TRIPOLI: After a swift initial thrust into the Daesh group’s bastion in Libya, six months on unity government forces still face dogged resistance from militant holdouts cornered in the Mediterranean city of Sirte.
Forces loyal to Libya’s Government of National Accord (GNA) announced the launch of the battle for Sirte, 450 kilometers (280 miles) east of Tripoli, on May 12.
Within weeks, GNA forces recaptured large chunks of the coastal city that Daesh militants had seized in June 2015 as a staging post for an expansion into North Africa.
But they have failed to dislodge the last pockets of Daesh fighters, holed up in the fiercely-defended district of Al-Giza Al-Bahriya, in a costly battle that has left at least 667 dead and 3,000 wounded in GNA ranks.
“The final assault is being held up... mainly due to the fact that it will result in very intense street fighting and Daesh is determined to defend its positions right down to the last square meter,” Rida Issa, spokesman for the pro-GNA forces, told AFP.
Ethan Chorin, a former US diplomat posted in Tripoli and now a consultant, has another explanation for why the assault, which is backed by American air strikes, has got bogged down.
“Those fighting Daesh in Sirte with Western backing are not all motivated, nor are they highly organized,” he said.
-step approach to the recapture of Sirte to limit casualties, not only in their own ranks but also among civilians “who Daesh are using as human shields” and whose numbers are unknown.
As for Daesh, the militants do not disclose their casualties but Issa gave an estimate of between 1,800 and 2,000 dead.
On Wednesday, the US military announced a resumption of anti-Daesh air strikes in Sirte following a one-week break, as part of an operation launched on Aug. 1 in support of the GNA that has totted up 368 raids
With the militants now encircled in an area of less than one square kilometer, “it is unclear what the impact of (further) airstrikes would be,” said Mattia Toaldo, a Libya expert with the European Council on Foreign Relations.
“The battle has taken longer than expected for a number of reasons: First they have encountered more resistance than expected ... they suffered more casualties and eventually started to feel war fatigue,” he said.
“Most importantly, in the very last stages it has become clear that Daesh holds several hostages, which makes attacking the last buildings they control more tricky.”
Issa said GNA troops could hear “the cries of civilians every time a strike is carried out” but he did not know their number, only that Daesh had entrapped them.
The group’s ouster from Sirte would deal a heavy blow to the militants, who have been left reeling since the start of the year by a string of military defeats in Syria and Iraq.
Those militants left in Sirte appear determined to fight to the death rather than be taken prisoner, often carrying out car-bomb attacks wherever pro-GNA forces are gathered in numbers.
“This is not an easy battle... because we are fighting against an armed radical ideology in which death is an aspiration. We very soon realized the complexity of this battle,” said Issa.
“Such an enemy can only be wiped out once all its fighters are killed. And that’s what we are doing.”
Posted by: badanov ||
11/12/2016 00:00 ||
Comments ||
Link ||
[2 views]
Top|| File under: Islamic State
#1
As the Sirte Islamists are reduced in numbers, where will the leaders next emerge? My bet is Mali.
[Libya Herald] Five years after it last issued indictments, the International Criminal Court’s chief prosecutor Fatou Bensouda has announced it will return to Libya to investigate war crimes. Because of the lawlessness and violence in the country and the ability of perpetrators to act with impunity, Libya would be a priority for the ICC in 2017.
Bensouda told the UN Security Council in New York on Wednesday that she intends to assemble cases for new indictments, some made public and others confidential (or "sealed" ‐ so those indicted only find out they are facing trial when they are tossed in the clink Drop the gat, Rocky, or you're a dead 'un! in a third country).
As part of this, she explained, her office intends to apply for arrest warrants "under seal as soon as practicable and hopes to have new arrest warrants served in the near future".
With Libya in chaos and violence across the country, Bensouda said: "The situation continues to tank and innocent civilians continue to bear the brunt of the fighting between the warring factions vying for control of Libyan territory. The current state of affairs, in which civilians are victimized, is completely unacceptable."
The court was ordered to investigate Libya by the UN in March 2011, with the anti-Qadaffy uprising at its height, and amid fears that the former dictator was set to carry out massacres of civilians.
In June of that year, three indictments were issued ‐ for Qadaffy, his son Saif al-Islam and intelligence chief Abdullah al-Senussi. In the event, neither man went to the ICC court in The Hague. Saddafi was caught and killed by rebels in Sirte, while Libya failed to hand over either Senussi or Saif after their capture.
The ICC agreed three years ago that Libya could try Senussi itself, who was sentenced to death in July last year by a Tripoli ...a confusing city, one end of which is located in Lebanon and the other end of which is the capital of Libya. Its chief distinction is being mentioned in the Marine Hymn... court, a trial that attracted controversy with human rights ...which are usually entirely different from personal liberty... groups and UN monitors saying due process was not followed.
Senussi remains incarcerated in a Tripoli prison with the justice system in chaos. Saif remains in Zintan under authorities who are not cooperating with the UN-backed Presidency Council and its Government of National Accord (GNA).
Bensouda’s comments have surprised some observers, because since the June 2011 indictments there have been no further actions by the court, despite civil war breaking out in 2014 and ISIS committing numerous crimes in Libya through 2015. Her decision to investigate ISIS now, as it faces imminent defeat from Misratan-led forces, backed by US air strikes, means it may be too late to find anyone to indict.
Posted by: Fred ||
11/12/2016 00:00 ||
Comments ||
Link ||
[9 views]
Top|| File under: Arab Spring
[Libya Herald] Plans have been agreed in Zintan between the Beida-based Thinni government and security officials from a number of towns in the Jebel Nafusa to establish a united police force for the area.
Mahdi Labad, the security affairs assistant of the Thinni administration, today agreed the move with Emad Trabilsi, the locally-based head of the Beida government interior ministry’s specialist police forces, and number of security heads from towns in the Jebel Nafusa and neighbouring area. The united police force is to be led by Trabulsi and his specialist police force.
Trabulsi was in Beida and Benghazi last week discussing the idea.
Labad also attended yesterday’s graduation ceremony in Zintan for 750 new coppers. They n included new officers from all over the country, "not just Zintanis" Abdullah Alrabu, a local journalist from Zintan told the Libya Herald.
The ceremony included military parade, a display of martial arts and a fly-past by the air force. Families of graduates were there as well.
It was the fourth batch of police to graduate and the second of this year, but was also the largest.
"The former batch this year had 500 graduates," Abdullah noted.
Posted by: Fred ||
11/12/2016 00:00 ||
Comments ||
Link ||
[1 views]
Top|| File under: Arab Spring
Virgin trade goods fetch higher prices. They're very lucky the mRketing department was distracted by more immediate concerns.
[Ynet] The 21 Chibok schoolgirls freed by Boko Haram ... not to be confused with Procol Harum, Harum Scarum, possibly to be confused with Helter Skelter. The Nigerian version of al-Qaeda and the Taliban rolled together and flavored with a smigeon of distinctly Subsaharan ignorance and brutality... Lions of Islam last month say they were not abused or raped during two-and-a-half years' captivity in northeast Nigeria ... a particularly crimson stretch of Islam's bloody border... , a source close to the presidency said on Wednesday.
Many girls kidnapped by the Islamist bully boy group have been used as sex slaves, fighters and even jacket wallahs, according to rights groups including Amnesia Amnesty International.
But the 21 freed girls said the Lions of Islam treated them well while they were held captive, according to a confidential report based on their two-week debriefing prepared for President Muhammadu Buhari and seen by the Thomson Rooters Foundation.
The girls, released last month after Switzerland ...home of the Helvetians, famous for cheese, watches, yodeling, and William Tell... and the Red Thingy brokered a deal, are now being held in a secret location in the capital Abuja for assessment by the Nigerian government.
State health workers confirmed that the girls were not sexually abused while in captivity, adding that they all tested negative for sexually transmitted diseases, the report said.
Posted by: trailing wife ||
11/12/2016 04:44 ||
Comments ||
Link ||
[1 views]
Top|| File under: Boko Haram
[ENGLISH.ALARABIYA.NET] Houthis are commonly known these days as "owners of the trucks" in Yemen ...an area of the Arabian Peninsula sometimes mistaken for a country. It is populated by more antagonistic tribes and factions than you can keep track of. Except for a tiny handfull of Jews everthing there is very Islamic... because they own the majority of the newest truck models.
Houthi ...a Zaidi Shia insurgent group operating in Yemen. They have also been referred to as the Believing Youth. Hussein Badreddin al-Houthi is said to be the spiritual leader of the group and most of the military leaders are his relatives. The Yemeni government has accused the Houthis of having ties to the Iranian government, which wouldn't suprise most of us. The group has managed to gain control over all of Saada Governorate and parts of Amran, Al Jawf and Hajjah Governorates. Its slogan is God is Great, Death to America™, Death to Israel, a curse on the Jews ... fighters are roaming the streets of Sanaa and other regions in these trucks. They are known drive arrogantly at high speeds in order to show their superiority. This has in turn, provoked most citizens because they live in unbearable conditions due to the militias’ practices.
Journalist Mouin al-Najari said that "all those who dare to ask for their salaries, are accused by Houthis of being mercenaries and agents for the coalition". He added that the owners of the trucks do not suffer from hunger and no one dares to talk to them."
Engineer Ali Yahia said that "the owners of these trucks and the thieves controlling our income are telling us that we should be patient because we are at war and that the salary is not necessary... At the same time, there are cases of hunger and suicides; a lot of people are in the streets now begging for money. This era’s rectors are driving the newest models of trucks... If you sell your trucks, I can guarantee that you would be able to pay the salaries for six months."
Qat as a luxury
But it’s not just about the Houthis’ trucks. Teir overindulgence was also depicted by the buildings and luxury villas constructed inside Sanaa since the war began.
Ali Mousleh, employee at the Ministry of Education, told Al Arabiya: "When diplomats left the country and capitalists emigrated along with many former officials, the situation worsened. I thought that famous expensive restaurants will close their doors and declare bankruptcy, but I found out that they are always crowded with armed hard boyz driving the newest truck models."
We can also note the provocative extravagance lifestyle of the militias in the Qat market. Salam al-Sahari, a seller at the Nasr market in the north Sanaa, said that "years ago, the turbans used to buy the worst kind of Qat, while my clients who used to buy the finest Qat leaves, were all officials and well-off employees and intellectuals. However, Switzerland makes more than cheese... it is quite the opposite today."
Posted by: Fred ||
11/12/2016 00:00 ||
Comments ||
Link ||
[11 views]
Top|| File under: Houthis
#1
Amazing! In the Houthi homeland most families have little more than a pot to piss in.
#3
Okay, some ones gotta do it. We need to sealift 15000 F-150s and over run these silly Toyotas. If necessary for a safe sales and landing experience I guess we could just arclight the other sales lots.
[ENGLISH.ALARABIYA.NET] Yemeni Deputy Premier and Foreign Minister (FM) Abdulmalik al-Mikhlafi called on the Special Envoy of the United Nations ...boodling on the grand scale... Secretary General to Yemen ...an area of the Arabian Peninsula sometimes mistaken for a country. It is populated by more antagonistic tribes and factions than you can keep track of. Except for a tiny handfull of Jews everthing there is very Islamic... Ismail Ould Cheikh to put forward a fresh roadmap to bring about peace, in Yemen, contrary to a recently presented and rejected one by the legitimate government.
In a press statement, following a meeting here with the Ambassador of Russia to Yemen, he emphasized the significance of putting forward a new map, that takes into consideration the references of the Gulf sponsored initiative, UN Security Council resolutions and the outputs of the National Dialogue Conference, in addition to accords reached, in consultations conducive to peace, previously, taken place, in Switzerland ...home of the Helvetians, famous for cheese, watches, yodeling, and William Tell... as Kuwait.
Yemeni official news agency reported that the two sides, discussed during the meeting, latest events, in Yemen and developments related to last roadmap presented by Ould Cheikh.
Posted by: Fred ||
11/12/2016 00:00 ||
Comments ||
Link ||
[9 views]
Top|| File under: Houthis
#1
I love auto maps and can fold.
I am inexpensive but not cheap.
[ENGLISH.ALARABIYA.NET] Walid Phares, one of US President-Elect Donald Trump ...New York real estate developer, described by Dems as illiterate, racist, misogynistic, and what ever other unpleasant descriptions they can think of, elected by the rest of us as 45th President of the United States... 's foreign policy advisers, has confirmed that the upcoming administration plans on creating a coalition with the GCC, Jordan and Egypt in counter-terrorism efforts.
Phares also confirmed during an interview with the BBC that Trump will plan on recalling the Iran nuclear deal and re-discussing it in congress before resubmitting it to EU partners, clarifying that the next US administration will demand key changes to agreement.
During the campaign, Trump said the Iran deal was one of the worst agreements ever negotiated. In a USA Today op-ed in September of 2015 Trump said, "When I am elected president, I will renegotiate with Iran."
When challenged by the BBC that a coalition between Gulf Arab countries and the US already exists, Phares responded: "We wished it were the case. A lot of Arab diplomats have been telling us that they hoped to have had more active participation with the US in fighting terrorism but the B.O. regime has opposed them saying that they ’did not want them in Iraq and Syria’ in order for the Iran nuclear deal to stick".
Posted by: Fred ||
11/12/2016 00:00 ||
Comments ||
Link ||
[6 views]
Top|| File under:
#1
Thank God! Trying to work with the Gnu C Compiler (GCC) can be a real pain in the ass!
#3
From wikileaks we know a number of Gulf Arab states fund ISIS as well as the Clinton Campaign. Shares should start with that list when determining who are friends and who are enemies.
[Dhaka Tribune] Using loopholes in border security, the terrorist group New Jama’atul Mujahideen Bangladesh (JMB) is now smuggling arms into Bangladesh from India, police have said.
Members of the old JMB hiding across the border in West Bengal are the suppliers of these weapons.
The two groups mainly use the Chapainawabganj and Joypurhat borders to bring in the arms, sometimes putting them inside mango baskets and sometimes inside shopping bags.
The weapons originate in Malda and Bihar in India.
Information from the interrogation of four New JMB members in jug and also some Indian arms smugglers had unveiled this criminal network, a senior officer from police Counter Terrorism and Transnational Crime (CTTTC) unit told the Dhaka Tribune.
The four turbans are Mizanur Rahman, Toufiqul Islam, Abu Taher and Selim Miah, who have revealed quite a few sensational information in interrogation, the officer said.
Ahmedul Islam, Assistant Commissioner (AC) of CTTC, admitted yesterday that the police had uncovered some information on this and were analysing them.
The outgoing director general of Border Guard Bangladesh (BGB) Maj Gen Aziz Ahmed admitted that the force had limited capability to check smuggling of this nature.
"We share a long border with India and we do not have sufficient capacity to check these activities," he said.
"We have information that arms smugglers use sacks of rice or onion in big trucks to bring arms, but we have no vehicle scanners. It is quite impossible to check all these vehicles manually," Maj Gen Ahmed said.
BGB had placed demands to the Home Ministry for better equipment, the DG said.
He pointed out that the lack of cooperation from law enforcement further aggravated the problem.
"BGB members often check trucks manually based on intelligence reports and are sometimes successful in apprehending smugglers. The problem is, we do not got updates from the Sherlocks once we turn the criminals in," he said.
Investigators say most of the arms used by New JMB came from India, even the modern AK-22 rifles. The modified AK -22 came from Bihar and entered Bangladesh through Chapainawbaganj.
CTTC chief Monirul Islam says New JMB brought in the weapons through their own channels.
"The Death Eaters did not take assistance from professional arms smugglers," he told the Dhaka Tribune.
"Although we have information that the AK-22s were modified in India, we are not sure where they were manufactured," he said.
"We are looking into their place of manufacture."
According to Sherlocks, New JMB leader Sagor of Joypurhat, Mizanur Rahman alias Boro Mizan of Gaibandha and Mizanur alias Chhoto Mizan worked as arms carriers, bringing the weapons through the border, while former JMB leader Sohel Mahfuz, who currently works for New JMB, looks after the syndicate’s activities in West Bengal.
New JMB leaders Nurul Islam Marjan and Rajib Gandhi handled the arms after they were delivered into Bangladesh by the carriers.
Sanowar Hossain, additional deputy commissioner of CTTC, said: "We have not found any connection between New JMB and any arms smuggler. They basically collect them through their own sources and bring them into Bangladesh through Chapainawabganj border."
According to sources, New JMB leader Shariful Islam, Mamunur Rashid and Junayed Khan have fled to India after the Gulshan attack and joined hands with Sohel Mahfuz there, trying to increase their capacity by collecting firearms.
"We are now trying to go the source of New JMB’s arms capacity and are conducting drives," ADC Sanowar said.
Posted by: Fred ||
11/12/2016 00:00 ||
Comments ||
Link ||
[2 views]
Top|| File under: Jamaat-ul-Mujahideen Bangladesh
Turkey’s Interior Ministry shut down 370 non-governmental organizations on Friday, Anadolu reported.
According to a statement from the ministry, the organizations in 39 provinces were linked to the Fetullah Terrorist Organization (FETO), the PKK/KCK, the Revolutionary People's Liberation Party-Front (DHKP-C) and Daesh.
They were closed to protect security and public order, the authorities said. Friday’s step was taken under state-of-emergency legislation, the ministry added.
The Interior Ministry said 153 organizations were associated with FETO while 190 were related to the PKK/KCK. Nineteen associations were connected to the DHKP-C and eight to Daesh.
[AlAhram] The Sick Man of Europe Turkey ...the only place on the face of the earth that misses the Ottoman Empire.... detained on Friday the head of the board of opposition daily Cumhuriyet, which saw nine of its staff tossed in the clink Youse'll never take me alive coppers!... [BANG!]... Ow!... I quit! last week, the newspaper said. Akin Atalay was taken into custody at Istanbul's airport after arriving from Germany, said Cumhuriyet, which has in recent years taken a strong line against President Recep Tayyip Erdogan ... Turkey's version of Mohammed Morsi but they voted him back in so they deserve him... 's ruling Islamic-rooted Justice and Development Party (AKP). He was targeted by a warrant that was part of a probe into "terrorist activities", and was ushered into a police vehicle that was waiting for him on the tarmac.
Nine of the paper's staff, including its current editor-in-chief, were remanded in jug at the weekend pending trial after raids that have added to growing international alarm about media freedoms in Turkey.
The exiled former editor-in-chief, Can Dundar, fled to Germany earlier this year while appealing against a near six-year jail term for revealing state secrets.
Posted by: Steve White ||
11/12/2016 00:00 ||
Comments ||
Link ||
[3 views]
Top|| File under: Sublime Porte
#1
Every single one threatening Erdogan's rule, and not a single one connected to Sunni "extremism"?
#3
You locate your political enemies, plant evidence, then declare them to be terrorists and arrest them all. Given control of the courts and the state of Turkish prisons, trial are irrelevant.
This is a totalitarian islamic dictatorship being assembled.
U.S. President Barack Obama's foreign policy legacy rests in part on a foundation of unilateral actions that his successor Donald Trump could reverse with the stroke of a pen.
Due to take office on Jan. 20, Trump, the winner in Tuesday's election, campaigned at times to dismantle Obama's nuclear deal with Iran and to reimpose sanctions Obama eased on Cuba. Trump also disagreed with foreign policy decisions that included the way Obama has deployed troops abroad to combat Islamist militant groups.
In his most notable foreign policy achievements, Obama, a Democrat, used executive authorities that offered a convenient legal path around a Republican-controlled Congress committed to blocking his agenda.
The U.S. Constitution gives a president broad executive powers to enact foreign policy. Both Republican and Democratic presidents have sought to exercise those powers by issuing executive orders, presidential memoranda and what are called findings.
"He (Obama) relied on executive authority to build a foreign policy legacy," said Thomas Wright, director of the Project on International Order and Strategy at the Brookings Institution.
"That is all vulnerable to countervailing executive authority by a Trump administration," Wright said.
Trump said in an October speech that he would "cancel every unconstitutional executive action, memorandum and order issued by President Obama" on his first day in office, without saying who would determine their constitutionality.
Perhaps nowhere has Obama faced more congressional opposition than in his pursuit of the 2015 deal with Iran, which Republicans and some Democrats said put too few restrictions on Iran's nuclear program in return for too much sanctions relief. Trump has vowed to dismantle it, although his statements on the deal have been contradictory. A president may tighten and relax economic sanctions by executive order.
"Anything enacted by executive order can be rescinded by executive order," said Zachary Goldman, a former U.S. Treasury official now at New York University.
Obama drew enough support from Democrats to block a Republican-led resolution rejecting the Iran deal, achieving a political victory but falling short of a consensus.
Trump will have the added advantage of working with a U.S. Senate and a House of Representatives controlled by fellow Republicans. Senate Republican Leader Mitch McConnell said on Wednesday he hoped Trump would "see how much he can undo the unilateral actions the president took all by himself, which would not require us."
Way to stand next to the man, Mitch...
Breaking with longstanding U.S. policy on another issue, Obama restored diplomatic ties with Cuba in 2015. But facing opposition in Congress to lifting a broad economic embargo, especially from Republicans, he used executive actions to ease some U.S. sanctions.
Obama capped his Cuba efforts last month with a sweeping "presidential policy directive," which also is reversible and sets forth mandates for government engagement, people-to-people exchanges, and greater U.S. business ties. Trump has taken contradictory positions on whether he supports the embargo or not.
Trump could roll back Obama's efforts to create greater transparency about drone strikes. Obama issued an executive order in July requiring annual disclosures about such strikes.
As commander-in-chief, Trump will wield the power to mobilize the U.S. military on short notice and without first seeking approval from Congress. Obama deployed U.S. troops to Iraq, Syria and Libya to help fight the Islamic State militant group by relying on the authority Congress granted President George W. Bush to battle al Qaeda. That same authority would allow Trump to ramp up U.S. deployments in fights against Islamist militants if he chose to do so.
One former U.S. intelligence official, speaking on condition of anonymity, said the president can approve covert action and needs only to brief relevant leaders in Congress once the operation is under way. Trump's powers, however, are limited.
He pledged to expand the Army, grow the Marine Corps, boost the Navy from 276 to 350 ships and submarines, and raise the number of Air Force tactical aircraft from 1,100 to 1,200. For starters, that would require that Congress scrap government spending caps under the Budget Control Act.
Trump's support for water-boarding, an interrogation technique that simulates drowning, also would meet opposition. Congress last year passed legislation barring the use of waterboarding and other "extreme interrogation techniques" widely considered torture. Obama signed the measure into law last November.
Posted by: Steve White ||
11/12/2016 00:00 ||
Comments ||
Link ||
[5 views]
Top|| File under:
#3
While I'm all for erasing Obama's policies on pretty much everything Trump will have to be careful how he does it.
If you spill wine on your rugs you have to remove the stains without bleaching out the rug itself, same thing with graffiti on the walls can't just use a blow torch to burn it off.
#7
If you spill wine on your rugs you have to remove the stains without bleaching out the rug itself, same thing with graffiti on the walls can't just use a blow torch to burn it off.
Of course one can always simply move.
Why would Trump downsize to the WH when he could move staff, et. al. to the tower in NYC?
One doesn't need to live with wine stains and burned walls.
#8
Rarely has Trump railed against big government. It seems the primary object of his rancor has been incompetence - or stupid as likes to say. It's hard to imagine that he will reverse actions that may someday limit his power. We can hope.
#11
Trump will need hazmat gear to clean out the White House.
As far as house and senate so-called leaders Paul and Mitch go, they need to go. They are part of the problem. We need leaders, not weasel manipulators. If we don't drain the swamp, we will be back to where we started or worse.
Posted by: Alaska Paul ||
11/12/2016 10:37 Comments ||
Top||
#12
Careful! Drain that too much swamp and Mitch et alia would have no soothing mud pools to lay about in. /s
Who am I trying to kid. Drain it and burn it out with napalm. We'll work on glassing it over later. Not one shred of his EO's should remain.
Posted by: Whiskey Mike ||
11/12/2016 10:54 Comments ||
Top||
#14
I'm all for removing any trace of Obama's "legacy" BUT some of his atrocities were layered on some things (like the constitution) which shouldn't be destroyed in the process. Let's not throw the baby out with the bath-water.
#15
As a companion project to "THE WALL" I would like to see the houses of congress moved to, or near to,
the geographic center of the US. Leave the museums and art galleries where they are, thereby creating both a tourist center and a legislative center.
#16
If one were to move the Houses of Congress to another location, along with the diffrent Departments they should be moved to the single most environmentaly unncomfortable place in the country. Hotter than hell in summer, blue balls cold in winter. Rainy, wet and humid in spring and fall. With no air conditioning and central heating allowed in government offices and the congressional/senate chambers. If the place is too bad and all legislative/policy has to conducted in this location then maybe, just maybe on the rare occasion congresscould actually convene they might try and get something done just so they could get the hell out. Maybe two locations. Summer in a swamp down South. Winters in say Nome.
As to EOs. I for one have never understood just how they can be constitutional in the first place.
#17
And lend a bit of damn urgency to running the country. The UK House of Commons does not have near enough seats for all its members, so when something is really happening you gotta get there early or be Winston Churchill or its SRO, lends an air of importance to the proceedings. The HOC has significantly less scmoozing in the aisles, want to talk, hit the cloakroom and have a double.
[DAWN] KARACHI: Former senator Faisal Raza Abidi was released from prison on Thursday after a district and sessions court granted him bail in a case about unlawful possession of a weapon.
The former Pakistain Peoples Party senator was tossed in the clink Drop the rosco, Muggsy, or you're one with the ages! on Nov 5 during a raid on his residence in New Rizvia Housing Society and subsequently booked for allegedly possessing an illegal sub-machinegun. He was remanded to prison the following day.
He moved a bail application through his lawyer Naeem Qureshi and contended that the weapon in question was licensed and a permit had been issued in the name of one of his guards.
After hearing arguments of both sides in the case, the district and sessions judge for Malir, Khalid Hussain Shahani, granted bail to Mr Abidi against a surety bond of Rs50,000.
The court ordered his release from prison after the surety had been furnished and he was set free in the evening.
According to the prosecution, a number of weapons, ranging from sub-machineguns to Kalashnikovs, were found during search of Mr Abidi’s house and he could not provide the licence/permit of a sub-machinegun.
Posted by: Fred ||
11/12/2016 00:00 ||
Comments ||
Link ||
[7 views]
Top|| File under: Govt of Pakistan
[DAWN] Two 'militants' suspected of affiliation with the outlawed Lashkar-e-Jhangvi ... a 'more violent' offshoot of Sipah-e-Sahaba Pakistain. LeJ's purpose in life is to murder anyone who's not of utmost religious purity, starting with Shiites but including Brelvis, Ahmadis, Christians, Jews, Buddhists, Rosicrucians, and just about anyone else you can think of. They are currently a wholly-owned subsidiary of al-Qaeda ... (LJ) disclosed information regarding their motives and modus operandi, a senior Counter-Terrorism Department (CTD) official told Dawn on Friday.
The two 'LJ murderous Moslems' Ishaq, alias Bobby, and Asim, alias Capri, from Liaquatabad were incarcerated I ain't sayin' nuttin' widdout me mout'piece! earlier this week for involvement in 28 cases, including the high-profile murder of renowned qawwal Amjad Sabri, who was bumped off in Bloody Karachi ...formerly the capital of Pakistain, now merely its most important port and financial center. It is among the largest cities in the world, with a population of 18 million, most of whom hate each other and many of whom are armed and dangerous... in June.
The CTD's Raja Umer Khattab, officer in-charge of Transnational Terrorism Intelligence Group (TTIG), told Dawn that during an initial interrogation, Capri confessed the men had targeted the famous qawwal as he used to attend majalis in the month of Muharram.
Capri also claimed that Sabri had done a programme on TV channel in which slain activist Khurram Zaki allegedly uttered some questionable words that the qawwal had supported.
According to Khattab, Capri, originally a resident of Karachi's Gulbahar area, shifted to Amjad Sabri's neighbourhood with the intention of targeting him.
The CTD claimed that Capri's two brothers are also faceless myrmidons who are languishing in jails, whereas his third brother was killed in a sectarian attack.
Bobby, considered a ’computer expert,' told the Sherlocks that he had collected material from the internet regarding the activities of the qawwal, Khattab claimed.
According to the CTD, Bobby, considered an 'expert shooter' was the one to hit Amjad Sabri. A resident of Karachi's Orangi Town, Bobby is a Hafiz-e-Koran who joined LJ in 2012, the CTD said.
Two of Bobby's accomplices, along with other murderous Moslems, were killed in an encounter with law enforcement agencies during a deadly terror attack on Karachi's Jinnah International Airport in June 2014.
Posted by: Fred ||
11/12/2016 00:00 ||
Comments ||
Link ||
[8 views]
Top|| File under: Lashkar e-Jhangvi
#1
slain activist Khurram Zaki allegedly uttered some questionable words
#2
"Department of Dubious Utterance."
"I'd like to report these old veterans,
A handful of civies,
Some geeks in their skivvies...
They keep Hill awake with their mutterins'."
#3
Bobby, considered a ’computer expert,'
Bobby, considered an 'expert shooter'
Bobby is a Hafiz-e-Koran
Wow, that Bobby's a regular Jason Bourne.
"Sure, Bobby's a marvelous shooter
And quite the dab hand at computer.
Oh, how he holds on
And recites the Koran
As he rides on the back of my scooter!"
[DAWN] The Foreign Secretary on Friday expressed concern ...meaning the brow was mildly wrinkled, the eyebrows drawn slightly together, and a thoughtful expression assumed, not that anything was actually done or indeed that any thought was actually expended... over the deliberate targeting of villages and populated areas by Indian forces along the Line of Control (LoC) and the Working Boundary in a briefing given to the heads of missions of the permanent member of the United Nations ...a lucrative dumping ground for the relatives of dictators and party hacks... Security Council (UNSC).
During the briefing to the head of missions, the Foreign Secretary also expressed concern over the increase in frequency and intensity of Indian shelling and firing which has led to the death of at least 26 civilians, said the spokesperson for the Foreign Office in a statement.
The FO statement also added that the heads of missions were made aware of the use of heavy artillery, employed by Indian forces on November 9 in the sectors of Shahkot and Jura along the LoC.
Heavy artillery has been used by the Indian armed forces on the disputed border after a gap of 13 years.
Referring to the United Nations Military Observer Group in India and Pakistain (UNMOGIP), the Foreign Secretary reiterated that Pakistain if fully cooperating and providing unrestricted access to the observer mission, however, India has limited the group’s access and is not cooperating.
The heads of mission assured Pakistain that they would convey the concerns to their respective capitals and underscored the need for restraint, observance of ceasefire and dialogue to resolve issues.
The UNSC representatives were informed that the Pak armed forces gave a "befitting reply to Indian aggression".
A briefing over the ceasefire violations was also given by a representative of the Military Operations Directorate.
Posted by: Fred ||
11/12/2016 00:00 ||
Comments ||
Link ||
[8 views]
Top|| File under: Govt of Pakistan
[IsraelTimes] Shin Bet records a total of 153 terror-related incidents in October, with nearly a third occurring in Jerusalem.
The number of terrorist attacks recorded in Israel increased last month by almost 30 percent over September -- the sharpest rise recorded in any given month over the past year.
The Shin Bet recorded a total of 153 attacks in October, with nearly a third occurring in Jerusalem, compared to 109 attacks in September, according to the security agency’s monthly report, which it published on its website earlier this week.
The 29% increase in attacks -- the largest since the near tripling of incidents recorded in October 2015 -- owed partly to a near doubling of incidents in the Israeli capital to 48 last month from 26 in September. The October tally for Jerusalem has more than tripled since August, when 13 attacks were recorded there.
The attacks last month resulted in two fatalities and 23 injuries among victims, according to the Shin Bet. Both killings occurred on Oct. 9 during a drive-by shooting in the West Bank that also injured 10. Despite the rise, the tally for October is still lower than the average of 170 attacks per month over the past year.
The Shin Bet reports do not include dozens of incidents of rock throwing that occur every month, mainly in the West Bank.
On Thursday, a protest march commemorating the 12th anniversary of the death of Paleostinian leader Yasser Arafat erupted into festivities with Israeli forces as the demonstrators headed to the Ofer detention center. Four Paleostinians were maimed and two were detained, according to Ma’an.
THE HAGUE: The executive body of the global chemical arms watchdog has condemned Bashar Assad’s forces and Daesh for using toxic weapons and called for stepped up inspections, sources and officials said.
It is the first time the watchdog has found a state member to have violated the Chemical Weapons Convention, and came during a rare vote by its 41-member executive council, sources who attended the closed session said.
A four-page resolution put forward by Spain voiced “grave concern” over the findings of a one-year investigation by a joint panel of the UN and the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW), according to a copy seen by AFP.
It “condemns in the strongest possible terms” the use of chemical weapons in Syria and calls on “all parties identified” in the report to “immediately desist from any further use.”
The joint UN-OPCW panel’s report released last month concluded that Assad’s forces had carried out three toxic arms attacks on villages in 2014 and 2015.
Syrian government helicopters flying from two regime-controlled air bases dropped chlorine barrel-bombs on the villages of Qmenas, Talmenes and Sarmin, in rebel-held Idlib province.
Daesh terrorists meanwhile were found to used mustard gas in August 2015 in Syria.
The OPCW resolution pointedly “demands” that Syria “comply fully with its obligations under the convention,” and mandated the watchdog as soon as safely possible to carry out inspections at the site of the attacks.
Based in The Hague, the OPCW usually works by consensus, but after weeks of behind-the-scenes negotiations on the text it became impossible to reach unanimity, mainly due to Russian objections, said one source who attended the session.
When it was clear that “an overwhelming majority” supported the resolution it was decided to put it to a vote, the source said.
A total of 28 countries including Britain, France and the US voted in favor of condemning Syria and Daesh, gathering the two-thirds needed to pass, the sources said.
Four countries voted against — China, Iran, Russia and Sudan — while nine countries abstained.
“This decision confirms that the Assad regime and Daesh are responsible for using abhorrent chemical weapons against civilians,” said British Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson in a statement after the vote.
“There is a clear determination across the international community to hold those who have used these heinous weapons to account.”
Posted by: badanov ||
11/12/2016 00:00 ||
Comments ||
Link ||
[3 views]
Top|| File under: Islamic State
[ENGLISH.ALARABIYA.NET] Russia rejected a U.N. request to extend future ceasefires to permit the delivery of aid into Aleppo, as the international organization warned that it was delivering the last remaining food assistance.
Speaking in Geneva, Jan Egeland, the special adviser to the U.N. envoy for Syria, said the last time the over a quarter of million people inside east Aleppo received any humanitarian aid was at the beginning of July.
"The reports we have now from within east Aleppo is that the last food rations are being distributed as we speak. There will not be more to distribute next week. Some families have not had any distributions, families in need of relief, have not had any distributions for several weeks already," Egeland said.
The Russian Defense Ministry said Thursday that Egeland had sent a request for longer truces to get aid to the eastern area of the city that still hosts more than a quarter of a million people.
In a statement, the ministry’s front man Igor Konashenkov said it was "against common sense" to extend the breaks in conflict "just for the sake of it, not to bring real help to peaceful civilians, but so that faceless myrmidons can better restore their battleworthiness."
Posted by: Fred ||
11/12/2016 00:00 ||
Comments ||
Link ||
[2 views]
Top|| File under: Govt of Syria
#1
Air-drop AK-47s, bullets and a map to where the terrorists have hidden their food after it was stolen from the citizens. Wait three days. Problem solved.
[ENGLISH.ALARABIYA.NET] The Iran nuclear deal would fall apart if a US administration walked away from it, as President-elect Donald Trump ...New York real estate developer, described by Dems as illiterate, racist, misogynistic, and what ever other unpleasant descriptions they can think of, elected by the rest of us as 45th President of the United States... has vowed to do, the State Department said Thursday. Iran’s President Hassan Rowhani had argued on Wednesday that the deal ‐ which saw world powers lift sanctions on Tehran in return for controls on its nuclear program ‐ has been enshrined in international law.
The outgoing US administration is proud of the agreement and has no intention of dropping it, but Trump said several times during his campaign that moving away from it will be a priority once he takes power in January.
"Any party ‐ and I’m speaking very hypothetically here, because I don’t want in any way to attempt to hypothesize about what the incoming administration’s going to do ‐ I’m just talking purely about an agreement that any party can walk away from," State Department front man Mark Toner said.
"And that will have profound consequences on the integrity of the agreement." Toner said that the Iran deal was not a legally binding treaty, but that the current US administration believes it is in Washington’s interest to continue it.
Asked whether if the US withdraws support for the deal whether Iran might start building a nuclear weapons program, Toner said: "Yes. That’s the reality of the situation." "This is why we believe it to be in everyone’s interest, including the world’s interest, that if Iran abides by this agreement, and all the parties abide by the agreement, then we have shut-off Iran’s path to a nuclear weapon," he said.
During the election campaign, Trump described the deal as "disastrous" and said it would be his "number one priority" to dismantle it. On Wednesday, Rowhani said: "Iran’s understanding in the nuclear deal was that the accord was not concluded with one country or government but was approved by a resolution of the UN Security Council and there is no possibility that it can be changed by a single government."
Posted by: Fred ||
11/12/2016 00:00 ||
Comments ||
Link ||
[0 views]
Top|| File under: Govt of Iran
[ENGLISH.ALARABIYA.NET] As soon as the United States elected Donald Trump ...New York real estate developer, described by Dems as illiterate, racist, misogynistic, and what ever other unpleasant descriptions they can think of, elected by the rest of us as 45th President of the United States... as its 45th president, the media started speculating on who would replace current Secretary of State John F. I was in Vietnam, you know Kerry Former Senator-for-Life from Massachussetts, self-defined war hero, speaker of French, owner of a lucky hat, conqueror of Cambodia, and current Secretary of State... A leaked document published by Buzzfeed on Thursday purportedly shows a who’s who short-list of Trump’s closest Republican surrogates and insiders who would be considered top candidates President-Elect Trump’s cabinet.
The list of 41 names, obtained by BuzzFeed News, covers 13 state departments, the attorney general, Office of Management and Budget, White House chief of staff, and White House counsel.
Former House Speaker Newt Gingrich ...former Speaker of the House, author of the Contract with America. Gingrich gave the country welfare reform and a balanced budget and the Publicans a landslide House victory in 1994. On the downside, he has a roving eye and a loose fly, he's opinionated, and he's abrasive despite his ability to work with the other side of the political aisle... , American lawyer and diplomat John Bolton and junior Senator from Tennessee Bob Corker and were listed as possible candidates to replace Kerry as the US top diplomat.
Posted by: Fred ||
11/12/2016 00:00 ||
Comments ||
Link ||
[3 views]
Top|| File under: Govt of Iran
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.
[ENGLISH.ALARABIYA.NET] Yemeni Deputy Premier and Foreign Minister (FM) Abdulmalik al-Mikhlafi called on the Special Envoy of the 
[Dhaka Tribune] Using loopholes in border security, the terrorist group New Jama’atul Mujahideen Bangladesh (JMB) is now smuggling arms into Bangladesh from India, police have said.
Turkey’s Interior Ministry shut down 370 non-governmental organizations on Friday, Anadolu reported.
[ENGLISH.ALARABIYA.NET] As soon as the United States elected 
