Pakistan's offensive against the Taliban has failed to target the insurgent networks posing the greatest danger to Nato forces in Afghanistan, according to America's Ambassador in Islamabad.
Anne Patterson told The Daily Telegraph of Washington's frustration with the "different priorities" of Pakistan's government and how the failure to agree common targets was hampering the struggle against the Taliban in Afghanistan.
Mullah Omar, who created the Taliban movement in the 1990s and led its regime in Kabul between 1996 and 2001, is believed to be based in the Pakistani city of Quetta, where he directs the Afghan insurgency through a group of leaders known as the "Quetta Shura". His most effectively ally is a jihadist network run by Jalaluddin Haqqani, a veteran extremist, and his son Sirajuddin, based in Pakistan's Tribal Area of North Waziristan.
But Pakistan's military offensive has not targeted any of these groups, concentrating instead on the Swat valley in the north-west. Mullah Omar and his allies focus their efforts on Afghanistan and are careful not to make trouble inside Pakistan. This appears to secure their safety.
Ms Patterson said that America and Islamabad agreed on tackling al-Qaeda's core leadership and the Pakistani Taliban. But Pakistan was "certainly reluctant to take action" against leaders of the Afghan insurgency based on its soil.
"Where we differ, of course, is the treatment of the groups who are attacking our troops in Afghanistan. And that comes down to Haqqani and Gul Bahadur and Nazir, to a lesser extent Hekmatyar, and yes of course there are differences there," said Ms. Patterson. "We have a very candid dialogue about this with some frequency."
Gul Bahadur and Maulvi Nazir are Pakistani Taliban commanders who fight only in Afghanistan. Gulbuddin Hekmatyar is a veteran Afghan warlord based close to the Pakistani border.
Ms Patterson acknowledged the constraints on Pakistan's ability to take action. "In my view, the Pakistanis don't have the capacity to go after some of these groups. Some they do, let me stress, but Sirajuddin Haqqani holds territory, huge swathes of territory, in North Waziristan where he's been implanted for years."
The Ambassador added: "My own view is that the Haqqani group is the biggest threat [in Afghanistan]. The Quetta Shura, yes, is sort of a command and control. They move in and out of Afghanistan. But the Haqqani group has ... shown the ability to reach all the way to Kabul with these huge attacks, which not only kill loads of people but are also politically destabilising."
The Haqqani network is blamed for a series of bombings inside the Afghan capital, notably an attack on the Indian Embassy last year. Both Hekmatyar and Haqqani once had close ties to Pakistan's Inter-Services Intelligence agency, while Islamabad saw Mullah Omar's regime in Afghanistan as a key ally until the terrorist attacks on September 11, 2001.
Western officials believe that Pakistan still views these figures as "assets", amounting to an insurance policy if the American-led coalition leaves Afghanistan and the Taliban sweeps back to power. They think this explains President Asif Ali Zardari's reluctance to move against their networks, while confining his offensive to groups which pose a direct threat to Pakistan.
"What happens if America leaves [Afghanistan]? What would Pakistan's situation be the day after?" asked Hasan Askari Rizvi, a local commentator. "If we pick a fight with every group in the tribal area and Afghanistan, after the Americans leave, everybody would pounce on Pakistan."
#1
Logical on the part of Pakistan. 1. The Taliban discussed don't attack the Paks. 2. If BHO retreats from Afghanistan the Paks don't have the strength to address them so why Pi## them off.
Reflects the uncertainty Obama generates for our "friends".
#2
There's another good reason to go after the rank and file. Since the US is going after the leaders, the end result is an army of privates, which still offers a risk. So you hit the privates as well, to discourage them from becoming replacements for the leaders.
#4
the pakistanis, though, can logically assert that it makes sense to go after swat and nearby areas first. What does it profit us to kill mullah omar and save afghanistan if Islamabad falls? Makes more sense to save the pakistani state FIRST.
Now will they follow up? I dont know, but I dont see who we can tell them to go after wazirstan and quetta when they arent finished clearing in swat.
Meanwhile I agree, a US withdrawl from Afghan would dramatically cut our leverage in Pakistan.
Posted by: liberal hawk ||
09/21/2009 22:24 Comments ||
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#3
Army General Stanley McChrystal wrote: "Failure to gain the initiative and reverse insurgent momentum in the near-term (next 12 months) -- while Afghan security capacity matures -- risks an outcome where defeating the insurgency is no longer possible."
The emphasis should be a stable post-exit Afghanistan. The war against the Taliban hasn't been winnable for some time and the Iraq comparisons doesn't apply.
#5
So, what's the mission, getting Bambi reelected?
Of course
and anything else to pronounce him GOD
Posted by: Redneck Jim ||
09/21/2009 14:36 Comments ||
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#6
McChrystal has threatened to resign if he is not given the troops, according to Bill Roggio. Good for him. The military has to start assuming responsibility for its actions and the top is the place to start.
#7
IMHO, the Big O does not care a wit for Afghanistan and the al Q threat from that area or from Pakistan or the NWFP. He never did.
He said some things about Pakistan and Afghanistan during the campaign, but they were just words to placate voters that he would not cut and run.
Now he will ignore McCrystal's carefully worded and research report and will not increase troop strengths and other resources, like the Brit MoD.
He certainly will not go into the NWFP and make it a hellhole to eliminate al Q base ops there. Afghanistan is lost if O has his way.
Posted by: Alaska Paul ||
09/21/2009 19:44 Comments ||
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As President, I will pursue a tough, smart and principled national security strategy - one that recognizes that we have interests not just in Baghdad, but in Kandahar and Karachi, in Tokyo and London, in Beijing and Berlin. I will focus this strategy on five goals essential to making America safer: ending the war in Iraq responsibly; finishing the fight against al Qaeda and the Taliban; securing all nuclear weapons and materials from terrorists and rogue states; achieving true energy security; and rebuilding our alliances to meet the challenges of the 21st century... In the 18 months since the surge began, the situation in Afghanistan has deteriorated. June was our highest casualty month of the war. The Taliban has been on the offensive, even launching a brazen attack on one of our bases. Al Qaeda has a growing sanctuary in Pakistan. That is a consequence of our current strategy.
It is unacceptable that almost seven years after nearly 3,000 Americans were killed on our soil, the terrorists who attacked us on 9/11 are still at large. Osama bin Laden and Ayman al-Zawahari are recording messages to their followers and plotting more terror. The Taliban controls parts of Afghanistan. Al Qaeda has an expanding base in Pakistan that is probably no farther from their old Afghan sanctuary than a train ride from Washington to Philadelphia. If another attack on our homeland comes, it will likely come from the same region where 9/11 was planned. And yet today [July 15, 2008], we have five times more troops in Iraq than Afghanistan.
Senator McCain said - just months ago - that "Afghanistan is not in trouble because of our diversion to Iraq." I could not disagree more. Our troops and our NATO allies are performing heroically in Afghanistan, but I have argued for years that we lack the resources to finish the job because of our commitment to Iraq. That's what the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff said earlier this month. And that's why, as President, I will make the fight against al Qaeda and the Taliban the top priority that it should be. This is a war that we have to win.
I will send at least two additional combat brigades to Afghanistan, and use this commitment to seek greater contributions - with fewer restrictions - from NATO allies. I will focus on training Afghan security forces and supporting an Afghan judiciary, with more resources and incentives for American officers who perform these missions. Just as we succeeded in the Cold War by supporting allies who could sustain their own security, we must realize that the 21st century's frontlines are not only on the field of battle - they are found in the training exercise near Kabul, in the police station in Kandahar, and in the rule of law in Herat.
Moreover, lasting security will only come if we heed Marshall's lesson, and help Afghans grow their economy from the bottom up. That's why I've proposed an additional $1 billion in non-military assistance each year, with meaningful safeguards to prevent corruption and to make sure investments are made - not just in Kabul - but out in Afghanistan's provinces. As a part of this program, we'll invest in alternative livelihoods to poppy-growing for Afghan farmers, just as we crack down on heroin trafficking. We cannot lose Afghanistan to a future of narco-terrorism. The Afghan people must know that our commitment to their future is enduring, because the security of Afghanistan and the United States is shared.
The greatest threat to that security lies in the tribal regions of Pakistan, where terrorists train and insurgents strike into Afghanistan. We cannot tolerate a terrorist sanctuary, and as President, I won't. We need a stronger and sustained partnership between Afghanistan, Pakistan and NATO to secure the border, to take out terrorist camps, and to crack down on cross-border insurgents. We need more troops, more helicopters, more satellites, more Predator drones in the Afghan border region. And we must make it clear that if Pakistan cannot or will not act, we will take out high-level terrorist targets like bin Laden if we have them in our sights.
#9
"Well, one can always fall back on the President's campaign remarkslies"
Fixed that for ya', Pappy.
No extra charge.
Posted by: Barbara Skolaut ||
09/21/2009 21:46 Comments ||
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#10
The admin is torn between the desire to win in afghanistan, and its fear that Kharzai has made it impossible. And the fear that a request for more troops, opposed by the left, and by some on the right (like George Will) will undermine it crucially.
At this time it behooves everyone who thinks a withdrawl from Afghan would be a mistake to put partisanship aside and to push as hard as possible for the POLICY of increasing resources.
Personally I think it will be hard for the admin to face appointing the third US commander in Kabul in 6 months. And I think McCrystal would resign. However it will help if we all reach out in places other than here and spread the word for victory.
Posted by: liberal hawk ||
09/21/2009 22:18 Comments ||
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#11
WAFF > USA CALLING RUSSIA TO WAR IN AFGHANISTAN [30-40K more US Troops + RUSS MIL HELP AGZ MILITANTS].
D *** NG IT, VLADVEDEV, COME ON OVER AND JOIN THE FUN - ITS 2009, REAGAN IS DEAD, BUSH 1 IS RETIRED, BUSH 2 IS NOW OBAMA, OSAMA IS EITHER DEAD OR IN POOR HEALTH, + OSAMA + THAT GUY FROM GUAM AREN'T HERE/AROUND TO KILL YOUR ARMY.
YOU CAN WIN NOW!
JOE M. SAYS HE'LL LEAVE RUSS + YOUR ARMY IN AFPAK ALONE IFF YOU + TOM BERENGER, ETAl. RETURN HIS GOOD ISLAND SHIRTS FROM THE 1970's, + TELL HIM WHOM KILLED ANNA LONGINOVA.
[Quqnoos] The US intelligence agency is sending teams of spies and paramilitary operatives to Afghanistan, Los Angeles Times reports.
Thank you for the publicity, LAT. Any notes on how we should recognize them?
Blond hair. Blue eyes. Yale pin.
The precise numbers are classified, but one US official has said the US Central Intelligence Agency already has nearly 700 employees in Afghanistan.
That's like a brigade or something, I think. More than the Pope has.
The surge of CIA agents parallels the US military expansion in the war-torn country as President Barack Obama has doubled the number of US troops in Afghanistan this year.
The incoming spies are receiving a broad range of assignments, including working in tandem with special forces units hunting high-value targets, tracking public sentiment in regions seen as shifting support toward the Taliban and gathering intelligence on corruption in the Afghan government, the Times said.
In other words, normal spy stuff. That's not really news.
The CIA push comes at a time that the Taliban-led insurgency has reached a record-level in Afghanistan and the movement conduct sophisticated attacks across the country, including the fortified Afghan capital, Kabul.
The agency's station is based at the US Embassy in Kabul, according to LA Times. But the bulk of the CIA's workforce is spread among a group of secret bases and military outposts that dot the country.
The country. Would that be Afghanistan, Pakistan, or Pashtunistan?
One of the largest concentrations of CIA personnel is at Bagram air base north of Kabul, which for years was the site of a secret agency prison, and the headquarters for U.S. military special operations forces.
One imagines it was Attorney General Holder's office that leaked this information, to reduce the need for prosecutions later. One hopes most sincerely one is wrong.
Posted by: Fred ||
09/21/2009 00:00 ||
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U.S. spy agencies have already stepped up their scrutiny of corruption in Kabul. The recent Senate report described a wiretapping system activated last year that is aimed at tracing ties between government officials and drug kingpins in the country.
#2
Wiretapping? Kind of difficult when everyone uses cell phones. Perhaps they meant electronic eavesdropping, and I hope we've been doing that from the beginning, Willy, just to know what we're ignoring.
Separately, it just occurred to me (clearly a slow thought day) that making the bad guys even more paranoid is not a bad thing, since they're already scanning the sky for Predators. Perhaps Mossad could share how they called all of Hizb'allah's cell phones at once...
[Asharq al-Aswat] Somalia's hardline al Shabaab insurgents have warned schools not to use textbooks provided by U.N. agencies and other donors they accuse of being un-Islamic.
The rebel group, which Washington says is al Qaeda's proxy in Somalia, hit the African Union's main base in Mogadishu with twin suicide car bombs Thursday, killing 17 peacekeepers in a country of growing concern to Western security analysts. The attack raised serious questions about the credibility of the nation's fragile U.N.-backed government, which controls just some of Somalia's central region and parts of the capital.
And in a sign of the insurgents' growing influence in the chaotic city, the rebels issued orders to schools Saturday.
"Some U.N. agencies like UNESCO are supplying Somali schools with text books to try to teach our children un-Islamic subjects," al Shabaab spokesman Sheikh Ali Mohamud Rage told Koranic students gathered at Mogadishu's Nasrudin mosque.
"I call upon all Somali parents not to send their youngsters to schools with curriculum supported by the U.N. agencies."
Fighting has killed more than 18,000 civilians since the start of 2007 and driven another 1.5 million from their homes.
Together with another rebel group, Hizbul Islam, al Shabaab has been battling government troops and the AU peacekeepers to impose its own strict version of Islamic law throughout Somalia.
Al Shabaab's stern religious views are rejected by many Somalis, who are traditionally moderate Muslims. But some residents do credit the gunmen with restoring relative stability and a measure of law and order to areas under their control.
In July, the group barred three U.N. agencies from operating on its territory, saying the U.N. Development Program, U.N. Department of Safety and Security and U.N. Political Office for Somalia were working against the creation of an Islamic state.
Posted by: Fred ||
09/21/2009 00:00 ||
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The Egyptian Cultural Ministry has recently decided to renew the project of translating Israeli literature into Arabic. This decision sparked criticism among Egyptian educated circles, who saw it as an attempt to placate Israel, and thereby to secure its support for Egyptian Cultural Minister Farouq Hosni's candidacy for UNESCO secretary general. The Egyptian Cultural Ministry denied the allegation, explaining that the translation of Israeli books had never been part of normalization with Israel, but rather a way to help Egyptian readers know their enemy. It is noteworthy that the plan is to translate the books not from their original Hebrew editions but from their translated editions in European languages, so as to avoid direct contact with Israeli writers and publishers.
Some Egyptian intellectuals approved of the project, believing that Arabic translations of Israeli books would prove useful to Egyptian intelligence and contribute to the readers' general knowledge. Others objected, fearing that cultural normalization with Israel would lead to its acceptance as an integral part of the Arab region.
Following are excerpts from the Egyptian press on the issue:
Translation of Israeli Literature into Arabic under the Auspices of the Egyptian Cultural Ministry
On June 11, 2009, the Egyptian Ministry of Culture announced that it was about to sign a contract with a European publishing house for translating into Arabic books by Israeli authors David Grossman and Amos Oz. The director of Egypt's National Center for Translation, Dr. Gaber Asfour, stated that by July 2009, such a contract would be signed with French and British publishers, but not with Israeli publishers. Asfour explained: "We cannot have direct contact with Israeli publishers, since this would create a wave of protest in Egypt and in the Arab world as a whole. Therefore, we have decided to negotiate with European publishers." Jewish cooties!
Asfour said that the translation project had started in the 1960s, with the aim of "know your enemy," but had been cancelled in 2000 after the translation of several Israeli books, because Egypt signed an international charter under which it had to obtain permission from both the author and the publisher before translating books into Arabic. [1] Asfour said that the project of translating Israeli books into Arabic directly from the Hebrew originals had been cancelled so as to avoid contact with Israeli elements, but added that the Center's policy regarding translating world literature into Arabic remained unchanged. Thus, since 2005, Israeli works have been translated into Arabic from their translated editions in other languages. [2] Asfour stated: "We are against normalization, and so we thought of an alternative way - namely, translating Israeli books from their English translations..." [3] Hooooo, cunning arab hypocrisy! Opinions in Favor of the Project
Director of Egypt's NationalCenter for Translation: It's Not Normalization - It's a Way To "Know Your Enemy" Thanks Allan egypt is at peace with Israel.
Asfour explained that the books slated for translation are works by Oz and Grossman, as well as some writings by the "new historians," who, he maintains, are known as supporters of the peace process. [4] So, israeli moonbats now have a new market to corner. Good for them!
He stated: "It is important that the Arab audience read the works of Israeli historians in order to familiarize themselves with the culture of their enemy. We even translate [works] by enemies of Islam, and ask experts to comment on them." He added that it is important that Egyptian Arab citizens know that there are Israeli writers who are against the Zionist philosophy.
According to Asfour, the translation project was authorized by Egyptian Cultural Minister Farouq Hosni, who is a candidate for UNESCO secretary general. [5] It should be noted that Hosni had stated previously that he would burn any Jewish book found in the Alexandria Library. Sounds like he's prime material for the UNESCO.
He later apologized; [6] this was viewed by some as an attempt to placate Israel in order to secure its support for his candidacy.
Israeli Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu did in fact withdraw Israel's objection to Hosni's candidacy -fostering the view that the Egyptian Cultural Ministry's decision to translate Grossman's and Oz's works was another of Hosni's attempts to placate Israel. Asfour, however, denied any connection between the Cultural Ministry's decision and Hosni's UNESCO aspirations. [7]
The Egyptian Cultural Ministry's plan triggered various responses from Egyptian intellectuals. Some supported the project, claiming that the translation of literary works was a praiseworthy endeavor in its own right, and that it had nothing to do with cultural normalization. Others criticized the Cultural Ministry's decision on the grounds that translating Hebrew literature would be perceived as pandering to Israel so that its minister could become UNESCO secretary-general.
Translating Israeli Literature Is Not Cultural Normalization
Editor of the Egyptian English-language newspaper Al-Ahram Weekly 'Assem Al-Qirresh stated: "Relations between Israel vs. Egypt and the Arabs as a whole are oil and water... but everyone is entitled to education, regardless of the timing or of the agenda of the decision makers." He said that the important question is which books are to be translated, and what the selection criterion are, and added: "The real challenge is translating the works of writers who embody authentic Jewish thought [rather than only of those who espouse left-wing ideology]." Egyptian poet Sha'ban Yousef also supported the translation project, saying: "Translating literature - [whether] Israeli, Brazilian, American [or any other] - is not in itself tantamount to cultural normalization." [8] Cultural normalization is Bad, let's not soil Pure Arabic Culture with those lesser, dirty literatures.
Egyptian writer, journalist, and screenwriter Bilal Fadhel called the ministry's decision to translate Israeli literature "more than commendable" and "long overdue." He added: "There is no difference between literary works and political writings which are translated and widely [distributed] in the Arab world in order to familiarize [the public] with Israel's political position." In his opinion, there is no risk that anyone reading Israeli literature would begin to love Israel or support normalization with it.
Editor of the Egyptian Cultural Ministry's weekly Al-Qahira Salah 'Issa likewise backed the Cultural Ministry's plans, and criticized those who objected to them: "It is like burying your head in the sand. I cannot conceive how one can understand the Israelis without understanding their literature, culture, and art - as the Israelis did when they translated all the works of [renowned Egyptian author] Naguib Mahfouz." [9]
Opinions Against the Project
The Translation Project Is Designed to Make the Cultural Minister UNESCO Secretary General
Egyptian publicist Muhammad 'Aboud posted an article calling to cancel the project because it was a waste of public funds: "Personally, I have much respect for the group that opposes the translation of Hebrew books into Arabic under the auspices of the Cultural Ministry... I understand why the ministry is in such a rush to translate Hebrew literature, and I do not believe that they made this important move as part of the national endeavor to recognize Israel... It seems to stem not from a thirst for knowledge, but rather for a position in an international [organization], which may or may not materialize...
"Translating Hebrew literature from English or French, or more accurately, translating an English or French translator's rendition of a Hebrew text, would strip the original of nearly all artistic, conceptual, and literary value. Therefore, this plan must be opposed, since it would waste public funds...
"I appeal to our father at the Ministry of Culture [Farouq Hosni]: Please, let the translation of Hebrew literature into Arabic be executed by private individuals [rather than the Cultural Ministry], so it will not be tainted by the slime of normalization and of direct or indirect cooperation with Israel. After all, the decision on the appointment to the high [UNESCO] office will be decided in a couple of days. Then you will leave, but the unjustified objections to translating Hebrew literature will remain - despite the importance of this project for building a knowledge base regarding aspects of Israeli reality." [10]
The Translation of Books Will Remove the Psychological Barrier Between Arabs and Israelis, And Promote Normalization
Egyptian columnist Dr. 'Ammar 'Ali Hassan also criticized the translation project, calling it a crime. He wrote: "These translations will significantly further cultural normalization [with Israel]. They are a step towards the destruction of a psychological barrier between Arabs and Israelis... If this barrier is broken once by the translation of Israeli stories, it will be broken repeatedly, hundreds of times. Their literature, poetry, and stories will gradually find their way into the region, which will help the Arabs know them better, which will lead to acceptance of their existence in the region, which will lead to accepting them as a fundamental and integral part of the region." Oh, no! Eternal war is the answer!
Hassan added that the mission of knowing one's enemy must be carried out only in the framework of political and strategic research by researchers at universities. [11]
#1
Amos Oz is no moonbat. He is more like me. He veers back and forth in his works between thinking real peace is possible, and wanting to wash his hands of the arabs by seperation. He has a revisionist background, despite years in the Labour party. He is definitely a Zionist.
Grossman is more radical, IIUC.
Neither of course would contribute to "knowing your enemy" and Oz at least, would force egyptians to THINK.
Posted by: liberal hawk ||
09/21/2009 22:29 Comments ||
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Posted by: Mullah Richard ||
09/21/2009 14:35 Comments ||
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#2
On the plus side, the Anglicans in Africa get a ton of converts from blacks tired of being despised and murdered by Arabs. The derogatory racist word "Kaffir", for southern African blacks, is based in the Arab word "Kafir", which means 'heathen', 'unbeliever' or 'infidel'.
The Arabs see blacks as little better than farm animals, even if they are Muslims.
Yemen's president on Sunday accused northern rebels of killing innocent civilians and using "human shields," in an address carried in state media.
*shrug* Isn't that what women and children are for, in that part of the world?
Yemenis of the Shi'ite Zaydi sect have been locked in battle with government forces since the army launched "operation scorched earth" in August in Saada and Amran provinces.
Rebel leader Abdul-Malik al-Houthi, in comments published in Saudi daily Asharq al-Awsat, rejected a key demand that the rebels stop hiding in the mountains of the north, saying this would amount to removing them from their lands.
There were reports of limited fighting on Sunday, the first day of the Muslim holiday of Eid al-Fitr marking the end of the fasting month of Ramadan.
Last week dozens of civilians were reported killed in two army air raids, sparking condemnation from aid organizations and Yemeni rights groups. The United Nations top human rights official called on Sanaa to meet its obligations to civilians.
In his address to mark the Eid, President Ali Abdullah Saleh said the Shi'ite rebels, referred to as Houthis after their leaders' clan, had ignored a cease-fire offer.
"We hoped this offer would not be met with escalation including kidnapping, killing innocent citizens and using them as human shields," he said.
A military spokesman also accused the Houthis of using "human shields" in a statement responding to footage published by the rebels appearing to show children killed in last week's air raid. He said the images were a "fabrication."
The government in Sanaa says the rebels want to restore a Shi'ite state that fell in the 1960s and accuse Shi'ite power Iran of maintaining contacts with them.
The rebels say they want autonomy and accuse Saleh of despotism and corruption in a drive to stay in power, as well as introducing Sunni fundamentalism via his alliance with Riyadh.
Their leader rejected a demand that they stop hiding in the mountains of the north. Abdul-Malik al-Houthi told the Saudi daily: "Most of the places where we live are in the mountain areas, so do they want to move us from there? We cannot accept this."
Posted by: Fred ||
09/21/2009 00:00 ||
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[Al Arabiya Latest] Russian prosecutors found no suspicious materials on the ship Arctic Sea despite media reports it was carrying an air-defense system for Iran, Russian newswires reported on Saturday.
If you can't trust a Soviet Russian prosecutor, who can you trust?
Russia's foreign minister denied the British and Russian press reports earlier this month.
The Maltese-registered cargo ship with a 15-man Russian crew was officially carrying timber from Finland to Algeria worth 1.7 million dollars when it was boarded on July 24 by eight men. The ship was then intercepted by Russian warships off Cape Verde.
Eight suspects -- including Russians, Estonians and Latvians -- were accused of hijacking the Arctic Sea. The suspects have denied the charges of piracy and kidnapping and are now awaiting trial in Moscow.
Speculation has raged that the Arctic Sea -- which vanished for several weeks after being allegedly hijacked -- may have carried a secret cargo, including missile systems covertly bound for Iran.
British and Russian press reports, citing military sources in Israel and Russia, said the vessel had been loaded with Russian S-300 missiles at the naval port of Kaliningrad without the Kremlin's knowledge.
How exactly do you export an entire S-300 system and the Kremlin doesn't know?
The Israeli intelligence service, Mossad, had been monitoring the shipment and tipped off Moscow.
A spokesman for the Russian Prosecutor General's Investigative Committee said prosecutors found nothing but timber on the ship, anchored near the Canary Islands.
"The ship was searched with the help of modern refrigerators appliances, inside and outside. There was nothing but timber and lumber. Nothing that could compromise Russian Federation was found," Interfax news agency quoted him as saying.
However, suspicions persist in the media, with reports that officials from Spain, Malta and Russia couldn't agree on how and where to transfer the ship, while Spain denied it entry to its port of Las Palmas in the Canary Islands.
Last week Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu had visited Russia but his office declined to elaborate on the affair.
Posted by: Fred ||
09/21/2009 00:00 ||
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Amid growing concern about North Korea's expanding ballistic missile capabilities, South Korea has said it will buy Israel's advanced Green Pine radar system, which is used with the Jewish state's principal missile killer, the Arrow-2. The deal will be worth an estimated $200 million, one of Israel's largest weapons deals with South Korea.
Seoul's media reported that South Korea's Defense Acquisition Program Administration would place the order for two Green Pine Block-B systems by the end of October. The radars, built by Elta Systems, a subsidiary of state-owned Israel Aerospace Industries, are believed to have a detection range of more than 300 miles. That would cover most of North Korea.
DAPA spokesman King Young-San told reporters in Seoul that the Green Pine units were scheduled to become operational by 2012. "The system will significantly improve our anti-missile defense capabilities," he said.
Green Pine was the winner of a contest that culminated in tests held in August, edging out its main competition from Thales of France. The Green Pine system will be part of South Korea's Air and Missile Defense-Cell, a missile defense command-and-control center scheduled for completion by 2012.
Elta will integrate the system into the South Korean missile shield, which is based on U.S. interception systems such as the Patriot built by Lockheed Martin of the United States.
The South Korean air force took delivery of the first shipment of Patriot air-defense systems, bought second hand from Germany, in November 2008.
Since then, nuclear-armed North Korea has conducted several missile test-firings, heightening concerns in the south that Pyongyang was becoming more aggressive amid political uncertainty about what is happening in the hermit regime. Shooting NORK missiles near, at or over Japan and South Korea is definitely not a confidence builder in peace negotiations.
North Korea is believed to possess some 600 Scud ballistic missiles capable of hitting targets across South Korea and possibly parts of Japan.
Pyongyang also has an estimated 200 Roding-1 missiles that could reach Tokyo. Which would result in NORK becoming a radioactive glass bowl.
The North has also carried out a series of tests on its long-range Taepodong-2 missile, most recently on April 5 over the Sea of Japan.
Since then, North Korea has fired more than a dozen missiles and detonated its second nuclear device in defiance of international opposition, prompting the U.N. Security Council to impose sanctions in June. And prompting Kimmie into making a long bacon gesture at the UN.
Israel's Haaretz newspaper reported Friday that South Korea was also discussing with Israel Aerospace Industries the possibility of buying the Arrow-2 missile defense system.
India and Turkey have also expressed interest in the Arrow. India has already acquired Green Pine.
However, Haaretz defense analyst Yossi Melman noted, "The chances are slim that a foreign country will purchase the Arrow before a joint Israeli-American missile development occurs." And given the chilly relations between the US pres and Israel at the moment, joint missile development may be on the back burner for a while.
The United States has provided the bulk of the funding for the Arrow program.
Posted by: Alaska Paul ||
09/21/2009 00:00 ||
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A second al-Qaida video featuring a German speaker has surfaced online, but it does not contain specific threats against the country, according to Germany's Interior Ministry.
The speaker on the video is most likely Bekkay Harrach, who uses the pseudonym Abu Talha, a spokeswoman for the Interior Ministry said Sunday. The spokeswoman, speaking on condition of anonymity in line with department policy, said that German intelligence services are evaluating the authenticity of the video.
On Friday, al-Qaida posted a video with Harrach issuing a threat in connection with Germany's troop presence in Afghanistan - prompting authorities to step-up security a week ahead of national elections next weekend.
Sunday's video shows a still image of a masked man under the German title "O Allah, I love you." An 39-minute audio message in German, presumably spoken by Hallach, talks about jihad and the issue of sin in Islam. The message also mentions Afghanistan.
The ministry said Friday that the earlier video underlines the fact the Sept. 27 elections offer "a particular background for propaganda and operational actions by terrorist groups." It said that authorities believe there is an "increased threat situation" to which they are responding with "adjusted security measures in particular at airports and stations."
Friday's video, provided by the site Intelligence Group, showed Harrach warning that, if Germans do not push their political parties to withdraw the country's soldiers from Afghanistan, "there will be a rude awakening after the elections."
Authorities have said Harrach, a German of Moroccan background, is believed to have lived for many years in Bonn and now could be in the Pakistan-Afghanistan border area.
[Al Arabiya Latest] A Swedish newspaper report alleging that Israeli soldiers stole and sold body parts of dead Palestinians did not constitute inciting racism, judicial authorities have ruled, news agency TT reported Saturday.
Two written requests had been submitted to the Swedish Chancellor of Justice to probe whether the report in the Aftonbladet tabloid last month amounted to inciting racial hatred and violated freedom of expression laws.
TT said the Chancellor of Justice had decided not to open a preliminary investigation into the case that sparked a row between Sweden and Israel. The chancellor, who was unavailable for comment on Saturday, is a government-appointed official who acts as an independent judicial watchdog and is the only prosecutor in Sweden who can take legal action in cases concerning freedom of speech.
Aftonbladet alleged in a story in August that Israeli soldiers had been involved in the illegal trafficking of human organs. The claims sparked outrage in Israel and prompted senior figures in the Israeli government to demand that Sweden condemn the report.
Israel had demanded Sweden condemn the article it labeled an anti-Semitic "blood libel." But Stockholm rebuffed the calls, saying that doing so would violate the country's tradition of freedom of speech.
Swedish Foreign Minister Carl Bildt abruptly cancelled a trip to Israel early in September allegedly after reports that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu had considered refusing to meet with him.
Posted by: Fred ||
09/21/2009 00:00 ||
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#3
The sad thing is this whole "organ theft" thing started several years ago when National Geographic magazine did an investigative article on the world wide organ trade.
In it was a map showing the flow of organs around the world. The Persian Gulf and Saudi were some of the main importers.
Ever since then, the Arab world has been abuzz with stories of Westerners (and Joos) stealing organs from Arab children.
This is nothing more than an attempt to distract people from Arab harvesting of African and Asian organs.
"deny everything, admit nothing, make false counter-accusations"
Posted by: Frozen Al ||
09/21/2009 11:33 Comments ||
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#4
It's also not sexist or age-ist. Congrats! You've refuted a charge which hasn't been made.
How about Anti-Semitism, Lars?
Posted by: Mitch H. ||
09/21/2009 14:03 Comments ||
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[Al Arabiya Latest] U.S. President Barack Obama, in a series of interviews aired on Sunday, said he would not grant a request by former CIA directors to quash the Justice Department's investigation into allegations of prisoner abuse following the Sept. 11 attacks.
Seven former CIA chiefs sent a letter to Obama on Friday saying the Justice Department's investigation would "create an atmosphere of continuous jeopardy" and warning of "endless criminal investigations."
The only two who didn't sign were George H.W. Bush and a Mr. Gates, I believe.
The president, in an interview with CBS's show "Face the Nation", noted that although he had the "utmost" respect for the CIA, U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder would have to make "judgment in terms of what has occurred."
Posted by: Fred ||
09/21/2009 00:00 ||
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Reducing USA Nuke arsenal, investigating CIA for "abuses", probably changes in military we haven't heard about yet---could it be that Obamacare is just a distraction while the real agenda is implemented?
Posted by: Herb Clusomble8159 ||
09/21/2009 00:00 ||
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Obama: I don't have a deadline for withdrawal. But I'm certainly not somebody who believes in indefinite occupations of other countries. Keep in mind what happened when I came in. We had been adrift, I think, when it came to our Afghanistan strategy. And what I said was that we are going to do a top to bottom review of what's taking place there...."
Ann Althouse (who enthusiastically voted for Obama) finds this worrisome...the fact that Obama compares the U.S. involvement in Afghanistan to that of the Soviet Union.
I only point this out to vent that nothing...NOTHING...pisses me off more than the assholes that vote first and whine later.
#2
FREEREPUBLIC > GENERAL WARNS OF AFGHAN LOSS WITHOUT MORE TROOPS [30-40000 additional].
versus
* NEWMAX > DE BORCHGRAVE - RISK OF TET-STYLE TALIBAN OFFENSIVE GROWS, +
* FREEREPUBLIC > ANGLICAN ARCHBISHOP SAYS MUSLIMS MASS PRODUCING CHILDREN TO TAKE OVER AFRICA [massive local economic intervention-ventures + promise of multiple wives].
IOW > AFRICANS BEING PROMISED JOBS, FREE $$$, + EXTRA WOMEN, ETC. ALL IN THE NAME OF GOD???
#4
Osama President Bush, the message said, was leaving his successor with a "heavy inheritance" and he doubted that the US could continue fighting al-Qaeda for decades.
"If he withdraws from the war, it is a military defeat. If he continues, he drowns in economic crisis." Obama, probably in response: And for those who seek to advance their aims by inducing terror and slaughtering innocents, we say to you now that, "Our spirit is stronger and cannot be broken. You cannot outlast us, and we will defeat you."
Obama now (Guess he figured Osama was right after all) I'm not interested in just being in Afghanistan for the sake of being in Afghanistan or saving face or, in some way you know, sending a message that America is here for the duration.
#5
Ann Althouse (who enthusiastically voted for Obama) finds this worrisome...the fact that Obama compares the U.S. involvement in Afghanistan to that of the Soviet Union.
I only point this out to vent that nothing...NOTHING...pisses me off more than the assholes that vote first and whine later.
Call me old fashioned, but I think Ms. Althouse's change of political heart has more to do with her getting laid on a regular basis..
More dishonesty from the left. After 9/11, I knew plenty of lefties who said that their BDS was based on Iraq, and that pursuing OBL in Afghanistan was OK.
All along, I knew that even if W had never gone into Iraq, sooner or later they would have found a reason to look upon the Afghanistan TO as bad too, and a reason to have BDS.
Now I have my proof.
Posted by: no mo uro ||
09/21/2009 7:39 Comments ||
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#7
But I'm certainly not somebody who believes in indefinite occupations of other countries.
Well, why not practice 'first in, first out' with Germany and Japan, then South Korea.
#9
President Barack Obama's confusion over Afghanistan
Telegraph View: President Obama must take the opportunity to clarify his war aims in Afghanistan - and dispel the dangerous confusion he has so carelessly created.
Last week, we thought we knew what Barack Obama's Afghanistan strategy was; today, we do not have much of a clue. His out-of-the-blue musings in his Sunday morning TV interviews that "until I'm satisfied we've got the right strategy, I'm not going to be sending some young man or woman over there", indicated an alarming funk at the White House.
#12
it makes sense to insist on the right strategy. absolutely. Having read/skimmed Mccrystals 65 page document, I think it will be hard for the admin to say it does NOT represent a sound strategy.
The problem is not the lack of a real good strategy from CentCom. They have THAT paper in hand.
The problem is in Kabul. its first name is hamid, its last name is kharzai. And THAT is not McCrystsals to deal with. Its Eikenberry's and Holbrookes. And ultimately Obama's.
Kharzai believes the US wont leave and let him fall, and cant pull off a coup. The audience for withdrawl talk, hopefully, is Kharzai. But at some point, BHO, who has promised to talk with everyone from chavez to putin, has to go to Kabul and lay it on the line with Kharzai.
Posted by: liberal hawk ||
09/21/2009 22:37 Comments ||
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[Dawn] Pakistan confirmed on Saturday seven suspects were in detention over last year's Mumbai attacks, calling on India to provide more information to bring the perpetrators to justice. Interior Minister Rehman Malik told a news conference that Pakistan had made tremendous progress over investigations into who was responsible and said the government was determined to secure their conviction in court.
India blamed the November attacks on the outlawed militant group Lashkar-e-Taiba and the siege stalled a four-year peace process between the two nuclear-armed countries. 'We have arrested seven accused despite sketchy information,' said Mr Malik. That means they're gonna get off, of course. There's no such thing as "adequate evidence" if you don't want the evidence to be adequate.
Pakistan said previously it was holding five men over the assault in which 10 Islamist gunmen went on a 60-hour rampage that killed 166 people. The minister said another two suspects were arrested after the Indian and Pakistani prime ministers met in Egypt last July.
Pakistan has begun highly secret court proceedings and in July five suspects appeared before a special court behind closed doors. Court officials said they included the alleged mastermind Zakiur Rehman Lakhvi and an alleged key LeT operative Zarar Shah. 'They are all in our custody and a charge-sheet is likely to be issued by the court very soon,' said Mr Malik, giving no date.
India insists it will resume talks to normalise ties only after Pakistan brings to justice the alleged perpetrators of the November 26-29 siege. 'We want to see them convicted,' said Mr Malik. 'There has been considerable progress. We have done the investigation with a very skilful professional team... the results have been tremendously good,' the minister added, urging India to provide more details. 'The court wants authentic documents and we have requested this dossier, dossier number five which includes all the requests -- particularly that information which we need from India,' he said.
India says it has so far provided four dossiers to Islamabad containing information relating to suspects and the logistics of the attacks. The lone surviving gunman on trial in India said that he and the others were Pakistanis who came to Mumbai undetected by sea. 'The boat used for the transportation of the terrorists has also been recovered and seized,' the Pakistani interior minister said.
Posted by: Fred ||
09/21/2009 00:00 ||
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The leader of Iraq's largest Shiite party sought Monday to shore up political support before January's elections, urging his rivals to join him and resist what he called threats to their unity. The push by Ammar al-Hakim, who took over the Iranian-backed Supreme Islamic Iraqi Council after the death of his influential father last month, is trying to repair a split between the main Shiite parties that came to dominate Iraq's government after Saddam Hussein's fall in 2003.
His appeal Monday during a sermon for the Muslim holiday of Eid al-Fitr was aimed at Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki, who said he would withdraw his Shiite Dawa party from its alliance with SIIC and run with his own bloc in the Jan. 16 parliamentary elections. "Uniting our position is the most urgent need, and we will still work to accomplish this unity," al-Hakim told worshippers at an outdoor prayer service in Baghdad. "It is the right of our people to expect that."
The death of al-Hakim's father from lung cancer came at an especially critical moment for the Shiite political forces whose rise to power has often irked the country's Sunni Muslim population. Although a minority in Iraq, Sunnis enjoyed the trappings of power under decades of Saddam's Sunni-led regime. Some have questioned whether the relatively inexperienced 38-year-old al-Hakim can bridge the division among the Shiites.
Just two days before his father's death, the Supreme Council announced the formation of a new political bloc called the Iraqi National Alliance to contest the parliamentary elections. It also includes followers of anti-American Shiite cleric Muqtada al-Sadr. Al-Maliki, whose part is already allied with SIIC, however, refused to take his party into the new alliance because of differences over the allocation of power and a desire to reach out to more prominent Sunnis and Kurds.
"We are working today to widen our Iraqi National Alliance to include the most political powers we can who are ready to work under this tent," al-Hakim said "There are efforts being made by some inside Iraq and outside aimed at fragmenting our unity," he said, without elaborating.
In another sign of outreach to the prime minister, al-Hakim backed the idea an international tribunal to try those responsible for bombings and other attacks in Iraq. The prime minister called for such a tribunal after Aug. 19 bombings of government ministries that he has blamed on Saddam loyalists living in Syria.
In his second public speech since taking over the party leadership, al-Hakim also reached out to voters directly, saying he would provide Iraqis with more reliable electricity and water services if his alliance leads the next government. "Today, in the country of the two rivers, drinkable water ... has become only a dream for some Iraqis," al-Hakim said. Iraq is also known as the land between two rivers, a reference to the Euphrates and the Tigris.
Al-Hakim's Supreme Council is also trying to recover from an embarrassing defeat in Jan. 31 provincial elections in the oil-rich south due to voter backlash against religious parties. Al-Maliki's party, however, surged ahead there because of his popularity from security gains.
For the first time in 18 years, Israel, the United States and the Western powers were unsuccessful at preventing passage of a resolution calling on Israel to sign the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty. The resolution, passed at the end of the annual general assembly of the International Atomic Energy Agency in Vienna on Thursday, also demands that Israel open its nuclear reactor in Dimona to international inspectors.
More useless posturing by a group that is second only to the World Court in useless posturing.
The resolution was passed by a majority of 49 countries, among them the members of the Arab League and the bloc of developing nations; against 45 Western countries, including the European Union and the United States, and 16 abstentions.
The non-binding resolution mentions "Israeli nuclear capabilities."
In the past, the United States and other Western countries were able to persuade the developing countries not to join the resolution, thus thwarting its passage.
Another resolution, passed with the agreement of Israel and Egypt, calls for nuclear disarmament in the Middle East, and for dialogue among all nations in the region to this end.
Israel's representative at the conference, deputy chief of the Israel Atomic Energy Commission, David Danieli, said the resolution was counterproductive, stressing that Middle Eastern countries such as Libya, Iran and Syria, and Iraq in the past, had contravened the IAEA's resolutions despite being signatories to the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty. He said these countries were planning to develop or had already developed nuclear weapons.
Israel did, however, manage to thwart a proposal by Iran to prohibit any member of the IAEA from attacking the nuclear facilities of another member.
A little too transparent, were they ...
Posted by: Steve White ||
09/21/2009 00:00 ||
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What would ROPers do without their "International" enablers?
#2
Hey, G(r)om, I think you're being unfair here, re the UN and stuff. They paid for it, it's their. Well, it's not really tfrue, the West, and the USA foremost, pay for it. But it's their nonetheless.
I wonder if the people who set the UN back in the halcyon days thought it was going to end up like this? Oh, the irony.
[Al Arabiya Latest] The Palestinian Authority's President Mahmoud Abbas and Israeli Prime Minster Benjamin Netanyahu accepted Sunday an invitation by the American president for a trilateral meeting after the White House made a surprise announcement amid stalled efforts at resuming talks.
The three-way meeting in New York -- on the sidelines of the United Nations General Assembly meeting -- will seek "to lay the groundwork for the relaunch of negotiations, and to create a positive context for those negotiations so that they can succeed," White House spokesman Robert Gibbs said in a statement.
A statement from Netanyahu's office Sunday said the he "warmly accepts the invitation."
Top Palestinian negotiator Saeb Erakat said Abbas had accepted the invitation and accused Israel however of blocking the resumption of peace negotiations that have been stalled since December. "We hope that this meeting will be an opportunity for President Obama to listen to the different points of view and to understand who is blocking the negotiations," Erakat said. "It is Netanyahu who refuses the call by Obama to resume negotiations on the basis of international resolutions and the 'roadmap', and we hope that the American president will force the parties to apply them," he said.
Posted by: Fred ||
09/21/2009 00:00 ||
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The odds of success are low, so with that in mind, and also the threat of global warming on our minds, ma I humbly suggest that they have a video conference in their respective offices.
It will save tens of thousands of gallons of jet fuel, which would otherwise go to producing many tons of the dreaded CO2.
Talk the talk and walk the walk.
Posted by: Alaska Paul ||
09/21/2009 19:36 Comments ||
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He (Medvedev) said Israel is not going to deliver any blows on Iran, as he was assured by Israeli President Shimon Peres during their recent meeting.
A question, and remember, death is not an option: whose lips are most likely to fall off, Medvedev or Peres? Discuss.
Medvedev said when he met Peres in Sochi last month, the Israeli president said "Israel does not intend to launch any strikes on Iran, we are a peaceful country and we will not do this."
Medvedev also confirmed a secret visit "in a close regime" by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to Moscow earlier this month, whom he had conversation with, according to a transcript of the interview published by the Kremlin. Yet he did not disclose any details of their meeting. Israeli media said Netanyahu was to discuss Moscow's arms deals with Iran and Syria during the visit.
In Israel the president, however much loved, has no power, no more than the queen of England. It's the prime minister who makes runs things, and we must note that Mr. Medvedev does not quote PM Netanyahu on the subject. And of course, there is the lips factor.
[Al Arabiya Latest] Iranian director Mohammad Rasoulof, forced to make his latest film "The White Meadows" under difficult conditions, used the San Sebastian film festival to lash out at the Tehran regime.
The film, in competition for the festival's top Golden Shell award, tells the story of a man, Rahmat, who for many years has been tasked with collecting the tears of residents of several islands, although no one knows exactly what he has been doing with them.
Told in the style of a traditional Iranian fable, it is a veiled attack on the Tehran regime.
"I come from a country full of contradictions and suffering, where there is a dictatorship," and "censorship does not allow me to talk openly about what happens in my country," he told a news conference on Saturday evening.
The film was shot in 58 days with both professional and non-professional actors in beautiful countryside by Lake Orumieh, which is dotted with rocky islets covered with salt crystals.
"The conditions were very difficult, we had trouble getting permission, our budget was very limited.... It was a clandestine, underground film.
"It is very difficult to make independent cinema in Iran, we don't have subsidies and we don't have the right to show our films in Iran."
Posted by: Fred ||
09/21/2009 00:00 ||
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[Iran Press TV Latest] Lebanese army chief cautions his forces against Israeli 'schemes' after Tel Aviv blamed Beirut for a terror strike on the Israeli-occupied Palestinian lands.
Chief of the Lebanese Armed Forces Brigadier-General Jean Kahwaji urged the troops to encounter the maneuverings calling on them to be "firm with all those tampering with civil peace," Lebanese newspaper The Daily Star reported on Saturday.
He called for "more alertness on the southern border," where a self-professed al-Qaeda-affiliated group reportedly fired two Katyusha rockets into the northern part of the occupied territory.
The Israeli military responded by firing at least a dozen shells into southern Lebanon. Despite the appearance of a signed statement on a militant website claiming responsibility for the rocket attack, Tel Aviv filed a complaint with the United Nations against Beirut. Moreover, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu declared that he held the Lebanese government responsible.
The strikes, the third this year, were aimed at using south Lebanon as an "arena for the exchange of messages," the commander said, adding that the army and other security apparatus "should increase joint efforts to monitor the movements of terrorists and continue tracking them."
Kahwaji also demanded from the army "close cooperation with the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon [UNIFIL] as part of the implementation of Resolution 1701." The resolution ended the July 2006 Israeli aggression on the Lebanese soil. The massive Israeli attack, which killed over a thousand, mostly Lebanese civilians, were thwarted by the Hezbollah resistance fighters.
Posted by: Fred ||
09/21/2009 00:00 ||
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#2
Yah, all israel's problems involve not attacking the non-democratic proxy hard enough. i imagine the dentist sits in Damascus and laughs his ass off at you as we speak.
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.
By: L. Azuri * 
[Dawn] Pakistan confirmed on Saturday seven suspects were in detention over last year's Mumbai attacks, calling on India to provide more information to bring the perpetrators to justice. Interior Minister Rehman Malik told a news conference that Pakistan had made tremendous progress over investigations into who was responsible and said the government was determined to secure their conviction in court. 
He (Medvedev) said Israel is not going to deliver any blows on Iran, as he was assured by Israeli President Shimon Peres during their recent meeting.
[Iran Press TV Latest] Lebanese army chief cautions his forces against Israeli 'schemes' after Tel Aviv blamed Beirut for a terror strike on the Israeli-occupied Palestinian lands. 
