LCCC
ENGLISH DAILY NEWS BULLETIN
ِAugust
08/2011
Bible Quotation for today
Romans 8/31-39: " What then shall we say
about these things? If God is for us, who can be against us? He who didn’t spare
his own Son, but delivered him up for us all, how would he not also with him
freely give us all things? Who could bring a charge against God’s chosen ones?
It is God who justifies. Who is he who condemns? It is Christ who died, yes
rather, who was raised from the dead, who is at the right hand of God, who also
makes intercession for us. Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Could
oppression, or anguish, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or
sword? Even as it is written, “For your sake we are killed all day long.
We were accounted as sheep for the slaughter. (Psalm 44:22) No, in all these
things, we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. For I am
persuaded, that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor
things present, nor things to come, nor powers, nor height, nor depth, nor
any other created thing, will be able to separate us from the love of God, which
is in Christ Jesus our Lord.
Latest
analysis, editorials, studies, reports, letters & Releases
from
miscellaneous
sources
Reading the Al-Qaeda files
and seeing what they can teach/By Walid Phares/August
07/11
Latest News Reports From
Miscellaneous Sources for August 07/11
Pope Benedict XVI calls for respect
of Syrians' “legitimate aspirations”
Ban Tells Assad to End Military
Onslaught in Syria
Turkey revives military threat as
Syrian tanks storm Deir al-Zour
STL Indictment to Be Released
between August 18 and 20
Arab League Urges Syria to Stop
violence 'Immediately'
Activists: At Least 57 Killed Today
in Syria, Including 38 in Deir Ezzor
Syrian Tanks Attack Deir al-Zour
Lebanon against
interference in Syria, Mansour tells Assad
Assad to Mansour: State is
Obligated to Confront Outlaws who are Terrorizing the People
Syria Hits Back, Asks GCC to
Condemn 'Armed Groups Acts'
Erdogan on Syrian Violence: We Have
Reached the End of our Patience
Shaaban: Turkey Will Hear Stronger
Statements from us When its FM Visits Damascus
Navy SEALs unit which killed Bin
Laden loses 22 men in Afghan helicopter crash
US Senator calls on Syria’s Assad
to step down
Prominent Syrian opposition figure
arrested, activist says
Prominent Syrian Opposition Figure
Arrested, as Protests Kick Off in Several Areas
One Killed, 8 Wounded as
Palestinians Clash at Ain al-Hilweh
Future bloc MP Riad Rahhal :
Lebanon’s UN stance contradicted Human Rights Charter
Sleiman discusses latest
developments with Rai
Al-Rahi to Suleiman: Dialogue Must be Resumed in Order to Reach Agreement on
Defense Strategy
Jumblat May Meet Hariri before Returning to Lebanon from Turkey Visit
Aoun: We are Not Spiteful, But Just
Baroud in Tunisia to Oversee its Parliamentary Elections
Al-Lino: We Can No Longer Remain
Lenient with Criminals Targeting Ain al-Hilweh
Lebanon: Prisoner dies in Roumieh
Families of detained
Islamists hold protest in Tripoli
Pope
Benedict XVI calls for respect of Syrians' “legitimate aspirations”
August 7, 2011 /Pope Benedict XVI called Sunday for an adequate response to the
"legitimate aspirations" of the Syrian people and a return to peaceful
coexistence in the conflict-torn nation. "I am following with deep concern the
dramatic and increasing episodes of violence in Syria that have led to numerous
victims and grave suffering," the pontiff said in a weekly address to pilgrims
at his summer residence in Castel Gandolfo, just outside Rome. Already in June
the pope expressed his concern over events in Syria in a meeting with the new
Syrian ambassador to the Holy See, Hussan Edin Aala. The pontiff said at the
time that mass demonstrations against the government in Damascus showed "the
urgent need for real reforms", calling for "respect for truth and human rights".
Benedict has said that Syria was traditionally "an example of tolerance, of
conviviality and of harmonious relations between Christians and Muslims".In May,
the pontiff made an appeal for an end to bloodshed in Syria and called on
authorities to "recognize legitimate aspirations for a future of peace and
stability."-AFP/NOW Lebanon
Syrian official responds to GCC’s call on Syria to “end
bloodshed”
August 7, 2011 /An unnamed Syrian official said on Sunday that Syria received
the Gulf Cooperation Council’s statement “with regret,” the Syrian Arab News
Agency reported.
The GCC on Saturday urged an end to "bloodshed" in Syria and called for major
reforms. “The statement completely ignored the information and the facts that
the Syrian state mentioned regarding murders and actions of sabotage carried out
by armed groups targeting [Syria’s] security and sovereignty and the [Syrian
people’s] future.”The source added that the statement also ignored the reforms
Syrian President Bashar al-Assad announced, as well as “Assad’s confirmation” of
the importance of national dialogue that is the only means to resolving the
current crisis. The political leadership was not prevented from working to carry
out reforms despite the Syrian opposition’s “negative” stance and despite the
“armed groups’ continuity of actions of murder and sabotage.”“[To end] the
current violence…[our] Arab brothers in the GCC need to demand the end of
sabotage and to condemn armed violence performed by groups that do not want [to
positively] serve Syria.”“We hope that our brothers in the gulf reconsider their
stance taking into consideration what the Syrian political leadership is doing
to overcome the current crisis, achieve security and stability, and fulfill the
Syrian people’s demands.”Anti-regime protests erupted in Syria in mid-March. At
least 1,583 civilians and 369 members of the army and security forces have been
killed, according to a Syrian Observatory toll.-NOW Lebanon
Turkey
revives military threat as Syrian tanks storm Deir al-Zour
DEBKAfile Exclusive Report August 7, 2011,
After capturing the northern town of Hama in a bloody military assault, Syrian
President Bashar Assad Sunday, Aug. 7, sent a whole division of 200 tanks and
dozens of armored vehicles to blast their way into another rebellious city,
Syria's oil center of Deir el-Zour in the Euphrates Valley, a town of half a
million inhabitants. At least 60 people were reported dead in one day.
debkafile's military sources report that while Hama is a Muslim Brotherhood
stronghold, Deir el-Zour is the urban center of some 2.1 million members of
assorted nomadic Bedouin tribes. They too are Sunni Muslims though of different
sects. The Baqqara tribal federation is the largest, numbering 1.2 million,
followed by the Fadan Walad and the Fadan Kharsa of the Euphrates Valley and the
al Shammar Karsah of Deir al Zour and its environs.
Unlike the protesters of Hama, these tribesmen lack anti-tank weapons for
battling Syrian armor and so their town may not hold out against the Syrian
onslaught beyond two or three days. The tribesmen have meanwhile run for cover
to the dense papyrus groves of the river bank and the narrow wadis of the Iraqi
al Anbar province just across the border. From these hiding places, our military
sources expect them refugees to organize protracted guerrilla warfare against
the Assad regime and Syrian army.
debkafile recalls that these are the very tribes which from 2003 to 2006 joined
al Qaeda in bloody warfare on US forces in central Iraq, preventing Anbar and
the central Iraqi towns of Falujja and Ramadi ever being completely subdued and
constantly convulsed by suicide attacks.
It was only when President George W. Bush agreed to implement the Awakening
Councils plan put forward by Gen. David Petraeus, the current CIA Director,
which involved substantial monthly payments to the tribal chiefs for warfare
against al Qaeda that, Al Anbar was pacified.
Aware of the menace posed by these tribes, Syrian security services last week –
ahead of the Deir el-Zour offensive – captured the Baqqara tribal chief Sheikh
Nawaf al-Bashir as hostage against the tribes joining the uprising against the
regime. Syrian military intelligence will find him a tough nut to crack – even
for a heavy bribe.
The upshot may well be that although the Syrian army finally subjugates Deir al-Zour
and Abu Kemal on the Iraqi border its forces will be cornered by Sunni tribes
which control the road networks around the two eastern towns and prey to their
raids.
Assad's offensive against the two towns also places at risk Syria's small oil
fields and pipeline system. Their daily product of $8-10 million is his primary
source of revenue for sustaining his war on the uprising and they will certainly
become a prime strategic target for the resistance.
Turkish Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan decided to send his foreign minister Ahmed
Davutoglu to Damascus Tuesday, Aug. 9, after declaring Saturday that Turkey's
patience with its neighbor "was running thin and his country could not remain a
bystander to the violence… but must do what is necessary."
Davutoglu will "deliver our message in a more determined way," said Erdogan. "…a
new process will take shape according to their response and actions."
"We do not see Syria as a foreign problem, Syria is our domestic problem because
we have a 850-kilometer border with this country, we have historical and
cultural ties, we have kinship," Erdogan said. This was the last warning from
Ankara – and therefore NATO – that Turkey was about to intervene militarily in
Syria, after maintain army units on the Syrian border for weeks. Friday, Aug. 5,
Russia's NATO ambassador Dmitry Rogozin accused NATO, of which Turkey is a
member, of planning a military campaign against Syria to help overthrow the
Assad regime "with the long-reaching goal of preparing a beachhead for an attack
on Iran." Click here for debkafile report
Future bloc MP Riad Rahhal : Lebanon’s UN stance
contradicted Human Rights Charter
August 7, 2011 /Future bloc MP Riad Rahhal said on Sunday that “Lebanon’s stance
in the UN regarding the presidential statement on Syria does not comply with the
UN Human Rights Charter that was signed by Lebanon.”“The stance also contradicts
with the ministerial statement regarding the special relations with Lebanon and
Syria,” the National News Agency also quoted him as saying. “What stance
will the Lebanese government take if the Syrian people topple their regime? With
whom will the government stand? Will it leave with [Syrian] Bashar al-Assad or
will it stand by the Syrian people?”Rahhal called on the cabinet to “take an
honorable stance approved by all the Lebanese people and to stand by the Syrian
people before it is too late.”The UN Security Council Wednesday condemned Syrian
President Bashar al-Assad's deadly crackdown on protests and called for those
responsible for violence to be held "accountable."Lebanon did not block the
adoption, but disavowed the document.-NOW Lebanon
Prisoner dies in Roumieh
August 7, 2011
The National News Agency reported on Sunday that four prisoners in Roumieh
Prision set their beds on fire.One of the detainees, identified as Mohammad
Zouieter, died shortly afterward from his injuries. A number of riots have
broken out in the facility in the past months, with prisoners demanding a series
of rights. -NOW Lebanon
Ban Tells
Assad to End Military Onslaught in Syria
Naharnet/U.N. leader Ban Ki-moon told Syrian President Bashar Assad on Saturday
to immediately end his deadly military campaign against opponents, the United
Nations said.
Ban also said the use of mass arrests must also be halted in Syria in the first
contacts between the two since April. Assad had been refusing to take calls from
the U.N. secretary general as he stepped up his crackdown on opposition
protests. But a U.N. Security Council statement this week has increased
international pressure on the Syrian leader whose government announced Saturday
that "free" elections would be held this year. "In a phone conversation with
President Assad of Syria today, the secretary general expressed his strong
concern and that of the international community at the mounting violence and
death toll in Syria over the past days," said U.N. spokesman Martin Nesirky.
Ban "reflected to the Syrian president the clear message sent by the Security
Council and urged the president to stop the use of military force against
civilians immediately," Nesirky said.
The Security Council ordered the U.N. leader to make a report on events in Syria
by Wednesday and Ban had promised to make a new effort to contact Assad.
Assad again made his defense that "a large number" of Syrian security forces had
been killed in the protests, and Ban said he condemned violence against
civilians and security forces, said his spokesman. "The president also referred
to his recently announced reform measures. The secretary general underscored
that for these measures to gain credibility, the use of force and mass arrests
must stop immediately," the U.N. added. "He reminded President Assad of the
Syrian authorities’ obligations under international human rights law."
The U.N. leader also repeated calls for the Syrian government to receive
missions from the international humanitarian agencies and the U.N. High
Commissioner for Human Rights.
These longstanding demands will be discussed Syria's foreign minister this week,
the spokesman said. "The secretary general also underlined the responsibility of
the Syrian authorities to ensure the security of the U.N. staff and premises
inside the country," added the spokesman. Protests against Assad started in
mid-March. The Syrian government has since then sought to crush the democracy
movement with brutal force, killing around 1,650 civilians and arresting
thousands of dissenters, according to the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights.
Source Agence France Presse
Assad to Mansour: State is Obligated to Confront Outlaws who are Terrorizing the
People
Naharnet /Foreign Minister Adnan Mansour stressed on Sunday Lebanon’s rejection
of all attempts to meddle in Syria’s internal affairs. He said after holding
talks in Damascus with Syrian President Bashar Assad: “Lebanon’s stability is
linked to Syria’s stability.” “The two countries are not only bound together
because they are neighbors, but they are bound by historic, cultural, and
fraternal ties,” he added. For his part, Assad stated that Syria is steadily
implementing reform. Furthermore, he said: “The state is obligated to protect
the lives and security of its citizens against outlaws who are blocking roads,
closing down cities, and terrorizing the people.” The meeting was attended by
Syrian Foreign Minister Walid a-Muallem, Assad’s advisor Buthaina Shaaban,
Syrian Ambassador to Lebanon Ali Abdul Karim Ali, and Lebanese Ambassador to
Syria Michel Khoury.
Activists: At Least 57 Killed Today in Syria, Including 38
in Deir Ezzor
Naharnet /Syrian forces backed by tanks killed at least 57 people on Sunday in
the regions of Deir Ezzor, Homs and Idlib, activists said, as President Bashar
al-Assad defended what he termed the state's duty to crack down on "outlaws"
despite mounting condemnation. Security forces killed at least 38 civilians in
the city of Deir Ezzor alone, activists said, and at least seven more died in
Hula, a town in Homs province, in a separate assault with tanks. "The operations
are focused on al-Joura district where the army and security forces opened fire,
killing at least 20 and wounding dozens of others," Syrian League for the
Defense of Human Rights head Abdul Karim Rihawi told Agence France Presse. While
the pope joined an international chorus of concern over the bloodshed, Assad
defended his security forces' deadly crackdown on anti-regime protests as the
"duty of the state" to confront "outlaws." "Syria is on the path to reforms," he
said, quoted by state news agency SANA. "To deal with outlaws who cut off roads,
seal towns and terrorize residents is a duty of the state which must defend
security and protect the lives of civilians," he said.
His statement came a day after a personal appeal by U.N. chief Ban Ki-moon for
Assad to halt the bloodshed. Ban in a telephone call "expressed his strong
concern and that of the international community at the mounting violence and
death toll in Syria over the past days," U.N. spokesman Martin Nesirky said late
Saturday. The secretary general "reflected to the Syrian president the clear
message sent by the (U.N.) Security Council and urged the president to stop the
use of military force against civilians immediately," Nesirky said. Ban's call
followed a pledge by the U.S., French and German leaders to consider new steps
to punish Syria after security forces killed more than 30 people on the first
Friday of Ramadan, the holy Muslim month of fasting.
In contrast to Assad's reference to outlaws, Pope Benedict XVI called Sunday for
an adequate response to the "legitimate aspirations" of the Syrian people. "I am
following with deep concern the dramatic and increasing episodes of violence in
Syria that have led to numerous victims and grave suffering," the pontiff said
in a weekly address to pilgrims outside Rome. Hundreds of tanks and armored cars
have been deployed in Deir Ezzor, said Rami Abdul Rahman, head of the Syrian
Observatory for Human Rights, adding many residents had fled in fear of the
assault on the largest city in east Syria.
Syria's government has sought to crush the democracy movement with brutal force,
leaving at least 2,059 people dead, including 391 members of the security
forces, according to the Britain-based Syrian Observatory. On Saturday, security
forces in Damascus arrested prominent opposition figure and former political
prisoner Walid al-Bunni and his two sons, said Abdul Rahman. Foreign Minister
Walid Muallem said earlier the same day that "free and transparent" elections to
a new parliament would be held by the end of 2011, as he met with ambassadors
posted to Damascus. Muallem stressed "the commitment of the Syrian leadership to
the continued reform process and implementation of measures announced by
President Assad."
The embattled president issued a decree on Thursday allowing opposition
political parties.
In April, he ordered an end to five decades of draconian emergency rule and
abolished the feared state security courts, while in June he said talks could
lead to a new constitution and end his Baath party's monopoly on power. But the
concessions have been largely dismissed by the opposition as a ploy to stave off
world condemnation.
The Syrian protesters have been calling for greater freedoms since mid-March,
inspired by Arab uprisings that ousted the autocratic leaders of Tunisia and
Egypt at the start of the year.
Assad's regime has become increasingly isolated, with allies like Turkey and
Russia calling for an end to the bloody crackdown.
Turkey's Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu is to visit Syria on Tuesday with the
message that Ankara "has run out of patience" with the ongoing violence, Prime
Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan said. Assad's adviser Buthaina Shaaban said
Davutoglu would himself "receive a firm message" in Damascus.
Turkey had failed to condemn "the brutal murders carried out by armed terrorist
groups against civilians and soldiers" in Syria, she said, adding that Damascus
had always "opposed interference in internal affairs" of other states. The
foreign ministry, meanwhile, rejected criticism from the Arab monarchies of the
Gulf and called for them to instead condemn "the violence of armed groups ... to
allow time for the reforms" proposed by the authorities.
**Source Agence France Presse
Al-Rahi
to Suleiman: Dialogue Must be Resumed in Order to Reach Agreement on Defense
Strategy
Naharnet /Maronite Patriarch Beshara al-Rahi hoped on Sunday that national
dialogue would be resumed in Lebanon in order for all the concerned sides to
reach an agreement on a national defense strategy. He said while addressing
President Michel Suleiman during his Sunday sermon: “We hope you will be able to
fulfill your pledge of resuming dialogue.”
He gave the sermon from the Deir al-Qamar town in the Chouf, as part of his tour
of the region. Al-Rahi added: “This dialogue is aimed at protecting Lebanon and
fortifying it against various dangers.”“We hope that the talks would develop
into a comprehensive national conference that would pave the way for a document
of coexistence that would be able to follow up the challenges of our Arab
world,” he stated. Earlier on Sunday, the patriarch and the president held a
closed-door meeting at the latter’s summer residence at the Beiteddine palace in
the Chouf.The talks focused on Lebanese and regional developments.
Indictment to Be Released between August 18 and 20
Naharnet /The indictment in the Special Tribunal for Lebanon is expected to be
released between August 18 and 20, reported the Kuwaiti al-Rai newspaper on
Sunday. It said that published indictment will be a 40-page summary of the
original, which is comprised of 9,700 pages. The summary will include
testimonies, documents, and files on various aspects of the 2005 assassination
of former Prime Minister Rafik Hariri. They include information on the car that
carried the explosives used in the murder, where it was bought, and how it
entered Lebanon. The indictment will also reveal information on the nature of
the bomb that targeted Hariri and the investigations that followed the crime.
The first phase of the indictment was released in late June and it was
accompanied by arrest warrants against four Hizbullah members.
Arab League Urges Syria to Stop violence 'Immediately'
Naharnet/The Arab League on Sunday called on the Syrian authorities to
"immediately" stop the violence that has rocked the country since mid-March, in
the pan-Arab body's first official statement on the unrest. League Secretary
General Nabil al-Arabi "calls on the Syrian authorities to bring an end
immediately to acts of violence and campaigns by the security forces against
civilians," the statement said. It said Arabi expressed his "increasing concern"
because of "the deterioration of the security situation in Syria following the
rise in violence and military operations in Hama, Deir Ezzor and several
regions."The Arab League chief met Syrian President Bashar al-Assad in Damascus
on July 13 on "developments in Syria," Syrian state television said. Arabi at
the time told reporters the league "rejects any interference in the internal
affairs of Arab countries and nobody can withdraw the legitimacy of a leader
because it is up to the people to decide." He also underlined that Syria's
stability was essential for other Arab countries.*Source Agence France Presse
Jumblat May Meet Hariri before Returning to Lebanon from
Turkey Visit
Naharnet /Progressive Socialist Party leader MP Walid Jumblat may meet with
former Prime Minister Saad Hariri in Paris, revealed a March 14 source to the
Kuwaiti al-Anbaa newspaper on Sunday. It said that he may hold the talks with
the former premier in the upcoming hours before returning to Lebanon. The MP had
visited Turkey on Saturday where he met with Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu.
According to diplomatic sources, the talks focused on the political situation in
Lebanon, as well the developments in the Arab world. Turkey reasserted its
position on these developments, stressing the importance it places on stability
in Lebanon, revealed the sources.
Aoun: We are Not Spiteful, But Just
Naharnet/Free Patriotic Movement leader MP Michel Aoun stressed on Saturday that
corruption should not be the norm in forming a new government in Lebanon. He
said during an FPM dinner in the Chouf region: “The state cannot be built
without security, a fair judiciary, and adequate finances.”“The state treasury
cannot be guarded by someone who steals the people’s taxes,” he noted. “We vow
that we will complete the plan of change and reform and those who deserve it
will be appointed to their rightful positions,” the MP added. “We want a fair
state and all who have robbed the country and led us to this poor condition will
be held accountable,” Aoun declared. “No one can label us as spiteful. We are
not spiteful, but just,” stressed the FPM leader.
US Senator calls on Syria’s Assad to step down
August 6, 2011
US Senator Robert P. Casey, the chair of the Senate Foreign Relations
subcommittee on Near Eastern and South and Central Asian affairs, called on
Syrian President Bashar al-Assad to step down, adding that the Syrian people
“should not have to bear the brutality” of Assad’s regime.
“The horror taking place in Syria has led me and others in the Senate to
conclude that this regime is not capable of real reform. It has lost all
legitimacy,” Casey said in an article published on Saturday with The Washington
Post newspaper. He added that “the Syrians outside
their country should [no longer] suffer from the terrible reach of this regime
[as well].”
“Amid Assad’s campaign of terror, we cannot forget his support for terrorism
abroad. Assad’s fall could have significant ramifications across the region: It
would weaken Iran’s Revolutionary Guard Corps, which would no longer have a
foothold in Damascus. It would reduce the strength of Hezbollah in Lebanon,
which continues to stockpile weapons that it receives from Syria. And it would
limit Hamas’s ability to conduct terrorist operations in Gaza.”
Casey also said that Washington’s “allies in the Arab League and in
Turkey could play a critical role in pressuring Assad.”
The Senator called on the US Congress and administration to make efforts
“to leverage” relations with Damascus for a comprehensive regional approach to
the crisis in Syria. “We must also continue to pursue efforts that constrict the
regime’s ability to conduct business abroad,” he said.
Syrian activists say at least 1,600 civilians have been killed since the regime
launched its crackdown on pro-democracy demonstrators mid-March.-NOW Lebanon
Prominent Syrian opposition figure arrested, activist says
August 6, 2011 ظSecurity forces on Saturday arrested
prominent opposition figure and former political prisoner Walid al-Bunni and his
two sons, Syrian Observatory for Human Rights chief Rami Abdel Rahman said.
The arrests came after Syria vowed on Saturday to hold "free and
transparent" elections by the end of 2011 as Arab states in the Gulf joined a
chorus of Western pressure over its deadly suppression of anti-regime
protests."The Syrian security services on Saturday evening arrested opposition
figure and ex-political prisoner Walid al-Bunni" and his sons Moayed and Ayad,
the Britain-based Abdel Rahman told AFP in Cyprus by telephone.
Syrian activists say at least 1,600 civilians have been killed since the
regime launched its crackdown on pro-democracy demonstrators mid-March.-NOW
Lebanon
Navy SEALs unit which killed Bin Laden loses 22 men in Afghan helicopter crash
DEBKAfile Special Report /August 6, 2011,
In a signal strategic achievement, the Afghan Taliban shot down a US Chinook
helicopter killing 31 US troops and 7 Afghan commandos in the rugged Wardak
province east of Kabul early Saturday, Aug. 5./ Among them were 22 members
of the elite Navy SEAL Six, the same unit which killed Osama bin Laden in May.
This was the single largest US loss of life in the Afghan war. US military
sources say it is unlikely that any of those who took part in that operation
were aboard the helicopter. Even so, the Taliban who downed the Chinook
apparently with a rocket-propelled grenade will be able to claim they made good
on their vow to avenge the al Qaeda leader's death.
Downing a helicopter apparently by a rocket-propelled grenade, which is not a
standard anti-aircraft weapon, indicates that the Taliban has perfected methods
for shooting down low-flying American helicopters with the basic weapons in
their possession.
As the investigation begins on the incident, there are conflicting reports about
the mission performed by the men aboard.
According to a US military source, they we returning from an operation in which
eight insurgents were believed to have been killed. A Taliban insurgent present
at the crash scene told Western correspondents the helicopter was not leaving
but arriving: "What we saw was that when we were having our pre-dawn (Ramadan)
meal, Americans landed some soldiers for an early raid. The other helicopter
also came for the raid," Mohammad Walil Wardag said. "We were outside our rooms
on a veranda and saw this helicopter flying very low, it was hit by a rocket and
it was on fire. It started coming down and crashed just away form our home close
to the river."
So far this year, 365 coalition troops have died in Afghanistan, 42 in July.
The news of the helicopter crash and fatalities reached Washington as the Obama
administration was still reeling from the Stand & Poor's downgrade of America's
credit rating for the first time ever from AAA to AA+. It piled a military
calamity on top of a body blow to the American economy.
It also placed in doubt President Barack Obama's claim in recent weeks that the
US-led coalition had been able to halt Taliban's "military momentum." Indeed in
the very areas that NATO combat forces have begun to hand over security control
to local forces, Taliban are redoubling their attacks. The 140,000 foreign
troops in Afghanistan – about 100,000 of them American, are due to all leave
Afghanistan by the end of 2014 and some withdrawals have already taken place.
debkafile's military sources report that despite the hints from the White House
that the US is in direct talks with the Taliban for ending the war, what these
contacts amount to is field commanders interacting with insurgents on a local
level - not so far talks with the Taliban high command and its leader Mullah
Omar. A negotiated end to the Afghan war is therefore not in sight.
Reading
the Al-Qaeda files and seeing what they can teach
Saturday, August 06, 2011
By Walid Phares/Spero News
The free world has waited patiently for 10 to 20 years to learn the master plan
of international jihadism’s “al-Za’im,” (English: “the leader”) Osama bin Laden.
Because Seal Team Six dropped in on the al-Qaida leader’s Abbottabad domicile
unannounced, he was unable to marshal a defense or dispose of the stockpile of
strategic documentation he had preserved on digital storage media and in paper
files.
It is safe to assume that the information he had accumulated over a period of
years is in the U.S. being thoroughly scrutinized by members of the intelligence
community.
U.S. officials characterized the files seized from bin Laden’s vault as a
veritable cornucopia of actionable intelligence that should keep analysts and
Arab language translators busy for a very long time.
Analysts, who have monitored Osama’s activities since the mid-1990s, have had to
rely on sometimes-obfuscated statements he has made in his speeches in their
intelligence estimates. Now they have a mountain of hard data to excavate.
Because bin Laden’s his domicile hasn’t changed much since his December 2001
flight from Tora Bora, one would assume that his Afghan archives accompanied or
were reunited with him at his Pakistani safe house.
More importantly, we now know that bin Laden’s compound was the command center
from which he continued to direct al-Qaida’s strategic operations.
We have also learned that bin Laden always communicated via courier to avoid
detection and he was punctilious about keeping digital copies of his communiqués
on local hard drives. So what is in the mountain of intelligence we now possess?
Almost immediately after bin Laden’s elimination, bits and pieces of the
intelligence taken from his compound were gradually released for public
consumption and, to some degree, satisfaction.
Debates quickly ensued over the appropriateness of publishing images of the
deceased al-Qaida leader’s corpse and its burial at sea. Media pundits and the
public dove into the debate with both feet.
When that debate was winding down another wave of photographs and video were
released showing bin Laden watching a TV show about himself and the terrorist’s
narcissism fueled the next heated debate. Additional material has been gradually
released, most of it suitable for tabloid publication and less so for tactical
purposes.
Doubtless, the material released to date has been interesting and in some ways,
placating. But the “beefy” strategic information that experts, intelligence
analysts, lawmakers, military strategists and the public really need is yet to
be produced.
For instance, it is essential that individuals in these and similar roles
understand the ideology that inspires and guides jihadists and jihadist
movements globally.
How does al-Qaida see its role in the global jihad and how do they relate to
other jihadist movements? What anticipated final event must occur before
Islamists’ vision of a restored, global caliphate is fulfilled?
If the global jihad was World War II and the jihadists, Nazis, Allied
Intelligence would search beyond the psychological profile of Nazi leaders to
learn everything there is to know about the enemy.
We would expect a mountain of intelligence such as the following:
1. Bin Laden's views of his potential relationship with his protectors inside
Pakistan, particularly those connected to or part of the Directorate for
Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI). We know the latter has ties to the
Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) terror group because of the situation with India, at least
in the past.
2. For years, bin Laden and Ayman al-Zawahiri were able to get their video
messages rushed to the front of the programming queue on Qatari-funded al
Jazeera TV as exclusive news stories.
That bin Laden and al-Zawahiri relied on couriers to ferry their messages to the
Arab TV network boasting the most powerful broadcast antenna in the Arab world
raises an obvious question: What group prompted the premier television network
in the Arab World, to facilitate world wide distribution of the views of the
world’s most-wanted terror fugitive?
Intelligence mining should be able to skim all we need to know about bin Laden's
symbiotic relationship with propaganda operatives.
3. Numerous journalists and media pundits in the Arab world claimed on air and
in print to know better than anyone what bin Laden wanted and what he was
thinking.
4. Harsh disagreement between the two organizations over the mechanics of jihad
notwithstanding, the Ikhwan have turned out many of al-Qaida’s senior leaders.
The two camps were birthed out of the same Salafi womb and their sibling rivalry
has gone on for years. This raises another interesting question: How did bin
Laden perceive the Muslim Brotherhood? What was the basis of his criticism of
them? In his view, how did they fail and, more importantly, who within the
Ikhwan did bin Laden like?
5. While the two are at odds ideologically and both consider the other to be an
enemy, reported numerous contacts between the Iranian regime, or parts of it,
and al-Qaida are not out of the question since they share common enemies in the
West, the United States, and some Arab regimes. Therefore, it is logical to
assume that mediated and perhaps direct exchanges took place between them.
6. Mining bin Laden’s files to discover the degree to which al-Qaida has
penetrated Islamist networks in the US and elsewhere in the West would be of
immeasurable value to their intelligence, law enforcement, military, and
Homeland Security efforts.
What pressures and influence has al-Qaida brought to bear on those groups. We
already know of cases where al-Qaida-linked jihadists have embedded themselves
in Islamist political networks in America and the West. Obviously, bin Laden
knew much more about this infiltration than we did. This is a critically
important issue with dramatic implications for Homeland Security that needs to
be a top priority in the mining of bin Laden’s files.
Bin Laden’s mountain of archives should be a gift that keeps on giving
high-value intelligence to U.S. and international security agencies. Bin Laden
watching himself on TV may have been entertaining, but locating the pillars of
his war on the West is a top priority.
Walid Phares is the author of The Coming Revolution: Struggle for Freedom in the
Middle East, teaches Global Strategies in Washington, D.C., and advises members
of the U.S. Congress and the European parliament.