Four Afghan civilians and three policemen were killed on Thursday by two separate roadside bombs aimed at police convoys, police said. A remote-control bomb hit the convoy of a border police commander on the outskirts of western Herat city as he drove to the airport, provincial police chief Mohammad Shafiq Fazli said. Four civilians were martyred and the border police commander Mohammad Ayob Safi and his two bodyguards were wounded in the bomb blast, Fazli said, adding the commander was the target of the device.
In a similar incident in restive southeastern Khost province, a roadside blast hit a police vehicle in a crowded local market, said Qasim Jan, the secretary to the provincial governor. Three police were martyred and one was wounded in the attack in Sabari district, Jan said. The blast shattered the windows of nearby cars and shops but did not cause any civilian casualties, he added. Provincial governor Arsala Jamal and other officials had been due to visit the district to inaugurate a newly built school, but the event was cancelled after the blast, Jan said.
Posted by: Fred ||
12/22/2006 00:00 ||
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#1
The godly radical muslims...killing other muslims...in the name of allan.
ETHIOPIA moved tanks and other reinforcements into battle overnight in preparation for a third day of fighting against Islamist forces in southern Somalia, witnesses said, while the Islamists vowed an all-out war.
As the clashes intensified, the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) said the fighting had left "dozens'' dead and many homeless.
But the Government said its Ethiopian-backed forces had killed more than 500 Islamist fighters since Wednesday, when violence erupted near the government-held town of Baidoa.
"We are very concerned about the plight of civilians who might get caught up in the fighting,'' said Pascal Hundt, the ICRC's chief for Somalia.
"We call on all parties involved in the clashes to spare and protect civilians and to take every precaution when conducting military operations,'' he said.
The ICRC urged rival sides "to ensure that wounded and captured fighters are protected and receive treatment and that medical staff, hospitals and clinics are spared from attacks.''
Hospitals and clinics in the region had admitted at least 200 wounded since Wednesday, the ICRC said.
Somali Information Minister Ali Jama said fatalities were reported on two fronts east and south of the Baidoa, about 250 km northwest of the capital Mogadishu.
"The combined total from two fronts is over 500 Islamists killed since Wednesday,'' Jama told AFP.
The figure could not be independently verified.
"Most of those killed are innocent children who have been sent to the frontline. It is unfortunate because we have been forced into this ... we do not like shedding the blood of children,'' Jama added.
Fighting erupted early Wednesday, hours after the expiry of an Islamist-imposed ultimatum for thousands of Ethiopian troops the Islamists say have been deployed to back the Government.
"Our Mujahideen are ready to defend themselves from the invading enemies,'' Islamic commander Hassan Bullow told AFP.
"This war is a religious obligation and we are here to fight for our religion against the enemies until we die.''
Ethiopia is supporting Somalia's weakened government against the Islamist forces, which control the capital Mogadishu and much of the rest of the war-ravaged Horn of Africa nation.
The two sides traded heavy shellfire on Friday east and south of Baidoa, the Government said.
"The fighting is continuing heavily on both fronts,'' Jama told AFP.
"Much fighting is taking place, mainly in Idale and Dinsoor,'' he added, referring to outposts about 60 km and 120 km south of Baidoa.
In central Somalia, residents said Ethiopian military trucks headed to Sadehigle, outside the Muslim-held town of Bandiradley, about 630 km north of Mogadishu, sparking fears of possible clashes.
Witnesses said Ethiopian tanks travelled overnight to Daynunay, a flashpoint garrison town about 30 km to the east of Baidoa, where shelling was reported.
Clashes erupted on Wednesday, a day after the expiry of a deadline issued by the Islamists for Ethiopian troops to pull out.
The Islamists have complained about the silence of the Arab League and African Union over the dispute.
"Why are they ignoring what is taking place in the ground?'' asked Sheikh Mohamoud Ibrahim Sulley, a leading Islamist official.
"The world is silent today while Ethiopian forces are killing us inside our country, but tomorrow when we defeat them and chase them, things will be changed, we will inter their territories and at that moment the world will shout,'' Sulley warned.
The fighting and war of words have come despite a statement by European Commission humanitarian chief Louis Michel on Wednesday that he had secured the commitment of both sides to observe a truce and resume peace talks.
Arab League-mediated talks in Khartoum collapsed in November when Islamists refused to negotiate until Ethiopia withdraws its troops.
#1
Brave Lions of Islam sending children into battle?
Whoda thunk it. Islamopussies, cowards, and slime abound in the "powerful Islamic Courts"
Posted by: Frank G ||
12/22/2006 19:08 Comments ||
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#2
I hope the CIA is sending plane loads of cash to the Ethiopian ammo fund.
Posted by: ed ||
12/22/2006 19:17 Comments ||
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#3
Actually, if the CIA is doing anything, I hope it is hiring ex-Eastern Bloc technicians and buying spare parts for all of the ex-Soviet hardware the Ethiopians have. A couple of good repair/replacement depots staffed with trained personnel would go a long way in this war - allowing the Ethiopians to concentrate armour and mechanized infantry against the Mad Max technicals of the fundies. The Ethiopians have a lot of equipment idled because of the lack of spare parts, and a few C-17 loads of such from Romania, Poland, Hungary, the Czech Repub, or Slovakia would bring a couple of divisions' worth of tanks and APCs back on line.
The Sudanese army said it killed 200 rebels while repelling an attack in Darfur, the deadliest single military operation reported in the war-torn region since fighting started there four years ago. The bloodshed came amid intensified efforts to reach an agreement on the deployment of UN peacekeepers in Darfur as Washington warned Khartoum had until years end to accept or face coercive action. In a statement quoted by the state-run SUNA news agency, the army also said that 20 of its troops were wounded during the fighting, which took place in northern Darfur on Wednesday.
Posted by: Fred ||
12/22/2006 00:00 ||
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#1
And some of them weren't even disguised as women and children.
Bodies lay in the streets and fighters pounded each other with heavy artillery and mortars for a third day Thursday as Somalia's Islamic leader announced the country was now at war, leaving a day-old peace initiative in tatters.
The Ethiopian-backed interim government fought for control of strategic areas close to its base with fighters from the rival Islamic movement. The clashes threaten to spiral into a major conflict in this volatile region, sucking in Ethiopia and its bitter rival Eritrea. Analysts believe Ethiopia may soon raise the stakes by deploying attack helicopters in support of the government. An Associated Press photographer saw 19 bodies of Islamic fighters in Moode Moode, a town 15km from the government garrison town of Baidoa, where fighting had taken place Wednesday.
Posted by: Fred ||
12/22/2006 00:00 ||
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#1
An Associated Press photographer saw 19 bodies
Did he actually take a photo of the bodies as proof? Perhaps the photographers name was police captain Jamil Hussein who, as we already know, exists (wink, wink,nudge, nudge) and can be trusted implicitly to tell us the truth.
Posted by: Scott R ||
12/22/2006 1:02 Comments ||
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#3
"Analysts believe Ethiopia may soon raise the stakes by deploying attack helicopters in support of the government."
Ethiopia's got attack helicopters? Ex Soviet? Al Quaeda was pretty tough on those in Afghanistan back in the day - but maybe that was by using US Stinger missiles, which hopefully the Somalians do not have. Can't imagine they won't have Chinese equivalents though - or will soon.
Will some 'talented outside observers' be helping the helos with tactics and targetting? And pilotting?
#6
The Ethiopians were well supplied by the Soviets during the Junta period, including a fair number of Hinds, T-55s, BMPs, MiGs and the like. They have had issues since the fall of the Soviet Union and the collapse of the Communist Junta with spare parts, but they have been working hard in the past decade to rectify that situation.
And any Stingers that Al-Q got during the Soviet War in Afghanistan were stolen from or sold by the other groups that the West supported. Besides which, you won't want to bet your life on the launcher batteries from that period, 15 year shelf life.
#7
aQ got NO stingers in the Afghan war as they Afghans wouldn't allow the Arabs in to join the fight. Binnie and pals stayed in Peshawar talking the talk and spreading the moolah, but few Arabs were actually fighting.
The Political Secretary at Somali Mission to the United Nations has said that Somalia's transitional federal government repulsed the offensive by warmongering jihadists of al Qaeda in Somalia. Omar Jamal's comments came on the heels of a heavy artillery fighting that ensued between militia loyal to the Islamic Courts Union and forces of transitional government yesterday.
The fighting took place just 45 kilometres from Baidoa, the seat of the transitional government, with both sides claiming to have gained the upper hand. Following the intervention of the European Union's (EU) Commissioner for Development, Louis Michel, the two warring parties agreed to return to peace talks in Sudanese capital Khartoum, although no date has been fixed. "This is not the first time the Islamists in Somali said one thing, and did right the opposite," the Somali envoy declared in a statement today, dispelling reports from some quarters that the Interim President Abdullahi Yusuf has left Baidoa for security reasons. Mr Jamal said he had spoken to President Yusuf this morning, who confirmed that he is still in his Baidoa office.
Somalia's internationally recognised transitional government increasingly refers to the Mogadishu-based Islamist movement as an al Qaeda group, after it was revealed that the Somali Islamists have recruited radical jihadists from abroad to join their fight to take over the country. al Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden has also appealed on behalf of the Mogadishu group at least twice, saying Muslims should go to Somalia to assist in the fighting. The Baidoa-based government, on the other hand, has been able to recruit massive aid from neighbouring Ethiopia, which has sent troops and arms to Somalia to protect President Yusuf's government. This support is however very controversial in Somalia, as most Somalis regard Ethiopia as the country's historic enemy.
Meanwhile, religious leaders in Africa called on Somalia's warring factions to broker peace and return to negotiation table as a solution to the 16-year long war that still claims several lives on a daily basis in the country. At a press conference in the Kenyan capital Nairobi, the group representing African religious bodies of national, regional and international levels, urged the international community to apply the regional initiative that called for the establishment of a government of national unity in the country - the only way to avoid a full-blown war in Somalia. "We call upon all actors in the Somalia arena to practice maximum restraint and to exert all pressure on the parties to cease any further escalation in the already volatile environment," Agnes Abuom, a representative of the World Council of Churches told the press.
Posted by: Fred ||
12/22/2006 00:00 ||
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#1
Somalia is pretty repulsive....
Posted by: Barbara Skolaut ||
12/22/2006 22:14 Comments ||
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Moved to today since a good bloodletting like this needs to breathe. AoS.
Somalia's Islamist leader today declared war on Ethiopia as fears grew that the conflict could spread across the horn of Africa.
Western diplomats quaked in their lace knickers fear that the heavy fighting between the Somalia Islamic Courts Council (SICC) and its Ethiopian-backed interim government could escalate into a regional war involving both Ethiopia and its rival Eritrea.
Sheikh Hassan Dahir Aweys, leader of the SICC, told Reuters today: "We are at war with Ethiopia, but not with the [Somali] government."
Hassan's never been told not to bite off more than he could chew ...
He told the Associated Press: "All Somalis should take part in this struggle against Ethiopia."
"C'mon people now, smile on your brother, everybody get together, time to kill one another right now ..."
The Islamist group's troops exchanged heavy artillery fire with the interim government's forces for the third day running. It is the most sustained combat so far between the rival Somali factions, struggling for control of the country, which has been in a state of anarchy since 1991.
Heavy artillery means a .50 cal on a technical?
The fighting started late on Tuesday, the deadline the SICC had given Ethiopian troops protecting the weak government to leave the country or face holy war. Both sides claim to have killed hundreds but there is yet no confirmation of casualties.
"We're moidalizing 'em!"
The latest round of clashes began early today near Dinosaur Dinsoor, 62 miles south-west of the interim government's base in Baidoa. Sheikh Ibrahim Shukri Abuu-Zeynab, a spokesman for the SICC, claimed it had captured Idaho Idale, a town 37 miles south-west of Baidoa, killing 200 Ethiopian troops.
Somalia's deputy defence minister, Salad Ali Jelle, said 71 Islamist fighters had been killed and 221 injured so far during clashes in three locations near military training camps around Baidoa. Three government troops were killed and seven injured, he claimed.
Residents and a government source said troops loyal to both sides also appeared to be moving north, in what some feared could spell fresh fighting in the town of Galkaayo. The latest outbreak of violence appears to have scuttled diplomacy efforts by the European Union aid chief, Louis Michel, who held talks with both factions in Baidoa and Mogadishu yesterday.
Fierce diplomacy from the EU, that's what we need.
Military experts say Ethiopia has sent 15,000-20,000 troops into Somalia, while Eritrea has sent about 2,000 to the SICC.
Ethiopia remains officially silent on the declaration of war, repeating its denial of involvement in the fighting. But witnesses have told Reuters that the country's troops are heavily involved in the latest battles. Analysts believe Ethiopia may soon raise the stakes by deploying attack helicopters in support of the government.
At which point the Courts Council gunnies are going to become very afraid ...
#1
Actually, the Islamists have 122mm and 152mm artillery, both leftover from the Barre regime, and what has been smuggled in by supporters from Muslim states in North Africa. But generally, when speaking of "heavy artillery" used in regards to technicals, one is speaking of 23mm and 37mm anti-aircraft guns mounted for ground fire.
#2
3 articles and no reference to the "powerful Islamic Courts"? Did somebody lose their macro?
Posted by: Frank G ||
12/22/2006 7:01 Comments ||
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...What the Ethiopians need are some 7.62mm miniguns mounted on slightly up-armored APCs. The way Islamists fight, it would be like shooting fish in a barrel.
Mike
Posted by: Mike Kozlowski ||
12/22/2006 9:00 Comments ||
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#4
My fierce (and biting) commentary skeered off the macro Frank.
Good chance these trainees will return value, and in an important place. Surprised we're admitting it.
SPECIAL OPERATIONS UNITS TRAIN YEMENI CENTRAL SECURITY FORCE COUNTER TERRORISM UNIT (CSF-CTU)
MACDILL AFB, FLA. United States and Special Operations Forces and conventional Marine units have provided training to the Yemeni Central Security Force Counter Terrorism Unit (CSF-CTU) as part of the persistent Foreign Internal Defense (FID) program. FID is one of the primary tenets of special operations and enables partner nations military forces to gain knowledge and capabilities while receiving training and guidance from U.S. and coalition partners. The U.S. Coast Guard has also been involved in the training, building the Yemen Coast Guard and providing them the means to enhance their ability to secure its territorial waters.
Special Operations Command Central (SOCCENT) has provided a near continuous presence to ensure all resources had complimentary effects. Through the use of conventional force training and Joint Combined Exercise Training (JCET) events that focused on special operations, the Yemen forces have been able to make a significant impact to the Global War on Terror.
Most recently, the CSF-CTU executed two raids that resulted in either death or capture of significant operatives within the al-Qaeda organizations. They Yemen forces also seized weapons and weapon making materials during the raid.
The successful integration of US and conventional special operations forces serves as a model for capacity building in the CENTCOM AOR. The CSF-CTUs transformation is the most successful example of capacity building outside of Iraq and Afghanistan.
#3
One wonders whether it is a good idea to teach potentially bad guys how to fight better, but past experience has shown that the guys who are trained by Special Ops end up not only being better fighters, but more reliable people. Some sanity (or at least their special brand of insanity) seems to rub off during sustained contact. And while no one in that part of the world will truly be our 'friend', there's a decent chance at least some of these people will not be our enemy either, and may provide invaluable contacts in the future.
#6
The way you stay out of the sinktrap, grom, is by posting lots of little pointless nothings - fartlets that make sense only to you. If you ever said anything worthy of note, you'd be gone, I have no doubt.
#10
For those who object to the training, what do you propose to do about Yemen? There is a strong faction there that supports Al-Q because of tribal links and ideology; however, there is another strong faction that wishes to join the modern world and enjoy its benefits; and another strong faction that is secular but Marxist, who wishes to fight the fundies. So, the US is trying to strengthen the hand of the two factions who oppose the fundies with training and equipment.
If we steadfastly refuse to aid any in the Muslim world who wish to defeat the fundies, we ensure the success of the fundies everywhere in the world that there are Muslims. Will there be some blowback against us, in the form of a few of those trained passing on their skills to the fundies : probably yes. But, how many fundies will the rest of the trained people kill, capture, or nullify after they are brought up to speed?
Remember, the Kurds are Sunnis and we have a very strong relationship with them. So, we can have Muslim allies as long as we are careful.
MEHERPUR, Dec 20 (UNB): A leader of an outlawed party was killed in a shootout with Rapid Action Battalion (RAB) members at Bamandi village in Gangni upazila early Wednesday.
Another one bites the dust....
The deceased identified as Amjad Hossain alias Tiger, commander of Purba Banglar Communist Party (PBCP-Lal Pataka).
Commie Commander Croaked
A RAB official said they got an information that some extremists of the party were holding a secret meeting at an abandoned house at Devipur ground of the village.
"Psssst, secret meeting tonight. Abandoned house in Devipur. Pass it on"
Three slaughtered in dists
KUSHTIA, Dec 21: A Jamaat activist was slaughtered and a BCL cadre shot and wounded by underground terrorists in Mirpur upazila on Thursday, reports UNB.
Police and locals said terrorists in guise of police and RAB picked up Amirul Islam, 32, from his house at Kachuabaria village early hours Thursday.
Couldn't have been real cops and the RAB. I mean, they'd never wack anyone.
He was left slaughtered in adjacent Koirpur bazaar. It is suspected that Amirul was murdered out of enmity.
In another incident, Anisur Rahman, 26, a BCL cadre of Patikabari was shot by terrorists following a brawl over contractual work at Poradah 8:30am. He was rushed to Kushtia General Hospital and later shifted to Dhaka in a serious condition.
Sounds like a union beef
A report from Bogra said Sadiqur Rahman, 45, was slaughtered by unknown assailants in his Telihan village of Kahalu uapzila.
Police said Sadiqur was a fugitive jailed in three criminal cases. His body was recovered from a crop field.
"Dr. Quincy, deliverly for you."
Another report from Naogaon said Aslam Ali, 32, was slaughtered by unknown assailants at Girigram village in Raninagar upazila early Thursday. Aslam, a cadre of Purbo Banglar Communist Party (Lal-Pataka), was abducted allegedly by rivals within the party on way to local bazar. His body was found in a nearby field.
Fiancee wins at long last
JAMALPUR, Dec 21: Rabeyas fast unto death has crowned with success. She was solemnly tied in marriage with her lover Khokan Mondal at 2 am Thursday, reports UNB.
It's a Bangladeshi love story
The elders of Ragunathpur village in sadar upazila in a hectic arbitration meeting made Khokan and his parents agree and the marriage was solemnized on a Tk 2.5 lakh kabsin.
I think that means they got paid a dowry
Rabeya, a student of Class X, and Khokan, an employee of pharmaceutical company, were in love for long two years when he took her to joyous bouts and slept many nights in her home.
Having joyous bout after joyous bout
But Khokan recently backed out of his promise of marrying Rabeya.
Something about free milk and a cow...
In desperate move she went to Khokans home on Wednesday and sat tight in a fast unto death.
"I'm going to sit here until you marry me or I die of hunger."
The incident evoked curiosity among the villagers who thronged the home of Khokan causing serious embarrassment to his family.
"Is she still out there, mother?"
"Yes, and the neighbors are beginning to talk."
Soon the village elders met in arbitration and gave verdict in favour of on the spot marriage of the couple.
Posted by: Steve ||
12/22/2006 08:01 ||
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#1
murdered out of enmity
What is this world coming to?
Police rounded up seven people including Afghan nationals after 11 people were wounded by a bicycle bomb in Quetta, officials said on Thursday. The blast happened late on Wednesday close to the mountain-ringed citys main police station. We have picked up seven persons, mostly Afghan nationals, during raids in Quetta and are interrogating them regarding Wednesdays bomb blast, senior police officer Abdul Qadir Tahibo said. There has been some evidence of involvement of Afghan nationals in sabotage activities in past, he said.
Posted by: Fred ||
12/22/2006 00:00 ||
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#1
Do these people really think that if they let these kind of idiots, use thier country as safe harbour, that they won't use the same tactics on them when they are upset.
#3
I'm glad to see an attack inside the borders of a country that is 'safe-harboring' the terrorists.
Food for thought, just what would happen if Iraqi Nationals would "terrorize" Iran/ Syria/ Saudi inside their own borders?? After all, those countries are supplying weopons/ funding/ manpower.
#4
I can't imagine it would do much good to terrorize the general population in a more-or-less totalitarian dictatorship. The rulers and the army are the only ones whose opinions matter, and I'm not so sure about the army.
In a startling discovery, police in north Kashmir have stumbled on a full-fledged recruitment cell of the Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) in a 'madrassa'in Sopore. The Dar-ul-Shamas-ul-Uloom has been in existence for the last six years, police said and claimed that it was in fact a clandestine recruiting centre for the Lashkar. Founded just six years ago by Maulvi Abdul Ahad Rather alias Bitta Molvi, Dar-ul-Shamas-ul-Uloom, at Tarzoo in Sopore, has 300-odd students in the age group of 7-30 years, preparing to become Imams, but apparently, it was nothing more than a Lashkar recruitment centre, police stated.
"With the arrest of four LeT operatives from Dar-ul-Shamas-ul-Uloom, ostensibly an Islamic Darasgah, we have discovered that Pakistani ultras have started outsourcing terrorist actions to 'talibs'(students) in madrassas."
Said SP Sopore Mir Imtiaz,"With the arrest of four LeT operatives from Dar-ul-Shamas-ul-Uloom, ostensibly an Islamic Darasgah, we have discovered that Pakistani ultras have started outsourcing terrorist actions to 'talibs'(students) in madrassas."
The four arrested Latief Ahmed Bhat (21), Mohammad Yasin Mir (22), Shamasuddin Rather (30) and Mohammed Waseem Bhat (19) were 'talibs' in the madrassa and two of them have even stayed at Bharuch in Gujarat, in a madrassa for two years, apparently for memorising the holy Koran, police said. The Moulvi was picked up by Army after Latief's father complained that his son had been missing. Latief claimed he was deputed for arms training in Kupawara forests by the Moulvi.
Though booked for harbouring and running terror school, the Moulvi was released on court orders this month.
Though booked for harbouring and running terror school, the Moulvi was released on court orders this month, the SP said. Talking to TOI, Latief admitted he was sent for 15 days arms training to Kupwara forests and that it was the Moulvi who handed him over to two LeT men for training. He said he was trained to handle only pistol in Kupwara forests for 15 days and an LeT commander indoctrinated him to take up arms for jihad. "The first task accomplished by me, was to set a beauty parlour on fire in Sopore. I was given one litre of petrol and another terrorist accompanied me with a pistol. I set the parlour on fire while the other kept the owner in captivity till I destroyed the parlour,"Latief said.
When contacted, Jammu and Kashmir police chief Gopal Sharma said, action under law would be initiated against the particular madrassa.
Posted by: Fred ||
12/22/2006 00:00 ||
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THE head of an al-Qaeda-dominated group in Iraq offered to give US troops a month to pull out free of attack in an audiotape posted on the internet overnight and demanded an answer within two weeks.
Abu Omar al-Baghdadi also charged that Washington had attempted to open communications through Saudi intermediaries but said he had rebuffed the overture, in the voice recording whose authenticity could not immediately be verified.
"We are offering you the opportunity to withdraw your troops in complete safety and we are expecting your response within two weeks,'' said the voice purporting to be that of Baghdadi, leader of a self-proclaimed Islamic emirate in western and north-central Iraq that is dominated by al-Qaeda supporters.
"We appeal to President George W. Bush to seize this historic opportunity which should allow your troops to pull out in safety,'' it said.
Bush has faced intense political pressure to overhaul his Iraq policy, following the rout of his Republican party in mid-term elections, rock-bottom approval of his management of the Iraq war and mounting US combat deaths.
A policy review by the Iraq Study Group, a bi-partisan panel, recommended that all frontline US troops be withdrawn by early 2008.
But Mr Bush made it clear Wednesday that he was opposed to any precipitate withdrawal from Iraq and that in the short term US troop numbers might even rise.
"I want the enemy to understand that this is a tough task, but they can't run us out of the Middle East; that they can't intimidate America,'' he said.
The voice recording also charged that US officials had made contact with the al-Qaeda front organization through Saudi intermediaries in a bid to open up communication but said that the overture had been rebuffed.
"The giant has begun to collapse and is seeking to negotiate through various parties, particularly through its agents,'' it said.
"It conveyed to us through the Saud family (the royal family in Saudi Arabia), the dictators of the (Arabian) peninsula, its desire (to negotiate), claiming already to have sat down with all parties apart from us.
"But we told it: 'We don't negotiate with those who have shed the blood of our children'.''
US officials have expressed readiness to open up communications with insurgent groups in Iraq but have always excluded those with links to al-Qaeda.
#1
In turn, al-Qaeda demands that the US and its highly trained force of municipal animal-control officers quit oppressing them and putting them in cages.
If the US doesn't comply immediately, they plan to dig up flowerbeds.
BAGHDAD - More than 1,000 British troops backed up by tanks carried out a dawn raid on Friday to seize an Iraqi police chief accused of leading a death squad that slaughtered 17 police trainers. Under cover of thick fog, the soldiers were able to approach several addresses in the port city of Basra undetected and seize seven suspects without a shot being fired, military spokesman Major Charlie Burbridge said.
"The purpose of this raid is not just to apprehend this individual, but it is a precursor to disbanding the Serious Crimes Unit of the Basra police," he said by telephone from the restive southern city.
Burbridge said that British forces, with the support of Iraqi leaders, had found evidence that the unit was involved in "death squad activities" and had decided to wind it up, starting with Friday's raid.
British military spokesman says move is precursor to disbanding Serious Crimes Unit of Basra police.
Some of the seven detainees may be released after questioning, he said, but enough evidence was found to make a case against the group's leader, long a thorn in the side of the British presence in southern Iraq.
On October 29, unidentified gunmen ambushed a bus carrying 17 employees of a British-run police training academy back to their homes in Basra. The passengers were massacred and their bodies dumped around the Shuaiba area in what was seen as an attempt to intimidate local residents and as a direct challenge to the British mission to pacify the region.
Burbridge said that the prime suspect seized on Friday - whom he did not identify - was thought to have been involved in the attack and that evidence gathered at the scene of the raid was thought to be enough to hold him.
The British force in Basra has long had problems with the local police, to whom they one day hope to hand over security responsibility for the city, especially with the notorious Serious Crimes Unit.
But, wait, there's more! Just above this headline, there's this one : "Gaza truce holds for third day despite clash"
So, the definition of a truce can be rather elastic... I guess that nothing short of a full-scale massed artillery duel is a violation of a truce in paleoland, the background level of violence and mayhem being rather high even in "normal" times...
Posted by: Ol Dirty American ||
12/22/2006 13:02 Comments ||
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#8
Ok...Paleo Militants have launched some 50 rockets since the Nov. 26 "truce" and some fear it might "destabilize" a "shaky cease-fire" between militant factions and Israel.
It makes you wonder if their proof readers are retarded or they write this shit and just laugh their asses off.
The IDF and the Shin Bet (Israel Security Agency) arrested a Hamas operative a month ago who was suspected of manufacturing weapons, including Kassam rockets, for his organization and for the Islamic Jihad, it was released for publication on Thursday. The man, identified as Ibrahim Hussein, was also accused of supplying equipment for digging tunnels used for planting explosives. The suspect confessed to the charges after his arrest.
Posted by: Fred ||
12/22/2006 00:00 ||
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#1
Get the recipe for their propellant and cut those supplies off, too! Might even be able to get UAVs to sniff for the propellant as well if they knew what to sniff for!
#2
Kassams use potassium nitrate and sugar for propellant. Sort of hard to stop fertilizer and sugar. The good news is the stuff isn't really storable. It has the tendecy to absorb water from the air. This is most likely why they are so erratic in their performance. Now if some one could fudge the salt peter so it was more reactive.
BTW the potassium nitrate I use in the greenhouse comes from Haifa Chemical. Real nice fine powder that cries to be made into "Rocket Candy".
Posted by: bruce ||
12/22/2006 7:11 Comments ||
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#3
If only they would eat their saltpetre, like good little soldiers.
#7
I always thought these stories REALLY need the old ESTES BASEMENT BOMBER graphic.
BTW been there done that! In my youth I reloaded a used estes casing with my scienitfic formula of KNO3 and sugar. Put it in an old rocket took it out to the backyard. Now my launch controller needed Dad's car battery to work and I didn't have any jetex wick. So i made a fuse out of a couple inches of scotch tape dusted with some black powder from my brother's powder flask. Lit the "fuse" and whom! Next thing I knew I was doing a wily coyote impression. The thing must have flown since there was no debris, but then my hand started to hurt. Nothing broken or missing but my hand was really messed up. Told Dad I caught my hand in the garage door.
Recently my brother asked me what the whole story was behind that incident He laughed and said I was a victum of hollywood. They use SMOKELESS powder to make those powder trails in the grade b westerns. Black powder goes up in an instant smokeless burns much slower when not confined. So kids don't do this at home and really don't do it if you don't have a garage door you can use to explain what happened to your hand.
Posted by: bruce ||
12/22/2006 16:20 Comments ||
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#8
When I was in High School we made rockets using potassium nitrate and powdered sugar as a propellant. You are right about it being unpredictable.
Posted by: Deacon Blues ||
12/22/2006 17:00 Comments ||
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#9
LOL Bruce, we'll let you keep your eyes, now that you've lerned your lesson.
Posted by: Your Friend Vern in Penrose ||
12/22/2006 17:54 Comments ||
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#10
Expect a rush of work accidents as the race for a replacement is on.
A Kassam rocket landed in Sderot on Thursday evening, making for a total of five rockets fired at Israel. Several people suffered from shock, and there was some property damage.
Posted by: Fred ||
12/22/2006 00:00 ||
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#1
...and Olmert remains curled up in the corner, muttering "It's still a cease fire...can't shoot back...still a cease fire...can't shoot back..."
Gunmen exchanged fire in Gaza City early on Friday close to the home of the foreign minister in the Hamas-led government, Palestinian witnesses said. It was not immediately clear if the heavy gunfire near the home of Mahmoud al-Zahar was a clash between rival Hamas and Fatah factions, though residents said they suspected the gunmen were from a local clan rather than Fatah. Residents said the gunmen opened fire at al-Zahar's home, which sparked the exchanges with Hamas fighters.
Hamas blamed the kidnapping on a clan affiliated with Fatah that was trying to avenge the killing of two of its members in an earlier round of factional fighting.
The violence started after two Hamas militants, including a senior member of the Islamic group, were kidnapped late Thursday night, security officials said. The kidnappers fired assault rifles, injuring a bystander. Hamas blamed the kidnapping on a clan affiliated with Fatah that was trying to avenge the killing of two of its members in an earlier round of factional fighting. Got all that?
That wave of violence, which broke out last week, killed 16 people and left dozens injured across Gaza, before a truce took effect Tuesday night. And then the carnage stopped, of course, except that...
But the new violence broke out when Hamas militiamen tried to free the two kidnapped fighters and engaged in a firefight with the Fatah-affiliated militants behind the abductions, Hamas officials said. "Take that, youse militants! [BANG! BANG! BANGETY BANG!]"
"Die, next thing to infidels! [KAPOW! KABOOM!]"
In the tense atmosphere pervading Gaza, the fight quickly spread out of control, encompassing the presidential guard outside Abbas' house, other security officers in the area and the Hamas militiamen guarding Zahar's home and the nearby Foreign Ministry building. Gunmen manning strategic positions on rooftops began shooting at others in the streets. The presidential guard took up defensive positions behind newly built walls of sandbags and barriers of cement blocs outside Abbas' residence. Hamas officials said the Fatah gunmen shot at Zahar's home. One witness estimated that more than 2,000 bullets were fired in the first 10 minutes and several rocket-propelled grenades were also launched. "Bullets're cheap, Mahmoud! Keep firin'! Y'might hit somebody!"
Bullets are cheap ... yeah, tell that to the tunnel guy ...
Residents of the neighborhood, the scene of other gunbattles over the past week, put their children in their bathtubs for protection against stray bullets, residents said. Others tucked themselves in corners for safety.
Posted by: Fred ||
12/22/2006 00:00 ||
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1000's of rounds of bullet, RPG's and nobody got hurt? These guys are terrible shots!
Posted by: Frank G ||
12/22/2006 7:16 Comments ||
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Despite this, the ceasefire is said to be "holding"...
Jakarta, 22 Dec. (AKI) - Militant Muslim cleric Abu Bakar Bashir on Friday said the Indonesian Supreme Court ruling clearing him of any part in the 2002 Bali bombings was set-back for the West True and a warning that attempts by Western nations to meddle in Indonesia would fail.False "This is evidvence that even though all this time the West think they can subjugate Indonesia, there are still some Muslims and Indonesians who have the courage to convey the truth," Bashir told Eslhinta radio in a telephone interview. The "truth", of course, being conveyed by vehicles ladened with Semtex and fanatical jihadis. Bali hai ho!
Thursday's ruling - which also ordered authorities to "rehabilitate" the 69-year-old cleric's reputation - is largely symbolic, as Bashir was Jakarta's Cipinang Penitentiary on 14 June after completing 26 months of a 30-month jail sentence for being part of a conspiracy behind the nightclub bombings. Does that include an Australian ad campaign?
A panel of judges at the Supreme Court unanimously ruled that the white-bearded, bespectacled Muslim cleric was not involved in the 2002 bomb attacks on Bali that killed 202 people, mostly Western tourists. Presiding judge German Hoediarto said the verdict was handed down after investigating the testimony from 30 witnesses. "They all said Bashir was not involved in the case," Hoediarto told the Detikcom news portal. Thirty witnesses conveyed the "truth"!
And if you can't believe 30 islamist jihadis swearing on a stack of Qur'ans, who can you believe?
Bashir had filed a case review to the court a few weeks before his release from prison and after Bali bombing death row convict Amrozi bin Nurhasyim retracted his statement that the cleric endorsed a plot to bomb the resort island. Everything's goin' smooth as clockwork.
How many virgins was he promised again?
Lawyer Mahendradatta, acting for Bashir said his client responded to the verdict calmly. "Alhamdulillah. This is all the will of God," the lawyer said, quoting Bashir. "And we're five minutes ahead of schedule, too."
Insh'allan. Let's do lunch.
The lawyer told Antara he would discuss a possible compensation lawsuit with other members of the defence team following the court ruling. The verdict, Mahendradatta said, confirmed allegations there was a "plot to weaken Muslims" in Indonesia. Translation: "Weak" Muslims, it is time to carefully consider your future prospects. We won and the government is going to subsidize our future ... endeavors. Choose wisely.
Police antiterror investigators said bin Nurhasyim and his accomplice Mubarok had met with Bashir before the Bali bombings and that the cleric had given them permission to launch an attack in Bali. The two terrorists militants later testified in the Cilacap District Court that they did not meet with the cleric before the bombings. Amrozi said the initial testimony had been forced out of him by police.
Bashir has been accused by Australia and the United States of being the spiritual leader of the regional Jamaah Islamiyah terror network blamed for the Bali attacks and a series of other blasts in Indonesia. Bashir has consistently denied any connection to that or other attacks blamed on the southeast Asian militant group, Jamaah Islamiyah (JI) whose objective is the creation of an Islamic 'caliphate' in the region.
#2
It is a "blow" to the West? It is absolutely an outrage, but it really reflects on the f***ed up nature of the justice system in an Islamic nation such as Indonesia.
#3
Wouldn't it be funny, er, coincidental if there just happened to be another earthquake there? i mean in response to the verdict and all...
But when there is, you can bet that the good ol' (gullible) USA will be first in line with all sorts of aid; aid that will never get those that truly need it.
Posted by: Barbara Skolaut ||
12/22/2006 16:39 Comments ||
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#7
That's Mick Dundee. He made an ass of himself in the "Immigration fury over killer gangs" thread and got himself banned. And he's madder'n a wet hen about it.
Posted by: Dave D. ||
12/22/2006 16:43 Comments ||
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Re #5
Wrong human subtype. Indonesians have different phenotype __and__ genotype.
#11
All this says is that if you are Western and vacationing in Indonesia, you are f**ked. The local government will not protect you, aid you, or try those who attack you.
Since the US is too far away from Bali to provide much tourism, it is up to the Aussies to initiate the boycott of these scumbags. And while I realize that the Balinese are generally not Muslim, this is the same thing as vacationing in a Mob-owned resort : your money goes to the scumbags who are doing/supporting/enabling terrorism against the West, just like your money in the example resort goes to the Mob. In both cases, you are paying the salaries and buying the guns for the bastards.
#14
Greetings Brother Dundee. Read this in the a.m. and walk quickly to your nearest meeting, knowing that you've pretty much fucked up yet again. It's the room with the blue star bud. Sit quietly and listen.
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.
Four Afghan civilians and three policemen were killed on Thursday by two separate roadside bombs aimed at police convoys, police said. A remote-control bomb hit the convoy of a border police commander on the outskirts of western Herat city as he drove to the airport, provincial police chief Mohammad Shafiq Fazli said. Four civilians were martyred and the border police commander Mohammad Ayob Safi and his two bodyguards were wounded in the bomb blast, Fazli said, adding the commander was the target of the device. 
The Sudanese army said it killed 200 rebels while repelling an attack in Darfur, the deadliest single military operation reported in the war-torn region since fighting started there four years ago. The bloodshed came amid intensified efforts to reach an agreement on the deployment of UN peacekeepers in Darfur as Washington warned Khartoum had until years end to accept or face coercive action. In a statement quoted by the state-run SUNA news agency, the army also said that 20 of its troops were wounded during the fighting, which took place in northern Darfur on Wednesday.
Bodies lay in the streets and fighters pounded each other with heavy artillery and mortars for a third day Thursday as Somalia's Islamic leader announced the country was now at war, leaving a day-old peace initiative in tatters.
The Political Secretary at Somali Mission to the United Nations has said that Somalia's transitional federal government repulsed the offensive by warmongering jihadists of al Qaeda in Somalia. Omar Jamal's comments came on the heels of a heavy artillery fighting that ensued between militia loyal to the Islamic Courts Union and forces of transitional government yesterday. 
Somalia's internationally recognised transitional government increasingly refers to the Mogadishu-based Islamist movement as an al Qaeda group, after it was revealed that the Somali Islamists have recruited radical jihadists from abroad to join their fight to take over the country. al Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden has also appealed on behalf of the Mogadishu group at least twice, saying Muslims should go to Somalia to assist in the fighting. The Baidoa-based government, on the other hand, has been able to recruit massive aid from neighbouring Ethiopia, which has sent troops and arms to Somalia to protect President Yusuf's government. This support is however very controversial in Somalia, as most Somalis regard Ethiopia as the country's historic enemy. 
The fighting started late on Tuesday, the deadline the SICC had given Ethiopian troops protecting the weak government to leave the country or face holy war. Both sides claim to have killed hundreds but there is yet no confirmation of casualties. 
Outlawed party leader killed in Meherpur 
In a startling discovery, police in north Kashmir have stumbled on a full-fledged recruitment cell of the 
BAGHDAD - More than 1,000 British troops backed up by tanks carried out a dawn raid on Friday to seize an Iraqi police chief accused of leading a death squad that slaughtered 17 police trainers. Under cover of thick fog, the soldiers were able to approach several addresses in the port city of Basra undetected and seize seven suspects without a shot being fired, military spokesman Major Charlie Burbridge said.
But, wait, there's more! Just above this headline, there's this one :
Gunmen exchanged fire in Gaza City early on Friday close to the home of the foreign minister in the Hamas-led government, Palestinian witnesses said. It was not immediately clear if the heavy gunfire near the home of 
Jakarta, 22 Dec. (AKI) - Militant Muslim cleric Abu Bakar Bashir on Friday said the Indonesian Supreme Court ruling clearing him of any part in the 2002 Bali bombings was set-back for the West 
