KISMAYO, Somalia -- A bilateral talks between Somalias Jubaland administration and Mogadishu-based Federal Government are due to kick off in Ethiopian capital of Addisababa under the auspices of IGAD this week, Garowe Online reports.
In an effort to restart the forthcoming round of talks, Jubaland President Ahmed Mohamed Islam (Madobe) flew to Addisababa on Monday.
The first round of talks, which took place in Addisababa in July 2013, brought together President Hassan Sheikh Mohamuds close aide and State Minister for Presidency, Farah Abdulkadir and President Madobe who accepted to join the bilateral discussions after an immense pressure from IGAD but the talks hit deadlock over Jubaland recognition.
President Madobe recently accused the Somali Federal Government in Mogadishu of violating the Federal Constitution and continuing to orchestrate violence in Jubaland by arming anti peace figures.
Mogadishu-based Federal Government is beset by formidable failures including worsening relations with Puntland and Jubaland issue.
Posted by: Steve White ||
08/21/2013 00:00 ||
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[AnNahar] Libya's navy has prevented a tanker from "illegally entering" Al-Sedra oil terminal in the east of the country, the army's general staff said Tuesday, as protests paralyzed several ports.
"Patrol boats from the Libyan navy stopped an oil tanker sailing in Libyan territorial waters from entering Al-Sedra port" on Monday, it said, cited by official news agency LANA.
"The ship, bearing the name Wael, tried on several occasions to enter the port but was prevented," the army said.
It was unclear who had chartered the vessel.
The Libyan navy said in a statement on Tuesday that it would monitor ships off the coast near the oil terminals of Al-Sedra, Ras Lanouf and Brega.
"Ships that are not duly bound by contracts with the NOC (National Oil Company), which alone is authorized to sign petroleum export contracts, will be forbidden from loading crude oil and will be ordered to leave," it warned.
"In case of refusal to obey orders, the ship will be stormed and taken to the nearest port," the Libyan navy added.
The government is locked in a stand-off with striking oil installation guards, whom it accuses of trying to sell crude oil on their own account. Authorities have threatened to use force to prevent the sale of any oil that does not go through the proper channels.
On Saturday, the National Oil Co said a "Libyan gang is currently in contact with concessionaires in the international oil market to sell oil illegally."
This group, which operates in the eastern Ras Lanuf region, "is seeking to sell a cargo of 700,000 barrels," the NOC said.
Libya's main oil terminals have been hit by strikes since late July that caused production to plummet to less than 330,000 barrels per day before rising again to 670,000 bpd. Even that figure fell short of the 1.6 million bpd averaged before the 2011 overthrow and killing of long-term dictator Muammar Qadaffy ...The late megalomaniac dictator of Libya, admired everywhere for his garish costumes, funny hats, harem of cutie bodyguards, and incoherent ravings. As far as is known, he is the only person who's ever declared jihad on Switzerland... Libya is almost entirely dependent on oil and gas for its foreign exchange earnings, with hydrocarbons accounting for more than 80 percent of its GNP and up to 97 percent of its exports.
The strike has cost the North African nation $1.6 billion dollars in lost export revenues since July 25, according to Oil Minister Abdelbari al-Aroussi.
[Ynet] Media reports that suggest the United States has cut off aid to Egypt are not accurate, a White House front man said on Tuesday, adding that the B.O. regime is still reviewing its options.
"That review has not concluded and ... published reports to the contrary that assistance to Egypt has been cut off are not accurate," White House front man Josh Earnest told news hounds in a briefing. Earnest also said that Egypt's detention of Moslem Brüderbund leader Mohamed Badie was not in line with the standard that the United States would hope to uphold in protecting basic human rights ...not to be confused with individual rights, mind you....
Posted by: trailing wife ||
08/21/2013 00:00 ||
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#1
OTOH JAPAN TODAY > EGYPT CAN SURVIVE WIDOUT US MILITARY AID: INTERIM MINISTER.
Interim PM Hazer Al-Beblawi.
* JAPAN TIMES > POLITICAL ISLAM AT A CROSSROADS IN EGYPT - AND IN ARAB WORLD.
Gettysburg, Middle East = Muslim World.
MusBros as the "Mother/Mothership" of contemporary Political Islam could either disappear forever, or else more likely to return to the covert underworld from whence it arose, + rise again???
Posted by: Mullah Richard ||
08/21/2013 10:02 Comments ||
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#4
The office of Sen. Patrick Leahy (D-VT), the head of the appropriations state and foreign-operations subcommittee, told The Daily Beast on Monday that military aid to Egypt has been temporarily cut off.
#5
If they wait long enough, they won't have to decide.
It's almost as if our government is totally populated by Wally from Dilbert. His philosophy is that if you wait long enough, a priorty ceases to be a priorty.
[Ynet] A state source in Egypt told the Paleostinian news agency Maan that Egyptian authorities have demanded Hamas, always the voice of sweet reason, to hand over Mahmoud Izzat, deputy to Mohamed Badie and current acting supreme leader of the Moslem Brüderbund. According to suspicions, Izzat is hiding in the Gazoo Strip.
The source added that the authorities wish to question Izzat on the execution of 25 coppers in Egyptian Rafah on Monday. According to the source, Izzat is suspected of killing officers and soldiers in el-Arish, Rafah and in a-Sheikh Zawid. The source added that Egypt notified the Interpol that Izzat must be apprehended, as well as three Hamas members.
#1
Which three Ham-ass gunnies must be apprehended? Or did it mean that they'd notified three gunnies (who just happened to be standing around) that Baddie must be apprehended? And how long did it take for the gunnies to stop laughing?
Egyptian Nobel Peace Prize winner Mohammed ElBaradei is to face trial on September 19 over his resignation as vice president after a deadly crackdown on the Muslim Brotherhood, state-run newspaper Al-Ahram reported online on Tuesday, dpa reported.
Ah-ha. Now it's clear why he went to Vienna...
The case against him was brought by the head of criminal law in Helwan University, who argues that ElBaradei was appointed vice president as a representative of the opposition and was obliged to refer his resignation to them.
ElBaradei left Cairo for Vienna on Sunday, according to Al-Ahram.
Posted by: Steve White ||
08/21/2013 00:00 ||
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#1
Unless I misunderstand this, they are chargine ElBar with putting his resignation letter in the wrong box.
Now, I'm all for giving him a good thumping, but can't we at least dummy up some vaguely believable charges before we give him a fair trail and then hang him? Let's think about appearances, people!
#3
I agree with TW. He quit his post to side with the MB. Charging him with littering is much better than hoping he falls up the stairs and out a window.
I have not bought the jersey yet, but so far PR wise I like what Sissi et al are doing; reminds me of Honduras.
An Egyptian court will review a petition on Wednesday for the release of deposed President Hosni Mubarak, judicial sources said, meaning he could leave prison as the legal grounds for his detention crumble. The court will convene at the Cairo prison where Mubarak is being held, the sources said.
Fareed el-Deeb, the lawyer who filed the petition, said on Monday he expected his client to be freed this week after a court ordered his release in one of the remaining corruption cases against him.
It might be better to send Hosni to a guest house just outside Riyadh. Easier for everyone if you know what I mean...
Has former President Mubarak any money left? I thought it was all confiscated by the state when they first brought him in.
Mubarak, 85, was sentenced to life in prison last year for failing to stop the killing of protesters during the uprising against him in 2011. But the appeals court accepted his appeal in January and ordered a retrial.
He is now being retried on those charges, but has served the maximum amount of pre-trial detention permitted in the case.
The last remaining corruption case relates to allegations that Mubarak received gifts from a state-run publisher. However, his family has paid back the value of the alleged gifts, strengthening Deeb's confidence that he will be released.
Posted by: Steve White ||
08/21/2013 00:00 ||
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Emirati journalist Hamad Al Mazroui has announced a reward of one million Egyptian pounds equal to approximately $143,000 to whoever helps rat out arrest any of the three most important leaders of the Muslim Brotherhood in Egypt.
Now here's a man who understands the region...
Al Mazroui posted the announcement on his Twitter account that he would hand over the amount to anyone who helps locate any of the three top Brotherhood leaders Essam el-Eryan, Mohamed Al Beltagi and Safwat Hijazi whose arrests have been ordered by the South Cairo Public Prosecution.
The bounty will be presented in coordination with the Egyptian Interior Ministry, no matter what the informants nationality or religion is, or even if he/she is one of the Egyptian Interior Ministrys officers or from the Muslim Brotherhood itself.
Especially if he's from the Brüderbünd, but given their screening and indoctrination methods, don't hold your breath...
Speaking to Khaleej Times, Al Mazroui said: I have allocated the cash reward to cease the bloodshed in Egypt as those three men are the leaders of militants and they are no less dangerous than the supreme guide of the Muslim Brotherhood.
Al Mazroui had earlier donated Dh1 million to Egypt during a public donation campaign to save Egypt from the current economic crisis.
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08/21/2013 00:00 ||
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[BBC] What makes a young middle-class man turn to Islam and want to risk "martyrdom" in Syria? A French father, who has just been bereaved, tells the BBC's Christian Fraser what happened to his sons.
The jihadist video is familiar in both style and content. In front of the black flag proclaiming allegiance to Allah, is a man who calls himself Abu Abd Al-Rahman.
"I am French," he says. "My parents are atheists; they do not subscribe to any religion."
In fact his parents were baptised Catholic - as was he - and they know him as Nicolas. He is a 30-year-old convert. He comes from a middle-class background in Toulouse. His mother works for the army...
The two men were regular visitors to the Izards, a notorious crime-ridden estate in the northern outskirts of the city. Nicolas had been convicted for selling hashish. His family says he was mixing with the wrong sort.
But then he found his new faith. He was more observant, stricter, in his adherence to the religion than many of his Muslim friends. And he tried to convert everyone in his family.
In 2011 he succeeded in converting his brother. His mother was so concerned by his developing behaviour she called the French intelligence service. Everything happens for a reason. Sometimes that reason is 'stupidity'.
#4
Some folks need to be filled with purpose. In the past it was patriotism and Christianity but the left has smeared those left and right for the past few decades. Not a surprise.
A military judge on Wednesday morning sentenced Army Pfc. Bradley Manning to 35 years in prison for leaking hundreds of thousands of classified documents to the anti-secrecy group WikiLeaks.
Manning, 25, was convicted last month of multiple charges, including violations of the Espionage Act for copying and disseminating the documents while serving as an intelligence analyst at a forward operating base in Iraq. He faced up to 90 years in prison.
According to the military, Manning is required to serve one-third of the sentence before he becomes eligible for parole.
The government had asked Judge Denise Lind, an Army colonel, to sentence Manning to 60 years. "There is value in deterrence, your honor; this court must send a message to any soldier contemplating stealing classified information," said Capt. Joe Morrow, a military prosecutor. "National security crimes that undermine the entire system must be taken seriously."
Defense lawyer David Coombs portrayed Manning as a well-intentioned but isolated soldier with gender identification issues, and he asked Lind to impose "a sentence that allows him to have a life."
"He cares about human life," said Coombs as the sentencing phase of the court-martial at Fort Meade ended last week. "His biggest crime was he cared about the loss of life he was seeing and was struggling with it."
Manning also addressed the court and apologized for his actions, saying he was "sorry that I hurt the United States."
Manning will receive a credit of 1,293 days for the time he has been confined prior to the sentence, including 112 days of credit for abusive treatment he was subjected to in the brig at the Quantico Marine Base.
What abusive treatment?
Manning transmitted the first documents to WikiLeaks in February 2010, sending what came to be known as the Iraq and Afghanistan "War Logs" -- field reports from across both theaters. Manning's lawyers said he had become disillusioned by what he was seeing in Iraq and hoped that the public release of the secret material would prompt greater public understanding of the wars.
Manning established a relationship online with a person who is thought to be Julian Assange, the founder of WikiLeaks. As their personal correspondence deepened, Manning continued to transmit more material, including assessments of detainees at Guantanamo Bay and an enormous cache of diplomatic cables. He also leaked a video that showed a U.S. Apache helicopter in Baghdad opening fire on a group of Iraqis, including two journalists and children, that the helicopter crew believed to be insurgents.
According to his lawyers, Manning became more and more stressed in Iraq, wrestling with his sexuality and the breakup of a relationship. At one point, in April 2010, he sent an e-mail to a superior with the subject line "My Problem" and a photo of himself wearing a blond wig and lipstick.
On May 7, Manning was found on the floor of a supply room with a knife at his feet. After some brief counseling, he was returned to his workstation. Later that same day, he struck a fellow soldier and was removed permanently from the secure environment where he worked.
Following these events, Manning boasted to hacker Adrian Lamo that he had been working with WikiLeaks. After engaging Manning for several days, Lamo informed Army investigators and the FBI about the breach of information and provided them with his chat logs with Manning. Manning was arrested in Iraq on May 27, 2010.
Legal proceedings against Manning began in December 2011 and, in February of this year, Manning pleaded guilty to 10 lesser included charges. The trial portion of the proceedings began June 3, and on July 30, Lind found Manning guilty of 20 of the 22 charges he faced.
Good.
Now jug Snowden.
Then tear apart military intelligence and NSA procedures and methods so that this doesn't happen again. How is it that low-level twerps like Manning and Snowden get such access? How is it that basic audit controls, firewalls, compartments, etc aren't there?
And most importantly, why hasn't there been any higher level accountability? Who is the general/admiral/Pentagon official relieved of command for this affair?
Finding Manning guilty was necessary. It's a good start. We have to finish the job by demanding accountability and responsibility all the way up.
#1
With the Manning leaks already history there should have been no way for Snowden to repeat the process at the next gov't agency down the road, yet it happened. It happened even though Snowden gave significant clues to his intentions from his initial hiring. Can NSA really be THAT incompetent at protecting secrets? Or was Snowden's whole expose engineered from above? Could there be either some viral code in what he was carrying or some significant false information, intended to be received by foreign interests or to provide tracers of foreign communications that made the sacrifice and embarrassment of the NSA domestic spying program worthwhile?
#3
The most disturbing thing about this sentence was that he could be released in 8 years for good behavior.
Defense lawyer David Coombs portrayed Manning as a well-intentioned but isolated soldier with gender identification issues
This is what p*sses me off: Gays can't have it both ways. Either they are identical to straights and can handle anything straights can or we gotta "go easy on him. He's gay!"
Either you can hold your end up or you can't, and Manning should never have been allowed near any secret communications.
Al
Posted by: Frozen Al ||
08/21/2013 12:42 Comments ||
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#4
At one point, in April 2010, he sent an e-mail to a superior with the subject line "My Problem" and a photo of himself wearing a blond wig and lipstick.
Apparently cross-dressing is no longer a punishable offense under the UCMJ. Perhaps gender specific uniforms items are no longer applicable.
#8
"National security crimes that undermine the entire system must be taken seriously."
As I remember, the blinded Lady Liberty holds a balance AND the book of law. How does one plea bargain balanced equivalency so that Bradelina gets "a sentence that allows him to have a life." after putting the lives of so many others in real or potential risk?
Draconian, but let the crime fit the time, or end-of-time.
[AnNahar] The U.S. Treasury on Tuesday set economic sanctions on a Pakistain Islamic school it branded a "terrorist training center" supporting al-Qaeda and the Taliban.
The Treasury said the Ganj madrassa in Beautiful Downtown Peshawar ...capital of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (formerly known as the North-West Frontier Province), administrative and economic hub for the Federally Administered Tribal Areas of Pakistan. Peshawar is situated near the eastern end of the Khyber Pass, convenient to the Pak-Afghan border. Peshawar has evolved into one of Pakistan's most ethnically and linguistically diverse cities, which means lots of gunfire. was being used as a training and recruiting base by the two krazed killer groups, as well as the radical Lashkar-e-Taiba ...the Army of the Pure, an Ahl-e-Hadith terror organization founded by Hafiz Saeed. LeT masquerades behind the Jamaat-ud-Dawa facade within Pakistain and periodically blows things up and kills people in India. Despite the fact that it is banned, always an interesting concept in Pakistain, the organization remains an blatant tool and perhaps an arm of the ISI... blamed for the November 2008 Mumbai attacks that killed 166 people.
The head of the madrassa, Fazeel-A-Tul Shaykh Abu Mohammed Ameen Al-Peshawari, known as Shaykh Aminullah, has been a U.S. and U.N.-designated terrorist since 2009, for his support for al-Qaeda and the Taliban.
But it was the first time a madrassa -- generally, schools managed under Islamic principles -- has been the target of sanctions, which forbid any Americans from having any business interaction with it, and freeze any of its assets that come under U.S. jurisdiction.
"Today's action is the first designation of a madrassa that is being abused by terrorist organizations," the Treasury said in a statement.
"This action does not generally target madrassas, which often play an essential role in improving literacy and providing humanitarian and developmental aid in many areas of the world, including Pakistain."
It said the Ganj school is a place "where students, under the guise of religious studies, have been radicalized to conduct terrorist and bully boy activities."
In addition, the Treasury set sanctions on Umar Siddique Kathio Azmarai, who it said has served as a controller and courier in the al- Qaeda organization since the late 1990s, including providing support for the family of the now-dead the late Osama bin Laden ... who used to be alive but now he's not... .
#6
Saudi money and Saudi/Pak intolerance/jihadi ideology has been present since pre 911 and nothing has been done by Perv and Successors to close these schools of hate. The West know we are fighting Paki led jihadist in Afghanistan since 911 but no one gets told off in Pakistan for undermining US/Nato. Why?
Posted by: Paul D ||
08/21/2013 19:45 Comments ||
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#7
And whuzzabout the madrassas located in Pennsylvania + other CONUS???
Or - surprise, surprise - I have to do their job for them AGAIN???
Israel and the Palestinians held a second negotiating session at a secret location in Jerusalem on Tuesday, Israel Radio reported, quoting a member of the Palestinian team, dpa reported. News that the session was taking place was not officially made public, because the participants have agreed to continue the talks outside the media spotlight.
A first session in Jerusalem last week marked the end of a three-year absence of direct negotiations.
US envoy Martin Indyk had met Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas late on Monday, urging him to continue the talks, despite ongoing Israeli construction in the West Bank and East Jerusalem, the radio added.
Israel's chief negotiator, Tzipi Livni, told Israel Radio on Tuesday that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's centre-right coalition was impeding the negotiations.
"It's no secret that there is a party in the coalition" which opposes negotiations and a two-state solution of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, Livni said. This was a reference to the ultra-nationalist, pro-settler Jewish Home party, which has 12 seats in the 120-seat Israeli parliament.
Livni, a centrist, is a supporter of the two-state solution and is seen as a dovish member of Netanyahu's coalition.
It'd be great if you were right, Tzipi, but I fear you aren't and I fear you're gambling your country's security on a mush of promises.
Posted by: Steve White ||
08/21/2013 00:00 ||
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[Jpost] Movement denounces Islamist group's "repression and tyranny"; Hamas, always the voice of sweet reason, accuses Fatah of attempt to instigate tensions in Gazoo.
Following the Egyptian example, a group of activists has launched a Paleostinian version of the Tamarod ("Rebellion") campaign to remove Hamas from power in the Gazoo Strip.
Tamarod is a grassroots movement in Egypt that led the campaign to oust president Mohamed Morsi.
The Paleostinian group on Monday shared a video announcing a series of anti-Hamas activities as of November 11.
"Repression and tyranny have reached their peak and we can no longer remain silent," the group said in the video. "The time has come to reject death under Hamas's security club."
The group said that the Paleostinian Tamarod movement consisted of youths "of all colors and affiliations."
Denouncing Hamas as medieval gangsters, the group accused the Islamist movement of torture, sabotage, smuggling, bribery and thuggery.
"Addressing Hamas," the group said, "We won't ask you to leave because you are part of us. But you won't rule after November 11 even if you finish us off. All our options are open, except for using weapons. We are different from you. Unlike you, we don't use weapons against our brothers. Unlike you, we don't kill children, the elderly, women and youths. Unlike you, we don't destroy mosques. We will face you with bare chests."
That's a good way to lose against those who are vicious and well-armed.
Hamas officials in Gazoo accused Fatah of being behind the video.
"We are witnessing attempts by Fatah to instigate tensions in the Gazoo Strip," said one official. "Our people, who threw Fatah out of the Gazoo Strip, will not be deceived by this new conspiracy."
Sources in Gazoo said Hamas security forces have tossed in the clink Drop the rod and step away witcher hands up! two Paleostinians on suspicion of "plotting to overthrow the Hamas government."
The sources said the two men are from the southern Gazoo Strip.
Hamas authorities have taken a number of preemptive measures to foil any attempt to copy the anti- Morsi campaign in Gazoo.
The measures include imposing travel bans on top Fatah leaders, including Zakariya al-Agha, who was prevented from leaving Gazoo to participate in a PLO meeting in Ramallah earlier this week.
Tensions between Hamas and Fatah have escalated in the aftermath of the ousting of Morsi.
While Fatah has come out in support of Morsi's removal, Hamas has condemned Egypt's new rulers for carrying out a military coup against a democratically elected president.
On Sunday, Hamas rejected an offer by Fatah to hold long-overdue general elections in the West Bank and Gazoo. Representatives of the two rival parties who met in Gazoo City failed to reach an agreement on holding presidential and parliamentary elections.
Salah Bardawil, a senior Hamas official, said that by offering to hold elections, Fatah was trying to "cover up for the scandal of resuming peace talks" with Israel.
"How can we hold elections under the current tense situation and while the negotiations were taking place with the goal of liquidating the Paleostinian cause?" Bardawil asked.
He said that Hamas would not allow Fatah to hold elections in Gazoo.
#1
There's both opportunity and risk here. The opportunity is finding creative ways to assist the movement in screwing over Hamas (and Fatah.) The risk is that the same schtuff could be used against Israel.
[IranPressTV] Work has started to repair what has been damaged by the foreign-sponsored faceless myrmidons as the Syrian Army retakes control of the country's main power plants near the capital Damascus, Press TV reports.
The situation remains tense in the industrial block that separates Kabun and Jobar areas of Damascus, a Press TV correspondent in Syria reported on Tuesday.
Entering the area is only possible through a secured path made up of a maze of holes and hoses between the abandoned plants.
The Syrian Army has recaptured the main warehouse of the Damascus electricity establishment, which was taken over by the armed faceless myrmidons in July. The faceless myrmidons damaged the buildings and machinery in the warehouse.
"By gaining control of this establishment we broke the backbone of the hard boys," an army officer told Press TV.
The army troops entered the compound through various entrances, killed many gunnies and pushed others to Jobar, the army officer stated, adding that "there is only one more building in this parameter which they (militants) control now."
As soon as the establishment was taken over by the army the repair process was started, the Press TV correspondent said.
"We are in the general electricity department of Damascus. Armed men have sabotaged some of the devices and offices (here). We are repairing them," Shadi Suleiman, an electricity worker said.
Thanks to the Syrian Army, the area is now secured, he added.
The Syrian Army has made it clear that operations will continue until securing all the areas that surround the capital.
The government troops have recently conducted successful clean-up operations across the country, inflicting heavy losses on the hard boys.
The Syrian Army's push against the faceless myrmidons rattled their sponsors.
Syrian Information Minister Omran al-Zoubi said on June 26 that Soddy Arabia ...a kingdom taking up the bulk of the Arabian peninsula. Its primary economic activity involves exporting oil and soaking Islamic rubes on the annual hajj pilgrimage. The country supports a large number of princes in whatcha might call princely splendor. When the oil runs out the rest of the world is going to kick sand in the Soddy national face... is trembling with fear because of the Syrian Army's recent gains against the hard boys.
Zoubi said that the Saudi weapons and money is the main reason behind bloodshed in Syria.
Syria has been gripped by deadly unrest since 2011. According to the United Nations ...an idea whose time has gone... , more than 100,000 people have been killed and millions of others displaced in the violence.
Posted by: trailing wife ||
08/21/2013 00:00 ||
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"Once the rockets go up
Who cares where they come down?
'That's not my department,' said Werner von Braun"
[AnNahar] The "Marwan Hadid Brigades" grabbed credit on Tuesday for the firing of rockets in the Bekaa region on Sunday, reported LBCI television.
The previously unknown group grabbed credit for the attack in a statement and video aired on Youtube.
On Monday, President Michel Suleiman ...before assuming office as President, he held the position of commander of the Leb Armed Forces. That was after the previous commander, the loathesome Emile Lahoud, took office as president in November of 1998. Likely the next president of Leb will be whoever's commander of the armed forces, too... expressed his "grave concern" with the shelling that took place in Hermel, tasking the Army Command with "determining the location from where they were fired in order to tackle the situation with the appropriate means."
Five rockets landed in and around Hermel, a Hizbullah stronghold, on Sunday, a security source told Agence La Belle France Presse on condition of anonymity.
"Two rockets landed in the town of Hermel, in an area between the Mabarrat teaching association and the Masharii al-Qaa area, causing no casualties," the source said.
"Another three rockets have landed now on the outskirts of Hermel," he added.
It was not immediately clear whether the rockets were launched from inside Leb or from across the border in strife-torn Syria, said the source, although state-run National News Agency said they were fired from Syrian territory.
Hermel and other areas of eastern Leb, a bastion of Hizbullah, have been hit by several rocket attacks launched from Syria in recent months.
The repeated violations prompted Suleiman in June to file a memorandum to the United Nations ...an organization which on balance has done more bad than good, with the good not done well and the bad done thoroughly... and Arab League ...an organization of Arabic-speaking states with 22 member countries and four observers. The League tries to achieve Arab consensus on issues, which usually leaves them doing nothing but a bit of grimacing and mustache cursing....
The analysts quoted here are curiously single-minded...
Analysts believe the Group 5+1 should offer a new package of incentives to President Rohani's government in the course of the new round of talks, inclusive of both sides' demands and a chronological chart for both sides' expected steps to be taken, IRNA reported.
According to the IRNA correspondents in Vienna, Bern, Geneva, and Zurich, the European analysts believe the West must distance itself from its sanctions and pressure diplomacy and stop ruining the opportunities for reaching a win-win compromise. According to them, the new package of incentives should be inclusive of the most natural expectations of both sides so that both sides will know what steps they would have to take at which expected times.
It's like they all read each other's briefing papers...
The analysts reiterate that for the west, Iran's commitments to cooperate maximally with the IAEA, full transparency in Tehran's nuclear program, and guarantee not to deviate towards military purposes in the future are the matters of great significance. They believe on the other side, the Iranians expect that their right to enrich uranium in accordance with the nuclear NPT and lifting the unjustly imposed economic sanctions would be met, as key points of mutual cooperation.
Everyone agrees that international law allows the Iranians to use nuclear power for peaceful purposes, IF they submit to proper IAEA inspection and declare all their sources and stockpiles. The problem is that the Iranians don't want to be inspected and don't want to declare anything, because they want the bomb. No amount of "incentives" will change that.
They propose that the new package of incentives should be inclusive of those four demands of the two sides, while simultaneously efforts aimed at resolving the regional security conflicts, too, should be born in mind.
Zurich-based International affairs analyst, Martin Walker, voicing opposition against the imposed sanctions against Iran reiterates, "The west, and particularly the United States and the EU must have realized by now that the sanctions do not pave the path for purposeful negotiations."
They do, however, slow down the rush to the bomb...
Stuxnet was probably more effective for that.
He refers to the emerged hopes at the international scene after coming to power of President Hassan Rohani for resolving the Iranian nuclear issue and refers to some political experts viewpoints who believe the nuclear talks must go beyond the nuclear issue to include security issues as well.
Why would anyone think Rohani is going to be different than Short Round? Both take their marching orders from the Mad Mullahs, and those jokers haven't gone anywhere...
The Swiss analyst points out that there probably are negotiations between Tehran and Washington today, noting that Iran, too, like the United States, is one of the serious opponents of the Al-Qaeda terrorist group, and Washington is well aware of this fact, but the US problem in this respect is its unilateral and unlimited support for Israel in Middle East disputes.
Oh sure, Iran is an opponent of al-Qaeda -- when they aren't funding them and supplying shelter...
Walker believes in the nuclear file, too, despite the existence of differences of opinion among the different political factions, they are all agreed that Iran's natural right to take peaceful advantage of the nuclear technology should be recognized.
He believes the west will in its upcoming nuclear talks, just like the past, speak about three axes, namely the level of nuclear enrichment, the amount of the thus far enriched uranium, and providing facilities for easy access of the inspectors to Iran's entire nuclear facilities.
Another Swiss political analyst in Bern, Michael Warze, too, advises the EU and the United States to present positive proposals to the new Iranian president.
Yes, yes, we have to concede everything now...
He notes that the new Iranian President Hassan Rohani has asked for détente with the world, emphasizing, "Rohani's remarks on moderate approach and lenience are not hollow mottoes; he has thus far spoken very precisely and is after keeping his promises."
The man doesn't want détente, he wants a hudna.
Posted by: Steve White ||
08/21/2013 00:00 ||
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Hey look! They've decided on the shape of the table!
Technical preparations for a new Geneva conference on Syria were "almost complete," the UN announced Tuesday, as an aid group said that authorities in Iraqi Kurdistan had imposed a daily quota on the number of refugees crossing into the territory, dpa reported.
"The table will be roundovalsquare rectangular."
Oscar Fernandez-Taranco, the UN assistant secretary general for political affairs, told the UN Security Council that a political solution is urgently needed to end the bloodshed in Syria.
"We hope that the international community will remain committed to this (political) process and will contribute to its success, in word and in action," he said. He gave no details about the preparations.
"We're still not sure about the color of the tablecloth."
The United States, Russia and the UN hope the second Geneva conference will implement provisions reached in the first one held last year, which called for a transitional government with full executive power in Damascus. But the US and Russia, which had yet to agree on a date for the conference, remained divided over political issues in Syria, where the UN says more than 100,000 people have died in the 29-month-old civil war.
Fernandez-Taranco said the Syrian government's recent victories over the armed opposition "should not give it false confidence that it can win militarily."
"Likewise, promises of arms should not push the opposition towards different priorities or expectations other than a political solution."
"The food, however, will definitely be catered."
Posted by: Steve White ||
08/21/2013 00:00 ||
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The Champ, going to jail? Yes of course, you'll read all about it tomorrow morning. It'll be just below the fold, adjacent the article and foto of my Power Ball win.
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I quickly went to the self-licking Illinois State Police homepage to see if anything about this training was mentioned. Of course I found nothing related to the Anti-Mooslim article, but did find an interesting link entitled 'Urgent Notice to Law Enforcement and FOID Card Holders'. Appears the new Illinois concealed carry law has a rather interesting stipulation should you suffer a FOID card revocation. This form requires that you:
.... list all fi rearms within your possession at the time of revocation, indicating they have been secured/transferred in accordance
with 430 ILCS 65/9.5. If your FOID card was confiscated by the Court or Law Enforcement, provide documentation.
I have no idea what 430 ILCS 65/9.5. is, but it would appear they have conveniently made a leap from registration of concealed carry to registration and ownership. One can only wonder if FOID program suspension or termination might fall under the same parameters as revocation.
A multi-volume chronology and reference guide set detailing three years of the Mexican Drug War between 2010 and 2012.
Rantburg.com and borderlandbeat.com correspondent and author Chris Covert presents his first non-fiction work detailing
the drug and gang related violence in Mexico.
Chris gives us Mexican press dispatches of drug and gang war violence
over three years, presented in a multi volume set intended to chronicle the death, violence and mayhem which has
dominated Mexico for six years.
Rantburg was assembled from recycled algorithms in the United States of America. No
trees were destroyed in the production of this weblog. We did hurt some, though. Sorry.
Egyptian Nobel Peace Prize winner Mohammed ElBaradei is to face trial on September 19 over his resignation as vice president after a deadly crackdown on the Muslim Brotherhood, state-run newspaper Al-Ahram reported online on Tuesday, dpa reported.
