#1
Kirolos Andraws had every reason to be excited about the January uprising in his native Egypt, figuring democracy would bring hope for young people like him.
Then one day in February, says Mr. Andraws, a gang of thugs beat him and told him, "you deserve to die." His offense, he says: refusing to convert to Islam.
The very same Arab spring/Muslim Brotherhood/Mubarack ouster movement cheered here at "pass the popcorn" Bloodyburg. Now. Is the world a better place for the Christians around the world? No. And welcome back to the dark ages after only 400 years of enlightenment.
#2
I don't specifically recall anyone here and "Bloodyburg" who actually said Mubarak's ouster was a good thing,nor his remaining in power was a good thing as well.
The main sentiment was that the general press giddiness over the "Arab spring" was unfounded and that any change would probably not be an improvement, nor much of a change.
#3
And welcome back to the dark ages after only 400 years of enlightenment.
Two world wars, numerous civil wars, two flavors of communist oppression, and a genocide or two. I would hardly consider the past four hundred years as "enlightenment".
#4
Huh. I just reset my cookies, it wanted to make me "Slurt Dark Lord of the Hatfields2470."
Two world wars, numerous civil wars, two flavors of communist oppression, and a genocide or two. I would hardly consider the past four hundred years as "enlightenment".
Well, at least it's easier to get laid now than in 1500.
U.S. State Department Deputy Spokesman Mark Toner refuses to confirm rumors that the U.S. seeks to buy back weapons that may have been looted from open stockpiles, according to an AFP report.
U.S. experts sent to Libya to recover weapons left over by fallen leader Muammar Gadhafi found 5,000 surface-to-air missiles, the U.S. State Department reportedly said Friday.
According to a report by AFP, U.S. State Department Deputy Spokesman Mark Toner said the exact number is difficult to say, for there was no actual inventory and a number were destroyed by NATO air strikes this year. Toner reportedly said the U.S. supports the current Libyan government's efforts to restore order in the north African nation. "We support the Libyan government as it works on this... to disarm, demobilize, and reintegrate the militias. It's clearly a high priority for them," he reportedly said.
AFP added that, according to Toner, the U.S. State Department was still in the process of evaluating how many missiles existed in Libya, which could pose a danger to civilian aircraft. It added that Toner refused to confirm rumors that the U.S. was seeking to buy back some of the weapons that may have been looted from open stockpiles during the chaos of the Arab Spring fighting.
On Thursday, the United Nations Security Council was reassured that none of Libya's nuclear materials had gone missing and there appeared no risk of arms proliferation in the country.
#2
Qid pro quo for the vital NATO air campaign should have been agreement for NATO to immediately airlift out the missle stockpiles, no purchase needed.
[Tripoli Post] The head of Libya's National Transitional Council, NTC, Mustafa Abdul-Jalil called on "revolutionaries" who faced the forces of the former Libyan leader and forced the fall of Al Qadaffy from power, to come up with a list of potential candidates they believe should represent them and join the interim council.
Jalil made the announcement Wednesday at a conference in Tripoli. He told former revolutionaries: "We will choose seven, eight or nine to become members of the national council."
Abdul Jalil urged former rebels, who have evolved into brigades organised primarily along regional lines, to "choose wisely", taking into account the demanding nature of the job as, he said, it often requires "more than 12 hours" per day.
Jalil's announcement was well received after weeks of criticism levelled at the NTC following the overthrow of Al Qadaffy's dictatorial regime. His remarks were welcomed with rounds of applause and cries of "Allahu Akbar" (God is greatest).
The NTC, that acted as 'government' during the eight months of the conflict, has come under fire and accused for "lack of representativeness" and "transparency", particularly in the eastern city of Benghazi, where the uprising began in February.
Abdul-Jalil urged the former rebels to primarily come up with a list of candidates for the position of commander-in-chief of the national army, which is in the process of being reconstituted. He said that he "must come from the ranks of the traditional army because this is a military position".
Posted by: Fred ||
12/24/2011 00:00 ||
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#1
I call it "dividing the spoils", but what do I know.
North Korea accused the South Friday of an intolerable response to the death of supreme leader Kim Jong-il by expressing sympathy for the North Korean people, but deciding not to send a government delegation to Kim's funeral next week.
In a statement carried on the North's official website, Pyongyang warned Seoul that the decision could have a considerable impact on North-South relations. The North has said it will open its border to any delegation from the South that wants to express condolences.
But South Korea has said it will allow only two groups to visit -- the families of former President Kim Dae-Jung and former Hyundai Group chairman Chung Mong-hun.
North Korea proclaimed the beginning of the Kim Jong-un era Thursday, describing the son of Kim Jong-il as the "successor" of the nation's revolutionary undertakings "and leader of its people."
An editorial in North Korea's official newspaper Rodong Sinmun said Kim Jong-un should move forward on a path of self-reliance, while continuing the teachings of Kim Jong-il, whose death was announced this week. The paper urged the nation to rally behind the young leader and faithfully uphold his leadership.
Posted by: Steve White ||
12/24/2011 00:00 ||
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#1
I wondered what that Laughter was.
Posted by: Redneck Jim ||
12/24/2011 1:22 Comments ||
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#2
I do think that using the loudspeakers to broadcast SKor radio comedies might be taken the right way.
Assassinations, spying, military exercises and grandiose construction -- yup, sounds like a Communist regime preparing for a celebration...
Several North Korean spies have been arrested for plotting to assassinate South Koreans involved in anti-North Korean campaigns, National Intelligence Service Director Won Sei-hoon told a National Assembly audit Tuesday. Hwang Jin-ha, a Grand National Party lawmaker and member of the National Assemblys Intelligence Committee, quoted Won as adding in the closed-door session that security for the potential victims has been increased.
Won also revealed that in North Korean military exercises in June, the ground forces focused on simulating attacks on South Korea, and the navy concentrated on sea infiltration, while the Air Force trained to conquer frontline islands in the northwest of South Korea using fighter jets and helicopters.
The spy chief warned of a "high risk" that construction workers cut corners in a mega project to build 3,000 high-rise apartments in Pyongyang's Mansudae District in celebration of regime founder Kim Il-sung's 100th birthday next year. "We are told that they built 35 stories in just two months, leaving no time for the concrete to cure," Hwang quoted Won as saying.
He said preparations for the anniversary next year, when North Korea has vowed to become "a powerful and prosperous nation," are in full swing despite the regime's dire financial straits. The North has formed a committee to prepare a lavish ceremony and a massive "global" conference on the regime's Juche or self-sufficiency ideology on April 15, 2012, the day of the founder's birthday. He said the personality cult surrounding current leader Kim Jong-il is also intensifying ahead of his 70th birthday on Feb. 16, 2012.
The NIS said the North Korean regime is working hard to eliminate any elements that would pose threat to the third-generation power succession to Kim's son Jong-un, with patrols intensifying especially in the cities and border areas.
Meanwhile, Hwang said North Korean defectors frequently suffer tooth decay, hepatitis, tuberculosis -- all associated with poverty and malnutrition -- and sexually transmitted diseases. Women in the border areas "are engaged in prostitution through human trafficking or by choice to make money, and because there is no hygiene supervision, STDs are spreading," he added.
Posted by: Steve White ||
12/24/2011 00:00 ||
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Please also note Sgt. Wright, standing next to the traitor. I know what his job is. I bet he could bench press a Humvee, and strangle an adult grizzly bear. As needed, he could squish Manning like a cricket.
#5
His 15 mins are long gone. He's lost a lot of credibility and I rarely see puff pieces lionizing him in the lefty media like they used to. Apparently, he's so insufferable that the Wikileaks people and the progressives all hate him now. But I worry that going after him would make him a martyr. I would hang Manning and leave Assange alone.
Posted by: DJ Curtis C ||
12/24/2011 19:49 Comments ||
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#6
No - prosecute Manning and throughly discredit Assmange but don't give him the publicity of being arrested or given a trial.
The undeclared halt in CIA attacks in Pakistan, now in its sixth week, aims at reversing a sharp erosion in trust after deadly incidents, including the mistaken attack on soldiers by U.S. gunships.
In an effort to mend badly frayed relations with Pakistan, the CIA has suspended drone missile strikes on gatherings of low-ranking militants believed to be involved in cross-border attacks on U.S. troops or facilities in Afghanistan, current and former U.S. officials say.
The undeclared halt in CIA attacks, now in its sixth week, is aimed at reversing a sharp erosion of trust after a series of deadly incidents, including the mistaken attack by U.S. gunships that killed 24 Pakistani soldiers last month.
The pause also comes amid an intensifying debate in the Obama administration over the future of the CIA's covert drone war in Pakistan. The agency has killed dozens of Al Qaeda operatives and hundreds of low-ranking fighters there since the first Predator strike in 2004, but the program has infuriated many Pakistanis.
Some officials in the State Department and the National Security Council say many of the airstrikes are counterproductive. They argue that rank-and-file militants are easy to replace, and that Pakistani claims of civilian casualties, which the U.S. disputes, have destabilized the government of President Asif Ali Zardari, a U.S. ally.
And some U.S. intelligence officials are urging the CIA to cut back the paramilitary role it has assumed since the terrorist attacks of Sept. 11, 2001, to refocus on espionage. They suggest handing the mission to the Pentagon's Joint Special Operations Command, which flies its own drones and conducts secret counter-terrorism operations in Yemen and Somalia.
The policy remains intact for now. But the CIA has decided to temporarily suspend so-called signature strikes, missile attacks against fighters and others whose actions, after observation by surveillance drones or other intelligence, suggest support for the Taliban and other insurgent groups in neighboring Afghanistan.
#1
That it is winter, and all the bad guyz are buttoned up and hard to find, and flying drones in such cold is bad for them, yeah, we are doing this for Pak sensibilities.
[Dawn] A briefing by the head of the US Central Command to Pak officials on a Nov. 26 cross-border NATO ...the North Atlantic Treaty Organization. It's headquartered in Belgium. That sez it all.... air attack that killed 24 Pak soldiers and severely strained ties with Washington has been cancelled, a Pak official said on Friday.
News that General James N. Mattis' visit to Pakistain has been cancelled came a day after the United States announced that its investigation into the attack found both American and Pak forces were to blame for the border incident.
Posted by: Fred ||
12/24/2011 00:00 ||
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#1
Pakistan has also flatly rejected the US compensation offer to its soldiers' families. + has indic that the outcome of the US investigation into 11/26 is unlikely to repair damaged relations between Pak + the US.
#3
Since Pakistan wouldn't get the money directly it's of no value for them to accept it. They can then tell the families that the US didn't offer it. Propaganda win.
Posted by: Deacon Blues ||
12/24/2011 8:58 Comments ||
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#4
"Hard to imagine Pakistain turning down money. Or are they holding out for more?"
[Dawn] Pakistain's powerful military pledged on Friday to continue supporting democracy, reiterating it was not planning a takeover as tensions grew over a controversial memo alleging an army plot to seize power. They usually say that just before the tanks roll...
At the same time, President Asif Ali President Ten Percent Zardari's ... sticky-fingered husband of the late Benazir Bhutto ... office said Zardari had no intention of leaving the country over the scandal, which has raised tensions and undermined the already deeply unpopular president.
An army statement quoted military chief General Ashfaq Kayani ... four star general, current Chief of Army Staff of the Mighty Pak Army. Kayani is the former Director General of ISI... as telling troops the military will continue to support democracy in Pakistain and that any talk the army was planning to take over was "speculation".
Many Paks wonder whether Zardari can survive the crisis, and speculation has been growing the powerful generals will try to oust him somehow.
The tension is a worrying sign for the region and for Pakistain's uneasy relationship with its key ally, the United States.
The United States wants political stability in Pakistain so that Islamabad can help fight militancy and aid Western efforts to stabilise Afghanistan.
Zardari, known for his resilience in the face of pressure, has no intention of leaving, a senior member of his ruling party said.
"The current information is there is no such plan. He is very much here," the official, Shazia Marri, told Rooters.
"It's all speculation, and such speculation has proven baseless in the past as well," Marri said.
Pakistain's top judge earlier moved to allay fears of a possible military coup as tensions rose.
"There is no question of a takeover. Gone are the days when people used to get validation for unconstitutional steps from the courts," Supreme Court Chief Justice Iftikhar Chaudhry said.
The Supreme Court is looking into a petition demanding an inquiry into what has become known as "memogate". Kayani, arguably the most powerful man in the country, has called for an investigation into who may have been behind the memo.
"Spectre Haunts Pakistain"
Newspaper editorials on Friday highlighted unease in the nuclear-armed South Asian nation, predicting a showdown between Zardari and his allies and the military, which is so influential it has been described as a state within a state.
"A spectre is haunting Pakistain -- the spectre of a clash between the army and the government that threatens to turn fatal," said an editorial in the News.
Businessman Mansoor Ijaz, writing in a column in the Financial Times on Oct. 10, said a senior Pak diplomat had asked that a memo be delivered to the Pentagon with a plea for US help to stave off a military coup in the days after the raid that killed al Qaeda leader the late Osama bin Laden ... who walked in the Valley of the Shadow of Death and didn't make it out... in May.
Ijaz later identified the diplomat as Pakistain's ambassador to Washington, Husain Haqqani, a Zardari ally who denied involvement but resigned over the controversy.
The military faced unprecedented public criticism over the bin Laden affair, widely seen as a violation of illusory sovereignty.
But many Paks rallied around the army after a Nov. 26 air attack by US forces in Afghanistan mistakenly killed 24 Pak soldiers on the border. The memo has also helped boost the army's image at the expense of the government.
Zardari's government has become increasingly unpopular since he took office in 2008. It has failed to tackle myriad problems, from crippling power cuts to suicide kabooms and a struggling economy.
The army is fed up with Zardari and wants him out of office, although through legal means and without a repeat of the coups that are a hallmark of the country's 64 years of independence, military sources told Rooters on Thursday.
Tempers Flare
Another military source said tensions must be defused.
"Tempers are flaring; there is no doubt about that. However, the hip bone's connected to the leg bone... there are efforts to pacify the situation as well. And I hope they work, as under the current scenario, it is fast becoming a recipe for a head-on collision," he told Rooters on Friday.
Dawn, one of the country's most respected newspapers, said it would be premature to assert that an "extra-constitutional" removal of the government was in the works, but it noted the army has seized power before.
Friction between Pakistain's civilian government and military have bedevilled the nation for almost its entire existence, with the military ruling for more than half its 64-year history.
The army remains the arbiter of power and analysts say it has plenty of ways to pressure Zardari to step down, especially if a link is established between him and the memo, which sought the Pentagon's help in averting a feared coup.
In the past the army has asked Pak civilian leaders to resign and influenced judicial proceedings against them.
On Thursday, Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani ... Pakistain's erstwhile current prime minister, whose occasional feats of mental gymnastics can be awe-inspiring ... told parliament that any institution acting as a "state within a state" was unacceptable, a clear reference to the military.
Zardari returned to Pakistain this week from medical treatment in Dubai that raised speculation he would resign under pressure from the military.
Although his position is largely ceremonial, he wields considerable influence as leader of the ruling party and his forced departure would be a humiliation for the civilian leadership and could throw the country into turmoil.
Zardari is the widower of former premier Benazir Bhutto ... 11th Prime Minister of Pakistain in two non-consecutive terms from 1988 until 1990 and 1993 until 1996. She was the daughter of Zulfikar Ali Bhutto, founder of the Pakistain People's Party, who was murdered at the instigation of General Ayub Khan. She was murdered in her turn by person or persons unknown while campaigning in late 2007. Suspects include, to note just a few, Baitullah Mehsud, General Pervez Musharraf, the ISI, al-Qaeda in Pakistain, and her husband, Asif Ali Zardari, who shows remarkably little curiosity about who done her in... , who spent years opposing military rule before she was assassinated in 2007.
Pakistain's next parliamentary elections are not due until 2013, although some opposition parties have been calling for early polls. Presidents are elected by politicians.
Posted by: Fred ||
12/24/2011 00:00 ||
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#1
It would be amusing if, instead, he said the speculation was true.
In a late night development on Wednesday which added yet another twist to the memo scandal, the federal government, through the Ministry of Defence, conceded before the Supreme Court that it had no operational control over the armed forces as well as the Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI). A one-page reply by the defence ministry said it was not in a position to submit any reply on behalf of the armed forces and the ISI.
Earlier on Dec 15, the government had submitted its reply on behalf of the ministries of interior and foreign affairs. It requested the court to dismiss the petitions over memo scandal. The filing of the reply by the defence ministry has heightened apprehensions, with many interpreting it as a telltale sign of friction between the civilian arm of the government and the military over the memo matter.
Lt Gen Ahmed Shuja Pasha, the ISI chief, also submitted to the court his sworn affidavit through the office of Attorney General Maulvi Anwarul Haq late on Wednesday night. He virtually repeated the stand he had taken in his reply filed earlier in the court. Earlier during the day, army chief Gen Ashfaq Parvez Kayani submitted a sworn affidavit acknowledging the existence of the memorandum while PML-N chief Nawaz Sharif submitted a rejoinder. The affidavits of President Asif Ali Zardari and former ambassador to the US Husain Haqqani had not arrived.
Not satisfied with the replies, the court had on Dec 19 asked the petitioners as well as the respondents to submit affidavits on oath as well as paragraph-wise comments denying or accepting whatever was levelled or stated in the petitions or the replies. The court felt the need for seeking sworn affidavits and rejoinders to clear cobwebs in different stands taken by the petitioners and the respondents and to ascertain whether a question of public importance is involved to exercise jurisdiction under Article 184(3) of the Constitution by the court.
However, despite clear directives, President Zardari chose to remain silent by not filing any reply. Realising the importance of the reply on part of the president, the Supreme Court at the last hearing had pointed out that allegations not rebutted would always be considered correct, implicitly asking the president to submit his point of view on the memo scandal.
I am not aware of the status. However, it is a legal and constitutional issue which will appropriately be addressed in accordance with the law and the Constitution, presidential spokesman Farhatullah Babar told Dawn when asked whether or not the president would file the reply.
[Pak Daily Times] Planned crisis talks set for Friday between Iraqi politicians after deadly attacks in Storied Baghdad ...located along the Tigris River, founded in the 8th century, home of the Abbasid Caliphate... were cancelled, an official said, after the two main parliamentary blocs refused to meet.
The meeting had been called in an effort to resolve a worsening political row between the Shiite Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki's National Alliance and the Sunni-backed Iraqiya bloc, the latter of which is boycotting the cabinet and parliament.
"Yesterday, the National Alliance said Iraqiya should first end its boycott of parliament and the cabinet, and then there will be a meeting of the political blocs," a parliament official said, speaking on condition of anonymity ... for fear of being murdered...
"If the National Alliance does not attend the session, there is no need for it, because the crisis is between them and Iraqiya." Authorities have issued a warrant for the arrest of Sunni Vice President Tareq al-Hashemi on charges he ran a death squad, and Maliki has called for Deputy Prime Minister Saleh al-Mutlak to be sacked after Mutlak said the premier led a "dictatorship" and was "worse than Saddam Hussein". The meeting, called after more than a dozen attacks in Storied Baghdad killed 60 people on Thursday in the deadliest violence Iraq has seen for four months, had been scheduled for 3:00 pm (1200 GMT) in parliament.
Posted by: Fred ||
12/24/2011 00:00 ||
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#1
Nice to know that no matter what happens, we aren't around anymore for these savages' political games.
Islamic Jihad leader Ramadan Shallah said that the Palestinian factions' meeting in Cairo did not come to a result that would require the different groups to commit to the Palestine Liberation Organization's policies in order to join it. Shallah told London-based Al-Hayat, "There were clear indications during the meeting emphasizing that joining the PLO did not mean each faction must give up its agenda."
SYRIA'S Muslim Brotherhood has claimed responsibility for suicide bombings in Damascus that killed 44 people, saying they were the first step in liberating the capital and that more attacks were to come.
The claim on Saturday contradicted assertions by the regime of President Bashar al-Assad that the blasts, which also wounded 166 people, were the work of al-Qa'ida and of the opposition Syrian National Council that the regime carried them out.
''One of our victorious Sunni brigades was able to target the state security building in Kfar Suseh in the heart of the ... capital Damascus in a successful operation carried out by four of our kamikazes drawn from the best of our glorious men, leaving many dead and wounded from the ranks of the Assad gangs,'' it said on its official website.
''We as defenders of the Syrian people and the sanctity of this nation send a message to Assad's gangs: This is the beginning of the liberation of Damascus and the tip of the iceberg,'' the statement added.
''Hence we warn our fellow citizens and advise them not to approach government centres or security branches ... because our martyrdom brigades are in a state of maximum readiness to carry out quality operations in Aleppo, Damascus, and the blessed land of Syria in the next 10 days.''
The statement was signed by the ''Muslim Brotherhood's media committee inside Syria''.
BTW, since Syria and Hizbullah, Hamas, et al., are all buddies, does this mean that Al Qaeda is not part of the happy throng that is Syria, Egypt, and Lebanon? Seems Al Qaeda is working at cross purposes with Hizbullah...and if it is the Muslim Brotherhood, is Egypt paying attention?
Is the State Department paying attention or are they so enthralled with another Muslim group that they are still sending flowers and candy to the Muslim Brotherhood?
Posted by: Bill Clinton ||
12/24/2011 12:02 Comments ||
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#2
Bill, Hamas is the Gaza branch of the Egyotian Muslim Brotherhood. They just have gotten training, support and funding from Iran via Syria because they harass Israel. But the funding etc probably won't go on much longer -- they've been quietly leaving Damascus for Jordan because of the Syrian troubles.
Al Qaeda in Gaza is in competition with Hamas, arguing that Hamas has gotten soft on Israel since they we elected. Hamas has slapped them down hard, destroying a hide-out or several and killing -- if I recall correctly -- some dozen or so of the leadership and henchmen.
U.N. leader the ephemeral Ban Ki-moon ... of whom it can be said to his credit that he is not Kofi Annan... is "gravely concerned" at escalating violence in Syria but the onus is on Hereditary President-for-Life Bashir Pencilneck al-Assad Despoiler of Deraa... to fully carry out an Arab League ...an organization of Arabic-speaking states with 22 member countries and four observers. The League tries to achieve Arab consensus on issues, which usually leaves them doing nothing but a bit of grimacing and mustache cursing... peace plan, a front man said Friday.
Ban spoke out as the U.N. Security Council stepped up wrangling over a resolution on the Syria crisis. While the United Nations ...the Oyster Bay money pit... says more than 5,000 people have been killed in the government crackdown, the Security Council has failed to agree any formal resolution on Syria.
Suicide bombers hit two security service bases in Damascus ...Capital of the last overtly fascist regime in the world... earlier, killing at least 44 people in attacks the government blamed on al-Qaeda but which the opposition said were the work of Assad's forces.
The U.N. secretary-general "is gravely concerned at the escalating violence in Syria," his front man Martin Nesirky said.
"Today's kabooms in Damascus, which resulted in more deaths and injuries, underscore his growing concerns. He emphasizes that all violence is unacceptable and must stop immediately."
Despite the latest attacks, Ban stressed the need for "credible, inclusive and legitimate" political change in Syria.
He said the government must "fully and speedily" implement the vaporous Arab League peace plan and he welcomed the arrival Arab League monitors in Damascus.
Western diplomats have expressed skepticism that the monitors will be allowed to work effectively. Ban said he "looks forward to the deployment of the full-scale observer mission, which must be given unhindered access."
The 15-member Security Council meanwhile held new talks on a draft Russian resolution on Syria that the United States and European nations say is not tough enough on the Assad government.
Russian ambassador Vitaly Churkin said European nations had unacceptable changes that backed their "regime change" agenda.
Posted by: Fred ||
12/24/2011 00:00 ||
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#1
Is gravely concerned what diplomats are just before they write the dreaded "strongly worded memorandum"?
Posted by: Bill Clinton ||
12/24/2011 12:15 Comments ||
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#2
I think there a couple of steps in between, Bill.
But I'm not sure, because I think - and they don't, except about themselves and how to get more boodle. :-(
Posted by: Barbara ||
12/24/2011 12:19 Comments ||
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[An Nahar] The Fatah-dominated Paleostinian Armed Struggle has placed in long-term storage a Paleostinian named Abed Abdullah al-Ghazi on suspicion of involvement in the liquidation of the bodyguard of PAS chief Mahmoud Issa at the southern refugee camp of Ein el-Hellhole.
Issa, who goes by the nom de guerre of al-Lino, told al-Akhbar daily published on Friday that his group's Sherlocks questioned al-Ghazi, who admitted to carrying out the operation to kill the bodyguard with the help of a relative of Fatah's commander Mounir Maqdah.
The bodyguard, Amer Fustoq, was killed on Sunday when a masked gunman opened fire on him. Immediately after his killing, al-Lino accused the remnants of Jund al-Sham and Fatah al-Islam A Syrian-incubated al-Qaeda work-alike that they think can be turned off if no longer needed to keep the Leb pot stirred. of involvement in the liquidation.
Al-Akhbar also said al-Ghazi hinted during the questioning that Maqdah was covering up the liquidation.
But the Fatah commander denied in remarks to Voice of Leb radio station (93.3) involvement in the murder.
Posted by: Fred ||
12/24/2011 00:00 ||
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[An Nahar] Israeli defense officials have accused Hizbullah of involvement in the latest roadside kabooming on French peacekeepers serving with UNIFIL near the southern city of Tyre, Israeli daily Haaretz reported.
The newspaper said the defense officials believe French Foreign Minister Alain Juppe is right in accusing Hizbullah of having a hand in the bombing that left five troops injured.
Juppe has said he believes Damascus ...Capital of the last remaining Baathist regime in the world... probably ordered the attack and that its ally Hizbullah assisted in carrying it out.
Haaretz quoted the defense officials as saying that the Shiite group "is trying to intimidate UNIFIL, particularly the French troops ... so that they won't monitor Hizbullah's activities in southern Leb too closely."
"The attacks are apparently carried out by proxies, smaller organizations, so that they cannot be linked directly to Hizbullah," they said.
The Israeli officials are probing possible connections between the Shiite party and the two recent firings of Katyusha rockets, Haaretz said.
These developments may indicate a change in Hizbullah's policy and may be linked to the erosion of Syrian Hereditary President-for-Life Bashir Pencilneck al-Assad Oppressor of the Syrians and the Lebs... 's regime, it added.
"Hizbullah is in a turbulent state," one of the Israeli defense officials said. "On the one hand, Assad's regime faces collapse; on the other, Iran has been forced to cut back its financial aid to the organization due to the international sanctions that Tehran faces.
"Under such circumstances, Hizbullah is liable to make a mistake and pursue courses of action that would further complicate its situation."
Posted by: Fred ||
12/24/2011 00:00 ||
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[An Nahar] Hizbullah stressed on Friday that the bombings that took place in Syria will not weaken the resolve of the forces of resistance in the region.
It said in a statement: "The United States and its regional proxies are behind the Damascus ...Home to a staggering array of terrorist organizations... bombings."
"These bombings which resulted in the death and injury of dozens of people, mainly women and kiddies, are the specialty of the United States, the mother of terrorism," it added.
"This horrific terrorist crime... committed one day after the coordinated bombings that targeted Storied Baghdad ...located along the Tigris River, founded in the 8th century, home of the Abbasid Caliphate... and other cities across Iraq is a cowardly, bloody act of Dire Revenge™ after the United States' humiliating withdrawal from Iraq," read the statement.
A cold war has been heating up for months between Washington and Hizbullah, with the group denouncing the planting of CIA "spies" in its ranks and the United States accusing the movement of illegal financial and drug dealings in recent weeks.
Syrian officials say at least 30 people were killed and 100 maimed in Friday's bombings in Damascus, which they have blamed on al-Qaeda.
The attacks were the first of their kind against the powerful security services in the heart of the capital since unprecedented protests against Assad's regime erupted in mid-March.
One bombing targeted the General Security Directorate, Syria's most important plainclothes security service, in the Kfar Suseh neighborhood of Damascus.
The second went kaboom! outside a nearby military intelligence building.
Posted by: Fred ||
12/24/2011 00:00 ||
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[An Nahar] President Michel Suleiman ...before assuming office as President, he held the position of commander of the Leb Armed Forces. That was after the previous commander, the loathesome Emile Lahoud, took office as president in November of 1998. Likely the next president of Leb will be whoever's commander of the armed forces, too... condemned the "terrorist" bombings in Damascus ...The City of Jasmin is the oldest continuously-inhabited city in the world. It has not always been inhabited by the same set of fascisti... on Friday, saying they were aimed at targeting the Arab roadmap intended to resolve the Syrian crisis.
In a telephone conversation with Syrian Hereditary President-for-Life Bashir Pencilneck al-Assad Supressor of the Damascenes... , the Lebanese head of state said the bombings which "coincided with the arrival to Syria of an observer mission's advance team aim at targeting the Arab plan that Syria and the Arab League ...an organization of Arabic-speaking states with 22 member countries and four observers. The League tries to achieve Arab consensus on issues, which usually leaves them doing nothing but a bit of grimacing and mustache cursing... had agreed to."
The Arab plan, which was endorsed by Syria on November 2, intends to oversee an end to nine months of bloodshed, calls for the withdrawal of the military from towns and residential districts and a halt to violence against civilians and the release of detainees.
The jacket wallahs hit the compound of the General Security Directorate and a military intelligence building in Damascus, killing more than 30 people.
The bombings, which officials blamed on al-Qaeda, were the first attacks against Syria's powerful security services in the heart of the capital since the uprising began in March.
Posted by: Fred ||
12/24/2011 00:00 ||
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[An Nahar] Former Prime Minister Saad Hariri Second son of Rafik Hariri, the Leb PM who was assassinated in 2005. He has was prime minister in his own right from 2009 through early 2011. He was born in Riyadh to an Iraqi mother and graduated from Georgetown University. He managed his father's business interests in Riyadh until his father's liquidation. When his father died he inherited a fortune of some $4.1 billion, which won't do him much good if Hizbullah has him bumped off, too. noted on Friday that some members of the Lebanese government are seeking to drag Leb onto a path of terrorism through covering up the Syrian regime's crimes.
He made his statements in light of the twin kabooms that took place in Damascus ...Home to a staggering array of terrorist organizations... earlier on Friday and the Syrian Foreign Ministry's statements that Leb had warned earlier this week that members of al-Qaeda had infiltrated the country.
Hariri said via Twitter: "The Syrian Foreign Ministry's statements are fabricated by it and some of its Lebanese pawns."
In addition, he stated that the regime in Syria "is specialized in exporting terrorism."
Asked if the bombings were a sign that the regime was targeting the Arab League ...an organization of Arabic-speaking states with 22 member countries and four observers. The League tries to achieve Arab consensus on issues, which usually leaves them doing nothing but a bit of grimacing and mustache cursing... observers, the former premier replied: "This is a great possibility."
"The regime does not hesitate to commit the most heinous of crimes," he stressed.
Arab League observers arrived in Syria on Thursday to monitor its implementation of a League initiative aimed at ending violence against anti-regime protesters.
Suicide bombers hit two security service bases in Damascus on Friday killing more than 30 people and casting a pall over the first day of work of an Arab observer mission intended to oversee an end to nine months of bloodshed.
The bombings, which officials blamed on al-Qaeda, were the first attacks against Syria's powerful security services in the heart of the capital since the uprising began and overshadowed new protests against Hereditary President-for-Life Bashir Pencilneck al-Assad's Despoiler of Deraa... regime.
Posted by: Fred ||
12/24/2011 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
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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.
Pakistain's powerful military pledged on Friday to continue supporting democracy, reiterating it was not planning a takeover as tensions grew over a controversial memo alleging an army plot to seize power.
the ephemeral Ban Ki-moon
[An Nahar] Israeli defense officials have accused Hizbullah of involvement in the latest 
Hereditary President-for-Life Bashir 
[An Nahar] Hizbullah stressed on Friday that the bombings that took place in Syria will not weaken the resolve of the forces of resistance in the region.
Hereditary President-for-Life Bashir 
[An Nahar] Former Prime Minister 
