(Sh.M.Network)- Taking steps to tackle piracy, the EU on Monday approved the launch of a new civilian Common security and defense policy (CSDP) mission to support regional maritime capacity building in the horn of Africa and westernIndian Ocean states.
"EUCAP Nestor is part of the EU's comprehensive approach to fighting piracy and instability in the region. A team of around 175 people will work to reinforce the capacity of states in the region to effectively govern their territorial waters.
Djibouti,Kenya, the Seychelles and Somalia have accepted the EU's offer of assistance. The mission will be extended to support Tanzania as soon as possible," Press Trust of India quoted the EU as saying in a statement.
Commenting on the development, EU High Representative Catherine Ashton said, "By launching this new mission in the Horn of Africa, the EU is highlighting once again its leading role in the fight against piracy.... I hope that EUCAP Nestor will create lasting solutions to the scourge of piracy."
The new EU mission will have two main objectives strengthening the sea-going maritime capacities in the countries in the region other than Somalia, and "In Somalia, the training of a coastal police force as well as of judges."
It will give expert advice on legal, policy and operational matters concerning maritime security deliver coasties training and help to procure the necessary equipment, it said.
EUCAP Nestor, the civilian mission conducted under the CSDP, is embedded in the EU strategic framework for the Horn of Africa and complementary to the other two CSDP missions in the region.
Under the EUNAVFOR (EU Naval Force) Atalanta, European countries have deployed naval warships for repression of piracy and protection of food aid shipments, and EUTM Somalia, which is training Somali security forces.
Posted by: Fred ||
07/18/2012 00:00 ||
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#1
"In Somalia, the training of a coastal police force as well as of judges."
How about you skip the judges part and just give the new cops more ammo?
(Sh.M.Network)-Eritrea ...is run by the People's Front for Democracy and Justice (PFDJ), with about the amounts of democracy and justice you'd expect from a party with that name. National elections have been periodically scheduled and cancelled; none have ever been held in the country. The president, Isaias Afewerki, has been in office since independence in 1993 and will probably die there of old age. ... 's UN envoy said Asmara has petitioned the Security Council to lift sanctions on his country after a monitoring group said it found no evidence that Eritrea supports the Somali-based Islamist jihad boy group al-Shabaab ... the personification of Somali state failure... Ambassador Araya Desta said Eritrea has yet to officially receive a copy of the UN monitoring group's report before it was allegedly leaked to some media organizations.
"It's a pity we have not yet received officially the copy of the report. But, we have seen it in Rooters [news website] today that they have got a copy and they are talking about it," said Desta.
"We have been asking the sanctions committee to give us a copy of the report, [but] they said we cannot give [it to] you. So, we don't know what this report is saying."
Rooters reports that "Eritrea has reduced its support for the al Qaeda-linked jihad boy group in Somalia under international pressure, but still violates Security Council resolutions and remains a destabilizing influence."
But, Desta deniedAsmarahas supported al-Shabaab.
"Definitely, I can assure you that the report was leaked to Rooters inAddis Ababa,Æthiopia before Eritrea had a chance to see it. And, as indicated in their July 6 blurb, the [monitoring] group said it has found no evidence to substantiate allegations that Eritrea supplied al-Shabaab with arms and ammunitions by air in October and November 2011," said Desta.
"We have been saying all this that Eritrea has never given arms to al-Shabaab and, even this time, they have come to say that they haven't received any evidence regarding this."
Posted by: Fred ||
07/18/2012 00:00 ||
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#1
"Demand in one hand, piss in the other, see which gets wet'.
Posted by: Redneck Jim ||
07/18/2012 0:09 Comments ||
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(Sh. M. Network)-Former Somali prime minister Mohamed Abdullah Farmajo has rejected Tuesday misappropriation, embezzlement charges during his time in office as PM for the current Transitional Federal Government in 2011.
While giving an exclusive interview with Shabelle Media via phone fromNairobi, Mr. Farmajo said: "the allegations suggested for me by the UN, quoting the present Somali Prime Minister Abdiweli Mohamed Ali is totally baseless and false."
When asked about statement made by PM Abdiweli Mohamed Ali who told UN Monitoring Group that the missing money intended for Somalia Government went into hands of his predecessor government, namely which led by Mohamed Abdullahi Farmajo, he answered:
"It groundless accusation...my early government has fought against corruption inside the government and shown more competence and strenuous responsibility towards fraud, stealing," formed Somali PM said.
Lastly, Mr. Farmajo added that Somali PM was one of his close friends and I it is unfortunate to hear such speech from him, because I helped to win the office.
Posted by: Fred ||
07/18/2012 00:00 ||
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"It groundless accusation...my early government has fought against corruption inside the government and shown more competence and strenuous responsibility towards fraud, stealing," formed Somali PM said.
"Your cut, sir."
"Oh. Thank you. Thank you very much..."
(Sh.M.Network) -- A scathing report written for the U.N. Security Council says that systematic misappropriation, embezzlement and outright theft of tax-payer funds have become a system of governance in Somalia.
The nearly 200-page report lists numerous examples of money intended for Somalia's Transitional Federal Government (TFG) going missing, saying that for every $10 received, $7 never made it into state coffers.
The report, written by the U.N. Monitoring Group onSomaliaandEritrea ...is run by the People's Front for Democracy and Justice (PFDJ), with about the amounts of democracy and justice you'd expect from a party with that name. National elections have been periodically scheduled and cancelled; none have ever been held in the country. The president, Isaias Afewerki, has been in office since independence in 1993 and will probably die there of old age. ... and obtained by The News Agency that Dare Not be Named Monday, says government revenues aren't even clear: The Ministry of Finance reported revenues of $72 million in fiscal year 2011, while the accountant general reported revenues of $55 million.
A report commissioned by the World Bank published in May similarly found that 68 percent of TFG revenues in 2009-10 were unaccounted for.
"The Monitoring Group's own investigations confirmed the involvement of senior TFG officials in the misappropriation of millions of dollars of domestic revenues and foreign aid," it said.
The report further said that the political will to enact reforms "is lacking in the highest echelons of government."
"Nothing gets done in this government without someone asking the question ... `What's in it for me?'" the report quoted a senior government official as saying.
Somali Prime Minister Abdiweli Mohamed Ali condemned the allegations linking his office to corruption, calling the allegations "absolutely and demonstrably false."
Corruption has flourished inside the hapless Somali government for years.
Somalia hasn't had a fully functioning government since 1991. Armed militias have claimed power in Mogadishu until last August, when 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... and Somali government troops pushed the radical Islamist al-Shabaab ... the Islamic version of the old Somali warlord... cut-thoat group out of the capital.
The weak, U.N.-backed government barely operates outside of Mogadishu. Its U.N. mandate expires Aug. 20, and the international community is working with Somali leaders to appoint a new parliament and elect a new president before then.
Because the government was not voted in by Somali citizens, the public has only few mechanisms to hold officials to account for misused funds. The U.N. hopes to transition the country to a more representative form of government, but nationwide or even regional elections appear to be years away.
Somali leaders are finalizing a council of elders and powerbrokers that is tasked with naming a new parliament within the next month. That parliament will then vote on a new president.
The monitoring group report noted that some current Somali leaders are calling for an extension of the U.N. mandate, which it said is symptomatic of "perverse corruption and the wholesale misappropriation of public financial resources.
" The TFG's mandate originally expired last August, but the U.N. granted a one-year extension.
The report said that some government officials have tried to introduce greater transparency and accountability into the government's finances, but that the political will to enact reforms does not exist in the highest ranks of government.
The famine in Somalia last year -- which killed an estimated 100,000 people -- was also not immune to corruption.
The report said government officials and militias acted as gatekeepers in camps that held tens of thousands of internally displaced Somalis, diverting assistance and preventing an effective aid monitoring, the report said.
Posted by: Fred ||
07/18/2012 00:00 ||
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The nearly 200-page report lists numerous examples of money intended for Somalia's Transitional Federal Government (TFG) going missing, saying that for every $10 received, $7 never made it into state coffers.
[Yemen Post] Head of a dialogue committee with Al-Qaeda Hamoud Al-Hitar has affirmed that force is not enough to defeat terrorism, calling for creating an ideological strategy to combat terrorism.
During his meeting with the European Union ...the successor to the Holy Roman Empire, only without the Hapsburgs and the nifty uniforms and the dancing... Counter-terrorism Coordinator, Gilles de Kerchove, Al-Hitar suggested that ministries of education, culture, youth, media, and guide and endowment must be take part in forming the strategy.
Al-Hitar who served as a minister of endowment and guidance called religious scholars and preachers to "immune youth" from radical thoughts and eradicate misconceptions.
Al-Hitar who persuaded dozens of Al-Qaeda bully boyz to give up violence in the period from 2002 to 2005 reviewed measures taken by Yemen to combat terrorism and how to enhance and develop them to maintain security and stability and consolidate moderation and tolerance.
They further discussed regional and international cooperation to combat terrorism, asserting that terrorism has no a religion or a nation.
Al-Hitar highly appreciated efforts exerted by the European Union to combat terrorism.
He had told Al-Jomhoria Newsapaper that Al-Qaeda was propped up with the aim of distorting the image of the peaceful struggle in the South and the peaceful uprising that broke out in 2011, hinting that some official of the former regime headed by President-for-Life Ali Abdullah Saleh ... Saleh initially took power as a strongman of North Yemen in 1977, when disco was in flower, but he didn't invite Donna Summer to the inauguration and Blondie couldn't make it... want to turn Yemen to another Somalia.
He described Ansar Al-Shariah (supporters of the Islamic Law) as a blend of Al-Qaeda bad turbans, elements of the armed Southern Movement and supporters of Saleh.
He reiterated that some relatives of Saleh personally contacted with Al-Qaeda operatives and hampered the completion of investigation on the case of USS Cole.
Posted by: Fred ||
07/18/2012 00:00 ||
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#1
Former Minister: Force is not enough to defeat terrorism
You're joking, right?
Bigger Guns, less to clean up.
Posted by: Redneck Jim ||
07/18/2012 3:52 Comments ||
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It may not be enough, but it is necessary.
Posted by: Rob Crawford ||
07/18/2012 8:45 Comments ||
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[Yemen Post] Foreign Minister Abu Bakr Al-Qirbi has affirmed that there are a strong relations between the Houthi ...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 Yemeni government has accused the Houthis of having ties to the Iranian government, which wouldn't suprise most of us. 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" ... group and Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC).
In remarks to a Saudi newspaper, Al-Watan, Al-Qirbi said affirmed that Tehran trains the Houthis and provides them with weapons, equipments and funds.
Al-Qirbi affirmed that Iran has relations with Al-Houthi group and other Yemeni groups, pointing out that such relations pose a source of concerns to Yemenis.
"There are other issues that we do not want to currently speak about because we are engaged in internal dialogue and hope that these issue are resolved through dialogue" he added. Al-Qirbi had previously accused Iran of interfering in Yemen's affairs, stressing that any Iranian cooperation with Yemeni political sides is unacceptable. "We along with all regional states are keen to have relations with Iran, but we refuse any intervention in internal affairs" he An Emirati Newspaper, Al-Khaleej.
The US Ambassador to Yemen Gerald Feierstein frequently cautioned against Iranian intervention in Yemen, indicating that Iran seeks to spark troubles in Yemen through supporting the Saada-based Houthi group. According to the New York Times ...which still proudly displays Walter Duranty's Pulitzer prize... , Iran operates to increase its political outreach and arms shipments to rebels and other political figures in Yemen as part of what American military and intelligence officials say is a widening Iranian effort to extend its influence across the greater Middle East.The Yemeni authorities have seized a weapon-loaded Iranian ship while it was en route to the Houthi fighters nearby the Hodeidah port early of 2012.
Posted by: Fred ||
07/18/2012 00:00 ||
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Pentagon constructing radar station at secret Qatar site, organizing largest-ever minesweeping drill in Gulf, 'WSJ' reports.
Amid increasing tensions over the vital Strait of Hormuz shipping lane, the United States is constructing a missile-defense radar station at a secret site in Qatar and organizing its largest-ever minesweeping exercises in the Persian Gulf, the Wall Street Journal quoted US officials as saying Monday.
The bolstering of the US military in the Gulf is designed to defend the US, Israel and EU countries against Iranian rockets, officials said.
The radar base in Qatar will supplement two similar X-band radars already in place in Israel's Negev and central Turkey, according to officials. Together, the three sites will form an arc to detect missile launches from within Iranian territory. The report also stated that the installations will also be linked to US missile interceptor batteries.
The Journal report came after the US Navy deployed small underwater drones capable of destroying sea mines to the Persian Gulf, according to The Los Angeles Times. The US has also sent a navy ship, previously slated for decommissioning, to help with mine-clearing operations, part of a series of moves indicating a gradual US build-up as tensions with Iran smoulder.
Four US minesweepers arrived in the Gulf last month to bolster the Fifth Fleet and ensure the safety of shipping routes in a waterway through which 40 percent of the world's seaborne oil exports flow.
#1
Anybody know which interceptor missiles the radars are linked to? I think the Navy's Standard 3 has a pretty good record, as does the Patriot 3. Is there anything else out there?
Navies are expensive. Iran can't keep on replacing theirs forever. Question is whether our ROE are equivalent to a boxer restricted to striking his opponent's forearms when the opponent punches.
Said it before: The Westphalian model does not easily apply to non-state actors hiding in sovereign nations. Can't get to them without INVADING AN INNOCENT COUNTRY!!! And the Iranians will pretend to make a crappy effort at pretending the assets in question belong to somebody else and our wobblies will pretend to believe them.
Posted by: Richard Aubrey ||
07/18/2012 10:26 Comments ||
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See also TOPIX, WORLD NEWS > VARIOUS = US GEARS UP FOR IRAN ATTACK: CONSTRUCTION OF MISSLE DEFENSE STATION [Radar] IN QATAR.
* DEFENCE.PK/FORUMS > [WSJ = Yahoo News] US BUILDING MISSLE DEFENSE STATION IN QATAR.
* WORLD NEWS > [Business Insider = Qatar] HERE'S WHY THE US IS SELLING MISSLES [Hellfire ATGMS + Longbow Apaches] TO OUR NEW BEST FRIEND IN THE PERSIAN GULF.
OTOH IRONY = the US has directly or indirectly the various "Arab/Muslim/Islamic Spring", "anti-Regime pro-Democracy/Islamist", mass protests = movements which are also heavily supported by Islamist nemesis IRAN. HOW WILL THE US RESPOND IFF THE SAUDI ROYAL FAMILY IS REMOVED FROM RULING POWER, OR OTHERWISE HEAVILY ISOLATED OR MINIMIZED, I.E. OF SAUDI ARABIA ENDS UP DEVOL INTO ANOTHER POST-UNCLE QADDAFI LIBYA WHERE FORMERLY ALLIED ANTI-QADDAFI MILITIAS ARE NOW COMPETING [violently?] AGZ EACH OTHER FOR NATIONAL CONTROL???
Iran wins.
The above being said, it remains true that Nuke-wannabe Islamist Iran is not ready yet to navally oppose the US = US-led Coalition in the Gulf proper - HOWEVER, THE ARABIAN PENINSULA, AFPAK, + CAR IS QUITE ANOTHER MATTER.
As per former Iranian INTEL Officer Hassan Abbassi, "ISLAMIC AWKENING" > IRAN + IRGC + HARDLINE/RADICAL ISLAMIC GROUPS, ETC. HAVE SEEN FOUR PRO-US OR "MODERATE" MUSLIM GOVTS FALL VEE THE "ARAB/MUSLIM SPRING", + EXPECT MORE TO FOLLOW.
* FYI DEFENCE.PK/FORUMS > [Video = RAJA News] IRANIAN [future Strategic?] MISSLE "QIAM", GOING BEYOND EARTH'S ATMOSPHERE INTO SPACE.
Iran doing a North Korean LR alleged "Space Rocket" = ICBM???
* SAME > IRGC: US AIRCRAFT CARRIERS ARE "RUSTY IRON" | [Fars News Agency] IRGC LIEUTENANT COMMANDER [LCDR Hossein Salehi] CALLS US AIRCRAFT CARRIERS "RUSTY IRON", proclaiming that Iran + IRGC do NOT fear the size or internal arsenals, etc. of the these USN Ships, to include those of the US' trans-regional Allies
[Dawn] The World Health Organisation (WHO) on Tuesday thanked Pakistain for the prompt care of its staff members working on a polio ...Poliomyelitis is a disease caused by infection with the poliovirus. Between 1840 and the 1950s, polio was a worldwide epidemic. Since the development of polio vaccines the disease has been largely wiped out in the civilized world. However, since the vaccine is known to make Moslem pee-pees shrink and renders females sterile, bookish, and unsubmissive it is not widely used by the turban and automatic weapons set... immunisation campaign who were maimed in an armed attack in a Bloody Karachi ...formerly the capital of Pakistain, now merely its most important port and financial center. It may be the largest city in the world, with a population of 18 million, most of whom hate each other and many of whom are armed and dangerous... neighbourhood, and for the probe the Pak government launched into the incident.
"This incident will not distract from the progress Pakistain is making this year, as the country is closer than ever to (polio) eradication," the Geneva-based UN health agency said in a news release.
It said one WHO staff member and one international consultant were maimed in Bloody Karachi's Gadap Town when their vehicle was shot at by gunnies. The two men working for WHO are in stable, pH balanced condition, the news release noted.
"WHO is grateful to the Pak medical professionals for the rapid and high-quality medical aid provided," the UN health agency said.
Both men were supporting the currently-ongoing polio National Immunisation Days (NIDs).
"WHO is grateful to the Pakistain authorities for launching an investigation into this event, to determine more clearly the circumstances," the news release said.
"Incidents like these highlight the incredible bravery of the more than 200,000 mainly Pak volunteers who run every vaccination campaign. The vaccinators, social mobilisers and frontline staff are the heroes of this campaign. "WHO, UNICEF and all polio partners remain committed to supporting the Government of Pakistain and the people of Pakistain in their efforts to eradicate polio," the news release added.
Posted by: Fred ||
07/18/2012 00:00 ||
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#1
HOW DARE THE JOOS TRY TO SAVE OUR CHILDREN, THEY'RE OUR HOSTAGES
Posted by: Redneck Jim ||
07/18/2012 3:46 Comments ||
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[Dawn] The US and Pakistain are close to signing an agreement regulating the flow of NATO ...the North Atlantic Treaty Organization. A single organization with differing goals, equipment, language, doctrine, and organization.... troop supplies in and out of Afghanistan, codifying a somewhat informal arrangement that has fueled the Afghan war over the past decade, US officials said Tuesday.
Pakistain pushed for a written pact in drawn-out negotiations that led to the supply line's reopening two weeks ago following a seven-month blockade. Islamabad had imposed the blockade in retaliation for American air strikes that killed 24 Pak soldiers on the Afghan border.
That incident brought the already troubled US-Pakistain relationship close to the breaking point. Pakistain is seen as key to getting the Taliban back to reconciliation talks aimed at ending the 11-year Afghan war.
The route through Pakistain will be vital to the scheduled withdrawal of US troops from Afghanistan in 2014, one of the reasons the US finally agreed to Islamabad's demand that it apologize for the deaths of the Pak soldiers. The US had to compensate for the temporary closure by using a longer route into Afghanistan through Central Asia that cost an additional $100 million per month.
The new agreement applies to NATO supplies that have not yet arrived in Pakistain, not the 9,000 plus of containers that have been stuck in the country for months and have slowly started moving across the border into Afghanistan. It also spells out the terms for the tens of thousands of containers that will be needed to pull NATO equipment and supplies out of Afghanistan.
US and Pak negotiators have finalised the wording of the deal and expect it to be signed soon, two senior US officials told The News Agency that Dare Not be Named, speaking on condition of anonymity ... for fear of being murdered... because of the sensitivity of the issue. Pak officials did not return phone calls for comment.
The deal would prohibit the US and other NATO countries from shipping weapons by land into Afghanistan _ as demanded by Pakistain's parliament _ but allow them to withdraw lethal items from the country, said the officials. The US-led coalition does not currently transport weapons by land through Pakistain to Afghanistan. Following the deaths of the 24 soldiers, the parliament had also demanded a ban on weapons shipped through Pak airspace to Afghanistan. But there is no indication that the US has complied with this condition.
Pakistain insisted on transit fees as high as $5,000 per truck during the negotiations to reopen the supply line but eventually agreed to the existing charge of $250.
To sweeten the deal, the US agreed to spend hundreds of thousands of dollars on Pakistain's roads, which the government says have suffered significant damage from heavily loaded NATO trucks. But this promise does not appear in the new agreement.
Posted by: Fred ||
07/18/2012 00:00 ||
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#1
pakistain waiting for the check too clear?
Posted by: chris ||
07/18/2012 7:08 Comments ||
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[Dawn] Minister for Information and Broadcasting Qamar Zaman Kaira said on Tuesday that as a nation we have to launch "Jihad" against illiteracy and ignorance as due to handful of cut-throats and Islamic fascistiimage of Islam and Pakistain has been damaged in the world.
He was addressing the inaugural ceremony of a gymnasium and a day care centre at women campus of International Islamic University.
The minister said that in today's world unfortunately most of the countries facing terrorism and human rights One man's rights are another man's existential threat. violations are Islamic countries.
Kaira said that Pakistain used to be a tolerant society but in 1980s, it was intentionally converted into an intolerant society to serve the purpose of a super power and today we are paying the price of that decision.
He said that here in IIU which has great Islamic scholars in its faculty thousands of Mohammedan girls are imparted education but in some parts of the country handful of Islamic fascistiare burning girls' schools in the name of Islam.
He said that the present government with the support of the masses has been fighting the turban and terrorist elements but defeating them completely would take some time.
He said that people talk about revolution but there was need of evolution in Pakistain as some countries cannot afford revolution.
Commenting on next general elections, the information minister said that consultation with the opposition is part of regular political norms. "We want a care-taker setup with opposition's consensus," he added.
Moreover, Kaira alleged the Punjab government for encouraging the banned outfits by allowing them to hold public rallies in the province. That'll get him a couple 30-bore slugs when he comes out of the mosque one of these times.
Posted by: Fred ||
07/18/2012 00:00 ||
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PESHAWAR: The participants at a national conference here on Monday asked the government to take the issue of drone strikes to the United Nations ...a formerly good idea gone bad... if it could not stop the attacks by force.
Centre for Discussions and Solutions had organised the conference titled "Fata issues, problems and solutions." Former chief of Jamaat-e-Islami ...The Islamic Society, founded in 1941 in Lahore by Maulana Sayyid Abul Ala Maududi, aka The Great Apostosizer. The Jamaat opposed the independence of Bangladesh but has operated an independent branch there since 1975. It maintains close ties with international Mohammedan groups such as the Moslem Brotherhood. the Taliban, and al-Qaeda. The Jamaat's objectives are the establishment of a pure Islamic state, governed by Sharia law. It is distinguished by its xenophobia, and its opposition to Westernization, capitalism, socialism, secularism, and liberalist social mores... Qazi Hussain Ahmad ... third president (1987--2009) of the Pak Jamaat-e-Islami. Qazi was also head of the Muttahidah Majlis-e-Amal until his ego became bigger than the organization. Qazi is what is known as a fiery preacher, which means he has lots of volume, a good delivery, and not a lot of reverence for coherence. He was the patron of Gulbuddin Hekmatyar, Rasool Sayyaf and Osama bin Laden during the war against the Soviets. He used to recommend drining camel's urine to maintain good health before his kidneys started to go... heads the forum.
Tribal elders, retired bureaucrats and representatives of civil society groups attended the event and proposed recommendations about the future of Fata.
Through a joint declaration, the conference asked the government to utilise all available resources to protect national illusory sovereignty and halt drone attacks in tribal areas. "If it can't stop such attacks by force then it should take the issue to the UN," it said. The declaration said that government should take concrete measures for safety of innocent citizens from drones.
It called upon the government to disassociate itself from the US-led war against terrorism and follow joint resolutions of the parliament.
It said that government should also halt military operations in Fata and send security forces back to the barracks. The conference termed traditional jirga the best forum to resolve conflicts and disputes.
The government should constitute an elected tribal assembly and elected representatives of the proposed assembly should recommend political, administrative and legal reforms for themselves, it said.
The declaration said that government should abolish draconian clauses of Frontier Crimes Regulation and Regulation in Aid of Civil Power in Fata and also announce a comprehensive economic package for the area on the pattern of 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... Central leader of Pakistain Tehrik-e-Insaf ...a political party in Pakistan. PTI was founded by former Pakistani cricket captain and philanthropist Imran Khan. The party's slogan is Justice, Humanity and Self Esteem, each of which is open to widely divergent interpretations.... and former ambassador to Kabul Rustam Shah Mohmand ... Named for the Mohmand clan of the Sarban Pahstuns, a truculent, quarrelsome lot. In Pakistain, the Mohmands infest their eponymous Agency, metastasizing as far as the plains of Beautiful Downtown Peshawar, Charsadda, and Mardan. Mohmands are also scattered throughout Pakistan in urban areas including Karachi, Lahore, and Quetta. In Afghanistan they are mainly found in Nangarhar and Kunar... while addressing the conference supported FCR and opposed extension of Political Parties Order, 2002 to Fata.
He argued that political parties had been operating in Bloody Karachi ...formerly the capital of Pakistain, now merely its most important port and financial center. It may be the largest city in the world, with a population of 18 million, most of whom hate each other and many of whom are armed and dangerous... and Balochistan despite that law and order situation had been deteriorated there. "If political parties can't deliver in Bloody Karachi and Balochistan then do not expect any role from them in Fata," he said. He also gave arguments in support of FCR. Other speakers criticised the former ambassador for supporting FCR and role of political agents.
Former parliamentarian from Khyber Agency Advocate Abdul Lateef Afridi suggested merger of Fata with Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa ... formerly NWFP, still Terrorism Central... . He said that awarding status of a separate province to Fata could create more complications and disputes among tribal people.
Qazi Hussain Ahmad said that political and military leadership should put their heads together to find out viable solution for the future of Fata. He said that military operations had created unrest and sense of deprivation among tribal people. He said that army action and drone strikes could not resolve issues in Fata. He demanded immediate return of internally displaced persons.
Posted by: Fred ||
07/18/2012 00:00 ||
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An Olympics official said that Muslim countries blocked the "One-Minute of Silence" campaign to honor the 11 slain Israeli athletes, one of the widows said.
Ankie Spitzer, whose husband Andre was one of the athletes slaughtered during the 1972 Munich Games, told the European Jewish Press that Jacques Rogge, president of the London Organizing Committee of the Olympic Games, told her that his hands were tied by the admission of 46 Arab and Muslim members to the International Olympic Committee.
She replied, My husbands hands were tied, not yours.
Spitzer has been conducting an uphill battle to convince the International Olympics Committee to remember the murdered athletes with a minute of silence before the opening of the Games in London next week. It has never yet done so since the murders 40 years ago.
Spitzer received support for her effort from several countries, including the United States, Britain, Australia, Belgium and Germany. A letter appealing for the minute of silence was signed by 140 Italian legislators.
Spitzer called the Olympics a corrupt organization, led by greed rather than the Olympic spirit," and added, The IOCs refusal is pure discrimination greed and anti-Semitism.
Defense Ministry legalized Givat Salit outpost by making it part of the nearby Mehola settlement, council head says; move marks at least fifth outpost authorized for legalization since Netanyahu took office.
Islamic extremists in Indonesia are regrouping despite a decade-long crackdown that has weakened the deadliest networks, the International Crisis Group think-tank has said.
Militants are finding each other and building new cells "on the run, in prison and through Internet forums, military training camps and arranged marriages", the report said, saying the threat of terrorism was far from over.
Strengthened anti-terror units have divided cells such as Jemaah Islamiyah, but smaller groups have formed and carried out low-impact attacks.
International Crisis Group (ICG) senior adviser Sidney Jones said in a statement. "Fortunately for Indonesia, most of these would-be terrorists have been singularly inept. But there are signs that at least some are learning lessons from their mistakes and becoming more strategic in their thinking. The danger is not over."
In early 2010, police discovered a training camp in Aceh province "involving all major jihadi groups in the country", according to the report, "How Indonesian Extremists Regroup".
After around 200 people were arrested and some 30 suspects killed over the following two years, new alliances emerged, dormant cells were revived and recruits were made "through internet chatting, prison visits and radical lectures".
ICG Southeast Asia project director Jim Della-Giacoma said officials in Indonesia had been lucky because the extremists had often not been competent. He said, "Ten years after Bali, there are virtually no effective programs in place to address the conditions that allow jihadi ideology to flourish."
A suicide bombing that killed and wounded members of Bashar al-Assad's inner circle on Wednesday will weaken the Syrian president's support base and might accelerate high-level defections, but does not signal his imminent downfall.
"This bombing is in some ways the most successful direct attack on the regime we've had so far," analyst Gala Riani said of the attack, apparently a suicide bombing by a bodyguard which killed the defence minister as well as Assad's brother-in-law, a former intelligence chief.
Coming on the fourth straight day of fighting in the capital Damascus, the bombing, claimed by the Free Syrian Army (FSA) and also by Islamist group Liwa al-Islam, intensifies pressure on Assad and may provoke a ferocious response.
"I think the next few days are going to be crucial in signalling where the conflict goes from here," said Riani, a Middle East analyst at the Control Risks consultancy.
"At the very least, we can expect the situation to continue to deteriorate. But I think it will take more than this to take the Assad regime down."
The brazen attack at a meeting of top security officials and ministers in the heart of Damascus will send a message to the top of the Syrian government that they are vulnerable.
"It sends a stark message that individual ministers are not safe and is likely to accelerate the erosion of the regime's support base," said Anthony Skinner, head of Middle East consultancy Maplecroft.
The bombing does not alter the fact that the rebels remain hugely outgunned by Assad's forces.
#2
Heck, Oswald defected to the Soviets, and came back to kill JFK. If the commies viewed that as the beginning of the end for the US, they were wrong, or off by at least 50 years.
The ''decisive battle'' has begun in Damascus, exiled Syrian Muslim Brotherhood leaders meeting in Istanbul in their first plenary congress in 30 years said today.
Three decades after their attempted uprising against Hafez al Assad, father of the current Syrian president, ended in a bloodbath and 20,000 dead, the Sunnite Muslim Brotherhood now sees their chance for a comeback.
In spite of ''long years of repression by the regime,'' the movement has remained strong in Syria, said Brotherhood leader, Mohammad Riad Shakfa. The biggest force on the Syrian National Council, which is the West's main opposition interlocutor, and very influential in the Syrian Free Army, the Muslim Brotherhood is supported by Turkish Premier Recep Tayyip Erdogan, who is also a Sunnite, and whom Assad accuses of fomenting a religious war in his country. If Syria were to follow the Egyptian model post-Assad, the country's next leader might well be from the Muslim Brotherhood.
But Syria's strong ethnic and religious divisions, as evidenced by tensions within the anti-Assad forces, could also cause the country to split, warned analyst Abdullah Bozkurt.
From Turkey's point of view, the nightmare scenario would be a three-way split into a Shiite Alawite state along the Mediterranean, a Kurdish state between Turkey and Iraqi Kurdistan, and a Sunnite state in the rest of the country, Bozkurt said. In recent days, Syrian Kurdish National Council leader Sherkoh Abbas accused the Muslim Brotherhood of ''railroading the revolution'' in order to replace Assad with ''an Islamic, Sunnite, Arab and nationalist regime.''
#4
Are you saying that when you are beaten back,(Again) you'll give up?
Of course not. If the Sunni Arabs win this battle, they're winning. If the Sunni Arabs lose this battle ("tis but a scratch"), they're also winning. The timeline just gets extended.
Still, I understand why they're doing this - they're hoping for a cascade of surrenders. At the same time, like Tet, it's a heavy risk, and they'll lose a lot of people, given how well-protected Damascus is. And a thousand years of persecution, coupled with fresh reminders from Iraq's persecution of minorities should have inured Syria's minorities to the likelihood that they will be liquidated if the Sunni Arabs come to power. In a fight to the death where one side has the heavy weapons, I'm not laying any money on the Sunni Arabs. Even Gaddafi's shambolic army was on the verge of wiping out the opposition when NATO jumped in. Syria's Alawites came close to overrunning northern Israel during Yom Kippur in 1973.
[An Nahar] General Manaf Tlass, a key military defector and ex-ally of Bashir al-Assad, called Tuesday for a political transition in Syria and condemned military attacks on civilians in a statement sent to Agence La Belle France Presse.
In his first statement to the media since his defection was announced on July 6, Tlass said the regime held "the majority of responsibility" for the crisis and confirmed he was in Gay Paree.
As heavy fighting ... as opposed to the more usual light or desultory fighting... raged in the Syrian capital Damascus ...Capital of the last remaining Baathist regime in the world... , Tlass expressed anger that security forces were being used to suppress dissent.
"I sincerely hope that the blood stops flowing and that the country emerges from the crisis through a phase of constructive transition that guarantees Syria its unity, stability and security, as well as the aspirations of its people," Tlass said.
"I am ready like any other Syrian, with no other ambition, to fulfill my civic duty to contribute to a better future for my country, as much as I can, and like all those... who have already made many sacrifices," he said.
However, the difference between stupidity and genius is that genius has its limits... he did not specifically call for Assad to step down or say that he was joining the Syrian opposition. French officials had earlier said he was "in contact" with the opposition.
Tlass, 48, is the highest-ranking military officer to have abandoned the Syrian regime, as a member of the inner circle of power and a childhood friend of Assad.
"I cannot but express my anger and pain at seeing the army pushed to carry out a fight that is against its principles, a fight directed by security forces and in which the people, including the soldiers, are the victims," he said.
"When I took a position and refused to take part in the security action, I was isolated, accused and even labeled a traitor," he said.
"But my conscience, my deep conviction, pushed me to challenge this destructive action and to distance myself."
A general in the elite Republican Guard charged with protecting the regime, Tlass is the son of former defense minister Mustafa Tlass, a close friend of Assad's late father and predecessor, Hafez.
Posted by: Fred ||
07/18/2012 00:00 ||
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[An Nahar] U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton ... sometimes described as For a good time at 3 a.m. call Hillary and at other times as Mrs. Bill, never as Another Chateaubriand ... on Monday said Washington would use "all elements of its power" to prevent Iran going nuclear and was working in "close consultation" with Israel over how to do so.
Speaking to news hounds at the end of a whirlwind 24-hour visit to Jerusalem, Clinton said that Iran not yet decided to curb its nuclear ambitions, and warned that Washington would stop at nothing to prevent it from getting a nuclear bomb.
"We will use all elements of American power to prevent Iran obtaining a nuclear weapon," she said in remarks which carried an implied threat of military action -- a course of action never ruled out by Washington.
Thanks to U.S. efforts to rally the international community to tackle the Iranian nuclear threat, Tehran was "under greater pressure than ever before," Clinton said, indicating that the B.O. regime was "pressing forward in close consultation with Israel."
"I think it is fair to say we are on the same page at this moment, trying to figure our way forward to have the maximum impact on affecting the decisions that Iran makes," Clinton said.
Clinton arrived in Israel late on Sunday at the tail end of a nine-nation tour, holding talks with brass hats including Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, President Shimon Peres, Defense Minister Ehud Barak and Foreign Minister Avigdor Lieberman.
Posted by: Fred ||
07/18/2012 00:00 ||
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#1
Election Time - time to "wag the dog".
Posted by: Bob Noodleman1527 ||
07/18/2012 0:10 Comments ||
Top||
#2
Yeah, the Jewish vote is starting to defect to Romney so he has to come up with something.
#3
"We will use all elements of American power to prevent Iran obtaining a nuclear weapon," she said in remarks which carried an implied threat of military action -- a course of action never ruled out by Washington.multiple strongly-worded letters...or...quelle horreur...the dreaded UN Security Council Resolution which will no doubt get vetoed by Russia and China anyway, so no problema, Shorty...proceed at your own pace. Just wait until after November so Bambi can still pick up the Jewish vote, 'k? !
Fixed!
Posted by: Ricky bin Ricardo (Abu Babaloo) ||
07/18/2012 2:05 Comments ||
Top||
#8
All the elements of power, except the canceling of the embargo waivers of course. He would rather go to war at great expense in US lives and resources than cause more disruption in the economies of 'allies'.
#17
WORLD NEWS > WE WILL NOT ALLOW IRAN TO CLOSDE STRAIT OF HORMUZ: PANETTA.
* SAME > US, BRITAIN WARN IRAN ON HORMUZ CLOSURE.
versus
* SAME > NORTH KOREAN MISSLE DEVELOPMENT PROGRAMME [LRBMS] WAY AHEAD OF SOUTH KOREA.
Nuke-wannabe Islamist Iran is not ready yet to navally oppose the US-Allies in the Gulf unless the Mullahs + IRGC are a glutton for sufferring casualties on their side, so any major MilPol countermoves Iran makes vee the US Gulf Buildup will be focused on LAND, NOT AT SEA. IRAN WILL DETER OR DEFEAT THE US CVNS + GATOR BOYZ BY DESTABILIZING OR OVERTHROWING THE VARIOUS REGIONAL MUSLIM GOVTS. WHICH SUPPORT THEM.
"Arab/Muslim Spring" protests on the Arabian Peninsula, support for Shia rights vee the KSA + GCC.
Again, until it does possess a minimal or "sufficient" NucWeap Arsenal Iran will prefer to stay on the Strategic Defensive for the time being.
(SANA) -- Russia's Permanent Envoy to the United Nations ...where theory meets practice and practice loses... , Vitaly Churkin, stressed that his country will veto any western draft resolution that constitutes a preface for military intervention in Syria.
Russia Today TV Channel quoted Churkin as saying, " Any hint to Chapter VII in Western draft resolution will be totally unacceptable to Moscow", pledging that Russia will use veto against it.
The Russian Envoy pointed out to a Russian decision prepared by his country to vote for at the Security Council with regard to Russia's readiness to adopt a draft resolution that would expand the mission of UNSMIS in Syria.
Posted by: Fred ||
07/18/2012 00:00 ||
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(SANA) -- Russian President Vladimir Putin ...Second President of the Russian Federation and the first to remain sober. Because of constitutionally mandated term limits he is the current Prime Minister of Russia. His sock puppet, Dmitry Medvedev, was installed in the 2008 presidential elections. Putin is credited with bringing political stability and re-establishing something like the rule of law. During his eight years in office Russia's economy bounced back from crisis, seeing GDP increase, poverty decrease and average monthly salaries increase. During his presidency Putin passed into law a series of fundamental reforms, including a flat income tax of 13%, a reduced profits tax, and new land and legal codes. Under Putin, a new group of business magnates controlling significant swathes of Russia's economy has emerged, all of whom have close personal ties to Putin. The old bunch, without close personal ties to Putin, are in jail or in exile... said that since the beginning, Russia supported the efforts of UN Envoy to Syria Kofi Annan ...Ghanaian diplomat who served as the seventh and so far the worst Secretary-General of the UN. Annan and the UN were the co-recipients of the 2001 Nobel Peace Prize for something or other that probably sounded good at the time. In December 2004, reports surfaced that Kofi's son Kojo received payments from the Swiss company Cotecna, which had won a lucrative contract under the UN Oil-for-Food Program. Kofi Annan called for an investigation to look into the allegations, which stirred up the expected cesspool but couldn't seem to come up with enough evidence to indict Kofi himself, or even Kojo... to settle the crisis in Syria, and that it intends to continue to support them in the future.
During his talks with Annan at the Kremlin on Tuesday, Putin said "since the beginning and since your first steps as a special envoy for the United Nations ...an organization whose definition of human rights is interesting, to say the least... to Syria, we provided support, and now we support your efforts to restore civil peace in Syria."
He pointed out that Annan's visit to Moscow is taking place on the background of tragic events in Syria, stressing that Annan is known to Moscow as a man with integrity who has popularity and trust.
For his part, Annan said that the situation in Syria has reached a turning point and is currently in a critical moment.
Posted by: Fred ||
07/18/2012 00:00 ||
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Al-Akhbar newspaper reports terrorist organization planned to assassinate both Lebanese army chief and parliament speaker
An al-Qaeda cell planned to assassinate Lebanese parliament speaker and leader of the Shiite Amal movement Nabil Berri and Lebanese Armed Forces chief Gen. Jean Qahwaji, al-Akhbar daily reported on Tuesday.
According to the report, two months ago Lebanese security forces were informed that senior al-Qaeda officials were in Leb to plan liquidations against political figures and religious leaders as well as attacks on religious centers.
The reliability of the information could not be verified at the time, however local security forces pursued the matter.
Two weeks ago, the information was confirmed by other sources and the plot to assassinate Beri and Qahwaji was exposed.
Al-Akhbar reported that al-Qaeda offered $100,000 for Berri's liquidation and another $100,000 for Qahwaji's murder.
The liquidation was to be carried out through a "missile ambush" of the targets' motorcades.
According to the report, the order for the operation came from al-Qaeda leader Ayman al-Zawahiri ... Formerly second in command of al-Qaeda, now the head cheese, occasionally described as the real brains of the outfit. Formerly the Mister Big of Egyptian Islamic Jihad. Bumped off Abdullah Azzam with a car boom in the course of one of their little disputes. Is thought to have composed bin Laden's fatwa entitled World Islamic Front Against Jews and Crusaders. Currently residing in the North Wazoo area. That is not a horn growing from the middle of his forehead, but a prayer bump, attesting to how devout he is... It was further reported al-Zawahiri recently told al-Qaeda officials that the organization has decided to make Leb its base in the Orient.
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.
(Sh.M.Network)- Taking steps to tackle piracy, the EU on Monday approved the launch of a new civilian Common security and defense policy (CSDP) mission to support regional maritime capacity building in the horn of Africa and westernIndian Ocean states.
(Sh. M. Network)-Former Somali prime minister Mohamed Abdullah Farmajo has rejected Tuesday misappropriation, embezzlement charges during his time in office as PM for the current Transitional Federal Government in 2011.
(Sh.M.Network) -- A scathing report written for the U.N. Security Council says that systematic misappropriation, embezzlement and outright theft of tax-payer funds have become a system of governance in Somalia.
Head of a dialogue committee with Al-Qaeda Hamoud Al-Hitar has affirmed that force is not enough to defeat terrorism, calling for creating an ideological strategy to combat terrorism. 
there are a strong relations between the 
The World Health Organisation (WHO) on Tuesday thanked Pakistain for the prompt care of its staff members working on a 
The US and Pakistain are close to signing an agreement regulating the flow of 
Minister for Information and Broadcasting Qamar Zaman Kaira said on Tuesday that as a nation we have to launch "Jihad" against illiteracy and ignorance as due to handful of 
PESHAWAR: The participants at a national conference here on Monday asked the government to take the issue of drone strikes to the 
Mohmand
Islamic extremists in Indonesia are regrouping despite a decade-long crackdown that has weakened the deadliest networks, the International Crisis Group think-tank has said. 
Hillary Clinton
...Second President of the Russian Federation and the first to remain sober. Because of constitutionally mandated term limits he is the current Prime Minister of Russia. His sock puppet, Dmitry Medvedev, was installed in the 2008 presidential elections. Putin is credited with bringing political stability and re-establishing something like the rule of law. During his eight years in office Russia's economy bounced back from crisis, seeing GDP increase, poverty decrease and average monthly salaries increase. During his presidency Putin passed into law a series of fundamental reforms, including a flat income tax of 13%, a reduced profits tax, and new land and legal codes. Under Putin, a new group of business magnates controlling significant swathes of Russia's economy has emerged, all of whom have close personal ties to Putin. The old bunch, without close personal ties to Putin, are in jail or in exile...
...Ghanaian diplomat who served as the seventh and so far the worst Secretary-General of the UN. Annan and the UN were the co-recipients of the 2001 Nobel Peace Prize for something or other that probably sounded good at the time. In December 2004, reports surfaced that Kofi's son Kojo received payments from the Swiss company Cotecna, which had won a lucrative contract under the UN Oil-for-Food Program. Kofi Annan called for an investigation to look into the allegations, which stirred up the expected cesspool but couldn't seem to come up with enough evidence to indict Kofi himself, or even Kojo...
Zawahiri
