Western and Afghan troops have driven the Taliban from a southern area after a week-long battle in which more than 70 militants were killed, an Afghan security official said on Saturday.
Violence has surged in Afghanistan in recent months after the traditional winter lull and an upsurge of fighting last year, the bloodiest since the Taliban's removal in 2001.
In the latest incident on Saturday, a roadside bomb killed at least eight Afghan police outside the southern city of Kandahar, provincial police chief, Esmatullah Alizai said.
There were no casualties among Afghan and Western troops in the fighting in Nahri Saraj of neighbouring Helmand province, scene of a series of operations by foreign-led forces in recent weeks, the security official said.
Five Taliban commanders were amongst those killed, the official said, adding there were no casualties among civilians.
"We have driven out the Taliban from the district and it is under our control," he said.
Foreign troops led by the U.S. military and NATO as well as the Taliban could not be immediately contacted for comment about the battle.
Nahri Saraj lies 25 km (15 miles) from Sangin district where witnesses said more than 40 civilians were killed last Tuesday in an air strike by U.S.-led coalition troops.
The coalition has confirmed civilian casualties in the battle of Sangin.
Separately, an air attack by Western forces killed at least seven civilians, including women and children, in Marja district of Helmand early on Friday, witnesses said on Saturday.
Seven of the civilians wounded in the attack were brought to a government run hospital in the provincial capital Lashkar Gah, they said.
"I know of six or seven deaths in my village," a wounded woman said at the hospital.
Afghan officials say U.S.-led troops have killed scores of civilians in the past two months in Afghanistan.
A U.S. commander apologised last week for the deaths of 19 civilians killed by coalition forces in March.
need instead to apportion blame on the taliban for using the civilians as shields and to promose more civilian causalties if the practice continues and that those also will be laid at teh feet of the taliban.
then the 'civilians' might lose thier enthusiam for supporting the bad guys.
Posted by: Abu do you love ||
05/12/2007 17:16 Comments ||
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Ask them if they apologized to the US for harboring and abetting those who trained and financed the islamists who drove killed 3000 on 9/11.
Fresh airstrikes in a volatile southern Afghan region killed up to 10 Taliban fighters close to where villagers say about 40 civilians died during a battle earlier this week, and the US-led coalition said local Afghans feared more militant attacks.
Taliban fighters ambushed a patrol of US-led coalition and Afghan forces near Sangin in Helmand province Thursday evening, and gunfire and airstrikes killed 10 militants, said Eizatullah Khan, the Sangin district chief. A coalition spokesman, Sgt. 1st Class Dean Welch, put the toll at six Taliban killed. He had no further details. Two villagers from Sangin said they knew of no civilian casualties caused by the fight.
Airstrikes called in by US Special Forces fighting some 200 Taliban militants north of Sangin on Tuesday killed 21 civilians, government officials said, while villagers said nearly 40 civilians were killed.
Posted by: Fred ||
05/12/2007 00:00 ||
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Two villagers from Sangin said they knew of no civilian casualties caused by the fight
They still have some civilians left alive? /sarc off
What supposedly happens here? Do the friendly Taliban invade their houses and not let anyone out? Word would soon get out that they were being a-holes so I doubt it. Do people leave their doors open thinking they'll give the fighters refuge and gain favor? Seems more likely given they probably don't know what a predator drone or nightvision are. Does a huge gunbattle develop around their houses so they are afraid to come out even if the Taliban come in? I can imagine this, too.
(SomaliNet) The government authorities in Mogadishu, the capital of Somalia Thursday said they were in denial of the speculations about the ban of the face-veils in which the security forces were removing from the Muslim women and then burning them. The statement was made by the new mayor of Mogadishu, Mohamed Omar Habeb Mohamed Dhere who held a news conference in the capital. Mr. Dhere described the act as unwanted and ordered soldiers to stop removing any more veils with immediate effect.
Speaking on the recent explosions in Mogadishu, the mayor said the security forces arrested some of those were responsible for the terror attacks. They will be brought before the justice, he said. The police is also tracing down other suspects.
Mohamed Dhere appealed to Mogadishu residents to work with his new authority to restore law and order. He encouraged the crack down operations on the illegal business kiosks praised it as positive step towards bringing the city back to its glory.
Posted by: Fred ||
05/12/2007 00:00 ||
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"bringing the city back to its glory. "
This does not compute. When have Mogadishu and glory ever had even passing acquaintance with each other?
(SomaliNet) The Ethiopian forces in the Somalia capital Mogadishu carried out four hours of military operation in the city's main Bakara market arresting suspects today. The Ethiopian soldiers have stormed several motels in Bakara market arresting key supporters of the ousted Islamists including Mohamed Roble Jimale Goble (former warlord), Ahmed Qare (known Islamist supporter) and Hussein Ali Wehliye (former ruler of Afgoye town in lower Shabelle region). Just in report says that the suspects were released after being questioned.
The suspects were caught as they were sleeping in their beds in the hotel which was surrounded by heavily armed Ethiopian soldiers, one eyewitness told Somalinet.
The Ethiopian soldiers raided the market before dawn blocking all the key roads to the market. No business center was opened during the mission. I was surprised when I saw this morning Ethiopian soldiers taking position at my door, I was really scared and I was refused to go out, said Leylo Ahmed, a resident in Bakara market.
The Ethiopian military mission in this morning followed last nights skirmishes within the government forces killing two civilians Bakara market is where biggest businesses are stationed. The interim government officials suspect that Bakara is now safe haven for many of the Islamist remnants. Elsewhere in Mogadishu, the Ethiopian soldiers killed two people whom they suspected this morning.
Posted by: Fred ||
05/12/2007 00:00 ||
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Police have been given five more days to question four suspects arrested this week in connection with the 7/7 London bombings, including the widow of ringleader Mohammad Sidique Khan. There was an extension granted which lasts until Wednesday for all four, a Scotland Yard spokeswoman said on Friday. Questioning continues and all four remain in custody, the spokesman added. Khans widow Hasina Patel, her brother and two other men were detained on Wednesday on suspicion of the commission, preparation, or instigation of acts of terrorism. Terrorism suspects can be held for questioning for up to 28 days in total, but police must apply to a judge to extend their initial detention after the first 48 hours and then at weekly intervals. Khan and three other young British Muslims blew themselves up on July 7, 2005, killing 52 people on three London underground trains and a bus in the first suicide attacks by Islamist militants in Western Europe. Wednesdays arrests were the second set within weeks. Three men were charged last month with conspiring with the bombers.
Posted by: Fred ||
05/12/2007 00:00 ||
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#1
The word "Grill" brings to mind certain images.
A Sri Lankan national pleaded guilty in a Maryland court Thursday to charges he tried to smuggle US weapons to Tamil Tiger rebels, the US Justice Department announced.
Thirunavukarasu Varatharasa, 37, pleaded guilty to attempted export of arms and munitions and to conspiracy to support the Tamil Tigers, a group the US State Department has considered a foreign terrorist organization since 1997. Varatharasa was the last of six defendants in the plot to be convicted of trying to obtain military weapons in the 2006 scheme in violation of US law. He faces a maximum penalty of 15 years in prison for conspiracy to provide material support to the Tigers, and 10 more years for trying to export weapons and ammunition.
US District Judge Catherine Blake has not set a sentencing date. We are committed to using all available legal tools to prevent terrorism, said US Attorney for the District of Maryland Rod Rosenstein. Six people - four Indonesians, a Singaporean, and Varatharasa - were arrested late last year after US undercover officers trapped them in a sting operation. They had sought to buy 53 military weapons, including sniper rifles, machine guns and grenade launchers as well as ammunition and night-vision devices for the Tamil Tigers.
This article starring:
Tamil Tigers
Thirunavukarasu Varatharasa
US Attorney for the District of Maryland Rod Rosenstein
US District Judge Catherine Blake
Posted by: Fred ||
05/12/2007 00:00 ||
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CHARSADDA: Policemen in uniform and plainclothes have been deployed at churches and houses of Christians here following the distribution of threatening letters on Monday, asking the minority community to convert to Islam or leave the area within 10 days, a police official said on Friday. We have taken all security measures to protect the Christians living in Charsadda, Headquarters DSP Sajjad Ali told Daily Times on the telephone. Ali denied that Christians were migrating to other areas due to security fears.
Local Christian leader Chaudhry Saleem backed Alis statement, saying no Christian had moved from Charsadda district. We are frightened, but no Christian family has moved to any other place, he told Daily Times.
Saleem said that DSP Sajjad had assured the 600 Christians living in the district that the police would protect them against any harm. DSP Ali said the police were investigating the matter to find out about the persons who could have written the letter. The letter was written in Urdu ... it seems that an immature person has written it because the writing style and language used is pretty bad. The Taliban are more sophisticated in such activities, he said.
Prince Javed, president of the All Pakistan Minorities Alliance (APMA) in Charsadda, said the letter had frightened the Christians, but no one had left the district so far. Meanwhile, APMA Chairman Shahbaz Bhatti told The Associated Press that several Christian families in Charsadda had already migrated to other places and others were contemplating the same.
Posted by: Fred ||
05/12/2007 00:00 ||
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Rose pedals shower dead lovers
As reported in daily Jang, a young boy, Waqas, who wanted to marry his sweetheart, took poison after a fight with his mother over the marriage proposal. The girl also took poison and reached the house of Waqas then started weeping over his dead body. She was rushed to the hospital when blood started from her mouth but she died on her way to the hospital. People showered rose petals on their janazas as they were lifted from the same street.
Fake pir beats the jinn out of a woman
As reported in daily Jang, in Gagu Mandi Munir Ahmads wife was running a high fever for few days. He took her to a local Pir Yasin Shah who said that she is under the control of very powerful jinn. He started treatment by beating her with hockey stick and the woman became unconscious. The pir charged Munir Ahmad 200 rupees fee and said the wife would be fine when she reached home. The woman died after remaining unconscious for two days.
Faisalabad madrassa follows Jamia Hafsa
As reported in daily Express, the students of Jamia Qasmia in Faisalabad raided an alleged brothel house, inspired by the incident of Jamia Hafsa. The residents of Ghulam Mohammad Abad registered their complaint with the madrassa against the woman who was running a brothel in the area. The students raided the locality and one student was arrested by the police.
Dacoits return jewellry to mehfil-e-milad women
As reported in daily Jang, in Daska four armed dacoits entered a house where women were holding mehfil-e-milad and snatched their jewellery at gun-point worth lacs of rupees. When the dacoits tried to stop the recitation of milad, the brave women refused to stop zikr-e-rasool (PTUI PBUH). Inspired by their faith the dacoits returned the jewellery and left after apologising to the women.
Madrassa teacher booked under Womens Protection Bill
As reported in daily Jang, a naib nazim Safiullah, aka Janat Gul, of a madrassa in Kahna tricked a boy, Naveed, to his room and tried to sodomize him. He beat him violently when the boy struggled and ran away. The abuser reached the house of the boy with an accomplice, but the local residents intervened and nabbed the culprits. A force of 25 stick bearing madrassa students attacked the residents of the street and forcefully released the culprits before the arrival of police. Police registered the case in section 367/A under the Women Protection Bill.
Fatwa against suicide bombing
As reported in daily Nawa-e-Waqt, two thousand ulema in a convention organised by Jamiat ulema Islam gave a fatwa that suicide bombing and establishing shariat by force, is un-Islamic. The six page fatwa by the convention stated that threatening barbers to stop shaving beards and attacking CD shops is also against Islam. Some hidden forces are attacking the Islamic government and are killing their own Muslim brothers. They said that these acts are bringing a bad name to madrassas and ulema.
Marriage of egoists Abhishek and Aishwarya
Accoriding to daily Jang, the experts of numerology said that the handwriting of Abhishek Bachan and Aishwarya Rai indicated that they wouldn't rebel against the family traditions. Abhishek could be physically harmed in 2008 but that can be avoided via puja. They advised Aishwarya to change her name into Aishwarya Bachan, but if she kept her name even as Aishwarya Rai Bachan, her mother could influence her marriage. They might have internal conflicts as both are big stars and Aishwarya Rai is more an egoist than Abhishek, but the clash of egos would not lead to separation.
Imam Mehdi arrested by police
As reported in daily Nawa-e-Waqt, in the southern Punjab city of Ahmad Pur Sharqia a man was arrested for declaring himself as Imam Mehdi. The jobless resident of Mohalla Nur Shah, Bilal Ahmad, was arrested under section 295 and 298 for blasphemy and sent to Bhawalpur central jail.
People accusing the cricket team should leave Pakistan
As reported in Daily Pakistan, popular all rounder Shahid Afridi of the Pakistan cricket team said that those who are hurling allegations of match fixing on Pakistan cricket team have no right to live in Pakistan. He said that he wanted to be the captain of Pakistan cricket team but he would support the new captain. He demanded that the PCB shall appoint a senior player as vice captain and ex-cricketers shall find new talent rather than finding jobs with the PCB.
12 year old Taliban slaughters his spy comrade
As reported in daily Express, Taliban commander Mullah Akhtar Usmani issued a video cassette showing the slaughter of his own comrade, Qari Ghulam Nabi, for spying against the Taliban. A 12 year old Taliban boy was shown with a knife slaughtering Qari Ghulam Nabi. The boy said that this would be the fate of all those who are spying for America. According to American news agency, Qari Ghulam Nabi was a Pakistani citizen whose father, Ghulam Sakhi, vowed to avenge the murder of his son.
Police officers released Sonia Naz case
As reported in daily Nawa-e-Waqt, an additional session judge released SP Khalid Abdullah and inspector Iqbal Chisti who were arrested in the famous Sonia Naz rape case. The court ruled that the applicant, Sonia Naz, was summoned by the court many times because she couldnt be contacted as she left her home for an undisclosed location.
Fight over the donations for shrine of Amir Cheema
As reported in Daily Pakistan, professor Mohammad Nazir Cheema, the father of Amir Cheema shaheed who sacrificed his life for the protection of sanctity of the Prophet Mohammad (PTUI PBUH) in Berlin, alleged that Pir Mohammad Afzal Qadri of Gujrat has purchased a land near the donated land of the grave of Amir Cheema and is receiving donations to construct a shrine. Pir Afzal Qadri has threatened to shift the remains of Amir Cheema to Gujrat.
Sarfraz Nawazs mouth for rent
As reported in daily Jang, the ex-captain of Pakistan cricket team Imran Khan sent legal notice against Sarfraz Nawaz for his allegations and said that Sarfraz Nawazs mouth is rented by people and is being used after the World Cup. He said Sarfrazs allegations of betting on Javed Miandad, he and now the Pakistan cricket team has brought bad reputation for Pakistan in the international press.
Pope finds ambiguity in Darwin's theory
As reported in daily Nawa-e-Waqt, Pope Benedict 16th criticized Darwins theory of evolution and said there are a lot of loop holes in this theory. He said there should be a compromise between reason and faith. He repeated the words of Pope John Paul II that Darwins theory is still more than a hypothesis, but it is not yet complete.
Westernised women working for clash of civilisations
As reported in daily Jang, the ameer of Jamaat Islami, Qazi Hussain Ahmad, said that a few Westernised women are protesting against the religious extremists to please the Americans. These protests are creating discord among the Muslims unity. The Western embassies in Pakistan are funding these NGOs and Westernised women to create the atmosphere of a clash of civilisations in Pakistan.
Posted by: Fred ||
05/12/2007 00:00 ||
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#1
Okay FredMan it kinda obvious you're just cranking this stuff out.
To wit:
He started treatment by beating her with hockey stick and the woman became unconscious. The pir charged Munir Ahmad 200 rupees
#3
Unfortunately (thanks to China) they already got the bomb
Posted by: John Frum ||
05/12/2007 6:46 Comments ||
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#4
I only wish my daily paper had such a diverse selection of stories. Where else can you find stories about field hockey medicine, cricket patriotism,apologetic jewellery thieves and a truculent pope?
#7
I only wish my daily paper had such a diverse selection of stories.
Go on your knees and thank your god that you were not born a Pakistani... else your daily paper would have such a selection of stories.
Posted by: John Frum ||
05/12/2007 12:33 Comments ||
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kojo, I only wish my daily paper had such a diverse selection of stories. Where else can you find stories about field hockey medicine, cricket patriotism,apologetic jewellery thieves and a truculent pope?
read...
jinn,
poison,
best little whorehouse in Faisalabad,
zikr-e-rasool (PTUI),
sodomize,
Fatwa who krapped a large shariat,
klash of EGOS,
section 295 and 298,
Pope Krickets,
12 year old Muslim Scout who Cuts Throats,
rape,
shrine,
Darwin's loop hole,
Wymins are creating discord among the Muslims unity!
Very bad news:
BAGHDAD Seven U.S. soldiers and an Iraqi army interpreter were attacked early Saturday while patrolling a Sunni insurgent area south of Baghdad, leaving five dead and three missing, the U.S. military said. The military refused to specify whether the Iraqi interpreter was among those killed or among the missing, citing security.
Troops were searching for the missing, using drone planes, jets and checkpoints throughout the area, according to the statement. Soldiers were also asking local leaders for information.
The attack occurred at 4:44 a.m. about 12 miles west of Mahmoudiya, the military said, adding that nearby units heard explosions and a drone plane observed two burning vehicles 15 minutes later. Mahmoudiya is about 20 miles south of Baghdad in an area known as the Triangle of Death because of frequent insurgent attacks.
Troops who arrived at the scene about an hour after the attack found five of the soldiers dead. The other three members of the patrol were gone, according to the statement, from Maj. Gen. William Caldwell, the chief U.S. military spokesman in Iraq. "Make no mistake: We will never stop looking for our soldiers until their status is definitively determined, and we continue to pray for their safe return," Caldwell said.
An Iraqi army officer, speaking on condition of anonymity because he wasn't authorized to disclose the information, also said joint U.S.-Iraqi forces were conducting house-to-house searches in the area and all roads to Mahmoudiya had been closed.
The attack occurred nearly a year after two American soldiers went missing following a June 16 attack in the same area, prompting a massive search. Their bodies were found tied together with a bomb between one victim's legs several days later. The soldiers kidnapped and butchered last year were Privates Kristian Menchaca and Tommy Tucker. It is my understanding that many here saw the terrorist demons' video of their bodies. Never forgive, never forget.
#3
It's time to crap or get off the pot. Like the 80% solution article from yesterday or day before said, the brain trust in D.C. better consult with itself. It either supports The Sauds + Sunni's or it supports Shias + Kurds + Iran. No good choices. Walking the fence only sacrifices Americans. Maybe they are content to do this, but most Americans are not. If we go 80%, then places like this hole ought to be totally elimininated. Nothing but rubble evident. No living beings remaining.
#4
I guess that I am not psychologically suited for small wars. Things like this make me want an ArcLight strike, three cells of three B-52s flying 250 ft drift angle station keeping formation. Puts a 750 pound bomb about every 500 feet with nothing left but a long field of craters.
#6
Given the choice between the enemy fearing us or "liking" us I would choose they fear us. Every time they think about doing some shit, they will also think about the most terrible consequences. Level this friggin area post haste. Nuke it or mine it and let it be a reminder of the terrible wrath of the United States.
I couldn't agree more. I said the same thing (along with several thousands of my peers)about Vietnam, but the Dummycrats are trying the same old sh$$ today. Maybe the place to ARCLIGHT isn't Iraq, but DC. It might do more good in the long run...
In the meantime, pick a town, tell the residents to leave by X time on Y date, and ARCLIGHT it into oblivion. Give Maliki 90 days to clean up his act AND his country, tell the Sunnis it's time to fish or cut bait, and tell the Shiites they play along or the US will simply pull out of Iraq and do to all of the country what they did to that village. Tell Iran they either stop trying to build nukes, or we'll stop them - WITH nukes. Oh, and yeah, nuke Mecca, Medina, and Qom. Tell Tehran they have 90 days to surrender, or every city with 20,000 or more people gets it in the neck. Might not be a bad idea to take care of Pakiwakiland, southern Lebanon, and Sneeria at the same time. Give the Israelis the green light to clean out Gaza and the West Bank. Anybody that complains is next on the target list.
Posted by: Old Patriot ||
05/12/2007 17:49 Comments ||
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#11
Old Patriot, you thought the Brits were 'wussies' over 'the 15', Super "W" will bend over backwards with his jar in order NOT to upset the applecart; the Iraqi street! I'm bracing myself for the beheading video and General Caldwell's shock and realization of his 'Peter Principle'.
#12
Despite the best efforts of our "leaders", I believe we can still win this. I agree with Hugh Fitzgerald, all we have to do in order to win is to leave, and then watch the locals burn the whole region to the ground. Arm the weakest side, then arm the other side if the first one gets too strong, etc.
#13
IMHO that's not victory, that's sustained anarchy, with resulting instability in the region and oil trade. Although satisfying (to us) for the direct consequences on ungrateful and malicious assholes, it wouldn't be victory
Posted by: Frank G ||
05/12/2007 20:23 Comments ||
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#14
I blame penny packet deployments. Why the heck are we sending squad-sized units into action in urban areas? Shouldn't they be at least platoon strength?
#15
You're probably right there, Frank, I'm just in a particularly obnoxious mood after this piece of news. If we could get the sustained anarchy and complete destruction of the Arab world with only limited economic disruption, it would surely be the best option.
#16
lay waste to iran, mecca, NYTimes headquarters, cnn center atlanta, and any number other msn outlets.
i hate that we can't go all out because of the fear we have of what the msn and others will report, think, and thus be offended. as i type this, i watch a docu on wwII. we need those leaders today.
Posted by: Lee ||
05/12/2007 23:41 Comments ||
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BAGHDAD (AP) - Two Army helicopters land after a roadside blast, rescuing wounded American soldiers - and one Iraqi insurgent. Inside the Iraq's pocket, a medic finds the trip wire used to set off the bomb.
The scene - which occurred back in January - is part of a little-known U.S. mission amid Iraq's mayhem: ferrying injured prisoners along with soldiers from the clashes and ambushes.
Such flights have been aspects of battle for decades, but in Iraq they also serve as a bridge between very different eras of warfare.
The emergency care for the prisoners falls under the long-standing wartime codes of the Geneva Conventions. But the high-stakes pressures to wring information from them highlight the struggles against shadowy extremists in Iraq that still appear capable of striking at will in many areas.
Now, the potentials for conflict between the two demands - saving the enemy's life, but possibly saving U.S. soldiers with fresh intelligence - are receiving top-level attention.
The commander of U.S. forces in Iraq, Gen. David Petraeus, reminded his troops Thursday to ``occupy the moral high ground'' and not resort to torture or other abuses - even if the motive is for confessions that could help U.S. forces.
Petraeus' memo followed a Pentagon survey that found many U.S. soldiers serving in Iraq would support torture in certain cases and would not report a comrade for killing or wounding civilians.
``My job is to keep EPWs (enemy prisoners of war) alive so they can be interrogated,'' said Sgt. Maxie B. Kimbriel, 42, a flight medic from New Boston, Texas. ``They may have information that leaves us vulnerable. They can't be questioned if they're dead.''
For two days and one night this week, The Associated Press flew with a medevac company - known as the Army's ``witchdoctors'' - out of Camp Taji, an Air Force base just north of Baghdad.
Their Black Hawk helicopters - filled with medical equipment and emblazoned with bright red crosses - are famous for the risks they take skimming rooftops and dodging power lines to pick up anyone injured in battles or attacks involving U.S. forces: soldiers, extremists and Iraqi civilians.
For some, the toughest part is treating young American soldiers or Iraqi children who have been seriously wounded and may not survive.
``All wounded soldiers get to me, but the young ones - 18 to early 20s - they get to me the most,'' said Kimbriel of the unit, formally known as Charlie Company, 2nd Battalion, 227th Aviation Regiment, 1st Calvary, Air Brigade. ``These young Joes who are seriously wounded and may never live full lives, marry or have kids.''
But others grappled with very different emotions while caring for EPW insurgents who are blindfolded and bound to their stretchers on the medevac flights.
``The medic especially can't help but wonder: How many Americans has he killed? ... If the situation were reversed, we'd be having our heads cut off as captives on TV. And we're saving his life,'' said Maj. Guy Gierhart, 36, the company commander from Corpus Christi, Texas.
If they survive, the EPWs are transferred from U.S. hospitals to prisons in Iraq where they will be interrogated - seeking information and details fresh from the fight.
Gierhart said his medevac company has evacuated more than 3,000 patients in the last nine months, including many American and Iraq forces and Iraqi EPWs.
``We are required under the Geneva Convention to rescue the enemy, and we give them better care than our soldiers could ever expect from al-Qaida in Iraq,'' said U.S. military spokesman Lt. Col. Christopher Garver. ``But we also stop them from planning or carrying out attacks, and as detainees they sometimes give us information we need about future ones.''
Flight medic Sgt. Christopher Orange recalls flying to the scene of a U.S. convoy hit by a roadside bomb and sniper ambush in Baghdad in January. By the time the two Black Hawk medevac helicopters arrived, the American soldiers had returned fire and there were casualties on both sides.
``The first medevac helicopter pulled out the wounded Americans. It was my job on the second one to save a seriously wounded Iraqi insurgent who was captured,'' said Orange, 37, of Sarasota, Fla. ``While I searched his trousers, I found a wire that he apparently had used to set off the roadside bomb.''
Under the Geneva Conventions, the medevac crews can only carry rifles and handguns for their own protection - not the kind of powerful machine guns that normally sit in the two open windows on either side of a Black Hawk. But the ``witchdoctors'' often are accompanied by fully armed military helicopters or meet ones that arrive separately at rescue sites.
Insurgents and militias often fire at medevac teams with AK47s, heavy machine guns and heat-seeking surface-to-air missiles, said U.S. Army Lt. Col. Chris Joslin, 43, of Reno, Nev., the commander of the 2nd Battalion, 227th Aviation Regiment, at Camp Taji.
Last month, one crew chief was wounded in the hand by small arms fire through an open Black Hawk window during a flight outside of Baghdad, Gierhart said.
Since the war started, seven medevac crew members have died, along with five of their patients, in a series of attacks on medical helicopters.
``Our medevacs work hard to keep their patients alive, including EPWs who have tried to kill Americans,'' said Col. Daniel Shanahan, the brigade commander at Camp Taji. ``That wears on some of our guys, given what could happen if the situation were reversed.''
The emergency care for the prisoners falls under the long-standing wartime codes of the Geneva Conventions.
"We are required under the Geneva Convention to rescue the enemy, and we give them better care than our soldiers could ever expect from al-Qaida in Iraq," said U.S. military spokesman Lt. Col. Christopher Garver.
Under the Geneva Conventions, the medevac crews can only carry rifles and handguns for their own protection - not the kind of powerful machine guns that normally sit in the two open windows on either side of a Black Hawk.
What is all this bullshit about the GC? They simply DO NOT apply to those who violate them without a second thought. Terrorists need to be offed as swiftly and effeciently as possible. As to interrogating them:
Petraeus' memo followed a Pentagon survey that found many U.S. soldiers serving in Iraq would support torture in certain cases and would not report a comrade for killing or wounding civilians.
Gruesome as it may sound, our soldiers have the right idea. They know what fate awaits them at the hands of these monsters. We must be just as brutal with these remorseless thugs. Nothing but stone cold brutality will get us anywhere with these turds on legs.
I wish we had battle lasers that would cut these bastards in half in a single swipe. I want our troops taking the field with weapons so vicious that terrorists shit their pants at the thought of engaging them. CCLAW laser blinding systems, microwave at-distance roasting beams, I care not. Terrorists deserve nothing but the heel of our collective military boot grinding them into a bloody paste.
#4
How they forget that after Malmedy, the troops didn't take too many prisoners if they thought the troops were SS. Don't recall too many investigations or courts martial over the point.
#5
Why the hell are we extending GC protections to ILLEGAL-COMBATANTS? The foot soldiers should be summarily executed (publically with full disclosure of the reason, the fact that they are considered ILLEGAL COMBATANTS under the Geneva Conventsions and the reason they are considered such). The leaders should be wrung dry (by any means necessary) and then publically executed.
BAGHDAD - US troops killed four militants suspected of involvement in car bomb networks, including one believed to have links to senior Al Qaeda in Iraq leaders, the US military said on Friday.
In a statement, the military said a series of raids against car bomb cells took place in and around Baghdad and the northern city of Mosul over the past two days. Nine militants were detained. The four were killed on Friday near Taji, north of Baghdad, the statement said. The militant with suspected links to Al Qaeda was a car bomb cell leader, the military said. It said US forces approached a building during the raid, when soldiers were fired upon by the four. Troops returned fire, killing them, it said.
Although we are still seeing car bombs, where they are being directed has changed significantly -- Major General Joseph Fil
US and Iraqi forces launched a security crackdown in Baghdad in February that has cut sectarian death squad killings. But car bombs mainly blamed on Sunni Islamist Al Qaeda still plague the city, killing and wounding scores each week.
US commanders say they are making it a priority to go after car bomb networks, while putting up tall concrete barriers around popular targets such as markets to minimise attacks. In an interview with Reuters this week, the commander of US troops in Baghdad, Major-General Joseph Fil, said his forces were making headway. Although we are still seeing car bombs, where they are being directed has changed significantly, he said. The effect of the car bombs has been reduced hugely, they are not getting to markets anymore because they are not allowed. They are not getting to many of the neighbourhoods that they used to go because they are just denied that opportunity.
US military officials say the number of car bombs in Baghdad has fallen by 41 percent during the three months of the security offensive compared to the same period before the plan.
Posted by: Steve White ||
05/12/2007 00:00 ||
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Our troops have removed Islamic madmen which would have murdered possibly hundreds of Iraqis plus our troops as well.
G-d bless our troops!
Posted by: Mark Espinola ||
05/12/2007 2:39 Comments ||
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leave the bodies to ferment for a week, and then send them to their home country as a present.
BAGHDAD - Three more US soldiers have been killed in Iraq, the military announced Friday, as an increased pace in combat operations kept the average rate of American deaths at three per day so far this month.
In the bloodiest incident, one soldier was killed and nine were wounded by an explosion that detonated by their patrol Thursday while they were conducting combat operations in Diyala Province north of Baghdad. Two of the wounded were able to return to duty, a statement said, while the others are receiving treatment.
One soldier was shot dead while conducting combat security operations in south Baghdad. Another, from the military police, died of his wounds after being hit by gunfire in Diwaniyah, south of the capital.
Posted by: Steve White ||
05/12/2007 00:00 ||
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Two suicide car bombers struck police patrols in a predominantly Shiite area Friday in Baghdad, killing at least 11 people and wounding nearly 20, police said.
The blasts struck in quick succession at about 6 pm in the Zafaraniyah area of southeastern Baghdad, shattering the calm of the traditional Islamic day of rest. The violence started when the driver of a Sedan plowed into police cars parked near a bridge where a checkpoint was being established. That was followed within minutes by the explosion of a fuel truck near another nearby bridge, police said.
Posted by: Fred ||
05/12/2007 00:00 ||
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Rival Palestinian factions clashed in the Gaza Strip on Friday, wounding at least six in some of the heaviest internal fighting in weeks, security officials and witnesses said. The clashes erupted within 48 hours of Palestinian security forces having begun deployment in Gaza under a new security plan. Palestinians had hoped the deployment would help curb growing lawlessness and ease tensions between ruling Hamas Islamists and President Mahmoud Abbass secular Fatah faction. That's working well...
Hamas said the fighting began before dawn when members of Abbass national security forces detained a member of Hamass armed wing. The man was detained because he was suspected of being involved in firing on security forces overnight, according to a source with the national security forces. Hamas militants responded by storming the facility where the man was being held and freeing him. At least two members of the national security forces were injured, one seriously, in the gun fight.
In other clashes early on Friday, at least one Hamas member was wounded, along with three other people.
Internal fighting decreased after Hamas and Fatah formed a unity government two months ago, but tensions have remained high and a Western aid embargo on the Palestinian Authority remains in place. A pro-Fatah Web site accused seekers of bloodshed within Hamas of starting the latest round of fighting. A Fatah source accused Hamas militants of briefly seizing 18 members of Fatah-led security services. They were released but Hamas kept the vehicles and arms.
Abbas and Prime Minister Ismail Haniyeh of Hamas had ordered the deployment of the security forces this week as part of the security plan. But casting doubt over the effort, Interior Minister Hani al-Qawasmi, an independent with no security background, said he did not order the move and renewed his threat to resign. Militant groups, including Hamass armed wing, urged the security forces not to take any actions against them.
Posted by: Fred ||
05/12/2007 00:00 ||
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Ima get a an anti-trust Fatwa out against Barb S. Demand is out running supply. $4 popcorn is an outrager!
An unidentified attacker threw a grenade into a camp housing hundreds of war-displaced in Sri Lankas restive east overnight, wounding eight people, police said on Friday.
The explosion in the camp, set up in a Muslim school in the town of Kattankudi in the eastern district of Batticaloa, comes as a new chapter in a two-decade civil war between the state and Tamil Tiger rebels unfolds. It also closely followed visits to the island by top US State Department official Richard Boucher and Anglican spiritual leader Rowan Williams, the Archbishop of Canterbury.
Someone threw a grenade over the wall into the camp, and eight people were wounded and taken to hospital, a police officer told Reuters from Kattankudi. Two children were among the wounded. The military says it has nearly driven Tiger fighters from Batticaloa, where an armed renegade faction called the Karuna group - which analysts say is allied to the government - operates freely.
The Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE), who want to carve out an independent state for minority Tamils in the islands north and east, blamed the government. This is another example of abuses by the government of Sri Lanka security forces and their paramilitaries, said Tiger military spokesman Rasiah Ilanthiraiyan. We had nothing to do with it.
Posted by: Fred ||
05/12/2007 00:00 ||
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The report by Belgian prosecutor Serge Brammertz, head of the U.N. probe into the assassination of Lebanon s former Prime Minister Rafik Hariri, was said to have been "concluded" on Thursday The daily Asharq Alawsat, citing well-informed Lebanese sources, said outcome of Brammertz' report and disclosure of those involved in the 2005 murder of Hariri and related crimes are "subject to" creation of the U.N.-backed international tribunal.
The sources said the U.N. commission investigating Hariri's killing has "crowned" its nearly two-year probe with the grilling of fugitive Rana Koleilat, former Al Madina Bank executive, who is jailed in Brazil for allegedly trying to bribe police officers who located her for Interpol. Koleilat, who is also under investigation for a multi-million-dollar fraud at Al Madina, was arrested in Sao Paulo on March 12, 2006.
Asharq Alawsat said the sources quoted diplomats at the United Nations as saying that Koleilat's testimony had "shed light on important issues that have been awaiting clearance" from the U.N. commission. The sources said Koleilat was interrogated as a witness, thus, her testimony ought to be supported with tangible evidence and documents.
Posted by: Fred ||
05/12/2007 00:00 ||
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I noticed that if I visit the same article twice that I seem to get counted twice. Can it be made to count hits from unique IP addresses vs. just how many times it gets hit? That would be more useful.
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.
Western and Afghan troops have driven the Taliban from a southern area after a week-long battle in which more than 70 militants were killed, an Afghan security official said on Saturday.
Fresh airstrikes in a volatile southern Afghan region killed up to 10 Taliban fighters close to where villagers say about 40 civilians died during a battle earlier this week, and the US-led coalition said local Afghans feared more militant attacks. 
(SomaliNet) The Ethiopian forces in the Somalia capital Mogadishu carried out four hours of military operation in the city's main Bakara market arresting suspects today. The Ethiopian soldiers have stormed several motels in Bakara market arresting key supporters of the ousted Islamists including Mohamed Roble Jimale Goble (former warlord), Ahmed Qare (known Islamist supporter) and Hussein Ali Wehliye (former ruler of Afgoye town in lower Shabelle region). Just in report says that the suspects were released after being questioned. 
Police have been given five more days to question four suspects arrested this week in connection with the 7/7 London bombings, including the widow of ringleader Mohammad Sidique Khan. There was an extension granted which lasts until Wednesday for all four, a Scotland Yard spokeswoman said on Friday. Questioning continues and all four remain in custody, the spokesman added. Khans widow Hasina Patel, her brother and two other men were detained on Wednesday on suspicion of the commission, preparation, or instigation of acts of terrorism. Terrorism suspects can be held for questioning for up to 28 days in total, but police must apply to a judge to extend their initial detention after the first 48 hours and then at weekly intervals. Khan and three other young British Muslims blew themselves up on July 7, 2005, killing 52 people on three London underground trains and a bus in the first suicide attacks by Islamist militants in Western Europe. Wednesdays arrests were the second set within weeks. Three men were charged last month with conspiring with the bombers.
A Sri Lankan national pleaded guilty in a Maryland court Thursday to charges he tried to smuggle US weapons to Tamil Tiger rebels, the US Justice Department announced. 
CHARSADDA: Policemen in uniform and plainclothes have been deployed at churches and houses of Christians here following the distribution of threatening letters on Monday, asking the minority community to convert to Islam or leave the area within 10 days, a police official said on Friday. We have taken all security measures to protect the Christians living in Charsadda, Headquarters DSP Sajjad Ali told Daily Times on the telephone. Ali denied that Christians were migrating to other areas due to security fears. 
Rose pedals shower dead lovers
BAGHDAD (AP) - Two Army helicopters land after a roadside blast, rescuing wounded American soldiers - and one Iraqi insurgent. Inside the Iraq's pocket, a medic finds the trip wire used to set off the bomb. 
BAGHDAD - US troops killed four militants suspected of involvement in car bomb networks, including one believed to have links to senior Al Qaeda in Iraq leaders, the US military said on Friday.
Two suicide car bombers struck police patrols in a predominantly Shiite area Friday in Baghdad, killing at least 11 people and wounding nearly 20, police said. 
Rival Palestinian factions clashed in the Gaza Strip on Friday, wounding at least six in some of the heaviest internal fighting in weeks, security officials and witnesses said. The clashes erupted within 48 hours of Palestinian security forces having begun deployment in Gaza under a new security plan. Palestinians had hoped the deployment would help curb growing lawlessness and ease tensions between ruling Hamas Islamists and President Mahmoud Abbass secular Fatah faction. 
An unidentified attacker threw a grenade into a camp housing hundreds of war-displaced in Sri Lankas restive east overnight, wounding eight people, police said on Friday. 
The report by Belgian prosecutor Serge Brammertz, head of the U.N. probe into the assassination of Lebanon s former Prime Minister Rafik Hariri, was said to have been "concluded" on Thursday The daily Asharq Alawsat, citing well-informed Lebanese sources, said outcome of Brammertz' report and disclosure of those involved in the 2005 murder of Hariri and related crimes are "subject to" creation of the U.N.-backed international tribunal.
