SAN`A, Yemen (AP) - Eight suspected al-Qaida members, including an Iraqi with Swiss nationality, admitted in court Monday to planning attacks on Western embassies here, while six convicted terrorists were sentenced to two years in jail in another case. The trials were the latest in a series of Yemeni cases involving the terror network of Osama bin Laden, who has ancestral ties to this tribal-dominated Arabian Peninsula country that has long been a haven for Islamic extremists.
The eight suspected al-Qaida members told the court on the opening day of their trial Monday that they had planned to attack the British and Italian embassies and the French Cultural Center in the Yemeni capital and that they received money and instructions from al-Qaida operatives in Saudi Arabia. They face five to 10 yeas in jail if convicted. The suspects, including five Yemenis, Iraqi-born Swiss national Anwar Bayan Sadiq al-Gaylani and Syrians Omran Mohammed Said and Majid Omar Nizan, were detained during recent months in a crackdown on terrorism by Yemeni authorities.
I notice a lot more Syrians popping up these days
The eight are among 13 suspected al-Qaida members detained recently. Five were released, including a Yemeni woman, for lack of evidence. Police found hand grenades, military fatigues and documents showing sketches of the sites to be attacked. Al-Gaylani and Said claimed they were beaten and tortured during the investigation, and the court ordered they be examined by doctors. The trial was adjourned to March 28 for defense hearings. Security forces in armored vehicles and machine gun-toting jeeps blocked streets leading to the court and snipers were posted on rooftops of nearby buildings.
In the other case, six Yemeni al-Qaida members were each sentenced to two years in jail for planning attacks against Westerners here and in Saudi Arabia, Syria, and Iraq. The men are expected to be released soon; they've been in custody since 2003. Five suspects were acquitted. Two of the men were detained in Yemen while the nine others were extradited from Iran, Saudi Arabia and Syria. The defendants denied charges of planning terror attacks and forming an armed gang but admitted to using forged documents that Yemeni authorities said were to be used for traveling to Iraq to fight U.S.-led forces.
This article starring:
ANWAR BAIAN SADIQ AL GAILANI
al-Qaeda in Yemen
MAJID OMAR NIZAN
al-Qaeda in Yemen
OMRAN MOHAMED SAID
al-Qaeda in Yemen
Posted by: Steve ||
03/21/2005 10:10:54 AM ||
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Rapid Action Battalion making a list
Rapid Action battalion (Rab) has taken a new move to record profiles of "most wanted criminals". on computer. The profiles will be brought under computer network through special programming.
I'll bet the RAB will get theirs working before the FBI does.
Initially, profiles of two criminals listed with each thana in Khulna metropolitan city and one in each police station in the district will be prepared . According to a highly placed police sources, Rab will do the job without any help from police. Our own intelligence will collect data and prepare the profiles containing photos, addresses, number and nature of crimes and background of criminals, they said. The profiles will also contain data on their wealth and property, sources of income and name of their godfathers. Strict secrecy is being maintained in preparing the profiles correctly by Rab intelligence branch. Once complete, the elite force will swing into action against criminals.
That's why we haven't had many "crossfires" lately, they're waiting for the paperwork to be finished
The source further said criminals using cell phones will be tracked down by tapping their phones and using other sophisticated digital equipment. This will definitely help Rab arrest wanted criminals quickly, they hoped. Previous criminal records (PCR) of wanted persons kept in computer network will help the Rab in containing murders and subversive activities. Other metropolitan cities are also being brought under this new plan by Rab with the help of its intelligence units. Outdated techniques being applied by law enforcers are absolutely ineffective as hardened criminals are availing the opportunity of modern technology including cell phone and internet to commit crimes, the RAB source said.
5 culprits held Arms, counterfeit currency, stamps seized in Ctg
CHITTAGONG, Mar 20: - Police in separate raids conducted at Fatikchary, Rawzan and Sitakund police station detained five culprits and recovered arms and a good quantity of counterfeit banknote and non-judicial stamps over the last couple of days. The detainees were identified as Mohammed Nazim Uddin alias Naizza (32) of Fatikchary, Mohammed Anwar (40), Mohammed Mostofa (45) and Mohammed Jafor Bhuiyan alias Dulal (47) of Rawzan area, Mohammed Imam Hussein of Sitakund. Informed sources said that Fatikchary police detained Mohammed Nazim Uddin alias Naizza yesterday. According to his confessional statement police recovered a foreign-made single-barrel gun, a foreign-made double-barrels gun and two pipe guns. On the other hand, Rawzan police rounded up Mohammed Anwar today. In pursuance of his confessional statement police recovered counterfeit banknote and stamps worth about Taka 1,38,500 and a camera. Police also detained his accomplices Mohammed Mostofa and Mohammed Jafar Bhuiyan alias Dulal. Meanwhile, Sitakund police booked Mohammed Imam Hossen yesterday. He was convicted of two months imprisonment in a case. Separate cases were lodged with respective police stations in these connections.
Chittagong arms haul case-JIC interrogates Yakub The members of Joint Interrogation Cell (JIC) started grilling Yakub Ali yesterday, main charge-sheeted accused person in the country's biggest-ever arms haul case in Chittagong, a highly placed source said. Yakub was asked various questions during the first day of his eight-day remand about his involvement in the arms and ammunition recovery from the CUFL jetty in Chittagong, sources said. The law enforcing agencies seized a huge consignment of sophisticated illegal arms and ammunition when they raided CUFL jetty in Chittagong in the small hours of April 1, 2004. It was the biggest-ever arms haul in the country. The members of law enforcing agencies declined to disclose anything about the information that was given by Yakub during the interrogation. Talking to The Independent, Intejar, Officer-in-Charge (OC) of Mirpur police station, said Yakub was interrogated at the police station by JIC which consists of members of Army, SB, DB, CID and DGFI. Acting on a tip off, a team of Mirpur Thana police arrested Yakub Ali in a drive conducted at Habib Manjil of Lalkuthi under Mirpur police station in the early hours on March 17. Yakub Ali was produced before the Chief Metropolitan Magistrate (CMM) Court by the police on March 18 with a prayer for 10 days' remand. But the court granted eight-days' police remand.
Terrors storm ex-reporter''s house, injure brother A group of terrorists stormed the village home of the former senior reporter of The News Today Shakhawat Hossain on Friday night at village Khupi under Shahdhar Char union in Shibpur police station on Friday night and injured his brother Shekhar Miah with Chapati and other deadly weapons. They also hurled abusive language at the ailing mother of the journalist and his sisters. Seriously injured Shekhar Mia was immediately rushed to local hospital at Shibpur where he is still undergoing treatment. Terrorist Serajul Mia along with his brother Mobarok Mia and two other alleged terrorist cousins attacked the family members of the journalist, who was the Executive committee member of Dhaka Reporter''s Unity (DRU) in 1999 and is the associated member of Economic Reporters'' Forum (ERF). The terrorists also threatened the family not to file any case with the local police station in this connection. They were creating pressure for resolving the problem through arbitration.
Arbitration? Sounds like a union problem
But finally, a case has been lodged in connection with the attack on the family members of the journalist. No one was so far arrested till the filing of the report on Saturday night.
3 JCD cadre held in hijacking case in Sylhet SYLHET, Mar 18:—Rapid Action Battalion (RAB) in a massive swoop arrested three JCD activists for allegedly hijacking a motorcycle and other snatching cases in the city on Wednesday night. According to RAB-3 source, Mr Ashraf Hussain, Principal Officer, National Bank, Sylhet, while returning to his residence at Majortila, the eastern part of the city was attacked by JCD cadres who snatched away his motor cycle No Sylhet a 8972 at gunpoint around 7-30 p.m. on Wednesday. Mr Ashraf lodged a written complaint with Sylhet RAB-3 who went into active at once. Meanwhile at around 10 p.m. on Wednesday the hijacker informed Mr Ashraf over phone to pay ransom to get back his motor cycle. He assured them to pay the ransom and one hijacker Abdul Haq (26) S/o Md Abdul Karim of Mohammedpur (Islampur) went to Mr Ashraf's residence where RAB personnel in plain clothe laid an Ambush.
"Sure, I've got the ransom money, come on over to the house. Pay no attention the the heavily armed men in the bushes"
Meanwhile, the two others Abdul Qadir (24) S/o ANA Miah of Praithasha and Ziaul Haq (24) S/o Kubaidul Islam also went to Mr Ashraf's residence to take money and eventually they were arrested by RAB.
Posted by: Steve ||
03/21/2005 9:00:52 AM ||
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injured his brother Shekhar Miah with Chapati and other deadly weapons
A Spanish national accused of involvement in the 2004 Madrid bombings has been remanded in custody by Bow Street magistrates in London. Moutaz Almallah Dabas, 39, was arrested in Slough, Berkshire, on Saturday and is thought to have been held in a central London police station. He was arrested on an extradition warrant from the Spanish authorities. Dabas, who wore a shirt, khaki-coloured trousers and a duffle coat, spoke only to give his name and date of birth at the 30-minute hearing.
Mr Dabas was arrested 24 hours after his brother Mohannad Almallah Dabas, a Syrian national, was arrested in Madrid. The Spanish Interior Ministry has accused the two men of being linked to the recruitment of young Islamic radicals in Spain. It claims they used a flat in Madrid to house recruits, or people passing through. They are alleged to have been helped by a Syrian man, who has already been arrested and charged for his suspected role in the 11 March attacks. The bombings have been firmly attributed to Islamic extremists by Spain's public prosecutor. So far more than 70 people have been arrested, with 22 held on charges, over the bombings. A Moroccan cell with links to al-Qaeda claimed responsibility for the attack, and most of those arrested have been Moroccan citizens.
This article starring:
MOHANNAD ALMALLAH DABAS
al-Qaeda in Europe
MUTAZ ALMALLAH DABAS
al-Qaeda in Europe
Posted by: Steve ||
03/21/2005 9:29:38 AM ||
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Slough? Meh. I say we just demolish a square click of this jihadi infested hellhole.
Posted by: Howard UK ||
03/21/2005 10:18 Comments ||
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British police believe there is a substantial risk of an attack in Britain by Irish Republican Army dissidents, a newspaper reported on Saturday.
Gerry got snubbed on St. Paddy's Day. Time to bomb Harrods.
The Observer said police on Friday raised the threat level from Irish paramilitaries to "substantial." That is just below the "severe general" threat police believe is posed by Al Qaeda-allied terrorists, the Sunday newspaper said in early editions. A Metropolitan Police spokeswoman said the force did not discuss security matters, but said police had no specific intelligence that would prompt a warning to the public. The Observer quoted a memo allegedly sent by anti-terrorist police to London businesses this week stating "reporting indicates that dissident Irish Republican terrorists are currently planning to mount attacks on the UK mainland." IRA bombs killed dozens of people in mainland Britain between 1972 and 1997, when the outlawed group declared a cease-fire. Splinter groups such as the so-called "Real IRA" have carried out several attacks.
Posted by: Fred ||
03/21/2005 00:00:00 ||
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Well, I'd rather be blown up for the sins of Empire than for simply being a filthy infidel.
Posted by: Howard UK ||
03/21/2005 7:39 Comments ||
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WASHINGTON - The United States is suspending $2.7 million in military assistance to Nicaragua because President Enrique Bolanos has not followed through on a promise to destroy surface-to-air-missiles, a State Department official said Monday. The administration is concerned that the missiles, left over from the Central American wars of the 1980's, could fall into the hands of terrorists and be used to attack commercial flights.
The State Department official, asking not to be identified, said the missiles are believed to be in the custody of the Nicaraguan military. The official said Bolanos assured President Bush that the missiles, believed to number about 1,000, would be destroyed. Rose Likins, a senior official from the State Department political-military affairs bureau, visited Managua a month ago to reaffirm American concerns.
At the time, Likins said Nicaragua was the only Central American nation with such missiles, which she described as the "preferred weapons" of terrorists.
At issue are Soviet-made SA-7's, which were made available by Moscow to Nicaragua's Sandinista government in its war with the U.S.-backed Contra rebels two decades ago. The heat-seeking missiles can hit low-flying aircraft within a range of three miles.
The Sandinistas were voted out of power in 1990, and have been succeeded by a succession of governments friendly to the United States since then. But former Sandinista President Daniel Ortega is captaining political forces in the country opposed to destruction of the missiles. He has denounced the U.S. demands as an intrusion on Nicaraguan sovereignty. The Sandinistas joined with another opposition group in approving legislation to prevent Bolanos from destroying the weapons.
Keep your old unstable missiles, we'll just keep the money. It's called Cause - Effect, get used to it.
Posted by: Steve ||
03/21/2005 2:14:01 PM ||
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Good.
Posted by: Mrs. Davis ||
03/21/2005 14:55 Comments ||
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Thousands of protesters, some armed with clubs and Molotov cocktails, overran Kyrgyzstan's second-largest city Monday, forcing police to flee as the government lost control of the impoverished southern region of the former Soviet republic.
Demonstrators in Osh burned and stomped on portraits of President Askar Akayev and seized control of the airport. The army did not intervene despite the chaos. No casualties were reported.
The opposition occupied government buildings in five cities and towns across southern Kyrgyzstan, Interior Ministry spokesman Nurdin Jangarayev said. The capital, Bishkek, which is cut off from the south in winter by a high mountain range, remained calm, but the emboldened opposition vowed to press on until Akayev resigns.
"Power in Osh has been taken over by people!" opposition member Anvar Artykov told the crowd. "I congratulate you on our victory and urge you to maintain order."
The protests, involving more than 17,000 people in the affected cities, won the first concession from Akayev an investigation into allegations of widespread vote-rigging in two rounds of parliamentary elections since Feb. 27. The allegations, backed by European observers, have led to demands for Akayev's resignation and to weeks of increasingly violent protests.
Although Central Asia is the last and largest bastion of post-Soviet dictators, Akayev was regarded as the region's most reform-minded leader. But in recent years he has increasingly cracked down, and his reputation was tarnished in 2002 after police killed six demonstrators protesting the arrest of an opposition lawmaker.
Abdil Seghizbayev, an Akayev aide, said security forces would not act against the protesters and said peace talks would be possible only after order is restored.
"Neither the authorities nor opposition leaders can control the crowd right now," he said. "If an (opposition) leader emerges who can control the protesters, the government will be ready to talk to him."
The demonstrations make Kyrgyzstan the next possible candidate for a revolution within the former Soviet bloc. However, the uprisings that swept Georgia and Ukraine in the past two years were peaceful and Kyrgyzstan lacks a powerful opposition leader able to take over.
Kyrgyzstan's opposition parties long have been fractured along regional lines running parallel to the mountain range that divides the country. The south is poorer and densely populated, and its residents resent what they see as a lack of adequate representation, while the north, including Bishkek, enjoys most of the power and resources.
The opposition is convinced that it is being shut out of political life in this mostly Muslim nation of 5 million people. Although Islamic militants have conducted raids in Kyrgyzstan in previous years, religion does not appear to be playing a role in the latest protests.
Kyrgyzstan, which borders China, Uzbekistan, Tajikistan and Kazakhstan, is an energy-rich region of considerable interest to the United States and Russia, which are vying for influence in the area.
Southern Kyrgyzstan has been the scene of a series of incursions in recent years linked to the Islamic Movement of Uzbekistan, a group that fought alongside the Taliban against the U.S.-backed government in Afghanistan. U.S. troops and other anti-terrorist coalition forces are based at the Manas airport near Bishkek for air operations in Afghanistan.
Russia condemned Monday's protests, as it did last year with Ukraine.
"Extremist forces must not be allowed to use political instability to create a threat to the democratic foundations of Kyrgyz statehood," the Russian Foreign Ministry said.
Moscow also rebuked the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe for its critical evaluation of the elections, urging it to "be more responsible in forming its conclusions to prevent destructive elements from using these assessments to justify their lawless actions."
U.N. Secretary-General Kofi Annan voiced concern about the developments in Kyrgyzstan and urged both sides to settle the dispute peacefully, according to his spokesman.
"The secretary-general is opposed to the use of violence and intimidation to resolve electoral and political disputes, and calls on all parties to apply restraint," Fred Eckhard said. "Dialogue is the only viable means for addressing the current tensions."
The opposition has charged that Akayev, 60, who is prohibited from seeking another term, planned to manipulate the parliamentary vote to gain a compliant legislature that would amend the constitution to allow him a third term. Akayev, who has been president for 15 years, has denied wanting another term.
Roza Otunbayeva, an opposition leader and former foreign minister, on Monday ruled out any talks with Akayev. "We have one aim only: to oust this government. ⊠There is no need for talks anymore," she said.
But another opposition leader, Kurmanbek Bakiyev, said talks would be possible if Akayev attends them.
In Osh, many police, security forces and local officials fled the demonstrators, some of whom shouted: "Akayev, Go!" Others burned a billboard bearing Akayev's portrait.
The protesters seized the governor's office, regional police and security stations. Some 100 police deployed near the governor's office threw away their truncheons and shields and melted away, and one who wasn't fast enough was beaten by protesters.
About 100 protesters later took control of Osh airport, where they met no resistance, police said.
Security officers sat on their packs at the airport in the face of protesters, awaiting evacuation.
"This is a new day in our history," said Omurbek Tekebayev, an opposition official in Osh.
On Sunday, protesters in the town of Jalal-Abad burned much of the police headquarters, freed 70 detained protesters and occupied the governor's office.
About 15,000 people demonstrated peacefully in Jalal-Abad on Monday, a local government spokesman said, and the Interior Ministry said hundreds more were rallying in at least two other towns.
Posted by: Dan Darling ||
03/21/2005 5:42:31 PM ||
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So far the Kyrgyz protests instead of genuine pro-democracy revolts (like in Ukraine), seem to revolve instead around specific members of the political elite that objected to their own exclusion from the power-pie. Their protest are not united, and each elite excluded just tries to win the district he ran in, instead of having a common democratic vision. Unlike Georgia and Ukraine they couldn't agree even in choosing a leader among them.
Posted by: Frank G ||
03/21/2005 21:40 Comments ||
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#7
Pappy, can you explain to me how the above article indicates the revolt is pro-democracy?
"We have one aim only: to oust this government."
Let me know, Pappy, when the aim actually becomes something other than becoming Vizier in the place of Vizier. Both Cedar and Orange Revolution had more goals than just attaining power. Cedar wanted national independence and removal of Syria's army. Orange Revolution promised a new openness in society and a fight of oligarchic corruption. Both were supported by hundreds of thousands of people.
Here I see a few thousands people, whose seeming lack in popular support is compensated by molotov cocktails instead.
I see though that obsession surrounding my person is growing. Pappy is also caught in the game, and probably thinks himself cute.
BOSSES at Perth International Airport have held urgent security talks after three drunken men allegedly climbed a fence and gained access to a parked Qantas jet. The three men, one aged 20, the other two aged 24, are due to appear in Perth Magistrates Court later this week after they were arrested by the Australian Federal Police (AFP) on an aerobridge near the A330 aircraft early yesterday. They were each charged with unauthorised access to a secure area and trespassing on Commonwealth land.
Police would allege the three men scaled the fence about 1am (WST), getting onto the plane, which had just arrived in Western Australia from Singapore, an AFP spokesman said. After being detained at the East Perth lock-up they were bailed until their court appearance. A security screening of the aircraft was carried out after the men were discovered, and nothing suspicious was found on board, the AFP said A spokeswoman for Westralia Airports Corporation, owners of the airport, said it would make no comment on the incident until a meeting of bosses had concluded. A Qantas spokeswoman also said the company had no comment on the security breach.
Posted by: God Save The World ||
03/21/2005 1:56:59 AM ||
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What proportion of Australian males aged 20-24 have a BAC of less than 0.1% at 1 am in the morning? Just some mates havin some fun, lokin for a joy ride, I'd say.
Posted by: Mrs. Davis ||
03/21/2005 9:21 Comments ||
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What proportion of Australian males aged 20-24 have a BAC of less than 0.1% at 1 am in the morning?
The ones who pray 5x / day for the Khalifate to be renewed.
A Sydney man was planning a terrorist attack on a Commonwealth building in an attempt to force the Federal Goverment to change its policies, the New South Wales Supreme Court has heard.
Zeky Mallah, 22, from Condell Park in Sydney's south-west has pleaded not guilty to three terrorism-related charges, including planning to kill officials from spy agency ASIO and the Department of Foreign Affairs.
In making his opening remarks, Crown prosecutor Dennis Fagan SC told the jury that Mallah began planning a suicide attack on a Commonwealth building in Sydney after he was refused a passport in 2002.
The court heard Mallah had declared his own personal "jihad" on security authorities.
The jury was told it will hear evidence that Mallah bought a rifle in mid-2003 and later that year tried to sell the exclusive coverage of his suicide mission to an undercover police officer who was posing as a freelance journalist.
It was also told it would see a video and documents in which the 21-year-old says he is declaring his own personal jihad on ASIO and its officers.
Mr Fagan said the prosecution alleged that Mallah was planning the attack to try to make the Federal Government change the way ASIO operated.
The defence will make its opening remarks tomorrow.
The trial is expected to last for three weeks.
Posted by: God Save The World ||
03/21/2005 1:48:32 AM ||
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Ukrainian weapons- dealers smuggled 18 nuclear- capable cruise missiles to Iran and China four years ago, prosecutors said, revealing new details of an investigation that will test the Government's commitment to cleaning up corruption that critics say flourished under Leonid Kuchma, the former President.
An investigation into illicit weapons sales by officials loyal to Mr Kuchma has led to secret charges or arrests of at least six arms-dealers accused of selling missiles to Iran and China. Twelve of the missiles went to Iran and six to China, the prosecutor-general's office said.
The Kh55 cruise missiles, which have a range of 2,975km (1,860 miles), were smuggled out of Ukraine four years ago, the prosecutors said. "The proceedings against persons implicated have been forwarded to the Kiev Court of Appeals and are being heard behind closed doors," a statement said.
A spokesman named one of the accused as Volodymyr Yevdokimov, whom he said was the director of Ukraviazakaz, a cargo company.
Iran does not operate long-range bombers, but it is believed that Tehran could adapt its Soviet-built Su24 strike aircraft to launch the missile, which it received without nuclear warheads. The weapon's range would put Israel and a number of other American allies within reach.
Posted by: Dan Darling ||
03/21/2005 12:08:51 AM ||
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As of a couple of days ago, that was 12 to Iran and six to China, yes? Can we just copy over all the previous comments?
Posted by: Bobby ||
03/21/2005 0:18 Comments ||
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It's the Sunday Times...what do we expect from them? It's not like they're up to the journalistic standards of the New York Times or anything.
#3
...Yes, they could adapt them to the Su24 (Soviet equivalent to the F-111). However, this thing is 26 feet long and weighs around 4K pounds - the Fencer can handle the weight, but anything that long will have to be slung under the wings, and since the Fencer is a variable-geometry aircraft, them wings ain't swingin'. Fencer then goes from a very fast strike aircraft to a medium-fast target. Given the range (about 1800 miles), what's more likely is that they rig them on a large cargo aircraft that can get them up to altitude over Iranian territory, then launch them.
On the other hand, these missiles - as some of the articles have pointed out - were manufactured in the late 80s, and probably haven't had any decent maintenance in years. (Our AGM-86 ALCM, similar in design and employment, goes back to a depot facility for regular rework and maintenance, and they are constantly being tweaked at their bases.)It's unlikely - not impossible, but unlikely - that the Kh-55s here are fully operational and in the kind of condition they'd need to be in to pull off an attack against USAF, USN, and Israeli defenses.
Mike
Posted by: Mike Kozlowski ||
03/21/2005 7:38 Comments ||
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Also, just to recap the earlier comments, it's not an easy task to form-fit a nuclear warhead to these things. Again, not impossible, but not an overnight thing either.
#6
Raptor:
There are ground (well, sea) launch versions of the KH55 mentioned at this site.
It appears to be the Kh55 with a first-stage booster. So, it has that capability, but if you add the booster, it would be larger and heavier. I don't know if you could put the all up round on a truck or not.
#8
These CM's are prob intended primarily for use ags US aircraft carriers and their CVBG's, then to a lesser extent ags Israel. The Mad Mullahs = Saddam in that they know they can't stop or defeat any US or US-Brits led Allied invasion - the best they can hope for is for them and the anti-USA agendists to PC intimidate US pols and Big Medias vv nuclearized or nuke-potential "Vietnam(s)" or "Quagmire" scenarios. The Commies and Radical Islam are fighting for the same outcome - a PC enslaved world with Global Big Government; Anti-Democracy/Pluralism; deficit-based Left-/Anarchism-based Mass Ultra-Conservatism-Totalitarianism; State-Army-based/centric Materialism, and an over-Regulated, Stratified Society, i.e. Slaves that don't know or believe they're slaves even when they realize they are!? Failed Leftism-Socialism no longer stands for social improvement, Utopian idealism or even Alternatism, only Anarchism for the sake of Anarchism, Dissent for the sake of Dissent, Politics and PC for the sake of Politics and PC, Power and Absolutism for the sake of Power and Absolutism, with no thought as to why, reason, or consequence; Power Thuggery, Power Piggery, and Power Whoring! The Failed Left is fighting for the PC Supremacy of the medieval Rampaging, Uncivilized, Barbarian Hordes of Asia and Antiquity, the Rampage for the sake of Rampage, NOT for Progress or Civilization. Even Attila and Genghis, etal. fought to improve and civilize their nations, not for the sake of rampaging for the sake of rampaging!?
I'm very happy about this, although Moussaoui's oral arguments would have been entertaining...
The Supreme Court declined Monday to hear terrorism suspect Zacarias Moussaoui's appeal of a key ruling upholding the Bush administration's power to bar certain witnesses sought by the only person charged in the United States in connection with the Sept. 11 attacks. Justices let stand a lower court ruling that allowed the government to pursue the death penalty while restricting Moussaoui's direct access to three al-Qaida terror captives. The lower court, citing national security concerns, said Moussaoui could use government-prepared summaries from the captives but not interview them himself. The Supreme Court action shifts the case back to trial court, where U.S. District Judge Leonie Brinkema in Alexandria, Va., must oversee the crafting of summaries and other classified information. A trial could begin as early as September.
It's only been almost 4 years already. What's the rush?
Moussaoui, a French citizen who was indicted in December 2001, remains the only person charged in an al-Qaida conspiracy that includes the Sept. 11 attacks. He has acknowledged his loyalty to Osama bin Laden but denies he was to have any role in the 2001 attacks on New York and Washington. His court-appointed attorneys argue in filings that forcing Moussaoui to rely on summaries violate his 6th Amendment right to a fair trial because the classified documents contain information "from unnamed, unsworn government agents purporting to report unsworn, incomplete, nonverbatim accounts" of witness statements.
But the administration countered that high court review at this point was premature because government attorneys were working to put together summaries under Brinkema's direction. An appeal challenging the death penalty and use of summaries, if one is necessary, would be more appropriate after trial, it said. "The challenged substitutions have not yet been crafted and thus their adequacy and admissibility cannot be examined in a concrete factual context," acting Solicitor General Paul Clement wrote. Justice Department spokesman Bryan Sierra said the government would present a motion to the district court suggesting a trial date. The filing could be as early as Tuesday. Sierra said the Supreme Court's rejection of Moussaoui's appeal "once again affirms our belief that the government can provide Zacarias Moussaoui with a fair trial while still protecting national security interests." "Today's denial of Moussaoui's appeal puts us another step closer to trial and we look forward to presenting our case to the district court," he said. The case is Moussaoui v. U.S., 04-8385.
At least three people were seriously injured in a blast in Ambon, the sectarian violence-hit capital of Indonesia's eastern Maluku island chain, eyewitnesses said. The explosion at 10:30 pm (1330 GMT) was believed to have originated from a car driving through Batumerah, a predominately Islamic area of the city, the scene of sporadic violence between Muslim and Christian communities. All three victims were believed to be Muslims and were taken for treatment at the nearby Al-Fatah and Al-Mukadeh Muslim hospitals.
One local journalist, quoting police sources, said that as many as 11 people may have been wounded in the explosion, with three seriously hurt. The vehicle believed to have been involved in the blast was being examined by members of paramilitary police deployed to the area. Ambon and some other parts of the Malukus were ravaged by three years of Muslim-Christian clashes that killed more than 5,000 people before a February 2002 peace pact took effect. But sporadic violence has continued and tension between the two communities has remains high in Ambon and several of its surrounding small islands.
Police last month sent a team of elite snipers to reinforce Ambon, anticipating unrest ahead of a regional separatist group's "independence day" next month. Outlawed supporters of the self-declared Republic of South Maluku are expected to attend a flag-raising ceremony to mark the day on April 25. In April last year, a banned parade by the Christian-affiliated separatists sparked violence in which at least 38 people were killed after a week of bloody communal unrest.
JAKARTA, Indonesia (AP) - Indonesia plans to formally outlaw the al-Qaida-linked terror group Jemaah Islamiyah, a move that will make it easier for authorities to arrest and prosecute militants in the world's most populous Muslim nation, a top security official said Monday. Banning the organization - which is listed by the United Nations as a terrorist group - will please the United States and other foreign governments but risks opposition from Muslim groups and political parties that fear it may herald a broader crackdown on Islamic activists.
Ansyaad Mbai, who heads the counterterrorism desk at Indonesia's Coordinating Ministry for Political and Security Affairs, said the government intends to outlaw the group, which is blamed for a host of attacks and plots throughout Southeast Asia, including the 2002 Bali nightclub attacks. "I am convinced that this will happen because I know President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono is very concerned with this problem," he told The Associated Press. "The reason this is not being done immediately is because the political situation is still very sensitive."
Authorities have locked up more than 150 militants in the last three years, but officials balk at publicly identifying them as belonging to Jemaah Islamiyah or being motivated by sympathy with al-Qaida. Part of the reluctance to ban Jemaah Islamiyah rests on its name, which means "Islamic community." Proponents of an Islamic state in secular Indonesia, who were brutally repressed under former dictator Suharto, fear that such a ban could mean they too will be targeted.
Mbai said that banning the group was essential in the fight against terror.
"We know there are many JI members who have got military training and have the ability to make bombs and use weapons who are still around, but the police cannot arrest them unless there is evidence they are involved in a particular act of terrorism," Mbai said. "If JI is proscribed as a banned organization, then security agencies can take preventive steps," said Mbai, a two-star police general known to be close to Yudhoyono.
Jemaah Islamiyah's alleged spiritual leader, Abu Bakar Bashir, was sentenced to 30 months in jail earlier this month for conspiracy in the 2002 Bali nightclub bombings that killed 202 people. Analysts have said prosecutors would have been able to build a stronger case against the 66-year-old cleric if they had been able to directly charge him with heading the group. Jemaah Islamiyah has been blamed for a string of terrorist attacks in Indonesia in recent years. They include the Bali bombings, a blast at Jakarta's J.W. Marriott hotel the following year that killed 12, and a suicide car bombing at the Australian Embassy last September that killed 10.
Two of its purported top leaders - Malaysians Azahari bin Husin and Noordin Mohamed Top - were allegedly central players in all three attacks and remain fugitives in Indonesia. Authorities have long warned they are planning more attacks.
Wasn't one of them rumored to have gotten wacked by a Philippines air strike on a rebel hideout?
Posted by: Steve ||
03/21/2005 10:00:41 AM ||
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#1
Window dressing, IMHO. Those ineffective courts and, even when they have a perp cold, stunning sentences, such as Bashir's 30 months, leave a tad more to be desired. Remember this assclown was acquitted of plotting to assassinate the then VP Megawati - played "sick" when they came to "arrest" him - and laughed at the courts and judges - with good reason. He's allowed a cellphone and gives press interviews from "prison". Tough system there in Indo, when the perp's a Muzzy.
15,000 policemen will be deployed in malls, churches and vital installations across Manila to prevent terror attacks during the long Easter break, police said today.
Authorities have warned that members of the Muslim extremist Abu Sayyaf group may stage bomb attacks in Manila and key cities on the southern island of Mindanao after a failed jail break last week left 22 members dead.
Up to seven escaped militants from Abu Sayyaf and Jemaah Islamiyah were still at large, Officials said.
Jemaah Islamiyah is considered to be the South-East Asian chapter of al-Qaeda, which experts say has been training Abu Sayyaf militants in bomb making.
"All security measures are in place and we remain on full alert," national police chief Arturo Lomibao said.
"The threat is still serious that is why we have deployed (men) since last week."
"All members of the PNP (national police) will not be allowed to take their (vacation) leaves and will be on post 24 hours a day.
"We appeal to the public to remain vigilant," as the militants were "highly mobile" and could bomb targets in Manila or Mindanao.
Manila police chief Avelino Razon said up to 15,000 police would be stationed in crowded areas such as malls and transport terminals.
Millions of Filipinos traditionally travel to the provinces during the Easter holiday.
Last month, Abu Sayyaf set off bombs in the Makati financial district of Manila and two cities in Mindanao, killing eight and wounding up to 150 others.
Posted by: God Save The World ||
03/21/2005 1:59:50 AM ||
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#1
Yup, Bending over and taking it (and perhaps paying 16 million) for 1 filipino overseas worker has done wonder's hasn't it Arroyo?
I wonder how much of that 16 million (assuming it was paid) is being spent on bombs and explosives to kill your own people...
Edited for brevity.
The U.S. Navy aircraft carrier USS Theodore Roosevelt is on the move in Atlantic Ocean and is possibly headed towards the Mediterranean Sea. The convergence of three carrier groups in the corridor of the Middle East will send very strong message to the Syrians and Iranians. There are indications that soon US is moving two more aircraft carrier battle groups to the Eastern Mediterranean Sea and the Persian Gulf. This will spell a formidable strike force for Iran and Syria who are in defiance on issues of Lebanon and Nuclear weapons development.
Outbound from Singapore, the USS Carl Vinson is currently crossing the Indian Ocean headed towards Middle-East. This will be the first time since February 2004 that US will have three major carrier groups stationed on and around Middle East.
Each of these carrier groups carry nearly 85 aircrafts and is capable of deliver precision-guided munitions. In addition there are anti-submarine aircrafts, airborne-early-warning and rotary-wing aircrafts. Because in the air refueling capabilities these aircrafts can operate from a long distance. The carrier groups are independent and can operate indefinitely. This information was included in a previous post on Rantburg. The third carrier is presumably the USS Harry S. Truman.
Posted by: Dar ||
03/21/2005 2:42:11 PM ||
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#5
This is way overdone. We have all the air power we need in Iraq and around the Gulf States. No real need for carriers as such.
There are perhaps political considerations involved in not using the land-based assets - namely, that the local governments will be concerned. Local allies can't give us a hard time about using the carriers, since they don't operate on their soil. Still, that has to be balanced against putting these really expensive warships at risk.
General Characteristics, Ohio Class
Builders: General Dynamics Electric Boat Division.
Power Plant: One nuclear reactor, one shaft
Length: 560 feet (170.69 meters)
Beam: 42 feet (12.8 meters)
Displacement: 16,764 tons (17,033.03 metric tons) surfaced; 18,750 tons (19,000.1 metric tons) submerged
Speed: 20+ knots (23+ miles per hour, 36.8 +kph)
Ships:
USS Ohio (SSBN 726) â Out of service 29 Oct. 2002 for conversion to SSGN
USS Michigan (SSBN 727) â conversion to SSGN scheduled for October 2003
USS Florida (SSBN 728) â conversion to SSGN scheduled for October 2003
USS Georgia (SSBN 729) â conversion to SSGN scheduled for 2004
Crew: 15 Officers, 140 Enlisted
Armament: Up to 154 Tomahawk missiles each (140 on SOF-configured SSGNs).
#9
We may be able to pull off strikes with assets already in place, but nothing says "Hello" like old fashioned gun boat diplomacy.
Carriers represent a very large and visible stick to all involved.
Posted by: Laurence of the Rats ||
03/21/2005 15:51 Comments ||
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#10
MMHQ! lol. They gotta be getting a little twitchy in Tehran at the moment. Never hurts to keep em thinking "flinch." Even lil Kim in Korea understands the usefulness of an attitude adjuster displayed properly.
#12
Even if it's routine rotation, it's nice to have that much power right there--enough to say to both Syria and Iran we've got the power to swat both of you down, and simultaneously at that!
Posted by: Dar ||
03/21/2005 16:15 Comments ||
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#13
Isn't the USS Theodore Roosevelt informally known as "The Big Stick"?...
#14
mojo, yes it is. The WWII carrier the Cowpens was nicknamed The Mighty Moo and the Battleship Missouri was The Mighty Mo.
Posted by: Deacon Blues ||
03/21/2005 16:42 Comments ||
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The mighty Moo? LOL! I didn't know that. I have kin who fought there and ran and fought and ran and waited for Gen. Greene to get with the program. :)
#17
THREE carrier groups in one place? Correct me if I'm wrong, but doesn't such a display of testosterone make that three prong group about, oh...say... the second most power laden country on the face of the earth in one confined area? With all due respect...you really want three USN carrier groups parked off your coast?
Posted by: Mark Z. ||
03/21/2005 19:02 Comments ||
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#18
Mark Z: THREE carrier groups in one place? Correct me if I'm wrong, but doesn't such a display of testosterone make that three prong group about, oh...say... the second most power laden country on the face of the earth in one confined area? With all due respect...you really want three USN carrier groups parked off your coast?
Since George HW Bush's New World Order, Uncle Sam has, with the exception of Afghanistan, pretty much gone to the UN for anything that related to America's national interests. A display of testosterone is when we destroy a significant portion of the Iranian military. These are just routine maneuvers blown out of proportion by excitable Indian reporters.
This is an older story about the big counterprotest a week+ ago.
Nearly one million people gathered for an opposition rally in Beirut, officials say - a month after the death of former Prime Minister Rafik Hariri. The demonstration surpassed recent pro-Syrian rallies and is thought to be the biggest in Lebanese history. The BBC's Kim Ghattas in Beirut says the crowds turned the city centre into a sea of red, white and green - the colours of Lebanon's national flag. They were protesting against the presence of Syrian forces in Lebanon. Syria has pulled back some of its troops in Lebanon to the border. Damascus also promised the UN a full timetable for the withdrawal of its 14,000 troops and intelligence agents. Meanwhile military intelligence officers left two offices in the north, in the town of Amyoun in Koura region and Deir Ammar on the coast, the Associated Press news agency reported.
Beirut city official Mounib Nassereddine told AFP news agency more than 800,000 people had turned out for the protest, which would make it the biggest demonstration held in the country's history. AP also estimated the same turnout. Demonstrators packed Martyrs Square, near where Hariri died in a car bomb, and the crowd spilled over into nearby streets. The sea of people fell silent at 1255 (1055 GMT), the exact time Hariri was killed four weeks ago. Unlike previous anti-Syrian rallies, Sunni Muslims came out in force to join Druze and Christians to commemorate the loss of their leader. A stream of buses and cars brought protesters from the eastern Bekaa Valley, while others arrived from Junieh in the north by sea.
"Hezbollah organised a giant demonstration last Tuesday to intimidate us," Nada, 35, who travelled to Beirut from Zahle in the east, told AFP. "Today we're taking up the challenge and invite [Hezbollah] to join us because we represent the true majority of the country," she said. Many offices and schools closed early for the demonstration. Our correspondent says a lot more effort went into organising this event, and the media owned by Hariri was a driving force. The opposition will try to keep the momentum until parliamentary elections in May, she adds.
Posted by: Steve ||
03/21/2005 9:21:22 AM ||
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Iran has approved a secret nuclear research centre to train scientists in atomic technology, a British newspaper reported on Sunday. "Intelligence officials believe that the creation of the facility is yet further evidence that Iran is involved in a clandestine programme to build nuclear weapons," The Sunday Telegraph said. Scientists would be able to take post-graduate courses in nuclear engineering and the production of nuclear materials at the new faculty, which would be attached to the Atomic Energy Organisation of Iran, the newspaper said, citing western intelligence sources.
The allegation comes despite growing pressure on Iran from the United States and Europe to guarantee that it will not use its atomic energy programme to acquire nuclear weapons. "If the Iranians were really serious about only developing nuclear technology for peaceful means, there would be no need for a facility like this," a senior western security official told The Sunday Telegraph. "It suggests that they do not want to share their nuclear expertise with the outside world," the official said.
Posted by: Fred ||
03/21/2005 00:00:00 ||
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Mahdi Army Beats 2 Students to Death in Basrah No one seems to have reported the latest events in Basrah. Not any of the news services or the blogs.
Students of the Basrah and Shatt Al-Arab universities in Basrah city have been on strike for the last three days as a reaction to the attack last week by Sadrists and Mahdi Army militiamen on tens of students organising a field trip or a picnic at Al-Andalus park, downtown Basrah.
Hooded men assaulted the students with rubber cables and truncheons which resulted in the death of a Christian girl, Zahra Ashour, and another student who came to her rescue after militiamen had tore off her clothes and were beating her to death. He was shot in the head.
Students say that their belongings, such as mobile phones, cameras, stereo players and loudspeakers, were stolen or smashed to pieces by the militiamen. Girl students not wearing headscarves, most of them Christian, were severely beaten and at least 20 students were kidnapped and taken to Sadr's office in Al-Tuwaisa [that's a neighborhood in Basra I think]
for 'interrogation' and were only released late at night.
Students also say the police and British soldiers were nearby but did not intervene....
Thousands of students have been demonstrating in front of the Basrah Governorate building in Asharr for the last three days, shouting 'No to political Islam', 'No to the new tyranny' and 'No to Sadr'. The police (which is loyal to Da'wa in Basrah) reportedly attacked the students in order to disperse the demonstrations.
#1
Nice - Islamic Honor requires beating Christian girls.
Posted by: Frank G ||
03/21/2005 14:13 Comments ||
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3 observations:
1) I hate to say it, but it smells like the logical outcome from the application of the "soft power" approach. I could say much much more about how stupid this was / is, but... One or two Sheikhs probably control the entire region - "for Sistani". If the police stood by, as good little soldiers of one faction / party / Sheikh, then the region is screwed.
2) If Sistani does, indeed, continue to sit on his hands, then he's complicit - you know he could quickly and positively end this situation with mere words. Lopping off the heads of the perps who killed these students would be a start.
3) We should've killed Sadr and every last one of the murderous thugs with him in Najaf back when Sistani made his little "emergency medical trip" to London. He'll never be a martyr - the argument presented back then for sparing him and luring him into politics. He and his "followers" (mercs) are a hernia in the system in need of excising. Everyone here knew he'd be a "problem", sooner or later, and we were only delaying the inevitable when he was spared from his just deserts.
I hope the students keep it up until they get air time & press coverage -- and a rise out of Sistani.
#5
A nice foreshadowing of the political evolution of Iraqi society, though. Thousands of students have been demonstrating in front of the Basrah Governorate building in Asharr for the last three days, shouting âNo to political Islamâ, âNo to the new tyrannyâ and âNo to Sadrâ.
The university students will be the future leaders and, like the Iranian youngsters, they see the danger of rule by mullah. So long as the Coalition forces remain, Sistani/Sadr cannot take active control, and it won't take long for the opportunity to be lost forever if this kind of thing continues/
#7
I believe the murdered girl was a Muslim not a Christian. Check out the discussion of this incident in Zeyad's 'Healing Iraq' blog.
http://healingiraq.blogspot.com/
The performance of the pro-Muqtada list in the election demonstrates that the fat tyre-head and his thugs have minimal public support. I would like to see the Iraqi Army arrest him and give his backside a good kicking on Iraqi TV news. That should destroy some of the fear and mystique surrounding this pustule.
Posted by: Homer from London ||
03/21/2005 15:54 Comments ||
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Memo to the new Iraqi Govt:
Tater + wall + five guys w. rifles = end of problem
March 20, 2005: The UN says Ethiopia has moved over 30,000 troops up to the Eritrean border, most of them near the disputed town of Badme. This breaks down to approximately six new divisions. Ethiopian infantry divisions have roughly 5000 troops each. Ethiopia now has 90,000 troops in the area. This UN report follows a series of reports from mid-December 2004, that Ethiopia was reinforcing units on its side of the Temporary Security Zone (TSZ) created by UNMEE (United Nations Mission in Ethiopia and Eritrea). Other sources indicate Ethiopia is also sending new military units to the Somali-Ethiopian border. Ethiopia has indicated it will offer troops to any new Somalia peacekeeping effort, either under the auspices of the UN or the African Union. Many Somali clams, however, have long-standing disputes with Ethiopia and claim that Ethiopia has been meddling in Somali affairs. This could get interesting.
Posted by: Steve ||
03/21/2005 10:27:04 AM ||
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#1
Ill supported and ill prepared troops facing eachother in what is surely the most God foresaken place on earth.
#2
Gonna be another WWI-like war, just like the Iran-Iraq war in the 80s.
Posted by: Dar ||
03/21/2005 10:45 Comments ||
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#3
They can't match the scale of the Iran-Iraq conflict but I'm sure they'll match the futility and brutality in the upcoming Battle of the Feebles. Kinda like two 90 years olds having it out manno on manno. They may have the will to do it but the capabilities are pretty self-limiting. Where's Koffi when ya need him?!
#6
Hell, my grandpa (a WW2 vet) has a replacement hip, left hand shakes, poor eyes but still can put a 3 round group in a teacup size hole from 300 meters. I still wouldn't screw with him.
#7
The UN says Ethiopia has moved over 30,000 troops up to the Eritrean border, most of them near the disputed town of Badme. This breaks down to approximately six new divisions.
That depends on Ethiopian ground unit combat organization doctrine. If we go by the old Soviet doctrine it's closer to four divisions max.
I s'pect any engagement between like forces will be a bloodbath simply by the virtue that the officers are likely political, likely uneducated as military officers, and are untrained in critical matters like operations and logistics.
#8
Ethiopian ground unit combat organization doctrine
LOL! Spear carriers first, then spears, then drummers, then motorized corps of the little epulate fellas, then the medium edpulats corp.
#9
I thought the fools had worn themselves out last time, but obviously both sides just took a hudna break. This is about measuring testosterone; they won't quit until they run out of bullets or bodies, whichever comes first -- but as tkat's poetic image indicates, it may take a while.
#11
This guy claims that it's a tribal African case of "let's you and him fight", that the majority of the foot infantry slaughtered in the last go-round, 1998-2000, were Orono tribals thrown away by the Trigay Ethiopian elites.
It's damned hard to find any non-NGO-bleeding-heart accounts online of that war, btw.
Posted by: Mitch H. ||
03/21/2005 15:18 Comments ||
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U.S. nuclear investigators have determined the black market technology Pakistani scientist A. Q. Khan was selling was far more detailed than first thought. While it has been more than a year since Pakistani President Pervez Musharraf pardoned Khan, U.S. officials and the International Atomic Energy Agency have begun gleaning information from Khan's chief deputy, Buhari Sayed Abu Tahir, who is in jail in Malaysia.
You remember B.S.A. Tahir, he vanished into a "protective custody" black hole along with his family last year. I thought he was the key player most likely to cut a deal.
"It's becoming clearer to us that Khan was selling a complete package," a senior U.S. official told the New York Times. "Not a turnkey operation -- that would be overstating it -- but close to it." To investigators and other experts, the discovery that Khan was selling step-by-step directions for making crucial parts of a bomb was startling. "The real secrets are in the details of the metallurgy, the manufacturing and the engineering," said Siegfried Hecker, director of the Los Alamos weapons laboratory from 1986 to 1997.
Khan is a metallurgist and an expert at making both centrifuges that enrich uranium and nuclear warheads. Investigators say that in the early 1980's, he obtained the detailed blueprints for a Chinese atomic bomb.
Posted by: Steve ||
03/21/2005 9:46:02 AM ||
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...Talk about picking the wrong guys to shoot at...
"Sarge! Sarge! They's shootin' at us!"
"Just like them Hatfields, ain't it, Elbert?"
"Cletus! Bring up s'more ammunition!"
Dozens of terrorists attacked a U.S. convoy with gunfire and rocket-propelled grenades, sparking a clash that saw U.S. troops kill 26 militants, one of the largest fights since Iraq's Jan. 30 election. Some 40 rebels hit the military police and artillery units from the Kentucky National Guard late Sunday as the Americans traveled along a road 20 miles southeast of Baghdad that has seen a recent uptick in violence, the military said in a detailed account Monday. Six soldiers and seven militants were wounded, and one person was arrested. After the attack, troops recovered six rocket-propelled grenade launchers , 16 rockets, 13 machine guns, 22 assault weapons, more than 2,900 rounds of ammunition and 40 hand grenades from the insurgents. This sems to me to be a very telling report- these guys rustle up their largest attack in a couple months and get their asses handed to them: better than 50% KIA, and God willing a few captured as well.
Posted by: Mike Kozlowski ||
03/21/2005 7:13:45 AM ||
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#2
When you see these kind of numbers for an ambush, you have to figure we did the ambushing. I'd say we were tipped for the attack and were waiting for these "late" goobers.
And these weren't infantry, but arty and mil police. Good, but our second string when it comes to combat. God bless them! They done good.
At approximately noon on March 20, 26 terrorists were killed, seven wounded, and one captured when they attacked a coalition force convoy on the outskirts of Baghdad in the Salman Pak area. Seven soldiers were injured during the attack. A U.S. military convoy and its security element from the 617 Military Police Company was patrolling when the convoy was ambushed by approximately 40 â 50 terrorists with rocket propelled grenades and small arms fire. The convoy became disabled and the 617 MPâs maneuvered to flank the terrorists. Apache air support was called in but didnât participate in the engagement. The Apache remained in the area to provide additional support if needed.
Military personnel recovered six RPG launchers, 16 RPG rockets, 13 RPK (machine guns), 22 AKMs (assault rifle), more than 2900 rounds of ammunition, and 40 hand grenades from the terrorists.
Every day soldiers guard convoys across Iraqâs most dangerous roads. In recent days, this road has had increased attacks on coalition forces. On March 18, there was another complex attack at almost the same location. The attack consisted of RPGs, mortars, and small arms fire from both sides of the road. No U.S. soldiers were injured in this attack.
#8
Marine Lance Corporal James Blake Miller is from Jonancy, Kentucky. Growing up with firearms and hunting makes these folks a very poor choice of target...
Idea for the Asshats... Next time put up a sign that says:
"Honk if you're from [insert Blue State No Guns city here]!"
And attack if they honk. Of course, they'll prolly end up with reformed Barrio Boyz who have killed more people by the time they're 15 than these shit-for-brains Terrs know. It's a crap-shoot to screw with the US Military. Better stick to killin' unarmed women and children. They're a better match for your Jihadi Manliness...
#23
Them boys were In-surgents? Well golly be, we's figgered they was revenooers fixin' ta' conferscate our corn squeezin's and bust our still. I'll tell you what.
#25
#21 tw- 2900 rounds is just over 100 rounds per corpse. That is about 300 rounds less than I will be going into combat with as a basic load (IIRC). 2900 is a small number when it comes to mdern combat with rifles. If it had been 29,000, that is a large number.
One of the boys who was wounded has died. He was from a unit not far from where I drill. The KYARNG has been affected by his death and that says something. That the Guard can be affected by a single death and several wounded ina war of this length says that we are kicking ass in a one-sided battle.
The soldiers who die in this war will be remembered for a long time, for they will be a small band who did much and sacrificed all. Never before has so much been accomplished with the sacrifices of so few. No other war we have ever fought has claimed so few lives.
Posted by: Janos Hunyadi ||
03/21/2005 19:35 Comments ||
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#29
SW/JR - Flying to Dallas Wed to meet (Thur/Fri) my youngest after his first USMC deployment in the Wild West of the Syrian border near Al Qaim. I've seen little snippets of friends (or acquaintances or people he knew of) being hurt, dimembered, or killed (but he didn't worry his Mom). He was such a kind, thoughful, and considerate kid - I hope it hasn't messed him up!
It doesn't matter what anyone thinks - these guys/gals are serving their country! You no lika da mission? Dat's fine! But honor da guy (and gal) carryin' da load! The government might be misguided, but the soldiers/sailors/airmen/women and Marines are NOT misguided!
*Somebody* hasta serve!
Posted by: Bobby ||
03/21/2005 21:36 Comments ||
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Iraqi cabinet minister Wael Abudl al-Latif said on Sunday he was safe and in his house in Baghdad, after police and Interior Ministry officials said he had been kidnapped south of the capital.
"Nope. Wudn't me."
"It's not true. I am safe," Latif, minister of state for Iraq's provinces, told Reuters by telephone.
"I just went out for a ride in my trunk."
Police had earlier said Latif's convoy had been ambushed south of Baghdad and that he had been seized along with 10 of his bodyguards. But Latif, a Shi'ite judge and ally of Prime Minister Iyad Allawi, said all his staff were safe. There was no immediate comment from police on how Latif had been falsely reported kidnapped.
Posted by: Dan Darling ||
03/21/2005 12:30:01 AM ||
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QUETTA: A spokesman for the little-known Baloch Liberation Front (BLF), who identified himself as Colonel Doda, called the Quetta Press Club and claimed responsibility for the two bomb blasts in Turbat. Four people were injured and a powerline and a government office damaged in three separate bomb blasts in Balochistan, officials said Sunday.
"We dunnit and we're glad!"
Posted by: Fred ||
03/21/2005 00:00:00 ||
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At least 49 people have died in Saturday's blast at a Sufi saint's shrine in Gandhawa in the Balochistan district of Jhal Magsi, a caretaker of the shrine said on Sunday. However, government officials said the death toll from the explosion was 29. The shrine's caretaker, Faqir Ghulam Hussain, said he had information about 49 people being killed and over 40 others being injured in the explosion. Asked about the lower official casualty figures, Hussain said the government officials knew about only the injured and dead taken to the hospital in Fatehpur town, where the shrine's located. The officials, he said, did not have information about the injured and dead bodies taken to hospitals in nearby cities of Nasirabad, Jacobabad, Dera Murad Jamali and Larkana. Hospital and police sources confirmed 27 bodies and 18 injured.
Interior Minister Aftab Ahmed Khan Sherpao put the death toll at 29 and said police were investigating the possibility that rivalry between caretakers of the shrine might have been behind the attack. "One possibility that police are investigating is rivalry among the descendants of the saint...there were some disputes among relatives," Sherpao told Reuters. Another possibility was that some conservative Muslims were opposed to the celebration of the saint's day, which includes dancing and singing by women devotees, he said. But Sherpao ruled out the possibility that sectarian or tribal militants were behind the latest blast.
My money's on sectarians, specifically Lashkar e-Jhangvi. But in Pakland, you never know... Well, actually you do, usually. But sometimes we can be surprised.
Police said they were investigating whether a suicide bomber had detonated the powerful bomb. "Investigators have reached the site of the blast and are collecting evidence," Balochistan police chief Chaudhry Muhammad Yaqub earlier told AFP. Yaqoob said a timing mechanism had been found. "It was a time bomb because we found a time device," Yaqoob told Reuters. Officials said no one had claimed responsibility for the attack, which happened at around 10:30 pm. Hussain also ruled out enmity as the motive behind the explosion. "We have no enmity with anyone, " he said.
Not that it'd matter in Pakland...
Local police official Khadim Hussain said the bomb was a time device fixed in an area where the food was served, suggesting that it was not a suicide bombing. A second, unexploded bomb was found near the shrine shortly after the first device detonated, Mohammad Amin Umrani, the nazim of neighbouring Naseerabad district, told AFP. It was removed safely. The bomb went off as food was being distributed after a ceremony. It weighed about 2 kg, Sherpao said. Many of the injured were hurt in a stampede after the blast, he said.
Posted by: Fred ||
03/21/2005 00:00:00 AM ||
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Dien Bien Phu at Dera Bugti? Is Sgt. Arsicaud on his way?
Bugti tribesmen have surrounded some 300 Frontier Corps (FC) personnel and government officials at a base in Dera Bugti area where fears of fresh fighting between the tribesmen and troops have forced thousands of residents to flee for safety, Balochistan Governor Awais Ahmed Ghani said on Sunday. The tribesmen have set up roadblocks and dug trenches along roads into Dera Bugti, the governor said, AP reported. Helicopters were airlifting supplies to the troops to avoid travelling by road and confrontation with the tribesmen, he told reporters in Quetta. More than 3,000 government employees and their families escaped on Saturday in vehicles under FC escort from Dera Bugti after a 16-hour battle in the town last week. The governor said up to 45 people, including eight soldiers, were killed in the fighting.
On Sunday, about 3,000 people, mostly women and children of local Bugti tribesmen, also left the town because they fear fresh fighting, Dera Bugti DCO Abdul Samad Lasi said. They were camped in the open outside Dera Bugti or sheltering with relatives in neighbouring towns, he added. "The situation in Dera Bugti is very tense. You can expect anything (to happen)," Lasi said by satellite telephone from the town. A cease-fire has been holding since early Friday.
Citing intelligence information, Lasi said about 5,000 armed Bugti tribesmen had taken up position on mountains near the town and that FC personnel were ranged against them. "If they (the Bugti tribesmen) make any move, if they open fire or attack, the government will give full response," he added. Army spokesman Maj Gen Shaukat Sultan said additional army troops had been sent to the gas fields at Sui to strengthen security, but denied the army was involved in an operation against the Bugti tribesmen.
Posted by: Fred ||
03/21/2005 00:00:00 AM ||
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No real issue, unless the Bugtis have artillery. Then it's a question of whether Pakistan has enough bombers and artillery to keep them suppressed. Uncle Sam never had to deal with Dien Bien Phu because he never sent out infantry without both artillery and air support readily available.
#4
CS: Zhang, I think there are some guys from Nam who would beg to differ. We had a couple of "near run things" during that war. Khe Sanh comes to mind.
The guys that lived through the walk back from Chosen with First Marines might also venture an opinion..
At Khe Sanh, the Marines had the benefit of B-52's and F-4's dropping significant tonnage on the NVA, not to mention massed artillery inflicting damage on them. At Chosin, Uncle Sam dominated the skies, taking out Chinese supply columns and attackers alike - artillery units were also integral to US infantry divisions, which was not true of the Chinese infantry, who were almost exclusively riflemen. The reality is that artillery, whether delivered by land or from the air, is the decisive factor in large unit land battles. It was Chinese-supplied artillery that brought the French to their knees at Dien Bien Phu.
Israel was poised on Sunday to withdraw its troops from a second West Bank city in a gesture to Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas after he won a commitment from militants to hold their fire against Israelis. "We expect to transfer Tulkarm to Palestinian responsibility on Monday," Defence Minister Shaul Mofaz told journalists at an army base in central Israel. He said the city of Qalqilya would be next, but gave no date for that pullback.
Posted by: Fred ||
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Soldiers have successfully flushed communist rebels from hideouts in the remote mountains of western Nepal, army officials said on Sunday. The troops found and destroyed at least two bomb-making factories and several of the Maoist rebels' bases, said a senior official involved in the operation. The official at the Royal Nepalese Army's western regional command centre, speaking on condition of anonymity, also claimed the operation had foiled attacks being planned by the rebels. Further details were not immediately available. The major operation was launched after King Gyanendra took over the government on Feb. 1, promising to wipe out the rebels and restore peace in this Himalayan country.
The guerrillas, who say they are inspired by Chinese revolutionary leader Mao Zedong, have been fighting since 1996 to replace Nepal's monarchy with a communist state. The insurgency has claimed more than 10,500 lives. In the latest operation, hundreds of troops combed mountainous remote in Nepal's remote western region, believed to be a rebel stronghold. The guerrillas' elusive leader, known as Prachanda, said a week ago that his forces would step up attacks on government troops and set up roadblocks, then call for an 11-day nationwide anti-monarchy strike beginning April 2.
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A suicide bomber killed the head of the Iraqi police anti-corruption department in the northern city of Mosul on Sunday and later insurgents attacked his funeral procession, killing two people, officials said. A US lieutenant-colonel said the bomber detonated explosives strapped to his body in the building where Brigadier Walid Kashmoula worked. Later insurgents fired guns at his funeral procession, killing two people and wounding at least 10 others, some seriously, hospital officials said. Dozens of cars were in the procession in western Mosul, following the vehicle carrying his body to the grave.
Posted by: Steve White ||
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#1
On second anniversary of Iraq War, Rumsfeld says: If Ankara had allowed US troops to invade Iraq through Turkey and open second front â insurgency today would be at much lower level.
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 Spanish national accused of involvement in the 2004 Madrid bombings has been remanded in custody by Bow Street magistrates in London. 
British police believe there is a substantial risk of an attack in Britain by 
BOSSES at Perth International Airport have held urgent security talks after three drunken men allegedly climbed a fence and gained access to a parked Qantas jet. The three men, one aged 20, the other two aged 24, are due to appear in Perth Magistrates Court later this week after they were arrested by the Australian Federal Police (AFP) on an aerobridge near the A330 aircraft early yesterday. They were each charged with unauthorised access to a secure area and trespassing on Commonwealth land.
At least three people were seriously injured in a blast in Ambon, the sectarian violence-hit capital of Indonesia's eastern Maluku island chain, eyewitnesses said. The explosion at 10:30 pm (1330 GMT) was believed to have originated from a car driving through Batumerah, a predominately Islamic area of the city, the scene of sporadic violence between Muslim and Christian communities. All three victims were believed to be Muslims and were taken for treatment at the nearby Al-Fatah and Al-Mukadeh Muslim hospitals.
Syria has pulled back some of its troops in Lebanon to the border. Damascus also promised the UN a full timetable for the withdrawal of its 14,000 troops and intelligence agents. Meanwhile military intelligence officers left two offices in the north, in the town of Amyoun in Koura region and Deir Ammar on the coast, the Associated Press news agency reported.
Iran has approved a secret nuclear research centre to train scientists in atomic technology, a British newspaper reported on Sunday. "Intelligence officials believe that the creation of the facility is yet further evidence that Iran is involved in a clandestine programme to build nuclear weapons," The Sunday Telegraph said. Scientists would be able to take post-graduate courses in nuclear engineering and the production of nuclear materials at the new faculty, which would be attached to the Atomic Energy Organisation of Iran, the newspaper said, citing western intelligence sources. 
No one seems to have reported the latest events in Basrah. Not any of the news services or the blogs. 
U.S. nuclear investigators have determined the black market technology Pakistani scientist 
Dozens of terrorists attacked a U.S. convoy with gunfire and rocket-propelled grenades, sparking a clash that saw U.S. troops kill 26 militants, one of the largest fights since Iraq's Jan. 30 election. Some 40 rebels hit the military police and artillery units from the Kentucky National Guard late Sunday as the Americans traveled along a road 20 miles southeast of Baghdad that has seen a recent uptick in violence, the military said in a detailed account Monday. Six soldiers and seven militants were wounded, and one person was arrested. After the attack, troops recovered six rocket-propelled grenade launchers , 16 rockets, 13 machine guns, 22 assault weapons, more than 2,900 rounds of ammunition and 40 hand grenades from the insurgents.
Iraqi cabinet minister Wael Abudl al-Latif said on Sunday he was safe and in his house in Baghdad, after police and Interior Ministry officials said he had been kidnapped south of the capital. 
At least 49 people have died in Saturday's blast at a Sufi saint's shrine in Gandhawa in the Balochistan district of Jhal Magsi, a caretaker of the shrine said on Sunday. However, government officials said the death toll from the explosion was 29. The shrine's caretaker, Faqir Ghulam Hussain, said he had information about 49 people being killed and over 40 others being injured in the explosion. Asked about the lower official casualty figures, Hussain said the government officials knew about only the injured and dead taken to the hospital in Fatehpur town, where the shrine's located. The officials, he said, did not have information about the injured and dead bodies taken to hospitals in nearby cities of Nasirabad, Jacobabad, Dera Murad Jamali and Larkana. Hospital and police sources confirmed 27 bodies and 18 injured. 
Israel was poised on Sunday to withdraw its troops from a second West Bank city in a gesture to Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas after he won a commitment from militants to hold their fire against Israelis. "We expect to transfer 
Soldiers have successfully flushed communist rebels from hideouts in the remote mountains of western Nepal, army officials said on Sunday. The troops found and destroyed at least two bomb-making factories and several of the Maoist rebels' bases, said a senior official involved in the operation. The official at the Royal Nepalese Army's western regional command centre, speaking on condition of anonymity, also claimed the operation had foiled attacks being planned by the rebels. Further details were not immediately available. The major operation was launched after 
A suicide bomber killed the head of the Iraqi police anti-corruption department in the northern city of Mosul on Sunday and later insurgents attacked his funeral procession, killing two people, officials said. A US lieutenant-colonel said the bomber detonated explosives strapped to his body in the building where Brigadier Walid Kashmoula worked. Later insurgents fired guns at his funeral procession, killing two people and wounding at least 10 others, some seriously, hospital officials said. Dozens of cars were in the procession in western Mosul, following the vehicle carrying his body to the grave.
