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| 5/24 |
| 2005/7/7-8 [Politics/Foreign/MiddleEast/Iraq] UID:38457 Activity:high |
7/7 LONDON'S BURNING
\_ Nuked again. You're a moron. I did not write this, and
I will continue to put this here. Keep it up. -John
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/london/4659243.stm -John
\_ Don't you just love CNN's tasteless "WE JUST WANTED TO DIE"
headline?
\_ http://CNN.com is definitely the most tabloidy of the major
online news sites. Even http://foxnews.com is respectable.
Is it bad then if http://CNN.com is the 10th most visited web site
in the entire world?
\_ I just got through to my cousin in London. She said that
every line through King's Cross was affected. She normally
takes a train that passes through King's Cross around 8:45
AM but today she was late for work and missed the train.
Thank god. --ranga
\- you know about half the lines go through King's X/Pancras
routing cloud.
\_ I'll take your word for it. I've only been to London
once and I didn't really pay attention to the tube
stations other than the ones I absolutely needed to
know about.
Anyway, my cousin says that the news over there still
isn't saying which train(s) the bombs were on but
that several trains in and out of Kings Cross were
damaged by the bombs. I'm just glad that she wasn't
anywhere near there today. --ranga
\_ http://www.theregister.co.uk/2005/07/07/tube_explosions
...three explosions on tube trains between Aldgate and
Liverpool St, at Edgware Road and between Russell Square
and King's Cross...
...There was also an explosion on a Number 30 bus -
travelling from Hackney to Marble Arch - in Tavistock Square...
\- if it went off in Tav. Sq, that is near the Russell Sq. Stn.
Marble Arch is not close to that area. If you know London
slighly, one was north of the City of London, two north of
the British Museum and one near Paddington Station.
\_ Sounds like everyone I know should be okay, then, although
I can't even imagine the transit nightmare that they are
dealing with at the moment - how many millions of people
use the tube every day? --lye
\_ Apparently the bus system is also shut...
\_ I can't tell exactly which tube lines were bombed and where. I have
several friends in London and I'm wondering if they were affected.
--lye
\_ Goddammit. None of the American media seem to care WHERE the
bombs were, just that they happened. --lye
\_ And this because we "invaded" 2 Arab countries? How can you people
continue to believe this is not a matter of us vs. them?
\_ "You people?" Can we at least wait until the fucking blood is
dry before starting the trolling and flame wars? Fucking
christ on a stick.
\_ The blood's been dry since 9/11
\_ Don't you just love CNN's tasteless "WE JUST WANTED TO DIE"
headline?
\_ I just got through to my cousin in London. She said that
every line through King's Cross was affected. She normally
takes a train that passes through King's Cross around 8:45
AM but today she was late for work and missed the train.
Thank god. --ranga
\- you know about half the lines go through King's X.
\- you know about half the lines go through King's X/Pancras
routing cloud.
\_ I'll take your word for it. I've only been to London
once and I didn't really pay attention to the tube
stations other than the ones I absolutely needed to
know about.
Anyway, my cousin says that the news over there still
isn't saying which train(s) the bombs were on but
that several trains in and out of Kings Cross were
damaged by the bombs. I'm just glad that she wasn't
anywhere near there today. --ranga
\_ http://www.theregister.co.uk/2005/07/07/tube_explosions
\_ Map with blasts: http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/4659957.stm
\_ And this because we "invaded" 2 Arab countries? How can you people
continue to believe this is not a matter of us vs. them?
\_ "You people?" Can we at least wait until the fucking blood is
dry before starting the trolling and flame wars? Fucking
christ on a stick.
\_ The blood's been dry since 9/11
\_ Oh give it a rest. Try to have some respect for the dead.
\_ Who is denying that it's a matter of us vs. them? I think the
main point of the reality-based community is that we should be
pursuing terrorists, not trumping up reasons to invade
countries with secular governments and no ties to terrorists.
-tom
\_ http://www.theregister.co.uk/2005/07/07/tube_explosions
...three explosions on tube trains between Aldgate and
Liverpool St, at Edgware Road and between Russell Square
and King's Cross...
...There was also an explosion on a Number 30 bus -
travelling from Hackney to Marble Arch - in Tavistock Square...
\- if it went off in Tav. Sq, that is near the Russel Sq. Stn.
marble arch is not close to that location. if you know london
\- if it went off in Tav. Sq, that is near the Russell Sq. Stn.
marble arch is not close to that area. if you know london
slighly, one was north of the City of London, two north of
the British Museum and one near Paddington Station.
\_ Sounds like everyone I know should be okay, then, although
I can't even imagine the transit nightmare that they are
dealing with at the moment - how many millions of people
use the tube every day? --lye
\_ Apparently the bus system is also shut...
\_ The Taliban govt was a secular govt?
\_ No, I supported the action in Afghanistan and thought
it was foolish to split our efforts by invading Iraq.
We still have something like 5-10 times the number of
troops in Iraq compared to Afghanistan. -tom
\_ I know what you're trying to say, but both the Tablian
and Iraq had well known ties to terrorists. Sheesh.
\- ^Iraq^Pakistan
\_ umm... hello... Iraq had no fucking ties with Al-Qaeda,
and no fucking ties with 9/11. I can't believe you're
just wildly spewing baseless talking points.
\_ I don't recall saying "Al-Qaeda" or "9/11."
Saddam pays Palestinian Suicide Bombers:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/middle_east/2846365.stm
http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,48822,00.html
\_ oooh... palestinian terrorist support. Do you
have any idea how many arab countries have given
money and support to palestinians over the years?
Why aren't we invading them? Why don't we invade
Pakistan and their support of terrorism in Kashmir?
For fuck's sake, you want to go rooting out
regional terrorism in every part of the known world.
\_ Seesh, are you being trollish on purpose? As
I said, I know what tom meant, and I even
agree, invading Iraq wasn't exactly a
brilliant idea. All I said was that the
statement "[Iraq had] no ties to terrorists"
is factually incorrect.
\_ Apologies for jumping down your throat. Your
original statement lumped both Iraq and Afgh.
into the same group, and they clearly aren't.
\_ What terrorists did Iraq have well-known ties to?
The rest of the world has no idea what you're talking
about.
\- Abu Nidal lived in Baghdad. Iraq had terrorist
ties but not sig ties to the 9/11 effort.
If we dont limit to 9/11 lots of countries
have "terrorist ties".
\_ LOOK! It's a missing white girl on an island with
lots of black people! Oooo! Shiny!
\_ Good point. Also see: http://csua.org/u/cmq
\_ Including the US. Remember the Contras?
\_ Without *trying* to sound callow about all those wounded and
killed today, I think that if killing 40+ innocent civilians
is the best that Al Qaeda can do after months/years of planning
then the organization is weak indeed. One loon with a gun at
a McDonald's managed that. Britain is the US' best ally and
that's all they can come up with?
\- one theory about AQ is there are have little self-help cells
which come up with their own plans. so this may not have been
something with 100s of players behind the scenes. the IRA
bombing campaing didnt kill that many people but it sure
\_ Maybe not their bombing, but the IRA did kill 1500+
\- so did the israeli army.
affected a lot of people. this will certainly have repercussions.
\_ What they're saying is that what they did in Spain they could
do in London.
What you could be asking is, "What kind of security did they use
on those London trains, and how much does it differ from BART
security?"
You can assume Spain was the first time they tried something like
that, so they weren't ready for that shit.
\_ The goal of this form of terrorism isn't about killing the
enemy. It's about getting them to leave your people alone.
Numbers are important only because it gets attention. The London
bombings are just a little reminder that AQ is out there, a
spitwad in the back of the neck. Now comes the overreaction by
the English public (internal domestic retribution) and additional
self-doubt about policies in Iraq.
\_ So I guess it was an overreaction from the Spanish public and
additional self-doubt about policies in Iraq? Cowards!
\_ Domestic overreaction is great news for AQ. One of the
hardest things to do in espionage is to create a true mole,
someone who works on the inside of the opposition, but is
totally commited to your cause. The slightly disaffected
English Muslims can be pushed into an extremist position
if the English public reacts badly. The problem with
demanding an answer to 'us or them" are the people who
say "us" but no longer believe.
\_ I guess 9/11 really worked out well then from Al Qaeda's
point of view. We're leaving them alone more than ever
now.
\_ 9/11 was publicity. AQ played it badly in Afghanistan
when the Taliban couldn't control the warlords, but came
back when the Coalition invaded Iraq. AQ's ranks have
expanded with help from the percieved "new Western crusade"
against Islam. AQ's line has always been "leave us alone."
The problem WAS getting enough support to actually do it.
Now they are gaining new extremists who believe in the
cause.
\_ Even if they got zero recruits, there goal is not
to isolation. You can not reason with it.
\_ Sure you can. There is a compromise situation. It's
just unacceptable to a huge majority of the people it
would affect. The "us" mentioned above mean forcibly
creating a state of tens to hundreds of millions
similar to Afghanistan circa 2000, including many
Muslim holy places and all of Israel. It would make
"Jesusland" look like Las Vegas. |
| 5/24 |
|
| news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/london/4659243.stm Printable version Eyewitnesses tell of travel hell Two people have been killed and scores injured after a series of explosio ns on the London Underground network and a bus in central London. Eyewitnesses tell what they have seen and heard from around the capital. DAVID JONES, TAVISTOCK SQUARE Suddenly there was this thud, people on the bus said there's been an expl osion behind us and people rushed to the front. There was not a lot of fire but there was the smell of an explosion and a t that point people wanted to walk away from what they had seen. I suppose, to be honest, my first thought was G8, Olympics, somebody does not want London to celebrate. We ran into a building and a security guard was saying get in, get in'. BELINDA SEABROOK, RUSSELL SQUARE I was on the bus in front and heard an incredible bang, I turned round an d half the double-decker bus was in the air. It was a massive explosion and there were papers and half a bus flying th rough the air. There must be a lot of people dead as all the buses were packed, they had been turning people away from the tube stops. GERALDINE FOURMON, TAVISTOCK SQUARE There was a big bang. After the smoke went away I realised there was a do uble decker bus exploded. I saw at least five people jump from the top deck of the bus. It was such a big explosion and the bus was packed because the tube was c losed. ANDY ABERNETHY, LONDON It was a train on the Piccadilly line between King's Cross and Russell Sq uare and literally it was just a very loud bang. There were a lot of serious injuries down there as well. A guy by me thought he was going to die, I'm hoping he got out OK. JACQUI HEAD, KING'S CROSS Suddenly there was a massive bang, the train jolted. There was immediatel y smoke everywhere and it was hot and everybody panicked. Terror of passengers People started screaming and crying. Very silent and we we re thinking we were not going to get out. TAS FRANGOULLIDES, KING'S CROSS The train didn't get very far out of the station when there was an explos ion. Loads of glass showered down over everyone, the glass in the doors in bet ween all the carriages shattered. There was a lot of smoke and a lot of dust, there were some areas of pani c, I could hear screams. I started walking towards Russell Square then I saw the bus. Police were running from the scene and waving people away. I had to walk to work because I had to try and do something normal, it wa s all so chaotic. It wasn't till I got to work that I realised I had a cut on my head and m y clothes were covered in dust. ARASH KAZEROUNI There was a loud bang and the train ground to a halt. People started pani cking, screaming and crying as smoke came into the carriage. A man told everyone to be calm and we were led to safety along the track. When they led us to safety, I went past the carriage where I think the ex plosion was. The metal was all blown outwards and there were people inside being helpe d by paramedics. His clothes were torn off and he seemed pretty badly burned. ANA CASTRO, LIVERPOOL STREET People were screaming and shouting and saying things like I'm dying, I'm dying, please help me. I think I saw somebody who was dead it was just indescribable. LISA CURTIS, NEAR LIVERPOOL STREET People were evacuated immediately. I overheard one lady saying to a polic e officer that it looked like someone had left what looked like a brown jumper on the platform and it exploded. SARAH REID, NEAR LIVERPOOL STREET I was on the train and there was a fire outside the carriage window and t hen there was a sudden jolt which shook us forward. There was really hard banging from the carriage next door to us. A carriage was split in two, all jagged, and without a roof, just open. SCOTT WENBOURNE, ALDGATE I saw three bodies on the track. We walked to the platform, which took about half an hour as there were so many of us, after all it was rush hour. There were police at the platform and some of the injured were tended to. JACK LINTON, 14, ALDGATE There was a massive explosion, smoke and flames. Then eventually the smoke cleared and we mana ged to open the central doors down the train to go to the back of it bef ore they walked us along the track past the train to the station. The middle of the train was blown out and there were people on the track. I've got glass in my hair and my pockets and my ear hurts. SIMON CORVETT, EDGWARE ROAD All of sudden there was this massive huge bang. It was absolutely deafeni ng and all the windows shattered. The glass did not actually fall out of the windows, it just cracked. The train came to a grinding halt, everyone fell off their seats. There were just loads of people screaming and the carriages filled with s moke. You couldn't really breathe and you couldn't see what was happening. The driver came on the tannoy and said We have got a problem, don't panic'. You could see the carriage opposite was completely gutted. |
| www.theregister.co.uk/2005/07/07/tube_explosions -> www.theregister.co.uk/2005/07/07/tube_explosions/ Lester Haines Published Thursday 7th July 2005 10:00 GMT The entire London Underground network was shut down this morning followin g three explosions on tube trains between Aldgate and Liverpool St, at E dgware Road and between Russell Square and King's Cross. Bus services in the central Zones 1 and 2 are also suspended, as are National Bus coach services in and out of the capital. current status of services (be patient - website very slow). Police have confirmed that seven people were killed at Liverpool Street, and that there were 21 fatalities at King's Cross. London's police chief said traces of explosiv e had been found at one site. Click Here There was also an explosion on a Number 30 bus - travelling from Hackney to Marble Arch - in Tavistock Square, apparently the work of a suicide b omber. Dr Lawrence Buckman of the British Medical Association, whose hea dquarters is in nearby Tavistock Rd, treated victims at the scene and co unted "10 dead, nine critical, nine walking wounded", AP reports. Emergency services report 45 seriously-injured casualties from all four b lasts and around 300 with minor injuries. Alastair Wilson, clinical dire ctor at the Royal London, told AP that the hospital had admitted 183 pat ients from two of the incidents. Eight were critically injured, and six were undergoing surgery. Victims' injuries included general blast and li mb injuries, and smoke inhalation. The Metropolitan Police have issued a casualty hotline number for those c oncerned about relatives: 0870 1566 344. Sir Ian Blair, the Metropolitan Police commissioner, urged people to "sta y where you are - the whole London transport network is currently stoppe d The safest thing is to stay where you are. Don't call the emergency s ervices unless you have a life-threatening situation." Police have also asked those currently in London to think how and when th ey will get home, amids fears that an attempted mass exodus from the cen tre will exacerbate the already chaotic situation. Those trying to contact friends and family via mobile phone should be awa re that network priority may be given over to the emergency services. reported congestion, although BT said its networ k had survived a "massive spike" earlier in the day. Commissioner Blair further urged the media not to speculate on the cause of the explosions. The BBC, however, reports that "Arab sources said the blasts were probably the work of al-Qaeda"*. Prime Minister Tony Blair confirmed in a live TV statement this lunchtime that it is "reasonably c lear" that the explosions were terrorist attacks. notes: "It is too early to confirm the cause of the attacks, but the nat ure of the incident points to a pre-meditated act of terrorism." The PM left the G8 summit in Scotland shortly after his broadcast to travel to London. The first underground explosion occurred at 0851 BST between Aldgate and Liverpool Street. Further explosions followed between Russell Square and King's Cross (0856) and at Edgware Road (0917). British Transport Police originally blamed power surges for the blasts, b ut the National Grid said that "there had been no problems with its syst em which could have contributed to the incidents". BBC: "The train didn't get very far out of the station when th ere was an explosion. Loads of glass showered down over everyone, the gl ass in the doors in between all the carriages shattered. "There was a lot of smoke and a lot of dust, there were some areas of pan ic, I could hear screams. "I started walking towards Russell Square then I saw the bus. Police were running from the scene and waving people away. I had to walk to work be cause I had to try and do something normal, it was all so chaotic. "It wasn't till I got to work that I realised I had a cut on my head and my clothes were covered in dust." Islamist website on which a postin g claims the attacks on behalf of the "Secret Organisation Group of al-Q aeda of Jihad Organisation in Europe". The statement reads: In the name of God, the merciful, the compassionate, may peace be upon t he cheerful one and undaunted fighter, Prophet Muhammad, God's peace be upon him. Nation of Islam and Arab nation: Rejoice for it is time to take revenge against the British Zionist Crusader government in retaliation for the massacres Britain is committing in Iraq and Afghanistan. The heroic muj ahideen have carried out a blessed raid in London. Britain is now burni ng with fear, terror and panic in its northern, southern, eastern, and western quarters. We have repeatedly warned the British Government and people. We have ful filled our promise and carried out our blessed military raid in Britain after our mujahideen exerted strenuous efforts over a long period of t ime to ensure the success of the raid. We continue to warn the governments of Denmark and Italy and all the Cru sader governments that they will be punished in the same way if they do not withdraw their troops from Iraq and Afghanistan. God says: "You who believe: If ye will aid (the cause of) Allah, He will aid you, and plant your feet firmly." |
| news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/4659957.stm Printable version London blast locations London has been hit by four explosions - three on underground trains and one on a bus. LIVERPOOL STREET TUBE STATION Seven people are confirmed dead after an explosion rips through a carriag e on an Underground train about 100 metres outside Liverpool Street stat ion. A passenger tells of an "enormous bang and a lot of smoke". He adds: "A g roup of us got fire extinguishers and were able to smash through the car riage door." Passengers are rushed out of Liverpool Street station by police and Under ground staff. Anxiety increases as mobile phones stop working, leaving p eople unable to contact friends and relatives. At Liverpool Street Station in the City financial district, the wounded a re treated by medics as they lie on the concourse. A doctor at Aldgate estimates that at least 90 people had been wounded in the explosion. At 1530 BST, it is still unclear which Underground line the train was tra velling on. Liverpool Street is a major underground and overland interchange through which hundreds of thousands of commuters, many of them financial workers , pass each day. EDGWARE ROAD TUBE STATION The explosion occurs at 0917BST on an Underground train at the station. After the blast passengers begin emerging from the station, many covered in blood and clearly distraught. Paramedics go into the station, prompting fears there may still be injure d people trapped underground. A woman passenger tells the BBC there was a huge bang as two trains passe d in a tunnel just outside Edgware Road. I believe it's the second carriage that has all the injured people in it." A senior police official said there had been a number of fatalities but t hat "things are still relatively confused". The area around Edgware Road underground station remains sealed off. An o fficial says there are 12 fire appliances and 60 firefighters there. Edgware Road is a busy station with four underground lines: Hammersmith a nd City, District, Circle and Bakerloo. KING's CROSS TUBE - RUSSELL SQUARE The explosion happens at 0856BST on the Piccadilly Underground line headi ng north from Russell Square to King's Cross. An eyewitness who was on the train says: "I was in the second carriage an d I think the explosion was in the carriage in front of me, or maybe was even on the track. Another passenger says that - after 30 minutes - people smashed windows t o get out of their carriage and started walking down the side of the tra in. Two hours later, police say a rescue operation is still in place to evacu ate some passengers still trapped underground. King's Cross is a major underground and railway interchange with both com muter and long distance railway lines terminating there. WOBURN PLACE The explosion at 0947BST rips the top deck off a double decker bus in Wob urn Place / Tavistock Square. The location is near to Russell Square - scene of one of the underground train blasts - and also Euston mainline railway station. Describing the blast, eyewitness Belinda Seabrook said: "I was on the bus in front and heard an incredible bang, I turned round and half the doub le decker bus was in the air. "It was a massive explosion and there were papers and half a bus flying t hrough the air." It is unclear how many casualties have resulted from the blast. |
| news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/middle_east/2846365.stm Printable version Palestinians get Saddam funds Ceremony to award cheques under a painting of Arafat and Saddam Iraq regularly parades volunteers to "liberate Palestine" Saddam Hussein has paid out thousands of dollars to families of Palestini ans killed in fighting with Israel. Relatives of at least one suicide attacker as well as other militants and civilians gathered in a hall in Gaza City to receive cheques. Saddam is a hero," read a banner o ver a picture of the Iraqi leader and Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat a t the ceremony. With war looming in the Middle East, Palestinian speakers condemned the U nited States and Israel, which dismissed the ceremony as support for ter rorism. Saddam's payments $10,000 per family $25,000 for family of a suicide bomber $35m paid since September 2000 PALF figures One by one, at least 21 families came up to receive their cheques from th e Palestinian Arab Liberation Front (PALF), a local pro-Iraq group. A Hamas suicide bomber's family got $25,000 while the others - relatives of militants killed in fighting or civilians killed during Israeli milit ary operations - all received $10,000 each. Another banner in the hall described the cheques as the "blessings of Sad dam Hussein" and PALF speakers extolled the Iraqi leader in fiery speech es. "Saddam Hussein considers those who die in martyrdom attacks as people wh o have won the highest degree of martyrdom," said one. The party estimated that Iraq had paid out $35m to Palestinian families s ince the current uprising began in September 2000. Saddam's avowed support for the Palestinians, and his missile attacks on Israel during the Gulf War, have won him wide backing in the territories . Saddam's 'kindness' Israel condemned the Iraqi handouts as funding for terrorism. "It shows that Saddam is involved in every activity that is terrorism and murderous and leads to instability in the Middle East," said Amira Oron , a spokeswoman for the Foreign Ministry. Relatives at the ceremony Saddam is the only one that has stood with us Tahseen Maghani father of dead Hamas fighter However, families at this week's ceremony said the money would be used to rebuild homes destroyed by Israel and bring up orphaned children. "Saddam supports the families of the martyrs, not terrorism," said Ahmed Sabah, 69, whose son was killed by an Israeli missile strike in December . "It is a shame that Arabs stand silent as America prepares to occupy Iraq ." Israel blamed Mr Sabah's son Mustafa for bomb attacks on three Israeli ta nks which killed seven soldiers in 2002. Tahseen Maghani, whose Hamas militant son Karam was killed trying to infi ltrate the Jewish settlement of Netzarim, said he would use the money to plant crops and build a house. "These are tough times for Saddam but his kindness will help us a lot," h e said. Sabri Salama, a relative of two Palestinian teenagers killed in an Israel i air strike on Gaza in January, said America was "the chief terrorist s tate". Ibrahim Zanen, a PALF spokesman, said he hoped the ceremony would not be the last. |
| www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,48822,00.html McGeough's story in today's Sydney Morning Herald describ es a very hellish twist on the Academy Awards: The men at the top table then opened Saddam's checkbook and, as the names of 47 martyrs were called, family representatives went up to sign for c hecks written in US dollars. Those of two suicide bombers were the first to be paid the new rate of $2 5,000 US and those whose relatives had died in other clashes with the Israeli military were given $10,000 US each. The $500,000 US doled out in this impoverished community yesterday mean s that the besieged Iraqi leader now has contributed more than $10 milli on to grieving Palestinian families since the new intifada began 18 mont hs ago. I mean, who would let a foreign journalist see this sort of Iraqi-Palestinian blood partnershi p? "I asked the Ramallah office of the Arab Liberation Front," McGeough said . So the Palestinian Authority is blatantly exposing its t errorist funding from Iraq? One way is that it is a deliberate way for Baghdad to escalate the suicide bombings." McGeough quoted the Arab Liberation Front's Ma'amoon Tayeh as saying the extra $15,000 would encourage more suicide-bomber volunteers to "confirm the legitimacy of our national questions." "Saddam Hussein considers Palestine to be a governate of Iraq and he thin ks the same of the Palestinian martyrs as he does of Iraqi martyrs they all are martyrs for the whole Arab nation," Tayeh was quoted as saying. This Arab realm is the same one Saddam has invaded and battled on various fronts for 30 years. Whatever desperate and brainwashed Palestinian kid s aren't known for their nuanced view of recent Middle East history. This should be on the front page of every se rious newspaper. But you have to spend some time looking for any mention s of it. On March 12, the Associated Press quoted Baghdad's Al-Iraq news paper's quoting of deputy minister Tariq Aziz, who said the payments hav e been made since 2000 and recently were increased. The BBC monitored a broadcast this week about the blood money deal. likes of Muammar Gaddafi, wh o at least sounds more sincere the Saudis. But McGeough is the first to bring this twisted tale to the current war coverage. It was news even to the Palestinian officials McGeough questioned. "I interviewed the guy from the Arab Liberation Front last Thursday, the general secretary, and he told me everyone got $10,000. "It's a bit hard for Arafat, given his grip on things, and in particular his ownership of his security forces .... This little paperback is full of information that's very relevant right n ow: Saddam's campaign to enroll the past in the service of future glory is ob sessive. He has embarked on a giant project to reconstruct a version of ancient Babylon .... Saddam is widely portrayed as a latter-day Nebuchad nezzar, the 6th Century BC Babylonian ruler, whose memory the Old Test ament has preserved as a conqueror of Jerusalem, the leader who carried the Hebrews into captivity. Saddam even had bricks stamped with his name alongside Nebuchadnezzar's. Logic and diplomac y don't mean a damned thing to a Nebuchadnezzar wannabe. Saddam's answer to the "peace process" is a fat check to the suicide bombers' families and the destruction of the evil Hebrews. And the Palestinian authorities don't seem to have any problem doling out that dirty money ... Ken Layne types from a shack behind his Los Angeles home. Con and the upcoming Space Critters, he has written and edited for a variety of news outfits including Information W eek, the Sydney Daily Telegraph, UPI and Mother Jones. |
| csua.org/u/cmq -> cfrterrorism.org/groups/abunidal.html The Abu Nidal Organization hijacks an EgyptAir plane, Valletta, Malta, 19 85. Over the years, the Abu Nidal Organization (ANO) mounted terrorist operation s in 20 countries, killing about 300 people and wounding hundreds more. In the mid-1980s, the group was seen as the worlds most dangerous terro rist organization, but some experts say the group is inactive and no lon ger poses much of a threat; Abu Nidal was said to be ailing in recent ye ars and in August 2002 was reported dead. The ANOalso called the Fatah Revolutionary Council, the Arab Revolutionary Brigades, or the Revolutio nary Organization of Socialist Muslimsremains on the US State Departm ents list of foreign terrorist organizations. Abu Nidal, which means father of the struggle in Arabic, is the alias o f Sabri al-Banna, who was born in 1937 into a landowning family in Briti sh-ruled Palestine. During the 1948 Arab-Israeli War, Bannas family fle d, ending up in the West Bank. In the 1950s, he joined the Arab national ist Baath Party, and in 1967 he got involved with the Palestine Liberat ion Organization (PLO). Abu Nidal represented al-Fatahthe dominant fact ion of the PLO, led by Yasir Arafatin Sudan and later Iraq. He split wi th the PLO in 1974 after it proposed the creation of a national authorit y in the West Bank and Gaza Strip as a step toward Palestinian statehood . Abu Nidal, who continued to advocate Israels destruction, accused the PLO of selling out and set up his own organization, the Fatah Revolutio nary Councilsignifying that he saw his group as the true heir to Arafat s Fatah movement. What terrorist activities has the Abu Nidal Organization undertaken? Many of the groups targets have been Israelis, PLO officials, and repres entatives of Arab governments it dislikes. Among the groups best-known attacks are: * the 1994 assassination of the senior Jordanian diplomat Naeb Imran Ma aytah in Beirut; The group wants the state of Israel to be eliminated, preferably through an international Arab revolution, and therefore supports armed struggle against Israel. It bitterly opposes Arab-Israeli peace negotiations, a s well as the United States, the PLO, and moderate Arab regimes in Jorda n, Egypt, and the Persian Gulf states. It has also served as a mercenary terrorist force for radical Arab regimes. Iraq, Syria, and Libya have all harbored the group and given it trai ning, logistical support, and funding, often using the ANO as guns or hi re. Abu Nidal began working with Iraqi intelligence while representing F atah in Baghdad, experts say. He formed his organization with Iraqs hel p and began by attacking Syria and the PLO. In 1983, Iraqi President Sad dam Hussein expelled Abu Nidal and his group in an attempt to win Americ an military support for Iraqs 1980s war with neighboring Iran. Once the war ended, Iraq resumed its support of Abu Nidal. After being expelled from Iraq, the organization moved to Syria, where it worked to undermine peace plans involving Jordan, Israel, and the PLO. In turn, Syria expelled the Abu Nidal Organization in 1987, probably und er US pressure to distance itself from terrorists, at which point Liby a took it in. In 1999, in an attempt to rid itself of international sanc tions, Libya kicked out the Abu Nidal Organization. It is now thought to be based in Iraq, with cells in Palestinian refugee camps in Lebanon. In 1999, Egypt and Libya closed down ANO offices in th eir countries. |
| CNN.com -> www.cnn.com/ About 250 prisoners freed from Abu Ghraib The United States today freed about 250 detainees from Abu Ghraib prison, site of alleged abuses that prompted global outrage and led to days of hearings on Capitol Hill. Today marks the first mass prisoner release since the abuse scandal broke several weeks ago. Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld had visited the prison Thursday. |
| foxnews.com -> www.foxnews.com/ Round Two Ends Town hall style presidential debate comes to a close in St. GET YOUR WEATHER Type in your zip code, or city, state or country for your current conditi ons and five day forecast. |