Afghan security forces have detained 12 suspected militants, including two alleged Pakistani nationals, on suspicion of terrorism including helping with suicide bombings, the government said on Thursday.
Four of them, including a man described as a known Taliban commander, were arrested on Thursday in Ghazni province, said the interior ministry. The commander was alleged to be a Taliban suicide bombing facilitator, it said in a statement. Six other rebels, including two alleged Pakistani nationals, were captured the same day in the same province, it said, giving no further details.
Another alleged suicide bomb facilitator was seized in southeastern Logar province and the 12th was captured near Kandahar.
Posted by: Fred ||
02/02/2007 00:00 ||
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Ethiopia's government said Thursday it had foiled a bomb attack by bitter rival Eritrea against an African leaders summit. "We have presented the explosives for display to the public," government spokesman Zemedkun Teckle said, referring to a device shown on the state-owned television station's evening news broadcast.
There was no immediate way of independently verifying Eritrea's involvement. Eritrean officials were not immediately available for comment on the allegations. Zemedkun said senior Eritrean government officials planted bombs, but he did not give any other details, saying a more detailed statement would be available in the coming days. African leaders held an annual meeting of the African Union on Monday and Tuesday.
Posted by: Fred ||
02/02/2007 00:00 ||
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#1
Good graphic, I haven"t thought of Snidely Whiplash in years.
Posted by: Redneck Jim ||
02/02/2007 10:00 Comments ||
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Me too, mostly because I had not, and still have not, the slighest idea of who he might be.
Mortar bombs and rockets struck parts of Somalia's capital Mogadishu on Thursday, killing at least three people, witnesses said. "The (mortar bombs and rockets) are being fired towards the sea port," said one witness, who identified himself as Mohamed Deq. "One mortar hit a house nearby, injuring a young boy. Another mortar has hit another house, killing a man and a girl. So many mortars have been fired. It is really terrifying. People are coming out of their houses, people are standing in the streets confused."
It was not immediately clear who was behind the attack. In a two-week war over the New Year period the government, backed by troops and weapons from Ethiopia, drove out Islamists who had controlled Mogadishu and much of the south for six months. But there have been a number of attacks in the capital since then. On Tuesday, a series of blasts rocked northern Mogadishu in an area of the capital where Ethiopian troops were based, security sources and residents said.
Posted by: Fred ||
02/02/2007 00:00 ||
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RIYADH (Reuters) - Saudi police arrested a man with weapons hidden under his clothes as he tried to enter the Grand Mosque in Mecca, Islam's holiest site, a Saudi security official said on Friday.
Police stopped the man late on Thursday because he appeared to be acting strangely. He was carrying a revolver and a sub-machinegun under his clothes, and was wearing what appeared to be a suicide belt but which later proved to be fake. The man's nationality was not clear.
Posted by: Steve White ||
02/02/2007 00:00 ||
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#1
There ought to be some chicken that come home to roost, at some point.
#2
people get disoriented when they drink too much zam zam water--they think ...go to grand mosque--byog--bring your own guns--but what's with the fake bomb belt--suicide by mamluk?
Posted by: yo momma ||
02/02/2007 1:40 Comments ||
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#3
The Saudis don't play that s*** when it comes to the Grand Mosque, he'll be forced to watch his own beheading soon!!
#6
Hey lemme go! I was only following our custom that requires strangers to town to donate weapons to the nearest mosque armory. I was hesitant 'cause my splodeydope vest wasn't finished yet. But I knew they'd expect one.
Ten Yemeni soldiers were killed and 20 wounded in an attack on an army roadblock in Saada province in the northwest of the country, a security source told AFP. The assault was presumed to have been carried out by Zaidi rebels, he added. "Violent clashes are taking place in the Rizamat region" where the checkpoint attack was reported said the source, who requested anonymity. Thursday's toll raised to at least 22 the number of soldiers killed in fighting between the army and Zaidi insurgents in Saada province since rebel attacks resumed earlier this week.
The ruling General People's Congress (GPC) of President Ali Abdullah Saleh said on its website on Wednesday that five soldiers, including an officer, were killed in "terrorist attacks led by members of the (rebel) group." Zaidi rebels are suspected of being behind attacks on Saturday and Sunday against army and police in the Saada region near the Saudi border which left seven soldiers dead and 20 others wounded.
On Monday Saleh called on the rebels to lay down their arms and surrender. "Those saboteurs and terrorists who belong to (tribal Zaidi leader) Abdul Malek al-Huthi should hand in their heavy and medium weaponry to the (army) command in the Saada region," he said in an address to military commanders. There has been no official indication of rebel losses, but the security source told AFP on Thursday that "three rebels were killed on Wednesday at a village in Saada province."
The Huthi tribe led a rebellion against government forces in 2004 and 2005 that left around 700 dead and hundreds more wounded. Since then there have been intermittent outbreaks of fighting. One rebel leader, Abdel Malak al-Huthi, confirmed on Thursday that threats had been made against Jews in the village of Al Salem in Saada province to make them leave. "These Jews have a problem with the other inhabitants of the region, who have complained about them," he told the Arabic-language satellite television channel Al-Jazeera. "The people have demanded that these Jews leave because they have provoked damage... by their admitted meddling in regional affairs and their moral corruption," Huthi said.
Posted by: Fred ||
02/02/2007 00:00 ||
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Attacks on Britain's Jews have risen to the highest level since records began. A study published today shows the number of reported anti-Semitic incidents has almost tripled in 10 years, with more than half the attacks last year taking place in London. The findings prompted the report's authors to warn of a "wave of hatred" against Jews.
The number of incidents increased to 594 last year, up by 31 per cent on the previous year. Violent assaults soared to 112, up by more than a third on 2005. Incidents ranged from the unprovoked stabbing of a Jewish man in north London to the sending of hate mail and the vandalism of Jewish cemeteries and synagogues.
The Anti-Semitic Incidents Report 2006, compiled by the Community Security Trust (CST), responsible for combating anti-Semitism in the UK, blames the huge rise on a number of factors ranging from Israel's invasion of Lebanon last summer to the jailing of the historian David Irving in Austria for denying the Holocaust.
The threatened suspension of Ken Livingstone as Mayor for comments made to a Jewish Evening Standard reporter triggered 11 anti-Semitic incidents, according to the report.
When the figures were first compiled in 1984, there were just 154 reported incidents, about a quarter of the total for last year.
Mark Gardner, CST spokesman said of the level of hate crimes: "This is unacceptable racism, that many Jews had hoped and believed was a thing of the past.
"Today's anti-Semitism is a wave of hatred, intimidation and abuse against British Jews, who are stupidly blamed and randomly attacked over international tensions for which they bear no responsibility." The MSM reap its fruits.
Incidents last year include:
An Orthodox Jew punched in the face and almost pushed off a Tube platform by an Arab man who screamed: "Get back to Stamford Hill, I want to kill you all"
A Jewish man walking to synagogue with his two young sons suffered a broken leg after being punched and kicked by a white man shouting "f***ing Jew"
Seventy incidents of desecration and damage to synagogues, cemeteries, Jewish schools and private homes with attacks including swastikas daubed on walls
Savage assault of a 12-year-old Jewish girl Jasmine Kranat, who was beaten unconscious on a north London bus by two teenage girls who asked her first if she was Jewish.
The physical descriptions of perpetrators in 205 of the incidents show 96 were by white people, 28 by black people, 60 by Asians and 16 by Arabs. The report has been passed to ministers. IIRC, after the 2000-2002 (but still ongoing on a lower/less reported scale) wave of antisemite attacks in France, the RG police inteligence found that only 7% of those could be attributed to the radical far-right.
Btw, while antisemite violence is an hate crime, and an appalling symptom of what's going on, it shouldn't mask the bulk of "everyday" anti-european, anti-white violences.
#3
Britons of Judaic faith and are ardently anti-Zionist.
*sign* I believe this is a symptom of their desire to assimilate. It's been the bane of Jewish existence for centuries, based on the (false? stupid? misguided?) belief that they will be accepted.
Lots and lots and lots of examples. Weimar Germany is just a more recent one.
Sorry Mouse, this does not seem to slow the tide one bit. They come from a culture that does not understand the finer points of civilization. They only understand pain, when the radical imams experience more robberies like OBL's brother in law, they will get the point or/and die.
Posted by: 49 Pan ||
02/02/2007 12:58 Comments ||
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#8
The remaining Jews just need to get out of Europe. What was old is new again.
exactly. which is why Israel exists and is needed.
Ironic....the more antisemitism, the more they drive Jews to migrate to and defend Israel.
(Xinhua) -- Three of the nine people arrested by British police in Birmingham under the Terrorism Act were taken on Thursday to Coventry Magistrates Court in northwest Britain. Eight people were arrested early on Wednesday morning by police and security forces investigating an "Iraq-style" kidnap and beheading plot, while the ninth was held at 15:00 pm on the motorway, Sky news reported. Under anti-terror laws, a person can only be held for 48 hours without charge. West Midlands Police said earlier that the nine were held "on suspicion of the commission, preparation or instigation of acts of terrorism under the Terrorism Act 2000." The police would also be asking for more time to question all the nine men. The other six will appear in court later.
Although no detailed information has been given by the police under a six-month surveillance operation, Sky news reported that the nine people, believed to be Britons of Pakistani origin, were intended to post a video of a serving British Muslim soldier being tortured and killed on the Internet. The unnamed hostage in his 20s is now under police protection, said the report.
Local police have distributed 5,000 leaflets to let residents in the community know what they are doing in the hope that people would come with more information on any suspicious acts. British media speculated that the alleged beheaded plot could be a backlash to the Iraqi and Afghanistan policies Tony Blair and his U.S. counterpart George W. Bush imposed. It indicated that homegrown British Muslims had started to target Muslim soldiers in the army for their participation in the war in Iraq. The move would also affect recruits among British Muslims to join the army to be deployed in Afghanistan.
Posted by: Fred ||
02/02/2007 00:00 ||
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#1
Further to my comments on this topic from yesterday, may I apologise for my totally out of order reply to LiberalHawk. Sometimes it is best to count to 10 slowly, take a long walk around the block and re-read the comment before submitting.
Won't happen again, and thank you for your civil, well-reasoned reply.
#2
Very gracious of you rhodesiafever , and as TW pointed out yesterday to me , you have been around a while . If you have earnt her respect , then that is by far and away good enough for me . I apologize for my snarky remarks at the end of the day .
Posted by: Howard UK ||
02/02/2007 6:00 Comments ||
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#4
NYT has a fairly long article dedicated to the local reaction. Lots of victimization, disbelief, anger. What was missing was outrage and self criticism. In other words, nothing's changed.
Picture of a Policeman with the caption 'Friend or Foe' - Now, I wonder which community they're targeting? - Funny cos Muslims don't seem to go a bunch on 'time-out', unless of course we're talking spewing racist bile at Speaker's Corner or planning to blow things up / commit murder.
Posted by: Howard UK ||
02/02/2007 9:31 Comments ||
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#6
How about a Irish style power-drill to the knee-caps? We all have our quaint traditions to uphold.
#7
Why is always a "backlash"? Why not call it a "nut reaction"? Have they started the "I was just at the wrong place at the wrong time" or the "George Bush lied to me" stuff yet?
TO wander the streets of Sparkbrook, a suburb of Britain's second city, Birmingham, from shabby corner shop to proud, white-domed mosque, is to enter a world where conspiracy theories are the breath of life.
Many ordinary Muslims do not believe that this week's arrests were an act to foil a terrorist plot aiming to visit unspeakable barbarity on a young British soldier.
Rather, they see the entire operation as a giant con trick. This fits a growing perception of a post-9/11 world in which innocent Muslims are demonised and the terror threat is manufactured to suit the dark designs of the West's Judeo-Christian elite. ...
Posted by: Redneck Jim ||
02/02/2007 12:41 Comments ||
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#10
I temember the old saying "If you don't want people to stare at you, don't dress that way.
Substitute "Act that way," and it applies here.
Posted by: Redneck Jim ||
02/02/2007 12:46 Comments ||
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#11
Pitifully obvious use of the Iraq war in reporting on this case. They're not "Iraq-style" kidnappings; try Psychotic Islamic-style. Muzzies have been chopping heads since long before Iraq.
#12
Too bad that the part about holding the guy @ 15:00 on the motorway didn't conclude : "..in front of a speeding lorry..." or some other equally happy ending.
Getting so tired of the ankle grabbing attitude around the globe for all these goat -phuquers.
LYON, France - Authorities have found no bomb aboard a Rome-bound Air France plane that was diverted to the eastern French city of Lyon on Thursday after a threat by an anonymous caller, officials said. We have found no trace of a bomb, an official at the local prefecture said after fire-fighters and explosive experts had searched the plane at the Lyon airport.
Local officials said 123 passengers had been aboard the plane, which had taken off from Paris. The plane had landed safely and all passengers had disembarked, they said. An Air France spokeswoman said police had launched an inquiry into the case, but gave no further details.
Posted by: Steve White ||
02/02/2007 00:00 ||
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Having a little fun with the boys, are we?
SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico - A news report about Saddam Hussein's execution was removed from a recreation area at the Guantanamo Bay detention center after a detainee's lawyer accused officials of using it to frighten prisoners, a U.S. military spokesman said Thursday. Didya hear, guys? His head popped clean off!
Authorities also removed an Arabic-language poster that depicted Saddam's capture, court appearances and death sentence, said Navy Cmdr. Robert Durand, a Guantanamo Bay spokesman. The military decided the poster "appeared insensitive" and did not belong in the recreation area, where authorities post information about current events for detainees. Awwwwwwwwwww...did it scare the Brave Jihadi Warriors?
"The intent of this poster was to show that the Iraqi people are making progress and have delivered justice," Durand said in an e-mailed statement from the detention center on a U.S. Navy base in southeastern Cuba. ...and that maybe this could happen to you, Brave Jihadi Warrior.
Earlier, an attorney for Australian detainee David Hicks complained the military was attempting to intimidate prisoners with news of the Iraqi leader's execution. "What they're trying to do is ground them into submission with the prospect of their execution," attorney Joshua Dratel said by phone from a Florida airport as he returned from a visit with Hicks. We heard he died slow, mate. Maybe that won't happen to you. But maybe it will. Tough to find a good hangman these days...
Dratel said detainees were shown photographs of the execution, but Durand said the news article included only a picture of Saddam before the hanging. Woah! Look at that! That looked really painful! That hadda hurt!
Durand said stories are intended only to provide "intellectual stimulation" to detainees, most of whom have been held since 2002 and otherwise would learn about the outside world only from their attorneys and letters from their families. The military has displayed stories from a number of news organizations on such topics as the decision by Keith Ellison, a Muslim elected to the U.S. Congress from Minnesota, to take the ceremonial oath with a Quran instead of a Bible."Articles chosen are not always pro-U.S.," Durand said. Why?
Dratel noted that some of the nearly 400 men held at Guantanamo could face execution if they are convicted by military tribunals. Let's hope so.
Hicks, a former kangaroo skinner, was one of the first prisoners to arrive at the isolated detention center when it opened in January 2002. His lawyers say he is suffering from depression and ill health because of the conditions of his incarceration. "He's doing as poorly as I've seen in the three years we've been going down there," Dratel said. Manolo! The violin!
Hicks' father, Terry Hicks, said that showing detainees the photo and articles about the execution amounted to "intimidation, mind games and mental torture. My reaction to that is that plain and simply the Americans have now lowered themselves to the regime that they put out in the first place," said Terry Hicks, who lives in Adelaide, Australia. You know? That one my kid worked for?
Hicks was detained in Afghanistan and was originally charged with attempted murder, conspiracy to commit war crimes and aiding the enemy. He was selected to face a U.S. military tribunal before the U.S. Supreme Court declared the commissions illegal in June. The lead U.S. prosecutor in a revised tribunal system, Air Force Col. Morris Davis, has said Hicks could be among a handful of prisoners expected to be charged by Friday. Or maybe not. Maybe he'll get to wait another couple of years...
A US jury found two Palestinian men not guilty of racketeering conspiracy charges Thursday in a Hamas financing case once hailed by the US administration as a major victory in the "war on terror." The jury did however find both men guilty of less serious charges of obstruction of justice, for which they can still face lengthy prison terms.
The three-month trial, which evolved into a debate on the legitimacy of the Islamist movement Hamas and the alleged use of torture by Israeli security forces, was closely watched by Chicago's Palestinian and Jewish communities and civil rights activists.
Dozens of spectators, who had rushed to the courtroom on short notice, burst into cheers and applause when the not guilty verdict was returned against naturalized US citizen Muhammad Salah, a Chicago grocer, and former Washington-based university professor Abdelhaleem Ashqar.
Prosecutors had argued that both men were top officials in the militant wing of Hamas, which currently heads the Palestinian government but is still designated as a terrorist organization by the United States. Salah was accused of being a "bag man" who shuttled funds for guns and other terrorist activities, while Ashqar was accused of being the group's secretary and communications go-between. Both men had insisted throughout the trial that they were only involved in charitable activities and had been documenting the history of a legitimate political movement.
Posted by: Fred ||
02/02/2007 00:00 ||
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#1
Not guilty, but
guilty of less serious charges of obstruction of justice.
Not guilty in the headline, but guilty in the text.
Charges? Were there other charges ommitted in this stellar reporting?
Posted by: Bobby ||
02/02/2007 6:30 Comments ||
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#2
very unfortunate outcome; the "we were collecting funds for the charitable arm of Hamas" although a scam was an effective defense; also, since Hamas wasn't declared a terrorist org until 1995, it complicated things; in addition, the crime of 'racketeering' is hideously vague and makes it tough to get convictions in compilcated cases.
#3
#2 And last, but not least, treating terrorists as criminals---giving them all the benefits of an ethical code that they intend to wipe from the World---is numero uno mistake.
#4
Sounds like the U.S. made the best of a bad case (not enough hard evidence). Perhaps Salah and Ashqar can enjoy the shouts of victory before the long prison terms begin and then the long years of supervision.
#5
"And last, but not least, treating terrorists as criminals---giving them all the benefits of an ethical code that they intend to wipe from the World---is numero uno mistake."
I so agree with you, Mr Gromgurru. And I've got a nice long list of the folks I consider terrorists, who will be imprisoned without trial on January 21, 2009, if all goes well.
Posted by: Sen Hillary Clinton ||
02/02/2007 15:39 Comments ||
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#6
I agree as well.
Posted by: Mr. Robert Mugabe ||
02/02/2007 15:40 Comments ||
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#7
I'm working to implement this excellent idea right now.
Granted, it's "only a battery", but in today's world, I don't want ANYTHING sold to Iran.
SAN ANTONIO, Texas (Reuters) - U.S. immigration agents have charged an Oregon businessman with trying to buy batteries used in U.S.-built Hawk surface-to-air missiles for shipment to Iran, court documents show. Robert Caldwell, 56, of Portland, Oregon, is charged with conspiring to export regulated items without a license under rules governing international arms trade. He was freed on $50,000 bond pending trial.
Caldwell was arrested last week after giving an undercover agent a check for the $5,000 batteries during a meeting at a hotel across from the historic Alamo mission, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement Agent Jerry Robinette said. "There is no way to get a license," Robinette said. "He would not have been able to acquire a license to ship something like that to Iran."
Hawk missiles, which are launched from fixed positions and considered highly lethal, downed dozens of Iraqi Air Force jets at the start of the Gulf War in 1990. They are believed to be among weapons the United States sent to Iran as part of the Iran-Contra weapons-for-hostages exchange in the 1980s. Sure, let's blame it on Ollie and Ronnie. The cowboys.
But the United States now strictly bans weapons exports to Iran, which it designates as a sponsor of terrorism.
Robinette said Caldwell is an import-export broker in Oregon. He did not say how many batteries Caldwell allegedly attempted to buy. They cost $5,000 each, officials said.
Caldwell's lawyer, Van Hilley, said his client was simply in the wrong place at the wrong time.
That's actually a true statement.
"Mr. Caldwell is a broker, and he met this fellow from England and got involved in something that was well beyond his comprehension," Hilley said. Sure, I always go to England and try to sell parts for Hawk missiles to folks I don't know. Straight out of last week's episode of 24, I tell ya.
Didn't understand any of it, did he, not even the part about handing over the check ...
The federal documents show Caldwell is the second person arrested for attempting to buy the batteries. The other suspect is said to have told investigators that the plan was to send the batteries to Iran. That suspect allegedly fingered Caldwell as a middle man in the scheme, prompting agents to set up the sting in San Antonio.
And now it's Caldwell's turn to rat out the next guy.
"Our concern is to make sure that this battery or any other components of a Hawk missile don't make it to Iran," Robinette said. "We want to make sure they never get ... used against our troops or against our allies."
Posted by: BA ||
02/02/2007 00:00 ||
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#1
You know, the “Graem Bauer” plotline on “24” makes more and more sense to me every day.
Posted by: Eric Jablow ||
02/02/2007 0:19 Comments ||
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#2
...Just as a side note, the Iranians are believed to have adapted at least one of their F-14s to fire a Hawk mounted under its wings. Yes, it looks weird but it's at least technically doable..
Mike
Posted by: Mike Kozlowski ||
02/02/2007 5:56 Comments ||
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#3
With all these components they need it would be a nice opportunity to plant some nasty bugs.
#7
"Sure, let's blame it on Ollie and Ronnie. The cowboys.
But the United States now strictly bans weapons exports to Iran, which it designates as a sponsor of terrorism."
Just like they did when Ollie and Ronnie were selling arms to our sworn enemies, nice historically heroic behaviour on behalf of the USA
#8
Being where the action is - is not a crime; buying weapon stuff for Iran is. The jury in San Antonio will surely get to see it all in Living Technicolor and hear it all in SurroundSound. Some guy is going to have to get up and sing the song, "it was all a simple misunderstanding", and then tap dance the "he is a wonderful family man" for the jury. I hope Caldwell enjoys the show before the 20 year stretch begins.
#10
#2 Come-on Mike, even turbans should know that Hawk is worthless without an illuminating radar (it navigates to target via radar reflections). And no way you could put one on a plane.
#16
Grom...you are absolutely correct. And Steve is also correct. (I was a Hawk pulse ack/BCC/ROR repair tech in the USMC) Pretty big missile, and far superior to the Ruskie SAM's. Maybe the Ranians converted the missile shell to a gas tank. Need a Raytheon engineer to explain this one.
#18
Question, when the hell are we going to start hanging traitors and Muslim terrorist? The new building design in New York should have included a gallows. Or at least a mobile one so it could be moved daily over to the New York Time's office.
#19
Before I even looked at the article, I knew the SOB had to be from the People's Republic of Portland, soon to be the Caliphate of Portland. I live in Oregon, and the news about the Portland 7 is just the tip of the iceberg in that toilet of a town : the mayor is a whack job who has fought the Feds on EVERY counter-terrorism measure, the Chief of Police has been changed a few times recently but none of them have been strong anti-terrorists, and the Oregonian {aka Portland Pravda} glorifies and excuses any and all scumbags caught supporting the jihadis.
#20
Grom..I was a 2211,'62-'64, 1st LAAM Bn, B Batt, back in the vacuum tube days, missed DaNang by a month. Keep pushing those buttons , this site needs Hawks like you. :)
Suspected militants ambushed a van and killed two government officials and a tribal cop in North Waziristan on Thursday, said the political administration, while two people died in a blast in Bara tehsil of Khyber Agency.
Two Communication and Works Department officials and Khasadar Nekmatullah were on their way to Mir Ali when four gunmen in a vehicle with tinted windows fired at their van, killing all three immediately and injuring three others. AFP reported the government officials van was carrying the salaries of tribal police from Miranshah to North Waziristan. AP reported that the Rs 800,000 meant for salaries was not stolen. We cannot say for sure who attacked the government vehicle, said an official. In Bara, political authorities said Dakhan was inspecting a bomb at home after his neighbour Bilal found it in nearby fields when the blast occurred, killing Dakhan and his daughter-in-law and injuring six others, including five children.
Posted by: Fred ||
02/02/2007 00:00 ||
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Coalition Forces Use Precision Guided Munitions To Stop Attack
CAMP FALLUJAH, Iraq - Coalition Forces used precision guided munitions in two separate incidents during hostile actions in Ramadi today and Thursday. Eighteen insurgents were killed in the attacks.
Thursday night in Ramadi, Coalition Forces were attacked with small arms fire from several insurgent positions. Coalition Forces returned fire and when the attack did not cease, used machinegun fire and two tank main gun rounds. The insurgent attack continued and Coalition Forces used a precision guided munition to halt the attack. If a hammer doesn't work, use a bigger hammer.
The weapon struck the intended target, ending the attack. At least 15 insurgents were killed during the attack.
Today in Ramadi, Coalition Forces were attacked with small arms fire and rocket-propelled grenades from insurgents in several buildings. Coalition Forces returned fire using machinegun fire and one tank main gun round in an effort to stop the attack. When the attack did not cease, What's up with our tank main gun rounds?
Coalition Forces used a precision guided munition against the attackers. The Coalition Force strike hit its intended target, ending the attack. At least three insurgents were killed in the attack. There were no reports of civilian casualties and there were no Coalition casualties from either of the attacks.
#1
I'm guessing that the tank rounds we use are meant more for penetration than explosion. They might be basically punching a hole in one side and out the other.
For taking down walls of buildings, optimally you use a low explosive, fired from an engineer gun. It is an odd explosion that just pushes a wall over, instead of punching a hole through it.
Few soldiers ever see it in operation, but once they do, they become very fond of it.
#4
The problem with most tank rounds is that they are designed to kill OTHER tanks : long rod penetrators, HEAT, and the like; the only other major round carried consistently is the new tungsten shot round, which makes the 120mm main gun of an Abrams into a freaking huge shotgun. What is needed for urban warfare is an updated HESH round or a thermobaric round designed for the 120mm gun.
Actually a HESH/thermobaric 1-2 punch would be ideal for urban fighting : the scabbing and wall breaching from the HESH, immediately followed by a thermobaric round through the new opening.
US and Iraqi forces detained dozens of suspected militants Thursday in a security sweep northeast of Baghdad after a spate of bombings near the Iranian border earlier this week, an army official said.
The raids were launched against the cities of Khanaqin, Balad Ruz and some border villages after the area was struck by bombings on Tuesday targeting Shiite ceremonies commemorating Ashoura. Security forces arrested 37 suspected militants who were accused of involvement in those attacks, as well as nine Mahdi Army members who had fake passports and army and police IDs, an Iraqi army official said. Also detained were 14 people who were on wanted lists, as well as an Egyptian and an Afghan, the official said.
Posted by: Fred ||
02/02/2007 00:00 ||
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HILLA,Iraq - Forty-five people were killed and 150 wounded when two suicide bombers struck in the centre of Hilla, 120 kilometres, (75 miles) south of Baghdad on Thursday, a medical and security source said. At least 45 people were killed and 150 others wounded in a twin blast at a market in the centre of the city, said a hospital source in Hilla, the capital of Babil province.
A local policeman confirmed the toll and said it had been caused by two bombs that exploded almost simultaneously.
Posted by: Steve White ||
02/02/2007 00:00 ||
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#1
what about abu gharib/--oh the humiliation-- islamobarbarians are always attacking markets with women and children--its like no one in mesopotamia has developed a superego--its all kill kill kill--and i used to wonder how the algerian gia slit innocent villagers' throats-- babooons
Posted by: yo momma ||
02/02/2007 1:53 Comments ||
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AFP: 2/2/07, 14:40. Somebody put it on the stopwatch.
GAZA CITY (AFP) - Palestinian president Mahmud Abbas and exiled Hamas political supremo Khaled Meshaal declared a ceasefire between their feuding factions in the Gaza Strip after internecine violence killed 25 people in just 24 hours. Oh, wait a minute... Shortly after the ceasefire was announced, unknown gunmen opened fire on the motorcade of the Egyptian envoy to the Gaza Strip, who has been at the heart of mediation efforts between Abbas's Fatah and the ruling Hamas faction. There were no injuries in the incident which cast doubts on the chances of the ceasefire, which came three days after the declaration of another truce. Nah, c'mon guys. Give it a chance. This could be the one...
"President Mahmud Abbas and Hamas political chief Khaled Meshaal held a phone conversation this evening and agreed to make an effort to end the fighting," presidential spokesman Nabil Abu Rudeina told AFP. Howda we evah get this far...
The two leaders also agreed to meet in the Muslim holy city of Mecca next Tuesday on the initiative of King Abdullah of Saudi Arabia, he added. Oh. Mecca. That should solve everything.
Nizar Rayan, a Hamas official in the Gaza Strip, confirmed that "Abbas and Meshaal reached an agreement between Fatah and Hamas on an immediate ceasefire." Peace in our lunchtime. At least they can maybe put the fires out.
Black smoke billowed into the sky from Gaza's Islamic University on Friday after the Hamas bastion was stormed overnight by Abbas's presidential guard and gunfire and mortar attacks erupted across the territory, also spreading to the West Bank. Masked fighters from Hamas and Fatah roamed the largely deserted streets to the rattle of gunfire as representatives of the rival parties met in Gaza City. The presidency blamed Hamas for the violence amid increasing international pressure on the factions to resolve their differences and negotiate a power-sharing agreement.
Fatah, moderate and secular, and Hamas, radical and Islamist, have tried for months to form a national unity government acceptable to Western donors in the hope of ending a crippling aid freeze. Hamas has steadfastly rejected Western demands that it renounce violence and recognise Israel and past peace deals. Should we set the over/under?
#4
The presidency blamed Hamas for the violence amid increasing international pressure on the factions to resolve their differences and negotiate a power-sharing agreement.
It sounds like that's exactly what they're doing - Pali style.
#7
UPDATE! http://www.news24.com/News24/World/News/0,9294,2-10-1462_2063751,00.html
Gaza City - Hamas fighters blew up a pro-Fatah radio station in Gaza, ambulances were caught in the crossfire and gunmen exchanged heavy fire in deserted streets as a new wave of factional fighting killed seven people on Friday in the chaotic coastal territory.
The resurgent violence, which has killed a total of 13 people since Thursday, destroyed a brief truce between Fatah and Hamas and forced thousands of Gazans to huddle in their homes to escape the crossfire.
Fatah forces stormed a Hamas-affiliated university on Friday afternoon, setting two buildings on fire and waging a shootout with Hamas forces inside the campus. Black smoke rose over the city.
In a symbol that the two sides had returned to open warfare, their respective radio stations stopped playing songs of national unity and broadcast songs about armed struggle and fighting the enemy.
Egyptian mediators blamed Hamas for violating the latest cease-fire deal by ambushing an official convoy.
Gaza plunged into chaos
On Friday morning, 50 officers from Abbas's presidential guard surrounded the Hamas-led Interior Ministry and exchanged fire with Hamas gunmen guarding the building. Outside of Gaza City, Hamas militants launched mortar shells at a Fatah training base in an attack that wounded 30 recruits, security officials said. One shell missed the base, hitting a nearby house and wounding two children inside.
The roads of Gaza were nearly empty, sealed off by makeshift roadblocks of rubble and garbage. Only masked security officers, some with hand grenades clipped to their ammunition vests, were visible in the streets. The sound of gunfire mixed with the call to prayer, but the mosques were mostly empty for Friday afternoon prayers as people stayed at home in fear.
Fighting in northern Gaza killed two Fatah-affiliated security officers and two Hamas gunmen early on Friday, according to hospital officials and Hamas. A woman and two children, ages eight and five, were also killed, health officials said.
A total of 182 people were wounded, 19 of them critically, in the fighting since Thursday afternoon, the Health Ministry reported.
Health officials said Gaza was running out of blood and appealed for blood donors. Ambulances had come under fire and one rescue worker was lightly injured by a ricocheting bullet, they said. A Red Crescent hospital near a security base in Gaza City was hit in cross fire and its windows and gates were pocked by bullet holes.
Overnight, rival gunmen fought in the streets with mortar shells, rocket-propelled grenades and heavy calibre machine guns.
Hamas gunmen blew up the Fatah-affiliated Voice of Labor radio station in the northern town of Jebaliya on Friday morning after a five-hour siege, according to Rasem Bayri, who heads the Palestinian Federation of Labor Unions.
#8
Fatah, moderate and secular, and Hamas, radical and Islamist,
Riiigggghhhhtttt.... The only difference between the two is who's in charge.
Posted by: Rob Crawford ||
02/02/2007 17:53 Comments ||
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#9
In a symbol that the two sides had returned to open warfare, their respective radio stations stopped playing songs of national unity and broadcast songs about armed struggle and fighting the enemy.
#10
This is the reason that the US and Israel unblocked funds for the Fatah-led faction of the Paleo "government" : Fatah needed to balance out the Iranian shipments to Hamas. Realistically, you want both sides more or less evenly balanced, so the feuding and bloodletting can continue for the maximum amount of time. That way, you kill off the cannon fodder on each side and decrease the total number of terrorists available to send against Israel and the West. Also, a long drawn out civil war can lead to one side winning and being so tired of the killing, that they are really interested in peace with their neighbors. Kind of rough on the civilians in Gaza, but then, I remember the Paleo crowds cheering and handing out candy on 9/11 - so F*&K them!
#11
Also, a long drawn out civil war can lead to one side winning and being so tired of the killing, that they are really interested in peace with their neighbors.
Unpossible. Palestinians will never tire of killing.
Posted by: Rob Crawford ||
02/02/2007 19:15 Comments ||
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#12
>EM>Health officials said Gaza was running out of blood and appealed for blood donors
Well, let's see, we have Israeli blood, then we have goat blood, then we have chicken blood from Indonesia, donkey blood, and camel blood.
That's type I, type g, type c positive, type d, and type c negative, which will it be ?
17 killed since collapse of Fatah-Hamas cease-fire
At least 10 Palestinians were killed Friday (as of early afternoon local time) in clashes between Hamas and Fatah, bringing the total number of fatalities since a brief cease-fire collapsed Thursday to 17, Palestinian sources said midday Friday. Some 170 have been wounded in the fierce fighting... Egyptian Newpapers (controlled by the govt.) have been blaming Hamas which means Egypt is probably sending weapons to Fatah.
#10
I don't think popcorn does it anymore. Someone's gonna have to breakout the grill...
Gaza fighting escalates as Hamas seizes Fatah bases
GAZA (Reuters) - Fighting between Palestinian factions escalated across Gaza on Friday, killing at least 15 people as Hamas overran compounds used by President Mahmoud Abbas's forces and two major universities were set ablaze.
Residents of the narrow coastal strip, home to 1.5 million Palestinians, hid in their homes instead of attending Friday prayers as the rivals fought running gun battles with rifles and rocket-propelled grenades from streets and rooftops.
"Gaza is being burned down," Arafat Abu Eyad said from his smoke-filled balcony overlooking smoldering buildings.
#12
What I wonder is. With all these children---and other innocent bystanders---being killed; why don't we hear anything from HRW, UN, Amnesia INtarnation?
#14
Update: 2 Universities ablaze, over 21 killed in the last 24 hours, people afraid to come out of their houses. In other words, even more of a hellhole.
These are the "people" Israel is supposed to negotiate with? Daniel Pipes had it right. This is not a clash of civilizations, but civilization vs. barbarism. And when you remove the civilized, the barbarous flourish. There is not a western country in which this sort of conflict could REMOTELY happen, even though there are factions that hate each other at least as much in our societies.
I just wonder what happens if Hamas wins. I guess Israel completely disengages, but al Qaeda, Iran and the Muslim Brotherhood (and their friends) have free reign in the region.
#15
>"Gaza is being burned down," ?? WTF??? I thought just last week or so there was much gnashing of (rotten) teeth to effect that there was no infrastructure left following the invasion of the Jooos in the recent past....
this doesn't compute.
#17
"There is not a western country in which this sort of conflict could REMOTELY happen, even though there are factions that hate each other at least as much in our societies."
Spain, 1936-59.
Russia, 1918-1921
Finland, 1918 (or was it 1919?)
Hungary, 1919
France, The Vendee, 1791-1796 (or so)
France, 1871
Ireland 1920 (?)
Thats omitting the unpleasantness in the USA 1861-1865, which arguably is different, cause it was a secession more than a civil war about power WITHIN a state. And was fought according to more or less civilized rules (Not that that prevented it from being a horror anyway)
But if you want to see barbarism, the Vendee, the Russian civil war, etc all had plenty.
Civil wars happen. When they do, they are royally bad. Its just the Pals turn now, thats all.
Lets hope it kills off mainly gunnies, not civvies, and that Hamas loses, but that AAMB suffers most of all the Fatah linked groups.
#19
Maybe civil war is a way of maturing out of a bloodthirsty winner take all attitude to a desire for order and peace.
Naaaa, never mind.
Love the pic.
A Palestinian source has said that the Iranian general nabbed in Gaza by Palestinian security officers supervised the manufacturing weapons and explosives for Hamas. The source told Ynet on Friday that the expert was in charge of several labs in the university, mainly chemistry labs in which he instructed Hamas activists, most of them women, manufacturing the explosives.
At least five Iranian citizens were arrested during a raid at the Islamic University, a Hamas stronghold in Gaza City. Six to nine Palestinians were killed in the raid, sources said. One of the Iranians committed suicide during the raid.
Shot himself behind both ears?
The raid on the Hamas-linked university in Gaza was carried out by national security forces affiliated with Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas. Hundreds of weapons and a lathe for the production of Qassam rockets were seized in the raid.
A security official said that during the raid a Hamas commander believed to have orchestrated the kidnapping of an Israeli soldier near the Gaza Strip in June last year suffered serious-to-moderate wounds.
Gut-shot, I hope? And pray for sepsis.
Ahmad Jaabri is believed to have planned the cross-border raid carried out by gunmen of Hamas and two other Palestinian groups on June 12 during which Corp. Gilad Shalit was kidnapped.
The Palestinian source added that at least 20 women, some of them students, were arrested in the labs supervised by the Iranian expert, who was mainly involved in developing shells and rockets, but also explosives. The source said that it was so far not clear what would happen to the general, who was still being questioned by Fatah members.
Official diplomatic sources in the Palestinian Authority, including aides to Abbas and senior Fatah officials, refused to officially comment on the affair. Hamas officials also continued to strongly deny the report on the Iranians' arrest. The security forces also took control of Hamas-controlled government offices. Hundred of security officers stormed the university, eyewitnesses said, and set fire to one of its building.
They're Paleos, they're good at burning stuff down.
#6
am i the only one thinking that this would be an excellent time for israel to release cannon fodder Palestinian prisoners, in a gesture of taking out the trash good will?
#7
Clearly, Iran is attempting to build a Hezbollah South in Gaza. They want to be able to attack Israel from all directions. It's a great strategy, and Israel will be pressed when the time comes to go out and reclaim ground to form a safty zone. Without such a zone, rockets can rain in on Israel day and night.
Israel must act and soon. What can they do, and what will they do ?
#10
Why did the security officers only set fire to one of the buildings at Hamas U? Do they teach anything other than memorized the Koran and making explosives?
#14
Sometimes I think we (the West) are doing a Dorothy in the Wizerd of Oz. Dorothy closes her eyes, clicks her heals, makes a wish, and she returns to Kansas (wakes up from a coma).
The analog here is that we continue to close our eyes, and hope that that the Iranian problem will miraculously disappear. It ain't.
#15
Maybe it will disappear in a cataclysm of IDF fission powered weapons, just after they attempt to deploy one of their own. How grim a scenario would that be?
#17
DEFENSETECH.org + DEFENCETALK + STRATEGYPAGE > have articles on Iranian-made/supplied bombs [e.g.IEDS, Commies]] being used by the insurgents. Supposed to be agz the USA-Allies, espec the USA, NOT other Radics or Muslims.
* All together now, wid feeling, OOOOOOPPPSIES.
#7
Oh, pooh, tu3031. I learnt that in my grammer school science classes. You just ... applied it... in certain business transactions long, long ago. ;-)
#9
Any chance the "controlled explosion" took place in the middle of Gaza?
Yeah, I didn't think so, either.
Posted by: Barbara Skolaut ||
02/02/2007 16:37 Comments ||
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#10
It's not the size so much as the kind of explosive. Twenty-two pounds of gunpowder will make a boom, but won't do much more than dig a ten-foot diameter hole. Twenty-two pounds of Semtex or RDX will blow a hole about 60 feet in diameter. I doubt the paleos were using gunpowder.
Posted by: Old Patriot ||
02/02/2007 23:22 Comments ||
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Palestinian security forces arrested seven Iranian citizens during a raid Thursday night at the Islamic University, a Hamas stronghold in Gaza City, a security official said. According to reports, another Iranian citizen committed suicide during the raid. The raid came during a large-scale assault by Fatah-affiliated gunmen on the university, which followed a day of gunfights between Hamas and Fatah gunmen throughtout the Gaza Strip. The new wave of street battles killed at least six people, one of them a security officer, wounded dozens, and effectively destroyed a three-day-old truce that brought a brief period of quiet to the volatile area.
Posted by: Fred ||
02/02/2007 00:00 ||
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#1
Interesting move. Apparently, Fatah wants to fix an impression that Hamassins are Iranian tools. In a way, it is correct--there is, no doubt, some give and take regards to Iranian funding of Hamas.
#2
If I was Abbas I would march them to the nearest wall and leave the bodies for the wild dogs. However the Palestinains are fools so they won't that goes double for the PA.
#3
SPoD, ya'right, them PA are fools, but in my crystal ball I see an impression of pliers in the near future of the detained Iranians. Even small favors count.
#7
This civil war might be a chance for Israel to get Iranian influence (anything major anyway) out of the territories. Israel can hardly go in and brutalize Hamas, but the World Community doesn't give a rats ass if the Paleos brutalize their own.
At this point, there is a plus side to supporting Mazen. I just hope somebody poisons his salad after the job's done. Can't be furgivin him for that Archille Lauro incident.
Posted by: Mike N. ||
02/02/2007 8:53 Comments ||
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#8
I think everyone needs to pop along to here for some therapy . Although Im sure its pretty much booked up with 250,000 clients
#10
Of course there were Iranians, but for innocent reasons. Gaza is a great vacation destination.
Frankly, because Fatah is Israel's Partner in Peace they should hand them over to Israel. Fatah will only get screams out of them. Israel will get information.
#11
Nice day dream, but abbas of course cant be seen turning anyone over the EEVIL Zionists. At least not in a way it could ever get out. More likely they will interrogated in Gaza. Probably with the friendly presence of Egyptian Intell. Getting, say, a CIA guy present disguised as an Egyptian would be nice, but I suspect Mubarak and Abbas would really make us pay for that. More likely they will dole out whatever they find, screening it to tell the story they want to tell.
What do you think is the Fatah motive for faking that its Iranians (not contesting that you may be right, just want to explore the chess game)? A. To make Hamas look bad on the Pal street, and in the Arab world (esp KSA) B. To win undeserved sympathy from Israel and the US
C. Cause Israel and/or the US and/or the Egyptians have put them up to it to make Iran look bad D. Other?
#15
Israel now, Lebanon-Syria in the future > all have a common enemy in Radic Iran. Some noteworthy or well-known Lefty blogs don't deny Iran's ambitions - they merely indic that Iran's ambitions are NOT a threat to the USA. Remember, the GLOBAL JIHADIST/ISLAMIST STATE is NOT a threat to anyone.
NABLUS, West Bank - Israeli soldiers shot dead three Palestinian militants and a teenager in the occupied West Bank on Thursday, medical and security sources said. Two militants from the Al-Aqsa Martyrs Brigades, a group loosely affiliated to ineffectual Palestinian president Mahmud Abbass Fatah party, were shot and killed in the northern town of Nablus, the faction said.
Amer Qalbuny, 21, was killed in a shootout with Israeli soldiers and Wuahel Awad, 21, died from his wounds after the clash. We identified hitting two armed men, an Israeli military spokeswoman said.
Nice shooting, Avi.
A 17-year-old Palestinian was killed near the controversial barrier being built by Israel across the West Bank, medical and security sources said. Taha Mohammed Qalajawi was shot by Israeli gunfire near the barrier at Qalandiya between Jerusalem and the West Bank political capital of Ramallah. He was taken to hospital in Ramallah where he was pronounced dead.
An Israeli army spokeswoman said soldiers had opened fire at the lower body parts of a Palestinian who was attempting to cross the barrier and was subsequently evacuated by the Red Moon Shaped Thingy Crescent.
A fourth Palestinian was shot dead by Israeli forces during an arrest operation to capture two wanted militants in the northern town of Tulkarem. Jasser Abu Zgheib, from Al-Aqsa, was shot while trying to run away flee and was evacuated to an Israeli hospital where he died, an Israeli military source said. A second suspected member of Islamic Jihad, also shot while trying to escape, was being treated in another Israeli hospital, the source added.
Posted by: Steve White ||
02/02/2007 00:00 ||
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#1
Jasser Abu Zgheib, from Al-Aqsa, was shot while trying to run away flee and was evacuated to an Israeli hospital where he died, an Israeli military source said
uh huh... mre likely he's doped up and singing like a canary in an undisclosed location
Posted by: Frank G ||
02/02/2007 10:11 Comments ||
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Thai investigators are reopening the possibility Muslim militants from the far south might have planted bombs in Bangkok that killed three people on New Year's Eve, a top Justice Ministry official said on Friday.
Sunai Manomai-udom, head of the ministry's Department of Special Investigation (DSI), said a man caught on a security camera near one of the places hit was also a suspect in a series of bank bombs in the three southernmost provinces. "We think it's him," Sunai told Channel 3 television.
He named the man as Thawansak Jehna, for whom an arrest warrant was issued in October in connection with bombs in the Muslim-majority southern province of Yala. Sunai said police and DSI investigators had spotted Thawansak, along with another man and a woman, on security video from a mall where a bomb hidden in a tube of potato chips had been defused.
In the immediate aftermath of the blasts, the army-installed government ruled out militants from the far south, where 2,000 people have died in a three-year separatist campaign of shootings and bombings. Instead, they inferred that Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra, ousted in a Sept. 19 military coup, or elements in the police and army still loyal to him were behind the attacks.
Sunai also told a Bangkok radio station the DSI had asked Interpol for help in identifying the other two suspects on the tape. The police sent the tape to the FBI and DSI had sent the video to Denmark, a member of the council of coup leaders told reporters on Friday, adding he doubted either agency would find enough evidence to arrest anyone. "I have full confidence in the dedication of the police and the DSI, but I am not confident that they will have enough evidence to arrest anybody," General Anupong Paochinda said.
Last week, police released without charge a group of 19 people -- a mixture of police, military and civilians -- detained seven days earlier on suspicion of involvement.
#4
I find I have no sarcasm reserves sufficient to address this supposition with the scorn it deserves. I used to wonder how it could be Gondor should ignore the storm-clouds over Mordor. I still do not understand but have to accept how easy it is to sleep-walk off the cliff.
Suspected Muslim guerrillas attacked an overcrowded Philippine jail by blasting a wall early Friday, allowing them to set free three suspected bombers and dozens of other inmates, officials said.
At least 25 men with grenade launchers and rifles destroyed the padlocks of six cells after they barged into the North Cotabato provincial jail in southern Kidapawan city, allowing 49 inmates to escape, deputy jail warden Redentor Marasigan said. Four guards desperately put up a defense by opening fire on the attackers, setting off a brief clash that wounded at least one inmate, Marasigan told The Associated Press by telephone. The guards were quickly overwhelmed by the attackers, who used an M203 grenade launcher to punch a hole in a wall and gain entry into the one-story building, he said.
Posted by: Fred ||
02/02/2007 00:00 ||
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#1
Two thoughts:
1) If the bombers were dead, it wouldn't matter if they got sprung.
2) How did the springers know where the springees were? Next time, set a trap by lying where they are and then nail them.
(AHN) - Philippine security forces arrested a suspected bomb expert and member of the Moro Islamic Liberation Front Thursday while his aide was killed in a pre-dawn raid on their hideout east of the capital, Manila. Senior Superintendent Asher Dolina, chief of the Criminal Investigation and Detection Group National Capital Region, said a team of Philippine National Police and Philippine Marines swooped down on the base of militants in Tanay, Rizal, triggering a firefight that lasted for several hours. Dolina said Sandali Utto was captured at Block 4, Lot A, Purok 6, Lupang Arenda, Barangay (village) Sta. Ana while Mohammad Utto died after a firefight with police around 4:30 a.m. at the riverside along Purok 8 of the same village.
The two alleged guns-for-hire were being monitored by authorities, said Dolina. Marine spokesman Ariel Caculitan added that several firearms and explosives were seized in the operation. He said the people killed and arrested had established linkages with the terrorist Abu Sayyaf Group and with the regional Southeast Asian regional terrorist network Jemaah Islamiyah after peace talks started between the MILF leaders and Philippine government. "These are former members of the MILF who turned criminal elements," he said.
Dolina said the operatives, including the PNP Maritime group and the Marines, were supposed to serve the arrest warrant on Mohammad Utto when he allegedly fired and had even intended to throw a grenade at them. Sophia Dalana, Mohammad Utto's wife, and an alleged MILF member, Bagiuo de Embada, were injured in the encounter. They were brought to the Pasig General Hospital, said Dolina.
In a separate operation, police swooped down on Sandali Utto's residence, where several submachine guns, magazines, live ammunition, and explosive devices were seized, said Dolina. Utto is under the custody of the CIDG-NCR, Dolina said. Dolina said Utto's group was engaged in criminal activities and was also known to "coddle" members of Abu Sayyaf and Jemaah Islamiyah, outlawed militant groups on the U.S. government's terrorist watchlist. "We suspect they were planning attacks in the metro [area]," Dolina told reporters.
However, MILF spokesman Eid Kabalu denied Utto was a member, stressing that the rebel leadership has not sanctioned any operations in Manila in keeping with peace talks. The 12,000-strong MILF has been waging a separatist rebellion on southern Mindanao Island since 1978. But it signed a truce with Manila in 2003 and has denounced links to Al Qaeda-linked JI and Abu Sayyaf to pave the way for peace talks.
Posted by: Fred ||
02/02/2007 00:00 ||
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Tehran, 2 Feb. (AKI) - Jondallah, the main armed separatist group of Iranian Baluchistan, has claimed responsibility Friday for an attack the previous night in Zahedan, the capital of Iranian Baluchistan, which killed four security officials . "The commando of martyr Ahmad Dehmordeh wanted to remind the regime of the Islamic Republic, which is now celebration its birth (the 28th anniversary of the 1979 revolution) that it is not supported by the people of Baluchistan and it must not feel safe there," the group said in a statement delivered to Adnkronos International (AKI).
Celebrations for the 28th anniversary of the Iranian revolution began on Thursday and will end on 11 February.
Since the Jondallah militant group led by Abdol Malek Righi was set up two years ago, at least 34 people have died in attacks carried out by its members against officials of Iran's Revolutionary Guard, the Pasdaran, and Iranian police.
Tehran claims Righi and his militants are "terrorists hired by foreign powers."
Posted by: Steve ||
02/02/2007 10:20 ||
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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.
Afghan security forces have detained 12 suspected militants, including two alleged Pakistani nationals, on suspicion of terrorism including helping with suicide bombings, the government said on Thursday.
Ethiopia's government said Thursday it had foiled a bomb attack by bitter rival Eritrea against an African leaders summit. "We have presented the explosives for display to the public," government spokesman Zemedkun Teckle said, referring to a device shown on the state-owned television station's evening news broadcast. 
Mortar bombs and rockets struck parts of Somalia's capital Mogadishu on Thursday, killing at least three people, witnesses said. "The (mortar bombs and rockets) are being fired towards the sea port," said one witness, who identified himself as Mohamed Deq. "One mortar hit a house nearby, injuring a young boy. Another mortar has hit another house, killing a man and a girl. So many mortars have been fired. It is really terrifying. People are coming out of their houses, people are standing in the streets confused."
RIYADH (Reuters) - Saudi police arrested a man with weapons hidden under his clothes as he tried to enter the Grand Mosque in Mecca, Islam's holiest site, a Saudi security official said on Friday.
Ten Yemeni soldiers were killed and 20 wounded in an attack on an army roadblock in Saada province in the northwest of the country, a security source told AFP. The assault was presumed to have been carried out by Zaidi rebels, he added. "Violent clashes are taking place in the Rizamat region" where the checkpoint attack was reported said the source, who requested anonymity. Thursday's toll raised to at least 22 the number of soldiers killed in fighting between the army and Zaidi insurgents in Saada province since rebel attacks resumed earlier this week.
Attacks on Britain's Jews have risen to the highest level since records began. A study published today shows the number of reported anti-Semitic incidents has almost tripled in 10 years, with more than half the attacks last year taking place in London. The findings prompted the report's authors to warn of a "wave of hatred" against Jews. 
(Xinhua) -- Three of the nine people arrested by British police in Birmingham under the Terrorism Act were taken on Thursday to Coventry Magistrates Court in northwest Britain. Eight people were arrested early on Wednesday morning by police and security forces investigating an "Iraq-style" kidnap and beheading plot, while the ninth was held at 15:00 pm on the motorway, Sky news reported. Under anti-terror laws, a person can only be held for 48 hours without charge. West Midlands Police said earlier that the nine were held "on suspicion of the commission, preparation or instigation of acts of terrorism under the Terrorism Act 2000." The police would also be asking for more time to question all the nine men. The other six will appear in court later. 
Suspected militants ambushed a van and killed two government officials and a tribal cop in North Waziristan on Thursday, said the political administration, while two people died in a blast in Bara tehsil of Khyber Agency. 
US and Iraqi forces detained dozens of suspected militants Thursday in a security sweep northeast of Baghdad after a spate of bombings near the Iranian border earlier this week, an army official said. 
A Palestinian source has said that the Iranian general nabbed in Gaza by Palestinian security officers supervised the manufacturing weapons and explosives for Hamas. The source told Ynet on Friday that the expert was in charge of several labs in the university, mainly chemistry labs in which he instructed Hamas activists, most of them women, manufacturing the explosives. 
NABLUS, West Bank - Israeli soldiers shot dead three Palestinian militants and a teenager in the occupied West Bank on Thursday, medical and security sources said. Two militants from the Al-Aqsa Martyrs Brigades, a group loosely affiliated to 
Thai investigators are reopening the possibility Muslim militants from the far south might have planted bombs in Bangkok that killed three people on New Year's Eve, a top Justice Ministry official said on Friday.
(AHN) - Philippine security forces arrested a suspected bomb expert and member of the Moro Islamic Liberation Front Thursday while his aide was killed in a pre-dawn raid on their hideout east of the capital, Manila. Senior Superintendent Asher Dolina, chief of the Criminal Investigation and Detection Group National Capital Region, said a team of Philippine National Police and Philippine Marines swooped down on the base of militants in Tanay, Rizal, triggering a firefight that lasted for several hours. Dolina said Sandali Utto was captured at Block 4, Lot A, Purok 6, Lupang Arenda, Barangay (village) Sta. Ana while Mohammad Utto died after a firefight with police around 4:30 a.m. at the riverside along Purok 8 of the same village.
