MARJAH, Afghanistan--It is hard to know whether Monday was a very bad day or a very good day for Lance Cpl. Andrew Koenig.
On the one hand, he was shot in the head. On the other, the bullet bounced off him.
In one of those rare battlefield miracles, an insurgent sniper hit Lance Cpl. Koenig dead on in the front of his helmet, and he walked away from it with a smile on his face.
"I don't think I could be any luckier than this," Lance Cpl. Koenig said two hours after the shooting.
Lance Cpl. Koenig's brush with death came during a day of intense fighting for the Marines of Company B, 1st Battalion, 6th Regiment. Lance Cpl. Koenig is a designated marksman. His job is to hit the elusive Taliban fighters hiding in the tightly packed neighborhood near the base.
The insurgent sniper hit him first. The Casper, Wyo., native was kneeling on the roof of the one-story outpost, looking for targets. He was reaching back to his left for his rifle when the sniper's round slammed into his helmet. The impact knocked him onto his back.
"I'm hit," he yelled to his buddy, Lance Cpl. Scott Gabrian, a 21-year-old from St. Louis.
Lance Cpl. Gabrian belly-crawled along the rooftop to his friend's side. He patted Lance Cpl. Koenig's body, looking for wounds.
Then he noticed that the plate that usually secures night-vision goggles to the front of Lance Cpl. Koenig's helmet was missing. In its place was a thumb-deep dent in the hard Kevlar shell.
The only injury: A small, numb red welt on his forehead, just above his right eye.
Word of Lance Cpl. Koenig's close call spread quickly through the outpost, as he emerged from the shock of the experience and walked through the outpost with a Cheshire cat grin.
Gunnery Sgt. Kevin Shelton, whose job is to keep the Marines stocked with food, water and gear, teased the lance corporal for failing to take care of his helmet.
"I need that damaged-gear statement tonight," Gunnery Sgt. Shelton told Lance Cpl. Koenig. It was understood, however, that Lance Cpl. Koenig would be allowed to keep the helmet as a souvenir.
Sgt. Shelton, a 36-year-old veteran from Nashville, said he had never seen a Marine survive a direct shot to the head. But next to him was Cpl. Christopher Ahrens, who quietly mentioned that two bullets had grazed his helmet the day the Marines attacked Marjah. The same thing, he said, happened to him three times in firefights in Iraq. I'm thinking Corporal Ahrens needs to find a different line of work.
After his moment with Lance Cpl. Gabrian, Lance Cpl. Koenig put his dented helmet back on his head and climbed the metal ladder to resume his rooftop duty within an hour of being hit. "Mahmoud, I got good news and bad news. The good news is, I shot one of the infidel Marines right in the head."
"Outstanding work, Achmed. What's the bad news?"
"He's pissed."
Posted by: Matt ||
02/15/2010 16:09 ||
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"I'm thinking Corporal Ahrens needs to find a different line of work."
Posted by: Barbara Skolaut ||
02/15/2010 20:43 Comments ||
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Ima thinkrn the story of Lance Cpl Koenig and Sgt. Shelton need to be broadcast on the Jihadi airwaves, saying "you can't kill us!". Propaganda has effects.
Posted by: Frank G ||
02/15/2010 22:14 Comments ||
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#5
Lawyers and reporters have joined the Taliban as co-conspirators and declared themselves part of the enemy forces. Use the same tactics on them you'd use on the Taliban. Shooting a few dozen lawyers would not only clear up the situation, it would do wonders for morale. May I suggest including all the lawyers elected/appointed to public office, as well?
Posted by: Old Patriot ||
02/15/2010 18:20 Comments ||
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#6
A suit and tie isn't a uniform. Undeclared combatants....
work with me here
Posted by: Frank G ||
02/15/2010 18:41 Comments ||
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#7
Stop : TRO : Hawkster : Gulf Of Tongist : Keoni Stansfield : Help : Kill : 64,000 Polish : Paulish : For : Ronsom
#10
Lest we fergit, "SMOKEY AND THE BANDIT" Movie Scene > THAT IS NOT GERMAINE TO THE SITUATION ... ... THE GOD ***** GERMANS HAVE GOT NUTHIN TO DO WID ANYTHIN!
#11
ho about we send the lawyers too Marjah too do the investigating
Posted by: chris ||
02/15/2010 20:52 Comments ||
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#12
Lawyers are not a new problem. In the 1500s Spanish explorations of the new world, they got so bad Ferdinand forbade them. They got through anyway.
The Taliban released a video Sunday of two French journalists kidnapped in Afghanistan in December pleading for their government to negotiate with their captors.
The video was posted on a Web site and the link was provided by Taliban spokesman Zabiullah Mujahid. On it, the two journalists plead for their release and urge French President Nicolas Sarkozy to negotiate quickly with their captors.
The pair disappeared Dec. 30 along with two or three Afghan employees while traveling in Kapisa province northeast of Kabul. French soldiers in the region are fighting the Taliban and other insurgents as part of NATO's mission in Afghanistan.
In the video, one of the reporters said there was a third hostage, though only the two Frenchmen appeared on tape. They spoke sitting on the floor of a dark room, with a flowered sheet hung behind them. Both were unshaven and appeared tired, but the two reporters both said they were in good health and had been well treated. They said the days and weeks felt long and they were eager to go home.
Last month, Sarkozy confirmed the two were alive and healthy. He said France was doing everything possible to secure their release. French media have not disclosed the identities of the journalists.
The French Foreign Ministry did not confirm the contents of the video, or whether officials have seen it.
"In this type of situation, for regard for the families of our two compatriots and in the very interest of their security, discretion is needed," the statement said.
The ministry said France is in touch with Afghan authorities and condemned the kidnapping.
"To target journalists carrying out their indispensable mission of information in Afghanistan is unacceptable," the statement said.
Posted by: Fred ||
02/15/2010 00:00 ||
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[Dawn] The NATO force in Afghanistan Sunday said 12 Afghan civilians were killed when at least one rocket missed its intended target during a major offensive against the Taliban.
"Two rockets from a High Mobility Artillery Rocket System (HIMARS) launched at insurgents firing upon Afghan and ISAF forces impacted approximately 300 metres off their intended target, killing 12 civilians in Nad Ali district, Helmand province today," NATO's International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) said in a statement.
"ISAF commander General Stanley McChrystal conveyed his apologies to President Hamid Karzai for this unfortunate incident," it said.
The use of HIMARS had been suspended while an investigation was conducted, the statement said.
"The original target of the two rockets was a compound where insurgents were delivering accurate, direct fire on an Afghan-ISAF joint team," it said, adding: "An Afghan National Army soldier and ISAF service member had been injured by the insurgent fire."
McChrystal's apology follows a statement by Karzai that 10 Afghan civilians had been killed when a rocket hit their home in Marjah, in Nad Ali district, focus of Operation Mushtarak, which aims to flush out militants.
The NATO and Karzai statements appeared to be talking about the same incident.
US Marines are leading a force of 15,000 US, NATO and Afghan troops in the operation, which was launched before dawn on Saturday to clear a path for the Afghan government to re-establish control of the opium-producing area.
Karzai on Saturday warned troops to take all measures necessary to protect civilians.
"We deeply regret this tragic loss of life," the ISAF statement quoted McChrystal as saying.
"The current operation in central Helmand is aimed at restoring security and stability to this vital area of Afghanistan.
"It's regrettable that in the course of our joint efforts, innocent lives were lost. We extend our heartfelt sympathies and will ensure we do all we can to avoid future incidents," he said.
Posted by: Fred ||
02/15/2010 00:00 ||
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Taliban militants are retreating from the Afghan district of Marjah without protracted resistance, reports say. Witnesses told a Press TV correspondent on Saturday that NATO forces were meeting only scattered resistance in the town of Marjah in the southern province of Helmand.
Early on Saturday, thousands of US-led NATO troops launched a major offensive against Marjah, which is one of the Taliban's major strongholds in Afghanistan. The AP news agency quoted Marjah residents as saying Taliban militants had fallen back into the center of the town, perhaps to try to regroup and mount harassment attacks.
Yet the Taliban say they have massed thousands of militants to fight the foreign troops in the region. They claim they have already started launching mortars and have killed at least 25 foreign troops in the latest attacks.
However, there is no independent confirmation of the reports since journalists cannot report from the conflict zone.
Posted by: Fred ||
02/15/2010 00:00 ||
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#1
Cowardly lion from the wizard of oz would me most apt .
Posted by: Oscar ||
02/15/2010 9:31 Comments ||
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#2
That being said , it seems Uk forces are having it easier in NAd Ali , whilst 6th Marines et al are encountering a large amount of sniper fire and obviously IEDs, slowing down progress a little. Locals helping identify IED placements though .
Posted by: Oscar ||
02/15/2010 9:39 Comments ||
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#3
same shit different day, it's not time for the dreaded spring offensive yet
Posted by: chris ||
02/15/2010 10:10 Comments ||
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[Quqnoos] The long-awaited push, involving 15,000 NATO and Afghan troops, has been launched to target key Taliban strongholds in southern Helmand province.
Operation Moshtarak, meaning "together", aims to wrest control of the town of Marjah and Nadi Ali districts in Helmand province from the Taliban.
Mark Sedwill, Nato's senior civilian representative, on Sunday said they were satisfied with the operation's first day. "I can't yet say how long it will take for this military phase to get to the point where we can bring in the civilian support from the Afghan government, we hope that will happen quickly," Sedwill told reporters in Kabul.
Marjah and Nad Ali are deemed as a spiritual Taliban stronghold and a hub for Taliban's narco-trade and foreign insurgents.
The operation is the first major test of the new surge policy of Barack Obama, the US president.
At least 15,000 US, British and Afghan soldiers stormed the stronghold in what is also NATO's biggest operation since the collapse of the Taliban. Two NATO deaths, including one Briton, have been confirmed. Afghan forces said 20 militants had been killed and 11 others have been arrested.
President Hamid Karzai has warned the troops to do everything possible to avoid harming civilians, a sensitive issue among the Afghan people.
The offensive began with waves of helicopters ferrying US Marines into Marjah. British troops then flew into Nad Ali district, to the north, followed by tanks and combat units.
Prime Minister Gordon Brown praised the UK forces for their action. He said: "This day will be long remembered as the day when a new phase of the campaign to win the support of the people of Afghanistan was initiated."
A White House spokesman said President Barack Obama was keeping a close eye on combat operations and had had multiple updates. He was also to be briefed by the top US commander in Afghanistan on Sunday.
It was estimated there were between 400 and 1,000 militants based in the region before Operation Moshtarak was launched.
Afghan Defence Minister Gen Abdul Rahim Wardak also said it was important to bring in Afghan security forces quickly. "The area has been heavily mined, that's why we are moving so slowly," he said in Kabul.
Posted by: Fred ||
02/15/2010 00:00 ||
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[Maghrebia] Mauritanian security services on Friday (February 12th) arrested two alleged members of al-Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb, identified as Mohamed Ould Kehli Ould Bouya Ahmed and Hadj Ould Hmoudna, after an exchange of fire in northeast Zouerate, ANI reported. The three vehicles carrying the terrorists came from Mali. One Mauritanian soldier was injured in the attack.
In related news, French Foreign Minister Bernard Kouchner arrived Saturday (February 13th) in Bamako in his second surprise visit since the November 2009 kidnapping of Frenchman Pierre Camatte. AQIM, which claims to hold Camatte, is demanding the release of 4 Malian prisoners in exchange for the Frenchman's freedom. Last week, the group announced it would execute Camatte February 20th if its demands were ignored.
Posted by: Fred ||
02/15/2010 00:00 ||
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#1
"French Foreign Minister Bernard Kouchner arrived Saturday (February 13th) in Bamako in his second surprise visit since the November 2009 kidnapping of Frenchman Pierre Camatte."
What, negotiate with terrorists for the release of a captive? Oh, right, this is France we're talking about.
Posted by: American Delight ||
02/15/2010 0:13 Comments ||
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[Iran Press TV Latest] A female Saudi author has been reportedly murdered by her family members for expressing support for the non-Wahhabi Islamic faiths, including Shiism.
Belqeis Molhem was murdered by two of her "fanatical" brothers in the Shia-populated city of al-Ahsa, east of Saudi Arabia, some months ago, the Kuwaiti Arabic language daily Al-Watan reported.
Also a poetess and a teacher, the 1977-born Molhem had graduated in Islamic studies from the King Faisal University
Molhem's death is blamed on her religious stance and her positive position on the Islamic faiths other than the Kingdom's official religion of Wahhabism -- an extremely intolerant interpretation of Islam.
The victim had recently written a number of articles, censuring the ignorance in Saudi Arabia about the family of the Prophet of Islam Muhammad (PBUH) -- buried in Saudi Arabia and highly revered within the Shia faith.
Wahhabism is known for the strict limits it imposes on the females who, in line with the school's restrictions, are not allowed to drive or visit the shrine of the Shia religious figures.
She had also written an article, reflecting on her daughter's respect for Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah, the Secretary General of the Lebanese resistance movement Hezbollah.
The works prompted far-reaching reactions from her family and the religious circles within the Kingdom who accused her of turning her back on the ancestral religion of Wahhabism and gravitating towards Shiism. The allegations later caused Molhem's husband to divorce her.
The Saudi authorities arrested the perpetrators, both employed by the state-owned national oil company Saudi Aramco, following a complaint submitted to the Interior Ministry by one of the victim's children. The survivor has blamed foul play on his two uncles.
The director of the Malek Fahd hospital in Al-Hofuf of the Al-Ahsa Oasis and a cousin of the victim is being questioned in the case. The suspect is said to have issued the permission for Molhem's burial and alleged that the victim had died of natural causes.
The incident is reportedly the second of its kind to happen in the Kingdom due to religious bigotry after a Saudi female was killed last year by her sibling for converting from Wahhabism.
Saudi officials have refused comments on the aspects of the crime and the motives behind it.
Molhem's younger brother, Abdul-Rahim, is affiliated to the al-Qaeda terrorist network and is currently imprisoned in Iraq on terrorism charges. He recently appeared on the Iraqi television to confess.
Posted by: Fred ||
02/15/2010 00:00 ||
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#1
The Wahabbi are not loyal to the state, and they continually conspire to overthrow the Saud, but for their part, the Saud don't push back hard enough, or often enough. Saudi Arabia will remain a mess until they do so, or someone else gets so tired of the Wahabbi that they purge them entirely.
It is like living in a cage with an irate adult male chimpanzee. Sooner or later he is going to mess you up unless you mess him up first.
#2
Two adult male chimpanzees, Anonymoose: The Wahabis and the House of Saud princelings and princesses. Both are mostly mad, as far as I can tell from a distance, and the rest of the population, including the citizenry, is attacked by both.
#3
She had also written an article, reflecting on her daughter's respect for Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah, the Secretary General of the Lebanese resistance movement Hezbollah
[Al Arabiya Latest] Saudi Arabia's deputy defense minister said on Saturday he gave Yemen's Houthi rebels 48 hours to release five Saudi soldiers held captive, adding that a ceasefire agreement between the rebels and the government in Yemen was an internal affair.
"They must return our five prisoners, and we have given them 48 hours to do so," Deputy Defense Minister Prince Khaled bin Sultan said at a defense show in Riyadh, adding his country would "not permit militants to remain on our soil."
The countdown started from Friday, his aide, General Ibrahim al-Malek, told AFP. "He gave them 48 hours from yesterday," said the aide, who like Prince Khaled did not specify what action Saudi Arabia would take if the prisoners were not released by the deadline.
The London-based Asharq al-Awsat newspaper reported the handover of the captive Saudi soldiers would be completed in less than a week. "The handover operations of prisoners of war after the end of the Saudi confrontations against the Houthi infiltrators are part of the ceasefire agreement between the Yemeni government and the Houthi rebels," newspaper quoted an unidentified Yemeni security official as saying. "The handover operations are expected to be completed in less than a week." he added.
Complications
But rebel sources said an exchange of prisoners has run into last-minute complications. "The authorities want us to release all Yemeni and Saudi prisoners, which was not the agreement," one of them said.
The rebels want to exchange their prisoners for rebels captured by the Yemeni military.
Saudi Arabia, meanwhile, was refusing to exchange detained rebel fighters for the five Saudi soldiers being held by the rebels, according to another rebel source.
The ceasefire is the government's latest bid in a campaign to crush a rebellion that began in 2004, killing thousands and leaving 250,000 homeless in recurring fighting.
The latest round of clashes erupted on August 11, when government forces launched "Operation Scorched Earth," an all-out offensive.
The six-point truce requires the rebels to reopen three major routes in the first stage: the road between Saada, Harf Sufian and the capital, Sanaa; the road from Saada west to Malahidh and the road from Saada east to al-Jawf.
It also calls for a rebel withdrawal from government buildings, the return of arms seized from security forces, release of all prisoners including Saudis, handover of captured army posts, and a pledge not to attack Saudi Arabia.
The Saudis joined the fighting in November after accusing the rebels of killing a border guard and occupying two small villages.
Saudi ground troops and aircraft repeatedly engaged the rebels in operations which the rebels said continued even after their fighters had withdrawn from all Saudi territory occupied in the fighting.
Posted by: Fred ||
02/15/2010 00:00 ||
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#1
Have Saudi's Freed From : Captive Interventionist Achievers : Have Them : Saudi's : Promise : Five : Not To Be : Ever : Near : Region : While : In : Saudi Military Service : EVER : NEVER : AGAIN : Allah O Akbar : All : Sign : Peaceful Accords -
Posted by: Phavith the Rasher of Bacon5048 ||
02/15/2010 18:32 Comments ||
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#2
WORLD NEWS > YEMEN: SMALL ARMS SALES GOING UNDERGROUND; + SOMALI PIRACY MAY REACH YEMEN
[Proposal for Piracy Conference to be held in POTUS Bammer WH].
* SAME > SOMALIA: HIZBUL ISLAM URGES LAWMAKERS TO JOIN ISLAMISTS.
IMO read, JOIN-OR-DIE???
HEY, D **** NG IT, THE HIZBIES ARE ASKING POLITELY!
[Bangla Daily Star] Police arrested 31 more Islami Chhatra Shibir cadres at Rajshahi and Dhaka yesterday raising the total number of Jamaat-Shibir men detained to 364 since the Rajshahi University violence on February 9.
Meanwhile, two cases were filed against over 450 leaders and activists of Jamaat-e-Islami and Shibir in connection with their clash with Chhatra League men in Nilphamari Saturday.
Police said a team from Boalia Police Station picked up 13 cadres from Shalbagan area of Rajshahi and Motihar police arrested 10 at different private hostels in Rajshahi. Four cadres were also detained on Rajshahi University campus.
Boalia Police Station Officer-in-Charge Jasim Uddin said they detained the 13 cadres when they were trying to bring out a procession at Shalbagan area around noon.
Motihar Police Station OC Tofazzel Hossain said among the 10 cadres arrested at different dormitories and students' messes, eight are accused in six cases filed in connection with the killing of Bangladesh Chhatra League leader Faruk Hossain and injuring a number of others on February 9.
Our Rajshahi University correspondent reports: Police arrested four suspected Shibir men from the campus area.
Dhaka Metropolitan Police officials said in separate drives yesterday they arrested three Shibir cadres at a mess and another at Mirpur.
Meanwhile, the arrested 24 Shibir cadres, detained on Chittagong University campus Saturday, were shown arrest yesterday in the case filed in connection with the attack on policemen by Jamaat-Shibir men Friday.
Investigation officer of the case Mohiuddin Mahmud, also the OC of Chittagong Police Station, said the 24 arrestees might have taken part in the attack at Jamal Khan Intersection.
"We sought seven days' remand for each of the 24 Shibir men, arrested at different cottages around the university campus, from the court and the hearing on the prayers will be held tomorrow [Monday]," the OC added.
On Friday, Chittagong police arrested 96 Jamaat-Shibir men, including Chittagong city Nayeb-e-Ameer Ahsan Ullah, when they clashed with law enforcers trying to hold demonstration after the killing of Chittagong University student AAM Mahiuddin Masum Thursday night.
In separate drives as part of a countrywide combing operation following violence at Rajshahi University and Chittagong University, law enforcers arrested a number of Shibir cadres from Tangail, Pabna, Chapainawabganj, Nilphamari and Chandpur.
Our correspondent in Nilphamari reports: Two separate cases were filed yesterday against hundreds of leaders and activists of Jamaat-e-Islami and Shibir in connection with the clashes in Nilphamari Saturday.
Nilphamari Chhatra League unit Vice-President Hossain filed a case with Nilphamari Police Station against 107 identified, including the district Jamaat chief, and over one hundred unknown leaders and activists of Jamaat-Shibir.
Sub-Inspector Moazzem Hossain of the same police station filed another case against 250 people, including 25 named.
Some 25 activists of Jamaat and Shibir were arrested so far after the clashes that ensued when Shibir attacked a Chhatra League procession leaving around 60 people, including 30 Chhatra League men, injured.
Posted by: Fred ||
02/15/2010 00:00 ||
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Five Sydney men convicted of terrorism-related offences have been sentenced to maximum sentences ranging from 23 to 28 years in prison.
Justice Anthony Whealy, who presided over a trial that began in November 2008, said in the Supreme Court at Parramatta that the offence of conspiring to commit an act in preparation for a terrorist act or acts was higher on the scale of criminality. He said today that he was satisfied beyond reasonable doubt that each of the offenders had intended that the end result of their actions would be serious damage to property, carrying with it the risk of death or injury to the public.
The men are not allowed to be named for legal reasons. The first man, 44, regarded as the principal organiser of the conspiracy, was sentenced to a maximum term of 28 years in prison, commencing on November 8, 2005, when he was arrested, with a non-parole period of 21 years. The second man 36, was sentenced to 27 years in prison from the time of his arrest in 2005, with a non-parole period of 20 years and three months. The third man, 40, was sentenced to 20 years in prison from the time of his arrest in 2005, with a non-parole period of 19 years and six months. The fourth man, 34, was also sentenced to 26 years in prison from the time of his arrest in 2005, with a non-parole period also of 19 years and six months. The fifth man, 25, who entered the conspiracy later than the others and was not arrested until September 21, 2006, received a term of 23 years, backdated to the time of his arrest with a non-parole period of 17 years and three months.
The five men were among nine people arrested in a huge police and ASIO crackdown in 2005 and 2006. Of those, four have pleaded guilty to lesser offences and have been dealt with. The five who elected to go on trial pleaded not guilty and were convicted on October 16 last year.
Justice Whealy said in his remarks on sentencing today that the jury had apparently been satisfied that each of the five had intended that acts be carried in Australia involving the detonation of explosives. He said the jury must have been satisfied that this was for the purpose of carrying out violent jihad so as to coerce the Australian government to change its policies regarding the invasion of Muslim countries.
Justice Whealy said that what was particularly appalling was the videos and other extremist materials that had been found in possession of the accused. He said that some of the videos involving executions were so horrific that they had not been shown to the jury. Instead, only a written summary had been provided.
Each of the offenders, Justice Whealy said, had been driven by a religious zeal, and the fact that it was a conspiracy meant that it took on a life of its own and was more menacing than the individual acts of the participants. He said that chemicals for bomb making and ammunition had been accumulated in preparation for a terrorist act or acts and he noted that there was "a wide range" of material that had never been recovered and might be available to terrorists in future conspiracies.
The five accused wore traditional clothing and four of them wore prayer caps. During the judge's summing up, some of them smiled and, during breaks in his address, some of them exchanged pleasantries with each other. After the sentences were pronounced and the judge left the bench, all five broke into smiles. Two men shouted from the back of the court in Arabic: "Be patient. Allah is with you."
Asia Times Online has received a message from top guerrilla commander Ilyas Kashmiri, whose 313 Brigade is an operational arm of al-Qaeda. The message arrived on Monday morning, shortly after the deadly weekend bombing of the German Bakery in the western Indian city of Pune. The message does not specifically claim responsibility for the bombing, but implies the Brigade's involvement.
The text of the emailed message reads, in rough translation:
"We warned the international community to play their role in getting the Kashmiris their right of self-determination and preventing India from committing brutalities in Kashmir, especially in Badipuar, raping the women and behaving inhumanly with Muslim prisoners.
"We warn the international community not to send their people to the 2010 Hockey World Cup, IPL [Indian Premier League - a cricket competition involving international players] and Commonwealth Games [to be held in Delhi later this year]. Nor should their people visit India - if they do, they will be responsible for the consequences.
"We, the mujahideen of 313 Brigade, vow to continue attacks all across India until the Indian Army leaves Kashmir and gives the Kashmiris their right of self-determination. We assure the Muslims of the subcontinent that we will never forget the massacre of the Muslims in Gujarat and the demolition of Babri Masjid [a Muslim mosque destroyed by Hindu militants in 1992]. The entire Muslim community is one body and we will take revenge for all injustices and tyranny. We again warn the Indian government to compensate for all its injustices, otherwise they will see our next action.
"From 313 Brigade"
This article starring:
ILYAS KASHMIRI
al-Qaeda
Posted by: john frum ||
02/15/2010 11:47 ||
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Three Lashkar-e-Taiba militants were killed in two separate encounters in Jammu and Kashmir, where a major tragedy was averted with timely detection of a powerful IED in Baramulla district on Monday, police said.
A self-styled district commander of Lashkar-e-Toiba (LeT) Ashraf Moulvi and his close associate Rouf Ahmad Bhat were killed in a gunbattle with a joint search party of police and Army in Kulgam district's Qaimoh, 70 kms from Srinagar in South Kashmir, this morning, Superintendent of Police, Kulgam, Keshav Ram Chourasia told PTI. "As per police records the duo were affiliated with Hizbul Mujahideen but had recently switched to LeT which was revealed by the documents recovered from them," he said.
Terming the killing of the two militants as a "major success", he said Moulvi had been arrested and jailed under Public Safety Act (PSA) thrice in the past one decade. "He rejoined militancy last year after his release and was behind several sensational incidents in the recent past, including the killing of a former militant Gulzar Ahmad Dar and attack on Police post at Qaimoh," the SP who supervised the operation said.
He said Bhat (18) had joined militancy only a few months back and was moving around with Moulvi. The duo had escaped an encounter after getting trapped in a cordon and search operation at Rampur village in the district last month. "We got specific information about their presence in a house and accordingly laid a cordon in the wee hours. After noticing the search parties, the ultras came out and tried to flee while firing on the search parties and were killed in the ensuing gunbattle," Chourasia said.
This article starring:
ASHRAF MULVI
Lashkar-e-Taiba
RUF AHMED BHAT
Lashkar-e-Taiba
Posted by: john frum ||
02/15/2010 10:13 ||
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Indian policemen carry the body of suspected militant Roaf Ahamad after he was killed during a gun battle in Kulgam, some 70 Kilometers (44 miles) south of Srinagar, India, Monday, Feb. 15, 2010. Two suspected militants were killed during a gunfight with Indian army and police in Kashmir on Monday, police said.
Posted by: john frum ||
02/15/2010 18:32 Comments ||
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#2
Posted by: john frum ||
02/15/2010 18:33 Comments ||
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ION DAILY TIMES.PK > J-K GOVT: STONE-PELTING AN "ACT OF WAR". J-K Govt says protesting or rioting Youths can be treated as subversives = traitors, hence can be lawfully arrested and imprisoned.
[Geo News] A suspected man was arrested and his accomplice fled on Sunday evening near the residence of Iqbal Marwat, the District Police Officer of Bannu. While search operation was under way to apprehend the other missing person, the police said. According to police authorities, the suspected person apparently came to the area to condole the death of blast victims. However, the local people became alert over his suspicious actions. The arrested person, who was shivering with fear, was shifted to local police station for further interrogation.
Posted by: Fred ||
02/15/2010 00:00 ||
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[Dawn] Security forces have arrested 11 militants on Sunday, including four key commanders during fresh action in the Sipah area of Bara Tehsil in Khyber Agency.
Security forces also seized heavy weapons and imposed a curfew while they pound militant hideouts in various parts of Bara.
A search operation in the area is still continuing while the arrested militants have been shifted to an unknown location for initial investigation.
Over in Mohmand Agency, unknown assailants have killed two civilians in Pandiali Tehsil.
Posted by: Fred ||
02/15/2010 00:00 ||
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[Dawn] An explosion ripped through a busy intersection in southern Pakistan on Sunday, killing three people in an area that has avoided much of the Taliban-led violence that has plagued the country.
Authorities were investigating the nature of the blast, which occurred in Dadu city in southern Sindh province, said local police chief Ghazi Salahuddin.
The explosion damaged several buildings in the area, including a sweet shop that bore the brunt, said eye witness Ghulam Nabi Panwar.
''It was a huge blast, but it mainly destroyed the sweet shop and the rickshaw in front of the shop,'' said Panwar.
The explosion wounded nine people, who were brought along with the three dead to the main hospital in Dadu, said hospital official Rafiq Kolachi.
Police sources said one suspected person was arrested from the site and shifted to unknown place for investigation.
EDO Health Dr. Javed told Dawnnews that an emergency has been declared in Civil Hospital and all employees have been called in.
Posted by: Fred ||
02/15/2010 00:00 ||
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[Dawn] Security officials were investigating the possible involvement of suspected militants in a bomb blast in western India that killed nine people, but New Delhi said talks with Islamabad later this month would go ahead.
The bomb, left in a backpack at the popular German Bakery in the city of Pune on Saturday, wounded 60 and appeared to target Indian and foreign tourists.
Senior internal security sources, who declined to be named, said the focus had fallen on separatist group Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT), which has been blamed for the Mumbai attacks, and a local militant group called Indian Mujahideen (IM) because both had been behind bombings in India in the past.
"As of now our line of investigation is towards the possible involvement of LeT ... a sleeper module of the Indian Mujahideen could also be involved," a senior interior security official overseeing the investigation told Reuters.
Both groups are fighting against Indian rule in Kashmir, the disputed Himalayan region.
"Nothing is ruled out, nothing is ruled in. The investigation is in progress," Home Minister Palaniappan Chidambaram said.
On Friday, India and Pakistan agreed to high-level talks in New Delhi on Feb. 25, suspended after Pakistani militants killed 166 people during a three-day rampage through the financial capital of Mumbai in November 2008.
Any sign of Pakistani involvement in the Pune attack would worsen relations between the two nuclear rivals and further destabilise a region overshadowed by war in Afghanistan.
The main opposition Bharatiya Janata Party said India must "seriously reconsider" going ahead with the talks, but a government official said the talks were on track.
"The talks are going to go on schedule. We realise there are complexities in engaging Pakistan, but we have to see things in their entirety. And at this moment, there is no reason for the talks to not go on," the official said.
Police in Pune, about 160 km south of Mumbai, had been alerted to the possibility of attacks on Osho ashram and Chabad House, which had also been targeted during the Mumbai attacks, Chidambaram said.
The German Bakery restaurant, located close to a Jewish centre and a religious retreat frequented by foreigners, was a soft target in an area that had been on the radar of intelligence officials, Chidambaram said, denying there was an intelligence failure.
The Pune ashram was one of the sites surveyed by David Headley, arrested in the United States last year and charged with scouting targets for the Mumbai attacks.
An Italian woman and an Iranian man were among those killed. The 12 foreigners injured included Iranians, Yemenis, Sudanese, Nepalis, a Taiwanese and a German, Police Commissioner Satyapal Singh told reporters.
"We are awaiting forensic and intelligence reports. It is too early to say anything now," Singh said.
Authorities have warned of renewed threats of attacks on Indian soil and stepped up security in recent months.
Airports and railway stations across the country have been put on high alert after the blast and extra security given to the South African and Indian cricket teams in India.
Posted by: Fred ||
02/15/2010 00:00 ||
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#1
It is like living in a cage with an irate adult male chimpanzee. Sooner or later he is going to mess you up unless you mess him up first.
Yeah, I know it's a different thread but I think it could be applied to India and Pakistan just as well.
[Dawn] An Italian and an Iranian were among the nine people killed in a bomb attack at a restaurant in the western Indian city of Pune, police said Sunday. Pune police commissioner Satyapal Singh identified the two as Nadia Macerini and Syed Abdul Khari, the latter a student at the Symbiosis Institute law school in Pune.
Twelve foreigners were also among the 60 people injured in Saturday's blast. Five of the 12 were from Iran, two from Sudan, two from Nepal, and one each from Yemen, Taiwan and Germany, he said.
Maharashtra state police inspector general Rashmi Shukla told reporters in Mumbai that Israeli, German and US establishments in the state had been told to be on higher alert.
The bomb, hidden in a backpack under a table, exploded on Saturday evening at the German Bakery restaurant, a magnet for young Indians and foreign tourists. The eatery is near an ashram, or religious retreat, popular with overseas visitors and a Jewish cultural and religious centre run by the orthodox Chabad-Lubavitch movement.
No arrests have yet been made and an investigation is under way, Singh told reporters.
The Indian government has already announced compensation of 200,000 rupees (4,300 dollars) to the families of those killed and 100,000 rupees to the injured.
Posted by: Fred ||
02/15/2010 00:00 ||
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#1
NEWS KERALA > INDIAN MUJAHIDEEN [IM] SUSPECTED IN PUNE BLAST | PUNE WAS A FORMER "IMPORTANT BASE" FOR INDIAN MUJAHIDEEN.
* SAME > VARIOUS > [LeT Operative] HEADLEY LINKED/SURVEYED AREA OF PUNE BLAST.
* DAILY TIMES.PK > AL QAEDA-LINKED GROUP ["313 Brigades"] VOWS ATTACKS ACROSS INDIA, until INDJUH gives People of KASHMIR [Muslims]right to self-determination + withdraws its mil forces [Indian Army] from same.
[Ma'an] Egyptian authorities raided six tunnels on the Gaza-Egypt border and confiscated goods intended for smuggling, security sources told Ma'an on Sunday.
Security services stormed the tunnels 120 meters from the Rafah border crossing after receving a tip-off that increased attempts to transfer goods into the Strip were reported near the Salah Ad-Din terminal, particularly in residential areas near the subterranean metal wall, the sources said.
Spare parts for computers were confiscated during the operation, the sources added.
Fifteen tunnels have been stormed and shut down near the Salah Ad-Din terminal near the metal wall's construction site, as contractors face problems in installing the required metal bars due to rocky terrain, the sources said.
Meanwhile, two separate attempts to enter Israel through the barbed wire border between Israel and Egypt by African migrants was apprehended, the sources concluded.
Posted by: Fred ||
02/15/2010 00:00 ||
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Four people have died in two shooting incidents in Thailand's rebellious deep south in the past two days, both incidents involving a mother and daughter, police said.
On Monday, a Muslim woman and her daughter were shot dead in a rubber plantation in Narathiwat province, Police Captain Heraman Jaedee said. Heraman said the mother had been summoned to speak to security authorities and may have been killed to prevent her from giving information to them.
In a separate incident on Sunday, a Buddhist woman and her 14-year-old daughter were shot dead in a drive-by attack as they were riding a motorcycle home in Pattani province, said Police Colonel Naraecha Suwanlapa.
Iranian authorities detained five more members of the Baha'i minority, a hard-line newspaper reported on Sunday.
The daily Javan newspaper, which has ties to the elite Revolutionary Guards, reported that the five included Niki Khanjani, who is the daughter of Jamaloddin Khanjani, one of seven Baha'i leaders jailed since 2008 on charges of harming national security.
The report did not describe the current charges, but said many Baha'is have escaped to neighbouring countries and the remote border areas of Iran after allegedly fomenting post election unrest.
Opposition members have poured into the streets on several occasions since June in protest to the result of the presidential election, which they maintain were tarnished by fraud.
Iranian authorities have repeatedly accused members of Baha'i minority of being involved in the turmoil.
In January, the Tehran prosecutor said several followers of the Baha'i faith were detained in December protests for "organising the riots and sending pictures of the protest abroad".
The minority has also been pursued for its faith, banned in 1979 after the Islamic revolution.
The Baha'i faith was founded in the 1860s by Baha'u'llah, a Persian nobleman considered a prophet by his followers. Islam considers Muhammad the last of the prophets and so conservatives reject the Baha'i faith.
Previously there had been reports that as many as 48 Baha'is were imprisoned in Iran solely on the basis of their religious beliefs.
Posted by: Fred ||
02/15/2010 00:00 ||
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Lebanon says its army has opened fire on four Israeli warplanes that flew into Lebanese airspace. The Lebanese army said in a statement that its units used anti-aircraft fire Sunday to force the Israeli warplanes out of Lebanese airspace. The army said the planes were in southern Lebanon and the Beqaa Valley, in central Lebanon.
Israeli warplanes frequently fly over Lebanese airspace in what Israel says are reconnaissance missions. The overflights and violations of UN Security Council resolutions have been a constant source of tension between the two countries. Sunday's events come amid heightened tensions in the Middle East following some of the sharpest exchanges in years between Israel and its Arab neighbors.
Posted by: Fred ||
02/15/2010 00:00 ||
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#1
anyone else notice that no one else gets accused of violating UN resolutions except Israel? I s it not against some resolution for Lebanon too harbora major terrorist org like Hezbollah?
Posted by: chris ||
02/15/2010 10:08 Comments ||
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#2
TOPIX/WORLD NEWS > HEZBOLLAH WARNS AGZ ISRAELI ATTACKS ON SYRIA, IRAN. Any mil attack by Israel on same will be deemed an attack by Israel = Tel Aviv agz the Hezzies Huzzies Hizzies Hissies, requiring a proper retaliatory response.
* WORLD NEWS > HARD-LINE TO HARDER-LINE? HAMAS FACES A CHALLENGE FROM AL QAEDA-INSPIRED MILITANTS [Jihadi Salafist groups e.g. SOLDIERS OF THE MONOTHEISM BRIGADES]. Jihadi Salafists are launching strikes agz HAMAS Officios.
[Al Arabiya Latest] Opposition leader Mehdi Karroubi's wife on Sunday pleaded with Iran's supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei to take action against those who had "tortured" her son and several other detained protesters.
In an open letter, Fatemeh Karroubi, described to Khamenei what happened to her son Ali after his arrest last Thursday, the anniversary of Iran's 1979 Islamic revolution.
"The arrest of Ali was a triumph for this group who tortured him in order to intimidate other detainees," she said in the letter published on her husband's website, Sahamnews.org.
The website also published a picture of Ali with bruised back and hand.
She called on Khamenei to "take care of the situation of unknown children of this country, especially the young people arrested recently."
Iranian opposition leaders Mohammad Khatami and Karroubi also came under attack and their supporters clashed with police as vast crowds massed in Tehran on Thursday to mark the revolution anniversary.
"I persistently and humbly ask you to take care of people who have gone under tyranny. Ask the judiciary to deal with those who ordered and those who are behind the crimes in ... detention centers," Fatemeh Karroubi said.
She said "when the order came in for Ali to be released ... the officer who was torturing him said 'if you had stayed 24 hours more here, I would have delivered your dead body.'"
Karroubi, who lost to hardliner President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad in a disputed June 12 election, has repeatedly accused authorities of abusing protesters detained in jails, including raping several males and females.
Posted by: Fred ||
02/15/2010 00:00 ||
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#1
Medhi Karroubi has shown the most courage and personal integrity of Iran's opposition. His son is paying for this. There is nothing hypothetical about the "torture" to the son. You can bet it was especially brutal to intimidate the father.
They also beat Mousavi's wife.
Posted by: Frozen Al ||
02/15/2010 12:26 Comments ||
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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.
[Maghrebia] Mauritanian security services on Friday (February 12th) arrested two alleged members of al-Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb, identified as Mohamed Ould Kehli Ould Bouya Ahmed and Hadj Ould Hmoudna, after an exchange of fire in northeast Zouerate, ANI reported. The three vehicles carrying the terrorists came from Mali. One Mauritanian soldier was injured in the attack.
[Iran Press TV Latest] A female Saudi author has been reportedly murdered by her family members for expressing support for the non-Wahhabi Islamic faiths, including Shiism. 
[Bangla Daily Star] Police arrested 31 more Islami Chhatra Shibir cadres at Rajshahi and Dhaka yesterday raising the total number of Jamaat-Shibir men detained to 364 since the Rajshahi University violence on February 9.
Five Sydney men convicted of terrorism-related offences have been sentenced to maximum sentences ranging from 23 to 28 years in prison.
Asia Times Online has received a message from top guerrilla commander 
Three Lashkar-e-Taiba militants were killed in two separate encounters in Jammu and Kashmir, where a major tragedy was averted with timely detection of a powerful IED in Baramulla district on Monday, police said.
[Dawn] An explosion ripped through a busy intersection in southern Pakistan on Sunday, killing three people in an area that has avoided much of the Taliban-led violence that has plagued the country.
[Dawn] Security officials were investigating the possible involvement of suspected militants in a bomb blast in western India that killed nine people, but New Delhi said talks with Islamabad later this month would go ahead.
Four people have died in two shooting incidents in Thailand's rebellious deep south in the past two days, both incidents involving a mother and daughter, police said.
Lebanon says its army has opened fire on four Israeli warplanes that flew into Lebanese airspace. The Lebanese army said in a statement that its units used anti-aircraft fire Sunday to force the Israeli warplanes out of Lebanese airspace. The army said the planes were in southern Lebanon and the Beqaa Valley, in central Lebanon.
[Al Arabiya Latest] Opposition leader Mehdi Karroubi's wife on Sunday pleaded with Iran's supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei to take action against those who had "tortured" her son and several other detained protesters.
