A special thanks from the Taliban

Yesterday, Pakistani President Asif Zardari, the widower of Benazir Bhutto, signed into law a "peace agreement" where the Pakistani Taliban would implement Sharia law in the scenic Swat Valley. Sharia, of course, is the type of "justice system" that allows for the flogging of a teenage girls and arranged marriages between old men and 8-year olds.

Anyway, the Taliban have shown their appreciation by refusing to lay down their arms, which was supposed to be their side of the bargain. So here we have it...the Taliban gets to welsh on their deal and the Pakistani government is left with their country backsliding into the grip of homicidal maniacs. The Taliban also had a "thank you" gift to offer...

From BBC:

A suicide car bomber has attacked a security post in north-western Pakistan, killing at least 18 people, nine of them police, police say.

The bomber set off his explosives as he pulled up at a checkpoint in Charsadda, a town near the city of Peshawar.

There has so far been no claim of responsibility for the attack.

But correspondents say Pakistani Taleban militants, allied to al-Qaeda, have carried out numerous such attacks over the past two years.

Sick stuff. I hope that President Obama can show the same determination he showed when confronting the Somali pirates.

Standing with our ally

I understand that I have been fixated with what has been happening in India this last week, so I felt the need to post this article by Christopher Hitchens. I agree with him that we need to maintain a close partnership with India. He is also correct in saying that India acts as a good "counterweight" to Russia and China, although I do not necessarily agree with him about Pakistan, seeing as Pakistan is suffering from terrorism too.

I should note that this is from the center of the article...the full piece can be seen in the link below. Enjoy Hitchens' writing :)

Our friends in Bombay

by Christopher Hitchens

I hope I am not alone in finding the statements about Bombay from our politicians to be anemic and insipid, and the media coverage of the disastrous and criminal attack too parochially focused on the fate of visiting or resident Americans. India is emerging in many ways as our most important ally. It is a strong regional counterweight to Russia and China. Not to romanticize it overmuch, it is a huge and officially secular federal democracy that is based, like the United States, on ethnic and confessional pluralism. Its political and economic and literary echelons speak English better than most of us do. Its parliament in New Delhi—the unbelievably diverse and dignified Lok Sabha—was viciously attacked by Islamist gangsters and nearly destroyed in December 2001, a date which ought to have made more Americans pay more attention rather than less. Since then, Bombay has been assaulted multiple times and the Indian Embassy in Afghanistan blown up with the fairly obvious cross-border collusion of the same Pakistani forces who are helping in the rebirth of the Taliban.

It would be good to hear from the president and the president-elect that we regard attacks on the fabric and society of India with very particular seriousness, as assaults on a close friend that was battling al-Qaida long before we were. In response, it should be emphasized, our military and financial and nuclear and counterinsurgency cooperation with New Delhi will not be given a lower profile but a very much higher one. The people of India need to hear this from us, as do the enemies of India, who are our sworn enemies, too.

The inevitable question arises: Did our nominal ally Pakistan have a hand in this atrocity? In one sense, to ask the question is to answer it. Whether we refer to al-Qaida "proper," or to any of the armed Kashmiri formations that have lately been mentioned, we find some pre-existing connection to Pakistan's Inter-Services Intelligence agency, or ISI. Another conceivable suspect, the former Bombay crime lord Dawood Ibrahim, wanted by the Indian authorities on suspicion of blowing up the Bombay stock exchange and killing 300 civilians in 1993, has long been a fugitive from justice living safely in Pakistan's main port of Karachi. Not a bad place from which to organize an amphibious assault team that acted as if it had been trained by serious military professionals.

Terror sweeps through Mumbai

It is very saddening to see a beautiful city burn at the hands of extremists. This great tragedy is still unfolding as I write...it is equally disappointing that the world has taken its eyes off of this inhumane threat. I'm watching CNN now, and one report even suggests that the terrorists might have followed rescue workers to a hospital and attacked there. Just remember that terrorism doesn't go away when the markets are struggling, and they are always willing to remind us of this. Let's pray that the hostages are rescued and the brave Indian soldiers and police bring this to a close.

From the BBC:

Gunmen have carried out a series of co-ordinated attacks across the Indian city of Mumbai (Bombay), killing at least 80 people and injuring 200 more.

At least seven high-profile locations were hit in India's financial capital, including two luxury hotels where hostages were reported to be held.

A fire is sweeping through the Taj Mahal Palace, Mumbai's most famous hotel which is now ringed by troops.

Police said four suspected terrorists have been killed and nine arrested.

The situation is still confused but the main train station, a hospital, a restaurant and as well as the two hotels are among those places caught up in the violence.

There are reports of gunfire and explosions taking place elsewhere in the city.

Commandos have now surrounded the two hotels, the Taj Mahal Palace and the Oberoi Trident, where it is believed that the armed men are holding dozens of hostages.

One eyewitness said that the attackers had singled out British and American passport holders.

If this report is true, our security correspondent Frank Gardner says it suggests that Islamic militants are behind the attack.

A claim of responsibility has been made by a previously unknown group calling itself the Deccan Mujahideen.

The motive is far from clear - but the attacks come amid elections in several Indian states, including in disputed Kashmir.

In the latest developments:

-Police say an explosion heard inside the Oberoi was from a hand grenade, and flames and a massive plume of smoke are billowing from the Taj Mahal hotel

-The head of Mumbai's anti-terrorism unit and two other senior officers are among those killed, according to local TV

-The US and the UK have both condemned the attacks and Washington says it is "assessing the hostage situation"

-Gunmen opened fire at about 2300 local time at the sites in southern Mumbai.

Aid workers under attack

People sometimes forget how anyone can be fair game in a violent conflict...and aid workers, the people who try to help and put a smile on the face of the innocent people they are protecting, are no exception. In the last week, there have been several attacks and assassinations carried out by various thugs and terrorist groups operating in countries ranging from Africa to south Asia.

The latest example is an attack by the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam against two ships carrying aid supplies to war-ravaged northern Sri Lanka. LTTE "suicide squads" rammed two motor boats packed with explosives into the vessels, damaging one and nearly sinking the other. The ruthless Tamil fighters are growing more violent as the fighting intensifies with the Sri Lankan government.

A UNHCR convoy rumbles through the countryside in Uganda

Earlier this week, aid worker Gayle Williams, a native of London, was gunned down by Taliban militants in Kabul. She was heading off to work when two men on a motorbike opened fire...the Taliban later claimed responsibility and boasted about her killing, saying the aid worker was "spreading Christianity", whatever that is supposed to mean. Williams' charity organization is now considering withdrawing from the country amidst the deteriorating security situation. I hope the Taliban feel proud of what they have done to the Afghan people and those who are trying to help them.

Also earlier this week, suspected rebels from the Al-Shabab insurgency in Somalia shot dead Muktar Mohamed Mohamoud, an engineer working for the children's organization, UNICEF, in front of a tea shop. The attack came after another worker from the world food program was killed as he stepped out of a Mosque in Mogadishu.

It is a tough, dangerous, and even life-threatening line of work, but someone needs to be there to make the world a better place...even when the rest of the civilized world is too afraid to do anything about it, or too ignorant to look past their own borders.

The children of Africa

A new dawn rises over Anbar

...and the sun has set for the forces of terrorism who worked so hard to destroy it. At least that's the way it seems now that the Iraqi security forces are running things and the Marines who have trained them look back on a job well done as they get ready to go home.

I think its safe to say that there was very little hope for Iraq's Al-Anbar province between the 2004 Presidential election and Saddam Hussein's execution in 2006. If there was one city the so-called "antiwar" movement could point to as proof that Iraq was a lost cause, Fallujah was that city. But by early next month, the US Marines will be completely withdrawn from the city and most of the other cities in Anbar Province. Of course, most of the media has continued its scorched-earth policy regarding positive news in Iraq, and is instead focused on Muqatada's rallies in Baghdad.

Maybe Mookie should take a deep breath, because it looks like the Iraqi people are taking their country back...and the Marines are doing everything they can to help them.

Marines begin withdrawal from Iraqi cities.

WASHINGTON — When Marine Maj. Gen. John Kelly deployed to Iraq in February, the violence had fallen so low in Anbar province that he began figuring out how to start closing bases and prepare to go home.

In the last 10 months the Marines in Fallujah have done what was unthinkable before the surge began — they have quietly transferred out of one of Anbar province's largest cities. FOX News has learned in an exclusive interview with Kelly from Fallujah that 80 percent of the move is complete. In February there were 8,000 Marines living at Fallujah base. Now there are about 3,000 left. By Nov. 14 there will be none.

"We will shut down the command function here and I will move; my staff has already started to move," Kelly, the commander of Multinational Force-West, told FOX News in an exclusive interview via satellite. "We will turn the lights off here."

They will hand the Fallujah base over to their Iraqi counterparts on Nov. 14, having relocated themselves and thousands of combat vehicles to the desert base of Al Asad to the west. Marines will no longer be seen in city centers such as Fallujah — a major step toward leaving Iraq, and one step closer to Iraq's goal of having U.S. troops out of its population centers by mid-2009 — one of the key points enshrined in the Status of Forces Agreement being reviewed on Capitol Hill today.

On Wednesday, to little fanfare, the Marines quietly closed down Al Qaim base near the Syrian border. Now it is run by Iraqis.

In Fallujah, where the U.S. Marines once had three large mess halls to feed troops, they are now down to one. The Marines have quietly disassembled the entire infrastructure of the base.

"We probably had several thousand of those large metal containers — tractor-trailer containers," Kelly said. "I bet we don't have 200 of them here now."

Of the thousands of vehicles once parked at the base, now there are only 300 left. Their transfer occurred at night, between 9 p.m. and 5 a.m., over the past 10 months so as not to disturb Iraqi drivers and clog the roads.

They dubbed it "Operation Rudy Giuliani" because they were cleaning the streets up and returning Fallujah to normalcy — taking down barbed wire and tearing down checkpoints and Jersey walls that made Anbar look like a war zone.

"There is almost no barbed wire left anywhere in Fallujah," Kelly said. An Iraqi no longer sees barbed wire when traveling in and around the city.

Between 300 and 400 concrete barriers that divided the city were removed by Navy Seabees.

One of the big changes Kelly made when he took command in Anbar was to remove fixed checkpoints, and Iraqi vehicles no longer had to pull off to the side when a military convoy was on the road. His troops risked car bombs, but the gamble paid off in what had once been Iraq's most dangerous province. The new road rules instantly lowered the tension between military and locals. Soon he transitioned to moving military convoys only at night, so they would not encounter locals. This also stymied many of the insurgents laying IEDs or roadside bombs, which they often had done at night.

Another change for the better since Kelly arrived in February: He pushed the central government to provide more fuel to the people of Anbar, so the mostly Sunni population is now happier. In February, Anbaris were receiving only 8 percent of their allocation of fuel from the central government of Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki. Now it's 90 percent — eliminating one of their main gripes.

But perhaps the biggest sign that the situation has changed for the better for Sunnis living in Anbar: With the help of the Marines and the Iraqi police, nearly 100 percent of the eligible voting population were registered a month ago to vote in upcoming provincial elections.

The rest of this story can be viewed here.

The time for cooperation is now

Tensions have been exacerbated between the US and Pakistan in recent weeks, after US special forces crossed into Pakistan to pursue Taliban militants who use the "sovereignty" of northwestern Pakistan to their advantage. There are two things that Pakistan needs to realize...first of all, the NW regions are anything but sovereign territory of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan. Much of the area is a "no-go" zone for the Pakistani security forces, and the Taliban is able to operate freely. Second of all, while the Taliban leaders claim that their fight is directed at America, the violence--the bombings and terror attacks that continue to rock the country--are going to continue as Pakistan remains on the track of democracy. The election of Benazir Bhutto's widower...Asif Ali Zardari, angers Baitullah Mehsud and Uncle Ayman just as much Pakistan's cooperation with the US. A Taliban mini-state in the northwest and a democratic Pakistan will never be able to cooperate together.

So the point is, as long as the US and Pakistan refuse to cooperate and draft a real plan to finally crush the Taliban safe havens, this will continue to happen...

This horrific attack against the Marriott Hotel killed scores of people--including two Americans and the Czech Republic's ambassador to Pakistan. Dozens of Muslims celebrating the breaking of the fast (during the month of Ramadan) were also killed, proving once again that Muslims and westerners alike are in this fight together. As can be seen in this photo, the hotel is said to be in danger of collapsing, and we can only pray that no one else is trapped inside.

Pakistan has already lost control of its sovereignty, and its time for Pakistan's leaders to realize this. Perhaps no one knows better than Asif Ali Zardari...who lost his wife, Benazir, to these people last year. Pakistan should immediately join up with NATO and launch a joint-operation into the lawless frontiers, and at the same time, an aggressive political campaign must be put together to convince the tribal leaders in Pakistan's northwest that the terrorists they are sheltering--Bin Laden ,Zawahiri, and Mehsud--are Islam's greatest enemies. It would be similar to the effort that brought Iraq's Anbar province away from the grip of Al-Qaeda, and back under the control of Iraqis. But in the end, breaking ties with the US will NOT free Pakistan from terrorism...it will only make it weaker.

Pakistan's steps to solving terrorism:

I believe Pakistan could make headway in fighting terrorism and regaining control of its north provinces if it followed steps like these.

-Continue the ongoing operations against the Taliban...but not alone. Pakistan, Afghanistan, and NATO should sign a joint agreement to move freely in pursuit of extremists across the border. The rugged mountains make this hard enough as it it is--the diplomatic BS is only tying things up and benefit the Taliban, who have no respect for any of that anyway.

-Convince the Pakistani people that terrorism is Islam's greatest threat, not the US. Iraq has run a series of anti-terrorism public service announcements on TV, and has had great success in turning the tide on "Islamic" fundamentalism.

-Work to improve relations with Afghanistan and India...it would be a tremendous blow if Al-Qaeda and their affiliates realized they have failed in their efforts to keep the region divided. Recent events--the Marriott attack, the serial bombings in major Indian cities, the attack on the Indian embassy in Kabul--are clearly meant to cause political chaos. India and Pakistan are historic enemies, but in today's dangerous world, they face a common enemy.

-Don't give up the fight...savage acts of terrorism like the Marriott attack are going to continue, unfortunately. It is important that Pakistan and its allies move against the Taliban and don't pull back. Zardari is right to label terrorism as "a cancer", because if left unchecked, the cancer of terrorism will eventually consume its host--in this case, Pakistan's new democracy--and replace it with an enemy regime on the scale of the 1979 revolution in Iran.

...this last suggestion is for the US and Pakistan's critics who claim Pakistan "hasn't done enough in fighting terrorism...

-Stand with Pakistan and its people! Pakistan is a victim of terrorism, even more so than America. This is why I get so angry when I hear American politicians criticize Pakistan for failing to confront terrorism from the safety of their offices in Washington. Musharraf's government repeatedly tried to go after the Taliban, but the campaign of violence directed at major Pakistani cities these last two years is what I believe led to his eventual collapse. The Taliban cannot confront Pakistan's military, but they can turn the tide of public opinion by directing their attacks on the Pakistani people. Saturday's attack on the Marriott was not the first...last year, a suicide bomber killed a hotel guard who bravely prevented the terrorist's entry into the building.

Accusations by India and Afghanistan's President, Hamid Karzai, that Pakistan is supporting terrorism against their countries are certainly adding fuel to the fire. Pakistan's intelligence agencies have unfortunately been infiltrated by Taliban sympathizers, but the Pakistani government and its people are suffering just as much as their neighbors. In closing I will quote Bob Marley..."unite for the benefit of your people".

Back to reality

These past few days, the presidential campaigns, as well as the American media have been overwhelmingly focused on the economy. Today's violence in Yemen should remind everyone that there are even more frightening things to worry about than the prospect of another buyout or the Dow losing 200 points. That is all serious stuff--but for all the fear and uneasiness many Americans have about their future, at least they don't have to wake up to Takfiri fanatics on their doorstep, as many US embassy workers and the people of Sanaa did early Wednesday...

Perhaps its one thing to be thankful for, and let's not forget about the families of those killed in this attack (all of them were Arabs). Even in the times when they are not the target (most often they are) Al-Qaeda sees Muslim blood as being cheap and expendable.

US embassy in Yemen bombed

From Al-Jazeera English:

At least 16 people have been killed in an attack on the US embassy in the Yemeni capital Sanaa by a suicide bomber and armed fighters, the country's interior ministry has said.

A suicide bomber on Wednesday morning drove a car close to the embassy before detonating his explosives, witnesses said, leaving part of the building on fire.

Armed men then attacked the embassy from a second car, they said.

Six guards, four civilians and six attackers died in the assault, the interior ministry said.

A group called Islamic Jihad in Yemen has claimed responsibility for the attack and threatened to target the British, Emirati and Saudi embassies in Sanaa, reports say.

A vehicle was on fire on the road near the embassy compound's perimeter and police sealed off the area, witnesses said.

Roads leading to the embassy were closed after the attack.

Mohammed al-Qadi, a political columnist for the Yemen Times, told Al Jazeera: "The attack came at about 9.30 in the morning, when there were not so many people passing in the streets outside the US embassy.

"Otherwise, the casualties could have been a lot more."

Washington accused al-Qaeda of being behind the attack.

"I think it is safe to say ... the attacks bear all the hallmarks of an al-Qaeda attack," Sean McCormack, the US state department spokesman, said.

Who's the real enemy?

This post is a plea to the people of Iraq. Anyone has read any history of the Middle East obviously knows that Israel and the Arab states are historic enemies. A member of Iraq's parliament, Mithal Al-Alusi, could face prosecution for visiting Israel to attend an anti-terrorism conference. While the two state may have their differences, there's no question that Israel and Iraq face the same common enemy: political fundamentalists justifying murder under the religion of Islam. In fact, Al-Alusi's two sons were murdered at the hands of terrorists in Iraq.

Iraqi soldiers take part in a counter-terrorism drill.

The terrorists who are capitalizing off of this violence will never be defeated unless the countries of the world can find away to put aside their differences and confront them.

Sadly, two of the lawmakers pushing for Al-Alusi's punishment are Sunni and Shia. This is not how unification should work. Personally, I think that Maliki's government is getting way to close to the regime in Tehran. Iraq will forge a relationship with a country it fought a bloody 8-year war with, in addition to Iran's support for extremists in southern Iraq, but apparently its too much to cooperate with Israel in fighting terrorism. For the sake of a peaceful future for the Middle East, Iraqi lawmakers should drop any and all charges that might be coming against Al-Alusi.

Iraq punishes MP for visiting Israeli conference

by Jpost and AP

Iraqi legislators said Sunday that parliament had voted to lift the immunity of a Sunni Arab lawmaker who visited Israel.

The parliament has also banned Mithal al-Alusi from traveling outside Iraq or attending parliamentary sessions, they said.

Sunday's punishment was confirmed by Osama al-Nujeif, a Sunni Arab lawmaker, and Haider al-Ibadi, a Shi'ite lawmaker.

The two men said Alusi's trip was illegal and a humiliation for Iraqis who see Israel as a historical enemy. Without parliamentary immunity, Alusi could be subject to prosecution.

Alusi, chairman of Iraq's Democratic Party, Mithal al-Alusi, surprisingly arrived at a conference on terror in Herzliya last Wednesday, calling for the establishment of a joint intelligence network with Israel and the United States.

"In Israel, there is no occupation, there is liberalism," Alusi said to the sound of roaring applause.

Alusi made his first trip to Israel in September 2004 to participate in a counter-terrorism conference. Apparently as payback, extremists murdered his two sons, 22 and 30.

The terrorists "will try to kill more. They will try to stop us. It should give us power to continue, to believe in ourselves," he told The Jerusalem Post in an interview at the time.

Alusi was given the American Jewish Committee's Moral Courage award following his sons' deaths.

Iraq could benefit by following India, which is seeking Israeli help in curbing a resurgent militant threat in Kashmir. What does either side have to lose right now?

Al-Qaeda stands alone

AQ's deputy leader Ayman Al-Zawahiri has released a new videotape, and in it, he condemns the actions of Iran, Hezbollah, and Hamas. Its clear now...AQ is getting desperate, and they are now forced to lash out at anyone...even grotesque regimes that have in the past been sympathetic to their cause. The article below the attack on Iran shows the measures Al-Qaeda needs to go to in order to continue their campaign of violence.

Al-Qaida blasts Iran for working with US

Al-Qaida marked the anniversary of the September 11 attacks Monday with an hour-and-a-half video message summarizing the state of jihad, or holy war, around the world and slamming Iran for collaborating with the United States.

In the short excerpts aired on the Arab satellite news channel Al-Jazeera, al-Qaida Number 2 Ayman al-Zawahri accused Iran working with US forces.

"The guardian of Muslims in Teheran is cooperating with the Americans in occupying Iraq and Afghanistan and recognizes the two hireling governments there," he said.

Zawahri also criticized the Shi'ites for not "issuing any fatwa (edict) inside or outside Iraq calling for jihad and carrying arms against the Crusader occupier in Iraq." In militant postings, "crusaders" is shorthand for US troops in Iraq.

Zawahri has been increasingly singling out Iran and Shi'ites in his messages, most recently in April, describing the "Persians" as the enemy of Arabs and complicit in the occupation of Iraq.

The latest video featured clips of al-Qaida operations in the various fronts around the world, including Iraq, Afghanistan and Somalia, with prominent figures from the movement discoursing on their accomplishments over the year, Al-Jazeera said.

Meanwhile, in neighboring Pakistan...

From the Pakistan Dawn:

Teenage ‘suicide bomber’ held in Nowshera

NOWSHERA, Sept 8: Security personnel arrested on Monday a teenage boy they claimed was on a suicide mission and defused his explosives-lined vest. The boy was near a church in the Cantonment area when he was apprehended.

Officials said that 14-year-old boy, Mir Janan, was from Makeen area of South Waziristan.

During interrogation, the boy is said to have claimed that he belonged to Baitullah Mehsud’s Tehrik-i-Taliban Pakistan.

According to officials, he said that he had been brought to the area by a man on a motorbike.

The Inter Service Public Relations said the bomber was about 17 to 18 years old and his target was a security convoy.

He was spotted by two junior cmmissioned officers, Subedar Mohammad Naeem Akhtar and Naib Subedar Mohammad Rafique, who got hold of him.

The ISPR said that the boy was wearing a suicide vest packed with 10 to 15 kilogrammes of explosives. The vest was defused by bomb disposal personnel.

It is learnt that the boy also carried a hand-grenade and he tried to use it by removing its safety pin, but he was prevented from doing so.

Later, bomb disposal personnel had tactfully persuaded the bomber to take off the vest.

Security agencies are on the lookout for accomplices of the young terrorist.

Uncle Ayman doesn't have much to say about this in his tape. You would think someone like Baitullah Mehsud (Pakistani Taliban chief, alleged assassin of Benazir Bhutto) would have many "brave" martyrs on hand instead of having to convince 14-year olds to blow themselves up amongst fellow Muslims. A similar case like this happened in Iraq last month, involving a 16-year old girl.

Make no mistake, although AQ takes a beating every time the world sees their true face (that they kill children and target Muslims more than any other group), they did score a tremendous victory with Musharraf's ouster. Zawahiri points to this in his tape, specifically.

A cultural crossroad

It can almost be called Al-Qaeda’s Tibet…China’s western Xinjiang Province, home to the ethnic Uighurs, a mainly Muslim minority in China. Chinese repression of the Uighur people has given extremist groups an opportunity to exploit this suffering, and turn it into a political tool. The East Turkestan Islamic Movement has carried out at least three violent attacks against Chinese police in security forces during the month of the Olympics, killing dozens of people, primarily ETIM fighters and policemen.


Seeing as I have never had the chance to come face-to-face with an ethnic Uighur separatist, I am not sure if liberating the Muslim people of western China is truly something they care about (terrorist groups like Al-Qaeda in Iraq or the Taliban routinely put this notion to rest by blowing up innocent Muslims, often dozens at a time, almost every day). Regardless, the attacks that have occurred during the Olympic Games have only provoked the Chinese regime into forcing its ironclad grip even tighter on the Uighur community who would like to have the chance to exercise their religion, language, and culture freely.

Below is a very interesting article I found on Al-Jazeera about this tense situation…note the map of the province above, which borders Afghanistan and Pakistan. It’s alleged that some ETIM fighters are receiving training in the mountainous tribal areas of these countries.

Xinjiang tense in wake of attacks

By Tony Cheng, in Kashgar

With the eyes of the world on the Olympics in Beijing, a lockdown is in force across China's western Xinjiang province.

After three separate attacks in recent days, the Chinese government is unsure who they can trust in this restless region, more than 2,000 km from the Chinese capital.

At a checkpoint outside the ancient Silk Road city of Kashgar, a short distance from the site of Tuesday's fatal stabbing of three security officials, we found police relaxed, but no one was allowed to pass unchecked.

Heading back into the city, security was much tighter, with armed police forcing passengers to disembark from buses and cars to have their ID cards electronically checked.

Foreigners had their passports photocopied and their details entered into a computer.

A total of 31 people have been killed in just 2 weeks in the deadliest upsurge in violence seen in Xinjiang for many years.

Uighur exile groups based in Germany say the government has detained dozens of innocent Muslims in the wake of the attacks.

On August 4, Kashgar, close to the frontier with Afghanistan, saw the deadliest of the recent attacks when two men drove a truck directly into a group of jogging border police outside a small boarding house.

They threw what the authorities described as grenades, and continued the attack with knives.

By the time the attackers were overpowered, 16 policemen lay dead.

Reports in Chinese state media said police later found papers detailing a plan for "holy war" in the attackers' belongings.

It was a severe and bloody assault but with apparently very few witnesses - the owner of a nearby boarding house said she saw nothing.

When I asked a local shopkeeper how 16 people had died without his seeing any thing, he told me to go and ask the government.

The government itself has said little, despite claiming several months ago that there was a very real possibility of an attack from Muslim Xinjiang-based fighters targeting the Olympics.

But the simplicity of the weapons used - trucks, homemade bombs and knives - does not suggest the operations of a global "terrorist" network.

And the nature of the attacks appears more spontaneous than highly planned.

Kashgar's famous bazaar is still bustling with life, but in the wake of the recent violence everyone there seems a little more wary.

Separating Islam from Al-Qaeda

It is widely speculated that a massive car bomb attack against the Danish Embassy in the Pakistani capitol of Islamabad on Monday is reaction to the Danish cartoons that have been the subject of great controversy in recent months. The first thing on everyone's mind will be the notion that Islamic extremists are somehow "defending Islam" by driving a car packed with explosives into a foreign embassy, but let's remember something--there are over 1.2 billion Muslims in the world, and even if only 10 percent of them embraced Al-Qaeda's beliefs, the world would quickly be brought to its knees in a sea of destruction. The suggestion by some that attacks like this are the mainstream view in Islam are incorrect, the numbers themselves prove that wrong. Instead, controversies like the Danish Cartoons and the Dutch film "Fitna" give Al-Qaeda and other extremists a chance to recruit followers by convincing them that their religion is being insulted...and also put more distance between Muslims and westerners, who should be embracing each other in the fight against extremism. Anyone who reads my writings knows that I am a strong supporter of Islam and believe that the faith has been twisted into a sadistic ideology by some to advance certain beliefs--beliefs that are far from what is taught in the Koran. Someday, Al-Qaeda's lasting legacy will be the horrendous destruction it has brought upon Muslim countries and the religon it claimed to be fighting for, and not necessarily the attacks it has succeeded in carrying out in the west, which pale in comparison.

There's another reason not to believe the speculation that this is only about "blasphemy". Consider that AQ's #2 man Ayman Al-Zawahiri has openly declared that the Danish cartoons merit a response from Muslims, but why is it that Mr. Zawahiri doesn't have much to say when his Taliban allies in Pakistan's northwest blast their way through crowds of worshippers in mosques to target security officials and politicians? Surely, that is FAR more degrading and harmful to Islam than anything a Danish newspaper can print or anything Geert Wilders can say in his misguided film, yet Al-Qaeda and their fellow extremists do so with glee not only in Pakistan, but in Iraq, Afghanistan, and other Muslim countries. Al-Qaeda is exploiting this issue--and I strongly suggest the Dutch film "Fitna" and other anti-Muslim propaganda should be pulled, but by the looks of it, Al-Qaeda is far more interested in killing innocent people (mainly Muslims) and bringing about destruction in Muslim countries, so it isn't fair to say they are standing with their "fellow Muslims" to defend a religion they have greatly perverted.

Here's the story about the attack from The New York Times. Keep in mind Pakistan's government is trying to engage in "peace talks" with the Taliban, including militant leader Baitullah Mehsud, who is believed to be responsible for some of the many suicide bombings that have plagued Pakistani cities the last year and a half--including the assassination on Benazir Bhutto and the previous attempt on her life that killed scores of her supporters two months earlier.

A powerful car bomb exploded outside the Danish Embassy in an upscale area of the Pakistani capital Monday, badly damaging the building and killing at least six people, according to reports from hospitals.

A senior official at the Interior Ministry, Rehman Malik, said one foreigner was among the dead, but he did not give a nationality. Casualty lists posted at two hospitals said that six people had died and more than 20 had been injured. Mr. Malik said the police were investigating whether the blast was a suicide attack. There was no immediate claim of responsibility.

The blast, heard around the city at about 1 p.m., was the second effort to single out foreigners in Islamabad in the last few months and came as the civilian government has signed a series of peace deals with Islamic militants in the nation’s tribal areas.

Several European bomb experts who examined the blast site said that the bomb appeared to have contained about 110 pounds of explosives and left a crater nearly three feet deep. It was powerful enough to wreck cars up and down a street that is home to many diplomatic residences, schools and a nearby shopping center.

Security...something to be appreciated

Sometimes, I really think that Americans take their security and safety for granted. Just think of all the consumers who will complain about rising prices at the gas station or the supermarket, but for the most part, they remain able to do so without fear of a terrorist attack.

On Tuesday, a series of devastating bomb blasts ripped through several crowded markets and Hindu Temples in the Indian city of Jaipur, killing or wounding hundreds of people.

From the BBC:

At least 60 people have been killed and more than 150 wounded after a series of bomb blasts tore through the city of Jaipur in western India, officials say.

The bombs went off near historic monuments in the crowded old city at one of the busiest times of the day.

The head of state police said it was a terrorist attack. Reports suggest the death toll could rise.

Jaipur, in Rajasthan, is a popular tourist destination about 260km (160 miles) from the Indian capital, Delhi.

No group has admitted planting bombs in Jaipur. It is not yet clear what the motive for attacking the city might be.

Most people in Jaipur are Hindus but the city has a large Muslim minority. Correspondents say it has no history of religious violence.

In the 6 years since 9/11, the United States has been spared the brutal wrath of terrorism...enough time to allow it to become a political punchline at times, mainly among the anti-Bush factions who believe that the president's policies are the biggest threat to global stability. Does anyone remember the movie "Fahrenheit 9/11", where Michael Moore suggests that the terrorist threat is overblown and is being exploited by the Bush Administration? In the months and years that followed that movie, we have seen terrorists blow up commuter trains in the bowels of London, execute school children in Russia, detonate wedding parties in Iraq and Jordan, assassinate leaders in Lebanon and Pakistan, repeatedly decimate cities in Algeria, and target cafes in Israel...the list goes on. Almost on a daily basis, political extremists are taking more and more victims.

But it is not only comments that come from the American left and the so-called "antiwar" movement I take issue with. I often see conservative commentators and Republicans saying the same old phrase "Its better to fight them over there than over here". To me, that is a really dumb phrase, because the entire world is in this together. This is not only an issue of "national security". The one group that has been singled out as the source behind much of the terrorism in the world--Muslims--have also been the biggest victims. Sure, Al-Qaeda and the Takfiri extremists take victims in all forms--they may be westerners, Hindus, or Jews, but more often than not, Muslims continue to be targeted the most. The fact that Muslims have taken the brunt of terrorist violence certainly puts a dent in the beliefs of televangelists like Rod Parsley who claim that Islam is an "evil" religion seeking to topple western civilization.

Showing gratitude

Instead of viewing countries like Iraq, Pakistan, and Afghanistan as the proverbial "over there" some political leaders speak of, we should show tremendous respect to the people of those countries for fighting terrorism...right in their own backyard. While Americans go out shopping with the biggest worry of how much they can spend, Iraqis, Afghans, and others who live "over there" have to do so while fearing for their lives.

Sometimes though, they are not given the respect they deserve. The so-called "antiwar" movement repeatedly downplays the reality that Al-Qaeda is indeed operating inside of Iraq and targeting innocent people in its campaign of mass murder. Instead, they would like to present to the American people (or as they see it, potential voters) that the current fighting is only about ancient hatred, and that Iraqis are lusting for each others' blood and unable to put their country back together. The Iraqi Security Forces are portrayed as incompetent and incapable of handling operations on their own, even as they are bravely fighting against terrorism (in their own country) and taking losses much higher than their American counterparts.

I suggest we show a little more appreciation...and respect. Just because the terror attacks that are wrecking havoc across the globe have not found their way into the streets of an American city these last few years does not mean we should forget about it. Our allies and friends, as well as those who are determined to make the world a more dangerous place are fully participating...and Americans should be as well.

When the facts tell a different story...

On Tuesday, when speaking in Amman, Jordan, Senator John Mccain came under attack for suggesting that Al-Qaeda militants are working with Iran in their effort to bring about instability to Iraq. Sure enough, the critics came out swinging, saying that Iran and Al-Qaeda could never work together because Iran is a Shiite theocracy and Al-Qaeda adheres to a radical Sunni Muslim ideology. But then again, Iran's actions across the Middle East indicate it is a lot more interested in achieving power and influence as opposed to preserving a Shiite system of beliefs. For one thing, Iran is the primary supporter of Hamas, a terrorist group that "adheres" to the Sunni denomination of Islam. Hmmmmm...why would Iran, which is Shiite, want to work with Hamas?

From the Jerusalem Post:

A week after Shin Bet head Yuval Diskin informed the cabinet that Hamas terrorists train in Iran, a commander in the extremist militia admitted as much to The Sunday Times.

Reportedly, the group has been sending gunmen to train with Iran's Revolutionary Guards for the past two years. Currently, the unnamed commander told the British paper, some 150 gunmen are being trained.

Hamas's members enter Iran via Syria and avoid having their passports stamped. Syria is also home to "more basic training" than that given in Iran. Gunmen deemed of outstanding quality receive extra training and return to train others in Gaza.

The most promising members of each group stay longer for an advanced course and return as trainers themselves, he said. Those unfit for combat return to "serve" in a research unit.

To read more about Hamas' admission about the group's involvement with Iran, the Times Online gives a more detailed analysis.

Anyway, so maybe that debunks the incorrect assumption that terrorists who adhere to different beliefs are unwilling to put that aside for the sake of fighting a common enemy, which in this case would be Israel. But Mccain specifically mentioned Al-Qaeda. While any connections to Iran and the notorious Al-Qaeda in Iraq seem more sketchy, it has been documented in the 9/11 commission Report that Iran may have looked the other way as AQ terrorists were passing through its borders. It's also been suggested that Iranian officials maintained contact with AQ's leadership.

Then there's the allegations that suggest Iran is supporting the Taliban in Afghanistan. If you listen to the critics, the Iranians would never do such a thing, seeing as the Taliban, like Al-Qaeda, are "Sunni extremists". But there's one thing Iran might regard as more of a threat than the Taliban--a democratic Afghanistan on its doorstep. Indeed, if the Afghan reconstruction efforts succeed, it could be a severe blow to Iran's attempts to clamp down on the pro-democracy movement inside its own borders. Therefore, is it all that surprising that the Iranian soldiers patrolling the border would be willing to pass off caches of weapons to Taliban insurgents if they knew if was going to be used to kill American and coalition soldiers?

In the end though, these people--Iran, Al-Qaeda, Hamas, and the Taliban--betray everything the religion of Islam teaches by murdering innocent people and justifying violence by holding a Koran in one hand, and an Ak-47 or a bomb detonator in the other. If they are okay with doing that, why would they care if they had to work together with a group that has hijacked a different denomination?

I do not know what Mccain was thinking when he made the statements. Maybe he has researched this issue and read through some of the reports (like the ones I've linked to) or maybe he just assumed that terrorists are all like-minded murderers in the end. One thing's for sure though, no matter what they believe, both Iran and Al-Qaeda are determined to prevent progress towards reconciliation in Iraq, and are willing to kill those who get in their way.

When homicidal maniacs hijack a religion...

Well the news that has been come out of the Muslim world these last few days has been very disturbing. In December, I wrote a post about an assassination attempt on a Pakistani government minister who was attending prayers inside of a mosque. Scores of people died in that bomb attack, and these next examples are certainly no better. One happened in Iraq, the other in Afghanistan.

Yesterday in Iraq, two disabled women were strapped up with explosives and detonated by remote control in two Baghdad markets, killing almost 100 innocent people in what was perhaps the most brutal terrorist attack in over 9 months in the Iraqi capital. The obvious question we should all be asking is 'why', but we should also be wondering why the inhuman mass murderers behind the attack weren't willing to send one of their own "martyrdom seekers" into the crowd. Perhaps it is because they are simply running out of bad guys, or maybe its because they are too afraid, or it could be because they are desperate to find a way to destroy the amazing progress that has been made in Iraq in recent months. Just the same, those who continue to suggest that the Iraq conflict is nothing more than civil war are not only wrong, they are ignorant. To say that ordinary Iraqis or Muslims would committ such an evil act is insulting to the people of that country, their culture, and their religion.

In Afghanistan, an equally horrendous act was committed when a Taliban suicide bomber blew himself up inside of a mosque in the southern city of Lashkar Gah on thursday, killing the deputy governor of Helmand Province and five others in what the provincial police chief described as "totally against our religion". It follows a pattern of similar attacks in the region, including the one in Pakistan that was mentioned earlier.

These barbaric attacks are only the latest in a series of events that have been happening around the world in regards to the war on terrorism. Just look at the assassination of Benazir Bhutto, the Algiers bombings, and the siege of Mogadishu in Somalia in addition to the terrorist activities that continue in Iraq and Afghanistan. Some may deny it, but all of these events are connected to the broader war on terror in some way or another.

Running out of bad guys...

Its no secret now that things are getting better in Iraq. The fact that most major media outlets have paid little attention to the dramatic reduction in violence across the country is a good indication of just how much better things really are. So what do we owe all of this success to? Well, it seems to be three factors, the first being the well-planned strategy implemented by General David Petraeus, as well as the increase of 30,000 American troops on the ground. The second factor is the heroic actions of the brave Iraqis who have chosen to rise up against Al-Qaeda and extremism. Last year, an awakening council started by Shiekh Sattar Abu Risha routed the insurgency from the Al Anbar province. Similar movements followed suit and in time, Baghdad and the northern provinces were secure.

...and the third factor, as far as I've concluded, is that Al-Qaeda might just be running out of bad guys to kill innocent people.

A couple of days ago, an awakening council ambushed a group of Al-Qaeda in Iraq fighters and killed 35 of them. This sort of occurrence seems to be happening more often. Last month, the Islamic Army in Iraq, a former anti-American insurgent group, carried out its own raids against Al-Qaeda, while joint U.S.-Iraqi operations continue to wipe out dozens of terrorists on a daily basis. Not to mention, Al-Qaeda has got to be low on "martyrdom seekers" willing to blow themselves up, after hundreds of other fanatics have already done so over the years.

Over the weekend there seemed to be a little hint of desperation when Al-Qaeda's #2 man, Ayman Al-Zawahiri, released a video in which he demanded the group's Iraq-based wing purged the insurgency of traitors. Despite Zawahiri's attempt to sympathize with the American people about the antiwar sentiment currently splitting this country apart, it looks like there is a very good chance Al-Qaeda could be in its death throws, as far as Iraq goes at least.

Certainly, we can only hope.

Terror hits Algeria

Car bombs tore through the Algerian capital of Algiers this morning, one of which reduced the UN headquarters to rubble. Information is sketchy, and rescuers are still combing through the debris. The interior ministry, the UN, and hospital officials are all giving conflicting casualty figures--but so far its known that at least 22 people, five of them UN workers, are dead and some 180 injured. The hospitals are saying as many as 76 people may have been killed in the blasts, which would make it the deadliest attack in Algeria's history. In addition, ten UN workers are still missing and rescuers are trying desperately to find them. It's unknown at this time if the blasts were triggered by suicide bombers or timed detonators. Al-Qaeda has posted a message on an Islamist website claiming responsibility for the bombings.

The attack today is especially symbolic because of today's date...December 11th. In April, Al-Qaeda's north Africa wing took responsibility for a triple car bombing in Algiers that left 33 dead, that attack, just like this one, occurred on the 11th of the month. A series of other terrorists attacks have also hit Algeria, and many Algerians are fearing their country could backslide back into the days of an Islamic insurgency and guerrilla warfare.

My opinion on this...

This highlights just how dangerous extremist political Islam is. This shows that there is a lot more to the War on Terrorism than just Iraq and Afghanistan and that terrorism is a universal threat. The antiwar/impeach Bush crowd has been trying to convince the American public that the terrorist threat is hyped-up and overblown, but I'd like to see them tell that to the families of the dozens of people who died today in the streets of Algiers. This year alone, Muslim extremists have attacked all over the world, including the June car bomb plots/failed attack in London and Glasgow. Just because terrorists have been unable to attack us again in the United States is no reason to lower our guard. Nevertheless, if terrorists can hit in Algiers, a relatively affluent city on the Mediterranean, then they could very well hit southern Europe, just look at what happened in Madrid in 2004.

How will the world probably react to this? Well...

President Bush, as well as President Sarkozy in France and UN Chief Ban Ki Moon have condemned the bombings. The media however, has shown a few clips of the attacks and that's about it. They're far more concerned with the Drew Peterson Case and other small, local events. It really kills me when the reporters flock to Namibia to catch a glimpse of Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie, while completely ignoring the humanitarian catastrophes across the African continent. In addition, this attack today was not in an Iraqi city, so it contradicts the liberal media's talking points about how terrorism wasn't a problem until Bush invaded Iraq. If this had been the UN headquarters in Baghdad, you can bet it would be the opening story on the "Today Show", complete with close up shots of death in destruction to show the world how terrible the war is going.

But the biggest thing this will remind us of is that Al-Qaeda is still active and seeking new training grounds. North Africa, a vast region with a low population density, is the perfect spot to set up Jihadist camps. Pelosi and Reid continue to scream about how we need to go into Pakistan to get Al-Qaeda, but the most dangerous terrorists have already sought refuge in areas that have fallen off our radar, like north and east Africa. Somalia, another African country plagued by extremism, has become a battleground between Islamic militants and Ethiopian soldiers. Yes, although you don't here much about it, extremism is growing all over the world, and its been happening long before the US ever set foot in Iraq. We need to wake up to the reality of the world around us before more innocent people are killed by these homicidal maniacs.