Entirely predictable, I guess. The "handyman" who confessed to shooting the editor now sez: "I didn't do it" and "they (Yusuf Bey IV) told me to take the fall". Complicating factors include spectacularly (and possibly deliberately) bad post-arrest management by the Oakland cop shoppe, when they apparently put Bey and Broussard together in the same interrogation room. Be sure to read the comments to this article at the link and then look over the related links, including the standard three-hankie "misunderstood black muslims" handwringer.
As his client sits behind bars charged with murdering a journalist, LeRue Grim, attorney for Your Black Muslim Bakery handyman Devaughndre Broussard is making a public case that the real culprit is bakery leader Yusuf Bey IV. "You would think he is the main guy responsible for all of this," Grim said Monday during a telephone interview. "That is just logical, he is in charge of the whole place."
Grim's comments come as he revealed new details about what was going on at the bakery weeks before the Aug. 2 slaying of Oakland Post editor Chauncey Bailey and what Bey IV told Broussard while both were placed in the same interview room during a police interrogation. Grim said the details weretold to him by Broussard during a jail house interview Sunday night.
"My client tells me that Yusuf IV came in and said, 'Everything is on the line for us and the bakery and we're in survival mode,'" Grim said of the conversation he had with Broussard. "He tells him, 'If you take this, you're young, we will get you an attorney, we will get you manslaughter, we will get you probation and a year in county jail.'"
Broussard is facing the possibility of life behind bars for allegedly killing Bailey. Oakland police said the 19-year-old handyman confessed to the killing, saying he did the shooting because he was "a good soldier." He also told police that he was angry at Bailey for stories he was working on regarding the bakery's troubled finances and the Bey family feud, police said.
But ever since police said his confession was taken, Broussard has said he is not the person who pumped three shotgun blasts into Bailey.
Broussard first claimed during a television jail house interview, that he was beaten into a confession by police. About two weeks later, Grim claimed Broussard was told to take the fall for the killing by "a high-ranking member of the bakery." Police later confirmed that they placed Broussard and Bey IV together in an interview room before Broussard confessed to the killing. Police, however, would not say what was said during the conversation, only that Bey IV told Broussard to "tell the truth, tell them what you told me."
Grim said he is revealing the information in hopes of persuading police to take a look at Bey's involvement. "The police already announced that he confessed, giving the impression that it is all over," Grim said. "This is not necessarily what the police department is presenting it to be. There are questions about whether this confession was true."
Assistant Police Chief Howard Jordan said Monday that police continue to believe that Broussard's confession is true. However, Jordan said an investigation into any involvement Bey might have had with the killing will continue. "We believe Broussard's confession is valid," Jordan said. "We are looking into any or all of Bey's involvement and if we find any evidence, we will present it to the district attorney and hope to get him charged."
Bey IV's court-appointed attorney, Ted Johnson, said he had not had a chance yet to talk with his client and thus declined comment.
Nevertheless, Grim continues to say his client is a fall guy. Grim said Monday that his client decided to take the fall because he respects Bey IV and believes in the bakery's mission. "My client thinks the bakery is a good thing and that it helps a lot of people become 'good men,'"Grim said. "He was influenced by all that — Yusuf IV says they did a lot for him and to go on with the good cause and with the brotherhood. Yusuf IV kept telling him this is what a good soldier does. He tells him, 'You're a good soldier, we have to stick together,'" Grim continued.
Grim also said Broussard told him that about two weeks before the killing, he saw Bey IV and several other bakery members watching a videotape of what looked like the funeral for Yusuf Bey Sr. While the group was watching, they were pointing out different people who appeared on the video. Grim said Broussard did not think about the video until after he heard of the shooting and heard bakery members talking about how they saw Bailey on the video two weeks ago.
Grim also said the murder weapon was found at Broussard's duplex because bakery members gave it to him and told him to hide it. "They decided that my guy was going to take the fall, he thought that was not a good idea but because he feels Yusuf IV has done a lot of good things, he was influenced," Grim said. But after sitting in jail for two weeks and talking with his family, Grim said Broussard decided he no longer wanted to take the fall. "He did think about whether he wanted to risk his life by putting it all out, and even last night he had mixed feelings," Grim said. "But he decided to go ahead and do it."
#1
what Bey IV told Broussard while both were placed in the same interview room during a police interrogation
The detectives who permitted this egregious violation of detainee management need to be busted down to walking a beat. This one slip allowed Bey and Broussard to get on the same page about who takes what rap and why.
If Broussard is so determined to shrug off these charges, he'd better begin fingering the real shooter and provide convincing testimony towards that end. If he cannot, off to the pokey with him. These Oaktown flatfoots had damn well better make sure Broussard faces life in prison without any chance of pleading down to manslaughter. Bey's promises need to fall through like a certain bridge in Minnesota.
Pakistan and Afghanistan have agreed on a bilateral mechanism to facilitate the implementation of decisions and recommendations made at the Pak-Afghan Joint Jirga held in Kabul from August 9 to 12.
The fifth working committee of the jirga agreed on forming a permanent jirga. The committee was assigned the task to make both countries agree on "a bilateral mechanism comprising of an adequate number of members from each side to meet periodically to facilitate the implementation of decisions and recommendations made by the jirga and discuss any other related issue". The committee recommended a practical strategy for the implementation of decisions and their monitoring by both the governments and the media. It suggested involving tribal elders from both sides and exchange of information. The committee also decided that it would meet after every two months.
Posted by: Fred ||
08/21/2007 00:00 ||
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Eritrean President Issaias Afeworki warned Washington that its policies were leading the world on a "dangerous path", an official statement said on Monday.
"Steve, what's wrong? You're shaking."
"I'm not shaking, Fred, I'm seething."
"What, you're upset over what the Eritreans said?"
"Nah, Grossman fumbled three times last night!"
Two days after Washington said it was considering adding Eritrea to its list of "state sponsors of terrorism", Issaias gave an angry two-hour interview broadcast late on Sunday on state television. "Its strategy of monopoly and dominance through fomenting confrontation among peoples is leading the world to a dangerous path," he said, according to an official English translation released on Monday by the Information Ministry. "If the situation is at all to really change, US administration officials need to change their frame of thinking and put an end to their acts of adventurism, as well as weaving conspiracies to undermine our national interests," Issaias added.
Posted by: Fred ||
08/21/2007 00:00 ||
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#1
Yeah, and ESPN was going over the "highlights" of Michael Vick's career:
2002 - Named to Pro Bowl (celebrate by killing a few puppies. Real puppies, not Talipuppies.)
2004 - Named to Pro Bowl (celebrate by killing a few puppies. Real puppies, not Talipuppies.)
2005 - Named to Pro Bowl (celebrate by killing a few puppies. Real puppies, not Talipuppies.)
#2
Really smart to threaten the nation who donates 1/2 the total food calories eaten by your nation. Enjoy your rock soup, assholes.
Posted by: ed ||
08/21/2007 0:50 Comments ||
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#3
No, MOSLEMS are leading the world down a dangerous path. Moslems like you, issaias. Now when are you letting go of the thousand preachers of mine? and when are you going to stop funding these boomer groups?
A leader of rebels in Yemen, Abdul Malek Al Houthi, said yesterday a new war will never solve the problem between him and the government. "A military solution is a crime against the whole country, and if the authorities resorted to the military solution, they will never succeed as they did not succeed in the previous wars against us," said Al Houthi in a statement sent to local media. "And for us, we are not afraid of the threats. We are ready to defend ourselves and our principles and they [military] will be the losers if they went to war against us," he said.
The rebel leader's statement came after the President Ali Abdullah Saleh had threatened decisive military action against Al Houthi rebels if they did not give up the rebellion. "He has to respect his word and withdraw from his positions, otherwise, a military solution will be the decisive end," Saleh said earlier.
Al Houthi demanded continuation of dialogue although the talks with him achieved nothing during two months. "The authority escapes by going to war when it is defeated in dialogue, and when it is defeated by arguments and logic," Al Houthi said.
The government accused Al Houthi of foot-dragging and being not committed to the Qatari-brokered agreement for ending the fight between the government troops and the rebels. The Qatari side in the mediation left Sana'a last Friday for the second time since they started the process in mid-June. The mediation failed to convince Al Houthi to carry out the 10-point agreement during a period of 20 days. "There is no foot-dragging from our side in implementing the agreement and we have implemented everything which was wanted from us, but it is the government that has dragged its feet and did not implement anything until now," Al Houthi said.
He accused the Presidential committee of siding with the government saying, "It was always focusing on the points which obligate us and ignoring the points obligating the government. It was working as per certain instructions. Detentions are continuing and we face continuous provocations."
"The people of Sa'ada are witnessing our implementation of the agreement and our descending from mountains. We have documents proving everything we have done in the past but they want to militarise all the evacuated areas and this is what we refused because it does not go with the agreement. We also refuse deporting citizens from their areas," Al Houthi said.
Officials close to the government said the mediation had reached a deadlock after Al Houthi put new conditions to the mediators. He did not want to surrender two important places: Mutrah and Al Naqa'a, two strongholds south of Saudi Arabia. Another condition was to surrender the body of his brother Hussain who was killed in September 2004 in the first confrontations between government troops and the rebels. While Al Houthi and his followers say they are implementing the agreement and will not respond to 'government provocations', local sources in Sa'ada said that Al Houthi was building new positions in preparation for a new war.
Posted by: Fred ||
08/21/2007 00:00 ||
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Britons view Muslims with more suspicion than their American or European counterparts, according to a poll published in the Financial Times on Monday. According to the Harris Interactive survey of 6,398 people, only about 59 percent of Britons believed it was possible to be both a Muslim and a British citizen, compared to more than 70 percent of Spanish and French voters. Fifty-two percent of British respondents also said they expected a "major terrorist attack" in Britain within the next 12 months, the highest proportion of the six countries surveyed, with 32 percent of Spanish voters, 30 percent of Americans and between 15 and 18 percent of French, Germans and Italians expecting such an attack.
Posted by: Fred ||
08/21/2007 00:00 ||
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Top|| File under: Global Jihad
#2
Most of the UK media is quick to cover extremist comments by Muslim leaders. In contrast, the DOJ's labeling of CAIR and the ISNA as unindicted co-conspirators in a Texas case, has NOT been widely reported. Journalists should have no agenda other than to report the facts.
#5
Yes! Great Idea, let Bush do it. Then he can be blamed if it doesn't work out. Here is an idea, why doesn't the Government of Britain take a stand on something.
#6
RE: #5 Yes! Great Idea, let Bush do it. Then he can be blamed if it doesn't work out. Here is an idea, why doesn't the Government of Britain take a stand on something."
They already did; they approved of the Iranians providing food and shelter for a bunch os Sailors and Marines recently. And also provided, free for the taking several small patrol boats.
Sounds like they stand for something......
An Australian court has overturned a government decision to revoke the visa of an Indian doctor who was accused, but later cleared, of involvement in the failed car bomb attacks on London and Glasgow. The courtÂ’s decision was a bitter blow for the federal government, which has been criticised by civil rights groups and lawyers for its bungled arrest and subsequent release of Dr Mohamed Haneef in July.
Also a blow to common sense.
Dr Haneef, 27, was arrested in Brisbane, Queensland, in July and held for 11 days before being charged with “recklessly supporting terrorism” by giving the SIM card of his mobile phone to a second cousin, Sabeel Ahmed, after leaving the UK last year.
British police have charged Sabeel, 26, with withholding information that could have prevented an act of terrorism. His brother, Kafeel, died earlier this month of burns sustained when he allegedly crashed a Jeep packed with explosives into the front of Glasgow Airport on June 30.
Charges against Dr Haneef were dropped for lack of evidence and he consistently maintained that he gave away his SIM card so that his cousin could take advantage of extra minutes remaining on a pre-paid plan.
Needed those extra minutes to finalize the terror plan.
During his detention, immigration minister Kevin Andrews revoked Dr Haneef’s working visa on character grounds, saying he had a reasonable suspicion the doctor had an “association” with Sabeel and Kafeel Ahmed.
But Justice Jeffery Spender ruled that Andrews made a technical error in cancelling the visa by applying a character test incorrectly. Justice Spender granted the government 21 days to respond to his ruling. Mr Andrews said the government would appeal. “When I made the decision to cancel Dr Haneef’s visa, I made it in the national interest and I stand by that decision,” the minister said.
The government was accused of making him a scapegoat. What side are these courts on again?
That's a rhetorical question, right?
Posted by: Free Radical ||
08/21/2007 06:25 ||
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#1
Hey...not the court's problem if the government can't follow its own laws.
One of the hijackers of a Turkish plane received training at an Al Qaeda camp and wanted to be flown to Iran so he could eventually join Al Qaeda in Afghanistan, the state-run Anatolia news agency reported Monday, citing police.
Authorities didn't say at which Al Qaeda camp 33-year-old hijacker Mommen Abdul Aziz Talikh, an Egyptian of Palestinian origin, received training. Police said Talikh, along with Mehmet Resat Ozlu of Turkey, wielded a fake bomb and claimed Al Qaeda ties when hijacking the plane early Saturday after it took off from northern Cyprus. The pair held passengers and crew hostage for more than four hours before surrendering peacefully at the Turkish Mediterranean resort Antalya, where the plane had been diverted after taking off.
Dozens of Turks have joined Al Qaeda in Afghanistan or Iraq, police have said. Suicide bombers linked to Al Qaea hit Istanbul in 2003, killing 58 people in attacks that targeted two synagogues, the British Consulate and a British bank. In February, a court sentenced seven people to life in prison for the bombings.
The two hijackers had met in northern Cyprus a year ago and were lovers living together at the same house for a month, police said.
The two hijackers had met in northern Cyprus a year ago and were lovers living together at the same house for a month, police said. Ozlu was registered at the literature department of a university in the breakaway Turkish Cypriot state in northern Cyprus, Anatolia said.
Police said that during their interrogation the two suspects confessed that they wanted to divert the plane to Iran and travel to Afghanistan to join the "jihad." The men were among 136 passengers on board an Atlasjet flight that departed Saturday from Ercan in Turkish-controlled northern Cyprus. Six crew members were on the flight.
The suspects told police during initial questioning that they tried to storm the cockpit shortly after takeoff. Passengers said they failed to break the door down.
The suspects told police during initial questioning that they tried to storm the cockpit shortly after takeoff, Antalya Governor Alaaddin Yuksel said. Passengers said they failed to break the door down. "They claimed to have bombs," passenger Erhan Erkul told Turkey's NTV television. Police said the men had not been armed with explosives.
"Shuddup, knucklehead! Stand back! I'm gonna storm the cockpit!"
[CLUNK! BOUNCE!]
"Hey, Moe! Are you okay, Moe?"
It was the fifth hijacking or hijacking attempt of a Turkish plane in four years by people falsely claiming to be carrying explosives or arms ? despite increased security at airports following the Sept. 11 attacks in the U.S.
Police questioned two passengers on suspicion of ties to the hijackers, but released them after concluding that they were not linked, Anatolia said. The hijackers allowed women and children to get off the plane. While doing that, a group of men escaped by breaking down the rear emergency exit. Six of the passengers were injured when they jumped onto the tarmac from the back of the plane, including a man who broke his pelvic bone.
This article starring:
MEHMET RESAT OZLU
al-Qaeda
MOMEN ABDUL AZIZ TALIKH
al-Qaeda
Posted by: Fred ||
08/21/2007 00:00 ||
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More than a week old, but I missed it until I stumbled on that website; that's very weird, I actually suscribed to that list among others, and there was NOTHING racist or inflamatory about it, it was only articles relative to the WOT, very similar to what one finds in RB and with frequent and multiple overlappings. So, this is why he stopped it. The only adds Bruce Tefft made were occasional one-liners about double-speaking muslims or muslim orgs, way tamer than many comments here. This is lawfare pure and simple.
An Arab journalist, who has worked for various Middle East newspapers for over 25 years from the US, has pointed out the likely pitfalls of the National Security Agency (NSA) using its new powers to monitor overseas communications without any approval from a judge.
Mohammad Ali Salih writes in the Washington Times that he has 12 brothers and sisters, more than 30 cousins, about 50 nieces and nephews and many friends scattered in seven Muslim countries. There are also tens of readers who respond to his writings, in Arabic and English, in print and on the Internet. If the NSA, using its new powers to monitor overseas communications, electronically looks into his communications for catch words like "Allahu Akbar" and "Kafir" it will find them in there. "If the NSA is looking for certain names of terrorists, their supporters, helpers and financiers among my family members, it will not find them. If the NSA is looking for Muslims who are very critical of US policies towards Muslims, especially in the aftermath of September 11, may Allah help all of us," he writes.
Salih, who is from Sudan, writes that his brother begged him to return home during a recent phone conversation, and cursed "Bush and the rest of the 'Kafirs' who are killing Muslims all over the world". Another brother talked about the village's madrassa and said that some Arab businessmen from the Gulf had helped rebuild it. A sister, also on her cell phone, sang a popular local song about Condoleezza Rice that went, "Rice, the best of all prides. If my father agrees, I will marry you. And I'll keep you at home." His father said a prayer for him, "May Allah guide you. May Allah protect you from evil. May Allah defeat your enemies."
Salih points out that his relatives and friends are not exceptional. In Egypt, 92 percent believe that the US intends to "weaken and divide" Muslims. Ninety-one percent support "attacking US forces in Iraq". Another recent poll by Gallup, conducted in 10 Muslim countries, found that an "overwhelming majority...strongly doubted the US is trying to establish democracy in the ME". And an earlier poll by CNN found that people in nine Muslim countries called the US "ruthless and arrogant," with most describing themselves as "resentful" of this. He adds, "But, in spite of its faults, I believe America is God's heaven on earth. Never before in the history of mankind has a nation been so free, strong, advanced, diverse, proud and built on faith. According to many polls, most Muslims, like others, would love to come to America. That includes my relatives and friends, the young among them usually ask me to find a way for them to come to study."
Posted by: Fred ||
08/21/2007 00:00 ||
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#1
Relax, Mo. We're screening for "eggplant" and "Chinese checkers". Also "yodel", but only on Thursdays after a hard rain.
#2
"'The sun rises in the east'. I repeat, Mahmoud, 'the sun rises in the east.'"
Posted by: Steve White ||
08/21/2007 0:42 Comments ||
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#3
This is only the first stage of the NSA's muslim conditioning project. When the NSA computers detect an allah akbar, 100,000 volts is sent down the line.
Posted by: ed ||
08/21/2007 0:55 Comments ||
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#4
Cool yer jets Mr & Mrs muslim, were gonna find a way to reverse immigrate you in the end.
#10
30 cousins, about 50 nieces and nephews, donkeys, goats, and sheep; we are all brothers and sisters sleeping under the same tent. Some of us got traded for water or grain and now the sun never sets on the Salih family.
#12
It takes a helluva lot of nerve for a family of Sudanese to lecture the people of the United States of America on FIRST AMENDMENT RIGHTS. Sheesh, look at what the government of Sudan, ruled by al Qaeda sympathizers, are doing to their own people, most of whom are MUSLIMS. Frickin' hypocrites of the first water.
A military judge on Monday dismissed two of the most serious charges against the only officer charged with abusing detainees at Iraq's Abu Ghraib prison after an investigator acknowledged he failed to read the defendant his rights. Army Lt. Col. Steven L. Jordan is the last of 12 Abu Ghraib defendants to be court-martialed. He still faces four counts, including cruelty and maltreatment of detainees.
Posted by: Fred ||
08/21/2007 00:00 ||
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ISLAMABAD - Pakistan on Monday hinted it would renounce its unilateral moratorium on nuclear testing if India were to resume trials, last carried out by both countries nine years ago. New Delhi has said its right to conduct tests will not be undermined by a bilateral civilian nuclear deal with the United States which has raised concerns here.
“We take seriously the assertions by the India leadership about the possibility of resuming nuclear tests,” foreign ministry spokeswoman Tasnim Aslam told a weekly briefing. “Resumption of nuclear tests by India would create a serious situation obliging Pakistan to review its position and to take action, appropriate and consistent with our supreme national interest,” she said.
That's right, boys, use up your nukes testing them. Show us what big stuff you are.
Aslam said that Pakistan had proposed a nuclear test ban treaty to India to end the arms race in South Asia. “Pakistan continues to adhere to its unilateral moratorium on testing. We have also proposed to India a bilateral agreement on a test ban,” she said. “Pakistan does not want a nuclear arms race in the region but at the same time we are committed to maintain a credible minimum deterrence in the interest of strategic balance which is indispensable for our bare survival peace in the region.”
“We have been emphasising repeatedly that Pakistan has also its energy needs and we have future energy procurement plans which include the development of civilian nuclear power plants,” she said. “We want to develop civilian nuclear power generation under international safeguards.
“Pakistan is fully committed to non-proliferation and we believe that for effectiveness of the global nuclear non-proliferation regime Pakistan must be treated and viewed as a partner.”
Pakistan has also raised eyebrows over an Australian bid to sell uranium to India, saying it would tilt the strategic balance in New Delhi’s favour. “Like the US-India nuclear deal, the decision by Australia to sell uranium to India is a matter which warrants close attention. Any development that can impinge on the strategic balance in South Asia is a matter of vital concern to us,” Aslam said.
Especially since the long-term strategic balance is running against you.
A US report said earlier this year that Pakistan was building a third nuclear reactor to produce material for atomic bombs.
That's different, of course.
Posted by: Steve White ||
08/21/2007 00:00 ||
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#1
Wonder if India is cooking up a layer cake and needs to test for doneness.
Posted by: Thomas Woof ||
08/21/2007 5:55 Comments ||
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#2
India isn't about to resume testing.
The statements made in their parliament were in response to opposition criticism. All Manmohan Singh said was that their voluntary moratorium on testing was still in effect but they reserved the right to test again. The 123 agreement signed with the US made no mention of testing.
One of the motives behind the Chinese proliferation of nuclear weapons is to tie down and hopefully disarm regional rivals.
Thus North Korea gets the bomb, China organizes a big conference where the entire Korean peninsula and hopefully East Asia is denuclearized. So no bombs for South Korea, or Japan.
China gets to keep theirs however.
Pakistan got the bomb for the same reason. India's hands get tied and China can push for "South Asian" disarmament.
Posted by: john frum ||
08/21/2007 8:05 Comments ||
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A computer expert who was accused of being al-QaedaÂ’s communication chief and was linked to the Heathrow bomb plot has been freed by Pakistani authorities. Lies! All lies!! He's as innocent as a puppy.
Mohammed Naeem Noor Khan was arrested in Lahore in July 2004 but never charged. Uh huh.
Investigations had shown that he was the key connection between Osama bin LadenÂ’s inner circle and al-QaedaÂ’s operatives in Britain and the United States. He had also worked in close association with Khalid Sheikh Mohammed, the mastermind of the September 11 attacks. Close your eyes, put your fingers in your ears, and shout "Puppy! Puppy!"
Pakistani investigators said that Mr Khan had invented secret codes that enabled al-Qaeda operatives to send encrypted e-mails and messages via the internet. The information gleaned from Mr KhanÂ’s computer after his arrest revealed al-QaedaÂ’s plans for terrorist attacks against Britain and top financial institutions in the US. He's innocent anyway! Puppieeeee!
His interrogation helped to break down al-QaedaÂ’s cell in Britain and led to the arrest of Dahron Bharot, alias Eassa al-Hindi, and nine others. Bharot has recently been sentenced to 20 years jail. Among those arrested was Mr KhanÂ’s cousin, Ahmed Babar. So he had lots of info on the bad guys on his computer, his cousin is in the clink, but this guy didn't do ANYTHING wrong except maybe pee on the rug a little bit.
PakistanÂ’s Deputy Attorney-General, Mahbooba Elahi, said yesterday that Mr Khan had been allowed to return to his home in Karachi.
"Go forth, and encrypt no more!"
She gave no explanation as to why he was freed. Because he looked at you with those sad puppy-dog eyes? Never mind Ms. Elahi: I'm sure us Rantburg people can dream up a few possible explanations.
A majority of top US foreign policy experts say that Pakistan is most likely to become the next Al Qaeda stronghold and most likely to transfer nuclear technology to terrorists in the next three to five years, a new survey shows. According to the survey, 35 percent of the 108 experts polled by Foreign Policy magazine and the Centre for American Progress said that Pakistan was most likely to become the next Al Qaeda stronghold followed by Iraq 22 percent, Somalia 11 percent, Sudan 8 percent and Afghanistan 7 percent. Seventy-four percent of the experts said that Pakistan was most likely to transfer nuclear technology to terrorists. Forty-two percent said North Korea, thirty-eight percent said Russia, thirty-one percent said Iran and five percent said the US. Respondents were asked to name more than one country. A modest number of the experts favoured threatening Pakistan with sanctions. Yet about the same number support increasing US aid to the country. More than half of those surveyed believed the current US policy towards Pakistan was having a negative impact on national security. A majority of the experts said they would expect another September 11-scale attack within the next decade.
Posted by: Fred ||
08/21/2007 00:00 ||
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#1
I would say Iran would be number one if they got their hands on nukes either made by themselves or bourght from North Korea.
Another to worry about is Saudi who are behind all Sunni violence worldwide!!!!
http://www.asecondlookatthesaudis.com/ recommended reading!
Posted by: Paul ||
08/21/2007 5:10 Comments ||
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U.S. military officials are narrowing the range of Iraq strategy options and appear to be focusing on reducing the U.S. combat role in 2008 while increasing training of Iraqi forces, a senior military official told The Associated Press on Monday.
The military has not yet developed a plan for a substantial withdrawal of forces next year. But officials are laying the groundwork for possible overtures to Turkey and Jordan on using their territory to move some troops and equipment out of Iraq, the official said. The main exit would remain Kuwait, but additional routes would make it easier and more secure for U.S. troops leaving western and northern Iraq.
The official, who spoke on condition of anonymity because internal deliberations are ongoing, emphasized that the discussions do not prejudge decisions yet to be made by President Bush. Those decisions include how long to maintain the current U.S. troop buildup and when to make the transition to a larger Iraqi combat role.
It is widely anticipated that the five extra Army brigades that were sent to the Baghdad area this year will be withdrawn by late next summer. But it is far less clear whether the Bush administration will follow that immediately with additional drawdowns, as many Democrats in Congress are advocating.
Bush has mentioned publicly that he likes the idea, first proposed late last year by the Iraq Study Group, of switching the emphasis of U.S. military efforts from mainly combat to mainly support roles. But he also has said that this should not happen until Baghdad in particular is stable enough to enable Iraqi political leaders to make hard choices about reconciling rival interests among Sunnis, Shiites and Kurds.
There are now 162,000 U.S. troops in Iraq, of which 30,000 have arrived since February as part of Bush's revised strategy to stabilize Baghdad and to push Iraqi leaders to build a government of national unity.
Military efforts to stabilize the country effort have made strides in recent months, but political progress has lagged.
In a joint statement Monday, Sens. John Warner, R-Va., and Carl Levin, D-Mich., said that while the military buildup has "produced some credible and positive results," the political outlook is darker. The senators said that during their visit to Iraq last week they told Iraqi leaders of American impatience with the lack of political progress, and "impressed upon them that time has run out in that regard."
In a separate telephone interview with reporters, Levin urged the Iraqi assembly to oust Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki and replace his government with one that is less sectarian and more unifying.
Speaking to reporters in Washington by phone from Tel Aviv, Levin acknowledged that while there is broad frustration with the lack of action by the al-Maliki government, U.S. officials cannot dictate a change in leadership there. He said he and Warner did not meet with al-Maliki when they were in Iraq this time.
In response to Levin's remarks about dumping al-Maliki, Gordon Johndroe, spokesman for the National Security Council, noted that Iraqi leaders have been holding talks in recent days on ways to move toward a unified government.
"We urge them to come together, reach agreements and show the Iraqi people and the rest of the world their determination to create a stable and prosperous Iraq," Johndroe told reporters, adding that the administration believes al-Maliki is capable of moving the talks to a successful conclusion.
Under pressure even from members of his own party to change direction in Iraq, Bush is expected to decide his next steps after hearing in September from Gen. David Petraeus, the top commander in Iraq, and U.S. Ambassador Ryan Crocker, on what the U.S. troop buildup has accomplished.
Petraeus and Crocker are likely to present their views to Congress on Sept. 11 or 12, said Johndroe, the National Security Council spokesman. Johndroe said White House officials are consulting with congressional leaders this week on setting a date for the testimony.
Bush also will receive advice and recommendations from Defense Secretary Robert Gates as well as the Joint Chiefs and Adm. William Fallon, the top commander for American forces in the Middle East.
Bush's options are limited, politically and practically. The Army and Marine Corps do not have the capacity to increase troop levels, or even to maintain the current number beyond next spring. With the 2008 presidential election approaching, it's not so much a question of whether troop levels will be cut but when and how much.
U.S. commanders in Iraq believe they are making substantial progress toward stabilizing Baghdad and other contested parts of the country—including in Anbar province in western Iraq where the insurgency has weakened noticeably this year. But they are dubious about the ability of Iraq's political leaders to take advantage of the improved security in ways that promote political reconciliation.
Petraeus and other senior commanders have said in recent weeks that the U.S. troop buildup will end in 2008, but Petraeus has not yet recommended a follow-on strategy to Bush. Much depends on judgments about how soon Iraqi security forces will be ready to assume a bigger role, as well as the likelihood of political progress.
A top Iraqi Shiite militia leader predicted Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki's government was nearing its end because it has been tainted by its close work with American forces, a British newspaper reported Monday. Cleric Muqtada al-Sadr told The Independent newspaper that al-Maliki's government was on the brink of collapse, despite efforts to bolster its base of support.
"Al-Maliki's government will not survive because he has proven that he will not work with important elements of the Iraqi people," the cleric was quoted by the newspaper as saying. "The prime minister is a tool for the Americans, and people see that clearly. It will probably be the Americans who decide to change him when they realize he has failed. We don't have a democracy here, we have a foreign occupation."
Posted by: Fred ||
08/21/2007 00:00 ||
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Link ||
[3 views]
Top|| File under: Mahdi Army
#1
Be nice if this guy's life was near it's end.
Is he still hiding in Tehran?
#2
Tater may be half right. Maliki government may be near its end. If so, it may be partly because it is 'tainted' by association with the US. But it would also be partly because it is tainted by its association with Iran. In some ways Maliki is in a position similar to Musharraf in Pakistan - trying to find a 'middle' between enemies on one side and enemies on the other. They also have in common a shared border with Iran. Hmmmm.
WASHINGTON — After a brief trip to Iraq, Sen. Carl Levin said Monday that the Iraqi Parliament should vote no confidence in the government of Prime Minister Nouri Al Maliki because of its sectarian nature and leadership.
"The Maliki government is non-functional," Levin, D-Mich., said in a conference call with reporters.
He hasn't bothered checking out the Dhimmicratic Congressional Caucus lately, has he?
Levin, chairman of the Senate Armed Services Committee, and Sen. John Warner of Virginia, the panel's top Republican, just returned from a fact-finding mission to the country. The two reported that they are encouraged by the effects of the recent U.S. military surge there, but their enthusiasm is tempered by concerns about Iraq's political climate.
"We have seen indications that the surge of additional brigades to Baghdad and its immediate vicinity and the revitalized counter-insurgency strategy being employed have produced tangible results in making several areas of the capital more secure. We are also encouraged by continuing positive results — in al-Anbar Province, from the recent decisions of some of the Sunni tribes to turn against Al Qaeda and cooperate with coalition force efforts to kill or capture its adherents," the two said in a statement issued after leaving the country.
Speaking with reporters, Levin said he hopes when the Parliament reconvenes in the next few weeks, it will dissolve the government, which he said "cannot produce a political settlement because it is too beholden to sectarian leaders."
Levin said "broad frustration" exists across Iraq and within the Bush administration with al-Maliki, and he noted that the Iraqi constitution provides that 25 members of Parliament can sign a petition to hold this vote.
In a separate event, Shiite cleric Muqtada al-Sadr, an on-again, off-again supporter of Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki told a British newspaper on Monday that the Iraqi government is on the brink of collapse. "Al-Maliki's government will not survive because he has proven that he will not work with important elements of the Iraqi people," the cleric was quoted by The Independent as saying. "The prime minister is a tool for the Americans, and people see that clearly. It will probably be the Americans who decide to change him when they realize he has failed. We don't have a democracy here, we have a foreign occupation."
The trip, which included an excursion to Jordan, gave the lawmakers a chance to see progress on the ground. The two met with a host of American and Iraqi officials, including Gen. David Petraeus, commander of Multi-National Forces-Iraq, Gen. Ray Odierno, the commander of Multi-National Corps-Iraq, U.S. Ambassador Ryan Crocker and Stuart Bowen, special inspector general for Iraq reconstruction. The senators also met with Iraqi President Jalal Talabani, Deputy Presidents Adil Abd Al-Mahdi and Tariq Al-Hashimi and Deputy Prime Minister Barham Salih.
The visit comes ahead of an expected September report from Petraeus that is to outline the 18 benchmarks laid out by Congress to measure progress in Iraq. The White House said Monday that report should be provided in open hearings on Capitol Hill on Sept. 11 or 12.
Levin and Warner said that during their meetings they had few reassurances that the Iraqi government will be able to cooperate in any meaningful way. "In many meetings with Iraqi political leaders, of all different backgrounds, we told them of the deep impatience of the American people and the Congress with the lack of political progress, impressed upon them that time has run out in that regard, and told them of the urgent need to make the essential compromises," the lawmakers said. "In all of our meetings we witnessed a great deal of apprehension regarding the capabilities of the current Iraqi government to shed its sectarian biases and act in a unifying manner."
Levin said the Iraqi government is "stronger and more capable" than 10 months ago when Levin was last in Iraq. The Iraqis have trained 10 of 12 divisions — 163,000 troops. But he said that until U.S. troops pull out of Iraq, the country's army won't take the lead. Levin is still pushing for the U.S. to begin drawing down to well below pre-surge levels in the next four months.
Despite progress being made on the military side of the surge, Sen Levin said that without political progress the military successes won't add up to much. "There is consensus: there is no military solution to the conflict," Levin said.
While many of the military goals have been met, opponents of the Iraq war are using the failure for reconciliation on several key political goals as ammunition to call for a withdrawal.
Without a political compromise, a lasting calm seems unlikely. However, an additional 20,000 troops are expected to rotate in by December. This is not associated with the surge but would briefly increase the numbers of U.S. soldiers in the country.
#1
Old meme: "There is no military solution!"
New meme: "We might have solved the military part but the political situation is unsolvable!"
Next meme: "Yeah, okay, but try this one!"
The Democrats will never admit victory and their MSM enablers will never hold them to their previous statements.
Posted by: Jonathan ||
08/21/2007 9:41 Comments ||
Top||
European Union said Tuesday it will resume vital fuel aid to the Gaza Strip's electric company, bringing a measure of relief to Palestinians who have sweltered at home or choked on generator smoke during five days of power outages.
Poor darlings.
The EU had suspended payments for the fuel that powers major Gaza electricity generators on Sunday, suspecting the strip's Hamas rulers were pocketing electricity revenues. On Tuesday, the bloc announced that fuel shipments to the power plant would resume the following day. Hamas denied skimming money, saying the allegations were an attempt by Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas' government in the West Bank to discredit the Islamic group.
"Yeah. They wuz jus' tryin' to make us look bad!"
Hamas has been going door to door in Gaza in recent weeks, ordering residents to pay long-overdue electricity bills. While Hamas denies it controls the electricity company,
"Certainly not!"
Abbas' Fatah insists it does, citing the arrest last month of the Gaza electric company's executive director. The electricity crisis confronted the Islamic militant Hamas with a major crisis just two months after it seized control of the strip, vanquishing Fatah forces loyal to Abbas.
At a falafel stand in downtown Gaza City on Tuesday, people waiting in line covered their noses with their hands to avoid the fumes of the gas generators and stench from a pile of garbage that had been mounting for nine days due to a strike by unpaid municipal workers. "I stepped out of work to get some fresh air but I smell only exhaust from the generators and burnt garbage," said a mother of five who would only give her name as Nawal. "Then I go home to live in darkness. So 24 hours a day I can't avoid the noise and the misery of the dirty pollution of Gaza."
#1
Doesn't it bother these people that their very existence is dependent upon charity from people they hate and despise? It bothers me that Western governments are foolish enough to waste money on Palestinians.
#2
Let's not forget how in their haste to expunge all Jewish artifacts from this ancient temple site Muslims have excavated so much soil from around the mosque's foundations as to structurally destabilize it. Of course, when it collapses the Jews will be to blame. Most ironically, tight Jewish security at al-Aqsa is probably the only thing that has prevented some moron Palestinian from detonating himself inside of the place.
#6
And for those who might be unmoved by the desecration of an active church, consider the fact that they damaged irreplaceable, priceless 3rd century Roman mosaic floors in the process.
I'm glad I got to visit in 87 - it's been going downhill ever since.
#8
I'm sure we've covered this before, but how do you say chutzpah in Arabic?
They really have no clue about structures anyway, half of me says Let's just go ahead and get it over wid, go ahead and let the place implode of their own doing. Of course, it'll still be the Jooos fault.
Posted by: BA ||
08/21/2007 21:02 Comments ||
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The deputy speaker of the Palestinian parliament resigned on Monday in protest at internal feuding that has resulted in the legislative body being gridlocked for months. "The brothers [of Hamas and Fatah] cannot get together. I therefore present my resignation to the presidency of the legislative council and I will not change my mind," Hassan Khreisheh told a news conference in Ramallah.
Zowie. Actual Arab honor. Hoodathunkit?
Posted by: Fred ||
08/21/2007 00:00 ||
Comments ||
Link ||
[4 views]
Top|| File under: Palestinian Authority
#1
Why would one protest a gridlocked legislative body? In my experience gridlock is the best possible alternative.
Jordan is not ready to surrender Saddam Hussein's eldest daughter to Iraq, despite an Interpol alert and a new push from Iraq for her handover, a top government spokesman said Monday.
Nasser Judeh cited traditional Arab protection of a woman guest living in the country as the reason, but Iraqi officials contend the daughter deserves trial because she is funneling money to violent Sunni militants in Iraq. However, Judeh would not rule out the possibility that Raghad Saddam Hussein, 38, who enjoys asylum in Jordan, could be handed over to Iraqis at some later date.
The issue is one of several things that have caused tension between Iraq and Jordan in the last few years, as Shiite-Sunni tensions inside Iraq and across the region have grown. Jordan, which is mostly Sunni, has been leery of Iraq's Shiite-led government, while Iraq fears that Sunni insurgents get money and aid from the large Sunni Iraq refugee population in Jordan.
An Interpol red alert issued last year saying Raghad is wanted for "crimes against life, incitement and terrorism" gained new publicity after Iraqi government announcement this weekend. Government officials in Baghdad have previously accused Raghad of similar crimes - saying that she was one of several wealthy Amman-based Iraqi Sunni Arabs who are funding militants fighting a bloody insurgency that has bred sectarianism and brought the country to the brink of all-out civil war. Jordan has rejected requests by two successive Iraqi prime ministers, including the current Nouri al-Maliki, to hand over Raghad.
Raghad's asylum in the Hashemite kingdom was granted on humanitarian grounds, Judeh said. Privately, government officials have said that to hand her over would violate Arab codes of honor and would be embarrassing for Jordan. Under terms of her asylum, Raghad agreed "never to practice any political or media activities" while living in Jordan, Judeh said.
A red alert is only a warning from Interpol, not an arrest warrant, Judeh said. He would not say whether Raghad was mentioned during last week's high level security talks with Iraq's security adviser Mouwaffak al-Rubaie in the Jordanian capital. But Jordan's independent Al Arab Al Yawm daily reported Monday that al-Rubaie handed Jordanian officials a "list of wanted people, with Raghad at the top."
Citing unnamed members who were part of the Iraqi security delegation, the Arabic-language newspaper said the wanted among others also included Raghad's two cousins, Iraqi Sunni opposition leader Mishan al-Jubouri; a prominent journalist in Iraq, and the eldest son of Saddam's deputy Prime Minister Tariq Aziz, who is now in US custody.
Raghad, her younger sister Rana and their children came to Jordan in July 2003, three months after Baghdad fell to US-led forces who toppled their father. Jordan's King Abdullah II granted them asylum because they were considered as women and children left with no family and no male protection.
In 1996, Abdullah's late father, King Hussein, granted asylum to the women's husbands, including Raghad's husband Hussein Kamel - who was responsible for Iraq's nuclear file and the country's military industrialization - after they defected from Iraq. But months later, the men were lured back to Iraq where they were executed.
Raghad is known to have considered King Hussein as an "uncle." Hussein enjoyed good relations with Saddam, who provided cash-strapped Jordan with free oil. Former Information Minister Saleh Qallab ridiculed the allegations against Raghad in comments Monday in Jordan's pro-government al Rai newspaper.
Posted by: Fred ||
08/21/2007 00:00 ||
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Link ||
[9 views]
Top|| File under: Iraqi Insurgency
#1
If someone comes into my house and tries to run criminal enterprise from it they would no longer be welcome as a guest. AFAIAC, Raghead Hussein does not seem to be behaving like a guest.
#5
Seems this could be handled by suspending jordanian diplomats' immunity until the witch is deported. It's a safe bet many of the diplos would already be jugged for this or that but for their immunity...
Posted by: M. Murcek ||
08/21/2007 13:53 Comments ||
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Manila - The Philippine government has postponed the scheduled resumption of peace talks with Muslim secessionist rebels in Malaysia due to its failure to decide on how to move forward in the negotiations, a guerrilla spokesman said Tuesday.
Negotiators for the separatist Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) were set to depart for Kuala Lumpur on Monday when a Malaysian official informed them that the two-day talks scheduled to start on Wednesday will not push through.
'We were already in Manila and we were all set to go to Kuala Lumpur...but at the last hour the government has asked for a postponement,' said Mohaqher Iqbal, chief MILF peace negotiator.
Iqbal said Rodolfo Garcia, head of the government peace panel, told the Malaysian facilitator that he (Garcia) 'has not been given clear guidelines on how to proceed with the peace process.'
Peace talks between the MILF and the government have been stalled since September last year after the two sides failed to agree on the scope of a proposed Muslim homeland in the southern region of Mindanao.
Garcia, who was appointed chief government negotiator only in June, said he asked for the postponement of the resumption of the talks because he still has to clarify details about the government's positions on issues to be discussed in the talks.
'I asked for it (postponement) because I need more time to clarify some things, concretize stands to have the definite negotiating positions to present to them in the next rounds of talks,' he said.
Garcia said that despite the postponement, President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo remained upbeat about the peace talks - a priority in her programmes to achieve lasting solution to the decades-old Muslim insurgency in Mindanao.
'It is not right to say that the president is lacking political will, she is determined to solve the problem in Mindanao,' he said.
Garcia said the ongoing military offensives against Islamic militants in the southern province of Basilan and nearby Jolo island were not a factor in the postponement of the talks.
The operations in Basilan and Jolo were triggered by the killing of 14 marines, 10 of whom were beheaded or mutilated, during a firefight with MILF forces in the town of Albarka on July 10.
The MILF admitted to killing the marines, whom they accused of violating a 2003 ceasefire agreement, but denied beheading or mutilating them. An inquiry later blamed al-Qaeda-linked Muslim Abu Sayyaf rebels for the crime.
Posted by: anonymous5089 ||
08/21/2007 11:09 ||
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Link ||
[5 views]
Top|| File under: Moro Islamic Liberation Front
#3
FREEREPUBLIC > FRED THOMPSON > USA will have to rebuild military for GLOBAL FIGHT. USA took a "holiday" during the 1990's which saw the USDOD's force levels and capabilities eroded = all but destroyed.
* ALso in FREEREPUBLIC > FR Poster/Netter Opinion > IRAN > USA = USDOD will have to prepare for global/worldwide "WIDESPREAD CONFRONTATION". Likely NOT just in the ME or against Iran-Syria andor Radical Islamism???
Iran's ex-president Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani has raised controversy after claiming in a new book that revolutionary founder Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini did not favour the mantra of "Death to America". The revelation in the latest edition of Rafsanjani's diaries comes amid growing strains between Tehran and Washington but also after landmark talks with US officials on security in Iraq. The slogan "Death to America" symbolises Iran's enmity with the US and is chanted by the faithful after Friday prayers and often during speeches by the Islamic republic's top leaders. The comment comes in an entry from July 5, 1984, five years before Khomeini's death and in the midst of the 1980-1988 war with Saddam Hussein's Iraq, which cost a million lives on both sides.
Posted by: Fred ||
08/21/2007 00:00 ||
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[8 views]
Top|| File under: Govt of Iran
#1
Rafsanjani is a liar. Khomeini coined the phrase "the great satan" in reference to the US. And his practise of leading the "death to america" chant after Friday prayers at Teheran University, goes on to this day. In fact, EVERY Ayatollah has led the prayers and chant, more than once. Suprise: the chant was cancelled for the first Friday after 9-11, then re-started the next week.
#4
If the US is 'The Great Satan', and Ahmadenejad says 'Iran will be Hell for the American soldiers if they invade,' and Hell is 'home' for Satan, does that mean Ahmadenejad plans a 'Welcome Home' party for us?
Christian members of the March 14 coalition stressed Monday that they are "the Christian political authority that will have the basic and effective role" in electing a new President. The stand was outlined as a meeting grouping 29 Christian members of the multi-sect majority coalition was underway at the residence of Lebanese Forces leader Samir Geagea in Merab, northeast of Beirut.
Geagea, in a dialogue with reporters, said the meeting was aimed at "countering efforts by foreign intelligence to choose a president" for Lebanon. He stressed that the "era of foreign influence (in Lebanon) is gone and fabricating a president by outside powers is not right."
Geagea stressed that such rejected options of foreign interference in choosing a president for Lebanon were "applied during the era of Syrian hegemony." A vacuum in the presidential office is "a red line," Geagea announced. He disclosed that there had been some contacts with Free Patriotic Movement leader Michel Aoun concerning the election of a new head of state to succeed President Emile Lahoud, whose extended term in office expires on Nov. 24.
Posted by: Fred ||
08/21/2007 00:00 ||
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[10 views]
Top|| File under:
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.
Pakistan and Afghanistan have agreed on a bilateral mechanism to facilitate the implementation of decisions and recommendations made at the Pak-Afghan Joint Jirga held in Kabul from August 9 to 12.
Eritrean President Issaias Afeworki warned Washington that its policies were leading the world on a "dangerous path", an official statement said on Monday.
Britons view Muslims with more suspicion than their American or European counterparts, according to a poll published in the Financial Times on Monday. According to the Harris Interactive survey of 6,398 people, only about 59 percent of Britons believed it was possible to be both a Muslim and a British citizen, compared to more than 70 percent of Spanish and French voters. Fifty-two percent of British respondents also said they expected a "major terrorist attack" in Britain within the next 12 months, the highest proportion of the six countries surveyed, with 32 percent of Spanish voters, 30 percent of Americans and between 15 and 18 percent of French, Germans and Italians expecting such an attack.
Authorities didn't say at which Al Qaeda camp 33-year-old hijacker 
An Arab journalist, who has worked for various Middle East newspapers for over 25 years from the US, has pointed out the likely pitfalls of the National Security Agency (NSA) using its new powers to monitor overseas communications without any approval from a judge.
ISLAMABAD - Pakistan on Monday hinted it would renounce its unilateral moratorium on nuclear testing if India were to resume trials, last carried out by both countries nine years ago. New Delhi has said its right to conduct tests will not be undermined by a bilateral civilian nuclear deal with the United States which has raised concerns here.
A computer expert who was accused of being al-QaedaÂ’s communication chief and was linked to the Heathrow bomb plot has been freed by Pakistani authorities.
A majority of top US foreign policy experts say that Pakistan is most likely to become the next Al Qaeda stronghold and most likely to transfer nuclear technology to terrorists in the next three to five years, a new survey shows. According to the survey, 35 percent of the 108 experts polled by Foreign Policy magazine and the Centre for American Progress said that Pakistan was most likely to become the next Al Qaeda stronghold followed by Iraq 22 percent, Somalia 11 percent, Sudan 8 percent and Afghanistan 7 percent. Seventy-four percent of the experts said that Pakistan was most likely to transfer nuclear technology to terrorists. Forty-two percent said North Korea, thirty-eight percent said Russia, thirty-one percent said Iran and five percent said the US. Respondents were asked to name more than one country. A modest number of the experts favoured threatening Pakistan with sanctions. Yet about the same number support increasing US aid to the country. More than half of those surveyed believed the current US policy towards Pakistan was having a negative impact on national security. A majority of the experts said they would expect another September 11-scale attack within the next decade.
A top Iraqi Shiite militia leader predicted Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki's government was nearing its end because it has been tainted by its close work with American forces, a British newspaper reported Monday. Cleric Muqtada al-Sadr told The Independent newspaper that al-Maliki's government was on the brink of collapse, despite efforts to bolster its base of support. 
WASHINGTON — After a brief trip to Iraq, Sen. Carl Levin said Monday that the Iraqi Parliament should vote no confidence in the government of Prime Minister Nouri Al Maliki because of its sectarian nature and leadership.
European Union said Tuesday it will resume vital fuel aid to the Gaza Strip's electric company, bringing a measure of relief to Palestinians who have sweltered at home or choked on generator smoke during five days of power outages. 
The deputy speaker of the Palestinian parliament resigned on Monday in protest at internal feuding that has resulted in the legislative body being gridlocked for months. "The brothers [of Hamas and Fatah] cannot get together. I therefore present my resignation to the presidency of the legislative council and I will not change my mind," Hassan Khreisheh told a news conference in Ramallah.
Jordan is not ready to surrender Saddam Hussein's eldest daughter to Iraq, despite an Interpol alert and a new push from Iraq for her handover, a top government spokesman said Monday. 
Manila - The Philippine government has postponed the scheduled resumption of peace talks with Muslim secessionist rebels in Malaysia due to its failure to decide on how to move forward in the negotiations, a guerrilla spokesman said Tuesday. 
Christian members of the March 14 coalition stressed Monday that they are "the Christian political authority that will have the basic and effective role" in electing a new President. The stand was outlined as a meeting grouping 29 Christian members of the multi-sect majority coalition was underway at the residence of Lebanese Forces leader Samir Geagea in Merab, northeast of Beirut.
