[An Nahar] The French army handed over its security operation in the Malian desert city of Timbuktu to Burkina Faso ...The country in west Africa that they put where Upper Volta used to be. Its capital is Oogadooga, or something like that. Its president is currently Blaise Compaoré, who took office in 1987 and may be in the process of being chased out now... troops on Tuesday, as part of a phased withdrawal from its troubled former colony.
Al-Qaeda-linked Islamic Islamic fascisticontrolled Timbuktu along with other key northern Mali cities for nearly 10 months until being driven out by the French-led Operation Serval in January.
"Today, during an official ceremony in Timbuktu, the French troops have passed on the torch to the troops of Burkina Faso for security operations on the ground," Malian Army captain Famba Coulibaly told Agence La Belle France Presse.
The chiefs of staff of the Malian and Burkina Faso armies attended the ceremony, Coulibaly added, alongside bigwigs from Operation Serval.
He told AFP there would be 650 Burkinabes on the ground by next week.
La Belle France has begun a phased withdrawal of its 4,000 soldiers, with all but 1,000 expected to have left by the end of the year.
Chad President Idriss Deby, who sent 2,000 troops to Mali, announced last week that its forces would be staging their own withdrawal ahead of schedule from the present 6,000-strong African-led International Support Mission to Mali (AFISMA).
Posted by: Fred ||
04/24/2013 00:00 ||
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[Libya Herald] The French Institute was shut down today, following the bombing of the French embassy this morning, and tonight's film-showing has been called off.
"We have cancelled all events and closed the Institute," Director Béatrice Bertrand told the Libya Herald today. "We will have to take it day by day, but I think it will be closed for at least two or three days," she said.
This evening the institute was to have shown seven short films about life in Tripoli ...a confusing city, one end of which is located in Lebanon and the other end of which is the capital of Libya. Its chief distinction is being mentioned in the Marine Hymn... as seen through the eyes of the capital's inhabitants.
"After the bomb this morning, it is impossible to invite so many people to the institute because it could be very dangerous," Bertrand said.
"It is a pity because our work with Libyans is very good, we work very well with them," she said. Bertrand added that the institute had an excellent relationship with the community, in particular, with students, young people and artists.
"I hope we will be able to reopen in a few days," she said.
Posted by: Fred ||
04/24/2013 00:00 ||
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[Yemen Post] As a judge in Sana's, the Yemeni capital handed a sentence against 11 convicted terror gun-hung tough guys a hefty jail sentence, the al-Qaeda operatives vow they would soon get their Dire Revenge.
Judge Ahmed al-Maalami who oversaw the terror trial was openly threatened by one of the accused, Bilal al-Hababi as he handed out his verdict, six years in prison. "You apostate, you dog. We will eliminate you," cried out Bilal, while his fellow Islamists waved the infamous black al-Qaeda flag.
"Ansar al-Sharia ...a Yemeni Islamist militia which claims it is not part of al-Qaeda, even though it works about the same and for the same ends... (offshoot of al-Qaeda in Yemen) will come to show you the rule of God," he added defiantly.
Dubbed the most dangerous branch of al-Qaeda in the region, Ansar al-Sharia is said to have exchanged men, expertise and military equipment with its sister terror cell in Somalia, al-Shabaab ... the Islamic version of the old Somali warlord... .
With cells spread throughout Yemen, terror gun-hung tough guys have exponentially raised their profile since 2011, as they used Yemen's political chaos and security breakdown to their advantages, expanding not only their zone of influence but the group's ability to cause harm to state institutions.
While Yemen President Abdo Rabbo Mansour Hadi teamed up with the United States of America to crackdown on the terror group, both drone strikes and military ground operations have only but dented al-Qaeda. Strong of a reported 2000 - 3000 men according to security experts, al-Qaeda's guerrilla tactics and hit and run liquidations strikes are proving difficult to rein down on, infuriating officials.
Posted by: Fred ||
04/24/2013 00:00 ||
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[Bangla Daily Star] Three suspected robbers were killed in a 'shootout' between their cohorts and Rab members in the Sundarbans under Mongla upazila here early yesterday.
One of the dear departed was identified as Selim Hawlader, 34, a member of "Mortuja Bahini", a notorious gang of robbers.
The two others were yet to be identified.
Acting on a tip-off, members of Rapid Action Battalion (Rab)-8 raided a hideout of robbers in Mregomari canal in Chadpai range of eastern Sundarbans around 7:00am.
Spider senses tingling at the proximity of the law enforcers, the bandidos opened fire on them, compelling the elite force to retaliate, according to a Rab blurb.
The law enforcers later conducted a search in the area and found the three bullet-hit bodies lying on the ground. The other robbers, however, managed to flee the scene. ... as though they had never been... the release added.
Rab members also recovered seven firearms and over 200 rounds of bullet from the spot.
Later, police recovered the bodies and sent those to Bagerhat Sadar Hospital morgue for an appointment with Dr. Quincy.
Monirul Islam Hawlader, uncle of Selim, said he had been missing for two months.
Mozaffar Hossain, deputy assistant commissioner of Rab-8, filed two cases with Mongla Police Station.
Posted by: Fred ||
04/24/2013 00:00 ||
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#1
Why doesn't the Rantburg Shoppe have Rab-8 Coffee mugs?
[Bangla Daily Star] Yet again, police have become victims of brutal attacks.
During the hartal yesterday, opposition activists unleashed violence, injuring three cops of Bagharpara Police Station in the district.
Assistant Sub-Inspector Haidar Ali, who suffered critical head injuries, was flown to Combined Military Hospital in the capital by a Rab helicopter. His condition had deteriorated at Jessore Medical College Hospital.
His injured colleagues -- Officer-in-Charge Ramprasad Bhakta and Sub-Inspector Mafizur Rahman -- were undergoing treatment at JMCH.
Two BNP activists and a female passerby were also injured in a nearly 30-minute clash that ensued around 10:30am after the attack on the cops, said SI Jahangir of the police station.
Since February 28, when a war crimes tribunal handed down the death sentence to Delawar Hossain Sayedee, eight policemen have been killed and nearly 300 injured in clashes with Jamaat-Shibir and BNP men.
SI Jahangir said a police team went to Bhatar Amtala Bazaar on Jessore-Magura highway, some 20km off Jessore town, yesterday morning.
The OC, accompanied by SI Mafiz and ASI Haider, went to talk to a group of pickets who had barricaded the road. They left behind the other members of the team and tried to negotiate with the activists on removing the barricade.
Suddenly, some BNP men started beating the officers with sticks and bricks. ASI Haider fell on the ground; the activists kept hitting him, particularly in the head.
"Then, we started charging batons and firing blank shots to disperse the opposition cadres," Jahangir said.
Police fired eight rounds of rubber bullets, said Mustafa Kamal, assistant superintendent of police in Jessore.
Additional SP Subash Chandra Shaha said the BNP men had attacked police without any provocation.
Anwar Hossain, secretary of Bandabila union BNP, said Tito, a BNP activist, was accidentally injured by the OC. The incident made the locals angry and they beat up the policemen.
Another activist, Bablu, was also injured in police firing, he added. Oh, noze! Not Babbalu! And Lucy wanted to be in the show!
Reba Khatun, a roadside hotelier of the bazar, who was injured when hit by rubber bullets, said police started firing as the BNP men beat them up with sticks.
The 36-hartal that began yesterday was called by the BNP-led 18-party opposition alliance immediately after a Dhaka court on Sunday denied bail to seven top BNP leaders in seven cases.
Posted by: Fred ||
04/24/2013 00:00 ||
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RAB has a helicopter? Could an upazilla-circling drone be next? A 0330 airborne shutter gun strike against unnamed miscreants. My cockles are warmed at the mere thought...
[Bangla Daily Star] As the clock struck 10:30pm, Razin and Hitol decided to return home. The two -- both leaders of Chhatra League ... the student wing of the Bangla Awami League ... -- on a bike headed for home from Shibganj Bazar in Chapainawabganj, not knowing what lurked on the way.
When they arrived near Vanga Bridge area, around 10 alleged Jamaat-Shibir men, appearing from the nearby mango orchards, waylaid them. In no time, they started hacking the duo with machetes and other sharp weapons.
The attackers almost severed Razin's right ankle and hacked Hitol's legs with sharp weapons. Razin's ankle had to be amputated to save his life.
The incident happened in Shibganj upazila of Chapainawabganj on Saturday night.
Kabirul Haque Razin, 37, is the ex-president of Shibganj upazila unit BCL and Motiur Rahman Hitol is the general secretary of Shibganj municipality unit BCL.
Razin will take months to recover, said his cousin Muktadir Rahman Shimul, quoting doctors of Apollo Hospital.
Hitol, who is undergoing treatment at Pongu hospital, said: "My fault is that I am a Chhatra League leader and an activist of Gonojagoron Mancha."
The 30-year-old looked frightened as he described the attack to this correspondent yesterday, lying on his hospital bed.
"Some of them said, 'Kill him'. Others said, 'Cut him into pieces' while yet others screamed, 'Beat him in a way that he can walk never again,'" he recalled.
The attackers hacked away at both his legs and his head indiscriminately.
Police jugged I ain't sayin' nuttin' widdout me mout'piece! seven people in this connection but were yet to file a case, said Mizanur Rahman, officer-in-charge of Shibganj Police Station.
Meanwhile, ...back at the wreckage, Captain Poindexter awoke groggily, his hand still stuck in the Ming vase... on Sunday, the day after the incident, BCL activists demonstrated at Shibganj Bazar in protest at the attack on Razin and Hitol.
BCL activist AK Fosiul Alam Jumma was one of the demonstrators. On his way home around 5:30pm, he came under attacks by 10-12 masked criminals who cut off the tendons of his left hand.
"They tried to sever my hand but failed as locals rushed to my rescue," he told The Daily Star at the National Institute of Cardiovascular Diseases in the capital yesterday.
He blamed Jamaat-Shibir and BNP activists for the attack.
Earlier on April 2, Jamaat-Shibir men allegedly swooped on Kansat union councillor Ariful Islam at Academy intersection of Shibganj upazila.
The criminals hacked Ariful, also the JSD general secretary of its Shibganj upazila unit, at least 20 times and cut off the tendons of his left leg and the thumb of his left hand, said doctors at the Pongu hospital where he was undergoing treatment in a critical condition.
Since February 28, the day Jamaat leader Delwar Hossain Sayeedi ...Islamic orator and politician. He was a former Member of Parliament in the National Assembly of Bangladesh from 1996 to 2008, and is one of the most prominent leaders of the Bangladesh Jamaat-e-Islami... was handed down the death sentence for war crimes, Jamaat-Shibir men have critically maimed at least 10 Chhatra League and Juba League activists in the upazila, said a local BCL leader.
Posted by: Fred ||
04/24/2013 00:00 ||
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[Jpost] US Sherlocks are trying to trace the contacts and movements in the United States of Chiheb Esseghaier, a Tunisian doctoral student in Canada who is one of two suspects tossed in the slammer ... anything you say can and will be used against you, whether you say it or not... by Canadian authorities for allegedly plotting to derail a passenger train.
Sources close to the investigation said on Tuesday that Esseghaier, a Montreal resident, had made several trips to the United States. US Sherlocks are now trying to locate and check out people he might have met, the sources said.
One US official said Sherlocks were concerned that some of his contacts in the United States could be Orcs and similar vermin or krazed killers, although the source provided no details. I can say no more! Another official acknowledged that "loose ends" in the investigation were still being pursued in the United States.
Esseghaier and another man charged with an alleged al-Qaeda-backed plot to derail a Canadian passenger train made their first court appearances on Tuesday, and the lawyer for one said his client would fight the charges vigorously.
They were arrested on Monday in separate raids after what police said was an investigation that started in the middle of last year after a tip from a member of the Mohammedan community.
Which means [to Russian Intelligence at least] Tsarnaev enjoyed high enough priority as a potential terrorist or criminal to track and monitor continuously [but curiously, not arrest or detain]. One might assume that US Intelligence and Law Enforcement would extended no less a priority, or even have requested the assistance and reporting of host nation intelligence. I am beginning to catch a whiff of a bi-lateral counter-terrorism operation.
Posted by: Frozen Al ||
04/24/2013 12:46 Comments ||
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#3
The big question I have, and I hope someone on the Rant with more knowledge could comment on this, is: How is he re-entering Russia and going from Moscow to Makhachkala without the Russians somehow getting active. They already pinged him on a previous visit and told us. Then he re-enters and travels to a hot bed region and meets with people who are surely under surveillance. My theory is the Russians wanted this, they've wanted us in the N. Caucusus since 2003 and they want US access to the the Caucusus to flow through, and be regulated by, Moscow and not Tbilisi. Any insight anyone could offer I would appreciate.
#4
jefe101, I read the article as speaking about one trip from the U.S. to Russia, and within it several trips back and forth between cities before returning to Moscow to fly home to Boston. According to the article also, our lad was not the Russian target, but someone with whom there target met. It was a kindness that they attempted to inform us -- perhaps if they'd talked to the CIA station chief in Moscow instead, they'd have gotten a better reception.
#5
Thank you for your insight TW. My understanding is that in '11 FSB pegged him as someone to watch and asked the FBI to look into it. What happened with that we really don't know. But in '12 he returned to Russia, spent time in Doggystan and met a few times then with at least one FSB POI. If he pinged in '11, wouldn't his '12 activity have brought him higher up on the radar for Russia. If the FSB talked to us in '11, why wouldn't his elevated contact/activity level merit equal or greater FSB intervention, after all he is not an American, but actually still a Russian citizen. They can do whatever they want and often do in this part of Russia.
#6
Good points, jefe101. I don't know much about that part of the world, I'm afraid, and I'm not very good at following the kind of paranoid, byzantine thinking necessary to understand such people, let alone trying to anticipate, as you are.
[Al Ahram] A total of 264 people have been treated in Boston area hospitals for injuries suffered in the marathon kabooms, the city's public health commission said Tuesday.
The toll, up from around 200 on Monday, has been rising because people who suffered minor injuries in the blasts last week are only now going in for treatment, said commission spokeswoman Katinka Podmaniczky.
As of Tuesday morning, a total of 51 people remained hospitalized, she told AFP.
The blasts, allegedly carried out by two ethnic Chechens living legally in the United States, killed three people, one of them an eight-year-old boy.
The surviving suspect, 19-year-old Dzorkhar Tsarnaev, himself remains hospitalized with gunshot wounds. He has been charged with using a weapon of mass destruction and could face the death penalty if convicted.
Posted by: Fred ||
04/24/2013 00:00 ||
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If information existed that could have prevented the bombing but was held up by communications gaps between intelligence agencies, that would be a strong case against the growth of the Department of Homeland Security, which was specifically created to facilitate intelligence sharing between intelligence agencies in the aftermath of September 11, 2001.
Well, Shirley, that ain't possible!
Posted by: Bobby ||
04/24/2013 6:42 Comments ||
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#2
Is Jamie Gorelick still working part-time for the DoJ?
#3
It is actually fairly easy to reconcile Big Sis' statement that Tamerlan "pinged" on their database and the FBI's claim that they had no record of him traveling to Russia.
The FBI is in the DOJ and has different computer systems than Homeland Security. It's entirely possible that the systems don't interact.
One thing that's disturbing is the claim he was missed because someone mispelled his name. This has happened several times already with other terrorists.
When I was working on the warrant system for California, we stored both the suspect's written name and a phonetic name to handle this kind of problem. That way "Read", "Reed" and "Ried" would all have the same phonetic value.
We had this in the 1980's. I can't believe that Federal law enforcement doesn't have this in 2013.
Posted by: Frozen Al ||
04/24/2013 13:14 Comments ||
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[An Nahar] A letter possibly laced with the deadly poison ricin was found at a U.S. airbase Tuesday as a man charged with sending a similar letter to the White House was released on bond, officials said.
The letter discovered at Bolling Air Force Base outside Washington comes a week after three others were intercepted on their way to President Barack Obama We're gonna punish our enemies and we're gonna reward our friends who stand with us on issues that are important to us... , a U.S. senator and a Mississippi official.
"We've had another incident today, I'm told, at Bolling Air Force Base, the same substance," Senator Harry Reid ... the charismatic senator-for-life from Nevada, currently majority leader ... told news hounds.
The letter was discovered Tuesday morning during routine screening of incoming mail, said the Defense Intelligence Agency, which is headquartered at Bolling.
Initial tests "indicate possible biological toxins," the agency said in a statement that did not name the toxin.
"Prudent screening methods and force protection measures were implemented to prevent personnel from being harmed," the agency said, adding that it has "maintained normal operations."
Paul Kevin Curtis, 45, was tossed in the calaboose Yez got nuttin' on me, coppers! Nuttin'! by the FBI at his home in Corinth, Mississippi last week and charged with threatening the life of the president.
His lawyer insisted Tuesday that they found the wrong man, noting that the FBI could find "nothing" in Curtis's home or on his computer to link him to the letters.
"We have maintained from the beginning ... that Kevin Curtis is absolutely 100 percent innocent," Christi McCoy told CNN.
Posted by: Fred ||
04/24/2013 00:00 ||
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A letter possibly laced with the deadly poison ricin was found at a U.S. airbase Tuesday as a man charged with sending a similar letter to the White House was released on bond, officials said.
A U.S. airbase with no aeroplanes, but a large multi-billion dollar agency filled with Senior Executive Service employees, charged with intelligence collection and analysis. Save yourselves DIA, run for the GATE!
Ricin Suspect Released: Well if not Paul Kevin Curtis, perhaps the late Richard Jewell, Randy Weaver, or Steven Hatfill mailed the nasty envelopes ?
[Dawn] An abandoned car filled with arms and explosives was found near the Chak Shehzad residence of former military ruler Gen (r) Pervez Perv Musharraf ... former dictator of Pakistain, who was less dictatorial and corrupt than any Pak civilian government to date ... on Tuesday.
The Suzuki Mehran car was taken into custody by security personnel as probe into the incident went underway.
Police said 40 kilograms of explosives, along with two detonators and hand grenades, were found from the abandoned car.
Former president Musharraf is facing life threats from the Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistain (TTP) who had set up a special death squad to target former Pak president General (retd) Pervez Musharraf upon his arrival.
The All Pakistain Mohammedan League (APML) chief is under detention on judicial remand at his Chak-Shehzad residence, which was declared as a sub-jail after a court had earlier cancelled protective bail granted to him on April 18 over the judges detention case.
Posted by: Fred ||
04/24/2013 00:00 ||
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#1
The Suzuki Mehran car was taken into custody by security personnel as probe into the incident went underway.
Kinda reminds me of the Saturday Night Live news-skit where Secret Service agents wrestled an airplane door to the ground after it 'attacked' President Ford.
[Dawn] At least four people were killed and more than thirty others injured in a powerful kaboom in Nichari road area of Quetta, while a bomb kaboom in Bloody Karachi ...formerly the capital of Pakistain, now merely its most important port and financial center. It is among the largest cities in the world, with a population of 18 million, most of whom hate each other and many of whom are armed and dangerous... has killed two people and injured several others.
Mir Zubair Mehmood, the Capital City Police Officer in Quetta told Dawn.com that the casualties were due to suicide kaboom.
"Yes it was a suicide kaboom", the CCPO confirmed. He said around a dozen shops and two houses were also destroyed in the powerful blast.
However, a clean conscience makes a soft pillow... security officials said two frontier corps personnel were also among the dead. They said that the jacket wallah rammed his explosive laden vehicle in a wall near a frontier corps check post.
The bomb disposal squad told Dawn.com that 80 to 100 kilogram of kabooms were used in the attack. The strength of blast jolted nearby areas and its loud and powerful sound was heard far and wide in Quetta city.
This blast came in the aftermath of three coordinated blasts which left eight people injured in the city. There was no immediate claim of responsibility.
Karachi bomb kaboom
Meanwhile, ...back at the desert island, Irene was indignant at the thought of doing such a thing without benefit of clergy... in Karachi a bomb went kaboom! near the election camp of a political party, leaving two people dead and several others injured.
The blast took place at Peoples Chowrangi after which several shops were closed down.
SSP Imran Shaukat addressed the media and confirmed the two fatalities.
Posted by: Fred ||
04/24/2013 00:00 ||
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#2
At least four people were killed and more than thirty others injured in a powerful kaboom in Nichari road area of Quetta, while a bomb kaboom in Bloody Karachi has killed two people and injured several others
otherwise known as: "Tuesday...Allahu Akhbar!"
Posted by: Frank G ||
04/24/2013 9:28 Comments ||
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[Dawn] At least three people died in rain-related accidents, a paper of SSC examination was delayed and routine life was badly affected as thunderstorm hit the city on Monday afternoon.
An official at the Pakistain Meteorological Department said that the city received approximately 41 millimetres (over 1.5 inches) of rainfall during a one-and-a-half-hour spell that began at around 12.30pm and stopped at around 2pm.
He said that the weather in the city on Tuesday was expected to remain partly cloudy with chances of light rain/thunderstorm.
A 45-year-old woman and a six-year-old boy were electrocuted during two rain-related accidents in Liaquatabad No 1 and Baldia Town No 8.
In another incident, a young man died when a wall collapsed on him in Nazimabad No 7.
The sudden rain caused trouble for motorists, as almost all thoroughfares got inundated resulting in traffic jams.
The Board of Secondary Education, Bloody Karachi ...formerly the capital of Pakistain, now merely its most important port and financial center. It is among the largest cities in the world, with a population of 18 million, most of whom hate each other and many of whom are armed and dangerous... , which is conducting the SSC annual examinations these days, was forced to delay the Civics (Elective) paper due to the rain.
Officials said that the vehicles deputed to deliver question papers were trapped in the traffic jams and could not reach their destinations on time. Besides, a large number of students also experienced severe problems to reach their respective examination centres.
The examination centres in Gulshan-e-Hadeed were probably the last ones to get the question papers. However, today is that tomorrow you were thinking about yesterday... invigilators and examination centre bosses, keeping in view the time lost due to a delayed arrival of papers, allowed students more time to complete their papers.
Karachi Metropolitan Corporation Administrator Hashim Zaidi declared a rain emergency on Monday and cancelled the leave of all KMC staffers concerned.
He also visited various areas, including the airport, Natha Khan bridge, Malir 15, Sharea Faisal, FTC bridge, Laiquatabad, Nazimabad underpasses, KDA Chowrangi, old city areas, etc, to inspect work to drain out accumulated rainwater.
Meanwhile, ...back at the laboratory the smoke and fumes had dispersed, to reveal an ominous sight... Karachi Water and Sewerage Board chief Misbah Farid urged the people not to open or break manhole covers to drain out rainwater, as it would choke the main lines and severely affect the sewerage system.
The met official said that Saddar received 38 millimetres of rainfall, North Nazimabad received 35mm; PAF Base Masroor received 13mm; Gulistan-e-Jauhar 10mm; PAF Base Faisal 8mm and Landhi 5mm.
He said that the minimum temperature recorded on Monday was 26.8 degrees Celsius, maximum temperature recorded was 35 degrees Celsius and humidity was 69 per cent.
He said that maximum temperature on Tuesday was expected to remain between 32 and 34 degrees Celsius.
According to the Met Office website, Hyderabad received 21mm rain; Jacobabad 12mm; Sukkur 3mm, Larkana 2mm and Badin received traces.
Meanwhile, ...back at the the precinct, Lieutenant Queeg was stumped. Who could be leaking Mahoney's information like that?... police said that Najma, 45, wife of Iqbal, was electrocuted in Liaquatabad when an electric wire snapped near her house. The body was moved to the Abbasi Shaheed Hospital for his appointment with Doctor Quincy.
Six-year-old Naimat Khan, a resident of Keamari Town, was electrocuted in Baldia Town No 8. The body was brought to the Civil Hospital Karachi for a post-mortem examination.
Twenty-three-old Danish Ali was killed when a wall of his house collapsed in Nazimabad No 7. He was rushed to the nearby Abbasi Shaheed Hospital where he was pronounced dead. He's dead, Jim! by doctors.
Posted by: Fred ||
04/24/2013 00:00 ||
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[Jpost] Israeli Embassy in Kathmandu apprehends Iranian man who made "frequent, suspicious visits" to the embassy area.
Security personnel from Israel's embassy in Kathmandu have jugged Drop the gat, Rocky, or you're a dead 'un! an Iranian who was engaged in surveillance of the embassy in Nepal's capital city.
"Arik, fetch me the mustache wax and my favourite #7 truncheon. And some strong coffee and cookies -- this may take a while."
"And the special supplies on a tray and your laptop as well, Yossi? The home office flew in something new just for this one."
Israel's Channel 2 and the news website Himalayan reported on Monday that the Iranian, Mohsin Khosravian, is in police custody, having being transferred to the Nepalese police force by Israeli security.
According to the Himalayan article, based on a Sunday report in the local Annapurna Post, Nepalese authorities arrested Khosravian on April 13.
The Himalayan cited Israeli security officials from the embassy who expressed concern ...meaning the brow was mildly wrinkled, the eyebrows drawn slightly together, and a thoughtful expression assumed, not that anything was actually done or indeed that any thought was actually expended... s that the Iranian intended to cause harm to the embassy because "he carried a tourist map of the Lazimpat area" where the Israeli diplomatic facility is located. The paper reported that the man stayed in a hotel in the Thamel area of the capital city.
The Nepal Police's Central Bureau of Investigation and Special Bureau initiated an investigation into his activities and possible terrorist connections due to his "frequent and suspicious visits" to the area of the Israeli Embassy, said the report.
The Himalayan article noted that Khosravian had hidden his Iranian passport and used a fake Israeli one and the name Alexander to secure an "arrival" visa at the Tribhuvan International Airport on April 3.
The Annapurna Post said that the Iranian man had lived in Bangkok, Thailand, since 2004, and is married to a Thai woman. The suspicious activity surfaced after Khosravian's wife and two Iranian relatives arrived in Kathmandu from Bangkok on Friday for a meeting with him. Khosravian apparently obtained his false Israeli passport in Kuala Lumpur and, according to the results of the Nepalese investigation, used his Iranian passport to enter Malaysia on March 31.
The media in Nepal reported that he told authorities that he gave up his garment business and entered Nepal on his way to Europe to file an asylum application.
Speaking from Washington, Dr. Matthew Levitt, director of the Stein Program on Counterterrorism and Intelligence at the Washington Institute for Near East Policy, told The Jerusalem Post in a telephone interview on Monday that this type of Iranian surveillance has "been going on for a while." It is part of the Iranian government and its proxies' "ongoing shadow war with the West over Iran's nuclear program," he added.
Shortly ahead of Passover, Israel's National Security Council's counterterrorism bureau issued a warning that a global Shi'ite terrorism network made up of Iranian Quds Force and Hezbollah operatives continues to target Israelis overseas.
The bureau has designated 27 countries as being under a travel alert of varying severity.
Turkey, Kenya, Nigeria and Azerbaijan have been classified under the "ongoing potential threat" category, which is the third most severe warning type.
Dozens of terrorist attacks around the world have been thwarted this year, a bureau source said in March, adding that Iran and Hezbollah have clearly divided up attacks between them. Iranian agents target Israeli embassies and official state symbols -- as in New Delhi in 2012. Hezbollah, on the other hand, attempts the murder of less-protected Israeli tourists -- as occurred in Burgas last year, resulting in the deaths of five Israelis and a Bulgarian bus driver.
"Shi'ite terrorism is a threat to Israeli citizens and Diaspora Jews," the NSC said in its warning. "The threat is being sponsored by Iran and Hezbollah. Over the past two years, there has been an increased effort to carry out attacks. We are identifying a systematic campaign operating with the greatest vigor... They are fully coordinated. It is one axis."
Additionally, Israel has been in touch with foreign governments and local police officials in countries such as Cyprus (where a Hezbollah operative was convicted last month of plotting to murder Israeli tourists), Greece, Turkey, Thailand and India.
The source said countries hosting large numbers of Israeli tourists have been contacted by Israel requesting a beefedup security presence. One such meeting was held this past February in India, where some 45,000 Israeli tourists head every year.
India and Nepal are popular destinations for Israeli tourists.
The counterterrorism source said in March that the bureau was not telling Israelis to stay at home, but rather to exercise caution as they enjoy their overseas vacations.
Posted by: trailing wife ||
04/24/2013 00:00 ||
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Clashes erupted Wednesday between the Iraqi army and armed Sunni tribesmen who sealed off a central Iraqi town, leaving 22 dead, just a day after a bloody incident involving soldiers and protesters set off fighting that killed 56 people.
Other violence Wednesday killed 13.
The unrest is heightening Sunni-Shiite tensions and raising fears that the country could be headed toward a new round of all-out sectarian violence.
Wednesday's fighting broke out after tribesmen blocked roads leading to the Sunni town of Qara Tappah, about 120 kilometers (75 miles) northeast of Baghdad.
Iraqi troops arrived to try to clear the city. Fierce clashes erupted, and helicopters fired at the gunmen. Police say 15 gunmen and seven soldiers were killed.
In other violence, three gunmen were killed when they attacked a security checkpoint near the former al-Qaida stronghold of Mosul, about 360 kilometers (225 miles) northwest of Baghdad.
[Dawn] Clashes on Tuesday in north Iraq between security forces and anti-government protesters allegedly infiltrated by snuffies left 27 people dead and about 70 injured, top army officers said.
The festivities are just the latest violence between security forces and demonstrators in recent months, and will likely further increase tensions between protesters and the government.
They broke out around 5:00 am when security forces entered an open area in Hawijah, west of Kirkuk, ... a thick stew of Arabs, Turkmen, Kurds, and probably Antarcticans, all of them mutually hostile most of the time... where demonstrations have been held since January, and the high-ranking officers said.
One of the officers, a brigadier general from the division responsible for the area, said the operation was aimed at Sunni snuffies from a group known as the Naqshbandiya Army, and that security forces only opened fire after they were fired upon.
A second officer said that 34 Kalashnikov assault rifles and four PKM machineguns were recovered at the scene.
Two soldiers were killed and seven maimed in the operation, they said. The remainder were some combination of protesters and bad turbans, according to the army officers.
The violence came just hours after United Nations ...a formerly good idea gone bad... envoy Martin Kobler called for restraint on both sides in Hawijah, where tensions have been ratcheting up.
"I encourage the Iraqi security forces to exercise the utmost self-restraint in maintaining law and order and the demonstrators to continue to preserve the peaceful character of the demonstrations," Kobler said in a statement.
Protesters have taken to the streets in Sunni-majority areas of Iraq for more than four months, calling for the resignation of Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki and decrying the alleged targeting of their minority community by the Shia-led authorities.
Tuesday was not the first time that the demonstrations have turned deadly -- security forces killed a protester in the north Iraq city of djinn-infested Mosul on March 8, and eight demonstrators near Fallujah, ... the City of Mosques, which might have somthing to do with why it's not called Center of Prosperity or a really nice place to raise your kids... west of Storied Baghdad ...located along the Tigris River, founded in the 8th century, home of the Abbasid Caliphate... , on January 25.
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04/24/2013 00:00 ||
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[An Nahar] Two Grad rockets ...Soviet-developed 122-mm rockets, usually launched from trucks. Newer versions are reported to have a range of up to 30 km.... fired from Syrian territories on Tuesday went kaboom! on the outskirts of Leb's Hermel town district, causing material damage only.
According to the state-run National News Agency, one of the rockets landed in al-Maali area, damaging and under construction building.
However, nothing needs reforming like other people's bad habits... the news agency said that the second rocket wasn't located yet.
Fire from the conflict in neighboring Syria has regularly spilled over into Leb, killing two people in the most recent incident on April 14. Both rebel forces and regime troops have reportedly been involved in such fire.
Officially, Leb is observing a neutral stance towards the conflict pitting rebels against the regime of Hereditary President-for-Life Bashir Pencilneck al-Assad Before going into the family business Pencilneck was an eye doctor. If he'd stuck with it he'd have had a good practice by now... , but the uprising has inflamed tensions in the country's multi-confessional population.
The March 14 opposition movement has backed the uprising, while the Hizbullah and its allies support Assad.
Damascus ...The City of Jasmin is the oldest continuously-inhabited city in the world. It has not always been inhabited by the same set of fascisti... has said rebel fighters and weapons are crossing into Syria from Leb, while rebel forces accuse Hizbullah of intervening in the conflict by dispatching its fighters to battle alongside government troops.
Posted by: Fred ||
04/24/2013 00:00 ||
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[An Nahar] The United States designated two Lebanese foreign exchange firms as significant money launderers on Tuesday, saying they "moved money for narcos and benefited Hizbullah."
The U.S. Treasury named Kassem Rmeiti & Co. For Exchange and Halawi Exchange Co. for sanctions which freeze any assets they have on U.S. soil and ban Americans and U.S. businesses from any transactions with them.
It said both had been used to move money by the Ayman Joumaa narcotics network, a primary target in recent years of U.S. law enforcement, since the Treasury cracked down on the Lebanese Canadian Bank in 2011 for its alleged money laundering activities.
After sanctions deprived the Lebanese Canadian Bank access to key parts of the global financial system, the Treasury said, the Joumaa group used Kassem Rmeiti and Halawi to move its money, including passing millions through other banks into the United States to buy used cars, which are then exported to West Africa.
Both were linked to Benin-based money launderers and drug groups, according to the Treasury.
Both were also tied by the Treasury to money transfers for Hizbullah or the party's officials.
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04/24/2013 00:00 ||
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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.
Harry Reid
Pervez 
[Dawn] At least three people died in rain-related accidents, a paper of SSC examination was delayed and routine life was badly affected as thunderstorm hit the city on Monday afternoon.
Hereditary President-for-Life Bashir 
