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Posts Tagged war on terror
Taliban Uses Children In Suicide Attacks
Posted by Gary in News, Threat Watch on 21/Jun/2011 08:39
Use Of Children In Suicide Attacks Part Of ‘Ruthless’ Escalation For Taliban
NationalJournal.com
The Taliban have begun using child suicide bombers in eastern Afghanistan, underscoring the increasingly brutal nature of the fighting in a volatile region that is emerging as the central front of the U.S.-led war.
U.S. Intensifying Secret Campaign of Yemen Airstrikes
Posted by Jack Sinclair in News, Threat Watch on 9/Jun/2011 20:31
WASHINGTON — “The Obama administration has intensified the American covert war in Yemen, exploiting a growing power vacuum in the country to strike at militant suspects with armed drones and fighter jets, according to American officials.
The acceleration of the American campaign in recent weeks comes amid a violent conflict in Yemen that has left the government in Sana, a United States ally, struggling to cling to power.
Yemeni troops that had been battling militants linked to Al Qaeda in the south have been pulled back to the capital, and American officials see the strikes as one of the few options to keep the militants from consolidating power.”
http://www.nytimes.com/2011/06/09/world/middleeast/09intel.html?partner=rss&emc=rss
As U.S. pullout nears, Taliban attacks undermine confidence
Posted by Jack Sinclair in News, Threat Watch on 9/Jun/2011 20:14
By HASHIM SHUKOOR
McClatchy Newspapers
KABUL, Afghanistan — A 6-week-old Taliban offensive that has struck some of the most peaceful parts of Afghanistan and killed police commanders and senior officials is undermining confidence in the Afghan army and police just as the Obama administration considers how quickly it should begin drawing down U.S. forces here.
The campaign, whose targets have included high-level meetings of government officials and supposedly secure facilities in Kabul, including the Defense Ministry, has left many Afghans uncertain of the competency of the security forces and their loyalty.
Particularly unsettling for many was the attack April 18 in which a Taliban sympathizer wearing a military uniform entered the heavily defended Defense Ministry building and opened fire.”
“A suicide attacker getting into the Defense Ministry shows the government’s weakness,” said Abdul Samad, a 25-year-old mechanic, when he was asked about his sense of Afghanistan’s security situation. Such an attack “makes people lose trust in the security forces.”
http://www.miamiherald.com/2011/06/09/2259271/as-us-pullout-nears-taliban-bombs.html#ixzz1Opb045Do
Pakistani army says it doesn’t want U.S. aid
Posted by Jack Sinclair in News, Threat Watch on 9/Jun/2011 20:09
ISLAMABAD — “Pakistan’s army lashed out Thursday at its critics at home as well as in the United States in an angry statement that underscored just how deep a crisis the country’s armed forces are suffering.
The statement rejected all American financial aid for the military, saying the money should go instead to the government to be spent on “the common man.” It warned that it intended to “put an end” to domestic criticism of its actions.
It also tried to distance the military from the United States, saying that it had stopped U.S. training of the country’s border guards and ordered the U.S. to “drastically” reduce the number of its troops in Pakistan.”
http://www.miamiherald.com/2011/06/09/2259350/angry-pakistani-army-says-it-doesnt.html#ixzz1OpaSAKb6
Soldier from 4 SCOTS killed in Afghanistan
Posted by Gary in News, Threat Watch, Warriors on 4/Jun/2011 15:17
From: MOD
It is with sadness that the Ministry of Defence must announce that a soldier from The Highlanders, 4th Battalion The Royal Regiment of Scotland (4 SCOTS), was killed in Afghanistan, yesterday, Friday 3 June 2011.
Ministry of Defence
The soldier was fatally wounded by insurgent gunfire while on a security patrol in the Lashkar Gah District of Helmand Province.
Spokesman for Task Force Helmand, Lieutenant Colonel Tim Purbrick, said:
“It is with much regret that I have to inform you of the death of a soldier from The Highlanders, 4th Battalion The Royal Regiment of Scotland, in the Pupalzay area of the Lashkar Gah District of Helmand Province.
“The soldier was on a partnered patrol with the Afghan National Police to reassure the local population when his unit came under attack by rifle, Rocket Propelled Grenade and indirect fire from insurgents, during which he was fatally wounded. Our thoughts and prayers are with his family and friends.”
Next of kin have been informed and have requested a period of grace before further information is released.
Counter IED Summit – Tampa Florida
Counter IED Summit – Tampa Florida, July 25-27, 2011
IDGA’s Counter IED 2011 Summit will deliver a comprehensive overview of the latest requirements, emerging policies, programs, and methods involved in defeating and mitigating the IED threat. This year’s critical summit will cover the recent changes in the directions from “Defeating the Device” to “Train the Force”
Soldier who died in afghanistan left notes behind for his daughter
Posted by Jack Sinclair in News, Warriors on 1/Jun/2011 04:20
Army 1st Lt. Todd W. Weaver Died September 9, 2010 serving during Operation Enduring Freedom 26, of Hampton, Va.; assigned to 1st Battalion, 320th Field Artillery Regiment, 2nd Brigade Combat Team, 101st Airborne Division (Air Assault), Fort Campbell, Ky; died Sept. 9 at COP Stout, Afghanistan, of wounds suffered when insurgents attacked his unit with an improvised explosive device.
“Dear Emma: Well if you are reading this, I guess I did not make it home and therefore, I was not able to remind you again of how much I love you. I love you so much baby and I will always love you. Although I may not be here right now, take comfort in the fact that I am watching over you right now. I am not gone and I will always be with you in spirit. I know this time must be hard for you but I also know how strong you are. Never forget that God knew what was best for us before we were even born. Take comfort in that. This happened for a reason. Although you may not believe it now, you will one day.
I want you to know just how important you are to me. I could not ask for a more caring, beautiful and loving wife. The memories that we have shared over the last few years have been the best of my life. Although it may seem like my life was cut short, I lived a life that most can only dream of. I married the perfect woman. I have a beautiful daughter that amazed me every day. I even had two great dogs – at least most of the time. I couldn’t ask for anything more.
If you feel sad, just think back to the memories that we shared. Look at our daughter and how beautiful she is. Be strong for her. Remind her about her Daddy and tell her that I loved her more than anything else in the world. Her birth was the best day of my life and she was the best thing that ever happened to me. Her smile and laughter represent all that is good and beautiful in this world. Tell her that Daddy is in heaven now and will watch over her and protect her every minute of every day.
I love you Emma. But never be afraid to do what you need to do to be happy. It is so important that you continue to find happiness in your life. Although you may think this is impossible right now, have faith. Much better times are coming. You and Kiley have a wonderful life ahead of you and I am so happy to have shared some of it with you. I love you.
Your loving Husband, Todd”
Todd’s wife’s blog:
http://emmaweaverbabyonboard.blogspot.com/2011/03/struggle-and-peace.html
Iraqi Shiite Militias Contine to Pose a Threat as U.S. Forces Leave
Posted by Jack Sinclair in News, Threat Watch on 28/May/2011 00:18
“The attacks on the Americans in Maysan Province, near the Iranian border, and elsewhere in southern Iraq provide one of the starkest examples of what officials call a reinvigorated threat posed by Shiite militants and followers of the anti-American Shiite cleric Moktada al-Sadr during the American military’s waning days here.
These Shiite militias have emerged as perhaps the greatest threat to the 46,000 United States troops still in Iraq, military officials say. And a barrage of recent attacks — some of them deadly — has raised questions about the safety of Americans as the military withdraws troops and equipment in the months ahead.
“There are plenty of groups who will be paid to kill the last Americans on their way out,†said Col. Douglas Crissman, the military commander who oversees Maysan and three other southern provinces.”
http://www.nytimes.com/2011/05/27/world/middleeast/27shiite.html?_r=1&partner=rss&emc=rss
U.S. Tells Its Afghan Workers: No Torture, Corpse Mutilation
Posted by Jack Sinclair in Law, News, Threat Watch on 27/May/2011 19:46
“It’s never a good sign when you have to tell the men guarding your base not to murder civilians, torture detainees or desecrate corpses. But U.S. special-operations forces in Afghanistan are leaving nothing to chance.
… there are uniform expectations for would-be guards. Some of them read more like baseline conditions for membership in civilized humanity.
So-called “Afghan Security Guards†are instructed, “Do not kill or torture detained personnel.†For good measure, if someone’s taken captive, “immediately turn over to U.S., Coalition or [Afghan forces].†Should they kill someone who poses a threat, there is to be “no booby-trapping, burning [or] mutilation†of their corpses.
Afghans guarding U.S. bases don’t exactly have the best track record.”
Spc. Robert Mangini & PV2 Ryan Beach: 120mm mortar in Logar province
Posted by Jack Sinclair in News, Warriors on 11/May/2011 01:06
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Spc. Robert Mangini, mortarmen from Cinnaminson, N.J., native, and PV2 Ryan Beach, an Atlantic, Iowa, native, fire a 120mm mortar round in Logar province, Aug. 29. The mortar round is fired in under two minutes from the time the mortarmen receive a call for fire.
U.S.-Pakistani Relations Beyond Bin Laden
Posted by Brian in News, Threat Watch on 10/May/2011 14:15
U.S.-Pakistani Relations Beyond Bin Laden is republished with permission of STRATFOR.
By George Friedman
The past week has been filled with announcements and speculations on how Osama bin Laden was killed and on Washington’s source of intelligence. After any operation of this sort, the world is filled with speculation on sources and methods by people who don’t know, and silence or dissembling by those who do.
Obfuscating on how intelligence was developed and on the specifics of how an operation was carried out is an essential part of covert operations. The precise process must be distorted to confuse opponents regarding how things actually played out; otherwise, the enemy learns lessons and adjusts. Ideally, the enemy learns the wrong lessons, and its adjustments wind up further weakening it. Operational disinformation is the final, critical phase of covert operations. So as interesting as it is to speculate on just how the United States located bin Laden and on exactly how the attack took place, it is ultimately not a fruitful discussion. Moreover, it does not focus on the truly important question, namely, the future of U.S.-Pakistani relations.
Posturing Versus a Genuine Breach
It is not inconceivable that Pakistan aided the United States in identifying and capturing Osama bin Laden, but it is unlikely. This is because the operation saw the already-tremendous tensions between the two countries worsen rather than improve. The Obama administration let it be known that it saw Pakistan as either incompetent or duplicitous and that it deliberately withheld plans for the operation from the Pakistanis. For their part, the Pakistanis made it clear that further operations of this sort on Pakistani territory could see an irreconcilable breach between the two countries. The attitudes of the governments profoundly affected the views of politicians and the public, attitudes that will be difficult to erase. Read the rest of this entry »
Navy SEAL Hero Dog Is Top Secret
From: Global Animal
Navy SEAL, Mike Forsythe, and his dog, Cara, recently broke the world record for "highest man/dog parachute deployment" by jumping from 30,100 feet. Both wear oxygen masks. (PHOTO: Rebecca Frankel)
… Like the fictional 007, the mysterious agent came in the dead of night, helped take out the world’s most notorious terrorist, and then melted back into the shadows alongside 79 two-footed comrades in arms.
In keeping with the rest of the SEAL Team Six that killed Osama bin Laden, the dog who reportedly accompanied the Seals on the mission remains shrouded in mystery, and surrounded by speculation.
Though 79 men snuck into Abbottabad, Pakistan, only two dozen of those soldiers slid down the ropes. According to The New York Times, a military working dog (MWD) was one of them, strapped onto an assault team member as he was lowered out of a Black Hawk helicopter.
The military is staying tight-lipped about the maverick dog’s identity, refusing to reveal even breed or gender. If the dog is a female, that would make her the one and only of the ‘fairer sex’ in the SEAL Team Six since the Navy SEALs is a men-only force.
Allen West: Define the Enemy: What it takes to win in Afghanistan
Posted by Jack Sinclair in News, Threat Watch, Warriors on 6/May/2011 00:07
“Is your operation enemy oriented or is your operation terrain oriented?”
“The first thing we fail to understand is that Afghanistan is not a war in and of itself. Neither was Iraq a war in and of itself.
We have a war against an Islamic, totalitarian enemy which is political, which is informational it is military and it is also economic.”
-Lt. Col. Allen West
Lt. Col. Allen West (US Army, Ret.) speaks to the Center for Security Policy’s National Security Group on Capital Hill. Col. West was a senior advisor, Combined Security Transition Command – Afghanistan, U.S. Central Command.
Death of bin Laden – details pouring in
Posted by Gary in News, Threat Watch, Warriors on 3/May/2011 08:07
The Secret Team that Killed bin Laden
(Yahoo)
By Marc Ambinder National Journal
From Ghazi Air Base in Pakistan, the modified MH-60 helicopters made their way to the garrison suburb of Abbottabad, about 30 miles from the center of Islamabad. Aboard were Navy SEALs, flown across the border from Afghanistan, along with tactical signals, intelligence collectors, and navigators using highly classified hyperspectral imagers.
Behind The Hunt For Bin Laden
(New York Times)
Mark Mazzetti, Helene Cooper and Peter Baker
For years, the agonizing search for Osama bin Laden kept coming up empty. Then last July, Pakistanis working for the Central Intelligence Agency drove up behind a white Suzuki navigating the bustling streets near Peshawar, Pakistan, and wrote down the car’s license plate. The man in the car was Bin Laden’s most trusted courier, and over the next month C.I.A. operatives would track him throughout central Pakistan.
U.S. Rolled Dice In Bin Laden Raid
(Wall Street Journal)
Siobhan Gorman and Adam Entous
As two Black Hawk helicopters packed with American special forces skimmed their way across a moonless sky toward Osama bin Laden’s lair, the mission’s planners still weren’t even sure their target lived there.
The World is Safer
(Washington Post)
Scott Wilson and Anne E. Kornblut
The Obama administration presented new details Monday about the death of Osama bin Laden, portraying the spiritual leader of al-Qaeda as a reclusive figure who had lived in relative luxury and whose final moments had finally exposed his cowardice.
Bin Laden discovered ‘hiding in plain sight’
(Washington Post)
Greg Miller and Joby Warrick
Half an hour had passed on the ground, but the American commandos raiding Osama bin Laden’s Pakistani hideaway had yet to find their long-sought target. Two of bin Laden’s protectors were already dead, shot by the Navy SEALs carrying out the raid, and one of the U.S. helicopters sat crippled in the courtyard.
Washington Examiner EXTRA: Latest news on Osama bin Laden’s death
Posted by Gary in News, Threat Watch on 2/May/2011 15:03
From: The Washington Examiner
Washington Examiner EXTRA: Latest news on Osama bin Laden’s death
We’ve collected all of our coverage here. We’ll continue to update this post throughout the day.
Examiner Editorial – Bin Laden could run but he couldn’t hide from the U.S.
A decade ago in the terrible aftermath of one of America’s darkest days, President George W. Bush vowed that “I don’t know if it will be tomorrow, or next month, or next year, but we will get him.” Five years later, tough interrogation by the CIA of 9/11 mastermind Khalid Sheik Mohammed and another Osama bin Laden henchman turned up the nickname of an especially trusted courier of the al Qaeda leader. Read More
Nate Beeler’s Cartoon – The End of Osama bin Laden
Check out more of Nate Beeler’s cartoons here.
News from the Examiner’s staff writers:
Emily Babay and Brian Hughes – Crowds rejoice at White House after news of bin Laden’s death
Flag-waving Washingtonians flocked to the White House after learning of Osama bin Laden’s death, cheering and chanting “USA, USA,” into the early morning hours Sunday night and all afternoon Monday. Read More
Susan Ferrechio – Lawmakers credit Obama, Bush for killing bin Laden
Lawmakers on Capitol Hill put aside their partisanship at least temporarily Monday and praised President Obama for the mission resulting in the death of Osama bin Laden. Read More