http://www.geocities.com/svetlana.gubareva/other/115.html
The 'Nord-Ost' people also pointed out several descrepancies in the figures, and were able to show, from the government figures that "the number of dead does not add up to 129, but to a minimum of 174 persons." <<<<
So they hide 1/3 of the deaths, why?
Only to save face, so the world does not know how they failed.
No, I did not forget that we lost 3,000, plus Oklahoma City and Waco.
Are our figures changed also?
I really do wonder if Russia has allowed their mystery gas to be sold on the black markets....?
[It is too slow on my dial uppone line to my computer, I tried, I get 2 words and a pause, repeated]
MUST WATCH VIDEO
by: karlsonic 08/16/06 04:48 pm
Msg: 2306325 of 2306992
5 recommendations
A recent Charlie Rose interview with Wm Kristol and Richard Holbrooke was a view of things to come.
You can watch it here: http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=8281753702222990054&q=tvshow%3ACharlie_R ose
from:
http://news.messages.yahoo.com/bbs?action=m&board=37138459&tid=apiraq&sid=37138459&mid=2306325
http://en.rian.ru/russia/20060818/52793151-print.html
Russia has no info on preparation for N.Korea nuclear tests
18/08/2006 13:02
MOSCOW, August 18, (RIA Novosti) - Russia's Foreign Ministry said Friday it had no information confirming that North Korea was preparing to launch nuclear tests.
Media in the United States cited Thursday a senior military official as saying U.S. intelligence had observed suspicious vehicle movements at a North Korean test site. An unidentified senior State Department official later said the U.S. intelligence community considered a test to be a real possibility.
"We believe that with account for efforts to resolve the situation on the Korean Peninsula, escalating tensions would be counterproductive, while all suspicions should be cleared up at the negotiating table," the Russian ministry said.
North Korea conducted test launches of ballistic missiles in early July, including a long-range Taepodong-2, in an apparent attempt to force the international community, especially the U.S., to make concessions during nuclear talks.
The six-nation talks, which involve North and South Korea, Russia, China, Japan and the United States on resolving the problems around North Korea's controversial nuclear programs opened in 2003, but stalled in last November.
other articles
14:05 21/07/2006 Six-party talks on N.Korea at ASEAN forum unlikely-Russia source
19:44 28/07/2006 Russian FM against bilateral problems at six-nation talks on North Korea
[note: 8-22 meeting day]
http://en.rian.ru/business/20060818/52796617-print.html
Iranian delegation to arrive in Russia for nuclear talks Aug.22
18/08/2006 13:47 MOSCOW, August 18 (RIA Novosti)-A senior Iranian delegation will arrive in Russia next week to discuss nuclear cooperation, Russia's nuclear power equipment and service export monopoly said Friday.
Atomstroiexport, which is building a nuclear power plant in the Islamic Republic, said the working visit would be made from August 22 to 26 and the delegation would include a deputy head of the Atomic Energy Organization of Iran, Mahmud Jannatian.
"The program includes a visit to Unit 3 of the Kalinin nuclear power plant," an Atomstroiexport spokesman said.
The plant is based in the Tver Region in central Russia.
The company is building Unit 1 of the Bushehr nuclear power plant under a contract worth about $1 bln.
The unit was to be launched by the end of this year. But in July it was announced that Atomstroiexport and Iran had agreed a new schedule under which the nuclear plant will be put into operation in the second half of 2007.
other articles
15:20 13/08/2006 Iran says loses confidence in Europe to settle nuclear issue
19:46 11/08/2006 Russia, Iran presidents discuss Middle East conflict on phone
13:34 06/08/2006 Iran to continue relations with Russia despite UN resolution
12:56 06/08/2006 Iran to develop civil nuclear energy despite UN Security Council
12:39 06/08/2006 UN Security Council resolution on Iran unacceptable - official
http://en.rian.ru/russia/20060818/52791099-print.html
Youth movement picketing British Embassy in Moscow
18/08/2006 12:36 MOSCOW, August 18 (RIA Novosti) - A Russian pro-Kremlin political youth movement set up a picket in front of the United Kingdom's Embassy in Moscow on Friday.
About 25 activists of the Nashi ("Ours") movement are demanding an apology from Ambassador Tony Brenton for participating in the Different Russia conference in Moscow July 12. Held by Russian opposition leaders ahead of the Group of Eight summit in St Petersburg, the conference aimed to draw attention to what organizers said was a clampdown by President Vladimir Putin's administration on democratic and economic freedoms.
Nashi activist Yevgeny Ivanov said the conference was marred by the presence of Eduard Limonov, leader of the ultra-nationalist National Bolshevik Party, and Viktor Anpilov, head of the hard-line communist Working Russia party. "The ambassador offended all Russians by supporting these people," Ivanov said.
The picket, which is expected to gather some 50 people, will last until 5.00 p.m. Moscow time (1.00 p.m. GMT).
other articles
16:05 15/06/2006 Moscow court upholds ban on radical National Bolshevik Party
11:16 06/06/2006 Radicals facing charges after gate-crashing Moscow press forum
17:34 18/05/2006 Putin talks army, xenophobia, family violence to youth movement
http://en.rian.ru/analysis/20060818/52784699.html
War in Lebanon gives birth to new Middle East
18/08/2006 10:29 MOSCOW. (RIA Novosti political commentator Marianna Belenkaya) - Israeli and American politicians, Syrian President Bashar Assad and many Islamic leaders say the war in Lebanon has changed the balance of power in the Middle East and given a new political image to the region.
The Middle East is changing, but how?
At the beginning of the war between Israel and Hizbollah, U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice described the plight of Lebanon as part of the "birth pangs of a new Middle East", free of the influence of extremist movements. She was apparently referring to Lebanon's Hizbollah and Palestinian Hamas.
When the war ended, U.S. President George W. Bush claimed Hizbollah had suffered a defeat in the month-long conflict.
Many Israeli politicians agree with the American leader, although they say more cautiously that Israel has merely changed the situation on its northern border in its favor.
But statements by Hizbollah's leaders show that the movement has not accepted defeat. Moreover, it is claiming a bigger social and political role in Lebanon, and insists that other political forces in the country must respect it.
Lebanese Defense Minister Ilyas al-Murr said the Lebanese military would go to southern Lebanon "not to disarm Hizbollah, but to defend the country and strengthen the victory of the Lebanese resistance." He added: "The Lebanese army must ensure the safety of the people, including resistance members."
The Arab media are writing about Hizbollah's victory over Israel, something no Arab state has attained before. The resistance movement has significantly strengthened its position in the Middle East and the Islamic world as a whole, which cannot leave anyone indifferent, especially Arab leaders.
Syrian President Bashar Assad said: "The substantial achievements of the Islamic resistance represented by Hizbollah have changed the region's outlook. The U.S.'s intention to create a 'new Middle East' in line with its blueprint has failed."
This is true because Hizbollah has shown that it can stand up not only to Israel, but also to the United States.
"Hizbollah cannot be viewed as a purely terrorist organization now, because it has won the support of the majority of the Lebanese people and authorities," said Vladimir Akhmedov, a senior researcher at the Institute of Oriental Studies of the Russian Academy of Sciences. "Thousand-strong demonstrations in the East and West display Hizbollah banners and portraits of Hassan Nasrallah. If we keep saying that Hizbollah is a terrorist organization, we will have to admit that terrorists have won the war. Why then did we fight in Afghanistan and Iraq, and why did we initiate action against Iran? To fight terrorists who turn out to be ordinary people?"
Akhmedov said that Hizbollah had proved to be a viable organization militarily, politically and in terms of information. To progress now, it should stop fighting Israel in order to strengthen its influence in Lebanon.
"Its priority objective now is to provide material assistance to war victims and to help the authorities deal with the consequences of the war," he said. "This is a way of expanding its influence in the country and strengthening its foothold in state institutions, including the army. Nasrallah said on August 14 that Hizbollah's heavy weaponry and militants should form the basis of a stronger Lebanese state, which leaves no doubt regarding the organization's strategic plans."
Many Islamic political movements in other Mideast countries have similar objectives. Their popularity rests on the idea of social justice, which the mostly poor Arab people readily embrace. This is why these organizations are formidable rivals to many regimes in the region, and the war in Lebanon has strengthened their standing.
It is logical that the bulk of Arab governments showed restraint towards Israel during the war in Lebanon. Unlike during the Palestinian intifada in 2000-2002, Egypt and Jordan did not sever diplomatic ties with it, and Qatar did not close the Israeli representative office in its capital, Doha.
During the war, the Israeli newspaper "Yedioth Ahronoth", citing a source in the Defense Ministry, wrote: "Moderate Arab regimes are [quietly] expressing support for Israel's actions," which means that "Arab countries would be glad if Israel did away with Hizbollah."
But Israel has not lived up to these "quiet" expectations.
These trends show that the Middle East is changing. Nobody in the region, including members of the most radical Islamic movements - especially when they get seats in government - can seriously hope that Israel will disappear from the political map. Therefore, the sides should find acceptable conditions for a peaceful coexistence.
This is where opinions on ways of attaining this goal split. Some Arab regimes have opted for dialogue and pragmatic cooperation with Israel. Others, mostly those that represent the unofficial "resistance project", prefer fighting, when and if necessary.
The war in Lebanon has shown again that it is not Arabs who should recognize Israel, but Israel, the West and Arab regimes who should accept the fact that radical Islamic movements such as Hizbollah and Hamas are an inalienable part of Middle Eastern politics. Ignoring them is useless, which means that we have a choice between trying to liquidate them (which has proved impossible) and coming to terms with them.
But different views of the new landscape of the Middle East make the second objective extremely difficult to achieve.
The opinions expressed in this article are those of the author and may not necessarily represent those of RIA Novosti.
6 killed in northern plane crash
NORMAN WELLS, N.W.T. (CP) - Six people flying out to attend a funeral
were
found dead Wednesday in the wreckage of a small commercial plane that
crashed in a remote, mountainous area of the Northwest Territories.
"There had been a drowning . . . and these people had attended the
funeral
of the drowning victim," said RCMP Sgt. Larry O'Brien.
"We can't confirm identities yet, our members are still working on
that."
However, a relative of some of the victims, who didn't want her name
used,
identified them as Judith Pierrot, a young child; Farrah Grandjame, a
teenager; and adults Gary Grandjambe, Kenny Stewart and Alfred
Mazazumi.
The pilot also died.
"There's people gathered everywhere, the families and stuff," said the
woman
from Norman Wells, who would only say one of the victims was a cousin
and
another was a nephew.
"We've been talking to people in Fort Good Hope and they're just
totally in
shock. The whole region (is related)."
She said so far there is no indication what caused the crash.
"Nothing yet. I don't think the bodies have even been brought in yet,
at
this point."
However, she said many people she knew were already flying out to Fort
Good
Hope to lend support to their relatives there.
"That's the only way, because there's no roads up here to drive in. So
they'd either have to go by boat or plane."
A man who answered the phone at the Fort Good Hope Co-op said he also
knew
all the victims, but couldn't talk because he was busy taking food to
the
homes of the relatives.
News of the deaths spread quickly in the tight-knit community. On
Farrah
Grandjambe's webpage on the blogging site www.bebo.com, condolences
were
already being posted for the 17-year-old.
"I shed a tear but I know that won't bring you back," wrote Tara H. "I
still
can't believe it, I miss you too much . . . Why God had to take you, I
don't
know."
The site gave a poignant glimpse into the life of the girl.
"Well as for me, I am a little native from the North that use to live
in a
very small community but moved away for my last years in high school,"
she
wrote.
"I currently live in a big house with a whole load of natives, and it
gets
pretty crazy in there, if you know what I mean."
RCMP said the North-Wright Airways plane left Fort Good Hope with five
passengers and a pilot, and was due to arrive in Norman Wells about
1:15
p.m.
But when it didn't arrive by 2:50 p.m., a search and rescue effort was
mounted by RCMP along with civilian personnel.
"When the plane was reported missing, several planes were sent up from
Norman Wells - commercial planes - to search for it," said O'Brien.
"In addition, a helicopter left Norman Wells with one of the local RCMP
members on board, and it was these planes that were able to find the
crash."
An ELT - or emergency locator transmitter - signal was picked up which
pointed to a specific area where the plane had gone down somewhere
between
the two communities.
"It's a beacon that goes off in the airplane automatically during an
accident," explained John Lee, western regional manager of the
Transportation Safety Board.
When the crash site was found, there were no survivors.
"Our investigators will be deploying tomorrow morning," said Lee. "We
conduct parallel investigations at the beginning of all aircraft
accidents,
and when the RCMP determine there is no criminal involvement, they
typically
say . . . that they would hand it over to us."
O'Brien said dealing with the crash was putting a strain on the
resources of
the small detachments involved.
"What we've done to help the members in Fort Good Hope and Norman
Wells,
we've sent members out of Yellowknife," he said.
"Several members have flown up to assist the detachment both in terms
of
dealing with the crash and dealing with policing in those communities."
Fort Good Hope is a community of about 600 people 800 kilometres
northwest
of Yellowknife.
It was the site of another fatal plane crash that killed four people on
New
Year's Eve 2001.
Pilot error was eventually determined to be the cause of the crash of a
Cessna 172 owned by Ursus Aviation. The plane hit a snow-covered
mountainside.
Three people survived the impact but died from exposure before rescuers
found them.
http://cnews.canoe.ca/CNEWS/Canada/2006/08/16/1759737-cp.html
Last update - 07:49 18/08/2006
ANALYSIS: A new 'Mini-Iran' is emerging in southern Lebanon
By Amos Harel and Avi Issacharoff, Haaretz Correspondents
http://www.haaretz.com/hasen/spages/751917.html
Thursday was supposedly a historic day in Lebanon. For the first time
in 30
years, the Lebanese Army deployed south of the Litani River. This time,
too,
as was expected, the civilians threw rice at yet another military
force.
But, as the leading Lebanese officer on the scene read out the unit's
orders,
the real picture emerged: "The army will deploy on the wounded Lebanese
land
alongside the men of the resistance."
In other words: The Lebanese Army has no plans to drive Hezbollah out
of the
South or to confront them.
Lebanon's president and commander in chief of the army, Emile Lahoud,
made it
clear on Wednesday that Hezbollah would not be disarmed, not even in
the area
south of the Litani River. Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah may have
promised
that his men will not carry their arms openly but they could rebuild
their
bunkers and fill them up with rockets in preparation for the next
confrontation in the future.
Meanwhile, the deployment of the multinational force is being delayed,
and
France is in no rush to send many soldiers. UN Security Council
Resolution
1701, passed a week ago, is already on the path to becoming
meaningless. While
the Americans are declaring that the new forces in southern Lebanon
will not
allow Hezbollah to resume their positions along the border, Nasrallah
is
proving them wrong. His forces are patroling without hindrance in the
villages
of southern Lebanon (some of them not having left during the fighting);
they
are recording the Israel Defense Forces activities, and are giving
interviews,
while armed, to Arab television stations.
These developments are worrisome to the other religious groups in
Lebanon that
fear an Iranian-Syrian takeover in the South. Walid Jumblatt, Sa'ad
al-Din
Hariri and others sharply criticized Syrian President Bashar Assad for
his
efforts to intervene in domestic Lebanese politics. But as far as they
are
concerned, the real threat stems from Hezbollah's plans to reconstruct
southern Lebanon, using billions of Iranian dollars that are meant to
further
establish the organization in the country by pushing aside the
government
organs.
It is not surprising therefore that there are celebrations in Tehran:
Thursday, a public transport company there announced a day of free
travel in
the Iranian capital to celebrate Hezbollah's victory over Israel. In
the wake
of the Israeli invasion, it turns out that the regime of the Ayatollahs
is on
the verge of witnessing the realization of its dream for a "mini-Iran"
in
southern Lebanon.
It turns out that the political and military echelons in Israel were no
less
concerned than Hezbollah over the war of perceptions. Ministers recall
that
Olmert's aides joked about the possibility that he would make a victory
speech
in Bint Jbail, the site of Nasrallah's speech on Israel's spider web in
May
2000. The Shin Bet security service's VIP protection detail would have
never
authorized this, but the mere fact that it was discussed is an
indication of
how surrealistic the conversations became among decision makers.
The IDF carried out three operations in Bint Jbail during the war, and
did not
conquer it because of its sprawling urban character. The public are not
alone
in not understanding the army's plans; the officers are hard pressed to
comprehend them too.
During the war, Olmert bypassed Defense Minister Amir Peretz on a
number of
occasions and worked directly with Chief of Staff Dan Halutz. While
relations
became frayed, no one in the cabinet or the General Staff challenged
their
decisions.
Since the passing of the favorable resolution, Israel is having to
withdraw
from the territory it has occupied, following heavy losses; but
Hezbollah
continues to hold the ground and maintain that it won.
http://www.theconservativevoice.com/article/17326.html#
http://www.theconservativevoice.com/article/17326.html#
by Oliver North
The Rise of the Caliphate
August 17, 2006 10:19 PM EST
LONDON -- Let the recriminations begin! In the aftermath of Israel's abortive, on-again, off-again military campaign against Hezbollah terrorists in Lebanon, there are calls for a no-confidence vote to unseat Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert. In Washington, critics of President Bush cite the latest round of Mideast violence and the discovery of a suicide plot to bomb U.S.-bound aircraft as reasons to spurn Republicans at the polls this November. In Lebanon, Sheikh Hassan Nasrallah claims that Hezbollah's "victory" gives him a new mantle of political authority. His assertion is supported not just by his zealous followers -- but by
governments in Tehran, Damascus and less quietly in other Islamic capitals.
All these accounts of recent Mideast hostilities -- and now a U.N.-imposed cease-fire -- have appeared in this week's newspapers, magazines, radio and TV broadcasts. Though such depictions of political consequence may indeed be accurate -- they are woefully shallow and ultimately, misleading to readers and viewers.
With the exception of a small handful of serious journals, few
of today's commentators or "reporters" seem able or willing to explain the
latest armed confrontation and suicide bomb threats in the stark and
perilous terms they deserve. As a consequence, few Americans seem to
comprehend the two dangerous -- and perversely synergistic -- themes that
predominate in modern radical Islam:
-- The apocalyptic belief of Shia scholars, clerics and
political leaders -- like Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad --
predicting a violent, "final" clash between Muslims and infidels in which
Islam triumphs, by wiping "non-believers" from the Earth, and;
-- The predominantly Sunni Muslim goal of an Islamic caliphate
that extends from Casablanca, Morocco in the west to Bali, Indonesia in the
east.
The vision of a globe-spanning Islamic theocracy is not new. In
632 A.D., following the death of Muhammad, his followers named Abu Bakr as
caliph -- or successor. He resolved to spread the Muslim theology, with its
message of equality and strict rules of behavior, through force of arms. His
goal of Islamic dominance has survived the bloody Sunni-Shia schism, the
rise and collapse of the Ottoman Empire, two world wars, communism and the
fitful spread of representative democracy through most of the rest of the
world.
Thanks to a steady flow of petro-dollars, today's leaders of
"the religion of peace" -- both Sunni and Shia -- have been able to launch
and sustain well-financed, extremely aggressive campaigns to advance their
beliefs. Sheiks, imams, mullahs and ayatollahs routinely expound the virtues
of "martyrdom" and vicious treatment for Christians and Jews.
The "common ground" for all Islamic radicals is hatred of the
United States and Israel. Shia leaders like Iranian Ayatollah Khameini,
Sheikh Nasrallah and "President" Ahmadinijad, routinely proclaim that
Israel, the "Little Satan," must be "destroyed," and that the United States,
the "Great Satan," must be "driven from the lands of the prophet" -- meaning
places where Islam is practiced as a state religion.
Sunni terror leaders -- like al-Qaeda founder Osama bin Laden
and his second-in command, Ayman al-Zawahiri, have openly pledged to
establish a new global caliphate. They have loudly and proudly proclaimed
Islam will rule the world, and that the West and its "infidel" religions and
cultures will be destroyed.
Bin Laden has boasted, "the pious caliphate will start from
Afghanistan." Al-Zawahiri envisions the reestablishment of the caliphate,
writing, "history would make a new turn, God willing, in the opposite
direction of the United States and the world's Jewish government." Fazlur
Rehman Khalil, an al-Qaeda apologist has written, "due to the blessings of
jihad, America's countdown has begun. It will declare defeat soon," and will
be followed by a new caliphate.
Western political leaders and media elites appear unwilling to
acknowledge the threat posed by these two repetitive themes in modern
radical Islam -- an Armageddon-like final battle -- and the call for a new
globe-spanning caliphate. The failure of the "international community" to
fully support democracy in Afghanistan and Iraq, to insist on disarming
Hezbollah in Lebanon or to stand unified against Iranian efforts to acquire
nuclear weapons place all of us -- not just Israel -- in great peril.
Instead of confronting radical Islam, the response in the United
Nations, most of Europe and much of the United States is to preach
"tolerance," "understanding" and "dialogue." The belief that poverty, lack
of education or inadequate economic opportunity has incited Muslim rage
against the West is totally mistaken.
The terrorists left to re-arm in Lebanon weren't recruited into
Hezbollah by the promise of a square meal. Apparently most of the would-be
suicide killers apprehended last week here in London had jobs. Like the 19
hijackers who killed nearly 3,000 in the United States on Sept. 11, several
had university degrees. And like the seven who blew themselves to pieces
here in London on July 7, 2005 -- they all intended to die. Understanding
that is going to be important in the days ahead -- particularly so if the
Iranians deploy "an Islamic bomb."
To find out more about Oliver North, and read features by other
Creators Syndicate writers and cartoonists, visit the Creators Syndicate Web
page at www.creators.com.
COPYRIGHT 2005 CREATORS SYNDICATE INC
TCV News
Southern Lebanon Iranian Satellite
August 18, 2006 07:09 AM EST
By Sher Zieve – Southern Lebanon is said to have developed into an Iranian satellite country. Terrorist Hezbollah, a worldwide organization created by Iran, has occupied the area of Lebanon for at least 2 decades and has the support of the newly formed Lebanese government.
Haaretz.com reports that an officer in the Lebanese Army said: "The army will deploy on the wounded Lebanese land alongside the men of the resistance [Hezbollah]." Hezbollah is said to populate a large portion of troops within Lebanon’s Army, which has been deployed to the Lebanon-Israel border.
Hezbollah has said that it has no intention of either disarming or leaving the Southern Lebanon area, which effectively dissolves the UN Security Council’s Resolution 1701. Resolution 1701, ostensibly designed as the first step toward a ceasefire between Hezbollah and Israel, is now believed to have been rendered useless.
http://www.haaretz.com/hasen/spages/751917.html
Is anyone booking bets on what tomorrow's official report will say, I was getting confused about what she did have, here is another report, FBI says she had it all...]
http://www.theconservativevoice.com/article/17297.html
TCV News
FBI Confirms UA Flight 923 Passenger Items
August 17, 2006 11:31 AM EST
By Sher Zieve – Rescinding its Wednesday comments that a female passenger who became “distraught” on United Airlines flight 923 was not carrying banned items, on Thursday the FBI reversed its position. As reported Wednesday by a Logan Airport official, FNC confirms that FBI officials now advise the woman did have matches, Vaseline, a screwdriver and at least one note referencing al-Qaeda in her possession.
It is unclear as to why the FBI contradicted the earlier Logan Airport official’s report. The woman, who is said to have been pacing the airliner’s aisles muttering “Pakistan”, has been identified as 59-year-old Catherine Mayo of Vermont.
On Wednesday, flight 923’s pilot declared an in-flight emergency on the flight from London to Washington DC. The flight was then rerouted from Dulles airport to Boston’s Logan Airport, with US military jets as an escort.
The woman is currently being held by authorities.
http://www.theconservativevoice.com/article/17188.html
TCV News
Over 750 Criminal Aliens Captured by Feds in Five States
August 15, 2006 04:31 PM EST
by Jim Kouri - Seven hundred fifty-eight criminal aliens were deported last month to their respective countries of origin, according to officals with Immigration and Customs Enforcement.
All of those deported resided in a five-state area that included Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama, Arkansas and Tennessee.
Among the deported was 26-year-old Alfranes Alves De Moura, a Brazilian national convicted of assault with a deadly weapon, domestic assault and unlawful possession of a firearm.
Also deported was Floyd Jackson, 28, of Jamaica. Jackson had numerous criminal convictions including unnatural acts upon a child; providing obscene materials to minors; assault and battery; breaking and entering, larceny and possession of a controlled substance.
Jackson was alleged to have provided alcohol and marijuana to his victims encouraging them to become intoxicated so that he could abuse them.
The offenses of the criminal aliens removed included: drug possession and distribution; assault on a police officer; sex offenses; aggravated assault, attempted murder and rape.
Those deported represent the following countries: Mexico, Colombia, Haiti, Nigeria, Slovakia, and Lebanon.
“We will continue to fulfill our congressional mandate by deporting those ordered removed from our country, especially those who have committed egregious offenses against our citizens,” said acting field office director Steve Boll, who leads ICE's detention and removal efforts in New Orleans.
“Every deportation helps to restore integrity to our nation's immigration system,” he said.
Criminal aliens are non-citizens who have committed felonies or other crimes that make them ineligible to remain in the United States in accordance with the Immigration and Nationality Act.
http://weekly.ahram.org.eg/2006/808/op2.htm
More than resistance
Hizbullah has emerged from the Lebanese conflict as the major moral force within the region, writes Amr Elchoubaki*
In a recent recording released by Al-Qaeda, Ayman El-Zawahri vowed solidarity with the Lebanese resistance. The world's second most wanted terrorist declared his support for the oppressed and promised to keep fighting the US and Zionism on behalf of all Arabs and Muslims. His words rang hollow. An alliance between a resistance group such as Hizbullah and a terrorist outfit such as Al-Qaeda is out of the question. Al-Qaeda may have blown up transport facilities in Madrid and London but it cannot lend a hand to freedom fighters anywhere. The only thing Al-Qaeda excels at is tarnishing the cause of armed resistance. The Palestinian cause has already suffered from Al-Qaeda's dubious exploits.
Al-Qaeda cannot be Hizbullah's ally but it can be its successor. Al-Qaeda would love a foothold in Lebanon but only once the Lebanese state has lost its grip on power. Only then can terrorist operatives from Al-Qaeda and other outfits infiltrate the country. This is what happened in Iraq. Had Israel been able to score a decisive victory against Hizbullah Lebanon would have turned into the kind of failed state of which Al-Qaeda dreams.
Following 9/11 the US narrowed its perspective on terror. Initially it tried its hand in Afghanistan and then it went all the way in Iraq, with terrible consequences. Europe has also come to embrace the narrow-mindedness espoused by the Bush administration. Anyone carrying arms against an occupier is automatically branded a terrorist and war is seen as the best answer to terror.
The US administration cannot tell the difference between terror and armed resistance. I cannot distinguish between Hizbullah and Al-Qaeda. Hizbullah, Hamas, Jihad, the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine, and Fatah's Al-Aqsa Brigades are all resistance movements. The failure to distinguish these groups from terror outfits such as Al-Qaeda has brought nothing but catastrophe to this region and the "new Middle East" has become bloodier than anything we have experienced before. The battle with terror is an intellectual, security and political one while the battle with the forces of the armed resistance is a political endeavour which can be ended once Israel gives up the land it occupies.
Israel is the world's last colonial outpost and the world's foremost terror state. Israel has committed war crimes against the Lebanese people and its attack on Lebanon, triggered by a military operation in which Hizbullah captured two soldiers, demonstrates infinite arrogance. What Israel wants is to destroy Hizbullah, not because it is a terror group but because it is a symbol of resistance.
The Americans and Israelis confuse terror with resistance and are unwilling to take any political responsibility for their actions. Both want politics to disappear so they can use force and propaganda to achieve their goals. It is a risky tactic. Had they succeeded in destroying Hizbullah they would have given real terrorists a foothold in Lebanon. If the Lebanese state loses its grip on the country terror operations will become a daily reality, as in Iraq.
Hizbullah is more than a fighting force. It is a political and social necessity. Political arrangements for this region have so far been based on repression from outside and capitulation on the part of local regimes which is why the Arab public has latched on to Hizbullah. For them Hizbullah symbolises steadfastness. It is the only group that has said no to Israel and refused to back down. When so-called moderate governments bent over backwards to accommodate the Israelis and the Americans, Hizbullah stood its ground which is why Hizbullah is so popular today.
The Americans don't seem to understand the Arab mood or just how tired the public is of seeing their rulers take their cue from Washington. Arabs are not nostalgic for Saddam, nor are they thrilled to see countries such as Syria resist with words rather than deeds. They are tired of the endless oppression of Baathist-style regimes. What the Arabs want to see is democratic leaders, defiant but aware of the international situation. What the region needs is an injection of Latin American politics, leaders who are neither isolationist nor dictatorial in their outlook but who have backbone.
People may well be tired of what the Americans and Israelis are doing to the region but is there any chance of the Arab world having a democratic -- Islamist or leftist -- government right now? For the moment the chances are slim. We have resistance movements, such as Hizbullah, but we also have repressive governments that hang on to the status quo. Neither seems to offer a way out of the region's dilemma though the resistance movements do at least have moral power. Hizbullah has offered the Arab world a voice that contrasts totally with that of incumbent governments. This moral power has immense potential which the Bush administration cannot, and never will, understand. Both Israel and the US want to manufacture a new elite in this region that will submit to their every demand, just as the current regimes do and this is unacceptable to the Arab public.
The destruction of Hizbullah is no solution. It would have opened the door to terror across the region. Had the war in Lebanon dismantled the state, which it almost did, the situation would have been disastrous not only for Lebanon but the entire region. A cycle of terror would have been unleashed, and the cost for the civilian population would have been enormous. We need to think only of Iraq.
Israel and the US want to change the region but they are averse to the one thing that can change it in a positive manner -- a just and peaceful settlement. Israel is killing Palestinians every day. It is refusing to withdraw from the occupied territories and continues to believe that force and arrogance guarantee security.
Hamas and Hizbullah are part of the social and political fabric of this region and it is necessary to engage them in dialogue. This may involve pressure and compromises, differences and squabbles but it is the only solution to the horror and violence we have just witnessed. Hizbullah is more than an outfit with trained fighters; it is a moral symbol and a political necessity. Hizbullah cannot be silenced by force because it has captured the imagination of the Arab world. But it can be engaged in dialogue and persuaded through argument.
What the region really needs now is for Israel to leave the Arab territories it occupies.
* The writer is a political analyst at the Al-Ahram Centre for Political and Strategic Studies.
© Copyright Al-Ahram Weekly. All rights reserved
Al-Ahram Weekly Online : Located at: http://weekly.ahram.org.eg/2006/808/op2.htm
Shattered dreams
The Egyptian students who skipped their cultural exchange programme in pursuit of the American dream were arrested in New York. Reem Leila investigates
Eleven Egyptian students were arrested in New York this week after their attempt to disappear in the US, rather than take part in the cultural exchange programme they initially signed up for. It all began when 17 Mansoura University students were picked to travel to the US on 29 July, and take part in a cultural exchange programme at Montana University. Six of the students did just that, but the rest had other plans. To them, the trip was an opportunity to travel to the US, find a job and perhaps start a new life. None of them thought they would be front page news, pursued by the FBI as suspected terrorists. By Monday, all of them were in FBI custody. According to US federal law, when any foreign scholar fails to show up after four days of their arrival, the university should notify FBI and Immigration and Custom Enforcement (ICE) that they are missing. Montana University notified the FBI about the 11 students, which in turn issued a lookout to local law enforcement who registered them as "no-shows" in the system developed after 11 September.
None of the six students at Montana were "certain about the status of their fellow students and why they have not made it", explained Magdi Abu Rayan, president of Mansoura University to Al-Ahram Weekly.
The no-show students, whose ages range between 18 and 22 years old, are expected to be deported back to Egypt after being investigated for violating the terms of their visas. "Only God knows when they will return," suggested Abu Rayan. He will travel to the US today in an attempt to solve the problem and help in the release of the 11 as soon as possible.
"I hope I am able to meet the students in order to speak to them and know why they did that," Abu Rayan said. After informing the Egyptian Embassy in Washington, DC, and the Egyptian Consulate in New York -- which was completely unaware of the situation at the beginning -- now the Ministry for Foreign Affairs is exerting "tremendous" effort to "pressure" US authorities to release them, according to the university president. "They are just students and pose no terrorism threat," he assured.
The only concern is that this incident took place close to the anniversary of the 2001 terrorist attacks on 11 September, but "fortunately US authorities do not believe that the students are connected to the terror plot in Britain or any other terrorist acts," confirmed Abu Rayan.
Public opinion and students' parents are blaming Mansoura University officials for not sending an escort to accompany the students on the trip. According to Mohamed Suweilam, deputy head of Mansoura University's Education and Students Affairs, students on previous cultural exchange programmes were unaccompanied because a chaperone was not included in the terms of the programme. Moreover, there were three US supervisors waiting for them at the airport to accompany them to Montana University, but they deceived them and abscond. "Even if they were accompanied by 10 supervisors, they would have taken off anyway if that was their intent," stated Suweilam.
Mansoura University will take legal action against the students as soon as they return, and they will be prevented from joining any similar programmes or university activities in the future. They will also be investigated by the university's disciplinary board, and "suspended from university for a period ranging from one month to a whole semester," revealed Suweilam.
Parents of the 11 students were invited to a meeting with Abu Rayan to help officials in finding their sons, or inform the students to turn themselves in either to the Egyptian Embassy or Egyptian Consulate. But only three parents of the 11 attended the meeting, while the others vehemently refused to appear. "Later, we discovered they knew about their children's intention to elope to the United States to look for a job opportunity there," added Suweilam.
The 17 students were selected among 50 students who applied for the programme. According to Nagwa Nawar, head of Mansoura University's English Language Research Centre, the selection of students was based on their financial status because of the high expenses of the trip -- LE32,000 per student. The university applied for 20 student visas, but the US Embassy rejected three students and agreed to the remaining 17. Throughout the week prior to their departure, students attended sessions to teach them the legal regulations of the cultural programme.
"Before their departure, all the students and their parents signed a pledge stating that none of the students would violate US regulations and laws, and to be committed to the type of study stated during the programme and to return to Egypt on schedule," asserted Nawar. Students were also provided with guide booklets, in addition to the phone numbers and addresses of the three supervisors who will be waiting for them at the airport in case any problem popped up.
"I hope this incident will not cast doubt on this programme," stated Abu Rayan. "I personally believe in the importance of mutual cultural and educational exchange programmes for the benefit of our students."
Caption:
C a p t i o n 2:
© Copyright Al-Ahram Weekly. All rights reserved
Al-Ahram Weekly Online : Located at: http://weekly.ahram.org.eg/2006/808/eg7.htm
Safavi: Iran Must Await 'Time for Revenge' Against US, Israel
Fars News Agency (Internet Version-WWW)
Monday, July 31, 2006
Tehran, 30 July: According to Fars News Agency's correspondent,
Commander
Seyyed Yahya Rahim-Safavi, speaking this evening, Sunday, at a ceremony
inaugurating the Basij Call-Up Network, conveyed his condolences
following
today's heinous crime and the killing of children, women, and men in
the
town of Qana by the Zionist regime, and said: America and Britain have
been
busy killing Muslims in Afghanistan and Iraq for four years and Israel,
for
its part, has been busy killing Muslims in Palestine for 60 years with
the
support of those two countries.
Safavi added: Should Bush, Blair, and Olmert not be tried as war
criminals?
Are the biggest terrorists not these same governments of America,
Britain,
and Israel? And are these three countries not the real axis of evil
against
humanity and Muslims?
He repeatedly asked what the duty of Muslims is (in these
circumstances),
and said: Does the honor (gheyrat) of 1.5 billion Muslims allow the
blood of
innocent Muslims to be shed in this way in Afghanistan, Iraq,
Palestine, and
Lebanon? How can people's consciences bear these tragedies? What has
happened to Muslims' honor? What has happened to the Arabism, rage, and
honor of 250 million Arabs? Why are the heads of Arab countries silent
about
these crimes?
The commander of the (Islamic Revolution Guards) Corps (IRGC) asked: Is
silence over these crimes not complicity with the criminals?
He added: I hope that the ulema of the world of Islam will make
Muslims'
duty clear as soon as possible. The religious and Islamic leaders of
Muslim
countries, the heads of these countries and the media and reporters of
Muslim countries must not allow the Zionist regime to achieve its aims
with
the news boycott that it has created over its crimes.
Safavi remarked: If other Muslim countries had a Basij (volunteer force
affiliated to IRGC) like Iran and brave leaders like our eminent
leader, His
Eminence Ayatollah Khamene'i, things would have not come to this for
them. I
ask God to bring the destruction of the Zionist regime closer in years
in
view of these crimes and injustices. And the Zionists themselves are
bringing their own deaths forward by doing these things, because the
Hizballah and the people of Lebanon are unbeatable and the contrived
regime
and cancerous tumor that Israel is -- which has been created with the
aim of
pillaging the resources and wealth of Muslims -- must cease to exist
(bayad
az beyn beravad).
He said: I ask God to inflame Muslims' honor and to destroy the leaders
who
are affiliated to Zionism and America.
He added: I hope that our brave and great nation will one day succeed
in
wreaking vengeance on Israel and America for the blood of wronged
Muslims
and martyrs.
The IRGC commander, addressing Basij and IRGC members, said: We also
blame
the martyrdom of all our 200,000 martyrs of the imposed (Iran-Iraq) war
on
America for encouraging Saddam to attack Iran. We have to keep alive in
our
hearts our sacred hatred of America and Israel until the time for
revenge
arrives.
Safavi said: Undoubtedly, the blood of Muslim nations will one day boil
over
and spur them to action. I hope that the religious leaders of Muslim
countries and, then, these countries' political leaders will be spurred
to
action in defense of wronged Muslims. Our media and media people, too,
must
try to make all the freedom-lovers and free-thinkers of the world hear
the
cries of wronged Muslims.
(Description of Source: Tehran Fars News Agency (Internet Version-WWW)
in
Persian -- (Khabargozari-ye Fars) is a privately-owned news agency. It
began
operating in mid November 2002. Its managing editor is Mehdi Faza'eli,
the
editor in chief of the Javan daily and a member of the managerial board
of
the Association of Muslim Journalists. The other members of the board
of
directors of the news agency, are Alizera Shemirani, of Farda
newspaper,
Abdollah Moqaddam and Akbar Nabavi of Resalat newspaper, the former
director
of Farabi Foundation Hasan Eslami-Mehr, and university professor
Abolhoseyn
Ruholamin.)
Suicide of the West
National Review Online Blogs - New York,NY,USA
... Britain’s campuses are now the prime hunting grounds of the jihad.
... Britain has now effectively defined as a moderate someone who does
not support mass murder ...
http://article.nationalreview.com/?q=MTI2ZTRmYjg1OTA2ZjM1NGFhMDFjMDQ3ODJmYzA2MWE=
See all stories on this topic:
http://news.google.com/news?ie=utf8&oe=utf8&persist=1&hl=en&client=google&ncl=http://article.nationalreview.com/%3Fq%3DMTI2ZTRmYjg1OTA2ZjM1NGFhMDFjMDQ3ODJmYzA2MWE%3D
August 18, 2006
Student missing
Search for bright young man at standstill
By SUN MEDIA
EDMONTON -- There have been no clues or tips about what may have happened to a bright young man who vanished after he told his parents he was going to check out a music festival.
Robert Barrington Leigh, 20, hasn't been seen since he left his family's home Sunday night on his mountain bike to visit the Edmonton Folk Music Festival.
About 100 friends and family searching Edmonton's river valley since Tuesday have been unable to turn up any sign of the honours math and physics student, who has studied at the University of Toronto since 2003.
On Wednesday, the Edmonton Police Service used its helicopter to look for Barrington Leigh, but to no avail.
His older siblings have flown in from Vancouver to create a missing-person website, co-ordinate search efforts and design posters.
His family is putting out flyers in areas where "things are likely to be dumped."
"We asked his friends and teachers about everything. It all checks out. He was fine. It's just too out of character for him to disappear," said his mother, Iris Barrington Leigh.
The math wizard, who has won awards in several international competitions, has a well-deserved straight-edge reputation, she said.
Police spokesman Dean Parthenis said missing-persons detectives are expected to pick up the case next week.
"But we have no evidence to indicate foul play," he said. "Public help in this type of case is paramount."
http://calsun.canoe.ca/News/Alberta/2006/08/18/pf-1763133.html
Explosion Blasts Drug Store in Sofia
18 August 2006 | 07:31 | FOCUS News Agency
Sofia. A drug store in the Bulgarian capital Sofia was blasted by an explosion at about 5.30 am local time on Friday, a reporter of FOCUS News Agency informed.
The drug store was at the ground floor of an apartment building in the residential area of Strelbishte in Southern Sofia. The area was closed by police. Building residents were taken to a safe place and were later allowed to return to their homes.
Currently the area in front of the drug store is cleaned from broken glass.
The exact reasons for the explosion are still to be estimated.
“Everything rocked” people living near the drug store told FOCUS.
A woman, living in the same apartment building said she heard a blast and then a revving car engine, slamming car doors, and male voices shouting.
http://www.focus-fen.net/index.php?id=n94260%3E
http://www.focus-fen.net/index.php?id=n92445
National Security | NATO
La Libre: NATO Investigates Info Leakage in Press
18 July 2006 | 09:54 | FOCUS News Agency
Brussels. NATO is investigating info leakage in the press of a secret document in which US agent from counter intelligence services is reproaching his director in breaching the security measures in appointing students in the NATO structures, the Belgium newspaper La Libre reports today.
In the document signed by S.V. and the editors claim to have is claimed that police don’t check precisely enough the nominees for students practice in order not to allow infiltration of organizations like Green Peace or other with extremist orientation.
http://www.focus-fen.net/index.php?id=n94267
Southeast Europe and Balkans | Republic of Macedonia
Counterfeit USD Bills Appear in Macedonia’s Prilep
18 August 2006 | 09:08 | FOCUS News Agency
Prilep. 26 counterfeit USD bills of 100 dollars each appeared on late Wednesday in the Macedonian town of Prilep, the Macedonian TV chanbnel Kanal 5 reported.
An unidentified person offered the money in a currency exchange office in the center region of the town.
By accepting the counterfeit bills the office underwent damages amounting to 122,200 denars /61 denars = 1 Euro/.
Police was informed on the case and started investigation.
http://www.focus-fen.net/index.php?id=n94245
Southeast Europe and Balkans | Croatia
Russian Millionaires Buying out Croatian Seacoast
17 August 2006 | 19:08 | FOCUS News Agency
Zagreb. By the end of the tourist season 100,000 Russian tourists will have visited the Croatian seacoast. As a rule they stay in the villas they have recently bought or in the most expensive hotels and remain there longer that the other tourists, Serbian newspaper Blic informs.
The Croatian coast also became very attractive for Russian millionaires and for those who are among the first in the Forbs’s rank list of the richest people in the world. Russian millionaires have bought gorgeous villas, hotels and attractive areas from Istra to Dubrovnik.