KABUL - Taleban insurgents in Afghanistan say they will fully cooperate with a polio vaccination campaign launched by the government on Wednesday in four restive provinces.
"Send in some more hostages!"
The Afghan public health minister announced that the campaign in four southern provinces will continue for two days to eliminate the virus which still exists but with very few cases in Afghanistan. The campaign is being undertaken in Helmand, Uruzgan, Farah and Kandahar provinces. A similar two-day campaign will also be kicked off on September 24 in three eastern provinces: Kunar, Nangarhar and Laghman. Both the south and east are among the most volatile zones of Afghanistan.
Dr Abdullah Fahim, spokesman for the Public Health Ministry, told Deutsche Presse-Agentur DPA the two zones were singled out for the polio vaccinations because the virus was found there recently. He said nine cases of polio have been found in the targeted provinces. Insecurity in the two zones has hindered previous vaccination campaigns there.
Meanwhile, the Taleban have said in an unprecedented manner that all insurgents have been told to protect the staff involved in the polio vaccination campaign. A Taleban spokesman, Zabihullah Mujahid, told dpa: We will fully help the vaccination teams to carry out their campaign and (they will) not to be hurt by anyone as all our friends have been told to provide a safe environment for the vaccinators.
Until they need cash ...
The Taleban have earlier kidnapped and killed health workers in the south and east. The United Nations, which backs the process logistically, also has asked all parties to ensure security for the vaccination campaign.
Posted by: Steve White ||
09/20/2007 00:00 ||
Comments ||
Link ||
[5 views]
Top|| File under:
#1
So the Taliban figured out the 'Roe Effect' before it eliminated its future recruiting base years before the western liberal establishment?
Taliban fighters carrying machine guns and rocket-propelled grenades used children as human shields during a battle in southern Afghanistan on Wednesday, a tactic that forced US-led coalition soldiers to hold their fire, the coalition said.
The fighting in Uruzgan province began when more than 20 insurgents attacked a joint Afghan and coalition patrol Wednesday morning.
As a coalition aircraft prepared to bomb the site, "coalition forces as well as the aircraft identified several insurgents in one compound using children as human shields," a coalition statement said. Ground forces and the aircraft withheld fire to avoid injuring the children, it said.
Posted by: Fred ||
09/20/2007 00:00 ||
Comments ||
Link ||
[4 views]
Top|| File under: Taliban
#1
Justice Kennedy to be outraged in 9, 8, 7....oh, wait. This is the Taliban. Never mind. Who needs the real Geneva Convention when you can make one up yourself.
#3
Tap ... tap. Nope, not even a wiggle out of the old Surprise Meter.
It pains me to say that our troops must learn to shoot through any civilian human shields these vermin come up with. It will discourage all further use of such cowardly tactics and serve further notice to the Afghans of just how lethal it is to have the Taliban come anywhere near them.
#4
Another question: Why isn't anyone capturing some footage of this taking place? This is vital propaganda material to humiliate and properly demonize these Islamic pukes. A surveillance drone could easily snap some rather detailed shots of such villainy.
Reporters Without Borders is dismayed by the Casablanca appeal court's 18 September 2007 decision to uphold a prison sentence for reporter Mostapha Hurmatallah of the Arabic-language weekly "Al Watan Al An", one week after he was freed pending the outcome of his appeal. "This ruling marks the end of the relative respite the Moroccan press has been enjoying of late," the press freedom organisation said. "Whatever the result of the petition that will now be made to the court of final appeal, Morocco is now clearly on a dangerous slope."
Reporters Without Borders added: "Hurmatallah's release a week ago was seen as a sign of government good faith by the many foreign journalists who came to cover the second elections held under King Mohammed. But the judicial authorities returned to their bad old ways when the spotlights were turned off."
In its decision, the Casablanca appeal court upheld Hurmatallah's prison sentence but reduced it by a month, from eights months to seven, and reduced "Al Watan Al An" editor Abderrahim Ariri's suspended prison sentence from six months to five. The court also upheld the 1,000 dirham (approx. 89 euros) fine imposed on the journalists. The original sentences were passed by a Casablanca criminal court on 15 August. Their lawyers said they expected that Hurmatallah would remain free pending the outcome of their petition to the court of final appeal. Arrested on 17 July, Hurmatallah spent a total of 56 days in detention, most of it in Oukacha prison.
Posted by: Fred ||
09/20/2007 00:00 ||
Comments ||
Link ||
[4 views]
Top|| File under:
WASHINGTON (CNN) -- A MoveOn.org political advertisement that criticized the top U.S. commander in Iraq was "disgusting," President Bush said Thursday, accusing Democrats of being afraid to criticize the anti-war group.
Bush told reporters at a White House news conference that MoveOn.org's ad in The New York Times about Gen. David Petraeus was a "sorry deal." The September 10 full-page ad was titled "General Petraeus or General Betray Us?"
"I felt like the ad was an attack, not only on Gen. Petraeus, but on the U.S. military," Bush said. "And I was disappointed that not more leaders in the Democratic Party spoke out strongly against that kind of ad."
Bush said that "most Democrats are afraid of irritating a left-wing group like MoveOn.org" and they "are more afraid of irritating them than they are of irritating the United States military."
He said, "It's one thing to attack me. It's another thing to attack somebody like Gen. Petraeus."
Many Democratic lawmakers immediately criticized the ad after it was published.
Eli Pariser, executive director of MoveOn.org, reacted quickly to Bush's comments.
"What's disgusting is that the president has more interest in political attacks than developing an exit strategy to get our troops out of Iraq and end this awful war," Pariser said. "The president has no credibility on Iraq: He lied repeatedly to the American people to get us into the war. Most Americans oppose the war and want us to get out."
MoveOn.org and other war critics have accused Petraeus and the Bush administration of "cherry-picking" data to make it seem that military success is being achieved in Iraq.
During testimony last week before Congress, Petraeus and Ryan Crocker, U.S. ambassador to Iraq, said they believed the U.S. troop increase in Iraq has had some success, an assertion that critics of the war have questioned.
A Senate GOP amendment to repudiate the MoveOn.org ad passed Thursday 72-25 as Republicans tried to force Democrats to distance themselves, on the record, from the controversy.
Among Democratic presidential candidates, Sens. Hillary Clinton of New York and Sens. Chris Dodd of Connecticut voted against the resolution. Sens. Joe Biden of Delaware and Barack Obama of Illinois didn't vote.
In a 51-46 vote, Democrats failed in a bid to condemn "personal attacks" on then-Democratic Sen. Max Cleland of Georgia in 2002 and Sen. John Kerry, the 2004 party presidential nominee. Sixty votes were needed to proceed.
The Democratic amendment about Cleland and Kerry also included language condemning the "unwarranted personal attack" on Petraeus.
#1
Maybe so, and what took "W" so long to react? Be it as it may, the catch phrase is brilliant by Moveon.org, you can't think or say one without thinking of the other; And I've actually heard people slip up and say the flip side in error due to the closeness of the homonym!
A Senate GOP amendment to repudiate the MoveOn.org ad passed Thursday 72-25 as Republicans tried to force Democrats to distance themselves, on the record, from the controversy.
I'm still a little stunned, but both Maryland's senators voted in favor of this measure. I wrote to them both to thank them.
#5
"What's disgusting is that the president has more interest in political attacks than developing an exit strategy to get our troops out of Iraq and end this awful war," Pariser said. "The president has no credibility on Iraq: He lied repeatedly to the American people to get us into the war. Most Americans oppose the war and want us to get out."
No, what is disgusting is you are the base of what ued to be a prominient political party in this country. You have no heart, you have no soul, and you have no use at all to this country. YOU are disgusting. A bunch of malcontents with very little if any education and definately no moral upbringing. You are the downfall of America, not George Bush. YOU are the problem.
#6
What's the popularity rating of MoveOn's hand puppet, the Democratic Congress, around 11% and the US military over 50%. Tells a lot about who needs to clean their own house when it comes to distortion, lies, and misrepresentations all for the love of POWER.
(New York - WABC, September 19, 2007) - Iranian president Mahmoud Ahmadinejad requested to visit Ground Zero during an upcoming trip to New York. That request was rejected Wednesday. But a source tells Eyewitness News that the decision may not stop him.
A law enforcement source says the Iranian mission to the United Nations has informed the Secret Service that the Iranian president intends to visit Ground Zero Monday at 10 a.m.
The source says regardless of the NYPD's rejection of the request for a Ground Zero tour, Iran's president and his entourage will be accompanied by a Secret Service protective detail, a detail provided to all heads of state when they visit the United States.
The Iranian mission to the United Nations made the initial request to the NYPD and the Secret Service, who will jointly oversee security during the president's two-day visit.
Ahmadinejad is scheduled to arrive September 24 to speak to the U.N. General Assembly, as the Security Council decides whether to increase sanctions against Iran for its uranium enrichment program.
Police Commissioner Ray Kelly said the NYPD and Secret Service were in discussions with the Iranian mission about the logistics for the possible visit to the World Trade Center site.
"There has been some interest expressed in his visiting the area," Kelly said. "It's something that we are prepared to handle if in fact it does happen."
The request was rejected Wednesday afternoon in a meeting which included NYPD, Secret Service and Port Authority officials, who said the site is closed to visitors because of construction. They said requests for the Iranian president to visit the immediate area would also be opposed by the NYPD on security grounds.
Kelly said that Ahmadinejad had not indicated why he wants to visit the site of the terrorist attacks of September 11th.
Mayor Rudy Giuliani released the following statement on Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad:
"Under no circumstances should the NYPD or any other American authority assist President Ahmadinejad in visiting Ground Zero. This is a man who has made threats against America and Israel, is harboring bin Laden's son and other al-Qaeda leaders, is shipping arms to Iraqi insurgents and is pursuing the development of nuclear weapons. Assisting Ahmadinejad in touring Ground Zero - hallowed ground for all Americans - is outrageous."
Senator Hillary Clinton released the following statement:
"It is unacceptable for Iranian President Ahmadinejad, who refuses to renounce and end his own country's support of terrorism, to visit the site of the deadliest terrorist attack on American soil in our nation's history."
#1
Tell this worthless hostage-taking turd to walk on over there by himself. I'm sure there's plenty of New Yorkers who'd love to give him a personal beating "tour".
#2
Give him the full WTC experience -- lift him up in a helicopter to the 100th story level, then drop him. If he refuses to leave the chopper, set him on fire.
Posted by: Rob Crawford ||
09/20/2007 12:13 Comments ||
Top||
#6
I imagine he wants to visit Ground Zero for the same reason Japanese tourists used to visit the USS Arizona memorial in Pearl Harbor. The lure of the USS Arizona to Japanese has been diminished since President Bush parked the USS Missouri next to it. For some reason they aren't as eager to visit the USS Missouri.
#10
I imagine he wants to visit Ground Zero for the same reason Japanese tourists used to visit the USS Arizona memorial in Pearl Harbor.
Really? When I visited the Arizona, back in '89 or so, there were a surprising number of Japanese tourists. We had a young tour guide give a little speech before we got on the boats. Said his grandmother (an immigrant from the Phillipines) drove a forklift during the war. At the end of his talk he re-iterated: Never forget. I wondered what the Japanese were thinking.
Come to think of it, I don't remember many Japanese on the Missouri, but it's not organized the way the Arizona tour is.
#13
HELL NO, HE WON'T GO!!! If New Yorkers and others visiting the good city were to traffic jam the first 3 blocks around the site by cars; and throw in half a million on the streets (sort of like a New Years eve party), a powerful message would be sent to him and his mop headed bosses!
#14
Yesterday Zenster was censored for mentioning a sniper rifle in connection for this story. The moderator(s) felt he had transgressed some putative line in the sand. He even apologized.
I respectfully submit that he broke no such bounds of decency. IF he had recommended the target as the Mayor who apparently sanctions this travesty, or George Soros, or Columbia University, or ANSWER, Code Pink, etc. etc. etc., then you all would have a point. As it was he suggested a target who is an enemy of America and democracy in general, one who advocates the destruction of a major US ally and who has threatened the US as well. He is reputed to have been involved in the US embassy takeover and have been a part of assasinations in Austria. There's no question that is gov't is killing US service men and women in an undeclared war.
You are falling into the politically correct trap of not saying something controversial because you're afraid someone will bust your chops for it. Guys, this little fuckwad is an enemy. Killing him is not taboo. Mentioning a rifle as the mechanism as opposed to say burying him, which comment was allowed to stand yesterday, is not inappropriate.
This is the last site I'd have expected political correctness to rear it's ugly behind. Don't screw it up.
#16
Reading round the blogosphere - he might not even be able to get there! Organization is happening!
From Michelle Markin:
Update 3:20pm Eastern 9/20. Ken Timmerman sends word that his organization, Foundation for Democracy in Iran, is organizing with David Bossie of Citizens United, to counter-protest at Ground Zero. They are chartering buses from Washington, D.C.:
Dear Friends of Freedom,
The Foundation for Democracy in Iran, in coordination with Citizens United and other groups, is calling on all Americans, regardless of their origin or political believes to come to New York on Monday to defend Ground Zero from desecration by the terrorist president of the Islamic Republic of Iran, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad.
We will be chartering buses from the Washington, DC area. Please watch our website, www.iran.org, for more details and for rendezvous points.
And the latest update at www.iran.org/
Sept. 20, 2007:
Update, 4:41 PM: Ahmadinejad tells Scott Pelly of CBS 60 Minutes he is "amazed" that Americans are upset about him going to Ground Zero, and hints he may drop that part of his trip. But don't bet on it. You can send an email to the US Secret Service, who will handle his security (now that NYPD says it won't), to protest their action.(More phone numbers, here)
#17
This little turd was part of the rabble that seized the American embassy in 1979. This should have been an act of war then. Today, he is not about respecting what happened at the WTCs. He is about exploiting a visit for propaganda in the muzzie world. Personally, I don't give a crap what happens to this little version of a muslim Hitler. He is an evil man.
When, at a private dinner party at which Ambassador Gillerman was also present, Mr. Kelly was asked what he thought Mr. Ahmadinejad would want to do at ground zero, the commissioner growled that the Iranian wanted to "scout the next attack."
#20
No use protesting or demonstrating at the UN, save the people power for ground zero. They (the secret service can ferret him in and out of the UN by underground or by in yard or building top heli. Much more difficult for a blood fanged gawking Ahmadinejad at ground zero. The crowds can be held back by force by the Feds but not at the cost of that photo shoot flying aroung the world of the US Government 'rough housing' it's citizens to allow a known terrorist standing tall, gloating at the nation's par-non #1 memorial site!
Posted by: ed ||
09/20/2007 18:26 Comments ||
Top||
#22
JohnQC (#17), I can see your point, in complete agreement. The first mental image that comes to my mind was that of Hitler and his smirk, standing bold and tall in front of the Arc de Triomphe when France fell.
Who can guarantee me, right here and right now, that Ahmadinejad won't smirk or crack the slightest smile that cameras may pick up on zoom, while standing at the 'Pit of the revenge to the 'Great Satan'"?
#23
Mercutio, thank you for providing an outside assessment of yesterday's snafu. While I might agree with much of what you posted, it remains that Rantburg and its moderators make the rules and we follow them. Participation here is voluntary and strictly at Fred's discretion.
I think it's safe to say thatfor how often I have opposed the accepted wisdom hereRantburg is nothing less than a last bastion of truly free speech. If there were even a remote chance that my suggestion might have drawn unwanted attention from other circles, then Steve White had every right to redact my post.
In light of the short shrift Rantburg gives Political Correctness, I'm more than willing to dismiss it as being the reason my comment was redacted. Time might prove me wrong but I sincerely doubt it. Again, I deeply appreciate your own take on this. I, too, feel that Ahmadinejad is both an enemy of the state and a direct accomplice in the murder of American soldiers and citizens. My initial post's mention of "hostage-taking" was a direct reference to 1979.
All said and done, I still feel that the Bush administration has its head in the sand about this. There should an executive order prohibiting Ahmadinejad from getting within even a mile of Ground Zero. You and I both know that this visit is strictly for purposes of propaganda back in Iran and that it would be a travesty for national security if it is permitted. Bush simply has no grasp as to the vital importance of propaganda in largely illiterate high context Muslim cultures. His inability to properly articulate Islam's threat threat to America reflects this astonishing lack of appreciation on his part. This shortcoming already costsand will continue to costAmerican lives by needlessly prolonging this conflict and inadequately militating the public against Islam.
The criminal always returns to the scene of the crime*.
* By no means do I consider Ground Zero to be a crime scene - it was just another attack in Islam's long war against the West. I just couldn't say "a criminal always returns to the scene of the attack" and have the line work.
Posted by: Tibor ||
09/20/2007 19:30 Comments ||
Top||
#25
The criminal always returns to the scene of the crime
Don't anybody kid themselves, Ahmadinejad is going after a terrorist "trophy".
I don't disagree that Fred (POOBAH - May He Find Many More Dirty Old Lady Pics) gets to set the rules.
I merely believe those rules were violated/mis-interpreted by purging an appropriate response to a totally unacceptable gimmick dreamed up by one of this country's most active enemies.
As a participant in the takeover of the embassy, he should be a) banned from the US and b) arrested for his crimes if he does show.
And no, I really don't care very much about the agreement with the UN to let scum into the country.
#27
Mercutio, 'tis said some of our lurkers wear very neat black suits with crisp white shirts, and some are not now wearing their uniforms. (Or at least, given the caliber of the non-snark analysis here, I hope so -- it would be well worth their while to check in periodically). But we don't want to say the kinds of things they would have to take entirely more seriously than would have been meant, and our moderators work to ensure that. Zenster is aware of that, hence his immediate response yesterday, since on more than one occasion he has added a great deal to our discussions.
We all understand the sentiment, though -- especially our moderators, I suspect. ;-)
#28
As a participant in the takeover of the embassy, he should be a) banned from the US and b) arrested for his crimes if he does show.
Nothing less is acceptable. Fear not, Mercutio, we are in violent agreement. Ahmadinejad's disregard forand violation ofInternational soil should strip him of diplomatic immunity. We are the worst sort of fools for allowing this Islamic cockroach to set foot upon American soil. Otherwise, trailing wife sums it up rather well.
#31
You are falling into the politically correct trap of not saying something controversial because you're afraid someone will bust your chops for it. Guys, this little fuckwad is an enemy. Killing him is not taboo. Mentioning a rifle as the mechanism as opposed to say burying him, which comment was allowed to stand yesterday, is not inappropriate.
There's controversial, and then there's short-sighted stupidity.
Yes, he's a fuckwad. Yes, he deserves killing.
But. Not. In. New. York.
You may think it appropriate. But you don't have to live with the fallout. Or have to personally deal with the consequences. Or do any of the heavy lifting that results.
If my troops have to fight, I'd rather it be on our terms, and not because some 'patriot' decided it for us.
#32
I think a pretty solid rule to follow us not to talk about killing Americans or killing people in America. That tends to concern people who's job it is to be concerned about such things.
Unless it's the end result of a legal judicial process, of course.
Posted by: Mike N. ||
09/20/2007 22:25 Comments ||
Top||
#33
Unless it's the end result of a legal judicial process, of course.
Which is how it should bein terms of targeted killingsbut I digress. I'll sum up by saying that I have most often posted about my wish that Ahmadinejad would catch a headshot in front of untold numbers of his admirers. NO! Not at Columbia University, I mean in Tehran!
Ignore the hysterical headline from AP. What Boeing is doing is incredibly important and probably will work over time. Intergrating complex systems like this one takes time to get right. Some do fail, but most succeed with sufficient effort and fine tuning.
The payoff will be not only on our borders but potentially in Iraq, Afghanistan etc. What's going up on our southern border is important in its own right, but it's also the prototype for an important defense capability with wider use.
Because of a software glitch, the first high-tech "virtual fence" on the nation's borders remains inoperable, three months after its scheduled debut.
Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff said he is withholding further payment to the prime contractor, Boeing Co., until the success of the pilot project stretching 28 miles near the border southwest of Tucson.
Standard contracting move.
Nine 98-foot towers laden with radar, sensors and sophisticated cameras have been built in an area heavily trafficked by illegal immigrant and drug smugglers. The towers, each a few miles apart, are intended to deter or detect border crossers and potential terrorists and enhance the ability of Border Patrol agents to catch them.
More testing is expected by early October, Chertoff told the House Committee on Homeland Security this month in Washington.
"We are now looking to begin acceptance testing in about a month," Chertoff said meaning the point at which contracting officials give the go-ahead for testing "and we will then kick the tires again."
As a contractor (or a government program officer) you always hope that acceptance testing goes totally smoothly. Some do. Some of mine did. But when you're talking about the first deployment of a new concept in a complex real world application, some don't. That's why we test. And fix and test.
Of Chertoff's remarks, Boeing spokeswoman Deborah Bosick said only: "We're working with our customer to solve some remaining technical issues."
The virtual fence is the first stage of a plan to smother the Mexican and Canadian borders with 1,800 such towers, all aimed at enabling the U.S. Border Patrol to pinpoint crossings and improve their ability to intercept crossers.
About three-fourths of the $20 million cost for the 28-mile project has been paid, homeland security officials said. The fencing was announced as part of a $67 million initial contract awarded last September to Boeing, the bulk going to set up program management, systems engineering and planning support.
The virtual fence system is supposed to coordinate camera, sensor and radar sightings and provide a common operating picture to agents on the ground to intercept those entering the country illegally.
"The integration of all the systems into a common operating picture continues to be the challenge," said Homeland Security spokesman Russ Knocke. Boeing has put new people on the project who are working to resolve the problems, he said.
In June, with the towers up, a radar problem caused a brief delay. Then, federal officials said there was a software problem.
In his Sept. 5 testimony, Chertoff said the original plan was to begin acceptance testing in June "so that we could make a determination that we were satisfied with the product and take possession of it I think in July."
Acceptance testing is "a little bit like buying a car. We didn't want to get stuck with a lemon," Chertoff said.
The individual components worked well, but the system integration did not, he said.
Boeing has "retooled their team on the ground and replaced some of the managers. ... They are now working through the problems of system integration as we speak," Chertoff said. "I think they put their A-team in place to do it."
As for the testing, Chertoff added, "We should get it done well before the end of the year."
#2
$20 mil is not much in a Boeing context.
Actually not much in a big biz context.
I used to specify and design minor test tools that cost $7mil/release and that was peanuts and a shoestring. Tech. costs! Period.
WASHINGTON - Democrats' efforts to challenge President Bush's Iraq policies were dealt a demoralizing blow Wednesday in the Senate after they failed to scrape together enough support to guarantee troops more time at home. The 56-44 vote four short of reaching the 60 needed to advance all but assured that Democrats would be unable to muster the support needed to pass tough anti-war legislation by year's end. The legislation, sponsored by Sen. Jim Webb, D-Va., was seen as the Democrats' best shot because of its pro-military premise.
"The idea of winning the war in Iraq is beginning to get a second look," said Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., who led opposition to the bill alongside Sen. John McCain.
Webb's legislation would have required that troops spend as much time at home training with their units as they spend deployed in Iraq or Afghanistan. Members of the National Guard or Reserve would be guaranteed three years at home before being sent back. Most Army soldiers now spend about 15 months in combat with 12 months home.
"In blocking this bipartisan bill, Republicans have once again demonstrated that they are more committed to protecting the president than protecting our troops," said Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid.
Wednesday's vote was the second time in as many months that Webb's bill was sidetracked. In July, a similar measure also fell four votes short of advancing.
Democrats said they were hopeful additional Republicans, wary of the politically unpopular war, would agree this time around to break party ranks. It had already attracted three dozen co-sponsors including Republicans Chuck Hagel of Nebraska, Olympia Snowe of Maine and Gordon Smith of Oregon.
But momentum behind the bill stalled Wednesday after Sen. John Warner, R-Va., announced he decided the consequences would be disastrous. Warner, a former longtime chairman of the Armed Services Committee, had voted in favor of the measure in July but said he changed his mind after talking to senior military officials. Webb later told reporters there was no doubt Warner's opposition threw cold water on the bill.
Hagel, R-Neb., said the White House also "has been very effective at making this a loyalty test for the Republican Party."
Of the 56 senators voting to advance the measure were 49 Democrats, six Republicans and Vermont Independent Bernard Sanders. Voting against it were 43 Republicans and Connecticut Independent Joseph Lieberman. The vote "means Congress will not intervene in the foreseeable future" in the war's execution, Lieberman told reporters.
In coming days, the Senate plans to vote on legislation by Sen. Carl Levin, D-Mich., that would order combat troops home in nine months. Levin, chairman of the Armed Services Committee, said his bill would allow some troops to remain behind to conduct such missions as counterterrorism and training the Iraqis; he estimated the legislation, if enacted, would cut troop levels in Iraq by more than half. The Senate also planned to vote on legislation by Sen. Russ Feingold, D-Wis., and Reid, D-Nev., that would cut off funding for combat next year.
The firm deadlines reflect a shift in strategy for Democrats, who had been pursuing a bipartisan compromise on war legislation. But after last week's testimony by Gen. David Petraeus, the top military commander in Iraq, Democrats calculated not enough Republicans were willing to break party ranks and support more tempered legislation calling for combat to end next summer.
McCain, R-Ariz., the top Republican on the Armed Services Committee and a Vietnam veteran, said Webb's bill was a "backdoor method" by Democrats to force troop withdrawals. "We have a new strategy. We have success on the ground," said McCain. Pulling out troops would spark "chaos and genocide in the region, and we will be back," he said.
McCain offered an alternative resolution that would identify equal deployment and training times as a goal, but would not mandate deployment restrictions. The resolution was aimed at peeling off Republican support and lessening the prospects of passage for Webb's bill. That resolution fell five votes shy of advancing, in a 55-45 vote.
Defense Secretary Robert Gates said he would have recommended that President Bush veto Webb's legislation if it is passed. The bill could force the military to extend tours, rely more heavily on reservists, or not replace units right away, even if they are needed, Gates said.
Webb and his supporters say the bill provides flexibility to avoid those pitfalls, including a presidential waiver if Bush can certify to Congress that ignoring the limitation was necessary to national security.
The goal there was to pin the tail on Bush.
Webb amended the bill, after consultation with Gates, to exempt special operations forces and give the military 120 days to comply.
#1
Keep in mind that, ala WORLDTRIBUNE, the Russ conducted a 48-hour AIREX where simulated Russ ALCMS were fired at US targets, i.e. MULTIPLE US TARGETS INSIDE A MOSTLY PEACETIME AMERICA WITH A VOLUNTEER ARMY. *SUN TZU > teaches that the enemy is not responsible for our strengths or weaknesses, only we are.
#2
Very good! Now the Democratic Congress can 'put up or shut up'. "W" being entrenched as snug as a bug in a rug, calling their bluff! Since the Congress can't end the war by cutting off the funds, they should just throw up their hands, and move on to other legislative topics and hope the American people can hold they're breaths through the long summer next year to redeem them.
The government on Wednesday ruled out the option of setting up permanent military bases in the tribal areas. Some media reports claimed the government was planning to set up permanent military bases in Warsak, Parachinar, Razmak and Samar Bagh. The government is not contemplating any permanent structures for the army in the tribal areas, Interior Ministry spokesman Brig (r) Javed Iqbal Cheema told reporters at a weekly briefing. The government was, however, building the capacity of the Frontier Corps and Frontier Constabulary in the tribal areas as part of a multi-pronged strategy to ensure stability there, he said.
Negotiations underway: He said negotiations were underway with tribal people for the release of abducted soldiers in the Mehsud-dominated areas in South Waziristan. There are encouraging signs the issue will be resolved amicably with the help of tribal elders, and soldiers will be released ... unconditionally at the earliest, he said.
On the recent suicide attack on elite troops in Tarbela, Cheema said investigations indicate the army was targeted. He said investigations were proceeding well, and hoped those responsible for the attack would be apprehended soon. However, no culprit has been arrested so far, he added. Cheema told reporters law enforcement agencies had made headway in investigations into other terrorist and suicide attacks, including the recent suicide-bombings in Islamabad and Rawalpindi.
The spokesman condemned the killing of Maulana Hasan Jan, saying his murder was another grim reminder of the threat militants posed to peace in the country. Cheema also condemned the kidnapping of a local television journalist and promised the matter would be investigated.
Atomic scientist Dr Abdul Qadeer Khan has decided to challenge his detention in the Supreme Court (SC) and has hired two Islamabad-based lawyers to fight his case, Geo news reported on Wednesday.
Quoting a report, the channel said that Dr Khan would directly nominate President Gen Pervez Musharraf in the petition. It said that President Musharraf would be accused of not keeping promises allegedly made to Dr Khan when he (Musharraf) asked him to confess to committing acts of nuclear proliferation on television.
Quoting its sources, the channel said that following intelligence information to the government about Dr Khans likely move, Dr Attaur Rehman, adviser to Prime Minister Shaukat Aziz, called on the scientist at his residence in Islamabads E/7 Sector to convince him not to file the petition.
This article starring:
Dr Abdul Qadeer Khan
Dr Attaur Rehman
Prime Minister Shaukat Aziz
Posted by: Fred ||
09/20/2007 00:00 ||
Comments ||
Link ||
[3 views]
Top|| File under: ISI
#1
Fine - let him out and we can put a decent price on his head. Dead or Alive.
"Shocked to our foundations, sez we. And during holy Ramadan, no less!"
The latest attack on the military men followed a series of attacks launched against the army that has been engaged in a battle, for four years now, with tribal militants, mostly Taliban. The slain soldiers were reportedly severely tortured before being killed, while one was beheaded.
Shocking beyond words: This is shocking beyond words, said Sherry Rehman, the partys central information secretary. We always knew the militants were capable of going to any lengths against the army and the civilians, and the merciless slaughter of the army men confirms our worst fears. This kind of brutality is not countenanced by our state, culture and our religion.
It's pretty common, but not countenanced...
Rehman noted with concern the series of setbacks suffered by the military in the wake of fresh assaults launched on the countrys army by the militants, both inside and outside the tribal areas. It is most disturbing that the Pakistan army, considered to be the best in the world, is under intensive attacks and is being pushed to the corner by militants, she added.
Rehman pointed out that ever since the onset of such attacks that defy the writ of the state, the PPP had been calling for a political as well as security commitment to the cause. There is just no other option. Every civilian and military life is precious, she added. She also said that there was no question of having any second thoughts about the need to eliminate the elements at the root of such terrorist activities, as any leniency towards them was bound to cost the country.
This article starring:
North Waziristan
Pakistan Peoples Party
Sherry Rehman, the partys central information secretary
Posted by: Fred ||
09/20/2007 00:00 ||
Comments ||
Link ||
[4 views]
Top|| File under: Taliban
#1
the Pakistan army, considered to be the best in the world
#2
It is most disturbing that the Pakistan army, considered to be the best in the world, is under intensive attacks and is being pushed to the corner by militants, she added.
Geez, Sherry. Ever think that the people telling you this might be...full of shit? It could be possible...
I don't think the "hearts and minds" wheeze has ever worked. "Grab them by the balls and their hearts and minds will follow" does seem to work. The article adjacent to this one features the Pak Talibs torturing and chopping the heads off their fellow countrymen. When Mr. Ambassador can come up with a method of winning those guys' hearts and minds maybe somebody outside a college will listen to him.
Speaking at the George Washington University, he said lack of education and poverty are primarily responsible for the rise of extremism and terrorism.
The 9-11 hijackers were middle class to upper middle class, many of them engineering students. The most recent plot in Britain featured physicians, one of whom managed to roast himself. Binny, with a fortune reported at one time at $320 million, hasn't seen many welfare checks. Ayman's a physician. The Wazoo headchoppers do feature a fair number of the impoverished and ignorant, but that's because Wazoo is both tribal and deeply Muslim. The poverty is a side effect of the ignorance which the locals consider a virtue. The guys doing the actual leading of the head choppers aren't the poor, however. They're the local holy men, like Mullah Omar, waxing fat off the contributions of the poor and ignorant.
He said Pakistan was investing in those two areas with US support, adding Pakistan would spend $100 million every year for the next 10 years to uplift the tribal areas bordering Afghanistan.
Durrani denied terrorist safe havens on the Pakistani side of the Afghan border but conceded that Al Qaeda and Taliban might be present in the region. He said Afghanistan should improve its governance, reduce the hold of warlords, eliminate corruption and uproot the drug mafia to effectively combat terrorism with Pakistans support. Speaking about last weeks US-Pakistan dialogue in Islamabad, he said both countries had agreed to expand and strengthen our relationship to a point where it can withstand the occasional shock which comes our way.
This article starring:
Mahmud Ali Durrani, Pakistans ambassador to the United States
Posted by: Fred ||
09/20/2007 00:00 ||
Comments ||
Link ||
[4 views]
Top|| File under: al-Qaeda
#1
Force alone will not destroy terrorism
Too right! A successful effort will likely involve high temperature plasma.
#2
FREEREPUBLIC > WHY NOT THE CALIPHATE IN INDONESIA?
Strengthening Islamism in Asia-Pacific 'round 'em pesky regional flanks. Also, WAFF.com > USA, CHINA COMPETE FOR INFLUENCE IN PHILIPPINE MILITARY, OTHER AFFAIRS. And so it begins.
#3
Force alone won't do it. Force must be combined with a policy of moving all tribesmen into monitored reservation areas and the resettlement/exploitation of all tribal lands by agribusiness or as exclusive "nature reserves" ringed by mine-fields. Populations concentrated into reserve areas must then be re-educated, preferably by Mormons/Seventh Day Adventists/EST enthusiasts.
#8
When he's right he's right. Force must be directed properly---the sine qua non of fighting Jihad is a firm grasp of the fact that anybody infected by the Islamic meme is not really human.
Posted by: Redneck Jim ||
09/20/2007 13:35 Comments ||
Top||
#11
OK, so if lack of education and poverty are responsible for extremism and terrorism what is responsible for lack of education and poverty? Hmmm. It wouldn't have anything to do with those schools that only teach the Koran, would it?
Republican presidential candidate Rudy Giuliani urged NATO to admit Australia, India, Israel, Japan and Singapore on Wednesday as part of proposals to combat Islamic extremism.
Speaking to a U.S.-British conservative group in London, Giuliani said Britain and the United States must stand side-by-side in tackling Islamic terrorism.
"This is no time for defeatism and appeasement," he said.
He also ruled out a "pre-determined timetable" for a U.S. pullout from Iraq and said British Prime Minister Gordon Brown was right to reject such a timetable for British forces.
Victory there should depend on reaching a point at which Iraq could be maintained as a U.S. ally "in the terrorist war against us," said Giuliani, Republican frontrunner in the race to succeed George W. Bush in the November 2008 election.
Iraq was part of a much larger war, Giuliani said, urging Washington and London not to be distracted from Afghanistan, where he called for a redoubling of efforts.
Among his proposals for the United States and Britain to take the lead in "winning this war," Giuliani urged the two countries to push for an expansion of NATO into a global body.
"We should open the organization's membership to any willing state that meets basic standards of good governance, military readiness (and) global responsibility, regardless of location," he said.
"I think we should consider countries such as Australia, Singapore, India, Israel, Japan ... and there are probably a whole group of others that we could put on that list," he said.
The defense alliance has expanded in recent years but its current membership is 26 countries in North America and Europe.
Facing increasing war-weariness in the United States, Bush last week ordered gradual troop reductions in Iraq but defied calls for a dramatic change of course.
Giuliani, giving the first "Margaret Thatcher Atlantic Bridge" lecture to an audience that included the former British prime minister, called for an expansion of the U.S. military, saying it had cut back too much after the Cold War.
"We need to add at least 10 new combat brigades, that's probably just the beginning," Giuliani said, adding the United States faced not only Islamic terrorism, but also had to consider the possibility of a "large war with a nation state."
Speaking earlier, Giuliani said the United States should spell out clearly to Iran that it would not allow Tehran to acquire nuclear weapons. Giuliani said he had discussed Iran with Brown, his predecessor Tony Blair and Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert in the past few days.
The West suspects Iran is developing atomic weapons but Tehran says its nuclear program is aimed solely at generating electric power.
"The policy of the United States of America should be very, very clear: we will use any option we believe is in our best interest to stop them from being a nuclear power," Giuliani said
#1
I wouldn't put them in NATO. Those poor countries have done nothing that bad to deserve that. Besides, NATO is no longer an alliance, it is a boy's club.
I would create a new global alliance of like minded democracies and ask them, as well as some eastern Europe countries (like Poland) to join.
#4
Unless Rubi is thinking of using NATO to replace the UN. Ineffectually Lite. It it would at least reduce the number of third world wannabe states in the general assembly. Full flavor, less filling.
#6
This is one of the dumbest proposals I have heard of. Giuliani is not a particularly attractive candidate outside of his response, as mayor, to the attack on NYC. If this is indicative of the level of his thinking about how to conduct the war, he makes Fred or Mitt worthy of a stronger second look.
#8
What Darth said. I'm all for a new treaty organization that would include the countries, plus England, Poland, and maybe a few other eastern European nations.
Maybe we could even throw in a helpful Islamic country. Say, Kurdistan.
Around seven months ago, a draft constitution for the Kurdistan region was made available for discussion, suggestions and amendments. Article seven of this proposed constitution states: This constitution stresses the identification of the majority of Kurdish people as Muslims; thus the Islamic sharia law will be considered as one of the major sources for legislation making.
It is clear to the world that in those countries where sharia law is practised - or simply where groups of Islamic militias operate - freedom of expression, speech and association is under threat, if not totally absent. The rights of non-Islamic religious minorities are invariably violated and women suffer disproportionately.
The implementation of sharia law in Kurdistan would be the start of new bloody chapter in the Islamists' history of inhuman violence against the people, of oppression sanctioned by religious law.
#13
Agree w/ DV, plus check the map; there seems to be a shortage of coastine or even proximity to the Northern Atlantic......(unless the impending global warming and resulting melting of all the ice in the world creates new coastlines and this is then a brilliant move by Rudy the Magnificent).
#14
I suspect Rudy sees Europe as a future battle field in the war on Islam. In that, NATO forces would be appropiate no matter how limp they are today as a fighting force. Also, NATO is active in Afghanistan and hopefully improving as a fighting force. Rudy's inclusion of India and Israel in recognition that these countries have their own wars against Islam, and we (NATO) should be contributing toward their victories, which we are in many ways. Including Japan, Australia, and others (New Zealand, Philipines, South Korea) is a clue to Rudy's understanding that the war on Islam is or should be global.
Currently, much of these efforts are already being done without formal declarations of war, and without these efforts spreading from confined locations (like into Pakistan). Also, the open creation of an operational axis sends Russia, China and lesser pains in the ass a clear message. And finally, this would set the stage for dumping the UN much like the League of Nations was dumped.
I accept those with a problem about Rudy's religious conservatism, but he is a great potential war president. He gets it, and he is a brilliant strategist. He also has a wide trail of tax cuts......brilliant, Spemble, brilliant.
#15
You make a good point, but my gut reaction (and it's just that: a gut reaction) based on reading about the current and past history of the Kurds is that it wouldn't play out that way. The Kurds have been tolerant of the Azeri for a thousand years. Saying that "Islamic sharia law will be considered as one of the major sources for legislation making" could mean they want to be like Iran, or it could mean they want to be like Ireland. I'm guessing it would turn out somewhere in between leaning in the direction of Ireland.
#16
Hmmmmm.... Keep NATO, but form a SEA Treaty Alliance of countries that DON'T PISS US OFF (that much.)
Japan, Singapore, Oz, Nz: in
S. Korea can send an observer until they get their little protest kids under control.
Israel is a Special Alliance.
India is making the right moves, but too early.
#18
We'll have to agree to disagree, Secret Master. Shari'a law is a total deal-breaker and must remain so. Even a whiff of such Islamic bullshit is fatal to authentic liberty and freedom. We have idiotically allowed it to be re-enacted in Afghanistan and Iraq, contrary to our own national security. No country on earth must be permitted to engage in such a wholesale violation of human rights. Shari'a is the handmaiden of Islamic theocracy and therefore verboten in even a minimally civilized world. There must be absolutely no latitude granted on this issue. Excising the cancer of Islam includes cauterizing all traces of shari'a law. Period.
#19
No to New Zealand until they grow up, please. But thinking totally out of the box, how about both Singapore and Taiwan? Two places I would move to in a minute if Mr. Wife got a good transfer offer. ;-)
#21
Bummer, 3dc. But no such move is on offer as far as I'm aware, anyway. Still, in my dreams the cement dust has settled. ;-) (And it would be so much fun to learn Mandarin properly! I found out after a year of slogging that I need to be immersed to master that one.)
#22
Giuliani likely proposed NATO because it's an existing defense organization with established procedures for inter-operability (friendly non-NATO countries already use some of them).
#23
trailing wife, someone so well traveled as yourself would absolutely adore a stint in Taiwan. My six-week sojourn there still rates amongst one of the most vibrant and enjoyable adventures in my entire life. The Taiwanese were some of the most delightful and fun-to-know people that I have ever met.
Anecdote: During my last week in Taoyuansome 40 miles south of TaipeiI had decided to revisit my most favorite restaurant of all. Appropriately enough, named Happy Mouth. The tangerine pork served there is a recipe I still seek to re-create. Their simple omelet of stunningly fresh shrimp, garden peas and egg was a masterpiece. A blind man could order from the menu and do no wrong.
It was my hope that on a weekend they might serve dim-sum. Sadly, my restaurant Chinese is almost entirely restricted to the Cantonese required for ordering yum-cha. In Mandarin, dim sum becomes ~ din shien and so I was reduced to gesticulating like an Italian real estate salesman trying to close a deal.
Just after ordering all of my favorites, I watched a server deliver some dim sum-like items to an adjoining table. I vigorously pointed to the objects of my desire and before the waiter could respond, I found myself invited to the table of my neighbors. Curiously enough, they had ordered all of the same things I had plus a few other delicacies.
Arthur and Ann Yang proceeded tonot only walk me through other delights on offer butinvite me to accompany them on a tour of Taoyuans old-town district, including local Buddhist temples and the ancient woodworking district as well. First, though, I was required to help them taste samples of their prospective wedding cakes. Never have I savored such odd combinations of sweet pastries and sundry ingredients like dried mushrooms or the odd Asian spice.
Still, as we parted ways in Taoyuans old-town, they would not dare to hear of me paying my own bus fare back to my hotel. Rest assured, revenge was mine. Knowing of their impending wedding, I retained enough Taiwanese currency andupon my return statesidesent them, replete with red envelope and all, some $100 DT of Taiwanese currency to celebrate their marriage.
I cannot but think that you would also encounter people of similar quality if you had the good fortune of visiting Taiwan. My memories of Formosa are so dear thateven todayI still feel homesick for that not-at-all-foreign land.
#24
I wish I were as well travelled as you think, Zenster dear. I still haven't been to California, f'r instance. But what a charming story! I hope that once the trailing daughters are away at university, I'll be able to join Mr. Wife on some of his more interesting business trips -- he'll be so busy during the day he won't notice if I toddle off by myself and meet interesting strangers like yours... or the local Rantburgers for tea. ;-)
It will nice to be able to cover longer distances, to haul butt to where troops and supplies are needed, and to go fast enough to make it very difficult to hit with an RPG. With this factored in, it may be safer than any troop-ferrying helicopter out there during combat operations.
But I understand there are some weak areas, like the power shafts to the turboprops and failures in complicated hydraulic lines. Anyone else know anything about this and if they have the problems truly solved yet?
WASHINGTON - The first combat squadron of tilt-rotor V-22 Ospreys has been quietly deployed to Iraq, ushering a new form of aerial technology into 21st Century warfare.
A Marine Corps aviation squadron and 10 Ospreys left for Iraq on Monday aboard the U.S.S. Wasp, a small Navy aircraft carrier known as an amphibious assault ship, said Marine Corps spokesman Maj. Eric Dent.
The departure from the New River Marine Corps Air Station near Jacksonville, N.C., was made under extremely tight security with no advance notice to the news media and no ceremonial speeches by Marine Corps officials. "It was just another workday for the squadron," Dent said.
Marine Medium Tiltrotor Squadron 263, nicknamed "The Thunder Chickens," will be based at the Al Asad Airbase in western Iraq for at least seven months of combat operations. The Marine Corps Ospreys, known as MV-22s, will be used to ferry Marines as well as cargo throughout predominately Sunni Muslim Anbar province. Hopefully the enemy won't hear that nickname. If they do, they better start painting sharks teeth on them or something.
Dent, citing "operational security," offered only limited details about the deployment and said he was not allowed to discuss the timetable of the trip or scheduled arrival in Iraq. The V-22s, which, in military-speak can "self-deploy" into war zones, could conceivably leave the Wasp en route and make the rest of the journey by air.
The deployment marks a long-sought goal after three-decades of tilt-rotor technology that began with the development and flight of Bell Helicopter's XV-15 prototype in the 1970s. Fort Worth -based Bell is manufacturing the Osprey with Boeing Helicopters of Ridley Township, Pa.
The aircraft, which flies like an airplane and lands and takes off like a helicopter, reaches speeds and distances well beyond that of traditional helicopters and is considered far more agile than the aging CH-46 "Sea Knight" helicopters that it s replacing. Can/should they stick a gun out the side like a Huey?
But the Osprey's entry into combat will be under intense scrutiny after years of controversy that included delays, steadily rising costs and two fatal crashes in 2000 that nearly led to the program's cancellation.
Critics say the tilt-rotor concept is still unproven and could endanger the lives of its crewmembers in combat. Nothing is ever proven in combat until you use it so I guess by this logic we will never be able to introduce new equipment. The idea is solid, but the implementation is difficult. It would be interesting to see which aircraft critics would prefer to ride in themselves to fly across Baghdad on a bad day.
Supporters say it is ideal for combat and will enable Marines to get into hot spots faster and more safely.
The aircraft has provided years of employment at Bell's plants in Texas, where about 1,700 employees manufacture major Osprey components at Grand Prairie and Hurst, near Dallas. The aircraft is assembled by up to 800 workers at another Bell plant in Amarillo.
Bell-Boeing spokesman Bob Leder, based in Amarillo, said workers weren't aware that their handiwork was on its way to Iraq until he posted a copy of a Marine Corps Times article about the deployment.
"There was a feeling of great excitement and at the same time we were praying for the safety of all the Marines," Leder said. "It's like 'OK, this is the real thing.'"
Dent said that "just under 100" members of the squadron were deployed along with the aircraft after training for the mission for more than a year.
The Thunder Chickens' 28 pilots, including two women, volunteered and were chosen by a Marine Corps selection board.
The squadron commander is Lt. Col. Paul J. Rock Jr., who has been flying Ospreys since the 1990s. At least a third of the squadron has had previous combat experience in Iraq.
#1
30 years to get this thing working? I know it has been grounded several times for mechanical failure crashes in training - I think I'd rather ride the Sea Knight myself.
#2
From distant memories the problem with the Osprey is that transition from plane to helicopter mode and viceversa is aerodynamically very tricky (ie pray for no sudden wind gust) and the Osprey cannot do any maneuvering during it. Ie it is a sitting duck. In other words it cannot indert troops when there bad guys in the zone.
#3
The deployment marks a long-sought goal after three-decades of tilt-rotor technology that began with the development and flight of Bell Helicopter's XV-15 prototype in the 1970s. Fort Worth -based Bell is manufacturing the Osprey with Boeing Helicopters of Ridley Township, Pa.
Ah..em...
In my photo lib I have versions of this concept got back before WW-II. It has always been a turkey.
#5
JFM,
Actually it is not quite that bad. You can switch to helicopter mode outside of the ZL and then come in like a helicopter, or if wind conditions are right, make the switch high above ground fire and then come down.
The thing you don't want to do is switch modes low to the ground.
Al
Posted by: Frozen Al ||
09/20/2007 10:33 Comments ||
Top||
#6
The thing you don't want to do is switch modes low to the ground.
#9
The props are directly connected to their respective engine; the cross wing torque shaft is to provide power to a prop if / when an engine fails. i think there is limited flight capability on one engine, but due to the diameter of the props, it might be a bit tricky to sucessfully transistion them to some semblence of helicopter mode for the landing, i am picturing a roto-tiller-like event in that instance.
i think a bigger problem is going to be sand intrusion into the complicated fold-by-wire system: the props fold, and the wing pivots over the fuselage for shipboard storage and it is all controlled via the computer.
like an earlier poster said: bring on the Sea Knight.
#10
WHat are the advantages of this thing? You still have to go into Helo-mode to insert. When you're getting people out, won't the thing already be out of the danger zone by the time it elevates and switches back to plane-mode?
If it works, a big if, then it will beahve like a fixed wing except at laning take-off and that means much highrer speed, far less fuel use, a lot more range and higher payload than a helicopter all while being able to land where fixed wing planes can't.
Former PA interior minister and Hamas senior official MP Saaeed Siyam has warned Wednesday Fatah's leadership against harming any Hamas political leaders in Gaza Strip and the West Bank.
He unmasked authenticated reports that Fatah leadership was planning to target Hamas political leaders in a bid to destabilize security condition in Gaza Strip. "A number of those [Fatah] leaders are in Gaza strip and the others are in the West Bank; yet, we want to make it clear for them in both regions that
"The hand of Hamas will reach them in the event they think of committing any foolish acts of this kind."
the hand of Hamas will reach them in the event they think of committing any foolish acts of this kind", Siyam underlined in statement he made Wednesday.
However, the veteran Hamas political leader confirmed his Movement's keenness on holding unconditional inter-Palestinian national dialogue and on preserving unity of the Palestinian land. But he ruled out possible Hamas-Fatah talks before the start of the US-planned "peace conference" this coming autumn, affirming that Hamas Movement had withdrawn the authority it gave to PA chief Mahmoud Abbas to handle political negotiations with the Israeli occupation government. "Hamas will not anymore be bound by any agreement Abbas might sign with the Israelis while the Palestinian arena is drowning in political division", Siyam underscored.
He also unveiled that the legitimate PA caretaker government established the "nucleus" of the new PA national security apparatus comprising 400 elements who formerly worked for the same apparatus under the former unruly set up of the apparatus under Fatah leadership. According to Siyam, the national security apparatus will be under the leadership of former PA security officer Hussien Abu Aathra, and that the apparatus will be in-charge of the borders and crossings.
Yet, he explained that Hamas wasnt keen on controlling those apparatuses, and that the Movement's main objective was to reestablish PA security apparatuses properly based on national and professional basis and away from factional, personal, and external influence. Furthermore, the Hamas political leader reaffirmed his Movement's adherence to the Cairo declaration, national harmony document, and the Makka agreement that were signed between Fatah and Hamas.
For his part, Islam Shahwan, the spokesman of the PA interior ministry's executive force that Siyam founded during his term as an interior minister, affirmed that security condition in Gaza was "calm and under control". He also vehemently denied reports suggesting that a "big" explosion had rocked the executive force headquarters in Gaza city, explaining that the incident was caused by an electric short-circuit. "No one was harmed in the incident as PA civil defense men rushed to the place and put off the fire", Shahwan elaborated.
"Nothing to see here. Move along."
Seconding Siyam's remarks, Shahwan unveiled that his department possesses first-hand information on a group of Fatah leaders planning to sabotage the calm in the Gaza Strip, but he didnt give details on that group, saying that investigation and data gathering were underway.
This article starring:
Hamas
former PA security officer Hussien Abu Aathra
Islam Shahwan
Hamas
PA chief Mahmoud Abbas
Saaeed Siyam
Hamas
Posted by: Fred ||
09/20/2007 11:28 ||
Comments ||
Link ||
[3 views]
Top|| File under: Hamas
Dr. Sami Abu Zuhri, the Hamas spokesman in the Gaza Strip, on Tuesday refuted news reports on contacts between his Movement and the Israeli occupation as sheer lies that target tarnishing Hamas's image.
Abu Zuhri in a press release said that the report was intentionally released to cover up for ongoing political contacts aimed at breeding a new Olso agreement. He was thus referring to PA chief Mahmnoud Abbas's contacts with Israeli premier Ehud Olmert.
He drew the attention to the fact that the "false claim" contradicted the field situation where an IOF preparation for a large-scale invasion of the Strip is underway targeting the Hamas Movement. "Our only dialogue with occupation is resistance", he asserted, adding that Hamas did not object to contacts made by PA government officials to facilitate the crossings issue and to spare those crossings any attacks "to serve our people".
Abu Zuhri pointed out that the IOA was the one refusing any calm and escalating military attacks on the Palestinians. Retorting to the Israeli deputy war minister's condition that called for a period of 15 days to test Hamas's seriousness in having calm, Abu Zuhri said that it was occupation and not Hamas that should stop aggression then speak about a truce.
This article starring:
Hamas
Israeli premier Ehud Olmert
PA chief Mahmnoud Abbas
Sami Abu Zuhri
Hamas
Posted by: Fred ||
09/20/2007 11:27 ||
Comments ||
Link ||
[4 views]
Top|| File under: Hamas
Taher Al-Nuno, the spokesman of the legitimate PA caretaker government, has affirmed Tuesday that any agreement that might result from the US-designed peace conference this coming autumn will not be binding for the Palestinian people.
"Nope. Nope. Don't apply to us."
The clear and sound remarks of Nuno came in the aftermath of the PA caretaker government's weekly session Tuesday where he also accused Israel of blackmailing Palestinian parties to give up Palestinian national constants and legal rights. "The [PA weekly] session discussed a number of crucial matters in the Palestinian arena, including the anticipated visit of US secretary of state Condoleezza Rice to the region that aims at tightening the siege and isolation on Hamas", Nuno furthermore explained.
But he underlined that both the PA caretaker government and the Palestinian resistance factions, including Hamas Movement among other Palestinian resistance factions, will not allow any one to tamper with the national and legal rights of the Palestinian people. He also affirmed that the PA caretaker government was taking the Israeli threats of invading the Gaza Strip seriously; underlining that the government was taking all possible security measures and military preparedness to repel any IOF military adventure into Gaza.
Furthermore, the PA official deprecated what he described as "repressive measures" taken by the PA security apparatuses in the West Bank under PA chief Mahmoud Abbas against Hamas cadres, political leaders, and social welfare charities.
He also flayed decision of the "unconstitutional" PA government in Ramallah city under Salam Fayyadh of cutting salaries of the PLC deputies, describing such decision as "an attempt to strangle the PA legislature", and to "destroy the Palestinian political system".
This article starring:
PA chief Mahmoud Abbas
Salam Fayyadh
Taher Al-Nuno
Hamas
US secretary of state Condoleezza Rice
Posted by: Fred ||
09/20/2007 11:26 ||
Comments ||
Link ||
[3 views]
Top|| File under: Hamas
The government of Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas has frozen the salaries of leading parliamentarians from the militant Hamas, including the deposed Prime Minister, as a warning not to "conduct illegal activities," government officials said on Wednesday.
The 21 parliamentarians are prominent Hamas members from the Gaza Strip, including ousted premier Ismail Haniyeh, and senior hardline Hamas member, Mahmoud Zahar. They did not receive their usual $3,000 (2,196) monthly salary at the end of August, although legislators from Abbas' Fatah were paid.
Less-prominent figures among Hamas' 74 lawmakers - including the group's three women delegates in the Gaza Strip - also received their paychecks.
Posted by: Fred ||
09/20/2007 00:00 ||
Comments ||
Link ||
[4 views]
Top|| File under: Hamas
In the first confirmation that Israel operated over Syria two weeks ago, opposition leader and former prime minister Binyamin Netanyahu said Wednesday that he congratulated Prime Minister Ehud Olmert following the alleged airstrike of a nuclear installation in northern Syria on September 6.
Israel has officially maintained a policy of silence on the incident and until now the only statement issued by the IDF was that "we do not respond to these types of reports." Netanyahu's announcement that he congratulated Olmert was the first confirmation that Israel had operated in Syria.
Speaking during a live interview on Channel 1 news, Netanyahu said that he was "part of the matter from the beginning" and that he knew to separate matters of national security from politics. Asked if he was concerned about Olmert's rise in the polls in the wake of the incident, Netanyahu said: "When we are dealing with matters of national security, I know how to give my support."
Also on Wednesday, exactly two weeks after IAF planes allegedly infiltrated Syrian airspace and bombed a nuclear installation raising concerns of war, the IDF resumed training on the Golan Heights on Wednesday in a massive display of infantry and armored forces.
Hundreds of armored vehicles and thousands of soldiers participated in the three-day exercise which was scheduled to be completed on Thursday. The exercise saw the implementation of a wide-range of lessons learned from the failures of the Second Lebanon War and involved infantry units, armored forces, the Engineering Corps and the Air Force.
Ahead of the exercise, the IDF Foreign Liaison Office in the Northern Command asked the United Nations Disengagement Observer Force (UNDOF) deployed in on both sides of the Israeli-Syrian border to update Damascus about the upcoming exercise. The officials explained that UNDOF was regularly updated about large-scale IDF training exercises in the Golan Heights and asked to relay "calming" messages to the Syrian military.
Lt.-Col. Ronen Morali, deputy commander of the Givati Brigade, told reporters that the exercise was the culmination of a long training period which has prepared his soldiers for "any challenge ahead."
Elsewhere, a day after a paratrooper was killed in clashes with Palestinian terrorists, IDF troops continued to clamp down on the Nablus camp of Ein Bet Ilmeh, killing one wanted terrorist and arresting 13 more.
The operation in the Nablus camp began early Tuesday morning when soldiers swept into the town with the goal of dismantling a joint Hamas-Popular Front of the Liberation of Palestine (PFLP) terror infrastructure that is in the midst of planning terror attacks against Israeli cities. IDF officers from the Central Command said the operation would continue.
"We intend to operate inside the camp until we achieve our goals and the threat is neutralized," an officer explained.
Palestinians said that Adib Salim Damoni, a 38-year-old handicapped man, was standing unarmed at a window of his home at the Ein Bet Ilmeh camp near Nablus when a bullet hit him in the neck. The IDF said that soldiers opened fire at an armed gunman.
On Tuesday, St.-Sgt. Ben-Zion Henman, from the Paratrooper Brigade's elite Reconnaissance Battalion, was killed during heavy clashes in the Nablus camp. Henman, 22 and from the community of Nov in the southern Golan Heights, sustained a severe bullet wound that penetrated the seam of his flak jacket and entered his chest. He was laid to rest late Tuesday night in the Hispin cemetery.
On Wednesday, the Haruv Battalion and the Paratrooper Brigade's Reconnaissance Battalion continued operating in the camp in search of wanted terrorists and terror infrastructure. The soldiers, who were supported by Special Forces and border policemen, discovered several hidden bomb caches inside terrorist homes and underneath their beds.
Posted by: Fred ||
09/20/2007 00:00 ||
Comments ||
Link ||
[8 views]
Top|| File under: Govt of Syria
#1
Great, wonderful, Pass the cigars around, high fives all; Netanyahu is my hero...Ahhh Bibi, please keep an eye on my favorite nuke plant Dimona, keep her safe and warm; and the jets on 'ready five', thanks!
#2
I wonder if the Women's Studies Department and the GBLT group will protest his speech?
Absolutely spot on, Cyber Sarge! Liberal enchantment with Islam has to be one of the most parasitic and suicidal relationships in history.
The FBI needs to identify and monitor every single person who applauds this Islamic cockroach. It is revolting beyond measure to know that this genocidal scumbag will be applauded but I would not bet a plug nickel against it. More than anything, it goes to demonstrate just how far the liberals in America have descended that they wouldand I cannot but know they willapplaud someone who is the embodiment of evil on this earth. I can only hope that the ADL (Anti-Defamation League) will be there to greet him. It sickens me to have such confidence that Columbia will allow no such thing. How far we have fallen. Our only saving grace is that we would have to freefall another decade or century to remotely approach the level of cretinism that Islam so proudly lays claim to.
#3
I wonder if the Women's Studies Department and the GBLT group will protest his speech?
Absolutely spot on, Cyber Sarge! Liberal enchantment with Islam has to be one of the most parasitic and suicidal relationships in history.
The FBI needs to identify and monitor every single person who applauds this Islamic cockroach. It is revolting beyond measure to know that this genocidal scumbag will be applauded but I would not bet a plug nickel against it. More than anything, it goes to demonstrate just how far the liberals in America have descended that they wouldand I cannot but know they willapplaud someone who is the embodiment of evil on this earth.
Tehran, 20 Sept. (AKI) - A research centre run by the office of the president of Iran has released a 15-page document in which they define President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad as the "Socrates of the Third Millenium". Uhhh... the "Third Millenium" since when, Dinner Jacket?
The document has been released just days before Ahmadinejad is due to visit New York. The Iranian president will arrive in the city on Sunday to address the United Nations General Assembly. In the document, various speeches and letters written by the Iranian president are analysed and it concludes that "Ahmadinejad reasons and discusses exactly as Socrates did in ancient Greece, by disarming other speakers and through his sharp reasoning."
"It's mainly the irony used by the president in his dialogue with foreigners," said the document refering to letters Ahmadinejad had written to Pope Benedict XVI, US president George Bush and German president Angela Merkel.
Just ahead of Ahmadinejad's visit to New York, the president's cultural advisor, Javad Shamaghdari said that the Iranian government is willing to collaborate with the American director Oliver Stone to make a documentary on the Iranian president. Ahmadinejad had initially rejected a request to do the project by the Oscar-winning director.
"Oliver Stone should visit Iran and familiarise himself with the reality of the country, before beginning his documentary of Ahmadinejad," said Shamaghdari.
In July, another advisor to the president, Mehdi Kalhor , told the media that Ahmadinejad had refused the offer by Oliver Stone "even though the director is considered to be against the current US president."
"The West shows a distorted image of Iranian culture" and a documentary done by Stone could offer the public something different," said Shamaghdari. Oliver Stone has already done documentaries about Fidel Castro and the Israeli-Palestine conflict.
Also ahead of Ahmadinejad's visit to New York, the authorities in the city turned down a request by the president's office to visit Ground Zero, the site of the 9/11 terrorist attacks in the city. New York police said his request was rejected on security grounds as well as because construction is taking place at the site.
Ahmadinejad's plan to visit Ground Zero angered critics who were outraged by the idea that the leader of a country Washington considers a state sponsor of terrorism, would visit a "hallowed" ground.
#5
Actually, the first millenium of the Christian or Common Era ended on 31. December, 1000 A.D. (or 999, if you are so inclined). The second millenium started 1. January, 1001 AD (or 1000, ditto), and the third millenium on 1. January, 2001 A.D. (or 2000, let's not get into that argument again). It's the same as counting the centuries -- we're now in the 21st century, not the 20th.
Which doesn't make poor President Ahmadinejad anything like Socrates. Besides speaking the wrong language, he doesn't ask nearly enough questions.
NEW YORK Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad asked permission to lay a wreath at the World Trade Center site when he comes to New York City next week, but the request was denied, a police official said Wednesday.
The Iranian president, who is arriving Sunday to address the United Nations' General Assembly, had asked the police department, the U.S. Secret Service and the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey earlier this month for permission to visit the site of the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks, police spokesman Paul Browne said.
The request to enter the fenced-in site was rejected because of ongoing construction there, Browne said. "Requests for the Iranian president to visit the immediate area would also be opposed by the NYPD on security grounds," Browne said.
It wasn't clear whether Ahmadinejad wanted to descend to the base of the trade center site, where the fallen twin towers stood, or lay a wreath on a public sidewalk outside the site. Telephone calls to the Iranian Mission to the United Nations were not immediately returned.
Kelly earlier said he did not know why Ahmadinejad expressed interest in the site. "I am not sure we have the rationale behind it," he said. One can only imagine. I imagine he will later say how the Jooos kept him from paying his respects to the infidels, pigs, and dogs who died when Bushhitler crashed the planes into his own towers to have an excuse to invade Mooselimbs.
White House spokesman Gordon Johndroe said Wednesday that an Ahmadinejad visit to Ground Zero "is a matter for the city of New York, but it seems more than odd that the president of a country that is a state sponsor of terror would visit Ground Zero."
In a television appearance earlier this week, Ahmadinejad said his country wanted peace and friendship with the United States, despite mounting tensions between the two countries.
Posted by: Bobby ||
09/20/2007 07:03 ||
Comments ||
Link ||
[9 views]
Top|| File under:
#1
More from the New York Times He is expected to arrive in New York on Sunday, address the United Nations on Monday, and leave the city on Wednesday morning, Mr. Kelly said. Mr. Ahmadinejad is also scheduled to speak at Columbia University on Monday. Lee C. Bollinger, the president of Columbia, said yesterday that Mr. Ahmadinejad would speak at a World Leaders Forum, but that strict conditions had been set.
A year ago, after he was invited to address the same Columbia forum he is scheduled to attend on Monday, Mr. Ahmadinejads invitation was withdrawn.
Posted by: Bobby ||
09/20/2007 7:42 Comments ||
Top||
#2
If he wants to shed tears for the senseless destruction of human life by evil people, take him to the Holocaust Museum instead.
#5
Well that didn't work try cut and paste.
'Iranian president intends to visit Ground Zero'
http://abclocal.go.com/wabc/story?section=local&id=5665164
Laura Ingraham
Sean Hannity
Hugh Hewitt
Dennis Miller
and
Giuliani's Campaign
"
I was wondering about the visit Iranian dictator, and nut case Ahmadnejad wanted to make to ground zero. In my mind such a visit, owing to his statements, is an affront to decency and most offensive. What folks in New York could do is - protest - surround the site, and deny him any access... I see on Drudge where he insists on going. Well if I were a New Yorker I might just do what I could to stop him from setting foot on, in a National sense, sacred ground.... A memorial site that such garbage as Ahmadnejad shouldn't be allowed anywhere near...
ATLANTA (AP) - Former President Jimmy Carter said Wednesday that it was almost inconceivable that Iran would "commit suicide" by launching missiles at Israel.
Speaking at Emory University, Carter, who brokered the 1979 Camp David peace accord between Israel and Egypt, said Israel's superior military power and distance from Iran likely are enough to discourage an actual attack.
"Iran is quite distant from Israel," said Carter, 83. "I think it would be almost inconceivable that Iran would commit suicide by launching one or two missiles of any kind against the nation of Israel."
Iran's deputy air force commander said Wednesday that Israel is within range of Iran's medium-range missiles and bombers and that Tehran would strike back if Israel "makes a silly mistake."
The White House said the comments almost sound geared toward provoking a fight and Israeli officials said they take the threats seriously.
Carter did not dismiss the idea that Iran might want to attack Israel, noting Iran's refusal to suspend uranium enrichment production despite two United Nations resolutions imposing sanctions on the country. Tehran insists its nuclear program is aimed at producing energy for civilian use but the U.S., its European allies and many others fear the program's real aim is to produce nuclear weapons.
"Obviously, we all hope we can do whatever we can to keep Iran from becoming a nuclear power," Carter said.
Carter said unease between Israel and Palestinians in Gaza and the West Bank is a far greater threat to Israel's security than Iran. He criticized the Bush administration for not doing enough to broker peace in the region.
#2
"I think it would be almost inconceivable that Iran would commit suicide by launching one or two missiles of any kind against the nation of Israel."
Lebanon's Maronite Bishops on Wednesday stressed that all MPs should take part in a parliamentary session to elect a new president, noting that boycotting such a duty is tantamount to boycotting the nation. "It is the duty of the honorable MPs to attend the election session in order to shoulder their responsibilities towards their homeland and their citizens. Refraining in this domain is tantamount to boycotting the homeland," the bishops said in a statement after their monthly meeting under Patriarch Nasrallah Sfeir (picture right) .
The meeting, originally scheduled for the first Wednesday of each month, was postponed due to Sfeir's visit to the Vatican earlier this month.
Posted by: Fred ||
09/20/2007 00:00 ||
Comments ||
Link ||
[9 views]
Top|| File under: Hezbollah
Lebanon's Prime Minister Fouad Siniora met Saudia Arabia's King Abdullah Bin Abdel Aziz at the seaside palace in Jeddah at 10:30 PM Tuesday September 18 , hours after arriving into this Red Sea city. Siniora was accompanied by 2 of his advisers Mohammad Shatah and Roula Nour Eddine during the meeting The Saudi ambassador to Lebanon Abdul Aziz Khojeh and Saudi Minister of State for the Shoura council accompanied the Saudi king .
Posted by: Fred ||
09/20/2007 00:00 ||
Comments ||
Link ||
[8 views]
Top|| File under: Hezbollah
#1
I'm just waiting for the senorita to start crying over the humanity in the lost of his government's members, by the pro-Syrian assassins praised by Assad! Lebanese life taking is only horrific if it's at the hands of the Israelis, I guess.
A powerful bomb killed a pro-government lawmaker and six others Wednesday in a Christian neighborhood of Beirut, threatening to derail Parliament's already deeply divided effort to elect Lebanon's next president in voting due to start in days. Antoine Ghanem, a 64-year-old member of the right-wing Christian Phalange party, was the eighth anti-Syrian figure and fourth lawmaker from the majority assassinated since 2005, reducing the ruling coalition's margin in Parliament.
Members of the coalition held Syria responsible for Ghanem's death, which came only two days after he returned to Lebanon from the safety of abroad. Damascus denied the accusations of involvement, as it has done for each of the past seven assassinations.
Security officials said 67 people were wounded in Wednesday's blast, half of which have left the hospital. The explosion occurred at rush hour on a busy street in the Sin el-Fil district, severely damaging nearby buildings, setting several cars on fire and leaving the street littered with blood and debris. Bystanders watched in shock as ambulances and civil defense workers searched for victims. Explosive experts were seen sifting through the engine of Ghanem's car, which was blown at least 50 meters (165 feet) by the force of the explosion. A security official said the bomb was likely detonated by remote control near Ghanem's car.
"I have never seen a more cowardly regime than that of Bashar Assad's," said lawmaker Saad Hariri, blaming the Syrian president for Ghanem's death. Hariri heads the anti-Syrian majority in Parliament, a role he stepped into after his father, former Prime Minister Rafik Hariri, was killed by car bomb in 2005.
Cabinet member Ahmed Fatfat also blamed Syria for the attack, saying Damascus wanted to derail recent efforts by majority and opposition leaders to begin presidential elections on Sept. 25. "It is the only regime that does not want presidential elections in Lebanon to be held," Fatfat told The Associated Press.
Pro-Syrian President Emile Lahoud also implied Ghanem's death was meant to undermine the upcoming elections, saying "it is no coincidence that whenever there are positive signs" that someone is killed.
Syria was quick to condemn the attack, which it said aimed at sabotaging efforts by the Lebanese people to reach agreement. "This criminal act aims at undermining efforts paid by Syria and others to achieve Lebanese national accord," Syria's state-run news agency SANA quoted an anonymous Syrian official as saying.
The assassination of anti-Syrian figures began in 2005 with the death of Hariri, the former prime minister. Hariri's death sparked massive protests that helped bring an end to Syria's nearly 30-year domination of Lebanon. Damascus was forced to withdraw its troops from Lebanon in 2005, and a government led by anti-Syrian politicians was elected. Since then, the government of U.S.-backed Prime Minister Fuad Saniora has been locked in a power struggle with the opposition, led by Syria's ally Hizbullah. Government supporters have accused Syria of seeking to end Saniora's slim majority in parliament by killing off lawmakers in his coalition.
After the assassination of Lebanese Parliament member Walid Eido in June, many majority legislators had to leave the country to spend the summer abroad for security reasons. Others who stayed in Lebanon took extra security.
Ghanem was traveling Wednesday in a car with regular license plates, his blue plate hidden in the trunk, apparently as a security measure. Cabinet member Fatfat told the AP that Ghanem returned two days ago from abroad where he had been taking refuge for the past two months. Antoine Andraos, another colleague of Ghanem, said Ghanem called him this afternoon asking for a bulletproof car, a TV station linked to Hariri reported.
According to security officials, a landmark hotel near the Parliament building in downtown Beirut has been rented for majority members to protect them during the 60-day presidential election process, which begins Tuesday.
Wednesday's bombing heightens tensions before the presidential vote that already threatens to throw the country into deeper turmoil. Many fear divisions over the presidency could lead to the creation of two rival governments, a grim reminder of the last two years of the 1975-90 civil war when army units loyal to competing administrations battled it out.
Lahoud is due to step down from the presidency by Nov. 23, and government supporters see the vote as the opportunity to put one of their own in the post. Hizbullah and its allies have vowed to block any candidate they don't approve of - and they can do so by boycotting the vote, preventing the necessary two-thirds quorum. If no candidate is agreed on by the time Lahoud steps down, Saniora and his Cabinet would automatically take on executive powers. If that happens, opposition supporters have said Lahoud might appoint a second government, a step many fear would break up the country. With Ghanem's death, Saniora supporters hold 68 of parliament's 128 seats, compared to the opposition's 59.
Posted by: Fred ||
09/20/2007 00:00 ||
Comments ||
Link ||
[7 views]
Top|| File under: Govt of Syria
Yale Law School will end its policy of not working with military recruiters following a court ruling this week that jeopardized about $300 million in federal funding, school officials said Wednesday.
Yale and other universities had objected to the Pentagon's "don't ask, don't tell" policy that allows gay men and women to serve in the military only if they keep their sexual orientation to themselves. Yale Law School had refused to assist military recruiters because the Pentagon wouldn't sign a nondiscrimination pledge. Ah, the Pentagon didn't enact "Don't ask", it was Congress that wrote that into law. Shouldn't Yale be protesting them instead, or and I using logic again?
The 2nd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals ruled against Yale on Monday, rejecting its argument that its right to academic freedom was infringed by federal law that says universities must give the military the same access as other job recruiters or forfeit federal money. "The fact is we have been forced under enormous pressure to acquiescence in a policy that we believe is deeply offensive and harmful to our students," said Robert Burt, a Yale law professor who was lead plaintiff in the case. The funding loss would have devastated the university's medical research into cancer, heart disease and other illnesses, Burt said.
Pretty much would have shut the medical school and all the biological and physical sciences departments down. Funding from NIH and NSF is what keeps the doors open at the big 50 medical schools.
Yale Law Dean Harold Koh said in a news release Wednesday that he was disappointed by the appeals court decision, saying the school has an obligation to "ameliorate the impact" of discriminatory hiring practices. "We intend to meet this obligation and will work alongside our students to identify the best ways of doing so, in accordance with the law," Koh said. "We continue to look forward to the day when all members of our community will have an equal opportunity to serve in our nation's armed forces." Koh did not immediately respond to calls seeking additional comment.
Jan Conroy, a Yale Law spokeswoman, said the school would waive the requirement that military recruiters sign the nondiscrimination pledge. The Air Force already has asked to participate in a job interview program that starts Monday, she said.
The 2nd Circuit decision followed the U.S. Supreme Court's unanimous ruling last year that the government can force colleges to open their campuses to military recruiters. The justices rejected a free-speech challenge from law schools and professors who claimed they should not have to associate with military recruiters or promote their campus appearances.
Posted by: Gary and the Samoyeds ||
09/20/2007 00:00 ||
Comments ||
Link ||
[3 views]
Top|| File under:
#1
Money before principle Yale? I'm shocked, shocked I say to discover the real issue here. Federal welfare for the academically self-centered gifted.
#5
Yale = whiney dirtbags. If you dont like the rule, do without the money. Have the courage of your convictions. And its not like they don't have a metric assload of rich alumni to draw on.
#7
Well...if the faculty was truly that worked up about the eeeeevilllll military types setting foot on their precious campus, they could just do their part to make up the funding shortfall by donating their salaries to Yale and working for free.
#8
I wish the government had the balls to say, "Mmm, thanks. We have changed our minds and we won't be putting recruiters in your pitiful school and we are with holding the money anyway. Just 'cuz you suck."
#9
"The fact is we have been forced under enormous pressure to acquiescence in a policy that we believe is deeply offensive and harmful to our students,"
But everyone has their price. And, for us, that appears to be 300 Million...
A multi-volume chronology and reference guide set detailing three years of the Mexican Drug War between 2010 and 2012.
Rantburg.com and borderlandbeat.com correspondent and author Chris Covert presents his first non-fiction work detailing
the drug and gang related violence in Mexico.
Chris gives us Mexican press dispatches of drug and gang war violence
over three years, presented in a multi volume set intended to chronicle the death, violence and mayhem which has
dominated Mexico for six years.
Rantburg was assembled from recycled algorithms in the United States of America. No
trees were destroyed in the production of this weblog. We did hurt some, though. Sorry.
The Afghan public health minister announced that the campaign in four southern provinces will continue for two days to eliminate the virus which still exists but with very few cases in Afghanistan. The campaign is being undertaken in Helmand, Uruzgan, Farah and Kandahar provinces. A similar two-day campaign will also be kicked off on September 24 in three eastern provinces: Kunar, Nangarhar and Laghman. Both the south and east are among the most volatile zones of Afghanistan.
Taliban fighters carrying machine guns and rocket-propelled grenades used children as human shields during a battle in southern Afghanistan on Wednesday, a tactic that forced US-led coalition soldiers to hold their fire, the coalition said. 
Reporters Without Borders is dismayed by the Casablanca appeal court's 18 September 2007 decision to uphold a prison sentence for reporter Mostapha Hurmatallah of the Arabic-language weekly "Al Watan Al An", one week after he was freed pending the outcome of his appeal. "This ruling marks the end of the relative respite the Moroccan press has been enjoying of late," the press freedom organisation said. "Whatever the result of the petition that will now be made to the court of final appeal, Morocco is now clearly on a dangerous slope."
Atomic scientist 
Dr. 
The government of Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas has frozen the salaries of leading parliamentarians from the militant Hamas, including the deposed Prime Minister, as a warning not to "conduct illegal activities," government officials said on Wednesday. 
In the first confirmation that Israel operated over Syria two weeks ago, opposition leader and former prime minister Binyamin Netanyahu said Wednesday that he congratulated Prime Minister Ehud Olmert following the alleged airstrike of a nuclear installation in northern Syria on September 6. 
The Iranian president, who is arriving Sunday to address the United Nations' General Assembly, had asked the police department, the U.S. Secret Service and the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey earlier this month for permission to visit the site of the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks, police spokesman Paul Browne said.
White House spokesman Gordon Johndroe said Wednesday that an Ahmadinejad visit to Ground Zero "is a matter for the city of New York, but it seems more than odd that the president of a country that is a state sponsor of terror would visit Ground Zero."
ATLANTA (AP) - Former President Jimmy Carter said Wednesday that it was almost inconceivable that Iran would "commit suicide" by launching missiles at Israel. 
"Iran is quite distant from Israel," said Carter, 83. "I think it would be almost inconceivable that Iran would commit suicide by launching one or two missiles of any kind against the nation of Israel." 
"I have never seen a more cowardly regime than that of Bashar Assad's," said lawmaker Saad Hariri, blaming the Syrian president for Ghanem's death. Hariri heads the anti-Syrian majority in Parliament, a role he stepped into after his father, former Prime Minister Rafik Hariri, was killed by car bomb in 2005. 
Pro-Syrian President Emile Lahoud also implied Ghanem's death was meant to undermine the upcoming elections, saying "it is no coincidence that whenever there are positive signs" that someone is killed. 
