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Haji Omar Khan is no more
Today's Headlines
Headline Comments [Views]
Page 1: WoT Operations
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Page 6: Politix
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Good morning
Posted by: Fred || 10/28/2008 08:40 || Comments || Link || [0 views] Top|| File under:

#1  May I bond with you, Lillian? Wouldn't want you to catch a cold.
Posted by: AlanC || 10/28/2008 9:31 Comments || Top||

#2  nice.
Posted by: Broadhead6 || 10/28/2008 11:03 Comments || Top||

#3  Buy Bonds!
Posted by: Mike || 10/28/2008 11:10 Comments || Top||

#4  Love Lillian, not so crazy about the curtains.
Posted by: Old Patriot || 10/28/2008 12:58 Comments || Top||

#5  Bond, Lillian, Bond.

I'm both stirred and shaken...."
Posted by: Maggie Thomble1805 || 10/28/2008 14:39 Comments || Top||

#6  Fred has been trying to lift our spirits lately. I have noticed a lot of nekked women lately.
Posted by: JohnQC || 10/28/2008 20:33 Comments || Top||


Afghanistan
Assailants Gouge Out Afghan Man's Eyes in Front of Family
KANDAHAR, Afghanistan — Armed assailants attacked a man and gouged out his eyes in front of his family during a gruesome assault in southern Afghanistan, officials said Sunday. Sayed Ghulam, 52, was recovering in a hospital in the country's largest southern city, Kandahar.

Ghulam said three armed men knocked on his door in the Sangin district of Helmand province late Thursday. When he opened the door, they punched him in the face, put the barrel of a Kalashnikov rifle in his mouth and gouged out his eyes with a knife in the presence of his wife and seven children.

"I was crying, along with my children and wife, who was screaming for help, but they didn't listen," Ghulam told The Associated Press from his hospital room in Kandahar. Ghulam, a farmer who said he raises wheat and popcorn, said he doesn't know why he was attacked. "I don't have any enemies. But they were not letting me talk. They put the AK-47 in my mouth and they were punching me."

Daoud Ahmadi, spokesman for Helmand's governor, blamed Taliban fighters for the attack, saying the militants often kill innocent Afghans. "This guy Ghulam was just a normal man, a farmer," Ahmadi said. "I don't know what kind of heart these killers have."

But Taliban spokesman Qari Yousef Ahmadi denied that Taliban fighters were involved. "Whenever we carry out an attack we claim responsibility," Ahmadi said. "We didn't gouge out this man's eyes."

Ghulam, whose head is almost completely wrapped in a large white bandage, said his attackers were wearing black turbans on their head like many Taliban fighters, but said he didn't know who carried out the attack.

Taliban militants sometimes carry out harsh punishments for people they accuse of being thieves or "spies" for the Afghan government. Such punishments include having hands cut off or being tarred and paraded publicly, but there have been few recent reports of people having their eyes gouged out.
Posted by: Steve White || 10/28/2008 00:00 || Comments || Link || [0 views] Top|| File under:

#1  шкафы купе
кожаная мебель
кухни
кухонная мебель
кабинет руководителя
кабинет для руководителя
офисная мебель
мебель диана
диван угловой
мягкая мебель
офисные кресла
кресла для руководителя
мебель на заказ
офисная мебель москва
офисная мебель персонал
компьютерные столы
Posted by: jeruy || 10/28/2008 6:22 Comments || Top||

#2  Clean up Aisle 1 - someone knocked over the borscht display!
Posted by: Jack is Back! || 10/28/2008 6:47 Comments || Top||


Africa Horn
NATO anti-piracy ships escort their first vessel
(Xinhua) -- A NATO warship has just completed the alliance's first anti-piracy mission off the coast of Somalia by escorting a shipment of supplies to an African Union mission in the country, said NATO Secretary General Jaap de Hoop Scheffer on Monday.

"The state of play is that one NATO ship just finished escorting a ship which was bringing in supplies for the Burundian battalion...in Somalia," Jaap de Hoop Scheffer told reporters.

He said a second ship is escorting a World Food Program (WFP) ship and will dock on Tuesday. "The operation is moving well," he said.

Three NATO ships -- from Italy, Greece and Britain -- have been deployed to escort WFP food shipments and patrol the waters to deter acts of piracy until a European Union (EU) mission is in place. The three NATO ships are allowed to use force pursuant to the authorized rules of engagement and in compliance with relevant international and national law, said NATO's top military command for operations on Friday.

The ships were ordered to redirect toward Africa at short notice after NATO defense ministers agreed two weeks ago to send warships to carry out anti-piracy duties off the coast of Somalia. The decision was in response to a request by the WFP and UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon.

Rampant piracy on the waters is making food shipments impossible without escorts. At the same time the WFP shipments are crucial as over 40 percent of the Somali population depends on WFP food aid.
Posted by: Fred || 10/28/2008 00:00 || Comments || Link || [0 views] Top|| File under:

#1  Every time I see the acronym NATO I start thinking UN. That is not respectful of NATO as you want it to be but it is the way it is becoming. Rummy was right - we need to seriously reassess our participation in that outfit.
Posted by: Jack is Back! || 10/28/2008 6:49 Comments || Top||

#2  Funny, I thought it not respectful of the UN.
Posted by: Nimble Spemble || 10/28/2008 7:15 Comments || Top||

#3  The three NATO ships are allowed to use force pursuant to the authorized rules of engagement

Given the elite German special forces unit that just spent a year turtled up in their base in Afghanistan, I can't help wondering if said rules of engagement involve MOLWAS (Military Operations Like War And Stuff)?
Posted by: SteveS || 10/28/2008 10:27 Comments || Top||


Royal Navy authorized to destroy pirate vessels
The Royal Navy has been given a new role to actively hunt pirate vessels, MPs have been told. Armed Forces Minister Bob Ainsworth said the navy had moved to a more 'proactive posture' in tackling the threat. Royal Navy sources said commanding officers had been given the power to destroy equipment used by pirates -- including sinking their vessels.

In a Commons written answer, Mr Ainsworth told shadow foreign secretary William Hague yesterday: 'The government's stance on piracy has recently been reviewed. This has resulted in a move to a more proactive posture whereby Royal Navy units in the region will actively seek out pirates, and we have issued them with more robust guidance to deal with any pirates encountered.'

Previously, commanding officers could only engage pirates if they caught them in the act and were not allowed to destroy their weapons or equipment.

A navy source said: 'The UN Convention on the Laws of the Sea does not permit them to destroy equipment. What the UK guidance will do is allow commanding officers to do that.'

A Nato fleet, including attached Royal Navy units, is deploying to the area and part of its mission will be to protect World Food Programme shipping heading to Somalia's capital Mogadishu. A US-led international fleet Combined Task Force 150, including the British frigate HMS Northumberland, is already patrolling the Gulf of Aden.
Posted by: Pappy || 10/28/2008 00:00 || Comments || Link || [0 views] Top|| File under:

#1  Old pirates never die , they just get blown offshore !

Sorry couldnt resist :)
Posted by: Quetta Sucks || 10/28/2008 5:08 Comments || Top||

#2  Glad to see they have use for their last few ships
Posted by: Dan || 10/28/2008 9:45 Comments || Top||

#3  Captain Hooke Silver, Attorney at Law:

http://www.boredtodeath.co.uk/ani129.php

Specializing in ninja lawsuits.
Posted by: Anonymoose || 10/28/2008 10:12 Comments || Top||

#4  There is a Royal Navy?
Posted by: bman || 10/28/2008 11:32 Comments || Top||

#5  Previously, commanding officers could only engage pirates if they caught them in the act and were not allowed to destroy their weapons or equipment.
"Ahoy there, kindly release the Captain from walking the plank and in a calm fashion report yourselves to the nearest authorities or we shall be forced to ask you a second time."

Proactive Posture, Hah. Its a friggin ship of war in dangerous predatory waters protecting merchants. In the days of the Caribbean Pirate roundups they seemed to be able to determine whats what but in the days of sending via satellite images with a 2 second delay from Puntland to England cannot make a determination?

And screw the UN and its supposed body of law. In the real world it don't mean jack.
Posted by: swksvolFF || 10/28/2008 12:13 Comments || Top||

#6  'The UN Convention on the Laws of the Sea does not permit them to destroy equipment'.

Another very good reason the United States should never accept this POS "treaty", including the loss of the ability to move warships freely through any "international" waters. The Law of the Sea Treaty(LOST) is the UN's biggest attempt yet to claim sovereignty overy 2/3 of the Earth's Surface.
Posted by: Old Patriot || 10/28/2008 13:06 Comments || Top||


Home Front: WoT
Al Qaeda media chief stands mute at Guantanamo
The U.S. war crimes trial of Osama bin Laden's accused media director began Monday with silence from the defense side of the Guantanamo Bay courtroom after the judge ruled the Yemeni defendant had the right to stand mute and offer no defense.

Defendant Ali Hamza al Bahlul came to the courtroom on the Guantanamo Bay naval base voluntarily but is boycotting participation because he does not recognize the tribunal's legitimacy. "I will be joining Mr. al Bahlul's boycott of the proceedings, standing mute at the table," said his U.S. military-appointed lawyer, Air Force Maj. David Frakt.

The judge, Air Force Col. David Gregory, said the rules allow Frakt to honor his client's wishes by doing nothing, since the prosecution has the entire burden of proving the charges. His further questions to the defense were met with silence.

Bahlul is accused of preparing al Qaeda recruiting materials, including a video glorifying the 2000 attack that killed 17 U.S. sailors on the warship USS Cole, preparing the videotaped will of September 11 ringleader Mohamed Atta, and operating communications gear for bin Laden. He is also accused of acting as one of the al Qaeda leader's bodyguards.

Bahlul, a man so loquacious that other prisoners have begged not to be held in cells adjacent to his, had made lengthy statements in previous hearings. He acknowledged that "I am from al Qaeda" and expressed loyalty to bin Laden.

The judge ruled those statements cannot be used as evidence against him because they were made in the limited context of explaining his intent to boycott.

Bahlul, who is about 38, refused to wear the earphones that would allow him to hear an Arabic interpretation of the hearing. He is charged with conspiring with al Qaeda, soliciting to commit murder and providing material support for terrorism. He faces life in prison if convicted.

His trial is only the second in the special tribunals created by the Bush administration to try non-U.S. captives on terrorism charges without the protections normally granted to civilians and soldiers. Bin Laden's driver, Salim Hamdan, was convicted at the first one in August of providing material support for terrorism.
Posted by: Fred || 10/28/2008 00:00 || Comments || Link || [1 views] Top|| File under: al-Qaeda

#1  I don't know whether to admire these military lawyers or put them in the great tree bark grinder most lawyers belong. But it has to be a thankless job, whatever. How can you get up in the morning, put that uniform on and then sit down with the scum of the earth and say to yourself "I am protecting the constitution of the United States of America". I couldn't do it.
Posted by: Jack is Back! || 10/28/2008 6:52 Comments || Top||

#2  The U.S. war crimes trial of Osama bin Laden's accused media director began Monday with silence from the defense side of the Guantanamo Bay courtroom after the judge ruled the Yemeni defendant had the right to stand mute and offer no defense.

What's the matter Bahlul? Kaffir got your tongue?
Posted by: Hupusing Stalin7098 || 10/28/2008 8:12 Comments || Top||

#3  I wish that the judge could air an Arabic translation during the trial, forcing Bahul to hear and understand what was going on. From previous accounts of him, the man is an impulsive talker and would find it very difficult to not respond to what was going on around him. Sadly, Col. Gregory will stick with procedures, allowing this scumbag to appear much more disciplined and martyred that he is.
Posted by: Richard of Oregon || 10/28/2008 8:46 Comments || Top||

#4  Smarter judges let fools who want to play the martyr do so. It doesn't help their defense, and it takes away grounds to appeal.

I heard of one federal judge who had a wink-wink, nod-nod agreement with a prosecutor to let a right wing kook defend himself. The kook spent four days ranting and raving, without objection, before his voice burned out. Then the judge found him guilty.

Before sentencing, the kook actually thanked the court for letting him have his say, and happily went off to prison.
Posted by: Anonymoose || 10/28/2008 10:00 Comments || Top||

#5  he don't agree with the tribunals legitmacy. Good we don't agree with al queadas legitamcy either.
Posted by: chris || 10/28/2008 10:16 Comments || Top||

#6  Its my hope that i will get to talk to this terrorist in person. I am supposed to attend the trial, we leave Fiday. I want to tell him how Bin Laden, and killers like him have shattered our dreams after the Cole attack which killed our son. I just came from a website of a lawyer that is bragging about how he is representing these creeps for free. In the name of Human Rights. What about all the innocent rights of Al-Qeada victims? Gary G. Swenchonis, Sr
Posted by: Gary Swenchonis || 10/28/2008 16:55 Comments || Top||

#7  Kaffir got your tongue?

Heh.
Posted by: .5MT || 10/28/2008 17:06 Comments || Top||

#8  Your son gave his life to protect our freedom, Mr. Swenchonis. We here at Rantburg understand the magnitude of his gift, and hope that thought will provide you with some comfort as we all mourn a good man's life cut short by those who chose evil.
Posted by: trailing wife || 10/28/2008 17:26 Comments || Top||

#9  trailing wife:

solemn declarations like yours got us into the current mess. we continue to elect pseudo leaders who vomit specious pseudo principles, which the sheepish masses refuse to examine.

if you want a better country, run on reality, not stereotypes. i cannot describe the depth of anger that i hold for platitudinous jackasses like GWB and McCain.

do your country a favor and refuse to wax carbon copy eloquence whenever a musical chair opens up. get angry at bad leaders and pseuds like steve white (may his stomach acids burn off his arrogant self conceit).

The problem in Iraq, Afghanistan and Washington: pseudo niceness. we need a meaner and nastier America. I spit in the face of faith based marshmallows posing as humans. There should have been 20,000,000 enemy dead since 9-11. Bad leadership and stereotypical thinking shielded our homicidal swords.

Don't comfort people; buy them guns, dammit.
Posted by: Jack Nasty Meandog || 10/28/2008 17:40 Comments || Top||

#10  Entirely too much nuance Jack. Let it out man! Holding all of this inward could lead to duodenal ulcers, bleeding,, perforation, narrowing and obstruction....spitting, vomiting, etc.
Posted by: Besoeker || 10/28/2008 17:57 Comments || Top||

#11  Jack Nasty: I've just redacted three of your comments.

You're new here. Learn the rules. We don't like personal attacks, we don't blame all Muslims for what a substantial minority have done, and we're not particularly into toilet humor.

Read the comments here and you'll see how it's done well. We're into civil, well-reasoned discourse. And snark, done with wit.

AoS (moderator)
Posted by: Steve White || 10/28/2008 18:22 Comments || Top||

#12  if you want a better country, run on reality, not stereotypes. i cannot describe the depth of anger that i hold for platitudinous jackasses like GWB and McCain.

Cut loose of your inner KooooooooooK much?
Posted by: .5MT || 10/28/2008 18:26 Comments || Top||

#13  jeebus, Jack Nasty, even I can handle it, so you should be able to, superior intellect and moral high ground and sech.
Posted by: Frank G || 10/28/2008 18:38 Comments || Top||

#14  I'm confused, Mr. Meandog. You object to offering a bit of sympathy and comfort to man mourning the murder of his son, somehow equating that to a difference in politics? Does your mother know this?
Posted by: trailing wife || 10/28/2008 19:32 Comments || Top||

#15  Does he even have a mother, tw?
Posted by: Barbara Skolaut || 10/28/2008 20:04 Comments || Top||

#16  Of course he has a mother, Barbara. Even sponge buds come from mother sponges, although of course they don't have fathers... and I'm quite certain mother sponges have expectations of their offspring, just like we humans do.
Posted by: trailing wife || 10/28/2008 22:06 Comments || Top||

#17  Once again, TW slices and dices, without even breaking a sweat...
Must suck to be Nasty Jackoff.
Posted by: USN, Ret. || 10/28/2008 23:03 Comments || Top||


India-Pakistan
Two people killed in Quetta bomb blast
(AKI) - Two people were killed and several others were injured in a bomb blast in the centre of the Pakistani city of Quetta on Monday. According to police, a bomb exploded outside the local mayor's office near Liaquat Bagh. Pakistan's Geo News reports that the blast also damaged nearby buildings and vehicles parked in the area. Police immediately cordoned off the area. Emergency services arrived at the scene and began ferrying the injured to hospital. Quetta is the capital of Baluchistan, reputedly a Taliban stronghold on the border of Afghanistan. No one has taken responsibility for the attack.
Posted by: Fred || 10/28/2008 00:00 || Comments || Link || [0 views] Top|| File under:

#1  A bigger bomb would have been better , maybe something along the line of a couple of MOABs

Posted by: Quetta Sucks || 10/28/2008 5:00 Comments || Top||

#2  Hic!
Martini, Orange and Beer?
Posted by: .5MT || 10/28/2008 17:09 Comments || Top||


Pakistan: At least 16 killed in clashes in northwest

(AKI) - Clashes between militants and pro-government tribal militias claimed at least 16 lives in the volatile Swat Valley in northwest Pakistan on Sunday. The fighting is reported to have broken out after militants kidnapped about 60 tribal elders and killed eight of them.

The fighting in Swat came as fresh fighting was reported in the Bajaur tribal region bordering Afghanistan. Pakistani forces claimed to have taken the town of Loi Sam, but on Sunday fighting continued with helicopters and artillery pounding targets in Bajaur.

At a media conference in Islamabad on Sunday, Pakistan's Prime Minister, Yousaf Raza Gillani said the international community recognised Pakistan's vital role fighting the threat of terrorism and wanted to work with it in countering security and economic challenges.
Posted by: Fred || 10/28/2008 00:00 || Comments || Link || [0 views] Top|| File under: TTP

#1  well they are doing what I would like them too dao anyway. just not fast enough. killing each other off
Posted by: chris || 10/28/2008 10:17 Comments || Top||


10 Talibs eat dirt in Swat
At least 10 Taliban were killed in a clash with troops in Sarsanai village of Matta tehsil in Swat on Monday. "A firefight began after Taliban refused to lay down arms and leave the area. Resultantly, 10 Taliban were killed," military spokesman Major General Athar Abbas told AFP.

Three Taliban were arrested in a search operation in the same village, a spokesman told Daily Times. The Sarsanai operation was conducted 'as a last resort', he said, after Taliban attacked two separate troop convoys. A relief camp has been set up in the Balogram area for the displaced villagers, he added.

Separately, a soldier was killed when Taliban attacked a Frontier Corps checkpost in Tutano Bandai area in Matta. The spokesman also said helicopter gunships destroyed a Taliban ammunition depot in the Aghal Parao area of Matta. "Scores of miscreants" were killed in the strike, he said, but did not give an exact number. In the Aghal area of Kabal tehsil, Taliban killed three of the 72 people they had taken hostage on Sunday. In Mohmand Agency, the political administration closed the Peshawar-Bajaur highway on Monday, as two helicopter gunships pounded suspected Taliban hideouts in Qandaro.
Posted by: Fred || 10/28/2008 00:00 || Comments || Link || [0 views] Top|| File under: TTP


Haji Omar Khan is no more
A Pakistani Taliban commander accused of launching cross-border attacks in Afghanistan was among 20 people killed in a suspected U.S. missile strike, a senior official said Monday. The commander, Haji Omar Khan, died when at least two missiles slammed into a training camp in the South Waziristan tribal region near the Afghan border on Sunday night, local administration official Mawaz Khan told AFP.

"The death toll has gone up to 16 as six more bodies have been recovered from the site. Senior Taliban commander Haji Omar died in the strike," Khan said.

Another government official quoting local sources said up to 20 people were killed, mostly Pakistani Taliban fighters, adding that a team was on its way to the area to investigate.

The slain commander was a senior member of the group of veteran Taliban chieftain Jalaluddin Haqqani, residents added. Many of the recent U.S. missile strikes in Pakistan have targeted Haqqani and his followers.
Khan was active in attacks against the border, local residents said. The slain commander was a senior member of the group of veteran Taliban chieftain Jalaluddin Haqqani, residents added. Many of the recent U.S. missile strikes in Pakistan have targeted Haqqani and his followers.

Suspected U.S. drones have carried out more than a dozen such missile attacks on militant targets on the Pakistani side of its border with Afghanistan since the beginning of September, killing dozens of people.

"Two missiles were fired, they hit two houses in Shakai and up to 20 militants were killed," said one of the Pakistani intelligence agency officials, referring to an area in the South Waziristan region that is a stronghold of Pakistani Taliban leader Baitullah Mehsud.

Mehsud is Pakistan's most notorious militant commander, blamed for a string of suicide bomb attacks in Pakistan including the assassination of former prime minister Benazir Bhutto in December last year. He also supports Taliban militants battling U.S.-led forces in Afghanistan.

A bit more detail, from Pak Daily Times
Muhammad Omar, a commander of Taliban leader Jalaluddin Haqqani, was among the 20 men killed in Sunday's suspected US missile strike in South Waziristan, officials said. Two lower-level commanders -- Waheedullah and Nasrullah -- and five Taliban from North Waziristan who had come to meet Omar also died.

Omar was active in attacks on US-led and NATO troops in Afghanistan's Khost, Paktia and Paktika provinces. He was a cousin of Taliban commander Nek Muhammad who was killed in 2004 in the first such US missile strike. A Taliban leader told Reuters by telephone the strikes were 'very accurate'. "The missiles struck rooms where the guests were having dinner. None survived."
This article starring:
Haji Omar Khan
Posted by: Fred || 10/28/2008 00:00 || Comments || Link || [0 views] Top|| File under: Taliban

#1  "The missiles struck rooms where the guests were having dinner. None survived."

I want to believe! But it is the statement from the Taliban, so .....
Posted by: Glenmore || 10/28/2008 7:58 Comments || Top||

#2  They should really consider teleconferencing.
Posted by: bigjim-ky || 10/28/2008 10:44 Comments || Top||

#3  teleconferencing

Maybe the Mossad can cut them a good deal on some cell phones?
Posted by: Glenmore || 10/28/2008 11:20 Comments || Top||

#4  "Sucks to be you."
Posted by: mojo || 10/28/2008 11:32 Comments || Top||

#5  I'm glad intel is good enough that the US can hit specific rooms in a house, and the "right" people are killed. It makes me think we have some "indians" (SF "A" teams) on the ground in the right places. God Bless 'em all, and let them keep up the good work.
Posted by: Old Patriot || 10/28/2008 13:15 Comments || Top||

#6  Another on-time arrival by Air Predator. Keep 'em coming boys.
Posted by: Thor Glirong1735 || 10/28/2008 14:29 Comments || Top||

#7  "Suck to be the caterer"
Posted by: Skunky Glins 5*** || 10/28/2008 18:45 Comments || Top||


Five Hizb militants killed in J&K
A joint operation launched by the Army and the Jammu and Kashmir police on Monday gunned down five top most militants of Hizbul Mujahideen (HM). The encounter took place at Methwan area in Kishtwar district.

According to sources, police and 11 Rashtriya Rifles launched a search and cordon operation in Methwan. During the operation, the troops came under fire from the militants, which they retaliated.

The militants have been identified as Dadu Bakerwal, a resident of Tiller Marwa; Mohammed Rajab from Aftee; Mohammed Shafi a resident of Bangam Marwah and Jasar code Junade.

Four AK rifles, arms and ammunition and explosive materials have been recovered from the encounter site.

SP of Kishtwar, Haseeb Mughal, told HT that it is a big blow to the outfit. Adding that it also a big success for the police.
Posted by: john frum || 10/28/2008 00:00 || Comments || Link || [0 views] Top|| File under:


Iraq
U.S. Marines in Iraq's Sunni Heartland Prepare to Pull Back From Once-Violent Cities
RAMADI, IRAQ—The squad of Marines from the 2/9 Weapons Company is understandably nervous about moving through the market district in downtown Ramadi. Most are on their first tour here, but they well know that these were once some of the bloodiest streets for American troops in a city at one time the heart of a Sunni insurgency that harbored Al Qaeda in Iraq. So when a truck driver slams the gate of his vehicle, the marines briefly flick their rifles up, eyes alert and scanning rooftops.

But the streets are crowded and calm. Many residents, in fact, are surprised to see the six Americans on a joint patrol with the Iraqi police. "What are you doing here?" a carpet store owner asks casually. "We thought you'd stopped patrolling."

In the coming months, the marines will leave the cities in Anbar province, including Ramadi and Fallujah, and pull back to the large bases outside of urban centers. For the Americans, it's a race to shore up the Iraqi police and government so that they will have to leave those bases as infrequently as possible. "We're in the last 10 yards of this mission," says Maj. Gen. John Kelly, who leads coalition forces in western Iraq, including Anbar.

But make no mistake, he adds, serious challenges remain, including infighting between tribes, an ongoing flood of released prisoners, and the failure of the Shiite-dominated central government to provide resources to the province. Then, of course, there are the coming provincial elections, which are needed to shift power away from unpopular and recalcitrant former exiles elected after most Sunnis boycotted the previous vote. It's this convergence of events, each of which alone could plunge the region back into chaos, that has prompted Gen. David Petraeus to repeatedly describe the remarkable decline in violence in Iraq as "fragile" and "still reversible."

Certainly, the decline in carnage has been stunning. Two years ago, internal Marine intelligence officers had all but written off Anbar province, concluding that the fight had been lost both socially and politically. There were dozens of roadside bombings, shootings, and spasms of chaotic violence every week just in the 2/9 Weapons Company's area of east Ramadi. Today, there are fewer than a dozen violent incidents a week in the entire province. Most of them are intertribal in nature and tend to be settled privately, usually at gunpoint.

The marines won't be decreasing their numbers when they consolidate forces to larger camps, at least not right away. And few are predicting an immediate spike in violence when U.S. troops retreat to their bases. After all, the increase in American forces never was the main reason for the sharp decline in violence. Instead, by 2005— long before the surge—the numerous Sunni tribes in Anbar were already considering an alliance with U.S. forces, whom they viewed as the only counterweight to ascendant Shiites in Iraq, says Joost Hiltermann, deputy Middle East program director for the Brussels-based International Crisis Group. The particularly barbaric violence at the hands of AQI later became a rallying cry, one touted by the U.S. military. But it was the tribal calculations that made and have kept the peace in a region long fearful of the government in Baghdad.

Even today, there's little presence here of Iraq's national army, comprised mostly of Shiites and Kurds. When a local Iraqi Army unit moved from outside Ramadi to Diyala recently to aid in security, the people of the city didn't even notice. What they do notice are the Iraqi police, local Sunnis who patrol and man checkpoints in their distinctive bright blue uniforms.

Former foes. Many of the police are new hires, former insurgents who have renounced violence at the behest of tribal leaders. They came from groups like the so-called Sons of Iraq, militia units that incorporated many former insurgents into local security forces. But the central government agreed to integrate only about 40 percent of the SOI into the police, leaving the rest without stable work and fueling concern that many will return to violence.

MORE HERE
Posted by: GolfBravoUSMC || 10/28/2008 12:44 || Comments || Link || [0 views] Top|| File under:


Gunmen injure 2 Iraqi soldiers, bomb explodes in Mosul
Aswat al-Iraq: Two Iraqi soldiers were wounded on Monday when their vehicle patrol was attacked by gunmen fire, while a bomb exploded targeting a police officer in northern Mosul, a police source. "Two Iraqi army soldiers were wounded when two mortar shells landed near their vehicle patrol followed by an armed attack by unknown gunmen in al-Sedeq neighborhood in northern Mosul," the source told Aswat al-Iraq. "An explosive charge went off near the house of a police officer in al-Rashidiya region in northern Mosul, causing material damage to his car without leaving casualties," the same source said.

Posted by: Fred || 10/28/2008 00:00 || Comments || Link || [0 views] Top|| File under: Iraqi Insurgency


12 wanted men arrested in Ninewa
Aswat al-Iraq: Iraqi security forces on Monday arrested 12 wanted men in separate areas of Ninewa, the official spokesman for the Ninewa operations command said.

"A force from the 3rd division of the Iraqi army arrested six wanted men in Zemar district in Talafar, west of Mosul," Brig. Khaled Abdul Sattar told Aswat al-Iraq. "Another force from the same division detained three wanted men in Beaaj district in west of Mosul," he added. "The border guards brigade clashed with three gunmen before arresting them in Sinjar district, west of Mosul," he also said.
Posted by: Fred || 10/28/2008 00:00 || Comments || Link || [0 views] Top|| File under: Iraqi Insurgency


Iranian infiltrator captured in Basra
Aswat al-Iraq: Police forces on Monday arrested an Iranian infiltrator in eastern Basra, as well as four wanted men during crackdown operations in separate areas of the province, the media office of the Basra police said. "Emergency police forces arrested an Iranian infiltrator in Shatt al-Arab region in eastern Basra after he illegally entered the Iraqi territory," the media office told Aswat al-Iraq. "The forces also arrested four wanted men for criminal and terrorist cases during crackdown operations in separate areas of the province," it added.
Posted by: Fred || 10/28/2008 00:00 || Comments || Link || [0 views] Top|| File under: IRGC


Israel-Palestine-Jordan
PA forces crack down on Hebron
Palestinian Authority security forces have conducted their first crackdown in the volatile West Bank city of al-Khalil (Hebron), arresting 50 people.

Hundreds of forces started to crack down on residents on Sunday night, smashing doors, raiding homes, and arresting wanted 'fugitives', the witnesses said. Nearly 50 Hamas affiliates were arrested in the operation, a Palestinian Authority official claimed.

Meanwhile, al-Kahlil Police Chief Ramadan Awad said the detained men were all 'fugitives'.

Over the weekend, Palestinian Authority Chief Mahmoud Abbas increased security forces loyal to his Fatah movement in the city. Palestinian security officials say the deployment of nearly 600 troops was coordinated with Israel. The operation is the latest step in security cooperation between Israel and the Palestinian Authority in the West Bank.

Al-Khalil is the third West Bank city to be recently reinforced with forces loyal to Abbas.
Posted by: Fred || 10/28/2008 00:00 || Comments || Link || [0 views] Top|| File under:


Southeast Asia
14 killed in S Philippines conflict
(Xinhua) -- One soldier and 13 separatist rebels were killed on Monday in a five-hour encounter in the southern Philippine province of Maguindanao, a military official said.

The soldier was killed in the encounter between government troops and some members of the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) which took place at about 12:15 p.m. local time, Philippine TV GMA News reported, quoting a military spokesmen Randolph Cabangbang.

While only identifying seven of the slain rebels, Cabangbang said that "Reliable intelligence report" showed a total of 13 rebels were killed in the conflict. All of the rebels were followers of MILF sub-commander Ameril Ombra Kato, one of the most wanted rebel leaders by the government,he added.

Government forces have been pursuing Ameril Ombra Kato and two other MILF sub-commanders, Aleem Sulaiman Pangalian and Abdullah Macapaar, for more than two months since early August. The rebels and their followers attack towns and villages in the southern region of Mindanao after the government failed to sign a territorial pact with the MILF.

At least 103 people have been confirmed killed in the continuous clashes since Aug. 10, according to a latest report released by the government. Military officials estimated that some 200 rebels have been eliminated in the operations against the separatists.
Posted by: Fred || 10/28/2008 00:00 || Comments || Link || [0 views] Top|| File under: Moro Islamic Liberation Front


Syria-Lebanon-Iran
CIA led mystery Syria raid that killed terrorist leader
A CIA-led raid on a compound in eastern Syria killed an al Qaida in Iraq commander who oversaw the smuggling into Iraq of foreign fighters whose attacks claimed thousands of Iraqi and American lives, three U.S. officials said Monday.
If our CIA was any good at all they would have planted evidence showing that the Iranians had done it ...
The body of Badran Turki Hishan al Mazidih, an Iraqi national who used the nom de guerre Abu Ghadiya, was flown out of Syria on a U.S. helicopter at the end of the operation Sunday by CIA paramilitary officers and special forces, one U.S. official said.

"It was a successful operation," a second U.S. official told McClatchy. "The bottom line: This was a significant blow to the foreign fighter pipeline between Syria and Iraq."

A senior U.S. military officer said the raid was launched after human and technical intelligence confirmed that al Mazidih was present at the compound close to Syria's border with Iraq. "The situation finally presented itself," he said.

The three U.S. officials, who all spoke on the condition of anonymity because the operation was classified, declined to reveal other details of the raid. A CIA spokesman declined to comment.
"We can say no more, and we said too much already!"
The senior military officer said that U.S. intelligence had been tracking al Mazidih for some time, and that "the more we learned about him and how he works" the higher he rose on the U.S. most-wanted list. "He is the guy who produced the most prolific of the foreign fighters networks," said the first U.S. official, adding that the extremists he smuggled into Iraq were responsible for attacks that "killed thousands of Iraqis and our own U.S. forces."

On Feb. 28, the Treasury Department announced a freeze on any U.S. assets belonging to al Mazidih and three of his associates, charging that they were smuggling "money, weapons, terrorists, and other resources through Syria to al Qaida in Iraq, including to (al Qaida) commanders."

The Treasury Department announcement identified al Mazidih as a Sunni Muslim who was born in the late 1970s in the northern Iraqi city of Mosul and was a lieutenant of al Qaida in Iraq leader Abu Musab al Zarqawi, who was killed in 2006. He was believed to be living in the Syrian town of Zabadani.

"Former al Qaida in Iraq leader Abu Musab al Zarqawi appointed Badran (al Mazidih) as the group's Syrian commander for logistics in 2004," the Treasury said. "After Zarqawi's death, Badran began working for the new AQI leader, Abu Ayyub al Masri. As of late-September 2006, Badran took orders directly from Masri, or through a deputy.

"Badran obtained false passports for foreign terrorists, provided passports, weapons, guides, safe houses, and allowances to foreign terrorists in Syria and those preparing to cross the border into Iraq," it said. "As of the spring of 2007, Badran facilitated the movement of AQI operatives into Iraq via the Syrian border. Badran also directed another Syria-based AQI facilitator to provide safe haven and supplies to foreign fighters," the Treasury said. "This AQI facilitator, working directly for Badran, facilitated the movement of foreign fighters primarily from Gulf countries, through Syria into Iraq."

The Bush administration, which for years has expressed frustration over what it charges have been Syria's lackluster efforts to stop foreign Islamic fighters from crossing into Iraq, refused to publicly acknowledge the operation.

It wasn't immediately clear whether an order that President Bush signed in July allowing U.S. commandos from Afghanistan to attack a suspected terrorist base in Pakistan also authorized cross-border operations in other countries.

Pentagon officials were tight-lipped about the operation. But they were quick to defend the decision to cross the border, with one saying that if nations that sponsor terrorist networks won't go after them, "we will."
Good. Now be quiet.
The raid into Syria on Sunday has ignited a major diplomatic storm, with Iran joining in Syria's condemnation of the U.S.
Oh there's a surprise ...
The Syrian government charged that eight civilians, including four children, along with fifty baby ducks and twenty fluffy kittens, died in what it described as a daylight attack on al Sukkari farm in eastern Syria by U.S. forces that flew across the border from Iraq in four helicopters.

"The Americans do it in the daylight. This means it was not a mistake. It is by blunt determination," Syrian Foreign Minister Walid al Moallem charged Monday at a news conference in London. "For that, we consider this criminal and terrorist aggression."
And we'll do it again if you don't bring the border infiltration to an end ...
The Syrian Foreign Ministry Monday summoned Maura Connelly, the ranking U.S. diplomat in Damascus, to receive an official protest, said State Department spokesman Sean McCormack.

The Iraqi government defended the raid. Government spokesman Ali al Dabbagh said that Syria had refused to hand over foreign fighters who'd taken refuge there after killing 13 Iraqi border guards. However, al Dabbagh said, a proposed accord governing the status of U.S. forces in Iraq "will limit this type of operation. It will limit the United States from using Iraqi land to attack others."
This was a very special, five star operation. He literally got the Yamamoto treatment.
This article starring:
Abu Ayyub al Masri
Abu Ghadiya
Abu Musab al Zarqawi
Badran Turki Hishan al Mazidih
Posted by: Anonymoose || 10/28/2008 13:22 || Comments || Link || [0 views] Top|| File under:

#1  It could be that a message was sent to others: "This could happen to you, too..."
Posted by: M. Murcek || 10/28/2008 13:56 Comments || Top||

#2  "The raid into Syria on Sunday has ignited a major diplomatic storm..."

We're talking about Syria here. How major could this 'diplomatic storm' really be?
Posted by: Parabellum || 10/28/2008 14:10 Comments || Top||

#3  How major could this 'diplomatic storm' really be?

Obviously, you have never experienced the wrath of a pencil-necked optometrist before.
Posted by: SteveS || 10/28/2008 14:22 Comments || Top||

#4  The Syrian government ordered Tuesday an American school and a US cultural center in Damascus closed in response to a deadly US attack on a village near the Iraq border, the Syrian state-run news agency SANA said.

Ha! looks like Zippy's got a lotta Jimmy Carter in him...
Posted by: tu3031 || 10/28/2008 14:39 Comments || Top||

#5  The Syrian government ordered Tuesday an American school and a US cultural center in Damascus closed in response to a deadly US attack on a village near the Iraq border, the Syrian state-run news agency SANA said.

Good, no EXCELLENT! The Center is nothing more than a gateway to the US for muzzie students throughout the region. Go ahead and insist that the US Mission be closed as well. We'll save a bundle of tax dollars!!!
Posted by: Besoeker || 10/28/2008 14:53 Comments || Top||

#6  Ahnother successful peace mission. Good work, guys.
Posted by: Richard of Oregon || 10/28/2008 15:27 Comments || Top||

#7  So, the CIA can still pull off an Op. Good for them.
Posted by: Iblis || 10/28/2008 16:05 Comments || Top||

#8  Do it now and continue to do it through January 20, 2009. If the polls are correct, it will be at least 4 and maybe 8 years before we get anymore licks in.
Posted by: MarkZ || 10/28/2008 16:44 Comments || Top||

#9  Syria must think it is fun to do these things to others, but must think it unfair to be on the receiving end. I'm gonna miss Bush.
Posted by: whatadeal || 10/28/2008 16:46 Comments || Top||

#10  I want's a nom de guerre . All I got is 20 or 30 nom-nom-nom de confuser
Posted by: .5MT || 10/28/2008 17:15 Comments || Top||

#11  Gee, y'mean the cloak-and-dagger boys actually had valid and timely info?

Well, color me surprised.
Posted by: mojo || 10/28/2008 17:37 Comments || Top||

#12  Mitch Rapp!
Posted by: Hellfish || 10/28/2008 18:43 Comments || Top||

#13  I propose that Rantburgers each ship one case of beer to Langley everytime they pull one of these off.
Posted by: Mike N. || 10/28/2008 22:29 Comments || Top||

#14  So now can we cut the USAID funding to Syria, close down our embassy, send everyone home, and then isolate them like Cuba.
Posted by: 49 Pan || 10/28/2008 23:17 Comments || Top||



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Two weeks of WOT
Tue 2008-10-28
  Haji Omar Khan is no more
Mon 2008-10-27
  US strike kills up to 20 in Pakistain
Sun 2008-10-26
  U.S. Troops in Syria Raid
Sat 2008-10-25
  Paks bang 35 hard boyz in Bajaur
Fri 2008-10-24
  Qaeda big turban Khalid Habib titzup in Pakistain
Thu 2008-10-23
  Pirates seize Indian vessel with 13 crew near Somalia
Wed 2008-10-22
  Report: Nasrallah poisoned; Iranian docs saved life
Tue 2008-10-21
  Saudi terrorist trials kick off in Riyadh
Mon 2008-10-20
  Sri Lanka claims smashing 'final' Tiger defences
Sun 2008-10-19
  Taliban stop bus- massacre 30
Sat 2008-10-18
  Kidnapped Chinese engineer escapes Pakistani Taliban
Fri 2008-10-17
  Missile Strike Targeting Baitullah Country Kills 6
Thu 2008-10-16
  18 Talibs titzup in attack on Lashkar Gah
Wed 2008-10-15
  Puntland Coasties free Panama ship from pirates
Tue 2008-10-14
  DPRK regrants IAEA inspectors access to its nuclear facilities

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