An Egyptian court has dropped the case against former President Hosni Mubarak of conspiring to kill protesters during the 2011 rebellion against him. The court also cleared Mubarak's former Interior Minister, Habib al-Adly, and six other security officials of wrongdoing over the deaths.
The courtroom erupted in cheers when the judge concluded the retrial by dismissing the charges which relate to the deaths of hundreds of demonstrators. Mubarak was also cleared of a corruption charge involving gas exports to Israel.
Mubarak is still serving a separate three-year sentence for embezzlement of public funds. Mubarak and his former interior minister were convicted of conspiracy to kill and given a life sentence in June 2012, but a retrial was ordered last year.
[An Nahar] An anti-Islamist former Libyan general, Khalifa Haftar ... served in the Libyan army under Muammar Qadaffy, and took part in the coup that brought Qadaffy to power in 1969. He became a prisoner of war in Chad in 1987. While held prisoner, he and his fellow officers formed a group hoping to overthrow Qadaffy. He was released around 1990 in a deal with the United States government and spent nearly two decades in the United States, gaining US citizenship. In 1993, while living in the United States, he was convicted in absentia of crimes against the Jamahiriya and sentenced to death. Haftar held a senior position in the anti-Qadaffy forces in the 2011 Libyan Civil War. In 2014 he was commander of the Libyan Army when the General National Congress (GNC) refused to give up power in accordance with its term of office. Haftar launched a campaign against the GNC and its Islamic fundamentalist allies. His campaign allowed elections to take place to replace the GNC, but then developed into a civil war. Guess you can't win them all... , said Friday he has given himself two weeks to take Benghazi and three months to recapture the capital 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...
The strongman, who is allied to the Libyan parliament, has been battling Islamist militias who took control of the war-torn country's biggest cities this summer after their defeat in elections.
Forces loyal to Haftar and Prime Minister Abdullah al-Thani are fighting for control of Benghazi in the east and have launched an offensive against Islamist positions west of the capital.
"For Tripoli we are only at the beginning," Haftar told the Italian daily Corriere della Sera. "We need more men and more supplies and weaponry."
"I have given myself three months, but maybe we will need less. The Islamists of Fajr Libya (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... ) are not difficult to fight, no more so than 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.... at Derna," the town in the east of the war-torn country which has become a base for forces of Evil affiliated to the bad boy group who control swathes of Syria and Iraq.
"But the priority is Benghazi," Haftar said. "The Ansar Asharia (Islamist militia) is battle-hardened, that takes more work, even though we control 80 percent of the city and we are pushing forward," he added.
The general wants parliament and al-Thani's internationally-recognized government, now based in Tobruk, close to the Egyptian border, to come back at least to Benghazi. "I have given myself a deadline of December 15," he said.
More than three years after dictator Moamer Qadaffy was toppled and killed in a NATO ...the North Atlantic Treaty Organization. A single organization with differing goals, equipment, language, doctrine, and organization.... -backed revolt, Libya is awash with weapons and powerful militias, and has rival governments and parliaments.
"The Tobruk parliament is the one elected by the people. The one in Tripoli is an illegal assembly where the Islamists want to turn back history," Haftar insisted.
"But the real danger comes from the fundamentalists who want to impose their will everywhere. If Ansar Asharia takes power here, the threat will come to you in Europe, in your houses," he said in the interview, given close to Benghazi.
"Egypt, Algeria, the Emirates and Soddy Arabia ...a kingdom taking up the bulk of the Arabian peninsula. Its primary economic activity involves exporting oil and soaking Islamic rubes on the annual hajj pilgrimage. The country supports a large number of princes in whatcha might call princely splendor. When the oil runs out the rest of the world is going to kick sand in the Soddy national face... have sent us arms and ammunition, but only their older technology. We are not asking you (Europeans) to send us ground troops or bomber aircraft. If we have adequate military equipment we will manage," he added.
Posted by: Fred ||
11/29/2014 00:00 ||
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Security experts of South Korea and China clashed Friday over a possible deployment of an advanced U.S. missile-defense system on South Korean soil, highlighting a long-standing rift between Seoul and Beijing despite their growing warmth on bilateral ties.
South Korea has officially disavowed its intention to join or host the U.S. missile-defense system known as the Terminal High-Altitude Area Defense (THAAD) battery, but the Pentagon has said it is considering deploying it in South Korea to better defend against missile threats from North Korea. About 28,500 U.S. troops are stationed in South Korea.
If the Chinese were to "deal with" North Korea in a definitive way there'd be no need for THAAD, or even U.S. troops, on the Korean peninsula. Perhaps the Chinese and South Koreans could find a way...
China's opposition to a deployment of the THAAD battery in South Korea has been well known, but the disagreement at a forum, jointly hosted by the South Korean Consulate General in Shanghai and the Shanghai Academy of Social Sciences, again proved how it is difficult for South Korea and China to develop common security interests in Northeast Asia.
Liu Ming, deputy head of the Institute of International Relations at the Shanghai institute, told the forum that a deployment of the advanced U.S. missile-defense system in South Korea would "pose a threat" to China's security interests because its radar system can monitor military facilities in China.
Nam Sung-wook, a professor of North Korean studies at Seoul-based Korea University, hit back at the Chinese opposition, saying that South Korea can't intercept a North Korean missile flying at an altitude higher than 100 kilometers. Nam, who also serves as a policy adviser at South Korea's defense ministry, said South Korea "can't help but deploying" the THAAD battery because the country's security is under threat from North Korea's missiles.
Nam called on China to "play a more active role" in persuading North Korea to give up its nuclear weapons program.
Earlier this week, the Chinese ambassador to South Korea, Qiu Guohong, warned that, if South Korea allows the U.S. to deploy the THAAD battery on its soil, it would hurt Seoul-Beijing relations, a South Korean lawmaker said after meeting him.
Posted by: Steve White ||
11/29/2014 00:00 ||
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Surprisingly enough they're not named "Michelle", "Valerie", and "Susan"...
Three women form a core part of the repressive North Korean regime, loyally lining up behind their tubby brother and husband to fend off challenges to his authority.
They are leader Fat Boy Kim Jong-un's wife Ri Sol-ju, his older half-sister Kim Sul-song, and his younger sister Kim Yeo-jong.
Kim Sul-song is the oldest of the three. She is believed to have been born in 1974, the eldest daughter of former leader Kim Jong-il and his second wife Kim Yong-suk. She studied political economics at Kim Il-sung University. Since the late 1990s, she has worked in the Workers Party.
So she's a sinister, professional hack...
She is believed to have acted as a secretary to her father, managing his security detail and engagement schedule, and now does the same job for Suet Face Kim Jong-un.
Ken Gause of the U.S. Center for Naval Analyses speculates that Kim Sul-song is at the apex of a structure that collects and controls the information flow in the regime.
Kim Sul-song and her husband, Sin Pok-nam, a senior party official, played a central role in purging former eminence grise Jang Song-taek and are now spearheading the reform of the party, New Politics Alliance for Democracy lawmaker Hong Ihk-pyo said last year quoting a North Korean source in China.
Ri, who was born in 1989 or thereabouts, is believed to have been influential in helping Choe Ryong-hae, who had been almost elbowed aside by Hwang Pyong-so, return to the center of power recently. Ri came to Choe's rescue because she is close to his wife Kang Kyong-sil, according to rumors.
There also is speculation that Air Force general Ri Pyong-chol was appointed to the top decision-making National Defense Commission in September because Ri Sol-ju's father was an Air Force pilot. This suggests that she is a vital ally for anyone seeking promotion.
Kim Yeo-jong has taken a key post in the Workers Party, though what exactly her duties are is unclear.
She's also a sinister, professional hack...
Posted by: Steve White ||
11/29/2014 00:00 ||
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#1
Surprisingly enough they're not named "Michelle", "Valerie", and "Susan"...
[Ynet] Turkey, which is part of NATO ...the North Atlantic Treaty Organization. It's headquartered in Belgium. That sez it all.... , responds to accusation that captured Hamas, always the voice of sweet reason, cell acted on orders from Istanbul; Turkish diplomats say some in Israel attempting to derail diplomatic reconciliation
What reconciliation? Erdogan's Turkey could never accept the equality with the Jewish state that diplomatic reconciliation requires.
Turkey denied on Friday the claim that Hamas planned terrorist attacks from headquarters in Istanbul. The Shin Bet made the accusation on Thursday, setting off a diplomatic face-off between Israel and Turkey. Turkish sources argued that the Shin Bet's announcement was meant to demonize Turkey and sabotage attempts to mend the countries' diplomatic ties.
Israel requested NATO and the American government to take steps against Turkey in response. "It's illogical for a NATO member to host a terrorist organization that trains and plans terror attacks on its soil," said the Israeli statement.
Turkish diplomats were enraged by Israel's allegations, calling them "lies and deception".
"It never happened," the diplomats said. "There are elements in Israel who are trying to torpedo the attempts to smooth things out between the two countries and turn a new leaf. They are telling lies, as though Hamas operates in Turkey with the government's knowledge. Turkey has a dialogue with Hamas, but will absolutely not allow any terror organization to operate on its soil."
Minister of Strategic Affairs Yuval Steinitz said on Thursday that Israel expected the US and NATO to pressure on Turkey to immediately dismantle Hamas infrastructure in the country and to cease turning a blind eye to its presence.
"This is a very worrying and serious development," Steinitz said. "We did not expect this. Turkey is a NATO member that fights terror. Hamas is a terror organization, so this is a very serious issue."
Defense Minister Moshe Ya'alon complained in an October meeting with the outgoing American Secretary of Defense Chuck Hagel in October that "Turkey is playing a cynical game. Hamas is supported by Turkey and Qatar ...an emirate on the east coast of the Arabian Peninsula. It sits on some really productive gas and oil deposits, which produces the highest per capita income in the world. They piss it all away on religion, financing the Moslem Brotherhood and several al-Qaeda affiliates... . Hamas has two terrorist headquarters, one in Gazoo and the other in Istanbul."
ISLAMABAD: Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf chief Imran Khan on Friday accused the government of rigging the last year's general elections by printing 5.5 million extra ballot papers.
So they're like Democrats in any major U.S. city...
"At least 5.5 million extra ballot papers were printed to perpetrate the vote fraud. This is how Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PMLN) got away with 15 million votes in 2013 as against 6.8 million in 2008," Imran said while addressing a key press conference.
He also alleged that the police had been the rulers' election rigging force. "Punjab and Sindh have become police states," he said. The PTI leader said that those who had printed these 5.5 million ballot papers with a fraudulent intent indeed dealt a blow to the democracy in country.
"It was one of the darkest chapters of Pakistan's history," Imran said, alleging that former chief justice Iftikhar Chaudhry, Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) and caretaker governments of Punjab and Centre had direct hand in electoral rigging. Imran Khan said that if election rigging probe was not conducted and culprits were not brought to book, then the next general elections will be a contest between "rigging practitioners".
"Each and every person involved in the rigging should be tried and asked about their motive behind trampling upon rights of millions of Pakistanis," he remarked.
Imran said Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif should resign on grounds that he is a beneficiary of the rigging, and a fair probe could not be conducted under him. "We will never accept probe under PM Nawaz Sharif as he is the main beneficiary of rigging."
The purpose of his sit-ins, he said, was to hold elements involved in rigging accountable and punish them as per law. The rigging was carried out through extra ballot papers, he claimed. Imran said the additional ballot papers were dispatched to specific constituencies with the purpose of rigging. Imran again expressed his surprise over how Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz bagged "10.5 million extra votes".
"We did not know that the ex-chief justice was also involved in the rigging of last elections," said Imran Khan. "We were told that justice will be served to us in four months, but to no avail," he regretted.
The PTI chief said, "Hundreds of our election petitions were dismissed on minor objections like those of full stops, comas and unimportant flaws." When there was a ray of hope for justice, "we lodged first protest after a year", he said.
Imran alleged there was even post-poll rigging. He said the Zardari-led PPP government has destroyed Sindh in its tenure from 2008-13 and yet it surprisingly got more votes in 2013 elections than even Benazir Bhutto could get.
Posted by: Steve White ||
11/29/2014 00:00 ||
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[An Nahar] Hundreds of Jordanians joined a rally Friday organized by the Moslem Brüderbund to denounce Israeli plans to enshrine in law the country's status as the national Jewish homeland.
An estimated 1,500 protesters set off from the Husseini mosque in downtown Amman holding up signs saying "Al-Aqsa is in danger".
"There is a greater danger today, and that is the Jewish state draft law," Hamzeh Mansur, the former head of the Brotherhood's Islamic Action Front ...Jordan's branch of the Moslem Brüderbund... party, told the protesters.
"Where is Jordan's custodianship over Jerusalem and where is the promised Paleostinian state," he asked.
Jordan has custodianship over the Al-Aqsa mosque compound in Jerusalem -- which is holy to both Jews and Moslems -- and other Moslem holy sites in annexed Arab east Jerusalem, which the Paleostinians want as the capital of their future state.
East Jerusalem has been hit by months of violence, which has spread across the occupied West Bank and to Arab communities inside Israel.
The tensions soared earlier this month when Israeli police entered Al-Aqsa during festivities triggered by a vow by far-right Jewish groups to pray at the holy site, which they call Temple Mount.
Against that background, the Israeli government endorsed Sunday a proposal to enshrine in law the country's status as the national homeland of the Jewish people.
The Paleostinian leadership has said the law "kills" the Middle East grinding of the peace processor and namely the creation of a Paleostinian state side by side Israel.
Critics have also said the move will weaken democracy in Israel and could institutionalize discrimination against Israel's 1.7 million Arab citizens.
Posted by: Fred ||
11/29/2014 00:00 ||
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#1
The Muslim Brotherhood could only attract a lousy 1,500 people. It wasn't a protest, it was a walk in the park.
[Ynet] Turkey plans to build a tax-free industrial zone in the West Bank city of Jenin, according to a memorandum of understanding signed on Wednesday.
"This will not only be an organized industrial zone, but a free zone as well, offering unique and massive advantages to all investors, whether they are Turkish, Paleostinian or other," Ahmet Sekeroglu, board chairman of TOBB-BIS, a Turkish industrial parks management company, told the Turkish Anadolu Agency. "Investors will not pay any taxes. Moreover, they will be getting significant support from Turkey, Germany and the US," said Sekeroglu.
Exported products from the zone will not be subject to taxes or quotas to various countries, including the US, Germany, La Belle France, and Soddy Arabia ...a kingdom taking up the bulk of the Arabian peninsula. Its primary economic activity involves exporting oil and soaking Islamic rubes on the annual hajj pilgrimage. The country supports a large number of princes in whatcha might call princely splendor. When the oil runs out the rest of the world is going to kick sand in the Soddy national face... , he said, adding, "the businesses will be insured by the World Bank, too."
Science, Industry and Technology Minister Fikri Isik and PA Deputy Prime Minister and National Economy Minister, Muhammad Mustafa signed the memorandum. TOBB-BIS is going to construct the industrial zone with support from the German government. It is scheduled to be completed in 2015 and will employ 6,000 workers.
The Turkish minister said that the project will lead to joint cooperation between the two on other industrial zones across the Paleostinian territories, according to the report. "Within this framework, we will be sharing our know-how and 50 years of experience through training programs and workshops in Turkey," said Isik.
Mustafa remarked that a strong economy is necessary if the Paleostinians are to become independent.
The industrial zone is likely to be built 30 km. from Haifa"s port and the Jordanian border, according to the Turkish company.
Separately, Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan ... Turkey's version of Mohammed Morsi but they voted him back in so they deserve him... said on Thursday in Istanbul, "Only we can solve our problems. I speak openly; foreigners love oil, gold, diamonds, and the cheap labor force of the Islamic world. They like the conflicts, fights and quarrels of the Middle East. Believe me, they don"t like us," AFP reported. "They look like friends, but they want us dead, they like seeing our children die. How long will we stand that fact?" said Erdogan.
"The only condition to overcome the crisis in the Islamic world is unity, solidarity and alliance. Believe me, we can resolve every problem as long as we are united," he said at a meeting of the Standing Committee for Economic and Commercial Cooperation of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation. "Islamic countries, which have developed economically, recently, have been experiencing the biggest humanitarian and political crisis in their history simultaneously," the Turkish president said.
"If we act together, we will end the loneliness of Paleostine which has continued for nearly one century... It is possible to end the bloodshed in Iraq and killing of Syrian children if we unite."
Referring to criticism over his remarks that Moslems discovered America before Columbus, Erdogan said according to the report, "I have been the target of heavy criticism by the Western media. Just because I repeated a fact based on scientific research, I have been targeted by the Western media, as well as the foreigners within who suffer from an ego complex."
[An Nahar] A detainee who transported several female jacket wallahs in his car inside Leb was referred Friday to the relevant judicial authorities over his involvement in multiple terror offenses.
"The Intelligence Directorate referred the detainee Mohammed Ali Ibrahim al-Atrash this morning to the competent judicial authorities," the army said in a statement.
It noted that Atrash was incarcerated Book 'im, Mahmoud! on charges of "ties to terrorist groups, driving booby-trapped cars to Arsal, transporting niqab-wearing women trained to stage suicide kabooms, and transferring material that can be used in the manufacturing of bombs."
The plots that the detainee had been involved in were aimed at "pushing the country to a security chaos," the statement said.
"During interrogation, he revealed information related to the kaboom that rocked (the northern Bekaa town of) al-Nabi Othman on March 16, 2014 and the bombing that targeted an army post in Arsal on March 19, 2014," the army added.
Meanwhile, ...back at the dirigible, the pilot and the copilot had both hit the silk.
Jack! Cynthia exclaimed. Do you know how to drive one of these things?
Jack wiped some of the blood from his knuckles.
No, he said. Do you?... al-Manar television said al-Atrash's interrogation is still underway to determine if he has "more information about plots targeted against Leb's security."
The TV network added that the detainee confessed to transferring female would-be suicide bombers with the aim of targeting Shiite Ashura gatherings in 2013 before the plots were foiled.
It also noted that he is "a brother of the terrorist Omar al-Atrash."
On February 12, the army intercepted a booby-trapped vehicle carrying three women near the Bekaa border town of Arsal. The Army Command said the vehicle had entered Leb from Syria's Yabrud region.
The driver, Jumana Hmayyed, was remanded in jug and is still in prison until this moment, while the other two women -- Hala Rayed and Khadijeh Audeh -- were released a few days later.
LBCI television said at the time that the women confessed to plotting "a triple bombing during which the car and two suicide bombers were supposed to blow up."
Arsal lies 12 kilometers from the border with Syria and has been used as a conduit for weapons and rebels to enter Syria, while also serving as a refuge for people fleeing the conflict that erupted in 2011.
The Lebanese army has several times seized cars loaded with arms, ammunition and explosives in the town and its outskirts.
Several high-profile terror suspects have been arrested over their involvement in a wave of deadly bombings that rocked Leb in the past two years.
Posted by: Fred ||
11/29/2014 00:00 ||
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The home-made destroyer dubbed Damavand will join Iran's naval fleet in the Caspian Sea by the end of the current Iranian fiscal year (started on March 21).
Iranian Army's 4th Naval Zone Admiral Khordad Hakimi said on Nov.27 that "among the Caspian Littoral countries, only Russia has destroyers, and Iran's army should be always ready to tackle any threats," Fars news agency reported.
The production of the Damavand destroyer started in 2010, according to the Iranian media outlets. When completed, it will have the ability to carry helicopters, anti-ship missiles, surface-to-air missiles, and torpedoes. The ship will also be equipped with electronic warfare devices.
Iranian officials say that the country is upgrading its warfare capabilities in the Caspian Sea in a bid to maintain peace and security along its coastal waters in the North.
Posted by: Steve White ||
11/29/2014 00:00 ||
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#5
This is the only place on the entire Iranian Caspian coast that could build anything larger than a rowboat. I just mailed a copy of the photo to Fred.
Posted by: Old Patriot ||
11/29/2014 20:00 Comments ||
Top||
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.
[Ynet] Turkey, which is part of 
The home-made destroyer dubbed Damavand will join Iran's naval fleet in the Caspian Sea by the end of the current Iranian fiscal year (started on March 21).
