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Showing posts from May 8, 2011

Major militant attacks in Pakistan since 2007

Source: AP A look at some of the major attacks in Pakistan in recent years: 2011: — May 13: A pair of Taliban  suicide bombers  attack paramilitary police recruits in Shabqadar, killing 80 in retaliation for the U.S. raid that killed Osama bin Laden. 2010: — Nov. 5: A suicide bomber strikes a Sunni mosque in  Darra Adam Khel  in northwestern Pakistan, killing at least 67 during Friday prayers. — Sept. 1: A triple Taliban suicide attack on a  Shiite Muslim procession  kills 65 in the southwestern city of Quetta. — July 9: A pair of suicide bombers kills 102 people in the Mohmand tribal region. — July 2: Twin suicide bombers attack Pakistan's most revered Sufi shrine in the eastern city of Lahore, killing 47 people. — May 29: Two militant squads armed with hand grenades, suicide vests and assault rifles attack two mosques of the Ahmadi minority sect in Lahore, killing 97. — March 13: Two suicide bombers targeting army vehicles in Lahore kill more than 55 people. — Jan. 1: A suicide

France: Terrorism Charges Dropped Against Iranian Group

Source: NYTIMES The French authorities are dropping terrorism charges against 24 members of an Iranian dissident group for lack of evidence, court documents show, nearly eight years after a sensational raid on the organization’s headquarters amid charges that the group was planning attacks in Europe. The police arrested 120 people in the raid on the offices of the group, the People’s Mujahedeen Organization of Iran, which wants to overthrow the Iranian government, in a Paris suburb in 2003. Most were released, but 24 people were held on terrorism or terrorism-financing charges. The authorities said the organization had been plotting to attack Iranian embassies and assassinate former members working with Iranian intelligence services in Europe. In a ruling dated Wednesday, the investigating judges found that there were no grounds for proceeding with indictments for terrorism or terrorism financing. The group’s lawyer, William Bourdon, said the judges based their decision partly on “a l

How WikiLeaks vindicated Bush’s anti-terrorism strategy

Source: washington post Osama  bin Laden’s death  at the hands of U.S. special operations forces is a major success in our country’s war against al-Qaeda. As a result of the Central Intelligence Agency’s interrogation program and the intelligence gained from detainees held in Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, a major fraction of al-Qaeda’s senior leadership has been captured or killed since 2001. This conclusion was inadvertently reinforced recently by WikiLeaks’ illegal disclosure of more than 700 classified Defense Department files on Guantanamo Bay detainees. Their publication has harmed our security and cemented the impression among allies that America is incapable of keeping secrets. But the material also provides compelling evidence of the effectiveness of Bush administration anti-terror policies after the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks. The illegally released files, in addition to a host of declassified documents  on U.S. detention policies posted at www.rumsfeld.com , record complex decisions an

Three dead in Sukoharjo terrorism raid

Source: Jakarta post The National Police Detatchment 88 anti-terror unit gunned down two suspected terrorists during a raid in Sukoharjo, Central Java, in the early hours on Saturday morning. One resident, a food stall waiter, died when struck by a stray bullet from the shootout between the police and the suspects. Central Java Police chief Insp. Gen. Edward Aritonang confirmed the raid. “Yes, we’ve conducted a raid in Sukoharjo,” said Edward as quoted by  metrotvnews.com . The suspects were identified as Sigit Qordowi and Hendro Yunianto. Edward said the suspects exchanged gunfire with the police. He claimed that the bullet that killed the food stall waiter came from the suspects. From the suspects, police seized six firearms, books and two bags containing pellets and bolts.

Africa: mobile phones, radio promote rights, says Amnesty International

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Source: Gaurdian Amnesty International's annual report says Africa's vibrant civil society, still often repressed, can no longer be ignored by those in power Egyptians celebrating in February at Cairo's Tahrir Square after the popular, grassroots-led revolt that drove Hosni Mubarak from power. Photograph: Pedro Ugarte/AFP/Getty Images Much needs to be done to secure  human rights  in  Africa , but "the tide is turning" and mobile phones and FM radio have arguably done more than most other conventional methods to pursue this objective, reports Amnesty International  in  its annual report . "In many countries in Africa," says Amnesty, "there is now a vibrant civil society, which, although often still repressed, can no longer be ignored by those in power." The advocacy group's secretary general,  Salil Shetty , says in the report that, across the world, 2010 "may well be remembered as a watershed year when activists and journalists us

ATS arrests 10 more Naxals at Pune station

Source: TOI MUMBAI: The  anti-terrorism squad  (ATS) arrested 10 suspected Naxals, including five teenagers, from the Pune railway station complex in a late-night operation on Thursday. Four 7.65 mm pistols and 300 pages of Naxal literature were recovered from them. ATS chief Rakesh  Maria  said, "Our Pune unit has been collecting information about Naxals for some time now. We nabbed them while they were trying to flee Pune. Most of them told us they had come to Pune three months ago." The arrested are Satyajit Rana (18), Pinto Mahato (19), Rudra Mahato (19), Robi Hansda (19), Robi Mahato (19), Kadu Henbra (21), Nirapan Mahato alias Sanna (23), Ajit Mahato (35), Sushanto Mahato (36) and Anando Mahato (37). All of them hail from West Midnapore district in West Bengal. The accused had been working as casual labourers in Shiru, an MIDC area near Pune. Most of the suspects are members of the People's Guerilla Liberation Army (PGLA). They were produced before a Pune cou

Libya Rebels Meet White House Officials

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Source: VOA Photo: AP National Security Adviser Tom Donilon is interviewed on ABC's 'This Week,' May 8, 2011 (file  Representatives of the Libyan Transitional National Council [TNC] met with President Barack Obama's national security advisor on Friday, as they continue to press for more aid in their fight against Libyan Leader Moammar Gadhafi. Libya also was a focus of talks that Obama had with NATO Secretary General Anders Fogh Rasmussen. National Security Advisor Tom Donilon met with the rebel delegation headed by Dr. Mahmoud Jibril. The president did not drop in on the talks. A White House statement said the meeting was aimed at continuing "the close consultations" about the situation in Libya. The statement said Donilon reiterated that the United States views the TNC as a legitimate and credible interlocutor of the Libyan people, while stressing that Gadhafi has lost his legitimacy to rule and reiterated Obama’s call for him to leave immediately.   It s

Thailand’s high-stakes gamble after crackdown

As bullets ricocheted through Bangkok’s Wat Pathum Wanaram  temple during the violent climax of Thailand’s political crisis last spring, the woman known as Nurse Kate was just finishing treating one of the wounded when she saw another injured man lying near the entrance to the Buddhist temple. Despite the firefight raging around her, the 25-year-old made her way to the new victim. Then, despite the green cross that was plain on her white vest, someone shot her dead. The story of brave Nurse Kate, whose real name is Kamolkate Akkahad, is well known in Thailand. What isn’t agreed on, however, is who shot her three times as she was tending to the wounded inside the supposed sanctuary of a Buddhist temple, where some 2,000 others had taken refuge from the violence of that day. Was she gunned down by an army sniper, as much of the evidence suggests, during the operation to bring an end to two months of rolling demonstrations by Red Shirt anti-government protesters in the commercial heart

Bin Laden revenge attack rattles Pakistan

Source: the globe and mail Reeling from the political fallout of Osama bin Laden’s death and a twin bombing that killed dozens of security officers on Friday, Pakistan’s powerful intelligence chief offered his resignation during a raucous joint session of Parliament that stretched past midnight. As legislators straggled out of their secret meeting early Saturday morning, it appeared that none of them wanted to accept the offer from Lieutenant-General Ahmad Shuja Pasha  to step down from his post as Director-General of Inter-Services Intelligence, one of the most influential jobs in the country. The parliamentarians issued a joint resolution, however, that strayed into a domain usually reserved for Pakistan’s secretive military and intelligence leadership, calling for a halt to U.S drone strikes in the tribal areas. “Unilateral action cannot advance the global cause against terrorism,” Information Minister Firdous Ashiq Awan  said, reading from the statement, adding that any such acti