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Showing posts from September 2, 2012

Fresh Video Emerges of French Qaida Hostages

A fresh video emerged Saturday of four out of six French hostages held by al-Qaida in North Africa, all of them calling for negotiations to secure their freedom. Shown separately in the video uploaded to the Mauritanian news website Sahara Medias, Pierre Legrand, Daniel Larribe, Thierry Dole and Marc Feret, who were abducted in Niger in September 2010. "It's Wednesday, August 29, 2012. We have now been here for nearly two years," Larribe said, without disclosing where he was speaking. All four called on their relatives, employers and the French authorities to help negotiate their release. The separate shots had differing backgrounds and the armed men wearing turbans who stood behind each hostage were not the same. Sahara Medias is one of the most reliable news sites in Mauritania, with a particularly strong network of sources in northern Mali, which was seized by radical Islamist groups from government forces five months ago. The four were among seven people

Yemen Clashes Kill Three 'Qaida' Militants

Clashes between the army and militants in southern Yemen on Saturday killed three suspected al-Qaida members and wounded two soldiers, an official said. The militants attacked a vehicle carrying troops near the coastal town of Shaqrah, in Abyan province, before army reinforcements arrived and the soldiers killed "three extremists," said the official on condition of anonymity. In addition to the two wounded soldiers, a reserve forces member was hit, he added. The army launched an all-out offensive in May, forcing al-Qaida to withdraw from towns it had captured in Abyan last year, but the network maintains a strong presence in the region. Suspected U.S. drone attacks in southern Yemen in the past few days have targeted al-Qaida insurgents. Al-Qaida in the Arabian Peninsula took advantage of the weakness of the central government in 2011 during protests against ousted president Ali Abdullah Saleh to expand its presence in the impoverished country. Al-Qaida loyalists

Army Confiscates Vehicle Loaded with Arms

The Lebanese army confiscated on Saturday a large quantity of weapons, ammunition, explosives and military equipment hidden in a vehicle in the Beirut’s southern suburb of al-Rowais. “After the intelligence branch obtained information on several people collecting weapons to smuggle them from the area of al-Rowais, the army raided the area and was able to seize various kinds of arms in a Jeep Patrol,” the army said in a communiqué. According to it, the arms were handed over to the competent authorities. “The army will continue its raids until the owner of the car and his accomplices are detained,” the statement said. The army confirmed on Friday media reports that it arrested several people in al-Rowais following a string of kidnappings by members of al-Meqdad clan. "A number of wanted persons have been arrested and others are being pursued in different regions of Lebanon in order to arrest them and work for the release of all the kidnapping victims," said a stateme

Georgia Detains Russian 'Militant' after Border Clash

Georgia on Saturday said it has detained a Russian militant fighter, one of the remnants of an armed gang that recently clashed with security forces near the enemy states' border leaving 14 dead. "The Georgian interior ministry has detained one of the members of the armed group in the Lopota Gorge, Akhmet Chataev, a citizen of the Russian Federation from the North Caucasus," the ministry said in a statement. Officials have said the clash with the alleged Muslim militants broke out last month when Special Forces confronted an armed gang which had crossed over from Russia's North Caucasus region of Dagestan, where the Kremlin has been battling an Islamic insurgency. Three Georgian servicemen and 11 alleged militants were killed. Some of the dead fighters were identified as Russians from Chechnya and Ingushetia in the volatile North Caucasus, but two of them were Georgian citizens, Muslims from the remote Pankisi Gorge which is home to some refugees who fled Rus

Seven Die in Gangland Violence in Mexico

MONTERREY, Mexico – Seven people died in two separate instances of gangland violence in northern Mexico, officials told Efe on Friday. Five people were fatally shot before dawn Friday inside a business in the city of Torreon, a source in the Coahuila state Attorney General’s Office said. Killed were the business owner and his two adult sons, another adult and a 15-year-old boy. “We have already identified the murdered people and an operation to find the aggressors was launched,” the source told Efe, adding that army soldiers, state and municipal people were conducting the manhunt. Police in the business and industrial metropolis of Monterrey found two men decapitated on a street in the Arturo B. de la Garza neighborhood. The bodies of the two victims, both in their mid-20s, were covered with blankets and bound with cable, while their severed heads were left nearby in a bag, a source in the Nuevo Leon state investigations agency told Efe. Neighborhood residents said they saw

Peruvian Soldier Killed in Rebel Attack on Chopper

Latin American Herald Tribune - LIMA – A Peruvian soldier was killed Friday when one or more guerrillas fired at an army helicopter flying over jungle in the southern region of Cuzco, the military said. The attack took place at 12:45 p.m. during an aerial patrol in the Valley of the Apurimac and Ene rivers, or VRAE, area, according to a statement from the high command. Army Cpl. Johny Huatorongo Huaman died from bullet wounds. The chopper was attacked while flying over station KP-150 on the Camisea natural gas pipeline in the Kepashiato district, where remnants of the Shining Path rebel group kidnapped 36 gas company employees in April. The workers were eventually released unharmed, but 10 police and soldiers died in clashes with the captors. Peruvian President Ollanta Humala announced Tuesday that a leader of the Shining Path faction in the VRAE area was killed in a confrontation with security forces. “We have been able to confirm the death of the so-called Comrade Willia

2 minor communist rebels surrender

Friday, September 7, 2012 TWO female members of Medic Team Baking, Squad 1, Sandatahang Yunit sa Platoon of Guerilla Front 16, North Eastern Mindanao Revolutionary Committee voluntarily surrendered separately without firearms to the 3rd Special Forces Battalion Thursday morning and Friday afternoon. The child victims of the New People’s Army (NPA), who are both 15 years old and residents of Surigao del Norte, went to the headquarters of 7th Special Forces Company accompanied by their relatives to surrender. The minors allegedly joined the NPA on July 6 and left the group last August 25. They said that being young females, they were not able to endure the hunger and the hardships in the mountains while evading government forces. They also said they were duped into joining the armed struggle through text messages and were made to believe they will have a better life in the armed movement. Both victims were taught three basic NPA courses and were trained to fire a gun in order

Maoists creating corridor along Western Ghats: police

Extremists recruit in TN, Kerala; spreading up to Wayanad An increase in Maoists’ activities in Dakshina Kannada indicated that the Left extremists were working towards their plan of creating a corridor along the Western Ghats from the northern tip to Wayanad in Kerala, a police officer, who had served in the region, said. The officer, now on central deputation, said that in 2006 the Maoists group devised the plan to spread their activities in the Western Ghats. The increase in the number of sighting of Maoists in Dakshina Kannada indicated the creation of that corridor, he said. “It is a matter of concern. There are reports of Maoist groups recruiting people from Tamil Nadu and Kerala. They have planned to spread till Wayanad,” he said. The officer said the Maoist activities in Dakshina Kannada were earlier restricted to higher reaches of Belthangady taluk. The Maoists were now seen adopting an organised approach for achieving their objective. “They are conducting many training

Police capture a PKK militant with explosives

ISTANBUL Police have captured a suspected member of the outlawed Kurdistan Worker's Party (PKK) and seized 30 kilograms of explosives in an operation conducted in the southern province of Antalya, according to daily Hürriyet. Security forces launched the operation in the Taurus Mountains following information gathered from the questioning of a militant,Yunus Çiçek, who was reportedly responsible for a deadly Aug. 9 landmine attack on a military bus in the Aegean province of İzmir. Suicide weapons also were seized by police during the operation. Çiçek was captured wounded and another militant, the alleged perpetrator of the İzmir attack, was killed in a firefight with security forces at a checkpoint in the southeastern province of Şanlıurfa on Sept. 2. Source http://www.hurriyetdailynews.com/police-capture-a-pkk-militant-with-explosives.aspx?pageID=238&nID=29677&NewsCatID=341

TURKEY BLAMES KURD REBELS FOR BLAST

The Turkish government on August 22 blamed a Kurdish rebel group for a bomb attack that killed nine people near the Syrian border, amid concerns by ruling party officials that the militants may be developing links with the regime in Syria, and its civil war could have a destabilising effect on Turkey. The explosion in the southern city of Gaziantep followed an escalation in fighting between Turkish forces and the rebel Kurdistan Workers’ Party, or PKK, which had close ties in the 1990s to then Syrian President Hafez Assad – current leader Bashar Assad’s father. Turkey, which seeks the ouster of Assad, is sheltering nearly 70,000 Syrian refugees and has urged the United Nations to set up camps inside Syria for the displaced. Turkish officials, including President Abdullah Gul, cited PKK’s hand in similar attacks as a sign that it was the likely perpetrator. Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu said any alleged link between the PKK and the Syrian regime in the Gaziantep bombing would be

Policeman Killed in Chechnya Car Bombing

Moscow, Sep 7 (IANS/RIA Novosti): One police officer was killed when a bomb planted under his car detonated in the Chechen capital of Grozny, an official said. A spokesperson for the regional investigative committee said the officer, a police captain, was killed when the "unidentified explosive device" went off as he was opening the door to his Toyota Carolla. According to preliminary data, the bomb was equivalent to four kg of TNT. According to specialists, it was remotely detonated, the spokesperson said. Source http://www.daijiworld.com/news/news_disp.asp?n_id=148826

Third suspect of Putin death plot

Edelgireyev from Chechnya has been named as the third suspect of the death plot planned against Russian President Vladimir Putin, Lenta.ru reports. The suspected has been accused of storing and selling explosives and banditism. He was is on the international wanted list, suspected of keeping Adam Osmayev and Ilia Pyanzin in touch with North Caucasus terrorist leader Doku Umarov. Adam Osmayev’s wife Amina said she received no information about the third suspect. Pyanzin’s lawyer Musa Khadisov resigned from the case. The lawyer represented Ruslan Ozniyev who got 17 years of prison for terrorism in Moscow. Pyanzin and his assistant Ruslan Madayev arrived in Odessa from the Arab Emirates in 2011 or early 2012 to assassinate Putin. Osmayev was supervising them. He was on the wanted list for an assassination attempt against Chechen Leader Ramzan Kadyrov. Madayev was killed by a blast when building a bomb in February 2012, Pyanzin was injured. Osmayev was caught a month later. Pyanzin wa

Envoy Urges Chechnya, Ingushetia to End Border ‘Bickering’

The Russian president’s Envoy to the North Caucasus Federal District Alexander Khloponin on Friday called on the leaders of Chechnya and Ingushetia to end their administrative border dispute. On August 26 Chechen leader Ramzan Kadyrov said that Chechnya is going to ask the federal authorities to demarcate an administrative border between Chechnya and Ingushetia. The latter, he said, is encroaching on Chechen land. A week later Kadyrov said that Chechnya has documents to substantiate its claim for Ingushetia’s Sunzhensky and part of the Malgobek districts. Ingush leader Yunus-Bek Yevkurov replied in his LiveJournal blog that attempts to review the administrative border between the two republics might trigger a conflict. “I ask you to… stop publicizing this issue, end mutual offenses, stop discussions on this issue once and for all,” Khloponin said. “Stop bickering about it, you are brotherly peoples after all.” He said the issue should be solved by two working groups that are t

‘TTP Punjab conducted dry runs to attack Pak nuke site’

Islamabad: Taliban based in Pakistan's Punjab province conducted dry runs to target a nuclear site in Dera Ghazi Khan where authorities have beefed up security, according to a media report on Friday. A faction of the banned Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) was identified as the "key culprit" for a possible attack on the facility, The Express Tribune quoted an intelligence report as saying. However, report dispelled the notion that terrorists had completed their reconnaissance and succeeded in making a video of the installation in Dera Ghazi Khan. Dera Ghazi Khan district police chief Chaudhry Saleem told PTI yesterday that security at several sensitive installations, including the nuclear facility, had been increased due to a reported threat from militants. According to reports, large contingents of soldiers and police have been deployed at the facility, which comprises uranium milling and mining operations and a uranium hexaflouride conversion plant. The Expres

Landmine seized in Kandhamal

Saturday, Sep 8, 2012, Phulbani A powerful landmine planted on a road by Maoists was seized by security personnel in Odisha's Kandhamal district. The explosive device was found between Kotagada and Srirampur yesterday while the securitymen were returning after a combing operation in forests, Sub-Divisional Police Officer of G Udayagiri, Sesadeba Bariah said. The landmine was defused. Altogether nine explosive devices including landmines and tiffin bombs were seized from Baliguda sub-division from Maoist-affected district in the last one year, he said. Source http://www.dnaindia.com/india/report_landmine-seized-in-kandhamal_1738398

Suspected Somali pirates fire on Italian navy helicopter

ROME, Fri Sep 7, 2012 7 (Reuters) - Suspected pirates opened fire on an Italian navy helicopter on patrol off the east coast of Somalia, hitting a window and slightly injuring a pilot, the force said on Friday. The attack from a small boat broke the window, spraying out glass that hit one of the pilots in the neck, the navy said. The helicopter, which was taking part in a European Union anti-piracy operation named 'Atalanta', did not return fire to avoid endangering any possible hostages, it added. It later returned safely to the Italian navy's ship San Giusto, said European Union Naval Force spokeswoman Jacqueline Sherriff. Somali pirates have raked in millions of dollars in ransoms from seized vessels in recent years in what has become a highly organized international criminal enterprise, spurring international navies to join forces in a crackdown. NATO said in July increased international anti-piracy efforts were helping to reduce the threat to shipping. &qu

Terror groups may use sea route, warns PM

Prime Minister Manmohan Singh on Saturday pitched for a comprehensive maritime domain awareness scheme as there were indications that terrorist groups are maintaining their ability to use the sea route. On the concluding day of a three-day long meeting of Directors and Inspectors General of Police here, Mr Singh also said that there were increasing infiltration attempts in Jammu and Kashmir “In Jammu and Kashmir, we are beginning to see increasing infiltration attempts, across the Line of Control and even the International Border. There are also indications about terrorist groups maintaining their ability to use the sea route. “Vigilance, therefore, needs to be exercised not only on our land borders but along the coast line as well. The comprehensive scheme of Maritime Domain Awareness to be led by the Navy would help strengthen coastal vigilance, whereas deployment of more permanent border obstacles and better sensors could improve the situation along the land borders,” he said

Clashes, arrests after protesters criticise Jordan King

Jordanian anti-riot forces stormed a protest in the southern city of Tafileh on early Saturday after participants began chanting slogans reportedly criticizing King Abdullah II. According to eye-witnesses and activists, authorities fired tear gas and live rounds to disperse a group of some 60 protesters after activists began chanting slogans insulting the Monarch, arresting 15 participants. “As soon as we started using the words ‘royal palace’ and ‘regime,’ the police came at us with force,” said Fadi Abadeen, an activist who was present at the protest. A Jordanian security source confirmed that police arrested 15 protesters who currently face charges of attempting to “undermine the regime” and “incite a riot.” “The young men who were arrested were acting outside the lines of the law and were trying to cause a riot and not protesting peacefully,” the source, who is not authorized to speak to the press, told the DPA. Jordanian security officials refused to disclose the anti-Kin

Censorship Debate Skirts Tough Questions

By Amol Sharma If the goal of the two-hour gabfest was to restore some civility between parties that don’t trust each other, to get some good vibes flowing, then it succeeded on that score. But it sidestepped some big controversies in the process. The idea was flawless: gathering representatives of the Indian government, major Internet companies and civil society groups to dissect recent controversies over online censorship – a.k.a. #Emergency2012 – and find a way forward. India badly needs this kind of dialogue. Unfortunately, industry body FICCI’s roundtable on “Legitimate Restrictions on Freedom of Online Speech,” while well-intentioned, for the most part skirted the tough questions, including: Did the government err in blocking any of the Web content it blocked? Why didn’t the government release a list of blocked sites and the rationale for blocking them? When will blocked sites be restored, or will they ever be? The event did produce some constructive suggestions on how Ind

Russia Develops Underwater Drones

Russia is developing underwater drones for special tasks, a senior defense industry official said on Friday. “The U.S. Navy is moving along similar lines,” said Anatoly Shlemov, head of state defense contracts at the United Shipbuilding Corporation. Although work on those systems began in the USSR in the late 1980s, this is the first time it has been officially announced. That was why the Soviet Navy abandoned the Piranha submarine program, Shlemov added. Project 865 Piranha (NATO reporting name Losos) is a midget submarine, designed for special operations and is almost completely silent. Only two Piranha-class submarines were reportedly built. Source http://en.rian.ru/mlitary_news/20120831/175539837.html

Hundreds Protest TV Channel 'Censorship' in Kiev

Hundreds of people gathered in central Kiev on Saturday to show support for an independent cable TV channel that claims it is being censored after several operators suspended its broadcasts. Protesters in the Ukrainian capital held banners with slogans such as "Stop censorship" and "TVi is the last frontier of freedom." Similar demonstrations were held in Kharkiv and other cities. The action comes after TVi was taken off air in eleven regions across the country, in a move that it says was prompted by pressure from the authorities. TVi is critical of President Viktor Yanukovych and his government. But operator Triolan denied it had come under pressure, citing internal issues for the decision. A number of high-profile opposition figures, including Arseniy Yatsenyuk, leader of the Front for Change party, joined the protest in Kiev. The authorities have made no comment as yet. Source http://en.ria.ru/world/20120908/175845080.html

12 Kenyans killed in revenge ethnic attack: Red Cross

Kenyan soldiers move forward to disperse Muslim youth shouting slogans after Friday prayers outside the Musa Mosque in Majengo Area of Mombasa, Kenya Kenyan gunmen killed at least 12 people in a revenge attack following a massacre last month in which 52 people were killed in the remote southeastern Tana region, Red Cross officials said Friday. "Eight men, two women and a child died in the attacks," Kenya Red Cross spokesperson Nelly Muluka said, adding that one person later died 'from gunshot injuries on his way to hospital'. "There is a lot of tension in the area following the attack by the gunmen," she added. "These are revenge attacks." Following the killings last month -- in which at least 52 mainly women and children were hacked or burnt to death in the worst ethnic massacre for several years -- police brokered meetings between the two rival communities. However, tensions have remained high, and one person was killed in the area last

DGPs warned of nationwide IM resurgence

The homegrown terror outfit Indian Mujahideen has transformed into a 'factory churning out terrorists' in India. The police top brass across India has been warned that the IM’s 'resurgence' is taking place with new modules set up in New Delhi and Bihar. The annual DGPs’ conference, ending all speculation, has for the first time officially declared that IM 'has ISI patronage'. The Delhi police, in a conference presentation on Friday, said the IM was targeting disenchanted youth comprising 'petty criminals' and 'highly-paid software professionals' for assembling bombs, Internet hacking and is extensively using social networking sites to avoid detection. The banned outfit is also picking 'normal cosmopolitan-looking cadres' to give the security forces the slip. Many inter-state modules of IM are said to exist in Uttar Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, Karnataka, Bihar, Gujarat, Maharashtra and Kerala. Posing a challenge for investigators

Spectre of the educated terrorist: Professionals are the new face of terror as they swell the ranks of outfits like Indian Mujahideen

A journalist, a doctor, a researcher at the Defence Research and Development Organisation, an employee of a major computer MNC and an engineer - all professionals, many excelling in their chosen fields. But they have also become the face of modern violent Islamic extremism. In contrast to the image of the jihadi being a madrasa-educated, semi-literate individual, today's terrorist, to go by the profile of the various groups who come under the rubric of the 'Indian Mujahideen', can be from any segment of society. The 16 people arrested last week - six in Bangalore, five in Hubli, four in Nanded and one in Hyderabad - allegedly for planning terrorist attacks, fall into this category. Muti-ur-Rahman Siddiqui is a reporter who covered the higher education beat for the English daily Deccan Herald, Master of Computer Applications student Shohaib Mirza and his brother Aijaz Mirza, a DRDO junior scientist, are among those arrested. Educated and well-to-do individuals, who of

Prince Harry deployed to Afghanistan for four-month frontline stint

The Prince arrived at Camp Bastion in Helmand Province on Thursday night ahead of his tour of duty, which will involve flying an Apache helicopter in support of ground troops on missions against the Taliban. It is the second time the 27-year-old has been deployed to Afghanistan, having originally been sent to Helmand Province in 2008. However that tour of duty, which was kept private, was cut short after the media learned of the deployment amid concerns from the Ministry of Defence that the Prince's safety had been compromised as a result. Royal Navy Captain Jock Gordon, Commander of the Joint Aviation Group, said that the Prince - known in the military as Captain Wales - would be undertaking a 'difficult and demanding' job. He added: 'I ask that he be left alone to get on with his duties and allowed to focus on delivering support to the coalition troops on the ground.' Harry's last tour in Afghanistan saw him take the role of Forward Air Controller, ca

Police search home of Alps shooting victim Saad al-Hilli as brother denies family feud

| Metro.co.uk Officers from Surrey Police had erected a tent in front of the family home in Claygate, Surrey to conduct a search alongside a team of French officers. Led by officer Marc de Tarle, the team of four have travelled to the UK in a bid to find out more about the family's life at home. Saad al-Hilli was shot dead along with his wife, named by neighbours as Iqbal, and an older woman who was also travelling in their car near Annecy, France. French officers have joined British police for the search (Picture: PA) The couple's children - Zainab, seven, and four-year-old Zeena - were in the vehicle at the time, while a French cyclist, 45-year-old Sylvain Mollier, was also gunned down. Prosecutor Eric Maillaud has revealed investigators are looking into the possibility that Mr al-Hilli and his brother had been arguing over money in the run-up to the deaths. A group of mums from a local school bring floral tributes to the al-Hilli family home in Claygate, Surrey (P

Haqqani network behind Kabul blast near NATO HQ

- CBS News (AP) KABUL, Afghanistan — A suicide bomber blew himself up near NATO headquarters in the Afghan capital on Saturday, killing at least six people, police said. The Taliban claimed responsibility for the attack, saying the target was a U.S. intelligence facility nearby. Jamie Graybeal, a spokesman for the U.S.-led international military alliance, said all coalition compounds in Kabul were currently secure. He said he was not aware of any casualties among members of the coalition. The U.S. and Italian embassies, as well as the Afghan presidential palace, are also located near the site of the blast. The Afghan Interior Ministry said six people, all civilians, were killed and five others were wounded. Taliban spokesman Zabiullah Mujahid said in a statement emailed to reporters that the bombing was carried out by a 28-year-old militant from Logar province, south of Kabul. But Kabul deputy police chief Daud Amin said eyewitnesses reported seeing a teenage boy, who was

Cyber attacks grow increasingly 'reckless,' U.S. official says

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Other nations are increasingly employing cyber attacks without "any sense of restraint," a top U.S. cybersecurity official said on Friday, citing "reckless" behaviors that neither the United States nor the Soviet Union would have dared at the height of Cold War tensions. Debora Plunkett, of the secretive National Security Agency, w hose responsibilities include protecting U.S. government computer networks, predicted that Congress would pass long-stalled cybersecurity legislation within the next year.Lawmakers failed this summer to overcome disputes over cybersecurity regulations for private firms such as utilities.Plunkett, head of the NSA's Information Assurance Directorate, the agency's cyber-defense arm, told a university audience that "we're starting to see nation-state resources and expertise employed in what we would characterize as reckless and disruptive, destructive behaviors."Even during the Cold War, blocs of n

Six dead as suicide bomber strikes outside Nato offices in Kabul

- 8th September, 2012 The Ministry of Interior confirmed the fatalities and revealed that five others have been wounded by today's blast, which took place close to Nato headquarters, the US and Italian embassies and the presidential palace. Investigators were quickly on the scene to study the remains of the blast (Getty) Taliban spokesman Zabiullah Mujahid immediately emailed a statement to reporters in which he claimed a 28-year-old militant from the province of Logar, to the south of Kabul, was behind the attack. However, Kabul's deputy police chief Daud Amin has claimed that eyewitnesses report seeing a teenage boy - of no more than 13 or 14-years-old - walking close to the site with a bag. The blast comes as Afghans mark the 11th anniversary of the death of Ahmad Shah Massoud, the former commander of the Northern Alliance, who was killed by an al-Qaeda suicide bomber two days before the 9/11 attacks in 2001. Source http://www.metro.co.uk/news/911229-six-dead-as-su

From the Vault: 1972: Terror as a tactic

Sep 06, 2012 Forty years ago this week, a band of Palestinian terrorists known as Black September broke into the Olympic Village in Munich, West Germany and succeeded in taking members of the Israeli Olympic team hostage. On Sept. 6, an attempt by the West Germans to rescue the athletes and coaches went horribly awry. When all the smoke had cleared, 11 Israelis were dead, as well as a handful of the terrorists. Here's what Journal Star opinion page editor Chuck Dancey had to say about that on this date in 1972. --- "The sudden explosion of terror tactics into the Olympic Games exposes millions of people, a little bit more closely, to the realities of the doctrine of terror as a tactic ... The shock around the world was but a sample of the shocks that have beset Israel for 40 years ... and as such ought to make a great many people much more appreciative of their experience and the necessities of their policies. Not many years ago, I was visiting a border kibbutz in nor

Bulgaria and Global Terrorism

On 18 July 2012 at Saravofo airport a terrorist attack was carried out against Israeli tourist. Despite its criminal nature and tragic consequences, to us Bulgarians the attack had a very serious psychological, medical, geopolitical and geostrategic impact. Unfortunately, as a result of the “efforts” of the government and our impotent media, these aspects of the terrorist attack were totally neglected. And that speaks volumes about Bulgarian politicians and statesmen, the state and us Bulgarians. 1. “Our dumbfounded politicians were so pitiful after the attack in Bourgas. The only thing that their imagination produced were feeble excuses that they had no idea that such an attack had been planned...So the key question here is how intelligence data should be collected in order to avoid future incidents. From all uttered by our politicians we understood that the government relied only on intelligence information from Israel and the US. Our political leaders didn’t even consider the o

Understanding the Breivik Verdict

by Jens-Martin Eriksen and Frederik Stjernfelt - City Journal On August 24 in Oslo, terrorist and mass murderer Anders Breivik was sentenced to the toughest sentence under Norwegian law: 21 years in prison, with the possibility of prolongation should it be determined, 21 years from now, that he remains dangerous. Considering Breivik’s crimes, the gravity of the verdict came as no surprise. On July 22, 2011, Breivik attempted to assassinate the Norwegian head of state with a bomb before gunning down over 60 innocent young members of the Labour Party at a summer camp. He claimed that Labour members were “cultural Marxists” responsible for an impending Muslim takeover of Europe. Still, the sentence leaves important questions. How could Breivik have come so far in his planning for the massacres without being detected? How widespread is his viewpoint in Norway and in Europe as a whole? And what, exactly, is the character of this viewpoint? Breivik’s ideology is so extreme that an impor

Terrorism cost to business in Colombia is worst in the world

According to the new World Economic Forum Competitiveness Report, the biggest challenge to Colombia's competitiveness is terrorism, followed closely by organized crime and violence. Colombia ranks worst out of 144 countries around the world in the cost to business of terrorism, followed closely by the cost of organized crime (140th place), and the cost to business of crime and violence (136). Colombia was ranked 69th overall with regard to competitiveness on the The Global Competitive Index (GCI), down one place from last year. The GCI is the "accepted tool" for evaluating the potential for growth, productivity and efficiency of a country. By comparing 144 of the world's countries it provides a picture into the comparative advantages of each. The variables used in the GCI are taken from statistical data collected from institutions such as the International Monetary Fund, the World Bank and other surveys. Colombia's position although it has dropped by one p

Peru's shining path : Still smouldering

TWENTY years ago this month, police arrested Abimael Guzmán, the founder of the Shining Path, and Elena Iparraguirre, his partner. With that, the group’s violent insurgency soon came to an end. A truth commission reckoned that the Maoist guerrilla group, which engaged in terror, was responsible for a majority of the 70,000 or so killings that took place during its battle with Peruvian society and the security forces. Is that nightmare about to return? Interviewed in her small cell on the top floor of Lima’s main women’s prison, surrounded by books and watercolours she has painted, Ms Iparraguirre says she has not changed her views. She remains a dogmatic communist, but she accepts that the Shining Path was defeated militarily. Before being allowed to talk to Ms Iparraguirre your correspondent was required to submit to questioning by a committee of five other Shining Path prisoners. Both she and Mr Guzmán, who is 77, are serving life sentences, and will not be released. But other seni

Cabinet Chief: Killed Shining Path Leader Not On List Of Terrorism Victims

September 7, 2012 by Andean Air Mail & PERUVIAN TIMES · A Shining Path leader killed this week by Peruvian security personnel was not on a list of victims from the country’s internal conflict, according to Cabinet chief Juan Jimenez. On Wednesday, President Ollanta Humala announced that security forces killed “Comrade William,” a Shining Path leader who was believed to be fourth in the group’s overall command and second in its military command. “William” is said to be Rolando Cabezas, who local media, including leading daily El Comercio, said was reported on a list of missing persons that was compiled following Peru’s internal conflict during the 1980s and 1990s. According to La Republica, DNA samples were taken from the Cabezas family in Huanta, Ayacucho in 2009, when police suspected that Comrade William was Rolando. In 1989, the family had reported that Rolando and two cousins were kidnapped by Sendero. Rolando was 20 at the time, and was never seen again. “Any list always

Sustained peace efforts in Abra draw more rebels to surrender

BANGUED, Abra, Sept. 7 (PIA) -- Two members of the New People’s Army voluntarily surrendered to the 503rd Infantry Brigade under the leadership of Col. Eliseo C. Posadas through the Church Military Advisory Group (CMAG) and local peace talks participants. The surrenderees are alias Sakay, 55, of Brgy. Lat-ey, Malibcong, an NPA member for 14 years, and alias Diego, 17, of Brgy. Buneg, Lacub, who was with the underground movement for less than a year. The two were presented to Governor Eustaquio P. Bersamin last September 5 for proper documentation and for processing the immediate cash assistance from the provincial government through the Provincial Social Welfare and Development Office (PSWDO). Sakay served the NPA organization as overseer of the education department of the Abra Party Committee (APCOM) while Diego had been assigned mostly in the tri-boundary of Abra, Mountain Provinc,e and Ilocos Sur. They shared their fears and difficulties as they experienced being hungry mos