Thousands of American and Afghan soldiers launched an offensive against resurgent Taliban militants in five eastern provinces Saturday, seeking to expand the Afghan government's reach into the volatile frontier region, the U.S.-led coalition said.
The operation comes as a NATO-led force, including 2,500 U.S. soldiers, is pressing heavy attacks on militants in Afghanistan's south, claiming to have killed hundreds of guerrillas over the past two weeks.
The new push in the east is "part of a series of coordinated operations placing continuous pressure on Taliban extremists ... in order to provide security to the population, extend the government to the people and to increase reconstruction," the U.S.-led coalition said.
Dubbed Operation Mountain Fury, the offensive involves 7,000 U.S. and Afghan soldiers in the central and eastern provinces of Paktika, Khost, Ghazni, Paktya and Logar, the military said. Insurgents and other Islamic extremist groups, including al-Qaida, are known to operate in the region, especially in areas bordering Pakistan where the reach of the Afghan government is weak.
A separate U.S.-led operation called Big Northern Wind has been going on in neighboring Kunar province's Korangal Valley since late August.
The U.S. military said troops had been preparing the ground for Operation Mountain Fury for weeks and began the "maneuver phase" early Saturday. "Mountain Fury will continue until the conditions of bringing security, construction and growth are met," Maj. Gen. Benjamin Freakley, the top U.S. operational commander, said in the statement. "The Afghan people are tired of war. They want what their government is capable of providing: security, employment, education and a better way of life," Freakley said.
#4
You know, it's interesting how there has been zero mention of the Afghan province in the NE that has a border with China. Now granted, it is a generally peaceful province, however, it is right next door to the extremely "restive" Uighar area of China.
Somali Christian sources report Ali Mustaf Maka'il, a 22-year-old college student and cloth merchant who converted from Islam to Christianity 11 months ago, was shot and killed in the Manabolyo quarter of Mogadishu.
According to a report from the Barnabas Fund, quoting a Christian source inside Somalia, the gunman was loyal to the Union of Islamic Courts, the Islamist organization that took power in Mogadishu in early June and now controls much of southern Somalia.
The report states the gunman shot Ali in the back Sept. 7 after he refused to join a crowd chanting Quran verses in honor of the lunar eclipse. Solar and lunar eclipses are significant in Islam and are accompanied by special congregational prayers. The Union of Islamic Courts confiscated Ali's body for 24 hours before delivering it to the grieving family, the report said.
The Barnabas Fund comments: "It seems that under the new Islamist rulers, who include hard-line jihadi elements, the tragic history of persecution and martyrdom for Somalia's tiny Christian community is set to continue and most likely to worsen."
The group reports that in July there were unconfirmed reports three Christians had been shot and killed by Islamists as they returned home from a prayer meeting. In October 2005, an evangelist and house church leader, Osman Sheik Ahmed, was shot dead by Islamist radicals, Barnabas said. Also, children of Christian Somali refugees in Kenya have been kidnapped by Muslim relatives and taken to Islamic institutions in Somalia for 'rehabilitation.'"
The Barnabas Fund pointed out the leader of the Union of Islamic Courts, Hassan Dahir Aweys, promised to implement Sharia, or Islamic law, in all areas he controls.
According to Sharia, the group explained, apostates those who leave Islam for another religion must be killed. Union of Islamic Court leaders even have threatened to kill as apostates Muslims who are lax in their prayers, claiming this is commanded by Sharia. Several Muslims have been flogged publicly for drug-related offences since the union took control.
The Barnabas Fund report states more then 99.5 percent of Somalis are Muslims and regard Christianity as a foreign religion of their historic enemies in Ethiopia and of their former colonial masters the Italians and the British. It adds: "There is a long history of conflict between Muslim Somalis and Christian Ethiopians, so anti-Christian sentiment runs deep. Most Somalis take it for granted that a true Somali is a Muslim and converts to Christianity must be traitors. These prejudices, widely held by Muslim Somalis, seem to be used to justify violence against Christians, both indigenous and expatriate.
The group says the inherent hostility toward the West and Christians has risen since the U.S.-led military actions in Afghanistan and Iraq and the recent Israeli campaign against Hezbollah.
#2
Bankrupt and bereft of anything approaching hope or love, the religion of fear must COMPEL it's subjects by fear, hatred and intimidation. Just another example in a long line.
"Jesus said, I am the way, the truth, and the life. No man can come to the Father, except through me."
#5
That is what they would like to do to the Pope.
That is what they would like to do to YOU!
YES, YOU!!!
We (and not just the U.S.) need a Special Forces unit to hunt down and kill anyone who kills or seriously harms someome who converts from Islam or who kills or seriously harms anyone who Insults Islam"!!!
#10
This needs to be answered by a 1000lb JDAM on the mosque of the dropper's choice, on a Friday afternoon, 5:30 Local time. Let's see who's the last man standing.
Posted by: Old Patriot ||
09/16/2006 23:52 Comments ||
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SANAA: Four bombers and a security guard were killed on Friday when Yemeni security forces foiled twin suicide bombings against oil installations, five days before the impoverished Arab nation goes to the polls. The bombers, in explosives-laden cars, tried to attack an oil refinery in Maarib, a lawless tribal area in the desert east of the capital Sanaa, and a Canadian-run terminal in the southeastern port of Dhabba on the Gulf of Aden.
The two attempts, at around 5:30 am local time (0230 GMT), were foiled by the forces in charge of security at oil installations and the Yemeni army, a security official said. In Maarib, the two booby-trapped cars exploded before reaching their target after coming under fire from security forces and soldiers. The two assailants were killed, he said.
At the Dhabba oil terminal, operated by Canadian company Nexen Inc, the bombers two cars also exploded outside the site and the attackers were killed, along with a guard who was hit by gunfire, the official said. There was no immediate claim of responsibility and the source said an investigation had been launched to try to find out who planned the attacks. He did not rule out the possibility that they could have been aimed at hampering the September 20 elections, and also suggested there could be a link with the kidnapping Sunday of four French tourists in the lawless southeast of the country. The Frenchmen were abducted by tribesmen in a bid to put pressure on authorities to free jailed members of their tribe and negotiations have so far failed to secure their release.
Fridays attack came just days after Osama bin Ladens right-hand man Ayman al-Zawahiri warned that the Gulf and Israel would be the next targets of Al-Qaeda, in a video message coinciding with the fifth anniversary Monday of the September 11 attacks on the United States. It also followed an attempt by Islamic extremist gunmen to storm the US embassy in Damascus on Tuesday that left four attackers and a guard dead.
The run-up to the presidential and local polls in Yemen, a tribal based country that is one of the poorest nations on the planet, has been marred by violence. Unlike its wealthy Gulf neighbours, Yemen is only a modest oil producer and is not a member of the OPEC oil cartel. Its output is estimated at 380,000 barrels per day.
Posted by: Fred ||
09/16/2006 00:00 ||
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Pope Benedict XVI has said he is sorry that a speech in which he mentioned Islam has offended Muslims.
In a statement read out by a senior Vatican official, the Pope said he respected Islam and hoped Muslims would understand the true sense of his words.
In Tuesday's speech the Pope quoted a 14th Century Christian emperor who said the Prophet Muhammad had brought the world only "evil and inhuman" things.
The remarks prompted protests from Muslims around the world.
Posted by: john ||
09/16/2006 07:52 ||
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#1
He's not really sorry, just doesn't want this to cause backlash in those countries against Christians and Jews. Well, more than usual anyway.
Posted by: Charles ||
09/16/2006 8:22 Comments ||
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#2
He is sorry that muslims mininterpreted his words, not for the words themselves..
Posted by: john ||
09/16/2006 8:24 Comments ||
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#3
"I'm sorry you pack of barbarians were offended by the statements of a man whose nation was exterminated by your ancestors 500 years ago."
Posted by: Rob Crawford ||
09/16/2006 8:37 Comments ||
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#4
"I'm sorry you couldn't wait 24 hrs before confirming what I said"
Posted by: Frank G ||
09/16/2006 8:39 Comments ||
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#5
Well, that's the end of the Catholic Church's pretensions towards universality. If the leader of the Church can't stand by his words, thoughtfully and forcefully delivered, then it isn't a Church at all, but just another sect. Just another denomination in a beleaguered faith, and a fading denomination at that.
How demoralizing. And I'm not even a believing Christian.
Posted by: Mitch H. ||
09/16/2006 8:43 Comments ||
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#6
And the apology for "Zawahiri threatens France".
Come on people. This is stupid. Is thier great religion so fragile that this turns thier world upside down? And this religion is going to take over Europe in 10 or so years.
#7
It's actually a non-apology. Similiar to "I'm sorry if what I said bothers you" - not a retraction. Besides of all the people in the world you would expect the pope to stand by the truth, and in this case he has.
It hardly needs pointing out here at Rantburg that evil & inhuman do things go hand & hand with Islam.
Islam IS the enemy of the civilized world.
#10
I'm sorry that we are going to have to fight a war of extermination with Muslims. I do not say war of civilizations because they are a pack of ignorant barbarians.
The only question in my mind is how many Westerners will be killed before the extermination begins.
#15
I think Benedict is trying to wake up Europe. So he points out the obvious, then issues a non-apology of the sort the Euros demand and expect, all the while allowing them to think about the original point and watch the actual Muslim violent reaction.
#17
Look, folks, it cannot be that bad. Nobody has been killed in riots, yet. However, the clerics and so-called holy men will take every opportunity to get the muzzies all riled up. It IS all part of the war that Islam has declared on western civilization.
Posted by: Alaska Paul ||
09/16/2006 11:13 Comments ||
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#18
Don't kid yourselves. He's going to Turkey in the next month or so. Something will happen.
#19
We must seek paths of reconciliation and learn to live with respect for each other's identity
Certainly. And what happens to those who refuse to do so?
Posted by: Rob Crawford ||
09/16/2006 11:41 Comments ||
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#20
Nobody has been killed in riots, yet.
Nope. Just bombings, shootings, and torchings of Christian churches in the PA. Empty buildings, so far.
Don't expect that to last.
Posted by: Rob Crawford ||
09/16/2006 11:42 Comments ||
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#21
I know that here on Rantburg the Pres has been waiting for a sufficient provocation.
Would the assasination, or attempted assassination of the Pope by Muslims be enough?
Posted by: Redneck Jim ||
09/16/2006 12:23 Comments ||
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#22
The Pope's comments really have the muslims between a Kabaa and a hard place. If major violent riots break out, it simply proves his point. Yet, to not violently protest is terribly unislamic and against all teachings.
That more violent "protests" haven't occurred yet seems to indicate they do understand their regular seething and ranting and killing plays into the Pope's comment as proof.
#24
I wish he had let his comments stand, as is. Every time these scumbags firebomb a church, we should respond by flaming 10 of their mosks.
Preach it, SOP. If we had gone Roman on these guys earlier, the 'moderate muslims" might have stopped the jihadis. The longer we wait, the higher the butcher's bill will be. Their barbarism wil continue until they learn that the cost is too high.
#25
That more violent "protests" haven't occurred yet seems to indicate they do understand their regular seething and ranting and killing plays into the Pope's comment as proof.
No, it means they haven't really had time to organize yet. It took months for the Motoon riots to get under way.
Posted by: Rob Crawford ||
09/16/2006 14:04 Comments ||
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#26
Some of you don't seem to get it. This is not an apology for what was said. It's not much of an apology at all, more like tossing sand into the wound and punching it. The statement is very clear he is sorry they are offended. No place does is say he is sorry for or takes back the quote he used. It is like saying "I am sorry you are stupid and ugly."
#28
The Pope has no apology for what he has said. he is simply "sorry" that muslims are offended and reacting with the very violence and hatred of which they have been accused.
The Pope has called a spade a spade. And, in illustration, the mulims are reacting in spades. And that is what makes him sorrowful. And hopefully the apologists, hand-wringers, fifth columnists, MSM, LLL and other ostriches - wiser.
#29
Running errands today, I had the radio on a little. Gawd, the press is staffed and run by idiots. They got this story almost exactly wrong.
Fer crissake, would we be better served without international press?
Posted by: Rob Crawford ||
09/16/2006 17:09 Comments ||
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#30
"... a clear and radical rejection of the religious motivation for violence, from whatever side it may come."
Any of you Muslims paying attention to this?
Here's the only part where anything remotely like an apology is given:
"The Holy Father thus sincerely regrets that certain passages of his address could have sounded offensive to the sensitivities of the Muslim faithful, and should have been interpreted in a manner that in no way corresponds to his intentions."
His remarks weren't supposed to be offensive, they were merely a bitchslap wakeup call that a magnifying glass is being held up to the Islamic anthill religion.
He deftly refuses to fault his own choice of words and instead mentions how "certain passages of his address could have sounded offensive", which is another way of telling Islam just how wrong they are to take exception.
I also like his reference to "the sensitivities of the Muslim faithful", although I strongly doubt that Islam will catch this sidelong reference to how skinless thin-skinned it is.
#31
The liberals have already demanded that the Pope be impeached since he offended their contributers. It's only a matter of time before the Democraps try to link him to the Enron scandle and argue that he allowed Haliburton to provide food service to the Jews. In other news, Bagdad has some how elected Blanche Lincoln as Mayor after useing voting machines donated by the state of Arkansas. I guess they forgot to unfix them.
Posted by: Rick ||
09/16/2006 17:22 Comments ||
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#35
Don't think for one minute that the Pope doesn't know exactly what he is doing. It is well known that John Paul conspired with Reagan to bring down the Soviet Union. The only way for the West to win this war without a lot of western damage is to goad the Muzzies into action before they have the Nukes.
(KUNA) -- Two Kurdish militants and a Turkish village guard were killed in armed clashes in Van distribut in eastern Turkey on Friday, part of the government's crack down on the outlawed Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK), security sources said. They added in press remarks the clashes occured in Erci town near the Iranian borders, saying that the Turkish forces were combing the area to hunt down for further PKK militants. The PKK militants have recently escalated their attacks against the Turkish government forces.
Posted by: Fred ||
09/16/2006 00:00 ||
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AMSTERDAM The Supreme Court ruled on Friday that one of the former leaders of the Kurdish PKK, Nuriye Kesbir, cannot be deported from the Netherlands. The ruling was handed down on an appeal for cassation lodged by Justice Minister Piet-Hein Donner. The Christian Democrat CDA minister had wanted to deport the Kurdish activist to Turkey.
But the Supreme Court said a ruling by the appeals court in The Hague at the start of 2005 blocking the extradition was the correct decision. It accepted the appeals court reasoning that insufficient guarantees had been given that Kesbir would not be tortured in Turkey.
Heard about the Turkish truncheons and mustache wax, did they?
Turkey had requested Kesbir's extradition because the PKK leader was allegedly involved in terrorist attacks.
The Supreme Court ruling represents the definitive end to the drawn-out battle over Kesbir's extradition.
#1
This is an outstanding decision. Turn him loose, put him back on the dole, and let him plot his next mischief. There really is no hope, when stupidity reigns.
Berhampur: Eight persons were arrested and about one kg of material, which they claimed to be uranium, was seized from their possession in Orissa's Ganjam district, a senior police officer said on Saturday.
The material and some amount of explosives were seized from six persons in Behrampur village on Thursday as they were about to transport them, Superintendent of Police Rajesh Kumar told PTI.
Two others were later nabbed from the same village.
"We have no idea about the nature of material seized and sent it to the state forensic laboratory for examination. The arrested persons, however, claimed it was uranium," he said.
The Chhatrapur beach in Ganjam district is known to contain rare earth materials - like illumenite, monanzite and menzite.
Posted by: john ||
09/16/2006 11:57 ||
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FRESNO, Calif. - Three men have been indicted by a federal grand jury in Fresno for illegally exporting sensitive military equipment, including body armor and chemical protective suits, to Yemen.
Amen Ahmed Ali, 56, of Bakersfield, also known as Ali Amin Alrowhani, Amin Al Rohany or Ameen Alrohany, and two associates, Mohamed Al-Rahimi, 62, of Bakersfield, and Ibrahim A. Omer, 40, of Fort Worth, are charged with exporting stolen sensitive military equipment to Yemen. In addition, Ali is charged with acquiring and transmitting secret defense information obtained from a government undercover agent.
HYDERABAD, India - Indian police commandos shot dead five Maoist rebels, including three women, in the jungles of the southern state of Andhra Pradesh on Friday, a senior police officer said. One of those killed in the forests of the northern district of Warangal was a maker of rockets and launchers, said the areas top police officer, Stephen Ravindra.
Acting on a tip-off, the commandos swooped down on a secret Maoist meeting and killed the extremists in a gunbattle, he added.
That would be Mukkerjee the Weasel.
Last week, in one of the biggest arms hauls in the region, Andhra Pradesh police seized at least 1,500 rockets and dozens of launchers from secret Maoist arms depots.
Maoist rebels, who operate in at least nine Indian states, claim to fight for the rights of Indias impoverished peasants and landless labourers. The revolt has killed thousands of people in the last three decades, including at least 6,000 in Andhra Pradesh.
Posted by: Steve White ||
09/16/2006 00:00 ||
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Shiite militiamen and criminals entrenched throughout Iraqs police and internal security forces are resisting recent efforts by some Iraqi leaders and the American military to root them out and help win the trust of skeptical Sunni Arabs, Iraqi and Western officials say.
The new interior minister, Jawad al-Bolani, who oversees the police, lacks the political support to purge many of the worst offenders, including senior managers who tolerated or encouraged the infiltration of Shiite militias into the police under the previous government, according to interviews with more than a dozen officials who work with the ministry and the police.
The Interior Ministry recently discovered that more than 1,200 policemen and other employees had been convicted years ago of murder, rape and other violent crimes, said a Western diplomat who has close contact with the ministry. Some were even on death row. Few have been fired.
Despite the importance American commanders place on hiring more Sunni Arabs for the overwhelmingly Shiite police force, the ministry still has no way to screen recruits by sect or for militia allegiance. Such loyalties are the root cause of the ministrys problems.
A senior American commander said that of the 27 paramilitary police battalions, we think 5 or 6 battalions probably have leaders that have led that part of the organization in a way that is either criminal or sectarian or both. Death squads in uniforms could be responsible for the recent surge in sectarian violence, with at least 165 bodies found across Baghdad since Wednesday.
(KUNA) -- At least four Iraqi civilians were killed and another six were wounded Friday when a bomb exploded in a football field in Fallujah City. Eyewitnesses said the bomb was planted inside a public field in the city and it was ignited while some kids were kicking a ball there. The explosion killed four of the kids and wounded another six.
Moreover, Kirkuk police source said that anonymous gunmen opened fire today to assassinate, Taha Mahmoud, the Mayer of Kaif Town, located South-West of Kirkuk. The source said police has been investigating the incident, but did not reveal any further details. In a separate incident, nine Iraqi civilians were wounded when a booby-trapped car exploded South of Mosul. Iraqi police source told Kuwait News Agency (KUNA) the booby-trapped car exploded in Yaranjah area while a Multinational Forces vehicle was patrolling the area.
Meanwhile, Iraqi police said that they found today 51 anonymous dead bodies, noting the death causes of the bodies were still ambiguous. This brings the number of dead bodies found in Baghdad during the last 48 hours to 110.
Posted by: Fred ||
09/16/2006 00:00 ||
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(KUNA) -- Iraqi police in Mosul said on Friday that gunmen in the northern city of Mosul had killed a Police Colonel and in the southwest city of Kirkuk police foiled a bomb attack on an oil pipeline at Biji's oil refinery. An Iraqi police source said unknown gunmen opened fire on the police chief Colonel Halab Abdulrahman while he was entering his house in the Al-Zanjili area.
On a different note, a source from the Iraqi military security force protecting oil installations said that the force had foiled a bomb attack on an oil pipeline that transfers crude oil from Kirkuk to Biji's oil refinery. Armed men tried to plant explosives underneath the pipeline but fled after shots were fired from the security protection force, the source said.
Posted by: Fred ||
09/16/2006 00:00 ||
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BAGHDAD: Iraq said on Friday it would dig trenches around Baghdad and seal off dozens of roads with access to the capital as a new security measure to restrict insurgent movements. "As a new security measure, access to the capital will be permitted only through 28 roads," Interior Ministry spokesman Brigadier General Abdel Karim Khalaf said, adding these roads would have new checkpoints. "Dozens of other minor roads with access to the capital will be sealed by trenches and barbed wire."
Posted by: Fred ||
09/16/2006 00:00 ||
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#1
I like the way you think, Fred, these gators can be useful not only for purses and cowboy boots.
Could Tator become the next Captain Hook?
Posted by: Captain America ||
09/16/2006 0:05 Comments ||
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#2
Tater has had as much dental work as the gator
Posted by: Frank G ||
09/16/2006 0:12 Comments ||
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#3
more: Trenches around Baghdad
"Trenches will be dug around Baghdad in the coming weeks when the third part of the Baghdad security plan is implemented," Khalaf said. Metropolitan Baghdad has a circumference of about 60 miles...
Khalaf said that vehicle and even pedestrian traffic would be restricted to just 28 entry points with manned checkpoints...
"We will leave only 28 inlets to Baghdad while all other inlets will be blocked. Supports will be added to the trenches to hinder the movements of people and vehicles. The trenches will be under our watch, but there would be no concrete walls or razor wire." he said.
To help halt that bloodshed, more U.S. troops have been shifted to Baghdad from the insurgent stronghold of Anbar province, a senior U.S. commander said.
BTW This remedy [trenches] as well as many other common sense actions are clearly something that the elected Mesopotamian Geniuses could have accomplished on their own, like you know, THEMSELVES, if they weren't f*cked up.
#9
U.S. denies Baghdad trench plans
...Lieutenant Colonel Barry Johnson said the ('trench around Baghdad') description sounded like an exaggeration of a plan that mostly would rely on existing terrain features to ensure that traffic moved through the 28 checkpoints. "No doubt there will be some trenches involved in this, but to say there is going to be a moat around the city is a bit of a stretch," Johnson said.
"They've called it a trench around Baghdad. Really what this is, is there's a series of obstacles that the Iraqi government are planning, and we're working with them, to ensure movement through checkpoints, to keep terrorists and extremists and criminals from using those (other) routes," Johnson said. "So it's not a trench. It will be a series using the natural terrain that already exists such as canals, and some obstacles."
Didn't the US do something like this with berms at one of the other Iraqi cities?
#10
The point is that Baghdad has so many canals that it's like hauling coal to Newcastle to dig another set of 'em. In the desert towns of al Anbar, they needed berms to replicate what they can do with just the existing agricultural canals in place.
Assuming that the US spokesmen know what they're talking about. I'd imagine that the existing canal system isn't comprehensive, and that the ali babas and local militias would know them better than outsiders. Including how to circumvent the crossing points.
Although I predict a rash of unexplained drownings in the next couple months, stupid being as stupid does.
Posted by: Mitch H. ||
09/16/2006 8:49 Comments ||
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Catholic church, orthodox church, who cares? all christians are kufrs anyway, aren't they?
Gunmen opened fire at a Greek-Orthodox church in Gaza Saturday, in protest of comments made by Pope Benedict XVI against Islam. No one was hurt.
Some minor damage was made to the church Friday, after a grenade and three Molotov cocktails were thrown at the church.
#2
This s**t was almost funny at one time - in a tragi-comic kind of way. Now it's just utterly infuriating and beyond pathetic. The mask is off. I don't care what CAIR and their taqiyya-spewing ilk say - the real muslims are speaking loud and clear.
#5
Thank you, Pope Benedict. My wife, who is generally oblivious to Islam and the WOT, now better sees what a raving pack of lunatics we are dealing with. Watch the polls, folks. Attacking churches in reaction to words promoting non-violence is very educational for voters like my wife.
Five Palestinian intelligence officers were gunned down by unknown attackers in Gaza City on Friday near the home of Hamas Prime Minister Ismail Haniya, medical and security sources said. The five men, one a general, were driving in a car in the Shatti refugee camp in Gaza City when unknown gunmen in a jeep raked their vehicle with gunfire, killing them instantly, an intelligence service official said.
The source named one of the victims as Jihad Taya, a colonel responsible for international relations within the security service. The other victims were his subordinates, the security source said. "The bodies of five people dressed in civilian clothes and shot dead were taken to hospital," said a hospital source.
Posted by: Fred ||
09/16/2006 00:00 ||
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#1
Weren't so secret, were they?
Posted by: Barbara Skolaut ||
09/16/2006 5:30 Comments ||
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#2
Start your Pali Security Badge collection today. I hear the Pali Naval Security is the hardest to find.
Muslims leaders around the world demanded a more personal apology from the Pope last night after the Vatican said he "sincerely regrets" the offence caused by remarks which they claimed had insulted Islam.
Senior Vatican officials tried to damp down fury over the speech in which the Pope quoted from a medieval text saying that the Prophet Mohammed had brought the world "only evil and inhuman" things. Cardinal Tarcisio Bertone, the Vatican's secretary of state, issued a statement saying that the Pope's remarks had been misinterpreted. He "sincerely regrets that certain passages of his address could have sounded offensive to the sensitivities of the Muslim faithful, and should have been interpreted in a manner that in no way corresponds to his intentions".
The statement expressed the Pope's "esteem" for Muslims and emphasised that he intended to underline that there was "no place for violence in religion".
But street demonstrations and sporadic violence against Christian churches continued and left two of the world's largest religions still dangerously at odds. "We want a personal apology from the Pope," said Mohammed Habib, the deputy leader of Egypt's Muslim Brotherhood. A cleric linked to Somalia's powerful Islamist movement last night called for Muslims to "hunt down" and kill the Pope. Cartoon lunacy redux
Posted by: Captain America ||
09/16/2006 21:29 ||
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Hat tip LGF.
GAZA CITY (AFP) - Assailants angry at Pope Benedict XVIs comments on Islam targeted several churches across the Palestinian territories on the second day of attacks directed at the Christian church.
In Gaza City, a group calling itself the Islamic Organization of the Swords of Righteousness claimed responsibility for unleashing a volley of gunfire on the oldest church in the city. We carried out this shooting because of the popes statement, and he must apologise, the caller, who refused to give his name, told AFP Saturday.
The attack came a day after a grenade exploded outside the same church and four days after the pope criticised connections between Islam and violence, particularly with regard to jihad. In the West Bank town of Nablus, gunmen threw Molotov cocktails at four churches of different denominations, Palestinian security sources told AFP. In one incident, gunmen opened fire inside an empty Catholic church after the buildings entrance door was burnt down, the sources said.
Posted by: Rob Crawford ||
09/16/2006 11:36 ||
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#1
Poor bastards, they had no choice but to attack.
#3
Using Paleologic, every time that the Paleos dance in the street screaming "Death to Israel", the IDF has the right to kill them until they apologize. All in all, there may be a pony in this pile.
#4
Using Paleologic, every time that the Paleos dance in the street screaming "Death to Israel", the IDF has the right to kill them until they apologize.
"Oh, you said to. We thought you were asking for death from Israel. Huh. Well, stop braying like jackasses at the first sign that the pedophile profit isn't admired by all mankind, and this kind of confusion will end."
Posted by: Rob Crawford ||
09/16/2006 13:48 Comments ||
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#5
We must seek paths of reconciliation and learn to live with respect for each other's identity
Perhaps our Oregon-based moralizer should have posted that comment here as well, instead of just in the 'Pope thread'.
#8
"Hey, Mohammed! Tell everybody the Pope said something that gives us a pathetic excuse to destroy all the churches! I'm running off to RockMart to get as many stones as I can carry!"
#15
Continue to prove the point, and this will continue downhill. Bur remember one thing Ishmael; There is always a winner and a loser. Issac is the winner.
Syria has approached several EU states, including Germany, requesting help on how to stop arms smuggling across its border with Lebanon, Germany said on Friday. "Syria approached several EU states - also Germany and me personally - with a request for advice and assistance for the border controls on the Syrian side," German Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier told reporters after a meeting of EU foreign ministers in Brussels. Sure, we Euros are stupid. We must give Assad all the security intelligence we can so they can make us look like the fools we are
The EU said in a statement it would draw up a report on possible EU help for border security as part of the existing UN Security Council resolution aimed at ending the conflict between Israel and Hizbullah. Italian Prime Minister Romano Prodi said last weekend that Europeans could train Syrian forces to clamp down on arms smuggling, but denied he had suggested Europeans might patrol the border.
Yup, it's just a lack of training that keeps the Syrians from policing their border.
Italian Foreign Minister Massimo D'Alema told a news briefing in Brussels that EU foreign policy chief Javier Solana had been charged to follow up on the plan. "The first aim is to technically support the Lebanese army but also on the basis of some opportunites registered by Prodi, to study the possibility of European assistance for the Syrians," D'Alema said.
D'Alema said Solana would work, particularly with the Germans, to create a European programme that would then be presented to the United Nations. He noted that Germany had already agreed to provide personnel and technical support.
Posted by: Captain America ||
09/16/2006 00:00 ||
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#1
" "The first aim is to technically support the Lebanese army but also on the basis of some opportunites registered by Prodi, to study the possibility of European assistance for the Syrians," D'Alema said."
But of course! It would be an excellent jobs program for Syria's visual and hearing impaired. Social action is what the EU is good at, no?
#2
The arms smugglers must be cutting a little too deep into Baby Assad's profit margin.
Posted by: Scott R ||
09/16/2006 1:29 Comments ||
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Syria seeking EU help to stop increase arms smuggling to facilitate more efficient Jooooo-killing
There - fixed that for ya'.
Accuracy is important.
Posted by: Barbara Skolaut ||
09/16/2006 5:28 Comments ||
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#4
Priceless, fricking priceless. Europe needs to take Syria's envoy outside and shoot him for such a blatant snowjob. This needs to be common practice with these Islamic con-men. Imagine how quickly things would improve if we used the Dallas Korbin School of Negotiation Protocol.
"We demand you release 1,000 Palestinian prisoners in exchange for the soldier from Isra ... BLAMMO!"
"We seek extensive negotiations with the EU about suspending further uranium enrich ... KAPOW!"
"Your city's failure to install sharia law causes these Muslim youths to rio ... BANG!"
(KUNA) -- Three Spanish warships arrived in Tyre on Friday carrying 570 officers and soldiers who are to join the UNIFIL in implementation of UN Security Council Resolution 1701, said a UNIFIL source.
The source told Kuwait News Agency (KUNA) that the deployment of the Spanish forces would require three days, and that they would be working under the umbrella of the UNIFIL. The first group of Spanish soldiers dispatched to Lebanon, comprising of 50 soldiers, had arrived yesterday and had determined the depth of waters and whether it would allow for the docking of the Spanish warships. Spain had pledged 1,100 soldiers to work under the UNIFIL.
Posted by: Fred ||
09/16/2006 00:00 ||
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What? Does someone have a flat Tyre?
Posted by: Captain America ||
09/16/2006 0:08 Comments ||
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Look, Mohammed - more targets!
Posted by: Barbara Skolaut ||
09/16/2006 5:29 Comments ||
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No, no, no, Abdul, these stupid infidels came to "protect the People of Lebanon from Zionist aggression". Dig up the Katyusha launcher.
The prediction market at Strategy Page has a bet on 15,000 actually there by a particular date. I'm leaning on NO but the EU nicks keep surprising me by actually sending poor fools to Hezb ball land.
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Thousands of American and Afghan soldiers launched an offensive against resurgent Taliban militants in five eastern provinces Saturday, seeking to expand the Afghan government's reach into the volatile frontier region, the U.S.-led coalition said.
Somali Christian sources report Ali Mustaf Maka'il, a 22-year-old college student and cloth merchant who converted from Islam to Christianity 11 months ago, was shot and killed in the Manabolyo quarter of Mogadishu. 
SANAA: Four bombers and a security guard were killed on Friday when Yemeni security forces foiled twin suicide bombings against oil installations, five days before the impoverished Arab nation goes to the polls. The bombers, in explosives-laden cars, tried to attack an oil refinery in Maarib, a lawless tribal area in the desert east of the capital Sanaa, and a Canadian-run terminal in the southeastern port of Dhabba on the Gulf of Aden.
HYDERABAD, India - Indian police commandos shot dead five Maoist rebels, including three women, in the jungles of the southern state of Andhra Pradesh on Friday, a senior police officer said. One of those killed in the forests of the northern district of Warangal was a maker of rockets and launchers, said the areas top police officer, Stephen Ravindra.
(KUNA) -- At least four Iraqi civilians were killed and another six were wounded Friday when a bomb exploded in a football field in Fallujah City. Eyewitnesses said the bomb was planted inside a public field in the city and it was ignited while some kids were kicking a ball there. The explosion killed four of the kids and wounded another six.
(KUNA) -- Iraqi police in Mosul said on Friday that gunmen in the northern city of Mosul had killed a Police Colonel and in the southwest city of Kirkuk police foiled a bomb attack on an oil pipeline at Biji's oil refinery. An Iraqi police source said unknown gunmen opened fire on the police chief Colonel Halab Abdulrahman while he was entering his house in the Al-Zanjili area.
BAGHDAD: Iraq said on Friday it would dig trenches around Baghdad and seal off dozens of roads with access to the capital as a new security measure to restrict insurgent movements. "As a new security measure, access to the capital will be permitted only through 28 roads," Interior Ministry spokesman Brigadier General Abdel Karim Khalaf said, adding these roads would have new checkpoints. "Dozens of other minor roads with access to the capital will be sealed by trenches and barbed wire."
Five Palestinian intelligence officers were gunned down by unknown attackers in Gaza City on Friday near the home of Hamas Prime Minister Ismail Haniya, medical and security sources said. The five men, one a general, were driving in a car in the Shatti refugee camp in Gaza City when unknown gunmen in a jeep raked their vehicle with gunfire, killing them instantly, an intelligence service official said.
Muslims leaders around the world demanded a more personal apology from the Pope last night after the Vatican said he "sincerely regrets" the offence caused by remarks which they claimed had insulted Islam.
Syria has approached several EU states, including Germany, requesting help on how to stop arms smuggling across its border with Lebanon, Germany said on Friday. "Syria approached several EU states - also Germany and me personally - with a request for advice and assistance for the border controls on the Syrian side," German Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier told reporters after a meeting of EU foreign ministers in Brussels. 
(KUNA) -- Three Spanish warships arrived in Tyre on Friday carrying 570 officers and soldiers who are to join the UNIFIL in implementation of UN Security Council Resolution 1701, said a UNIFIL source.
