Women in Lebanon Gain Right to Open Bank accounts…..OMG The World is Ending!

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The end of the world must be near women in Lebanon can actually have their own bank accounts. Next thing you know women in Saudi Arabia will be allowed to drive and adultery in Somalia will not be punished by burying the offender up to their necks and having everyone stone him or her to death. Now this is progress.

 

 

Lebanon: Women gain right to open bank accounts

by Kal El on December 18, 2009 · Comments

In what is normally considered the bastion of freedom in the Arab world, women recently won the right to open bank accounts for themselves, and their children.

Woman opens first bank account in Lebanon

BEIRUT (AFP)

A Lebanese woman opened a bank account in the name of her underage children on Thursday, setting a precedent in a country where females often face legal discrimination.

“I’ve been trying to open a bank account for my two sons for 10 years now, but I was continuously told that only my husband could sign the papers,” Lebanese-American Barbara Batlouni told AFP.

“It’s unfair. They’re my children too and I don’t see why I cannot, as their mother, teach them to manage their finances,” she said at the headquarters of Bank of Beirut and the Arab Countries (BBAC).

Her move came after Lebanon’s bank association altered its own rules on December 9, following a campaign to press for the change led by the Institute of Progressive Women and other groups.

A smiling Batlouni signed the first papers at BBAC for an account that named as beneficiaries her two sons, 16-year-old Samer and 14-year-old Jad.

“I’m glad that Lebanon is improving its laws,” said Samer, who along with Jad will become the official holder of the account once he turns 18.

The bank also gifted her a 1,000-dollar (790-euro) cheque as a token of their appreciation for her “fight against discrimination,” BBAC general manager Ghassan Assaf said.

While the boys’ father is Lebanese, Batlouni, the Lebanon country director of the non-profit organisation Amideast, said she insisted on opening the account herself on principle.

“Lebanese women excel in all fields, and yet they do not have their basic rights,” she said.

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Two British soldiers sacrificed their Lives stopping Suicide Bombers

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Two British soldiers sacrificed their Lives s topping Suicide Bombers to stop Taliban suicide bombers detonating their devices in a packed marketplace, their commanding officer said today.

 

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/asia/afghanistan/6832080/Two-soldiers-killed-in-Afghanistan-sacrificed-lives-stopping-suicide-bombers.html

Published: 10:14AM GMT 17 Dec 2009

Lance Corporal David Kirkness (left) and Rifleman James Brown Photo: PA

Lance Corporal David Kirkness, 24, and Rifleman James Brown, 18, both of 3rd Battalion The Rifles, were killed while manning a vehicle checkpoint near Sangin in Helmand province, southern Afghanistan, on Tuesday. Two Afghan soldiers were also killed in the suicide attack.

L/Cpl Kirkness, from Wakefield, West Yorkshire, and Rfn Brown, from Farnborough, Hampshire, were taking part in a joint security operation with Afghan forces on a route into central Sangin. Lieutenant Colonel Nick Kitson, commanding officer of 3 Rifles Battle Group, said their comrades took comfort and pride from the fact that they averted a "much larger tragedy". He said: "Their sacrifice prevented two suicide bombers from reaching their intended target, the bustling and ever more prosperous Sangin bazaar, packed with local Afghans going about their daily business." Bob Ainsworth, the Defence Secretary, paid tribute to the two soldiers in a speech to the Royal United Services Institute in London today.

Mr Ainsworth said: "Their deaths harden our resolve, but this will be a very difficult time for their families as they come to terms with their loss."

L/Cpl Kirkness, who joined 3 Rifles in March 2004, had completed a demanding sniper course and studied the local language of Pashtu before deploying to Afghanistan in October. His colleagues paid tribute to a professional and level-headed soldier with a "massive heart which was all too often worn on his sleeve". Lt Col Kitson said: "We of the Rifles have lost a brother. He died doing a job for which he was the keenest of volunteers, a job he loved and for which he was made. "His memory, commitment and selflessness will be forever revered. Our thoughts and prayers go out to his family and friends. We all have much of which we can be truly proud."

Colour Serjeant Paul Lucke said L/Cpl Kirkness was the "life and soul" of the reconnaissance platoon of 3 Rifles. "There is always a standing joke with the Rifle platoons that the reconnaissance symbol is a Christmas tree," he said. "Well if this is true Kirky would be the star on top, shining bright forever." L/Cpl Kirkness leaves a three-year-old daughter, Brooke. His parents said in a statement: "If you knew David, you had to love him – it was impossible not to. And in David’s own words, ‘If you didn’t know me, hard luck’. He will always be in our hearts."

Rfn Brown only joined the Army this year, and had arrived with B Company of 3 Rifles less than a fortnight ago. Major James Richardson, officer commanding B Company, said his death was "particularly cruel". "While he did not have a chance to forge the closest of relationships with his new battle partners his loss weighs heavily because of the unrealized potential and the strength of the initial signs," he said. "Our thoughts are with his family, for whom this will have been the bitterest of blows." Lt Col Kitson added: "He had been with the battalion for a desperately short time but was showing the promising signs of a soldier with a bright future.

"He had already made a lasting impression on his fellow riflemen with his immense courage, infectious confidence and talent for making people laugh." Paying tribute in a statement, his family said: "You were a true hero and will be dearly missed. We all love you so much. "You died a hero living your dream and you will always be in our thoughts. Your actions will always speak louder than words ever could. "Mr Ainsworth said: "I was extremely saddened to learn of the deaths of Lance Corporal David Kirkness and Rifleman James Brown.

"They were killed as they were working side by side with their Afghan Army counterparts to provide security and reassurance to the local population. My thoughts and condolences are with their family, friends and colleagues at this sad time."

A total of 239 British service personnel have died since the start of operations in Afghanistan in 2001, including 102 deaths this year.

Petraeus Admits US Giving Security Support to Yemen to Al Arabiya

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This is a very interesting interview missed entirely by Western Media outlets it reaffirms reports that Saudi and US Naval forces have effectively blockaded the Coast of Yemen and are patrolling its Territorial Waters in order to prevent Iranian Arms ships from supplying arms to Houthi or Shiite Tribes and possibly Al Qaeda. The Yemeni forces supposedly foiled a Major Al Qaeda attack similar to the one carried out against our Embassy and a foreign School in 2008.   http://www.alarabiya.net//articles/2009/12/17/94425.html  You can watch the full interview using the link below.

 

US giving security support to Yemen: Petraeus

http://www.alarabiya.net/articles/2009/12/13/94083.html

Petraeus interview will air ec. 14 at 7:00 p.m. KSA local time (File)

DUBAI (Al Arabiya)

General David Petraeus, who now heads the United States Central Command, gave an exclusive interview to Al Arabiya on Sunday where he discussed Washington’s support of Yemen and Iraq and the country’s relationship with Syria.
The general said the U.S. is providing security support to Yemen within the framework of military cooperation provided by Washington to its allies in the region. He emphasized that U.S. ships found in Yemeni waters are not only there for monitoring but for also for stopping the flow of arms to the Houthi rebels.

Petraeus added that he asked Syria to exert greater effort to prevent terrorist infiltrators from passing through its territory into Iraq and revealed that the recent drop in the number of infiltrators from 110 to less than 10 per month was due to al-Qaeda movement restrictions and not because of Syrian efforts.
Petraeus also revealed that officials from Iraq’s former regime are currently in Syria, including Izzat al-Douri, Saddam Hussein’s former vice president.
The officials, he said, are living in Syria with complete freedom and some even own satellite channels. The general emphasized that this has created tension between Iraq and Syria. He said Iraqis hope that Damascus will limit the activities of Saddam Hussein’s remaining supporters who are now calling for a change in Iraq’s new regime.
The full interview will be aired on Al Arabiya on Monday Dec. 14 at 7:00 pm KSA local time (1600 GMT).

For full interview Click Here

MI-6 Agent Exposed True Purpose of Qom Reactor.

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This site has been known about since 2002  another indication that the 2007 National Intelligence Estimate was politicized and designed to undermine the Bush Administration, the Syrian reactor destroyed by Israel in 2008 was another site that if the Israeli had not destroyed would be operational now. I imagine that this agent fate is one not many of us would care to share. The Obama administration used its knowledge of the coming admission of the sites existence by Iranian authorities to evidently score a few foreign policy points with the American Public.

 

Channel 2: Iran arrested spy just before revealing Qom plant to IAEA

By JPOST.COM STAFF

http://www.jpost.com/servlet/Satellite?pagename=JPost/JPArticle/ShowFull&cid=1260894117164

Iran arrested a Western spy who was operating within its uranium enrichment plant at Qom just before its existence was revealed, according to a Channel 2 report.

Citing Western intelligence, the Tuesday report said that Iran had decided to reveal the plant’s existence to the International Atomic Energy Agency in order to minimize potential damage.

The spy reportedly operated undercover from within in the plant, and transferred information back to his operator.

The Channel 2 report did not specify the alleged spy’s nationality.

 

 

 

http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-3820549,00.html

 

MI-6 agent exposed true purpose of Qom reactor

Iran revealed construction of secret plant to IAEA only after learning that MI-6 agent told operatives it was designated for uranium enrichment

Ron Ben-Yishai

Published: 
12.15.09, 22:16 / Israel News

Iran revealed its nuclear facility near the holy city of Qom in late September after a British agent exposed its true purpose to the West, Ynet learned Tuesday.

American, British and Israeli satellites had documented construction works at the uranium enrichment site for years, but the West only learned of its true purpose from an MI-6 agent who was exposed by Iran.

Information proved by another Western intelligence agency coincided with the agent’s findings.

A report issued by the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) said Iran had told the UN nuclear watchdog that it had begun building the plant within a bunker beneath a mountain near Qom in 2007, but the IAEA had evidence the project had begun in 2002.

The Islamic Republic said it decided to report the existence of the plant due to its commitment to the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty. Iran told the Vienna-based agency that the site, which is guarded by heavy anti-aircraft weaponry, wouldn’t be operational for 18 months and that no centrifuges have been installed in it as of yet.

The White House responded to the development by urging Iran’s complete and immediate cooperation with the IAEA. "After hiding this site from the international community for years, full transparency is essential, and it is time for Iran to play by the rules like everyone else," White House spokesman Tommy Vietor said in late September.

US President Barack Obama said at the time that evidence of Iran’s building the underground plant "continues a disturbing pattern of Iranian evasion" that jeopardizes global nonproliferation.

Daily Mail Islamic Militants Stone to Death man for Adultery in Somalia

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Pictured: Islamic militants stone man to death for adultery in Somalia as villagers are forced to watch

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/worldnews/article-1235763/Pictured-Islamic-militants-stone-man-death-adultery-Somalia-villagers-forced-watch.html#ixzz0Zh5njqTU

This barbaric scene belongs in the Dark Ages, but pictures emerged today of a group of Islamic militants who forced villagers to watch as they stoned a man to death for adultery.

Mohamed Abukar Ibrahim, a 48-year-old, was buried in a hole up to his chest and pelted with rocks until he died.

The group responsible, Hizbul Islam, also shot dead a man they claimed was a murderer.

Begging for his life: Mohamed Ibrahim appeals to Islamic militants not to carry out the execution as he is buried in the ground as his villagers are forced to watch

But the verdict was so shocking that it prompted a gun battle between rivals within the group that left three militants dead, witnesses said.

The executions took place yesterday in Afgoye, some 20 miles south-west of the capital of Mogadishu.

Hizbul Islam fighters ordered hundreds of residents to a field, where a rebel judge announced that the two men had confessed to murder and adultery.

No mercy: The militants bury Ibrahim in the ground in a village south-west of lawless Mogadishu, Somalia

A woman who had confessed to fornication had been sentenced to 100 lashes, he added.

‘This is their day of justice,’ the judge, Osman Siidow Hasan, told the crowd. ‘We investigated and they confessed.’

But when some Hizbul Islam fighters wanted to delay the executions, a bloody gun battle broke out between the two factions, shocked residents said.

Gruesome end: Hizbul Islam group members pelt Ibrahim until his face is a bloody mess and he dies. His face has been pixellated on grounds of taste

The second condemned man is shot dead at point blank range by a relative of the man he was convicted of murdering ‘Three Hizbul Islam fighters died and five others were injured after they fought each other," Halima Osman, an Afgoye shopkeeper, told Reuters in Mogadishu by telephone.

‘Some wanted to delay the execution while the others insisted. They exchanged fire. The group that was against the execution was overpowered and chased away,’ she said. Once the gun battle was over, the militants coldly carried out the verdicts.

A relative of the murder victim shot the first as he lay on the floor.’I could not watch,’ local man Ali Gabow told Reuters. ‘The lady who had been with the second man was only given 100 lashes because she said she had never married.’

The executions were the first time that Hizbul Islam guerillas had dealt out the type of punishments usually associated with the more hardline al Shabaab rebel group in Somalia. The U.S. claims that al Shabaab is al Qaeda’s proxy in the failed Horn of Africa state. That rival Islamic groups are beginning to align their practices with al Shabaab is a chilling twist in the already frightening militancy that is gripping the country. President Sheikh Sharif Ahmed’s Western-backed government controls just a few strategic sites in Mogadishu.

Western security experts say the country has become a safe haven for militants, including foreign jihadists, who are using it to plot attacks across the impoverished region and beyond.

Read more:

Special Forces Are How You Win in Afghanistan

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This is how it supposed to be done, no sanctuaries, no place to hide, kill their officers and commanders. Strike them when their smoking, laughing or joking using air strikes or today Predators etc. That is how you fight insurgents or a wars of attrition both psychologically and Tactically. You want your enemy looking over his shoulder constantly scanning the mountainside,  tree line or the sky. Never let him rest or feel safe no matter where he is. It is a complicated mental and tactical chess game where the stakes for both sides are a matter of  life or death.

This should have been done two years ago!  Special Forces today have a communication and a technological edge only dreamed about in Vietnam etc. This war cannot be won forting up in population centers occasionally running Massive Military operations by conventional forces. This war will be won by hard men who appear suddenly, kill without mercy and disappear before they can be run to ground. In other words Special Forces the same men who captured a well known Iraqi terrorists and now face  a court martial because he has a split lip.

 

 

   

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/newstopics/onthefrontline/6796289/Special-forces-troops-open-up-new-front-against-the-Taliban-in-Helmand.html

Special forces troops open up new front against the Taliban in Helmand

British and US special forces are set to open a new front in southern Afghanistan in a bid to "break the back" of the Taliban insurgency.

By Sean Rayment, Defence Correspondent
Published: 9:00PM GMT 12 Dec 2009

They believe many insurgents are motivated by money and local disputes rather than ideology and can be persuaded to stop fighting Photo: AP

A task force composed of members of British, US and Afghan special forces will be ordered to hunt down and kill or capture senior Taliban and al-Qaeda leaders as part of American-lead Nato surge into southern Afghanistan and the border region of Pakistan.

The operation to "decapitate" the Taliban leadership will begin in earnest in the next few weeks and form part of a series of "shaping operations" prior to a major offensive against key insurgent strongholds in central Helmand.  The British special forces group, called Task Force Crichton, will focus on targeting medium value targets (MVTs) such as Taliban bomb teams and middle-ranking insurgency commanders.

Key to their mission will be the increased use of unmanned predator drones to attack Taliban and al-Qaeda units and headquarters, a covert CIA tactic which has reaped huge dividends in the tribal areas of Pakistan.  It is understood that troops from Task Force Crichton have already killed and captured dozens of middle ranking commanders across southern Afghanistan in a series of operations over the past six months.

Senior sources have said that as well as the 30,000 extra troops promised by US President Barack Obama, "hundreds of special forces troops" will be made available with improved intelligence, surveillance, target acquisition and reconnaissance capabilities. The US special forces will be drawn largely from Delta Force, the highly secret unit which has worked closely with the SAS since 2001.

Defence chiefs are hoping that the additional elite troops will emulate the success of Task Force Black, the combined US and British special forces unit which had a string of high profile successes in Iraq, including the killing of al-Qaeda in Iraq’s leader, Abu Musab al-Zarqawi. Britain has around 500 members of the special forces serving in Helmand from the SAS, the Special Boat Service, the Special Reconnaissance Regiment, the Special Forces Support Group (SFSG) as well as a collection of intelligence gathering units.

The role of the SFSG has been vital to the success of special forces missions in Helmand. The unit was created in April 2006 and was formed around the 1st battalion The Parachute Regiment and contains elements of both the Royal Marines and the Royal Air Force Regiment. Over the past three years it has mounted numerous, and increasingly independent, operations in both Afghanistan and Iraq. British special forces are based in a secret location which The Sunday Telegraph has decided not to identify, where the SFSG select and train Afghan volunteers to serve in the highly regarded Afghan Territorial Force (ATF).

Those who pass the rigorous selection process, which involves physical training, field craft tactics and weapon skills, are posted to front line units to work closely with British troops, where they are now highly regarded. The Sunday Telegraph has agreed to an MoD request not to publish further details of the relationship between the ATF and the special forces for fear that security may be compromised.

But one defence source said: "The ATF are in great demand. They have saved dozens of British lives. Every unit in Helmand wants to work with them because they are such a fantastic asset." A senior British commander described the surge in special forces troops as "very bad news for the Taliban". He added: "The plan is to break the back of the insurgency. We will erode their ability to plan and conduct attacks against Nato troops through a series of very precise special operations. It will be classic behind the lines fighting and we believe it will have a strategic impact in Helmand."