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Area: WoT Operations    Non-WoT    Opinion        Politix   
Suicide bomber in Tunisia kills at least one, state TV reports
Today's Headlines
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Page 4: Opinion
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Page 6: Politix
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-Signs, Portents, and the Weather-
Whiskey for the Ummah


Posted by: 3dc || 06/27/2019 00:00 || Comments || Link || [1 views] Top|| File under:

#1  Democracy! Whiskey! Sexy!
Posted by: SteveS || 06/27/2019 20:34 Comments || Top||


Afghanistan
Ghani To Discuss Four Key Issues In Pakistan Trip
[ToloNews] President Ashraf Ghani
...former chancellor of Kabul University, now president of Afghanistan. Before returning to Afghanistan in 2002 he was a scholar of political science and anthropology. He worked at the World Bank working on international development assistance. As Finance Minister of Afghanistan between July 2002 and December 2004, he led Afghanistan's attempted economic recovery until the Karzais stole all the money...
is expected to discuss four key issues with the Pak Prime Minister Imran Khan
... aka The Great Khan, who ain't the brightest knife in the national drawer...
during his upcoming trip to Islamabad which will take place on June 27, presidential front man Haroon Chakhansuri said on Tuesday as critics continue to blast the president over the planned trip to the neighboring nation.

Security, peace talks with the Taliban
...Arabic for students...
, regional connectivity, trade ties, and investment will dominate agenda during the meeting with the Pak leadership, said Chakhansuri.

The Afghan government has said that the trip will also help to find out how Pakistain can contribute to the Afghan grinding of the peace processor.

According to the Afghan government, Ghani accepted the invitation by the Pak leader on the recommendation of members of the peace consultative Loya Jirga which was held in April.

Ghani prepares for a trip to Pakistain at a time that the role of Pakistain in the crisis in Afghanistan has been undermining bilateral relations between the two neighbors.

"The president should convince Pakistain to work with interest towards intra-Afghan talks," said MP Habiburrahman Pedram.

"There is no doubt about it that Pakistain has interfered in Afghanistan over the past 40 years, but it clearly committed aggression that needs to be stopped now. Stability will be ensured in Afghanistan once this aggression is ended," said university lecturer Nasrullah Stanekzai.

"Our argument is that the issue of elections will be discussed during these tours and there is a mechanism to prevent it," said Assadullah Saadati, second running mate to Chief Executive Abdullah Abdullah
... the former foreign minister of the Northern Alliance government, advisor to Masood, and candidate for president against Karzai. Dr. Abdullah was born in Kabul and is half Tadjik and half Pashtun...
in the upcoming presidential elections.

The visit marks Ghani’s second state visit to Islamabad since 2014.
Posted by: trailing wife || 06/27/2019 00:00 || Comments || Link || [0 views] Top|| File under: Govt of Pakistan


Khalili Says Islamic Emirate Not Acceptable For Afghans
[ToloNews] Amid optimism by the Afghan government and the United States on a potential peace deal ahead of the upcoming polls in Afghanistan, the head of the High Peace Council, Mohammad Karim Khalili said he supports the efforts for the reconciliation process but added that an Islamic emirate will not be a responsive system for Afghanistan, which he says has seen a major change ‐ compared to the Taliban
...Arabic for students...
era back in 1996-2001.

Khalili, who addressed the second consultative and political gathering of Hizb-e-Wahdat-e-Milli, led by him, said agreeing on an Islamic emirate as part of a peace deal means "surrender" of one party to another.

Therefore, Khalili suggested that the Afghan government and its international partners should ensure a dignified peace which he says is the demand of every Afghan.

"Peace under the shadow of an Islamic emirate is not peace; rather, it is surrendering of one party to another. Meanwhile,
...back at the palazzo, Count Guido had been cornered by the banditti...
it is also not peace when the [Afghan government] asks the Taliban to surrender. It means surrendering. Neither the Taliban will surrender nor the people of Afghanistan are ready to accept an Islamic emirate," Khalili stated.

Khalili said that the Taliban should realize that an Islamic emirate "will never be a responsive and acceptable government and system" for the new generation in Afghanistan.

"We should change our perspective about the future," he stressed.

His remarks are expressed a day after the US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo’s visit to Kabul, who met with Afghan leaders and said the US hopes there is a peace deal ahead of the upcoming presidential elections.

Meanwhile,
...back at the palazzo, Count Guido had been cornered by the banditti...
Khalili criticized the new politicians in the Lower House of the Parliament for failing to elect a speaker and called it a crisis.

He said that the rifts in the parliament are the outcome of the controversial parliamentary elections ‐ last year in October.

"We witnessed the parliamentary elections a while ago, in which the will of few people was practiced. Many institutions decided on the winning candidates. Such an election is a scandal to democracy," said Khalili.
Khalili stressed the need for transparent presidential elections in order to prevent another crisis.

Addressing the same event, Chief Executive Abdullah Abdullah
... the former foreign minister of the Northern Alliance government, advisor to Masood, and candidate for president against Karzai. Dr. Abdullah was born in Kabul and is half Tadjik and half Pashtun...
who is supported by Khalili in the upcoming presidential elections, said the country is in a critical condition and that efforts are underway both for elections and the grinding of the peace processor.

"From one side people are moving towards elections to choose a better future by using their votes while on the other side, peace efforts are underway in national, regional and international level," Abdullah said.
Posted by: trailing wife || 06/27/2019 00:00 || Comments || Link || [2 views] Top|| File under: Taliban

#1  Option 1: Call the maximum no. of Taliban leadership for talks and a sit-down. Poison them all. Continue fight. It might go easier now. Show no mercy, no prisoners.

Option 2: Agree to islamic emirate thingy. Insist that it be led by a 50/50 board, have a constitution, and no Pak influence in Af. Let their leaders settle into complacence and a new lifestyle, meeting leaders and traveling to far flung locations; while India or Israel train you up a batch of figurehead Pashtuns who can speak talibanese to their dogs. Commence purge of old guard. Ring in the new.

Option 3: Back to the fighting.
Posted by: Dron66046 || 06/27/2019 14:48 Comments || Top||


Africa Horn
Sudan’s Mahdi rejects call for mass demos on June 30
[ENGLISH.ALARABIYA.NET] Sudan’s veteran opposition leader Sadiq al-Mahdi rejected on Wednesday a call for nationwide mass demonstrations against the country’s ruling generals on June 30.

The remarks by the head of National Umma Party come as the tension between the generals and leaders from the umbrella protest movement, the Alliance for Freedom and Change, remain high after a deadly crackdown on a protest camp killed dozens of demonstrators.

The June 30 rallies called by the alliance coincide with the 30th anniversary of the coup that had brought now ousted leader Omar al-Bashir
Head of the National Congress Party. He came to power in 1989 when he, as a brigadier in the Sudanese army, led a group of officers in a bloodless military coup that ousted the government of Prime Minister Sadiq al-Mahdi and eventually appointed himself president-for-life. He has fallen out with his Islamic mentor, Hasan al-Turabi, tried to impose shariah on the Christian and animist south, resulting in its secessesion, and attempted to Arabize Darfur by unleashing the barbaric Janjaweed on it. Sudan's potential prosperity has been pissed away in warfare that has left as many as 400,000 people dead and 2.5 million displaced. Omar has been indicted for genocide by the International Criminal Court but nothing is expected to come of it.
to power after toppling the then elected government of Mahdi.

"Our opinion is to avoid escalatory measures from either side," Mahdi, who is part of the protest movement, said at a presser at his party headquarters in Omdurman, the twin city of Khartoum across the Nile.

Mahdi said any escalation prior to receiving the ruling military council’s response to a power transfer plan proposed by Æthiopia would be "premature".

Æthiopia is mediating talks between the generals and protest leaders since previous negotiations collapsed in the wake of the June 3 crackdown on a protest sit-in outside the army headquarters in the capital.

Æthiopia’s proposal calls for forming a new 15-member civilian-majority governing body, which the protest leaders have accepted but the military council has so far dismissed.

On June 3, gunnies in military fatigues stormed the protest camp, shooting and beating demonstrators who had camped there since April 6. More than 100 people were killed on that day, according to medics linked to the protest movement. Officials say 61 people died.

The generals deny they ordered the dispersal, insisting they had authorized only a limited operation to clear a nearby area of drug pushers. Æthiopia and the African Union
...a union consisting of 53 African states, most run by dictators of one flavor or another. The only all-African state not in the AU is Morocco. Established in 2002, the AU is the successor to the Organisation of African Unity (OAU), which was even less successful...
have since stepped up diplomatic efforts to resolve the crisis in Sudan.

Posted by: Fred || 06/27/2019 00:00 || Comments || Link || [2 views] Top|| File under: Govt of Sudan


Africa North
Libya's Tripoli-based HoR denounces Salame's meetings with Haftar, says he's biased
[Libya Observer] Members of the Libyan House of Representatives (HoR) convening in Tripoli
...a confusing city, one end of which is located in Lebanon and the other end of which is the capital of Libya. Its chief distinction is being mentioned in the Marine Hymn...
denounced Tuesday the meeting of UNSMIL's Head Ghassan Salame with "outlaw Khalifa Haftar
...Self-proclaimed Field Marshal, served in the Libyan army under Muammar Qadaffy, and took part in the coup that brought Qadaffy to power in 1969. He became a prisoner of war in Chad in 1987. While held prisoner, he and his fellow officers formed a group hoping to overthrow Qadaffy, so it's kind of hard to describe him as a Qadaffy holdover. He was released around 1990 in a deal with the United States government and spent nearly two decades in the United States, gaining US citizenship. In 1993, while living in the United States, he was convicted in absentia of crimes against the Jamahiriya and sentenced to death. Haftar held a senior position in the anti-Qadaffy forces in the 2011 Libyan Civil War. In 2014 he was commander of the Libyan Army when the General National Congress (GNC) refused to give up power in accordance with its term of office. Haftar launched a campaign against the GNC and its Islamic fundamentalist allies. His campaign allowed elections to take place to replace the GNC, but then developed into a civil war. Guess you can't win them all...
They said in a letter to the Secretary General of the UN that Haftar has no authority or official occupation as the HoR scrapped General Commander of Army post that was given to him by Tobruk-based HoR in 2015.

"Salame's visit to Haftar who hindered the UN-led political process gives him and his attack on Tripoli some sort of legitimacy." The letter reads.

It adds that the HoR members were hoping Salame would condemn the attack on Tripoli and other cities in southern Libya with all the aftermath and destruction those attacks had caused, including in Benghazi and Derna.

The HoR members also said that Salame has become part of the problem, saying Haftar can never be part of the political process again.

Salame visited Haftar in al-Rajma days ago and discussed with him the ongoing fighting and the ways to end it.

He also met with HoR Speaker in Tobruk Aqila Saleh and, according to MPs in there, he told Saleh that UNSMIL doesn't recognize Tripoli-based HoR.

In Tripoli and other western region cities, many people have been calling for sacking and replacing Salame saying he is biased to Haftar and is reluctant to condemn the Tripoli offensive by Haftar's forces despite the hundreds of casualties and thousands of IDPs it caused.

Posted by: Fred || 06/27/2019 00:00 || Comments || Link || [0 views] Top|| File under: Arab Spring

#1  Losing that? or is he winning?

The UN is winning? lol
Posted by: newc || 06/27/2019 3:36 Comments || Top||


Britain
UK Labour readmits Corbyn ally who said party too apologetic on anti-Semitism
[IsraelTimes] Chris Williamson gets off with warning; British Jewish group calls reinstatement into party dogged by countless anti-Semitic scandals an ’utter disgrace’.

A key ally of Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn who was suspended from the British party for sayings it is "too apologetic" over anti-Semitism has been readmitted.

A party ethics panel warned politician Chris Williamson on Wednesday for saying earlier this year that when it comes to Labour’s anti-Semitism problem, its deniers "have backed off too much, we have given too much ground, we have been too apologetic." Labour suspended Williamson in February pending an ethics review.
"Keep it on the down-low, big mouth"
The remark was another twist in a three-year saga over the proliferation of anti-Semitic hate speech in Labour’s ranks and internal splits on whether to address the problem.

Labour is being investigated by the Equality and Human Rights Commission, a government watchdog, for thousands of cases of anti-Semitic hate speech in its ranks since 2015.

Since his election in 2015 to head Labour, Corbyn has fought allegations that his critical attitude toward Israel and alleged tolerance of anti-Semitism have injected Jew-hatred into the heart of the party.

On Tuesday, The Times of London demonstrated how Twitter accounts advocating for Corbyn shared the same backstory presenting the authors as descended from Holocaust survivors.

In 2009, Corbyn called Hamas, the well-beloved offspring of the Moslem Brotherhood, and Hezbollah his friends and said that Hamas is working to achieve peace and justice. In 2013, he defended an anti-Semitic mural. In 2014, he laid flowers on the graves of Paleostinian murderous Moslems who murdered Israeli athletes in Munich in 1972. The following year he said British "Zionists" don’t understand British irony.
Posted by: trailing wife || 06/27/2019 00:00 || Comments || Link || [0 views] Top|| File under:


Europe
Palestinian murdered German for being 'rich Jew’ who 'destroyed my country'
[Jpost] A Paleostinian man murdered a German real estate investor in November because he was a "rich Jew" who destroyed his country, according to shocking testimony during a Wednesday court appearance in the southern state of Baden-Wurttemberg.

A witness said the 31-year-old Paleostinian man named Iyad B. said the real estate investor and 57-year-old victim Michael Riecher is a " rich Jew" who "annihilated my country," according to a report in the local newspaper Schwarzwälder Bote. The witness said the Paleostinian’s hatred in connection with the apparent reference to Jews destroying his country is related to the motive for murder. It is unclear what Iyad means by "my country."

It is also unclear from the German media reports if Riecher was Jewish although he played a critical role in the renovation of a local sanctuary room of the synagogue, according to a media report. Riecher worked with Syrian refugees with respect to housing placement.

Iyad’s accomplice, the 28-year-old Syrian Mohammed Omran Albakr, allegedly devised the plan to attack and rob Riecher. Albakr eventually moved into Riecher's parent’s house with his wife.

The testimony by the witness, who works as a barber, took place in the court house in the town of in Horb am Neckar. The Schwarzwälder Bote reported that the witness used the alias Hesham A. and said "Iyad did not say anything about plans" to murder Riecher. The witness said that Iyad did not comment on the fact that Riecher could be killed as part of the attack. Riecher was in frail health due to a lung condition. The accused perpetrators strangled the victim.

Iyad’s last name was not listed in German media reports due to privacy protection. Mohammed Omran Albakr was previously listed in media reports because after his arrival to Germany in 2015, Albakr was praised as a model refugee in a 2016 Schwarzwälder Bote article.

Albakr lived on the Syrian side of the Golan Heights. According to Schwarzwälder Bote, he studied mathematics and refused to serve in the Syrian army. As a result, the Syrian regime of president Bashir al-Assad imprisoned him. After he was released from prison, Albakr migrated to The Sick Man of Europe Turkey
...Qatar's colony in Asia Minor...
and eventually to Germany.

The Free Democratic Party MP Michael Theurer said in 2014: "If Michael Riecher had not taken over the financial risk of the property developer, we would not be sitting in a rock-solid renovated sanctuary today."

The murder of Riecher comes amid growing antisemitism in Germany. Michael Blume, the commissioner to combat antisemitism in the state Baden-Wurttemberg, has faced a wave of criticism for drawing an apparent parallel between the Nazi mass murderer Adolf Eichmann and a German Jewish activist who fights the Boycott, Divestment, and Sanctions campaign against Israel.

The Simon Wiesenthal Center urged Blume to resign because of his comparison in March. Henryk M. Broder, Germany’s leading authority on contemporary post-Holocaust antisemitism, wrote that Blume has "no idea about antisemitism." Blume refuses to urge a partially-owned state bank to close its account with the pro-BDS Paleostine Committee Stuttgart. The Bundestag declared BDS antisemitic in May.
Posted by: trailing wife || 06/27/2019 00:00 || Comments || Link || [3 views] Top|| File under: Moslem Colonists

#1  Albakr was praised as a model refugee in a 2016 Schwarzwälder Bote article.


I guess it depends on your point of view.
Posted by: AlanC || 06/27/2019 8:26 Comments || Top||

#2 
Posted by: Dron66046 || 06/27/2019 9:02 Comments || Top||

#3  Merkel isn't Wendy Torrance, she's the Overlook Hotel.
Posted by: Elmerert Hupens2660 || 06/27/2019 12:31 Comments || Top||


Dutch lawmaker appeals conviction for inciting discrimination
[DAWN] Dutch anti-Islam politician Geert Wilders on Tuesday called for either an acquittal or a procedural delay in his appeal against a 2016 conviction for inciting discrimination against Moroccans.

"This trial has every appearance of being politically motivated. Stop the witch hunt!" he told judges at the Hague Appeals Court.

Wilders was convicted over a 2014 incident at a campaign rally when he asked supporters whether they wanted more or fewer Moroccans in the Netherlands. When they chanted "Fewer! Fewer! Fewer!" he replied: "We’re going to take care of that." He was prosecuted after Dutch authorities received dozens of complaints from individuals and Moslem groups.

"I only asked a question that half of the Netherlands would answer with ’Yes’," Wilders told the appeals court.

The judges at his original trial found that Wilders’ remarks were insulting to Dutch Moroccans and that his right to freedom of speech did not outweigh their right to be spared incitement to discrimination. But Wilders was not fined or locked away
Please don't kill me!

Posted by: Fred || 06/27/2019 00:00 || Comments || Link || [2 views] Top|| File under: Moslem Colonists

#1 
Dutch christian schoolgirls ordered by teachers to learn muslim prayer, taught by Imam

Posted by: Dron66046 || 06/27/2019 14:36 Comments || Top||


The Grand Turk
Erdogan says NATO countries shouldn’t sanction each other amid row over S400
[ENGLISH.ALARABIYA.NET] President His Enormity, Sultan Recep Tayyip Erdogan the First
...Turkey's version of Mohammed Morsi but they voted him back in so they deserve him. It's a sin, a shame, and a felony to insult the president of Turkey. In Anatolia did Recep Bey a stately Presidential Palace decree, that has 1100 rooms. That's 968 more than in the White House, 400 more than in Versailles, and 325 more than Buckingham Palace, so you know who's really more important...
on Wednesday said NATO
...the North Atlantic Treaty Organization. It's headquartered in Belgium. That sez it all....
countries should not place sanctions each other as the tensions with Washington mount over Ankara’s deal with Russia to buy S-400 missile defense system.

"Do not forget that The Sick Man of Europe Turkey
...the occupiers of Greek Asia Minor...
is a NATO country. America is a NATO country. I am not aware if NATO countries place sanctions on one another," Erdogan told news hounds at an Ankara airport, before leaving for Japan where he will attend the G20 summit.

Erdogan is due to meet Saturday with US President Donald Trump
...Oh, noze! Not him!...
on the margins of the summit in Osaka. Turkey’s deal with Russia will be one of the issues on the table.

The US has given Turkey a deadline of July 31 to drop the purchase of the S-400 system, or face sanctions and removal from the United States’ F-35 fighter jet program.

Erdogan is hoping to use good relations with Trump in order to defuse tensions when they meet this weekend.

He said Turkey’s relations with Washington was based upon "strategic partnership" and added he did "not get such an impression from Mr. Trump" that sanctions would be placed unless Ankara dropped the Russia deal.

The Ottoman Turkish leader also insisted that the agreement with Moscow was a "done deal" and that the system was "in the process of delivery."

Erdogan this week said his country would take delivery of Russia’s S-400 missile defense system in July.

Posted by: Fred || 06/27/2019 00:00 || Comments || Link || [0 views] Top|| File under: Sublime Porte

#1  I'm inclined to agree, but you haven't been a NATO member for quite a while.
Posted by: Bobby || 06/27/2019 7:20 Comments || Top||

#2  I was inclined to agree until I realized I had read "$400" for "S400". As it is, YipYip, stuff it.
Posted by: Mercutio || 06/27/2019 7:49 Comments || Top||

#3  Ditto Mercutio. Thought someone skipped out on a bar tab.
Posted by: AlanC || 06/27/2019 8:28 Comments || Top||

#4  The whole point of Turkey being in NATO is so we can flank Russia by presenting it with two directions of invasion on the day that we execute Operation Barbarossa Part II: Only We Bring Winter Coats This Time.

Since we're a peace-loving country, we aren't going to be invading anyone, and Turkey can be safely dismissed from NATO, a purely defensive alliance.
Posted by: Herb McCoy || 06/27/2019 12:41 Comments || Top||

#5  Cute comment, Herb - I like the bit about winter coats. However, the purpose of Turkey as a NATO member was and is defensive, that is, to prevent Russian (nee Soviet) expansion into the Med via the Black Sea.
Posted by: Mercutio || 06/27/2019 16:28 Comments || Top||

#6  "In a world where Tom Lehrer's not red,
Where cowboys and commissars wed,
Where 'fascists' and Putin
Are chillin', not shootin'...
One man blandly chants in his stead!"
Posted by: Flirong Poodle1120 || 06/27/2019 19:01 Comments || Top||


New Pentagon chief confronts Turkey on NATO debut
[ENGLISH.ALARABIYA.NET] President Donald Trump
...the Nailer of NAFTA...
’s pick for Pentagon chief plunged straight into business as he made his NATO
...the North Atlantic Treaty Organization. It's headquartered in Belgium. That sez it all....
debut Wednesday, confronting The Sick Man of Europe Turkey
...Qatar's colony in Asia Minor...
over its purchase of Russian air defense missiles.

Mark Esper, nominated as defense secretary last Friday, reiterated Washington’s warning that buying the Russian S-400 missile system would mean it would be booted out of the US F-35 jet fighter program.

Making his first appearance at a meeting of NATO defense ministers, Esper had what a Pentagon front man described as a "frank and transparent" meeting with his Ottoman Turkish counterpart Hulusi Akar.

The US and NATO are alarmed that Turkey may acquire the missiles, which are designed to shoot down planes like the F-35, America’s new generation multi-role stealth fighter that Turkey also wants to buy.

But Turkey has so far rebuffed all efforts to persuade it to drop the deal, and President His Enormity, Sultan Recep Tayyip Erdogan the First
...Turkey's version of Mohammed Morsi but they voted him back in so they deserve him. It's a sin, a shame, and a felony to insult the president of Turkey. In Anatolia did Recep Bey a stately Presidential Palace decree, that has 1100 rooms. That's 968 more than in the White House, 400 more than in Versailles, and 325 more than Buckingham Palace, so you know who's really more important...
insisted on Tuesday that delivery would take place in July.

"The two leaders had a frank and transparent discussion where Secretary Esper reiterated that Turkey’s purchase of the Russian S-400 air and missile defense system is incompatible with the F-35 program and that Turkey will not be permitted to have both systems," Pentagon front man Jonathan Hoffman said.

Erdogan has said he will use his good relations with Trump to defuse tensions when they meet on the sidelines of the G20 summit in Osaka, Japan later this week.

But the US has set a July 31 deadline for Ankara to drop the purchase or face sanctions and expulsion from the F-35 program.

This would mean an end to Turkey’s current plans to buy 100 F-35s and the loss of lucrative contracts to build parts of the jet.

Esper, who is yet to be confirmed in the post by the Senate, is the third man to lead the Pentagon in six months after Jim Mattis and Patrick Shanahan.

Posted by: Fred || 06/27/2019 00:00 || Comments || Link || [0 views] Top|| File under: Sublime Porte

#1  Nato countries shouldn't take land of other NATO countries either... Cyprus....
Posted by: 3dc || 06/27/2019 17:44 Comments || Top||

#2  Don't get me started on the 4th Infantry Division...
Posted by: SteveS || 06/27/2019 17:52 Comments || Top||


'An Ottoman Frigate, A Barbaros Vessel' And Part Of A Great Showdown Like Battles Of Lepanto, Preveza
[MEMRI.ORG] "Turkey's second drillship, Yavuz, departed yesterday for Cypriot waters to join its predecessor, Fatih, in the East Mediterranean. These vessels are each an element of Turkey's national struggle. They are Turkish fleet. They are part of a massive Mediterranean struggle.

"Do not consider them solely as an energy issue. Do not view them as a natural gas or oil issue either. Consider them an Ottoman frigate, a Barbaros vessel, the protection of an empire, the protection of the Republic of Turkey.

"A MILLENNIUM-OLD POLITICAL LEGACY HAS BEEN BROUGHT TO THE PRESENT
Continued on Page 49
Posted by: Fred || 06/27/2019 00:00 || Comments || Link || [1 views] Top|| File under: Sublime Porte

#1  Talk about "IT'S ALL ABOUT ME!"
What a self-centered deranged view of the world!
Posted by: 3dc || 06/27/2019 6:29 Comments || Top||


India-Pakistan
Shooter, three abettors still untraceable in Abidi murder case
[DAWN] An antiterrorism court was informed by the investigating officer that the alleged shooter and his three accomplices are still "untraceable" even six months after the murder of Muttahida Qaumi Movement
...English: United National Movement, generally known as MQM, is the 3rd largest political party and the largest secular political party in Pakistain with particular strength in Sindh. From 1992 to 1999, the MQM was the target of the Pak Army's Operation Cleanup leaving thousands of urdu speaking civilians dead...
-Pakistain leader Ali Raza Abidi.

Former politician Abidi was assassinated by motorcyclists near his residence in Defence Housing Authority on Dec 25, 2018.

The Counter-Terrorism Department had booked and arrested four suspects ‐ Mohammad Farooq, Abdul Haseeb, Mohammad Ghazali and Abu Bakar ‐ in the murder case. Their four alleged accomplices ‐ Bilal, Hasnain, Faizan and Ghulam Mustafa, alias Kali Charan ‐ are absconding in the case. It claimed that the suspects belonged to criminals’ gangs operating in Lyari.

Posted by: Fred || 06/27/2019 00:00 || Comments || Link || [1 views] Top|| File under: Govt of Pakistan


Lal Masjid’s khateeb removed, Maulana Aziz’s entry banned for three months
[DAWN] The capital administration has removed the khateeb of Lal Masjid
...literally the Red Mosque, located in Islamabad and frequented by all sorts of high govt officials. The proprietors, Ghazi Abdul Rasheed and Maulana Abdul Aziz Ghazi, unleashed their Islamic storm troopers on the city, shutting down whorehouses and beating people up who weren't devout enough. The Musharraf govt put an end to the nonsense by besieging the place. Abdul Aziz Ghazi was nabbed while he was trying to escape dressed up like a girl. BBC reported that the corpse count at 173, but other claims, usually hysterical, say there were up to 1000 titzup. Among their number was Abdul Rashid Ghazi. Everyone then said tut-tut and what a nice guy he had been...
and imposed a three-month ban on the entry of former khateeb Maulana Abdul Aziz
...nutball holy man who runs the Lal Masjid in the heart of Pakistain's capital. After instigating a rebellion against the state in 2007, he was caught trying to sneak away dressed in a burka. He rejects democracy as un-Islamic, which it probably is...
in the mosque.

The decision was taken after a meeting between Deputy Commissioner Hamza Shafqaat and Ulema, including Mufti Raees Ayubi from Azad Kashmire and Qazi Nisar from Gilgit-Baltistan.

Former administration of Jamia Hafsa
... the Islamic nunnery maintained by Lal Masjid....
, including Maulana Abdul Aziz’s wife Umme Hassam, along with 80 students came to Lal Masjid after a plot allotted to the seminary was cancelled.

They started living in eight rooms on the premises of the mosque adjacent to the weekly bazaar and commenced educational activities, said officials. The DC requested the Ulema at the meeting held on Monday to play their role in getting the rooms vacated.

The Ulema played the role of mediators between the capital administration and the former administration of the mosque.

It was decided that teachers and students of Jamia Hafsa would continue their educational activities in Lal Masjid for three months. During this period, the capital administration would resolve the issue of the cancellation of a plot allotted to Jamia Hafsa so that they could be shifted there.

When contacted, officers of the capital administration neither confirmed nor denied the development saying so far no notification had been issued.

However,
if you can't be a good example, then you'll just have to be a horrible warning...
an official confirmed to Dawn that the khateeb of the mosque had been transferred on his own request.

After the development, the capital administration and police reopened the Masjid Road which had been closed a few days ago.

Ehtesham Ahmed, a close associate of the former Lal Masjid administration, told Dawn that Khateeb Amir Siddiqui had been suspended by the Auqaf department after Monday’s meeting. Ulema from Kashmire and Gilgit played their role in getting the issue resolved, he added.

"Now 10 Muftis from Lal Masjid’s Darul Ifta will be leading prayers till the appointment of a new khateeb after three months," he said.

During the meeting, he added, it was also agreed that Maulana Aziz would not enter the mosque for three months.

The issue related to the cancellation of the plot allotted to Jamia Hafsa was also discussed, Mr Ahmed said. It was decided that the students and teachers of the madressah would continue their educational activities in Lal Masjid but no more students would be enrolled there.

The capital administration also agreed that it would make efforts to get a plot arranged from the civic agency for the students.

Maulana Aziz remained khateeb of Lal Masjid from 1998 to 2004. He was arrested during the Lal Masjid operation in 2007.

Later, Maulana Abdul Ghaffar was appointed as the khateeb and Amir Siddiqui the naib khateeb on temporary basis.

In 2009, Maulana Ghaffar left the mosque after the release of Maulana Aziz and the latter started leading prayers in Lal Masjid till 2014 when a ban was imposed on him.

Amir Siddiqui then led prayers and three months ago was appointed the mosque’s khateeb.

Posted by: Fred || 06/27/2019 00:00 || Comments || Link || [1 views] Top|| File under: Govt of Pakistan


Border guards’ brawl briefly suspends crossing at Torkham
[DAWN] Cross-border movement at Torkham remained suspended for some time on Tuesday after an exchange of hot words between the border guards of Pakistain and Afghanistan.

Reason behind the verbal brawl could not be known as local officials refused to share details of the incident with media. Traffic, however, was restored after the intervention of bigwigs from both sides.

Meanwhile,
...back at the shootout, bullets whapped! around Butch as he tried to tie his scarf around his shoulder as a tourniquet......
custom clearing of Pak goods to Afghanistan was also delayed for several hours on Tuesday owing to a technical fault in the internet service.

Officials said that they were trying their best to rectify the fault and clear the backlog of vehicles that could not be cleared on time.

A large number of loaded vehicles were seen stranded at the custom terminal, awaiting their custom clearance.

Posted by: Fred || 06/27/2019 00:00 || Comments || Link || [0 views] Top|| File under: Govt of Pakistan


Israel-Palestine-Jordan
Abbas adviser welcomes Oman’s decision to open mission to the Palestinians
[IsraelTimes] Majdi al-Khaldi says Muscat operated diplomatic office in West Bank in 1990s but later closed it; four Arab states currently maintain representation in Ramallah.

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 diplomatic affairs adviser has welcomed Oman’s decision to open a diplomatic mission in Ramallah.

The Omani Foreign Ministry announced in a statement on its Twitter account on Wednesday that Muscat decided to open "a new diplomatic mission in the State of Paleostine at the level of of an embassy."

The statement came on the second day of the US-led conference focused on the Paleostinian economy in the Bahraini capital Manama. The Paleostinians have fiercely opposed the summit, arguing that discussions about statehood should precede those regarding the Paleostinian economy.

"We appreciate and welcome the decision of the Sultanate of Oman to open an office here," Majdi al-Khaldi told The Times of Israel in a phone call.

Four Arab states currently have diplomatic offices in Ramallah: Jordan, Egypt, Tunisia and Morocco.

Jordan and Egypt are the sole two Arab states to maintain formal diplomatic ties and peace treaties with Israel.

Khaldi said that Oman operated a diplomatic office in the West Bank in the 1990s but later closed it.

In its statement, the Omani Foreign Ministry also said the decision to open the diplomatic mission came "in continuation of the Sultanate’s supportive approach to the brotherly Paleostinian people."

It also said that a delegation from the Omani Foreign Ministry would go to Ramallah to carry out the required procedures to open a diplomatic mission.

The Paleostinians operate an embassy in Muscat.

Asked whether Oman coordinated its decision to open a diplomatic office to the Paleostinians with Israel, the Israeli Foreign Ministry said it was not aware of the matter.

Even though Oman does not have formal diplomatic relations with Israel, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu visited Muscat in October 2018 and met Omani Sultan Qaboos bin Said there.

Before Netanyahu’s trip last year, no Israeli premier had been known to visit Oman in more than two decades.
Posted by: trailing wife || 06/27/2019 00:00 || Comments || Link || [0 views] Top|| File under: Palestinian Authority


Netanyahu: Israel used cyber intel. to thwart around 50 ISIS terror attacks around the world
[Jpost] Israel has used its cyber intelligence capabilities to thwart around 50 ISIS terrorist attacks in dozens of countries worldwide, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said at the Cyber Week conference at Tel Aviv University on Wednesday.

While Israel previously disclosed that it had provided the intelligence to thwart an ISIS plot to bomb a United Arab Emirates Etihad Airways flight from Sydney to Abu Dhabi, Netanyahu revealed that the intelligence that broke the case was obtained through cyber tools.

He said that while he could not give specifics, the audience could "multiply by about 50" the Sydney airline terrorist plot, and that would be the number of terrorist plots worldwide (mostly by ISIS) that Israel has helped to prevent thanks to its cyber intelligence powers.

"The plane from Sydney to Abu Dhabi was not going to be hijacked but went kaboom! in midair," he said. "We used our cyber tools to discover that ISIS was going to do this, and so we alerted the Australian police and they stopped it before it could happen.

"This particular incident I can talk about because it was leaked to the media," Netanyahu said. "If you multiply that by 50, it will give you an idea of the contribution that Israel has made to prevent major terrorist operations, especially from ISIS, in dozens of countries. Most of those cases were foiled because of our cybersecurity operations."

The prime minister said that the world is in the midst of a cyber revolution due to new trends in big data, artificial intelligence and connectivity.

He said that Israel is thriving by being at the forefront of applying these areas to industries, from the auto industry to health to agriculture.

Netanyahu said Israel was too small to compete in the car industry in the past, but as cars become mostly computers, it is penetrating the industry.

He credited much of Israel’s punching above its geographic size to the country’s primacy in cyberdefense, which in turn stems from Israel’s unique investment in its Military Intelligence, Mossad and Shin Bet sectors.

Moreover, he said cooperation with the US is unbelievable and better than ever before.

The prime minister and his national security adviser, Meir Ben-Shabbat, also met with US Deputy Secretary of Energy Dan Brouillette to discuss the Iranian threat and cybersecurity cooperation.

Following Netanyahu, Israel National Cyber Directorate chief Yigal Unna introduced a new cybersecurity defense system to detect attempts to deface websites called Trackzilla.

Unna said that the new system is staggeringly successful, reducing the number of effective attacks by OpIsrael in April 2019 to 134, as opposed to 1,145 from OpIsrael in April 2018.

OpIsrael is identified with the international anarchic group Anonymous, and with pro-Paleostinian hacker groups, and seeks to hack Israeli Internet sites with the goal "to disconnect Israel from the cyber world." It has been a recurring annual coordinated series of cyberattacks against Israel in the spring in recent years.
Posted by: trailing wife || 06/27/2019 00:00 || Comments || Link || [1 views] Top|| File under: Islamic State

#1  The best ops are always the ones media don't know about.
Posted by: Dron66046 || 06/27/2019 13:29 Comments || Top||


Syria-Lebanon-Iran
Widespread internet outage reported in Iran
Testing? A useful graph and table at the link for those who understand such things.
[Jpost] A widespread internet outage in Iran
...a theocratic Shiite state divided among the Medes, the Persians, and the (Arab) Elamites. Formerly a fairly civilized nation ruled by a Shah, it became a victim of Islamic revolution in 1979. The nation is today noted for spontaneously taking over other countries' embassies, maintaining whorehouses run by clergymen, involvement in international drug trafficking, and financing sock puppet militias to extend the regime's influence. The word Iran is a cognate form of Aryan, the abbreviation IRGC is a cognate form of Stürmabteilung (or SA), the term Supreme Guide is a cognate form of either Shah or Führer or maybe both, and they hate Jews Zionists Jews. Their economy is based on the production of oil and vitriol...
was reported by NetBlocks on Wednesday night. International connectivity registered as low as 65% of normal levels during the night.

Many of Iran's internet providers were affected by the outage, according to NetBlocks, a non-governmental organization that monitors cybersecurity and internet governance.

The organization reported that data available indicates a purposeful or accidental cut in international connectivity. It was not clear whether the disruption is part of Iran's plans to move to an internal intranet system or whether it was caused by a cyber-attack. The outage may also be a result of sanctions by foreign companies that supply access to Iranian networks.

NetBlocks maps the entire IP address space of individual countries in real times. This shows internet outages corresponding to connectivity disruptions.

"Purposeful internet outages generally have a distinct network pattern," explained NetBlocks on their website. This pattern is used "to determine and attribute the root cause of an outage."

As of around 2 a.m. Israel time, the internet outage showed some signs of recovery with real-time network measurements showing overall accessibility at around 85%.

Iran has been working on an intranet system, known as Iran's national information network (ININ), since 2010, according to Radio Farda.

"All domestic activities, services, applications [and] various types of contents... are included in the national internet," said Communications and Information Technology Minister Mahmoud Vaezi at the inauguration event in 2016, according to the BBC.

Iran already has blocked access to tens of thousands of sites and services including Twitter and Facebook, although many users use virtual private networks (VPNs) and proxy sites to bypass the filter.

The intranet is intended to promote Islamic content and raise digital awareness among the public.

Last February, Iran announced that they were going to conduct an "internet disconnection drill," according to Radio Farda, but the plan was delayed.

"The National Internet Project could pave the way for further isolation, surveillance and information retention," stated a report by the British human rights
...not to be confused with individual rights, mind you...
campaign group Article 19, according to the BBC. "[It] risks severely isolating the Iranian people from the rest of the online world, limiting access to information and constraining attempts at collective action and public protest."
Posted by: trailing wife || 06/27/2019 00:00 || Comments || Link || [1 views] Top|| File under: Govt of Iran

#1  'nationwide internet disconnection drill',

I swear they're the world's biggest liars.
Posted by: Dron66046 || 06/27/2019 6:24 Comments || Top||

#2  Wonder if they have Paki IT support.
Posted by: Skidmark || 06/27/2019 12:21 Comments || Top||

#3  Coming to a urban area near you.
Posted by: Procopius2k || 06/27/2019 18:02 Comments || Top||


Iran's Supreme Leader says US offer for negotiations is a 'deception'
[DAWN] The offer by the United States to negotiate with Iran
...a theocratic Shiite state divided among the Medes, the Persians, and the (Arab) Elamites. Formerly a fairly civilized nation ruled by a Shah, it became a victim of Islamic revolution in 1979. The nation is today noted for spontaneously taking over other countries' embassies, maintaining whorehouses run by clergymen, involvement in international drug trafficking, and financing sock puppet militias to extend the regime's influence. The word Iran is a cognate form of Aryan, the abbreviation IRGC is a cognate form of Stürmabteilung (or SA), the term Supreme Guide is a cognate form of either Shah or Führer or maybe both, and they hate Jews Zionists Jews. Their economy is based on the production of oil and vitriol...
is a deception, Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei said on Wednesday in remarks published on his official website.

US President Donald Trump
...Oh, noze! Not him!...
has said he is willing to hold talks with the Islamic Theocratic Republic.

"Negotiations are a deception for what they want. A weapon is in your hands and they don't dare come close. They say drop the weapon so I can do whatever I want with you. This is negotiation," Khamenei said.

Posted by: Fred || 06/27/2019 00:00 || Comments || Link || [0 views] Top|| File under: Govt of Iran

#1  Rug merchants afraid to bargain with Trump. Amusing.
Posted by: SteveS || 06/27/2019 15:49 Comments || Top||


Terror Networks
'Drug overdoses have reached epidemic proportions in North America': UN issues warning to US as it says world opioid addiction is 50 per cent higher than thought and cocaine use is at record level
They’ve got to make up income lost because of sanctions against Iran (for those narco gangs connected to Hezbollah and the IRGC) and the drop in oil prices (those connected to Al Qaeda and ISIS). But why warn the U.S. when the problem is worldwide?
Posted by: Skidmark || 06/27/2019 00:00 || Comments || Link || [1 views] Top|| File under: Narcos

#1  And do you think Congress cares?

Posted by: Phaick Uneretle6310 || 06/27/2019 0:34 Comments || Top||

#2  turns out that opioids are the opium of the masses
Posted by: lord garth || 06/27/2019 1:21 Comments || Top||

#3  ...while the Student Loan Program is the opioids for the Progs.
Posted by: Procopius2k || 06/27/2019 7:57 Comments || Top||

#4  The final figure is still being determined, the provisional data predict a total of 69,096 drug overdose deaths for a 12-month period ending November 2018, compared with the predicted 72,287 for the 12-month period ending November 2017

Maybe prevention efforts are beginning to pay off.
Posted by: JohnQC || 06/27/2019 15:12 Comments || Top||



Who's in the News
28[untagged]
5Taliban
5Govt of Pakistan
4Sublime Porte
3Commies
2Islamic State
2Arab Spring
2Govt of Iran
2Moslem Colonists
1Thai Insurgency
1Govt of Sudan
1Govt of Syria
1Hamas
1Houthis
1Narcos
1Palestinian Authority

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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.
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Two weeks of WOT
Thu 2019-06-27
  Suicide bomber in Tunisia kills at least one, state TV reports
Wed 2019-06-26
  Saudi Special Forces capture emir of ISIS in Yemen
Tue 2019-06-25
  Ethiopia security forces kill alleged coup leader
Mon 2019-06-24
  Trump calls on China, and the world, to protect their own ships from Iran
Sun 2019-06-23
  Army chief shot dead in coup attempt in Ethiopia
Sat 2019-06-22
  Libyan army forces enter Tripoli Airport, seize major positions from Haftar's forces
Fri 2019-06-21
  Niger Says 18 IS Fighters Killed in Joint Operation with U.S.
Thu 2019-06-20
  Presidential Motorcade: Individual taken into custody by Secret Service Uniformed Division Officers
Wed 2019-06-19
  Spain busts gang that helped finance al-Qaeda in Syria
Tue 2019-06-18
  Iran says it dismantled a U.S. cyber espionage network
Mon 2019-06-17
  Mohammed Morsi titzup
Sun 2019-06-16
  Maldives seek foreign help to deal with IS fighters
Sat 2019-06-15
  Iranian boat fired missile at US drone prior to tanker attack, US official says
Fri 2019-06-14
  Tanker Front Altair is on fire according to Bloomberg
Thu 2019-06-13
  Middle East on alert as two oil tankers are hit by explosions and one 'sinks' in suspected 'torpedo attack' in Gulf of Oman

Better than the average link...



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