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Showing posts from March 3, 2013

Security situation in northeast India has improved, says Shinde

New Delhi, March 8 (IANS) Home Minister Sushilkumar Shinde said the security situation in northeastern states has improved while Rs.1,659 crore had been provided to them for modernisation of police forces during the last 12 years, an official statement said Friday. Shinde, who addressed the members of the Consultative Committee attached to his ministry Thursday, said Mizoram has continued to remain peaceful, Tripura has shown "remarkable improvement" while Arunachal Pradesh had largely remained peaceful except its Tirap and Changlang districts due to presence of National Socialist Council of Nagaland (NSCN) factions. Referring to Manipur, he said the security situation there has also improved with a noticeable decline in casualties among civilians and security forces. Citing the ethnic violence which took place in Assam during July-August and again in November last year, Shinde said the situation in the area was under control and the government was watching it closely.

'No extraordinary security measures for Sochi' : Russia

Moscow, March 8 (IANS) There will be no extraordinary security measures during the 22nd Winter Olympics in the Russian city of Sochi in 2014, a high-ranking security official said Thursday. "Organisers will, first of all, care for the Olympic Games participants, our guests and Sochi residents," deputy head of the Federal Security Service (FSB) Vladimir Kuleshov was quoted as sayibg by Xinhua after a meeting with international group of security and law-enforcement experts in Sochi. According to Kuleshov, who is also a member of the National Anti-terrorism Committee, no extraordinary measures have been planned before and during the Games in that Black Sea resort. "Russian laws will be enforced which will make everyone feel themselves comfortable," he stressed. Kuleshov explained that these laws permit the security services to search public at the entrance to the sports venues not to let arms, explosives and other dangerous things brought into the arenas. Th

Backed by 14 lakh Indians, Amnesty seeks Sri Lanka probe

New Delhi, March 8 (IANS) Amnesty International Friday gave a petition to Prime Minister Manmohan Singh signed by 14 lakh Indians seeking an independent probe into allegations of war crimes in Sri Lanka. Amnesty India chief executive G Ananthapadmanabhan handed over the petition to V. Narayanasamy, the minister of state in the Prime Minister's Office. "This petition represents the voices of 14 lakh ordinary Indian citizens asking India to play a stronger role in seeking justice in Sri Lanka," Ananthapadmanabhan said. "This is a demand for an end to the impunity for past and present human rights violations in Sri Lanka," he added. The petition, addressed to the prime minister, urges him to stand up for justice in Sri Lanka and to act to end the climate of impunity perpetuated by Colombo, Amnesty said. The petition asks the Indian government to support an independent international investigation into allegations of crimes under international law committe

U.N. Starts Talks to Free Peacekeepers Held by Syria Rebels

United Nations officials negotiated on Thursday with Syrian rebels who had seized a group of United Nations peacekeepers in the disputed Golan Heights region between Syria and Israel, as the rebels offered assurances of the peacekeepers’ well-being and appeared to back away from threats to hold them as hostages. Israel, which has watched anxiously for spillover as the Syrian civil war has intensified, signaled Thursday that it had no intention of becoming embroiled in the situation. Amos Gilad, a senior official in the Defense Ministry, told Israel Radio that “we can rely on the U.N. to persuade” the insurgent fighters to release the peacekeepers, who are from the Philippines, and that “neither the rebels nor anyone else has an interest in clashing with the international community, which it needs for support.” The authorities in Manila said the troops had not been harmed, and President Benigno S. Aquino III said he believed the peacekeepers would be viewed by both sides in the Syr

Ukrainian topless feminists to protest in Africa and South America

Ukrainian feminist group Femen, seen here during a protest at St. Peter's square near the Vatican, say they plan to take their message to Africa and South America. Picture: AFP UKRAINIAN feminist group Femen are taking their topless protests around the world, having already stripped off in Western Europe to highlight a range of issues from democratic violations to sexual exploitation. While enjoying little support at home, Femen's protesters have become a symbol of Ukraine abroad having taken their tops off in Moscow, Paris, Zurich, Brussels, and even in St Peter's Square in Vatican City. And now they plan to go even further afield. "This year we hope to cover North Africa and South America," said one of Femen's leaders, Anna Gutsol. The group, which was founded in 2008, came up with the idea of its topless protests almost by accident. FEMEN activists stage a topless protest against the 2013 World Economic Forum annual meeting in the Swiss resort

Ex-Argentina pres Carlos Menem guilty of arms trade

Former Argentine President (1989-1999) Carlos Menem (C) listening to his sentence during his trial in Buenos Aires on September 13, 2011. FORMER Argentine president Carlos Menem has been convicted of orchestrating arms smuggling while in office. The Appeals Court on Friday issued a guilty verdict against the 82-year-old Menem, who ruled from 1989 to 1999, for the smuggling of 6500 tonnes of weapons and ammunition to Croatia and Ecuador. His then defence minister, Oscar Camilion, was also convicted. Menem was initially acquitted of the charges in 2011 along with more than a dozen other defendants, but prosecutors appealed. The appeals court convicted Menem of "aggravated smuggling", which carries a sentence of four to 12 years in jail. Menem is now a senator and thus in theory has immunity from imprisonment. But he could be incarcerated after his term ends in 2014, or if he is stripped of this legal shield. Weapons were sent to Croatia in seven shipments aboard f

Over 50 arrests after Malaysia clashes

Malaysian police say they have arrested more than 50 people in the eastern state of Sabah. MALAYSIAN police say they have arrested more than 50 people in a remote state since the start of a nearly month-long incursion by Filipino Islamists. Malaysian forces have been widening their hunt for armed followers of a Philippine sultan who have been staking a territorial claim in the eastern state of Sabah. Malaysia has said previously that clashes between the gunmen and its security forces had left 60 people dead and has rejected a call by the fighters' leader for a ceasefire in a farming region where the militants were being pursued. In announcing the arrests, federal police chief Ismail Omar said on Friday they had all occurred in other areas of the state of Sabah, outside the battlezone where the militants and armed forces were facing off. "Outside the operation area, police already arrested certain suspects who we believe have links to the invaders," Ismail said.

Fijians joining the Taliban

Fighters with Afghanistan's Taliban militia sit on a hillside at Maydan Shahr in Wardak province, west of Kabul. FIJI police said they were working with Interpol to investigate reports of Fijian militants joining the Taliban. Although the Fiji Muslim League rejected the claims, police criminal investigation department director Luke Rawalai said on Saturday they were "taking this very seriously". He said Fijians joining the Taliban would violate the Pacific island country's counter-terrorist laws and it would be treated as "a major crime". "We are investigating through our channels overseas", police spokesman Inspector Atunaisa Sokomuri said, naming Interpol as assisting in the investigation. A Taliban spokesman in Pakistan also said five weeks ago that they had "welcomed some people from Fiji" to their ranks late last year. However, the Fiji Muslim League said that while some Fijian Muslims had gone to Pakistan to pursue thei

US man kills rifleman TV show host

The US host of a TV program about shooting has been shot dead, police say. A US man shot and killed the host of a TV program about shooting - while the host was visiting his wife. Wayne Bengston, 41, then beat his wife, took his two-year-old son to a relative's house and drove to his home about 40 kilometres away, where he apparently killed himself, police say. The victim was Gregory G. Rodriguez, 43, host of the Sportsman Channel show "A Rifleman's Journal". Bengston's wife told police that Rodriguez was in town on business and visiting her at her mother's house when her husband showed up on Thursday night. It wasn't clear how Rodriguez and the woman were acquainted. After the shooting, sheriff's deputies found Bengston's truck parked in his driveway. Efforts by a police SWAT team to contact Bengston inside the house were unsuccessful, and officers found the man's body with an apparently self-inflicted gunshot wound to the head,

UK radical arrested over bail breach

Radical preacher Abu Qatada has been arrested for allegedly breaching his bail conditions. RADICAL preacher Abu Qatada has been arrested for allegedly breaching his bail conditions, days ahead of the British government's latest deportation bid in court. UK Border Agency officials arrested Qatada on Friday, following raids by the Metropolitan Police Service Counter Terrorism unit. Searches at two residential homes and a business began on Thursday, while a search on a third property is ongoing, Scotland Yard said. However no arrests have been made in connection with the police investigation, a Home Office spokesman said. "The UK Border Agency arrested a 52-year-old man from north London for alleged breaches of his bail conditions imposed by the Special Immigration Appeals Commission (SIAC)," he said, adding the breach would be considered by SIAC at the earliest opportunity. A Scotland Yard spokesman said there had been searches at residential addresses in north

Bin Laden Relative Pleads Not Guilty in Terrorism Case

Sulaiman Abu Ghaith, a son-in-law of Osama bin Laden who once served as a spokesman for Al Qaeda, pleaded not guilty at his arraignment on Friday morning in federal court in Manhattan, where he was charged with conspiring to kill Americans. John P. Cronan, an assistant United States attorney, said in court that Mr. Abu Ghaith had spoken at length with United States law enforcement officials after his arrest by federal authorities on Feb. 28. Mr. Cronan cited a 22-page document detailing his statements but did not characterize the statements, which were not made public. The appearance of Mr. Abu Ghaith before Judge Lewis A. Kaplan of United States District Court, in the cavernous, wood-paneled ceremonial courtroom in Lower Manhattan, just blocks from ground zero, the site of the Sept. 11 attack on the World Trade Center, was not without symbolism. But details of both the defendant’s role in Al Qaeda and his arrest remained unclear. Slight, trim and balding, with a manicured gray

10 die in Iraqi attacks

TEN people have been killed in a series of attacks in northern and central Iraq, most of which targeted security personnel, police say. Two people were killed and seven injured in bombings in the Salah al-Din province, some 170km north of Baghdad. Blasts shook the cities of Tikrit, Beiji and Samraa. In the city of Mosul gunmen killed an army officer, his wife and child in an attack on their home. Five members of the one family were killed in a similar attack in the city of Hilla. The five were pro-government militiamen. Source http://www.news.com.au/breaking-news/world/die-in-iraqi-attacks/story-e6frfkui-1226593526678?from=public_rss

West training Syrian rebels in Jordan

Jordanian soldiers guard the border with Syria. The Guardian has been told that UK intelligence teams are giving Syrian rebels in Jordan logistical and other advice. Western training of Syrian rebels is under way in Jordan in an effort to strengthen secular elements in the opposition as a bulwark against Islamic extremism, and to begin building security forces to maintain order in the event of Bashar al-Assad's fall. Jordanian security sources say the training effort is led by the US, but involves British and French instructors. The UK Ministry of Defence denied any British soldiers were providing direct military training to the rebels, though a small number of personnel, including special forces teams, have been in the country training the Jordanian military. But the Guardian has been told that UK intelligence teams are giving the rebels logistical and other advice in some form. British officials have made it clear that they believe new EU rules have now given the UK th

Delhi echoes in Dhaka’s Shahbag Square

DHAKA: Months after the posters of 'Hang the rapists' and 'Am I just a body to be used?' were pulled down and the water-cannons left Jantar Mantar, the rage has found resonance 1,424km away. Dhaka's Shahbag Square, uniquely placed near a university and a business centre, has been echoing with cries of 'Phansi chai' and 'Hang the bloody razakars (collaborators)', since February 5. On both sides of the border stand "dented-painted" young women outraged by historical wrongs and unwilling to accept them anymore. If students and 30-something professionals like Snigdha Kapoor took to the streets in Delhi, connecting with friends through social networking sites, the Dhaka campaign has seen collegiates like Arafil Afroz Laxmi coming out against the "razakars". Laxmi says she heard about the Nirbhaya gang-rape and it upset her. "I travel by bus sometimes as late as 11pm. I feel unsafe. It should not have happened, it could happen t

More attacks on Hindu temples in Bangladesh

SATURDAY, MARCH 09, 2013 Source http://www.thedailystar.net/mycms/multimedia_archive/photos/2013/March/09/f6d9e92b25037f51252a5d95d0c6360e_thumbB.jpg Fanatics vandalised a temple at Munshiganj and set fire to another in Rangpur in the early hours yesterday, creating widespread panic among the local Hindu community. In Munshiganj, miscreants vandalised five idols at a temple at Shashongaon village of Sirajdikhan upazila on Thursday night. Locals found the idols, including that of the goddess Kali, totally destroyed when they went to the temple to worship yesterday morning, reports our Munshiganj correspondent. Md Abul Kashem, upazila nirbahi officer, and Sheikh Mahbubur Rahman, officer-in-charge of Sirajdikhan Police Station, visited the spot. OC Mahbubur alleged that a gang of miscreants was attacking the temples in the area to create panic among the Hindus. He assured the local Hindus that the hunt was on to nab the fanatics. In Rangpur, miscreants destroyed the idol o

China accuses Dalai Lama of offering cash sop to fiery protesters

BEIJING: A Chinese official accused exiled Tibetan spiritual leader the Dalai Lama on Friday of providing money to encourage people to set themselves on fire, and said they had evidence to prove the Nobel Peace laureate was instigating the self-immolations. More than 100 Tibetans have set themselves alight in protest against Chinese rule since 2009, mostly in heavily Tibetan areas of Sichuan, Gansu and Qinghai provinces rather than in what China terms the Tibet Autonomous Region. Most have died. "Self-immolation is fundamentally immoral and inhumane behaviour," Padma Choling, the Chinese appointed head of Tibet's rubber stamp legislature, said on the sidelines of China's annual meeting of parliament. "Instead of being against this, and putting a stop to this, they are encouraging it and using other means, such as giving financial compensation, to continue to instigate incidents like these. I think this is even less humane," he added, referring to the Dal

'Indian-origin jihadis' fighting in Syria against Assad regime

NEW DELHI: Indian-origin jihadi fighters have been found fighting along with the rebels in the raging civil war in Syria. "This is one of the reasons why we think India should play a more pro-active role, because this expanding conflict will not leave anyone untouched," said Bouthaini Shabaan, political adviser to Syrian President Bashar-al-Assad, in a conversation with TOI. She quoted UN envoy Lakhdar Brahimi as saying that there were almost 38 nationalities of fighters in war-torn Syria. Shabaan is in India as a special envoy of Assad, to convey a message from him to PM Manmohan Singh. Syria wants India to take a lead role at the forthcoming BRICS summit, and "support" Russia and China in their stand on the conflict. Both P-5 countries have vetoed UN Security Council resolutions against Syrian regime. Shabaan met foreign minister Salman Khurshid and national security adviser (NSA) Shivshankar Menon. MEA spokesperson said, "India reiterated deep concern o

Sri Lanka police block Tamils from rights rally

Colombo: Sri Lankan police blocked hundreds of minority Tamils from attending a rally in the capital Wednesday to protest extrajudicial killings and the disappearances of their loved ones, an activist said. Buses packed with family members were prevented from leaving the northern town of Vavuniya to make a 260-kilometre (162-mile) journey to Colombo for the Wednesday morning rally, activist and politician Mano Ganeshan said. “The protest was called off because nearly 1,000 people were not allowed to proceed from Vavuniya,” Ganeshan told AFP. “Armed police and army intimidated bus drivers and threatened them with dire consequences if they moved.” Military spokesman brigadier Ruwan Wanigasooriya denied intimidation, but said police had “advised” bus operators against leaving in the interest of maintaining peace and calm in the area. “The police stopped an organized movement of several buses in view of several complaints of stoning of buses in the area,” Wanigasooriya said. “If th

Malaysia: 31 Killed in Filipino Clan Clashes

Malaysian troops claim to have killed 31 Filipinos today in the ongoing battle with an intruding clan of Muslims from the Philippines in the state of Sabah, on the far northeastern tip of Boreno. The leaders of the clan denied the claim, insisting that all of their members are alive an accounted for, and insisted that the Malaysian troops had just killed random villagers in the district. If confirmed, the overall death toll of the ongoing battle is now 60, including eight Malaysian police. The fighting surrounds a faction linked with a clan leader in Manila, who holds disputed hereditary claims to the Sultanate of Sulu, which ceded the territory in question to a British syndicate in the 19th century on promise of annual rent. Though there are several different “heirs” to the Sultanate, Malaysia insists the issue is irrelevant because the residents of British North Borneo voted to join the Federation of Malaysia. The Malaysian government had been paying the rent in the form of an

Turkey: Non-Muslims Must Return Adopted

Abigail R. Esman Imagine: You adopt a young child, a toddler whose biological parents abused him, or a small girl whose mother abandoned her at birth. You raise the child as your own in a loving home, providing all the opportunities available for happiness. And then the government demands you give the child back. Or imagine you are that child, safe and secure with her foster family, a child who has joined the school soccer league, whose ballet skills have earned her scholarships and awards, whose foster siblings have known no life without her, whose puppy follows her everywhere she goes. And then the government demands you find another family to live with, because the family you’ve known for as long as you can remember practices the wrong religion. And imagine, further, that it’s not even your own government. Does this sound like Europe in the 1930s? Guess again: It is happening in Europe right now, as the Turkish government sweeps in to demand that foster and adopted childre

Shocking Facts on Female Genital Mutilation

Abigail R. Esman Last fall, Mohamed Kandeel, a physician and member of the Geneva Foundation for Medical Education and Research – a partner of the World Health Organization (WHO) – published an article in which he argued for the legalization of the procedure widely called “female genital mutilation” (FGM). His reasoning? Because it is practiced by Muslim cultures throughout Africa and much of the Middle East, and the Muslim community, he noted, “is the second largest in the world.” Kandeel’s ideas may be all wrong, but his facts are shockingly correct: The WHO estimates that between 100-140 million women and girls have undergone FGM, with millions more likely to be victimized, and the overwhelming majority of these women and girls are Muslim. (FGM does take place in non-Muslim cultures in Africa and among Coptic Christians in Egypt, but it is by no measure as widespread.) And it isn’t just in Africa and the Middle East, but in our own neighborhoods as well: According to Emine

Imam Preaches Armed Jihad in VA High School

Ryan Mauro Sheikh ShakerAn Islamist imam spoke in support of armed jihad at an event held in a Virginia high school on January 26, a video from the event shows. The event was put together by the First Hijrah Foundation and held at the TC Williams high school in Virginia. According to the organizers, the event's purpose was to “to commemorate the 1st Anniversary of Ethiopian Muslims peaceful struggle for justice and freedom of religion and Fund Raising for the families of the unjustly detained scholars of Ethiopian Muslims.” An edited video compiling the statements made at the event by Imam Shaker of Dar Al-Hijrah Islamic Center is below: The video shows Imam Shaker making the following statements: http://youtu.be/RnkjM1jeMz8 “…the power of armament. You cannot defend yourself by wishful thinking.” He adds that colonial powers would not be driven from Muslim lands by asking them to leave. “The world respects those who push back, the world only fears those who fight back.”

U.S. Cybersecurity Status Weak, Reports Charge

News J. Nicholas Hoover Senior Editor, InformationWeek Government DOD report says the military is "not prepared" for cyber war, while a White House report says agencies fall short of federal cybersecurity goals. The Department of Defense is "not prepared" to defend against sophisticated international cyber attacks, and government-wide, agencies have failed to meet some White House cybersecurity targets, according to two new reports. While the reports differ in tone and structure -- one report demands urgent action by the military and the other is a straightforward compliance report -- together they underscore the hard work the government still has ahead of it as it continues to face an onslaught of increasingly sophisticated cyber attacks. The report on the military, a study by the Defense Science Board (a civilian committee providing solicited scientific and technical advice to DOD leadership), finds that the Department of Defense is woefully unprepared to

China leveled 'time-bomb' cyber attack on Japanese, researchers say

Seculert recently uncovered two different spear-phishing attacks that were using a fake Mandiant report to target Japanese and Chinese journalists. The social engineering ploy played off of the celebrity of the real Mandiant report, which said that multiple attacks throughout recent years should be attributed to one group of attackers, unit 61398 in the Chinese military. Now, the security firm has found that the bug has a time-bomb element: the malware is set to trigger only during a specific timeframe. Up till then, the malware will communicate with the legitimate Japanese websites, and only on Tuesdays between 8am and 7pm will it start communicating with the real C2 server. At this point the malware will download and execute a new piece of malware, basically setting the stage for a new phase of the targeted attack. Seculert noted that the domain was suspended by the dynamic DNS service provider last Monday, a day before the time bomb was supposed to be triggered; therefore, the

Malaysia Invaded: Hundreds of Terrorists Land on Beaches, Western Media Mute

Malaysia has called in air support and armor to confront a bizarre terrorist invasion in its eastern state of Sabah. The West’s woeful, irresponsible coverage of a burgeoning region-wide destabilization, fits in nicely with its coverage of US-Saudi funded/armed terrorism around the world, including in Syria where US-funded terrorists of the so-called “Free Syrian Army” have just taken dozens of UN peacekeepers hostage in the Golan Heights – just days after the US announced it would fund the terrorists further, to the tune of $60 million and the West’s Arab partners have just granted the terrorist faction Syria’s seat at the “Arab League.” Terrorists are US-Saudi Funded Extremists – Part of Engineered Destabilization. While the West pleads ignorance over the identity of the militants held up in the jungles of Malaysia’s Sabah state, the militant organizations themselves have declared thousands more in reinforcements are being arranged in the Philippines to join and exasperate the

Egypt women wage war against 'sexual terrorism'

Faced with a spike in sexual violence against female protesters, Egyptian women are overcoming stigma and recounting painful testimonies to force silent authorities and a reticent society to confront "sexual terrorism". The victims of the attacks have been talking openly about their ordeals, insisting they will not be intimidated by a campaign they believe is aimed at shunning them from public life. "We are not victims, we are revolutionaries. What happened to us has made us stronger and we will continue to take to the streets," said activist Aida al-Kashef. Harassment of women is by no means new on Egypt's streets, where they were often the target of verbal abuse and sometimes groping. But since the revolution that toppled long-time president Hosni Mubarak in 2011, the problem has snowballed, with women now being regularly attacked by mobs of men in and around Tahrir Square. The attackers have stripped women of their clothes with knives, sexually assa

2 arrested in French anti-terrorism probe

PARIS — PARIS (AP) - French officials say two men suspected of plotting terror attacks have been detained. Officials at the Interior Ministry and the Paris prosecutor's office say intelligence and police officers detained them Thursday in a house in Marignane near the southern city of Marseille. The men are 18 and 20. The Interior Ministry official says the two were suspected of preparing explosives, and had been under surveillance since November. He says they had been identified as a threat based on their online activity, and that authorities moved in because they believed the two were ready to carry out "terrorist acts." The target and location of the potential attacks are unclear. The officials spoke on condition of anonymity because they weren't authorized to publicly discuss terrorism investigations. Source http://www.vcstar.com/news/2013/mar/07/2-arrested-in-french-anti-terrorism-probe/

The Politics of Extremism

The mainstream political media – from top-rated television programs like Meet the Press to David Brooks and Thomas Friedman in the New York Times – tells America a story of perpetual partisan bickering. Democrats and Republicans are retreating to their extremes rather than trying to come together. Both sides are moving away from the middle. Both sides refuse to propose solutions. It’s both sides. That’s not true. The story of the American political parties in the last three decades has been of what is called, in political science jargon, “asymmetric polarization.” Democrats have remained a center-left party, while Republicans have drifted to the extreme right. Respected centrist and center-right analysts Thomas Mann of the Brookings Institution and Norm Ornstein of the American Enterprise Institute wrote a book last year making this point. They called the Republican Party an “insurgent outlier” and slammed the “failure of the media” to report that it had become “ideologically extr

Civil rights group warns of extremists on the rise

By MICHAEL MUSKAL LOS ANGELES TIMES March 06, 2013 - 12:00 AM LOS ANGELES — Efforts to limit gun violence and to bring about immigration reform have led to a growing backlash from the extreme right, including the so-called patriot and militia groups, a civil rights group said Tuesday. In its latest report, the Southern Poverty Law Center, which tracks extreme right-wing and hate groups, said that it had counted 1,360 patriot groups in 2012, up about 7 percent from the 1,274 active in 2011. But that is also a rise of 813 percent since 2008, the year Barack Obama was elected the nation's first African-American president. The groups include 321 militias, far more than the movement's previous peak in the 1990s, when militias were inflamed by the 1993 Brady Bill to control guns and the 1994 assault rifle ban, the center said. "Now, in the wake of the mass murder of 26 children and adults at a Connecticut school and the Obama-led gun control efforts that followed, it s