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Showing posts from August 23, 2009

Suicide Bomber Wounds Saudi Prince

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Source: VOA By VOA News 28 August 2009 Saudi Arabia's state news agency says a member of the royal family who heads the kingdom's anti-terrorism operations suffered minor injuries when a suicide bomber detonated a blast at his home. Prince Mohammed bin Nayef bin Abdul Aziz (File) Deputy Interior Minister Prince Muhammad bin Nayef was receiving visitors at his home in Jeddah late Thursday when the bomber got close and detonated his explosives. The prince had opened his house to visitors as part of observances for the Muslim holy month of Ramadan. The bomber, who state media said was a wanted terrorist, was the only casualty in the attack. An al-Qaida linked group claimed responsibility for the bombing. The prince later appeared on television with bandages wrapped around two fingers, and said the attack would only increase the government's determination to eradicate militancy. Saudi Arabia is the birthplace of al-Qaida leader Osama bin Lade

Violence in Pakistan's Northwest Kills 29

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By VOA News 28 August 2009 At least 29 people were killed Thursday in a suicide bomb attack and a suspected U.S. drone strike in Pakistan's northwest. Pakistani security officers and others stand near coffins of colleagues killed by suicide attack in Torkham, along Afghan border, 27 Aug 2009 Officials say a suicide bomber blew himself up at the main border crossing from Pakistan's Khyber Pass into Afghanistan, as border guards gathered outside their barracks to break their Ramadan fast. The explosion at Torkham checkpoint killed 21 people, mostly the guards, and wounded at least 15 others. No one claimed immediate responsibility for the bombing. Earlier, a suspected U.S. drone strike targeting a suspected Taliban hideout in the South Waziristan tribal region killed eight people and wounded at least seven others. Pakistani Prime Minister Yusuf Raza Gilani strongly condemned the suicide attack at Torkham and reiterated Isla

Maoists gun down four in Jharkhand

Source: ET 28 Aug 2009, 2125 hrs IST, IANS RANCHI/NEW DELHI: Maoist rebels gunned down four people, including a woman and a 14-year-old girl, after raiding a house near this Jharkhand capital Friday. The central government "strongly" condemned "such wanton and brutal" killings. A group of about 20 armed Maoists attacked the home of Digambar Mahato in Bundu, about 45 km from here, at 1.30 a.m. The rebels blasted the door of the house with IEDs and grenades and then opened indiscriminate fire, resulting in the death of Rita Kumari, 14, Budni Devi, 25, Pradeep Kumar, 25, and Vijay Pramanik, 16. Mahato's younger daughter was injured and was admitted to a hospital, where her condition was said to be out of danger. "The mode of operation indicates that Maoist rebels executed the killing," said Arun Mathew, superintendent of police (Rural). In New Delhi, a home ministry statement said the Communist Party of India-Maoist was "desperate" to "t

Pakistan Court Orders Curbs Lifted on Rogue Scientist

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ISLAMABAD, Pakistan — A court in Pakistan on Friday directed the government to lift any remaining restrictions on the movements of Abdul Qadeer Khan , the rogue scientist who confessed to having run an illicit global nuclear proliferation network . Skip to next paragraph Enlarge This Image Mian Khursheed/Reuters Abdul Qadeer Khan, the rogue scientist who confessed to having run an illicit global nuclear proliferation network, surrounded by security officials at his home in Islamabad on Friday. The ruling is likely to create a new irritant with the Obama administration, which had said it was “exceedingly concerned” about Mr. Khan and whether the restrictions that remained on him were sufficient. Whether the government will follow through with the new ruling is unclear. Mr. Khan, a metallurgist by profession, is hailed in Pakistan for developing the nation’s nuclear weapons program. He was placed under house arrest in 2004 after a tearful public apology in which he co

Hizbul operative Mujeeb Ahmad gets lifer

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Source: rediff Mujeeb Ahmad, a suspected Hyderabad-based operative of terrorist organization Hizbul Mujahideen  was sentenced to life imprisonment by a court in Hyderabad on the charges of sedition and collecting arms to wage war against the country. The first metropolitan sessions judge Srirama Murthy also sentenced six associates of Mujeeb Ahmad to ten years imprisonment. Mujeeb and others were found guilty under section 122 (collecting arms with intention of waging war against the country) 124-A (sedition), 23-A of Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act. However they were acquitted from the charges of criminal conspiracy. Those convicted also include a driver from Baramulla in Kashmir [ Images ] Shabbir Ahmad and cleaner Ravinder who were arrested by Rajasthan police in Ajmer district in December 2005 when they were bringing consignment of arms for Mujeeb Ahmad. Others sentenced include Mujeeb's brother in law Yaseen and Shaikh Awadi. However two accused the Hizb Chief Sala

Myanmar fighting forces up to 30,000 to flee to China

The military Junta in Myanmar is facing it trial and needs to prove its might Source: Reuters By Chris Buckley BEIJING (Reuters) - Fresh fighting has erupted between Myanmar forces and an armed ethnic group in the remote northeast, forcing tens of thousands to flee across the border into China, activists and state media said on Friday. China called on Myanmar to maintain stability in the border region, even as the U.N. High Commissioner for Refugees estimated that between 10,000 and 30,000 civilians had fled the conflict. "We also urge Myanmar to protect the security and legal rights of Chinese citizens in Myanmar," said the statement by spokeswoman Jiang Yu, on the ministry's website (www.fmprc.gov.cn) The fighting could raise tension between China and Myanmar, whose military junta looks to Beijing as one of its few diplomatic backers and a crucial source of investment. Thousands have fled this month from Kokang in Myanmar's Shan State after clashes there, which, ac

French hostage escapes from rebels in Somalia

Source: reuters By Abdi Sheikh MOGADISHU (Reuters) - One of two French security advisers kidnapped by insurgents in Somalia last month escaped on Wednesday and fled to the presidential palace in Mogadishu. Police said the former hostage killed three of his captors but Marc Aubriere denied killing anyone and said he slipped away while his guards slept and then walked across the city. Militants had seized the Frenchmen at a hotel in the capital on July 14 and handed one to the Hizbul Islam rebels and the other to fighters from the al Shabaab group, which Washington describes as al Qaeda's proxy in the Horn of Africa state. Al Shabaab militants said later that they had taken custody of both men, although that could not be confirmed. Somali government officials at the city's hilltop Villa Somalia palace said the man who escaped was in good health. "We understand he killed three al Shabaab guys who were guarding him. I cannot understand how this good story happened but now he

Iraqi Shi'ite party leader dies, successor eyed

Source: Reuters By Waleed Ibrahim BAGHDAD (Reuters) - The leader of one of Iraq's most powerful Shi'ite Muslim political groups and most important religious dynasties died on Wednesday, adding to political uncertainty in a violent run-up to an election next January. Abdul Aziz al-Hakim, who headed the Supreme Islamic Iraqi Council (ISCI), a major partner in the Shi'ite-led government, died while undergoing treatment for cancer in Iran , ISCI said. "It is a painful event and a great tragedy," the ISCI-owned television station quoted Ammar al-Hakim, his son and likely successor as party leader, as saying. ISCI officials said two funerals would be held, in Iran and in Iraq. Born in 1950, Hakim lead ISCI since 2003 after his brother, Grand Ayatollah Muhammad Baqer al-Hakim, was killed by a car bomb. ISCI is part of Iraq's ruling Shi'ite alliance, which includes Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki's Dawa party, but it said this week it would lead a new group t

Q+A: What are the risks of instability in Yemen?

Source: reuters (Reuters) - Yemen, the Arab world's poorest country, is combating a reignited Shi'ite revolt in the north, separatist unrest in the south and intensified al Qaeda militancy. Oil output is dwindling and water resources are being depleted. The global economic downturn has limited the ability of President Ali Abdullah Saleh's government to cope with high unemployment, runaway population growth and widespread poverty. If Yemen tipped further into instability, or even state failure, this could endanger its neighbors, especially Saudi Arabia, and complicate efforts to fight al Qaeda and protect international shipping routes from piracy in the Gulf of Aden. Western alarm is growing. Fierce fighting this month between Yemen's armed forces and Shi'ite rebels in the north has prompted the United States to urge both sides to return to last year's ceasefire agreement. In May, Washington said violence in the restive south could undermine Yemen's unity an

Rebels say repulse army attack in north Yemen

Source: reuters * Rebels say hold off government attack * Government says takes valley in fierce fight SANAA (Reuters) - Yemeni rebels said on Wednesday they had held off an attack by government forces in a northern province that has seen heavy fighting in recent days. A statement from the rebels of a Shi'ite sect in the Arabian Peninsula nation said the army had failed to advance in the Haraf Sufyan district, where government sources reported more than 100 rebels killed on Sunday as battles intensified. "The authorities made failed attempts to advance in Haraf Sufyan in Amran province and al-Minzala in Saada province. They retreated in failure after one (tank) was destroyed in Haraf Sufyan," a statement sent to Reuters said. A government source denied the claim, saying the army had taken a valley after losses on both sides in fierce fighting. "The main road connecting Saada to the capital (Sanaa) is still closed to supplies and military reinforcements because of mi

Putin defends rebel regions' independence one year on

Source: reuters By Daria Korsunskaya MOSCOW (Reuters) - Prime Minister Vladimir Putin defended Russia's recognition of Abkhazia and South Ossetia as independent states a year ago, a move he described on Wednesday as an assertion of power in the face of U.S. dominance. The Kremlin crushed a Georgian attempt to retake its breakaway province of South Ossetia in a five-day war last August. Moscow swiftly recognized it and fellow rebel region Abkhazia as independent states, deploying troops in each. Georgia said Moscow's recognition of the regions as independent states amounted to the annexation of its territory. Both regions celebrated Wednesday as the anniversary of their independence, with concerts and flower-laying ceremonies. Dozens drove through Tskhinvali, the capital of South Ossetia waving Russian and Ossetian flags and honking their horns. At a meeting in Moscow with South Ossetia's President Eduard Kokoity, Putin said he was unconcerned that only Nicaragua had follow

Fears of Shiite-Sunni violence breakout in Lebanon

Source: AP thru yahoo By BASSEM MROUE, Associated Press Writer Bassem Mroue, Associated Press Writer – Wed Aug 26, 4:43 am ET BEIRUT – No one knows when an international court will issue its first indictments in the assassination of Lebanon's former prime minister, but Lebanese are already afraid it could spark a wave of violence between its Shiite and Sunni communities. The Netherlands-based tribunal has kept silent on who it might charge in the 2005 slaying of Rafik Hariri . The fear in Lebanon is that it will accuse members of the powerful Shiite militant group Hezbollah . Hezbollah has fiercely denied any role in the killing, and the group's leader Hassan Nasrallah has warned of a backlash from the heavily armed guerrillas if the court implicates any of its members. He threatened a repeat of clashes that erupted in May 2008, when Hezbollah fighters trounced pro-government gunmen in battles that nearly tipped t

'26/11 terrorists accessed email from 10 IP addresses, 5 from Pak'

 Source: TOI PTI 26 August 2009, 08:40pm IST MUMBAI: Wanted accused in the 26/11 attack case had communicated with terrorists using an email ID which was accessed from ten IP addresses -- five from Pakistan, two USA, two Russia and one Kuwait- - a cyber law expert informed the special trial court in Mumbai on Wednesday. Kharak_telco@yahoo.com was the email ID used by wanted accused while communicating with terrorists via Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) through New Jersey-based Callphonex, Mukund Pawar, Crime Branch inspector, told special public prosecutor Ujjwal Nikam during examination in the court. Of the ten IP addresses, five belonged to Pakistan, said the witness, who traced their locations from the website. One of the addresses (118.107.140.138) was traced to Col R Saadat Ullah of special communication organisation, Qasim Road, Rawalpindi, Pakistan. Three addresses were traced to World Call network Operations and the fifth came from Sajid Iftikar, EFU House, Jail Road in P

Red rampage in Orissa, J’khand, Bihar

Source: TOI Naxalites Blast Rly Station, Community Hall, Abduct Officials, Torch Vehicles TIMES NEWS NETWORK  Bhubaneswar/Ranchi/Patna: Maoists went on the rampage in Orissa, Jharkhand and Bihar early on Tuesday, blowing up a railway station and a community centre along with torching over a dozen vehicles.      Since Monday, the Red rebels have been observing a 48-hour bandh in these three states along with West Bengal and Chhattisgarh in protest against the 'illegal detention' of two of their top leaders. Amid widespread violence, Jharkhand Police on Tuesday produced the Maoist duo -- identified as Anil and Kartik -- in a Ranchi court. Earlier, they had denied having taken them into custody.      "We had called the bandh to force the police to admit that they had arrested two of our comrades and produce them in court by 5 pm on Tuesday. But they did it an hour before the deadline. Hence, we are calling off the bandh," said Kishanji, CPI(Maoist) politburo member. 

HOMAGE TO DEPARTED: BJP leaders pay floral tributes at the memorial of Lumbini Park terror attack victims on the second anniversary of the twin blasts on Tuesday

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HOMAGE TO DEPARTED: BJP leaders pay floral tributes at the memorial of Lumbini Park terror attack victims on the second anniversary of the twin blasts on Tuesday Twin blasts bravehearts Sudipta Sengupta | TNN  Hyderabad: Post August 25, 2007, Satish Anne feels unsettled each time he hears a loud noise. Even the sound of crackers during festivals unnerves him. But that has not deterred Anne from continuing to walk up to his shop, Savita Steel, everyday, even though it is situated right next to Gokul Chat, one of the sites of the twin bomb blasts, that shook the city two years back. Ditto, Shanshank Kasarla, operator of the laser show at Lumbini Park or Vijay, an employee for 15-years at Gokul Chat or K Rajkumar, a plumber at the city park.      Despite being witness to the massacre that left at least 40 dead on that fateful night, these people have been reporting to duty every single day—only more cautious and sometimes a little scared. “I walk into work praying that my day ends safely,

Explosion Rocks Southern City Kandahar - Bloomberg

Live! Coverage from Kabul: At Least 8 Killed in Afghan Explosion (Bloomberg News)

Pakistani Taliban confirm leader is dead: report

 Source: Reuters ISLAMABAD (Reuters) - Pakistani Taliban militants confirmed on Tuesday for the first time that their leader, Baitullah Mehsud, had been killed, the BBC reported. Pakistani and U.S. officials had said for days that Mehsud was killed in a missile strike by a pilotless U.S. drone aircraft in his South Waziristan stronghold near the Afghan border on August 5, but the Taliban had denied it. The BBC said on its website that two Taliban commanders loyal to Mehsud, Hakimullah Mehsud and Wali-ur-Rehman, confirmed that Baitullah Mehsud had been killed. Pakistan and U.S. officials had said militants appeared to be in disarray since Mehsud's death, with reports of infighting between factions vying to take command. Analysts saw the Taliban 's earlier denials that Mehsud was dead as an attempt to hide divisions over who should take charge of the Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan, or Taliban Movement of Pakistan, alliance of militant factions. Hakimullah said Baitullah had been

Chechen rebels order separatist leader death: website

Source: reuters MOSCOW (Reuters) - Chechen rebels called on Tuesday for prominent separatist leader Akhmed Zakayev to be killed, saying he had abandoned Islam by recognizing the legitimacy of the restive region's Kremlin-backed government. Zakayev, who lives in London, represents the moderate wing of the separatist movement and has clashed with radical Islamist insurgents in Russia's southern republic of Chechnya. Islamist rebel website www.kavkazcenter.com said Zakayav had recognized the authority of Ramzan Kadyrov, the Kremlin-backed leader of the region. "Public remarks show that he (Zakayev) has fallen away from Islam," the website said, adding that Doku Umarov, Chechnya's most wanted separatist leader, was behind the order. "The court has ruled that the killing of this apostate is a duty for Muslims." It did not say what court had issued the ruling. Zakayev, 50, fought Russia as a senior rebel commander in two wars with Moscow in 1994-2000. Af

Suicide bomber kills four in Russia's Chechnya

Source: reuters Tue Aug 25, 2009 12:09pm EDT GROZNY, Russia (Reuters) - A suicide bomber killed four policemen in Chechnya on Tuesday, pressing an Islamist challenge to Russian control of the north Caucasus region a day after a visit by Prime Minister Vladimir Putin. But in a sign of the widening gulf between Islamist fighters and more moderate Chechen separatists, a rebel leader who styles himself the "Emir of the Caucasus" ordered the murder of Akhmed Zakayev, a rival living in exile in London. A suicide bomber attacked a group of policemen in the village of Mesker-Yurt, 20 km (12 miles) from Chechnya's capital Grozny, while they waited for their car to be washed, a source in local law enforcement agencies told Reuters. The attack followed a day after Putin visited Chechnya, showing support for hardline local chief Ramzan Kadyrov and demonstrating Russia's determination to tackle a wave of violence in this mountainous southern border area. "An unidentified p

Afghan journalist shot dead in Pakistan

Source: hindustan times Unidentified gunmen on Monday shot dead an Afghan journalist after pulling him out of his car in Pakistan's unruly tribal region, officials said. Janullah Hashimzada, who worked for several Afghan and foreign news organisations, was on his way to the northwestern city of Peshawar when the gunmen killed him in the Khyber tribal region bordering Afghanistan. Officials said the gunmen pulled Hashimzada out of his vehicle on the Pakistan-Afghan highway and shot him. He died instantly. The gunmen fled and no one claimed responsibility for the killing. Hashimzada, who belonged to eastern Afghan province of Ningrahar and had settled in Pakistan, was coming to Peshawar from Jalalabad, officials said. He worked for the Afghan news agency Pajhwak, CNN, APTN and Al-Arabiya channel.

Over 30 killed in 'huge explosion' in Afghanistan

Source: hindustan times More than 30 people were killed and at least 56 wounded when a car bomb targeting an international aid organisation in southern Kandahar province rocked the city on Tuesday, officials said. "At this time I can say that more than 30 people were killed and more than 56 others were wounded in today's explosion," Zelmai Ayoubi, a spokesman for the provincial governor said. He said most of the victims were civilians as dozens of civilian homes were destroyed in the attack. Ayoubi said the attack, which is believed to have been carried out by car bomb, was against a office of the Canadian International Development Agency (CIDA). Officials from CIDA were not immediately available for comment. According to witnesses, the attack was near a building that houses the country's secret service. Shots were also heard following the explosion. On Tuesday, the first results were being announced for the country's presidential election, against which the radi

Bus bombings south of Baghdad kill at least 11

Source: reuters BAGHDAD (Reuters) - Bombs planted on two minibuses killed at least 11 people and wounded 12 near the usually quiet southern town of Kut on Monday, officials said. Iraq has been reeling from a series of huge bombings, mainly in and around the capital Baghdad, the troubled northern city of Mosul and western Anbar province, since U.S. troops pulled out of city centers in June. Two police sources in Baghdad earlier said 20 people had been killed in Kut, and 10 wounded, but the head of the local council of Wasit province put the toll at 11 killed and 12 wounded. A Wasit police source also said 11 had died. "This is a criminal and treacherous act. This is the first time this has happened in Wasit, which is usually very quiet. This is an effort to bring violence to the province and create terror," said Mahmoud Abdulla, head of the provincial council. The buses were on their way to Kut, a mainly Shi'ite Muslim area 150 km (95 miles) southeast of Baghdad, from Bag

Nostalgia for white terrorism

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Source: Salon Tuesday, Aug. 25, 2009 06:25 EDT Constantin Film/Jürgen Olczyk Vinzenz Kiefer (left) and Hannes Wegener in "The Baader Meinhof Complex." Imagine, if you will, a distant imaginary realm in which terrorists -- people who blow up other people in the name of some political or crypto-religious agenda -- are not dark-skinned foreigners with unpronounceable names but white folks born and raised in the mainstream of Western society. In other words, imagine the 1970s. Of course it goes a lot further back than that. If you want to get technical, terrorism, in the modern sense of the word, was essentially a 19th-century European invention, and everybody who does it today, no matter how baroque their causes or their tactics, is just aping the old-school anarchists of the late imperial age. But the '70s hold a special and dire place in that history, as a moment when small-scale violent insurrection -- from the left, from the right, along tribal or