[An Nahar] President Barack Obama If you like your coverage you can keep it... told his Afghan counterpart Hamid Maybe I'll join the Taliban Karzai ... A former Baltimore restaurateur, now 12th and current President of Afghanistan, displacing the legitimate president Rabbani in December 2004. He was installed as the dominant political figure after the removal of the Taliban regime in late 2001 in a vain attempt to put a Pashtun face on the successor state to the Taliban. After the 2004 presidential election, he was declared president regardless of what the actual vote count was. He won a second, even more dubious, five-year-term after the 2009 presidential election. His grip on reality has been slipping steadily since around 2007, probably from heavy drug use... on Tuesday he is now planning a full U.S. troop withdrawal, but did not rule out agreeing a post-2014 mission with the next Kabul government.
The U.S. threat was the latest twist in a long political tug-of-war with Karzai, who has infuriated Washington with his refusal to sign a Bilateral Security Agreement (BSA) governing a post-2014 mission in the dying months of his mandate.
"President B.O. told President Karzai that because he has demonstrated that it is unlikely that he will sign the BSA, the United States is moving forward with additional contingency planning," the statement said.
"Specifically, President B.O. has asked the Pentagon to ensure that it has adequate plans in place to accomplish an orderly withdrawal by the end of the year should the United States not keep any troops in Afghanistan after 2014."
The White House has previously warned that Karzai's intransigence on a deal painstakingly negotiated last year meant it had no choice but to consider a full withdrawal.
It refuses to leave troops behind in Afghanistan after America's longest war without the legal protections granted by the BSA.
Though Karzai has refused to sign the pact, which defines a post-2014 NATO ...the North Atlantic Treaty Organization. It's headquartered in Belgium. That sez it all.... training and anti-terror mission, some of the candidates in April's Afghan elections have indicated they would sign it. The deal has also been endorsed by a council of tribal elders.
The statement said that Obama was reserving the "possibility of concluding a BSA with Afghanistan later this year," should he find a willing partner in the government.
It was the most concrete sign yet that Washington may be willing to wait out the Afghan electoral process before making a final decision on a future role in Afghanistan.
However, if you can't be a good example, then you'll just have to be a horrible warning... the statement warned "the longer we go without a BSA, the more challenging it will be to plan and execute any U.S. mission."
Posted by: Fred ||
02/26/2014 00:00 ||
Comments ||
Link ||
[4 views]
Top|| File under:
#1
OTOH the Bammer repor may demand to still keep INTEL elements in the country even iff no BSA is signed.
Lest we fergit, 2009-10 MSM-NET = AL QAEDA SAID THEY WON'T HESITATE TO USE PAKISTAN'S NUKES IN TERROPS, JIHAD AGZ THE USA IFF IT HAD THE CHANCE.
The prob is moreso than not that any post-Obama USA will have to send US Milfors back into BOTH AFGHAN + PAK iff Militants take control of Pak's nuke arsenal - the Russians + Chinese + Indians won't even PC think about it.
Drivers of the public transportation vehicles operating from Mogadishu to Afgooye in Lower Shabelle have explained to us that illegal checkpoints have been dumped on the main roads and money is being collected from the drivers.
The long road connecting Mogadishu to Afgooye which is very much used by public transportation vehicles is rumoured to have numerous checkpoints accumulating funds from people on board the vehicles and is said to cause the drives significant difficulties.
One of the drivers who contacted Radio Shabelle in Mogadishu reported that in the past, checkpoints were deposited on roads at night and in the evenings, but now even during the day where the thieves would collect up to 400,000ShS ($20) which the drivers cannot afford to pay. He also urged the Somali government to take action in removing the checkpoints immediately as it causes complications.
The road that leads to Afgooye district used by the people leaving Mogadishu, has recently been cleared of checkpoints by the Officials of the Somali government even though they have been unsuccessful in removing the current checkpoints that still lay on the road.
Posted by: Steve White ||
02/26/2014 00:00 ||
Comments ||
Link ||
[4 views]
Top|| File under:
MOGADISHU -- Federal Government of Somalia for the first time disclosed a major shakeup that will affect security agencies in the wake of the deadly terror attack on Villa Somalia Presidential Compound, Garowe Online reports.
Someone's going to be held responsible? What a novel thought! Can we try that in the United States? Hello? Hello? Say, is this mike on?
In an interview with Somali National TV on Tuesday , President Hassan Shiekh Mohamud said that the security agencies officials will face shuffle in an effort to ensure tight security in Mogadishu and the other parts of the country.
"Somalia Federal Government will share creating a secure environment with the world because Al Shabaab Is on global fight and the militants are not carrying out rampage in Somalia alone," stated Mohamud.
President Mohamud has not announced those who would be fired in the shakeup by name and he also declined to specify a date on which the change will occur.
"Al Shabaab attack on Villa Somalia was aimed to show that Somalia is not stable but they failed in their plan," added the President.
Last Friday, Al Shabaab gunmen stormed the presidential compound, with a suicide bomber firstly ramming an explosive-laden car into the palace, followed by a gun battle after the armed men bluffed their way past the main security checkpoints at the entrance to Villa Somalia.
According to political analysts who asked to remain anonymous, the recent terror attack exposed the frailty of security apparatus and the ineffectiveness of high-ranking security officials in the job.
Re-arranging the deck chairs cabinet positions will fix that, you'll see...
Posted by: Steve White ||
02/26/2014 00:00 ||
Comments ||
Link ||
[5 views]
Top|| File under: al-Shabaab
[An Nahar] Egypt's military-installed authorities named a former member of ousted strongman Hosni Mubarak ...The former President-for-Life of Egypt, dumped by popular demand in early 2011... 's ruling party as prime minister Tuesday ahead of a presidential election expected to bring the army chief to power.
Ibrahim Mahlab, a former state-sector construction boss, vowed to fight "terrorism" and bring back tourists as he began work on forming a new cabinet after the surprise resignation on Monday of prime minister Hazem al-Beblawi.
Beblawi's government had been installed in July after the military ousted Islamist Mohammed Morsi ...the former president of Egypt. A proponent of the One Man, One Vote, One Time principle, Morsi won election after the deposal of Hosni Mubarak and jumped to the conclusion it was his turn to be dictator... , Egypt's first freely elected president and its first civilian one.
But it resigned in the face of mounting criticism of its failure to get to grips with a floundering economy and worsening industrial unrest.
Mahlab, who served as housing minister in Beblawi's cabinet, said that interim president Adly Mansour had tasked him with forming a new government "in three to four days".
He promised to work hard to improve services for Egyptians and fight "terrorism".
"This will create the conditions for investment and the return of tourism," he said.
Since Morsi's overthrow, Islamist gunnies have killed several foreign tourists as well as scores of security personnel in attacks that have severely dented the economically vital tourism sector.
A limited reshuffle had been expected to allow army chief Field Marshal Abdel Fattah al-Sisi to step down as defense minister and run for president.
But Sisi, who is expected to win the election this spring, will retain his post in Mahlab's cabinet for around two weeks until an electoral law has been passed, a bigwig told Agence La Belle France Presse.
Mahlab, a former chairman of Egypt's state-owned Arab Contractors Company, one of the Middle East's leading construction conglomerates, was named to the upper house of parliament in 2010, the year before Mubarak's overthrow in the Arab Spring uprising.
Mahlab, who is now in his 60s, resigned from the company in September 2012 after heading it for 11 years, the state-owned daily Al-Ahram said.
Posted by: Fred ||
02/26/2014 00:00 ||
Comments ||
Link ||
[4 views]
Top|| File under: Arab Spring
[An Nahar] An Egyptian court Tuesday sentenced three members of a political party to three years in jail for campaigning for the boycott of last month's constitutional referendum, judicial sources said.
The referendum was the first step in a roadmap outlined by Egypt's interim authorities for a return to democratic rule after Islamist president Mohammed Morsi ...the former president of Egypt. A proponent of the One Man, One Vote, One Time principle, Morsi won election after the deposal of Hosni Mubarak and jumped to the conclusion it was his turn to be dictator... was ousted by the military in July.
The three members of the Strong Egypt party, founded by former presidential candidate and ex-Moslem Brüderbund member Abdelmoneim Abul Futuh, were also fined 500 Egyptian pounds each (around $70, 55 euros), the sources said.
They were accused of being members of a "terrorist armed gang whose aim was to disturb public peace and security and disrupt the state's interests... and inciting citizens to boycott the constitution (referendum)," one of the sources said.
The three accused, who were tried in absentia, can appeal the verdict and be granted a retrial if they surrender to authorities.
They were briefly incarcerated Drop the rosco, Muggsy, or you're one with the ages! in January in a northern Cairo neighborhood for hanging posters in the streets calling on residents to boycott the referendum or vote against the constitution, the sources said.
The new constitution -- which grants the military extensive powers but lacks much of the Islamist-inspired wording of the 2012 charter adopted under Morsi -- was approved by a 98.1 percent margin.
The run-up to the referendum was marred by arrests of activists who campaigned against the new charter.
Activists who spearheaded protests against Morsi and his predecessor Hosni Mubarak ...The former President-for-Life of Egypt, dumped by popular demand in early 2011... have repeatedly accused the military-installed authorities of resorting to autocratic measures.
Posted by: Fred ||
02/26/2014 00:00 ||
Comments ||
Link ||
[5 views]
Top|| File under: Arab Spring
[An Nahar] The U.N. mission in Libya voiced "deep concern" on Tuesday over the near-daily violence plaguing the North African country, a day after seven Egyptian Christians were found murdered.
The U.N. Support Mission in Libya called on authorities to make every effort to rein in the rampant unrest, which has hit not only foreign targets but also Libyan civilians and security personnel, as well as polling stations in last week's election to a constituent assembly.
"UNSMIL expresses its deep concern about the continued violence -- including liquidations, bombings, kidnappings and attacks in the east and other Libyan areas," it said in a statement.
The attacks have targeted "judges, members of the security forces, activists, civilians and Arab and foreign nationals, as well as polling centers and buildings housing government and diplomatic missions," it said.
"UNSMIL calls upon officials and all forces to do their utmost to put an end to all acts which threaten stability in Libya, put the security of its people at risk, violate human dignity and undermine the values that Libyans uphold as they aspire to build a state based on the rule of law and the respect for human rights." ...which are often intentionally defined so widely as to be meaningless...
The bodies of the seven Egyptian Christians were found near Libya's second city of Benghazi on Monday a day after they were kidnapped from their homes in the eastern region.
Posted by: Fred ||
02/26/2014 00:00 ||
Comments ||
Link ||
[5 views]
Top|| File under: Arab Spring
[ALLAFRICA] The All Progressives Congress (APC) has warned the federal government against going ahead with its reported plan to remove the elected Governor of Borno and appoint a military administrator to oversee the affairs of the state, under the guise of intensifying the fight against Boko Haram ... not to be confused with Procol Harum, Harum Scarum, possibly to be confused with Helter Skelter. The Nigerian version of al-Qaeda and the Taliban rolled together and flavored with a smigeon of distinctly Subsaharan ignorance and brutality...
In a statement in Ibadan, Monday, by its Interim National Publicity Secretary, Alhaji Lai Mohammed, the party said the presidency should realize that there is always a limit to impunity, and that if indeed anyone should be removed over the protracted insurgency in the state and the entire North-east, it is President Goodluck Jonathan ... 14th President of Nigeria. He was Governor of Bayelsa State from 9 December 2005 to 28 May 2007, and was sworn in as Vice President on 29 May 2007. Jonathan is a member of the ruling People's Democratic Party (PDP). He is a lover of nifty hats, which makes him easily recognizable unless someone else in the room is wearing a neat chapeau...
"What is happening in the North-east in general and Borno state in particular is failure of leadership at the highest level of government, especially because the imposition of a state of emergency in the three worst-hit states has given the President emergency powers to deal with the protracted crisis.
"As the President and Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces, President Jonathan is in full control of all the instruments of coercion available to the country, which he can and has been deploying at will. If, therefore, some seemingly implacable dead-enders have continued to kill, maim and destroy in any part of the country, no one but the President should be held liable. Everyone knows a Governor does not deploy troops.
"Also, it is trite to say that the raison d'etre of any government is the protection of lives and property. This means that the moment any government fails in that key responsibility, it can no longer justify its reason for existence," it said.
APC said Gov. Kashim Shettima and the entire people of Borno are the victims in the senseless war being waged by Boko Haram, and that what they deserve are succour and support, not further victimization by a federal government which seems to have run out of ideas on how to subdue the sect.
The party said no one should lend any credence to the denial, by the presidency, of the evil plot to remove Gov. Shettima, because this presidency's words have never been worth the paper on which they are written.
Posted by: Fred ||
02/26/2014 00:00 ||
Comments ||
Link ||
[13 views]
Top|| File under: Boko Haram
[SUNNEWSONLINE] Nigeria's bid to win the fight against Boko Haram ... not to be confused with Procol Harum, Harum Scarum, possibly to be confused with Helter Skelter. The Nigerian version of al-Qaeda and the Taliban rolled together and flavored with a smigeon of distinctly Subsaharan ignorance and brutality... may take longer than expected except the Federal Government identifies the sect's foreign backers and severe such links.
This was one of the recipes for fighting insurgency given by Turkish journalist and interfaith dialogue expert during a chat with a cross-section of journalists in Lagos. Kerim Balci said the importance of international cooperation cannot be undermined as turbans groups such as Boko Haram rely on external financial and material support to execute their operations. "There is no single terrorist organization that don't have foreign backing...financial, logistic support as well as military support," he said.
Balci drew attention to the experience of Turkey during the era of militancy by the Partiya Karkerên Kurdistan (PKK -Kurdistan Workers Party) and how some Western interests financed the group's activities. According to him, PKK capitulated and agreed to peace talks only after its European backers decided to stop sponsoring it, following mounting pressure from Turkey. Balci said Nigeria's Ministry of Foreign Affairs has a greater role to play than the Ministry of Defence.
He said military operations targeted at Boko Haram might not force the group to accepting a ceasefire easily as long as they continue to receive training, equipments and financial assistance from foreign sources. Rather, Boko Haram will continue to change its operational tactics.
"Nigeria's intelligence has to work to identify their foreign supporters. The foreign ministry has to work hard to cut their foreign links. It is not the defence ministry that is actually important," he said.
An idol mind is devil's workshop according to an adage. Balci noted that terrorist groups exploit the poverty and illiteracy of the society to recruit jobless youths through financial and material inducement.
Balci also said that the government should cut all links between Boko Haram members and the local residents. This, he said could be achieved through the establishment of schools, vocational centers and other socio-economic activities that keep the people, particularly the youths employed or busy, to the extent that they may not be easily cajoled by members of the sect into either joining or assisting them.
Posted by: Fred ||
02/26/2014 00:00 ||
Comments ||
Link ||
[4 views]
Top|| File under: Boko Haram
The Mexican Suprema Cort de Justicia del Nacion (SCJN) or Supreme Court, said Monday that Mexican states may not use preventative detention, saying that the practice was available only to the federal government, according to Mexican news accounts.
The practice, known as arraigo, or rooting was a constitutional reform passed in 2008 in order to allow federal prosecutors a tool in dealing with organized crime. Arraigo allows the government to detain individuals incommunicado suspected in serious crimes drug crimes for up to 80 days in 40 day increments without trial or bail. Arraigo can only be granted by a federal judge, and can only be extended once by a federal judge. In past drug cases, some defendants have been detained for 20 days.
According to a La Jornada wire dispatch which appeared in the online edition of El Diario de Chihuahua news daily, the panel voted eight to two on a case brought by Comision Nacional de los Derechos Humanos (CNDH) or Human Rights Commision, concerning Article 291 in the state constitution of Aguascalientes, which permitted local and state judges to grant requests for preventative detention for serious crimes.
The SCJN members said that arraigo was intended to be applied only in serious crimes linked to drug cases. While the ruling negated the Aguascalientes law, the court said that preventative detention cases would have to be evaluated on a case by case basis. That part of the ruling means that criminal defendants are not to be released en masse until a judge has had a say in the release, but can petition the court for redress. A number of state entities have arraigo on their books including Hidalgo state.
In Mexico in the legal community, arraigo is generally considered a violation of human rights inasmuch as a judge is employed to oversee the detention. The ruling leaves unaddressed federal use of arraigo.
According to the news report, arraigo violates international human rights conventions, and it also is in direct contradiction to the SCJN ruling in 2011 that international human rights treaties have the same force as as Mexican laws in the area of human rights.
According to a Notimex wire dispatch which appeared in Milenio news daily, SCJN intends to deal with the 2011 ruling in a later session.
According to a news article in Animal Politico, 8,595 individuals have been placed in preventative detention, but only 3.2 percent have actually been convicted of a crime. In a separate news report, Mexican federal judges have denied arraigo only 4.7 percent of the time. It is unclear in the news report if those statistics are nationwide at the federal level or at both the federal and state levels. In states such as Hidalgo, crimes listed under which states have imposed arraigo include murder, robbery, extortion, abortion and rebellion.
According to Jose Antonio Guevara Bermudez, director of the Comision Mexicana de Defensa y Promocion de los Derechos Humanos (CMDPDH) or Commision for Defense and Promotion of Humans Rights, preventative detention increases the chance that a detainee will suffer physical abuse at the hands of the state. In the Animal Politico article a 2011 case is cited of Miriam Lopez, who was arrested in Ensenada, Baja California.
Senora Lopez claimed she was subjected to torture and physical and sexual abuse during the three weeks she remained in preventative detention.
Chris Covert writes Mexican Drug War and national political news for Rantburg.com and BorderlandBeat.com He can be reached at grurkka@gmail.com
WoT related because we understand how critical the National Guard is to our defense.
Republican governors are accusing President Barack Obama of making politically motivated cuts to their states National Guard funding.
Speaking to reporters after a meeting between the President and the National Governors Association, the GOP governors said they were deeply troubled by Obamas tone when asked about planned cuts to the National Guard. South Carolina Governor Nikki Haley said Obama became aggressive and that his tone chilled the room quite a bit.
He basically said, Many people in this room have asked for cuts, and now you getting em, Haley said at a news conference across from the White House at the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, adding that her husband, a guardsman, just returned from a yearlong deployment to Afghanistan.
She said Obama was trying to punish all these people who are asking for debt reduction by cutting the National Guard. Its just not a logical way to do things.
Texas Governor Rick Perry echoed Haleys remarks, saying, I hope that were not about to make a tragic mistake in this country by hollowing out our guard in our states in some political statement of youre all going to feel the pain, because thats certainly what I heard from the President of the United States today.
As a matter of fact, he said in that meeting, he said, If I hear any of you pushing back, making statements about Washington spends too much money, you will hear from me, Perry recounted.
White House press secretary Jay Carney declined to respond directly to the GOP characterization. Im not going to read out pieces of the conversation the President had with governors because, as these questions themselves demonstrate, there were a lot of issues covered, he said. When it comes to the defense budget, thats being addressed right now by the Secretary of Defense and the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs, and they will have a great deal of detail in the about the recommendations theyre making as part of the budgetary process, and Im sure well have more to say about that as after the budget comes out.
I won't object to the DoD taking its fair share of cuts. I'd just like to see the Departments of Agriculture, Interior, and Health & Human Services take their fair share as well. And I'd especially like to see the travel budget of the IRS zero'd out...
Posted by: Steve White ||
02/26/2014 00:00 ||
Comments ||
Link ||
[4 views]
Top|| File under:
#1
"As a matter of fact, he said in that meeting, he said, 'If I hear any of you pushing back, making statements about Washington spends too much money, you will hear from me,'" Perry recounted.
And not one of them rose from his chair, and told the SOB to go to hell, and walked out.
[DAWN] After the cabinet endorsed the country's internal national security policy on Tuesday, Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif ... served two non-consecutive terms as prime minister, heads the Pakistain Moslem League (Nawaz). Noted for his spectacular corruption, the 1998 Pak nuclear test, border war with India, and for being tossed by General Musharraf... addressing the session said that in order to ensure the safety and security of citizens, the government would establish its writ across the country under all circumstances, DawnNews reported.
He said the government had initiated the dialogue process with the Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistain (TTP) with sincerity and made arrangements for the outlawed group's negotiators to travel to Wazoo for holding consultations with krazed killer leaders but by targeting innocent civilians, the TTP had rendered the process meaningless.
Establishing peace in the country is the ultimate goal, the prime minister said, adding that the state's writ would be established at all costs.
Earlier during the session, the federal cabinet ratified the internal security policy and Interior Minister Chaudhry Nisar Ali Khan is expected to announce its details in Parliament tomorrow.
Under the chairmanship of Prime Minister Sharif, the ministers consulted on the policy as well as on peace talks with the TTP.
The cabinet agreed that the TTP would have to announce an unconditional ceasefire, adding that the banned group now stood alone and the nation had united against terrorism.
Sources told DawnNews that in accordance with the policy, the National Counter-Terrorism Authority (Nacta) would be the focal organization for national security, adding that the heads of the armed forces would be among members of Nacta.
The cabinet agreed that all decisions pertaining to anti-terror measures would be taken at the highest levels of authority.
The cabinet gave its nod on the policy following a briefing on it by Chaudhry Nisar who also took the ministers into confidence over the situation in relation to peace talks and targeted operations.
The policy also entails the formation of a joint intelligence directorate to make the exchange of information more effective on federal and provincial levels.
Posted by: Fred ||
02/26/2014 00:00 ||
Comments ||
Link ||
[9 views]
Top|| File under: Govt of Pakistan
[DAWN] The Beautiful Downtown Peshawar ...capital of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (formerly known as the North-West Frontier Province), administrative and economic hub for the Federally Administered Tribal Areas of Pakistan. Peshawar is situated near the eastern end of the Khyber Pass, convenient to the Pak-Afghan border. Peshawar has evolved into one of Pakistan's most ethnically and linguistically diverse cities, which means lots of gunfire. High Court on Tuesday declared illegal Pakistain Tehrik-e-Insaf ...a political party in Pakistan. PTI was founded by former Pakistani cricket captain and philanthropist Imran Khan. The party's slogan is Justice, Humanity and Self Esteem, each of which is open to widely divergent interpretations.... (PTI) protests during which party activists blocked the NATO ...the North Atlantic Treaty Organization. It's headquartered in Belgium. That sez it all.... supply route in Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa ... formerly NWFP, still Terrorism Central... province and forcibly stopped and searched trucks, DawnNews reported.
A two-member bench of the PHC comprising Justice Yahya Afridi and Justice Malik Manzoor Hussain heard the petition filed by local trader Haji Lal Mohammad against the forced inspection of Afghanistan-bound cargo trucks by activists of PTI and its allied parties.
During the hearing, the court said the government should ensure the protection of human rights ...not to be confused with individual rights, mind you... and freedom.
Moreover, the court said the stopping and checking of vehicles during the protests was illegal.
PTI chief Imran Khan ... aka Taliban Khan, who ain't the sharpest bulb on the national tree... has long opposed the US campaign of drone attacks targeting Taliban and Al Qaeda faceless myrmidons in Pakistain's tribal areas and the stated objective of the protests was to stop US drone strikes in Fata and Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa and force both the federal government and the Taliban to start talks to restore peace in the region.
He had intensified his rhetoric after a US drone strike killed Pak Taliban chief Hakimullah Mehsud on Nov 1.
Khan said the attack that killed Hakimullah was a deliberate attempt by Washington to sabotage efforts towards peace talks with the faceless myrmidons who have killed thousands in a six-year-long campaign of violence.
Posted by: Fred ||
02/26/2014 00:00 ||
Comments ||
Link ||
[6 views]
Top|| File under: Govt of Pakistan
[DAWN] Jamaat-e-Islami ...The Islamic Society, founded in 1941 in Lahore by Maulana Sayyid Abul Ala Maududi, aka The Great Apostosizer. The Jamaat opposed the independence of Bangladesh but has operated an independent branch there since 1975. It maintains close ties with international Mohammedan groups such as the Moslem Brotherhood. the Taliban, and al-Qaeda. The Jamaat's objectives are the establishment of a pure Islamic state, governed by Sharia law. It is distinguished by its xenophobia, and its opposition to Westernization, capitalism, socialism, secularism, and liberalist social mores... chief Syed Munawar Hassan ... The funny-looking leader-for-life of the Pak Jamaat-e-Islami. He joined the National Students Federation (NSF), a lefty student body, and was elected its President in 1959. He came into contact with the Islami Jamiat-e-Talaba (IJT) Pakistan and studied the writings of Mawlana Syed Abul Ala Maududi, The Great Apostasizer. As a result, he joined IJT in 1960 and soon he was elected as President of its University of Karachi Unit and member of the Central Executive Council. He was Assistant Secretary General of Jamaat-e-Islami Pakistain in 1992-93, and became Secretary General in 1993. After years of holding Qazi's camel he was named Amir when the old man stepped down in 2009... has asked Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif ... served two non-consecutive terms as prime minister, heads the Pakistain Moslem League (Nawaz). Noted for his spectacular corruption, the 1998 Pak nuclear test, border war with India, and for being tossed by General Musharraf... to seek help from Afghan Taliban supreme leader Mullah Mohammad Omar for restoration of peace.
"The prime minister should send a delegation to Mullah Omar ... a minor Pashtun commander in the war against the Soviets who made good as leader of the Taliban. As ruler of Afghanistan, he took the title Leader of the Faithful. The imposition of Pashtunkhwa on the nation institutionalized ignorance and brutality in a country already notable for its own fair share of ignorance and brutality... and seek his help for the restoration of peace in Pakistain," he suggested while addressing party workers at the JI provincial secretariat here on Sunday.
He proposed that Mr Sharif should arrange a joint meeting of the two negotiation committees to pave the way for peace in the Federally Administered Tribal Areas.
He said that the military leadership could also be included in the talks. Prof Mohammad Ibrahim and other leaders of the party were also present on the occasion, said a blurb.
Mr Hasan said that durable peace could not be established in any society through the use of force. For instance, he said that the NATO ...the North Atlantic Treaty Organization. A cautionary tale of cost-benefit analysis.... had failed to subjugate Afghanistan and now America and its allies were pulling their forces from the neighbouring country.
"The rulers should realise that peace can't be restored without table talks," he said, adding that military operation would create more complications in Fata. He recalled that use of force had resulted in the creation of Bangladesh, and Pakistain could not afford adventurism.
The JI chief said that the Constitution was being violated in Balochistan ...the Pak province bordering Kandahar and Uruzgun provinces in Afghanistan and Sistan Baluchistan in Iran. Its native Baloch propulation is being displaced by Pashtuns and Punjabis and they aren't happy about it... and Sindh, but the government was not taking notice, while sacrifices of the tribal people were being ignored.
He warned that thousands of people would be rendered homeless if the government launched military operation in Fata. He alleged that the American and Indian lobbies were very active to destabilise Pakistain.
In Nowshera, coordinator of Taliban committee Maulana Yousaf Shah told Dawn by phone on Sunday that he and Prof Ibrahim had handed over a detailed report of their meeting with Taliban political shura to Maulana Samiul Haq ...the Godfather of the Taliban, leader of his own faction of the JUI. Known as Mullah Sandwich for his habit of having two young boys at a time... , the chief of Taliban negotiation committee.
He said that now Maulana Samiul Haq wanted to immediately convene a consultative meeting of the Taliban negotiation committee to discuss the emerging situation.
Yousaf Shah appealed to both the government and Taliban to show flexibility in their stands for the sake of innocent citizens. "Military operation is not a solution to the existing problems," he said.
He disclosed that they had contacted the top leadership of Taliban and Taliban political Shura and its report had been presented to Samiul Haq.
Posted by: Fred ||
02/26/2014 00:00 ||
Comments ||
Link ||
[11 views]
Top|| File under: Jamaat-e-Islami
[DAWN] The Pakistain Tehrik-e-Insaf ...a political party in Pakistan. PTI was founded by former Pakistani cricket captain and philanthropist Imran Khan. The party's slogan is Justice, Humanity and Self Esteem, each of which is open to widely divergent interpretations.... has said that it will support the army operation if the Taliban refuse to announce an unconditional ceasefire. Train's left the station. Time to get on board.
The announcement came at a grinding of the peace processorion organised by the students' wing of the party here on Sunday.
The participants, some of them on foot and others on cycle of violences and cars, went from Ichhra to Shama Chowk through Ferozepur Road. They were led by Ejaz Chaudhry, Dr Yasmin Rashid, Leader of Opposition in Punjab Assembly Mahmoodur Rashid and Aleem Khan.
Carrying placards, banners and party flags, they called upon the government to quit the US-led 'war on terror' to restore peace in the country.
They also asked the Taliban to stop attacks on Frontier Corps and police.
Addressing the participants, Mr Chaudhry reiterated chairman Imran Khan ... aka Taliban Khan, who ain't the sharpest bulb on the national tree... 's demand that the Taliban must announce an unconditional ceasefire.
Mr Rashid advised the Taliban not to construe the offer for dialogue as a sign of weakness (of the state) and warned that if they did not stop attacking the army, the forces would have the right to counter-attack in its defence.
The party's provincial information secretary, Andleeb Abbas, said if the Taliban were serious about the dialogue they should agree to a ceasefire and ensure that other groups abided by it.
She said the PTI stood by the army, FC and police and would not tolerate a single incident of terrorism against them.
Dr Yasmin condemned the killing of armymen and innocent women and kiddies in terrorist attacks.
Pigeons and balloons were released and the participants recited the national anthem before dispersing.
Posted by: Fred ||
02/26/2014 00:00 ||
Comments ||
Link ||
[14 views]
Top|| File under: Govt of Pakistan
[DAWN] The Pakistain Tehrik-e-Insaf ...a political party in Pakistan. PTI was founded by former Pakistani cricket captain and philanthropist Imran Khan. The party's slogan is Justice, Humanity and Self Esteem, each of which is open to widely divergent interpretations.... (PTI) asked the government on Monday to take the political ownership of military strikes against forces of Evil in the tribal areas.
Talking to news hounds outside the Parliament House, PTI chief Imran Khan ... aka Taliban Khan, who isn't your heaviest-duty thinker, maybe not even among the top five... advised the government to limit surgical strikes to those Taliban factions which were involved in attacks on security forces and civilians. He also called upon the banned Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistain (TTP) to unilaterally announce a ceasefire to save the grinding of the peace processor.
He claimed that about 50 groups within the TTP were willing to hold talks with the government and again urged Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif ... served two non-consecutive terms as prime minister, heads the Pakistain Moslem League (Nawaz). Noted for his spectacular corruption, the 1998 Pak nuclear test, border war with India, and for being tossed by General Musharraf... to personally lead the grinding of the peace processor, because the country was facing an existential crisis.
"If at all the government believes it is left with no other option but to carry out a military operation, it should first evacuate about 600,000 people from North Wazoo, on the lines of the 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... military operation, to avoid collateral damage."
Political analysts are of the opinion that the PTI has of late somewhat changed its stance towards the Taliban. "Since the PTI was directly involved in the grinding of the peace processor, its leadership was left with no excuse but to change the stance," one of the analysts who declined to speak on the record said.
The PTI is the only political party that has a representative in the four-member government committee formed to hold talks which collapsed before actually taking off. Former ambassador Rustam Shah Mohmand was the PTI's nominee in the committee which effectively called off the talks on Feb 18 after a Mohamand Agency-based TTP group claimed the credit for beheading 23 Frontier Corps (FC) men.
The TTP had nominated Mr Khan as its negotiator but he declined and expressed confidence in the government's initiative.
A detailed blurb explaining the PTI's stance on the grinding of the peace processor said: "The PML-N government must now take political ownership of any military operation and inform the politicianship and the nation."
It said the party still felt that talks were the best way forward but if targeted operations were required, "the government must create national consensus and take responsibility by giving a clear policy and ensuring protection of civilians -- especially to avoid Dire Revenge™ attacks".
Referring to the party's manifesto, it said the best policy to deal with the forces of Evil was to disengage, isolate and exterminate. "Only by isolating the hardcore snuffies from those willing to talk can the government bring sustainable peace."
PTI spokesperson Dr Shireen Mazari said her party was disappointed by what she termed "pre-planned sabotage" of the process. "They seem to have succeeded and talks seem to be off the table."
She said the PTI was committed to peace and had always felt that it could be better achieved through dialogue. The PTI had seen what happened in Afghanistan where the US with all its money and military prowess could not achieve peace through force, hence the only superpower had reverted to talks with the Afghan Taliban.
She said that in Pakistain, 6,000 operations, 200 of them major operations, since the 9/11 attacks had failed to bring peace. Giving peace a chance through dialogue was the demand of all political parties in several all-party conferences convened over the past year by the previous and current government, she said.
So the demand for dialogue was not simply a PTI position but a national consensus among all political parties, she said, adding that her party had also proposed a framework for the process: talks to be held within the constitution, ceasefire by both sides and isolating those not willing to negotiate from those ready to hold talks.
Posted by: Fred ||
02/26/2014 00:00 ||
Comments ||
Link ||
[8 views]
Top|| File under: Govt of Pakistan
[Ynet] The US government raised concerns about a reported arms deal between Iraq and Iran "at the highest levels" with Iraq's government, White House front man Jay Carney told news hounds on Tuesday.
Carney said that the Iraq government has denied in a blurb that any contracts were signed, and noted that the US government will follow up with Iraq on the issue.
Posted by: trailing wife ||
02/26/2014 07:23 ||
Comments ||
Link ||
[5 views]
Top|| File under: Govt of Iran
#1
Freeing a country from a murdering tyrant, constructing the largest US Embassy in the world and staffing it with hundreds of US State Department diplomats failed to bring about a positive, Pro-U.S. gov't and effective diplomatic solutions ?
#3
All those idiots yammering "no blood for oil!" really didn't know what they were talking about...
Posted by: Steve White ||
02/26/2014 10:50 Comments ||
Top||
#4
Dave D. pointed out about a decade ago that we attempted to democratize them for the sake of our souls, not theirs -- so that we could explain to our grandchildren that we gave them a fair chance before we went back and turned it all to glass and dust. He has a jaundiced view of humanity, particularly the Muslim variety, does our Dave D. Very Heinleinian that way.
#6
#5 If it's OK for Iran to have nukes then why would any other arms be a problem?
Iranian nukes and war-drumming
Only portend the satans' succumbing.
But conventional arms
Might be used to bring harms
To nice Muslims who don't have it coming.
#2
One of the submarine's innovations is a security system that is similar to the "windbreaker" defense system that is used in tanks; the system recognizes approaching missiles and causes them to stray off course.
Windbreaker destroys missiles, doesn't make they stray off course. Either the writer doesn't know what he is talking about, or Israel has a new anti-missile system.
[UPI] TEL AVIV, Israel, Feb. 25 - Israeli warplanes have reportedly hit a convoy on the Syria-Lebanon border carrying anti-aircraft missiles from war-torn Syria to Hezbollah, amid growing Israeli concerns about a threat to its northern border. But the most immediate threat the Israelis perceive from that quarter is not Iranian-backed Hezbollah.
Gantz said Israeli forces were in a "very high state of readiness" amid the growing perception in the Jewish state that the nature of the Syrian conflict has become intensely sectarian between Sunnis and Shiites, the cockpit of a similar confrontation in Iraq, Syria's eastern neighbor. The above para captures the 'bottom line' of the lengthy article.
[An Nahar]A new Israeli law giving Mohammedan and Christian Arab citizens separate representation on a national employment commission drew fire from the Paleostinians on Tuesday.
"This law aims to create a new reality among our people based on religion and not national identity," Paleostine Liberation Organization executive committee member Hanan Ashrawi said in a statement.
Israel's parliament on Monday passed into law a bill expanding the equal opportunities commission from five to 10 members, and giving separate seats for the first time to representatives of Christian and Mohammedan Arab workers' groups.
"We and the Christians have a lot in common. They're our natural allies, a counterweight to the Mohammedans who want to destroy the country from within," Haaretz daily quoted the bill's sponsor, Yariv Levin, of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's Likud party, as saying.
It also sets aside seats for Druze, ultra-Orthodox Jews and families of Jewish immigrants from Æthiopia, all groups which have higher than average unemployment.
The bill was passed three months ahead of the first trip to the Holy Land by Pope Francis, who is to visit Amman, Bethlehem and Jerusalem from May 24 to 26.
The Israeli Arab community has its roots in the 160,000 Paleostinians who remained inside Israel following its creation in 1948. Today they and their descendants number around 1.3 million out of a total Israeli population of 7.9 million.
Posted by: Fred ||
02/26/2014 00:00 ||
Comments ||
Link ||
[4 views]
Top|| File under:
#1
Anything is fair in Love and War. Its a basic principle.
And corollary to that is : if your enemy wants it then don't let him have it it. Even if you don't need it yourself, don't let him have it anyway.
P*ss on him every chance you get, and f*8k with his head whenever you can.
Palestinians are not your friends. Their mother and the dog too.
Posted by: Frank G ||
02/26/2014 11:01 Comments ||
Top||
#3
More interesting is the fact that it fitted with HELLADS, a laser system that can destroy air or ground targets. HELLADS has already been fitted onto the B-1.
This immediately makes all of China's "carrier killer" missiles obsolete.
Posted by: Florida Al ||
02/26/2014 11:58 Comments ||
Top||
[Ynet] It is safe to deduce there was indeed a strike against targets near the Lebanese-Syrian border last night, and it is safe to assume Israel was behind it.
Judging by the quantity and level of accuracy of the reports in the Lebanese media, it is safe to infer that there was indeed a strike against targets on the ground on Monday night, likely on both sides of the Lebanese-Syrian border. One can also assume, judging by the nature of the reports, that there was intensive Israel Air Force activity during those hours.
From all of that, it appears that it would not be far fetched to infer that Hezbollah attempted to smuggle advanced weaponry into Leb last night.
One can also assume that Israel, as it has said it would numerous times in the past, did indeed act to stop the convoys leading these weapons from reaching their destination.
The strike took place in the Beqaa Valley area, a "traditional" area through which Hezbollah and the Syrians have tried in the past to smuggle not only advanced weapons, but also drugs and other contraband.
The mountainous area has wadis with wide dirt roads through which even large tow-trucks can pass. According to reports on the usually-credible Al Arabiya news network, this was an attempt to smuggle ballistic missiles from Syria to Leb.
There were past attempts to smuggle such weaponry - some of which Israel thwarted and some of which Israel failed to stop, so it can be assumed Hezbollah managed to obtain a small amount of Syrian-made advanced Scud D ballistic missiles with a range of 700 kilometers.
It is fairly easy to locate and hit these convoys, which carry relatively large loads like the ballistic missiles, even in problematic weather conditions.
The Syrians reportedly store the weapons meant for Hezbollah in a logistics army base near Damascus. The base is now under Hezbollah control, and the Shi'ite organization defends it from Syrian rebel forces. Convoys often leave this base towards the Syrian border in the Nabi Chit area to transfer the advanced arms to Hezbollah in the Beqaa Valley.
It is very possible that this is what happened Monday night. Hezbollah took advantage of the stormy weather, that makes it harder on intelligence mechanism to see what is happening on the ground, and also makes it harder on IAF planes to strike, in order to try to clandestinely transfer the missiles or other advanced weaponry. The weather was clear in recent weeks, and a window of opportunity was opened on Monday night that Hezbollah could've taken advanced of. This is probably what Hassan Nasrallah's men and the Syrian army were trying to do.
Lebanese media reported on strikes inside Leb, but Hezbollah's television station Al-Manar was quick to deny these reports and claim there was no strike on Lebanese territory. Al-Manar also claimed Hezbollah did not suffer any losses, but it seems like there were losses to Hezbollah men on the convoys, judging by Lebanese press reports.
Hezbollah rejected reports of an attack on Lebanese territory so it would not have to respond to these attacks. It is also possible the Monday night strike really did take place on Syrian territory, very close to the Lebanese border. In any case, Hezbollah does not want its major opposition in Leb to slam it for doing nothing while Israel attacks its ranks.
It is also likely that more than one target was attacked, since this is a convoy that was transferring advanced weaponry and it was naturally scattered on a fairly large area as a form of precaution.
As for the reported losses, that Hezbollah may or may not have suffered, this ambiguity comes from the type of report. Hezbollah has suffered losses in the past when convoys attempting to smuggle weapons were attacked, but it did not report on those incidents, and since there were no journalists in the area, there was no one else to report on the attacks. This time, there was a hardworking journalist who reported on the strike, and perhaps it was the Syrian opposition that reported on Hezbollah losses in order to step up their psychological warfare.
In any case, it appears both Hezbollah and the Syrians failed in their mission last night.
[Ynet] Online magazine quotes official Israeli source as saying Israel struck weapons convoy near Syrian-Lebanese border Monday.
Israel is behind the Arclight airstrike on a weapons convoy near the Syrian-Lebanese border Monday night, a senior Israeli official told Time Magazine.
It is still unclear precisely which missiles were targeted; however the Israeli official noted that the convoy apparently included missiles with heavier and more dangerous warheads than the ones that are already held by Hezbollah, which obtained tens of thousands of rockets directed at the heart of population centers in Israel.
This is the first time an Israeli source confirms -- according to Time -- that Israel stands behind an attack on Lebanese soil.
According to foreign reports, Israel previously struck weapon transfers meant for Hezbollah four times.
#1
Apparently, the Juices have, like, superpowers that let them see in the dark and thru clouds and stuff. And maybe that Mahmoud the Weasel ratted out his compadres for cash.
The interesting bit here (IMHO) is the Israelis admit it. "Yeah, we did it. And we'll do it again next time you try, so knock it off."
Not at my best lately -- the SAD has sadly affected my concentration and whatall. But what the hell.
Allah knows, do the kuffar ever doze?
Well, whatever. We'll gather our missals together
A truckload at a time
Life is sweet, setting booms off in the street
Wearing leather, on patrol with my goat on a tether
I'm cheery all the time, the time, so cheery all the time
When I drive this truck, the Joos will try to get me
If they have bad luck, somebody else might net me
That would really suck! Allan above, please let me
Bombard the folks I abhor
All alone, with one pious chaperon
Stormy weather, we're pulling our missals together
Heading on down the line, near the borderline
Rolling down the wadis, just a little bit edgy
Hoping the Israelis won't give me a wedgie
Rainin' cats and collies, blinding every truckin' Hezbi
Crikey, a thunderous roar!
Flying high, up into the smoky sky
Stormy weather, the faithful foiled by the oppressor
They'll do it every time!
[An Nahar] Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Tuesday Israel was doing all that was "necessary" to ensure its security, following reports of an air raid against Hizbullah ...Party of God, a Leb militia inspired, founded, funded and directed by Iran. Hizbullah refers to itself as The Resistance and purports to defend Leb against Israel, with whom it has started and lost one disastrous war to date, though it did claim victory... targets on the Syrian-Lebanese border.
"We are doing everything that is necessary in order to defend the security of Israel," Netanyahu said at a joint news conference in Jerusalem with visiting German Chancellor Angela Merkel ...current chancellor of Germany. She was educated in East Germany when is was still run by commies, but in 1989 got involved with the growing democracy movement when the Berlin Wall fell. Merkel is sometimes referred to by Germans as Mom...
"We will not say what we're doing or what we're not doing" to maintain Israel's security, he said in a cryptic reply to a question on the raid.
On Monday night, "two Israeli raids hit a Hizbullah target on the border of Leb and Syria," a Lebanese security source told AFP.
The National News Agency confirmed the report, adding that the raids targeted the countryside of the Lebanese town of Nabi Sheet on the border.
Hizbullah is an arch-enemy of Israel, and has sent thousands of fighters across the border to aid Syrian Hereditary President-for-Life Bashir Pencilneck al-Assad Scourge of Qusayr... 's regime as it battles Sunni-led rebels.
Syria has long provided arms and other aid to Hizbullah, and served as a key conduit of Iranian military aid to the movement, which battled Israel to a bloody stalemate in 2006.
Residents of Nabi Sheet told AFP they saw flares light up the sky ahead of the raids, which shook their houses.
People in neighboring areas said they heard planes flying low and that the target appeared to be a Hizbullah position in the mountains near the town.
Nabi Sheet is a bastion of Hizbullah, and the group has a suspected weapons store and training camp there.
Posted by: Fred ||
02/26/2014 00:00 ||
Comments ||
Link ||
[8 views]
Top|| File under: Hezbollah
[An Nahar] Russia on Tuesday warned Soddy Arabia ...a kingdom taking up the bulk of the Arabian peninsula. Its primary economic activity involves exporting oil and soaking Islamic rubes on the annual hajj pilgrimage. The country supports a large number of princes in whatcha might call princely splendor. When the oil runs out the rest of the world is going to kick sand in the Soddy national face... against supplying Syrian rebels with shoulder-launched missile launchers, saying such a move would endanger security across the Middle East and beyond.
The Russian foreign ministry said in a statement that it was "deeply concerned" by news reports that Saudi Arabia was planning to buy Pak-made shoulder-launched surface-to-air missiles and anti-tank systems for armed Syrian rebels based in Jordan.
It said that the aim was to alter the balance of power in a planned spring offensive by rebels on the regime of Hereditary President-for-Life Bashir Pencilneck al-Assad Oppressor of the Syrians and the Lebs...
"If this sensitive weapon falls into the hands of gunnies and turbans who have flooded Syria, there is a great probability that in the end it will be used far from the borders of this Middle Eastern country," the foreign ministry said.
Long-existing tensions between Russia and Saudi Arabia have intensified further as a result of the Syria conflict, with Moscow standing by Assad but Riyadh offering open support for the rebels.
Posted by: Fred ||
02/26/2014 00:00 ||
Comments ||
Link ||
[12 views]
Top|| File under: al-Nusra
#1
As per MSM-Net, PAKISTAN allegedly may also be selling arms to the Rebs, + training 'em.
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.
Goodluck Jonathan
Wazoo
Syed Munawar Hassan
[UPI] TEL AVIV, Israel, Feb. 25 - Israeli warplanes have reportedly hit a convoy on the Syria-Lebanon border carrying anti-aircraft missiles from war-torn Syria to Hezbollah, amid growing Israeli concerns about a threat to its northern border. But the most immediate threat the Israelis perceive from that quarter is not Iranian-backed Hezbollah.
[Ynet] It is safe to deduce there was indeed a strike against targets near the Lebanese-Syrian border last night, and it is safe to assume Israel was behind it.
Hereditary President-for-Life Bashir 
Hereditary President-for-Life Bashir 
