#3
Looks like she just threw something on because of unexpected guests. Good throw, Joan!
Posted by: Richard of Oregon ||
09/16/2008 11:03 Comments ||
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#4
Hey Fred, how about some with Angie Dickinson. Pre-Police Woman, if possible.
Posted by: Scott R ||
09/16/2008 11:19 Comments ||
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#5
I don't have many of her. I'll see what I can find.
Posted by: Fred ||
09/16/2008 13:17 Comments ||
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#6
just so long as it's not Angie Harmon. Way too much of her to date
Posted by: Frank G ||
09/16/2008 13:24 Comments ||
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#7
and Puhhhhhleaze NO RosieAngieMcDonald
/barf
Posted by: Red Dawg ||
09/16/2008 13:35 Comments ||
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#8
One of my early boyhood crushes was the actress Maureen O'Hara. Red hair is one of many things that attracted me to my wife. How about a look, if you've got something, Fred.
Posted by: Old Patriot ||
09/16/2008 14:56 Comments ||
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#9
We'll never [sniff] get Angie [sob] Harmon [wail].
Posted by: Steve White ||
09/16/2008 17:28 Comments ||
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#10
heh
Posted by: Frank G ||
09/16/2008 18:29 Comments ||
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#11
I'll be old and gray before we see an Angie Harmon pic in the D-S.
Aug. 22, 2007, didn't start off well for members of 1st Platoon, Company C. And it only got worse. "I was asleep in my bunk," said Staff Sgt. Erich Phillips, the company's mortar section sergeant. "I woke up to [rocket-propelled grenades] slamming into the side of my building. Then two soldiers ran in and said: 'Sergeant, we're under attack.' "
Phillips, on his fourth deployment to Southwest Asia, had already figured that out.
It was about 5 a.m. and enemy forces were trying to overrun the platoon-size element stationed at the Ranch House, a rudimentary outpost built on a mountain side 7,000 feet above sea level in Nuristan province, Afghanistan. "That was exactly their intention," Phillips said Monday. "We didn't allow them. We fought hard."
Phillips not only fought hard, he was instrumental in keeping one of the perimeter posts from falling into enemy hands, stopping the enemy advance. His actions that day earned him the Distinguished Service Cross, pinned on Monday by Gen. Carter Ham, commander of U.S. Army Europe.
Two dozen U.S. soldiers from 2nd Battalion, 503rd Infantry Regiment fought off a force estimated at about three times their strength that day. Half of the U.S. soldiers were wounded and parts of the compound were breached. But, with the help of A-10 Warthogs, they held out long enough for more air support to arrive and force the enemy to abandon their attack.
Phillips said Monday that all the U.S. soldiers involved in the battle deserved recognition. That's something his company commander, Capt. Matthew Myer, would expect him to say. "He's one of those guys that people rely on," Myer said. "Very humble. But an absolute go-getter in his job."
That job changed several times during the attack. Phillips initially directed fire from the mortar pit, then led its defense -- holding off more than a dozen insurgents who had breached the perimeter with a combination of small-arms fire and grenades. Then he and Sgt. Kyle Dirkinitis, a medic, rushed out to defend an isolated guard post. Phillips halted another enemy advance with more grenades and fire. Dirkinitis -- who would eventually receive the Bronze Star with "V" device -- was then wounded in the chest. Phillips dragged him to safety and directed another soldier to treat his injury while rejoining the fight. Strafing runs by the A-10 and machine-gun and mortar fire by the Chosen Company soldiers forced the enemy to abandon their positions. Phillips then led a team that retook part of the perimeter. He then dragged another wounded soldier from a destroyed guard tower and directed the evacuation of wounded personnel.
Phillips would go on to fight in two more battles that involved elements from his company -- an ambush near Aranus on Nov. 9 that killed five soldiers and a July 13 attack in Wanat that resulted in nine more U.S. deaths.
The 24-year-old from Eastpoint, Fla., said he'll soon be leaving the brigade to head back to the States and join the Rangers, where he'll be an instructor.
Suspected Taliban dragged a schoolteacher out of a mosque in Afghanistan and cut off his ears as a 'punishment' for working for the government, an education official said. The Taliban took another dozen people, most of them elderly men, out of the mosque in the Zabul province and beat them up on similar charges, provincial education chief Muhammad Nabi Khushal said. The men had burst into the mosque while dozens of worshippers were in a late night prayer session Saturday and singled out primary school teacher Bismillah Khan, Khushal said, blaming the Taliban.
Posted by: Fred ||
09/16/2008 00:00 ||
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#1
The one thing that has provided what little stability as has ever existed in this part of the world was respect for elders. Even that is gone now under the pressure of the 'Lord of the Flies' Taliban.
A bombing Monday killed three bodyguards of a district chief, including his son, in an area of Afghanistan at the center of claims that US air strikes killed dozens of civilians last month, the official said. Lal Mohammad Omarzai told AFP the bomb was apparently hidden in a three-wheel motorcycle near the Shindand district center and remotely detonated as his two-vehicle convoy passed. "Three of my bodyguards, one of them my son, were martyred and five others were wounded," said Omarzai, who was not hurt in the attack.
Shindand is the focus of one of the biggest claims of civilian casualties in air strikes since international troops arrived in Afghanistan to remove the extremist Taliban in late 2001. An Afghan investigation and a UN rights team have said more than 90 civilians, many of them women and children, were killed in August 22 strikes called in after international and Afghan troops came under attack. The US military says only five to seven civilians were killed along with 30-35 militants. It has, however, agreed to review its investigation.
Shindand is home to armed rebels, including Taliban, who regularly carry out attacks on officials as part of their campaign against their Western-backed government. Other groups are also involved.
Posted by: Fred ||
09/16/2008 00:00 ||
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A couple of weeks ago, when an Iranian vessel was caught by Somalia pirates, the pirates reported the ship was carrying "arms" of some sort (see here). Now the Iranians react, with their usual delicate touch in Iran denies hijacked vessel claims:
Iran has rejected reports that its vessel hijacked by Somali pirates in the Gulf of Aden was carrying a 'dangerous consignment'.
The pirates were angry because when they opened the cargo of the Iranian ship, several Somalis died, while others lost hair and suffered skin burns, Reuters quoted Andrew Mwangura, of the Kenyan-based East African Seafarers' Assistance Program, as saying. "It must have been a very dangerous chemical," he added, without identifying the substance.
Iran's shipping company, however, said on Monday that the report was a 'sheer lie', adding, "The ship - Iran Diyanat had no dangerous consignment on board." It also dismissed allegations that the ship fetched a $200,000 payment from its owners, saying, "Despite hopeful progress made in talks with the pirates, no ransom has yet been paid to them."
Mwangura claimed that the Iranian ship was supposed to be released, but now the pirates are saying the $200,000 was for facilitation only. "They want more money for the ransom."
"Iran reserves the right to file a lawsuit against Andrew Mwangura at an authorized international court for spreading lies," Iran's shipping company said. It added that all 29 crew members are in good health and that the company is doing its utmost to release the bulk carrier as early as possible.
The ship was carrying 42,500 tons of minerals and industrial products for a German firm at the time it was hijacked in the Gulf of Aden off the Somali coast on August 21.
Posted by: 3dc ||
09/16/2008 14:55 ||
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#1
The pirates were angry because when they opened the cargo of the Iranian ship, several Somalis died, while others lost hair and suffered skin burns...
Oh, those poor pirates. Maybe they can sue the shipping company.
And then Iran's response. "Lies, all lies. No chem weaps were on that ship."
#3
Geraldo wouldn't go near it. Too dangerous. His hair is his life.
Posted by: Richard of Oregon ||
09/16/2008 16:25 Comments ||
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#4
Sounds like Lye, the instant it his water you get fumes as described, Even the water in the air if moist enough (Or a leaky hull)Other chemicals also react violently with Lye, but High school chemestry was forty-some years ago.
Any Chemists out there?
Posted by: Redneck Jim ||
09/16/2008 17:20 Comments ||
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#5
Or Causic Soda?
Posted by: Redneck Jim ||
09/16/2008 17:23 Comments ||
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French commandos stormed a sailboat to free two French tourists who were being held by heavily-armed Somali pirates, President Nicolas Sarkozy has said. One pirate was killed and another six captured in the lightning raid, which lasted 10 minutes. The hostages were unharmed.
With the backing from a French warship stationed nearby, some thirty commandos swooped on the pirates. They received support from Germany and Malaysia, according to the Elysée.
The rescue mission coincided with the news that a Hong Kong-registered chemical tanker has been seized and its 22 crew members taken hostage in the same area.
"France will not allow crime to pay," declared Mr Sarkozy, who dispatched the commando unit after receiving information that the pirates were approaching a highly-protected coastal base, where rescue efforts would have been far riskier.
"This operation is a warning to all those who engage in criminal activity," said the French president, who called for an international effort to protect ships in the pirate-infested Gulf of Aden and surrounding area - reputedly the world's most dangerous. "This is a call for the mobilisation of the international community," he said.
Hijackers captured Jean-Yves Delanne and his wife Bernadette from their 52-foot yacht, the Carré d'As, on September 2. They had reportedly demanded a $1.4 million ransom. Mr Sarkozy confirmed a ransom had been demanded, but gave no further details.
The pirates were intercepted while heading for the coastal base in the town of Eyl, in Somalia's northeastern semi-autonomous Puntland region.
The freed hostages are sailing enthusiasts who live in Tahiti and had been passing through the Gulf of Aden on their way from Australia to the French Atlantic port of La Rochelle when they were seized. Their yacht was escorted back to Djibouti, where France has a military base.
The pirates are on their way to France, where they will join another six captured in a spectacular French land rescue operation earlier this year.
French commandos intervened on April 11 after Somali pirates seized a French luxury yacht, Le Ponant, and its 30 crew, holding them hostage for a week.
Authorities in Puntland welcomed the latest French military operation. "The state of Puntland encourages such steps and calls on other governments whose nationals are being held to do the same thing," said a presidential advisor.
His words came amid efforts to secure the release of several other vessels still in the hands of pirates in the area -- the latest being the Hong-Kong registered chemical tanker. "The incident happened in the maritime security corridor that is patrolled by coalition naval forces," said the head of the International Maritime Bureau Piracy Reporting Centre. "The situation (in the Gulf of Aden) is dangerous. We urge the UN and the international community with naval assets in the region to stop this menace," he said.
Around 50 ships, mainly merchant vessels, have been attacked by pirates off Somalia's 2,300 miles of coastline since the beginning of the year, and dozens have been captured. According to Mr Sarkozy, Somali pirates are currently holding 150 people and at least 15 ships.
A French tuna fishing boat came under rocket attack some 700 kilometres off the Somali coast on Saturday. Pirates are becoming increasingly emboldened and now target boats in an area the size of France off the Somali coast. A pirate mother ship is suspected of operating in the area, sending out small, heavily armed speed boats when it spots a passing vessel.
On Saturday a Japanese-operated oil tanker came under fire, while a Spanish trawler was targeted last week.
In June, the UN Security Council unanimously adopted a resolution authorising foreign warships to enter Somalia's territorial waters with the government's consent. However, at present very few foreign warships patrol the area. European foreign ministers agreed on Monday to set up a special unit to coordinate the anti-piracy effort off Somalia, raising the possibility of a future EU naval mission.
Well, in the old days they would be hung as a warning to other pirates.
Nowdays... dunno. Prisons not full enough?
Personally, I would be for hanging the corpses from trees and left behind a sign on a empty noose written in the local languages saying, "There is always room for more Pirates."
#10
Before President Bush leaves office, he needs to authorize an ARCLIGHT strike on Eyl, especially if McCain is elected President. A few innocents may be killed, but it'll send a message to the entire world that we won't put up with idiocy, whether it's pirates or islamists.
Posted by: Old Patriot ||
09/16/2008 15:01 Comments ||
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A dozen Mauritanian soldiers were killed in an ambush Monday by members of Al-Qaeda's North African branch, a security official said. The unit had been "on a normal patrol on the northern border" when the attack took place 70 kilometers east mining of the town of Zouerat, close to the Moroccan-occupied Western Sahara.
The official did not say whether any of the assailants, described as members of Al-Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb (AQIM), were killed in the attack, the worst of its kind in three years. The remainder of the patrol, which numbered 22 or 23 soldiers, managed to return to base afterward, the official said, adding that reinforcements had been sent to the area.
Last month a statement by AQIM appeared on the Internet condemning the August 6 military coup in Mauritania and urging the Mauritanian people "to prepare for war." The suspected head of Al-Qaeda in Mauritania, Al-Khadim Ould Esseman, also urged the country's Muslims not to recognize the ruling military junta, calling it an "infidel regime."
Monday's ambush came as the African Union's security and peace commissioner, Ramdane Lamamra, was to meet coup leader General Mohammad Ould Abdel-Aziz to try to broker an end to the country's constitutional crisis.
This article starring:
Al-Qaeda in Mauritania
Al-Khadim Ould Esseman
Al-Qaeda in Mauritania
General Mohammad Ould Abdel-Aziz
Posted by: Fred ||
09/16/2008 00:00 ||
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A firebrand Muslim cleric was found guilty Monday of leading a terrorist group after Australia's largest terror trial in which 12 men were accused of plotting attacks on the country. A jury found cleric Abdul Nacer Benbrika guilty on all counts, including being a leader and a member of a Melbourne terrorist cell. It also found five other men guilty of being members of the group.
After a trial lasting more than seven months, a further four suspects were cleared of planning terrorist acts in Melbourne, involving the detonation of an explosive or use of weapons. The jury was unable to deliver verdicts on two other men.
Benbrika showed no emotion as the jury delivered a guilty verdict on charges of intentionally directing the activities of a terrorist organization and of being a member of a terrorist organization.
The jury heard that Benbrika, 48, urged his followers to target football matches or a train station and kill 1,000 people to make Australia withdraw soldiers from the conflicts in Iraq and Afghanistan. He had told his followers it was "permissible to kill women, children and the aged," prosecutors had told the panel.
Benbrika had suggested, during taped telephone calls, a bombing where the maximum loss of life could be inflicted, prosecutor Richard Maidment told the trial.
Maidment had said the case was about "a home-grown terrorist organization" and that Benbrika had urged the group to do "something big" to pressure the Australian government to pull its troops out of Iraq and Afghanistan. The prosecutor also said material, including literature on how to make bombs and video tapes with messages from Osama Bin Laden, were seized from the group by police. Much of this material is freely available online.
But defense lawyers argued the men were not terrorists, but young men learning about Islam from a self-styled sheikh who "couldn't organize a booze-up in a brewery."
Benbrika's defense lawyer, Remy Ven de Wiel, told the court Benbrika was a braggart and did nothing more than talk about jihad. "The Muslims in Australia have a sense of powerlessness and political impotence and they express themselves," Van de Wiel had told the jury.
"They just blow stuff up to express their impotence!"
This article starring:
Abdul Nacer Benbrika
Posted by: Fred ||
09/16/2008 00:00 ||
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#1
Coat them in molasses, roll on bread crums, sprinkle with chum and pig guts, and set them overboard off the reefs. Sharks have to eat too, ya know.
A suspected Syrian terrorist who has spent seven years in mostly segregated custody in Canada is claiming that his indefinite detention without charge or trial amounts to cruelty, his lawyer said on Sunday. In a challenge filed in the Federal Court on Friday, Hassan Almrei argued that his lengthy incarceration violated his constitutional rights, Toronto lawyer Lorne Waldman told The Canadian Press. "It's been seven years and we're saying it's unconstitutional," said Waldman, speaking from Argentina. "It's cruel and inhumane treatment."
Posted by: Fred ||
09/16/2008 00:00 ||
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#1
The lawyer from Toronto is in Argentina while his client is in Canada.
That Toronto lawyer must REALLY be terrified of the Conservatives winning the election!
His client is slowly going mad by realizing that it's all "The Will of Allan".
(ISLAMABAD, Pakistan) Pakistan's military has ordered its forces to open fire if U.S. troops launch another air or ground raid across the Afghan border, an army spokesman said Tuesday. The orders, which come in response to a highly unusual Sept. 3 ground attack by U.S. commandos, are certain to heighten tensions between Washington and a key ally against terrorism.
Although the ground attack was rare, there have been repeated reports of U.S. drone aircraft striking militant targets, most recently on Sept. 12.
Pakistani officials warn that stepped-up cross-border raids will accomplish little while fueling violent religious extremism in nuclear-armed Pakistan. Some complain that the country is a scapegoat for the failure to stabilize Afghanistan.
Pakistan's civilian leaders, who have taken a hard line against Islamic militants since forcing Pervez Musharraf to resign as president last month, have insisted that Pakistan must resolve the dispute with Washington through diplomatic channels.
In Washington, a Pentagon spokesman said Pakistan would "correct the record" on the latest statement. "We enjoy good cooperation with Pakistan along the border," said the spokesman, Bryan Whitman. "Pakistan is an ally in the global war on terror."
However, army spokesman Maj. Gen. Athar Abbas told The Associated Press that after U.S. helicopters ferried troops into a militant stronghold in the South Waziristan tribal region, the military told field commanders to prevent any similar raids. "The orders are clear," Abbas said in an interview. "In case it happens again in this form, that there is a very significant detection, which is very definite, no ambiguity, across the border, on ground or in the air: open fire."
U.S. military commanders accuse Islamabad of doing too little to prevent the Taliban and other militant groups from recruiting, training and resupplying in Pakistan's wild tribal belt.
Pakistan acknowledges the presence of al-Qaida fugitives and its difficulties in preventing militants from seeping through the mountainous border into Afghanistan. However, it insists it is doing what it can and paying a heavy price, pointing to its deployment of more then 100,000 troops in its increasingly restive northwest and a wave of suicide bombings across the country.
After talks Tuesday with British officials in London, Pakistani President Asif Ali Zardari said he did not "think there will be any more" cross-border raids by the U.S. He declined to comment on the order to use lethal force against American troops. Instead, he and British Prime Minister Gordon Brown issued a joint statement saying Afghanistan and Pakistan should lead the efforts to battle border militancy. The joint statement left out any mention of the United States.
American officials have confirmed their forces carried out the Sept. 3 raid near the town of Angoor Ada but given few details of what happened. Abbas said that Pakistan's military had asked for an explanation but received only a "half-page" of "very vague" information that failed to identify the intended target.
Pakistani officials have said the raid killed about 15 people, and Abbas said they all appeared to be civilians. "These were truck drivers, local traders and their families," he said.
How to reverse a surge in Taliban violence in Afghanistan has become a major issue in the U.S. presidential campaign and refocused attention on the porous border with Pakistan.
Pakistan's military has won American praise for a six-week offensive against militants in the Bajur tribal region that officials here say has killed 700 suspected insurgents and about 40 troops. Troops backed by warplanes killed eight more alleged militants Tuesday, officials said.
In the same timeframe, there has been a surge in missile strikes apparently carried out by unmanned U.S. drones. Such attacks killed at least two senior al-Qaida commanders earlier this year.
Abbas did not say when exactly the orders for Pakistani troops to open fire to prevent cross-border raids by U.S. troops were issued. He wouldn't discuss whether Gen. Ashfaq Parvez Kayani, who replaced Musharraf as army chief last year, personally took the decision or if the orders had been discussed with American officials. The spokesman also played down suggestions that the instructions had been put into practice before dawn on Monday, when U.S. helicopters reportedly landed near Angoor Ada only to fly away after troops fired warning shots.
Abbas insisted no foreign troops had crossed the border and that "trigger-happy tribesmen" had fired the shots. Pakistani troops based nearby fired flares to see what was going on, he said. The U.S. military in Afghanistan said none of its troops were involved.
Posted by: john frum ||
09/16/2008 17:34 ||
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#2
on Brit Hume's show: Adm Mullen is traveling to Pakland after the Baghdad turnover. The Paks are now, you guessed it, backing down from these claims. They say the AP quoted the Pak General "out of context". Heh. More likely, Mullen wants to give him the rundown of the consequences of such an action and the blowhards backed down
Posted by: Frank G ||
09/16/2008 18:40 Comments ||
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#4
It still amounts to the same situation as if the DEA and the FBI both raid a drug house at the same time. While they may argue over who is in charge, the drug house is still going to be out of business.
That is, the US and Pakistan may shoot in each other's direction, but the Taliban and al-Qaeda will be in the middle of the gunfight.
#5
Moose? Why would the ISI authorize strikes on their own tool?
Posted by: Frank G ||
09/16/2008 20:35 Comments ||
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#6
HMMMM, HMMMMM, this is interesting - PAKISTAN's GOVT in Islamabad must be aware by now that RUSSIA COVERTLY FEARS ISLAMIST NUCLEARIZATION AND ISLAMIST-INDUCED NEW BREAKUP OF RUSS AND RELATED TRANS-REGIONAL DESTABILIZATIONS [China, India, etc], and that RUSS WANTS TO SET UP A RAPID REACTION CENTRAL ASIAN/CAUCASIA MIL SECURITY ALLIANCE-ORG WID ITS FORMER CENTRAL ASIA SSRS [Kazakh, Uzbeks, Taijiks, etc.] AS PER SCO-CSTO, indicative as per Russ latent fears of its own anti-US Muslim-Islamist Allies [IRAN]. Pakistan also has its MilPol ties wid CHINA + NORTH KOREA.
IMO PAKISTAN may be trying to redo GEORGIA CONFLICT except vv CHINA, NOT RUSSIA > Iff so, the question then becoms WILL NUCLEAR CHINA, FACING ITS OWN INTERNAL MUSLIM/ISLAMIST THREAT, OVERTLY OR COVERTLY DESIRE AND TOLERATE A FORMAL = PERMAN US-NATO/EU MIL PRESENCE IN SOUTH-/SW ASIA [+ JAPAN + SOKOR, etal US Allies]???
TSARIST/KIEVAN RUSSIA, the post-1917 Revol + Cold War USSR, + now post-COLD WAR/USSR RUSSIA had all contin to proclaim their historical EURO-CENTRICITY > CHINA, on the other hand, DOES NOT. CHINA WILL INTERPRETE A FORMAL = PERMAN US-NATO/EU MIL PRESENCE IN PAKISTAN = SOUTH ASIA AS A DE FACTO THREAT TO ITS INTERESTS.
#7
ION IRNA > INDIAN PREZ: TRANS-BORDER INTERVENTIONS FUELED THREAT OF TERRORISM [ + LEFT-WING EXTREMISM + INSURGENCY/MILITANCY/
NAXALITE RADICALISM, etc]. THE DANGEROUS NEAR-TERM CHALLENGES FACING CONTEMPOR INDIA, espec as per Sovereignty, National Integrity, and Identity.
The Pentagon and the Pakistani military have denied a pair of reports that emerged September 15 that said Pakistan had repelled US air incursions. Even before the reports, tensions have been on the rise between Washington and Islamabad, creating the potential for military encounters in the air over the Afghan-Pakistani border region, reports Stratfor.com.
Pakistani sources told a foreign news agency on Sept 15 that US helicopters were fired upon by Pakistani troops near Angoor Adda in South Waziristan, and turned back while attempting to cross the border under the cover of darkness. The same day the Pakistani media reported that Pakistani fighter jets had scrambled and intercepted a US 'spy plane' (this could have been an unmanned aerial vehicle) in or near North Waziristan that then returned to Afghanistan.
Regardless of the truth to these now-denied claims, the chance that rising tensions between Washington and Islamabad may manifest themselves in the form of military encounters in the air above the Afghan-Pakistani border region is indeed cause for concern.
Islamabad is trapped between the need to get control over its own jihadist uprising and the need to show its domestic population that it is standing up to increasingly overt unilateral US military action inside its territory. Opposing the primary vector of these actions - unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs), fighter jets and helicopters - is one way Pakistan can attempt to push back against the United States and demonstrate its resolve to both Washington and its own people, whether it chooses to do so overtly or through proxies.
The nature of US intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance (ISR) and special operations forces operations in Pakistan makes it difficult to effectively defend against, however. Constant monitoring by UAVs, bombings by aircraft from along the border and lightning late-night raids across the border in high terrain present a number of defensive challenges in an area where Islamabad already struggles to enforce its writ.
The Pakistani military is unlikely to bring its heaviest air defence hardware to bear in any bid to deter such incursions. Already fairly weakly equipped, these forces must remain largely dedicated to defences focused on India. Given the terrain, Pakistans heavier air defence assets would also be difficult to bring to bear beyond very isolated point-defence roles. And given their short supply, the Pakistani military would likely be hesitant to put these defences at undo risk of being destroyed.
More dispersed efforts using gunfire (Pakistan does retain anti-aircraft artillery) and Man-Portable Air Defence Systems (MANPADS) would be problematic as well. Using this sort of defence effectively would require a comprehensive deployment along the border, something Pakistani forces probably do not have the bandwidth for at this time. Even if it did, this picket would still be very limited in capability given the limitations of both older MANPADS, anti-aircraft artillery and crude sensors in the rough terrain.
Though it could help with challenging the United States while maintaining deniability, the idea of dispersing MANPADS to proxies is also problematic. So much has been done since 9/11 to secure these stockpiles in places like Pakistan that even Islamabad might hesitate to do so - especially to third parties they do not control, since there would be the risk that MANPADS could be used to bring down a civilian airliner, and that Islamabad could be found out as the source of the weapon.
Instead, Pakistan could now be running combat air patrols with its F-16s over the Federally Administered Tribal Areas (FATA) if there is any truth at all to the news report. Pakistan has yet to secure a deal with the United States to buy new Block 50/52 F-16s, so its patrols are being run by F-16s still operating with the AN/APG-66 radar from the much older Block 15 configuration.
They are not ideal, and they are certainly unable to hold up against US. and NATO patrols, but they are better positioned to spot inbound helicopters and ISR flights and give them a scare. In most cases (except when supporting troops already on the ground in Pakistan), the US abort criteria will likely generally be set low, since the United States is not interested in losing aircraft inside Pakistan.
But Islamabad is not interested in losing aircraft, either. Already facing a hostile US Congress over the delivery of the newer F-16s the Pakistani air force wants, Pakistan cannot risk losing the F-16s it does have. This is not simply because deteriorating relations with Washington have, in the past, cut off Islamabads F-16s from outside support, but because of a profound military disadvantage against India. New Delhi continues to field new Su-30MKI Flankers, which even the newer F-16s might have difficulty handling.
The obvious caveat here is that shooting down a manned US aircraft - intentionally and directly or at the hands of a proxy - is an enormous line to cross for Islamabad. Right now, it is simply important for Pakistan to demonstrate to its domestic audience a commitment to defending its own borders, while at the same time showing resolve to Washington as the Pentagon formulates a new strategy for Afghanistan.
Things would likely have to escalate significantly for Islamabad to consider truly working to bring down US aircraft. But while their options in terms of air defence along the border are extremely limited, Pakistan continues to hold the logistical keys to US and NATO operations in Afghanistan - an extremely strong lever in the search for some sort of accommodation.
Posted by: john frum ||
09/16/2008 17:25 ||
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#1
standing up to increasingly overt unilateral US military action inside its territory.
I contend it is not really Pakistani territory anymore; they have ceded control to Taliban & AQ. If they have enough force to contest the US over the territory they have more than enough force to contest the Taliban for it. So, either this is all just hot air for political purposes (most likely) or the Taliban has dominant position in Pakistani government (not quite yet, I think.)
Tehrik e Taliban Swat (TTS) has released 25 out of 38 Pakistani security forces earlier abducted in the Swat Valley, northwest Pakistan.
"The release of the abductees was made possible through the efforts of the local Jirga with the leadership of local Taliban," a military spokesman said Monday adding that the released were Frontier Constabulary and police personnel.
Recently elders in the area and government officials held talks to find a solution to end fighting in the Swat Valley, the military official said, confirming the death of two soldiers by the militants. "Two security personnel were slaughtered while in custody and later their bodies were handed over to relatives."
The abducted personnel surrendered on July 30, when nearly 500 Taliban militants stormed the Dewlai Police Post in Orakzai district in Kabal area of the Swat Valley in North West Frontier Province.
Meanwhile, Muslim Khan, a Taliban spokesman told reporters that the decision to release the abducted soldiers was made in a Taliban's Shurrah [council] meeting which was held in an undisclosed location.
Posted by: Fred ||
09/16/2008 00:00 ||
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Security forces arrested a Taliban commander in Mohmand Agency on Monday, officials and locals told Daily Times. Abdul Rashid was arrested at the Ghalani checkpost in Halimzai tehisl. His father confirmed his arrest. Officials said he had been taken to an undisclosed location for questioning. Also in the agency, a civilian truck carrying supplies for a Frontier Constabulary (FC) camp in Mohmand went missing, officials said. Terrorists ransacked a CD market in Shabqadar tehsil of Charsadda on Monday and warned shopkeepers to end their businesses or face consequence. Policemen deployed yards away did not intervene, witnesses said.
Posted by: Fred ||
09/16/2008 00:00 ||
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Four Indian security personnel were killed in a gunbattle with heavily armed militants in Indian-held Kashmir, an army spokesman said on Monday. He said the fighting broke out late on Sunday when Indian soldiers, backed by counter-insurgency police, surrounded a forest where militants were present. "The militants opened fire on the approaching security personnel, killing two soldiers and two policemen," said the spokesman, adding that the troops had then retaliated.
Three militants, including a senior commander of Hizbul Mujahideen, were also killed in two separate gunbattles with soldiers, said police sources.
Posted by: Fred ||
09/16/2008 00:00 ||
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QUETTA: Law enforcement agencies claimed late on Monday to have detained three suspected terrorists and recovered 1,000 kilogrammes of explosives in a raid on a Baloch settlement in the outskirts of the provincial capital.
According to government sources, a joint raid was conducted in New Kahan locality in Quetta, which is populated by the Marri Baloch tribesmen. During the raid, three suspected terrorists allegedly opened fire on the forces, which continued for an hour. The law enforcement agencies managed to overpower the three terrorists and took them into custody. The officials said they had also seized around 1,000 kg of explosives from a vehicle parked in the area.
Pakistan Army: An Anjuman Ittehad-e-Marri spokesman told Daily Times that the raid had been carried out by the Pakistan Army rather than the Frontier Corps, the Anti-Terrorist Force or the local police. "A contingent of 60 trucks and official vehicles came and began a door-to-door search operation," said an eyewitness.
According to a Marri tribesman, the forces had arrested 25 people. Eight of them had been injured, he claimed. Those arrested also included eight girls, he said.
"Such raids are meant to defame the Baloch National Movement and paint it as a terrorist movement. The government functionaries themselves brought the explosives and showed to the world that they had been recovered from the possession of the Baloch tribesmen who do not even have access to clean drinking water and basic amenities of life," said the spokesman. He said the raid would tremendously undermine the Pakistan People's Party government's credibility in the province.
The raid was strongly condemned by the Baloch Student Organisation (BSO). Activists from the BSO staged a protest in front of the University of Balochistan, saying a formal province-wide protest would be observed on Tuesday (today).
New Kahan is a settlement of the Marri tribesmen who had gone along with their tribal chief Nawab Khair Baksh Marri to Afghanistan in the 1980s. On their return from Afghanistan, they were provided shelter in New Kahan where they live amid scant civic amenities.
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09/16/2008 00:00 ||
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The National Crisis Management Cell has warned against nationwide suicide attacks, Daily Times learnt on Monday.
A source privy to the matter said the Interior Ministry has warned the provincial authorities against suicide attacks in major cities including Karachi, Lahore, Peshawar and Islamabad. The source disclosed that Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) chief Baitullah Mehsud has planned to carry out suicide attacks throughout the country, and had dispatched five suicide bombers for this purpose.
A letter received by the Home Department quoted intelligence agencies as reporting that five suicide bombers hailing from Swat, aged 25 to 27, had left from the Pimgada bus stand to different parts of the country. The letter warned that the bombers would target government offices, sensitive installations and the personnel of law enforcement agencies. The Interior Ministry has directed the authorities concerned to make all necessary arrangements to prevent any untoward incident.
Posted by: Fred ||
09/16/2008 00:00 ||
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Troops have been deployed in trenches vacated by warring tribes in the Kurram Agency, political authorities said on Monday. "Strict action will be taken against any tribe violating the ceasefire," Political Agent Muhammad Azam Khan told reporters, adding that security forces were being deployed in Balaskhel, Sadda, Sangeena, Bagazai, Alizai and other restive areas. He said clashes between the tribes in Karman and Lower Kurram had ended.
Posted by: Fred ||
09/16/2008 00:00 ||
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Helicopter gunships and fighter jets killed 24 Taliban in raids on their hideouts in Bajaur Agency on Monday, officials said.
Several Taliban strongholds were destroyed in attacks on bunkers in Loyesam, Tang Khata, Rashakai, Tandar Gat, Kirala, Bai Cheena, Tangai and Khazana, officials said. Security forces patrolled Loy Khwar, Tangi, Kotkai and Charmang but did not make ground advances. Curfew was relaxed in parts of the agency earlier in the day and shops and markets were open until afternoon.
In a statement late on Sunday, the military said ground forces secured several areas and were advancing toward Loyesam, located on a key road leading southwards to Peshawar. Official Iqbal Khattak told AP that troops were also trying to secure Nawagai, another strategic town on a main road.
Casualty figures and details of the operation are difficult to confirm independently because of the region's remote and dangerous nature.
Posted by: Fred ||
09/16/2008 00:00 ||
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#1
What does the number 24 in BasePakistan translate to in Base10? I seem to have some trouble with the math between number systems. 30 in Base10 seems to become about negative 90 in BasePakistan: what other control points do we have for the translation?
#2
The confusion is understandable since Pakistanis deal in imaginary numbers.
Posted by: ed ||
09/16/2008 9:20 Comments ||
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#3
ed---you are giving too much credit to the Paks. They do not understand that the square root of -1 is defined by i.
Without this prerequisite, they have no business with imaginary numbers. They can deal in creative numbers, but NO IMAGINARY NUMBERS FORRR YUUUU.
[*wags index finger*]
Posted by: Alaska Paul in Tok, AK ||
09/16/2008 21:45 Comments ||
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BAGHDAD - Gen. David Petraeus, whose strategy for countering the Iraq insurgency is credited by many with rescuing the country from all-out civil war, stepped aside Tuesday as Gen. Ray Odierno took over as the top American commander of the conflict. At a traditional change-of-command ceremony attended by top Iraqi and American military and civilian officials, said Odierno's skills and experience make him "the perfect man for the job."
With Defense Secretary Robert Gates presiding at the ceremony in a cavernous rotunda of a former Saddam Hussein palace outside Baghdad, Petraeus handed over the flag of his command, known as Multi-National Force Iraq, to Odierno and then bade farewell.
Petraeus said the insurgents and militia extremists who have created such chaos in Iraq over the past five years are now weakened but not yet fully defeated. He noted that before he took the assignment in February 2007 he had described the situation as "hard but not hopeless." He thanked his troops for having "turned 'hard but not hopeless' into still hard but hopeful".
Because of Odierno's extensive previous experience in Iraq, he is generally expected to be able to continue building on the gains made under Petraeus' command, although an evolving set of difficult challenges face him here and in Washington, where he will soon have a new commander in chief.
A major part of Odierno's job will involve working with Iraqi political leaders, in tandem with U.S. Ambassador Ryan Crocker. In that role Odierno may call on his experiences in 2004-05 as assistant to the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, when he was the Pentagon's liaison to Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice and traveled abroad with her frequently.
Odierno commanded the 4th Infantry Division during the opening months of the war in 2003. He returned in December 2006, at perhaps the darkest hour for the American-led enterprise, to be the No. 2 commander under Petraeus. He finished that tour in February 2008. When he arrived in Baghdad on Saturday, Odierno recalled after accepting the handover from Petraeus, "I felt like I had never left, but I also felt like I was coming back to my second home."
Also addressing the ceremony was Adm. Mike Mullen, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, who said Iraq had become a "vastly different place" during Petraeus' tenure. "In more places and on more faces we see hope," Mullen said.
Gates recalled the perils faced by Petraeus in February 2007. "Darkness had descended on this land," Gates said. "Merchants of chaos were gaining strength. Death was commonplace," and people around the world were wondering whether any Iraq strategy would work. Slowly, but inexorably, the tide began to turn," Gates said. "Our enemies took a fearsome beating they will not soon forget. Fortified by our own people and renewed commitment, the soldiers of Iraq found new courage and confidence. And the people of Iraq, resilient and emboldened, rose up to take back their country."
Injecting a bit of humor, Gates made note of what he called "one other historical achievement" for the new command team of Odierno and Lt. Gen. Lloyd Austin, who replaced Odierno in February as the No. 2 commander and will remain until next spring. "Between Gen. Odierno and Lt. Gen. Austin we just might have the tallest command in American military history about 13 feet of general by my estimate," Gates said. Each of the generals is nearly 6 feet 6 inches tall.
Odierno told the gathering that while much remains for the U.S. military to accomplish here, the Iraqis must take charge. "This struggle is theirs to win," he said.
Petraeus' next assignment will be as commander of U.S. Central Command, with broader responsibilities. From his headquarters in Tampa, Fla., he will oversee U.S. military involvement across the Middle East, including Iraq, as well as Afghanistan, Pakistan and other Central Asian nations. He takes up that post in late October.
#10
For a short time, he will be in the cat-bird's seat. The big question is where does he go from here? He will probably be very quiet until election day. But after that decision, he will write his own destiny.
#11
If he's smart, he'll find a way to declare victory and withdraw. We've done all the good we can in Afghanistan. It is of no strategic value to us at all as far as I can see, and its cost is well in excess of whatever value can be imagined.
#12
They make Odierno sound more like a politician than a soldier. Dunno if that's true or fair or not. But if it is we certainly have Petraeus to thank for creating the kind of environment where the skills of a politician are more in demand that those of a soldier.
#13
Odierno sound more like a politician than a soldier
By the time you get above Colonel you have to be more like a politician than a soldier. Just like in big business general managers and VPs are more politicians than anything else.
#14
crap, I'm an engineering Project Manager (for a while longer) in a major municipality, and I have been more politician than engineer in the last year. Another reason I'm grinning from ear-to-ear with the change....
Posted by: Frank G ||
09/16/2008 20:07 Comments ||
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#15
And, w/r/t Commodore Frank, he is responsible for some major bridges in his town, and NONE of them go to Nowhere. They all go to Somewhere.
I am a civil engineer, and I support this message.
Posted by: Alaska Paul in Tok, AK ||
09/16/2008 21:48 Comments ||
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#16
heh, thx AP
Posted by: Frank G ||
09/16/2008 22:19 Comments ||
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MOSUL, Iraq - The sign was ominous, the humor dark. Iraqis who live in the neighborhood had suddenly vanished, often an indication that an attack is imminent.
"No way is anything going to happen," joked Staff Sgt. Angel Perez, a Humvee commander, as he watched an Iraqi police convoy drive near the outpost of the platoon from the 3rd Armored Cavalry Regiment. "That convoy is definitely not going to get hit," he said.
Seconds later, a roadside bomb detonated just ahead of the convoy. Nobody was hurt, but the explosion shook the walls of the barracks and sent the men running for weapons and roaring out of the gate in Humvees.
Although security in Iraq has improved, it remains fragile, Lt. Gen. Lloyd Austin, the No. 2 U.S. commander in Iraq, told reporters in the capital Monday.
And nowhere is the fragility more apparent than here in Mosul, 225 miles northwest of Baghdad. Sunni Arab insurgents, routed or weakened in Baghdad and other urban centers since last year, are making a stand in this former bastion of support for Saddam Hussein.
"Since the start of Ramadan, it's been crazy. We've been mortared, we've had fire come at the guard towers, we've had IEDs," said Spc. Erich Hellwig. The 20 soldiers in Hellwig's unit occupy Outpost Rabiy, a converted salvage yard in a western neighborhood shattered by fighting.
"It's getting to the point where people are leaving their boots on when they sleep. You get worried that someone would come in and take out our gate," said Hellwig, who survived an ambush of his convoy last week. In that attack, a rocket-propelled grenade exploded near a U.S. military vehicle, kicking up a cloud of dust but inflicting no casualties.
Hellwig's company recorded 15 attacks, including car bombs, roadside bombs and rocket-propelled grenades, in the week before Ramadan started on Sept. 1 in the large area of western Mosul that it patrols. Attacks in the first six days of Ramadan nearly tripled to 42, the unit's figures show. The unit did not suffer any casualties during that time.
After the attack on the Iraqi police convoy, Perez and his comrades searched through ruined buildings for the bomb's triggerman. They found only civilians who claimed they did not see or hear anything unusual.
As the American vehicles departed, an insurgent in an abandoned building fired a grenade that hissed through the air and exploded behind the last Humvee. Turret gunners returned fire, but a search afterward turned up only bullet-pocked walls.
A day earlier, the unit responded to a suicide truck bombing of an Iraqi army convoy near the outpost. That attack killed the driver of a truck carrying fuel drums and an Iraqi soldier, and wounded another five soldiers. Assailants who had waited for the blast opened fire on the Americans before fleeing the area.
"Honestly, I don't know who we are fighting," said Staff Sgt. Tim Carter, who has survived six roadside bomb attacks. "If I see them placing a roadside bomb or firing at us, then that's who we are fighting, but otherwise there is no way to tell if he is a civilian or al-Qaida. Here, a kid can run up to shake your hand and then later throw a grenade at you."
U.S. soldiers at the outpost said some of their attackers had been as young as 11, armed with grenades or firebombs. Carter said his unit had not killed any children.
Senior U.S. commanders see their small combat outposts scattered around Mosul as the centerpiece of a strategy designed to reduce insurgent violence by having troops live within the community and gather better intelligence. Platoons rotate into the outposts on stints of several days from a large base at the city's airport.
Adrenaline flows during attacks, but life on the Rabiy outpost is also laden with unease and boredom.
The soldiers search for weapons caches, discovering one in the foundations of a half-built mosque a few blocks from the outpost. They wait for nearby mosques to begin a call to prayer over loudspeakers after nightfall, often a prelude to volleys of gunfire aimed at the outpost or other targets in what U.S. soldiers euphemistically describe as "contact."
"I think the (American) people think the war is over," Carter said. "But they don't realize the amount of contact that we receive out here."
#1
Interesting. This is more news than I've seen in a while about Mosul. I thought it was more pacified than this article indicates. Seems like there is still work to do. Be safe brave men, and smite those who would do you and their countrymen harm.
#4
This is more news than I've seen in a while about Mosul. I thought it was more pacified than this article indicates. Seems like there is still work to do.
Just recently finished Michael Yon's Moment of Truth in Iraq (strongly recommended, BTW), and he closed by pointing out that Mosul was still not clean due to several factors - not least that it had not been "surged" by our guys (my words, his ideas), and that it would mostly be an Iraqi job to clean it out completely.
(AKI) - Three people have been killed and 10 others injured after two car bomb explosions in central Baghdad on Monday.
"Two car bombs detonated consecutively near the Personal Status Court in al-Karada area, downtown Baghdad, killing three civilians and wounding 10 others," said a police source, quoted by Iraqi news agency Voices of Iraq.
The blasts took place as United States Defense Secretary Robert Gates arrived in Baghdad on a surprise visit where he is scheduled to meet senior Iraqi officials, including Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki.
Posted by: Fred ||
09/16/2008 00:00 ||
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A bomber has blown herself up in a crowd of people in the Iraqi province of Diyala, killing at least 20 people and wounding around 30 others.
The female bomber detonated her explosive device in a crowd of people during a feast in the town of Bala Druz, south of the provincial capital Baquba, General Abdel Karim al-Rubaie, the Commander of Iraqi troops in Diyala told AFP.
The attack was allegedly aimed at the house of a former detainee who was released from the US military prison Camp Bucca on Sunday. Baquba police Lieutenant Ali Ahmed also confirmed the attack.
Posted by: Fred ||
09/16/2008 00:00 ||
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Them Dogmushes is gettin a little too cocky. Time to show them who's boss...
Hamas forces assaulted the compound of a heavily armed Gaza clan early Tuesday, sparking a fierce street battle that killed 11 people in fighting throughout the night, Hamas officials said. Two bystanders, including a young boy, were among the dead. Dogmushes! Drop ya rods and c'mon out!
Come n get us coppers!
Okay, Al-Muldoon. Give em the gas.
BAMBAMBAMBAMBAMBAM....
Machine-gun fire and explosions were heard around the Gaza City neighborhood home to the Doghmush clan, a notorious family with links to both terror and criminal groups. Members of the clan were responsible for kidnapping a British Broadcasting Corp. journalist last year.
Since violently taking over Gaza last year, Hamas has moved to establish order in Gaza's once-chaotic streets and eliminate groups who could threaten its rule. Eleven people died in early August in a clash between Hamas forces and another clan aligned with its Fatah rivals. Any killin to be done around here, we'll do it.
Hamas launched the assault shortly after midnight, hours after a member of the Doghmush clan killed a policeman while resisting police. The fighting erupted after the clan refused to turn the man over, said Interior Ministry spokesman Ihab Ghussen, and continued for about nine hours. Give him up, ya dirty rats!
Eat lead coppers!
BAMBAMBAMBAMBAMBAMBAMBAM...
Eight members of the family and one policeman were killed in the fighting, along with the two bystanders, he said. The age of the boy was not immediately known. Forty people were wounded, he added. Look how dey massacred my boy!
No immediate confirmation was available from the Doghmush clan. Earlier, the family posted an announcement on a Gaza Web site saying several of its members were hurt. They got a website? Will have to try and find that.
"Explosions and shooting are coming from all directions. The sky is raining bullets, and my children are terrified and they are screaming," one local resident said as the fighting raged. A 55-year-old father of five, he gave his name only as Ziad because he did not want to draw the attention of the clan or of the authorities. Except for the occcasional intense firefights, they were very quiet people. Please don't kill me.
The battle raged outside the house of a senior Hamas leader, Mahmoud Zahar, who lives in the same neighborhood. Watch where you're shooting there flatfoot. Do you know who I am?
The fiercely independent and widely feared Doghmush clan includes members close to Hamas's Fatah opponents, as well as members of Islamic militias that have been allied with Hamas. Maybe next time they could just shoot each other?
Those gunmen took part in the capture of Israeli soldier Gilad Schalit in a cross-border raid in 2006 and others who seized BBC journalist Alan Johnston and held him for nearly four months last year. Independent contractors, if you will...
#1
Last year PBS chose to commemorate the anniversary of 9/11 by re-airing "Gaza ER", a shameless Pallywood flackery piece perfectly produced to elicit sympathy for the Oppressed Paleos and loathing for the Zionists. I watched with blood boiling but must admit a certain amount of merriment during the scene where the Gaza hospital director is cowering on the floor of his office, avoiding the window and desperately making phone calls while a mob of raging Dogmush clansmen is howling for his head and Dire Revenge⢠from the parking lot below.
#2
GazaMaanTwelve people, including a police officer and a young girl, were killed in clashes between de facto government security forces and members of the Dughmush clan in Gaza on Tuesday morning. Sources from police department confirmed that Jamil, Ibrahim and Saeb Doghmush were killed during the raid.
Eyewitnesses said that they saw body of a few months year old girl in Ash-Shifa hospital in Gaza who appeared to have lost her head. She is said to be daughter of Abu Al-Qassem Doghmush, the leader of the An-Nasser Brigades, and armed group close to Hamas.
Fatah spokesperson Fahmi Az-Zaarir condemned what he called a massacre by Hamas forces against the Dughmush family. He said in a statement: These shameful practices of Hamas in the holy month of Ramadan are definite proof that Hamas lost all humanitarian and religious values.
Another Fatah leader, Ziad Abu 'Ein, accused Hamas of war crimes. Urging Arab states to intevene, 'Ein called the de-facto police "gangs," and said Hamas is "willing to make truces with Israel--but not with its own people."
#4
On Monday, Jameel Doghmush killed a Hamas policeman and wounded another officer when they tried to arrest him near a market in Gaza city. The slain, Abdel Kareem Abu Khziq, is Hamas' 12th member to be killed by Doghmush family since Hamas won parliamentary elections in 2006. The 13th one was killed later this morning during the clashes to dismantle the clan's stronghold.
Though it took less than 12 hours, the battle to take control of Doghmush family was tense and Hamas succeeded to kill Jameel Doghmush who is accused of killing another Hamas police officer last June.
Dont Cry for Dead Bad Guys. Dont be fooled by their impressive name -- the Army of Islam. These members of the Dagmush clan spread fear in Gaza through their extortions and kidnappings. (Israeli Corporal Gilad Shalit still in Gaza captivityand BBCs Alan Johnston passed through their grimy hands.) A Palestinian friend recalled that when a Dagmush kid tried to steal a bike from the neighborhood and was chased off, the kid came back with his scary older brothers who demanded the bike. They gave it to him.
So, for once, Gazans were grateful for an Israeli missile strike. On Wednesday, the day before the truce, an Israeli aircraft blasted a car carrying three Army of Islam commanders. Hamas chiefs werent too upset over this, either. After the BBC man was freed, Hamas quietly began cracking down on the Army of Islam. Their fighters kept turning up dead or simply vanishing. Rumors were that clan leader Mumtaz Dagmush was planning an attack on the Israelis to prove his Jihadi credentials and to get funds from rich Arab extremists in the Gulf. Dagmush had flirted with al Qaeda, not out of ideology, but because as a brand name al Qaeda has a certain cache in the Arab world, and accessibility to cash.
Martyrs funerals are great social events. In fact, going to funerals is one of the major pastimes in Gaza, though maybe that will change now that the truce has started. The death of a Hamas militant brings a thousand men into the streets, shooting guns into the air and shouting Allah is Great.
The Dagmush were expecting a big crowd for the three Army of Islam guys killed by the Israelis. They had huge posters of the victims faces, floating above the Dome of the Rock shrine in Jerusalem. They also cordoned off the street traffic and erected a long tent with hundreds of plastic chairs for mourners. The tent was empty saved for a few old men, probably the dead mens fathers and uncles.
See? says my friend, whose son had the run-in with the Dagmush kid over the stolen bike. Everybody in Gaza hates them. He adds: For once the Israelis did us a favor.
A Palestinian terrorist on Monday stabbed an Israel Defense Forces soldier at the Almog junction in the southern West Bank, near the Dead Sea, and fled. The soldier, who sustained moderate wounds, was taken to hospital for medical attention.
An initial investigation into the incident revealed that in addition to stabbing him, the Palestinian also snatched the soldier's weapon before fleeing.
A team of detectives from the Samaria and Judea District police force spotted the wounded soldier at a bus station, bleeding profusely. The soldier told the detectives that a man had stabbed him and fled toward the bathroom of a nearby gas station. The detectives rushed to the gas station, found the assailant and successfully subdued him.
The perpetrator, a Ramallah resident, told the detectives that he was working with another Palestinian. The two had followed the victim into the gas station bathroom, where he had stabbed him.
Police forces began combing the area in search of the second assailant, who managed to flee the scene. The Palestinian man was arrested and taken to the Samaria and Judea District police station for questioning.
Posted by: Fred ||
09/16/2008 00:00 ||
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The Prime Minister's Office Counter Terrorism Bureau on Monday issued a warning to Israelis vacationing in Egypt's Sinai Peninsula, urging them to return to Israel due to an "immediate and concrete" abduction threat.
While the Counter Terrorism Bureau already issued the warning several times recently, it chose to reiterate it ahead of the Jewish High Holidays, to begin at the end of September, a time when many Israelis vacation abroad.
The warning explains that the threat of Israelis being abducted and smuggled into the Gaza Strip is "grave and immediate," and consequently "urgently calls on all Israelis to leave Sinai immediately, without delay."
The bureau also warns that "the involvement of the Hezbollah in terror activity raises the alert level" in regard to the advisory currently in place against traveling to Sinai. "For quite some time, there have been serious concerns for the safety of Israelis visiting or staying in all of Egypt," the warning continues.
Posted by: Fred ||
09/16/2008 00:00 ||
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Rumors the U.S. military has created a secret weapon that can decimate al-Qaida insurgents in Iraq and be used to hunt for Osama bin Laden in Pakistan have been heating up military/technology blogs in the week since Bob Woodward began conducting interviews for his latest book, "The War Within: Secret White House History 2006-2008.
In the book and subsequent "60 Minutes" interview, Woodward hints that the militarys success in creating a death ray resulted partly from a technology breakthrough that the famed Watergate reporter likens to the creation of the tank or the first atomic bomb.
"This is very sensitive and very top secret, but there are secret operational capabilities that have been developed by the military to locate, target and kill leaders of al-Qaida in Iraq, insurgent leaders, renegade militia leaders that is one of the true breakthroughs," Woodward told CBS correspondent Scott Pelley.
It's some kind of surveillance?" Pelley said. "Some kind of targeted way of taking out just the people that you're looking for?"
I'd love to go through the details, but I'm not going to," Woodward replied. "If you were an al-Qaida leader, and you knew about what they were able to do, you'd get your ass outta town."
But although Woodward described the technology as top secret, reporters and techno-enthusiasts on any number of defense Web sites say its been well-known for many years.
Though the military never has fully discussed the details, accounts gleaned from declassified briefings describe an advanced communications ability that allows soldiers to indentify bad guys positively and target them visually and sonically.
In short, they can see and hear as clearly from the sky now as they could in looking for someone face-to-face. The technology also apparently allows them to see through walls and roofs in targeting terrorists. The missiles themselves used to kill insurgents may be able to lock on to these biological signatures.
The military term for the new tactics and technology is Continuous Clandestine Tagging, Tracking, and Locating.
In a November 2007 declassified briefing available on the Internet, U.S. Special Operations Command leaders discussed methods using existing state-of-the-art technologies in nanotechnology, chemistry, and biology to kill enemy combatants. The breakthrough appears to involve technology that uses a persons voice, skin emissions, heat signature perhaps even the beating of their heart to target a missile.
Like something out of a science-fiction film, the military now apparently can use biometrics and unique mechanical defects natural signatures: e.g. perfumes and stains to find al-Qaidas leaders over long distances of hundreds of miles. In order to do this, small sensors would be dropped in target zones that would search for these signatures.
Although that scenario sounds cool, and the briefings routinely mention cell-based sensing and bio-engineered signature translation, many experts and bloggers are still on the fence about the perceived breakthrough.
I don't know what Woodward has been presented with, or what he knows of these capabilities, but I'm not convinced it's as dramatic a technological breakthrough as he seems to suggest, Sharon Weinberger wrote on Wired magazines DangerRoom blog. That said, I suppose it could be, but it looks like we'll have to wait to see more details."
The technology apparently is behind the escalation of U.S. military actions involving Predator drone aircraft and commando teams hunting insurgents in the mountainous Pakistan tribal regions. The Los Angeles Times reported on Sept. 12 that new devices roughly the size of a shoebox and so few in number they must be moved from plane to plane are behind several recent strikes.
Officials said the previously unacknowledged devices have become a powerful part of the American arsenal, The Times story reported, allowing the tracking of human targets even when they are inside buildings or otherwise hidden from Predator surveillance cameras.
A military official familiar with the systems said they had a profound effect, both militarily and psychologically, on the Sunni Arab insurgency in Iraq. It is like they are living with a red dot on their head, said a former U.S. military official familiar with the technology who, like others, spoke on condition of anonymity because it has been secret. With the quietness of the Predator, you never knew when a Hellfire [missile] would come through your window.
But while this may be news to Woodward and other mainstream reporters, bloggers expert in defense issues say the technology has been discussed publically for nearly a decade.
Despite claims by The Washington Post that these techniques have not been reported publicly, many if not more than Woodward realizes have been written about in technology stories by publications like Aviation Week & Space Technology dating back to 1991s Operation Desert Storm, and even before, as they were designed, tested, blended and fielded, David A. Fulghum writes on Aviation Weeks Ares defense technology blog.
#3
natural signatures: e.g. perfumes and stains to find al-Qaidas leaders over long distances of hundreds of miles
"he smells like shit and has a skidmark as long as his arm. Kill him. The surviving other members of his party will praise Allan"
Posted by: Frank G ||
09/16/2008 18:51 Comments ||
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#4
If it can see through walls it can see through burkas. They will have to kill all their women to prevent the dishonor of us infidels seeing them naked.
"UWB has very low power requirements so it can see through any concrete structure and track, in 3-D, the movement o people, Johnson said."
Okay, mount the sensors on a drone, and connect the audio so that we can identify anyone when they are addressed by name. Also run the audio through voice comparison at the NSA, and see if we can get an ident from there.
#8
he smells like shit and has a skidmark as long as his arm. Kill him. The surviving other members of his party will praise Allan"
Praise Allan you can be a member of the Talibs unless you STANK like HELL!!
We had people sniffers and sensors for movement all along the Network of Trails in Laos and Cambodia back in the 60s. Camouflaged in several models and no bigger than a 'Roll of Life-Savers w/some mud on them' IIRC.
So Imagine what tech we have now, LOL!
Jebus How fucking Nasty / Filthy these Perverted Shit Bags Taliban must be??
It's enough to make a Regular guy or gal gag.
Posted by: Red Dawg ||
09/16/2008 23:29 Comments ||
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#9
correction: Editor
Praise Allan you can't be a member of the Talibs.....
Posted by: Red Dawg ||
09/16/2008 23:31 Comments ||
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At least four people were killed and nine wounded in a series of bomb and shooting attacks across Thailand's restive, Muslim-majority south, police said Tuesday.
A Muslim father and son were killed in a drive-by shooting Tuesday morning as they returned home from tapping rubber trees in Yala province, near the southern border with Malaysia, they said. Terrorists Militants then detonated a roadside bomb aimed at authorities investigating the scene of the killing, wounding four police and five civilians, police said.
A 48-year-old Muslim man was shot dead early Tuesday when three militants in a pickup opened fire as he was sweeping outside his home in nearby Narathiwat province, they added. An 80-year-old Muslim man was shot dead in neighbouring Pattani province late Monday as he walked home from prayers at his local mosque.
(AKI) - Twenty separatist Tamil Tiger rebels and one soldier have been killed in fresh conflict in Sri Lanka's north, the Defence Ministry said Monday. The ministry said 22 rebels and 14 troops were wounded in Sunday's fighting in Kilinochchi and Vavuniya.
While The Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam did not comment on military casualty claims, the organisation's website said the Sri Lanka Army resumed attacks on villages on Monday.
Earlier on Monday, hundreds of protesters were attempting to block United Nation offices inside rebel-held territory in the north to stop its workers from leaving the area. The UN began withdrawing its staff a few days ago after the government said it could not guarantee the safety of aid workers because of increased fighting near the main rebel-held town of Kilinochchi.
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09/16/2008 00:00 ||
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Tamil death toll rises? I thought that was the point of the exercise.
As I read through my daily sources on Iran and their nuclear ambitions, after coming across such titles from the AP:
IAEA info suggests Iran worked on nuclear missile
VIENNA, Austria (AP) -- The U.N. nuclear monitoring agency shared new photos and documents purporting to show that Iran tried to refit its main long-distance missile to carry a nuclear payload, said diplomats who attended the meeting Tuesday.
Responding to the presentation to the 35-nation board of the International Atomic Energy Agency, a senior U.S. envoy said the information was compelling evidence against the Islamic Republic. His Iranian counterpart said the material shown was fabricated. And then from AFP
Iran warns on nuclear cooperation, rattles sabre over Gulf
TEHRAN (AFP) -- Iran warned on Tuesday it will not respond to every adverse claim about its nuclear drive, after a damning report from the UN atomic watchdog left the global community divided about future action. Amid fears that one response might be a US or Israeli strike on Tehran's nuclear programme, a top aide to Iran's supreme leader warned again that Iran could bring oil shipments from the Gulf to a halt if attacked. I come across this By Heather Robinson of the American Spectator. Who know Iran better then an Iraqi?
Published 9/16/2008 American Spectator
Last month, Iraqi parliamentarian Mithal al-Alusi contacted me by phone from Baghdad with an urgent warning that Iran could be a lot closer to attaining nuclear weapons than most analysts believe.
"Do they have an atom bomb? Not yet," he told me. "Can they build an atom bomb, a dirty bomb? Yes.... Americans believe humans can work 50 hours in a week, but [they] can work 24 hours in a day. They can build a bomb very soon." Obviously, Mr Mithal al-Alusi should be cleared by the Iraqi Parliament for all the false charges brought up against him by the Pro Iranians still seated in the Iraqi Parliament. Also, the Iraqi Parliament should do some serious house cleaning to rid their country from that outside destabilizing presence of Iran. Now I bring you here:
IAEA: Iran tried to refit missile for nuke
Published: 09/16/2008 JTA Breaking News
The U.N.'s nuclear weapons watchdog said Iran tried to refit a long-distance missile to carry a nuclear payload. Photos and documents were included in the information presented Tuesday to a closed meeting of the 35-nation board of the International Atomic Energy Agency, The Associated Press reported, citing anonymous diplomats.
The Iranian envoy told the AP that the information was bogus. Other country's representatives told the news service that the information appeared to be "credible but unverified."
A U.S. intelligence estimate said the efforts to refit the missile stopped after 2003.
The IAEA distributed a report to board members Monday indicating that the probe into allegations that Iran is developing a nuclear warhead have reached a standstill because Iran has not cooperated with the investigation. Iran, the confidential report said, had installed 3,820 centrifuges enriching uranium, 500 more than in May, and was working to install another 2,000.
IAEA's board of governors will discuss the report next week. A week? Why so long? Wouldn't you think that all this new information would be detrimental to the wellbeing of the security of the world?
#1
Obviously, Mr Mithal al-Alusi should be cleared by the Iraqi Parliament for all the false charges brought up against him by the Pro Iranians still seated in the Iraqi Parliament. Also, the Iraqi Parliament should do some serious house cleaning to rid their country from that outside destabilizing presence of Iran.
---------------------------------------
Are my words and not Heather Robinson's of the American Spectator. Forgot to highlight
#2
On the other side of the world, NORTH KOREA reportedly has tested a TAEPONGDONG-series Ballistic Missle Engine, for a regul T. variant or an improved longer-range version capable of striking the Western USA.
Also IRAN-DAILY/TOPIX > IRAN DENIES VESSEL HIJACKED BY SOMALI PIRATES [back on 08/21/GERMAN COMPANY CARGO] CARRIED DANGEROUS MATERIALS [read - NUKULAR], despite Pirate-specific claims of sudden deaths, loss of hair, and skin burns, etc. among their armed crews. IRAN, however, admits the ship could've or may have been carrying a DANGEROUS CHEMICAL SUBSTANCE INSTEAD???
Two Syrian commando battalions have crossed into Lebanon during the last 48 hours and taken up positions in seven Alawite-controlled villages in north Lebanon, an Israeli website reported.
The Israeli DEBKAfile website, citing military sources, said the battalions were accompanied by reconnaissance and engineering units.
Lebanese sources have also confirmed that Syrian commandos have crossed the border and began operating around the Lebanese village of Hekr Al Dahr near the Mediterranean Sea. The sources said the commandos were supported by Syrian helicopters and main battle tanks along the Lebanese border.
Just over one week ago International Analyst Network, a web site that deals with Counter-terrorism, has reported that "'hundreds' of Syrian commandos, preceded by 'dozens' of Syrian intelligence operatives, have crossed into northern Lebanon near the Lebanese village of Hekr el Dahr and that Syrian helicopters had been observed operating on the Syrian side of the border, and tanks and artillery pieces have been spotted and reported "
It is the largest Syrian force to "invade" Lebanon since Damascus was forced to end its occupation of the country in May 2005, three months after ex-Premier Rafik Hariri was assassinated, DEBKAfile said.
It said the Syrian incursion coincided with the expected arrival of Russian naval and engineering experts in Tartus, the Syrian port 40 kilometers north of Tripoli, to serve as the Russian fleet's first permanent Mediterranean base.
The website said Syrian President Bashar al-Assad "clearly feels he can safely embark on a fresh foreign adventure to occupy northern Lebanon without fear of restraint."
According to DEBKAfile's Washington and Paris sources, the U.S. and French governments knew what was coming in light of Damascus' accusations to MP Saad Hariri and Saudi Arabia of sponsoring efforts by the Salafis and radicals close to al-Qaida to set up a "Lebanese Kandahar" in Tripoli in order to keep Hizbullah out.
The website said Israel, too, was in the picture.
DEBKAfile said that during French President Nicolas Sarkozy's visit to Damascus last month, Assad said the West should understand that Syria could not accept a "jihadist base on its doorstep."
It quoted sources as saying that Assad's pretext for Syria's "blatant invasion" of northern Lebanon "is hardly likely to go down seriously."
"For five years, Assad provided al-Qaida and other radical Islamists a corridor through Syria to fight American troops in Iraq plus, training facilities," DEBKAfile said.
It said that once Syrian troops complete their advance into Tripoli, Assad will have control over the full length of the military supply route for Hezbollah from the Syrian ports of Latakia and Tartus.
The Russian presence will add a new and troubling dimension to this development, it concluded.
Lebanese military ,Security sources deny reports
Lebanese military and security sources denied that two Syrian commando battalions have crossed into Lebanon and taken up positions in seven Alawite-controlled villages in the north.
The sources told An Nahar daily in remarks published Monday that such reports are untrue.
Posted by: Fred ||
09/16/2008 00:00 ||
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"According to DEBKAfile...
oh. so it MUST be true! Any other sources reporting this? Things that show up only in DEBKA have so far proven to be false ... 100% of the time. If another source verifies it, no problem. But if DEBKA is the only one report it, so far they are batting .000
(AKI) - Six home-made bombs exploded in a mixed Sunni-Shia district of West Beirut early on Monday causing damage to buildings but no casualties, media reports said, quoting local security officials. The explosions came amid heightened tension and security concerns ahead of national reconciliation talks between rival political leaders on Tuesday, following the killing of pro-Syrian politician Sheikh Saleh Aridi in a car bomb last Wednesday.
The first explosive device went off on Monday 2.30 am local time in the Corniche al-Mazraa neighbourhood, damaging cars and shops, the Voice of Lebanon radio station reported. A second bomb exploded ten minutes later and a third one exploded close to the Abdul Nasser mosque. Three other devices went off in the following hours, with the sixth bomb reportedly exploding at 5.30 am local time. The Lebanese army defused two similar bombs near a church in the village of Lass, north of Beirut, a security official was quoted as saying.
Security forces have stepped up patrols in West Beirut. Armed militants from Lebanese Shia group Hezbollah in May took over large areas of the predominantly Sunni area in the worst fighting seen since the 1975-1990 civil war. Fierce clashes between pro-government Sunni and Hezbollah-led Shia opposition supporters left dozens dead.
Hezbollah guerrillas insist they have the right to resist Israel. The Western-backed ruling bloc in parliament maintains the state should have sole authority to bear arms. Tuesday's talks by Lebanon's national unity cabinet are expected to focus on the the country's defence strategy and Hezbollah's weaponry.
Posted by: Fred ||
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Well, you can't have Leb "national reconciliation talks" without bombs.
(AKI) - One person was killed after rival Palestinian factions clashed in Lebanon's largest Palestinian refugee camp on Monday.
The clashes took place in the camp of Ein al-Hilwe between members of Fatah and the Sunni Jund al-Sham (Army of Greater Syria) movement, Lebanese daily An Nahar reported. Issam al-Biqqai, a member of Jund al-Sham was reportedly killed by two Fatah militants. Militants then took to the streets armed with automatic rifles and rocket-propelled grenade launchers.
It is not the first time both movements have fought each other in the camp, one of 12 throughout Lebanon and the most populous one, housing over 70,000 inhabitants. Jund al-Sham is believed to be ideologically aligned with Al-Qaeda.
Last Friday, a Jordanian security official quoted by several media outlets, said that Al-Qaeda representatives had effectively infiltrated the camp. Reports say the Lebanese army had taken up positions at the entrance of the camp just metres away from the fighting.
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Bethlehem Maan Hamas denied rumors on Tuesday that the manager of the office of Hamas leader Khalid Mashal had been assassinated in Syria. Muhammad Nazzal, a member of Hamas politburo in exile said that reports of the killing of Hisham Al-Abdawi were false. So can we see him?
Ummmmmmmmmm...no.
In one version of the assassination report, broadcast on Israeli Channel Two TV, correspondent Ehud Yaari quoted Syrian opposition sources saying that gunmen surrounded Al-Abdawis car in northern Damascus four days ago and shot him dead. Yaari added that Syria had warned Mashal and Islamic Jihad secretary in exile Ramadan Shallah that Israel might have plans to assassinate them.
In remarks carried on a Hamas-affiliated website, the Palestinian Information Center, Nazzal said, The news about assassination of director of Khalid Mashals office was completely false and were meant to arouse confusion and mislead people.
He highlighted that the rumors are not unprecedented as months ago there were similar reports about assassination of Hisham Abu Libdah, who he said was actually killed in a car accident. Ah, yes. Ye Olde "Car Accident"...
Nazzal said that Hamas had received no warnings from Syria or any other party regarding assassinations. However, he said that Hamas is taking security precautions because Israel is expected to target Hamas leaders inside Palestine or abroad at any moment.
A multi-volume chronology and reference guide set detailing three years of the Mexican Drug War between 2010 and 2012.
Rantburg.com and borderlandbeat.com correspondent and author Chris Covert presents his first non-fiction work detailing
the drug and gang related violence in Mexico.
Chris gives us Mexican press dispatches of drug and gang war violence
over three years, presented in a multi volume set intended to chronicle the death, violence and mayhem which has
dominated Mexico for six years.
Rantburg was assembled from recycled algorithms in the United States of America. No
trees were destroyed in the production of this weblog. We did hurt some, though. Sorry.
Aug. 22, 2007, didn't start off well for members of 1st Platoon, Company C. And it only got worse. "I was asleep in my bunk," said Staff Sgt. Erich Phillips, the company's mortar section sergeant. "I woke up to [rocket-propelled grenades] slamming into the side of my building. Then two soldiers ran in and said: 'Sergeant, we're under attack.' "
A bombing Monday killed three bodyguards of a district chief, including his son, in an area of Afghanistan at the center of claims that US air strikes killed dozens of civilians last month, the official said. Lal Mohammad Omarzai told AFP the bomb was apparently hidden in a three-wheel motorcycle near the Shindand district center and remotely detonated as his two-vehicle convoy passed. "Three of my bodyguards, one of them my son, were martyred and five others were wounded," said Omarzai, who was not hurt in the attack.
French commandos stormed a sailboat to free two French tourists who were being held by heavily-armed Somali pirates, President Nicolas Sarkozy has said. One pirate was killed and another six captured in the lightning raid, which lasted 10 minutes. The hostages were unharmed.
A dozen Mauritanian soldiers were killed in an ambush Monday by members of Al-Qaeda's North African branch, a security official said. The unit had been "on a normal patrol on the northern border" when the attack took place 70 kilometers east mining of the town of Zouerat, close to the Moroccan-occupied Western Sahara.
(AKI) - Three people have been killed and 10 others injured after two car bomb explosions in central Baghdad on Monday.
A bomber has blown herself up in a crowd of people in the Iraqi province of Diyala, killing at least 20 people and wounding around 30 others. 
But while this may be news to Woodward and other mainstream reporters, bloggers expert in defense issues say the technology has been discussed publically for nearly a decade. 
As I read through my daily sources on Iran and their nuclear ambitions, after coming across such titles from the AP: 
Two Syrian commando battalions have crossed into Lebanon during the last 48 hours and taken up positions in seven Alawite-controlled villages in north Lebanon, an Israeli website reported.
(AKI) - Six home-made bombs exploded in a mixed Sunni-Shia district of West Beirut early on Monday causing damage to buildings but no casualties, media reports said, quoting local security officials. The explosions came amid heightened tension and security concerns ahead of national reconciliation talks between rival political leaders on Tuesday, following the killing of pro-Syrian politician Sheikh Saleh Aridi in a car bomb last Wednesday.
(AKI) - One person was killed after rival Palestinian factions clashed in Lebanon's largest Palestinian refugee camp on Monday.
