Gazette 082913

Thursday August 29th 2013

------------------------------

UN chief awaits Syria weapons report

UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon says he will receive a report on Saturday from weapons inspectors investigating an apparent Syrian chemical attack.

Hundreds are reported to have died in the attack near Damascus last week.
US President Barack Obama has said he has not yet decided on a plan for retaliatory action against Syria.
Other nations are also considering the next move. The UK wants a UN Security Council resolution to take "all necessary measures" to help civilians.

The UK prime minister's office said in a statement that the UK could still take "exceptional measures including targeted military intervention" even if the Security Council could not agree.

Syrian President Bashar al-Assad said his country would defend itself against any aggression.
The British parliament is voting later on Thursday on whether to back the principle of military intervention, but the leader of the opposition Labour Party has said MPs should not have to decide on what he called an "artificial timetable".
The Speaker of the Syrian parliament has written to his counterpart in London inviting a British parliamentary delegation to visit Damascus as soon as possible.

WHERE THE WORLD STANDS ON SYRIA

As the world absorbs the likely prospect of a multinational military strike on Syria, governments and citizens around the globe are warily debating the wisdom of another foray into a seething conflict in the Middle East.
A general consensus has taken hold that the government of Syrian President Bashar al Assad was indeed responsible for unleashing chemical weapons in a rebel-held suburb of Damascus last week, killing hundreds and affecting thousands, many of them children.
Yet nothing close to consensus exists on the international response, or even the strategic context that ought to shape that response. No agreement has been reached on the legality or appropriateness of military action minus authorization from the United Nations Security Council -- a seeming impossibility, given Assad's support from Russia and China.
Memories of previous military misadventures in the Middle East, not least in Iraq, have sown worries that the key powers forging the action in Syria -- the United States, Great Britain and France -- are less than fully reliable arbiters of the facts on the ground.
In Great Britain, former Conservative cabinet minister Cheryl Gillan warned that an attack on Syria could lead to "absolute disaster."

Assad's brother eyed in Syria chemical weapons strike, as UN experts tour site of attack

U.N. experts headed to the eastern suburbs of Damascus Thursday for a third day of inspections of areas struck by a purported chemical weapons attack, which one official suspects may have been ordered by Syrian President Bashar Assad's brother.
A U.N. official who monitors armed conflicts in the region told Bloomberg News that Maher Assad, the leader of the regime’s Republican Guard and the elite Syrian Army 4th Armored Division, is suspected of signing off on the attack that left hundreds dead last week. 
Assad's regime, which sits on one of the world's largest stockpiles of chemical weapons, has denied that it was behind the attack, but U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry said Monday that there is "undeniable" evidence that chemical weapons were used in Syria.
The official asked not to be named, and said the attack may have been a brash action by Maher instead of a strategic strike by the president.

Typhoon jets sent to Cyprus to guard against possible Syrian retaliation

The UK is sending six RAF Typhoon jets to Cyprus to defend the strategically important bases on the island against potential retaliatory attacks from the regime of Bashar al-Assad.
The Ministry of Defence confirmed that the fighters were flying to the Mediterranean on Thursday morning, ahead of any possible military action against Syria in the coming days.
The MoD stressed that the jets were not being sent to conduct potential ground-attack missions against Assad's regime, but were there as a precautionary measure.
The UK has two sovereign base areas on the former British colony at Akrotiri and Dhekelia. The aircraft will be based at the Akrotiri base, which has been a key staging post for military flights to and from Afghanistan.
The bases are also home to listening and surveillance stations that provide the British and US militaries, and western intelligence services, with vital information about what is going on across the Middle East.
Military analysts have expressed concern that Cyprus might be in range of Syria's Scud missiles. Assad also has a strong air force.
An RAF spokesman said: "We can confirm that as part of ongoing contingency planning, six RAF Typhoon interceptor fast jets are deploying this morning to Akrotiri in Cyprus. This is purely a prudent and precautionary measure to ensure the protection of UK interests and the defence of our sovereign base areas at a time of heightened tension in the wider region.

Egypt's Brotherhood ramps up calls for protests

Egypt's Muslim Brotherhood is ramping up calls for nationwide protests, urging people to take to the streets against the new military-backed government.
In a pre-recorded message aired late Wednesday on one of Al-Jazeera's Arabic news channels, top Brotherhood figure Essam el-Erian called on people to rise against the "failed, bloody military regime."
The Interior Ministry says its police forces are on high alert in preparation for the protests, which have turned deadly.
How people respond to calls for Friday protests and sit-ins will test whether the Brotherhood can still mobilize its base amid a fierce security crackdown against the group.
Hundreds of Brotherhood members have been killed and arrested since the July 3 coup that ousted President Mohammed Morsi, a longtime leader in the Islamist group.

Baghdad Bombings: Dozens Killed In Wave Of Attacks In Shiite Muslim Areas

BAGHDAD — Car bomb blasts and other explosions tore through mainly Shiite districts around Baghdad during morning rush hour Wednesday in a day of violence that killed at least 80, intensifying worries about Iraq's ability to tame the spiraling mayhem gripping the country.
It was the latest set of large-scale sectarian attacks to hit Iraq, even as the government went on "high alert" in case a possible Western strike in neighboring Syria increases Iraq's turmoil.
A relentless wave of killing has left thousands dead since April in the country's worst spate of bloodshed since 2008. The surge in violence raises fears that Iraq is hurtling back toward the widespread sectarian killing that peaked in 2006 and 2007, when the country was teetering on the edge of civil war.
Most of Wednesday's attacks happened in within minutes of each other as people headed to work or were out shopping early in the day. Insurgents unleashed explosives-laden cars, suicide bombers and other bombs that targeted parking lots, outdoor markets and restaurants in predominantly Shiite areas in and around Baghdad, officials said. A military convoy was hit south of the capital.
Security forces sealed off the blast scenes as ambulances raced to pick up the wounded. The twisted wreckage of cars littered the pavement while cleaners and shop owners brushed away debris. At one restaurant, the floor was stained with blood and dishes were scattered on plastic tables.
"What sin have those innocent people committed?" asked Ahmed Jassim, who witnessed one of the explosions in Baghdad's Hurriyah neighborhood. "We hold the government responsible."

Indian Mujahideen leader Yasin Bhatkal captured by security forces

One of India's most wanted Islamists has been arrested in a security forces operation on the border with Nepal.
Yasin Bhatkal is accused of involvement in a string of recent attacks including a 2010 blast at a bakery patronised by international tourists in the city of Pune that killed nine and injured 60.
The 30-year-old is said to be one of the founders of the Indian Mujahideen (IM) militant organisation. "Yasin Bhatkal has been traced and detained ... His interrogation is going on," Sushilkumar Shinde told reporters in Delhi on Thursday morning.
India has been hit by a series of high-profile attacks involving both local and overseas-based militants. The most spectacular recent strike was launched by Pakistan-based extremists against hotels and other targets in Mumbai, the country's commercial capital, in 2008. However, there have been dozens of smaller-scale operations which do not attract international attention.
Indian counter-terrorist officials said the detention of Bhatkal was their biggest success for several years. Experts say Bhatkal, who has been pursued for a decade, would rank among the top five wanted Indian Islamists.


Panama: North Korea arms shipment broke UN sanctions

A preliminary report by a team of United Nations experts has determined that a North Korean cargo ship seized in Panama for carrying weapons violated sanctions, the Panamanian government has said.
A security ministry statement said the Cuban weapons found under sacks of sugar, including equipment for launching missiles, "without a doubt" violated sanctions meant to halt sophisticated arms sales to North Korea.
The ministry did not give further details and no one at the ministry answered phone calls from the Associated Press seeking comment.
The statement comes a day after the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute gave a similar assessment that it said was based on photographs and reports from Panamanian and UN authorities.
A UN panel of experts monitoring sanctions against North Korea visited Panama in mid-August to investigate the arms seizure. Its report has yet to be made public.
After the seizure Cuba said the cargo included "obsolete defensive weapons" including two MiG-21 jet aircraft and 15 motors, nine missiles in parts and two anti-aircraft systems that were being shipped to North Korea "to be repaired and returned".
North Korea said it had a "legitimate contract" to overhaul "ageing weapons" to be sent back to Cuba.
UN sanctions state that member states must prevent the direct or indirect supply, sale or transfer of all arms and materiel to North Korea, and related spare parts, except for small arms and light weapons.
-
Afghan Taliban unwilling to talk to Karzai government: Pakistan

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan said on Tuesday that Afghan Taliban insurgents are unwilling to talk to Karzai government and its peace negotiators at least for now.

The statement came hours after Afghan President Hamid Karzai concluded a two-day visit to Pakistan that was focused on efforts to encourage Taliban to come to the negotiating table, Xinhua reported.

Karzai's spokesperson Aimal Faizi said that Karzai pressed for Islamabad's help to bring Taliban leaders to the negotiating table.

Afghan government claims that leaders of Taliban are living in Pakistan and that Islamabad should use influence on them and facilitate direct talks between Taliban and Afghan High Peace Council.

Pakistan's advisor to the Prime Minister on national security and foreign affairs Sartaj Aziz, however, said the Taliban are not willing to talk to Afghan government or Afghan High Peace Council.

"Pakistan will try its best to persuade them to hold dialogue so as to avert outbreak of civil war in post-conflict Afghanistan," Aziz told state radio.

Taliban regime was outsted by a US-led invasion in late 2001 for harbouring al-Qaida and the US and Nato-led combat troops are due to complete withdrawal from Afghanistan by the end of 2014.-

Egypt Closes Suez Canal To All US Military Ships Citing Defence Pact With Syria

The first thing Abdel Fattah al-Sisi Commander-in-Chief of the armed forces, not to enter any US military chartered a tanker to the Suez Canal to hit Syria, stressing Egypt’s commitment to joint defence agreement between Egypt and Syria.

 

If true, and there is no confirming this as of yet, as say bravo to Gen. al-Sisi.   Granted the guy has slaughtered hundreds of his own countrymen the last couple weeks but at least he has the balls to standup to us and islamic extremism.  -Mort

Obama marks King's 'unfinished business'

US President Barack Obama has linked the ongoing struggle for economic equality in America with the goals of the 1963 March on Washington, in a speech marking its 50th anniversary.

Mr Obama, the first black US president, said ensuring economic opportunity was "our great unfinished business".
He also linked his own rise to the White House with the efforts of the civil rights protesters decades ago.
Members of Martin Luther King's family and veterans of the march also spoke.
Mr Obama gave his address at the Lincoln Memorial on the National Mall in Washington DC almost 50 years to the minute after Martin Luther King Jr culminated the march with his celebrated I Have a Dream speech
The time - 15:00 local time (19:00 GMT) - was marked by ringing bells.
Mr Obama began by honouring King, as well as the many African-American and white marchers who descended on Washington to protest for equal rights for black citizens 50 years ago.
"They assembled here, in our nation's capital, under the shadow of the great emancipator, to offer testimony of injustice, to petition their government for redress and to awaken America's long-slumbering conscience," Mr Obama said.

Administration announces new gun control measures, targets military surplus imports

The Obama administration unexpectedly announced two new gun control measures on Thursday, including one that would curb the import of military surplus weapons, in a move that could anger collectors. 
Vice President Biden was set to announce the new measures later Thursday morning. They took the form of executive actions, which President Obama added to the list of 23 steps the White House already determined the president could take on his own. 
The steps come after Congress declined to pass any gun control legislation earlier this year despite an aggressive White House push for action in the wake of the Newton, Conn., shooting massacre. With the political world focused on Mideast tensions and looming fiscal battles, the move signaled Obama's intent to show he hasn't lost sight of the issue. 
One new policy will end a government practice that lets military weapons, sold or donated by the U.S. to allies, be reimported into the U.S. by private entities, where some may end up on the streets. The White House said the U.S. has approved 250,000 of those guns to be reimported since 2005; under the new policy, only museums and a few other entities like the government will be eligible to reimport military-grade firearms. 
The Obama administration is also proposing a federal rule to stop those who would be ineligible to pass a background check from skirting the law by registering a gun to a corporation or trust. The new rule would require people associated with those entities, like beneficiaries and trustees, to undergo the same type of fingerprint-based background checks as individuals if they want to register guns.

President Obama is deploying explainer-in-chief Bill Clinton to lift Obamacare

The “Secretary of Explaining Stuff” has just been deployed for assignment. Again.
Facing key implementation deadlines for a health-care law that has been received poorly by the public and is the subject of unwavering criticism from Republicans, President Obama is trying to right the ship by turning to the Democratic Party’s best messenger: Bill Clinton.
It could be just what the doctor ordered for the president. (No pun intended.)
Clinton will give a speech about Obamacare in Little Rock, Ark., next week. A White House official says the address will be the first “of a number of high-profile events and speeches by administration officials and allies throughout the fall.” Clinton will headline more events, the official added.
It’s not the first time Obama has turned to the man who has secured his place as the Democratic Party’s best messenger these days. Last fall, Clinton delivered a rousing speech at the Democratic National Convention that outshone even Obama’s address. Nearly twice as many Americans who watched the convention said Clinton’s speech was the highlight of the convention as said Obama’s address was the standout, according to one poll. Days later, another poll showed Clinton was more popular than ever.

Obama Refused to Send Gas Masks

The Obama administration has refused to send gas masks and other chemical-weapons protection gear to Syrian opposition groups, despite numerous requests dating back more than a year and until the reported chemical-weapons attack that struck the Damascus suburbs August 21.

Following the harrowing attack that left more than 1,300 dead and more than 3,000 injured in East Ghouta and other Damascus suburbs, the Obama administration is contemplating a strike on the regime of Bashar al-Assad. But Syrian civilians are still trying to cope with the tragedy and treat the wounded, who include scores of children caught sleeping when the gas was dispersed. The attack zone has a fatal shortage of gas masks, chemical-weapons protection gear, and the nerve agent antidote atropine; civilians and activists have been forced to resort to crafting makeshift masks out of everyday household items.

More chemical-weapons attacks could come, and there is now an urgent demand in rebel-held areas for gas masks and other gear. But there is also anger and frustration among opposition leaders that despite more than a year of requests to the U.S. government, the Obama administration did not send any gas masks or chemical-weapons protection gear to opposition-controlled areas.

Homeland Security chief Janet Napolitano bids farewell

Janet Napolitano has a message for the next head of the Department of Homeland Security: “You will need a large bottle of Advil.”
In a farewell speech Tuesday, Napolitano gave a wide-ranging defense of her 4½f years as head of one of the government’s youngest and most unwieldy departments.
“Some have said that being the secretary of DHS is the most thankless job in Washington,” Napolitano said at the National Press Club in the capital. “That’s not true. No doubt it is a very big and complex job. It is literally a 24/7 job,” she said. “Yet, as my successor will soon learn, it is also one of the most rewarding jobs there is. What you do here matters to the lives of people all across our great nation, and your decisions affect them in direct, tangible ways."

Hacked e-mails reveal 'Washington approved' plan to stage Syria chemical attack

First reported by SPIII January 28, 2013

On Saturday, Cyber War News released a cache of e-mails allegedly hacked by someone in Malaysia from a British private defense contractor called Britam Defence.
One of the e-mails contains a discussion between Britam’s Business Development Director David Goulding and Philip Doughty, company founder. In the exchange, it’s revealed that there is a plan to unleash chemical weapons in Syria in order to blame it on the Bashar Al Assad regime to justify a direct intervention by U.S. and NATO forces in the country's civil war. The plan, thought up by the government of Qatar according to the e-mail, is “approved by Washington.”