Thursday, October 15, 2009

I do not believe the Pakistan authorities are so stressed for direction they are showing any signs of defeat...

...as the installations and targets of the criminals are unprotected.

These attacks aren't expected and there are no barriers to prevent these attacks.

It speaks loudly to the fact there isn't so much a since war within Pakistan so much as a 'police action' to bring regions of the country away from the oppressive influence of the Taliban. These acts of violence are more akin to the 'sectarian' attacks we witnessed in Iraq for so long.

...The FIA building was attacked on March 11 last year and Manawan Training School on March 30 this year. Thirty-six people had lost their lives in the two attacks.

In the end, all the 10 terrorists were dead (click here)— either killed by law enforcers or blowing themselves up after having been cornered — but they kept the city on tenterhooks for more than three hours. The entire security paraphernalia was mobilised and police, elite force, Rangers and the army were all roped in as the scale and magnitude of the attack became evident....


Obama signs Kerry-Lugar bill into law (click title to entry - thank you)
By Anwar Iqbal Friday, 16 Oct, 2009

The US president signed the Enhanced Partnership with Pakistan Act of 2009, also known as the Kerry-Lugar-Berman bill, without fanfare before leaving on a trip to New Orleans.
The bill has come under fierce criticism in Pakistan, which dampened the US desire to showcase the bill as a major milestone towards establishing long-term partnership with Pakistan.
Although Foreign Minister Shah Mehmood Qureshi told a news briefing in Washington on Wednesday that Obama would also attach a signing statement to the new law, the White House said that the president did not and had no intention to do so.

A signing statement underscores the way the executive intends to implement a law, which may differ from the text of the law itself. ‘This law is the tangible manifestation of broad support for Pakistan in the US, as evidenced by its bipartisan, bicameral, unanimous passage in Congress,’ White House spokesman Robert Gates said....

Two injured in grenade attack in Quetta (click here)
DawnNews Report Thursday, 15 Oct, 2009

The injured security personnel were shifted to the Combined Military Hospital for medical treatment, according to the police.

Earlier in the day, militants launched attacks in Lahore, and carried out bombings in Peshawar and Kohat.

Target Killings

Unknown gunmen also killed one person inside a shop and injured another, in what police are describing as a target killing.

The assailants shot the shopkeeper when Quetta’s Jinnah road was at its busiest. The attackers then abandoned the body of the victim and fled from the scene.

Quetta has been hit by four target killings in as many days, highlighting the precarious security situation in the city.

A poll in the "Dawn" Newspaper (click here)

Should western coalition forces negotiate with the Afghan Taliban?
Yes(46%)
No(49%)
Don’t know(5%)

It is very similar to the sectarian violence that spawned in Iraq. It is a matter of the local police to come to terms with how best to handle the mess. They know it is coming, they can identify the criminals when they enter the city. It is a matter of how do they control this? To confront the criminals is to spawn violence.

I don't believe a private security force is the answer. That will confuse the issue.

Huge blast strikes Peshawar, several injured (click here)
Thursday, 15 Oct, 2009

Preliminary reports suggest the attack was carried out by a car bomb, Peshawar’s CCPO Liaquat Ali told DawnNews.
The CCPO said that a car packed with explosives was parked at the scene, and that it was later detonated by remote control
Police cordoned off the area and the injured were being shifted to the Lady Reading hospital.
People trapped under the rubble were still being dug out, and sources told DawnNews that eight injured survivors and the body of a dead child were shifted to the Lady Reading Hospital.
Earlier, the city of Peshawar had been placed on high alert, after reports that terrorists had entered the city.
Residents interviewed by DawnNews said that they were unhappy with the security which had been provided by the government, and that they had been trying to arrange for private protection for some time.
Initial reports suggest that the bomb exploded outside the NWFP chief minister’s driver’s house.— DawnNews

Large explosive operations such as this are usually the work of al Qaeda. Here again it isn't the military that is in a quandry to respond to unexpected local attacks, it is the police trying to deal with these thugs. It sounds as though there is a considerable bit of confusion in regard to containing and responding to this issue.

TTP claims killing 11 in Kohat blast (click here)
By Abdul Sami Paracha Friday, 16 Oct, 2009

...The police station is in a high-security zone where official residences of Kohat region’s DIG, district police officer and district coordination officer, PAF officers’ mess and flats and a security checkpost are located.
According to officials, the light green double-cabin pick-up driven by a young man slammed into the main gate of the Saddar police station. The van carried about 100kg of explosives.
The powerful blast created a six-foot deep and 10-foot wide crater. Nearly half of the police station’s building and a boundary wall of the nearby officers’ mess collapsed. Eight vehicles were destroyed and a school building and several houses were damaged.
The place was strewn with parts of victims’ bodies and some parts were found even on roofs of nearby houses. The blast was heard in places as far as Darra Adamkhel.
A student who was going to school was among the dead. Hospital sources confirmed to have received 11 bodies. The three slain policemen who died were identified as constables Fayyazul Hassan, Mohammad Noor and Khursheed. The civilian victims are Javed, Tariq, Haji Baseer
Khan, Abdul Wali, Tahir-ur-Rehman and Arshad Ali. Two bodies were mutilated beyond recognition.
The injured, two policemen and a prisoner among them, were taken to the Combined Military Hospital....

The current government in Pakistan is far from imploding. They are building alliances in the region to assist in stability. The more stability in the region, the less the criminals of the Taliban and al Qaeda can operate their killing campaigns.

Whoever expected Putin to show up on the scene? It is a good thing. There is more and more consolidation of effort between all the parties including The West. They will be contained. If there is anything Russia is BEST at, it is establishing 'stable government states' and containing chaos. If anyone can assist this to a peaceful end between India and Pakistan it will Putin. Absolutely.

It would be good if Kashmir was settled as well. I think a Saudi Price was asking Obama to intercede in Kashmir. I don't believe Obama will take up an active role with Kashmir, but, might include the issue with State Department initiatives. He and Secretary Clinton might seek to bring Kashmir to the talks.

Gilani, Putin agree to strengthen ties (click here)
By Shamim-ur-Rahman Thursday, 15 Oct, 2009

BEIJING: Pakistan and Russia agreed on Wednesday to re-launch their inter-governmental commission by the end of this year to revatalise bilateral relations, with focus on infrastructure development, energy, rail link, heavy industry and upgradation of Pakistan Steel.
The agreement was reached at a meeting between Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani and his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin held here on the sidelines of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation.
During the meeting which lasted about an hour and fifteen minutes, they agreed on the need for re-engaging relations, according to Pakistan’s Ambassador Masood Khan who briefed the media on the talks between the two leaders.
Mr Putin said his country would support Pakistan’s request for full membership of the SCO and indicated that he would back resumption of composite dialogue between India and Pakistan because reduction of tension between the two countries would facilitate improvement of Moscow’s relations with Islamabad....

Iraq is flying on its own. Hope for Afghanistan to do the same.


Iraq Prime Minister's Office, ho/AP Photo
In this image released by the Iraqi Prime Minister's Office, Iraq's Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki, right, shakes hands with his Turkish counterpart Receb Tayyip Erdogan, during a meeting in Baghdad, Iraq, Thursday, Oct. 15, 2009.


...Turkish-Iraqi ties have been warming since the 2003 (click here) U.S.-led invasion toppled dictator Saddam Hussein, but raids by Turkish forces pursuing Kurdish rebels who use northern Iraq as a stronghold have been a consistent sore point in relations.
Nouri al-Maliki delivered the message to Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan during a meeting in Baghdad, the Iraqi government spokesman said.
"Iraq's prime minister reiterated that the government will not allow any forces to cross Iraqi borders," said Ali al-Dabbagh.
In a statement delivered later Tuesday by Erdogan as he stood next to al-Maliki at the end of the visit, the Turkish leader said Turkey respects Iraqi sovereignty but emphasized that the Kurdish rebels are a threat to its security and that it will continue to combat them in the future....


85,000 people are a lot of people. Some would say that is an underestimate. I probably is. In 2003, Fallujah was a city of 600,000 people in 2003. 85,000 seems like an underestimate. There are still those in refugee camps and the Iraqi government can't say for sure all their citizens are accounted for within all the dispersals over the years since March 2003.

Iraq says 85,000 violently killed (click here)
Page last updated at 17:24 GMT, Wednesday, 14 October 2009 18:24 UK
Just over 85,000 Iraqis were killed in Iraq between 2004 and 2008, according to the first estimate from the Iraqi government since the war began.
The figure is based on death certificates issued by the ministry of health and included 15,000 unidentified bodies.
It counts violent deaths of military, police and civilians, but does not include foreigners or insurgents.
Previous attempts to calculate the number of dead have been controversial.
Past reports have used a number of different methods to produce estimates ranging from more than 100,000 to well over half a million deaths since 2003.
The Ministry of Human Rights included the figure in a larger report into human rights in the country....


It would seem the Iraqi army and police are being loyal to their leadership. They are fighting and dying to secure their country.

FACTBOX-Security developments in Iraq, Oct 15 (click here)
Thu Oct 15, 2009 8:43am EDT

Oct 15 (Reuters) - Following are security developments in Iraq at 1230 GMT on Thursday.* denotes a new or updated item*
MOSUL - A roadside bomb killed one policeman and wounded another officer and three civilians in western Mosul, 390 km (240 miles) north of Baghdad, police said.*
MOSUL - A roadside bomb targeting an Iraqi army patrol wounded one civilian in eastern Mosul, police said.*
BAGHDAD - A roadside bomb killed an Iraqi soldier and wounded two others and one civilian in north Baghdad's Adhamiya district, police said.
KIRKUK - A roadside bomb wounded four Iraqi policemen in southern Kirkuk, 250 km (155 miles) north of Baghdad, a police source said.
TUZ KHURMATO - A roadside bomb wounded a member of the Kurdish security forces on Wednesday in Tuz Khurmato, 170 km (105 miles) north of Baghdad, police said.
RAMADI - An assailant attacked and wounded a local journalist on Wednesday in Ramadi, 100 km (60 miles) west of Baghdad, police said.


Returning to Iraq: Oregon Army National Guard soldiers on leave reenter the war zone (click here)
By Mike Francis, The Oregonian
October 15, 2009, 5:25PM

KUWAIT CITY – It feels like any commercial flight, this Ryan Air 767 out of Dallas. "Get Smart" plays on the movie screens in each cabin, and flight attendants walk the aisles, collecting napkins and plastic cups. And then the pilot turns on the intercom and delivers an ambivalent welcome. "We're sorry to have to bring you back, but hopefully we'll see you on another one of our flights real soon, when you're coming home for good."...



Exclusive: Army Brigade Will Not Go to Iraq in January as Scheduled (click here)
Move Frees Up an Additional Combat Unit That Could Be Sent to Afghanistan
By LUIS MARTINEZ

Oct. 15, 2009
In perhaps another sign of the improving security situation in Iraq, an Army brigade slated to replace a departing unit this January has received orders not to deploy, defense officials told ABC News....

And this time when we leave a war behind we are doing it the right way. We aren't leaving enough munitions in the country for them to start and conduct still another war. The USA is leaving and taking everything home. I would think the USA and its allies need most of it in Afghanistan.

Leaving Iraq Is a Feat That Requires an Army (click title to entry - thank you)
By MARC SANTORA
Published: October 8, 2009
JOINT BASE BALAD, Iraq — There is no more visible sign that America is putting the
Iraq war behind it than the colossal operation to get its stuff out: 20,000 soldiers, nearly a sixth of the force here, assigned to a logistical effort aimed at dismantling some 300 bases and shipping out 1.5 million pieces of equipment, from tanks to coffee makers.
It is the largest movement of soldiers and matériel in more than four decades, the military said.
By itself, such a withdrawal would be daunting, but it is further complicated by
attacks from an insurgency that remains active; the sensitivities of the Iraqi government about a visible American presence; disagreements with the Iraqis about what will be left for them; and consideration for what equipment is urgently needed in Afghanistan....

California comes out of the closet and Ahnold is no Girly Man. Will the USA follow?


...The highly contentious piece of legislation (click here) drew strong support from the gay community and ire from conservative groups. After vetoing a similar bill last year, and recently implying that he would veto all of the bills on his desk if the legislature did not agree on a water bill, Schwarzenegger surprised many with his decision to honor Milk....



Governor OKs Harvey Milk Day, marriage bill (click title to entry - thank you)
Wyatt Buchanan, Chronicle Sacramento Bureau
Tuesday, October 13, 2009

...The governor signed the measure late Sunday along with new laws to help gay and lesbian people in the state, including a measure giving same-sex couples legally married in other states all the rights of marriage in California.
While the governor vetoed the bill honoring Milk last year, President Obama's awarding Milk the Presidential Medal of Freedom and an Academy Award-winning film about Milk's life moved Schwarzenegger to sign the bill, spokesman Aaron McLear said.
"The bill is symbolic of the importance of the gay community to California, which is why he signed it," McLear said, adding that Schwarzenegger wanted to "honor that community." It is the only such day of recognition for a gay or lesbian person in the United States.
The measure was among 478 bills signed by Schwarzenegger on Sunday, the deadline for him to act on legislation passed by the Legislature before its session ended Sept. 11. The governor vetoed 229 bills....


Obama: "I will end Don't Ask, Don't Tell"