[Bangla Daily Star] Six people have been killed in an ambush in northeastern Kenya's border region with war-torn Somalia, police said Wednesday following the latest in a string of attacks. Unidentified gunmen attacked a pickup truck laden with passengers late Tuesday near Qooqae in the northeastern Mandera region, a troubled area hit by multiple attacks in recent months, local police chief Joseph Tenai said.
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06/13/2013 00:00 ||
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[Shabelle] A Kenyan court sentenced nine Somali citizens each to five years in prison on Monday after finding them guilty of violently hijacking a vessel, MV Magellan Star, in the Gulf of Aden in September 2010.
The nine were captured by international anti-piracy forces before being handed over to Kenya to be prosecuted, because Somalia was not considered able to try them properly.
Although the number of attacks has fallen markedly since 2011 thanks to tougher security aboard ships and increased Western naval patrols, piracy emanating from the Horn of Africa nation may still cost the world economy about $18 billion a year, the World Bank said in April.
Prosecutors told the court the men attacked the ship armed with three AK-47 rifles, a G3 rifle, one SAR rifle and other crude weapons.
"They hijacked the vessel, using violence against its crew by firing at them, and took control of the ... vessel, thus endangering the lives of the crew," they said in the charge sheet.
All nine had denied the accusations, and were held in jug at one of Kenya's maximum security prisons during the trial.
While handing out the sentence, the court noted that the accused had already served a long term in jail while the trial was in progress, and therefore were given shorter prison terms.
"Such charges would ordinarily attract a jail term of up to 20 years," magistrate Richard Odenyo said in his ruling, which was translated for the suspects who did not understand English.
A lawyer representing the accused termed the ruling "fairly reasonable", saying his clients had not yet decided whether to lodge an appeal.
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[An Nahar] An attempt to kill a senior Libyan army officer in the eastern city of Benghazi on Wednesday left him lightly maimed, the army's general staff said.
It said on its Facebook page that Colonel Abdullah al-Shaafi, front man for the Joint Operations Room in Benghazi, had been the target of an attempted liquidation.
The statement said that Shaafi and one of his attackers were taken to hospital.
One of Shaafi's aides told Agence La Belle France Presse that gunnies had shot the colonel in the foot, but that he had received treatment and had already left hospital.
"One attacker was killed and another maimed," the aide said, without providing any further details.
The defense and interior ministries set up the Joint Operations Room in Benghazi to help reestablish order in the city, cradle of the 2011 uprising that toppled former dictator Muammar Qadaffy ... who had more funny outfits than Louis XIV... .
Militias with different tribal and ideological links now control parts of Benghazi, where there has been a wave of attacks on army and coppers and facilities.
Islamists have often been blamed, but some observers say militias in general have launched attacks in a bid to stop regular security forces from regaining control of the city, despite local opposition.
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06/13/2013 00:00 ||
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#1
One of Shaafi's aides told Agence La Belle France Presse that gunnies had shot the colonel in the foot,
[Al Ahram] Violent festivities between Moslem Brüderbund members and supporters of the anti-government 'Rebel' ('Tamarod') campaign took place in the coastal city of Alexandria late on Wednesday, leading to the local headquarters of the Brotherhood's Freedom and Justice Party being destroyed.
The Rebel campaign is a signature drive launched in May with the intention of "withdrawing confidence" from President Mohamed Morsi, who hails from the Brotherhood, by collecting 15 million citizens' endorsements before the end of this month.
As campaign members were seeking to collect signatures from pedestrians in the central Raml district, hundreds of Brotherhood members coming from Tawhid Mosque locked horns with the campaigners.
Al-Ahram's Arabic-language news website reported that, as well as fist fights, both camps exchanged stones. The same report also quoted a local, Mohamed Abdulla, as saying that Brotherhood members "fired live rounds in the air."
The use of firearms, according to Abdulla, angered the residents of the area and caused them to "completely destroy" the headquarters of the Freedom and Justice Party, which is located in the area.
Al-Ahram reported that thousands of angry residents later gathered around the Tawhid Mosque, where Brotherhood members were hiding.
By contrast, the Arabic-language website of the Freedom and Justice Party said that dozens of Rebel supporters attacked FJP and Moslem Brüderbund members as well as residents, using bladed weapons and birdshot.
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[Nigerian Tribune] NO fewer than 60 corpses of suspected Boko Haram ... not to be confused with Procol Harum, Harum Scarum, possibly to be confused with Helter Skelter. The Nigerian version of al-Qaeda and the Taliban rolled together and flavored with a smigeon of distinctly Subsaharan ignorance and brutality... bully boyz were said to have been deposited on Monday at the state specialist hospital in Maiduguri, the Borno State capital, Nigerian Tribune gathered on Tuesday.
It was also gathered that the bully boyz were incarcerated Drop the gat, Rocky, or you're a dead 'un! and handed over to the military by youths alleged to have been engaged by government and trained by foremost hunter, Ali Quara, who specialises in hunting robbers and notorious criminals.
Nigerian Tribune gathered that some groups of youths declared hunting extravaganza on Boko Haram bully boyz and other criminals to clean the state, after several months of blood-letting by the sect.
One of the directors charged with the responsibility of evacuating corpses, who did not want his name in print, told newsmen on Tuesday in Maiduguri that the youth, who are now referred as "Civilian JTF" in Maiduguri, had been making tremendous effort at hunting and catching members of the dreaded sect, who seemed to have defied all effort to be arrested by security officials.
He said, "if you observe now, the security personnel are not oppressing the people as they are doing in the past. Now it is the civilian JTF who knows these Boko Haram boys that go about identifying, arresting and hands them over for justice."
According to him, "with this new arrangement, Borno would soon be cleansed of these bad elements and the peace we are all praying for is at our doorsteps," adding that "what we need to do is to continue to pray for victory for these youths that have voluntarily contributed by putting their lives on the line for the sake of millions of Borno citizens who were being killed by Boko Haram terrorists."
He said "this is what the state should have done long ago to prevent the killings of many innocent citizens, but everything has its own time. We did not know that one day, some youths would come up, bundle a Boko Haram member and hand such over to the military. That was impossible in the past but now it is the Boko Haram who are seeking hiding places."
Also a former director in the Ministry of Information, who also pleaded anonymity, told Nigerian Tribune that he was reliably informed that those youths hunting for Boko Haram members in Maiduguri were 300 in number and were selected 20 from each of the 15 wards in Maiduguri and supported with the help of the hunter Quara and some of his boys.
"You know Ali Quara was engaged by government to train these boys who know those Boko Haram members from each ward of the state capital, they were not just trained but also using all forms of 'juju', that bullet or knife cannot penetrate them and they know all those involved in Boko Haram activities in their areas.
"Also the people in every ward in the state are now gingered by the show of courage by the youth and are now coming out with information on who is Boko Haram and who is not in their domain. That is why there have been great success since this new operation 'catch Boko Haram again in Maiduguri."
Meanwhile, ...back at the desert island, Bert was realizing to his horror that he'd had only one bottle for one message, and he'd forgotten to include a return address... there was no confirmation from the Police or JTF with regard to the number of Boko Haram bully boyz killed, as there were still no telephone services in Maiduguri to make calls to security agencies for official confirmation.
In another development, following the destabilisation of the activities of Boko Haram bully boyz in Marte Local Government Area of Borno State, a committee set up by the state governor, Kashim Shettima, was taking some relief materials to the victims of bully boyz in Marte, to cushion their sufferings.
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06/13/2013 00:00 ||
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[BETA.DAWN] Airport officials briefly enjugged You have the right to remain silent... four US embassy officials at Bloody Karachi ...formerly the capital of Pakistain, now merely its most important port and financial center. It is among the largest cities in the world, with a population of 18 million, most of whom hate each other and many of whom are armed and dangerous... 's Jinnah International Airport Wednesday morning who were then sent back to Islamabad.
There was no verbal spat or scuffle. Airport officials confirmed the incident but did not elaborate why the officials were sent back.
A US embassy front man confirmed the incident and told Dawn.com that four embassy officials had reached Karachi from Islamabad this morning to meet with officials from the US consulate in Karachi.
He said airport officials did not allow them to enter the city and they subsequently returned to Islamabad.
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[Bangla Daily Star] Gunmen have kidnapped a British man working for an energy company in the restive Indonesian province of Aceh, officials said yesterday.
Malcolm Primrose was being driven to a work site on Tuesday when he was stopped by a group of gunnies at around 11:00 am (0400 GMT) in Lubuk Pempeng village, East Aceh district, officials said.
"The man was on his way to a drilling site when at least four men with firearms stopped his car," provincial police front man Gustav Leo told AFP.
The kidnappers tied up his driver before taking the Briton to their car and driving off, he said, adding that details of the incident came from the driver, an Indonesian.
"We are pursuing the kidnappers based on the witness's testimony. We don't know yet their motive."
A source familiar with the matter said that the oil and gas company Primrose was working for, Medco Energi Internasional, had not yet received any ransom demand.
The British embassy in Jakarta said in a statement: "We can confirm a Brit was involved in an incident in Aceh yesterday. We are in touch with the local authorities and his family. An embassy team has deployed to the area. "
The man, in his early 60s, had been working as a sub-contractor for a subsidiary of Medco Energi Internasional, which confirmed the kidnapping.
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#1
Apparently, he's been released, probably after paying a ransom. (Heard on Sky News radio)
An Nahar] Several rockets fired from the Lebanese-Syrian border area landed in several towns in the Bekaa Valley on Wednesday, amid reports of festivities between Hizbullah and Syrian rebels on the eastern mountain range on the Lebanese-Syrian border.
"Four rockets fired from the Syrian side of the border hit the outskirts of the town of Sirein, east of Baalbek," state-run National News Agency reported.
Meanwhile, ...back at the cheese factory, all the pieces finally fell together in Fluffy's mind... OTV said rockets fired from Leb's eastern mountain range hit the Bekaa towns of al-Nabi Sheet and Sirein.
"The sounds of kabooms were heard in the vicinity of the towns of Hawrtaala, Brital and al-Khodr in the Bekaa," it added.
"A rocket fired from the eastern Lebanese-Syrian border hit the town of Riyaq," OTV reported, as al-Jadeed television said the rocket caused no casualties.
OTV said fierce festivities erupted between Hizbullah fighters and the jihadist al-Nusra Front in the barren mountains of Maaraboun and Ham in northern Bekaa as rockets were falling on the Lebanese region.
MTV also reported "fierce festivities" between the rebel Free Syrian Army and Hizbullah on the eastern mountain range "opposite the towns of al-Nabi Sheet and al-Khodr."
It later said Hizbullah managed to seize control of the outskirts of the town of Ham in Damascus province, "which is considered an FSA stronghold."
MTV also reported that three more rockets hit the town of al-Khodr "amid the sounds of kabooms in the area."
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[An Nahar] The army announced that it will immediately respond to any further cross-border attacks by the Syrian military after a helicopter gunship attacked on Wednesday.
"Army units deployed in the (Arsal) area took the necessary defensive measures to respond immediately to any similar violations," an army statement said, in a rare warning against the regime of Syrian Hereditary President-for-Life Bashir Pencilneck al-Assad Despoiler of Deraa... .
President Michel Suleiman ...before assuming office as President, he held the position of commander of the Leb Armed Forces. That was after the previous commander, the loathesome Emile Lahoud, took office as president in November of 1998. Likely the next president of Leb will be whoever's commander of the armed forces, too... stated that Leb "has the right to take the necessary measures to defend its illusory sovereignty," urging an end to the "Syrian violations" against Arsal.
"These raids put the security and safety of Lebanese people in danger and it contradicts with revolutions regulating the relations between both countries," he expressed in phone calls with caretaker Prime Minister Najib Miqati, caretaker Foreign Minister Adnan Mansour, Army chief Gen. Jean Qahwaji and Head of the Lebanese-Syrian Higher Council Nasri Khoury.
The Army Command's communique came hours after a Syrian Arclight airstrike targeting Arsal injured at least one person earlier on Wednesday.
Several media outlets reported that the Syrian raids targeted the center of the town, whose residents back the rebellion against Assad, injuring Mohammed Ahmed al-Braidi.
LBCI said that the helicopter fired three rockets near Arsal municipality building.
The raid comes four days after such Syrian strike targeted Leb's border areas.
The latest raid comes soon after the Syrian town of Qusayr was captured by the regime army and Hizbullah fighters from the rebels after nearly three-weeks of fierce fighting.
Ever since the Syrian revolt erupted in March 2011, Arsal has become a key conduit for refugees and maimed people fleeing strife-torn Syria.
Security officials say the town has also served as a passageway for fighters and arms flowing into Syria.
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#1
The army announced that it will immediately respond to any further cross-border attacks by the Syrian military after a helicopter gunship attacked on Wednesday.
[An Nahar] At least 60 Shiite villagers died in festivities with rebels in eastern Syria while twin suicide kabooms hit Damascus as the West moved to support the opposition following battlefield losses against pro-regime forces.
Despite Tuesday's attacks, Bashir al-Assad's regime, dominated by his Alawite sect of Shiite Islam, appears to have gained the upper hand against mainly Sunni Musselmen rebels, buoyed by military support from its allies, Hizubllah and Iran.
With regime forces gaining ground, La Belle France said the nearly 27-month conflict, which is estimated to have killed at least 94,000 people, is at a "turning point" and that it is time to review whether to arm the opposition.
The issue of military support is likely to top the agenda when U.S. Secretary of State John F. I was in Vietnam, you know Kerry Former Senator-for-Life from Massachussetts, self-defined war hero, speaker of French, owner of a lucky hat, conqueror of Cambodia, and current Secretary of State... meets in Washington with British counterpart William Hague on Wednesday.
"Armed Shiite villagers attacked a nearby rebel post yesterday and killed two. Today (Tuesday) rebels attacked the village and took control of it, killing 60 Shiite residents, most of them fighters," Rami Abdel Rahman, director of the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, told Agence La Belle France Presse.
The festivities came in the majority Sunni village of Hatlah, in eastern Deir Ezzor province.
At least 10 rebels were also killed in the fighting on Tuesday, and Shiite residents of Hatlah were fleeing following the violence, Abdul Rahman said.
Earlier in Damascus, two suicide kabooms left at least 14 people dead and 31 maimed, and caused widespread damage in the Marjeh neighborhood, state media and the rights Observatory said.
The Observatory said one of the blasts "was caused by a jacket wallah who went kaboom! inside the cop shoppe".
Syria's cabinet denounced the attack, saying "armed terrorist groups and those behind them have failed completely because of the victories achieved by our brave army".
Forces loyal to President Assad, including thousands of Hizbullah fighters, have overrun rebel fighters in central Syria in the past week, including in the strategic town of Qusayr.
"There are lessons to be drawn from what happened in Qusayr and what is happening in Aleppo," said French foreign ministry front man Philippe Lalliot.
"We are at a turning point in the Syrian war. What should we do under these conditions to reinforce the opposition armed forces? We have had these discussions with our partners, with the Americans, the Saudis, the Turks, many others.
"We cannot leave the opposition in the current state."
Plans to bring together members of Assad's regime and the opposition at talks in Geneva have so far failed to come to fruition, and Hague at the weekend warned that regime gains on the ground raised new hurdles.
U.S. President Barack Obama I've now been in 57 states -- I think one left to go... has asked his national security team to "look at all options" to end the fighting, State Department spokeswoman Jen Psaki reiterated Tuesday, adding however there would be no American "boots on the ground".
Damascus has also benefited from political support on the international stage from Russia, which supplies it with weapons and has blocked U.N. Security Council resolutions condemning it.
But Russian President Vladimir Putin ...Second and fourth President of the Russian Federation and the first to remain sober. Putin is credited with bringing political stability and re-establishing something like the rule of law, which occasionally results in somebody dropping dead from polonium poisoning. Under Putin, a new group of business magnates controlling significant swathes of Russia's economy has emerged, all of whom have close personal ties to Putin. The old bunch, without close personal ties to Putin, are in jail or in exile or dead... said on Tuesday that he always believed that Assad should have implemented political reforms that could have averted the bloodbath.
In Aleppo province, the army launched multiple attacks on rebel positions, including areas of the Minnigh airbase held by myrmidons, the Observatory said.
"Parts of Minnigh military airbase were shelled by regime forces.... Rebels are in control of large swathes of the airbase."
A military source told AFP heavy festivities were raging at the base for a third day, but denied any part of the airport was under rebel control.
Regime forces shelled the opposition-controlled villages of Deir Hafer and Al-Bab, and hit the myrmidon stronghold of Marea with rockets, the Observatory said.
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A multi-volume chronology and reference guide set detailing three years of the Mexican Drug War between 2010 and 2012.
Rantburg.com and borderlandbeat.com correspondent and author Chris Covert presents his first non-fiction work detailing
the drug and gang related violence in Mexico.
Chris gives us Mexican press dispatches of drug and gang war violence
over three years, presented in a multi volume set intended to chronicle the death, violence and mayhem which has
dominated Mexico for six years.
Rantburg was assembled from recycled algorithms in the United States of America. No
trees were destroyed in the production of this weblog. We did hurt some, though. Sorry.
[Nigerian Tribune] NO fewer than 60 corpses of suspected 
[BETA.DAWN] Airport officials briefly 
[Bangla Daily Star] Gunmen have kidnapped a British man working for an energy company in the restive Indonesian province of Aceh, officials said yesterday.
Hereditary President-for-Life Bashir 
[An Nahar] At least 60 Shiite villagers died in 
...Second and fourth President of the Russian Federation and the first to remain sober. Putin is credited with bringing political stability and re-establishing something like the rule of law, which occasionally results in somebody dropping dead from polonium poisoning. Under Putin, a new group of business magnates controlling significant swathes of Russia's economy has emerged, all of whom have close personal ties to Putin. The old bunch, without close personal ties to Putin, are in jail or in exile or dead...
