A 4th Brigade Combat Team, 82nd Airborne Division Soldier was honored Wednesday at the hallowed grounds of Arlington National Cemetery where veterans from wars past and present are entombed.
Sgt. Alexander Van Aalten, an infantryman with the All American division, was posthumously presented the Netherlands Decoration of Merit of the Minister of Defense in Gold before the Van Aalten family and members of the division. Dutch Minister of Defense Eimert Van Middelkoop presented the award to Van Aaltens wife Shana, inside the museum where the names of valiant Soldiers of the past are scribed on the walls for history.
Here we remember the brave Sgt. Alexander Van Aalten, who gave his life in Afghanistan serving his country, striving for peace and helping his Dutch colleagues, said Van Middelkoop.
Van Aalten, a Cookeville, Tenn., native was attempting to recover a Dutch soldier who died in a mine field on April 20, where he also would suffer that same fate.
NATO troops deployed in Afghanistan have intercepted an Iranian arms shipment destined for the Taliban in what appears to be an escalating flow of weaponry between the two former enemies, The Washington Post reported on Sunday. Citing unnamed officials from the NATO-led International Security Assistance Force, the newspaper said the shipment seized on September 6 included armour-piercing bombs, which have been especially deadly when used as roadside bombs against foreign troops in Iraq. The NATO-led force interdicted two smaller shipments of similar weapons from Iran into southern Helmand province April 11 and May 3, the report said. Its not the fact that its qualitatively different, but this was a large shipment which got peoples attention, the paper quotes a US official as saying. This time, the arms were shipped into the western province of Farah, indicating an attempt to find routes less likely to be discovered, The Post said. A senior Iranian official called the allegation baseless, according to the report. We have no interest in instability in Iraq or Afghanistan, the paper quotes the Iranian official as saying. We have good neighbourly relations with the heads of state, who have praised Iran recently. Why should we send weapons to the opposition? Iran has long opposed the Taliban, but US officials say their cooperation is based on common opposition to foreign, and particularly Western, troops in Afghanistan, The Post said.
Posted by: Fred ||
09/17/2007 00:00 ||
Comments ||
Link ||
[4 views]
Top|| File under: Govt of Iran
#1
It's kinda educational when you open up a subject that you know your adversary is going to lie about. It teaches you how they lie, and if you look at the shadows long enough, what they are trying to conceal.
#3
We have no interest in instability in Iraq or Afghanistan, the paper quotes the Iranian official as saying.
I no longer speculate as to why people's heads don't explode when they say bullshit like this but I still wonder why they aren't being made to explode for it.
A new battalion of Afghan National Army commandos completed its first operation on Friday, capturing a well-known Taliban facilitator and two suspected Taliban extremists, according to a Pentagon announcement.
Working with a contingent of Afghan national police advised by coalition forces, the commandos led a two-day mission 30 miles southwest of Jalalabad in the Sherzad district of Nangahar province. During the mission, the commandos captured and detained Haji Shir Khan, a known improvised explosive device (IED) maker, who is responsible for numerous IED attacks on Afghan and coalition forces in the province. The assault force also found two weapons caches that contained 18 rocket-propelled-grenade rounds, an anti-tank mine, 10 hand grenades, a 12-gauge shotgun, eight fully-loaded AK-47 magazines, and more than 80 kilograms of opium. The commandos represent a bright future for the Afghan national security forces, and its no surprise after all of their training that they were successful in todays mission, said Army Maj. Chris Belcher, a Combined Joint Task Force 82 spokesman.
In separate actions the same day, in Ghazni province, Afghan and coalition forces killed several suspected militants and detained another. Also, several suspected militants were killed and two others were detained during an operation in Helmand province. The detainees include a suspected militant who was wounded during the course of operations and evacuated for further medical attention. Soldiers found opium, several AK-47s, numerous full ammunition vests, a machine gun and several rocket-propelled grenades during the operation, it was claimed.
Posted by: Fred ||
09/17/2007 00:00 ||
Comments ||
Link ||
[4 views]
Top|| File under: Taliban
#1
Aww Shucks!!! I thought it would be Omar! I guess he's eating his oatmeal in Pakistan after all.
(SomaliNet) Local insurgents linked with the ousted Islamic Courts Union launched an ambush attack on the position of the government soldiers at Aden Adde junction in the second street of Bakara market in south of Mogadishu overnight, witnesses said on Sunday as the opposition leaders of the Asmara founded new alliance for liberation Somalia vowed to engage war with the Ethiopian forces in the horn of African nation and what they called its puppet government
The rival side exchanged rocket propelled grenades and heavy machine-guns around 11:00pm local time. The skirmish lasted for 20 minutes as the sound of artillery weapons could be heard in the area which frightened the residents. There was no immediate casualty from the latest gun battle.
So ev'ryone's a crack shot ...
Police spokesman Abdi Wahid Mohamed Hussein said the troops came under attack as they were patrolling near Bakara market. He said there was no casualty on the soldiers.
Posted by: Steve White ||
09/17/2007 00:00 ||
Comments ||
Link ||
[3 views]
Top|| File under: Islamic Courts
#1
They must be selling more than melons at the Bakara market. It seems to be a magnet for these shoot-em-ups.
Posted by: Jack is Back! ||
09/17/2007 9:22 Comments ||
Top||
(SomaliNet) Unidentified armed men shot dead the deputy army commander of the Lower Shabelle region in southern Somalia on Sunday. Mohamud Mohamed Siad known as Sanjabil was gunned down this morning as he was in El-jale environ 4km southeast of Marka city, the provincial capital of Lower Shabelle region.
The governor of Lower Shabelle region Abdukadir Sheikh confirmed the death of the deputy army commander. A group of men armed with automatic rifles killed Sanjabil and then escaped unharmed but we have sent a team to investigate the latest killing, said the governor.
It is not yet clear why he was killed and no group has claimed the responsibility of his murder. According to local witnesses, the gunmen stopped the car in which the deputy commander was traveling and ordered him to get off the vehicle where they later shot him dead.
Meanwhile, two unknown men armed with pistols killed a national security officer in Shibis district, east of the capital Mogadishu mid on Sunday. Mohamed Mohamud Barow, was shot dead in Shibis as the attackers escaped but the district commissioner said they are pursuing the muggers.
Posted by: Steve White ||
09/17/2007 00:00 ||
Comments ||
Link ||
[4 views]
Top|| File under: Islamic Courts
Turkish troops killed one Kurdish rebel in a clash in the country's southeast and captured two others injured on Sunday, local authorities said. The clash occurred near the town of Besiri of the southeastern city of Batman. The two injured rebels were hospitalized in Batman, authorities said. Rebels of the Kurdistan Workers' Party have been fighting government forces in Turkey's southeast since 1984. Fighting has claimed tens of thousands of lives.
Posted by: Fred ||
09/17/2007 00:00 ||
Comments ||
Link ||
[4 views]
Top|| File under:
Police in Quebec have arrested a terrorist suspect on charges of conspiracy to set off bombs in Austria and Germany. He is accused of helping to run a jihadist Web site in Canada and of having links with a cell of al-Qaida propagandists in Vienna.
While Austrian police arrested three suspected operators of a jihadist Web site on Wednesday in Vienna, Royal Canadian Mounted Police closed in on one of their colleagues, Said Namouh, in a town in the Canadian province of Quebec. He was accused of conspiracy to bomb targets outside Canada. The 35-year-old man, reportedly Moroccan by descent, lived near Maskinongé, Quebec, and was allegedly involved in procuring explosives and making online threats against the governments of Austria and Germany last spring. Canada was reportedly not a target.
The Vienna group consisted of a married couple and a friend who are all accused of producing a video which threatened attacks on Germany and Austria last March. The six-minute film warned of violence if the governments of both countries failed to pull troops out of Afghanistan. In March, Austria had a total of five officers in Afghanistan. Which constitutes a fair quorum for declaring jihad.
The video appeared on the German-language home page of the Global Islamic Media Front, a propaganda Web site for al-Qaida. Its producers seem to have taken inspiration from a cell in Canada, possibly from Namouh himself. The English-language edition of GIMF has been based in Canada since 2002, and authorities say the alleged head of the Vienna cell, Mohammed M., approached the Canadians by e-mail to volunteer help on a German-language site. "He more or less asked how you set something like that up," said a German security official. The German-language site went online in 2005.
GIMF is an organizational tool for al-Qaida sympathizers, who communicate in discussion forums, trade information and radicalize new recruits. But German security official say the cell arrested in Vienna was not actively planning an attack. "They were more like armchair jihadists," said one official. So, give them the chair and not the comfy one, either.
Posted by: Zenster ||
09/17/2007 01:33 ||
Comments ||
Link ||
[3 views]
Top|| File under: al-Qaeda in Europe
#1
Royal Canadian Mounted Police closed in on one of their colleagues, Said Namouh
#3
This took place in the province of Quebec which, although it has huge influence in federal Canadian politics, is really an enclave of its own compared to the rest of Canada due to the legally required use of the French language. This requirement attracts immigrants who are fluent, or can get by, in French. They tend to gather together by (previous) nationality or tribal ties.
So there is a large Moroccan contingent there and a large Haitian group. The Moroccans have a Muslim religious upbringing and the Haitians have a criminal upbringing. Lovely place.
There will be more and more of these incidents in the future and it will be interesting to see if the Mounties or the Quebec Provincial Police can put someone on the inside. I doubt that they can.
#4
This took place in the province of Quebec which, although it has huge influence in federal Canadian politics, is really an enclave of its own compared to the rest of Canada due to the legally required use of the French language. This requirement attracts immigrants who are fluent, or can get by, in French. They tend to gather together by (previous) nationality or tribal ties.
So there is a large Moroccan contingent there and a large Haitian group. The Moroccans have a Muslim religious upbringing and the Haitians have a criminal upbringing. Lovely place.
There will be more and more of these incidents in the future and it will be interesting to see if the Mounties or the Quebec Provincial Police can put someone on the inside. I doubt that they can.
#5
This took place in the province of Quebec which, although it has huge influence in federal Canadian politics, is really an enclave of its own compared to the rest of Canada due to the legally required use of the French language. This requirement attracts immigrants who are fluent, or can get by, in French. They tend to gather together by (previous) nationality or tribal ties.
So there is a large Moroccan contingent there and a large Haitian group. The Moroccans have a Muslim religious upbringing and the Haitians have a criminal upbringing. Lovely place.
There will be more and more of these incidents in the future and it will be interesting to see if the Mounties or the Quebec Provincial Police can put someone on the inside. I doubt that they can.
#6
This took place in the province of Quebec which, although it has huge influence in federal Canadian politics, is really an enclave of its own compared to the rest of Canada due to the legally required use of the French language. This requirement attracts immigrants who are fluent, or can get by, in French. They tend to gather together by (previous) nationality or tribal ties.
So there is a large Moroccan contingent there and a large Haitian group. The Moroccans have a Muslim religious upbringing and the Haitians have a criminal upbringing. Lovely place.
There will be more and more of these incidents in the future and it will be interesting to see if the Mounties or the Quebec Provincial Police can put someone on the inside. I doubt that they can.
#7
Great bang for the buck. One "Submit" punch and get 4, count 'em, 4 entries. My Mac likes you guys! My Mac likes you guys! My Mac likes you guys! My Mac likes you guys!
Two bombs exploded in quick succession on Saturday night in the Char Bagh area of Swat district, destroying four shops and partially damaging 14. The two blasts totally destroyed a medical store, two audio centres and a barbershop. Militants also fired at a police checkpost in Char Bagh at the time of the explosions. Police returned fire but there were no casualties on either side.
Posted by: Fred ||
09/17/2007 00:00 ||
Comments ||
Link ||
[3 views]
Top|| File under: Taliban
#1
Must suck to live in Swat. No cable, no DVDs, can't get a haircut, no music, can't buy a pair of shoes, can't fly a kite, can't look at broads...it's like Disney World for Muslims.
#2
You hear about all this shooting in the muzzie world, but nobody ever seems to get hurt. We train the Afghan army, and they start killing and terrorists. We train the Iraqi army, and they start killing and capturing terrorists. It's a wonder what just a little proper training can bring about. No wonder Iran is having coniptions. Iraqis to the west, Afghans to the east, cooperation and training with the Indians - the hardcore muzzies in Iran are in a definite bind. Now we need to work with the Somalis (a counter against Eritrea and Sudan), the Omanis, maybe the Kuwaitis, and anyone else that can give both Iran and Soddy aRabida a hard time.
Posted by: Old Patriot ||
09/17/2007 13:49 Comments ||
Top||
MIRANSHAH: Three security personnel sustained serious injuries and two Taliban were killed when the latter attacked the Amin checkpost late on Saturday night, sources said.
Electricity disrupted in area: The crossfire between the militants and the personnel disrupted the power supply system in the area, which was restored at 1pm on Sunday. The firing started at 12am and continued till 6am
High school, stadium attacked: According to a private TV channel, Taliban militants attacked security checkposts at Amin Pakt, Gora Qabristan, a high school and stadium with automatic weapons and rockets, injuring three security personnel, Online reported. Two of the militants were killed in the gunbattle that ensued.
Posted by: Fred ||
09/17/2007 00:00 ||
Comments ||
Link ||
[3 views]
Top|| File under: Taliban
Alan Greenspan, the former Federal Reserve chairman, said in an interview that the removal of Saddam Hussein had been "essential" to secure world oil supplies, a point he emphasized to the White House in private conversations before the 2003 invasion of Iraq.
Greenspan, who was the country's top voice on monetary policy at the time Bush decided to go to war in Iraq, has refrained from extensive public comment on it until now, but he made the striking comment in a new memoir out today that "the Iraq War is largely about oil." In the interview, he clarified that sentence in his 531-page book, saying that while securing global oil supplies was "not the administration's motive," he had presented the White House with the case for why removing Hussein was important for the global economy.
"I was not saying that that's the administration's motive.
I'm just saying that if somebody asked me, 'Are we fortunate in taking out Saddam?' I would say it was essential."
"I was not saying that that's the administration's motive," Greenspan said in an interview Saturday, "I'm just saying that if somebody asked me, 'Are we fortunate in taking out Saddam?' I would say it was essential."
He said that in his discussions with President Bush and Vice President Cheney, "I have never heard them basically say, 'We've got to protect the oil supplies of the world,' but that would have been my motive." Greenspan said that he made his economic argument to White House officials and that one lower-level official, whom he declined to identify, told him, "Well, unfortunately, we can't talk about oil." Asked if he had made his point to Cheney specifically, Greenspan said yes, then added, "I talked to everybody about that."
Greenspan said he had backed Hussein's ouster, either through war or covert action. "I wasn't arguing for war per se," he said. But "to take [Hussein] out, in my judgment, it was something important for the West to do and essential, but I never saw Plan B" &0151; an alternative to war.
Greenspan's reference in "The Age of Turbulence: Adventures in a New World" to what he calls the "politically inconvenient" fact that the war was "largely about oil" was first reported by The Washington Post on Saturday and has proved controversial.
Defense Secretary Robert M. Gates took issue with Greenspan on ABC's "This Week" yesterday. "I wasn't here for the decision-making process that initiated it, that started the war," Gates said. But, he added, "I know the same allegation was made about the Gulf War in 1991, and I just don't believe it's true."
Critics of the administration have often argued that while Bush cited Hussein's pursuit of weapons of mass destruction and despotic rule as reasons for the invasion, he was also motivated by a desire to gain access to Iraq's vast oil reserves. Publicly, little evidence has emerged to support that view, although a top-secret National Security Presidential Directive, titled "Iraq: Goals, Objectives and Strategy" and signed by Bush in August 2002 &0151; seven months before the invasion &0151; listed as one of many objectives "to minimize disruption in international oil markets."
Which is a far cry from US domination of the Iraqi oil production or reserves. Pfeh.
Though Greenspan's book is largely silent about Iraq, it is sharply critical of Bush and fellow Republicans on other matters, denouncing in particular what Greenspan calls the president's lack of fiscal discipline and the "dysfunctional government" he has presided over. In the interview, Greenspan said he had previously told Bush and Cheney of his critique. "They're not surprised by my conclusions," he said.
As for Iraq, Greenspan said that at the time of the invasion, he believed, like Bush, that Iraq had weapons of mass destruction "because Saddam was acting so guiltily trying to protect something." While he was "reasonably sure he did not have an atomic weapon," he added, "my view was that if we do nothing, eventually he would gain control of a weapon."
His main support for Hussein's ouster, though, was economically motivated. "If Saddam Hussein had been head of Iraq and there was no oil under those sands," Greenspan said, "our response to him would not have been as strong as it was in the first gulf war. And the second gulf war is an extension of the first. My view is that Saddam, looking over his 30-year history, very clearly was giving evidence of moving towards controlling the Straits of Hormuz, where there are 17, 18, 19 million barrels a day" passing through.
Disruption of 3-4 million bbl/day could translate into oil prices as high as $120 a barrel. Loss of anything more would mean "chaos" to the global economy.
Greenspan said disruption of even 3 to 4 million barrels a day could translate into oil prices as high as $120 a barrel &0151; far above even the recent highs of $80 set last week &0151; and the loss of anything more would mean "chaos" to the global economy.
Given that, "I'm saying taking Saddam out was essential," he said. But he added that he was not implying that the war was an oil grab.
"No, no, no," he said. Getting rid of Hussein achieved the purpose of "making certain that the existing system [of oil markets] continues to work, frankly, until we find other [energy supplies], which ultimately we will."
#1
I had some asshole come into my office today and give me a ration of shit about "See? Alan Greenspan ADMITS the war was all about oil!!!" He ain't gonna like it when I lay this article on him tomorrow. He ain't gonna like my marginal notes, either. Heh, heh.
Posted by: Dave D. ||
09/17/2007 19:45 Comments ||
Top||
Posted by: Barbara Skolaut ||
09/17/2007 20:20 Comments ||
Top||
#4
For 80-something, he's still pretty sharp. I can't say I disagree with any of the criticisms he made (that I know about); lack of fiscal discipline and disfunctional government and Iraq/oil were/are important to the global economy.
#8
Hard to imagine Alan Greenspan speaking more clearly on this issue than the administration, but I think he did it. The US continues to do as little as possible toward finding alternatives to importing massive quantities of oil and exporting billions of $ to our enemies. Oil security and the Jihad are tightly bound together. How much are we willing to spend to secure oil supplies for everyone in the world? This discussion needs to take place on a national level.
Meanwhile there is another hostile power which can easily block the Straits of Hormuz and interrupt or shut down its exports of oil to the world. It used to have a lot of oil. Now it wants nukes.
. . . At around 1005 we started moving to contact (meaning: trying to engage in the fight). We walked south, moving toward the firing, linking up with SSG Michaels squad and the IA with him. By now the fighting was a few hundreds meters away. All small arms. I didnt hear any explosions. Some civilians were caught in the crossfire and a woman got shot in the neck and was slightly wounded, though we did not yet know this. The fighting was light: maybe 1 PKC machine gun and 4-5 AKs. But often big fights start as other elements, friendly and enemy, are drawn in. . . .
As we crossed the field, at about 1020, the silver van started driving in front of us. We could see it driving from our right to our left on Route Burga a couple of hundred meters to our front. The van was well within accurate small-arms range. I was unaware of the radio chatter about the armed men in the van, and the white sack; so to me it was just a van that was driving near us with four men, while a firefight was going on nearby. But to Captain Morris and the others hearing the chatter, and to those Soldiers in the Bradleys peering with excellent optics, the men in the van were clearly armed and not displaying any sort of recognition signal. The van was in an area where there was fighting going on, and where American forces had killed about 7 during the past 24 hours, and where we knew for a fact that al Qaeda was.
My video had been running for several minutes. One of the Bradleys saw what he thought were bullets kicking up in our direction, as if someone were shooting at us, or at least in our direction. But at this timethe silver van now nearly directly in front of usI heard no shots nor saw any contact. As the van closed the range at about 200 meters, our guys fired several warning shots. The van sped up. The Soldiers rained heavy small-arms fire and were kicking up dust, and Corporal Antony Johnson fired a 40mm grenade, but the van just kept speeding away whenBOOM! BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!a Bradley fired 4 shots from the 25mm cannon. All four high-explosive rounds impacted and the van careened off the road and crashed out of sight. . . .
Posted by: Mike ||
09/17/2007 15:43 ||
Comments ||
Link ||
[4 views]
Top|| File under:
Posted by: Red Dawg ||
09/17/2007 16:50 Comments ||
Top||
#3
The problem here is that this was apparently friendly fire. The unfortunate friendlies were probably unused to being friendlies, being as they were recent side-switchers, but still this is not a good thing.
#4
I'd like to think that every time Yon posts one of these awesomely vivid dispatches the owner of every MSM outlet in the country calls his editor-in-chief in and says something like:
"Again! The SOB has done it again! You wanna tell me why we've got 50 people on the staff with journalism degrees from Columbia, and this guy is whipping our butts six days a week and twice on Sunday? All he's got is a camera and a laptop, for gosh sakes!"
I doubt very much that's happening, but that's what I'd like to think.
Posted by: Matt ||
09/17/2007 18:31 Comments ||
Top||
#5
That's because:
a) All fifty Columbia journo-school grads are safely away from Iraq.
b) The one journalist/editor they do have in-country is a freelancer working for four other wire services as well and has a distinct fondness for the Green Zone. Likely Western European with a background that precludes objectivity.
c) The stringers the one in-country journalist/editor has hired are either folk he (or the services he works for) worked with when Saddam was in power, or were suggested to him, or hired because they or their groups were amenable to the journalist/editor.
By BASSEM MROUE, Associated Press Writer I'll bold the AP spin to make it easy for everybody...
BAGHDAD - The Iraqi government said Monday that it was revoking the license of an American security firm accused of involvement in the deaths of eight civilians in a firefight that followed a car bomb explosion near a State Department motorcade.
The Interior Ministry said it would prosecute any foreign contractors found to have used excessive force in the Sunday shooting. It was latest accusation against the U.S.-contracted firms that operate with little or no supervision and are widely disliked by Iraqis who resent their speeding motorcades and forceful behavior.
Interior Ministry spokesman Abdul-Karim Khalaf said eight civilians were killed and 13 were wounded when contractors believed to be working for Blackwater USA opened fire in a predominantly Sunni neighborhood of western Baghdad.
"We have canceled the license of Blackwater and prevented them from working all over Iraqi territory. We will also refer those involved to Iraqi judicial authorities," Khalaf said.
The spokesman said witness reports pointed to Blackwater involvement but said the shooting was still under investigation. It was not immediately clear if the measure against Blackwater was intended to be temporary or permanent.
Blackwater, based in Moyock, N.C., provides security for many U.S. civilian operations in the country.
The U.S. Embassy said a State Department motorcade came under small-arms fire that disabled one of the vehicles, which had to be towed from the scene near Nisoor Square in the Mansour district. "There was a convoy of State Department personnel and a car bomb went off in proximity to them and there was an exchange of fire as the personnel were returning to the International Zone," embassy spokesman Johann Schmonsees said, referring to the heavily fortified U.S.-protected area in central Baghdad also known as the Green Zone. Officials provided no information about Iraqi casualties but said no State Department personnel were wounded or killed.
The embassy also refused to answer any questions on Blackwater's status or legal issues, saying it was seeking clarification on the issue as part of the investigation, which was being carried out by the State Department's diplomatic security service and law enforcement officials working with the Iraqi government and the U.S. military.
Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki late Sunday condemned the shooting by a "foreign security company" and called it a "crime."
Tens of thousands of foreign private security contractors work in Iraq some with automatic weapons, body armor, helicopters and bulletproof vehicles to provide protection for Westerners and dignitaries in Iraq as the country has plummeted toward anarchy and civil war.
Monday's action against Blackwater was likely to give the unpopular government a boost, given Iraqis' dislike of the contractors.
Many of the contractors have been accused of indiscriminately firing at American and Iraqi troops, and of shooting to death an unknown number of Iraqi citizens who got too close to their heavily armed convoys, but none has faced charges or prosecution.
"There have been so many innocent people they've killed over there, and they just keep doing it," said Katy Helvenston, the mother of late Blackwater contractor Steve Helvenston, who died in 2004 during the ambush in Fallujah. "They have just a callous disregard for life."
Helvenston is now part of a lawsuit that accuses Blackwater of cutting corners that ultimately led to the death of her son and three others.
The question of whether they could face prosecution is legally murky. Unlike soldiers, the contrators are not bound by the Uniform Code of Military Justice. Under a special provision secured by American-occupying forces, they are exempt from prosecution by Iraqis for crimes committed there. Khalaf, however, denied that the exemption applied to private security companies.
Iraqi police said the contractors were in a convoy of six sport utility vehicles and left after the shooting. "We saw a convoy of SUVs passing in the street nearby. One minute later, we heard the sound of a bomb explosion followed by gunfire that lasted for 20 minutes between gunmen and the convoy people who were foreigners and dressed in civilian clothes. Everybody in the street started to flee immediately," said Hussein Abdul-Abbas, who owns a mobile phone store in the area. So it sounds like an ambush
The wartime numbers of private guards are unprecedented as are their duties, many of which have traditionally been done by soldiers. They protect U.S. military operations and diplomats and have guarded high-ranking officials including Gen. David Petraeus, the top U.S. commander in Baghdad. They also protect journalists, visiting foreign officials and thousands of construction projects.
Blackwater has an estimated 1,000 employees in Iraq, and at least $800 million in government contracts. It is one of the most high-profile security firms in Iraq, with its fleet of "Little Bird" helicopters and armed door gunners swarming Baghdad and beyond. The secretive company, run by a former Navy SEAL, is based at a massive, swampland complex. Until the Sept. 11, 2001 terror attacks, it had few security contracts.
Since then, Blackwater profits have soared. And it has become the focus of numerous controversies in Iraq, including the May 30 shooting death of an Iraqi deemed to be driving too close to a Blackwater security detail.
In violence Monday, a suicide bomber detonated his explosives-laden car near a busy market in Baghdad, killing three people and wounding 10 in an attack that apparently targeted a police patrol, said a police officer, who spoke on condition of anonymity as he was not authorized to release the information.
Hamid Ghassan, a 20-year-old juice vendor, who described hearing the blast, said he was dismayed that al-Maliki's government is "sitting safe, making agreements and lying to people while masses ... are being killed." Geez, there was even more then usual...
#2
So Iraq wants to basically ban security for diplomatic convoys? I bet Rove put them up to this.
My advice to the 'innocent' civilians caught in crossfire/wildfire surrounding ambushes - when you see an ambush being set up, get far away very fast and report it to authorities. If you don't, then expect the consequences to further cleanse the gene pool.
#4
Bassem Mroue? Certainly an unbiased reporting source! I wish there was as much concern on the part of the Maliki government over AQ and other terrorists groups and Iran meddling. I also wish they would do more of the heavy lifting.
#6
"There have been so many innocent people they've killed over there, and they just keep doing it," said Katy Helvenston, the mother of late Blackwater contractor Steve Helvenston, who died in 2004 during the ambush in Fallujah. "They have just a callous disregard for life."
#10
no State Department personnel were wounded or killed.
mission accomplished by Blackwater.
BASSEM's Gauloises stained brain compliments his Hate America and Jews bad breath... APs kind of guy or gal or it, you decide.
***
Gubmint vs. Private security.
False comparative argument.
The private tools/entities in some instances have a greater potential to augment Gubmint assets and react faster than Gubmit.
The Critics:
One set are the vocal and political anti-war Hate America Groupies who are using Blackwater/ and Private Security as their anti-war pony to ride.
Another set are the World Wide competitors that lost most of the juicy contracts to Blackwater!
Legit shortcomings.. I'm sure there are short comings, I means except for me everyone else falls just a little bit short right! >:)
Finally what if you were a Nobel Peace Prize winner who's politics ran left of Jimmuh Carter.
~:)
Mkay, what would you do if you needed to hire a pilot and plane to fly your wife out of a NO Go Commercial flight area before she wound up becoming part of the SOUP?
Call al-Aska Paul!!
/lesson, think what you will abstractly..but when the shit hits the fan who ya goina call..
Posted by: Red Dawg ||
09/17/2007 18:03 Comments ||
Top||
#11
I know and prefer EODT (better compnay IMHO).
But if they want to pull Blackwater, they are going to lost all of their trustworthy security detail people. I hope Maliki likes eating IEDs.
I hope Maliki eats an IED. Him and his wannabe warlord pals represent a large part of the internal causes that prolong this war. All of them need to kack and be replaced with younger and more Westernized individuals who genuinely desire democracy. Maliki has no such desire.
Mods: Have we seen this one yet? Upbeat assessment by Iraqi national security adviser.
Not as far as I know. Good catch. Wonder it got past the CNN censors?
BAGHDAD, Iraq (CNN) -- Iraq's government expects fewer combat operations for U.S.-led coalition troops in the near future, the country's national security adviser said Tuesday. Mowaffak al-Rubaie, reacting to testimony Monday by U.S. Gen. David Petraeus and Ambassador Ryan Crocker on Capitol Hill, said Iraq is aiming "to achieve complete Iraqi security reliance as soon as possible."
But he said his country still needs help. "We know that for some time we will continue to need the support of the coalition," al-Rubaie said.
Al-Rubaie expressed appreciation for the "transparency and candor" of Petraeus and Crocker, who underscored that the Iraqi government, while making some progress, faces many severe challenges in the months and years ahead.
Addressing the frustrations of citizens and officials, al-Rubaie said the government wished it were further along but it is doing what it can on all fronts -- militarily, politically, and economically. He noted that despite "progress," there have been "setbacks" in what has been a "most difficult path." "We Iraqis are, of course, impatient and we wish our progress was more rapid. We understand this as well as the impatience and disappointment of our coalition supporters who expected more, sooner."
Al-Rubaie said the armed forces that were built from scratch in the post-Saddam Hussein era were making strides. Three years ago, none of the country's 18 provinces were under Iraqi control. Today, seven provinces are under full Iraqi security responsibility, and there will be more transfers of power.
And he said Iraq has almost 500,000 trained soldiers and police operating against insurgents. By the middle of next year, he said, all the Iraqi army combat units will be "organized, equipped and trained and in operations."
"The capabilities of our security forces are now formidable," he said.
And, he said, the citizenry is turning against "our common enemy," a reference to the "tribal awakening" of Iraqis who are turning against militants, such as al Qaeda in Iraq. Such a development has been touted in Iraq's Anbar province.
He said Iraq has just published a national security strategy, he said. "With the significant and visible success of the current security operation and the increasing capabilities of Iraqi forces, we anticipate in the near term, the relaxation of the requirement for coalition forces in direct combat operations," al-Rubaie said. "We will work with our coalition partners to make sure the coalition requirement in Iraq will take into consideration ... Iraqi capabilities and security conditions on the ground."
The political arena is of greatest concern to the U.S. government and its citizens. The Nuri al-Maliki government has been beset by partisan bickering, sectarian tensions and bloc walkouts, and the Iraqi parliament has not yet passed key legislation.
Al-Rubaie characterized Iraqi government officials as "transparent defenders of the interests of all Iraqis and not of the privileged few, as was the case with the previous regime.
Kept his lips on, did he?
He praised the recent efforts by the 15-month-old government to forge a security plan and a mutual agreement among several top political parties. "I want to reassure our citizens and our allies that our government is totally committed its work on all outstanding political matters keeping foremost the interests of Iraq while protecting the rights of even the smallest minority."
He said Iraq's economy is emerging from decades of neglect. He said local commerce, construction and reconstruction are booming in secure areas of the country. Old industries are transforming themselves and tourism in the Kurdish region is emerging. He said oil and electricity continue to need much "investment and modernization," but they are "already exceeding the production level achieved before liberation."
He thanked the United States and other coalition allies for its "selfless commitment" to Iraq. But al-Rubaie's rhetoric, while optimistic, was cautionary as well: dangers are literally around the corner. "Trust and mutual respect are still difficult and enormously hindered by the continuous attacks of the terrorists and extremists -- particularly foreign terrorists. We are not yet completely free to shape our future," he said.
#1
He must be Shia - rubbing his hands together, little sweat beads on his forehead, big smile - shaking his head. Self-fulfilling prophecy. Yes, time to leave. Call Mahmoud and the black hats. We are freeeeeeee!
Posted by: Jack is Back! ||
09/17/2007 13:53 Comments ||
Top||
#2
He is Shia, albeit pretty secular. British trained neurologist by original profession. He was first named the National Security Advisor by the Coalition Provisional Authority. Disagreed with Allawi, left, was brought back by Maliki.
Quoted re: execution of Saddam: I was proud of what had happened, because we played by the book... If that upset the feeling of some of the Arab nations and Arab rulers, I think that is tough luck to them.
Has been trying since May of this year to convince Congress not to pull the troops out prematurely. Met with Lieberman and others while here in DC.
#3
IOW, assuminq that no US-IRAN conflict takes place and local Iraqi insurgents also take a breather - iff the Afghan War and the Arab-Israeli Conflict is any measure, the Islamist R-n-R won't take too long.
#4
Forgot to say that iff the Iraqi insurgency contins to lose men and materiel as they have recently, IMO post-Lull the Islamists will likely try to enable one last "decisive battle" agz US-IGA forces before finally giving up the Iraq-only effort/front.
BAGHDAD, Iraq (CNN) -- Dozens of Islamic terrorists militants loyal to al Qaeda attacked Shiite Muslim villages north of Baghdad around dawn Sunday, killing more than a dozen people, an Interior Ministry official said. Iraqi troops and police arrived and chased off the terrorists militants, the official said.
How about killing the terrorists instead?
The al Qaeda raids targeted two villages about 25 miles (40 kilometers) north of Baquba. The fundamentalist Sunni terrorists fighters, armed with guns and rocket-propelled grenades, struck about 6 a.m. Sunday (10 p.m. Saturday ET). The Sunni terrorists fighters killed 14 people, including three children, wounded 10 others and set 12 houses ablaze, the Interior Ministry official said.
Villagers fought back for about an hour before Iraqi police and army units joined the battle, but there were no casualties reported among the terrorists attackers. The jihadists retreated into the countryside with government troops in pursuit after reinforcements arrived, the official said.
Also Sunday, Shiite Police Col. Karim Abdul Hussein was gunned down near his home in Afak, east of the southern provincial capital of Diwaniya. The asassination comes five weeks after a bombing that killed the province's governor and police chief, along with three bodyguards.
Diyala has been the scene of sometimes-intense fighting between Shiite factions in recent months, and coalition forces have taken on militia fighters in Diwaniya.
Eight more people were killed and 14 were wounded in a gun battle in western Baghdad, and other attacks left at least seven people dead nationwide. The clash occurred near Nisoor square, in western Baghdad. Details were sketchy, but the official said witnesses told police that the security forces involved appeared to be Westerners driving sport utility vehicles, which are usually used by Western companies.
In addition, one person was killed and seven wounded in a car bomb in the Mansour district, also on Baghdad's west side, the official said. And in eastern Baghdad, a mortar round killed one person and wounded three others when it landed near Shaab stadium Sunday morning. We need to set a few traps, but I doubt there are many villages that would like to be the bait!
Posted by: gorb ||
09/17/2007 03:12 ||
Comments ||
Link ||
[3 views]
Top|| File under: al-Qaeda in Iraq
Coalition forces captured a suspected longtime al-Qaeda in Iraq terrorist during an operation Sept. 4 in Tarmiyah.
Muayyad Ali Husayn Sulayman al-Bayyati, also known as Abu Wathiq, is believed to have helped bring the al-Qaeda in Iraq terrorist group to Tarmiyah. He is allegedly an advisor to senior terrorist leaders and was responsible for conducting executions.
Intelligence reports indicate al-Bayyati is closely associated with a senior al-Qaeda in Iraq leader and conducts executions either by shooting or beheading people at the main intersection in Tarmiyah. Reports also indicate residents of Tarmiyah feared al-Bayyatis constant threat of violence and knew him as The Executioner. Furthermore, detainee reporting indicates that al-Bayyati tortured two 12-year-old boys by burning their hands and beating them, because he believed the boys were spies for Coalition forces.
Al-Bayyati and two other suspected al-Qaeda in Iraq terrorists were captured on Sept. 4 during coordinated raids northwest of Tarmiyah. One of the other detainees is linked to an operation Sept. 2 where Coalition forces destroyed 12 tons of explosives. During this raid, Coalition forces found two caches of weapons and explosives. An air strike safely destroyed the bomb-making facility and caches found during this operation, which contained rocket-propelled grenades, explosive materials and fully assembled improvised explosive devices. We will work closely with Iraqi officials to ensure al-Bayyati receives due process through the Iraqi justice system, said Maj. Winfield Danielson, MNF-I spokesman.
Posted by: Fred ||
09/17/2007 00:00 ||
Comments ||
Link ||
[3 views]
Top|| File under: al-Qaeda in Iraq
#1
Will be interesting to see how fast these Iraqi trials go; with fewer humanitarian groups to push for killer's rights
Iraqi Special Operations Forces, with U.S. Special Forces as advisers, detained a extremist militant company commander and a cell member Sept. 15 during an operation in Ad Diwaniyah.
During the operation, enemy fighters initiated an attack on Iraqi and U.S. Forces with an improvised explosive device, small arms and machine gun fire. The forces returned well-aimed and proportional fire to eliminate the threat, killing three enemy fighters and wounding several others.
Intelligence indicates the extremist commander leads more than 20 enemy forces, who are responsible for launching improvised explosive device, explosively formed penetrator and indirect fire attacks against Iraqi and Coalition Forces in the area.
On July 5, the group attacked the Coalition base in Ad Diwaniyah with indirect fires. Further intelligence reports that the group has launched more than 450 rocket and mortar attacks on the base during the past four months.
Reports also indicate this group assaulted the local police station on July 7 of this year, killed two Iraqi police officers and then fired on Coalition forces rushing to aid the police.
In a separate operation Sept. 15 in the Bayaa area of Baghdad, ISOF detained an extremist militant battalion commander. The suspect is linked to extra judicial killings, kidnappings and the forcible removal of Sunni residents from the same area.
Posted by: Fred ||
09/17/2007 00:00 ||
Comments ||
Link ||
[3 views]
Top|| File under: Iraqi Insurgency
Coalition forces killed eight terrorists and detained seven suspected terrorists during operations Sunday targeting al-Qaeda in Iraq's leadership nodes and Baghdad-area operations.
Coalition forces conducted two operations to bolster security in Baghdad and the surrounding belts. West of Tarmiyah, Coalition forces used information from an operation Aug. 31 to target associates of the al-Qaeda in Iraq emir of the northern belts. As the assault force approached the target building, several armed men engaged them with small arms fire. Coalition forces returned fire in self-defense, killing one armed terrorist. Three of the armed men maneuvered into tactical positions in a nearby palm grove, and Coalition forces called in close air support to defend against the enemy elements, killing three more armed terrorists. As they secured the target buildings, one man refused to comply with the interpreter's instructions and remained barricaded in the building. After repeated attempts to convince the suspected terrorist to come out, Coalition forces engaged the man, killing him. The ground forces detained one suspected terrorist and discovered a cache of bomb-making materials, which they safely destroyed with an air strike.
In an operation in the southern belts around Baghdad, Coalition forces targeted al-Qaeda in Iraq in the Arab Jabour area, including leaders replacing those who have been recently captured or killed. When the ground forces approached the target building, an armed man engaged the assault force. Coalition forces, responding in self-defense, killed the armed terrorist. Another armed man attempted to penetrate a Coalition forces security element, and a third attempted to engage the assault force from a nearby building. Coalition forces, responding in self-defense, engaged and killed both armed terrorists. The ground forces detained two suspects and discovered a cache of weapons and bomb-making materials, which they safely destroyed on site.
Based on intelligence from an operation Sep. 15, Coalition forces captured a suspected al-Qaeda in Iraq leader south of Ramadi. Coalition forces also conducted a raid in Mosul targeting al-Qaeda in Iraq operatives who facilitate a foreign terrorist network, and detained three suspected terrorists. "We're not waiting for the terrorists to strike we're going after them," said Maj. Winfield Danielson, MNF-I spokesman. "We want to keep them on the run, unable to recover from the damage Coalition and Iraqi Security Forces are inflicting on their networks."
Posted by: Fred ||
09/17/2007 00:00 ||
Comments ||
Link ||
[3 views]
Top|| File under: Iraqi Insurgency
An Iraqi Army patrols vigilance thwarted a suicide bomber in Mosul Saturday, causing him to prematurely detonate his suicide vest.
The Soldiers from 2nd Brigade, 2nd Iraqi Army Division noticed the individual suspiciously approaching their position. They began shouting at the suspect and fired warning shots. The suicide bomber immediately detonated his vest. There were no injuries to civilians or ISF.
In a different operation, acting on a tip from a local Iraqi citizen, Iraqi Army Soldiers and Coalition Forces raided the residence of a suspected improvised explosive device facilitator in the northern Iraq city of Aitha, Sept. 12. Though the target suspect was not at home, the soldiers from 3rd Brigade, 2nd Iraqi Army Division discovered a weapons cache containing 50 lbs. of assorted homemade explosive and artillery propellant, 20 hand grenades, one assault rifle, one machine gun and assorted IED-making materials. Iraqi Security Forces confiscated additional weapons and explosives and seized three fully-loaded black market fuel trucks found at the site.
The ISF are truly leading the way and taking the fight to the enemy here in Nineveh, said Col. Stephen Twitty, commander of the 4th Brigade Combat Team, 1st Cavalry Division. They are continuously reacting to intelligence and executing strikes that have resulted in the capture of a large number of suspected enemy fighters and the removal of large amounts of IED-making materials and supplies from the province. In the past 10 days, ISF and CF have killed eight enemy fighters, captured over 200 suspected enemy fighters, and seized numerous caches of small arms, ammunition, explosives, and IED-making materials in support of Operation Lightning Hammer II, a joint ISF and Coalition effort.
Posted by: Fred ||
09/17/2007 00:00 ||
Comments ||
Link ||
[3 views]
Top|| File under: Iraqi Insurgency
Iraqi Special Operations Forces, with U.S. Special Forces as advisers, killed two insurgents during an operation targeting an extremist company commander Sept. 16 in ad Diwaniyah. As the Iraqi and U.S forces arrived at the target location, the first insurgent brandished a weapon and rushed the team members displaying hostile intent. The assault team immediately suppressed the threat with proportionate and well-aimed fire.
The second assault team observed a second insurgent jumping from roof to roof. When he made a move to retrieve a weapon, the forces responded to the threat and suppressed it using proportionate and well-aimed fire. Insurgents continued to attack the teams with small arms fire and grenades as the teams departed the target location.
Posted by: Fred ||
09/17/2007 00:00 ||
Comments ||
Link ||
[5 views]
Top|| File under: Iraqi Insurgency
Two eastern Baghdad residents were killed and two more wounded in an insurgent rocket attack in the New Baghdad District Sept. 13. One 107mm rocket impacted in an intersection near Forward Operating Base Loyalty, striking a car and engulfing it in flames. Soldiers with the 1st Battalion, 8th Cavalry Regiment, attached to the 2nd Infantry Brigade Combat Team, 2nd Infantry Division, responded to the blast and cordoned off the area. The wounded were transported to Medical City for treatment.
Explosive ordnance detachment Soldiers determined the impact was due to a rocket strike and recovered part of the rocket. Insurgents have regularly targeted Iraqi civilians, soldiers and police officers as well as Coalition Forces. During the month of September, there have been 45 confirmed indirect fire attacks by criminal militia members in Baghdad security districts. Twenty of these attacks occurred in the New Baghdad or East Rashid Districts.
Besides the two civilians killed and wounded in the Sept. 13 attack, 11 Iraqi Police officers have been wounded in four separate attacks this month.
Posted by: Fred ||
09/17/2007 00:00 ||
Comments ||
Link ||
[3 views]
Top|| File under: Iraqi Insurgency
IDF troops prevented a Palestinian terrorist from infiltrating the settlement Shavei Shomron in the West Bank, Israel Radio reported Sunday evening. Soldiers spotted the man trying to enter the settlement and as he realized he was discovered he opened fire on them. No troops were wounded in the exchange of fire that ensued. The army reported that the offender was also apparently unhurt and were conducting searches in the area.
Posted by: Fred ||
09/17/2007 00:00 ||
Comments ||
Link ||
[4 views]
Top|| File under: PLO
Al-Qaida-linked militants and their sympathizers may be using an unlikely weapon to strike at attack helicopters and cut the risk of aerial raids on their jungle strongholds: kites.
A Huey helicopter encountered difficulty while flying back at night from a recent combat mission on the southern island of Jolo after a kite's thick nylon cord became dangerously entwined in its rotor, Philippine air force chief Lt. Gen. Horacio Tolentino said Monday. The pilots had noticed unusual vibrations, and managed to land safely in a Jolo military camp, he said.
An air force officer familiar with the incident told The Associated Press that the kite's cord most probably struck the Vietnam War-era Huey over a sparsely populated mountainous region, from which the aircraft evacuated soldiers wounded during a clash with suspected Abu Sayyaf militants. It was unlikely the kite had been flown by ordinary civilians, the officer said on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to talk to the media.
Several kites may have been flown, then tied to trees surrounding a rebel encampment as an extra buffer against nighttime air attacks, the officer said. "They really have an intention to bring down our helicopters," Tolentino told the AP.
After the incident, Tolentino said he instructed air force pilots to undertake "evasive maneuvers" aimed to protect choppers from kites during landing and takeoff in Jolo, especially at night. Inspectors were deployed to ensure no kites were being flown near air force areas, he said.
Kites' potentially lethal power caught the country's attention last May, when a Huey helicopter crashed on a busy street near an air base in central Cebu province, killing nine people, seven of them on the ground. Investigators said the nylon kite cord, which accidentally got coiled in the assembly connecting the main rotor to the aircraft's body, may have caused the crash.
Tolentino said the air force endorsed a bill to Congress that would penalize people who fly kites near airports and air bases nationwide following that deadly accident.
Posted by: ryuge ||
09/17/2007 07:45 ||
Comments ||
Link ||
[4 views]
Top|| File under: Abu Sayyaf
#1
Where's Charlie Brown's kite-eating tree when you need it?
#5
I saw it posted right here on this forum that the Taliban had outlawed kites. The speculation was that they were too much fun and so they were likely to make the good muzzies forget one or more of their five daily head bangings on the floor of the local mosque.
#7
Wire-strike kits are avialable for most helicopters; basically it is a blade of hardened steel that has a rather sharp edge. mounted on the cabin forward of the rotors and also alongside the fuselage on areas that are potential wire catch points, these blades will sever the wires and allow the a/c to continue flight. If you look at most police and news choppers (example: bell jet rangers) you will see this wire strike blade above the cockpit with the tip leading the base at about a 45 degree angle.
We put such kits on our(HS-14) SH-60s several years ago; do not run your fingers over the blade to clean the dirt off.....
Iran threatened to fire long-range missiles at American targets in the Middle East yesterday as the war of words between Teheran and the West continued to escalate.
A senior commander of the Revolutionary Guard, the largest component of the Islamic republic's armed forces, chose this moment to outline the capability of his country's ballistic missiles.
The Shahab-3 rocket has a range of 1,250 miles, allowing it to strike an array of Western targets across the Middle East.
"Today the Americans are around our country but this does not mean that they are encircling us. They are encircled themselves and are within our range," said Gen Mohammed Hassan Koussechi.
"If the United States is saying that they have identified 2,000 targets in Iran, then what is certain is that it is the Americans who are all around Iran and are equally our targets," he told the official IRNA news agency.
Gen Koussechi added: "We have reached capacities that allow us to hit the enemy at a range of 2,000 kilometres."
A wide array of possible targets faces Iran across the Gulf. Dubai, filled with Western companies, tourists and expatriates, is only 105 miles away.
Iran's armed forces already occupy Abu Musa, an island claimed by the United Arab Emirates, 40 miles from Dubai.
Other potential targets include the oilfields in Saudi Arabia's Eastern province, the headquarters of America's Central Command in Qatar and the main harbour of the US Fifth Fleet in Bahrain. RAF Akrotiri in Cyprus is also in range.
Tension over Iran's nuclear programme is now building. Teheran continues to defy three UN resolutions by enriching uranium, which could produce the essential material for a nuclear bomb.
Later this month, America will probably seek the Security Council's support for a new resolution imposing more sanctions on Iran.
President Nicolas Sarkozy has toughened France's approach towards Teheran, with Bernard Kouchner, his foreign minister, giving warning at the weekend that the world should "prepare for the worst and the worst is war".
Teheran responded yesterday by accusing Mr Sarkozy of being an American stooge.
Iran is enriching uranium using centrifuges. It aims to install 3,000 at the underground nuclear plant in Natanz.
Once it has succeeded and the technical barriers are formidable Iran would need about one year to produce enough weapons-grade uranium for one bomb.
The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) has reached a new agreement with Iran designed to lay to rest any fears that Teheran is developing a nuclear bomb.
But Western diplomats say the IAEA agreement contains one flaw it does not specify that Iran must stop enriching uranium. However, Mohamed ElBaradei, head of the IAEA, said that any talk of war was "hype". He added: "People need to bear with us."
American forces yesterday captured 12 Iraqis who they accuse of smuggling weapons from Iran. The men, who were detained in Baghdad, had prepared and stockpiled an especially lethal variety of roadside bomb, said the US military.
#3
Instead of blustering breast feathers, Iranian mullahs should be trying to negotiate albeit secretly a 'measured defeat' on their part, by the US. The level of Assured Destruction of Iran will be determined by Iran's 'Use It Or Lose It' decision, and whether WMD warheads are loaded on the first or second wave missiles.
Japan bent that knee one day before the third atom bomb would have been dropped, that surrender action saved the nation from total annihilation; whereas Hitler didn't give a s***, and the generals had to plea for surrender to 'save the German people', the last historical mistake of the 'Third Reich'. Eating alittle cheese is better than not eating it at all!
#4
"Today the Americans are around our country but this does not mean that they are encircling us. They are encircled themselves and are within our range," said Gen Mohammed Hassan Koussechi.
Chesty Puller said it better. Then again, he was leading Marines...
#5
RIAN > IAEA > NO GUARANTEES ON IRAN'S NUCLEAR PROGRAM'S CIVILIAN NATURE [hence will tolerate a nuke reactor for Muslim Azerbaijian]; + RUSSIA DENIES SUPPLYING WEAPONS TO IRAQ INSURGENTS
* TARIQ ALI > GWOT:IRAN BENEFITS THE MOST FROM AMERICA'S ACTIONS.
#9
Iraqi scud strikes did little more than put a couple of thousand of Israel residences - some used by Arabs - out of commission for a short time. However, the Iranians might have an advantage in accuracy.
However, there remain professional soldiers in the Iran military who would like to make a move against the Ayatollahs. That would be extremely bloody. The Ayatollahs are unlikely to seek peace, given their martyrdom rites.
The US administration believes that wiping out Shiite leadership in Iran will lead to co-operation with Sunnis in the GWOT. Makes sense.
#10
The mullahs fought Saddam to a bloody stalemeate over eight years. We had him filthy and ragged and in a hidey hole in a matter of weeks. The Iranians know the odds; they're hoping the Western public doesn't.
Posted by: Baba Tutu ||
09/17/2007 22:18 Comments ||
Top||
#11
With the anti-missile weapons we have in place nowdays, it would be a strike from Iran and a butt-whoopen' response from the US.
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 new battalion of Afghan National Army commandos completed its first operation on Friday, capturing a well-known Taliban facilitator and two suspected Taliban extremists, according to a Pentagon announcement. 
(SomaliNet) Local insurgents linked with the ousted Islamic Courts Union launched an ambush attack on the position of the government soldiers at Aden Adde junction in the second street of Bakara market in south of Mogadishu overnight, witnesses said on Sunday as the opposition leaders of the Asmara founded new alliance for liberation Somalia vowed to engage war with the Ethiopian forces in the horn of African nation and what they called its puppet government 
(SomaliNet) Unidentified armed men shot dead the deputy army commander of the Lower Shabelle region in southern Somalia on Sunday. Mohamud Mohamed Siad known as Sanjabil was gunned down this morning as he was in El-jale environ 4km southeast of Marka city, the provincial capital of Lower Shabelle region. 
Police in Quebec have arrested a terrorist suspect on charges of conspiracy to set off bombs in Austria and Germany. He is accused of helping to run a jihadist Web site in Canada and of having links with a cell of al-Qaida propagandists in Vienna. 
Two bombs exploded in quick succession on Saturday night in the Char Bagh area of Swat district, destroying four shops and partially damaging 14. The two blasts totally destroyed a medical store, two audio centres and a barbershop. Militants also fired at a police checkpost in Char Bagh at the time of the explosions. Police returned fire but there were no casualties on either side.
Coalition forces captured a suspected longtime al-Qaeda in Iraq terrorist during an operation Sept. 4 in Tarmiyah.
Iraqi Special Operations Forces, with U.S. Special Forces as advisers, detained a extremist militant company commander and a cell member Sept. 15 during an operation in Ad Diwaniyah. 
Coalition forces killed eight terrorists and detained seven suspected terrorists during operations Sunday targeting al-Qaeda in Iraq's leadership nodes and Baghdad-area operations.
An Iraqi Army patrols vigilance thwarted a suicide bomber in Mosul Saturday, causing him to prematurely detonate his suicide vest. 
