[Tolo News] Criticising foreigners, President Karzai wants to put the blame on international community for his own failures, Dr Abdullah said on Wednesday.
Abdullah, leader of Change and Hope coalition, said President Karzai has consistently violated the laws.
He said Karzai violated the constitution when he extended his presidential term, now in election laws and in some cases he even violated Afghan laws concerning cabinet ministers.
So when the President himself uses law as a tool to fulfill his desires, then the ground is prepared for interventions in the Afghan laws, he said.
"Every time the constitution has been violated by President's Office," Abdullah said.
In a way President Hamid Maybe I'll join the Taliban Karzai wants to put the responsibility for his own failure on foreigners, he said.
"Unfortunately Mr Karzai, considering the fact that he has come short to fulfill his responsibilities towards people, sees blaming foreigners as the only way out," he said.
Law experts said President Karzai is obliged to oversee constitution implementation and prevent foreigners's interference.
Head of Afghanistan Defence Lawyers' Association, Rohullah Qarizada, told TOLOnews: "If our own institutions do not violate the law , foreigners do not ever dare to interfere in law implementation,"
Afghan analysts said a number of officials close to President Karzai show unnecessary interest to foreigners, which paves the way for intervention.
Posted by: Fred ||
01/06/2011 00:00 ||
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[Tolo News] Analysts said on Wednesday that presence of acting ministers in Karzai's cabinet gives rise to questions about the current government.
Analysts believe that this totally showcases Karzai government's weakness.
Currently there are seven acting ministers in Karzai's cabinet including health and higher education ministries.
It has been a year since President Karzai took office for the second time, but still his cabinet hasn't been completed.
Last year Afghan House of Representatives approved acting ministers' law to prevent acting ministers from continuing their role, but it didn't work.
They said President Karzai has acted against the acting ministers' law and appointed Mr Sarwar Danish and Dawood Ali Najafi as acting ministers for higher education and transport.
Acting ministers' law says candidate ministers should not be re-introduced to parliament for the same positions and the period of an acting minister is one month.
But even after Mohammad Ismail Khan and Sarwar Danish failed to win confidence vote, they were appointed as acting ministers in water and energy and higher education ministries.
"Officials do not follow the constitution and all the cabinet ministers act under the will of the President," Faizullah Jalal, an Afghan lecturer, told TOLOnews.
Acting Ministers in Karzai's cabinet are as follows:
1- Public Health Acting Minister, Suraya Dalil
2- Higher Education Acting Minister, Mohammad Sarwar Danish
3- Water and Energy Acting Minister, Mohammad Ismail Khan
4- Transportation and Aviation Minister, Dawood Ali Najafi
[Tolo News] After an official said President Karzai stalls military operations against the Taliban, Isaf forces strongly reacted against the comments.
In an interview with TOLOnews, General Josef Blotz Isaf's Spokesperson highlighted that there is no reason to downturn military offensives against the Taliban, but much more pressures needed to be applied on them.
Blotz said Afghan government should have an initiative in talks with the Taliban, and it should be the Taliban to renounce violence and lay down arms.
Isaf declined to have any sort of information about pressures on counter-insurgency operations applied by President Karzai.
Blotz said the operations will not decrease at any cost.
"We believe strongly that it is very important to keep the pressure on the Taliban, because we started to have success, started to make progress by putting pressure on the insurgency. So we must not now rot it down and remove the pressure in order to facilitate whatever negotiations, Blotz said.
He said social economic reasons make the Islamic fascistijoin the Taliban side and carry out attacks against Afghan and foreign forces.
"The majority of the Islamic fascistichoose the wrong side, because of social economic reasons. They are not, I would say, Islamic fascistiof very strong convictions, so it's not a monolithic bloc we are seeing; it is more a syndicate of different groups with different motivations and different aims and goals," he said.
A top Afghan official had told TOLOnews on condition of anonymity that it has been times President Karzai has been preventing troops from launching military operations against the Taliban.
But Karzai's Spokesperson underlined that the President is only against offensives that claim lives of civilians, conducted without coordination and operations that can damage the Afghan grinding of the peace processor.
Posted by: Fred ||
01/06/2011 00:00 ||
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John I was in Vietnam, you know Kerry, ... the Senate's current foreign policy expert, filling the empty wingtips of Joe Biden... the US senator for Massachusetts, has called comments by Sudan's president on the country's upcoming referendum on southern succession "extremely encouraging" during a visit to Khartoum, the Sudanese capital.
Omar al-Bashir Head of the National Congress Party. He came to power in 1989 when he, as a brigadier in the Sudanese army, led a group of officers in a bloodless military coup that ousted the government of Prime Minister Sadiq al-Mahdi and eventually appointed himself president. Omar's peculiar talent lies in starting conflict. He has fallen out with his Islamic mentor, Hasan al-Turabi, tried to impose shariah on the Christian and animist south, resulting in its imminent secessesion, and attempted to Arabize Darfur by unleashing the barbaric Janjaweed on it. Sudan's potential prosperity has been pissed away in warfare that has left as many as 400,000 people dead and 2.5 million displaced. Omar has been indicted for genocide by the International Criminal Court but nothing is expected to come of it. pledged last week to help build a stable and "brotherly" southern state if it votes for independence on January 9.
The president echoed those comments on Tuesday when he visited the southern capital of Juba, saying he would celebrate the results of the referendum even if the south chooses to secede.
Kerry, who is chairman of the Senate foreign relations committee, is one of a number of international envoys who are in the country ahead of the referendum which could see Sudan's south establish itself as an independent nation.
"The speech by President Bashir here [in Khartoum, on December 31], as well as his comments in Juba yesterday are extremely encouraging," Kerry told news hounds following a meeting with Ghazi Salaheddine, an influential presidential adviser, on Wednesday.
"They're very positive, very constructive, and I think it sets a good stage for the events that begin in the next days."
Posted by: Fred ||
01/06/2011 00:00 ||
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#1
I see little positive from our end. I want this to work. Too bad WE are not serious about it.
[Asharq al-Aswat] The protection of places of worship in Egypt is the responsibility of the government, an Egyptian minister said Wednesday, ruling out foreign security for Coptic Christians attacked this week.
A New Year's Day attack on a Copt church in Egypt that killed 21 people has raised alarm about the safety of Christians in the Middle East with calls for Europe to come up with a coordinated response.
"We will not allow any foreign party to protect the Copts in Egypt because that would infringe on the exclusive responsibility of our government," Egyptian Foreign Minister Ahmed Aboul Gheit said during a visit to Morocco.
Egypt is on high alert Monday ahead of the Coptic Christmas on January 7.
"The places of worship in Europe, the churches as well as the mosques, are also concerned about the question of protection," the minister said at a presser with his Moroccan counterpart, Taieb Fassi Fihri.
French Foreign Minister Michele Alliot-Marie on Tuesday called on Europe to come up with a coordinated response to attacks on the Middle East's Christians, including asylum but also ways for people "to stay in their homes".
The Egyptian minister, visiting Morocco as part of a regional tour, said investigations were still under way to find out who was responsible for the New Year's Day attack, which also maimed 79 people.
Posted by: Fred ||
01/06/2011 00:00 ||
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[Asharq al-Aswat] In the weeks before the New Year's Day suicide kaboom of an Egyptian church, al-Qaeda-linked websites carried a how-to manual on "destroying the cross," complete with videos on how to build a bomb and the locations of churches to target -- including the one that was attacked.
They may have found a receptive audience in Alexandria, where increasingly radicalized Islamic hard-liners have been holding weekly anti-Christian demonstrations, filled with venomous slogans against the minority community.
The blast, which struck Saturday as worshippers were leaving midnight Mass at the Mediterranean city's Saints Church, killed 21 people.
geriatric President Hosni Mubarak has accused foreign groups of being behind the attack, which has sparked a wave of angry protests by Christians in Egypt.
But on the ground, Sherlocks are searching in a different direction -- scrutinizing homegrown hard-liners, known as Salafis, and the possibility they were inspired by al-Qaeda.
Only two or three days before Saturday's bombing, police jugged several Salafis spreading fliers in Alexandria calling for violence against Christians, a security official said. He spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to talk to the media.
According to authorities, the strong belief among Sherlocks is that local Death Eaters who knew the area and the nature of their target were behind the blast. The Egyptian weekly Al-Youm Al-Saba said police were examining photos of the Salafis' weekly protests for suspects.
In the weeks before the attack, al-Qaeda snuffies on the Web spewing calls for "jihad," or holy war, on Egypt's Christians laid out everything anyone would need to carry out a bombing.
One widely circulated posting includes a so-called "Jihadi Encyclopedia for the Destruction of the Cross," with a series of 10 videos describing how to build a bomb.
In the videos, an unidentified Islamic myrmidon in a white lab coat and a black mask is shown listing the ingredients to make TNT and mixing up the chemicals in beakers.
The site lists Coptic Christian churches in Egypt, along with phone numbers and addresses -- including Alexandria's Saints Church. "Blow up the churches while they are celebrating Christmas or any other time when the churches are packed," it says.
Security officials say they were aware of the online "how-to manual" before the church bombing and are examining any links between it and the material posted on Islamic websites.
One main Salafi group, the Salafi Movement in Alexandria, issued a statement condemning the bombing, saying its preachings "reject such practices."
The ultra-conservative Salafi ideology has been gaining followers throughout Egypt in recent years, preaching a return to the ways of early Mohammedans. It calls for strict segregation of the sexes and rejection of any religious "innovations," such as permitting boys and girls to attend school together or collecting interest on bank loans.
The movement has spread across class lines, among wealthy businessmen, the middle class and urban poor. Men grow long beards and shave off mustaches, to imitate the Prophet Muhammad. Women wear the black niqab robes and veil, which envelop the entire body and face, showing only the eyes.
In many ways, it resembles the doctrine of al-Qaeda, with one major difference -- while it advocates jihad against "foreign occupiers" in Iraq or Afghanistan, it rejects holy war inside Egypt, at least for now.
But many observers warn that some members are growing more radicalized and have begun to advocate jihad within the country, providing fertile ground for al-Qaeda influence.
They cite the group's unprecedentedly fierce campaign against Egypt's Coptic Christian Church.
It was sparked by the case of two Christian women who reportedly converted to Islam to get divorces from their husbands, since the church bans divorce. The Salafis accuse church officials of forcing the women to renounce Islam and return to Christianity, a claim the church denies.
At weekly protests attended by hundreds outside mosques in Alexandria and Cairo, Salafis have accused the church of holding the women against their will. Vowing vengeance and denouncing Coptic Pope Shenouda III as an "infidel," the protesters accused Copts of trying to "Christianize" Egypt's Mohammedans and stockpiling weapons in churches and monasteries.
In September, one Salafi holy man, Ahmed Farid, wept as he told worshippers at an Alexandria mosque that Mohammedans were being "humiliated" by Christians, chiding them for "giving up jihad."
At a Salafi protest in Cairo in October, some raised the flag of al-Qaeda in Iraq -- a black banner emblazoned with the phrase "there is no god but God and Muhammad is God's prophet."
Two days later, al-Qaeda in Iraq attacked a church in Storied Baghdad in a siege that left 68 Christians dead, the worst attack ever against Iraq's Christian minority. The group issued a statement vowing a campaign against Christians unless the two women in Egypt were freed, and several other attacks on the community in Storied Baghdad have followed.
Since then, calls on al-Qaeda-linked websites for attacks on Egypt's Christians have grown to a fever pitch.
A statement posted with the videos decries the failure of Mohammedans to act to free the two women.
"Will we keep on dreaming and dreaming, or is it time to wake up to the echoing boom and the flying torn limbs that will please the faithful and scare the infidels?" the statement reads. "Of course, it is better to act as a group, but that must not be an impediment between you and action. ... Move forward on your own."
Continued on Page 49
Posted by: Fred ||
01/06/2011 00:00 ||
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#1
I like the fact that the MAC address will match somewhere, and so will fingerprints.
Train stations across London have been put on high alert amid fears of a terrorist attack on transport hubs.
British Transport Police cancelled leave and called in extra officers after intelligence was received that terrorists could be planning attacks.
A security source said there was no “imminent” threat and the overall threat level had not changed but there was activity from one of a “handful” of extremist cells that cause concern at any time, leading to an adjustment in policing levels.
It is understood that “intelligence chatter” suggested that transport hubs in London could be a target.
It was unclear last night whether the terrorists were discussing suicide bomb attacks, or Mumbai-style shootings, or a combination of methods.
A Whitehall source said: "The assessment of the threat to transport hubs has been revised. The view is that there is a greater risk than before, so steps are being taken as a precaution."
South Korea's special forces have dwindled to the point that they are outnumbered 10:1 by their North Korean counterparts, a military source said Wednesday.
The source said the South is trying to find a way of countering the 200,000-strong North Korean special forces "because we found a serious imbalance in their strength in the process of re-evaluating threats from the North" following the sinking of the Navy corvette Cheonan in March and the shelling of Yeonpyeong Island in November.
The North has increased special forces by 80,000 to 200,000 over the past four years. By contrast, the number of the South Korean special forces stands at fewer than 20,000.
Under a troop reduction plan during the Roh Moo-hyun administration, one of the Army's three Special Assault Commandos that are responsible for responding to North Korea's infiltration from the rear has already been disbanded. Each commando has about 1,200 troops.
Over the past years, the North has focused on boosting light infantry units capable of infiltrating rapidly into the South through the frontline area. The South should have reinforced these special elite units to deal with the threat but has instead reduced them.
The Army's Special Warfare Command, whose main duties are to infiltrate into the rear area and destroy strategic targets in the North in an emergency, has about 10,000 troops.
South Korea's special forces units include the SACs, the SWC, the Navy UDT/SEAL, the Marine Corps' special search team, and the Air Force's combat controllers. At least 1,000 SWC troops are always on standby for dispatch abroad and therefore exempt from basic duties.
Recognizing the seriousness of the matter, not only has the military been reviewing it, but a presidential defense committee has proposed boosting special forces. But no concrete plans have been presented yet.
"The times demand that we boost special forces to cope with new security threats such as terrorist threats, as well as threats from the North's special troops," a government source said. "Top military brass need to try harder to work out a response as soon as possible."
Posted by: Steve White ||
01/06/2011 00:00 ||
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#1
Does anyone think those 200,000 troops are as competent or more competent than (for instance) ROK marines?
#3
The North Korean Special Forces are like the former Iraqi Republican Guards - slightly better trained, better housed, better equipped, and better fed than the line troops. They are NOT SOCOM material, or the functional equivalent of the USMC or the ROK Marines. Just because a communist nation calls their troops Special Forces does not make them Special Forces. Besides which, does anyone believe that with a population 1/15 of the US that North Korea could have an actual SOCOM force of 200,000? We cannot get that many Special Forces troops with our large population and military budget.
#4
ION PEOPLES DAILY > [old]REPORT: CHINA SHIFTING NUCLEAR RULES OF ENGAGEMENT. Preemptive Nuc Strike option as preceded by intitial Conventional forces warning.
* SAME > THE LOST JAPAN MUST LOOK BEYOND ALLIANCE, as per wid ROK. TOKYO must completely change or reconsider its views on CHINA.
* SAME > CHINA HAS PLANS FOR FIVE AIRCRAFT CARRIERS.
#5
Bizarre military drill by semi-naked soldiers
Half dressed and screaming, members of the South Korean Special Forces brave bitterly icy waters in a test of strength and endurance.
#7
Know your enemy. The "Special Forces" of NKor are mainly there as the most loyal troops, and their primary duty is to maintain control of the country, and to be able to put down any military uprisings by the regular forces -- which Shieldwolf points out, was the same role the RG held for Saddam in Iraq. There do exist in this group, in limited numbers, some "Commando" types, a few thousand that that approximate Marines in terms of discpline and amphib training, and a smaller number that approximate Army Rangers in terms of unconventional insertion training. Very few of them are trained and equipped to western "Special Forces" standards, and probably only a handful even come close to the level of SAS, Green Berets or SEALs.
So make no mistake about it - these "special" forces are special mainly in their loyalty to the Government. For this, they get better food, housing and newer equipment, and they are nearly completely isolated from any contact with normal North Korean society and economy. They still cannot afford the ammunition, fuel and other supplies to train properly.
#8
South Korea might be wise to make sure there are no stockpiles of food, weapons or ammo too close to the border that would be useful to invading Norks.
South Korea might be wise to make sure there are no stockpiles of food, weapons or ammo too close to the border that would be useful to invading Norks.
Or they could plant stockpiles of food and clothing in the most likely paths in order to stall the offense while the troops loot.
Posted by: Rob Crawford ||
01/06/2011 15:42 Comments ||
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#10
#9 - Contaminate the food stockpiles with a strong, long-lasting cathartic & the invasion will end rather abruptly.
North Korea says it wants to reduce tensions on the Korean Peninsula by holding what it calls "unconditional and early" talks with the South. Running out of tree bark and grass soup?
North Korea's government, political parties and social organizations issued a statement carried by the official news media Wednesday, saying they are ready to meet "anyone anywhere" for dialogue on the future of inter-Korean relations. "Just buy us dinner!"
But South Korean officials dealing with the North were dismissive of the offer, saying they want actions, not words from Pyongyang. "If we buy you dinner, how do we know you'll put out afterwards?"
"Sir! We are a lady! You should know by now we never put out!"
"Missle tease!"
In his New year's address to the nation Monday, South Korean President Lee Myung-bak said Seoul is open to dialogue, but that it will respond sternly to any new provocation from Pyongyang.
The United States also called on North Korea to demonstrate it is serious about wanting to resume dialogue with South Korea and other parties in nuclear disarmament talks. State Department spokesman Philip Crowley reiterated Wednesday that Pyongyang must commit to stopping what he called "provocations" and agree to carry out its obligation from a 2005 denuclearization agreement.
Posted by: Steve White ||
01/06/2011 00:00 ||
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#1
Unconditional? How about, "If you guys kill off Kim Jong Il and his spawn, we'll buy everyone an extra big bowl of rice for lunch!"
#2
"Moose, you've got something there, offer 50 Pounds of rice to each and every NORK who Leaves and comes south,
The country will collapse in a month.
Posted by: Redneck Jim ||
01/06/2011 13:25 Comments ||
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[Chosun Ilbo] The Chinese ambassador to South Korea was highly critical of North Korea's botched currency reform at the end of 2009, calling it a "mistake" that risked "further alienating the populace," according to confidential diplomatic cable revealed by WikiLeaks. Cheng Yonghua told U.S. Ambassador to South Korea Kathleen Stephens over dinner that the North "would be much better off today if it had followed China's path to reform."
Chen "commented that being behind the times had historical roots for Korea. He noted wryly that 100 years after the Qing Dynasty had supplanted the Ming, Korea insisted on sending its tributes to the Ming Court and clinging to Ming customs and traditions." He said that as a small nation, "the Korean response when confronted with a rapidly changing environment was to hunker down out of fear that it would cease to exist if it succumbed to change."
Cheng, currently ambassador to Japan, had dinner with Stephens on Dec. 21, 2009. The currency reform, he said, was "ill-advised attempt to reassert the regime's control over the economy." He added he personally believes that when ordinary people start to earn money "it is very difficult to put the genie back in the bottle."
Political Counselor at the Chinese Embassy in Seoul Chen Hai, who was present at the dinner, "cited a conversation about trade deficits between Vice Foreign Minister Wu Dawei and [North Korean] First Vice Foreign Minister Kang Sok-ju in which Kang... appeared to have no grasp of the concept of a trade deficit," according to the cable.
Posted by: Fred ||
01/06/2011 00:00 ||
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According to passenger accounts in the media, the attempted hijacking began shortly before the Boeing 737 plane was going to land in Istanbul on Wednesday. The masked suspect, later identified in news reports as 40-year-old Yasar Cuma or Cuma Yasar, claimed to be holding a bomb (later found to be fake) and tried to break into the cockpit, demanding that the plane return to its originating point in Oslo, Norway. Good thing for him he wasn't heading to the US or he would have been caught by the TSA. As soon as the plane entered US airspace.
Picture of the rather wobbly would-be terrorist at link.
Serdar Tatar, one of five foreign-born Muslim men who were convicted of a terrorist plot to attack Fort Dix, has filed a federal lawsuit claiming his civil rights have been violated at the Federal Detention Center in Philadelphia. He filed the amended complaint Tuesday in U.S. District Court and seeks damages. Warden Troy Levi and other administrators and staff at the detention center are named as defendants.
Tatar is serving a 33 years at a federal penitentiary in Tucson for his role in the Fort Dix terror plot. He and his four co-defendants have appealed their convictions and sentences.
In his complaint, Tatar alleges he was treated unfairly while being held at the Philadelphia center. He claims he was "malnourished," and lost more than 40 pounds and suffered "mental anguish and pain" from his hunger.
This malnutrition gambit came up previously during their trial when one of the co-defendants, speaking on behalf of the group, asked the judge if they could get more food for lunch because they were so famished that they could not focus on the trial testimony.
Tatar, in his amended complaint, says detention center staff did not protect him after he reported a "very heated" verbal altercation with his cellmate co-defendant Dritan Duka in February 2008. Tatar alleges that Duka threatened harm, but that prison staff left the two together in their cell for 23 hours a day. He claims Duka attacked and wounded him a month later.
The complaint also alleges Tatar was forced to strip naked twice in front of a video camera for no reason, causing him emotional distress.
#1
I always considered myself a fairly compassionate person. I find it amazing how much I DON'T CARE what horrors have befallen this, no doubt stellar, example of Muslim victimhood.
Posted by: Alan Cramer ||
01/06/2011 13:58 Comments ||
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#2
From dreams of jihadi glory and eternal sex with clueless women to PMITA federal prison. Sucks to be you, dude! But consider, O Lion of Islam, that everything which transpires is the will of Allah. Maybe this is your punishment for being such a ...umm, what's the Islamic term for asshat?
#8
Serdar Tatar, one of five foreign-born Muslim men who were convicted of a terrorist plot to attack Fort Dix, has filed a federal lawsuit claiming his civil rights have been violated at the Federal Detention Center in Philadelphia.
The Taliban issued a statement this week saying that Senator Lindsey Graham has proven the U.S. is trying to colonize the Near East nation.
In its statement issued Tuesday the Taliban reacted to comments made by Graham during an appearance on "Meet the Press."
Graham said putting U.S. air bases in Afghanistan, at the request of Afghanistan, would be "enormously beneficial to the region."
"We have had air bases all over the world. A couple of air bases in Afghanistan would allow the Afghan security forces an edge against the Taliban in perpetuity. It would be a signal to Pakistan, the Taliban are never going to come back in Afghanistan that it could change their behavior," he said. "It would be a signal to the whole region that Afghanistan is going to be a new and different place."
In a harshly worded message, which called Graham out by name, the Taliban group said that the senator's remarks "reveal the colonialist intentions of America" under the guise of the war on terror.
"Such remarks by a well-known official of invading America clearly shows that the war on terrorism has been a drama, produced by Washington," said the Voice of Jihad.
The Taliban Voice of Jihad Online also claimed the U.S. wishes to "loot" the nation of its resources in order to take advantage of the shift in industrial development from the West to Asia and called attacks on civilian sites like markets and mosques "conspiracies by the invading America."
"They only carry out raids on people's homes like thieves during the night and martyr innocent Afghans," the declaration says in a appeal for cash and support.
NATO has "lost the ability to confront the mojahedin in broad daylight," it added.
Graham responded that the Taliban is grasping at straws because the Afghanis realize they are better off now than under the Taliban.
"The overwhelming majority of Afghans have no desire to return to Taliban control. Taliban control represented one of the darkest periods in Afghan history," Graham told Fox News. "It is my desire to have an enduring relationship with the Afghan people that would be mutually beneficial to both countries."
[Arab News] The governor of Pakistain's wealthiest and most populous province was rubbed out in the capital Tuesday by one of his own guards, who later told interrogators that he was angry about the politician's stance against the country's blasphemy law, officials said.
The attacker, Malik Mumtaz Qadri from Elite Force of Punjab, shot up the governor at Kohsar Market in Islamabad where Taseer went for lunch with friends.
An intelligence official interrogating Qadri said the commando boasted about the liquidation, saying he was proud to have killed a blasphemer. Qadri, 26, pumped nine bullets into Taseer, hitting him in chest and face.
Interior Minister Rehman Malik said seven people were jugged for investigation. He said security was being beefed up around Christian localities across the country.
"We will see whether it was an individual act or weather someone had asked him to do it," said Malik. "It was one shot first and then a burst. I think nine or 10 shots," said R.A. Khan, a witness. "I rushed over and saw coppers pinning down another police commando, who was lying on road with his face down."
Five other people were maimed as other security personnel responded to the attack.
Taseer's funeral prayer would be offered on Wednesday at the Governor House in Lahore.
Taseer was a member of Pakistain People's Party (PPP) and a close associate of President Asif Ali President Ten Percent Zardari ... husband of the late Benazir Bhutto, who showed remarkably little curiosity about who actually done her in ... . In recent days, as the PPP has faced the loss of its coalition partners, the 56-year-old Taseer insisted that the government would survive. It was his very public stance against the blasphemy law that apparently led to his killing.
Pakistain's blasphemy law has come under greater scrutiny in recent weeks after a Christian woman, Aasia Bibi, was sentenced to death for allegedly insulting Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him). The law effectively prescribes death for anyone convicted of insulting Islam.
During a recent interview with Arab News, Taseer said: "I do not have the authority to remit the death sentence ... she (Aasia) has filed a mercy petition addressed to the president and I will send her petition to the president with favorable recommendation."
Shahbaz Bhatti, minister for minority affairs, said Pakistain's religious minorities would join the PPP in two-week mourning for Taseer.
Taseer, son of a poet, Muhammad Din Taseer, and nephew of legendary poet Faiz Ahmad Faiz, was born in Lahore. He went to the city's St. Anthony's School and Government College and then to London School of Economics. In 1977, he joined Tehrik-e-Istiqlal and in 1979, after Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto's execution, he joined the PPP.
All politicians including Zardari, Prime Minister Yousaf Raza Gilani, Muttahida Qaumi Movement leader Altaf Hussain, Pakistain Mohammedan League (Nawaz) leader Nawaz Sharif ... served two non-consecutive terms as prime minister, heads the Pakistain Müslim League (Nawaz). Noted for his spectacular corruption, the 1998 Pak nuclear test, border war with India, and for being tossed by General Musharraf... Punjab Chief Minister Shahbaz Sharif and Information Minister Fauzia Wahab, condemned the liquidation. Gilani announced a three-day period of national mourning and ordered flags lowered to half-mast.
Meanwhile, ...back at the ranch... Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam chief Fazlur Rahman, who is currently in Madinah, said that in a country where there are courts, legislative assemblies and other organs of a democratic state, nobody should take the law into their own hands. "I condemn it. I am a political worker and believe in democracy. Any act that derails the political system is not in the interest of Pakistain," he said.
Rahman said there is extremism on both sides. "There are some people in Pakistain who in their quest to please the West describe jihad -- which is a just struggle -- as terrorism. Parliament should enact laws that leave no room for anybody to violate the principles of Islam," he said.
Riyadh-based Pak national Faiz Al-Najdi said he was shocked by the killing. "I condemn this ghastly incident and I believe this should be condemned by all. Pakistain is visibly in the grip of anarchy. Such incidents surely bring a bad name to the people and the country. It is needless to underscore here that violence breeds violence and it would only put the country on the path of anarchy. And, I believe ultimately this would lead to Pakistain's destruction." He said the killing indicates that the security apparatus in the country has been penetrated by the Islamic myrmidon elements who have been indoctrinated to resort to violence. "In my opinion, it is about time the security forces in the country take stock of such situation."
In 1981, Taseer married Amna Haq. Taseer is survived by seven children.
Posted by: Fred ||
01/06/2011 00:00 ||
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#1
Next time, if you want bodyguards, hire Koreans or some other foreigners who are very hard to touch, take their jobs very seriously, and whose family would lose much face if you got killed. And pay them well and on time.
#3
No need for shock or even mild surprise. Like Benazir Bhutto's assassination, something like this was easy to foresee. Expect nothing less from such a hive of scum and villainy.
[Dawn] The Elite Force guard who bumped off Punjab Governor Salman Taseer is said to be associated with 'Dawat-i-Islami', a non-political and non-violent religious group with Barelvi leaning.
Wikipedia-- well-known authority on everything, which they sometimes get right -- has something to say about Barelvis, who by current evidence appear to have developed more violent political opinions recently.
This was disclosed by a colleague of Mumtaz Qadri, the self confessed assassin.
Qadri, 26, son of Malik Bashir, joined Punjab police and got Elite Force training in 2006-7. He was posted to the Elite Force wing in Rawalpindi in 2008.
Qadri, who has five brothers and four sisters, got married three years ago and his first child, a son, was born four months ago.
A police officer said Qadri had been assigned guard duty with Mr Taseer during the governor's visits to Islamabad and once with Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani.
On Tuesday, Qadri left the Police Lines at around 7.30am to report for duty. Police took his five brothers and father into custody from their house soon after he had confessed to the crime.
In addition, 25 coppers and a muharar of Elite Force who had prepared the list of personnel, including Qadri, for duty during the governor's visit were also taken into custody and shifted to Islamabad for investigation.
Investigators also confiscated the cellphones of the security personnel deployed for the governor's security.
A police party went to the house of Qadri in Mohammedan Town late in the night and found some religious books in his room.
The room was sealed after the search. A group of women who had come to visit Qadri's wife after coming to know about the crime committed by him told this news hound that the man said his prayers regularly.
At this point in the narrative, that would seem not to be A Good Thing, actually.
But they could not meet his wife because police had locked the house. A number of people were gathered outside the triple-storey house.
Posted by: Fred ||
01/06/2011 00:00 ||
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[Dawn] Hundreds of Fezbook Facebook users welcomed the killing of liberal Pak politician Salman Taseer as a strike against reformers of the country's tight blasphemy laws.
The Punjab governor was shot on Tuesday by one of his guards, 26-year-old Mumtaz Qadri, who confessed to the murder because of Taseer's vocal opposition to the law that was recently used to sentence a Christian woman to death.
Analysts say the liquidation underscores how deeply religious extremism has penetrated Pakistain's conservative society, with even the Internet-literate elite resorting to Facebook to rally support for the killer.
Nearly 2,000 Fezbook Facebook users joined one group on the social networking site praising Qadri, and dozens of "fans" joined other pages set up in Qadri's honour in the hours after the shooting.
All the pages had been removed by Wednesday. Fezbook Facebook was not immediately reachable for comment.
But other private account holders used their Fezbook Facebook status updates to make comments such as: "We salute you Mumtaz Qadri," "thank God he (Taseer) is not alive (any) more" and praise for the attacker as "a soldier of Islam".
In a sign of mainstream media opposition, Pakistain's leading Urdu-language newspaper, Jang, ran a front-page story declaring: "There should be no funeral for Salman Taseer and no condemnation for his death."
"A supporter of a blasphemer is also a blasphemer," said a sub-heading, reporting that 500 religious scholars and holy mans had paid tribute to Qadri.
But voices also came out to denounce the gunman, and Fezbook Facebook page named "I Hate Malik Mumtaz Hussain Qadri" had 70 "fans" with no comments or discussions.
Those Fezbook Facebook users who spoke out in support of the politician expressed sadness over the growing Islamisation of the country.
"Sad over Death of Tolerance in Pakistain. Governor Punjab killed by his 'lunatic guard,'" said one man on his status.
"Pretext: Late Governor Salman Taseer was bold enough to stand-up against Blasphemy law... extensively used/abused against religious minorities," he added.
"It is sad. I shiver thinking where we are heading and in which society my kids will live their lives," said another.
Police investigations are focusing on whether the bearded police commando acted alone or as part of a wider conspiracy.
A lawyer from Islamabad's high court, Farooq Sulehria, told AFP that the assassin would find no shortage of support.
"We will provide all legal support to Mumtaz Hussain Qadri, we will fight for him in the court," said Sulehria.
Posted by: Fred ||
01/06/2011 00:00 ||
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(KUNA) -- The gory murder of Pakistains largest province Punjab Governor, Salman Taseer, on Tuesday has opened a debate here that as to how o tackle the growing extremism, fundamentalism and intolerance in the society. It has triggered a wave of anger and disbelief across the country.
Salman Taseer was bumped off by one of his own official security guards, who later told media that he killed him for supporting change in the Blasphemy law. "He had called blasphemy law a black law", said the killer, who surrendered himself to the police after killing the Governor.
The killer, being identified as Mumtaz Abdul Qadir, emptied two full magazines of his official semi-automatic Kalashnikov rifle into the Governor. The killer showed no signs of regret and he was as calm as any normal person could.
"This indicates how dangerously radicalisation has crept from our society into the security forces as well", said a local psychologist, Rizwana Aslam, while talking to KUNA.
The murder has opened a debate among the scholars, policy makers and the government, equally, as to how to tackle the growing extremism and fundamentalism in the society.
"It is very dreadful that the Governor was murdered not by any outsider rather his own security guard", opined a political analyst, Dr. Javed Makhdoom. The extremism has infiltrated into the security apparatus as well, he said.
Dr. Khamdi, a leading religious scholar, emphasized on the need of opening the society to the freedom of reasoning and questioning.
Almost all newspapers here on Wednesday were filled with the need of change in the education system. "Everyone should have a right to question any notion", said Waqas Nasir, a young political scientist with strong religious background. If I, he said, question the logic of a certain law, which is related to religion, then it does not make me a kafir. He added that Governor Salman has been punished for questioning the logic.
Governor Salman Taseer had opposed Pakistains controversial Blasphemy law and been supporting amendments in it ever since a Christian woman, Aasia Bibi, was sentenced to death by a local district court for allegedly committing blasphemy. The Governor had said that Aasia Bibi, should be granted presidential pardon.
His comments drew criticism from the religious circles and few announced death money on his head. On 31th December, he had written on Twitter "I was under huge pressure 2 cow down b4 rightest pressure on blasphemy. Refused. Even if I'm the last man standing." Only few hours before his murder, the Governor met with Federal Information Minister and sought the ministrys assistance in conveying his right message on the subject.
The death of Governor Salman Taseer has been termed has a great loss for Pakistain. The government has announced three days of mourning and the National flag will remain at half mast.
Posted by: Fred ||
01/06/2011 00:00 ||
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#1
Huh. I thought the only debate was how fast to surrender to the "extremists".
Posted by: Alan Cramer ||
01/06/2011 14:45 Comments ||
Top||
[Dawn] Sherry Rehman, Pakistain People's Party MNA and an advocate of the rights of women and minorities, said Mr Taseer's liquidation "represents a terrible loss to the progressive forces in Pakistain".
She said: "It is also a clear signal to the state that some serious thought, planning and resources need to go into facing this threat to the state and nation".
"It is a very tragic incident and I grieve with Mr Taseer's family at the loss," she added.
Posted by: Fred ||
01/06/2011 00:00 ||
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[Ennahar] Iraqi Shiite catspaw radical leader Moqtada Sadr returned in Iran on Wednesday after four years out of his country, an official of his movement said under cover of anonymity. Not exactly a triumphal return...
"It happened around 3:00 p.m. (12:00 GMT) with several leaders of his movement," the official said. "This is not just a visit. He will remain in Najaf," the Shiite holy city, 160 km south of Baghdad. Just remember Mookie, we have an eye on you. It's just overhead...
He said Moqtada Sadr had left Iraq in late 2006. He lived in Iran in recent months.
Moqtada Sadr, arch enemy of the Americans, still enjoys strong popularity among some segments of the Shiite population. The ones influenced by Iran...
He has long led the Mahdi Army, a militia created in 2003, which was once considered the most powerful in Iraq with 60,000 troops. Sorta like how Saddam once had the most powerful military in Iraq...
Moqtada Sadr had announced in late August 2008 the end of his military operations. After his 'army' got their hind ends kicked by the Americans, and fled ran away crying "please don't kill us!"
Posted by: Fred ||
01/06/2011 00:00 ||
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#1
Tator Tot, run away.
Too many high powered rifles even for you. The old days have slipped away, and the new days just begun.
This will be not your average fight with Iraqis and Americans, You have another opponent far worse for you this time.
[Arab News] Iran's new foreign minister is pushing to cement ties with neighboring Iraq Wednesday at a time when American troops are preparing to go home and Tehran's influence is on the rise. Did he bring Tater along in his entourage?
Officials from around the Middle East have been streaming into Iraq since the new government was sworn in last month, nine months after an inconclusive election that led to prolonged political wrangling. Iranian Foreign Minister Ali Akbar Salehi's visit came a few days after Jordan and Egypt sent senior delegations.
Iraq's neighbors are racing to try to regain their influence in Iraq, partly to counter Iran's rising power. Iraq and Iran were long bitter rivals, especially under Saddam Hussein's Sunni-dominated regime, and fought a brutal eight year war in the 1980s, which killed hundreds of thousands on both sides.
Relations improved dramatically with the overthrow of Saddam's regime and the installation of a new government. Iran is one of Iraq's largest trading partners, and millions of Iranian pilgrims travel to Iraq yearly.
At a joint presser with his Iraqi counterpart, Salehi said his country was looking forward to boosting relations in all fields with the new Iraqi government.
Iraqi Foreign Minister Hoshyar Zebari said the two sides discussed "in detail" an Iranian opposition group that Iran wants expelled from Iraq. His comments suggested Iraq may finally be ready to tackle an issue that has long angered Iran.
"Our constitution doesn't allow any gang on our land that launches attacks and assaults against neighboring countries," Zebari said. "We are determined to deal with this issue and there were some good suggestions to put an end to it," he added, without elaborating.
The group -- known as the Mujahedeen-e-Khalq -- fought alongside Saddam during his 1980s war with Iran and once launched hit-and-run attacks inside Iran. Many of the group's supporters live in a camp north of Storied Baghdad that used to be protected by American troops but is now encircled by Iraqi forces.
The improvement in ties with Iran has come at the same time that relations have soured with Iraq's mostly Sunni Arab neighbors.
Most Arab governments sent diplomats here following Saddam's fall in 2003 but did not cultivate high-level relations to avoid the appearance of endorsing the US military occupation of an Arab country.
But as of early 2006, many softened their stance under strong US pressure, reopened their embassies and started to bolster trade and political relations.
About 50,000 American troops remain in Iraq and are mainly focused on assisting and training Iraqi security forces before their scheduled pullout from the country by the end of this year.
In other news, police said a roadside kaboom hit a bus Wednesday carrying Iranians to the city of Samarra, 60 miles (95 kilometers) north of Storied Baghdad, wounding four people. The police spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to speak to the media.
Militants intent on toppling Iraq's government have often targeted Iranians visiting Iraqi religious sites.
Posted by: Fred ||
01/06/2011 00:00 ||
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#1
You had better believe they funded and brought Tater. You better believe that the political ambiance is Shia, and if around the corner you see a man with an umbrella, you know the time is up.
Check the money flow in Iraq, that will clear things up as the markets blossom.
[Arab News] Rioters in the town of Maan in southern Jordan set fire to government buildings and police cars on Tuesday in a protest against the killing of two men this week, prompting the government to send security forces to the area to restore order.
Witnesses said hundreds of rioters angry at the authorities' failure to arrest the culprits behind Monday's killings spilled on to the streets of the desert town, setting a court building alight and damaging businesses.
"They hurled stones and burnt tires in the main streets of the city. Other groups of rampaging masked youths burnt the local court," said one witness, Ibrahim Kreishan.
Security officials confirmed troubles had erupted and tear gas was used to disperse hundreds of people who had attacked government property and damaged private shops.
Residents said the unrest followed the funeral of two workers from prominent tribes who were believed killed in a labor dispute on Monday by Bedouins from the powerful Hwaitat tribe.
They said Hwaitat tribe members were angered that rival tribes from the city of Maan were employed in their hometown in Shidiya, nearly 70 km (45 miles) south of Maan, to build a multi-million dollar water project.
Most of the businesses attacked in Maan on Tuesday belonged to members of the Hwaitat tribe.
Maan is a tribal stronghold of over 40,000 people about 250 km (156 miles) south of the capital Amman, which is known for its defiance of central authority.
The impoverished city has the been scene of violent civil unrest in recent years and Mohammedan fundamentalists have long been active among its residents, many of whom carry weapons and have resisted pressure to disarm.
Inter-tribal violence has been on the rise in Jordan where tribes, who are the original inhabitants of the country, form the backbone of support for the Hashemite dynasty.
In 2009 the kingdom suffered its worst economic performance since an economic crisis in 1989 when it was forced to seek help from the International Monetary Fund.
The downturn is making it more difficult for the state to satisfy demands of Jordanians for state jobs as proceeds from foreign aid and tax revenues have shrunk, analysts say.
Posted by: Fred ||
01/06/2011 00:00 ||
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#1
Jordan, the TRUE Palestine.
There is more to this than reported.
#2
The downturn is making it more difficult for the state to satisfy demands of Jordanians for state jobs...
An equitable solution would be to have the Hwaitaties rebuild all the stuff they just destroyed. It's what they call a "Stimulus" in the US. How do you say Shovel Ready in Arabic?
[Ma'an] Paleostinian Authority security services released Wednesday the director of Mohammad Dahlan's office in Ramallah, following his detention five days earlier.
Mu'taz Khuder was nabbed in the course of an investigation by the Fatah Central Committee, the ruling party's top body, into the actions of Dahlan.
While officials have remained tight lipped over the content of the investigation, reports in the Israeli press said it hinged on accusations that Dahlan had attempted to assemble a private militia in the West Bank.
Posted by: Fred ||
01/06/2011 00:00 ||
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[Ma'an] Former US Attorney General William Ramsey Clark said Wednesday that what he witnessed in Gazoo was "far beyond expecations."
Clark said the trip had been tough and the journey exhausting. He waited for several hours at Cairo airport before he crossing to the blockaded coastal enclave by land at Rafah, he said. And boy were his arms tired...
In a joint presser with the Gazoo government's Prime Minister Isma'il Haniyeh, Clark called for an end to the violations of Paleostinians' rights and said support should be given for the establishment of a Paleostinian state.
The former US official urged Arab leaders to initiate an end to Israel's siege of Gazoo by making transit through the Rafah crossing on the Gazoo-Egypt border as easy as possible.
"This country must be open to the world. The international community in general and the Arab world in particular must take the first step."
Clark promised to help efforts to reconcile Hamas, always the voice of sweet reason, and Fatah, and urged the parties to prioritize national interests and end their rivalry.
"You can make that decision, and we hope to see Paleostine united and independent." You'll be a long time dead before that happens, Ramsey.
Asked about his motivation to visit Gazoo, he said he came to show solidarity and to see first-hand the destruction wrought on the Strip by Israel's December 2008 offensive. ...and my attention whoredom needed a recharge.
"What I saw was far beyond expectations," he said.
Haniyeh thanked Clark for his visit, and asked him to encourage other international dignitaries and heads of state to travel to the Strip. Ramsey Clark on line two, sir.
Who? Oh, him. I could've sworn he was dead.
Should I put him through?
Nah...
The Gazoo prime minister reiterated Clark's call for an end to the siege, and said Paleostinians would remain steadfast.
The Hamas premier called for Washington to stop employing double-standards in the region.
Clark was Attorney General under US President Lyndon Johnson in the 1960s, and later went on to represent former Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussein and Serbian leader Slobodan Milosevic. Both were charged with war crimes. Yeah, Ramsey's first order of business with his clients should be to help them write a will, because, guys, I'm really not a very good lawyer. They'll save you a seat in hell...
Posted by: Fred ||
01/06/2011 00:00 ||
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#1
Ramsey is still alive?
What sort of deal did he make with the devil to remain corporeal?
Posted by: Water Modem ||
01/06/2011 1:17 Comments ||
Top||
#2
TOPIX > ISRAEL: WE WILL KEEP GAZA ON BRINK OF ECONOMIC COLLAPSE.
versus
* SAME > LEIBERMEN: PEACE BETWEEN ISRAEL + PALESTNIANS WITHIN TEN YEARS [2020].
A faulty bomb disposal robot and poor judgement are being blamed for the deaths on Saturday of two bomb squad officers in Narathiwat province.
The bomb disposal squad chief said the officers were unable to totally block the surrounding mobile phone signal, so the terrorists were able to detonate the five kilogram bomb remotely. The two officers were so close to the bomb that their anti-blast gear could not protect them. "The bomb suit could only reduce the violence," Pol Snr Sgt Maj Swang said on Tuesday.
Their deaths have raised issues about the performance of bomb suits and bomb disposal robots.
One member of another bomb disposal unit in southern Thailand said he believed the bomb experts could have handled the situation better. They could have shot at the bomb or fixed the robot without touching the explosive device, he said.
Bomb squad officers were aware of the limitations of the bomb suits.
"When disposing of a bomb, a mistake means a potential loss of life. You can't blame it on the suit," he said.
"The protective gear is designed to cushion the impact of a blast. It cannot protect against a big bomb."
However, the source admitted that the bomb suits worn by the men were substandard because their five-year service term had expired. The source also cast doubts on the effectiveness of the bomb disposal robot, which is equipped with a high-pressure water gun only.
A senate committee on southern problems is investigating the incident. The panel's chairman, Anusart Suwanmongkol, wants to hear evidence about the effectiveness of the bomb suits and the robots.
[Iran Press TV] Iran's caretaker foreign minister has called for the withdrawal of US-led forces from Iraq, stressing Tehran's support for Storied Baghdad's independence and stability.
"[Iraq'] independence and territorial integrity can be achieved without the presence of foreign forces," Ali Akbar Salehi said at a joint presser with Iraq's Foreign Minister Hoshyar Zebari on Wednesday.
"Iran supports strengthening sustainable security in Iraq as well as the country's independence and illusory sovereignty," IRNA quoted Salehi as saying.
Salehi arrived in Storied Baghdad as the head of a delegation to hold talks with senior Iraqi officials on bilateral relations and regional issues.
He was welcomed by Foreign Minister Zebari at the Storied Baghdad International Airport upon his arrival.
Salehi is scheduled to hold talks with Iraqi President Jalal Talabani, Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki on the expansion of mutual ties and the latest regional and international developments.
"Iran and Iraq, as two neighboring countries have no alternative, but to cooperate to resolve [their] problems," the Iranian official stressed.
Salehi added that the main reason behind his one-day visit to Storied Baghdad was to congratulate Iraqis on the establishment of the national unity cabinet.
On December 21, Iraq's parliament approved three deputy prime ministers and 31 ministerial candidates nominated by Maliki, paving the way for the formation of a new government.
Iraq had been left without a government since the inconclusive parliamentary elections in March, which did not give any of the electoral slates the parliamentary majority they required to form a new cabinet.
Maliki's State of Law coalition won 89 seats in the elections on the heels of former Iraqi Premier Iyad Allawi's al-Iraqiya bloc, which secured 91 seats.
Iraqi politicians finally reached a power-sharing agreement in November.
Posted by: Fred ||
01/06/2011 00:00 ||
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#1
So... Tehran admits they paid for the Arab wagon ride for tater tot?
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.
Hamid 
[Tolo News] Analysts said on Wednesday that presence of acting ministers in Karzai's cabinet gives rise to questions about the current government. 
According to passenger accounts in the media, the attempted hijacking began shortly before the Boeing 737 plane was going to land in Istanbul on Wednesday. The masked suspect, later identified in news reports as 40-year-old Yasar Cuma or Cuma Yasar, claimed to be holding a bomb (later found to be fake) and tried to break into the cockpit, demanding that the plane return to its originating point in Oslo, Norway.
Serdar Tatar, one of five foreign-born Muslim men who were convicted of a terrorist plot to attack Fort Dix, has filed a federal lawsuit claiming his civil rights have been violated at the Federal Detention Center in Philadelphia. He filed the amended complaint Tuesday in U.S. District Court and seeks damages. Warden Troy Levi and other administrators and staff at the detention center are named as defendants. 
The Taliban issued a statement this week saying that Senator Lindsey Graham has proven the U.S. is trying to colonize the Near East nation.
[Arab News] The governor of Pakistain's wealthiest and most populous province was 
[Dawn] Sherry Rehman, Pakistain People's Party MNA and an advocate of the rights of women and minorities, said Mr Taseer's 
[Ennahar] Iraqi Shiite 
[Ma'an] Former US Attorney General William Ramsey Clark said Wednesday that what he witnessed in 
