[Tolo News] Senior US military commanders in Afghanistan has warned that Pakistain's intelligence strongly works to make Afghans fail to have a government.
Some people from Pakistain's Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) infiltrate into Afghanistan and take back Afghan youths to train them against foreign forces and the Afghan government, US military commanders said.
Officials said jihad boy attacks in southern Ghazni province were organised in Quetta city of Pakistain. Foreign gun-hung tough guys provide the Taliban with war trainings in the same city in Pakistain.
More than 2,600 Polish soldiers are stationed in restive Ghazni province.
Following a dramatic rise in violence in the province, a huge number of American service members were also poised to the region to control the area.
"We also have seen some indications that there have been foreign trainers that have come to train the local Taliban who are fighting here in Ander," Fivecoat, a US military commander, told TOLOnews in Ghazni province.
Security has been better in Ghazni in the past several months, but the Taliban and foreign gun-hung tough guys including Arabs, Chechens and Paks were active, said officials on the ground.
"The ISI, some people from Pakistain to tell the civilians don't go to Shura with the Americans, don't talk with us, don't have local police programme, don't work with them, and it's because they want to destroy our plans for security in this area," said Paul Meacham, a US military commander, in Ghazni.
"They want to destroy the plans for the government to become stronger. They don't want these people to have government," SFC Meacham further said.
Ander district in Ghazni province has been the scene of harsh Taliban attacks in the past several months and the US forces have built a security base in the district to increase government control over the area.
Some foreign military officials in southern Afghanistan said there has been some progress in the fight against insurgency, but still the Taliban have been active at night.
Residents in Ander district also helped government and foreign forces in targeting forces of Evil in the province.
Taliban move in some districts in Ghazni province usually at night time and they have regularly intimidated people not to cooperate with foreign forces.
Posted by: Fred ||
01/26/2011 00:00 ||
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#1
Ming the Merciless would first consider bombarding Quetta but then settle for the more evil local epidemic of a Marburg quality...
Unfortunately Ming and NATO don't operate on the same mental bandwidth.
Posted by: Water Modem ||
01/26/2011 1:21 Comments ||
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* BHARAT RAKSHAK > [Vigil Online] LET [Pakistan]DIE: INDIA SHOULD KEEP ITS HANDS CLEAN AS PAKISTAN SINKS [slowly implodes + collapses], SAYS NV SUBRAMANIAN.
ARTIC = Both US, IRAN have common strategic = geopol interests in any break-up + "balkanization" of PAKISTAN; US-WEST MUST ENSURE THAT ANY POST-COLLAPSE PAKISTAN IS STRIPPED CLEAN OF ANY AND ALL PAK NUCLEAR WEAPONS, ETC. THAT CAN FALL INTO THE HANDS OF MILITANTS/JIHADISTS.
* SAME > THE BALKANIZATION OF PAKISTAN: A COLLECTIVE [Global/World] NATIONAL SECURITY STRATEGY.
* SAME > AS PAKISTAN NEARS BANKRUPTCY, PATIENCE OF FOREIGN LENDERS WEARS THIN, + PAKISTAN"S BUDGET DEFICIT REACHES RS$510BILYUHN, + RAGING INFLATION ADDS TO PAKISTAN'S LONG LIST OF WOES.
#2
PEOPLES DAILY FORUM > USAF TO DEPLOY GIANT BLIMP TO AFGHANISTAN ["Blue Devil" Blimp = 7x the size of the famed Goodyear Blimp + will carry 2,000 Servers in its onboard computer].
#4
Petraeus states the core objective as, "ensure that Afghanistan never again becomes a sanctuary for Al Qaeda or other trans national extremists."
I believe this goal is not worth the treasure and blood. I believe the outflow of money to achieve the General's core objective damages American security because we could use that money for more foreboding security issues like the war in Mexico.
The US Military is doing what it is supposed to do. Fight to achieve victory (whatever that is in the case of Afghanistan) It is up to us old sons of bitches back home to make the right decision as to whether the fight is worth it or not. And as far as this SOB is concerned, Afghanistan and all of South Asia isn't worth it.
#5
If what Joe says is true then maybe our guys are just hanging around so they can be in a forward position to start picking up the pieces when Pakistan collapses. Once we secure the nukes, we can leave them to simmer in their own weird stew.
An independent south Sudan would consider joining the International Criminal Court, a tribunal which has indicted Sudan's president for war crimes and genocide, according to a southern minister.
Not Jimmy Swaggart presumably.
Asked whether south Sudan would join the ICC, the minister for regional cooperation, Deng Alor, said: "Why not? We don't have a problem with the ICC.
"The ICC is about human rights. We fought for over 40 years for human rights -- we will see the procedure and definitely they will contact us or we will contact them and we will have no problem," he said late on Tuesday.
ICC membership would require the south to arrest Sudan's Omar Hassan al-Bashir if he entered its territory.
Sudan's north has planned to retain close ties with an independent south, but Khartoum rejects any recognition or even discussion
oh my!
of the ICC. Membership for the south would restrict travel for Bashir and strain relations.
And just when we thought the region was going to become tranquilstable semi-tolerable.
Alor said it was too early to decide whether south Sudan would establish diplomatic relations with Israel, which the Islamic government of the north regards as an enemy state.
"We don't have a problem with Israel. If our national interest demands that we establish diplomatic relations, we will do, but we cannot make this decision now."
#1
If there is a pressing need to meet with the president of North Sudan, while the South is an ICC member, it can make either a temporary or permanent bilateral treaty with the North to permit him in with diplomatic immunity.
The US has made a whole bunch of such bilateral treaties, to insure that our citizens, military leaders, and politicians will not be arrested overseas.
#2
First thing they need is a new name. South Sudan doesn't cut it. They need something a little more original to get it through everybody's head that they are now a whole new nation.
[The Nation (Nairobi)] The international community should target the big fish involved in piracy if the war on the crime is to be won, a Somali MP has urged.
Lower Shebelle MP Mohamed Omar Dalha on Monday said foreign cartels were involved in the frequent hijacking of ships in Somali waters since they gain a fortune in ransom.
In an interview with the Daily Nation in Mombasa, Prof Dalha said piracy was a money-minting machine like drugs, adding that it was time the fat cats were brought to justice if the international community was serious in combating the crime.
He asked how Somali youths aged between 15 and 20 could get information that a ship was coming from Europe and plan an attack when they were illiterate and without communication equipment.
Prof Dalha, who served as a Cabinet minister and deputy speaker in former president Abdullahi Yusuf Ahmed's regime, said foreign players organised the attacks on ships as they had information on the voyages.
He said: "If the international community is serious in combating piracy in Somali waters, they should target the major players in the racket, who earn colossal amounts of cash from ransoms.
"We are used to seeing illiterate Somali youngsters being jugged and charged in Kenya while the big fish are left to enjoy their illegal fortunes."
The MP said it beat logic to hear that Somali teenagers hijacked ships yet the best assembled warships on earth patrol the local waters.
He also called on concerned parties to launch a well-equipped and trained coasties in Somalia.
He noted that during former president Siad Barre's reign there were no piracy incidents since there was a force in place to counter the crime.
"If we are to eradicate piracy in Somalia, then a coasties must be established with trained personnel and machinery to be able to fight the people involved in the racket."
At the same time, the MP proposed that the suspected Somali pirates be tried on their soil, arguing that Kenya had no jurisdiction to prosecute them under international laws.
He said Kenya could only try them if they were caught committing the crimes in Kenyan waters.
Posted by: Fred ||
01/26/2011 00:00 ||
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#1
BHARAT RAKSHAK > POSTER thread = SOMALI PIRATES/PIRACY steadily expands its tentacles = Buccaneer reach towards MALDIVES + COASTS OF WEST INDIA.
Gettin' closer + closer to INDJUH = INDIA every year.
[The Nation (Nairobi)] Five Somali pirates captured during a dramatic raid by South Korean navy commandos on a hijacked ship last week should face trial in South Korea, Seoul's foreign minister said Tuesday.
"As a sovereign country, our government has an undoubted right to punish those who attacked our people," Kim Sung-Hwan told a presser.
Kim also rejected criticism of last Friday's raid on the Samho Jewelry, a 11,500-ton freighter hijacked on January 15 in the Arabian Sea.
Eight pirates were killed and five seized while 21 crew members were rescued. All crew were unhurt apart from the skipper, who was hit by three shots from pirates and is in hospital in Oman.
Despite successful raids last week by both the South Korean and Malaysian navies, the European Union Naval Force off the Horn of Africa said it would not follow suit because such raids could further endanger hostages.
"I reject any criticism against a military operation which was aimed to rescue our people from those who threatened their lives," Kim said in answer to a question.
Defence Minister Kim Kwan-Jin said Monday that the captured pirates should be tried in South Korea.
But he also told politicians he would consult with other ministries about the possibility of swapping them for the crew of another South Korean ship, the Geummi 305.
The trawler with two South Koreans, two Chinese and 39 Kenyans aboard was hijacked on October 9 in the Indian Ocean.
Defence ministry front man Kim Min-Seok Tuesday ruled out a possible swap, saying that "it's not appropriate to make use of those who committed a crime".
Officials said a final decision on the captured pirates would be made as early as Thursday when the freed ship, escorted by a South Korean destroyer, arrives in the Omani port of Muscat.
The rescue was seen as a major morale boost for the South's military, which faced strong domestic criticism for a perceived weak response to North Korea's shelling of a border island in November.
It also sparked new calls for the release of the Geummi 305. Ransom negotiations remain stalled because the trawler's owners went bankrupt.
Foreign minister Kim said the government would do its best for the release of the trawler but repeated Seoul's official stance that there would be no direct negotiations with pirates.
Piracy has surged in recent years off Somalia, a lawless, war-torn country that sits astride one of the world's most important shipping routes, leading to the Suez Canal.
Dozens of ships have been hijacked and held for ransom. Since 2006 three South Korean vessels have been seized and released after ransoms were paid.
Posted by: Fred ||
01/26/2011 00:00 ||
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#1
You'd get more mileage out of just shooting them.
Posted by: Barbara Skolaut ||
01/26/2011 14:55 Comments ||
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[Ennahar] The Algerian government has ordered local governments and public enterprises to work to improve services for citizens in order to avoid any event because of poor social conditions, and also to prevent youth from being exploited by some circles.
The government has opted for a policy of rapprochement with citizens, taking urgent measures to alleviate social tension, unlike what happened recently in Tunisia where security forces have not hesitated to fire on demonstrators.
According to informed sources, Prime Minister Ahmed Ouyahia had instructed his minister of Energy and Mines to resolve any breakdown or failure in gas, electricity and drinking water to avoid any interruption or shortage.
Moreover, Prime Minister had also instructed his Minister of Post and Information of Technology and Communication, Moussa Benhamadi to ensure the availability of liquidity.
The government that works for the appeasement on the social front and for the return to calm took important decisions on the fiscal activity, delaying the operation of monitoring and evaluation of the tax situation of individuals and legal persons.
Import of 200,000 tons of milk powder
The government decided to supply the national market in wheat and milk powder. Instructions had been given to the Algerian Office of cereals to make its applications in hard and soft wheat especially as the international market may face unrest, uncertainty on domestic production for the year 2011 because of lack of rain in several parts of the country.
The government emphasizes the need to ensure citizens' needs.
The instruction of the Prime Minister is also about the postponement of any operation of relocation and demolition. Local authorities are required to work with public authorities to improve services to citizens, to work in order to calm the spirits and protect the citizens of any attempts of political exploitation.
The Prime Minister had instructed the walis (prefects) and local officials to determine the grievances of citizens suffering from social problems and avoid making promises to keep the confidence between the citizen and public administration.
Posted by: Fred ||
01/26/2011 00:00 ||
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Thousands of anti-government protesters, some hurling rocks and climbing atop an armored police truck, clashed with riot police Tuesday in the center of Cairo in a Tunisia-inspired demonstration to demand the end of Hosni Mubarak's nearly 30 years in power.
Police responded with blasts from water cannons and set upon crowds with batons and acrid clouds of tear gas to clear demonstrators crying out "Down with Mubarak" and demanding an end to Egypt's grinding poverty, corruption, unemployment and police abuses.
Tuesday's demonstration, the largest Egypt has seen for years, began peacefully, with police showing unusual restraint in what appeared to be a calculated strategy by the government to avoid further sullying the image of a security apparatus widely seen as little more than corrupt thugs in uniforms.
As crowds carrying Egyptian and Tunisian flags filled downtown Cairo's main Tahrir square, however, security personnel changed tactics and the protest turned violent. The scenes had particular resonance because Tuesday was also a national holiday honoring the much-feared police.
Demonstrators attacked a water cannon truck, opening the driver's door and ordering the man out of the vehicle. Some hurled rocks and dragged metal barricades. Officers beat back protesters with batons as they tried to break cordons to join the main group of demonstrators downtown.
Protesters emerged stumbling from white clouds of tear gas, coughing and covering their faces with scarves.
Some had blood streaming down their faces. One man fainted. Police dragged some away and beat a journalist, smashing her glasses and seizing her camera.
At one point, the protesters seemed to gain the upper hand, forcing a line of riot police to flee under a barrage of rocks. One demonstrator climbed into a fire engine and drove it away.
To the north, in the Mediterranean port city of Alexandria, thousands of protesters also marched in what was dubbed a "Day of Rage" against Mubarak and lack of political freedoms under his rule.
Like the Tunisian protests, the calls for the rallies in Egypt went out on Facebook and Twitter, with 90,000 saying they would attend. Organizers used the site to give minute-by-minute instructions on where demonstrators should go in an attempt to outmaneuver the police.
By late afternoon, access to Twitter appeared to have been blocked.
In another parallel with Tunisia, the protests drew energy in large part from the death of one person: a young Egyptian man named Khaled Said whose family and witnesses say was beaten to death by a pair of coppers in Alexandria last year.
His case has become a rallying point for Egypt's opposition. Two coppers are on trial in connection with his death.
Tunisia's protests were also sparked by the death of one man: a poor Tunisian vegetable vendor who set himself in fire to protest corruption.
Last week, several people in Egypt -- and elsewhere in the Middle East and North Africa -- set themselves on fire in apparent attempts to copy his actions.
Posted by: Fred ||
01/26/2011 00:00 ||
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#1
MEMRI.ORG > PROMINENT SHEIKH [Abu Mundhir Al-Shinqti] CALLS FOR REBELLION AGZ EGYPTIAN PRESIDENT HOSNI MUBARAK.
* Also from MEMRI > JIHADISTS PLAN CYBER-ATTACK AGZ US GOVT. COMPUTERS.
Posted by: Frozen Al ||
01/26/2011 00:00 ||
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#1
...According to the Times Of India, Gamal 'Sonny' Mubarak (heir apparent to Hosni) has taken his family to England on a last minute emergency shopping trip:
[Arab News] A scientific forum was opened at Prince Naif University of Security Sciences in Riyadh Monday to caution the public against possible abuse of the Internet to promote terrorism and extremism.
Speaking at the forum, Abdul Aziz Al-Ghamdi, president of the university, said Mohammedans were the largest victims of terrorism in the world.
In terms of the body count that's actually true.
He emphasized that Islam had nothing to do with terrorism.
Nevermind what the Islamicists say...
Prince Bandar bin Abdullah bin Mishari, director of the National Information Center at the Ministry of Interior, opened the forum, which focused on the role of the Internet in combating terrorism and extremism.
The forum was organized by the Saudi university in association with the anti-terrorism team at the United Nations, aka the Oyster Bay Chowder and Marching Society, Global Counterterrorism Center in the US and the German Ministry of Interior.
Prince Bandar underscored the Kingdom's achievements in combating terrorism and extremism, referring to its pre-emptive strikes against terrorists. "We have foiled about 220 terrorist attacks in the Kingdom," he said, emphasizing the Kingdom's firm stand against terrorism. "We have become a model to follow in this field."
Where did they learn to love jihad, Your Royal Highness? Were you not a model there, first?
He also pointed out that the Arab Anti-Terrorism Agreement, which was signed during a joint meeting of Arab interior and justice ministers in Egypt in 1998, was the first of its kind in the world.
The timing neatly demonstrates its effectiveness compared to other such agreements.
The Organization of the Islamic Conference and Gulf Cooperation Council have also signed similar agreements.
The result of which can be seen around the world.
"We give top priority to security cooperation with other countries to fight terrorism and other crimes," Prince Bandar said. He also referred to King Abdullah's initiative for cultural dialogue, saying it reflects the Kingdom's desire to establish global peace. He emphasized the need to conduct more studies on how to use the Internet to fight terror.
In his speech, Al-Ghamdi said: "Our university has given utmost importance to fighting terror, as 125 dissertations for master's and doctorate degree programs as well as 254 training programs conducted by the university's various colleges were related to terrorism."
Al-Ghamdi said the forum would discuss different aspects of the subject, such as the use of the Internet for terrorism and how to prevent recruitment of faceless myrmidons and the spread of terrorist ideologies through the Internet.
It will also highlight the role of the civil society, the private sector and the media in combating terrorism and enlighten the public on the possible negative effects associated with the use of the Internet.
He called for regional and international cooperation to fight all forms of terrorism.
The two-day forum is attended by delegates from Yemen, Jordan, the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain, Algeria, Oman, Qatar, Leb, Egypt, the US, Spain, Germany, Holland, Belgium, Canada, Norway, Austria, La Belle France, Italy, Turkey, Singapore, Japan, Indonesia, Sweden, Britain, Pakistain, China, India and Afghanistan in addition to delegates from the OIC, GCC, European Union and the Russian Federation.
Some good countries there, but there seems to be one missing...
Posted by: Fred ||
01/26/2011 00:00 ||
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#1
In his speech, Al-Ghamdi said: "Our university has given utmost importance to fighting terror, as 125 dissertations for master's and doctorate degree programs as well as 254 training programs conducted by the university's various colleges were related to terrorism."
Mostly on how to inspire it...
Posted by: Rob Crawford ||
01/26/2011 11:37 Comments ||
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British intelligence helped draw up a secret plan for a large-scale crackdown on Hamas, and even armed and funded PA security organizations, leaked documents reveal.
According to the reports, the plan included imprisoning leaders and activists, the closing radio stations and replacing imams. The plan was drawn up in 2004 and delivered by a Jerusalem-based MI6 officer to Jibril Rajoub, a senior PA security official at that time.
According to The Guardian, most of the plan has since been carried out by the PA.
The two suicide bombers who carried out the Moscow attack were thought to be part of a suicide squad trained in Pakistan's al-Qaeda strongholds sent to the capital to target the city's transport system.
A newspaper close to Russia's FSB security service published what it claimed was a warning to Moscow police issued in December that said there was credible intelligence that a suicide squad made up of three women and one man from Chechnya was headed to Moscow.
The memo said the team had spent time in Pakistan and Iran and that one of the women had a relative with a flat in Moscow that might be used as a bomb making factory. Another group of five Islamist militants trained in Pakistan was also expected to cross into Russia soon, it added.
An al-Qaeda linked website said that the group Islamic Caucasus Emirate, led by the rebe Doku Umarov, was poised to claim it had staged the attack. It said that Russia's harsh military measures against independence activists in the Caucasus had provoked the attack. It said: "You disbelievers are the firewood of Hell. You will enter it."
The daily Kommersant newspaper said security service officials were alerted to the extent of the threat when a woman accidentally blew herself up on New Year's Eve in Moscow. It later emerged that her husband was in jail for being a member of an Islamist terror group and that she and a girlfriend had been sent to Moscow from the internal Muslim republic of Dagestan to commit an act of terror.
Russian media published a grisly picture of the male terrorist's severed head that was being circulated around police and security services in the troubled mostly Muslim North Caucasus region to see if anyone recognised him.
#2
Has it occurred to anyone but me that Pakistain is now what Afghanistan was in 2001?
Posted by: Fred ||
01/26/2011 11:01 Comments ||
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#3
Except that Pakistan is our "ally" and Afghanistan was some backwater that most everybody had forgotten about. Perhaps with the reset button hit, Hilary can get the Ruskies to invade Pakistan no. Sort of an Afghanistan in reverse.
#4
actually strange as it seems ... there might be some merit in Russian/USA cooperation in the area. Squeeze the Taliban/Al Qaeda radical Islamists from both sides. A pincer move as it were.
As long as the Russian can be persuaded not to commit atrocities against the civilians like they did before, maybe just maybe mutual cooperation might be the key.
Certainly Russia has much more to lose if hostilities in Afghanistan/ and Pakistan keep spreading.
(Xinhua) -- The attackers behind Monday's deadly blast at Domodedovo airport must be eliminated, Russian President Dmitry Medvedev said Tuesday. If they'd kept after them after Shamil became meat then there wouldn't be any problem today...
"It is necessary to do everything possible to reveal, unmask and bring those responsible for the crime to justice. The nests of these snuffies must be destroyed," the president was quoted by RIA Novosti news agency as saying. The only way to make that work is to go after them and kill the controllers. The cannon fodder sets out to kill themselves, but the big turbans figure they're Too Important to the Movement™ to decompose. Meanwhile, ...back at the ranch... he urged the country's secret service to invest maximum efforts to counter terrorism and extremism. Try making them afraid to plot their terrorist operations...
"The majority of the threats we talk about the last year, remain. These threats cannot disappear in a year as they have a prolonged nature," he told a meeting with the Federal Security Service ... the successor to the KGB... (FSB). You had a nice, long drop-off in carnage with the death of Basayev. There's a successor to Shamil operating now -- probably not Count Doku, but somebody in the shadows. Y'gotta find him and kill him, preferably spectacularly and publicly, then say "Next!" and wait for the next genius to step up.
He urged the special service to pay special attention to the young people who could be easy prey for those provoking hatred, xenophobia and violence.
Medvedev highlighted the need to secure safety during the APEC summit, the World Students Games and the Winter Olympics, due in 2012 in Vladivostok, in 2013 in Kazan and in 2014 in Sochi, respectively.
"All sorts of criminals have been getting prepared for these events too," Medvedev warned, adding that upcoming general elections in Russia might also be a target for terrorists.
A suicide kaboom killed 35 and injured over 100 at Moscow's busiest airport Monday. It was the second deadly attack in the Russian capital within a year.
Posted by: Fred ||
01/26/2011 00:00 ||
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#1
James,
Did you notice the complete lack of hand wringing and "why don't they like us?" on the part of the Russians?
Karl,
I believe Vlad the impaler Putin said that "retribution would be an INEVITABILITY" If I was a Czechnian, I'd beat it out of town. The Russians do not have anything vaguely resembling Liberal Angst about terrorism.
#5
Regarding Beslan, do I recall something like "We'll scrape the from the sewers"?
After Beslan (the elementary school massacre), Putin took revenge by ending the popular election of provincial governors, arrogating to himself the power to appoint them. Maybe this time, he’ll take revenge by appointing himself President-for-Life.
SEOUL, Jan. 26 (Yonhap) -- South Korea said Wednesday it has proposed holding working-level military talks with North Korea on Feb. 11, in what would be their first dialogue since the North's deadly bombardment of a border island in November.
The proposed inter-Korean talks, which would be held at the border truce village of Panmunjom, are aimed at setting the time, place and agenda for a higher-level military meeting, said Kim Min-seok, a spokesman at the South's defense ministry.
North Korea has yet to respond to the South's proposal made via a military communications line at Panmunjom, Kim said.
The talks are expected to be led by Col. Moon Sang-gyun of the South and Col. Ri Son-kwon of the North, who have served as representatives of working-level military talks from each side for years. But the level of representatives is likely to be upgraded to general-level officers, depending on the North's response, Kim said.
Posted by: Steve White ||
01/26/2011 00:00 ||
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The DPRK is once again threatening to make a "PHYSICAL RESPONSE" to upcoming new US-ROK Drills.
* ION PEOPLES DAILY FORUM > CHINA'S LANZHOU MILITARY REGION VERSUS RUSSIA'S [new]CENTRAL MILITARY DISTRICT. Despite national reorg, Russia's new Central Military District is deemed as unable to match China's powerful Lanzhou MR.
ANALYSTS > CHINA is able to "control" KRGYZSTAN + TAIJIKISTAN in Central Asia vee Russia by using potent economics-only based measures - however, it will be difficult iff not impossible for Chin to achieve same with KAZAKHISTAN; RUSSIA'S CENTRAL MILITARY DISTRICT IS DEEMED AS UNABLE TO MIL INTIMIDATE CHINA AS PER CHINA'S STRATEGIC NORTHEAST INDUSTRIAL REGION NOR AS PER THE RUSS FAR EAST.
* SAME > SOUTH CHINA SEAS CLASH POSSIBLE?
ARTIC = There is little evidence that the bulk of Smaller ASEAN = SCS States are willing to give up sovereignty nor make serious compromises wid China as per CHIN-CLAIMED DISPUTED SCS ISLANDS. CHINA IN LT MAY BE WILLING TO UNILATER TAKE/GRAB BY MIL FORCE WHAT IT IS UNABLE TO PROCURE VIA POLITICAL, ECON REGIONAL DIPLOMACY.
A second Australian special forces soldier has been awarded a medal for his role in a fierce gunbattle in Afghanistan in June last year.
The soldier, known as Sergeant P, has received the Star of Gallantry - which ranks only behind the Victoria Cross.
It comes a few days after SAS Corporal Ben Roberts-Smith was awarded the VC, Australia's top military honour. Corporal Roberts-Smith single-handedly neutralised two Afghan insurgent machine gun positions.
The Star of Gallantry is awarded for acts of conspicuous gallantry in action in circumstances of great peril.
U.S. military officials tell NBC News that investigators have been unable to make any direct connection between a jailed army private suspected with leaking secret documents and Julian Assange, founder of the whistleblowing website WikiLeaks.
That's the bad news. The good news is, we can still execute him for espionage and treason.
The officials say that while investigators have determined that Manning had allegedly unlawfully downloaded tens of thousands of documents onto his own computer and passed them to an unauthorized person, there is apparently no evidence he passed the files directly to Assange, or had any direct contact with the controversial WikiLeaks figure.
U.S. Attorney General Eric holder has said his department is also considering whether it can prosecute the release of information under the Espionage Act.
He violated the various secrets acts. That ought to be enough, though I don't mind at all piling on just to send a message.
Assange told msnbc TV last month that WikiLeaks was unsure Army PFC Bradley Manning is the source for the classified documents appearing on his site. "That's not how our technology works, that's not how our organization works," Assange said. "I never heard of the name of Bradley Manning before it appeared in the media."
He called allegations that WikiLeaks had conspired with Manning "absolute nonsense."
On Monday, U.S. military officials also strongly denied allegations that Manning, being held in connection with the WikiLeaks' release of classified documents, has been "tortured" and held in "solitary confinement" without due process. The officials told NBC News, however, that a U.S. Marine commander did violate procedure when he placed Manning on "suicide watch" last week.
He violated procedure only if we wanted the little pisher to hang himself with his belt...
Military officials said Brig Commander James Averhart did not have the authority to place Manning on suicide watch for two days last week, and that only medical personnel are allowed to make that call.
The official said that after Manning had allegedly failed to follow orders from his Marine guards. Averhart declared Manning a "suicide risk." Manning was then placed on suicide watch, which meant he was confined to his cell, stripped of most of his clothing and deprived of his reading glasses -- anything that Manning could use to harm himself. At the urging of U.S. Army lawyers, Averhart lifted the suicide watch.
U.S. Marine and Army officials say Manning is being treated like any other maximum security prisoner at Quantico, Va. He is confined to his single-person cell 23-hours per day, permitted one hour to exercise, permitted reading material and given one hour per day to watch television.
Posted by: Steve White ||
01/26/2011 12:22 ||
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Non-story, flled by a news office that is throwing anything it can at the wall and hoping it will stick. It's been known from the beginning (and little Brad at least manned up to this) that he passed the data to someone else, who in turn ran it to WikiLeaks. For them to say Assange had no direct contact with Manning is thoroughly and utterly disingenuous - he didn't NEED to have contact with him. That's like saying (at the risk of Godwinning this thread) that the US was unable to make any direct connection between the men who actually did the dirty work at Auschwitz and Hitler.
Mike
Posted by: Mike Kozlowski ||
01/26/2011 12:44 Comments ||
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#2
Smart enough to use a cutout middle? Great, go after the middle. Keep peeling the onion and prosecuting each layer.
#5
Mike a very good example! But I will replay my original thought I have had since this story broke: If you want to stop this type of behavior, execute private manning after a speedy and public trial. Let Assange leak the fact EVERY civilized nation thinks that North Korea should go away and the nobody wants a nuclear tipped Iran. We can survive those earth shattering revelations.
(Xinhua) -- Gotabhaya Rajapaksa, Sri Lanka's Defense Ministry Secretary told the Colombo High Court Tuesday that he did not order the killing of surrendering Tamil Tiger rebels during the last stages of the conflict.
Gotabhaya Rajapaksa, the brother of President Mahinda Rajapaksa was giving evidence before the High Court on the "white flag case" where former army chief Sarath Fonseka is being tried for his statement that top defense officials had ordered the killing of the rebels who gave themselves up to the army with white flags in May 2009 when the three decade old war ended.
The top defense official said the false accusation caused immense international damage to Sri Lanka, and as a result some of the foreign training for the Sri Lankan troops came to be suspended.
He said on the contrary the government treated the the surrendering rebels well, over 5,600 of whom were already rehabilitated and released.
Fonseka who led the troops to victory over the Tamil Tiger rebels fell out with the president after the conflicted ended. His statement on the rebel killing was made to a Sunday weekly when he contested against incumbent Mahinda Rajapaksa in the presidential election in January 2010.
Posted by: Fred ||
01/26/2011 00:00 ||
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[An Nahar] Hizbullah Secretary General Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah noted on Tuesday that Leb is going through a critical and difficult phase that requires responsible action, adding that the opposition "seeks the cooperation of all sides in order to overcome this phase."
He stressed that the opposition has confronted developments and the indictment through constitutional means.
Commenting on the street demonstrations, he said: "We understand the sentiments because of the political and media tensions."
"However, The infamous However... had the situation been reversed with the other camp's candidate being appointed as prime minister and with opposition supporters heading to the streets, we would have heard condemnations from Washington and western capitals," Nasrallah noted.
"This means that there are no clear standards being adopted. Why do you respect that majority and not this one? If protesting and blocking roads are legitimate rights, then why do you condemn the opposition when it takes to the street?" he asked.
Addressing the appointment of Najib Miqati as prime minister-designate and the protests against it, he said: "Intimidating Miqati is useless and saying that he was appointed by Hizbullah is wrong."
"Such an allegation is sectarian incitement ... The opposition chose Miqati in order to ease the tensions," he added.
Addressing allegations that Hizbullah is seeking to take control of the state, Nasrallah stressed: "We are not asking for the state or the government ... do not conspire against us or stab us in the back."
"We don't want your protection and take care of the people, especially the people in the deprived regions in Akkar, the Bekaa, and the North," he said.
"The greatest lie is that Hizbullah wants to seize the state and the government," he added.
"Refusing to take part in this government means you want to keep power to yourselves ... If we didn't give Miqati a chance to succeed, then where do you want to take the country?" he asked.
"The previous government or the upcoming one won't be able to protect Leb. The country is protected by its people, army, and Resistance," he stressed.
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01/26/2011 00:00 ||
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#1
"Won't be able to protect Lebanon" > IOW, ONLY HEZBOLLAH + RADICAL ISLAM CAN.
IMO once again HEZBOLLAH = NASRALLAH is trying hard NOT to say that Hezbollah + Radical Islam will NOT allow Lebanon to return to NON-ISLAMIST GOVERNANCE/RULE.
SUB-IOW > LEBANON IS HEZBOLLAH, + HEZBOLLAH IS LEBANON from now on forever.
Thus of course
* JPOST > {Chief PA Negotiator] EREKAT: PALESTINIAN STATE IS COMING, ISRAEL CAN'T STOP IT.
Nominally okay on its own SAVE FOR THAT WHOLE AL-QAEDA IN-GAZA, + AL-QAEDA-IN-THE-TRANSJORDAN, AQIY/AQAP,..... @etc. thingy(s); + Iran's plans to deploy = conduct NavOps in the Mediterranean off Israel + Red Sea.
#3
DAILY TIMES.PK > [The Palestinian Papers]"ISRAEL PROPOSED TO TRANSFER OF ARABS".
ARTIC = ARAB-ISRAELIS, to PA + new Paleo State.
and
* DEFENCE.PK/FORUMS > SAME > [Ex-SecState Condi] RICE: US ARMY PRESENCE IN IRAQ PROTECTS ISRAEL.
INTERESTING > ARTIC = Although SecState Condi thought otherwise, CHIEF PA NEGOTIATOR EREKAT argued that IHO THE PALEOS = PA HAD [major = potent?]EXTERNAL ENEMIES OTHER THAN JUST ISRAEL???
[An Nahar] Prime Minister-designate Najib Miqati on Tuesday rejected attempts to cast him as "Hizbullah's man" and said the dispute over a U.N. tribunal that brought down his predecessor could only be resolved through dialogue.
"Don't prejudge me or my behavior, please, especially the international community," the 55-year-old billionaire businessman told Agence La Belle France Presse in an interview at his Beirut home shortly after being appointed to form a new government.
"I say in all honesty that my nomination by Hizbullah does not mean I am bound by any of their political positions except as concerns the protection of the national resistance," he said, referring to the gang's struggle against Israel.
Miqati said he felt no shame in the fact that the Iranian- and Syrian-backed Hizbullah had supported his appointment and wished outgoing premier Saad Hariri's Western-backed party had done the same.
"I say 'thank you to them', I respect them as I respect those who did not vote for me," he said. "Now I will work in the interest of all Lebanese.
"Let my actions speak for themselves."
A centrist who has good ties with Syria, Miqati recalled that in 2005, when he served briefly as premier, he had been labeled "a Syrian puppet" but was later recognized as a capable statesman.
"During my tenure ... I did everything in the interest of Leb and everyone was surprised by what I achieved," he said.
The PM-designate added that the thorny issue of the Netherlands-based Special Tribunal for Leb, which has been at the center of a long-running standoff between Hizbullah and Hariri, would be tackled through dialogue.
"Stopping the tribunal today is no longer a Lebanese decision," he said. "Leb's cooperation with the tribunal is something else.
"So before (jumping to conclusions) we have to look at the file again, study it and if there is any issue of dispute, it will be solved through dialogue."
Miqati said he would begin two days of consultations with parliamentary groups on forming a new government on Thursday and hoped that Hariri's coalition would back his efforts.
"I sent a message to Hariri today to reconsider his position," he said. "Let us be together in the same boat, in the interest of Leb."
He also sought to reassure Washington, which has expressed concern about his appointment, saying Leb "cannot have but very good relations" with the United States.
"I hope they will maintain their support for Leb," he said. "They know my history.
"It may not be a personal relationship but they know what I am capable of," he added. "My actions will speak for themselves."
Addressing worries that his appointment could adversely affect Leb's economy, Miqati said he believed otherwise.
"I have a background as a businessman, and the business community knows that I am liberal who believes in the private sector and freedom of the economy," he said.
He added that his government would seek to implement institutional reforms, tackle rampant corruption, address the day-to-day needs of the Lebanese and boost ties with Europe.
He said it was a given he would entertain warm relations with neighboring Syria, believed to have played a role in his nomination and which was forced to pull its troops from Leb in the wake of Hariri's murder.
"It goes without saying that relations have to be very good and that there has to be mutual respect," he said.
Hizbullah for months had been pressing Hariri to reject the tribunal which it believes will implicate party members in ex-premier Rafik Hariri's 2005 murder.
Earlier Tuesday, President Michel Suleiman assigned Miqati to form the new government.
Miqati's appointment came in a presidential decree.
"The president informed me of the outcome of his consultations with parliamentarians, which have resulted in my appointment as prime minister," Miqati told news hounds from the Baabda Palace.
"I will cooperate fully with all Lebanese to form a new government that protects their unity and illusory sovereignty," he vowed.
He also pledged to maintain a centrist position.
Miqati received the backing of 68 of parliament's 128 MPs, who had been meeting with Suleiman since Monday after Hizbullah and its allies brought down the unity government of Saudi- and Western-backed Saad Hariri on January 12.
The remaining 60 MPs backed Hariri for another term.
Miqati's appointment has sparked widespread anger within the Sunni community. They view it as a bid by Hizbullah to sideline Hariri, the most popular Sunni leader, and even take control of the government.
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01/26/2011 00:00 ||
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[An Nahar] French President Nicolas Sarkozy warned Syria that Leb is an independent country and that the international tribunal must complete its work "until the end."
"Leb is Syria's neighbor and La Belle France relies on this friendship to tell Syria that Leb is an independent country and must remain independent; and the Special Tribunal for Leb must complete its work until the end," Sarkozy said in remarks published Tuesday by pan-Arab Asharq al-Awsat newspaper.
During a presser held on Monday at the Elysee Palace, Sarkozy reiterated La Belle France's refusal that Leb be used to serve foreign interests.
Sarkozy said he was committed to an initiative he launched earlier this month that calls for the formation of a "contact group" to resolve the Leb crisis.
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01/26/2011 00:00 ||
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[An Nahar] Druze leader Walid Wally Jumblat ... who's been on every side in Leb at least four times... held outgoing Prime Minister Saad Hariri responsible for street protests that broke out across Leb as Hizbullah candidate Najib Miqati was set to become Leb's new premier.
He expressed dismay at the pro-Mustaqbal ... the Future Movement, political party led by Saad Hariri... demonstrations, saying these protests were in contrary to what Hariri himself had called for.
"Hariri was the one to choose the democratic game," Jumblat said in remarks published Tuesday by As-Safir newspaper.
He said he believed Hariri was "aware of what he is doing. He bears a big responsibility, and he has to protect peace and institutions."
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Going to be great watching joe jihad do a scramble dance when the counter-app plays "I fuck goats!" dang loud while forwarding his info on to...whoa wait.
Now that jihadi leadership cadres are being tracked down by UAVs and hunting parties, they've moved planning and fundraising to the internet. Go to the link for a quick overview of their discussion topics.
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.
Somali pirates
Thousands of anti-government protesters, some hurling rocks and climbing atop an armored police truck, clashed with riot police Tuesday in the center of Cairo in a Tunisia-inspired demonstration to demand the end of Hosni Mubarak's nearly 30 years in power.
A second Australian special forces soldier has been awarded a medal for his role in a fierce gunbattle in Afghanistan in June last year.
