[Tolo News] Senior Taliban leaders led the war in Afghanistan by phone calls from neighbouring Pakistain, Isaf said on Monday.
We know this because the satellites were listening... and triangulating. Do you want to know what the latest Number Three calls his other wife?
Taliban leaders live in luxurious havens somewhere outside Afghanistan, but only number three's lower-ranking Taliban operatives fight against foreign and Afghan forces here in the country, Isaf Spokesman General Josef Blotz told news hounds in Kabul.
Mr Blotz underscored the need for an increase in attacks to target hard boys' sanctuaries in the countries.
Hey, Joe! It's time to ramp up missile production again -- they're using up the Scorpions as fast as we ship 'em out!
In most restive provinces cell phones stop functioning during the night time.
It is believed that Taliban fighters have intimidated communication firms to ban services at night time.
Of course, that means they can't talk to each other at night, either.
The Taliban leaders "in a coward way are hiding away in safe havens somewhere trying to lead their men here in Afghanistan from behind," Blotz told news hounds. "They not only live in safe havens, they live actually in luxury trying to fuel the insurgency against the Afghan population by using cell phones and we do see that every day."
Pakistain and Iran have consistently been accused of fueling insurgency in Afghanistan. Blotz highlighted that Iran's border with Afghanistan is where narcos and cut-throats cross into the country.
"The common border between Afghanistan and Iran is a border crossing criminality to including drug trafficking," he said.
"Nato is not directly engaged with Iran. We follow what Iran does. It's for Afghanistan and Iran to work out a really good regional partnership between the two countries," said Nato's Senior Civilian Representative Spokesperson, Dominick Medley.
Isaf welcomed Russia's preparation to co-operate with Afghans in the fight against insurgency and drug trafficking.
We know the universe exists outside our minds because of surprises like that.
Senior Western officials have anticipated 2011 to be fateful but a deadly year is ahead of troops combating an increasingly growing insurgency in the country.
Posted by: Fred ||
01/25/2011 00:00 ||
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Afghanistan's Caped PresidentHamid Maybe I'll join the Taliban Karzai has strongly condemned the US-led forces for committing serious crimes against civilians and their property in the war-ravaged country.
The condemnation comes after the US-led troops cut down thousands of trees and inflicted serious damage to public property in Ghazni Province.
"According to reports, the foreign forces have recently cut down between 3,000 to 4,000 trees in an area between Khani Baba and Band-e-Sarda villages," the presidential palace said in a statement.
Karzai has reacted angrily to the news, saying that "the actions were a crime against public property of Afghanistan."
The developments come as a recent report says US-led military operations have inflicted over USD 100 million in damages on public property in southern Afghanistan.
Karzai's office has repeatedly called on the US to pay more attention to the protection of civilian lives and property during military operations.
US President Barack B.O. Obama has admitted that the issue of civilian causalities has created tension between the two governments.
Obama acknowledged that he sometimes has "blunt" conversations with Karzai, who has often criticized the US-led alliance for endangering civilians.
"Sometimes that conversation is very blunt. There are going to be some strong disagreements. Sometimes real tensions," Obama said at the NATO summit in Lisbon in late November 2010.
Afghans say the US-led forces disregard local culture and have targeted hundreds of civilian in different parts of the war-torn country.
Foreign forces are often accused of killing civilians during operations launched against cut-throats in the country.
Civilians have been the main victims of violence in Afghanistan, particularly in the country's troubled southern and eastern provinces, where they are killed by both bad turban and foreign fire.
US-led forces have some 150,000 soldiers deployed in Afghanistan. The war in Afghanistan, with civilian and military casualties at record highs, has become the longest war in US history.
Posted by: Fred ||
01/25/2011 00:00 ||
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#1
so we took down some more of his opium fields and he is calling them trees?
Posted by: Water Modem ||
01/25/2011 1:35 Comments ||
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#2
Karzai has reacted angrily to the news, saying that "the actions were a crime against public property of Afghanistan."
Right. Our guys run around there with nothing better to do than to call in special equipment to take out bunches of trees in an area.
Can we frag this SOB already, or should we wait for the Taliban to violate their apparently agreed-upon hudna after we leave and let them do the job?
The government may consider an exchange of five Somali pirates captured by the Navy in a rescue operation with the crew of a fishing trawler who have been held by pirates in the lawless country since November.
Defense Minister Kim Kwan-jin hinted at the unorthodox solution when he met members of the National Assembly's Defense Committee on Monday to report on the rescue of a Korean freighter in the Gulf of Aden. When some committee members called for a prisoner swap, Kim promised to consult other government officials in the matter.
But the Foreign Ministry is reportedly skeptical about the idea. Officials there said pirates and Korean sailors cannot be exchanged on an equal footing, and it is unclear if such a swap is feasible since the freighter Samho Jewelry and the trawler Keummi may have been hijacked by different gangs.
Government officials considered handing the captives over to be tried in a third country like Kenya or Oman, but this proved difficult and the government is now minded to bring them to Korea.
The committee was also told that the pirates had missiles and other weapons that posed a serious danger to the Korean Navy ship.
Only until the pirates try to use them; at that point they'll be the hunted.
Army Lt. Gen. Lee Sung-ho of the Joint Chiefs of Staff said the pirates "had a huge 70,000-ton ship registered in Panama. We didn't know exactly what equipment or how many pirates were on board, but we know it carried missiles."
Meanwhile, the rescued Samho Jewelry reached Omani waters Monday but is not expected to dock in Muscat until Thursday because it will take time to discuss how to handle the captured and killed pirates.
Posted by: Steve White ||
01/25/2011 00:00 ||
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#1
It seems to me that anti-piracy forces should simply gather up 50 or 100 Somali inhabitants of every Somali coastal town, and hold then in an internment camp - or aboard an internment ship somewhere - as trade "commodities" to use in exchange for pirate hostages.
As far as that goes, simply gather up coastal Somali boats, automobiles, anything else of value - its probably fair to assume that such artifacts are the fruits of prate plunder anyway - and "trade" them back for pirated vessels.
#5
Hey gromky - if private individuals do it for their own benefit, it's piracy. If governments do it, by issuing a letter of marque, its legal. At least - it used to be, in the "old days" of piracy.
Issue "Blackwater Eric" a letter of marque, and I'm sure he'd be happy to serve as a scourge of pirates.
#6
if private individuals do it for their own benefit, it's piracy. If governments do it, by issuing a letter of marque, its legal. At least - it used to be, in the "old days" of piracy.
With a letter of marque, it's only privateering if the captains keep the booty. If they turn it over to the government, then they are merely private contractors fulfilling a government job.
#9
Lone Ranger's plan wouldn't work for the same reason that the Korean plan wouldn't work - no way to guarantee that you've taken anything the particular pirates holding the hostages actually want. As I understand it, there isn't a hell of a lot of organization in the Somali pirate business - it's a lot of gangs, usually each organized around one or more mother-ships & in contact with landside negotiators and bagmen who don't actually work for the pirates except on a market basis.
As for the letters of marque and reprisal, don't they need to be issued *against* a wartime sovereign target? Privateers can't just go booming about the main, grabbing random individuals and ships willy-nilly, they have to be attacking flagged entities, don't they? There *isn't* a sovereign entity in the Somali piracy trade, Puntland and Somaliland make no claims to control their "volunteer coast guards".
Posted by: Mitch H. ||
01/25/2011 16:06 Comments ||
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(Xinhua) -- Malaysian Defense Minister Ahmad Zahid Hamidi confirmed here Monday that seven Somali pirates, who were seized by the Malaysian armed forces when they were trying to hijack a Malaysian merchant ship in the Gulf of Aden, are expected to be sent to Malaysia next Monday for trial.
The pirates, who were on their way to Malaysia, are expected to arrive at Port Klang, a major port on southwest coast of the Peninsular Malaysia, on Jan. 31, and will be immediately handed over to the Royal Malaysian Police upon arrival to face trial, state media Bernama quoted the minister as saying on Monday.
A Malaysian merchant ship, MT Bunga Laurel, was attacked by a group of armed Somalian pirates on Jan. 21 midnight when passing through the Gulf of Aden. The armed forces on the Royal Malaysian Navy auxiliary ship, Bunga Mas 5, which was on duty to protect the ship, made a swift fightback against the pirates.
Twenty-three crew members were successfully rescued without bloody injuries while seven pirates were nabbed by the Malaysian armed forces during the battle.
Posted by: Fred ||
01/25/2011 00:00 ||
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(Xinhua) -- The UN on Monday called on the international community to step up its support to Somalia as the war-torn nation approaches the anniversary of two decades without a functioning national government amid struggles to consolidate peace, stability and progress for it's people.
UN Resident and Humanitarian Coordinator for Somalia, Mark Bowden said despite decades of conflict, many of Somalia's development indicators have improved since 1991 as the UN and local partners have increased support for the provision of essential social services to vulnerable communities. "Somalia is one of the world's most intractable crises. For twenty years conflict over power, resources and land has destroyed lives, created hundreds of thousands of orphans and devastated communities," Bowden said.
Large swathes of Somalia remain in the grip of conflict resulting in a dire humanitarian situation for over two million people. Last month the UN warned that a predicated drought is likely to push many more people into crisis. "Progress is possible even in these difficult circumstances. Across the country, increasing numbers of children are enrolling in schools, health clinics are opening, and the economy led by the agricultural, banking and telecom sectors is growing rapidly."
UN supported immunization campaigns have kept Somalia polio- free since 2007 and the incidence of Malaria has been reduced by 57 percent between 2005 and 2009.
In the last three years the UN with local partners has also scaled-up nutrition services by over 300 percent for the treatment of acute malnutrition among the most affected infants. "While indicators of Somali welfare remain low, they have shown a marked improvement since 1991 despite continuing conflict. Life expectancy has grown, access to health facilities has almost doubled, infant mortality has dropped and extreme poverty has plummeted," Bowden said.
He said despite significant signs of progress much more needs to be done as the Somali people need UN support more than ever. "The international community must step up its support to the people of Somalia if we are to protect the gains we have made and prevent many more people from slipping into crisis and Somalia from becoming one of the world's few chronic catastrophes," he said.
This week the United Nations, aka the Oyster Bay Chowder and Marching Society will also launch a five year development plan for Somalia called "the United Nations Assistance Strategy for Somalia (UNSAS)."
The UNSAS will set out the humanitarian, recovery and development objectives of the UN in Somalia for the next five years.
The UNSAS aims to increase availability of essential social services, provide livelihood opportunities and build Government institutions that are able to provide security and justice for all Somali people. "As we reflect on the tragic consequences of two decades of conflict, let us reaffirm our commitment to building a lasting peace which matches the resilience of millions of Somali people who continue to work towards a better future."
Posted by: Fred ||
01/25/2011 00:00 ||
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#1
we tried too help these dumbasses, remember Black Hawk down? Fuck them and theis al shabaab. Maybe they will hurry up and kill each other off.
Posted by: chris ||
01/25/2011 19:36 Comments ||
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Head of Caucasus Muslims Office Sheikhulislam Allahshukur Pashazade expressed condolences to Russian President Dmitry Medvedev, Prime Minister Vladimir Putin and Patriarch of Moscow and All Russia Cyril in connection with the act of terror that took place at the Domodedovo international airport and have caused numerous human casualties, the Office reported on Tuesday. Yeah, I'll bet you did. "Please don't kill me!"
Pashazade expressed his sincere condolences to the families and relatives of killed, the Russian people. Pashazade assessed the actions of terrorists that have no religious or ethnic belonging as the greatest sin before God. Sheikhulislam hoped the effectiveness of joint struggle against the terrorism. No belonging may technically be true. That woman is probably an old maid or a widow. Both outcasts from Islam.
A blast took place in arrivals hall of the Moscow airport "Domodedovo" on Jan. 24 at 16:32. According to the latest data, roughly 35 people died, 180 injured. Roughly 110 people were hospitalized.
A few are even voicing the previously unthinkable suggestion that Prime Minister Vladimir Putin should resign, since he is the leader most closely associated with setting policy during the decade-long cycle of terrorism and brutal security countermeasures in the seething north Caucasus.
"It seems that we live from one terrorist assault to another," Igor Korotchenko, a former high-ranking security officer, told the independent Ekho Moskvi radio station Tuesday.
"When it happens, we see authorities react. They give instructions and order intensive antiterrorist operations, but it all comes to naught until we are shaken by the next explosive terrorist act," he said. Start burying the remains of terrorists in a pig.
Igor is panicking unnecessarily. No plan to reduce terrorism is foolproof or 100% guaranteed. There will be days when terrorists are successful, and innocents are going to die on those days. It's all about reducing the odds. None of us would want to live in Vlad's Russia or be subject to Vlad's whims, but this attack isn't his fault -- it's squarely on the fault of the evil people who perpetrated it.
In addition, it's unclear what levers Putin could push now if he aims to exact retribution. After the Beslan school hostage crisis in 2004 that killed more than 330 people, half of them children, Putin pushed through changes to make regional governors appointed rather than elected. Still, further attempts at consolidating Russian government control could provoke a backlash from an opposition movement that has grown in recent months. I'm sure it will be interesting. And I hope we can help.
And speaking of consolidating power, maybe the T&A can put scanners out in the parking lot of airports, too.
#1
After the Beslan school hostage crisis in 2004 that killed more than 330 people, half of them children, Putin pushed through changes to make regional governors appointed rather than elected. Still, further attempts at consolidating Russian government control could provoke a backlash from an opposition movement that has grown in recent months.
Maybe the solution is to make someone named Vladimir Putin President-for-Life.
(Xinhua) -- The Rodong Sinmun newspaper of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) on Monday said detente on the Korean Peninsula is essential for peace in Northeast Asia.
Then stand down your army, Young Leader Kim Jong Un.
According to an article published by the DPRK's official newspaper, the Korean Peninsula has turned into "a region fraught with highest tension and biggest danger of war worldwide," which badly affected peace in Northeast Asia.
Whose fault is that?
The article said the key to peace on the peninsula is to "see into the essence of the U.S. policy for aggression on Korea and take a principled stand toward it."
No, no! That is an error thought. You must purge yourself of such errors before you can... eat. So best get to work on it.
The United States' asserting that it is to cope with the "military threat" from the DPRK is just a pretext to "perpetuate its military occupation" of South Korea and reinforce its armed forces' aggression around the peninsula, said the article.
Another thought error. You're just riddled with them, like worms. We must purge you before we feed you.
"The U.S. strategy is to put whole Korea under its control by military strength and, with it as a springboard, dominate Northeast Asia and, furthermore, Eurasia," the article said.
No, that's China's strategy. It's easy to confuse expansionist Han totalitarians with round-eyes who don't want you to spread nuclear war around the world.
The article meanwhile stressed that further U.S. advocate of the DPRK's "military threat" will lead to greater war possibility on the peninsula, and more strained situation in Northeast Asia and the Asia-Pacific region.
No "army first", no "juche", nothing about the heroic Kim family... I'd give it a 3.
The article reaffirmed that it was the consistent stand of the DPRK to preserve peace and security in Northeast Asia and contribute to achieving global peace, security and development.
Posted by: Fred ||
01/25/2011 00:00 ||
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#1
It seems as thought the younger generation of socialist lions at the DPRK propaganda ministry of true have lost some grammar skills. I suspect being always faint with hunger does that for you.
Or might it be the Chinese translators in the PLA who don't really give a crap about proficient English skills anymore since they see the need for English fading, to be replaced by the always troubling Contonese-Mandarin debate since their are the looming world power in their minds?
A UN human rights official has been roundly condemned for suggesting that the US government may have orchestrated the September 11 terrorist attacks.
Richard Falk, a retired professor from Princeton University, wrote on his blog that there had been an "apparent cover up" by American authorities. He added that most media were "unwilling to acknowledge the well-evidenced doubts about the official version of the events" on 9/11, despite it containing "gaps and contradictions".
And he described David Ray Griffin, a conspiracy theorist highly regarded in the so-called "9/11 truth" movement, as a "scholar of high integrity" whose book on the subject was "authoritative".
Ban Ki-Moon, the UN Secretary-General, described the comments as "preposterous" and "an affront to the memory of the more than 3,000 people who died in the attack." But Mr Ban said that it was not for him to decide whether Prof Falk, who serves the organisation as a special investigator into human rights abuses in the Palestinian territories, should be fired by the UN.
Because Mr. Ban is only the Secretary-General. It's not like he's in charge or anything.
Vijay Nambiar, Mr Ban's chief of staff, said this was up to the human rights council, a 47-nation body based in Geneva, Switzerland, that was created by the UN in 2006.
After assuming the role of prosecutor and judge, Al- Jazeera, the Arab worlds most influential TV network, has ruled that the leaders of the Palestinian Authority have betrayed their people and must therefore step down from the stage.
The defendants have been found guilty of ceding control over most of east Jerusalem to Israel, relinquishing the right of return for millions of Palestinian refugees and conducting security coordination with Israeli security authorities.
In other words, PA President Mahmoud Abbas and his men have been convicted of high treason which, in the Arab and Islamic world, is a crime punishable by death.
Al-Jazeera is now waiting for the executioner (the Palestinians, in this case) to carry out the death sentence.
Palestinian Authority proposed that only a handful of the nearly six million Palestinian refugees be allowed to return.
Since the Palestinian intent was that any agreement was merely a step to annexing everything between the Jordan and the Mediterranean, and the PA announced this frequently in Arabic to their people at the time, as Yasser Arafat had done before his timely death, any fuss now is mere posturing for effect.
[Al Jazeera] Paleostinian Authority officials have come down hard on secret documents obtained by Al Jizz showing that top negotiators offered major concessions to Israel in the division of holy sites and Jerusalem, the would-be capital city of a future Paleostinian state.
Since at the same time they were telling their own people, in Arabic, that it was all a lie to move the juices closer to total surrender, I don't see why they're so upset that their ruses are revealed. It's not as though everyone didn't know every offer and counteroffer at the time, anyway.
the ineffectual Mahmoud Abbas, the Paleostinian president, was quoted by the Rooters news agency as saying that the leaked documents deliberately confuse Israeli and Paleostinian positions.
"What is intended is a mix-up. I have seen them yesterday present things as Paleostinian but they were Israeli... This is therefore intentional," he said.
Equally critical of the documents is the chief Paleostinian negotiator, Saeb Erekat, who dismissed the accounts of negotiations with Israel released by Al Jizz as "a bunch of lies".
The Paleostine Papers revealed unprecedented private concessions from Erekat and other Paleostinian Authority (PA) negotiators on the issue of the division of Jerusalem and the Haram al Sharif (Noble Sanctuary).
Reporting from Ramallah on Monday, Al Jizz's James Bays said Paleostinians were divided in their reaction to the Paleostine Papers, with some supporters of the PA quite angry at Al Jizz.
"There was a small group of protesters who gathered near Al Jizz's office in the main square in Ramallah, no more than 50 people ... Suddenly they came towards Al Jizz's office and made their way into the building where the Al Jizz bureau is located. They got as far as the bureau itself, and tried to bash down the door," Bays reported.
The police were called to the scene, and the incident did not escalate further, Bays said, adding that the incident "shows how passionate some people are about this issue and how heated the debate in this city has become since the release of the Paleostine Papers.
Nothing to hide
In an appearance on Al Jizz shortly after the documents were released on Sunday, Erakat said the Paleostinian leadership had "nothing to hide" and dismissed most of the report as lies.
He said that the information shown contained mistakes and inaccuracies and that his words were taken out of context and he was misquoted.
"I have always said that east Jerusalem is part of Paleostine.
"No body has given up anything, I have shown [that] Jerusalem Map on Al Jizz a year ago. The land exchange principle was discussed before," Erekat said.
He said that all documents were shared in advance with the Arab league and several Arab countries, including Egypt, Jordan and Qatar.
"We have not gone back on our position. If we had given ground on the refugees and made such concessions, why hasn't Israel agreed to sign a peace accord?" he asked.
The chief Paleostinian negotiator in the 2008 talks, Ahmed Qurei, told The News Agency that Dare Not be Named that "many parts of the documents were fabricated, as part of the incitement against the Paleostinian Authority and the Paleostinian leadership".
Posted by: Fred ||
01/25/2011 00:00 ||
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#1
it's not as if a Paleo has ever lived up to their promises, right?
Posted by: Frank G ||
01/25/2011 19:26 Comments ||
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(Xinhua) -- The Qatar-based broadcaster Al- Jazeera has launched new documents showing that the Paleostinian Authority offered much bigger peace concessions to Israel than previously revealed.
Chief Paleostinian negotiator Saeb Erekat "had suggested unprecedented compromises on the division of Jerusalem and its holy sites," according to the documents.
But Israel rejected the offer, saying it did not meet their demands, the documents show.
Details of the proposals, laid out during peace talks in 2008, emerged late on Sunday when Al-Jazeera began publishing the first of 1,600 confidential documents known as the "Paleostine Papers."
Al-Jazeera said it has obtained nearly 1,700 documents, maps and minutes of decade-long records of negotiations.
The Arab satellite news channel said the leaks cover more than 10 years of secret talks between the Paleostinians and the Israelis.
The documents also show Paleostinian president the ineffectual Mahmoud Abbas was warned in advance of Israel's 2008 invasion of Gazoo.
Al-Jazeera did not say how it obtained the documents, however, it said Sunday on its website, "Over the last several months, Al- Jazeera has been given unhindered access to the largest-ever leak of confidential documents related to the Israeli-Paleostinian conflict."
The release of the so-called "Paleostine Papers" comes just weeks after Wikileaks starting publishing some 250,000 secret U.S. diplomatic cables.
The Paleostinian-Israeli peace talks have reached a deadlock due to a dispute over Jewish settlement construction, with the Paleostinians refusing to return to the negotiating table until Israel halts settlement building. The WSJ has more if you can tunnel through their subscription wall.
Posted by: Fred ||
01/25/2011 00:00 ||
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Sanctions have not held up Iran's nuclear program and it could produce bombs within two years, Israel's new top spy said on Tuesday, staking out a conservative timeline in the face of rosier U.S. assessments.
The remarks by Major-General Aviv Kochavi, chief of military intelligence, also appeared aimed at asserting authority over the rival Israeli espionage agency Mossad, whose departing chief said this month Iran might not have nuclear arms before 2015.
"The sanctions have had an impact on the Iranian economy, but they have had no impact on Iran's nuclear program," Kochavi said in his first briefing to an Israeli parliamentary defence panel, according to its spokesman.
"The question is not when Iran will have a bomb but rather how much time until the Supreme Leader decides to escalate" uranium enrichment, Kochavi said, referring to a currently low-purity project that Iran says is for peaceful energy needs.
"Based on their infrastructure and the technical know-how and uranium they have, within a year or two after he makes that decision, they will have nuclear weapons." The Mossad is not happy about being second-guessed. Maybe they are starting to head the way of the CIA now.
#2
Again, be it 2012 or 2020, any NUC IRAN will prefer to be on the Media,Diplomatic "Defensive"
as it Nuclearizes + devs a reliable, effec NucWeaps Arsenal includ Delivery Systems potent enough to deter andor defeat outside = foreign attack, ee the US-ISRAEL. Iran for time being will prefer to let the MILTERRS be in the forefront of any MIL CONFRONTATION, BRINKMANSHIP + WAR, AGZ THE US-ISRAEL + OTHER.
#3
Iran's other advantage is that the US Govt, + mainstream America still believe that POLITICAL DIPLOMACY + DETERRENCE can still stop Iran's nuclear ambitions + agenda in LT; WHEREAS US ALLY ISRAEL BELIEVES IT WON'T HENCE ISRAEL PREFERS THE MIL OPTION TO OCCUR IN THE [very]NEAR-TERM.
As corollary, MOUD's comments in the Artics above + Prior once again make it clear that Iran will NOt stop nuclearizing despite any US-Israeli AIR, SPECOPS? STRIKE(S) AGZ ITS NUCPROGS - ONLY A FULL-SCALE GROUND INVASION + OCCUPATION [International = UNSC Mil-forced "Regime Change"]WILL DO IT.
[Iran Press TV] Lebanese army says it has tightened security measures to avert potential threats amid the current political crisis in the country over choosing a new prime minister.
The army released a statement on Monday, saying it has increased the deployment of troops and tightened security measures to enhance the country's security and stability amid the current political crisis.
The statement called on citizens to show the highest level of national responsibility, Press TV correspondent in Beirut reported.
The army also underscored that it would deal firmly with any attempt to harm the security, freedom and stability of Lebanese citizens.
Leb is grappled with its worst political crisis since 2008, over tensions provoked by the US-backed Special Tribunal for Leb, whose prosecutor's indictment on former Lebanese Prime Minister Rafiq Hariri's 2005 liquidation was submitted last week.
The political parties are now negotiating to pick a new prime minister as Saad Hariri's government has fallen apart over the tensions.
Lebanese President Michel Suleiman held parliamentary talks on Monday to decide on whom to appoint as the country's next prime minister.
Meanwhile, ...back at the ranch... Israel is reportedly preparing to take advantage of the political chaos in Leb and launch another military strike on the country.
In an interview with Press TV, Lebanese political analyst Radwan Rizk said Israel is seriously considering an invasion of south Leb over concerns about the formation of a Hezbullies-led government in the country.
"Israel is looking for an allied government taking over in Leb and this is a dream for it because we will never let any government by any kind of force, politically or militarily, to take over a government in Leb," he added.
Posted by: Fred ||
01/25/2011 00:00 ||
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[An Nahar] "False Witness" Mohammed Zuhair Siddiq has unveiled that he holds seven important recordings that implicate top Syrian officers in ex-Premier Rafik Hariri's liquidation.
Siddiq called al-Jadid TV's anchorman George Salibi during his talk show Sunday night and made the revelation. He said he is going to deliver the tapes to the Special Tribunal for Leb at The Hague.
He exposed one of the recordings in which a high-ranking Syrian officer and his subordinate discuss about Abu Adas and how he refuses to execute orders to carry out the liquidation because he only kills infidels (koffar).
The high-ranking officer then asked his subordinate: "You animal, didn't you tell him that Hariri is an infidel?"
Siddiq said many people in the March 8 coalition would recognize the officer which he refused to name. Media reports said the man is Brig. Gen. Rustom Ghazaleh, the former head of Syria's military intelligence in Leb.
The "false witness" told the TV station that he obtained the recordings from Syria's Interior Minister from 2004 to 2005, and long-time head of Syria's security apparatus in Leb, Ghazi Kanaan.
Siddiq then said he had warned Syria's hereditary President Bashar Pencilneck Assad ... who used to be referred to in the Egyptian press as the boy president ... several times about the Abu Adas issue and Prime Minister Mohammed Naji Otari had sent an envoy to Spain to negotiate with the "false witness."
Asked whether he had met with Caretaker Premier Saad Hariri in Spain, Siddiq confirmed that such a meeting took place at the request of the STL.
He stressed that the talks were his only meeting with Hariri and Col. Wissam Hassan. He said that both were skeptical about him and did not believe him. Siddiq added that he never met them again.
Salibi questioned his motives behind coming up with such information after five years of silence and on the eve of the parliamentary consultations to name a new premier.
Siddiq's revelation also came after broadcasts on al-Jadid of interviews conducted by U.N. Sherlocks and a conversation between Hariri and Siddiq in Spain.
Posted by: Fred ||
01/25/2011 00:00 ||
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[An Nahar] Informed opposition sources praised on Monday Hizbullah Secretary General Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah's choice to nominate former Prime Minister Najib Miqati to head a new government, saying that only House Speaker Nabih Knobby Berri ... the Hizbullah sock puppet ... was informed of this plan.
They told the Central News Agency that Berri agreed to it a few hours before the consultations when the opposition's original choice to nominate former PM Omar Karami was reconsidered.
They explained that by nominating Miqati, at least three of his MPs' votes will be transferred to the opposition, which would not have been possible had Karami been nominated, therefore granting the opposition 63 votes against Caretaker Prime Minister Saad Hariri's 65.
Meanwhile, ...back at the ranch... an informed opposition political source told the news agency that the decision to nominate Miqati was a result of Arab, regional, and international pressure on the opposition and Syria against naming Karami.
"The Syrian leadership informed the opposition of this decision Saturday night through Nasrallah and Berri's envoys who visited Damascus in a quick visit," it added.
The source predicted that Miqati may win 68 votes during the parliamentary consultations and he has started preparing the formation of a new government.
It revealed that it would be a technocratic Cabinet of 14 ministers, with the defense and interior ministries going to the president.
"This does not mean that there will be no preliminary consultations to form a 30-minister national unity cabinet," it added.
Furthermore, it stressed that the opposition had requested Miqati to implement a five-point plan, the first of which demands withdrawing the cooperation protocol between Leb and the Special Tribunal for Leb as it was formed through unconstitutional means.
The other points include withdrawing the Lebanese judges from the STL seeing as they are false witnesses, halting the funding of the tribunal, referring the false witnesses file to the Lebanese judiciary, and bolstering Lebanese-Syrian ties, said the source.
Posted by: Fred ||
01/25/2011 00:00 ||
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[An Nahar] Progressive Socialist Party leader MP Walid Wally Jumblat ... who's been on every side in Leb at least four times... on Monday announced the end of his Democratic Gathering parliamentary bloc, after four MPs of the 11-member gathering decided not to back his candidate for the premiership.
Following binding consultations with President Michel Suleiman at the Baabda Palace on naming a new PM, Jumblat said that his bloc will now be renamed to the National Struggle Front.
"I would've hoped to continue the road with the comrades of yesterday in the Democratic Gathering, but circumstances dictate that there is no justification for its persistence, that's why we will go back to the old, historic naming -- the National Struggle Front -- which dates back to the days of martyr Kamal Jumblat," Jumblat said.
The new bloc, which voted for ex-PM Najib Miqati to head the country's next government, comprises MPs Walid Jumblat, Ghazi Aridi, Wael Abu Faour, Akram Shehayyeb, Alaeddine Terro, Nehme Tohme and Elie Aoun.
The four MPs who are not part of Jumblat's bloc anymore are Marwan Hamade, Henry Helou, Antoine Saad and Fouad al-Saad. They voted for caretaker Prime Minister Saad Hariri later in the day.
Jumblat's stance comes after he declared Friday that he will side with "Syria and the Resistance." That'd be the Hezbullies, natch...
He said the aim of his decision was to preserve Leb's stability.
Hizbullah and its allies last week brought down the government of Saad Hariri because of a dispute over a U.N. probe into the 2005 liquidation of Hariri's father, ex-premier Rafik Hariri.
Posted by: Fred ||
01/25/2011 00:00 ||
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[An Nahar] Najib Mikati's candidacy for the premiership has reportedly won the blessing of La Belle France and Qatar in addition to Syria as the Opposition's condition primarily called for the abolition of the international tribunal.
As-Safir newspaper on Monday said Miqati's nomination came following intensive contacts between Gay Paree and Doha that also included prominent regional capitals.
It said Miqati is expected to receive a "comfortable" percentage of votes against Hariri, particularly since at least two of his north Leb allies (Mohammad Safadi and Ahmad Karami) will vote for him and given that Druze leader Walid Wally Jumblat ... who's been on every side in Leb at least four times... will most likely secure 8 votes from his Democratic Gathering bloc in Miqati's favor.
As-Safir said AMAL Movement and Hizbullah MPs Ali Hasan Khalil and Haj Hussein Khalil visited Miqati at his Verdun residence on Saturday and conveyed to him the Opposition's desire to bring him as Leb's new prime minister to head the next Government which would take upon itself the termination of the agreement between Leb and the international tribunal, the withdrawal of Lebanese judges from the tribunal and ending financing it, in addition to referring the false witnesses' issue to the Judicial Council.
Mikqati, however, according to the report, considered that any commitment of this kind is to be taken unanimously by Cabinet.
"Cabinet can discuss these issues and decide which it deems appropriate," Miqati reportedly told AMAL and Hizbullah delegates.
A senior Mustaqbal ... the Future Movement, political party led by Saad Hariri... Movement official, on the other hand, acknowledged that Miqati has been named by the Opposition after he agreed to adopt a position against the Special Tribunal for Leb.
The pro-Opposition Al-Akhbar newspaper, meanwhile, said Miqati also made a "brief" visit to Damascus where he met President Bashar Assad.
Posted by: Fred ||
01/25/2011 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.
[Tolo News] Senior Taliban leaders led the war in Afghanistan by phone calls from neighbouring Pakistain, Isaf said on Monday. 
Hamid 
Somali pirates
called on the international community to step up its support to Somalia as the war-torn nation approaches the anniversary of two decades without a functioning national government amid struggles to consolidate peace, stability and progress for it's people.
In addition, it's unclear what levers Putin could push now if he aims to exact retribution. After the Beslan school hostage crisis in 2004 that killed more than 330 people, half of them children, Putin pushed through changes to make regional governors appointed rather than elected. Still, further attempts at consolidating Russian government control could provoke a backlash from an opposition movement that has grown in recent months.
(Xinhua) -- The Rodong Sinmun newspaper of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) on Monday said detente on the Korean Peninsula is essential for peace in Northeast Asia.
A UN human rights official has been roundly condemned for suggesting that the US government may have orchestrated the September 11 terrorist attacks. 
