Afghanistan demanded on Sunday that Pakistan make clear its position on an irresponsible statement by the NWFP governor that Afghan people support Taliban insurgents. The Afghan foreign ministry said the comment last week by NWFP Governor Al Jan Orakzai was a direct and flagrant interference in the internal affairs of Afghanistan.
Such expressions are further examples of continuing direct and indirect attempts by certain circles within the Pakistani intelligence and political establishment to prevent emergence of an independent, peaceful and democratic Afghanistan in the region, a FO statement said. The ministry cited Orakzai as saying Afghans, particularly Pashtuns who live in an area straddling the border, back the Taliban, which it called a terrorist group. He also said, the Taliban are gaining public support and that Pashtuns are using terrorist attacks as tools to gain more political representation in Afghanistan, the statement said. Aurakzai told reporters on Saturday he believed the roots of the insurgency are in Afghanistan. There are maybe five percent, 10 percent, okay 20 percent (of the Taliban) from this side but 8O percent of them are in Afghanistan, he said, adding the insurgency was turning into a liberation war.
The ministry accused Aurakzai of characterising terrorism as a liberal movement and showing his opposition to UN Security Council resolutions on rooting it out, and cited his contemplative and practical ties with it. In accordance with international norms and laws, the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan calls upon the Islamic Republic of Pakistan to clarify its official position on these irresponsible and intrusive statements, it said.
Posted by: Fred ||
02/19/2007 00:00 ||
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BUJUMBURA - Burundi will send some 1,700 troops to Somalia as part of an African Union peacekeeping mission to stabilise the chaotic Horn of Africa nation, the army said on Sunday, adding that an advance team would leave in days. Burundi will supply 1,700 troops and the first elements are expected to leave next week, said army spokesman Colonel Adolphe Manirakiza, adding that 80 extra army officers would also be sent.
It is a response to the African Union request which asked African countries to supply troops to help Somalia find peace.
Burundi had its own problems a while back and needed an AU intervention. Nice to see them stepping up to repay an old debt.
Posted by: Steve White ||
02/19/2007 00:00 ||
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#1
Well, since the Ugandans made it very clear that they were going into Somalia, and willing kick ass, others in the AU are now talking about stepping up to the plate with troops. The Ugandans will kill someone if they feel it is necessary, and will kill a lot of someones if they feel that is necessary. They are no shrinking violets, and after their experiences with LRA and its support from the Sudan, they have no love lost for Arabs, Muslims, or both of the above.
#2
Burundi soldiers are Tutsis and Tutsis kick ass. They have litlle in common with the drug-crazed rabble of west Africa.
BTW Arab slave-trader expeditions who tried to foray into Tutsi-ruled pre-colonial Rwanda came back empty handed and with far fewer men than they had at departure. Or didn't came back at all.
The family of Al-Azhar student Abdul Kareem Nabeel Suleiman, accused of contempt of religion, has disowned him before his court verdict session on the upcoming Thursday. His father, a retired mathematics teacher, has demanded applying the Sharia [Islamic law] ruling on him by giving him three days to repent, followed by having him killed if he does not announce his repentance.
The father of the Al-Azhar student, who is accused of contempt of the Islamic religion, harming the reputation of Egypt, and inciting to disrupt the peace and to overthrow the regime, has decided to rescind from boycotting his trial hearing sessions. [He has decided] to attend the court verdict session with his four brothers, who completely memorized the Holy Quran, to announce disowning the accused Abdul Kareem inside the court room, in order to reduce the embarrassment and pressure that civil rights organizations are applying on the court panel.
The father of the accused also described the organizations that are working on having his son acquitted as monkey rights organizations, in his own words. He also described his son as the monkey who has imitated the atheists of the West in their intellectual thinking.
The family also said that they will announce their disownment of their son on the Internet as well.
The Dean of Sharia in Al-Azhar University, which the student Abdul Kareem attends, had him attend a disciplinary hearing after he attacked the Islamic religion on the Internet, and spoke against the Messenger of Allah peace and blessings be upon him and the companions [of the prophet of Islam].
#4
Egypt blocking links to this story? Eureferendum has more. $2 billion a year buys a lot of filtering hardware. Kareem is also a blogger and the Sandmonkey post about him is also down.
Posted by: ed ||
02/19/2007 14:44 Comments ||
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Hundreds of Kenyan Muslims marched in Mombasa today demanding the release of Muslims they say are being held unfairly, and vowed to disrupt a world cross country championship if they were not freed. Ahmed Farid, a leader of Kenya's Muslim community, said that the government has until March 23 to free 23 Muslims he said were being detained at police stations across the east African country, some of them because of a conflict in neighboring Somalia. He said some had not even been charged.
Kenya's Muslims have long complained of being marginalised by authorities, and feel they have been unfairly targeted, particularly since 1998 and 2002 attacks blamed on al Qaeda-linked militants.
"We are protesting against the arrest and torture of our Muslim brothers in connection with terrorism," Farid told some 1,500 demonstrators in the city of Mombasa. "Failure to which, we will hold another major demonstration to disrupt the IAAF championships," he said at the peaceful demonstration, which brought businesses to a halt and caused huge traffic jams.
Rights groups and Muslim leaders say authorities had detained and illegally deported some Kenyan-Somalis suspected of being allies of Islamists, who had ruled much of southern Somalia before being ousted by Ethiopian-backed government forces in December.
In January, Kenya sent about 30 prisoners shackled hand-and-foot on a plane to Somalia after they were arrested near its border with the chaotic Horn of Africa nation. "We want those being held in Somalia to be brought back into the country immediately, those in police custody in Kenya to be released without any further delay," Farid said.
#3
We had a bishop from Kenya visit our church yesterday speaking to small groups and selling handmade items with the proceeds going to missionaries in Kenya. Some of the items such as handcarved wooden giraffs and zebras were very well done and quite inexpensive compared to what you might find in an import store. I opened my wallet. I figure the more Christians in Kenya, the fewer muslims.
A Muslim man, who outraged many in the UK last year by dressing as a suicide bomber during protests against the Danish publication of cartoons of the prophet Muhammed, has been hired to clean trains at night something that has other employees concerned for their safety.
Omar Khayam's picture taken outside the Danish embassy in London, complete with fake suicide belt was seen around the world in February 2006, only half a year after the July 7, 2005, train bombings in London that killed more than 50 people.
He was on parole at the time of the protests and, though he later apologized for his "insensitive" bit of street theater, authorities determined his actions were a violation of parole.
The attention Khayam drew to himself resulted in a return to prison for a 2002 drug conviction. He was on parole at the time of the protests and, though he later apologized for his "insensitive" bit of street theater, authorities determined his actions were a violation of parole.
Freed early, Khayam has been employed by First Capital Connect in Cambridge, cleaning trains at night. A spokesman for First Group, the parent company, indicated there was no cause for concern. "We are subject to UK employment law and carry out all necessary employment checks. The safety of customers and employees is our main priority," he told the Cambridge Evening News.
#1
A spokesman for First Group, the parent company, indicated there was no cause for concern. "We are subject to UK employment law and carry out all necessary employment checks. The safety of customers and employees is our main priority," he told the Cambridge Evening News.
he'll be gone as soon as the cameras leave. Idiots. Quite thorough on those background checks, huh?
Posted by: Frank G ||
02/19/2007 11:11 Comments ||
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#2
give him a real suicide belt , an old quarry and an old defunct railway carriage and let him practice .
North Korean leader Kim Jong-il has ordered most Japanese cars in the communist country seized in a sign of his growing discontent with Japan imposing severe sanctions after the North's detonation of a nuclear bomb last October, the Yonhap News Agency reported Monday quoting informed sources. ``After he paid tribute to the Kumsusan Memorial Palace on Jan. 1, he saw a Japanese car that wasn't working blocking the road and gave a National Defense Committee edict to seize Japanese cars," Yonhap quoted a source familiar with the North Korean situation as saying, asking to remain anonymous.
In North Korea, senior government officials have German-made Mercedes-Benzes, while midlevel officials and Japanese North Koreans drive Japanese cars. Most North Korean institutions also operate Japanese cars for official purposes. Under Kim's order, all Japanese cars are to be seized or banned from the streets, except for ones given as gifts to secret service agencies, prestigious movie stars and athletes, Yonhap reported quoting the sources.
"Since the measures took effect, the discontent of car owners in Pyongyang has been growing. It remains to be seen whether the authorities will be able to implement them fully, because most of the cars operating in North Korea are Japanese," another source was quoted as saying.
According to the report, Kim's sudden order might be connected with Japan's push for sanctions against North Korea since the country staged its first-ever nuclear weapon test in October. Japan's sanctions included banning the Mangyongbong-92, a North Korean ferry that served as a major trade conduit between the two countries, from entering Japanese waters.
It has also adopted a series of measures against a pro-North Korean residents' association in response to its suspected role in North Korea's nuclear and other weapons programs. The General Association of Korean Residents in Japan, better known as Chongryon, the group's official Korean name, acts as North Korea's de facto representation in Japan, which does not have formal diplomatic relations with the communist country.
Posted by: Mike Kozlowski ||
02/19/2007 10:26 Comments ||
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#2
hey, Hugo, most of the cars in AloPresidenteland are American-made.....
Posted by: Frank G ||
02/19/2007 11:14 Comments ||
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Idiot, All he's doing is pissing off those wealthy enough to own a car, Bad,Bad, JuJu.
Posted by: Redneck Jim ||
02/19/2007 11:27 Comments ||
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"Dude, Where's My Car?" If Kimmie was trying to provoke an uprising, this ought to do it.
Ya can freeze me and make me eat bark and grass, man, but do not mess wid me ride.
#6
Since there is no gas to run them, how does this work?
Posted by: john ||
02/19/2007 15:29 Comments ||
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Much ado about nothing. There are damn few people who have cars and ALL of them are the political elits. If Kimmie says "turn over you car" you turn over your car and PRAY he doesn't throw you in a gulag for some made up charge for having a Japanese car.
U.S. Vice President Dick Cheney arrives in Tokyo on Tuesday for talks with the emperor, the prime minister and even U.S. troops aboard the aircraft carrier Kitty Hawk. One person not on his list, however, is Japan's outspoken defense minister, who called the U.S. invasion of Iraq "a mistake."
Cheney's brief visit he arrives late Tuesday and departs early Thursday is intended as a pat on the back for Japan, which has been one of Washington's most valuable allies in its global war on terror, sending troops to Iraq and deploying logistical help for the U.S. and coalition forces in Afghanistan.
It will be a busy stay. Cheney is scheduled to meet with Emperor Akihito and Empress Michiko, dine with Prime Minister Shinzo Abe and talk with Foreign Minister Taro Aso.
Not on the list is Defense Minister Fumio Kyuma, who recently said the U.S. decision to invade Iraq was based on dubious assumptions that Saddam Hussein possessed weapons of mass destruction and was thus "a mistake."
The comment generated a flurry of retractions and clarifications from Japan's government, which has been a staunch supporter of Washington's war in Iraq and even sent hundreds of non-combat troops to the country to provide humanitarian assistance, such as rebuilding roads and schools and supplying fresh water to an area in Iraq's south.
Kyuma later backtracked, claiming that his remark was misinterpreted but standing by his belief that Washington should have been more cautious. Officials said he was not being deliberately snubbed by Cheney.
"This visit will be a very short one with a tight schedule," chief Cabinet spokesman Yasuhisa Shiozaki said Monday. "I don't think the meeting was canceled, it was originally not possible within the tight schedule."
Security issues, however, are likely to dominate Cheney's talks here. Japan and the United States are seeking to maintain a closely coordinated stance on North Korea, which recently agreed in multilateral talks to allow inspections and shut down a nuclear reactor in exchange for energy aid and other incentives. The talks involving Japan, the U.S., Russia, China and the two Koreas are aimed at getting the North to abandon its nuclear weapons program altogether.
Japan will also be pitching its plea for pressure on the North to provide more information on the fate of more than a dozen Japanese who were abducted in the 1970s and '80s. Japan believes some may still be alive, and that more may have been kidnapped by the North than the 12 or so it has admitted taking.
Cheney and Japanese leaders are also expected to discuss a wide-ranging realignment of U.S. troops in Japan. About 50,000 troops are stationed throughout the country under a mutual security pact that dates back to the 1960s, but Tokyo and Washington have been reworking that alliance to make the presence more effective and "interoperative," meaning that the two forces are likely to work closer together in the years to come, with Japan taking on a more significant role in its own defense and in international peacekeeping operations.
Cheney is also scheduled to visit Australia and the tiny U.S. island of Guam.
#1
Cheney is also scheduled to visit Australia and the tiny U.S. island of Guam.
Here you go, Joe - a chance to meet VP Cheney! Go for it. Tell HIM what you think.
Posted by: Old Patriot ||
02/19/2007 14:07 Comments ||
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Any place that can hold our JosephMendiola is bigger than it looks. But JosephM dear, we'd very much like a report after your dinner with the Vice President - of those bits you can tell, anyway. (After all, True German Ally mentioned Rantburg to then-Secretary of Defense Rumsfeld when they crossed paths in Germany, and I'm sure JosephM's connections are at least as good).
#3
Not just Vice President Cheney, apparently. link US to stage world's largest anti-terrorism exercise on Guam
Exercise TopOff4 is part of a series of large-scale manoeuvres established to strengthen the United States’ ability to respond to terrorist attacks involving weapons of mass destruction. US Coast Guard commander in Guam, William Marhoffer, said the TopOff4 exercise would be bigger than last year's Valiant Shield war games, in which the US mobilised 30 ships, 280 aircraft and 22,000 military personnel.
"It will be bigger in some ways. Valiant Shield was a military exercise. It was a show of force. It was the first time we had three carrier strike groups in combined operations in the Pacific since the Vietnam War. Top Officials (TopOff4) is a domestic counter-terrorism exercise ... it involves the intelligence communities, the Department of Homeland Security, the FBI, the Department of Defense, the US Coast Guard."
Guam is home to one of the largest US military naval bases in the region and 8,000 marines will soon be relocated there from Japan. The island, with a population of 170,000, is banking on the US military buildup to bail it out of its economic woes. The US and Japan are spending 15 billion dollars on the relocation of the marines from Japan, which is expected to further boost Washington's military strength in the Asia-Pacific.
Posted by: Deacon Blues ||
02/19/2007 18:55 Comments ||
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#6
I'm sure JosephM would never break opsec or a confidence, but he occasionally has mentioned interesting (and to me, comforting) tidbits in the past.
By ROD McGUIRK Associated Press Imaginary Friend Writer
CANBERRA, Australia (AP) -- Australia's foreign minister says that the U.S. defense secretary has assured him that an Australian held at Guantanamo Bay would be able to serve his sentence in Australia if he is charged and convicted, and he could return before the end of the year. David Hicks, a former kangaroo skinner who converted to Islam and is accused of fighting for the Taliban, has been held at Guantanamo for five years without being charged, and his attorneys and family say he may have developed mental illness during his extended incarceration.
He was captured in Afghanistan by the Northern Alliance during the U.S.-led invasion in December 2001.
Just a confused, pious young kangaroo skinner wandering the hills and valleys of Afghanistan looking for enlightenment. With mullahs. And a rifle.
A U.S. prosecutor said last week that Hicks is likely to be formally charged with terrorism offenses within two weeks and a military commission would be established to try him within four months. "What we are trying to do is ensure that the trial takes place as quickly as possible, so assuming that the trial goes ahead on schedule, then whether he's _ whether David Hicks is convicted or he's acquitted, and we obviously make no judgment about that _ but he should be able to come home to Australia before the end of the year," Foreign Minister Alexander Downer told Australia's Nine Network television Sunday.
David Hicks' father, however, said he was unconvinced by the assurances from Downer. "I think they just want to sound like they're looking out for David's interests to get them past the next election," Terry Hicks said.
Prime Minister John Howard told Nine Network on Monday that he would ask Vice President Dick Cheney about the Hicks case when Cheney visits Australia this week. "I will be pressing the vice president as strongly as the circumstances allow for the trial to take place without any further delay," Howard said. "It's taken too long."
We agree. Try him, convict him, jug him for thirty years, and promise the Aussies they can have him back the day he completes his sentence.
The Australian government announced last May that it had signed an agreement with the United States that would allow Hicks to apply for a transfer to an Australian prison if he were convicted at the U.S. naval base on Cuba of terrorism offenses. Such a transfer would need the approval of both the Australian and United States governments and Hicks would have to serve the full duration of the sentence handed down by a U.S. military commission.
Terry Hicks said he doubted whether either of the two governments would risk sending his 31-year-old son back to Australia where the top legal body, the Law Council of Australia, has condemned the military commission system as unfair and could potentially take up legal challenges to the case.
Hicks is looming as an electoral liability for Howard's center-right government, which hopes to win its fifth three-year term at elections due late this year. Members of his government complain that voters are angry about the time Hicks has spent at Guantanamo without being convicted of any crime.
#3
So try him as an unlawful combattant, find him guilty (I don't think there's much doubt), and execute him. Solves the entire problem. Bury him in Cuba, just for the he$$ of it. There are several small islands that are part of Guantanamo. Bury him on one of them, and burn the records. Let his idiot father wail and gnash his teeth all he wants. Sounds like "daddy" may be as big a risk as "sonny-boy".
Posted by: Old Patriot ||
02/19/2007 14:17 Comments ||
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John Howard says Australia could send more instructors to Iraq in a bid to lift the skills and performance of the nation's military forces.
Speaking ahead of the five-day visit of US vice-president Dick Cheney, starting on Thursday, the Prime Minister said he believed Australia's current troop level in Iraq was appropriate. He did not expect Mr Cheney to request more Australian troops.
"I wouldn't at the margin rule out some additional trainers because trainers are very important in helping get the Iraqi army ready to do the job we all want it to be able to do, and that is to look after the country's security," he told the Nine Network. However, he said he could never categorically rule out sending more combat forces to respond to some sudden dramatic change of circumstances.
Australia currently has some 1,450 personnel in the Middle East, including about 900 inside Iraq. The largest unit is the battle group of 520 troops providing security backup for the Iraqi government in two provinces in southern Iraq. About 30 Australian instructors contribute to training of Iraqi army at the Iraqi basic training centre near Tallil.
Australia has some 550 personnel in southern Afghanistan, most with the engineering task group engaged in reconstruction. However, the government has left open the prospect of despatching a special forces task group to assist in countering the anticipated Taliban offensive in the northern spring.
US officials have flagged that Mr Cheney will canvass what more Australia may be able to do to enhance its commitments in Iraq and Afghanistan. Mr Howard would not rule out sending extra combat troops to Afghanistan. "We will keep our own force commitment in Afghanistan under review," he said.
"On Afghanistan we continue to review our force level there. The situation in Afghanistan is not easy. We would like to see a greater commitment in the southern part of the country from a number of the non-NATO countries."
Mr Howard again reiterated his view that it would be a disaster if America and its allies pulled out of Iraq early. "I do not want to see a precipitate coalition withdrawal because that would plunge the country into much greater bloodshed," he said.
"It would embolden the terrorists, it would be an enormous humiliation for the United States and it would damage Australia's security interests, particularly against terrorists in this part of the world."
SAN SEBASTIAN, Spain -- Call it prophetic or defeatist or just plain cynical. But when the Basque separatist group known as ETA shattered its so-called "permanent cease-fire" in December with a massive bombing at Madrid's airport that killed two people, former ETA leader and convicted killer Eduardo Uriarte was not surprised.
What had stunned him, he said, was that nine months earlier, Socialist Prime Minister José Luis Rodríguez Zapatero had bothered to reach out to ETA, which seemed close to final defeat after a nearly 40-year campaign of terror and assassinations that has left more than 800 people dead. "ETA had almost disappeared, and the decision to have a dialogue with them brought ETA back to life," said Uriarte, 61, who spent eight years in prison for his part in the first ETA killing, in 1968. He was released in a general amnesty in 1977 and is now a peace activist.
"A government cannot give a terrorist group credibility and dignity like the Spanish government did," Uriarte said. "ETA is not looking for negotiation. They're looking for victory."
The ETA is a group of killers. I suspect they don't even really know what victory is, and wouldn't know what to do with it if Zappie capitulated and gave them everything. For them the life is planting bombs and killing people. It's what they do.
The Dec. 30 bombing at Madrid's Barajas airport, which leveled a five-story parking lot and killed two Ecuadoran immigrants, may not have surprised Uriarte, but it shocked Zapatero's government and many Spaniards who had dared to hope that peace talks with ETA, formally known as Basque Homeland and Liberty, would finally settle one of Europe's last and longest violent campaigns for independence.
It shocked Zappie because, in socialist mantra, when you make a concession the other side is supposed to do the same. That's 'negotiation' with terrorists. It assumes that terrorists want what you want -- peace. But if they don't, this is what happens, and you end up 'shocked'.
#2
"A government cannot give a terrorist group credibility and dignity like the Spanish government did," Uriarte said. "ETA is not looking for negotiation. They're looking for victory."
This quote from a former terrorist leader and convicted killer should be branded across the forehead of everyone of the LLL Democrats and the rest of their appeasing ilk.
BTW has anyone figured out how ETA is Bush's fault?
#3
BTW has anyone figured out how ETA is Bush's fault?
Posted by: AlanC 2007-02-19 11:28
No, it's Richard Nixon's fault - when he was Vice-President. Bush was just a toddler then. Either way, the dummycritters will blame it on a repuglycon.
Posted by: Old Patriot ||
02/19/2007 14:42 Comments ||
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Leading U.S. Democrats vowed on Sunday to seek a revision in President George W. Bush's 2002 authorization to wage war in Iraq, as a way to raise pressure for a change in strategy. Undeterred by Senate Republicans who blocked a resolution opposing Bush's troop buildup in Iraq, Democrats in control of Congress pledged to challenge Bush anew by seeking a mandate that the mission of U.S. troops does not include interceding in a civil war. "We'll be looking at modification of that (war) authorization in order to limit the mission of American troops to a support mission instead of a combat mission," Senate Armed Services Committee Chairman Carl Levin, a Michigan Democrat told "Fox News Sunday."
Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, a Nevada Democrat, called the Iraq war "the worst foreign policy mistake in the history of this country."
With the safety of U.S. troops already in Iraq at stake, Levin said there was little appetite in Congress to end funding for the unpopular war. The war, fueled by an unrelenting insurgency and sectarian violence, already dominates the 2008 White House race. Senate Foreign Relations Committee Chairman Joseph Biden said Congress should "repeal and restate" Bush's war authority and make clear that the U.S. mission in Iraq is to protect against al Qaeda gaining territory and to train Iraqi forces. Biden, a Delaware Democrat and presidential hopeful, spoke on CBS television's "Face the Nation."
Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, a Nevada Democrat, called the Iraq war "the worst foreign policy mistake in the history of this country." "We find ourselves in a very deep hole. We need to find a way to dig out of it," Reid told CNN's "Late Edition."
Last week the House of Representatives passed a nonbinding resolution against Bush's plans to send an additional 21,500 troops to Iraq to enhance security in Baghdad and Anbar province. But Bush's fellow Republicans in the Senate used procedural tactics to block the measure on Saturday. In October 2002, Congress authorized Bush to take military action in Iraq primarily because of what the administration charged was a threat of weapons of mass destruction. No such weapons were found after the March 2003 invasion, but the administration said U.S. troops would remain to help Iraq become a democracy.
This article starring:
Carl Levin
Harry Reid
Joseph Biden
Posted by: Fred ||
02/19/2007 00:00 ||
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#1
FOX/RIGHTNATION.com > Col. David Hunt > WE CAN'T OR WE NO LONGER HAVE THE WILL TO FIGHT article; plus RIGHTNATION > MARK STEYN > Why the Iraq war may end in US defeat, aka MURTHA.
#6
Congress really needs to read the Constitution once in a while. It'll keep them from being so stupid. "The Congress of the United States... shall make no ex post facto laws", which is exactly what rewording the 2002 act would be. We either need to educate some congresscritters, or exclude them from ever holding office again. Stupidity should NOT be rewarded.
Posted by: Old Patriot ||
02/19/2007 16:12 Comments ||
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#7
OP, could you post the specific section and article you're citing for the ex post facto statement? I can't seem to find it all of a sudden (stupid law library search engines).
However, some other interesting tidbits that Congress ought to know (and most of 'em probably don't),
Section 6
Clause 1:
The Senators and Representatives shall...in all Cases, except Treason, Felony and Breach of the Peace, be privileged from Arrest during their Attendance at the Session of their respective Houses, and in going to and returning from the same; and for any Speech or Debate in either House, they shall not be questioned in any other Place.
Section 9
Clause 2:
The Privilege of the Writ of Habeas Corpus shall not be suspended, unless when in Cases of Rebellion or Invasion the public Safety may require it.
Those in Congress who think they are immune from arrest for their treason had better think twice about that.
Democratic presidential candidate John Edwards criticized the Bush administration on Sunday for failing to engage directly with Iran to resolve problems with the Iraq war and Iran's effort to develop nuclear weapons. "It's a huge strategic mistake not to be dealing directly with Iran," Edwards told the Associated Press in an interview before a campaign event in Dubuque. "What we should be doing with Iran, both on the Iraq issue and the nuclear issue, is being much smarter than we're being now. We have tools available to us to engage them."
America's relationship with Iran emerged as a hot topic last week amid reports the Iranian government was shipping armor-piercing weapons to militias in Iraq. Some intelligence reports suggested the shipments were being authorized by top Iranian officials. President Bush acknowledged Iran was providing hostile weapons to Shiite groups, but stopped short of blaming top Iranian leaders.
Edwards said Bush's reluctance to open diplomatic lines with Iran and Syria was costing the United States in its efforts to stabilize Iraq. The former North Carolina senator said the U.S. and its European allies have the leverage and resources to enlist Iran's cooperation. "The way for America to engage them on this issue is to use the economic tools available ... to make it clear if they are willing to give up their nuclear weapons we are willing to make nuclear fuel available to them," he told the AP.
Posted by: Fred ||
02/19/2007 00:00 ||
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#1
Hey John! Maybe we should open an embassy in Iran! What do you think?
Don't try this at home folks -- John is a professional grade dipshit!
The U.S. Navy has found a way to lower the attrition rate (75 percent) of candidates for SEAL training. Having decided to expand the SEAL force, and not getting enough new candidates, the navy established a "prep school" for recruits wanting to become SEALs. Noting that the major cause of failure is the inability of the candidates to handle the heavy physical demands of the training, the navy decided to help wannabe SEALs cope.
The navy hired former SEALs, who are stationed around the country to show potential recruits how to prepare for the physical screening tests they have to pass to get into SEAL school, and what level of conditioning is required to complete the course. So far (about a year on), sixty percent more of the SEAL candidates complete their training (the failure rate goes from 75 to 60 percent). The navy is recruiting civilians who are athletic and want to be SEALs, and the addition of the physical conditioning coaches has made SEAL school less intimidating.
The former SEALs also play a role in abolishing a lot of the myths about SEAL training. Yes, it's tough, but there's a lot of urban legends out there making it seem impossibly tough. The navy knows it has lost a lot of potential SEALs because of all the wild stories. The former SEALs, serving with the recruiters, get potential SEAL recruits into the right physical, and mental, shape to get into, and pass, SEAL school. I think it is a great idea to give a pre-course conditioning course for SEAL trainees. With three months of otherwise low-stress physical conditioning, they would really boost their success rate. They could then focus entirely on the rest of the course when they arrived.
Traumatized US soldiers are being treated for post-war psychological disorders by going out on patrol in a computer-generated "virtual Iraq," experts told a conference. Skip Rizzo, a psychologist at the University of Southern California, has helped create a program that simulates life in the war zone for Iraq veterans suffering from conditions such as post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD).
The ground-breaking treatment allows soldiers to experience the sights, sounds and even the smells of a war-zone, courtesy of wrap-around goggles linked to a startlingly realistic virtual world.
The idea is to re-introduce veterans to the experiences that have inflicted mental scars until gradually they are no longer haunted by the memories, a long-established therapeutic technique known as "exposure therapy."
Continued on Page 49
Posted by: Steve White ||
02/19/2007 00:00 ||
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#1
experience the sights, sounds and even the smells of a war-zone, courtesy of wrap-around goggles linked to a startlingly realistic virtual world.
Does it permit them to experience the loss of their mates in the vaporized HUMVEE directly to their front, and have to speed away without returning fire...attempting to reach the "Sheriff's Net" for reporting and instructions? What about the MANPAD threat that... isn't, but the helos keep dropping form the skies. Does it relate to that? Does it enable them to relate to fellow soldiers on trial or imprisoned for losing it, and blowing away one of these indigenous collaborator muzrat bastards? Does it allow them to experience a diplomatically borne, kinder-gentler ROE where tank main guns and 50 cals are seldom permitted to be used? Does it relate to General Pace and his donkish comments about a faultless Iran? Does it enable them to repond to leftest, communist politicians back home who say "they support the troops" but in truth, don't give a damn. I think I've just had a "smell" of 'virtual Iraq.'
#3
Know a guy back from his 2nd tour in Iraq. Special assignment both times. For reasons of mission, he was sent back to his original duty station w/o any transition after the 2nd one, which was pretty bloody. Totalled his car one day by blasting through an intersection when he saw a white Toyota coming up towards him on a side street, just like the insurgents favored.
Luckily he survived and he managed to miss the van with a mother and kids who had the right of way.
Army's looking for ways to help guys and gals transition better than he did. Lots of the kids are pretty comfortable w/ electronic games, so it's one tool to use.
#4
Great idea, but I am not sure if you ever get over "it"...deal with it yes. I had a terp who had 27 direct IED hits and I wonder if it is going to catch up to him one day and it all come storming back.
#5
hmmm, I'm no expert, nor do I play one on TV, but "reliving" the Iraqi experience doesn't sound like therapy...but what do I know. This sounds like a grant-fad. I'd be more than willing to listen if I heard some successfully treated GI's proclaiming it a success, rather than Skip Rizzo, USC psychologist
Posted by: Frank G ||
02/19/2007 20:21 Comments ||
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#6
It's a technique that's been used for a long time to desensitize people with phobias, Frank. Coupled with anti-anxiety medication and biofeedback and suchlike therapies, it works pretty well for many people. PTSD is considered one of the sheaf of anxiety disorders, along with obsessive-compulsive disorder and panic attacks, that apparently one in eight of the general population experience at some point in their lives. I imagine that the incidence of any anxiety disorders is lower in our modern military, simply because there is so much weeding out in the early steps of the process.
#7
The ground-breaking treatment allows soldiers to experience the sights, sounds and even the smells of a war-zone, courtesy of wrap-around goggles linked to a startlingly realistic virtual world.
Sounds like a good prep for those about to be sent to Iraq.
WASHINGTON, Feb. 18 Senior leaders of Al Qaeda operating from Pakistan have re-established significant control over their once-battered worldwide terror network and over the past year have set up a band of training camps in the tribal regions near the Afghan border, according to American intelligence and counterterrorism officials.
This has been clear since the day Perv and his government pulled the Pak army out of Wazoo and the Northwest Frontier. The NYT is just getting around to noticing.
American officials said there was mounting evidence that Osama bin Laden and his deputy, Ayman al-Zawahri, had been steadily building an operations hub in the mountainous Pakistani tribal area of North Waziristan. Until recently, the Bush administration had described Mr. bin Laden and Mr. Zawahri as detached from their followers and cut off from operational control of Al Qaeda.
The United States has also identified several new Qaeda compounds in North Waziristan, including one that officials said might be training operatives for strikes against targets beyond Afghanistan.
American analysts said recent intelligence showed that the compounds functioned under a loose command structure and were operated by groups of Arab, Pakistani and Afghan militants allied with Al Qaeda. They receive guidance from their commanders and Mr. Zawahri, the analysts said. Mr. bin Laden, who has long played less of an operational role, appears to have little direct involvement.
#2
WAFF.com > Pakis are allegedly helping SAUDI ARABIA wid the Saudi nuclear option, i.e. Saudis want nuke weapons. Annual pilgramage to Mecca > PC disguise for Paki scientists to enter SA???
#3
absolutely no proof that these anonymous officials actually exist, and given yeterday's factual lies on the "debate", I'd say the entire article is a spin fabrication based on the widely known existence of the AQ in Pakland, all else is subject to salt
Posted by: Frank G ||
02/19/2007 6:56 Comments ||
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General Headquarters has asked the Council of Islamic Ideology to issue a decree, or fatwa, stating whether a soldier killed in Pakistan while fighting terrorists or pre-empting sectarianism is a martyr. GHQ sent a list of eight questions to the council about the various circumstances in which a soldier who dies on duty can be considered a martyr. The council responded to GHQ that it was not within its ambit to issue decrees, but it was forwarding the questions to muftis. The replies of the muftis were sent back to GHQ, but not published in the CIIs report. GHQ asked the CIIs opinion on the status of soldiers killed in accidents during military exercises or on the way to war zones, or who die of mountain sickness on Siachen; soldiers killed in a border area or along the Line of Control in a stove blast, or a landmine explosion; and about Pakistani soldiers killed while serving abroad under the United Nations.
Posted by: Fred ||
02/19/2007 00:00 ||
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#2
I gather that this wonderful body has no problem with Robert Mugabe, Sudan, Cuba, North Korea, Syria, Iran, or any of about 160 other nation's problems with racism, right?
But when it comes to those evil Joooooooooooos, oh, boy, let's examine their racial policies and see what we can dig up to direct criticism against them.
It's waaaaaaaaaaaay past time this evil, corrupt, morally, ethically, and economically bankrupt organization was tossed the hell outta' the United States and we washed our hands of the whole business.
If you surveyed the same number of Americans in 1940, you think you'd get a response like "War with Germany unjustified". I'm sure that would have been fine while you enjoyed the Blitz. Would have it been right? Keep reminding us of the mistake our grandparents made.
#4
Polls are meaningless. You would have gotten the same results if you had taken a similar poll about war with Germany in Britain in 1938, or even early '39. And we all know how that turned out.
Posted by: Infidel Bob ||
02/19/2007 8:33 Comments ||
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#5
War? Justified. Crusade? That one's got a cherry on top.
As part of the effort to give all marines an opportunity to serve in Iraq, the U.S. Marine Corps is sending the 1st Stinger Battery, Marine Air Control Group 18, 1st Marine Aircraft Wing. The 130 marines and sailors in this unit normally provide dozens of Stinger teams, each using shoulder fired Stinger anti-aircraft missiles to take down low-flying enemy aircraft.
But since the bad guys in Iraq have no air force at all, the 1st Stinger Battery will use their rifles to help provide security around air bases in Iraq. Both the army and the marines have been sending all sorts of support units to Iraq, even if their specialty is not needed.
The troops can help out with "force protection" duties. The effort to protect U.S. bases has been a massive, and largely unreported, one. It is one of the big success stories in Iraq, because there have been only a handful of successful attacks inside these bases, while thousands of terrorists have died trying to get in. Then again, it would be awful useful to have a Stinger unit available if there was a possibility of low flying small aircraft coming from the direction of Iran.
I didn't include this bit of info I received last week and left some of it in the comment section yesterday, #4 .
My friend in the Balad environs [Apache tec mechanic] also said that 'recently' (?) some American Stingers were stolen in Iraq, by the Jehadi shit-heads somehow? (i suspect rogue elements of the Iraqi Army might have been in on it)
Of course the first thing I asked him was, what the hell were our Man-Pads doing in the Iraq combat theater in the first instance? He said that he only heard that they had been stolen but that didn't know any of the particulars why they were in Iraq to begin with.
If I get anything further that seems safe to comment on I'll share it.
keep in mind my 'report' could be just another rumour.
#6
Hopefully they will soon go into phase two "we are NOT stinking Arabs but the descendants of Mesopotamians, of Hammurabi and of the peole who invented math. Arabs were invadersé.
And then into phase three/
"Islam was the tool for keeping us under Arab boot. We are neither Arabs nor Muslims".
Panrabism leads naturally to islamism so it must be fought
Step 1 - remember when every time there was a spectacular bombing of civilians, the Iraqis would say, "whoever did this could not have been a moslem" or similar words; well they pretty well know better now
Step2 - they used to blame Americans for everything; electricity down, pot holes in roads, etc. ; well they have finally figured out who is doing it to them
Unfortunately it took them a long time to adjust to the facts; the steps you want them to take (and I would like these steps taken also) are much bigger steps
#8
There are many, many other non-arab muslims who could say the same thing and repudiate mohamdism. Iraq, Egypt, Turkey, any country in Africa would/should be in the same boat.
#10
I can tell you from first hand expierence, meaning I lived with the Iraqi Army, every suicide bomber we encountered was a foriegner. I will also tell you my troopers were quick to ID non nationals and hook them up, and about 98 times out of 100, they were bad guys.
If you do not believe Iraq is the front line and it is better to have the chuckleheads blowing themselves up there, then let me know...I have some serious deals to make you....
#12
#10 TopMac - If you get lots of takers, would you pass some along to me? I've got this swamp land real estate in Florida I really need to sell 'cuz Mama needs an operation. Yeah, that's the ticket.... ;-p
Posted by: Barbara Skolaut ||
02/19/2007 22:42 Comments ||
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#13
Thanks for your service, TopMac. There are a lot more people who appreciate your work than you know.
Posted by: mac ||
02/19/2007 23:56 Comments ||
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A prominent Shiite member of the Iraqi parliament said in press reports Monday that the Shiite cleric Moqtada al-Sadr "feels his life is in danger."
So he has a couple of neurons to rub together, does he?
Al-Bayena al-Jadida newspaper quoted MP Haydar al-Obaidy and a prominent Dawa Islamic Party leader as saying, "Al-Sadr has a feeling he might be chased by the Americans and that there is no problem for him leaving Iraq."
"It's a justifiable feeling as the US side had conducted similar operations before."
Al-Obaidy believes the US want to kill overthrow al-Sadr and "if he doesn't appear, they will tell the public al-Sadr escaped because he was afraid."
There had been conflicting claims over the whereabouts of al-Sadr. The US Cable News Network (CNN) had earlier reported that al-Sadr left Iraq for Iran a few weeks ago. Then a Mahdi leader and former Shiite MP Fattah al-Sheikh denied that al-Sadr went to Iran, saying al-Sadr was in the Shiite city of Najaf.
"Nobody can find him there, but trust us, that's where he is."
Also an Iranian official denied al-Sadr being in Iran.
Samy al-Askari, an advisor to the Shiite Premier Nuri al-Maliki, said that al-Sadr was currently in Tehran but was soon due to return to Iraq. But the Sadr movement denied that its leader was in the Iranian capital, with MP Saleh al-Okeili stating, "al-Sadr is currently in Iraq."
"It's a big place. He's around somewhere."
The denial came amid other claims by the movement that the reports about al-Sadr being in Tehran were an attempt by the US military to lure him from his hideout.
In his February 15 speech the President outlined the progress of the Baghdad Security Plan. He stated that, our new commander in Iraq, General David Petraeus, is now on the ground in Baghdad. I visited him by secure video yesterday. He reports that coalition troops are arriving on schedule. He says the Iraqi government is following through on its commitment to deploy three additional army brigades in the capital. Prime Minister Maliki has said part of our strategy is to put more Iraqis in the fight in the capital city to achieve our objective, and he's doing that. So far, coordination between Iraqi and coalition forces has been good they are beginning joint operations to secure the city by chasing down the terrorists, and insurgents, and the criminals, and the roaming death squads. They're doing what the Iraqi people want in Baghdad -- they want a peaceful life.
IA, 2-7 Cavalry Take Down Insurgent Operation, Uncover Large Weapons Cache:
Soldiers from the 2nd Battalion, 4th Brigade, 2nd Iraqi Army (IA) Division and A Co., 2nd Battalion, 7th Cavalry Regiment raided several buildings in northeast Mosul February 9 in response to intelligence received about a possible weapons cache.
Ten suspects were detained in the southern compound, five of which tested positive for explosive residue. Millions of dinars (worth thousands of dollars in US currency) were also found in an underground storage room along with over 400 fake identification cards. One suspect was detained in the northern compound, and a tunnel gave way to the discovered cache of ordnance and weapons. The weapons seized at the site included approximately 250,000 rounds of small-arms ammunition, grenade fuses, dozens of rockets, 100 grenades, over 200 mortar rounds, more than a dozen rocket launchers, approximately 100 pounds of Improvised Explosive Device-making material, more than a dozen small arms. All of the ordnance was turned over to explosive ordnance disposal teams, and the remaining evidence was processed along with the 11 detainees.
SHALAMCHEN, Iraq - Iraq began to reopen its borders with Iran and Syria on Sunday, three days after they closed as part of an operation to crack down on sectarian and insurgent violence, officials said. Trucks and cars carrying civilian travelers and freight were crossing the Iranian frontier normally at Shalamchen, an overland border crossing near the southern Iraqi city of Basra, following the decision.
We received orders today from Prime Minister Nuri Al Maliki to open the border posts from 6:00 am (0300 GMT) this morning, General Rahdi Mohassen of the Iraqi border force told AFP at the scene.
A senior security official in Baghdad, speaking on condition of anonymity because he is not authorized to brief the media, confirmed that two main routes into Syria and four into Iran had reopened.
Posted by: Steve White ||
02/19/2007 00:00 ||
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WTF? Methinks Maliki may need to 'take one for the team.'
#3
#2 Fun , sand and good times no doubt .
I would suspect , no matter how crappy Iranian markets are for local produce , they are probably a better sellers market than in some regions in Iraq.
Posted by: Fred ||
02/19/2007 00:00 ||
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#1
the Deceit Organs never tire of the paleo soap opera. the MSM invents another heroic meme for the poor paleos. Clan Law, is now the latest MSM asana, bending over backwards striking the adoration pose.
#2
There are some families who are not even eating (because they choose instead) to arm themselves," Abu Seneineh said, speaking in a gold dealer's shop in Hebron's central market.
Where the need to kill is stronger than the need to live.
#4
When a car was set on fire in a row between two Palestinian families in Hebron earlier this month, it was not the police who stepped in to restore calm, but a 75-year-old tribal elder.
They should just let it burn - like the French do.
U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice said Sunday she has "seen nothing to date" that indicates the new Palestinian unity government will renounce terrorism and recognize Israel. Those are the key conditions set by the Mideast Quartet -- the United States, the European Union, Russia and the United Nations -- for the resumption of international aid to the Palestinian government.
Rice spoke to reporters shortly after her meeting with Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert in Jerusalem, who said earlier in the day that the Israeli and U.S. positions regarding the new Palestinian government are "completely identical."
Earlier in the day, Rice met with Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas in Ramallah, West Bank, for just over two hours, most of it without the presence of aides. Sunday's one-on-one discussions are laying the groundwork for Monday's three-way talks in Jerusalem. (Watch why Rice's visit comes at a difficult time )
Despite agreeing to share power with more moderate Fatah politicians -- including Abbas -- the ruling Hamas party, which took power a year ago, has refused to negotiate its hardline stance against Israel. That position has cost the Palestinian government and people millions of dollars of international aid from the United States and the European Union. Aid has flowed through nongovernmental organizations, but the government has been largely financially crippled. The government was already facing financial difficulties. Hamas ran its winning campaign last year largely on a promise to clean up Fatah's corruption.
Hamas' victory has also further complicated the long-stalled peace talks between the Palestinian Authority and Israel. Addressing reporters before her meeting with Abbas, Rice thanked him for his "personal commitment to peace and understanding which has led the Palestinian people to international agreements that recognize the importance of the two-state solution and all that comes along with that." Rice said she hoped Monday's trilateral talks will "be an opportunity ... to recommit to existing agreements and begin to explore and probe the diplomatic horizon."
For his part, Abbas expressed his "admiration" for Rice's diplomatic efforts and said that he and Rice would be discussing the political horizon and Israeli-Palestinian issues. "Most importantly, we will discuss issues of peace," he added.
Rice flew to Israel from Baghdad, Iraq, where she had made an unannounced stop to check on the security situation. Saturday, she met with her Israeli counterpart, Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni, who voiced her support of Rice's position, saying that "the path toward a Palestinian state goes through renunciation of terrorism and violence."
Posted by: Fred ||
02/19/2007 00:00 ||
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#1
Well fed Liars lying among the well traveled, smiling annointed. All very meaningless gibberish that will at days end, avail nothing, nothing at all. A "3-Way" yes, a total waste of time, aviation fuel and per diem.
US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice arrived in Israel yesterday in an uphill bid to revive stalled peace talks after ineffectual Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas issued a defiant appeal for acceptance of his pact with Hamas. This (unity government) agreement was the best we could get."
I actually believe that.
This agreement was the best we could get. We cannot change it. You either take it or leave it,
"We cannot change it. You either take it or leave it, a Palestinian official said of Abbass message to Assistant US Secretary of State David Welch during preparatory talks in the West Bank city of Ramallah.
We'll leave it. Enjoy.
After a surprise trip to Iraq, Rice was scheduled to meet Israeli Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni in Jerusalem yesterday night. She will hold separate talks with Abbas and Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert today, laying the groundwork for a three-way summit in Jerusalem tomorrow.
The summit was overshadowed by the threat of an American and Israeli boycott of the power-sharing government between Abbass Fatah and Hamas Islamists. Initially billed as an opportunity to discuss establishing a Palestinian state, Israeli officials said the summit would focus instead on disagreements over the unity deal.
Abbass spokesman, Nabil Abu Rdainah, said the Palestinians hoped to convince the United States that this is the only possible agreement, that the government must be given a chance. Rice said Washington would wait to see how the unity government takes shape before deciding on US policy.
Take your time Condi, don't be in a rush. Might take months, even years, to see if we should change.
Earlier this week, however, senior Palestinian officials and western diplomats said Washington had warned Abbas it would shun the new government, including non-Hamas ministers, if it does not recognise Israel, renounce violence and accept interim peace deals as called for by the Quartet of Middle East mediators. Abu Rdainah said yesterday: The American position has not been crystallised.
Senior Abbas aide Saeb Erekat said Palestinians hoped the three-way summit would launch a quiet channel, as ineffectual President Abbas has requested, to explore how to get to our objective of a Palestinian state.
This article starring:
Condoleezza Rice
David Welch
Ehud Olmert
Mahmoud Abbas
NABIL ABU RDAINAH
Palestinian Authority
SAEB EREKAT
Palestinian Authority
Tzipi Livni
Posted by: Fred ||
02/19/2007 00:00 ||
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#1
OK Recognise them. Just don't give them any money.
#2
No, If we're going to recognise them, MAKE THEM PAY US FOR THE PRIVILEDGE.
Posted by: Redneck Jim ||
02/19/2007 11:42 Comments ||
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#3
Abbas will soon go on a charm offensive in Europe. I 'm sure that some of the more leftist ministers in France and Germany (and in the EU) will make fawning noises. However, the test will be whether the money flows and if so, how much.
Islam should not be called fascist, eminent Indian intellectual and journalist M J Akbar told the US-Islamic World Forum yesterday. What do you mean by the term Islamofascist? he asked a task force session on The Name Game: What is the impact of the names we use.
While briefing the Gulf Times about his presentation, Akbar, a former member of the Indian Parliament, pointed out that Islam is 1,400 years old whereas fascism appeared only in 1920. So, whatever fascism might be, it cannot be Islamic. On the other hand, there are certain Muslims who are fascists. But you dont blame Islam for this, he maintained. Akbar stated that he does not blame Christianity for Hitler or Robert Mugabe, or the Vatican for Mussolini. Why do you blame Islam? he asked again.
In his characteristic style, the editor-in-chief of The Asian Age (India), said that terms, which mean nothing, are commonly used. For instance, look at the term the West and Islam. Islam is a faith and West is geography. How can I compare the geography and faith? he demanded. Akbar asked why the West and South East Asia is not discussed. Then I can tell you how the Indonesians were boiled in water. Why dont you discuss the West and South Asia. I can tell you how the British killed 4mn people, he stated.
The speaker observed that those who use the terms against Islam, are indulging in caricature and demonisation, just as they indulged in caricature and demonisation of the Jews in 1950s. To substantiate his point, Akbar took out a caricature of a Jewish man done in Germany, showing him dark and swarthy, when the German Jew was actually white. All your colonisation comes riding on a horse called civilisation, he remarked.
Akbar said that the future is not going to be controlled by the axis of evil. We have to get rid of that phrase. Dont replace it with axis of good, because both evil and good are sentimental. What the world needs is the axis of equals, he added.
#2
From Islamic Law and Constitution by Maulana Maududi
Islamic State is Universal and All Embracing
A state of this sort cannot evidently restrict the scope of its activities. Its approach is universal and all-embracing. Its sphere of activity is coextensive with the whole of human life. It seeks to mould every aspect of life and activity in consonance with its moral norms and programme of social reform. In such a state no one can regard any field of his affairs as personal and private. Considered from this aspect the Islamic State bears a kind of resemblance to the Fascist and Communist states. But you will find later on that, despite its all-inclusiveness, it is something vastly and basically different from the totalitarian and authoritarian states. Individual liberty is not suppressed under it nor is there any trace of dictatorship in it. It presents the middle course and embodies the best that the human society has ever evolved. The excellent balance and moderation that characterise the Islamic system of government and the precise distinctions made in it between right and wrong elicit from all men of honesty and intelligence the admiration and the admission that such a balanced system could not have been framed by anyone but the Omniscient and All-Wise God.
Islamic State is an Ideological State
Another characteristic of the Islamic State is that it is an ideological state. It is clear from a careful consideration of the Quran and the Sunnah that the state in Islam is based on an ideology and its objective is to establish that ideology. State is an instrument of reform and must act likewise. It is a dictate of this very nature of the Islamic State that such a state should be run only by those who believe in the ideology on which it is based and in the Divine Law which it is assigned to administer. The administrators of the Islamic State must be those whose whole life is devoted to the observance and enforcement of this Law, who not only agree with its reformatory programme and fully believe in it but thoroughly comprehend its spirit and are acquainted with its details. Islam does not recognise any geographical, linguistic or colour bars in this respect. It puts forward its code of guidance and the scheme of its reform before all men. Whoever accepts this programme, no matter to what race, nation or country he may belong, can join the community that runs the Islamic State. But those who do not accept it are not entitled to have any hand in shaping the fundamental policy of the state. They can live within the confines of the state as non-Muslim citizens (zimmis). Specific rights and privileges have been accorded to them in the Islamic Law. A zimmis life, property and honour will be fully protected and if he is capable of any service, his services will also be made use of. He will not, however, be allowed to influence the basic policy of this ideological state. The Islamic State is based on a particular ideology and it is the community which believes in the Islamic ideology that pilots it. Here again, we notice some sort of resemblance between the Islamic and Communist states. But the treatment meted out by the Communist states to persons holding creeds and ideologies other than its own bears no comparison with the attitude of the Islamic State. Unlike the Communist state, Islam does not impose its social principles on others by force, nor does it confiscate their properties or unleash a reign of terror by mass executions of the people and their transportation to the slave camps of Siberia.
Posted by: John Frum ||
02/19/2007 8:49 Comments ||
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#3
The division of Islamic Jihad into offensive and defensive is not permissible. Islamic Jihad is both offensive and defensive at the same time. It is offensive because the Muslim Party attacks the rule of an opposing ideology, and it is defensive because the Muslim Party is constrained to capture state power in order to protect the principles of Islam in space-time forces. ayyid Abul Ala Mawdudi, Jihad fi Sabilillah (Jihad in Islam)
Posted by: John Frum ||
02/19/2007 8:50 Comments ||
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#4
More from Maududi...
The purpose for which the Muslims are required to fight is not as one might think to compel the believers into embracing Islam. Rather, their purpose is to put an end to the sovereignty and supremacy of the unbelievers so that the latter are unable to rule over men. The authority to rule should only be vested in those who follow the true faith; unbelievers who do not follow this true faith should live in a state of subordination. Unbelievers are required to pay Jizyah (poll tax) in lieu of the security provided to them as the Dhimmis (Protected People) of an Islamic state. Jizyah symbolises the submission of the unbelievers to the suzerainty of Islam. To pay Jizyah of their own hands humbled refers to payment in a state of submission. Humbled also reinforces the idea that the believers, rather than the unbelievers, should be the rulers in performance of their duty as Gods vicegerents.
Posted by: John Frum ||
02/19/2007 8:51 Comments ||
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#5
Islam wishes to do away with all states and governments which are opposed to the ideology and programme of Islam. The purpose of Islam is to set up a state on the basis of this ideology and programme, regardless of which nation assumes the role of standard-bearer of Islam, and regardless of the rule of which nation is undermined in the process of the establishment of an ideological Islamic state. Islam requires the earth not just a portion, but the entire planet not because the sovereignty over the earth should be wrested from one nation or group of nations and vested in any one particular nation, but because the whole of mankind should benefit from Islam, and its ideology and welfare programme.
It is to serve this end that Islam seeks to press into service all the forces which can bring about such a revolution. The term which covers the use of all these forces is Jihad. To alter peoples outlook and spark a mental and intellectual revolution is a form of Jihad. To change the old tyrannical system and establish a just new order by the power of the sword is also Jihad, as is spending wealth and undergoing physical exertion for this cause. Mawdudi, Jihad,
Posted by: John Frum ||
02/19/2007 8:52 Comments ||
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#6
Why not? Straight question. If nationalism has been typically identified as the ruling principle of fascism, then yes, that would have to be replaced by loyalty to Islam ("umma-ism"), but there certainly are some similarities:
Here are two definitions from google.
A social and political ideology with the primary guiding principle that the state or nation is the highest priority, rather than personal or individual freedoms.
www.chgs.umn.edu/Educational_Resources/Curriculum/Witness_And_Legacy_-_Teacher_R/Glossary__Teacher_Resource_Boo/glossary__teacher_resource_boo.html
a totalitarian political system led by a single dictator who allows no opposition, promoting an aggressive nationalism and often racism.
www.summit.org/resource/dictionary/
#10
From Wikipedia: Fascism is a political ideology and mass movement that seeks to place the nation, defined in exclusive biological, cultural, and historical terms, above all other loyalties, and to create a mobilized national community.
This fits Islam to a "T".
Islam is as much a political entity as it is a religious one in that it specifically does not differentiate between the government and the application of sharia law. In fact, Islam specifically states that the government or other political entities must submit or be covered by sharia law.
Islam definitely seeks to place the "nation" by any description you care to apply above all other loyalties and to mobilize the "national" community.
#11
There is the problem that fascist ideologies are exclusivist - defined either by racial or national terms. Fascist ideologies are inherently non-expansionary in intellectual terms. You're either German or you're not; you're either Italian or you're not; you're white or black or you're not. Fascisms are territorially expansionist - lebensraum and all that - but the land is for the group, the people on the land are not wanted. Fascism isn't looking for recruits to the totality, it's been defined & will be purified.
Islam and communism, on the other hand, are missionary ideologies. They want both land and souls. Your property, possessions and earth are not enough for the Islamist or the Communist - they want your allegiance, your mindspace, your heart. They want you, or at least your progeny if you're too intransigent to be convertible.
But the man on the street doesn't understand why it's worse to be a Communist than to be a Fascist; calling someone a totalitarian Islamist doesn't have the rhetorical punch of "Islamofascist".
Posted by: Mitch H. ||
02/19/2007 10:42 Comments ||
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#13
Islam and communism, on the other hand, are missionary ideologies. They want both land and souls. Your property, possessions and earth are not enough for the Islamist or the Communist - they want your allegiance, your mindspace, your heart. They want you, or at least your progeny if you're too intransigent to be convertible.
French 50's seminal anticommunist sociologist & political thinker Jules Monnerot made that very same comparison, calling the first (or second? Can't remember) book of his monumental trilogy on the "Sociology of communism" : "communism, 20th century's islam".
Posted by: Art ||
02/19/2007 11:47 Comments ||
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#15
Is Islam a religion of peace? Are not many of the members of Islam not fomenting much of the terrorism in the world today? Do not many of its imans preach and advocate the killing of infidels? Who planned and carried out the destruction of the World Trade Centers (1993 and 2001)? What do they have in common? Who carried out the London bombings. Spain bombings? Cole bombing? Lebanon Marine barracks bombing? Various graphic beheadings? Murder of the Blackwater employees? Various embassy bombings? Belsen school murders? The list goes on and on. What evidence is there that Islam is the religion of peace?
#18
Ironically, MJ Akbar and his paper have no problems writing about Hindu Fascists
Posted by: John Frum ||
02/19/2007 13:51 Comments ||
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#19
I read somewhere that Eskimoes (sp?) have over 80 words for various kinds of snow. But at the end of the day it is all still some kind of snow.
This interesting discussion of what box to put islam in is great intellectual exercise, but in the end whatever box you put it in still falls in the dangerous, evil, enemy categories for Western Civilization. That generalization shouldn't be difficult to accept.
#20
What did happen to Zenster ? .com also has disappeared once again. I am concerned about such things, because I wonder if someone can be tracked down and neutralized by underground forces like stinkin' Islamofasists nazi pigs.
#21
The Zenster has been sounding the alarm for the islamoterror problem for a long time. He might be a little frustrated with the slow pace against the terrorist problem.
I downloaded Hizb ut-Tahrir propaganda that informed members of the cult of terror, "democracy seizes sovereignty from allah." Western Muslims use democratic institutions, including the secular courts, as a means to the end of obliterating democratic institutions. Lenin made a similar statement: "The purpose of Parliamentarism is the abolishment of Parliamentarism." Totalitarians think alike.
#24
It seems to me that the amount of intellectual leeway that the left uses to make the case that Bush==hitler and Republicans==nazis allows for the Islam==facism case as well. of course, both argument patterns, as well as Akbar's, founds their arguments on superficialities while carefully avoiding truly substantive similarities or differences that would spoil things for them.
George Orwell's "Notes on Nationalism" is a real jewel. Although first observed in Nationalists, he uses the term to mean a certain way of thinking about one's most cherished beliefs and ideology that makes one behave in a totalitarian manner.
To me, the various little -isms ALL say "Absolute power and authority exercised to support _______ is inherently good, right, and free of error.". All of them merely differ in what they put in the blank: Nazis put "the aryan race", Facists put "the Italians", Communists and socialists put "the workers", extremist zionists put "The jews", The KKK put "the white man", the Roman Catholics put "the roman catholic church. Mohammed was no different in putting "Islam" in the slot.
In contrast, the American founders said "Screw absolute power, and inherent goodness in any such exercise is non-existent." For all its faults, calvinism's belief in the depravity of man has been their most factually well supported assertion.
- it promotes one collective and encourages it to kill members of enemy collectives
- it claims to uphold private property while rejecting a free-market economy (especially financial markets)
It's different from Italian fascism, or German national-socialism, yes. Still, at the end of the day it is one of the foulest forms of totalitarianism ever witnessed. It deserves to be eradicated.
Zenster posted today at Jihad Watch. I miss him here.
Posted by: info ||
02/19/2007 17:29 Comments ||
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#28
It seems to me that those elected officials who use the word Islamofascism are not accusing Islam of fascism; they are accusing Islamofascists of fascism.
The problem the Rantburgians see (and that I see) is that Sharia is so tyrannical that it could be called fascistic - of course in Sharia the moslem has it worse than the dhimmi in some ways (being given lashes for not going to prayer, etc.)while the dhimmi is worse off in other ways (paying the protection fee).
#29
Let's not introduce a dichotomy between the theory and practice of Islam.
Islam is a thoroughly evil ideology, in words and deeds. It cannot be defeated if we pretend to only deal with some errant practitioners while we tolerate propaganda for their foul, tyrannical ambitions.
#31
I don't know what happened to Zenster, but I do know that if we had applied his "kill them all" mentality in WWII there would be no ethnic Germans, Italians, or Japanese alive today. We don't need that approach to subdue Islam any more than we needed it in WWII.
#1
OK, who is going to photoshop algore on Mr. Freeze for the next "climate change" story. Right now we are suffering from "gore effect" weather in FL. The greenhouse computer recorded 26F Saturday morning.
Posted by: bruce ||
02/19/2007 6:39 Comments ||
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American troops will repair schools, roads and do other civic projects as part of annual joint exercises launched in Mindanao yesterday aimed at fighting grassroots support for Al Qaida-linked militants, US military officials said.
We know that terrorists here get some support from the local population, but that level of support continues to decrease with more humanitarian projects, said Maj. John Redfield, a spokesman for the US contingent. We are seeing more and more people come forward with information against the terrorists, and certainly we encourage people to continue to do that, he told The Associated Press.
He also cited recent Philippine battlefield successes for declining support for the Abu Sayyaf, who authorities say number about 400 on the pre-dominantly Muslim island of Jolo, about 950 km south of Manila. More than 7,000 Filipino soldiers, backed by US military surveillance and other non-combatant assistance, have been waging an offensive in Jolo that has so far led to the killing of Abu Sayyaf chieftain Khadaffy Janjalani and his presumed successor, Jainal Antel Sali Jr. or Abu Sulaimanboth wanted by US and Philippine authorities.
A manhunt continues for other Abu Sayyaf commanders and two top Indonesian militants who are wanted for their alleged role in the 2002 nightclub bombings that killed 202 people on Indonesias Bali Island. Philippine Lt. Gen. Eugenio Cedo, who is overseeing the Jolo offensives, on Saturday vowed to capture or kill the remaining militants before the May 14 local and congressional elections.
Aside from helping repair a 4-km road, the American troops will renovate school buildings and clinics in Jolo. In nearby Tawi Tawi province, US troops will help build a pier and a boat ramp. US troops will also offer medical assistance in impoverished central Mindanao, including Makilala town, where a bomb attack by suspected Muslim guerrillas killed eight people last year, Redfield said.
US and Philippine troops are also holding drills on crisis action planning to help them deal with terrorists at sea, along with piracy, drug smuggling and infrastructure protection, the US embassy said in a statement.
#2
Maybe because the lazy Jerry Springer family feuding outright rude neighbor's standing water is breeding mosquitoes that carry little things like malaria, equine encephalitis, and other exotic niceties. And either you have to clean it up, because there's no one else, or just enjoy the consequence of plague it will permit.
Iran has rejected claims by Russian officials that it has failed to meet payments for work on the Bushehr nuclear plant in southern Iran.
Russian officials had warned the $1bn (£513m) deal might be delayed.
Moscow last year backed limited UN sanctions on Iran for refusing to halt uranium enrichment after objections to the Bushehr deal were dropped.
BBC correspondents say Moscow may be wary of delivering nuclear fuel next month, as scheduled in the deal.
Iran insists its nuclear programme is for purely peaceful purposes but the US suspects it of seeking nuclear arms.
Under the Bushehr deal, Russia would have started the fuel shipments by March, launched the plant in September and begun to generate electricity by November.
Russia's Federal Nuclear Power Agency spokesman Sergey Novikov said the "launch schedule definitely could be affected" by the reported delay in payments.
One unnamed Russian official told Associated Press Iran was blaming "technical reasons" for the delay.
But Mohammad Saeedi, the deputy head of the Atomic Energy Organisation of Iran, said: "Iran has had no delay whatsoever in making payments for the Bushehr nuclear power plant to the Russian company."
A UN Security Council deadline is due to expire on Wednesday for Iran to stop the enrichment of uranium.
The United States is pushing hard for the international community to take tough action.
BBC diplomatic correspondent Jonathan Marcus says it would be uncomfortable for the Russians if they began to supply nuclear fuel to Tehran before the International Atomic Energy Agency had given the country's nuclear programme a clean bill of health.
He says many analysts see the reports that Tehran is falling behind on its payments as a pretext to delay the delivery.
The fuel amounts to approximately 100 tonnes of partially enriched uranium.
The BBC's Richard Galpin in Moscow says experts believe Iran has a shortage of uranium and this fuel could be diverted and enriched to weapons-grade material.
#3
They learned from Iraq that running up that last minute debt left you afterwards with either the new after dictator government refusing to pay leaving you with a impossible task of collecting or accepting 10cent on the dollar on time payoff.
Moscow, 19 Feb. (AKI) - Work on Iran's nuclear power plant of Bushehr, which is being built with Russian technology, could be delayed because Tehran is late with payments, news reports quoted Russian officials as saying on Monday. Iran is expected to pay 1 billion dollars to Russia to help it build the plant in southern Iran. Tehran did not confirm or deny the reports.
Running short of cash, are you?
"Financing of the project by the Iranian side has practically been frozen since mid-January," Irina Yesipova, spokeswoman for lead Russian contractor Atomstroiexport, told the AFP news agency.
I don't think the Russians are going to buy the old "Checks in the mail" ploy
Russia was scheduled to finish construction of the Bushehr plant in September so that the plant could become operative in November.
Moscow, a veto-holding member of the Security Council, backed limited UN sanctions against Iran over its nuclear programme last December. World powers dropped objections to Russia's construction of the Bushehr plant after Russian officials, who had long opposed sanctions against Iran, agreed to back the resolution unanimously voted by the Council on 23 December. Iran has repeatedly refused to halt sensitive nuclear work the international community fears is aimed at building nuclear weapons, claiming it is solely for civilian use.
Additional: Feb. 19 (Bloomberg) -- Iran's first nuclear reactor won't start as expected this year because of supply and financing delays and it may be postponed indefinitely, the Russian agency building the power plant said. United Nations sanctions over Iran's enrichment program are making it difficult for the Islamic Republic to find non-Russian suppliers for cooling systems and other components needed to finish the Bushehr reactor, Russian officials said.
``The schedule for the Bushehr plant will need to be corrected,'' said Sergei Novikov, spokesman for Russia's Atomic Energy Agency, by phone in Moscow today. The Iranians stopped making scheduled payments to Russia more than a month ago, after insisting on paying in euros instead of dollars, Novikov said.
Iran's Atomic Energy Organization rejected the accusation over payments, a spokesman, who declined to be identified, said by phone. Iran has made all payments and Russia is responsible for providing all the nuclear plant's equipment, he said. Russia says Iran is responsible for procuring non-Russian components.
Russian Atomic Energy Agency chief Sergei Kiriyenko, a former prime minister, said in Tehran in December that Bushehr would start producing electricity by November, provided Iran meets all payments and secures supplies of key reactor components from non-Russian producers. If those criteria are met, Kiriyenko said Russia would supply fuel to the reactor six months from the start of production.
``The problem of equipment supplies is even worse than the lagging payments,'' said Andrei Cherkasenko, Chairman of ZAO Atompromresource, a non-state company that helps finance nuclear projects for the Russian government, in an e-mailed statement. A non-Russian company has agreed to supply the cooling systems, though no sooner than at the end of this year, Cherkasenko said, declining to name the company. ``That means the reactor cannot be completed for several months after this.''
Russia may not want to complete the reactor, said Ruslan Pukhov, director of Moscow-based Center for Analysis of Strategies and Technologies. The $1.3 billion project, started in 1995, isn't profitable and has been a constant headache for Russia, he said. ``If Bushehr ceased to exist, it'd be easier for everyone involved, apart from the Iranians, of course,'' Pukhov said.
Iranian negotiators are expected to fly to Moscow next week to discuss the Bushehr delays, RIA Novosti reported today, citing an unidentified Russian government official.
Posted by: Steve ||
02/19/2007 11:27 ||
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#1
"No worries America, you don't need to bomb uranium manufacturing facilities now."
Iran doesn't want a power plant, Iran wants nuclear missiles. Bushehr doesn't matter one iota toward that... and the uranium refining has continued unceasingly.
Iran on Sunday said it had summoned the Pakistani ambassador following two bomb blasts in its southeastern border city of Zahedan, one of which killed 11 elite Revolutionary Guards. After the meeting with ambassador Shafqat Saeed, the two countries resolved to form a committee to improve security over their shared borders, foreign ministry spokesman Mohammad Ali Hosseini said according to the state-run IRNA news agency. The Pakistani ambassador was summoned to the foreign ministry to give explanations. Discussions were undertaken and a committee was formed between the two countries to reinforce border security.
A car bomb attack in Zahedan, a city 40 kilometres from the Pakistan border, on Wednesday killed 11 Revolutionary Guards, followed by late night clashes and a percussion bomb on Friday which lightly wounded one person. The investigation and the confessions show that foreigners are implicated in these actions, Hosseini added, without specifying further. Local officials said the unrest bore suspicious hallmarks of involvement by the United States and Britain, reiterating previous allegations of Western trouble-making in the southeastern Sistan-Balochistan province. According to unconfirmed website reports, Wednesdays attack was claimed by a shadowy Sunni militant group, Jundallah, which has been blamed for a string of armed incidents in the volatile province.
Posted by: Fred ||
02/19/2007 00:00 ||
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Pakistan vs Iran in a steel cage death match. The only down side is that it could cause a worldwide popcorn shortage.
Posted by: Steve ||
02/19/2007 11:09 Comments ||
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Hizbullah cabinet member Mohammed Fneish, who resigned last November along with four other Shiite ministers just two days before the government was due to discuss a draft U.N. document on an international tribunal to try Hariri's suspected killers, has vowed that Hizbullah will not surrender its weapons. "We hold on to our weapons since their employment is not over yet," Fneish said in remarks published by the daily Al Mustaqbal on Sunday. "The resistance will continue to confront Israeli aggressions. It (resistance) is still a necessary force to protect Lebanon," stressed Fneish. He assured that neither Hizbullah nor its weapons are for bargaining, saying: "no one can argue its legitimacy."
The senior Hezbollah politician Fneish resigned from his cabinet position in November, 2006, but not before stealing critical files from the Ministry of Energy, effectively crippling the organization. Upon leaving his post, Fneish dismissed further negotiations with the government "a return to the negotiating table would now be useless. It's a total waste of time."
Hizbullah was the only armed group which was not asked to surrender its weapons after Lebanon's 1975-1990 civil war because it was considered a "resistance group" then fighting Israel's occupation of Lebanese territory. U.N. Security Council resolutions have called for the disarming of all militias in Lebanon. Hizbullah was expected to disarm under U.N. Res. 1701 which brought an end to the 34-day Israel-Hizbullah war this summer.
All five Shiite ministers and one Opposition Christian in the 24-member cabinet of Prime Minister Fouad Saniora resigned in advance of a vote that approved the creation of an international tribunal to probe the assassination of former Prime Minister Rafik Hariri.
Posted by: Fred ||
02/19/2007 00:00 ||
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OK, if you refuse to lay down your "Arms" We'll just help you lay down your whole bodies, arms, legs, torso, head, and all.
Posted by: Redneck Jim ||
02/19/2007 11:54 Comments ||
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#3
There needs to be a penalty clause attached to any UN resolution that details what will happen if people fail to comply. In the case of Hezbollah, it should include total annialation by whatever force can carry it out. I say ARCLIGHT them until south Beirut, and the areas south and east of Beirut, no longer contain any members of Hezbollah or its supporters. UNIFIL will have to decide if they're going to stay and watch the fireworks, or not.
Posted by: Old Patriot ||
02/19/2007 18:19 Comments ||
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#4
ARCLIGHTs are expensive and wasteful (and the Buffs use so much fuel they'll only contribute to global warming).
Use a couple nukes instead (Hey, we spent trillions designing and building the damned things. What good are they if we don't use one once in awhile just to get everybody's attention? And, it'll contribute to global cooling (nuclear winter anyone?)).
Syrias president has denied rumours of a rift between Damascus and Iran during a visit to Tehran, accusing "enemies" of Islamic countries of trying to sow discord.
Nicely done, Fred. Oops, sorry, shouldn't compliment you publicly.
The comments come as several Arab observers point to what they say are newfound tensions between majority Shia Iran and majority Sunni Syria over their differing interests in Iraq. "The creation of a rift among Muslims is their latest weapon, which is more dangerous than their previous plans," Bashar al-Assad was quoted as saying on the Iran's state TV website.
The comments were published on Sunday, a day after Assad ended his visit, his fifth since taking office in 2000. Some Arab diplomats have said Syria feels betrayed by Iran because of a joint Iranian-Saudi Arabian effort to clamp down on sectarian tensions in Iraq and violence in Lebanon. The site did not elaborate on who the "enemies" Assad referred to might be, but during his two-day trip the Syrian president also accused the U.S. and Israel of having "ominous aims."
Posted by: Fred ||
02/19/2007 00:00 ||
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Heh. I've seen that pic a hundred times and it still brings a smile...
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.
A Muslim man, who outraged many in the UK last year by dressing as a suicide bomber during protests against the Danish publication of cartoons of the prophet Muhammed, has been hired to clean trains at night something that has other employees concerned for their safety. 
Democratic presidential candidate John Edwards criticized the Bush administration on Sunday for failing to engage directly with Iran to resolve problems with the Iraq war and Iran's effort to develop nuclear weapons. "It's a huge strategic mistake not to be dealing directly with Iran," Edwards told the Associated Press in an interview before a campaign event in Dubuque. "What we should be doing with Iran, both on the Iraq issue and the nuclear issue, is being much smarter than we're being now. We have tools available to us to engage them."
Traumatized US soldiers are being treated for post-war psychological disorders by going out on patrol in a computer-generated "virtual Iraq," experts told a conference. Skip Rizzo, a psychologist at the University of Southern California, has helped create a program that simulates life in the war zone for Iraq veterans suffering from conditions such as post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD).
WASHINGTON, Feb. 18 Senior leaders of Al Qaeda operating from Pakistan have re-established significant control over their once-battered worldwide terror network and over the past year have set up a band of training camps in the tribal regions near the Afghan border, according to American intelligence and counterterrorism officials.
A prominent Shiite member of the Iraqi parliament said in press reports Monday that the Shiite cleric Moqtada al-Sadr "feels his life is in danger." 
SHALAMCHEN, Iraq - Iraq began to reopen its borders with Iran and Syria on Sunday, three days after they closed as part of an operation to crack down on sectarian and insurgent violence, officials said. Trucks and cars carrying civilian travelers and freight were crossing the Iranian frontier normally at Shalamchen, an overland border crossing near the southern Iraqi city of Basra, following the decision.
U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice said Sunday she has "seen nothing to date" that indicates the new Palestinian unity government will renounce terrorism and recognize Israel. Those are the key conditions set by the Mideast Quartet -- the United States, the European Union, Russia and the United Nations -- for the resumption of international aid to the Palestinian government.
US Secretary of State 
Hizbullah cabinet member Mohammed Fneish, who resigned last November along with four other Shiite ministers just two days before the government was due to discuss a draft U.N. document on an international tribunal to try Hariri's suspected killers, has vowed that Hizbullah will not surrender its weapons. "We hold on to our weapons since their employment is not over yet," Fneish said in remarks published by the daily Al Mustaqbal on Sunday. "The resistance will continue to confront Israeli aggressions. It (resistance) is still a necessary force to protect Lebanon," stressed Fneish. He assured that neither Hizbullah nor its weapons are for bargaining, saying: "no one can argue its legitimacy."
Syrias president has denied rumours of a rift between Damascus and Iran during a visit to Tehran, accusing "enemies" of Islamic countries of trying to sow discord. 
