Hi there, !
Today Sat 09/27/2008 Fri 09/26/2008 Thu 09/25/2008 Wed 09/24/2008 Tue 09/23/2008 Mon 09/22/2008 Sun 09/21/2008 Archives
Rantburg
531698 articles and 1855974 comments are archived on Rantburg.

Today: 110 articles and 442 comments as of 13:46.
Post a news link    Post your own article   
Area: WoT Background    Non-WoT    Opinion    Local News       
Five Indian Mujaheddin nabbed in Mumbai
Today's Headlines
Headline Comments [Views]
Page 1: WoT Operations
5 00:00 plainslow [] 
4 00:00 remoteman [] 
0 [2] 
6 00:00 USN, Ret. [] 
11 00:00 jeremy [] 
3 00:00 Jack is Back! [] 
0 [] 
3 00:00 xbalanke [] 
3 00:00 Besoeker [] 
0 [] 
1 00:00 trailing wife [] 
2 00:00 SteveS [] 
2 00:00 Besoeker [] 
1 00:00 Spot [] 
0 [] 
0 [] 
0 [] 
3 00:00 Ptah [1] 
0 [] 
Page 2: WoT Background
2 00:00 trailing wife [1]
1 00:00 Frank G []
7 00:00 online poker []
4 00:00 DLR []
16 00:00 CrazyFool []
0 []
17 00:00 Frank G []
0 []
1 00:00 Besoeker []
3 00:00 Abdominal Snowman []
0 []
3 00:00 Frank G []
6 00:00 Procopius2k []
0 []
2 00:00 Paul [1]
24 00:00 Skunky Glins 5*** [1]
1 00:00 tu3031 []
0 []
1 00:00 tu3031 []
2 00:00 ed []
6 00:00 tu3031 []
0 []
0 []
4 00:00 Last Breath Farm Resident []
3 00:00 JohnQC []
3 00:00 Old Patriot []
1 00:00 tu3031 [1]
1 00:00 JosephMendiola []
Page 3: Non-WoT
3 00:00 KBK [1]
2 00:00 Last Breath Farm Resident [1]
13 00:00 lotp []
16 00:00 Besoeker []
7 00:00 Last Breath Farm Resident [1]
1 00:00 Flains Barnsmell3313 []
3 00:00 3dc []
2 00:00 DMFD []
2 00:00 Procopius2k []
3 00:00 Bright Pebbles [1]
3 00:00 Procopius2k []
8 00:00 ed []
9 00:00 JohnQC []
8 00:00 Besoeker []
9 00:00 JohnQC []
6 00:00 Cornsilk Blondie []
3 00:00 tipper []
1 00:00 JohnQC []
7 00:00 ed []
8 00:00 xbalanke []
11 00:00 bigjim-ky []
9 00:00 rjschwarz []
0 []
2 00:00 USN, Ret. []
0 []
0 []
1 00:00 Besoeker []
1 00:00 Jack is Back! []
0 []
5 00:00 bigjim-ky []
1 00:00 SteveS []
3 00:00 pig headed muzzer []
10 00:00 Procopius2k []
1 00:00 DanNY []
8 00:00 mom []
1 00:00 bigjim-ky []
4 00:00 bigjim-ky []
0 []
Page 4: Opinion
1 00:00 OldSpook []
6 00:00 trailing wife [3]
0 []
1 00:00 Parabellum []
1 00:00 Besoeker []
3 00:00 xbalanke []
20 00:00 FOTSGreg [2]
1 00:00 bigjim-ky []
10 00:00 Black Bart Ebbolusing2994 []
6 00:00 ed []
Page 5: Russia-Former Soviet Union
2 00:00 bigjim-ky [1]
0 []
3 00:00 Sonny Glusoque3834 []
3 00:00 FOTSGreg []
7 00:00 Anonymoose []
5 00:00 trailing wife []
17 00:00 Flitch the Imposter aka Broadhead6 [1]
3 00:00 Danielle []
5 00:00 xbalanke []
5 00:00 ed []
9 00:00 g(r)omgoru []
2 00:00 Ebbang Uluque6305 []
3 00:00 Nimble Spemble []
3 00:00 Besoeker []
3 00:00 tu3031 []
Good morning
Posted by: Fred || 09/24/2008 00:00 || Comments || Link || [0 views] Top|| File under:

#1  Nice, um, mink.
Posted by: Steve White || 09/24/2008 0:01 Comments || Top||

#2  For once I have to agree with PETA-heads: This would be a much better picture if the poor animal friend had been allowed to go free rather than being murdered for its pelt.
Posted by: Atomic Conspiracy || 09/24/2008 0:11 Comments || Top||

#3  FYI:

Boyz and Girlz, Clearly That's one of dem Hybrid Beavers.

A completely new strain I might also Add... AND Her baby Beaver needs Lotsa fluffing, stroking, and bonding time!

Hey No Problemo... cause..

In the interest of Internal Relations, Ima volunteering RBees thank You Guys.

:)

Fred: Super # 10+++ plus-plus-plus!

~:)
Posted by: Red Dawg || 09/24/2008 2:15 Comments || Top||

#4  All I found on her was that she was a Gypsy Joe Dancer in the 1928 Broadway production of "Whoopee", to which I sincerely add, amen!
I have a question for Red Dawg, though. If this is a Hybrid Beaver, where do you plug it in? Anyway, the photo is absolutely stunning. Thanks, Fred.
Posted by: Richard of Oregon || 09/24/2008 8:12 Comments || Top||

#5  MUST NOT SAY IT...WON'T SAY IT...I CAN'T HELP MYSELF

Minks!! Why do they hate us?!?

SORRY...I'M WEAK AND CAVED IN TO THE IMPULSE
Posted by: AlmostAnonymous5839 || 09/24/2008 9:57 Comments || Top||

#6  Q: How does a girl get a mink? A: Same way a mink does.
Posted by: Besoeker || 09/24/2008 10:06 Comments || Top||

#7  Actually, guys, I think that's an otter. If that were a mink, there would be MUCH MORE of her exposed. I otter go over there and make sure SHE knows what it is, in case of allergies... or something.
Posted by: Old Patriot || 09/24/2008 11:07 Comments || Top||

#8  Mabel Baade is pronounced Mabel "BAD."
Posted by: JohnQC || 09/24/2008 15:13 Comments || Top||

#9  What a cheesy photo backdrop; no drapes to see if the carpet that's not there matches the drapes that also appear to be missing. or sumpin.....

From the Nobody But Me Cares Dept: Spousal Unit used to wear her hair just like that, back in the day.
Posted by: USN, Ret. || 09/24/2008 16:39 Comments || Top||

#10  She's not completely naked. She's wearing shoes!
Posted by: Iblis || 09/24/2008 16:52 Comments || Top||



Afghanistan
Karzai sees 'first' hope in winning anti-terror war
NEW YORK (AFP) - Afghanistan President Hamid Karzai said recent leadership change in Pakistan has offered for the "first time" a hope of winning the "war on terror" and called for a joint assault on extremist "sanctuaries" along their common border.

He also asked the United States to provide full backing to the new democratically elected administration of President Asif Ali Zardari, who took over from former military strongman Pervez Musharraf, in fighting extremism.

Relations between the neighbors were strained during Musharraf's rule, with the Afghan leader persistently accusing Islamabad of not doing enough to curb cross-border militancy."For the first time, I see in the region a ray of hope," Karzai said at a New York-based Asia Society forum on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly .

He said Zardari, whose wife former prime minister Benazir Bhutto was killed in a suicide blast, would move away from what he charged was Islamabad's longstanding use of "radicalism and extremism as an instrument of policy. If we can all work together, Afghanistan, Pakistan, the United States and our allies, I see now possibilities of moving beyond the days where one or the other of us may need extremism or radicalism as an instrument of policy and when that happens, there would be no place for extremists to play against all of us and if that happens, there will be no extremist activity as it is now."

Afghanistan has repeatedly accused Pakistan of clandestinely supporting Taliban rebels, which Washington and Kabul say are using tribal areas in Pakistan along the border with Afghanistan as sanctuaries. Karzai had also blamed Pakistan's intelligence service for a deadly suicide attack on the Indian embassy in Kabul that killed 60 people -- a charge Islamabad has denied. The Afghan leader said Zardari had a "very" good understanding of the tribal region and "the need to change" the situation there."My hope is he would have the instruments to (wage the fight against terrorism) ... the instruments means backing from the United States, first of all," he said.

Karzai spoke after Zardari met US President George W. Bush for talks, also at the sidelines of the UN event."Pakistan is an ally, and I look forward to deepening our relationship," Bush told reporters. The US leader moved to ease Zardari's concerns over unilateral strikes by US forces in Afghanistan on militant hideouts in Pakistan that Islamabad said had caused many civilian casualties."And your words have been very strong about Pakistan's sovereign right and sovereign duty to protect your country, and the United States wants to help," Bush said with Zardari by his side. The Pakistani leader replied, "We have issues. We've got problems. But we will solve them and we will rise to the occasion."

Karzai also endorsed a plan voiced by his defense minister for a joint US-Afghan-Pakistani military task force that would be empowered to operate on both sides of the border. "A force to act together on two sides of the border? A new idea but a welcome idea, I'll back it," he said to a question.

He also said that any surge in international troops for the war in Afghanistan should be involved in flushing out militants in border "sanctuaries" in Pakistan instead of penetrating deeper into Afghan villages.

Underlining the need to have a regional approach to fighting terrorism, Karzai said any assault should be "concentrated on the sanctuaries -- on those that train extremists, equip extremists, motivate extremists and then send them across" to Afghanistan. "The surge, in other words, will work only if you concentrate the deployment of troops at the right places where we need them," he said.
Posted by: tu3031 || 09/24/2008 10:14 || Comments || Link || [0 views] Top|| File under: Taliban

#1  One question.
How much does "full backing" set us back per year?
Posted by: bigjim-ky || 09/24/2008 11:45 Comments || Top||

#2  Another question. How much will it cost us in the long run if we don't help the newly elected government out?
Posted by: Richard of Oregon || 09/24/2008 12:37 Comments || Top||

#3  Hmmm. Meets Palin. Sees nice legs in heels. Gets backbone. Turns 180.
Posted by: Jack is Back! || 09/24/2008 12:51 Comments || Top||

#4  Third question, can we divert Karzai's cut of the opium trade to help pay for it?
Posted by: remoteman || 09/24/2008 12:52 Comments || Top||


Africa Horn
Mortar Attack on Market Kills as Many as 30 in Somalia
Mortar rounds slammed into a market in Somalia's capital Monday, killing up to 30 people, including children, and overwhelming hospitals with dozens of wounded in the worst fighting in months, witnesses said.

The violence -- extreme even by the standards of this chaotic country in the Horn of Africa -- comes as Islamist insurgents who want to topple the government appear to be gaining significant power. The government, which has failed to assert any real control since it was formed in 2004, had no comment on the bloodshed.

At least 60 people were wounded, including nine children, according to Dahir Dhere, a physician at Medina Hospital. "There is blood everywhere, and human flesh on the walls," said Abshir Mohamed Ali, a shop owner at Mogadishu's Bakara market, where much of the carnage was centered.

Seven members of one family -- a mother, grandmother, four children and an uncle -- were among the dead, according to Sahal Mohamed Ali, who was attending their funeral. "Only the 2-year-old child survived this disaster, with minor injuries," Ali said by telephone from the funeral.

The fighting began after insurgents fired mortar shells at the capital's main airport and the presidential palace, said Ali Mohamed Siyad, who heads the Bakara market traders association. Government forces and their Ethiopian allies responded with mortar rounds and gunfire.

In the past, government officials have suspected that insurgents use the Bakara market as a base. Militants with ties to al-Qaeda have been fighting for control since the government and its Ethiopian allies pushed the Islamists from the capital in December 2006. But the government, riddled with corruption, has failed to deliver basic services and comes under daily attack.

Thousands of civilians have died in the fighting, and hundreds of thousands have fled Mogadishu, contributing to a massive humanitarian emergency. Foreigners, journalists and humanitarian workers are frequently abducted for ransom.

Earlier Monday, Somali forces opened fire on kidnappers to free a German man and his Somali wife, said Muse Gelle Yusuf, governor of the northern port of Bosasso. The couple were in police custody after being freed unharmed, Yusuf said. In Berlin, Foreign Ministry spokesman Jens Ploetner said the couple were doing "well, generally speaking."

Off the country's lawless coast, heavily armed pirates stalk the seas. Fifty-seven ships have been attacked this year, most in the Gulf of Aden. The surge in attacks has prompted the U.S. Naval Forces Central Command to establish a security corridor patrolled by an international coalition of warships.
Posted by: Fred || 09/24/2008 00:00 || Comments || Link || [0 views] Top|| File under: Islamic Courts

#1  What else are bored Somali lads to do with themselves on a Monday?
Posted by: trailing wife || 09/24/2008 8:18 Comments || Top||


Bangladesh
Outlaw killed in shootout with police
An outlaw was killed in a shootout between his cohorts and police at Teltupi village in Harinakundu upazila eary on Tuesday.
No, we really don't know where that is.
The dear departed deceased was identified as Fazar Ali, 47, area commander of outlawed party JSD Gonobahini.
He was wanted on twelve systems in eight cases, including of four murders, police said.
Nope, his mother didn't love him.
Acting on a tip-off, ...
... the ever-helpful Mahmoud the Weasel strikes again ...
... police arrested Fazar from his house in Teltupi village on Monday midnight.
"Teltupi Village. You will never find a more wretched hive of scum and villainy. We must be careful."
That's why it's a 'shootout' and not an 'encounter' or a 'cross-fire' ...
According to his painfully extracted statement, ...
... how many times did he fall down the stairs again ...
... police conducted operation in a killing brick field of the village along with Fazar at about 2:15 am.
Always in the 'Back of the Brickyard' upazila ...
"As soon as police reached the spot ...
"Which spot?"
"That spot!"
... accomplices of Fazar fired towards them ...
... don't worry, you'll never see or hear from them again, they're polite that way ...
...forcing the law enforcers to fire back that triggered a gun battle", said an eyewitness account of police.
And the forensics people didn't recover even a single spent round of bullet ...
Fazar was caught in the line of fire ...
THWIP!
... while fleeing ...
... hard to keep the feets fleeing when you've caught a round of bullet ...
... and received bullet wound.
... right behind the ear.
He succumbed when he was taken to upazila health complex.
I don't even want to ask what kind of health care is available at the 'upazila health complex'.
Police recovered one shutter gun and 10 bullets from the scene.
Borrowed the shutter gun from the RAB. Sure hope Lt. Chaudray signed the chit ...
Posted by: Steve White || 09/24/2008 00:00 || Comments || Link || [1 views] Top|| File under:

#1  :-D
Posted by: trailing wife || 09/24/2008 8:29 Comments || Top||

#2  ...found with a mit full of aces and 8's...
Posted by: flash91 || 09/24/2008 13:06 Comments || Top||

#3  LOL! Great inline!
Posted by: Ptah || 09/24/2008 22:53 Comments || Top||


Britain
UK: Police investigating bomb attack at Iranian Embassy
(SomaliNet) The Scotland Yard said on Tuesday that British police are investigating a suspected petrol bomb attack at the Iranian Embassy in London,. Scotland Yard said the attack on Monday sparked a minor fire which caused little damage to the embassy. No one was injured. Meanwhile, officers believe arsonists targeted the embassy. They are examining CCTV footage for clues.
Posted by: Fred || 09/24/2008 00:00 || Comments || Link || [0 views] Top|| File under: Govt of Iran


Home Front: WoT
Judge Lets 9/11 Defendants Urge Ramzi bin al-Shibh to Appear
A military judge on Monday ordered Ramzi Binalshibh, one of the accused Sept. 11, 2001, plotters, brought to court here by force if necessary, after he refused to leave his cell to attend a hearing in his case.

But the presiding judge, Marine Col. Ralph Kohlmann, also decided to let Khalid Sheik Mohammed, the alleged operational planner of the terrorist attacks, and three other defendants write letters to Binalshibh to encourage his appearance Tuesday morning without recourse to force. Binalshibh's lead attorney said that, after receiving the letters, Binalshibh agreed to appear in court Tuesday.

Binalshibh acted as a liaison between the Hamburg cell that spearheaded the attack and al-Qaeda's leadership in Afghanistan. He refused to come to court Monday for hearings on a series of motions before his trial, which has yet to be scheduled. Binalshibh, who wants to represent himself, has also declined to meet with his military or civilian attorneys.

The pretrial hearings also will cover defense demands for more resources, the production of transcripts of proceedings in Arabic and requests by Binalshibh's counsel for the appointment of clinical and forensic psychologists.

Navy Cmdr. Suzanne Lachelier, Binalshibh's lead attorney, said there are substantial questions about Binalshibh's mental state and his competence to stand trial. She noted that among the medications being administered to him "is a psychotropic drug prescribed to persons with schizophrenia."
If he's that crazy he shouldn't ever be set free ...
Binalshibh's attorneys said it remains unclear whether the detainee has been diagnosed with schizophrenia or if the drug, which they declined to identify because the information is classified, is being used for behavior control.

Two psychiatrists hired by the government examined Binalshibh two weeks ago, but defense attorneys said they have not received a report of the findings. The defense is seeking to have its own independent examination of Binalshibh and asked that the proceedings be suspended until a hearing is held on his competence to stand trial.

The judge rejected the motion, siding with the prosecution. "Our position is that you don't get to opt out," said Army Col. Lawrence Morris, the chief prosecutor. "He is presumed competent."

The prosecution's desire to see Binalshibh brought to court was stymied, however, when the military refused to forcibly extract him from his cell without a formal order from the judge. The behind-the-scenes standoff led the judge to suspend proceedings.

As the judge discussed the legal wrangle with the prosecution, Mohammed raised his hand and offered to meet with Binalshibh in an effort to persuade him to come to court. The other defendants also said they would help out.
This article starring:
Ramzi Binalshibh
Posted by: Fred || 09/24/2008 00:00 || Comments || Link || [0 views] Top|| File under: al-Qaeda

#1  may I suggest a trepanation and lobotomy with a rusty fork?
Posted by: Frank G || 09/24/2008 8:03 Comments || Top||

#2  Everyone knows cyanide cures schizophrenia usually within 24 hours. What seems to be the difficulty?
Posted by: Besoeker || 09/24/2008 8:10 Comments || Top||

#3  This circus is one more reason that we should have a "take no prisoners" policy. I know - we give up important intelligence but geez I am getting tired of all this.
Posted by: Jack is Back! || 09/24/2008 12:54 Comments || Top||


India-Pakistan
Five Indian Mujahideen men arrested from Mumbai
MUMBAI: Mumbai Police claimed to have arrested five members of the terrorist group Indian Mujahideen in connection with the serial blasts in Ahmedabad and Delhi. The five are learnt to have provided logistics support to those who carried out the blasts, the police said.

The cops have also hinted at the Indian Mujahideen being controlled from Pakistan.

The men, identified as Mohammad Sadiq Sheikh, Afzal Usmani, Mohammed Sakib, Mohammed Arif and Shaikh Ansar were nabbed from a place near the Maharashtra-Karnataka border. All of them belong to Azamgarh in Uttar Pradesh, said the cops.

They are believed to have provided the suspected terrorists with logistics support, including acquiring the vehicles that were laden with explosives. The police claim to have arrested the founder member of the terrorist outfit. A large quantity of arms has also been seized from the suspects. The next target of the terrorists was Mumbai, said the city police commissioner. The police also claimed that all arrested were involved in blasts since 2005 including Mumbai train blasts in 2006.
This article starring:
Ahmedabad
Azamgarh in Uttar Pradesh
Maharashtra-Karnataka border
AFZAL USMANIIndian Mujaheddin
MOHAMAD SADIQ SHEIKHIndian Mujaheddin
MOHAMED ARIFIndian Mujaheddin
MOHAMED SAKIBIndian Mujaheddin
SHEIKH ANSARIndian Mujaheddin
Posted by: john frum || 09/24/2008 10:05 || Comments || Link || [2 views] Top|| File under: Indian Mujahideen


Pakistan finds suspected US spy drone wreckage
ISLAMABAD, Pakistan - The Pakistani army said Wednesday it found the wreckage of a suspected U.S. spy plane near the Afghan border, but denied claims that it had been shot down.

Three Pakistani intelligence officials earlier said troops and tribesmen had shot down the drone late Tuesday near Jalal Khel, a village in Pakistan's South Waziristan region.

However, a Pakistan army statement on Wednesday said security forces had recovered the crashed surveillance aircraft. It said a technical problem appeared to have brought it down and that it was investigating further.

The U.S.-led coalition in Afghanistan said one of its drones, which can be equipped with video surveillance equipment, went down Tuesday in the Afghan province bordering Waziristan. But it said coalition forces retrieved it and that no others were missing. The CIA also operates drones in the region.

The three Pakistani intelligence officials said the drone was hit after circling the Angoor Ada area of South Waziristan for several hours. Wreckage was strewn on the ground, they said, speaking on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to brief the media.

A senior U.S. official challenged the account. "We're not aware of any drones being down," said the official, who also asked for anonymity because of the diplomatic sensitivity of the issue.
Posted by: tu3031 || 09/24/2008 09:23 || Comments || Link || [0 views] Top|| File under:

#1  man this is one big victory for the cave men over there ain't it? This is what like the 15 article over them shooting at a remote control airplane
Posted by: sinse || 09/24/2008 10:20 Comments || Top||

#2  I was just wondering and some of our mil intelligence readers might know. What is the capability of a ground laser overloading the photo sensors. Similarily, it seems that radar, IR detection, and other spy plane intelligence devices could be disabled easily with modern equipment. Am I way off on this?
Posted by: Richard of Oregon || 09/24/2008 11:58 Comments || Top||

#3  Excellent question Richard. Entirely feasible given the right combination technology which I doubt the Paks or anyone besides the Russians have. Daytime aerial persistent surveillance utilizing a tight orbit at low altitude over a specific field of view (FOV) presents a tempting challenge to an enemy armed with automatic weapons. I'd hold mechanical failure responsible at 5% and the Golden BB at 95%.
Posted by: Besoeker || 09/24/2008 12:22 Comments || Top||

#4  Weather Balloon.
Posted by: Parabellum || 09/24/2008 12:22 Comments || Top||

#5  Pentagon says crashed "drone" in Pakistan not from U.S.
Posted by: Penguin || 09/24/2008 13:12 Comments || Top||

#6  how about loading 10 or 15 ounds of c4 and BBs in all the drones, complete with a timimg and 'weight on wheels' fuse. i the thing goes down, the clock starts; by the time the bad guys find it and drag it home, it goes boom.
just a concept.....
Posted by: USN, Ret. || 09/24/2008 14:24 Comments || Top||


Hunt on for two explosives-laden trucks in Islamabad
Police are searching for two explosives-laden trucks in the federal capital, Daily Times learnt on Tuesday. Sources said intelligence agencies had informed the police that three trucks loaded with explosives had entered the federal capital. One of them targeted the Marriott Hotel on Saturday, while whereabouts of the other two are not known.

The sources said the 'missing' trucks were still present in the city, adding that a risk of strikes by them had forced the police to put the security on high alert, increase personnel deployment near important buildings, erect pickets on key roads and begin intensive patrolling across Islamabad. Vehicles, especially trucks, were being searched by the police at the pickets, the sources said, adding the police were keeping a close watch on hotels and guesthouses.

Meanwhile, the Federal Interior Ministry has warned that banned militant groups could strike in Karachi as well as other cities of the country, Daily Times learnt on Tuesday.

Following this, Additional Home Secretary for Law Enforcement Dr Shafqat Abbasi has written a letter to Sindh Police Inspector General (IG) Sultan Salahuddin Babar Khattak and ordered him to ensure foolproof security measures for foreigners, especially Chinese nationals and their installations, sources said on condition of anonymity. "We have ordered the Sindh IG to provide foolproof security to all foreign nationals and sensitive government and foreign installations," Abbasi said.
Posted by: Fred || 09/24/2008 00:00 || Comments || Link || [0 views] Top|| File under: al-Qaeda in Pakistan

#1  Might be easier to find the two unexplosive laden trucks in Islamabad.
Posted by: tu3031 || 09/24/2008 9:11 Comments || Top||

#2  Oh! SNAP!!!
You beat me to it!
Posted by: bigjim-ky || 09/24/2008 9:12 Comments || Top||

#3  Inspector General (IG) Sultan Salahuddin Babar Khattak and ordered him to ensure foolproof security measures for foreigners, especially Chinese nationals and their installations, sources said on condition of anonymity.

Happy to see the Senator Chris Dodd "VIP treatment" catching on.

Posted by: Besoeker || 09/24/2008 9:14 Comments || Top||


Military claims killing six militants in Darra
The security forces in Darra Adamkhel on Monday claimed to have killed six militants in the restive town at a public sector primary school in Torchapper area while a soldier was killed and another injured in an improvised explosive device (IED) blast.

Also, the security forces started search operation in the gun-manufacturing town and recovered arms and ammunitions from some houses in Qasimkhel area of the semi-tribal region. Tribal sources told The News that the security forces continued shelling from Kohat and Speena Thana throughout the day on Monday.

During the shelling one school at Torchapper area was targeted in the evening, which, the security forces said, was being used by the militants as their base camp.Official sources said six militants were killed in the incident. However, the claim could not be confirmed independently.

Earlier in the wee hours of Monday, a vehicle of the security forces hit an IED that was planted by the militants on main road near Sanikhel area. The blast killed a soldier identified as Hameedullah of 23-AK unit of Pakistan Army while Hawaldar Sadiq sustained injuries.

The body and the injured soldier were brought to Combined Military Hospital (CMH), Kohat. Moreover, two gunship helicopters were seen hovering over the restive town all the day. However, they did not resort to shelling, the tribal sources informed.

On the other hand, the local tribesmen have voiced concern over the recovery of arms and ammunitions in Qasimkhel area. They said that majority of population of Darra Adamkhel was involved in the business of arms and ammunitions.

Due to operation their business had already come to a complete standstill, resulting in serious financial losses for them. While most of the businessmen had shifted their arms to their houses in order to avoid looting of their shops during the operation. The tribesmen had stored their arms in basements in their houses, they said.
Posted by: Fred || 09/24/2008 00:00 || Comments || Link || [0 views] Top|| File under: TTP


Pakistani army kills 60 in offensives after bomb
Pakistani troops backed by helicopter gunships and artillery killed some 60 militants close to the Afghan border, officials said Tuesday, underlining the government's intent to confront extremists after the Marriott hotel bombing.

Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani said terrorists are "enemies of Islam with no faith" and vowed to get tough on militants sheltering in the border region. "We will not allow them to challenge the writ of the government and create a law of the jungle and a life of the stone age," he told a gathering of Muslim scholars in the capital, Islamabad.

The fighting Monday and Tuesday comes at a time of tension between the U.S. and Pakistan over American military attacks on militants based in the lawless tribal areas along the border with Afghanistan.

Washington has urged Pakistan to assert its control in the region, which is a haven for al-Qaida and Taliban militants who cross into Afghanistan to attack American and NATO troops as well as for Pakistani extremists who are striking targets in Pakistan.

The bloodiest fighting this week has been in the Kohat region, where the military deployed helicopter gunships and artillery in killing at least 50 militants, an army spokesman, Maj. Murad Khan, said. One solider also died, he said. Khan said the military regained control of a mountain road tunnel seized by insurgents several days ago.

In the nearby Bajur tribal region, security forces killed at least 10 militants Tuesday in the latest round of a major offensive there, government official Iqbal Khattak said.

Al-Qaida or the Taliban are suspected in Saturday's truck bombing at the Marriott hotel in Islamabad. The attack killed 53 people, among them the Czech ambassador and two U.S. Defense Department employees, and wounded about 270. Some officials believe the bombing may have been a response to the Bajur offensive, which the army says has killed more than 700 suspected militants since August. The region is believed to be a possible hiding place for Osama bin Laden.

Pakistan's army spokesman, Maj. Gen. Athar Abbas, has described Bajur as a "mega-sanctuary" for militants and said the military was determined to flush them out. However, a series of recent cross-border operations apparently conducted by U.S. forces, including missile strikes and a ground assault, have highlighted Washington's concerns that the Pakistani government is unwilling or incapable of rooting out extremists.

The incursions have angered many Pakistanis and drawn officials protests that Washington is violating the country's sovereignty, something President Bush acknowledged before meeting with Pakistani President Asif Ali Zardari in New York on Tuesday. "Your words have been very strong about Pakistan's sovereign right and sovereign duty to protect your country, and the United States wants to help," Bush said. "Pakistan is an ally, and I look forward to deepening our relationship."

Meanwhile, at least six people -- including a 12-year-old boy -- were killed and a bank set afire Tuesday during rioting in Mangora in the northwestern Swat Valley, police and a hospital official said. It was unclear how the people died, but police said officers fired warning shots trying to control a mob that was protesting the lack of electricity and natural gas in the town. Police officer Mohibullah Khan said militants bombed the power station and gas pipeline to the town last week.

In Geneva, the U.N. refugee agency asked for donations of $17 million to aid more than 300,000 Pakistanis who have fled fighting and floods near the Afghan border. The U.N. High Commissioner for Refugees has distributed supplies to 84,000 people displaced by floods in northwestern Pakistan and could provide shelter and other relief to more than three times that number if it had more money, agency spokesman William Spindler said. Pakistan's government estimates 90,000 people chased from their homes by fighting are living as refugees along the Afghan border in North West Frontier Province and a similar number are displaced in the northern part of the province around Swat, Spindler said.

The deadly bombing of the Marriott continued to affect operations of diplomatic missions, aid groups and other organizations. British Airways said Tuesday it "indefinitely" suspended flights to Pakistan "in light of the current security situation." A British Embassy spokesman, Aidan Liddle, said a company that runs four visa application centers for the embassy closed them pending a security review.

In Washington, the Pentagon identified one of two Americans killed in Marriott bombing as Air Force Maj. Rodolfo I. Rodriguez, 34, of El Paso, Texas.
Posted by: Fred || 09/24/2008 00:00 || Comments || Link || [0 views] Top|| File under: TTP

#1  killed some 60

Applying the Pakistani correction factor, I conclude they killed 2, or maybe 3.
Posted by: GlenmoreInColorado || 09/24/2008 0:31 Comments || Top||

#2  And all 'civilians', no doubt.
Posted by: SteveS || 09/24/2008 17:41 Comments || Top||


Six killed as police fire on protesters in northwest Pakistan
(PTI) At least six demonstrators were killed today when police fired on hundreds of people protesting against the civilian casualties during the military operation against the Taliban in Pakistan's restive Swat valley, witnesses said. Angry demonstrators defied curfew, burnt two banks and shouted slogans against the military operation in the area. The security forces opened fire, killing six demonstrators and injuring nine others, witnesses said.

Unidentified gunmen also destroyed a gas plant and electricity grid station, disrupting power and gas supply to the area.

Local residents said that shells fired by the army on suspected militant hideouts usually landed on homes, killing civilians. Five members of a family were killed and several others injured when a mortar hit a house in Charbagh area of Swat yesterday.

The people staged a protest to condemn the civilian casualties. They marched 15 kilometres to Mingora, the headquarters of Swat district, and staged sit-in to block a road.

The protesters also burnt tyres at several places to block traffic. The leaders of the protesters said the operation by the security forces has forced the people to demonstrate. They demanded the withdrawal of the army from Swat.

A statement issued by the army expressed regret over the civilian casualties in the firing by the security forces.
Posted by: Fred || 09/24/2008 00:00 || Comments || Link || [0 views] Top|| File under: TTP

#1  The people staged a protest to condemn the civilian casualties.

Cause everyone knows, there's nothing they hate more than VIOLENCE in the frontier.
Posted by: bigjim-ky || 09/24/2008 7:48 Comments || Top||

#2  No one leaves the police barracks until all the weapons are cleaned. No excuses, no exceptions!
Posted by: Besoeker || 09/24/2008 7:54 Comments || Top||


Pakistani spies hear Qaeda celebrating Marriot blast
A group that claimed responsibility for bombing the Marriott Hotel in Islamabad had not previously been heard of, but Pakistani intelligence eavesdroppers heard Al Qaeda operatives celebrating the attack. The suicide truck bomb that killed at least 53 people and gutted the hotel on Saturday has raised fresh fears about worsening security in Pakistan. A group calling itself Fidayeen-e-Islam (Partisans of Islam) claimed responsibility in a call to an Islamabad-based correspondent for Al Arabiya, an Arab news channel. "It's either new or it might be a distraction," said a senior intelligence officer. "What we do know is that there was a lot of celebration among the lower ranks of Al Qaeda." Three members of a Pakistani group known for Al Qaeda ties were caught in Gujranwala as a result of electronic surveillance hours after the Marriott blast, according to another intelligence officer. Arabiya reported that the group that claimed responsibility issued several demands, including that Pakistan ends co-operation with the United States. Many Pakistanis already say that the alliance with the US incites militant violence and Pakistan should not be fighting 'America's
war'.
Posted by: Fred || 09/24/2008 00:00 || Comments || Link || [0 views] Top|| File under: al-Qaeda in Pakistan

#1  Pakistan should not be fighting 'America's
war'.

Well, if Pakistan weren't fighting Afganistan's war, then there wouldn't be any problem.
Posted by: Spot || 09/24/2008 7:59 Comments || Top||


Foreign Taliban lead fight against army in Bajaur
Foreign Al Qaeda and Taliban fighters are 'infiltrating' into Bajaur from Afghanistan to join their colleagues in the crucial battle for survival in the face of an all-out military action, highly placed sources said on Tuesday.

"Foreign militants are leading the fight against the army. The army action is beyond the local combatants' capacity and they need hardened and well-trained foreign militants," said the sources on condition of anonymity.

They told Daily Times that the foreign Taliban and Al Qaeda -- Arabs, Chechens, Uzbeks and Afghans -- are being led by an Afghan commander Qari Ziaur Rehman.

"He (Rehman) is leading the fight and he is calling for reinforcement from across the Afghan border," said the sources. "He is leading the whole show. He carries a lot of clout among foreign militants who mostly engage the Americans inside Afghanistan," the sources said.

Tunnels: The sources said a network of tunnels was discovered in Tankkhata, Rashakai, Kerala and Loyesam, where the Taliban hold great sway. "They would fire at the forces from some house and then use the tunnel to escape the army's return fire.

"These foreigners were interested in renting houses by the roadside, and paid Rs 20,000 to Rs 25,000 in rent per month. The purpose of renting houses along the roadside was to attack the forces if they launched action against the militants," said the sources.

Pakistan Army's Major Murad Khan confirmed to Daily Times that "We have received information about militants crossing into Bajaur from across the border and they are mostly foreigners."

When asked whether the Pakistan Army had informed the coalition forces in Afghanistan about stopping militant infiltration from the Afghan side, he said, "I have no information." The confirmation coincides with reports from Khar that most of the resistance was being offered by foreigners.

The army undertook a leading role in the operation from September 1, after paramilitary forces made a failed attempt to take over Loyesam from the militants on August 6.

Since then, 80 percent areas of Utmankhel, Salarzai and Khar tehsils have been 'cleared of militants', the sources said. However, tehsils Nawagai and Mamoond have not yet been secured against the militants. Unofficial reports say the government forces arrested some foreign militants during the action but their nationalities were not disclosed for security reasons.
Posted by: Fred || 09/24/2008 00:00 || Comments || Link || [0 views] Top|| File under: al-Qaeda in Pakistan


Malik suspends 25 policemen over negligence
Adviser to the Prime Minister on Interior Rehman Malik has suspended and ordered an inquiry against 25 police officials posted in the Red Zone of Islamabad for negligence, BBC Urdu reported on Tuesday. According to the channel, Malik took his personal vehicle at 2am on Monday night and drove around in the Red Zone for a considerable amount of time, however, none of the police officials deployed in the area took notice of his suspicious behaviour. The advisor called the Islamabad Inspector Genera and Senior Superintendent Police and reprimanded them over their negligence in the most sensitive area of the federal capital.
Posted by: Fred || 09/24/2008 00:00 || Comments || Link || [0 views] Top|| File under: Govt of Pakistan


HUJI chief still at large
Qari Saifullah Akhtar, the Harkatul Jehadul Islami (HUJI) chief, suspected of involvement in the Marriott Hotel suicide bombing, is still at large.

Benazir Bhutto had alleged in her posthumous book that Qari Saifullah, who had played a lead role in a 1995 failed coup plot to topple her second government, had masterminded the October 18, 2007 deadly suicide attack on her welcome procession in Karachi

Shortly before her assassination, Benazir Bhutto was putting final touches to her hard-hitting memoirs: "Reconciliation: Islam, Democracy and the West", which were published by Simon & Schuster six weeks after her death.
Continued on Page 49
This article starring:
QARI SAIFULLAH AKHTARHarkatul Jehadul Islami
Posted by: Fred || 09/24/2008 00:00 || Comments || Link || [0 views] Top|| File under: HUJI


Iraq
Three die in roadside bomb attacks in Iraq
At least three people were killed in roadside bomb attacks across Iraq on Tuesday after insurgents bombed the house of a Sunni MP in the northern city of Mosul in a separate attack, officials said. One man was killed and three were wounded when a bomb targeting an Iraqi Army patrol exploded in central Baghdad, a police source said.

A motorist was killed and three others were wounded when their car was blasted by a roadside bomb in Iskandariyya district, just south of the capital, police said.

In Mosul, the house of Sunni MP Hashem Yahiya al-Tai came under attack on Monday, his Iraqi Islamic Party said on Tuesday. Tai was in Baghdad when the attack took place, but several civilians were wounded when insurgents bombed his house, a statement from the party said.

"The security situation is getting worse in Nineveh" Province of which Mosul is the capital, it said. "After journalists, it is now parliamentarians who are being targeted," the party said, adding that Tai's house was badly damaged in the blast.

The Iraqi Islamic Party is the leading party in the National Concord Front, the main Sunni bloc which holds 40 seats in the 275-member Parliament.

Insurgents continue to launch sustained attacks in Mosul and the surrounding province of Nineveh. A number of attacks have also targeted Iraqi journalists in the city. Last week four members of a TV crew from the private Al-Sharqiyya channel were kidnapped and killed by gunmen in Mosul as they were filming a Ramadan show.

An American soldier was also killed on Tuesday, the US military said. "The soldier was killed as a result of a small-arms fire attack west of Salman Pak," just south of Baghdad, the military said in a statement without elaborating.
Posted by: Fred || 09/24/2008 00:00 || Comments || Link || [0 views] Top|| File under: Iraqi Insurgency


US soldiers accidentally kill Sunni leader in Iraq
American soldiers accidentally shot and killed the leader of a local U.S.-allied Sunni group Tuesday after coming under attack in a volatile area north of Baghdad, the military said. The shooting comes a week before the Shiite-led Iraqi government begins to assume authority over the Sunni groups known as the Sons of Iraq, or Awakening Councils. The military has credited the Sunni revolt against al-Qaida in Iraq as a key factor in the sharp decline in violence over the past year.

The head of the group in Siniyah, Jassim al-Garrout, was killed after he rushed to the site of an ambush against U.S. forces in the area, which lies between the northern oil-hub of Beiji and Saddam Hussein's hometown of Tikrit, according to witnesses and police.

One of al-Garrout's comrades said the group would demand an apology from the Americans. "The Awakening Councils have become targets of al-Qaida, the government and sometimes even the U.S. forces. We do not know our fate and we are feeling lost," Farooq Sami said. "We are undertaking the task of combating terrorists, yet we are left sometimes unpaid and without money. We have participated in maintaining peace and security in our area, yet we sometimes do not get our salaries."

Lt. Gen. Lloyd Austin, the No. 2 U.S. commander in Iraq, said Monday that the Iraqi government will begin next week paying the salaries of about 54,000 of the mostly Sunni fighters in the province surrounding Baghdad.

In Tuesday's incident, the U.S. soldiers were hunting for insurgents and weapons after they were hit by a roadside bomb and small-arms fire near Siniyah, 110 miles northwest of Baghdad, according to an e-mailed military statement.

The troops then came under fire while searching a house and "shot a Sons of Iraq leader who was mistaken for the enemy when he entered the house," said Navy Lt. Cmdr. David Russell, a U.S. military spokesman in Baghdad. Medical aid was administered, the military said, but the troops were unable to save al-Garrout.

Russell said the U.S. soldiers had warned their Sunni allies to identify themselves and to stay clear of the house.
Posted by: Fred || 09/24/2008 00:00 || Comments || Link || [0 views] Top|| File under: Iraqi Insurgency

#1  American soldiers accidentally shot and killed the leader of a local U.S.-allied Sunni group Tuesday after coming under attack in a volatile area north of Baghdad, the military said.

Personally, I believe these "Sons of Iraq" were moonlighting as "insurgents".
Posted by: g(r)omgoru || 09/24/2008 6:21 Comments || Top||

#2  The head of the group in Siniyah, Jassim al-Garrout, was killed after he rushed to the site of an ambush against U.S. forces.

Unless someone rings you up for reinforcements, never "RUSH" headlong into an ambush site.
Posted by: Besoeker || 09/24/2008 7:10 Comments || Top||

#3  Michael Yon described a similar incident with the 1920s Brigade where we shot up a van of allied militia dudes. It boiled down to a combination of suspicious behavior (speeding van in a volatile area) and lack of the day's ID token (specific colored tape in designated areas).

Given how many friendlies of formally allied real military forces have been hit, I'm surprised this doesn't happen more often.
Posted by: xbalanke || 09/24/2008 15:10 Comments || Top||


Israel-Palestine-Jordan
Paleos Try Multi-Vehicle Attack, Chicken Out
Palestinian Arab terrorists driving two cars and a bulldozer burst through an Israeli army checkpoint in Samaria on Wednesday and attempted to run down the Israeli soldiers manning the position.

The Israelis fired their weapons in the air, quickly convincing the Palestinian to halt the attack before anyone was injured. The four terrorists were all taken into custody and their vehicles confiscated.

The incident comes less than 48 hours after an Arab teenager rammed his car into a group of Israeli soldiers in Jerusalem, wounding 17 people.

Also on Wednesday, an Israeli soldier subdued and arrested a 16-year-old Palestinian after the latter drew a large knife at a checkpoint outside the town of Nablus.

In other terror related news, Israeli security officials announced on Wednesday the recent capture of a Jerusalem-based Arab terror cell that is believed to have been behind the murders of at least two Israeli Border Police officers in the capital in separate attacks.

Officials believe the cell to be part of a Hamas effort to increase its presence and activity in Jerusalem.
Posted by: Anonymoose || 09/24/2008 16:18 || Comments || Link || [0 views] Top|| File under:

#1  If the West Bankers keep this up, they will end up fenced in as securely as the Gazans.
Posted by: trailing wife || 09/24/2008 16:32 Comments || Top||

#2  Need new glasses; when I first saw this, I thought it said: "Pelosi Trys multi car attack..." and thought it had something to do with McCain's fleet.......

Posted by: USN, Ret. || 09/24/2008 16:44 Comments || Top||

#3  "The Israelis fired their weapons in the air"

There's your first mistake....
Posted by: Barbara Skolaut || 09/24/2008 20:00 Comments || Top||

#4  Barbara,
That might be the point - provoke or rattle the Israelis into opening fire on an 'innocent' civilian car filled with women, children, baby ducks, etc. I'd bet the rent money that the first time the Israelis do blow away a vehicle, that's who will be in it.

Mike
Posted by: Mike Kozlowski || 09/24/2008 21:43 Comments || Top||

#5  Running out of suicide dude's and dudette's are they?
Posted by: plainslow || 09/24/2008 22:20 Comments || Top||



Who's in the News
80[untagged]
5Govt of Pakistan
4TTP
4Govt of Iran
3al-Qaeda in Pakistan
3al-Qaeda
2Iraqi Insurgency
2Indian Mujahideen
1Islamic Courts
1Jamaat-e-Ulema Islami
1Lashkar e-Taiba
1Taliban
1Hamas
1Govt of Sudan
1HUJI

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
Wed 2008-09-24
  Five Indian Mujaheddin nabbed in Mumbai
Tue 2008-09-23
  Livni asked to form a new government
Mon 2008-09-22
  Up to 15 tourists kidnapped in Egypt
Sun 2008-09-21
  2 Delhi blasts suspects banged
Sat 2008-09-20
  Islamabad Marriott kaboomed
Fri 2008-09-19
  300 child hostages freed in NWFP
Thu 2008-09-18
  25 arrested over embassy attack in Yemen
Wed 2008-09-17
  Odierno takes over as US commander in Iraq
Tue 2008-09-16
  Twelve Mauritanian troops dead in attack blamed on Al-Qaeda's North Africa wing
Mon 2008-09-15
  Pak Troops open fire at US military helicopters
Sun 2008-09-14
  Pakistan order to kill US invaders
Sat 2008-09-13
  30 dead, 90 injured as five blasts hit Indian capital
Fri 2008-09-12
  Kimmie recovering from brain surgery
Thu 2008-09-11
  Seven years. Never forgive, never forget, never ''understand.''
Wed 2008-09-10
  Head of al-Qaeda in Pakistain dead in Haqqani raid

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.
3.91.11.30
Help keep the Burg running! Paypal:
WoT Background (28)    Non-WoT (38)    Opinion (10)    Local News (15)    (0)