#3
I think the Dhimmicrats will be laying in a big stock of these for '06 and '08.
Dubya can save the Dems from well-deserved extinction if he doesn't get his act together on immigration.
NAZARETH — The Israeli foreign ministry has dispatched secretly envoys to some Gulf states to convince them to normalise ties with the Jewish state, it was claimed by Israeli daily Yediot Aharonot. The paper, which said Israeli efforts were now focused on a number of Gulf countries, quoted a high-level Israeli foreign ministry official as saying that the missions had made 'significant progress' in this regard and that the announcement of ties with those countries was "just a matter of time."
The paper said the Israeli missions include a number of Israeli businessmen who are in talks with their Gulf counterparts because the plan laid down by the Israeli Foreign Minister, Silvan Shalom, revolves on two phases, adding that Phase One evolves on the building of economic ties with those countries and the opening of representative offices in those countries on a reciprocal basis, while Phase Two evolves upgrading the level of these ties to full diplomatic ties, including increasing the level of cooperation in the area of economy.
According to the paper, the Israeli foreign minister had categorised the Arab world into two categories — those described by Tel Aviv as 'moderate', which are willing to establish ties with the Jewish state and the second category, is described as 'strict', which still want to kill all the Jooooos are refusing to establish ties with Tel Aviv due to internal and external pressure.
Posted by: Steve White ||
04/28/2005 1:02:34 AM ||
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#1
Israel has always been secretly working to have better relations with its neighbors.
Sheikh Hamid Abdullah Al-Ali, former secretary-general of the Salafi Movement, was escorted to the Court of Cassation Tuesday by 11 armed men from the Special Forces to look into a petition he has filed to cancel the verdict which has been issued against him by a lower court. Al-Ali was convicted of criticizing — during a Friday sermon — HH the Amir's right to give instructions to foreign armies to launch a war on Iraq from Kuwaiti territories, defaming HH the Amir in public by describing Arab leaders as 'traitors and failures,' holding a public seminar — without permission — to defame brotherly and friendly states and founding an Internet site explaining how to make explosives.
On June 19, 2004, the Criminal Court sentenced Al-Ali to two years in jail and ordered him to sign a pledge of good conduct for three years and pay KD 1,000 to suspend the sentence. The verdict was upheld by the Court of Appeals on Nov 28, 2004. During the session, lawyer for Ali, attorney Osama Al-Monawer, said according to Item No. 109 of the Kuwaiti law, a case can only be filed against a person through a complainant. He added none of the Arab leaders had filed a complaint against his client. "More than what Sheikh Hamid Al-Ali has said is heard in more than 55 Islamic states, however, no one has been referred to the Public Prosecution," the lawyer added.
Posted by: Fred ||
04/28/2005 00:00:00 AM ||
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BOGOTA, Colombia -- U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice in Bogota voiced her support of Colombia while expressing reservations about neighboring Venezuela.
Rice lauded President Alvaro Uribe for his continued fight against left-wing rebels and Colombia's ongoing war on drugs, El Tiempo reported Thursday.
In recent months, Colombia has extradited several suspected drug traffickers to face trial in the United States.
Colombia is the world's No. 1 supplier of cocaine and a major producer of heroin. The United States has committed $3.3 billion to Plan Colombia, a project to clamp down on the drug trade.
Meanwhile, Rice continued to voice her concern over Venezuela's efforts to fortify its military. Left-leaning Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez recently secured the purchase of 100,000 assault rifles from Russia. He's up to something....
Rice made similar remarks about Venezuela in Brazil, the first leg of her four-nation tour of the region. Rice next heads to Chile, then El Salvador.
#1
Assault rifles: perfect for arming the barrio in anticipation of civil war.
Or for arming jihadists looking to perpetrate a Beslan in a school or mall to the north. Anyone want to put odds on Chavez and Co seeking ties with Al Qaeda now?
Georgia is still used by terrorists as a transit route, the U.S. Department of State says in its annual 2004 report on the threat of terrorism in other countries, issued on Wednesday in Washington.
At the same time the document notes that the practice scaled down following the measures the Georgian government took in the Pankisi Gorge at the end of 2003. The gorge is near the Chechen sector of the Russian-Georgian border.
More intensive counter-terrorist operations at the end of 2004 in Pankisi in the wake of the September 2004 terrorist attack in Beslan further reduced the opportunities for trans-national terrorist groups to use the Pankisi Gorge as a transit zone, the State Department indicates.
The report points out that at the moment Georgia's law enforcement capability is limited, and efforts to reform Georgia's security agencies are held back by the lack of adequate resources, equipment and trained personnel. It is also pointed out that these complications have not yet allowed Georgia to formulate a comprehensive anti-terrorist policy.
Posted by: Dan Darling ||
04/28/2005 4:09:35 PM ||
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When I first read the headline, I thought of Georgia, USA. Reminds me of the time someone said to me, "There's a job available in Georgia". I said, "Oh?", thinking he meant the state of Georgia. He said, "Yeah, but it's dangerous work." I said, "Oh, that Georgia." It was related to stopping illegal border crossings.
Foreign mercenaries from among the Arabs and Turks operating in Chechnya are trying to employ in their terrorist attacks members of different nationalities living in the republic, according to Russian secret services, reported Major-General Ilya Shabalkin, a spokesman for the regional headquarters for the counter-terrorist operation in the North Caucasus.
The law enforcement bodies know that the mercenaries handle practically up to 80% of the funds allocated to finance illegal armed formations.
But, according to Shabalkin, evidence by self-reported militants suggests that financial injections from abroad into illegal armed formations have markedly diminished in the recent period.
The headquarters reported that not a single bandit group made up mostly of mercenaries came to the assistance of their partners-in-crime against whom federal forces mounted special operations.
On January 30, 2005, for example, in the Urus-Martan district of Chechnya, law enforcement bodies isolated and destroyed two militants from the Bugayev group.
On April 5 of this year in Khasavyurt in Dagestan, a special operation demolished two warlords - Anvar Visayev and Anvar Abdulkadyrov, the headquarters said.
In addition, intelligence reports and information supplied by detained militants say that an armed conflict has erupted between bandits of the Dzhanet grouping over finances, it was noted at the headquarters.
Posted by: Dan Darling ||
04/28/2005 4:11:07 PM ||
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The armed group of killed Chechen warlord Aslan Maskhadov and supporters of his surviving leadership rival Shamil Basayev are haggling over cash flows from abroad, a spokesman for the counter-terrorist operation in the North Caucasus, Ilya Shabalkin, was quoted as saying by RIA Novosti.
Russian intelligence services reported that Basayev has been trying to subordinate Maskhadov's aides who control cash channels from abroad. The rebel leader aims to establish personal control over the entire funding of bandit groups in Chechnya, but the guerillas who used to support Maskhadov refuse to serve under him.
After Maskhadov was killed on March 8 by Russia's FSB Special Forces, they elected a new leader of the so-called Ichkerian republic (the name given to Chechnya by the separatists), Abdul-Khalim Saidulayev.
Some rebels do not recognize either Basayev or Saidulayev. Shabalkin said those who refrain from fighting in illegal armed groups may become victims of revenge attacks. Thus, they prefer to give up criminal activities and are either leaving Chechnya or surrendering to federal forces if they lack the finances to travel abroad. Shabalkin, however, did not specify, how many militants had already surrendered to law enforcement bodies since March.
Commentators have repeatedly said that Basayev would claim the leadership after Maskhadov's death. But this is the first time Russian military officials have acknowledged the confrontation between Maskhadov's and Basayev's guerillas.
Ilya Shabalkin also added that intelligence has established Shamil Basayev's whereabouts. The sources said he refuses to take part in fighting against federal forces and is considering the possibility of giving himself up.
No confirmation of this information has been received from the warlord's representatives so far. Rebel Web site Kavkazcenter continues to post news about acts of violence in Chechnya.
Posted by: Dan Darling ||
04/28/2005 4:15:17 PM ||
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Russian President Vladimir Putin has offered to host in Moscow an international conference on peace in the Middle East this fall during a meeting with his Egyptian counterpart Hosni Mubarak. The two leaders also called on the United Nations to play a greater role in Iraq. "I am suggesting that we should convene a conference for all these countries concerned (with the Mideast peace process) and the quartet, next autumn," Putin told reporters at a joint press conference with Mubarak. The quartet includes the United States, Russia, the European Union and the United Nations.
Posted by: Fred ||
04/28/2005 00:00:00 ||
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Posted by: Barbara Skolaut ||
04/28/2005 13:10 Comments ||
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#3
Translator screwed up. Putin's proposing an internal meeting of ba'athists and pan-arabists to see whether Russia can help move any more weapons around.
Pyongyang, April 27 (KCNA) -- U.S. Secretary of State Rice, while justifying the Iraqi war started by the U.S. recently, blustered that though the information about north Korea's nuclear program is insufficient, the whole world should strongly react to it. These reckless remarks come under fire by a signed commentary of Rodong Sinmun Wednesday. Her remarks reveal the U.S. efforts to create an international atmosphere for putting pressure upon the DPRK over the nuclear issue and its design for mounting a preemptive attack on it, the commentary observes, and goes on:
Given the fact that Rice is the chief architect of the U.S. foreign policy, her outcries provided the army and the people of the DPRK with an opportunity to clearly reconfirm the Bush administration's purpose of its policy towards the DPRK.
"Insufficient information about north Korea's nuclear program" and "the whole world's strong counter-action" touted by Rice are intended to shift the U.S. blame for having compelled the DPRK to have access to nuclear weapons onto the international community and mobilize multi-national forces for mounting preemptive attacks on it. To this end, the U.S. imperialist warlike forces worked out "OPLAN 5029-05," a new concrete version of the existing war scenario against the DPRK, and drew up a "plan to bomb nuclear facilities" in the DPRK and a "plan for blockading its coastal areas and airspace." This means they are leaving no means untried to stifle the DPRK by preemptive strikes. Their talk about "the whole world's strong counter-action" is little short of a declaration of a preemptive attack on the DPRK.
The army and people of the DPRK remain undeterred by any outbursts of the U.S. as they are strong in the spirit of independence and pluck. They will pay no heed to "the whole world's strong counter-action" and so on. Their message to the Uncle Sam is that it may do as it pleases. But the U.S. should bear in mind that the option of a preemptive attack is not its monopoly.
It is the mode of counter-action of the army and people in the DPRK to counter the attack by a stick with a rifle and the rifle firing with artillery firing. The U.S. would be well advised to ponder over the disastrous consequences to be entailed by its preemptive strike at the DPRK.
Gee, that almost sounds like a threat to me.
Posted by: Steve ||
04/28/2005 1:07:55 PM ||
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#1
Oh those independent and plucky NKors, there they go again...
#2
I must say that I miss the 'Sea of fire' guy. The 'army based juche idea' guy was pretty good too, but not enough spittle for my taste. This is positively boring in comparison.
Posted by: Scott R ||
04/28/2005 19:37 Comments ||
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...The Enlightened One asks: What is the sound of two keys turning?..
Mike
Posted by: Mike Kozlowski ||
04/28/2005 21:43 Comments ||
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North Korean leader Kim Jong Il has sent his regrets that he won't be attending the May 9 Victory Day celebrations in Moscow after all. And it's not just the Dear Leader who will be absent; Prime Minister Lee Hae Chan said the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade "confirmed that nobody from the North would attend the anniversary." North Korea however is considering sending a handful of old soldiers who participated in the war to the anniversary.
North Korea reportedly felt that the possibility of confronting U.S. President George W. Bush outweighed the benefits of showing comradely solidarity. Kim hinted at his no-show last month in Pyongyang when he visited the Russian Embassy to receive a medal marking the victory of World War II. Russia diplomatically commented only, "We understand North Korea's position."
Still a little nervous after that last train trip, eh Kimmy?
Posted by: Steve ||
04/28/2005 12:53:28 PM ||
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#8
I wonder if somebody's been reading IMAO's "In My World" in Pyongyang and taking it a tad too seriously? What do they think, Bush's going to pull out a M1911A1 on the stage in front of the cameras and open fire at Kim?
For god's sake, that's what ninjas are for! Show some balls.
Posted by: Mitch H. ||
04/28/2005 15:18 Comments ||
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#9
He's all a-quiver over the May 17th release of the Team America DVD
Posted by: Frank G ||
04/28/2005 18:55 Comments ||
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#10
Methinks he's afraid that if he leaves he won't be allowed back in.
Posted by: Deacon Blues ||
04/28/2005 19:40 Comments ||
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#11
OK... I have a serious question. Why not kill him as soon as he is identifiable? Down sides? Seems like it takes care of the problem all at once. Anyone see any downsides other than media/public opinion issues? Seriously. Kind of like an international law question, but not really....
Posted by: Mark E. ||
04/28/2005 23:52 Comments ||
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Raouf Ben Halima, 39, sleeps on his side, never on his stomach.
He enters the bathroom leading with his left foot, but puts his pants on leading with his right.
He does not use a fork when he eats, he uses his index finger, middle finger and thumb.
Halima is a member of the Tablighi Jamaat, or Preaching Party, a global army of Muslim missionaries helping to expand their religion and reinforce their faith.
They believe that emulating the habits of the Prophet Muhammad is the surest way to restore Islam to its intended path.
So Halima and his associates shave their upper lips but let their beards grow. They wear their pants or robes above the ankle because the prophet said letting clothes drag on the ground is a sign of arrogance.
"Halfway between the knee and the ankle is best," Halima explained, sitting amid stacks of religious tracts in his small home.
His comments during conversations about the growth of militant Islam offered a glimpse into the beliefs of a group that is unsettling to many in France. The Tablighi are one of the primary forces spreading Islamic fundamentalism in Europe, and many young men pass through the group on their way to an extreme, militant interpretation of the religion.
#2
Seriously, Paris is beginning to sound more and more like a decaying US urban 1970s hellhole. Race riots. Mass youth unemployment. Police too terrified to even enter neighborhoods dominated by violent movements, gangs, ordinary hoodlums. An angry and dispirited middle class under stress. Economic stagnation. Massive political corruption.
#3
that explains the boxers showing 6" above the shorts thang...
Posted by: Frank G ||
04/28/2005 18:06 Comments ||
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Paris is beginning to sound more and more like a decaying US urban 1970s hellhole
the difference is that the US did a lot of soul searching, ultimately cleaning up urban decay. France's response is to rationalize/sympathize/appease/blame the Jews
#5
Every school of Islamic thought tells moslems to imitate Muhammud in all things.
So if a muslim takes this seriously, he would also want to marry 4 women, assault them during their period, wipe out tribes that laugh at them and lots of other fun things.
#6
who would be the French Giuliani? Willing to kick ass, takes the slings and arrows, yet turn societal opinion around? Remember "Broken Windows" and the controversy it cost Rudy? His answer? Go ahead. I see nothing but societal pimps and whores so far.
Posted by: Frank G ||
04/28/2005 20:47 Comments ||
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Oh, but Frank, some of them gladly do it for free... (ick)
A group of prominent right-wing American analysts, supported by several Serbian academics, have claimed that the greatest terrorist threat to Europe comes from the Balkans, particularly from Bosnia and Kosovo which still maintain links to al-Qaeda and other Islamic terrorist organisations. The experts were delegates at a two day conference, sponsored by the Belgrade University, that attracted terrorism specialists from the region, the United States and Europe.
Yosef Bodansky, the director of the Congressional Task Force on Terrorism and Conventional Warfare in Washington, said that the Balkans was a "springboard for Islamic extremism" in Europe and that Iran was the main driving force behind it.
According to Bodansky, Iran was among leading countries that finance and support Islamic terrorism directed against the United States and Europe. "The final goal of Islamic terrorist groups and organizations is to turn America into an Islamic republic and to secure world domination through it," Bodansky told the meeting.
Gregory Copley, director of the Washington Institute for Strategic Studies, a leading neo-conservative think-tank which many oberservers say reflects the position of some of President George W. Bush's top officials, also attended the conference. Copely argued that Americans had demonstrated the shortsightedness of their foreign policy in the Balkans by supporting local Muslims during the civil war in Bosnia and ethnic Albanians, who are also Muslims, in Serbia's southern province of Kosovo. In 1999, Bush's predecessor, Bill Clinton, won NATO support for a bombing campaign against Belgrade to halt the "ethnic cleansing" of Albanians by Serbs in Kosovo.
Copley, and some other participants, said they believed that al-Qaeda still had dormant cells in Bosnia and among Kosovo's ethnic Albanians.
Evan Coleman, a consultant on terrorism for the American Justice Department and Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), said that "Al Qaeda still has camps for recruiting and training terrorists in the area of Zenica in Bosnia" and that it was happening before the eyes of NATO soldiers stationed there. He said that no one in the American administration paid attention to the intelligence reports and "the government of the United States sometimes acts like a gorilla without a brain."
Zoran Dragisic of the Faculty for Civil Defence at the University of Belgrade argued that Al Qaeda, Kosovo Albanians and organized crime groups were the main source of terrorism in the Balkans. Serbia could potentially fall prey to their attacks, Dragisic said, but he pointed out that the Balkans were just "an oasis" for organising and planning, while Western Europe was really the main target of terrorist attacks.
Posted by: Dan Darling ||
04/28/2005 3:57:52 PM ||
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Charles Pasqua has been a central figure in French politics for three decades. Once described as the man who knows all the secrets, he served twice as minister of interior, first in the late 1980s when Jacques Chirac was prime minister and again in the left-right co-habitation of the Mitterrand presidency of the early 1990s.
For years French magistrates have been investigating his financial records, probing allegations that he received bribes and illicit funds generated by influence-trafficking and other activities, including arms sales to Angola.
Mr Pasqua has never been convicted of any wrongdoing. Indeed last September he won a seat in the French Senate - a position which confers immunity against prosecution.
But the Financial Times and the Italian business daily Il Sole 24 Ore can reveal that he is about to face a fresh set of allegations which focus on his contacts with Iraq under the regime of Saddam Hussein.
Documents obtained by Philippe Courroye, a French magistrate, during a visit to New York to meet investigators from the United Nations' committee of special inquiry suggest that the former minister and Bernard Guillet, his diplomatic adviser, received and traded lucrative oil allocations through amiddleman.
On Wednesday Mr Pasqua could not be reached for comment. Last year, when his name was first linked to the oil-for-food inquiry, he said: "All this is ridiculous. I categorically deny any involvement."
Mr Guillet was in police custody having been arrested on Tuesday in connection with the oil-for-food inquiry.
snip
Posted by: Mrs. Davis ||
04/28/2005 4:33:57 PM ||
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#1
So did the entire French political establishment get its palms greased by Saddam?
Posted by: Jonathan ||
04/28/2005 16:45 Comments ||
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FoxNews guy Jonathan Hunt interviewed this asstard about 6 months ago. It was hysterical. A pompous ass, Pasqua was, at first, very generous in his comments - even sly offhand stuff about who might have been on the take. Hunt, who is a bona-fide bulldog, chased everything he said... and scared / pissed him off. He clammed up and demanded the interview be terminated when Hunt got too close to him, lol! You may find it on the Fox site if you want to dig around. It was just about the time the WSJ's Claudia Rosset really got things going with Sevan's denials. Hunt chased him all over the UN bldg, lol!
AMSTERDAM — The terror threat to the Netherlands has shifted from international networks to local Dutch groups, according to the security service AIVD.
The Hans Brinker Group for Skating and Combat?
Presenting the AIVD's annual report for 2004, agency boss Sybrand van Hulst said the chance of attack in the Netherlands remained very real. He said the arrest of a group Moroccan-Dutch men for membership of the alleged terror group, Hofstadgroep, and suspects accused of threatening politicians Ayaan Hirsi Ali and Geert Wilders had helped reduce a portion of the risk. On the other hand, he said the actions of Mohammed B. — the 27-year-old man who has admitted murdering filmmaker Theo van Gogh — acted as an inspiration for other young Muslim men.
Oh, those "local Dutch groups". Yeah, they have no contact with the world-wide islamic network at all.
Van Hulst said there had also been a shift in potential targets, from large groups — such as the Madrid train bombings — to individuals such as Van Gogh. Fewer people can be involved in preparing attacks directed at specific individuals, limiting the chance of detection by the authorities, he said.
According to Van Hulst, the move from international to local terror networks can also be seen in other European countries. He could not say how many networks there are in the Netherlands.
Doesn't know or afraid to say?
They are inspired not only by Mohammed B., but also by the events in Iraq. Some young Muslims could also be angered by Dutch participation in the international military force in Afghanistan, Van Hulst said.
"But that has nothing to do with international terror networks, nope, nope!"
The AIVD boss said his agents had noticed a rising, but "fortunately very limited" radicalisation among Turkish people for the first time. He emphasised that the radicals were a very small part of the communities of orthodox Muslims living in the Netherlands.
Posted by: Steve ||
04/28/2005 2:25:06 PM ||
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BERLIN - German Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder and New Zealand Prime Minister Helen Clark called in Berlin on Thursday for "credible steps" toward nuclear-arms reductions. They issued their call ahead of Monday's talks at the United Nations on the 35-year-old Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty, which is up for a month-long review. "This is the expectation of both of us as these talks commence in New York," Schroeder said after talks with his visitor from New Zealand. Clark said: "The conference couldn't be more timely. We must seek the proper balance between the potential for peaceful utilisation of nuclear energy while at the same time preventing military abuses." The review comes amid mounting pressure from critics such as Germany who say the NPT has failed to keep nations such as North Korea, Israel, Iran, South Africa, Iraq, Pakistan, India, Taiwan, and Libya from seeking or building atomic weapons in the past or now.
What, you expected them to pay attention to a silly piece of paper....oh, right, we're talking about Helen and Gerhard, sorry.
Berlin also says it has not done much to reach its goal of eliminating the nuclear arsenals of Britain, China, France, Russia, and the United States.
SEE: above paragraph
Posted by: Steve ||
04/28/2005 2:12:14 PM ||
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#1
Well if these countries had any nuclear weapons and more than just a symbolic defense capability they might deserve some input. But they don't. These pussies are going to have no solution to a nuclear Iran because they choose not to. We will have a solution because we are not a bunch of socialist and neo-communist white trash. Lil·li·pu·tians trying to rope the Gullivers down. Germany has become the suck boy for France. New Zealand needs to worry about it's sheep population.
#2
Morons. Neither has nukes, thank god. I can just imagine "Dear Leader" Clark with a couple of SS18's...
How about this: All the nuclear powers tell everybody else to NOT DEVELOP NUCLEAR WEAPONS, on pain of being flash-fried in the streets. "We determine you have 'em, or are real close, you get a glassy new parking lot where your capital used to be."
#4
I've long wondered what would happen if someone were to smuggle a ship with AK-47s and ammo in to the Maori in NZ. The whites have set up the place so that you could conquer it with a butter knife, yet still treat the Maori as dogs, and it would be funny as hell to see them kicked off the island by their new rulers. What could they do, sue? Whine?
#6
A good first step, for Schroeder at least, would be to stop his country's trade in nuclear, dual-use, and tools/equipment to make nuke/dual use products. Germany is more than a tad too fond of selling the wrong kind of high-tech machinery to Iran, f'r instance. Bloody-handed hypocrite.
Charles Pasqua, a former French minister of interior, has emerged as one of the highest-ranking targets of the widening investigations into the Iraq oil-for-food scandal. United Nations, US and French investigators are examining Iraqi documents that show officials in Baghdad were instructed to transfer his lucrative oil allocations to an offshore company, to shield him from criticism.
Mr Pasqua's alleged role has emerged as inquiries turn to the role of foreign governments in the corruption within the humanitarian aid programme. France and Russia, which opposed the 2003 invasion, have long been accused in the US of being too close to Saddam Hussein's regime. Early on Tuesday, Bernard Guillet, Mr Pasqua's diplomatic adviser, was arrested at home in Paris in connection with the oil-for-food inquiry, on the orders of Philippe Courroye, a French investigative judge. Mr Guillet was yesterday in police custody.
The Iraqi documents indicate that Mr Pasqua's oil allocations were personally approved by Mr Hussein. Last October, a list of alleged beneficiaries of Iraqi oil allocations that included politicians, journalists and business people from all over the world was published by the US administration. Mr Pasqua and Mr Guillet were said to have received 10.8m and 2m barrels respectively. At the time Mr Guillet was reported as saying: "My role was only to say to Tariq Aziz [deputy prime minister] or others, 'Look, there are some companies that are willing to work and they're having difficulties.' That's it." However, a handwritten note from Saddam Hassan, Somo's managing director, suggests Mr Guillet asked Iraqi officials not to give his boss's allocations to any French company.
Mr Pasqua could not be reached for comment. He has previously denied any wrongdoing.
Posted by: ed ||
04/28/2005 7:16:01 AM ||
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Cool. Next stop, Thierry Maugein. And thence to Jacques le Vol.
A co-defendant told police that a key al Qaida suspect — who earlier this week called himself a peace-loving moderate Muslim — is a radical who recruited men for "holy war" training in Afghanistan, according to testimony read to a Madrid court today.
Y'mean he lied to us? Wow! That's never happened before, has it?
A police statement said Ghasoub al-Abrash Ghalyoun told officers in April 2002 that Imad Yarkas, the accused leader of a Spanish al Qaida cell, spoke often jihad, or holy war. "He was a radical person. He was always talking about the mujahedeen," the police statement said, quoting Ghalyoun. It was read aloud by a court clerk at the request of lead prosecutor Pedro Rubira. However, Ghalyoun denied it today.
"I never said that!... It's taken out of context!... Those aren't my words!... That's not me on the tape!... It's not me in the video!... That's not my DNA!..."
Ghalyoun and Yarkas are standing trial on charges they helped plot the September 11 attacks on the US. Ghalyoun, 39, is accused of taking detailed video footage of the World Trade Centre that a Spanish judge says served as the first blueprints for the September 11 plots. A third defendant faces similar charges, and 21 others are accused of belonging to a terrorist organisation, weapons possession and other offences, but not September 11 planning.
In the police statement read to the court today, Ghalyoun told officers Yarkas engaged in recruiting at a Madrid mosque, and that people who prayed there knew that if they wanted to be sent off for terror training in camps in Afghanistan, Bosnia or Chechnya, Yarkas was the man to see. Yarkas "considered atheists all those who did not share his way of thinking," Ghalyoun told police after his arrest in 2002. Asked if Yarkas, also known as Abu Dahdah, sent men from Spain to terrorist camps in Afghanistan, Ghalyoun said he had heard Abu Dahdah "sent mujahedeen to wage jihad" but he could not name the people or say how many they were, the police statement said. But Ghalyoun testified today he did not remember saying this about Yarkas, and that Yarkas never asked him personally to wage holy war or contribute money for others to do it.
"No, no! Certainly not!"
Ghalyoun, 39, took video of the twin towers in New York and other landmarks during a visit to the US in 1997, court documents say. The videotapes eventually were passed on to "operative members of al Qaida and would become the preliminary information on the attacks against the twin towers," Judge Baltasar Garzon wrote in a September 2003 indictment against the Syrian-born Ghalyoun and other alleged members of a Spanish al Qaida cell. Yarkas, the alleged leader of the cell, testified this week that he had nothing to do with the attacks. He also denied setting up a meeting in Spain in July 2001 at which one of the suspected suicide pilots and an alleged co-ordinator of the attacks planned last-minute details of the massacre.
Posted by: Dan Darling ||
04/28/2005 12:22:08 AM ||
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Posted by: Fred ||
04/28/2005 00:00:00 ||
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#1
Another crack in Schröder's wall? I'll leave the deep dark meanings, signs, and portents of this to someone well-versed in German politics - and their system, which seems to have elections scheduled helter-skelter, lol!
I'm waiting, I guess, for an authority who knows to say, this is the end of the political shill Schröder and the beginning of an honest relationship with the US.
Oh, and I still think Fischer is a Socialist Moonbat Murderer who deserves a prison cell, heh.
Turkey's Parliament protested yesterday over a decision by the Polish National Assembly to recognize the killing of Armenians by Ottoman Turks 90 years ago as "genocide". Parliament Speaker Bulent Arinc said Turkey was canceling several meetings between Turkish and Polish lawmakers in protest.
Touchy, aren't they?
Turkey strongly denies the claims that some 1.5 million Armenians perished in what is called a systematic genocide orchestrated by the Ottoman government in 1915-1923. It says the Armenians were victims of a war, which claimed even more Turkish lives. Last week, Poland's Parliament became the latest in a string of national assemblies, including those of France and Canada, to recognize the killings as genocide. Russia's State Duma also reaffirmed its long-standing support for the Armenian claims.
Posted by: Fred ||
04/28/2005 00:00:00 ||
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h/t Lucianne
The White House yesterday accused Senate Democrats of opposing reform of the scandal-plagued United Nations by blocking the nomination of John R. Bolton as U.S. ambassador to the world body.
Meanwhile, the chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee predicted that the panel will confirm Mr. Bolton when it reconvenes May 12. Democrats earlier this week said their Senate leaders have not decided whether to filibuster the Bolton nomination if it is approved by the committee.
The White House is trying to shift the debate away from Mr. Bolton and onto the United Nations itself.
Bemoaning the "corruption" of the oil-for-food program and other scandals at the United Nations, White House press secretary Scott McClellan told reporters: "We believe that the United Nations could be much more effective."
"Are you saying that Senate Democrats are opposing Bolton because they oppose U.N. reform?" a reporter asked.
"That's what this issue boils down to," Mr. McClellan replied. "A vote for John Bolton is a vote for reform at the United Nations. A vote against him is a vote for the status quo at the United Nations."
The remarks confirmed a White House strategy, first outlined in The Washington Times on Tuesday, to focus attention on U.N. scandals such as the oil-for-food program in Iraq and the sexual abuse of African girls by U.N. peacekeepers.
Nonetheless, reporters continued to ask yesterday about reports that Mr. Bolton was abusive to subordinates when he served as an undersecretary to former Secretary of State Colin L. Powell.
"These are side issues that distract from the real issue," Mr. McClellan said. "The real issue here is, are we going to move forward on reform at the United Nations or are we going to accept the status quo?"
Although he did not confirm the substance of the accusations against Mr. Bolton, the presidential spokesman acknowledged that the nominee can be hard-nosed.
"John Bolton is someone who brings a lot of experience and a lot of passion -- and sometimes a blunt style -- to this position," Mr. McClellan said. "But those are exactly the kind of qualities that are needed in an agent of change to get things done, particularly at a place like the United Nations," he added. "So we hope that the Senate will move forward quickly on his nomination."
Sen. Richard G. Lugar, chairman of the Foreign Relations Committee, predicted that the panel would approve Mr. Bolton's nomination and send it to the full Senate for a vote next month. "We will have a vote that I believe will be favorable, and the committee will report the nomination to the floor," the Indiana Republican told reporters. "I'm not certain that I will know the heart of hearts of each member sitting there on May the 12th," he added. "I hope that I will have a good idea, but each will have to make up his or her mind."
Just to be on the safe side, the White House was trying to set up a meeting between Mr. Bolton and Sen. George V. Voinovich, the Ohio Republican whose concerns about the nominee's temperament delayed the original vote, which had been scheduled for April 19. If you won't do your job, and show up for the hearings, perhaps the offer of a PRIVATE CONFIRMATION HEARING will get your attention, Mr Voinovich.
Posted by: .com ||
04/28/2005 5:40:36 AM ||
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The rope-a-dope phase of this bout is now over.
h/t Lucianne Bush nominee is being smeared
April 28, 2005
It's been just over three months since George W. Bush began his second term as president. Yet criticism of his foreign policy is no less feverish than it was this early in his first term. This time however the animus is directed against him via his nomination of John Bolton to be U.S. ambassador to the United Nations.
The smear campaign against Bolton has gone on far too long. If the Foreign Relations Committee can't bring itself to endorse him soon, the White House ought to make good on its threat to force a showdown vote on the Senate floor. The only drawback is the cover it would provide those committee members who've sheepishly allowed the president's nominee to be abused in such a shameful manner.
Every day seems to bring a new charge against Bolton, yet each loses credibility as soon it is put in its proper context or simply refuted.
For example, the head of the consulting firm that hired Bolton as legal counsel for an aid project in Kyrgyzstan in 1994 has disputed an accusation from anti-Bush partisan Melody Townsel that he shouted at her and pounded on her hotel room door. He not only cast doubt on Townsel's account, but also accused her of a poor performance while she worked on the project.
Frederick Vreeland, a former intelligence officer and ambassador to Morocco, complained bitterly Monday about Bolton's "temperament" when Bolton served as assistant secretary of state for international organizations (which included the U.N.) in 1991. Of course, that was the period during which Bolton broke with the State Department bureaucracy to doggedly campaign for repeal of the U.N.'s infamous Resolution 3379, which equated Zionism with racism.
Bolton has also been accused of bullying intelligence analysts to change their judgments. But the Senate long ago investigated these allegations. In fact, the Senate Intelligence Committee issued a report last year exonerating him and other officials of trying to manipulate intelligence for political purposes.
It should be clear by now that the Bolton brouhaha is less about the proper temperament needed to conduct diplomacy than it is a dispute over policy. If being tough, blunt and occasionally arrogant is disqualifying for public service, a great many lawmakers would be out of work. Some Democrats still consider it a sin that Bolton called Kim Jong Il a "tyrannical dictator" and said life in North Korea was a "hellish nightmare," which it still is.
No, the character assassination of John Bolton is an excuse to kill a nomination that mostly Democrats oppose on ideological grounds. President Bush wants Bolton to help prod a dysfunctional U.N. toward reform, contrary to a foreign-policy establishment willing to subjugate U.S. interests for multilateralism's sake. Those opposed to Bolton are opposed to a policy that takes seriously the implications of international agreements, insists on accountability, and emphasizes the primacy of America's own domestic laws.
No wonder Senate Democrats Chris Dodd and Joe Biden, both secretary-of-state wannabes who represent the views of John Kerry's failed campaign for president, are out to derail Bolton's nomination. Because they want to avoid a genuine debate over the role of the U.N. that they would be likely to lose, they've resorted to personal attacks.
As Danielle Pletka of the American Enterprise Institute told Time magazine this week, "This is not the outrage of sincere grown-ups over the malfeasance of a senior executive. John is not about making the world safe for cocktail parties."
Rough around the edges or not, Bolton is the right man for the job. Hell, that's what I like best about him, lol!
Posted by: .com ||
04/28/2005 5:29:16 AM ||
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Agreed,.com.I'll take a stand-up,straight-talking man or woman over a sweet-talking,glad -hander any day.
Benon Sevan, who once headed the United Nations' oil-for-food program, hinted in a recent letter to the U.N. chief of staff, Mark Malloch Brown, that he would consider retributions against the organization if it refused to reimburse the mounting legal fees he has incurred while attempting to fend off allegations related to the program.
"Retribution"? What's he gonna do? Kneecap Fred Eckhard? Kidnap Kojo and rough him up?
The letter adds to growing tensions among lawyers, the United Nations, and a host of investigators who are investigating the scandals swirling around oil for food. Defense attorneys employed by oil-for-food players now include influential Washington lawyers known for taking on high-profile cases - and demanding fat fees. Indeed, two former law partners, both of whom served on President Clinton's defense team during the 1990s impeachment hearings, may soon be pitted against one another: Gregory Craig and Lanny Davis. Mr. Davis now represents a former Volcker committee investigator, Robert Parton, who resigned citing principal differences with others on the team. The disagreements led to the Volcker team softening its conclusions about Secretary-General Annan, who is represented by Mr. Craig.
Pass the popcorn, please...
The April 10 letter to Mr. Malloch Brown was penned by Mr. Sevan's somewhat lower-profile lawyer, Eric Lewis. Mr. Lewis demanded that the United Nations reconsider its prior decision not to reimburse the legal fees incurred by Mr. Sevan as result of oil-for-food accusations. "We want to do this in a confidential manner" but under certain circumstances, "we might have to reconsider," the letter said, according to a senior U.N. official who spoke to The New York Sun on condition of anonymity. Mr. Lewis implied in his letter that Mr. Sevan could go public with the circumstances surrounding the initial promise by the United Nations to cover Mr. Sevan's legal fees - and the organization's subsequent about-face. Mr. Sevan's knowledge of the program might include potentially damaging information about several U.N. officials.
You mean all that stuff that was supposed to have been disclosed, given a full and transparent investigatory process?
After the Sun reported last month the decision to reimburse Mr. Sevan's legal fees with funds left over from the oil-for-food account, Mr. Malloch Brown announced the decision would be reversed. "That decision by the secretary general has not changed," a U.N. spokesman, Stephane Dujarric, told the Sun yesterday. "The U.N. will not pay Mr. Sevan's fees."
Mr. Lewis did not return phone calls to his office yesterday. Separately, several congressional sources confirmed to the Sun yesterday that Mr. Parton has retained Mr. Davis as his attorney. Mr. Parton has said he had resigned from the Volcker committee over disagreements on investigative procedures. After Mr. Parton's resignation, Paul Volcker told Fox News on Tuesday that "There should not be and has not been any question as to whether the report itself reviewed all the investigative leads."
But if the leads weren't offered up in the first place, there wasn't anything to investigate, was there?
Mr. Parton might soon be called to testify before some of the eight congressional committees investigating the oil-for-food scandal. This could lead to legal complications, as IIC members have signed certain confidentiality agreements. The circumstances surrounding the recent resignation of Mr. Parton and his colleague, Miranda Duncan, from the IIC, are "a matter of great concern to the chairman," said a staffer at the office of Rep. Dana Rohrabacher, Republican of California, who heads the House Subcommittee on Oversight and Investigations. The staffer added, however, that no decision has been made yet on whether to call Mr. Parton or Ms. Duncan to testify. The congressional committee begins a separate oil-for-food hearing today on the role of BNP Paribas, the French based bank with a New York branch that was hired by the United Nations and Saddam Hussein to handle the escrow account where most of the proceeds from Iraq's oil sales were deposited. BNP is represented by yet another onetime Clinton lawyer, Robert Bennett. Mr. Davis, a partner in the law firm Orrick, Herrington,& Sutcliffe, told the Sun yesterday that for the time being, Mr. Parton is trying to avoid commenting on his resignation or on the work of the Volcker committee. Mr. Craig, of Williams and Connolly, was the White House legal adviser during Mr. Clinton's impeachment hearings. A U.N. spokesman, Fred Eckhard, told the Sun that Mr. Craig offered his services to Mr. Annan "as a friend" and for is working on a pro-bono basis. No U.N. funds would be used to pay his services, the spokesman said. Heh. Popcorn, anyone?
Posted by: .com ||
04/28/2005 5:24:21 AM ||
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...What's the old saying about honor among thieves?
Mike
Posted by: Mike Kozlowski ||
04/28/2005 7:21 Comments ||
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Threatening to spill the beans,is he.This is likely to get very entertaining.
#3
Benon, never takes sides against the family. In house, that "stern reprimand" bullshit goes out the window. Don't take money out of my pocket, Benon. You wouldn't like what happens...
Posted by: Kofi A. ||
04/28/2005 9:04 Comments ||
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Greg Craig certainly taps the bottom of the barrel for clients...
Posted by: Frank G ||
04/28/2005 9:56 Comments ||
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What does he need money for? Seems that he has plenty of relatives that lived in poverty but were in fact wealthy. His recently deceased aunt left in a tidy sum of money but he forgot to report it to the Turkish authorities. Most of them have to be getting on in age and can't tell if the elevator is actually on the same floor before they step into the shaft. Couple more of them pass on and he will be sitting pretty. I think that maybe the LLL should form some legal defense group becuase they seem to be always getting in trouble with the law.
#10
Nothing worse than a bevy of lawyers wondering which firm won't get paid.
Sell the book rights, Beno. That will generate the cash you will need for your defense.
25.04.2005 at 0315 UTC in position 07:15.4N - 108:20.4E, South China Sea. Persons in two fishing boats attempted to board a bulk carrier underway by tying ropes to ship's side. Attempt foiled.
24.04.2005 at 1050 LT in position 02:48.56N - 101:03.0E Malacca Straits. A speedboat approached a container ship underway. Ship altered course to port but the boat suddenly increased speed and headed for the ship. Master raised alarm, crew mustered, and the boat reduced speed [and] moved away. Description of boat, length 7-8 metres, white hull, 1 dark obm, dark sunroof with 4-6 persons wearing dark clothes.
23.04.2005 at 1950 UTC at Belawan Anchorage, Indonesia. One robber armed with a long knife boarded a tanker at forecastle whilst another robber was climbing anchor chain. Duty a/b challenged the robbers and raised alarm. Robbers jumped overboard and escaped in a speedboat waiting with two other accomplices. Port authorities informed.
22.04.2005 at 2350 LT in position 29:37nN - 048:45.7E, Umm Qasr Anchorage, Iraq. Three robbers armed with guns and a knife boarded a bulk carrier using hooks attached to ropes. They took hostage several crewmembers, assaulted them and demanded money. They took crew one by one to their cabins and stole cash and personal belongings. They also stole money from ship's safe and master's personal belongings. They took master [to the] poop deck and disembarked into a 5 metre wooden boat waiting with an accomplice. Master reported incident to coalition warships in the area.
22.04.2005 at 0500 in position 00:27.1S - 105:09.0E, off Lingga Islands, Indonesia . Pirates armed with guns boarded a general cargo underway from stern. They tied up all crew and held the ship for two days. All cargo on board was unloaded. On 25.04.05 pirates left the ship in speedboats. Further details are awaited.
18.04.2005 at 1915 LT in position 01:20S - 116:57E, Balikpapan outer roads, Indonesia. Two robbers in two unlit fishing boats boarded a bulk carrier at forecastle. They stole two liferafts and lifeboat equipment. Master contacted port authorities but received no response. Ship picked up anchor and left outer roads.
16.04.2005 at 0535 LT in position 01:13.6S - 117 00.7E, Balikpapan Anchorage, Indonesia. Masked robbers armed with long knifes boarded a tug. They stole one liferaft and escaped.
Posted by: Pappy ||
04/28/2005 12:28:45 AM ||
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"...whilst another robber was climbing anchor chain."
"It was... ummm... something else... Or maybe somebody else said it..."
Posted by: Fred ||
04/28/2005 00:00:00 ||
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So, for an entire month, he has allowed news stories which quote him as claiming exoneration - and challenged none of those which differed with this impression... A fairly complete picture in these RB articles:
"After so many distressing and untrue allegations have been made against me, this exoneration by the independent inquiry obviously comes as a great relief," he said.
#4
.com, You know the LLL are not responsible for the words that come out of their mouths. Kofi could haved been talking about any number of investigations that are taking place at the un. You ass-u-me that he was talking about the oil-for-dictators fiasco. He could have been talking about Pediphiles-for-Peacekeepers, Parking Tickets-for-Pompous People, or Sex-for-Diplomats investigations when he made that comment. I demand you retract you allegations that he was lying. I hope Bush sends someone really nice to work with Kofi, because he has had a rough couple of years as the SGUN.
Posted by: Fred ||
04/28/2005 00:00:00 ||
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Germany? The EU already has 2 votes, and the other European vote goes to a third-rate power whose population is shrinking so fast it will be smaller than Bangladesh in another generation.
Add a vote for India and Japan. Conslidate shrinking Europe's UNSC position into one seat, one vote.
Malaysian police detained two Americans for allegedly handing out Christian religious pamphlets to Muslims near a mosque, officials said Wednesday. The two men were arrested during a routine police patrol for "disturbing the peace in a religious manner" Monday in Putrajaya, Malaysia's administrative capital just south of Kuala Lumpur, a district police official said on condition of anonymity. Details of the men's identities were not immediately available. Proselytizing of Muslims by members of other religions is prohibited in Malaysia, a moderate, predominantly Muslim Southeast Asian country. Police obtained a court order to detain the suspects for up to two weeks for questioning, the official said, adding that they were also being investigated for not having travel documents with them when the arrest occurred. It was not immediately clear what offense the men could be charged with, he said. A US Embassy officer visited the two men Wednesday, said embassy spokesman Frank Whitaker.
Posted by: Fred ||
04/28/2005 00:00:00 ||
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Proselytizing of Muslims by members of other religions is prohibited in Malaysia, a moderate, predominantly Muslim Southeast Asian country.
Whew! For a second there I was beginning to think it was a radical country.
#3
When it comes to fryin' up radical muzzies, moderation is for monks. A take-off on a quote by Lazarus Long.
Posted by: Deacon Blues ||
04/28/2005 7:27 Comments ||
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I've got a number of citations for âdisturbing the peace in a religious mannerâ that need distributing. I hear the USMC is good at that sort of delivery.
#5
SF: Let's just blanket the country using the USAF. No need to get the Marines involved in "light work."
Posted by: BA ||
04/28/2005 10:22 Comments ||
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While I can certainly see the unreasonable aspect of this whole episode, I have to say that these people being detained, had they indeed engaged in the actions the Malaysians say they did, should get no external help from U.S. officials. A visitor or visitors to a country are subject to its laws, whatever they may be, and should one violate that law knowingly, they are at the mercy of those responsible for law and order (or lack of). If this sounds too harsh, then the proper solution is, DON'T GO THERE IF YOU CAN'T ABIDE BY THEIR LAWS.
The U.S. State Department says in a new report that Iran was the "most active" state sponsor of terrorism last year, putting the Tehran government atop a group of six countries cited in the department's annual report on terrorism that remain subject to U.S. sanctions.
The U.S. government also released new figures indicating a large amount of terrorist activity worldwide in 2004 but officials insisted it did not mean a sharp increase from previous years.
The State Department report, issued yesterday, says Iran continues to use terrorism as an instrument of state policy, most notably in anti-Israeli activities.
The report says Iran provided funding, safe haven, training, and weapons for Lebanon-based Hezbollah and Palestinian terrorist groups Hamas, Islamic Jihad, the Al-Aqsa Martyrs Brigades, and the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine-General Command.
State Department counselor Philip Zelikow told reporters of a range of alleged pro-terrorist activities by the Iranian regime.
"Iran and Syria are of special concern for their direct, open and prominent role in sponsoring Hezbollah and Palestinian terrorist groups, for their unhelpful actions in Iraq, and, in Iran's case, the unwillingness to bring to justice senior Al-Qaeda members detained in 2003."
Iran in the past has not denied offering moral and political support to groups like Hezbollah and Hamas, but has said it did not provide material aid to them. It regularly accuses Washington of sponsoring state terrorism by Israel against Palestinians.
In addition to Iran and Syria, the countries on the U.S. terrorism list are Cuba, North Korea, Sudan, and Libya. The State Department report says Sudan and Libya would remain on the list despite taking "significant steps" to cooperate in the global war on terrorism in 2004. Iraq was dropped from the list in October.
The list requires the U.S. government to control sales of items with military and civilian applications, limits U.S. aid, and requires Washington to vote against loans from international financial institutions.
Overall in 2004, Zelikow cited improving international cooperation on counterterrorism measures and said "we are winning the war on terrorism." But he warned against complacency and noted the attacks in Beslan, Russia, and Madrid highlight the struggles that remain.
"Terrorism remains a global threat from which no nation is immune, despite ongoing improvements in U.S. homeland security, our campaigns against insurgents and terrorists, and the deepening counterterrorism cooperation among the nations of the world, international terrorism continued to pose a significant threat to the United States and its partners in 2004," Zelikow said.
This year's report was released amid controversy over allegations the State Department planned to exclude statistics to avoid criticism of the effectiveness of antiterror measures.
The administration decided that the new National Counterterrorism Center would release the statistics. The center said there were 651 terrorist attacks worldwide in 2004 that killed 1,907 people. That compares with State Department figures announced in 2004 showing 208 attacks that caused 625 deaths in 2003.
In Iraq, a comparison of the figures shows 22 terrorist incidents in 2003 increased to 201 in 2004 and the number of killed rose from 117 in 2003 to 554 in 2004.
But U.S. officials said the increase is mainly due to more thorough methods used to compile data on terrorist attacks.
The acting director of the counterterrorism center, John Brennan, told reporters it is incorrect to measure two sets of figures compiled through much different means.
"It does not necessarily represent a sharp increase in the number of terrorist attacks," Brennan said. "What's the sharp increase is in the number of incidents being reported now annually, as a result of much more rigorous research and identification of all these incidents."
The report said that Al-Qaeda remained the primary terrorist threat to the United States despite success in arresting several top leaders and weakening its operational capability.
Posted by: Dan Darling ||
04/28/2005 4:01:22 PM ||
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Blinding Glimpse of the Obvious. Should show KSA princes as the mini-me's of the terror world
Posted by: Frank G ||
04/28/2005 18:01 Comments ||
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Parrot from Aladdin, "Now there's a big surprise! I think I'm gonna have a heart attack and die from the surprise!"
The tents in Martyrs' Square will come down Saturday after one last rally that promises to feel more like a party, as the protesters there say their job is done and it's time to move on. "Who could have ever imagined we would get everything we asked for," exclaimed Edmond Rabbat, one of the organizers. "The Syrian troops have retreated, [Syrian President Bashar] Assad went on television and said he had made mistakes. I mean, it's unbelievable!"
Protesters also point to the fact that the United Nations team on its way to Lebanon to investigate the assassination of former Premier Rafik Hariri and a UN verification team will come to make sure the Syrian withdrawal has been completed. "The truth will take time to come out, and we will keep doing what we can to ensure this international commission uncovers it," adds Rabbat. After nearly 70 days, the protesters may be more than ready to leave, as small squabbles seem to be breaking out. A planned news conference Wednesday in Martyrs' Square was cancelled after protesters failed to agree on who should read a prepared statement.
It is Lebanon, after all...
Posted by: Fred ||
04/28/2005 00:00:00 AM ||
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"Who could have ever imagined we would get everything we asked for..."
Doesn't this beg the old saw, "Beware what you wish for..." ?
What will they do with their new situation? Prolly recreate the old situation.
#2
I'm just aghast that the U.N. team is now heading there to investigate a murder that happened 70+ days ago! Guess they had to wait until all potential sources of violence were out of there.
Posted by: BA ||
04/28/2005 10:20 Comments ||
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Took that long to get the Syrian generals outta the hotel suites.
Nine days before the end of his 15-year exile in France, former Army Commander General Michel Aoun said that he will not forge alliances with the opposition in the next elections if they fail to agree on a minimal joint program. Speaking to local journalists through a videophone at the Press Club Wednesday, Aoun said: "There won't be absolute alliances. I care about the unity of the opposition but we cannot unite temporarily before the elections and split again after we win." He said: "I prefer to lose in the next elections rather than deceive people when they discover after four years that we lied to them and didn't meet their aspirations."
Aoun said that he is ready to have candidates in all electoral districts where his Free Patriotic Movement has popular support, even if the opposition has other candidates in those areas. When asked why he thinks more loyalists than opposition members support his homecoming, Aoun said: "You should ask some opposition members why they fear my return." Aoun, who has been in exile for rejecting the Syrian presence in Lebanon, said: "It is a miracle that Syria withdrew its troops from Lebanon. The Lebanese never thought this could one day happen."
Posted by: Fred ||
04/28/2005 00:00:00 AM ||
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The Lebanese Association for Human Rights strongly denounced the use of violence by the Lebanese Army against relatives of Lebanese prisoners detained in Syrian jails who were caught in a clash with security forces while staging a peaceful protest Tuesday. The protest outside Parliament, mainly by mothers calling for the release of their children from Syrian prisons, turned violent when one of the demonstrators beat Beirut MP Adnan Araqji's car hood with a flag pole after the vehicle almost knocked into him while trying to enter Parliament through the line of protesters. The Lebanese Army intervened to protect the official with some soldiers beating demonstrators with their rifle butts during ensuing clashes, resulting in the injury of 16 people.
In a statement released Wednesday, the association lashed out at the Lebanese authorities conduct regarding the demonstrators, describing the incident as "a dangerous sign of the ongoing use of repressive violence to contain public expressions of their legitimate rights." The association demanded an investigation into the incident and greater efforts to resolve the question of those Lebanese still missing or detained in Syrian jails.
Posted by: Fred ||
04/28/2005 00:00:00 AM ||
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Lebanese Foreign Minister Mahmoud Hammoud said on Wednesday that UN Secretary General Kofi Annan's report on the implementation of UN Security Council Resolution 1559, "is just a report and not a resolution." Hammoud was commenting on the report, which Annan had presented to members of the UN Security Council on Tuesday. Hammoud added: "According to the available information that we have received, the UN Security Council will convene Thursday to discuss Annan's report, and will either issue a presidential statement or a presidential press release on the matter." In accordance with the UN charter's provisions, unless the report is turned into a resolution, Lebanon will not be bound by it. Hammoud continued: "We will continue discussing this matter with the UN to clarify our stand."
In the report Annan had said Syria had "considerable leverage over Lebanese domestic affairs," during its almost three-decade-long military presence in Lebanon. On Tuesday, Syria completed its withdrawal from Lebanon, which Hammoud said will be verified by a UN commission "that will document the withdrawal through maps it has received from Syria and field trips it plans to conduct in collaboration with Lebanese experts." The team of military experts were expected to arrive in Lebanon from Damascus late Wednesday, and will deliver their report on the withdrawal to Annan in the coming days.
Despite being formally informed by the Syrian government that Syrian troops have withdrawn from Lebanon, in accordance with UN Security Council Resolution 1559, Annan said there had been "no progress to date" made on fully implementing the resolution. This was a clear reference to the failure of Lebanese authorities to disarm either the militias inside the Palestinian refugee camps or the Lebanese resistance group Hizbullah. Hammoud said regarding Hizbullah's disarmament: "We the government have confirmed our stand; we support the resistance and consider it a Lebanese internal affair. Hizbullah is not a militia. It is a national resistance movement established and maintained to defend Lebanon and the Lebanese occupied territories in the South."
Posted by: Fred ||
04/28/2005 00:00:00 AM ||
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[FM] Hammoud said regarding Hizbullah's disarmament: "We the government have confirmed our stand; we support the resistance and consider it a Lebanese internal affair. Hizbullah is not a militia. It is a national resistance movement established and maintained to defend Lebanon and the Lebanese occupied territories in the South."
#2
What part of a bus interior or a pizza parlor demands "resistance"? Those bus drivers and pizza drivers--what provocateurs! And those babies? Obviously Mossad agents in disguise.
Apparently, the mere existence of a Jew on the soil of the same earth leads Hammoud and his ilk to justify murder (murder="resistance", in Arabic).
Do these folks have even the smallest brain for processing their own utterances? Voices of the brainwashed still dominate the ME.
Lebanon's new government, bolstered by a strong vote of confidence in Parliament yesterday, just a day after the last Syrian soldier left the country, said parliamentary elections would be held next month. Many people hope the end of Syria's 29-year military domination signals a new era for Lebanon which still bears the scars of its devastating civil war, but doubts linger over whether Damascus has truly relinquished control. Interior Minister Hassan Sabeh signed a decree for legislative polls to be held on four consecutive Sundays between May 29 and June 19, shortly after new Prime Minister Najib Mikati handily won a confidence vote.
The staging of elections on time was a key demand of the Lebanese opposition and the international community which had piled pressure on Syrian President Bashar Assad's regime to pull the troops out. On Tuesday, Lebanese danced in the streets and Syrians waved national flags as the last troops crossed the border home. "We have turned a shameful page in the history of Lebanon and for the first time in 30 years, we can talk freely," opposition MP Butros Harb said.
Posted by: Fred ||
04/28/2005 00:00:00 AM ||
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When you look at the faces of individuals, like this young woman and, my favorite, the Iraqi woman proudly displaying her ink-stained finger, it makes real the consequences of the asinine games their "leaders" play, both the asshats and even the semi-good guys. If only we could share with them the amazing good luck we had at our own founding - to have intelligent freedom-loving honest brokers controlling the determination of the future.
Premier Najib Mikati's government won an overwhelming vote of confidence Wednesday after two-days of debate, and immediately scheduled the legislative elections to begin on May 29 and continue over the following three Sundays, dated June 5, 12 and 19. The rapid developments followed the U.S. administration's warning early Wednesday against delaying Lebanon's elections beyond the constitutional timeframe of May 31, saying Speaker Nabih Berri's bid for a one-month postponement could force Lebanon down a "dangerous path leading to a constitutional crisis."
But before opening the Parliamentary session and before Mikati's government won the vote of confidence, Berri denied he had proposed the elections be delayed. "I confirm to the Lebanese that the elections will begin on May 29," he said. Despite U.S. President George W. Bush's veto over Berri's alleged bid, Parliament passed what has been dubbed "a reiterated, pressing law," drafted on the spot during a legislative session, extending the current Parliament's mandate for three weeks from May 31 to June 20. The government won 110 to one with two abstentions. No other Cabinet in Lebanon's history has been given such a high vote of confidence without actually offering any specific agendas or proposals in its policy statement.
Posted by: Fred ||
04/28/2005 00:00:00 AM ||
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The American who led the hunt for Iraq's missing weapons of mass destruction has revealed that the investigation was cut short after he was targeted by Abu Musab al-Zarqawi, the militant leader in an attack that left two people dead. The head of the Iraq Survey Group, Charles Duelfer, has reported that his investigation into the possible transfer of WMD to Syria had been wound up because of the "declining security situation".
But, in an interview with The Independent, Mr Duelfer said that Zarqawi had claimed responsibility for the car-bomb attack on his convoy on 6 November 2004. "A car-bomb tried to get me and my follow car," Mr Duelfer said. "Two of my guards were killed and one was badly wounded. My hearing's not been right since."
Mr Duelfer, in an addendum to the final report which runs to thousands of pages, concluded that there was no evidence that WMD had been moved to Syria by Saddam Hussein. The report contradicted assertions by Donald Rumsfeld, the US Secretary of Defence, who claimed after the war that the lack of WMD in Iraq might be explained this way.
Mr Duelfer reported just before the US presidential election last November that his 1,500-strong group had found "no evidence" that Saddam had possessed chemical, biological or nuclear weapons. His dossier demolished claims by the British government and Bush administration issued before the Iraq war that Saddam's weapons were a threat to the US and Britain.
Mr Duelfer denied suggestions - including from an Australian colleague, the weapons inspector Rod Barton - that he had been subjected to political pressure by the US or British authorities. He confirmed that John Scarlett, the head of MI6, had mentioned some "nuggets" that could be put into his interim report, issued in March last year. "I looked at them, and didn't include them," he said.
But he added that he did not construe such suggestions to be political pressure. "I got a lot of suggestions from governments with big intelligence operations. It would be foolish of me not to look at them.
"There was political interest, but that's not the same as political pressure," he said. "There was a desire on the part of capitals to find WMD. It would have made everyone's life much easier. But the view was: let the chips fall where they may."
Asked what he had achieved in his 18 months in Iraq, Mr Duelfer said he had built up a comprehensive picture of Saddam's strategic intent. He believes that given the opportunity, which would have come with the lifting of UN sanctions, the Iraqi dictator was poised to resume his banned weapons activities. "I think there's a decent set of data on the table." After hours of debriefing more than 100 Iraqi scientists and experts, "I think I understand the motivation of the regime."
He explained that his attempt to comprehend the workings of Saddam's regime had led him to the oil-for-food scandal. In his report, he contended that Saddam's government siphoned more than $2bn (£1.05bn) in illicit bribes and kickbacks from companies that traded with Iraq through the UN's humanitarian oil-for-food scheme. Six investigations are now under way into the scandal.
Mr Duelfer, who backed the invasion of Iraq, said his team had drawn up a timeline of international events in order to understand the mindset of the isolated Iraqi leader. "We wanted to know what was he looking at when he made this or that decision, for example, going to war with Iran," he said.
Asked why he had not gone to such trouble to understand the mindset of the Iraqi dictator in the 1990s, when he was deputy head of the UN inspection agency Unscom, Mr Duelfer argued that Iraq's obstruction of the arms monitors had not been conducive to such an approach.
"The patterns of behaviour reinforced assumptions," he said. He also recognised that because of the lack of relations between America and Iraq in the 1990s, the lack of direct intelligence from the ground was also an impediment.
"There was a systemic problem in the intelligence community," he noted. "What I think I missed was how high Saddam's priority was to get out of sanctions. From 1991, it was the number one priority."
Mr Duelfer has retired as a weapons inspector but will write an account of his time in Iraq. His next project is as consultant to a mission planning to resume manned flights to the Moon.
Posted by: Dan Darling ||
04/28/2005 4:23:07 PM ||
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Mr Duelfer has retired as a weapons inspector but will write an account of his time in Iraq. His next project is as consultant to a mission planning to resume manned flights to the Moon.
Of course, you don't have to go very far to find the willfully ignorant who want to believe we never went there either.
After the upcoming mess on the CEV and whatnot, I'm not expecting much from NASA, it looks like business as usual.
Posted by: Phil Fraering ||
04/28/2005 19:08 Comments ||
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We're still supposed to believe the attack in Jordan last year originated with someone's Junior Science chemistry set?
Posted by: Phil Fraering ||
04/28/2005 19:09 Comments ||
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Nobody I know (well, serious people, anyway) buys into that one, Phil. Either al-Qaeda is now at the point where their expertise rivals that of some states or they got state help. The consensus so far is the former, but that could easily change.
Posted by: Dan Darling ||
04/28/2005 20:42 Comments ||
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cough *syria* cough
Posted by: Frank G ||
04/28/2005 20:48 Comments ||
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Dan, I think it's especially indicative that the attack didn't go off as planned. I could more easily believe that the group (Al Qaeda, whatever) that did it could have been trying to use pilfered chemical weapons they didn't know how to properly use than that they were at the point of making them themselves but didn't properly use them.
I intend to write more on that subject when I'm no longer /home-less.
Posted by: Phil Fraering ||
04/28/2005 21:38 Comments ||
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I'd be interested in seeing that when you do, Phil.
Posted by: Dan Darling ||
04/28/2005 22:17 Comments ||
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Exactly 10 days after Pakistan President Pervez Musharraf left India after cementing bilateral ties, a closely-guarded secret about the arrest of a sworn anti-Musharraf Maldivian terrorist in Kerala is slowly trickling out. Kerala Police, acting on an intelligence input, arrested Asif Ibrahim, head of a sleeping capsule of Jamaat-ul-Muslimeen in Puttalam, Sri Lanka, while he was scouring the possibility of buying sniper guns and explosives for subversive activities in Maldives.
His eventual deportation, however, is smouldering as intelligence agencies feel that the Police should've retained him for some more time for extracting his Indian connections. Jamaah Tul Muslimeen, suspected to be a front organisation of Al Qaeda, stands for Talibanisation of countries with high Muslim population. The organisation, enjoying full patronage of ISI, has active links with Karachi. The organisation has openly announced its stand to overthrow Governments in Muslim countries like Maldives and Pakistan, headed by liberal leaders and President Gayoom and President Musharaf.
During interrogation, the Maldivian terrorist spilled facts that shocked even intelligence agencies. Asif confessed that he had met many UK-settled Maldivians in Karachi last year who wanted a more pro-Muslim governance in Maldives. He also told his interrogators that he was assigned the task of opening a Jama'ah Tul Muslimeen cell in Colombo for carrying out various activities. "He admitted that about 1 million Sri Lankan rupees was channelled into Colombo under the guise of tsunami funds for setting up the terrorist cell. More money was to be funneled into the country from different parts of the world. He also admitted that he was in Kerala to tap possible sources who could provide him with sniper guns and explosives," top sources told this website's newspaper.
The idea was to blow up Maldivian Islamic Centre. Asif Ibrahim had even shifted his family from Male to Colombo to save them from possible interrogation after the mission was accomplished. Many officials feel that Asif should've been subjected to more severe interrogation. "He acted funny. When an IG-rank officer encountered him, he refused to give answers maintaining that he had already given his views on the issue," sources said.
Asif confessed that he was trying to open a cell in Kerala but dropped the idea for want of local support. But there has been some positive signals for the Maldivian cause of late. More such details should've been collected than sending him to Maldives, sources said.
Police, however, stand by their decision. "We handed him over to Maldivian authorities. There was nothing anti-India. He has been arrested on arrival at Male," sources said. But intelligence agencies feel that police should've verified this theory before believing it. "Asif looked like a well-trained operative. Police never bothered to think twice that he probably would've been lying. And now we've no control over him," a senior officer pointed out.
Thiruvananthapuram is turning out to be a major link in the international circuit of illegal activities. the drug traffic has already registered a spurt. The capital city has also become a platform for anti-Maldivian activities.
This article starring:
ASIF IBRAHIM
Jamaat-ul-Muslimeen
Jamaat-ul-Muslimeen
Posted by: Dan Darling ||
04/28/2005 3:44:55 PM ||
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Life in Madain is returning to normal after a disputed hostage crisis that thrust the town, located 40 kilometers southeast of Baghdad, into the international spotlight. Although there are still checkpoints at the entrances of the town and Iraqi police patrolling the area, most markets and schools have reopened. Residents were seen going about their normal business, according to IWPR reporters visiting the area on 24 April. "After the Iraqi security forces started patrolling, we were able to come out from our houses," said Hazim Alwan, a Madain cab driver. "This area was like a ghost town for more than a month after the extremists took control of it. But now we can live our normal, daily lives." But mystery still surrounds the hostage crisis, and the Iraqi National Assembly has since launched an investigation into what happened in the town. Parliamentary deputies are also looking into alleged negligence by the defense and interior ministries in the Madain case. Officials at both ministries have declined to comment.
Real or fabricated crisis?
The crisis began on 16 April, when Shi'ite leaders announced that Sunni insurgents had captured around 150 Shi'ite hostages in Madain and were threatening to kill them unless the community left the town. Politicians - particularly Shi'ites - expressed their outrage while outgoing interim prime minister Iyad Allawi blamed al-Qaida for the kidnappings - although the militant group denied responsibility. Controversy ensued when US and Iraqi forces were sent into the town to rescue the hostages, but could not find any evidence of kidnappings - prompting accusations that the hostage crisis was staged in order to incite a Sunni-Shi'ite civil war. A few days later on 20 April, Iraq's new president Jalal Talabani announced that more than 50 bodies found floating in the Tigris river were believed to be those of the Madain hostages. But the authorities said some of these corpses appear to have been killed at the end of February, well before the Madain hostages were allegedly kidnapped. Jalal al-Deen al-Sagheer, one of five National Assembly committee members investigating Madain, said more than 100 bodies have since been found in the Tigris. "Those bodies had been in the Tigris even before February because the families there were complaining about losing their children back then," al-Sagheer said on 26 April. "But the security forces didn't play their proper role in finding the perpetrators."
Avoiding a sectarian war
Residents said insurgents began appearing in Madain more than a month ago, apparently after fleeing nearby Latifiya, where the government staged a recent crackdown. They claim that masked gunmen had been roaming the town, and that some - armed with rocket launchers and machine guns - recently told Shi'ites to leave their homes. "All 11 members of my family had to leave," said farmer Muhammed Raoof, who just returned to Madain. "The gunmen told us openly to get out of town or they would kill us." Jasim Abd, a grocer, said two of his cousins have been missing for a month and he has not heard any news of their fate. "We lived in a nightmare," Abd said. "We Shi'ites could not say anything as the Sunnis had control over everything. Before the entrance of the security forces, we were at their mercy." Iraq's politicians have said they are determined to avoid being drawn into a civil war. "We will not let extremism achieve its goal of starting a sectarian war in Iraq, no matter what it takes," said al-Sagheer, who is a member of the United Iraqi Alliance coalition, which is backed by Shi'ite religious leader Grand Ayatollah Ali al-Sistani and has 148 of the 275 seats in parliament. Rasim al-Awadi, a member of the largely secular Iraqi List headed by Allawi, said he believed the Madain hostage crisis is "a game aimed at creating a sectarian problem between Shi'ites and Sunnis". "We have to be aware of this and not be dragged into it, as that would be a mistake with serious consequences," he said.
Posted by: Steve ||
04/28/2005 1:49:30 PM ||
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The University of Texas at Austin's Institute for Advanced Technology (IAT) Electromagnetic Systems Division showed off it's electromagnetic rail gun (RailGun) technology demonstrator at the 24th Army Science Conference (ASC 2004), and DefenseReview was lucky enough to get to view it being fired. IAT's demonstrator rail gun fired a lightweight aluminum projectile (approx. .45 caliber) through a soft target (cardboard or foam, I think) at high speed, and, well, it was pretty neat. Founded in 1990, IAT is an autonomous research unit tasked with aiding the U.S. Army and Navy with "basic an applied research in electrodynamics, hypervelocity physics, pulsed power, and education in related critical technologies". In other words, they research, build, and test electromagnetic RailGun tech for the Army and Navy.
With an electromagnetic rail gun (a.k.a. EM projector), you don't even need explosive projectiles, because the projectile velocity is so high that the kinetic energy will create all the destructive force you need. As an added bonus, you also need much less projectile mass--the projectile can be much lighter and smaller, and still achieve the same level of destructive force. Assuming that DARPA (Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency), ARL (Army Research Laboratory) and NAVSEA (Naval Sea Systems Command) can overcome all of the inherent technological challenges and solve all the potential problems with elecromagnetic (EM) propulsion--like improving superconductivity of the gun rails and thus avoiding excessive heat and destruction of the gun upon firing and adequate power generation for the weapons system--America's enemies will be in even bigger trouble than they already are.
The U.S. Navy plans to utilize EM rail guns on its DD(X) Destroyer. If successful, the DD(X) Destroyer will be a lethal combination of stealth technology and EM weapons technology. The enemy won't be able to see it/locate it past 30 kilometers out, and the DD(X) will be able to locate and kill that enemy from about 100 kilometers out, and possibly as far out as 200 kilometers. You do the math. And, the kinetic energy projectiles can be GPS guided.
DoD (Department of Defense) and th U.S. Army are looking at electromagnetic (EM) gun tech for Future Combat Systems (FCS) "transformation" program, which will by a "system of systems" or "family of systems" and utilize futuristic vehicles and weapons systems. FCS will take advantage of network centric warfare technologies. GlobalSecurity.org has a very informative page on Future Combat Systems (FCS), here. Imagine tanks, infantry fighting vehicles (IFVs), howitzers, and smaller cannon systems that utilize electromagnetic propulsion weapons instead of chemical propellant (gunpowder), and thus fire smaller, lighter projectiles at much higher speeds, thus achieving the same or superior results against enemy targets. The EM gun systems will also allow vehicles to carry much more ammo into battle (smaller and lighter projectiles with no gunpowder, remember?). Anyway, if the U.S. military and development partners can perfect the technology, it's going to be a brave new world on the 21st century battlefield, no doubt. Just make sure you're behind the gun.
Posted by: Steve ||
04/28/2005 1:17:46 PM ||
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If we ever get a base on the Moon a rail gun would work very well for sending stuff back to earth or further on out into space. These things are the bees knees.
Posted by: Deacon Blues ||
04/28/2005 13:46 Comments ||
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I'm kind of missing something with that demo. It seems to be like showing how a horseshoe magnet can pick up iron filings, "but the one we're working on can crush an aircraft carrier into a ball."
#8
Hook'em horns! Hey maybe we should install one on to Vince Young's arm? "Go long, I'll hit ya in the end zone. (fling)Oops, sorry. I'll get your arm back for ya".
Posted by: Bill ||
04/28/2005 17:52 Comments ||
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The U of T has been developing this technology for 20+ years to date, and the solution is always a few more million dollars down the road. I hope there is a plan B for the DD(X) main armament.
April 28, 2005: The U.S. is no longer going to release its annual terrorism report. Seems there's a problem with defining exactly what is a terrorist attack? How do you count them? This is not a simple question.
On the other hand, an approximation is better than no data, isn't it?
That's been a problem for a long time. The current war on terror is mainly concerned with international terrorism. Specifically, attacks by Islamic terrorists on the United States, or its citizens overseas. That leaves out the majority of terrorist attacks world wide.
I think most of us here would strongly disagree with that statement. The local groups — the Kashmiri Killer Korps, for the most obvious instance — make up the farm teams for the big time international Bad Guyz...
Most terror attacks are by local groups. India has been under attack by Islamic terrorists for over a decade, primarily in Kashmir.
Lashkar e-Taiba's pretty tightly integrated into the IIF. Bangla's HUJI is, too. So are the Egyptian Islamic Group and Egyptian Islamic Jihad, all "local" organizations. Since the original declarationo of war on us, they've been joined by the Islamic Movement of Uzbekistan, Zarqawi's Tawhid and Jihad bunch, GSPC, and a host of others.
This province, with a majority Moslem population, has been claimed by India and Pakistan for over half a century. In 1989, Pakistan decided to support Islamic radicals who sought to wage a war of terror against Indians, and non-Moslems, in Kashmir, and eventually the rest of India. Hundreds of terror attacks occur each year because of this. You could count this as international terrorism, because thousands of Islamic radicals have come over the border from Pakistan. But what about Israel, where over four years of Palestinian terrorism has resulted in thousands of terrorist attacks, with the Palestinians getting support from many other Arab countries, plus Iran.
Paleo Islamic Jihad is a proxy for Iran. Hamas is a Muslim Brotherhood operation. PFLP and DFLP used to be Commie fronts. And Lebanese Hezbollah doesn't even pretend to be "Paleostinian."
In many parts of the world, you get lots of overlap between criminal terrorism and political terrorism.
Such as anything Dawood Ibrahim becomes involved with, or the Taliban alliances with the opium producers, or Abu Sayyaf/Pentagon Gang...
The State Department report never included criminal terrorism attacks, which are far more numerous than politically motivated ones. But in the Philippines, and many other places, the political terrorists also carry out terrorism in support of plain old criminal activities (just for the money).
... and the money flows back into the terror organizations' coffers...
In the Philippines, as elsewhere, some of the terrorism is the result of clan or tribe feuds. Some of these are about money or land disputes, but many occur simply because two groups of people don't like each other, and haven't for many generations. In many parts of the world, the criminals get themselves organized and indoctrinated, and suddenly their criminal scams are politically motivated and becomes a different kind of terrorism. The victims have a hard time telling the difference.
Yeah, a bullet's gonna feel the same, no matter who puts it into your kneecap...
Take Colombia, where it's hard to tell if an incident is terrorism or just a criminal trying to make some money. That's not an unusual situation.
It can also be both, of course, and it's often a percentage of both that might vary from act to act...
And then there's war. When one side is not organized as a proper army (per the Geneva Conventions), does that make every one of their attacks a terrorist incident? The Iraqi army that coalition forces defeated in early 2003 was organized and led by the Sunni Arab minority. This crew lost their army, and control of the country, but kept on fighting. So one day their attacks are combat, and after Baghdad falls it's terrorism?
No. When their attacks are directed against U.S. or Iraqi forces they can be guerrilla warfare. When they target civilians they become terrorism. Occupying forces, even if we don't agree with their definition, are legitimate military targets. Civilians never are. Attacks on military targets that are designed to produce civilian casualties aren't, either.
What we call guerilla warfare is basically irregular troops employing terrorism as a weapon.
No, it's not. Guerrilla warfare has as long a history as warfare itself. There are fairly distinct rules that have evolved for the treatment of guerrillas — in Vietnam, for instance, they were treated as POWs unless they had taken part in attacks on civilians.
That's all they have, since their more powerful opponent is too strong to face in a conventional battle. Guerillas fight like guerillas because they have no choice, and can only hope to wear down their opponent so that there will be a decisive battle the guerillas will win. It rarely works out that way, something most people ignore because the few guerilla victories get more publicity than the guerillas more numerous defeats. Don't let media driven perceptions cloud your view of reality.
We won't, but we won't lose track of the difference between guerrillas — can be good guys or bad guys — and terrorists — always bad guys because the tactics themselves are illegitimate.
To most Americans, the score keeping is simple. Only terrorist attacks on American civilians, especially in the United States, count. Dead or imprisoned terrorists, who failed in their attempts to carry out attacks are a plus. Plowing through all the other terrorism stats is useful, but only for people deep into counter-terrorism. There are relationships between criminal and political terrorism, and between those motivated by purely local grievances, and those who are eager to bring America down. But for most Americans, the score card is a lot simpler.
In that case more should be done to make the populace aware of the fact that there's not, in most cases, a difference between the big time international killers and the small fry local killers, not much of a difference between the local bully boys and the international men of mystery. Terrorism is a tactic and it's a mindset. While its use isn't only confined to Osama bin Laden, the locals can move up into the international organization easily enough. When they relocate, the problem relocates with them.
The War on Terror has to involve the ruthless extermination of all practitioners of terrorism, regardless of where they are on the food chain, or where they are on the poltical spectrum, if anywhere, the while physically destroying their organizational leadership. The leadership's the key — we saw that when Sheikh Yassin became a smear on the sidewalk and Rantissi went roasty toasty a few weeks later. But the muscle can grow into leadership, or it can sell itself to new leadership. The concept of terrorism itself is evil, antithetical to the values of civilization, so they have to be killed to protect the rest of us. Otherwise, as happened in Paleostine until Yasser died of old age, we'll end up doing the same thing over and over, playing the same charades, trying to appease the unappeasible, until we eventually just give up and become like them.
Posted by: Steve ||
04/28/2005 9:10:17 AM ||
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for the State Dept, the problem goes deeper than Strategypage's analysis.
Let's look at some cases:
Attacks by paleos on Israeli civilians
Attacks by paleos on Israeli military
Attacks by paleos on Israeli reservists in which israeli civilians get killed
attacks by Chechens on Russian civilians
attacks by Chechens on Russian military
attacks by Chechens on Russian military where Chechen civilians are killed
which should count as terrorist if you count non American
I'm leaving this article from Indymedia up because it gives a clear indication of the way in which the insurgency and its supporters are consciously using the press since the armed insurgency is not achieving their goals.
INSURGENTS ARE US: Death Squad Capitalism
FARHAT QUAMMAQUAMI
The American staged election in Iraq, which was designed to sub-contract their Death Squads and provide a façade of legitimacy for an otherwise illegitimate phenomenon, is three month old. Yet behind the armored walls of the protected Green Zone, with all the pressures from Rumsfeld, Rice and Khalilzad and even when faced with the possibility of assassination, kidnapping and Mosque burnings the handpicked members have not still succumbed to the American choice of appointees.
This is a strange phenomenon that people go to poles, elect a list of hooded, nameless and faceless representatives, then vote for a slate of candidates that no-one knows or what they really spouse. It become even stranger when the world is seeing that even this sham, behind the fortress of the so-called Green Zone has failed to produce a puppet government to represent the occupiers will. It becomes weirder when you see there is no analysis of this farce in the media.
American occupiers arranged the election so the desired personnel composed of outsiders like allawi and Jaaffari thugs of traitors, murderers and thieves would run Iraq for America. The Corporate Media, pronounced this ploy to the world as the Iraq " historic election" that would send shock waves through the dictatorial Muslim world that would ignite a chain reaction of after shocks to liberate the Middle East from political and cultural oppression. There is no government because they are afraid of us Death Squads. They know it is like joining the Mafia and swearing allegiance to the Godfather. Once you are in it there is no way out of it . They are aware of the fact more that any one else that Insurgents are US.
The US is everywhere. US is everywhere! US control their phones, their security, al aspects of their daily life, and their environment.
Continued on Page 49
Posted by: GADFLY ||
04/28/2005 1:41:34 AM ||
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"The Royal Meteorological Service has issued a Category Five Metaphor Alert for the British isles tonight. This storm's shock waves may ignite a chain reaction of after shocks behind the fortress of the Green Zone. US is everywhere! It becomes weirder when you see there is no analysis of this farce in the media. Residents are advised to take precautions. Repeating, the Royal Meteorological Service . . . "
Posted by: Mike ||
04/28/2005 8:26 Comments ||
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Farout Qumquat and Gadfly (he wishes) are some jolly fellows. I've sworn off for the last 35 yrs, but I think I want some of what they're taking - assuming someone will strap me down for the ride.
COALITION forces in Iraq have seized a laptop computer thought to belong to Abu Musab al-Zarqawi, al-Qaeda's area leader, providing them with vital intelligence on the insurgency which is continuing to wreak havoc across the country.
Air Force General Richard Myers, the chairman of the US Joint Chiefs of Staff, who has masterminded the "global war on terror", trumpeted the intelligence coup in a Pentagon briefing as proof that US troops were "winning" in Iraq, despite the recent upsurge in attacks that have killed more than a dozen westerners and scores of Iraqis in the past two weeks.
US intelligence chiefs were able to download several leads from the computer's hard drives, which also contained digital photos of the Jordanian-born al-Qaeda operative.
The intelligence led to raids being mounted on a number of "safe houses" and several lieutenants of Zarqawi being captured, along with bomb-making equipment.
But General Myers admitted the rate of insurgent attacks - currently at 50 to 60 each day - is now back up to 2004 levels after a drop following January's election, which had led some Pentagon chiefs to suggest that the US could begin withdrawing its troops.
The spate of attacks continued yesterday with the killing of an Iraqi MP, who was shot dead by suspected insurgents at her home in Baghdad.
Lamia Abed Khadouri, a member of the former interim prime minister Ayad Allawi's coalition, is the first politician killed since elections at the end of January. Police said gunmen knocked at her door and shot her when she answered.
The past week's violence and the continued inability of Iraqi politicians to form a government have seriously dented the impression of progress that senior US generals and politicians have been trying to cultivate since January's elections.
The US had some good news on the political front yesterday, when Ibrahim Jaafari finally presented a proposal to form a government including representatives of all Iraq's main ethnic and religious groups.
And seeking to offer some positive information on the battle against the insurgency, General Myers said his troops were "close" to capturing Zarqawi when they seized his laptop.
Pentagon officials said Zarqawi appeared to have eluded a team of covert US special-forces troops dispatched to arrest him. When the al-Qaeda operative and his party approached a checkpoint near Ramadi he became nervous and sent a car carrying associates ahead of his own pickup. When US troops stopped the first car, the trailing lorry turned around and fled.
The capture of Zarqawi's laptop is not the first time US intelligence has gained access to the digital secrets of al-Qaeda. In 2003, US and Pakistani forces captured a laptop computer used by al-Qaeda's operational planner, Khalid Shaikh Mohammed.
It was claimed at the time that the intelligence coup yielded a list of at least half a dozen hiding places along the Pakistan-Afghan border used by Osama bin Laden and his supporters.
The US has built up Zarqawi into a major figure in the Iraqi insurgency and regularly use him to try to link the conflict in Iraq to their wider, "global war on terror".
But so far they have had little success in their hunt for him.
The deepening security crisis in Baghdad was highlighted this week when it emerged that the British government has dispatched two RAF Puma helicopters to fly diplomats around the Iraqi capital, because it is considered too dangerous to use the roads for fear of insurgent bombs.
The Puma helicopters are based at Baghdad international airport and make up to six flights a day into the heart of the city to move visiting diplomats and military commanders to the heavily fortified Green Zone.
Insurgents regularly fire on the British helicopters, but to date none has been hit.
Posted by: Dan Darling ||
04/28/2005 12:03:58 AM ||
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that was a fun read!! just for the "petty" and "inappropriate use" of "quote marks" and leading words like "trumpeted", Is the Scotsman pulling kids from high school?????!!!
Posted by: ed ||
04/28/2005 7:22 Comments ||
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How many of us have multiple photos of ourselves on our computer? I mean, other than those who may be corresponding with 14 year olds in chat rooms? Vanity, thy name is Zarqawi?
Highlight, Copy (Ctrl C), Paste (Ctrl V), Dan. There's no excuse for mis-spelling when someone's already spelled (or spelt in The Scotsman) it for you.
OK, I'm off my high horse. Got to go count up how many pictures of myself I have on this machine.
Freelance terror operations, either affiliated with al-Qaida or inspired by its goals, are a growing menace as the terrorist network's loss of central leadership degrades its potency, the State Department said Wednesday. Nevertheless, Osama bin Laden's al-Qaida remained "the primary terrorist threat to the United States in 2004," the department said in its first "Country Reports on Terrorism."
"There is a declining role for a significantly degraded al-Qaida and a rising role for groups inspired by al-Qaida," State Department counsel Philip D. Zelikow said at a briefing on the document.
The report cited as examples the March 2004 bombings of commuter trains in Madrid, Spain, and an Algerian terrorist leader's announcement of fealty to al-Qaida. The incidents "illustrate what many analysts believe is a new phase of the global war on terrorism, one in which local groups inspired by al-Qaida organize and carry out attacks with little or no support or direction from al-Qaida itself," the report said. The report expanded on testimony to the Senate Intelligence Committee in February from CIA Director Porter Goss. He spoke of gains against al-Qaida and its affiliates but warned that they remain dangerous.
Jointly with the State Department report, the new National Counterterrorism Center issued a compilation of international terror incidents last year with numbers of incidents and victims. It said 651 significant international terrorist attacks caused 9,321 casualties worldwide, including 1,907 deaths. The dead, wounded or kidnapped included 103 Americans or 1 percent of the total.
On Tuesday, Rep. Henry Waxman, D-Calif., said the 651 attacks were triple the 2003 number but told Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice the report probably understates the toll. Zelikow said the toll is irrelevant to last year's, because the terrorism center had greater manpower and resources to put into the project than the State Department had. The country reports especially credited Pakistan for its work in curtailing the effectiveness of al-Qaida, blamed for the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks on the United States and other spectacular assaults around the world. "Al-Qaida leadership was degraded through arrests and ongoing Pakistani operations to assert greater control along the border with Afghanistan where some al-Qaida leaders are believed to hide," the report said. "Numerous al-Qaida and affiliated foot soldiers were captured or killed during the year." Still, it said, "Many senior al-Qaida leaders remained at large, continued to plan attacks against the United States, U.S. interests and U.S. partners." Additionally, the fugitives "sought to foment attacks by inspiring new groups of Sunni Muslim extremists to undertake violent acts in the name of jihad," it said. Some of the events were carried out by groups whose existence became known only after the attack, the report said.
"I do believe we are winning the war on terrorism, but I believe it will be a very long struggle," Zelikow said.
Until now, the State Department has been the government's principal authority on terrorism. It has distributed figures with its annual "Patterns of Global Terrorism," based on definitions of terrorism established by Congress in legislation that ordered distribution of the annual terrorism report. Last year's report caused problems for the State Department after it was learned that it greatly understated the number of incidents that had occurred. On Wednesday, House Democratic leaders asked the department's acting inspector general, Cameron Hume, to investigate whether the mistakes were politically motivated. The National Counterterrorism Center is working on a new list, to be released in June, that will use new, more realistic, definitions of terrorism. "It is going to be a much more comprehensive data set," said John Brennan, the center's interim director, and will be likely to encompass many additional incidents. As an example of the rules under which the State Department, and his center for the listings distributed Wednesday, have operated, Brennan said the report lists only one of two Russian airliners that suicide bombers blew out of the sky last year. The one that counted had an Israeli aboard. The other had all Russians, which made it a domestic incident.
Gah.
"It makes no sense to have the definition of terrorism depend on checking the nationality of all the victims," Brennan said.
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04/28/2005 12:20:27 AM ||
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The military should go back to the barracks, or the people of Pakistan will push it back, Asif Ali Zardari, the spouse of former prime minister Benazir Bhutto told a news conference on Wednesday. Reiterating his call for early parliamentary elections, Zardari said: "Free and fair elections in 2005 are the only solution to the present political crisis. There is no place for tailored democracy and we will continue our struggle for real democracy until we achieve our target." Zardari also invited the rest of the opposition to join hands with the ARD in trying to restore democracy.
Posted by: Fred ||
04/28/2005 00:00:00 AM ||
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Iraqi Prime Minister-designate Ibrahim al-Jafaari has announced he has formed a cabinet, more than 12 weeks after the country held parliamentary elections. After nearly three months of protracted political haggling, the vote took place on Wednesday, a senior member of the ruling alliance said. Aljazeera said quoting al-Jafari that a list containing the names of those who will assume ministerial portfolios, has been submitted to the presidential council. The announcement came shortly after armed men shot and killed a member of Iraq's parliament outside her home in eastern Baghdad. Iraqi police identified the victim as Lamia Abid Khadawi, a member of caretaker Prime Minister Iyad Allawi's political party. Khadawi is thought to be the first person in the 275-member National Assembly to be killed.
Officials said late on Tuesday that al-Jafari had presented his government line-up to President Jalal Talabani. But he did not make the names public because of last-minute disagreements over some appointments, al-Maliki said. PM-designate al-Jafari makes the announcement in Baghdad "There are still problems in deciding who will hold the oil and interior ministries," he said on Tuesday. There was no immediate word on whether all differences had been resolved. Possible make-up Iraqi media sources said the United Iraqi Alliance (UIA) would get 17 cabinet posts. The Kurds would get nine portfolios, including the Foreign Ministry, while Sunni Arabs would get seven portfolios, including the Defence Ministry. The Christian and Turkmen minorities were expected to get one ministry each. Iraqi media sources said that Sadun al-Dulaymi, a Sunni, would be named defence minister.
Posted by: Fred ||
04/28/2005 00:00:00 AM ||
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#1
How deep into W's press conference on SS does he work this development into a reply.
This should be the leading news of the day but the MSM will yawn and position it as insignificant.
The African Union has asked to start talks with NATO for logistical support in its mission in Sudan's war-torn western Darfur region, an official at the military alliance said yesterday. The request was made in a letter sent to the North Atlantic Treaty Organization's Secretary-General Jaap de Hoop Scheffer by AU Commission Chairman Alpha Oumar Konare, said NATO spokesman James Appathurai.
After receiving the message at NATO's headquarters yesterday morning, de Hoop Scheffer quickly informed the permanent representatives of NATO's members who then "agreed that exploratory talks should begin with the AU", Appathurai said. The request comes ahead of a scheduled meeting today of senior AU diplomats in Addis Ababa to mull a significant expansion of the pan-African body's operation in Sudan's troubled western region of Darfur. The AU's Peace and Security Council will meet today to discuss the possible expansion of the current mission, perhaps by more than 100 percent, an official at the pan-African body's headquarters in the Ethiopian capital said. Today's meeting has been called "to discuss reinforcing the African Union mission to Sudan," Said Djinnit told AFP, adding that the existing mission might be more than doubled.
Posted by: Fred ||
04/28/2005 00:00:00 ||
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A multi-volume chronology and reference guide set detailing three years of the Mexican Drug War between 2010 and 2012.
Rantburg.com and borderlandbeat.com correspondent and author Chris Covert presents his first non-fiction work detailing
the drug and gang related violence in Mexico.
Chris gives us Mexican press dispatches of drug and gang war violence
over three years, presented in a multi volume set intended to chronicle the death, violence and mayhem which has
dominated Mexico for six years.
Rantburg was assembled from recycled algorithms in the United States of America. No
trees were destroyed in the production of this weblog. We did hurt some, though. Sorry.
Sheikh 
Russian President 
North Korean leader 
BERLIN - German Chancellor 
A co-defendant told police that a key al Qaida suspect — who earlier this week called himself a peace-loving moderate Muslim — is a radical who recruited men for "holy war" training in Afghanistan, according to testimony read to a Madrid court today.
25.04.2005 at 0315 UTC in position 07:15.4N - 108:20.4E, South China Sea. Persons in two fishing boats attempted to board a bulk carrier underway by tying ropes to ship's side. Attempt foiled.
Malaysian police detained two Americans for allegedly handing out Christian religious pamphlets to Muslims near a mosque, officials said Wednesday. The two men were arrested during a routine police patrol for "disturbing the peace in a religious manner" Monday in Putrajaya, Malaysia's administrative capital just south of Kuala Lumpur, a district police official said on condition of anonymity. Details of the men's identities were not immediately available. Proselytizing of Muslims by members of other religions is prohibited in Malaysia, a moderate, predominantly Muslim Southeast Asian country. Police obtained a court order to detain the suspects for up to two weeks for questioning, the official said, adding that they were also being investigated for not having travel documents with them when the arrest occurred. It was not immediately clear what offense the men could be charged with, he said. A US Embassy officer visited the two men Wednesday, said embassy spokesman Frank Whitaker.
The tents in Martyrs' Square will come down Saturday after one last rally that promises to feel more like a party, as the protesters there say their job is done and it's time to move on. "Who could have ever imagined we would get everything we asked for," exclaimed Edmond Rabbat, one of the organizers. "The Syrian troops have retreated, [Syrian President Bashar] Assad went on television and said he had made mistakes. I mean, it's unbelievable!"
Nine days before the end of his 15-year exile in France, former Army Commander General 
Lebanese Foreign Minister 
Lebanon's new government, bolstered by a strong vote of confidence in Parliament yesterday, just a day after the last Syrian soldier left the country, said parliamentary elections would be held next month. Many people hope the end of Syria's 29-year military domination signals a new era for Lebanon which still bears the scars of its devastating civil war, but doubts linger over whether Damascus has truly relinquished control. Interior Minister 
Premier 
April 28, 2005: The U.S. is no longer going to release its annual terrorism report. Seems there's a problem with defining exactly what is a terrorist attack? How do you count them? This is not a simple question. 
The military should go back to the barracks, or the people of Pakistan will push it back, 
Iraqi Prime Minister-designate 
The 
