[An Nahar] Rebels in Sudan's South Kordofan said on Tuesday they acted in self-defense by firing artillery against the state capital, a rare barrage which the governor reported killed six people.
"They are provoking us," Arnu Ngutulu Lodi, front man for the Sudan People's Liberation Movement-North (SPLM-N), told AFP.
He said Monday's attack followed government shelling and aerial bombardment of rebel positions, which was continuing Tuesday.
Sudan's army front man could not be immediately reached to comment.
"The current military activities for the SPLM-N are a mere action of self-defense in front of the huge NCP government dry season offensive preparations," Lodi said, referring to the ruling National Congress Party.
The United Nations ...Parkinson's Law on an international scale... , which condemned what it called an indiscriminate and reprehensible attack, said one shell landed in the U.N. Children's Fund (UNICEF) compound but failed to explode.
South Kordofan Governor Ahmed Haroun, quoted by the official SUNA news agency, said six women and kiddies were killed and 22 people were maimed.
The U.N. said it was unclear if civilians had been hurt.
Posted by: Fred ||
10/10/2012 00:00 ||
Comments ||
Link ||
[1 views]
Top|| File under: Govt of Sudan
#1
"What is the most frustrating about this assignment ... ... ... ... the Taliban [real enemy] is [already]inside the Building".
IOW THE REAL ENEMY IS NOT "THE ENEMY" PER SE, BUT HIS OWN SIDE - BUREAUCRATS, LEGALISTS, + ASSORTED POLITICAL, ETC. "PASS-THE-BUCK/BLAME" PAPER + GOVT-CRITTERS WHOM ARE MORE INTERESTED IN LOOKING INNOCENT THAN SOLVING A PROB OR DOING THEIR JOB DESCRIPTION.
Between Bad Guyz + Girl Scouts selling cookies, clearly the problem is the Scouts/Cookies.
[Ma'an] Egyptian authorities seized 6,500 liters of fuel in northern Sinai that were headed to Gazoo via underground border tunnels, security sources said.
Forces stopped three trucks in Bir al-Abed and jugged Drop the rod and step away witcher hands up! two smugglers, while a third escaped, the sources said.
Gazoo's only border crossing not controlled by Israel, Egypt's Rafah terminal, is not equipped for the transfer of goods.
The tunnels have been used to import anything from food to construction materials, fuel and cars, and bully boyz have also used them to import munitions.
After turning a blind eye for years, Egypt started closing the tunnels after an Aug. 5 attack in Sinai when gunnies killed 16 Egyptian soldiers. Egypt suspects the tunnels were used by some of the orcs, but Hamas, always the voice of sweet reason, says no one from Gazoo was involved in the attack.
[An Nahar] The United States will support La Belle France if it intervenes militarily in its former colony Mali, where Islamist forces control the north of the country, a top U.S. diplomat said in an interview Tuesday.
"We back La Belle France and if it decides to intervene militarily, it can count on the support of the United States," Assistant Secretary of State for European and Eurasian Affairs Philip Gordon told Le Monde newspaper.
Gordon however declined to elaborate on what form that support might take.
French President Francois Hollande ...the Socialist president of La Belle France, and a fine job he's doing of it... promised Tuesday that his country would provide logistical, political and material support for a U.N.-backed African military intervention in Mali.
La Belle France is pushing for a U.N. Security Council resolution which will authorize west African countries to establish a force capable of wresting back control of northern Mali from Islamic radicals.
Hollande's strong statement of support for the creation of such a force was made following talks in Gay Paree with U.N. Secretary General the ephemeral Ban Ki-moon ... of whom it can be said to his credit that he is not Kofi Annan... , who said he shared the French government's concern over the growing influence of Islamists in huge parts of north Africa.
This article starring:
Posted by: Fred ||
10/10/2012 00:00 ||
Comments ||
Link ||
[1 views]
Top|| File under: Ansar Dine
[An Nahar] La Belle France will provide logistical, political and material support for U.N.-backed African military intervention in Mali, President Francois Hollande ...the Socialist president of La Belle France, and a fine job he's doing of it... promised on Tuesday.
La Belle France is pushing for a U.N. Security Council resolution which will authorize west African countries to establish a force capable of reclaiming control of northern Mali from Islamic radicals.
Hollande's strong statement of support for the creation of such a force was made following talks here with U.N. Secretary General the ephemeral Ban Ki-moon ... of whom it can be said to his credit that he is not Kofi Annan... , who said he shared the French government's concern over the growing influence of Islamists in huge parts of north Africa.
French officials have repeatedly expressed concern ...meaning the brow was mildly wrinkled, the eyebrows drawn slightly together, and a thoughtful expression assumed, not that anything was actually done or indeed that any thought was actually expended... that northern Mali is in danger of becoming a new Afghanistan, a breeding ground for Islamic militancy that could pose a threat to the security of western Europe.
Six kidnapped Frenchies are currently being held in the region by the north African branch of al-Qaeda.
Mali's Prime Minister Cheick Modibo Diarra last month asked the U.N. Security Council to sanction the creation of a military force capable of reconquering the north of the country, which has since March been under the control of Islamists who have capitalized on a political vacuum created by a military coup in the capital Bamako.
Posted by: Fred ||
10/10/2012 00:00 ||
Comments ||
Link ||
[0 views]
Top|| File under: Ansar Dine
Unfortunately for them, the memory hole isn't what it used to be.
The State Department said Tuesday it never concluded that the consulate attack in Libya stemmed from protests over an American-made video ridiculing Islam, raising further questions about why the Obama administration used that explanation for more than a week after assailants killed the U.S. ambassador and three other Americans. What we said was not what you thought we said. Perhaps you...misheard?
The revelation came as new documents suggested internal disagreement over appropriate levels of security before the attack, which occurred on the 11th anniversary of the Sept. 11 terror attacks on the U.S.
Briefing reporters ahead of a hotly anticipated congressional hearing Wednesday, State Department officials provided their most detailed rundown of how a peaceful day in Benghazi devolved into a sustained attack that involved multiple groups of men armed with weapons such as machine guns, rocket-propelled grenades and mortars over an expanse of more than a mile.
But asked about the administration's initial - and since retracted - explanation linking the violence to protests over an anti-Muslim video circulating on the Internet, one official said, "That was not our conclusion." He called it a question for "others" to answer, without specifying. The officials spoke on condition of anonymity because they weren't authorized to speak publicly on the matter, and provided no evidence that might suggest a case of spontaneous violence or angry protests that went too far.
The attack has become a major issue in the presidential campaign, featuring prominently in Republican candidate Mitt Romney's latest foreign policy address on Monday. He called it an example of President Barack Obama's weakness in foreign policy matters, noting: "As the administration has finally conceded, these attacks were the deliberate work of terrorists."
The administration counters that it has provided its best intelligence on the attack, and that it refined its explanation as more information came to light. But five days after the attack, Obama's ambassador to the United Nations, Susan Rice, gave a series of interviews saying the administration believed the violence was unplanned and that extremists with heavier weapons "hijacked" the protest and turned it into an outright attack.
She has since denied trying to mislead Congress, and a concurrent CIA memo that was obtained by The Associated Press cited intelligence suggesting the demonstrations in Benghazi "were spontaneously inspired by the protests at the U.S. Embassy in Cairo" and "evolved into a direct assault" on the diplomatic posts by "extremists."
Alongside defining the nature of the Benghazi attack, Congress is looking into whether adequate security was in place.
According to an email obtained Tuesday by the AP, the top State Department security official in Libya told a congressional investigator that he had argued unsuccessfully for more security in the weeks before Ambassador Chris Stevens, a State Department computer specialist and two former Navy SEALs were killed. But department officials instead wanted to "normalize operations and reduce security resources," he wrote.
Eric Nordstrom, who was the regional security officer in Libya, also referenced a State Department document detailing 230 security incidents in Libya between June 2011 and July 2012 that demonstrated the danger there to Americans.
Nordstrom is among the witnesses set to testify Wednesday before the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee. According to the panel's chairman, Rep. Darrell Issa, R-Calif., and the head of a subcommittee, Rep. Jason Chaffetz, R-Utah, the State Department refused repeated requests to provide more security for U.S. diplomats in Libya.
"You will note that there were a number of incidents that targeted diplomatic missions and underscored the GoL's (government of Libya) inability to secure and protect diplomatic missions," Nordstrom's email stated.
"This was a significant part of (the diplomatic) post's and my argument for maintaining continued DS (diplomatic security) and DOD (Department of Defense) security assets into Sept/Oct. 2012; the GoL was overwhelmed and could not guarantee our protection.
"Sadly, that point was reaffirmed on Sept. 11, 2012, in Benghazi," he added.
Nordstrom said the incidents demonstrated that security in Libya was fragile and could degrade quickly. He added that Libya was "certainly not an environment where (the diplomatic) post would be directed to `normalize' operations and reduce security resources in accordance with an artificial time table."
Nordstrom also said diplomats in Libya were told not to request an extension of a 16-member special operations military team that left in August, according to an official of the Oversight panel. The official was not authorized to discuss the matter publicly and thus spoke only on the condition of anonymity.
The State Department has said it never received a request to extend the military team beyond August, and added that its members were replaced with a security team that had the same skills.
Democrats on the Oversight committee were sharply critical of Issa, the chairman, calling his investigation "extremely partisan."
"The chairman and his staff failed to consult with Democratic members prior to issuing public letters with unverified allegations, concealed witnesses and refused to make one hearing witness available to Democratic staff, withheld documents obtained by the committee during the investigation, and effectively excluded Democratic committee members from joining a poorly-planned congressional delegation to Libya," a Democratic memo said.
It said in the previous two years, House Republicans voted to cut the Obama administration's requests for embassy security by some $459 million.
The Democratic memo said Nordstrom told committee investigators that he sent two cables to State Department headquarters in March and July 2012 requesting additional diplomatic security agents for Benghazi, but that he received no responses.
He stated that Charlene Lamb, the deputy assistant secretary for international programs, wanted to keep the number of U.S. security personnel in Benghazi artificially low and that Lamb believed the Benghazi facilities did not need any diplomatic security special agents because there was a residential safe haven to fall back to in an emergency.
Issa had a phone conversation Monday with Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton about the committee's investigation.
The FBI is still investigating the attack. Clinton also has named a State Department review panel to look into the security arrangements in Libya.
#2
The Democratic memo said Nordstrom told committee investigators that he sent two cables to State Department headquarters in March and July 2012 requesting additional diplomatic security agents for Benghazi, but that he received no responses.
When the above happened, it was then incumbent upon RSO Eric Nordstrom to discuss the issue with Ambassador Stevens who could then go around Lamb and discuss it directly with the Assistant Secretary for Diplomatic Security (DS) or Secretary Clinton herself. The CIA Chief of Station (COS) and the mission's US Defense Attache could have also been brought into the discussion in the event the Clinton discussions were unsucccessful. I personally cannot believe that the RSO failed to discuss the issue with the Ambassador and recommend a solution.
The mission's Counterintelligence Coordinating Authority (CICA) working for the Defense Attache, and in concert with the COS, also has responsibility for monitoring security for the
mission.
One of two things appears to have taken place:
a. Stevens told his staff to drop it, and did not pursue the issue.
b. Stevens was told by Clinton to drop it.
The question must now be asked, was Secretary Clinton aware of the security issue in Benghazi ?
#8
It isn't just that Ambassadors are appointed by the President but the UN mission does not come under the State Department. The UN Ambassador reports directly to the White House and not to State.
The Ambassador to the UN is a peer with the Secretary of State as both are members of the cabinet.
#9
US mission does not come under the State Department.
Unless something has changed dramatically, for the day-to-day function of security (the issue at hand), I think you'll find the State Dept. has the rose pinned on it.
#10
The security at USUN is without a doubt a State/DS thing.
#2 Besoeker
--If the RSO sent 2 cables requesting add'l security, you can rest assured the Ambo was aware of the cables and approved them.
--I've worked at 5 embassies and have never heard of the CICA. There is a working group for CI-related matters but DAO/COS have a very limited role in the day to day security of an embassy.
--I'm removed from the drama but I can tell you that this is huge poop storm. I would not be surprised to see some "health problems" crop up w/senior DS folks JUST after the election.
Posted by: Bangkok Billy ||
10/10/2012 11:36 Comments ||
Top||
#11
The Ambassador to Libya works for:
The assistant secretary of state for Near Eastern affairs, who has left the building as of May. His deputy is:
Elizabeth Dibble, who is principal deputy assistant secretary of state for Near Eastern affairs.
She works for:
Wendy R. Sherman, Under Secretary of State for Political Affairs
She works for:
William J. Burns Deputy Secretary of State D(B) through the executive Secretariat.
And all these paper-pushers work for Hillary Rodham Clinton.
Now Hillary and Burns have another office for security that works for them run by Under Secretary for Management, Patrick F. Kennedy. It is run by:
Assistant Secretary of State for Diplomatic Security - Eric J. Boswell. And his wing nut for foreign security is:
Deputy Assistant Secretary for International Programs -- Charlene R. Lamb
So basically, Dibble (or a superior) ordered Stevens to go to Benghazi on 9/11, and Lamb (or a superior) did not have any security there. Someone at the top of the State Dept, either Hillary or her deputies, will have to fall on this grenade eventually.
#12
Rammer, face it: it won't be Hilary falling on the grenade.
Posted by: Rambler in Virginia ||
10/10/2012 13:15 Comments ||
Top||
#13
Bangkok Billy:
Your embassy background is obviously more extensive and probably more current than mine. I have however, worked with a couple of Counterintelligence Coordinators (military types under the DEFAT) mid to late 1990's. Tried to steer clear of that crowd, no further comment. Yes, I concur, a very large "poop storm". My experience with the Bureau of Diplomatic Security (DS) was very positive. Back in the day, many were former miliary. I'd hate to see those folks become scapegoats.
#16
"Someone at the top of the State Dept, either Hillary or her deputies, will have to fall on this grenade eventually."
but ... but ... but
that would imply the world is still RESPONSIBLE for its own actions. I thought we had moved beyond that point. We are now in the New World Disorder :-)
[France24] The International Criminal Court ... where Milosevich died of old age before being convicted ... begins a two-day hearing Tuesday on whether Saif al-Islam, the eldest son of late Libyan leader Muammar Qadaffy ...The late megalomaniac dictator of Libya, admired everywhere for his garish costumes, funny hats, harem of cutie bodyguards, and incoherent ravings. As far as is known, he is the only person who's ever declared jihad on Switzerland... , should face trial at The Hague or in Libya for crimes against humanity.
Posted by: Fred ||
10/10/2012 00:00 ||
Comments ||
Link ||
[1 views]
Top|| File under: Arab Spring
A hearing into whether a Muslim cleric who has been described as "more radical than Osama bin Laden" can avoid deportation from Britain to stand trial in Jordan began Wednesday in London.
Britain has been trying to deport Abu Qatada for years, but his legal appeals have kept him in the United Kingdom. He is accused of funding terrorist groups and is said to have inspired one of the 9/11 hijackers.
In January, the European Court of Human Rights blocked Britain from sending him to Jordan because of fears that evidence obtained by torture could be used against him at the trial planned by the Middle Eastern country.
Britain then launched a round of negotiations with Jordan in order to deal with the court's concerns and arrested Abu Qatada again on April 17.
The following month, the European Court rejected an appeal by his lawyers to avoid deportation.
The decision set the stage for the latest hearing in front of the Special Immigration Appeals Commission, which will hear three witnesses in person. The hearing is expected to last several days.
The high court judge who manages the commission is likely to give his ruling a few weeks after the appeal concludes, a court official said.
[France24] His Excellency President-for-Life, Caudillo of the Bolivarians Hugo Chavez vowed Tuesday to keep supporting Bashir al-Assad, calling him Syria's legitimate president and blaming the United States for the war that has raged on for nearly 19 months.
"How can I not support the government of Bashir al-Assad if it is the legitimate government of Syria?" asked Chavez, who was re-elected Sunday to a third term.
He called the rebels fighting to oust Assad terrorists.
"Who am I going to back, the terrorists... who run around killing people right and left?" Chavez asked.
Posted by: Fred ||
10/10/2012 00:00 ||
Comments ||
Link ||
[0 views]
Top|| File under:
[An Nahar] U.N. Secretary General the ephemeral Ban Ki-moon ... of whom it can be said to his credit that he is not Kofi Annan... on Tuesday described North Korea's boast that it has missiles capable of reaching the U.S. mainland as "alarming" and warned it would increase tension in the region.
Ban, a former foreign minister of South Korea, admitted he had no way of knowing if the claim issued by North Korea earlier on Tuesday was credible.
But in an interview with Agence La Belle France Presse, he said: "I read the report and it is quite an alarming statement by the DPRK (North Korea)."
"They should contribute to the reduction of tensions and this will only heighten tensions and create further distrust between South and North Korea," he added.
"Also, it is not the way to gain the trust of the international community. I sincerely hope that the DPRK authorities will sincerely engage in dialogue between the South and North as well as with neighboring countries."
Ban said he concurred with the view of most analysts that the North Koreans were reacting to South Korea's announcement on Sunday of a new accord with the United States to almost triple the range of its missiles to 800 kilometers (500 miles).
The deal will give the South the capacity to hit targets across the North, as well as bringing parts of Japan and China into reach.
"Their reaction seems to come from the recent agreement between the Republic of Korea (South Korea) and the United States," Ban acknowledged. "However that is a totally separate issue."
Posted by: Fred ||
10/10/2012 00:00 ||
Comments ||
Link ||
[0 views]
Top|| File under: Commies
#2
The ROK's new 800-km missles,espec iff "dual-use", means that any mil intervening PLA forces may be limited to the Yalu or north of the Yalu, as separate or exclusive from PLA contingents already based inside the DPRK to protect the Pyongyang Govt.
As per Rising China, it means more difficulties or barriers for them in achieving permanent + unchallenged strategic access for the PLA fom the ECS into WESTPAC + NORPAC. WIDOUT "SOLE" SOVEREIGN CONTROL OF TAIWAN + DIAOYU/SENKAKU ISLANDS + SOUTH CHINA SEA[Okinawa?], CHINA WILL HAVE TO ACCEPT PROJECTING POWER FROM ITS OWN COASTS, NOT OVERSEAS BASES VEE THE "FIRST ISLAND CHAIN".
Either that, or China must wage major war agz Russia for control of the RFE, as well as CENTASIA.
What could possibly be happening in November, that would him want to postpone?
Maybe he read of Romney's surge in the polls, so maybe no black Dude with more flexibility
Russian President Vladimir Putins visit to Turkey next week has been postponed to November because of his busy schedule, the Turkish Prime Ministrys office said.
Putins visit to Ankara was originally planned for Oct. 14 and Oct. 15.
#1
Turkey is becoming increasingly isolated. Things are working better with Iran and Syria. Better to wait as Turkey will blunder into trouble soon enough.
BRUSSELS NATO is ready to defend Turkey, the alliance's top official said Tuesday, in a direct warning to Syria after a week of cross-border artillery and mortar exchanges dramatically escalated tensions between the two countries.
The comments by NATO Secretary-General Anders Fogh Rasmussen were the strongest show of support to Turkey since the firing began Wednesday -- though the solidarity is largely symbolic. NATO member Turkey has sought backing in case it is attacked, but despite publicly supporting Syria's rebels Ankara isn't seeking direct intervention. And the alliance is thought to be reluctant to get involved militarily at a time when its main priority is the war in Afghanistan.
"Obviously Turkey can rely on NATO solidarity," Fogh Rasmussen said ahead of a meeting of NATO defense ministers in Brussels. "We have all necessary plans in place to protect and defend Turkey if necessary."
When pressed on what kind of trouble on the border would trigger those plans, NATO's chief said he could not discuss contingency plans. "We hope it won't be necessary to activate such plans, we do hope to see a political solution to the conflict in Syria," he said.
In an address to lawmakers from the ruling party, Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan reiterated that Ankara will continue retaliating for attacks from Syrian President Bashar Assad's regime.
"Every kind of threat to the Turkish territory and the Turkish people will find us standing against it," Erdogan said. "Soldiers loyal to Assad fired shells at us, we immediately reacted and responded with double force. We shall never stop responding."
At least 25 additional F-16 fighter jets were deployed at Turkey's Diyarbakir air base in the southeast late Monday, Turkey's Dogan news agency said, quoting unidentified military sources. The military's chief of staff inspected troops along the border with Syria on Tuesday.
But despite the flare-up in recent days, there appears little appetite in Turkey for a war with Syria, said Volker Perthes, the director of the German Institute for International and Security Affairs. Only a sudden change in the situation on the ground could draw Turkey into what has so far remained a domestic conflict, said Perthes.
Joshua Alvarez, managing editor of the Istanbul-based Kalem Journal, said it was very unlikely that Turkey would call on NATO and force a decision on a commitment unless hostilities with Syria sharply increase.
"Turkey will continue to seek as many reassurances as it can, but Turkey will not put its foot down and demand a commitment from NATO," said Alvarez. "Turkey is aware of NATO's extreme reluctance about repeating a `Libya-styled' campaign in Syria, a much more complex and difficult scenario. Turkey wants no part of such a campaign, either. "
Ankara's reluctance to go it alone in Syria was voiced Tuesday by Turkish Deputy Prime Minister Ali Babacan.
"Whichever step we take, it will be taken in consultation with our friends and our allies and in agreement with them," he said. "This is not a Syrian-Turkish bilateral issue, it is a humanitarian issue and we think that at the same time it's an issue that should be viewed as a regional security issue. The Arab League is involved, the Islamic Conference Organization is involved and NATO is a part of it."
Posted by: Steve White ||
10/10/2012 00:00 ||
Comments ||
Link ||
[2 views]
Top|| File under:
[An Nahar] British radical Islamic preacher Abu Hamza pleaded not guilty "Wudn't me." in a U.S. court on Tuesday to 11 terror charges, including conspiring to set up an al-Qaeda-style training camp on American soil.
The one-eyed, handless 54-year-old appeared in Manhattan federal court without his trademark prosthetic hook that he wears on one arm and which was removed by U.S. authorities after he was extradited from Britannia last week.
The Egyptian-born holy man is being prosecuted under his birth name Mustafa Kamel Mustafa, though he is better known in radical circles as Abu Hamza al-Masri, a former preacher at mosques in Britannia.
Asked by Judge Katherine Forrest to confirm he wanted to plead not guilty to the charges, the grey-bearded defendant replied quietly: "Yes, your honor."
It was his only statement during his hearing, at which he wore a blue prison smock.
Forrest set August 26 next year as the trial date and remanded Abu Hamza in jug in the maximum security detention center attached to the downtown New York courthouse.
Also Tuesday, two other men extradited along with Abu Hamza from Britannia appeared before a different judge in the same courthouse.
Khaled al-Fawwaz and Adel Abdul Bary, charged with participating in the bloody 1998 bombings of U.S. embassies in Tanzania and Kenya, will go to trial October 7, 2013.
The trial of Abu Hamza, who allegedly tried to establish a bad boy training camp in the northwestern U.S. state of Oregon and kidnapped tourists in Yemen, is expected to take six to eight weeks, prosecutors said.
Prosecutors said they will soon provide a mountain of evidence, some of it classified, for review by Abu Hamza's court-appointed defense lawyer, Jeremy Schneider.
This includes 8,500 pages of everything from statements by the defendant to the results of searches of his controversial mosque in Finsbury Park, London.
Another four hard drives and 24 DVDs containing documents and videos will also be submitted.
More immediately, Abu Hamza is keen to recover his prosthetic hands.
Schneider said he had use of them part of the day, "but not enough."
"As you can imagine, he is not happy," Schneider said. "He is having a hard time."
Posted by: Fred ||
10/10/2012 00:00 ||
Comments ||
Link ||
[0 views]
Top|| File under: al-Qaeda
Addressing a presser at the National Press Club, Talal Bugti said that instead of providing security in the border areas and controlling other illegal activities in Balochistan ...the Pak province bordering Kandahar and Uruzgun provinces in Afghanistan and Sistan Baluchistan in Iran. Its native Baloch propulation is being displaced by Pashtuns and Punjabis and they aren't happy about it... the FC was protecting the criminals.
"Besides being involved in smuggling of goods, vehicles and drugs," Talal Bugti said, "they are carrying out extrajudicial killings of political workers in the province."
He, however, said that the FC personnel were not doing all such activities alone rather they had the support of federal and provincial politicianship.
"The booty from the above-mentioned illicit business including the extortions is shared by the interior minister, Rehman Malik Pak politician, Interior Minister under the Gilani government. Malik is a former Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) intelligence officer who rose to head the FIA during Benazir Bhutto's second tenure. Malik was tossed from his FIA job in 1998 after documenting the breath-taking corruption of the Sharif family. By unhappy coincidence Nawaz Sharif became PM at just that moment and Malik moved to London one step ahead of the button men. He had to give up the interior ministry job because he held dual Brit citizenship. , and a percentage goes to the top," he added without naming any person or authority but later said he was referring to the politicianship in the country which heads the ruling party too.
Responding to the queries by mediapersons about foreign involvement in the province, Mr Bugti bluntly responded that the security agencies should be made accountable for that.
"What are the ISI, MI and the FC doing there?" he said adding: "It is their job to check such activity not only in Balochistan but all over the country."
Posted by: Fred ||
10/10/2012 00:00 ||
Comments ||
Link ||
[1 views]
Top|| File under: Govt of Pakistan
[Dawn] Pakistain Tehrik-e-Insaf ...a political party in Pakistan. PTI was founded by former Pakistani cricket captain and philanthropist Imran Khan. The party's slogan is Justice, Humanity and Self Esteem, each of which is open to widely divergent interpretations.... (PTI) Chairman Imran Khan ... aka Taliban Khan, who ain't the brightest knife in the national drawer... on Tuesday said that the United Nations ...what started out as a a diplomatic initiative, now trying to edge its way into legislative, judicial, and executive areas... (UN) will be requested to intervene for stopping US drone attacks in tribal areas of Pakistain bordering with Afghanistan, DawnNews reported.
Speaking to a presser, Khan vowed to take the matter to the UN as it was in violation of its own charter.
Criticising the government's role on the issue, the PTI chief sarcastically advised the rulers to hold back their offer of engaging Taliban in a dialogue as their tenure in the government will be over in mere three months time.
Khan claimed that the PTI will establish peace across the country including in the troubled area of Wazoo. He said that his party will bring the innocent people affected by the drone attacks to the Supreme Court to get them justice.
The PTI chief also vowed to initiate a signature movement against the attacks at global level.
Commenting on dual national parliamentarians' issue, Khan said contesting elections with dual nationality was in violation of the constitution. His party will provide electoral tickets to those who only possess Pak nationality, he added.
Posted by: Fred ||
10/10/2012 00:00 ||
Comments ||
Link ||
[0 views]
Top|| File under: Govt of Pakistan
[Dawn] Prime Minister Raja Pervez Ashraf on Tuesday said that the government was ready to hold talks with Baloch leaders but the talks must take place under a constitutional framework, DawnNews reported.
Addressing a session of the Senate in Islamabad, Prime Minister Ashraf stated that Balochistan ...the Pak province bordering Kandahar and Uruzgun provinces in Afghanistan and Sistan Baluchistan in Iran. Its native Baloch propulation is being displaced by Pashtuns and Punjabis and they aren't happy about it... was the government's first priority.
He added that true representatives were the ones elected by the people and therefore the Baloch leadership must participate in the elections.
Furthermore, he said it was due to democracy that a man like himself, who came from the middle class, had become the country's prime minister. He added that countless sacrifices had been made in order to uphold democracy.
He assured the Senate that the government was fully aware of the challenges faced by the country, adding that, neither was the government negligent nor was it evading its responsibilities. He also said that it was the duty of the parliament to resolve the various issues and address the challenges.
The prime minister said the country had been enduring the torment of terrorism for a long time, adding that, the attack on Malala Yousufzai, the teenage peace activist, was a manifestation of the same mindset.
Moreover, the premier said that restoring the Constitution, the implementation of the National Finance Commission (NFC) Award and the passage of the 18th Amendment were some of the major accomplishments of the current parliament. He added that the sustaining democracy was imperative for the country's progress.
Posted by: Fred ||
10/10/2012 00:00 ||
Comments ||
Link ||
[0 views]
Top|| File under: Govt of Pakistan
[Dawn] The obligatory tut-tuttery...
Various Political leaders and public office bearers, including the president, the prime minister and other parliamentarians condemned the attack of Taliban on National Peace Award winner Malala Yousafzai on Tuesday.
Prime Minister Raja Pervez Ashraf on Tuesday strongly condemned the attack on a school van, carrying Pakistain's youngest Peace Award winner Malala Yousafzai and directed that the injured children be evacuated to Beautiful Downtown Peshawar ...capital of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (formerly known as the North-West Frontier Province), administrative and economic hub for the Federally Administered Tribal Areas of Pakistan. Peshawar is situated near the eastern end of the Khyber Pass, convenient to the Pak-Afghan border. Peshawar has evolved into one of Pakistan's most ethnically and linguistically diverse cities, which means lots of gunfire. for better treatment.
He directed immediate dispatch of a helicopter to evacuate the injured to Peshawar and to investigate the matter, besides providing best possible treatment to the other injured.
PM Ashraf called Malala's father and expressed concern ...meaning the brow was mildly wrinkled, the eyebrows drawn slightly together, and a thoughtful expression assumed, not that anything was actually done or indeed that any thought was actually expended... over the attack.
President Asif Ali Ten Percent Zardari ... husband of the late Benazir Bhutto, who has been singularly lacking in curiosity about who done her in ... directed the concerned authorities to provide best possible medical assistance to the injured girls.
He said that the cut-throats would never be able to shake the resolve of the nation through such dastardly acts and the nation will continue to fight against snuffies till its logical conclusion.
The United States also denounced Taliban attack. "We strongly condemn the shooting of Malala. Directing violence at children is barbaric, it's cowardly, and our hearts go out to her and the others who were maimed, as well as their families," State Department spokeswoman Victoria Nuland said.
Parliamentarians in the Lower House of Parliament strongly condemned the attack on Pakistain's Malala and said that terrorist could not succeed in their nefarious designs through such cowardly acts.
They praised Malala for her bravely who stood firmly against menace of terrorism and extremism. They termed liquidation bid on her attack on all peace loving people.
ANP chief, Asfandyar Wali Khan and provincial president, Senator Afrsiab Khan Khattak have strongly condemned the attack on National Peace Award winner and have expressed grief and sorrow over the injuring of three girls including the laureate of Tamgha-e-Shujaat, Malala Yousufzai in the incident.
According to a condemnation statement issued here from the Central Media Cell at Bacha Khan Markaz here Tuesday, they said that Malala Yousufzai has rendered matchless services for restoration of peace in Swat ...a valley and an administrative district in the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Province of Pakistain, located 99 mi from Islamabad. It is inhabited mostly by Pashto speakers. The place has gone steadily downhill since the days when Babe Ruth was the Sultan of Swat... and in the recognition of her services the government of Pakistain had conferred Tamgha-e-Shujaat on her. They said that the people could not be demoralized through nefarious activities.
They said that those spreading anarchy and chaos in the country are the enemies of Pakistain and they have no relations with any ideology or religion.
He said that like past nefarious designs for disrupting peace in the country will be foiled in future too.
They appealed the people to remain calm and never quit patience and extend support to the government in the elimination of these enemies of humanity.
Expressing deep sorrow on the incident, Muttahida Qaumi Movement ...English: United National Movement, generally known as MQM, is the 3rd largest political party and the largest secular political party in Pakistain with particular strength in Sindh. From 1992 to 1999, the MQM was the target of the Pak Army's Operation Cleanup leaving thousands of urdu speaking civilians dead... (MQM) Chief Altaf Hussain said that firing upon innocent students and injuring them was blatant terrorism, and the perpetrators behind this vile act should be swiftly brought to justice, said a statement issued by the MQM here on Tuesday.
Expressing deep sorrow on the incident, Pakistain Tehrik-e-Insaf ...a political party in Pakistan. PTI was founded by former Pakistani cricket captain and philanthropist Imran Khan. The party's slogan is Justice, Humanity and Self Esteem, each of which is open to widely divergent interpretations.... (PTI) Chief Imran Khan ... aka Taliban Khan, who is the lightweight's lightweight... , in a statement, said that firing upon innocent students was blatant terrorism and the perpetrators behind this act should be brought to justice.
He said that Malala was working to promote education despite difficult circumstances.
He demanded of the government to take serious notice of the attack and take action against the elements involved in it.
Pakistain Moslem League- Nawaz (PML-N) Chief Nawaz Sharif ... served two non-consecutive terms as prime minister, heads the Pakistain Moslem League (Nawaz). Noted for his spectacular corruption, the 1998 Pak nuclear test, border war with India, and for being tossed by General Musharraf... condemned the attack and termed it as a coward action of the Taliban.He said that these attacks can not dent the cause for which Malala stood for.
Malala Yousafzai got the attention of the world for encouraging her fellow students to continue their studies despite threats by the snuffies and Orcs and similar vermin before and after the military operation in Malakand Division.
She earned fame by playing a leading role in promoting peace in the restive Swat region through her writing and feature stories.
She was also one of the top-five contenders, from amongst 148 children from all over the world, for the International Peace Prize in South Africa.
Posted by: Fred ||
10/10/2012 00:00 ||
Comments ||
Link ||
[0 views]
Top|| File under: Govt of Pakistan
[Dawn] Security was beefed up by the provincial government on Tuesday after MPAs and provincial ministers belonging to Pakistain People's Party (PPP) were attacked with crackers and grenades in Sindh, DawnNews reported.
Sindh Local Government Minister Agha Siraj Durrani came under attack in wee hours of Tuesday in Shikarpur's Garhi Yaseen area when faceless myrmidons attacked the residence of the PPP minister damaging the outside wall of his residence. The number of coppers, providing security to Durrani, was increased and a three-member investigative committee was formed to probe the incident.
In Larkana, a cracker was hurled at the residence of Sindh Law Minister Ayaz Soomro. However, a woman is only as old as she admits... it could not detonate.
Unknown men fled away after hurling a hand grenade at the Hyderabad residence of MPA Imdad Patafi, who was elected from Tando Allahyar. No casualties were reported however Patafi's residence was partially damaged.
Meanwhile, ...back at the barn, Bossy had come up with a new idea... a suspicious bag with pamphlets from Sindhu Desh Liberation Army was found at the residence of PPP MPA Mir Hayat Talpur in the Digree area of Mirpur Khas. Subsequently, an extra contingent of police was posted outside his house.
In a similar incident, a five kilogram bomb was defused at the residence of MPA Fasih Shah in Nawabshah.
Moreover, a hand made bomb was defused from Speaker Sindh Assembly Nisar Khuhro's residence in Larkana.
Earlier on Sunday, six activists of the PPP and a news hound working for a TV channel were killed and 10 people, including three news hounds and the administrator of Khairpur Taluka Municipal Administration, injured when a group of gunnies opened fire on a PPP public meeting in Khairpur's Sadoro Janwari village.
Posted by: Fred ||
10/10/2012 00:00 ||
Comments ||
Link ||
[0 views]
Top|| File under: Govt of Pakistan
[Dawn] President Asif Ali Ten Percent Zardari ... husband of the late Benazir Bhutto, who has been singularly lacking in curiosity about who done her in ... on Tuesday directed for sending National Peace Award winner and young Pak rights activist Malala Yousafzai, who was attacked by Pak Taliban on Tuesday in Mingora city of Swat, abroad for medical treatment.
According to Spokesperson to the President Senator Farhatullah Babar, arrangements were being made to implement the President's directive.
Surgeons treating Malala had earlier recommended the government to send her abroad for treatment to save her life.
Quoting surgeons, who conducted her detailed checkup, the official sources said here Tuesday that the single bullet, which hit her head, had pierced down to backbone. Swelling on the scull does not allow surgery right now, they added.
"In such a condition, she immediately needs a sophisticated surgical procedure, which is not possible in the country," they opined.
Malala along with three other schoolmates sustained bullet injuries when some unknown assailants opened fire on their school van in Mingora early in the day. Later, she was shifted to CMH Beautiful Downtown Peshawar ...capital of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (formerly known as the North-West Frontier Province), administrative and economic hub for the Federally Administered Tribal Areas of Pakistan. Peshawar is situated near the eastern end of the Khyber Pass, convenient to the Pak-Afghan border. Peshawar has evolved into one of Pakistan's most ethnically and linguistically diverse cities, which means lots of gunfire. Pak Taliban have taken responsibility for attacking Malala Yousufzai, who with another girl was injured in the attack on their school van in Swat ...a valley and an administrative district in the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Province of Pakistain, located 99 mi from Islamabad. It is inhabited mostly by Pashto speakers. The place has gone steadily downhill since the days when Babe Ruth was the Sultan of Swat... on Tuesday.
Speaking to Dawn.com's correspondent Zahir Shah Sherazi from Qazi's guesthouse an undisclosed location, Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistain (TTP) front man Ehsanullah Ehsan said that the TTP accepts responsibility of the attack as Malala was propagating anti-Taliban and 'secular' thoughts among the youth of the area.
A team of senior doctors late Tuesday completed her medical examination in a combined military hospital (CMH) and stated her condition as critical.
"We have thoroughly examined her, she is at death's door. The bullet travelled from her head and then lodged in the back shoulder, near the neck," a doctor in the CMH told AFP, requesting anonymity as he was not authorised to talk to media.
"Next three to four days are important for her life. She is in the intensive care unit and semi-conscious, although not on the ventilator," he said.
Malala was returning home from her school in Swat's Mingora area when her van was attacked by the gunnies.
Certain media outlets reported that the gunnies attacked the van on identifying the young children's rights activist.
Sources said Malala was hit by couple of bullets to her neck and head.
Both injured girls were taken to the Saidu Sharif Hospital. According to doctors, Malala was now out of danger. However, death is not the end. There remains the litigation over the estate... Prime Minister Raja Pervez Ashraf has ordered to shift her to a Peshawar hospital swiftly through a helicopter. The prime minister has strongly condemned the incident.
Posted by: Fred ||
10/10/2012 00:00 ||
Comments ||
Link ||
[0 views]
Top|| File under: Govt of Pakistan
The flight of the Iranian UAV launched by Hezbollah has turned the issue of defending gas reserves in the Mediterranean Sea into a very pressing issue, say Israeli experts. Thus far, it appears that the primary threat to drilling rigs and future production rigs might come from the sea, in the form of explosive boats or a boat carrying armed terrorists.
Now, according to the experts, Hezbollah's success in flying a UAV along Israel's coast and then into the country's airspace completely changes things. Some of the experts hold the opinion that the entire operation was mostly intended to examine the ability for early detection of UAVs. This was revealed to be lacking, since the UAV entered Israel's airspace and flew within it for approximately half an hour.
In the past, Hassan Nasrallah has voiced threats directed at Israel's gas reserves in the Mediterranean Sea. It seems that the UAVs he received from Iran were not intended for intelligence purposes, since he could obtain what he received from this UAV through Google Earth. One of the experts said that Hezbollah has no need for tactical intelligence, since its main weapons are rockets, which are mostly statistic weapons that do not require real-time intelligence information of the kind supplied by advanced UAVs.
According to the expert, the need for UAVs is for the purpose of harassing and attacking a large target such as a drilling or production rig. The new situation will required the diversion of many additional measures towards protecting the gas reserves in Israel's economic waters.
It seems that the initial reinforcement will be in the detection system, which will have to be better adapted for improved detection of targets with a small radar signature. According to the experts, this refers to both radars as well as other sensors that can assist in early detection.
#3
Because the power of an electronic signal drops off as the square of the distance, a jammer is particularly effective in a local area no matter what the power of the transmitter (within reason).
The real problem is defending static targets like off-shore drilling platforms from rockets or the anti-ship missiles the Hezbies shot at the Israeli navy last time.
#4
no offense to Israel - but the publicity about one unfriendly UAV coming over the border is ridiculous. How many UAV's have been sent into Iran .. by you know who?? Were all of those UAV's simply intel-gathering missions, or were some of them armed? Good question :-)
The United States military has secretly sent a task force of more than 150 planners and other specialists to Jordan to help the armed forces there handle a flood of Syrian refugees, prepare for the possibility that Syria will lose control of its chemical weapons and be positioned should the turmoil in Syria expand into a wider conflict.
The task force, which has been led by a senior American officer, is based at a Jordanian military training center built into an old rock quarry north of Amman. It is now largely focused on helping Jordanians handle the estimated 180,000 Syrian refugees who have crossed the border and are severely straining the countrys resources.
American officials familiar with the operation said the mission also includes drawing up plans to try to insulate Jordan, an important American ally in the region, from the upheaval in Syria and to avoid the kind of clashes now occurring along the border of Syria and Turkey.
The officials said the idea of establishing a buffer zone between Syria and Jordan which would be enforced by Jordanian forces on the Syrian side of the border and supported politically and perhaps logistically by the United States had been discussed. But at this point the buffer is only a contingency.
#3
Looks like the BATTLE FOR AFPAK is officially the BATTLE FOR AFRICA, + pre-2014 to boot.
IMO US SPECOPS + OTHER IN JORDAN = the US is building strategic areas = "lily pads/ink blots" in select Africa regions while "holding the line" agz Rising Iran + Quds Force, etal. in the Persian Gulf + Near East/Asia, wid NATO + UNCOM in interim.
LIBYA = also read, NORTH AFRICAN OIL + PROTECT SUEZ CANAL + MONITOR MB-LED EGYPT'S NUKE COOP WID IRAN [the "Egypt" in Nuke-wannabe Iran's desired Japan/Egypt" Model].
Moreso given FOX NEWS AM > US sezzes THREE AL-QAEDA AFFILIATE GROUPS ARE RECRUITING + BUILDING UP THEIR STRENGTH IN LIBYUH FOR NEW ATTACKS.
Three-week exercise, postponed from spring, will be largest of its kind to date, simulate missile defense scenarios.
The US and Israel will commence the largest-ever joint air defense drill of its kind in Israel on October 21, an army source said on Tuesday.
The exercise, named Austere Challenge 12, was originally scheduled for last spring but was postponed due to regional tensions with Iran.
Or something like that, anyway.
On October 14, large numbers of American soldiers are expected to begin arriving in Israel, where they will set up aerial defense positions on Israeli territory and on US Navy vessels off the Israeli coastline.
The three-week drill will simulate various missile defense scenarios, and is expected to end with a live-fire interception of a decoy incoming Patriot missile.
One of the objectives of the drill is to facilitate the rapid deployment of US missile defense systems to Israel and test their ability to operate in conjunction with Israeli defense systems during a conflict.
The IDF Spokesman's Office said Tuesday that "the US and Israel hold regular joint exercises between the militaries.
These exercises are planned ahead of time and form part of the routine training program, aimed at improving mutual operations."
The AC12 drill forms "another milestone in the common strategic relations between the US and Israel," the office added, stressing that the drill is "unrelated to any pinpoint developments in the region."
I believe him. But I am both gullible and naive.
At the end of August, the US said it would decrease the original number of American forces due to take part in AC12. An Israeli defense source said at the time that the exercise will still be the largest of its kind to date, adding, "Defense cooperation between Israel and the US has never been better."
Note the careful limitation to defence, underlining by omission cooperation at the levels of diplomacy and heads of state.
In 2009, the IDF and US European Command held the Juniper Cobra 10 air defense exercise, which involved 1,400 US soldiers and the same number of IDF soldiers.
The drill went through three phases: a field training exercise; computer simulation command post-exercise to test interoperability capabilities; and a live-fire exercise involving a Patriot missile interception.
The exercise was hailed as a success by Israeli and American military commanders.
Separately, the Home Front Command is expected to hold its sixth annual national emergency drill on October 21. The drill will focus on testing responses to earthquakes.
That's a heads up to the Halliburton Earthquake Division. Earthquake Division to the white courtesy phone, please -- there's work to be done!
#2
Lemme see, three weeks, beginning October 14 ( 14+21, carry the eleventeen), why I do believe that runs right into voting season. Do ya think that Big Bird might just be planning a little sumpin' for them what ain't voted by then??
Indonesian police have warned of possible attacks targeting Friday's ceremony marking 10 years since the Bali bombings.
A top Bali police official said security was being tightened after they received "credible information" that dignitaries could be targeted.
Leaders including Indonesia's Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono and Australia's Julia Gillard will be attending the ceremony.
They will mark two blasts on 12 October 2002 in Kuta that left 202 people dead.
"From the information that we have gathered, there are indications of movements aimed at VIPs who will attend the event," Bali's deputy police chief Ketut Untung Yoga Ana was quoted by Reuters news agency as saying.
He said security at airports and seaports would be intensified at "the highest level" and additional security measures taken.
At least 1,000 security personnel would be on hand for the commemoration ceremony, he said.
[Ynet] Iraq has signed contracts in recent months to buy more than $4.2 billion worth of weapons from Russia, according to a document issued on Tuesday at a meeting between Iraqi Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki and Russian Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev.
The contracts were signed during visits to Russia by Iraq's acting defence chief in April, July and August, the document showed. It gave no details about the deals.
Posted by: trailing wife ||
10/10/2012 00:00 ||
Comments ||
Link ||
[6 views]
Top|| File under: Govt of Iran
#1
And Iraq has also signed a new bilateral agreements wid Iran to increase econ + defense cooperation.
ADVANTAGE - IRAN.
Looks like the USN may still see its Nuclear Supercarriers + Gator Amphibs isolated by Iran to the Sea of Oman and beyond for target practice, by Iranian strike aircraft + Subs + Iranian, allied LRBMS [nuke]???
#2
The deal makes sense because Russia has been such a great ally to Iraq and has sacrificed so many soldiers during Iraq's liberation and reconstruction over the past 9 years.
/sarc off
Posted by: American Delight ||
10/10/2012 6:31 Comments ||
Top||
#3
Well most of their stuff is easier to maintain, crappy, but easier to keep running. Heck, we're buying Russian helicopters for the Afghans. Plus, there's that kickback/corruption opportunity when its done without us [which is why 'we' made the purchase in Afghanistan].
#4
Update Putin seeks to boost ties with Iraq Russia's President Vladimir Putin on Wednesday pushed for closer energy and military cooperation with Iraq, seeking to rebuild ties that withered after Saddam Hussein's downfall and the U.S.-led invasion of Iraq.
Putin said during the talks with visiting Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki that Russia's oil companies are willing to expand their operations in Iraq. He urged al-Maliki to ease company registration procedures and simplify other requirements to help boost ties.
"We see the development of trade and economic relations and the deepening of political dialogue as our contribution to the process of speeding up Iraq's return to peaceful life," Putin said after the talks.
Al-Maliki said during the negotiations that Iraq is willing to develop military and security cooperation with Russia, which supplied billions of dollars worth of weapons to Saddam Hussein.
Al-Maliki told the Interfax news agency that Iraq may buy more than $4 billion of weapons from Russia, including helicopter gunships and air defense missiles.
[An Nahar] Hereditary President-for-Life Bashir Pencilneck al-Assad Horror of Homs... on Tuesday appointed Sattam Jadan al-Dandah as Syria's new ambassador to Iraq, the official SANA news agency reported. He replaces Nawaf Fares who defected in July,
"President Assad issued a decree appointing Sattam Jadan al-Dandah as Syrian ambassador to Iraq. He was sworn in by Mr. Assad," the report said.
Fares declared his defection on July 11 and withdrew from the ruling Baath party. He later called on the Syrian military to "immediately join the ranks of the revolution," in a statement broadcast by satellite news channel Al-Jazeera ... an Arab news network headquartered in Qatar, notorious for carrying al-Qaeda press releases. The name means the Peninsula, as in the Arabian Peninsula. In recent years it has settled in to become slightly less biased than MSNBC, in about the same category as BBC or CBS... .
The authorities in Damascus ...The place where Pencilneck hangs his brass hat... later fired Fares and threatened to prosecute him.
Posted by: Fred ||
10/10/2012 00:00 ||
Comments ||
Link ||
[7 views]
Top|| File under: Govt of Syria
[An Nahar] U.N. Secretary General the ephemeral Ban Ki-moon ... of whom it can be said to his credit that he is not Kofi Annan... on Tuesday urged the Syrian regime to declare an immediate truce to bring an end to the conflict that he said had left 20,000 dead over the last 19 months.
"It is unbearable for the (Syrian) people to continue like this. That is why I have conveyed to the Syrian government (a) strong message that they should immediately declare a unilateral ceasefire," he said.
He told a joint presser in Gay Paree with French President Francois Hollande ...the Socialist president of La Belle France, and a fine job he's doing of it... that the reaction he had got from the Syrian government had been to ask what opposition forces would do if the regime called a truce.
"That is exactly what I have discussed and I am in the process of discussing with the member states of the (United Nations ...an international organization whose stated aims of facilitating interational security involves making sure that nobody with live ammo is offended unless it's a civilized country... ) Security Council and the countries in the region," he said.
Ban urged "the opposition forces to agree to this unilateral ceasefire when and if the Syrian government declares it" and he called on countries supplying arms to either side to stop in order to ease the suffering of the Syrian people.
Posted by: Fred ||
10/10/2012 00:00 ||
Comments ||
Link ||
[6 views]
Top|| File under: Govt of Syria
[An Nahar] Iran's foreign ministry warned on Tuesday it could look at cutting diplomatic ties with the United Arab Emirates because of a festering dispute over three Gulf islands claimed by both countries.
"If making such anti-Iranian claims reaches a level that national interests lie in reducing or severing political ties... (such a move) will be implemented after consultations with experts," ministry front man Ramin Mehmanparast told the parliamentary news website icana.ir.
The UAE maintaining these "baseless claims will have a negative effect on bilateral relations," Mehmanparast stressed.
Iran and the UAE are at loggerheads over the islands of Abu Musa, Greater Tunb and Lesser Tunb, which lie in the strategic Strait of Hormuz in the Gulf.
Iran took control of them in 1971 when colonial-era Britannia withdrew from that part of the Gulf.
The Islamic republic says the islands are a historic part of its territory, and President Mahmoud Short Round Ahmadinejad in April visited them to reassert that position.
However, the hip bone's connected to the leg bone... the UAE claims ownership in line with an agreement signed with Britannia, and has garnered support from other Gulf Arab states and its ally the United States.
Mehmanparast echoed Tehran's line that the UAE stance has no "rational, logical, historical, or legal basis."
He warned that the UAE could "suffer the fate of Britannia" -- alluding to Iran's decision last year to downgrade diplomatic relations to Britannia in anger over heightened Western sanctions.
Britannia eventually cut direct diplomatic ties with Iran in December 2011 after pro-government demonstrators in Tehran stormed the British embassy.
Posted by: Fred ||
10/10/2012 00:00 ||
Comments ||
Link ||
[5 views]
Top|| File under: Govt of Iran
#1
See also TOPIX > IRAN AGAIN DISMISSES BAHRAINI CLAIMS TO DISPUTED PERSIAN GULF ISLANDS.
Ditto by Iran agz Base-Too-Far Qatari claims to smaller islets.
China has its new SANSHA/SASHI CITY in the South China Sea [Taiwan? Okinawa? Diaoyus? in East China Sea], Iran has Abu Musa, etc.
[An Nahar] Turkey's top military commander General Necdet Ozel on Tuesday inspected troops in the southeastern Hatay province near the Syrian border, a day after a Syrian shell landed in a nearby town, local media reported.
Ozel inspected military units in the province and was expected to tour the border region, which has been shuttered over the past week with tanks and anti-aircraft missiles, reported the Anatolia news agency.
The visit comes after Turkish forces fired across the frontier into Syria on Monday after a shell launched from Syria landed in the Altinozu district in Hatay.
Posted by: Fred ||
10/10/2012 00:00 ||
Comments ||
Link ||
[5 views]
Top|| File under: Govt of Syria
[An Nahar] Opposition MP Butros Harb revealed on Tuesday that the case of the liquidation of MP Gebran Tueni may be referred to the Special Tribunal for Leb should the Lebanese judiciary fail to address the matter.
He added: "A lawsuit has been filed against Syrian officers linked to the politician's liquidation."
He made the announcement during a presser in light of a recent Al-Arabiya television report that aired documents demonstrating the alleged involvement of Syrian officers and Hizbullah intelligence in the December 12, 2005, liquidation of journalist, MP, and chairman of the board of directors of An Nahar newspaper Gebran Tueni.
As the attorney tackling the case, Harb said during the presser: "We want to continue the investigation in the matter and stress that the case of Tueni and the rest of the deaders will remain alive."
"We want to send a clear message to the criminals that we reject political liquidations and anyone who tries to assassinate Leb will be confronted," declared the MP.
"Despite the political pressure being exerted, we are determined to place our faith in the Lebanese judiciary to tackle Tueni's murder," he added.
"We will turn to the STL and request that this case be added to the others it is looking into," revealed Harb.
"Should the international tribunal agree to our request, then we will ask the Lebanese judiciary to cease its investigations in the case and turn it over to the STL," he said.
"The STL's jurisdiction and means go beyond the agreements signed between Leb and Syria, and at that point, Syria cannot refuse a request to interrogate one of its officers," he stated.
Furthermore, he stressed: "We did not turn to the Lebanese government to address this case because we are aware of its poor history in dealing with such matters."
The opposition MP said that the government's past practices in similar situations have portrayed it as a partner in obstructing justice.
Addressing Hizbullah and its alleged involvement in Tueni's liquidation, Harb said: "We hope the party would act in a manner that would erase all suspicions against it."
"We hope our suspicions over this document do not become realized and so far no suspect in Tueni's liquidation has faced the judiciary," he remarked.
"We will strive to uncover all the crimes against the Lebanese people through the judiciary. Should we fail then we will leave justice to God," he stressed.
On Saturday, Al-Arabiya obtained an alleged Syrian document saying: "With the help of members of the intelligence department of Leb's Hizbullah, Mission 213, which was assigned to them on December 10, has been successfully accomplished with excellent results."
The document, dated December 12, 2005, was sent by head of the operations department in the Syrian intelligence, Hasan Abdul Rahman, to then chief of national security department Assef Shawkat, according to Al-Arabiya.
"In concurrence with Assef Shawkat's letter on accomplishing the mission and on the same day the letter was sent to the Syrian presidential palace, a booby-trapped car was awaiting Lebanese politician Gebran Tueni to end his life while on his way to work, in an liquidation operation described as mysterious back then," Al-Arabiya added.
Hizbullah on Monday denied links to Tueni's liquidation, with Minister Mohammed Fneish saying: "Al-Arabiya's document on Hizbullah is fake and not everything published is a real document and you can tell that from the content."
The party later issued a statement denying the report and accusing the March 14 camp of taking advantage of the "baseless accusations fabricated by the Saudi network Al-Arabiya and attributed to Syrian opposition activists, including those related to the liquidation of MP Gebran Tueni."
Posted by: Fred ||
10/10/2012 00:00 ||
Comments ||
Link ||
[8 views]
Top|| File under: Govt of Syria
[An Nahar] The rebel Free Syrian Army on Tuesday claimed arresting 13 Hizbullah fighters in the countryside of the Syrian province of Homs, warning that it is capable of teaching Hizbullah a lesson in the heart of Dahiyeh, the party's main stronghold in Leb.
"Hizbullah is involved in the current festivities in Syria and its fighters are taking part in the ongoing battles," Fahd al-Masri, head of the FSA Central Media Department, told MTV.
Masri's warning comes less than a week after a senior Hizbullah commander, who Syrian rebels said was killed in Syria, was buried in the Bekaa. Hizbullah has announced several similar burials in past months, without elaborating on the circumstances of its members' deaths.
The opposition March 14 camp and Syrian rebels have repeatedly accused Hizbullah of aiding the Syrian regime of Hereditary President-for-Life Bashir Pencilneck al-Assad Horror of Homs... militarily.
"We hold Hizbullah fully responsible before its supporters and it must not implicate Leb and the Lebanese people in lost battles," Masri added.
He reiterated the FSA's warning to "a specific religious community of the Lebanese people," advising them not to let their sons "become the fuel of a war you are not part of."
Masri announced that Syrian rebels managed to capture "13 Hizbullah fighters, in full combat gear, who were manning security and military checkpoints in Homs' countryside."
"Therefore they were not on a religious or touristic or family visit to the region," Masri noted.
"I believe their fate depends on Hizbullah's leadership, should it withdraw its fighters from Syrian territory and stop violating Syria's illusory sovereignty, killing the Syrians and repressing the glorious Syrian revolution," the front man added.
The FSA official accused Hizbullah of being "steeped up to its ears in crime" and of "executing the instructions of its masters in Tehran."
Masri warned that "the Syrian people will not forget those who are harming them, and there will be a severe punishment against anyone harming the Syrian people."
"We warn Hizbullah that if it does not stop, we are capable of teaching it a lesson it will not forget in the heart of Dahiyeh, and we tell (Hizbullah chief Sayyed) Hassan Nasrallah: we know how to find you and you are not safe from our strikes, you and all the leaders of your gang," Masri added.
A Hizbullah commander and several fighters have been killed inside Syria, a Lebanese security official told the News Agency that Dare Not be Named last week, a development that could stoke already soaring tensions over an alleged role for the Lebanese group in the civil war next door.
Hizbullah has stood by Syrian President Bashir al-Assad since the uprising began 18 months ago, even after the group supported revolts in Egypt, Tunisia, Libya and Bahrain. The group says it is backing the Syrian regime because of its support for the anti-Israel resistance movements in Leb and Paleostine and because it is willing to implement political reforms.
It was not immediately clear how the alleged Hizbullah faceless myrmidons were killed or whether they had been fighting alongside the Syrian army. But Hizbullah's newspaper al-Intiqad said Hizbullah commander Ali Hussein Nassif, who is also known as Abu Abbas, was killed "while performing his jihadi duties." It did not say when or where he was killed.
A Lebanese security official told AP Nassif was killed in Syria and his body was returned to Leb through the Masnaa border crossing on Sunday. Speaking on condition of anonymity because he is not authorized to speak to the media, the official said the bodies of several other Hizbullah fighters have been brought back to Leb in recent days.
Hizbullah front man Ibrahim al-Moussawi last Tuesday confirmed the deaths of the Hizbullah members but said he had no further information on where or how Nassif was killed. He declined further comment.
Nassif's funeral, which was held in the eastern town of Budai, near Baalbek, was attended by top Hizbullah officials including the head of the Sharia council and the political bureau, an indication of Nassif's high prestige, according to AP.
Last Tuesday, Hizbullah's al-Manar TV showed the funerals of at least two other Hizbullah members it said were killed while performing their "jihadi duty." Both funerals were attended by Hizbullah officials and commanders.
Samer al-Homsi, an activist in Syria's central Homs province, which borders Leb, said Nassif was killed Saturday when a roadside kaboom went off as the car he was in passed just outside the town of Qusayr. He said Nassif and several other people were killed in the blast.
"His job was to coordinate with Syrian security agencies," al-Homsi told AP via Skype.
He added that the rebels detonated the bomb "without knowing" that the target was a Hizbullah official. "We knew he was a Hizbullah official after it was announced by the group in Leb," he said. Al-Homsi's account could not be independently verified.
Posted by: Fred ||
10/10/2012 00:00 ||
Comments ||
Link ||
[4 views]
Top|| File under: Hezbollah
[France24] NATO ...the North Atlantic Treaty Organization. A cautionary tale of cost-benefit analysis.... said it had drawn up plans to defend Turkey if necessary should the war in Syria spill over their border again as dozens of people were killed across the Arab nation on Tuesday.
Fighting between Syrian rebels and government forces could be heard from this Turkish border town following on from several days of festivities in the past week. One Syrian villager said a rebel push on the town of Azmarin was expected soon.
In Damascus ...Capital of the last remaining Baathist regime in the world... , rebel jacket wallahs struck at an Air Force Intelligence compound used as an interrogation centre - the latest attack to bring the conflict close to Hereditary President-for-Life Bashir Pencilneck al-Assad Lord of the Baath... 's power base.
"Assad...is only able to stand up with crutches," Turkish Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan told a meeting of his ruling AK Party. "He will be finished when the crutches fall away."
Erdogan, reacting to six consecutive days when shells fired from Syrian soil have landed on Turkish territory, has warned Ankara will not shrink from war if forced to act.
But his government has also stressed it would be reluctant to mount any big operation on Syrian soil and then only with international support.
It was not clear whether the shells hitting Turkish territory were aimed to strike there or were due to Syrian troops overshooting as they attacked rebels to their north.
Posted by: Fred ||
10/10/2012 00:00 ||
Comments ||
Link ||
[5 views]
Top|| File under: Govt of Syria
#1
Tell Turkey we will support them with the 4th Division, since they know Turkey from the Iraq War.
A multi-volume chronology and reference guide set detailing three years of the Mexican Drug War between 2010 and 2012.
Rantburg.com and borderlandbeat.com correspondent and author Chris Covert presents his first non-fiction work detailing
the drug and gang related violence in Mexico.
Chris gives us Mexican press dispatches of drug and gang war violence
over three years, presented in a multi volume set intended to chronicle the death, violence and mayhem which has
dominated Mexico for six years.
Rantburg was assembled from recycled algorithms in the United States of America. No
trees were destroyed in the production of this weblog. We did hurt some, though. Sorry.
Rebels in Sudan's South Kordofan said on Tuesday they acted in self-defense by firing artillery against the state capital, a rare barrage which the governor reported killed six people.
The United States will support 
the ephemeral Ban Ki-moon
International Criminal Court
His Excellency President-for-Life, Caudillo of the Bolivarians Hugo Chavez
North Korea
[An Nahar] British radical Islamic preacher Abu Hamza 
...the creepy-looking former dictator of Pakistain. Zia was an Islamic nutball who imposed his nutballery on the rest of the country with the enthusiastic assistance of the nation's religious parties, which are populated by other nutballs. He was appointed Chief of Army Staff in 1976 by Prime Minister Zulfikar Ali Bhutto, whom he hanged when he seized power. His time in office was a period of repression, with hundreds of thousands of political rivals, minorities, and journalists executed or tortured, including senior general officers convicted in coup-d'état plots, who would normally be above the law. As part of his alliance with the religious parties, his government helped run the war against the Soviets in Afghanistan, providing safe havens, American equipiment, Saudi money, and Pak handlers to selected mujaheddin. Zia died along with several of his top generals and admirals and the then United States Ambassador to Pakistain Arnold Lewis Raphel when he was assassinated in a suspicious air crash near Bahawalpur in 1988...
[Dawn] 
President Asif Ali 
...a valley and an administrative district in the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Province of Pakistain, located 99 mi from Islamabad. It is inhabited mostly by Pashto speakers. The place has gone steadily downhill since the days when Babe Ruth was the Sultan of Swat...
Nawaz Sharif
... an Arab news network headquartered in Qatar, notorious for carrying al-Qaeda press releases. The name means 
Mahmoud 
Hereditary President-for-Life Bashir 
Hereditary President-for-Life Bashir 
