[AnNahar] At least 24 people were maimed Saturday when a protest in Kabul against French magazine Charlie Hebdo ...A lefty French satirical magazine, home of what may well be the majority if the active testicles left in Europe... turned angry, police said, with officers firing warning shots after demonstrators pelted them with stones.
Some 500 people joined the rally on the outskirts of the Afghan capital to express their anger against the satirical magazine's publication of cartoons of the Prophet Mohammed.
"Somewhere in a place I've never heard of people did something insulting to our prophet, so now we're going to jump up and down shouting slogans about whatever it is. And if the police don't like it, they can die like the far-away infidels we can't reach."
"Seven protesters were maimed during the protest and they were taken to hospital," Kabul police chief Abdul Rahman Rahimi told Agence La Belle France-Presse.
Seventeen coppers were also injured when protesters hurled rocks at them, he added. Smoke was seen rising from the scene by an AFP photographer.
Local media, citing witnesses, said at least two people had been killed in the unrest, but the police chief dismissed the reports.
Islamist gunniesrubbed out 12 people at Charlie Hebdo's Gay Paree offices on January 7.
The satirical weekly, which lampoons everyone from the pope to presidents, had sparked anger in the Islamic world in the past with its cartoons of Mohammed.
Many Moslems consider depictions of the prophet to be blasphemous.
The attack on Charlie Hebdo sparked worldwide protests in defense of freedom of speech, but the magazine stirred fresh anger in Moslem countries a week after the shootings with a defiant "survivors' issue" that again featured Mohammed on the front page.
Angry crowds poured onto the streets from Pakistain to Ivory Coast to vent their rage at the new cover.
At least 20,000 people protested against the magazine in the western Afghan city of Herat ...a venerable old Persian-speaking city in western Afghanistan, populated mostly by Tadjiks, which is why it's not as blood-soaked as areas controlled by Pashtuns... last week, while several thousand others rallied in Kabul chanting "death to La Belle France, death to the enemies of Islam".
Police said Saturday's protest had been brought under control and the road opened for traffic.
"The protesters were throwing stones at the police, and the police fired some shots in the air to stop the protesters," said Kabul deputy police chief Gul Agha Rohani.
[Khaama (Afghanistan)] An Afghan National Army (ANA) officer who had vanished during a training exercise in United States to avoid returning to Afghanistan was denied asylum by an American immigration judge on Friday.
Maj. Jan Mohammad Arash had claimed that his life was under threat in Afghanistan where he was receiving threats from teh Taliban group.
He had vanished along with two ANA officers ‐ Cpt. Mohammad Nasir Askarzada, and Cpt. Noorullah Aminyar late in September last year.
Continued on Page 49
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[IsraelTimes] Source close to group repudiates Cairo after court deems armed wing terrorists; Sissi: Fight against terror will be long and hard
A source close to Hamas, always the voice of sweet reason,'s armed wing, the Izz ad-Din al-Qassam Brigades, said Saturday the group no longer recognizes Egypt as a broker with Israel,
One.
following an Egyptian court's decision to label the group a terrorist organization.
Two.
Meanwhile, ...back at the pound, the little lost dog had finished eating the rat terrier... Egypt announced plans for a unified task force to combat turbans in the Sinai peninsula as its president vowed a long and difficult battle against terrorism.
Three and four.
"After the court's decision Egypt is no longer a mediator in Paleostinian-Israeli matters," a Hamas source told Rooters on Saturday, hours after the court's ruling. Cairo has long been a go-between for both parties and has played a pivotal role in brokering a number of ceasefires in Gazoo, including at the end of last summer's war.
True. No more hudnas for Hamas, it seems.
Ismail Haniyeh ...became Prime Minister after the legislative elections of 2006 which Hamas won. President Mahmoud Abbas dismissed Haniyeh from office on 14 June 2007 at the height of the Fatah-Hamas festivities, but Haniyeh did not acknowledge the decree and continues as the PM of Gazoo while Abbas maintains a separate PM in the West Bank... , the group's former prime minister in the Gazoo Strip, lambasted Cairo over the announcement, saying "you [Egyptians] have lost your sense of justice."
"The Brigades are a source of pride, respect and bravery," he said, according to Ynet.
The choice to label the armed-wing a terrorist group was made two days after a host of coordinated attacks by jihadists on government forces in the Sinai Peninsula killed 31 people.
It's been a busy week, too, chock full of consequences.
Egyptian President Abdel-Fattah el-Sissi condemned the attacks, vowing a long, aggressive campaign against holy warrior groups operating in the restive region.
"This battle will be difficult...and will take a long time," he said in a televised statement on Saturday.
"We will not leave Sinai for the terrorists," he vowed. The Egyptian leader made his address as military commanders announced plans to forge a unified command for all armed forces in Sinai.
[SPA.GOV.SA] Secretary General of the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC), Iyad Ameen Madani, expressed his strong condemnation of the terrorist attack perpetrated in the Sinai Peninsula on January 29th , 2015, resulting in many casualties among the Egyptian security and army officers, and many other injuries.
The OIC Secretary General also expressed his deep condolences to the families of the victims and to the Egyptian people and government, along with his best wishes of prompt recovery for the injured.
Also, the Secretary General expressed his full confidence that the Egyptian authorities will successfully track down the perpetrators of this despicable criminal act and bring them to justice.
In addition, the OIC Secretary General reaffirmed the OIC's full support for Egypt's security and stability and for all efforts to combat terrorism, recalling, on the occasion, the OIC's principled and unwavering stand in condemning terrorism in all its forms and manifestations.
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Cairo -- An Egyptian court set May 16 for a verdict in the espionage trial of ousted president Mohammed Mursi, who could be sentenced to death if convicted, an official said on Saturday.
Notice they don't say which year...
Mursi faces several trials along with top leaders of his Muslim Brotherhood. In this case, he and 35 others are charged with being part of a vast conspiracy to destabilise Egypt involving foreign powers, Hamas, Hezbollah and Iran’s Revolutionary Guards.
Separately, another court is to deliver a verdict on April 21 in the trial of Mursi and 14 others for inciting the killing of protesters in clashes outside the presidential palace in December 2012.
That will be the first in any of the cases against Mursi, who also faces a third trial for breaking out of jail during the 2011 uprising that toppled president Hosni Mubarak.
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[AnNahar] Sunni-ruled Bahrain said Saturday it had revoked the citizenship of 72 people convicted of "harming the interests of the kingdom" in unrest by the Shiite majority since 2011.
The official BNA news agency said their nationality had been rescinded in a decree as part of measures to "preserve security and stability and fight the danger of terrorist threats."
BNA published a list of the 72 people affected by the measure adopted by the interior ministry and approved by the cabinet.
"Proper legal procedures will be taken by the interior ministry to implement this decision," it added.
This is the largest number of Bahrainis to be stripped of their nationality since a law passed in 2013 on the punishment of those convicted of "terrorist" acts.
Last November, three Shiites were sentenced to 10 years in prison and stripped of their citizenship for planning to attack the police.
Their case followed that of another 18 deprived of their citizenship after the authorities in 2012 revoked the nationality of 31 Shiites for "endangering state security."
Bahrain, ruled by the Sunni al-Khalifa dynasty, is home to the U.S. Navy's Fifth Fleet and sits across the Gulf from mainly Shiite Iran.
The tiny but strategic Gulf nation has been rocked by unrest since a 2011 Shiite-led uprising demanding a constitutional monarchy and more representative government.
At least 89 people have been killed in festivities with security forces since 2011, while hundreds have been locked away Youse'll never take me alive coppers!... [BANG!]... Ow!... I quit!
and put on trial, rights groups say.
Bahraini authorities say they have stripped the citizenship of a senior member of the Islamic State ...formerly ISIS or ISIL, depending on your preference. Before that al-Qaeda in Iraq, as shaped by Abu Musab Zarqawi. They're very devout, committing every atrocity they can find in the Koran and inventing a few more. They fling Allah around with every other sentence, but to hear the pols talk they're not really Moslems.... hard boy group and dozens of other people. The list includes Sunni and Shiite Bahrainis. Among those affected is Turki al-Binali, a 30-year-old Sunni preacher who has emerged as one of the Islamic State group's leading ideologues.
[DAILYMAIL.CO.UK] Yemen's president will not reconsider his resignation, despite pressure for him to do so by rebels who control the capital and who he says are holding him "at gunpoint," an official close to him said Saturday. "Nope. I ain't gonna be president!"
The refusal comes after representatives from Yemeni political parties met Abed Rabbo Mansour Hadi at his home, where the rebels, known as Houthis, continue to hold him under house arrest and are searching all visitors. "Search that guy, Mahmoud! He might be carryin' a ladder!"
Impoverished Yemen, home to a formidable al-Qaeda affiliate, has been leaderless since Hadi resigned this month after the Houthis pressured him for a greater share of power. "'A greater share of power?' Here, take the hat! I quit!"
The Houthis, who have controlled the capital, Sanaa, since September, and their supporters have been holding a conference in a sports stadium since Friday -- saying they seek to organize "a peaceful transfer of power." "We're gonna be in charge, but we don't want nobody to shoot back!"
The official, speaking on condition of anonymity ... for fear of being murdered... because he was not authorized to speak to news hounds, said Hadi was willing to participate in a national dialogue session -- provided that it took place outside the rebel-controlled capital. He said Hadi proposed the southern city of Taiz as an alternate venue. "Taiz is nice in February! But if y'want, we can hold it in Miami Beach!"
Later in the day, a U.S. drone strike hit a car in Shabwa province, killing four suspected al-Qaeda operatives, Yemeni tribal and security officials said. "Ahmed! What's that sound? [KABOOM!]"
A similar strike targeted the group last Monday, signaling Washington's determination to keep fighting the holy warriors despite political paralysis brought on by a power grab by Iranian catspaws. The officials did not give the nationalities of the men killed. They spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to release the information otherwise.
Also Saturday, hundreds of anti-Houthi ...a Zaidi Shia insurgent group operating in Yemen. They have also been referred to as the Believing Youth. Hussein Badreddin al-Houthi is said to be the spiritual leader of the group and most of the military leaders are his relatives. The Yemeni government has accused the Houthis of having ties to the Iranian government, which wouldn't suprise most of us. The group has managed to gain control over all of Saada Governorate and parts of Amran, Al Jawf and Hajjah Governorates. Its slogan is God is Great, Death to America™, Death to Israel, a curse on the Jews ... protesters formed a human chain in the city of Dhamar that was later broken up by rebels who fired automatic rifles into the air. In a statement, the demonstrators demanded a halt to all dialogue with the Houthis until they disarm and release detained activists.
Military officials said the Houthis still control most of the capital's military installations and arms depots, and have at their disposal heavy weapons including hundreds of T-72 tanks, self-propelled artillery and Katyusha rocket launchers.
The Houthis also recently captured a Republican Guard camp outside Sanaa which had been used by American experts until 2012 to train local forces battling Yemen's al-Qaeda's affiliate, which Washington considers to be its most dangerous branch.
The military officials spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to speak to the press.
Since the Houthis escalated their conflict with the embattled central government in January, demonstrators have taken to the streets in several cities to protest their power grab.
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02/01/2015 00:00 ||
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[YEMENONLINE.INFO] Yahya Al-Houthi ...a Zaidi Shia insurgent group operating in Yemen. They have also been referred to as the Believing Youth. Hussein Badreddin al-Houthi is said to be the spiritual leader of the group and most of the military leaders are his relatives. The Yemeni government has accused the Houthis of having ties to the Iranian government, which wouldn't suprise most of us. The group has managed to gain control over all of Saada Governorate and parts of Amran, Al Jawf and Hajjah Governorates. Its slogan is God is Great, Death to America™, Death to Israel, a curse on the Jews ... member of Yemen parliament and the brother of Al-Houthis leader Abdulmalik Al-Houthi said that the the expanded National Council , which called for a meeting in Sana'a by Abdul-Malik Al-Houthi during the past two days will be announced Sunday the formation of presidential council and new government with choosing the head of the Presidential Council, and the appointment of General Commands Army.
Al-Houthi's statement came in the light of the continued meetings between the political forces, with the participation of representatives from the Houthi group to search for consensus to form a presidential council after outgoing President Abed Rabbo Mansour Hadi's refusal to abandon resign, calling to resort to constitutional solutions.
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[YEMENONLINE.INFO] The United States is facing increasing difficulty acquiring intelligence needed to run its stealth drone program in Yemen, undermining a campaign against the most lethal branch of al Qaeda after Houthi ...a Zaidi Shia insurgent group operating in Yemen. They have also been referred to as the Believing Youth. Hussein Badreddin al-Houthi is said to be the spiritual leader of the group and most of the military leaders are his relatives. The Yemeni government has accused the Houthis of having ties to the Iranian government, which wouldn't suprise most of us. The group has managed to gain control over all of Saada Governorate and parts of Amran, Al Jawf and Hajjah Governorates. Its slogan is God is Great, Death to America™, Death to Israel, a curse on the Jews ... rebels seized control of parts of the country's security apparatus, U.S. officials say.
Gaps in on-the-ground intelligence could slow America's fight against a resurgent al Qaeda in Yemen and heighten the risk of errant strikes that kill the wrong people and stoke anti-U.S. sentiment, potentially making the Death Eaters even stronger in areas where al Qaeda is already growing.
Iran-backed Houthi rebels have taken up positions in and around several defense and intelligence installations whose teams had previously cooperated with Washington, cutting off key sources of information for drone-missile attacks, the officials told Rooters.
Turmoil in the wake of last week's collapse of a U.S.-backed Yemeni government after days of festivities in the capital Sanaa, has already forced the U.S. State Department to reduce staff and operations at the U.S. Embassy.
U.S. officials told Rooters last week that Washington has also halted some counter-terrorism operations, but described the measures as temporary.
The turmoil has also cast doubt over the future of a key partnership for Washington in the fight against al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula ...the latest incarnation of various Qaeda and Qaeda-allied groups, including the now-defunct Aden-Abyan Islamic Army that boomed the USS Cole in 2000... , or AQAP. Only last September President Barack Obama teachable moment... touted cooperation with Yemen as a model in counter-terrorism.
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[YEMENONLINE.INFO] Al-Qaeda in Yemen says La Belle France has surpassed the US to become the main enemy of Islam. The group says the US has been "weakening" in recent years, and also claims to be behind the recent terror attacks on Charlie Hebdo ...A lefty French satirical magazine, home of what may well be the majority if the active testicles left in Europe... journalists in Gay Paree.
The announcement was made by Ibrahim al-Rubaish in an audio message that was published on YouTube. It claimed that with the "weakening" of the United States over the past few years, La Belle France has surpassed the US in the "war on Islam," AFP reported.
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#1
'Tis ironically or indirectly consistent wid Ayman Zawahiri's call for Islam's Hard Boyz to de facto destabilize and takeover the Manpower, Resources, + Nukes of Russia, China, + India, etc. IN ORDER TO OFFSET OR VOID THE MILTECH, ETC. SUPERIORITY OF THE NON-MUSLIM = JUDEOCHRISTIAN WORLD.
ZAWAHIRI = NO MATTER HOW MANY NUKES OR NUKES-WMDS THE US-WEST/ALLIES ARE DROPPED ON ISLAM, THE FORMER WILL NEVER BE ABLE TO DEFEAT, STOP, OR DESTROY ISLAM OR RADICAL ISLAM + JIHAD WIDOUT RISK OF MUTUAL ANNIHILATION [MAD Doctrine]. THE FALL OR FINAL DEFEAT/DESTRUCTION OF THE NON-MUSLIM WORLD WILL BE INEVITABLE = ONLY BE A MATTER OF TIME.
[IsraelTimes] Boris Johnson says gunnies watch pornography and masturbate excessively
London's mayor had some choice words Friday for Moslems who turn to radicalism, calling them sexually frustrated losers who turn to terrorism out of a deep-seated lack of self-confidence.
"If you look at all the psychological profiling about bombers, they typically will look at porn. They are literally wankers (masturbators). Severe onanists," Boris Johnson told UK tabloid The Sun, citing an MI5 report.
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#5
The Religion of Peace is a balm
That helps its adherents stay calm
When they read the Koran,
Halal grease in their hand,
And a portrait of Mo on their palm.
[THEGUARDIAN] Cabinet chief accuses US senator of ‘imperialist behaviour’ after Florida Republican says he doubts Argentina’s ability to conduct a credible investigation
Posted by: Fred ||
02/01/2015 00:00 ||
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#1
Crooked country. And filled with typical loser machismo. Two words for you: The Falklands. Two more words to remind Argentina of its place: General Belgrano.
#2
For those with any doubts, this was the typical action of would-be dictatorship or a cult of personality: generate an external enemy to distract the populace from what the thugs are doing. All Rubio did was speak the truth.
#2
I came across the British colonial forces rules of engagement for Somali bandits, back in the day, and the Japanese might find them useful here.
1. Shoot on sight.
2. Shoot first.
3. Shoot to kill.
4. Keep shooting.
#3
I've been thinking a lot about Japan lately. I wonder what would happen if someone gave Japan the complete, up-to-the-minute plans for the USS Kitty Hawk. I wonder how long it would take them to begin building one, how long before launch, and how much longer before they have a competent carrier task force and aircrews. I have noticed that Japan is increasing its submarine force (by more than twice), and is building some copies of our Iwo Jima class LHD vessels. I wouldn't be surprised if the JSDF was also silently constructing nuclear weapons and the means to deliver them against both China and North Korea. China and Japan have been feuding for 3500 years. I don't think there's a lot of love lost between them.
Posted by: Old Patriot ||
02/01/2015 18:09 Comments ||
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#4
@#3: Sorry, only the Chinese are allowed U.S. war-machine plans./sarc
#6
#5 Honestly, if the Japanese wanted to get nukes, they'd have them quite quickly as long as they could get the fissile materiel.
They have the fissile materiel. It is not bomb core shaped yet, but that is _relatively_ trivial.
A _relatively_ simple, boosted single stage weapon in the 200-50kt range that is small, light, and rugged enough to fit on a SRBM/MRBM/IRBM is well within their technical capability. All that is needed is the political will (read: desperation).
Now consider what the Narcissist in Chief has been doing to our alliance structure around the world.
The thought of Japan, if they combined the bloody mindset of 1930's with their modern tech base is not a happy thought.
IMO the ISIS' murder of Mr. Goto will only intensify domestic Nippon support for amending the Japanese Constitution in favor of allowing the mainly "defensive" JSDF to both be deployable overseas + serving under UNO mandate, as well as support for the JSDF to develop some sort of "offensive" military capability.
Post-GOTO, prolly safe to say we're looking at expansion of Japanese Elite-Special Forces + expanded covert International missions for Japan's INTEL-PYWAR assets.
[007's JAMES BOND'S ADOPTED BROTHER
HIROHITO BOND here].
And yeah, Asia/East Asia #1 wannabe CHINA won't be happy, + will respond in kind.
#8
Since WWII the Nipponese have shown no spine. They are no different than the EU and depend on the American tax payer for their defense.
The ISIS event in nothing compared to the threat from China.
Talk is cheap, let's see action.
A clash at a checkpoint followed by a 48-hour manhunt this week left five people dead in Xinjiang region.
On Wednesday, three Uighur teenagers failed to stop at a security checkpoint in Keriye county (Yutian in Chinese) in Hotan prefecture (Hetian in Chinese) and then resisted police efforts to detain them.
Three security officials "chased them with a pickup truck and stopped them at a river valley and tried to take them to the police," said Memet Turdi, village head of Yantaqkol village of Chira country (Cele in Chinese).
Turdi said the three teenagers “refused to go to the police, saying that they were there to find valuable stones."
“When a policeman dragged one of them to the truck a dispute erupted between them. Then the suspects killed all the personnel with knives," he said. According to Turdi, the three slain security officials, two auxiliary police and one security guard were not armed.
BEIJING -- North Korea "reportedly" sacked the chief of its Supreme Guard Command, the elite personal bodyguard force tasked with protecting the North's leader Kim Jong-un, in the wake of last month's killings by a North Korean army deserter, a Chinese scholar wrote in an op-ed for state media on Saturday.
In the op-ed piece published by state-run China Daily newspaper, Hu Mingyuan, associate researcher at the Center for Northeast Asian Studies, suspected that, if the reported dismissal is true, it might indicate Pyongyang's willingness to move toward warmer ties with Beijing.
China lodged a diplomatic protest after a North Korean army deserter killed four Chinese citizens in a robbery attempt in the Chinese border city of Helong on Dec. 28 last year. The North Korean soldier was shot dead during a manhunt, Chinese officials said.
"The Democratic People's Republic of Korea (North Korea) has reportedly dismissed all officials, including the head of Pyongyang's Supreme Guard Command, considered responsible for a DPRK army deserter crossing the border last month and killing four Chinese nationals while trying to commit robbery," Hu said. "If the report of the removal of the Pyongyang officials is true, it has to be said the DPRK has had a drastic change of heart."
"By holding the military leadership accountable for the shooting and robbery incident, DPRK leader Kim Jong-un has sought to not only appease the public rage in China but also strengthen China-DPRK relations," Hu said.
The North's current Supreme Guard commander, Yun Jong-rin, was last seen in public on Dec. 2 last year, in a photo published by the Rodong Sinmun, the official newspaper of the reclusive state's ruling Workers' Party.
Posted by: Steve White ||
02/01/2015 00:00 ||
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#1
So someone did watch, 'The Interview', and take it seriously?
U.S. Under Secretary of State Wendy Sherman on Thursday told officials here that Washington and Seoul share the same policy when it comes to North Korea.
Washington has been ramping up pressure on Pyongyang just as Seoul is trying to improve inter-Korean relations, raising concerns that the two allies are increasingly out of step.
"We have the same policy as [South Korea] does and that is to ultimately have a denuclearized peninsula. Denuclearization is the first priority where North Korea is concerned," Sherman said.
Following a vice-ministers' meeting, Sherman said all members of the six-party nuclear talks apart from North Korea are working together to see what more they can do to engage Pyongyang.
The multilateral dialogue involving the two Koreas, the U.S., China, Japan and Russia has been stalled for more than six years.
Posted by: Steve White ||
02/01/2015 00:00 ||
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#1
Maybe they should bring Iran into the talks. North Korea could ship their nukes to Iran. This would take care of two of Obama's goals: a denuclearized Korean peninsula, and a nuclear Iran.
Posted by: Rambler in Virginia ||
02/01/2015 0:50 Comments ||
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#2
Champ will cut a deal with the Norks that will include the pull-out of U.S. forces from the peninsula. All former allies must be betrayed.
[IsraelTimes] A government infographic lists a change in eating habits, including baguettes, as part of behavior modifications that could signal an embrace of Islamic extremism
In the wake of the brutal terror attacks that shook Gay Paree earlier this month, the French government took out an advertisement advising citizens on the "first signs" that could indicate a friend or relative was embracing Islamic extremism.
Seemingly, one of the the first clues one could look for is the banning of baguette from the person's diet, as evidenced by a crossed-out pictogram of a baguette with the caption: "Changing their eating habits."
The ad sparked an onslaught of ridicule on social media, with some tweets mocking the French government for not having a clue.
The ad was part of a $480 million campaign to counter terrorism and the rise of home-grown terrorists, in the wake of the Charlie Hebdo ...A lefty French satirical magazine, home of what may well be the majority if the active testicles left in Europe... and Hyper Cacher attacks on January in which 17 people were killed over three days.
Other suggestions among the nine-point list for spotting radicalization were more well-received, such as a rejection of friends and family members, a change of dress, a loss of interest in sports, music and TV and, most obvious, if they frequent myrmidon sites online.
[AnNahar] An art installation showing high heels on Islamic prayer rugs was pulled from an exhibition near Gay Paree after a Moslem group complained the work could provoke "uncontrollable" reactions, the artist said Tuesday.
"Silence", which has already been shown in Gay Paree, Berlin, New York and Madrid, was supposed to go on display in Clichy La Garenne, which is just north of the capital, in a woman-themed art show.
But French-Algerian artist Zoulikha Bouabdellah decided to replace the work after a local Moslem group told Town Hall last week that "uncontrollable, irresponsible incidents could result" if the installation was shown there.
Bouabdellah said she was surprised by the "incomprehension" her work has met, but added she believes it is tied to emotions stirred by the jihadist attacks in La Belle France earlier this month that left 17 people dead.
"I'm left wondering by the reasons that push a certain fringe among French Moslems to see this work as blasphemous," she said, adding that she didn't intend it to shock or provoke.
Bouabdellah decided to replace "Silence" with a video installation titled "Dansons" that shows belly dancing to the French national anthem.
Istanbul -- Everything seems normal as the passengers stream out of a routine flight from a Middle Eastern country after landing at a major Turkish international airport. But as they cross the air bridge from the plane into the airport, two plainclothes Turkish police -- on the lookout for militants on their way to Syria -- scrutinise their appearance and behaviour.
They check the passengers’ passports and detain two men who arouse suspicions after saying they are travelling on to the city of Adana, in southern Turkey.
The country has long been under pressure to do more to thwart the transit of militants across its territory to war-torn Syria. Thousands are believed to have taken commercial flights to Turkish airports before heading overland to Syria to fight alongside Daesh militants.
But Ankara insists it is now doing all it can to tighten border security and said Western states should do more to prevent the militants from leaving for Turkey in the first place.
Turkey has clearly been stung by the criticism, and last year it established “risk analysis centres” at international airports and bus terminals across the country in order to spot extremists and deport them.
Eager to show the extent of the measures now in place round the clock at Turkish transport hubs, the Turkish authorities gave AFP unusual access to its security teams at the airport. The teams have detected some 1,500 suspects and around one third of them were sent back to their countries of origin, a Turkish security official said in an interview.
“The suspect is spotted at the air bridge and then taken to the passenger documents check desk and later to the risk analysis centre for a further interview with the police,” the official said, speaking on condition of anonymity.
During the process the authorities can communicate with the countries of origin if necessary.
Or, better yet, just jug the miscreant in a Turkish prison...
Eyes turned to Turkey when Hayat Boumeddiene, the partner of a militant who took part in the January 7 Paris attacks, flew to Istanbul, passed through immigration -- and then the entire country -- without being stopped. Ankara says it cannot assure 100 per cent border security unless Western states provide real time intelligence and full lists of suspects — which was not the case with Boumeddiene.
“In the past intelligence sharing was weak,” said the official, adding that it was enhanced after the Paris attacks but “it is not considered sufficient.”
He said: “35 per cent of Daesh members come from European countries and hold European passports.”
Up to 600 Turkish nationals have joined militants but this does “not place Turkey in the top 10 source countries,” according to the official.
A 33-year-old terror suspect, identified only by his initials S.L., was held at Istanbul’s international airport by Turkish police in June last year after arriving on a flight from Paris exhibiting “suspicious behaviour”. During the interview it emerged that he had converted to Islam very recently and planned to join militants, authorities said.
In another incident, police confiscated military equipment, binoculars and first aid material from a Norwegian suspect last year.
“How can an individual with military equipment in his bag (on his way) to join Daesh be completely unnoticed in the country of departure?” the official said.
Meanwhile, militants are now going out of their way to appear normal when entering Turkey.
“Shaving the beard or changing appearance does not mean that suspects will not be spotted,” the official said.
Psychological testing in interview rooms helps determine whether suspects are to be sent back.
For those deemed suspicious, authorities draw up a confidential document outlining their justification for deportation, place it in an envelope and give it to the airline to be delivered to the country of origin.
“Airline companies are responsible for the passengers they carry,” the official said.
The two suspects who said they were headed for Adana are taken to the risk analysis centre in a small room nearby for further questioning. Officials declined to give any hint about their ultimate fate.
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[NBCNews] Two men detained as suspected jihadis were wearing burqas because one was visiting a secret girlfriend, according to police in Turkey.
Authorities stopped the disguised pair in the southeastern town of Mardin, close to the Syrian border, where security has been increased in the wake of the rise of ISIS.
Officers noticed that one of the "women" was wearing men's shoes, English-language news site Hurriyet cited the Dogan News Agency as reporting.
Investigators later discovered the suspects were wearing burqas in order to hide a love affair, Mardin governor's office and the local police department told NBC News.
One of them men, identified only by the initials M.D., is married but had been secretly visiting a woman who belongs to a different tribe. His friend, Z.T., was acting as a watchman during the couple's clandestine meeting.
Yet again the burqa serves to conceal sin rather than promote modest virtue. How can the pious do aught but cry to the heavens, "For the love of Allah, ban the burqa!"
The emergence of ISIS has raised social tension and security concerns in Turkey's southeast where there are worries about the movement of jihadis across the Syrian border, Hurriyet reported.
The most compelling witness would be Hillary Clinton, the secretary of state when the U.S. foreign mission in Benghazi was overrun by Islamic militants on Sept. 11, 2012.
Although she has testified on two previous occasions -- once in each chamber of Congress â-- she indicated a willingness to appear before the special select committee, according to Cummings, who claimed he'd broached the subject to her last year.
"She immediately said she would do that and she wanted to come in December and then she said, 'Well, if you can't have me in December I'll come in January.' She said, 'I'll do it, period,'" Cummings said, according to CNN.
Gowdy has long expressed a desire to hear from Clinton, but not until the panel has had a chance to subpoena and review all relevant State Department documentation, including emails to and from Clinton and her own notes. Clinton feigns cooperation while Cummings, etal, throw up obstacles to same. Nice smoke.
[DAWN] As the nation mourns Friday's deadly blast on Shikarpur's Masjid-o-Imambargah ...since Pakistain is very religiously correct, Shia Moslems can't call their houses of worship 'mosques,' which are reserved for Sunnis. It's not clear if imambargahs are used for explosives storage like mosques are... Karbala-e-Moulla that killed at least 60 people, Station House Officer (SHO) Lakhi Gate Bashir Ahmed Khokar and the head constable have been suspended for showing negligence in performing their duties.
Additionally, constable Javed who had been designated the security of the imambargah has been enjugged
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Posted by: Fred ||
02/01/2015 00:00 ||
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[DAWN] Lal Masjid ...literally the Red Mosque, located in Islamabad and frequented by all sorts of high govt officials. The proprietors, Ghazi Abdul Rasheed and Maulana Abdul Aziz Ghazi, unleashed their Islamic storm troopers on the city, shutting down whorehouses and beating people up who weren't devout enough. The Musharraf govt put an end to the nonsense by besieging the place. Abdul Aziz Ghazi was nabbed while he was trying to escape dressed up like a girl. BBC reported that the corpse count at 173, but other claims, usually hysterical, say there were up to 1000 titzup. Among their number was Abdul Rashid Ghazi. Everyone then said tut-tut and what a nice guy he had been... holy manMaulana Abdul Aziz ...nutball holy man who runs the Lal Masjid in the heart of Pakistain's capital. After instigating a rebellion against the state in 2007, he was caught trying to sneak away dressed in a burka. He rejects democracy as un-Islamic, which it probably is... delivered his third consecutive Friday sermon over the telephone.
During the last three weeks, the holy man has not visited the mosque due to which there are speculations that he is under house arrest. However, some people cause happiness wherever they go; others whenever they go... according to police sources, he has decided to stay in Jamia Hafsa ... the Islamic nunnery maintained by Lal Masjid.... seminary to protest withdrawal of security by the government.
Maulana Aziz enjoyed official security for about three years. As many as three police commandos were deputed for his security in 2011. But on December 21, 2014, Interior Minister Chaudhry Nisar Ali Khan ...Currently the Interior Minister of Pakistain. He is the senior leader of the Pak Moslem League (N) and a close aide to Nawaz Uncle Fester Sharif. He is noted for his vocal anti-American railing in the National Assembly. However (comma) Khan told the U.S. ambassador that he was in fact pro-American but he and the PML-N would have to be critical of US actions in order to remain publicly credible. Khan cited his wife and children's US citizenship as proof, which means he's lying to one side or the other and probably both. He wears a wig, but you probably guessed that. since hair doesn't grow naturally in that shape or texture... told a presser that the government had withdrawn security from the holy man.
The minister said Maulana Aziz was not the khateeb of the mosque as his nephew Maulana Amir Siddique had been appointed the khateeb when Pervez Perv Musharraf ... former dictator of Pakistain, who was less dictatorial and corrupt than any Pak civilian government to date ... was in power.
An official of Lal Masjid, Tehseenullah, confirmed to Dawn that Maulana Aziz had been delivering weekly sermons over the telephone and did not visit the mosque for over three weeks.
"Because of security situation, the Maulana has decided to limit his activities. Moreover, the police have also informed him that his life was in danger," he said.
When contacted, SSP Operations Mir Viaz Niaz said Maulana Aziz was not under house arrest. "He can go anywhere in the city. However, some people cause happiness wherever they go; others whenever they go... it is up to him if he delivers the Friday sermons through phone or in person," he added.
Posted by: Fred ||
02/01/2015 00:00 ||
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[Ynet] Outgoing US Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel said in an interview on Friday the United States might eventually need to send non-combat ground troops to Iraq to help turn back Islamic State ...formerly ISIS or ISIL, depending on your preference. Before that al-Qaeda in Iraq, as shaped by Abu Musab Zarqawi. They're very devout, committing every atrocity they can find in the Koran and inventing a few more. They fling Allah around with every other sentence, but to hear the pols talk they're not really Moslems.... forces.
Hagel, who announced his resignation under pressure in November, told CNN all options must be considered in Iraq, including sending troops for non-combat roles such as gathering intelligence and locating Islamic State targets.
"I think it may require a forward deployment of some of our troops ...," he said. "I would say we're not there yet. Whether we get there or not, I don't know."
#3
If there were any brains in the administration, we'd have build a training base in Kurdistan already (and use it for logistics), and had them rotating to use US-paid (and covert staffed) trainers elsewhere outside of the region.
[AnNahar] When Islamic State ...formerly ISIS or ISIL, depending on your preference. Before that al-Qaeda in Iraq, as shaped by Abu Musab Zarqawi. They're very devout, committing every atrocity they can find in the Koran and inventing a few more. They fling Allah around with every other sentence, but to hear the pols talk they're not really Moslems.... group holy warriors invaded the Central Library of djinn-infested Mosul ... the home of a particularly ferocious and hairy djinn... earlier this month, they were on a mission to destroy a familiar enemy: other people's ideas.
Continued on Page 49
Posted by: trailing wife ||
02/01/2015 00:00 ||
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#1
I am still waiting for IS to build pyramids of severed human heads a la Hulagu Khan and Tamerlane.
[IsraelTimes] Recruits aged 15 and up taught how to kidnap soldiers, use weapons, and infiltrate into Israel through tunnels
Always good to have lots of cannon fodder...
Thousands of recruits as young as 15 learned how to kidnap soldiers, use weapons, and infiltrate into Israel though tunnels at a Hamas, always the voice of sweet reason, paramilitary training camp in Gazoo.
On Thursday, some 15,000 Gazook teenagers and young men graduated from the week-long training camps, called the "Pioneers of Liberation."
The 15-21-year-olds underwent military training for the armed wing of Hamas, Izaddin al-Qassam, six months after Hamas and other Gazoo terror groups fought a 50-day war against Israel.
Drills included weapons training and exercises simulating kidnapping IDF soldiers and infiltration into Israel through tunnels. Portraits of Israeli leaders were used in target practice for sniper training.
"We are participating in the camp so that we will know how to fight the Zionist enemy and regain our ancestral home of Paleostine," one teenager said, in footage from the training camps screened on Israel's Channel 2 TV on Thursday night.
Thursday's graduation ceremony in Gazoo City was attended by Hamas big turbanIsmail Haniyeh ...became Prime Minister after the legislative elections of 2006 which Hamas won. President Mahmoud Abbas dismissed Haniyeh from office on 14 June 2007 at the height of the Fatah-Hamas festivities, but Haniyeh did not acknowledge the decree and continues as the PM of Gazoo while Abbas maintains a separate PM in the West Bank... , the former Gazoo prime minister. The Islamist terror group, which is committed to the destruction of Israel, took control of Gazoo in 2007.
According to a Hamas spokesperson, high demand for the camp for forced organizers to expand the program and make logistical changes to accommodate all of the participants.
"They train us to be a jihad fighter for Allah, to liberate Paleostine from the defilement of the Zionist occupations, and to be ready for our upcoming Independence, Allah willing," another young participant said.
Hamas organizes military-style camps for young recruits each year, but this was the first time its military wing hosted the training at its bases, the TV report said.
The al-Qassam Brigades is estimated to have 20,000-25,000 fighters in its ranks. Some 2,000 Gazooks were killed in the summer war; Israel said most were Hamas and other gunnies, and blamed Hamas for all civilian fatalities since it emplaced its rocket launchers and cross-border tunnel openings in Gazoo residential areas. Seventy-three people were killed in Israel. Hamas fired over 4,500 rockets and other projectiles into Israel, and staged several attacks through the tunnels.
#1
The highest aspiration of the Gazan is to become a terrorist? I guess it takes too long to become a physician, engineer, teacher or something otherwise useful. At some point the West will turn on the jihadists--just not until after the next U.S. Note the recent protest signs in Texas. Got to love Texas.
#2
This was not a capricious leak by a lone former US official. This leak was a message to Netanyahu by the Obama regime of an operation carried out under the Bush/Israeli alliance.
There are hidden messages to Israel from the Obama regime in this leak.
[Iran Press TV] The bond between the United States and Israel is "falling apart", says a London-based political activist.
He's in London looking at what is being said in Washington, DC. This will greatly impact what he sees and through what filters he understands it.
Gilad Atzmon made the remarks to Press TV on Saturday while commenting on a Washington Post report about the US Central Intelligence Agency's role in liquidation of Imad Mughniyah, a high-ranking Hezbollah figure, by Israel's intelligence service, Mossad, on February 12, 2008.
"For a long while, Israel and the United States had been collaborating in what they regarded security issues," but now "this bond is now falling apart", Atzmon said.
There never was a bond between this White House and Israel. But the bond between Israel and the Republican Party, some Democratic politicians, and the majority of the American citizenry is as strong as ever. Ditto the Armed Forces. Not that the Washington Post is capable of recognizing any of those groups as being meaningful...
In its report, the Post quoted a former US intelligence official as saying that the CIA had been tracking Mughniyah's movements prior to the operation and also helped build a bomb, remotely detonated by Mossad after being planted in the spare tire of a parked SUV in the Syrian capital Damascus
"Nobody is surprised by the fact that the CIA was involved in the liquidation of Imad Mughniyah. What is slightly unusual is to see the method they were using," Atzmon said, referring to the boom-mobile as "not something that's usually associated with organizations like CIA".
But is well known to the Israelis with whom they partnered. Perhaps that had something to do with the successful weapon choice.
Posted by: Fred ||
02/01/2015 00:00 ||
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#1
Just how frightening is a US President, universally seen as feckless at best, in search of a "Legacy?"
The FBI did not have prior knowledge of a police raid in the Philippines last Sunday to arrest wanted militants that went wrong and left more than 50 policemen dead, an FBI spokesman said. Philippine media had reported that the FBI helped orchestrate the raid.
#4
We are going to get our best people on it just as soon as we clear our desks of Benghazi, Fast and Furious, Ferguson, MO, the IRS,....it might take awhile.
Beirut -- Tens of thousands of longtime Palestinian refugees in a camp on the outskirts of the Syrian capital have been cut off from United Nations emergency aid for nearly two months by armed groups that are preventing access, a UN official said.
Up to 18,000 people are living inside the devastated Yarmouk camp, which is caught between government forces and Syrian insurgent groups including Al Qaeda’s Nusra Front. Food, water and medicine are scarce.
Sucks to be stateless...
Last year “a degree of cooperation” allowed aid to enter after several months of being blocked, but access has again vanished with a deterioration of security, said Pierre Kraehenbuehl, head of the UN’s agency for Palestinian refugees, UNRWA.
“We really haven’t been able to bring in any assistance since early December,” he said.
Yarmouk was home to more half a million Palestinian refugees before Syria’s conflict began in 2011. Most have fled abroad or to elsewhere in Syria. Those who stayed face worsening conditions, including price rises and a severe winter, Kraehenbuehl said.
“They can’t withstand too many shocks at the same time,” he said.
Neither can your average bombing victim, but that doesn't stop the Paleos...
Kraehenbuehl said he had urged Lebanese officials to allow Palestinians fleeing Syria to enter. About 44,000 Palestinians from Syria are now living in Lebanon, but tighter entry restrictions have meant that few have been able to enter since May,
So the Lebanese still remember the last time they let the Paleos in...
Lebanon also hosts 1.5 million Syrians who fled the war, giving it the highest number of refugees per capita in the world. Hospitality has worn thin in a country with a creaking infrastructure and tense security environment.
Not to mention the ungrateful refugees...
The militarisation of Palestinian camps was widely seen as a catalyst of Lebanon’s own 15-year civil war, which ended in 1990.
Yup, that's what they remember...
Kraehenbuehl also voiced concern about Gaza, where the UN agency said last week that a lack of money had forced it to suspend payments to Palestinians for repairs to homes damaged in last summer’s war with Israel. Donors had paid only around $100 million of the $720 million needed, he said.
Posted by: Steve White ||
02/01/2015 00:00 ||
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[IsraelTimes] Realizing social media interactions can be used against them, bully boyz search for alternative routes to spread their messages
Less visible electronically -- until the youngsters forget, and tweet or post on Facebook -- but we followed Al Qaeda bike messengers to Osama bin Laden's new home. If there are connections, they can be traced.
After having used the Internet profusely for propaganda and recruitment, jihadist organizations have realized that Sherlocks are gleaning crucial information online and are increasingly concealing their web presence, experts say.
Apart from recent orders given to fighters to limit their exposure, erase the footprint of their online activity and avoid revealing too many place names or faces, the Islamic State ...formerly ISIS or ISIL, depending on your preference. Before that al-Qaeda in Iraq, as shaped by Abu Musab Zarqawi. They're very devout, committing every atrocity they can find in the Koran and inventing a few more. They fling Allah around with every other sentence, but to hear the pols talk they're not really Moslems.... and Al-Nusra ...the current nom de guerre of al-Qaeda in the Levant, which isn't to be confused with al-Qaeda in Iraq and the Levant... Front groups are increasingly using the "Dark Web" -- the hidden part of the Internet protected by powerful encryption softwares.
"Sometimes we get the geographical location of some fighters thanks to Facebook," Philippe Chadrys, in charge of the fight against terrorism at La Belle France's judicial police, said earlier this week.
"Some even publish it on the public part of their account. That gives us elements to build a case. Because of course we don't go to Syria, we have no one on the ground, and we lack proof."
In November, Flavien Moreau, a 28-year-old jihadist who travelled to Syria and then returned to La Belle France, was incarcerated Youse'll never take me alive coppers!... [BANG!]... Ow!... I quit! for seven years exclusively on the basis of what he posted online.
And those who just months ago had happily posted videos, photos of themselves holding Kalashnikovs or of beheadings on Facebook have now realised that they were single-handedly building a case against themselves, if they ever decided to come home.
"We are starting to notice the beginnings of disaffection with Facebook -- they have understood that's how we get incriminating evidence," said Chadrys.
"They are resorting more and more to Skype or WhatsApp, software that is much harder to intercept.
"We realise that the people we are interested in are increasingly specialised in computing. They master encryption software and methods to better erase data."
Chadrys also said that jihadists were increasingly using the "Dark Web."
"That makes our probes much more complicated. The turbans are adapting, they understand that the telephone and Internet are handy, but dangerous.
He pointed to Mehdi Nemmouche, saying last year's alleged Brussels Jewish museum killer had no mobile phone and no Facebook account.
Faced with this problem, police are resorting to calling in cryptography and computing experts, but there are never enough, which slows down investigations.
Last autumn, the Islamic State group (IS) published guidelines for its members, asking fighters not to tweet precise location names, to blur faces or stop giving too many details about on-going operations.
"Security breaches have appeared, which the enemy has taken advantage of," read the text, written in Arabic.
"The identity of some brothers has been compromised, as have some sites used by mujahedeen. We know that this problem does not only involve photos, but also PDF, Word and video files."
In a recent report, Helle Dale of the US-based Heritage Foundation think-tank wrote that cyber-surveillance was key to the fight against IS "as human intelligence is hardly available on the ground, especially in Syria, and the number of unmanned drones is limited."
But, she added, the group "is changing is communications strategy. It is encrypting its electronic communications, limiting its presence online and using services that delete messages as soon as they are sent."
[IsraelTimes] With 300 hours of material uploaded every minute, Google says screening for jihadi videos impossible
Internet giant Google said Wednesday that its video-sharing website YouTube is so inundated that staff cannot filter all terror related content, complicating the struggle to halt the publication of terrorist propaganda and hostage videos.
Google Public Policy Manager Verity Harding said that about 300 hours of video material is being uploaded to YouTube every minute, making it virtually impossible for the company to filter all images.
Harding spoke at a European Parliament meeting of the ALDE liberal group on a counter-terrorism action plan.
She said that "to pre-screen those videos before they are uploaded would be like screening a phone call before it's made."
The European Union ...the successor to the Holy Roman Empire, only without the Hapsburgs and the nifty uniforms and the dancing... 's counter-terror chief believes it is time to help companies to contain the security risk by having experts from member states flagging terror-related content.
"We have to help them, and refer to them, and signal content," Gilles De Kerchove said. "Each member state should have a unit with people trained to do that."
On YouTube, users can highlight problem videos and have them reviewed by a member of staff.
When a Scotland Yard unit recently told Google about material that did not comply with the company's own guidelines, De Kerchove said 93 percent of that content was removed. But when individuals flag up problems only a third of it is taken down.
Detecting violent, extreme and racist material is a mammoth task. But concerted, targeted warnings from organized groups work best.
"There are community groups and others who do this on a larger scale and they're incredibly helpful to us," Harding said.
Despite the serious threat posed by extreme and violent videos, neither the big Internet companies nor the European Union appear willing to take on a legal battle to enforce their removal.
"We can contemplate legislation but I suspect it would be an awfully monumental exercise," De Kerchove said.
A multi-volume chronology and reference guide set detailing three years of the Mexican Drug War between 2010 and 2012.
Rantburg.com and borderlandbeat.com correspondent and author Chris Covert presents his first non-fiction work detailing
the drug and gang related violence in Mexico.
Chris gives us Mexican press dispatches of drug and gang war violence
over three years, presented in a multi volume set intended to chronicle the death, violence and mayhem which has
dominated Mexico for six years.
Rantburg was assembled from recycled algorithms in the United States of America. No
trees were destroyed in the production of this weblog. We did hurt some, though. Sorry.
A lefty French satirical magazine, home of what may well be the majority if the active testicles left in Europe...
A lefty French satirical magazine, home of what may well be the majority if the active testicles left in Europe...
BEIJING -- North Korea "reportedly" sacked the chief of its Supreme Guard Command, the elite personal bodyguard force tasked with protecting the North's leader Kim Jong-un, in the wake of last month's killings by a North Korean army deserter, a Chinese scholar wrote in an op-ed for state media on Saturday.
A lefty French satirical magazine, home of what may well be the majority if the active testicles left in Europe...
The most compelling witness would be Hillary Clinton, the secretary of state when the U.S. foreign mission in Benghazi was overrun by Islamic militants on Sept. 11, 2012.
Currently the Interior Minister of Pakistain. He is the senior leader of the Pak Moslem League (N) and a close aide to Nawaz 
Beirut -- Tens of thousands of longtime Palestinian refugees in a camp on the outskirts of the Syrian capital have been cut off from United Nations emergency aid for nearly two months by armed groups that are preventing access, a UN official said.
