North Korea fired several short-range guided missiles Friday in an apparent test launch, South Korean officials and media reports said. South Korea's Joint Chiefs of Staff confirmed the launches, but said it was still investigating how many missiles were fired and where exactly the tests occurred.
"The short-range missile launches are believed to be part of a routine exercise that North Korea has conducted annually on the east and the west coasts in the past," the Joint Chiefs said in a statement. The missiles were fired from the communist country's east coast into the sea between Japan and the Korean peninsula, a Joint Chiefs official said on condition of anonymity, citing official protocol.
Some reports suggested the North's test was in response to South Korea's launch of its first destroyer equipped with high-tech Aegis radar technology on Friday.
South Korea's Yonhap news agency cited an unidentified Unification Ministry official as saying the tests would not strain ties because they were apparently part of regular exercises. North and South Korea are planning to hold Cabinet level talks on reconciliation efforts next week in Seoul.
Japan's public broadcaster and other media, citing Japanese and U.S. sources, reported that the missiles were surface-to-ship. Japan's Defense Ministry and Foreign Ministry could not immediately confirm the reports, but were investigating.
Public broadcaster NHK said the missiles were shorter-range, and were not North Korea's existing Rodong or Taepodong I ballistic missiles. It was not immediately known where the missiles landed.
Kyodo News agency said the missiles were launched from Hamgyong Namdo on the east coast of the Korean Peninsula and are considered modified silkworm or miniaturized Scuds, with a range of about 60 to 125 miles.
The US is increasingly concerned about Chinas deployment of mobile land and sea-based ballistic nuclear missiles that have the range to hit the US, according to people familiar with an imminent Pentagon report on Chinas military.
The 2007 Pentagon China military power report will highlight the surprising pace of development of a new Jin-class submarine equipped to carry a nuclear ballistic missile with a range of more than 5,000 miles. Washington is also concerned about the strategic implications of Chinas preparations later this year to start deploying a new mobile, land-based DF-31A intercontinental ballistic missile that could target the whole US.
Robert Gates, US defence secretary, on Thursday said the report would not exaggerate the threat posed by China. It paints a picture of a country that is devoting substantial resources to the military and developing...some very sophisticated capabilities.
The report also outlines concerns about the build-up of missiles across the Taiwan Strait, Chinas recent anti-satellite missile test and its development of technologies to deny access in space. US experts on the Chinese military have been surprised by the pace of development of the nuclear forces, and particularly the Jin programme. The Pentagon believes that China is developing five Jin submarines. One is already being tested at sea and could become operational next year.
The Chinese have maintained that they have a no first use policy [for nuclear weapons] and that they have a minimal deterrent policy, which means they have only enough nuclear capability to retaliate, said Michael Green, former White House senior Asia adviser to President George W. Bush. But open source journals and discussions and their own modernisation suggest that they are possibly developing capabilities for a more flexible use of nuclear weapons, and survivability and tactical uses that would call into question this declared policy.
In 2005, Chinese General Zhu Chenghu fuelled US concerns that China might be changing its strategic stance when he told journalists that it might have to use nuclear weapons against the US if attacked during a confrontation over Taiwan. Chinese officials later restated the countrys no first use policy and have privately played down Gen Zhus influence.
Having rattled the saber in its scabbard, there was no need to draw it. Then.
Some gullible analysts have also suggested that the Chinese move could be partly in response to US plans to develop a ballistic missile defence system.
New French President Nicolas Sarkozy made immigration a central issue of his campaign. Now, his new minister for immigration and national identity says its time to start paying immigrants to leave the country.
France's new Immigration, Integration and National Identity Minister, Brice Hortefeux toured Charles de Gaulle airport on his first day on the job. He has said he intends to pay more immigrants to return home.
France's new Immigration, Integration and National Identity Minister, Brice Hortefeux toured Charles de Gaulle airport on his first day on the job. He has said he intends to pay more immigrants to return home.
France is home to over 5 million immigrants -- and the new conservative-led government doesn't plan on making things any more comfortable for them. While the new regime in Paris is determined to curb illegal immigration, it is also looking to encourage legal migrants to reconsider their decision to stay in France -- by paying them to go back home.
New immigration minister, Brice Hortefeux, confirmed on Wednesday that the government is planning to offer incentives to more immigrants to return home voluntarily. "We must increase this measure to help voluntary return. I am very clearly committed to doing that," Hortefeux said in an interview with RFI radio.
Under the scheme, Paris will provide each family with a nest egg of 6,000 ($8,000) for when they go back to their country of origin. A similar scheme, which was introduced in 2005 and 2006, was taken up by around 3,000 families.
Hortefeux, who heads up the new "super-ministery" of immigration, integration, national identity and co-development, said he wants to pursue a "firm but humane" immigration policy.
The new ministry was a central pledge in Nicolas Sarkozy's election campaign, who had warned that France was exasperated by "uncontrolled immigration." He was accused by the left of playing on public fears of immigration during his campaign, in an attempt to appeal to the supporters of the far-right National Front. In the end, Sarkozy won comfortably with 53 percent, and Hortefeux says this shows that the French people have clearly decided on what immigration policy they want. He also pointed to an opinon poll in the Le Figaro newspaper, which found that three in four people in France approved of the ministry.
Since he was appointed by the new president last Friday, Hortefeux has insisted that "co-development" will be an important plank of French immigration policy. He argued that the system of voluntary return can be seen as a means for investment in developing countries. He said that the method of transferring funds via returning immigrants to their country of origin was a better policy than providing aid for development.
Hortefeux is also talking tough when it comes to dealing with illegal immigration, insisting that there are no plans for a mass legalization of the estimated 200,000 to 400,000 illegals in France.
The new minister voiced concern that the majority of legal immigration into France was that of existing immigrants bringing in relatives, while only a small proportion were granted visas due to their professional skills.
"To be integrated, you need language skills and a professional activity," he told RFI, and said he is considering introducing a language test to prospective immigrants.
France is home to an estimated 1.5 million immigrants from mostly Muslim North Africa and 500,000 from sub-Saharan Africa, according to the 2004 census.
Asked on RFI about how the notion "national identity," fits into the new ministry -- the term has been fiercely criticized by the French left -- Hortefeux said: "This should not be understood as something menacing, but on the contrary, it is initiative with the aim of bringing coherence."
#1
Does this mean some cobwebs are finally being pulled aside so that enemy infiltration can start to be monitored ? The next step up the stairway is to outlaw mosques, outlaw Islam, deport all Muslims back to where they originated, forcefully.
WARSAW, Poland (AP) - Negotiators voiced optimism Thursday that they could reach agreement for Poland to host part of a U.S. missile defense system. A Polish official said a deal could come in the next several months. ``This meeting today brings optimism to us because many of our observations and reflections are shared and were responded to by our American partners,'' said Polish deputy foreign minister Witold Waszczykowski. ``Poland shares many of America's assessments of global threats,'' Waszczykowski said. ``Combatting missile programs deserves Poland's full attention.''
Oh that's just going to rattle Putin's cage. Heh.
John Rood, U.S. assistant secretary of state for international security and nonproliferation, called Thursday's second round of talks ``very constructive and fruitful.''
A first round of talks was held last week focusing on so-called status of forces issues, meaning the legal status of the base and its personnel, how they are treated and what their legal responsibility would be on Polish territory. The next round is slated for late June in Washington, Waszczykowski said, adding that Warsaw would present ``concrete proposals.'' He predicted that an agreement could come in early fall.
Posted by: Steve White ||
05/25/2007 01:17 ||
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Interesting throughout, but here's the heart of it:
Gerd Schroeder, a major in the U.S. Army who has served in Iraq and Afghanistan, sees a big problem with the lack of context in reporting from Iraq. In an article at The American Thinker, he explains how he came to that conclusion after studying the Brookings Institution Report, IRAQ INDEX Tracking Reconstruction and Security in Post-Saddam Iraq.
In the report, which he says is updated frequently and provides information from the U.S. military and other governmental agencies, he found some examples of how a lack of context can create a misleading public impression. One example was in the coverage of ISF figures.
The Iraqi security forces (ISF) includes military, police, special police, Iraqi National Guard and border police. From early 2005 to mid-2006, the hot topic for marking progress in the war was how many ISF were being trained and employed. However, in mid-2006, this media reporting trend almost wholly dried up, he said.
In an attempt to understand why, he examined information from the report: In July-August 2006, the number of deployed ISF jumped from 269,600 up to 298,000. The previous months had experienced much smaller growth, but July/August 2006 experienced a 10.6 percent jump in ISF. The numbers jumped again in September by almost 10,000 to 307,800. October rose 4,000, and November rose almost 11,000.
Schroeder concluded that when ISF figures became a good news story of progress, they received less media attention. He says there is significant, unreported good news in Iraq. He acknowledges there is plenty of bad news there, but that the media has been doing a good job of reporting on those negative aspects.
Posted by: Rob Crawford ||
05/25/2007 12:02 ||
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Canadian Islamists who have been trying to bring in Sharia into Canada, so far without success, have now chosen another route - Islamic banking.
According to Tarek Fatah, founder of the Muslim Canadian Congress, In 2003, we saw Islamists trying to sneak Sharia into Canada through the backdoor of Family Law and under the cover of Multiculturalism. Now, they seem to be taking a different route. They claim they are introducing the seemingly innocuous Islamic banking by claiming such banking to be interest-free and Sharia-compliant. This is one more ploy to prey on the fears and insecurities of Muslim Canadians. Invoking Islam to make a fortune is only one part of the agenda. The other is to try one more time to make Sharia part of the Canadian lexicon. Only this time, it has the backing of corporate lawyers and senior bankers who see big money at the end of the line. The whole concept is a fraud that will further marginalise an already marginalised community.
Because they dont charge interest, financial services, like mortgages, offered by Islamic institutions tend to be higher priced than those from secular. Fatah said ideally, Islamic financial institutions should operate in places with a Muslim majority. If it hasnt picked up, this is because the Muslim community is not foolish, he said.
Islamic financial services in Canada are being pushed by banking executives from the Muslim community who feel that by creating a niche they will be able to tap into an area non-Muslims cant access. Its a complete fraud because what you are doing is you are adding interest upfront and building it into your investments and dishonestly calling it interest-free, he added.
A Muslim Canadian business executive who manages a shipping business in Pakistan, said, In essence, Islamic banking is manipulative, deceitful and fraudulent at several levels. Any finance student will tell you that interest-based banking as we know it today is a component of inflation, risk and the opportunity cost of money. It is centrally regulated and transparent. Furthermore, by having a more efficient Aggregate Demand-Aggregate Supply dynamic, one can minimise the inflation component but the other two components are the basis of a regulated banking system that is a key aspect of economic and technological growth. The Islamists have their own arguments which probably culminate in: why do something with honesty and transparency when religion can be misused to obfuscate the issue and concentrate power in the hands of a few!
A report by Brian Adeba in the Ottawa publication The Embassy, says rules on interest, real estate and overcoming apprehension from both within and without the Muslim community make it tricky for Sharia-inspired banks to be set up in Canada.
#2
Seems easy to prevent: doesn't Canada require businesses to obtain a license to operate and aren't there banking laws that would prevent such a maneuver? Perhaps a Canadia-burger can fil in this poor ol' yankee...
#3
JHC, some asshole banker in Boston is doing the same here in US. This shit needs to be stopped immediately. Either they use and adapt to our rules, or pack their goat herd and depart to the desert hellhole whence they came. No compromising.
#4
USN, ret, Canuckian banking industry is heavily regulated and to obtain a licence is not easy (in banking industry, that is, else a piece of cake, depending what sector). That is not to say that an existing chartered bank couldn't offer some kind of "service" targetting mooselimbs. Or that an extra big bag of Soddy money would not be able to overcome regulations.
This morning, John Edwards and Barack Obama have really, really big grins on their faces:
The book looks in detail at Hillary Clinton's Senate vote in support of the Iraq war, suggesting she may have been motivated by a desire to not abandon her husband's tough-on-Iraq policy and a need "to prove that she was tough enough" as a woman. But Gerth and Van Natta suggest that she did not read the National Intelligence Estimate, which included caveats and dissents about reports of Iraq's weapons program.
Reines, Clinton's Senate spokesman, seemed to confirm last night that she did not read the NIE, saying by e-mail that she was "briefed multiple times by several members of the administration on their intelligence regarding Iraq, including being briefed on the NIE."
Well, we now know what topic will come up in the next Democratic debate.
Posted by: Mike ||
05/25/2007 13:13 ||
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#1
Just watched Panderella get a somewhat lukewarm welcome from a bunch of Military Veterans she was speaking to explaining why she voted against the latest Iraq spending bill. I think taht was a big mistake for her. She's gone from being seen as anti-war to anti-troop.
Posted by: Deacon Blues ||
05/25/2007 18:12 Comments ||
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WASHINGTON - Courting the anti-war constituency, Democratic presidential rivals Hillary Rodham Clinton and Barack Obama both voted against legislation that pays for the Iraq war but lacks a timeline for troop withdrawal. On a vote of 80-14, the Senate cleared the measure and sent it to President Bush.
"I fully support our troops" like hell you do but the measure "fails to compel the president to give our troops a new strategy in Iraq," said Clinton, a New York senator. "Enough is enough," Obama, an Illinois senator, declared, adding that President Bush should not get "a blank check to continue down this same, disastrous path." Their votes Thursday night continued a shift in position for the two presidential hopefuls, both of whom began the year shunning a deadline for a troop withdrawal.
Kos is pleased.
Both Clinton and Obama have faced intense pressure from the party's insane liberal wing and Democratic presidential challengers who urged opposition to the measure because it doesn't include a timeline to pull forces out of Iraq.
Sen. Christopher Dodd of Connecticut, who also voted against the legislation, was among the Democratic candidates calling for rejection of it, along with former Sen. John Edwards of North Carolina and New Mexico Gov. Bill Richardson.
Neither of these guys has a chance in hell of getting the nomination, and they successfully pressured Hildebeast and 'Bama to vote no? We may need to update our 'invertebrate' picture.
Of the four Democratic hopefuls in the Senate, only Sen. Joe Biden of Delaware supported the bill. He said he did so reluctantly because he viewed the measure as flawed. But he added: "As long as we have troops on the front lines, it is our shared responsibility to give them the equipment and protection they need."
Both Clinton and Obama had remained publicly uncommitted in the hours before the vote. Neither were on the Senate floor as voting began. Halfway through, Obama walked into the chamber and cast his "no" vote. Clinton did the same a few minutes later.
So the Hildebeast waited for the new guy to vote first? How utterly self-serving, and how utterly like her.
Posted by: Steve White ||
05/25/2007 00:58 ||
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WASHINGTON (AP) - Bowing to President Bush, the Democratic-controlled House reluctantly approved fresh billions for the Iraq war on Thursday, minus the troop withdrawal timeline that drew his earlier veto. The 280-142 vote sent the bill to the Senate for final passage, expected later in the evening.
"The Iraqi government needs to show real progress in return for America's continued support and sacrifice," said Bush, and he warned that August could prove to be a bloody month for U.S. troops in Baghdad's murderous neighborhoods.
Once again reminding us that the fight will be long and costly, not that the MSM or the Dhimmicrats will hear it.
Five months in power on Capitol Hill, Democrats coupled their concession to the president with pledges to challenge his policies anew. "This debate will go on," vowed House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, announcing plans to hold votes by fall on four separate measures seeking a change in course.
In a highly unusual maneuver, cowardly House Democratic leaders crafted a procedure that allowed their rank and file to oppose money for the war then step aside so Republicans could provide the bulk of votes needed to send it to the Senate for final approval.
Not daring to get their fingerprints on the bill while at the same time trying -- and failing -- to placate the nutroots.
Moments earlier, the House voted 348-73 to include a separate package of domestic spending.
Which I really, really hope Bush vetoes.
After months of struggle with the White House, Democrats emphasized their reluctance to allow the war to continue. "I hate this agreement," added Rep. David Obey, D-Wis., chairman of the House Appropriations Committee, who played a key role in talks with the White House that yielded the measure.
The legislation includes nearly $95 billion to pay for the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan through Sept. 30. In addition to jettisoning their plan for a troop withdrawal timeline, Democrats abandoned attempts to require the Pentagon to adhere to troop training, readiness and rest requirements unless Bush waived them.
The bill establishes a series of goals for the Iraqi government to meet as it strives to build a democratic country able to defend its own borders. Continued U.S. reconstruction aid would be conditioned on progress toward the so-called benchmarks, although Bush retains the authority to order that the funds be spent regardless of how the Baghdad government performs.
In exchange for providing the war money on Bush's terms, Democrats won White House approval for about $17 billion in spending above what the administration originally sought. Roughly $8 billion of that was for domestic programs from hurricane relief to farm aid to low-income children's health coverage. Democrats also won a top priority - the first minimum wage increase in more than a decade. The current federal wage floor of $5.15 an hour will go to $7.25 in three separate installments of 70 cents.
Posted by: Steve White ||
05/25/2007 00:00 ||
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#1
"I really hate this agreement." Sounds like you don't belong in Congress, son! I remember reading here a few months ago about the guy who got elected and thought he'd be in charge and was crushed to discover he had to cooperate. Oh, the horror!
Then the Democrats proudly announce they stuffed some garbage into the bill, intended to protect Americans, that would not stand on its own merit.
But they bought some more votes.
Posted by: Bobby ||
05/25/2007 7:42 Comments ||
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It passed in the Senate, 80- 14 with 6 not voting:
WASHINGTON - The system for delivering badly needed gear to Marines in Iraq has failed to meet many urgent requests for equipment from troops in the field, according to an internal document obtained by The Associated Press.
Of more than 100 requests from deployed Marine units between February 2006 and February 2007, less than 10 percent have been fulfilled, the document says. It blamed the bureaucracy and a "risk-averse" approach by acquisition officials. Sounds like an HMO to me.
Among the items held up were a mine resistant vehicle and a hand-held laser system.
"Process worship cripples operating forces," according to the document. "Civilian middle management lacks technical and operational currency." Definitely an HMO.
The 32-page document labeled "For Official Use Only" was prepared by the staff of the 1st Marine Expeditionary Force after they returned from Iraq in February.
The document was to be presented in March to senior officials in the Pentagon's defense research and engineering office. The presentation was canceled by Marine Corps leaders because its contents were deemed too contentious, according to a defense official familiar with the document. The official spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to discuss it publicly.
The document's claims run counter to the public description of a process intended to cut through the layers of red tape that frequently slow the military's procurement process.
The Marine Corps had no immediate comment on the document.
In a briefing Wednesday, Marine Corps officials hailed their "Urgent Universal Need Statement" system as a way to give Marines in combat a greater say in weapons-buying decisions.
"What we all liked about (the urgent requests) is they came from the operators out on the ground and there was always a perceived better way of doing things," said Maj. Gen. Dennis Hejlik, who was a commander in Iraq from June 2004 to February 2005.
The document lists 24 examples of equipment urgently needed by Marines in Iraq's Anbar province. One, the mine resistant ambush protected vehicle, has received attention as a promising way to protect troops from roadside blasts, the leading killer of U.S. forces in Iraq.
After receiving a February 2005 urgent request approved by Hejlik for nearly 1,200 of the vehicles, the Marine Corps instead purchased improved versions of the ubiquitous Humvee.
The industrial capacity did not exist to quickly build the new mine resistant vehicles and the more heavily armored Humvees were viewed as a suitable solution, Marine Corps officials said.
That proved not to be the case as insurgent elements in Iraq developed more powerful bombs that could penetrate the Humvees. The mine resistant vehicles are now a top priority for all the military branches, which plan to buy 7,774 of the carriers at a cost of $8.4 billion.
Brig. Gen. Robert Milstead, chief of Marine Corps public affairs, said cost was not a factor in choosing the Humvee.
"This was not a budgetary decision," Milstead said Wednesday. "You can take that to the bank."
The internal document, however, states that the cost of building new vehicles was a primary reason the request was denied by the Marine Corps Combat Development Command in Quantico, Va.
Needs of the deployed troops are "competed against funded programs," the document states.
"Resistance costs time," it adds. "Unnecessary delays cause U.S. friendly and innocent Iraqi deaths and injuries."
A second example cited is the compact high power laser dazzler, an inexpensive, nonlethal tool for steering unwelcome vehicles away from U.S. checkpoints in Iraq. The dazzler emits a powerful stream of green light that stops or redirects oncoming traffic by temporarily impairing the driver's vision.
In June 2005, Marines stationed in western Iraq filed an urgent request for several hundred of the dazzlers, which are built by LE Systems, a small company in Hartford, Conn. The request was repeated nearly a year later.
"Timely purchase and employment of all systems bureaucratically stymied," the document states.
Separate documents indicate the deployed Marines became so frustrated at the delays they bypassed normal acquisition procedures and used money from their own budget to buy 28 of the dazzlers directly from LE Systems.
But because the lasers had not passed a safety review process, stateside authorities barred the Marines from using them.
In January, nearly 18 months after the first request, the Marines received a less powerful laser built by a different company.
Titus Casazza, president of LE Systems, criticized the Marine Corps' acquisition process.
"The bureaucrats and lab rats sitting behind a desk stateside are making decisions on what will be given to our soldiers even if contrary to the specific requests of these soldiers and their commanding generals," he said.
There are successful examples listed in the briefing document. A December request for an airborne surveillance system Angel Fire is expected to be filled this summer. The system provides constant overhead surveillance of large urban areas, such as Ramadi or Fallujah, and is able to track the movement of people and vehicles.
Len Blasiol, a civilian official with the Combat Development Command, said the speed with which requests can be met is largely dependent on how much research and development work needs to be done.
"The first question is, 'Is this something we can go out right now today and buy? Is it sitting on a shelf somewhere waiting for us to buy?' And if it is, then we figure out how to buy it," Blasiol said.
#1
It doesn't matter what the troops need. What matters is whose friend's company is making the gear. It's some weird company we've never heard of, making lifesaving equipment? That doesn't help me at all! Denied...now why don't the troops in the field ever request the shoddy equipment that one of my Dartmouth buddies makes? I tell you, procurement is a thankless job...
#3
"Resistance costs time," it adds. "Unnecessary delays cause U.S. friendly and innocent Iraqi deaths and injuries."
Hear that, Harry? Nancy knew, how about you?
Posted by: Bobby ||
05/25/2007 7:20 Comments ||
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Sure, hurry up and wait is SOP, But filter out the extra AP spin.
Newer Vehicles always have industrial/manufacture lag times..
The Pentagon plans to phase out its armored Humvees in Iraq and Afghanistan and send in vehicles that better withstand roadside bomb blasts, Defense Secretary Robert Gates said Wednesday (May 10, 2007).
Mine Resistant Ambush Protected (MRAP) trucks, destined to augment and later replace up-armored HMMWVs currently operating in Iraq and Afghanistan. The new vehicles provides much improved protection , specifically against Improvised Explosive Devices (IEDs), which cause 70% of all U.S. casualties in Iraq.
#8
I know LE Systems and their product. It rocks and would save both US and innocent Iraqi lives. The safety folks are the ones holding this up based on zero data. It should be fielded and pronto.
#9
Keep in mind that this is the very same AP who would breathlessly report when gear that was 'rushed into service' didn't work, that it would be another f*ckup, in a long series of f*ckups, in a total f*uckup called Iraq.
Police detained a man Friday suspected of supplying the explosives used in last week's deadly blast at a mosque in southern India, authorities said. The suspect, a Muslim, was the first person picked up by police in connection with the bombing, and word of his detention came as police tightened security around the 17th century Mecca Masjid ahead of Friday prayers, which usually draws thousands of people.
A bomb went off at the mosque as Friday prayers were ending a week ago, killing 11 people. Another five people died in clashes that erupted after the blast between security forces and Muslim protesters who were angered by what they said was a lack of police protection.
The suspect, a 39-year-old kerosene dealer, was nabbed in Jalna, a city in western India, said a police official speaking on the condition of anonymity because the investigation is ongoing. The official did not offer any further details about the suspect or the investigation.
At the Mecca Masjid, meanwhile, about 4,000 police officers backed by armored vehicles equipped with tear gas launchers were deployed to guard the structure at the first Friday prayers since the bombing. At the entrance to the mosque compound, police frisked worshippers. Authorities also cleared rocks and loose debris -- used last week to pelt officers during the protests -- from the area around the mosque and banned mobile phones because investigators say a cell phone may have been used to set off the bomb. "We are getting excellent cooperation from the people, and I am sure there will be no trouble," said the city's police commissioner, Balwinder Singh.
Hyderabad, a city of 7 million people -- about 40 percent of them Muslim -- has long been plagued by Hindu-Muslim tensions and occasional violence. Muslim leaders in Hyderabad have said they do not trust local police to handle the investigation into the bombing, and authorities in the city on Thursday asked Indian federal investigators to take over the case, although it was not clear when that would happen.
WANA: The telecommunications links to South Waziristan have been restored and journalists and locals have lauded the development. The agencys telecommunications were cut off six months ago and according to the Pakistan Telecommunication Limited (PTCL), the communication channels were disrupted when militants damaged the communication installations.
The disruption caused difficulties for residents of Wana and its surrounding areas and also disturbed journalists who were unable to fax or email their news stories, while the phone lines were also cut off from the rest of the country.
During March, Waziristan tribesmen under the leadership of Maulvi Nazir launched an operation against Uzebk militants and some sources said the communication links disruption was part of the operation to keep the media away from the emerging situation in the area.
ISLAMABAD: Ghazi Abdul Rashid, deputy prayer leader of Lal Masjid, has warned President Pervez Musharraf that a Taliban-style opposition movement is emerging to challenge his already crisis-hit regime.
Ghazi said his followers backed Chief Justice Iftikhar Muhammad Chaudhry and predicted the political upheaval would further the students goal of a pure Islamic state. If the government tries to suppress the change that our movement is demanding, then there is a likelihood of Talibanisation, the 43-year-old Ghazi said. I can see it happening.
We are not only challenging Musharraf, we are challenging the system, Ghazi told AFP on Wednesday, speaking inside the Jamia Hafsa madrassa next to the mosque. Bearded men with Kalashnikov rifles stood guard during the interview.
The countrys system has totally failed and needs to be changed because it is not giving any relief to 99 percent of the people, he added. We know that if Musharraf goes away, another Musharraf would come. The system we want is Islamic. Ghazi said the students empathised with Chaudhry. We have sympathy for the chief justices plight, which is because of the system that has allowed Musharraf to do this kind of thing, said Ghazi. The man who is meant to give justice to the people is begging for justice himself. Pakistan has become more secular since when my father was a cleric at the Lal Masjid, he said. This is our reaction. We want to go back.
ISLAMABAD: Foreign Minister Khurshid Mehmood Kasuri on Thursday said India had not so far shared intelligence with Pakistan on Samjhota Express blasts despite repeated requests. He was talking to reporters at the Parliament House.
Anti-Terrorism Mechanism (ATM) was signed between the two governments for intelligence sharing but India is not cooperating, he said. He said he was unaware of Indias objections to Muzaffarabad-Sri Nagar bus service, adding both countries had liberalised visa policy and issued more visas at present compared with the past. He said it was unfair to say that Pakistan was not doing enough in the war on terror. We have deputed 80,000 troops on our western borders and have suffered hundreds of casualties. We have done more than any other country in the war on terror, he said. He said Pakistan also proposed fencing and mining to stop cross-border terrorism. He said efforts were being made at diplomatic level to make necessary amendments in Emma Nicholson report on Kashmir.
We have a clear stance that we will not accept Israel without an independent Palestinian Authority, he replied to a question.
John Bolton, former U.S. ambassador to the United Nations, says Europe has to "get serious about the threat of Irans nuclear push or face grave consequences if Iran develops nuclear weapons.
Bolton, appearing Thursday as a guest on Fox News Channel, said U.N. Security Council sanctions against Iran can only go so far toward slowing Iran's uranium enrichment process, but will not stop Iran from developing nuclear bombs. "Certainly, its worth putting more sanctions through the security council, although the ones in place now are weak and watered down, Bolton said. "We really need to get our friends in Europe to get serious about this matter. Over the past several months, theyve wanted sanctions without pain. They dont want to interfere with their trade and investments for Iran. That wont work, and until they get serious, that wont solve the problem.
Bolton said Thursdays report by the IAEA that Iran may be only three to eight years away from developing a nuclear bomb should serve as a wake-up call to those who believe Irans nuclear goals are purely wholesome. "What the IAEA report this week shows is that the Iranians are very close to an industrial scope enrichment capability, which means the timing of getting to a nuclear weapon is largely in their hands, Bolton said. "I think we need a dramatic ramp up of pressure, and if we cant get that quickly from the Europeans, unfortunately were going to have to do something else like regime change or, as a last resort, a use of force by the United States [to stop Irans proliferation].
Bolton blames the IAEA director general, Mohamed ElBaradei, for much of the frustrating foot dragging with regard to the forcefulness and effectiveness of U.N. Security Council sanctions on Iran. "One thing we have to do very clearly in the IAEA is tell the director general there to sit down and stop trying to interfere with our [U.S.] efforts to prevent proliferation, Bolton said. "ElBaradei . . . has been an apologist for Iran right from the start of this, thats why his continued efforts on a diplomatic front have been unhelpful.
#5
"ElBaradei . . . has been an apologist for Iran right from the start of this, thats why his continued efforts on a diplomatic front have been unhelpful.
The United States on Friday urged radical cleric Moqtada al-Sadr to play "a useful and positive role" in Iraq after his dramatic return to frontline Iraqi politics.
"Now that he's back from four months in Iran, we hope he'll play a useful and positive role in the development of Iraq," said White House national security spokesman Gordon Johndroe.
Boy, that's telling him!!! Tater will be walking funny for a WEEK after that spanking!
Am I the only one who's concluded the Administration hasn't a clue about what makes the enemy tick? Pfeh...
Posted by: Dave D. ||
05/25/2007 17:15 ||
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Link ||
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#1
I can think of a few ways Tater can play a positive and useful role (doorstop for instance), but they all involve substantially reduced oxygen consumption on his part.
#2
"the antihero who died a surprise, painful, and futile death is a suitable role model. We hope you'll audition for it. We can airbrush the teefus thing"
Posted by: Frank G ||
05/25/2007 18:26 Comments ||
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#3
Ha ha. We should urge him to donate to the Salvation Army and participate in Big Brothers too. Hell, let's ask him to care for the sick in Calcutta.
Posted by: Deacon Blues ||
05/25/2007 19:00 Comments ||
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#5
Another JohnD(r)oe from State/nsa. Hope springs eternal, while reality persistantly remains. Does Gordon think Sadr was in Iran for sensitivity training?
#6
Am I the only one who's concluded the Administration hasn't a clue about what makes the enemy tick? Pfeh...
Ummm ... despite all appearances, no. Although a poll of foggy bottom might indicate otherwise.
Kill the SOB, stop pussy-footing around.
Ding, ding, ding ... we have a winner! Sadr's continuing oxygen deprivation of other more deserving lifeforms like scorpions, lice and cockroaches remains a national disgrace.
#3
Of course it's fake! There was no illustration of a victim forced to wear panties on his head, which we all know is the worst act of torture conceivable!
[/sarcasm]
Posted by: Dar ||
05/25/2007 12:44 Comments ||
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#4
It's pretty easy to prove it genuine - just compare what it says in the manual with what we've seen from the bodies of victims we've recovered. That should REALLY put the left's undies in a bunch. And so fitting!
Posted by: Old Patriot ||
05/25/2007 14:45 Comments ||
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#5
Somehow the juxtaposition of the torture manual with abu ghraib needs to be made clear. Backchannel stories about the treatment of our kids after captured hasn't been made clear to the American public (probably out of a sense of decency for the families so they won't know the horrors their loved ones endured). Well this info has got to get out. Humiliation and sleep deprivation versus mutilation, horrible burning, gutting, drilling, etc.... the American people and the foolish general public need to understand what real abuse and torture is about, and understand that the enemy here isn't really civilized or even worthy of civilized treatment. They understand the strong horse treatment and raw power. Stop hamstringing those of us who are willing to really open up that can of whup-ass...
#6
During the algeria war, there was a similar problem : while the fln comitted unspeakable atrocities against neutral or pro-french algerians and against captured french or arab soldiers (the lest odious being to "simply" poke their eyes out and leave them for their comrades to find, otherwise it was even more gruesome), including some really EVIL acts (like french soldiers, draftees, going to rescue an isolated farm after a distress phone call, and in addition to finding the family slaughtered with the 14 years old daughter raped and beheaded, getting the horror of seeing the baby impaled in the oven, like a chicken ready to be roasted), the public opinion, stirred by the "usual suspects" focalized solely on what the french army was doing and its supposed brutality.
So, the minister of algeria published a book called "Aspects Véritables De La Rébellion Algérienne" (true aspects of the algerian rebellion), chokeful of pictures of mutilated, violated bodies, which was distributed among draftees to fight disinformation.
This was a step in the right direction, I think. Information warfare is as central now than then, I wonder why the US army and the gvt are not more proactive in that regard?
#7
The left is the sickness of the western world that needs to be eliminated.
Posted by DarthVader
Yep, you guys are real 'civil.'
Posted by: Dr. Monkey Von Mnkerstein ||
05/25/2007 16:39 Comments ||
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#8
Judging from your post, which has less brain-power than a monkey fart, you seem to be implying that I am going for the rounding up and killing of people that spout "leftist" thought.
"eliminate"
verb
1 [T] to remove or take away:
2 [T often passive] to defeat someone so that they cannot continue in a competition:
3 [T] SLANG to murder:
If you have ever been a reader of this page, you would realize that the first two would be the ones we talk about. Since the press is fully engaging in the repression of anything that doesn't fit their liberal script, we engage in other means of information dissemination.
Guess how many news outlets are reporting this?
0
How many "humanitarian" organizations are condemning it?
0
How many "progressive" talk shows will cover and condemn this?
0
What I am talking about is the elimination of this cowardly line of thought and actions. The left is happy to pile on a safe target, like the US. But will happily fold and renounce their rights just so they don't "offend" (see get decapitated or bombed by) violent psychopaths. We are in a contest of wills. I am moving to make the left lose against us, so we don't lose against Islamofascists.
Otherwise, you will be able to look forward to this kind of treatment by your new Islamic overlords.
BAGHDAD - Radical Shiite cleric Muqtada al-Sadr appeared in women's clothing public for the first time in months on Friday, delivering a fiery anti-American sermon to thousands of followers and demanding U.S. troops leave Iraq.
Al-Sadr had gone into hiding in Iran four months ago at the start of the U.S.-led Baghdad security crackdown. It was not immediately clear why he chose to return now to his base in the Shiite holy city of Najaf. However, he could be trying to take advantage of the absence of a major rival, Supreme Islamic Council of Iraq leader Abdul-Aziz al-Hakim, who was recently diagnosed with lung cancer and went to Iran for treatment.
I generally don't think 'Tehran' when I think of treatment for lung cancer.
Al-Sadr traveled in a long motorcade from Najaf to the adjacent holy city of Kufa on Friday morning to deliver his sermon before 6,000 worshippers. I hope we had an eye in the sky following him back to wherever he came from.
"No, no for Satan. No, no for America. No, no for the occupation. No, no for Israel," he chanted in a call and response with the audience at the start of his speech.
He repeated his long-standing call for U.S. forces to leave Iraq. "We demand the withdrawal of the occupation forces, or the creation of a timetable for such a withdrawal," he said. "I call upon the Iraqi government not to extend the occupation even for a single day."
Sounds like Mahmoud gave him his talking points.
He also condemned fighting between his Mahdi Army militia and Iraqi security forces, saying it "served the interests of the occupiers." Instead, he said the militia should turn to peaceful protests, such as demonstrations and sit-ins, he said.
As part of his effort to recast himself as a nationalist instead of a radical with a narrow Shiite agenda the 33-year-old leader called on Sunnis to join with him in the fight against the U.S. troop presence here. He also criticized the government's inability to provide reliable services to the people. Al-Sadr is believed to be honing plans to consolidate political gains and foster ties with Iran.
His Mahdi Army fought U.S. troops to a virtual standstill in 2004, Bullsh** - casualty ratios at better than 20:1 as I understand, and we were being 'delicate' to avoid excess collateral damage.
but to avoid getting wiped out renewed confrontation he ordered his militants off the streets when the U.S. began its security crackdown in the Baghdad area.
His associates say his strategy is based partly on a belief that Washington soon will start reducing troop strength, leaving behind a hole in Iraq's security and political power structure that he can fill. He's got that right - thanks, Dems, MSM.
Al-Sadr also believes that Shiite Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki's government may soon collapse under its failure to improve security, services and the economy, al-Sadr's aides say. A political reshuffle would give the Sadrist movement, with its 30 seats in the 275-member parliament, an opportunity to become a major player. In a move that could hasten the collapse, al-Sadr pulled his supporters out of al-Maliki's government last month over the prime minister's refusal to call for a timetable for a U.S. withdrawal.
#1
Taking a clue from his allies, the Democrats, "al-Sadr pulled his supporters out of al-Maliki's government last month over the prime minister's refusal to call for a timetable for a U.S. withdrawal."
Posted by: Bobby ||
05/25/2007 7:48 Comments ||
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#2
Who let him cross the border, and why haven't they been clapped in irons?
#3
His Mahdi Army fought U.S. troops to a virtual standstill in 2004
Ah - one of the classics, I'd forgotten this one. When such preposterous inversions of reality can become "slugs" (boilerplate facts inserted for background into all stories), things are way, way past the crisis point in the profession of journalism. Wire services are the worst, most important perps. As the NYT front page drives most TV "news", the wires now dominate all international coverage that Americans see. Scary, and infuriating.
#7
So I guess this means he'll be easier to kill now?
We can only hope so. Squashing this turd would send a critical message on several levels. We really need to make it crystal clear that no matter how effing "holy" any Muslim SOB is supposed to be, they will still get their head blown off for shouting "death to America!"
Capping Sadr would not only stall his insurgency but also show that Islam and its aristocracy means diddly-squat to us if they insist upon harming our troops. Attaching a fatal price tag to such activities is a vital way of conveying our supreme displeasure with such chicanery. Finally, we are obliged to ourselves to kill this rutbag for all the grief he has caused. Iraq must learn that when we sneeze, they are going to catch a cold all hell.
A Muslim cleric, apparently from the Palestinian Authority, has released a fatwa (religious ruling) permitting the killing of members of the Hamas terrorist organization. In support of his position, the heretofore unknown sheikh declared Hamas to have "Jewish characteristics;"
"Meet the new Jew, same as the old Jew"
yet, he said that "the Jews have more mercy" on the Arabs than Hamas.
"Today, until just after evening prayers."
The fatwa and accompanying argumentation appeared in two articles, one in the Saudi newspaper Al-Watan and the other published on the website of the Fatah terrorist organization, headed by Palestinian Authority Chairman Mahmoud Abbas.
According to a report and translation of the articles provided by the Middle East Media Research Institute (MEMRI), the Islamic cleric, identified as Sheikh Shaker Al-Hiran, labeled Hamas "Khawarij." This term is a reference to a group of Muslims that rebelled against the leadership of seventh-century Islam.
Among other affronts, the Fatah-backed sheikh declared, Hamas is willing to ally itself with non-Muslims and to battle co-religionists. Al-Hiran then said that Hamas-backed scholars should be confronted about the activities of their organization. "If they say that what they [i.e., Hamas members] do is prohibited, then you should kill them cold-bloodedly, [and you will] be rewarded by Allah for ridding Muslims of their influence and evil. Jews have more mercy towards our nation than [Hamas]. If they [i.e., the scholars] say that their conduct is permitted, then kill their scholars.... They are all the same."
In his article entitled "The Common Characteristics of Hamas and the Jews,"
My cognitive dissonance just had a head-on collision with my boggle. Airbags deployed, the works.
Al-Hiran wrote that the Islamist group has "Jewish characteristics."
"The beady little eyes, the shifty posture, the way their shadows touch you, all the marks of Shaytan!"
For the PA sheikh, this means hypocrisy and a lack of trustworthiness, including breaking agreements reached with the Fatah leadership of the PA.
MEMRI analysts noted, "The articles triggered condemnation, such as a statement by Palestinian Authority Mufti Sheikh Muhammad Hussein, who labeled Al-Hiran's articles as a clear call for fitna (civil strife)." In particular, MEMRI reported that the article comparing Hamas to the Jews "triggered harsh reactions and prompted online messages from readers questioning Al-Hiran's existence."
#2
"Hamas, the sworn enemy of the Zionist Entity, is made up of Jews! Therefore, it is the duty of all true Moslems to destroy Hamas . . . wait a minute, no, then we would be defending the state of Israel . . . so we must protect the Jews of Hamas from the Jews of Israel . . . but that would make us tools of the international Jewish-Neocon-Christer-Halliburton conspiracy. the Jewish conspiracy! . . . but if we go the other way, we would still be tools of the international Jewish-Neocon-Christer-Halliburton conspiracy . . . ILLOGICAL! ILLOGICAL! NORMAN COORDINATE!"
[cue sparking and smoke coming from ears]
Posted by: Mike ||
05/25/2007 9:27 Comments ||
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#3
Izza gonna ask Mr Mashaal if he got a good recipe for chicken soup, and if prefers challah really crusty, like I do.
the arab mind has no problem holding mutually incompatible propositions, (e.g., the holocaust never happened but thumbs up for Hitler or 9-11 was a Mossad conspiracy but the perps were martyrs of Allah to be highly praised)
#9
This is the end result of ANY ideology built on hate. If you deny it an external enemy, or if it has destroyed its external enemies, it will start to consume itself.
This is why I am all for giving the Paleos a state and wall it off. They will destroy themselves.
Plus, it makes targeting for artillery strikes simpler.
The apparent recent success of Indonesian authorities in stemming violent attacks by the Indonesian-based, Islamist terror group Jemaah Islamiyah (Islamic Community) following arrests in March has some experts suggesting the Al-Qaeda-inspired group has been damaged beyond repair. Key arrests of seven alleged JI members in raids in Central and East Java in March by Indonesian counter-terrorism authorities which also uncovered an enormous cache of explosives and weaponry and JI documents revealing an organizational split in the group, has analysts talking about the beginning of the end for Jemaah Islamiyah (JI).
However a key report delivered earlier this month by independent conflict resolution think tank the International Crisis Group (ICG) argues the terror group, though damaged by the arrests, may be in a building and consolidation phase and are far from finished as a potent force. Press reports of bomb blasts in the southern Philippines island of Mindanao blamed on JI operatives since the release of the report would seem to back up the ICGs view. JI is in a building and consolidation phase which for the most part means that it is unlikely to be interested in large, expensive operations that could further weaken its support base, says the ICGs South East Asia expert Sidney Jones in the ICG report released on May 3, 2007.
The report said the documents captured during the March police raids showed a serious split in the organization between those who favour small-scale cheap attacks against individual targets which would reduce Muslim fatalities and those, like suspected Bali bomber Noordin Mohammed Top, who prefer larger-scale,more dramatic amd more expensive acts of violence against Western targets. Top has split from the mainstream Jemaah Islamiyah organization though is believed to retain some ties with the group.
Continued on Page 49
Some 1,400 US troops are en route to Mindanao to take part in joint military exercises in areas threatened by Islamic militants, the US embassy here said Thursday. The combined naval tactical operations exercise, to start on May 31, would be held in the southern port of Zamboanga and the nearby island of Basilan, an embassy statement said.
The maneuvers are designed to enhance the ability of our nations to work together in maritime situations that range from natural disasters to maritime interception of criminals and terrorists, it said. They include a tactical scenario where the US and Philippine navies will operate together in teams, focussing on improving communication and information sharing.
Basilan is a hotbed of the Abu Sayyaf, an Islamic militant group linked to the Al-Qaeda network of Osama bin Laden, while the Zamboanga port has been a frequent target of Abu Sayyaf bombings.
#1
Off to Balikatan. The great omar predicts there will be at least two charges of Marines raping school girls, false of course, and how we are being cruel to the locals. Ah, ya just gotta love the liberal press.
Posted by: 49 Pan ||
05/25/2007 13:24 Comments ||
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Day after end of deadline to halt uranium enrichment and in light of possibility of additional sanctions, Ahmadinejad says 'sanctions will hurt Western countries more than they will hurt us'
Dudi Cohen and AP
The Western powers are unable to act against Iran, President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad said Friday morning, the day after the end of a deadline set by the UN Security Council to halt its nuclear program.
On the backdrop of the increase in the United States' military pressure, as nine warships arrived in the Persian Gulf, Ahmadinejad spoke in the city of Golpaygan and said that "the Iranians are living in faith and unity under the leadership of Iran's spiritual leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, and therefore the world powers will not be able to make life difficult for them."
On Thursday, the Iranian president ruled out out even a brief halt in his country's nuclear program, saying it would hand a victory to the country's enemies who seek to prevent Iran from becoming a world power.
The ISNA news agency reported that the Iranian president referred to the Security Council's resolutions as "having no influence."
According to Ahmadinejad, "These sanctions will surely hurt them (the Western countries) more than they hear us, and will bear no fruit."
Ahmadinejad's outburst followed Wednesday's report by the UN nuclear watchdog that said Iran has expanded its controversial uranium enrichment program in defiance of UN demands for a suspension. The report could set the stage for a third round of UN Security Council sanctions against Iran.
The Iranian president is currently visiting the Isfahan region, where the nuclear facility for uranium enrichment is located. At the moment it is unclear whether he plans to visit the facility, but inspectors of the UN nuclear agency are visiting the site these days.
Mohammad Saidi, head of the International Department of the Atomic Energy Organization of Iran, said Thursday that the inspectors were visiting the Isfahan facility according to the decisions of the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) and that they would move on from there to the uranium enrichment facility in Natanz.
Iran insists its nuclear program is peaceful, aimed only at developing energy, and has touted it as a sign of its technological prowess. The United States and its allies contend it is secretly aiming to develop nuclear weapons.
But in a reflection of international divisions on how to handle the crisis, the US has lodged a complaint against the head of the UN nuclear agency, Mohamed ElBaradei, for suggesting that Iran be allowed to keep some elements of its uranium enrichment, diplomats said. Such comments could undermine efforts to pressure Iran into fully scrapping the program.
US President George W Bush said Thursday he would work with allies to beef up sanctions on Iran. ''We need to strengthen our sanctions regime,'' Bush said in a Rose Garden news conference. Leaders of Iran ''continue to be defiant as to the demands of the free world.''
TEHRAN, Iran (AP) - Iran's hard-line president warned Israel on Thursday that other nations in the region would "uproot" the Jewish state if it attacked Lebanon in the summer.
Don't worry Mahmoud, Olmert doesn't have the stones to go back into Lebanon.
"If you think that by bombing and assassinating Palestinian leaders you are preparing ground for new attacks on Lebanon in the summer, I am telling you that you are seriously wrong," President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad told a rally in the city of Isfahan. "If this year you repeat the same mistake of the last year, the ocean of nations of the region will get angry and will uproot the Zionist regime."
Posted by: Steve White ||
05/25/2007 00:00 ||
Comments ||
Link ||
[8 views]
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#1
Oh, I see... In Farsi, Israel's defence = Israel's attack.
Meaning that Hizbies are almost re-armed, so they'll try to pull some crap soon.
Posted by: Barbara Skolaut ||
05/25/2007 0:30 Comments ||
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#3
im not sure why it would be in Israels interest to go back into Leb right now. Seems the priority wrt Leb, is to get the Hariri trial going, and put more pressure on Syria that way. An Israeli invasion would be a diversion.
The main thing is to keep strengthenging the Leb Army to make it a useful tool against any attempt by Syria to divert things. Its not clear to me whats behind the Pal refugee camp thing - Syria trying to create a diversion - or a deliberate attempt to build up the Leb Armys abilities by going after folks whod been there for awhile? If it was Syria, they sure backed a pathetic horse.
Now IF Syria tries to create a diversion by another Hezbo attack on Israel, and assuming that the UN and Leb forces are no barrier to that (not an implausible assumption, by any means) THEN Israel would have to consider a response. Clearly another halfbaked invasion like last year would be a mistake. The alts would be a more or less pin prick air only response, or a full ground invasion from the get go. You are correct that Olmert probably wont do the latter - I think less from a lack of cojones, than from internal political weakness.
OTOH, why then, does not Syria-Iran-Hezbo strike NOW, with Israel in its maximal state of political weakness, sure not to last?
A. To attack again with no provocation would alienate world opinion, esp in Europe (nah, even I dont buy this one)
B. The UN force/Leb Army troops in the South really would get in the way (more possible than most here think, IMO, and certainly more plausible than A)
C. Cause they are too preoccupied elsewhere, in Iraq, Gaza, etc. But why then pick a fight with the Leb Army by backing Fatah Islam, if they are really behind that?
D. Cause Hezb is weaker than it looks, and even a "pin prick" attack could be very painful, and Hezb doesnt want to play that game
E. Internal divisions in the Iranian regime are paralyzing them?
The branch of Hizbullah's construction arm created to oversee the rebuilding of the capital's battered southern suburbs said Thursday it would begin in June to restore the neighborhood to its state prior the Israeli bombardment last summer. A majority of residents in the four municipalities of the Dahiyeh have given the Waad (Promise) project, a subsidiary of Jihad al-Binaa, power of attorney over their properties, allowing the group to collect indemnity payments from the government on their behalf, design an urban planning scheme for the congested district and determine which Leb politicians to bribe architects and engineers to award building contracts to.
Waad general manager Hassan Jichi said the LL80 million ($53,000) of government compensation promised to owners of each destroyed apartment unit would not be enough to finance the construction of the 1.2 million square meters of built-up area damaged during war. Hizbullah and the Waad project plan to cover the remaining costs so that residents do not have to pay out of their own pockets, he said, without specifying the size of the gap in payments.
"Since people needed to return to their homes quickly, Hizbullah Secretary General Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah held meetings with the owners of 281 properties in need of rebuilding, and came up with two scenarios that honor the social conventions and common memory of Dahiyeh," Jichi said at a news conference held in Beirut Thursday morning. "I hope that the international donor countries and charities who have already expressed willingness to rebuild will give money to Waad," he said.
Based on the results of a questionnaire distributed to residents, Waad's seven-member advisory committee drafted an urban planning scheme that would allow structures to be rebuilt according to their pre-war dimensions, with the same layout. All of the new buildings will be carbon neutral and earthquake-resistant, contain underground parking lots, a two-door elevator, power generators, fire alarms and stables for all the new ponies facilities for the disabled, Jichi said. The zoning plan also calls for squares, public gardens and benches, which a Kuwaiti donor has already agreed to fund, he said.
"Did I mention the part about sending money? In small unmarked bills."
The objective, said architect Jack Khawam, a member of Waad, is "to beautify Dahiyeh, rather than change its identity because we want people to recognize their homes."
Indeed the Waad project has its own rebuilding philosophy, a Waad engineer told The Daily Star on condition of anonymity. "The people who live there wanted to go back to the same place they lived before, they want the same neighbors, the shops under their homes, everything," he said in a phone interview after the news conference. Some people did not even want problems in their homes to be addressed. One family had a problem with their balcony and they did not want to fix it. People insisted on having the same number of rooms and bathrooms, but we did make buildings more colorful."
Rahis Fayyad, a vocal critic of Solidere and a member of the Waad advisory panel, said residents wanted to retain the character of the Dahiyeh and avoid mimicking Solidere by increasing the amount of commercial space and building high-rises.
The government has been slow to deliver compensation, said Jichi. However, "the idea is that they should finance the rebuilding." Other private and government donors have also pledged to contribute money and building materials, he said, naming "Gulf states, Syria and Iran" and "even some European donors and Lebanese Christians."
"Operators are standing by!"
No contractors have been commissioned yet, and the panel is in the final stages of drafting the qualifications for companies to bid. But there will be no open tendering process, the source said. "They know we are rebuilding so they can come and submit a bid if they want," he said of regarding the manner in which contractors could participate.
#2
"Waad general manager Hassan Jichi said the LL80 million ($53,000) of government compensation promised to owners of each destroyed apartment unit would not be enough to finance the construction...(t)he government has been slow to deliver..." He said.
I guess that Jichi has shot his Waad.
#3
"Waad general manager Hassan Jichi said the LL80 million ($53,000) of government compensation promised to owners of each destroyed apartment unit would not be enough to finance the construction...(t)he government has been slow to deliver..." He said.
I guess that Jichi has shot his Waad.
Students at San Jose University disguise as soldiers, Palestinians at improvised checkpoint to condemn Israeli army's occupation of West Bank
On Israel's Independence Day this year, Max Grossman, an Art and Design lecturer at the University of San Jose in California, fell upon a giant wall built on campus by a student organization called Students for Change. The wall was meant to symbolize Israel's security fence in the West Bank. Students set up a checkpoint near the wall where fifty students posed as either Kaffiyeh-clad Palestinians or armed Israeli soldiers.
"I was in shock when I saw it," Grossman said. "I am 40, I learnt at Berkley and Colombia, places where numerous public protests took place, but I never saw something like this. They pretended questioning and torturing detainee." Students disguised as soldiers handcuffed, blindfolded and sometimes pretended to execute supposedly Palestinian civilians with their plastic rifles.
"It was like seeing a play," said Andrew Schwartz, a student at the university. He said students playing soldiers shouted slogans like "Shut up or I shoot you," "You won't see your family today," and "Don't speak."
Schwartz added that some female students disguised as pregnant Palestinian women who were shot by students acting as soldiers for disobeying orders at the improvised checkpoint.
'Free Palestine' and 'End Israel's apartheid' were among the slogans that could be read on the wall. Some students called on the US to end its financial support to Israel.
Jewish students staged a counter protest wearing shirts reading: "If I were a suicide bomber, you would be dead."
Grossman tried to have a conversation with a couple of students disguised a soldiers but to no avail. "They said they did not have to speak to me. They did not want dialogue as they had an agenda," Grossman said.
After the protest, Jewish students pushed for new campus regulations making it more difficult for students to hold protests.
#2
Why was this tolerated on campus ? Which administrator approved this ? He should be hauled up and terminated immediately for stupidity. If no permission was given, where were campus police ?
#3
"They pretended questioning and torturing detainee."
But were they using the Al Quaeda manual that came out the other day? Or are they still using the old-fashioned 'panties-on-head' techniques? After all, torture is torture, right?
#4
The university is described both as "San Jose University" and "the University of San Jose". It is neither. It is San Jose State University. It's important to get these things right.
#6
someone should go through the "checkpoint" with a fake bomb -- maybe a water balloon that explodes. It should get all those "oppressive Israeli soldiers" completely soaked. And when it does explode, they should scream "allah akbar!"
Then count everyone who is wet and call it a triumph for the cause!
#7
I thought this was kinda lame. They really wanted to make an impression, they could've had some "mysterious device" blow up in some 10 year old's face or at least have somebody shot in the feet a couple of times, preferably by his own weapon. Maybe kidnap the president of the university for a couple of hours...
#8
Less than two years ago a Palestinian woman was intercepted while trying to blow a maternity. Only sick, repugnant people can be on the side of Palestinians.
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.
The US is increasingly concerned about Chinas deployment of mobile land and sea-based ballistic nuclear missiles that have the range to hit the US, according to people familiar with an imminent Pentagon report on Chinas military.
WARSAW, Poland (AP) - Negotiators voiced optimism Thursday that they could reach agreement for Poland to host part of a U.S. missile defense system. A Polish official said a deal could come in the next several months. ``This meeting today brings optimism to us because many of our observations and reflections are shared and were responded to by our American partners,'' said Polish deputy foreign minister Witold Waszczykowski. ``Poland shares many of America's assessments of global threats,'' Waszczykowski said. ``Combatting missile programs deserves Poland's full attention.''
WASHINGTON - Courting the anti-war constituency, Democratic presidential rivals Hillary Rodham Clinton and Barack Obama both voted against legislation that pays for the Iraq war but lacks a timeline for troop withdrawal. On a vote of 80-14, the Senate cleared the measure and sent it to President Bush.
Sen. Christopher Dodd of Connecticut, who also voted against the legislation, was among the Democratic candidates calling for rejection of it, along with former Sen. John Edwards of North Carolina and New Mexico Gov. Bill Richardson.
WASHINGTON (AP) - Bowing to President Bush, the Democratic-controlled House reluctantly approved fresh billions for the Iraq war on Thursday, minus the troop withdrawal timeline that drew his earlier veto. The 280-142 vote sent the bill to the Senate for final passage, expected later in the evening.
In a highly unusual maneuver, 
BAGHDAD - Radical Shiite cleric Muqtada al-Sadr appeared in 
Day after end of deadline to halt uranium enrichment and in light of possibility of additional sanctions, Ahmadinejad says 'sanctions will hurt Western countries more than they will hurt us' 
TEHRAN, Iran (AP) - Iran's hard-line president warned Israel on Thursday that other nations in the region would "uproot" the Jewish state if it attacked Lebanon in the summer.
The branch of Hizbullah's construction arm created to oversee the rebuilding of the capital's battered southern suburbs said Thursday it would begin in June to restore the neighborhood to its state prior the Israeli bombardment last summer. A majority of residents in the four municipalities of the Dahiyeh have given the Waad (Promise) project, a subsidiary of Jihad al-Binaa, power of attorney over their properties, allowing the group to collect indemnity payments from the government on their behalf, design an urban planning scheme for the congested district and determine which 
