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Cyber officials: Chinese hackers attack 'anything and everything'
http://www.fcw.com/article97658-02-13-07-Web&printLayout
Cyber officials: Chinese hackers attack 'anything and everything'
BY Josh Rogin

Published on Feb. 13, 2007 NORFOLK, Va. -- At the Naval Network Warfare
Command here, U.S. cyber defenders track and investigate hundreds of
suspicious events each day. But the predominant threat comes from Chinese
hackers, who are constantly waging all-out warfare against Defense
Department networks, Netwarcom officials said.

Attacks coming from China, probably with government support, far
outstrip other attackers in terms of volume, proficiency and sophistication,
said a senior Netwarcom official, who spoke to reporters on background
Feb 12. The conflict has reached the level of a campaign-style,
force-on-force engagement, he said.

“They will exploit anything and everything,” the senior official said,
referring to the Chinese hackers’ strategy. And although it is
impossible to confirm the involvement of China’s government, the attacks are so
deliberate, “it’s hard to believe it’s not government-driven,” the
official said.

The motives of Chinese hackers run the gamut, including technology
theft, intelligence gathering, exfiltration, research on DOD operations and
the creation of dormant presences in DOD networks for future action,
the official said.

A recent Chinese military white paper states that China plans to be
able to win an “informationized war” by the middle of this century.
Overall, China seeks a position of power to ensure its freedom of action in
international affairs and the ability to influence the global economy,
the senior official said.

Chinese hackers were responsible for an intrusion in November 2006 that
disabled the Naval War College’s network, forcing the college to shut
down its e-mail and computer systems for several weeks, the official
said. Forensic analysis showed that the Chinese were seeking information
on war games in development at NWC, the official said.

NWC was vulnerable because it was not part of the Navy Marine Corps
Intranet and did not have the latest security protections, the official
explained. He said this was indicative of the Chinese strategy to focus
on weak points in the network.

China has also been using spear phishing, sending deceptive mass e-mail
messages to lure DOD users into clicking on a malicious URL, the
official said. China is also using more traditional hacking methods, such as
Trojan horse viruses and worms, but in innovative ways.

For example, a hacker will plant a virus as a distraction and then come
in “slow and low” to hide in a system while the monitors are
distracted. Hackers will also use coordinated, multipronged attacks, the official
added.

Chinese hackers gained notoriety in the United States when a series of
devastating intrusions, beginning in 2003, was traced to a team of
researchers in Guangdong Province. The program, which DOD called Titan
Rain, was first reported by Federal Computer Week in August 2005. Following
that incident, DOD renamed the program and then classified the new
name.

That particular set of hackers is still active, the Netwarcom official
said. He would not confirm whether the Titan Rain group was linked to
the NWC attack or any other recent high-profile intrusions.

Other senior military officials have spoken out recently on U.S. cyber
strategy, saying the country urgently needs to develop new policies and
procedures for fighting in the cyber domain.

Current U.S. cyber warfare strategy is dysfunctional, said Gen. James
Cartwright, commander of the Strategic Command (Stratcom), in a speech
at the Air Warfare Symposium in Orlando, Fla., last week. Offensive,
defensive and reconnaissance efforts among U.S. cyber forces are
incompatible and don’t communicate with one another, resulting in a disjointed
effort, Cartwright said.

Gen. Ronald Keys, commander of Air Combat Command, told reporters at
the conference that current policies prevent the United States from
pursuing cyberthreats based in foreign countries. Technology has outpaced
policy in cyberspace, he said.

The United States should take more aggressive measures against foreign
hackers and Web sites that help others attack government systems, Keys
said. It may take a cyber version of the 2001 terrorist attacks for the
country to realize it must re-examine its approach to cyber warfare, he
added.

Netwarcom officials described their approach as an active defense, in
which monitors build defenses around the perimeter of DOD systems, work
to mitigate the effects of attacks and restore damaged parts of the
network.

Meanwhile, the consolidation of DOD’s cyber resources is ongoing.
Netwarcom works directly with the Joint Task Force for Global Network
Operations, DOD’s lead agency on network defense and operations, a component
of Stratcom.

Netwarcom, the Navy’s lead cyber agency, is moving from monitoring the
networks to full command-and-control capabilities. The Air Force
announced in October 2006 that it will create a Cyber Command, based on the
infrastructure of the 8th Air Force under Lt. Gen. Robert Elder, at
Barksdale Air Force Base, La., to coordinate its cyber warfare efforts.

In the end, the cyberthreat is revolutionary, officials said, because
it has no battle lines, the intelligence is intangible, and attacks come
without warning, leaving no time to prepare defenses. Education and
training of computer users, not enforcement, are the most effective
defense measures, officials said.

Venezuela's Military Build-up:

Who's Watching the Guns?

http://www.lanuevacuba.com/nuevacuba/notic-07-02-1321.htm

Strategy Security

Infosearch

José Cadenas

Analyst

Bureau Chief

USA

Research Dept.

La Nueva Cuba

February 13, 2007

On November 29th, Venezuela received the final shipment of the 100,000
AK-103 assault rifles that it purchased from Russia last year. Despite
the high-profile nature of this sale, little is known about Venezuela's
plans for safeguarding the rifles, which would be a hot commodity on
the region's vibrant black market. It's time to start asking some tough
questions about the rifles and President Chavez's plan for protecting
them.

The rifle deal is part of a multi-million dollar military build-up by
the oil-rich country, which has also signed contracts for fighter jets
and military helicopters, and is reportedly considering the purchase of
Russian air defense systems, submarines, and infantry fighting
vehicles. The sales have been a source of heated rhetoric, mostly from Chavez,
and have strained relations with United States. Unhappy with the
Venezuelan government's lack of cooperation on terrorism and concerned about
its military build-up, the Bush administration banned U.S. arms exports
to Venezuela in May and pressured several countries to forego major
weapons deals. Spain, Sweden and Brazil have obliged; Russia has not.

In each case, Chavez and his officials have responded with
characteristic bombast and vitriol, calling the U.S. a "senseless, blind and dumb
giant" and accusing it of attempting to "isolate Venezuela, destabilize
its democratic government and prepare the political conditions for an
attack."

While Chavez's colorful insults steal the headlines, the issue of
greatest importance-the influx of thousands of rifles and millions of rounds
of ammunition into a region rife with black market arms trafficking-has
received scant meaningful attention. The illicit arms trade stocks the
arsenals of Colombian rebels and international narcotics traffickers,
and the Venezuelan military has already inadvertently contributed dozens
of its old FAL assault rifles to this trade. A 2003 study by the RAND
Corporation found that weapons, some of which "are registered to the
Venezuelan Armed Forces.routinely move from Venezuela into Colombia."
These findings are corroborated by a variety of sources, including
Colombian government officials and defectors from the main rebel group, the
FARC. In an interview that appeared in Jane's Intelligence Review, a
former member of the FARC's '16th Front' claimed that the rebels ".brought
in rifles from Venezuela, such as used FALs in lots of 50..." from a
supplier in Maracay, Venezuela's main garrison town.

If the leaks in Venezuela's arsenals aren't plugged soon, many of the
new rifles will undoubtedly follow the same path as the diverted FAL
rifles. And if Chavez follows through on his commitment to arm a million
or more Venezuelans, the trickle of weapons could become a torrent.
Chavez is preparing for a "war of resistance" against a US invasion and is
building a rifle factory to equip the huge reserve force, which will be
tasked with "defend[ing] every street, every hill, every corner" from
US invaders.

The Venezuelan government has revealed little about its plans for
safeguarding the new rifles other than vague references to marking them with
unique serial numbers. While marking weapons is important, serial
numbers alone do not prevent the theft and diversion of small arms. Keeping
weapons out of the wrong hands requires a variety of safeguards,
including robust stockpile security, careful monitoring of local black
markets, and a willingness on the part of other countries to hold governments
accountable for failing to properly secure their arsenals.

The US government has repeatedly expressed concerns about the potential
for diversion of the rifles and ammunition to terrorists and criminals.
But anti-US sentiment is rampant in Venezuela, and America's
protestations have fallen on deaf ears. Nary a peep has come from the rest of the
world; even those governments that champion the cause of small arms
control have been conspicuously silent.

It is time for the international community to speak up. Pressure from
foreign governments, and particularly Venezuela's main trading partners,
could help persuade Chavez to moderate his small arms build-up and to
beef up controls on military stockpiles. To that end, these governments
should take the follow steps: First, they should make it crystal clear
to Chavez that he should not arm civilians. The threat posed by the
distribution of military firearms to the civilian population is far
greater - to Venezuelans and their neighbors - than the phantom US invasion
force they ostensibly would be used to thwart. Second, these governments
should ask the Venezuelan government to brief them on its plans for
preventing the theft, loss or diversion of the rifles and ammunition. The
plan should be thorough and detailed, and should include physical
security and stockpile accounting practices that meet international
standards. Finally, the Organization of American States and Venezuela's
neighbors should monitor the regional trade in illicit small arms and alert
the international community if Venezuela's rifles start appearing on the
black market.

The region-and the world-deserve at least that.

Rafsanjani: Islamic world can neutralizes US plots

http://www2.irna.ir/en/news/view/menu-234/0702186546002636.htm

Rafsanjani: Islamic world can neutralizes US plots
Tehran, Feb 18, IRNA

Iran-Syria-Rafsanjani
Chairman of Expediency Council Ayatollah Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani in a
meeting with Syrian President Bashar al-Assad here Saturday said
Islamic
world with the vigilance of its political and religious leaders can
neutralize the US plots.

According to the EC's Public Relations Office report, Rafsanjani said
creating disunity among Shia and Sunni Muslims in the region,
especially
in Iraq and Lebanon, is an American plot.

Referring to the sensitive situation in the region and the world,
Rafsanjani underlined the importance of cooperation, as well as
consultation between Iran and Syria and said such relations will be
beneficial to the whole of region and the Islamic world.

President Assad, for his part, said the speedy developments in the
region need deep attention adding the US and its allies that have
failed
in the region, especially in Iraq, Lebanon and Palestine, are trying to
take advantage of any opportunity to create crisis and the Muslim
countries must mobilize their abilities to confront such mischief.

He described Iran as a big Islamic country in the region and said Islam
is the main and common factor to establish friendly relations between
Islamic countries.

Assad said creating division between Shia and Sunni Muslims in Iraq and
Lebanon is the latest plot of the US and its friends to take advantage
of differences and they are trying to cover their defeats in Iraq,
Palestine, Lebanon, Iran and Syria with false propaganda.

At the end of the meeting, President Assad invited EC chairman to pay
an
official visit to Syria and Rafsanjani welcomed warmly the invitation.

President al-Assad heading a high-ranking delegation arrived in Tehran
on Saturday for a two-day visit.

http://www.forward.com/articles/iranian-scientist-s-death-stirs-talk-of-an-atomi/

Iranian Scientist’s Death Stirs Talk of an Atomic ‘Whodunit’

Marc Perelman | Fri. Feb 16, 2007

The escalating confrontation between Iran and the West has produced an atomic “whodunit,” with fingers pointing across the Middle East.

Last month, Iran reported the death of Ardeshir Hassanpour, 44, one of the country’s leading nuclear scientists. The news fueled a wave of rumors and conspiracy theories in cyberspace.

Radio Farda, which is funded by the U.S. State Department and broadcasts into Iran, reported “mysterious circumstances.” Iranian dissidents claimed it was a Tehran-ordered hit because Hassanpour, a professor at Shiraz University, “was leaking information to the West.” One U.S. security consulting firm proclaimed that the killing was part of a Mossad effort to thwart Iran’s pursuit of a nuclear weapon.

None of the above, according to the Iranian government. Tehran blamed the death on a freak accident, saying that Hassanpour died from “gas suffocation at his home.”

The case has generated “Internet buzz,” said Patrick Clawson, deputy director of research at the Washington Institute for Near East Policy. “Of course, there are many people wondering if Israel is repeating its successful campaign against scientists working on the Egyptian missile program in the 1960s,” he added. “I really don’t know what happened.”

The first Iranian reports of Hassanpour’s demise came January 21, six days after his death, and blamed the tragedy on “gas poisoning,” according to Radio Farda. On February 2, Stratfor, a company based in the United States, asserted that Israel had ordered a hit on Hassanpour. The company cited “very strong intelligence” that the physicist died from “radioactive poisoning” as part of a Mossad effort to halt the Iranian nuclear program — a theory that was repeated two days later in the London Times.

And while some observers believed that Tehran would seize upon the charges to blast Jerusalem, the opposite happened. Iranian Vice President Gholamreza Aghazadeh, who is also head of the country’s Atomic Energy Organization, was quickly quoted as saying that all of Iran’s nuclear experts, “thank God, are sound and safe.” And the Fars news cited an unidentified “informed source” as saying that Hassanpour had been “suffocated by fumes from a faulty gas fire in sleep”; the source also rejected as propaganda the theory about Mossad participation. The Israeli intelligence agency “is basically incapable of running operations inside Iran,” the source reportedly said. The next day, AlArabiya.net, a Saudi-owned online news service, added a new dimension to the mystery by relaying the claims of Ali Nourizadeh, longtime critic of the regime, that the Iranian government had in fact assassinated Hassanpour.

Nourizadeh, a London based journalist, offered a number of reasons for pointing the finger at Tehran, including the claim that Hassanpour was leaking information about the Iranian nuclear program to Western countries. Also, Nourizadeh said, Iranian officials were annoyed with Hassanpour’s repeated warnings about the danger of an accident at a nuclear reactor.

Nourizadeh told Al Arabiya that he received an e-mail from Hassanpour two weeks prior to his death, in which he expressed his concerns and complained that he was being followed.

“Two weeks later,” Nourizadeh was quoted as saying, “I received a letter from one of his students telling me that the man was ‘killed’ in his home and that they found his body three days later.”

According to Nourizadeh, Iranian suspicions about the scientist were prompted by a visit he made to Dubai and by the possibility that he met Americans on that occasion. Hassanpour, Nourizadeh added, had decided to stop cooperating with the regime following the election of Mahmoud Ahmadinejad as president in August 2005, because he saw him as dangerous for the country.

But while Nourizadeh described Hassanpour as “a genius in the manufacturing of missiles in Iran” who worked for the leading government weaponry agencies and played a “prominent role” in designing Iranian missiles, the Fars news agency stated that he did not work at nuclear facilities and was merely a university professor at Shiraz.

Media reports have stated that he received Iran’s most prestigious military-research prize in 2004 and the top award at an international science conference last year.

Though the mystery remains unsolved, a couple of things are certain: Hassanpour is dead, and footage of his funeral was posted on the Internet.

Or was it?
Fri. Feb 16, 2007

US and Israel agree boycott plan
The US and Israel will not work with a new Palestinian unity government unless it recognises Israel, Prime Minister Ehud Olmert has said.

He was speaking as US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice prepared for talks with Mr Olmert and Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas.

Mr Olmert said he and US President Bush agreed on their position on Friday.

Hamas, the largest group in the proposed Palestinian unity government, refuses to recognise Israel.

Mr Olmert said a Palestinian government that failed to accept conditions laid down by the quartet of the US, EU, Russia and UN "cannot receive recognition and there will not be co-operation with it," Reuters news agency reports.

The quartet has called on the Palestinians to recognise the state of Israel and give up violence against it.

"I spoke about this on Friday with the president of the United States, and I can tell you the Israeli and US positions are completely identical," Mr Olmert said in televised comments, Reuters says.

The EU, US and Russia have maintained an economic boycott of the Palestinian government since Hamas won legislative elections last year.

If one waited for the perfect time to come to the Middle East then one would never get on the airplane
Condoleezza Rice
US secretary of state

Ms Rice is holding separate meetings on Sunday with Mr Olmert and Mr Abbas before the three are due to get together on Monday.

After arriving in Israel, Ms Rice said it was an important time to advance the vision of a Palestinian state.

Mr Olmert's comments will add to doubts about whether the US will engage with a new Palestinian unity government.

Speaking after talks with Israel's Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni, Ms Rice said now was "an important time to talk about how we advance the vision of two states living side-by-side in peace and in freedom".

But she and Ms Livni both stressed that any new Palestinian coalition government must recognise Israel, renounce violence and accept past peace agreements.

Many observers wonder whether the two embattled leaders, Mr Olmert and Mr Abbas, are strong enough to take the difficult steps towards peace, says the BBC's Bethany Bell in Jerusalem.

Moderation urged

Ms Rice arrived in Israel after a brief visit to the Iraqi capital, Baghdad, where she reviewed a new security plan intended to reduce violence in the city.

"I think that the moderates in the Palestinian side need to understand that a path towards a Palestinian state needs to go though renunciation of violence and terrorism and not by compromising with terror," said Ms Livni, after meeting the secretary of state.

Ms Rice said the US would "await the formation of a [Palestinian] government before making any decisions about it".

"If one waited for the perfect time to come to the Middle East then one would never get on the airplane," she added.

On Thursday the Palestinian leader and Fatah chief asked former Prime Minister Ismail Haniya of Hamas to form a national unity government.

Factional fighting between Fatah and Hamas claimed more than 90 Palestinian lives between December and this month.

Conditions

Hamas' refusal to recognise Israel has led to a crippling ban on Western financial aid since the party won elections in January last year.

Mr Haniya now has five weeks to get a new cabinet accepted by the Hamas-dominated parliament.

But if Hamas maintains its position regarding Israel, there is concern that any talks brokered by Washington will be futile.

President Abbas has called for the new administration to be given a chance.

"We will say to the Americans and to the Israelis that they must give a chance to this government," said his spokesman Nabil Abu Rudeina, after Mr Abbas met US Assistant Secretary David Welch, as part of preparations for Monday's summit.

As part of the power-sharing deal it was reported that Hamas had agreed to respect past Palestinian agreements that recognise Israel.

However, the BBC's Alan Johnston in Gaza says the Americans are expected to demand an explicit statement of recognition and a renunciation of violence.
Story from BBC NEWS:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/go/pr/fr/-/2/hi/middle_east/6372633.stm

Published: 2007/02/18 09:14:51 GMT

© BBC MMVII

Italians march in US base protest

Tens of thousands of people have marched in the north-eastern Italian city of Vicenza against a planned extension of the US army base there.

Organisers say the majority of local people are opposed to US plans. They say Prime Minister Romano Prodi has ignored strong local objections.

Mr Prodi is going ahead with a plan agreed by his pro-US predecessor, Silvio Berlusconi.

Despite fears of possible violence, the march passed off peacefully.

Schools normally opened on Saturday were closed, and the US embassy warned Americans to avoid the city, as Mr Prodi appealed for protestors to avoid violence.

Vicenza's mayor had feared the march would be infiltrated by left-wing radicals from other EU states intent on causing violence - as happened in Genoa six years ago, when rioting during a G8 summit caused heavy damage, one death and many injuries.

Organisers said 100,000 people attended, while police put the number at 40,000.

Ministers banned

Marchers carried banners reading "America, No Thanks" and "Bases Go Home", and waved rainbow-coloured peace flags.

"There is no reason to have this base here," said Antonio Faitta, 25, who travelled from Genoa for the protest.

Special trains and buses from various parts of Italy arrived in Vicenza for the march.

People want to impose with violence a base that nobody wants
Local man

Many of them had been chartered by leftist parties and the Greens, members of Mr Prodi's ruling coalition, although the prime minister had banned ministers from attending the march.

The BBC's David Willey in Rome says the centre-left government is embarrassingly split between those who want to respect the decision of the previous centre-right coalition to agree to Washington's request, and those who would like to see the Americans out.

Thousands set off from the town's railway station with banners such as "No To The Bases" and "America No Thanks".

"We love our town and we want to protect it," a local protester told the BBC.

"Other people want to impose with violence a base that nobody wants."

Transfer from Germany

The Americans established a military presence in Vicenza more than half a century ago.

President George W Bush wants to strengthen the base, the headquarters of the 173rd Airborne Brigade, by transferring from Germany to Italy another 2,000 US soldiers.

This would bring the total number of US troops stationed in Vicenza to nearly 5,000.

The base provides over 1,000 jobs to locals in Vicenza and injects millions of dollars into the local economy.

A withdrawal could have serious local economic consequences.

Story from BBC NEWS:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/go/pr/fr/-/2/hi/europe/6370671.stm

Published: 2007/02/17 18:47:28 GMT

© BBC MMVII

Helicopter crashes in Afghanistan

The US-led coalition has said one of its helicopters has crashed in south-eastern Afghanistan after reporting engine failure.

The helicopter is reported to be an American Chinook, but the coalition did not give any more details.

An operation has been mounted to locate and rescue the helicopter's occupants.

Coalition and Nato forces have lost several helicopters in Afghanistan in the last few years but only one is thought to have been shot down.

Taleban claim

"It was not enemy fire related," Col Tom Collins, of Nato's International Security Assistance Force (Isaf), was quoted by the Associated Press news agency as saying.

"The pilot was able to radio in that he was having engine problems. We're confident it was not due to enemy action."

The helicopter crashed in the Shah Joy district of Zabul province, residents told Reuters news agency.

The province borders Pakistan and has been the scene of Taleban activity recently.

A Taleban spokesman said the helicopter had been shot down, but the BBC's Alastair Leithead in Kabul says they frequently make similar claims that are unfounded.

There is no indication as to whether the helicopter was on a military mission.

Our correspondent says the helicopter was based in Bagram airbase, near Kabul, where the weather has been poor.

But he said the weather further south in Zabul has been clearer.

Nato and coalition forces in Afghanistan are bracing for an expected spring offensive from regrouping Taleban fighters.
Story from BBC NEWS:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/go/pr/fr/-/2/hi/south_asia/6372813.stm

Published: 2007/02/18 05:35:45 GMT

© BBC MMVII

Hicks to return home 'this year'
Australia's only remaining detainee at the US military jail in Guantanamo Bay could be home by the end of the year.

David Hicks will face a US military commission this year, Foreign Minister Alexander Downer said.

Mr Hicks will either be sent home a free man or, if found guilty, serve any sentence in Australia, Mr Downer said.

Mr Hicks, 31, has been held at Guantanamo Bay for five years. He was arrested in Afghanistan in 2001 for allegedly fighting with the Taleban.

"If the trial proceeds and proceeds quickly... then it'll be possible to get Mr Hicks back to Australia by the end of the year, either to serve in a prison in Australia or of course just to be released, depending on the result of the trial," Mr Downer told Australian TV network Channel 9.

Charge sheet

Earlier this month the US released more details of the charges against Mr Hicks, a father of two.

The document revealed for the first time allegations that he was mentored by alleged UK shoe bomber Richard Reid in Afghanistan.

We are on our way to a trial before a military commission, at which Mr Hicks is sure to receive a fair trial. And that's what the US is committed to
Senior US official

It also alleges that he took part in an al-Qaeda training course in 2001, armed himself with 300 rounds of ammunition and three grenades and used the alias Abu Muslim Australia as he conducted surveillance of the US and British embassies in Kabul.

Mr Hicks is facing charges of providing material support for terrorism and attempted murder.

The Muslim convert and former kangaroo skinner pleaded not guilty to charges of conspiracy, attempted murder and aiding the enemy in August 2004.

Those charges were dropped last year when the US Supreme Court ruled the military commission was unlawful.

The announcements come ahead of US Vice President Dick Cheney's visit to Australia this week.

Mr Cheney will meet Australian Prime Minister John Howard on Friday with the case of Mr Hicks high on the agenda, as Mr Howard's government comes under pressure over the case.

"The vice-president is going to, obviously, want to listen closely to the prime minister's concerns," a senior US official said.

"We are on our way to a trial before a military commission, at which Mr Hicks is sure to receive a fair trial. And that's what the United States is committed to."

The opposition Australian Labor Party has accused the government of neglecting Hicks' case. They say the government's lobbying now is a ploy ahead of a federal election due in the next 12 months.

"Given the government's record to date on Hicks, they seem to be responding because we're coming up to an election and there's public outrage," foreign affairs spokesman Robert McClelland told the national broadcaster, ABC.

Australia's only other Guantanamo Bay inmate, Mamdouh Habib, was released in January 2005.

He is now running as a candidate in the upcoming New South Wales state election.
Story from BBC NEWS:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/go/pr/fr/-/2/hi/asia-pacific/6373029.stm

Published: 2007/02/18 11:35:00 GMT

© BBC MMVII

Japan turns down Greenpeace help
Japan has rejected a plea by New Zealand to allow a Greenpeace vessel to tow its stricken whaling ship out of Antarctic waters.

Officials said there was no threat of environmental damage from the Nisshin Maru, which has been disabled by fire, despite earlier fears of oil leakage.

New Zealand has been calling for the ship to be moved to prevent any pollution of the pristine area.

Meanwhile one crew-member was confirmed dead in the fire.

The Japanese whalers have had a number of confrontations at sea with anti-whaling activists in recent days, but the authorities have ruled out any connection between the protests and the fire.

'Dead in the water'

The fire broke out on board the Nisshin Maru - an 8,000-tonne processing ship - just before daybreak on Thursday.

The body of seaman Kazutaka Makita, who went missing when the fire broke out, was found on Saturday.

Fisheries Agency official Hideki Moronuki told Reuters news agency that the fire had been almost put out, but it would be a while before it became clear how badly the engines had been affected and whether the ship would be able to sail.

Earlier, New Zealand's Conservation Minister Chris Carter said the ship was "dead in the water".

He pointed out that the ship was just 60 miles (100 km) from the world's biggest Adelie penguin colony at Cape Adare.

There are fears that it could start leaking fuel oil into the Ross Sea and damage the immediate environment.

Greenpeace urged Japan to accept its offer. "This is not a time to play politics from behind a desk in Tokyo," said Karli Thomas, from on board the Esperanza.

But Japanese officials said there was no immediate cause for concern.

"There's no threat of oil leakage at all, and no worries over environmental pollution from the Nisshin Maru," said Kenji Masuda, of the Fisheries Agency.

Mr Moronuki said that if the ship failed to set sail on its own, it would get help from a Japanese tanker, which is alongside it.

The whaling fleet left for the Antarctic in December, and planned to hunt 850 minke whales and 10 fin whales until mid-March.

It has been involved in several clashes with the protest group the Sea Shepherd, leading Japanese officials to accuse the activists of behaving like pirates.

The Sea Shepherd's vessels were heading back to port for refuelling when the fire on the Nisshin Maru broke out.

The ICR admits the whaling mission is now up in the air while it waits to see if the Nisshin Maru - the only ship in the fleet able to process whale carcasses - is able to continue.

Story from BBC NEWS:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/go/pr/fr/-/2/hi/asia-pacific/6370767.stm

Published: 2007/02/17 08:25:39 GMT

© BBC MMVII

Clashes reported in Iranian city
Clashes between armed militants and police have erupted in the south-eastern Iranian city of Zahedan, state media have reported.

Police sealed off the area and exchanged fire with the attackers after a bomb went off, Irna news agency quoted an unnamed official as saying.

It comes two days after a car bomb in Zahedan killed 11 Revolutionary Guards.

A hardline Sunni group, Jundallah, said it carried out Wednesday's attack.

Iranian officials have accused Britain and the United States of supporting ethnic minority rebels operating in the Islamic republic's sensitive border areas.

'Percussion bomb'

The explosion and clashes took place just hours after the funerals for the 11 Revolutionary Guards.

The governor of Zahedan, Hassan ali Nouri, told Fars news agency that the explosion was caused by a percussion bomb - a device which produces a large bang but causes little damage.

Provincial police commander Gen Mohammad Ghaffari told Fars that 68 people had been arrested over Wednesday's bombing, including three who are suspected of having carried out the attack.

"The gang has been ordered by some foreign states to plant bombs in specific places and escape the country simultaneously," Gen Ghaffari said.

He added that police had found a number of weapons and explosives in a house "where members of the terrorist group Jundallah were getting prepared for another operation".

Zahedan is the capital of Sistan-Baluchestan province, which borders both Afghanistan and Pakistan.

It has a substantial Sunni Islam Baluch community.

The city has been the focus of low-level unrest, with several security force members being killed in the last two months.

Police have sometimes clashed with gangs transporting opium from Afghanistan.
Story from BBC NEWS:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/go/pr/fr/-/2/hi/middle_east/6370503.stm

Published: 2007/02/16 23:31:35 GMT

© BBC MMVII

Bomb kills polio health official

A senior health official has been killed and three guards injured in a bomb blast in Pakistan's tribal region bordering Afghanistan, officials say.

The dead man, Abdul Ghani Khan, played a key role in a polio immunisation drive in the Bajaur tribal region.

Dr Khan was returning from a meeting of tribal elders to persuade them to end their opposition to the campaign.

It is not clear if he was targeted because of his work to eradicate polio in the area.

No one has admitted to carrying out the blast. Officials said the assailants used a remote-controlled bomb.

Endemic

The government is facing resistance from some tribes in its campaign to vaccinate children against polio.

Some tribal leaders say the vaccine is a part of a US conspiracy to reduce fertility and reproduction rates.

Two of the three guards travelling with Dr Khan are in a serious condition after the blast, in a village around 50kms (30 miles) northeast of Khar, the main town in the Bajaur tribal region.

Pro-Taleban militants are known to be active in the area.

Pakistan is one of the few countries in the world where polio remains endemic.

It is a highly infectious viral disease which mostly affects children under five-years-old.

The virus attacks the central nervous system, causing paralysis, muscular atrophy and deformation. It can ultimately lead to death.

Pakistan last year confirmed 40 cases of the crippling disease, the World Health Organisation (WHO) said.

Equipment found

Elsewhere, police in the southern city of Karachi say that they have arrested three suspected suicide bombers linked to al-Qaeda following a shoot-out.

They say that they have recovered a jacket for use in suicide attacks, hand grenades, pistols and information on how to prepare for suicide bombings.

They say the three suspects had been trained in the restive tribal regions of South Waziristan.

There have been a number of suicide attacks in Pakistan in recent weeks.

Story from BBC NEWS:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/go/pr/fr/-/2/hi/south_asia/6368505.stm

Published: 2007/02/16 15:47:04 GMT

© BBC MMVII

Cargo cult lives on in South Pacific
By Phil Mercer
BBC News, Tanna, Vanuatu

At the base of a sacred volcano in an isolated corner of the South Pacific young men play the "Star Spangled Banner" on bamboo flutes.

Every February they parade in old US army uniforms with wooden weapons.

Others go bare-chested with the letters "USA" painted in bright red letters on their bodies.

Nearby, a giant Stars and Stripes flutters in the breeze from the main flagpole.

This is the heart of John Frum country on the island of Tanna in Vanuatu.

Villagers at Sulphur Bay worship a mystical figure who they believe will one day bring them wealth and happiness.

Time of upheaval

"John is our god," declares village chief Isaac Wan, who beats his fists into the ground to emphasise his words.

"One day he will come back," he says.

Believers are convinced that John Frum was an American.

The name could well have come from war-time GIs who introduced themselves as "Jon from America."

Devotees say that the ghost of a mystical white man first appeared before tribal elders in the 1930s.

It urged them to rebel against the aggressive teachings of Christian missionaries and the influence of Vanuatu's British and French colonial masters.

The apparition told villagers to do all they could to retain their own traditions.

It's a little bit weird but it makes me feel really patriotic
Marty Meth
US visitor

Anthropologist Ralph Reganvalu told the BBC that the sect was a "cultural preservation movement" that was born during a time of upheaval.

"There was a whole period in history known as Tanna Law where the missionaries put in this series of rules about what people weren't supposed to do and the movement emerged because of this oppression," he said.

Homage to the US

World War II and the arrival of US troops on Vanuatu was a defining time for the movement. They had a name for their spiritual deity. He was John Frum.

Villagers believe that their messiah was responsible for delivering to them the munificence of the US military.

They were awestruck by the army's cargo of tanks, weapons, refrigerators, food and medicine.

John Frum day is held annually on 15 February. This year's celebration marks the 50th anniversary of the sect's formal establishment.

It also recognises the day when villagers raised the US flag for the first time.

Through this homage to the US, disciples hope their ethereal saviour can be encouraged to return.

"It's a little bit weird but it makes me feel really patriotic," said Marty Meth, a retired businessman from New York, who had travelled to Tanna to see the festivities.

"It's really nice to see Americans welcome here since in so many places in the world we're not so welcome these days," he added.

Waiting and hoping

Sulphur Bay lies in the shadow of Mount Yasur, an active volcano whose roar can be heard far away.

Many followers of John Frum believe his spirit lives deep within the volcano.

Every few minutes Yasur bellows.

Watching and listening from the crater's edge is both exhilarating and frightening. A deafening growl is followed by the blasting of molten rock high into the sky.

These rumblings are a constant reminder for villagers that the spirit of John Frum remains as potent as ever.

Those people are holding on to a dream that will never come true
Christian youth worker

About 20% of Tanna's population of 30,000 follow the teachings of one of the world's last remaining cargo cults.

Other islanders can barely disguise their contempt for it.

A Christian youth worker told me how he thought the cult was childish. "It's like a baby playing games," he insisted. "Those people are holding on to a dream that will never come true," he said.

I put this view to Rutha, who's married to Chief Isaac's son. She was unfazed.

"I don't care what they think," she says gently without a hint of displeasure. "John is our Jesus and he will come back."

The John Frum Movement is still trying to entice another delivery of cargo from its supernatural American god.

In the meantime his disciples continue to wait and hope.
Story from BBC NEWS:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/go/pr/fr/-/2/hi/asia-pacific/6370991.stm

Published: 2007/02/17 13:45:02 GMT

© BBC MMVII

German football games called off
All lower league football matches have been called off in the southern German state of Saxony this week.

The move came after 800 hooligans attacked police last weekend during a Lokomotive Leipzig game, injuring 39 officers in running battles.

Five people were arrested and police are examining video footage.

Some Leipzig fans turned up at the stadium on Saturday to help repair damage, while players visited police stations and handed out flowers.

The head of the German Football Federation (DFB), Theo Zwanziger, had called for this weekend's ban "as a gesture of solidarity towards the police".

The violence broke out after Lokomotive Leipzig lost a regional cup game 3-0 to FC Erzgebirge Aue II.

Leipzig fans hurled paving stones and concrete blocks at police.

"What happened there within those five or 10 minutes is something I have never ever experienced before," a police dog handler told Reuters news agency.

"I'm surprised there weren't any dead."

Police accused the Leipzig club of failing to prevent fans bringing fireworks into the stadium.

The president of the club said that Lokomotive would "step up security and increase the number of security personnel and tighten control."

But, added Steffan Kubold, "please remember we're playing in the sixth league", and consequently lack resources for extensive security operations.

Interior Minister Wolfgang Schauble said that football clubs should invest more in youth work, and build stronger links with fans.

An official from the national youth sporting body, Deutsche Sportsjugend, echoed the minister's call, and said that the ban on matches in Saxony unfairly affected many clubs who had nothing to do with the violence.

Story from BBC NEWS:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/go/pr/fr/-/2/hi/europe/6372097.stm

Published: 2007/02/17 17:51:08 GMT

© BBC MMVII

Seven jailed for Turkey bombings
A court in Turkey has sentenced seven people to life in prison for the 2003 Istanbul bombings which killed 58 people including the UK consul-general.

A Syrian, Loai al-Saqa, was jailed for masterminding and securing finance for the attacks on the UK consulate, two synagogues and an HSBC bank branch.

The remaining six were Turkish citizens convicted of organising the bombings.

A total of 74 people were tried - many received lighter sentences and 26 of them were acquitted.

As the verdicts were read out to a packed courtroom, several defendants shouted "God is great".

The judge ruled that five of those sentenced to life, including Saqa, should not be allowed to benefit from any sentence reductions or amnesties.

'High-level operative'

The court was told that a group of men, calling themselves Warriors for Islam, came together to plan the attacks on the direct orders of Osama Bin Laden.

In court, many of the defendants admitted attending training camps in Afghanistan for Islamic extremists - but all but one man denied any part in the Istanbul attacks.

Harun Ilhan, one of the men jailed for life, admitted plotting the bombings and being a member of al-Qaeda.

Saqa - who had denied involvement in the attacks - was described by the state prosecutor as a high-level operative for al-Qaeda.

"Hey my hero brothers! Do not worry for me. Victory is very near," Saqa said during final arguments.

Also sentenced to life in prison were Fevzi Yitiz - for helping to build the truck bombs - and Yusuf Polat, Baki Yigit, Osman Eken and Adnan Ersoz.

Seyit Ertul was convicted of leading an al-Qaeda cell in the Turkish town of Konya and was sentenced to 18 years in prison.

Hamid Obysi was sentenced to 12-and-a-half years for membership of al-Qaeda, bomb-making and producing false identity cards

Twenty-nine people received sentences of six years and three months and 10 more were sentenced to three years and nine months for helping the bombings.

UK Foreign Secretary Margaret Beckett welcomed the verdicts.

"These were abhorrent acts, two of which specifically targeted British interests," she said.

Story from BBC NEWS:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/go/pr/fr/-/2/hi/europe/6370117.stm

Published: 2007/02/17 03:00:36 GMT

© BBC MMVII

The International Islamic Trade Finance Corporation starts business

http://www.ameinfo.com/111003.html

The International Islamic Trade Finance Corporation starts business
Dr Ahmed Mohammed Ali, President of the Islamic Development Bank Group,
announced that the General-Assembly Meeting of the International
Islamic
Trade Finance Corporation (ITFC) will be held on February 24, 2007 in
Jeddah.

Economy and Finance Ministers of IDB (56) Member Countries, and heads
of
financial institutions will attend the Meeting and officially launch
ITFC.

The Board of Governors of the Islamic Development Bank had earlier
announced plans to launch the International Islamic Trade Finance
Corporation (ITFC) at its 31st Annual Meeting, held in Kuwait in May
2006. ITFC has an initial capital of US$300 million and will be
headquartered in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia.

Dr Ahmed Mohammed Ali said

'The inception of the International Islamic Trade Finance
Corporation complements an initiative announced by Custodian of the Two
Holy Mosques King Abdullah Bin Abdul Aziz during the Islamic Summit
held
in Malaysia during October 2003, and is in line with the suggestion of
the UAE during the 29th Annual Meeting of the Board of Governors of
Islamic Development Bank held in Teheran in September 2004. It is aimed
at boosting the economic development of Member Countries by enhancing
regional trade.'

'This initiative will work to alleviate economic burdens and combating
poverty in the least developed Member Countries. ITFC will provide more
resources to the Islamic Development Bank to finance exports and
investments and secure necessary guarantees that will facilitate
greater
trade exchange regionally,' he added

The main objective of the International Islamic Trade Finance
Corporation is to increase the modest Intra-Trade volume among Member
Countries of the Organisation of Islamic Conference (OIC). ITFC will
strive to develop and finance trading in accordance with the principle
and provisions of Islamic law thus complementing the activities of the
Islamic Development Bank.

Its activities will include developing and financing inter-regional
trade, streamlining the development effect of trade financing
operations
and upgrading the capabilities of the member countries in the field of
exports.

An independent organization, ITFC will monitor market trends and work
to
attain the Islamic Development Bank's objectives through the launching
of specialized funds.

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