Hat tip - the Blogfodder
It is no longer cool to have a beard.
Islamist president Mohamed Morsi is out. His opponents, a military-backed interim government of secularists, are in. And if you've got a beard -- that most conspicuous symbol of Islamism in post-Arab Spring Egypt -- you're likely to get taunted on the metro, harassed in the souk and possibly even assaulted, according to conservative Muslims
"The treatment has changed for the worse," said Osama Ibrahim, an imam at a Cairo mosque that caters to hard-line Islamists. Here's a thought, Mr. Imam - quit "catering" to islamonazis. Hey, hey, hey! That's his meal ticket you're threatening!
[L]ocal men stopped the couple's car and barred them from entering a marketplace, Ibrahim said, because of the way they were dressed.
"You have to understand: The minibuses don't even stop for me anymore," he said. As Instapundit says, "Heh."
Posted by: Barbara ||
08/04/2013
10:59 ||
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I put this in Non-WOT, but didn't we used to have a "WOT background" category?
Fixed -- AoS at 1100 CT
Posted by: Barbara ||
08/04/2013 11:11
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because of the way they were dressed.
Idiot or deliberately obtuse?
This kinda crap always twists my knickers. Your dress is NOT the cause of the treatment it is what your choice in dress says about your probable character/morals/attitudes/actions that cause the treatment you receive.
#3
And if you've got a beard -- that most conspicuous symbol of Islamism in post-Arab Spring Egypt -- you're likely to get taunted on the metro, harassed in the souk and possibly even assaulted
#4
a beard -- that most conspicuous symbol of Islamism in post-Arab Spring Egypt
Oh no, that would be the prayer bump, which always makes me worry about the cumulative effect of small brain concussions. And a Turkish-German businessman has the answer to that: orthopedic prayer rugs.
At first sight, the rug looks like other prayer mats, but it is designed with special cushioning for under the knees, feet and forehead, said Adnan Pirisan, 50, who himself suffered from painful joints.
Apart from saying the padding is a special kind of foam that "doesn't get damaged", he declined during a telephone interview with Agence France Presse to reveal its composition. "Production secret," he said.
In his first interview since the overthrow of President Mohamed Morsi last month, Egypt's commanding general sharply criticized the U.S. response, accusing the Obama administration of disregarding the Egyptian popular will and of providing insufficient support amid threats of a civil war.
"You left the Egyptians. You turned your back on the Egyptians, and they won't forget that," said an indignant Gen. Abdel Fatah al-Sissi, speaking of the U.S. government. "Now you want to continue turning your backs on Egyptians?" If you'd been paying attention, General, you'd have seen that's how Champ treats his friends.
In Cairo's Defense Ministry on Thursday, he provided his most detailed explanation yet of why he decided to oust Morsi, the nation's first thugocratically democratically elected president. Sissi also expressed deep disappointment that the United States has not been more eager to embrace his rationale.
Sissi's comments are a measure of just how thoroughly the Obama administration has alienated both sides in a profoundly polarized and unsettled Egypt, all while trying to remain neutral. Morsi's supporters in the Muslim Brotherhood regularly accuse the United States of acquiescing to a military coup. I'm pretty sure that disturbs the sleep of The One, since the Brotherhood liked to defecate on the U.S.
Sissi spoke on the same day that Secretary of State John F. Kerry made the administration's most supportive comments to date, saying that Egypt's army was "restoring democracy." Careful, Jahwn, there's still room under the bus!
U.S. officials have cautioned Sissi and other generals to show restraint in their dealings with protesters, at least 140 of whom have been killed in clashes with security forces. Baby ducks and innocent fluffy bunnies, right, WaPo?
The Obama administration has also encouraged the military to reconcile with the Muslim Brotherhood. That prospect appears distant, with authorities promising a fresh crackdown on Islamist protests and Morsi continuing to be detained in an undisclosed location, unable to communicate with even his family.
Egypt's commanding general suggested that if the United States wants to avoid further bloodshed in Egypt, it should persuade the Muslim Brotherhood to back down from the Cairo sit-ins it has maintained since July 3. That'd be a strong move, which makes it unlikely.
"The U.S. administration has a lot of leverage and influence with the Muslim Brotherhood, and I'd really like the U.S. administration to use this leverage with them to resolve the conflict," Sissi said.
One of Morsi's first major acts in office was to sweep away an older generation of military leaders and appoint Sissi to command the country's armed forces. Many observers speculated that Morsi had selected Sissi because he was more sympathetic to the Brotherhood, which had been oppressed by generations of military-backed leaders.
But in the interview, Sissi was unsparing in his criticism of the group, saying that Brotherhood members are more devoted to their Islamist beliefs than they are to Egypt. Now there's a revelation!
"The idea that gathers them together is not nationalism, it's not patriotism, it is not a sense of a country," he said. Sissi said he had done all he could during the president's year in office to help him succeed. Morsi, he said, had repeatedly failed to heed the general's advice.
Meanwhile, the economy was badly deteriorating, and law and order had begun to break down. Millions of Egyptians took to the streets on June 30, the anniversary of Morsi's inauguration, to demand the end of his rule.
"I expected if we didn't intervene, it would have turned into a civil war," he said. "The most important achievement in my life is to overcome this circumstance, [to ensure] that we live peacefully, to go on with our road map and to be able to conduct the coming elections without shedding one drop of Egyptian blood," he said, before adding, "When the people love you, this is the most important thing for me."
Posted by: Bobby ||
08/04/2013
09:06 ||
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"Sissi: The dilemma between the former president and the people originated from [the Muslim Brotherhoods] concept of the state, the ideology that they adopted for building a country, which is based on restoring the Islamic religious empire."
As usual, the actual interview is more interesting than the Post's interpretations and editorializing.
[AnNahar] Rebels battling Syrian Hereditary President-for-Life Bashir Pencilneck al-Assad Supressor of the Damascenes... 's regime captured an arms and ammunition dump in the Qalamun area near Damascus early on Saturday, a watchdog said.
In the north, fighting between Kurds and jihadists raged as the main opposition National Coalition called on gangs there to "exercise restraint."
The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said several groups, including the jihadist al-Nusra Front, were behind the capture of the depot of anti-tank weapons and rockets.
"Liwa al-Islam, al-Nusra Front, al-Tawhid battalion, the Maghaweer (rebel commando force) and the Qalamun Martyrs' battalion... captured an ammunition depot near the village of Qaldun in the Qalamun area" northeast of the capital, the Britannia-based Observatory said.
They seized "anti-tank weapons and ground-to-ground Grad missiles, as well as a variety of other ammunition, after festivities overnight from Friday to Saturday," it said.
Meanwhile the state news agency SANA reported that the bullet-riddled bodies of local official Ahmed Marmar and two other men were found near the Qalamun hospital.
Marmar was a member of the a local council and had been kidnapped last week along with the other two men from Qalamun, near the Lebanese border.
Using the regime's term for rebels, SANA accused "snuffies of kidnapping the three men and shooting them dead."
In Damascus itself, fighting was reported in the flashpoint southern belt, as loyalist forces pressed a months-long bid to dislodge rebels from the city's outskirts.
Elsewhere, the army shelled rebel-held areas of the central city of Homs, focusing on the neighborhoods of Juret al-Shiyah and Qussour, said the Observatory.
After the rebels lost the Khaldiyeh district this week, the army has pushed on with its bid to dislodge them completely from Syria's third city.
In the northern province of Hasakeh, jihadists and Kurds clashed two weeks after the expulsion of radical Islamists from the strategic Kurdish town of Ras al-Ain, opening up a new front.
Syria's main opposition group called on warring parties in the north to "exercise restraint... to ensure the safety of civilians and secure the release of detainees."
Two Islamist Lebanese-Swedish brothers who left their Scandinavian home for Leb, have died fighting alongside Syrian rebels, their cousin and a local holy man said on Saturday.
Hassan and Moatasem Deeb "were killed Friday in a rebel assault on the Abu Zeid army checkpoint near Qalaat al-Hosn" in Homs province, Sheikh Mohammed Ibrahim told Agence La Belle France Presse.
Their deaths have devastated their parents, who had already lost a third son Rabih to sectarian fighting in Tripoli ...a confusing city, one end of which is located in Lebanon and the other end of which is the capital of Libya. Its chief distinction is being mentioned in the Marine Hymn... last year.
Sheikh Mohammed said Moatasem, 18, went kaboom! in a suicide boom-mobile at the checkpoint, and Hassan, 21, died in the assault that followed.
The youths apparently did not die in vain, as the assault on the checkpoint succeeded, said the holy man.
Cousin Jihad Deeb said that, although the youths had long been "deeply religious," the news of their deaths hit the family hard.
While still in Sweden just a year ago, Hassan had started his university studies. And had he stayed in Scandinavia, Moatasem would have started his degree this year.
"But they left everything and traveled back to Mankoubin, where their parents have been living for two years now," said Jihad.
Established to host families from Tripoli during a 1955 flood, Mankoubin later became home to people too poor to afford life in the heart of the northern port city.
Today, Mankoubin is an impoverished area that frequently gets dragged into sectarian festivities pitting Sunnis from the Bab al-Tabbaneh quarter and Alawites from neighboring Jabal Mohsen.
Tripoli's sectarian festivities erupt frequently, and their intensity has grown as a consequence of the war raging in neighboring Syria.
Sectarian tensions in Tripoli see Sunnis generally supporting Syria's rebels and Alawites, the Shiite spinoff group to which Bashir al-Assad belongs, backing the Syrian president's regime.
Eighteen months ago, Moatasem and Hassan's brother Rabih was killed fighting in one of those festivities.
The commitment to jihadist activities among family members goes further.
In 2007, one of the youths' uncles was killed fighting alongside Islamists in a fierce battle against the Lebanese army in the Paleostinian camp of Nahr al-Bared.
Another uncle is in jail in Germany over ties to al-Qaeda.
Once they returned to Mankoubin from Sweden, where they had lived for several years, the young men "decided to cross the border and join Jund al-Sham", said the sheikh, who stressed that no one knew of their plans.
Jund al-Sham is an independent jihadist group set up in 2012 and led by Lebanese radicals.
"Moatasem traveled first. He went to Qalaat al-Hosn eight months ago. Hassan joined him two months later," Ibrahim added.
Jihad Deeb said "they had no work, and they lived in a poor area that has no state support. Most of us are not radicals, but you see many al-Qaeda flags in Mankoubin."
Not actual radicals, merely terrorist supporters. Not much different than football (soccer) yobs, if you look at it right.
Asked why he believed his cousins joined the rebels, he added: "Hassan and Moatasem really believed that Sunnis must fight there.
"But their father and mother are devastated. The father is near emotional collapse. And you can imagine how their mother feels; she has lost three sons."
Not to mention either two brothers, two brothers-in-law, or one of each. Unless the "uncles" are actually cousins, in which case the possible permutations expand considerably.
The family was due to receive condolences from guests on Saturday, who would "congratulate" them for their sons' "martyrdom" in Syria, said Ibrahim.
The neighborhood is decorated with Al Qaeda flags. Of course they "will".
For a map, click here. For a map of Tamaulipas state, click here
A total of five unidentified individuals have been killed and another nine have been wounded in fighting in Reynosa, Tamaulipas on Saturday, according to English and Spanish language news reports.
According to a news report which appeared on the website of ValleyCentral.com, the gun battles began near the intersection of Anzalduas Canal and Calle Bravo just before dawn between a Mexican military units and armed suspects.
A separate news report which appeared on the website of El Sol de Zacatecas news daily said that Tamaulipas' Procuraduria General de Justicia del Estatdo (PGJE), or attorney general had little information about the shootout other than at least one of the dead was a Mexican soldier.
Excelsior news daily said the shootout took place near the intersection of Bulevar Hidalgo and Heron Ramirez. According to the report, damage from the shootout included police vehicles and business buildings nearby. A photo which appeared in the news report showed damage to a burning police vehicle. El Sol de Zacatcas mentions joint patrols, which are mixed Mexican Army and state police patrols, were involved in the shootout.
According to a separate account which appeared in Periodico AM, several more unofficially confirmed shootouts have taken place in northern Tamaulipas state Saturday.
Near the village of Los Guerra between Miguel Aleman and Ciudad Mier, a Mexican Army detachment exchanged gunfire with armed suspects later Saturday morning. Lives were lost but no official public account has been released.
At 0800 hrs on a road near Matamoros three armed suspects were killed in a shootout with Mexican Army troops. Again no official confirmation of the incident has been released through government sources.
Additionally, gunfire was reported in neighborhoods of Las Cumbres and Obrera in Reynosa.
Chris Covert writes Mexican Drug War and national political news for Rantburg.com and BorderlandBeat.com.
#1
The map link doesn't show Reynosa. Reynosa is on the south bank of the Rio Grande across from McAllen, Texas, and about 60 miles WNW of Matamoros on the route to Nuevo Laredo. How's that new drug war policy going el Presidente?
[AnNahar] Gunmen rubbed out four coppers on a patrol in the southern Pak port city of Bloody Karachi ...formerly the capital of Pakistain, now merely its most important port and financial center. It is among the largest cities in the world, with a population of 18 million, most of whom hate each other and many of whom are armed and dangerous... Saturday, police said.
The coppers were killed at a bridge linking Shah Faisal colony to the low-income Korangi neighbourhood of Karachi.
"At least four coppers were rubbed out by unknown gunnies," police front man Imran Shaukat told AFP.
Nobody immediately grabbed credit for the killings and the motive behind them was unclear, he said, adding that police were investigating.
So it could be the Pakistani Taliban, inter-ethnic gangsters, or narcos. Lucky Karachi to have so have so many options.
Karachi, a city of 18 million people, contributes 42 percent of Pakistain's GDP but is rife with murder and kidnappings and has been plagued for years by ethnic, sectarian and political violence.
Oh, yes, the political violence. I forgot about that. Sorry.
Bahrain police have confiscated weapons and ammunition from a warehouse in Bilad Al Qadeem.
The spokesperson of the Capital Governorate Police said the warehouse was discovered on Friday morning by the police while patrolling the area. He said that police forces confiscated weapons and tools used in committing 'terrorist' acts. He pointed out that the seized items included two locally-made bombs, a mock bomb, eight locally made rifles with 20 bullets, three locally made 'gas weapons,' and four shots for them, a number of Molotov cocktails ready to be used ( about 150), in addition to a number of iron skewers.
He said the required legal measures had been taken, and the Public Prosecution was informed of the incident, highlighting that investigation was intensified to determine the identity of those involved in the terrorist act.
The warehouse wasn't the first one to be discovered by the police as most of the found ones were located in old houses in disturbed areas in Bahrain. Some of the weapons were hidden under the ground.
Posted by: Steve White ||
08/04/2013
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[Ynet] Three suicide kaboomers killed at least nine civilians, most of them children, in a botched attack Saturday on the Indian consulate in an eastern Afghan city near the border with Pakistain, security officials said.
Police fired on the hard boyz as they approached a checkpoint near the consulate in Jalalabad, prompting one of them to set off their explosives-laden car, said Masum Khan Hashimi, the deputy police chief of Nangarhar The unfortunate Afghan province located adjacent to Mohmand, Kurram, and Khyber Agencies. The capital is Jalalabad. The province was the fief of Younus Khalis after the Soviets departed and one of his sons is the current provincial Taliban commander. Nangarhar is Haqqani country.. province. The blast killed nine bystanders, and maimed another 24 people including a policeman. All three attackers also died.
[AnNahar] A top Iraqi army officer said he survived a bombing on Saturday that killed nine soldiers during an operation against al-Qaeda Death Eaters in Diyala province north of Storied Baghdad ...located along the Tigris River, founded in the 8th century, home of the Abbasid Caliphate... "I was targeted directly," Staff Lieutenant General Abdulamir al-Zaidi told Agence La Belle France Presse by telephone.
The blast, which struck some 50 meters (yards) along the road from where Zaidi was walking, also maimed 11 soldiers, he said.
"This area is a stronghold for al-Qaeda," Zaidi said of where the attack took place, 30 kilometers (18 miles) north of the city of Baquba.
The general said on July 28 that security forces had launched a major operation in Diyala, Salaheddin and Kirkuk provinces aimed at tracking down those behind bombings and liquidations during the Mohammedan holy month of Ramadan.
All three provinces have been hit by frequent attacks in recent weeks, including Baquba and surrounding areas.
Iraq is witnessing its deadliest violence since 2008, when it was emerging from a prolonged and bloody sectarian conflict between Sunni and Shiite Mohammedans.
Experts point to widespread discontent among Iraq's Sunni Arab minority, which the Shiite-led government has failed to address, as the major cause of the spike in unrest this year.
There's Islam's bloody border, and then there's Greater Arabia's bloody border.
[AnNahar] A new outbreak of tribal violence in Sudan's Darfur region has killed nine people, official media said on Saturday, in fighting that has added to worsening insecurity in the region.
The deaths occurred during two days of unrest involving Arabs and the non-Arab Fur tribe in Kebkabiya, North Darfur, the SUNA news agency reported.
"Now the situation is stable and under control," SUNA quoted Kebkabiya Commissioner Adam Mohammed Adam Saleh, the senior district official, as saying.
An initial clash killed three people and then spread.
"There was shooting in the Kebkabiya town market," he said.
The area is about 140 kilometers (87 miles) west of El Fasher, the North Darfur state capital.
Members of the Fur, who gave their name to Darfur (Land of the Fur), began a rebellion in the region 10 years ago, along with other non-Arabs. They were angered at what they saw as the domination of Sudan's power and wealth by Arab elites.
In response, government-backed Janjaweed militia shocked the world with atrocities against the people, mostly blacks.
Now the dynamics of the conflict have changed as the government can no longer control its former Arab tribal allies, observers say.
Inter-ethnic fighting -- much of it Arab against Arab -- has been the major source of violence this year in Darfur, where an estimated 300,000 people were displaced in the first five months alone, the international peacekeeping mission to the region has said.
[AnNahar] Gunmen rubbed out a woman and her two daughters in Iraq Saturday and a roadside kaboom killed a man and his son as 10 died in other attacks, officials said.
Iraq is witnessing its deadliest violence since 2008, when it was emerging from a prolonged and bloody sectarian conflict between Sunni and Shiite Musselmens.
The woman and her two adult daughters were killed in their home near Baquba, north of the Iraqi capital.
A Sahwa anti-al-Qaeda militiaman said the women may have been informants for the security forces.
Gunmen also killed two brothers who were former Sahwa members and another person in two attacks near Baquba, where a bomb in the city killed one person and maimed five.
Sunni snuffies consider Sahwa militiamen, who joined forces with the United States from late 2006, helping to turn the tide of the war, to be traitors and frequently attack them.
In Tikrit, also north of Storied Baghdad ...located along the Tigris River, founded in the 8th century, home of the Abbasid Caliphate... , a roadside kabooming killed a man and his 11-year-old son as they walked in the city center.
Gunmen also killed a judge's two bodyguards in the northern province of Nineveh, and snuffies attacked a police checkpoint with automatic weapons, killing a policeman.
The judge was not with the guards when they were killed.
An kaboom near a market in Storied Baghdad and another on a main road killed three people and maimed 10.
Militants frequently plant bombs in public areas in an attempt to sow fear and reduce confidence in the government.
Security forces are also often targeted.
Violence has increased markedly this year, especially since an April 23 security operation at a Sunni anti-government protest site that sparked festivities in which dozens died.
Protests that erupted in Sunni-majority areas in late 2012 are ongoing amid widespread discontent among Sunnis who accuse the Shiite-led government of marginalizing them.
Experts say Sunni anger is the main cause of the spike in violence this year.
[Business Insider] One thing that has become clear as the Edward Snowdenski saga unfolds is that WikiLeaks and Russia have both been integral to the No Such Agency leaker's arrival and extended stay in Moscow.
The Kremlin and the renegade publisher haven't overtly coordinated moves in regards to Snowdenski, but they certainly haven't been working against each other. And the two had a shared history before Snowdenski arrived in Moscow.
Here are a few notable details from a tentative timeline of Edward Snowden and his associates created by former senior U.S. intelligence analyst Joshua Foust:
November 2, 2010: An official at the Center for Information Security of the FSB, Russia's secret police, told the independent Russian news website LifeNews "It's essential to remember that given the will and the relevant orders, [WikiLeaks] can be made inaccessible forever."
December, 2010: Israel Shamir, a long-standing associate of Wikileaks traveled to Belarus, a close ally of Russia, in December with a cache of Wikileaks files. Belarussian authorities published the cables and cracked down, harshly, on pro-democracy activists.
April 17, 2012: Government-funded Russian TV station RT gives [WikiLeaks founder] Julian Assange his own talk show. They have Assange, we have 'The View'.
June 23, 2013: Izvestia, a state-owned Russian newspaper, writes that the Kremlin and its intelligence services collaborated with Wikileaks to help Snowden escape from Hong Kong (Wikileaks did not mention any official involvement in Snowdenski's departure from Hong Kong in their press statements).
Ever since the 30-year-old ex-Booz Allen contractor got on a flight from Hong Kong to Moscow, Russia and WikiLeaks have been working parallel to each other. I thought that was a given.
When informed of this, President Obama said, "Tell him to call on my grandpop's friend Vasili. He's a hoot!"
On June 23, after the U.S. voided Snowdenski's passport while he was in Hong Kong, WikiLeaks tweeted that the organization "assisted Mr. Snowdenski's political asylum in a democratic country, travel papers ans [sic] safe exit from Hong Kong."
As an aside, I guess the Wikileakers aren't mad at Mr. Assange anymore.
That was followed by the update that "Mr. Snowdenski is currently over Russian airspace accompanied by WikiLeaks legal advisors."
It turned out that Assange convinced Ecuador's consul in London to provide a travel document requesting that authorities allow Snowden to travel to Ecuador "for the purpose of political asylum." The country's president subsequently said the document was "completely invalid."
When Snowdenski arrived in Moscow with void travel papers, all signs suggest that Russia's domestic intelligence service (i.e. FSB) took control of him. That would certainly be a safe assumption.
That day a radio host in Moscow "saw about 20 Russian officials, supposedly FSB greeters agents, in suits, crowding around somebody in a restricted area of the airport," according to Anna Nemtsova of Foreign Policy.
WikiLeaks, meanwhile, insisted that Snowden was "not being 'debriefed' by the FSB."
"They're teaching him to properly appreciate Russian tea. Would you care for a cup?"
Nevertheless, Snowdenski's FSB-linked Moscow lawyer, Colonel Anatoly Kucherena, has been speaking for Snowden ever since Snowden accepted all offers for support and asylum on July 12.
On July 11 WikiLeaks had said that Snowdenski and it had "made sure that he cannot be meaningfully coersed [sic] by either the US or its rivals," even though that cannot be guaranteed when Russian intelligence is in play.
On Thursday a smiling Colonel Kucherena announced that Russia has granted Snowden temporary asylum -- giving him "the same rights and freedoms possessed by [Russian] citizens" -- and led him to a car that would take him to a "secure location." This is your new safe house, these are your new minders.
"And here is your voter registration i.d. Don't forget to pull the lever for Putin when the time comes."
#5
Hey, is it possible that Snowden is a CIA mole? I mean, he drops all that information and then conveniently winds up in Moscow? Nah, I think the KGB FSB would be wasting its time looking into that, and I'm sorry I started the rumor.
Posted by: Matt ||
08/04/2013 13:04
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Possible, but unlikely. His actions, whereabouts, and communications will be under constant surveillance. His profile is far too high. Much easier to recruit one their well placed [Russian or former Soviet Satellite] malcontents and collect reporting and periodic updates over time.
#8
Conspiracies not needed. SNowden was a tech, not a spy. And he walked the info out the door with the "right intent" in his own mind, due to the possibly unconstitutional aspects of the program he was revealing.
Problem is, its not like in the moves - and he's simply not field savvy nor anything but book smart. He's now being played by people far more clever than he is, and with far different motives than he likely had. Snowden is now oficially just another chump, the poor bastard.
Too bad we don't have a free press here in the US he thought he could trust - but if you want to be a whistleblower these days, you know that handing incendiary stuff over to an "investigative" reporter for NBC/CBS, the NY Times or WaPo is like living in the Soviet Union and giving it to a Pravda reporter - even if the reporter is straight up his editors are clearly in the pocket of the government regime in power.
[AnNahar] Libyan security forces on Saturday nabbed You have the right to remain silent... two men for firing at a military patrol in Benghazi, a commander in Libya's special forces told Agence La Belle France Presse.
"Two individuals on board a vehicle opened fire on Saturday on a special forces unit stationed in Benghazi city center," Colonel Wanis Boukhamada said.
After a short chase, the attackers were arrested and taken to special forces' headquarters for questioning, he added.
"The detainees could lead to the identification of perpetrators of the attacks and killings in the city of Benghazi in recent days," Boukhamada said.
Overnight, a police brass hat was seriously maimed in a kaboom in Benghazi, a security official told AFP on Saturday. The blast was the latest in a string of attacks on members of the security forces and judiciary in eastern Libya.
"Colonel Faouzi al-Oujli was critically injured when an bomb placed in his car went off," said the city's security front man, Colonel Mohamed al-Hijazi.
He said the officer had been returning to Benghazi from the southern city of Sabha to visit his family when the blast happened.
"The same method was used as in other attacks on members of the security forces -- a home-made bomb planted in the car," Hijazi said. "These attacks are well-planned and systematic, and show that police and army officers are under surveillance."
On Wednesday, an army colonel was rubbed out in the eastern town of Derna, while another was seriously maimed in a second attack in Benghazi.
Since the fall of strongman Muammar Qadaffy ...who single-handedly turned a moderately prosperous kingdom into a dictator's fantasyland and was then murdered by his indignant subjects 42 years later... in 2011, the east has seen a wave of attacks against members of the military and police and judges who served under the former regime.
Benghazi was the cradle of the uprising two years ago, and attacks there are generally blamed on radical Islamists who have also targeted Western interests.
Last September 11, U.S. ambassador to Libya Chris Stevens and three other Americans were killed in an attack on Washington's consulate in Benghazi.
And on June 5, an attempt was made to kill Jean Dufriche, La Belle France's honorary consul in the city.
On Friday, five people were maimed when an bomb detonated outside a cop shoppe in the Sidi Hassan district of Benghazi, Hijazi said.
[ANNARBOR] Video footage captured by a Colorado Springs, Colorado restaurant is making the rounds and is equally interesting to watch.
Twice in the last week, a large bear has lumbered to the back of a popular German restaurant with a penchant for authentic weiner schnitzel, and on both occasions, he was caught on tape. He's given dumpster driving -- err, diving -- a whole new meaning.
"He just grabbed right onto it," said Dieter Schnakenberg, manages Edelweiss.
"There's just something about a bear taking a trash dumpster away."
The video cameras were installed not long so, as the restaurant had been the target of graffiti.
Little did anyone know that mischief of this kind would be captured.
"He must like our food. He does take out," mused Helga Schnakenberg, co-owner of the family-run eatery.
"It looks like he's using a shopping cart."
After the second time, it was decided that locking the 500-pound dumpster to the fence would be a wise idea to perhaps dissuade the uninvited guest from continuing his bear buffet.
Posted by: Fred ||
08/04/2013
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LOL! The bear even checked what was inside before deciding to abscond with it!
Leave the cameras rolling, though. That bear may come back with a can of spray paint tomorrow.
[Dawn] At least eight people, including five coppers, were killed in different incidents of violence in Bloody Karachi ...formerly the capital of Pakistain, now merely its most important port and financial center. It is among the largest cities in the world, with a population of 18 million, most of whom hate each other and many of whom are armed and dangerous....
Unknown cycle of violence-riding gunnies opened fire targeting a police mobile deployed for duty at the bridge linking Shah Faisal colony area of the city with the Korangi Industrial Area.
Three coppers were killed on the spot whereas another law enforcer succumbed to his wounds while under going treatment at a hospital, according to rescue officials.
All victims were shifted to the Jinnah Hospital.
Senior police officer Tahir Naveed said Sherlocks found the coppers's bodies inside their vehicle, which had been sprayed with pistol and rifle bullets.
Naveed said the overnight attack seemed intended to demoralise the police forces.
Governor Sindh Dr Ishratul Ibad Khan condemned the incident and sought a report on it from the Inspector General of Sindh Police within 48 hours.
Moreover, another policeman was killed in a shooting incident in Karachi's Manghopir area.
Similarly three people bit the dust in separate incidents of violence which occurred in the city's Orangi Town area, on the Abul Hassan Isfahani road and in Malir's Memon Goth.
Karachi is home to multiple conflicts that frequently turn violent, including gang wars and ethnic and political rivalries. Militants are said to use the city as a hiding place and a source of funds obtained through bank heists, extortion and kidnapping for ransom.
Posted by: Fred ||
08/04/2013
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The peace of Ramadan strikes again. Also, Muslims don't kill other Muslims.
[Ynet] A senior Egyptian official said that during the last month the Egyptian army has placed in durance vile Drop the gat, Rocky, or you're a dead 'un! 90 suspected terrorist in the Sinai Peninsula, of which seven are Paleostinians. According to him, as part of the operation to cleanse Sinai of terrorist, some 60 armed forces of Evil were killed, of which 30 were Paleostinians.
The official further noted that a 300 ton container of diesel fuel intended for Gazoo was also destroyed during the operation.
#3
Uhm, if you are going to try this on a late model 1911 be aware that the tolerances can be tight and the springs kind of strong. The struggle to twist the barrel bushing into the right position can lead to the royal order of the red spot on your fore head when the recoil spring plunger exits at a high velocity. Also it might be a good idea to have the frame in a large plastic bag because the spring for the thumb safety plunger can launch the plunger and the spring across the room. Also it might be a good idea to "kink" that spring in the middle to prevent in the field launches. Doing this on the floor with a large white beach towel is is also recommended the first couple of times and also make sure pets, small children, and laughing wives are not present. Do not ask me how I know.
#5
What I like most about this stuff is that, after dis- and re-assemblys of enough firearms, I have sufficient pieces left-over to build me a free one...!
#14
Its kind of like the operating spring for the M-60. The one that everyone seems to want to take out while sitting on the floor with their legs spread. Lucky for me, the fellow showing us how to dissemble the M-60 did a warning demonstration before anyone attempted to impale sensitive anatomy parts.
Though failure doesn't sound as bad when you forget the reason for the term "M1 Thumb"
They had to. There weren't any left of the old lot, who are somehow all on trial for something or other.
[AnNahar] Turkey's top military council on Saturday appointed new commanders in what observers said was further evidence that the government now controlled the once all-powerful army.
The Supreme Military Council chaired by Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan decided on the forced retirement of gendarmerie force commander General Bekir Kalyoncu, who had been expected to become land forces commander.
Local media reported that Erdogan blocked the promotion because Kalyoncu's name often cropped up in the trial of alleged coup plotters.
Kalyoncu's exit is considered the latest blow to Turkey's beleaguered officer corps who are the target of a series of probes launched in recent years into past military interventions and coup plots.
General Hulusi Akar was promoted to the helm of the land forces and is expected to replace current chief of staff General Necdet Ozel in 2015.
Vice-Admiral Bulent Bostanoglu was appointed as the chief of the navy and Lieutenant General Akin Ozturk as the head of the air force.
Since coming to power in 2002, Erdogan's government has reined in the powerful military, once the self-appointed guardians of the secular state who carried out four coups over half a century.
In September, more than 300 hundred active and retired army officers, including three former generals, received prison sentences of up to 20 years over a 2003 military exercise alleged to have been an undercover coup plot.
And a Turkish court is due to deliver its verdict on Monday in a separate trial of 275 people including a former army chief accused of plotting to overthrow Erdogan's government.
Guess he won't be return to his former profession... Look for a really well organized prison break once the last one has been sentenced.
[AnNahar] Egypt's army chief General Abdel Fattah al-Sisi has lashed out at the United States, urging Washington to do more to pressure the Moslem Brüderbund to end its rallies.
In a rare interview with the Washington Post, the commander -- who led the military coup that ousted Islamist president Mohamed Morsi one month ago -- warned of police action to disperse such protests.
The United States provides $1.5 billion in mostly military aid to Cairo every year, but al-Sisi effectively accused President Barack Obama Why can't I just eat my waffle?... 's administration of averting its gaze from Egypt.
"You left the Egyptians, you turned your back on the Egyptians and they won't forget that. Now you want to continue turning your backs on Egyptians?" Sisi said, according to excerpts of the Thursday interview published on Saturday.
"The U.S. administration has a lot (of) leverage and influence with the Moslem Brüderbund and I'd really like the U.S. administration to use this leverage with them to resolve the conflict," he said.
When asked whether security forces would forcibly disperse the Brotherhood's protest camps, Sisi said the task would not fall to the army.
"Whoever will clean these squares or resolve these sit-ins will not be the military. There is a civil police and they are assigned to these duties," he said.
"On the 26th of (July), more than 30 million people went out onto the streets to give me support. These people are waiting for me to do something."
More than 250 people have been killed since Morsi's overthrow, as festivities have broken out around two massive protest camps set up by his supporters.
The United States has been trying to head off a further escalation as Egypt's interim government has warned the protesters to disperse or face consequences.
Sisi has meanwhile emerged as a hero among Morsi opponents, his face now staring down from the front pages of newspapers and street posters.
When asked whether he would seek the presidency, Sisi gave an enigmatic response.
"I want to say that the most important achievement in my life is to overcome this circumstance, (to ensure) that we live peacefully, to go on with our road map and to be able to conduct the coming elections without shedding one drop of Egyptian blood," he said.
When pressed on the question, he replied: "You just can't believe that there are people who don't aspire for authority."
"It's the hopes of the people that is ours. And when the people love you - this is the most important thing for me," he said.
The army intervened amid massive protests against Morsi, the country's first democratically elected leader, who won elections held a year after the 2011 overthrow of Hosni Mubarak ...The former President-for-Life of Egypt, dumped by popular demand in early 2011... , a former air force commander who ruled Egypt for three decades.
Sisi defended the decision to topple Morsi.
"I expected if we didn't intervene, it would have turned into a civil war. Four months before he left, I told Morsi the same thing," he told the Post.
"What I want you to know and I want the American reader also to know is that this is a free people who rebelled against an unjust political rule, and this free people needs your support."
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[NY Times] Iran's new president, Hassan Rouhani, vowed Saturday to work with the outside world to lift the "oppressive sanctions" crippling the Iranian economy, as he received the official backing of Ayatollah Ali Khamenei at a ceremony marking the start of his presidential term.
In an acknowledgment of the growing toll that international economic restrictions connected to Iran's nuclear program are having on the population, both Mr. Rouhani and Ayatollah Khamenei made the economy a major theme of their remarks.
"People called for change and improvement in their living standards, they want to live better," Mr. Rouhani said.
But he and the ayatollah offered somewhat different solutions. Whereas Mr. Rouhani said that interactions with the world, meaning talks with Europe and potentially the United States, were a way out of the crisis, Ayatollah Khamenei, who as supreme leader has final word on all important issues, expressed pessimism that such overtures would yield fruit. "Some of our enemies do not speak with our language of wisdom," he said, urging self-sufficiency.
As Mr. Rouhani takes his public oath of office on Sunday, Iran's growing economic crisis sits atop his agenda. Sanctions have slashed oil exports and limited Iran's ability to transfer money from abroad. The shortage has been aggravated by the profligate spending that is a legacy of the departing government of Mahmoud Short Round Ahmadinejad.
During most of Mr. Ahmadinejad's two terms, Iran enjoyed an oil windfall, with a flow of dollars and euros that fueled huge imports on goods ranging from ice cream to Porsches.
But now Mr. Rouhani's aides describe Iran's economic situation as the worst in decades. Many blame what they call Mr. Ahmadinejad's erratic economic policies, punctuated by slashed subsidies and unbridled inflation.
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#1
despite the fact that Rouhani is a lacky for the Mullocracy, on economic matters I would actually trust Rouhani before I would trust Obama
Posted by: lord garth ||
08/04/2013 0:10
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#2
But now Mr. Rouhani's aides describe Iran's economic situation as the worst in decades. Many blame what they call Mr. Ahmadinejad's erratic economic policies, punctuated by slashed subsidies and unbridled inflation.
Blaming the last guy still appears to be a common theme.
#4
"People called for change and improvement in their living standards, they want to live better" would be a tad more accurate.
Mr. Rouhani doesn't have much time to produce. Despite the talk decrying Mr. Ahmadinejad's "profligate spending", I suspect there will be a boost in subsidies, some "helicoptering", plus another round of overtures to China.
[BBC.CO.UK] The British embassy in Yemen is to shut temporarily and several other embassies have been told to be vigilant after the US issued a terrorism warning. The embassy in Sana'a will be closed on Sunday and Monday, as will the embassies of La Belle France and Germany.
The US reportedly intercepted al-Qaeda messages and will shut at least 21 embassies and consulates on Sunday.
Interpol issued a separate global security alert, citing jail breaks linked to al-Qaeda in nine countries. The international policing organization said "hundreds of terrorists" had been freed during breakouts in countries including Iraq, Libya and Pakistain in the past month.
Interpol said al-Qaeda was suspected of "involvement in several of the breakouts" and asked its 190 member states to help "determine whether any of these recent events are co-ordinated or linked".
The British embassy in Yemen had already been operating with a reduced staff "due to increased security concerns".
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[ABCNEWS.GO] Sen. Lindsey Graham ... the endangered South Carolina RINO... , R-S.C., is getting another challenge from the right.
Nancy Mace, the first woman to graduate from the military college The Citadel, will announce her candidacy Saturday in her hometown of Goose Creek, S.C.
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#1
Money in the bank? Establishment? Complaisant? Good Old BOy network? Challengers unlikeley to succeed according to press "experts" (aka concern trolls)? Opposition is Tea Party?
Sounds like just the guys that Rand Paul, Mike Lee and Ted Cruz managed to beat.
I just hope SC can come up with a Rand Paul, Mike Lee or Ted Cruz do beat little lord fauntleroy. I'd even settle for a Rubio if thats all they have, considering that Rubio has only gone off the rails once. so far. Citadel Grad hmm... I wonder if her politics are as solidly conservative as most Citadel grads I have served with long time ago.
#2
I had the same thought regarding politics OS. Strange, we so seldom here of cadet scandal at the Citadel or VMI when compared to that school with the mule mascot. Must be the waters.
#4
here is hoping ghramnesty is sent packing. bet dollars to doughnuts that if he loses the primary, he runs as independent and the dems throw their support to him a-la Murkowski. :(
Posted by: abu do you love ||
08/04/2013 5:21
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#5
I wonder how Ms. Graham does without McStain to lead her around?
GAROWE, Somalia -- The president of Somalias Puntland government Abdirahman Mohamed Farole has warned of consequences in the Somaliland separatist administrations pursuit for oil exploration in Sool and Sanaag regions, Garowe Online reports.
President Farole said that dialogue process in Istanbul between Somali Federal Government and Somaliland can succeed through consultation among all of Somalia.
We welcome Somaliland to rejoin Somalia, to negotiate, to agree who is wrong and who is right. But who has the authority? Somaliland is seeking international recognition, firstly from Somalis. Who can give it? We dont understand this rainbow alliance between Mogadishu and Hargeisa that skips Garowe, said President Farole, adding: Mogadishu should not look for power it does not have and Hargeisa should not waste its time seeking recognition from Mogadishu.
President Farole said Somalilands separatist administration should stay within its area until a federal and united Somalia is restored.
Somaliland is creating conflict in the region. Somaliland cannot give land to foreign companies to explore oil when the land does not belong to Somaliland, said President Farole.
The president said that Puntland needs peace and good neighborliness but warned of consequences in Somalilands pursuit of oil exploration in Sool and Sanaag region.
The UN Monitoring Group report released July 2013 noted concern about regional stability over oil exploration programs in northern Somalia managed by Puntland and Somaliland.
Somaliland administration gave exploration rights in parts of Sool and Sanaag to Norwegian oil company DNO and Turkish oil company Genel. Local communities in Sool and Sanaag share kinship and political ties with Puntland, while Somaliland claims the regions based on defunct colonial-era boundaries.
Puntland and Somaliland have fought sporadic battles since 2002 over control of territory with the epicenter of the conflict at Las Anod, capital of Sool region.
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[AnNahar] The global police agency Interpol on Saturday said it suspected al-Qaeda was involved in recent jailbreaks across nine countries, including Iraq, Libya and Pakistain.
Interpol said in a statement that the jailbreaks "led to the escape of hundreds of forces of Evil and other criminals" in the past month alone and issued a security alert.
It has also asked its 190 member countries to help "determine whether any of these recent events are coordinated and linked" and to immediately convey any intelligence which could help prevent another attack.
The Interpol alert comes the day after the United States issued a worldwide travel warning and ordered that its embassies across the Islamic world be temporarily closed due to unspecified plans by al-Qaeda to strike U.S. interests in the Middle East or North Africa in August.
Germany and Britannia have also announced that their embassies in Yemen would be closed on Sunday and Monday for security reasons.
Interpol, based in the central eastern city of La Belle France, noted that August is the anniversary of attacks in India, Russia and Indonesia.
This week also marks the 15th anniversary of the U.S. embassy bombings in the Kenyan capital Nairobi and Dar es Salaam in Tanzania, that killed more than 200 mostly African citizens and injured thousands.
[Ynet] Al Arabiya has reported the Russia has begun to pull back the number of its citizens stationed in Syria.
A senior Russian official is quoted by the network as claiming that only a few dozens remain. According the report, the decision was taken in response to the intensification of the ongoing conflict in the country.
Posted by: trailing wife ||
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#1
For a moment I thought that said Seattle.
Then I realized Seattle didn't need Russia's help for that.
[AnNahar] Tunisia's army pressed ahead Saturday with operations against Islamists in a remote mountain range after a bushwhack on its troops heightened a crisis sparked by a political liquidation.
The authorities kept a tight lid on the overland and helicopter raids launched Friday in the Mount Chaambi area near the border with Algeria where Islamist forces of Evil including veterans of a revolt in northern Mali are suspected to be hiding out.
Eight Tunisian soldiers were found in the area on Monday with their throats cut after being ambushed by bully boys.
The interior ministry, meanwhile, said a "religious Death Eater" was killed and another maimed in two separate incidents while handling explosives.
And police said a suspect package was found in Tunis warning security forces to withdraw from Mount Chaambi.
The coalition government led by moderate Islamic movement Ennahda has acknowledged that the country faces a growing threat of terrorism, although it has yet to issue a call for the public to remain vigilant.
On the political front, a compromise still eluded opponents and supporters of the government in their efforts to defuse a crisis triggered by the July 25 liquidation of opposition figure Mohamed Brahmi that has been blamed on jihadists.
Opposition parties have called on the government to step down but failed to draw up a united stand on policy.
Ennahda insists on its legitimacy to govern based on the last elections in October 2011.
Both sides in the political stand-off staged daily demonstrations over the past week, with Ennahda sending out calls for a mass solidarity rally in the capital's Kasbah Square from 9 pm (2000 GMT) on Saturday.
The government's critics say it has failed to rein in radical Islamists, who have grown in influence and stand accused of a wave of attacks since the 2011 uprising which toppled long-time president Zine El Abidine Ben Ali.
Since Brahmi's death -- the second political slaying after leftist leader Chokri Belaid was bumped off in February -- around 60 politicians have pulled out of the National Constituent Assembly that is drawing up Tunisia's long-delayed new constitution.
Tunisian authorities have pointed to links between the Chaambi bully boys, the assassins of Brahmi and Belaid and Tunisia's main Salafist organization Ansar al-Sharia ...a Yemeni Islamist militia which claims it is not part of al-Qaeda, even though it works about the same and for the same ends... , which denies the accusation.
[Ynet] Mohamed Salah, an Egyptian soccer player from FC Basel, is expected to arrive with his team to participate in the final match against Maccabi Tel Aviv as part of the third round of the UEFA Champion's League qualifiers.
Salah, and his fellow Egyptian team mate Mohamed Elneny, requested not to come to Israel, but were eventually forced to do so by the club's management.
[AnNahar] Nine Syrians were killed and nine maimed on Saturday in Syrian regime Arclight airstrikes near the Bekaa town of Arsal, reported the National News Agency. It said that the Arclight airstrikes targeted Syrian refugee gatherings in the forestland between Ras Baalbek and Arsal.
The maimed, including women and kiddies, have since been taken to Universal Hospital in Baalbek for treatment.
Meanwhile, ...back at the shattered spaceship, Fffflirgoll the Arcturan slithered stealthily toward the control room, where the humans had barricaded themselves... a Lebanese military source told Agence La Belle France Presse that the bodies of six Syrians killed near the border with Leb were transported into the country on Saturday, along with nine injured people.
The source could not confirm the cause of the casualties in Syria, but an injured woman told an AFP photographer that the Syrian air force had carried out a strike.
"Six bodies and nine injured people were brought into Leb at around 1:30 pm (1030 GMT) on a pick-up truck," the source said on condition of anonymity.
"They crossed the border at the Tufail crossing" in eastern Leb, he said.
An injured woman in her early 30s, speaking also on condition of anonymity, said: "We were targeted by an air strike while we were making our way from Syria to Leb."
At least two children were among the injured, the photographer said.
Several of them were taken to Arsal for treatment, while others were transported to nearby Baalbek, AFP said.
Arsal, which lies 12 kilometers from the border with Syria, has been used as a conduit for weapons and rebels to enter Syria, while also serving as a refuge for people fleeing the conflict. It has repeatedly come under shelling from Syria.
The last air raid in Arsal took place in June, with 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... urging Syria to respect Leb's illusory sovereignty.
Other border areas in the north and east have also been struck by frequent cross-border shelling and festivities, while the Syrian regime has told Leb to better control its mostly non-existent border to prevent the smuggling of fighters and arms.
The repeated violations prompted Suleiman to file a memorandum to the United Nations ...the Oyster Bay money pit... 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... Leb is sharply divided over the war in Syria and Arsal is a particular flashpoint as refugees from the uprising and fighters and smugglers hostile to the regime of Syrian Hereditary President-for-Life Bashir Pencilneck al-Assad Leveler of Latakia... traverse the border.
Gosh. Certain parties really do miss the Ottoman empire. That's why they're called neo-Ottomans... at least when the describers are being polite, anyway.
[AnNahar] A 72-year-old German was jugged Maw! They're comin' to get me, Maw! on the Greek island of Chios in the eastern Aegean suspected of spying on behalf of unknown Turkish nationals, police said Saturday.
"For at least three years, he photographed camps and other infrastructure of the (Greek) armed forces in Chios and was paid to give the material to Turkish nationals," the police said in a statement.
Last week, four men -- two Greeks and two Turks of Kurdish origin -- were arrested by the coastguard off Chios, for transferring a large amount of weapons and explosives to Turkey.
Further arrests have been made by Greece's anti-terrorism squad, which has taken over the case.
Those arrested are mostly Turks of Kurdish origin, suspected of belonging to the Kurdish Revolutionary People's Liberation Party-Front (DHKP-C), which is considered a terrorist group by Turkey and many Western countries.
At the time of the German's arrest, he was carrying two cameras containing photographs of military camps on the island, police said.
During a search at his house in Chios, where he has been living for four years, police further found laptops, maps, mobile phones and a pair of glasses with a built-in camera.
A search in his email account revealed a message describing the coastguard's arrest of the four men last week.
According to police, the suspect claims he was first hired in the summer of 2010 to provide photographic material and his payments ranged between 500 and 1,500 euros ($665 to $1990) for each mission.
Turkish press recently accused Greece of harboring terrorists, with daily Today's Zaman running an article titled "Terrorists sheltered by Greece may attack Turkish, American interests."
The accusation caused a strong reaction from Greece's foreign affairs ministry.
"Such articles... are well beyond the bounds of bizarre and inexplicable conspiracy theory," said the ministry's front man Konstantinos Koutras who questioned the motivations behind the publication, when asked about it.
[Ynet] Syria: UN fears for Homs children; rebels seize Damascus arms depot
The UN sounded the alarm Saturday about the plight of women and kiddies in Syria's Homs, urging all parties in the conflict to enable access to some 400,000 trapped civilians.
Meanwhile, ...back at the abandoned silver mine, the water was up to Jack's neck and still rising. And then he smelled the smoke... rebels battling Hereditary President-for-Life Bashir Pencilneck al-Assad The Scourge of Hama... 's regime captured an arms and ammunition dump in the Qalamun area near Damascus early on Saturday, a monitoring watchdog said.
"The situation of women and kiddies in the Syrian city of Homs is rapidly deteriorating," UNICEF said in a statement, adding that "new checkpoints are preventing more supplies from entering" the neighborhood of Al-Waer.
Around 400,000 civilians, mostly women and kiddies, who were forced to flee other areas of Homs have sought refuge in Al-Waer, and are now "living in partially constructed buildings, schools and other public buildings", UNICEF's Executive Director Anthony Lake said.
But the situation there "has worsened, with reports of intense daily festivities, and rocket and mortar strikes causing many casualties", he added.
Meanwhile, ...back at the abandoned silver mine, the water was up to Jack's neck and still rising. And then he smelled the smoke... the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said several groups, including the jihadist Al-Nusra Front, were behind the capture of the depot of anti-tank weapons and rockets.
"Liwa al-Islam, Al-Nusra Front, Al-Tawhid battalion, the Maghaweer (rebel commando force) and the Qalamun Martyrs' battalion... captured an ammunition depot near the village of Qaldun in the Qalamun area" northeast of the capital, the Britannia-based Observatory said.
They seized "anti-tank weapons and ground-to-ground Grad missiles, as well as a variety of other ammunition, after festivities overnight from Friday to Saturday", it said.
In Damascus itself, fighting was reported in the flash-point southern belt, as loyalist forces pressed a months-long bid to dislodge rebels from the city's outskirts.
Elsewhere, the army shelled rebel-held areas of the central city of Homs, focusing on the neighborhoods of Juret al-Shiyah and Qussur, said the Observatory.
After the rebels lost the Khaldiyeh district this week, the army has pushed on with its bid to dislodge them completely from Syria's third city.
A Turkish man was killed on Saturday by a stray bullet fired across the border from Syria into the Turkish town of Ceylanpinar, security sources said.
Ramazan Zeybel, 45, died in hospital. He was the fourth Turkish citizen to be killed by stray shells and bullets fired during festivities in the neighbouring Syrian town of Ras al-Ain.
With an ethnic mix of Arabs, Kurds and others, Ras al-Ain has been a focus of festivities for months, with Kurdish militias fighting for control against Arab rebel fighters from the al Qaeda-linked hardline Sunni Islamist Al-Nusra Front.
The UN says more than 100,000 people have been killed in Syria's war, most of them civilians and millions more have been forced to flee their homes, about 75 percent of them women and kiddies.
On Friday alone, at least 110 people were killed across Syria, the Observatory said.
[MIAMIHERALD] Zim-bob-we's electoral panel on Saturday declared that longtime President Bob Muggsy Mugabe Octogenarian President-for-Life of Zim-bob-we who turned the former Breadbasket of Africa into the African Basket Case... had won re-election by a landslide, a result that could exacerbate tensions in the country, where the 89-year-old's chief rival and former coalition partner has accused him of poll-rigging.
Mugabe seemed set to strengthen his hold over Zim-bob-we after the state Election Commission said his party won 158 of the 210 parliament seats. That gives it a two-thirds majority in the legislature -- enabling it to amend a recently approved constitution that provides for democratic reforms.
Challenger Morgan Tsvangirai's party, which had gambled that a high turnout in its favor would overcome any alleged fraud in the vote, captured 50 seats and two went to independent candidates.
According to the results, Mugabe won 61 percent of the vote, compared to 33 percent for Tsvangirai, who had been prime minister in a tense power-sharing deal with the president. Officially, Mugabe, who has been in power for 33 years, gets another five-year term in office.
Tsvangirai rejected the results as fraudulent and called for fresh elections. He urged a peaceful response to the alleged massive rigging by Mugabe's ZANU-PF party, which has the muscle of the security forces to deter any groundswell of street protests.
In contrast to an election marked by deadly attacks in 2008, the vote on Wednesday was mostly peaceful and African poll monitors, while expressing some concern about reported irregularities, seemed mostly relieved that it was not violent.
Britannia and the United States were more forceful in their criticism of the voting process, though Mugabe has based his career in part on sparring with Western powers and there is little chance their disapproval will sway him.
That leaves the Zim-bob-wean opposition with few options for countering Mugabe, who presides over a country that still has economic problems but enjoys some measure of stability compared to a period of soaring inflation years ago.
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[Ynet] Some 450 Olim arrive this week from La Belle France, England. 'We preferred leaving,' says one immigrant from La Belle France, 'We feel we're home'
The Muslim Middle East is emptying of Christians, Europe of Jews.
Many French citizens have traveled in Israel as part of their annual holiday, but this week a few hundred of them landed at Ben Gurion Airport -- forever. Three flights arrived from Gay Paree and another one made its way from Marseilles. On the aircraft were new immigrants who said they were fulfilling a dream
"I feel I've arrived home, making aliyah is a dream come true," said Sabrina Kozirov, 40, who came from La Belle France with her husband and two teenage daughters. "We made aliyah mainly for the girls. We want to be educated here among Jews and Israelis," she explained. "We're crazy about Israel and connected to the state and to Judaism. Our place is here," she said excitedly.
The Kozirov family came to Israel with another 450 immigrants from La Belle France and England who landed in Israel this week in an airlift organized by the Jewish Agency and the International Christian Embassy. A total of 800 immigrants from La Belle France are expected to arrive in Israel during the summer.
The newcomers will be integrated into communities across the country, and into programs run by the Jewish Agency. Recent data provided by the agency shows that by the end of the year, it is expected that the total number of immigrants from La Belle France will reach about 2,500 people -- an increase of 40% compared to the previous year's number.
Embassy representative David Parsons, who greeted the immigrants at Ben Gurion Airport, said that support for aliyah is meant to express the relationship with the Jewish people. "The backing of aliyah is designed to allow every Jew to realize his desire to move to Israel, as part of our support for the Jewish people and the State of Israel."
Kozirov said, "The situation in La Belle France had become unbearable. There is a large Mohammedan community and harsh political criticism of Israel. Therefore we preferred to leave." The family lived in Gay Paree before they arrived at Tivon. They hope to find an apartment that they can live in over the coming year.
#2
Let's see Jews fleeing European countries, Mass Embassy shut downs, Economic decline everywhere, and etc. Time to buy a shovel. WW III maybe on the horizon.
What is particularly troubling is a growing number of New York jews are talking about leaving the city.
#4
#3 What is particularly troubling is a growing number of New York jews are talking about leaving the city.
They are? For what reason?
Well, duh. To shelter forewarned from an impending apocalypse in their cavernous six-sided council chamber beneath Grossinger's pool, where they'll lounge atop piles of gold and merrily toast one another with goblets of Huey Newton's blood, and maybe watch some Henny Youngman roasts on youtube, while the pure and righteous folk of Gotham burn to ash. Why else?
#6
Significant numbers of French Jews moving to the UK.
Interesting, phil_b. That would be a combination of tax avoidance and harassment avoidance, one assumes... and the possibility of easily moving back to France should conditions improve.
Teams from İstanbul Police Department raided premises of the neo-nationalist Turkey Youth Union (TGB) early on Saturday ahead of what is to be the final hearing of the Ergenekon attempted coup d'état trial on Aug. 5 Today`s Zaman reported.
Somebody is a little nervous...
The TGB, which is the youth branch of the Workers' Party (İP) at a previous hearing of the case broke through police barriers erected at the complex that houses the court building and prison at Silivri, earlier called on their supporters to be present again at the courthouse for what is to be the trial's last day on Aug. 5.
Ergenekon is alleged to be a clandestine network of individuals nested within the state hierarchy that was ultimately aimed at overthrowing the ruling Justice and Development Party (AK Party) government and some of whose members are currently on trial for multiple counts of murder and causing public disorder.
Police teams are searching the TGB İstanbul branch building as well as houses of some of its administrators, reports said.
İstanbul Governor Huseyin Avni Mutlu said on Friday that no audience will be allowed in the courtroom during the next session of the Ergenekon trial on Monday to avoid clashes. Stating that such a decision was taken due to security measures, Governor Mutlu told reporters that only the defendants, lawyers, members of Parliament and journalists will be given access to the courtroom in Silivri district of İstanbul. The decision is made by the court, Mutlu added.
Stating that any gathering outside the courtroom in Silivri will be considered an unlawful demonstration, Mutlu urged people to obey the call not to gather at the court building.
"We want the due process to end in peace," Mutlu pointed out, saying that they are taking security measures against potential protesters from outside of İstanbul.
Posted by: Steve White ||
08/04/2013
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[WASHINGTONTIMES] The woman charged with defacing portions of the Washington National Cathedral with green paint will be monitored by both federal immigration and local officials after her release from the D.C. Jail.
D.C. Superior Court Judge Frederick Sullivan on Friday ordered 58-year-old Jia M. Tian to wear a GPS monitoring bracelet and be released to a halfway house, where she would not be allowed to leave or have visitors, rather than staying in jail pending trial.
But because Ms. Tian is in the country illegally -- she has a Chinese passport and was traveling on an expired visa when she was incarcerated Drop the rosco, Muggsy, or you're one with the ages! -- federal immigration officials will also keep an eye on her. U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement planned to enroll Ms. Tian in a federal monitoring program while "she is in removal proceedings," front man Brandon A. Montgomery said.
And we can't just toss her on the next plane and deport her because...
An ICE detainer placed on Ms. Tian was lifted after the judge's ruling and she won't be deported from the country before her court case is resolved, he said.
It was too early to tell Friday to what extent ICE officials would monitor Ms. Tian, with whom they had not yet met, but options could range from in-person meetings to phone calls to GPS monitoring.
Prosecutors initially worried that with her release from jail that federal authorities could deport Ms. Tian before her case went to trial.
What would be wrong with that?
Judge Sullivan opted to send Ms. Tian to a halfway house after he decided that confinement in jail would be too severe.
Posted by: Fred ||
08/04/2013
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What would be wrong with that?
Maybe they want to know where she got the green paint?
[NBCNEWYORK] Anthony Carlos Danger Weiner ...aka Hot Dog Tony, the remarkably offensive sex maniac six-term New York congressman who resigned in 2011, then decided everybody had forgotten by 2013, when he decided to run for mayor of New York City... tells NBC 4 New York he is "100 percent not" having any type of online relationships with anyone now, and says for the first time he has not kept any records of his past lewd affairs. "Trust me on that!"
"I don't have any of the records," Weiner said in an interview Friday. "I deleted everything." "Have I ever lied to you?"
I'm sure he did. But the phone company and the NSA have everything archived.
A woman came forward last month with explicit photos of Weiner and messages from him, revealing that the married mayoral candidate's affairs had continued long after he resigned from Congress in 2011. Since then, the embattled Democrat has sought to turn the conversation back to the day-to-day issues of campaigning.
He has been trailed at every appearance by news hounds and photographers, and gave a series of interviews Friday in what appeared to be an attempt to close the door on the conversation.
During his 15 minutes with NBC 4 New York, he grew weary of the topic, insisting at one point that the details of his illicit affairs, which he says ended about a year ago, didn't matter.
"The behavior that people know about, I did, over an extended period of time, with more than one person," Weiner said. "I just think at a certain point, OK, I think people know these embarrassing things about me. I think at a certain point now we have to have a conversation that goes to, alright, what else should people know?"
Posted by: Fred ||
08/04/2013
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Totally a Clintonista, look at the photo, it's just like Slick Willy who could turn of the water works at the drop of a hat or pants.
Posted by: Jack Salami ||
08/04/2013 9:57
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"I don't have any of the records," Weiner said in an interview Friday. "I deleted everything."
No problem. The delete key is an urban legend. We have everything backed up at Fort Meade. Now continue to make a complete arse of yourself and provide the media distraction we so desperately need. An LGBT admission would be helpful, as would shaving your head. Every little bit helps. Again, please continue.
[AnNahar] Two people were killed and four others were maimed on Saturday in a clash between army troops and runaways in the Baalbek neighborhood of al-Sharawneh, state-run National News Agency reported.
"A woman was killed and five people were hurt as an exchange of gunfire erupted during an attempt by an army patrol to arrest the runaway Hamza Ali Saadallah Zoaiter near al-Tatri Hospital in the Baalbek neighborhood of al-Sharawneh," NNA said.
"The runaway Hamza in addition to Ali Hasan Saadallah Zoaiter and the child Nouh Sadeq Zoaiter -- who were with him in the car -- were maimed in the clash," the agency added.
It said a passerby was also killed and two others were maimed in the shootout.
"Tania Minni, 14, was killed and her body is still at the al-Tatri Hospital in Baalbek, while Samira Minni was seriously maimed in her head and transported to al-Abdallah Hospital in Riyaq," NNA said, adding that the child Sami Minni was lightly injured in the incident.
Later on Saturday, the Army Command's Orientation Directorate issued a statement clarifying that "as an army checkpoint tried to stop a car carrying a number of gunnies in al-Sharawneh, those inside it opened fire on the checkpoint's members, who returned fire."
Three gunnies and three civilian passersby were maimed in the incident, the statement said, adding that two of the bystanders later died of their wounds.
"The aforementioned gunnies were enjugged Drop the heater, Studs, or you're hist'try! and it turned out that two of them are wanted on arrest warrants, while the dead and the maimed were transported to hospitals in the region," the statement added, noting that "military police launched a probe into the incident under the supervision of the relevant judicial authorities."
[Ynet] Ayman al-Zawahiri ... Formerly second in command of al-Qaeda, now the head cheese, occasionally described as the real brains of the outfit. Formerly the Mister Big of Egyptian Islamic Jihad. Bumped off Abdullah Azzam with a car boom in the course of one of their little disputes. Is thought to have composed bin Laden's fatwa entitled World Islamic Front Against Jews and Crusaders. Currently residing in the North Wazoo area. That is not a horn growing from the middle of his forehead, but a prayer bump, attesting to how devout he is... , the Egyptian-born head of the bad boy al-Qaeda organization, accused the United States of "plotting" Morsi's overthrow with the Egyptian military and the country's Christian minority.
"Crusaders and secularists and the Americanized army have converged ... with Gulf money and American plotting to topple Mohammed Morsi's government," he said in a 15-minute audio recording posted on bad boy Islamist forums.
In his first comments since the July 3 coup, Zawahiri also attacked Morsi's secular opposition and Coptic Christians, who he said wanted a secessionist state in Egypt, and called for a mass movement to install Islamic law.
"I give this piece of advice to whoever supported Morsi and I tell them first we have to admit that legitimacy doesn't lie in elections and democracy but it lies in Sharia," Zawahri said.
"Sharia is not electing Morsi president of a republic, a president of a secular and nationalistic state," he added.
"What has happened is the greatest evidence that taking democracy as a path to Islamic rule has failed," Zawahri said.
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.
"You left the Egyptians. You turned your back on the Egyptians, and they won't forget that," said an indignant Gen. Abdel Fatah al-Sissi, speaking of the U.S. government. "Now you want to continue turning your backs on Egyptians?" 
Hereditary President-for-Life Bashir 
Two Islamist Lebanese-Swedish brothers who left their Scandinavian home for 
[AnNahar] Gunmen 
Bahrain police have confiscated weapons and ammunition from a warehouse in Bilad Al Qadeem.
[AnNahar] Libyan security forces on Saturday 
[ANNARBOR] Video footage captured by a Colorado Springs, Colorado restaurant is making the rounds and is equally interesting to watch.
[Dawn] At least eight people, including five 
Since coming to power in 2002, Erdogan's government has reined in the powerful military, once the self-appointed guardians of the secular state who carried out four coups over half a century.
Lindsey Graham
[AnNahar] The global police agency Interpol on Saturday said it suspected al-Qaeda was involved in recent jailbreaks across nine countries, including Iraq, Libya and Pakistain.
[AnNahar] Tunisia's army pressed ahead Saturday with operations against Islamists in a remote mountain range after a 
[Ynet] Mohamed Salah, an Egyptian soccer player from FC Basel, is expected to arrive with his team to participate in the final match against Maccabi Tel Aviv as part of the third round of the UEFA Champion's League qualifiers.
Hereditary President-for-Life Bashir 
Hereditary President-for-Life Bashir 
[MIAMIHERALD] Zim-bob-we's electoral panel on Saturday declared that longtime President 
[NBCNEWYORK] 
[AnNahar] Two people were killed and four others were 
Zawahiri
