[Tolo News] First Vice-President General Abdul Rashid Dostum ...ethnic Uzbek warlord who distinguished himself fighting the Soviets and the Taliban. The story that he had a bad guy run over with a tank is an exaggeration. It was an armored personnel carrier... has increased momentum in his fight against Taliban murderous Moslems in northern Afghanistan by rallying support from local residents. This task has been made easier by a wave of horrific terrorist attacks by the bad boy group in recent weeks as well as widespread denunciations of their alleged backers in Pakistain by Afghan leaders.
Gen. Dostum, who is now leading a clearing operation in Qaisar district of northern Faryab province, made calls for support to residents in the village of Shakh on Sunday, where he received a warm welcome.
In recent weeks, Afghan leaders from President Ashraf Ghani ...former chancellor of Kabul University, now president of Afghanistan. Before returning to Afghanistan in 2002 he was a scholar of political science and anthropology. He worked at the World Bank working on international development assistance. As Finance Minister of Afghanistan between July 2002 and December 2004, he led Afghanistan's attempted economic recovery until the Karzais stole all the money. .. to the Ulema Council have denounced the Pak military's continued support for Taliban violence inside Afghanistan, calling it a betrayal of Islamabad's commitments and a gross violation of Afghanistan's national illusory sovereignty. The statements have come after a wave of deadly terrorist attacks in Kabul ...the capital of Afghanistan. Home to continuous fighting from 1992 to 1996 between the forces of would-be strongman and Pak ISI/Jamaat-e-Islami sock puppet Gulbuddin Hekmayar and the Northern Alliance, a period which won Hek the title Most Evil Man in the World and didn't do much for the reputations of the Northern Alliance guys either.... and elsewhere that left scores of civilians dead and ignited outrage around the country.
Condemnations of Pakistain's covert support for the Taliban are nothing new, as many Afghan leaders have accused Islamabad's Inter-Service Intelligence (ISI) of providing financial and logistical support for bad boy groups active inside Afghanistan for many years. However, the way to a man's heart remains through his stomach... the breadth and intensity of the backlash over the past week is unprecedented.
On Sunday, Dostum urged Faryab locals to answer the recent call for Jihad against Pakistain by the Afghan Ulema Council. The crowd that was gathered to hear him speak responded by chanting slogans against Pakistain and the ISI.
"You might be informed about the statement of the Ulema Council in Kabul; they issued the decree of Jihad against Pakistain. The Ulema declared Jihad on the basis of the Sharia," Dostum said. "The people of Afghanistan have collapsed major emperors and Pakistain is nothing for them," he added.
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08/17/2015 00:00 ||
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[AlAhram] Russia has 'gifted' Egypt with a new missile corvette that was part of the inauguration of a new Suez Canal expansion project earlier this month, Egypt's army said.
The move by the Russian government to "gift" Egypt the Molniya missile boat is "part of military cooperation between the Egyptian and Russian armed forces" as well as indicative of "Russia's support for Egypt and the matching visions of both countries on the war against terrorism," Egyptian military front man Mohammed Samir said in a statement Saturday.
He added that the highly advanced missile ship will be a new addition to Egypt's "development and modernization plans for its naval forces."
Considered one of the most advanced units in the Russian naval fleet, the ship features multiple armament systems including surface-to-surface missile--the world's fastest naval rocket system.
A group of Egyptian navy officers are set to be dispatched to Russia to receive training on the new missile ship, the front man added.
Cairo and Moscow are seeking to bolster defense ties as Egypt's relations with the US have soured following the 2013 ouster of Islamist president Mohammed Morsi.
In June, Russia and Egypt held their first ever joint naval exercise. Russia's President Vladimir Putin ...Second and fourth President and sixth of the Russian Federation and the first to remain sober. Putin is credited with bringing political stability and re-establishing something like the rule of law, which occasionally results in somebody dropping dead from polonium poisoning. Under Putin, a new group of business magnates controlling significant swathes of Russia's economy has emerged, all of whom have close personal ties to Putin. The old bunch, without close personal ties to Putin, are in jail or in exile or dead... and Egyptian president Abdel Fattah El-Sisi exchanged visits in February in an effort to strengthen ties between the once Cold War allies.
El-Sisi is expected to hold talks in Moscow during a two-day visit later in August.
The United States delivered eight F-16 fighter jets to Cairo two weeks ago to support "security and military efforts to confront terrorism" in Egypt, which is fighting an Islamist insurgency based in the North Sinai border region.
The delivery was part of a military package that had been unfrozen in March.
Washington also delivered two navy vessels to Egypt in June, doubling Cairo's total fleet of fast missile craft to four.
[Libya Herald] There are unconfirmed reports that the Islamic State ...formerly ISIS or ISIL, depending on your preference. Before that al-Qaeda in Iraq, as shaped by Abu Musab Zarqawi. They're very devout, committing every atrocity they can find in the Koran and inventing a few more. They fling Allah around with every other sentence, but to hear the pols talk they're not really Moslems.... (IS) forces now in control of Sirte's residential district No. 3 have told the families of those they have executed that they cannot bury them in town's cemetery. A source in the town told this newspaper that the families, to whom the bodies had been returned, have been instructed to bury them in ordinary ground outside Sirte.
IS regularly denounces those opposed to it as apostates who have left Islam. In Sirte, in during the past week, it has particularly denounced those fighting it as Salafists ...Salafists are ostentatiously devout Moslems who figure the ostentation of their piety gives them the right to tell others how to do it and to kill those who don't listen to them... , with the leading IS imam in the town, Hassan Al-Karami describing Salafism as a "cancer" which had to be rooted out. It has also "crucified" a number of those executed -- hanging up the bodies and leaving them for public view, a punishment reserved in the thinking of IS and others for apostates and those deemed to have caused discord within the Moslem community. It is also intended to show that those crucified will not enter paradise.
Some of those battling against IS were Salafists although others, many of them members of the Farjan tribe who tried to avenge IS' murder of Khalid bin Rajab Ferjani, imam the district's Cordoba mosque, were not necessarily supporters of the movement. The imam was.
His refusal to hand the mosque over to IS is thought to have been the cause for his murder.
Among those executed by IS yesterday, the source said, was a woman named as Khadija Al-Ferjani. He said that when IS forces yesterday broke into her home while carrying out house-to-house raids to catch members of the resistance and see who had arms, the woman started shooting at them, killing an undisclosed number. She was captured alive, the source claimed, but later shot.
Meanwhile, ...back at the comedy club, Boogie ducked another tomato... Algeria and Italia (the first western country to do so) have joined in the condemnations of IS' actions in Sirte.
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08/17/2015 00:00 ||
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[Libya Herald] Both sides of the political divide in Libya appear to have been galvanized into action by IS' repression of last week's uprising in Sirte but there is no sign of any cooperation.
House of Representatives member for Sidra Saleh Fhaima told the Libya Herald that events in Sirte would be the main issue in tomorrow's (Monday's) sitting in Tobruk although there were also plans to discuss the planned national unity government. He also said that that following an HoR appeal to the army's general staff for action, it was now preparing an attack force.
Meanwhile, ...back at the Council of Boskone, Kinnison began his slow infiltration of the sewer system... the head of Sirte military police which supports the 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... -based Libya Dawn ...aka Fajr Libya, the Islamist operation launched to counter that of General Khalifa Haftar (Operation Dignity). It is made up of the Libya Shield militia (Misrata and Moslem Brotherhood), Libya Revolutionaries Operations Room (Moslem Brotherhood), and Tripoli Brigade (close to Abdul Hakim Belhaj, head of Al-Watan party). Financing and moral support come from Turkey and Qatar... regime is reported saying that western units were now on the outskirts of Sirte and were awaiting orders to launch an offensive against the Islamic State ...formerly ISIS or ISIL, depending on your preference. Before that al-Qaeda in Iraq, as shaped by Abu Musab Zarqawi. They're very devout, committing every atrocity they can find in the Koran and inventing a few more. They fling Allah around with every other sentence, but to hear the pols talk they're not really Moslems.... (IS). This would happen, he claimed, within the next few days.
For his part, Ibrahim Jadhran based in Ajdabiya has also called for action, but says that his forces have insufficient equipment to fight IS. Calling for more arms, he said that his men had just enough to protect the oilfields.
Today, there were reports of fresh air attacks in Sirte, hitting IS targets at the university and the municipal buildings. Sounds of heavy kabooms were heard, although the outcome of the strike is not known.
On Tuesday, the Arab League ...an organization of Arabic-speaking states with 22 member countries and four observers. The League tries to achieve Arab consensus on issues, which usually leaves them doing nothing but a bit of grimacing and mustache cursing... is to meet to consider Libya's demand for Arab Arclight airstrike against IS. The Libyan demand is said to be supported by Egypt following a meeting between Libyan Foreign Minister Mohammed Al-Dairi and his Egyptian counterpart Sameh Shoukry.
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08/17/2015 00:00 ||
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Perhaps he's not dead after all. Quite the opposite of most jihadis, who prefer to die publicly so that they can get on with living privately... until they're ready for their next turn upon the world stage.
[AlAhram] The leader of Nigeria's Boko Haram ... not to be confused with Procol Harum, Harum Scarum, possibly to be confused with Helter Skelter. The Nigerian version of al-Qaeda and the Taliban rolled together and flavored with a smigeon of distinctly Subsaharan ignorance and brutality... denied he had been killed or ousted as chief of the jihadist group in an audio recording released Sunday attributed to him by security experts.
In the eight-minute Hausa-language message, Abubakar Shekau rebuffed claims by Chadian leader Idriss Deby that he had been replaced and called the president a "hypocrite" and a "tyrant".
"It is indeed all over the global media of infidels that I am dead or that I am sick and incapacitated and have lost influence in the affairs of religion," he said in the recording released on social media. "It should be understood that this is false. This is indeed a lie. If it were true, my voice wouldn't have been heard, now that I am speaking."
Deby declared on August 12 that efforts to combat neighbouring Nigeria's Boko Haram jihadists had succeeded in "decapitating" the group and would be wrapped up "by the end of the year". Deby told news hounds in the capital N'Djamena Boko Haram was no longer led by the fearsome Shekau and that his successor, whom he named as Mahamat Daoud, was open to talks.
"Gratitude be to Allah and with his help, I have not disappeared. I am still alive and I am not dead. And I will not die until my time appointed by Allah is up," Shekau said in the message.
The SITE Intelligence Group verified the authenticity of the message, and an AFP correspondent with extensive experience of reporting Boko Haram said it exactly resembled Shekau's voice in previous recordings.
Shekau's absence from Boko Haram videos in recent months has fuelled speculation that he might have been killed or maimed. He has not spoken publicly since he pledged allegiance to the Islamic State ...formerly ISIS or ISIL, depending on your preference. Before that al-Qaeda in Iraq, as shaped by Abu Musab Zarqawi. They're very devout, committing every atrocity they can find in the Koran and inventing a few more. They fling Allah around with every other sentence, but to hear the pols talk they're not really Moslems.... (IS) group in an audio recording released on March 7.
The jihadist commander refers to himself in the new recording for the first time as "leader of the west Africa wing" of IS and pays homage to its leader His Supreme Immensity, Caliph of the Faithful and Galactic Overlord, Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi ...formerly merely the head of ISIL and a veteran of the Bagram jailhouse. Looks like a new messiah to bajillions of Moslems, like just another dead-eyed mass murder to the rest of us... , referring to him as the "Caliph of Moslems".
He taunted Nigeria's President Muhammadu Buhari, who came to power on May 29 vowing to crush Boko Haram and ordered his military chiefs last week to end the insurgency within three months.
"This ostentatious person, a liar -- I mean Buhari, who raised arms to crush us in three months. You Buhari, why didn't you say in three years?" Shekau demanded. "We will certainly fight you by the grace of Allah until we establish Allah's law everywhere on Earth."
Speculation about Shekau's condition -- and even his true identity -- has been rampant in Nigeria for years. The wanted Islamist leader's whereabouts are unknown, but he has in the past made himself heard whenever he has been proclaimed dead.
Some experts and Nigerian security officials insist "Shekau" is a composite character, with different hard boy fighters stepping into the role at different times. The original Abubakar Shekau -- the son of poor farmers who became radicalised in a series of theological schools before taking over Boko Haram in 2010 -- actually died months, or possibly several years ago, according to the security services.
But the United States and other experts have questioned the credibility of that claim.
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[FINANCIALEXPRESS] If Chadian President Idriss Deby is to be believed, Abubakar Shekau, the bearded and bandoliered leader of Islamist militant group Boko Haram, is no more.
And information about the man President Deby says is the new head of Boko Haram, Mahamat Daoud.
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#1
Fascinating. Given that Mr. Shekau subsequently proclaimed himself defiantly among the living, one hopes the saintly Mr. Daoud is not about to replace him among the dead.
[ARABNEWS] Pro-government forces supported by Gulf air strikes have made key gains against Iran-backed Iranian catspaws in Yemen's third city Taez, seen as a gateway to the capital, military sources said Sunday.
The so-called Popular Resistance Committees, loyal to exiled President Abed Rabbo Mansour Hadi, have seized several strategic locations in central Taez, military officials said.
However, man does not live by words alone, despite the fact that sometimes he has to eat them... the Houthi ...a Zaidi Shia insurgent group operating in Yemen. They have also been referred to as the Believing Youth. Hussein Badreddin al-Houthi is said to be the spiritual leader of the group and most of the military leaders are his relatives. The Yemeni government has accused the Houthis of having ties to the Iranian government, which wouldn't suprise most of us. The group has managed to gain control over all of Saada Governorate and parts of Amran, Al Jawf and Hajjah Governorates. Its slogan is God is Great, Death to America™, Death to Israel, a curse on the Jews ... rebels and their allies still control entrances to Taez and other parts of the city.
The officials reported heavy fighting around the presidential palace in Taez and the nearby central security forces' camp -- held by the rebels.
Rashad Al-Sharaabi, front man of the Popular Resistance Committees in Taez, said 10 rebels and four loyalist fighters were killed in the past 24 hours.
Loyalist forces have retaken the intelligence headquarters and a fortress from which the rebels had been shelling Taez, as well as the highest peak overlooking the city on Jabal Sabr, Sharaabi told AFP.
Saudi-led Gulf coalition warplanes carried out several fresh air strikes in Taez early on Sunday, witnesses said.
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08/17/2015 00:00 ||
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[ARABNEWS] A huge arms cache seized in Kuwait last week was smuggled into the country from Iran, two Kuwaiti newspapers reported on Sunday.
Al-Anba reported at the time that the arms had been smuggled across the border from Iraq for use by members of an Iran-backed Hezbollah cell.
But Al-Rai and Al-Qabas dailies, citing sources, reported that the weapons had been brought into Kuwait by sea from Iran. They said the information had come from confessions made by the detainees.
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08/17/2015 00:00 ||
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[Dhaka Tribune] At least 300 leaders and activists of the BNP joined the ruling Awami League in Khagrachhari yesterday.
Local Awami League politician Kujendra Lal Tripura welcomed them with floral wreaths at a discussion in the afternoon at the Town Hall auditorium.
The event was organised to mark the 40th anniversary of death of the father of the nation Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman.
Around 200 BNP men led by district BNP member and Khagrachhari sadar union Chairman Amya Marma, 50 people led by district BNP member and Panchhari upazila Vice-Chairman Ratna Tanchangya and 50 others led by district Jubo Dal member Ershad joined the ruling party formally. They also vowed to work upholding the spirit of the party.
MP Kujendra asked them to work for the welfare of the society. "Awami League believes only in democracy, and it exercises democracy aiming at developing the country," he added.
Khagrachhari Hill District Council Chairman Kongjori Chowdhury, District AL vice-presidents Rono Bikrom Tripura and Mokyaching Chowdhury, General Secretary Md Jahedul Alam, district unit Jubo League ... the youth wing of the Bangla Awami League... General Secretary Ismail Hossain and Chhatra League ... the student wing of the Bangla Awami League ... General Secretary Jahir Uddin Firon also addressed the programme.
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[Dhaka Tribune] A local Jubo League ... the youth wing of the Bangla Awami League... activist was killed and five others sustained bullet injuries during a clash between two groups of Awami League supporters over joining a mourning day rally in Kushtia yesterday, UNB reports.
The dear departed was Sabuj, 23, son of Mobarak of Jhalupara.
The incident coincided with the National Mourning Day, which was observed across the country marking the 40th death anniversary of Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman.
Witnesses said a group of Awami League supporters brought out a rally from Milpara area around 12 at noon marking the National Mourning Day.
The clash broke out when members of another Awami League group, led by Awami League Kushtia unit's former general secretary Mominur Rahman Momiz, tried to join the rally.
Both groups carried hockey sticks, sharp weapons and firearms, and several rounds were fired during the clash, leaving five people, including Sabuj, Bidyut, 38, and Ajmal Hossain, 28, injured.
They were taken to Kushtia General Hospital where doctors pronounced Sabuj dead.
Doctors said two of the injured were in a critical condition.
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08/17/2015 00:00 ||
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The chief of the North Korean Army's General Staff, Ri Yong-gil, and the chief of the General Bureau of Reconnaissance, Kim Yong-chol, have been absent from major state events recently, fueling speculation about their fate.
The official [North] Korean Central News Agency's report on leader Kim Jong-un's Saturday visit to the Kumsusan Palace of the Sun, where the embalmed bodies of nation founder Kim Il-sung and his son Jong-il are displayed, did not mention the two top officials, and they appear in none of the pictures.
The visit marked the 70th Liberation Day, a major event that would normally be attended by all top officials.
Ri was also absent from another ceremony on Friday marking the anniversary.
Ri and Kim were last seen on July 27, which marks the end of the Korean War and is celebrated as "Victory Day" in North Korea.
Some North Korea watchers believe Ri and Kim may have been busy trying to deal with the fallout from a mine attack that saw South Korea resume a propaganda broadcast campaign along the entire frontline. One researcher at a state-run think tank said, "There are no signs that Ri Yong-gil and Kim Yong-chol have been sacked. There is a strong chance that they’re preparing for another military provocation."
And a non-zero chance that they were stood in front of an anti-aircraft gun, fed to rabid dogs, or made to view pics of a nekkid Fat Boy...
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08/17/2015 00:00 ||
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North Korea on Saturday threatened to shoot down South Korean loudspeakers that have resumed blasting propaganda across the demilitarized zone. The North Korean Army's frontline command in an "open warning" threatened to "take wholesale military action to pulverize all psychological warfare means along the entire frontline."
The loudspeaker campaign was restarted after two young South Korean conscripts were maimed by box mines planted by the North in the DMZ on Aug. 4.
"The resumption of the propaganda loudspeaker campaign is a direct provocation of war against us," the North’s official Korean Central News Agency quoted the frontline command as saying. "Never forget that military action will be an indiscriminate strike that takes possible challenge and escalation into consideration."
The North Korean National Defense Commission also demanded that South Korea and the U.S. stop upcoming military drills. The annual drills are mostly focused on computer simulations and involve 30,000 U.S. troops, including 3,000 reinforcement personnel from overseas, and some 50,000 South Korean troops.
Joint Chiefs of Staff Chairman Choi Yoon-hee called an urgent video conference with field commanders right after the North issued the threat. He ordered them to "respond to a provocation from the North strongly and resolutely."
"We're watching North Korean army movements closely because there's a high chance of a provocation," a military spokesman said.
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08/17/2015 00:00 ||
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#1
See also TOPIX > [Big News Network] NORTH KOREA THREATENS NUCLEAR ATTACK ON US.
* RELATED RUSSIA TODAY > NORTH KOREA THREATENS TO "INVADE US" UNLESS SOUTH KOREAN MILITARY EXERCISE AREN'T CANCELLED.
* DEFENCE.PK/FORUMS, LUCIANNE > [Washington Examiner] TIME TO UNIFY KOREA.
As said before, THE IRONY IS THAT THE US-ALLIES MAY ACTUALLY NEED + WANT KIM JONG-UN = NORTH KOREA TO HAVE NUKES IN ORDER TO BREAK CHINA'S CONTROL + FACILITATE DE FACTO INTER-KOREAN REUNIFICATION.
Also, CHINA = desires to keep the US out of any de facto military conflict in East Asia + IOR between China + US Regional Allies, + still would like the same - espec JAPAN - on its side or under its "Sphere(s) of Influence".
PRAGMATICALLY, ALL ANTI-US US GLOBALIST POTUS + MIGHTY "RED LINE" DEFENDER OBAMA HAS TO DO TO HELP CHINA ACHIEVE THE ABOVE IS SIMPLY TO PCORRECTLY-DENIABLY N-O-T ENFORCE THE US-JAPAN SECURITY TREATY AS LIKE WID OTHER US EAST ASIA ALLIES.
For Any, Each, + All the various Reasons already well-defined on the MSM-Net + by the Bammer Admin.
[RUDAW.NET] German Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier said Sunday the potential declaration of an independent Kurdistan would destabilized the Middle East and intensifies political conflicts across the restive region. ... as opposed to the rock solidity the region now enjoys.
In an interview with the Bild am Sonntag newspaper, Steinmeier said it would be better if Kurds stay with a unified Iraq rather than build their own independent state. He added that an independent Kurdistan would add more complication to conflicts in the region.
Steinmeier went on to say Kurdish Peshmerga forces now battling the Islamic State ...formerly ISIS or ISIL, depending on your preference. Before that al-Qaeda in Iraq, as shaped by Abu Musab Zarqawi. They're very devout, committing every atrocity they can find in the Koran and inventing a few more. They fling Allah around with every other sentence, but to hear the pols talk they're not really Moslems.... , or ISIS, need to receive more aid from Western countries. He stressed the need of humanitarian assistance for refugees and displaced people in the Kurdistan region.
He said Germany understands why The Sick Man of Europe Turkey ...the only place on the face of the earth that misses the Ottoman Empire.... has recently resumed its military operations and aerial attack on the Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK). He emphasized that even after withdrawing German Patriot missile batteries from Turkey, Germany won't stop supporting Ankara.
"Germany feels a responsibility towards Turkey's security in the region," said Steinmeier.
He said ISIS is poses a serious threat to Turkey's borders, adding that the PKK has also launched attacks against Turkish security forces.
The German Defense Ministry announced Saturday plans to withdraw its Patriot Missiles from the Turkish-Syrian border. The move comes after heated debate in German society over Turkey's stance towards 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... and the West.
Starting in 2013, the Patriot Missile issue had caused heated debate in Germany. Many Germans oppose the NATO mission, despite Ankara being a member state, viewing Turkey as not doing its part against the Death Eaters.
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08/17/2015 00:00 ||
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#1
It's simply fascinating how all the advanced thinkers---the ones whose belief that Arabs of "Palestine" must have their own state is a self-evident fact---are opposed to Kurdish self-determination.
#2
This is more destabilized than it already is. Kinda the way reuniting Germany destabilized European politics. What he's actually concerned about is, they've already bribed people, and those may not be able to make good on the bribes if the power shifts.
Posted by: ed in texas ||
08/17/2015 7:26 Comments ||
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#3
Q: How long has Germany been playing kissyface with Turkey? A: Actually, before there was a Turkey. And how many Turks work in Germany? Millions?
According to the CIA World Factbook, Germany's population of 80,854,408 is 2.4% Turkish, or about 1.94 million. Many of them must now be second or third generation, the descendants of the guest workers who came since 1961 and settled. It's safe to assume that more than half are women and children, many of whom do not have paying jobs, so less than 1 million are working there.
On the other hand, Wikipedia says the data, such as it is, can be sliced and diced in a number of different ways. 1.55 million permanent residents of Germany hold Turkish citizenship vs. 840,000 Turks who have taken German citizenship. There are 2.998 million Germans who have at least one Turkish parent, or 3.7% of the population. Apparently 1/5th to 1/4th of Turkish nationals are Kurds. Lots more here.
#8
As Christians flee a region, violence escalates. A Kurdistan will bring forth a multi-cultural society in that area, but not peace throughout the ME.
[IsraelTimes] Joint statement says air-defense units can be swiftly returned to defend the NATO ...the North Atlantic Treaty Organization. It's headquartered in Belgium. That sez it all.... member state if needed
The United States is withdrawing its Patriot missile system deployed near The Sick Man of Europe Turkey ...the only place on the face of the earth that misses the Ottoman Empire.... 's border with Syria when its mandate expires in October.
A joint Turkish and US announcement said Sunday that the air-defense units could be returned to Turkey within a week if the need arises. It said US navy ships would be present in the Mediterranean to support Turkey's defense.
The US, Germany and others deployed the batteries in 2013 to protect NATO ally Turkey after shells fired from Syria landed in the country.
The US decision comes a day after Germany said it would withdraw some 250 troops stationed in Turkey when the mandate for their air-defense mission ends next year. Germany said the main threat in the region came from the Islamic State ...formerly ISIS or ISIL, depending on your preference. Before that al-Qaeda in Iraq, as shaped by Abu Musab Zarqawi. They're very devout, committing every atrocity they can find in the Koran and inventing a few more. They fling Allah around with every other sentence, but to hear the pols talk they're not really Moslems.... group which doesn't possess missiles.
#2
IMO Artic reads, PUTIN WINS AGAIN + USA CONTINUES ITS WORLDWIDE UNILATERAL STRATEGIC [Self]RETREAT BY, FOR, + IN THE NAME OF US-LED ANTI-US OWG-NWO.
#6
Germany did the same the other day. Is this a middle finger raised to Turkey's illusory sovereignty or just the need to get troops out before they get swirled up in the fighting? Both is a good answer.
Is there a Kickstarter for the Kurdish airforce? I'd throw in a couple bucks.
[DAWN] The Indian coasties officer who claimed blowing up an alleged Pak boat when the Modi government blamed the crew for setting it on fire will be court-martialled, the Times of India said on Saturday.
It said Coast Guard DIG B.K. Loshali, who had contradicted government's version of events in connection with the interception of the mystery boat in January, will face court-martial proceedings from September after being indicted by a Board of Inquiry (BoI).
The BoI was instituted in February after Coast Guard found "unsatisfactory" Mr Loshali's reply to the show-cause notice issued to him over remarks that he had ordered the Pak boat to be blown up off the Porbandar coast.
The BoI had submitted its report to the Coast Guard headquarters in late April after which it was studied at various levels.
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[DAWN] India summoned Pakistain's envoy in New Delhi Sunday to protest against the weekend killing of at least half a dozen civilians in border firings, hiking tensions ahead of talks between the nuclear-armed rivals.
Six civilians died on the weekend in troubled Indian Kashmire after firing and shelling by Pak troops from across the border, claimed Indian police.
Another two non-combatants were killed in shelling by Indian soldiers into the Pak side of the disputed Himalayan region, according to a Pak official on Saturday.
"We are concerned about the ceasefire violations in the months of July and August," Pakistain High Commissioner Abdul Basit told news hounds outside the foreign ministry office in Delhi where he had been hauled in.
"There have been close to 70 ceasefire violations from this side [Indian] of the LoC (Line of Control) and working boundary," he said.
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[RUDAW.NET] Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi on Saturday ordered a court-martial to investigate Iraqi military officials who are suspected of abandoning their positions when ISIS seized Ramadi.
Abadi announced in a statement that Iraqi officials who fled their posts during the ISIS attack will be brought to justice under the rule of law.
Abadi's decision comes amind his extensive reform campaign to reshuffle the government and combat corruption and mismanagement in the country.
In mid-May, jihadists took advantage of a sandstorm to capture Ramadi, the capital of Anbar Province. The jihadists were met with little resistance from Iraqi forces and took the city quickly in what is considered the biggest victory in 2015 for the bully boys.
ISIS seized a large cache of ammunition and weapons, including rocket-propelled grenades and heavy machine guns supplied by the United States and Russia.
More than 85 percent of Anbar province, Iraq's second largest province, is held by ISIS.
Sunni-majority Fallujah, ... the City of Mosques, which might have somthing to do with why it's not called Center of Prosperity or a really nice place to raise your kids... 69 kilometers west of Baghdad, has been under ISIS control since last summer. The Iraqi Army has been continuously shelling the city to weaken ISIS.
A day after the fall of Ramadi, Abadi ordered Iraqi forces not to abandon their positions across the Anbar province. There were fears the Lions of Islam could capture the entire Sunni province, which saw intense fighting after the 2003 US-led invasion of the country to topple dictator Saddam Hussein.
Posted by: Fred ||
08/17/2015 00:00 ||
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[RUDAW.NET] A parliamentary report in Iraq investigating the fall of the city of djinn-infested Mosul ... the home of a particularly ferocious and hairy djinn... to the Islamic State ...formerly ISIS or ISIL, depending on your preference. Before that al-Qaeda in Iraq, as shaped by Abu Musab Zarqawi. They're very devout, committing every atrocity they can find in the Koran and inventing a few more. They fling Allah around with every other sentence, but to hear the pols talk they're not really Moslems.... group (ISIS) more than a year ago placed former prime minister Nouri al-Malki's name at the top of the list, a Kurdish MP said.
Other brass hats blamed for the fall of Iraq's second-largest city include Babakir Zebari, chief of staff of the Iraiq army, Abud Qanbar, commander of the joint operations in Iraq, Ali Ghedan, commander of the combat forces, and Saadun Dlaimi, former defense minister.
The report also implicated former Mosul governor Atheel Nujaifi, said Shakawan Abdulla, deputy head of the investigative committee and a Kurdish MP in the Iraqi parliament.
"A top official accused for the fall of Mosul is the former Iraqi prime minister Nouri al-Maliki ... Prime Minister of Iraq and the secretary-general of the Islamic Dawa Party. Maliki imposed order on Basra wen the Shiites were going nuts, but has proven incapable of dealing with al-Qaeda's Sunni insurgency. Reelected to his third term in 2014... , whose name appears at the top of the list," Abdulla told Rudaw.
He said MPs from Maliki's State of law bloc "did not vote in favor of submitting the final report and they tried to remove Maliki from the list but failed to do so," he told Rudaw.
The committee was composed of 26 members, 17 of whom voted in favor of the report, which included the names of 35 Iraqi army leaders and brass hats in Iraq involved.
The report is in two parts, first naming those directly responsible for losing Mosul, and the second blaming those who were negligent when ISIS attacked Mosul, including Nujaifi.
The report has also accused the Turkish consulate in Mosul.
The Iraqi parliament formed a committee of 26 MPs last December to find and punish officials who abandoned Mosul to ISIS.
The faceless myrmidons captured Mosul after the Iraqi Army fled without a fight, leaving large caches of modern and heavy weapons behind.
Posted by: Fred ||
08/17/2015 00:00 ||
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Top|| File under: Govt of Iraq
#1
Sounds like something the U.S. Congress would do. Simple to write a report; harder to drive out the Enemies of Freedom-Loving People Everywhere.
Posted by: Bobby ||
08/17/2015 7:35 Comments ||
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[RUDAW.NET] Iraqi police are poised to advance on Ramadi in Anbar province, following the recapture of the city outskirts. The news comes amid reports that Iraqi forces have arrived at Anbar University, just a few kilometers from the center of Ramadi. But the advance has been slow because of explosives and booby traps planted in the newly-liberated areas.
According to information obtained from residents, people living close to Ramadi's city gate have evacuated homes in anticipation of upcoming festivities.
Posted by: Fred ||
08/17/2015 00:00 ||
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Top|| File under: Islamic State
#3
Pragmatically, NUKE-ARMED ISRAEL = CHINA IN EAST ASIA-PACIFIC = has to decide iff the merits or premises of SO-CALLED "ZIONISM", wid ISRAEL as a "GREAT POWER" OR EVEN OWG "CO-SUPERPOWER", can be delayed or amended, versus being fully accomplished in the near-term, + knowing or recognizing that any delays to Zionist Israel's geopolitical agenda likely means its dedicated Enemies, Rivals, andor Wannabes will become that much more stronger relative to Israel over future time.
ESPEC WID RISING-IRAN-VS-RISING-TURKEY REGIONAL + CO-SUPERPOWER RIVALRY = BATTLE FOR IRAN-VS-TURKIC "SPHERE(S) OF INFLUENCE" OCCURRING RIGHT IN FRONT OF ISRAEL TOWARDS ZIONISM-IMPORTANT TIGRIS-EUPHRATES.
As we see with CHINA in East-South China Seas + IOR, ODDS ARE VERY HIGH THAT ISRAEL WILL CHOOSE TO N-O-T GIVE UP ON ITS HISTORICAL ZIONIST IDEALS OR AGENDA.
Wid Rising Iran, + now poten ditto Rising Turkey, as POTUS OBama's = USA's new BFF + Co-Superpower sibling(s?), ISRAEL MAY HAVE TO LOOK NORTH ANDOR DIRECTLY SOUTH OF ITS EASTERN BORDERS TO ASYMETRICALLY ACCOMPLISH THE ZIONIST AGENDA. DITTO AS PER ISRAEL LOOKING TO INCREASE ITS ECON + MAJOR NON-MILITARY INFLUENCE IN EUROPE + NORTH AFRICA, ETC.
Lastly, there is also the poten for ISRAELI ALLIANCE wid JORDAN.
[IsraelTimes] Long-term ceasefire between Hamas, always the voice of sweet reason, and Israel would tear Gazoo away from West Bank for good, claims Paleostinian communist party official
Hamas is about to sign a "comprehensive" agreement with Israel for the lifting of an eight-year blockade placed on the Gazoo Strip in return for a long-term ceasefire, a senior Turkish official said on Sunday.
Why is a Turkish official announcing this?
But the agreement is facing domestic opposition from without, as Paleostinian factions consider it a potential danger to the political unity of Gazoo and the West Bank as stipulated by the Oslo Accords.
What political unity? The joint government of technocrats fell apart without ever having actually come together, and that's just between Hamas and Fatah, a.k.a. the Palestinian Authority. Within each of the Palestinian territories even more factions contend with guile and violence against those running things.
In an interview with Hamas daily al-Resalah, Yasin Aktay, an adviser to Turkish Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu and deputy chairman of the ruling Justice and Development Party, said that Hamas's political leader Khaled Mashaal came to Ankara last week to update the Turkish leadership on the details of an agreement reached with Israel and mediated by former British prime minister Tony Blair.
Continued on Page 49
[AnNahar] Al-Qaeda's Syrian affiliate Al-Nusra Front has freed several members of a U.S.-trained rebel force that it kidnapped two weeks ago, the Western-backed unit said in a statement.
In a statement circulating on social media, Division 30 said seven of its members had been freed by Al-Nusra after being captured in late July.
"Seven Division 30 fighters who were being held by the brothers in Al-Nusra Front have been freed," the statement stamped by the unit said.
"We welcome this noble initiative and urge the brothers of Al-Nusra and hope that they will release in the coming hours the group's commander and other fighters," the statement continued.
It did not specify where the releases took place. All the kidnaps occurred in northern Syria.
Division 30 is among the units receiving training as part of a U.S.-led program operating from The Sick Man of Europe Turkey ...the only place on the face of the earth that misses the Ottoman Empire.... that is intended to create a force to fight the Islamic State ...formerly ISIS or ISIL, depending on your preference. Before that al-Qaeda in Iraq, as shaped by Abu Musab Zarqawi. They're very devout, committing every atrocity they can find in the Koran and inventing a few more. They fling Allah around with every other sentence, but to hear the pols talk they're not really Moslems.... group.
But after the first 54 members of the force entered Syria in July, 13 were kidnapped by Al-Nusra, including a commander, and at least three more were killed in festivities with the jihadist group.
Al-Nusra accused the captured fighters of serving U.S. interests and grabbed credit for the kidnap in a video purporting to show some of the detained forces.
#1
So, these guys are either related to somebody, or told a convincing "I take their money and their weapons, not their BS" line.
Posted by: ed in texas ||
08/17/2015 7:21 Comments ||
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#2
Over 20 of these US-trained "DIV 30" members have repor defected + joined AL-NUSRA after being captured???
VERSUS
* WAFF > EX-USDIA DIRECTOR GENERAL FLYNN [MGEN. Michael Flynn, USA] SAYS OBAMA [indirectly] CREATED ISIS TO BLOW UP SYRIAN GOVERNMENT.
By POTUS Obama little or nothing to stop the INTEL-predicted/anticipated formation, evolution, + rise of the former ISLAMIC STATE OF IRAQ + LEVANT INTO THE ISIS.
* PRAVDA > IFF ISIS ATTACKED PUTIN'S RUSSIA, ISLAMIC MILITANTS WILL BECOME "GOOD GUYS" FOR THE WEST.
* FREEREPUBLIC > [Washington Free Beacon] [USCRS] GOVERNMENT REPORT: US FIGHT AGZ ISLAMIC STATE DISORGANIZED, INCOHERENT.
------------------
Fear notteth, SYRIA = BABY ASSAD, iff the ISIS/ISIL = AL-NUSRA get too close all PUTIN has to do is .... ...
* CHINA DAILY FORUM, WORLD MILITARY FORUM > PUTIN SECRETLY ORDERS ACTIVATION OF UNDERGOUND EARTHQUAKE WEAPON.
D *** NG IT, as per 196's-1970's Guam Taotamonas -my Ancestors + Pre-Cestors - HERE I AM BELIEVING IT'LL BE THE PACIFIC-N-WORLD-RETREATING US THAT WILL SINK GUAM, CNMI, + OTHER STRATEGIC PACIFIC ISLANDS TO DENY THEIR MILITARY UTILITY TO CHINA, WHEN IN REALITY IT WAS DARTH VLAD = RUSSIA ALL ALONG!
[VINNY "I'M SO CONFUSED" BARBARINO here].
Of course, Vlad, + to include Dimitri, you realize this means your invites as Adults to the barbecue in Barrigada may be cancelled!?
[ALMANAR.LB] The successful operation that resulted in the arrest of terrorist Ahmad al-Assir was “purely Lebanese,” with no international or Palestinian intelligence agencies playing a role, General Security chief Abbas Ibrahim said.
“We are never embarrassed to say we cooperate with regional agencies in our operations, and this is what occurred when we arrested [extremist militant Shadi] Mawlawi,” Ibrahim was quoted as saying. “But this time, [the operation] was purely Lebanese and fully carried out by the General Security... from A to Z.”
He dismissed as “false” media reports that claimed Palestinian factions or foreign intelligence agencies helped Lebanese authorities identify Assir, who was arrested at Beirut’s airport Saturday morning.
According to Ibrahim, the operation was the result of close monitoring of the fugitive by the General Security.
Ibrahim also denied that General Security was able to identify Assir, who was wearing a disguise, through a retina scanning machine. “We have no such technology,” he said.
Posted by: Fred ||
08/17/2015 00:00 ||
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Top|| File under: Salafists
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.
[Tolo News] First Vice-President General Abdul Rashid 
...Second and fourth President and sixth of the Russian Federation and the first to remain sober. Putin is credited with bringing political stability and re-establishing something like the rule of law, which occasionally results in somebody dropping dead from polonium poisoning. Under Putin, a new group of business magnates controlling significant swathes of Russia's economy has emerged, all of whom have close personal ties to Putin. The old bunch, without close personal ties to Putin, are in jail or in exile or dead...
[Libya Herald] There are unconfirmed reports that the 
[ARABNEWS] Pro-government forces supported by Gulf air strikes have made key gains against Iran-backed 
The chief of the North Korean Army's General Staff, Ri Yong-gil, and the chief of the General Bureau of Reconnaissance, Kim Yong-chol, have been absent from major state events recently, fueling speculation about their fate. 
[IsraelTimes] Joint statement says air-defense units can be swiftly returned to defend the 
Nouri al-Maliki
[AnNahar] Al-Qaeda's Syrian affiliate Al-Nusra Front has freed several members of a U.S.-trained rebel force that it kidnapped two weeks ago, the Western-backed unit said in a statement.
[ALMANAR.LB] The successful operation that resulted in the arrest of terrorist Ahmad al-Assir was “purely Lebanese,” with no international or Palestinian intelligence agencies playing a role, General Security chief Abbas Ibrahim said.
