A little-known tribute some Navy SEALs gave to a fallen comrade is gaining notice.
Petty Officer Michael A. Monsoor was killed in battle in Iraq in September 2006, and posthumously awarded the Medal of Honor in April.
His funeral in Fort Rosecrans National Cemetery in San Diego was attended by nearly every SEAL on the West Coast, President Bush said.
During the service, as Monsoor's coffin was taken from the hearse to the gravesite, Navy SEALs lined up in two columns. As the coffin passed, video shows each SEAL slapping down the gold Trident from his uniform and deeply embedding it in Monsoor's wooden coffin.
The slaps were reportedly heard across the cemetery.
The symbolic display moved many, included Bush, who during his speech in April's Medal of Honor ceremony spoke about the incident.
"The procession went on nearly half an hour," Bush said. "And when it was all over, the simple wooden coffin had become a gold-plated memorial to a hero who will never be forgotten.
Monsoor described as an "outgoing guy" by his grandfather, George Monsoor, Sr. was killed on Sept. 29, 2006. He had been assigned to protect fellow SEALs on a rooftop in Ramadi, Iraq, when a fierce firefight with insurgents broke out. During the battle, a grenade bounced off Monsoors chest and landed on the roof.
Faced with the choice to save his comrades or save himself, Monsoor threw himself on the grenade, absorbing the impact.
He is survived by his parents, an older sister and two brothers.
Click to see a video showing the SEALs' tribute to Monsoor on YouTube.
Click to read President Bush's full speech at Monsoor's Medal of Honor ceremony.
Tension is mounting again in Sudan's oil-rich region of Abyei, following complaints from south Sudanese officials that northern troops have not withdrawn from the area. According to an agreement signed last month, both armies were to fully withdraw from Abyei by June 30 to avoid a repeat of the fighting in May that displaced tens of thousands of civilians.
The former rebel force of south Sudan, Sudan People's Liberation Army, also missed the end-of-June deadline to withdraw all of its troops from Abyei.
But the SPLA's Chief of Staff Oyay Ajak Deng tells VOA that while almost 90 percent of his soldiers have been moved out of Abyei town, government troops still remain there in full force.
"They should have started pulling out their forces on the 30th, but we are not seeing any movement on their side," said Deng. "Of course, we are very much concerned. Definitely, there is tension in the area. If they continue to remain there, of course, it will be complicating the matter again."
Abyei, which sits on rich oil fields straddling the north-south border, is claimed by both sides.
Its disputed status has long threatened a fragile peace deal the rebels and Khartoum signed in 2005 to end more than two decades of civil war. An international boundary commission determined that Abyei belongs to the south. But Khartoum has refused to recognize the findings.
Posted by: Fred ||
07/05/2008 00:00 ||
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#1
Most of the problems in Sudan, and a good many of those in Somalia, Chad, and the Central African Republic, arise in Khartoum. An arclight strike or six would do wonders for peace in central Africa. Piss of the Chinese, though.
Posted by: Old Patriot ||
07/05/2008 14:32 Comments ||
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Colombia showed a video on Friday of the rescue of Ingrid Betancourt and 14 other hostages where their anger turned to ecstasy as theater-trained military agents duped and overpowered leftist rebels.
Betancourt, a French-Colombian politician who flew to a hero's welcome in Paris on Friday, appeared offended in the video at being handcuffed before boarding a helicopter. One of three American captives spat an insult into the camera.
But moments later, the footage of Wednesday's daring rescue showed Betancourt on board the helicopter weeping, smiling and hugging fellow hostages as she was told she was free after six years in captivity at secret jungle camps. Cheering erupted in the background.
The first airing of the video -- taken by a military agent posing as a journalist -- revealed the shock of the freed hostages, whose raucous celebration rocked the helicopter so hard that Betancourt feared it would crash.
The bloodless operation brought the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia, or FARC, to the brink of defeat in its 44-year-old, cocaine-financed war for control of the country.
The rebels still hold hundreds of captives for ransom and political leverage. But the FARC, which has lost senior leaders in the field this year through illness, military attack and internal betrayal, had suddenly given up its top bargaining chip and exposed its fragmenting organization.
The rescue also boosted an already popular President Alvaro Uribe, who has supporters asking him to change the constitution and run for re-election in 2010 to maintain policies that have made much of Colombia safer and attracted foreign investment.
Posted by: Fred ||
07/05/2008 00:00 ||
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Betancourt, a French-Colombian politician who flew to a hero's welcome in Paris on Friday, appeared offended in the video at being handcuffed before boarding a helicopter
Patty Hearst thoery. Just being cautious.
ANKARA - Turkish Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan, fighting in court for his and the governing party's political survival, said on Friday political tensions would be fixed and that democracy was not under threat.
Turkey was rocked this week by reports that an ultra-nationalist illegal organisation planned to trigger a military coup against the government. The widening police investigation comes as the AK Party defends itself in court against charges of trying to introduce Islamic rule. The party could be closed down, a move that might lead to an early parliamentary election in the EU-applicant country.
"I want to stress once again that the democratic system is working with its institutions and rules in Turkey within the framework of the law," Erdogan told AK Party members. "Turkey has the experience to overcome this painful period and solve its problems with its domestic dynamics. Nobody should be worried," he said in comments broadcast live on television.
Twenty-one people, including two retired senior generals, prominent journalists and politicians, were detained on Tuesday for suspected links to the so-called Ergenekon organisation. Five of the suspects were released on Friday but are still set to face charges. CNN Turk said retired first army commander General Hursit Tolon and retired gendarmerie forces commander General Sener Eruygur had been sent to an Istanbul court on Friday.
Turkish newspapers said documents seized during police raids showed that the shadowy, hardline secularist organisation planned a series of violent events with the aim of forcing the military to intervene to restore order. Turkish opposition parties have accused the government of using the Ergenekon probe to hit back at critics of the ruling AK Party as it fights for its survival in court.
"We think it is not right that unfounded allegations should be made before the (Ergenekon) indictment is announced," Erdogan said.
Turkish opposition and business leaders have called on President Abdullah Gul to help calm tensions. "I attach great importance to not damaging Turkey's national interests, strategic goals and credibility of its institutions. I am holding meetings, which are not known by you (media), and will continue to do," Gul told reporters.
The Constitutional Court is expected to rule within three to six weeks on whether or not to close down the AK Party for allegedly seeking to turn Turkey into an Islamic state. The court will also decide on whether to have Erdogan and 70 other leading figures, banned from party politics for five years.
The European Union, which Turkey hopes to join, has criticised the closure case, saying such political issues should be debated in parliament and decided through the ballot box, not in the courts.
Just like the Lisbon Treaty ...
Posted by: Steve White ||
07/05/2008 00:00 ||
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Erdogan doesn't have a democratic bone in his body.
#1
I will not say anything about skinning Murtha alive.
I will not say anything about skinning Murtha alive.
I will not say anything about skinning Murtha alive.
I will not say anything about skinning Murtha alive.
I will not say anything about skinning Murtha alive.
I will not say anything about skinning Murtha alive.
I will not say anything about skinning Murtha alive.
Posted by: Frank G ||
07/05/2008 15:02 Comments ||
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#6
You've got to handle them that, they sure know which buttons to push. Just as the various muslim 'civil rights' groups in the USA, they're very savvy at playing us.
#7
Other than the occasional well-poisoner smear consumers, I don't think Euros ever feared Jews. They used them as scapegoats. Muslims are feared because most either participate in or support terror of some kind. And Mullah Krekar, etc openly point to demographics that are favorable to the slaves of allah. The danger perception viz the Muslim horde, is hardly a straw man.
Gateway Pundit has the video:
Murtha: I think they have 17 or so guidelines and they've solved 4 or 5 of them.
(Actually they've completed 15 of the 18 benchmarks.)
Murtha: I think the short term it (the Bush Surge) has reduced incidents. I'm not sure if it's because the Iraqis are just worn out but certainly the way they are doing it today it makes a big difference. It used to be we broke down doors. We went in and we killed people inadvertantly. Now they're much more careful about it. this POS is the Dem Party face.
Posted by: Frank G ||
07/05/2008 09:37 ||
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Murtha is either playing hard to the anti-war crowd that is completely delusional, or he has gone what is medically known as "Bat-shit-bonkers".
I vote for the second theory and believe he should be put away for our safety and his.
#2
I'm voting for the "bat-shit-bonkers" alternative. We have age requirements for some federal jobs. We have requirements for concealed carry permits. We have requirements for driving a car. However, the requirements for Congress aren't very high or non-existent other than a belly button.
#8
It's bat-shit-bonkers. No question. This guy's been over the rainbow for quite some time. I wonder who ties his shoes for him? That's what you call enabling. Same as Rosalyn does for Jimmy.
Posted by: Abu Uluque ||
07/05/2008 12:31 Comments ||
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#9
Watch the Donks in his district go to fed court to get the corpse seated after he dies cause when he does the district is going to have zero seniority and earmarks. May they enjoy their obscurity for a generation, or two.
ISLAMABAD, July 5 (APP): Pakistan foreign office spokesman Friday said that Pakistan's nuclear proliferation issue is a closed chapter.
He was reacting to an interview nuclear scientist Dr Abdul Qadeer Khan gave to The Associated Press claiming that the uranium enrichment equipment was sent from Pakistan to North Korea in a North Korean plane that was loaded under the supervision of Pakistani security officials.
Posted by: john frum ||
07/05/2008 11:50 ||
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I dunno... having a DOE NEST team remove every warhead is my idea of a 'closed chapter'
Posted by: john frum ||
07/05/2008 11:57 Comments ||
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#2
Nuking the sh$$ out of their storage areas also works, John. If one or two "miss" the storage area and land in Peshawar, Quetta, or Islamabad, well, "oops!- sorry". For some reason, I just have no sympathy for pakistanis, of any flavor.
Posted by: Old Patriot ||
07/05/2008 14:37 Comments ||
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Chief of Army Staff, General Ashfaq Parvez Kayani on Thursday underlined that the moral of Pakistan Army is in high esteem urging that it is fully equipped to tackle mounting challenges.
He expressed these views while addressing 109th Corps Commanders Conference held at General Headquarters on Thursday. The Chief of Army Staff, General Ashfaq Parvez Kayani, chaired the meeting.
The meeting discussed in detail professional Army matters.
The Chief of Army Staff dilated upon the operational preparedness of the Army and his training concept.
The Chief of Army Staff expressed his satisfaction on the high morale of the Army and urged all commanders to focus on professional excellence.
Sources told Online that Kayani made it clear that country has no threat of foreign elements as it is well-equipped to safeguard its borders.
Posted by: john frum ||
07/05/2008 08:07 ||
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Didn't that pen twirling geek in a James Bond thriller say...invincible ... just before the liquid nitrogen froze him?
#2
I wonder how many Pakistani general officers would fill their pants if 50,000 US Marines landed on their beaches early some morning, backed by two or three carrier divisions.
Posted by: Old Patriot ||
07/05/2008 14:39 Comments ||
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#3
Only thing they're not trained to deal with is multipule Lashkar Drums.
Pakistan's army under President Pervez Musharraf supervised a shipment of uranium centrifuges to North Korea in 2000, the disgraced architect of Pakistan's atomic weapons program said Friday.
The claim is the most controversial leveled by Abdul Qadeer Khan, who in recent months has been agitating for an end to house arrest and backing off his 2004 confession that he was solely responsible for spreading Pakistan's nuclear arms technology to Iran, North Korea and Libya.
The retired scientist's comments could prove embarrassing for Pakistan, which has repeatedly denied the army or government knew about Khan's proliferation activities before it was reported uncovered in 2003.
His allegations also could become awkward for Washington in its support for Musharraf, who has been a key U.S. ally in the region but has seen his power and popularity at home slide over the past year from anger over his firings of judges and confrontations with Islamic extremists.
A spokesman for Musharraf rejected Khan's claims, calling them "all lies." But some Pakistani experts have long argued that Khan's network could not have operated without the knowledge of the country's pervasive intelligence agencies.
In a telephone interview with The Associated Press, Khan said a shipment of used P-1 centrifuges which enrich uranium for nuclear warheads was sent from Pakistan in a North Korean plane that was loaded under the supervision of Pakistani security officials.
Khan said that the army had "complete knowledge" of the shipment and that it must have been done with the consent of Musharraf, the army chief who seized power in a 1999 coup. "It was a North Korean plane, and the army had complete knowledge about it and the equipment," Khan said. "It must have gone with his (Musharraf's) consent."
His allegations were first reported Friday by the Japanese news agency Kyodo.
Musharraf's spokesman, Rashid Qureshi, disputed Khan's charges. "I can say with full confidence that it is all lies and false statements," Qureshi said.
In a speech Friday, Musharraf himself made no mention of Khan's allegations while focusing on politics. He said he would not quit the presidency as demanded by his opponents and that he still has a valuable role to play. He called for Pakistanis to work together to fight Islamic extremism.
Spokesmen for the army and the Foreign Ministry declined to give immediate responses to Khan's charges.
Khan is regarded as a hero by many Pakistanis for his key role in the program that gave their country the Islamic world's first nuclear bomb in 1998, seen as a deterrent against the atomic arsenal held by neighboring India.
After his 2004 confession and a televised statement of contrition, Khan was pardoned by Musharraf but has effectively been kept under house arrest at his spacious villa in Islamabad.
Since a new civilian government took power after February elections sidelined Musharraf's supporters in parliament, Khan has increasingly spoken out in the media.
However, he had not previously implicated anyone or explicitly said that the army was aware of nuclear shipments. His comments Friday appear to stem from his growing frustration over the restrictions on his movements.
Khan and his wife retained an attorney earlier this week to petition the Islamabad High Court for an end to his detention. On Friday, the lawyer alleged that listening devices had been planted in the scientist's tightly guarded home.
Asked about his 2004 statements taking sole responsibility for nuclear proliferation, Khan said he had been persuaded that was in the national interest by friends, including Chaudhry Shujaat Hussain, a key figure in the ruling party at the time. Khan said he was promised complete freedom in return, but that "those promises were not honored." Hussain could not be reached for comment Friday.
Khan's activities to spread nuclear weapons technology are alleged to have begun in the late 1980s, primarily to Iran. Rest at link
Posted by: ed ||
07/05/2008 00:00 ||
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REDDIT > FALSE FLAG - WHAT DID THE US CIA AND STATE KNOW ABOUT PAKISTAN'S NUCLEAR DEAL WITH NORTH KOREA?
and
TOPIX > TREASONOUS COVERY OPERATIONS BY AMERICAN AGENCIES AGZ THEIR OWN COUNTRY.
Al Qaeda on Friday issued a videotape paying tribute to those killed during last year's military operation against Lal Masjid in Islamabad. The tape, which includes messages of Osama Bin Laden, Ayman Al Zawahiri and Abu Yahya Al Abbi, was sent to Ary One World TV on the completion of one year of the Operation Silence. Al Qaeda leaders in the tape have called Ghazi Abdul Rasheed, the slain deputy prayer leader of the mosque, the "Imam-e-Ummat". Leaders of religious and political parties have been criticised in the videotape, the channel reported. Urging the Pakistani tribesmen and mujahideen to remain united, the tape appeals to Muslim countries to wage jihad against the United States. Al Qaeda has also claimed responsibility for London attacks in the release, the channel said. The videotape also includes footage of Al Qaeda operations in various parts of the world. It is the first release from the group, which has been translated into Urdu.
Posted by: Fred ||
07/05/2008 00:00 ||
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A new elite force would be raised for the maintenance of law and order in Swat district, while talks between the NWFP government and Taliban are expected to start from Sunday (tomorrow), Malakand Range Deputy Inspector General (DIG) of Police Tanvirul Haq Sipra said on Friday.
Sipra told a press conference at the Mingora Press Club that after the creation of the force, police would not need the help of the Frontier Constabulary or other departments. He said that around 1,500 personnel would be deployed at seven centres to be set up in Swat.
He said that the number of police stations in Swat is being increased from nine to 22, and the number of policemen, which at present stands at 1,500, will also be doubled.
He said that Swat would be divided into rural and settled area administrations, with each area headed by an officer of the senior superintendent of police (SSP) rank. The number of Deputy Superintendents of Police (DSPs) is also being increased from four to 10, with each DSP responsible for two police stations.
Meeting: Meanwhile, the NWFP government and Swat Taliban are expected to hold talks on Sunday.
Taliban spokesman Muslim Khan said that senior provincial minister Bashir Ahmed Bilour and Minister for Forests Wajid Ali Khan have contacted the Swat Taliban leadership for the meeting.
Posted by: Fred ||
07/05/2008 00:00 ||
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#2
All politicians are liars. Perv is a politician. No news here. Of course, we can't believe a word out of the mouth of A. Q. Kahn, either - especially since what he's doing is trying to redirect the blame from himself to others. Hang 'em all and let God decide who's innocent.
Posted by: Old Patriot ||
07/05/2008 14:46 Comments ||
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The offensive in Khyber Agency will continue until the writ of the government is restored in the region, NWFP Governor Owais Ahmed Ghani said on Friday. Security forces are carefully pursuing the operation, which is against criminals and militants and common people need not worry, the governor told reporters. He said that a security policy had been devised, but it could not be revealed at the moment. He said protecting people was the government's responsibility and the government would therefore conduct more such operations, if need be.
Posted by: Fred ||
07/05/2008 00:00 ||
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The Taliban fighters were in a pickup truck, brazenly parked right outside the army fort in Darra Adam Khel, militants and the state in an uneasy co-existence.
For months, Darra, a Pakistani town infamous for its arms bazaar in the troubled North West, has been under the control of the country's fierce Taliban movement, whose cadres patrol the streets and enforce their own austere rules. The security forces, when they do emerge from their fort, do not challenge the hot-blooded young militants. Wrapped in head scarves, with only their eyes showing, and bristling with weaponry, the Taliban are now such a normal sight in the town that no one pays them any attention.
Even the Taliban's presence outside the Frontier Corps' White Fort in Darra did not excite the interest of the locals.
"What's wrong with that?" said tribal elder and gun store owner Shah Mahmood, when the scene at the fort was pointed out. "They [the Taliban] don't bother us, only those who are doing wrong. They have finished the robbers, the drug dealers, the kidnappers. Look, there is peace here now."
In theory, Pakistan's security forces are in opposition to the Taliban, who are linked to al-Qaeda and now firmly entrenched across the country's tribal belt and encroaching on "settled" areas of the northwest. In reality, large swathes of territory have simply been ceded to them. Many in Darra and across the tribal territory, known as the Federally Administered Tribal Areas (FATA), appear to believe that life under the Taliban may be harsh but at least the militants have brought law and order, something the state could not deliver.
Last week, the Frontier Corps, a paramilitary force, launched an operation against Islamist warlords based on the outskirts of Peshawar in the Khyber Agency, a part of FATA. Darra, just a 40-minute drive from Peshawar, is a Frontier Region, which means it should not be as wild as FATA. Yet the Taliban, far more extreme than Khyber Agency's militants, operate there with impunity. The rubble of a paramilitary checkpost they bombed marks the edge of town.
Business in the Darra market did not seem to be dented by the Taliban presence. But the burst of gunfire every few minutes is still jarring, as buyers test weapons by letting off a few rounds into the air.
In Mr. Mahmood's shop, a Kalashnikov copy made in Darra costs just 6,000 to 12,000 rupees ($141 to $282), while a smuggled Russian-made model is about 100,000 rupees ($2,353). Darra produces all components of the weapon in tiny workshops, with artisans using basic machinery and doing some of the work by hand. Even the bullets are manufactured there.
Over in the gun store of Mohammad Illyas, a much rarer weapon is on sale. A new-looking M16 rifle, a bulky American machine gun that was likely to have been taken from a dead U.S. soldier who had been fighting across the border in Afghanistan. Also for sale was a 70s-era M16, which was much lighter and had seen service, Mr. Illyas said, in the Vietnam war. He wanted the equivalent of $10,589 for the current M16, and $5,177 for the older model.
"People say that these Taliban here are Tajiks or Chechens or whatever, but that is a lie. They are our own people," Mr. Illyas said. "When there was government rule here, the police took money, the army took money. The Taliban don't. ... We say George Bush is the terrorist, not the Taliban."
Of course, it would be a brave person to speak out against the Taliban. Girls and women in particular suffer under their rule. But locals, not only in Darra but across the tribal belt, voiced support for them. While not popular, the Taliban get credit from locals for their emphasis on strict law and order, so exasperated were residents with the anarchy that prevailed under the Pakistani state.
"I would say that 70 per cent of people support the Taliban," said Abdul Qadir Khan, a student in Peshawar from South Waziristan, the epicentre of Pakistan's Taliban. "That's because people don't have education, they don't have jobs. The Taliban say they are fighting a holy war."
While the Taliban cannot bring economic development to an area, they have cracked down on the criminal gangs that plague the northwest and provide their own Islamic courts that dispense speedy justice. And development projects were not taking place anyway, locals complain.
Rustam Shah, an expert on the tribal area, who was formerly Pakistan's ambassador to Afghanistan, said that in recent years the colonial-era system of administration had broken down or been removed from FATA and the settled areas of Pakistan. That system gave enormous powers to the local representative of the government, the political agent in the tribal territory and to the deputy commissioner in the rest of Pakistan, to maintain order.
"The perception that we are fighting someone else's war and the destruction of the institutional framework that could have dealt with the [security] crisis created an administrative vacuum. That was filled by the Taliban," Mr. Shah said.
Posted by: Fred ||
07/05/2008 00:00 ||
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Top|| File under: Taliban
SRINAGAR -After days of clashes, Jammu remained peaceful yesterday with only sporadic incidents of stone-throwing reported in a few localities. In the evening, the authorities relaxed curfew for an hour by rotation in Gandhi Nagar, Bakshi Bagar and Janipura areas. The clashes between irate Hindu mobs and police have left scores of people injured whereas at places houses and other properties of minority Muslim community, too, came under attack from angry Hindus.
Curfew was clamped in Jammu and the towns of Bhaderwah and Samba on Wednesday following outbreak of violence over the revocation of the Jammu and Kashmir government's decision to transfer forest land to the Shri Amarnathji Shrine Board (SASB).
At Muthi, on the outskirts of Srinagar, the Kashmiri Pandits yesterday staged a protest on the main road along their settlement during which the effigies of Governor Narendra Nath Vohra, Chief Minister Ghulam Nabi Azad and People's Democratic Party patron and former chief minister Mufti Muhammad Sayeed were torched. However, the police arrived soon at the scene and fired tear gas to break the demonstration.
The Kashmiri Pandits also blocked the highway connecting Jammu with Srinagar as part of the saffron parties' 'economic blockade' of predominantly Muslim Kashmir valley. They also damaged several Srinagar-bound vehicles, police officials said.
Bharatiya Janta Party (BJP) President Rajnath Singh and another senior party leader Arun Jaitley are expected in Jammu today to show solidarity with the people of the region in their fight against the land revision move. The BJP has been in the forefront of the agitation which has brought all Hindu majority towns of the Jammu region to a standstill since Monday.
Meanwhile, Chief Minister Azad, who is camping in Jammu for the past two days, has sought cooperation of various political parties towards normalising situation and maintaining communal harmony.
Azad also talked on phone with presidents of BJP, National Conference, Panthers Party, Samajwadi Party, Bahujan Samaj Party and Shiv Sena and General Secretary of CPI (M) and Mayor, Jammu Municipal Corporation and expressed his desire for a collective effort by all political parties to maintain law and order and communal harmony in Jammu province.
Posted by: Steve White ||
07/05/2008 00:00 ||
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The once-dreaded Al Qaeda in Iraq stronghold of Amariyah has a new boss, and he's not shy about telling the story of the shootout that turned him into a local legend and helped change the tenor of the Iraq war.
Earlier this year, Abul Abed, a disgruntled Sunni insurgent leader, began secret talks with the Americans about ending Al Qaeda's reign of terror in this run-down, formerly middle-class Baghdad neighborhood, renowned as one of the city's most dangerous. He had been gathering intelligence on the group for months.One day in late May, he said, he decided it was time to act.
He hailed the car carrying the feared leader of Al Qaeda in the neighborhood, a man known as the White Lion, on one of Amariyah's main streets. "We want you to stop destroying our neighborhood," he told the man. "Do you know who you are talking to?" said the White Lion, getting out of his car. "I am Al Qaeda. I will destroy even your own houses!"
He pulled out his pistol and shot at Abul Abed. The gun jammed. He reloaded and fired again. Again, the gun jammed.
By this time, Abul Abed said, he had pulled his own gun. He fired once, killing the White Lion. "I walked over to him, stepped on his hand and took his gun," Abul Abed, which is a nom de guerre, said at his new, pink-painted headquarters in a renovated school in Amariyah, as an American Army captain seated in the corner nodded his head in affirmation of the account. "And then the fight started."
It was the beginning of the end for Al Qaeda in Amariyah. The next day, a firefight erupted. Al Qaeda fighters closed in on Abul Abed. Most of the 150 men who had joined him fled. Holed up in a mosque with fewer than a dozen supporters, Abul Abed thought the end was near. "The blue carpet was soaked red with blood," he recalled. Then the imam of the mosque called in American help. A friendship was born.
Now Abul Abed, a swaggering former major in the Iraqi army and reputedly a top leader in the influential Islamic Army insurgent group, reigns supreme in Amariyah -- with considerable help from the U.S. military.
Still wearing the White Lion's pistol tucked into his belt, he commands his own 600-member paramilitary force, called the Knights of Mesopotamia. He receives $460,000 a month from the U.S. military to pay, arm and equip them. They wear crisp olive green uniforms with smart red and yellow badges bearing the Knights' horse-head logo. They are well-armed, and some have flak jackets.
But they don't really need them. Since the Knights drove Al Qaeda out of Amariyah after a two-month battle, the neighborhood has become largely safe. "You can move freely in Amariyah at any time of the day or night," Abul Abed said. "You can even see women without head scarves, wearing tight jeans!"
An 'Awakening' in Iraq
Men like Abul Abed have helped change the face of the war. Following in the footsteps of the late Abdul-Sattar Abu Risha, the tribal leader who led the Sunni revolt that drove Al Qaeda from the base of its operations in Iraq's Anbar province, more than 70,000 people, most of them Sunnis, in 148 groups have joined in the so-called Awakening, or Sahwa, movement, according to the U.S. military, turning against Al Qaeda and turning to the Americans for help.
Since Abul Abed's fight in Amariyah, some of the most feared Baghdad neighborhoods, including Abu Ghraib, Fadhil, Ghazaliyah, Dora and Adhamiyah, have followed suit, forming their own brigades of Knights, welcoming the U.S. military and receiving U.S. money.
Abul Abed is coy about his insurgent connections. He gave his real name as Saad Erebi Ghaffouri al-Obaidi, though he is known across Baghdad as Abul Abed. U.S. officials, Amariyah residents and Sunni leaders say he was a prominent commander in the Islamic Army. He described himself as a former Iraqi army major who "went into business" after the regime fell. He won't say what business.
But he acknowledged that many of his men once fought Americans and now work closely with them.
"They recognize that they made a big mistake," he said. "They realize that they were on the wrong path and that they wasted many chances with what they did."
Posted by: Fred ||
07/05/2008 00:00 ||
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BAGHDAD - Several members of the Iraqi parliament called on President Jalal Talabani on Friday to apologise for shaking hands with Israeli Defence Minister Ehud Barak at a conference in Greece this week. Talabani, a Kurd, was introduced to Barak by Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas at a Socialist International meeting near Athens on Tuesday, where they shook hands. The handshake, largely ignored by Iraq's media but covered in the Israeli press, sparked heated debate in Iraq's parliament on Thursday.
Like most Arab countries, Iraq does not recognise Israel.
Some members accused Talabani of breaking Iraqi law, although it was unclear what the law says about Israel. "I told the speaker it was a slap in the face for the Iraqi people," said Ahmed al-Massoudi, from the movement of anti-American Shi'ite cleric Moqtada al-Sadr. "(The handshake) was a violation of law," he told Reuters.
Mookie has to keep his relationship with Iran and Hezbollah, so of course he's upset ...
Massoudi said he had received many complaints from Iraqis about the handshake and some members of parliament had called for an apology. Some had even urged Talabani to resign, he said.
Ali al-Adeeb, a senior parliamentarian from Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki's Dawa party, said the handshake was unacceptable. "The president is supposed to represent Iraqi policy ... which means not recognising Israel ... He must apologise."
Eye-rolling and face-making is spreading all over the country ...
Perhaps sensing the handshake might cause anger, Talabani's office issued a statement on Tuesday saying he met Barak as a representative of the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan (PUK) party, not as Iraq's president. The PUK is one of two main Kurdish parties in Iraq.
That's likely not going to fly ...
Fellow Kurds defended Talabani. "He was welcomed by Abbas who introduced him to Barak. It would have been illogical to refuse. It doesn't mean relations are normal," said Fouad Masoum, a Kurdish member of parliament.
Look at the photo of the handshake -- all three of them have their hands in there.
Posted by: Steve White ||
07/05/2008 00:00 ||
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#1
Mistake or calculated move? Iraq has some things more in common with Israel than than their Arab neighbors. Both countries pose a threat to their neighbors due to the fact that they have functional democracies and military resources that could roll over any of the neighbors who gets a little too feisty. A trade of some nice fresh oil for some really good military goodies would serve both countries well. Al Qaeda can't stop them and the countries around them don't have the guts to try direct action against them. Most Iraqi's are secular enough that they wont protest too much. Couild signal the death song of Sadr's power in Iraq. It's possibilities only, but some good possibilities.
Posted by: Richard of Oregon ||
07/05/2008 3:01 Comments ||
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Syrian commanders say their troops along the border with Iraq are making strides in nabbing militants intent on staging suicide attacks in Baghdad.
But, the commanders say, they could do a better job if they were able to obtain modern equipment denied to them because of sanctions and if they received cooperation from the U.S. military.
The commanders also say U.S. aircraft occasionally violate Syria's airspace, a situation that points to the lack of coordination between the countries.
"We work within our abilities," said Gen. Khaklil Al-Khaled, a provincial military commander in northeastern Syria. "The border constitutes a daily obsession to us, to prevent infiltration and confront the contraband groups and jihadist groups that infiltrate the border." Watch what life is like on the Syrian border »
Syrian commanders were interviewed by CNN along the border, where Syria and the United States have a complicated relationship.
The Syrian government "began limited cooperation with the United States in the global war against terrorism" after the September 11, 2001, attacks, the U.S. State Department has said.
The United States has long criticized Syria for being a staging ground for insurgents who infiltrate Iraq in the Euphrates River valley of Anbar province and conduct attacks in the towns along that waterway and in Baghdad.
It has also criticized Syria for its ties to Iran, the Lebanese militant group Hezbollah, and the Palestinian movement Hamas.
Syria says it is doing what it can to thwart insurgent activity and the United States in turn has softened its negative rhetoric toward President Bashar Al-Assad's regime. They say they've arrested many foreign fighters and have confiscated many weapons.
The number of monthly insurgent strikes in Iraq has dropped dramatically recently as Iraqis who once backed insurgents in Anbar province have turned against them. Still, some insurgent activity continues in Anbar and along the Nineveh province section of the Iraqi-Syrian border.
Al-Khaled said Syrian troop outposts are strung along the vast, sandy 385-mile Syria-Iraq border, with 12 soldiers per post. The troops have erected a sand wall and embark on daily foot and vehicle patrols.
"There have been many arrests of jihadi groups that infiltrate the Iraqi side, and they have been turned to the authorities. These jihadi groups belong to different nationalities, such as Egyptians, Saudis, Moroccans, Tunisians, and Libyans that fight in Iraq," Al-Khaled said.
The Syrians chafe at criticism from Americans for not doing a better job. The Syrians say they are using antiquated equipment because sanctions by the United States prevent them from upgrading.
They say they lack night surveillance equipment, automatic weapons and other items they believe would help them.
Al-Khaled said Syria doesn't like the U.S. administration casting blame on Syria for lax border security when "America itself cannot control its border with Mexico."
The Syrian military said it has no communication with U.S. commanders along the border -- something that troubles Syrian commanders. Al-Khaled said communication would help deal with problems such as U.S. planes entering Syrian airspace.
"Every now and then there are airspace violations -- sometimes not less than five to six times per month with their military jets and helicopters," Al-Khaled said.
He said Syria lodges its complaints with an Iraqi liaison officer. Americans say the errors are tactical or human, he said, but he doubts those assertions because of the U.S. military's acumen and resources.
"This is an issue that concerns both sides," he said. "There should not be any lenience from their part in violating the border of a free, sovereign state."
Mohammed Askari, spokesman for Iraq's Defense Ministry, declined to comment, saying these are Multi-National Forces issues. The U.S. military has not responded to a request for comment.
#1
ummm no. America's border isn't secured because we haven't tried, and neither has Syria. We also don't have a baathist secret police regime. And as for those advanced weapons? You might get some if you restart that nuke facility. They'll be airdropped
Posted by: Frank G ||
07/05/2008 10:00 Comments ||
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#2
Turn our way in a far more convincing way than this bitching and ye shall receive. Happens all the time, but the dentist will need to extract himself from the clutches of Iran. It's up to you. pencilneck.
Posted by: Richard of Oregon ||
07/05/2008 11:53 Comments ||
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DEBKAfiles political sources report that Tehran has given no ground on international concerns in its reply to the six-power proposals for ending the long nuclear standoff. Iran offers nothing but more negotiations, its standard gambit for spinning out time to achieve progress on its nuclear bomb program.
The New York Times of July 5 quotes Tehran as stating: The time for negotiations from the condescending position of inequality has come to an end, in its response to the incentives package offered by the five UN Security Council members plus Germany. The letter makes no reference to the six powers proposal of preliminary talks to start with a mutual six-week freeze - both on a fourth round of UN Security Council sanctions and on the expansion of Irans uranium enrichment program.
The letter was signed by Iranian Foreign Minister and was delivered to Solana.
The report did not elaborate on the content of the response.
Solana handed over an updated package of incentives to Iran last month.
Posted by: Fred ||
07/05/2008 00:00 ||
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#1
ION CHINESE MIL FORUM > MINISTER WEN JENBIAO: CHINA TO FACE GREATER CHALLENGES IN GRAIN SUPPLY [Food]; + INTERFAX > KAZAKHISTAN AGAINST JOINT NAVAL FLEET FOR CASPIAN NATIONS.
#3
REDDIT > WHY UKRAINE MATTERS TO A RUSSIA WITH MORE MUSLIMS. Symbolizes the end of PRO-RUSS PUTINISM = "KGB CAPITALISM", + POTENTIAL NEW FUTURE BREAKUP OF CURRENT RUSSIAN NORTH CAUCASUS INTO MORE MUSLIM STATES???
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.
Tension is mounting again in Sudan's oil-rich region of Abyei, following complaints from south Sudanese officials that northern troops have not withdrawn from the area. According to an agreement signed last month, both armies were to fully withdraw from Abyei by June 30 to avoid a repeat of the fighting in May that displaced tens of thousands of civilians. 
Colombia showed a video on Friday of the rescue of Ingrid Betancourt and 14 other hostages where their anger turned to ecstasy as theater-trained military agents duped and overpowered leftist rebels.
Al Qaeda on Friday issued a videotape paying tribute to those killed during last year's military operation against Lal Masjid in Islamabad. The tape, which includes messages of Osama Bin Laden, Ayman Al Zawahiri and Abu Yahya Al Abbi, was sent to Ary One World TV on the completion of one year of the Operation Silence. Al Qaeda leaders in the tape have called Ghazi Abdul Rasheed, the slain deputy prayer leader of the mosque, the "Imam-e-Ummat". Leaders of religious and political parties have been criticised in the videotape, the channel reported. Urging the Pakistani tribesmen and mujahideen to remain united, the tape appeals to Muslim countries to wage jihad against the United States. Al Qaeda has also claimed responsibility for London attacks in the release, the channel said. The videotape also includes footage of Al Qaeda operations in various parts of the world. It is the first release from the group, which has been translated into Urdu.
A new elite force would be raised for the maintenance of law and order in Swat district, while talks between the NWFP government and Taliban are expected to start from Sunday (tomorrow), Malakand Range Deputy Inspector General (DIG) of Police Tanvirul Haq Sipra said on Friday. 
SRINAGAR -After days of clashes, Jammu remained peaceful yesterday with only sporadic incidents of stone-throwing reported in a few localities. In the evening, the authorities relaxed curfew for an hour by rotation in Gandhi Nagar, Bakshi Bagar and Janipura areas. The clashes between irate Hindu mobs and police have left scores of people injured whereas at places houses and other properties of minority Muslim community, too, came under attack from angry Hindus.
The once-dreaded Al Qaeda in Iraq stronghold of Amariyah has a new boss, and he's not shy about telling the story of the shootout that turned him into a local legend and helped change the tenor of the Iraq war.
