KABUL, Afghanistan -- American officials have ignored him, and Afghanistan's presidential contenders have tried to persuade voters that they will be different from him. But those hoping to see President Hamid Karzai slip into a quiet retirement may be disappointed in the months to come.
Anyone hoping for a Najibullah moment for the man, however, may quietly shift their hopes into 'neutral'...
On Saturday, Afghans will vote in a presidential election that Mr. Karzai has shaped at every stage. He narrowed the candidate field, dissuading potential candidates from entering the race and forcing his brother Qayum to leave it. He handpicked the officials who will preside over any election disputes.
Then he blessed two of the three leading contenders with tens of thousands of dollars from his office's slush funds, hedging his bets that at least one candidate open to his influence will make it to a runoff, according to senior Afghan officials. It may be well into June before that second vote can be held, and Mr. Karzai will remain president in the meantime.
Few who know Mr. Karzai personally, including some of his critics, see a naked power grab in the president's maneuvering. They say Mr. Karzai is driven by a deep-seated belief that he is Afghanistan's indispensable man, uniquely suited to guide the country through the tumultuous years of transition ahead. That starts with the election, but Mr. Karzai's ultimate aim, the officials say, is to retain influence with the new Afghan administration.
On the one hand, Mr. Karzai, who is 56, "wants to leave a legacy and be judged as a true statesman who transferred power peacefully for the first time in Afghanistan," said Daud Muradian, a former foreign policy adviser to the president who now teaches at the American University of Afghanistan. "At the same time, he is being pulled by his Machiavellian side, and he wants to remain relevant in Afghan politics and be the power behind the next president."
That may be bad news for Obama administration officials who basically gave up on working with Mr. Karzai after he refused to sign a security deal that would allow American troops to stay past 2014. The leading candidates have all promised to sign the deal if elected, but until then, the United States' relationship with Mr. Karzai is not over -- and he has shown little inclination to hide his disdain.
Senior Afghan officials say Mr. Karzai saw in the reports new evidence of duplicity by an ally that he believes has undermined him for years. He was against the troop surge, he felt betrayed by American efforts to unseat him in the 2009 election and, more recently, he has come to believe that the United States is in league with Pakistan, and by extension the Taliban.
The ill will is shared by many American officials, who see Mr. Karzai as an unreliable ingrate. But as much as they would prefer to see his influence end, the Americans are still counting on him in one respect: Some hope he can help mediate what is expected to be a messy aftermath of an election season in which candidates have already accused one another of planning to commit fraud and have pledged not to accept the results if they lose.
[Pak Daily Times] Afghanistan heads to the polls Saturday to choose a new president after Hamid Maybe I'll join the Taliban Karzai ... A former Baltimore restaurateur, now 12th and current President of Afghanistan, displacing the legitimate president Rabbani in December 2004. He was installed as the dominant political figure after the removal of the Taliban regime in late 2001 in a vain attempt to put a Pashtun face on the successor state to the Taliban. After the 2004 presidential election, he was declared president regardless of what the actual vote count was. He won a second, even more dubious, five-year-term after the 2009 presidential election. His grip on reality has been slipping steadily since around 2007, probably from heavy drug use... 's 13-year reign and a US-led military campaign which have radically changed the country but failed to defeat the Taliban.
The first round of the election comes as the final 53,000 NATO
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[Egypt Independent] The Moslem Brüderbund's Freedom and Justice Party denied links to activist Ahmed al-Mogheer who has been recently calling for armed resistance against the armed forces and the police.
The FJP page on Facebook said Mogheer was not a member of the Moslem Brüderbund, while the latter insisted he was still a group member and has not resigned or been dismissed.
The FJP main page published an old statement for Moslem Brüderbund spokesperson Mahmoud Ghezlan saying Mogheer was not a MB member. "Media is trying to make use of Ahmed al-Mogheer as if he is the group spokesperson," the statement read.
"I am still officially a member of the Moslem Brüderbund," Mogheer wrote on his Facebook account. "[Dismissal should be through] the dministrative office of the governorate to which the member belongs after being warned and interrogated."
He added he has neither been warned or interrogated and has not resigned. Mogheer said that Ghezlan's old statement was fabricated. "I personally called some Guidance Bureau members who denied Ghezlan's statement," Mogheer wrote.
Mogheer sparked controversy on social networking websites after he praised the attacks on army and police personnel in the bombing at Cairo University on Wednesday.
Posted by: Fred ||
04/04/2014 00:00 ||
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Top|| File under: Arab Spring
[An Nahar] Egypt said Thursday it has boosted punishment for "terrorist" offenses and expanded the scope of crimes that fall under that category, a day after bombings killed a top police officer.
The legal amendments will come in force when interim president Adly Mansour approves the government-penned draft.
The cabinet did not immediately release the changes made to the law.
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[An Nahar] French forces deployed in the strife-torn Central African Republic began moving into the east of the country this week, the head of the operation General Francisco Soriano said Thursday.
"The third phase (of the intervention) began this week and we started deploying in the east," he told news hounds in Gay Paree during a video conference.
"The goal is to restore state authority, end the activities of gangs and disarm them," he said.
The troops deployed in the former French colony in December to tackle unrest sparked by a March 2013 coup that led to violence between Christians and Mohammedans.
In the initial phase, during the first two months of the operation, French forces worked to secure the capital Bangui, before moving into the west of the vast country to control the major trade route to Cameroon.
Soriano said the third phase became possible after President Francois Hollande ...the Socialist president of La Belle France, an economic bad joke for la Belle France but seemingly a foreign policy realist... in February decided to send 400 more troops to CAR, bringing the total French force in the country to 2,000, who are working alongside about 6,000 African troops.
Posted by: Fred ||
04/04/2014 00:00 ||
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Top|| File under: Seleka
[An Nahar] The Kuwaiti parliamentary committee for foreign relations on Thursday rejected a security pact ratified by other Gulf nations, with MPs saying the government-backed treaty is unconstitutional.
Leaders of the six-nation Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) approved the pact at a summit in December 2012 after it was signed by all GCC interior ministers including Kuwait.
The text paves the way for the extradition of anyone accused of carrying out political or security activities against a GCC member state.
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[Ynet] The Moslem Brüderbund has urged Britannia not to bow to foreign pressure in conducting a review of the group over concerns about possible links to violence, following its designation by Egypt and Soddy Arabia ...a kingdom taking up the bulk of the Arabian peninsula. Its primary economic activity involves exporting oil and soaking Islamic rubes on the annual hajj pilgrimage. The country supports a large number of princes in whatcha might call princely splendor. When the oil runs out the rest of the world is going to kick sand in the Soddy national face... as a terrorist organization.
In a statement, the movement said that it would "openly engage" with the review ordered by Prime Minister David Cameron ... has stated that he is certainly a big Thatcher fan, but I don't know whether that makes me a Thatcherite, which means he's not. Since he is not deeply ideological he lacks core principles and is easily led. He has been described as certainly not a Pitt, Elder or Younger, but he does wear a nice suit so maybe he's Beau Brummel ... but it would challenge in the British courts "any improper attempt to restrict its activity".
Posted by: trailing wife ||
04/04/2014 00:00 ||
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#1
Iff the MusBros in the UK can challenege in UK Courts, so can its new MusBros branch + Other Islamic or Islamist orgs in the US.
DON'T FEAR THE SSSSHHHHH ...PCCCCCCCORRECT SOON-TO-BE-NUCLEAR JIHADI- FEAR HIS LAWYERS + THE ACLU.
What has been done legally in EU Britain, can be done in pre, post-2015, pre or post-OWG NAU Amerika.
FYI UK MUSLIMS = REPOR WILL N-O-T GIVE THEIR "SHARIA ZONES" + CIVIE ENFORCEMENT PATROLS, ETC. NO MATTER WHAT LAWS OR REGS ARE PASSED BY THE BRIT PARLIAMENT.
D *** NG IT, NOT, NOT - SPELLED K-N-O-T-T-E - NOT!
[Jihad Watch] Alexander is right, of course. It has been obvious for years that the Pakistanis have been aiding the same jihadists that the U.S. government has been giving them billions of dollars to fight. The New York Times reported on that at length back in 2008. And recently we learned that Ahmed Shuja Pasha, the head of the ISI, the Pakistani government's spy service, knew the whereabouts of Osama bin Laden, and apparently so did many other top officials in the Pakistani government. Those who are surprised by what Chris Alexander says probably also think that Islam is a Religion of Peace that has been hijacked by a Tiny Minority of Extremists.
We need some politicians like Chris Alexander in the U.S., instead of the ones we have, who keep insisting that Pakistan is our reliable friend and ally. Finally hearing the truth is indeed refreshing.
[The Peninsula] Pakistain has freed at least 16 Taliban prisoners with the approval of Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif ... served two non-consecutive terms as prime minister, heads the Pakistain Moslem League (Nawaz). Noted for his spectacular corruption, the 1998 Pak nuclear test, border war with India, and for being tossed by General Musharraf... , officials said yesterday, in a move designed to invigorate a shaky grinding of the peace processor with the Death Eater group.
The Pak Taliban called a one-month ceasefire on March 1 but said this week they would not extend the truce because the government was not serious about meeting their demands.
The demands include releasing 800 prisoners the Death Eater group describes as innocent family members and withdrawing the army from parts of the semi-autonomous tribal areas along the border with Afghanistan.
The political agent of South Wazoo, the highest government official in the northwestern tribal region, confirmed the government has started releasing noncombatant prisoners to boost reconciliation efforts.
"South Waziristan's political administration released sixteen men on April 1," Islam Zeb said.
"They are not major commanders. They are innocent tribals who were tossed in the slammer ... anything you say can and will be used against you, whether you say it or not... during different search operations in South Waziristan in the last two to three years." Zeb said all the released prisoners belonged to the Mehsud tribe, a major Pashtun tribe living in South Waziristan. Another 100 prisoners on the Taliban's list were being processed and would be released in the next few days, he added.
Taliban negotiators were not immediately available to comment on the releases.
Intelligence officials confirmed that the prisoners were brought to the Zari Noor army camp in Wana, the region's main town.
The enclave on the Afghan border was once the epicentre of a spreading Taliban insurgency and the site of a major military offensive in 2009 that displaced half a million people. Security officials said once at Wana, the prisoners were handed over to office of the political agent, who then released them to the Taliban.
Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif personally authorised the releases, a source in his office said - an apparent sign the premier is giving in to pressure from the Pakistain Taliban and resisting those in the military arguing for tougher military action against Death Eater strongholds.
"But they (released prisoners) are all noncombatant civilians. They are not sensitive figures," the prime minister's aide said.
"Maybe some of them are Pakistain Taliban sympathisers but they are not commanders and have no role in the talks process." the prime minister's aide added.
"Releasing them will create goodwill and we hope they (Taliban) will reciprocate," he added. Sharif, who took power last year promising to strike a negotiated peace with the Taliban, has been trying to engage the Death Eaters, who want to topple his government and enforce severe Islamic law.
Posted by: Fred ||
04/04/2014 00:00 ||
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Top|| File under: Govt of Pakistan
[DAWN] The Pak government on Thursday denied reports that it has released prisoners of the Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistain (TTP) in a bid to revive peace talks with the turban group.
"The reports are incorrect. The government has neither released any Taliban prisoners nor has approval been given for any such measure," said a front man for the Prime Minister house in Islamabad.
Foreign news agency Rooters had reported officials as saying that the government had released 16 Taliban prisoners to invigorate the shaky grinding of the peace processor with the TTP.
The Pak Taliban called a one-month ceasefire on March 1 but said this week they would not extend the truce because the government was not serious about meeting their demands.
The demands include releasing 800 prisoners the turban group describes as innocent family members and withdrawing the army from parts of the semi-autonomous tribal areas along the border with Afghanistan.
Rooters quoted the political agent of South Wazoo, the highest government official in the northwestern tribal region, as saying that the government has started releasing non-combatant prisoners to boost reconcilliation efforts.
"South Waziristan's political administration released 16 men on April 1," Islam Zeb told Rooters. "They are not major commanders. They are innocent tribals who were placed in durance vile ... anything you say can and will be used against you, whether you say it or not... during different search operations in South Waziristan in the last two to three years."
However, there's no worse danger than telling a mother her baby is ugly... the PM house quickly denied any such release of prisoners.
"There is no truth in the reports. The political agent has only released a few petty criminals," he said.
Posted by: Fred ||
04/04/2014 00:00 ||
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Top|| File under: Govt of Pakistan
[DAWN] Iran has said five border guards kidnapped by hard boyz are in good health, disputing a report that one of them had been killed.
The guards were seized while patrolling the lawless frontier with Pakistain in early February.
Jaish al-Adl (Army of Justice), an Iranian Sunni Mohammedan rebel group in Sistan-Balochistan ...the Pak province bordering Kandahar and Uruzgun provinces in Afghanistan and Sistan Baluchistan in Iran. Its native Baloch propulation is being displaced by Pashtuns and Punjabis and they aren't happy about it... province, later grabbed credit.
"The kidnapped Iranian border guards are safe; there is no verified information to substantiate the terrorists' claim of murder of one of the kidnapped soldiers," official news agency IRNA quoted Iranian Deputy Foreign Minister Ebrahim Rahimpour as saying on Wednesday.
Jaish al-Adl said on its website last month that it had killed one border guard.
Last week the semi-official Fars News Agency also reported that one of the border guards had been killed, quoting an "informed source".
The kidnappings took place in an area with a history of violence and sectarian problems, and have raised tensions between Pakistain and Iran.
Both countries are Mohammedan, but Pakistain is a majority Sunni state with a minority of Shia's, while Iran is the reverse.
Posted by: Fred ||
04/04/2014 00:00 ||
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#1
IRAN has repor asked PAKISTAN to formally turn over responsibility for inter-border security to it + new IRGC "QUDS FORCE-HQ" unit.
#2
It would appear that, in return for Iran keeping its NucProgs + not taking any MilAction agz Iran ally Baby Assad in Syria, the Bammer Admin trusts or expects Rising Iran = Globie-desired future OWG Co-Superpower Iran to effec control the spread of regional militancy than Islamabad = Pakistan???
Another variation on "Declare victory and run away."
The Obama administration will reevaluate its enabling role in foundering Middle East peace talks following negative steps by both Israel and the Palestinians that have brought the negotiations to virtual collapse, U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry said Friday.
A clearly distressed Kerry, who has spent the better part of his 14-month tenure as America's top diplomat trying to cajole the parties into talks, said it is "reality check time" for the peace process.
Speaking to reporters in Rabat before traveling to Casablanca for a meeting with the king of Morocco, Kerry said, "We are going to evaluate very carefully exactly where this is and where it might possibly be able to go."
Noting the other pressing issues he's dealing with -- including Ukraine, Iran and Syria -- Kerry said, "there are limits to the amount of time and effort that the U.S. can spend if the parties themselves are unable to take constructive steps."
He said it is "regrettable" that in the last few days both sides "have taken steps that are not helpful and that's evident to everybody."
Kerry has been the lead player in a months-long effort by the Obama administration to resuscitate Mideast peace talks, with heightened urgency as an end-of-April deadline approached for setting a framework for productive talks.
Even as the secretary made another visit to the region, Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas moved, against Israel's wishes and the expectations of the U.S., to seek accessions to 15 international conventions through the United Nations.
Israel, arguing that the action violated terms the two sides had agreed upon for the Jewish state's release of Palestinian prisoners, retaliated Thursday by saying it would not set free a fourth batch of prisoners, as had been scheduled this week.
The U.S. has supported statehood for the Palestinians but has argued that they should accomplish this through the peace process rather than by unilateral actions.
Kerry planned to return to Washington on Friday after a lengthy overseas trip that had him shuttling between cities in the Middle East and Europe in an effort to keep the peace talks alive.Kerry said the talks are not open-ended and "it's reality check time and we intend to evaluate precisely what the next steps will be." Stay away. It's a fool's errand. On second thought, I guess that's why we have fools.
#3
A US Official says that CHINA may suffer similar Russia-style sanctions iff it tries to pull anything like the Crimea in Asia-Pacific.
IOW, iff the Crimea Annexation is any measure the good Official is trying hard NOT to say that CHINA = RUSSIA = CHINA WILL LIKELY SUCCEED IN ANY ATTEMPT TO USE MILITARY FORCE TO TAKE OVER THE SOVEREIGN TERRITORY OF OTHER COUNTRIES, ALBEIT IN LIMITED BUT OVERWHELMING MILITARY INVASION + LOCAL DESTABILIZATION, WHERE THE US = OBAMA'S BEST LIKELY RESPONSE IS [POTUS Carter-esque = USSR?]ECONOMIC SANCTIONS.
POTUS Carter's sanctions or threat therein didn't stop the then-USSR from invading or staying in Afghanistan, just as Putin isn't deterred ala the annexation of Crimea into the Russian Federation.
As long as China is not afraid of sanctions, IT + PLA MAY KEEP THE FOREIGN TERRITORY(S) IT HAD MILITARILY OR DIPLOMATICALLY, + UNILATERALLY, SEIZED - DITTO FOR RISING IRAN, ETAL. GLOBALIST-DESIRED OWG CO-SUPERPOWERS???
Israel will not release the fourth batch of 26 terrorists it was to have freed last Saturday night, because of the Palestinian decision to apply for admission to 15 international treaties and conventions, Justice Minister Tzipi Livni told chief PLO negotiator Saeb Erekat
[An Nahar] Israel has told the Paleostinians that a planned release of 26 prisoners cannot proceed, placing already embattled peace talks in further jeopardy after both sides took steps Washington called "unhelpful."
Israel's chief negotiator with the Paleostinians has told them that the planned release cannot go ahead, a source close to the embattled talks told Agence La Belle France Presse on Thursday.
A frustrated U.S. Secretary of State John F. I was in Vietnam, you know Kerry
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Posted by: Fred ||
04/04/2014 00:00 ||
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#1
A frustrated U.S. Secretary of State John F. Kerry
#2
Those damn Joooos continue to insist on their right to keep on living. If they would just lay down and die, there would be peace in the Middle East.
/sarcasm
Posted by: Rambler in Virginia ||
04/04/2014 10:22 Comments ||
Top||
#3
No, Rambler, when they run out of Jews they just have to fight some other group. Mainly each other. It's genetic.
#4
Pooh. Look at Syria, Lebanon, Egypt, Yemen, Bahrain, Saudi Arabia, Turkey, Iran, all of North Africa plus the Horn... (did I forget anyone?) No need to wait until the Juices are gone, they can fight one another right now.
#6
Next time I will put the /sarcasm tag in large letters.
I fully realize that if the Jews all went away somehow, the Muslims would simply find someone else to attack.
Posted by: Rambler in Virginia ||
04/04/2014 16:50 Comments ||
Top||
#7
Too bad they did away with the old blink tag eh Rambler?
When Israel built that oh-so-evil wall the Palieos couldn't get their 'hit' of murdering innocents anymore so they turned on each other. They really are addicted to it - much worse than an addiction to Heroin, Smack, or Welfare.
Abu Sayyaf militants have freed a kidnapped school principal on Thursday afternoon in Basilan province in the Muslim autonomous region in Mindanao.
60-year old Benita Latonio was set free in Sumisip town where she had been kidnapped at gunpoint by five masked men on March 31. Details of her release were not clear, but kidnappers had earlier demanded a huge ransom in exchange for her freedom.
No group claimed responsibility for the kidnapping, but intelligence reports pointed to Abu Sayyaf leader Juhaibel Alamsirul.
Posted by: ryuge ||
04/04/2014 00:00 ||
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[Ynet] With 2,500 new Syrian refugees daily - more than a person per minute, Leb, numbering only 4.5 million people, is now home to a million Syrian refugees.
In addition to the registered refugees, there are tens of thousands of other Syrian refugees who are not registered and Lebanese officials estimate the number of unregistered refugees to be as high as 400,000.
Posted by: trailing wife ||
04/04/2014 00:00 ||
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#1
Can't we just reclassify them as "Palestinian Refugees"? In wouldn't be actually something new.
[An Nahar] A pro-government Syria newspaper accused U.N.-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 envoy Lakhdar Brahimi Thursday of encouraging "terrorism" and plotting the "destruction and dismantling of the Middle East."
"Brahimi has not for a single day acted as an honest broker," said an editorial in Al-Watan. "He has consistently been a party and an employee in the plot to destroy and dismantle the Middle East."
The newspaper also said he "consistently refuses to comment on (the presence in Syria of) 'imported muscle,' whom he appears to view as defenders of democracy and freedom of belief."
"His silence proves the role he has played and continues to play in encouraging terrorism, or at least in ignoring it," added the paper, which is close to Hereditary President-for-Life Bashir Pencilneck al-Assad The Scourge of Hama... 's regime.
The regime has consistently portrayed the country's revolt as a foreign-backed "terrorist" plot.
On Tuesday, Al-Watan reported that Brahimi intends to hold talks with U.S. and Russian officials in Geneva in mid-April to prepare for a new round of peace talks in Switzerland ...home of the Helvetians, famous for cheese, watches, yodeling, and William Tell... .
So far, none of the parties has confirmed that.
A previous round, dubbed Geneva II, brought regime and opposition representatives to the negotiating table for talks in January but reaped no concrete results.
Posted by: Fred ||
04/04/2014 00:00 ||
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#1
Some of us in Israel felt this way about "Peace Envoys" for a long, long time.
[An Nahar] Eleven Western and Middle Eastern powers on Thursday warned Syrian Hereditary President-for-Life Bashir Pencilneck al-Assad Trampler of Homs... against holding elections, saying that the vote would have no credibility amid the country's brutal civil war.
In a joint statement, the 11 core members of so-called Friends of Syria urged Assad instead to embrace a plan outlined in Geneva talks that includes a transitional government as a way out of the three-year war.
"Elections organized by the Assad regime would be a parody of democracy, would reveal the regime's rejection of the basis of the Geneva talks and would deepen the division of Syria," said the statement, as issued by the U.S. State Department.
The 11 nations include Western powers the United States, Britannia, La Belle France, Germany and Italia as well as key regional opponents of Assad: Qatar, Soddy Arabia ...a kingdom taking up the bulk of the Arabian peninsula. Its primary economic activity involves exporting oil and soaking Islamic rubes on the annual hajj pilgrimage. The country supports a large number of princes in whatcha might call princely splendor. When the oil runs out the rest of the world is going to kick sand in the Soddy national face... , Turkey and the United Arab Emirates. Arab powers Egypt and Jordan are also part of the group, which does not include Assad's allies Russia and Iran.
The statement said that a credible election would be impossible with millions of Syrians displaced.
"Bashir al-Assad intends these elections to sustain his dictatorship," it said.
"An electoral process led by Assad, whom the United Nations ...the Oyster Bay money pit... considers to have committed war crimes and crimes against humanity, mocks the innocent lives lost in the conflict," it said.
Posted by: Fred ||
04/04/2014 00:00 ||
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Top|| File under: Govt of Syria
[An Nahar] Lebanese Forces A Christian political party founded by Bashir Gemayel, who was then bumped off when he was elected president of Leb... leader Samir Geagea ... Geagea was imprisoned by the Syrians and their puppets for 11 years in a dungeon in the third basement level of the Lebanese Ministry of Defense. He was released after the Cedar Revolution in 2005 ... stated that the situation in Leb is "difficult and bleak", which is why the time is right for him to run for president, reported the pan-Arab daily Asharq al-Awsat on Thursday.
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[An Nahar] The so-called Free Sunnis of Baalbek Brigade noted Thursday that "Hizbullah ...Party of God, a Leb militia inspired, founded, funded and directed by Iran. Hizbullah refers to itself as The Resistance and purports to defend Leb against Israel, with whom it has started and lost one disastrous war to date, though it did claim victory... and Iran" are behind the security plan that the army is poised to implement in the Bekaa city, vowing to turn Baalbek into "a graveyard for the 'Crusader army' and Hizbullah."
"Neither you nor Hizbullah are capable of removing the revolutionary pulse from our hearts, even if you try to implement the Iranian scheme under the pretext of 'the security plan in Baalbek'," the shadowy group said in a post on its Twitter account, addressing what it called "the non-Lebanese army."
"We swear to God ... that we will turn Baalbek's land into a graveyard for the 'Crusader army' and Hizbullah," the Brigade pledged.
The group warned the army against "recklessness and defiance," saying it has discovered that the security plan has "malicious goals."
"It is a security crackdown against the Sunni Ummah (nation) because it is targeted against the areas of Sunni influence in Leb," it added, alleging that the plan -- which was devised by the Higher Defense Council and approved by cabinet -- is aimed at "reining in the Sunni community in Leb."
The mysterious group had claimed that it is an affiliate of the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant ... the current version of al-Qaeda in Iraq, just as blood-thirsty and well-beloved as the original... bad boy group, but the ISIL has denied that.
On March 16, the Brigade engaged in a war of words with the al-Nusra Front in Leb, which is believed to be a local franchise of the Syria-based, Qaeda-linked al-Nusra Front.
The dispute erupted after both groups grabbed credit on Twitter for the deadly suicide kaboom that rocked the Bekaa town of al-Nabi Othman.
On Saturday, the Free Sunnis of Baalbek Brigade grabbed credit for a suicide kaboom that killed three army troops in the outskirts of the Bekaa border town of Arsal.
The security plan was launched in the northern city of Tripoli ...a confusing city, one end of which is located in Lebanon and the other end of which is the capital of Libya. Its chief distinction is being mentioned in the Marine Hymn... on Tuesday and it is expected to move to tense areas in the Bekaa and Beirut in the coming days.
Posted by: Fred ||
04/04/2014 00:00 ||
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#1
I'd write a note directing self to store popcorn---but, from experience, they're all talk.
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.
David Cameron
[Jihad Watch] Alexander is right, of course. It has been obvious for years that the Pakistanis have been aiding the same jihadists that the U.S. government has been giving them billions of dollars to fight. The New York Times reported on that at length back in 2008. And recently we learned that Ahmed Shuja Pasha, the head of the ISI, the Pakistani government's spy service, knew the whereabouts of Osama bin Laden, and apparently so did many other top officials in the Pakistani government. Those who are surprised by what Chris Alexander says probably also think that Islam is a Religion of Peace that has been hijacked by a Tiny Minority of Extremists.
Nawaz Sharif
Wazoo
Hereditary President-for-Life Bashir 
Hereditary President-for-Life Bashir 
Samir Geagea
