Oh. My. God. He really is all that, and then some.
[AnNahar] U.S. 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... said Thursday the Egyptian army, which deposed president Mohammed Morsi, had intervened at the request of millions to protect democracy and had restored it.
Kerry made the remarks in a interview in Pakistain where he earlier congratulated the new government on an historic transition of democratic power in a country long dominated by the military.
He was asked by Geo television why the United States had not taken a clear position on military intervention against Morsi's democratically elected government.
"The military was asked to intervene by millions and millions of people, all of whom were afraid of a descendance into chaos, into violence," Kerry told Geo.
"And the military did not take over, to the best of our judgement - so far. To run the country, there's a civilian government. In effect, they were restoring democracy," he added.
The interviewer questioned him over allegations that Egyptian troops have rubbed out people in the streets.
"Oh, no. That's not restoring democracy, and we're very, very concerned... I've been in touch with all of the players there. And we have made it clear that that is absolutely unacceptable, it cannot happen," Kerry said.
He said the United States was working with the European Union ...the successor to the Holy Roman Empire, only without the Hapsburgs and the nifty uniforms and the dancing... and other countries to see if the troubles in Egypt could be resolved peacefully.
"But the story of Egypt is not finished yet, so we have to see how it unfolds in the next days," he said.
#5
...however when a Central American military removes an El Presidente in accordance with their Constitution it's always a coup according to Foggy Bottom.
[AnNahar] Algeria's army has reinforced its forces along the eastern border with Tunisia, Interior Minister Daho Ould Kablia said on Thursday, days after the killing of eight Tunisian soldiers.
The soldiers were found on Monday with their throats cut after being ambushed by jihadist hard boyz in Mount Chaambi, an area near the border with Algeria.
Algeria's army "reinforced its resources and capabilities on the eastern border of the country because of the troubles that Tunisia is going through," Kablia told the national news agency APS.
Tunisian armed forces have intensified their hunt for an gang in the Mount Chaambi area since the spring, after several members of the security forces were killed or maimed by bombs.
Algiers has said it strongly condemns "the base act of terrorism that resulted in several deaths among the Tunisian armed forces."
Islamist bad boy groups in Algeria remain active decades after a bloody civil war in the 1990s that killed some 200,000 people, leading some in Tunisia to suggest connections with the group in Mount Chaambi.
Algeria's foreign ministry said on Thursday it condemned the "false allegations" against Algeria from "certain circles in Tunisia."
In a statement published by APS, ministry front man Amar Belani decried the allegations as a move to "deceive the Tunisian people as they are mobilizing to unite against terrorism."
Interior Minister Kablia said there had been an "exchange of security information between Algeria and its neighbors to fight the various scourges that threaten the security and stability of the region."
Exchanges of visits by bigwigs from Tunisia, Libya and Algeria have led to closer cross-border cooperation.
Posted by: trailing wife ||
08/02/2013 00:01 ||
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Egypts military-backed government on Wednesday or-dered the police to clear two Cairo protest camps packed with supporters of ousted President Mohammed Mursi, saying they posed a threat to national security and were terrorising citizens.
The move signalled an imminent crackdown against the heavily barricaded sit-ins -- one outside a mosque in eastern Cairo and another on the other side of the city near the main Cairo University campus -- and raised the prospect of more violence after clashes broke out during previous action against the mainly Islamist protesters.
More than 260 people have been killed since Mursi was ousted by the military on July 3, leaving the country between those calling for his reinstatement and millions who marched against him and his Muslim Brotherhood in a show of support for the new political order.
Police have been instructed to end the protests within the law and the constitution, Information Minister Dorreya Sharaf El Din said in a televised statement, although she did not specify a timeframe.
Interior Minister Mohammed Ibrahim, who is in charge of the police, said the disbanding of the sit-ins will be carried out in gradu-al steps according to orders from prosecutors. I hope they (Mursi supporters) resort to reason and leave without authorities having to move in, he told the Associated Press in a telephone interview.
Posted by: Steve White ||
08/02/2013 00:00 ||
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h/t Gates of Vienna
The editor of a Saudi Arabian social website has been sentenced to seven years in prison and 600 lashes for founding an Internet forum that violates Islamic values and propagates liberal thought, Saudi media reported on Tuesday.
Raif Badawi, who started the 'Free Saudi Liberals' website to discuss the role of religion in Saudi Arabia, has been held since June 2012 on charges of cyber crime and disobeying his father - a crime in the conservative kingdom and top U.S. ally.
The Amir of Kuwait, His Highness Shaikh Sabah Al Ahmad Al Jaber Al Sabah pardoned on Tuesday all those who have been sentenced to jail for insulting him.
On the occasion of the last 10 days of (the Muslim fasting month of) Ramadan, I am pleased to issue an Emiri pardon for those who have been handed jail terms on charges of insulting the Emir, he announced in a televised speech.
Several opposition members have been jailed and dozens more are on trial on charges of undermining Shaikh Sabahs authority and insulting him. Currently, there are at least three youth opposition activists serving various jail terms on charges of insulting the Emir.
A number of other activists and former opposition lawmakers are on trial for similar charges following a government clampdown on dissent that began in October. They include two women, one sentenced to 11 years and the other for 20 months for insulting the Emir. It was unclear whether the pardon applied to all or only to those in jail.
Criticising the Emir is a felony that can carry a jail sentence of up to five years.
The Emirs action came a few days after parliamentary election that was boycotted by the main opposition groups in protest against an amendment to the electoral law even though the constitutional court upheld the change in June.
Posted by: Steve White ||
08/02/2013 00:00 ||
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North Korea is strengthening asymmetric systems such as special operations, cyber warfare and nuclear arms because its conventional forces have declined in capability, the officer nominated as the next commander of the U.S. Force Korea told the Senate Armed Services Committee on Tuesday. Lt. Gen. Curtis Scaparrotti was speaking at his confirmation hearing for the job.
He added the North also has hundreds of medium and short-range ballistic missiles and keeps increasing their range, destructive power and accuracy. He claimed they pose a threat to the western part of the U.S. mainland as well as Okinawa, Guam and Alaska.
The North's successful launch of a space rocket in December 2012 showed that its missile capability has been improved and that it is aimed at the U.S., he speculated.
Asked about Seoul's request of another delay in the handover of full operational control of the South Korean troops, he said, "I do agree with the [scheduled] timetable. It is a bilateral agreement, Strategic Alliance 2015, to turn over operational control by December of 2015."
Once appointed, he pledged to do his best to meet the schedule. But in a written statement to the committee, he hinted at the possibility of readjusting the schedule, saying the handover transfer should cause no unnecessary crisis in South Korea's security given realistic threats from the North.
Scaparrotti added he will talk with the South Korean government about detailed plans, terms and conditions for a successful handover once he takes charge of the USFK.
Posted by: Steve White ||
08/02/2013 00:00 ||
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#1
Lets not fergit the Backpack Nukes + alleged Nuke tennis-balls.
* FYI WND > EXPERT: CUBA COULD HIT US WID DEATHBLOW.
* ION TOPIX > [Forbes] FOR STABILITY IN EAST ASIA, US SHOULD ABROGATE COLD WAR-ERA "MUTUAL DEFENSE" TREATIES, in favor of "Collective Self-defense" vee consent of sovereign nations.
ARTIC = OF THREE POSSIBLE FLASHPOINTS - ECS + SCS + NOKOR - THE SOUTH CHINA SEA [SCS] IS LIKELY TO EXPLODE/IGNITE FIRST BEFORE THE OTHERS.
* TOPIX > COMMANDERS: BUDGET CUTS COULD ERODE NUCLEAR ARSENALS.
* STARS-N-STRIPES > BULK OF NEW [deeper Sequstration-led] BUDGET CUTS WILL HURT PENTAGON [hard].
* FREEREPUBLIC > HAGEL: BUDGET CUTS COULD FORCE US NAVY TO SIDELINE THREE AIRCRAFT CARRIERS.
* WAFF > [StrategyPage] THE [new-n-improved, armed] CHINESE WHITE FLEET [revamped Coast Guard] GOES OFF TO WAR.
Coming to GUAM-CNMI-WESTPAC near you, once of course Debt-Sequester ridden Amerika PCorrectly-Deniably surrenders in the name of "Globalism" + the OWG "MultiPolar World" of multiple "Co-Superpowers".
In parallel wid the USA, all other OWG "Co-Superpowers" are Par, + all ranked at World#1 + desire to be World #1 - WHAT COULD POSSIBLY GO WRONG???
ARE YOU GLAD OUT OUR FED/GOVT-CRITTERS NEVER ASKED US VOTERS TO VOTE ON IFF THEY WANTED "GLOBALISM" + OWG-NWO, + RELATED!
* ASAHI SHIMBUN AJW > US GENERAL [USAF] SAYS AGGRESSIVE CHINESE TERRITORIAL CLAIMS BRING RISK.
* WORLD NEWS > TIES WID JAPAN FACE "GRIM TEST" [tests?]: CHINA NAVAL RESEARCHER WRITES.
PLA NavResInst Researcher Xing Guangmei.
A polite, oh-so-Chinese + Asian way of saying "test(s)" by the CRUCIBLE OF WAR = TRIAL BY COMBAT.
Its for Japan + ROK + PHIL + Vietnam, ASEAN to surrender + concede, NOT for "post-US" wannabe, We-see-ourselves/China-as-equal-to-the-US China to stop its escalations = NOT not open fire on Japan + PHIL, etal.
AND IN THIS CORNER WE HAVE POTUS BARACK
"RED-LINES ARE ACTUALLY GREEN, YA KNOW" OBAMA...
* WORLD NEWS > [New Straits Businesss Times] AL-QAEDA TRAINEES IN NEW ZEALAND, as per Kiwi = New Zealand PM Keys.
And so it begins ... ...
Lest we fergit, its NOT just China + PLA that ASEAN + Pacific Islands have to worry about wid any US-specific geopol retreat or fallback from East Asia.
h/t Gates of Vienna
Currently best known for not very much, the north German state of Brandenburg could soon be catapulted into an economic boom - a drilling firm reckons there are 92 million tonnes of oil there and plans to start drilling in four years. (1)Is there like any place outside Tibet where there is no oil?
(2) Can Soodies learn to eat sand?
#7
If it wasn't for China, the Saudis would be already eating sand, although in the form of wheat grown on desert sand with desalinated water.
At a certain price point, it makes more sense for the Saudis to use their oil to run desal plants. Although unfortunately for them Israel has the best desal technology.
[Ynet] Accused Fort Hood gunman Major Nidal Hasan, MD, PhD
...the bearded, paralyzed friend of ex-Al Qaeda cleric Anwar Al-Awlaki, who became an ex-cleric courtesy of a drone missile, followed fairly quickly by the death of his son and some friends by the same method. There are those who feel this is bad because poor Anwar was born in the U.S. as, after a decent interval, was his son...
released documents to Fox News on Thursday, days before his court-martial is to begin, in which says he wishes to renounce his US citizenship and military oath.
Hasan, an American-born Mohammedan and US Army major, is charged with opening fire on the Army post in Texas in November 2009, killing 13 and wounding 32. He is acting as his own attorney in his court-martial, scheduled to begin at the base on Aug. 6. If convicted he could face execution or life in prison.
Posted by: trailing wife ||
08/02/2013 06:46 ||
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#1
Won't do him any good to renounce, rip up his meal card, or kick the door. It won't be accepted. He's much safer to the regime as a deranged, nutcase US Army officer. Remember, we are NOT at war with Islam.
The judge is the administrator to insure compliance with legal proceedings. There are three courts martial forms, the general, the special and the summary. The latter is akin to a magistrates court consisting of one officer and has limited punitive powers. Both the general and special courts martial have the full array of judge, attorneys, and the board and has the same punitive abilities as any civilian criminal court but with additional articles concerning criminal behavior that don't exist in the civilian world.
One of the differences between civilian criminal proceedings and military is the ability of the jury members to ask questions of those on the witness stand. The usual proceeding has the questioner write the inquiry on paper and then have the judge review it for relevance and proper legal form.
#8
* DEFENCE.PK/FORUMS > AL-QAEDA LEADER [Ayman Zawahiri] VOWS TO BREAK OUT MUSLIMS HELD AT GUANTANAMO.
Besides possibly rescuing MAJOR HASAN, undoubtedly a few of the rescued Hard/Burqua Boyz will be charged to stay on in Cuba + set up Jihadi Ops there + as well as "near-abroad"???
MOSCOW -- American fugitive Edward Snowden was offered a job by Russia's top social networking site on Thursday, hours after the former intelligence contractor received a year-long asylum in Russia.
How appropriate...
"We invite Edward Snowden to Petersburg and will be happy if he decides to join the star team of programmers at VKontakte," Pavel Durov, one of the founders of the St. Petersburg-based VKontakte, Russia's answer to Facebook, said on his profile.
Snowden's temporary asylum papers allow him to work in Russia, according to Anatoly Kucherena, a lawyer close to the Russian authorities, who has been assisting the American.
Durov of VKontakte, or "InTouch", which says it has more than 210 million registered profiles and up to 47 million daily users, said he took pride in Russia's decision to harbor Snowden.
"Today Edward Snowden - the man who denounced U.S. security services' crimes against citizens of the whole world - received temporary asylum in Russia," Durov said.
"In such moments one feels pride with our country and regret over the course taken by United States - a country betraying the principles it was once built on," he added.
Posted by: Steve White ||
08/02/2013 00:00 ||
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#1
As discussed, this position may require occasional travel back to Moscow to work on sensitive gov't related projects. Your availability for travel is:
10% of the time (__).
25% of the time (__).
50% of the time (__).
75% of the time (__).
WASHINGTON -- A highly anticipated fall summit between President Barack Obama and Russian President Vladimir Putin could become a casualty of Moscow's defiant decision to grant temporary asylum to National Security Agency leaker Edward Snowden, the White House signaled Thursday after weeks of pressuring and pleading for his return to face prosecution.
Russia's decision "is not a positive development," White House spokesman Jay Carney said.
Shaddup ya twerp...
"We are extremely disappointed that the Russian government would take this step despite our very clear and lawful requests in public and in private to have Mr. Snowden expelled to the United States to face the charges against him," Carney said.
Obama is scheduled to go to Russia in September for the Group of 20 economic summit in St. Petersburg and also stop in Moscow for one-on-one talks Putin. The White House alternately has demanded that Russia return Snowden while also saying it doesn't want his case to negatively impact relations with Moscow.
In other words, Champ is being his usual lofty, mealy-mouthed self...
Asked whether Obama would still travel to Moscow, Carney said pointedly, "We are evaluating the utility of a summit."
There was a strong reaction from some lawmakers.
"Russia's action today is a disgrace and a deliberate effort to embarrass the United States. It is a slap in the face of all Americans," Republican Sens. John McCain of Arizona and Lindsey Graham of South Carolina said in a joint statement. "Now is the time to fundamentally rethink our relationship with Putin's Russia."
Yeah, let's rethink by sending all the RINOs to Russia...
The senators suggested expanding U.S. sanctions against Russians accused of human rights violations, completing U.S. missile defense programs based in Europe, and moving quickly on another round of NATO expansion to include the Republic of Georgia.
A top Democrat, Sen. Chuck Schumer of New York, said Obama should recommend moving the G-20 summit. Long before Thursday's decision, Graham suggested the U.S. boycott the Winter Olympics taking place next year in Sochi, Russia.
"Russia has stabbed us in the back, and each day that Mr. Snowden is allowed to roam free is another twist of the knife," Schumer said.
Few people know more about stabbing someone in the back then Chuckie Schumer. Okay, okay, Dick Durbin...
"There is no question that there are a range of issues, setting aside the disposition of Mr. Snowden, on which we are currently in disagreement with Russia," Carney said.
And in each case we're rolling over...
Posted by: Steve White ||
08/02/2013 00:00 ||
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#1
The last time we saw Putin in the news, he was strangling a monster fish with his bare hands. Somehow, I don't think B-HO's disapproval will bother him in the least.
MOSCOW Brushing aside pleas and warnings from President Obama and other senior Americans,
...why would Vlad listen to them after all...
Russia granted Edward J. Snowden temporary asylum and allowed him to walk free out of a Moscow airport transit zone on Thursday despite the risk of a breach in relations with the United States.
No risk at all. Champ won't do a darned thing. He's already demonstrated that. What, we're going to boycott the winter Olympics? He'll look like Jimmuah, and even Valerie Jarrett knows that isn't a good idea.
Russias decision, which infuriated American officials, ended five weeks of legal limbo for Mr. Snowden, the former intelligence analyst supposedly wanted by the United States for leaking details of the National Security Agencys surveillance programs, and opened a new phase of his legal and political odyssey.
Even as his leaks continued with new disclosures from the computer files he downloaded, Mr. Snowden now has legal permission to live and conceivably even work anywhere here for as long as a year, safely out of the reach of American prosecutors.
Already got a job offer, and not at a sushi bar...
Though some supporters expect him to seek permanent sanctuary elsewhere, possibly in Latin America, Mr. Snowden now has an international platform to continue defending his actions as a whistle-blower exposing wrongdoing by the American government.
The skinny little creep will continue to do what he does best, annoy people...
In a statement issued by WikiLeaks, Mr. Snowden thanked Russia for giving him permission to enter the country in accordance with its laws and international obligations. He accused the Obama administration of disregarding domestic and international law since his disclosures, but added that in the end, the law is winning.
Sure. Now you live in Russia, land of law. Congrats...
White House officials indicated that Mr. Obama was leaning against his plan to meet President Vladimir V. Putin of Russia in Moscow next month after the summit meeting of the Group of 20 nations in St. Petersburg, though officials stopped short of canceling the meeting outright. While American and Russian officials acknowledge the need to work together on issues of global importance, like the reduction of nuclear weapons and the war in Syria, Mr. Snowdens case now casts a shadow over relations in the way little has since the days of cold war defections.
In other words, Champ already knows that he's going to cave...
We are extremely disappointed that the Russian Federation would take this step, the White House press secretary, Jay Carney, said in Washington. He pointedly added that the administration was evaluating the utility of having a summit.
Mr. Carney then shook his tiny fists in frustration and retaliated against the press by telling more lies...
Mr. Putin, who spent the day at his official residence on the outskirts of Moscow, has appeared increasingly impervious to entreaties from the United States even those directly from Mr. Obama, who called him last month to discuss Mr. Snowdens case.
Why should he respond, let alone care?
Mr. Putin, who met with the president of Tajikistan, in part to discuss the impact of the American withdrawal from Afghanistan next year,
Champ gives speeches, Vlad makes plans...
made no public comments about Mr. Snowden on Thursday. The Kremlins spokesman, Dmitri S. Peskov, said the decision had been made by immigration officials and not by Mr. Putin himself, though it is widely assumed here that any decision with such potentially severe diplomatic consequences would require approval from the Kremlin.
It has nothing to do with the president or his administration, Mr. Peskov said in a telephone interview.
No, no, certainly not!
The Kremlin seemed to dare the White House to cancel the summit meeting. Mr. Peskov said that Russia continued to prepare to hold the meetings in Moscow and would until notified otherwise. He said that Russia believed in the importance of the relationship for ensuring regional and global security, but he shifted the onus to the Obama administration. You cannot dance tango alone, he said.
But you can sleep alone...
By late Thursday night, Mr. Snowdens whereabouts remained unclear.
Somewhere in Russia.
He left the international transit zone at Sheremetyevo airport unexpectedly at 3:30 p.m. after his lawyer, Anatoly G. Kucherena, spent the day with officials from the Federal Migration Service. Mr. Kucherena delivered him a passport-like document issued Wednesday and valid until July 31, 2014, granting him status as a temporary refugee in Russia.
Mr. Kucherena, in an interview, said he would not disclose Mr. Snowdens whereabouts, though he expected that he could make a public appearance soon. I cannot give out details, he said in an interview.
Mr. Snowden, 30, could still decide to seek permanent asylum in another country. According to Mr. Kucherena, he has not officially applied for permanent political asylum in Russia and could simply remain until he is able to fly elsewhere, though the logistics of that have been complicated by intense pressure from the Obama administration on countries to block his transit.
Suppose he gets onto a Russian Aeroflot plane that's flying, with stops, to Caracas. Anyone think Champ will interfere?
Mr. Snowdens official arrival in Russia was broadly cheered by many here who have defended his decision to leak the secrets of American surveillance.
Most of whom were shocked, shocked that a world power spies...
Ivan Melnikov, a senior Communist Party member of Parliament and a candidate for mayor of Moscow in next months election, called him a hero. Frankly speaking, Mr. Melnikov said, according to the Interfax news agency, he is like a balm to the hearts of all Russian patriots.
The Russian inferiority complex shines through...
Pavel Durov, the founder of the most prominent Russian online social network, VKontakte, even invited Mr. Snowden to join his company and help create new security measures. Snowden might be interested in working to protect the personal data of millions of our users, he wrote.
Lyudmila M. Alekseyeva, the head of the Moscow Helsinki Group and a stalwart of the human rights movement here since the Soviet era, welcomed the governments decision. I am satisfied that this happened, Ms. Alekseyeva, who met Secretary of State John Kerry in Moscow in May, told Interfax.
Although Mr. Putin has sought to avoid a personal confrontation with Mr. Obama over Mr. Snowden calling his limbo in the airport an unwanted Christmas present officials across the political spectrum have delighted in criticizing what they perceive as American arrogance and hypocrisy. Robert Shlegel, a member of Parliament in the pro-Kremlin majority party, United Russia, noted that the disclosures exposed surveillance efforts against American allies in Europe as well.
Will Obama cancel meetings with their leaders, too? he said.
Depends on whether he wants to be laughed at behind his back.
Posted by: Steve White ||
08/02/2013 00:00 ||
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#1
"We are extremely disappointed that the Russian Federation would take this step,"
Translation:
We are absolutely delighted the little bastid is staying in RU and assisting with their SW security challenges. The fok'n LAST thing we needed was Snowden going before a congressional committee or appearing on Sean Hannity. Thanks Vlad, yes, that Pike was definitely a whopper!
Excerpt: "Since January, some CIA operatives involved in the agency's missions in Libya, have been subjected to frequent, even monthly polygraph examinations, according to a source with deep inside knowledge of the agency's workings.
The goal of the questioning, according to sources, is to find out if anyone is talking to the media or Congress." /spit.....
#1
The write-in comments are better than the story itself.
A post operation or post deployment polygraph is Klingon common practice. They are a reminder to conduct accurate reporting, be honest with operational funding, and keep your yap shut. Failing a poly is bad ju-ju. Failing or coming up inconclusive, can result in a second or third session. One can get parked, pulled from prime-time, or run out the door. Frequent multiple poly's are NOT common practice. I suspect something very significant is being hidden.
#3
B, what is going on here? The current environment is effectively post scandal. No sentient individual should be surprised at anything and none of this appears to have any meaningful electoral advantage component to it. Why all the pressure?
#5
It there was that much CIA on the ground in Benghazi, obviously something very important was going on. AND if that very important going on was that secretive and that "hot," why was the US Ambassador there? The scenario I come up with tells me a CIA gig doesn't want State around.
The big question still is WHY Stevens was there.
BTW, I was at the US Embassy in Tripoli the other night for a function and met the new ambassador. A very impressive lady. When I was introduced to her, she immediately picked up on my Texas accent and asked me why I didn't have my cowboy boots on...she's from New Mexico. My Libyan lady was very amused by the exchange between us.
Posted by: Bill Clinton ||
08/02/2013 5:50 Comments ||
Top||
#6
One theory Bill [not my theory, but I'll go with it]....a typical agency squabble gone terribly wrong. The Klingon's wouldn't touch the weapons project due to a AQ and host-nation player turmoil. The Hildebeast insisted the project proceed and it did. With the exception of one Blue Mtn security guy, the Brits smartly unassed early on. Stevens made a last ditch, unsuccessful effort to unfok the mess for his boss. The Klingons were on hand to muscle the extraction. The rest is history. As the 2016 Dem lead, the Hildebeast was the principal.
Keep an eye on anybody who looks at your feet and tries to imitate a Texan.
#9
Recalling that the Ambassador met with a Turkish representative for an hour and a half that evening, and then the attack started one hour after that meeting ended, my assumption is the meeting was connected to the CIA project there.
#10
Is it possible that the Ambassador (and Hilly?) was kept in the dark about the CIA being there in force and what they were there for?
This regime is so paranoid, incompetent and arrogant (no those are not mutually exclusive) it wouldn't surprise me to find that the A$$hole-inC set this all up without looking at the big picture for his own bizarre reasons.
#11
Possible Alan, the State Dept. Diplomatic Security Service (DSS) guy or 'Regional Security Officer' (RSO) would be aware of that many operators in-country. If he knew, the AMBO knew. It's a small community, it's his job.
#12
Is it possible that the Ambassador (and Hilly?) was kept in the dark about the CIA being there in force and what they were there for?
No.
The scenario I come up with tells me a CIA gig doesn't want State around.
Given Amb. Steves' background in Benghazi, it's unlikely that there was no cooperation or 'lack of situational knowledge' between State and the Klingons. I'd go so far as to say that, given Mr. Stevens's history, he may have violated a diplomatic rule and played spook-on-the-side, or, his ambassadorship appointment was to be more than that from the start.
One theory Bill [not my theory, but I'll go with it]....a typical agency squabble gone terribly wrong.
Possible. Likely. Recall that at least one of the Klingon contractors was there ostensibly to acquire MANPADS in order to take them out of circulation. Nothing about disposition has ever been mentioned. One group may have had responsibility for that, to the displeasure or cross-objective of the other.
Another likely scenario was that the 'authorized' flow of weapons, or a deal to ship weapons, was ordered stopped by NCA; it did not sit well with the Benghazi militias (and the Turks and the Egyptian MB) and Mr. Stevens was called in to placate.
#13
Your theory Pappy, is clearly supported by the fact that the US is still [reportedly] providing only non-lethal aid to the Syrian rebels. A theory also validated by the long-standing animus btwn the Agency and State.
At this point, the Klingons have no choice other than insulate and support the Beast. Imagine the potential impacts on the Klingon mission and secret budget should an angry Hildebeast become POTUS.
I'm with Uncle Phester. A lot of sudden US Embassy closures throughout the ME. The next few days should be quite interesting.
#14
At this point, the Klingons have no choice other than insulate and support the Beast
I'm not sure if '2016' is the reason (though it is a valid one.) There are a few others within the Beltway who would be disturbed with a Klingon "lack of faith" (to mix sci-fi metaphors here) and who are able to provide immediate and painful impact.
#23
given Mr. Stevens's history, he may have violated a diplomatic rule and played spook-on-the-side
Very plausible Pappy, but isnt the more likely scenario he was sanctioned to facilitate the exchange. Or, given the necessity for deniability, perhaps he was tasked to clean up a mess? After all somebody has the ManPads and prolly someone else has the Colonels gold.
Of course he does. He's The Second Smartest Man In The Room.
[AnNahar] 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... said Thursday that U.S. drone strikes in Pakistain could end "very soon", in unusually outspoken remarks welcomed in Islamabad but immediately downplayed by American aides.
It is the first time such a senior member of the U.S. administration has indicated there could be a definitive end to the program, which the CIA has in the past called an effective counter-terrorism weapon.
But the strikes are a major thorn in often fractious ties between Islamabad and Washington, and are officially condemned by Pakistain as a violation of illusory sovereignty and international law.
Kerry waded into the row at the tail end of a visit to Islamabad, in which he announced that Washington was reviving strategic dialogue with Pakistain for the first time after a series of crises in 2011.
Asked in an interview by state-run PTV whether the strikes could end, Kerry said: "I think the program will end as we have eliminated most of the threat and continue to eliminate it."
Pressed on whether a timeline was envisaged, Kerry replied: "Well, I do. And I think the (U.S.) president has a very real timeline and we hope it's going to be very, very soon."
Pakistain's top diplomat Sartaj Aziz on Thursday demanded a halt to drone strikes that have already decreased.
But U.S. officials immediately sought to downplay Kerry's remarks.
State Department spokeswoman Jen Psaki said that the number of drone strikes had declined owing to the drawdown of American troops from Afghanistan and because of progress in curtailing the al-Qaeda threat.
"Today the secretary referenced the changes that we expect to take place in that program over the course of time, but there is no exact timeline to provide," she said in a statement.
Pakistain's new government led by Nawaz Sharif ... served two non-consecutive terms as prime minister, heads the Pakistain Moslem League (Nawaz). Noted for his spectacular corruption, the 1998 Pak nuclear test, border war with India, and for being tossed by General Musharraf... is likely to seize upon Kerry's remarks as a coup.
A front man for the foreign ministry late Thursday welcomed Kerry's remarks, saying it was Islamabad's long-standing position that they should stop.
Kerry's television remarks strayed from what he told a presser with Aziz, when he tackled complaints about drones by pointing the finger at al-Qaeda leader Ayman al-Zawahiri ... Formerly second in command of al-Qaeda, now the head cheese, occasionally described as the real brains of the outfit. Formerly the Mister Big of Egyptian Islamic Jihad. Bumped off Abdullah Azzam with a car boom in the course of one of their little disputes. Is thought to have composed bin Laden's fatwa entitled World Islamic Front Against Jews and Crusaders. Currently residing in the North Wazoo area. That is not a horn growing from the middle of his forehead, but a prayer bump, attesting to how devout he is... , believed to be based in Pakistain.
"An al-Qaeda leader like Al-Zawahiri is violating the illusory sovereignty of this country. And when they attack people in mosques and blow up people in villages and market places they are violating the illusory sovereignty of the country," he said.
On Afghanistan, he said he was confident that Washington and Kabul would reach a long-term security agreement that would allow American troops to remain in the country beyond 2014.
"We're making progress, we're working on it. I am personally confident that we will have an agreement," Kerry said.
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... suspended talks on the deal in June, furious that a Taliban liaison office in Qatar appeared to have been opened as an embassy for a government in waiting.
"Let me be clear: the U.S. is drawing down not withdrawing," Kerry said.
There are concerns that a complete departure of foreign troops in late 2014 could leave Afghan government troops too weak to contain a Taliban insurgency and possibly see the country slide back into civil war.
Kerry's visit announced the resumption of so-called strategic dialogue between Pakistain and the United States, and he invited the newly elected Sharif to hold talks with U.S. President Barack Obama They get bitter, they cling to guns or religion or antipathy to people who aren't like them... in the autumn.
It will be the highest level talks between the two sides since January 2011, after which U.S. troops found and killed al-Qaeda leader the late Osama bin Laden ... who is no longer with us, and won't be again... in Pakistain in May 2011.
In November 2011, U.S. air strikes mistakenly killed 24 Pak soldiers along the Afghan border, leading Islamabad to shut down NATO ...the North Atlantic Treaty Organization. A cautionary tale of cost-benefit analysis.... ground supply lines for seven months.
Kerry said it was time to put the relationship on a stronger footing.
Sharif has made economic growth and resolving the energy crisis the top priority of his new administration, but Kerry also stressed that prosperity depends on doing more to eliminate hard boy havens.
"Pakistain cannot realize its full economic potential until it overcomes bully boys," Kerry told the news conference.
"The choice for Paks is clear: will the forces of violent extremism be allowed to grow more dominant, eventually overpowering the moderate majority?"
Kerry paid tribute to Sharif's election, which marked the first time that an elected civilian Pak government had completed a full term in office and handed over to another at the ballot box.
Sharif described Kerry as a "wonderful friend".
Kerry also met the outgoing President Asif Ali Ten Percent Zardari ... husband of the late Benazir Bhutto, who has been singularly lacking in curiosity about who done her in ... and 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... .
[Ynet] The US Senate voted to confirm Samantha Power as President Barack Obama I've now been in 57 states -- I think one left to go... 's next ambassador to the United Nations ...aka the Oyster Bay Chowder and Marching Society... on Thursday.
As voting continued, more than 70 of the 100 senators had voted in favor of Power, a former White House national security staffer and former journalist who won a Pulitzer Prize for her book "A Problem from Hell," a study of US failure to prevent genocide.
[Ynet] President Barack Obama My friends, we live in the greatest nation in the history of the world. I hope you'll join with me as we try to change it... spoke separately by phone on Thursday to Paleostinian President the ineffectual Mahmoud Abbas ... a graduate of the prestigious unaccredited Patrice Lumumba University in Moscow with a doctorate in Holocaust Denial... and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu,
...a graduate of the prestigious accredited Harvard and MIT universities, with a plethora of degrees ranging from architecture to polysci to an MS in business management acquired in less than four years with time out to fight the Yom Kippur war, but comparing the academic achievements of the three men would be so petty that we won't do it...
the White House said, as the United States seeks to keep up the momentum for peace negotiations.
"President B.O. called Prime Minister Netanyahu today to commend his leadership and courage in resuming final status negotiations with the Paleostinians," the White House said in a statement. "The president underscored that while the parties have much work to do in the days and months ahead, the United States will support them fully in their efforts to achieve peace."
[Ynet] IDF soldiers uncovered explosives at the house of a wanted Paleostinian in the vicinity of Ramallah Wednesday night. The device exploded by sappers. The man was taken for questioning.
[Ynet] The IDF and the US army's European Command completed two joint drills in southern Israel and the Mediterranean, held over the last two weeks, the IDF Spokesperson's Unit reported.
The two drills included a joint training by the two countries' air forces and navies.
Hope they accomplished something useful, or at least had fun together, maintaining tie that will come in handy in 3 1/2 years.
Palestinian officials visited Israels parliament for the first time ever on Wednesday to meet their Israeli counterparts, as the two sides moved toward peace negotiations.
Check the silver and look for backpacks...
The Knesset raised the Palestinian flag during a meeting among MPs, officials and businessmen from both sides, an AFP correspondent said.
The meeting, which was attended by us on behalf of president Mahmud Abbas, was positive, said the head of the Palestinian delegation and member of Abbass Fatah party Mohammed Al Madani.
We talked about how to make the peace process succeed, and about the Arab initiative and the dangers of the process collapsing, he told AFP.
The meeting took place between current and former Israeli MPs, including members of the ultra-Orthodox Shas party and secular centrist Yesh Atid, which is in the ruling coalition.
Israeli Labour Party member Hilik Bar said this meeting is to support Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, Abbas, and the negotiators in Washington.
Posted by: Steve White ||
08/02/2013 00:00 ||
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[Ynet] Syrian Defense Minister General Fahed Jassem al-Farij, said in an interview for Syrian state TV that "the mask has been removed of the face of the Zionist enemy, and the whole world has seen the proof for Israel's involvement in its gross attacks and support of terror gangs."
It must be a slow news day, if they're singing this old song.
Al-Farij pointed at "the Israeli arms and equipment seized by the Syrian army in the hands of Death Eaters and the microchips planed by agents of the occupation in one of Syria's beaches."
Good lord, that happened simply ages ago. A month, at least.
According to him, Israel's support of the rebels is also apparent in the treatment of maimed rebels in Israeli hospitals.
Or civilians. Without uniforms, it's so hard to tell.
Ev'ryone oppresses someone, sometime... At least if they're a Muslim nation, at any rate.
[Ynet] Iran's supreme leader is urging Iranians to avoid all dealings with members of the banned Baha'i sect in a possible prelude to further crackdowns on the minority.
Iran already bans the Baha'i, which considers a 19th century Persian nobleman as the final prophet. The fatwa, or religious edict, by Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei is his latest against the group. It supports similar fatwas in the past by other holy mans.
Things appear to be looking up for Assad the Younger. Could it be that the rebels are correct in their assessment?
[AnNahar] Syrian Hereditary President-for-Life Bashir Pencilneck al-Assad Lord of the Baath... made a visit on Thursday to the town of Daraya outside Damascus, a former rebel bastion now mainly under government control, state television ... and if you can't believe state television who can you believe?
reported.
The broadcaster aired no immediate footage to accompany its report.
It was one of the few occasions that Assad had been reported to have traveled outside the capital since an uprising against his rule erupted in March 2011.
It came as he sent an Army Day message to troops telling them he was "sure of victory" over the rebels.
"If we in Syria were not sure of victory, we would not have had the will to resist nor been able to persevere in the face of more than two years of aggression," he said.
"I have great faith in you and confidence in your ability to... fulfill the national mission that has been assigned to you," Assad told troops in the message.
"You have shown rare courage in the battle against terrorism and you have impressed the whole world with your resistance... in one of the most brutal and ferocious wars of modern history," he said.
His comments came after troops recaptured a key neighborhood of the strategic central city of Homs on Monday in the biggest gain so far of a month-long assault.
The army has also been on the offensive in the eastern suburbs of the capital and west of the main northern city of Aleppo.
The 28-month conflict has killed more than 100,000 people, according to the United Nations ...the Oyster Bay money pit... , but U.N. efforts to convene a Russian- and U.S.-backed peace conference have stalled.
Posted by: trailing wife ||
08/02/2013 00:47 ||
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[AnNahar] Hizbullah has set up a large banner near the border with Israel with the phrase "we are coming" in Arabic and Hebrew, the state-run National News Agency reported on Thursday.
"The banner was placed at the western side of al-Wazzani river mouth, near the border with Israel," the NNA detailed.
"This took place on the eve of Hizbullah's celebration of al-Quds Day."
In the meantime, Israeli military activity was registered in the South as Merkava tanks were spotted in the region facing al-Wazzani area.
"An Israeli military delegation was roaming the area and some of its members used endoscopes to watch Lebanese territories."
Israeli air force also flew at a medium altitude in the South over the towns of Nabatieh and Iqlim al-Tuffah.
As a response to the Israeli activity, army and United Nations ...a formerly good idea gone bad... Interim Force in Leb troops were heavily deployed in the area.
Hizbullah is set to celebrate al-Quds Day on Friday near the technical fence in the southern al-Wazzani, during which the party's leader Sayyed Hasan Nasrallah is expected to give a speech.
* DEFENCE.PK/FORUMS > PRESIDENT AL-ASSAD TO ARMY: YOU ARE CARRYING ON THE WAR FOR HOMELAND, OUR MATTER NOW IS [Total] VICTORY.
* EARLIER SAME > OBAMA ADMINISTRATION LOSING CREDIBILITY IN CAIRO.
Iff the Bammer Admin reputation is such that both Govt. + Opposition/Rebels don't trust or ignore the Bammer's = USA's advice-n-demands, WHY SHOULD THE HEZZIES BELIEVE IT WOULD BE DIFFERENT FOR ISRAEL + LEBANON, ETAL???
#3
When I was in Israel two years ago, we visited the Golan Heights. As we drove along, the guide pointed out some old minefields - clearly marked in Hebrew, Arabic and English. I suggested that they change the Arabic to say "Come pick the flowers".
Posted by: Rambler in Virginia ||
08/02/2013 7:36 Comments ||
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Posted by: Barbara ||
08/02/2013 16:14 Comments ||
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#6
* DEFENCE.PK/FORUMS > US LEAKS ON ALLEGED SYRIA STRIKES COULD BE [deliberate] ATTEMPT TO HARM ISRAELI INTEREST | JPOST, EXPERT: LEAKED "NYT" STORY AOUT FAILED AIRSTRIKE ON SYRIAN ARMS CACHE NOT FROM [Israel-] FRIENDLY SOURCES.
Welcome to "Globalism", OWG-NWO, + "MuliPolar World" where the US is just one Global Nuclear "Co-Superpower" among Several or Many.
Iff the post-911 US is the "tip of the spear" in setting up OWG-NWO + related, then by definition the US is direwctly or indirectly helping establish the OWG Global Nuclear Caliphate for Islam + Hard Boyz. SUB-IOW, ITS IN THE US "GLOBALIST/OWG" INTEREST TO HELP RADICAL ISLAM GO NUCLEAR???
[AnNahar] Syrian opposition member Burhan Ghalioun said on Thursday it was "disgusting" to hear that Hereditary President-for-Life Bashir Pencilneck al-Assad Before going into the family business Pencilneck was an eye doctor. If he'd stuck with it he'd have had a good practice by now... expressed confidence after his forces inflicted two major defeats on rebels.
"It is disgusting and repulsive that he speaks of victory after he destroyed his country, killed tens of thousands and forced into exile half the population, after a period of two and a half years," Ghalioun told Agence La Belle France Presse.
Speaking to mark Army Day, Assad said on Thursday he was "sure of victory."
"If we in Syria were not sure of victory, we would not have had the will to resist nor been able to persevere in the face of more than two years of aggression," Assad said.
His remarks are "repugnant to the Syrians as well as the rest of the world," Ghalioun said.
He added that Assad "speaks of strength while his army is collapsing and depending on mercenaries of Hizbullah and Iran to defend the regime."
Assad was said to have made his first known trip outside of the capital in more than a year, to visit a former rebel bastion nearby now largely in the hands of loyalists.
State television reported that Assad visited Daraya, a mostly Sunni town neighboring rebel districts south of Damascus, to inspect military units on Army Day.
His remarks came after Khaldiyeh, in the strategic central city of Homs, was seized by troops on Monday from rebels who had held it for almost two years.
Asked about on the announcement of an upcoming U.N. mission to investigate three sites in Syria, where the use of chemical weapons has been reported, Ghalioun said "the Syrian regime has accepted this mission following heavy international pressure... but after erasing the traces of the crime."
"I doubt that the regime will cooperate with the mission," Ghalioun added, indicating that the investigation should "focus on 13 sites, not just three."
U.N. front man Martin Nesirky said on Wednesday the mission "will travel to Syria as soon as possible to contemporaneously investigate three of the reported incidents."
The United Nations ...a formerly good idea gone bad... says reports on 13 different chemical attacks have been made.
The 28-month conflict has killed more than 100,000 people, according to the United Nations, while U.N. efforts to convene a Russian- and U.S.-backed peace conference have stalled.
Posted by: trailing wife ||
08/02/2013 00:38 ||
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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.
The Amir of Kuwait, His Highness Shaikh Sabah Al Ahmad Al Jaber Al Sabah pardoned on Tuesday all those who have been sentenced to jail for insulting him.
Nawaz Sharif
Zawahiri
President Asif Ali 
Hereditary President-for-Life Bashir 
Hereditary President-for-Life Bashir 
