FYI "Good News" Posts

After today, all of the "Good News From Iraq/Afghanistan" posts will be titled "Good News From The War On Terror". I will then break the news down by whatever regions are provided by CentCom.

Top Iranian General Disappears

The Blotter

The mysterious disappearance of an Iranian general in Turkey in early February has led to speculation he either was kidnapped or defected.

Iran has reportedly asked Interpol to investigate the general's disappearance. Iranian Foreign Minister Manouchehr Mottaki was quoted by Iran's news agency today as saying that a foreign ministry official was currently in Turkey to investigate the disappearance and has asked the Turkish government "to inquire into the issue and give explanation on Asgari's whereabouts."

One respected analyst with sources in the Iranian Revolutionary Guard says Gen. Ali Reza Asgari has defected and is now in a European country with his entire family, where he is cooperating with the U.S.

Other reports have suggested that the general may have been kidnapped by the Israeli secret service, the Mossad. A spokesperson at the CIA declined to comment on the reported defection.

"This is a fatal blow to Iranian intelligence," said the source, explaining that Asgari knows sensitive information about Iran's nuclear and military projects. Iran called tens of its Revolutionary Guard agents working at embassies and cultural centers in Arab and European countries back to Tehran out of fear that Asgari might disclose secret information about their identities, according to the analyst.

There are conflicting reports about how and when Asgari disappeared. The general, according to Turkish and Israeli press reports, arrived in Istanbul from Damascus on Feb. 7. Initial reports speculated he may have been kidnapped because he failed to show up at a hotel that had been booked for him by two non-Turkish men.

The source, however, believes Asgari's disappearance was prompted by the detention of five Iranians after the raid on their government's liaison office in Irbil, Iraq in January. Asgari, 63, knew and may have worked with some of the detained men, said the analyst.

Asgari's years with the Iranian Revolutionary Guard and the Iranian defense ministry would make him an invaluable source of information. He was reportedly based in Lebanon in the 1990s and was in charge of ties with the Lebanese Shiite group Hezbollah.

At one point he was also in charge of military purchases at the defense ministry and exposed widespread corruption there which led to the arrest of a number of officials. Most recently, he worked as a consultant for the same ministry

If he was kidnapped, hopefully he's in a CIA secret prison being water-boarded. If he defected, good. If we or one of our allies are involved, the amount of intelligence that can be gained would be great.

CIA Hot On The Trail of Bin Laden?

The Blotter

Armed with fresh intelligence, the CIA is moving additional man power and equipment into Pakistan in the effort to find Osama bin Laden and his deputy Ayman al Zawahri, U.S. officials tell ABC News.

"Reports that the trail has gone stone cold are not correct," said one U.S. official. "We are very much increasing our efforts there," the official said.

People familiar with the CIA operation say undercover officers with paramilitary training have been ordered into Pakistan and the area across the border with Afghanistan as part of the ramp-up.

Although never publicly acknowledged, Pakistan has permitted CIA teams to secretly operate inside Pakistan.

Pakistan officials say they are aware that CIA teams have increased their presence in northern Waziristan since last September when Pakistan withdrew its troops from the area under a much-criticized "peace deal" with tribal leaders.

Director of National Intelligence Mike McConnell testified last week that current intelligence "to the best of our knowledge" puts both bin Laden and al Zawahri in Pakistan. It was the first time a high-ranking U.S. official publicly identified Pakistan as bin Laden's hiding place.

Past intelligence has indicated that bin Laden often changed locations in March, traveling to hiding places in the mountains once the snow cover begins to melt.

Once again, I expect a big letdown. This is something we've heard several times, and each time we narrowly missed him. I actually think the chances of him still being alive is 50/50. Mr. Zawahiri has been the mouthpiece for Al-Qaeda for quite some time and it's just gives me a feeling Bin Laden is either dead or in grave condition. Just show us the body, I don't want him alive. If he is found alive, hopefully he will be tortured before his last breaths.

Al-Qaeda Leader In Iraq Captured?

The Fourth Rail Via Jawa Report

Unconfirmed report indicates Bagdadi captured in Salahadin province

Iraqi security forces are reporting that Abu Omar al-Baghdadi, the leader of al-Qaeda's political front organization the Islamic State of Iraq, has been captured in the northern city of Duluiya in Salahadin province, according to Deutsche Presse-Agentur. The report has not been confirmed by the U.S. military at this time. The mid February news that Abu Musab al-Masri was wounded and subsequently captured by Iraqi security forces turned out to be a false report from the Interior Ministry. However today's report of al-Baghdadi's capture was issued by the Salahadin provincial administration.

Al-Baghdadi's real name is reported as Muharib Mohammed Abdullah, and he is “a former legal expert from the city of Balad.” Baghdadi's capture would be a largely symbolic victory, as al-Masri is the real power behind al-Qaeda and its Islamic State.

After so many false reports, you can't help but doubt this. Hopefully, it will turn out to be good news.

Good News From Iraq And Afghanistan 3/2-3/4

IRAQ

EIGHT TERRORISTS KILLED DURING SALMAN PAK RAID

BAGHDAD, Iraq - Coalition Forces killed eight terrorists during a raid Thursday targeting al-Qaeda in Iraq operating in the Salman Pak region.
Intelligence reports indicate a significant number of individuals involved with the AQIZ terrorist network currently operating in the area. Activities in this area have been linked to a roadside and vehicle-borne explosives network. Terrorists in the area are also believed to be involved in smuggling weapons and facilitating foreign fighters.
During the raid, in which Coalition Forces were repeatedly confronted by small arms and mortar fires, Coalition Forces identified three armed terrorists maneuvering toward them with hostile intent. Ground forces engaged the enemy, killing the three terrorists.
Twenty minutes later, ground forces were again confronted by eight terrorists who began firing upon them. Ground forces returned fire, killing four terrorists. The other four fled the area.
Ground forces also witnessed armed terrorists in a vehicle who were accessing a weapons cache and removing small arms. Coalition Forces engaged, killing one terrorist. Two terrorists were wounded and fled.
Coalition Forces recovered several sniper rifles, AK-47s and rocket-propelled launchers from one of the engagement sites.
"Successful coalition operations continue to disrupt al-Qaeda in Iraq operations, restricting freedom of movement and reducing the organization's manpower pool," said Lt. Col. Christopher Garver, MNF-I spokesman.

THREE SUSPECTED TERRORISTS DETAINED IN BAGHDAD RAID

BAGHDAD, Iraq – Coalition forces detained three suspected terrorists during a raid in Baghdad Sunday morning.

The targeted suspected terrorist, who was detained on the scene, is reported to be involved in the procurement and distribution of weapons, including explosives to conduct improvised explosive devices attacks against Iraqi citizens and Coalition Forces.

While conducting the raid, Coalition Forces entered a mosque where the targeted suspect was hiding. Coalition Forces detained the targeted suspect along with two other suspected terrorists.

During the operation, one local Iraqi woman received wounds to her thigh and head. Coalition medical personnel treated her onsite and she was transported to a local hospital for further care.

“Coalition forces soldiers respect the sanctity and holiness of all places of worship and exercise the utmost restraint when planning for and considering the conduct of operations in and around mosques,” said Lt. Col. Christopher Garver, MNF-I spokesperson.

“We do not enter mosques for the sole purposes of disrupting insurgent activities or conducting a show of force. Mosque entries occur only as a last resort, and only when substantial and credible evidence shows insurgent activity is occurring there – i.e., meetings, storage of weapons, harboring of insurgent leaders,” he said.

IRAQI FORCES CAPTURE SUSPECTED WEAPONS SMUGGLER IN BASRA

Baghdad – Special Iraqi Army Forces captured an alleged weapons smuggler and trafficker during operations with Coalition advisers Mar. 4 in Basra.

The suspect reportedly funnels weapons and improvised explosive devices to rogue Jaysh Al Mahdi elements for use in attacks against Iraqi and Coalition Forces.

Iraqi forces captured the alleged trafficker without incident. The operation, against a suspected rogue JAM member, demonstrates that Iraqi forces operate at will throughout Iraq to combat criminal and violent elements undermining the security of Iraq.

CLEARING OPERATIONS BEGIN IN SADR CITY

BAGHDAD - More than 600 Multi-National Division - Baghdad Soldiers and 550 Iraqi security forces began a clearing operation in the eastern district known as Sadr City March 4.

Soldiers from 2nd Battalion, 325th Airborne Infantry Regiment, 2nd Brigade Combat Team, 82nd Airborne Division, with two Stryker companies from 1st Battalion, 23rd Infantry Regiment, 3rd Brigade Combat Team, 2nd Infantry Division, conducted a combined clearing operation beginning in the early morning hours March 4, teaming up with the 8th Brigade, 2nd Iraqi National Police Division and the 3d Battalion, 2nd Brigade, 10th Iraqi Army Division.

"During operations today, local residents were receptive and cooperative with coalition and Iraqi forces," said Lt. Col. Scott R. Bleichwehl, MND-B spokesman. "The operation is designed to set secure conditions for the citizens of Sadr City."

During the operation March 4, Bleichwehl said no weapons caches were reported or suspects detained. He added there were no incidents of violence, and no casualties to coalition forces, Iraqi security forces or civilians.

AIR STRIKE LEADS TO HOSTAGE RESCUE; WEAPONS CACHE UNCOVERED

BAGHDAD, IRAQ – An assessment performed by Coalition Forces following an air strike in Arab Jabour on Saturday led to the rescue of four Iraqi citizens and the uncovering of a terrorist weapons cache today.

Four Iraqi citizens were liberated from a building near the site of yesterday’s air strike. According to one of the liberated hostages, the terrorists holding them captive fled immediately after the air strike. All four hostages were treated on site for various injuries. One of the hostages said he had been held captive for 50 days.

At the site of the air strike, Ground forces also found remnants of an anti-aircraft heavy machine gun known as a DShK and multiple rocket propelled grenades and grenade launchers. Additionally, a DShK Tripod was found dug in the ground along the Tigris River with spent ammunition cartridges.

Coalition Forces called in the air strike yesterday after they began receiving small arms fire from several armed men across the Tigris River and were unable to safely subdue enemy fire.

Coalition Forces used two precision guided bombs in the strike destroying a small structure and killing seven terrorists hiding inside. A large secondary explosion was noted after the initial bombs were dropped on the target, indicating the presence of explosive material within the structure.

AFGHANISTAN

8 ARRESTED IN COMBING AFGHAN-COALITION OPERAT ION

BAGRAM AIRFIELD, AFGHANISTAN – Afghan and Coalition forces arrested one known terrorist and seven other suspects early Friday in the Gorwek Valley area of Paktika Province in connection with aiding terrorist fighters and facilitating terrorist operations.
Reliable information led the combined force to the compound, where the inhabitants complied with a request for peaceful surrender.
No shots were fired, and there were no injuries to Afghans or Coalition forces or reported damages during the operation.

Inmate Hugo Chavez Escapes From Mental Institution Again

FOXNews.com

CARACAS, Venezuela — President Hugo Chavez on Sunday said he believes enemies including the CIA are out to kill him, and called U.S. diplomat John Negroponte a "professional killer."

Chavez said Venezuelan officials have intelligence that associates of jailed Cuban anti-communist militant Luis Posada Carriles also are involved in plotting to assassinate him.

He said the death plot idea has "gained weight" due to various factors, including the recent appointment of Negroponte, the former director of national intelligence, as deputy to Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice.

"Who did they swear in ... there at the White House as deputy secretary of state? A professional killer: John Negroponte," Chavez said.

Chavez did not elaborate, but his government has previously accused Negroponte of playing a key role in the Contra war against the leftist Sandinista government of Nicaragua when he served as ambassador to Honduras — a haven for clandestine Contra bases — from 1981 to 1985.

Whoever is trying to kill him should hurry up and do it. He's already crazy, the more he believes this, the worse he's going to become. It's actually amazing that he thinks he's that important.

Nuclear bomb materials frighteningly available

MercuryNews.com

WASHINGTON - The number of experts who believe that terrorists could obtain the apparatus for a nuclear bomb is impressive and growing.

The Sept. 11 Commission described in 2004 the relative ease with which terrorists could conceal the needed weapons-grade plutonium or highly enriched uranium, which it said would be ``about the size of a grapefruit or an orange.''

Since 2001, law enforcement officials have developed training exercises on how terrorists might smuggle eight components for an improvised 10-kiloton bomb into the United States and then detonate it near the White House.

Experts in and out of the government worry that the most likely source of nuclear material is Russia and the former Soviet bloc nations, where stocks of weapons-grade plutonium and uranium are stored at loosely guarded sites.

And some people are trying to get their hands on them.

The International Atomic Energy Agency reports 976 incidents of illicit trafficking of nuclear and radioactive materials since 1993 -- with 149 of them last year alone. In 2006, a man in the former Soviet republic of Georgia was arrested for allegedly trying to sell highly enriched uranium to terrorists.

I believe we are at a point where it's not if, but when some type of nuclear device is detonated inside the United States. With the combination of lack security of nuclear material in foreign countries and our ridiculously open border, it's just a matter of time before it happens.

Pakistan Makes A Deal With The Taliban?

Asia Times Online Via Victorycaucus.com

KARACHI - The Pakistani establishment has made a deal with the Taliban through a leading Taliban commander that will extend Islamabad's influence into southwestern Afghanistan and significantly strengthen the resistance in its push to capture Kabul.

One-legged Mullah Dadullah will be Pakistan's strongman in a corridor running from the Afghan provinces of Zabul, Urzgan, Kandahar and Helmand across the border into Pakistan's

Balochistan province, according to both Taliban and al-Qaeda contacts Asia Times Online spoke to. Using Pakistani territory and with Islamabad's support, the Taliban will be able safely to move men, weapons and supplies into southwestern Afghanistan.

The deal with Mullah Dadullah will serve Pakistan's interests in re- establishing a strong foothold in Afghanistan (the government in Kabul leans much more toward India), and it has resulted in a cooling of the Taliban's relations with al-Qaeda.

-------------

Al-Qaeda does not fit into any plans involving Pakistan, but mutual respect between the al-Qaeda leadership and the Taliban still exists. All the same, there is tension over their ideological differences, and al-Qaeda sources believe it is just a matter of time before the sides part physically as well.

One would think that the threat of cutting off aid to Pakistan and the deal to help India with nuclear energy would be enough to discourage these kinds of acts. Of course the U.S. has threatened to cut off the palestinian terror-tory but yet we keep pouring millions to them. I guess it just goes to show you that none of those people can be trusted. They will pat you on the back with one hand and stab with you the other.

Terrorist Bill Of Rights-NY Times

New York Times Via LGF

Restore Habeas Corpus

One of the new act’s most indecent provisions denies anyone Mr. Bush labels an “illegal enemy combatant” the ancient right to challenge his imprisonment in court. The arguments for doing this were specious. Habeas corpus is nothing remotely like a get-out-of-jail-free card for terrorists, as supporters would have you believe. It is a way to sort out those justly detained from those unjustly detained. It will not “clog the courts,” as Senator Graham claims. Senator Patrick Leahy of Vermont, the Democratic chairman of the Judiciary Committee, has a worthy bill that would restore habeas corpus. It is essential to bringing integrity to the detention system and reviving the United States’ credibility.

Stop Illegal Spying

Mr. Bush’s program of intercepting Americans’ international calls and e-mail messages without a warrant has not ceased. The agreement announced recently — under which a secret court supposedly gave its blessing to the program — did nothing to restore judicial process or ensure that Americans’ rights are preserved. Congress needs to pass a measure, like one proposed by Senator Dianne Feinstein, to force Mr. Bush to obey the law that requires warrants for electronic surveillance.

Ban Torture, Really

The provisions in the Military Commissions Act that Senator McCain trumpeted as a ban on torture are hardly that. It is still largely up to the president to decide what constitutes torture and abuse for the purpose of prosecuting anyone who breaks the rules. This amounts to rewriting the Geneva Conventions and puts every American soldier at far greater risk if captured. It allows the president to decide in secret what kinds of treatment he will permit at the Central Intelligence Agency’s prisons. The law absolves American intelligence agents and their bosses of any acts of torture and abuse they have already committed.

Close the C.I.A. Prisons

When the Military Commissions Act passed, Mr. Bush triumphantly announced that he now had the power to keep the secret prisons open. He cast this as a great victory for national security. It was a defeat for America’s image around the world. The prisons should be closed.

Account for ‘Ghost Prisoners’

The United States has to come clean on all of the “ghost prisoners” it has in the secret camps. Holding prisoners without any accounting violates human rights norms. Human Rights Watch says it has identified nearly 40 men and women who have disappeared into secret American-run prisons.

Ban Extraordinary Rendition

This is the odious practice of abducting foreign citizens and secretly flying them to countries where everyone knows they will be tortured. It is already illegal to send a prisoner to a country if there is reason to believe he will be tortured. The administration’s claim that it got “diplomatic assurances” that prisoners would not be abused is laughable.

Congress needs to completely overhaul the military prisons for terrorist suspects, starting with the way prisoners are classified. Shortly after 9/11, Mr. Bush declared all members of Al Qaeda and the Taliban to be “illegal enemy combatants” not entitled to the protections of the Geneva Conventions or American justice. Over time, the designation was applied to anyone the administration chose, including some United States citizens and the entire detainee population of Gitmo.

To address this mess, the government must:

Tighten the Definition of Combatant

“Illegal enemy combatant” is assigned a dangerously broad definition in the Military Commissions Act. It allows Mr. Bush — or for that matter anyone he chooses to designate to do the job — to apply this label to virtually any foreigner anywhere, including those living legally in the United States.

Screen Prisoners Fairly and Effectively

When the administration began taking prisoners in Afghanistan, it did not much bother to screen them. Hundreds of innocent men were sent to Gitmo, where far too many remain to this day. The vast majority will never even be brought before tribunals and still face indefinite detention without charges.

Under legal pressure, Mr. Bush created “combatant status review tribunals,” but they are a mockery of any civilized legal proceeding. They take place thousands of miles from the point of capture, and often years later. Evidence obtained by coercion and torture is permitted. The inmates do not get to challenge this evidence. They usually do not see it.

The Bush administration uses the hoary “fog of war” dodge to justify the failure to screen prisoners, saying it is not practical to do that on the battlefield. That’s nonsense. It did not happen in Afghanistan, and often in Iraq, because Mr. Bush decided just to ship the prisoners off to Gitmo.

Ban Tainted Evidence

The Military Commissions Act and the regulations drawn up by the Pentagon to put it into action, are far too permissive on evidence obtained through physical abuse or coercion. This evidence is unreliable. The method of obtaining it is an affront.

Ban Secret Evidence

Under the Pentagon’s new rules for military tribunals, judges are allowed to keep evidence secret from a prisoner’s lawyer if the government persuades the judge it is classified. The information that may be withheld can include interrogation methods, which would make it hard, if not impossible, to prove torture or abuse.

Better Define ‘Classified’ Evidence

The military commission rules define this sort of secret evidence as “any information or material that has been determined by the United States government pursuant to statute, executive order or regulation to require protection against unauthorized disclosure for reasons of national security.” This is too broad, even if a president can be trusted to exercise the power fairly and carefully. Mr. Bush has shown he cannot be trusted to do that.

Respect the Right to Counsel

Soon after 9/11, the Bush administration allowed the government to listen to conversations and intercept mail between some prisoners and their lawyers. This had the effect of suspending their right to effective legal representation. Since then, the administration has been unceasingly hostile to any lawyers who defend detainees. The right to legal counsel does not exist to coddle serial terrorists or snarl legal proceedings. It exists to protect innocent people from illegal imprisonment.

Are we allowed to question their patriotism yet? To summarize the bill of rights suggested by the NY Times, it's our fault the terrorists do what they do, so we should let them do it. Of course it wouldn't have anything to do with their religion. If we stop capturing people that wish to kill us, the world will be a happy place.

More Troubling Events Concerning Russia

Expert in Russian poisoning case is shot

WASHINGTON - FBI agents say they are assisting police in suburban Washington who are investigating the shooting of a Russian expert — a man who spoke out on "Dateline NBC" last weekend and strongly suggested that remnants of the KGB were responsible for the bizarre poisoning death of Alexander Litvinenko.

The Russian expert, Paul Joyal, was shot Thursday night as he got out of his car in front of his house in Adelphi, Md. Investigators in Prince Georges County say a witness claims to have seen two men running away after the shooting. Joyal remains hospitalized with a gunshot wound to the midsection. Authorities have not said whether they've been able to talk to him.

Joyal is a long-time consultant on security and Russian affairs. From 1980 to 1989, he was director of security for the Senate Intelligence Committee.

On last weekend's "Dateline," he said of Litvenenko's death: "A message has been communicated to anyone who wants to speak out against the Kremlin: 'If you do, no matter who you are, where you are, we will find you and we will silence you — in the most horrible way possible.'"

Russian Police Crack Down on Anti-Kremlin Demonstration

ST. PETERSBURG, Russia — Police clubbed protesters and dragged them into waiting buses on Saturday in response to a defiant demonstration against the Kremlin in the heart of President Vladimir Putin's hometown.

Several thousand members of liberal and leftist groups chanted "Shame!" as they marched down St. Petersburg's main avenue to protest what they said was Russia's roll back from democracy. The demonstration, called the March of Those Who Disagree, was a rare gathering of the country's often fractious opposition.

It was at least the third time police have moved in to break up an anti-Kremlin protest in recent months.

St. Petersburg authorities had prohibited the march, only granting permission for a rally far from the city center, but the activists defied the ban and marched down the Nevsky Prospekt, the city's main street, blocking traffic. The mayor called the protesters extremists trying to destabilize the city ahead of local elections.

Riot police beat dozens of protesters with truncheons, but several thousand broke through police cordons. They marched toward the city center and rallied for about 40 minutes until police moved in again, detaining people and dragging them into buses.

Putin accused of shutting out opposition parties from coming polls

Opposition parties in Russia are accusing Vladimir Putin's Kremlin of mounting a concerted campaign to shut them out of forthcoming elections and squeeze the life out of the democratic process.

With seven days to go until regional elections, nine parties have already been barred from standing in one or more regions, and others are struggling to overcome the obstacles being placed in their path.

Small parties not currently represented in the national parliament claim that to qualify for the vote on March 11, they have been told they must put up a huge bond in advance or collect tens of thousands of signatures of support. They say that even when they meet the criteria, the government moves the goal posts.

The warnings come amid an increasingly bitter war of words between the United States and Russia over the direction in which Moscow is heading. Last week Mike McConnell, America's national intelligence director, accused Mr Putin of taking a backward step in the march towards democracy. He claimed Mr Putin had surrounded himself with "extremely conservative" advisers and was controlling the process of selecting Russia's next leader.

Next Sunday's contests in 14 regions are the last major electoral test before federal parliamentary elections in December and the vote to choose President Putin's successor a year from now.

Under new legislation passed last year, nearly half of Russia's 35 parties had already been defined out of existence because they were too small. Some of them allege election rules have been twisted to consign them to the wilderness.

Kremlinology: a study of the president's men

Winston Churchill famously compared analysing Soviet-era politics to watching bulldogs fighting under a carpet.

Although Boris Yeltsin, unwittingly perhaps, laid bare the Kremlin's inner workings for a while, ex-KGB Vladimir Putin has not just pulled the carpet back into place, he has nailed it to the floor. As a result the art of Kremlinology has made a comeback - and nowhere is it practised more enthusiastically than over the question of Mr Putin's successor.

For the moment, at least, the Kremlinologists believe there are two front-runners: first deputy prime ministers Dmitry Medvedev and Sergei Ivanov. Both men, each backed by competing Kremlin factions, have been given extensive coverage in the media over the past year in an attempt to boost their popularity.

Western diplomats say they would marginally prefer Mr Medvedev, who is seen as the more moderate of the two. But as a friend of Mr Putin from the time when the president served as deputy mayor of St Petersburg in the 1990s, he is still unlikely to diverge much from Russia's current course.

Mr Ivanov is seen as more of a hawk and has been frequently vocal in his criticisms of the West. Like the president, he is a former KGB officer and is thought to be close to a powerful faction in the Kremlin known as the Siloviki, dominated by those with a Soviet-era intelligence background.

While cipher candidates could also run to give the election an air of legitimacy domestically, few doubt that the candidate backed by Mr Putin will win. Liberal heavyweights like former prime minister Mikhail Kasyanov and former chess champion Garry Kasparov could also mount a challenge but it is likely to be stillborn. They will either be jailed or further discredited and are already unpopular after being portrayed as corrupt stooges of the West. Some still believe that, despite his insistence to the contrary, Mr Putin will change the constitution to seek a third term. Even if he does not, Mr Putin will still loom large in Russian politics, assuming his successor stays loyal — something that cannot be taken for granted as Boris Yeltsin discovered.

Mr Putin, however, is in a stronger position. Although the factions in the Kremlin are locked in fierce competition for control of the country's energy and natural resources, they know that stability is the best way to ensure their own preservation.

It is also possible that Mr Putin could pick another insider if his loyalty appeared more solid. Kremlinologists say that as many as 10 other candidates are still being considered.

Teheran agents smuggled missile that shot down RAF helicopter in Iraq

Telegraph.co.uk

A missile which brought down an RAF Lynx helicopter and killed five British Service personnel was smuggled into Iraq by Iranian agents, an official inquiry into the attack will reveal.

The Sunday Telegraph has learnt that a British Army Board of Inquiry (BOI) into the events surrounding last May's attack will state that the weapon, a shoulder-launched surface-to-air missile known as an SA14 Strella, came from Iran.

The attack, which was also responsible for the death of Flt Lt Sarah Mulvihill, the first British servicewoman to be killed on active service since the Second World War, appears to provide further evidence of Iran's direct involvement in the deaths of British troops serving in Iraq.

It is understood that the inquiry, which has assessed evidence from military engineers and scientists, will conclude that the aircraft was shot down with an Iranian SA14 missile. The inquiry, which is conducted by senior RAF and Army officers, will deliver its finding to defence chiefs next month.

Iran poised to strike in wealthy Gulf states

Telegraph.co.uk

Iran has trained secret networks of agents across the Gulf states to attack Western interests and incite civil unrest in the event of a military strike against its nuclear programme, a former Iranian diplomat has told The Sunday Telegraph.

Spies working as teachers, doctors and nurses at Iranian-owned schools and hospitals have formed sleeper cells ready to be "unleashed" at the first sign of any serious threat to Teheran, it is claimed.

Trained by Iranian intelligence services, they are also said to be recruiting fellow Shias in the region, whose communities have traditionally been marginalised by the Gulf's ruling Sunni Arab clans.

Were America or Israel to attack Iran, such cells would be instructed to foment long-dormant sectarian grievances and attack the ex-tensive American and European business interests in wealthy states such as Dubai and Saudi Arabia. Such a scenario would bring chaos to the Gulf, one of the few areas of the Middle East that remains prosperous and has largely pro-Western governments.

The claims have been made by Adel Assadinia, a former career diplomat who was Iran's consul-general in Dubai and an adviser to the Iranian foreign ministry. They came as Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, the Iranian president, made a formal visit to Saudi Arabia yesterday in what was widely seen as an attempt to defuse growing Sunni-Shia tensions in the Middle East.

Saudi Arabia has accused Iran of backing Shia death squads killing Sunnis in Iraq, and of backing the Lebanon-based Hezbollah militia in its efforts to bring down the government in Beirut. Meanwhile, a US naval build-up has continued in the Gulf waters south of Iran, a move intended to show Washington's readiness to strike against Teheran's nuclear installations for defying UN orders to cease uranium enrichment.

Mr Assadinia, who fled Iran after whistle-blowing on corruption among the country's all-powerful theocrats, said: "The Iranian government believes that to survive it needs permanent bases throughout the Middle East. Anybody who contemplates threatening or invading Iran will have those cells unleashed against them."

Mr Assadinia, 50, served for two years at the Iranian consulate in Dubai, which he says was also used as a conduit for illicit funding of Hezbollah, the Lebanon-based Shia militant group that waged a six-week war with Israel last summer.

Major Attack Aimed At Bin Laden?

The Blotter

For the past two days, U.S. and NATO forces have been conducting a major attack against a compound in a remote area of Eastern Afghanistan where Osama bin Laden or another senior al Qaeda leader may be hiding, ABC News has learned.

According to eyewitnesses and local reporters in Kunar province, Coalition forces launched a fierce attack on a small enclave in the village of Mandaghel, approximately 17 miles from the border with Pakistan, on Friday afternoon. Warplanes pounded the positions ; U.S. special forces and Afghan National Army soldiers moved in shortly afterwards.

The assault appeared to meet stiff resistance from militants at the compound. Heavy artillery and gunfire could be heard for hours, local witnesses said . A handful of civilians were reportedly wounded in the strike. Though sealed off from outside access, the area now appears to be under coalition control.

U.S. officials declined to identify who the operation was targeting, but indicated they were after a "High Value Target" (HVT) . Official sources would not rule out that al Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden himself was the intended victim. Afghan officials said the target could be another senior ranking al Qaeda leader.

The Coalition, which generally refuses to discuss ongoing operations, declined to make an official comment.

According to a local official, the compound under attack belongs to an Islamic militant and suspected drug trafficker named Haji Aminullah. The area of Kunar province is known as a stronghold of Wahabbists—followers of the strict sect of Sunni Islam practiced in Saudi Arabia, according to Barnett Rubin, senior fellow at New York University. Since the 1980's, the area has been a haven for Arab militants, including Osama bin Laden.

Hahahahaha, "Official sources would not rule out that al Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden himself was the intended victim." Not a 'victim', but a 'high value target'. Hopefully he will meet his 72 virgins soon.

Bill Maher Sorry the Assassination Attempt on Dick Cheney Failed

MSM fails to report and Democrat candidates for president have yet to condemn him. Maher seems to think the world would be a safer place if the Cheney would have been Assassinated.

NewsBusters.org

Maher: But I have zero doubt that if Dick Cheney was not in power, people wouldn’t be dying needlessly tomorrow. (applause)


Maher: I’m just saying if he did die, other people, more people would live. That’s a fact.

Video at Ms. Underestimated

This is also the same man who said the following after the 9/11 attacks.

"Look at what they did," he said. "First of all, you have a whole bunch of guys who are willing to give their life. None of (them) backed out. All of them slammed themselves into pieces of concrete ... These are warriors."

Maher, according to a transcript of the show, responded by saying, "We (the United States) have been cowards lobbing cruise missiles from 2,000 miles away. That's cowardly. Staying in the airplane when it hits the building, say what you want about it, it's not cowardly."

Ann Coulter Calls Edwards A 'Faggot', Dems Lose It

FOXNews.com

Democratic Party boss Howard Dean demanded that Republican presidential candidates denounce conservative columnist Ann Coulter after she referred to Democratic presidential hopeful John Edwards as a ‘faggot’ during a speech Friday at a national conservative gathering.

Coulter, who was addressing the Conservative Political Action Conference in Washington, D.C., said:

"I was going to have a few comments on the other Democratic presidential candidate John Edwards, but it turns out you have to go into rehab if you use the word 'faggot,' so I - so kind of an impasse, can't really talk about Edwards."

Members of the audience seemed startled, then many clapped, and she proceeded to open the floor to questions, reported EditorandPublisher.com

After her comments, Democratic National Committee Chairman Howard Dean issued a press release expressing his outrage. Dean called Coulter’s remarks ‘hate-filled and bigoted.’

If this was Cindy Sheehan, Al Franken, or any other left wing nutjob, they would be applauded for speaking out against the oppressors. Many Democrats have said equally offensive things.