"Our message is very clear: We are going to be fighting, we are going to be talking and we are going to be building... and they [militants] can either be helping or hindering but we are not going to stop."
She added: "Insurgents must renounce violence, abandon al-Qaeda and abide by the laws and constitution of Afghanistan, including its protections for women and minorities. But the 'Insurgents' won't pay a price for 9/11.
"Reconciliation is possible - indeed, it represents the best hope for Afghanistan and the region." Who decided to forgive the Taliban and when did it happen?
And if the Taliban end up with a reward for 9/11 (Western recognition, protection and danegeld aid) why should a nuclear Iran fear the consequences of Iranian sponsored terror attacks on the US?
Posted by: Ulang Omating7662 ||
10/20/2011 06:43 ||
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#1
Gee, if only there was a Hillary Clinton when Rudolf Hess parachuted into Scotland.
#3
Well, just goes to show that Hillary really doesn't have any princpled complaints with radical terrorists. If it can help her in some way she'd sup with the devil with a short spoon.
#6
"just goes to show that Hillary really doesn't have any principles complaints with radical terrorists"
FTFY, Alan. No charge.
Posted by: Barbara ||
10/20/2011 13:40 Comments ||
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#7
Once upon a time, I was friends with a limousine liberal who called this "Realpolitik." All fancy with an accent and everything (re-AL-poli-TEEK) as if that settled the matter.
I, being retarded at foreign languages and ignorant of other cultures, questioned her until I got her to explain what she meant. (1) It's not our problem; (2) even if it was, there's no way to solve it; and (3) "oh whatever, who gives a f*ck about these people anyway."
#9
I, being retarded at foreign languages and ignorant of other cultures
For certain definitions of retarded and ignorant not in common use, RandomJD? ;-) Your poor friend -- did she have the correct R pronunciation? (We won,t even ask about the L, fewer being aware of the amusing possibilities there.)
Um, I know that my memory ain't what it used to be, but wasn't Henry the K that main proponent of Realpolitik back in the day? Did your LL friend know who Henry was, back in the day?
#11
TW - my poor friend was a dual US-German citizen, and fluent in some obscure Bavarian dialect that sounded like Swiss German in a blender. The Prussians who carefully schooled me in Hochdeutsch said I sound like a Turk, so, as I'm sure you understand, whether her pronunciation was "correct" or not would depend on who you ask.
AlanC - yes, she cited Kissinger as evidence that her position was unimpeachable. I showed her #9 in a book of fallacies, The Faulty Appeal to Authority, as evidence that it was. That's when she got kinda pissy, although I figured out later, that's not really what it was about.
#12
that's not really what it was about She sounds like she was playing 'one-up-manship' with you & thought you would be so abashed by her fancy pronunciation, that you would stop thinking. Or at least, that she would 'win.'
#13
"She sounds like she was playing 'one-up-manship' with you"
She sounds like a PITA.
Posted by: Barbara ||
10/20/2011 15:57 Comments ||
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#14
Meh. Lawyers. We practice on each other, like cubs. If we can get each other to buy it, that's a keeper. Problem was, her boyfriend liked me better than her (I am female - he is not gay!) and I was oblivious to that dynamic.
Barbara, that's exactly what he told me, after he dumped her. :)
#15
The PITA German gal had a point if she was referring to Afghanistan. We are wasting blood and treasure there daily. Nothing is going to come of it. As soon as we leave, regardless of the money we pay, it is going to revert to type. Why continue the charade? I hold our military in high regard and it disgusts me to know that some of them are going to lose their lives for absolutely nothing. Bug out...tomorrow.
#16
- my poor friend was a dual US-German citizen, and fluent in some obscure Bavarian dialect that sounded like Swiss German in a blender
*shudder*. The poor woman. Sounding like one came directly from the village can be a bit of a handicap when among educated Germans, until one has proved oneself.
#17
remoteman: she opposed Iraq and sent Paul Krugman columns to persuade me. (Oh yeah, that worked). So naturally, she was all for nation-building in Afghanistan - "the good war." I was skeptical, and I've come to agree with you 100%.
#18
I think Bush was right about Afghanistan - 'declare victory and get out'. And probably right about Iraq - an opportunity to kill bad guys, with real strategic value, and at least a chance at some kind of long-term success (though in 'realpolitik' terms it might have been better to leave Hussein in power and play him off against Dinnerjacket like we used to do.)
[Tripoli Post] Al-Baghdadi al-Mahmoudi, the prime minister in the former Libyan regime of ousted leader Muammar Al Qadaffy ...a reminder that a single man with an idea can screw up an entire nation... , has been hospitalised in the Tunisian capital, Tunis due to complications following a hunger strike.
Al-Mahmoudi, Libyan prime minister since 2006, decamped Libya to neighbouring Tunisia in the midst of the conflict that eventually deposed Muammar Al Qadaffy from power. He is currently in detention, while the Tunisian government considers a request from the interim government of Libya for his extradition.
The former Libyan government official began a hunger strike early this month protesting his detention after a court of appeal had quashed his sentence of six months imprisonment for entering Tunisia without a visa.
His lawyer Mabrouk Korchid said that Al-Mahmoudi has serious heart problems and as he is also diabetic, his hunger strike has developed complications to his health. "He has been admitted to a military hospital in Tunis," Korchid said.
In an interview conducted through his lawyer, Al Mahmoudi has denied any involvement in repression during Al Qadaffy's rule. He said he wanted to cooperate with Libya's new interim government.
Al-Mahmoudi is the highest-ranked member of the former regime now in detention. During the first months of the conflict he gave televised briefings defending Al Qadaffy and accusing NATO ...the North Atlantic Treaty Organization. A cautionary tale of cost-benefit analysis.... of deliberately killing civilians
Posted by: Fred ||
10/20/2011 00:00 ||
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[Tripoli Post] Libya's Transitional National Council, NTC, officially recognised the Syrian opposition council on Wednesday as the legitimate authority in Syria. This recognition follows months of unrest against Syrian President Bashar Al Assad that has left over 3,000 civilians dead.
Libya's interim government said in a statement: "The NTC expresses its full recognition of the Syrian National Council as the legitimate ruler of Syria."
Posted by: Fred ||
10/20/2011 00:00 ||
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The Mexican naval agency, Secretaria Marino (SEMAR), issued a denial Wednesday that documents posted on a drug war website were authentic.
Without specifically identifying Bordelandbeat.com, SEMAR in its statement said the posted documents contained markers and other criteria that were not of the type used by Mexican federal government agencies.
Borderlandbeat.com posted documents last week it claimed were from an anonymous source, but stating the documents were authentic.
Acting on intelligence provided by the US Drug Enforcement Agency (DEA), the documents describe a Mexican naval counterterror operation that took place in June 10th, 2010, when Mexican marine operatives raided a villa in Roma colony in Mexico city arresting four individuals and seizing a reported 22 kilograms of explosives already compiled into a bomb.
The report also mentioned an individual identified as Ahmed Saleem or Salim, who was said to be a Somali national terrorist suspect who had migrated to Mexico through Guatemala. Saleem had been staying at a nearby hotel when the raid took place, but was not detained, and is presumably still at large.
The report also said the Mexican naval intelligence had information that the target was to be the US embassy in Mexico City, although the information was not obtained at the villa. The report said that much of the information they had were provided by Israeli intelligence.
According to a story by a Milenio weekly publication, Marine operatives seized a number of items from the villa including 20 kilos of nitric acid, glycerin and paraffin, material that could be used to make candles, a Milenio report detailed. The contention that bomb making materials, not bombs were found is critical, as at the time a Mexican legal official denied explosives were found.
The purported Mexican naval intelligence document however said that a number of items were found including a bomb:
One cylinder shaped cardboard container holding 22.7 kilograms of high explosives and sealed with a paraffin compound. Two copper cables sheathed in plastic were inserted into the paraffin.
One orange colored thick fabric suitcase containing two Motorola brand c115 cellphones without batteries.
Four Motorola brand multichannel radios with chargers.
One Radioshack brand frequency counter.
Latex gloves.
One dark green notebook with Arabic and Spanish writing.
One small prayer rug with Islamic motifs.
One bar of body soap.
One toothbrush.
One sealed box of toothpaste.
One liter of nitric acid.
Five liters of pure glycerin.
One plastic bag containing 5 fuses (3 slow burn and 3 rapid burn).
One kilogram of gunpowder containing aluminum.
10 meters of yellow/red colored detonation cord.
150 grams of mercury.
The report failed to detail the type of explosive found in the bomb component, although it is possible that the explosive to be used was in fact gunpowder.
Despite their great wealth, influence, power and ability to corrupt, Mexican cartels apparently do not have a reliable source of military grade or even high explosives save for commercial grade dynamite, such as Tovex, which is used by mining companies in the Mexican sierras and by PEMEX, and gunpowder compiled from fireworks, which Mexico does have a lot of.
One of the issues in the Borderlandbeat.com report on the documents and SEMAR's response is that Mexican cartels are assisting foreign Islamic terrorist groups outside the US in smuggling their operatives into the US and in assisting them in gaining materials, such as documents needed to function in secret in Mexico.
Borderlandbeat.com does note in its report that SEMAR denies the document's authenticity, not their existence. The website also claimed in its update to the documents story that they attempted to gain contact with Mexican officials without avail.
Mexican official rarely, if ever respond to press queries over the transom. I know. I've tried.
Officials from Seoul and Washington are discussing a revision of restrictions on the range of South Korean missiles, Defense Minister Kim Kwan-jin said Monday. The current missile guidelines restrict the range of South Korean ballistic missiles to 300 km, but Seoul wants them to cover the entire peninsula, according to Kim.
Kim did not specify how much longer Seoul wants the range to be, but a range of some 800 km is needed to cover all of North Korea. This was the first time the defense chief has formally revealed that discussions are underway.
Asked whether he wants to extend the range to cover all missile bases in the North, Kim said yes.
The missile guidelines were worked out in 1979 and revised in 2001. They limit the range to 300 km and the payload to 500 kg, even though North Korea is developing inter-continental ballistic missiles.
Posted by: Steve White ||
10/20/2011 00:00 ||
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North Korea has recently moved fighter jets near the Northern Limit Line, the de facto maritime border, and ground-to-air missiles close to Baeknyeong Island. There is speculation that it plans a minor provocation while South Korean president Lee Myung-bak visits the U.S. since any show of unity between the two allies tends to incense the North.
"The North Korean military was seen moving mobile missile launchers at a ground-to-ship missile base near the NLL," a government source said. "There's likelihood that the North will launch a military provocation" while Lee is away.
An intelligence source said, "The North Korean Army is showing movements similar to those seen right before it shelled Yeonpyeong Island last year."
Lee was quoted by a source as saying prior to his departure for Washington, "If the North launches a provocation during a Seoul-Washington summit, it will become an international issue rather than a domestic one." He instructed the military to "strongly respond" if the North does.
Posted by: Steve White ||
10/20/2011 00:00 ||
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#1
See also TOPIX/WORLD NEWS > NORTH KOREA MAY HAVE A NEW [undergound] "URANIUM ENRICHMENT FACILITY".
and
* GUAM PDN > USMC WEBSITE STRESSES GUAM'S IMPORTANCE | [Marine Corps Times] GUAM CENTRAL TO PACIFIC MILITARY OPERATIONS.
China is watching USDOD developments/projects in Guam quite closely.
INTEHWESTING > IIUC ARTIC = China apparently deems Guam + CNMI + Iwo Jima + Palau as extensions of its Chinese landmass even though Guam is sovereign US territory. GUAM AT RISK OF CHINA-VS-US "CONTINENTAL SHELF", "GUNBOAT" DIPLOMACY???
#2
Guam is still in danger of tipping over, right? Best everyone not rush to one side at once
Posted by: Frank G ||
10/20/2011 15:04 Comments ||
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#3
US MARINE CORPS TIMES
versus
* PACIFICNEWSCENTER > CNMI GOVERNOR FITIAL OFFERS TO LEASE NORTHERN ISLANDS TO CHINA.
9 islands for China lease, but I'm wondering why Fitial did not mention SAIPAN + TINIAN iff the USDOD isn't going to EVER use 'em?
SEC PANETTA = supports the reloc of Okinawa Marines to Guam as long as it is "COST(S) EFFECTIVE" widin the larger USDOD budget. IMO, thats US Congress, USDOD-speak for NOT saying that the lowest-cost option for the US still remains to reloc the Okin Marines not to Guam but back to their original, already well-developed Hawaii or West Coast, etc. CONUS HQ bases where surplus housing, MWR facilities, + developed training ranges, etc. already exist. US Marine forces will only come to Guam for temporary scheduled overseas training + RR contingency events. Panetta's comments is consistent wid the remarks of the recent CODEL visit.
Widout the Marines, Guam will see only select USAF LR Drone + Manned Squadrons-in-training, + Navy + SC until such future time both the USAF + Navy complete their desired force transition to UV = Drone-Robotic forces. Ditto US ARMY, USCG, USAR, + ARMY/AIR GUARD in time.
Lastly, IMO the USMC Times Artic + Panetta + Governor Fitial's comments ONLY PROVE THAT GUAM MUST GET ON WID SELF-DETERMINATION ASAP, I.E. VOTE TO BECOME EITHER A US STATE OR ELSE WHOLLY INDEPENDENT + SOVEREIGN FROM THE US. All other interim political status options became obsolete on 9-11.
#4
I see no response to Rep. Hank Johnson's (D-McKinneyland) concerns. Will you or will you not address the disproportional buoyancy v. weight distribution. I ask you, SIR?
Posted by: Frank G ||
10/20/2011 23:04 Comments ||
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South Korean fighter jets could fly into North Korea if the North launches another military provocation, Defense Minister Kim Kwan-jin said Wednesday.
Answering a question from Grand National Party lawmaker Kim Jung-hoon whether it is possible for South Korean fighter jets to strike North Korean military positions across the military demarcation line if the North shells South Korean territory again as it did last year, Kim said there is no problem with that idea.
Kim earlier said the South "can strike not only the sources of provocation but their backup" if the North provokes again.
A Defense Ministry official later tried to soothe ruffled feathers by claiming Kim meant "to clarify the principle of responding resolutely to the North's provocation, rather than talking about any concrete operational plan."
A military officer said, "This is a matter we need to consider carefully. If the North provokes again, we could launch a precision strike at the source of the provocation with fighter jets or missiles from areas south of the military demarcation line. But fighter jets might be shot down if they fly into North Korean airspace before the enemy's anti-air defense is neutralized."
Posted by: Steve White ||
10/20/2011 00:00 ||
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#1
ION WAFF > [StrategyPage] AIR WAR OVER NORTH KOREA.
and
* SAME > FREEDOM IS ANOTHER WORD FOR NOTHING LEFT TO LOSE. DPRK's capitalist = free markets sectors slowly but steadily painfully take root + sprout leaves.
Perhaps more importantly, its members are NO LONGER AFRAID to push back agz the harsh Regime, Commie regulatory system that attempts to persecute them - in fact, more and more Army-Police + Statecritters seemingly are starting to join them.
* SAME > B-1B RULES THE HIGH SEAS, vee the reliable, but elderly + incraesingly costly B-52 ala LR Naval Attack/Strike missions.
[IN A FUTURE DARK PEAK-OIL HIT WORLD, USDOD-USAF TRY TO SELL B-52 PARTS TO CHINA here].
versus
* WAFF > SPACEWAR.com > FOR US NAVY, ASIA [Asia-Pacific] IS CRUCIAL PRIORITY: ADMIRAL, New US Navy CNO ADM. Jonathan Greenert.
* SAME > [StrategyPage = Australia] BIG BOATS, BIG BUDGETS, BIG PLANS.
Tehran has reacted with anger and threats over Ankara's decision to allow NATO to deploy a radar as part of its antimissile system.
Iran's supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, has condemned the decision, while senior Iranian military commanders and government officials have warned of consequences.
"This is very serious, this is important for Iran, Iran does not like it," says Iran analyst Jamsid Assadi of France's Burgundy School of Business. "Iran is feeling very much more isolated and in danger. And if for example when I read Iranian press, especially the very conservative ones, they criticize very clearly what's happening."
Ankara's decision is widely seen as a military and diplomatic victory for Washington, confirming Turkey's commitment to its NATO partners, over its Iranian neighbor.
It's a turn away from the trend of the past few years, when Turkey's Islamic-rooted Justice and Development Party (AKP) had prioritized deepening its relations with Tehran as part of its policy of "zero problems" with its neighbors.
[Hurriyet Daily News] UN Secretary General the ephemeral Ban Ki-moon ... of whom it can be said to his credit that he is not Kofi Annan... urged Iraq and Turkey yesterday to collaborate on a solution to end what he called "unacceptable" cross-border attacks by the outlawed Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK).
In a written statement issued after PKK Islamic fascistikilled at least 24 soldiers in simultaneous attacks in southeast Turkey, Ban's front man Martin Nesirky said the illusory sovereignty of both Turkey and Iraq must be respected.
"The secretary general expresses his concern over the attacks in the Hakkari province of Turkey, reportedly by Kurdish elements operating from Iraqi territory, which have left many Turkish soldiers dead," he said.
Turkey hit back with cross-border air strikes on rebel bases and sent troops into neighboring Iraq as Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan canceled a foreign trip and called an emergency meeting of top security officials.
"It is clearly unacceptable that Iraq's territory is being used to mount cross-border attacks against neighboring countries," Nesirky said.
"The secretary general urges Iraq and Turkey to engage in constructive dialogue in order to find a peaceful solution to this challenge."
Posted by: Fred ||
10/20/2011 00:00 ||
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ISLAMABAD: Pakistan Army chief Gen. Ashfaq Parvez Kayani told a Parliamentary committee on Wednesday that the United States should focus its efforts on stabilizing war-shattered Afghanistan, rather than pressuring Pakistan to step up its war against militants on Pakistani territory. Can't expect a leopard to change its spots, after all...
"The real problem lies in Afghanistan, not in Pakistan," Kayani was quoted as saying by a parliament member who attended the three-hour briefing at army headquarters in Rawalpindi.
Kayani said Pakistan alone would decide if and when to launch a full-scale offensive in North Waziristan, which Western intelligence agencies say is a sanctuary for militants who cross the border to attack US-led NATO forces in Afghanistan. He also said the United States would have to think "10 times" before taking any unilateral action there. Pakistan is not like Iraq or Afghanistan, the parliamentarian quoted Kayani as saying, suggesting that any North Waziristan operation would be very risky. To whom? We seem to be drone-zapping the bad boyz at will...
"The problem lies in Afghanistan, not Pakistan," the parliamentarian quoted Kayani as telling the committee in a national security briefing at army headquarters in Rawalpindi.
Posted by: Steve White ||
10/20/2011 00:00 ||
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#1
See RELATED ARTIC [old] > WORLD NEWS = DON'T MESS WITH NUCLEAR POWER PAKISTAN, ARMY CHIEF GENRALASHFAG PERVEZ KAYANI WARNS US.
and
* SAME [old] > THINK TEN TIMES BEFORE YOU RAID [attack] US: KAYANI WARNS US.
* SAME > WEST HAS FAILED TO ERADICATE RADICAL ISLAM.
Lest we fergit, RADICAL/MAD MULLAHS = "ISLAM RULES, OR ISLAM WILL BE DESTROYED".
Simple, yes, but oh so brutal, effective, or realistic as far as Radical Islam = MilTerrs are concerned.
[Dawn] If US policy makers need proof of how little control Pakistain has over its strategic border region with Afghanistan, all they need to do is watch videos available on YouTube of snuffies believed to be terrorising the streets of North Wazoo.
Armed men in black with balaclavas freely roam the streets of one of the biggest towns in North Waziristan, where the United States wants Pakistain's military to launch an offensive against bad turban groups.
There are no signs of security forces as the men belonging to a bad turban hit squad created to hunt suspected US spies throw a man into a station wagon and pin him down.
Nervous bystanders keep their distance. Another man looks horrified as snuffies haul him off a pick up truck. Both are shown in another video being blown up by explosives placed at their feet.
The United States has been piling pressure on Pakistain to go after snuffies in North Waziristan -- many of whom attack Western forces in Afghanistan -- since American Special Forces killed the late Osama bin Laden ... who used to be but now ain't... in a Pak town in May.
Admiral Mike Mullen said before retiring as chairman of the US Joint Chiefs of Staff last month that the Haqqani group that attacked US targets in Afghanistan was a "veritable arm" of Pakistain's spy agency, the Directorate of Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI).
The remarks infuriated Pak leaders, who denied links to the group and said Pakistain had sacrificed more than any other country that joined the US "war on terror" after the 9/11 attacks on the United States.
The videos, distributed in markets across North Waziristan to keep people from providing tips to be used for US drone missile strikes on bad turbans, were a reminder of the insecurity of the border region.
Washington believes Afghanistan can't be stabilised unless Pakistain eliminates militancy in the forbidding frontier areas.
Pakistain's army chief told parliamentarians that the United States should focus on pacifying Afghanistan instead of pushing Pakistain to attack North Waziristan, and that Pakistain would decide if and when to act there.
He said any unilateral US military action in North Waziristan would be risky.
Militant groups like the one in the videos -- known as the Khurasan -- seem to operate with impunity there.
Al Qaeda, the Pak Taliban and the Haqqani network -- blamed for a September, 13 attack on the US embassy in Kabul -- picked the most ruthless fighters from their ranks in 2009 to form the Khurasan unit, for a special mission.
The B.O. regime was escalating drone strikes on snuffies in the Pak tribal areas on the Afghan border and something had to be done to stop the flow of tips used for the US aerial campaign.
In the videos, the snuffies were wearing shirts with patches bearing their group's name, Mujahideen al-Khurasan, and none seemed worried about being captured or killed.
Throughout the footage, a Khurasan song could be heard.
"These people in white cars and black windows are pursuing their aim. They are the Khurasan," it said.
But there plenty of reasons to fear them.
The group has gone rogue. Its brutal methods, such as electrocutions and drilling during interrogations, alienated Taliban leaders, men who would not hesitate to order beheadings.
Posted by: Fred ||
10/20/2011 00:00 ||
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[Dawn] Pakistain Tehrik-i-Insaf (PTI) Chief Imran Khan ... who isn't your heaviest-duty thinker, maybe not even among the top five... on Wednesday said Pakistain Peoples Party (PPP) was not ruined by the military dictators but its own co-chairman Asif Ali President Ten Percent Zardari ... sticky-fingered husband of the late Benazir Bhutto ... succeeded in doing the same, DawnNews reported.
Speaking at students federation's meeting, Khan said Zardari unmasked the real faces of all political parties by 'purchasing them' and he should be given credit for that.
Mr Khan predicted that PML-N Chief Nawaz Sharif ... served two non-consecutive terms as prime minister, heads the Pakistain Müslim League (Nawaz). Noted for his spectacular corruption, the 1998 Pak nuclear test, border war with India, and for being tossed by General Musharraf... would soon make a phone call to Chaudhry Shujaat of PML-Q in order to bring him back to form a coalition and Sharif would assert the move as 'in national interest.'
The party chief further said N-league had opened their gates to welcome all political parties as they were scared of PTI's popularity.
The October 30 rally would decide whether the people of Lahore were with 'right' or with 'wrong,' said the PTI chief.
Posted by: Fred ||
10/20/2011 00:00 ||
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[Dawn] Corps commander, Beautiful Downtown Peshawar Lieutenant General Asif Yaseen Malik on Tuesday said success against militancy in the Federally Administered Tribal Areas was not possible until peace lashkars were strengthened.
Talking to a peace lashkar and tribal elders of Arakhel area in Jawaki, frontier region of Kohat during a meeting here, Lt-Gen Asif said under the government's new policy, peace lashkars were being made stronger for a decisive role in the fight against terrorism in the restive region.
He said peace lashkars should block the re-entry of faceless myrmidons to their respective areas and that was possible only if all rustics got together against militancy.
The peace lashkar and tribal elders from Manderi, Ghariba and Paya areas apprised the corps commander of education, communications, health and irrigation problems in their respective areas.
Lt-Gen Asif assured them of early solution of the problems and asked them to help the security forces maintain peace in their areas.
General officer commanding of Pakistain Army's 9th division Major-General Rizwan Akhtar, commissioner Kohat division Sahibzada Anis, political agent of FR, Kohat and district coordination officer, Kohat Shahidullah Khan, assistant political agent of FR Kohat Fakharuddin and senior military and civil officials were also in attendance.
He later visited the Army Public School in Kohat cantonment area and met teachers, students and staff.
Posted by: Fred ||
10/20/2011 00:00 ||
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[Dawn] Chief of the Army Staff Gen Ashfaq Parvez Kayani ... four star general, current Chief of Army Staff of the Mighty Pak Army. Kayani is the former Director General of ISI... has ruled out the possibility of an immediate unilateral US military offensive in North Wazoo, saying the Americans will have to think 10 times before going for this.
The comments came at a rare briefing held on Tuesday for members of the standing committees on defence of the two houses of parliament at the General Headquarters.
A participant of the meeting told Dawn that the army chief had been asked to comment on the possibility of a US strike in Pakistain for its failure in Afghanistan, like it had attacked Laos and Cambodia before leaving Vietnam.
Gen Kayani did not say what would be Pakistain's response in such an eventuality, but reminded that it was a nuclear power and must not be compared with Iraq and Afghanistan.
The briefing was mainly given by the Director General of Military Operations, Maj-Gen Ashfaq Nadeem, but the army chief also shared his views with the politicians, mainly about fears of US military build-up close to North Waziristan and the possibility of a unilateral attack in the region, and the army's concern over the weak legal framework hindering trial and prosecution of terrorists.
It was probably for the first time that two parliamentary bodies jointly attended a comprehensive briefing on national security at the GHQ. The briefing was originally scheduled for Oct 13 and an invitation was also extended to the Parliamentary Committee on National Security, headed by Mian Raza Rabbani, to attend the meeting. But the committee had decided to boycott the briefing and wanted it to be held at the Parliament House.
Almost all other members of the standing committees on defence attended the GHQ meeting. However, a poor excuse is better than no excuse at all... Professor Khurshid Ahmad, who is a member of both the Parliamentary Committee on National Security and the Senate's Standing Committee on Defence, boycotted the briefing.
Another participant said Gen Kayani had rejected the US allegations that Pakistain was using the Haqqani network for waging a proxy war in Afghanistan and said his country was a part of solution, and not the problem.
He said he had told the Americans that Pakistain would go for a military action in North Waziristan keeping in view the situation and capabilities, and would not do it under any pressure. "If somebody convinces me that military action in North Waziristan will resolve all problems, I am ready to go for it tomorrow," he said.
He said the problem was within Afghanistan and made it clear that some principles governed relations between states and nobody would be allowed to cross the red line. Gen Kayani rejected a perception that Pakistain wanted to control Afghanistan and said it was evident from history that nobody ever succeeded in doing so.
"When the United Kingdom and the Soviet Union failed to do so how can it be expected of Pakistain? We do not have a magic wand to succeed in doing what others failed," he added.
The army chief said Pakistain wanted peace and stability in Afghanistan so that it did not face any challenge from its eastern and western borders.
He said Pakistain had handed over its position in black and white to US President Barack B.O. Obama and desired to get their position in writing as well. He said Pakistain would never allow its territory to be used for attacks against any other country.
Gen Kayani said the US had been told that Pakistain did not need military aid, adding that he had received a call from Washington asking if he meant it. "My reply was we mean what we say". He said only 20 per cent of the $1.5 billion aid under the Kerry-Lugar bill had so far been received.
About the allegations of the Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) having 'unsavoury characters', he said the intelligence information came from links and all international intelligence agencies, including Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) and MI6, had such contacts. He stressed that these contacts must be positively used.
Gen Kayani said it had been conveyed to the US that Pakistain had a long-term interest in the region and would not like to lose its long-term interest for short-term gains.
He underlined the need for revisiting the legal framework to prosecute those involved in terrorist activities. "The present law does not allow us to detain suspects for more than three months. This was not a sufficient time and Death Eaters gain out of it."
The army chief said the weak law on terrorism and counter-insurgency was a problem because presently there was no deterrence. He said the law of evidence was outdated and not in conformity with the present scenario. He said a bill seeking to amend the Anti-Terrorist Act of 1997 had been pending before a Senate committee for almost a year.
Maj-Gen Ashfaq Nadeem informed the politicians that Taliban activity in Afghanistan had increased by 40 per cent, despite 10 years of military presence of 49 countries. He said there were safe havens of Taliban in Kunar and Nuristan in Afghanistan.
"Taliban operate from there (Afghanistan) to launch attacks inside Pakistain."
Maj-Gen Nadeem said India's cold start doctrine had added to the threats confronting Pakistain. He said seven out of nine Indian commands and three strike corps were along the border with Pakistain. Eighty-one per cent of forward and main operating bases were positioned against Pakistain.
"We cannot base our strategies on any good intentions, no matter how noble they may be, as intentions can change overnight.
Our strategy has to be based on India's capability," he added.
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[Dawn] The Director General of Inter-Services Public Relations, Major General Athar Abbas ... who is The Very Model of a Modern Major General... , has said that army troops and Frontier Corps personnel had been deployed in areas bordering Afghanistan to stop krazed killer attacks from across the border.
In an interview with Radio Pakistain, he said Pakistain would not allow Death Eaters to attack its checkposts and border villages and kill civilians.
The ISPR director general said about 100 personnel of police, Levies and paramilitary forces had so far been killed in attacks by Death Eaters from across the border during past three to four months.
The ISAF, he said, had been informed about the attacks and the location of krazed killers' hideouts had also been pointed out, but no action had so far been taken, which indicated that the safe havens and bunkers might have been destroyed or Death Eaters had decamped from there.
He said it appeared that there was no presence of the Afghan army or ISAF in the vast area from where Death Eaters were operating against Pakistain.
He said about 37 security personnel were killed in the Chitral attack, which was the first such assault and a matter of great
concern for Pakistain.
Replying to a question, he said there was a report about a krazed killer attack in Bajaur, but no casualty had so far been reported.
He said most of the krazed killers' attacks had taken place in Dir and the terrorist group which had decamped from Swat ...a valley and an administrative district in the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Province of Pakistain, located 99 mi from Islamabad. It is inhabited mostly by Pashto speakers. The place has gone steadily downhill since the days when Babe Ruth was the Sultan of Swat... was trying to return via Dir.
He said all border checkposts had been strengthened and their numbers in Dir had been increased.
He said Death Eaters had safe havens in Kunar, Nuristan and Nangarhar The unfortunate Afghan province located adjacent to Mohmand, Kurram, and Khyber Agencies. The capital is Jalalabad. The province was the fief of Younus Khalis after the Soviets departed and one of his sons is the current provincial Taliban commander. Nangarhar is Haqqani country.. areas of Afghanistan and there were no security forces in the areas. It appeared that the Death Eaters were being supported locally and operating freely, he added.
He said Pakistain could not launch an operation across the border. The issue has been taken up with Afghan army personnel and ISAF, but no effective operation has been seen in these areas.
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Convicted terrorist Samir Kuntar on Wednesday urged Palestinians to capture more Israeli soldiers in order to secure the freedom of all Palestinian prisoners being held in Israeli jails, the Ma'an news agency reported.
Kuntar, sentenced to four life sentences in 1980 for participating in a terror attack that killed four Israelis, was freed in 2008 in a swap for the bodies of two Israeli soldiers.
The former PLO member, speaking from Lebanon, stated that the deal to release Gilad Schalit in exchange for 1,027 Palestinian prisoners proves that armed resistance is the only way to liberate Palestinians jailed in Israel.
Convicted terrorist Samir Kuntar on Wednesday urged Paleostinians to capture more Israeli soldiers in order to secure the freedom of all Paleostinian prisoners being held in Israeli jails, the Ma'an news agency reported.
Kuntar, sentenced to four life sentences in 1980 for participating in a terror attack that killed four Israelis, was freed in 2008 in a swap for the bodies of two Israeli soldiers.
The former PLO member, speaking from Leb, stated that the deal to release Gilad Schalit in exchange for 1,027 Paleostinian prisoners proves that armed resistance is the only way to liberate Paleostinians set to sit in solemn silence in a dull, dark dock, in a pestilential prison with a life-long lock in Israel.
GAZA - A would-be Paleostinian jacket wallah freed by Israel in the prisoner swap for soldier Gilad Shalit told cheering schoolchildren in the Gazoo Strip the day after her release on Wednesday she hoped they would follow her example.
"I hope you will walk the same path we took and God willing, we will see some of you as deaders," Wafa al-Biss told dozens of children who came to her home in the northern Gazoo Strip.
Biss was traveling to Beersheba's Soroka hospital for medical treatment in 2005 when Israeli soldiers at the Erez border crossing noticed she was walking strangely. They found 10 kilograms (22 lbs) of explosives had been sewn into her underwear.
A member of al-Aksa Martyrs Brigades, an offshoot of Paleostinian Authority President the ineffectual Mahmoud Abbas ... a graduate of the prestigious unaccredited Patrice Lumumba University in Moscow with a doctorate in Holocaust Denial... 's Fatah party, Biss was sentenced to a 12-year term for planning to blow herself up.
Hamas, always the voice of sweet reason,'s Haniyeh awards prisoners' families $2,000Hamas prime minister Ismail Haniyeh ...became Prime Minister after the legislative elections of 2006 which Hamas won. President Mahmoud Abbas dismissed Haniyeh from office on 14 June 2007 at the height of the Fatah-Hamas festivities, but Haniyeh did not acknowledge the decree and continues as the PM of Gazoo while Abbas maintains a separate PM in the West Bank... decided to give $2,000 to the families of those prisoners who released on Tuesday as part of a prisoner swap in exchange for kidnapped IDF soldier Gilad Schalit, Hamas-affiliate Al Resalah reported.
Haniyeh also expressed support for those prisoners who were unable to return to their homes in the West Bank and were instead relocated in Gazoo.
"You are immigrants, and we are your support," Haniyeh said according to Al Resalah, adding that their relocation was not a dismissal because Gazoo is a part of Paleostine.
Jordan's prime minister designate Awn Khasawneh will hold talks with the political arm of the Moslem Brüderbund this week in attempts to include them in his new governing coalition, AFP reported Wednesday.
Islamic Action Front ...Jordan's branch of the Moslem Brüderbund... chief Hamzeh Mansour told AFP that his group was waiting to determine whether it would join Jordan's new reform-mandated government after Khasawneh announces its composition.
Khasawneh was in talks with the opposition and is expected to announce Amman's new government to King Abdullah II this weekend, AFP reported.
[An Nahar] La Belle France condemned on Wednesday the Syrian army's repeated incursions into Lebanese territory. ... something the Leb government is afraid to do...
The French Foreign Ministry said in a statement that Syria should respect Leb's illusory sovereignty and independence.
It noted that the incursions have resulted in the death of one person in Lebanese territory.
On Tuesday, conflicting reports said that Syrian troops had infiltrated al-Qaa in the Bekaa region, killing two Syrian army defectors.
The development came after Syrian troops entered the town of Arsal in the Bekaa where it killed a Syrian farmer and attacked a family residing in the area.
About a month ago, Syrian troops infiltrated northern Leb where it accidentally fired at the Lebanese army.
The French Foreign Ministry called on the Lebanese authorities to exert efforts to protect every individual who escapes the crackdown against anti-regime demonstrations in Syria.
Since March, Syria has witnessed protests against the rule of Hereditary President-for-Life Bashir Pencilneck al-Assad, Leveler of Latakia... with the regime retaliating with a bloody crackdown.
The United Nations ...what started out as a a diplomatic initiative, now trying to edge its way into legislative, judicial, and executive areas... estimates that some 3,000 people have been killed in the crackdown.
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[An Nahar] The March 14 Those are the good guys, insofar as Leb has good guys... General Secretariat slammed on Wednesday Hizbullah's recent positions, accusing it of acting as the sole authority on state decisions and the constitution due to its positions on the funding of the Special Tribunal for Leb.
It said in a statement after its weekly meeting: "We will consider the government as collapsed should it reject the funding of the tribunal."
"Hizbullah has astounded us for years with its so-called 'consensual democracy' and now it is calling for a cabinet vote to prevent the funding," it added.
"The party is boasting of its power to gain votes and imposing its will on its allies," it noted.
"Hizbullah's actions are the crowning achievement of the armed coup that it staged earlier this year ... and the March 14 forces are determined to continue their struggle against the illegitimate arms that are harming Lebanese-Lebanese ties and Leb's relations with the Arab and international powers," stressed the statement.
Hizbullah deputy chief Sheikh Naim Qassem ... the Grand Vizier of the Hezbullies... had stated on Sunday that cabinet may turn to a vote at cabinet to settle issues of contention.
Addressing Syria's infiltration of Lebanese territory, the general secretariat condemned Syrian Ambassador Ali Abdul Karim Ali and the Syrian Embassy's crackdown against protests in support of the Syrian people.
It lauded Internal Security Forces chief Ashraf Rifi's efforts to reveal the truth in the affair, voicing its support to him in this regard.
The March 14-led opposition and Rifi have accused the Syrian Embassy of being behind the disappearance of Syrian opposition members who had gone missing in Leb.
Last week, Rifi said that the ISF collected "dangerous information" linking the embassy to the disappearance of Shebli al- Aisamy.
Aisamy, 86, is a co-founder of Syria's ruling Baath party who decamped his native country in 1966 over political differences. He was last seen in May in the eastern Lebanese region of Aley.
Syrian Ambassador Ali has denied the accusations, accusing the MPs and some Lebanese officials of seeking to undermine his country.
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[An Nahar] Syria's largest opposition group threatened on Wednesday to seek outside help to stop the regime's "irresponsible" deadly crackdown against pro-democracy protesters.
Speaking in the Libyan capital, Syrian National Council member Najib Ghadbian also told news hounds that a peaceful revolution could bring down the regime of embattled Hereditary President-for-Life Bashir Pencilneck al-Assad Trampler of Homs... "There is a growing pressure from within Syria, mainly coming from the regime ... to militarize this protest movement," Ghadbian said.
"We do believe as a matter of principle that keeping the peaceful nature of the revolution is the right way to in fact bring down this regime."
"However, facts are stubborn; statistics are more pliable... if the regime continues to be so irresponsible ... our main objective is to call for the protection of civilians," he added, saying 35 people have been killed in the crackdown in the flashpoint central Syrian city of Homs in the past 48 hours.
Ghadbian said foreign help could take the form of creating a buffer zone, or imposing a no-fly zone, as the United Nations ...an idea whose time has gone... did in Libya to protect pro-democracy protesters from violent repression by strongman Moammar Qadaffy ...a reminder that a single man with an idea can screw up an entire nation... "This question is different from calling for a military intervention by the outside," he insisted.
Ghadbian was one of several senior members of the SNC currently visiting Libya, the only country yet to recognize the Syrian opposition movement as the legitimate representative of the Syrian people.
The SNC, the largest and most representative Syrian opposition grouping, was founded in Istanbul at the end of August and numbers 140 members, half of them living in Syria.
Ghadbian voiced optimism that members of the Assad regime would join the opposition movement to help with its peaceful ouster.
"We do believe there is a possibility that certain members of the regime are going to join this revolution and eventually ... that this revolution is going to succeed." He did not elaborate.
The SNC delegation earlier met the head of Libya's National Transitional Council, Mustafa Abdul Jalil.
Hassan al-Sughair, a senior member of Libya's NTC, said the new regime in Tripoli would offer "all kinds of support" to the group, to guarantee the success of the Syrian revolution.
On Monday Turkish Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu also met leaders of the opposition movement in Ankara, for their first official talks, a Turkish diplomat said.
"Turkey advised the (Syrian National Council) to be unified and work together to proceed towards democratic and peaceful transition in Syria. ... Because the current situation cannot be sustained like that," the diplomat said.
Protests against Assad's Baath Party, which has ruled Syria unchallenged for close to 50 years, erupted in March and have shown no signs of dying down despite a rising corpse count.
The United Nations on Friday said more than 3,000 people, including 187 children, have been killed in a fierce crackdown on the dissent.
At an urgent session in Cairo on Sunday, the Arab League ...an organization of Arabic-speaking states with 22 member countries and four observers. The League tries to achieve Arab consensus on issues, which usually leaves them doing nothing but a bit of grimacing and mustache cursing... called for "national dialogue" between Syria's government and the opposition in the Egyptian capital by the end of the month to help end the violence and avoid "foreign intervention" in Syria.
But the Syrian government newspaper Ath-Thawra dismissed the call and lashed out at the 22-member Arab League accusing it of serving U.S. and Israeli interests instead of Arab ones.
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[An Nahar] An official Syrian daily lashed out at the Arab League ...an organization of Arabic-speaking states with 22 member countries and four observers. The League tries to achieve Arab consensus on issues, which usually leaves them doing nothing but a bit of grimacing and mustache cursing... Wednesday, accusing it of serving the interests of the United States and Israel after the organization urged Damascus ...The City of Jasmin is the oldest continuously-inhabited city in the world. It has not always been inhabited by the same set of fascisti... to open up to dialogue.
"It is no longer surprising to see the vaporous Arab League, which is supposed to be concerned with joint Arab action, turn into an instrument of injustice aimed at destabilizing Syria," said the daily Ath-Thawra.
The daily said the 22-member Arab League was "hostage to powers following the agenda of aggressors like the United States, Israel and their European allies."
At an urgent session in Cairo on October 16, the Arab League called for "national dialogue" between Syria's government and the opposition in the Egyptian capital by the end of the month.
Syria's representative to the Arab League Youssef Ahmad slammed what he said was a "conspiracy" against the regime of Syrian Hereditary President-for-Life Bashir Pencilneck al-Assad Trampler of Homs... at the Cairo meeting on Sunday.
Protests against the Assad-controlled Baath Party, which has ruled Syria unchallenged for close to 50 years, erupted in March and have shown no signs of dying down despite a rising corpse count.
The United Nations ...what started out as a a diplomatic initiative, now trying to edge its way into legislative, judicial, and executive areas... on Friday said more than 3,000 people, including 187 children, have been killed in a fierce crackdown on the dissent.
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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.
"Our message is very clear: We are going to be fighting, we are going to be talking and we are going to be building... and they [militants] can either be helping or hindering but we are not going to stop."
Al-Baghdadi al-Mahmoudi, the prime minister in the former Libyan regime of ousted leader Muammar Al 
Officials from Seoul and Washington are discussing a revision of restrictions on the range of South Korean missiles, Defense Minister Kim Kwan-jin said Monday. The current missile guidelines restrict the range of South Korean ballistic missiles to 300 km, but Seoul wants them to cover the entire peninsula, according to Kim. 
the ephemeral Ban Ki-moon
Wazoo
Asif Ali 
Corps commander, 
...a valley and an administrative district in the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Province of Pakistain, located 99 mi from Islamabad. It is inhabited mostly by Pashto speakers. The place has gone steadily downhill since the days when Babe Ruth was the Sultan of Swat...
It noted that the incursions have resulted in the death of one person in Lebanese territory.
Hereditary President-for-Life Bashir 
An official Syrian daily lashed out at the 
Hereditary President-for-Life Bashir 
