The United States is "not satisfied" with the level of support it is receiving from NATO members in Afghanistan, US Defense Secretary Robert Gates said Monday ahead of a meeting of NATO defence ministers. "I am not satisfied that an alliance with members who have over two million soldiers, sailors, marines and airmen cannot find the modest additional resources that have been committed for Afghanistan," Gates told journalists during a trip to Kiev. The resources in question were committed at a NATO summit in Riga in November 2006, he said.
"I intend to pursue this in our meetings in the Netherlands" on Wednesday and Thursday with NATO defence ministers. "This will be clearly the principal theme" of the meeting, he said.
Gates was speaking after a meeting in Kiev of the Southeastern European Defence Ministerial, a body made up of the defence ministers of several country's in the region.
#1
As my Belgian brother in law once told me "NATO is the US" period. You can't embarrass the French, Germans, Spainards or old Europe into to doing more. They are incapable and lack the will. If I was an American GI in Afghanistan the last thing I would want is some "laizze-faire" Euro-soldier watching my back.
Posted by: Jack is Back! ||
10/22/2007 11:35 Comments ||
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#4
I've seen some NATO "soldiers" and airmen (non-US) on this installation the past few weeks. Few of them inspired a great deal of confidence, at least as far as personal appearance and fitness goes.
#5
European NATO soldiers range from the excellent to the pathetic. In my last assignment in Germany, I dealt a lot with NATO headquarters. Before that, I was in a tac unit that hosted NATO combattants from time to time. Some of the troops I dealt with were the equal to our Army - the Italian mountain troops, the Norweigan alpine troops, and some of the Germans. The Dutch intelligence folks (Dutch Air Force) were also top-notch, as were some of the Germans. The Belgian enlisted were were worthless, and the French officer we hosted wasn't anything to write home about. The Spanish have some excellent troops, but lousy leadership. The Portuguese are very good, but insular. During my tour, the Poles, Hungarians, etc., were on the other side...
The "end" of the Cold War was a signal for the Europeans to cut their military spending even more, probably far too soon (just as Bill Clinton's gutting of the US military was a gross mistake). With the US heavily engaged in Iraq and Afghanistan, Europe is going to have to pony up for its own defense, and the Russian bear is growling again. Having some combat-experienced troops who have rotated through Iraq and Afghanistan would be a major plus for them, but I doubt they will be able to see that.
Posted by: Old Patriot ||
10/22/2007 13:34 Comments ||
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#6
Afghanistan is an excellent mission, just enough to get yer feet wet. Kosovo is a lounge chair. I do not see why military commanders in NATO would not want to get some salt time here. Gates is right.
SEOUL - North Korea will likely start disabling its nuclear facilities as early as next week under a key agreement signed in early October, an unidentified South Korean official told Yonhap News Agency on Monday.
"We expect the disabling of the North's nuclear facilities to start as early as next week," the official was quoted as saying.
In a joint statement released at the end of the six-party talks on Oct. 3, North Korea pledged to disable three key facilities in Yongbyon and declare all its nuclear programs by year's end.
The facilities are a 5-megawatt experimental nuclear reactor, a spent- fuel reprocessing facility and a nuclear fuel fabrication plant.
The six-party talks, involving the two Koreas, the United States, China, Japan and Russia, are aimed at ending the North Korea's nuclear weapons programs.
A team of U.S. nuclear experts, led by Sung Kim, director of the U.S. State Department's Office of Korea Affairs, wrapped up a visit to North Korea's main nuclear complex at Yongbyon last week to discuss details for disablement of the nuclear facilities there.
#1
NORKOR are accusing SOKORS of illegal naval penetration of NK boundary lines - NK accusation comes shortly after SK News Op-eds reminding Sk citizens that NK has often violated the maritime/naval boundaries of SK.
#3
Dammit. I had a mouthful of coffee when that graphic popped up. Where are the paper towels?
If the NKors need help dismantling their nuke facilities, I suggest subcontracting the work to the Israelis who apparently have recent experience in the field.
Benazir Bhutto plans to purge the intelligence services of hundreds of rogue agents suspected of supporting Islamic terrorism if she becomes prime minister again.
In a move that puts her on a collision course with the nation's most powerful institutions, Bhutto said Pakistan's security services had to become "professional" agencies free from political agendas.
Foremost in her sights if she returns to power will be the notorious Inter Services Intelligence, the secretive "state within the state" that is blamed for orchestrating much of the terrorist violence convulsing Pakistan and neighbouring Afghanistan.
Many suspect it of providing financial and logistical assistance to al-Qaeda and the Taliban, the prime suspects in the suicide bombing that killed 140 people during her homecoming parade in Karachi on Thursday.
Bhutto said on Saturday: "I have strong reservations about some of the people still operating within the intelligence services, and we need reforms to get rid of them."
She spoke out as Pakistani authorities said they had detained three men for questioning over the attack, and a police investigator said investigators had also quizzed seven militants in jails in Karachi for possible information on the blasts.
On Saturday, a source close to the investigation disclosed that they thought the bomber had been chosen for the job because of his close physical resemblance to many of Bhutto's security staff.
Posted by: Fred ||
10/22/2007 00:00 ||
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[5 views]
Top|| File under: ISI
#1
Good luck with that one, Benazir. That idea will make you a real boom magnet. The ISI hard boyz will not go down without a fight.
Posted by: Alaska Paul ||
10/22/2007 0:32 Comments ||
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#8
I recall from high school biology class that women don't have balls, so she must not be a woman. That should remove the biggest reason for the Muslim threats against her.
#10
You can't get rid of the ISI just like they never got rid of the KGB in Russia. They would just morph into something unofficial looking and may end up running the country (ala Russia). Nope you need to more subtle. Make their clients suspcious of them, for example. Try to get someone to spill the beans on Binny and then blame it on a mole in the ISI. Make the rats start to eat each other.
Posted by: Jack is Back! ||
10/22/2007 11:39 Comments ||
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#11
I recall from high school biology class that women don't have balls, so she must not be a woman.
If Pakis had any balls they would retaliate by torching madrassas and hanging on sight anyone wearing "islamic dress". Oh and they would reject islam. Instead they prefer to kow-tow to their Arab masters: there are even some politicians who advocate shifting from Urdu to Arabic. Their balls must be made from anti-matter.
I recall from math class that 0 > negative number so Benazir (zero balls) has more than any Pakistani man.
One of the few viable solutions, yet problematic at best. There's waaaaay to many rats. Pakistan is Islam-the-Model. It is what we should expect every Muslim majority nation to evolve into, Afghanistan and Iraq included.
(PTI) Three Pakistan-based top militants of Lashkar-e-Taiba have set up high-altitude camps in Pir Panjal ranges to train cubs of the outfit in the use of improvised explosive devices to target VIPs, the army said today. A "secret arms training camp" was set up in Jadanwali area Rajouri district but the militants escaped into a thick forested area when Rashtriya Rifles troops raided the hideout, Military Intelligence officials said here.
They said Abdul Sakib code-named Alfa one, Abdu Adil and Abu Baiday alais Noor gave a demonstration to a batch of around 15 militants on various facets of IEDs. "The militants are avoiding direct conflict with the army troops and police due to casualty figures among their cadres and considering their top leadership has been eliminated this year," the officials said.
The militant outfit had opted for increasing use of IEDs to target VIPs and security forces to inflict maximum casualties and take minimum risks, they added.
This article starring:
Lashkar-e-Taiba
Abdu Adil
Lashkar-e-Taiba
Abdul Sakib
Lashkar-e-Taiba
Abu Baiday alais Noor
Lashkar-e-Taiba
Posted by: Fred ||
10/22/2007 00:00 ||
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Link ||
[6 views]
Top|| File under: Lashkar e-Taiba
(PTI) Former prime minister Nawaz Sharif has bowed to pressure from Saudia Arabia and the US to defer his return to Pakistan from exile till November 7, a media report said today. Sharif, who was deported to Saudi Arabia barely hours after he flew into Islamabad after seven years in exile on September 10, has given his word that he will not leave Saudi Arabia till November 7 and asked Pakistani and Saudi officials not to compel him to defer his homecoming any longer, The News reported.
The daily said Saad Hariri, the son of assassinated Lebanese prime minister Rafik Hariri and Prince Bandar bin Sultan of Saudi Arabia, convinced Sharif in Jeddah on October 17 to put off his return to Pakistan. It quoted sources in the Pakistan High Commission in London as saying that Sharif "had no option" but to bow to pressure from Saudi Arabia and the US, mounted on behalf of President Pervez Musharraf.
Pakistan's Supreme Court, which had said that Sharif is free to return to the country, is currently hearing a contempt petition filed by his PML-N party after he was deported to Saudi Arabia last month. Hariri played a "key role" in finalising an understanding between the Sharif family and Pakistan's military regime in 2000 and is believed to be very close to Musharraf, the report said. While visiting Sharif in Jeddah on Tuesday, he was accompanied by Prince Bandar, the former Saudi ambassador to the US. They asked Sharif to postpone his plan to leave Saudi Arabia for two to three weeks.
This article starring:
Nawaz Sharif
Prince Bandar bin Sultan
Rafik Hariri
Saad Hariri
Posted by: Fred ||
10/22/2007 00:00 ||
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[7 views]
Top|| File under: Govt of Pakistan
#1
he's just itching to get back and stir things up, isn't he? I expect an accident in his future
Posted by: Frank G ||
10/22/2007 7:23 Comments ||
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(PTI) The suicide bomber who targetted former Pakistani premier Benazir Bhutto's motorcade was reportedly armed with a device having about 15 kg of explosives and thousand of pellets leaving a trail of death snuffing out lives of 139 persons.
A senior security official told the Dawn newspaper on condition of anonymity that the suicide bomber had been part of a suspicious-looking group of men, some of whom had been seen holding sticks. This group had been spotted by a policeman standing under a flyover in the Karsaz area of Karachi, where Bhutto's armoured truck was targeted. Before the policeman could approach the group, the men melted into the huge crowd.
"These men were distinguishable from the rest of the crowd because they were wearing white salwar kameez and did not appear to be enjoying the music and joy of the occasion," the security official was quoted as saying.
Posted by: Fred ||
10/22/2007 00:00 ||
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[7 views]
Top|| File under: al-Qaeda
#3
A few more hundred attacks like this and maybe one or two Pakistanis will begin to protest this shit. Nah! Who am I kidding? Needless death is just so very Islamic.
(PTI) US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice today telephoned former Pakistani premier Benazir Bhutto and expressed sympathy over the loss of lives in the suicide attack on her rally in Karachi. Rice, who has played a key role in facilitating secret parleys between the Pakistan People's Party leader and embattled President Pervez Musharraf, said she was heartened that Bhutto escaped the assassination attempt.
Rice also condemned the attack and expressed sympathies with the bereaved families, said a brief statement from the PPP. Nearly 140 people were killed and hundreds injured in Friday's attack on Bhutto's convoy.
Posted by: Fred ||
10/22/2007 00:00 ||
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[5 views]
Top|| File under: Govt of Pakistan
#1
Lovely! Now go ahead and "condemn" your Palestinian pals Condo, they've been at this sort of thing with Israel for decades.
#3
I wonder if Rice's song might change if she narrowly escaped a bombing attack? Mind you, I wish her ZERO harm but I'm still obliged to think that one or two close calls at the hands of those she continues to empower might erode her badly misplaced support for these sand-loving Nazis.
(PTI) In the first ever case of Narco-terrorism in the country, money-starved Lashker-e-Taiba miltiants are smuggling in high quality narcotics particularly heroin from Afghanistan and Paksitan to fund their activities in Jammu and Kashmir.
Confirming this, Deputy Inspector General (DIG), Doda-Ramban-Kishtwar range, Farooq Khan told PTI that a consignment of the purest form of heroin (a999 greade), manufactured in Afghanistan and packaged in Pakistan with an international market value of Rs 1.50 crore were recovered from two persons in Bhaderwah belt of Doda district today. The preliminary tests carried at local Forensic Science Labortory (FSL) confirmed that it was the purest form of heroin, he said.
Packed in triple packs with the marking manufactured in Afghanistan and packed in Pakistan, heroin was given by a LeT Over Ground Worker of Thatri to two persons - Abdul Khalid (tailor) and Tahir Hussain (cable operator) for selling it in the market in Bhaderwah. Both of them were arrested and preliminary interrogations revealed that the LeT OGW had given it to them for selling it and reutrning him the cash. "Bhaderwah does not have hard drug comsumers nor is it close to Indo-Pak border. That points to one thing that money starved LeT militants of Pakistani origin are carrying drugs from across and selling it here to get cash+, DIG said.
Police recently busted several Hawala rackets and drug networks and recovered over Rs 8 lakh in cash, several kgs of heroin and sim-cards and mobile over the past one month in Jammu division. A total of over 32 kgs of heroin were recovered in Jammu region including the biggest haul of 25 kgs from R S Pura border town of Jammu district near Indo-Pak border this year.
This article starring:
Abdul Khalid
Lashker-e-Taiba
Farooq Khan
Tahir Hussain
Lashker-e-Taiba
Posted by: Fred ||
10/22/2007 00:00 ||
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[6 views]
Top|| File under: Lashkar e-Taiba
Former Pakistani premier Benazir Bhutto Sunday visited hospitals to meet those wounded in last week's devastating suicide attack that turned her homecoming parade into bloody carnage. Bhutto was flanked by heavy security carrying automatic weapons as she made her first public outing since Thursday's blasts in Karachi, which killed 139 people and ruined her planned triumphant return after eight years in exile.
She waved to dozens of supporters upon leaving Jinnah Hospital after she handed out envelopes containing 5,000 rupees ($84) to the injured and thanked staff for treating them. "My wounds were healed when I met Benazir Bhutto, it was the biggest thing in my life. I feel no pain now," Imran Ally, hit in the leg and chest by metal debris from the blasts, said.
Bhutto, the first female leader of an Islamic nation, later reiterated calls for a full investigation into the suicide attack, the worst in Pakistan's history, which also left 400 people wounded.
Posted by: Fred ||
10/22/2007 00:00 ||
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[7 views]
Top|| File under: al-Qaeda
It is hoped that representatives of the Taliban and former Afghan prime minister Gulbuddin Hikmatyar Khan will attend the next jirga, MNA Munir Khan Orakzai told Gulf Times on Wednesday, referring to the Pak-Afghan jirga scheduled for November.
He said credible sources had indicated that the Taliban and other militant groups were ready to sit down and talk. He said a lasting solution to the growing menace of Talibanisation could only be achieved after taking all concerned parties, including the Taliban, into confidence.
He said the locals in the Tribal Areas of Pakistan were responding favourably to the application of democratic principles in the region. He said the common man in Pakistan usually resorts to parallel systems such as jirgas for speedy justice because the judicial system in Pakistan is painstakingly slow and the police are a cultural villain.
This article starring:
Gulbuddin Hikmatyar Khan
Munir Khan Orakzai
Posted by: Fred ||
10/22/2007 00:00 ||
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[7 views]
Top|| File under: Taliban
#5
Pakistan is a problem for all of us. It is a problem for whoever gets elected in November 2008. Wakiland is a problem for the West. Iran is trying to get nuclear weapons, Pakistan already has them thanks to A.Q. Khan. Islamofacists armed with nuclear weapons in Pakistan--a disturbing thought.
Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam-Fazl (JUI-F) chief Maulana Fazlur Rehman said on Sunday the Muttahida Majlis-e-Amal (MMA) would remain intact though he was unhappy with the attitude of the Jamaat-e-Islami leadership. Well present our demands and reservations in the upcoming MMA supreme council meeting. We have great respect for MMA leaders despite all differences, he told a JUI Peshawar chapter meeting here.
MMA supreme council meeting delayed: Fazl said the MMA supreme council meeting was scheduled for October 22, but it had been delayed because of Qazi Hussain Ahmeds illness. We are in contact to set a new date, he said.
He said his party had called a meeting of its central majlis-e-shoora on October 24 and 25 to decide whether or not the JUI-F should quit the All Parties Democratic Movement. The majlis-e-shoora will also discuss ways and means to get rid of dictatorship, he added. Fazl told reporters after the JUI-F meeting that the government had failed to restore peace in the tribal areas. He asked the government to withdraw troops from the tribal region.
This article starring:
Jamaat-e-Islami
Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam-Fazl
Muttahida Majlis-e-Amal
Maulana Fazlur Rehman
Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam-Fazl
Posted by: Fred ||
10/22/2007 00:00 ||
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Link ||
[7 views]
Top|| File under: Muttahida Majlis-e-Amal
#1
I suggest calling this type of headgear "Ragtop"
I have dishrags just like that at home.
Posted by: Redneck Jim ||
10/22/2007 14:26 Comments ||
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#1
See also COUNTERRORISM BLOG. Kurds claiming to had taken Turkic troops hostage, + FREEREPUBLIC asks is a Turkish invasion of Kurdish areas imminent, Turks had shelled Kurdish villages???
Iraq's president said Sunday Baghdad would be unable to hand over Kurdish rebel leaders to Turkey as the crisis over the Iraq-based fighters intensified with the killing of 12 Turkish soldiers. "The handing over of PKK [Kurdistan Workers' Party] leaders to Turkey is a dream that will never be realized," Jalal Talabani, himself a Kurd, told a news conference in Arbil, the capital of Iraq's autonomus Kurdish region.
Iraq would be unable to succeed where the Turkish military had failed, he suggested. "PKK's leaders are in Kurdistan's rugged mountains. The Turkish military with its mightiness could not annihilate them or arrest them, so how could we arrest them and hand them to Turkey?" he asked. "Handing over Kurdish leaders is a dream which would not come true."
His remarks, made alongside the president of Iraq's autonomous Kurdish region, Massoud Barzani, came as Ankara announced that 12 soldiers had been killed in clashes in southeastern Turkey that also left 23 rebels dead. A Kurdish rebel leader also said that Turkish soldiers had been captured after fierce fighting in the Iraqi border area. No further details were immediately available.
Parliament in Ankara Wednesday approved a motion authorizing military strikes for a one-year period against PKK rebels, ethnic Kurds who use northern Iraq as a springboard for attacks across the border in Turkey. A motion carried by a large majority in the Iraqi parliament Sunday condemned the decision by its Turkish counterpart, but urged the PKK fighters to leave the country. "The parliament calls on PKK fighters to leave Iraqi territories and ask the Iraqi government to take the required measures to stop PKK activities being launched from Iraqi territories," the motion said.
A parliamentary motion condemning the Turkish threat was approved by 183 lawmakers of the 275-member national assembly. "Iraq's parliament unanimously votes to condemn the threat of using force to solve the dispute. It feels that the Turkish parliament's decision to use force does not boost bilateral relations," the motion said.
The parliament urged the government in Ankara to be "wise and work in coordination with the Iraqi government in order to deal with the crisis." It also rejected attacks by Kurdish rebels from Iraqi territory against neighboring countries.
In Ankara, Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan said Turkey's top government and military leaders would meet Sunday night with President Abdullah Gul to discuss the response to the latest rebel attack. The Turkish army has already sent additional troops to the region following the attack in which PKK rebels allegedly ambushed an infantry platoon.
Erdogan Friday urged the Iraqi government to close "once and for all" the PKK camps, but judged "positive" recent vows by Baghdad to do so. "What would satisfy us is the closure of all the PKK camps, including their training camps and the handover of their terrorist leaders," he was quoted as saying by the Anatolia news agency.
He also said that Iraqi Prime Minister Nuri Al Maliki had proposed joint action to crack down on the PKK rebels. "Maliki confirmed the following thing: that if there was no result from the talks, we would carry out this operation together," Erdogan said.
Ankara claims that some 3,500 PKK fighters have found refuge in Iraqi Kurdistan and are tolerated or even actively supported by Iraqi Kurdish leaders - a charge they strongly deny. The PKK has waged a bloody campaign for Kurdish self-rule in southeast Turkey since 1984. The conflict has claimed more than 37,000 lives.
Posted by: Fred ||
10/22/2007 00:00 ||
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[3 views]
Top|| File under:
#1
Iraqi Prime Minister Nuri Al Maliki had proposed joint action to crack down on the PKK rebels. "Maliki confirmed the following thing: that if there was no result from the talks, we would carry out this operation together
Could get bloody and a problem for the U.S. Be sure to hand out score cards so everyone can tell the PKK from indigenous peaceful Kurds. I keep typing PPK--guess I'm thinking of Walther PPK.
GAZA CITY - Hospitals throughout Gaza have shut down their operating rooms due to a lack of essential anaesthetic drugs, the de- facto Hamas administration in the Strip said.
It's a shame. Any reality testing here? Any understanding of cause and effect? Nope? Didn't think so.
Khaled Radi, a spokesman for the Hamas-led Health Ministry, said that a mediator company had informed them that Israel did not allow delivery of nitrous oxide, used as anesthetic in surgery operations. There were 44 cylinders in stock and 42 of them have been used so far. We have begun using the remaining two cylinders since Thursday and they will run out any time, Radi said.
The ministry has sent urgent appeals to several organizations to intervene, including the World Health Organization (WHO), warning that thousands of patients are in danger. Radi accused Israel of violating international law by threatening the lives of patients.
Always humorous to listen to a Paleo complaining about violations of international law. What about the use of Red Cross ambulances to run guns and ammo?
Israel declared Gaza hostile territory last month, a response to the violent takeover of the Strip by the radical Islamic Hamas movement and its failure to stop near-daily rocket attacks from the area at southern Israeli towns and villages.
It has since further tightened its closure on the Strip. Between October 12-17, it allowed the transfer of 114 people needing urgent medical treatment in Israel outside the Gaza Strip, the health ministry said. But it prevented the transfer of 30 other patients, citing security reasons, the ministry said.
Can't trust the ambulances and the ambulance drivers. Makes it hard to move patients.
In a report published Saturday, Human Rights Watch of course said that three Gaza patients have died because they were denied exit permits by Israel, while others have lost limbs or sight. The human rights group accused the Israeli Shin Bet internal security organization of giving clearance on an arbitrary basis, and Israel of punishing sick civilians as a way to hurt Hamas.
Not a word about the Paleos killing Israelis, of course, or ambulances used to run guns.
Posted by: Steve White ||
10/22/2007 00:00 ||
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[4 views]
Top|| File under:
#1
Israel owes you nothing but a fast run into the sea.
#4
I read on JPost that the problem is the Israelis are unwilling for the empty cylinders to approach the border as they might be packed with explosives.
#5
Maybe their buddies in Iran or Afghanistan can spare a little of their opiates? Or do they need to put it all out onto the international street to make enough money to please Allan?
#6
There is probably a doctor shortage also since many of them are turning jihadist in Great Britain. O.K. Paleos, what did you do with the money that was supposed to be used for humanitarium purposes; medicine and food and such? Huh? The phrase comes to mind: You made your own bed, now lay in it you boneheads.
Posted by: Frank G ||
10/22/2007 8:17 Comments ||
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#8
Bethlehem Ma'an Spokesperson of the Israeli liaison department at Erez Crossing, between Israel and the Gaza Strip, on Monday denied allegations that the Israeli authorities have prevented the entry of vital nitrous oxide gas needed for surgeries in Gaza.
The spokesperson said, "On Sunday afternoon the liaison coordinator of the Palestinian Authority came to us to ask that gas for surgery is permitted to enter and his request was approved immediately.
"Vehicles loaded with gas passed through Erez Crossing on Monday into the Gaza Strip."
He added, "Unfortunately the Palestinians informed us about the urgent need for gas at the last moment, after the depletion of their reserve."
Spokesperson of the de facto Palestinian Health Ministry in Gaza Khalid Radi refuted the claim of the Israeli liaison spokesperson, stating that gas has not been permitted to enter Gaza for the surgery rooms and that the depletion of nitrous oxide is severely endangering medical patients.
#10
They got Sharia, what the hell are they moanin for now?
Posted by: Herman Whinens3252 ||
10/22/2007 17:09 Comments ||
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#11
Gosh, you Paleos have really *bleep*ed yourselves with that clever trick of using ambulances to run fighters and weapons. Is that the sound of tiny wing beats I hear in the distance? Why, its the chickens coming home to roost!
Medical Question: isn't nitrous oxide a little lightweight as a surgical anesthetic? Or is it used in conjunction with something else?
#12
Why is everything in Gaza always Israel's fault? Gaza has a border with Egypt. Why not ship the stuff in from there. Most of the weapons and ammo come in that way anyway.
Besides, nitrous oxide from Israel would have Jooooooooo cooties on it, and so would be haram.
Hamas's violent takeover of Gaza in June was a "serious strategic mistake," a former Hamas government spokesman wrote in a scathing letter posted on a Web site affiliated with Hamas' political rival, Fatah.
It is unusual for Hamas members to go public with internal disagreements, and it was not immediately clear whether the five-page letter by the former spokesman, Ghazi Hamad, was intended for publication. Hamad could not be reached for comment Sunday.
He stepped down from his post after Hamas defeated Fatah-allied security forces in Gaza in a week of fighting this summer. Hamad stayed on as a consultant to the head of the Gaza government, Hamas Prime Minister Ismail Haniyeh.
In the letter, Hamad wrote that Hamas paid a high price for the takeover of Gaza, including increasing international isolation and even tighter economic sanctions. "I think what Hamas resorted to - the military resolution in Gaza - was not justified," he wrote. "I consider it a serious strategic mistake that burdened the movement with more than it can bear. True, it resolved a security problem, but it created a thousand political problems that we didn't need," he wrote. Hamas "became isolated, besieged, in a narrow strip (Gaza). The grip increased, the closure tightened, and people's suffering increased."
In a sign of his despair, Hamad wrote: "Oh God!! Where did we get to and where does this lead us? What catastrophe awaits us?"
Hamad has become increasingly distant from the group's official stance. Last week, he said Hamas had no objections to negotiating with Israel if it was in the interests of Palestinians. The group quickly disavowed Hamad's statement, saying he only spoke for himself; Hamas refuses to recognize Israel or negotiate with it.
This article starring:
Ghazi Hamad
Hamas
Ismail Haniyeh
Hamas
Posted by: Fred ||
10/22/2007 00:00 ||
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[4 views]
Top|| File under: Hamas
#1
A mistake?
A mistake was you took that land with no authority at all. You just thought it was yours. To me it is no mans land. My advice, leave it immediately. It should be deserted of all people. For rodents, vultures, and creepy crawling things.
Members of the cell that plotted to assassinate Prime Minister Ehud Olmert were arrested again two weeks ago and are now in custody, Palestinian Authority Prime Minister Salaam Fayad said Sunday in Jerusalem. Earlier, Fayad said that the suspects were released due to a lack of evidence after three months in custody.
Posted by: Fred ||
10/22/2007 00:00 ||
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[4 views]
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#1
Let's try releasing them as a good will gesture.
Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad on Monday praised growing economic and political cooperation with Armenia, shoring up closer ties with the ex-Soviet republic on Iran's northern border. "We consider our neighbourly relations with Armenia to be very important and a means of strengthening security and stability" in the region, Ahmadinejad said after meeting his Armenian counterpart, Robert Kocharian, on the first day of a two-day visit here.
The presidents announced the opening of a new highway linking the two countries and plans to build a cross-border railroad. They also said they had discussed joint projects to build an oil refinery, a hydroelectric power plant and wind power stations along the border.
"We will decisively and quickly realize joint programmes on the establishment of major infrastructure projects," Ahmadinejad said. "This is in the interest of our two countries and the region as a whole."
Kocharian said the new railway was in the planning stages and praised new transportation links as a chance to "increase the flow of goods between our two countries."
Landlocked Armenia has sought closer links with Iran because of an economic blockade imposed by neighbours Azerbaijan and Turkey over the disputed Nagorny Karabakh region, as well as Armenia's efforts to gain international recognition of Ottoman-era mass killings of Armenians as genocide.
Backed by Armenia, ethnic Armenians seized control of Nagorny Karabakh during a bloody war in the early 1990s that left thousands dead and forced nearly a million people on both sides to flee their homes.
In March, Kocharian and Ahmadinejad inaugurated a 150-kilometre (93-mile) pipeline that will deliver 36 billion cubic metres (1.27 trillion cubic feet) of gas from Iran to Armenia over 20 years. Armenia will pay for the gas with electricity it produces at a Soviet-era nuclear plant.
The United States has raised concerns about Armenia's growing ties with Iran, with the top US diplomat in Yerevan saying in June that the country should participate in international sanctions aimed at convincing Iran to halt its nuclear programme.
Ahmadinejad, who has caused outrage by saying the Holocaust is a "myth," was scheduled on Tuesday to visit a memorial to victims of the Ottoman massacres of Armenians between 1915 and 1917. Ahmadinejad was also scheduled Tuesday to visit Yerevan's Blue Mosque and to meet with members of the Iranian community here.
#2
Not smart, Aram. Short term gain, long term pain.
I know, being landlocked between Turkie, Iran, Azerbaijan and Georgia is not that great, but te southern direction is the most problematic.
Not really. Armenia has made a bet that Iran is the strong horse and they're probably correct. Even if Nutjob and the Mullahs are thrown out, Iran will still be the regional power with the most clout.
#4
Think you nailed it, Nimble. Armenia, Russia, and Iran have had a strategic axis of extremely odd bedfellows for some time. All explained fairly simply by geography and arrangement of respective enemies. Yerevan's cold in winter when there's no gas or electricity - and Armenia's external sources of both pass through the respectively hostile Azerbaijan and unreliable/unstable Georgia.
Due to all of this Armenia has had a peculiarly strategic position in the Russia-Iran axis since the early 90s, and I've always wondered how/whether we've used our extensive and interesting ties with Armenia to penetrate both ways in that axis. If I had the slightest fear that our folks had exploited this, sadly, I wouldn't think to mention it .... but, well, you know.
Geez, they can't even snowjob this guy anymore...
The timeline for an Iranian nuclear weapon was three to eight years, Army Radio quoted IAEA chief Mohamed ElBaradei as saying in an interview with the French Le Monde Monday.
"I cannot judge their intentions, but I can assume that Iran is indeed interested in obtaining a nuclear bomb," ElBaradei said. Thanks for all the help, Mo. Why don't you go shine your Nobel Peace Prize...
#3
I'd appreciate it if someone with some knowledge would explain this to me:
The US, in a time of war, took four years and many dollars to develop the Bomb. We had to invent the theory, the engineering and the knowledge base as we went, and it took four years.
The Iranians today want a Bomb. They know the theory, they understand in broad outlines the engineering, and they have a key advantage -- at the end, whatever they build should go kaboom. What they're developing is the practical engineering (how to make the right centrifuges, etc) and the knowledge base in their people.
The Iranians seem to be pretty dedicated to this, and money appears to be no object. And they've been at it for a while, perhaps a long while.
So why should I believe El-Baradei when he guesstimates, 'three to eight years'?
Sure seems to me that the Iranians could move along as quickly as they solve their engineering problems and accumulate sufficient U235 (corrected, Aos) to make a kaboom. And I wonder if they could do that more quickly than three years.
Guess we'll find out the hard way, huh.
Posted by: Steve White ||
10/22/2007 14:19 Comments ||
Top||
#4
the first letter in IAEA doesn't stand for International in El-Baradei's mind
Posted by: Frank G ||
10/22/2007 14:35 Comments ||
Top||
#5
The translations from Urdu into Korean, then Damascene Arabic and finally into Farsi take a long, long time.
#7
A fission bomb will require weapons grade U235 to make a boom on the ground. To make one deliverable on top of a missile will take Pu239, because of weight considerations. Making missile deliverable weapons takes some extremely precise machining of bomb elements, from the plutonium core to the explosive lens. It is not easy. If the fissile material is available to buy, then that is one large hurdle. I wonder how much technology the Iranians can get from the Russians, either the govt, or *ahem* freelancers. The Iranians have the money to buy the parts and the talent.
Posted by: Alaska Paul ||
10/22/2007 17:22 Comments ||
Top||
#8
"I cannot judge their intentions, but I can assume that Iran is indeed interested in obtaining a nuclear bomb," ElBaradei said.
Waitaminnit. Isn't this the same dingaling who said, only a few weeks back, that he was certain Iran's nuclear intentions were peaceful? I'm sure I recall a RB article or two to that effect.
Shit. Take off and nuke the site from orbit. It's the only way to be sure.
Posted by: Dave D. ||
10/22/2007 17:42 Comments ||
Top||
#9
RUSSIA + ISRAEL claim in approxi one yarn, and thats exclusive of the Russ claiming on the Net a while back that Iran may already have nuke bombs [battlefield/tactical]. As during the Cold War, the risk to the US-NATO/West stems not only from the indigenous efforts of hostile nations, but from covert + immediate Commie Bloc transfers to such during any US-USSR/Bloc regional-global confrontation.
#11
Alaska Paul,
I believe spherical implosion fission bombs (Nagasaki design) can be made just fine with U235 instead of Pu239. (I'm no nuclear physicist but I saw one in a movie one time.) It is true that that design is the one that can be scaled down to fit easily into a small missile warhead or artillery shell - but the smaller you make it, the harder it is. No tolerance for machining error, contaminants, or fusing/triggering mistakes or mis-designs (my guess is Kim's fizzle was this type.) The gun barrel Hiroshima design is straightforward (relatively speaking) - which is why it was deployed without testing (unlike the Trinity/Nagasaki version) - but it is hard to make lightweight (as far as I know.)
I snatched a Hezbollah flag the yellow banner with the green fist and rifle from one of the enemy's strongholds in Lebanon recently. And when I say stronghold, I literally mean a strong, heavily defended battle position where the Lebanese Army and police dare not enter, and I had to enter covertly.
Kathryn[ Jean Lopez, NR Editor,] knows about it. I'm pretty sure she thinks I'm nuts. I'm also pretty sure she might be right. But I did it for two reasons:
First, in my often flawed logic I figured that if the terrorists caught me taking the flag, they would as expressed by a former Christian militiaman who was with me at the time cut my head (meaning cut my head off). But the way I saw it, they would cut my American head if they caught me flag or no flag anyway.
Second, I hate those guys. Hezbollah, you'll remember, murdered 241 of my brothers when they blew up the Marine barracks in Beirut in 1983 when I was just a wee-rifleman in the Corps. The enemy stronghold where I snatched the flag was not far from the site of the bombing.
Of course, because there were others involved with me in the flag capture who are still in Lebanon, I cannot for the sake of their own security detail the particulars of our little mission.
Posted by: Mike ||
10/22/2007 12:42 ||
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Link ||
[8 views]
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#1
I hope you plan to display it proudly on your living room wall, on return.
Jim D
Posted by: Redneck Jim ||
10/22/2007 14:34 Comments ||
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#2
Be careful from now on - you don't have to be a high-profile Celeb or Politico, etc. to be a PYWAR target in war. INFO-PSYCHOLOGICAL/
PERCEPTIONS WARFARE IS STILL WAR IN ANY ENEMY'S BOOK.
BEIRUT (Rooters) - Lebanon delayed its presidential election by nearly three weeks to November 12 on Monday to allow more time for rival pro- and anti-Syrian groups to agree on a compromise candidate.
The Hezbies will launch their coup on Nov 10th, it appears ...
The Lebanese parliament had been scheduled to meet on Tuesday to choose a successor to pro-Syrian President Emile Lahoud, whose term expires on November 23. Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri said in a statement he was postponing the vote "to allow for more consultations that would lead to consensus on electing a president who would symbolize the unity and resilience of the country".
It is the second postponement in electing a president, a step seen as vital to resolving a one-year-old crisis pitting the anti-Syrian ruling majority against the opposition, led by pro-Syrian Hezbollah. Political sources said the delay was a positive signal that the two sides were still hopeful of reaching a compromise to ensure a smooth transition. Yeah, of course.
"We wish that by that time (November 12), we are able to progress towards holding this constitutional election," Prime Minister Fouad Siniora said.
There are fears that if no president is elected before Lahoud's term expires, Lebanon would end up with two rival governments and bloodshed. The political crisis is the worst since the 1975-1990 civil war.
Opposition MPs boycotted parliament on September 25 to prevent a two-thirds quorum and thwart anti-Syrian factions, which have a slim majority, from electing a new head of state. Siniora's backers, including the United States and Saudi Arabia, want to replace Lahoud with one of their own.
Hezbollah and its allies in the opposition want to deny the presidency to their rivals, whom they regard as puppets of the United States.
French Foreign Minister Bernard Kouchner, and his Spanish and Italian counterparts Miguel Moratinos and Massimo D'Alema, urged rival factions to reach a swift deal during a visit to Lebanon last week. "The ministers reiterated the urgency of an inter-Lebanese accord in terms of this crucial election, and our availability to continue working towards that end," deputy French Foreign Ministry spokesman Frederic Desagneaux said on Monday.
Y'urp-peon wishful thinking rarely has been stronger ...
Berri, a Hezbollah ally, has been holding talks with Saad al-Hariri, the leader of the anti-Syrian coalition, to try to agree on a consensus president, who according to Lebanon's power-sharing system must be Maronite Christian. Rival Christian leaders have also started meetings to bridge the gap and ensure a smooth election. The anti-Syrian coalition has put forward two of its Maronite members as candidates while the opposition backs its Maronite leader Michel Aoun.
A host of other current and former officials, including the army chief and central bank governor, are thought to be in the running as possible consensus candidates.
Iran's ex-president Mohammad Khatami has made a rare criticism of successor Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, saying inflation was a growing problem which government statistics were attempting to conceal, the press reported on Monday. The reformist Khamati has until now refrained from commenting on Ahmadinejad's policies since he left office in 2005, but his stinging attack comes amid intense manoeuvring ahead of parliamentary elections in March.
Too bad Khamati doesn't have any power.
"Inflation exists in society... every single person in society says that it exists and ordinary people feel it every time they purchase something," Khatami was quoted as saying by the economic daily Sarmayeh. "If you give figures that inflation does not exist or insert some change in the scientific indices to reach a desirable result, this will not make the realities disappear."
The government has been criticised by reformists and moderate conservatives alike for its handling of the economy. Inflation has surged in recent months and price rises in basic goods and services have hit the poor hardest. Iran's year-on-year inflation is currently running at 15.8 percent, according to central bank statistics. However, many economists dispute this figure and Iranian parliamentary research has estimated that inflation this year will be running at 22.4 percent.
"Unfortunately, it has become customary to conceal the real issues, and portrayed the issues in another way. Also anything regarding the past is portrayed as bad and condemned," said Khatami.
The presidency of Khatami between 1997-2005 started with a landslide election victory and high hopes he would transform Iranian society through reform. By his own admission, Khatami failed to fully realise these expectations. Yet the charismatic mid-ranking cleric retains considerable support and there has even been speculation he could stand in the 2009 presidential election, a rumour that has not been confirmed.
Ahmadinejad has defended his government's record on the economy and also said it welcomes criticism. "The country's atmosphere is a friendly one and everyone speaks his mind freely," he said on Sunday.
Posted by: 3dc ||
10/22/2007 04:21 ||
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#1
Amir Taheri brilliantly describes the present Iranian government: Usually portrayed as a theocracy, the Islamic Republic is, in fact, a form of oriental despotism mental disorder with a turban.
Fixed that. A mental disorder driven by a primitive, often barbaric religion.
#2
Khomeini's spiritual descendants have overplayed their hand. The killing of American soldiers in Iraq has been their undoing. It gives us the casus belli (not that I think we needed one in that we have been at war with these shia fanatics since their so-called "revolution" in 1979) to destroy the Revolutionary Guards and their vaunted Qods force, and knock out their nuclear installations.
Iranian president Ahmadinejads spiritual advisor wants to spread chaos across the world - and kill all enemies of Islam - in order to hasten the arrival of the Twelfth Imam. Banafsheh Zand-Bonazzi and Elio Bonazzi report that the most devastating consequences of Ayatollah Mohammad Taghi Messbah-Yazdis influence in Iran may be yet to come. (Read part one of the series here.)
#3
Khomeini's spiritual descendants have overplayed their hand.
Try to remember what a flaming wingnut the Ayatollah Khomeini truly was, as in issuing fatwan about the proper way to dispose of sexually abused goats and such. Now consider the following raving of his:
We do not worship Iran, we worship Allah, he declared in a speech in 1980 in Qom. For patriotism is another name for paganism. I say let this land [Iran] burn. I say let this land go up in smoke, provided Islam emerges triumphant in the rest of the world.
Now, consider the following:
The Hojjatiyeh movement opposes the Shiite version of a Caliphate, the Velawyateh Fagheeh (which Amir Taheri translates as The Regency of the Theologians), which was a principle articulated by Khomeini. Therefore, in a July 1983 speech, Khomeini outlawed the movement and ordered the arrest of Hojjatiyeh supporters. Some he even ordered executed.
So, here we see a monster raving loon like Khomeini outlawing and executing the religious brethern of Ahmadinejad's own spiritual adviser. What does this tell you in the way of just how whacked out these psychotic genocidal goons really are? Dismantling Iran is not an option, it is imperative to this world's survival.
LEESBURG, Va. (AP) - The United States and other nations will not allow Iran to obtain a nuclear weapon, Vice President Dick Cheney said Sunday. "Our country, and the entire international community, cannot stand by as a terror-supporting state fulfills its grandest ambitions," Cheney said in a speech to the Washington Institute for Near East Studies.
He said Iran's efforts to pursue technology that would allow them to build a nuclear weapon are obvious and that "the regime continues to practice delay and deceit in an obvious effort to buy time." If Iran continues on its current course, Cheney said the U.S. and other nations are "prepared to impose serious consequences." The vice president made no specific reference to military action. "We will not allow Iran to have a nuclear weapon," he said.
Cheney's words seemed to only escalate the U.S. rhetoric against Iran over the past several days, including President Bush's warning that a nuclear Iran could lead to "World War III." Cheney said the ultimate goal of the Iranian leadership is to establish itself as the hegemonic force in the Middle East and undermine a free Shiite-majority Iraq as a rival for influence in the Muslim world. Iran's government seeks "to keep Iraq in a state of weakness to ensure Baghdad does not pose a threat to Tehran," Cheney said.
While he was critical of that government and President Mahmoud Ahmedinejad, he offered praise and words of solidarity to the Iranian people. Iran "is a place of unlimited potential ... and it has the right to be free of tyranny," Cheney said.
Cheney accused of Iran of having a direct role in the deaths of U.S. soldiers in Iraq and said the government has "solidified its grip on the country" since coming to power in 1979.
Posted by: Steve White ||
10/22/2007 00:00 ||
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[7 views]
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#1
IRANIAN.WS > WORLD WAR III - BRING IT ON! Iran to America; + [NEW] NUCLEAR CHIEF SIGNALS IRAN HARDER LINE. May make US-Iran War more likely.
#3
NY POST > THE BEST OF FRENEMIES. Never mind the Caspian Summit - Russia and Iran are wary allies. *"FRENEMIES" - D *** NG IT, YOU KNOW CLINTONIAN CORRECTNESS HAS TRULY GONE GLOBAL WHEN EVEN THE RUSSIANS AND MOUD ARE AFFECTED.
#4
I hope there is a continuity to Cheney's thinking whoever his successor might be. A nuclear Iran is a nutty and dangerous Iran. They are embracing the ultimate suicide bombing. Putin is stoking the fires of hell. As McCain said in the debate last night: "I looked into his eyes and saw K-G-B."
Moderator note: image deleted. People, do not post images from photobucket unless they're sized properly. Images that are too big, especially too wide, break our formatting. AoS.
#6
DEBKA this AM > OLMERT > IRAN HAS ALREADY CROSSED THE [NUCLEAR] RED LINE. ITS TOO LATE FOR SANCTIONS. Only "direct military action" can stop Iran now. Article - Debka US Intel/Govt sources indic to Debka that iff Syria was indeed construc a small nuke reactor facility for PLUTONIUM processing as USA believes, THEN USA > ITS VERY LIKELY IRAN PER SE RECEIVED A SIMILAR PLUTONIUM-CAPABLE/CENTRIC REACTOR LONG BEFORE SYRIA DID??? IOW, USA = RUSSIA, etc > Iran may already have weapons-grade NUCMATS IFF NOT [Low-Yield?]NUKE BOMBS ALREADY???
Iran is sending two negotiators for nuclear talks with the European Union foreign policy chief Javier Solana Tuesday, foreign office spokesman said Sunday. Former chief nuclear negotiator Ali Larijani and his successor Saeid Jalili will leave Tuesday for talks with Solana in the Italian capital of Rome, said foreign ministry spokesman Mohammad-Ali Hosseini.
The decision to send two negotiators comes a day after Larijani stepped down and was replaced by Jalili to head Iran's National Security Council (NSC) - which is also in charge of country's nuclear negotiations. "Ali Larijani will accompany the new chief nuclear negotiator Saeed Jalili in his meeting with Solana in Rome," IRNA quoted Hosseini as saying.
The spokesman said the changes at the secretary level of the Iran's security council and also the chief nuclear negotiator would not have any impact on the country's "peaceful" nuclear course. "No misinterpretations should be made about the new developments. The aim which is pursuing peaceful nuclear technology is unalterable and based on broad unanimity," DPA quoted the spokesman as saying.
Iran and the EU will Tuesday resume their talks on the basis of the agreement reached between Tehran and the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) last August. According to the agreement, Iran and the IAEA would remove all technical ambiguities by November and the relevant IAEA report would serve as the basis for political talks between the Iranian side and Solana. A failure of the political talks might once again push the Iranian nuclear dossier to the United Nations Security Council and approval of a third resolution and harsher financial sanctions against the Islamic state.
This article starring:
Ali Larijani
Javier Solana
Mohammad-Ali Hosseini
Saeid Jalili
Posted by: Fred ||
10/22/2007 00:00 ||
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[7 views]
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#1
Not sure why, but I just recalled some scenes from "300".
In a especially candid interview with Wolf Blitzer on CNN, Lebanese majority leader Walid Jumblatt accused Hezbollah of assassinating his colleagues, Hafez al-Assad of murdering his father, and described the struggle for a Democracy in Lebanon. "We are ahead of a crucial three weeks and our opponents, although they are members of parliament, they have other methods to deal with us. Three weeks ago we lost a partner (Antoine Ghanem) in the majority ... We were 69 then, now we are 68. If they can kill 4 more of us, we will be reduced as a majority, and we will not be able to vote for a free president that will abide by international law and resolutions."
"It is impossible to have good security in Lebanon, we are hiding in our rooms. Most of the MPs are in an annex of the Phoenecia hotel, they are not even able to open the windows because of possible sniping."
When asked "who is behind these assassinations", Jumblatt responded "Syria and its allies Hezbollah. I have no doubt about it. The tribunal will give its verdict next year, but until next year it is quite a long time, anything can happen."
This article starring:
Antoine Ghanem
Walid Jumblatt
Posted by: Fred ||
10/22/2007 00:00 ||
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[10 views]
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#1
Lebanon was a Christian state. It is now a state where elected leaders are bombed by people working for Syria and/or Iran. That is an act of war every bombing. The UN has yet to provide findings adequate for their position. This is a nation of very decent people pitted against Israel by proxies. Iran will fight to the last Lebanese.
There is plenty of proof. The world is just too corrupt to save this Paris from radicalization?
Cedars and pines folks.
This world and civilization are failing big time. And the UN? They can all kiss my ass at the UN. FU UN. We call that FUUN.
#3
If you look at the world map, and the 'Islamic World' you will see that it is at war on all of its borders. Africa, India, Russia, Thailand, Europe, ...
#4
JPOST > PALESTINIAN AFFAIRS: CAUGHT BETWEEN ANVILS AND HAMMERS. Socialist versus Socialist - the only choice for Paleos ergo the [USA]World???, + THE SECOND LEBANON WAR BOLSTERED/STRENTHENED IRAN. Tehran works wid HAMAS + FATAH, and suppors Saudi Arabia in many thingys - Fatah has an office in Tehran.
#5
If you look at the world map, and the 'Islamic World' you will see that it is at war on all of its borders. Africa, India, Russia, Thailand, Europe, ...
We need for all of those border conflicts to be directed inwards and not outwards.
Posted by: Thomas Woof ||
10/22/2007 8:12 Comments ||
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#8
Bugs, I defer to others on this, but I believe the fact you highlight is perfectly consistent with the Islamic distinction between dar al-Harb and dar al-Islam.
But while I sympathize with Lebanese in general, I can't find my nano-violin for Marty Feldman, er, Wally.
Unless it was inaccurate or apocryphal, his reported comment about his heart per force rejoicing at the reports of dying American soldiers in Iraq put him beyond the pale. If he really said it, then a Syrian bullet in the back of his neck or a Hezbollah ATP car-seat cushion in his Mercedes would, uh, force my heart to rejoice .... sorry.
The administration of U.S. President George W. Bush wants the Lebanese to choose between having their country turn into an American military base or face a new strife, Lebanon's top Shiite Muslim cleric alleged Sunday. The allegation by Grand Ayatollah Mohammed Hussein Fadlallah came three days after a senior Pentagon official said the U.S. military would like to see a "strategic partnership" with Lebanon's army to strengthen the country's forces so that the militant Hezbollah group would have no excuse to bear arms. "We warn that the U.S. administration is offering the Lebanese a choice either to accept their country being turned into a (U.S.) military, security and political base, or to expect a new strife," Fadlallah said in a statement faxed to The Associated Press.
Eric Edelman, U.S. undersecretary of defense for policy, spoke about a "strategic partnership" with Lebanon's army in an interview aired on Lebanese television Thursday, two days after he held talks in Beirut on military cooperation with Western-backed Prime Minister Fuad Saniora and other officials. Edelman did not say that the U.S. government wants to build a military base in Lebanon.
Fadlallah, the top religious authority for Lebanon's 1.2 million Shiites, said the Lebanese army was aware of attempts to link U.S. military aid to Lebanon to confronting the guerrilla group and was determined in "rejecting strife and rejecting any restrictions on its armament."
Since last year's war between the Shiite militant group Hezbollah and Israel, the United States has sharply increased its military assistance to Lebanon to US$270 million in 2007 more than five times the amount provided a year ago in a show of support to Saniora's government.
Fadlallah was skeptical about U.S. military aid to the Lebanese army. "The Lebanese, who have seen the American failure in Iraq and felt the American involvement with Israel in last year's war against Lebanon ... must be aware that what the administration of President Bush is aiming at is something else other than supporting the Lebanese army," Fadlallah said. "It (U.S. Administration) is working to make Lebanon a new base for chaos and another position for NATO in order to exert pressure on regional and international powers which disobeyed its decisions and policies," the cleric added in a clear reference to Iran and Syria.
Also Sunday, Hezbollah's deputy leader, Sheik Naim Kassem, warned that the establishment of a U.S. military base would amount to "a hostile act" against Lebanon. Hezbollah also has denounced Edelman's call for a U.S. "strategic partnership" with Lebanon's army, saying American attempts to boost military ties were a ploy for domination and could turn the country into another Iraq. Some in Lebanon have expressed fears that a foreign military presence could attract al-Qaida and other militants, as has happened in Iraq.
This article starring:
Eric Edelman
Grand Ayatollah Mohammed Hussein Fadlallah
Sheik Naim Kassem
Hezbollah
Posted by: Fred ||
10/22/2007 00:00 ||
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[7 views]
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#1
heh. I like the sound of this. Up yours, Turkey.
#2
Well Mullah, you can have a prosperous country that is a gem of the mideast as it once was or you can have a third rate cesspool run from Syria and Iran via a Hezbollah proxy where bombings and political murders are commonplace.
"Experience has taught us that we can only get out captives back by sticking to our principles, fighting and carrying out more kidnapping operations," Hizbullah's Deputy Secretary-General Sheikh Naim Kassem said Sunday.
In a speech marking the return of a Hizbullah guerrilla's body transferred by Israel last week in a swap involving drowned Israeli Gavriel Daweet, Kassem said: "If you want to know the value of the prisoner exchange, listen to (Prime Minister Ehud) Olmert who spoke of the 'heavy price' that was paid." Kassem praised the prisoner swap his group conducted with Israel.
Yup. Olmert continues to make the case for Hizb'allah policies. Wonderful.
The Hizbullah deputy chief also spoke of the internal strife in Lebanon, attacking the Lebanese officials who were cooperating with the US. "We are opposed to this phony collaboration and no not accept it. We consider every US base in Lebanon an enemy."
Last Tuesday, a day after the prisoner exchange, Hizbullah leader Sheikh Hassan Nasrallah said there was "positive progress" in negotiations to swap captive IDF reservists Ehud Goldwasser and Eldad Regev for Lebanese prisoners in Israel. "I assert that there are strenuous negotiations, continuing sessions that will be resumed within days," Nasrallah said in a speech broadcast on Hizbullah's Al- Manar television station the day after the Daweet swap deal.
This article starring:
Sheikh Naim Kassem
Hizbullah
Posted by: Fred ||
10/22/2007 00:00 ||
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A multi-volume chronology and reference guide set detailing three years of the Mexican Drug War between 2010 and 2012.
Rantburg.com and borderlandbeat.com correspondent and author Chris Covert presents his first non-fiction work detailing
the drug and gang related violence in Mexico.
Chris gives us Mexican press dispatches of drug and gang war violence
over three years, presented in a multi volume set intended to chronicle the death, violence and mayhem which has
dominated Mexico for six years.
Rantburg was assembled from recycled algorithms in the United States of America. No
trees were destroyed in the production of this weblog. We did hurt some, though. Sorry.
The United States is "not satisfied" with the level of support it is receiving from NATO members in Afghanistan, US Defense Secretary Robert Gates said Monday ahead of a meeting of NATO defence ministers. "I am not satisfied that an alliance with members who have over two million soldiers, sailors, marines and airmen cannot find the modest additional resources that have been committed for Afghanistan," Gates told journalists during a trip to Kiev. The resources in question were committed at a NATO summit in Riga in November 2006, he said. 
SEOUL - North Korea will likely start disabling its nuclear facilities as early as next week under a key agreement signed in early October, an unidentified South Korean official told Yonhap News Agency on Monday. 
Benazir Bhutto plans to purge the intelligence services of hundreds of rogue agents suspected of supporting Islamic terrorism if she becomes prime minister again.
(PTI) Three Pakistan-based top militants of 
(PTI) Former prime minister 
(PTI) The suicide bomber who targetted former Pakistani premier Benazir Bhutto's motorcade was reportedly armed with a device having about 15 kg of explosives and thousand of pellets leaving a trail of death snuffing out lives of 139 persons. 
(PTI) US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice today telephoned former Pakistani premier Benazir Bhutto and expressed sympathy over the loss of lives in the suicide attack on her rally in Karachi. Rice, who has played a key role in facilitating secret parleys between the Pakistan People's Party leader and embattled President Pervez Musharraf, said she was heartened that Bhutto escaped the assassination attempt.
(PTI) In the first ever case of Narco-terrorism in the country, money-starved Lashker-e-Taiba miltiants are smuggling in high quality narcotics particularly heroin from Afghanistan and Paksitan to fund their activities in Jammu and Kashmir.
It is hoped that representatives of the Taliban and former Afghan prime minister 
Iraq's president said Sunday Baghdad would be unable to hand over Kurdish rebel leaders to Turkey as the crisis over the Iraq-based fighters intensified with the killing of 12 Turkish soldiers. "The handing over of PKK [Kurdistan Workers' Party] leaders to Turkey is a dream that will never be realized," Jalal Talabani, himself a Kurd, told a news conference in Arbil, the capital of Iraq's autonomus Kurdish region. 
GAZA CITY - Hospitals throughout Gaza have shut down their operating rooms due to a lack of essential anaesthetic drugs, the de- facto Hamas administration in the Strip said.
Iran's ex-president Mohammad Khatami has made a rare criticism of successor Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, saying inflation was a growing problem which government statistics were attempting to conceal, the press reported on Monday. The reformist Khamati has until now refrained from commenting on Ahmadinejad's policies since he left office in 2005, but his stinging attack comes amid intense manoeuvring ahead of parliamentary elections in March.
LEESBURG, Va. (AP) - The United States and other nations will not allow Iran to obtain a nuclear weapon, Vice President Dick Cheney said Sunday. "Our country, and the entire international community, cannot stand by as a terror-supporting state fulfills its grandest ambitions," Cheney said in a speech to the Washington Institute for Near East Studies.
Iran is sending two negotiators for nuclear talks with the European Union foreign policy chief 
In a especially candid interview with 
The administration of U.S. President George W. Bush wants the Lebanese to choose between having their country turn into an American military base or face a new strife, Lebanon's top Shiite Muslim cleric alleged Sunday. The allegation by .JPG)
"Experience has taught us that we can only get out captives back by sticking to our principles, fighting and carrying out more kidnapping operations," Hizbullah's Deputy Secretary-General 
