3 killed in central Mexican shooting
Posted on Friday, January 11, 2008 at 5:38am
Gunmen shot dead two federal agents and a civilian Thursday in the central state of Michoacan, prosecutors said, the latest in a series of deadly shootings involving police and soldiers in Mexico. The agents were traveling on a road in the Michoacan town of La Paloma when they were intercepted and shot, said Magdalena Guzman, a spokeswoman for the state attorney general's office. Full Story
30 killed in renewed fighting in Yemen
Posted on Friday, January 11, 2008 at 5:40am
Government soldiers and Shiite rebels are fighting again in northern Yemen, breaking a 6-month-old cease-fire with clashes that have killed more than 30 people, government officials and rebels said Thursday. Yemen, a poor country at the southern tip of the Arabian Peninsula, has struggled with a three-year insurgency that has killed thousands on both sides. Full Story
China blogger beaten to death
Posted on Friday, January 11, 2008 at 5:42am
Authorities have fired an official in central China after city inspectors reportedly beat to death a man who filmed their confrontation with villagers, China's Xinhua news agency reports. The killing has sparked outrage in China, with thousands expressing outrage in Chinese Internet chat rooms, often the only outlet for public criticism of the government. Full Story
Bird flu spread from son to father
Posted on Friday, January 11, 2008 at 5:48am
A Chinese man became infected with avian influenza through contact with his son, health officials said Thursday.
Investigators were unsure how the son contracted the disease, Xinhua, the official government news agency, reported. Neither man was known to have had contact with poultry. Full Story
Utah gun owners go armed at airport
Posted on Friday, January 11, 2008 at 5:54am
Utah gun-owners say they have a right to carry their weapons at the Salt Lake City International Airport as long as they stay out of secured areas. Full Story
New rules for driver's licenses
Posted on Friday, January 11, 2008 at 6:00am
Americans born after Dec. 1, 1964, will have to get more secure driver's licenses in the next six years under ambitious post-9/11 security rules to be unveiled Friday by federal officials.
The Homeland Security Department has spent years crafting the final regulations for the REAL ID Act, a law designed to make it harder for terrorists, illegal immigrants and con artists to get government-issued identification. Full Story
Investment in Thailand breaks record despite political uncertainty
Posted on Friday, January 11, 2008 at 8:31am
Investment applications in Thailand hit a record 644.8 billion baht (19.5 billion dollars) in 2007, up 32 per cent on the previous year, even in the face of great political uncertainty, the Bangkok Post reported Friday. The Board of Investment also approved - gave tax breaks - to a 744.5 billion baht in investments, almost double the year previously. Full Story
Nepal sets April 10 date for key polls
Posted on Friday, January 11, 2008 at 8:51am
Nepal's main political parties and former Maoist rebels have agreed to hold key polls on the Himalayan nation's political future on April 10, a minister said Friday. The elections, leading to the formation of a body that will write a new constitution, had been postponed twice due to disputes following the November 2006 signing of a landmark peace deal. Full Story
France raises bird flu risk level
Posted on Friday, January 11, 2008 at 9:57am
France's agriculture ministry raised the level of risk for bird flu to moderate from low on Friday after Britain discovered the deadly H5N1 strain in three wild swans. France, Europe's biggest poultry producer, last adjusted its risk levels for birdflu on Oct. 12 after no new cases of the H5N1 virus were detected in wild birds in the country for an extended period. Full Story
US would 'regret' Pakistan operation
Posted on Friday, January 11, 2008 at 10:00am
President Pervez Musharraf said in an interview published Friday that U.S. troops would be regarded as invaders if they crossed into Pakistan to hunt al-Qaida militants. He also said he would resign if opposition parties tried to impeach him after next month's elections. Full Story
Lebanon presidential vote set for another delay
Posted on Friday, January 11, 2008 at 10:18am
Lebanon's presidential election is set for a 12th delay despite efforts by the Arab League chief to get rival Lebanese leaders to agree an Arab plan to end the country's crisis, a senior political source said on Friday.
Parliament had been scheduled to meet on Saturday to confirm army commander General Michel Suleiman as head of state but no vote can take place without a deal between the Western-backed majority and the Hezbollah-led opposition.
The expected delay will follow three days of intense talks by Arab League Secretary-General Amr Moussa with rival leaders in Beirut on the Arab plan that calls for the election of Suleiman, formation of a national unity government and drafting a new law for parliamentary election that is due next year. Full Story
US plan Anbar security handover
Posted on Friday, January 11, 2008 at 10:19am
Security responsibility for Anbar province - once Iraq's most dangerous - could transfer to Iraqi forces by March, a senior US general said. Maj Gen Walter Gaskin of the US Marines said a fall in violence had paved the way for handing Anbar to Iraqi control. In Washington, the visiting Iraqi defence minister said Iraqi forces may be ready to take responsibility for all remaining areas of the country by 2009. Full Story
Detained Suu Kyi meets Myanmar junta minister
Posted on Friday, January 11, 2008 at 10:35am
Myanmar's detained opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi met a senior junta official on Friday, state media said, but it was not known what they discussed. MRTV showed footage from the fourth meeting between the Nobel laureate and ruling junta member Aung Kyi since he was appointed as a go-between after last September's crackdown on pro-democracy protests triggered world outrage. Full Story
Bush pledges to return to Mideast in MayPosted on Friday, January 11, 2008 at 10:45amU.S. President George W. Bush said Friday that he would return to the Mideast in May to continue pushing the Israelis and Palestinians toward a peace treaty and celebrate Israel's 60th anniversary.
"There's a good chance for peace and I want to help you," Bush told Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert and Israeli President Shimon Peres at the airport here, where he boarded Air Force One, ending his visit to Israel and the Palestinian territories. "Mr. Prime Minister and Mr. President, thank you very much for your invitation to come back. I'm accepting it now," Bush said on the tarmac. Full Story
Bush Outlines Mideast Peace Plan
Posted on Friday, January 11, 2008 at 10:49am
President Bush outlined Thursday in the clearest terms so far the shape of a two-state peace treaty he is hoping to broker between Israel and the Palestinians by the end of his term. He called for redrawing borders and compensating Palestinians and their descendants for homes they left in what is now Israel. Speaking after two days of meetings with Prime Minister Ehud Olmert of Israel and the Palestinian president, Mahmoud Abbas, Mr. Bush said,
I believe that any peace agreement between them will require mutually agreed adjustments to the armistice lines of 1949 to reflect current realities and to ensure that the Palestinian state is viable and contiguous. Full Story
Iranian Boats May Not Have Made Radio Threat, Pentagon Says
Posted on Friday, January 11, 2008 at 10:59am
The Pentagon said yesterday that the apparent radio threat to bomb U.S. warships in the Persian Gulf last weekend may not have come from the five Iranian Revolutionary Guard speedboats that approached them -- and may not even have been intended against U.S. targets.
The communication Sunday was made on radio channel 16, a common marine frequency used by ships and others in the region. "It could have been a threat aimed at some other nation or a myriad of other things," said Rear Adm. Frank Thorp IV, a spokesman for the Navy. In the radio message recorded by the Navy, a heavily accented voice said: "I am coming to you. You will explode after a few minutes." But Farsi speakers and Iranians told The Washington Post that the accent did not sound Iranian. Full Story
Tokyo to look for terrorist suspects in 3-D: official
Posted on Friday, January 11, 2008 at 2:53pm
Tokyo plans to set up three-dimensional cameras across the city in the world's most advanced system yet to pinpoint terrorist suspects, a local official said Friday. Full Story
Militant threat on Eiffel Tower intercepted: source
Posted on Friday, January 11, 2008 at 2:54pm
Portuguese air traffic authorities have intercepted a message describing a militant threat against the Eiffel Tower and have passed it to French authorities, a Portuguese source said on Friday. Full Story
Chavez defends Colombia's leftist rebels
Posted on Friday, January 11, 2008 at 2:55pm
President Hugo Chavez defended Colombia's leftist rebels as armies not terrorists on Friday, a day after triumphantly mediating the release of two of their hundreds of hostages. Full Story
Mexico shootout suspects tied to cartel
Posted on Friday, January 11, 2008 at 3:38pm
Three U.S. residents and seven others linked to the powerful Gulf drug cartel were arrested following a deadly shootout just across the border from Texas, Mexican officials said Tuesday. Full Story
Yemenis now biggest group at Guantanamo
Posted on Friday, January 11, 2008 at 4:07pm
The number of men held at Guantanamo Bay is declining rapidly, but there is no way out for most of the Yemeni detainees because their homeland's government and Washington are mired in a diplomatic impasse over security concerns. Full Story
Mauritanians arrested in tourist deaths
Posted on Friday, January 11, 2008 at 5:08pm
Two Mauritanians suspected of involvement in the killings of four French tourists were arrested Friday and officials said they are believed to belong to an Algerian-based terror cell affiliated with al-Qaida. Full Story
Iraqi parliament approves bill to rehabilitate Baathists
Posted on Saturday, January 12, 2008 at 9:29amS
hiite and Sunni members of Iraq's parliament buried their differences on Saturday to pass a controversial bill allowing former officials of Saddam Hussein's Baath party to return to public life. Full Story
'Al-Qaeda militants' ransack Gaza school: director
Posted on Saturday, January 12, 2008 at 10:10am
Militants from a hitherto unknown group linked to Al-Qaeda ransacked a private school in the northern Gaza Strip, its director said Saturday. Full Story
Pakistan kills over 50 militants near Afghan border: officials
Posted on Saturday, January 12, 2008 at 11:21am
Pakistani troops killed more than 50 Taliban militants after fighting off an attack on a military fort in a troubled tribal region bordering Afghanistan, security officials said Saturday. Full Story
Macedonia crash kills 11 soldiers
Posted on Saturday, January 12, 2008 at 1:11pm
A military helicopter from the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia taking soldiers home from Bosnia has crashed, killing all 11 people on board. Full Story
Fears of terror attack in Germany
Posted on Saturday, January 12, 2008 at 1:12pm
Lebanese authorities have warned of terrorist attacks being planned on targets within Germany, prompting the Justice Ministry in Berlin to increase its security measures, authorities said Saturday. Full Story
Croatian parliament approves PM Sanader's cabinet
Posted on Saturday, January 12, 2008 at 3:43pm
Croatia's new parliament approved on Saturday a centre-right coalition cabinet proposed by Prime Minister-designate Ivo Sanader and dominated by his conservative Croatian Democratic Union (HDZ). Full Story
Khamenei: U.S. won't bring Iran to its knees
Posted on Saturday, January 12, 2008 at 3:44pm
Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei said on Saturday the United States would not be able to bring Iran to its knees in a row over sensitive nuclear work the West suspects is aimed at making bombs. Full Story
Poll: Many Pakistanis believe government killed BhuttoPosted on Sunday, January 13, 2008 at 10:47amNearly half of Pakistanis suspect that government agencies or government-linked politicians killed Benazir Bhutto, an opinion poll showed, highlighting the popular mistrust of the country's U.S.-allied president ahead of elections next month. Full Story
West supports Mush's Bhutto assassination theory
Posted on Sunday, January 13, 2008 at 10:49am
Benazir Bhutto was killed by al-Qaida militants, after all, according to British officials who say evidence collected by Scotland Yard detective's points to the theory advertised by Presient Musharraf's regime. Full Story
Thousands rally in Georgia against Saakashvili
Posted on Sunday, January 13, 2008 at 10:50am
Tens of thousands of opposition protesters in Georgia rallied against presidential poll winner Mikheil Saakashvili on Sunday, alleging vote fraud and demanding a second round of the election. Full Story
Sri Lankan Donors Voice Concerns Over Ending of Peace Accord
Posted on Sunday, January 13, 2008 at 10:51am
Sri Lankan donors expressed ``strong concerns'' over the termination of a cease-fire accord with Tamil rebels as Japan's peace envoy arrived in the South Asian nation. Full Story
Israel-Palestinian final status talks start Monday
Posted on Sunday, January 13, 2008 at 1:47pm
Senior Israeli and Palestinian negotiators will open talks on Monday on the most sensitive issues such as the future of Jerusalem as part of a U.S.-led push for a peace deal this year, officials said. Full Story
Report: Al Qaeda Is Building a White Army of Terror
Posted on Sunday, January 13, 2008 at 3:16pm
According to a source at MI5 the British equivalent of the CIA 1,500 white Britons are believed to have converted to Islam with the purpose of funding, planning, and carrying out surprise terror attacks, the newspaper reported. Full Story
Kenya police used 'lethal force'
Posted on Sunday, January 13, 2008 at 3:56pm
Kenyan police have used lethal force, including gunfire, to break up anti-government protests, the US-based Human Rights Watch (HRW) has said. Full Story
Dutch soldiers kill 2 of their own in Afghanistan
Posted on Sunday, January 13, 2008 at 4:52pm
Dutch soldiers in Afghanistan killed two of their own men during a nighttime battle and separately two allied Afghan soldiers they mistook for enemies, the Dutch Defense Ministry said Sunday. Full Story
Israel to get "smarter" U.S.-made bombs than Saudis
Posted on Sunday, January 13, 2008 at 5:03pm
The United States has agreed in principle to provide Israel with better "smart bombs" than those it plans to sell Saudi Arabia under a regional defense package, senior Israeli security sources said on Sunday. Full Story
South African police chief quits as Interpol president
Posted on Sunday, January 13, 2008 at 5:05pm
South African police chief Jackie Selebi has resigned as president of Interpol to fight corruption allegations, the world police organization said on Sunday. Full Story
Taliban kill 10 policemen in Afghan attack
Posted on Sunday, January 13, 2008 at 5:07pm
Taliban guerrillas killed 10 policemen on Sunday in a raid in southern Afghanistan, provincial officials said. Full Story
Deadly Mexican gunbattles spark fears of Texas spillover
Posted on Sunday, January 13, 2008 at 5:28pm
Deadly gunbattles in two Mexican border cities last week left their sister communities in the Rio Grande Valley hoping that the brutal cross-border violence plaguing Nuevo Laredo for years had not spread downstream permanently. Full Story
Japan in Sri Lanka peace bid: officials
Posted on Monday, January 14, 2008 at 2:02am
A Japanese peace envoy opened talks with Sri Lankan leaders Monday as the international community stepped up pressure over Colombo's decision to abandon a truce with the Tamil Tiger rebels. Japan, the biggest bilateral donor to Sri Lanka, has hinted that foreign aid could be withheld if violence continues to escalate in the island's long-running ethnic conflict that has already claimed thousands of lives. Full Story
Bomb in southern Thailand kills 8 troops
Posted on Monday, January 14, 2008 at 2:03am
Suspected Muslim insurgents killed eight soldiers Monday in a bombing and shooting attack in one of Thailand's restive southern provinces, the army spokesman said.
The soldiers were on a routine morning patrol in the Chanae district of Narathiwat province when a bomb hidden on the road exploded as their vehicle passed, said the spokesman, Col. Akara Thiprote. Full Story
Concern over rising sex attacks in India's tourist hotspots
Posted on Monday, January 14, 2008 at 3:10am
Authorities in India's popular tourist destinations are boosting security after a spate of sexual attacks against foreigners, officials said. The federal government has called top tourism officials from all states for a meeting in capital New Delhi this month to review security measures after the highly publicised incidents. Full Story
Courtesy Terrorism Research Center, Inc.
Monday, January 14, 2008
Sunday, January 13, 2008
CONFLICT & TERROR 01/11
New nuclear deadline for N Korea
Posted on Thursday, January 10, 2008 at 8:47am
North Korea needs to complete the disabling of its nuclear facilities by the end of next month, US nuclear envoy Christopher Hill has said. Speaking in South Korea, Mr Hill said he wanted the process finished by the time the South's incoming President Lee Myung-bak takes office on 25 February. Full Story
Philippines to charge 15 in mall blast
Posted on Thursday, January 10, 2008 at 11:02am
Philippine police are set to file charges against 15 people, including employees of one of the country's top property developers, in connection with a mall blast that killed 11 people, officials said Thursday.
In their final report released Thursday, investigators ruled out terrorism as the cause of the blast at the Glorietta 2 mall in Manila's Makati financial district last October, sticking to initial findings that methane and diesel vapor triggered the explosion that also injured more than 100 people. Full Story
2 soldiers injured in school bomb attack in Thai South
Posted on Thursday, January 10, 2008 at 11:05am
Insurgents detonated a bomb inside a school in Southern Thailand's province of Narathiwat Thursday morning, injuring two soldiers and terrifying about 140 students there. Local police were quoted by local newspaper The Nation's website as saying that the explosion occurred at 9:45 am (0245 GMT) inside the Ban Pase School in Rangae district. Full Story
Hong Kong on the march - again
Posted on Thursday, January 10, 2008 at 11:09am
Hong Kong people will be on the march again on Sunday to protest the spurious democracy advancement package handed down by the National People's Congress (NPC) Standing Committee in Beijing last month.
But neither Beijing nor the organizers, the Civil Human Rights Front, is keeping their fingers crossed. The Front has officially told the police to expect a 20,000 turnout, a very far cry from the half million who marched in 2003 to protest Article 23 (a Draconian Beijing-backed anti-sedition law), express dissatisfaction with former chief executive Tung Chee-hwa and call for universal suffrage. Full Story
Scout: Islamic militant attacked prez
Posted on Thursday, January 10, 2008 at 12:00pm
The 15-year-old Boy Scout who saved the president of this Indian Ocean archipelago from a knife-wielding attacker said Thursday the assailant shouted "God is Great" before the assault. Mohammed Jaisham Ibrahim's account matches stories filtering out of the remote island where the incident took place and is likely to heighten concerns about rising Islamic militancy in the country best known for high-end resorts and stunning coral reefs. Full Story
Tamil Tigers urge Norway to maintain peace efforts
Posted on Thursday, January 10, 2008 at 12:02pm
Tamil Tiger rebels said on Thursday they were ready to revive a dying ceasefire abandoned by Sri Lanka's government and urged Norway to maintain its peace efforts despite escalating fighting. In its first public reaction to the government's withdrawal from the 2002 truce earlier this month, the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) expressed willingness to salvage the ceasefire, the basis of a moribund peace process. Full Story
ECB, Bank of England holds rates steady
Posted on Thursday, January 10, 2008 at 1:47pm
The European Central Bank and the Bank of England kept their benchmark interest rates on hold Thursday, both torn between the opposing challenges of higher inflation and worries about economic growth.
Those two factors could put the central banks on different paths in the coming months, with the ECB striking a hawkish note in the face of strong euro-zone inflation while the Bank of England is widely expected to deliver a cut next month to restore shaky consumer confidence. Full Story
Blair takes advisory post with JP Morgan
Posted on Thursday, January 10, 2008 at 1:48pm
Former British Prime Minister Tony Blair took a job as an adviser to JPMorgan Chase & Co. on Thursday, a part-time post that will not affect his role as a Mideast peace envoy, his spokeswoman said. Blair will give JPMorgan's senior management team "strategic advice and provide insights on global issues," said Ruti Winterstein, a Blair spokeswoman in Israel. Full Story
More passengers for Eurostar
Posted on Thursday, January 10, 2008 at 1:53pm
Rail service that connects Brussels and Paris with London attracted 5% more passengers last year. The rail service that connects Brussels and Paris with London attracted 5% more passengers last year. For the first time ever passenger numbers exceeded 8 million in 2007. Full Story
Protection zone set up as deadly bird flu found at swan reserve
Posted on Thursday, January 10, 2008 at 10:35pm
Three dead swans that were found in a bird sanctuary in Dorset had the deadly avian flu virus H5N1, it was confirmed yesterday.
The virus had been circulating in British birds for more than two weeks and may already be endemic in the wild bird population, experts have said. Tests are under way at the Veterinary Laboratories Agency in Weybridge, Surrey, to establish just how long the virus has been present in the mute swans from Abbotsbury. Full Story
Bid to resolve Kenya crisis fails
Posted on Friday, January 11, 2008 at 12:00am
Efforts to resolve Kenya's disputed presidential election faltered Thursday as diplomats from the United States and African Union left the country without forging an agreement. Full Story
Japan Prepares to Pass Anti-Terror Bill
Posted on Friday, January 11, 2008 at 12:02am
Japan's upper house of parliament rejected a bill Friday to revive a naval mission to support U.S.-led forces in the Indian Ocean, but the ruling party was expected to push the measure into law in the lower chamber. Parliament's upper house, controlled by a resurgent opposition, voted to reject legislation that would revive a limited version of Japan's six-year-long mission to provide fuel and other resources to U.S.-led forces in Afghanistan.
India's Singh Rejects U.S. Security Talks to `Contain China'
Posted on Friday, January 11, 2008 at 12:05am
Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh said his country isn't involved in security talks with the U.S., Japan and Australia to ``contain China'' and wants to forge closer ties between the world's two most populous nations. Singh, who makes his first visit as prime minister to the communist nation at the weekend, said engagement with the government in Beijing is a ``priority,'' state-run broadcaster Doordarshan reported on its Web site. Full Story
U.S. pounds al-Qaida havens with 40,000 pounds of bombs
Posted on Friday, January 11, 2008 at 12:11am
U.S. bombers and jet fighters unleashed 40,000 pounds of explosives during a 10-minute airstrike today, flattening what the military called havens for al-Qaida in Iraq on the southern outskirts of the capital. Full Story
UNM is busy counting chemicals for Homeland Security
Posted on Friday, January 11, 2008 at 12:13am
Researchers and other staff members at the University of New Mexico are busy counting all their jars and vials of potentially dangerous substances under an order from the U.S. Department of Homeland Security.
The university has less than two weeks to report the number, quantity and location of every chemical in its possession that appears on the agency's list of chemicals of interest. The count is required by federal anti-terrorism standards for chemical facilities. Full Story
Beslan protest group to stand trial
Posted on Friday, January 11, 2008 at 12:27am
Russian prosecutors have laid extremism charges against campaigners who claim that senior security officials bungled a 2004 school hostage rescue attempt in which 333 children and adults died, the campaign group said. Islamists seized more than 1,000 people in Beslan, southern Russia, starting a three-day siege that ended in carnage. Half the dead were children. Full Story
Medical pot rule up in smoke
Posted on Friday, January 11, 2008 at 12:29am
A Federal Court judge has struck down a government regulation which prevents medical marijuana growers from producing the drug for more than one patient. The decision by Judge Barry Strayer essentially grants medical marijuana users more freedom in picking their own grower, rather than relying on the government as a supplier.
Medical marijuana patients had argued that the restriction was unfair and prevented seriously ill Canadians from obtaining the drug they needed to treat their debilitating illnesses. Full Story
U.S. labels Kurdish PKK affiliate terrorist group
Posted on Friday, January 11, 2008 at 12:31am
The United States said on Thursday it had designated the Kurdistan Freedom Falcons (TAK), a group linked to PKK Kurdish militants, a terrorist group, subjecting it to U.S. financial sanctions. Full Story
Sri Lanka rejects Tiger offer to abide by scrapped trucePosted on Friday, January 11, 2008 at 2:18amSri Lanka's government on Friday rejected a Tamil Tiger offer to abide by the terms of a newly-scrapped 6-year ceasefire, and vowed to push on with a military campaign to crush the rebels. Full Story
CourtesyTerrorism Research Center, Inc.
Posted on Thursday, January 10, 2008 at 8:47am
North Korea needs to complete the disabling of its nuclear facilities by the end of next month, US nuclear envoy Christopher Hill has said. Speaking in South Korea, Mr Hill said he wanted the process finished by the time the South's incoming President Lee Myung-bak takes office on 25 February. Full Story
Philippines to charge 15 in mall blast
Posted on Thursday, January 10, 2008 at 11:02am
Philippine police are set to file charges against 15 people, including employees of one of the country's top property developers, in connection with a mall blast that killed 11 people, officials said Thursday.
In their final report released Thursday, investigators ruled out terrorism as the cause of the blast at the Glorietta 2 mall in Manila's Makati financial district last October, sticking to initial findings that methane and diesel vapor triggered the explosion that also injured more than 100 people. Full Story
2 soldiers injured in school bomb attack in Thai South
Posted on Thursday, January 10, 2008 at 11:05am
Insurgents detonated a bomb inside a school in Southern Thailand's province of Narathiwat Thursday morning, injuring two soldiers and terrifying about 140 students there. Local police were quoted by local newspaper The Nation's website as saying that the explosion occurred at 9:45 am (0245 GMT) inside the Ban Pase School in Rangae district. Full Story
Hong Kong on the march - again
Posted on Thursday, January 10, 2008 at 11:09am
Hong Kong people will be on the march again on Sunday to protest the spurious democracy advancement package handed down by the National People's Congress (NPC) Standing Committee in Beijing last month.
But neither Beijing nor the organizers, the Civil Human Rights Front, is keeping their fingers crossed. The Front has officially told the police to expect a 20,000 turnout, a very far cry from the half million who marched in 2003 to protest Article 23 (a Draconian Beijing-backed anti-sedition law), express dissatisfaction with former chief executive Tung Chee-hwa and call for universal suffrage. Full Story
Scout: Islamic militant attacked prez
Posted on Thursday, January 10, 2008 at 12:00pm
The 15-year-old Boy Scout who saved the president of this Indian Ocean archipelago from a knife-wielding attacker said Thursday the assailant shouted "God is Great" before the assault. Mohammed Jaisham Ibrahim's account matches stories filtering out of the remote island where the incident took place and is likely to heighten concerns about rising Islamic militancy in the country best known for high-end resorts and stunning coral reefs. Full Story
Tamil Tigers urge Norway to maintain peace efforts
Posted on Thursday, January 10, 2008 at 12:02pm
Tamil Tiger rebels said on Thursday they were ready to revive a dying ceasefire abandoned by Sri Lanka's government and urged Norway to maintain its peace efforts despite escalating fighting. In its first public reaction to the government's withdrawal from the 2002 truce earlier this month, the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) expressed willingness to salvage the ceasefire, the basis of a moribund peace process. Full Story
ECB, Bank of England holds rates steady
Posted on Thursday, January 10, 2008 at 1:47pm
The European Central Bank and the Bank of England kept their benchmark interest rates on hold Thursday, both torn between the opposing challenges of higher inflation and worries about economic growth.
Those two factors could put the central banks on different paths in the coming months, with the ECB striking a hawkish note in the face of strong euro-zone inflation while the Bank of England is widely expected to deliver a cut next month to restore shaky consumer confidence. Full Story
Blair takes advisory post with JP Morgan
Posted on Thursday, January 10, 2008 at 1:48pm
Former British Prime Minister Tony Blair took a job as an adviser to JPMorgan Chase & Co. on Thursday, a part-time post that will not affect his role as a Mideast peace envoy, his spokeswoman said. Blair will give JPMorgan's senior management team "strategic advice and provide insights on global issues," said Ruti Winterstein, a Blair spokeswoman in Israel. Full Story
More passengers for Eurostar
Posted on Thursday, January 10, 2008 at 1:53pm
Rail service that connects Brussels and Paris with London attracted 5% more passengers last year. The rail service that connects Brussels and Paris with London attracted 5% more passengers last year. For the first time ever passenger numbers exceeded 8 million in 2007. Full Story
Protection zone set up as deadly bird flu found at swan reserve
Posted on Thursday, January 10, 2008 at 10:35pm
Three dead swans that were found in a bird sanctuary in Dorset had the deadly avian flu virus H5N1, it was confirmed yesterday.
The virus had been circulating in British birds for more than two weeks and may already be endemic in the wild bird population, experts have said. Tests are under way at the Veterinary Laboratories Agency in Weybridge, Surrey, to establish just how long the virus has been present in the mute swans from Abbotsbury. Full Story
Bid to resolve Kenya crisis fails
Posted on Friday, January 11, 2008 at 12:00am
Efforts to resolve Kenya's disputed presidential election faltered Thursday as diplomats from the United States and African Union left the country without forging an agreement. Full Story
Japan Prepares to Pass Anti-Terror Bill
Posted on Friday, January 11, 2008 at 12:02am
Japan's upper house of parliament rejected a bill Friday to revive a naval mission to support U.S.-led forces in the Indian Ocean, but the ruling party was expected to push the measure into law in the lower chamber. Parliament's upper house, controlled by a resurgent opposition, voted to reject legislation that would revive a limited version of Japan's six-year-long mission to provide fuel and other resources to U.S.-led forces in Afghanistan.
India's Singh Rejects U.S. Security Talks to `Contain China'
Posted on Friday, January 11, 2008 at 12:05am
Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh said his country isn't involved in security talks with the U.S., Japan and Australia to ``contain China'' and wants to forge closer ties between the world's two most populous nations. Singh, who makes his first visit as prime minister to the communist nation at the weekend, said engagement with the government in Beijing is a ``priority,'' state-run broadcaster Doordarshan reported on its Web site. Full Story
U.S. pounds al-Qaida havens with 40,000 pounds of bombs
Posted on Friday, January 11, 2008 at 12:11am
U.S. bombers and jet fighters unleashed 40,000 pounds of explosives during a 10-minute airstrike today, flattening what the military called havens for al-Qaida in Iraq on the southern outskirts of the capital. Full Story
UNM is busy counting chemicals for Homeland Security
Posted on Friday, January 11, 2008 at 12:13am
Researchers and other staff members at the University of New Mexico are busy counting all their jars and vials of potentially dangerous substances under an order from the U.S. Department of Homeland Security.
The university has less than two weeks to report the number, quantity and location of every chemical in its possession that appears on the agency's list of chemicals of interest. The count is required by federal anti-terrorism standards for chemical facilities. Full Story
Beslan protest group to stand trial
Posted on Friday, January 11, 2008 at 12:27am
Russian prosecutors have laid extremism charges against campaigners who claim that senior security officials bungled a 2004 school hostage rescue attempt in which 333 children and adults died, the campaign group said. Islamists seized more than 1,000 people in Beslan, southern Russia, starting a three-day siege that ended in carnage. Half the dead were children. Full Story
Medical pot rule up in smoke
Posted on Friday, January 11, 2008 at 12:29am
A Federal Court judge has struck down a government regulation which prevents medical marijuana growers from producing the drug for more than one patient. The decision by Judge Barry Strayer essentially grants medical marijuana users more freedom in picking their own grower, rather than relying on the government as a supplier.
Medical marijuana patients had argued that the restriction was unfair and prevented seriously ill Canadians from obtaining the drug they needed to treat their debilitating illnesses. Full Story
U.S. labels Kurdish PKK affiliate terrorist group
Posted on Friday, January 11, 2008 at 12:31am
The United States said on Thursday it had designated the Kurdistan Freedom Falcons (TAK), a group linked to PKK Kurdish militants, a terrorist group, subjecting it to U.S. financial sanctions. Full Story
Sri Lanka rejects Tiger offer to abide by scrapped trucePosted on Friday, January 11, 2008 at 2:18amSri Lanka's government on Friday rejected a Tamil Tiger offer to abide by the terms of a newly-scrapped 6-year ceasefire, and vowed to push on with a military campaign to crush the rebels. Full Story
CourtesyTerrorism Research Center, Inc.
TERROR ROUNDUP
Click on links below to read articles
Iraq:
U.S. Airstrikes Hit 'Qaida Safe Havens'
Al-Qaeda leader caught in W. Mosul
Two al-Qaeda operatives arrested in Diala
Iraqi Security Forces, U.S. Special Forces detain suspected al-Qaeda in Iraq IED specialists (Hillah)
Citizen tip leads Coalition to cache (Baghdad)
Al-Qaeda in Iraq terrorist behind Oct. 11 attacks identified as Mullah Jasim
Air strike engages suspected IED emplacers during Operation Phantom Phoenix (Muqdadiyah)
UAV, Apaches tag team to take out IED emplacers Yusufiyah
Operation Marne Thunderbolt clears al-Qaeda from southeast Baghdad
Iraqi Army finds bomb making facility outside Baghdad (Al Baytara, Abu Ghraib)
MND-North Soldiers kill 4 extremists, destroy HBIED with air strikes (Khan Bani Sa’ad)
Black Lions capture suspected extremist (Baghdad)
Dragons find five caches, detain three (Rashid)
Coalition forces target al-Qaeda leaders in northern Iraq, six detained
Operation Iron Harvest clears al-Qaeda from northern Iraq (Baquba)
Coalition forces positively identify terrorist killed in operation Dec. 25
Air strike destroys AQI safe house, reveals large cache (Busayefi)
Iraqi Special Operations Forces detain extremist cell leader, 3 suspected extremists (Baghdad)
Iraqi Army, Coalition Forces find caches, detain terrorist (Kirkuk)
Coalition forces disrupt al-Qaeda in Iraq operations; three killed; 28 detained
Coalition forces capture Special Groups leader; detain four suspects (Baghdad)
Treasury Dept. Targets Iraqi Insurgents' Money
General: Anbar ready for handover
Afghanistan / Pakistan:
Taliban Tiff Turns Toxic (Dadullah vs Omar)
Pakistan army strikes hideout of pro-Taliban militant leader (Fazlullah)
Al Qaeda suicide cell leader captured in Pakistan
Pakistani Tribesmen raising anti-Al Qaeda Army (great news!)
Tribal chief tells militants to leave
Afghanistan arrests 11 Taliban fighters
Afghanistan: A First Step Toward 'Turning' Moderate Taliban?
18 suspected militants arrested in Swat
The West:
Britain jails would-be Taliban fighter
Sparks fly in Padilla sentencing hearing
Two British residents face extradition hearing over Al Qaida allegations
Couple Linked to Al Qaeda Online Video Threat to Face Trial in Austria
Terror Bloggers Claim Paris Attack Plan
Bosnia begins deportations of foreign fighters
German policeman says Lebanese plotters planned 'bloodbath'
The Caucasus:
Six militants killed in Dagestan, Russia
Wahhabi gunman killed in Dagestan
Israel / Levant:
Six Al-Qaeda suspects held in custody pending trial (Turkey)
Two Palestinians killed in Israeli raid in Gaza
High-ranking Fatah al-Islam member arrested (Lebanon)
India / Pakistan:
A Top Hizbul Militant Surrenders in Kashmir
Africa:
Tunisia Court Upholds Terror Conviction (ex-Gitmo inmate)
Terror suspect extradited from Spain remains in Moroccan custody
Algeria: Several terrorists killed or wounded in Army’s onslaught in Constantine
Southeast Asia:
Philippines to Charge 15 in Mall Blast
Philippines aims to cut Abu Sayyaf strength by half this year
A shock to the system (Moslem spies in Thai military)
Preparations for (US-Filipino war games called) Balikatan in high gear
Islam in Indonesia - Where “soft Islam” is on the march
Radical Solution to Terrorism (Indonesia)
Kuna (Kuwait)
Hat-tip Straight Vermonter
Iraq:
U.S. Airstrikes Hit 'Qaida Safe Havens'
Al-Qaeda leader caught in W. Mosul
Two al-Qaeda operatives arrested in Diala
Iraqi Security Forces, U.S. Special Forces detain suspected al-Qaeda in Iraq IED specialists (Hillah)
Citizen tip leads Coalition to cache (Baghdad)
Al-Qaeda in Iraq terrorist behind Oct. 11 attacks identified as Mullah Jasim
Air strike engages suspected IED emplacers during Operation Phantom Phoenix (Muqdadiyah)
UAV, Apaches tag team to take out IED emplacers Yusufiyah
Operation Marne Thunderbolt clears al-Qaeda from southeast Baghdad
Iraqi Army finds bomb making facility outside Baghdad (Al Baytara, Abu Ghraib)
MND-North Soldiers kill 4 extremists, destroy HBIED with air strikes (Khan Bani Sa’ad)
Black Lions capture suspected extremist (Baghdad)
Dragons find five caches, detain three (Rashid)
Coalition forces target al-Qaeda leaders in northern Iraq, six detained
Operation Iron Harvest clears al-Qaeda from northern Iraq (Baquba)
Coalition forces positively identify terrorist killed in operation Dec. 25
Air strike destroys AQI safe house, reveals large cache (Busayefi)
Iraqi Special Operations Forces detain extremist cell leader, 3 suspected extremists (Baghdad)
Iraqi Army, Coalition Forces find caches, detain terrorist (Kirkuk)
Coalition forces disrupt al-Qaeda in Iraq operations; three killed; 28 detained
Coalition forces capture Special Groups leader; detain four suspects (Baghdad)
Treasury Dept. Targets Iraqi Insurgents' Money
General: Anbar ready for handover
Afghanistan / Pakistan:
Taliban Tiff Turns Toxic (Dadullah vs Omar)
Pakistan army strikes hideout of pro-Taliban militant leader (Fazlullah)
Al Qaeda suicide cell leader captured in Pakistan
Pakistani Tribesmen raising anti-Al Qaeda Army (great news!)
Tribal chief tells militants to leave
Afghanistan arrests 11 Taliban fighters
Afghanistan: A First Step Toward 'Turning' Moderate Taliban?
18 suspected militants arrested in Swat
The West:
Britain jails would-be Taliban fighter
Sparks fly in Padilla sentencing hearing
Two British residents face extradition hearing over Al Qaida allegations
Couple Linked to Al Qaeda Online Video Threat to Face Trial in Austria
Terror Bloggers Claim Paris Attack Plan
Bosnia begins deportations of foreign fighters
German policeman says Lebanese plotters planned 'bloodbath'
The Caucasus:
Six militants killed in Dagestan, Russia
Wahhabi gunman killed in Dagestan
Israel / Levant:
Six Al-Qaeda suspects held in custody pending trial (Turkey)
Two Palestinians killed in Israeli raid in Gaza
High-ranking Fatah al-Islam member arrested (Lebanon)
India / Pakistan:
A Top Hizbul Militant Surrenders in Kashmir
Africa:
Tunisia Court Upholds Terror Conviction (ex-Gitmo inmate)
Terror suspect extradited from Spain remains in Moroccan custody
Algeria: Several terrorists killed or wounded in Army’s onslaught in Constantine
Southeast Asia:
Philippines to Charge 15 in Mall Blast
Philippines aims to cut Abu Sayyaf strength by half this year
A shock to the system (Moslem spies in Thai military)
Preparations for (US-Filipino war games called) Balikatan in high gear
Islam in Indonesia - Where “soft Islam” is on the march
Radical Solution to Terrorism (Indonesia)
Kuna (Kuwait)
Hat-tip Straight Vermonter
Wednesday, January 9, 2008
CONFLICT & TERROR 01/08
Senior al-Qaeda operative arrested in Pakistan
Posted on Monday, January 7, 2008 at 6:15am
Amin al-Haq, described as security coordinator for al-Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden, has been arrested in Pakistan in a special police operation, an influential Pakistani newspaper reported on Monday. Full Story
India and Malaysia seek closer ties
Posted on Monday, January 7, 2008 at 9:01am
India is training Malaysian pilots to fly Russian fighter jets as part of a pact to upgrade defence cooperation, ministers from both sides said, as the two nations seek closer ties. Indian Defence Minister A.K. Antony said after talks with Malaysian Defence Minister Najib Razak that they also agreed to hold joint military exercises and strengthen efforts to combat regional terrorism. Full Story
Bali bombers seek edict on execution: lawyer
Posted on Monday, January 7, 2008 at 9:03am
Three Islamic militants on death row for the 2002 Bali bombings met their families on Monday, as their lawyer said they would seek an edict from Indonesia's Muslim body on the legality of execution by shooting. The three -- Imam Samudra, Amrozi and Mukhlas -- could face a firing squad possibly within a month unless they seek presidential clemency, an option which they have already ruled out. Full Story
Airports set to ease bags limit
Posted on Monday, January 7, 2008 at 9:04am
Twenty-two UK airports are preparing to let passengers take more than one piece of hand luggage on flights from Monday, to coincide with extra security checks. Heathrow, Manchester, Glasgow and Edinburgh are among the airports where two luggage pieces will be permitted. Full Story
Greece hit by strong earthquake
Posted on Monday, January 7, 2008 at 9:06am
A powerful earthquake has hit Greece, shaking buildings and waking people from their sleep. Greek geologists say the quake - measuring 6.5 - was centred 120km (75 miles) south-west of Athens in the southern Peloponnese region. But it was very deep, 51km underground, and there were no early reports of casualties or damage. Full Story
German diplomat expelled by Iran
Posted on Monday, January 7, 2008 at 9:07am
The Iranian government has expelled a German diplomat. The unnamed person had been carrying out "non-diplomatic activities", a foreign ministry spokesman said. He gave no further details. Full Story
Thaksin Ready to Return Thailand, Face Corruption Charges
Posted on Monday, January 7, 2008 at 9:11am
Deposed Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra plans to return to Thailand from self-imposed exile by mid-April and is prepared to defend himself in court against corruption-related charges, his lawyer said Monday. Thai authorities have issued arrest warrants against Thaksinwho has mostly lived in London since his ouster in September 2006for allegedly violating stock-trading laws and on corruption-related charges. Full Story
China planning Taiwan Strait route for commercial aviation
Posted on Monday, January 7, 2008 at 9:15am
China plans to open a new commercial aviation route through the Taiwan Strait in a move that officials in Taipei said was a threat to regional peace and a danger to air safety. The new route between Hong Kong and Shanghai would track just inside the Chinese side of the unofficial dividing line through the middle of the Taiwan Strait, an area that both sides have mostly avoided since the 1950s, security and aviation specialists in Taiwan said. Full Story
Britons 'richer than Americans'
Posted on Monday, January 7, 2008 at 9:59am
The average UK person will this year have a greater income than their US counterpart for the first time since the 19th Century, figures suggest. Analyst Oxford Economics said the UK's GDP per head of population will reach #23,500 - #250 higher than in the US. Full Story
New clashes in Naples rubbish row ahead of crisis meeting
Posted on Monday, January 7, 2008 at 10:19am
Police in Naples clashed with protestors over a mafia-linked rubbish disposal crisis on Monday as the Italian government convened an emergency meeting to try and resolve the row. Prime Minister Romano Prodi was to meet with ministers in Rome to brainstorm long-term measures to resolve the chronic problem in the impoverished southern city and the surrounding Campania region, home to some six million people. Full Story
5.8-magnitude quake strikes Indonesia
Posted on Monday, January 7, 2008 at 12:57pm
A strong earthquake hit the Indonesian province of Papua Monday sparking fires in several homes, police officials reported. The earthquake struck at 12:12 p.m. off the northern coast of Papua, about 3,090 kilometres east of the Indonesian capital of Jakarta, the U.S. Geological Survey said. Full Story
Thaksin's wife to return to Thailand on Tuesday
Posted on Monday, January 7, 2008 at 3:33pm
The wife of deposed prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra is set to return on Tuesday to Thailand, where she and her husband face criminal charges of corruption, the national police chief said. Police plan to meet Pojaman Shinawatra at the airport and escort her directly to the Supreme Court, where she will hear the charges filed against her, national police chief Sereepisut Taemeeyaves said. Full Story
Slowdown fears knock EADS shares
Posted on Monday, January 7, 2008 at 3:35pm
Shares in Airbus parent, EADS, have fallen sharply, after an investment bank forecast weak orders and advised clients to sell the stock. Deutsche Bank cut its rating on EADS to "sell" from "hold" and predicted weaker aircraft orders for Airbus in 2008. Full Story
UK push for space station modules
Posted on Monday, January 7, 2008 at 3:37pm
A proposal for the UK to join the International Space Station (ISS) project has been put forward by a group of scientists and engineers. Their idea is for Britain to build and launch two modules that greatly enhance living conditions on the platform. Full Story
Far-Right NPD Praises Koch's Tough Talk on Immigration
Posted on Monday, January 7, 2008 at 3:43pm
German state governor Roland Koch, a member of Chancellor Angela Merkel's conservatives, has won praise from the far-right National Democratic Party for his campaign against "criminal young foreigners" (more...) and his calls for immigrants to embrace German values. Full Story
German Judge Orders Re-Arrest of Former RAF Terrorists
Posted on Monday, January 7, 2008 at 3:45pm
A German federal court has ruled that three former members of the Red Army Faction, the left-wing guerrilla group that waged a campaign of kidnappings and murders in the 1970s, be jailed for up to six months because they have refused to testify in a fresh probe into a 1977 killing. Full Story
Finnish Town Faces Fecal Foul-up
Posted on Monday, January 7, 2008 at 3:53pm
A city in Finland best known as the namesake to mobile phone giant Nokia is floundering in filthy drinking water after a municipal employee sent thousands of gallons of sewage into the water supply. Thousands have fallen ill -- and the water is still dirty. Full Story
Afghan bomb kills coalition soldiers
Posted on Tuesday, January 8, 2008 at 12:24am
A roadside bomb killed two soldiers from the U.S.-led coalition in eastern Afghanistan, and a suicide bomber on a motorcycle attacked a border police patrol in the south, killing a policeman, officials said. Full Story
UN's Ban considers Algeria bomb probe
Posted on Tuesday, January 8, 2008 at 1:31am
U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon hinted Monday at an independent probe of last month's twin suicide truck bombings that killed 17 U.N. staffers in Algeria. Full Story
Three dead in Mexico army clash with drug gang
Posted on Tuesday, January 8, 2008 at 1:36am
Mexican troops and police shot dead three suspected drug hitmen armed with grenades in a fierce gun battle in a town near the U.S. border on Monday. Full Story
Sri Lanka minister dies after roadside bomb attackPosted on Tuesday, January 8, 2008 at 1:36amA Sri Lankan government minister died on the operating table on Tuesday after his vehicle was targeted by a suspected Tamil Tiger roadside bomb north of the capital, a senior hospital official said. Full Story
Former Taliban commander made Afghan governor: officials
Posted on Tuesday, January 8, 2008 at 2:46am
A former Taliban commander who switched sides and helped NATO-led forces take a troubled southern area in a major operation last year has been made local governor, officials said Tuesday. Full Story
Fatah al-Islam chief warns of attacks on Lebanon army
Posted on Tuesday, January 8, 2008 at 3:32am
The leader of the Fatah al-Islam group threatened attacks against the Lebanese army after it crushed its militants in battles at a refugee camp in northern Lebanon last year. Full Story
Courtesy Terrorism Research Center, Inc.
Posted on Monday, January 7, 2008 at 6:15am
Amin al-Haq, described as security coordinator for al-Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden, has been arrested in Pakistan in a special police operation, an influential Pakistani newspaper reported on Monday. Full Story
India and Malaysia seek closer ties
Posted on Monday, January 7, 2008 at 9:01am
India is training Malaysian pilots to fly Russian fighter jets as part of a pact to upgrade defence cooperation, ministers from both sides said, as the two nations seek closer ties. Indian Defence Minister A.K. Antony said after talks with Malaysian Defence Minister Najib Razak that they also agreed to hold joint military exercises and strengthen efforts to combat regional terrorism. Full Story
Bali bombers seek edict on execution: lawyer
Posted on Monday, January 7, 2008 at 9:03am
Three Islamic militants on death row for the 2002 Bali bombings met their families on Monday, as their lawyer said they would seek an edict from Indonesia's Muslim body on the legality of execution by shooting. The three -- Imam Samudra, Amrozi and Mukhlas -- could face a firing squad possibly within a month unless they seek presidential clemency, an option which they have already ruled out. Full Story
Airports set to ease bags limit
Posted on Monday, January 7, 2008 at 9:04am
Twenty-two UK airports are preparing to let passengers take more than one piece of hand luggage on flights from Monday, to coincide with extra security checks. Heathrow, Manchester, Glasgow and Edinburgh are among the airports where two luggage pieces will be permitted. Full Story
Greece hit by strong earthquake
Posted on Monday, January 7, 2008 at 9:06am
A powerful earthquake has hit Greece, shaking buildings and waking people from their sleep. Greek geologists say the quake - measuring 6.5 - was centred 120km (75 miles) south-west of Athens in the southern Peloponnese region. But it was very deep, 51km underground, and there were no early reports of casualties or damage. Full Story
German diplomat expelled by Iran
Posted on Monday, January 7, 2008 at 9:07am
The Iranian government has expelled a German diplomat. The unnamed person had been carrying out "non-diplomatic activities", a foreign ministry spokesman said. He gave no further details. Full Story
Thaksin Ready to Return Thailand, Face Corruption Charges
Posted on Monday, January 7, 2008 at 9:11am
Deposed Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra plans to return to Thailand from self-imposed exile by mid-April and is prepared to defend himself in court against corruption-related charges, his lawyer said Monday. Thai authorities have issued arrest warrants against Thaksinwho has mostly lived in London since his ouster in September 2006for allegedly violating stock-trading laws and on corruption-related charges. Full Story
China planning Taiwan Strait route for commercial aviation
Posted on Monday, January 7, 2008 at 9:15am
China plans to open a new commercial aviation route through the Taiwan Strait in a move that officials in Taipei said was a threat to regional peace and a danger to air safety. The new route between Hong Kong and Shanghai would track just inside the Chinese side of the unofficial dividing line through the middle of the Taiwan Strait, an area that both sides have mostly avoided since the 1950s, security and aviation specialists in Taiwan said. Full Story
Britons 'richer than Americans'
Posted on Monday, January 7, 2008 at 9:59am
The average UK person will this year have a greater income than their US counterpart for the first time since the 19th Century, figures suggest. Analyst Oxford Economics said the UK's GDP per head of population will reach #23,500 - #250 higher than in the US. Full Story
New clashes in Naples rubbish row ahead of crisis meeting
Posted on Monday, January 7, 2008 at 10:19am
Police in Naples clashed with protestors over a mafia-linked rubbish disposal crisis on Monday as the Italian government convened an emergency meeting to try and resolve the row. Prime Minister Romano Prodi was to meet with ministers in Rome to brainstorm long-term measures to resolve the chronic problem in the impoverished southern city and the surrounding Campania region, home to some six million people. Full Story
5.8-magnitude quake strikes Indonesia
Posted on Monday, January 7, 2008 at 12:57pm
A strong earthquake hit the Indonesian province of Papua Monday sparking fires in several homes, police officials reported. The earthquake struck at 12:12 p.m. off the northern coast of Papua, about 3,090 kilometres east of the Indonesian capital of Jakarta, the U.S. Geological Survey said. Full Story
Thaksin's wife to return to Thailand on Tuesday
Posted on Monday, January 7, 2008 at 3:33pm
The wife of deposed prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra is set to return on Tuesday to Thailand, where she and her husband face criminal charges of corruption, the national police chief said. Police plan to meet Pojaman Shinawatra at the airport and escort her directly to the Supreme Court, where she will hear the charges filed against her, national police chief Sereepisut Taemeeyaves said. Full Story
Slowdown fears knock EADS shares
Posted on Monday, January 7, 2008 at 3:35pm
Shares in Airbus parent, EADS, have fallen sharply, after an investment bank forecast weak orders and advised clients to sell the stock. Deutsche Bank cut its rating on EADS to "sell" from "hold" and predicted weaker aircraft orders for Airbus in 2008. Full Story
UK push for space station modules
Posted on Monday, January 7, 2008 at 3:37pm
A proposal for the UK to join the International Space Station (ISS) project has been put forward by a group of scientists and engineers. Their idea is for Britain to build and launch two modules that greatly enhance living conditions on the platform. Full Story
Far-Right NPD Praises Koch's Tough Talk on Immigration
Posted on Monday, January 7, 2008 at 3:43pm
German state governor Roland Koch, a member of Chancellor Angela Merkel's conservatives, has won praise from the far-right National Democratic Party for his campaign against "criminal young foreigners" (more...) and his calls for immigrants to embrace German values. Full Story
German Judge Orders Re-Arrest of Former RAF Terrorists
Posted on Monday, January 7, 2008 at 3:45pm
A German federal court has ruled that three former members of the Red Army Faction, the left-wing guerrilla group that waged a campaign of kidnappings and murders in the 1970s, be jailed for up to six months because they have refused to testify in a fresh probe into a 1977 killing. Full Story
Finnish Town Faces Fecal Foul-up
Posted on Monday, January 7, 2008 at 3:53pm
A city in Finland best known as the namesake to mobile phone giant Nokia is floundering in filthy drinking water after a municipal employee sent thousands of gallons of sewage into the water supply. Thousands have fallen ill -- and the water is still dirty. Full Story
Afghan bomb kills coalition soldiers
Posted on Tuesday, January 8, 2008 at 12:24am
A roadside bomb killed two soldiers from the U.S.-led coalition in eastern Afghanistan, and a suicide bomber on a motorcycle attacked a border police patrol in the south, killing a policeman, officials said. Full Story
UN's Ban considers Algeria bomb probe
Posted on Tuesday, January 8, 2008 at 1:31am
U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon hinted Monday at an independent probe of last month's twin suicide truck bombings that killed 17 U.N. staffers in Algeria. Full Story
Three dead in Mexico army clash with drug gang
Posted on Tuesday, January 8, 2008 at 1:36am
Mexican troops and police shot dead three suspected drug hitmen armed with grenades in a fierce gun battle in a town near the U.S. border on Monday. Full Story
Sri Lanka minister dies after roadside bomb attackPosted on Tuesday, January 8, 2008 at 1:36amA Sri Lankan government minister died on the operating table on Tuesday after his vehicle was targeted by a suspected Tamil Tiger roadside bomb north of the capital, a senior hospital official said. Full Story
Former Taliban commander made Afghan governor: officials
Posted on Tuesday, January 8, 2008 at 2:46am
A former Taliban commander who switched sides and helped NATO-led forces take a troubled southern area in a major operation last year has been made local governor, officials said Tuesday. Full Story
Fatah al-Islam chief warns of attacks on Lebanon army
Posted on Tuesday, January 8, 2008 at 3:32am
The leader of the Fatah al-Islam group threatened attacks against the Lebanese army after it crushed its militants in battles at a refugee camp in northern Lebanon last year. Full Story
Courtesy Terrorism Research Center, Inc.
Monday, January 7, 2008
IRAQ EVENTS IN BRIEF JAN 05 - 07
Baghdad
A civilian (employee in the ministry of trade) was injured when an IED exploded inside his car in Zafaraniyah neighborhood southeast Baghdad around 9,00 am.
A suicide bomber wearing an explosive vest detonated himself near the information department inside the Sunni endowment in Sab’a Abkar area, part of Adhemiyah neighborhood north Baghdad. When the injured people were taken to the hospitals, a suicide car bomb exploded near a check point of Sahwa council (awakening council) targeting them. 14 people were killed including the leader of the Sahwa council Reyadh Al Samarra’i and 18 others were injured.
3 civilians were killed and 16 others injured in an IED explosion which was planted inside a vender near the Technology University in Al Sina’a Street east Baghdad around 12,10 pm.
A civilian was injured in two IEDs explosion near Husam ice cream shop in Jadriyah neighborhood downtown Baghdad around 12,10 pm.
A civilian was injured when an IED exploded inside a car (Kia sedan) near Saj al Reef restaurant in Karrada neighborhood downtown Baghdad around 1,00 pm.
Three civilians were injured in an IED explosion in al wathiq square in Karrada around 1,30 pm.
A civilian was killed and three others were wounded in an IED explosion inside a car (Oldsmobile sedan)in Palestine Street east Baghdad around 5,00 pm.
Gunmen in five modern cars kidnapped at least eight members of Sahwa council while they were in their check point in Adan Street in Shaab neighborhood north Baghdad around 8,30.
Police found seven anonymous bodies in Baghdad today. Four bodies were found in Karkh, the western side of Baghdad in the following neighborhoods (2 bodies in Doura, 1 body in Bayaa and 1 boy in Mahmoudiyah). The three other bodies were found in Rusafa, the eastern side of Baghdad in the following neighborhoods (2 bodies in Sleikh and 1 body in Shaab)
Diyala
Police found five bodies near the main street in Qara Kitta village 100 Kms east Baquba north of Baquba. One of the bodies was the body of the mayor of Qaraqoosh village.
Gunmen killed a civilian in Buhorz village south of Baquba today morning.
A police office and a member of Sahwa were injured when a mortar shell hit a combined check point downtown Baquba city today morning.
Kirkuk
Gunmen killed three civilians (a husband and his wife and an Iraqi army soldier) in Abo Saif village, part of al-Reyadh city west of Kirkuk city yesterday night.
A katyosha rocket hit the area near the building of Iraqia channel downtown Kirkuk city today morning. No casualties were reported.
Basra
Police released eight kidnapped business men from Kut city who were kidnapped one month ago. The operation was implemented today morning by Zubair city police west of Basra city. The police arrested six of the kidnappers. Another woman was released and her three kidnappers were arrested in Zubair city yesterday night.
Baghdad
*Around 8 a.m., gunmen with silencers assassinated Sheik Ismael Abass , the man who wants to have a Sahwa ( awakening ) council in Sha’ab neighborhood (north Baghdad) in front of his house.
- A Multi-National Division - Baghdad Soldier was killed and three others wounded when an improvised explosive device detonated near their vehicle during combat operations in southern Baghdad on Jan. 6, the US army said with no further details .
- Before noon, a suicide bomber wearing a vest filled with explosives targeted the headquarter of Iraq Unity Association at Karrada neighborhood near Finjan restaurants during their celebration of the anniversary of the Iraqi army day having some high rank officers , officials and media .Four were killed ( three soldiers and one civilian ) while eight were injured including a cameraman and a reporter, police and witnesses said.
- Around 1 p.m., a car bomb exploded on the main street of Qahira neighborhood near Qahira restaurant killing 3 people and injuring 15 others.
- Around 2.30 pm., four IEDs exploded in sequence in Nahda neighborhood near the car exhibition killing one person and injuring 4 others.
- Police found ( 6 ) unidentified dead bodies in the following neighborhoods in Baghdad: ( 3 ) were found in east Baghdad ( Risafa bank ); 1 in Sha’ab . 1 in Waziriyah and 1 at Al-Qasim high way near Sleikh . While (3) dead bodies were found in west Baghdad ( Karkh bank) ; 2 in Saidiyah and 1 in Doura.
Diyala
- Police found four ( heads ) of beheaded men without their bodies at Muqdadiya ( 45 km north east of Baquba.
- Sunday, Iraqi army arrested Sheikh Abdul Wahab , the head of Ubeid tribes in Khalis (15 km north of Baquba).
Mosul
- At noon, a truck bomb targeted ( Virgin Mary) church at Al-Muhandseen neighborhood in Mosul city injuring five members of one family injured in this incident as their house in next to the church.
- Around noon, a roadside bomb, a roadside bomb targeted a monastery in Mosul city with no casualties recorded.
- Around noon, a truck bomb targeted ( Noor ) church at Al-Noor neighborhood in Mosul city .No casualties recored.
Salahuddin
- At 12 p.m., a roadside bomb targeted an American convoy in downtown Tikrit ( 175 km north of Baghdad) .Clashes took place between gunmen who were hiding near the panda ice cream shop and the American patrol having two American soldiers killed in that incident , police said.
Also the Iraqi forces defused another IED which was planted in a place of 100 meter distance of the first place. While the US army said two American soldiers were wounded in a grenade attack in the same area having one soldier returned to duty.
7 civilians were wounded in an IED explosion inside a mini bus on al Salam bridge that links between Doura and New Baghdad neighborhoods around 3,00 pm.
Police found 12 anonymous bodies in Baghdad today, 9 bodies were found in Karkh, the western side of Baghdad in the following neighborhoods (6 bodies in Asia neighborhood, part of Doura neighborhood found by Sahwa (awakening council) and delivered them to the police station in Doura, 2 bodies in Saidiyah and a body in Shurta tunnel. 3 bodies were found in Rusafa, the eastern side of Baghdad in the following neighborhoods (1 body in Zayuna, 1 body in Jadriyah and 1 body on Mohammed al Qasim high way.)
Diyala
Six civilians (3 men, 2women and a child) were killed and three others (2 men and a woman) were injured in an IED explosion that targeted a mini bus on Sa’adiyah- Khanaqeen Street northeasr of Baquba today morning.
A civilian was killed and another was injured while a carriage was passing near the IED near the Silo in the center of Baquba city today morning. When the members of Sahwa (the awakening) council came to help, another IED exploded in the same place injuring three members of Sahwa.
18 civilians were injured when an IED exploded inside a local market in Jalawla city northeast Baquba city around 5,00 pm. Tow of the injured people were moved to Sulaimaniyah hospital because of their critical conditions.
An American soldier was killed in an IED explosion that targeted his vehicle while conducting a military operation in Diyala province. US army confirmed the news in a press released issued today.
Kirkuk
Police found a body of a young man near Sargaran area west of Kirkuk city. Police said that the body is of a young man from Arbil province and his name is Mohammed Ali.
Courtesy McClatchy Newspapers
A civilian (employee in the ministry of trade) was injured when an IED exploded inside his car in Zafaraniyah neighborhood southeast Baghdad around 9,00 am.
A suicide bomber wearing an explosive vest detonated himself near the information department inside the Sunni endowment in Sab’a Abkar area, part of Adhemiyah neighborhood north Baghdad. When the injured people were taken to the hospitals, a suicide car bomb exploded near a check point of Sahwa council (awakening council) targeting them. 14 people were killed including the leader of the Sahwa council Reyadh Al Samarra’i and 18 others were injured.
3 civilians were killed and 16 others injured in an IED explosion which was planted inside a vender near the Technology University in Al Sina’a Street east Baghdad around 12,10 pm.
A civilian was injured in two IEDs explosion near Husam ice cream shop in Jadriyah neighborhood downtown Baghdad around 12,10 pm.
A civilian was injured when an IED exploded inside a car (Kia sedan) near Saj al Reef restaurant in Karrada neighborhood downtown Baghdad around 1,00 pm.
Three civilians were injured in an IED explosion in al wathiq square in Karrada around 1,30 pm.
A civilian was killed and three others were wounded in an IED explosion inside a car (Oldsmobile sedan)in Palestine Street east Baghdad around 5,00 pm.
Gunmen in five modern cars kidnapped at least eight members of Sahwa council while they were in their check point in Adan Street in Shaab neighborhood north Baghdad around 8,30.
Police found seven anonymous bodies in Baghdad today. Four bodies were found in Karkh, the western side of Baghdad in the following neighborhoods (2 bodies in Doura, 1 body in Bayaa and 1 boy in Mahmoudiyah). The three other bodies were found in Rusafa, the eastern side of Baghdad in the following neighborhoods (2 bodies in Sleikh and 1 body in Shaab)
Diyala
Police found five bodies near the main street in Qara Kitta village 100 Kms east Baquba north of Baquba. One of the bodies was the body of the mayor of Qaraqoosh village.
Gunmen killed a civilian in Buhorz village south of Baquba today morning.
A police office and a member of Sahwa were injured when a mortar shell hit a combined check point downtown Baquba city today morning.
Kirkuk
Gunmen killed three civilians (a husband and his wife and an Iraqi army soldier) in Abo Saif village, part of al-Reyadh city west of Kirkuk city yesterday night.
A katyosha rocket hit the area near the building of Iraqia channel downtown Kirkuk city today morning. No casualties were reported.
Basra
Police released eight kidnapped business men from Kut city who were kidnapped one month ago. The operation was implemented today morning by Zubair city police west of Basra city. The police arrested six of the kidnappers. Another woman was released and her three kidnappers were arrested in Zubair city yesterday night.
Baghdad
*Around 8 a.m., gunmen with silencers assassinated Sheik Ismael Abass , the man who wants to have a Sahwa ( awakening ) council in Sha’ab neighborhood (north Baghdad) in front of his house.
- A Multi-National Division - Baghdad Soldier was killed and three others wounded when an improvised explosive device detonated near their vehicle during combat operations in southern Baghdad on Jan. 6, the US army said with no further details .
- Before noon, a suicide bomber wearing a vest filled with explosives targeted the headquarter of Iraq Unity Association at Karrada neighborhood near Finjan restaurants during their celebration of the anniversary of the Iraqi army day having some high rank officers , officials and media .Four were killed ( three soldiers and one civilian ) while eight were injured including a cameraman and a reporter, police and witnesses said.
- Around 1 p.m., a car bomb exploded on the main street of Qahira neighborhood near Qahira restaurant killing 3 people and injuring 15 others.
- Around 2.30 pm., four IEDs exploded in sequence in Nahda neighborhood near the car exhibition killing one person and injuring 4 others.
- Police found ( 6 ) unidentified dead bodies in the following neighborhoods in Baghdad: ( 3 ) were found in east Baghdad ( Risafa bank ); 1 in Sha’ab . 1 in Waziriyah and 1 at Al-Qasim high way near Sleikh . While (3) dead bodies were found in west Baghdad ( Karkh bank) ; 2 in Saidiyah and 1 in Doura.
Diyala
- Police found four ( heads ) of beheaded men without their bodies at Muqdadiya ( 45 km north east of Baquba.
- Sunday, Iraqi army arrested Sheikh Abdul Wahab , the head of Ubeid tribes in Khalis (15 km north of Baquba).
Mosul
- At noon, a truck bomb targeted ( Virgin Mary) church at Al-Muhandseen neighborhood in Mosul city injuring five members of one family injured in this incident as their house in next to the church.
- Around noon, a roadside bomb, a roadside bomb targeted a monastery in Mosul city with no casualties recorded.
- Around noon, a truck bomb targeted ( Noor ) church at Al-Noor neighborhood in Mosul city .No casualties recored.
Salahuddin
- At 12 p.m., a roadside bomb targeted an American convoy in downtown Tikrit ( 175 km north of Baghdad) .Clashes took place between gunmen who were hiding near the panda ice cream shop and the American patrol having two American soldiers killed in that incident , police said.
Also the Iraqi forces defused another IED which was planted in a place of 100 meter distance of the first place. While the US army said two American soldiers were wounded in a grenade attack in the same area having one soldier returned to duty.
7 civilians were wounded in an IED explosion inside a mini bus on al Salam bridge that links between Doura and New Baghdad neighborhoods around 3,00 pm.
Police found 12 anonymous bodies in Baghdad today, 9 bodies were found in Karkh, the western side of Baghdad in the following neighborhoods (6 bodies in Asia neighborhood, part of Doura neighborhood found by Sahwa (awakening council) and delivered them to the police station in Doura, 2 bodies in Saidiyah and a body in Shurta tunnel. 3 bodies were found in Rusafa, the eastern side of Baghdad in the following neighborhoods (1 body in Zayuna, 1 body in Jadriyah and 1 body on Mohammed al Qasim high way.)
Diyala
Six civilians (3 men, 2women and a child) were killed and three others (2 men and a woman) were injured in an IED explosion that targeted a mini bus on Sa’adiyah- Khanaqeen Street northeasr of Baquba today morning.
A civilian was killed and another was injured while a carriage was passing near the IED near the Silo in the center of Baquba city today morning. When the members of Sahwa (the awakening) council came to help, another IED exploded in the same place injuring three members of Sahwa.
18 civilians were injured when an IED exploded inside a local market in Jalawla city northeast Baquba city around 5,00 pm. Tow of the injured people were moved to Sulaimaniyah hospital because of their critical conditions.
An American soldier was killed in an IED explosion that targeted his vehicle while conducting a military operation in Diyala province. US army confirmed the news in a press released issued today.
Kirkuk
Police found a body of a young man near Sargaran area west of Kirkuk city. Police said that the body is of a young man from Arbil province and his name is Mohammed Ali.
Courtesy McClatchy Newspapers
CONFLICT & TERROR 01/07
Militants kill 8 elders in Pakistan
Posted on Monday, January 7, 2008 at 5:15am
Suspected Islamic militants fatally shot eight tribal leaders involved in efforts to broker a cease-fire between security forces and insurgents in Pakistan's volatile northwest, authorities said Monday. Full Story
Kenya death toll reaches 486
Posted on Monday, January 7, 2008 at 5:17am
Some 486 people have died in the explosion of violence following Kenya's disputed presidential election, a government official said Monday. Full Story
Iraq bombs hit Sunni stronghold
Posted on Monday, January 7, 2008 at 5:24am
A double bombing in Baghdad has killed at least seven people, including the head of a US-backed armed group which fights al-Qaeda in Sunni Muslim areas. Full Story
Sri Lanka clashes toll 'over 70'
Posted on Monday, January 7, 2008 at 5:24am
The Sri Lankan military says more than 70 Tamil Tiger rebels and four soldiers have been killed since Saturday in clashes in the north of the island. Full Story
Georgian president elected amid protests
Posted on Monday, January 7, 2008 at 5:26am
Thousands of Georgian opposition protesters denounced as fraudulent a presidential election that swept Mikhail Saakashvili to a second term, threatening instability in the former Soviet republic once considered a beacon of reform. Full Story
Civilians found dead after Afghan clash
Posted on Monday, January 7, 2008 at 5:30am
A suicide bomber on a motorcycle attacked a border police patrol on Monday in southern Afghanistan, killing a policeman, as officials reported that clashes elsewhere left two civilians and three Taliban militants dead. Full Story
Oil prices fall on US jobless concerns
Posted on Monday, January 7, 2008 at 5:31am
Oil prices fell Monday as a report of growing unemployment in the United States raised concerns of an economic downturn there that could curb demand for oil. Full Story
Al-Qaeda's American seeks Bush attacks
Posted on Monday, January 7, 2008 at 5:32am
Al-Qaida's American spokesman urged fighters to meet President Bush with bombs when he visits the Middle East, according to a new video posted on the Internet Sunday. Full Story
Courtesy Terrorism Research Center, Inc.
Posted on Monday, January 7, 2008 at 5:15am
Suspected Islamic militants fatally shot eight tribal leaders involved in efforts to broker a cease-fire between security forces and insurgents in Pakistan's volatile northwest, authorities said Monday. Full Story
Kenya death toll reaches 486
Posted on Monday, January 7, 2008 at 5:17am
Some 486 people have died in the explosion of violence following Kenya's disputed presidential election, a government official said Monday. Full Story
Iraq bombs hit Sunni stronghold
Posted on Monday, January 7, 2008 at 5:24am
A double bombing in Baghdad has killed at least seven people, including the head of a US-backed armed group which fights al-Qaeda in Sunni Muslim areas. Full Story
Sri Lanka clashes toll 'over 70'
Posted on Monday, January 7, 2008 at 5:24am
The Sri Lankan military says more than 70 Tamil Tiger rebels and four soldiers have been killed since Saturday in clashes in the north of the island. Full Story
Georgian president elected amid protests
Posted on Monday, January 7, 2008 at 5:26am
Thousands of Georgian opposition protesters denounced as fraudulent a presidential election that swept Mikhail Saakashvili to a second term, threatening instability in the former Soviet republic once considered a beacon of reform. Full Story
Civilians found dead after Afghan clash
Posted on Monday, January 7, 2008 at 5:30am
A suicide bomber on a motorcycle attacked a border police patrol on Monday in southern Afghanistan, killing a policeman, as officials reported that clashes elsewhere left two civilians and three Taliban militants dead. Full Story
Oil prices fall on US jobless concerns
Posted on Monday, January 7, 2008 at 5:31am
Oil prices fell Monday as a report of growing unemployment in the United States raised concerns of an economic downturn there that could curb demand for oil. Full Story
Al-Qaeda's American seeks Bush attacks
Posted on Monday, January 7, 2008 at 5:32am
Al-Qaida's American spokesman urged fighters to meet President Bush with bombs when he visits the Middle East, according to a new video posted on the Internet Sunday. Full Story
Courtesy Terrorism Research Center, Inc.
CONFLICT & TERROR 01/04
Pakistani troops capture 52 militants: army
Posted on Thursday, January 3, 2008 at 5:28am
Pakistani troops captured 52 suspected Islamist militants Thursday in the restive northwestern valley of Swat, the military said. Full Story
Israeli warplane hits Hamas base in Gaza
Posted on Thursday, January 3, 2008 at 6:48am
An Israeli warplane attacked a Hamas training base in Gaza City on Thursday, sending a large plume of smoke into the air, witnesses said. Full Story
UK airport strikes are called off
Posted on Thursday, January 3, 2008 at 8:15am
Unions have called off three strikes set for January that threatened to close the UK's busiest airports. Officials voted to halt the industrial action after airport operator BAA eased plans to alter workers' pensions right. The strikes would have hit all of BAA's seven UK airports, including Heathrow, Gatwick, Stansted and Edinburgh. Full Story
Indonesia hit by fresh floods
Posted on Thursday, January 3, 2008 at 8:57am
Heavy rains have caused further havoc in Java as rising floodwaters inundated farmland and triggered landslides on the Indonesian island. At least 112 people have been killed in widespread flooding and landslides over the past week, crisis centre officials said on Wednesday, with more than a dozen still missing. Full Story
British tour operators cancel Kenya holidays
Posted on Thursday, January 3, 2008 at 9:01am
British tour operators on Thursday cancelled holidays to Kenya for the rest of the week because of violence following disputed elections and government advice against all but essential travel there. "There was a meeting this morning of the federation of tour operators. They have two flights going out, one tomorrow and one on Saturday. Both will go out but they will fly empty to pick up holidaymakers due to come back," a spokesman said. Full Story
British police said ready to head to Pakistan
Posted on Thursday, January 3, 2008 at 9:02am
A team of British police is preparing to leave for Pakistan to help investigate the killing of Benazir Bhutto and hopes to be ready in 24 hours, a Scotland Yard spokesman said Thursday. "A team of officers will be going out to Pakistan and are currently making travel arrangements," said the spokesman after the British government agreed this week to a Pakistani request for help. Full Story
Iraq Shiite politician criticizes gov't
Posted on Thursday, January 3, 2008 at 9:03am
A suicide bomber blew himself up on the hood of a car driven by a member of Iraq's burgeoning Sunni-dominated security forces, the latest in a series of recent attacks against the U.S.-backed militiamen, according to U.S. military and Iraqi officials. The bomber struck in downtown Baqubah, the capital of Diyala province, where Sunni insurgents began turning on one another last year.
These tensions have grown as some insurgent groups, particularly the 1920 Revolution Brigades, have allied themselves with U.S. soldiers against the group al-Qaeda in Iraq. Wednesday's blast killed four people and wounded 23, according to hospital and morgue officials. The U.S. military gave the same death toll but put the number of wounded at six. Full Story
Iran seeks 'to restore peace, security' in Lebanon
Posted on Thursday, January 3, 2008 at 9:15am
Iran's Supreme National Security Council Secretary Ali Larijani said from Cairo on Tuesday that Tehran was seeking to restore peace and stability in Lebanon. Larijani expressed his country's willingness to "cooperate with Egypt and all Arab countries in order to restore peace and security in the Arab world, particularly in Iraq and Lebanon.
"He stressed that Iran "will recognize and welcome any president agreed on by the various Lebanese parties." He also pointed to the important role Egypt and the Arab League were playing in helping "the various parties in Lebanon to reach consensus."
Army puts down clashes in BastaPosted on Thursday, January 3, 2008 at 9:17amThe Lebanese Army opened fire into the air to disperse a clash which erupted in the Basta neighborhood of Beirut on Tuesday between supporters of the Sunni Future Movement and Shiite Hizbullah and Amal groups. Seven people were hurt in the clash. T
he clash started on Monday when unidentified individuals in the area tore down and burned a giant poster of slain former Prime Minister Rafik Hariri. Future Movement officials said they cordoned off the scene and took measures to prevent escalation.
Tension increased on Tuesday night, however, on Mamoun Street, when Future Movement supporters attempted to re-erect a picture of Hariri and his son MP Saad Hariri Saad-Hariri-Profile Sep-07. Clashes erupted between Future supporters and others, including Amal Movement and Hizbullah supporters, who refused to let the Hariri poster be erected "in their area." Full Story
Terrorists plan to strike before Republic Day
Posted on Thursday, January 3, 2008 at 9:19am
Intelligence agencies have received "credible inputs" of terror attacks planned by militant outfits in Jammu and Kashmir ahead of Republic Day on Jan 26, especially in the state's summer capital Srinagar, officials said. "This has come to our attention through (conversation) intercepts," a senior intelligence department official told. Full Story
Netherlands terror arrest: Erasmus bridge party target of attack
Posted on Thursday, January 3, 2008 at 9:26am
The three Rotterdam residents arrested on 31 December were planning to attack a new years party on the Erasmus bridge in Rotterdam. The Telegraaf reports this on the basis of well-informed sources close to the investigation into the suspects.
The men aged 31, 32 and 39 were arrested on Monday because the General Intelligence and Security Service (AIVD) could not rule out that they would commit a violent action. The public prosecution department did not disclose any details of what the three were reportedly planning. Full Story
Three Iraqis killed by US fire
Posted on Thursday, January 3, 2008 at 10:11am
Three Iraqi civilians were killed by US military fire in two incidents on Thursday in the province of Diyala, one of the most dangerous regions in the country, Iraqi security officials said. Two people died in the town of Al-Ghalibiyah, just west of the provincial capital Baquba, when a US patrol shot up their vehicle as it entered the main street from a side road while the convoy was passing, Iraqi army major Ziad al-Ani told AFP.
"It was in coincidence. The passing US military convoy thought the car was a hostile target and opened fire, shooting dead two people," said Ani. Full Story
Iran Leader Suggests U.S. Ties Possible in Future
Posted on Thursday, January 3, 2008 at 10:13am
Iran's supreme leader said on Thursday restoring ties with the United States now would harm the Islamic state, but he did not rule it out in the future. "Not having relations with America is one of our main policies but we have never said this relationship should be cut forever,"
Ayatollah Ali Khamenei said in a speech in the central province of Yazd, state television reported. "Certainly, the day when having relations with America is useful for the nation I will be the first one to approve this relationship." Full Story
Heavy fighting grips Sri Lanka as truce ends
Posted on Thursday, January 3, 2008 at 10:34am
Heavy fighting between government troops and Tamil Tigers broke out in northern Sri Lanka Thursday, hours after Colombo announced it was pulling out of a tattered ceasefire agreement with the rebels.
At least six Tiger rebels and a government soldier were killed in the latest clashes along the de facto border of the mini-state run by the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE), the defence ministry said. Full Story
Police disperse protesters in KenyaPosted on Thursday, January 3, 2008 at 11:02amRiot police fired tear gas and water cannons Thursday to beat back crowds heading for a banned rally to protest Kenya's disputed election, and the president said he is willing to talk to the opposition once calm has been restored. The attorney general called for an independent body to verify the vote tally. Full Story
Car bomb explodes in southeastern Turkey
Posted on Thursday, January 3, 2008 at 11:02am
A car bomb exploded in the Kurdish-dominated southeastern city of Diyarbakir on Thursday, wounding around 30 people, including military personnel, news reports said. A bus reportedly transporting military personnel was passing by a five-star hotel when the bomb exploded, the state-run Anatolia news agency said. Full Story
German conservative warns foreigners to adapt
Posted on Thursday, January 3, 2008 at 11:03am
A top conservative from Chancellor Angela Merkel's party warned immigrants on Thursday they must adapt to the German way of life or face "consequences." Roland Koch, premier of the prosperous western state of Hesse, is focusing on law-and-order themes in a bid to win a third term in a regional vote this month. Full Story
Lebanon: No link between al-Qaeda and Hezbollah says Nasrallah
Posted on Thursday, January 3, 2008 at 11:07am
The leader of Hezbollah, Hasan Nasrallah, has hit out against recent statements allegedly by al-Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden criticising the militant Lebanese Shia movement for allowing "crusader" troops from the United Nations into Lebanon after the 34-day conflict with Israel in 2006. Full Story
Spain seeks better Morocco ties after enclave spat
Posted on Thursday, January 3, 2008 at 2:17pm
Spain pushed for a return to normal relations with Morocco on Thursday, two months after a controversial visit by King Juan Carlos to two Spanish enclaves on Morocco's Mediterranean coast that Rabat claims as its own. Spain's Foreign Minister Miguel Angel Moratinos visited Morocco for talks with his opposite number and handed him a letter addressed to Morocco's King Mohammed. Full Story
Naples 'suffocated' by rubbish, again
Posted on Thursday, January 3, 2008 at 2:23pm
The Naples region was grappling Thursday with a chronic rubbish disposal problem, with at least 2,000 tonnes of excess garbage piled up outside dumps and in the streets.
Overburdened waste treatment centres in the impoverished southern region have been unable to handle the surplus, in a scenario that has been repeated countless times over the past decade and a half. Full Story
No end in sight as south Thai rebellion enters fifth year
Posted on Thursday, January 3, 2008 at 9:51pm
Brutal killings have reached unprecedented levels in Thailand's Muslim-majority south, experts say, as the region enters the fifth year of a separatist insurgency that is tearing communities apart. Full Story
Scotland Yard team expected in Pakistan
Posted on Friday, January 4, 2008 at 1:57am
A team of police from Britain's Scotland Yard is expected to arrive in Pakistan on Friday to help probe the assassination of opposition leader Benazir Bhutto as the controversy over her death rages on. Full Story
Israeli strikes kill 11 in Gaza
Posted on Friday, January 4, 2008 at 3:46am
Israeli troops on a night mission in the Gaza Strip killed two Hamas gunmen early Friday as Israel responded to Palestinian rocket fire with strikes against militants that left 11 dead in 24 hours. Full Story
Death toll from Turkey bombing rises to 5 as 110 hurt
Posted on Friday, January 4, 2008 at 3:48am
The death toll from a bomb explosion in southeast Turkey's largest city has risen to five, including three children, and the number of injured stands at 110, security sources said on Friday. Full Story
Philippines arrests Abu Sayyaf militants
Posted on Friday, January 4, 2008 at 3:49am
Two al-Qaida-linked Muslim militants, including one wanted for the 2001 kidnapping of three Americans and 17 other people from a resort island, were captured in separate raids in the southern Philippines, officials said Friday. Full Story
Police detain four over deadly Turkey bombing: prosecutor
Posted on Friday, January 4, 2008 at 4:24am
Police have detained four people over a powerful car bomb attack in Turkey's main Kurdish-populated city that killed five people, Diyarbakir's chief prosecutor said Friday. Full Story
Turkish police detain 40 in Hezbollah raid: agency
Posted on Friday, January 4, 2008 at 6:20am
Turkish police have detained more than 40 suspected members of the outlawed Turkish Islamist militant group Hezbollah, state news agency Anatolian said on Friday. Full Story
Courtesy Terrorism Research Center, Inc.
Posted on Thursday, January 3, 2008 at 5:28am
Pakistani troops captured 52 suspected Islamist militants Thursday in the restive northwestern valley of Swat, the military said. Full Story
Israeli warplane hits Hamas base in Gaza
Posted on Thursday, January 3, 2008 at 6:48am
An Israeli warplane attacked a Hamas training base in Gaza City on Thursday, sending a large plume of smoke into the air, witnesses said. Full Story
UK airport strikes are called off
Posted on Thursday, January 3, 2008 at 8:15am
Unions have called off three strikes set for January that threatened to close the UK's busiest airports. Officials voted to halt the industrial action after airport operator BAA eased plans to alter workers' pensions right. The strikes would have hit all of BAA's seven UK airports, including Heathrow, Gatwick, Stansted and Edinburgh. Full Story
Indonesia hit by fresh floods
Posted on Thursday, January 3, 2008 at 8:57am
Heavy rains have caused further havoc in Java as rising floodwaters inundated farmland and triggered landslides on the Indonesian island. At least 112 people have been killed in widespread flooding and landslides over the past week, crisis centre officials said on Wednesday, with more than a dozen still missing. Full Story
British tour operators cancel Kenya holidays
Posted on Thursday, January 3, 2008 at 9:01am
British tour operators on Thursday cancelled holidays to Kenya for the rest of the week because of violence following disputed elections and government advice against all but essential travel there. "There was a meeting this morning of the federation of tour operators. They have two flights going out, one tomorrow and one on Saturday. Both will go out but they will fly empty to pick up holidaymakers due to come back," a spokesman said. Full Story
British police said ready to head to Pakistan
Posted on Thursday, January 3, 2008 at 9:02am
A team of British police is preparing to leave for Pakistan to help investigate the killing of Benazir Bhutto and hopes to be ready in 24 hours, a Scotland Yard spokesman said Thursday. "A team of officers will be going out to Pakistan and are currently making travel arrangements," said the spokesman after the British government agreed this week to a Pakistani request for help. Full Story
Iraq Shiite politician criticizes gov't
Posted on Thursday, January 3, 2008 at 9:03am
A suicide bomber blew himself up on the hood of a car driven by a member of Iraq's burgeoning Sunni-dominated security forces, the latest in a series of recent attacks against the U.S.-backed militiamen, according to U.S. military and Iraqi officials. The bomber struck in downtown Baqubah, the capital of Diyala province, where Sunni insurgents began turning on one another last year.
These tensions have grown as some insurgent groups, particularly the 1920 Revolution Brigades, have allied themselves with U.S. soldiers against the group al-Qaeda in Iraq. Wednesday's blast killed four people and wounded 23, according to hospital and morgue officials. The U.S. military gave the same death toll but put the number of wounded at six. Full Story
Iran seeks 'to restore peace, security' in Lebanon
Posted on Thursday, January 3, 2008 at 9:15am
Iran's Supreme National Security Council Secretary Ali Larijani said from Cairo on Tuesday that Tehran was seeking to restore peace and stability in Lebanon. Larijani expressed his country's willingness to "cooperate with Egypt and all Arab countries in order to restore peace and security in the Arab world, particularly in Iraq and Lebanon.
"He stressed that Iran "will recognize and welcome any president agreed on by the various Lebanese parties." He also pointed to the important role Egypt and the Arab League were playing in helping "the various parties in Lebanon to reach consensus."
Army puts down clashes in BastaPosted on Thursday, January 3, 2008 at 9:17amThe Lebanese Army opened fire into the air to disperse a clash which erupted in the Basta neighborhood of Beirut on Tuesday between supporters of the Sunni Future Movement and Shiite Hizbullah and Amal groups. Seven people were hurt in the clash. T
he clash started on Monday when unidentified individuals in the area tore down and burned a giant poster of slain former Prime Minister Rafik Hariri. Future Movement officials said they cordoned off the scene and took measures to prevent escalation.
Tension increased on Tuesday night, however, on Mamoun Street, when Future Movement supporters attempted to re-erect a picture of Hariri and his son MP Saad Hariri Saad-Hariri-Profile Sep-07. Clashes erupted between Future supporters and others, including Amal Movement and Hizbullah supporters, who refused to let the Hariri poster be erected "in their area." Full Story
Terrorists plan to strike before Republic Day
Posted on Thursday, January 3, 2008 at 9:19am
Intelligence agencies have received "credible inputs" of terror attacks planned by militant outfits in Jammu and Kashmir ahead of Republic Day on Jan 26, especially in the state's summer capital Srinagar, officials said. "This has come to our attention through (conversation) intercepts," a senior intelligence department official told. Full Story
Netherlands terror arrest: Erasmus bridge party target of attack
Posted on Thursday, January 3, 2008 at 9:26am
The three Rotterdam residents arrested on 31 December were planning to attack a new years party on the Erasmus bridge in Rotterdam. The Telegraaf reports this on the basis of well-informed sources close to the investigation into the suspects.
The men aged 31, 32 and 39 were arrested on Monday because the General Intelligence and Security Service (AIVD) could not rule out that they would commit a violent action. The public prosecution department did not disclose any details of what the three were reportedly planning. Full Story
Three Iraqis killed by US fire
Posted on Thursday, January 3, 2008 at 10:11am
Three Iraqi civilians were killed by US military fire in two incidents on Thursday in the province of Diyala, one of the most dangerous regions in the country, Iraqi security officials said. Two people died in the town of Al-Ghalibiyah, just west of the provincial capital Baquba, when a US patrol shot up their vehicle as it entered the main street from a side road while the convoy was passing, Iraqi army major Ziad al-Ani told AFP.
"It was in coincidence. The passing US military convoy thought the car was a hostile target and opened fire, shooting dead two people," said Ani. Full Story
Iran Leader Suggests U.S. Ties Possible in Future
Posted on Thursday, January 3, 2008 at 10:13am
Iran's supreme leader said on Thursday restoring ties with the United States now would harm the Islamic state, but he did not rule it out in the future. "Not having relations with America is one of our main policies but we have never said this relationship should be cut forever,"
Ayatollah Ali Khamenei said in a speech in the central province of Yazd, state television reported. "Certainly, the day when having relations with America is useful for the nation I will be the first one to approve this relationship." Full Story
Heavy fighting grips Sri Lanka as truce ends
Posted on Thursday, January 3, 2008 at 10:34am
Heavy fighting between government troops and Tamil Tigers broke out in northern Sri Lanka Thursday, hours after Colombo announced it was pulling out of a tattered ceasefire agreement with the rebels.
At least six Tiger rebels and a government soldier were killed in the latest clashes along the de facto border of the mini-state run by the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE), the defence ministry said. Full Story
Police disperse protesters in KenyaPosted on Thursday, January 3, 2008 at 11:02amRiot police fired tear gas and water cannons Thursday to beat back crowds heading for a banned rally to protest Kenya's disputed election, and the president said he is willing to talk to the opposition once calm has been restored. The attorney general called for an independent body to verify the vote tally. Full Story
Car bomb explodes in southeastern Turkey
Posted on Thursday, January 3, 2008 at 11:02am
A car bomb exploded in the Kurdish-dominated southeastern city of Diyarbakir on Thursday, wounding around 30 people, including military personnel, news reports said. A bus reportedly transporting military personnel was passing by a five-star hotel when the bomb exploded, the state-run Anatolia news agency said. Full Story
German conservative warns foreigners to adapt
Posted on Thursday, January 3, 2008 at 11:03am
A top conservative from Chancellor Angela Merkel's party warned immigrants on Thursday they must adapt to the German way of life or face "consequences." Roland Koch, premier of the prosperous western state of Hesse, is focusing on law-and-order themes in a bid to win a third term in a regional vote this month. Full Story
Lebanon: No link between al-Qaeda and Hezbollah says Nasrallah
Posted on Thursday, January 3, 2008 at 11:07am
The leader of Hezbollah, Hasan Nasrallah, has hit out against recent statements allegedly by al-Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden criticising the militant Lebanese Shia movement for allowing "crusader" troops from the United Nations into Lebanon after the 34-day conflict with Israel in 2006. Full Story
Spain seeks better Morocco ties after enclave spat
Posted on Thursday, January 3, 2008 at 2:17pm
Spain pushed for a return to normal relations with Morocco on Thursday, two months after a controversial visit by King Juan Carlos to two Spanish enclaves on Morocco's Mediterranean coast that Rabat claims as its own. Spain's Foreign Minister Miguel Angel Moratinos visited Morocco for talks with his opposite number and handed him a letter addressed to Morocco's King Mohammed. Full Story
Naples 'suffocated' by rubbish, again
Posted on Thursday, January 3, 2008 at 2:23pm
The Naples region was grappling Thursday with a chronic rubbish disposal problem, with at least 2,000 tonnes of excess garbage piled up outside dumps and in the streets.
Overburdened waste treatment centres in the impoverished southern region have been unable to handle the surplus, in a scenario that has been repeated countless times over the past decade and a half. Full Story
No end in sight as south Thai rebellion enters fifth year
Posted on Thursday, January 3, 2008 at 9:51pm
Brutal killings have reached unprecedented levels in Thailand's Muslim-majority south, experts say, as the region enters the fifth year of a separatist insurgency that is tearing communities apart. Full Story
Scotland Yard team expected in Pakistan
Posted on Friday, January 4, 2008 at 1:57am
A team of police from Britain's Scotland Yard is expected to arrive in Pakistan on Friday to help probe the assassination of opposition leader Benazir Bhutto as the controversy over her death rages on. Full Story
Israeli strikes kill 11 in Gaza
Posted on Friday, January 4, 2008 at 3:46am
Israeli troops on a night mission in the Gaza Strip killed two Hamas gunmen early Friday as Israel responded to Palestinian rocket fire with strikes against militants that left 11 dead in 24 hours. Full Story
Death toll from Turkey bombing rises to 5 as 110 hurt
Posted on Friday, January 4, 2008 at 3:48am
The death toll from a bomb explosion in southeast Turkey's largest city has risen to five, including three children, and the number of injured stands at 110, security sources said on Friday. Full Story
Philippines arrests Abu Sayyaf militants
Posted on Friday, January 4, 2008 at 3:49am
Two al-Qaida-linked Muslim militants, including one wanted for the 2001 kidnapping of three Americans and 17 other people from a resort island, were captured in separate raids in the southern Philippines, officials said Friday. Full Story
Police detain four over deadly Turkey bombing: prosecutor
Posted on Friday, January 4, 2008 at 4:24am
Police have detained four people over a powerful car bomb attack in Turkey's main Kurdish-populated city that killed five people, Diyarbakir's chief prosecutor said Friday. Full Story
Turkish police detain 40 in Hezbollah raid: agency
Posted on Friday, January 4, 2008 at 6:20am
Turkish police have detained more than 40 suspected members of the outlawed Turkish Islamist militant group Hezbollah, state news agency Anatolian said on Friday. Full Story
Courtesy Terrorism Research Center, Inc.
Wednesday, January 2, 2008
CONFLICT & TERROR 01/02
Kenya pressured as 150 die in poll chaos
Posted on Tuesday, January 1, 2008 at 6:43am
Bodies and debris lay in Kenyan streets on Tuesday as Western powers exerted pressure on President Mwai Kibaki to investigate his disputed re-election that has triggered days of riots killing around 150 people. Full Story
Militants kidnap four Pakistani soldiers: military
Posted on Tuesday, January 1, 2008 at 8:58am
Militants abducted four Pakistani paramilitary soldiers in a tribal area on Tuesday in the first such incident since the d2eath of opposition leader Benazir Bhutto, officials said. Militants, believed to be loyal to alleged Al-Qaeda leader Baitullah Mehsud, seized the soldiers as they descended from their observation post on a hill near Makeen in South Waziristan. Full Story
US official killed in Sudan shooting
Posted on Tuesday, January 1, 2008 at 8:59am
A US diplomat was killed in a pre-dawn shooting attack in the Sudanese capital Khartoum on Tuesday which also left an embassy driver dead, officials said. "Early this morning, January 1, 2008, in Khartoum, Sudan, an American officer with the United States Agency for International Development was shot and wounded," the US embassy said in a statement. Full Story
UK defies Russia on British Council ban
Posted on Tuesday, January 1, 2008 at 9:00am
Britain on Tuesday defied a Russian order to close the regional offices of its cultural arm from New Year's day, but there was no evidence of Russian attempts to forcibly close British Council centers. Russia on December 12 ordered the British government's cultural arm to halt work from January 1 at all its regional offices, saying Britain had broken a host of international and domestic rules. Full Story
At least 16 Taliban killed in Afghanistan: officials
Posted on Tuesday, January 1, 2008 at 9:24am
At least 16 Taliban rebels including a suspected would-be suicide bomber were killed in US-led and Afghan operations across insurgency-plagued Afghanistan, officials said Tuesday. A man wearing a bomb-filled waistcoat was shot dead near a police checkpost in the eastern province of Khost on Tuesday, a police official said. Full Story
Parties urge end to state of emergency in Bangladesh
Posted on Tuesday, January 1, 2008 at 12:37pm
Major political parties called on Tuesday for the lifting of a state of emergency in Bangladesh after the army-backed interim government said it was committed to holding a parliamentary election at the end of the year. The interim authority imposed a state of emergency after it took over on January 11, 2007 after months of political violence and a series of strikes, and banned all political activities. Full Story
Israel: West Bank roadblocks will remain
Posted on Tuesday, January 1, 2008 at 4:32pm
Israel's network of roadblocks will remain in place across the West Bank, the defense minister said Tuesday, sparking an outcry from Palestinians who say they cannot rebuild their economy until people and goods move freely. Defense Minister Ehud Barak's comments soured an already tense atmosphere between Israel and the Palestinians just days before President Bush's first visit to the region as U.S. president. Full Story
Suicide bomb at Baghdad funeral kills 32
Posted on Tuesday, January 1, 2008 at 4:33pm
A suicide attacker killed at least 32 men gathered in eastern Baghdad Tuesday to mourn the death of a retired Iraqi army officer, a Shiite who was slain last week in a car bombing blamed on al-Qaida in Iraq. The attack was a reminder of the dangers that persist despite Baghdad's recent decline in violence and of the peril for any mass gathering in a country where the bereaved often find themselves targets. Full Story
Government seeks to help calm Kenyan crisis
Posted on Tuesday, January 1, 2008 at 4:35pm
Kenya's former colonial ruler Britain sought Tuesday to use its diplomatic muscle to help end deadly violence there, backing Commonwealth and African efforts to resolve a standoff over disputed elections. Prime Minister Gordon Brown spoke to Ghanaian President John Kufuor, chair of the African Union, and the head of the Commonwealth's observer mission in Kenya about overseeing a process of reconciliation, his office said. Full Story
Kenya church fire kills 50 who fled mob
Posted on Tuesday, January 1, 2008 at 4:36pm
A mob torched a church sheltering hundreds of people fleeing election violence Tuesday, killing up to 50 people including many children as four days of rioting and ethnic clashes marked one of the darkest times in Kenya's history. President Mwai Kibaki, sworn in Sunday after a vote opponents said was rigged, said political parties should meet immediately and publicly call for calm. Full Story
Sri Lanka set for price increases as war escalates
Posted on Tuesday, January 1, 2008 at 4:37pm
Sri Lanka is set to raise the prices of basic foods such as potatoes and sugar as well as cooking gas, officials announced Tuesday, fanning fears of galloping inflation in the conflict-wracked island. Inflation is already running at 17.5 percent in the tropical country, whose economy has been slowing amid an escalating war between government forces and Tamil rebels fighting for an independent homeland. Full Story
Jihadis picking soft targets for eyeballsPosted on Wednesday, January 2, 2008 at 3:50amBy hitting security camps as well as civilian targets like temples, trains, markets, courts and sufi shrines and specific mosques, jihadi groups are working to a plan to stir communal tensions, bleed the forces and win appreciation of handlers across the border for putting the focus on "home-grown" terror. Full Story
Gaza Is Tense as It Tallies Casualties
Posted on Wednesday, January 2, 2008 at 3:52am
Gaza remained tense on Tuesday after a night of clashes between Hamas and Fatah gunmen. Seven Palestinians were killed and 40 wounded in the clashes late Monday and early Tuesday, said Dr. Muawiya Hassanein, director of the emergency medical service in Gaza. He said 25 had been wounded by gunfire, and the rest had been beaten. Full Story
Bus blast kills four in Sri Lanka
Posted on Wednesday, January 2, 2008 at 3:54am
A bomb blast hit a Sri Lankan army bus Wednesday morning in Colombo's Slave Island district, killing at least four people, including at least two soldiers, and wounding 28 others, military sources said. According to the military, the bomb was placed inside a roadside hotel and exploded when the bus was passing. Army sources accused Tamil Tiger rebels of staging the attack. Full Story
Why terror thrives in UP
Posted on Wednesday, January 2, 2008 at 3:59am
The attack on the Central Reserve Police Force camp at Rampur marks a paradigm shift in strategy and tactics of jihadi groups, hellbent on making Uttar Pradesh their major theatre of operation the four terrorists who escaped are believed to be part of a fidayeen squad. This is the second fidayeen attack after the failed attempt at Ayodhyas Ramjanmabhoomi complex on July 5, 2005. Five terrorists were killed then. Full Story
Security-funding cut feared
Posted on Wednesday, January 2, 2008 at 4:01amA new robot for the bomb squad. A $700,000 custom-built command van for major police incidents. Huge firetrucks with advanced extrication equipment for the Fire Department. Decontamination tents for use during a radiological attack. Mesa has received more than $5 million for sophisticated equipment and anti-terrorism training as a major player in Arizona's Homeland Security defenses since Congress started doling out money to states after the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks. Full Story
Cyber criminals on the prowl
Posted on Wednesday, January 2, 2008 at 4:06am
Financial frauds in the cyber space may rise in 2008, warn online security vendors. The cyber security forecast for 2008 looks a tad gloomy. The $105 billion cyber crime market is set to grow this year as spammers increase attacks. The cyber criminals toolboxes will continue to expand as we enter 2008 and more file attachments and approaches are adopted. Full Story
Musharraf set to appeal for calm after vote delay
Posted on Wednesday, January 2, 2008 at 4:35am
Pakistan President Pervez Musharraf was to appeal for calm and national unity Wednesday after the assassination of Benazir Bhutto, with a delay in elections due to be announced later in the day. Full Story
Boom times for hi-tech criminals
Posted on Wednesday, January 2, 2008 at 4:39am
Starting a career as a cyber criminal got much easier in 2007. So say security experts looking back on 12 months in which hi-tech gangs took control of the net's underground. Full Story
Courtesy Terrorism Research Center, Inc.
Posted on Tuesday, January 1, 2008 at 6:43am
Bodies and debris lay in Kenyan streets on Tuesday as Western powers exerted pressure on President Mwai Kibaki to investigate his disputed re-election that has triggered days of riots killing around 150 people. Full Story
Militants kidnap four Pakistani soldiers: military
Posted on Tuesday, January 1, 2008 at 8:58am
Militants abducted four Pakistani paramilitary soldiers in a tribal area on Tuesday in the first such incident since the d2eath of opposition leader Benazir Bhutto, officials said. Militants, believed to be loyal to alleged Al-Qaeda leader Baitullah Mehsud, seized the soldiers as they descended from their observation post on a hill near Makeen in South Waziristan. Full Story
US official killed in Sudan shooting
Posted on Tuesday, January 1, 2008 at 8:59am
A US diplomat was killed in a pre-dawn shooting attack in the Sudanese capital Khartoum on Tuesday which also left an embassy driver dead, officials said. "Early this morning, January 1, 2008, in Khartoum, Sudan, an American officer with the United States Agency for International Development was shot and wounded," the US embassy said in a statement. Full Story
UK defies Russia on British Council ban
Posted on Tuesday, January 1, 2008 at 9:00am
Britain on Tuesday defied a Russian order to close the regional offices of its cultural arm from New Year's day, but there was no evidence of Russian attempts to forcibly close British Council centers. Russia on December 12 ordered the British government's cultural arm to halt work from January 1 at all its regional offices, saying Britain had broken a host of international and domestic rules. Full Story
At least 16 Taliban killed in Afghanistan: officials
Posted on Tuesday, January 1, 2008 at 9:24am
At least 16 Taliban rebels including a suspected would-be suicide bomber were killed in US-led and Afghan operations across insurgency-plagued Afghanistan, officials said Tuesday. A man wearing a bomb-filled waistcoat was shot dead near a police checkpost in the eastern province of Khost on Tuesday, a police official said. Full Story
Parties urge end to state of emergency in Bangladesh
Posted on Tuesday, January 1, 2008 at 12:37pm
Major political parties called on Tuesday for the lifting of a state of emergency in Bangladesh after the army-backed interim government said it was committed to holding a parliamentary election at the end of the year. The interim authority imposed a state of emergency after it took over on January 11, 2007 after months of political violence and a series of strikes, and banned all political activities. Full Story
Israel: West Bank roadblocks will remain
Posted on Tuesday, January 1, 2008 at 4:32pm
Israel's network of roadblocks will remain in place across the West Bank, the defense minister said Tuesday, sparking an outcry from Palestinians who say they cannot rebuild their economy until people and goods move freely. Defense Minister Ehud Barak's comments soured an already tense atmosphere between Israel and the Palestinians just days before President Bush's first visit to the region as U.S. president. Full Story
Suicide bomb at Baghdad funeral kills 32
Posted on Tuesday, January 1, 2008 at 4:33pm
A suicide attacker killed at least 32 men gathered in eastern Baghdad Tuesday to mourn the death of a retired Iraqi army officer, a Shiite who was slain last week in a car bombing blamed on al-Qaida in Iraq. The attack was a reminder of the dangers that persist despite Baghdad's recent decline in violence and of the peril for any mass gathering in a country where the bereaved often find themselves targets. Full Story
Government seeks to help calm Kenyan crisis
Posted on Tuesday, January 1, 2008 at 4:35pm
Kenya's former colonial ruler Britain sought Tuesday to use its diplomatic muscle to help end deadly violence there, backing Commonwealth and African efforts to resolve a standoff over disputed elections. Prime Minister Gordon Brown spoke to Ghanaian President John Kufuor, chair of the African Union, and the head of the Commonwealth's observer mission in Kenya about overseeing a process of reconciliation, his office said. Full Story
Kenya church fire kills 50 who fled mob
Posted on Tuesday, January 1, 2008 at 4:36pm
A mob torched a church sheltering hundreds of people fleeing election violence Tuesday, killing up to 50 people including many children as four days of rioting and ethnic clashes marked one of the darkest times in Kenya's history. President Mwai Kibaki, sworn in Sunday after a vote opponents said was rigged, said political parties should meet immediately and publicly call for calm. Full Story
Sri Lanka set for price increases as war escalates
Posted on Tuesday, January 1, 2008 at 4:37pm
Sri Lanka is set to raise the prices of basic foods such as potatoes and sugar as well as cooking gas, officials announced Tuesday, fanning fears of galloping inflation in the conflict-wracked island. Inflation is already running at 17.5 percent in the tropical country, whose economy has been slowing amid an escalating war between government forces and Tamil rebels fighting for an independent homeland. Full Story
Jihadis picking soft targets for eyeballsPosted on Wednesday, January 2, 2008 at 3:50amBy hitting security camps as well as civilian targets like temples, trains, markets, courts and sufi shrines and specific mosques, jihadi groups are working to a plan to stir communal tensions, bleed the forces and win appreciation of handlers across the border for putting the focus on "home-grown" terror. Full Story
Gaza Is Tense as It Tallies Casualties
Posted on Wednesday, January 2, 2008 at 3:52am
Gaza remained tense on Tuesday after a night of clashes between Hamas and Fatah gunmen. Seven Palestinians were killed and 40 wounded in the clashes late Monday and early Tuesday, said Dr. Muawiya Hassanein, director of the emergency medical service in Gaza. He said 25 had been wounded by gunfire, and the rest had been beaten. Full Story
Bus blast kills four in Sri Lanka
Posted on Wednesday, January 2, 2008 at 3:54am
A bomb blast hit a Sri Lankan army bus Wednesday morning in Colombo's Slave Island district, killing at least four people, including at least two soldiers, and wounding 28 others, military sources said. According to the military, the bomb was placed inside a roadside hotel and exploded when the bus was passing. Army sources accused Tamil Tiger rebels of staging the attack. Full Story
Why terror thrives in UP
Posted on Wednesday, January 2, 2008 at 3:59am
The attack on the Central Reserve Police Force camp at Rampur marks a paradigm shift in strategy and tactics of jihadi groups, hellbent on making Uttar Pradesh their major theatre of operation the four terrorists who escaped are believed to be part of a fidayeen squad. This is the second fidayeen attack after the failed attempt at Ayodhyas Ramjanmabhoomi complex on July 5, 2005. Five terrorists were killed then. Full Story
Security-funding cut feared
Posted on Wednesday, January 2, 2008 at 4:01amA new robot for the bomb squad. A $700,000 custom-built command van for major police incidents. Huge firetrucks with advanced extrication equipment for the Fire Department. Decontamination tents for use during a radiological attack. Mesa has received more than $5 million for sophisticated equipment and anti-terrorism training as a major player in Arizona's Homeland Security defenses since Congress started doling out money to states after the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks. Full Story
Cyber criminals on the prowl
Posted on Wednesday, January 2, 2008 at 4:06am
Financial frauds in the cyber space may rise in 2008, warn online security vendors. The cyber security forecast for 2008 looks a tad gloomy. The $105 billion cyber crime market is set to grow this year as spammers increase attacks. The cyber criminals toolboxes will continue to expand as we enter 2008 and more file attachments and approaches are adopted. Full Story
Musharraf set to appeal for calm after vote delay
Posted on Wednesday, January 2, 2008 at 4:35am
Pakistan President Pervez Musharraf was to appeal for calm and national unity Wednesday after the assassination of Benazir Bhutto, with a delay in elections due to be announced later in the day. Full Story
Boom times for hi-tech criminals
Posted on Wednesday, January 2, 2008 at 4:39am
Starting a career as a cyber criminal got much easier in 2007. So say security experts looking back on 12 months in which hi-tech gangs took control of the net's underground. Full Story
Courtesy Terrorism Research Center, Inc.
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