[Intl Bus Times] A military propaganda campaign in Iran is aimed at encouraging children to martyr themselves by going to fight in Syria.
The video, which was aired on Iran state television, shows children taking up arms and singing a song entitled 'Martyrs who defend the sacred shrine', which states that they are ready to give their lives, not just to free Iraq and Syria, but to 'reach Jerusalem'.
Produced by the Bassij Music House, from the Bassij branch of Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guards, which is responsible for pro-regime propaganda, the video appears to be an attempt to help prop up Bashar Al-Assad's regime in Syria using child soldiers to bolster the number of fighters.
The children in the video sing: "Let's rise up to save the sacred shrine. I have joined [Imam] Hossein's army division. I have a warrant from the [Imam Ali] to defend the sacred shrine. On my leader [Ali Khamenei's] orders I am ready to give my life.The goal is not just to free Iraq and Syria, My path is through the sacred shrine [in Syria], but my goal is to reach Jerusalem."
Posted by: Besoeker ||
04/30/2016
09:37 ||
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#1
Reports of a 'Bassij Music House' performance at the White House could not be confirmed.
[WAPO] Declassified military documents released Friday detail not only how the United States mistakenly struck a Doctors Without Borders hospital in Afghanistan last year but also frustrations among Special Operations troops.
The strike, which killed at least 30 people at the hospital, occurred in the city of Kunduz, which the Taliban had seized in previous days and U.S. Special Operations troops were working alongside Afghan forces to take back.
One officer, whose name, rank and unit were redacted from his witness statement, launched into a diatribe in which he blamed what happened on senior leaders. The officer wrote that he was going to provide unsolicited opinions, and that "these words may well be the greatest contribution of my career for one simple reason: the words I speak are the truth."
The officer wrote that the enemies of the Kunduz operation were "moral cowardice" and a "profound lack of strategy." Army Green Berets on the ground in the city at the time asked for guidance "no fewer than three times" during the multiday battle and heard nothing other than crickets -- "though those were hard to hear over the gunfire," he alleged.
"How have we as a force, as a group of officers, become so lost from the good lessons that our mentors taught us," the officer asked. "I will tell you how. It is a decrepit state that grows out of the expansion of moral cowardice, careerism and compromise devoid of principle, exchanged for cheap personal gain. We owe the man on the ground more than that, because for him, the decisions that he makes hopefully lands him somewhere between the judge's gavel and the enemy's bullet."
[CNN] Malawi's albinos are at risk of "total extinction" amid escalating attacks against them for their body parts, the United Nations warned.
Albinism is a genetic condition that leads to little or no pigment in the eyes, skin and hair. The southern African nation has about 10,000 albinos, according to the U.N.
In some African countries, albinos' body parts are believed to bring wealth and good luck. As a result, attackers chop off their limbs and pluck out organs, and sell them to witchdoctors.
Even after albinos are killed, some attackers go a step further and steal their remains from graveyards, said Ikponwosa Ero, the United Nations' expert on albinism.
"Persons with albinism, and parents of children with albinism, constantly live in fear of attack," she said.
"Many do not sleep peacefully and have deliberately restricted their movement to the necessary minimum."
Ero, who's an albino, recently visited Malawi, which has seen an increasing number of attacks.
Since the end of 2014, there have been 65 recorded cases of attacks, the U.N. said.
Ero urged the government to step in to protect albinos and go after their killers more aggressively.
"It is clear that an urgent and coordinated response from the government, civil society and development partners working in strong partnership with each other is required," she said. She called for better training for police and those who work for the court system, saying punishment for those who attack albinos is not stringent enough.
"As pointed out by various stakeholders during my visit, stealing a cow may attract a higher penalty," she said. Albinism is not limited to countries such as Tanzania, Burundi and Malawi.
In the United States, about one in 20,000 people have some type of albinism. But in countries such as Tanzania, the number can be as high as one in 1,500.
#1
In some African countries, albinos' body parts are believed to bring wealth and good luck.
Excellent margins as well, according to Planned Parenthood. Unfortunately the poaching of elephant and rhino horns gets much more press. It's the threat to tourism and game farms, the negative financial impacts thing. Lots of people, much fewer rhino.
[JP] A Republican candidate for the United States Senate seat from Florida is advocating a ban on all people from the Middle East ‐ with the exception of Israelis.
The candidate, Carlos Beruff, made the remarks in a speech before Republican Party members earlier this week. It was reported by the Sun Sentinel newspaper as well as the online news site Salon.
"I think our immigration department is broken. And I don’t think it’s safe to allow anybody from the Middle East into this country," Beruff was quoted as saying.
When asked about the remarks by a journalist, the candidate said: "Right now we have a terrorist threat that’s very real. You want to ignore it, but I don’t."
Beruff, who is seeking to replace the retiring Marco Rubio in the Senate, then said that the ban should apply to both Christians and Muslims from the Middle East.
"Pretty much anybody that’s got a terrorist organization in it, which is pretty much all the Middle East," he said.
When asked if Israel should be included on that list, he said: "I think Israel’s security measures are pretty strong. Israel is an exception."
[Wash Times] President Barack Obama is strangely obsessed with businessman Donald Trump.
He’s managed to squeeze zingers at the businessman while dealing with world leaders at business conferences and nuclear summits, and when asked at his bully pulpit in Washington about the real-estate mogul, Mr. Obama or his press corps never shy away.
On Wednesday, Mr. Trump gave his first foreign policy speech in Washington, read from a teleprompter. He stumbled in his pronunciation of "Tanzania" during it, but continued on, unfazed.
In a White House press briefing after the speech, Press Secretary Josh Earnest mocked Mr. Trump’s ability, saying to reporters: "Apparently the phonetics are not included on the teleprompter."
It was a low blow -- and one Mr. Obama and his team should be careful of, given Mr. Obama’s own lack of perfection in this area. Several years ago at the National Prayer Breakfast, Mr. Obama fumbled "corpsman" pronouncing it as "corpse-man."
He’s been since forgiven.
The White House seemingly can’t resist taking shots at Mr. Trump. Past presidents have consciously decided to stay out of the other party’s primary process, but not Mr. Obama. Mr. Trump seems to have gotten under his skin -- and has stayed there.
In September, at a Business Roundtable event, the president took a veiled blow at the businessman: "America is great right now. America is winning right now."
Then in February, as Mr. Trump was maintaining his lead in the polls, Mr. Obama concluded the American public was "too sensible" to elect Mr. Trump.
"I continue to believe Mr. Trump will not be president," Mr. Obama said at a news conference in California after a meeting with southeast Asian leaders. "And the reason is that I have a lot of faith in the American people. Being president is a serious job. It’s not hosting a talk show, or a reality show."
Zinger!
But at the event, he continued to rub it in: "It’s not promotion, it’s not marketing. It’s hard," Mr. Obama said of being president. "And a lot of people count on us getting it right."
In March, during a Democratic National Committee event, the President couldn’t resist calling Mr. Trump out again -- unprompted.
"We’ve got a debate inside the other party that is fantasy and schoolyard taunts and selling stuff like it’s the Home Shopping Network," he joked.
"How can you be shocked?" he asked to laughter from the crowd, according to a transcript. "This is the guy, remember, who was sure that I was born in Kenya -- who just wouldn’t let it go. And all this same Republican establishment, they weren’t saying nothing. As long as it was directed at me, they were fine with it. They thought it was a hoot, wanted to get his endorsement. And then now, suddenly, we’re shocked that there’s gambling going on in this establishment."
#1
'Strange Obsession' to some possibly. Chronic Narcissism, impulsivity, mood swings, denial, inappropriate anger, fear of abandonment, difficulty with relationships, identity issues, an unstable self-image, and intense emotions all point to BPD.
#4
Being president is a serious job. It’s not hosting a talk show, or a reality show."
If only you'd taken that advice, loser. Most unserious Preznit evah. Or did he forget getting interviewed by GloZell, a woman who bathes in milk and Froot Loops?
Posted by: Frank G ||
04/30/2016 9:33
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#5
Obama is looking at his legacy and its looking clear that his legacy may be Trump swept into office with a pile of Republicans behind him and the desire to reverse most of Obama's policies.
That's not a legacy Obama really wants. He wants Hillary to cover up his misdeeds and then take the blame for the failures.
[Wash Times] The White House Friday compared lawless anti-Donald Trump protesters to America’s original tea party patriots in Boston.
Asked if President Obama was concerned about protesters who took to the streets near a Trump rally in southern California Thursday night, White House press secretary Josh Earnest said there is "a long tradition of protests in the American political system."
"In fact, this country was started by a bunch of protesters, some of whom decided that they were pretty unhappy about taxes and threw some barrels of tea into Boston harbor," Mr. Earnest said.
He said Mr. Obama believes in voters making their voices heard at the ballot box and through public debate.
"And that debate is likely to be filled with some emotion," he said.
In California, some anti-Trump protesters damaged police vehicles, and nearly two dozen were arrested. The president’s spokesman said political protesters need to show "some respect for the system and for our country and for our government."
Asked if Mr. Obama has a responsibility to speak out against violent political protests, Mr. Earnest said the president has talked about the need for the political system to be "geared toward resolving conflicts." He also seemed to turn the question back on Mr. Trump’s political rhetoric.
"This is a big, diverse country," Mr. Earnest said. "And people are going to have different points of view. And we resolve those differences, not through violence, not by taking up arms against one another, not by questioning someone else’s patriotism or judging based on their religion or their color or who they are, but rather through our system of government."
#1
And the protesters who rented rooms at the hotel days in advance of the Trump visit, allowing them to display anti-Trump banners from balconies. Where did their funding come from ?
Today, Friday, April 29 2016, 2016, the Baltic Dry Index decreased by 7 points, reaching 703 points.
Baltic Dry Index is compiled by the London-based Baltic Exchange and covers prices for transported cargo such as coal, grain and iron ore. The index is based on a daily survey of agents all over the world.
Baltic Dry hit a temporary peak on May 20, 2008, when the index hit 11,793. The lowest level ever reached was on Wednesday the 10th of February 2016, when the index dropped to 290 points.
The rising trend in the Baltic Dry Index, the benchmark for dry bulk freight, has failed to enthuse Indian shipping companies because most see it as a blip that does not reflect the trade situation.
The Index is at 690, up 70 per cent month on month and 95 per cent in the last three months. “There is nothing to be excited about. The jump is purely momentary,” said an executive with the Shipping Corporation of India.
The grain harvest season in South America is the cause for the blip because freight rates from the region to China have improved. “If the index continues to rise, it will reflect in freight rates for domestic shipping companies,” said an executive with Essar Shipping. “This could lead to $8,000-10,000 freight per day, which will help companies cover their interest costs,” he added.
Shipping Corporation of India, Great Eastern Shipping, and Essar Shipping are leaders in the Indian shipping market.
“The trade routes that make up the dry bulk index do not include any of India’s routes. This index is more of a sentiment gauge for Indian shipping companies,” said an executive with Equator Maritime.
“The dry bulk situation remains poor for Indian shipping companies when exports are falling,” he added.
India was one of the world’s top iron ore exporting countries before the financial crisis hit. Duties on some minerals have discouraged exporters, hurting overall trade.
“Also the problem for bulk cargo in coastal shipping is there is no return cargo available. Shipping companies do not find it effective to run vessels along the coast,” said the executive with Equator Maritime.
“There are decent earnings in the tanker division for crude as well as refined products. Low crude oil prices are helping tanker companies,” said the Essar Shipping executive.
[Daily Excelsior] A perforated carcass of a turban who was killed during an operation launched last evening at Kanthpora in Lolab area of North Kashmire’s Kupwara district was recovered this morning.
A police officer said that Army’s 28 Rashtriya Rifles (RR) and Special Operations Group (SOG) of Jammu and Kashmire Police cordoned off Pir Mohalla area of Kanthpora in Lolab last evening and conducted searches for a turban who was hiding in the village.
"The turban who was holed up in a mosque since last night believed to have escaped during an encounter at Gujjarpati village in Putshahi area on April 21 was killed in the shootout", Police said.
Three of associates of the turban were killed in the encounter on April 21 at Gujjarpati village in Putshahi area of Lolab. The turban was injured in the shootout but beat feet from the cordon. Security forces had launched massive operations against him. He had taken shelter in the local mosque in injured condition and was being tracked by security forces.
The police officer said that last evening, when the security forces conducted searches, the turban tried to break the cordon. "In the initial exchange of fire, the turban managed to give slip to the security forces in the injured condition. The search operation which was immediately launched was hampered by the locals of the area by resorting to stone-pelting on security forces," he said.
However, nothing needs reforming like other people's bad habits... he said, this morning the joint team of security forces used sniffer dogs and launched the massive searches after locating blood stains of the injured turban. Later, the security forces recovered turban’s body which was lying near the local graveyard of the area.
The killing of this turban has taken the number of snuffies killed this year so far to 35. Majority of these killed snuffies belonged to LeT.
Meanwhile, ...back at the bunker, his Excellency called a hurried meeting of his closest advisors. It was to be his last. They discussed the officers's efficiency rating system... the protests broke out in the area for the second day today after news of killing of turban spread in the area. The turban was later laid to rest. Sources said festivities and protests raged in several areas of the Lolab including Kathpora, Cherkote and Lalpora.
Posted by: Fred ||
04/30/2016
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[DailyMail] The prime suspect in the the murder of a Rochdale imam 'has fled the UK' as three others remain in jug.
Jalal Uddin, 64, from Bangladesh, was found lying in a pool of his own blood with severe head injuries in a children's play area, in Greater Manchester, on February 18.
He was taken to hospital for treatment but died a short time later.
The religious leader, who attended mosque every day, was attacked as he left a friend’s house following evening prayers.
Detectives believe that his killing may have been organised by those seeking to stop his efforts to 'de-radicalise' young people in the area.
On Thursday police placed in durance vile Keep yer hands where we can see 'em, if yez please! a 24-year-old man on suspicion of arranging funds for terrorism, and a 28-year-old man on suspicion of conspiracy to commit murder.
A third man, 21, was also being further questioned on suspicion of conspiracy to commit murder, after he answered bail.
While a 17-year-old boy previously arrested on suspicion of murder has been bailed until June pending further inquiries.
It has also emerged that the team investigating the murder has been extended to include anti-terrorism officers, reports the Guardian.
#1
"Your 'Case of the Rochdale Imam'
Had nothing to do with Islam!"
"What? Surely now, Sherlock--"
"No, Watson, the Pure talk
Of nothing all day but 'salaam.'"
[NYTIMES] Mistakes by the crew flying an AC-130 gunship, compounded by equipment and procedural failures, led to the devastating attack on a Doctors Without Borders hospital in Afghanistan last year, the Defense Department announced Friday, and 16 American military personnel, including a general officer, have been punished for their roles in the strike.
The punishments for the Oct. 3 attack, which killed 42 people, will be "administrative actions" only, and none of those being disciplined will face criminal charges because the attack was determined to be unintentional. The punishments include suspension and removal from command as well as letters of reprimand, which can seriously damage or end a career.
The new top officer of the military’s Central Command, Gen. Joseph L. Votel, made the announcement during a Pentagon news conference. He said the military had conducted "a thorough investigation," which was "painstaking" in seeking an "accurate account" of what had occurred.
Its conclusion is that neither the crew members of the gunship who fired on the hospital in the northern city of Kunduz nor the Special Forces on the ground who were directing the strike "knew they were striking a medical facility" and that the attack on the hospital was a result of human errors compounded by "process and equipment failures," he said.
"This was an extraordinarily intense combat situation," General Votel told news hounds. The troops on the ground, he added, "were doing a variety of actions at the same time: They were trying to support their Afghan partners, they were trying to execute resupply operations, and they were trying to protect themselves."
But General Votel was clear on one point: The hospital was a protected facility that was at no time being used by active Taliban fighters, though some maimedDeath Eaters had been treated there. His statement directly contradicted the claim by many senior Afghan officials that the hospital was being used by Taliban fighters and was therefore a legitimate target.
Posted by: Fred ||
04/30/2016
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#1
The punishments include suspension and removal from command as well as letters of reprimand, which can seriously damage or end a career.
Total and absolute political bullshi*. A serious setback for what remains of elan and espirit de corps.
#3
I met a lst SOW pilot at the Club at Hurlburt Field years ago. He'd flown the sortie that hosed down a mental hospital in Grenada. He certainly wasn't proud of it, but there are no do-overs. War is a dirty business. There are no 'clean ends' to grasp, and perhaps that is as it should be.
#4
So General, if there were no Taliban in the facility, why did the troops on the ground and the guys in the air fire on the place?
You normally call in air support when you are taking fire from a particular location. Seems to me, the Taliban were in the compound firing on our guys and we responded.
Completer BS if you ask me. There were reasons for the incident and trying to blame it on a gak up of process and equipment failure...
I just hope the guys on the ground and the air crew were spared the administrative action. I hope the rear echelon drone and command second guessers got the brunt of this.
Posted by: Bill Clinton ||
04/30/2016 19:35
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[Khaama (Afghanistan)] At least 64 anti-government armed bully boyz were killed in the latest counter-terrorism operations in the past 24 hours, the Ministry of Defense (MoD) said.
According to an operational by MoD, the operations were conducted jointly by the Afghan army, intelligence and police forces, backed by the Afghan Air Force and artillery units.
At least 30 of the bully boyz were killed and 18 others were maimed during the clearance operations in Char Dara district of Kunduz, MoD said.
MoD further added that 3 Pak Taliban linked with the Haqqani network were killed during an operation in Khost province ... across the border from Miranshah, within commuting distance of Haqqani hangouts such as Datta Khel and probably within sight of Mordor. Khost is populated by six different tribes of Pashtuns, the largest probably being the Khostwal, from which it takes its name... and 10 others were killed in Kandahar province.
At least 9 others were killed and 18 more were maimed during an operation in Eshkamesh district of Badakhshan, MoD said, adding that 5 others were killed in Faryab and 9 more were maimed.
The Afghan forces also killed 6 bully boyz in separate operations conducted in Kapisa, Ghazni and Jawzjan provinces, MoD said.
The anti-government armed hard boy groups have not commented regarding the reports so far.
The Afghan cops have stepped up counter-terrorism operations amid rampant Taliban-led insurgency across the country which follows as the group announced its spring offensive earlier this month.
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04/30/2016
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A roadside bomb targeted Ethiopian army convoy serving with the African Union mission in Somalia (AMISOM) as they drove along a strategic road in west of Beledweyne, the regional capital of Hiiraan, an Eyewitness said on Friday.
The bomb which was planted besides the road of Nur Fahan village struck an armored personnel carrier belonging to Ethiopian troops, according to a resident who requested to not be named due to security reasons. At least two innocent civilians who were near the scene of the blast suffered slight wounds and were taken to a hospital in Beledweyne city, some 350Km north of Mogadishu.
It’s not yet clear if there were any casualties on Ethiopian soldiers as a result of the remote-controlled land mine explosion outside Beledweyne town.
Posted by: Steve White ||
04/30/2016
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[Khaama (Afghanistan)] Kabul ...the capital of Afghanistan. Home to continuous fighting from 1992 to 1996 between the forces of would-be strongman and Pak ISI/Jamaat-e-Islami sock puppet Gulbuddin Hekmayar and the Northern Alliance, a period which won Hek the title Most Evil Man in the World and didn't do much for the reputations of the Northern Alliance guys either.... has reacted towards the visit by a delegation of Taliban group leaders to Pakistain shortly after the group announced the delegation will hold talks on refugees and border issues with the Pak authorities.
A statement by ARG Palace said the visit by Taliban delegation from Qatar ...an emirate on the east coast of the Arabian Peninsula. It sits on some really productive gas and oil deposits, which produces the highest per capita income in the world. They piss it all away on religion, financing the Moslem Brotherhood and several al-Qaeda affiliates... to Pakistain is totally vague since the terror groups are not allowed to visit nations.
The statement further added that the delegation recently visited Pakistain and called the purpose behind their visit to focus on refugees and border issues.
Kabul insisted that the majority of the Afghans have been forced to flee the country due to the crimes of the snuffies groups, specifically the Taliban group.
"The remarks by the Taliban group is mainly aimed at deviating the public thoughts from the crimes the group committed and is currently committing," the statement added.
Noting the visit by Afghan Minister of Refugees and Repatriations to Pakistain last week, Kabul insisted that the government has continuously worked with the government of Pakistain and international organizations to assess the situation of the refugees.
Kabul also insisted that only the governments are authorized to discuss the border issues, calling the Taliban group a vanguard for those who are establishing military installations on this side of Durand Line.
The statement added that the group will never have the authority to discuss the border issues considering the international laws and called on neighboring countries to maintain their relations with the government of Afghanistan and respect the national illusory sovereignty of the country.
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04/30/2016
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[Dhaka Tribune] Home Minister Asaduzzaman Khan Kamal yesterday said three people had been identified over Monday's murder of LGBT rights activist Xulhaz Mannan and his friend Mahbub Tonoy.
Talking to news hounds at his Dhanmondi residence in the capital, he said: "Concerning the investigation into the double murder, we are moving forward in the right direction. We have so far identified three people in this connection, as you have seen in newspaper reports.
"But I cannot reveal the details right now. Everything will be disclosed after a few days," he said.
Kamal said some of those involved in the killing of bloggers had also been identified. "Some have been brought to trial and the rest will be tossed in the calaboose Don't shoot, coppers! I'm comin' out! soon."
The Detective Branch official involved in the investigation into the double murder also said they had managed to identify a few suspects and were proceeding in the right direction.
Investigators are trying to arrest the killers using CCTV footage and a bag left at the scene by the killers, sources said.
Detectives suspect that Xulhaz was targeted for his advocacy of homosexuality and that the killers were members of banned Death Eater outfit Ansarullah Bangla Team. Ansarullah Bangla Team members are operating under the banner of Ansar al-Islam after the group was banned.
Intelligence officials said Xulhaz and Tonoy were killed in a fashion similar to the previous murders committed by Ansar al-Islam members.
They said the bag left by the perpetrators proved to be very helpful in the probe.
An intelligence official said a mobile phone was found in the bag and the persons whom the killers maintained contact with using the phone were under surveillance.
A high official of the Detective Branch, asking not to be named, said the killers used advanced software to send information to one another.
"They used protected text for communication. The text was removed within a minute after it was sent. Detectives are trying to recover the message with the help of technology."
Monirul Islam, chief of the counter-terrorism and trans-national crime unit, said they are using different strategies to catch the killers.
"Several teams are working to identify and capture the killers. We are currently analysing the clues. Hopefully, the killers will be arrested and brought to book soon," he added.
On Monday, Xulhaz was killed in his Kalabagan residence in the capital along with Tonoy.
Xulhaz, an official of the United States Agency for International Development and a former protocol officer of the US embassy in Dhaka, was a cousin of former foreign minister Dipu Moni.
Tonoy was also an LGBT and theatre activist.
Posted by: Fred ||
04/30/2016
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#2
A workshop, where jazzy old thespian
Meets dizzy Strassbergian lesbi@n:
"Let's improv on blowing!"
The trumpet kept growing.
"Great affect! It's frankly Gillespian!"
[Dhaka Tribune] Police have placed in durance vile Book 'im, Mahmoud! two sons of a Bangladeshi couple who were rubbed out inside their house in Caliphornia, an impregnable bastion of the Democratic Party,.
Hasib Bin Golam Rabbi, 22, and his 17-year-old brother were taken into custody on Thursday, reports AP. Police did not disclose the teenager’s name because of his age.
Golam and Shamima Rabbi were found dead inside their San Jose residence on Sunday by friends who came to check on them.
A source told local media ABC7 News off-camera they found a gruesome scene, with the bodies of the couple lying on the hardwood floor, and a message in ink that read: "Sorry, my first kill was clumsy."
According to the report, the couple were popular fixtures at their mosque for three decades and had helped relatives emigrate from their native Bangladesh.
Word of the deaths of Shamima and Golam Rabbi and the arrest of their sons sent shock waves through the close-knit Muslims who perform at nearby Evergreen Islamic Centre.
"Everybody is praying that it is somebody else who did this and not the kids," said Abdul Jaka, a co-founder of the mosque where the couple performed their prayers and attended holiday celebrations and other events. "They were a nice family."
The victims’ nephew Golam Mustakim and his family emigrated from Bangladesh in 2000 and initially stayed with the Rabbis in their four-bedroom home.
Jason Wong, 16, a classmate of the 17-year-old at Evergreen Valley High School, said the junior was "quiet and kept to himself mostly." Wong, also a junior, said he saw the teen on campus on Monday, the day after his parents were found dead.
"I did not think anything was wrong then because I didn’t know his parents had died," Wong said. "But now it seems strange."
Relatives discovered the bodies, and it was not clear how long the couple had been dead, police front man Sgt Enrique Garcia said. No further details were released.
"This is one of those tragedies nobody ever wants to be in," mosque front man Faisal Yazadi said. "All we can do is pray."
It was not immediately clear if the suspects have attorneys.
They were being held without bail. The older son was expected to be in court yesterday. An appearance date for the teen was not immediately available.
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04/30/2016
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[DAWN] "Chaste to her husband, frank to all beside / A teeming mistress, but a barren bride" -- Alexander Pope
FROM Brazil to Malaysia, democracy around the world is under threat. Not from the march of army columns, but from the greed and corruption of a rapacious global political elite. While nation-destroying corruption of leaders such as Ferdinand Marcos, Mobutu Sese Seko, Sani Abacha, Alberto Fujimori, or Bob Muggsy Mugabe Octogenarian President-for-Life of Zim-bob-we who turned the former Breadbasket of Africa into the African Basket Case... was the accepted ’norm’ till the 1990s for a select band of unfortunate Third World countries whose people had been made destitute by their leaders’ insatiable greed, the latest wave of democracy was thought to have brought in a newer, and less-tainted, leadership.
Continued on Page 49
Posted by: Fred ||
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#1
Yes, an amazing story of economic success and democracy at work; the exodus of evil colonials from Zim. Those that assisted in the transition should be quite proud.
[DAWN] While the government’s plan to streamline the registration and monitoring of religious seminaries appears to be a pipe dream, the number of madressahs in the country, as well as the number of students enrolled in them, has been on the rise.
Even though seminary boards offer different reasons for the growing number of students and institutions in the country, the administrators of all five mainstream seminary boards believe that a lack of a clear policy was augmenting negative growth as well.
"The government is not doing anything, but it wants the five boards and the seminaries registered with us to be as perfect as a polished shoe," said Sahibzada Abdul Mustafa Hazarvi, nazim
Continued on Page 49
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[DAWN] Jamaat Ulema-e-Islam ...the political wing of the Pak Taliban... (JUI-F) chief Maulana Fazlur Rehman Deobandi holy man, known as Mullah Diesel during the war against the Soviets, his sympathies for the Taliban have never been tempered by honesty ... was on Thursday admitted at the Pakistain Institute of Medical Sciences (Pims) for several hours for the treatment of a stomach problem.
The JUI chief was kept under observation and after a number of tests discharged in the evening with an advice to have complete bed rest and avoid spicy and oily diet.
Maulana Rehman, who has been suffering from diabetes for over 10 years, was seen by gastroenterologists Dr Qurratul Ain Haider and Dr Waseem Khawaja.
Dr Khawaja later told Dawn that spicy and oily diet was the major cause of the stomach problem.
"As the diet was not healthy, it caused swelling in the stomach. Injections were given to decrease the swelling," he said.
Posted by: Fred ||
04/30/2016
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Top|| File under: Jamaat-e-Ulema Islami
#1
"and a new Cannon Towel™"
Posted by: Frank G ||
04/30/2016 19:01
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[ENGLISH.ALARABIYA.NET] Algerian troops on Friday killed three armed Islamist fighters in the Skidda region west of the capital during an operation in the area, the defence ministry said.
A statement said the suspects were killed in the afternoon during a search which is still under way, and described the gunnies as "terrorists".
Troops also seized several Kalashnikov assault rifles, ammunition and cell phones, it added.
Last year the army killed or placed in durance vile I ain't sayin' nuttin' widdout me mout'piece! 157 "terrorists" -- the term Algeria’s authorities use to describe Islamist murderous Moslems -- according to ministry figures.
A brutal civil war in the 1990s between the government and Islamists claimed the lives of some 200,000 people.
Despite adopting a peace and reconciliation charter in 2005 aimed at turning the page on the conflict, gangs remain active in central and eastern Algeria.
Posted by: Fred ||
04/30/2016
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[ENGLISH.ALARABIYA.NET] The Sick Man of Europe Turkey ...the only place on the face of the earth that misses the Ottoman Empire.... ’s leaders on Friday celebrated the 100th anniversary of a famous victory by the Ottoman army in World War I against Allied forces in today’s Iraq, as the authorities place greater emphasis on the pre-Republican history of the country.
The surrender by a British-led force at the garrison in Kut al-Amara (Kut in modern Iraq) is seen as the last Ottoman victory of the war which ended in the defeat of the Empire and its German allies.
Continued on Page 49
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04/30/2016
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Beijing denied a US aircraft carrier permission to make a port call in Hong Kong, a US consulate official says, a rejection that comes amid escalating tensions in the South China Sea.
The Chinese Foreign Ministry told the US on Thursday night the visit by the USS John C. Stennis would not be allowed, said the official, who requested anonymity.
"[The ministry] needs to approve every ship coming into Hong Kong. [They] said 'no' to the carrier," the official said, adding the reason for the denial was not clear.
In a written reply to the South China Morning Post's inquiry, the ministry said on Friday night that port calls made by US warships and military aircraft were examined on a "case by case basis in accordance with sovereignty principles and specific circumstances".
Carter flew to the nuclear-powered carrier for a two-hour visit on April 15, as it sailed about 100km west of the Philippine island of Luzon. Experts said the move likely irritated Beijing as Carter was accompanied by his Philippine counterpart, Voltaire Gazmin.
Posted by: Frank G ||
04/30/2016
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Troops from federal government of Somalia and their African Union counterparts wrested full control of Gal’ad, a strategic town in Galgaduud region on Friday morning. Gal’ad town which lies in central Somalia, has served as a significant stronghold for the Al Qaeda-linked Islamic militants of al-Shabaab over the past eight years, Somali military said.
The allied forces who moved from their bases in Bud-Bud village entered Gal’ad after the Al shabaab militants withdrew from the town, according to residents who spoke to Radio Shabelle by phone. Bud-Bud is situated just 30 kilometers (19 miles), west of Gal’ad town.
Local residents said SNA and AMISOM troops conducted security operation in the city and set up defensive positions outside the town, to fend off a possible counter-offensive from Al shabaab.
Posted by: Steve White ||
04/30/2016
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U.S. Vice President Joe Biden met Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi and other top officials in unannounced visits to Baghdad and Arbil on April 28 to show support for a government battling the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) amid political and economic crises.
It was the first visit for Biden, the White House’s point person on Iraq, since U.S. forces withdrew in 2011 after nearly nine years of occupation. He was the third and highest-level U.S. official to visit the country this month.
Biden’s trip, several months in the planning, is a sign of the progress Washington believes Iraqi forces have made in beating back the militants over the past year and its hope that the northern city of Mosul can be recaptured before U.S. President Barack Obama leaves office in January 2017.
Didn't have to be that way...
“This is a good indication of the United States’ continued support for Prime Minister Abadi’s efforts to unify the nation of Iraq to confront ISIL,” White House spokesman Josh Earnest said.
His first stop on April 28 was Baghdad where he met Abadi and Parliament Speaker Salim al-Jabouri to discuss “progress” in the fight against ISIL, including plans to retake Mosul.
Iraqi officials say they will retake Mosul this year but, in private, many question whether that is possible.
He later flew to Arbil, the capital of the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG), for a 90-minute working dinner with the region’s president, Massoud Barzani, to discuss the Mosul offensive in which Kurdish peshmerga forces are expected to have a critical role.
Posted by: Steve White ||
04/30/2016
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Twelve militants of the outlawed Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) were killed during ongoing operations in two southeastern Turkish provinces on April 28, the Turkish military stated on April 29.
According to a statement posted on the Turkish General Staff’s official website, six PKK militants were killed in the Nusaybin district of the southeastern province of Mardin, while six others were killed in the southeastern province of Şırnak. Security forces also seized several explosive devices, machine gun bullets, Kalashnikov magazines, shotgun shells, rocket launcher ammunition, binoculars, a rucksack and a shutter gun gas mask.
Meanwhile, one soldier who was heavily wounded during clashes between the PKK and Turkish security forces in Şırnak on April 26 succumbed to his injuries on April 29.
In another incident on April 29, PKK militants threw a hand-made explosive at a military building in the southeastern province of Diyarbakır. No injuries were reported in the incident. The explosive detonated after hitting the roof of the military building belonging to the Defense Ministry’s Construction Estate Regional Directorate in the central Yenişehir district at around 1.30 p.m. The explosion only caused material damage to part of the roof.
A number of police units were deployed to the area following the attack. One shrapnel piece from the explosion also hit a parked car near the military building. In addition, police also examined surveillance cameras nearby to apprehend the PKK militants responsible for the attack.
Posted by: Steve White ||
04/30/2016
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[Dhaka Tribune] A retired school teacher and his teenage son were tossed in the calaboose Youse'll never take me alive coppers!... [BANG!]... Ow!... I quit! yesterday in connection with the killing of Rajshahi University’s Prof AFM Rezaul Karim Siddique, police said.
Metropolitan Police Commissioner Md Shamsuddin disclosed the development at a media conference.
Abdul Hakim, 63, who taught at Bagmara Pilot High School, and his son, Bagmara College first year student Ariful Islam, were picked up from their house at Sreepur, family members said.
Hakim’s younger brother Ishaq Ali said a group of men, identifying as law enforcers, barged into their house and arrested his brother and nephew in the morning. They also confiscated mobile phones of other members of the family.
Hakim’s son Shariful Islam, 25, is a student at RU English department.
Police Commissioner Shamsuddin said there was no major breakthrough in the case. He requested witnesses to contact police and promised to ensure their safety.
English department teacher Prof Siddique was murdered last week near his house. He is the fourth RU teacher to be hacked to death since 2004.
Posted by: Fred ||
04/30/2016
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[Khaama (Afghanistan)] The Afghan intelligence operatives have placed in durance vile You have the right to remain silent... a group of kidnappers involved in the brutal murder of a 14-year-old boy identified as Abasin.
The National Directorate of Security ...the Afghan national intel agency... (NDS) said Abasin was kidnapped by the group around 5 months ago and later murdered him.
A statement by NDS said the group was arrested during an operation in Kabul ...the capital of Afghanistan. Home to continuous fighting from 1992 to 1996 between the forces of would-be strongman and Pak ISI/Jamaat-e-Islami sock puppet Gulbuddin Hekmayar and the Northern Alliance, a period which won Hek the title Most Evil Man in the World and didn't do much for the reputations of the Northern Alliance guys either.... city and the dead body of Abasin was recovered from a grave fin Chinar Keli area of Khak-e-Jabar district of Kabul.
The brutal murder of Abasin sparked anger among the Afghan people amid concerns that kidnap for ransom cases have increased during the recent months.
According to reports, the kidnappers had initially cut a finger of Abasin and demanded one hundred thousand US Dollars for his release.
Kidnap for ransom cases still continue in parts of the country despite the Afghan intelligence nabbed two MAFIA bosses involved in major kidnappings who were later executed by the government.
The two top MAFIA leaders, Habib Istalif and Raees Khudaidad, were executed late in 2014 and early in 2015 after they were arrested by intelligence operatives.
Posted by: Fred ||
04/30/2016
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[IsraelTimes] Eight arrested and 30 others detained after Friday prayers
Police and Border Police officers were attacked on Friday by Paleostinians throwing stones after Friday prayers in the Old City.
The festivities occurred near the Mughrabi Gate, the main entrance into the Temple Mount compound.
Police asked the Islamic Waqf, the religious authority entrusted with overseeing religious activities at the Temple Mount, to help restore calm. According to Channel 2, coppers warned Waqf officials that if they failed to do so, Israeli forces would enter the compound to enforce order.
"The dialogue was effective, peace and quiet were restored for the benefit of all worshipers and visitors," a statement by police issued late Friday afternoon said.
Eight people were locked away ... anything you say can and will be used against you, whether you say it or not... and some 30 others questioned after the riots ended.
Police "were investing great efforts in preserving the status quo and the public safety in the Temple Mount. Any attempt to disturb the peace or to hurt coppers or civilians will be met with a swift, resolute and uncompromising response from coppers. The long arm of the police will find every rioter and rock thrower and work to remove them from the premises and bring them to justice," the police statement continued.
Police deployed in large numbers in the Old City during the Passover holiday. Friday brought even more men and women in uniform to the site as Orthodox Christians were commemorating Good Friday.
On Tuesday, several Jews bowed down inside the Temple Mount compound, violating a police ban on non-Muslim worship at the site. The many officers on site rushed to create space between the Jews and Arab worshipers and Waqf members who had tried to beat them and hit them with sticks.
Over the past few days police have on several instances arrested activists from a radical Jewish movement that seeks to restore Jewish worship -- including animal sacrifices -- to the site where Jews believe the ancient Jewish Temple once stood.
[AnNahar] Morocco on Friday dismantled a "terrorist cell" composed of three men who had received instructions from the Islamic State ...formerly ISIS or ISIL, depending on your preference. Before that al-Qaeda in Iraq, as shaped by Abu Musab Zarqawi. They're very devout, committing every atrocity they can find in the Koran and inventing a few more. They fling Allah around with every other sentence, but to hear the pols talk they're not really Moslems.... group to carry out attacks in the country, the interior ministry said.
The suspects were detained in the northeastern town of Nador and had been ordered to set up an IS branch aimed at "preparing a series of suicide kabooms... against vital targets," a statement said.
The members of the cell are being investigated and will be referred to trial, it added.
In March, the interior ministry said that the alleged members of a jihadist cell it had incarcerated Drop the rod and step away witcher hands up! the previous month, including a French national, were plotting to carry out "biological" attacks in the kingdom.
Rabat says 152 "terrorist cells" have been busted since 2002, including 31 over the past three years with ties to jihadists in Iraq and Syria.
A study by the U.S.-based Soufan Group said in December that at least 1,200 Moroccans had traveled to fight alongside IS in Iraq and Syria in the previous 18 months.
Posted by: trailing wife ||
04/30/2016
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[ARA News] AMUDE – Macer Gifford (29), a foreign volunteer from the United Kingdom has set up a Tactical Medical Unit with volunteers from all around the world to help Kurdish forces of the People’s Protection Units (YPG) in northern Syria with medical aid.
“We came for a number of different reasons. Mainly because we couldn’t bear to sit at home and watch the world fail to confront ISIS. There has been a failure of leadership in the West and the current strategy to defeat ISIS is terribly flawed,” Gifford told ARA News.
“Not enough is being done to help the people that are the most effective on the ground [in reference to YPG]. I set up the Tactical Medical Unit because hundreds of Kurds were dying from preventable wounds,” he said.
“I knew I could get together a team of western medics to provide training and battlefield assistance to the YPG. We have trained 100 Kurds so far in battlefield medicine,” the British volunteer added.
In the end, the group aims to train 500 to 1000 fighters. “We have also created an all-westerner medical team that will be replaced by Kurds in the near future. We’re trying to create a legacy here that will endure for years to come,” he told ARA News.
Gifford joined the YPG in December 2014. “I was horrified by the British government’s inaction in the face of the sudden and brutal rise of the jihadists. The plight of the Yezidis and the heroic defence of Kobane by the YPG inspired me to come to Rojava [Syria’s Kurdish region] and join the resistance against ISIS,” he said.
“I’m particularly keen to share my experiences and raise awareness about the YPG. The Kurdish administration in Rojava should be a key part of the West’s strategy to defeat ISIS. We should support them with weapons, money and humanitarian aid,” he added.
Over 80 foreign fighters are now serving with the YPG and Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) in both the canton administrations of Kobane and Jazeera in northern Syria, Rojava.
Recently, foreign fighters have been facing difficulties returning back to their home countries due to the political problems between the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) and the local canton administrations in Rojava.
They risk arrest while crossing the Syrian border into the Kurdistan region of Iraq by smuggling, since the KRG does not allow fighters to cross in officially. Last week, two Britons and one Irishman were released after spending more than one week in the prison of Erbil, the capital of the Kurdistan region.
[ENGLISH.ALARABIYA.NET] Last week’s Jerusalem bus bombing carried out by member of Hamas, always the voice of sweet reason, shows the Islamist movement’s "determination" to continue resisting Israel, the head of the Paleostinian group in Gazoo said on Thursday.
Addressing thousands of supporters in the Gazoo Strip, Ismail Haniya praised the "heroic action" of Abdel Hamid Abu Sorur, who killed himself and maimed 20 people in the April 18 attack.
Haniya said the bombing "shows that Hamas and the sons of Hamas are committed to resistance and determined to pursue the intifada (uprising)".
"We say to the Zionist occupier that our people can no longer stand the blockade" which Israel imposed on Gazoo in 2006.
...and Egypt completed when President al Sisi took office in what was not quite a military coup.
"It is our right to have a port and an airport," in Gazoo, he said.
As it is my right to have the figure and energy I had at twenty-five.
Israeli police said that a Hamas holy warrior carried out the bus attack.
A wave of violence across Israel, the occupied West Bank, and Jerusalem has killed 203 Paleostinians and 28 Israelis since October.
The wave clearly prefers dead Muslims, many of who are Palestinians rather than Arab Israelis. But such is Allah's will.
Most of the Paleostinians killed were carrying out knife, gun or car-ramming attacks, Israeli authorities say.
Posted by: Fred ||
04/30/2016
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Top|| File under: Hamas
#1
"Killing Joooo civilians is our aim"
Posted by: Frank G ||
04/30/2016 18:58
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[WASHINGTONPOST] The battered Syrian city of Aleppo faced another wave of Arclight airstrikes and shelling Friday, activists said, killing worshipers at a mosque and damaging a clinic after an earlier air blitz left dozens dead, including patients and staff at a main hospital.
The attacks -- apparently carried out on both sides -- further eroded efforts to rebuild a cease-fire and halt what a United Nations ...a lucrative dumping ground for the relatives of dictators and party hacks... envoy described as a "monstrous disregard for civilian lives" by all factions in the conflict.
More than 200 people have been killed in the past week in Aleppo from pro-government Arclight airstrikes and rebel barrages on regime-held neighborhoods, said a Britannia-based monitoring group, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights.
Doctors Without Borders said the corpse count in an Arclight airstrike on al-Quds hospital in Aleppo on Wednesday had risen to 50, including six medical staff, and one of the area’s last pediatricians. The hospital was supported by both Doctors Without Borders and the International Committee for the Red Thingy, which also condemned the strike.
"The sky is falling in Aleppo," Muskilda Zancada, the head of the Doctors Without Borders mission in Syria, said in a statement Friday. "The city, consistently at the front lines of this brutal war, is now in danger of coming under a full offensive. No corner is being spared."
Posted by: Fred ||
04/30/2016
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#1
Bad news: "Fragile truce" phase is over.
Good news: Still in the "Rebuild the cease-fire" phase.
#2
Doctors Without Borders said the corpse count in an Arclight airstrike on al-Quds hospital in Aleppo on Wednesday had risen to 50, including six medical staff,
Ought to start calling themselves Médecins sans défense aérienne. An autoclave is no substitute for a ZSU.
[Dhaka Tribune] Claiming that the previous BNP government was the most experienced and successful in controlling militancy, party senior joint secretary general Ruhul Kabir Rizvi yesterday said their party is ready to help the government eliminate destructive krazed killer activities.
"BNP is ready to help (government) control any anti-civilisation and destructive krazed killer activities with its previous experiences," he said.
The BNP leader came up with the remarks while speaking at a press briefing at the party's Nayapaltan central office.
Rizvi also urged the government to come up with united and all-out efforts creating a national consensus irrespective of party and opinion to eliminate life taking and anti-democratic krazed killer forces in a bid to ensure peace and security.
He observed that militancy has emerged with its ugly face in the country as the government remains busy eliminating opposition avoiding its other responsibilities.
The BNP leader alleged that the government and the ruling party leaders are trying to hide the real offenders by intentionally involving their party men with recent killings, including Kalabagan double murders.
Mentioning that Information Minister Hasanul Haq Inu recently said 8,000 trained forces of Evil have returned to Bangladesh, Rizvi suggested the prime minister to ask the minister to know about whereabouts of the krazed killer without blaming BNP. "Because, he (Inu) knows their hideouts."
"Stop patronising the krazed killers...the remarks of your (PM’s) minsters and leader have demonstrated that you are pampering krazed killers," he added.
BNP does not do the politics of killing and terrorism, Rizvi said their party had rather broken the backbone of krazed killers. "There’ll be no use of giving BNP a bad name involving with militancy as people don’t believe it."
He urged the government to track down the gunnies involved in criminal activities and mete out exemplary punishment to them.
Posted by: Fred ||
04/30/2016
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[Dhaka Tribune] A medical student was put behind bars in NATO ...the North Atlantic Treaty Organization. A single organization with differing goals, equipment, language, doctrine, and organization.... re yesterday afternoon, following the post of an objectionable comment involving religious sentiments on Facebook.
The accused was identified as Khandaker Mahin, a student of the department of surgery and medicine at Kushtia Medical College and son of Golam Mostafa of Shekherhat of Sadar upazila in the district.
OC (investigation) of NATOre Sadar cop shoppe, Nazrul Islam Jewel, said a mosque that was set up in Shekherhat village last year had the donor’s name inscribed on the main entrance.
A man named Mannan from the village published a comment over the matter on Facebook. Mahin posted an unfavourable reply.
Locals became agitated after the remarks went public.
Afterwards, Sadar upazila Chhatra League ... the student wing of the Bangla Awami League ... General Secretary Shohanur Rahman lodged a case against the duo under the Information and Communication Technology Act.
Police forces locked away Please don't kill me! Mahin yesterday. He was sent to jail after being produced before court.
Posted by: Fred ||
04/30/2016
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[DAWN] The United States (US) administration is withholding funds earmarked for Pakistain's purchase of eight F-16 fighter jets, BBC Urdu reported, citing an unnamed senior US State Department official.
The State Department official told BBC Urdu on condition of anonymity that the B.O. regime is still willing to sell the fighter jets to Pakistain, but will not contribute US funds towards the deal.
The US administration took this step with directions from US Senate Committee on Foreign Relations Chairman Bob Corker because only Congress has the authority to dispense or withhold the funds, the official said.
As a result of this move, Pakistain may have to foot the bill of $700 million for the eight fighter jets.
As per the earlier arrangement, Pakistain would have paid $270 million while the US would grant the remaining $430 million for the purchase.
The $742 million earmarked for American military aid to Pakistain in the 2016-2017 budget has also been put on hold, but may be released if Congress changes its mind, the State Department official said, adding that the B.O. regime is working with Congress in this regard.
Posted by: Fred ||
04/30/2016
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[DAWN] Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif ... served two non-consecutive terms as prime minister, heads the Pakistain Moslem League (Nawaz). Noted for his spectacular corruption, the 1998 Pak nuclear test, border war with India, and for being tossed by General Musharraf... has said some elements are hatching conspiracies against his government, but he believes in prosperity and development of the country by launching mega projects.
"I was asked by the Oil and Gas Regulatory Authority to increase prices of petroleum products, but I refused to do so as prosperity and development of the country is dear to me.
"I will tackle those who are hatching conspiracies," the prime minister told a public gathering after inaugurating the second phase of the Hazara motorway from Havalian to Shinkiari at Hazara University’s ground on Thursday.
He also inaugurated a project of gas supply to Oghi, Shinkiari and other areas of the district.
Posted by: Fred ||
04/30/2016
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[ENGLISH.ALARABIYA.NET] Libya’s UN-backed unity government called on Thursday on military factions to hold off from any campaign against the ISIS-controlled city of Sirte until a unified military command structure is created.
The statement came amid signs that factions from both eastern and western Libya could be gearing up for an advance on Sirte, although such operations have repeatedly been announced in recent months without taking place.
ISIS has held Sirte since 2015, taking advantage of a conflict between loose alliances of armed brigades allied to Libya’s rival governments to seize a 250km strip of coastline around the central Mediterranean city, which lies between the eastern and western power bases.
Western states are hoping the unity government, which arrived 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 month, will be able to make Libya’s armed factions work together against the ultra-hardline holy warrior group, and have said they are ready to provide training for Libyan forces if requested by the unity government.
The United States has already conducted air strikes against ISIS snuffies in Libya.
The unity government’s leadership, or Presidential Council, said on Thursday it welcomed the "push by various factions and armed forces to fight ISIS forces in Sirte", but warned that an uncoordinated offensive could lead to civil war.
"In the absence of coordination and unified leadership ... the Council expresses its concern that the battle in Sirte against ISIS (ISIS) will be a confrontation between those armed forces," it said in a statement, adding such a conflict would likely benefit ISIS.
"Accordingly, the Presidential Council, as the supreme commander of army, demands all Libyan military forces wait for it to appoint a joint leadership for the Sirte operation," the statement said.
Posted by: Fred ||
04/30/2016
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[REUTERS] Venezuela's opposition-dominated Congress on Thursday ordered the dismissal of Food Minister Rodolfo Marco over chronic shortages of staple goods that have become the primary complaint about President Nicolas Maduro's government.
The opposition majority used a constitutional censure vote to order that Maduro dismiss Marco. Legislators had previously summoned him for questioning over the shortages, but he declined to appear.
"It cannot be that today in Venezuela, 3 million citizens eat less than twice a day, and the majority of them do not eat dairy, meat or eggs," said opposition deputy Carlos Paparoni.
The ruling Socialist Party may simply ignore the censure vote or seek to have it shot down by the Supreme Court, which has routinely sided with Maduro in disputes with Congress since the opposition's legislative elections victory in December.
Responding earlier this month to congressional criticism of Marco, Maduro said "nobody touches the food minister" and that "the revolution will not be censured by anyone, much less an immoral National Assembly," according to local media reports.
The growing difficulties in obtaining staple goods has helped spur the opposition's efforts to seek a recall of Maduro.
A combination of food shortages and electricity rationing contributed to dozens of incidents of looting around the country on Tuesday and Wednesday. Maduro attributed that violence to right-wing conspirators seeking to destabilize his government.
He has criticized the assembly for continuing to hold sessions despite an executive order that the public sector should work only on Mondays and Tuesdays, to save power.
Residents in the Caracas slum of Petare this month said they are eating more starches and skipping meals because they cannot find food or cannot afford to buy what is available.
Posted by: Fred ||
04/30/2016
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Top|| File under: Commies
#1
Doesn't Venezuela still have muddy water? Hollow logs?
[AnNahar] A Swedish suspect in the Brussels and Gay Paree attacks has told Sherlocks that he dumped the explosives that he carried onto the Belgian capital's metro system into the toilet, reports said Friday.
Not all the brave Lions of Islam are actually brave -- or at least they love life more than they expected.
Osama Krayem, 23, doused the home-made TATP explosive that he had carried into Maalbeek metro station with water before trying to dispose of it in the lavatory of the apartment where the attackers were based, La Libre Belgique newspaper said.
It said Sherlocks thought his claims were "credible" as TATP, the favored choice of the Islamic State ...formerly ISIS or ISIL, depending on your preference. Before that al-Qaeda in Iraq, as shaped by Abu Musab Zarqawi. They're very devout, committing every atrocity they can find in the Koran and inventing a few more. They fling Allah around with every other sentence, but to hear the pols talk they're not really Moslems.... group as it can be made from readily available chemicals, is in crystal form and dissolves in water.
Belgian TV station RTBF carried a similar report.
Belgian prosecutors declined to confirm or deny the reports when contacted by AFP and Krayem's lawyers were unavailable for comment.
Krayem, 23, was tossed in the calaboose Drop the rod and step away witcher hands up! on April 8 and charged the next day with "terrorist murders" over last month's suicide kabooms at Brussels airport and Maalbeek station in which 32 people were killed and more than 300 injured.
He has also reportedly been charged with links to November's Gay Paree attacks which left 130 people dead.
Both attacks have been claimed by the Islamic State group and appear linked to the same cell of attackers.
Posted by: trailing wife ||
04/30/2016
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Top|| File under: Islamic State
#1
Back in high school I learned that dumping metallic sodium in a toilet & flushing would likely cause an explosion a floor or two down.
[ENGLISH.ALARABIYA.NET] Abu Jassim can only afford to provide one meal a day for his seven-member family - usually a stew made of locally grown leafy green vegetables or rice with a small portion of flat bread.
"We are experiencing the agony of starvation for the first time in our life," said Abu Jassim, a 52-year-old grocer and resident of the besieged ISIS-held city of Fallujah.
In reality, nobody seems to be starving in Fallujah just yet. But medical officials say malnutrition is on the rise and vital medical supplies are running out.
Continued on Page 49
Posted by: Fred ||
04/30/2016
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Top|| File under: Islamic State
#1
These residents depicted a bleak picture of conditions inside the city, with prices soaring for some basic staples while other items have completely run out.
"It's like living in Venezuela, but with mortar fire", said a resident who would only give his name as Mohammed.
(IraqiNews.com) Nineveh – Media officials with the Ministry of Defense announced on Friday the killing of 91 ISIS elements during clashes in the villages of Muhana and Khardan south of Mosul.
The officials said in a statement followed by IraqiNews.com, “The security forces had managed to kill 91 terrorists and foiled an attack by ISIS on the villages of Muhana and Khardan south of Mosul.”
Noteworthy, a security force was able to repel an ISIS attack on the village of al-Nasr south of the city of Mosul a few days ago.
Posted by: badanov ||
04/30/2016
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Top|| File under: Islamic State
#1
I'm sure local hospitals were flooded by the wounded.
#2
I don't believe much of what the Iraq Army reports.
Using the Rburg kill numbers alone indicates 100's of dead ISIS daily, if you believe the press reports.
[DailyMail] Two alleged ISIS sympathisers gave Brussels bomb suspect Mohammed Abrini £3,000 months before he launched attacks in Gay Paree and Brussels, a court has heard.
Mohammed Ali Ahmed, 26 and Zakaria Boufassil, 26, allegedly met Abrini - referred to by Belgian police as 'the man in the hat' - at Small Heath Park in Birmingham in July.
The pair are accused of paying him the money when they knew it would be used to fund terrorism.
Abrini is currently in jug over the attack at Brussels airport in March which killed 16 people. He is also wanted over last year's attacks on Gay Paree which killed 130.
Meanwhile, ...back at the pound, the little lost dog had finished eating the rat terrier... Zakaria's sister, 29-year-old Soumaya Boufassil, also appeared in court, over allegations she was trying to reach Syria.
Alongside Ahmed, she is charged with preparing for terror acts between January 1 2015 and April 8 2016.
The court was told how the duo planned to travel to Syria so she could meet with her husband Abdelatif Gaini, who is allegedly fighting in Syria with ISIS.
Mother-of-two Soumaya, who is a Belgian national, also allegedly took £16,000 from three bank accounts as part of her attempt to get to war-torn Syria.
She then handed it out to different people saying 'if something should happen to use the cash to help my children', the court was told.
All three defendants are all from the Small Heath area of Birmingham and have links to Belgium, The Sick Man of Europe Turkey ...the only place on the face of the earth that misses the Ottoman Empire.... and Morocco.
Appearing at Westminster Magistrates' Court today, Ahmed was wearing a blue T-shirt while Zakaria Boufassil wore a grey hoody. Soumaya Boufassil wore a full black niqab.
The three defendant had a French interpreter to help them understand proceedings, but all spoke good English as they confirmed their names and dates of birth.
Prosecutors Carolyn Oakley told the court: 'Mohammed Ali Ahmed and Zakaria Boufassil arranged to meet Mohamad Abrini in Birmingham and give him £3,000.
'Abrini had planned to travel from Belgium to Birmingham between July 9 and 16 2015 to meet Mr Ali Ahmed.
'Abrini was wanted by French and Belgian authorities for the November attacks in Gay Paree and the attack in Belgium.'
The trio were among five people jugged Yez got nuttin' on me, coppers! Nuttin'! by Metropolitan Police Service's Counter Terrorism Command in raids on April 14 and 15.
The investigation was part of a joint investigation into the Gay Paree and Brussels terror attacks involving MI5, as well as the Belgian and French authorities called Operation Yawler.
Taxi driver Fazal Sajjad Younis Khan, 40, from Small Heath, has already been charged with possession of CS spray and will appear in court next month.
The fifth suspect, a 59-year-old man, remains on bail while the investigation continues.
Abrini is the second member of the terror cell thought to have been in the UK after it emerged the criminal mastermind behind Gay Paree, Abdelhamid Abaaoud, was also in Birmingham and London in the months before the November attacks.
Abaaoud, 28, who like Abrini is of Moroccan origin, was killed in a French police raid a week after the Gay Paree attacks
Posted by: trailing wife ||
04/30/2016
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#1
Look what we found in the park after dark.
We will take him home and name him Clark.
Isn't crazy what you can find it the park after dark?
BOOOOOOOOOOOOM!
The Cat In The Black is Back
Herr Doktor Seuss, the Baghdad Collection
Irbil- Official security sources revealed that Iran will be sending tons of ammo, arms and missiles to Shi’ite Popular Mobilization Forces and Hezbollah militants who are situated in the central city of Tooz District in Saladin Province Tuz Khormato. The artilleries are sent to support the continuation of battles against the Kurdish Peshmerga forces.
Thousands of Tuz Khormato residents are fleeing the city’s premise and vicinity, heading to the Kirkuk governorate, as they fear the renewal of fierce clashes their city has been witnessing over the past few days. Fierce clashes are erupting between Shi’ite militias and Peshmerga forces.
Asharq Al-Awsat newspaper sources revealed details on the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) ushering in, over the last two nights, seven cargos packed with high and medium caliber weapons which entered the area through the Mehran bordering exit and into Iraqi grounds.
The reinforcement came under coordination struck between official parties, the Iraqi government and the Popular Mobilization Forces PMF.
The cargos ferried rocket-propelled grenades, machine guns and rifles. As soon as the shipments arrived on Iraqi ground, they set course for the Tuz Khormato region taking the route through Sulaiman Bek which falls under the control of Shi’ite militias.
The loaded trucks landed in the hands of PMF groups and Lebanon-based Hezbollah militias assigned to fight in Iraq.
Meanwhile, Kurdish security director in the Tuz Khormatu district, Major Farouq Ahmed, told Asharq al-Awsat newspaper that the PMF has been expecting an attack by the Peshmerga forces.
“Over half of Tuz Khurmato’s residents have fled in the direction of the Kirkuk northern governorate as they fear the regeneration of clashes between the two conflicting sides, official spheres are currently inoperative and markets are closed with almost no sign of life across the city,” the sources added.
On the other hand, Iraqi army forces backed Peshmerga forces and the international coalition in launching an attack over ISIS sites in Southern Mosul to free whatever cities left under the terrorist organization’s control.
Nineveh Governorate security committee chairman Mohammed Ibrahim said that the Iraqi Army launched Yesterday at 6:00 am a comprehensive campaign backed by the international coalition in al-Mahana village, a strategic location, situated south of Mosul. The village was successfully freed from over a hundred ISIS militants; the coalition’s air campaign destroyed two explosive laced vehicles, three missile launching platforms and a score of high-arcing ballistic trajectories affiliated to ISIS.
Ibrahim pointed out that al-Mahana is a significantly strategic location, and with it being freed all support routes delivering ISIS with supplies have been cut off .Moreover, ISIS now has its movement restricted to a few villages in Mosul.
“After clearing out the al-Mahana from landmines planted by ISIS, the Iraqi Army will head towards villages situated on the eastern bank of the Tigris River to free them as well,” Ibrahim added.
Posted by: badanov ||
04/30/2016
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#1
Meanwhile, Kurdish security director in the Tuz Khormatu district, Major Farouq Ahmed, told Asharq al-Awsat newspaper that the PMF has been expecting an attack by the Peshmerga forces
California continues with its Kalifornication program using firearms laws. Last week a total of seven new firearms related laws were voted out of the Senate Public Safety Committee. Among the proposed new restrictions are requirements to force those who build their own ARs and 1911s to register those firearms, new definitions that would force shops selling pistol ammunition to keep track of sales (which gets around a 2009 court order forbidding the tracking of ammunition sales), expanding the definition of assault weapons and a ban on weapons magazines with a capacity larger than 10 rounds.
What the laws would do is to make legal practice in the state illegal, thus making the state one of the biggest gun thieves in the nation.
I have been told all my life that California leads all trends nationwide, but they do not in firearms and firearms freedom. Missouri and Idaho have legislation that ends those states' ability to regulate firearms, by making Constitutional Carry the law. In my own home state of Oklahoma the legislature passed resolutions for Constitutional Carry, eliminating onerous background checks as a condition for exercising your Gawd given rights.
Firearms will be front and center in the upcoming presidential race, and I suspect that Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump both favor adding even more gun laws.
Australia is the gun fascist's dream of the end result of banning firearms, but as I have said repeatedly, the notion that banning firearms will work in free societies has been shown repeatedly to fail. Twenty percent, just 20 percent of firearms extant in Australia were turned in, which makes their law a massive failure. Even Connecticut, browbeaten into accepting draconian firearms laws after the Sandy Hook massacre, could not get more than 18 percent of AR owners to register their firearms.
Prices for pistol ammunition were mixed. Prices for rifle ammunition were steady.
Prices for both used pistols and for used rifles were mixed.
Note: Average price for a used AR-10 Pattern Semiautomatic jumped 25 percent this week, with Florida leading thw way. This is reverse the trend from last year when the AR-10 pattern semitautomatic rifles was selling $820 average nationwide just nine months ago.
New Lows:
None
Pistol Ammunition
.45 Caliber, 230 Grain, From Last Week: Unchanged (6 Weeks)
Cheapest, 50 rounds: LAX Ammunition, Tulammo, FMJ, Steel Cased, .24 per round
Cheapest Bulk, 500 rounds: Lucky Gunner, Wolf WPA, FMJ, Steel Casing, .24 per round (From Last week: Unchanged (3 Weeks))
.40 Caliber Smith & Wesson, 180 Grain, From Last Week: -.02 Each After Unchanged (8 Weeks)
Cheapest, 50 rounds: Cheaper Than Dirt!, Atomic Ammunition, HP, Brass Casing, .20 per round
Cheapest Bulk, 1,000 rounds: Freedom Munitions, Freedom Ammunition, FMJFP, Steel Casing, .20 per round (From Last Week: -.02 Each After Unchanged (2 Weeks))
9mm Parabellum, 115 Grain, From Last Week: Unchanged (3 Weeks)
Cheapest, 50 rounds: Freedom First Outfitters, Tulammo, FMJ, Steel Casing, .17 per round
Cheapest Bulk, 1,000 rounds: SG Ammo, Tulammo, FMJ, Steel Casing, .16 per round (From Last Week: Unchanged (7 Weeks))
.357 Magnum, 158 Grain, From Last Week: -.02 Each After Unchanged (7 weeks)
Cheapest, 50 rounds: Cheaper Than Dirt!, Tulammo, FMJ, Steel Casing, .25 per round
Cheapest Bulk: 1,000 rounds: SG Ammo, Tulammo, FMJ, Steel cased, .25 per round (From Last Week: Unchanged (4Q, 2015))
Rifle Ammunition
.223 Caliber/5.56mm 55 Grain, From Last Week: Unchanged (6 Weeks)
Cheapest, 20 rounds: Ammunition Supply Company, Tulammo, FMJ, Steel Casing, .21 per round
Cheapest Bulk, 1,000 rounds: Cheaper Than Dirt!, Tulammo, FMJ, steel casing, .21 per round (From Last Week: Unchanged (2 Weeks))
.308 NATO 150 Grain, From Last Week: +.03 Each After Unchanged (5 Weeks)
Cheapest, 20 rounds: LAX Ammunition, Tulammo, FMJ, Steel Casing, .37 per round
Cheapest Bulk, 500 rounds: J&G Sales, Tulammo, steel casing, FMJ, .34 per round (From Last Week: Unchanged (7 Weeks))
7.62x39 AK 123 Grain, From Last Week: -.01 Each After Unchanged (3 Weeks)
Cheapest, 20 rounds: AmmoFast, Wolf WPA, steel case, FMJ, .24 per round
Cheapest Bulk, 1,000 rounds: Ammunition Supply Company, Wolf WPA, steel case, FMJ, .22 per round (From Last Week: Unchanged (2 weeks))
.22 LR 40 Grain, From Last Week: Unchanged (2 Weeks)
Cheapest, 50 rounds (10 Boxes Max): Ammomen, CCI Blazer, RNL, .07 per round
Cheapest Bulk, 325 rounds (2 Cases Max): Glen's Army Navy Store, Federal Automatch, RNL, .07 per round (From Last Week: Unchanged (3 Weeks))
[RADIO.FOXNEWS] Bashing a Trump supporter bloody, wrecking a police car, overwhelming the local cops simply could not have done more to ensure a Trump victory among Caliphornia, an impregnable bastion of the Democratic Party, Republicans who already think immigration and the demands of supporters of illegal immigrants colonists are out of control.
That riot demonstrated to Republicans why giving Donald Trump the nomination is a must.
These rioters don’t think these things through, of course. They are angry, emotional, not rational. They just want to demonstrate that they hate Donald Trump...and they don’t want to see a wall because, well, they like the border open. It’s how they have amassed political power in California. In some small way Donald Trump threatens that, or so they think. I think they’re wrong. California has gone over the cliff politically. It is thoroughly Democrat and will stay so for a very long time.
But hey, if you want to make sure Trump is the Republican nominee, a riot flying the Mexican flag is a sure fire winner.
Posted by: Fred ||
04/30/2016
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"But hey, if you want to make sure Trump is the Republican nominee, a riot flying the Mexican flag is a sure fire winner."
Yup. And be sure to keep on rioting, right up to November 8th.
Posted by: Dave D. ||
04/30/2016 7:52
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#3
I am reading that the rioters, when they come to Cleveland, may meet some physical resistance....
#6
Trump or Cruz, doesnt matter to them - because if either of them gets into office, the gravy train is done. I think the Free Shit Army is headquartered in Cali.
#13
The Bushes, the Clintons, the Kennedys, Obama, McCain and all these other weasel politicians have encouraged this type of behavior. California may have passed its tipping point...maybe even the whole country. We might still have time to stop it without a civil war and we might not. Or we might just turn into Mexico.
Posted by: Abu Uluque ||
04/30/2016 13:39
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#14
Consider this and the links to the anti-enforcement La Raza sites. Of note, included in the linking is SEIU, the major union for California State Employees.
#15
I am not a Trump supporter. Actually I think he is an loud mouth arrogant azz and I don't quite understand the charm of his "brashness." That said, I'd crawl through broken glass to vote for him to push back against this illegal immigrant riot nonsense.
(IraqiNews.com) Kirkuk – A security source in Kirkuk province said on Friday, that 32 ISIS members had been killed in an aerial bombing southwest of the province.
The source, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said in a statement obtained by IraqiNews.com, “The U.S. B-52 bomber conducted aerial strikes targeting sites belonging to the ISIS in the vicinity of al-Rashad and Bashir village (35 km southwest of Kirkuk),” adding that, “The bombardment resulted in killing 12 ISIS elements and 20 others, in addition to destroying three tactical units.”
Posted by: badanov ||
04/30/2016
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[ENGLISH.ALARABIYA.NET] Saudi authorities foiled a boom-mobileing attempt in a shoot-out that killed two suspects on Friday, the interior ministry said, after a small bomb maimed a policeman elsewhere.
ISIS had previously claimed deadly shootings and bombings against security forces in the kingdom, where dozens were also killed in a wave of attacks by Al-Qaeda between 2003 and 2006.
Security forces foiled "a terrorist act" on Friday after closely monitoring two cars in the southwestern region of Aseer. One of the vehicles was carrying explosives, an interior ministry front man said in a statement.
Their drivers, aware that they were being followed, shot up security forces, prompting a car chase, the source said.
Security aircraft intervened and the suspects pulled over in a desert area as both sides shot it out. forcing the drivers to leave their cars and seek cover before the bombs in one car went kaboom!, the front man added.
Both suspects were killed in the shoot-out that followed despite calls for them to surrender, the source said, adding that there were no casualties among the security forces.
Investigations are ongoing to identify the two men, the source said.
Friday’s announcement came a day after a small bomb went kaboom! outside a highway patrol station in eastern 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... , injuring a policeman, official media reported.
The late Thursday attack happened in the Al-Ahsa region, the Saudi Press Agency said, citing a provincial police front man.
One member of the police force received "a minor injury" and five vehicles were damaged, the front man added.
"Authorities started criminal investigations," he added.
Most of Saudi Arabia’s minority Shiites live in the kingdom’s Eastern Province which includes Al-Ahsa, an oasis region where much of the Gulf country’s oil reserves are located.
Posted by: Fred ||
04/30/2016
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[ENGLISH.ALARABIYA.NET] Oil prices pulled back a tick Friday from 2016 peaks, capping a fourth straight week of gains as the market pushed higher supported in part by a weaker dollar.
Traders seemed bent on looking past the global supply glut and media reports of higher OPEC production in favor of optimism that eventually the market will find a balance that would stabilize prices, which have slid from mid-2014 peaks above $100 a barrel.
US benchmark West Texas Intermediate (WTI) slipped 11 cents to $45.92 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange.
In London, Brent North Sea crude for delivery in June, the European benchmark, lost only one cent at $48.13 a barrel.
Over the course of the week, WTI rose 5.0 percent and Brent 6.7 percent, pushing the month’s gains to around 20 percent for both.
"The supply situation is still a factor in terms of oversupply and I think we rallied as much as we can on the hopes of a rebalancing coming at the end of the year," said John Kilduff of Again Capital.
Also underpinning the market was the dollar’s weakness after the Federal Reserve indicated Wednesday it was in no hurry to raise interest rates and the Bank of Japan’s rejection of more stimulus the next day, which sent the yen soaring, analysts said.
A weak dollar makes oil, priced in the US currency, more affordable for buyers.
"The declining US oil production and a weaker US dollar are giving tailwind to prices, whereas the ongoing oversupply and record-high US crude oil stocks are being ignored," said Commerzbank analysts in a client note Friday.
Posted by: Fred ||
04/30/2016
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[ARA News] ERBIL – Dozens of foreign IT experts from the radical group of Islamic State (ISIS) have deserted the group’s ranks in Iraq’s northwestern city of Mosul over the past few days, leaving a remarkable vacuum in the ISIS-linked media centers in the region, local sources reported on Wednesday.
Local sources confirmed that hundreds of foreign jihadis have recently left ISIS ranks and returned to their home countries, including technical support experts. This has put a pressure on the group’s media centers, which used to broadcast the pro-ISIS propaganda in support of the group’s self-declared Caliphate.
The new wave of dissidence also included a number of American nationals who used to serve as professional film makers on behalf of the extremist group in Mosul and other parts of Iraq.
Speaking to ARA News in Mosul, head of the Nineveh media center Raafat al-Zarari said that pro-ISIS sources admitted that the group has been suffering a shortage of media workers and IT experts “because many of them have left their areas, especially after the US-led coalition forces intensified airstrikes on media and command centers in northern Iraq and Syria.”
The US-led coalition forces have killed hundreds of ISIS top jihadis during the past few months, destroying dozens of media and command centers, as well as tactical units and weapons storage centers for the extremist group.
The source pointed out that the ordinary militants have no technical ability to observe electronic devices for civilians, including laptops, computers, hard drives and smart phones confiscated by the group’s Hisba police forces in the northern city of Mosul.
Al-Zarari explained that the majority of the fleeing technical experts hold the American citizenship. They were serving in media departments along with the group’s security centers in a bid to observe smart devices and computers confiscated from locals in Mosul.
“A number of American technicians have fled Mosul and crossed into Turkey through Syria earlier this week, while the remaining media workers do not have adequate technical expertise to do the same job of those technicians,” a source close to ISIS told ARA News, speaking on the condition of anonymity.
“Locals in Mosul should celebrate by now; their special files in the smartphones will no longer be retrieved,” the source sarcastically concluded.
“Some of those experts used to prepare multimedia reports in order to boost the group’s propaganda in a sophisticated manner,” Zarari told ARA News. “They were also delivering the materials to a large-scale audience on the social media. “These experts have attracted thousands of new followers, washing their minds, inciting them to involve in the bloody terror group across Syria, Iraq and even Europe.”
Many ISIS foreign members have left the city of Mosul after the US-led coalition forces stepped up airstrikes on the group’s media and communication centers. The crucial impact of ISIS propaganda films has dramatically reduced in the last few months, according to observers.
Posted by: badanov ||
04/30/2016
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#1
Another way to view this is that the high tech tumor in Mosul has metastasized.
[ENGLISH.ALARABIYA.NET] Gunmen killed a colonel in Yemen’s second city Aden on Friday, a day after the temporary capital’s police chief escaped a suicide kaboom.
The unidentified gunnies on a cycle of violenceshot up the traffic police chief, Colonel Marwan Abdulalim, as he was in his car going to the weekly Friday prayers in central Aden, a security official said.
The attack is the latest targeting bigwigs in Aden, the base of the Saudi-backed government. Many of the attacks have been claimed by Al-Qaeda or ISIS.
On Thursday, a jacket wallah blew up a vehicle packed with explosives when he was stopped at a checkpoint on the perimeter of the compound around police chief General Shallal Shayae’s house.
Shayae was unharmed in the attack but a security official said one guard was maimed.
There was no immediate claim of responsibility for the attacks that come after loyalist forces backed by a Saudi-led military coalition seized the key southeastern port city of Mukalla and nearby airport and oil facilities from Al-Qaeda, ending a year-long occupation by the turbans.
Government forces also recaptured Huta, another picturesque provincial capital further west, this month.
Military sources in Huta told AFP that authorities were on Friday defusing some 250 landmines and 60 bombs holy warriors had planted near government buildings before fleeing the city.
Meanwhile in Zinjibar, capital of the southern Abyan ...a governorate of Yemen. The region was a base to the Aden-Abyan Islamic Army terrorist group until it dropped the name and joined al-Qaeda. Its capital is Zinjibar. In March 2011, al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula declared the governate an Islamic Emirate after seizing control of the region. The New York Times fastidiously reported that those in control, while Islamic hard boyz, are not in fact al-Qaeda, but something else that looks, tastes, smells, and acts the same. Yemeni government forces launched an effort to re-establish control of the region when President-for-Life Saleh was tossed and the carnage continues... province, hundreds of residents erupted into the streets after Friday prayers demanding Al-Qaeda holy warriors controlling their city to leave, witnesses said.
"No more Qaeda, we want to live safely," they chanted according to witnesses.
Posted by: Fred ||
04/30/2016
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[ENGLISH.ALARABIYA.NET] A "regime of calm" will be enforced in parts of Syria’s Latakia and Damascus regions from 1:00 am (2200 GMT) on April 30, in order to "secure the implementation of the agreed cessation of hostilities", a Syrian military statement said on Friday.
A statement from the Syrian Army General Command did not mention the city of Aleppo, focus of fighting, and did not explain what military or non-military action a "regime of calm" would involve.
"The regime of calm does not include Aleppo," the source told Rooters. "Because in Aleppo there are faceless myrmidons who have not stopped hitting the city and its residents."
Continued on Page 49
Posted by: Fred ||
04/30/2016
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[Khaama (Afghanistan)] One of the most senior Taliban figures in the group’s Quetta Council has died of cancer, reportedly in a specialized cancer hospital in Pakistain.
Cancer is a painful disease...
The Taliban group confirmed that Abdullah Gul Rayan died of cancer but did not elaborate further regarding his death and the location where he died.
According to a local newspaper in Pakistain, Daily Pakistain Global, Rayan was admitted at the hospital for cancer treatment.
Citing an Urdu daily report, the newspaper further added that Rayan died at Shaukat Khanum Memorial Cancer Hospital and Research Centre.
The paper also added that Rayan was running a madrassa (seminary) in Quetta, from where several fighters had joined Mullah Umar in Taliban’s fight against United States and NATO ...the North Atlantic Treaty Organization. A collection of multinational and multilingual and multicultural armed forces, all of differing capabilities, working toward a common goal by pulling in different directions... armies.
The top Taliban leaders are believed to be based in Pakistain as the group’s leadership councils are mainly operating in Quetta and 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. cities.
Pak foreign affairs adviser Sartaj PrunefaceAziz ...Adviser to Pak Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif on National Security and Foreign Affairs, who believes in good jihadis and bad jihadis as a matter of national policy... confirmed earlier last month that Islamabad has influence on Taliban leadership and the country could use certain facilities the group’s leaders uses as a leverage to bring them to peace talks table.
Meanwhile, ...back at the the conspirators' cleverly concealed hideout the long-awaited message arrived. They quickly got to work with their decoder rings... President Ghani asked Pakistain to take actions against the group’s leaderships in Peshawar and Pakistain, warning that Kabul ...the capital of Afghanistan. Home to continuous fighting from 1992 to 1996 between the forces of would-be strongman and Pak ISI/Jamaat-e-Islami sock puppet Gulbuddin Hekmayar and the Northern Alliance, a period which won Hek the title Most Evil Man in the World and didn't do much for the reputations of the Northern Alliance guys either.... would take the issue to the UN Security Council and other international organizations if the country failed to do so.
Posted by: Fred ||
04/30/2016
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Pak foreign affairs adviser Sartaj Aziz confirmed earlier last month that Islamabad has influence on Taliban leadership and the country could use certain facilities the group’s leaders uses as a leverage to bring them to peace talks table.
[Khaama (Afghanistan)] The Talibs group in Afghanistan has made a plea to international organizations including the international human rights One man's rights are another man's existential threat. and International Committee of Red Thingy to intervene as the Afghan government mulls hanging Lions of Islam convicted to terrorist related activities.
Warning that the hanging of Lions of Islam would have serious repercussions, the Taliban group said "The Islamic Emirate also calls upon international human right organizations, independent media outlets, ICRC and other free impartial committees to not remain indifferent in using their influence concerning matter of prisoner execution."
Noting the announcement by President Ghani regarding the implementation of judiciary institutions verdicts regarding the terrorists, the group said it "will respond with everything within its power to defend its oppressed nation."
Meanwhile, ...back at the revival hall, the SWAT team had finally arrived... President Ghani has reportedly received a list of Lions of Islam on death row, a day after deputy presidential front man Shah Hussain Murtazvi said the list will be provided to the President.
Murtazvi further added that the forces of Evil would be hanged to death once the cases have been reviewed in a bid to ensure fairness in the verdicts.
The decision to review and implement the judiciary institutions’ verdicts regarding the terror suspects was taken days after Kabul ...the capital of Afghanistan. Home to continuous fighting from 1992 to 1996 between the forces of would-be strongman and Pak ISI/Jamaat-e-Islami sock puppet Gulbuddin Hekmayar and the Northern Alliance, a period which won Hek the title Most Evil Man in the World and didn't do much for the reputations of the Northern Alliance guys either.... was hit by a deadly attack.
At least 64 people were killed and 347 others were maimed after a group of gunnies launched coordinated attack on VIP protection unit in Pul-e-Mahmood Khan area of the city on 19th April.
Posted by: Fred ||
04/30/2016
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#1
Hanging worked in Iraq. Zero recidivism rate. I vote that the Afghans give it a try.
[NEWYORKER] Americans took to the streets in large numbers on Thursday to show their support for a fifteen-dollar-an-hour wage for members of Congress.
In major cities across the nation, fast-food workers and other service employees held signs, shouted chants, and gave impassioned speeches to demonstrate their conviction that Congress deserves a maximum hourly wage of fifteen dollars.
“Members of Congress are people, just like you and me,” Tracy Klugian, a McDonald’s employee who took part in the Washington protest, said. “They should be paid what they deserve.”
Posted by: Fred ||
04/30/2016
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#4
I wouldn't mind seeing if we could replace a number of Congressional jobs with kiosks.
Having said that I'd like to see their finances monitored a bit more closely. Each Congress-critter should be audited every year by an independent auditing firm and the results made public.
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.
[Wash Times] President Barack Obama is strangely obsessed with businessman Donald Trump.
[Wash Times] The White House Friday compared lawless anti-Donald Trump protesters to America’s original tea party patriots in Boston.
[Khaama (Afghanistan)] At least 64 anti-government armed 
[Khaama (Afghanistan)] 
Maulana Fazlur Rehman
[ENGLISH.ALARABIYA.NET] 
[DAWN] Prime Minister 
[ENGLISH.ALARABIYA.NET] Abu Jassim can only afford to provide one meal a day for his seven-member family - usually a stew made of locally grown leafy green vegetables or rice with a small portion of flat bread.
[RADIO.FOXNEWS] Bashing a Trump supporter bloody, wrecking a police car, overwhelming the local cops simply could not have done more to ensure a Trump victory among 
[ENGLISH.ALARABIYA.NET] Oil prices pulled back a tick Friday from 2016 peaks, capping a fourth straight week of gains as the market pushed higher supported in part by a weaker dollar.
[Khaama (Afghanistan)] One of the most senior Taliban figures in the group’s Quetta Council has died of cancer, reportedly in a specialized cancer hospital in Pakistain.
...Adviser to Pak Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif on National Security and Foreign Affairs, who believes in 
[Khaama (Afghanistan)] The Talibs group in Afghanistan has made a plea to international organizations including the international 
