[Dawn] Afghanistan's Caped PresidentHamid Maybe I'll join the Taliban Karzai ... A former Baltimore restaurateur, now 12th and current President of Afghanistan, displacing the legitimate president Rabbani in December 2004. He was installed as the dominant political figure after the removal of the Taliban regime in late 2001 in a vain attempt to put a Pashtun face on the successor state to the Taliban. After the 2004 presidential election, he was declared president regardless of what the actual vote count was. He won a second, even more dubious, five-year-term after the 2009 presidential election. His grip on reality has been slipping steadily since around 2007, probably from heavy drug use... left Tuesday for talks in Brussels with top US and Pak officials aimed at reviving faltering efforts to bring peace to his country.
Karzai's office says patience is running out with Pakistain, seen by the West as a key player in brokering peace with Taliban bully boyz who have been battling the Kabul government and US-led foreign forces since 2001.
US Secretary of State John F. I was in Vietnam, you know Kerry Former Senator-for-Life from Massachussetts, self-defined war hero, speaker of French, owner of a lucky hat, conqueror of Cambodia, and current Secretary of State... will host Wednesday's talks between Karzai and Pakistain's army chief General Ashfaq Kayani ... four star general, current Chief of Army Staff of the Mighty Pak Army. Kayani is the former Director General of ISI... , along with other bigwigs on both sides.
Kerry said Monday the aim was to "try to talk about how we can advance this process in the simplest, most cooperative, most cogent way" to satisfy Pakistain's and Afghanistan's interests and end up with "a stable and peaceful Afghanistan".
Relations between Islamabad and Kabul, strained for years, appeared to make headway earlier in the year but have once again nosedived. The Taliban still refuse in public to negotiate with Karzai's government.
"Pakistain has not taken practical measures towards the Afghan grinding of the peace processor so far. Afghans are running out of patience," Karzai's front man Aimal Faizi said Monday.
Posted by: Fred ||
04/24/2013 00:00 ||
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[An Nahar] Verification of a Sudan and South Sudan pullout from a border buffer zone has to await the arrival of more than 1,000 United Nations ...an international organization whose stated aim of facilitating interational security involves making sure that nobody with live ammo is offended unless it's a civilized country... peacekeepers, a U.N. commander said in documents released Tuesday.
The two countries, which battled on their undemarcated frontier a year ago, had an April 5 deadline to withdraw forces from the Safe Demilitarized Border Zone dividing them.
"Until ground verification is carried out, no definite findings can be reached about the redeployment of forces from both sides," area force commander General Yohannes Tesfamariam reported to a meeting of the two countries on Monday and Tuesday in Æthiopia.
The African Union ...a union consisting of 53 African states, most run by dictators of one flavor or another. The only all-African state not in the AU is Morocco. Established in 2002, the AU is the successor to the Organisation of African Unity (OAU), which was even less successful... released a copy of Tesfamariam's briefing.
He said land patrols can take place once the U.N. Security Council authorizes an additional 1,126 peacekeepers to protect a group of border monitors from Sudan, South Sudan and the U.N..
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04/24/2013 00:00 ||
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[An Nahar] An adviser to President Mohamed Morsi has submitted his resignation in protest at the running of the state and the "failure" of the government, Egyptian media announced on Tuesday.
"Mohamed Fuad Gadallah, presidential adviser on judicial affairs, is resigning," the public television channel Nile News said.
"The presidency is studying the resignation submitted by Mohamed Fuad Gadallah to the president of the republic on Monday," state news agency MENA said, citing a front man for Morsi.
Independent daily Al-Masri Al-Yom, which published the resignation letter, said Gadallah was protesting against "the absence of any clear vision for running the state" and over the government's "political, economic and security failure".
Gadallah was also acting against "attempts to kill off the powers of the judiciary and finish off its independence".
Posted by: Fred ||
04/24/2013 00:00 ||
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[Al Ahram] An Egyptian appeal judge has ordered the release of 30 individuals, including one US and one Syrian national, nabbed Youse'll never take me alive coppers!... [BANG!]... Ow!... I quit! in Friday's protest in Cairo against Egypt's judiciary.
On Tuesday, however, the public prosecutor's office appealed the decision to release the detainees, according to Judge Hamdi Mansour of the Central Cairo prosecutor's office.
On Sunday, the public prosecutor's office ordered the detention of 30 individuals for a four-day period pending investigation. The move followed violent festivities that erupted in Cairo when unidentified elements attacked protesters affiliated with the Moslem Brüderbund during Friday's demonstration.
Thousands of protesters, mainly Moslem Brüderbund members and supporters, staged a rally at Egypt's High Court in downtown Cairo on Friday to demand a "purge" of the judiciary from Mubarak-appointed judges. At least 87 people were maimed in the ensuing violence.
On its official website, the Moslem Brüderbund's Freedom and Justice Party accused Egypt's anarchist-inspired 'Black Bloc' group of instigating the violence on Friday.
Those detained were accused of unlawful assembly, resisting authorities, thuggery and possession of unlicensed firearms.
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04/24/2013 00:00 ||
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[Libya Herald] Security of diplomatic missions 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 well as government institutions is being beefed up, Interior Minister Ashour Shuwail said this afternoon. He was responding to the bombing of the French Embassy in Tripoli this morning.
"We regret the bombing incident and also the damage it did to the neighbouring houses. Truly it was a very sad sight," he said, following a visit to the site. "We have stepped up the security of the state institutions and diplomatic missions. A joint investigation committee has also been set up, consisting of members from the Crime Investigation Department, Intelligence, Tripoli police force, Supreme Security Committee Tripoli branch and the Diplomatic Task Force. Additionally a French team of experts will be helping the joint investigation committee. We will soon know the details but with the impact it looks like a lot of explosives were used."
Countering claims by local residents that the security forces took their time to respond to the bombing -- reports vary between 45 minutes to two hours -- Shuwail said that the Ministry was quick to respond, with all the relevant persons being informed shortly after the blast, which occurred around 7.10 am. An investigation team had visited the scene to gather details about the kaboom.
Referring to the casualties, he said the two injured French gendarmes were immediately taken to hospital. One was discharged straightway. The other with serious injuries was being treated.
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04/24/2013 00:00 ||
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[Libya Herald] A white vehicle is thought be one of three involved in this morning's kaboom on the French embassy.
The vehicles were caught on a neighbours's security cameras arriving outside the embassy at around 7.05 am. According to the neighbour, a shout of "Alahu Akhbar" was heard coming from the direction of the white vehicle.
There are not further details as yet.
It is not known if one or more boom-mobiles were detonated up in the attack.
Meanwhile, ...back at the Esquimeau village our hero was receiving a quick lesson in aeronautics...... a host of government ministers and security official headed to the site to see for themselves what had happened, among them Deputy Prime Minister Awad Barasi and Interior Minister Ashour Shuwail.
Asked if he was aware of any specific threats made against the French embassy, Shawail said that intelligence reports would be part of the enquiry. "We have to wait and see. Invstigations are at an early stage'" he said.
"Security will be tightened," as a result of the attack, he said.
Neighbours have pointed out that there were no Libyan security guards on duty outside the embassy at the time of the blast. This has drawn criticism. According to one source, the attack occurred during the guards' shift change.
Posted by: Fred ||
04/24/2013 00:00 ||
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#1
According to the neighbour, a shout of "Alahu Akhbar" was heard coming from the direction of the white vehicle
AKA: the traditional Maori war cry.
Posted by: Frank G ||
04/24/2013 9:33 Comments ||
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[Bangla Daily Star] Today, a majority of college going teenagers are sitting at home with open books and tired minds -- HSC exams are again postponed due to the 36 hour hartal ... a peculiarly Bangla combination of a general strike and a riot, used by both major political groups in lieu of actual governance ... s. The children of the slums are waiting for their fathers to come home with food but most likely they will not be satisfied when the parents return with empty hands, the young ones will go another day half-fed -- their fathers, laborers by profession, do not have much work when strikes loom over this land.
In yesterday's Daily Star the news of HSC exams being pushed to May 10-11 from April 23-24 was reported. In that same report, pre-hartal destruction of properties, fearful minds returning home amidst thin traffic the night before the 36-hour hartals, the decreasing incomes of laborers resulting them to go into deeper financial deprivation, were also covered. The echo of frustration from the different segments of the population, rich, poor and the ones in the middle, was voiced once again.
Those who have seen this land go through phases of political turmoil might still call this a bad time. But we think about the others, the youth, the generation to come who are growing up seeing vandalized properties, torched cars and buses, fear in their parents eyes, push back in major exams which hold the key to the next phase of their lives and there are the hungry little stomachs roaming around, perhaps trying to understand the meaning of it all. What could be so urgent with these hartals, violence and demands that has the power to stop the growth, physically and mentally, of the country's youth?
Isn't it time, to look at the future, to think about what we are teaching our children, what affect will this time leave on their minds? Isn't it time that we measure the bitterness and digression and stop and consider, we think it is, it definitely is that time.
Posted by: Fred ||
04/24/2013 00:00 ||
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#1
sounds like a Bangla Sequester
Posted by: Frank G ||
04/24/2013 9:34 Comments ||
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[An Nahar] The British government faced a fresh setback on Tuesday in its long-running legal battle to deport radical preacher Abu Qatada, but insisted it would not give up trying to send him to Jordan.
The Court of Appeal refused ministers permission to challenge its ruling last month that the terror suspect, also known as Omar Othman, cannot be deported to Jordan because of human rights One man's rights are another man's existential threat. concerns.
"The Court of Appeal has refused permission" to the government to take the case to the highest court in the land, the Supreme Court, a front man for the Judicial Office told Agence La Belle France Presse.
However, if you can't be a good example, then you'll just have to be a horrible warning... the refusal is not fatal to the case because ministers are entitled to ask the Supreme Court directly to hear their appeal -- and officials indicated they would do exactly that.
"We are disappointed with the Court of Appeal's decision but will now request permission to appeal directly from the Supreme Court," a front man for the interior ministry said.
"The government remains committed to deporting this dangerous man and we continue to work with the Jordanians to address the outstanding legal issues preventing deportation."
There is huge frustration in London over the failure to deport a man considered "an exceptionally high-risk terrorist", who has successfully blocked his removal for eight years.
A Spanish judge once branded him the right-hand man in Europe of the late Osama bin Laden ... who used to be alive but now he's not... , although Abu Qatada denies ever meeting the late al-Qaeda leader.
The preacher was convicted in Jordan of terrorism charges in his absence, and is likely to face a retrial if he is returned.
But the European Court of Human Rights last year blocked his deportation over fears that evidence obtained through torture would be used against him in the new trial.
Posted by: Fred ||
04/24/2013 00:00 ||
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#1
"Er, he went for a midnight walk and never came back?"
[IsraelTimes] French rabbi and his son were stabbed Tuesday morning at a Gay Paree synagogue in the city's 9th arrondissement by an Iranian psychiatric hospital runaway yelling "holy shit! Allahu akbar."
The insane act out in the ways society trains them to do, just as different cultures respond differently to getting drunk.. In medieval times they saw angels, now Muslims experience Sudden Jihad Syndrome.
Citing a member of the congregation who was attending the morning prayer services during the attack, the French news agency JSSNews reported that the attacker entered the Gay Paree synagogue on la rue Saulnier and injured "Rabbi Baroukh" and his son in an liquidation attempt.
The rabbi was identified Philippe Baroukh, 50.
Baroukh and his son, 18, were stabbed in the neck, according to French newspaper Le Monde. The father was lightly injured.
According to torahbox.com, the attack took place at the Beth-El synagogue. Neither Baroukh nor his son were in mortal danger, the report said.
Eyewitnesses said the attacker was a deranged man who had beat feet from a local psychiatric facility. The suspect, 28, was tossed in the slammer Don't shoot, coppers! I'm comin' out! by witnesses at the scene until police arrived and taken into custody.
In the first eight months of 2012, SPCJ, the security unit of French Jewish communities, counted 386 of what it called "anti-Semitic acts," representing a 45-percent increase compared to the corresponding period in 2011, when SPCJ counted 266 such incidents.
SPCJ said the figures correlated to official data by French authorities.
La Belle France has a Jewish population of some 500,000, according to the European Jewish Congress.
A man accused of plotting with al-Qaeda members in Iran to derail a train in Canada gave a rambling statement in a Toronto court Wednesday and appeared to be saying he does not recognize its jurisdiction.
That's nice dear. You sit over there not recognizing it, and when you've been convicted, you go on not recognizing the Canadian prison they send you to, the one with country music piped into every cell. Hopefully you've finished your research, and can therefore devote your spare time to writing it up for publication -- otherwise you will have a lifetime to regret having wasted your life in every possible way.
Law enforcement officials in the U.S. said the target was a train that runs between New York City and Canada. Canadian investigators say Chiheb Esseghaier, 30, and Raed Jaser, 35, received guidance from members of al-Qaeda in Iran. Iranian government officials have said the government had nothing to do with the plot.
"My comment is the following because all of those conclusions were taken out based on criminal code and all of us know that this criminal code is not a holy book," Esseghaier said at the hearing Wednesday. "We cannot rely on the conclusions taken out from these judgments."
The judge told him to "save that for another court," and take the advice of his lawyers. He was given a May 23 court date.
Charges against the two men in Canada include conspiring to carry out an attack and murder people in association with a terrorist group. Police - tipped off by an imam worried by the behavior of one of the suspects - said it was the first known attack planned by al-Qaeda in Canada. The two could be sentenced to life in prison if convicte
#2
I'm going to take a trip in that old gospel ship
I'm going far beyond the sky
I'm gonna shout and sing till the heavens ring
When I bid this world good-bye
Posted by: abu do you love ||
04/24/2013 23:29 Comments ||
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[Globe and Mail] A tip from a Toronto imam sparked an investigation that culminated in the arrests of two men who allegedly plotted to derail a Via passenger train.
Thank you, sir, for acting as a good citizen of any faith ought to do.
The imam alerted authorities more than a year ago about a person he regarded as an Death Eater who was corrupting youth in his community.
That single tip led to what the RCMP on Monday called the first-ever Canadian bust of an alleged al-Qaeda terrorist plot.
Well done, guys! Betcha there were cell phones and laptops to play with later, too, which means more arrests around the the world to follow... and perhaps a few American-enslaved spy squirrels making their way to certain windows and attics. ;-) Very well done, indeed!
The RCMP believes that two men, Chiheb Esseghaier, 30, and Raed Jaser, 35, were planning to derail a Via passenger train on the Canadian leg of its Toronto-New York route. The actual imam who phoned in the initial tip to authorities remains anonymous. But community sources confirm his involvement.
Continued on Page 49
The name of one of the Boston Marathon bombing suspects, Tamerlan Tsarnaev, was listed on the U.S. government's highly classified central database of people it views as potential terrorists. But the list is so vast that this did not mean authorities automatically kept close tabs on him, sources close to the bombing investigation said on Tuesday.
The sources said Tamerlan Tsarnaev's details were entered into TIDE, a database maintained by the National Counterterrorism Center, because the FBI spoke to him in 2011 while investigating a Russian tip-off that he had become a follower of radical Islamists.
The FBI found nothing to suggest he was an active threat, but all the same placed his name on the "Terrorist Identities Datamart Environment" list. The FBI has not said what it did find about Tsarnaev.
But the database, which holds more than half a million names, is only a repository of information on people who U.S. authorities see as known, suspected or potential terrorists from around the world.
Because of its huge size, U.S. investigators do not routinely monitor everyone registered there, said U.S. officials familiar with the database.
As of 2008, TIDE contained more than 540,000 names, although they represented about 450,000 actual people, because some of the entries are aliases or different name spellings for the same person. Fewer than 5 percent of the TIDE entries were U.S. citizens or legal residents, according to a description of the database on the NCTC website. What percentage actually live in the U.S?
Secretary of State John Kerry said on Wednesday that Tamerlan Tsarnaev returned from a six-month stay in Russia last year with a willingness to kill people.
In impromptu remarks on terrorism made in Brussels, Kerry said in response to a question about disillusioned young people in other parts of the world that similar problems exist in the United States.
We just had a young person who went to Russia, Chechnya, who blew people up in Boston, Kerry said. So he didnt stay where he went, but he learned something where he went and he came back with a willingness to kill people.
It remains unclear precisely what Tsarnaev did during his trip to the Russia, although it is known that he went to Dagestan, a region neighboring Chechnya, and relatives have said he visited Chechnya as well during part of his extended visit. U.S. officials have said they are not yet certain whether the 26-year-old, accused of carrying out last weeks Boston Marathon bombings with his brother, received any formal training by terrorist organizations.
Kerry made his comments during an informal question-and-answer period following his meeting with Belgian Foreign Minister Didier Reynders.
#3
He became reacquainted with his cultural heritage? Those Chechens have a long tradition of wiping out enemy clans to the last baby still at the breast... and the mother nursing it. Our Hatfields and McCoys are civilized by comparison.
The heads of the FBI and the Homeland Security Department (DHS) briefed House members on the Boston bombings Tuesday amid a wave of criticism that the agencies missed red flags that might have prevented the tragedy.
FBI Director Robert Mueller and DHS Secretary Janet Napolitano have come under fire for their handling of the case, particularly their screening of Tamerlan Tsarnaev, the elder suspect, who had been fingered by Russian intelligence for his possible ties to extremist groups.
Congressional leaders leaving Tuesday's briefing were largely silent about the details. But several leading voices on security issues made clear that they think the agencies have plenty of room for improvement.
"I can't comment on the specific information, but suffice it to say that the FBI has a lot of work to do they've admitted as such and that this investigation now, after the fact, has really just begun," said Rep. Michael McCaul (R-Texas), chairman of the House Homeland Security Committee and a sharp critic of the FBI since the bombings.
McCaul said lawmakers are still anxious to learn if the motivation behind the attacks was "homegrown" or might have been related to Tsarnaev's trip to Russia's volatile Caucasus region.
Those options are not exclusive...
"That is the big question, and I think the question has not been answered," McCaul said. "I know that the FBI is working with the Russians to determine what the elder individual did while he was over there for six months."
Rep. Pete King (R-N.Y.), a member of both the House Homeland Security and Intelligence committees, delivered a similar message. He called it a "detailed briefing," but was quick to note that his concerns about the nation's security procedures "are still there."
"It was a very thorough briefing, but not all of the questions have been answered," he said.
McCaul and King have sent a letter to Mueller, Napolitano and James Clapper, the director of National Intelligence, suggesting the FBI's handling of Tsarnaev's trip to Russia was "an intelligence failure."
There's a whole lot there we need to know about what Tsarnaev did while in Russia, who he talked to etc. Very little of that should be made public now but we need to know that the work is going to be done and not swept under the rug.
Rep. Bennie Thompson (D-Miss.), another member of the Homeland Security Committee, said most lawmakers are praising the response of law enforcers to the tragedy. If there were holes in the FBI's tracking of Tsarnaev after his return from Russia, Thompson said he's confident the agency will plug them.
"I think the policy that they followed will be looked at, and if a policy needs to be changed to say something else, I think the department will do it," Thompson said. "But the general tenor of what I heard is that the members have a lot of praise for professional manner in which all the federal, state and local worked together.
That being the more important point in all this...
"Hearings over the next few weeks or months will probably make some suggestions, in terms of whether or not the resources necessary to make the changes will be there remains to be seen," he added.
Posted by: Steve White ||
04/24/2013 13:12 ||
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Roughly 100 professors and lecturers at Columbia University in New York are demanding that their pension funds not be invested with companies that also do business with the IDF or with civilian security providers in Israeli communities in Judea and Samaria (Shomron) or eastern Jerusalem.
A very good way to ensure there won't be nearly enough money in the fund when it's wanted. I highly recommend the Columbia proceed along this course. But then, I'm not really a nice person.
University faculty (I have modest experience with this) generally have a 403b plan as the basis for their pension. It's a defined contribution plan that both the university and faculty contribute into. It's individually directed, and the faculty person has any number of options as to which funds are selected, etc. Many are with TIAA/CREF, and many more with Vanguard, which specialize in working with universities. Both have hundreds of funds available for investment. So if a professor wants to invest in a mid-cap anti-Israel fund, there should be one available. That professor doesn't have to force his will on me as I invest in the large-cap pro-Jooooz fund.
Professor Katherine Franke of Columbia's Center for Gender and Sexuality Law explained the group's stance. Franke is also affiliated with the Center for Palestine Studies.
Naturally. The two go together like Ernie and Bert.
The faculty members calling for divestment are seeking to end pension fund involvement with the following companies:
Dear Reader, consider this a Buy list:
Elbit Systems, which sells UAVs to Israel that the boycotters argue are used for "extrajudicial assassinations."
Motorola, which has an Israeli daughter company that develops sensors which are used by Israeli communities in Judea and Samaria to prevent terrorist infiltrations.
Veolia transportation, which is involved in building the Jerusalem Light Rail train "which connects the western part of the city to the illegal settlement in eastern Jerusalem," according to the pro-divestmetn staff.
Hewlett-Packard, which operates a system used by the IDF "to limit Palestinian freedom of movement."
Northrop Grumman, which sells airplane and helicopter parts to the IDF. The pro-divestment staff said the parts were used in planes "that Israel used in the Cast Lead operation, which took the lives of more than 1,000 Palestinian civilians." They are apparently using Hamas' initial claims regarding the operation's civilian death toll; the group has since admitted that most of those killed were Hamas fighters.
Wait -- where's Intel? I'm pretty sure they get a lot of new products from their Israel campus.
Supporters of the boycott campaign say they are continuing "a rich tradition of protest at Columbia University against racial segregation in the United States and against the apartheid regime in South Africa."
They're so cute when they're spouting unthinking cant!
The Columbia University divestment call follows similar actions at the University of Toronto Mississauga and Oxford University.
#1
I support complete divestment from the gaza strip and whatever else Jordan didn't steal. No aid no charity and no travel to the paleo shithole terrorist 'lands'.
Posted by: Silentbrick - Halliburton Lost Drill Bit Division ||
04/24/2013 6:04 Comments ||
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#2
A former Columbia foreign exchange student from the Class of '83 residing at 1600 Penn Ave, Wash D.C., who reportedly supports the pension fund disinvestment movement could not be reached for comment.
#3
I recommend the fund managers invest in Egyptian and Syrian penny stocks, the crappier the better, and then resign.
Posted by: Mitch H. ||
04/24/2013 8:33 Comments ||
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#4
That must be the Columbia University that employs Weather Underground Terrorist Kathy Boudin as a professor. Fitting model of the coastie caste in action.
h/t Instapundit
Marathon bombings mastermind Tamerlan Tsarnaev was living on taxpayer-funded state welfare benefits even as he was delving deep into the world of radical anti-American Islamism, the Herald has learned.
State officials confirmed last night that Tsarnaev, slain in a raging gun battle with police last Friday, was receiving benefits along with his wife, Katherine Russell Tsarnaev, and their 3-year-old daughter. The states Executive Office of Health and Human Services said those benefits ended in 2012 when the couple stopped meeting income eligibility limits. Russell Tsarnaevs attorney has claimed Katherine who had converted to Islam was working up to 80 hours a week as a home health aide while Tsarnaev stayed at home.
In addition, both of Tsarnaevs parents received benefits, and accused brother bombers Dzhokhar and Tamerlan were recipients through their parents when they were younger, according to the state.
[Al Ahram] Hackers have compromised the main Twitter account of The News Agency that Dare Not be Named, sending out an erroneous tweet about an attack at the White House.
The tweet, which said that there had been two kabooms at the White House and President Barack Obama I inhaled. That was the point... was injured, came after hackers made repeated attempts to steal the passwords of AP journalists.
The AP said Tuesday that its Twitter account had been suspended following a hack and said it was working to correct the issue.
The cyberattack is the latest in a string targeting international media organizations.
The tweet put out by hackers briefly sent the Dow Jones Industrial Average sharply lower.White House press secretary Jay Carney addressed the tweet Tuesday during the White House press briefing after hearing confirmation of the account's hacking from AP's chief White House correspondent Julie Pace.
"It appears as though AP's Twitter account has been attacked, so anything that was just sent out ... is obviously false," Pace said before asking her first question at Carney's daily briefing.
"I appreciate that," Carney told Pace. "And I can say that the president is fine, I was just with him."
Posted by: Fred ||
04/24/2013 00:00 ||
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[Ynet] Katherine Russell, the wife of deceased Boston Marathon bombing suspect Tamerlan Tsarnaev, is doing all she can to assist federal authorities investigating last week's attack, her lawyer said on Tuesday.
"She is doing everything she can to assist with the investigation," Amato DeLuca, one of her attorneys, said outside his Providence, Rhode Island office. "The report of involvement by her husband and brother-in-law came as an absolute shock to them all."
#3
She was working 80 hours a week as a home health care aide, ie. physical labour, while he made her dress like a moving black object, called her a slut and planned literally bloody murder. I'd sing like a bird, then reclaim the life he stole.
#4
Since you have so many expenses right now, Katherine, here's a free clue:
The bastard leech is dead. Dump your so-called religion, start dressing and thinking like a normal person again, and never look back.
"Multiculturalism" and "diversity" ain't what they're cracked up to be. Grow a brain.
Posted by: Barbara ||
04/24/2013 16:03 Comments ||
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#5
Dump your so-called religion, start dressing and thinking like a normal person again, and never look back.
She also better change her name and identity, and learn to handle a handgun that can stop a jihadi with a single bullet not particularly well aimed. Remember, she joined the Roach Motel of religions.
[Jpost] A former personal secretary to the late Osama bin Laden ... who is now sometimes referred to as Mister Bones... was sentenced to life in prison on Tuesday, for the second time, for participating in a conspiracy to kill Americans that included the 1998 bombings of two US embassies in Africa.
Wadih El-Hage, a Lebanese-born US citizen and former al-Qaeda member, was one of four people convicted in 2001 for their roles in bombings of embassies in Kenya and Tanzania that killed 224 people and injured thousands.
El-Hage, 52, was convicted in 2001 on charges including conspiring to kill US nationals and destroy government-owned buildings, in addition to multiple counts of perjury. He was re-sentenced on Tuesday after a prior life term was reversed in 2008 and sent back to the district court.
His lawyers sought leniency. But in handing down the new sentence, US District Judge Lewis Kaplan in Manhattan cited El-Hage's lack of remorse and the likelihood the man he termed a "committed terrorist" would resume his activities if released.
"It is necessary to deter others," Kaplan said. "It is necessary to prevent you from resuming terrorist activities."
[Dawn] As elections are less than three weeks away, religious parties, which had swept the 2002 polls in Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa ... formerly NWFP, still Terrorism Central... from the Muttahida Majlis-e-Amal platform, are in disarray due to internal rifts, which may benefit other political groups.MMA, which comprised Jamaat-e-Islami ...The Islamic Society, founded in 1941 in Lahore by Maulana Sayyid Abul Ala Maududi, aka The Great Apostosizer. The Jamaat opposed the independence of Bangladesh but has operated an independent branch there since 1975. It maintains close ties with international Mohammedan groups such as the Moslem Brotherhood. the Taliban, and al-Qaeda. The Jamaat's objectives are the establishment of a pure Islamic state, governed by Sharia law. It is distinguished by its xenophobia, and its opposition to Westernization, capitalism, socialism, secularism, and liberalist social mores... , Jamaat Ulema-e-Islam ...Assembly of Islamic Clergy, or JUI, is a Pak Deobandi (Hanafi) political party. There are two main branches, one led by Maulana Fazlur Rahman, and one led by Maulana Samiul Haq. Fazl is active in Pak politix and Sami spends more time running his madrassah. Both branches sponsor branches of the Taliban, though with plausible deniability... factions of Maulana Fazlur Rehman Deobandi holy man, known as Mullah Diesel during the war against the Soviets, his sympathies for the Taliban have never been tempered by honesty ... and Maulana Samiul Haq ...the Godfather of the Taliban, leader of his own faction of the JUI. Known as Mullah Sandwich for his habit of having two young boys at a time... , Jamaat Ulema-e-Pakistain-Noorani, Jamaat Ahle Hadith of Sajid Mir and Tehrik-e-Islami of Allama Sajid Naqvi, had secured 59 of the total 99 general seats of the provincial assembly in 2002.It bagged a total of 3,181,483 votes in the 2002 elections.In the 2008 elections, JUI-F used the MMA symbol 'book' but suffered major defeat.
Posted by: Fred ||
04/24/2013 00:00 ||
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#1
Internal rifts?
What does that mean? Bodies floating in rivers?
Enhanced torture techniques?
Gunplay and blood?
What's the body count?
Pass the popcorn
Posted by: Bill Clinton ||
04/24/2013 11:14 Comments ||
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[Dawn] Muttahida Qaumi Movement (MQM) chief Altaf Hussain has ordered that his party temporarily shutdown its election offices in Karachi in the wake of attacks on MQM workers and supporters, DawnNews reported.The MQM chief strongly condemned the attack on an MQM election camp in Karachi on Tuesday evening. He also said that political and religious parties must condemn all such terrorist attacks."In an environment like this, who will come out and cast their vote," the MQM chief said.
Posted by: Fred ||
04/24/2013 00:00 ||
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#1
"Political violence is okay, but only when we do it!"
Hmmm. Now we all discover whether the Generals of the Army of the Pure yet retain the power they once had.
[Dawn] As the complainant in the judges detention case filed another petition for the transfer of former president General (retired) Pervez Perv Musharraf ... former dictator of Pakistain, who was less dictatorial and corrupt than any Pak civilian government to date ... to the Central Jail Adiala, ex-generals warned that the army would not tolerate if the lawyers continued pushing their former chief to the wall.
The complainant in the judges detention case through his lawyer Chaudhry Mohammad Ashraf Gujjar maintained in the petition filed with the Islamabad High Court that after dismissal of the pre-arrest bail petition of Mr Musharraf, chief commissioner Islamabad Tariq Mehmood Pirzada and inspector general of Islamabad police Bani Amin Khan had extended undue favour to the former president by declaring his Chak Shahzad farmhouse as a sub-jail.
The petition said the accused did not join the investigation despite the court directions. Mr Musharraf was a proclaimed offender and being an accused in a terrorism-related offence, he was not entitled to being kept at a place other than the Adiala Jail.
He requested the court to set aside the notification of April 20 according to which the residence of the former general has been declared as a sub-jail.
When contacted, Qamar Afzal, the counsel for Mr Musharraf, said the lawyers were dragging the former president in the courts for their own publicity.
He alleged that during the hearings the lawyers did not maintain the decorum of the court and passed unethical remarks and even used abusive language against the former president of Pakistain.
According to him, the lawyers trying to humiliate the former president wanted to get publicity by indulging in such unethical practices.
Talking to Dawn, defence analyst General (retired) Jamshed Ayaz said the military was closely monitoring the situation. He said at least nine corps commanders currently serving in the army were promoted during the Musharraf regime.
He claimed that Musharraf still enjoyed support within the army ranks and the incumbent army chief General Ashfaq Pervaiz Kayani ... four star general, current Chief of Army Staff of the Mighty Pak Army. Kayani is the former Director General of ISI... should play a role to save Mr Musharraf from such a humiliation.
Posted by: Fred ||
04/24/2013 00:00 ||
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Top|| File under: Govt of Pakistan
It was the latest setback for Musharraf, who returned to Pakistan last month from four years in self-imposed exile to make a political comeback but is currently under house arrest in connection with a different case.
[Jpost] Jose Manuel Garcia-Margallo tells Peres that the ineffectual Mahmoud Abbas ... a graduate of the prestigious unaccredited Patrice Lumumba University in Moscow with a doctorate in Holocaust Denial... asked him to convey a message to Israel that he would like to see confidence building measures regarding political prisoners and the problem of the settlements.
Abbas, of course, can't be bothered to pick up his telephone to call Bibi Netanyahu directly, lest that Jooo get the idea he is an equal.
[Ynet] NYT reports differences in stance of Israel, Washington regarding attack on Iran: weapons system capable of hitting underground bunkers not included in deal. Netanyahu advisor: Difference of views... re-emerging
In other words, refueling vehicles so the bombers can get to Iran, but nothing effective to drop when they arrive on target. Bibi, may I suggest your clever designers and machinists make your own, post haste. I'm sure South Korea will be interested in buying as many as you are willing to sell, once you've taken care of your little Iran problem.
The deal signed this week between the US and Israel includes advanced weapons systems, but the interesting note is in the item left out of the deal, the New York Times ...which still proudly displays Walter Duranty's Pulitzer prize... reported Tuesday.
The paper said that the Israeli Air Force will not get bunker busting bombs which can pierce layers of cement at underground sites. These bombs are considered integral to a successful attack on Iran's underground nuclear facilities.
On Monday during his visit to Israel, US Secretary of Defense Chuck Hagel and his Israeli counterpart Defense Minister Moshe Ya'alon emphasized their shared commitment to stopping Iran's nuclear program, also agreeing that it was preferable to break the stalemate via diplomatic measures.
But an advisor to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu told the NYT that a gap still existed between the two countries: "The fundamental difference of views on how much risk we can take with Iran is re-emerging."
The deal includes new refueling planes, combat plane radars, anti-radar missiles, V-22 Osprey transport plane-helicopters and advanced focused munitions bombs for the Air Force. On Sunday Hagel defined the deal as "a clear message to Iran."
Especially if bunker busters aren't included. Even this little suburban housewife understands that message, Mr. Secretary, though I lack the subtlety of the Persian.
But Israeli and American experts agree that the bunker busting bombs which were left off the list are the only ones which have a chance of striking underground sites such as Fordo. The weight of each bomb is 13,608 kg, their length 6.2 meters, and they are capable of hitting bunkers at a depth of 61 meters. Each bomb can carry up to 2,400 kg of kabooms.
Regardless, at this point the IAF does not currently posses jets capable of carrying the bombs. In order to transport bunker busting bombs, they would need to use B-2 Bombers, the planes which the US recently flew non-stop in an exercise from the US to the Korean Peninsula, in order to show North Korea that the US Air Force could indeed reach its nuclear bases.
During his visit, Hagel said that Israel had every right to defend itself.
...against the Palestinians and Egyptians, perhaps, but certainly not against the Persians.
He added that Washington and Jerusalem had the same goal -- to stop Iran from achieving nuclear capability. Hagel noted that there were differences of opinion between the Americans and Israelis regarding when and if Iran will decide to complete its nuclear bomb, but added, "Iran presents a threat in its nuclear program and Israel will make the decisions that Israel must make to protect itself and defend itself."
"And we will ensure that all of Israel's decisions are unenforceable."
In the past, the US had denied Israeli requests for bunker busting bombs. Senior US officials would not confirm to the New York Times whether the most recent negotiations included such a request. Instead, they emphasized that the deal included tanker jets that would enable the IAF to reach Iran, should that be necessary.
An Israeli request for such planes had been denied in the past, under the administration of former president George W. Bush.
#1
"But Israeli and American experts agree that the bunker busting bombs which were left off the list are the only onesonly conventional ones which have a chance of striking underground sites such as Fordo."
</nitpick>
#2
Regardless, at this point the IAF does not currently posses jets capable of carrying the bombs. In order to transport bunker busting bombs, they would need to use B-2 Bombers,
I guess that might be a reason for no big 'uns too.
The Osprey buy is interesting, how many did they purchase?
[Ynet] The head of the International Union of Mohammedan Scholars (IUMS), Sheikh Yusuf al-Qaradawi ...crackpot Egyptian Islamist theologian. He is best known for his program Shariah and Life on Al Jazeera, with an estimated audience of 60 million kindred souls worldwide. He is also well-known for IslamOnline, which occasionally advocates things like slavery and thumping the old lady with a rod no thicker than an inch, and has published more than 120 books, including Islam: The Future Civilization. Joe has long had a prominent role within the intellectual leadership of the Moslem Brüderbund. Some of his views have been controversial in the West, though less so among the rubes of the Mysterious East, and he was refused entry to the United Kingdom in 2008. In 2004, 2,500 Muslim academics from Saudi Arabia, Iraq and from the Palestinian territories condemned Qaradawi, and accused him of giving Islam a bad name.... , has announced that he will boycott the 8th Doha International Center for Interfaith Dialogue conference, a three-day event that is scheduled to begin on Tuesday. He said he has decided he will not sit alongside Jews "who plundered Paleostine and destroyed mosques."
[An Nahar] Iran's Finance Minister Shamseddin Hosseini said Tuesday that international sanctions had pushed inflation above 30% and was causing "a lot of trouble" but that Iran's nuclear drive would not be halted.
Lashing out at measures by the United Nations ...what started out as a a diplomatic initiative, now trying to edge its way into legislative, judicial, and executive areas... , United States and European Union ...the successor to the Holy Roman Empire, only without the Hapsburgs and the nifty uniforms and the dancing... , Hosseini said the Iranian economy was increasingly gearing up to produce at home the goods that it cannot import.
"We work harder, we work more, we strive much more, we find new ways; we even change trading partners," he told a group of news hounds at the Iranian U.N. mission in New York.
The U.N. Security Council has ordered four rounds of sanctions to back demands that Iran halt its uranium enrichment. Measures by the United States and EU also target Iran's oil exports and central bank activities.
Western nations say Iran is hiding efforts to make make a nuclear bomb. Iran denies the charge, but refuses to disclose key details to the U.N. atomic watchdog.
"We never have and we never will stop behind the obstacles they create on our path," Hosseini declared.
The minister said the sanctions were "quite vast, all-encompassing and political most of all." They cause "quite a lot of trouble, quite a lot of hard work."
Posted by: Fred ||
04/24/2013 00:00 ||
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[An Nahar] An EU plan to buy oil from rebel-held areas of Syria is illegal and an "act of aggression," the Syrian foreign ministry warned on Tuesday in letters to the United Nations ...where theory meets practice and practice loses... "In an unprecedented decision that contradicts international law and the U.N. Charter... the European Union ...the successor to the Holy Roman Empire, only without the Hapsburgs and the nifty uniforms and the dancing... has decided to allow member states to import petrol... under the pretext of supporting the opposition," state news agency SANA reported, citing the letters.
"It is an illegal decision and an act of aggression."
Syrian rebels fighting President Hereditary President-for-Life Bashir Pencilneck al-Assad The Scourge of Hama... 's troops won a fresh boost Monday when the European Union eased its oil embargo to let them exploit the resources they control.
But the decision raised a furious response in Damascus ...Capital of the last overtly fascist regime in the world... The European Union will be trading "with the so-called opposition Coalition, which represents no one in Syria," the letters to U.N. Secretary General the ephemeral Ban Ki-moon ... of whom it can be said to his credit that he is not Kofi Annan... and the Security Council said.
The decision is an act of "complicity in the theft of resources that belong to the Syrian people, represented by the current, legitimate government," they added.
"The European Union is following its political and economic campaign that targets the national economy and the daily bread of Syrian citizens," the ministry added, referring to EU sanctions on the Assad regime.
Posted by: Fred ||
04/24/2013 00:00 ||
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[An Nahar] Salafist holy man Sheikh Salem al-Rafehi said Tuesday that he informed caretaker Interior Minister Marwan Charbel his readiness to withdraw his call for jihad if Hizbullah ended its involvement in Syria's civil war.
In remarks to LBCI, al-Rafehi said: "Charbel telephoned me and I formed him our readiness to pull the invitation to Jihad in Syria if Hizbullah stopped sending fighters to Syria."
Al-Rafehi and another Salafist holy man sheikh Ahmed al-Asir called on Monday for jihad to defend Sunnis in Syria.
Al-Asir announced the creation of the "Free Resistance Brigades," urging whoever is capable of heading to Syria to go there to aid "the oppressed" in the town of al-Qusayr, southeast of Homs.
Asir called on "all the Lebanese who fear attacks by Iran's party (Hizbullah) in Leb to arm themselves and form 5-member secret cells to be ready to exclusively defend themselves and their families should the need arise."
Fighting has flared in Syria's Homs region in recent weeks as the government has pressed its campaign to stamp out rebel-held pockets in the area.
Much of the heaviest fighting has raged near the Lebanese border around al-Qusayr, where activists said government troops backed by gunnies linked to Hizbullah captured the villages of Radwineyeh and Tel al-Nabi Mando.
Al-Rafehi also announced that he has decided to "send men and weapons in support of our Sunni brothers in al-Qusayr."
He called on "all Sunni men to be fully prepared ahead of sending the first batch (of fighters) to perform the jihadist duty in al-Qusayr."
Posted by: Fred ||
04/24/2013 00:00 ||
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[An Nahar] Lebanese Forces A Christian political party founded by Bashir Gemayel, who was then bumped off when he was elected president of Leb... leader Samir Geagea ... Geagea was imprisoned by the Syrians and their puppets for 11 years in a dungeon in the third basement level of the Lebanese Ministry of Defense. He was released after the Cedar Revolution in 2005 ... condemned on Tuesday Hizbullah's fighting in Syria alongside the Syrian regime, accusing the party of violating the Baabda Declaration that calls for Leb to distance itself from regional crises.
He said during a presser: "The government must hold a session to put an immediate stop to Hizbullah's fighting in Syria.
He explained that the government, despite its caretaking role, is obligated to address the country's national interests, especially when Hizbullah's actions are threatening to drag Leb towards the Syrian crisis.
Moreover, he said that Iran is employing Hizbullah in order to defend its expansionist ambitions in the region.
He added: "Iran has taken a strategic decision to fight for the survival of the Syrian regime at the expense of the life of the last Hizbullah fighter."
"Where is the Lebanese state's position on Hizbullah's involvement and some Lebanese calls for jihad in Syria?" he wondered.
Commenting on Hizbullah demands that the fighters killed in Syria should be recognized as deaders, Geagea asked: "What about those killed in Akkar and 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... ? Who tasked the party to defend the Syrian regime and for what purpose?"
Posted by: Fred ||
04/24/2013 00:00 ||
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[IsraelTimes] Iran has essentially crossed the "red line" set by Israel for its nuclear activity, and the coming few months will be a crucial period, Maj. Gen. (res.) Amos Yadlin, a former head of IDF Military Intelligence, said on Tuesday.
Speaking at a security conference in Tel Aviv, Yadlin said that "for all intents and purposes, Iran has crossed Israel's red line... in the summer, Iran will be a month or two away from deciding about a bomb."
Posted by: trailing wife ||
04/24/2013 00:00 ||
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[An Nahar] Former Prime Minister Saad Hariri Second son of Rafik Hariri, the Leb PM who was assassinated in 2005. He has was prime minister in his own right from 2009 through early 2011. He was born in Riyadh to an Iraqi mother and graduated from Georgetown University. He managed his father's business interests in Riyadh until his father's assassination. When his father died he inherited a fortune of some $4.1 billion, which won't do him much good if Hizbullah has him bumped off, too. condemned on Tuesday Hizbullah's fighting in Syria alongside the Syrian regime, warning that it will drag Leb towards the strife that Hereditary President-for-Life Bashir Pencilneck al-Assad Light of the Alawites... had "vowed to spread in the region."
He said in a statement: "Hizbullah's actions in Syria are a crime against Leb and the Lebanese and Syria and its people."
Hizbullah's fighting in Syria is a form of defense of the Syrian regime and not an act of defense of certain sectarian interests as the party had claimed, he continued.
"Who tasked Hizbullah with defending a segment of the Lebanese people in Syria?" he asked.
"Dragging Leb towards the game of death that the Syrian regime has actively sought once again proves Hizbullah's actual role in Leb and Syria and demonstrates, through the victims, destruction, and blood, the real purpose of the party's arms," stressed Hariri.
"The crime of leading Lebanese youths to death in Syria and in defense of a criminal regime is a part of a greater crime of dragging Leb towards a bloody regional strife that the Lebanese, starting with Hizbullah's supporters, do not seek," he declared.
"I therefore call on all Lebanese to express through peaceful means their rejection of this crime," he stated.
Posted by: Fred ||
04/24/2013 00:00 ||
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#2
...The AlawitesâBashar al-Assadâs minority sectâare not actually Shias, not really. Washington thinks they are, but thatâs because back in the 1970s the Lebanese cleric Musa Sadr issued a fatwa declaring them Shias. For a thousand years before that, no one thought of the Alawites as Shias or even Muslims. What they are is a secretive and closed heterodox minority that fuses Christianity, Gnosticism, and Twelver Shia Islam together into something else entirely. Muslims have always considered them infidels.
Posted by: Water Modem ||
04/24/2013 10:58 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.
[An Nahar] The British government faced a fresh setback on Tuesday in its long-running legal battle to deport radical preacher Abu Qatada, but insisted it would not give up trying to send him to Jordan.
Maulana Fazlur Rehman
Pervez 
North Korea
Hereditary President-for-Life Bashir 
the ephemeral Ban Ki-moon
Samir Geagea
Hereditary President-for-Life Bashir 
