Recent Appearances...

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Hello !
Recent Appearances...

Israel-Palestine-Jordan

Egyptian TV channel says its journalist was killed in Gaza airstrike

2024-01-15

Being a war correspondent is a known risk.

[IsraelTimes] A video-journalist from the Cairo-based television channel Al Ghad was reportedly killed in Gazoo
...Hellhole adjunct to Israel and Egypt's Sinai Peninsula, inhabited by Gazooks. The place was acquired in the wake of the 1967 War and then presented to Paleostinian control in 2006 by Ariel Sharon, who had entered his dotage. It is currently ruled with an iron fist by Hamas with about the living conditions you'd expect. It periodically attacks the Hated Zionist Entity whenever Iran needs a ruckus created or the hard boyz get bored, getting thumped by the IDF in return. The ruling turbans then wave the bloody shirt and holler loudly about oppression and disproportionate response...
in a strike the channel blames on the IDF.

"It is with a heavy heart that we announce that Al Ghad video-journalist Yazan al-Zwaidi has been murdered by Israeli fire," the station announced in a post on X.

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Africa Horn

Sudan security forces fire tear gas at protesters in Khartoum: Witnesses

2021-12-20

When the mob wants something they protest. When they get what they want, they still protest. It’s one of those meaningless lifestyle concept thingies.

[AlArabiya] Sudanese security forces fired tear gas Sunday at a huge crowd of protesters who had gathered near the republican palace in the capital Khartoum, witnesses told AFP.

Tens of thousands rallied on Sunday to mark three years since the start of demonstrations that led to the ouster of Omar al-Bashir
...Former President-for-Life of Sudan He came to power in 1989 when he, as a brigadier in the Sudanese army, led a group of officers in a bloodless military coup that ousted the government of Prime Minister Sadiq al-Mahdi and eventually appointed himself head cheese. He fell out with his Islamic mentor, Hasan al-Turabi, tried to impose shariah on the Christian and animist south, resulting in its secessesion, and attempted to Arabize Darfur by unleashing the barbaric Janjaweed on it. Sudan's potential prosperity has been pissed away in warfare that has left as many as 400,000 people dead and 2.5 million displaced. He was overthrown by popular consent in 2019. Omar has been indicted for genocide by the International Criminal Court but nothing is expected to come of it...
, as well as against the current military chief, General Abdel Fattah al-Burhan.

"The people want the downfall of Burhan," protesters shouted.

Security forces block major roads and bridges in #Sudan’s capital #Khartoum against planned protests over the Oct. 25 military coup that have continued even after the reinstatement of the prime minister.https://t.co/aiFIcceP9J
— Al Arabiya English (@AlArabiya_Eng) December 19, 2021

Tens of thousands or hundreds of thousands?Al Ghadeer claims more:

Hundreds of thousands of people marched to the presidential palace in #Sudan's capital Khartoum on Sunday in protest at the Oct. 25 military coup.https://t.co/VeGkP77W4N
— Alghadeer English (@alghadeertv_eng) December 19, 2021

Link

-Obits-

World Reacts To Death Of FW De Klerk, South Africa's Ex-President

2021-11-12

[AlGhadeerTV] The legacy of De Klerk’s role in South Africa’s transition from apartheid to democracy remains highly contested.

The death of South Africa’s last white president Frederik Willem (FW) de Klerk has drawn mixed reactions.

De Klerk, who negotiated the end of white minority rule and a peaceful transfer of power to a Black-led government, died on Thursday aged 85, after a battle with cancer.

De Klerk won praise worldwide for his role in scrapping apartheid and he shared the Nobel Peace Prize with Mandela in 1993. The following year Mandela won South Africa’s first multi-racial elections with his African National Congress (ANC).

But de Klerk’s role in the transition to democracy remains highly contested nearly 30 years after the end of apartheid.

Many Black people were angered by his failure to curb political violence in the turbulent years leading up to the 1994 multi-racial elections, while right-wing white Afrikaners, who had long ruled the country under de Klerk’s National Party, viewed him as a traitor to their cause of white supremacy.

Here are some of the early reactions to de Klerk’s death:

Al Ghadeer chose some unexpected personalities to quote.

Link

Syria-Lebanon-Iran

US-led coalition clashes with Syrian regime at Qamishli checkpoint

2020-08-18

[Rudaw] The US-led coalition denied carrying out an ~~Arclight~~ airstrike
<del>Arclight</del> airstrike

...KABOOM!...
against Syrian regime soldiers in Qamishli on Monday, saying troops engaged in "self-defence" after coming under fire near a regime checkpoint, according to an official statement.

According to the statement, coalition troops and members of the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) were conducting a "routine" security patrol near Tal Az-Zahab, southeast of Qamishli in Hasaka province, when passed a pro-Syrian regime checkpoint.

"After receiving safe passage from the pro-regime forces, the patrol came under small arms fire from individuals in the vicinity of the checkpoint. Coalition troops returned fire in self-defence. The Coalition did not conduct an airstrike," the statement read.

No coalition members were maimed or killed, it added.

The statement followed reports from Syrian state media of an "airstrike" by coalition helicopters, killing at least one Syrian regime soldier and wounding two others.

The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights also reported the strikes taking place after regime forces refused to let the US patrol pass, putting the regime soldier corpse count at two.

"Reliable SOHR sources have confirmed that regime checkpoint blocked a US military column in Tal al-Zahab village, south of al-Qamishli airbase in al-Hasakah countryside, which evolved to altercation between both sides," reported the SOHR Monday afternoon.

"Aircraft affiliated to the International Coalition came later and struck the checkpoint, leaving many casualties among regime soldiers stationed at the checkpoint," it added.

A video posted to Twitter on Monday afternoon purportedly shows US force fire at a Syrian army outpost.

This is the first direct military engagement between the United States and Syrian regime in recent months.

A unit from the Syrian army confronted a US military convoy in a village associated with the town of Tal Tamr in Hasaka province in July.

The US said it had "completely withdrawn" from northeastern Syria in late 2019, according to statements made by US Secretary of Defense Mark Esper. However around 600 soldiers remain across parts of the country to protect oil fields from the Islamic State
...formerly ISIS or ISIL, depending on your preference. Before that they were al-Qaeda in Iraq, as shaped by Abu Musab Zarqawi. They're really very devout, committing every atrocity they can find in the Koran and inventing a few more. They fling Allah around with every other sentence, but to hear western pols talk they're not really Moslems....
(ISIS), according to Rooters.

The withdrawal of US troops in early October prompted international outcry as ~~Ottoman~~ Turkish-backed forces invaded the areas held by the SDF since the defeat of ISIS.

Operation Peace Spring, greenlit by the decision of Commander-in-chief President Trump, saw ~~The Sick Man of Europe~~ Turkey
...Qatar's satrapy in Asia Minor...
launch its long-expected invasion of the region.

It aimed to cleanse the area of SDF, which it sees as a terrorist group, before resettling Arab refugees from elsewhere in Syria that have fled to Turkey since 2011.

Al Ghadeer adds:

The maimed soldiers were transported to a nearby hospital for treatment, SANA reported.

Syrian newspaper al-Watan reported that one of the maimed soldiers was an officer.

Link

Iraq

Leaders of the "Revolutionary Guard" .. And the illusion of military power!

2018-02-09

[Kitabat.com autotranslated]

Just a fair autotranslate by Google but interesting.

Brigadier General Hossein Salami, deputy commander-in-chief of Iran's Revolutionary Guards, said in an interview with the television program "Tonight's Headline" on Iran's Khabar: "We have the ability to confront the biggest enemy, the United States, We are well aware that we have no ally, and we only have to rely on the hidden capabilities of the Iranian nation. "

Dialogue axes

According to military expert Hussein Arin, Salami's remarks were based on four main axes: "The progress, capabilities and military capabilities of the Revolutionary Guard, and to inform the entire Revolutionary Guards of the strengths and weaknesses of the US military system, including the various basket of defensive capabilities, Of the Revolutionary Guards to launch shock strikes against the United States at any time and everywhere, and finally the expansion of Iranian strategic security and the calculation of the Syrian and Iraqi armies as a strategic and defensive depth of the Iranian Republic.

Salami's claims, on the occasion of 10 Fajr (the 10 days after Khomeini's return to Iran and preceded the victory of the Iranian revolution), are linked to the US military's strategic military department in the Middle East, which is a source of concern for the Iranian Republic. According to the new US strategy, it will double its military presence with "Syrian Kurdistan" and make the option of confrontation against "immediate Iranian threats to the Middle East" as part of what Donald Trump, the foreign secretary of Donald Trump's government.

Wrong rating ..

"This is not the first time my salami has made such a claim," adds Hussein Areen, according to the Persian-language news website Radio Al Ghad. He warned the US administration in 2015: "The Iranian Republic is preparing for real open wars with its victory over the Americans. In comparison to the recent and recent allegations made by Brigadier General Hussein Salami, Deputy Commander-in-Chief of the IRGC, he asserts that he, like other leaders, is exaggerating the capabilities of the Revolutionary Guard (due to the lack of necessary military science) Has a naïve and misguided view of American armament and military capabilities, and this misdirection of leaders and units and the implantation of false self-confidence could have catastrophic consequences. "

However, the IRGC leaders are still beating the old drums, like former Revolutionary Guards commander Muhsin Rezaei, who said earlier: "With our experience of war, we can manage the situation for up to 200 years in the future. The war has given us 200 years of experience. " Contrary to Salami's claims, which underestimate US military capabilities, it is impossible for the Revolutionary Guard and the Iranian armed forces to achieve a military victory over the GCC countries, let alone the United States. The illusion of power and hollow statements made by Hussein Salami, Ali Fadavi and other current and former Revolutionary Guard leaders is based primarily on false assessments, falsehoods and false self-confidence, and has caused disastrous consequences for Iran and the Iranian people.

Link

Iraq

Baghdad Bomb and Bullet Bulletin

2017-04-21

1 dead in bomb attack on Shia area

Baghdad (IraqiNews.com) One person was killed, five others were injured as an IED, that targeted Shia pilgrimage, exploded on al-Resala al-Oula district in Baghdad, a security source said.

“A bomb planted near Shia pilgrims on al-Resala al-Oula district in al-Baiyaa region, south of Baghdad, exploded leaving one person killed and four others wounded,” the source told Al Ghad Press on Thursday.

“Security troops cordoned off the blast spot preventing approach of citizens in fear of other blasts,” the source said, adding that “the forces kept the pilgrims en route to Kadhimiyah neighborhood away from the place and guided them to alternative roads.

Troops, according to the source, are searching for other bombs that could have been placed by terrorists in the district.

Tight security measures are imposed to protect the pilgrims who commemorate the death anniversary of Imam Musa al-Kadhim, the seventh of 12 imams revered in Shia Islam.

Violence in the country, according to the United Nations Assistance Mission in Iraq (UNAMI), left 1115 casualties, excluding security members, during March. Baghdad was the second most affected province with 84 deaths and 246 injuries, according to the organization’s monthly casualty count.

While several blasts are not followed by a claim of responsibility, Islamic State militants said they had been behind some bloody explosions and attacks that hit the capital in the past months, leaving casualties among civilians and security troops.

Islamic State is believed to have begun escalating attacks outside the city of Mosul, where the group has been losing ground and personnel since October, so as to relieve pressure by government forces on that front and to divert attention from group losses.

Link

Iraq

Anbar Antix

2017-01-24

38 ISIS Turban die in airstrike near Qaim

Anbar (IraqiNews.com) Airstrikes by fighter jets from the US-led coalition killed 38 members of the Islamic State militants in Anbar, some near the borders with Syria, on Monday.

Col. Walid al-Dailami, from the army’s Anbar Operations, said one of strikes targeted an IS location in al-Rabt, a region of the town of Qaem, near the Syrian borders, killing 33 at a training camp run by the group.

Meanwhile, Anbar’s top operations commander, Qassem al-Mohammadi, was quoted by AlMada Press as saying that five other militants were killed in coalition strikes at Wadi Muweil, west of the city of Ramadi. A booby-trapping workshop, a vehicle and a rocket launcher used by the group were also destroyed. he said.

IS has been holding Qaem, along with other few regions in western Anbar, since the group emerged in 2014 to proclaim a so-called “Islamic Caliphate”. Thousands of civilians are stranded under the group’s control and are barred from exiting.

The Iraqi army command in Anbar declared on the 5th of January the start of tribes-backed operations to retake IS remaining pockets in the province’s western regions. The operations lasted for a few days, recapturing a few villages, before halting again. Security sources said after the halt of operations that the government had decided to halt battles in Anbar until the end of operations in Mosul.

Iraqi and coalition fighter jets have, however, carried out regular strikes on Islamic State locations in the west. The group responded with stepping up several attacks in the past weeks that killed several security personnel.

On Sunday, Khalaf al-Jleibawi, a senior leader at al-Hashd al-Shaabi (Popular Mobilization Units), which fights IS with the government, said security forces had received confirmed information that several families of Islamic State militants had begun returning to the city of Ramadi, which security forces said they fully recaptured late 2015.

Iraqi kops detain 2 ISIS troops

Baghdad (IraqiNews.com) Security forces from the Federal Police arrested two members of the Islamic State who attempted to assassinate a police officer in Abu Gharib area, west of Baghdad, a source told Al Ghad Press on Monday.

The source said, “Security forces from the Federal Police’s 5th intelligence brigade monitored three suspects in al-Kanisa Street in Abu Gharib area.”

“Security forces ambushed them and found that they were attempting to place an adhesive explosive device under the vehicle of a police officer in the area of Abu Gharib,” the source added.

Two of the suspects were arrested and then transferred to a security center, and after interrogation they confessed that they belong to the so-called Wilayat al-Janub of the Islamic State group.

Link

Iraq

Iraq militia boss: US not serious about fighting Daesh

2015-10-06

A top leader of Iraq's Popular Mobilisation paramilitary organisation said on Monday that Baghdad had turned to Russia because the US-led coalition was not serious about fighting the Daesh group.

"To this day, we have not seen a really serious effort to fight Daesh," Hadi Al Ameri said in the holy city of Najaf.

"There are some who try to contain Daesh but not really eliminate them and prevent those fighters from returning to Europe, which is where they came from," he said.

Can't argue with the man: when you're right, you're right...

Ameri is a key MP of the Badr movement, a Tehran-backed Shia party which also has a powerful military wing. He was speaking at a conference organised by Badr's TV channel Al Ghadeer.

So he has an ulterior motive. So does everyone else in Iraq...

"This lack of seriousness of the international coalition made us change tack. Russia is moving in a very serious way against Daesh," he said.

Russia's airforce began air strikes in Syria last week. Moscow says it has been targeting Daesh but Washington and its allies say Russia does not distinguish between Daesh and other groups and ~~correctly~~ accuses the Kremlin of being focused on protecting Syrian President Bashar Al Assad and his regime.

You have to have fallen off the turnip truck late last night to miss what Russia is doing in Syria...

Iraq announced last week it had agreed to set up a cell in Baghdad aimed at increasing intelligence cooperation with Russia, Syria and Iran in the fight against Daesh. The government in Baghdad has since said it might consider allowing Russia to bomb Daesh targets in Iraq as well.

It's the 'strong horse' argument again...

Ameri said Daesh's ability to recruit internationally was unprecedented in the history of terrorism.

"They are currently recruiting fighters from 108 countries in the world and all of them are going through Turkey, with the coalition's knowledge," he said.

"We told America" 'if you are serious about fighting Daesh, you have to stop those arrivals, which are wreaking carnage and destruction on Syria and Iraq'," he said.

The US-led coalition - which also includes France and Britain - has carried out more than 7,000 strikes on Iraq and Syria since August 2014.

That's fewer than 20 a day...

Those have helped Iraqi forces roll back some of the territorial gains Daesh made last year but the militant group has proved resilient and the security forces slow to reform.

They're slow to return because–among other reasons–they have no expectation of support, and virtually no air cover.

Ameri and other Iraqi politicians have criticised the West's commitment as conditional and arms deliveries as too slow.

Link

Syria-Lebanon-Iran

Syria laying mines at border with Jordan

2011-11-17

The Syrian army has laid mines at the border with Jordan in order to "restrict access to humanitarian asylum in Jordan for Syrians," according to an "informed source" speaking with Jordanian daily Al Ghad.

The source told Al Ghad that the mines were laid specifically to block access to citizens in the Deraa governate - the site of some of the earliest anti-government protests that took place this year - and the city of Al Ramtha.

"[Syrians] are fleeing the deteriorating security situation in their country," the source said according to Al Ghad.

More than 19,000 Syrian refugees have decamped to neighboring Turkey since violence began eight months ago between forces loyal to

Hereditary President-for-Life Bashir Pencilneck al-Assad
Trampler of Homs...
and anti-regime activists, according to the New York Times
...which still proudly displays Walter Duranty's Pulitzer prize...
. An estimated 6,000 evacuees are also residing in Leb, according to Dubai-based Al Arabiya.

Link

Arabia

Bahrain shuts private radio station

2006-06-26

MANAMA - Bahrains information ministry has stopped broadcasts by the first privately-held radio station in the tiny Gulf kingdom due to a series of violations, an official said on Sunday. Jamal Daoud, who heads the ministrys publications department, said the ministry had canceled the license granted to Delmon Media, which operates the Sawt Al Ghad, or the voice of tomorrow, radio station.

The ministry also revoked an agreement between Bahraini state-run radio and television corporation and Delmon Media, he said.

Sawt Al Ghad, which began operating in January, committed a series of violations and did not abide by the terms of the agreement that enabled it to transmit, Daoud told AFP. He cited the owners failure to present bank evidence that their company has a capital of three million dollars, their tampering with the airwaves on which they transmitted and other violations.

Although a draft law regulating audiovisual media in Bahrain is still before parliament, the informtion ministry licensed Sawt Al Ghad on the basis of internal bylaws in a bid to open the market to investors, Daoud said. The ministry is currently studying more than 10 requests for licenses for private radio and television stations, he said.

But the newspaper Al Waqt quoted Sawt Al Ghads director, Raja Sawaya, as denying that the company had violated any of the terms of the agreement with the ministry. The cancelation order received on Saturday did not contain any details about, or justifications for, the decision, he said, adding that Delmon was considering making a formal protest.

Sucks to live in a non-democratic state, huh.

Sawt Al Ghad focused on entertainment and steered clear of politics. Delmon is owned by Lebanese investors with Bahraini, Kuwaiti and Saudi partners. It has been preparing to launch a private television channel.

Link

Israel-Palestine-Jordan

Jordan's Islamists reap inspiration from Hamas and Muslim Brotherhood

2006-05-12

Emboldened by the Muslim Brotherhood's electoral gains in Egypt last year and by the rise to power of Hamas in the Palestinian elections in February, Islamists in Jordan have raised their sights, preparing to take part in possible council elections this year and parliamentary elections next year.

The Islamic Action Front, the Muslim Brotherhood's political party, which controls 17 of the 110 seats in Parliament, is betting that it can now ride a popular wave to win a significant majority and maybe even form a government some day.

"We are a political party and it is natural for us to seek to come to power one day," said Rohile Ghraibeh, deputy secretary general of the Islamic Action Front. "If we were to win, is that worthy of any fear? We would consider it a blessing from God."

There is little chance of an Islamist government under this nation's current political system: King Abdullah has the power to bypass lawmakers in forming a government and can dissolve Parliament by decree.

But the Islamists' bluster and the government's reaction have increased tensions here. In the most significant case, security officials announced in late April that they had arrested several men with ties to Hamas who had been tracked smuggling weapons into Jordan from Syria.

Many in Jordan saw the timing of the announcement, right before a planned visit by Hamas leaders and as the Islamists were becoming more vocal, not only as an assault on Hamas, but also as a swipe at the Islamic Action Front, which is openly sympathetic to the group.

The front's new leadership quickly dismissed the government's smuggling allegation, and the sparse details released with the announcements, as a politically convenient ploy.

On Wednesday, a government spokesman, Nasser Judeh, said the men had admitted under interrogation that Hamas had been trying to recruit Jordanians for training in Syria and Iran to stage possible attacks in Jordan.

A Palestinian security delegation appointed by President Mahmoud Abbas landed in Amman on Wednesday to discuss the allegations.

"The announcement underscored the crisis between the government and the Islamists," said Muhammad Abu Rumman, who is in charge of research at the Jordanian newspaper Al Ghad and an expert on Jordanian Islamists.

Arab governments are seeking to send two messages, Rumman said: One is aimed at Western nations, hinting that true political reform would bring Islamists to power; the other is aimed at the Jordanian public, portraying the Islamists as untrustworthy and full of empty promises.

"They have begun to view Islamist participation as a security issue more than a political one," Rumman said of the Jordanian intelligence services. "The next step will likely be an attempt to weaken them."

He and others said that they have seen a decided governmental shift toward cooler dealings with the opposition since November, when suicide bombers attacked three hotels, killing at least 59 people in the worst act of terrorism in Jordan. New anti-terrorism legislation was soon passed, raising concerns by Islamists that they would be caught in a tighter net.

After the Hamas victory in Palestinian elections in January, Rumman said, that shift became more pronounced.

There are several reports that the intelligence services have become more heavy-handed toward journalists who criticize the government, he said.

And when the Islamists sought to protest the increase in fuel prices last month, the demonstration was quickly broken up and several members of the group reportedly were arrested. Government officials said they have nothing to fear from the Islamists, who have been part of Jordan's political fabric, though a tightly controlled one, since the 1950s.

If there is tension, it has been brought on by the Islamists, said Nasser Judeh, a government spokesman.

The prime minister met for three hours with Islamist members of Parliament after the announcement of the smuggling arrests last month and lines of communication have been kept wide open, Judeh said.

Jordan's election laws work against the Islamists' chances of gaining political control.

After Islamists won a majority of parliamentary seats in 1989, a new law put into effect in 1993, and with modifications in 2001, provided for a one-person, one-vote system in choosing Parliament, rather than allowing voters to choose from among party slates of candidates.

The changes weakened an ideologically based group in favor of traditional tribal ties.

Last year an initiative called the National Agenda, which made recommendations for changes in Jordan sought to overhaul the elections law by creating a hybrid of the existing law and a proportional voting system, but debate over changing the law continues.

Still, critics of the Islamists have begun calling for an even tougher stance by the government.

"The Islamists are growing stronger and their institutions are, too," said Samir Habashneh, a member of Jordan's appointed Senate and a former interior minister who has been an outspoken opponent of Islamist political power. "The government should take action now before it is too late. Although they are seen as pragmatic, this is just a phase before they begin spreading absolute Islamic power."

Ghraibeh of the Islamic Action Front and other Islamists said that they simply wanted a fairer chance at the ballot box, that they seek inclusiveness not exclusion.

"I am not optimistic that we can win a majority now, because the laws have still not been changed," Ghraibeh said. "But we are not trying to take everything away. We just want to take part in a fair process."

Link

Israel-Palestine-Jordan

Support for al-Qaeda plunges in Jordan

2005-11-16

Almost two thirds of Jordanians have changed their views of al Qaeda for the worse following suicide bombings against Amman hotels that killed more than 50 people last week, a poll said on Wednesday.

The poll of 1,014 people published by independent Al Ghad newspaper also said 87.1 percent of respondents considered al Qaeda a "terrorist organisation" and that 86.4 percent said the group's attacks did not represent Islam.

The poll by survey firm Ipsos did not provide a comparative figure, but in the past surveys had showed that al Qaeda enjoyed high approval ratings in Jordan.

Iraqi suicide bombers belonging to al Qaeda in Iraq -- led by Jordanian militant Abu Musab al-Zarqawi -- killed themselves and 54 other people in three near-simultaneous attacks in Amman luxury hotels on Nov. 9 in one of Jordan's worst attacks.

The majority of the dead were Jordanians at wedding parties.

The attacks have sparked outrage in Jordan, which had previously been spared al Qaeda-linked attacks that have hit other countries.

Asked if last week's attacks had changed their view of al Qaeda, 64 percent of respondents said it had changed for the worse while 2.1 percent said it had changed for the better. 31.9 percent said they had not changed their views.

Jordan's King Abdullah on Tuesday night dismissed 11 of his advisers, including the national security adviser, in a reshuffle officials said had been expected for several months but that were hastened by the suicide blasts.

The government has announced plans to draft new anti-terrorism laws in a country where the Western-trained security forces already enjoy wide powers.

The margin of error of the poll, conducted by phone Nov. 13 and Nov. 14, was 3.2 percent, it said.

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