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Showing posts from February 10, 2013

Arvindji, 150 Maoist cadres holed up in Gumla jungles

NEW DELHI: CPI (Maoist) leader Arvindji, who had got IED planted in the abdomen of CRPF jawans in the recent Latehar encounter, is cornered in the jungles of Jharkhand's Gumla district along with 150 Maoists. Sources said, security forces have been on Arvindji's trail for over 15 days and have surrounded the area forcing him to move within the Gumla jungles. However, forces are not able to strike as there are reports of the Maoists using villagers as human shield in case an encounter takes place. Sources said the Maoist contingent, after the Latehar encounter, was escaping to Saranda forests on the Odisha-Jharkhand border, when they were cornered in the Gumla jungles. In days to come there could be a face-off with the Maoists, sources added. A senior official from the anti-Naxal forces engaged in the chase said, "More than a fortnight ago we received information that Arvindji along with certain other Maoist leaders and a contingent of about 150 Naxalites was moving

Anti-Maoist hunt in Kerala forests stirs controversy

The massive hunt by Kerala Police for armed Maoists in the State’s northern jungles bordering Karnataka continued for the third consecutive day on Friday even as Adivasis living in the region alleged that the search was perhaps an act of overreaction from the police’s part as presence of extremists had not yet been convincingly confirmed. The Thirunelli forests in Wayanad witnessed the first-ever commando action in Kerala as a platoon of Thunderbolt, the recently constituted commando unit of the State police, scoured the jungles for the elusive extremists just when Kerala Police officials claimed that armed Maoists had indeed reached the area. They said that a group of five armed extremists, including a woman, had appeared at Chittari colony in Kanjirakkolli near the Karnataka border the other day and made Babu, an Adivasi, to buy provisions for them for which they paid him `2,500. However, the Maoists disappeared into the jungles after sighting a team of Excise personnel in the a

Maoist action squad member held

Jhargram (WB): A Maoist action squad member, wanted in several murder cases, was on Saturday arrested from Belpahari area in West Midnapore district. Indrajit Karmakar, having 19 warrants issued against him for seven murders and other anti-state activities in jangalmahal belt, was arrested by joint forces of police and paramilitary, Jhargram SP Bharati Ghosh said. The area is near Jhargram border. Karmakar was a member of the CPI (Maoist) Shyamal squad, active in the area in past two-three years. First Published: Saturday, February 16, 2013, 21:02 Source http://zeenews.india.com/news/west-bengal/maoist-action-squad-member-held_829516.html

Greece arrests three neo-Nazis attackers

ATHENS - Greek police have arrested two neo-Nazi sympathisers for illegal arms possession and a third person suspected of involvement in an attack that left three Pakistani migrants hospitalised, a police source said Friday. The arrests come as Greece is increasingly coming under pressure by human rights groups and its European neighbours to fight its growing neo-Nazi tendencies and widespread xenophobic violence. In a public appeal to witnesses, police on Friday released the names and photographs of two of the men - arrested in an Athens suburb earlier this month after officers found a gun, switchblade knives and bats stashed in their car. The men, aged 19 and 27, are suspected of having taken part in recent anti-migrant raids linked to the violent Greek neo-Nazi group, Golden Dawn, which entered parliament in June after amassing seven percent of the votes. At least two people have been killed and about ten injured in the xenophobic crack-downs. Police arrested the third m

No cover up by officials in neo-Nazi murders: Commission head

German Bundestag inquiry commission, formed to investigate neo-Nazi cell NSU’s murder spree on immigrants, announce that officials neither assisted nor intented to cover up the killings A German delegation hold a series of talks with Turkish officials on their findings about NSU inquiry. The commission will finalize its report in September. AA photo German institutions and officials neither assisted nor covered up the neo-Nazi murders between 2000 and 2006, according to the findings of the Bundestag’s inquiry commission so far, commission head Sebastian Edathy said on Feb. 15. “A question that has been asked very much by Turkish officials during our meetings was whether German officials assisted or turned a blind eye to that terrorist group. Our investigation is still under way but we haven’t found any clue up to now that there was intentional cover-up or assistance,” Edathy told reporters. A German delegation led by Edathy held a press conference following two-day talks with

Pakistan: 47 dead in bomb attack on Quetta market

At least 47 people have been killed and many others wounded in a bomb attack on a crowded market in the Pakistani city of Quetta, police say. Senior local police officer Wazir Khan Nasir told the AFP news agency that at least 200 people had been injured and the death toll could rise. The bomb was detonated by remote-control in a Shia-dominated area of Quetta, he said. He called it a sectarian attack: "The Shia community was the target." Quetta is the capital of Balochistan province, which borders Iran and Afghanistan and has been plagued by a separatist rebellion as well as sectarian violence. Last month, at least 92 people were killed in a bomb attack and 121 were wounded when suicide bombers blew themselves up at a crowded snooker club in a Shia-dominated area of Quetta. The banned Sunni militant group Lashkar-e-Jhangvi said it carried out the 10 January attacks. Source http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-21485731

Three Dortmund neo-nazi fans banned after Shakhtar game

BERLIN — Borussia Dortmund has banned three neo-Nazi supporters from attending matches across Germany for chanting right-wing slogans during Wednesday's Champions League game at Shakhtar Donetsk. The DAPD news agency says the men, who travelled with about 2,000 fans to Ukraine to watch the 2-2 draw, became violent against two mediators acting between the club and supporters. Dortmund police confirmed that charges of verbal abuse and grievous bodily harm have been brought against each of the three men, who were identified but not named. Their cases have been taken over by the state. An appeal for further information was made under the slogan, "No room for right-wing extremism." Club managing director Hans-Joachim Watzke says the men's actions were "despicable and represent an absolute taboo." Dortmund previously declared "zero tolerance" for right-wing extremists. Source http://www.kyivpost.com/content/sport/three-dortmund-neo-nazi-fans-b

Seven decades after Holocaust, neo-Nazis use soccer to preach Hitler's hate

Fans of the German soccer team Kaiserslautern hold up Israeli flags to protest against anti-Semitism prior to the Bundesliga match between FC Kaiserslautern and VfL Wolfsburg in March last year. By Donald Snyder, NBC News Special Correspondent Nearly seven decades after the Holocaust, young soccer fans in Germany have become targets of neo-Nazis who preach the hatred of Adolf Hitler’s Third Reich. “Again and again we see neo-Nazi presence in [sports] fan clubs and my office asks that action be taken against them,” said Winfriede Schreiber, head of the Brandenburg branch of the German government’s intelligence service. “For example, we see the fan club in [the German city] Cottbus consisting of a lot of neo-Nazis. We asked the football club to do something about this.” At her office in Brandenburg, a state in eastern Germany, Schreiber monitors extremism and reports evidence of hate crimes to prosecutors. “The neo-Nazis now look like everyone else,” Schreiber said. “Gone are

Amazon used neo-Nazi guards to control staff

Amazon is at the centre of a deepening scandal in Germany as the online shopping giant faced claims that it employed security guards with neo-Nazi connections to intimidate its foreign workers. Germany's ARD television channel made the allegations in a documentary about Amazon's treatment of more than 5,000 temporary staff from across Europe to work at its German packing and distribution centres. The film showed omnipresent guards from a company named HESS Security wearing black uniforms, boots and with military haircuts. They were employed to keep order at hostels and budgethotelswhereforeign workers stayed. "Many of the workers are afraid," the programme-makers said. The documentary provided photographic evidence showing that guards regularly searched the bedrooms andkitchensof foreign staff. "They tell us they are the police here," a Spanish woman complained. Workers were allegedly frisked to check they had not walked away with breakfast rolls. An

Catholic church rejects FARC invitation to peace talks

THURSDAY, 14 FEBRUARY 2013 A Colombian cardinal turned down an offer made by the FARC to have representatives of the catholic church at the peace talks currently underway in Havana, Cuba. "It is perfectly clear that we have nothing to do in Havana," said Cardinal Ruben Salazar in response to the invitation of FARC negotiator "Ivan Marquez." The leading FARC rebel suggested on Tuesday that Colombian bishops participate in the dialogue between the government and Colombia's largest left-wing rebel group. "I do not think that they are people who have to invite us... we do not have a single role at the table at the peace talks," Salazar said. "We as a Church are always willing to help acclimate the peace in Colombia," the cardinal added. Source http://colombiareports.com/colombia-news/peace-talks/28157-catholic-church-rejects-farc-invitation-to-peace-talks.html

Anti-capitalist FARC leader straddles capitalist symbol

An ardent anti-capitalist political leader for Colombia’s left-wing guerrilla group, FARC, faced criticism on Friday after photos emerged of the guerrilla leader posing atop a Harley Davidson motorcycle, an iconic symbol of United States capitalism. The photos of guerrilla leader Ivan Marquez, who is also the FARC's lead negotiator in peace talks with the Colombian government, sparked outrage across social media due to the apparent hypocrisy represented in the photos, due to his anti-imperialist and anti-capitalist views. “Guerrillas wake up, while you eat shit in the bush, your commander rides Harley Davidsons and eats caviar in Cuba,” commented one irate member of the public. A new Harley Davidson motorcycle is said to cost at least $15,000, which some have observed should be out of the price range of most leftist rebels. While the time and location of the photo has yet to be determined, the name of the state on the license plate of the jeep in the background reads '

Colombia's FARC frees two policemen

Patrolmen handed over to Red Cross officials in mountainous southern Colombia, where rebel group still holds a soldier. Colombia's FARC rebels have freed two police patrolmen it seized last month, in an apparent goodwill gesture ahead of the next round of tense peace negotiations with the government. The Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia, the biggest armed group in Latin America, released the two uniformed officers on Friday even as the rebel leadership pledged to continue seizing members of the security forces until peace is reached. Patrolmen Cristian Camilo Yate and Victor Gonzalez were handed over to the International Committee of the Red Cross in a mountainous area of southern Colombia, where the rebel group still holds a soldier. The FARC, considered a terrorist group by the United States and European Union, promised to free the soldier by Saturday. Television carried images of the two men embracing former Senator Piedad Cordoba after being freed. "We are

Al-Qaeda plan for northern Mali revealed in document: report

The Daily Telegraph said it had found the Arabic-language document outside a building bombed by French forces. (Screen grab courtesy: The Daily Telegraph) A document left behind in the bombed remains of an al-Qaeda training headquarters in the Malian city of Timbuktu gives a rare insight into the organization’s thinking, a British newspaper reported Wednesday. The Daily Telegraph said it had found the Arabic-language document outside a building bombed by French forces who drove the Islamists from the ancient city. The newspaper said the document was the first page of minutes from the 33rd meeting of the al-Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb (AQIM) leadership, held on March 18, 2012. The AQIM chiefs discussed a plan to capitalize on the gains made in northern Mali by the Islamist rebel group Ansar Dine and Tuareg minority rebels. It was suggested that AQIM pushed aside the groups and took control. At the time of the meeting, those groups had just captured a string of towns in the Sa

French-Turkish student handed 5-year sentence for ‘terrorist propaganda’

A Turkish court sentenced on February 15, Sevil Sevimli to five years and two months in prison for “terrorist propaganda”, but allowed her to return to France pending an appeal, her lawyer said. (AFP) A court in Turkey on Friday sentenced a French-Turkish student to more than five years in prison for “terrorist propaganda” but allowed her to return to France pending an appeal, her lawyer said. The lawyer, Inayet Aksu, said the court in the northwestern city of Bursa had sentenced Sevil Sevimli, 21, to five years and two months in prison but freed her until her planned appeal and did not require that she stay in Turkey. The exchange student was arrested after joining a May Day parade in Istanbul and went on trial in September on charges that risked up to 32 years in prison. Aksu said that while she was initially accused of belonging to a terrorist organization, she was only found guilty of disseminating propaganda on behalf of an outlawed group. Sevimli, who was detained for t

Suspected PKK money man charged in Germany

Abdullah S. was charged on Tuesday by German Federal Prosecutors for membership of a foreign organization. (Reuters) German federal prosecutors on Tuesday pressed charges against a 46-year-old Turkish man suspected of raising money for the outlawed Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) throughout Europe. Prosecutors charged the man, identified only as Abdullah S., with “membership of a foreign terrorist organization.” They said he worked under the codename “Hamza” in Germany between June 2003 and June 2004 “getting money for the PKK by collecting donations and contributions, running commercial activities and selling propaganda material.” He also drummed up support for PKK demonstrations and organizations, prosecutors charged. From May 2005 to June 2007, Abdullah S. stayed with the PKK leadership in northern Iraq before returning to run the “economic and finance office” of the PKK in Europe, they alleged. He was arrested on April 27 and has since been in police custody. The PKK,

Kurdish party names politicians to join Turkey-PKK peace talks

World Bulletin / News Desk The pro-Kurdish Peace and Democracy Party (BDP) submitted a petition to the Justice Ministry on Thursday, naming three Kurdish politicians the party wants to have join the ongoing peace talks with the militant Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK). Ahmet Türk, co-chairman of the pro-Kurdish Democratic Society Congress (DTK) and an independent deputy, BDP co-chairperson Selahattin Demirtaş and BDP deputy group chairman Pervin Buldan are the three Kurdish politicians named in the petition. If the Justice Ministry approves the BDP's request, these deputies will travel to İmralı Island where jailed leader of the PKK, Abdullah Öcalan, serves a life sentence and meet with him. Over the past weeks, there has been uncertainty and debates over which Kurdish politicians will join the peace talks between the government and the PKK. The PKK, listed as a terrorist organization by Turkey and much of the international community, has waged a bloody campaign for s

What does the PKK’s founding leader want?

Friday, Feb. 15th, was the 14th anniversary of the capture of Abdullah Öcalan, the founding leader of the outlawed Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK). On that date in 1999 he was forced to leave the Greek Embassy in Nairobi, Kenya, in a joint operation between the Turkish National Intelligence Organization (MİT) and the U.S. Central Intelligence Agency (CIA). Four months earlier in October 1998, following an ultimatum by the Turkish government, endorsed by Egypt and Iran, Hafez (the father of Bashar) al-Assad had to end his long stay in Syria. After spending months on the run between European capitals such as Athens, Moscow and Rome, he was brought to and jailed in Turkey on Feb. 16, 1999. For the last 14 years he has been in a room that is slightly larger than 11 square meters. The disclosure On Friday, stories were leaked to the Turkish press - possibly by sources from the İmrali island prison in the middle of the Marmara Sea, south of Istanbul -about the days Öcalan spends in capti

Two dead in car bomb blast in popular beach eatery in Mogadishu

MOGADISHU, Feb. 16 — At least two people are known to have been killed and four others injured in car bomb blast at a restaurant at Mogadishu seafront, officials said on Saturday. The explosion rocked a seaside restaurant at the popular Lido beach in one of the Mogadishu eateries reopened in the seaside city after security improved following the ouster of the Al-Shabab group a year ago. Source http://www.nzweek.com/world/two-dead-in-car-bomb-blast-in-popular-beach-eatery-in-mogadishu-49627/

Bomb blast kills 2, houses and shops burnt in Nigeria

A bomb explosion targeting soldiers killed at least two people on Friday in the restive northeastern Nigerian city of Maiduguri while houses and shops nearby were burnt, the military said. The two dead were suspected to be the bombers, according to a statement from Lieutenant Colonel Sagir Musa, though independent confirmation was not immediately available and the military's information is often unreliable. "No civilian was killed or wounded," the statement said of the incident in the Gambaru market area, adding that a military vehicle was damaged and a soldier was wounded. Musa also said shops and houses in the area caught fire due to the effects of the blast, but this also could not be independently confirmed. It was also not clear how many houses and shops were burnt. The military has been accused of setting homes and shops alight in Maiduguri in response to previous bomb blasts, among other abuses. Maiduguri is the home base of Islamist extremist group Boko

"Our government refused to listen to us" - WikiLeak's Castro

Sam Castro, the co-founder of the WikiLeaks Australian Citizens Alliance, spoke with the VOR's John Robles about Julian Assange's Australian Senate bid, internal Australian politics and the rules and current condition of Australian government policies, the public's support of Mr. Assange and the soon-to-be-official WikiLeaks Party and what has happened to Australia and the Australian people since the United States of America pulled Australia into the endless "War on Terror". Her viewpoint from the inside of Australia is both refreshing and informative as she details everything from surveillance to foreign policy. Hello! This is John Robles, I’m speaking with Sam Castro. She is the co-founder of the WikiLeaks Australian Citizens Alliance. Robles: Hello Sam! How are you this evening? Or it is morning for you, I believe. Castro: I’m great, thank you. Yes, it is mid morning. Robles: We’ve heard the news that Julian has officially registered. Your next step, I

Armenia urges Turkey to ratify bilateral agreements

Yerevan will annul its agreements with Turkey if Ankara continues to drag its feet on the documents’ ratification, Armenian President Serzh Sargsyan told the Voice of Russia on Saturday. At the same time, he touted a spate of Armenian-Turkish agreements that were signed in 2009 and that stipulate establishing diplomatic relations between the two countries. The documents are yet to be ratified by the MPs of Armenia and Turkey. The main stumbling block is Turkey’s denial of the Armenian genocide on the territory of the Ottoman Empire in 1915. Voice of Russia Source http://english.ruvr.ru/2013_02_16/Armenia-urges-Turkey-to-ratify-bilateral-agreements/

Turkey returns fire after Syrian shell strikes near border

Turkish artillery has fired at targets inside Syria in response to a Syrian shell striking a forest in Turkey’s Khatay region. No casualties have been reported. It’s not known whether the Syrian missile was fired by armed rebels or regime troops, fighting close to the Turkish-Syrian border. A Syrian shell killed five Turks in October 2012, prompting Turkey to strike back. Source http://english.ruvr.ru/2013_02_15/Turkey-returns-fire-after-Syrian-shell-strikes-near-border/

Pakistan: 10 Shiite Muslims killed in bomb blast

Feb 16, 2013 17:56 Moscow Time A remote-controlled bomb targeting Shiite Muslims killed at least 10 people in Pakistan's insurgency-hit southwest on Saturday, police said. The incident took place in Hazara town, an area dominated by Shiite Muslims on the outskirts of Quetta, capital of oil and gas rich Baluchistan province. "Ten people have been killed, the death toll may rise, it was a remote-controlled bomb. All the dead were from Shiite community" Wazir Khan Nasir, senior police officer in Quetta, said. Source http://english.ruvr.ru/2013_02_16/Pakistan-10-Shiite-Muslims-killed-in-bomb-blast/

Four Turkish officers killed in Aleppo clashes: Report

Sat Feb 16, 2013 9:6AM GMT At least four Turkish officers have been killed in clashes between Syrian government troops and foreign-backed militants in Syria's northern city of Aleppo. The Syrian website Syria Now reports that the corpses of the Turkish officers were identified among the militants killed in the Friday fighting in the al-Bab district of the flashpoint city. Reports say the Syrian government troops killed dozens of militants and inflicted heavy losses on them in two days of fighting for the control of the international airport and the nearby Nairab airfield in Aleppo. The airport and the military airfield both remain under government control. Damascus has repeatedly accused Ankara of supporting the insurgents who are fighting against the government of President Bashar al-Assad. On Friday, the Syrian government sent a letter to the UN, blasting Turkey's "destructive" role in the conflict that has ravaged the country for the past 23 months. In

All 10 killed in US-led airstrike were civilians, Afghan panel says

Sat Feb 16, 2013 2:50AM GMT ‘US liable for war crimes in Afghanistan’ An Afghan fact-finding committee has accused US-led foreign forces of killing ten civilians in a recent airstrike in eastern Afghanistan. In a report issued on Friday, the committee said that the victims were five children, four women and a man, who was an Afghan government official. Five children were also injured in the airstrike. Afghan President Hamid Karzai had tasked the panel with investigating the airstrike, which took place on Tuesday in the eastern province of Kunar. On Thursday, Karzai summoned General Joseph Dunford, the new commander of the International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) in Afghanistan, over the killings. According to a government statement, Dunford, who replaced General John Allen on Sunday, was called in "for explanations" to the Afghan presidential palace following the airstrike. "Pointing to a commitment Gen. Allen had previously made not to conduct any a

Bomb attack kills eight Shia Muslims in southwestern Pakistan

Sat Feb 16, 2013 1:52PM GMT A bomb attack has killed at least eight Shia Muslims in southwestern Pakistan, official sources report. Source http://www.presstv.ir/detail/2013/02/16/289259/bombing-kills-8-shia-muslims-in-pakistan/

Brits to decry BBC news blackout on Palestinian hunger strikers

PressTV - British campaigners are to stage a protest rally outside the BBC Broadcasting House in London to condemn the corporation’s news blackout on reporting the plight of Palestinian hunger strikers. The demonstration, which is organized by the London-based Islamic Human Rights Council (IHRC) and Innovative Minds (inminds), will be held on February 18 to blast the broadcaster for enforcing a reporting blackout on any coverage of Palestinian hunger strikers. Two Palestinian political prisoners named Samer Al-Issawi, and Ayman Sharawna have been refusing food for almost seven months to gain release from Israeli regime’s detention centers. On January 11, British activists staged a protest outside the BBC building and called on the corporation to end its biased approach and cover the hunger strikes in a letter addressed to the BBC director general Tim Davie. The letter also included a passionate message from Um Ra'fat, the mother of Samer Al-Issawi. However, after nearly fi

CIA-armed militants in Syria will eventually turn against US: Sara Flounders

PressTV - The United States government assists militants across the world, only to one day fight against them, a prominent political activist tells Press TV. In the background to this, Syria has been experiencing unrest since mid-March 2011, with the Syrian government and experts saying an anti-Syria plot was hatched by the US, Qatar and Saudi Arabia. Press TV has conducted an interview with Sara Flounders, co-director of the International Action Center, from New York, to further discuss the issue. Flounders is joined by Scott Rickard, a former US intelligence linguist from Florida, and George Lambraski, a former US diplomat, from London. The following is a rough transcription of the interview. Press TV: One of the consequences, Sara Flounders, if you can tell us, so much so that the British foreign secretary has actually come out saying they might not pose a threat to us when they first go to Syria but if they survive some may return, ideologically, hardened - this about these

Report: US drones killed 894 in North Waziristan

Fri Feb 15, 2013 6:51AM Though it is only a fraction of the overall drone war against the nation, the Peshawar High Court on Thursday heard details on the impact of the U.S. drone strikes against the North Waziristan Agency, from the tiny area’s agent. In the past five years, 147 distinct U.S. attacks have killed 894 people, including 35 women and 24 children. The vast majority of the other victims were local tribesmen, with only 46 foreigners among the slain, and not all of them confirmed to be militants. Well over 200 people, again overwhelmingly civilians, were wounded in the attacks. North Waziristan is a rural area about the size of Long Island, and just one of seven tribal agencies in Pakistan’s northwest. The strikes are only a fraction of the overall U.S. toll in Pakistan, with a large portion of the attacks also focused on South Waziristan as well as other tribal agencies. The court expressed frustration at the data providing, noting it made no effort to distinguish

Obama needs to be mindful of doing more harm to the continent while protecting American interests.

(The Root) -- The legacy of colonialism has saddled the African continent with crippling poverty, widespread hunger and incurable disease. But there is a new threat on the horizon: an era of perpetual war. America's war on terror was supposed to end, or at least subside, under President Obama's watchful eye. Withdrawal from Iraq was the first step. An orderly drawdown of combat forces in Afghanistan by 2014 was supposed to be the end. But conflicts in northern, western and central Africa have emerged as the new frontier of American aggression against al-Qaida. And though hardly discussed, the regions now harbor the most clandestine activity within Obama's foreign policy agenda: namely, a secret war in Africa conducted by drones. Last month, al-Qaida in the Islamic Maghreb seized an oil refinery in Algeria. More than 81 hostages were killed -- American, Japanese and British citizens among them. This followed last year's Sept. 11 attack on America's consulate in

Syrian troops press rebels in fierce airport clashes

Syrian army troops are advancing on rebel-held positions surrounding three military airports near the city of Aleppo in northern Syria, Al Mayadeen TV reported. Several militant groups attempted to take control of the airports and destroy their runways to undermine the Syrian army’s air superiority. Fierce fighting for the Aleppo international airport and the neighboring military air base have been reported. Government forces earlier said they repelled the rebels from two other air bases in the area, days after rebels seized the Al-Jarrah airport and the military Base 80. Source http://rt.com/news/line/2013-02-16/#id45283

Police use tear gas against protesters in Ivory Coast

Police in the Ivory Coast have used tear gas to disperse a protest by supporters of former President Laurent Gbagbo, AFP reported. Fifty young people shouting “Free Gbagbo” were pushed back as they tried to charge a barrier set up by police in Abidjan. Officers in riot gear sealed off Yopougan Square, while a division of the UN’s Ivory Coast operation used armored vehicles and four-wheel drives to block the main road leading to the demonstration. Gbagbo has been held by the International Criminal Court since 2011, where he has been charged with crimes against humanity. The former leader failed to step down as president in December 2010, sparking clashes that led to around 3,000 deaths. Source http://rt.com/news/line/2013-02-16/#id45274

US college student creates blueprints for a drone-proof city

Asher Kohn isn’t an urban planner, but he has managed to draw up designs for an entire city — and a drone-proof one, at that. But according to Kohn, a town that’s impermeable to the newest instruments of war isn't just a novelty. It's a necessity. “Architecture against drones is not just a science-fiction scenario but a contemporary imperative,” says Kohn, a 25-year-old American-born law student who is currently living in the Netherlands. And although architecture and urban planning are rarely core classes of most law school curricula, earlier this year Kohn handed in a simple blueprint for an assignment offered by a professor at the Sam Fox School of Design in St. Louis, Missouri. “I was assigned ‘military architecture’ and realized that for every huge military advance that made it easier to blow up urban areas, there was usually a passive response invented within a generation,” he tells Britain’s Daily Mail. “So I was wondering what the response would be for drones if dr

US Drone Killings in Waziristan. Indepth Investigation by American and Pakistani Lawyers

Joe Lombardo is co-coordinator of the United National Anti-War Coalition (UNAC), the largest anti-war coalition in the United States. He is also a founding member of Project Salaam, a group that helps Muslims persecuted (mainly by the government) in the U.S. In October 2012, Lombardo visited Pakistan as one of the leaders of a 31-member delegation of U.S. anti-war activists. They were there to show solidarity with activists in that country who were protesting the slaughter of Pakistani civilians by U.S. drone attacks. The delegation was sponsored by a group of Pakistani lawyers based in Islamabad, capital of Pakistan, who are documenting the effects of drone warfare in the Waziristan area where most drone attacks occur. Waziristan is in the far north of Pakistan and borders Afghanistan. The delegation visited the major cities of Karachi, Lahore, and Islamabad, but were turned back by the Pakistan Army — “at the behest of the U.S. government,” according to Lombardo — when they appr

U.S. Drone War On Al-Qaida Fully Justified

The nation's vexation over the morality and legality of President Obama's drone war has produced a salutary but hopelessly confused debate. Three categories of questions are being asked. They must be separated to be clearly understood. 1. By what right does the president order the killing by drone of enemies abroad? What criteria justify assassination? Answer: (a) imminent threat, under the doctrine of self-defense, and (b) affiliation with al-Qaida, under the laws of war. Imminent threat is obvious. If we know a freelance jihadist cell in Yemen is actively plotting an attack, we don't have to wait until after the fact. Elementary self-defense justifies attacking first. Al-Qaida is a different matter. We are in a mutual state of war. Osama bin Laden issued his fatwa declaring war on the United States in 1996; we reciprocated three days after 9/11 with Congress' Authorization for Use of Military Force — against al-Qaida and those who harbor and abet it. Regar