General David Petraeus said that the challenges in Afghanistan were serious, that they required a sustained and substantial commitment and that there were no quick fixes.
The new head of the British Army, General Sir David Richards, also warned last night that Nato had yet to find the right formula for success in Afghanistan. General Richards also warned that defeat for the international coalition would have an intoxicating impact on extremists around the world. Failure for an alliance as powerful as the Nato presence in Afghanistan would convice terrorists that anything might be possible.
The two generals were speaking after a soul-searching summer marked by a rising number of casualties. Since 2001 Britains death toll has reached 216 and Americas 830. But both men insist that the mission is achievable.
#3
General David Petraeus said that the challenges in Afghanistan were serious, that they required a sustained and substantial commitment and that there were no quick fixes.
His worry may be coming on the heels of Canada's announcement, along with rumblings from Berlusconi of a 'strong reduction', not to mention EU polls showing strong pressure for other NATO allies to pull out.
And, as Michael Yon opines, 'the bulk of NATO amounts to little more than a 'Taliban pinata'. They piled in when the war looked easy and largely humanitarian, but now that it's getting harder and more dangerous, they would like to pile out".
#4
When the Poles went out on missions they would drive to one side of the roadway, right up until they hit a choke point (like a bridge) then they would use the road. This, in their minds, kept them from getting hit with IED's.
'What to do?' says the local Jonny T commander.
Put the IED at the bridge and wait for the Poles.
Poles get blown up, then they no longer want to play ball.
Think I am kidding? This is the exact scenario last year in AFG when the Polish contingent in the area went out. They followed the same routines and got whacked. Now they want to take their toys and go home.
Same with the French.
They went out thinking that Jonny T only wanted to play REAL ball with the stinking American. Then they got to play ball with some pro-level guerilla types (pro for guerillas) and found out that playing ball with people who don't care what your rules are can get a guy killed.
Then the French leadership seriously thought about getting out (once again pissing all over the boots of their soldiers who wanted to do their job, SOP for them). They did not, which was a miracle and I wonder if that little trick with the voodoo doll really worked.
As good as the individual soldiers from other nations are as a group they do not have the stomach for the fight. The civilian leadership back home does not want to support them and is entirely too used to having the US shoulder the work (and cost) of fighting.
Posted by: Jame Retief ||
09/18/2009 14:15 Comments ||
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[Al Arabiya Latest] Afghan President Hamid Karzai denied Thursday that major electoral fraud took place last month after claiming victory after preliminary results were announced amid mounting allegations of vote-rigging.
Shortly after Karzai spoke to reporters a suicide car bomb hit Italian vehicles from the NATO-led force carrying foreign troops near the U.S. Embassy and an American military base in Afghanistan's capital, killing at least 10 people and wounding dozens, officials said.
"Media has reported major fraud. It wasn't that big. If there was fraud, it was small -- it happens all over the world," Karzai told reporters a day after preliminary results showed him winning the first round outright with 54.6 percent of the vote.
But the European Union said more than a third of his votes might be suspect because of fraud -- most of them for Karzai.
"If there is fraud, it has to be investigated, but investigated fairly and without prejudice," he said, and urged foreign allies not to interfere over investigations.
Afghans went to the polls on August 20 in only their second direct presidential election, but the vote has been overshadowed by massive claims of irregularities and threats of violence by Taliban rebels.
Fraud allegations
The European Union Election Observation Mission to Afghanistan on Wednesday said that they had identified 1.5 million votes which could be fraudulent, with 1.1 million of those cast for Karzai.
His campaign office responded furiously, accusing the EU of meddling and damning the announcement as "partial, irresponsible and in contradiction with Afghanistan's constitution."
His nearest rival, Abdullah Abdullah, who has 27.8 percent of the vote, has shown no sign of conceding the vote, alleging state-engineered fraud and urging a run-off.
His campaign spokesman Sayed Aqa Fazel Sancharaki said Wednesday that if the 1.5 million suspicious votes raised by the EU were investigated and thrown out, Karzai's share of the vote "will drop drastically".
"We do not accept these results at all," he told AFP.
Karzai said Thursday he would respect the results of investigations by the electoral bodies, but there is no timetable yet for the audits and recounts at about 2,500 polling stations, raising fears of protracted political turmoil.
Posted by: Fred ||
09/18/2009 00:00 ||
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South Korea and the U.S. are working out a strategy to avoid falling for North Koreas brinkmanship tactics again after almost 15 years of nuclear talks that have produced little result.
The two allies are apparently determined to maintain sanctions against the North until it denuclearizes. They believe their mistake in the past has been a piecemeal approach to negotiations that immediately rewarded the North for every small, reversible step.
Sort of like tossing a dog a yummie every time he wags his tail ...
Foreign Minister Yu Myung-hwan told the National Assembly's Foreign Affairs, Trade and Unification Committee on Thursday, "Even if its talks with the North resume, the U.S. will maintain UN Security Council sanctions unless the North takes tangible measures toward denuclearization."
"This government too will maintain the existing policy of faithfully implementing sanctions against the North until it takes verifiable steps to end its nuclear program." At the same time, we'll keep the dialogue door open to persuade the North to return to the six-party talks," he added.
A senior government official said, "There will be no compensation until North Korea takes action to denuclearize."
All the signs are that Seoul and Washington are determined not to fall again for the North's cycle of provocations, conciliatory gestures and stalling for time to win concessions. As a senior government official has suggested, South Korea and the U.S. need "basic changes to the larger framework in their approach to the North Korean nuclear issue."
North Korea has often avoided sanctions by agreeing to dialogue, slicing the denuclearization process into smaller stages, from "shutdown," via "disablement" to "dismantlement," and pulling out before the process is complete.
A Cheong Wa Dae official said, "We won't engage in talks that might result in stage-by-stage agreements like the statement of principles in the fourth round of the six-party in Sept. 19, 2005, or talks that led to an agreement on reversible disablement like the Feb. 13, 2007 deal."
Prof. Kim Sung-han of Korea University said Seoul and Washington would "conduct talks to launch a North Korean version of the Marshall Plan," the large-scale economic aid program for postwar Europe, "as well as security guarantees if the North goes directly to the stage of verifiable dismantlement and completely removes its nuclear weapons, nuclear materials and nuclear facilities overseas."
And shoots Kimmie and the generals ...
Posted by: Steve White ||
09/18/2009 00:00 ||
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#1
I really don't thik Oblahblahblah has the brains to outwit a 5 year oldtrick or treater.
Posted by: Redneck Jim ||
09/18/2009 1:01 Comments ||
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#2
ION YAHOO NEWS > SOUTH KOREA: NORTH KOREA WANTS RECOGNITION AS A NUCLEAR STATE.
#3
Obama Adviser (NorK Czar): I know! Let's pull COMPLETELY out of South Korea! That will freak North Korea right out and completely befuddle them!
Obama: Great idea! Get Murtha on the phone, we can move them to Okinawa and I hear he has some connections there. I knew there was a reason I paid you the big bucks!
#5
After all, Obama just outwitted the Russians. He threw the Poles and Czechs under the bus in exchange for .... Uh, he got concessions to ... The Russians offered us .... Well, he's darn clever that Obama is, smart diplomacy, ummm nuanced, yeah ... clever.
#7
I really don't thik Oblahblahblah has the brains to outwit a 5 year old trick or treater.
Kinda makes you wonder how he got elected president, doesn't it? Or better yet, it kinda makes you wonder why the US isn't on the bottom of the heap yet.
As for the missile shield, I understand Oblahblah is planning on having ships with SM-3s deployed to defend these countries, so he's supposedly just trading land-based systems for sea-based. What makes me wonder about all this is that Russia seems to be rolling over for it.
#8
"As for the missile shield, I understand Oblahblah is planning on having ships with SM-3s deployed to defend these countries, so he's supposedly just trading land-based systems for sea-based. What makes me wonder about all this is that Russia seems to be rolling over for it."
The Russians dont care about the missiles, which, as the Bush admin correctly said, couldnt stop a Russian attack anyway. The Russians care about stopping the precedent of a NATO presence on the ground in the Visograd states.
#13
There's even a few who think he's doing a good job, which just goes to show ....
"You can fool some of the people all of the time, and all of the people some of the time, but you can not fool all of the people all of the time."
-- Abe Lincoln
At least I hope not. I think a lot of the hopey change crowd are starting to realize who the rubes are.
[Kyodo: Korea] Chinese State Councilor Dai Bingguo, "And Bingguo was his name-o!"
a special envoy of President Hu Jintao, held talks Wednesday in Pyongyang with North Korean First Vice Foreign Minister Kang Sok Ju, Chinese official media reported. ""They thoroughly exchanged views on bilateral relations and regional and international issues of common concern,"" Xinhua News Agency said in a dispatch from the North Korean capital, without elaborating.
Posted by: Fred ||
09/18/2009 00:00 ||
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#3
ION CATHAY WMF > AS US-CHINA GEOPOL COMPETITION AND CONFRONTATION ESCALATES, SINGAPORE MAY BECOME A STRATEGIC BRIDGEHEAD FOR THE US IN SOUTH ASIA. Increased US Aid to Singapore + Possible return of US to CLOSED US BASES IN THE PHILIPPINES [CLARK-SUBIC].
* SAME > JAPAN "SANKEI SHIMBUN" NEWS: VIETNAM AND INDIA IN PARAMILITARY ALLIANCE AGZ CHINA. INDIA'S "TOKYO/TONKIN GULF" AIRCRAFT CARRIER BASE. Vietnam has repor decided to dev a "NORTH ASIA VS SOUTH ASIA" Strategy + engage in milpol cooperation wid India.
* SAME > INDIA TO DEPLOY 374 ADVANCED FIGHTERS AGZ CHINESE AIR FORCE IN SOUTHERN TIBET [3.4:1 ratio]. SINO-INDIAN AIR FORCES BUILDUP IN HIMALAYAS AND REGIONAL COMPETITION - 2010-2020].
INDIA also repor desires to dev new Army ground forces formations + engage in RAPID ARMED FORCES MODERNIZATION 2010-2020.
#2
"It is time for Germany to know that Afghanistan is not the 17th province of Germany and that it is not the 'beer tent' where to hold the 'Oktoberfest' throughout the year," he added.
Posted by: European Conservative ||
09/18/2009 20:50 Comments ||
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#3
Time for Germany to tell Al-Q to FOAD.
Posted by: Barbara Skolaut ||
09/18/2009 21:35 Comments ||
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#4
As the Sioux Indians learned at New Ulm, you do not mess around with people who wear leather pants, drink beer, and held their infantry lines against Napoleon Bonaparte.
Muslims in France's army who go on the pilgrimage to Mecca this year will not have to travel on private commercial flights or bunk with ordinary civilians. In a break from tradition, the Defence Ministry will provide a plane to fly them to Saudi Arabia and organize their stay.
For any western government to arrange a hajj trip would be unusual. It is especially so here, in a country so protective of its secularism that it regulates what Muslim girls can wear in school and is considering a blanket ban on the face-covering Islamic niqab. Nope, this is an outsider's view, just like the "sarko is a tough conservative" idea; reality is that mosques, big, small, and HUGE are springing up at an incredible rate, all over the place, and almost everywhere with public funding from local cities authorities, usually in the form of loaned grounds or direct subsidies (to the "cultural part" of the project).
French state secularism always has been a war-machine against Christianity and Catholiscism especially, and increasingly has double standards when dealing with muslims (and long before that, with joooos and protestants).
But for Mohamed-Ali Bouharb, a spit-and-polish gendarmerie captain who put together the final pieces for the pilgrimage last week, it is one step toward making Islam as "banal" in France as any other religion.
"The army is always in advance of society," said Capt. Bouharb, one of the 30 Muslim chaplains recently recruited by the armed forces. "And it is anaesthetized from all the social questions and debate outside."
While religion and state remain firmly separated in the rest of French society, the military has started accommodating its Muslim personnel in ways that would be unthinkable outside the barracks.
It now provides halal meals and, where possible, prayer rooms. Last week, the Muslim chaplaincy published the first edition of a new magazine, splashed with photos of mosques, recipes for meals to break the Ramadan fast and an article that would not raise an eyebrow in any French magazine. Its subject: How do you say "I love you?"
"What is really interesting is that while completely respecting France's secular spirit, we are nevertheless not very far from Anglo-Saxon vision," Capt. Bouharb said. "To have a photo of a mosque in a magazine from the secular public service -- that's new."
France has the largest Muslim population in Europe, estimated at between five and seven million people, or about 7 to 10 per cent of the French population. Double this to get a decent idea of real figures.
Statistics are not available because, officially, the state does not collect data according to ethnicity, religion or race. But the ratio of Muslims in the military, including the national police or gendarmerie, mirrors that in the population as a whole, according to Capt. Bouharb and other officials. If so, muslims make up between 10% (navy, airforce) to 20% (army) of the french armed forces, with some peaks at 30, 40% in some units, according to leaked figures. What does this tell about the ratio in the general population? Btw, seems like muslims (mostly from da 'hood) are a troublesome lot for the french army brass to deal with (respone has been appeasement and racism-blackmail), x3.5 AWOL, x6 rejecting orders, x6 insulting superiors, x8 misconduct. And, according to IIRC a documentary seen with much interest quite a while about, only about 1 out of ten would agree to fight a muslim country.
Minorities are still clustered almost exclusively in the lower ranks. But Muslims have served in the army since France's days as a colonial power 150 years ago and, until mandatory conscription was ended in 1996, they were drafted as soldiers like other young French men. Many, if not a majority opted to do their military service in their actual country of allegiance, as it was possible for most north african boyz to do; note that muslim soldiers HAVE been present in french armed forces, due to the colonial empire, up to and including in crack units, but this always has been a rather marginal phenomenon, despite the new enforced dogma ("muslims have fought for France in WWII, they've liberated France, they rebuilt France after the watr, etc, etc.... all of which is crap, Free France armed forces from northern africa were mostly made up of white european colons, colonial troops had a definitvely lower rate of mortality even though morroccans saw very hard fighting in Italy; not to mention the numerous "problems" associated with colonial troops during WWII, such as the rapes sprees in Italy)...
And those indigenous soldiers were/are usually as gung-ho and patriotic as the rest of their comrades.
Yet Islam in the military was not on an equal footing with other faiths. The Defence Ministry created a Muslim chaplaincy only in 2005, long after it had established Catholic, Protestant and Jewish offices.
"Soldiers I've interviewed say it was hard to be Muslim in the armed forces until a few years ago," said Elyamine Settoul, a doctoral student at the Institute for Political Studies in Paris who has surveyed minorities in the military.
"There were no accommodations for Ramadan," he added. "If the meals contained pork they weren't offered an alternative. It created tensions. But they say it's much better now." As a matter of fact, IIRC, no MRE include pork anymore, unless a specific demand is made (which shows you might be a Racist).
Much of the credit for the changes is given to the corps of Muslim chaplains, who also serve as prayer leaders or imams. While they have been integrated into all branches of the military, they have also been enrolled in a special course in French-style secularism.
Last year the army sent two of its Muslim chaplains to a government-sponsored class on citizenship and secular values for imams, the first of its kind, and another six will attend the course this fall. The course was taught at the private Catholic Institute of Paris because no public university was willing to wade into the state-religion divide. Some French Muslim leaders also criticized it as an inappropriate attempt by the state to take on the training of imams.
"What I knew about secularism going in was what everybody knows," said Capt. Bouharb, 32, who was one of the first graduates. "What I learned was its history, all the political debate at the beginning of the 20th century and its legal basis."
He also said the course left him better prepared to explain France to its own Muslim citizens, like those who come to him complaining that their daughters cannot wear head scarves in school or that their town refuses to set aside women's hours in the public pool.
"Even if our parents were not born in France, it's our country," said Capt. Bouharb, whose parents immigrated to France from Tunisia in the 1970s. "We were born here, grew up here and were educated here. We have to accept that public institutions apply the principle of secularism."
There were misgivings even among Muslims in the military when the chaplaincy was first set up. Only one in five imams in France speaks French as their first language. On average they are older than 50 and had their religious training in the Middle East or Turkey.
So some soldiers and gendarmes worried they might get an old-fashioned imam in a North African djelabah robe and floppy slippers, said Capt. Bouharb, or else "some bearded guy like Khomeini or somebody who only speaks Arabic."
The French army, with its long history of bonds with the Catholic Church, has for years sponsored annual trips for its soldiers to Catholic shrines in Lourdes. But the chaplains said the impetus for the army's upcoming hajj trip was more about security than playing catch-up.
Military personnel who travel on their own for the hajj could fall victim "to thieves or swindlers or disreputable travel agencies," Capt. Bouharb said. "Or imagine the situation of a serviceman who goes on his own and stays in a place where there's some incident -- I don't know what kind, but maybe a bomb or a fire."
Soldiers and police officers who go under the auspices of the military will have to pay about 3,000 -- roughly $4,700 -- less than most private travel agencies would generally charge, and their housing and guides will be provided by their counterparts in the Saudi Defence Ministry. Nice.
The trip is scheduled for November, unless it is cancelled over concerns about swine flu. Nice.
#2
Hum, not sure there are plenty of wimmen serving in the french army to start with (not in frontlines units anyway), but there are anyway, of course, including muslim ones.
#4
"If so, muslims make up between 10% (navy, airforce) to 20% (army) of the french armed forces, with some peaks at 30, 40% in some units, according to leaked figures. What does this tell about the ratio in the general population?"
Given an all volunteer force, and high unemployment among the muslim population, Im not sure it tells us anything at all. One would have to know MUCH more about recruitment into the French army, attitudes toward enlistment among non-muslim french, etc to really be able to answer that.
While the US is currently doing a pretty decent job of maintaining a military in which the majority racial group is well represented, its not historically uncommon for minorities to enlist out of proportion to their number in some countries. Why just for a start, we would have to see population numbers in the relevant age ranges - I guess the muslims in France are overall younger than the Catholic population?
#5
Good points, LH, minorities in a number of countries generally do see military service as a way to step up in societies.
Posted by: Steve White ||
09/18/2009 14:15 Comments ||
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#6
After the comments by Bouharb, I worry that he will become a target of the explosive criticism of those who do not have enough fervor for Islam.
The direction for this seems to be right and the fact that they are not, wholesale, giving money to the Muslims is actually encouraging. At first I though this would be a free trip to the Hajj with hookers thrown in for free!
Posted by: Jame Retief ||
09/18/2009 14:38 Comments ||
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#7
Embracing them? They're just checking for explosives.
Posted by: Richard of Oregon ||
09/18/2009 18:30 Comments ||
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#8
Embracing is OK. Just no kissing on the lips, please.
A controversial Dutch lawmaker has urged the country's parliament to pass a law to fine women who wear Islamic head coverings.
Geert Wilders said women observing the Islamic dress code or Hjiab should be fined 1,000 euros (1,461 dollars) per year. The leader of the liberal-right Freedom Party PVV made his remarks during a parliamentary debate about the government's budget plans on Wednesday.
"Everyone who wants to wear a headscarf, should first apply for a headscarf license," DPA quoted Wilders as saying.
He added the fine, which he called a "head rags tax," was meant to "demotivate" people to wear Muslim attire.
Wilders had earlier sparked outrage after he made the film Fitna that was considered as sacrilegious by Muslims. He has also announced his plans to make another film against Islam.
Posted by: Fred ||
09/18/2009 00:00 ||
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#1
This is actually a great first step to outlawing.
1 Tax and regulate.
2 arrest and fine offenders
3 onsficate offending scarves AND fine
4 outlaw all "Offensive Dress"
Finaly, some brains showing.
Posted by: Redneck Jim ||
09/18/2009 1:06 Comments ||
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#2
I'd rather see the West get at the problem behind the headscarf.
If a woman wishes to wear a headscarf because she believes that it is a proper way for her to show her reverence to God, I have no problem.
If a woman needs to wear a headscarf because she's afraid that if she doesn't, the local hard boyz from the neighborhood will harass or beat her, I have a problem.
The problem isn't the headscarf. The problem is the control over women that it symbolizes. We don't need to ban the scarf, we need to thump the hard boyz until they learn the proper lesson.
Posted by: Steve White ||
09/18/2009 7:59 Comments ||
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#3
They are using the same tactics the hard boyz are using. Threaten those who offend them. Not gonna work.
Posted by: Jame Retief ||
09/18/2009 9:58 Comments ||
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#4
Should have said:
Not gonna work without threats of beheading.
Posted by: Jame Retief ||
09/18/2009 9:58 Comments ||
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Pakistan has bowed to India's demand to arrest the alleged mastermind of last November's Mumbai attacks to help ease fraught ties between the two states.
New Delhi has said that Islamabad should arrest Hafiz Mohammad Saeed, the founder of the banned Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) militant group, as the key suspect in masterminding last year's 3-day carnage in Mumbai that killed 180 people, including those who carried out the attacks.
Pakistani police said Friday they would arrest Saeed for propagating 'holy war', and collecting funds for a so-called charity he heads.
India has been demanding action against Saeed and other Pakistan-based militants before the resumption of peace negotiations which were broken off by New Delhi after the Mumbai attack.
Faisalabad police say they have lodged two complaints against Saeed this week for delivering a speech to his supporters last month in which he urged jihad and appealed for funds for his Jamaat-ud-Dawa charity.
"We hope to arrest him soon," Hafiz Mohammad Irfan, a senior police official in Faisalabad, told Reuters.
The police complaints came ahead of a meeting between the two nuclear-armed countries' Foreign Ministers, Pakistan's Shah Mehmood Qureshi and India's S.M. Krishna, on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly in New York on Sept. 26.
Pakistan has acknowledged the Mumbai attack was partly plotted and planned from its soil, but still complains that evidence given by India about Saeed is insufficient and not tenable in court.
#3
This is very interesting. Back in the time of the Shah, Iran considered itself the southern front line against the Soviet Union, and prided itself that with US training and backing, they could offer some serious damage to the bear. The invasion of Iran by Russia was even seen as a major possible WWIII scenario.
However, going back to the time of the Tsars, Russia had ambitions against Iran, but it was too far, and too ambitious for the Russian army.
#4
If you look at the related film clips, you can see that the crowds are wearing green and are as large as they were right after the elections. It looks like the protest movement is not going away any time soon.
Now if we can only get Bambi to stop surrendering . . .
Posted by: Frozen Al ||
09/18/2009 17:34 Comments ||
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#5
"But the people kept chanting DEATH/DOWN WITH RUSSIA".... Just more proof among many others that Radical Islam's nukulaar focus at the present is targeted agz the major Cold War Nuc States of ASIA, i.e. already Missle-, Nuke-armed RUSSIA + CHINA + INDIA, + weak peripherals, destabilizin' and carving out militarized Islamist enclaves AMAP ASAP ALAP ATAP.
* 2010-2012 and IRAN, ISLAMIST NUCLEARIZATION.
* AFRICA > "Attacking where the US/US-NATO/ALLIES aren't".
* GLOBAL = UNIVERSAL JIHAD.
[Iran Press TV Latest] On the eve of the annual rally in support of Palestinians and other oppressed people, Iran's Islamic Revolution Guards Corps (IRGC) have issued a warning to the opposition elements against attempting to create disorder during the major event.
The Quds (Jerusalem) Day was designated by the late leader of the Islamic revolution, Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini, to show solidarity with the Palestinians and the city of Jerusalem (al-Quds) that remain under an Israeli occupation, as well as for all the oppressed people in the their struggles against tyrants. This day, the founder of the Islamic Republic declared, is "not only focused on Quds, but it is also a day of confrontation between the oppressed and the oppressors."
The Quds Day is marked on the last Friday of the holy month of Ramadan, which coincides with September 18 this year.
"some news and accessed reports speak of plans by foreign networks, especially the Zionist regime's espionage organization, to disturb and divert your powerful and unified movement ... against the regime occupying Jerusalem (al-Quds)," is how the IRGC statement addresses Iranians, according to the official Islamic Republic News Agency (IRNA).
"The enemies of the revolution and the system and those defeated in the recent election are trying to exact revenge on the people who opened a new chapter in the country's progress by creating the epic of June 12 and their unprecedented 85 percent turnout, by diversionary slogans, using deceptive and colorful symbols," the statement states.
"We warn the individuals and movements who are attempting to encourage the Zionist enemy that, if they intend to create any kind of disturbance or disorder in the magnificent Quds Day rally, then they will be confronted with the decisive confrontation of the brave children of the nation," the statement adds.
Posted by: Fred ||
09/18/2009 00:00 ||
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#1
too late, the opposition did rally.
One chant heard:
"not Gaza, not Lebanon, our lives are for Iran"
True Iranian nationalism may yet be our best hope.
[Iran Press TV Latest] The Leader of the Islamic Revolution has offered his condolences over the martyrdom of a senior cleric who was shot dead by terrorists in western Iran.
Mamousta Sheikholeslam, who represented the people of Kordestan Province in the Assembly of Experts, was shot twice in the head by unknown gunmen in a mosque in Sanandaj on Thursday.
Ayatollah Seyyed Ali Khamenei also condemned a recent spate of terrorist attacks in the same province over the past few days.
According to IRNA, Sheikholesalm's killing has been the third terrorist attack in the province over the past week.
On September 13, Sanandaj's interim Friday prayer leader Borhan Ali was shot dead by three unidentified gunmen.
According to the report, gunmen have also attacked a judge in Sanandaj. The judge, however, survived the attack.
President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad has also declared two days of public mourning in the Kordestan Province to mark the martyrdom of sheikholesalm.
Posted by: Fred ||
09/18/2009 00:00 ||
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[Al Arabiya Latest] Syria has asked the United Nations to launch an inquiry into what it says was an attempt by a former U.N. investigator to implicate Damascus in the killing of former Lebanese Prime Minister Rafik al-Hariri.
A letter from Syrian Foreign Minister Walid al-Moualem, made available to reporters on Thursday, also said Damascus reserved the right to take legal action of its own against the prosecutor, Detlev Mehlis, and his assistant, Gerhard Lehmann.
Mehlis was appointed to head a U.N. inquiry, requested by Lebanon, into the February 2005 death of Hariri and 22 others in a Beirut car bombing. Mehlis, a German, left the job in early 2006, and the post has since changed hands twice.
In an October 2005 report, Mehlis said there was "converging evidence pointing at both Lebanese and Syrian involvement in this terrorist act," which could not have been carried out without the knowledge of Lebanese and Syrian intelligence.
Syria denied responsibility, but the killing caused a worldwide outcry that forced an end to Syria's 29-year military presence in Lebanon.
Moualem said interviews given by one of four Lebanese officers held for nearly four years by Lebanese authorities over the killing before being released without charge in April showed Mehlis' anti-Syrian bias.
Posted by: Fred ||
09/18/2009 00:00 ||
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#1
HAREETZ > TOP IDF OFFICER: IRAN HAS TAKEN OVER HEZBOLLAH + HERZOG SEEKS AUTHORITY TO ALLOW ISRAEL TO BE PROTECTED INTERNATIONALLY.
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.
Muslims in France's army who go on the pilgrimage to Mecca this year will not have to travel on private commercial flights or bunk with ordinary civilians. In a break from tradition, the Defence Ministry will provide a plane to fly them to Saudi Arabia and organize their stay. 
