A suicide bomber rammed his car into a U.S. military convoy as it was passing through a crowded market in eastern Afghanistan on Thursday, killing at least 20 civilians and an American soldier, officials said. The attack outside Jalalabad, the capital of the eastern Nangarhar province, also wounded 74 civilians, said Ajmal Pardes, a provincial health official.
Separately, an explosion in southern Afghanistan on Wednesday killed two NATO soldiers, the military alliance said in a statement, without dislcosing the soldiers nationalities.
The bomber struck the convoy near a crowded market in the Bati Kot district, where people were trading sheep, cows, goats and other animals, said Ghafoor Khan, the spokesman for the provincial police chief. An Associated Press photographer said that an American military vehicle, two civilian vehicles and two rickshaws were destroyed in Thursday's blast.
A bomb-filled tanker exploded outside the office of the provincial council in the southern Afghan city of Kandahar on Wednesday, killing six people and wounding 42.
Wali Karzai, brother of President Hamid Karzai and head of the council, was in the building at the time but was unharmed. ìI am fine and safe,î he told reporters later. The Taliban claimed responsibility for the blast.
A spokesman, Yousuf Ahmadi, told AFP by telephone that the target was the provincial council. The explosives-filled tanker dug four metres deep and eight metres wide crater into the road just outside the council building.
"Six people, including an intelligence employee were killed, two intelligence guards and three passers-by, including a woman were injured," Kandahar province governor Rahmatullah Raufi told a press conference
Posted by: Fred ||
11/13/2008 00:00 ||
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#2
Great images. Rugged, stark country. Thanks for posting these, Matt.
Posted by: Alaska Paul ||
11/13/2008 10:00 Comments ||
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#3
amazing how it looks like the Eastern side of the Sierras (Owens Valley) or S-2 highway in the valley east of the Lagunas in San Diego County, including similar vegetation types
Posted by: Frank G ||
11/13/2008 20:22 Comments ||
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KABUL, Afghanistan (CNN) -- Two men on a motorcycle used water pistols to spray acid on girls walking to school Wednesday in the southern Afghan city of Kandahar, blinding at least two of them, military spokesmen said.
U.S. Col. Greg Julian said Afghanistan's National Military Command Center told him that four girls were hurt in the incident. Two were blinded and remain hospitalized, and two were treated and released, he said. The men escaped after the attack, and no one claimed responsibility for it, but Arab-language network Al-Jazeera said Taliban militants were suspected to be responsible.
The incident occurred about 8 a.m. near Mirwais Nika Girls High School in the Meir Weis Mena district. Kandahar government spokesman Parwaz Ayoubi gave different figures on the number of girls injured, saying six were burned, one of them severely. He called the attackers "enemies of education."
According to Al-Jazeera, the girls were attacked with battery acid. Two teenage sisters, one of whom suffered serious burns, were among the victims. "We were on the way to school when two men on motorbikes stopped next to us. One of them threw acid on my sister's face. I tried to help her, and then they threw acid on me, too," Latefa, 16, told the Qatar-based satellite network. "We were shouting, and people came to see what was going on. Then the two men escaped," she said. Latefa told Al-Jazeera that she was hurt, and her 18-year-old sister was in serious condition with acid burns on her face.
Al-Jazeera said schoolgirls in Kandahar can be recognized by their uniform of black pants, white shirt, black coat and head scarf.
The top U.S. commander in Afghanistan condemned the incident, as well as a suicide bombing that occurred near a government building hours later that killed and wounded several civilians, including women and children. "These cowardly acts reflect how dishonorable the insurgents truly are," Gen. David McKiernan said in a statement posted on the Web site of the International Security Assistance Force. "No one can honestly say they are fighting for the people, then purposefully attack innocent women and children," he said.
Posted by: Steve White ||
11/13/2008 00:00 ||
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#1
where are all the brave men who have toted AK's all their life when something like this happens? Steal one of their goats and they would get blasted but throw acid in their daufghters face and they stand back smoking a bugler
Posted by: chris ||
11/13/2008 7:45 Comments ||
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#2
The Taliban are so brave, when attacking schoolgirls.
Remnants of an Islamist government waging an insurgency against Somalia's interim authorities took over two strategic towns in on Tuesday, the latest territory gain by a strengthening rebellion, officials said. The Islamist Al-Shabaab movement, once part of the Union of Islamic Courts government that splintered after being pushed from power, seized Al-Dheer in central Somalia and Qoryoley in the south as part of a burgeoning campaign to take territory held by the weak UN-backed interim government and its Ethiopian allies. The new seizures give the group a strategic base in central Somalia, where it controls Kismayo, the third-largest city.
The Union of Islamic Courts had brought the first order in years - in the form of strict Sharia law - to large swathes of central and southern Somalia in 2006. The group was ousted after Ethiopian troops invaded Somalia at the behest of the interim regime, a body formed in exile and, at the time, ruled territory along the Kenyan border.
Al-Shabaab fighters took over Al-Dheer, a crossroads linking southern, central and northern Somalia, Tuesday, according to Sheikh Ali Dhere, the group's spokesman. The town is 340 kilometers north of Mogadishu.
"The town seems to be under the full control of Al-Shabaab," local human rights worker Mohammad Gule Hassan said. "After 24 hours of tension and fear in the town, which forced hundreds of people to flee from their homes, the fighting ended."
In a separate attack, nearly 1,000 insurgents seized Qoryoley in southern Somalia from militias loyal to Somalia's crumbling government. "They opened fire on our checkpoints and after we realized they were more mobile than us we decided to withdraw," said the town's police chief, Nor Shakow Jibril.
Since being ousted from government, more moderate members of the Islamic courts have signed an ineffectual peace deal with the government.
Earlier Monday, at least four Somalis were killed near Al-Dheer in clashes between Al-Shabaab fighters and a local militia that took up arms to protest a ban on qat, a widely consumed narcotic leaf, witnesses said Tuesday.
The militia attacked the Islamists late Monday near Al-Dheer, killing two of them and sparking a retaliatory attack in which two of their own died.
Al-Shabaab members had set up camp near the town before taking it Tuesday.
"The gangs attacked our forces in the region trying to stop moves to eliminate drugs, including qat, which is part of Sharia," said Sheikh Hassan Mohammad, an Al-Shabaab commander. "We defeated and killed two of them. We fully control the region now."
Posted by: Fred ||
11/13/2008 00:00 ||
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#1
wow, i would rather control half my bathroom than that shithole
Posted by: chris ||
11/13/2008 7:41 Comments ||
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Sudanese President Omar al-Bashir on Wednesday adopted proposals put forward by a national forum to solve the Darfur crisis, announcing an immediate ceasefire in the war-ravaged western province and calling for a campaign to disarm militias there.
"I hereby announce our immediate unconditional ceasefire between the armed forces and warring factions provided that an effective monitoring mechanism be put into action and be observed by all involved parties," Bashir told participants of the closing session of the Sudan People's Forum - made up of ministers and opposition figures but boycotted by Darfur rebels.
The forum, backed by Bashir himself, has recommended that Sudan should call for a fresh ceasefire in Darfur and release political prisoners as part of a new peace push. It also recommended Sudan's government should pay compensation to displaced Darfuris and appoint a national vice-president for the region.
Bashir also called for "an immediate campaign to disarm the militias and restrict the use of weapons amongst armed forces," in apparent reference to the feared Janjaweed militia that Khartoum is accused of backing. "We confirm our commitment of negotiations to reach peaceful solutions which guarantee the eradication of disputes," Bashir said.
The forum's recommendations are expected to lay a foundation for a possible peace conference in Qatar by the end of 2008.
Sudan is pressing a diplomatic offensive to persuade the U.N. Security Council to delay possible proceedings against Bashir, who could face an international arrest warrant for alleged war crimes in Darfur. Convincing the international community that Sudan is serious about promoting peace in Darfur, where the government has been accused of brutally repressing a nearly six-year insurgency, has been key to the people's initiative.
Bashir set up the forum weeks after the International Criminal Court prosecutor called for him to be tried for war crimes in Darfur. Many observers saw the new body as part of a diplomatic push to deflect the prosecutor's move and to show Sudan could find its own solution to the conflict.
Posted by: Fred ||
11/13/2008 00:00 ||
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#1
Guess which "militia" will get "disarmed", and which one won't. Bashir is a bucket of feces.
Posted by: Old Patriot ||
11/13/2008 13:09 Comments ||
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#2
Why wouldn't Bashir want to freeze the battlefield now that the African Furs have been burned out, raped, killed, and exiled?
Posted by: ed ||
11/13/2008 23:00 Comments ||
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HT: Drudge
Pirates caught redhanded by one of Her Majesty's warships after trying to hijack a cargo ship off Somalia made the grave mistake of opening fire on two Royal Navy assault craft packed with commandos armed with machineguns and SA80 rifles.
In the ensuing gunfight, two Somali pirates in a Yemeni-registered fishing dhow were killed, and a third pirate, believed to be a Yemeni, suffered injuries and subsequently died. It was the first time the Royal Navy had been engaged in a fatal shoot-out on the high seas in living memory. By the time the Royal Marines boarded the pirates' vessel, the enemy had lost the will to fight and surrendered quietly. The Royal Navy described the boarding as "compliant".
Yesterday's dramatic confrontation, the latest in a series of piracy incidents in the Gulf of Aden in recent months, took place 60 miles south of the Yemeni coast and involved the Royal Navy Type 22 frigate, HMS Cumberland, which has a Royal Marine unit on board, on short-notice standby to engage in "non-compliant boardings".
HMS Cumberland, on anti-piracy partol as part of a Nato maritime force, detected the dhow which was towing a skiff, and identified it as a vessel which had been involved in an attack on the Danish-registered MV Powerful earlier yesterday. The pirates had opened fire on the cargo boat with assault rifles.
Under rules of engagement which allows the Royal Navy to intervene when pirates are positively identified, the commandos were dispatched from the frigate in rigid-raider craft and sped towards the pirates' dhow. The Ministry of Defence said the Marines circled the pirates' boat to try and persuade them to stop.
As they approached, however, several of the pirates, a mixed crew of Somalis and Yemenis ... (led, apparently, by Moroons),
... swung their assault rifles in their direction and opened fire. The MoD said the Royal Marines returned fire "in self defence", and then boarded the dhow -- a stolen Yemeni-registered fishing vessel.
The commandos found guns and other "paraphernalia" on board the dhow and a handful of terrified pirates. The MoD said it was unclear whether the Yemeni who died had been shot by the Marines or was wounded from a previous incident involving the pirates.
Yesterday's battle signalled a new policy of maximum robustness for the Royal Navy on the high seas. Captain Mike Davis-Marks, a senior spokesman for the Navy, said: "This is bound to have an impact on pirates who for the last two years have been getting away with seizing vessels and receiving large ransoms. Now suddenly there's the threat of death and this may force them to think again, but they are determined people, so we'll have to see."
The Russians claimed a helicopter based on their own frigate Neustrashimy had also taken part in yesterday's battle, though the Royal Navy knew nothing about it. The Royal Marine commandos who boarded the pirates' dhow were supported by a Lynx helicopter from HMS Cumberland, the MoD said.
You know, I doubt those guys would have made even average pirates back in the olden days of european piracy in the Caraibes and such, an indomitable fighting spirit doesn't seem to be their dominant trait.
Anyway, this short phrase excerpt above made my day, and it's only 12 AM.
#2
The Cumberland should make a call at the nearest Somali port with the bodies of the pirates (killed and captured) hanging from a yardarm substitute. They should be cut down and tossed ashore, then the ship should depart. Send a message which could not be misinterpreted.
Landikotal-- Militants hijacked 13 trucks carrying supplies for US-led NATO forces in Afghanistan on Monday as they passed through the Khyber Pass, a government official said.
Most supplies, including fuel, for US and other Western forces battling a Taliban insurgency in landlocked Afghanistan are trucked through Khyber Agency, which is also facing growing militant violence.
Security along t More..h More..e road leading to the border has deteriorated this year and soldiers carried out a sweep in part of the Khyber region in June to push militants back from the outskirts of provincial metropolis. The trucks were seized at four places along a 35 km stretch of the road, said a senior government administrator in the Khyber region. "About 60 masked gunmen popped up on the road and took away the trucks with their drivers. Not a single shot was fired anywhere," the official, Bakhtiar Mohmand, told Reuters.
Mohmand said the trucks were not carrying weapons or ammunition but he was not sure what goods they were taking.
He said he believed militants loyal to Taliban commander Baitullah Mehsud were responsible. "Baitullah's men are behind this as they're very well-equiped and trained," he said.
Residents said two Pakistani army helicopter gunships flew over the area after the trucks were hijacked and carried out some firing, killing a civilian.
In Landikotal, the main town before the pass, traders and transport company operators complained that the government wasn't taking security on the road seriously.
"The government is a silent spectator. They attack our trucks, loot them and kill our drivers in broad daylight, even near security checkposts, but they can't do anything," said Eshtiar Mohmand, who owns a trucking company
#1
This will get worse and worse. We should get out now or prepare for real slogging in Pakiland. I doubt anyone is really up for the former, except perhaps the Indians. Maybe we should outsource it.
Must have had great faith that her new "religious conversion" would protect her at first. It sounds like she was wising up just prior to her kidnapping since she was asking for help for funding to bribe her way out of there due to concerns of kidnapping.
#3
She converted after 9/11... this really made all the loons come out of the wood, they had found their new "Strong horse", their new vehicle for their hatred, self or otherwise.
By Syed Saleem Shahzad - Iraqi-born militant Abu Akash survived a US predator drone attack in Pakistan's North Waziristan tribal area bordering Afghanistan last month, sources have told Adnkronos International (AKI). Al-Qaeda's third in command, Mustafa Abu al-Yazid, is also alive and reports of his killing in the Bajaur tribal area in August were fabricated by Pakistani security agencies, unnamed militant sources told AKI.
Abu Akash (known by his comrades as Abu Akasha) survived the deadly attack on the North Waziristan town of Mir Ali on 31 October, according to the sources.
"Abu Akasha left the house before the US predator drone missile strike in which over two dozen local tribal people were killed. He is healthy and very much in his routine," the sources maintained.
An announcement of al-Yazid's killing in Bajaur by Pakistani security forces was immediately contradicted by militants. "It was a cheap publicity shot on behalf of the Pakistani security forces to boast their military successes in Bajaur," the sources said, referring to the reported death of al-Yazid, believed to be Al-Qaeda's commander in Afghanistan. "Those who know the sheikh are aware that he is not based in Bajaur," sources said.
In further evidence of his survival, al-Yazid appeared in an Al-Qaeda video that surfaced in September warning 'Crusader' countries against offending Islam.
Abu Akash, who moved to the region three or four years ago, is known to have trained militants of Uzbek and Tajik origin. He has never been part of Al-Qaeda. Like most Arabs based in South Asia he is close to Al-Qaeda's inner circle but is not a member of the terror network or one of its advisors.
#2
We'll getcha next time.
Missiles coming out of the sky without warning must have them at the point of schizophrenia. At the rate we are bagging them they should be worried.
Posted by: chris ||
11/13/2008 12:16 Comments ||
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#4
Ain't that the shitz.
Do like the bouncy fire balls tho...
Posted by: Captain America ||
11/13/2008 12:46 Comments ||
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#5
I'm still waiting for the first ACRCLIGHT strike on these worthless POS. Six BUFFS unloading everything they have on one of those "mountain villages" would change a lot of opinions, and not just in Phakestan. Once again we're being far too nice to people that need the sh$$ kicked out of them.
Posted by: Old Patriot ||
11/13/2008 13:15 Comments ||
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An Iranian diplomat was kidnapped and his bodyguard was killed by unknown gunnies in Pakistain's northwestern city of Peshawar on Thursday, the Pakistaini government said.
Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi, in a statement, condemned the kidnapping of Iranian diplomat Heshmatollah Attarzadeh and assured Iran that Pakistaini authorities "will take all necessary measures for his safe and early recovery."
The official Associated Press of Pakistain quoted local police as saying the gunnies intercepted a vehicle carrying the Iranian Consulate's commercial attache as he was going from home to his office in Peshawar's posh Hayatabad township.
The report said the bodyguard was shot dead after resisting.
The incident occurred a day after an American aid worker was shot dead in Hayatabad.
Afghanistan's ambassador-designate to Pakistain Abdul Khaliq Farahi was kidnapped by unknown gunnies in the same township a few weeks ago. His whereabouts remain unknown.
Iran's Ambassador to Pakistain Mashallah Shakeri was quoted by his country's official Islamic Republic News Agency as saying he holds Pakistain responsible for ensuring security of foreign diplomats and that Iranian officials are working with Pakistani officials on the case.
IRNA quoted witnesses as saying three gunnies with long greasy beards were involved in the abduction, though no group had yet claimed responsibility.
Pakistaini Prime Minister Syed Yousuf Raza Gilani, in a statement, strongly condemned the abduction of the Iranian diplomat and ordered urgent steps to be taken for his safe release.
Peshawar is the capital of restive North-West Frontier Province, which has seen fighting in recent months between Pakistaini forces and pro- Taliban militants.
On Tuesday, a boom attack at the main gate of Peshawar's Qayum Stadium claimed four lives, including the suicide boomer.
Curfew remained imposed in villages close to the Mohmand Agency on Wednesday as two more suspected militants were killed and five others injured during clashes on the second day of the search operation launched by the security forces.
People remained stranded in their houses as the Army and the Frontier Corps troops and cops of the Peshawar Police raided various hideouts in Michni, Mathra, Pir Bala, Khandaro and other towns along the boundary between Peshawar and Mohmand Agency.
The road between the Mohmand Agency and the provincial capital remained blocked and no vehicle was allowed to ply on the road.The militants and criminals continued attacking the security forces with rockets and other sophisticated weapons on Wednesday. The security forces retaliated, killing two militants and wounding five others.
Posted by: Fred ||
11/13/2008 00:00 ||
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Five Army soldiers and a civilian were killed and 11 others injured when a suicide bomber rammed an explosives-packed vehicle into the gate of a school in Subhan Khwar area of Shabqadar town here on Wednesday.
Eyewitnesses told The News that a young man tried to drive a white-colour Hiace into the Government High School at 10:30 am. The security forces stationed at the school fired at the vehicle, which exploded with a big bang. The sound of the explosion was heard in a three-kilometre radius.
Sources said five security personnel and a civilian, identified as Amir Zada, were killed. Eleven others, including eight security personnel, Sena Public School students Rab Nawaz and Umar Farooq and a passer-by Ayub, were injured. However, in a press release, an ISPR spokesman conceded the death of only three security personnel and injuries to four others in the blast.
The injured security personnel were rushed to the Combined Military Hospital (CMH) in Peshawar, while the forces launched a search operation in the surrounding areas, including Maluk Koroona, Samanat, Pir Qilla, Rashakai and Subhan Khwar. The main Shabqadar bazaar was closed due to a curfew and the Peshawar-Bajaur road was also blocked.
Posted by: Fred ||
11/13/2008 00:00 ||
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Aswat al-Iraq: 12 people were killed and 60 others were wounded in a dual bombing with a booby-trapped car and roadside bomb at al-Neairiya neighborhood, eastern Baghdad, a source from the Iraqi police said on Wednesday.
"The incident took place at a bus station," the source told Aswat al-Iraq.
"The car bomb went off first, and then was followed by the roadside bomb," he added.
Posted by: Fred ||
11/13/2008 00:00 ||
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#1
I guess the chap (Totten?) who claimed that it's Sadr's militia who kept Baghdad boom free by killing every Sunni entering, was right.
by Maayana Miskin
IDF officials left all crossings between Gaza and the western Negev closed on Thursday despite earlier plans to open the crossings and allow fuel and other supplies to pass through. The change of plans was attributed to warnings of a planned terrorist attack. Earlier in the day, defense officials had expressed determination to continue with the transfer despite several rocket attacks on western Negev towns.
According to Israel Radio, terrorists planned to attack the Kerem Shalom crossing. The crossing and surrounding area have been the site of several attacks, including the 2006 attack in which Gilad Shalit was kidnapped and two other soldiers were killed.
Hamas officials in Gaza complained that the delay in fuel transfer could force Gaza's power station to shut down. The station provides approximately 25 percent of Gaza's power, with the rest supplied by Israel and Egypt.
United Nations officials warned that the delay could impact the UN food distribution program in Gaza. The program provides food to approximately 750,000 people, more than half of Gaza's population, they said. UN officials have issued similar warnings several times in the past year as terrorist attacks force Gaza crossings to be closed for days at a time.
Along with delaying the opening of the crossings, Israel kept 20 European Union consul generals from entering Gaza via Israeli crossings. IDF officials said the group had been told it would not be allowed to enter Gaza, but attempted to do so anyway. The crossings are open only to those providing humanitarian aid, the officials said.
Ceasefire Still On, Israel Says
Despite dozens of rocket attacks in the past week and multiple clashes between IDF soldiers and Gaza terrorists, Israeli defense officials said Thursday that Israel's ceasefire with Hamas is still in effect. It is faltering, but it is not over, said Deputy Defense Minister Matan Vilnai.
The temporary ceasefire was to last for six months, and to end in January. Hamas has already issued demands regarding the continuation of the ceasefire, and says it will only maintain the ceasefire if the IDF agrees to refrain from counterterrorist operations in Judea and Samaria as well as Gaza.
#1
I don't know where it says that they EVER have to open up the crossings. Where does it say that they have to give them electricity, fuel, water, medicine, food, parts, office supplies, teddy bears and microwave popcorn?
Maybe Egypt and Jordan should grab the bull by the horns and show some arab solidarity by financing this humongous welfare housing project.
The Sri Lankan military on Wednesday charged that even as its troops were getting closer to "their ultimate mission with increasing pace and vigour", LTTE chief Velupillai Prabakaran has ordered his followers to prepare for counter-offensive using civilians as a shield.
The Defence Ministry said the troops were proceeding as per their plans despite cynicism expressed by some defence observers and political segments.
The Ministry claimed that the Army Task Force 1 spearheading at the West of the Kilinochchi frontage is just few km behind Pooneryn, the final destination to accomplish its immediate mission.
As per the Ministry, troops on Tuesday reached Pallavi and Kiranchi hamlets sealing off the strategically vital Devil's Point. A 15-km-long land projection to the Indian Ocean, the point has been a safe heaven for the Sea Tigers .
It said the Task Force 1 troops heading for Pooneryn along the A-32 road (Mannar-Pooneryn) are now successfully negotiating the large marshlands in the South of Pooneryn.
Defence observers say once the B-69 at Nallur had been cut off, the remaining terrorists in Pooneryn, Alenken, Vallaipadu and Veravi will have either to surrender or meet the elite Rapid Action Boats squadron (RABS) of Navy.
"No land escape routes are available for the terrorists in these areas with the Army's advance," it said.
Posted by: Fred ||
11/13/2008 00:00 ||
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#1
is it just me or has the Sri Lankan gov been talking alot of shit for ALONG time about ousting the Tamils? Every time they have a battle they kill scores but then they get bombed at THEIR airfield by a cessna. I think someone in the info dept is full of it
Posted by: chris ||
11/13/2008 7:43 Comments ||
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#2
It's been clear for a while that the SL government is winning and rolling up the Tamil Tigers, but the terrain is difficult and well defended. In WW2 terms it would be like fighting up the length of Italy.
#3
they may be winning but I think their body counts and other gains are greatly exagerated. Not that i'm pulling for the tamils either just an observation on my part, i think the same of the pakis fighting their homemade militants
Posted by: chris ||
11/13/2008 12:22 Comments ||
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#4
At least the Sri Lankans are finally winning, chris. They've been fighting the Tamils for a generation or two, I think. I'm not convinced the Land of the Pure is capable of even facing the goal from the other end of the field, let alone coming close enough to score.
/end sports metaphor -- I seem to be feeling vaguely poetical at the moment.
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.
A suicide bomber rammed his car into a U.S. military convoy as it was passing through a crowded market in eastern Afghanistan on Thursday, killing at least 20 civilians and an American soldier, officials said. The attack outside Jalalabad, the capital of the eastern Nangarhar province, also wounded 74 civilians, said Ajmal Pardes, a provincial health official.
A bomb-filled tanker exploded outside the office of the provincial council in the southern Afghan city of Kandahar on Wednesday, killing six people and wounding 42.
KABUL, Afghanistan (CNN) -- Two men on a motorcycle used water pistols to spray acid on girls walking to school Wednesday in the southern Afghan city of Kandahar, blinding at least two of them, military spokesmen said.
By Syed Saleem Shahzad - Iraqi-born militant Abu Akash survived a US predator drone attack in Pakistan's North Waziristan tribal area bordering Afghanistan last month, sources have told Adnkronos International (AKI). Al-Qaeda's third in command, Mustafa Abu al-Yazid, is also alive and reports of his killing in the Bajaur tribal area in August were fabricated by Pakistani security agencies, unnamed militant sources told AKI.
An Iranian diplomat was kidnapped and his bodyguard was killed by unknown gunnies in Pakistain's northwestern city of Peshawar on Thursday, the Pakistaini government said. 
Curfew remained imposed in villages close to the Mohmand Agency on Wednesday as two more suspected militants were killed and five others injured during clashes on the second day of the search operation launched by the security forces. 
by Maayana Miskin
