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| Monday October 13th 2014 |
Turkey 'allows Syria rebel training'
Turkey has agreed to
allow moderate Syrian rebels to be trained on its soil, the US says, in
its bid to combat Islamic State in Syria and Iraq.
US National Security Adviser Susan Rice, who announced the development, said she welcomed the new agreement.It has not yet been confirmed by Turkey, which has so far refused to send troops into Syria or Iraq.
And Turkey's PM says no deal has been reached to allow the US to use Incirlik air base to attack IS militants.
Turkish MPs recently passed a motion that could allow foreign forces to use its bases for activities in Syria and Iraq, although the final decision rests with the government.
The US-led coalition is carrying out air strikes against Islamic State militants, who have seized large parts of Iraq and Syria. Many have targeted IS around the key Syria-Turkey border town of Kobane.
Report: Photographs of Kurdish fighters' bodies suggest chemical weapons use by ISIS
'MERIA' Journal obtains pictures of fighters killed in July battle with Islamic State marked by "burns and white spots...without any visible wounds or external bleeding.”
Photographs obtained by the Middle East Review of International Affairs (MERIA Journal)
which were published on Sunday appear to support claims that the
Islamic State used chemical weapons against Kurdish fighters in the
Kobani enclave on at least one occasion in the past.
The Syrian
town near the Turkish border is currently under siege and in danger of
falling under Islamic State control, bringing on fears of a potential
massacre.
The current siege of Kobani is not the first attempt by
Islamic State to capture the town. It has been suggested that during a
previous attempt, in July, IS unleashed a chemical agent on Kurdish
fighters.
Kurdish activists had previously claimed that the
chemical attack occurred on July 12, in the village of Avdiko in Kobani.
According to health minister of the Kurdish authority in Kobani, Nisan
Ahmed, the bodies of three Kurdish fighters killed in battles with IS
were not damaged by bullets, but instead were marked by "burns and white
spots...without any visible wounds or external bleeding.”
The MERIA Journal
on Sunday published a number of photographs of the three Kurdish
fighters, quoting expert Israeli sources as saying they appear to
suggest that a chemical agent, likely mustard, was used. The experts
added, however, that further information was needed to conclusively say
that the fighters died from a chemical attack.
Visiting Iraq, British foreign minister says airstrikes alone won't stop Islamic State group
BAGHDAD – Britain's foreign
minister says coalition airstrikes will not be enough to defeat the
Islamic State group, though he also rules out the use of foreign ground
forces.
Foreign Secretary Phillip Hammond, on a visit to Baghdad on Monday, says airstrikes have halted the advance of the Islamic State group. But what Hammond calls the "heavy work on the ground" will have to come from the Iraqi government and from inside the Sunni communities occupied by the group.
The
British government is taking part in the U.S.-led aerial campaign
combating the Islamic State group. However, it has refused to join the
U.S.-led airstrike campaign in Syria.
The triple attack took place in Qara Tappah in ethnically mixed Diyala province, an official from the Kurdish Asayish security forces said. He said the first bomber detonated an explosives vest at the gateway to a security compound that also houses the office of a main Kurdish political party. Minutes later, two suicide bombers plowed cars filled with explosives into the compound, causing heavy damage, he said.
The Islamic State extremist group claimed the attack, saying it was carried out by three foreign jihadists. The authenticity of the online statement could not be independently verified, but it was posted on a Twitter account frequently used by the militant group.
Foreign Secretary Phillip Hammond, on a visit to Baghdad on Monday, says airstrikes have halted the advance of the Islamic State group. But what Hammond calls the "heavy work on the ground" will have to come from the Iraqi government and from inside the Sunni communities occupied by the group.
Triple Suicide Bombing Kills Scores In Iraq
BAGHDAD (AP) — A triple suicide bombing Sunday killed at least 58 people in Iraq as a roadside bomb killed the police chief of the western Anbar province, authorities said, attacks that dealt major blows to Iraqi security forces struggling to combat the Islamic State extremist group.The triple attack took place in Qara Tappah in ethnically mixed Diyala province, an official from the Kurdish Asayish security forces said. He said the first bomber detonated an explosives vest at the gateway to a security compound that also houses the office of a main Kurdish political party. Minutes later, two suicide bombers plowed cars filled with explosives into the compound, causing heavy damage, he said.
The Islamic State extremist group claimed the attack, saying it was carried out by three foreign jihadists. The authenticity of the online statement could not be independently verified, but it was posted on a Twitter account frequently used by the militant group.
Billions set aside for post-Saddam Iraq turned up in Lebanese bunker
Stuart Bowen, who investigated corruption in Iraq, says US and Iraqi governments ignored appeals to recover money
More than $1bn earmarked for the reconstruction of Iraq was stolen and spirited to a bunker in Lebanon as the American and Iraqi governments ignored appeals to recover the money, it has been claimed.
Stuart Bowen, a former special inspector general who investigated corruption and waste in Iraq, said the stash accounted for a significant chunk of the huge sums which vanished during the chaotic months following the 2003 US-led invasion.
Bowen’s team discovered that $1.2bn to $1.6bn was moved to a bunker in rural Lebanon for safe keeping – and then pleaded in vain for Baghdad and Washington to act, according to James Risen, a journalist who interviewed Bowen for a book, Pay Any Price: Greed, Power and Endless War, to be published this week.
“Billions of dollars have been taken out of Iraq over the last 10 years illegally. In this investigation, we thought we were on the track for some of that lost money. It’s disappointing to me personally that we were unable to close this case, for reasons beyond our control,” Bowen said in an excerpt from the book published by the New York Times on Sunday.
The disclosure of the bunker shines a light on one of the occupation’s murkier puzzles: the fate of pallets of shrink-wrapped $100 bills which the Bush administration loaded on to Air Force C-17 transport planes in order to prop up the occupation of post-Saddam Hussein Iraq. About $12bn to $14bn was sent in the airlift and another $5bn via electronic transfer.
Bowen, a Texan friend of the president, was appointed in 2004 to investigate reports of corruption and waste in Iraq. He spent close to a decade chasing leads, until his office closed last year.
Much of the money was probably used by the Iraqi government in some way, Bowen concluded, but in 2010 a Lebanese American on his staff received a tip about stolen money hidden in a Lebanese bunker. In addition to the cash there was said to be approximately $200m in gold belonging to the Iraqi government.
An investigation, codenamed Brick Tracker, struggled to uncover details of the transfer, said Bowen, who told Risen: “I don’t know how the money got to Lebanon. If I knew that, we would have made more progress on the case.”
The fighting in Sari Pul province, as well as the disputed NATO airstrike in eastern Paktia province, show the serious challenges facing new Afghan President Ashraf Ghani Ahmadzai. Former President Hamid Karzai repeatedly clashed with NATO forces over civilian casualties from airstrikes, straining relations as public anger against the coalition grew.
The ambush in Sari Pul, where Taliban fighters reportedly have been
massing for days, happened Sunday in its Kohistanat district. There,
militants opened fire on an Afghan Army unit heading back to the capital
after several months being deployed there, killing 12 soldiers and two
police officers, said Kazim Kenhan, a spokesman for the provincial
police chief.
Kenhan said 13 troops and four police officers were wounded and six troops are missing after the ambush there, some 210 miles northwest of the capital, Kabul.
"A very intensive gun battle is going on right now and the casualty number might change overnight," Kenhan said Monday. "It is a mountainous area and very difficult to reach. We do need air support as we requested from the international forces, but they didn't help us."
He is now in a Rostov hospital. Reports say fellow rebels in the car at the time were not injured.
Rebels hold a large part of the region.
Few details about the attack on Mr Gubarev's car were given in the reports.
His wife Yekaterina, quoted by Russia's Tass news agency, said he did not have any bullet wounds and his injuries resulted from the car's collision with the pillar.
In February Mr Gubarev led the occupation of the Donetsk regional administration building by hundreds of pro-Russian activists.
The activists declared a "People's Republic of Donetsk" and he adopted the title of "governor". In April fighting erupted between the rebels and Ukrainian government forces.
A fragile ceasefire agreed on 5 September is generally holding, but clashes have continued in some areas, especially around Donetsk airport.
Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko is expected to hold talks on the crisis with Russia's President Vladimir Putin in Milan later this week. He was quoted on his website as saying he was under no illusions.
"These talks won't be easy, but I am ready for them," he said.
Mr Putin's spokesman said on Sunday that 17,600 Russian troops on training exercises near the border were to be pulled back from the area. Russia has denied widespread claims of supplying troops and weapons to the rebels.
The Ukrainian president said Austria had sent drones to monitor Ukraine's border with Russia as part of the ceasefire and further unmanned aircraft were due to be delivered soon by Germany and France.
Ukrainian Defence Minister Valery Heletey left his post on Sunday, two months after a rebel counter-offensive led to several areas of eastern Ukraine being recaptured.
The chaotic scenes came after police carried out a dawn operation to reopen some key roads blocked by protesters for more than 15 days. Police said they will continue to chip away at the occupied zone to relieve traffic, and warned that anyone who challenges them could be arrested.
Monday's confrontations highlighted the growing tension between
student-led protesters and authorities -- as well as other residents
aggravated by the disruptions. The protesters, who had enjoyed
widespread support when the movement began, are fighting to keep up
momentum as the political crisis entered a third week.
Demonstrators have flooded several thoroughfares in central Hong Kong since Sept. 28 in a civil disobedience movement to oppose restrictions on the first-ever direct election for the semiautonomous Chinese city's leader, promised by Beijing for 2017. They want authorities to drop a plan to use a pro-Beijing committee to screen candidates, and demand the resignation of Chief Executive Leung Chun-ying, the city's Beijing-backed leader.
Authorities have repeatedly urged protesters to retreat from the streets, but student leaders have vowed to keep up the disruptions until the government responds to their demands.
More than $1bn earmarked for the reconstruction of Iraq was stolen and spirited to a bunker in Lebanon as the American and Iraqi governments ignored appeals to recover the money, it has been claimed.
Stuart Bowen, a former special inspector general who investigated corruption and waste in Iraq, said the stash accounted for a significant chunk of the huge sums which vanished during the chaotic months following the 2003 US-led invasion.
Bowen’s team discovered that $1.2bn to $1.6bn was moved to a bunker in rural Lebanon for safe keeping – and then pleaded in vain for Baghdad and Washington to act, according to James Risen, a journalist who interviewed Bowen for a book, Pay Any Price: Greed, Power and Endless War, to be published this week.
“Billions of dollars have been taken out of Iraq over the last 10 years illegally. In this investigation, we thought we were on the track for some of that lost money. It’s disappointing to me personally that we were unable to close this case, for reasons beyond our control,” Bowen said in an excerpt from the book published by the New York Times on Sunday.
The disclosure of the bunker shines a light on one of the occupation’s murkier puzzles: the fate of pallets of shrink-wrapped $100 bills which the Bush administration loaded on to Air Force C-17 transport planes in order to prop up the occupation of post-Saddam Hussein Iraq. About $12bn to $14bn was sent in the airlift and another $5bn via electronic transfer.
Bowen, a Texan friend of the president, was appointed in 2004 to investigate reports of corruption and waste in Iraq. He spent close to a decade chasing leads, until his office closed last year.
Much of the money was probably used by the Iraqi government in some way, Bowen concluded, but in 2010 a Lebanese American on his staff received a tip about stolen money hidden in a Lebanese bunker. In addition to the cash there was said to be approximately $200m in gold belonging to the Iraqi government.
An investigation, codenamed Brick Tracker, struggled to uncover details of the transfer, said Bowen, who told Risen: “I don’t know how the money got to Lebanon. If I knew that, we would have made more progress on the case.”
Taliban ambush kills 14 Afghan troops as violent clashes continue
KABUL, Afghanistan – A mountain ambush by Taliban fighters killed at least 14 Afghan security force troops, authorities said Monday, as villagers elsewhere in the country alleged a NATO airstrike that the coalition said targeted militants actually killed civilians.The fighting in Sari Pul province, as well as the disputed NATO airstrike in eastern Paktia province, show the serious challenges facing new Afghan President Ashraf Ghani Ahmadzai. Former President Hamid Karzai repeatedly clashed with NATO forces over civilian casualties from airstrikes, straining relations as public anger against the coalition grew.
Kenhan said 13 troops and four police officers were wounded and six troops are missing after the ambush there, some 210 miles northwest of the capital, Kabul.
"A very intensive gun battle is going on right now and the casualty number might change overnight," Kenhan said Monday. "It is a mountainous area and very difficult to reach. We do need air support as we requested from the international forces, but they didn't help us."
East Ukraine rebel leader Gubarev unconscious after ambush
A top rebel politician in
eastern Ukraine, Pavel Gubarev, is unconscious in hospital after gunmen
fired at his car and it crashed into a pillar, Russian media report.
Sources in Mr Gubarev's pro-Russian "Novorossiya" movement
said his car was attacked in the Donetsk region, en route from
Rostov-on-Don in Russia.He is now in a Rostov hospital. Reports say fellow rebels in the car at the time were not injured.
Rebels hold a large part of the region.
Few details about the attack on Mr Gubarev's car were given in the reports.
His wife Yekaterina, quoted by Russia's Tass news agency, said he did not have any bullet wounds and his injuries resulted from the car's collision with the pillar.
In February Mr Gubarev led the occupation of the Donetsk regional administration building by hundreds of pro-Russian activists.
The activists declared a "People's Republic of Donetsk" and he adopted the title of "governor". In April fighting erupted between the rebels and Ukrainian government forces.
A fragile ceasefire agreed on 5 September is generally holding, but clashes have continued in some areas, especially around Donetsk airport.
Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko is expected to hold talks on the crisis with Russia's President Vladimir Putin in Milan later this week. He was quoted on his website as saying he was under no illusions.
"These talks won't be easy, but I am ready for them," he said.
Mr Putin's spokesman said on Sunday that 17,600 Russian troops on training exercises near the border were to be pulled back from the area. Russia has denied widespread claims of supplying troops and weapons to the rebels.
The Ukrainian president said Austria had sent drones to monitor Ukraine's border with Russia as part of the ceasefire and further unmanned aircraft were due to be delivered soon by Germany and France.
Ukrainian Defence Minister Valery Heletey left his post on Sunday, two months after a rebel counter-offensive led to several areas of eastern Ukraine being recaptured.
Angry Hong Kong mob leads assault against pro-democracy protesters
HONG KONG – A mob of masked men opposed to Hong Kong's pro-democracy demonstrators led an apparently coordinated assault on the protest zone in the heart of the city's financial district Monday, tearing down barricades and clashing with police.The chaotic scenes came after police carried out a dawn operation to reopen some key roads blocked by protesters for more than 15 days. Police said they will continue to chip away at the occupied zone to relieve traffic, and warned that anyone who challenges them could be arrested.
Demonstrators have flooded several thoroughfares in central Hong Kong since Sept. 28 in a civil disobedience movement to oppose restrictions on the first-ever direct election for the semiautonomous Chinese city's leader, promised by Beijing for 2017. They want authorities to drop a plan to use a pro-Beijing committee to screen candidates, and demand the resignation of Chief Executive Leung Chun-ying, the city's Beijing-backed leader.
Authorities have repeatedly urged protesters to retreat from the streets, but student leaders have vowed to keep up the disruptions until the government responds to their demands.
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