Libyan state TV has aired footage showing one of late dictator Moammar Gadhafi's sons jailed in Libya apologizing to the nation and asking for forgiveness.
About to be executed, is he...
Prison authorities say the video, broadcast late Thursday, is in response to "rumours" that Al Saadi Gadhafi is being tortured in custody.
Al Saadi was extradited to Libya earlier this month from Niger, where he had taken refuge as his father's regime crumbled in 2011.
The Libyan government is preparing to prosecute him for his alleged role in trying to suppress the uprising against Gadhafi's rule.
In the video, Al Saadi is seen wearing blue prison uniform, sitting in what looks like an office. He says he is sorry for the "harm and disturbances" - without elaborating - and says he is being treated well in prison.
Posted by: Steve White ||
03/30/2014 00:00 ||
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#1
"...My car had a flat, the dog ate my homework, it was a one-armed man, okay, I was the second gunman on the grassy knoll, just PLEASE DON'T KILL ME!!!!"
Mike
Posted by: Mike Kozlowski ||
03/30/2014 8:20 Comments ||
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[DAWN] The committees representing the government and the Taliban agreed on Saturday to extend the ceasefire and take measures to speed up the dialogue process.
At a joint meeting, presided over by Interior Minister Chaudhry Nisar Ali Khan and attended by members of the committees of the government and the outlawed Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistain, the two parties agreed to carry forward the grinding of the peace processor.
Talking to news hounds after the meeting, the head of the TTP committee, Maulana Samiul Haq ...the Godfather of the Taliban, leader of his own faction of the JUI. Known as Mullah Sandwich for his habit of having two young boys at a time... , confirmed that the ceasefire would continue beyond March 31, the date set by them. But he did not say whether the ceasefire was still "temporary" or "permanent".
He said the interior minister had sought three days to specify the 'practical steps' to be taken by the government. According to sources, the allusion was to release of non-combatants belonging to the TTP.
The sources said the minister was likely to convene another meeting of the two committees in a few days and present views of the government and other stakeholders.
Then the Taliban committee would meet the TTP shura and the venue and time for another round of direct talks would be decided.
Maulana Haq said the agenda for the next round of talks would be finalised soon.
He was optimistic about the future of talks and said people should support efforts for restoration of peace. Doubts about the fate of the talks must not be created, he said, adding that there was no reason for despondency.
The sources said the release of hundreds of prisoners, including some high-profile people, and setting up of a "peace zone" to allow free movement of the Taliban were the main demands of the TTP.
They said the government was unlikely to accept the demand for establishment of a peace zone because it would mean allowing creation of a state within state. But they said commencement of the process of releasing prisoners from both sides could move things fast.
A source told Dawn that the next round of talks would take place next week at a new venue. The agenda for this crucial round would be finalised shortly, he added.
He said during the next round, the government committee would hand the TTP a list of about 150 people, including sons of former prime minister Yousuf Raza Gilani ... Pakistain's former prime minister, whose occasional feats of mental gymnastics could be awe-inspiring ... and slain governor of Punjab Salman Taseer, as well as Ajmal Khan, a former vice chancellor of a university in Beautiful Downtown Peshawar ...capital of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (formerly known as the North-West Frontier Province), administrative and economic hub for the Federally Administered Tribal Areas of Pakistan. Peshawar is situated near the eastern end of the Khyber Pass, convenient to the Pak-Afghan border. Peshawar has evolved into one of Pakistan's most ethnically and linguistically diverse cities, which means lots of gunfire. , for their release from the Taliban's custody.
Earlier, the interior minister called on Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif ... served two non-consecutive terms as prime minister, heads the Pakistain Moslem League (Nawaz). Noted for his spectacular corruption, the 1998 Pak nuclear test, border war with India, and for being tossed by General Musharraf... and discussed with him the strategy for dialogue with the TTP. Steps required to be taken to ensure peace came under discussion.
The sources said the prime minister directed the minister to take all steps to bring peace in the country. He was quoted as saying that efforts should be made to make the dialogue process a success.
AFP adds: Maulana Haq dismissed speculation that peace talks were deadlocked, saying negotiations had made steady progress as he voiced optimism over a possible ceasefire extension. "Inshallah, the ceasefire will hold," he said.
"The talks are not deadlocked, rather the meeting between the Taliban political council and the government committee marks a big progress," Maulana Haq said.
Asked if the meeting also focused on the release of prisoners sought by the Taliban, he only said "all matters came up for discussion".
Posted by: Fred ||
03/30/2014 00:00 ||
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Let us wish them luck with this, and acknowledge the courage involved in what should be simple, basic medicine.
[DAWN] Health teams will Sunday launch a drive to vaccinate some 750,000 children in the troubled northwest, with thousands of police guarding against attacks by snuffies who claim the polio ...Poliomyelitis is a disease caused by infection with the poliovirus. Between 1840 and the 1950s, polio was a worldwide epidemic. Since the development of polio vaccines the disease has been largely wiped out in the civilized world. However, since the vaccine is known to make Moslem pee-pees shrink and renders females sterile, bookish, and unsubmissive it is not widely used by the turban and automatic weapons set... campaign is a front for spying.
The campaign in Beautiful Downtown Peshawar ...capital of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (formerly known as the North-West Frontier Province), administrative and economic hub for the Federally Administered Tribal Areas of Pakistan. Peshawar is situated near the eastern end of the Khyber Pass, convenient to the Pak-Afghan border. Peshawar has evolved into one of Pakistan's most ethnically and linguistically diverse cities, which means lots of gunfire. district, which covers Peshawar city and dozens of towns and villages, is the ninth phase of a push to eradicate polio in Pakistain, which along with Nigeria and Afghanistan are the only countries where the disease remains endemic.
The World Health Organisation has warned that Peshawar is the world's "largest reservoir" of polio.
"At least 750,000 children will be administered the vaccine in Peshawar district where 335,000 houses have been identified for the purpose," campaign organiser Yunus Zaheer told AFP on Saturday.
The campaign, which started early February, will continue until the end of April.
Vaccinators go door-to-door every Sunday across Peshawar district to administer drops to children for various diseases including polio, tuberculosis, tetanus, pneumonia, whooping cough, measles and hepatitis.
Zaheer said more than 6,200 teams comprising 12,500 workers have been set up to administer the vaccines, adding 6,700 police officials would be deployed on security duty during the campaign.
He said the campaign is likely to be extended to other districts of Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa ... formerly NWFP, still Terrorism Central... province later.
A senior local administration official, Zaheerul Islam, also confirmed the details of the campaign.
According to the WHO, Pakistain recorded 91 cases of polio last year, up from 58 in 2012.
Pakistain's failure to defeat polio stands in stark contrast to its neighbour India, which recently celebrated the eradication of the disease three years after its last case.
Some 56 people including health workers and police officials providing security have been killed in bad boy attacks on polio vaccination teams in Pakistain since Dec 2012.
Militant groups such as the Pak Taliban oppose the immunisation drive, saying it is a cover for US spying.
Violence, and the threat of it, have badly hampered the campaign to stamp out polio in Pakistain.
Posted by: Fred ||
03/30/2014 00:00 ||
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The United Statesâ top military officer will visit Israel next week where he will meet the defence minister who has angered Washington by criticising its strategies in the Middle East and Ukraine.
General Martin Dempsey, chairman of the US Joint Chiefs of Staff, will meet Defence Minister Moshe Yaalon in Jerusalem on Sunday, an Israeli government official said on Saturday. Another official said he was expected to stay through Tuesday.
In a statement, the Israeli military said Dempsey and his hosts would discuss âissues of mutual strategic interest, while continuing to build on this important defence relationshipâ.
The visit would reflect âthe United Statesâ unwavering commitment to Israelâs security,â it said.
Posted by: Steve White ||
03/30/2014 00:00 ||
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#2
Israel is keen about their national security and survival. The generals are keen about making the most ROI on their retirement pay by keeping their master happy. Consequently, strategies differ.
[Ynet] Egyptian authorities have ordered to open the Rafah Crossing for three days, in which only patients, civilians with foreign passports, students and humanitarian cases will be permitted to cross from Gazoo into Egypt.
The border crossing was closed a month and a half ago due to tensions between the Hamas, always the voice of sweet reason, regime and authorities in Cairo after the Moslem Brüderbund was named a terrorist organization in Egypt.
"They'd be just like Palestinian refugees only, y'know, Syrian!" he said with a shudder. And rightfully so, too. Can you imagine a second Ein el Hellhole?
[AnNahar] British Ambassador to Leb Tom Fletcher voiced fears over the possible normalization of Syrian refugees in Leb should the conflict in their country take a long time to be resolved, reported As Safir newspaper on Saturday.
He told the daily that the danger of their normalization exists, urging the Lebanese government to take the necessary plans to contain the impact of the Syrian conflict.
He added however that the Syrians themselves do not want to stay in Leb, but they aspire to return to their homeland as soon as possible.
A political solution is necessary for Syria, stressed the ambassador.
Fletcher noted that the international community had encouraged Leb to harbor the refugees, adding that this burden should not remain on its shoulders alone.
To this day, Britannia has presented a billion dollars in aid to Syrian refugees in the region and Leb has been one of the main beneficiaries of this aid, continued the ambassador.
The needs of the refugees are growing and the meetings of the World Bank and International Monetary Fund in April should present an opportunity to meet the refugees' educational needs, he explained.
The influx of nearly one million Syrian refugees, according to United Nations ...an organization which on balance has done more bad than good, with the good not done well and the bad done thoroughly... figures, has swollen Leb's population by 25 percent since the war broke out across the border in March 2011.
The U.N. forecasts that registered refugees in Leb could reach 1.5 million by the end of the year.
Posted by: trailing wife ||
03/30/2014 00:00 ||
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[Ynet] The United States is ready to step up covert aid to Syrian rebels under a plan being discussed with regional allies including Soddy Arabia ...a kingdom taking up the bulk of the Arabian peninsula. Its primary economic activity involves exporting oil and soaking Islamic rubes on the annual hajj pilgrimage. The country supports a large number of princes in whatcha might call princely splendor. When the oil runs out the rest of the world is going to kick sand in the Soddy national face... , according to a Washington Post report.
The plan includes CIA training of about 600 Syrian opposition forces per month in Saudi Arabia, Jordan and Qatar, foreign affairs columnist David Ignatius wrote on Thursday. That would double the forces currently being trained in the region.
#3
I suspect this is the price our beloved president paid to soothe the Saudis who are very upset that his people have been negotiating with Iran in secret.
#4
The people the Saudis sent to Syria have apparently been working _with_ Assad to destroy the rest of his opposition. If they want to be dissatisfied with anyone they need to look in the mirror.
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.
Nawaz Sharif
[Ynet] The United States is ready to step up covert aid to Syrian rebels under a plan being discussed with regional allies including 
