'The only explanation that fits is this: he was an American agent all along.' Did America keep mum on 26/11? By Vir Sanghvi 20 Dec 2009 Did the Americans have detailed advance information about the 26/11 plot which they did not share with India, only passing on a watered-down warning? And was there an American spy within the Lashkar-e-Tayyeba who kept Washington (or Langley) informed of terror acts planned against India -- even if this information was never handed over to us? It is certainly beginning to look that way... The terror suspect, we were told, was a US citizen of Pakistani origin. He had some links with the LeT. He had visited India. He may have been part of an advance team for 26/11... These papers showed that Headley had been convicted and sent to jail. But after 9/11, he had been set free and sent to Pakistan to work as an undercover agent for the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA). According to US journalists, Headley had been given a new passport in the American name of David Headley (his American mother’s maiden name is Headley) rather than his original name of Daood Gilani. He flew around the world, entering and leaving the US at will, avoiding the sort of attention that a convicted drug criminal was certain to attract at US airports. Further, suggested US journos, the DEA assignment may have been a cover... Why would the US treat a 26/11 suspect with such consideration? The only explanation that fits is this: he was an American agent all along. The US arrested him only when it seemed that Indian investigators were on his trail. He will be sentenced to jail, will vanish into the US jail system for a while and will then be sprung again -- as he was the last time.
Obama Ordered U.S. Military Strike on Yemen Terrorists --Cruise Missiles Launched Thursday Hit Two Suspected al Qaeda Sites; Major Escalation of US Efforts Against 'Terrorists' 19 Dec 2009 On orders from President Barack Obama, the U.S. military launched cruise missiles early Thursday against two suspected al-Qaeda [al-CIAduh] sites in Yemen, administration officials told ABC News in a report broadcast on ABC World News. One of the targeted sites was a suspected al Qaeda training camp north of the capitol, Sanaa, and the second target was a location where officials said "an imminent attack against a U.S. asset was being planned."
Saudi air raids kill 54 civilians in northern Yemen 20 Dec 2009 Saudi warplanes have carried out fresh airstrikes on northern Yemeni villages, killing more than 50 civilians, Houthi sources say. The Shia fighters said on Sunday that Saudi jets fired more than one-thousand missiles at the region along its border with Yemen, Arabic language Al-Menpar news website reported.
Saudi warplanes rain '1,011 missiles' on Yemen 19 Dec 2009 Houthi fighters say Saudi warplanes have fired some 1,011 missiles on the borderline with Yemen where the Shia population is already under heavy state-led and US-aided bombardment. The fighters also said on Saturday that the warplanes had carried out nearly 60 air assaults on the residential areas in the northern Al-Jabiri, Al-Dukhan and Al-Malaheet districts.
Pakistan in crisis as 'creeping coup' unfolds 20 Dec 2009 The political crisis in Pakistan has deepened after the Government's anti-corruption agency sought a warrant for the arrest of the country's Interior Minister. Officials from the National Accountability Bureau asked for permission to arrest Rehman Malik, the minister in charge of law and order and the war on terrorism. The scale of the crisis and the speed with which it has unfolded has prompted supporters of Mr Zardari to question the role of the judiciary and speculate on whether the army is behind the legal challenge to the Government. Some even spoke of a ''creeping coup'' unfolding. [I am thinking *Blackwater.*]
U.S. prosecution links drugs to terrorism --The case -- the first of its kind -- portrays northwest Africa as a new danger [oil] zone. Three men are accused of being Al Qaeda associates and conspiring to smuggle cocaine. 19 Dec 2009 Three men alleged to be Al Qaeda [al-CIAduh] associates were charged Friday with conspiring to smuggle cocaine through Africa -- the first U.S. prosecution linking the terrorist group directly to drug trafficking. The three suspects, who were charged in federal court in New York, are believed to be from Mali and were arrested in Ghana during a Drug Enforcement Administration sting. Although U.S. authorities have alleged that Al Qaeda and the Taliban profit from Afghanistan's heroin trade, the case is the first in which suspects linked to Al Qaeda have been charged under severe narco-terrorism laws, federal officials said. [That's not who profits from Afghanistan's heroin trade. See: Trail of Afghanistan's drug money exposed By Julien Mercille 16 Dec 2009 The total revenue generated by opiates within Afghanistan is about $3.4 billion per year. Of this figure, according to UNODC, the Taliban get only 4% of the sum... The remaining 75% is captured by government officials, the police, local and regional power brokers and traffickers - in short, many of the groups now supported (or tolerated) by the United States and NATO are important actors in the drug trade.]
Two-thirds of Afghan war veterans are suffering from hearing damage --The intense noise of the battlefield is afflicting British troops 20 Dec 2009 More than two-thirds of British troops returning from Afghanistan are suffering severe and permanent hearing damage, according to the most comprehensive study into one of the less well-known side-effects of the conflict in Helmand. Internal defence documents reveal that of 1,250 Royal Marine commandos who served in Afghanistan, 69% suffered hearing damage due to the intense noise of combat.
British Army to get new uniforms -- turned down by the US and made in China 20 Dec 2009 The British Army is introducing a new camouflage design for all its soldiers after tests showed that it made them less likely to be seen by the enemy. Called "multi terrain pattern", or MTP, the camouflage will first be used in Afghanistan, from March next year. The Ministry of Defence (MoD) has paid the US company an undisclosed sum for use of the new design and has secured intellectual property rights over the MTP camouflage to prevent others from using it without permission. The kit is to be produced by a Northern Irish company, but will be made in China. [Works for me. China did such a nice job with the drywall, milk and pet food. --LRP]
MoD names UK soldier killed in Afghanistan 20 Dec 2009 A British soldier who died in an explosion in Afghanistan has been named by the Ministry of Defence. Cpl Simon Hornby, 29, from 2nd Battalion, the Duke of Lancaster's Regiment, died on Saturday. He was wounded while on foot patrol in the Nad-e-Ali area of Helmand, and died later that day.
Oil well is on our side of border, Iran says 21 Dec 2009 Iran's armed forces have rejected claims that they have taken control of an oil well within Iraqi borders, stressing that the well in question is on Iranian soil. "Based on internationally recognized borders, the disputed oil well belongs to Iran as it is on Iranian soil," a spokesman for Iran's Armed Forces Headquarters told Press TV on Sunday morning.
Hugo Chavez orders military to shoot at US aircraft --President Hugo Chavez has accused the US of violating Venezuela's airspace with an unmanned spy plane, and ordered his military to shoot down any such aircraft in the future. 20 Dec 2009 Speaking during his weekly television and radio program, Mr Chavez said the aircraft overflew a Venezuelan military base in the western state of Zulia after taking off from neighbouring Colombia. He did not elaborate, but suggested the plane was being used for espionage. "These are the Yankees. They are entering Venezuela," he said. "I've ordered them to be shot down," Mr Chavez said of the aircraft. "We cannot permit this." He has accused Colombia of allowing the United States to use its military bases to prepare a possible attack against Venezuela. [See: CIA 'plot to kill Hugo Chavez' --Hugo Chavez has claimed that he avoided a US plot to kill him. 03 Jun 2009 The Venezuelan president said on state television that he had eluded an assassination attempt in El Salvador where he was due to attend the swearing in of its new leader, a Left-wing ally.]
Worse than the bank bailouts: Obama approves security aid to Israel, PA -- $100 million for the training of Palestinian security forces by American general Keith Dayton. 19 Dec 2009 US President Barack Obama this week signed the 2010 foreign aid budget law which includes $2.775 billion in security aid to Israel. This is the second year the budget is transferred to the Jewish state as part of understandings that the American assistance to Israel in the coming decade will total $30 billion. The approved budget comprises, for the first time, $500 million in aid to the Palestinian Authority, including $100 million for the training of Palestinian security forces by American general Keith Dayton. [See: CIA working with Palestinian security agents --US agency co-operating with Palestinian counterparts who allegedly torture Hamas supporters in West Bank 17 Dec 2009.]
CIA linked to Palestinian 'torture' 18 Dec 2009 Palestinian security agents who have allegedly tortured Hamas supporters in the West Bank have been working closely with the CIA, the UK's Guardian newspaper has reported. The US Central Intelligence Agency has co-operated with the Preventive Security Force (PSF) and General Intelligence Service (GI) in the Palestinian territory, the report on Friday said. "The [Central Intelligence] Agency consider them as their property, those two Palestinian services," a western official told the Guardian.
Iran rejects reports of oil well seizure in Iraq 19 Dec 2009 Iran rejects reports that its forces have taken over an oil well within Iraqi borders, while a Baghdad official admits the site is in a disputed border area. In a Saturday phone interview with Press TV, Iran's Foreign Ministry spokesman described reports about the country taking over an Iraqi oil well as an attempt to harm the close relations between Tehran and Baghdad.
Lockerbie bomber had secret £1.8m 20 Dec 2009 The man convicted of the Lockerbie bombing, Abdelbasset Ali al-Megrahi, had £1.8m in a Swiss bank account when he was found guilty in 2001 of the murder of the 270 people aboard Pan Am flight 103, it has been claimed. A sum of this size in the bank account of a man employed as head of security for an airline raises some big questions.
12 prisoners leave Guantanamo for home 20 Dec 2009 Twelve Guantanamo detainees have departed the ominous detention facility for their homelands in Afghanistan, Yemen and Somaliland, says the US Department of Justice. The Justice Department announced in a statement on Sunday that six Yemenis, four Afghans and two Somali prisoners have been transferred over the weekend to their home countries.
Man on terrorism articles charge 20 Dec 2009 A 20-year-old man has been charged with possession of articles for use in terrorism. The charge is connected to an attack in Londonderry's Hollymount Park in the Waterside when windows of a house and a car were smashed on Friday morning. Two other men, aged 42 and 18, have been charged with several offences.
States get 16-month reprieve from REAL ID 20 Dec 2009 Montana and 12 other states that are resisting the provisions of the REAL ID law won a 16-month reprieve when the federal government delayed implementation of the controversial measure. The decision by Secretary of Homeland Security Janet Napolitano means that Montana driver's licenses will continue to be legitimate identification for purposes such as traveling on commercial airliners.
National Guard Called Because of Storm --Governor calls National Guard to duty 19 Dec 2009 (WV) Gov. Joe Manchin (D) today ordered about 200 National Guard members to state duty in response to heavy snowfall that closed major highways and stranded travelers for hours during the storm. Guard wrecker crews have been on duty since the early morning hours clearing primary roadways of wrecked or abandoned vehicles.
Drug giant General Electric uses libel law to gag doctor 20 Dec 2009 General Electric, one of the world’s biggest corporations, is using the London libel courts to gag a senior radiologist after he raised the alarm over the potentially fatal risks of one of its drugs. The multinational [GE Healthcare, a British subsidiary of General Electric] is suing Henrik Thomsen, a Danish academic, after he described his experiences of one of the company’s drugs as a medical "nightmare". He said some kidney patients at his hospital contracted a potentially deadly condition after being administered the drug Omniscan.
Nelson Accused of Selling Vote on Health Bill for Nebraska Pay-Off --What started as Sen. Ben Nelson's personal stand against covering abortion with taxpayer money translated, somehow, into millions of dollars in federal aid for his home state -- drawing criticism that his vote was bought. 20 Dec 2009 The Nebraska DemocRAT, following weeks of negotiations with his caucus, finally agreed to back the Senate's health care reform bill insurance company giveaway this weekend after Democratic leaders made a series of concessions. Nelson's support gives Democrats the 60 votes they need to overcome a filibuster, barring any last-minute defections. But critics by Sunday were heavily questioning Nelson's motivations, given that the abortion restrictions he sought and won did not satisfy several major anti-abortion lawmakers and groups and that it took a major federal payoff to his state to seal the deal. Critics were calling it the "cornhusker kickback" and the "Nebraska windfall," lobbing accusations of political deal-making at Nelson.
Northeast digs out of monster snowstorm --Storm goes to sea after dumping 2 feet (70 cm) of snow 20 Dec 2009 The U.S. Northeast began digging out on Sunday from a massive snowstorm that buried cities from Washington to Boston under as much as 2 feet of snow, creating travel chaos and hampering Christmas shopping. Nearly 2 feet (70 cm) of snow piled up in the Baltimore-Washington area on Saturday in the largest snowstorm to hit the region since February 2003, while New York City saw totals of up to a foot (35 cm) before the monster storm churned into New England.
Previous lead stories: CIA working with Palestinian security agents --US agency co-operating with Palestinian counterparts who allegedly torture Hamas supporters in West Bank 17 Dec 2009 Palestinian security agents who have been detaining and allegedly torturing supporters of the Islamist organisation Hamas in the West Bank have been working closely with the CIA, the Guardian has learned. ...Evidence is emerging the CIA is co-operating with security agents whose continuing use of torture has been widely documented by human rights groups. The relationship between the CIA and the two Palestinian agencies involved - Preventive Security Organisation (PSO) and General Intelligence Service (GI) - is said by some western diplomats and other officials in the region to be so close that the American agency appears to be supervising the Palestinians' work.
Eikenberry assures Afghans U.S. will stay beyond 2011 17 Dec 2009 U.S. Ambassador to Afghanistan Karl Eikenberry Thursday further signaled that a strong American military presence will remain in Afghanistan long after July 2011, when President Obama plans to end his troop surge. Speaking at the Afghan Ministry of Foreign Relations before a group of diplomats, non-governmental organizations and Afghan citizens, Eikenberry drove home the Obama administration's sometimes contradictory message lies.
Islamic insurgents hack into CIA state-of-the-art Predator drones 18 Dec 2009 Predator drones used by the CIA against Islamic militants have been hacked into by insurgents using nothing more sophisticated than a $25.95 (£16) off-the-shelf software, it was revealed last night. Although the insurgents were not able to control the $20 million aircraft, typically armed with Hellfire missiles and flown over the battlefields of Iraq, Afghanistan and Pakistan, they could watch live video feeds beamed back to US control stations through their electronic "eyeballs". The hackers' success raises the disturbing possibility of the Predators being taken over and used to attack US or British forces, or perhaps even domestic targets. [...as the next false flag. US military officials knew about it for a year five years --and did *nothing* about it, of course.]
