Joanna Lumley aka Patsy Stone in "Absolutely Fabulous" aka Bond Girl in "On Her Majesty's Secret Service" aka Marie Jouvet in "Trail of the Pink Panther" aka Countess Chandra in " Curse of the Pink Panther" aka Giselle Parkyn in "Don't Just Lie There, Say Something!" (age 65)
Brave Lions of Islam, sending a child to do the work of a man.
A 12-year-old suicide bomber killed four people and wounded a dozen in eastern Afghanistan on Sunday, while a Taliban clash with police left two civilians and two police dead, officials said. The boy - thought to be one of the country's youngest-ever suicide attackers - detonated a vest packed with explosives in a marketplace in Paktika province near the Pakistan border, provincial spokesman Mukhlis Afghan said in a statement.
"The head of Shkin district council, Shair Nawaz, a woman and two other men were killed and 12 others were wounded," the statement said.
#1
Reading about this story, reminded of something that my aunt told me about her brother, after he returned home, after serving with the U.S. forces in Germany at the close of World War 2. My uncle told his sister that he had to kill a teenager; about 15 years old he came across during a mission.
My uncle told his sister, "It was either me or him". It effected him for the remainder of his life. From what I read about World War 2 history, when the allies were approaching Berlin from the West and the Russians on the east, the leadership and anyone who could, fled to safety. However, before they left, any teenagers and members of the Hitler youth left behind, were handled rifles and told to kill Americans, their allies and the Russians.
My understanding of history afterwards including Korea and Vietnam, and more recently in Iraq and Afghanistan soldiers are still faced with the same horror of deciding to kill a youngster to protect themselves or their comrades.
I had read elsewhere, that this is a sign of desperation and cowardice, they these folks find it necessary to use children, women and IED's to carry out these attacks since they are unwilling to face our soldiers directly.
Forgive my rant, but this kind of stuff really hit a nerve after reading this story.
#2
This is one of life's choices that is difficult. We in the West bend over backwards to protect children. We have a set of laws for juveniles and another for adults. Occasionally, juveniles are tried as adults in crimes which are horrific. We have child labor laws which protect children. We have laws which protect children from sexual exploitation and pornography. We try protect children from child abuse. When a 12 year old comes along who has been brainwashed and used by a ruthless enemy, most people have trouble with a decision to kill that child because of our Western ideas. However, if you want to come home and enjoy your family at the end of a tour you have no other choice unless you don't mind being killed. As Patton said: Let the other SOB die for his country [or religion or whatever cause he wants to die for]. I for one, don't think some little slackjaw a$$hole has the right to take your life.
Such choices also exist in the U.S. It is not uncommon to have 12-15 year old gang-bangers try to earn their chops with a gang initiation murder. Recently, two British tourists in Florida were murdered as the result of a gang initiation ritual. So if one wants to come home to his/her family, they'd best be prepared for these murderous young thugs.
You are absolutely correct about how we go out of way to protect our children, in comparison to those that preach that it is more important to love death, more than life. As as result, place a lower value on it. Nadel Malik Hasan, the Fort Hood killer had on his the Powerpoint presentation the same quote, slide number 48 - "We love death more than you love life!".
Your second example about the two tourist killed as a gang initiation was appropos as well. The value on human life here has declined over the years. Partly due to moral decline and the other, I place on the lack of citizens ability to protect themselves or their families via firearms. These gang bangers are often better armed than even the police.
[Iran Press TV] Fierce fighting has broken out between armed faceless myrmidons and al-Shabaab ... Harakat ash-Shabaab al-Mujahidin aka the Mujahideen Youth Movement. It was originally the youth movement of the Islamic Courts, now pretty much all of what's left of it. They are aligned with al-Qaeda but operate more like the Afghan or Pakistani Taliban. The organization's current leader is Ibrahim Haji Jama Mee'aad, also known as Ibrahim al-Afghani. Fazul Abdullah Mohammed, a Kenyan al-Qaeda member, is considered the group's military leader... fighters in Haiiran region in Somalia, leaving several al-Shaboobs dead.
Ten al-Shaboobs were killed and five others maimed in festivities with bad turbans, a Press TV correspondent reported.
The faceless myrmidons also captured three districts under al-Shaboobs' control, the correspondent added.
In the meantime, al-Shaboobs killed dozens of Somali troops in an ambush in Gedo region near the town of Luuq in Kured district.
Over 24 Somali forces bit the dust and two military vehicles destroyed in Friday's raid.
A Somali military officer told Press TV that al-Shaboobs ambushed a military convoy heading for Luuq.
"I heard two large kabooms," the officer said.
Witnesses also confirmed that such an attack had actually taken place.
In the Somali capital, Mogadishu, police has banned anti- government demonstrations.
Boilerplate follows...
Somalia has not had a functioning government since 1991, when warlords overthrew former dictator Mohamed Siad Barre.
Over the past two decades, up to one million people have been killed in Somalia in the fighting between rival factions and also due to famine and disease.
There are more than 1.4 million internally displaced persons (IDPs) in Somalia, with over 300,000 of them sheltering in Mogadishu alone.
Most of the displaced live in poor and degrading conditions in makeshift camps in southern and central Somalia, according to the United Nations ...an organization whose definition of human rights is interesting, to say the least... High Commissioner for Refugees.
Posted by: Fred ||
05/01/2011 00:00 ||
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BRITAIN said it was investigating reports that its official residence in the Libyan capital Tripoli was attacked and destroyed by Moamar Gaddafi's regime.
Sky News reported the UK Foreign Office said residences belonging to other countries may also have been attacked. The Italian Embassy has reportly been burnt out.
"We are aware of reports that the British Residence in Tripoli has been destroyed, and are currently investigating them," it said in a statement.
"We believe that other foreign residences have been attacked as well."
The statement added, "Such actions, if confirmed, would be deplorable as the Gaddafi regime has a duty to protect diplomatic missions.
"This would be yet another breach of Gaddafi's international obligations."
The British mission in Libya was shut in the early stages of the conflict. From this it appears that they consider Gaddafi to be still in charge. Obviously they will have no objections when he starts bombing command and control centres amongst the families of NATO leaders, including that of the US. Or is that not allowed under the R2P doctrine?
#1
In February of 2010 the Libyans threatened to storm the Swiss embassy in Tripoli unless a Swiss hostage who has taken shelter in the embassy surrendered himself to the Libyan hostage takers.
This isn't about any R2P the Libyans, it is about the R2P the west. Gaddafi has needed killing for a long time, and if NATO pulls this off this is going to scare lots of bad actors worldwide, including Gaddafi's successors.
#2
All true, Dino, and I won't shed a tear for Gaddafi or any of family as they're killed from the air. He's long since given up any protection that international law offers to those that observe and enforce the rules, at least in my estimation. I know the more legalistically minded don't seem to accept the concept of the out-law these days.
But it's bad form to complain when a man treated like an outlaw acts like an outlaw. It is, after all, the prerogative of those put outside the protection of the law.
Posted by: Mitch H. ||
05/01/2011 16:52 Comments ||
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#3
"We are aware of reports that the British Residence in Tripoli has been destroyed."
"We believe that other foreign residences have been attacked as well."
Well, what the hell did you expect? Qadaffyduck has never played by the Marquis de Queensbury rules. Did you expect him to start as soon as you start bombing him?
Man up and quit whining.
Posted by: Barbara Skolaut ||
05/01/2011 19:38 Comments ||
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On Saturday Muammar Gaddafi called for war with Italy over Italy's 'colonization' attempts. In a speech on Libyan state TV, Gaddafi said that he could not prevent a war with Italy since Libyans wanted it.
Gaddafi said, "We are already in a war with Italy since Italians kill our children in 2011 as they did in 1911, that is why I cannot forbid Libyans to defend their lives and carry the military actions on the enemy's territory. Italy insists on repeating the crimes of 1911, in keeping with the same colonialist policy. This is the violent face of Italy. My friend Berlusconi and the Italian parliament are committing a crime."
#4
The Duck of Death is conveniently omitting the fact that North Africans had terrorized Europe for centuries prior to colonization (Barbary Slave Trade, Barbary corsairs.)
In fact this threat was eliminated only when Western powers conquered the Barbary States.
After decolonization it didn't take long for Libya to revert to bad old habits. Not even 20 years after independence Gaddafi took power and the pirates were back.
Muammar Gaddafi called for a mutual ceasefire and negotiations with Nato powers in a live speech on state TV early on Saturday, while Nato bombs struck a government complex in the Libyan capital, Tripoli.
The targeted compound included the state television building, which was not damaged. Gaddafi spoke from an undisclosed location.
In his bumblingdrunken rambling pre-dawn speech, the Libyan leader appeared subdued but defiant, repeatedly pausing as he flipped through handwritten notes.
Can't the man afford a teleprompter?
"The door to peace is open," Gaddafi said, sitting behind a desk. "You are the aggressors. We will negotiate with you. Come France, Italy, UK, America, come, we will negotiate with you. Why are you attacking us?"
He said Libyans had the right to choose their own political system, but not under the threat of Nato bombings. "Why are you killing our children? Why are you destroying our infrastructure," he said.
Rebel leaders have said they will only lay down their arms and begin talks on Libya's future after Gaddafi and his sons step aside. Gaddafi has repeatedly refused to resign.
Posted by: Steve White ||
05/01/2011 00:00 ||
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#1
Why are you attacking us?
Attack is such a strong word. We like to think of it as Pruning the Gadaffy family tree.
#3
When you start begging to "negotiate" its finally beginning to dawn on you that you are losing. I think its beginning to dawn on Kadaffy.
He realizes that we are willing to kill him to get him out. He understands that we are going to murder him if we can and we dont care if we kill his entire family down to the grandchildren to do the job.
Has that dawned on you too? Has it also dawned on you that we are going to drag this situation out in Libya until we bleed the country white so that the whole place is as weak as a roadkill and then a coalition of Europeans and an American supervisor will set up a Karzai to milk the cow? No? We just want "Peace" right?
Khadaffy has no future. He has no place to run. No one anywhere will take him. He will wind up on a guthook the same as Mussolini. Its just a matter of time. Even the best case scenario would have him "legally" tried in a court of some kind and then we get to watch Saddam shuffle down the catwalk in the abbatoir and Khadaffy ( sorry did I say Saddam?). Well, rest assured it will all be legal. Legal is what happens when you play with the big boys.
Khadaffy is a weenie on a stick and we are all boyscouts.
How do you see it?
Oh, "subdued but defiant" means a rat in a corner. That's when you squirt him with lighter fluid and lock the dog in the bathroom.
Posted by: de Medici3489 ||
05/01/2011 7:31 Comments ||
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#4
This is the problem with going into something like this without a plan. Should've long ago set up a 'Dictators-r-Us' estates on American Samoa where these clowns could retire along with their immediate family and no more than two mistresses to encourage these fellows to move along without so much bloodshed. You know, a nice little private compound with a enticing ocean view [along the tsunami prone side of the island].
#6
P2K, leave American Samoa alone. It's way too nice. Find a more suitable location for this little retirement community you're planning.
Posted by: Abu Uluque ||
05/01/2011 11:36 Comments ||
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#7
I don't argue with your concept. One of the big downsides of choosing dictatorship for a career is the crummy retirement plan. Just leave the wonderful Samoan people out of it.
Posted by: Abu Uluque ||
05/01/2011 11:38 Comments ||
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#8
The Kerguelen islands are supposed to be nice in spring...
Posted by: European Conservative ||
05/01/2011 14:28 Comments ||
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Posted by: Bobby ||
05/01/2011 17:13 Comments ||
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#10
we bleed the country white so that the whole place is as weak as a roadkill and then a coalition of Europeans and an American supervisor will set up a Karzai to milk the cow?
You mean just like Afghanistan. What a cash cow that is.
deMedici, you should be banned on the basis you are an idiot.
Latest from the Guardian; they're all sniffy about this of course.
A Nato air strike in Tripoli has killed the youngest son of Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi, a Libyan government spokesman has said. Saif al-Arab Gaddafi, 29, was killed along with three of Muammar Gaddafi's grandsons, according to reports.
Unfortunate about the grandkids, but Saif was a legitimate target.
The Libyan leader was in the building at the time of the strike, but was unharmed.
Rats. Almost a two-fer.
Several of Gaddafi's friends and relatives were wounded.
Libyan government spokesman Moussa Ibrahim said: "This was a direct operation to assassinate the leader of this country."
Yup. The Boss is always a legitimate target in war.
"The attack resulted in the martyrdom of brother Saif al-Arab Gaddafi and three of the leader's grandchildren," he said.
"The leader with his wife was there in the house with other friends and relatives. The leader himself is in good health -- he wasn't harmed. [Muammar Gaddafi's] wife is also in good health."
Ibrahim added: "We think now it is clear to everyone that what is happening in Libya has nothing to do with the protection of civilians.
I dunno, as soon as Mo' himself is dead the civilians are going to be a lot better protected than they are right now.
"This is not permitted by international law.
Actually it is. Boss man and sonny-boy wear uniforms.
"Nato does not care to test our promises, the west does not care to test our statements. Their only care is to rob us of our freedom."
The one-storey house in a residential neighbourhood in Tripoli reportedly suffered heavy damage.
Nato gave no immediate reaction. There was no independent confirmation of the incident.
Posted by: Steve White ||
05/01/2011 00:00 ||
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#1
Maybe because of the birther brouha, I'm becoming a Doubthing Thomas on things. So, when are they going to produce the body/ies?
[Al Jazeera] A remote-control device was used to detonate the bomb in Marrakesh that killed at least 16 people, a Moroccan minister has said.
Taeb Cherkaoui, the Moroccan interior minister, said Thursday's attack bore the signature of al-Qaeda.
"The way in which this act was carried out reminds us of the style normally used by the Al-Qaeda organisation," he told journalists on Friday.
Cherkaoui said 13 of the 16 people who were killed had been identified as seven Frenchies, two Canadians, two Moroccans, a Dutch national and a Brit.
However AFP news agency, quoting a medical source, said the 16 comprised eight Frenchies, two Canadians, two Moroccans, a British man, a Dutchman, a Swiss man and a Portuguese man.
Moroccan officials have not yet confirmed this.
A report in the Israeli media earlier suggested that a 30-year-old pregnant Israeli woman and her husband, originally from Morocco, had been among the victims.
"Initial inquiries have shown an explosive product made up of nitrate and ammonium and two TATP explosives, and also with nails, and the kaboom was set off from a distance," Cherkaoui told deputies in Rabat earlier.
"Those who are in the habit of opting for this mode of action from a distance are known, which allows us to think that the danger is still present and we have to remain vigilant and prudent."
In his statement to parliament, Cherkaoui promised the attack would not stop the country's pursuit of democracy and respect for human rights. ...which are usually entirely different from personal liberty... Terror footprint
Triacetone triperoxyde, or TATP, is relatively easy to make and has surfaced in a number of recent investigations into attacks, including the July 2005 London bombings that killed 56 people and injured another 700.
Witnesses said Thursday's blast went off on the terrace of the Argana cafe, a popular tourist cafe in Jamaa el-Fna, Marrakesh's main square, wrecking the facade and the first floor.
John Van Leeuwen, a Dutch tourist, said he had looked the man believed responsible for the attack in the eyes moments before the blast.
"There were only tourists in the cafe, and three other Moroccans, and one guy that didn't initially look suspicious," Van Leeuwen told AFP by telephone as he waited, with Marjolein Appel, 39, to catch a flight home.
"But after we found out it wasn't a gas kaboom, my girlfriend and I, we looked at each other, and said that must have been him.
The man had been carrying "two huge bags", and he thought he had left the cafe shortly after him and his girlfriend, he added.
Police created a photofit image of the alleged bomber based on their description and "it looks as if it's someone that is familiar to the police", said Van Leeuwen.
No one has grabbed credit for the attack. But a video posted on the internet three days before the bombing and attributed to al-Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb (AQIM) included a threat to Morocco.
It showed five young men, armed and dressed in desert fatigues, their faces covered by the Arab headdress, or shemagh. AQIM has been active in countries in the region, notably carrying out a series of kidnappings for ransom.
On Friday French intelligence and anti-terrorism experts travelled to Marrakesh to help in the probe, a Moroccan official said. International police agency Interpol said it had offered its help.
Perfidious Albion, La Belle France, Germany, Spain, the European Union, the United Nations ...an organization whose definition of human rights is interesting, to say the least... and the United States have also denounced the bombing, the deadliest in the North African monarchy since 33 people were killed by 12 jacket wallahs in Casablanca in 2003.
Morocco depends heavily on tourism, with around 9.4 million tourists visiting the country in 2010, two million of them French.
Posted by: Fred ||
05/01/2011 00:00 ||
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[Al Jazeera] Libya's opposition has rejected leader Muammar Qadaffy's ... a proud Arab institution for 42 years ... latest offer of a conditional ceasefire and negotiations upon an end to NATO ...the North Atlantic Treaty Organization. Originally it was a mutual defense pact directed against an expansionist Soviet Union. In later years it evolved into a mechanism for picking the American pocket while criticizing the style of the American pants...
attacks.
The opposition joined NATO on Saturday in dismissing Qadaffy's offer, saying the time for compromise had passed.
"Qadaffy's regime has lost all credibility," Abdul Hafidh Ghoga, vice president of the opposition Transitional National Council, said in a statement. "The people of Libya cannot possibly envisage or accept a future Libya in which Qadaffy's regime plays any role."
NATO reiterated the sentiment, saying the alliance wanted to see "not words, but actions" to stop attacks on civilians in Libya.
"(UN Security Council Resolution) 1973 explicitly calls for an end to attacks on and abuses of civilians. The regime has announced ceasefires several times before and continued attacking cities and civilians," a NATO official told the AFP news agency.
The rejection came hours after Qadaffy announced in an address on state television that he would not leave Libya. But he added that he was ready for a truce once "all sides" are involved and NATO stops attacking his forces.
"We were the first to welcome a ceasefire and we were the first to accept a ceasefire ... but the crusader NATO attack has not stopped," he said. "We did not attack them or cross the sea ... why are they attacking us? Let us negotiate with you, the countries that attack us. Let us negotiate."
Conciliatory note
In a marked contrast to previous speeches, where he called the opposition "rats" and promised to track them down house by house, Qadaffy urged opposition fighters to lay down their weapons and said Libyans should not be fighting each other.
He blamed the uprising on mercenaries and foreigners.
"We cannot fight each other," he said. "We are one family."
Qadaffy denied mass attacks on civilians and challenged NATO to find him the names of 1,000 people who had been killed in the conflict.
After the pre-dawn broadcast on Saturday, state television said. ... and if you can't believe state television who can you believe?
NATO warplanes had bombed a site in the Libyan capital, Tripoli next to the television building during Qadaffy's address.
"A building adjacent to the Jamahiriya ... An Arabic neologism coined by Muammar al-Qadaffy. The word jamahiriya was derived from jumhuriya, which is the usual Arabic translation of republic. It was coined by changing the component jumhur ‐ public ‐ to its plural form, jamahir -- the masses. Thus, it is similar to the term People's Republic, only more denigrating to the actual inhabitants of the country... building was bombed during the broadcast of Muammar Qadaffy's speech and that implies a target on the leader of the revolution himself," the report said.
Desperation
Pro-Qadaffy forces are still struggling for control in key locations of the country as the conflict drags on.
The Libyan government announced claim over the strategic port city of Misrata on Friday, but Al Jizz correspondent Sue Turton said the situation on the ground differs.
A government front man threatened a blockade on Misrata port banning any ships that enter, but NATO said no such forced closure is happening, Turton said.
Qadaffy forces did shut the port on Friday but it is back open, and NATO is making extra effort to ensure humanitarian ships are not sabotaged before reaching the port, she said.
Government forces have been trying to capture Misrata's port for more than seven weeks, as it is a key passage point for humanitarian aid to reach the city's half a million people.
Posted by: Fred ||
05/01/2011 00:00 ||
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[Iran Press TV] Saudi nationals have taken to the streets of an eastern village in Soddy Arabia to hold anti-government protests and call for an end to military presence in Bahrain.
Hundreds attended the rally in Awamiyah on Saturday to demand basic human rights ...which often intentionally defined so widely as to be meaningless... and freedom of expression in their country, a Press TV correspondent reported.
The demonstrators urged implementation of reforms and the release of political prisoners.
They also voiced outrage at the kingdom's invasion of Bahrain -- a move, which Riyadh took in March to help Manama quell anti-government protests there.
Saudi protesters have been holding rallies against the monarchy across the kingdom -- namely in Awamiyah and the city of Qatif, also in the east -- over the past few months.
The protesters condemn Riyadh's continued imprisonment of people without charge and its suppression of women's rights. The unemployed have been calling for job opportunities and their share of the biggest Arab economy's oil income.
Such protests are usually suppressed by security forces. Earlier in the month, a Human Rights Watch report said the authorities had placed in durance vile over 160 activists since February.
Posted by: Fred ||
05/01/2011 00:00 ||
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[Iran Press TV] The Yemeni opposition has rejected the power transition deal proposed by the Persian Gulf Arab countries and the mediator has left Sana'a empty-handed.
The opposition said on Saturday that they would not attend the signing ceremony of the deal, which had been scheduled to be held in the Soddy Arabian capital Riyadh on Sunday, the News Agency that Dare Not be Named reported.
Opposition leader Mohammed Basnadwa said they had told the (Persian) Gulf Cooperation Council ([P]GCC) that they would not agree to any deal unless Yemeni President-for-Life Ali Abdullah Saleh signed it first.
He made the remarks after Saleh backed away from the agreement, which would give him immunity from prosecution if he steps down within 30 days.
(P)GCC Secretary General Abdul Latif Al Zayani left Sana'a later in the day after his meetings with Saleh and opposition leaders, which were held to help resolve the impasse, produced no results.
The latest development comes as a general strike is underway in major Yemeni cities, where protesters are sticking to their demand for the immediate resignation of Saleh.
At least four demonstrators were killed on Saturday and dozens more injured in the southern city of Aden as protests continued in the capital Sana'a and other Yemeni cities.
Posted by: Fred ||
05/01/2011 00:00 ||
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[Yemen Post] Yemen said on Saturday that the security forces had killed Waleed Abdulatif Al-Kainae, one of the extremely dangerous and most wanted Al-Qaeda members.
The September 26 website reported that the security forces had clashed with Al-Kainae and a group of gunnies he was leading killing them all in Aden.
The group had planned to attack key installations and target army and security commanders and personnel, it said, adding that the killings were a victory for Yemen, which has been waging a relentless war on terrorism.
In the last few weeks, Al-Qaeda has stepped up attacks on security targets, mainly in southern and southeastern region, killing and injuring several troops, as the officials said that AQAP has taken advantage of the months-long unrest.
The security authorities responded to the terrorist attacks, with several gunnies reported killed.
This article starring:
Waleed Abdulatif Al-Kainae
Posted by: Fred ||
05/01/2011 00:00 ||
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[An Nahar] Soddy Arabia's King Abdullah has imposed new media restrictions and threatened hefty fines and closure of news organizations allegedly undermining national security, press reports said on Saturday.
Under a decree issued on Friday, the media will be prohibited from reporting anything that contradicts the strict Islamic sharia law or serves "foreign interests and undermines national security," Agence La Belle France Presse reported.
Given how many have access to the internet and Twitter, that's not going to be nearly as effective as the king and his advisers plan.
The decree requires publishers to stick "to objective and constructive criticism that serves the general interest," media reports said, adding that violators face fines of up to 500,000 riyals ($133,000, 90,000 Euros).
In addition to a threat to close publishers who violate the decree, the authorities can also ban a writer for life from contributing to any media organization.
The Saudi media is tightly supervised by the government, and the most prominent newspapers are owned by people who are a part of or closely linked to the ruling Al-Saud dynasty.
The new restrictions come as the authorities aim to quell any uprisings inspired by the recent popular revolutions in Tunisia and Egypt and trouble elsewhere in the region.
Over the past week, police placed in durance vile 20 to 30 Shiites, including two bloggers, accused of taking part in demonstrations in the oil-rich Eastern Province, according to activists and a Shiite website.
The overwhelming majority of the estimated two million Saudi Shiites live in Eastern Province, which neighbors Bahrain where authorities last month crushed a Shiite-led protest.
Posted by: Fred ||
05/01/2011 00:00 ||
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[Yemen Post] Yemen's ruling party said on Saturday that President-for-Life Ali Abdullah Saleh ... Saleh initially took power as a strongman of North Yemen in 1977, when disco was in flower, after serving as a lieutenant colonel in the army. He had been part of the conspiracy that bumped off his predecessor, Ibrahim al-Hamdi, in the usual tiresome military coup, and he has maintained power by keeping Yemen's many tribes fighting with each other, rather than uniting to string him up. ... he will not sign the GCC initiative, but will send his political adviser, Dr. Abdul Karim Al-Eryani in favor of him to sign.
The ruling General People Congress party said in a statement that Al-Eryani will head the delegation to Riyadh.
The statement confirmed time that President-for-Life Saleh ... exemplifying the Arab's propensity to combine brutality with incompetence... will not attend the ceremony.
The speaksman of the opposition coalition, the Joint Meeting Parties, JMP, Mohamed Qahtan said that president Saleh himself should sign in the GCC initiative.
Meanwhile, ...back at the precinct house, Sergeant Maloney wasn't buying it. It was just too pat. It smelled phony... the head of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) arrived in Sana'a Saturday ahead of the signing of a power transition deal that aims at ending the unrest that gripped the country for over two months.
Under the deal, President-for-Life Ali Abdullah Saleh, his aides and family would be guaranteed immunity from prosecution. Saleh, who has been in power for 32 years, would also remain on as head of the ruling party.
A transfer of power to his vice president would take place within 30 days of the signing, followed by presidential elections within two months and the formation of a unity government.
The GCC head Abdullatif al-Zayani will invite representatives of the Yemeni government and opposition for the signing ceremony provisionally scheduled for Monday in the Saudi capital, Riyadh.
Posted by: Fred ||
05/01/2011 00:00 ||
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[Pak Daily Times] Two servicemen and four non-combatants were killed and at least another 23 were maimed in south Yemen during a shutdown called by anti-government protesters on Saturday, officials said. The defence ministry said an officer and a soldier were killed and two more soldiers were maimed, but gave no further details as tension mounted in the restive region. Local officials said protesters opened fire on troops as they tried to dismantle roadblocks set up near Al-Mansura neighbourhood in Aden to demonstrate against the regime of President-for-Life Ali Abdullah Saleh. Two soldiers and a civilian were maimed there, they said.
Posted by: Fred ||
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The Yemeni president has refused to sign a Gulf Arab-led agreement to give up power in exchange for legal immunity, sources say.
Saturday's development was a new blow to efforts to mediate the months-old crisis between President-for-Life Ali Abdullah Saleh ... Saleh initially took power as a strongman of North Yemen in 1977, when disco was in flower, after serving as a lieutenant colonel in the army. He had been part of the conspiracy that bumped off his predecessor, Ibrahim al-Hamdi, in the usual tiresome military coup, and he has maintained power by keeping Yemen's many tribes fighting with each other, rather than uniting to string him up. ... and demonstrators inspired by protests sweeping through the Arab region to demand his overthrow.
Abdul-Latif al-Zayyani, secretary-general of the Gulf Co-operation Council (GCC), which brokered the agreement, had flown to the Yemeni capital, Sanaa, on Saturday to urge Saleh to sign the deal.
Instead, he met high-level leaders of Saleh's governing political party and parliamentary bloc, where he was informed that Saleh had some reservations over the deal.
Al-Zayyani was not immediately available for comment. "I can say no more!"
While Yemen's opposition political parties have accepted the deal, many anti-government protesters have rejected it because of the fact that it will keep Saleh - in power for 32 years - from being tried.
They called for him to be put on trial for corruption and the deaths of an estimated 142 protesters since the opposition rallies began three months ago.
Fresh fatalities
Saturday's developments came amid reports of more deaths of anti-government protesters. Two soldiers and four non-combatants were killed and at least another 23 were maimed during a shutdown in southern Yemen, officials said.
The protesters in Aden were demanding Saleh's immediate overthrow and prosecution.
The defence ministry said an officer and a soldier were killed and two more soldiers were maimed, but gave no further details as tension mounted in the restive region.
Local officials said protesters opened fire on troops as they tried to dismantle roadblocks set up near Al-Mansura neighbourhood in Aden to demonstrate against Saleh's government.
They said troops moved into the area from where they suspected the attack was launched and opened fire, killing at least three civilians and wounding at least another 15 more.
The casualties were taken to a hospital, a medical source said.
Another body was at a private hospital, raising the number of civilians killed in the area on Saturday to four, the sources said.
Tensions in Yemen have surged since assailants rubbed out 12 protesters in Sanaa on Wednesday and the opposition warned that violence could derail the deal.
Tens of thousands of protests erupted into the streets across Yemen on Friday, vowing to stay there until Saleh quits his post, which he held since 1978.
"The people want the trial of the murderer," some anti-government demonstrators shouted.
Transitional government
The GCC deal stipulates that Saleh step down in a month and offers him and his entourage, including relatives who run branches of the security forces, immunity from prosecution.
Analysts say the 30-day window for Saleh to resign gives plenty of time for disgruntled forces from the old guard to stir trouble in Yemen, where half of the population owns a gun and al-Qaeda has gained a foothold in its mountainous regions.
The US and Soddy Arabia want the Yemen standoff resolved to avert chaos that could enable al-Qaeda to operate more freely.
Should the deal go through, Saleh would appoint a prime minister from the opposition to head a transition government, which would set up presidential elections 60 days after he resigns.
Saleh has in principle accepted the agreement negotiated by the six-state member GCC.
His departure would make Saleh the third ruler, after Tunisia and Egypt, to be ousted by a wave of popular uprisings.
Posted by: Fred ||
05/01/2011 00:00 ||
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[An Nahar] Several gunnies killed a policeman early Saturday in the largely Mohammedan region of Karachayevo-Cherkessia where an ancient church was also set on fire, officials said.
During a nighttime attack several assailants approached an off-duty policeman and shot at him in front of a bar in the Caucasus city of Cherkessk.
"He died of his wounds on the spot," front man for regional Sherlocks Sergei Shuvayev told Agence La Belle France Presse.
Police jugged several people and were now looking to establish whether they were behind the crime, he said, adding the motive remained unclear.
Attacks on government's officials and police are nearly an every-day occurrence in the nearby regions of Dagestan, Ingushetia and Chechnya, a Caucasus province where Russia fought two wars against separatists in the 1990s.
The unrest fuelled by a Mohammedan insurgency has in recent years been spreading to other North Caucasus regions like Stavropol and Karachayevo-Cherkessia which until now have rarely seen the bloody attacks.
High crime rates in the Caucasus are also due to a general sense of lawlessness and impunity as well as the easy availability of guns.
In a separate pre-dawn incident, assailants set on fire an ancient church near the village of Kosta-Khetagurovo in the same region, a local police front man said.
As a result of arson, there was largely no structural damage to the church, which is perched on a rock outside the village and is built of stone, front man Kazim Baibanov told AFP.
The fire had however damaged the church's wooden floors, he said, adding the person or persons unknown had also broken the windows.
The Shaoninsky church dates back to the 10th century and is one of Russia's oldest houses of worship.
Baibanov said authorities were looking into the incident, declining to speculate who might be behind the attack.
Last November assailants set on fire two Christian Orthodox churches and one Baptist church in the region, all attacks coming in the space of a day, he said.
Posted by: Fred ||
05/01/2011 00:00 ||
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#1
burn down ten mosques for every church damaged. They might get the hint
Posted by: Frank G ||
05/01/2011 10:53 Comments ||
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#2
NEWS KERALA > IMAM DEMANDS ISLAMIC CRESCENT MOON SYMBOL ON RUSSIAN [State]EMBLEM, i.e. atop one of the heads of the famous two-headed Russ Imperial Eagle, wid the Russ Orthodox Cross atop the other.
#1
...Bottom line here: Clearly the Taiwanese are going to cross a big bright red line if they produce and deploy these birds. But it is also clear that they have decided that it will be better to go down swinging at their enemies across the water than wait for help from America that will probably never come.
Mike
Posted by: Mike Kozlowski ||
05/01/2011 18:09 Comments ||
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#2
Agree - TAIWAN as a "breakout" = major staging base into WESTPAC, etc. PACOAS is more important to Rising China strategic interests than Hainan or the South China Seas as per dominating + breaking the "First Island Chain".
IMO the day after Taiwan formally declares that it will manufacture + deploy potent quantities of these new Missles [ + follow-on improved versions, other] will be the day PLA AIRBORNE FORCES, SPECOPS DROP OUT OF THE SKY ONTO TAIWAN IN MASS COMBINED-ARMS ATTACK - CHINA WILL HAVE TO INVADE + QUICKLY CONQUER TAIWAN IRREGARDLESS OF THE LEVEL OF CASUALTIES THE PLA SUFFERS, AS SUPPOR BY WARNINGS AGZ THE US THAT IT RISKS FULL-SCALE NUCLEAR WAR = NUCWAR OF ANNIHILATION, MAD WID CHINA IFF TRIES TO INTERFERE IN "INTERNAL" SOVEREIGN CHIN AFFAIRS.
It won't matter iff the PLA suffers 100 or 1.0Milyuhn combar casualties.
#3
Mike, I am agreement with you in regards to Taiwan going down fighting. I have worked with these people previously, and they are not to be underestimated.
The timing's a bit odd though, given the current administration in Washington, I suspect that the likely hood for the U.S. to get tangled in a conflict between Taiwan and China is low, despite our agreement with Taiwan established during the Carter Administration. Our President and Administration, based on the Libyan experience, will likely debate any action by China for a week or more, check the polls, stick a finger in the wind and see which way it's blowing before committing U.S. troops.
I wonder if the Taiwanese know something, that the rest of us don't? This could bear watching.
[Iran Press TV] As Islamophobia ...the irrational fear that Moslems will act the way they usually do... continues to spread across Europe, a newly published CIA file leaked by whistleblower website WikiLeaks claims that one of Milan's main mosques was a recruitment center for al-Qaeda.
The recently leaked CIA files suggest that the Pentagon considers nine mosques around the world of similar ties. Mosques in the populous cities of Montreal, London, Lyon, Bloody Karachi, and Sadah are among those on the list.
Mosque officials have refuted the claim outright.
"We don't have any skeletons hidden in our cupboards. We are open to dialogue and inspection, but authorities have never found anything wrong," Milan Islamic Cultural Center's Abdel Hamid Shaari told a Press TV correspondent.
Perhaps the Italian authorities haven't been bugging the right room. Try the one that's always locked, guys.
Shaari also criticized Italian authorities for fueling unnecessary mistrust among non-Mohammedans, who depend solely on the media for obtaining information on Islam and Mohammedans.
The mosque is a vocal critic of the city council for not allowing the Islamic community to have a permanent home in the continent's largest city.
At a time when Italian Mohammedans seek a law-abiding life, with hopes of finding jobs and being allowed to practice Islam freely, such accusations are only adding to the growing isolation of Mohammedans in Italia, according to the report.
Milan is currently home to over 80,000 Mohammedans.
Posted by: Fred ||
05/01/2011 00:00 ||
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[Pak Daily Times] A suspected jacket wallah was tossed in the calaboose in Arakhel area of Kohat on Saturday. According to official sources, the suspected 17-year-old suicide bomber was tossed in the calaboose as a result of a joint operation launched by Frontier Corps and peace committee of Jawakai area of Kohat and was shifted to unknown place for investigation. Initial investigations revealed name of the suspected suicide bomber as Noor Muhammad, a resident of Tappi Kohat. The suspect was dosed with tranquilisers for the completion of his mission. However, The flatulent However... no weapon or kaboom was recovered from him.
Posted by: Fred ||
05/01/2011 00:00 ||
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[Pak Daily Times] Police broke up a mob of people armed with sticks that was threatening to attack a church on Saturday after word spread that two copies of the holy Koran had been burned in eastern Pakistain, officials said. The crowds marching towards the church in the city of Gujranwala blamed Christians for desecration of the holy Koran.
Police charged the crowd of 300 people marching towards the church, lightly injuring several protesters, said Saeed Wahla, the top administrator in the city. The protesters blocked a street with barricades of burning tyres. A burned copy of the holy Koran was found on Saturday, and two weeks earlier several burned pages from the holy book turned up, said Nabil Awan, another local official.
The All-Pakistain Minorities Alliance condemned Saturday's march and demanded the government hold an inquiry to find out who was responsible for organising it. The group said such incidents are "just a conspiracy to destabilise the country".
Pooh. The Country of the Pure is perfectly capable of destabilizing itself without any outside help whatsoever.
Posted by: Fred ||
05/01/2011 00:00 ||
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#1
There are several large monkeys down at the local Zoo who know how to smoke cigarettes. On a quiet Wednesday afternoon they will come to the bars and you can pass them a smoke. They seem almost grateful. On Sundays though such things are frowned upon.
It somehow sets a bad example for the crowds of children.
Posted by: de Medici3489 ||
05/01/2011 7:41 Comments ||
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[Al Jazeera] Eight people have been killed and 19 others maimed after a jacket wallahwent kaboom!" at an Iraqi army checkpoint next to a market in the northern city of djinn-infested Mosul, police and hospital sources say.
A hospital source confirmed the number of dead and maimed and said Saturday's attack had taken place at a popular market in eastern djinn-infested Mosul, 390km from the capital, Storied Baghdad ...located along the Tigris River, founded in the 8th century, home of the Abbasid Caliphate....
"The suicide bomber went kaboom! himself at the entrance where Iraqi soldiers were manning a checkpoint to frisk people entering the market," the source said.
Lieutenant-Colonel Mahmoud al-Jibouri, Nineveh province's police, said: "Eight killed, 19 maimed. Five soldiers were killed and three civilians, and two soldiers are among the maimed."
Attacks against Iraq's army and police are rising as they prepare to take full responsibility for security in the country in the run-up to a full withdrawal of US troops by December 31, more than eight years after the US-led invasion of Iraq.
In other incidents on Saturday, fighters detonated bombs at the house of a judge, killing him, his wife and two daughters in Taji, 20km north of Storied Baghdad, according to an interior ministry source.
Fighters using silenced weapons rubbed out a policeman who was assigned to provide security for the judge, at the officer's home nearby, the source said.
Also in Taji, eight fighters wearing Iraqi army uniforms stormed the house of an industry ministry worker, killing him and his daughter, an interior ministry source said.
The attackers clashed with local residents when they left the house. One fighter was killed and two locals were maimed, the source said.
Posted by: Fred ||
05/01/2011 00:00 ||
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#1
Kamikaze drones. I was dreasming about something similar 10 years ago - air-launched 'swarms' of micro-drones that would self-destruct with micro-munitions into individuals.
#6
Besoeker if I may. I quote Annoymoose "that would be telling".
Marvelous idea but knockoffs could certainly be developed. Future is going to be portable and smaller. I hope they don't give computers independent actions and personalities. With my luck for example we would have a paranoid depressed schizo.
Two soldiers were killed and nine injured in two related bomb attacks in Yala's province yesterday. The incidents took place on the same day that Thailand's PM unveiled a new road providing a new route between Narathiwat and Yala.
The first attack occurred at 10:55 a.m. when a truck carrying army rangers was traveling near a rail line in Raman district and was hit by explosives planted by suspected terrorists insurgents, who then shot at officers after detonating the bombs.
Two soldiers - Sgt Maj Kiatisak Mahanam, head of a peace-building unit under Ranger Regiment 42, and Cpl Apisak Muangroy - and two paramilitary rangers - Akechai Cha-umdam and Nutpong Saensomjai - were seriously wounded.
More than 20 bullet casings from M16 rifles were found at the scene. An electrical cord was also found running from the road into a rubber plantation.
About 20 minutes later, a second attack with explosives and rifles was staged near a bridge about one kilometer away from the site of the first attack. The bombs were set off as soldiers rushed to the scene of the first attack in a pickup truck.
Sgt Maj Abus Bahakiri, 49, and Cpl Veerasak Hiranprateep, 30, were killed in the second attack. Five paramilitary rangers - Wicharn Saeng-uea, Kampanart Chanprommanee, Somrak Ritbanjerd, Thanu Phoprom and Rodas Mansen - were wounded.
There were more than 30 bullet casings from M16 and AK rifles, an electrical cord and the remains of an electrical circuit found at the blast scene.
Police believed the attack was carried out by peopled aligned to Busri Adae, a top figure in the Runda Kumpulan Kecil group, who was nabbed by police in Raman district on March 25. It is suspected that the two bomb attacks were intended as an act of revenge.
Meanwhile, PM Abhisit and other officials yesterday visited Narathiwat to follow up on the progress of development projects in the south.
During a meeting with governors of the provinces, Abhisit stressed the need to increase security measures to deal with terrorists militants after intelligence reports that an insurgency network led by suspected rebel leader Masae Useng was preparing to launch a fresh wave of attacks when the next school semsester begins.
Amidst this week's Middle East news one startling event has escaped the attention it deserves. According to news reports such as this one in The Wall Street Journal, an American diplomat in Damascus was detained and then "hooded by Syrian security agents and 'roughed up' before being released."
[An Nahar] A hand grenade shook the Boulevard area of the northern port city of Tripoli at dawn Saturday, causing no material damage, the state-run National News Agency reported.
NNA said that the grenade was tossed by unknown assailants near al-Baba building at 2:00 am. The blast did not cause any injuries or material damage, it added.
Grenade attacks are becoming frequent in Tripoli.
In another incident, two hand grenades were found near the house of Hassan Allam in Hermel. An army bomb disposal expert disposed of one of them and took the other to another nearby military base, NNA said.
Also Friday night, an unknown assailant threw a Molotov cocktail on a tent belonging to anti-confessional regime protestors in Dahr el-Wahesh after a dispute between Wael Jaber and several activists.
A man called Shebli al-Khaleq fired gunshots in the air to end the clash. No injuries were reported, NNA said.
Posted by: Fred ||
05/01/2011 00:00 ||
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[Al Jazeera] Syrian forces have continued their military crackdown in the flashpoint city of Deraa, where at least four people were reportedly killed in the latest violence.
The southern city came under heavy shelling and gunfire on Saturday, witnesses told Al Jizz, as residents attempted to bury those killed a day earlier during Friday's "day of rage" protests against the government.
"We are totally besieged. It is a tragedy. Many houses are levelled by shelling from the army. For the past six days we haven't seen an ambulance," one witness told Al Jizz via telephone, as gunfire rang out in the background.
"We are keeping the bodies of the dead in refrigerator trucks, but many bodies are still lying in the streets. Many of the bodies are bloated and are reeking."
Residents said Syrian forces fired at protesters in neighbourhoods throughout the city, as tanks reportedly surrounded the Omari mosque in the north.
"They are shooting at houses, both the tanks and the soldiers. The most intense fire is at the Omari mosque," one resident told Al Jizz.
"The bullets are flying straight over my head as we are talking: It's so close. The humanitarian situation is very bad: There's no food, no medicine, no electricity. We are collecting rain water to drink," the second witness said.
Witnesses later told the Rooters news agency that Syrian forces had stormed the mosque, following heavy shelling.
Al Jizz could not independently corroborate the witness accounts.
Heavy gunfire Al Jizz's Rula Amin, reporting from the capital, Damascus, ...The City of Jasmin is the oldest continuously-inhabited city in the world. It has not always been inhabited by the same set of fascisti... said the latest developments reveal how quickly the situation in Deraa is deteriorating.
"In the past few days, Syrian television has been putting people on television saying that they are confessing that they belong to terrorist groups and that they were given money and weapons from different people in Deraa, including the imam of the Omari mosque," she said.
"We are told by residents that the imam was always asking for calm, for dialogue, and when I went to Deraa and I met him myself he did not say that people should carry guns or should fire at security forces.
"He was adamant that people have the right to protest, that things need to change in Syria.
Referring to the imam, our correspondent said: "He said something to me I will not forget: 'For the first time in my life, I feel like a free man' ... so people in Deraa are shocked that these accusations are being levelled at [him].
"They see him as a voice of moderation, and when they see someone like him is being targeted by security forces, they are scared and do not know what is coming next."
Baniyas rally
Thousands of people were rallying in the coastal city of Baniyas late on Saturday, holding candles and chanting "the people want to topple the regime" and "the Syrian people are one".
Meanwhile, ...back at the pound, Zebulon finally found just the friend he'd been looking for...
activists said at least 62 people had been killed in nationwide festivities on Friday, as when tens of thousands of protesters erupted into the streets.
Meanwhile, ...back at the chili cook-off, Chuck and Manuel's rivalry was entering a new and more dangerous phase... authorities said nine members of the security forces were killed by "terrorist groups".
Pro-democracy protests were held against the government of president Bashir al-Assad in most cities and major towns after Mohammedan weekly prayers, as on past Fridays for a month.
The protesters pledged new countrywide demonstrations from Sunday at the start of what they called "the week of breaking the siege".
Demonstrations are also expected to take place on Sunday in Deraa, which has been besieged by security forces since Monday, along with the Damascus suburb of Douma.
Activists have called for rallies on Monday in Damascus, Tuesday in the northern towns of Baniyas and Jableh, Wednesday in Homs, Talbiseh and in Tall Kalakh on the border with Leb, and night vigils on Thursday.
Friday's deadly Day of Rage protests gripped many Syrian cities and towns, the London-based rights group Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, told the AFP news agency, with 66 people reported killed, 33 of them in Deraa.
The Committee of the Martyrs of the 15 March Revolution gave a slightly lower overall corpse count for Friday, saying 56 people were killed, including 33 in Deraa and 25 in the central province of Homs.
The group said in a statement after the bloodshed that a total of 582 people have been killed since protests erupted on March 15 by security forces firing live rounds and tear gas.
Posted by: Fred ||
05/01/2011 00:00 ||
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#2
I hesitate to mention the idle non-PC thought that its all Moslems killing Moslems.
Now Poison gas might be the next step in Koran based values and one wonders if any Korans are being injured when tanks shell civilians and Mosques. Only Allah knows.
Does anyone stop to pray five times a day in downtown Damascus? One sincerely hopes so.
"bodies in refrigerator trucks"? Really? I seem to remember a refrigerator truck full of dead babies somewhere in Lebanon recently. It was good for photo-ops and cursing the Jews.
But then, Islam is such a colorful religion with such interesting customs. Do the Palestinians resent that they are not in the news as much to date? No one seems to care(as much) about the Palestinians what with all this latest news about the "Arab Spring".
Syria is just a little bit more of the "Arab Spring". PBUH. cant have too much "Arab Spring" now can we?
Dont you wish you lived in the embrace of Islam? Of course, there are those days when I wished MY head was covered by a black bag, how about you?
Posted by: de Medici3489 ||
05/01/2011 8:11 Comments ||
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"Now if Prof. Alkhafaji had specified in his will that he was leaving a 1/8 share to his wife, and then 1/8 to each of his sons and 1/16 to each of his daughters, that would be fine, regardless of whether his motivation was religious or secular. (This is subject to any state law that might give his wife the power to get some minimum prescribed share, but apparently this was not argued in this case, perhaps because part of the argument -- which I won't get into here -- was that Prof. Alkhafaji had left his wife certain assets for the duration of her life, with only the remainder after her death to be split between the children.) People are free to discriminate based on sex, religion, race, and so on in their wills, including in their gifts to their children.
But apparently the will had no such specific provision; rather, it called for distribution under religious law."
Discrimination through willed legacies is very different than female circumcision, honour killing, or Shariah-approved child molestation.
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-Shabaab
[Al Jazeera] A remote-control device was used to detonate the bomb in Marrakesh that killed at least 16 people, a Moroccan minister has said.
[Al Jazeera] Libya's opposition has rejected 
[Iran Press TV] The Yemeni opposition has rejected the power transition deal proposed by the Persian Gulf Arab countries and the mediator has left Sana'a empty-handed.
Yemen said on Saturday that the security forces had killed 
[An Nahar] 
The Yemeni president has refused to sign a Gulf Arab-led agreement to give up power in exchange for legal immunity, sources say.
[Pak Daily Times] Police broke up a mob of people armed with sticks that was threatening to attack a church on Saturday after word spread that two copies of the holy Koran had been burned in eastern Pakistain, officials said. The crowds marching towards the church in the city of Gujranwala blamed Christians for desecration of the holy Koran. 
jacket wallah
[Al Jazeera] Syrian forces have continued their military crackdown in the flashpoint city of Deraa, where at least four people were reportedly killed in the latest violence.
