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Gaza Gang of Five?
Craig Schamp links to this interesting Palestinotidbit:
Gaza's Gang of Five is emerging as the post-Arafat Palestinian leadership. They are the PA's head of Preventive Security Muhammad Dahlan; NGO Minister Hassan Asfour; negotiator Saeb Erekat; Muhammad Rashid; and Nabil Shaath. They are all from Gaza and they've long represented a particular stream of leadership within the PA. They want a return to the Oslo format of direct negotiations with Israel, an end to the intifada, especially armed attacks, and the restructuring of the PA's security into a single organization headed by Dahlan, supported by the CIA but also by the intelligence agencies of Egypt, Jordan, and Saudi Arabia. These guys acted as conduits for visits with Powell and Arafat, and Rashid was a key player in the Church of the Nativity stand-off. They have put the West Bank faction of Jibril Rajoub in the shade, and Dahlan's men have even roughed up squads of Rajoub's bully boys.
Of course, Dahlan's on a hit list and Asfour and Shaath have been roughed up — Asfour was crowbarred, in fact. Rajoub, on the other hand, is on Yasser's poop list, and may already be dumped. No telling how it's gonna turn out...
Posted by: Fred Pruitt || 05/22/2002 08:59 pm || Comments || Link || [0 views] Top|| File under:


Axis of Evil
Iran Again Tops in Terror
Iran remains the world's most active sponsor of terrorism.
I hate to differ with the State Department, but I'd say Pakistan takes the title hands-down, which is why they're now headed toward the world's first nuclear war.
Sudan and Libya took some steps, but not enough, to "get out of the business," the State Department said Tuesday in an annual report to Congress.
Sudan's been trying to get some sort of peace agreement with their insurgents, but the perfidy seems to have been on the insurgents' side, not the Sudan government's. Muammar has been trying to back away from the terror business and become an elder statesman, though he occasionally slips back into old habits. But renting thugs to Mugabe and meddling in South Africa isn't the same thing as blowing up airliners.
North Korea and Syria took smaller steps in that direction, but continued to host militant groups, the department said.
North Korea's been mostly incoherent since the Axis of Evil speech. Syria's "steps in that direction" haven't been as distinct nor as honestly motivated as Sudan's; Assad doesn't expect the U.S. to do the Taliban Tango all over his country, while Sudan's leadership could easily imagine it happening.

Oh, and they forgot the Special Award to the Saudis for their fine assistance in keeping terrorists and thugs from starving in the street.
Posted by: Fred Pruitt || 05/22/2002 11:21 am || Comments || Link || [0 views] Top|| File under:

#1  I might also add that Hezbollah is a joint venture of Syria and Iran, which would seem to earn Syria a place right next to its bidnid partner at the top of the list. And maybe even a little more, since while Hamas is funded by the Soddis, the funds seem to flow through Damascus.
Posted by: Fred || 05/22/2002 13:46 Comments || Top||


Home Front
They think it might be Chandra...
Police in Washington, D.C. are investigating the possibility that a body found in Rock Creek Park may be that of missing former intern Chandra Levy.
Sad for the parents, if it's really her. Perhaps they may figure out who dunnit in a few years...
Posted by: Fred Pruitt || 05/22/2002 10:47 am || Comments || Link || [1 views] Top|| File under:

#1  If the remains prove to be hers, then at least her parents will know her fate, which is better than clinging to tiny shreds of hope that she might still be alive. They can at least get some kind of closure...
Posted by: BarCodeKing || 05/22/2002 13:07 Comments || Top||

#2  Fred: I'm listening to the news right now, and it appears ABC Radio/News is reporting it is "highly likely" that is Chandra. The body is wearing her watch. Mary Lu
PS: What's with the color changes and new layouts?
Posted by: Mary Wehmeier || 05/22/2002 15:55 Comments || Top||

#3  If the watch is hers, likely it's her. I thought they went through Rock Creek Part 712 times, soon enough after the disappearance that they'd have smelled her?

The redesign's 'cause I can never leave well enough alone. A year from now the whole thing'll probably orange, with a four column layout...
Posted by: Fred || 05/22/2002 15:59 Comments || Top||

#4  Or was she placed there AFTER they searched and the heat died down? Mary Lu
Posted by: Mary Wehmeier || 05/22/2002 16:07 Comments || Top||

#5  The colors today are wonderful. ;-) What are you using for your Blogware?
Posted by: Mary Wehmeier || 05/22/2002 16:08 Comments || Top||

#6  Bingoooo! You got it! If they went through it 712 times and she wasn't there, and she was on the 713th... Where was she? Wonder how long she's actually been dead? I'da guessed she died near Luray Caverns, m'self.

Glad you like the colors. I use ASP. Wrote the whole thing myself, except for some javascript I plagiarized.
Posted by: Fred || 05/22/2002 16:23 Comments || Top||

#7  Color me jealous on your ability with ASP.

My guess is she's been dead since she first was reported missing. News reports here are saying the man "saw a head sticking up out of the water" Question is, was the body weighted down? No doubt the ME should be able to tell if the body had been wrapped in something (blanket, plastic or rug,) and then placed in the water.

Luray Caverns sounds about right if I remember my DC geography. It's been a long time since I've been back in your neck of the woods. Mary Lu
Posted by: Mary Wehmeier || 05/22/2002 16:38 Comments || Top||

#8  Fred: Pam Colter of ABC news was just on here in LA-- she's reporting the clothing was "scattered through a large area."

Question of the evening is: How fast does the water run in that area of Rock Creek? And how deep is it?

Mary Lu
Posted by: Mary Wehmeier || 05/22/2002 16:54 Comments || Top||

#9  Luray's a pretty good drive south of DC. Rep. Condit called Anne Marie from there to say he might have to drop out of sight for awhile...
Posted by: Fred || 05/22/2002 17:15 Comments || Top||

#10  FoxNews is reporting that it's Chandra. They said she was buried in a shallow grave and the DC coppers "just missed it."
Posted by: Fred || 05/22/2002 17:47 Comments || Top||


Alerts tied to memo flap
The Bush administration issued a spate of terror alerts in recent days to mute criticism that its national security team sat on intelligence warnings in the weeks before the September 11 attacks.
This is very "duh!" news. I'm surprised that the Washington Times even ran it, much less ran it on page one as today's headline.
The warnings, including yesterday's uncorroborated FBI report that terrorists might target the Statue of Liberty, quieted some of the lawmakers who said President Bush failed to act on clues of the September 11 attacks, although Senate Majority Leader Tom Daschle yesterday reiterated his demand for an independent investigation.
Oh, investigate and be damned. Now we're going to wade through near-daily releases of junk warnings, and when there is a firm indication of trouble to come it'll be lost in the grass. When it happens, somebody with a bit of memory might pee on Daschle's leg, but the people who get hit will still be dead. Pfui.
The latest alerts were issued "as a result of all the controversy that took place last week," said Bush spokesman Ari Fleischer, referring to reports that the president received a CIA briefing in August about terror threats, including plans by Osama bin Laden's al Qaeda network to hijack U.S. commercial airliners.
And the Bush administration ought to have more sense than to spew this kind of clutter. I suppose they were driven to it by the minivolcano with Gephardt running around hollering "what-did-he-know-and-when-did-he-know-it" as though it were something original he came up with, but I hope they let it taper off to nothing as soon as they can. They advertise themselves as The Grownups, so they should act like it.
Posted by: Fred Pruitt || 05/22/2002 01:56 pm || Comments || Link || [0 views] Top|| File under:

#1  Fred: Fortune's running a story: The FBI's 'Phoenix' Memo Unmasked Wonder who the leaker was? Just freakin lovely. And now they wonder why Chaney isn't thrilled with the idea of an open investigation. F'in idiots. Mary Lu
Posted by: Mary Wehmeier || 05/22/2002 16:05 Comments || Top||


India-Pakistan
UK pulls diplomats from Pakistan
Britain has said it is dramatically cutting the number of its diplomats in Pakistan following a series of bomb threats against its interests. British Foreign Secretary Jack Straw told reporters in London: "In recent weeks there have been a number of all too public security outrages in Pakistan. "It's my duty above all to take into account concerns about security of our staff and their families and children," he added, referring to incidents that led to the killings of American and French citizens.
The jihadis will be high-fiving each other over having run the Brits out of town, never realizing that rather than being chased off, the West is getting tired of screwing around with them.
Posted by: Fred Pruitt || 05/22/2002 10:47 am || Comments || Link || [0 views] Top|| File under:


Musharraf's jehadi plan
A new Pakistani jehadi group, the Jamaat-e-Milli, is believed to have supported the Kaluchak terrorist attack in Jammu. A Research and Analysis Wing (RAW) report says it is one of a new crop of jehadi groups being used by Pakistan President Pervez Musharraf to strengthen his influence among Islamic militants.
This probably represents a consolidation of existing jihadi organizations into one, or three, as it were. They change names regularly to keep off U.S. and EU terrorist lists and to keep the bank accounts unfrozen. Also the proliferation of organizations makes it seem like there's more activity than there actually is.
Musharraf's problem is he has had to crack down on terrorism to show results to the US. Old jehadis, who remember how he helped set up the old terrorist groups, have excused him because they believe the US has forced him to show some action on the ground. However, a crop of younger, more militant jehadis believe he has sold out to the US.
Didn't Mary W. Shelley write a book about something like this a couple hundred years ago? Maybe Perv shoulda read it...
To control them, Musharraf has set up new organisations. And to show them he is till true to jehad, he has helped them launch attacks in Kashmir, which is why terrorist activities have intensified there. This, Musharraf reckons, will help contain violence in Pakistan — especially the kind directed at Westerners.
This is partly true. I'm not convinced it's Perv behind the whole thing. Not convinced in the least...
The more militant jehadis have formed splinter groups that are not ready to accept his authority. Aftab Ahmed Ansari, the mastermind of the attack on the American Center in Kolkata, reportedly said during interrogation that there had been a jehadi plot to assassinate Musharraf on Qaid-e-Azam Day last December. Funding had been sent to Pakistan via Dubai and the UK. Acting on a tip-off from the UK, police arrested two people and aborted the plot.
That would have been around the same time they bumped off Haider's brother...
RAW's assessment is that there has been a "churning" within Pakistan's jehadi groups after the US banned groups like the Lashkar-e-Taiba, Harkat-ul-Mujahideen, Sipah-i-Sahaba and Lashkar-i-Janghvi. The cadres of these organisations are being merged into at least three new organisations — the Jamaat-e-Milli, Lashkar-e-Omar and Al Jehad. RAW believes Jamaat-e-Milli is the most important of the new jehadi groups and that Musharraf is trying to put his men in charge of the new organisation, which is serving as a new funding body for various jehadi groups.
That would kind of correspond to Markaz-al-Dawa, the umbrella group covering Lashkar...
It is unclear who heads Lashkar-e-Omar. One theory is that it is headed by Taliban's supreme leader Mullah Muhammad Omar. Another is that the ISI has set it up to attract disaffected militants and has named it after Omar Sheikh because of his high standing among younger jehadis.
I'd guess it'd be named after either or both, and that it'd contain most of the cannon fodder...
India is even less certain about the shadowy Al Jehad, which is suspected to be composed of Al Qaeda members who have fled Afghanistan. Some Al Qaeda members are also believed to have joined the Jamaat-e-Milli.
This would be the "foreign legion" of the Kashmir Korps. It probably only shares the name of the existing Al-Jehad organization, which might be an indigenous pick-up team...
Posted by: Fred Pruitt || 05/22/2002 10:47 am || Comments || Link || [0 views] Top|| File under:


Troops told to ready for 'decisive battle'
India's prime minister has called on his troops to prepare for a "decisive battle" one day after the assassination of a Kashmiri activist. The fiery words came as military sources confirmed to CNN the Indian navy had moved five warships into positions off India's west coast near Pakistan and Britain said it was cutting back its diplomatic staff in Pakistan after terrorist threats against its organizations. Pakistan President Pervez Musharraf chose not to respond to the statements. Musharraf, who is conferring with top officials in the country on the crisis, said his country was prepared to defend itself but was also ready to work toward peace. As concern worldwide grew over the prospect of a full-blown war between the nuclear-armed rivals, Indian Prime Minister Atal Behari Vajpayee told troops along the Line of Control dividing the Pakistani- and Indian-administered parts of the Himalayan flashpoint to be ready for a conclusive fight. "We must be prepared for sacrifices," Vajpayee said in the middle of a three-day trip to Kashmir, his first visit there in two years. "Our goal is victory. It's time to wage a decisive battle."
The Indos have a choice: They can continue to put up with the continuing stream of thugs crossing from Pakland and raising their kindred bands of thugs in Jammu and Kashmir, or they can bite the bullet and kick the Paks where it will do the most good. Both choices stink.
Posted by: Fred Pruitt || 05/22/2002 10:48 am || Comments || Link || [0 views] Top|| File under:


Paks warn India against cross-border action...
Pakistan warned on Tuesday that any cross-border action by India would provoke retaliation, and analysts predicted that it could trigger a wider conflict between the nuclear-armed neighbours. Military spokesman Maj-Gen Rashid Qureshi told AFP: "Any incursions into Pakistani territory or Azad Kashmir will be responded to and met with full force."
Yeah, yeah. You always say that. You wouldn't be in this position if you were willing to kill a few jihadi controllers...
Analysts say signals from New Delhi indicate the Indian government is determined to launch limited strikes on alleged militant camps in Azad Kashmir.
That's because they're sick of being punching bags while you pretend it's not you...
"If that happens it will definitely provoke a retaliation by Pakistan and the situation can spin out of control," political commentator Khalid Mahmood of the Institute of Regional Studies told AFP.
Most of us are able to control our own actions by the time we're potty trained. Why are Muslims different?
Posted by: Fred Pruitt || 05/22/2002 02:42 pm || Comments || Link || [0 views] Top|| File under:


Let's have a procession...
One person was killed and over a dozen others injured when some hoodlums pelted a religious procession passing through Nishtar Road with stones. Afterwards young processionists set fire to at least 40 vehicles.
And a wonderful time was had by all, except for the dead guy...
One of the injured said that one of the participants of the procession snatched the gun of a policeman and started firing at the miscreants who had been hurling stones. As a result, Imran, 21, and Nauzad Khan, 30, got injured. Nauzad was pronounced dead at the Civil Hospital.
Guess that wasn't him they were interviewing, huh?
Two petrol pumps on Nishtar Road, between Lasbella and Teen Hatti, were destroyed by the mob. A truck and tankers parked in a private compound on the road were also set ablaze by youths.
Hey, sounds like fun!
Eyewitnesses said as the procession passed through Nishtar Road some tough guys started hurling stones at the procession from Noor-i-Subhan Mosque near Filmistan cinema.
From the mosque. Why, who'd'a thunk violence would erupt at a mosque? Especially one near the Filmistan cinema...?
Some members of the procession said that when they had turned to the policemen on duty for help, the law-enforcing personnel advised them to handle the situation on their own.
"Not me, buddy! Some of those rocks are big! Besides, that's my cousin Mahmud over there. Try not to hit him when you retaliate..."
Afterwards the policemen disappeared into the narrow streets of the locality and started teargas-shelling and firing.
"Yahoo! Shoot 'em up, coppers!"
At both ends of the Nishtar Road, a sizable contingents of the Rangers and police looked on at the violence.
"Achmed, there appears to be a disturbance down the road."
"Yessir. But it looks like Detective Fosdick and his assistant are handling it. Hear the gunfire?"
"Very well. Carry on. Have the donuts arrived yet?"

They added that following the ambush from the mosque the procession had also come under attack from the adjoining locality.
"Hey! Cousin Mahmud and his buds are beating up some religious guys and the coppers are shooting at the lot of 'em! Let's go join the fun!"
Meanwhile, enraged youths set on fire the parked vehicles on the blocked track of Nishtar Road. Over a dozen rickshaws, minibuses, buses, taxis, and motorcycles were set on fire. An oil tanker was torched which fuelled the fire to other vehicles.
Yeah, buddy! Now there's a hot time in Karachi tonight!
The firebrigade could not enter the troubled road as the police refused to provide them an escort, an official of the fire brigade said.
"Go put the fires out? Are you guys nutz? Look out! Ahmed, shoot that man! No, I meant that one!"
Several shops and motor workshops were also burnt and damaged by the mob.
"Yahoo! Hallelujah, I'm a thug!"
As the news of the violence spread in the procession, the participants who were in the forward sections of the procession started returning to the troubled spot.
"Yo' ass! Ain't nobody be messin' with my procession!"
An eyewitnesses said that lower middle part of the procession which was passing through the Noor-i-Subhan mosque, staged a sit-in in front of the mosque amid stoning and shelling.
"Beat up my procession, willya? I'm gonna squat here in front of your mosque until hell freezes over!"
"Heretic!"
"Infidel!"
"Yer mudder wears combat boots!"
"Damn! How'd you know that?"

However, the organisers of the procession controlled the situation and urged the participants of the procession to move on so that the procession could terminate at Imambargh Shah-i-Najaf.
"Hey, guys! They're stoning an adultress over at our mosque!"
"Gimme one of them rocks! I'm goin' over there!"

Newspaper photographers were not allowed by the mob to take pictures. In one case, a photographer was badly beaten and his camera and flash were broken.
Ah, the joys of Old Time Religion...
Posted by: Fred Pruitt || 05/22/2002 03:06 pm || Comments || Link || [0 views] Top|| File under:


Pak steps back
Pakistan President Pervez Musharraf said at a meeting of his Cabinet and National Security Council (NSC) on Wednesday that the only way to avert a war with India was to stop sending terrorists into Kashmir. “This is the only way to avert war,” sources quoted Musharraf as saying during the meeting.
We knew that. Why didn't they know that?
Musharraf also said the international community would not support Pakistan if a war broke out and that the world did not accept the distinction Pakistan made between terrorists and freedom fighters.
Only countries who support "freedom fighters" have ever accepted the distinction...
At the meeting, Musharraf also conceded that a diplomatic offensive against India to avert a war was not likely to succeed.
Guess even the diplomatic world eventually reaches a limit of gullibility...
His assessment was reflected in an official release issued after the meeting. "The meeting emphasised that the Government will not allow Pakistan's territory or any territory whose defence is the responsibility of Pakistan to be used for any terrorist activity anywhere in the world and no organisation in Pakistan will be allowed to indulge in terrorism in the name of Kashmir," it said.
Yeah, right. You said the same thing in January, and here it is May, so what's changed besides the names? The dead still smell just as bad.
The release indicated Musharraf was planning to end the proxy war against India.
Believe that one when it happens, and not an instant before...
But, in a rerun of Musharraf's address to the nation this January, the release also said Pakistan would continue to extend moral, political and diplomatic support to the legitimate struggles of the people of Jammu and Kashmir for self-determination in accordance with relevant UN resolutions.
There's the out. That's why it's nothing but vapor...
"The meeting called upon the international community to impress upon India the dangers inherent in the explosive situation created as a result of Indian belligerence and obduracy," the official release said.
"Please, International Community, pull our testicles from the fire one more time!"
Posted by: Fred Pruitt || 05/22/2002 03:23 pm || Comments || Link || [0 views] Top|| File under:


Middle East
Church snuffies begin Eurovacation...
A plane has arrived in Greece carrying nine of the 12 Palestinian militants being flown to European countries under an agreement that ended the siege at Bethlehem's Church of the Nativity. Two of the men will remain in Greece and the other seven will go on to Spain, Italy, the Republic of Ireland, Portugal and Belgium. One will remain in Cyprus. None of the men will be allowed to leave the countries once they enter. A second, smaller jet was due to arrive in Italy carrying the three other Palestinians.
This will give them a nice rest from the stresses of recruiting exploders, assassinating people, and beating up their neighbors. By the time they sneak back into Palestinian territory, a couple months from now, they'll be tanned and rested and rarin' to go.
Posted by: Fred Pruitt || 05/22/2002 10:58 am || Comments || Link || [1 views] Top|| File under:

#1  Too damn bad they're not residing with their terrorist bro' at Camp X-Ray. The local guard from my hometown have been at guarding them at Guantanamo Bay. http://www.qctimes.com/cuba/index.html has done a complete report on Prison and how everyone is doing with some great pics.
Posted by: Mary Wehmeier || 05/22/2002 16:02 Comments || Top||


Another boomer in Rishon Letzion
A bomb exploded in Rishon Letzion in central Israel Wednesday night, killing two people and injuring more than 40 others. Israeli police officials called the explosion a suicide-bomb attack. Rishon Letzion was the site of a suicide bomb attack on May 8 that killed 15 people and injured more than 60 others.
Wonder why the same place twice...?
Posted by: Fred Pruitt || 05/22/2002 01:49 pm || Comments || Link || [0 views] Top|| File under:

#1  FoxNews sez that al-Aqsa Martyrs' Brigades have claimed the credit for this act of heroism.
Posted by: Fred || 05/22/2002 17:18 Comments || Top||


Yasser thinks having his own state would be dandy, thank you...
Yasser Arafat is considering a new approach to negotiations with Israel — one in which he would seek to establish a Palestinian state first and leave other divisive issues such as the status of refugees for future talks.
Oh, what an original idea. Golly, wonder why nobody else never thunk of it...?
Kadoura Mousa Kadoura, director-general of Mr. Arafat's northern West Bank office and a member of the Palestinian National Assembly, outlined the new approach during a recent visit to Jenin. "Let Israel withdraw, and we shall establish a state on our territory, and then we negotiate over the status of the refugees," Mr. Kadoura said.
Shucks, the Israelis will probably be just overjoyed when they do that...
The approach differs from the Palestinian position at failed Camp David talks nearly two years ago, when Mr. Arafat demanded an all-or-nothing resolution of outstanding issues such as the return of refugees and the status of Jerusalem.
You mean when he had his chance and he blew it?
Speaking alongside portraits of Mr. Arafat and of Iraqi President Saddam Hussein in his Jenin headquarters, Mr. Kadoura said the new approach had been endorsed by the Palestinian leader, who has "talked very clearly" about the strategy.
"Talked very clearly?" Yasser? He's been incoherent for the past six months. You sure it was him? Oh, and that's a stunning picture of Sammy, by the way. Just stunning.
Posted by: Fred Pruitt || 05/22/2002 03:30 pm || Comments || Link || [0 views] Top|| File under:


Marwan sez don't stop now...
West Bank Fatah leader Marwan Barghouti sent out a message from his detention Jerusalem center today via his attorney urging Palestinians to press ahead with their resistance against Israel. The most senior Palestinian official to be apprehended during Operation Defensive Shield, Barghouti was arrested April 15 by IDF troops in Ramallah in connection with the deaths and injuries of scores of Israeli civilians. His lawyer, Jawad Boulous, has said that as a political leader, his client pleads not guilty to all charges expected to be brought against him in his future trial.
Well, yeah. Guess you could say explosives are a form of free speech...
Posted by: Fred Pruitt || 05/22/2002 05:24 pm || Comments || Link || [0 views] Top|| File under:


Three Fatah thugs killed in IDF attack near Nablus
Three Fatah-Tanzim leaders were killed by tank shelling near Nablus. Local Fatah head, Mahmoud Titi, 30, was killed in the attack, which took place at the Balata refugee camp. The other two dead were identified by residents as Iyad Abu Hamdan, 22, and Imad Al Hatib, 25.
Golly, shucks. That's jes' terrible. Heh heh...
Salah Sanakreh 35, who lives near the scene, said he heard five tank shells explode. He said the bodies were badly mutilated by the blast.
Yup. That'll happen...
Titi took command of the camp branch after Nasser Awais was arrested during the incursion.
They thought he had exploded, but that turned out to be somebody else...
At first it was reported that Awais was killed in the fighting, but later he was detained in a nearby village by Israeli forces.
Boy, weren't they surprised to see him! "Nasser! Is that you? Stick 'em up!"
Army forces on Mount Gerizim, overlooking the camp, fired shells at the camp cemetery, hitting the three, according to witnesses. The IDF said they were engaged in hostile activities.
And what the hell, as long as they were at the cemetary anyway...
Posted by: Fred Pruitt || 05/22/2002 05:34 pm || Comments || Link || [0 views] Top|| File under:


Palestinian fellow bumped off in Lebanon camp...
An 18-year-old Palestinian was shot dead in a south Lebanon refugee camp early Wednesday. The body of Montaser Mohammed was found outside his house in Ein el-Hilweh, Lebanon's largest refugee camp with 75,000 Palestinians on the edge of Sidon. The circumstances of his killing are unclear, said Maher Shobeita, an official of Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat's Fatah faction in the camp. Palestinian officials said guerrilla factions were investigating the killing. The victim was described as an unemployed man who did not belong to any group.
Just another deader. Could be that he just owed money to Big Mahmoud and Fat Tony... But it's in Lebanon, where there's been a spate of dead guys lately.
Ein el-Hilweh is notorious for its lawlessness. Several Palestinians wanted by police for capital crimes are believed to be hiding in the camp. Lebanese security forces guard the camp's entrances but they do not enter it.
Kinda the original tough neighborhood...
Posted by: Fred Pruitt || 05/22/2002 05:43 pm || Comments || Link || [0 views] Top|| File under:


PA court orders Shubaki released
The Palestinian High Court in Ramallah yesterday ordered the release of Fuad Shubaki, the man believed responsible for the Karine A arms shipment who was jailed in Jericho last month. Hussein Shuyukhi, Shubaki's lawyer, appealed to the court for his immediate release, saying there was no proof he was directly involved in the Karine A. It is not clear if the Palestinian Authority will honor the court's ruling, after a deal was reached with British and American jailers to keep him behind bars in Jericho.
Cynical, but not surprising...
Posted by: Fred Pruitt || 05/22/2002 05:55 pm || Comments || Link || [0 views] Top|| File under:


Hamas calls for reform, may participate in elections
The leaders of the radical Hamas movement called Wednesday on the Palestinian National Authority to begin internal reforms as soon as possible and hinted that they would be willing to participate in municipal elections. Senior Hamas member Mahmoud Al Zahar told a Gaza conference that it is time to set up a preparatory popular committee to work in the framework of the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) and prepare for reforms. "[Hamas'] program is not to elect another Palestinian Authority that would last for another three years. We want to put an everlasting program on how to run the conflict [with Israel] and build up a united Palestinian society," said Al Zahar.

Al Zahar called for the establishment of a committee to work under the PLO, hinting that Hamas may agree to participate in the elections. "We must activate municipal and local elections into institutions and student councils," said Al Zahar. "Going into such a process might help us to a great extent to get out of this national impasse."

The conference, arranged by the Palestinian Council for Foreign Affairs, which is headed by Palestinian lawmaker Zeya Abu Amer, also included representatives of the PNA as well as other PLO factions.

Jamil Al Majdalawi, a member of the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine (PFLP), told the conference that all of those Palestinian factions and groups who are calling for reforms should take responsibility to achieve success in the coming period. He said that change and reform in the PNA and Palestinian society must be carried out for the sake of the battle for freedom and independence.
I suppose this is a start, but they see reforms as a method of consolidation and being able to wage a more efficient war against the Israelis.
Posted by: Fred Pruitt || 05/22/2002 06:09 pm || Comments || Link || [0 views] Top|| File under:


Terror Networks
U.N. spreads blame for Colombia massacre
A U.N. report released Tuesday said a Marxist rebel group, right-wing paramilitaries, the government and the military all shared blame in fighting earlier this month that left 119 civilians dead in a small town in the remote jungles of northwest Colombia. The report was prepared by the U.N. Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights in Colombia. The killings, the worst casualty toll among the civilian population from a single battle in Colombia's 38-year-old civil conflict, took place in early May during fighting between FARC (the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia) and paramilitary forces in the town of Bojayá.

Anders Kompass, director of the Colombia office, said in his report, written after a trip to the area, said the FARC had committed murder and violated international law that obliged warring factions to take measures to safeguard civilians. The deaths occurred when the FARC fired a cooking-gas cylinder packed with explosives that veered off target and hit a church where 300 villagers were sheltered. Ninety-eight civilians were injured. Kompass also blamed paramilitary fighters for trying to hide among the civilians to defend themselves from the rebel attack. But he reserved some of his strongest criticism for the state and its security forces. Kompass said the government, the police and the army not only ignored warnings of an impending tragedy but also may have collaborated with the outlawed paramilitary forces to allow them to enter the region.
If we are all responsible, then no one has to take responsibility. Why bother writing the report? Was there an ink surplus that had to be trimmed?
Posted by: Fred Pruitt || 05/22/2002 10:54 am || Comments || Link || [0 views] Top|| File under:


Lebanon terror summit didn't include al Qaeda leaders
A widely publicized March meeting in Lebanon of Hamas and Hezbollah leaders did not include any senior al Qaeda representatives, U.S. officials said Tuesday. ABC News reported Monday that the meeting included al Qaeda leaders and was a summit to discuss cooperation on attacks against the United States. If any al Qaeda members were at the meeting, "which is unclear, then it would have been nobody who could decide anything," one official said. In fact, U.S. officials said, a major topic of the meeting was cooperation between Hamas and Hezbollah on terrorism against Israel.
In other words, it was a routine coordination meeting between Hamas and Hezbollah, like happens in Beirut all the time. But to ABC's crew, it had never happened before and they forgot about the Jerusalem Project. Is that egg on their faces?
Posted by: Fred Pruitt || 05/22/2002 11:06 am || Comments || Link || [0 views] Top|| File under:



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Wed 2002-05-22
  Paks warn India against cross-border action...
Tue 2002-05-21
  Abdul Ghani Lone assassinated
Mon 2002-05-20
  India, Pakistan Trade Heavy Fire as Tensions Mount
Sun 2002-05-19
  Jammu attack aimed at triggering Indo-Pak conflict: JKNAC
Sat 2002-05-18
  Hafiz Saeed jugged. Again.
Fri 2002-05-17
  Israeli army occupies Jenin again
Thu 2002-05-16
  Pakistan steps up al-Qaeda search
Wed 2002-05-15
  Yasser promises elections
Tue 2002-05-14
  Riaz Basra, dead again
Mon 2002-05-13
  Yasser calls for 'millions of martyrs'
Sun 2002-05-12
  Yasser prepared to accept Jewish state. Really.
Sat 2002-05-11
  Frenchies say Karachi bombing was directed at them
Fri 2002-05-10
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Thu 2002-05-09
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Wed 2002-05-08
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