Hi there, !
Today Thu 08/30/2012 Wed 08/29/2012 Tue 08/28/2012 Mon 08/27/2012 Sun 08/26/2012 Sat 08/25/2012 Fri 08/24/2012 Archives
Rantburg
531187 articles and 1854387 comments are archived on Rantburg.

Today: 69 articles and 209 comments as of 23:57.
Post a news link    Post your own article   
Area: WoT Background    Non-WoT    Opinion        Politix   
Kenyan cleric shot dead, sparks riots in Mombasa
Today's Headlines
Headline Comments [Views]
Page 1: WoT Operations
2 22:22 JosephMendiola [336120] 
9 20:01 Procopius2k [336079] 
9 13:51 Silentbrick - Schlumberger Squishy Mud Division [336076] 
4 22:27 JosephMendiola [336130] 
2 11:58 Ebbang Uluque6305 [336070] 
6 22:28 Iblis [336076] 
0 [336074] 
0 [336089] 
0 [336076] 
0 [336091] 
0 [336102] 
0 [336073] 
0 [336075] 
2 10:37 Besoeker [336075] 
1 04:34 g(r)omgoru [336072] 
0 [336085] 
0 [336084] 
0 [336082] 
1 06:35 American Delight [336105] 
0 [336071] 
0 [336087] 
0 [336084] 
0 [336080] 
0 [336074] 
Page 2: WoT Background
8 21:15 tu3031 [336098]
0 [336101]
0 [336087]
8 17:24 g(r)omgoru [336111]
4 16:49 mojo [336067]
3 19:43 JosephMendiola [336072]
3 16:50 mojo [336070]
8 16:51 mojo [336084]
6 22:56 JosephMendiola [336095]
0 [336074]
0 [336074]
0 [336089]
0 [336072]
0 [336076]
0 [336071]
3 14:37 rjschwarz [336065]
1 15:30 Shinter Javirong9154 [336068]
4 11:50 Ebbang Uluque6305 [336072]
1 15:42 Shinter Javirong9154 [336068]
0 [336073]
0 [336068]
8 17:17 Dikhed Al Fuqwad [336071]
Page 3: Non-WoT
3 19:49 Procopius2k [336099]
1 22:57 tu3031 [336115]
2 23:06 JosephMendiola [336125]
12 22:19 Barbara [336090]
6 16:30 Raider [336077]
0 [336072]
2 18:50 Beavis [336070]
10 22:47 Redneck Jim [336100]
4 08:22 Bobby [336068]
0 [336074]
0 [336073]
1 00:21 JosephMendiola [336089]
13 22:44 Redneck Jim [336089]
5 16:08 DarthVader [336073]
Page 4: Opinion
1 00:28 JosephMendiola [336105]
12 20:26 Broadhead6 [336085]
6 18:04 tu3031 [336072]
10 16:09 JohnQC [336063]
6 20:15 rjschwarz [336087]
Page 6: Politix
11 21:16 tu3031 [336078]
11 19:19 tu3031 [336065]
0 [336067]
0 [336066]
Good Morning
Posted by: || 08/27/2012 23:27 || Comments || Link || [336076 views] Top|| File under:

#1  Am I the only one who misses the birthday pics?
Posted by: Griter Crart8496 || 08/27/2012 17:29 Comments || Top||

#2  No.
Posted by: Secret Asian Man || 08/27/2012 17:33 Comments || Top||

#3  No.
Posted by: Redneck Jim || 08/27/2012 20:22 Comments || Top||

#4  Yes
Posted by: Squinty Chaith8856 || 08/27/2012 20:52 Comments || Top||

#5  No
Posted by: tu3031 || 08/27/2012 21:14 Comments || Top||

#6  Another 'no' vote.
Posted by: Iblis || 08/27/2012 22:28 Comments || Top||


Afghanistan
Rogue Afghan soldier guns down two US troops
Posted by: || 08/27/2012 05:25 || Comments || Link || [336076 views] Top|| File under:

#1  Latest word is this particular case was an accidental shooting, not a soldier gone rogue.
Posted by: crosspatch || 08/27/2012 7:55 Comments || Top||

#2  Could be an accident in this case. But I just spoke yesterday to a friend who knows someone who was killed in one of these Green on Blue incidents. In that case - the US serviceman was gunned down in the home of a senior Afghan policeman. This is such a radical change in culture - because traditional culture for the Afghans says that you would never harm someone in your own home - even your worst enemy. Apparently, all that is gone now.

The Green on Blue killings mark one of the most effective strategies by the Taleban to undermine the morale of US troops and to prevent US assistance to Afghanistan. This is not a small issue - it's a BIG one. Finding an effective answer will not be easy.
Posted by: Raider || 08/27/2012 10:26 Comments || Top||

#3  I have an idea about dealing with blue on green killings.

Enact the following policy: Any time ANA or Afghan Police kill and American service member, we arrest that individual's Platoon Leader, Company Commander, Battalion Commander, Brigade Commander, and Division Commander - and then line them up against the wall, and execute them by firing squad - with their seconds in command attending as witnesses.

I will guess that there might be another two blue on green incidents after that policy is enacted - and then, miraculously - the problem would cease to exist.

Affix mortal responsibility - and vetting will improve dramatically.

Think of the military parachute rigger's oath: "I will be sure - always". What makes it trustworthy is their commitment to jump any chute they have packed. Make it so with the armed Afghan government forces.

Posted by: Lone Ranger || 08/27/2012 10:32 Comments || Top||

#4  Finding an effective answer will not be easy. Posted by Raider

Declare victory and label the worthless bastids fully trained and operationally ready! No more feel good "partnering". Assign them a fok'n sector. We've got a sector, they've got a sector. You need air support, call us. Otherwise FO!
Posted by: Besoeker || 08/27/2012 10:35 Comments || Top||

#5  August 1 Thru August 22 Casualties 34

Killed by Afghan Police Officer After Sharing Predawn Ramadan Breakfast

-Gunnery Sgt. Ryan Jeschke, 31 – Herndon, VA

-Staff Sgt.Sky R. Mote, 27 – El Dorado, CA

-Capt. Matthew P. Manoukian, 29

Taliban Suicide Vest Detonation
-Maj. Walter D. Gray, 38 – Conyers, GA

-Maj. Thomas E. Kennedy, 35 – West Point, New York

-Command Sgt. Maj.Kevin J. Griffin, 45 – Laramie, WY

EID

-Sgt. Louis R. Torres, 23 – Oberlin, OH

-Pfc. Michael R. Demarsico II, age unavailable – North Adams, MA

-Staff Sgt. Eric S. Holman, 39 – Evans City, PA

-Petty Officer 3rd Class Clayton R. Beauchamp, 21 – Weatherford, TX

-1st Sgt. Russell R. Bell, 37 Tyler, TX

-Staff Sgt. Matthew S. Sitton, 26 Largo, FL

-Lance Cpl. Curtis J. Duarte, 22

-1st Lt. Todd W. Lambka, 25 Fraser, MI

-Pfc. Jesus Jonathan Lopez, 22

-Spc. Kyle B. McClain, 25 – Rochester Hills, MI

Combat Death
-Sgt. 1st Class Coater B. Debose, 55

-Staff Sgt. Gregory T. Copes, 36 – Lynch Station, VA –

-Hospital Corpsman Petty Officer 1st Class Darrel L. Enos, 36 – Colorado Springs, CO

-Spc. James A. Justice, 21 – Grover, NC

-Pfc. Andrew J. Keller, 22 – Tigard, OR

-Lance Cpl.Gregory T. Buckley, 21 – Oceanside, NY

-Staff Sgt. Scott E. Dickinson, 29 – San Diego, CA

-Cpl. Richard A. Rivera Jr. , 20 – Ventura, CA

-Master Sgt.Gregory R. Trent, 38 – Norton, MA

-Spc.Ethan J. Martinez, 22 Lewiston, ID

-Cpl.Daniel L. Linnabary II, 23 – Hubert, NC

Helicopter Crash - Unknown Cause
-Sgt. Richard A. Essex, 23 – Kelseyville, CA

-Special Warfare Operator Petty Officer 1st Class Patrick D. Feeks, 28 – Edgewater, MD

-Sgt. Luis A. Oliver Galbreath, 41 – San Juan, PR

-Chief Warrant Officer Brian D. Hornsby, 37 – Melbourne, FL

-Chief Warrant Officer Suresh N. A. Krause, 29 – Cathedral City, CA

-Special Warfare Operator Petty Officer 2nd Class David J. Warsen, 27 – Kentwood, MI

Cause of Death Under Investigation
-Sgt. David V. Williams, 24 – Frederick, MD
Posted by: Shusons Phomoling8120 || 08/27/2012 10:57 Comments || Top||

#6  Seems like an awful lot of "rogues", if ya know what I mean...
Posted by: mojo || 08/27/2012 11:24 Comments || Top||

#7  May not be the same incident but it is mayhem out there...

Two American soldiers were shot and killed by one of their Afghan colleagues in the east, military officials said, bringing to 12 the number of international troops — all Americans — to die at the hands of their local allies this month.

But Afghan officials said Monday's attack in Laghman province was a separate case from the rash of recent insider attacks on international forces, because it appeared to have been unintentional.

The incident unfolded when a group of U.S. and Afghan soldiers came under attack, said Noman Hatefi, a spokesman for the Afghan army corps in eastern Afghanistan. When the troops returned fire and ran to take up fighting positions, an Afghan soldier fell and accidentally discharged his weapon, killing two American soldiers with the stray bullets, he said.

"He didn't do this intentionally. But then the commander of the (Afghan) unit started shouting at him, 'What did you do? You killed two NATO soldiers!' And so he threw down his weapon and started to run," Hatefi added. The U.S. troops had already called in air support to help with the insurgent attack and the aircraft fired on the escaping soldier from above, killing him, Hatefi said.
Posted by: Gerthudion Throter8068 || 08/27/2012 11:24 Comments || Top||

#8  an Afghan soldier fell and accidentally discharged his weapon, killing two American soldiers with the stray bullets

Hmmm..more accurate than NYPD cops. Two kills with a spray, even on auto [or if they were using M16s, three round burst] seems rather statistically improbable. Not impossible but highly improbable. Fratricides do occur in combat - Pat Tillman.
Posted by: Procopius2k || 08/27/2012 11:37 Comments || Top||

#9  I don't think executing their commanding officers up the chain will help that much. Shooting the perps entire family might. Extended family. Along with their imam and village chief.

Always remember, what would the Romans do. Multiply by 10.
Posted by: Silentbrick - Schlumberger Squishy Mud Division || 08/27/2012 13:51 Comments || Top||


Seventeen civilians beheaded in Afghanistan's Helmand
Seventeen civilians have been beheaded in Afghanistan, local officials say, with 10 Afghan soldiers killed in a separate incident.

The civilians died in Musa Qala district, in the southern province of Helmand on Sunday night.

The 10 soldiers were killed in the same province when insurgents attacked a security checkpoint also on Sunday.

Meanwhile, an Afghan soldier reportedly killed two foreign soldiers on Monday in eastern Laghman province.

"Last night 17 local villagers, two women and 15 men, were beheaded by unknown people in Kajaki district," Daud Ahmadi, a spokesman for Helmand province, told Agence-France Presse (AFP) news agency.

"We don't know who was behind the killings at this time. We're investigating," he added.
'Insider plot'

The attack on the 10 soldiers took place in Washir district. It left four other Afghan soldiers injured and at least another five missing, reports said.

It is not clear whether they were abducted or went with the attackers voluntarily.
Posted by: tipper || 08/27/2012 03:24 || Comments || Link || [336130 views] Top|| File under:

#1  Update
Local officials said the men had gathered to listen to music and watch the women dance when they were attacked. The Taliban disapprove of men and women mixing socially.

"I can confirm that this is the work of the Taliban," the Helmand provincial governor's spokesman, Daud Ahmadi, told AFP news agency.

He added that the men and women were "partying with music in an area under the control of the Taliban".
Posted by: tipper || 08/27/2012 6:56 Comments || Top||

#2  Fun is unIslamic.
Posted by: Ebbang Uluque6305 || 08/27/2012 12:29 Comments || Top||

#3  The Taliban never did pass "The Birds and The Bees" in kindergarten. It was a major carrer setback for them. They probably still believe that storks deliver babies to the remote Provinces.
Posted by: Raider || 08/27/2012 16:24 Comments || Top||

#4  Uh, uh, THE HARD BOYZ HATE THE BEE GEES + ZEPPELIN, BUT L-O-V-E SPINAL TAP???

gut nuthin.

* See also CHINESE MILITARY FORUM > IS "17" AND ISLAMIC UNLUCKY NUMBER? TALIBAN BEHEAD 17 [of 18] PAK SOLDIER CAPTIVES, in separate attacks.
Posted by: JosephMendiola || 08/27/2012 22:27 Comments || Top||


Africa Horn
Dozens Killed in Sudan's South Kordofan
[An Nahar] Sustained fighting in Sudan's South Kordofan state has killed several dozen government troops and five rebels, the faceless myrmidons claimed on Sunday after the army said it repulsed them.

The Sudan People's Liberation Movement-North (SPLM-N) said "fighting is still continuing inside Al Moreib," a village in Rashad district of northeastern South Kordofan.

"So far from enemy side 61 men were killed and large numbers maimed," the SPLM-N said. "We lost five deaders and seven others are slightly injured."

The rebels first reported a battle in Al Moreib on Friday, when they accused the government of attacking and looting the area. Two other Rashad-area villages had earlier been attacked by government soldiers and militia, they said.

Late on Saturday the army said it had "clashed with the rebels and drove them outside the area" where they had been "terrorizing and intimidating" residents.

It said one soldier and more than two dozen rebels were killed.

Access to the region is restricted, making verification of casualty claims difficult.

Ethnic minority faceless myrmidons of the SPLM-N have been fighting in South Kordofan since June last year and in Blue Nile state since September.
Posted by: Fred || 08/27/2012 00:00 || Comments || Link || [336076 views] Top|| File under: Govt of Sudan


Al-Shabaab terrorist surrenders in Puntland
An al-Shabaab terrorist militant turned himself in to Puntland police forces in Galgala on August 25th.

Puntland spokesperson Ahmed Omar Hirsi said the defector, Mowlid Adan Qalalan, was an important member of al-Shabaab in the Galgala mountains and led a large armed unit.

Hirsi said, "He was a long-time member of al-Shabaab who worked in southern regions such as Kismayo and Mogadishu. He has now decided to leave them, and so he surrendered to the military forces based in Bari region."

When Qalalan surrendered he had a large machine gun, a satellite phone, radio transmitter and documents from which valuable intelligence may be obtained.

The surrender comes after a recent announcement from the Puntland authorities that there has been an influx of al-Shabaab fighters in the region, fleeing from defeats in southern Somalia.

Colonel Jamaa Saeed Warsame said Qalalan had lost hope in al-Shabaab and had expressed remorse for his criminal actions.
Posted by: ryuge || 08/27/2012 00:00 || Comments || Link || [336082 views] Top|| File under:


Africa North
Man Killed in Egypt Blast near Israel Border
[An Nahar] Egyptian security officials and witnesses said a man was killed in an kaboom near the border with Israel on Sunday, with some accounts saying he was trying to fire a rocket into Israel.

Witnesses said he was killed in an kaboom as he tried to fire a rocket, and as an Israeli military drone hovered in the sky above its side of the border.

The man, Ibrahim Ouda Bereikat, had been cooled for a few years
Drop the rosco, Muggsy, or you're one with the ages!
briefly last week as part of a sweeping military crackdown in the Sinai Peninsula against Islamist krazed killers, Bedouin sources said.

Security officials confirmed that a man was killed in an kaboom near the border with Israel, but could not give a clear account of the circumstances.

They said he might have been killed by a landmine, or accidentally in "militant training exercises."
Posted by: Fred || 08/27/2012 00:00 || Comments || Link || [336102 views] Top|| File under: Global Jihad


Egypt: 76 convicted for attack on Israeli Embassy
Cairo court convicts 76 Egyptians on charges linked to last year's raid on Israeli Embassy when thousands of protesters tore down building's security wall and ransacked its offices

A Cairo court has convicted 76 Egyptians on charges linked to last year's attack by protesters on the Israeli Embassy.
 
Seventy-five of the defendants received suspended one-year sentences Sunday, while one defendant tried in absentia was given a five-year prison term.
Golly. That's ...harsh.
The court listed eight charges, including "an assault against diplomatic missions" and "sabotage."
 
In September, thousands of protesters tore down a security wall around a high rise building housing the Israeli Embassy in Cairo and then ransacked its offices. The embassy's storming followed the killing of six Egyptian soldiers by Israeli troops who were pursuing Paleostinian snuffies near the Egyptian border.
 
The attack prompted nearly the entire embassy staff to evacuate in the one of the worst crises to hit the two countries' relations since their 1979 peace treaty.
Posted by: trailing wife || 08/27/2012 00:00 || Comments || Link || [336084 views] Top|| File under:


Terrorist 'involved in attack on Israel' killed in Sinai
Global Jihad operative Ibrahim Madan killed in kaboom while riding his cycle of violence near Israel-Egypt border, Egyptian and Paleostinian sources report. Residents claim Israeli drone hit him, but Israel and Egypt deny

Egyptian and Paleostinian media reported Sunday that an Egyptian citizen who was involved in a terrorist attack on the Israeli border was killed from an kaboom while riding his cycle of violence in Sinai.
 
According to the Ma'an News Agency, the man is Ibrahim Owida Nasser Madan, a member of the Global Jihad in Sinai. Though reports in Egypt indicate that an Israeli drone was responsible for Madan's death, Israeli defense officials denied any IDF involvement.

Egyptian newspaper Al-Masry Al-Youm and the Ma'an News Agency initially reported, based on alleged testimony of residents of the region, that the kaboom occurred as a result of a missile launched at Madan's cycle of violence, but this version was disproved. According to AFP, residents said that the man was about to fire a rocket at Israel -- and was then killed by a small aircraft. This version was also not corroborated and defense forces in north Sinai denied it.
 
The kaboom occurred south of the village of Al-Qasiya in the Sinai Peninsula, some 15 kilometers from the Egypt-Israel border. Sources estimated that the blast was caused by an bomb Madan was carrying or a landmine that was left in the ground from previous Israel-Egypt wars. The same sources stated that Egyptian defense forces were still investigating Madan's death.

Based on Egyptian Intelligence reports, Sinai sources reported that Madan, a member of the Jihad in Sinai, was jugged
Keep yer hands where we can see 'em, if yez please!
last week by Egyptian officials who were working to purge the area of terrorists. However,
a poor excuse is better than no excuse at all...
reports further stated that Madan was released.
 
According to the Ma'an News Agency, Madan was involved in the deaths of Israelis, including an attack on an Israeli bus. This may refer to the August 2011 multiple terror attacks near Eilat, which claimed the lives of eight Israelis.
  
Egyptian defense forces have been conducting a large scale operation to capture snuffies operating in Sinai since the terror attack at the beginning of August, in which Jihad snuffies killed 16 Egyptian coppers.
 
That attack -- in which gunnies reportedly took control of two Egyptian armored vehicles and infiltrated Israel, but were hit by the IAF -- demonstrated how the Sinai Peninsula has become terror stricken, beyond the control of defense forces.
Posted by: trailing wife || 08/27/2012 00:00 || Comments || Link || [336080 views] Top|| File under: Global Jihad


Africa Subsaharan
Kenyan cleric shot dead, sparks riots in Mombasa
Hundreds of protesters smashed cars and torched churches in the Kenyan city of Mombasa on Monday after unknown gunmen shot dead a Muslim cleric accused by the United States of helping Islamist militants in Somalia.

One protester was killed in the riots which erupted after Aboud Rogo Mohammed was shot on Monday, as youths from the port city's large Muslim population took to the streets complaining he had been deliberately targeted by police.

"It's an attack on Muslims, and we will not take it lightly," said Suleiman Atham, one of the protesters.

Deputy police chief Robert Kitur said Rogo - who faced terrorism charges over allegations he was recruiting non-Somali Africans for Somalia's al Shabaab militant group - was killed while driving in a private car.

"Unknown gunmen attacked his vehicle ... sprayed it with bullets and killed him on the spot," Kitur said. "They must have been targeting him, and must have been trailing him for a while."

In what police described as an act of impulse
Isn't that typical...
rather than a planned strategy to target Christians, protesters tried to burn down two churches, setting furniture on fire before the flames were extinguished. They vandalized at least four other churches, breaking chairs and damaging an altar.
This article starring:
Aboud Rogo Mohammed
Posted by: tipper || 08/27/2012 14:22 || Comments || Link || [336120 views] Top|| File under:

#1  "He was bein' a pain..."
Posted by: mojo || 08/27/2012 17:46 Comments || Top||

#2  Similar attack in Russia - one Muslim Cleric repor killed also.
Posted by: JosephMendiola || 08/27/2012 22:22 Comments || Top||


Arabia
Saudi Foils 'Terror' Plot, Busts Cells in Riyadh, Jeddah
[An Nahar] Saudi authorities announced on Sunday they had foiled a "terror" plot by elements suspected of links to al-Qaeda, mostly Yemenis, and busted two bad turban cells in Riyadh and Jeddah.

The interior ministry said in a statement the suspects were "in contact with the deviant organization abroad," a term usually used to refer to the al-Qaeda jihadist network.

The suspects were working on "recruiting elements to execute criminal attacks targeting security forces, citizens and foreign residents, as well as public installations," it said in a statement carried by the official SPA news agency.

The ministry said two Saudis and six Yemenis were tossed in the slammer,
You have the right to remain silent...
and it also named two nationals as wanted for questioning.

"Investigations revealed that those elements were at an advanced stage... including preparing explosives and testing them outside Riyadh," the ministry said, adding that one suspect accidentally lost a finger during the tests.

The first Saudi suspect turned out to be the head of the cell in Riyadh, and he gave "detailed information" that led to the arrest of the six Yemenis, who also confessed to taking part in the plot, it said.

Police found "chemicals used for explosives as well as mobile phones wired to detonate bombs remotely," at an annex of a mosque in the capital, the ministry said.

Investigations also led to a link with the other cell in the western city of Jeddah, the kingdom's second largest city.

The ministry said that a Saudi member of that cell "who worked on preparing explosive chemicals" was tossed in the slammer.
You have the right to remain silent...

If any of those plots had succeeded, it would have been the first since the suicide kaboom against assistant defense minister Prince Mohammed bin Nayef in August 2009.

The prince suffered only superficial injuries after the bomber got close to him and detonated his explosives.
Posted by: Fred || 08/27/2012 00:00 || Comments || Link || [336075 views] Top|| File under: al-Qaeda in Arabia

#1  Still no official word on Saudi Prince Bandar and the rumors that he was killed a few weeks ago. It is looking very much like those rumors are true. Also looks like the Saudis are trying to purge their inner circles of possible traitors and informants.
Posted by: Raider || 08/27/2012 10:30 Comments || Top||

#2  Just a guess, but it appears Bandar may have been quietly voted off the island by the Saudi leadership.
Posted by: Besoeker || 08/27/2012 10:37 Comments || Top||


Caribbean-Latin America
30 die in Mexico in intergang shootout

For a map, click here

By Chris Covert
Rantburg.com

As many as 30 armed suspects have been killed in an apparent intergang gun battle in western Mexico state Sunday, according to several Mexican news accounts.

A news account published on the website of El Economista late Sunday say that gunfights between armed gangs associated with Los Zetas and Michoacan state based Los Caballeros Templarios ended in an area known as El Cerro de la Culebra, which is adjacent to Michoacan state.

News reports also indicate elements of the Mexican Army may have also been involved in the fighting. Reports say many of the dead have been removed from the scene, which a common practice with Los Zetas.

A report published on the website of El Sol de Zacatecas news daily said that fighting began at around 1500 hrs Sunday afternoon in Luvianos municipality. As of publication no security forces have entered into the battle area, which also includes Cerro de la Campana and Caja de Agua.

South central and western Mexico have been undergoing a number of security incidents, such as in Jalisco, Michoacan and Guerrero states. Uncredited news reports have indicated that Los Zetas are undergoing a internal struggle for power, which may have left the criminal gang vulnerable to attack from their rivals.

This latest bloody incident has not yet been confirmed by local authorities, but if it is confirmed it will be one of the bloodiest confrontations since last spring's intergang war in northern Sinaloa state which claimed, by this writer's count, the lives of 57 over 10 days. That gun battle included a number of drug cartels including Los Zetas, Beltran-Leyva and Juarez cartels against the Sinaloa drug cartel.

Chris Covert writes Mexican Drug War and national political news for Rantburg.com
Posted by: badanov || 08/27/2012 00:00 || Comments || Link || [336070 views] Top|| File under:

#1  The Knights Templar have sworn to kill Z-40 - who is now the leader of the Zetas. We will see how that works out. For now, this could be the start of many major battles between the two cartels.
Posted by: Raider || 08/27/2012 10:28 Comments || Top||

#2  They were actually fighting each other instead of just murdering civilians? That's a switch, isn't it?
Posted by: Ebbang Uluque6305 || 08/27/2012 11:58 Comments || Top||


Badanov's Buzzkill Bulletin
For a map, click here.
By Chris Covert
Rantburg.com

Since August 10th Mexican Army and naval personnel have seized 31 kilograms of cocaine, 4,119 kilograms of marijuana, 5.1 kilograms of marijuana seeds, .89 kilograms of crystal methamphetamine and MX $52,700.00 (USD $3,995.94) in cash, according to official information.
  • A unit with the Mexican 12th Military Zone encountered and killed five armed suspects in San Luis Potosi state August 12th. The unit was on patrol in Cedral municipality along Mexican Federal Highway 57 when it came under small arms fire. Army return fire killed the five armed suspects. Three rifles, 22 weapons magazines, 550 rounds of ammunition and one vehicle were seized.

  • On August 10th an army unit with the Mexican 13th Military Zone in Nayarit state detained two suspects and seized a quantity of drugs, including quantities of crystal methamphetamine and cocaine. One vehicle was seized. The arrests took place near the intersection of calles Plutarco Elias and Emilio M. Gonzalez in Santa Teresita municipality.

  • A Mexican Army unit with the 26th Military Zone encountered an unknown number of armed suspects in Veracruz state, killing four August 12th. The unit was on patrol in Cordoba municipality when it came under small arms fire. Army return fire ended the encounter with the four dead. Also seized were four rifles and undisclosed quantities of ammunition and weapons magazines.

  • An army unit with the 13th Military Zone seized marijuana seeds in Jala municipality August 11th in Nayarit state. Soldiers located an abandoned van with 5.1 kilograms of marijuana seeds, two weapons magazines and two rounds of ammunition.

  • On August 13th in Ruiz municipality in Nayarit state, a Mexican Army unit with the 13th Military Zone located a vehicle, one handgun, one weapons magazine, two rounds of ammunition and a quantity of marijuana.

  • An army unit with the Mexican 8th Military Zone detained two unidentified individuals and seized a large quantity of marijuana in Tamaulipas August 13th. The soldiers found a tractor trailer rig carrying fruits and vegetables, as well as 2,044.6 kilograms of marijuana wrapped in 75 packages. The stop took place in Reynosa municipality along the Reynosa-Monterrey highway at around 2330 hrs.

  • A Mexican Amy unit with the 45th Military Zone destroyed five plots used to grow marijuana in Sonora state August 13th. The plots were located in Cucurpe municipality where soldiers found plots of land totalling 160 square meters with marijuana plants and another 16.6 square meter plot with marijuana seedlings. All plants were destroyed at the site.

  • An unidentified female kidnapping victim was rescued by Mexican Army personnel with the 7th Military Zone in Nuevo Leon state August 15th. The unit was on patrol when it attempted to stop a suspicious vehicle travelling in Bosques de la Huasteca colony in Santa Catarina municipality. A pursuit ensued, ending about four kilometers away where one unidentified armed suspect was killed, one was detained and a third had escaped. Soldiers located a female victim at a building and also seized four rifles, 30 weapons magazines, 815 rounds of ammunition, four vehicles, one motorcycle, tactical gear, eight head of livestock and the property.

  • An army unit with the 29th Military Zone seized a quantity of cocaine in Veracruz state August 16th. The seizure took place incident to a traffic stop in Tropico de la Rivera colony in Coatzacoalcos municipality, where soldiers found 31 kilograms of cocaine and a vehicle. Two unidentified suspects were also detained.

  • An army unit with the Mexican 13th Military Zone located and dismantled a laboratory used to manufacture synthetic drugs in Nayarit state August 18th. The unit was on patrol near the village of La Noriega in Compostela municipality when it located the lab. Among items seized were 12 200 liter drums containing an undisclosed liquid substance, 13 bags of an undisclosed chemical, four plastic containers, six metal containers, 11 gallon containers with an undisclosed liquid substance, four washers and seven metal tubes.

  • Mexican Army units with the 2nd Military Zone seized 1,209 kilograms of marijuana in 110 packages in the village of Loma Linda in Ensenada municipality in Baja California state August 18th.

  • Army units with the Mexican 2nd Military Zone detained one unidentified suspect at a traffic stop in Villas del Real colony in La Presa delegation in Tijuana municipality August 18th in Baja California state. Soldiers seized 85.3 kilograms of marijuana, one handgun, one weapons magazine and one vehicle.

  • In San Jose colony of Mexicali municipality in Baja California state, an army unit with the 2nd Military Zone seized .89 kilograms of crystal methamphetamine.

  • Soldiers with the Mexican 2nd Military Zone destroyed 21 marijuana plants in Ensenada municipality in Baja California state, seven near Ejido Leyes de Reforma and 18 near Ensenada proper.

  • Army units with the Mexican 19th Military Zone rescued six kidnapping victims in Veracruz state in two separate incidents August 19th. The operations took place in Ciudad Cuauhtemoc and Panuco where soldiers also detained seven unidentified suspects and seized five rifles, two handguns, 582 rounds ammunition, 21 weapons magazines, one inert hand grenade and four vehicles.

  • A Mexican Army unit with the 5th Military Zone encountered several armed suspects in Chihuahua state, killing one August 22nd. The incident took place in Ojinaga municipality where soldiers came under small arms fire. Army return fire killed one and forced the detention of six other armed suspects. Soldiers also seized one handgun, two weapons magazines, 40 rounds of ammunition, three vehicles, two of them stolen, personal quantities of cocaine, radio equipment, and 10 phones.

  • An army unit with the 9th Military Zone detained one unidentified individual and seized quantities of munitions and drugs in Sinaloa state August 21st. The detetion took place near the village of San Pedro Rosales in Navolato municipality. Seized contraband included five rifles, two grenades, 29 weapons magazines, 782 rounds of ammunition, personal quantities of cocaine and marijuana, four vehicles, one motorcycle, three kevlar helmets and radio equipment.

  • Two suspects were detained by Mexican naval infantry personnel in Veracruz state August 8th and 10th. Isaias Flores Penda AKA El Cronos was detained August 8th at a traffic stop. Acting on information provided by the suspect, a marine unit located and detained Juan Carlos Hernandez Pulido AKA Bertha two days later at the Centro de Integracion Familiar in Veracruz state. Mexican Navy official information has that Hernandez Pulido was operations chief for Jalisco Nueva Generación drug cartel in Veracruz state. Seized contraband in the August 10th operation included two hand grenades, 68 bags of cocaine presumably divided for retail sale, 62 bags of crack cocaine, 52 bags of marijuana and communications gear.

  • A Mexican naval infantry unit detained one individual and seized quantities of drugs and guns inn Coahuila state August 15th. Esteban Cardenas Vaselis AKA Leon was detained by Mexican marines in Saltillo, Coahuila along with Ever Didier Candelario Ramíerez. Naval official information has it that Cardenas Vaselis was a southeastern Mexico regional leader for Los Zetas criminal group. Contraband seized included MX $52,700.00 (USD $3,995.94), two rifles, one handgun, three fragmentation grenades, eight weapons magazines, 239 rounds of ammunition, 200 packages of marijuana and two radios.
  • A Mexican naval infantry unit seized a large quantity of marijuana at a traffic stop in Michoacan state August 15th. The traffic stop took place in the village of Vazquez Pallares in Coalcoman municipality, where a Mexican marine patrol ordered the driver of a box van to stop. Inside marines found 777.1 kilograms of marijuana in 176 packages. The driver, identified as Angel Yoair Rodriguez Anaya, 22, was detained at the scene.

  • Mexican Naval infantry personnel detained four individuals and seized quantities of drugs and guns in Nuevo Leon state August 20th. One of the detainees was identified as turf leader for the Gulf Cartel in General bravo municipality, Lauro Tijerina Murrieta AKA El M-33 in a presumed traffic stop. Lauro Tijerina García AKA El Laurito, Abel Guerra Hernandez AKA El Flaco and Jhosep Solís Gonzalez AKA Jhosep were also detained. Contraband seized included one vehicle, one rifle, three handguns, 16 weapons magazines, three hand grenades, nine radios, 15 handsets, personal quantities of cocaine, 350 rounds of ammunition and one military-style uniform.

Chris Covert writes Mexican Drug War and national political news for Rantburg.com
Posted by: badanov || 08/27/2012 00:00 || Comments || Link || [336105 views] Top|| File under:

#1  Imagine if the U.S. military were seizing drugs domestically. The Left would be howling bloody murder.
Posted by: American Delight || 08/27/2012 6:35 Comments || Top||


Caucasus/Russia/Central Asia
Ingush terrorists admit suicide bomber targeted wrong victims
"Oh. Never mind."
The leaders of the Ingushetia wing of the North Caucasus insurgency have admitted that the terrorist fighter who blew himself up at a funeral on August 19 for a police officer killed the previous day did not realize that the police who went to the funeral were not the members of the Malgobek police whom he was supposed to kill.

In a statement posted on the insurgency website, the commanders explained that the aim of the suicide bombing was to kill Malgobek police chief Mukhazhir Yevloyev, whom they called "one of the worst enemies of Allah."

That admission corroborates the Ingushetian claim that Ilez Korigov was killed in order to lure Yevloyev to his funeral. But the statement also disclosed that Korigov had been the handler of Khadjimurad Gatagazhev, whom they called "a secret agent of the infidels' special services."

The terrorist insurgent leadership claimed to have executed Gatagazhev on August 12. He gunned down outside his home by four masked men.

What the suicide bomber did not know was that the entire Malgobek police detachment had been sent out to hunt for the vehicle in which Korigov's killer made his getaway, and the officers who showed up at his funeral were members of a border police detachment of which Korigov's uncle Lamazan Korigov was a deputy commander.

The terrorist insurgent leaders emphasized that the main target of the suicide bombing was Yevloyev, and the bomber had orders not to proceed with the operation if Yevloyev did not show up at the funeral. They speculated that the bomber mistook Ensign Khizir Fargiyev for Yevloyev.

Fargiyev seemingly recognized the bomber from a federal "wanted" list and intercepted him before he could approach the main body of mourners, according to his brother and fellow police officer Salambek Fargiyev, who survived the attack.

Apparently, Khizir Fargiyev greeted the bomber, walked up and embraced him; at that moment, the bomber set off his explosives.
Posted by: ryuge || 08/27/2012 00:00 || Comments || Link || [336071 views] Top|| File under:


One policeman killed, 3 injured in Dagestan attack
One police officer was killed and three others injured when their patrol in town of Khasavyurt in Dagestan was attacked late on August 25. The police officers were investigating a tip that a suspect was nearby and when they approached a bridge in the town, they came under fire.

Police and security forces are searching for the attackers.
Posted by: ryuge || 08/27/2012 00:00 || Comments || Link || [336087 views] Top|| File under:


India-Pakistan
Mortar Bombs Kill Six in Pakistan
[An Nahar] Mortar bombs smashed through a house in a village in northwestern Pakistain early Saturday, killing six people, security officials said.

The incident took place in Qambarabad village, a suburb of Beautiful Downtown Peshawar close to the Khyber tribal district, where the military is fighting against local warlord Mangal Bagh
...a former bus driver, now head of the Deobandi bandido group Lashkar-e-Islam and the Terror of Khyber Agency...
and his Lashkar-e-Islam (Army of Islam) bad boy faction.

"Militants fired several mortar shells and two of them hit a house in Qambarabad close to Bara town, killing six people and wounding 12 others, all members of a same family," a local security official told Agence La Belle France Presse.

It is not clear whether the house was the bad boys' intended target.

Another security official also confirmed the incident and casualties and said that the mortars were fired from Qazi's guesthouse an undisclosed location.

Khyber is part of Pakistain's semi-autonomous tribal belt on the Afghan border, considered to be the world's premier al-Qaeda hub despite the killing of the late Osama bin Laden
... who no longer exists...
by United States troops last year.
Posted by: Fred || 08/27/2012 00:00 || Comments || Link || [336089 views] Top|| File under: Lashkar-e-Islami


Five Muslims killed in fresh unrest in India
GUWAHATI: At least five Muslims were murdered in northeast India by an armed gang from the ethnic Bodo community in fresh violence, after more than a month of clashes, police said on Sunday.

"A group of seven Muslim villagers in two vehicles were returning home from a relief camp when they came under attack," said Sanjit Krishna, police chief of the western Chirang District, in Assam state. The party had apparently been trying to reach their village after a few days of calm in the area and had dared to venture out on Saturday from their guarded government relief camp.

At least five were found dead near Choudhurypara village, about 220 kilometres from Assam's main city of Guwahati, while police are trying to trace the other two.

An estimated 90 people have died and 400,000 people from both communities are taking refuge in camps spread across four western Assamese districts of Chirang, Kokrajhar, Dhubri and Baksa.

In a separate incident early on Sunday, four Muslim villagers were wounded in an attack by tribal Bodos in Kokrajhar.
Posted by: Steve White || 08/27/2012 00:00 || Comments || Link || [336072 views] Top|| File under:

#1  So, how does it feel to be on the receiving end?
Posted by: g(r)omgoru || 08/27/2012 4:34 Comments || Top||


Quetta Quorpse Qount
QUETTA: In separate acts of violence on Sunday, a man was killed and another wounded in a firing incident in Musakhel district while armed persons kidnapped four people including three drivers from Bolan and Awaran districts.

According to Levies Force sources, unidentified persons opened fire on a vehicle en route to Zhob, killing a person and injuring another. The assailants fled from the scene after the incident. The deceased was identified as Rahim. Levies Force personnel moved the body of the deceased and the injured to a nearby hospital. The motive behind the killing is stated to be old enmity.

Meanwhile, armed men kidnapped three drivers in two separate incidents from Dhadar area of Bolan district.

In the first incident, unidentified men held Muhammad Ismail, resident of Machh on National Highway in Bolan and moved him to an undisclosed location.

Separately, armed men kidnapped two drivers, Muhammad Usman and Rehmatullah, near Gandawa Nothal area. Following the incident, the transporters blocked the National Highway on Bolan by parking their trucks and chanted slogans against the administration for its inability to round up the kidnappers. In another incident, unidentified armed men kidnapped Kareem Jan from Bedi area of Awaran district near District Headquarter Hospital.
Posted by: Steve White || 08/27/2012 00:00 || Comments || Link || [336085 views] Top|| File under:


Iraq
Bombs, Shootings Kill Ten across Iraq
[An Nahar] A series of attacks in and around Storied Baghdad
...located along the Tigris River, founded in the 8th century, home of the Abbasid Caliphate...
and in north Iraq on Sunday killed 10 people, including three soldiers and two coppers, security and medical officials said.

The gun and kabooms took to 256 the number of people killed nationwide so far this month, according to an Agence La Belle France Presse tally, already equal to the comparable figure from July.

In Storied Baghdad, five people were rubbed out and two maimed in three separate attacks, officials said.

Gunmen armed with silencer-equipped pistols rubbed out three security guards in Storied Baghdad's eastern district of Zayouna, an interior ministry official and a medic at the capital's al-Kindi Hospital said.

Another shooting in Urr, a neighborhood in north Storied Baghdad, left two coppers dead and another maimed, the interior ministry official and a doctor at nearby Imam Ali Hospital said.

A gun attack at al-Wathak intersection in the center of the capital, meanwhile, left a sheikh maimed, medical sources said.

Just west of the capital, three soldiers were killed and two others were maimed by two roadside kabooms that detonated as they patrolled nearby, Lieutenant Colonel Mohammed Jerefi said.

Doctor Hamed Tafesh from Fallujah hospital confirmed the toll from the attack in the town of Garma in Anbar province.

Authorities also found two dead bodies in the northern ethnically mixed province of Kirkuk,
... a thick stew of Arabs, Turkmen, Kurds, and probably Antarcticans, all of them mutually hostile most of the time...
with officials saying they believed both people were killed by gunfire earlier on Sunday.

One of the bodies was of a generator operator, while another was of an unidentified woman, police and medics in Kirkuk province said.

Late on Saturday, three soldiers were maimed by a roadside kaboom north of Baquba, a city 60 kilometers (37 miles) north of Storied Baghdad, security and medical sources said.

The latest fatalities took to 256 the number of people killed in Iraq violence so far in August, according to an AFP tally based on reports from security and medical officials.

Violence has significantly decreased in Iraq compared to the brutal years of 2006 and 2007, but attacks are still common across the country.
Posted by: Fred || 08/27/2012 00:00 || Comments || Link || [336091 views] Top|| File under: al-Qaeda in Iraq


Israel-Palestine-Jordan
Salafi Group Claims Responsibility For Sderot Rocket Attack
Fundamentalist Salafi organization Jamaat ul-Mujahedin Bayt al-Maqdis grabbed credit for the three rockets launched at Sderot Sunday morning. The organization, affiliated with al-Qaeda, is known to be operating in the Gazoo Strip.
 
One of the rockets hit a factory in Sderot, and another went kaboom! in a factory in Shaar Hanegev. There were no reports of injuries.
Posted by: trailing wife || 08/27/2012 00:00 || Comments || Link || [336074 views] Top|| File under:


Southeast Asia
MILF breakaways warn of fresh attacks in Mindanao
A top leader of breakaway Muslim terrorist rebel group Bangsamoro Islamic Freedom Fighters (BIFF) warned today of more fresh attacks as they expanded their controlled areas in Mindanao.

Abu Misri Mama, spokesman for the BIFF, said while the military has captured their main stronghold, Camp Omar, in days of fierce gunfighting in the province of Maguindanao, they have set up new base near Cotabato and at the headquarters of 6th Division in Datu Odin Sinsuat which also houses the airport.

Mama said, "In time we will launch our harassment, we are already near to our enemies. Civilians, whether Muslims, Christians or Indigenous Peoples, are residing near military detachments or headquarters, they can start evacuate so they will not be hurt in the crossfire."

The 1,000-strong BIFF is the armed wing of the Bangsamoro Islamic Freedom Movement (BIFM) which broke away from the the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) in 2010.
Posted by: ryuge || 08/27/2012 00:00 || Comments || Link || [336074 views] Top|| File under: Moro Islamic Liberation Front


Syria-Lebanon-Iran
Video of Syrian Helicopter shot down by missile
Posted by: phil_b || 08/27/2012 05:29 || Comments || Link || [336079 views] Top|| File under:

#1  A Man Portable Air Defense (MANPAD) weapon travels at supersonic speed will leave a vapor trail. I don't see spiraling or following trail. Looks like the aircraft was in the altitude range of 10k (+ or -)feet and within range of heavy machine guns. I suspect (but cannot confirm).... the "lucky BB".
Posted by: Besoeker || 08/27/2012 8:44 Comments || Top||

#2  Video wes removed by youtube...
Posted by: 49 Pan || 08/27/2012 9:28 Comments || Top||

#3  On-line MANPAD tracking and strike video is hard to come by these days. Interesting no ?

Here is an old Russian SA-16 piece taken of a survivor with some good data.

Posted by: Besoeker || 08/27/2012 9:56 Comments || Top||

#4  If you've seen this video - can you please post an alternative link.
Posted by: Devilstoenail || 08/27/2012 10:46 Comments || Top||

#5  here i think.
Posted by: Devilstoenail || 08/27/2012 10:56 Comments || Top||

#6  "Shooting at it for an hour".

"Lucky BB" Pilot with a death wish.
Posted by: Besoeker || 08/27/2012 12:25 Comments || Top||

#7  If you go to the Al Jazeera Syria blog and scroll down, you will find the vid. It clearly shows a smoke/vapour trail of a missile before the helicopter explodes.

No zigzagging, so perhaps just an RPG.

Curiously, the BBC has edited this part out and just shows the helicopter burning.
Posted by: phil_b || 08/27/2012 18:01 Comments || Top||

#8  Oh, ferchrissakes.

Just call me when it's over. >:-(
Posted by: Barbara || 08/27/2012 19:31 Comments || Top||

#9  ...why be in a rush. They're burning up several years worth of cannon fodder which would cause problems elsewhere. The nice touch is that we're returning the favor Syria extended to us during the Iraqi insurgency. There may not be 'interest' in Sharia but we in the West do believe in compound interest.
Posted by: Procopius2k || 08/27/2012 20:01 Comments || Top||


91 Killed across Syria, Regime Accused of 'Massacre'
[An Nahar] Syrian Hereditary President-for-Life Bashir Pencilneck al-Assad
Supressor of the Damascenes...
said on Sunday the foreign "conspiracy" against his country would be defeated, as his forces were accused of a bloody rampage in a town near Damascus
...The place where Pencilneck hangs his brass hat...
that left hundreds dead.

"The Syrian people will not allow this conspiracy to achieve its objectives" and will defeat it "at any price," Assad said during a meeting in Damascus with a top official from Iran, Syria's chief regional ally.

The Syrian leader has since March last year been trying through force to smother a popular uprising that has turned into a brutal civil war which has left thousands dead, seen more than 200,000 refugees fleeing to neighboring countries and 2.5 million in need inside Syria.

The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said at least 320 people were killed in a five-day onslaught on Daraya, a satellite town southwest of the capital, by troops battling to crush cut-thoats.

Grisly videos issued by opposition gun-hung tough guys showed dozens of charred and bloodied bodies lined up in broad daylight in a graveyard, and others lying wall-to-wall in rooms in a mosque in Daraya.

The Local Coordination Committees, a network of activists on the ground, described it as a "massacre" by Assad's regime and said many victims had been summarily executed and their bodies burnt.

"The shabiha (pro-regime) militias... have been transformed into a killing machine that threatens the Syrian people and our future," it said.

Human rights groups have accused the regime of committing many atrocities in its attempts to crush the uprising, and a U.N. panel said earlier this month it was guilty of crimes against humanity.

"Bodies were found in fields, basements and shelters and in the streets," Observatory director Rami Abdel Rahman told Agence La Belle France Presse.

He said 200 bodies had been identified so far, including 15 women and 14 children, and that many of the victims had died in shelling or were summarily executed.

In the first reaction by a world power, Britannia said that if confirmed, the Daraya massacre "would be an atrocity on a new scale."

Activists issued graphic videos of the scenes in Daraya, one showing dozens of bodies in dimly lit rooms, with a commentary referring to "an odious massacre committed by the gangs of the Assad regime in the Abu Sleiman Addarani Mosque."

In another LCC video, Daraya's dead, among them at least two children, were shown being prepared for burial, their bodies lying in a hastily dug trench covered with blankets and strewn with palm fronds.

State media said Daraya, a conservative Sunni Mohammedan town of some 200,000 people, was "purified of terrorist remnants."

Pro-government television al-Dunia said "terrorists" carried out the attacks, as it interviewed residents including traumatized children and showed a number of bloodied bodies lying in the streets.

"Our valiant armed forces cleared Daraya of the remnants of armed terrorist groups which committed crimes that traumatized the citizens of the town and destroyed public and private property," government newspaper Ath-Thawra said.

Meanwhile,
...back at the buffalo wallow, Tex and his new-found Indian friend were preparing a little surprise for the bandidos...
the head of the Iranian parliament's foreign policy committee, Aladin Borujerdi, vowed that Tehran will "stick by our Syrian brothers."

"We see Syria's security as our security," he said in Damascus, where he met both Assad and Vice President Farouq al-Sharaa, Iran's state-owned IRNA news agency said.

Sharaa -- the regime's top Sunni Mohammedan official -- made his first public appearance in over a month when he was seen walking and talking with Borujerdi, following opposition claims he had tried to defect and was under house arrest.

Assad, in his talks with the visiting Iranian official, said Syria is continuing "its strategy of resistance."

"What is happening now is not only directed at Syria but the whole region. Because Syria is the cornerstone, foreign powers are targeting it so their conspiracy succeeds across the entire region."

Assad has long characterized the brutal conflict as a fight against foreign "terrorists" aided by the West and Syria's Sunni Mohammedan foes in the region, including Soddy Arabia
...a kingdom taking up the bulk of the Arabian peninsula. Its primary economic activity involves exporting oil and soaking Islamic rubes on the annual hajj pilgrimage. The country supports a large number of princes in whatcha might call princely splendor. When the oil runs out the rest of the world is going to kick sand in their national face...
Tehran has said it will submit a plan for ending the conflict to a Non-Aligned Movement summit it is hosting on Thursday and Friday.

The Iranian initiative comes as its foes in the West ramp up the pressure on Damascus, with Washington and London threatening action if it uses its chemical weapons and Gay Paree voicing support for a partial no-fly zone.

The Observatory also reported shelling or air strikes in other parts of the country on Sunday including the battered northern city of Aleppo
...For centuries, Aleppo was Greater Syria's largest city and the Ottoman Empire's third, after Constantinople and Cairo. Although relatively close to Damascus in distance, Aleppans regard Damascenes as country cousins...
and Daraa in the far south, the cradle of the anti-Assad uprising.

The Britannia-based Observatory reported a total of at least 91 people killed countrywide on Sunday -- 61 civilians, 13 rebels and 17 loyalist soldiers.

August is already the deadliest single month of the conflict with at least 4,000 people killed, according to the Observatory, while around 25,000 have died since March 2011. The United Nations
...boodling on the grand scale...
puts the corpse count at more than 17,000.
Posted by: Fred || 08/27/2012 00:00 || Comments || Link || [336073 views] Top|| File under: Govt of Syria


1 Dead, 6 Hurt in New Violation of Leb Tripoli Ceasefire
Violation being the automatic modifier for ceasefire in the Muslim world. The Arabic for that phrase is hudna.
[An Nahar] One man was killed and six others maimed in the northern city of Tripoli
...a confusing city, one end of thich 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...
on Sunday, as fresh festivities broke out between the rival neighborhoods of Jabal Mohsen and Bab al-Tabbaneh, a security official said.

Three of the maimed were Lebanese soldiers who are deployed in the port city to quell tensions after fierce street battles first erupted last Monday, raising concerns that Syria-linked violence could destabilize the country.

"The army surrounded an gang, who were entrenched in some of the houses and positioned on the roofs of some buildings," the source told Agence La Belle France Presse.

Clashes lasted for an hour, and the army later locked away
Please don't kill me!
10 militiamen, he added.

Al-Jadeed television said "the army locked away
Please don't kill me!
10 gunnies from al-Mouri family over the shooting in al-Zahriyeh in Tripoli."

A ceasefire brokered by local officials was supposed to take effect Wednesday, but violence was reignited when a sniper killed a Sunni holy man on Friday, and at least 118 people have been maimed in the course of the week.

Sniper fire continued on Sunday, according to the security official, who said the man killed had been hit by a sniper in Jabal Mohsen. State-run National News Agency identified the victim as Adel Othman.

Despite patrols by the Lebanese army, "gunnies continue to ride around on cycle of violences with their weapons out in the open. They avoid arrest by driving into crowded neighborhoods and narrow alleys where it is difficult for the army to pursue them," the source said.

The latest violence in Tripoli came on the heels of a spate of kidnappings in Leb linked to the conflict in neighboring Syria.

The army is "cleansing the area" of the fighting and it will respond to any gunfire, reported the pan-Arab daily al-Hayat Sunday.
Posted by: Fred || 08/27/2012 00:00 || Comments || Link || [336075 views] Top|| File under: Govt of Syria


Damascus gripped by execution-style killings
AMMAN: Syrian opposition activists accused President Bashar Assad's forces on Sunday of committing a massacre of scores of people in a town close to the capital that the army had just retaken from rebels.

More than 200 bodies were found in houses and basements around Daraya, a working-class Sunni Muslim town to the southwest of Damascus, according to activists who said most had been killed "execution-style" by troops on house-to-house raids.

"Assad's army has committed a massacre in Daraya," said Abu Kinan, an activist in the town, using an alias to protect himself from reprisals.

"In the last hour, 122 bodies were discovered and it appears that two dozen died from sniper fire and the rest were summarily executed by gunshots from close range," Abu Kinan told Reuters by telephone.

The activist said he witnessed the death of an 8-year-old girl, Asma Abu Al-Laban, shot by army snipers while she was in a car with her parents. "They were trying to flee the army raids. Three bullets hit her in the back and her parents brought her to a makeshift hospital. Nothing could be done for her," he said.

The Local Coordination Committees, an activists' organization, said Assad's forces killed 440 people across Syria on Saturday, including dozens of women and children, in one of the highest death tolls since the uprising against his rule broke out in March last year.

The organization, which monitors Assad's military crackdown, said 310 people were killed in Damascus and its environs, including Daraya, 40 in the northern province of Aleppo and 28 in Syria's Sunni tribal heartland region of Deir Al-Zor. The rest were reportedly killed in the Idlib, Daraa, Hama and Homs, outlying provinces were poverty and discontent with Assad's minority Alawite rule have been building up since bloody repression by Assad's father, the late President Hafez Assad, killed tens of thousands of people in the 1980s.

Video footage from activists showed numerous bodies of young men side-by-side at the Abu Suleiman Al-Darani mosque in Daraya, many with what looked like gunshot wounds to the head and chest.

"A massacre," said the voice of the man who appeared to be taking the footage. "You are seeing the revenge of Assad's forces ... more than 150 bodies on the floor of this mosque."

The southern fringe of Damascus is a frontline in what has snowballed over the last 17 months from anti-Assad protests into a sectarian civil war. Tanks deployed on the Damascus ring-road shelled the southern neighborhoods of Al-Lawwan and Nahr Aisheh late into Saturday night and fighting raged in the eastern Ghouta suburbs of the capital, residents said.

The army overran Daraya, one of a series of mostly rundown Sunni Muslim towns that surround Damascus, on Saturday after three days of heavy bombardment that killed 70 people, according to opposition sources and residents. They said most of the dead were civilians.
Posted by: Steve White || 08/27/2012 00:00 || Comments || Link || [336084 views] Top|| File under:



Who's in the News
57[untagged]
3Govt of Syria
2Global Jihad
1Arab Spring
1Commies
1al-Qaeda in Iraq
1Govt of Sudan
1al-Qaeda in Arabia
1Lashkar-e-Islami
1Moro Islamic Liberation Front

Bookmark
E-Mail Me

The Classics
The O Club
Rantburg Store
The Bloids
The Never-ending Story
Thugburg
Gulf War I
The Way We Were
Bio

Merry-Go-Blog











On Sale now!


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.
Click here for more information

Meet the Mods
In no particular order...
Steve White
Seafarious
tu3031
badanov
sherry
ryuge
GolfBravoUSMC
Bright Pebbles
trailing wife
Gloria
Fred
Besoeker
Glenmore
Frank G
3dc
Skidmark

Two weeks of WOT
Mon 2012-08-27
  Kenyan cleric shot dead, sparks riots in Mombasa
Sun 2012-08-26
  Badruddin Haqqani drone zapped!
Sat 2012-08-25
  Breivik gets 21-year prison term
Fri 2012-08-24
  Gunmen attack U.S. diplomatic vehicle in Mexico
Thu 2012-08-23
  115 Dead in Syria as Troops Unleash Deadly Damascus Assault
Wed 2012-08-22
  Deputy PM Says Syria 'Ready to Discuss' Assad Departure
Tue 2012-08-21
  US drones kill 10 militants in Pakistan
Mon 2012-08-20
  Third Drone Strike In 24 Hours Kills Two In North Waziristan
Sun 2012-08-19
  Suicide bomber kills six policemen at funeral in Ingushetia
Sat 2012-08-18
  US drone kills 5 militants in northern Pakistan
Fri 2012-08-17
  Algeria’s Brahimi agrees to be Syria mediator
Thu 2012-08-16
  20 Shiites in Pakistan pulled from buses, gunned down
Wed 2012-08-15
  Pro-Saleh Troops Attack Yemen Defense Ministry
Tue 2012-08-14
  Al Qaeda front group claims Iraq attacks
Mon 2012-08-13
  Nigerian Troops Kill 20 Boko Haram Islamists: Military

Better than the average link...



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.
18.208.203.36
Help keep the Burg running! Paypal:
WoT Background (22)    Non-WoT (14)    Opinion (5)    (0)    Politix (4)