Pakistan is buying 700 air-to-air missiles made by US defence group Raytheon for 284 million dollars, the company said on Monday. Pakistan is purchasing 500 Advanced Medium-Range Air-to-Air Missiles (AMRAAM), the largest international order for this weapon, and 200 short-range AIM-9M Sidewinder missiles, Raytheon said in a statement.
Delivery of the AMRAAM arsenal will start in 2008 and continue through 2011, it said. AMRAAM, from a joint US Air Force and Navy program, are used by the armed forces of 32 countries, while 20 countries have AIM-9M Sidewinder missiles, the statement said.
Pakistan has signed a letter of offer and acceptance for the 700 missiles, it said. “The combined 284 million dollar procurement augments Pakistan’s established inventory and will provide the bulk of the air-to-air fire power of the Pakistan Air Force,” the statement said.
http://www.dailytimes.com.pk/default.asp?page=2007\01\17\story_17-1-2007_pg7_21
Israel’s pilot ID system to foil Sept 11-style attacks
1/17/07
TEL AVIV — Israel will this year issue all commercial airlines that fly to its territory with a locally invented pilot identification system designed to prevent September 11-style suicide attacks, Israeli officials said yesterday. Planes without the “Code Positive” system, which will be distributed free of charge as of May, will be turned back from Israeli airspace on pain of being shot down, an official said. Israel is widely considered to have the world’s most sophisticated aviation security. Such expertise has been in high demand abroad since Al Qaeda squads hijacked American commuter jets and rammed them into the World Trade Center in New York and the Pentagon on September 11, 2001. The hijackers are assumed to have killed the pilots.
Danny Shenar, head of security at the Transportation Ministry, described Code Positive as a credit card-size device that is personally and exclusively assigned to each pilot, and carried aboard their flights. “Using this card, it will be possible to verify that the person flying the aircraft is indeed the person qualified to fly it,” Shenar told Israel's Army Radio. “This system was developed to prevent aviation mega-terror over Israel, in the form of a plane coming through one of the borders and crashing into a target in Israel,” he said. “The system should be operational by the end of the year.” Code Positive was developed by Israeli firm Elbit Systems Ltd. Shenar declined to elaborate on the specific technology involved for security reasons.
But he said it would be impossible for a hijacker to force a pilot to hand over identifying details, or otherwise pose as a legitimate member of the flight crew. “You can’t bluff this system,” Shenar said. It was unclear from his remarks whether the system would send an alert if a pilot remained at the controls but was forced to follow hijackers' orders. The US government inquiry into the September 11 attacks said ground radio overheard orders apparently given by hijackers to their captive passengers over aircraft public address systems.
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A Director of the Media Trust, Publishers of Daily Trust Newspapers, Muhammaed Ilyas Damagun, was yesterday arraigned before a Federal High Court sitting in Abuja, on a three-count charge of being a member and financing of an illegal terrorist organisation called "The Nigerian Taliban."
The accused, who was brought to court around 8.45a.m., was said to have committed the offence between October 16 and November 15, 2002, at Kano and other places in Nigeria. The charge sheet said Damagun received the sum of $300,000 from a terrorist organisation called Al Qaeda World Network, Sudan, and deposited the money with Habibsons Bank Limited, Windson House, 55-56 ST James Street, London, in the account No 21067695, with the intent that the said money shall be used in the execution of acts of terrorism committing an offence against the law.
He was also alleged to have given out various sums of money and a 10-seater bus with registration Number, KADUNA AN 379 ANC and 30 loud speakers to Muhammed Yusuff, operative of the Nigerian Taliban, to facilitate the spread of extremism and various acts and techniques on terrorism and committed the offence.
The accused was alleged to have committed an offence of recruiting, sponsoring and transporting 14 members of militia group to receive combat training on terrorism at a camp in Mauritania.
Excerpted
I can't comment Oorang or I'll be banned.
http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-3353269,00.html
"IDF Chief Halutz resigns"
Latest Update: 01.17.07, 00:50
ARTICLE SNIPPET: "An earthquake in the military and political echelons: IDF Chief of General Staff Lt. Gen. Dan Halutz resigned Tuesday night. He reported his resignation to Defense Minister Amir Peretz and Prime Minister Ehud Olmert.
He intended to report his resignation to the IDF general staff Wednesday morning, but, from fear of leaks, decided to issue a public statement Wednesday, slightly after midnight."