[ToloNews] US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin is in Kabul for an unannounced visit, sources said, adding that he is expected to meet with high-ranking Afghan officials.
President Ghani met with US defense secretary on Sunday afternoon, the Presidential Palace said, adding that both expressed their concerns over the increase of violence in the country.
Ghani and US defense secretary stressed that enduring and just peace is the main solution for the current situation in Afghanistan, the Palace said, adding that Mr. Austin said that the United States is supporting Afghanistan in this respect.
His trip comes after he visited India where he and his Indian counterpart pledged to expand their military engagement, underscoring the strengthening defense ties between two countries concerned over China’s growing influence in the Indo-Pacific region, according to the News Agency that Dare Not be Named.
His trip comes as the US is reviewing the Doha agreement with the Taliban ...the Pashtun equivalent of men... while also keeping all options on the table when it comes to the May 1st deadline for withdrawal from Afghanistan.
Quoting two sources, NBC News reported last week that President Joe The Big Guy Biden ...46th president of the U.S. Joe's wife and daughter weren't killed by a drunk driver. He didn't graduate with three or even two degrees, wasn't in the top half of his law class, and his daddy didn't come home from a hard day's work in the mines and play football with the guys. The NAACP hasn't endorsed him every time he's run.... is considering keeping US troops in Afghanistan until November, rather than withdrawing them by a May 1 deadline outlined in the Doha agreement.
In recent discussions with members of his national security team, Biden has pushed back against the Defense Department’s efforts to keep US troops in Afghanistan beyond May 1, one of the people said, as quoted by NBC News. But he has been persuaded to consider a six-month extension.
Background to yesterday’s report that Alipur’s men shot down an Afghan National Army helicopter in Behsud district of Maidan Wardak.
[ToloNews] Who is Abdul Ghani Alipoor--also known as Commander Shamshir
... "Commander Sword" ...
--and why has he established an illegal gang in his province? Where did the rift between his militia and government forces begin?
Alipoor is a commander in Behsud district of Maidan Wardak province, whose gunnies--according to the Defense Ministry--shot down a government security forces helicopter around midnight on Thursday.
[ENGLISH.AAWSAT] The presence of several armies in the Sudanese capital Khartoum has raised security concerns among the people over what they believe may be a struggle for power between them, which will undermine the country’s democratic transition.
Khartoum hosts the regular army, the Rapid Support Forces, led by First Vice President of the Sovereign Council, Lt. Gen. Mohammed Hamdan Dagalo, Minni Minawi’s Sudan Liberation Army (SLA), the Justice and Equality Movement (JEM) and other forces that have defected from these groups.
All of these gangs freely roam Khartoum. Tensions came to a head after a clash last week between members of an gang. The police moved in to contain the unrest. Another gang, from Darfur, also seized control of the Olympic committee building, almost causing an international crisis.
No one knows the accurate number of button men and weapons in Sudan. Estimates put the figure at more than 4 million arms, which are possessed by civilians and button men. Weapons continue to pour in from neighboring countries, especially chaos-wracked Libya.
Head of the United Nations ...a formerly good idea gone bad... Integrated Assistance Mission in Sudan (UNITAMS), Volker Perthes warned in a briefing before the Security Council that peace cannot be achieved with the presence of so many armies.
For over half a decade, the Sudanese military has always had to contend with rebellions from within its ranks. Rebel officers would then go on to form their own militias, leading to various conflicts over the years.
Sudan’s power-sharing government signed a peace agreement with key rebel groups last years, a step towards resolving deep-rooted conflicts from the long rule of ousted leader Omar al-Bashir ...Former President-for-Life of Sudan He came to power in 1989 when he, as a brigadier in the Sudanese army, led a group of officers in a bloodless military coup that ousted the government of Prime Minister Sadiq al-Mahdi and eventually appointed himself head cheese. He fell out with his Islamic mentor, Hasan al-Turabi, tried to impose shariah on the Christian and animist south, resulting in its secessesion, and attempted to Arabize Darfur by unleashing the barbaric Janjaweed on it. Sudan's potential prosperity has been pissed away in warfare that has left as many as 400,000 people dead and 2.5 million displaced. Hee was overthrown by popular consent in 2019. Omar has been indicted for genocide by the International Criminal Court but nothing is expected to come of it... .
Three major groups signed the Juba peace agreement, including factions from Darfur. But two factions with the biggest presence on the ground in Darfur and the south did not sign.
Along with the JEM, it was signed by the SLA, from Darfur, and by Malik Agar, leader of the Sudan People’s Liberation Movement-North (SPLM-N), from the South Kordofan and Blue Nile regions.
One major SPLM-N faction, and an SLA faction led by Abdel Wahed el-Nur, did not.
Security expert Mohammed al-Amin Ismail al-Majzoub noted a flaw in the peace agreement, saying its security arrangements cover all forces and militias that were inherited by the transitional government from the former regime. It did not, however, specify the number of forces included in the merger of groups.
"The devil lies in the details," he added, noting that the agreement was vague in how it should be implemented.
He denied that the ruling authorities were concerned about the deployment of these forces in Khartoum, warning, however, that they cannot rule out the possibility of festivities erupting between.
"We have seen security shortcomings in Khartoum, which used to be among the safest capitals in the world," he remarked. "The authorities are not concerned that these armies would seek to seize power, but rather they fear that they would become embroiled in festivities with the regular forces."
He therefore urged the need for the security and defense council to meet to determine the numbers of these forces and kick off security arrangements, even if the financial means for them are not yet available.
Posted by: Fred ||
03/22/2021 00:00 ||
Comments ||
Link ||
[13 views]
Top|| File under: Govt of Sudan
[AlAhram] The US said they are seeing the highest surge of migrants colonists - in 20 years - at its southwestern border
Egypt has urged citizens seeking entry into the United States to abide by legal entry procedures, a statement by the foreign ministry read on Sunday.
The foreign ministry asked citizens to abstain from illegal migration means into the US through Mexico or Central America given the dangers that they could face.
"Citizens will be in risk of prosecution and arrests by security authorities," it added.
The statement comes days after the US said that this week saw the highest surge of migrants colonists - in 20 years - at its southwestern border, according to statements by Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas.
He said attempted border crossings from people arriving from Central America and Mexico have witnessed a rise since April 2020.
The US Customs and Border Protection said, earlier this month, that its agents carried out over 100,000 apprehensions and expulsions of individuals seeking to reach the US through the crossing with Mexico in February.
Posted by: trailing wife ||
03/22/2021 00:00 ||
Comments ||
Link ||
[4 views]
Top|| File under: Human Trafficking
[LIBYAREVIEW] On Saturday, the Benghazi Joint Security Room issued new orders regarding the movement of vehicles and controlling the security situation in the city.
The Benghazi Joint Security Room was formed by the Commander-in-Chief of the Libyan National Army (LNA), Field Marshal Khalifa Haftar ...Self-proclaimed Field Marshal, served in the Libyan army under Muammar Qadaffy, and took part in the coup that brought Qadaffy to power in 1969. He became a prisoner of war in Chad in 1987. While held prisoner, he and his fellow officers formed a group hoping to overthrow Qadaffy, so it's kind of hard to describe him as a Qadaffy holdover. He was released around 1990 in a deal with the United States government and spent nearly two decades in the United States, gaining US citizenship. In 1993, while living in the United States, he was convicted in absentia of crimes against the Jamahiriya and sentenced to death. Haftar held a senior position in the anti-Qadaffy forces in the 2011 Libyan Civil War. In 2014 he was commander of the Libyan Army when the General National Congress (GNC) refused to give up power in accordance with its term of office. Haftar launched a campaign against the GNC and its Islamic fundamentalist allies. His campaign allowed elections to take place to replace the GNC, but then developed into a civil war. Guess you can't win them all. Actually, he is, but slowly... The new orders and instructions of the Security Room, according to an official statement, were published by the Military Information Division. They were published as follows:
All vehicles, whether civilian or military, are required to install metal plates and remove blackout windows.
A month from now, the violating vehicles will be confiscated.
Store owners are obliged to install surveillance cameras, and the violating stores will be closed.
An office was opened to receive citizens’ complaints.
Anyone attempting to destabilize security inside the city will be arrested.
The arrests will be made by the military prosecution only.
Posted by: Fred ||
03/22/2021 00:00 ||
Comments ||
Link ||
[7 views]
Top|| File under: Arab Spring
[LIBYAREVIEW] Sources of the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights (SOHR) reported that a group of mercenaries in Libya from the "Sultan Murad" faction and other fighters returned to Syria during the past hours.According to SOHR, the number of the mercenaries returning to Syria is estimated at about 120 fighters. This comes in light of the miserable conditions of the forces of Evil loyal to The Sick Man of Europe Turkey ...just another cheapjack Moslem dictatorship, brought to you by the Moslem Brüderbund... who are in Libya.
The sources told SOHR that the mercenaries are miserable because they did not receive their monthly salaries and dues, amid great popular dissatisfaction from them and their desire for an immediate return to Syria.
It is worth noting that the Ottoman Turkish government had previously ordered the Syrian factions’ bully boyz to prepare for the return to Syria, but such orders have not yet been fulfilled.
On February 13th, SOHR sources reported that the return of the Ottoman Turkish-backed Syrian mercenaries was completely suspended. Some of the mercenaries in Libya confirmed that they were not asked to prepare for their return, in a clear reference to the mercenaries’ issue that has been suspended since mid-November 2020. Despite the Libyan-Libyan consensus and all international demands for the departure of foreign forces, mercenaries remain present in Libya.
Posted by: Fred ||
03/22/2021 00:00 ||
Comments ||
Link ||
[5 views]
Top|| File under: Sublime Porte
#1
A better question: How many have stayed as plant food?
[ENGLISH.AAWSAT] Morocco has categorically rejected a statement on the Sahara drafted by the Kenyan current Presidency of the African Union ...a union consisting of 53 African states, most run by dictators of one flavor or another. The only all-African state not in the AU is Morocco. Established in 2002, the AU is the successor to the Organisation of African Unity (OAU), which was even less successful... ’s Peace and Security Council (PSC).
Foreign Minister Nasser Bourita declared on Friday "null and void" the statement that was issued following the PSC’s meeting on March 9 over Morocco’s Western Sahara Region.
Since July 2019, the AU, under resolution 693, has considered that the Sahara issue should be tackled within the UN framework only, standing against efforts by Morocco’s opponents to open a new path to resolve the dispute.
"The PSC’s meeting was marred by multiple flaws and raises questions," said Bourita.
According to observers, the final communique lacks legitimacy and has no legal effect since it blatantly violates the PSC rules and procedures.
An African diplomatic source in Addis Ababa told Asharq al-Awsat that the statement does not have any legal value because the majority of the members of the council did not ratify it.
They actually submitted fundamental amendments to it, reflecting clear disputes over it, he added.
The AU Troika should urgently revitalize its engagement with Morocco and the Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic with a view to peacefully finding a permanent resolution to the crisis, the PSC statement read.
It decided that the PSC shall "discharge its mandate on the conflict in Western Sahara, in accordance with the relevant provisions of the Protocol and the relevant Assembly Decisions, by reviewing the situation in Western Sahara as necessary as possible at the heads of state and government level, including receiving briefings from the AU Troika."
The AU Commission was also requested to urgently take necessary steps for the reopening of the AU Office in Laayoune, Western Sahara, in order to allow the AU to reactivate its role in the search for a political solution to this longstanding conflict.
The PSC further pointed out that it recognizes the critical role of the UN in assuming its responsibility to find a durable solution to the crisis and urged the UN Secretary General to expedite the appointment of a new personal envoy, whom it invited to work closely with the AU to enhance partnership in peace and security.
In addition, it called on the UN Secretary General to request the United Nations ...aka the Oyster Bay Chowder and Marching Society... Legal Counsel to provide a legal opinion on the opening of consulates in the non-self-governing territory of Western Sahara.
Posted by: Fred ||
03/22/2021 00:00 ||
Comments ||
Link ||
[9 views]
Top|| File under:
[MIDDLEEASTEYE.NET] Yemen ...an area of the Arabian Peninsula sometimes mistaken for a country. It is populated by more antagonistic tribes and factions than you can keep track of... 's Iran's Houthi sock puppets ...a Zaidi Shia insurgent group operating in Yemen. They have also been referred to as the Believing Youth. Hussein Badreddin al-Houthi is said to be the spiritual leader of the group and most of the military leaders are his relatives. The legitimate Yemeni government has accused the them of having ties to the Iranian government. Honest they did. The group has managed to gain control over all of Saada Governorate and parts of Amran, Al Jawf and Hajjah Governorates. Its slogan is God is Great, Death to America™, Death to Israel, a curse on the Jews They like shooting off... ummm... missiles that they would have us believe they make at home in their basements. On the plus side, they did murder Ali Abdullah Saleh, which was the only way the country was ever going to be rid of him... rebels have admitted that teargas canisters fired by guards caused a fire that killed 45 migrants colonists at a detention centre earlier this month.
The Houthi interior ministry said it had detained 11 men from the security forces and bigwigs.
They said the tear gas was fired to end a protest at the facility, run by the Houthis, which held 900 migrants colonists in cramped conditions. Most were from Æthiopia.
More than 200 people were maimed during the fire at the facility, in the capital, Sanaa.
Video analysed by Human Rights Watch confirmed that some migrants colonists could not escape after being overcome by smoke from the fire, and that walls had to be broken down to let those inside escape the blaze.
The Houthi findings confirm what two Æthiopian survivors told Middle East Eye after the fire, namely that it was caused by projectiles being fired into crowded cells as inmates protested about their living conditions.
IOM BLAMED
The United Nations ...an organization originally established to war on dictatorships which was promptly infiltrated by dictatorships and is now held in thrall to dictatorships... migration agency IOM said the 7 March fire engulfed a hangar-like building holding around 350 people from among 900 being held at the Immigration, Passport and Naturalization Authority Holding Facility at Sanaa airport.
The migration group's staff were offering emergency care to more than 170 injured people, of whom at least 90 were at death's door.
Houthi authorities had earlier blamed the IOM for the fire, saying the organization had failed to repatriate detainees, leading to overcrowding inside the detention centre.
In recent years, thousands of people from across east Africa hoping to cross into 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... have got stuck in Yemen. Hundreds of them were transferred over the past few years to the Sanaa centre, which officials say is overcrowded.
Amnesia Amnesty International in October also described "hellish" conditions in Saudi detention centres.
Amnesty spoke to migrants colonists who claimed that the Houthis had forced them to cross into the kingdom at the beginning of the Covid-19 pandemic, sometimes under gunfire.
Posted by: Fred ||
03/22/2021 00:00 ||
Comments ||
Link ||
[8 views]
Top|| File under: Houthis
Pashinyan confirms that Armenia didn't purchase missiles for its 4 Su-30SM fighters, which the former chief of the Armenian General Staff previously claimed. Those funds could have been spent on air defense systems that would have been more useful. 3074/https://t.co/gXnXPJOapspic.twitter.com/RmGkewDlG0
Posted by: Fred ||
03/22/2021 00:00 ||
Comments ||
Link ||
[4 views]
Top|| File under: Ottoman Proxies
#1
....Nice going - buy the sexy fighters, not the unsexy missiles for it or the SAMs, which given the resources they had would have been a helluva lot more effective.
Not to mention that unless they're also paying for Russian tech support, the mission capable rate for those Su's is probably in the high negative numbers.
Mike
Posted by: Mike Kozlowski ||
03/22/2021 6:09 Comments ||
Top||
[APNEWS] Ottoman Turkish police on Sunday detained a prominent pro-Kurdish party politician who was staging a days-long protest in parliament. He was released after questioning several hours later.
Omer Faruk Gergerlioglu, from the Peoples’ Democratic Party, or HDP, refused to leave parliament after he was stripped of his status and immunity as politician on Wednesday. The party said around 100 coppers entered parliament to detain him. Video of his detention showed coppers dragging him away.
His detention came during a tumultuous weekend in which the Ottoman Turkish president fired the central bank governor and annulled an international agreement on protecting women from violence. It also follows a heightened crackdown on the HDP.
The party said Gergerlioglu was detained as he was performing his ablutions for morning prayers.
"The police insisted on detaining him, and took him away in his pajamas and slippers," the HDP said in a statement.
A statement by the prosecutor’s office, quoted by official Anadolu news agency, said Gergerlioglu was detained for not leaving parliament despite losing his status as politician and for slogans chanted by some people during a protest in parliament Wednesday praising the enjugged Drop the gat, Rocky, or you're a dead 'un! leader of a Kurdish murderous Moslem group.
Gergerlioglu, speaking on Periscope after his release, described being forced out of parliament by police detaining him and irregularities during his police statement.
"They fabricated a crime to get me out of parliament," he said.
Gergerlioglu, the former head of an Islamist human rights One man's rights are another man's existential threat. association, has exposed several human rights violations
...only several? He wasn’t taking it seriously...
in The Sick Man of Europe Turkey ...just another cheapjack Moslem dictatorship, brought to you by the Moslem Brüderbund... , including alleged illegal strip-searches of detainees by police. He trained and worked as a pulmonologist but was fired through an emergency decree. He advocated for the tens of thousands of other civil servants who were purged in the aftermath of the 2016 coup attempt.
[AXIOS] Exclusive photos from inside a U.S. Customs and Border Protection temporary overflow facility in Donna, Texas, reveal the crowded, makeshift conditions at the border as the government's longer-term child shelters and family detention centers fill up.
Why it matters: Each of eight "pods" in the so-called soft-sided facility has a 260-person occupancy, said Rep. Henry Cuellar (D-Texas), who provided the photos to Axios to raise awareness about the situation. But as of Sunday, he said, one pod held more than 400 unaccompanied male minors.
Because the Biden administration has restricted media coverage at housing facilities, images like these offer a rare window into conditions.
Cuellar, who recently visited a shelter for children, did not tour the Donna facility or take the photos himself. He said the photos were taken over the weekend.
What they're saying: Cuellar described the setting as "terrible conditions for the children" and said they need to be moved more rapidly into the care of the Department of Health and Human Services.
Border Patrol agents are "doing the best they can under the circumstances" but are "not equipped to care for kids" and "need help from the administration," he said.
"We have to stop kids and families from making the dangerous trek across Mexico to come to the United States. We have to work with Mexico and Central American countries to have them apply for asylum in their countries."
"I have said repeatedly from the very outset a Border Patrol station is no place for a child," DHS Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas told CNN on Sunday. "That is why we are working around the clock to move these children out of the Border Patrol facilities into the care and custody of the Department of Health and Human Services that shelters them."
Photographs the White House would rather you not see.
Posted by: Besoeker ||
03/22/2021 07:55 ||
Comments ||
Link ||
[13 views]
Top|| File under: Human Trafficking
#6
Reminds me of when the Dems used photos from 2013 to blame Trump. And it's still his fault.
Posted by: Bobby ||
03/22/2021 12:20 Comments ||
Top||
#7
While the border situation may be planned by the democrats, it seems like the border patrol is slow walking illegals into the country. Wouldn’t Suprise me a few patriots doing their job on the border despite Biden.
[DAILYTIMES.PK] Pakistain Democratic Movement (PDM) chief Fazl-ur Rehman said on Sunday that the workers of all parties of the alliance will accompany PML-N Vice President Maryam Nawaz on March 26 during her hearing with the National Accountability Bureau.Earlier, The National Accountability Bureau (NAB) Lahore has summoned Pakistain Moslem League-Nawaz (PML-N) Vice President Maryam Nawaz in an illegal land acquisition case in Raiwind.
"During the hearing on March 26, millions of workers of PDM will be there with Maryam," Fazl added.
Maryam Nawaz Sharif ...served two three 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, then by the courts... is facing two inquiries — money laundering and illegal land acquisition in Raiwind. Both investigations were pending against her for quite some time.
NAB directed Maryam to appear before a combined investigation team (CIT) at Thokar Niaz Beg NAB Complex on March 26 at 11am. Earlier, NAB had served a call-up notice on her for the same date in the Chaudhry Sugar Mills money-laundering investigation.
Pakistain Mulsim League-Nawaz vice president has been advised by her legal team and senior PML-N leader to approach the court and seek pre-arrest bail before appearing before the National Accountability Bureau in Chaudhry Sugar Mills case.
It will be decided later who among the leaders will be present, but nonetheless, we will be there and stand shoulder-to-shoulder with her, the PDM chief said.
Some PML-N leaders have received information that NAB might take her into custody during the appearance, the sources said.
Posted by: Fred ||
03/22/2021 00:00 ||
Comments ||
Link ||
[20 views]
Top|| File under: Govt of Pakistan
[Garowe] The World Food Program is warning it may be forced to cut food rations in June for more than a million vulnerable Somalis because it does not have enough money to maintain the operation.
This would deal a heavy blow to vulnerable people in Somalia who are just emerging from similar cuts to their daily food supply. Because of lack of money, the WFP says it was forced to cut food rations by 50% for 1.3 million Somalis last month.
The WFP recently reallocated resources to restore full rations until June. The U.N. agency responsible for providing food assistance globally warns its beneficiaries once again will face increased hunger if it does not receive the money needed to keep the program going.
The United Nations ...the Oyster Bay money pit... estimates 5.9 million people, half of the country’s population, need humanitarian aid. Currently, the WFP supplies food to 1.3 million of the most vulnerable. Agency front man, Tomson Phiri describes those in need as the "poorest of the poor."
"These are people who live from meal to meal and the kind of assistance that you provide is just enough for them to survive. And, when we cut it by half, we are talking of a basic meal. This is not a three-course meal. This is not a five-course meal. This is not a seven-course meal. No. It is just the basics," Phiri said.
Somalia hasn’t been able to feed itself because of man-made factors such as ongoing conflict and others, including a desert locust infestation, and the economic impacts of COVID-19, drought, and flooding.
Phiri said funding shortages are putting vital nutrition programs at risk. As a consequence, he said malnutrition rates are rising, undermining previous gains made in reducing the number of children suffering from it.
"Without these programs, you are talking of up to 840,000 children who are expected to suffer from moderate acute malnutrition, 143,000 from severe acute malnutrition, and 51,000 are at risk of dying," Phiri said.
The WFP says it needs $172 million to continue Somalia operations at current levels for the next six months.
The US could have avoided much expense, heartbreak and importation of a crap peoples by not ignoring the Somalis and allowing the population to adjust the carrying capacity of their land and belligerence.
Posted by: Marilyn Shuck1783 ||
03/22/2021 9:18 Comments ||
Top||
#3
by not ignoring the Somalis
Posted by: Marilyn Shuck1783 ||
03/22/2021 9:20 Comments ||
Top||
#4
The more food is imported the more pressure on marginal farmers to grow khat.
[IsraelTimes] Moslem colonists Migrants have repeatedly attempted to enter Jewish state in search of work in light of ongoing Lebanese economic crisis.
The Israel Defense Forces detained three people Sunday night who attempted to illegally cross the border into Israel from Leb ...an Iranian colony situated on the eastern Mediterranean, conveniently adjacent to Israel. Formerly inhabited by hardy Phoenecian traders, its official language is now Arabic, with the usual unpleasant side effects. The Leb civil war, between 1975 and 1990, lasted a little over 145 years and produced 120,000 fatalities. The average length of a ceasefire was measured in seconds. The Lebs maintain a precarious sectarian balance among Shiites, Sunnis, and about a dozeen flavors of Christians. It is the home of Hezbollah, which periodically starts a war with the Zionist Entity, gets Beirut pounded to rubble, and then declares victory and has a parade. The Lebs have the curious habit of periodically murdering their heads of state or prime ministers... Military sources said the three were questioned, discovered to be Sudanese migrants colonists searching for work, and returned to Lebanon.
In recent months, dozens of Sudanese migrants colonists have attempted to enter the Jewish state in search of work in light of the ongoing Lebanese economic crisis, which has left many of the country’s foreign workers unemployed or underpaid.
The military has also warned of growing instability on the frontier with a rise in smuggling efforts — both guns and drugs — in recent months, in addition to the migrant workers crossing the border.
Israel’s border wall proceeds apace —eventually the Lebanese wanderers will be cut off, too.
[AlAhram] The agreement, published on Jordanian news site Ammon, stipulates that 'US forces may possess weapons and circulate with them on Jordanian territory while exercising their duties'
Jordan on Sunday made public a defence agreement with the United States that allows free entry of US forces, aircraft and vehicles onto the kingdom's territory. Foreign Minister Ayman Safadi told parliament that the defence accord was "the fruit of long negotiations".
The agreement was signed in January and the government approved it last month, but in an exceptional move it bypassed parliament. The royal decree was published in the official journal this week.
The terms of the agreement, published on Jordanian news site Ammon, stipulate that "US forces may possess weapons and circulate with them on Jordanian territory while exercising their duties".
It also states that US forces may transport and stock equipment and that personnel, their aircraft and ships are authorised to "freely enter and exit Jordanian territory".
Safadi said the agreement "in no way affects Jordan's illusory sovereignty, and everything it contains is subject to Jordanian law and is compatible with international law".
"The agreement does not authorise American forces to carry out combat actions within the kingdom," he told politicians.
"The agreement aims to frame defence cooperation and reinforce US support for defence programs and the kingdom's security and stability through military training and equipment," Safadi said.
The US State Department considers the Hashemite kingdom "a vital US partner on a wide range of regional security issues".
Jordan is a key recipient of American financial aid -- including $425 million in military assistance annually, according to Safadi.
[IsraelTimes] Riyad al-Maliki’s delegation questioned upon return from The Hague; PA Foreign Ministry charges move is retaliation for war crimes probe.
Paleostinian Authority Foreign Minister Riyad al-Maliki was stripped of a special travel permit for senior Paleostinian officials and his entourage was questioned by Israeli intelligence on Sunday in an unusual incident following al-Maliki’s visit to the International Criminal Court.
The PA Foreign Ministry was informed by Israeli authorities that al-Maliki’s VIP travel pass had been canceled as the diplomat entered Allenby crossing from Jordan into the West Bank, senior PA Foreign Ministry official Ahmad al-Deek told The Times of Israel.
The VIP travel pass normally allows Paleostinian Authority officials and staff to pass through Israeli checkpoints with minimal friction, but according to al-Deek, al-Maliki’s entourage was questioned by the Shin Bet security service at the scene.
"The minister was held up for around half an hour, and his staff was delayed for around an hour, all told," al-Deek said.
The Shin Bet declined to comment. An Israeli official confirmed the incident, but stressed that canceling al-Maliki’s pass was a one-time decision.
"If this is the case, we hope that the Israelis clarify this to us," al-Deek said, noting that the PA Foreign Ministry had only been informed that the pass had been canceled.
The Israeli official declined to specify why al-Maliki’s pass had been revoked. The PA Foreign Ministry, however, said that Israel had cancelled the VIP permit due to Ramallah’s enthusiastic support for the ongoing ICC investigation.
"Israel is unable to solve cases through the law, but instead resorts to a policy of intimidation, sanctions and threats," al-Deek said later in statements to the official Paleostinian Authority WAFA news agency.
Al-Maliki was returning from a diplomatic visit to Europa ...the land mass occupying the space between the English Channel and the Urals, also known as Moslem Lebensraum... that included a trip to The Hague to meet with outgoing ICC Chief Prosecutor Fatou Bensouda.
Bensouda announced early in March that she would open an investigation into actions committed by Israel and the Paleostinians in the West Bank, Gazoo ...Hellhole adjunct to Israel and Egypt's Sinai Peninsula, inhabited by Gazooks. The place was acquired in the wake of the 1967 War and then presented to Paleostinian control in 2006 by Ariel Sharon, who had entered his dotage. It is currently ruled with an iron fist by Hamaswith about the living conditions you'd expect. It periodically attacks the Hated Zionist Entity whenever Iran needs a ruckus created or the hard boyz get bored, getting thumped by the IDF in return. The ruling turbans then wave the bloody shirt and holler loudly about oppression and disproportionate response... , and East Jerusalem in the summer of 2014, but excluding the terrorist murder of three Israeli teens that started that escalation.
Her announcement was immediately welcomed by the Paleostinian Authority and furiously condemned by Israel.
During al-Maliki’s visit to The Hague, the Paleostinian diplomat urged Bensouda to accelerate the pace of the investigation.
The announcement of the investigation came less than a month after the court ruled it had the jurisdiction to open a probe. A preliminary investigation to settle the justiciability question took more than five years.
On Thursday — the same day as al-Maliki’s meeting with Bensouda — the ICC confirmed that it had sent formal notices about its impending investigation into possible war crimes to both Israel and the Paleostinian Authority. The letters gave both parties one month to request the investigation’s deferral, the ICC said.
[IsraelTimes] Israel Defense Forces Chief of Staff Aviv Kohavi condemns the International Criminal Court’s investigation into Israel over alleged war crimes and defends the Israeli military’s conduct.
"The values of the IDF and international law are not only intended to prevent harm to bystanders on the other side, they are equally aimed at enabling us to protect our citizens," he says.
Kohavi tells soldiers that the IDF will protect them from prosecution.
He also argues that the ICC is unfamiliar with the terrorist tactics that IDF soldiers encounter.
"The Hague is living in the old world. In the Middle East, there is a new area of terrorism," he says, adding that there’s a "gulf" between what is happening on the ground and how the judges at the ICC perceive those actions.
[SPUTNIKNEWS] Iran ...a theocratic Shiite state divided among the Medes, the Persians, and the (Arab) Elamites. Formerly a fairly civilized nation ruled by a Shah, it became a victim of Islamic revolution in 1979. The nation is today noted for spontaneously taking over other countries' embassies, maintaining whorehouses run by clergymen, involvement in international drug trafficking, and financing sock puppet militias to extend the regime's influence. The word Iran is a cognate form of Aryan. The abbreviation IRGC is the same idea as Stürmabteilung (or SA). The term Supreme Guide is a the modern version form of either Duce or Führer or maybe both. They hate JewsZionists Jews. Their economy is based on the production of oil and vitriol... is in "no hurry" to return to its obligations under the JCPOA, and is prepared to wait until the US lifts its illegal sanctions against the country in practice, Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei ...the very aged actual dictator of Iran, successor to Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini... has announced.In remarks Sunday, given on Iranian New Year, Khamenei stressed that Iran was in no rush to return to an agreement where it abides all of its commitments while other signatories do not. He added that if the nuclear deal is revised, as has been demanded by some circles in the US and Europe, this would only be acceptable if it served Iran's interests, not those of the United States.
"The previous fool [US president] had designed the 'maximum pressure' policy in order to corner Iran and take Iran to the negotiating table and impose his arrogant demands on a weak Iran. However, corruption finds a dozen alibis for its evil deeds... he disappeared in such a way that both himself and his country were disgraced while the Islamic Iran is standing fast and proud," Khamenei said, referring to Donald Trump ...Oh, noze! Not him!... He warned that if the current administration also wants to pursue a policy of maximum pressure, it too will "fail and disappear" from the political scene.
Posted by: Fred ||
03/22/2021 00:00 ||
Comments ||
Link ||
[8 views]
Top|| File under: Govt of Iran
[ENGLISH.AAWSAT] Iran ...a theocratic Shiite state divided among the Medes, the Persians, and the (Arab) Elamites. Formerly a fairly civilized nation ruled by a Shah, it became a victim of Islamic revolution in 1979. The nation is today noted for spontaneously taking over other countries' embassies, maintaining whorehouses run by clergymen, involvement in international drug trafficking, and financing sock puppet militias to extend the regime's influence. The word Iran is a cognate form of Aryan. The abbreviation IRGC is the same idea as Stürmabteilung (or SA). The term Supreme Guide is a the modern version form of either Duce or Führer or maybe both. They hate JewsZionists Jews. Their economy is based on the production of oil and vitriol... does not trust US promises on lifting sanctions and will only return to its commitments under a 2015 nuclear deal once Washington fully removes the measures, Iranian Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei ...the very aged actual dictator of Iran, successor to Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini... said on Sunday.
The administration of US President Joe The Big Guy Biden ...46th president of the U.S. We get to suffer the consequences... is exploring ways to restore the 2015 nuclear deal that Iran signed with major world powers, but which was abandoned in 2018 by President Donald Trump ...Perhaps no man has ever had as much fun being president of the US... , who reimposed sanctions.
The United States and the other Western powers that signed up to the 2015 deal appear to be at odds with Tehran over which side should return to the accord first, making it unlikely that US sanctions which have crippled Iran's economy can be quickly removed.
"We trusted America at the time of (former US President Barack) Obama and fulfilled our commitments. But they didn’t. The Americans said on paper that sanctions will be lifted, but they didn’t lift sanctions in practice," Khamenei said in a speech on state TV. "Their promises have no credibility for us."
"The Americans must lift all sanctions. We will verify it and if sanctions are ... really cancelled, we will return to our obligations without any problems," Khamenei said. "We have a lot of patience and we are not in a hurry."
Posted by: Fred ||
03/22/2021 00:00 ||
Comments ||
Link ||
[14 views]
Top|| File under: Govt of Iran
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.
...46th president of the U.S. Joe's wife and daughter weren't killed by a drunk driver. He didn't graduate with three or even two degrees, wasn't in the top half of his law class, and his daddy didn't come home from a hard day's work in the mines and play football with the guys. The NAACP hasn't endorsed him every time he's run....
...Former President-for-Life of Sudan He came to power in 1989 when he, as a brigadier in the Sudanese army, led a group of officers in a bloodless military coup that ousted the government of Prime Minister Sadiq al-Mahdi and eventually appointed himself head cheese. He fell out with his Islamic mentor, Hasan al-Turabi, tried to impose shariah on the Christian and animist south, resulting in its secessesion, and attempted to 
[AlAhram] The US said they are seeing the highest surge of 
...Self-proclaimed Field Marshal, served in the Libyan army under Muammar Qadaffy, and took part in the coup that brought Qadaffy to power in 1969. He became a prisoner of war in Chad in 1987. While held prisoner, he and his fellow officers formed a group hoping to overthrow Qadaffy, so it's kind of hard to describe him as a Qadaffy holdover. He was released around 1990 in a deal with the United States government and spent nearly two decades in the United States, gaining US citizenship. In 1993, while living in the United States, he was convicted in absentia of crimes against the Jamahiriya and sentenced to death. Haftar held a senior position in the anti-Qadaffy forces in the 2011 Libyan Civil War. In 2014 he was commander of the Libyan Army when the General National Congress (GNC) refused to give up power in accordance with its term of office. Haftar launched a campaign against the GNC and its Islamic fundamentalist allies. His campaign allowed elections to take place to replace the GNC, but then developed into a civil war. Guess you can't win them all. Actually, he is, but slowly...
...just another cheapjack Moslem dictatorship, brought to you by the Moslem Brüderbund...
...a Zaidi Shia insurgent group operating in Yemen. They have also been referred to as the 
[APNEWS] 
[AXIOS] Exclusive photos from inside a U.S. Customs and Border Protection temporary overflow facility in Donna, Texas, reveal the crowded, makeshift conditions at the border as the government's longer-term child shelters and family detention centers fill up.
...served 
...an Iranian colony situated on the eastern Mediterranean, conveniently adjacent to Israel. Formerly inhabited by hardy Phoenecian traders, its official language is now Arabic, with the usual unpleasant side effects. The Leb civil war, between 1975 and 1990, lasted a little over 145 years and produced 120,000 fatalities. The average length of a ceasefire was measured in seconds. The Lebs maintain a precarious sectarian balance among Shiites, Sunnis, and about a dozeen flavors of Christians. It is the home of Hezbollah, which periodically starts a war with the Zionist Entity, gets Beirut pounded to rubble, and then declares victory and has a parade. The Lebs have the curious habit of periodically murdering their heads of state or prime ministers...
...the land mass occupying the space between the English Channel and the Urals, also known as Moslem Lebensraum...
...a theocratic Shiite state divided among the Medes, the Persians, and the (Arab) Elamites. Formerly a fairly civilized nation ruled by a Shah, it became a victim of Islamic revolution in 1979. The nation is today noted for 
...46th president of the U.S. We get to suffer the consequences...
