1. Unlike other terrorists, Terrorists in Mumbay has not demanded anything? They don't demand release of their co-prisoners nor demanded money... why?? what was their target then?
2. Unlike other islamic Jehadis with beard and turbans, why Mumbai terrorists came with strange look - they wore jeans and T-shirts; clean-shaved and no turbans nor any sign of muslims terrorists we normally watch on media?
3. And the Terrorists attackers did nothing specifically for western, even Israelis, it was sure if they were Jehadists!
4 Beer driking terrorists; Jehadi terrorists and non-alcoholic, however Mumbai Terrorists goes to the cafe and drinks beer before they start firing??
5. Mumbai terrorists (as shown by media) had close similarities with RSS cadres: Mumbai terrorist wearing an yellow band on his right hand as RSS cadres wears normally (see pictures).
6. Mumbai terrorists immediately find their targets by killing ATS leaders [Hemant Karakare, CP Ashok Kamthe & Vijay Salskar) in early hours of their terror? How they so specific the clearly chose ATS leaders? And the terrorist immediately ran away, why? & who was that terrorist?
7. Only one terrorists is caught lively (?), all others killed as in every encounter in recent past?
8. Mumbai terrorits are very clear about their targets, they are well experienced their hide abouts in Taj and other places?
9. Prime Minister, Sonia & LK Advani visits Mumbai, but no clues or no claims about ISI or Pakistan.. However No1 terrorist, Gujarat CM Modi hurry-up to Mumbai and declares that Pakistan is behind the attack without any doubt! [because he is the one who hired them]
Note: no other CMs goes to Mumbai.. And he offers rewards to every military men killed of 1 crore unlike PM and LK Advani? Even he offers aid to MahaRastra!
10. Media was widely reporting that there were IDs of terrorists recovered which shows Malaysian and Mauritious IDs however such references disappeared once Terrorist leader Modi's arrival!
11 The timing of Mumbay terror is well planned, just before state elections!
12. We are told that they came from Pakistan by sea? Indian military in boards sea were sleeping?? We told they came by speed boats? Yes, but not from Pakistan but from Gujarat!
13. It took contineous 60 hours to stop the terrorism! and most of terrorists killed!!
Wednesday, December 3, 2008
Sunday, November 30, 2008
The Mumbai terror attacks: 10 reasons why we're not ready to draw conclusions
1 - We still don't have a clear timeline: what happened, when it happened, who was involved.
2 - On November 28, 2008, the Scotsman reported: "Alex Neill, head of the Royal United Services Institute's Asia security programme, . . . reckons up to 100 terrorists would have been involved in the planning and execution of the attack and said it was surprising they had managed to keep it a secret."
Another British expert stated on CNN on Sunday morning that it was not likely that 10 men, could carry out attacks at 9 locations, within a period of 30 minutes.
3 - While the Deccan Mujahideen are reported to have claimed responsibility for the attacks, others believe that it was the work of Lashkar-e-Taiba, Sudents Islamic Movement of India (SIMI), an ad hoc group of militants, right-wing Hindu groups -- the same groups responsible for the destruction of the Babri Masjid, the pogrom in Gujarat, and the assassination of Mahatma Gandhi.
Historian Amaresh Misra, author of the 2000 page, 2 volume, "War of Civilizations: India AD 1857," claims that the right-wing Hindu groups collaborated with Israel's spy agency Mossad.
4 - On August 19, 2008 an American, Kenneth Haywood, who was being investigated last July for "bomb blasts which killed 42 people" in a series of 16 explosions fled India. Some claim that Haywood may have been a CIA asset.
5 - On July 1, 2004, Jane's reported: "India's external intelligence service, the Research and Analysis Wing (RAW) has launched a major internal investigation for possible moles following the apparent defection of a senior officer recruited by the US Central Intelligence Agency (CIA).
"The Indian government fears that the defection of Rabinder Singh, who held the senior rank of joint secretary and who headed the agency's Southeast Asia department, is only the tip of the iceberg in a possible infiltration operation by the CIA and Mossad, Israel's foreign intelligence service." Given the long history of false-flag operations, it is not unreasonable to ask if the CIA and/or Mossad may have been involved.
6 - Maharashtra ATS chief Hemant Karkare, who led the Mumbai response to the attacks was killed. NDtv, on November 27, 2008, reported: "Karkare had solved the serial bomb blasts in Thane, Vashi and Panvel and was also credited for the stunning revelations in the investigation of the September 29 blast in Malegaon. . . . the Pune ATS on November 26 reportedly received phone calls threatening to blow up the residence of Karkare "within a couple of days".
The death of Karkare, who was said to be investigating Mossad collaboration with right-wing Hindu groups, is suspicious.
7 - On November 29, 2008, Indian Express reported: "The family of slain Maharashtra ATS chief Hemant Karkare has declined Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi's offer of monetary help".
"Modi is the face of hardline Hindu nationalism. His administration is believed to have instigated some of the worst communal violence in India since the 1947 partition -- the killing of 2,000 Muslims in 2002", according to NPR.
The Karkare family's refusal to accept compensation from the Modi government raises a red flag.
8 - Amir Kasab, Karkares's reported killer is the only "terrorist" captured alive by Indian authorities, and he (very conveniently) names his fellow "terrorists."
Kasab is reported to have told interrogators during questioning that he and his men were sent specifically to kill Israelis to avenge "atrocities" against the Palestinians, according to the Times of India.
The Israeli newspaper Haaretz reports that "Amir Kasab, 21, told investigators that this was why they targeted the Chabad House, also known as the Nariman House in Mumbai, an outreach center meant for local Jews and Jews touring India, including Israelis."
9 - The role of Nariman House (aka Chabad House) is puzzling -- it is reported that they ordered enough food to "feed an army or a bunch of people for twenty days." Were the "terrorists" attacking Nariman House, or were they housed there?
10 - Kasab, or another "terrorist," was photographed wearing an orange (safron) wrist band -- a Hindu symbol, not likely to be worn by Muslims.
2 - On November 28, 2008, the Scotsman reported: "Alex Neill, head of the Royal United Services Institute's Asia security programme, . . . reckons up to 100 terrorists would have been involved in the planning and execution of the attack and said it was surprising they had managed to keep it a secret."
Another British expert stated on CNN on Sunday morning that it was not likely that 10 men, could carry out attacks at 9 locations, within a period of 30 minutes.
3 - While the Deccan Mujahideen are reported to have claimed responsibility for the attacks, others believe that it was the work of Lashkar-e-Taiba, Sudents Islamic Movement of India (SIMI), an ad hoc group of militants, right-wing Hindu groups -- the same groups responsible for the destruction of the Babri Masjid, the pogrom in Gujarat, and the assassination of Mahatma Gandhi.
Historian Amaresh Misra, author of the 2000 page, 2 volume, "War of Civilizations: India AD 1857," claims that the right-wing Hindu groups collaborated with Israel's spy agency Mossad.
4 - On August 19, 2008 an American, Kenneth Haywood, who was being investigated last July for "bomb blasts which killed 42 people" in a series of 16 explosions fled India. Some claim that Haywood may have been a CIA asset.
5 - On July 1, 2004, Jane's reported: "India's external intelligence service, the Research and Analysis Wing (RAW) has launched a major internal investigation for possible moles following the apparent defection of a senior officer recruited by the US Central Intelligence Agency (CIA).
"The Indian government fears that the defection of Rabinder Singh, who held the senior rank of joint secretary and who headed the agency's Southeast Asia department, is only the tip of the iceberg in a possible infiltration operation by the CIA and Mossad, Israel's foreign intelligence service." Given the long history of false-flag operations, it is not unreasonable to ask if the CIA and/or Mossad may have been involved.
6 - Maharashtra ATS chief Hemant Karkare, who led the Mumbai response to the attacks was killed. NDtv, on November 27, 2008, reported: "Karkare had solved the serial bomb blasts in Thane, Vashi and Panvel and was also credited for the stunning revelations in the investigation of the September 29 blast in Malegaon. . . . the Pune ATS on November 26 reportedly received phone calls threatening to blow up the residence of Karkare "within a couple of days".
The death of Karkare, who was said to be investigating Mossad collaboration with right-wing Hindu groups, is suspicious.
7 - On November 29, 2008, Indian Express reported: "The family of slain Maharashtra ATS chief Hemant Karkare has declined Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi's offer of monetary help".
"Modi is the face of hardline Hindu nationalism. His administration is believed to have instigated some of the worst communal violence in India since the 1947 partition -- the killing of 2,000 Muslims in 2002", according to NPR.
The Karkare family's refusal to accept compensation from the Modi government raises a red flag.
8 - Amir Kasab, Karkares's reported killer is the only "terrorist" captured alive by Indian authorities, and he (very conveniently) names his fellow "terrorists."
Kasab is reported to have told interrogators during questioning that he and his men were sent specifically to kill Israelis to avenge "atrocities" against the Palestinians, according to the Times of India.
The Israeli newspaper Haaretz reports that "Amir Kasab, 21, told investigators that this was why they targeted the Chabad House, also known as the Nariman House in Mumbai, an outreach center meant for local Jews and Jews touring India, including Israelis."
9 - The role of Nariman House (aka Chabad House) is puzzling -- it is reported that they ordered enough food to "feed an army or a bunch of people for twenty days." Were the "terrorists" attacking Nariman House, or were they housed there?
10 - Kasab, or another "terrorist," was photographed wearing an orange (safron) wrist band -- a Hindu symbol, not likely to be worn by Muslims.
Saturday, November 29, 2008
Attack on Mumbai: Modi, Mossad, and Sangh Parivar
The Mumbai terror attacks were a gigantic exercise, a fight between those forces within the Indian establishment who want to take India towards the dangerous and suicidal US-Israel nexus and those who want India to stay Independent and have good relations with Pakistan, China and Iran.
Friday, November 28, 2008
Mumbai terror attacks: the Mossad angle
They kiled Hemant Karkare, chief of the police anti-terrorist squad in Mumbai, to send a message that you cannot investigate the Mossad-RSS angle.
Saturday, October 25, 2008
Exercise your rights
. . . no presidential candidate, least of all a Democrat awash with money from America's "banksters", as Franklin Roosevelt called them, can or will challenge a militarised system that controls and rewards him. Obama's job is to present a benign, even progressive face that will revive America's democratic pretensions, internationally and domestically, while ensuring nothing of substance changes.
Sunday, October 5, 2008
9/11 Unveiled: Clearing the way for truth in media
The new monograph, 9/11 Unveiled by Enver Masud of The Wisdom Fund, is the best short summary of what most Americans and virtually all of the rest of the world consider to be the "9/11 mystery". In this factual account, Enver Masud avoids the popular focus on the accumulating wealth of merely circumstantial evidence that the official U.S. governmental account of 9/11 is incomplete.
Monday, September 29, 2008
Why America should listen to Ahmadinejad
The Iranian president makes more sense than Bush, McCain or Obama.
Wednesday, September 24, 2008
Saturday, September 13, 2008
The draft Iraqi oil law: making a mockery of sovereignty
President Bush says the Iraq war is not about oil but his actions belie that claim. In the months before the March 2003 invasion, members of the U.S. State Department "Oil and Energy Working Group" met to plan how to open Iraq to international oil companies. The oil law now proposed by the Iraqi Council of Ministers is a virtual photocopy of a plan first drafted by U.S. oil industry executives and consultants in Houston long before Iraq was "liberated." . . .
The proposed oil law creates a Federal Oil and Gas Council on which would sit representatives of Exxon-Mobil, Shell, BP, etc., whose tasks include approving their own contracts.
The proposed oil law creates a Federal Oil and Gas Council on which would sit representatives of Exxon-Mobil, Shell, BP, etc., whose tasks include approving their own contracts.
Thursday, September 11, 2008
NEW BOOK: '9/11 Unveiled'
A challenge to those who dismiss alternative explanations of 9/11 as 'conspiracy theories'Shortly after September 11, 2001, as I looked down on the Pentagon from a nearby hill, the first question I asked was, "Where's the plane?"
Over the next few years I was to learn that: Bin Laden is NOT wanted by the FBI for 9/11; contrary to popular reports, the FBI claims only two cell phone calls were made from all four planes responsible for the September 11 attacks; the Executive Director of the 9/11 Commission, and the principal author of the the 9/11 Commission Report had by March 2003, with the Commission's staff barely in place, prepared a detailed outline, complete with "chapter headings, subheadings, and sub-subheadings" of The 9/11 Commission Report; and this Executive Director of the 9/11 Commission -- a Commission vigorously opposed by the White House — also drafted the Bush administrations pre-emptive war doctrine.
"9/11 Unveiled" is unique in that it reduces the many, and complex reports of what happened on September 11 to short, easily read sections while placing them in historical and political context.
The facts presented in "9/11 Unveiled" will cause thinking people to question the official explanation of 9/11, and to ask why our "free press" has, uncritically, accepted the official explanation.
International poll: no consensus on who was behind 9/11
A new WorldPublicOpinion.org — A project managed by the Program on International Policy Attitudes at the University of Maryland — poll of 17 nations finds that majorities in only nine of them believe that al Qaeda was behind the 9/11 terrorist attacks on the United States.
In no country does a majority agree on another possible perpetrator, but in most countries significant minorities cite the US government itself and, in a few countries, Israel. These responses were given spontaneously to an open-ended question that did not offer response options.
In no country does a majority agree on another possible perpetrator, but in most countries significant minorities cite the US government itself and, in a few countries, Israel. These responses were given spontaneously to an open-ended question that did not offer response options.
September 11 seven years later — the human perspective
Less than 3.000 people were killed on that day. It was a horrific and an unspeakable tragedy for the victims and their loved ones. Bu - numerically speaking - it's a small event in today's ocean of violence against other people, other cultures and Nature. According to trustworthy statistics, the global injustice system kills about 100.000 people per day; that is thirty 9/11s per day that we could decide to prevent - if we fought a war on injustice and mal-development.
The data for losses of civilian and military lives in both Iraq and Afghanistan are disputed. But estimates of the deaths due to sanctions against Iraq are around 1 million people; some add 600.000 during the war and there are more than 4 mllion out of a population of 25 million who have left their homes.
In the U.S. alone, about 30.000 are killed annually, Americans killing other Americans and roughly 300.000 die of obesity.
The data for losses of civilian and military lives in both Iraq and Afghanistan are disputed. But estimates of the deaths due to sanctions against Iraq are around 1 million people; some add 600.000 during the war and there are more than 4 mllion out of a population of 25 million who have left their homes.
In the U.S. alone, about 30.000 are killed annually, Americans killing other Americans and roughly 300.000 die of obesity.
Wednesday, September 10, 2008
Filmmaker urges international tribunal to probe 9/11
Italian film-maker Giulietto Chiesa, who was in Berlin for a screening of his documentary which questions the official US version of the 9/11 terrorist attacks, has called for an international tribunal to probe events. . . .
Chiesa, one of Italy's most respected journalists and a La Stampa foreign correspondent for more than 20 years, told his Berlin audience an 9/11 international tribunal could serve a useful purpose.
Chiesa, one of Italy's most respected journalists and a La Stampa foreign correspondent for more than 20 years, told his Berlin audience an 9/11 international tribunal could serve a useful purpose.
Was America attacked by Muslims on 9/11?
Much of America's foreign policy since 9/11 has been based on the assumption that it was attacked by Muslims on that day. This assumption was used, most prominently, to justify the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq. It is now widely agreed that the use of 9/11 as a basis for attacking Iraq was illegitimate: none of the hijackers were Iraqis, there was no working relation between Saddam Hussein and Osama bin Laden, and Iraq was not behind the anthrax attacks. But it is still widely believed that the US attack on Afghanistan was justified. For example, the New York Times, while referring to the US attack on Iraq as a "war of choice," calls the battle in Afghanistan a "war of necessity." Time magazine has dubbed it "the right war." And Barack Obama says that one reason to wind down our involvement in Iraq is to have the troops and resources to "go after the people in Afghanistan who actually attacked us on 9/11." . . .
Is it conceivable that this assumption might be false? Insofar as Americans and Canadians would say "No," they would express their belief that this assumption is not merely an "assumption" but is instead based on strong evidence. When actually examined, however, the proffered evidence turns out to be remarkably weak. . . .
Is it conceivable that this assumption might be false? Insofar as Americans and Canadians would say "No," they would express their belief that this assumption is not merely an "assumption" but is instead based on strong evidence. When actually examined, however, the proffered evidence turns out to be remarkably weak. . . .
Experts to debate 9-11 on Russian TV on Friday, September 12
Leading 9/11 experts have completed taping a television debate which will be telecast on Russian state television this coming Friday, September 12.
Thursday, September 4, 2008
In India, outcry over U.S. letter
A day after a secret letter from the U.S. State Department to Congress about the controversial nuclear energy deal with India was made public, Indian opposition figures cried foul, accusing Prime Minister Manmohan Singh of willfully misleading the nation about restrictive aspects of the deal.
Republican jitters over Palin
A fast trickle of details have been coming to light that are worrying the Republicans . . .
These include news that Todd Palin belonged to the radical Alaska Nationalist Party, that the Governor hired a lawyer to defend her in an ethics inquiry ordered by the state legislature and that, as mayor of Wasilla, she hired a lobbyist in Washington to steer so-called "earmarks"—gifts of federal money—to her town, a practice especially favoured by Alaskans that has been derided by Mr McCain.
These include news that Todd Palin belonged to the radical Alaska Nationalist Party, that the Governor hired a lawyer to defend her in an ethics inquiry ordered by the state legislature and that, as mayor of Wasilla, she hired a lobbyist in Washington to steer so-called "earmarks"—gifts of federal money—to her town, a practice especially favoured by Alaskans that has been derided by Mr McCain.
Tuesday, September 2, 2008
John McCain and the Telecoms
It’s no secret that John McCain has been a longtime friend of the telecom industry. Indeed, the Arizona Senator has had important historic ties to big corporations like AT&T, MCI and Qualcomm. In return for their financial contributions, McCain, who partly oversees the telecommunication industry in the Senate, has acted to protect and look out for the political and economic interests of the telecoms on Capitol Hill.
Why Iraqi 'client' blocked US long-term presence
Maliki declared Aug. 25 that the U.S. had agreed that "no foreign soldiers will be in Iraq after 2011." A Shi'ite legislator and Maliki ally, Ali al-Adeeb, told the Washington Post that only the Iraqi government had the authority under the agreement to decide whether conditions were conducive to a complete withdrawal. He added that the Iraqi government "could ask the Americans to withdraw before 2011 if we wish."
A secondary role for U.S. in India's nuclear future
France and Russia "come at the head of the queue for business contracts from the nuclear deal now," Das said. "But let us not forget it is a very, very long line behind. And Americans and others are the long line behind."
Monday, September 1, 2008
Zionist nationalist myth of enforced exile
An Israeli historian suggests the diaspora was the consequence, not of the expulsion of the Hebrews from Palestine, but of proselytising across north Africa, southern Europe and the Middle East
US arms to India extend NATO ties
The Government unveiled India’s new defence procurement policy on the same day that the nuclear deal with the United States sailed through the International Atomic Energy Agency. The policy throws wide open the field for “private players” from abroad. . . .
The deal provides the political-strategic ambience for the US President to selectively effect waivers on the embargo of transfer of military technology to India. Large scale US participation in the great Indian arms bazaar — reputed to be gearing up for business worth $40 billion — now becomes possible. . . .
Commercial considerations apart, it ensures “interoperability” between the US and Indian armed forces and, in turn, facilitates Indian participation in the operations under the North Atlantic Treaty Organisation [NATO].
The deal provides the political-strategic ambience for the US President to selectively effect waivers on the embargo of transfer of military technology to India. Large scale US participation in the great Indian arms bazaar — reputed to be gearing up for business worth $40 billion — now becomes possible. . . .
Commercial considerations apart, it ensures “interoperability” between the US and Indian armed forces and, in turn, facilitates Indian participation in the operations under the North Atlantic Treaty Organisation [NATO].
Muslim charities negotiate a minefield
In the months following the terrorist attacks of Sep. 11, 2001, the US government launched its "global war on terror" by rounding up thousands of "Middle Eastern-looking" men and women, jailing them without charges or access to lawyers, but accusing none of them of terror-related crimes, convicting no one, and ending up deporting some for non-criminal immigration violations.
At about the same time, the government opened up a second front against charitable organizations it suspected of providing financial or other material assistance to groups the government designates as "terrorist." While the campaign applies to all domestic nonprofit organizations, the lion's share of scrutiny, suspicion, and preemptive action has fallen on groups that support Muslim causes.
At about the same time, the government opened up a second front against charitable organizations it suspected of providing financial or other material assistance to groups the government designates as "terrorist." While the campaign applies to all domestic nonprofit organizations, the lion's share of scrutiny, suspicion, and preemptive action has fallen on groups that support Muslim causes.
Sunday, August 31, 2008
Russia remains a Black Sea power
If the struggle in the Caucasus was ever over oil and the North Atlantic Treaty Organization's (NATO's) agenda towards Central Asia, the United States suffered a colossal setback this week. Kazakhstan, the Caspian energy powerhouse and a key Central Asian player, has decided to stand shoulder-to-shoulder with Russia over the conflict with Georgia, and Russia's de facto control over two major Black Sea ports has been consolidated.
Report: Israel won't allow a nuclear Iran
According to Ma'ariv, Sneh offered the two candidates the "sane, cheap and the only option that does not necessitate bloodshed." To prevent Iran's nuclear aspirations, Sneh wrote, "real" sanctions applied by the US and Europe were necessary. A total embargo in spare parts for the oil industry and a total boycott of Iranian banks would promptly put an end to the regime, which is already pressured by a sloping economy and would be toppled by the Iranian people if they have outside assistance, he said.
The window of opportunity Sneh suggests is a year and a half to two years, until 2010.
The window of opportunity Sneh suggests is a year and a half to two years, until 2010.
CIA memos reveal doubts over 'key' Lockerbie witness
Mr Giaka eventually returned to Tripoli in 1990 after the CIA money dried up. But the agency kept in touch with him and finally persuaded him in 1991 to come to America. Nine years later, Majid Giaka arrived at the Lockerbie bombing trial in the Netherlands. He described how he had seen Megrahi and his co-accused, Khalifa Fhimah, at Luqa airport before the bombing with a large brown suitcase. But the CIA cables confirm that nearly two years before, Mr Giaka didn't remember anything.
At the Lockerbie trial, the four judges described some of his evidence as "at best grossly exaggerated and at worst simply untrue" and concluded he was "largely motivated by financial considerations".
At the Lockerbie trial, the four judges described some of his evidence as "at best grossly exaggerated and at worst simply untrue" and concluded he was "largely motivated by financial considerations".
Christians hide in forests as Hindu mobs ransack villages
Thousands of terrified Indian Christians are hiding in the forests of the volatile Indian state of Orissa after a wave of religious 'cleansing' forced them from their burnt-out homes with no immediate prospect of return.
A mob of Hindu fundamentalists rampaged through villages last week, killing those too slow to get out of their way, burning churches and an orphanage, and targeting the homes of Christians.
A mob of Hindu fundamentalists rampaged through villages last week, killing those too slow to get out of their way, burning churches and an orphanage, and targeting the homes of Christians.
Pakistani city of Peshawar could fall to Taliban as fear and attacks grow
"We want peace, but we can not have it because of this terrorist America which orders our government to attack its own people," he said. "The Taliban are Godly people, they are Islamic, and we are happy that they send suicide bombers for revenge.
Saturday, August 30, 2008
How the Republicans win
Barack Obama made it across the tightrope of the Democratic National Convention, gaining solid endorsements from Bill and Hillary Clinton and giving a rousing speech before some 80,000 supporters at Invesco Field in Denver. But now comes the time when the Republicans win elections.
Georgian port is focal point of standoff with Russia
Weeks before Russia invaded Georgia earlier this month, excavators in this key Black Sea port began to lay the ground for a $200 million tax-free zone to triple the port's capacity and create, Georgian officials said, the Dubai of the Caucasus.
Friday, August 29, 2008
Up, in the sky: Black helicopters startle Portlanders
The sudden appearance of black helicopters carrying apparently armed men and buzzing around Portland generated dozens of calls to emergency dispatchers and the mayor's office from residents and visitors.
It's nothing to worry about, city and federal officials insisted Tuesday. And, by the way, you might see more of the same tonight.
The four MH-6 helicopters are part of a joint training exercise for U.S. Army and Navy special operations forces that had been planned for months, according to the U.S. Defense Department.
It's nothing to worry about, city and federal officials insisted Tuesday. And, by the way, you might see more of the same tonight.
The four MH-6 helicopters are part of a joint training exercise for U.S. Army and Navy special operations forces that had been planned for months, according to the U.S. Defense Department.
Galilee drying up, Syria-Israel claim shoreline
The next round of the fledgling talks between Israel and Syria are due to begin and, according to Walid al-Moualem, the foreign minister in Damascus, control of the Sea's shoreline is a bone of contention.
Only a two-page 'note' governs U.S. military in Afghanistan
Although President Bush pledged in a 2005 declaration signed with Afghan President Hamid Karzai to "develop appropriate arrangements and agreements" formally spelling out the terms of the U.S. troop presence and other bilateral ties, no such agreements were drawn up.
But after a U.S.-led airstrike last week that United Nations and Afghan officials have said killed up to 90 civilians — most of them children — Karzai has publicly called for a review of all foreign forces in Afghanistan and a formal "status of forces agreement," along the lines of an accord being negotiated between the United States and Iraq.
The prospect of codifying the ad hoc rules under which U.S. forces have operated in Afghanistan since late 2001 sends shudders through the Bush administration,
But after a U.S.-led airstrike last week that United Nations and Afghan officials have said killed up to 90 civilians — most of them children — Karzai has publicly called for a review of all foreign forces in Afghanistan and a formal "status of forces agreement," along the lines of an accord being negotiated between the United States and Iraq.
The prospect of codifying the ad hoc rules under which U.S. forces have operated in Afghanistan since late 2001 sends shudders through the Bush administration,
Catholic schools in India protest
Thousands of Catholic schools are shut across India in protest against continuing anti-Christian violence in the eastern state of Orissa. . . .
Over 3000 police have been deployed but attacks on churches continue. Hundreds of Christians have fled their homes.
Over 3000 police have been deployed but attacks on churches continue. Hundreds of Christians have fled their homes.
Thursday, August 28, 2008
U.S. radar system deployed in Israel a first
The radar deployment will have historical significance: the first American base on Israeli territory.
Israel has always had reservations about such a possibility and preferred to "defend itself by itself" and retain maximum freedom of action. . . .
In the current circumstances, the radar deployment, planned to take place in the coming months, has two possible meanings.
One: a signal to Israel not to attack Iran. . . .
The second meaning is less likely, but should not be ignored: The United States is planning to attack Iran, or to back an Israeli strike, and it is preparing Israel's defenses against a possible Iranian response.
Israel has always had reservations about such a possibility and preferred to "defend itself by itself" and retain maximum freedom of action. . . .
In the current circumstances, the radar deployment, planned to take place in the coming months, has two possible meanings.
One: a signal to Israel not to attack Iran. . . .
The second meaning is less likely, but should not be ignored: The United States is planning to attack Iran, or to back an Israeli strike, and it is preparing Israel's defenses against a possible Iranian response.
Maliki picks a date with destiny
Generations of Iraqi leaders have succumbed to the "Iraqi curse" - dying violent deaths while in office or soon after leaving it. Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki's date with destiny could well be determined by his present fixation on another date — when United States troops should permanently leave his country.
This week, Maliki reiterated that he had agreed with the United States that all 145,000 American troops would withdraw from Iraq by the end of 2010. The negotiations are for a Status of Forces Agreement to govern relations between American troops and the Iraqis after the United Nations mandate expires this December.
Maliki said there would be no security agreement with the US without an unconditional timetable for withdrawal, . . .
This week, Maliki reiterated that he had agreed with the United States that all 145,000 American troops would withdraw from Iraq by the end of 2010. The negotiations are for a Status of Forces Agreement to govern relations between American troops and the Iraqis after the United Nations mandate expires this December.
Maliki said there would be no security agreement with the US without an unconditional timetable for withdrawal, . . .
Switzerland frees $60 million in Zardari’s assets
Mr. Zardari’s accounts were frozen in 1997 at the request of Pakistani authorities investigating allegations that Mr. Zardari had received kickbacks while he was a government official and his wife, Benazir Bhutto, was prime minister.
Peaceful protests in Kashmir alter equation for India
Political analysts and human rights activists say the Indian government has failed to adjust its strategy to deal with a separatist movement committed to nonviolence. Some Indian political leaders, even those who disagree with the push for Kashmir's independence, are beginning to wonder whether India's democracy is mature enough to handle such widespread but peaceful dissent.
China hails $3bln oil deal with Iraq
Becoming the first foreign firm to enter such an agreement since the end of Saddam Hussein's regime, state-owned China National Petroleum Corp. (CNPC) this week won the right to develop the Al-Ahdab oil field south of Baghdad. . . .
The agreement, reached during a visit to China by Iraqi Oil Minister Hussain al-Shahristani, revives a 1997 contract that granted China exploration rights to the Al-Ahdab oil field in the province of Wassit.
The agreement, reached during a visit to China by Iraqi Oil Minister Hussain al-Shahristani, revives a 1997 contract that granted China exploration rights to the Al-Ahdab oil field in the province of Wassit.
Wednesday, August 27, 2008
Front-runner in Pakistan has been ill, report says
Asif Ali Zardari, who is favored to win the presidency in elections here next week, filed medical records in a London courtroom that stated that he suffered from a range of mental illnesses, according to an account in The Financial Times on Tuesday.
Mr. Zardari, the widower of former Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto who served more than eight years in prison in Pakistan on corruption charges that were dismissed this year under an amnesty agreement, suffered from dementia, major depression disorder and post-traumatic stress disorder, the newspaper reported that the medical records said.
Mr. Zardari, the widower of former Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto who served more than eight years in prison in Pakistan on corruption charges that were dismissed this year under an amnesty agreement, suffered from dementia, major depression disorder and post-traumatic stress disorder, the newspaper reported that the medical records said.
Will Iraq disintegrate if the United States withdraws its troops?
The United States and Iraq are close to agreeing a security accord under which the US would pull its combat troops out of Iraqi cities, towns and villages on 30 June 2009, and out of Iraq by 31 December 2011. This will only happen if a joint Iraqi-American ministerial committee agrees that security in Iraq has improved to the point where the half million strong Iraqi security forces can take over.
Tuesday, August 26, 2008
Russia recognizes breakaway Georgian regions
Russia formally recognized the breakaway Georgian territories at the heart of its war with Georgia on Tuesday, drawing immediate condemnation from the West as the United States dispatched a military ship bearing aid to a port city still patrolled by Russian troops.
Afghan variable in Asian geopolitics
American strategy, camouflaged as a methodology for humanitarian, anti-terrorist intervention, is to control the main urban centres of the country - Kabul in order to lock the Pakistani North West; Kandahar as a door to Iranian and Pakistani Baluchistan, and Herat as base to act against Iran. . . .
Some observers feel that the US-British leadership would not be averse, depending upon the evolution of the conflict, to the secession of the tribal areas from Pakistan if such a new country could be used as a pad for NATO military facilities. An independent, “pro-Western” Baluchistan, stretching across the present territories of Pakistan and Iran is included in the plans for the Greater Middle East.
Some observers feel that the US-British leadership would not be averse, depending upon the evolution of the conflict, to the secession of the tribal areas from Pakistan if such a new country could be used as a pad for NATO military facilities. An independent, “pro-Western” Baluchistan, stretching across the present territories of Pakistan and Iran is included in the plans for the Greater Middle East.
Russian threat to Nato supply route in Afghanistan
Russia played a trump card in its strategic poker game with the West yesterday by threatening to suspend an agreement allowing Nato to take supplies and equipment to Afghanistan through Russia and Central Asia.
The agreement was struck at a Nato summit in April to provide an alternative supply route to the road between the Afghan capital and the Pakistani border, . . .
The agreement was struck at a Nato summit in April to provide an alternative supply route to the road between the Afghan capital and the Pakistani border, . . .
Haniyeh: Arrival of blockade-busting boats spells end of Gaza siege
Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh on Saturday welcomed two boats that sailed from Cyprus to the Gaza Strip in efforts to break the Israeli-imposed blockade on the Palestinian territory, saying that the arrival of the boats signaled the end of the siege.
The 70-foot (21-meter) Free Gaza and 60-foot (18-meter) Liberty left the southern port of Larnaca about 10 a.m. Friday for the estimated 30-hour trip. The activists planned to deliver 200 hearing aids to a Palestinian charity for children and hand out 5,000 balloons.
The 46 activists from 14 countries belonging to the U.S.-based group Free Gaza include an 81-year-old Catholic nun and the sister-in-law of Mideast envoy and former British Prime Minister Tony Blair.
The 70-foot (21-meter) Free Gaza and 60-foot (18-meter) Liberty left the southern port of Larnaca about 10 a.m. Friday for the estimated 30-hour trip. The activists planned to deliver 200 hearing aids to a Palestinian charity for children and hand out 5,000 balloons.
The 46 activists from 14 countries belonging to the U.S.-based group Free Gaza include an 81-year-old Catholic nun and the sister-in-law of Mideast envoy and former British Prime Minister Tony Blair.
UN finds evidence 90 civilians dead in US-led strikes
A United Nations team has found "convincing evidence" that 90 civilians, including 60 children, were killed in US-led air strikes last week, the body's representative in Afghanistan said Tuesday.
Monday, August 25, 2008
Sunday, August 24, 2008
Freedom is the only thing the Kashmiri wants
The Indian government's worst nightmare has come true. Having declared that the militant movement has been crushed, it is now faced with a non-violent mass protest, but not the kind it knows how to manage.
This one is nourished by people's memory of years of repression in which tens of thousands have been killed, thousands have been 'disappeared', hundreds of thousands tortured, injured, raped and humiliated. . . .
At the heart of it all is a moral question. Does any government have the right to take away people's liberty with military force?
India needs azadi [freedom] from Kashmir just as much - if not more - than Kashmir needs azadi from India.
This one is nourished by people's memory of years of repression in which tens of thousands have been killed, thousands have been 'disappeared', hundreds of thousands tortured, injured, raped and humiliated. . . .
At the heart of it all is a moral question. Does any government have the right to take away people's liberty with military force?
India needs azadi [freedom] from Kashmir just as much - if not more - than Kashmir needs azadi from India.
'Mr 10 Per Cent' puts jail behind him and bids to lead Pakistan
Less than a year ago Asif Ali Zardari appeared to be yesterday's man. Seemingly sidelined by his wife, Benazir Bhutto, and her party, facing a series of corruption charges and bearing the nickname "Mr 10 Per Cent", it appeared that his days of power and influence were over.
Now he is back, as never before. Having been catapulted to the forefront of Pakistan's political maelstrom by the assassination of his wife, Mr Zardari is poised to become his country's head of state.
Now he is back, as never before. Having been catapulted to the forefront of Pakistan's political maelstrom by the assassination of his wife, Mr Zardari is poised to become his country's head of state.
Kashmir under indefinite curfew
Thousands of troops have been drafted in to patrol Srinigar's empty streets.
The strikers want a referendum which they hope will lead to self-determination for the region.
The strikers want a referendum which they hope will lead to self-determination for the region.
U.S. debates going after militants in Pakistan
The ongoing disarray among Pakistan's new civilian leadership, including its refusal to accept a U.S. military training mission for the Pakistani army, has led to intense frustration within the Pentagon and reignited a debate over whether the U.S. should act on its own against extremists operating in Pakistan's northwestern tribal regions.
VP choice Biden unpopular in Iraq for autonomy plan
Senator Joe Biden may be one of the only U.S. politicians that can get Iraq's feuding Sunni, Shi'ite and Kurdish politicians to agree. But not in a good way.
Across racial and religious boundaries, Iraqi politicians on Saturday bemoaned Democratic presidential contender Barack Obama's choice of running mate, known in Iraq as the author of a 2006 plan to divide the country into ethnic and sectarian enclaves.
Across racial and religious boundaries, Iraqi politicians on Saturday bemoaned Democratic presidential contender Barack Obama's choice of running mate, known in Iraq as the author of a 2006 plan to divide the country into ethnic and sectarian enclaves.
Saturday, August 23, 2008
Why Obama–Biden could mean more of the same
In many ways, Barack Obama’s approach to Iraq is strikingly similar to that of the Bush administration and John McCain.
. . . the real context of the upcoming Democratic convention is that “the surge” in Iraq is not working at all. Despite measurable successes in bringing the levels of violence down, the American-sponsored political system in Iraq is actually more dysfunctional than ever, and incapable of delivering the results that both Iraqis and Americans are looking for. Perhaps the best evidence is the fact that it is now Washington’s own darlings in Iraq and their pet projects that stand in the way of progress, as seen in the vice-presidential vetoes this year against the provincial powers law and the provincial elections law. There is in fact a cross-sectarian majority in the Iraqi parliament that wants to have early elections and power-sharing in Kirkuk, but Washington’s allies among the Kurds and the Islamic Supreme Council of Iraq (ISCI) keep blocking progress towards national reconciliation and a more sustainable political system. . . .
Biden’s website specifically devoted to his soft partition schemes, www.planforiraq.com, was quietly shut down – at this site, Biden’s rhetoric had consistently focused on a tripartite Iraq to the very end.
. . . the real context of the upcoming Democratic convention is that “the surge” in Iraq is not working at all. Despite measurable successes in bringing the levels of violence down, the American-sponsored political system in Iraq is actually more dysfunctional than ever, and incapable of delivering the results that both Iraqis and Americans are looking for. Perhaps the best evidence is the fact that it is now Washington’s own darlings in Iraq and their pet projects that stand in the way of progress, as seen in the vice-presidential vetoes this year against the provincial powers law and the provincial elections law. There is in fact a cross-sectarian majority in the Iraqi parliament that wants to have early elections and power-sharing in Kirkuk, but Washington’s allies among the Kurds and the Islamic Supreme Council of Iraq (ISCI) keep blocking progress towards national reconciliation and a more sustainable political system. . . .
Biden’s website specifically devoted to his soft partition schemes, www.planforiraq.com, was quietly shut down – at this site, Biden’s rhetoric had consistently focused on a tripartite Iraq to the very end.
A new rush to spy
There is apparently no limit to the Bush administration’s desire to invade Americans’ privacy in the name of national security. According to members of Congress, Attorney General Michael Mukasey is preparing to give the F.B.I. broad new authority to investigate Americans — without any clear basis for suspicion that they are committing a crime.
Opening the door to sweeping investigations of this kind would be an invitation to the government to spy on people based on their race, religion or political activities.
Opening the door to sweeping investigations of this kind would be an invitation to the government to spy on people based on their race, religion or political activities.
Pakistan is at last finding its voice. The US would be wise not to gag it
Given the bleak economic and security situation in Pakistan, it is easy to forget that 2008 has also been a year of positive events for the country. February's elections proved that it is possible to hold free and fair polls in Pakistan, that in such circumstances undemocratic leaders such as Musharraf and his allies will be trounced, and (yet again) that the notion of broad public support for the parties of the religious right is a myth.
Afghanistan: 76 civilians die in airstrike, ministry claims
US-led coalition forces killed 76 Afghan civilians in western Afghanistan yesterday, most of them children, the country's Interior Ministry said.
Friday, August 22, 2008
Militants ready for Pakistan's war
Pakistan has two options. The country can give in to militancy or it can conduct military operations against it, influential advisor to the Interior Ministry, Rahman Malik, said on Thursday. And the government is not going to negotiate with militants, he added.
His remarks follow a suicide bomb attack outside the country's main defense industry complex at Wah, 30 kilometers northwest of the capital Islamabad, which killed as many as 100 people. The Pakistani Taliban immediately claimed responsibility, saying the attack was in response to the military's recent air bombardment of Bajaur Agency, which led to the displacement of 250,000 people.
His remarks follow a suicide bomb attack outside the country's main defense industry complex at Wah, 30 kilometers northwest of the capital Islamabad, which killed as many as 100 people. The Pakistani Taliban immediately claimed responsibility, saying the attack was in response to the military's recent air bombardment of Bajaur Agency, which led to the displacement of 250,000 people.
Iraq takes aim at leaders of U.S.-tied Sunni groups
The Shiite-dominated government in Iraq is driving out many leaders of Sunni citizen patrols, the groups of former insurgents who joined the American payroll and have been a major pillar in the decline in violence around the nation.
In restive Diyala Province, United States and Iraqi military officials say there were orders to arrest hundreds of members of what is known as the Awakening movement as part of large security operations by the Iraqi military.
In restive Diyala Province, United States and Iraqi military officials say there were orders to arrest hundreds of members of what is known as the Awakening movement as part of large security operations by the Iraqi military.
Syria seeks weapons deal with Russia amid 'Cold War' ripples
The ripples from a short and brutal war in the Caucasus spread out to encompass the Middle East yesterday, when the Syrian president rekindled a strategic alliance with Moscow that had been neglected since the Cold War.
The consequences of Russia's six-day war in Georgia have spiralled outwards every day since a French-brokered ceasefire was signed last week.
The consequences of Russia's six-day war in Georgia have spiralled outwards every day since a French-brokered ceasefire was signed last week.
What Israel lost in the Georgia war
Most of the equipment used by the Georgian military comes from the U.S. and other suppliers. Still, Israeli companies had been sufficiently involved in supplying specialized equipment and advanced tactical training to the Georgian military that the connection — and Russia's perception of it — created a ripple of anxiety in Israeli government circles. . . .
Israel's strategic priority now is countering the threat it sees in Iran's nuclear program, and on that front, Russian cooperation is essential. If the Israelis are to achieve their objective of forcing Iran to end uranium enrichment through diplomatic coercion, they will need Russian support for escalating U.N. sanctions — a course of action for which Russia has thus far shown little enthusiasm. And if Israel were to opt for trying to destroy Tehran's nuclear facilities through a series of air strikes, then the presence of the sophisticated Russian S-300 missile system in Iran would considerably raise the risk to Israeli pilots. Unfortunately for Israel, however, there may be little it can do to shape Moscow's Iran policy for the simple reason that Israel is not a major factor in Russia's strategic outlook. Moscow's actions on Iran are less likely to be determined by Israel supplying a few drones to Georgia than they are to be shaped, for example, by the deployment over extreme Russian objections of U.S. interceptor missiles on Polish soil.
Israel's strategic priority now is countering the threat it sees in Iran's nuclear program, and on that front, Russian cooperation is essential. If the Israelis are to achieve their objective of forcing Iran to end uranium enrichment through diplomatic coercion, they will need Russian support for escalating U.N. sanctions — a course of action for which Russia has thus far shown little enthusiasm. And if Israel were to opt for trying to destroy Tehran's nuclear facilities through a series of air strikes, then the presence of the sophisticated Russian S-300 missile system in Iran would considerably raise the risk to Israeli pilots. Unfortunately for Israel, however, there may be little it can do to shape Moscow's Iran policy for the simple reason that Israel is not a major factor in Russia's strategic outlook. Moscow's actions on Iran are less likely to be determined by Israel supplying a few drones to Georgia than they are to be shaped, for example, by the deployment over extreme Russian objections of U.S. interceptor missiles on Polish soil.
Iraq still demanding withdrawal date, right to try U.S. troops
Foreign Minister Hoshyar Zebari told reporters that a draft was complete and would be referred to the executive council on Friday.
If the council agrees to the draft, it will move to the Political Council for National Security before going to the Iraqi parliament, which must approve the agreement before the U.N. mandate expires.
If the council agrees to the draft, it will move to the Political Council for National Security before going to the Iraqi parliament, which must approve the agreement before the U.N. mandate expires.
Thursday, August 21, 2008
What really happened to 7 World Trade Center?
Today, Shyam Sunder, lead investigator at NIST, presented NIST's findings at a press briefing. A draft "Final Report on the Collapse of World Trade Center Building 7" was made available on the Internet later in the day.
NIST claims that the collapse was due to "some structural damage to the southwest perimeter" by falling debris, and to "ordinary building content fires" on floors 7 through 9, and 11 through 13. This caused "buckling of a critical interior column", followed by "progressive collapse".
It should be noted that engineers have routinely designed structures to withstand expansion of steel members due to fire or other sources of heat.
Architects & Engineers for 9/11 Truth, with 400 plus members, argue that NIST does not address why the collapse exhibits none of the characteristics of destruction by fire, such as slow onset with large visible deformations, and symmetrical collapse - which would cause the building to fall to the side most damaged by the fire.
NIST also does not address why the collapse does exhibit all the characteristics of a classic controlled demolition with explosives such as rapid onset of collapse, sounds of explosions at ground floor — a full second prior to collapse, symmetrical collapse — through the path of greatest resistance — at nearly free-fall speed — with the steel skeleton broken up for shipment, massive volume of expanding pyroclastic dust clouds, tons of molten metal found by Controlled Demolition, Inc., the chemical signature of thermate (a high tech incendiary) found in slag, solidified molten metal, and dust samples by Prof. Jones, and rapid oxidation and intergranular melting on structural steel samples examined by FEMA.
When I worked for the U.S. Department of Energy, it would have been highly unusual that a report such as NIST's were presented to the news media without it first being presented to outside peer review, and often with both supporting and dissenting views included in an appendix.
NIST refuses to release the photos and videos upon which they base their analysis.
NIST claims that the collapse was due to "some structural damage to the southwest perimeter" by falling debris, and to "ordinary building content fires" on floors 7 through 9, and 11 through 13. This caused "buckling of a critical interior column", followed by "progressive collapse".
It should be noted that engineers have routinely designed structures to withstand expansion of steel members due to fire or other sources of heat.
Architects & Engineers for 9/11 Truth, with 400 plus members, argue that NIST does not address why the collapse exhibits none of the characteristics of destruction by fire, such as slow onset with large visible deformations, and symmetrical collapse - which would cause the building to fall to the side most damaged by the fire.
NIST also does not address why the collapse does exhibit all the characteristics of a classic controlled demolition with explosives such as rapid onset of collapse, sounds of explosions at ground floor — a full second prior to collapse, symmetrical collapse — through the path of greatest resistance — at nearly free-fall speed — with the steel skeleton broken up for shipment, massive volume of expanding pyroclastic dust clouds, tons of molten metal found by Controlled Demolition, Inc., the chemical signature of thermate (a high tech incendiary) found in slag, solidified molten metal, and dust samples by Prof. Jones, and rapid oxidation and intergranular melting on structural steel samples examined by FEMA.
When I worked for the U.S. Department of Energy, it would have been highly unusual that a report such as NIST's were presented to the news media without it first being presented to outside peer review, and often with both supporting and dissenting views included in an appendix.
NIST refuses to release the photos and videos upon which they base their analysis.
On the brink of peace in the Middle East?
The positive developments include the Israeli-Hamas ceasefire, the relaxation of sanctions on Gaza, and the Israeli-Hezbollah prisoner exchange. The two key Palestinian factions, Fatah and Hamas, have made some efforts at reconciliation. Meanwhile, the government crisis has been resolved in Lebanon, and there has been an uptick in Syria-Lebanon relations. Indirect talks have also intensified between Israel and Syria. Even in Iraq, despite the tragic misadventures of invasion and occupation, the security and political situations show signs of improvement, and analysts in the region are beginning to look toward a post-U.S. occupation period.
Philippine autonomy deal scrapped
The Philippine government has pulled out of a controversial autonomy deal with Muslim separatist rebels in the south, following days of fighting.
A presidential spokeswoman described the move as a "painful step", but said leaders were still open to talks.
The government had agreed to expand an existing Muslim autonomous zone in a bid to end decades of violence.
But Christian communities opposed the deal and when the Supreme Court blocked it, the rebels launched attacks.
A presidential spokeswoman described the move as a "painful step", but said leaders were still open to talks.
The government had agreed to expand an existing Muslim autonomous zone in a bid to end decades of violence.
But Christian communities opposed the deal and when the Supreme Court blocked it, the rebels launched attacks.
Georgia separatists rise up under Russian protection
Georgia faced the growing likelihood of dismemberment Thursday as Moscow-backed separatists hardened demands for independence and Russian troops retained an iron grip.
Draft is set to keep U.S. forces on Iraqi soil
Iraqi and American negotiators have agreed to a draft of a long-awaited security agreement to govern the presence of American troops in Iraq, . . .
The main sticking points, in fact, are also the most delicate: setting a timeline for American troops to leave and declaring whether American forces would be granted immunity from Iraqi prosecution.
In Baghdad, Hoshyar Zebari, Iraq’s foreign minister, said that the text of a draft had been agreed upon by negotiators on the technical and legal teams who had worked on it since March 11. But he cautioned that this fell short of a final agreement because it had yet to be approved by the political leadership in either country, including Prime Minister Nuri Kamal al-Maliki.
The main sticking points, in fact, are also the most delicate: setting a timeline for American troops to leave and declaring whether American forces would be granted immunity from Iraqi prosecution.
In Baghdad, Hoshyar Zebari, Iraq’s foreign minister, said that the text of a draft had been agreed upon by negotiators on the technical and legal teams who had worked on it since March 11. But he cautioned that this fell short of a final agreement because it had yet to be approved by the political leadership in either country, including Prime Minister Nuri Kamal al-Maliki.
Wednesday, August 20, 2008
Nader predicts Obama to pick Clinton
“I don’t think he’s that dumb,” said Nader, commenting on widespread speculation that Obama’s choices are down to Sens. Joe Biden, Evan Bayh, or Virginia Gov. Tim Kaine.
The smart pick, according to Nader, is Hillary Rodham Clinton. . . .
“He just has to swallow hard and do what JFK did” in picking rival Lyndon Johnson in 1960, . . .
The smart pick, according to Nader, is Hillary Rodham Clinton. . . .
“He just has to swallow hard and do what JFK did” in picking rival Lyndon Johnson in 1960, . . .
The toll of the war in Georgia's North
But a trip here by reporters, who were accompanying the first humanitarian aid convoy to reach outlying areas, also undermined some of the most incendiary allegations advanced by Georgian officials. Mereti, site of the alleged abductions, is the same village where government officials had recently said three local women were raped and murdered. At least eight residents said Tuesday that no such attacks had occurred.
Georgians living in several of the villages said the Russians occupying their land had treated them well, done nothing to encourage them to leave and offered the only protection available from the South Ossetian militias they feared most.
Georgians living in several of the villages said the Russians occupying their land had treated them well, done nothing to encourage them to leave and offered the only protection available from the South Ossetian militias they feared most.
Deadlock and death in inauspicious start to Pakistan post-Musharraf
Post-Musharraf Pakistan got off to an inauspicious start yesterday, after a meeting of the coalition government resulted in deadlock over the key issue of the judiciary, and Taliban militants demonstrated that their violent campaign would continue with a suicide bombing that killed at least 27.
Pervez Musharraf resigned as Pakistan's president on Monday in order to avoid impeachment following a series of crises, starting with the sacking in March 2007 of the country's chief justice. . . .
Many believe that Asif Zardari, the leader of the Pakistan People's party, is wary of having Chaudhry standing in judgment over his administration.
Pervez Musharraf resigned as Pakistan's president on Monday in order to avoid impeachment following a series of crises, starting with the sacking in March 2007 of the country's chief justice. . . .
Many believe that Asif Zardari, the leader of the Pakistan People's party, is wary of having Chaudhry standing in judgment over his administration.
Poland signs missile shield deal with U.S.
The United States and Poland on Wednesday signed a formal agreement to base U.S. ballistic missiles on Polish soil, a move that has angered Russia and stoked regional tensions over the territorial conflict in Georgia.
Big three block Iran attack
The United States is in a huge foreign policy muddle in the Middle East. It wants to dominate and control Iran, but it requires the support of the world community to accomplish its aims. Diplomacy and sanctions require only a low level of support. On the other hand, to launch a military attack or green-light one by Israel, the United States needs far more backing. . . .
Israeli officials acknowledge that it would be difficult to launch such an attack without approval from Russia, China, and India, something that the United States would have to lobby those nations to achieve. The chances at present are extremely slim that any of the three will acquiesce.
U.S. condemnation of Russia's military action to defend the breakaway region of South Ossetia, combined with the determination of the Bush administration to install missile systems in Poland and the Czech Republic, virtually guarantee that Russia will not do anything to help the United States foment more violence in its neighborhood.
Israeli officials acknowledge that it would be difficult to launch such an attack without approval from Russia, China, and India, something that the United States would have to lobby those nations to achieve. The chances at present are extremely slim that any of the three will acquiesce.
U.S. condemnation of Russia's military action to defend the breakaway region of South Ossetia, combined with the determination of the Bush administration to install missile systems in Poland and the Czech Republic, virtually guarantee that Russia will not do anything to help the United States foment more violence in its neighborhood.
Resurgent Taleban kill 10 French troops and assault US base
The Taleban have staged two of their most spectacular operations in Afghanistan, killing ten French troops in a battle just outside Kabul and launching a frontal assault on a big US base near the Pakistani border.
The attacks, which began on Monday and continued yesterday, are the latest in a series of dramatic raids by the militant group, including a prison break in Kandahar and the bombing of the Indian Embassy in Kabul, suggesting a tactical shift from multiple skirmishes to bold offensives.
The attacks, which began on Monday and continued yesterday, are the latest in a series of dramatic raids by the militant group, including a prison break in Kandahar and the bombing of the Indian Embassy in Kabul, suggesting a tactical shift from multiple skirmishes to bold offensives.
Why Bush will pardon AIPAC for espionage
Both the Republican and Democratic parties desperately need this case to go away long before the next president is sworn in. From their standpoint, it would be unseemly to have U.S. officials subpoenaed and actually put on the witness stand to reveal how Middle East policy is really crafted in the height of an election season dominated by narratives of hope, change, and restoring integrity. . . .
If President George W. Bush waits to pardon Weissman and Rosen until shortly before leaving office, it would be too late for AIPAC's most precious asset: its reputation as an entity engaged in lawful activities. The administration also has an overriding self-preservation interest in seeing this case vanish: it is the singular judicial process for determining whether AIPAC goes too far in agitating for wars – whether in Iraq, Lebanon, or Iran. . . . Pardoning AIPAC would mean that Col. Lawrence Franklin, a member of Douglas Feith's infamous Pentagon policy shop and a crucial witness for the prosecution, walks free.
If President George W. Bush waits to pardon Weissman and Rosen until shortly before leaving office, it would be too late for AIPAC's most precious asset: its reputation as an entity engaged in lawful activities. The administration also has an overriding self-preservation interest in seeing this case vanish: it is the singular judicial process for determining whether AIPAC goes too far in agitating for wars – whether in Iraq, Lebanon, or Iran. . . . Pardoning AIPAC would mean that Col. Lawrence Franklin, a member of Douglas Feith's infamous Pentagon policy shop and a crucial witness for the prosecution, walks free.
Tuesday, August 19, 2008
Journalist says U.S. target was Al-Jazeera
After more than six years as a prisoner of the United States, former TV cameraman Sami al-Hajj is back at work with Al-Jazeera, the largest broadcaster in the Arab world, a thorn in the side of most Arab governments - and, by most indications, a target of deep hostility from the Bush administration.
Al-Hajj, 39, was the longest-held journalist in U.S. custody at the time of his release in May, and the only one ever held at the U.S. naval base at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba. Military authorities repeatedly accused him of being a terrorist in league with al Qaeda, then released him without charges.
Al-Hajj, 39, was the longest-held journalist in U.S. custody at the time of his release in May, and the only one ever held at the U.S. naval base at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba. Military authorities repeatedly accused him of being a terrorist in league with al Qaeda, then released him without charges.
Who started Cold War II?
The American people should be eternally grateful to Old Europe for having spiked the Bush-McCain plan to bring Georgia into NATO.
Had Georgia been in NATO when Mikheil Saakashvili invaded South Ossetia, we would be eyeball to eyeball with Russia, facing war in the Caucasus, where Moscow's superiority is as great as U.S. superiority in the Caribbean during the Cuban missile crisis.
If the Russia-Georgia war proves nothing else, it is the insanity of giving erratic hotheads in volatile nations the power to drag the United States into war.
Had Georgia been in NATO when Mikheil Saakashvili invaded South Ossetia, we would be eyeball to eyeball with Russia, facing war in the Caucasus, where Moscow's superiority is as great as U.S. superiority in the Caribbean during the Cuban missile crisis.
If the Russia-Georgia war proves nothing else, it is the insanity of giving erratic hotheads in volatile nations the power to drag the United States into war.
How a comedian became the most influential voice in American politics
The latest sign of how far the show and its host have come from their edgy early days will come at the Democratic Convention in Denver, where he and his reporters are fully accredited.
When asked last year by the Pew Research Centre to name the journalist they most admired, Americans placed the fake news anchor Mr Stewart at number four on the list. He was tied with such luminaries as Tom Brokaw of NBC, Dan Rather, then of CBS, and Anderson Cooper of CNN.
When asked last year by the Pew Research Centre to name the journalist they most admired, Americans placed the fake news anchor Mr Stewart at number four on the list. He was tied with such luminaries as Tom Brokaw of NBC, Dan Rather, then of CBS, and Anderson Cooper of CNN.
Kurdish control of Kirkuk creates a powder keg in Iraq
Of all the political problems facing Iraq today, perhaps none is so intractable as the fate of Kirkuk, a city of 900,000 that Kurds, Arabs and Turkmens all claim as their own. The explosive quarrel over the city is one major barrier to creating stable political structures in the rest of Iraq. . . .
This month, legislation in the national Parliament to set the groundwork for crucial provincial elections collapsed in a bitter dispute over Kirkuk, as Arabs and Turkmens demanded that the Kurds be forced to cede some of their power here. But with the Kurds having already consolidated their authority in Kirkuk, there seemed little chance — short of a military intervention — of that happening.
This month, legislation in the national Parliament to set the groundwork for crucial provincial elections collapsed in a bitter dispute over Kirkuk, as Arabs and Turkmens demanded that the Kurds be forced to cede some of their power here. But with the Kurds having already consolidated their authority in Kirkuk, there seemed little chance — short of a military intervention — of that happening.
Nukes unlikely to be affected by Musharraf leaving
Experts say a 10-member committee, and not just the president, makes decisions on how to use them and only a complete meltdown in governance — still a distant prospect in Pakistan — could put the atomic bomb in the hands of extremists.
"Pakistan's nuclear assets are not one man's property," said Maria Sultan, a defense analyst and director at the London-based South Asian Strategic Stability Institute.
"Pakistan's nuclear assets are not one man's property," said Maria Sultan, a defense analyst and director at the London-based South Asian Strategic Stability Institute.
Credit crunch may take out large US bank warns former IMF chief
“The US is not out of the woods. I think the financial crisis is at the halfway point, perhaps. I would even go further to say the worst is to come,” Prof Rogoff said at a conference in Singapore.
In an ominous warning, he added: “We’re not just going to see mid-sized banks go under in the next few months, we’re going to see a whopper, we’re going to see a big one — one of the big investment banks or big banks,” he said.
In an ominous warning, he added: “We’re not just going to see mid-sized banks go under in the next few months, we’re going to see a whopper, we’re going to see a big one — one of the big investment banks or big banks,” he said.
Monday, August 18, 2008
Kashmir demonstrators in UN march
Thousands have gathered in Srinagar city in Indian-administered Kashmir, demanding that the UN recognise their right to self-determination.
Separatist leaders plan to submit a memorandum to the UN office in the city outlining their demands.
More than 21 people died last week in the Muslim-majority Kashmir valley during police firing on protesters.
The unrest began two months ago when a small piece of land was awarded to a trust running a Hindu shrine.
This provoked Muslim anger. The government then rescinded its decision, triggering furious counter-protests from Hindus in Jammu.
Separatist leaders plan to submit a memorandum to the UN office in the city outlining their demands.
More than 21 people died last week in the Muslim-majority Kashmir valley during police firing on protesters.
The unrest began two months ago when a small piece of land was awarded to a trust running a Hindu shrine.
This provoked Muslim anger. The government then rescinded its decision, triggering furious counter-protests from Hindus in Jammu.
The Afghan women jailed for being victims of rape
In Lashkar Gah, the majority of female prisoners are serving 20-year sentences for being forced to have sex. . . .
Earlier this year a report by Womankind, Taking Stock: Afghan Women and Girls Seven Years On, revealed that violent attacks against women, usually in a domestic setting, are at epidemic proportions – 87 per cent of women complain of such abuse, and half of it is sexual. More than 60 per cent of marriages are forced and, despite laws banning the practice, 57 per cent of brides are under 16. Many of these girls are offered as restitution for a crime or as debt settlement. Afghanistan is the only country in the world with a higher suicide rate among women than men.
Earlier this year a report by Womankind, Taking Stock: Afghan Women and Girls Seven Years On, revealed that violent attacks against women, usually in a domestic setting, are at epidemic proportions – 87 per cent of women complain of such abuse, and half of it is sexual. More than 60 per cent of marriages are forced and, despite laws banning the practice, 57 per cent of brides are under 16. Many of these girls are offered as restitution for a crime or as debt settlement. Afghanistan is the only country in the world with a higher suicide rate among women than men.
Growing clamour to remove the Hague prosecutor who wants Sudanese president arrested
A coalition of human rights lawyers, academics and leading non-governmental organisations (NGOs) has begun openly to criticise the competence and conduct of the prosecutor of the international criminal court, the Argentinian Luis Moreno-Ocampo. Their concerns follow his announcement last month that it is to seek an arrest warrant for genocide against the Sudanese president, and the collapse of the five-year-old court's first trial.
Musharraf to resign as President of Pakistan
Bowing to pressure from Pakistan's newly-elected civilian government, Pakistani President Pervez Musharraf, once a top U.S. ally, said Monday that he will resign from office immediately, effectively ending nearly nine years of military rule in the country under his leadership.
Sunday, August 17, 2008
Georgia: This time, the world is not buying it
For almost 8 years the US media has served as Ministry of Propaganda for a war criminal regime. Americans incapable of thinking for themselves, reading between the lines, or accessing foreign media on the Internet have been brainwashed. . . .
The gullibility and unconcern of the American people has had many victims. There are 1.25 million dead Iraqis. There are 4 million displaced Iraqis. . . .
Only this time, the rest of the world didn't buy it. The many years of lies – 9/11, Iraqi weapons of mass destruction, al Qaeda connections, yellowcake, anthrax attack, Iranian nukes, "the United States doesn't torture," the bombings of weddings, funerals, and children's soccer games, Abu Ghraib, renditions, Guantanamo, various fabricated "terrorist plots," the determined assault on civil liberties – have taken their toll on American credibility. No one outside America any longer believes the US media or the US government.
The rest of the world reported the facts – an assault on Russian civilians by American- and Israeli-trained and -equipped Georgian troops.
The Bush Regime, overcome by hubris, expected Russia to accept this act of American hegemony. But the Russians did not, and the Georgian military was sent fleeing for its life.
The gullibility and unconcern of the American people has had many victims. There are 1.25 million dead Iraqis. There are 4 million displaced Iraqis. . . .
Only this time, the rest of the world didn't buy it. The many years of lies – 9/11, Iraqi weapons of mass destruction, al Qaeda connections, yellowcake, anthrax attack, Iranian nukes, "the United States doesn't torture," the bombings of weddings, funerals, and children's soccer games, Abu Ghraib, renditions, Guantanamo, various fabricated "terrorist plots," the determined assault on civil liberties – have taken their toll on American credibility. No one outside America any longer believes the US media or the US government.
The rest of the world reported the facts – an assault on Russian civilians by American- and Israeli-trained and -equipped Georgian troops.
The Bush Regime, overcome by hubris, expected Russia to accept this act of American hegemony. But the Russians did not, and the Georgian military was sent fleeing for its life.
Head of World Congress of Russian Jewry accuses Georgia of genocide
Russian-speaking Israeli figures have expressed dismay at a statement made by the chairman of the World Congress of Russian Jewry, Russian Senator Boris Spiegel, calling for the establishment of a tribunal that would investigate Georgia's "war crimes" during the past week's round of fighting.
Spiegel, a prominent Jewish oligarch boasting close ties with the Kremlin, accused Georgia of genocide and ethnic cleansing.
Spiegel, a prominent Jewish oligarch boasting close ties with the Kremlin, accused Georgia of genocide and ethnic cleansing.
Saturday, August 16, 2008
Six days that broke one country—and reshaped the world order
The American "train and equip" mission for the Georgian military is six years old. It has been destroyed in as many days. And with it, Georgia's Nato ambitions.
US officials admit worry over a 'difficult' al-Maliki
U.S. officials privately admit being concerned that Iraqi Prime Minister Nuri al- Maliki has become "overconfident" about his government’s ability to manage without US combat troops, according to an Iraq analyst who just returned from a trip to Iraq arranged by US commander General David Petraeus.
Russia: Poland risks attack because of US missiles
A top Russian general said Friday that Poland's agreement to accept a U.S. missile interceptor base exposes the ex-communist nation to attack, possibly by nuclear weapons, the Interfax news agency reported.
The statement by Gen. Anatoly Nogovitsyn is the strongest threat that Russia has issued against the plans to put missile defense elements in former Soviet satellite nations.
Poland and the United States on Thursday signed a deal for Poland to accept a missile interceptor base as part of a system the United States says is aimed at blocking attacks by rogue nations. Moscow, however, feels it is aimed at Russia's missile force.
The statement by Gen. Anatoly Nogovitsyn is the strongest threat that Russia has issued against the plans to put missile defense elements in former Soviet satellite nations.
Poland and the United States on Thursday signed a deal for Poland to accept a missile interceptor base as part of a system the United States says is aimed at blocking attacks by rogue nations. Moscow, however, feels it is aimed at Russia's missile force.
The train wreck of the Zionist New World Order
Russia says that independent investigators are welcome to document the war crimes that Bush, Israel and Georgia just inflicted upon South Ossetia.
Friday, August 15, 2008
US court rules Saudis not liable for Sept 11 attacks
Upholding a 2006 decision by a lower court, the Second Circuit Court of Appeals in Manhattan ruled inadmissible a lawsuit in which families of victims of the 9/11 attacks charged that Saudi Arabia, four Saudi princes, a Saudi charity and bank had given material support to Al-Qaeda.
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