China, India, Pakistan, Afghanistan, etc.

[wildcard]

We had a nice thread on the old site with lots of links and maps and infos..., and it's GONE dammit, it's GONE so get over it. We're starting a new one.

http://www.topnews.in/files/Afghanistan-map_0.jpg

http://www.upi.com/Top_News/US/2010/04/26/3-killed-in-suicide-bomb-attack/UPI-89531272255908/

3 killed in suicide bomb attack
Published: April 26, 2010 at 12:25 AM


KABUL, Afghanistan, April 26 (UPI) -- A suicide bomb attack Sunday in Afghanistan's southern Zabul province killed at least three people, authorities said.

Those killed included one of the guards of a private security firm deployed in a market area, said Mohammad Jam Rasool Yar, a spokesman for the governor, CNN reported. The other two killed were reported to be civilians.

The blast also injured seven people, the report said. Other reports gave a higher death toll.

Militant violence has escalated in the country's southern region where U.S.-led coalition forces are involved in a campaign to drive out the Taliban.

NATO's counterinsurgency campaign, centered in Helmand province since February, is expected to focus next on Kandahar province beginning in June.

[wildcard]

http://www.presstv.ir/detail.aspx?id=124464&sectionid=351020401
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/f/f5/NWFP_FATA.svg/558px-NWFP_FATA.svg.png

http://outofcentralasianow.files.wordpress.com/2009/11/khyber_and_orakzai_in_northwest_pakistan.jpg


8 militants killed in NW Pakistan


At least eight militants have been killed and several others injured during the ongoing offensive against the Taliban in the Orakzai tribal region of northwestern Pakistan.

The clashes took place after the militants attacked a security checkpoint in central Orakzai, one of the seven districts in the region, in which the security forces are conducting the offensive against the militants, a Press TV correspondent reported late Sunday.

The troops, backed by gunship helicopters, pounded the Taliban hideouts in the Lower Orakzai agency, killing eight militants and wounding 11 more.

The incident followed a military crackdown on the Taliban in the Orakzai agency, which began four weeks ago in an effort to clear them out of the region.

Pakistani security forces moved into the Orakzai district late last month to hunt down militants fleeing an earlier offensive in the neighboring district of South Waziristan.

Meanwile, the security forces have arrested three Taliban commanders including Sardar, Kamal and Muhammad Razaq from Mardan in northwestern Pakistan. The detainees have been shifted to Swat for interrogation.

According to official data, more than 400 militants have been killed so far and the security forces are successfully advancing towards their strongholds.

[wildcard]

link (http://www.theaustralian.com.au/news/breaking-news/seven-hurt-by-roadside-bomb/story-fn3dxity-1225860968614)

http://www.apna.tv/news/product_images/3676-S.jpg

Seven hurt by roadside bomb

* From correspondents in Pakistan
* From: AP
* May 01, 2010


POLICE say a roadside bomb has exploded near a police vehicle in southwestern Pakistan, wounding seven people.

Police official Ghulam Nabi says today's attack happened in the city of Quetta, and it wounded four officers and three civilians.

No one claimed responsibility but authorities have blamed ethnic Baluch and nationalists for such previous attacks.

Quetta is the capital of Baluchistan province, where nationalists have waged a slow-scale insurgency for years to demand more autonomy and a greater share of income from the area's natural resources.

[wildcard]

http://www.presstv.ir/detail.aspx?id=125097&sectionid=351020402

US warns of 'imminent' attacks in India

Sat, 01 May 2010 17:40:26 GMT


The United States has warned its citizens of possible "imminent" attacks by militants on New Delhi, as the Indian police are put on high alert.

"There are increased indications that terrorists are planning imminent attacks in New Delhi," said a statement on the US embassy's website.

On Saturday, the Canadian and Australian missions in India followed similar warnings, cautioning their nationals against visiting certain parts of the country and avoid crowded shopping areas.

The new warnings suggest that a terrorist attack could be carried out in busy market places within the coming days or weeks.

The Indian Home Ministry says it is aware of the threats while the government has put its police force on high alert.

New Delhi has often blamed Pakistan's Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) for aiding militant groups carrying out attacks in India. Islamabad has denied the charges.

The old rivals have a history of mistrust and have fought three wars since their independence from Britain in 1947.

[wildcard]

Random (some proposed) oil, gas pipeline pics.

http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_Qm2i8mXTjhs/Snle9FbKN1I/AAAAAAAABnk/B5y9car9Dqs/s400/afghanistan_pipeline.jpg

http://www.agoracosmopolitan.com/home/Frontpage/2006/04/19/images/Afghan_oil_pipeline.jpg

http://leftwrite.files.wordpress.com/2008/08/oil-pipelines-east-and-west.jpg

[wildcard]

This past Monday. 4-26-2010

Explosions hit Kandahar, 2 dead, say Afghan police

link (http://www.hindustantimes.com/News-Feed/afghanistan/Explosions-hit-Kandahar-2-dead-say-Afghan-police/Article1-536032.aspx)


Three explosions struck Kandahar on Monday morning, killing two civilians amid a wave of violence that has swept the key southern Afghan city where the US is planning an offensive to clear out the Taliban.

Two police officers and one civilian were wounded, authorities said.

The first two blasts - one caused by a roadside bomb and the other from a motorbike packed with explosives about 30 feet (10 meters) away - happened within a minute of each other in downtown Kandahar, said Deputy Provincial Police Chief Fazel Ahmad Sherzad. About two hours later, a third blast struck north of the city.

The looming offensive and a surge in militant attacks - on local officials, aid workers and contractors for US development projects - has left Kandahar's half-million inhabitants increasingly terrified.

"The security in this city is deteriorating," said Enayutullah Khan, 43, a rickshaw driver.

"People leave their homes only to find food for their children. Otherwise we don't leave the house." Rangina Hamidi, who runs a Kandahar-based handicrafts business that employs about 200 women, said many of her workers had been too frightened to come to work in recent days.

"It's very scary. We don't know what is happening," said Hamidi, whose employees sew embroidered clothing, tablecloths and shawls.

Kandahar is the largest city in southern Afghanistan and the birthplace of the Taliban, which still has considerable support here. A US-led operation planned for this summer aims to clear Kandahar of Taliban fighters and break the grip of warlords who have allowed the fighters to slip back in.

President Barack Obama has ordered 30,000 more troops into Afghanistan, in part to back up the Kandahar offensive. The operation will be a critical test of the Afghan war. But the Taliban have launched increasingly deadly attacks ahead of the offensive. Since April 12, at least 20 civilians have been killed in Kandahar, including children. Aid workers also have been targeted.

Monday's first two explosions, which killed two civilians and injured one police officer and one civilian, happened while a convoy of police vehicles was passing by, the Interior Ministry said. One of the explosions went off near a car belonging to Sherzad, the deputy police chief, but he was not inside the vehicle at the time. Another policeman was injured in the blast in the city's north.

Also Monday, Eric Laroche, the World Health Organization's assistant director-general for health action in crises, urged that more be done to protect the health of millions of Afghans still vulnerable to disasters like earthquakes and combat.

"Much has been achieved in recent years to expand health care in many parts of the country, but we still see today that many Afghans remain extremely vulnerable to a wide range of humanitarian emergencies, and more needs to be done to protect them," Laroche said in a statement, urging that more medical personnel and clinics be made available across Afghanistan, particularly in remote areas.

On Sunday, meanwhile, one Afghan police officer was killed and another was wounded during an attack on a militant compound in the Wordoch district of Badakshkhan province northeast of Kabul, according to an Interior Ministry statement released Monday. The statement said two militants were killed in the operation. During a search of the compound, authorities found explosives and eight different kinds of roadside bombs.

Also Sunday, government forces on a mission to eradicate poppies in eastern Nangrahar province came under fire, said Ghafor Khan, a provincial police spokesman. During the gunbattle three Afghans - one from the Afghan Army and two from the border police - were killed. Nine more members of various Afghan forces were also injured. Six Taliban militants were killed in the fighting and 12 were injured, Khan said.

The area is now under government control, and the forces destroyed about 200 acres (80 hectares) of poppies.

Destroyed by harvesting? ::)

[wildcard]

They know we're on to their "30 militants killed" meme so they've upped the ante!

40 militants die in Pakistan attacks
link (http://www.upi.com/Top_News/International/2010/05/02/40-militants-die-in-Pakistan-attacks/UPI-63181272847850/)


PESHAWAR, Pakistan, May 2 (UPI) -- Pakistani military helicopters attacked Taliban positions in the Orakzai tribal region Sunday, killing 40 militants, the Press Trust of India reported.

The news agency reported official sources said the gunships destroyed 10 Taliban hideouts in the northwestern region.

Two security personnel were reported injured by a mortar shell.

PTI said its official sources told it security forces have given people living in the Dabori area three days to leave in advance of a planned offensive in the region to root out Taliban entrenched there.

Pakistani officials say army forces have killed more than 500 militants and wiped out 75 hideouts in the Orakzai Agency in the past five weeks.

http://www.historycommons.org/events-images/b298_tribal_region_2050081722-23323.jpg

[wildcard]

Bus hits bomb in Afghanistan; 7 dead

link (http://www.upi.com/Top_News/International/2010/05/02/Bus-hits-bomb-in-Afghanistan-7-dead/UPI-38051272846336/)


KABUL, Afghanistan, May 2 (UPI) -- A bus hit a roadside bomb in eastern Afghanistan Sunday evening, killing seven people.

The New York Times said up to 14 more people were injured by the blast, which occurred in Paktia province near the Pakistan border.

"Most of the victims were children and women," the U.S. newspaper quoted Afghan police spokesman Mohammed Usman as saying.

Meanwhile, a British soldier was killed in an explosion in Sangin, Helmand province, the Times said.


http://peacelikeariverblog.com/images/2007/Afghanistan_Oct24_Nov7.jpg

[wildcard]

One day this will be America.

[url=http://www.hindustantimes.com/News-Feed/afghanistan/Roadside-blast-kills-eight-civilians-Afghan-police/Article1-538666.aspx[/url]

Roadside blast kills eight civilians] link

Khost, Afghanistan, May 03, 2010


Eight civilians, two of them children, were killed and 14 more wounded when a roadside bomb struck a minivan in eastern Afghanistan, police and a doctor said on Monday.

The victims were among a group of people travelling in Paktia province late Sunday when the bomb exploded, deputy provincial police chief Ghulam Dastagir Rustamyar told AFP.

"Yesterday evening along the road to Zurmat a civilian minivan struck a roadside bomb, as a result of which eight civilians were killed," he said.

Doctor Mohammad Nader said the bodies of four men, two women and two children had been brought to the main hospital in Paktia. Another eight wounded were also admitted, he said.

No one has claimed responsibility for the attack.

But roadside bombs, often made from a mixture of fertiliser, fuel and metal, have become the weapon of choice for Taliban-led militants and cause increasing numbers of casualties among civilians as well as foreign and Afghan forces.

NATO and the United States have 126,000 troops fighting the insurgency in Afghanistan, with the number set to peak at 150,000 by August as they try to fast-track efforts to end a conflict that is now in its ninth year.

But civilian casualties have undermined efforts to win Afghan hearts and minds as part of a sweeping new counter-insurgency strategy coordinated by General Stanley McChrystal, who heads NATO and US troops in Afghanistan.

[wildcard]

link (http://www.hindustantimes.com/world-news/india/India-Russia-set-up-a-USD-600-million-aircraft-Joint-Venture/Article1-491771.aspx)

India, Russia set up a USD 600 million aircraft Joint Venture


India and Russia are to invest USD 600 million to set up a joint venture (JV) to produce a medium lift transport aircraft for their armed forces.

While Bangalore based state-owned Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL) will fork out USD 300 million, Russia's United Aircraft Cooperation (UAC) will invest a similar amount for the joint venture which will start rolling out the aircraft by 2017.

The Voice of Russia radio said that the joint venture coming up with fifty-fifty equity would develop the aircraft at Aviastar-SP plant based in Ulyanovsk city on Volga. The Indian Air Force is expected to order at least 35 and Russian Air Force as many as 100 medium lift transport aircraft.

In its basic configuration the new transport aircraft will have a payload capacity of 18.5 tons of cargo and can fly up to a a distance of 2500 km in any climatic conditions.

The aircraft is being designed to also operate from high altitude mountain airstrips, according to information posted on UAC website. India hopes that the new medium lift transport aircraft will replace its ageing fleet of 104 AN-32 aircraft.

Though India has signed a contract worth USD 398 million for the upgradation of these aircrafts between this year to 2017, the new plane will replace it.

[wildcard]

http://www.presstv.ir/detail.aspx?id=125545&sectionid=351020403

Blasts leave 5 dead in Afghanistan

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/d/dd/Afghanistan-Nimruz.png/256px-Afghanistan-Nimruz.png


At least five police officers and a government official have been killed in a series of explosions that rocked the southwestern Afghan province of Nimroz.

The blasts took place in the provincial capital, Zaranj, on Wednesday. Five other police officers have been injured.

Taliban militants have reportedly claimed responsibility for the attacks.

Local officials say militants stormed several buildings in the city -- including the governor's office. Afghan troops have managed to kill nine of the attackers.

The militants are reportedly fighting government troops at the provincial council and provincial court buildings.

Coordinated raids targeting the government have become increasingly prevalent in Afghanistan despite the presence of some 126,000 US-led foreign troops in the country.

[DMac]

Good thread Wildcard! I will add some info at a later date.

[wildcard]

Come on in!

http://geopolicraticus.files.wordpress.com/2009/01/kashmir.jpg

http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_x7xNgfhbbWo/S0IFP5IS3OI/AAAAAAAAAEQ/sUQYOil_UtE/s320/Kashmir_2007.JPG.jpeg

[wildcard]

link (http://www.hindustantimes.com/News-Feed/pakistan/Pak-tests-nuclear-capable-missiles/Article1-540877.aspx)

Pakistan tests two nuclear-capable missiles

Islamabad, May 08, 2010


Pakistan successfully test-fired two short-range, nuclear-capable missiles on Saturday as part of efforts to boost defence capabilities, the military said.

Prime Minister Yusuf Raza Gilani and senior military officials watched the test-firing of the Ghaznavi ballistic missile, which can travel up to 300 km (185 miles), and the Shaheen-I, with a range of 650 km (400 miles).

"Both missiles successfully hit the target areas," the military said in a statement. It did not identify the location of the tests.

Pakistan carried out nuclear tests in May 1998, days after similar tests by old rival India.

The South Asian neighbours, which have fought three wars since their independence from British rule in 1947, regularly carry out missile tests and the latest Pakisani tests were not expected to increase tension between them.

India halted a tentative peace process after an assault on its city of Mumbai by Pakistan-based Islamist militants in 2008 but the countries' prime ministers met in Bhutan last month and asked their officials to take steps to normalise ties.

On Thursday, an Indian court sentenced to death a Pakistani national, Mohammad Ajmal Kasab, the lone surviving gunmen in the Mumbai assault that killed 166 people.

[wildcard]

Oh the oil pipeline must be getting close to the border now!

link (http://enews.earthlink.net/article/top?guid=20100528/38a8fe01-c0d1-476d-ad19-3d1de7ad0fdf)

Report: US weighs military option in Pakistan


From Associated Press
May 29, 2010 3:01 AM EDT

WASHINGTON (AP) — The U.S. military is developing plans for a unilateral attack on the Pakistani Taliban in the event of a successful terrorist strike in the United States that can be traced to them, The Washington Post reports.

Planning for a retaliatory attack was spurred by ties between alleged Times Square bomber Faisal Shahzad and elements of the Pakistani Taliban, the Post said in an article posted on its website Friday night, quoting unidentified senior military officials.

The military would focus on air and missile strikes but also could use small teams of U.S. Special Operations troops currently along the border with Afghanistan, the Post said.

Airstrikes could damage the militants' ability to launch new attacks but also might damage U.S.-Pakistani relations.

The CIA already conducts unmanned drone strikes in the country's tribal regions. Officials told the Post that a U.S. military response would be considered only if a terrorist attacks persuaded President Barack Obama that the CIA campaign is ineffective.

A senior U.S. official told The Associated Press on Wednesday that Pakistan already has been told that it has only weeks to show real progress in a crackdown against the Taliban.

The U.S. has put Pakistan "on a clock" to launch a new intelligence and counterterrorist offensive against the group, which the White House alleges was behind the Times Square bombing attempt, according to the official.

U.S. officials also have said the U.S. reserves the right to strike in the tribal areas in pursuit of Osama bin Laden and other high-value targets.

At the same, the Obama administration is working to improve ties with Pakistani intelligence officials to head off attacks by militant groups, the Post reported.

Officials quoted by the Post and the AP requested anonymity because of the sensitivity surrounding U.S. military and intelligence activities in Pakistan.

[wildcard]

link (http://www.hindustantimes.com/world-news/pakistan/RAW-s-role-in-mosque-attacks-not-ruled-out-Pak/Article1-550104.aspx)

RAW's role in mosque attacks not ruled out

Press Trust Of India
Islamabad, May 29, 2010


Pakistan Interior Minister Rehman Malik on Friday said the involvement of India's RAW intelligence agency in terror attacks on two mosques of the minority Ahmedi sect in Lahore could not be ruled out.

"About Balochistan (province), I am sure that RAW is involved in saboteur activities. But for Lahore we are investigating," he said while talking to journalists.

"The involvement of RAW cannot be ruled out. However, anything concrete would come forth after the investigation," Malik said, adding, the involvement of Taliban and Al Qaeda elements in the attack would also be probed.

Meanwhile, officials of the Indian High Commission here were not available for comment.

About 80 people were killed and over 100 injured when terrorists armed with suicide vests, grenades and assault rifles stormed the two mosques in Lahore, the capital of Punjab province.

A Punjabi faction of the Pakistani Taliban claimed responsibility for the attack in a message sent to a TV news channel.

Malik said the interior ministry had sent two security alerts to the Punjab government on May 13 and May 26 about possible terrorist activity in Lahore, Islamabad and Rawalpindi.

"But it is yet to be probed whether the security measures taken by the provincial government were adequate or not. I have sought a report from the Punjab government on the incident," he said.

According to the intelligence reports, a terrorist named Abdul Jabbar alias Nasrullah was planning to carry out attacks in Lahore while militant commander Qari Hussain was plotting attacks in Rawalpindi, Islamabad and Lahore using suicide jackets procured from the Bannu region in the country’s northwest.

"One militant apprehended (during today's attack) hails from Punjab. Such people have their headquarters in Jhang. It is not a secret. They had been carrying out terrorist activities for years," he said, referring to the headquarters of the banned Lashkar-e-Jhangvi.

Malik said the federal government will provide all support to Punjab and that he would visit the province within a week to discuss the issue.

"I had always been vocal that such militants exist in Punjab. If two explosive-laden trucks are seen in Dera Ghazi Khan, what are they there for? Obviously, they have some objectives," he said.

[wildcard]

Militants attack Afghan police convoy, killing 5

link (http://www.hindustantimes.com/News-Feed/afghanistan/Militants-attack-Afghan-police-convoy-killing-5/Article1-550161.aspx)

Associated Press
Kabul, Afghanistan, May 29, 2010


Militants ambushed an Afghan police convoy with a roadside bomb and gunfire in eastern Afghanistan, killing five officers before fleeing NATO aerial bombardment, an official said Saturday.

Two militants were killed and up to six wounded in the battle Friday in Paktia province, said Ghulam Dastagir, the deputy provincial police chief.

He said the convoy was headed toward the Dandi Pathan district when one vehicle was hit by a roadside bomb blast, killing five officers and wounding the district police chief. Militants opened fire after the blast, triggering a gunbattle that lasted several hours before NATO aircraft were called in.

Farther north, officials in Nuristan province were still trying to confirm reports that a senior Pakistani Taliban leader was killed in several days of fighting between security forces and militants who have been trying to seize control of the Barg-e-Matal district on the Pakistan border.

Villagers who took part in the fighting said they had killed Taliban commander Maulana Fazlullah, who spearheaded the takeover of Pakistan's Swat Valley three years ago, gaining prominence as the "Radio Mullah" for his vehemently anti-Western sermons on local radio. The former mountain resort area fell under Taliban control until Pakistani forces drove them out last year.

Pakistani Taliban leaders say Fazlullah was in Nuristan but they believe he is still alive.

Meanwhile, NATO announced Friday that Afghan and international troops acting on intelligence information found and destroyed two bomb-making and weapons storage facilities this week in Kandahar province, and battled with militants who tried to defend them.

A cache found at one facility, in the Panjwai district, included high explosives, mortar rounds, roadside bombs, rocket-propelled grenades and automatic rifles, a NATO statement said. At the other, mines, roadside bombs and a stockpile of materials and equipment for making more were found. The exact location was not disclosed. On Friday, the top U.S. commander in Afghanistan, Gen. Stanley McChrystal, and other dignitaries officially launched the construction of a rail link between northern Afghanistan and neighboring Uzbekistan. The 50-mile (75-kilometer) line from the Afghan city of Mazar-e-Sharif to Termez in Uzbekistan would eventually carry millions of tons of goods between the two countries, officials said.

Transport routes from Central Asia are among key supply lines for trade in Afghanistan and for U.S. military operations. Taliban militants have sought to disrupt and control transport routes all over the country.

[wildcard]

Seems like things are heating up over there.

Suspected sabotage derails train in India; 90 dead

By BIKAS DAS
Associated Press Writer


SARDIHA, India (AP) -- Railway authorities canceled all night trains in an eastern Indian state on Saturday after a passenger express train derailed and was hit by a cargo train, killing at least 90 people and injuring hundreds. The government accused Maoist rebels of sabotaging the tracks.

Railway workers and paramilitary soldiers used cranes to lift and pry apart train cars to search for more bodies from the Jnaneswari Express, which was heading from Calcutta to suburban Mumbai when it derailed early Friday.

"The death toll now stands at 90, and there are 149 people with injuries in hospitals," said Soumitra Mazumdar, a railways spokesman.

"We are doing everything possible to pull the bodies from the wreckage," he said.

Railway officials said they believed bodies were still trapped between the engines of the two trains, which smashed together near the small town of Sardiha, about 90 miles (150 kilometers) west of Calcutta in West Bengal state.

Railway authorities said they would not run any trains at night in West Bengal for at least the next four days, when Indian Maoist rebels have called a general strike.

The area is a stronghold of the rebels, known as Naxalites, who have launched repeated and often-audacious attacks in recent months - despite government claims of a crackdown.

Just 11 days ago, the rebels ambushed a bus in central India, killing 31 police officers and civilians. A few weeks before that, 76 soldiers were killed in a rebel ambush - the deadliest attack by the rebels against government forces in the 43-year insurgency. There have been dozens of smaller attacks.

On Friday, the government vowed once again to crush the Naxalites.

"The Maoists have done this work," West Bengal Chief Minister Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee told reporters in Calcutta. "All-out efforts will be made to free the state and the country from this danger."

But analysts say the government is hobbled by vacillating policies, poorly trained and ill-armed security forces and vast tracts of India where the government has little influence and where poverty has brought considerable support to the Naxalites, who claim to be fighting on behalf of the rural poor.

The rebels, who have tapped into the poor's anger at being left out of the country's economic gains, are now present in 20 of the country's 28 states and have an estimated 10,000 to 20,000 fighters, according to the Home Ministry.

"There is an absence of government, there is an absence of competence in government, there is an absence of coherence in response," said Ajai Sahni, a New Delhi-based analyst with close ties to India's security establishment. "The purpose of the Maoists is not to resolve grievances but to harvest them, and there are numerous grievances in the country to harvest."

In Sardiha, officials said the train tracks had been sabotaged but disagreed about exactly what had happened, with some saying it was caused by an explosion and others blaming cut rail lines.

Bhupinder Singh, the top police official in West Bengal, said posters from the People's Committee Against Police Atrocities, a group local officials believe is closely tied to the Maoists, had been found at the scene taking responsibility for the attack.

However, a spokesman for the group, Asit Mahato, denied any role, the Press Trust of India news agency reported.

The Maoists seldom claim credit for their attacks.

Railway Minister Mamata Banerjee said the Sardiha area had been the scene of earlier Naxalite attacks, and that trains were under orders to travel slowly through the region - in part so that drivers can keep watch for sabotaged tracks or bombs, and in part so the effects of a crash are lessened if a train does derail.

---

Associated Press writers Tim Sullivan, Ashok Sharma, Muneeza Naqvi and Nirmala George in New Delhi contributed to this report.

[wildcard]

http://www.presstv.ir/detail.aspx?id=128173&sectionid=351020403

Taliban seize town in east Afghanistan


Afghan officials say that Taliban militants have managed to take control of Barg-e-Matal town in the eastern province of Nuristan.

According to Taliban spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid, the militants took control of the city on Saturday morning after heavy clashes with Afghan police forces based in the area, a Press TV Correspondent reported.

Mujahid added that 28 Afghan police members were killed in the attack that started on Friday night.

Meanwhile, An Afghan MP slammed US-led forces for failing to protect the town near Pakistan's border.

[wildcard]

Death toll from Indian train tragedy attains 110

http://news.xinhuanet.com/english2010/world/2010-05/29/c_13322896.htm

http://news.xinhuanet.com/english2010/world/2010-05/29/13322896_11n.jpg

http://news.xinhuanet.com/english2010/world/2010-05/29/13322896_21n.jpg




JHARGRAM, India, May 29 (Xinhua) -- Rescue workers at Friday's train derailment and collision site here said the death toll from the tragedy stood at 110 by Saturday afternoon as more bodies were found in the debris of the smashed coaches, said police.

They also believe that the death toll might exceed 150 as one badly smashed bogie is yet to be searched completely while the number of the injured stood at 250 in the worst sabotage by extreme left-wing Naxal rebels upon trains so far in India.

"So far 110 bodies have so far been recovered," West Bengal Police Inspector General Surajit Kar Purakayastha told Xinhua.

Volunteers of National Cadet Corps, personnel of the railway, army, Central Reserve Police Force and Combat Battalion for Resolute Action, along with a team of doctors and paramedics, were still active at the site located some 150 km from West Bengal's state capital Kolkata.

The railway rescue team is trying hard to restore the overhead traction and tracks damaged in about a two-kilometer stretch.

Meanwhile, a report has been filed at the Jhargram police station by the driver of the Howrah-Kurla Gyaneshwari Express train.

The report, called First Information Report (FIR), however, does not talk about the role of Naxal rebels or any other outfit which might have carried out the sabotage.

In the FIR, driver B.K. Das has said that he heard a loud sound which was quite similar to the sound of explosion and then he saw smoke coming out from the wheels of the train.

The driver further states that he soon figured out that a train was coming from the opposite direction. But the goods train rammed into the Gyaneshwari Express train despite the fact that he sounded an alert for the same train to stop.

Das filed the FIR against unknown persons with the Government Railway Police, Jhargam.

[wildcard]

http://news.xinhuanet.com/english2010/world/2010-05/28/c_13321007.htm

Naxal rebels claim responsibility for train sabotage in E India


NEW DELHI, May 28 (Xinhua) -- India's extreme left-wing Naxal rebels have claimed responsibility for the sabotage on the railway tracks which led to a collision between an express train and a freight train in the eastern Indian state of West Bengal in the wee hours Friday, which killed 65 people, a senior police official said.

"The Naxalites' People's Committee against Police Atrocities ( PCPA) has left two posters near the rail tracks clearly owning responsibility for the derailment of the Kurla-bound Gyaneswari Express," Inspector General of Police (Law and Order) Surajit Pur Kayastha told the media.

He quoted the posters as saying: "We earlier demanded withdrawal of the joint security forces from Jangalmahal (West Midnapore, Bankura and Purulia) ..., but those demands were not met."

At least 65 people were killed and over 200 others were injured when a freight train hit an express train after the latter derailed following a sabotage of the railway tracks in the eastern Indian state of West Bengal early Friday morning, said police.

The incident happened at 01:30 a.m. when the Mumbai-bound Howrah-Kurla Lokmanya Tilak Gyaneshwari Super Deluxe Express was running between the Khemasoli and Sardiya stations near Jhargram area in the state.

Earlier West Bengal Police chief Bhupinder Singh told the media in state capital Kolkata that the Naxalites were behind the incident.

"We suspect the hand of Naxalites as a section of the rail track was found missing and fishplates were loosened," he said, adding that posters of Naxalite organizations have been found at the site.

[goldmonkey]

Options studied for a possible Pakistan strike
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2010/05/28/AR2010052804854_pf.html

The U.S. military is reviewing options for a unilateral strike in Pakistan in the event that a successful attack on American soil is traced to the country's tribal areas, according to senior military officials.

Ties between the alleged Times Square bomber, Faisal Shahzad, and elements of the Pakistani Taliban have sharpened the Obama administration's need for retaliatory options, the officials said. They stressed that a U.S. reprisal would be contemplated only under extreme circumstances, such as a catastrophic attack that leaves President Obama convinced that the ongoing campaign of CIA drone strikes is insufficient.

"Planning has been reinvigorated in the wake of Times Square," one of the officials said.

At the same time, the administration is trying to deepen ties to Pakistan's intelligence officials in a bid to head off any attack by militant groups. The United States and Pakistan have recently established a joint military intelligence center on the outskirts of the northwestern city of Peshawar, and are in negotiations to set up another one near Quetta, the Pakistani city where the Afghan Taliban is based, according to the U.S. military officials. They and other officials spoke on the condition of anonymity because of the sensitivity surrounding U.S. military and intelligence activities in Pakistan.

Continued ...
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2010/05/28/AR2010052804854_pf.html

[gunDriller]

i wonder how many of the terrorist attacks in India Pakistan & Afghanistan Israel has a hand in.

[wildcard]

They are really stirring things between India and Pakistan. I am sure it is all an excuse to move in there to lay that pipeline. Those dangerous pakis need democracy brought to them now! Self determination is so 200 years ago. But since they have nuclear weapons it's going to be interesting.

http://www.myconfinedspace.com/wp-content/uploads/2006/10/free-logo.gif

http://www.vistawallpapers.com/image.php?v=./data/media/7/Democracy_Will_Come_to_You.jpg

[wildcard]

Over a dozen injured in Kashmir clashes
Sat, 29 May 2010 23:55:50 GMT


Several people have been injured in clashes between police and protesters in Indian-administered Kashmir amid a general strike across the Kashmir Valley.

Over a dozen people were injured on Saturday when thousands of villagers staged a demonstration in Kashmir's northern district of Baramulla, about 50 kilometers from the capital Srinagar.

Police fired teargas to disperse the villagers who were protesting the murder of three Muslims by police forces in April.

Last month, the Indian military claimed it foiled an infiltration attempt by shooting three militants dead along the de facto border that divides Kashmir between India and Pakistan.

But three families in Baramulla said the murdered men were relatives who had gone missing three days before, a claim which was later proven to be true following the exhumation of the victims' bodies.

Meanwhile, a general shutdown is being observed across the Kashmir Valley in protest against a visit by Indian Congress Party chief Sonia Gandhi to Jammu and Kashmir.

The strike was called by All Parties Hurriyat Conference Chairman Syed Ali Geelani in a show of dissociation with India and its administration on the eve of Sonia Gandhi's visit.

"The Congress Party is barely responsible for the whole situation which is prevailing in Jammu and Kashmir, and India and Pakistan, since 1947 till date," Geelani told the Press TV correspondent in Srinagar. "So to show the resentment of the people against the Congress Party and their policies, we have called for a shutdown."

Indian authorities later took Geelani into custody in an attempt to dampen the protests in Srinagar, vowing to confront any potential threat to the public order.

"We cannot afford anything which would tamper with the normalcy," Deputy Commissioner Mehraj Ahmad Kakroo said.

"You cannot afford any breach of peace and public tranquility. So law has to take its own course. Whosoever has to be under restrictions, we will do it," he insisted.

Kashmir has been the main source of dispute between Pakistan and India since their independence from Britain in 1947. The status of the territory was the cause of two of the three wars the rival South Asian countries have fought.

Despite the risks, it seems the Kashmiris are determined to continue their "people power" movement.

Political analysts say the frequent street protests of the past two years are giving new life to the Kashmir liberation struggle.

Over the past two decades, the conflict in Kashmir has left over 47,000 people dead by the official count, although other sources say the death toll could be as high as 90,000.

[wildcard]

link (http://www.nydailynews.com/news/world/2010/07/02/2010-07-02_pakistan_blames_us_for_deadly_shrine_attack_tha t_killed_dozens.html)

Pakistan blames U.S. for deadly shrine attack that killed dozens

THE ASSOCIATED PRESS

Friday, July 2nd 2010, 10:13 AM

LAHORE, Pakistan -- Pakistanis lashed out Friday at the U.S., blaming its alliance with their government and its presence in Afghanistan for spurring two suicide bombers to kill 42 people at the country's most important Sufi shrine.

The reactions showed the challenge facing Washington and the Pakistani government when it comes to rallying public support against the Islamist extremism that has scarred the South Asian nation, even after an audacious attack on the moderate, Sufi-influenced Islam most Pakistanis practice.

Thousands of people had gathered late Thursday at the green-domed Data Darbar shrine in Lahore when bombs went off minutes apart. The blasts ripped concrete from the walls and left the white marble floor awash with blood. There was no claim of responsibility, but Islamist extremists consider Sufism - a mystical strand of Islam - to be heretical.

But on Friday, few Pakistanis interviewed saw militants at the root of the problem.

"America is killing Muslims in Afghanistan and in our tribal areas (with missile strikes), and militants are attacking Pakistan to express anger against the government for supporting America," said Zahid Umar, 25, who frequently visits the shrine, where 180 people were also wounded.

Pakistanis are suffering because of American policies and aggression in the region, said Mohammed Asif, 34, who runs an auto workshop in Lahore. He and others said the attacks would end if the U.S. would pull out of Afghanistan.

Several other Pakistanis interviewed blamed the Ahmadis, a minority sect that has long faced discrimination in Pakistan. On May 28 in Lahore, gunmen and a suicide squad targeted two Ahmadi mosques, massacring at least 93 people, and some Pakistanis claimed the sect must have been seeking revenge.

Others cast about for additional villains - though America's hand was seen there, too.

Washington "is encouraging Indians and Jews to carry out attacks" in Pakistan, said Arifa Moen, 32, a teacher in the central city of Multan.

Pakistani officials condemned the bombings, using language they have frequently used to try to convince the population that the fight against militancy is not one they can ignore.

"Those who still pretend that we are not a nation at war are complicit in these deaths," said Farahnaz Ispahani, a spokeswoman for Pakistani President Asif Ali Zardari.

The U.S. Embassy issued a statement Friday condemning the attack and saying it "demonstrates the terrorists' blatant disregard for the lives of the Pakistani people and the future of this country."

[wildcard]

http://news.xinhuanet.com/english2010/world/2010-08/23/c_13458174.htm

30 killed, 40 injured in suicide blast in NW Pakistan

ISLAMABAD, Aug. 23 (Xinhua) -- At least 30 people were killed and 40 others injured in a suicide blast which took place Monday afternoon near a mosque in Wana Bazaar of South Waziristan in northwest Pakistan, reported local media Express.

According to the report, the blast took place at the main gate of Mulana Noor Muhammad Mosque in where there were reportedly more than 100 people offering prayers inside.

Shortly after the blast, the police have cordoned off the area and rescue work is now underway. The injured people have been shifted to different hospitals.

This is the third blast reported Monday in Pakistan.

Earlier Monday, a blast took place in Pakistan's northwest Khyber tribal agency, injuring seven security troops near a mosque in Bara. This was shortly followed by a remote-controlled explosion in adjoining Kurram tribal agency, killing at least eight people and injuring several others.

The second blast took place in Khomta, a central town in Kurram, when a tribal meeting was being held to resolve dispute over primary school issue.

[wildcard]

India cancels China defense exchanges

http://previous.presstv.ir/photo/20100827/pirhayati20100827075129280.jpg
WTF did you just say about my hat??? -- Lt. General BS Jaswa


http://www.presstv.ir/detail/140226.html


Fri Aug 27, 2010 8:54AM

India has cancelled defense exchanges with communist China after Beijing denied a visa to an Indian army general from the Jammu and Kashmir state.


China refused to issue a visa to the General Officer Commanding in Chief in Jammu and Kashmir, Lt. Gen. BS Jaswal.

The commander is responsible for Indian army operations in the Muslim-majority disputed region.

New Delhi said Beijing had to be sensitive to the Indian government's concerns, one of which is the Kashmir region.

"While we value our exchanges with China, there must be sensitivity to each others' concerns. Our dialogue with China on these issues is ongoing," India's External Affairs Ministry said in a statement, Hindustan Times reported on Friday.

Kashmir has witnessed protests against Indian rule triggered by recent killings blamed on government forces. Sixty-four people have lost their lives in two months of violence. The New Delhi government's refusal to send a word of apology over the slayings and the reluctance shown by the Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh to order an end to shootings have added to the anger of protestors.

Indian-administered Kashmir has been the scene of pro-independence demonstrations almost on a daily basis despite strict curfews.

Anti-India sentiment runs high in the region. Residents reject Indian dominion over the region -- claimed by both India and Pakistan -- and want a separate homeland or unity with Pakistan.

More than 68,000 people have lost their lives in Kashmir since 1989.

[wildcard]

Taliban attack NATO bases in E Afghanistan, 13 suicide bombers killed

http://news.xinhuanet.com/english2010/world/2010-08/28/c_13466918.htm

KHOST, Afghanistan, Aug. 28 (Xinhua)-- A group of Taliban insurgents launched an attack on NATO bases in eastern Afghanistan 's Khost province early on Saturday, police said.

"A group of Taliban terrorists raided two bases of NATO-led troops in Khost province early Saturday but all the attackers were killed," provincial police chief Abdul Hakim Ishaqzai told Xinhua.

He also added that the militants attacked NATO-led forces base in Sahra Bagh and old airfield at 05:00 a.m. local time with suicide bombers rockets and small arms.

Ishaqzai further said that all the insurgents were killed and the situation is under full control at the moment.

However, he could not give the exact numbers of the attackers killed during the counter attack.

Earlier he put the number of those insurgents killed in counter attack as high as six.

Meanwhile, NATO-led forces in a statement released here said that Afghan and coalition forces killed 13 Haqqani network insurgents, four of them were wearing suicide vests, as they attempted to attack Salerno base Saturday morning.

"No Afghan or coalition forces were killed in the attack," the statement said.

Haqqani network is the military wing of Taliban outfit operating in the east, southeast as well as in Afghan capital Kabul.

Previously, press department of NATO-led troops in southeast Afghanistan put the number of insurgents killed in counter attack as high as 11. It also said that five more attackers were detained and two soldiers sustained injuries.

Meanwhile, Taliban spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid claimed of responsibility and in talks with media via telephone from undisclosed location said 20 suicide bombers stormed NATO bases in Khost province.

Mujahid also claimed that the militants shot down a helicopter in old airfield.

He also said huge casualties was inflicted on the troops but failed to give a figure.

Taliban militants have vowed to intensify their attacks mostly in the shape of suicide and roadside bombings against Afghan and NATO-led troops stationed in Afghanistan.

[wildcard]

http://www.hindustantimes.com/In-a-snub-Pakistan-asks-India-to-send-aid-through-UN/Article1-593100.aspx

In a snub, Pakistan asks India to send aid through UN

Pakistan has declined an Indian offer of $5 million aid for flood victims directly and wants it to be routed through the United Nations, Dunya TV reported in Islamabad on Saturday. "We have conveyed to India that they can send their aid to us through UN," Foreign Office spokesman Abdul Basit told Dunya TV by via telephone.

He said the UN was the flagship organisation for all foreign aid pouring into the country from different parts of the world for flood-hit people.

India offered the aid to assist the rehabilitation of over 20 million displaced people in Pakistan following flash floods that started July 28 and continue to rock the infrastructure across the country. More than 1,600 people have died this month.

Pakistan had earlier shown reluctance to accept the Indian offer.

...continues at link

[wildcard]

Nine killed on Kashmir de facto border

http://www.presstv.ir/detail/140660.html

Nine suspected militants trying to sneak into Indian-administered Kashmir have been killed in a gunfight with Indian troops on the de facto border, officials say.


"The army has foiled a major infiltration attempt by killing nine militants who were trying to infiltrate into Kashmir from across the Line of Control (LoC)," army spokesman J.S. Brar told AFP.

The gun battle erupted late Sunday in western Uri sector after troops noticed a group of militants trying to sneak in from Pakistan-controlled Kashmir under the cover of darkness.

The firefight is still continuing in the dense forest, said Brar, adding that army reinforcements had been sent to the scene of the fighting.

In the past, India had accused the Pakistani army of providing covering fire for infiltrating militants, the charges Islamabad denies.

The LoC divides the volatile region of Kashmir into India- and Pakistan-controlled areas. The line is 720 kilometers long, running in a non-linear way over rugged terrain near Jammu in the southwest up to glacial heights of the Himalayas near China's Sinkiang province in the northeast.

[wildcard]

http://www.presstv.ir/detail/140880.html

Dozens killed in Pakistan explosions

Multiple bomb explosions at a Shia Muslim gathering in the eastern Pakistani city of Lahore have left at least 28 people dead and 200 others wounded.


Three bombs went off in quick succession during a crowded mourning procession in the Karbla Game Shah area of Lahore on Wednesday, a Press TV correspondent reported.

"The three explosions took place at the end of a Shia mourning procession in Lahore city," a local police official Shahid Qureshi told AFP.

The Shia Muslims were marking the martyrdom of the first Shia Imam, Ali Ibn-Abi Taleb (PBUH).

Medics say the death toll is expected to rise as some of the injured are said to be in critical condition.

Despite being considered a stable and peaceful city, Lahore has seen several bomb attacks over the past couple of years.

Pro-Taliban groups have launched a violent campaign against the Shia Muslims, and are stretching the campaign toward the so-called stable areas of Pakistan as well.

Several Shia religious gatherings have been targeted in central province of Punjab over the past few months.

Since the 1980s, thousands of people have been killed in sectarian-related incidents in Pakistan.

[wildcard]

Oops, see what happens to leaders that don't want to get in line?

http://edition.cnn.com/2010/WORLD/asiapcf/09/02/afghanistan.air.strike/#fbid=cktWLY2_n4F&wom=false

10 killed in NATO airstrike in Afghanistan

September 2, 2010

Kabul, Afghanistan (CNN) -- Ten parliamentary campaign workers were killed in a NATO airstrike in northeastern Afghanistan on Thursday, a provincial official said.

The incident -- which took place ahead of the September 18 parliamentary election -- occurred in the Rostaq district of Takhar province, where NATO says it was targeting a militant.

Afghan President Hamid Karzai, who has consistently deplored civilian casualties in the war, condemned the strike, which occurred on the same day he's scheduled to meet with U.S. Defense Secretary Robert Gates.

Faiz Mohammad, spokesman for the provincial governor, said the event happened because NATO-led and Afghan security forces are not coordinating their activities properly.

NATO's International Security Assistance Force told CNN it is "still looking into this situation" and "gathering the facts."

"We're aware of the allegations that this strike caused civilian causalities and we'll do our best to get to the bottom of the accusations," U.S. Marine Corps Maj. Gen. David Garza, an ISAF official, said in a press release.

"What I can say is these vehicles were nowhere near a populated area and we're confident this strike hit only the targeted vehicle after days of tracking the occupants' activity."

Along with the deaths, candidate Abdul Wahid Khorazani and another campaign worker were injured, Mohammad said. He said the civilians were campaigning for Khorazani at the time.

ISAF said it carried out "a precision airstrike targeting an Islamic Movement of Uzbekistan senior member," determined to be the deputy shadow governor for Takhar.

"Intelligence tracked the insurgents traveling in a sedan on a series of remote roads in Rustaq district. After careful planning to ensure no civilians were present, coalition aircraft conducted a precision airstrike on one sedan and later followed with direct fire from an aerial platform. The vehicle was traveling as part of a six-car convoy, but no other vehicles were hit in the strike," the military said.

ISAF wasn't able to get a ground force to the region right away, but "initial reflections indicate eight to 12 insurgents were killed or injured in the strike, including a Taliban commander."

[wildcard]

Flood causes 1,710 death, 43 bln dollar loss in Pakistan

http://news.xinhuanet.com/english2010/world/2010-09/02/c_13475797.htm

2010-09-02

By Jamil Bhatti

ISLAMABAD, Sept. 2 (Xinhua) -- The flash floods in Pakistan have left 1,710 people dead, millions homeless and caused a loss of over 43 billion U.S. dollars, the government said Thursday.

According to a survey report by Pakistan's Federal Flood Commission (FFC) released Thursday morning, at least 1,710 people died and another 2,632 were injured as the floodwater in the Indus River finally rushed into the Arabian Sea after ravaging the country for five weeks.

Chairing a federal cabinet meeting on Wednesday, Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani said the economic losses inflicted by the floods were estimated at 43 billion dollars, almost equal to the expenditures incurred on the war on terror over the past nine years.

"The national economy is expected to grow four percent this year, but it might end up at 2.5 percent, causing massive job losses and affecting incomes of thousands of families," said Gilani.

Gilani also said that the devastation might also affect revenue collection and increase expenditures, widening the budget deficit and hitting the textile and sugar sectors and in turn affect the balance of payments and external resource stability.

"Growth of the manufacturing sector might fall far below the target of 5.6 percent and inflation might increase to 15-20 percent, more than the 9.5 percent target," the prime minister worried.

Briefing media after the meeting, Information Minister Qamar Zaman Kaira said 20 million people had been affected and more than 7.5 million of them had been displaced.

The FFC report reveals that the floods devastated everything at large scale, affecting 11,003 villages, damaging 697,799 houses and washing away the crops at an area of over 1.79 million hectares besides perishing 220,061 cattle heads.

[Book]

Flood causes 1,710 death, 43 bln dollar loss in Pakistan

Pakistan should sell Iran a few nuke missiles to raise money in this glorious Free Trade world of Globalism. We believe in free trade and capitalism in a global economy...right?

|--0--|

[wildcard]

Death toll rises to 40 in Pakistan's suicide blast

QUETTA, Pakistan, Sept.3 (Xinhua) -- At least 40 people were killed and over 100 others injured in a Friday afternoon suicide blast that took place in Pakistan's southwest city of Quetta, reported local media.

According to the reports, the blast occurred at about 3:05 pm when a suicide bomber blew himself up among a rally at the Meezan Chowk area of Quetta city. The rally is reportedly gathered to show the support for the Palestinian people. An estimated 2,500 people reportedly took part in the rally, said an eyewitness, adding that the rally is organized by Shia muslims.

On Wednesday night, a massive attack targetting Shia Muslims took place in Pakistan's eastern city of Lahore, during which at least two suicide bombers blew themselves up among hundreds of thousands of Shia Muslims who were marching on the streets in the city to mark the death anniversary of Ali, the son-in-law of Prophet Muhammad , killing at least 37 people and injuring over 200 others.

Punjab-based terrorist group named Lashkar-e-Jhangvi which comprises Sunni Muslims later claimed the responsibility for the deadly attack.

Shortly after today's blast in Quetta, police have cordoned off the area and reportedly fired in the air to hold back people who tried to enter the blast site in fear of possible attack by angry people who have lost their beloved ones in the blast as it did happen following Wednesday night's blasts in Lahore.

All the injured people have reportedly been shifted to different hospitals in the city. At least four media people who were present to cover the rally were also injured, sources in Quetta told Xinhua.

So far no group has claimed responsibility for the attack yet.

[wildcard]

http://www.hindustantimes.com/News-Feed/chunk-ht-ui-homepage-world/Quetta-blast-toll-rises-to-73/Article1-595660.aspx

Quetta blast toll rises to 73

Islamabad, September 03, 2010


At least 73 people were killed and more than 150 injured in a blast that ripped through a procession taken out by the Shia community near Meezan chowk in Quetta, capital of Pakistan's Balochistan province, media reports said. Bomb disposal squad officials confirmed that the blast was caused by a suicide attacker who blew himself up. As many as 59 bodies were received by combined military hospital (CMH), 10 were brought to civil hospital, while Bolan medical complex received four bodies.

Driver of Aaj TV crew Muhammad Sarwar also died in the blast while several cameramen covering the procession were injured. City police authorities said the participants of the procession were asked to disperse, as per prior agreement, before Meezan chowk but they did not heed to it.

Angry participants of the procession and activists of Imamia Students Organisation (ISO) resorted to aerial firing after the incident and also torched a government building. DSNG van of a local TV channel was also fired at that broke the wind screen. However, the driver and other staff remained unhurt.

Balochistan Shia Conference has announced 40 days of mourning to condemn the blast. Balochistan Chief Minister Sardar Aslam Raisani has announced to provide free treatment to all injured people. Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gillani has ordered high level probe into the unfortunate incident.

Emergency has been declared in Quetta hospitals to cater to the situation. Because of shia community processions scheduled across the country after Friday prayers, security was on high alert because of terror threats. Earlier on Wednesday, three back-to-back blasts in Lahore on a Shia procession had killed more than 35 people and injured more than 250 others.

[wildcard]

http://www.hindustantimes.com/mumbai-ii-could-spark-off-full-blown-indo-pak-war/article1-598743.aspx

'Mumbai II could spark off full blown Indo-Pak war'

Press Trust Of India
Washington, September 11, 2010

As US observes the ninth anniversary of the September 11 terror attacks, a reputed Washington-based research group today warned that a repeat of 26/11 may lead to a full blown Indo-Pak war.

Preventing Mumbai-II from occurring remains a major foreign policy challenge for the US, the report said. "One of the more predictable foreign policy challenges of the next years is a 'Mumbai II': a large-scale attack on a major Indian city by a Pakistani militant group that kills hundreds," said the 42-page report from the Bipartisan Policy Centre's National Security Preparedness Group, a Washington based research group.

Authored by Peter Bergen and Bruce Hoffman, the report "Assessing the Terrorist Threat" appreciated the considerable restraint shown by India in its reaction to the provocation of the Mumbai attacks in 2008.

"Another such attack, however, would likely produce considerable political pressure on the Indian government to 'do something'. That something would likely involve incursions over the border to eliminate the training camps of Pakistani militant groups with histories of attacking India," the report said.

"That could lead in turn to a full-blown war for the fourth time since 1947 between India and Pakistan," it said. "Such a war involves the possibility of a nuclear exchange and the certainty that Pakistan would move substantial resources to its eastern border and away from fighting the Taliban on its western border, so relieving pressure on all the militant groups based there, including al-Qaeda," said the report.

Over a three-day period in late November 2008, Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) carried out multiple attacks in Mumbai targeting five-star hotels housing Westerners, as well as a Jewish-American community centre, it noted. Additional incidents involved the Pakistan-born US citizen David Headley (who had changed his name from Daood Sayed Gilani).

Headley's reconnaissance efforts on behalf of LeT were pivotal to the attacks in Mumbai, the report said. "Last year he also planned an operation to kill those responsible for the 2005 publication in a Danish newspaper of cartoons of the Prophet Mohammed, which many Muslims had deemed to be offensive," the report said.

[wildcard]

http://www.hindustantimes.com/Kashmir-erupts-again-ahead-of-Cabinet-meet/H1-Article1-599324.aspx

Kashmir erupts again ahead of Cabinet meet

Samar Halarnkar , Hindustan Times
Srinagar, September 12, 2010

Fresh violence swept troubled Kashmir and its capital despite one of its tightest and most suffocating curfews of the current unrest, as Chief Minister Omar Abdullah stayed in Delhi, insisting he was “putting pressure” on the Centre for a political package ahead of a union cabinet meeting on Monday.

Late on Sunday, police vans announced indefinite curfew across many towns and the first night curfew in Srinagar since the militancy of the 1990s. The government disabled Internet data cards, security checkpoints refused to honour curfew passes, and there was no loosening of curfew after 7 pm, as is usually the case.

“We appeal to you not to leave your houses, you could be shot at if you do,” late-night announcements said in downtown Srinagar.

On the 92nd days of the current disturbances, the toll climbed to 70 with the death in a Srinagar hospital of a 35-year-old stone thrower who took a bullet in his neck six days ago.

Abdullah said Sunday’s violence was confined to a handful of places in Srinagar, but the police reported unrest in several towns, with the house of Education Minister Peerzada Mohammad Sayeed coming under intense attack from protestors in Anantnag, an hour south of Srinagar.

Even as the police registered first information reports (FIRs) against Kashmir’s chief priest, the moderate separatist Mirwaiz Umar Farooq and emerging hardliner Masrat Alam, of instigating Id violence, the Mirwaiz told the Hindustan Times there could be hopes for peace if the cabinet fulfilled these conditions:

•Announcing the repeal of, not amendments to, the controversial Armed Forces Special Powers Act (AFSPA), especially in areas like Baramulla, Kupwara, Rajouri and Poonch, where the army is heavily deployed.

•Removing the “more dangerous” Public Safety Act, under which anyone can be detained for up to two years without trial.

•“Gradual demilitarisation” of the Valley’s major cities, by moving paramilitary camps of the CRPF and BSF. It would make a “huge difference”, said the Mirwaiz.

“Nothing will happen with half-hearted cosmetic gestures,” the Mirwaiz said. “Only concrete measures will do.”

Criticised for being in Delhi when the Kashmir was burning, Abdullah said he was not on a private visit but as “a prelude” to the Cabinet Committee on Security (CCS).

"Since I am in Delhi, it is obvious I will stay with my family," he told HT.

On Saturday, Abdullah — who also wasn’t in Srinagar when the first unrest began in June — appeared on news channels to say the Mirwaiz had betrayed his trust by leading crowds to Lal Chowk after Id prayers. The Mirwaiz accused Abdullah of lying.

“Three FIRs have been registered against Mirwaiz Umar Farooq at three police stations of Srinagar. At Lal Chowk area, Mirwaiz Umar Farooq (and others) by their speeches instigated the public to resort to arson and damage public property,” said a police spokesman.

Charges and counter-charges continued over Saturday’s arson. Hardline separatist leader Syed Ali Shah Geelani, released on Saturday, criticised the FIRs against the Mirwaiz and Alam. He alleged the involvement of Ikhwanis (pro-government gunmen) in the arson.

The offices of a Chief Engineer, a security barrack at the Hazratbal shrine (housing a hair of the prophet), and the Crime Branch Headquarters were set on fire. A police spokesman said “cases of social and public importance, like rape and murder, human-rights violations, land scams and corruption scandals were under investigation at Crime Branch”.

The Mirwaiz said the FIRs against him were the same “oppressive tactics” in use for the past 20 years. He denied his men were involved in the arson.

“As per eyewitnesses, the fire started from the top of the building mysteriously, and no protester was seen around it,” said the Mirwaiz. “How could a building that is fenced by a 20-ft-high brick wall and razor wire start burning from the top? It raises serious doubts, and that need to be impartially investigated, so that the conspiracy behind the arson is known.”

The FIR against Bhat and compatriot Mehraj-ud-Din Kalwal is for instigating violence at the Hazratbal shrine on Saturday. “They caused disaffection among public by their speech,” said the police spokesman.

[wildcard]

http://www.hindustantimes.com/News-Feed/srinagar/12-killed-70-hurt-in-Kashmir-Omar-appeals-for-peace/Article1-599552.aspx

12 killed, 70 hurt in Kashmir, Omar appeals for peace

Press Trust Of India
Srinagar, September 13, 2010

In a sudden flare-up of violence in Kashmir today, 17 people, including a policeman, were killed and over 70 injured with mobs torching several government properties and a school, some of the trouble triggered by a TV report alleging desecration of the Quran in the US.

The state cabinet, which met this evening, condemned the alleged act of desecration and made a fervent appeal to the people not to take law in their own hands.

In New Delhi, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh voiced concern over the ongoing unrest in Jammu and Kashmir. He also sought to reach out to the people in the state, saying their grievances have to be addressed and promised talks within the Indian Constitution with those who abjure violence.

Five persons were killed and more than 20 injured in firing by security forces at Tangmarg, 45km from Srinagar, in Baramulla district after protesters went on a rampage setting ablaze a private school, run by a minority educational group, following the report of desecration.

DGP Kuldeep Khoda said 41 persons were seriously injured and they included 2 SPs one of whom was airlifted from Bandipora to Srinagar.

He said a mob torched a Block Development Office, court chamber, tehsildar's official vehicle and residence, social welfare office, patwari office and two huts of tourism department.

The agitators then attacked a police station and tried to ransack it, prompting the security forces to fire at them.

While two youths Muddasir Ahmad Parray and Abdul Majid were declared dead at the nearby Magam Sub District Hospital, another youth succumbed to injuries at a city hospital here. He has been identified as Abdul Qayoom, officials at the hospitals said.

Two injured youths, identified as Afaq Ahmad Khan and Tariq Ahmad Ganai, were declared dead on arrival at a city hospital.

Another mob attacked a security forces camp at Humhama in Budgam district, prompting retaliatory fire in which two were killed.

In Charar-e-Sharief, protesters pelted stones at a CRPF camp, Deputy Commissioner, Budgam, Rafi Ahmed said. The CRPF personnel resorted to firing to disperse the mob. Seven persons were injured one of whom succumbed to his injuries.

A woman died on the spot when she was hit by a stray bullet inside her residential compound at Ompora in Budgam.

A policeman, Devender Singh, was killed when he was run over by a vehicle while chasing a stone-pelting mob also in Budgam.

In another clash in Bandipora, one person was killed and two others injured when security forces opened fire to quell a stone-pelting mob, police said.

Three persons lost their lives in clashes in Pampore town of Pulwama district and other parts of the Valley while a youth injured in firing allegedly by security forces succumbed in hospital.

A teenaged boy was killed and another critically injured when security forces allegedly opened fire to disperse a stone-pelting mob in Anantnag district of South Kashmir late in the evening, police sources said.

Aaqib Ahmad Wagay and Firdous Ahmad were hit by bullets when security forces opened fire in self-defence after their vehicle was attacked by a stone-pelting mob near Lazibal, 60 kms from here, the sources said. Both the injured youth were taken to hospital where Wagay was declared dead.

One person was killed in a firing incident at Chanakhan in Sopore area of Baramulla district, the sources said.

Conflicting reports were, however, received as to who opened fire that killed Rafiq Ahmad Teli but a police spokesman said he was felled by a bullet fired by militants who tried to target security forces.

The spokesman said one policeman was also injured in the firing by the ultras.

A mob set on fire the house of a police constable at Kreeri in Pattan area of the district as he was posted at police station Tangmarg where five persons were killed in police firing. One of the deceased was a resident of Pattan area.

Today's violence coincided with the call of hardline faction of Hurriyat Conference headed by Syed Ali Shah Geelani for a march to the local office of the United Nations Military observors at Sonawar here. The march was, however, foiled by the authorities with the strict implementation of the curfew in the city.

A youth was feared dead after he jumped into a river to escape arrest while being chased by security forces at Khannabal, 55 kms from here in Anantnag district.

Two others also jumped along with the youth but they managed to swim to safety. Efforts are on to trace the missing youth, the sources

Jammu and Kashmir government, meanwhile, banned an international news channel, Press TV, after it aired the report about alleged desecration of the holy book.

"The transmission of Press TV in Jammu and Kashmir has been banned with immediate effect," State Chief Secretary S S Kapur told reporters here.

He said the move was prompted after reports of the sacrilege act. Also, the channel was not registered with the Union Information and Broadcasting Ministry as required under the law.

[DMac]

14 People Killed in Indian Kashmir in Deadliest Violence for Months (http://www.voanews.com/english/news/-Kashmir-Protests-Turn-Deadly--102769324.html)


Officials say the protests were partly fueled by reports on an Iranian state-run channel that a Quran had been damaged in the United States during the weekend.

Iran slams silence on Quran desecration (http://www.presstv.com/detail/142296.html)
Iran's Parliament Speaker Ali Larijani censures the US silence on the outrageous act of desecrating the holy Quran, urging the Muslim world to take swift action against it.

[wildcard]

What did you think that was all about? I told you it was just to stir up hate between Americans and muzlims. The jew wins again.

[DMac]

What did you think that was all about? I told you it was just to stir up hate between Americans and muzlims. The jew wins again.


No surprised face here.

[wildcard]

Don't push us too far on Kashmir, its ours: Pakistan warned US

Press Trust Of India
Washington, September 14, 2010

US had asked Pakistan in 2002 to end infiltration across the Line of Control in Jammu and Kashmir but was instead told not to "push it too far" on the issue with an assertion that "Kashmir should have been ours", according to declassified documents.

This communication forms part of a meeting Richard Haass, the then Director of Policy Planning Staff at the US State Department, had with an unnamed Pakistani military official on October 31, 2002 to discuss US-Pak cooperation a year after the deadly 9/11 attacks in the US.

"On Kashmir, Haass stressed the importance of ending infiltration, but the Pak official warned the US not to push Pakistan too far on Kashmir," classified documents released on Monday said.

According to the document, Haass told the top official that he was pleased about the (Indian) announcement of troop pullback from the border as de-escalation would free resources to be devoted to sealing the Afghan border and counter-terrorism.

"It appeared that India wanted to renew contacts but continued infiltration was a barrier to progress," Haass said.

"The US believed that infiltration was continuing. Stopping it would help Pakistan's cause with the US and India. Infiltration hurts Pakistan's friends efforts to help it," he said, according to the documents.

The Pakistan official agreed that Kashmir was the issue "bedevilling our relations". But Pakistan’s Kashmir position was "based on justice", he argued.

"Kashmir should have been ours. The Pakistani people would not agree to make the LOC (Line of Control) the international border. Kashmir had cost Musharraf a lot, as had his decision to help the CT coalition.

"Musharraf's detractors had hit him on both Kashmir and Afghanistan. India had tried to exploit the political atmosphere after 9/11," the Pak official said.

"Haass relied that he perceived an opportunity to improve the situation in and surrounding Kashmir. India seemed to realize that lack of political and economic opportunity and abuse of human rights created support for insurgency and a better context for diplomacy was now being created.

"Haas said that both improved governance and diplomacy were key to moving forward on Kashmir," the documents said.

At the same meeting, Pakistan pleaded with the US to provide it with an aerial surveillance capability.

Pakistan would have no objection to the same capability being provided to India, the Pakistani official said and proposed that it might be an excellent confidence building measure, as if the two sides could see what was happening across the border to reduce the possibility of misconstruing what the other side was doing, the documents said.

[wildcard]

http://news.bbcimg.co.uk/media/images/49085000/gif/_49085561_kashmir_304.gif


Kashmir mob defies curfew to pelt troops with stones

14 September 2010

A mob has defied the curfew in Indian-administered Kashmir, pelting the security forces with stones.

Police fired tear gas at the group in Khanpora Baramulla district, north Kashmir, and one man was injured. The curfew has been extended to new areas.

Meanwhile, all commercial flights to Kashmir have been cancelled for three days, given the ongoing trouble.

Police shot dead 18 civilians on Monday in the deadliest day since the Kashmir protests erupted three months ago.

A policeman was also killed when he was run over by a lorry.

The BBC's Altaf Hussain in the main city of Srinagar says reports of Koran desecration in the US have stoked anger.

Scores of Kashmiris have now died since June, when anti-India protests broke out after police shot dead a teenager.

The curfew was extended on Tuesday to cover fresh areas; thousands more federal police were deployed across the valley.

Police patrolled the streets of Srinagar using loudspeakers to warn residents to stay indoors.

On Monday night, an angry mob set fire to a private school in Pulwama town.

A policeman's house was also torched in Anantnag district, police said.

Thousands of people defied the curfew and took to the streets on Monday, chanting anti-India and anti-US slogans and burning effigies of US President Barack Obama.

Protesters set fire to several government buildings and a Protestant-run school, as well as attacking a police station.

Police fired live ammunition to break up the demonstrations. Eighteen civilians were killed and more than 100 people were wounded.

A policeman died after he was run over by a lorry driven by demonstrators in the town of Humahama.

The Indian government said it was "deeply distressed" by the violence.

The latest violence was partially caused by last week's plan by a Florida church to burn copies of the Koran during the 9/11 anniversary caused outrage across the Muslim world; it was eventually called off.

But reports that pages had been torn from a Koran outside the White House over the weekend reignited the controversy and further heightened tensions in the Kashmir Valley.

Kashmir has been a flashpoint between India and Pakistan for more than 50 years.

[DMac]

What did you think that was all about? I told you it was just to stir up hate between Americans and muzlims. The jew wins again.


I don't think we've seen the end of this Koran burning brouhaha.

Problem, meet reaction:

'US accountable for Quran desecration' (http://www.presstv.ir/detail/142437.html)


A senior Iranian lawmaker has held Washington accountable for all consequences resulting from the provocative desecration of the holy Quran in the United States.


"US police reluctance to react to such sacrilegious action indicates Washington's green light to such a heinous crime," Head of National Security and Foreign Policy Commission of Iran's Parliament (Majlis) Alaeddin Boroujerdi told the Fars news agency on Tuesday.

Boroujerdi, however, termed the US as the main loser of this dangerous game, saying the action lumps the Obama administration together with that of the Bush.

"The US government should take serious action against the perpetrators of this provocative move and declare its stance on that regard," Boroujerdi went on to say.


Prior to this year's anniversary of the September 11 attacks, an extremist Florida pastor, Terry Jones, officially declared that he would set the Quran on fire, but he was forced to call off his decision after he faced international condemnation.

Yet, some anti-Islam protestors burned pages of the Muslim's holy book on September 11, facing no police intervention or reaction whatsoever.

Meanwhile, another group tore some pages of the holy Quran in front of the White House.

The insulting move triggered angry protests across the world, particularly in Muslim states.

[wildcard]

Yeah, now we've have a nation of zealots angry at us. And their words are backed by nuclear weapons! (sorry civ II reference)

[zap]

Quote;;;;The BBC's Altaf Hussain in the main city of Srinagar says reports of Koran desecration in the US have stoked anger.


I really don't give a sh*t is they are angry, TOOO F--EN BADD!!

[DMac]

http://www.tehrantimes.com/index_View.asp?code=226896

Iran expresses concern over Kashmir crackdown
Tehran Times Political Desk

TEHRAN -- Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Ramin Mehmanparast has expressed concern over the crackdown in Indian-administered Kashmir, in which a number of Muslims have been killed.

Cracking down on the protests will only increase Muslims’ anger, Mehmanparast said on Saturday.

Thousands of people staged massive demonstrations in several districts of Kashmir on Thursday to voice their anger over the desecration of the Quran in the United States.

Fourteen Kashmiri Muslims and an Indian police officer were killed during the protests.

Terry Jones, the pastor of the Gainesville, Florida-based Dove World Outreach Center church, had intended to set the Quran on fire on the ninth anniversary of the September 11, 2001 attacks against the United States but cancelled his plan due to international pressure and criticism.

However, a copy of the Quran was burned by a U.S. citizen on September 12.

Since then, millions of Muslims have taken to the streets across the world to denounce the desecration of the Quran