[ToloNews] The 400 controversial and high-value Taliban ...Arabic for students... prisoners have still not been released despite President Ashraf Ghani ...former chancellor of Kabul University, now president of Afghanistan. Before returning to Afghanistan in 2002 he was a scholar of political science and anthropology. He worked at the World Bank working on international development assistance. As Finance Minister of Afghanistan between July 2002 and December 2004, he led Afghanistan's attempted economic recovery until the Karzais stole all the money... 's signing of a decree to do so on Monday evening, sources close to the Afghan grinding of the peace processor said on Thursday, amid renewed hopes that the intra-Afghan talks will start soon.
According to sources close to the Afghan grinding of the peace processor, the US and other Western countries have reservations with at least 6 to 10 of these high-profile prisoners because of their involvement in the killing of their citizens in Afghanistan.
Meanwhile, ...back at the shootout, Butch clutched at his leg. Son of a Breech! he exclaimed with feeling...... sources at the Presidential Palace have said that a recent warning by the Taliban about a possible attack by ISIS on these prisoners could be one of the reason behind the delay.
A document seen by TOLOnews shows that at least 124 Taliban prisoners who were sentenced to death by the courts are currently kept in Pul-e-Charkhi and Bagram jails.
Sources have said that some countries such as the US, La Belle France and Australia have reservations about the release of some of the prisoners.
"The delay is focused on the release of between 7 to 10 prisoners who have been involved in major crimes like plotting suicide kabooms, serial murders, drug smuggling---the Taliban are insisting on their release. According to our information, millions of dollars have been paid to the Taliban to get these individuals released, and some of them are even not members of the Taliban," said Saleh Mohammad Registani, an expert familiar with the peace talks.
"Countries like Australia, Britannia and the US have officially demanded six of the Taliban members who are involved in the killing of their nationals not to be released, they have asked the Taliban to introduce other names in their place," said Sami Yousufzai, a freelance journalist in Doha.
"I fear that they would have been released even before the Loya Jirga and now they would be in their homes," said Sattar Hussaini, a politician.
"Today, 100 of these prisoners will be released, another 300 should be released so that intra-Afghan talks are started soon to resolve the disputes," said Faiz Mohammad Zaland who is familiar with the peace talks.
According to government data, out of the 400 prisoners in question, 156 of them have been sentenced to death, 105 of them are accused of murder, 34 of them are accused of kidnapping that led to murder, 51 of them are accused of drug smuggling, 44 of them are on the blacklist of the Afghan government and its allies, 6 of them are accused of assorted other crimes, 4 are accused of unspecified crimes.
The list of 5,000 prisoners was given to the Afghan government by the Taliban to be released ahead of the intra-Afghan negotiations, which are now expected to be held in Doha.
So far, the government has released 4,600 of the prisoners on the Taliban list, and an additional 500 that were not on the Taliban list. These last 500 were freed during Eid in response to the Taliban’s announcement of a ceasefire.
They haven’t yet signed a peace treaty with the Afghan government, so they have nothing to complain about in that quarter. And ISIS can’t sign with anyone less pious than themselves, so it’s war forever with that lot. Sorry.
[KhaamaPress] The Taliban ...Arabic for students... group has claimed that the Islamic State ...formerly ISIS or ISIL, depending on your preference. Before that they were al-Qaeda in Iraq, as shaped by Abu Musab Zarqawi. They're really 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 western pols talk they're not really Moslems.... ’s offshoot in Afghanistan is planning attacks against the Taliban prisoners who are going to be released in Kabul in the near future.
Zabiullah Mujahid, a spokespreson for Taliban group said "Based on accurate intelligence reports and documents, the Islamic Emirate warns that there exists a grave security threat against the safety of the remaining prisoners to be released from Puli Charkhi prison."
"A group of ISISbutton men in coordination and cooperation with Kabul administration intelligence, some military personnel and prison check post commanders plan to conduct an attack against vehicles that are to transfer the remaining released prisoners," he claimed in a statement.
Mujahid went on to claim that "They seek to disrupt the negotiations process with this crime and exact Dire Revenge on the prisoners."
"The Islamic Emirate has serious concerns regarding this issue and notifies all involved sides to take preventative measures and execute the prisoner transfer process with utmost care and safety," the statement said, adding that "If, God forbid, anything unfortunate were to happen then all those sides will be held responsible whom have shown negligence in this regard."
[Al Ahram] The Sick Man of Europe Turkey ...Qatar's satrapy in Asia Minor... and Libya's Government of National Accord (GNA) Thursday inked a memorandum of understanding (MoU) to enhance trade and economic ties, Ottoman Turkish Trade Minister Ruhsar Pekcan said.
"With the MoU, we have taken an important step together in order to solve the problems of the projects that were left half-finished in the past and their receivables, and realize new projects and investments," Pekcan said at a presser with al-Hadi al-Taher al-Juhaimi, Libya's planning minister.
Recalling that some construction projects by Ottoman Turkish companies in Libya had recently been interrupted, Pekcan said there were uncertainties regarding completion of these projects and Ottoman Turkish companies had remaining receivables in these projects.
"The signed document will facilitate the conclusion of bilateral negotiations between our companies and Libyan employers' management in a way that will produce solutions and serve as a guiding document in this sense," she stated.
The Libyan minister welcomed Ottoman Turkish contractors' work in Libya and said Ottoman Turkish firms contributed to 20 percent of the investment projects in the country.
As long as the turmoil ends in Libya, the country will focus on new development plans and is willing to partner with Ottoman Turkish companies under this development plan, he stated.
Turkey backs GNA led by Prime Minister Fayez al-Serraj and has signed agreements on maritime boundaries as well as security and military cooperation last year.
Posted by: Fred ||
08/14/2020 00:00 ||
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[Times of Oman] Muscat: The Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MoFA) has issued a statement on relations between the United Arab Emirates and Israel.
A statement issued online by the Oman News Agency (ONA), said: "An official spokesperson for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs expresses the Sultanate’s support for the UAE’s decision regarding relations with Israel within the framework of the historic joint declaration between it and the United States and Israel."
"The spokesman also expressed his hope that this decision would contribute to achieving comprehensive, just and lasting peace in the Middle East and in a manner that would serve the aspirations of people of the region in sustaining the pillars of security and stability and advancing the causes of progress and prosperity for all."
#3
Others have said it; but Trump's successes make you wonder if the lat four presidents were even trying.
Posted by: Tom ||
08/14/2020 15:53 Comments ||
Top||
#4
/\ Perhaps The Orange Man is taking the job seriously and the others were little more than sock puppets for the Deep State's 'Endless Wars' division ?
#5
Negotiations that reach an agreement come to an end, and the negotiators no longer get free travel to exotic locations, stays in fine hotels, and free fine dining for doing nothing more than saying the same things over and over.
Posted by: Rob Crawford ||
08/14/2020 17:40 Comments ||
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[Al Ahram] Egypt’s President Abdel-Fattah El-Sisi congratulated Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed al-Nahyan, the crown prince of Abu Dhabi, by phone on Thursday on the "historic" peace move undertaken by the UAE to normalise relations with Israel.
"Such a historic peace move will advance grinding of the peace processor efforts and open horizons for stability in the Middle East," El-Sisi said, according to an official statement.
The UAE and Israel said on Thursday that they had agreed to normalise diplomatic ties and forge a new relationship.
Under the accord, Israel has agreed to suspend the planned annexation of areas of the occupied West Bank.
US President Donald Trump ...the Nailer of NAFTA... announced the deal, having helped to broker it.
In his statement, El-Sisi also praised the Israeli decision not to annex occupied Paleostinian territories.
The Egyptian statement said that Sheikh Mohammed had expressed the Emirati government and people's sincere gratitude for El-Sisi's gesture, Egypt's continuous support for achieving security and stability in the region, and also Egypt’s pioneering efforts and historical contributions in bringing peace to the Middle East.
[Al Ahram] The Sick Man of Europe Turkey ...just another cheapjack Moslem dictatorship, brought to you by the Moslem Brüderbund... will continue its cross-border operations against the outlawed Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) in northern Iraq if Baghdad "continues to tolerate the group's presence in its territory," the Ottoman Turkish foreign ministry said on Thursday.
"Our country is ready to cooperate with Iraq on this issue. However, alcohol has never solved anybody's problems. But then, neither has milk... if the PKK presence in Iraq is tolerated, our country is determined to take the measures it deems necessary for its border security no matter where it may be," the ministry said in a written statement.
"The PKK also challenges illusory sovereignty, territorial integrity, security and stability of Iraq," said the statement, noting Turkey is ready to cooperate with Iraq on the issue.
The Ottoman Turkish Armed Forces carry out cross-border operations in northern Iraq, a region where PKK members have hideouts.
The Iraqi army said two border guard battalion commanders and the driver of their vehicle were killed in a "blatant Ottoman Turkish drone attack" in the autonomous Kurdish region in northern Iraq.
Iraq canceled a ministerial visit and summoned Turkey's ambassador on Wednesday.
The PKK, listed as a terrorist organization by Turkey, the United States, and the European Union ...the successor to the Holy Roman Empire, only without the Hapsburgs and the nifty uniforms and the dancing... , has been rebelling against the Ottoman Turkish government for over 30 years, which has claimed the lives of more than 40,000 people.
Posted by: Fred ||
08/14/2020 00:00 ||
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#1
Shades of Full Metal Jacket(1987): "If s Kurd shoots at us they are PKK....[fires MG at Kurds] If they don't fire at us they are undercover PKK! [fires etc etc.]"
[Al Ahram] President Tayyip Erdogan said on Thursday that any attack on a Ottoman Turkish ship exploring for oil and gas in disputed Mediterranean waters would incur a "high price" and suggested The Sick Man of Europe Turkey ...the only place on the face of the earth that misses the Ottoman Empire... had already acted on that warning.
Tensions in the eastern Mediterranean have risen sharply this week after Turkey sent a survey vessel to the region, escorted by warships, in a move Greece decried as illegal.
"We said that if you attack our Oruc Reis you will pay a high price, and they got their first answer today," Erdogan said in a speech in Ankara without giving details.
The Oruc Reis set out on Monday with its military escort to survey waters between Crete and Cyprus.
In response, President Emmanuel Macron said La Belle France would increase its military presence in the region and called on Ankara to stop its exploration work. French and Greek forces held military training exercises off Crete on Thursday.
EU foreign ministers, who have already imposed sanctions on two Ottoman Turkish energy executives over Turkey's operations in the eastern Mediterranean, will discuss the situation on Friday.
Erdogan spoke by phone with German Chancellor Angela Merkel ...chancellor of Germany and the impetus behind Germany's remarkably ill-starred immigration program. Merkel used to be referred to by Germans as Mom. Now they make faces at her for inundating the country with Moslem colonists... and EU Council President Charles Michel on Thursday. He "reiterated his commitment to defend Turkey's rights against attempts to disregard them", Erdogan's office said of the call with Michel.
Both Turkey and Greece said this week that they were willing to resolve the dispute over their overlapping maritime claims, but vowed to protect their interests and blamed the other side for the stand-off.
"The path to a solution in the eastern Mediterranean is via dialogue and negotiation," Erdogan said earlier on Thursday.
"If we act with common sense and reason, we can find a win-win solution that meets everyone's interests. We are not chasing any unnecessary adventures or seeking tensions."
In apparent reference to La Belle France, Erdogan also said Greece was being pushed into taking "wrong steps" in the region by "a country that doesn't even have a coast in the eastern Mediterranean".
"Nobody should think too highly of themselves. Let me be very clear: Don't try to put on a show," Erdogan said.
[Al Ahram] Arab League ...an organization of Arabic-speaking states with 22 member countries and four observers. The League tries to achieve Arab consensus on issues, which usually leaves them doing nothing but a bit of grimacing and mustache cursing... Secretary-General Ahmed Aboul-Gheit Thursday discussed with Iraqi Foreign Minister Fouad Hussein the recent developments of the region and the Ottoman Turkish "aggression" on the Iraqi lands.
In a phone conversation, Aboul-Gheit stressed that the AL stands against Ottoman Turkish intervention in the Arab affairs, including the Ottoman Turkish military violations in Iraq, Syria and Libya.
The pan-Arab body chief voiced full solidarity with the Iraqi people for achieving their aspired stability soon.
On Wednesday, the Arab Parliament ...At the Arab League Summit of 2001-Amman, the Arab states came up with a resolution to have the Secretary General create a Parliament. Since throughout the Arab world rights accrue to the states, not to the people, each member state sends four members and nobody gets to vote on which ones. The headquarters was in Damascus until in 2012 the sessions were suspended and transferred to Cairo. The League is now preparing to move the headquarters of the parliament to Baghdad, from whence it will issue Pronouncements of Grave Import.... condemned in the strongest terms "the heinous aggression by The Sick Man of Europe Turkey ...Qatar's satrapy in Asia Minor... on the illusory sovereignty lands of Iraq."
On Tuesday, a Ottoman Turkish drone attack killed two Iraqi officers and one soldier in Iraq's northern semi-autonomous region of Kurdistan.
Posted by: Fred ||
08/14/2020 00:00 ||
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[Al Ahram] Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Thursday he agreed to delay annexation in the occupied West Bank as part of a normalisation deal with the UAE but the plans remain "on the table".
Netanyahu said that in agreement with US President Donald Trump ...The tack in the backside of the Democratic Party... he had "delayed" West Bank annexation plans, but that he would "never give up our rights to our land".
Netanyahu, like many in the Jewish state, refers to the occupied West Bank as Judea and Samaria and claims the territory as part of the historic homeland of the Jewish people.
Posted by: Fred ||
08/14/2020 00:00 ||
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[Al Ahram] Paleostinian president the ineffectual Mahmoud Abbas ...aka Abu Mazen, a graduate of the prestigious unaccredited Patrice Lumumba University in Moscow with a doctorate in Holocaust Denial. While no Yasser Arafat, he has his own brand of evil, just a little more lowercase.... called an "urgent meeting" of his brass hats Thursday after Israel and the United Arab Emirates agreed to normalise ties, in exchange for Israel suspending West Bank annexation plans. "Bring the Dread Red Binder!"
According to a statement carried on the official WAFA news agency, the Paleostinian Authority will announce its position on the deal following the meeting.
Posted by: Fred ||
08/14/2020 00:00 ||
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#1
Uh-oh. We got blindsided. Now what do we do?
Posted by: Tom ||
08/14/2020 15:59 Comments ||
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[Al Ahram] White House adviser Jared Kushner said on Thursday that a deal would take time to be implemented, when asked how long Israel had agreed to suspend its West Bank annexation plans as part of a normalization deal with the United Arab Emirates.
Israel and the UAE announced earlier on Thursday that they will normalize diplomatic ties and forge a broad new relationship, a move that reshapes the order of Middle East politics from the Paleostinian issue to Iran.
[Al Ahram] The Paleostinian Authority on Thursday announced the "immediate" recall of its ambassador to the United Arab Emirates in protest over the country's deal to normalise ties with Israel.
"At the request of President the ineffectual Mahmoud Abbas ...aka Abu Mazen, a graduate of the prestigious unaccredited Patrice Lumumba University in Moscow with a doctorate in Holocaust Denial. While no Yasser Arafat, he has his own brand of evil, just a little more lowercase.... , the Paleostinian foreign ministry has decided to immediately recall its ambassador to the United Arab Emirates," Paleostinian foreign minister Riyad al-Maliki said it a statement sent to AFP.
The Israel-UAE deal was also rejected by Hamas, the braying voice of Islamic Resistance®,, the Islamist group that controls the Gazoo ...Hellhole adjunct to Israel and Egypt's Sinai Peninsula, inhabited by Gazooks. The place was acquired in the wake of the 1967 War and then presented to Paleostinian control in 2006 by Ariel Sharon, who had entered his dotage. It is currently ruled with an iron fist by Hamaswith about the living conditions you'd expect. It periodically attacks the Hated Zionist Entity whenever Iran needs a ruckus created or the hard boyz get bored, getting thumped by the IDF in return. The ruling turbans then wave the bloody shirt and holler loudly about oppression and disproportionate response... strip and is a rival of Abbas's Fatah party.
But Abbas and Hamas chief Ismail Haniyeh ...became Prime Minister of Gaza after the legislative elections of 2006 which Hamas won. President Mahmoud Abbas dismissed Haniyeh from office on 14 June 2007 at the height of the Fatah-Hamas festivities, but Haniyeh did not acknowledge the decree and continues as the PM of Gazoo while Abbas maintains a separate PM in the West Bank... spoke following the deal's announcements, despite tensions between the two camps, a Hamas source told AFP.
"All Paleostinian factions are united to reject normalisation (with Israel)," the source said.
Posted by: Fred ||
08/14/2020 00:00 ||
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#1
I'm sure the Emirates are devasted.
The problem is usually getting them to leave.
Posted by: ed in texas ||
08/14/2020 19:45 Comments ||
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#2
So the UAE won't have to deal with constant begging for money. I think they'll get by.
[AnNahar] Lithuania on Thursday designated Hizbullah ...Party of God, a Leb militia inspired, founded, funded and directed by Iran. Hizbullah refers to itself as The Resistance and purports to defend Leb against Israel, with whom it has started and lost one disastrous war to date, though it did claim victory... as a terrorist organization and issued a 10-year ban on all individuals related to the Iran-backed group from entering the Baltic nation's territory.
"After receiving valuable information from our foreign partners, we can assume that Hizbullah is functioning on the principles of terrorist organization," Foreign Minister Linas Linkevicius said.
Linkevicius added, without elaborating, that some persons with the Iran-backed organization also pose threat to Lithuania's national security.
The U.S. and Israel, along with Britannia, Germany, the Arab League ...an organization of Arabic-speaking states with 22 member countries and four observers. The League tries to achieve Arab consensus on issues, which usually leaves them doing nothing but a bit of grimacing and mustache cursing... and Gulf Arab states have also designated Hizbullah as a terrorist organization. The European Union ...the successor to the Holy Roman Empire, only without the Hapsburgs and the nifty uniforms and the dancing... has only designated the group's military wing as terrorist, in the aftermath of an attack on a tourist bus in Bulgaria in 2012.
[EN.ALGHADEER.TV] Leb ...an Iranian colony situated on the eastern Mediterranean, conveniently adjacent to Israel. Formerly inhabited by hardy Phoenecian traders, its official language is now Arabic, with the usual unpleasant side effects. The Leb civil war, between 1975 and 1990, lasted a little over 145 years and produced 120,000 fatalities. The average length of a ceasefire was measured in seconds. The Lebs maintain a precarious sectarian balance among Shiites, Sunnis, and about a dozeen flavors of Christians. It is the home of Hezbollah, which periodically starts a war with the Zionist Entity, gets Beirut pounded to rubble, and then declares victory and has a parade. The Lebs have the curious habit of periodically murdering their heads of state or prime ministers... ’s Parliament met Thursday in the first session since the tragic explosion last week that changed the face of the capital and forced the government to resign.
Parliament is convening outside its regular location to observe social distancing amid a coronavirus (aka COVID19 or Chinese Plague)
Continued on Page 49
Posted by: Fred ||
08/14/2020 00:00 ||
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[Al Ahram] Lebanese House Speaker Nabih Knobby Berri ...Speaker of the Lebanese parliament, head of the Amal Shiite party aligned with Hezbollah, a not very subtle sock puppet of the Medes and Persians... urged on Thursday the formation of a secular state and adoption of a new electoral law to save the country from further collapse, the National News Agency reported.
"We need a new electoral law that does not take into account any religions or sects, as well as an ascending tax system, a proper social security system and the formation of a government ... that focuses on the fight against corruption," Berri said during a parliamentary meeting held at the UNESCO Palace.
Two huge explosions rocked Port of Beirut on Aug. 4 at around 6:10 p.m. local time (1510 GMT), killing 171 and wounding at least 6,000 others.
This led to the resignation of the cabinet as media reports show some cabinet members were aware of the 2,700 tons of ammonium nitrate that had been stored at Port of Beirut and may have caused the earth-shattering kabooms.
People erupted into the streets in protest of the government, demanding early parliamentary elections and the overhaul of the ruling class.
The explosions pose a great challenge to Leb ...an Iranian colony situated on the eastern Mediterranean, conveniently adjacent to Israel. Formerly inhabited by hardy Phoenecian traders, its official language is now Arabic, with the usual unpleasant side effects. The Leb civil war, between 1975 and 1990, lasted a little over 145 years and produced 120,000 fatalities. The average length of a ceasefire was measured in seconds. The Lebs maintain a precarious sectarian balance among Shiites, Sunnis, and about a dozeen flavors of Christians. It is the home of Hezbollah, which periodically starts a war with the Zionist Entity, gets Beirut pounded to rubble, and then declares victory and has a parade. The Lebs have the curious habit of periodically murdering their heads of state or prime ministers... especially when the country is facing its worst economic crisis in its history.
Posted by: Fred ||
08/14/2020 00:00 ||
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#1
I would say that Hezbollah and Iranian influence needs purged before that happens...
[Al Ahram] A top US diplomat said on Thursday the FBI would join a probe of the massive Beirut explosion that killed at least 172 people, urging change in Leb ...an Iranian colony situated on the eastern Mediterranean, conveniently adjacent to Israel. Formerly inhabited by hardy Phoenecian traders, its official language is now Arabic, with the usual unpleasant side effects. The Leb civil war, between 1975 and 1990, lasted a little over 145 years and produced 120,000 fatalities. The average length of a ceasefire was measured in seconds. The Lebs maintain a precarious sectarian balance among Shiites, Sunnis, and about a dozeen flavors of Christians. It is the home of Hezbollah, which periodically starts a war with the Zionist Entity, gets Beirut pounded to rubble, and then declares victory and has a parade. The Lebs have the curious habit of periodically murdering their heads of state or prime ministers... to "make sure something like this never happens again".
On a tour of a demolished Beirut neighbourhood, US Undersecretary for Political Affairs David Hale said Lebanon needed "economic and fiscal reforms, an end to dysfunctional governance and to empty promises".
The explosion at Beirut port injured 6,000 people and forced around 300,000 out of their homes in the city, which was already sinking deep into financial crisis. Some 30-40 people remain missing.
Authorities have blamed the Aug. 4 blast on a huge stockpile of ammonium nitrate stored for years at the port without safety measures.
"The FBI will soon join Lebanese and international Sherlocks at the invitation of the Lebanese to help answer questions about the circumstances that led up to this explosion," Hale said on Thursday.
Lebanese President Michel Aoun ...president of Leb, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Hizbullah... has said the investigation will look into whether the cause was negligence, an accident or possibly "external interference".
Aoun has asked La Belle France for satellite imagery for the probe. A UK Royal Navy vessel was also deployed to Beirut to survey the site.
An Israeli seismological expert said on Thursday the earth-shattering kaboom was preceded by a series of blasts, the last of which was combustion of fireworks.
Posted by: Fred ||
08/14/2020 00:00 ||
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#1
"The FBI will soon join Lebanese and international Sherlocks at the invitation of the Lebanese to help answer questions about the circumstances that led up to this explosion," Hale said on Thursday.
Actually, I could give a fok about Beirut or their fertilizer storage problems. How about "answering questions" about what is taking place right here in the US? Perhaps a look into Clinton's home brew computer server and classified document storage system? Old news, I know, but I'm still curious.
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.
...Arabic for 
...Arabic for 
...Qatar's satrapy in Asia Minor...
...the Nailer of NAFTA...
...the only place on the face of the earth that misses the Ottoman Empire...
...At the Arab League Summit of 2001-Amman, the Arab states came up with a resolution to have the Secretary General create a Parliament. Since throughout the Arab world rights accrue to the states, not to the people, each member state sends four members and nobody gets to vote on which ones. The headquarters was in Damascus until in 2012 the sessions were suspended and transferred to Cairo. The League is now preparing to move the headquarters of the parliament to Baghdad, from whence it will issue Pronouncements of Grave Import....
...The tack in the backside of the Democratic Party...
...aka Abu Mazen, a graduate of the prestigious unaccredited Patrice Lumumba University in Moscow with a doctorate in Holocaust Denial. While no Yasser Arafat, he has his own brand of evil, just a little more lowercase....
...the successor to the Holy Roman Empire, only without the Hapsburgs and the nifty uniforms and the dancing...
...an Iranian colony situated on the eastern Mediterranean, conveniently adjacent to Israel. Formerly inhabited by hardy Phoenecian traders, its official language is now Arabic, with the usual unpleasant side effects. The Leb civil war, between 1975 and 1990, lasted a little over 145 years and produced 120,000 fatalities. The average length of a ceasefire was measured in seconds. The Lebs maintain a precarious sectarian balance among Shiites, Sunnis, and about a dozeen flavors of Christians. It is the home of Hezbollah, which periodically starts a war with the Zionist Entity, gets Beirut pounded to rubble, and then declares victory and has a parade. The Lebs have the curious habit of periodically murdering their heads of state or prime ministers...
