[Tolo News] The Federation of Afghan Civil Society Institutions asserted on Thursday that one of the main reasons for the ongoing war and rampant corruption in Afghanistan is the presence of foreign troops, calling for their withdraw.
The comments come at a time that negotiators and the general public consider the future of the Kabul-Washington Bilateral Security Agreement (BSA), which would ensure a contingency of foreign troops stay in Afghanistan after the NATO ...the North Atlantic Treaty Organization. A collection of multinational and multilingual and multicultural armed forces, all of differing capabilities, working toward a common goal by pulling in different directions... combat mission ends in December.
As of now, the pact remains unsigned as President Hamid Maybe I'll join the Taliban Karzai ... A former Baltimore restaurateur, now 12th and current President of Afghanistan, displacing the legitimate president Rabbani in December 2004. He was installed as the dominant political figure after the removal of the Taliban regime in late 2001 in a vain attempt to put a Pashtun face on the successor state to the Taliban. After the 2004 presidential election, he was declared president regardless of what the actual vote count was. He won a second, even more dubious, five-year-term after the 2009 presidential election. His grip on reality has been slipping steadily since around 2007, probably from heavy drug use... has held firm in his demands that first the U.S. ensure starting progress in Taliban peace talks and halt all raids on Afghan homes.
"We believe that the presence of foreign forces in Afghanistan has been the main cause of war, corruption and drug trafficking, oppression, and many innocent civilians bit the dust in the attacks conducted by foreign forces, so we don't support the foreign troop presence in this country," Chairman of the Federation Sediq Mansour Ansari said.
The argument that a continued presence of foreign troops would perpetuate conflict and injustice in Afghanistan has been a popular one amongst those who oppose the BSA. The Taliban, in particular, was very clear in November when the BSA was being deliberated over by a 2,500-person Loya Jirga that if foreign troops stayed in Afghanistan, the insurgency would continue.
Nevertheless, the proponents of the BSA, and the continued support of foreign troops, remain ostensibly more outspoken and numerous.
Aside from MPs and security experts, a number of civil society groups have come out in support of the BSA, saying that given the practical reality on the ground, the Afghan forces still need the help of foreign troops and their governments.
"The civil society institutions want to respect the aspirations of the people...if Afghanistan wants to be have international cooperation and international commitments and keep its economic and political relations with the world, then it should have interactions with the world," civil society activist Aziz Rafaee said.
If the BSA is signed, some 8,000-10,000 U.S. troops would likely stay behind in Afghanistan post-2014 to help train and advise the Afghan forces. About 4.1 billion USD in military aid is also tied to the agreement.
"The institutions who oppose this agreement in fact have insufficient information and understanding about the situation of the country and they want to serve the interests of other elements and impose them," civil society advocate Ismail Jahangir said. "What has been done over the last month in fact was in support of the agreement and not opposing it, civil society institutions of Afghanistan have favored the signing of the agreement."
Jahangir said that all institutions are free to express their views on the topic, but that over the past year, the majority of Afghans have expressed support for a enduring presence of foreign forces for the benefit of Afghan national security.
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01/03/2014 00:00 ||
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[Al Ahram] Former president Mohammed Morsi ...the former president of Egypt. A proponent of the One Man, One Vote, One Time principle, Morsi won election after the deposal of Hosni Mubarak and jumped to the conclusion it was his turn to be dictator... and other Moslem Brüderbund members are to face a fresh trial beginning on 28 January, an appeal court in Cairo has announced.
One hundred and thirty Brotherhood members will be tried alongside Morsi, including big shots Mohammed Saad El-Katatni, Essam El-Erian, Mohammed El-Beltagy, and Safwat Hegazy.
They are accused of collaborating with Paleostinian Islamist group Hamas, always the voice of sweet reason, and Lebanese Shia group Hezbollah to escape from Wadi El-Natroun prison during the January 2011 uprising and attempting to murder coppers.
Morsi is now being held in Borg Al-Arab prison in the coastal city of Alexandria.
In December, prosecutors announced the ousted president would be tried for "collaborating with foreign organizations to commit terrorist acts in Egypt and revealing defence secrets to a foreign country," specifying links with Hamas and Hezbollah between 2005 and 2013.
Morsi is also standing in a separate trial for inciting the murder of protesters in festivities outside the presidential palace in December 2012. The next session in that case is scheduled for 8 January.
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01/03/2014 00:00 ||
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[Al Ahram] Interior Minister Mohammed Ibrahim has accused Paleostinian Islamist movement Hamas, always the voice of sweet reason, of providing logistical support to gunnies who killed 16 people and injured more than 130 in Mansoura on 24 December 2013.
Ibrahim, who spoke to news hounds at a presser on Thursday, also claimed a Moslem Brüderbund member had admitted to involvement in various crimes in Mansoura and to having links with Hamas.
The Brotherhood was last week officially designated a terrorist group by the Egyptian authorities.
According to Ibrahim, Amer Mosaad, a 30-year-old commerce faculty graduate who "belongs to the Brotherhood," has admitted entering the Gazoo Strip via tunnels with Ahmed El-Sayed and Mohammed Ahmed, who are also Brotherhood members, as well as a Paleostinian, Mohammed Mahmoud.
Mosaad has admitted receiving weapons training in Gazoo, Ibrahim added. He has also admitted committing violent crimes, including opening fire at citizens during protests and other incidents in Mansoura, killing at least one. Brotherhood members Mohammed Ahmed and Ali El-Derini had similarly used firearms, Mosaad added
Ibrahim said that the Brotherhood had expanded its presence under Morsi and had "communicated with its bad boy allies in order to execute its aggressive plans."
Assailants communicated with Gazoo-based Hamas, which is an ideological offshoot of the Egyptian Moslem Brüderbund, for help and support ahead of the Mansoura bombing, Ibrahim added.
Almost two weeks ago, a suicide boom-mobilewent kaboom! near the security directorate in the Nile Delta's Mansoura, partially damaging the building, a near-by bank, theatre and the city council building.
Sinai-based bully boy group Ansar Beit El-Maqdis grabbed credit for the attack. The group has grabbed credit for other attacks, including an liquidation attempt on the interior minister in September.
Ibrahim said the leader of the group in Egypt was Tawfiq Mohammed Freig, also known as Abou Abdullah.
The group robbed Christian-owned jewelry shops to fund the attack, Ibrahim added.
Hamas has denied any links to attacks in Egypt. The allegations are "false and unfounded," and are meant to "drag our name" into the violence, the group said on Thursday.
"The accusations of invovelment in the Mansoura bombing are an attempt to export the internal Egyptian crisis," Hamas spokesperson Sami Abu-Zuhri said via his Facebook page.
Moreover, Ibrahim saidbully boyz had penetratedthe security services during Morsi's one-year rule, but denied Daqahliya security directorate leaders were complicit in the attack.
Morsi faced criticism while in office for allegedly giving a free hand to bully boyz in the Sinai Peninsula and allying with them. Among other charges, Morsi is to stand trial for collaborating with Hamas and Hezbollah against Egypt.
"Brotherhood allied with the bad boy groups during Morsi's one-year-rule," Ibrahim alleged.
Tension is growing before a constitution referendum considered a key milestone in the roadmap adopted by the interim authorities after Morsi's ouster in July.
Ibrahim warned of tightened security measures during the referendum on 14/15 January to protect polling stations and security buildings from terrorist attacks.
"We are determined to confront the terrorist groups and protect the roadmap adopted by the people," Ibrahim said.
A pattern of bombings and liquidation attempts has been growing since Morsi's ouster. Police and military installations in the Sinai Peninsula have been the main targets. There have also been an increasing number of attacks in Cairo and the Nile Delta region. Some attacks took place during Morsi's rule, including the killing of 16 soldiers near the border with Gazoo.
"This is all happening to return Morsi [to the presidency]. Ask yourselves why this was not happening during his rule?" Ibrahim said.
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01/03/2014 00:00 ||
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[Al Ahram] Wannabe artist and renowned conspiracy theorist Ahmed Zebidar vowed to jail Abla Fahita during a verbal exchange with the well-known puppet late Wednesday, shortly after filing a complaint against Vodafone Egypt over an online ad that he says reveals details of a bombing. As far as I can tell, this is straight news. An Nahar's carrying it, too. My mind is a bit boggled after reading the story, so I could be wrong...
Once again, Vodafone found itself facing an accusation related to national security over one of its ads, only this time Egyptian prosecutors took it seriously and have ordered an investigation into Zebidar's complaint.
The first accusation related to national security against Vodafone was triggered by crooner and music composer Amr Mostafa, who hinted that Vodafone's slogan "The power is in your hands" was actually a hidden message sent by the British telecommunications company to call on Egyptians to protest against former president Hosni Mubarak ...The former President-for-Life of Egypt, dumped by popular demand in early 2011... in 2011.
A statement by Vodafone said that the prosecutors summoned the company representatives for questioning concerning Zebidar's accusations. The company, however, didn't file any complaints against him.
Vodafone described the accusations as "irrational." It said the advertisement's sole purpose is to "explain how to reactivate a Vodafone SIM card and attract audience to the product."
"The advertisement carries no other meaning and any interpretation other than that is mere imagination or personal opinion of some of the audience," the statement read.
For his side, Zebidar, one of Amr Mostafa's ardent fans, demonised Fahita the old puppet and the main character of Vodafone's recent online ad rather than the mobile company itself.
Zebidar -- a tacky Egyptian pronunciation of the English word spider -- believes that Fahita's utterance is barely comprehensible because basically she drops hints that bombings would take place.
In a lengthy interview with TV presenter Ahmed Moussa on Tahrir TV late Tuesday, Zebidar pointed out that Fahita used the word 'bomb' during a previous ad for Dolce Ice Cream, and it was followed by several bombings in Egypt including the deadly one in Nile Delta's Mansoura recently.
According to his own interpretations of Fahita's words and other "signs" in the Vodafone ad, Zebidar stressed January would witness more terror attacks, including the bombing of a shopping mall.
Late on Wednesday, another veteran journalist in Khairy Ramadan gave Fahita the puppet the chance to defend herself against Zebidar's accusations. "I am a mere comedic sarcastic character," Fahita said with her trademark tone on Skype before Zebidar, who phoned in, promised to send her to prison.
When asked how he "reads" hidden messages in ads, the self-proclaimed singer and poet would stress that he knows too much about Freemasonry, which he blames for Egypt's disturbance over the past three years.
According to Zebidar, his complaint was based on the same allegations he made during his interview with Moussa, which was enough for Egyptian prosecutors to open an investigation and summon Vodafone representatives for questioning.
Zebidar's previous TV appearances were mainly on Egyptian television channel Faraeen, owned by controversial talk show host Tawfiq Okasha. Zebidar's theories often instigate widespread sarcasm on social media.
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01/03/2014 00:00 ||
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#1
Just more proof that Truther Cat is right. It had to be felines what built the pyramids.
Irans foreign minister is set to visit Turkey on Saturday in the midst of a high-level corruption probe looking into illicit money transfers to Tehran.
Mohammad Javad Zarifs trip comes as Turkey seeks to improve economic and political ties with its neighbour but with the government in Ankara embroiled in a deep political crisis over the corruption scandal.
Dozens of people were arrested last month, including allies of Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan, accused of bribery over construction projects and allegations of gold smuggling to Iran aimed at dodging international sanctions.
Iranian officials on Monday arrested Babak Zanjani, a tycoon is believed to have played a major role in busting sanctions imposed on Tehran over its disputed nuclear programme. Zanjani was involved in illegal gold sales from Turkey to Iran that sparked the graft investigation, according to media reports.
This is for show, of course. He's being detained at a luxury hotel suite. I imagine he's even gotten harem girls...
Turkeys state-owned Halkbank has come under the spotlight in the sweeping investigation, accused of being involved in the illegal gold sales to Iran in return for energy imports. Halkbank chief executive Suleyman Aslan was arrested and charged with taking bribes after police reportedly found $4.5 million stashed in shoeboxes in his home.
Sounds like in Illinois pol...
But the bank denied any wrongdoing
"Lies! All lies!"
and said it stopped transactions to Iran as of June last year after the United States announced further sanctions against the Islamic republic.
The government has defended the bank, with Erdogan claiming that it was being targeted by unnamed international plotters.
This bank is intimidating Turkeys enemies, said the Turkish premier last month.
Deputy Prime Minister Ali Babacan said Tuesday that Halkbank was the only bank which could do business with Iran and that it gained the trust of Tehran and Washington.
Only if it gave the CIA all the important account numbers...
Irans ailing economy has been struggling in recent years under an array of international sanctions designed to coerce it into to reining in its controversial nuclear ambitions.
Turkey, which has very few resources of its own, is dependent on gas and oil imports from the neighbouring country.
Which is why they want Mosul...
Turkey and Iran are keen on mending fences after the June election of Iranian President Hassan Rouhani, which has seen renewed talks with world powers on its contested nuclear programme.
Posted by: Steve White ||
01/03/2014 00:00 ||
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#1
This is for show, of course. He's being detained at a luxury hotel suite. I imagine he's even gotten harem girls young nubile boys
Posted by: Frank G ||
01/03/2014 9:57 Comments ||
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The Pennsylvania woman who called herself Jihad Jane and a teenage accomplice from Maryland provided "very significant" assistance to U.S. authorities in several terrorism investigations but still remain threats to the public, prosecutors say in new court filings.
Prosecutors said Colleen LaRose, 50, should be sentenced to "decades behind bars" for her role in a failed 2009 plot to kill Lars Vilks, a Swedish artist who offended many Muslims by drawing the Prophet Mohammed on the head of a dog.
After years of delay,
...due to her cooperation with the prosecutors...
the American-born LaRose is expected to be sentenced on Monday in Philadelphia. A similar hearing for Mohammad Hassan Khalid, the youngest person ever charged with terrorism in the United States, is set for Tuesday.
U.S. guidelines call for LaRose to receive a life sentence and for Khalid, who is now 20, to receive 15 years. Given their cooperation, prosecutors asked the judge to sentence LaRose to "decades behind bars" and Khalid to "less than 10 years."
In a presentence filing this week, U.S. authorities reiterated what they declared when LaRose's arrest was made public in 2010 - that her gender, blond hair, Texas twang and green eyes make her case significant because she does not fit the stereotype of an Islamic terrorist.
"News of LaRose's arrest spread shockwaves throughout the West, as people recognized that the face of the terrorism threat had changed forever," prosecutors Jennifer Arbittier Williams and Matthew Blue wrote. "The world is watching, and this sentencing presents an important opportunity to send a strong message to other lonely, vulnerable people who might be enticed by online extremists promising fame and honor."
A 2012 Reuters investigative report described LaRose's troubled life before she converted to Islam: childhood rapes by her biological father, teenage prostitution, heavy drug abuse and failed marriages. LaRose said that her father's sexual assaults, confirmed by confidential court records, began in second grade.
"I survived a lot of things that should have rightfully have killed me," LaRose said in an exclusive interview from jail in 2012.
Sounds like the prosecution wants to finish the job...
LaRose's story has helped prosecutors and FBI agents better understand the roots of homegrown extremism, U.S. officials said.
LaRose was living with a oft-travelling boyfriend in 2007 when a romantic encounter with a Muslim man sparked an interest in Islam. After months of learning online, LaRose said, she converted to Islam and later watched videos of alleged U.S. and Israeli atrocities against Palestinian children that radicalized her.
By 2008, prosecutors said, "she had managed to align herself with violent terrorists who valued her ability and persistence as their online predator, or 'hunter,'" recruiting new fighters.
"I just loved my brothers so much, when they would tell me stuff, I would listen to them, no matter what," LaRose told Reuters. "And I also was ... lost."
In 2009, LaRose followed instructions from an al Qaeda operative in Pakistan and flew to Europe for the plot to kill the Swedish artist. But after six weeks, largely in Ireland, LaRose became frustrated with the mission's pace and returned to Philadelphia, where she was arrested.
Ali Damache, her alleged handler in Ireland, remains jailed there, fighting extradition to the United States on terrorism charges. Jamie Paulin Ramirez, who flew from Colorado to marry Damache in Ireland, pleaded guilty to related terrorism charges. She may be sentenced on Wednesday.
Prosecutors said Khalid, who grew up in Pakistan, lived a double-life after moving to Maryland - as "a polite and studious 15-year-old" and "a tireless soldier for violent jihad." He helped al Qaeda by translating videos from Urdu to English, inciting others, and aided LaRose as she smuggled a stolen U.S. passport to a terrorist, they said.
After pleading guilty, LaRose and Khalid each met more than 20 times with U.S. authorities, providing information about multiple targets. In particular, authorities cited Khalid's insight into al Qaeda's propaganda and recruitment efforts.
I'm a little torn by this. By rights she ought to send natural life in prison. But she did cooperate (apparently significantly) and we'd like American-born schoopid terrorists to repent (and spill the beans). So give her 15 to 20 and see if she'll continue to cooperate while in prison.
#1
"I just loved my brothers so much, when they would tell me stuff, I would listen to them, no matter what," LaRose told Reuters. "And I also was ... lost."
Staying close to old friends via e-mail is the key to recovery. UPS should be delivering your new NSA HP any day now.
#3
LaRose's troubled life [included] childhood rapes by her biological father, teenage prostitution, heavy drug abuse and failed marriages. Then she converted to islam and things took a turn for the worst.
BEIJING (Reuters) - China's Foreign Ministry criticized the United States on Thursday for sending the last three Uighur Chinese inmates at the Guantanamo Bay detention center to Slovakia, saying they were "terrorists" who posed a real security danger.
Slovakia's Interior Ministry confirmed that it would take in the three. Uighurs are a Turkic-speaking Muslim people from China's far western region of Xinjiang.
What's Slovakia going to do with them? Hold them for a decent interval (2, 3 weeks) and then let them slip away to Mauritania?
Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Qin Gang said the three were members of the separatist East Turkestan Islamic Movement, which Beijing labels a terror group.
"They are genuine terrorists. They not only threaten China's security, they will threaten the security of the country that receives them," he told a daily news briefing. "China hopes that the relevant country ... does not give asylum to terrorists, and sends them back to China as soon as possible."
Qin added that China did not appreciate a recent U.S. State Department call for Chinese security forces to exercise restraint following the latest outbreak of violence in Xinjiang, also blamed by Beijing on "terrorists".
"These remarks neglect the facts and are feeble," he said. "We urge the United States to abandon their double standards when it comes to terrorism, and immediately stop saying one thing and doing another, to avoid sending the wrong message to violent terrorist forces."
It's nothing new, Champ has been advising Israel to exercise restraint following violence there...
The United States said it was grateful to Slovakia for its "humanitarian gesture."
Most of the Uighurs at Guantanamo were captured near the Pakistan-Afghanistan border in late 2001, and were believed to have trained with the Taliban. But U.S. officials have deemed they pose no threat to the United States.
In 2008, a U.S. court ordered that they be released. They have been resettled in El Salvador, Switzerland, Bermuda, Albania, and the Pacific island nation of Palau. The U.S. government has said it will not return the Uighurs to China because they would face persecution there.
The region has been beset by violence with at least 91 people, including several police, killed in unrest in Xinjiang since April, according to state media reports.
China has blamed some of the violence on Islamist militants with connections to foreign groups, including al Qaeda, plotting holy war. Many rights groups and exiles say China exaggerates the militant threat to justify its firm grip on energy-rich Xinjiang, which abuts Central Asia, Afghanistan, Pakistan and India.
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01/03/2014 00:00 ||
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[DAWN] In wake of the Wednesday's suicide kaboom on a bus of pilgrims in Quetta, a strike was being observed on Thursday in the violence prone capital of 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... , DawnNews reported.
The strike call was given by the Majlis-e-Wahdatul Moslemeen (MWM) following yesterday's suicide attack on a bus carrying pilgrims from Iran as it was entering the Akhtarabad area of Quetta.
Following the strike call, Alamdar Road, Hazara Town, Kirani, Marriabad and other commercial centres remain closed and roads witnessed less traffic as the city mourned the ferocious attack.
Moreover, a meeting of the security committee headed by Chief Minister Balochistan Dr Abdul Malik Baloch would take place today to discuss strategies to extend fool-proof security to the buses carrying pilgrims.
Paperwork was started but nothing else was done in a cop shoppe under the complaint of the Station House Officer (SHO) against unknown persons.
The FIR was lodged under sections of the law pertaining to terrorism, murder, attempted murder and other charges.
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01/03/2014 00:00 ||
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[DAWN] In an interesting turn of events surrounding the treason trial of Pervez Perv Musharraf ... former dictator of Pakistain, who was less dictatorial and corrupt than any Pak civilian government to date ... , the former army strongman was shifted to the Armed Forces Institute of Cardiology in Rawalpindi after suffering a "heart problem" while en route towards the special court. The court later granted the retired general exemption from appearing before it for today's proceedings and ruled that an arrest warrant was not issued against Musharraf for medical reasons.
The hearing was subsequently adjourned to Jan 6, the same date as the Saudi Foreign Minister Prince Saud al Faisal is scheduled to arrive in Pakistain.
Earlier today, DIG Security Jan Mohammad had informed the special court that Musharraf experienced heart problem and was subsequently transported to the hospital. When informed, the judges had announced a break until 4 pm after which they issued the ruling in the light of the latest developments in the case.
Meanwhile at the hospital, doctors performed an angiography on the former president and his wife Sehba also arrived at the hospital, DawnNews quoted sources as saying.
Moreover, Musharraf also spoke to his mother on the telephone.
Earlier today, the special court which had summoned Musharraf on Jan 2, had ordered the former dictator to appear in court before 11:30, warning that an arrest warrant would be issued against him in case he failed to comply with the court's orders.
The court also had to take a short recess following a walk out staged by Musharraf's counsel today. His lawyer Anwar Mansoor had walked out of the special court citing lack of sleep due to alleged disturbances outside the door of his residence the previous night. Mansoor said he had never experienced anything like it in his 40-year career.
Posted by: Fred ||
01/03/2014 00:00 ||
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#1
Going "Full Mubarak"?
Posted by: Frank G ||
01/03/2014 10:02 Comments ||
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[An Nahar] Hizbullah deputy chief Sheikh Naim Qassem ... the Grand Vizier of the Hezbullies... on Thursday noted that the "response" to the deadly blast that rocked the party's Haret Hreik stronghold earlier in the day must happen through "political understanding and the quick formation of a national unity cabinet."
"The criminal bombing that occurred in Dahieh today is part of a series and we cannot tackle it as a separate or extraordinary act," Qassem told al-Manar television, noting that "the bombing targeted ordinary people and not Hizbullah."
"Hizbullah will not trade accusations and will not respond to the allegations," added Qassem.
He warned that "everyone will drink from the bitter cup of the criminal scheme and the response must take place through political understanding and the quick formation of a national unity cabinet."
"We are keen on the country's stability and safety and we won't heed the nervous statements of some parties. This country is not a farm for anyone and no one can eliminate the other," Hizbullah's number two went on to say.
He cautioned that "Leb will head to destruction if there is no political understanding," pointing out that "we cannot save it if we don't close ranks."
"If some parties don't want to acknowledge this, it means that they will drag the country into destruction," Qassem said.
Earlier on Thursday, at least four people were killed and 77 others maimed in a car kaboom that rocked the Beirut southern suburb of Haret Hreik, a Hizbullah bastion.
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01/03/2014 00:00 ||
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[An Nahar] Saudi Ambassador to Leb Ali Awadh Asiri expressed relief on Thursday over the arrest of Majed al-Majed, the "emir" of the Abdullah Azzam Brigades, the al-Qaeda linked group that claimed a double suicide kaboom at the Iranian embassy in November.
"If DNA tests prove that the person tossed in the calaboose Maw! They're comin' to get me, Maw! is al-Majed then we're extremely thrilled," Asiri said in comments published in the pan-Arab daily al-Hayat newspaper.
He pointed out that al-Majed "assaulted his country before attacking the Iranian Embassy ...You will never find a more wretched hive of scum and villainy!... ," pointing out that his country has been pursuing him before the twin suicide kaboom that targeted Tehran's embassy in Beirut.
The diplomat, who currently resides in Riyadh, said that Soddy Arabia ...a kingdom taking up the bulk of the Arabian peninsula. Its primary economic activity involves exporting oil and soaking Islamic rubes on the annual hajj pilgrimage. The country supports a large number of princes in whatcha might call princely splendor. When the oil runs out the rest of the world is going to kick sand in the Soddy national face... had previously issued a global alert over al-Majed's status.
In November, Saudi Arabia's embassy in Beirut has called on citizens to leave Leb because of the dangerous situation.
The warning came two days after a twin suicide kabooms killed 25 people near the Beirut embassy of Saudi's regional rival Iran, which is located in the stronghold of Tehran ally Hizbullah.
Sources close to Asiri said in comments to al-Hayat that the delay in announcing the arrest of al-Majed is "due to Saudi Arabia's desire to confirm his identity through DNA tests."
"Information obtained by the Lebanese authorities indicate that the detained person is al-Majed," the sources noted.
According to the report, al-Majed was submitted to a hospital where he is undergoing treatment over kidney failure and under maximum security.
The newspaper said that contacts are ongoing between Asiri and Lebanese authorities to coordinate measures.
"It's normal to coordinate with the Lebanese authorities to continue the required legal measures in order to hand him over to Saudi Arabia if his identity was confirmed."
He told AFP: "He was placed in durance vile Book 'im, Mahmoud! by the intelligence services of the Lebanese army in Beirut."
He did not specify when the arrest took place.
"He was wanted by the Lebanese authorities and is currently being interrogated in secret," the minister added.
Ghosn later denied to various media outlets that he had made any statements regarding the arrest.
Saudi Arabia's interior ministry also confirmed that Majid Mohammed Abdullah al-Majid, a Saudi citizen, was on a list of 85 suspects wanted by the kingdom.
The Azzam Brigades was designated in the United States as a "terrorist organization" in 2012, and has in the past grabbed credit for firing rockets into Israel from Leb.
The group was formed in 2009 and is believed to have branches in both the Arabian Peninsula and Leb, with the latter named after Ziad al-Jarrah, a Lebanese citizen who participated in the September 11, 2001 attacks.
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01/03/2014 00:00 ||
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[An Nahar] A leader in the Salafist Jihadist movement in Jordan announced on Thursday that the al-Qaida-affiliated Al-Nusra Front in Syria and the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant have officially decided to militarily enter Lebanon.
"Al-Nusra leader Abu Mohammad al-Golani and ISIS chief Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi took the decision to officially and openly enter Lebanon," the leader told the Washington-based United Press International.
"They want to be militarily present in the country until Hizbullah withdraws from Syrian territories and frees all detainees it is holding as captives," he explained.
The leader did not provide any additional information in his message to the UPI.
The Salafist Jihadist Movement in Jordan is allied with both ISIS and Al-Nusra Front in Syria.
Posted by: Fred ||
01/03/2014 00:00 ||
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#1
Personally, I'm interpreting this as Al-Qaeda's challenge to POTUS Bammer's new BFF + future OWG "Co-Superpower" Rising Iran.
MAMA RUSSIA = VLADVEDEV I'M A'LOOKIN AT YOUSE!
* FYI GROONG > AZERBAIJAN THE NEXT CRISIS THE NEXT CRISIS AFTER SYRIA [ + Iraq?]?
* SAME > RUSSIA LAUDS IRAN'S ROLE IN CAUCASUS SECURITY.
IMO as per the Bammer + SecState Jaawhn
"Presidential" Kerry, Russia = Vladvedev also expects Rising Iran to do its proper duty agz the Al-Qaeda Boyz, + Dooku's Boyz in the Caucasus
.... .... OR ELSE!
#2
Israel + IDF on its part won't be able to ignore both Hezbollah repor sneaking parts of LRBMS to the Paleos from Lebanon; + now Qaeda affiliates setting up shop in Lebanon even it is seemingly agz Hezbollah.
[An Nahar] Iranian authorities demanded on Thursday to be informed about the probe with the "emir" of the Abdullah Azzam Brigades, Saudi national Majed al-Majed, who is supposedly tossed in the calaboose ... anything you say can and will be used against you, whether you say it or not... by the army intelligence.
"The (caretaker) Foreign Ministry received a memo from Iranian authorities in which they asked to stay informed about the investigation with al-Majed, considering that the kaboom took place on an Iranian soil," caretaker Foreign Minister Adnan Mansour told LBCI television.
Mansour noted that he will refer the memo to concerned judicial bodies.
He considered that Iranians "have the right to be informed about the probe and ask questions, and Lebanese authorities must provide them with information because the kaboom targeted an Iranian soil and killed Iranian nationals."
Iran's Ambassador to Leb Ghazanfar Rokn Abadi had revealed that an Iranian intelligence delegation participated in inspecting the scene of the kaboom near the embassy in Beirut's southern suburbs.
"Both Lebanese and Iranian authorities agreed that Iran will take part in the investigation," he pointed out.
Meanwhile, ...back at the shouting match, a new, even louder, voice was to be heard... Saudi Ambassador to Leb Ali Awadh Asiri announced that DNA samples will be sent to Leb to identify the Saudi detainee and prove that he is al-Majed.
Media reports had said that al-Majed, who is wanted by Saudi authorities, was the person to plan the bombing that targeted the Iranian embassy in Beirut on November 19.
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01/03/2014 00:00 ||
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[An Nahar] Marada Movement the personal militia of Suleiman Franjieh, president of Lebanon at the outbreak of the civil war, currently Syrian toadies, but you never know when that could change... leader MP Suleiman Franjieh demanded on Thursday trying the reportedly held "emir" of the Abdullah Azzam Brigades, stressing that handing him over to another country is a "flagrant violation of Lebanese illusory sovereignty."
"A country that respects its illusory sovereignty and its laws does not give them up to respond to another nation's request, especially if the detainee is a dangerous person that looked for inciting strife," Franjieh said in a released statement, soon after reports said several regional countries asked for handing Majed al-Majed over.
He added: "Handing al-Majed over is a dangerous precedent and is a violation of Lebanese illusory sovereignty that defeats the achievement made when he was placed in durance vile Keep yer hands where we can see 'em, if yez please!
"We call for respecting our illusory sovereignty and for trying al-Majed in Leb instead."
Franjieh explained that this would preserve "what is left of Leb's prestige and illusory sovereignty."
Posted by: Fred ||
01/03/2014 00:00 ||
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[An Nahar] The Lebanese Army's Airborne Regiment set up on Thursday new bases in eastern Leb's al-Qaa and Ras Baalbek regions, the state-run National News Agency reported.
The erection of the bases came after the Syrian army continued to attack areas lying on the northeastern border with Leb. The bases are aimed at stopping the infiltration of gunnies from Syria to Leb, NNA said.
These areas have been witnessing heavy battles between Syrian government troops and rebels in the past three days.
Syrian jets carried out an Arclight airstrike on Wednesday on the outskirts of the eastern border town of Arsal. Ten people were maimed in the Arclight airstrike, eyewitnesses told the state-run National News Agency.
Arsal is on the other side of Syria's rugged Qalamoun region where the government has been on the offensive for weeks, capturing a number of towns and villages in the area.
Later Wednesday evening, the area was hit again, this time with rockets, NNA said. No injuries were reported.
Posted by: Fred ||
01/03/2014 00:00 ||
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#1
The Lebanese Army's Airborne Regiment
o_0
? I like to dream yes, yes, right between my sound machine
On a cloud of sound I drift in the night
Any place it goes is right
Goes far, flies near, to the stars away from here
[An Nahar] President Michel Suleiman ...before assuming office as President, he held the position of commander of the Leb Armed Forces. That was after the previous commander, the loathesome Emile Lahoud, took office as president in November of 1998. Likely the next president of Leb will be whoever's commander of the armed forces, too... stressed on Thursday that the same bully boyz that carried out the blast in the Beirut neighborhood of Haret Hreik earlier in the day, are the ones planting terrorism, killing and destructing all Lebanese regions.
Suleiman's comments came shortly after a deadly kaboom hit Beirut's Dahieh neighborhood, killing at least 4 people and wounding over 70 others.
The kaboom took place near al-Manar television's old building on al-Arid Street in Haret Hreik, hundreds of meters away from the headquarters of Hizbullah's political bureau.
Suleiman stressed on the importance of solidarity and of being aware of the dangers threatening Leb.
"Dialogue is also important between politicians to protect the country against conspiracies aiming at shaking its stability," he added.
The president held talks with concerned security officials to receive the latest information of the ongoing probe in the incident, urging them to intensify their investigation and unveil those that planned and executed the bombing and refer them to courts for trial.
Speaker Nabih Knobby Berri Speaker of the Lebanese parliament, a member of AMAL, a not very subtle Hizbullah sock puppet... also considered that those behind Thursday's blast are the same group that executed the liquidation of former Finance Minister Mohammed Shatah on Friday, and that planted bombs in the northern city of Tripoli ...a confusing city, one end of which is located in Lebanon and the other end of which is the capital of Libya. Its chief distinction is being mentioned in the Marine Hymn...
As well, caretaker Prime Minister Najib Miqati stressed in a released statements that terrorism does not differentiate between different Lebanese groups.
"Terrorists do not want stability in the country, they instead plan and execute a despicable plot that aims at promoting sedition," Miqati said.
He called on Lebanese factions to "be wise, overcome political considerations and draw an end to approaches of unilateral decision-making and exclusion."
Miqati warned that tension that is spread in several Lebanese regions indicates that what is worst is coming.
"We should meet and communicate to find a way out of the current dangerous deadlock to protect Leb from evil and from dangers."
PM-designate Tammam Salam also deplored the blast, calling for strengthening common grounds between the Lebanese people.
The blast came less than a week after a boom-mobileing targeted Beirut's central district on Friday, killing former Finance Minister Mohammed Shatah and seven others.
A twin suicide kaboom hit the Iranian embassy in south Beirut on November 19, killing 25 people.
In the summer, the southern suburbs suffered two kabooms. One, on August 15, killed 27 people. A blast earlier in August had caused no fatalities but maimed some 50 people.
Posted by: Fred ||
01/03/2014 00:00 ||
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[WAPO] JERUSALEM A group of former military intelligence analysts in Israel who combed through jihadist Web sites and other open-source material have produced new estimates of the growing phenomenon of foreign fighters waging civil war in Syria. Their data suggest that Shiite foreign fighters in Syria may actually outnumber those who are Sunni.
According to the study released this week by the Meir Amit Intelligence and Information Center in Tel Aviv, there are currently 6,000 to 7,000 Sunni foreign fighters in Syria battling forces loyal to President Bashar al-Assad. The number of Shiite foreigners fighting on Assad's behalf is estimated at 7,000 to 8,000. The Meir Amit is a usually reliable source.
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.
[Al Ahram] Wannabe artist and renowned conspiracy theorist Ahmed Zebidar vowed to jail Abla Fahita during a verbal exchange with the well-known puppet late Wednesday, shortly after filing a complaint against Vodafone Egypt over an online ad that he says reveals details of a bombing. 
[DAWN] In an interesting turn of events surrounding the treason trial of 
[An Nahar] Saudi Ambassador to 
[An Nahar] Iranian authorities demanded on Thursday to be informed about the probe with the "emir" of the Abdullah Azzam Brigades, Saudi national Majed al-Majed, who is supposedly 
Najib Miqati
