Military Enthusiast

Boeing Receives Contract for 1st Major Upgrades to Malaysian F/A-18D Hornets

2011-12-14T03:06:00.000-08:00

LANGKAWI, Malaysia – The Boeing Company [NYSE: BA] on Nov. 28 received a U.S. Navy contract under the Foreign Military Sales Program to provide the first major upgrades for the Royal Malaysian Air Force (RMAF) fleet of eight F/A-18D Hornet fighter aircraft.

The contract covers design, development and installation of retrofit kits that will provide enhanced navigation, targeting and situational awareness. The upgrade program includes:
-GPS improvements
-A color, moving-map cockpit display
-Identification Friend or Foe Interrogation capabilities
-Addition of the Joint Helmet Mounted Cueing System
-Maintenance and air crew training for these systems.

“These upgrades will deliver enhanced capability for the RMAF fleet to remain effective, interoperable with allies and operationally relevant for years to come,” said Julie Praiss, Boeing Global Services & Support director of Tactical Aircraft & Weapons Support. “Boeing looks forward to our continued partnership with the Royal Malaysian Air Force and the U.S. Navy to ensure that these F/A-18Ds continue to serve Malaysia’s strike and interdiction mission needs.”

The upgrades also make the RMAF’s F/A-18Ds more compatible with the F/A-18E/F Super Hornet, which Boeing is offering to meet Malaysia’s Multi-Role Combat Aircraft needs.

The government of Malaysia ordered eight F/A-18D Hornets in 1993. Since delivering all aircraft on schedule in 1997, Boeing has been providing sustainment support for the fleet at the RMAF base in Butterworth, Malaysia. These support programs include engineering and logistics support, pilot training and technical publications.

Boeing provides life-cycle support solutions, services and upgrades for F/A-18 Hornet fleets worldwide, including for the U.S. Navy and Marine Corps, the Royal Australian Air Force, the Royal Canadian Air Force, the Finnish Air Force, the Kuwait Air Force, the Spanish Air Force, the Swiss Air Force and the RMAF.

The combat-proven F/A-18 Hornet is a twin-engine, multi-mission, tactical aircraft. It converts between air-to-air fighter missions and air-to-ground strike missions while on the same sortie with the flick of a switch. Currently serving the armed services of eight nations, the Hornet can be used for fighter escort, suppression of enemy air defenses, reconnaissance, forward air control, close air support, and day and night strike missions.

Bell Helicopter Receives Orders from Indonesia

2011-12-14T02:56:00.000-08:00

FORT WORTH, TEXAS – Bell Helicopter, a Textron Inc. company (NYSE: TXT), announced today it has received five firm orders with two potential follow-on orders for Bell 412s from PT Dirgantara Indonesia (PTDI) for delivery to government agencies in Indonesia.

"Bell Helicopter has had a long partnership with PTDI in Indonesia," said Larry D. Roberts, senior vice president, Bell Helicopter’s Commercial Business.

“The sale of these helicopters is part of the framework of an ongoing industrial collaboration between our two companies," Roberts said. "We believe our partnership will continue to grow and possibly expand in the future."

The five Bell 412s are expected to be delivered to PTDI by the end of the year. PTDI will then transport them to Bandung, Indonesia, where local content and customer specific mission equipment will be added prior to PTDI making final delivery to end-users.

In 2010, Bell Helicopter announced plans to extend the capability and performance of the Bell 412EP through a series of upgrades which are expected to be available to customers in 2012.

"The Bell 412 has had tremendous success in the region. It is well-known throughout the world for its reliability and multi-mission capabilities. We are committed to continuing to invest in the Bell 412 and will evolve it based on customer feedback and mission requirements," Roberts said.

The upgrade program entails a Supplemental Type Certificate (STC) project that is intended to extend the wide range of missions that can be performed by the Bell 412EP consisting of an engine and flight deck upgrade, which will be available in 3-axis and 4-axis options.

The engine upgrade, in partnership with Pratt & Whitney Inc., is designed to provide a 15 percent engine SHP increase, improved OEI and hot/high performance and introduction of electronic engine control. The upgrade will yield a 10-12 percent increase in CAT A/PC1 & PC2 performance, increased hot/high capability and provides a path for a future upgrade for increased range and payload.

The flight deck upgrade will provide a modern glass flight deck – leveraging the well-received glass flight deck in the new Bell 429 – by utilizing hardware common to that aircraft, specifically display units. This will provide commonality in the cockpits of Bell Helicopter’s light twin and medium twin aircraft, simplifying pilot familiarity and maintenance training.

The planned engine and flight deck upgrades are in addition to an earlier Bell 412EP STC for the BLR FastFin™ System. The FastFin™ upgrade, certified by Transport Canada and the Federal Aviation Administration and available today, increases HOGE and HIGE performance limits and expands the lifting capacity of the Bell 412EP, providing more tail rotor reserve authority, improving hover stability, high/hot performance, crosswind capabilities, and payload, while reducing pilot workload and lowering operating costs through fuel savings.

Earlier this year, Bell Helicopter broke ground on a new Maintenance, Repair and Overhaul (MRO) facility in Singapore's Seletar Aerospace Park dedicated to customer support and service for the Asia-Pacific region. The new facility, which Bell Helicopter will operate in partnership with Cessna, will replace and augment the existing Bell Helicopter Supply Center and strengthen the company's sales presence in the Asia Pacific region, as well as add parts distribution and maintenance capabilities for Cessna operators in the region.

"Bell Helicopter is focused on continually improving the customer experience and remains committed to transforming the model for commercial aviation aircraft support – finding innovative ways of supporting our customers around the world and leading the way in new and emerging markets," said R. Danny Maldonado, senior vice president, Bell Helicopter's Customer Support and Chief Services Officer.

"With more than 6,000 helicopters flying in more than 12 countries, Asia Pacific has the second largest fleet of aircraft in the world. Adding this new service center is one way we are demonstrating that commitment to our customers throughout the Asia Pacific region," Maldonado said.

The Bell 412 is backed by Bell Helicopter's industry-leading customer support and service that has earned it – voted by our customers – the #1 ranking in Professional Pilot magazine for 17 consecutive years as well as #1 in Aviation International News for a sixth consecutive time.

Moscow sees ‘no military component’ in Iran’s nuclear program

2011-12-14T02:51:00.000-08:00

There is no military component in Iran’s nuclear program, Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov said on Friday. Western powers and Israel suspect Iran of seeking to build nuclear weapons. Iran denies this, saying its program is civilian in nature. Speculation has been building that Israel is considering a preemptive strike on Iran's nuclear facilities.

“We have verified data showing that there is no reliable evidence for the existence of a military component,” Ryabkov said.

“There is no proof of a military component in Iran’s nuclear program.”

It is essential to “clear all the remaining doubts through negotiations,” he said, adding that it was important for Iran to closely cooperate with the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA).

The IAEA said in a report released in early November that Iran continued nuclear weapons research and technology development after 2003, at a time when it declared a halt in its nuclear program. The report said that Iran had temporarily frozen nuclear activities, but that there was evidence the program continued to be carried out at a more modest pace.

Iranian officials slammed the report as a distortion of facts aimed at satisfying U.S. political interests. IAEA chief Yukiya Amano has urged Iran to provide the requested clarifications regarding possible military dimensions to its nuclear program.

(http://en.rian.ru/world/20111209/169515956.html)

Russia Reached an Agreement with Indonesia on a New Contract for Six Fighter Aircraft

2011-12-14T02:44:00.000-08:00

On the first day of the Malaysia International Exhibition LIMA-2011, according to "Kommersant", the delegation of "Rosoboronexport" unable to agree on the delivery of six Su-30MK2 with Indonesia. The last remains only to determine the final set of weapons to these aircraft, and then to the end of this year, will sign the final contract.

On the arrangements for signing the contract for the Su-30MK2 said a source who participated in the negotiations on Russia's part. "We have already met with Defense Minister Purnomo Yusgiantoro of Indonesia and Air Force Commander Air Marshal of the country Imam Sufaat detail verbalize questions about cooperation, but now we have reached a new level - the source says," and "Even before the new year we expect to sign the final contract to supply Indonesia six Sukhoi Su-30MK2. " He noted that they will meet for two aircraft plants - in Irkutsk and KNAAPO (for a uniform load of enterprises).

Disclose the contract value interviewee refused, citing the fact that Indonesia is still not fully decided on the types of weapons that must be installed on the fighters. However, the source, who participated in the negotiations on the part of Indonesia, said that the amount of the contract is "in no case less than $ 500 million." Will the new Su-30MK2 purchased for cash or on credit, the parties did not specify. Note that the previous delivery (for example, a contract for the delivery of Su-27SKM worth about $ 300 million) in Indonesia is carried out at the expense of Russia issued the loan.

"Regardless of what form will be paid for the six Su-30MK2, this is a big success for Russia - the director of the Center for Analysis of Strategies and Technologies Ruslan Pukhov .- Given the increased interest of America, Indonesia, offering to buy for the money used F- 16 aircraft, Indonesia would this deal with Russia to slow down. However, it did not, that is good news."

Earlier, Indonesia has received from Russia ten fighter brand "Sukhoi." Under the contract signed in September 2003, the Air Force Indonesia received two Su-30MK and two Su-27SKM. And in 2007, purchased six aircraft - three Su-27SKM and Su-30MK2 (their delivery was completed in September 2010). All in all, as stated in late September, Mr. Yusgiantoro, by 2024, "in order to protect the country's sovereignty Indonesia is going to buy 180 fighter jets, staffed by ten squadrons of aircraft."

Rosoboronexport yesterday from the official declined to comment.

Russia deploys new missile system in Chechnya

2011-12-14T02:39:00.000-08:00

A new missile system has been deployed in Russia’s Northern Caucasus republic of Chechnya, a senior military official said on Wednesday.

The Barnaul-T system will be hooked up to Russia’s Glonass sat-nav system.

“The new system makes for better coordination of the actions of missile defenses on all levels, and also increases their mobility and durability during battle,” Lt. Col. Oleg Kochetkov told reporters.

The new system will track and coordinate information on airborne targets, Kochetkov added.

(http://en.rian.ru/mlitary_news/20111214/170234201.html)

Russia to develop new AWACS plane

2011-08-11T05:04:00.000-07:00

Russia hopes to develop a new airborne warning and control system (AWACS) plane by 2016, Air Force chief Col. Gen Alexander Zelin said on Tuesday. “We are expecting to receive the A-100 aircraft built on the basis of the Il-476 transport plane with the PS-90 engine and extended flight range,” Zelin told reporters in Moscow.

The new AWACS plane will have an advanced active phase array capable of detecting and tracking airborne and land-based targets.

“We will have the carrier [Il-476] by 2013-2014 and should be able to build this plane by 2016,” Zelin said.

The Russian Air Force has around 20 A-50 Mainstay AWACS planes, based on the Ilyushin Il-76 transport.

The A-50 is equipped with the large Liana surveillance radar with its antenna in an over-fuselage rotodome and can control up to ten fighter aircraft for either air-to-air intercept or air-to-ground attack missions.

(RIA NOVOSTI)

South Korea Receives First 737 AEW&C Peace Eye Aircraft

2011-08-11T04:55:00.000-07:00

South Korea has received the first of four Boeing 737-700 Peace Eye airborne early warning & control (AEW&C) aircraft. The aircraft was delivered to Gimhae air force base, 450km (250 miles) southeast of Seoul, after a flight fromBoeing's production facility in Seattle, said the Defense Acquisition Program Administration (DAPA).

DAPA will conduct flight tests on the aircraft before passing it to the Republic of Korea Air Force in September.

The aircraft has already undergone mission system flight testing in the US. The remaining three aircraft are being modified by Korea Aerospace Industries at its Sacheon facility. They will be delivered in 2012.

"The 737 AEW&C gives Korea a powerful capability for airborne surveillance, communications and battle management," said Boeing. "It also provides increased security for the Korean peninsula against today's threats and threats in the future."

The 737 AEW&C features Northrop Grumman's unique approach to achieving 360° radar coverage. The multi-role electronically scanned array (MESA) radar includes two side-looking arrays, as well as a top-hat array that uses "endfire" techniques to steer the radar beam forward and aft of the aircraft.

"The so-called 'top hat' portion of the MESA radar provides a practical solution for fore and aft coverage, while maintaining the low drag profile of the dorsal array system," said Boeing. "This allows the system to be installed on the mid-size 737-700 platform, without significant impact on aircraft performance."

According to DAPA, a single Peace Eye can monitor the entire Korean peninsula. It can track up to 1,000 airborne or surface targets simultaneously, while also directing combat operations. It carries a flight crew of two and a mission crew of six to 10.

Seoul signed a $1.6 billion deal for the four aircraft in 2006. It is the second customer for the AEW&C variant of the 737-700 commercial airliner in the Asia Pacific region, after Australia.

Australia obtained four of the type under its Wedgetail programme, with initial operating capability expected in December.

Turkey has also purchased four of the aircraft under its Peace Eagle programme.

(Flight Global)

India to Help Vietnam Build a Submarine Fleet

2011-08-11T04:43:00.000-07:00

In the framework of building a strategic partnership, the Indian Navy will help Vietnam develop Navy submarine fleet. Cooperation in the field of defense is a fundamental part of the framework to build a strategic partnership between India and Vietnam.

Like Vietnam, the staff of the Indian Army in general and in particular the Navy has a lot of equipment originating from the Soviet Union and Russia. India is one of the foreign country to use as soon as Kilo submarines, with rich experience. Indian Navy ready to share this with Vietnam for the Navy plans to build a submarine fleet in time to Kilo.

An official of the Indian Navy, said: "We are helping Vietnam to build their submarine fleet. Our experience in the operation of Kilo submarines will be shared with them.

" The official declined to provide information, whether the crew Vietnam has provided practical experience on the Kilo submarines in India or not.

With his rich experience of India will help Vietnam build a submarine fleet. In the photo, an Indian naval officers outside observers by Kilo submarine periscope.

Vietnam has officially announced the purchase of six diesel-electric submarines from Russia in 2009 and most recently, Defense Minister Phung Quang Thanh has also spoken to confirm the construction of a submarine fleet of about 5-6 yearsto.

Currently in the Indian Navy personnel are 10 class diesel electric submarines Sindhughosh, this variant is exported to India's Kilo submarines of Project 877EKM.

Mr. Uday Bhaskar, director Institute of Oceanography Commodore stressed that Vietnam is an important strategic partner of India, we have much in common in the historical issues. "We both have a lot of weapons and equipment from Russia, so that India can bring technical assistance to Vietnam," he said.

Earlier during the visit of Indian Defense Minister AK Antony to Vietnam in 2010, the Indian side pledged to help Vietnam strengthen the modernization of the military, especially naval.

These include programs to upgrade the ships from the Soviet Union, also in the framework of the visit, the Indian Navy has transferred to Vietnam a lot of technical equipment to upgrade the fleet from Soviet Union.

Russian destroyer Marshal Shaposhnikov

2011-08-11T04:36:00.000-07:00

The Marshal Shaposhnikov (BPK 543) is an Udaloy-class destroyer of the Russian Navy laid down in 1985. The vessel serves in the Russian Pacific Fleet, and is currently undertaking operations to combat piracy off the Somalian coast. Her namesake is Boris Shaposhnikov. In early May 2010, the Marshal Shaposhnikov recaptured the motor tanker MV Moscow University, which had been attacked and seized by pirates east of Socotra Island.

On 6 May 2010, Russian commandos from the Marshal Shaposhnikov rescued the hijacked tanker MV Moscow University. The entire crew escaped unharmed.[3] The Moscow University had been hijacked by Somali pirates on 5 May 2010. The commandos from the Marshal Shaposhnikov detained 10 pirates and killed one during the release of the tanker.

Guided Missile Cruiser "Moskva" (ex-"Slava")

2011-08-11T04:23:00.000-07:00

Project 1164, Atlant, Slava, Moskva, BLK-COM-1 and Krasina are all designations given to the first ship of a new class of Soviet Rocket Cruiser. As is true with all Soviet and modern Russian warship designs the new cruiser was known by a project number, in this case Project 1164 Russian Code Name Atlant. To the west analysts saw a new shape emerging in the slipway of 61 Kommunara Shipyard 445 in the city of Nikolayev on the Black Sea. Clearly it was the first of a new class of major Soviet combatant. The first NATO code name was BLK-COM-1 (Black Sea-Combatant-Design 1) and then briefly the NATO Code name Krasina. However, soon after NATO learned the Soviet name for the initial ship, Slava, a traditional Russian name meaning Glory, and the class was called the Slava Class Missile Cruiser.

Slava, renamed Moskva on July 7, 1995, was laid down on November 5, 1976. As the initial ship of a new class, building time was slower than those of the sisterships. She was launched three years later on July 27, 1979 and almost another four years would pass until Slava was commissioned on February 7, 1983. Moskva ex-Slava was the first of a planned six ship class of the most impressive surface action warship, with the exception of the Kirov Class RKR, to be built by the Soviet Union or the modern Russian Navy. Three are in service with Russian Fleet, Moskva in the Black Sea, Marshall Ustinov in the Northern Fleet and Varyag (Viking) ex-Cheryona Ukraina in the Pacific Fleet. A forth unit Admiral Flota Lobov has been renamed Ukrayina for service in the Ukrainian Navy. A fifth ship, Rossiya, then Oktyabrskaya Revolutsia and a sixth, Admiral Flota Sovetskogo Soyuza Gorshkov were both cancelled on October 4, 1990.

Displacing 9,380 tons (11,490 tons full load) the Moskva is a large ship, measuring 186.4m (oa) 170m (wl) in length, 20.8m (19.2m wl) in beam and 6.23m (8.4m at sonar) in draught. The class bristles with weapons systems and sensors, giving it a modern version of the Fierce Face look, so notable in Cold War Soviet warship designs. Overpowering all else are the sixteen P-500 Bazalt Surface to Surface Missile (SSM) canisters with their 4K80 missiles, NATO Code name SS-N-12 Sandbox. Designed to be carrier killers, the cruisers of the class were designed like the other classes of Soviet Rocket Cruisers (RKR) to offset the strength of the NATO fleets, the carrier. Behind the twin stacks are eight cylinders, resembling the end of a revolver handgun cylinder. Each cylinder has eight Fort (SA-N-6) Surface to Air (SAM) missiles. These missiles are 64S-300MPU/3R41 or 5V-55, NATO Code name Grumble missiles, in their vertically stored and launched (VLS) cylinders. Two cylinders for short range SAMs are found at the stern. One cylinder is on each side of the hangar with twelve B-203A VLS SA-N-4 Osa SAM with a total of 40 9MK-33M-5, NATO Code name Gecko Missiles. One twin Dual-Purpose 130mm/70 (AK-130) gun position is found at the bow and six CIWS AK-30/54 six-barrelled 30mm gatling guns for point AA defense. Rounding out the weapons fit are ten 533mm (5x2) torpedo tubes and two RBU-6000 ASW rocket mounts with a total of 144 rockets. Helicopter support comes in the form of one Ka-27PL ASW or one Ka-2RTS Helix targeting helicopter. Anyway you slice it, the Moskva packs a punch.

The cruisers of the class are powered by four gas turbines each producing 27,500 shp. There are also two cruise turbines, each of 10,000 shp for economical cruising on the two propeller design. The very hot exhaust from the turbines vents through the twin stack structure amidships. The designers of the class used this exhaust to power other auxiliary turbines. There are two exhaust gas cruise turbines each of 1,500 shp, two boost turbine exhausts and two gas turbine exhaust generators to provide steam to auxiliary turbines. Capable of 32.5 knots (30 knot sustained), Moskva has a range of 8,070 nm at 18 knots or 2,200 nm at 32 knots. The complement is 66 officers, 64 michmen (petty officers) and 355 enlisted men.

The Moskva (ex-Slava), which had been in refit at the Nikolayev yard since 1990-91, remained undelivered to the Russian Black Sea Fleet through the end of 1998. The Moskva was expected to return to service to replace the Admiral Golovko as the flagship of the Black Sea fleet.

http://flot.sevastopol.info/eng/ship/cruisers/slava.htm

US administration 'divided' over Afghanistan, says book

2010-09-22T00:36:00.000-07:00

President Barack Obama's special envoy to Afghanistan and Pakistan believes the current strategy cannot work, according to a new book. The claim, published in the New York Times, is from a book by veteran reporter Bob Woodward.

Reports say the book paints a picture of in-fighting in the administration. Some key players doubt the president's strategy of sending 30,000 more troops to Afghanistan and starting to withdraw next summer.

Bob Woodward, who made his name exposing President Richard Nixon's cover-up of Watergate has written a searing series of books about President Bush and the Iraq war so his latest work "Obama's war" has been eagerly awaited in Washington.

Now the New York Times say it has a leaked copy.

It cites quotes from Richard Holbrooke, the special envoy to the region, saying "It can't work" and the president's main advisor on Afghanistan says that the painstaking White House review which took months "didn't add up" to the policy that was adopted.

It says the CIA has a 3,000-strong secret army inside Afghanistan and that intelligence reports suggest the Afghan President Hamid Karzai has been diagnosed as a manic depressive.

Mr Woodward's book paints a picture of President Obama demanding an exit strategy, saying "I can't lose the whole Democratic party" and irritated with the military for boxing him.

Perhaps most significantly it hints at conflicts to come over the timetable for a US withdrawal.

It quotes the top US soldier in Afghanistan, General David Petraeus, as believing they could "get more time on the clock", and then being told by a senior advisor: "That's a dramatic misreading of this president."

( www.bbc.co.uk )

Sukhoi fighters pass flight tests at Indonesia base

2010-09-22T00:15:00.000-07:00

All three Su-27SKM fighters delivered to Indonesia by Russia earlier this month have successfully passed flight tests at an airbase in the South Sulawesi province, a source at the base said on Wednesday.

The planes were delivered to Indonesia as the final part of an August 2007 $300 million deal for six of the Sukhoi fighters. That agreement followed on from the 2003 purchase by Indonesia of four fighter jets from Russia.

Indonesia's Air Force chief of staff Marshal Imam Sufaat said on Friday his country planned to buy six more Sukhoi fighter jets from Russia, the Jakarta Post reported.

"The existing squadron of 10 Sukhois is insufficient for our vast air space," Imam told the Antara news agency.

He said the purchases had already been approved by the country's president, President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono.

However he added that while the purchases would be on the Defense Ministry's long-term agenda, he was not sure when the deal would go ahead.

( RIA NOVOSTI )

Iranian army receives new short-range missiles

2010-09-21T20:58:00.001-07:00

The first batch of modified short-range missiles have entered service in Iran's Revolutionary Guard, the defense minister said on Tuesday.

The Guard has received a modified version of the surface-to-surface Fateh-110 missiles, Brigadier General Ahmad Vahidi said, according to Irna news agency.

Iran said last month it had successfully test-fired the third generation of Fateh-110 missiles.

The Fateh-110 is a short-range, road-mobile, solid-propellant, high-precision ballistic missile with advanced navigation and control systems.

( RIA NOVOSTI )

Yakhont missiles could protect Russian naval base in Syria - analyst

2010-09-20T20:57:00.000-07:00

Russian-made mobile anti-ship missile systems sold to Syria could be used to protect a Russian naval supply and maintenance site near Syria's Mediterranean port of Tartus, a Russian arms trade expert said on Monday.

Russia earlier announced it would honor a 2007 contract on the delivery of several Bastion anti-ship missile systems armed with SS-N-26 Yakhont supersonic cruise missiles to Syria, despite U.S. and Israel security concerns.

Syria needs to shield a 600-km stretch of its coastline from potential amphibious assaults.

"One of the purposes of the deployment of Bastion missile systems in Syria is to ensure the protection of the Russian naval site in Tartus," said Igor Korotchenko, head of a Moscow-based think tank on the international arms trade.

The Yakhont missile has a range of 300 kilometers, the capacity to carry a 200-kilogram warhead and the unique ability of being able to cruise several meters above the water surface, making it difficult to detect and intercept.

According to Korotchenko, none of the world's existing warships could thwart a Yakhont missile attack.

The Soviet-era naval maintenance site near Tartus is Russia's only military foothold in the Mediterranean. Russia plans to modernize the facility to accommodate large warships, including missile cruisers and even aircraft carriers after 2012.

( RIA NOVOSTI )

Mystery Chinese SSK fuels Asia's submarine race

2010-09-20T20:52:00.000-07:00

The China Shipbuilding Industry Corporation has launched an unidentified new-type conventional submarine (SSK) at its Wuhan shipyard, according to Chinese reports. It is the third new SSK design revealed by China since 1994 and is likely to exacerbate regional anxieties that are propelling many Asian states to increase or establish submarine fleets.

Vague or altered internet images of this new SSK, which first appeared on the popular Chinese CALF web page on 10 September, led observers to think that it may be yet another Chinese internet hoax, but the submarine's existence was confirmed by much clearer images on 13 September.

While not much larger than the 3,000- to 4,000-ton Type 041 Yuan class, the new boat appears to incorporate Russian design influences, including a stouter hull with a reduced aft taper similar to the Project 667 Lada/Amur class, plus an elongated sail and hull-mounted retractable hydroplanes similar to the Project 636 Kilo class. However, in contrast to the sail of the Kilo, the new Chinese SSK incorporates hydrodynamic elements such as an intricately-faired leading edge with concave and convex curves.

( www.janes.com )

UK troops leave Helmand's Sangin

2010-09-20T01:13:00.000-07:00

British forces in Afghanistan have handed responsibility for security in Sangin to US forces, marking the end of their four-year mission in the area. Control was handed over from UK forces to the US Marine Corps at 0630 BST.

The UK has suffered its heaviest losses in the area. Of the 337 UK deaths in Afghanistan since 2001, a third have happened there. Defence Secretary Dr Liam Fox said UK troops should be "proud of their achievements".

He said Sangin, in Helmand province, was "one of the most challenging areas of Afghanistan".

"The level of sacrifice has been high and we should never forget the many brave troops who have lost their lives in the pursuit of success in an international mission rooted firmly in our own national security in the UK," he said.

British troops will redeploy to central Helmand, where they will continue to lead the fight against the insurgency and assist in building a stable and secure Afghanistan, he added.

UK forces have been in Sangin since 2006, and 106 UK personnel have been killed. The MoD announced in July that British troops were to be replaced by US forces.

The BBC's Ian Pannell in Kabul said there would be a physical handover, with the union jack lowered and the US flag raised, but little would change on a pratical level.

He said some members of the 1,000-strong 40 Commando Battle Group had already left, and the handover would be staggered over the coming weeks.

Describing it as a "totemic" moment for the UK, he said Sangin is the most dangerous district in Helmand - if not the whole of Afghanistan.

On a recent visit to the area, he witnessed a long battle in which a number of US soldiers, Afghan soldiers and civilians sustained injuries.

"Although progress has been made the area remains very difficult, it is a key battleground for insurgents and coalition forces.

"The truth is, the Americans will now have to try and finish the job that Britain started," he added.

Ministry of Defence spokesman Major General Gordon Messenger, a former commander of the UK Helmand task force, insisted the handover was not an admission of defeat.

"It certainly won't look like that on the ground," he told BBC Radio 4's Today programme.

"The British soldiers that are there are handing over to the American Marines. In terms of the physical security presence, and every other aspect of the campaign in Sangin, it's going to be more of a continuum than a watershed."

"We are seeing real and positive progress in areas that only a year or so ago were in a very different state," he added.

The commanding officer of 40 Commando group, Lieutenant Colonel Paul James, said the handover was "poignant moment" tinged with sadness, but the overwhelming emotion was one of pride.

"I think we've achieved significant success here: making Sangin a much more stable and peaceful place.

"And probably just as importantly, the Afghan national security forces that we've partnered here are now starting to be able to stand on their own two feet and take on the responsibility for delivering Sangin for themselves.

"It's not going to be British forces who deliver success in Sangin and it's not going to be American forces.

"It's not going to be anyone else other than the Afghans themselves."

( www.bbc.co.uk )

Sikorsky X2 breaks 250 kt to set new record

2010-09-19T23:59:00.000-07:00

Sikorsky's X2 helicopter technology demonstrator achieved its stated goal of 250 kt true air speed in level flight at the Sikorsky development Flight Center in Florida on 15 September, the company has announced.

The speed, reached during a flight lasting just over one hour, is an unofficial speed record for a helicopter, surpassing the 216 kt achieved by a modified Westland Lynx in 1986. The X2 demonstrator also reached 260 kt in a very shallow dive during the flight, Sikorsky said.

The record-breaking flight has yet to be confirmed by the Fédération Aéronautique Internationale (FAI): the body responsible for approving such feats.

With the primary performance key for the X2 now met, Jim Kagdis, programme manager for Sikorsky Advanced Programs, said that the demonstrator vehicle has about three months more of flight-testing to undertake. During this time, the company will fly the aircraft for four more tests to demonstrate that it has achieved the other key performance parameters of the programme, such as for noise, vibration, efficient hovering and safe autorotation.

Once flight-testing is complete, "we will declare success and we will have the information needed to then look out how we can take this information and technology and apply it to future concepts", Kagdis said.

( www.janes.com )

Expired ammunition cause of Ukraine warship incident - Navy source

2010-09-19T23:32:00.000-07:00

The artillery shells that exploded on board a Ukrainian warship during military drills off the Crimean Peninsula, were expired, a source in the Ukrainian Naval Forces said on Saturday.

Ukraine's UNIAN news agency reported earlier in the day that two artillery shells had gone off on board the Kirovograd medium amphibious assault ship late on Friday, seriously injuring four servicemen. The incident took place at Crimean training ground Opuk during the Vzaimodeistviye-2010 (Cooperation-2010) military exercises.

The injured servicemen have been reportedly admitted to hospital in a grave condition.

"Firing expired artillery shells is a common practice that allows to kill two birds with one stone: both to train and to get rid of obsolete ammunition," the source said, adding that the incident would have been prevented if drill monitors had checked the ammunition's expiration date.

"During gunnery exercises, a ship is strongly shaken - even ceiling lamps in corridors fall down. It's quite possible that the expired shells detonated. Fortunately, they were quite small, and no one was killed," he said.

Ukraine's defense authorities have provided no official comments over the incident. UNIAN said the defense minister, Mykhailo Yezhel, had been supervising the drills on Friday.

In 2008, during military drills off the Crimean peninsula, a missile exploded just seconds after it was launched from a Buk-M1 (SA-11 Gadfly) missile system. No one was killed in the incident.

Although the Ukrainian military authorities declared the drills "successful," then-Defense Minister Yury Yekhanurov admitted that missiles used by the country's military were "obsolete."

( RIA NOVOSTI )

Russian troops conduct live firing drills at South Ossetia base

2010-09-19T23:29:00.000-07:00

Russian troops, deployed at a military base in South Ossetia, have conducted a battalion-level tactical exercise with live firing, a military source said. The exercise was held on Saturday at the Dzartsemi training ground.

The personnel "dealt successfully with the task and performed well at firing sites," said Lt. Col. Andrei Bobrun, a spokesman for the commander of the North Caucasus Military District.

After recognizing the independence of South Ossetia in August 2008, Russia signed an agreement with the former Georgian republic to establish a permanent military base in South Ossetia's capital, Tskhinvali.

The base hosts up to 1,700 servicemen, T-62 tanks, light armored vehicles, air defense systems and a variety of aircraft.

( RIA NOVOSTI )

Blast rattles Kabul before Afghan poll begins

2010-09-17T20:48:00.000-07:00

Afghanistan braced for a day of violence on Saturday as voters headed to the polls for a parliamentary election that is a crucial test of government credibility and the strength of its security forces.

A large blast rocked central Kabul about three hours before polls were due to open at 7 a.m. (0230 GMT).

An area near the U.S. embassy was cordoned off but there were no reports of damage or injury. A spokesman for NATO-led forces said the blast was being investigated.

The Taliban have vowed to disrupt the poll and urged potential voters to stay at home even as the government called on Afghans to come out to polling stations for what is their second chance to choose their own parliament.

"We should try to do our best under the current circumstances. It is very important that the Afghan people come out and vote," Afghan President Hamid Karzai, who was re-elected last year in a poll marred by fraud accusations, told reporters.

Significant security failures would be a major setback, with Washington watching closely before U.S. President Barack Obama conducts a war strategy review in December likely to examine the pace and scale of U.S. troop withdrawals.

Corruption and fraud are also serious concerns after a deeply flawed presidential ballot last year. A third of votes cast for Karzai were thrown out as fake. Even though he is not standing, Saturday's vote is seen as a test of Karzai's credibility.

It will not be clear for several weeks at least who among the almost 2,500 candidates have won the 249 seats on offer in the Wolesi Jirga, or lower house of parliament.

Preliminary results from Saturday's voting will not be known until October 8 at the earliest, with final results not expected before October 30.

Election observers expect thousands of complaints from losing candidates, with Afghanistan's own poll watchdog expecting a "disputatious" election, which could delay the process further.

Almost 300,000 Afghan soldiers and police are providing security for the poll, backed up by some 150,000 foreign troops.

CLAMPDOWN, ABDUCTIONS

A heavy security clampdown was imposed on Kabul on Friday.

A wave of abductions spread across much of the rest of the country on Friday, however, with 23 kidnappings of people working on the elections, including two candidates.

Observers fear security worries could lead to a low voter turnout, as it did last year when the Taliban staged dozens of attacks but failed to disrupt the process entirely.

Voter turnout was very low last year in the south and east where Pashtuns, Afghanistan's main ethnic group, dominate and where the Taliban has its strongest support.

Washington believes corruption weakens the central government and its ability to build up institutions like the Afghan security forces, which in turn determines when Western troops in Afghanistan will be able to leave.

Voter turnout may also be hit by cynicism and disillusionment. Billions of dollars in foreign aid cash have flowed into Afghanistan over the past nine years but, for many people, have brought no real improvement in their lives.

( www.reuters.com )

Russia to overhaul Bulava production if tests fail again - Serdyukov

2010-09-17T20:21:00.000-07:00

Russia will have to overhaul the whole production and manufacturing system of its troubled Bulava ballistic missile if this autumn's tests fail again, the defense minister said on Friday.

Anatoly Serdyukov said that if failures continue and their causes prove to be different, "then we will have to overhaul the whole system of production and [manufacture] control of these missiles."

The Bulava (SS-NX-30), a three-stage liquid and solid-propellant submarine-launched ballistic missile (SLBM), has officially suffered seven failures in 12 tests.

Bulava test launches were put on hold after the most recent failed launch, from the Dmitry Donskoy nuclear submarine in the White Sea on December 9, 2009, pending the results of a government investigation.

The failure was caused by a defective engine nozzle. A source close to state commission, which investigated the failure, said the malfunction was caused not by the design but by a manufacturing fault.

The next test launches, initially scheduled for mid-August, have repeatedly been postponed.

"The next three launches of the Bulava missile will be held until the first ice appears. We will definitely launch [the missiles]," Serdyukov said.

Some analysts suggest that in reality the number of failures was considerably larger, with Russian military expert Pavel Felgenhauer suggesting that of the Bulava's 12 test launches, only one was entirely successful.

The future development of the Bulava has been questioned by several lawmakers and defense industry officials, who suggest that all efforts should be focused on the existing Sineva SLBM.

( RIA NOVOSTI )

Indonesia confirms plans to buy six more Su fighters from Russia

2010-09-16T21:27:00.000-07:00

Indonesia's Air Force chief of staff Marshal Imam Sufaat said on Friday his country planned to buy six more Sukhoi fighter jets from Russia, the Jakarta Post reported. He said the purchase would be on the Defense Ministry's long-term agenda, but was not sure when the plan would be implemented.

"The existing squadron of Sukhois remains insufficient to give a deterrent effect given our vast territory," Imam told the Antara news agency.

He said the proposal was already approved by the country's president, President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono.

Indonesia bought three Russian fighter jets in 2003. The $300 million contract signed in August 2007 stipulated the delivery of six Su-30MK fighter planes. Three aircraft were delivered in February 2009, another two were handed over to Indonesia on September 10, and one was taken to Indonesia on Thursday.

( RIA NOVOSTI )

The Bushmaster Adaptive Combat Rifle (ACR)

2010-09-16T20:45:00.000-07:00

The Bushmaster Adaptive Combat Rifle (ACR) is the production name for an updated version of the Masada Adaptive Combat Weapon System. In late January 2008, Bushmaster entered into a licensing agreement with Magpul whereby Bushmaster would take over production, future development and sales of the Masada.

It is a patent pending self-loading rifle platform designed by Magpul Industries of Erie, Colorado. The rifle was initially developed over a period of four months, completely independent of government funding. Prototypes were displayed at the 2007 SHOT Show in Orlando, Florida. Originally scheduled for release in the second quarter of 2008, Bushmaster announced on May 16, 2008, that the consumer release would be delayed until Q1 2009, due to a focus on military projects.

On November 18, 2008, Bushmaster released a statement saying, "The ACR is being redesigned to be a superior offering to compete for the next generation US Army infantry carbine and subcompact weapon requirement and will be available to select customers in 2009.

The ACR was one of the weapons displayed to U.S. Army officials during an invitation-only Industry Day on November 13, 2008. The goal of the Industry Day was to review current carbine technology prior to writing formal requirements for a future replacement for the M4 Carbine.

Design

The original Magpul Masada design represents an amalgamation of several recent rifle designs, incorporating what is considered by its designers to be the best features of each in a single, lightweight, modular rifle platform.

Design features from the Armalite AR-18 (short-stroke gas system), the FN SCAR (upper receiver, charging handle location), the Heckler & Koch G36/XM8 (liberal use of polymer components), the M16/AR-15 (trigger pack), and the M16 (barrel, fire control group) are clearly prevalent. The rifle also includes several features developed by Magpul, such as a quick-change barrel/trunnion system, adjustable gas regulator, non-reciprocating charging handle, and storage compartments located in the stock and grip.

Just prior to the deal with Bushmaster, Magpul made additional changes to their design—the most obvious of these is the relocation of the ambidextrous operating handle to a forward position (somewhat similar to the Heckler & Koch G3 and Heckler & Koch MP5 series of weapons). Experts from Magpul Industries have on several occasions mentioned that depending on the barrel length of the weapon, the rate of fire is estimated to be in the range of 600-800 rpm (this is an estimate; specifics have not yet been verified).

Bushmaster Firearms, with the help of Remington Arms (a sister company in the Freedom Group, Inc portfolio that includes Bushmaster, Remington, Marlin, and DPMS Panther Arms brands) has also made some design changes based on extensive environmental and functional testing specifically to meet the emerging requirements of the US military in both the carbine and subcompact weapon versions of the ACR family. It is expected that the rifle will be offered to military customers in 5.56mm NATO, 6.8mm Remington SPC, 6.5 Grendel, and possibly in .30 Remington AR. with the same lower receiver and the user just having to switch out the barrel, bolt face, and magazine to change calibers. It is also expected that the ACR will have barrel length options of 10.5″, 12.5″, 14.5″, 16″ (commercial), and 18″. The official name of the rifle for military use will be the Remington ACR.

The magazine conceived for the 5.56mm version of the ACR rifle is called the PMag, a high-impact, 30-round polymer magazine claimed by Magpul to be significantly more resistant to wear, shock, and harsh environments than other counterparts on the market. The PMag is STANAG 4179-compatible, as it will readily fit any STANAG magazine firearm, including the M16 rifle family.

The Bushmaster ACR's modular construction even allows the user to fire several other rounds, including the 7.62×39mm round and Remington 6.8 SPC round with an alternate barrel and lower receiver.

Availability

The ACR is stated to be available in the 2nd Quarter of 2010 for military, government and commercial customers. The ACR will be available in greater quantity (tens of thousands) in the commercial marketplace in 2010.

According to an official press release from Bushmaster, the rifle will have suggested retail price between $2,685 - $ 3,061.00

- twice as much as early price quotes of "around $1500," causing public outcry and dismay of the rifle from a large portion of the firearms fraternity and potential civilian end-users. Semi-automatic versions will be available to the commercial market from Bushmaster, and selective-fire versions available for military and law enforcement under the Remington name.

As of April 2010, civilian market rifles are available for sale.

( www.wikipedia.org )

Akash Surface-to-Air Missile System, India

2010-09-16T20:20:00.000-07:00

The Akash (sky) is an all-weather medium-range surface-to-air missile (SAM) system developed in India. It provides multidirectional and multitarget area defence. The missile system was indigenously developed as part of the integrated guided-missile development programme (IGMDP). In operation from 1983 to 2007, the programme developed a range of missiles, including the Nag, Agni and Trishul missiles and the Prithvi ballistic missile.

In 2008, the Indian Air Force (IAF) introduced its indigenous SAM system after nine successful field trials. Some modifications to the Akash SAM, such as the launch platform, were made to the army version to meet mobility and gradeability requirements.

In June 2010, the Defence Acquisition Council (DAC) of India ordered Rs125bn ($2.8bn) of the army version Akash missile system for induction into the Indian Army.

Akash surface-to-air-missile

The Akash SAM was developed to replace the Russian 2K12 Kub (SA-6 Gainful) missile system, currently in service. Development of the Akash missile system began in the 1980s, involving the work of 300 public and private companies. The flight tests were initiated in 1990 and the development flights continued till 1997. Several user trials of the missile system were conducted and its ballistic missile role was proven successful.

The Akash SAM system – including the associated radars, missile and systems – took about 20 years to develop, at an investment of about $120m. Other countries that have developed the multitarget handling surface-to-air missile systems are the US, some EU countries, Russia, Israel and Japan.

SAM system features

The Akash SAM system consists of an integral ramjet propulsion, a switchable guidance antenna system, a command guidance unit, an onboard power supply, a system arming and detonation mechanism, digital autopilot, radars and C4I centres.

The Akash SAM system – including the associated radars, missile and systems – took about 20 years to develop, at an investment of about $120m. Other countries that have developed the multitarget handling surface-to-air missile systems are the US, some EU countries, Russia, Israel and Japan.

Akash missile launch

The Akash missile can be launched from static or mobile platforms, such as battle tanks, providing flexible deployment. The SAM can handle multitarget and destroy manoeuvring targets such as unmanned aerial vehicles (UAV), fighter aircraft, cruise missiles and missiles launched from helicopters.

The Akash SAM system defends vulnerable areas in all weather conditions against medium-range air targets being attacked from low, medium and high altitudes.

It can operate autonomously, and engage and neutralise different aerial targets simultaneously. The kill probability of the Akash is 88% for the first and 99% for the second missile on a target. The Akash SAM is claimed to be more economical and accurate than the MIM-104 Patriot, operated by several nations including the US, due to its solid-fuel technology. The Akash can intercept from a range of 30km and provide air defence missile coverage of 2,000km².

SAM system features

The Akash SAM system consists of an integral ramjet propulsion, a switchable guidance antenna system, a command guidance unit, an onboard power supply, a system arming and detonation mechanism, digital autopilot, radars and C4I centres.

Detonation sequence

The prefragmented warhead of the Akash missile is coupled with a digital proximity fuse. The detonation sequence is controlled by safety arming and a detonation mechanism. The missile is also integrated with a self-destructive device. Unlike the Patriot missile, Akash uses a ramjet propulsion system which gives it thrust to intercept the target at supersonic speed without any speed deceleration.

The terminal guidance system of the missile enables its working through electronic countermeasures.

The Rajendra radar completely guides the Akash missile, which increases its efficacy against electronic jamming of aircraft.

( www.army-tecnology )

Obama calls for soonest ratification of arms treaty with Russia

2010-09-16T19:58:00.000-07:00

U.S. President Barack Obama and other top state officials urged the Senate of speed up the ratification of a new strategic arms reduction treaty with Russia. The U.S. Senate Foreign Relations Committee voted 14-4 on Thursday to recommend the Senate ratify a new strategic arms reduction treaty with Russia.

"Today, I urge the full Senate to move forward quickly with a vote to approve this Treaty," the U.S. President said in a statement.

"I encourage members on both sides of the aisle to give this agreement the fair hearing and bipartisan support that it deserves, and that has been given to past agreements of its kind," he went on.

He said that "leaders from across the political spectrum," including former secretaries of state and defense from Republican and Democratic administrations have endorsed the treaty.

"They recognize that it is in our national security interest," the president added.

The new treaty was signed by Obama and his Russian counterpart Dmitry Medvedev on April 8 in Prague as a replacement for the START 1 treaty that expired in December 2009. It stipulates that the number of nuclear warheads is to be reduced to 1,550 on each side, while the number of deployed and non-deployed delivery vehicles must not exceed 800 on each side.

The Russian and U.S. presidents earlier agreed that the ratification processes should be go ahead side-by-side.

U.S. Secretary of Defense Robert Gates and Secretary of State Hillary Clinton "applauded" the committee vote in a joint statement.

"Like previous arms control treaties, the New START Treaty deserves broad bipartisan support and prompt ratification by the full Senate. We urge Senators to act quickly and approve this treaty," the statement reads.

The two officials said the treaty would provide stability and predictability in relations of the world's two largest nuclear powers.

"It will restore crucial inspection and verification mechanisms that ceased when the original START agreement expired last year, allowing U.S. inspectors back inside Russian nuclear weapons silos," Clinton and Gates said. "And it will help keep nuclear material from falling into the hands of terrorists or rogue regimes."

Russian Defense Minister Anatoly Serdyukov, who is currently on the visit to the U.S., also welcomed the move.

"Of course, we are positive [about the recommendation]. We discussed it yesterday with Defense Secretary Robert Gates. Both U.S. and Russia are interested in [ratification]," he said. "We expect this to happen, though not everyone in Russia applauds the agreement."

He said that Russia would follow the U.S. ratification procedure to try and synchronize the ratification process, but "will not jump the gun."

The document was submitted to the U.S. Senate for ratification on May 13 and to the State Duma on May 28.

Representatives of the Department of State and the U.S. administration earlier said that the Senate may vote before the November 2 mid-term elections. However, Senator John Kerry, who chairs the Senate's foreign affairs committee, said that the voting should take place after the elections, for a smoother and swifter vote.

"I personally believe we will have the votes to ratify this," the senator said.

The Democrats control just 59 seats in the upper house of the U.S. Congress, while a total of 67 votes are required to ratify the agreement. At least one of the Republicans, Senator Richard Lugar, openly expressed his support for the pact.

( RIA NOVOSTI )

Four Russian strategic bombers complete patrol in Far East

2010-09-16T19:48:00.000-07:00

Four Russian Tu-95MS Bear H strategic bombers have successfully completed an air-patrol mission in Russia's Far East, a Defense Ministry spokesman said on Thursday. The mission, spanning neutral water areas in the Sea of Japan, the Pacific and the Arctic Ocean, lasted around 14 hours, Vladimir Drik said.

He did not specify whether the planes flew in formation or separately.

The mission included midair refueling and flying over featureless terrain where the pilots were completely reliant on the planes' instruments.

( RIA NOVOSTI )

Russia to complete Su fighter delivery to Indonesia by late Sept. - ambassador

2010-09-15T23:40:00.000-07:00

Russia will make its last delivery to Indonesia as part of a 2007 Su-30MK fighter deal in late September, the Russian ambassador to Indonesia said on Thursday.

"The handing-over ceremony...will take place at the end of September," Alexander Ivanov said.

The $300 million contract signed in August 2007 stipulated the delivery of six Su-30MK fighter planes. Three aircraft were delivered in 2009, while another two were handed over to Indonesia on September 10.

The Indonesian Air Force wants the fighters to take part in a military parade on October 5.

Three Russian specialists who were helping the Indonesian Air Force assemble the recently delivered Su fighters died at a Sukhoi holding in the Indonesian city of Makassar on Monday in "unexplained circumstances", amid allegations of methanol poisoning.

The Russian ambassador said, however, the reports of poisoning are "groundless." He also said the cause of death had yet to be announced.

Alexander Ivanov said the deaths did not affect the work of other Russian specialists in Makassar, and that work to assemble the Su fighters was being carried out according to schedule.

( RIA NOVOSTI )

RG41 Wheeled Armoured Combat Vehicle, South Africa

2010-09-15T20:25:00.000-07:00

The RG41 is an 8×8 wheeled armoured combat vehicle developed by BAE Systems South Africa. It is a new-generation combat vehicle, which integrates high mobility, protection and fire power in an advanced combat vehicle platform. The vehicle is suitable for multiple theatres.

The RG41 development project began in 2008 and the first RG41 vehicle was showcased at the Eurosatory defence exhibition in Paris in June 2010.

RG41 design and features

Designed for modern warfare environments, the RG41 is a low-cost, highly mobile combat vehicle. The field-repairable mine-protected design was developed by using the RG series technology, which has proved to be successful across the world in different environments.

The ITAR (international tariff in arms regulation) free design mostly consists of commercial off-the-shelf (COTS) components. The lower hull of the vehicle comprises five modular units joined together and bolted under the top structure. The vehicle is based on the 8×8 wheeled chassis.

The RG41 has a high payload capacity of 11t and offers 14.9m² of usable cabin space. The vehicle is fitted with 11 seats, each with safety belt four-point harness, and provides good ride comfort.

The vehicle accommodates a gunner and a section commander in the turret and seven troops in a hull compartment. The class-leading turning circle and good power-to-weight ratio improve the mobility and performance of the vehicle.

The driver's seat is placed at a very front of the vehicle for good vision. The space for the commander is provided behind the driver to take control over the section leader and troops. The vehicle contains a large section when it is equipped with a remotely controlled overhead weapon station.

RG41 variants

The RG41 is offered in several standard and customised variants for specific missions. The standard variants include a section combat vehicle, a command vehicle, an ambulance, a recovery vehicle and an engineering vehicle.

Turret

The RG41 can be fitted with a range of conventional or overhead turrets and weapon stations. The vehicle demonstrated at the Eurosatory was fitted with the new TRT-25 remote weapon station (RWS). The TRT-25 is effective beyond the range of 2,000m and allows engagement on the move in day and night operations. The turret with minor modifications, can accept a number of weapons.

Armament

The RG41 can be armed with direct and indirect-fire weapons. A 25mm Alliant Techsystems M242 Bushmaster and a 7.62mm co-axial machine gun can be mounted on the TRT-25 turret. A 360° video vision system is provided for vehicle commander.

Self-protection

The field-upgradeable self-protection of the RG41 varies with the requirements of the user. The vehicle features a full-length semi v-shaped hull for high levels of protection against mines and IEDs. The lower part of the hull consists of the drive line and the structure is covered with a five-piece modular mine-protection package.

The vehicle also has an engine bay and a crew compartment fire suppression system.

RG41 engine

The RG41 is powered by a Deutz 2015TCD V6 engine. It is coupled to a ZF5HP902 five-speed transmission that transmits power to the two-speed 17,000 series transfer box. The engine delivers a maximum power of 390kW at 2,100rpm and a maximum torque of 2,130Nm at 1,300rpm. The vehicle can run at a maximum speed of 100km/h.

Mobility

The fully integral power-assisted steering system of the vehicle has twin steers. The main brake system consists of pneumatic disk brakes equipped with an anti-lock braking system (ABS). The RG41 is equipped with double wishbone-type, hydro-pneumatic strut and hydraulic shock absorbers. The hydro-pneumatic suspension provides a high level of cross-country mobility to the vehicle.

The RG41 is equipped with a central tyre pressure regulation system. The vehicle has 16.00R20 Michelin XZL tyres fitted with 10.00R20 aluminium rims. These tyres reduce ground pressure and provide off-road speed. Run-flat inserts provide a range of 100km at 50km/h speed.

( www.army-technology.com )

The British Accuracy International AS50 BMG Sniper Rifle

2010-09-15T20:18:00.000-07:00

This awesome weapons represents the British attempt at designing the worlds greatest sniper rifle. Similar in design and features to the Barrett M107 .50 caliber sniper rifle, the Accuracy International AS50 certainly exhibits the pinnacle of futuristic sniper rifle engineering. The greatest difficulty to overcome when designing a rifle of such high caliber is how to effectively and efficiently disperse the recoil, and the AS50 employs a free-floating barrel with a dual chamber muzzle brake to accomplish this feat.

One important thing to note about this rifle though, is that it is truly designed as an anti-material weapon, meaning that it is intended to be armor-piercing to take out lightly armored vehicles such as APCs and trucks rather than intended as anti-personnel. However though, the accompanying video definitely stirs the imagination when it shows the melons, the perfect shape for a human head, being blown apart after the round penetrates some concrete blocks. I’m just waiting for the X-ray vision scope to be put on this bad boy, watch out everyone!

( www.futurefirepower.com )

Myths About the NATO 5.56 Cartridge

2010-09-15T20:15:00.000-07:00

There are a lot of myths and misconceptions surrounding the current M16A1, M16A2, M4, M16A4NATO 5.56 round and its effectiveness on the battlefield. Now before you make a judgment as a soldier or as a firearm enthusiast (a more euphemistic way of saying “gun nut”), consider your sources. Who is it that is telling you the 5.56mm, or .223 if you prefer, is an ineffective round? Is this source an armchair general who has watched Blackhawk Down one too many times; or a Navy Corpsman who has been attached to a MEF fighting in Fallujah and has seen, treated and inflicted these wounds with his own M-4? People look at the .30-06 round from their grandfather’s M1 Garand and the 7.62×51mm round from their dad’s M-14 and compare it to the M-16/M-4’s 5.56 and think; “Wow, this is considerably smaller. Therefore, it must be less effective.”

Now Joe Nichols had it right when he said, “Size Matters.” However, when you are talking about combat cartridges this is not always the case, and I say that hesitantly. When the 5.56 was derived from Remington’s .223 in the late 1950’s, it was meant as a “force multiplier” if you will. By that I mean a soldier could literally carry twice as much ammunition as one who has the older 7.62 for the same weight. They wanted a soldier who could stay longer in the field without re-supply and could literally out-last and out-shoot the enemy in many aspects. The 5.56 is an incredibly fast and flat shooting round compared to the 7.62, but is under half the bullet weight.

So one might ask; ‘How in the world can a smaller bullet be more lethal than a bigger one?” One word: cavitation. Cavitation is the rapid formation and collapse of a substance or material after an object enters it at a relatively high velocity. I guarantee you have seen cavitation before. Next time you are in the pool or on the boat, look at your hand as it passes through the water or the propeller spinning. In both cases you will notice bubbles on the trailing edge of each. You see this because the liquid water falls below its vapor pressure. Without getting into physics and the hydrodynamics behind it, I’ll just leave it at that. When a human body is hit with a 5.56mm 62-grain bullet traveling at 3,100 feet per second; essentially the same thing happens but much, much more violently. For a split second, the cavity created inside the human body by the round from an M-16/M-4 is about the size of a basketball (if hit dead center of mass). The 5.56 creates this massive cavitation by tumbling through the body initiated by inherently unstable flight.

Other calibers of bullets travel through the body on, more or less of, a straight line after some fragmentation. When the 5.56 round was first designed by Remington, it was meant to tumble through a target, not kill with brute force. It did this not only by the relatively blunt shape, but also by using a rifle barrel with less of a twist. Next time you look at an M-4 or an AR-15, notice it says “5.56 NATO 1:7” on the barrel. This literally translates into; “the bullet will make 1 full rotation for every 7 inches of this barrel.” This was not always the standard twist set for the new NATO round. The first AR-15 made by Armalite, had a 1:14 twist making it a very, very unstable round. One can only imagine the orientation of the entry and exit wounds.

Now if you haven’t figured it out already, the less the twist, the more unstable the round is. (1:14 twist is less than 1:7) It is said in “firearm enthusiast” legend that the first tests were done on pig carcasses and that the entry wound could be on the lower right stomach with an exit wound coming out of the back upper left shoulder. It left horrific wounds and terrible internal damage to its intended target, immediately drawing the interest of the US Military, in particular USAF General Curtis Emerson LeMay. That’s right folks, you can thank we in the United States Air Force for the M-16/M-4 legacy (I say this without sarcasm). He thought it was an ideal weapon for his deployed members of the USAF Security Forces for guarding the perimeters of Air Force installations in such places as Korea and Vietnam. Before military trials, Armalite increased the barrel twist to 1:12 to improve accuracy. But when tested in frigid Alaska, accuracy was decreased because of the increased friction from the denser, colder air. Therefore, the barrel twist was eventually increased from 1:12 to 1:9 and eventually to the 1:7 you see it today. Although some bull-barreled AR-15’s and Stoner Sniper Rifles can be found in a 1:9, most issued M-16’s and M-4;s are primarily a 1:7 twist.

This change increased the accuracy of the 5.56 round out past 500 meters, but decreased its lethality when striking a body. Now the real debate begins… How truly deadly is the 5.56? Well, this past April when I was going through Combat Skills Training at Ft. McCoy, Wisconsin, one week was spent in Combat Life-Saving class (CLS). The medics who instructed us had slide show after slide show of combat injuries they have treated over their last three deployments to Iraq and Afghanistan. And let me tell you, these were not for the weak stomachs among us. If you are reading this article, I bet you are the same type of person as I to ask, “What calibers caused those wounds?” These men and women have seen the worst injuries of coalition forces and enemy combatants alike. The Geneva Conventions state that medics must provide medical care to all captured enemy personnel when able. Therefore, many Taliban and Jihadist fighters came across their operating rooms. After class one day I asked all of them, “Do any of you doubt the killing power of the 5.56 round?” They all answered with a resounding, “NO.”

I personally don’t like telling war stories but I do enjoy telling hunting stories. I have brought down 180 to 200+ pound deer with a 55 grain .223 FMJ (full metal jacket) with no problem. Yes, I know, the counter argument to that is, “Well that’s not an enemy combatant hopped up on cocaine, khat or adrenaline.” I understand that, but if you saw the exit wound or those on the pictures from the combat medics, you would certainly cease your criticism of the 5.56. However, there are certain design features of the M-16/M-4 that continue to puzzle me.

We have all heard the reports of those rifles failing during combat during Vietnam and even yet today. During the 60’s when it was first introduced, it was hailed as “the self-cleaning rifle.” Of course that was proven to be a myth within the first months of its service. Soon thereafter, cleaning kits, cleaning manuals with attractive cartoon-like characters, and muzzle covers were issued in large numbers. A lot of the first problems the rifle saw were due to using ball powder vs. stick powder. Ball powder burns hotter, faster and dirtier than stick does. This caused the rifle to gum up quicker in the humid atmosphere of Vietnam and mis-feed the rounds. The U.S. Military then switched back to the cleaner burning stick powder and added a forward assist to jam the bolt carrier forward after heat expansion and carbon build-up. The military saw this problem and fixed it fairly early on, so why haven’t they saw the clear flaw in the 100% gas-blowback operation of the firearm? Why haven’t they learned lessons from rifles such as the AK-47, AK-74, G36, SCAR and countless other who have switched to a short stroke gas piston?

So far rifles such as the HK 416, HK 417, SCAR and MAGPUL Masada have all incorporated this short stroke gas piston in their designs and have all seen massive reductions in carbon build-up, over-heating, and mis-feeds. If this needs any explaining; what this basically does is stop the hot, carbon-filled gasses just rear of the front sight and pushes a pistol-like rod back instead of the gas traveling all the way back to the bolt carrier assembly. It is even possible to convert current uppers to this gas piston system using such kits as those offered by Bushmaster. If the cost benefit is too great for these kits to be installed, why not begin to install them on the floor as they are now? They are 100% compatible with all lowers used by the M-16 and M-4.

So in conclusion, the main flaws of the M-16/M-4 assault rifle system is not necessarily in the round itself, but in one minor design feature of just the upper. This article is meant as a predecessor to a piece in the making on the advantages to switching to a round such as the 6.8 SPC or 6.5 Grendel. The 5.56 round is effective, but could be better. I want to hear your feedback. Tell me why so many people (mostly civilians) think the flaws of the rifle are in the round. I’m looking to you military folks; tell me about your operational experience with it. Airsoft players, armchair generals, and firearm enthusiasts; let’s hear your voice, but don’t comment on its “knock-down power” unless you hunt big game with a .223 or were once in the military and have used it in combat. Next up: A viable future replacement for the 5.56 and the M-16/M-4 combat rifles along with first-hand news from the front on forces already making the switch.

Remember; every rifle and every round can be equally as deadly when put in the right hands. We seek to find the perfect round and the perfect rifle to increase that number of hands.

( www.futurefirepower.com )

Russia, U.S. establish defense working group

2010-09-15T19:52:00.000-07:00

The U.S.-Russian Defense Relations Working Group agreed to be created during a visit by the Russian defense minister to Washington will focus on issues related to U.S. and Russian military reforms and help achieve transparency in military cooperation between the counties.

The Russian minister, Anatoly Serdyukov, and U.S. Secretary of Defense Robert Gates signed a joint statement on the creation of the working group on Wednesday, following two days of talks in the U.S. capital.

The working group is intended to develop a "new level of relations between the military departments of both countries," the statement said.

According to the document, the working group will address the following issues: armed forces reform and transformation, priorities of defense policy and national security, transparency and confidence-building measures furthering the improvement of mutual understanding, regional and global security, new challenges and threats, and cooperation in areas of mutual interest.

Gates and Serdyukov, who will co-chair the group, intend to meet at least once a year, the statement said.

( RIA NOVOSTI )

US-led Troops Advance in Taliban Stronghold

2010-09-15T19:41:00.000-07:00

U.S. and Afghan forces began advancing slowly Wednesday through the insurgent-filled district in southern Afghanistan that gave birth to the Taliban movement, treading ground where guerrilla fighters have operated freely for years, the British general in charge of NATO troops here said.

Maj. Gen. Nick Carter said the latest push in Zhari district is part of a crucial strategy aimed at reducing violence in the provincial capital Kandahar by stemming the flow of fighters and weapons there and connecting civilians estranged from their government.

But he downplayed the extent of the latest troop movements headed by the U.S. Army's 101st Airborne Division, which mans outposts with Afghan troops throughout the district. He said they were part of military operations that have been going on in Zhari for at least four months. U.S. and Afghan forces on Wednesday, he said, had only gone "slightly further than we've gone before."

The movements were significant, though, because the locations were areas where coalition forces had never been - at least not in force.

One of the targets in Zhari was the village of Makuan, which U.S. commanders expect to clear within days. Carter said troops had "breached some IED belts" adjacent to the village, referring to bombs coalition forces often call improvised explosive devices.

He said troops encountered "some resistance," but gave no details.

Also on Wednesday, NATO said 25 Afghan civilians had been killed and 60 injured so far in September as the result of the Taliban insurgency.

"While the Taliban talk of protecting the people and issue disingenuous directives claiming to shield Afghans from harm, instead they have increased their use of indiscriminate violence, killing scores of innocent Afghans," NATO spokesman Rear Admiral Greg Smith said in a statement. "Their rhetoric does not match reality."

Civilian deaths in NATO military operations are a major source of contention between the alliance and Afghanistan's government, even though the United Nations says the insurgents are responsible for most civilian deaths and injuries.

( www.military.com )

Testing times: UK's Sea Viper missile system bares its fangs

2010-09-15T00:20:00.000-07:00

At just past midday on 17 June 2010, the guided weapons test barge Longbow was in position on the Direction Générale de l'Armement Essais de Missiles (DGA EM) range area a few miles off the Île du Levant (a small island lying off the French Riviera).

Inside, range personnel and test engineers from European missile house MBDA prepared for a critical test-firing of the UK Royal Navy's (RN's) new Sea Viper anti-air guided weapon system.

At 1255 h local time a Mirach 100/5 target vehicle launched from the Île du Levant. Back on Longbow, the back-to-back antenna of Sea Viper's Sampson multifunction radar (MFR) was rotating at 30 rpm atop a 34 m mast, its electronically scanned beams interweaving horizon search and volume search functions near instantaneously.

Twelve minutes later, the target presented and Sampson made an initial detection on a low-level target flying at high subsonic speed on a crossing trajectory. Plot confirmation and track initiation followed, with the MFR reporting the track to the Sea Viper system for threat evaluation.

Complex software-based logic, running on a high-speed processing platform, immediately prioritised the track and put the MFR into a dedicated tracking mode that increased radar dwell time on the target. The track was declared a threat, prompting weapon assignment and the relay of a launch message to Sampson.

Two Aster 30 missiles – housed inside an eight-cell SYLVER A50 vertical launcher module on Longbow 's deck – received initialisation messages, the system software providing each munition with positional information on the target and the predicted missile trajectory to intercept. The stressing nature of the threat demanded a salvo firing to maximise the probability of kill.

"Three, two, one, zero time," reported Longbow's trials manager to the range trials director. "Permit firing."

A hatch on the vertical launch silo flipped open and two seconds later an eruption of bright orange flame was followed by a trail of dirty white smoke as the first Aster 30 missile arced upwards and away from Longbow and accelerated towards its target.

( www.janes.com )

U.S. missiles kill 12 militants in Pakistan

2010-09-14T23:54:00.000-07:00

Missiles fired by U.S. drones hit al Qaeda- and Taliban-linked fighters in Pakistan's northwest, killing a dozen insurgents on Wednesday, security officials said, the 12th such strike this month.

The attack, the third in less than 24 hours, targeted what officials said was a militant compound in North Waziristan, a major sanctuary for al Qaeda and Taliban on the Afghan border.

"At least eight missiles were fired and at least 12 militants were killed," a security official told Reuters on condition of anonymity.

Another security official said those killed were "Punjabi Taliban," a term used for militants from the central Pakistani province of Punjab, and were working closely with the Haqqani network, one of the brutal Afghan militant factions fighting U.S.-led foreign forces across the border.

Named after veteran mujahideen leader Jalaluddin Haqqani, the group is now led by his son Siraj and is closely linked to al Qaeda. North Waziristan is a major base for Haqqani network.

The pre-dawn strike took place in Dargah Mandi, a village on the outskirts of North Waziristan's main town of Miranshah.

A fresh surge of missile strikes by pilotless U.S. drones in Pakistan's lawless tribal belt, most of them in North Waziristan, has killed scores of militants this month.

The Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan (The Taliban Movement of Pakistan), who have unleashed attacks across Pakistan, last week threatened more strikes in response to U.S. drone attacks.

The al-Qaeda-linked TTP has made threats against U.S. and European targets, but has so far failed to carry out any overseas attacks. The attempt by Faisal Shahzad, the would-be Times Square bomber, in May was the closest the group came to success.

U.S. officials say the drones are highly effective against militants though civilian casualties have angered Pakistanis.

Pakistan, a crucial U.S. ally for its efforts to stabilize Afghanistan, has launched major offensives against homegrown militants attacking the Pakistani state but the United States has long demanded its ally extend its crackdown on Afghan militant factions, particularly the Haqqani network.

Pakistan, now overwhelmed by the worst floods in its history, says its troops are overstretched and it needs to consolidate gains before mounting new operations.

Analysts believe Pakistan is holding Afghan groups such as the Haqqani network in reserve to maintain influence in Afghanistan after the Americans begin to leave next year and to check the influence of its arch-rival India and Iran.

( www.reuters.com )

USAF uses C-17 for bio-fuel flight-test

2010-09-14T21:51:00.001-07:00

The US Air Force (USAF) flew a Boeing C-17 Globemaster III strategic transport aircraft on JP-8 aviation fuel blended with bio-fuel during tests at Edwards Air Force base (AFB), California, it announced on 3 September.

The trials, which were carried out by the 418th Flight Test Squadron (FLTS) between 23 and 27 August, mark the first time that the USAF has flown an aircraft on bio-fuel. They were a major milestone in the air force's attempts to develop an alternative to JP-8 aviation fuel, of which it is the largest consumer in the world.

During the trials a C-17 flew on all four engines being powered by a 50:25/25 blend of JP-8; bio-fuel derived in part from animal fat; and synthetic fuel derived from coal. The flight was a first for any Department of Defense aircraft where a 50 per cent mix of JP-8 was blended with 25 per cent renewable bio-fuel and 25 per cent fuel derived from the Fischer-Tropsch process, which is essentially liquefied coal or natural gas.

According to Lieutenant General Mark D Shackelford, the military deputy to the assistant secretary of the air force for acquisition, the test marks a major milestone in the USAF's efforts to source half of its jet fuel requirements from domestically derived, environmentally friendly alternative sources by 2016.

( www.janes.com )

Thirty Insurgents Killed in Afghanistan

2010-09-14T21:20:00.000-07:00

Up to 30 insurgents have been killed in fighting ahead of this week's parliamentary elections in Afghanistan which the Taliban want to undermine, NATO and Afghan officials said Tuesday.

The military alliance said that up to 23 militants were killed in action in southern Helmand province Monday and three in eastern Wardak province Tuesday. An Afghan official said four Taliban were killed Tuesday in southeastern Zabul province.

There were no reports of casualties among joint NATO-Afghan forces.

Attacks and clashes are rising amid an allied offensive aimed at suppressing the continuing Taliban insurgency.

Meanwhile, tensions are rising ahead of Saturday's parliamentary elections. The Taliban has vowed to target polling stations and warned Afghans not to participate in what it calls a sham vote.

NATO said the coalition forces killed three "known manufacturers" of improvised explosive devices in Wardak, just west of capital Kabul.

"The removal of these criminals effectively removed a potential threat to the people of Afghanistan," Lt. Col. Dan Morgan, Regional Command-East chief of operations, said in a statement. "We will continue to work with our Afghan partners to provide a secure environment for the upcoming elections."

The insurgents want to oust the pro-West Afghan government and drive foreign troops out of the country, and have sought to sabotage all aspects of the political process, including elections.

The government and its Western allies hope the ballot for the lower house of parliament will help consolidate the country's shaky democracy, eventually leading to the withdrawal of the roughly 140,000 NATO-led foreign troops in the country.

NATO said the coalition forces were attacked on three separate occasions during a patrol in the Sangin district of Helmand province on Monday. The forces responded with airstrikes, mortars, rocket and machine gun fire, killing up to 23 insurgents.

The allied forces stopped firing when women and children moved into the compound from where the insurgent fire had originated, NATO said.

Civilian deaths in NATO military operations are a major source of contention between the alliance and Afghanistan's government, even though the United Nations says the insurgents are responsible for most civilian deaths and injuries.

Mohammad Jan Rasoolyar, spokesman for the provincial governor of Zabul, said four militants were killed and four caught alive with explosive material on Tuesday.

( www.military.com)

Russia's Kazan aircraft plant to build next generation bomber

2010-09-14T20:15:00.000-07:00

The Kazan aircraft maker will start manufacturing a new strategic bomber, Prime Minister Vladimir Putin said on Tuesday.

The plant will continue upgrading Tu-160 and Tu-22 long-range bombers and will then "start assembling a new-generation strategic bomber," he said.

He offered no indication of the new bomber's specifications or exactly when production would start.

Another Kazan-based enterprise - a helicopter plant - will start production of a new Mi-38 helicopter and continue making Mi-8, Ansat and Aktai helicopters that have already proved their worth, Putin also said.

( RIA NOVOSTI )

T- 90 Main Battle Tank

2010-09-14T19:34:00.000-07:00

The T-90 is a Russian main battle tank (MBT) derived from the T-72, and is currently the most modern tank in service with the Russian Ground Forces and Naval Infantry. The successor to the T-72BM, the T-90 uses the tank gun and 1G46 gunner sights from the T-80U, a new engine, and thermal sights. Protective measures include Kontakt-5 ERA, laser warning receivers, Nakidka camouflage, the EMT-7 electromagnetic pulse (EMP) creator for the destruction of magnetic mines.

and the Shtora infrared ATGM jamming system. It is designed and built by Uralvagonzavod, in Nizhny Tagil, Russia.

Development

By 1992, the Russian Ministry of Defense announced that it could no longer afford to manufacture two main battle tanks in parallel.

Since both the "quality" T-80U and the cheaper "quantity" T-72B were being built at different plants, and each plant was critical to the economy of its city, the government gave small orders to both. Omsk built five T-80Us and Nizhny Tagil built fifteen T-72s, and both built more in the hopes of winning large export orders. Nizhny Tagil had built a few T-72BMs, T-72Bs upgraded with a third generation add-on explosive reactive armour (ERA) called Kontakt-5, which was already in service on the T-80U.

To further improve the T-72's export prospects and its chances of being selected as Russia's sole production MBT, the T-80U's more sophisticated fire control system was also added to produce a vehicle designated T-72BU. The T-90 was developed by the Kartsev-Venediktov Design Bureau at the Uralvagonzavod factory in Nizhny Tagil. The production model is based on the T-72BM, with some added features from the T-80 series.

The T-90 with an 840 hp (630 kW) engine went into low-level production in 1993, based on a prototype designated T-88. It features a new generation of Kontakt-5 explosive reactive armor on its hull and turret. Of conventional layout, the T-90 represents a major upgrade to every system in the T-72, including the main gun.

The T-90S have been identified as export model. The references to a T-90E appear to be unsubstantiated.

The T-90 is fitted with a "three-tiered" protection system: the first tier is the composite armour in the turret, second tier is third generation Kontakt-5 ERA and third tier is a Shtora-1 countermeasures suite.

( www.wikipedia.org )

Russian aircraft carrier readies for training mission

2010-09-14T19:23:00.000-07:00

Russia's only aircraft carrier, the Admiral Kuznetsov, has left a dry dock after scheduled repairs and is getting ready for a training mission in the Barents Sea, the Northern Fleet said in a statement.

"The Admiral Kuznetsov aircraft carrier will sail to the Barents Sea at the end of September on a training mission relevant to its main purpose," the statement said.

The warship was assigned to the Northern Fleet in January 1991. It is capable of carrying 26 Su-33 Flanker-D and MiG-29K Fulcrum-D carrier-based fighter jets, and 24 anti-submarine helicopters.

The upcoming mission will most likely involve a comprehensive program of naval pilot training to further develop the skills acquired by pilots at the Nitka Naval Pilot Training Center in Ukraine.

The Admiral Kuznetsov is expected to be docked at Sevmash shipyards in 2012 for full-scale modernization, which will continue for at least five years.

Russia is aiming to finish drafting plans for a new nuclear-powered aircraft carrier for its Navy by 2012 and build at least three of the ships for its Northern and Pacific fleets.

( RIA NOVOSTI )

Pakistan drone attack kills 10 in North Waziristan

2010-09-14T00:50:00.000-07:00

Ten militants died when missiles fired by a suspected US drone hit a house in north-western Pakistan, local security officials say. They said the raid targeted a militant hideout in Shawal district in the North Waziristan region on the Afghan border.

It is the 10th drone strike this month in the region, a stronghold of the Taliban and al-Qaeda.

The attacks have killed hundreds of people since January 2009 and fuelled anti-American sentiment in Pakistan.

Pakistan publicly objects to the strikes but analysts believe they have the private backing of officials.

The American military does not routinely confirm drone operations, but analysts say the US is the only force capable of deploying such aircraft in the region.

( www.bbc.co.uk )

New information emerges on post-9/11 hunt for bin Laden

2010-09-14T00:31:00.000-07:00

Western intelligence agencies were able to form a detailed picture of Osama bin Laden's movements in the years after 9/11, and came closer to capturing or killing him than has so far been acknowledged, a former European intelligence official has disclosed.

The former official, who declined to be identified, told CNN that in 2003 and 2004 an informant in the Afghanistan-Pakistan border region with close connections to al Qaeda's top leadership provided a stream of reliable information on bin Laden's movements. But the information was never quite fresh enough for Western intelligence agencies to target al Qaeda's leader.

Nearly nine years ago, bin Laden and others in the al Qaeda leadership escaped as their haven among the caves and mountains of Tora Bora -- close to the Afghanistan border with Pakistan -- came under withering U.S. air attacks. Despite bin Laden being the world's most sought-after fugitive, to date very little has been reliably reported about his movements beyond a consensus that he is now likely hiding somewhere in the tribal areas of Pakistan.

The former official said that in the period after bin Laden left Tora Bora, under pressure and on the run, he and his lieutenants were little able to communicate with each other. But gradually, al Qaeda restored its communications and was able to resume meetings.

Bin Laden even met with 9/11 mastermind Khalid Sheikh Mohammed at some point before the latter's arrest in February 2003. Additionally, bin Laden and his deputy Ayman al-Zawahiri were frequently in the same area and regularly in communication.

During this time, Western intelligence agencies were able to draw up a detailed map tracing bin Laden's movements, according to the former intelligence official.

In 2003-2004, bin Laden spent time in several areas -- amid the rugged mountains of Pakistan's Federally Administered Tribal areas and in Pakistan's North West Frontier Province, a more heavily populated area where Pakistan's security forces had a greater presence.

But according to the former official, bin Laden shunned big cities, preferring to stay in rural areas. The intelligence stream indicated that al Qaeda's leader also made several trips across into Afghanistan during this period, despite the presence of tens of thousands of U.S. troops.

In a high-stakes game of hide-and-seek, Western intelligence agencies were always playing catch-up as bin Laden moved from location to location. Tantalizingly at one point, according to the former official, information about his exact location was only one week old. But the intelligence stream on bin Laden's movements never resulted in what is known as "actionable intelligence" that could have led to his capture or assassination.

After 2004 the intelligence stream dried up, according to the former official, who did not elaborate why. But he said that despite the setback, information on al Qaeda's leaders' movements never completely dried up; and recent intelligence suggested bin Laden and al-Zawahiri were still in close geographic proximity and able to communicate with each other.

However, few al Qaeda followers get to meet them. European and American jihadists who joined up with al Qaeda in 2008 have subsequently told Western interrogators that for security reasons access for them to bin Laden was strictly off limits.

Bin Laden is now mainly concentrating on providing "strategic direction" to the al Qaeda organization, rather than involving himself deeply in the daily running of the terrorist organization, the former official told CNN. Raw intelligence reports leaked in July on the Wikileaks website suggesting bin Laden took part in detailed planning of operations should be treated with skepticism, said the former official.

U.S. intelligence officials play down the possibility that bin Laden might be captured soon. CIA Director Leon Panetta stated in June that very little hard information on bin Laden's movements had come to light in recent years.

But on Friday, President Barack Obama said that pressure on the al Qaeda leadership meant that "they have been holed up in ways that have made it harder for them to operate." He added: "Bin Laden has gone deep underground. Even Zawahiri, who is more often out there, has been much more cautious."

( www.cnn.com )

U.S. preparing massive arms deal for Saudi Arabia, defense official says

2010-09-14T00:30:00.000-07:00

The Obama administration is preparing to notify Congress of plans to sell $60 billion of military equipment to Saudi Arabia, according to a U.S. defense official.

The official, who would not be identified because the proposal has not yet been sent to Congress, described the deal as "enormous."

"We believe this is the largest of its kind in history," the official said.

Congress would have to approve the deal.

The proposed package includes 84 newly manufactured F-15/SA fighter aircraft; 70 upgraded aircraft, 70 Apache helicopters, 72 Black Hawk helicopters, and 36 AH-6 Little Bird helicopters. A number of bombs and missiles also are in the deal, including the Joint Direct Attack Munition, a satellite-guided bomb, as well as a laser-guided Hellfire missile variant and some advanced targeting technology.

The Saudi arms effort is in large part directed at providing a modernized capability against Iran.

"This gives them a whole host of defensive and deterrent capabilities," the official explained.

The official emphasized that nothing in the sale would change the qualitative edge that Israel seeks to maintain. A point reiterated by State Department spokesman P.J. Crowley.

"Suffice it to say that at the core of our policy is making sure that, you know, there is stability in the region and part of that stability is making sure that Israel has what it needs ... to be able to provide for its own security," Crowley said Monday. "So the United States would do nothing that would upset that -- the current ... balance in the region."

The Obama administration hopes to send the proposed package to Capitol Hill no later than next week. The official emphasized it's not clear yet whether the Saudis would follow through to buy all of the weapons and aircraft in the package because they are continuing to evaluate their own financial concerns.

Boeing Corp. has told the administration that if the entire package is sold, 77,000 company jobs would be "involved," but there was no calculation on how many new jobs might be created over the five- to 10-year period of potential delivery, according to the official.

The official also indicated the United States is discussing with the Saudi government additional sales of a ballistic missile defense system and more modern warships.

( www.cnn.com )

Military Eyes Secret of Fireflies’ Glow

2010-09-13T23:47:00.000-07:00

Someday, the secrets of fireflies or glowing sea plankton could save an American soldier in battle, a Navy SEAL on a dive or a military pilot landing after a mission. That's the hope behind a growing field of military-sponsored research into bioluminescence, a phenomenon that's under the microscope in laboratories around the country.

For university scientists who specialize in bioluminescence, an organism's ability to illuminate with its own body chemistry, military research grants are offering a chance to break ground.

A possible military use of bioluminescence would be creating biodegradable landing zone markers that helicopters can spot even as wind from their rotors kicks up dirt.

The military could also develop bioluminescent "friend vs. foe" identification markers and security systems, and methods to track weapons and supplies on the battlefield.

First described around 500 B.C. by the Greek philosopher Anaximenes, bioluminescence is familiar by its sight - if not its name - to children catching fireflies and to divers entranced by lanternfish and other sea life.

It's also the factor behind the renowned Bio Bay in Vieques, Puerto Rico, where floating microorganisms called dinoflagellates leave neon-blue trails when disturbed.

The phenomenon is noteworthy because it creates light without heat, said Bruce Branchini, a chemistry professor at Connecticut College in New London.

For the military, that could mean using bioluminescence to mark objects or locations wouldn't make them vulnerable to an enemy with heat-seeking technology.

Branchini, who recently received a $225,000 grant for his work studying lightning bugs, is examining ways to use their proteins to mutate the greenish-yellow glow to create what's called "far red."

That light, just short of infrared, is just off the spectrum of human vision and is the same light produced in the signals of television remote controls.

"What they're going to do with it, I don't know," Branchini said. "I don't have secret clearance, I don't go to secret meetings. They'll work on the practical applications, but what interests me the most is the research portion."

Hugh De Long, deputy director of math, information and life sciences at the Air Force Office of Scientific Research, said it has given about $500,000 in grants yearly for bioluminescence studies since 2002 or 2003.

The Office of Naval Research and the National Science Foundation also give grants for bioluminescence work, sometimes several million dollars at a time. They hope for long-term benefits for the military, health researchers and other government entities by encouraging the basic biological research with financial incentives.

De Long said although government researchers also work on bioluminescence, tapping the knowledge of academics throughout the United States is key.

"It's much more beneficial and efficient for the military to go out to the university community and say, 'Hey, look, this is an area that will tie in with some of the stuff we're doing, and we want to fund that,'" De Long said.

(www.military.com)

Russia's most powerful warship returns home after tour-of-duty

2010-09-13T20:42:00.000-07:00

Russia's Pyotr Veliky nuclear-powered missile cruiser will return on Sunday to its home base in northern Russia after a tour-of-duty that lasted for almost six months, a Navy official said.

The flagship of the Northern Fleet has covered about 28,000 nautical miles since the beginning of the mission on March 30 and accomplished a wide range of tasks in line with a comprehensive program of combat training.

The cruiser sailed through the Atlantic, the Mediterranean Sea, and the Indian Ocean to take part in the Vostok-2010 strategic drills in the Pacific in June-July.

On the way back to its home base in Severomorsk, the Pyotr Veliky held joint PASSEX-type drills with the Indian frigate INS Trishul on August 11 and with the French frigate FNS Latouche-Treville on September 6.

The Kirov class cruiser has a displacement of between 24,000 and 26,000 tons, and a speed of up to 31 knots (almost 57 km/h). The ship is 251 meters in length and has a crew of more than 700 sailors.

The ship's main weapons include 20 SS-N-19 Shipwreck missiles, designed to engage large surface targets, and air defense is provided by 12 SA-NX-20 Gargoyle launchers with 96 missiles and 2 SA-N-4 Gecko with 44 missiles.

(RIA NOVOSTI)

Regional anti-terror exercises start in Kazakhstan

2010-09-13T20:39:00.000-07:00

Joint anti-terror exercises of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) entitled Peace Mission 2010 will start on Monday at the Matybulak range in the southeast of Kazakhstan.

The exercises will involve some 5,000 servicemen from five of the six SCO member states – Kazakhstan, China, Kyrgyzstan, Russia and Tajikistan. Uzbekistan will skip the event.

Over 300 military vehicles, more than 50 aircraft and helicopters from Kazakhstan, China and Russia will be employed.

Russia will contribute over 1,000 troops, some 130 armored vehicles (tanks, self-propelled artillery systems and infantry fighting vehicles), more than 100 trucks, and over 10 aircraft (including Su-24 Fencer frontline bombers, Su-25 Frogfoot close-support aircraft and Mi-8 transport helicopters).

The drills will test the interoperability of the SCO armed forces in rendering assistance to a member state involved in an internal armed conflict or subjected to a terrorist attack.

Established in 2001 as a non-military alliance, the regional mutual security group SCO initially aimed to deal with Islamic extremism and other security threats in Central Asia, but has since expanded its scope to include cooperation in disaster relief and trade.

The drills will be held for 17 days. The active phase will start September 24. SCO defense ministers will observe the exercises.

(RIA NOVOSTI)

NATO Claims Numerical Superiority in Kandahar

2010-09-08T20:01:00.000-07:00

The NATO-led coalition has overwhelming numerical superiority over the Taliban around the key southern Afghan city of Kandahar and expects to clear the area of insurgents by November's end, a top commander said Tuesday.

Whether the operation's success will last, however, will depend on the Afghan government's ability to offer the area long-term security, Maj. Gen. Nick Carter said.

The operation to firm up security in Kandahar, with a population of about a half million with another half million in the hinterlands, is by far the biggest in the nine-year war.

The city served as the capital of the Taliban when the Islamist militia rose to power in Afghanistan in the 1990s. Al-Qaida leader Osama bin Laden used it as his base during the 9/11 attacks. Now, the insurgency draws its greatest strength from the province and the neighboring region, dominated by the ethnic Pashtun majority who form the Taliban core.

Carter said there were 10,000-12,000 Afghan national army troops in the region along with 5,000 Afghan police, besides about 15,000 international troops. They face about 1,000 guerrillas, said Carter, who heads Regional Command South, where Kandahar is located.

Coalition forces have been trying for years to pacify villages around Kandahar City, which the insurgents use to infiltrate the biggest urban center of the south.

Although the international force has always been succesful in clearing the militants, they have managed to return within months because the NATO-led coalition didn't have the forces to hold on to the areas.

"You need to dominate the population and dominate the ground ... in order to secure the solution," Carter said.

He said most of the coalition effort was aimed at clearing the Taliban from the surrounding districts of Zhari and Panjwai and along Highway 1, "where they operate ... with a degree of freedom of action."

"I shan't go into the timing of all this, suffice it to say it will happen in 2-3 months," Carter said during a video conference from Kandahar. "Our expectation is that by mid- to the end of November we will have rid those areas of the Taliban."

The NATO force in Regional Command South consists mainly of Americans, British and Canadians, along with Slovak, French and Belgian contingents.

While acknowledging that the ultimate success of the operation depends on the Afghan government's long-term security capabilities, Carter suggested patience.

"These things take time, and if you give (the government) time there's a sporting chance it will prevail," he said.

(www.military.com)

Mullah Omar says Afghan Taliban close to victory

2010-09-08T19:56:00.000-07:00

Taliban leader Mullah Omar says his fighters are winning the war in Afghanistan and that the Nato-led campaign has been "a complete failure". In a rare statement, the shadowy leader called on US President Barack Obama to withdraw his troops "unconditionally and as soon as possible".

Nato has boosted its presence in Afghanistan to 150,000 soldiers in a bid to finally defeat militants. However, the US has set July 2011 to begin withdrawal, if conditions allow.

Critics of the move say it has emboldened the Taliban. Mullah Omar's statement, which marked the end of the Muslim festival of Ramadan, was posted on jihadist websites and relayed by the Site Intelligence Group.

"The victory of our Islamic nation over the invading infidels is now imminent and the driving force behind this is the belief in the help of Allah and unity among ourselves," he said.

"In the time to come, we will try to establish an Islamic, independent, perfect and strong system."

He claimed that those behind the 2001 invasion of Afghanistan which overthrew the Taliban "admit themselves that all their strategies are nothing but a complete failure".

He also commanded his fighters to observe the Taliban's code of conduct and avoid harming civilians.

Spiritual head

Mullah Omar is still considered the spiritual head of the Taliban in Afghanistan, although others are believed to be in day-to-day command of the hardline movement.

He has not been seen in public for years and is believed to be hiding in Pakistan.

President Obama ordered a further 30,000 US troops to Afghanistan last December following a review of the war.

Gen David Petraeus, who commands US and Nato forces in Afghanistan, said last month he saw "areas of progress" in the war and that momentum by the militants had been checked in their strongholds of Kandahar and Helmand.

He has made winning civilian hearts and minds a key part of his strategy to defeat the Taliban.

However, Afghan President Hamid Karzai has said that civilian casualties were undermining the counter-insurgency in his country.

He also said that US plans to begin withdrawing troops next year have given the Taliban "a morale boost".

(www.bbc.co.uk)

SCO to begin large-scale anti-terror drills in Kazakhstan

2010-09-08T19:50:00.000-07:00

The six member states of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) will begin joint anti-terror exercises, Peace Mission-2010, at the Matybulak training ground in Kazakhstan on Thursday.

Established in 2001 as a non-military alliance, the regional mutual security group SCO initially set dealing with Islamic extremism and other security threats in Central Asia as its goal, but has since expanded its scope to include cooperation in disaster relief and trade.

In all, 5,000 troops from SCO member states (Russia, China , Kazakhstan, Tajikistan, Uzbekistan and Kyrgyzstan) will take part. Each of the member states will contribute at least one operational-tactical group.

Russia will send over 1,000 troops, some 130 armored vehicles (tanks, self-propelled artillery systems and infantry fighting vehicles), more than 100 trucks, and over 10 aircraft (including Su-24 Fencer tactical bombers, Su-25 Frogfoot close-support aircraft and Mi-8 transport helicopters).

The drills will test the interoperability of the SCO armed forces in rendering assistance to a member state involved in an internal armed conflict or subjected to a mass terrorist attack.

The active phase of the 17-day exercises will be held on September 24.

(RIA NOVOSTI)

NATO aims to oust Taliban from Kandahar by November

2010-09-07T20:45:00.000-07:00

Afghan and NATO forces are planning an offensive to clear Taliban insurgents from areas around the city of Kandahar by late November, the NATO commander for southern Afghanistan said Tuesday.

Some 10,000-12,000 Afghan soldiers and 5,000 police backed by thousands of international troops will focus operations against an estimated 1,000 insurgents in districts west of the strategic city, British Major-General Nick Carter said.

"It will happen in the next two to three months, but our expectation is that by mid- to the end of November that we will have rid those areas very much of the Taliban," he told reporters in Brussels by video conference from Afghanistan.

"You need to dominate the population and dominate the ground ... in order to achieve the solution."

Carter, whose near 28,000-strong regional force includes Americans, British, Slovaks, French, Belgians, Canadians and Romanians, said international troops would fight alongside the Afghan forces and provide air and other logistical support.

He said that in the past year the combined Afghan international forces in the Kandahar region had succeeded in seizing the initiative back from the insurgents in a region considered the birthplace of the Taliban movement.

However, hundreds of insurgents were operating "with a degree of freedom" south of Afghanistan's Highway One -- the main road that sweeps across southern Afghanistan -- and the aim was to protect the vital ring road and population centers.

"SPORTING CHANCE"

The key to the long-term success of the operation would be to ensure the establishment of Afghan administration in areas cleared of insurgents.

"You can't get stability unless you have security and governance working in parallel," he said. "It's about Afghan human capacity ... These things take time and if we give it time, there's a sporting chance it will prevail." Carter said NATO forces were also looking to double electricity supplies over the next 6-9 months to Kandahar city, where hundreds of businesses have folded in the past two years.

"If you haven't got employment ... you will begin to drive people to all kinds of potentially nefarious activity or indeed insurgency. So it's important that all that happens in tandem."

There has been a big increase in foreign troop numbers to around 15,000 in Kandahar province since President Barack Obama announced the deployment of 30,000 more U.S. troops to try to create conditions to train Afghan forces so that they can eventually take over security duties from NATO.

A major thrust against the insurgents had been expected earlier this year to demonstrate progress by the year end, when the White House plans another review of the Afghan operation.

But NATO and the U.S. military said the offensive would unfold more slowly than originally planned, given fierce Taliban resistance and the need to prepare local authorities to provide services once security improves.

(www.reuters.com)

U.S. says not considering NATO Afghan troop request

2010-09-07T20:17:00.000-07:00

The United States does not plan to contribute to a NATO request for 2,000 troops for the Afghan war, the Pentagon said on Tuesday, even as the head of the alliance held out the possibility of U.S. participation. The NATO commander in Afghanistan submitted a request last week that alliance officials said called for another 2,000 soldiers, including 750 trainers.

Colonel Dave Lapan, a Pentagon spokesman, said the request referred to a long-standing NATO requirement focusing on training Afghan forces.

Last year, NATO allies failed to meet all NATO requests for trainers and Washington temporarily deployed 850 troops to help fill the gap. Those soldiers are due back in the United States this fall and no more were being considered, Lapan said.

"We would look for NATO to first fill that requirement," Lapan told reporters at the Pentagon.

U.S. forces count for 95,000 of the nearly 150,000 foreign troops fighting the Taliban in Afghanistan.

NATO Secretary-General Anders Fogh Rasmussen, speaking earlier with reporters in Washington, said it was still unclear where the extra soldiers would come from and did not rule out the possibility that some might be U.S. troops.

"The composition of the 2,000 will very much depend on the force generation process. So here and now I don't know how many will be U.S., how many will be other allies and partners," Rasmussen said when asked how many might be U.S. troops.

"But in the past we have succeeded to keep it as a broad alliance mission and I expect that to continue."

President Barack Obama ordered a "surge" of 30,000 additional soldiers for the unpopular Afghan war last December but said those forces would start withdrawing in July 2011.

Any additional increases could undercut that drawdown, which supporters say conveys a needed sense of urgency to ramp up Afghan security forces for an eventual handover after nine years of war.

Critics say the July 2011 date has backfired, sending a signal that the United States is preparing to wind down at a time when NATO forces are suffering record casualties.

Rasmussen, who later met Obama at the White House, said he believed the July 2011 date fit into plans to start gradually passing security responsibility to Afghan forces next year.

But he declined to set a date in 2011 for the transition to begin, saying it would depend on conditions on the ground.

"It's a clear military assessment that we can't do it this year," Rasmussen said. "But based on the reports that I have seen ... I find it realistic to start the process next year."

Rasmussen said he hoped to be able to make announcements "in broad terms" at a NATO conference in Lisbon in November about where in Afghanistan the transition might start.

"We have to make sure that we get conditions right before we start this process because a transition to lead Afghan responsibility should be irreversible," he said. "We'll not be in a position to take responsibility back afterwards. That would be a disaster."

(www.reuters.com)

Two US soldiers killed in northern Iraq shooting

2010-09-07T20:03:00.000-07:00

Two US soldiers have been killed and nine wounded in northern Iraq. The US military says they were shot by a gunman dressed in Iraqi army uniform near the town of Tuz Khormato, 210km (130 miles) north of Baghdad.

The Americans were among a group of US soldiers meeting Iraqi security forces at an Iraqi army compound. The killings are the first US military deaths since US President Barack Obama declared an end to US combat operations in Iraq on 31 August.

"Eleven US soldiers were engaged with small arms fire, killing two and wounding nine, inside an Iraqi army commando compound," a US military statement said.

"The event occurred at approximately 1550 local time (1250 GMT) when a person wearing an Iraqi army uniform opened fire on the soldiers. The assailant was shot and killed and the soldiers were medically evacuated," it added.

US military spokesman Major Lee Peters told the BBC it was not clear, at this stage whether the assailant was an infiltrator or a soldier. He added that there were no reports of Iraqi soldiers being wounded in the attack.

The last US combat brigade left Iraq nearly two weeks ago - well before the deadline set by Mr Obama to cut the number of US troops in Iraq below 50,000.

Those remaining US troops are focusing on supporting Iraqi forces, in what they call "advise and assist" missions.

Tuesday's shooting happened on just such a mission, the BBC's Gabriel Gatehouse in Baghdad reports.

And while the US military is calling this an isolated incident, and saying that joint missions will continue, the trust which has so painstakingly been built up between the Americans and their Iraqi colleagues is bound to be affected, our correspondent adds.

All US forces are due to be removed by the end of the year.

Divisions over timetable

More than 4,000 US military personnel have been killed in Iraq since the US-led invasion in March 2003.

While many Iraqis - including Prime Minister Nouri Maliki - have welcomed the withdrawal, others say they believe it is happening too soon and that the country is not ready to manage its own security.

The end to US combat operations came despite continuing violence and instability in Iraq.

Violence is down from the peak seen during the sectarian conflict in 2006-2007, although the number of civilian deaths rose sharply in July.

And in the first three weeks of August, almost daily attacks on Iraqi forces and traffic police in Baghdad and Anbar province, west of the capital, killed more than 85 people.

(www.bbc.co.uk)

RFS Admiral Levchenko escorts ships off African coast

2010-09-07T19:50:00.000-07:00

The Russian destroyer RFS Admiral Levchenko has started escorting a convoy of seven civilian ships off the coast of Africa, a Russian Defense Ministry spokesman said Tuesday.

"Today the large ASW ship Admiral Levchenko completed forming a regular convoy of seven civilian ships of different class, and started accompanying it through the most dangerous areas of the Horn of Africa and the Gulf of Aden," the spokesman said.

A task force led by the RFS Admiral Levchenko, an Udaloy class guided-missile destroyer of the Northern Fleet, arrived in the Gulf of Aden on July 3 to join the international anti-piracy mission near Somalia. The Russian mission also includes the Olekma tanker and the SB-36 tugboat of Russia's Black Sea Fleet.

The SB-36 tugboat thwarted on August 3 an attack of two pirate boats on the Russian-flagged Dafna tanker in the southern part of the Red Sea.

According to the London-based International Maritime Bureau, the number of pirate attacks worldwide decreased in the first half of 2010 by 34 percent year-on-year mostly due to the ongoing anti-piracy operation in the Gulf of Aden.

The Russian Navy has maintained a presence off the Horn of Africa with warships operating on a rotation basis. Russia joined international anti-piracy efforts off the Somali coast in October 2008.

(RIA NOVOSTI)

India's BrahMos missile tested in steep-dive mode

2010-09-06T20:53:00.000-07:00

India successfully test-fired the BrahMos cruise missile with the missile performing its first steep dive at supersonic speed, The Hindu reported on Monday.

The missile was launched from the Integrated Test Range at Chandipur, off Orissa, on Sunday. After reaching a flat trajectory, it dived vertically at three times the speed of sound.

This was BrahMos' 23rd flight.

"It was an important mission. For the first time, a cruise missile was tested at a supersonic speed in a steep-dive mode," A. Sivathanu Pillai, CEO of BrahMos Aerospace Private Limited, said.

"When you launch a missile, it goes up and reaches a flat trajectory. In this case, the BrahMos dove straight down from its flat trajectory while cruising at a supersonic speed," he said.

BrahMos Aerospace Ltd. is a Russian-Indian joint venture manufacturing supersonic cruise missiles.

The BrahMos missile has a range of 290 km (180 miles) and can carry a conventional warhead of up to 300 kg (660 lbs). It can effectively engage targets from an altitude as low as 10 meters (30 feet) and has a top speed of Mach 2.8, which is about three times faster than the U.S.-made subsonic Tomahawk cruise missile.

Established in 1998, BrahMos Aerospace manufactures and markets BrahMos supersonic missiles. Sea- and ground-launched versions have been successfully tested and put into service with the Indian Army and Navy.

(RIA NOVOSTI)

Russian, French warships to exercise in Atlantic

2010-09-06T20:44:00.001-07:00

Russia's Pyotr Veliky nuclear-powered guided-missile cruiser will take part in a joint exercise with the French Latouche-Treville anti-submarine frigate later on Monday, a French Navy spokesman said.

He said after the exercise the Russian warship, currently at the French port of Brest, would leave French territorial waters.

The warships will practice joint maneuvers at sea, replenishment of supplies, ship-to-ship transfer of goods, and helicopter landings.

The Latouche-Treville is named after the 19th century politician and admiral Louis-Rene Levassor de Latouche Treville.

(RIA NOVOSTI)

Planned Quran-burning could endanger troops, Petraeus warns

2010-09-06T20:11:00.000-07:00

The U.S. commander in Afghanistan on Monday criticized a Florida church's plan to burn copies of the Quran on September 11, warning the demonstration "could cause significant problems" for American troops overseas.

"It could endanger troops and it could endanger the overall effort in Afghanistan," Gen. David Petraeus said in a statement issued Monday.

The Dove World Outreach Center in Gainesville, Florida, plans to mark the anniversary of al Qaeda's September 11, 2001, attacks on New York and Washington by burning copies of the Muslim holy book. The church insists the event is "neither an act of love nor of hate," but a warning against what it calls the threats posed by Islam.

The event has drawn criticism from Muslims in the United States and overseas, with thousands of Indonesians gathering outside the U.S. Embassy in Jakarta, Indonesia, on Sunday to protest the planned Quran burning.

"The burning is not only an insult to the holy Quran, but an insult to Islam and Muslims around the world," said Muhammad Ismail, a spokesman for the hard-line Indonesian Muslim group Hizb ut-Tahrir.

With about 120,000 U.S. and NATO-led troops still battling al Qaeda and its allies in the Islamic fundamentalist Taliban movement, Petraeus warned that burning Qurans "is precisely the kind of action the Taliban uses and could cause significant problems -- not just here, but everywhere in the world we are engaged with the Islamic community."

And one of his deputies, Lt. Gen. William Caldwell, told CNN's "The Situation Room" that event "has already stirred up a lot of discussion and concern" among Afghans.

"We very much feel that this can jeopardize the safety of our men and women that are serving over here in the country," said Caldwell, the head of NATO efforts to train Afghan security forces.

Caldwell said American troops "are over here to defend the rights of American citizens, and we're not debating the First Amendment rights that people have." But he added, "What I will tell you is that their very actions will in fact jeopardize the safety of the young men and women who are serving in uniform over here and also undermine the very mission that we're trying to accomplish."

"I would hope they would understand that there are second- and third-order effects that will occur that will affect that young man and woman who's out there on point for America, serving their nation today, because of their actions back in the United States," he said.

In a statement on its website, the Dove World Outreach Center said it plans to burn Qurans "to warn about the teaching and ideology of Islam, which we do hate as it is hateful." Its pastor, Terry Jones, has written a book entitled "Islam is of the Devil," and the church sells coffee mugs and shirts featuring the phrase. But the church says its animus is not aimed at individual Muslims.

"We love, as God loves, all the people in the world and we want them to come to a knowledge of the truth," it states.

Jones canceled a planned appearance on CNN's "Rick's List" to discuss the controversy Monday afternoon. Plemon el-Amin, the imam of an Atlanta, Georgia, mosque, said that Jones' criticism of Islam is "really quite uninformed."

"But in America, there is the freedom to be ignorant," el-Amin said. "The only problem is in the world, many people don't understand that particular freedom. So what he is doing is like shouting fire in a theater, in a world theater, and people are upset."

El-Amin said Jones has boasted of never reading the Quran, so "He doesn't know that he's going to burn a book that has some of the most beautiful passages about Christ Jesus throughout, as well as Moses, Abraham and all of the prophets he reads about and says he follows in the Bible." But he said the best strategy would be to ignore Jones, "like we do people on corners saying the end of the world is coming."

Other religious organizations have joined with U.S. Muslim groups to oppose the Quran-burning. The National Association of Evangelicals is urging the church to cancel the event, warning it could cause worldwide tension between the two religions, and Christian, Muslim, Jewish and Hindu leaders in Gainesville have organized a "Gathering for Peace, Understanding and Hope" the night before the scheduled Quran burning.

In addition, an armed Christian organization that had pledged to protect the Dove World Outreach Center withdrew its support from the Quran-burning last week, stating the event "may diminish the work of the Holy Spirit to witness to Muslims."

That group's founder, Shannon Carson, said he agrees with the church's stance on Islam, which he called a cult "that is invading our nation." But he complained that the "liberal media" is using stories on Jones's plans "to distract, divide and enrage the public."

(www.cnn.com)

U.S. defense industry girding for predicted slump

2010-09-06T20:04:00.000-07:00

After years of predictions of a downturn that never materialized, U.S. defense companies are now bracing in earnest for leaner times, lower profit margins and tougher negotiations about government contracts.

Defense Secretary Robert Gates has launched a major efficiency drive to trim $100 billion out of the Pentagon's bloated overhead accounts from 2012 to 2016 to help avert cuts to modernization programs or funding for troops.

The Pentagon insists it expects to get growth of 1 percent after inflation in its overall budget in the fiscal 2012 budget request, despite cuts expected in other government accounts.

But much of that will be eaten up by rising personnel and health costs, leaving far less money for weapons programs than during years of double digit growth in defense spending after the September 11, 2001, hijacking attacks.

That has left industry executives with a growing sense of apprehension about the future, especially given the end of combat operations in Iraq and yawning deficits that have even some normally hawkish Republican lawmakers calling for cuts.

For a graphic on defense companies' sales and profits, please see link.reuters.com/vew39n

"The contractors are finally waking up and realizing that Gates is serious," said Jim McAleese, a Virginia-based defense consultant, adding he did not foresee big program cancellations until the fiscal 2013 budget cycle, which begins next spring.

The Pentagon's efficiency and acquisition reforms are pressuring companies across the industry to make their organizations leaner and sell off unprofitable units. Many will also have to accept more risk and lower profits on the shrinking number of defense contracts that are up for grabs.

Across the board, prospects for flat defense budgets have prompted companies to step up overseas arms sales, hunt for attractive acquisitions and move into adjacent markets.

Executives from the largest defense companies will map out their strategies for weathering the storm at the annual Reuters Aerospace and Defense Summit in Washington next week.

GRAPPLING WITH SOFTENING DEMAND

"Everybody in the sector knew that one day there would be a downturn. Now it has finally hit the industry and companies are determining what concrete steps they must take to deal with softening demand," said Loren Thompson, chief operating officer of the Virginia-based Lexington Institute.

Recent news of delays in the U.S. Army's multibillion-dollar ground combat vehicle program and an even bigger U.S. Navy warship program -- two of the few new Pentagon programs out for bidding -- deeply unsettled industry executives.

The U.S. Air Force still plans to award a new refueling plane deal valued at up to $50 billion to either Boeing Co (BA.N) or its European rival, Airbus parent EADS (EAD.PA), this fall, but says that could mean a deal as late as mid-December.

And the Pentagon has taken months longer than expected to finalize a contract with Lockheed for the next batch of F-35 fighters, evidence of the tighter scrutiny being given to any contracts amid the Defense Department's new war on waste.

MINING THE BACKLOG

Thompson said most companies have a solid backlog of orders from Bush administration years that would last for some time, although many companies are now trying to "mine the backlog," and get more out of the orders they already have.

That means layoffs, tougher negotiations with suppliers and customers, and efforts to cut expenses across the board.

Some companies like Lockheed Martin Corp (LMT.N) and Northrop Grumman Corp (NOC.N) have already taken more strategic steps to adjust their portfolios and sell off units that weren't a good fit in the current budget environment.

Others that played a big role in supplying vehicles for the Iraq and Afghanistan wars, like BAE Systems (BAES.L), Oshkosh Corp (OSK.N) and General Dynamics Corp (GD.N), could face some headwinds, as could companies that were heavily dependent on big military networking programs that are going out of vogue.

Mergers and acquisitions activity is expected to pick up, given low valuations, ample cash reserves and the industry's need to continue generating growth for shareholders.

"Last year we were saying 'Flat is the new up.' This year and next, the headline is, 'M&A is back,'" said Tom Captain, global aerospace and defense sector leader for Deloitte LLP.

Defense stocks have declined 1 percent so far this year and could face further downturns in coming months, analysts say, although they note the November U.S. congressional elections or a major extremist attack could dramatically change the story.

Richard Aboulafia, vice president of the Virginia-based Teal Group, said defense stocks still represented a refuge for investors, given mounting fears about a double-dip recession.

"Defense companies would be in serious trouble if the economy weren't so uncertain. It's a safe haven compared to what else is out there," he said, adding "It's as close as you can get to guaranteed returns."

But he said many lawmakers appeared to be suffering from "defense spending fatigue" and it was uncertain how long the Pentagon would be able to maintain a steady budget topline, given the fact that Gates is already flagging his retirement.

Lawmakers are still willing to fight for some programs, like the second Lockheed F-35 fighter engine, being built by General Electric Co (GE.N) and Britain's Rolls Royce (RR.L), a program Gates has tried repeatedly to kill.

GE and Rolls are fighting hard to maintain the contract and avoid handing Pratt & Whitney, a unit of United Technologies Corp (UTX.N), a monopoly stake in an engine market valued at around $100 billion over the longer term.

Even if the budget does decline somewhat and profit margins come down from current rates around 10 to 12 percent, Aboulafia said the overall level of defense spending would remain high. "You're still talking about an awful lot of money and relatively low risk in an economy with relatively few robust opportunities," he said.

As defense companies face tamer growth, their commercial counterparts are poised to benefit as air traffic improves from the two-year downturn and production of Boeing's 787 Dreamliner plane ramps up.

"We're going to see three, four, five years of considerable topline growth and that will benefit not only Boeing's earnings but earnings and revenues for the suppliers," said Paul Nisbet, an analyst with JSA Research and longtime aerospace watcher.

"The commercial side from all indications, if we don't have a real bad world economy, is in for some very good years."

(www.reuters.com)

Russia to complete delivery of Su fighter jets to Indonesia by mid-September

2010-09-06T00:15:00.000-07:00

Russia will deliver the last of six contracted Su fighter jets to Indonesia on September 7 and 16, an informed source said on Monday. Under a $300 million contract, signed in 2007, Russia is to complete the delivery of three Su-30MK2 and three Su-27SKM fighters to Jakarta by the end of 2010 in addition to two Su-27SK and two Su-30MK fighters purchased in 2003.

The third Su-30MK2 jet was delivered in January. Russia's An-124 transport plane will deliver two Su-27SKM planes to the air base in the city of Makassar in Indonesia's South Sulawesi province on Tuesday, the source said. The other Su-27SKM plane will be delivered to the same base five days later.

The planes will be sent to Indonesia earlier than scheduled following a request by the Indonesian military authorities, who would like the aircraft to take part in a military parade dedicated to Armed Forces Day on October 5, he added.

Indonesia earlier said it needed at least one squadron equipped with 16 Sukhoi fighters to replace part of the outdated fleet of U.S. F-16 fighters.

(RIA NOVOSTI)

Rachel Corrie's parents could face men who killed her in court

2010-09-05T21:45:00.000-07:00

The family of Rachel Corrie, the American activist crushed to death in Gaza seven years ago, could face the men driving the Israeli bulldozer that killed her in the second stage of their civil suit against the state.

The case, which began in March, reopened at Haifa district court today and will hear Israeli state witness testimony on her death. The 23-year-old had been trying to prevent the demolition of a Palestinian house in Rafah, in the Gaza strip.

In 2003 an Israeli army investigation into the incident concluded that its troops were not to blame for Corrie's death. Her family says that a full investigation was never carried out.

Representing the Corrie family, Hussein Abu Hussein, a leading human rights lawyer in Israel, said: "It is clear that the army investigation was very far from being sufficient, thorough or impartial."

Today the court heard from one of the military investigators into the case, referred to only by his first name, Oded. He told the court that he did not think it important during the investigation to question Palestinian eyewitnesses to the incident, or the medical team that treated Corrie. Abu Hussein said: "It is amazing that this 20-year-old – at that time with no legal background and no experience – was responsible for this investigation."

The court was also shown about 12 minutes of Israeli footage from surveillance cameras close to where the incident took place. Hussein said the clip started minutes after the incident, although the cameras it came from are supposed to operate around the clock.

Rachel's father, Craig, said: "Being here is emotionally taxing in ways that are really hard to explain, but we have to do it and have an obligation to the many who cannot. It is not just about Rachel or our family."

The state will present as witnesses the head of the military investigation and the men who were operating the bulldozer that killed Corrie.

Corrie, from Washington, travelled to Gaza during a period of intense conflict between the Israeli military and the Palestinians. Her diaries, in which she describes her experiences in Gaza, were later turned into a play, My Name is Rachel Corrie, which has toured internationally.

(www.guardian.co.uk)

U.S. military helps repel suicide bombing attack, official says

2010-09-05T20:55:00.000-07:00

U.S. military personnel were involved in repelling a suicide bombing attack Sunday on an Iraqi military base in Baghdad, four days after the United States officially ended its combat operations in Iraq.

U.S. forces "provided suppressive fire" and helicopter support during the attack, said Lt. Col. Eric Bloom, a spokesman for the U.S. military in Baghdad. No U.S. soldiers were injured, Bloom said.

At least 12 people were killed and 36 others were injured in Sunday's attack, the Iraqi military command said. The interior ministry reported eight dead and 21 wounded.There was no immediate explanation for the discrepancy.

There was no immediate claim of responsibility for the attack, but a senior U.S. military official said American authorities believe al Qaeda in Iraq is responsible.

The U.S. official said there were five attackers: the vehicle bomber, who detonated his explosive device; two vest bombers who were killed by the Iraqi army as they tried to get through the checkpoint but did not detonate; and two attackers, who got into a building next to the checkpoint inside the compound and detonated themselves before the Iraqi army could get to them.

An Iraqi interior ministry official and the Baghdad Operations Command -- the Iraqi military command in the capital -- also said the attack was carried out by five suicide bombers.

A CNN videographer was not allowed to videotape or get past the security perimeter at the scene, but reported that more than a dozen bodies were carried out more than four hours after the attack.

The military base is the headquarters of the Rusafa Operations Command -- the Iraqi military command for the eastern part of Baghdad.

Sunday's target was the same military base used as an Iraqi army recruitment center and attacked by a suicide bomber August 17. That bombing killed at least 48 people, most of whom were prospective recruits among hundreds lining up outside the center.

The Islamic State of Iraq, an umbrella group for al Qaeda in Iraq, and other Sunni extremist groups claimed responsibility for that bombing. The group previously claimed responsibility for a similar attack in the heart of the capital on June 14 involving up to seven suicide bombers who struck the central bank.

While U.S. and Iraqi government officials have voiced confidence in the ability of Iraqi security forces, recent attacks have raised concerns among the population about the fragile security situation.

On August 28, the Iraqi government announced there were plots by al Qaeda and other groups to carry out attacks across the country and called on security forces and citizens to be on high alert.

The recent violence comes amid a political crisis that has gripped the country for months. After inconclusive national elections almost six months ago, politicians are still wrangling to try to form a government.

In a separate attack Sunday, at least five people were wounded in a roadside bombing in eastern Baghdad, the interior ministry said.

(www.cnn.com)

Basque separatist group Eta 'declares ceasefire'

2010-09-05T20:47:00.000-07:00

Armed Basque separatist group Eta says it will not "carry out armed actions" in its campaign for independence. In a video obtained exclusively by the BBC, the group said it took the decision several months ago "to put in motion a democratic process".

The Basque interior minister called the statement "insufficient". Madrid has previously insisted that Eta renounce violence and disarm before any talks. Eta's violent campaign has led to more than 820 deaths over the past 40 years.

It has called two ceasefires in the past, but abandoned them both.

This latest announcement comes after the arrests of numerous Eta leaders and during an unprecedented period of debate within the Basque nationalist community over the future direction of policy, says the BBC's Clive Myrie in San Sebastian.

Eta has been coming under increasing pressure to lay down its weapons, our correspondent adds.

Under pressure

It is unclear whether Eta is declaring a permanent or temporary ceasefire.

In the video obtained by the BBC, three hooded Eta fighters are shown sitting behind a desk with the Eta flag pinned up behind them.

The figure in the middle reads out a prepared statement defending Eta's campaign of violence, but towards the end she says the group now wants to achieve its aims by peaceful, democratic means.

"Eta confirms its commitment to finding a democratic solution to the conflict," the statement says.

"In its commitment to a democratic process to decide freely and democratically our future, through dialogue and negotiations, Eta is prepared today as yesterday to agree to the minimum democratic conditions necessary to put in motion a democratic process, if the Spanish government is willing," it says.

It adds that Eta "took the decision several months ago not to carry out armed actions".

The statement ends: "We call on all Basque citizens to continue in the struggle, each in their own field, with whatever degree of commitment they have, so that we can all cast down the wall of denial and make irreversible moves forward on the road to freedom."

Eta announces that it took the decision several months ago not to carry out armed actions.

Nationalist politicians in the Basque country welcomed the announcement and called on the Spanish government and the international community to respond positively.

The pro-Eta party Batasuna, which has been banned since 2003 on the grounds that it is Eta's political wing, is one of two Basque nationalist parties to have called on Eta to declare "an internationally verifiable ceasefire" days earlier.

Cautious reaction

But Rodolfo Ares, the interior minister for the Basque region, called Eta's statement inadequate.

"Any declaration that talks about the suspension of terrorist attacks - even if it is only temporary - should be considered as good news," he said.

But he called Eta's declaration "ambiguous" and "absolutely insufficient", because it did not "take into account what the vast majority of Basque society demands and requires from Eta, which is that it definitively abandon terrorist activity".

The Spanish government, which has been studying Eta's statement but is yet to make an official response, has said in the past that it will only negotiate with Eta if it renounces violence and disarms.

The deputy editor of the Basque language newspaper, Gara, which follows the activities of Eta closely, said the Basque people had been hoping for this declaration.

"I think that it's a big step and a positive step," Njaki Soto told the BBC. "I think that's it's something that the majority of the Basque society was waiting [for] or expecting and in that sense I think that it's something that no-one can say that it's negative."

"It will be a long way but it's something that can bring the peace and the justice to the Basque country," he said.

Barbara Duhrkop, a former Socialist MEP whose husband Enrique Casas was murdered by Eta in 1984, said the statement was a positive step but did not go far enough.

"It's still insufficient because they talk about ceasefire, democratic process, but there's nothing about laying down arms and permanence. So I would be very careful, very cautious to evaluate how much worth there is in this announcement," she said.

Founded in 1959, Eta has since then waged a bloody campaign for independence for the seven regions in northern Spain and south-west France that Basque separatists claim as their own.

Controversial peace talks in 2006 collapsed after an Eta bomb killed two people at Madrid airport.

(www.bbc.co.uk)

Analysis: Spec-Ops on Show to Woo War Skeptics

2010-09-03T22:21:00.000-07:00

The new top commander in Afghanistan is talking up a weapon that has been kept in the shadows for years - special operations missions to kill or capture key insurgents - to try to convince skeptics the war can be won.

More than previous commanders, Gen. David Petraeus has been releasing the results of special operations missions - 365 militant leaders killed or captured in the last 90 days, another 1,031 rank-and-file insurgents killed and 1,335 detained - to demonstrate the Taliban and their allies are also suffering losses as NATO casualties rise.

Accentuating the positive is part of Petraeus' media style, developed when he commanded U.S. forces in Iraq and was widely credited with helping turn the tide in that war.

Those skills are part of what the White House knew it needed when President Barack Obama selected the four-star general in July to replace Gen. Stanley McChrystal, after remarks critical of the administration appeared in Rolling Stone magazine.

Since taking command, Petraeus has used a series of high-profile media interviews to try to reverse the wave of pessimism about the war, especially within Congress and the American public.

Playing up missions by special operations forces - Navy SEALs, Delta Force, Army Rangers and Green Berets - offers a way to demonstrate that the U.S. and its NATO partners are taking the fight to the Taliban.

Petraeus has shared key heretofore classified data with reporters at a level of detail that surprised many U.S. officials here and in Washington.

A senior official in Kabul downplayed the notion that publicizing these details is calculated to win public support, saying it simply highlights one of the war's successes. The official spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss the commander's strategy.

Special operations missions are now at their highest tempo, with nearly 3,000 carried out between May and August, according to officials here.

U.S. officials here are sensitive to the suggestion that Petraeus is using the spec-ops successes for public effect, perhaps because it harks back to the largely discredited body counts of the Vietnam war.

But back in Washington, the release of information was warmly welcomed in some quarters, offsetting the daily drumbeat of rising U.S. casualties. At least 27 U.S. service members have been killed in the past week.

Special operations troops have been in Afghanistan since the conflict began in 2001, working with the anti-Taliban Northern Alliance to drive the Taliban from power after the Sept. 11, 2001 terror attacks in the United States and later to pursue al-Qaida leaders.

Last fall, McChrystal, who commanded special operations forces in Iraq, stepped up the tempo, broadening their mission to include killing or capturing midlevel commanders in the Taliban and their allies in the Haqqani network.

What's new is that Petraeus and his aides are talking about it.

By highlighting their successes, Petraeus could earn bankable political capital that he will need if he recommends that Obama slow the drawdown of U.S. troops that the president promised will begin next July.

This does not mean that Petraeus is shifting emphasis from traditional counterinsurgency strategy - clearing territory, holding it, building on it, and then turning it over to the Afghan government.

In an interview Tuesday with The Associated Press and two other news organizations, Petraeus spoke of spec-ops successes, but added: "You don't kill or capture your way out of an industrial strength insurgency."

However, demonstrating progress is difficult in a war fought in hundreds of small, scattered engagements, where frontlines do not move and where cities do not fall.

That's where the spec-ops raids come in. The mystique of elite, highly trained commandos swooping down on an unsuspecting Taliban leader in the dead of night plays well back home, especially at a time when much of the news from Afghanistan focuses on rising American deaths and frustration with the Afghan government.

Heavy use of special operations forces is not without risk. Afghans from President Hamid Karzai to lowly village elders complain night raids offend Afghan culture and turn the population against the international coalition.

Vice Admiral Bill McCraven, who heads up the U.S. Joint Special Operations Command Forward, traveled to a small village in Gardez province to apologize to Afghan elders, after his troops killed two armed men during a nighttime raid last February. The elders claimed three women died in the crossfire.

A U.S. defense official here says one special operations task force recorded no shots fired in 973 out of 1,225 missions in the 12 months ending in August. The targets simply gave up without a fight. The official added up to 10 Afghan special forces troops take part in each raid, often in the lead, when the force reaches the target.

The official spoke on condition of anonymity to describe classified operations.

U.S. officials believe the increased operational tempo by such forces over the past year has begun to bite into the insurgent network in the central part of Helmand province, a southern area that has seen some of the bloodiest fighting of the past two years.

U.S. intelligence has tracked a breakdown in regular communications between local commanders in Helmand and their leadership in Quetta, in the border region of Pakistan, according to defense officials who spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss matters of intelligence.

There is anecdotal evidence, the officials say, that resentment is building in the midlevel ranks of the Taliban, aimed at the top commanders who are safely ensconced in Quetta or in the North Waziristan area of Pakistan.

Still, the senior U.S. official in Kabul concedes spec-ops forces have not yet reversed the Taliban's momentum nationwide.

There's progress in some areas, he said, but "we clearly need to do more in others."

(www.military.com)

Radical Islam is world's greatest threat - Tony Blair

2010-09-03T22:09:00.000-07:00

Former UK Prime Minister Tony Blair has described radical Islam as the greatest threat facing the world today. He made the remark in a BBC interview marking the publication of his memoirs.

Mr Blair said radical Islamists believed that whatever was done in the name of their cause was justified - including the use of chemical, biological or nuclear weapons.

Mr Blair, who led Britain into war in Afghanistan and Iraq, denied that his own policies had fuelled radicalism.

Asked about the argument that Chechens, Kashmiris, Palestinians, Iraqis and Afghans were resisting foreign occupation, he said Western polices were designed to confront radical Islamists because they were "regressive, wicked and backward-looking".

The aim of al-Qaeda in Iraq was "not to get American troops out of Baghdad [but] to destabilise a government the people of Iraq have voted for", he told the BBC's Owen Bennett Jones in a World Service interview.

'Stronger will'

The former British leader - who now acts as the Middle East envoy for the international Quartet - said that Iran was one of the biggest state sponsors of radical Islam, and it was necessary to prevent it by any means from developing a nuclear weapon.

"We need to give a message to Iran that is very clear - that they cannot have nuclear weapons capability, and we will stop them," he said.

Mr Blair said he was not advocating military action, but simply saying no option could be taken off the table.

Iran denies pursuing a nuclear weapons programme, and insists its atomic work is for civilian purposes.

Mr Blair told the BBC his view of foreign policy had changed as a result of the 9/11 attacks: "After 11 September, rightly or wrongly, I felt the calculus of risk had changed.

"There is the most enormous threat from the combination of this radical extreme movement and the fact that, if they could, they would use nuclear, chemical or biological weapons.

"You can't take a risk with that happening."

Mr Blair said he agonised over how to respond to radical Islam and still had doubts that he was right.

These are really difficult issues, he said, but added: "This extremism is so deep that in the end they have to know that they're facing a stronger will than theirs."

Mr Blair has also expressed optimism about the prospect of peace in the Middle East. Direct talks between the Israelis and the Palestinians began in Washington on Thursday.

Speaking in Dublin, on the prime-time entertainment programme The Late Late Show, Mr Blair said he believed the Middle East peace process was similar to Northern Ireland - and would be successful.

He said: "I feel it can be settled. You just have to carry on."

There was a small anti-war protest outside the Dublin studio where the interview took place.

Mr Blair also told the Late Late Show that his successor as prime minister, Gordon Brown, remained a friend.

In his autobiography, Mr Blair said Mr Brown was "maddening", had "zero" emotional intelligence and sought to frustrate key reforms.

However, Mr Blair said there were many things he admired about Mr Brown and would "probably" still go for a drink with him.

(www.bbc.co.uk)

When did UN know of Congo gang rapes?

2010-09-03T01:45:00.000-07:00

The United Nations appears to have been aware of rape by rebels in eastern Congo earlier than it originally said it was, according to an internal e-mail and a humanitarian bulletin. Between July 30 and August 3, Rwandan and Congolese rebels raided a series of villages and towns, where they gang-raped up to 240 women and four baby boys, according to the relief organization International Medical Corps.

A U.N. spokesman said on Wednesday that the United Nations Organization Stabilization Mission in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (MONUSCO) has put the number of rape victims at more than 240, with more cases being reported.

On August 22, when the rapes were first publicly reported, the number of victims stood at 156. Since then, nearly 100 more victims have been identified.

According to the organization, many of the victims were raped by two to six men.

Last week, the U.N. Security Council in New York held an emergency session on the rapes, and Secretary General Ban Ki-moon called the attacks outrageous.

The United Nations has said it did not learn about the attacks until August 12, when it was alerted by International Medical Corps.

International Medical Corps said it first told the United Nations about the rapes on August 6. A July 30 internal U.N. e-mail that was relayed to relief agencies working in the area warned that the rebels had taken over the villages, and had already committed one instance of rape.

The town of Mpofi, 52 kilometers from Walikale, had just fallen into the hands of the Democratic Forces for the Liberation of Rwanda, a rebel group.

"A woman was raped there," the e-mail said in French. "Humanitarian workers are said not to go there."

On August 10, the United Nations posted an online bulletin saying that 25 women had been raped in the villages, contradicting statements made by U.N. military spokesman Madnoje Mounoubai and special representative Roger Meece.

Asked to explain the discrepancy, deputy U.N. spokesman Farhan Haq told reporters on Thursday: "We are aware of the existence of a number of e-mails and we are trying to trace exactly how those e-mails were responded to."

He said that about 80 peacekeepers were conducting patrols in an area about four times the size of Manhattan. "The question is -- how much area could they cover and were they able to get into the areas where they needed to be, where the relevant information was?"

(www.cnn.com)

Nat’l Guard Prepares for Border Mission

2010-09-03T01:32:00.000-07:00

National Guard troops here are poised to take up surveillance positions along the U.S. border with Mexico as part of Operation Copper Cactus. A year-long federal mission calls for up to 1,200 National Guard Soldiers and Airmen to support U.S. Customs and Border Protection and U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement in Arizona, California, New Mexico and Texas.

The majority of the troops will support the CBP with entry identification teams and support ICE with criminal investigative analysts for one year. "Arizona is uniquely situated as a border state to support Customs and Border Protection directly," said 1st Lt. Valentine Castillo, Arizona National Guard public affairs officer.

Training for the entry identification teams includes how to handle encounters with anyone who approaches their observation posts.

The teams monitor the border from strategic observation points with state-of-the-art surveillance and detection tactics and technology in support of local law enforcement.

"They act as extra eyes and ears for the Border Patrol," Castillo said.

Surveillance sites in Nogales are on high ground from which Soldiers can monitor miles of border, sending observations to the Border Patrol and freeing up agents for other duties.

The criminal investigative analysts will assist ICE agents in reducing the flow of illegal bulk currency and weapons from the United States to Mexico.

Because of the severe climate on the border, where temperatures frequently exceed 100 degrees, the Arizona Soldiers are also receiving combat lifesaver training, Castillo said.

For many of the Soldiers, the course is a refresher of training they have already received. Many of them have deployed for previous domestic missions and operations abroad, and have experience in a combat environment.

"Morale is high," Castillo said. "They're ready to finish [training] and support Customs and Border Protection and Immigration and Customs Enforcement."

Around the state, Soldiers are also training in radio operations, environmental awareness and specialized surveillance equipment. Soldiers are also qualifying on their weapons, an annual requirement for all Soldiers.

The National Guard has been providing Southwest border support for a number of years through counter-drug programs, and they're prepared for a larger mission, said Maj. Gen. Peter Aylward, who is coordinating the four-state operation at the National Guard Bureau.

The National Guard successfully supported the border security mission during Operation Jump Start from 2006 to 2008.

"The National Guard historically has always performed well," Aylward said. "This is a very important mission for this nation that's an intensification of earlier efforts that began in 1993. This is just another chapter of a great initiative."

With nearly 470,000 Soldiers and Airmen, the National Guard is uniquely suited to support homeland defense operations and border security missions.

(www.military.com)

Hamas, 10 other groups pledge to continue targeting Israelis

2010-09-03T01:06:00.000-07:00

Members of the militant wing of Hamas and representatives of 10 other militant groups met Thursday and said they were joining forces and that attacks on Israelis would continue. During the meeting, Hamas representative Abu Obeida spoke in general about resistance, jihad, and responding to Israel with iron and fire.

The meeting came shortly after a Hamas official said "resistance operations" against Israelis would continue, despite the arrests of Hamas activists in the West Bank. The Hamas pledge to continue attacks came after the Islamist group claimed responsibility for two shooting attacks on Israeli settlers in the past two days that left four people dead and two others wounded.

The threat also coincides with the beginning of direct peace talks between Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas in Washington.

Hamas, which holds sway in the Palestinian territory of Gaza, opposes the talks. But Abbas said he is supported by allies in his rival Fatah party, as well as several other Arab governments in the region.

Hamas spokesman Sami Abu Zuhri, speaking to reporters in Gaza, said Abbas has no political legitimacy and no right to represent the Palestinian people.

A key Palestinian demand in the talks is that a freeze on Jewish settlement-building in the West Bank be continued, but settlers in the community where the four people were killed on Tuesday resumed building there on Wednesday night.

Naftali Bennett -- director of The Yesha Council, which represents settlers -- said the move is designed to show that the ultimate response to terror is the legitimate expansion of Jewish communities.

"This feels like deja vu from the days of the Oslo Accords, where fancy ceremonies take place in Washington while Israelis are murdered on our roads and in our schools," he said.

The settlement freeze, implemented to push forward the peace process, is set to expire on September 26.

Palestinians have said they will leave the direct talks if the freeze ends, and some members of Netanyahu's coalition government have threatened to leave if the freeze continues.

(www.cnn.com)

Death toll tops 30 in Lahore blasts

2010-09-02T00:47:00.001-07:00

The death toll from a trio of suicide attacks during a Shiite processions in Lahore, Pakistan, grew to 31 Thursday, authorities said. Khalid Ranjha, a Lahore government official, said 340 people were injured in Wednesday's blasts, which left seven people critically wounded.

The three explosions occurred within a radius of about 600 meters (2,000 feet). All three blasts were the work of suicide bombers, said Nayab Haider, a spokesman for the Lahore police. Police tried to stop the first suicide bomber as the procession was ending, but he blew himself up as the police officer caught up with him in the crowd, Haider said.

Three or four minutes later, the second blast erupted. It was followed 25 minutes later by yet a third suicide bomber. Police have found two heads and one body separately, said Haider, who said authorities had assigned 2,500 police officers to the procession after receiving a warning that it might be attacked.

Khusro Pervez, a senior government official, said the incidents took place around the time of the daily breaking of the Ramadan fast, and security may have been lax.

"At the end of the procession, security should have been more vigilant," Pervez said. "The incident happened because of security breach."

Pakistan is a largely Sunni Muslim nation, and the attack on Shiite Muslims conjures thoughts of the long-standing tensions between the two groups in the Middle East and Asia.

Paramilitary forces have been deployed to the streets to bring order. Local TV channels showed pictures of angry people burning vehicles, beating police and trying to break into a police station.

(www.cnn.com)

West Bank shooting wounds 2 Israelis

2010-09-02T00:01:00.000-07:00

Two Israelis were wounded Wednesday night in a shooting at Rimonim Junction, east of the West Bank city of Ramallah, the Israel Defense Forces said. The suspected gunmen ambushed the Israeli car at around 11 p.m. (4 p.m. ET) causing it to swerve off the road.

The overturned vehicle was found riddled with bullets, Israeli National Police spokesman Micky Rosenfeld told CNN. "Based on the crime scene evidence, the victims' wounds and the bullet holes in the vehicle we believe this is a terrorist attack," he added.

The military wing of Hamas claimed responsibility for the attack.

Israeli National Police and the IDF set up roadblocks and were searching for those responsible.

The victims, an Israeli man and woman in their 30s, were taken to a hospital where the man was listed in serious condition; the woman was lightly wounded.

The attack came a day after four Israelis -- including a pregnant woman -- were fatally shot on the West Bank. The Israeli military said Wednesday it is still looking for the shooters.

Wednesday's attack came on the eve of direct Israeli-Palestinian peace talks in Washington, where Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas both condemned the attacks.

"I will not let the terrorists block our path to peace, but as these events underscore once again, that peace must be anchored in security," Netanyahu told reporters in a joint news conference that included Abbas and U.S. President Barack Obama.

"What happened yesterday and what is happening today is also condemned," Abbas said. "We do not want any blood be shed."

(www.cnn.com)

Gates Says History will Judge Iraq War’s Worth

2010-09-01T23:59:00.000-07:00

Defense Secretary Robert Gates said Wednesday that history will judge whether the war in Iraq was worth it. In Iraq to mark the formal close of the U.S. combat mission and the departure of the top U.S. war commander, Gates visited troops at Camp Ramadi in western Iraq.

Asked whether the U.S. was still at war in Iraq, Gates answered succinctly, "I would say we are not." Fewer than 50,000 U.S. troops are still in Iraq, down from more than 165,000 at the height of the fighting.

Gates was less definitive about whether the 7 1/2-year war was worthwhile. That judgment "really requires a historian's perspective," and will depend in part on whether Iraq emerges as a democratic anchor in the Middle East, Gates told reporters after his Ramadi visit.

"I believe our men and women in uniform believe we have accomplished something that makes the sacrifice, the bloodshed, not to have been in vain," he said. "How it all weighs in the balance remains to be seen."

Although the remaining troops' main role is to help train Iraqi forces over the next year, they are not out of harm's way. Recent U.S. deaths in Iraq have come from homemade explosives that deliberately target U.S. vehicles or soldiers, or attacks on gatherings where insurgents knew Americans would be.

Several thousand U.S. special operations forces will continue to hunt al-Qaida and other terrorist fighters, accompanying Iraqi commandoes. U.S. forces will remain armed, and will return fire or fight in self-defense.

Gates said the United States would consider keeping some military forces in place past next year, if the Iraqi government requests it. All U.S. forces are set to leave by the end of 2011 under an agreement with the Iraqi government.

Wednesday's transition from a combat stance to an "advise and assist" role was largely symbolic. U.S. troops have been leaving Iraq in huge numbers for the past year, while their front-line combat roles dwindled.

The war is no longer the political rallying point it was when U.S. force numbers, and casualties, were at their height three years ago. But it is still unpopular, with a majority of Americans unconvinced that the war was worth fighting.

"The problem with this war, I think, for many Americans, is that the premise on which we justified going to war turned out not to be valid," Gates told reporters after meeting with troops in Ramadi.

"Even if the outcome is a good one from the standpoint of the United States, it'll always be clouded by how it began."

Ramadi, home of one of the U.S. military's new advisory brigades, is in the heart of Anbar province, the cradle of the Sunni insurgency against the initial U.S. occupation. Gates said Anbar holds a special and haunting significance for the U.S. military. Several members of his staff were wounded or saw their comrades killed in the province during the worst years of the fighting.

The difference between that time and now was illustrated by the questions soldiers asked him. Some of their top concerns included health care, retirement and the fate of combat pay now that the combat mission is officially over.

Lt. Col. Buddy Houston, deputy brigadier commander of the 4/3 Advise and Assist Brigade in Ramadi, said there have been no incidents in the last 14 months where Iraqis asked for direct combat help.

"I can't imagine a violent situation where we would have to go back in and re-engage," Houston said.

He added that he didn't anticipate, "even under the worst-case scenario," that a civil war could break out in Iraq as U.S. troops leave.

( www.military.com )

Biden in Iraq for Security Changeover Talks

2010-08-30T23:17:00.000-07:00

With the seven-year combat mission in Iraq coming to an end Tuesday, Vice President Biden has arrived in Baghdad to attend a changeover ceremony and to meet with Iraqi political leaders. He's expected to push them to form a new government, nearly six months after inconclusive elections. There's widespread concern that the political instability will lead to a reversal of recent improvements in security.

Lt. Gen. Robert Cone, a U.S. deputy commander, told Fox, "I'm not sure how much longer this situation can go on. Look at the opportunity that presents for the terrorists." Amid this atmosphere Fox News spoke to shoppers at a Baghdad market this weekend. "There's no country where a government hasn't been formed for six months," said Abu Muhammad. "Everywhere else, one month is enough."

But the top U.S. commander in Iraq predicts the election stalemate could drag on another eight weeks. General Ray Odierno told the New York Times, "If it goes beyond 1 October, what does that mean" Could there be a call for another election? I worry about that a little bit."

Despite the lack of a government, the last U.S. combat brigade packed up and left. Troop levels have dropped below 50,000 ahead of the August 31st deadline set by President Obama. Starting September 1, the U.S. military says it's mission changes from combat to "advise and assist." And all American troops are supposed to be gone by the end of next year.

That's a topic of heated debate at Haidar Mohammed's Baghdad bakery. "It's a good idea," says Mohammed. "The Americans must leave the country."

Ali Abdamir disagrees. "American soldiers should stay longer," he says, "Until we can rebuild the army and police forces."

U.S. commanders note that the remaining Americans will be trying to develop and strengthen Iraqi forces. "Yeah, we probably need 50-thousand soldiers here right now," admits Lt. Gen. Cone, "We'll probably need them for some time."

Last week, more than two dozen bombings and shootings across the country killed 56 Iraqis, mostly police and soldiers. Some Iraqis want to see a new leader who is tougher on terrorists.

Abu Muhammad declares, "Iraq doesn't need religious parties. It needs a strong man to direct the people."

Sohair Ahmed thinks the U.S. should step in and run Iraq for awhile. "I prefer to give the authority to the Americans," she says. "Obama should appoint a Commissioner to Iraq. Iraqis are corrupt. Americans are not."

Her idea probably won't get any serious consideration from the Obama Administration. The President campaigned on ending the war. And even voters in Iraq's fledgling democracy know what that means. "Obama won the election and must satisfy his voters," says Abdamir.

The prevailing view in one Baghdad market is the President's policy is based on what's best for him politically, not necessarily what's best for Iraq.

(www.foxnews.com)

Hong Kong SDU

2010-08-30T20:22:00.000-07:00

The Special Duties Unit (Abbreviation: SDU) nicknamed Flying Tigers is an elite paramilitary police Special Forces unit of the Hong Kong Police. Established in July 1974, it is a sub-division of the Police Tactical Unit (PTU)

Its primary functions include counter-terrorism, hostage rescue and other crimes (usually involving firearms) which are deemed extremely dangerous. The unit holds regular training exercises with similar units from around the world and used to be trained by the British SAS before the handover of Hong Kong to China.

The establishment of the SDU can be traced back to an incident on March 13, 1971, when a Philippine Airlines flight was hijacked and was forced to land at Kai Tak Airport. Though the incident was resolved peacefully, the Hong Kong Police Force became concerned that a similar incident would occur in the future. The Sharpshooter Team was assembled in 1973 and later reorganized into the Special Duties Unit in 1974.

The unit is modeled after the British SAS. When SAS personnel came to Hong Kong in 1978 to refine their CQB techniques as well as training syllabus, SDU received their training from the SAS. Reports of a proposal to slash down salaries of SDU operators were shot down in a press conference to disprove the said reports, saying that the people "can rest assured that the high level of anti-terrorist capability and readiness will always be maintained.

It consists of a support group, administration group and the action group. The action group is the core of the unit, further categorised into the land assault team, the water assault team and the sniper team.

The following units include:

* Operation Team, which is divided into Team A and Team B, together with the Sniper team. Team C is responsible for the training of SDU officers.

* The medical team, which consists of SDU officers with special training in battlefield first aids.

* The headquarters, which is responsible for all administrative works, as well as providing intelligence to the operations.

* The boat team, which maintains and operate the Zodiac vessels. The Zodiac vessels are also used by the US Navy SEALs. Recently several FB/RIB 55 series boats were purchased from FB Design in Italy to supplement the Zodiac vessels.

* The maintenance team, which maintain all land vehicles as well as Asia's most advanced Close Quarter Battle (CQB) House. Four Guardian Tactical Intervention Vehicles from Jankel Armouring Limited were purchased in 2007 and arrived in 2008, providing improved armor protection for operators during high-risk operations.

* special duties paramedics - introduced in 2000

The SDU Water Team

British SBS operators also helped SDU develop its own specialist marine attack unit (known as the Marine Counter Terrorist Team; nicknamed: "Water Ghosts" after an incident in the early 1980s. Due to its highly specialist nature, the Marine Counter Terrorist Team has often been compared with the United States Navy SEALs. An SDU sniper in the team was seriously injured when having joint training with the United States Naval Special Warfare Development Group (DEVGRU) in 1991, during a ship-boarding exercise.

The Marine Counter Terrorist Team was later disbanded in 2000, because all current SDU operators are equally trained and proficient in maritime operations.

Training & Selection

To maintain the SDU's high standards, recruitment exercises are not open to the general public. To even qualify for the recruitment, one must have a minimum two years service in the Police Tactical Unit and complete training under the PTU,and to be both a non-smoker and non-drinker. The selection process is very stringent, with a high drop-out rate; only about 100 are selected to enlist in the SDU. Contrary to popular belief, the unit does not train with mainland China special forces. The SDU's training program has been merged with the ASU recently to prevent potential candidates from dropping out from either unit.

Originally the SDU received much training from British Forces Overseas Hong Kong supplemented by visits from Special Air Service (SAS), Royal Marine and Parachute Regiment personnel. After about 15 years, the SDU took on its own training, mainly basing the tactics on British Special Forces techniques but also exchanging ideas with officers from elite units in the United States, Australia and New Zealand.

The officers in the unit maintain a high degree of secrecy and only the closest family members know their true identity.

Interestingly, the SDU does not enforce a retirement age, due to the unit's emphasis on overall personal capability rather than physical prowess alone; an officer only retires when he wishes to resign or has become incapable of fulfilling his duties.

At their retirement, they are paid a lump sum of Hong Kong dollar (HK) $2,000,000 and would still receive a monthly pension thereafter. SDU operators have conducted training exercises with foreign special forces units, including the Navy SEALs, Delta Force, STAR, GIGN, SBS and the British SAS.

Equipment & weapons

The SDU has been known to be armed/formerly armed with the following weapons and equipment:

Pistol
Smith & Wesson Model 10 (Early 70s - late 70s)
Browning Mk3 (Late 70s - early 90s)
Glock 17 (Early 90s - present)

Submachine Guns
Sterling submachine gun (Early 70s - late70s)
MP5A3 (Early 80s - present)
MP5A5 (Early 80s - present)
MP5SD3 (Early 80s - present)

Assault Rifle
AR-15 (Early 70s - early 80s)
XM-177 (1982–2000)
MC-51 (1992–1996)
M4A1 (2001–present, as a medium range sniper rifle)[dubious – discuss][citation needed]
G-36KV (2001–present, as a medium range sniper rifle)[dubious – discuss][citation needed]

Shotguns
Remington 870 (Early 80s - present)
Benelli M1 Super 90 (Early 80s - present)

Sniper Rifles
G3SG-1 (Early 80s - early 90s)
PSG-1 (Late 80s - 2005)
L42A1 (Early 80s - 90s)
L96A1 (Early 90s - present)
SR-25 (Late 90s - present)
SSG-2000 (Early 90s - present)

Known Operations

During a bank robbery in 1992, four robbers with AK-47 assault rifles and hand-grenades battled the SDU, resulting in 7 operators injured. As a result of this incident, their CQB technique was further refined in order to fit Hong Kong's unique urban environment, and new equipment was added to the SDU's arsenal. All suspects were apprehended. Before Christmas Eve of 2003, Kwai Ping Hung the most wanted person in Hong Kong was arrested in a joint raid between the SDU and Criminal Intelligence Branch (CIB, Team D) with no gunshots being reported. When the WTO Ministerial Conference of 2005 was held in Hong Kong, the SDU was deployed to protect WTO delegates in the country.

(www.wikipedia.org)

CBO: Eight Years of Iraq War Cost Less Than Stimulus Act

2010-08-30T19:46:00.000-07:00

As President Obama prepares to tie a bow on U.S. combat operations in Iraq, Congressional Budget Office numbers show that the total cost of the eight-year war was less than the stimulus bill passed by the Democratic-led Congress in 2009.

According to CBO numbers in its Budget and Economic Outlook published this month, the cost of Operation Iraqi Freedom was $709 billion for military and related activities, including training of Iraqi forces and diplomatic operations.

The projected cost of the stimulus, which passed in February 2009, and is expected to have a shelf life of two years, was $862 billion.

The U.S. deficit for fiscal year 2010 is expected to be $1.3 trillion, according to CBO. That compares to a 2007 deficit of $160.7 billion and a 2008 deficit of $458.6 billion, according to data provided by the U.S. Office of Management and Budget.

In 2007 and 2008, the deficit as a percentage of gross domestic product was 1.2 percent and 3.2 percent, respectively.

"Relative to the size of the economy, this year's deficit is expected to be the second largest shortfall in the past 65 years; 9.1 percent of gross domestic product (GDP), exceeded only by last year's deficit of 9.9 percent of GDP," CBO wrote.

The CBO figures show that the most expensive year of the Iraq war was in 2008, the year when the surge proposed by Gen. David Petraeus and approved by President Bush was in full swing and the turning point in the war. The total cost of Iraq operations in 2008 was $140 billion. In 2007, the cost of Iraq operations was $124 billion.

According to an analysis by the American Thinker's Randall Hoven, the cost of the Iraq war from 2003-2008 -- when Bush was in office -- was $20 billion less than the cost of education spending and less than a quarter of the cost of Medicare spending during that same period.

( www.foxnews.com )

Ramadi: Becoming the next Dubai or sliding into sectarian chaos?

2010-08-30T19:35:00.000-07:00

"I saw one suicide bomber, I saw him. By my eyes, I remember," says Qasim Abid, the governor of Anbar province in Iraq. Abid lost his arm in the December 2009 attack, but not his determination to reinvent Ramadi. He says it will be his revenge against terror.

"The revenge by doing investment, by doing infrastructure, execution of project, killing the problem of unemployment and so on," Abid explains. "To make civilization in al-Anbar."

In the middle of his office is the model of a dream: the new city of Ramadi he wants to be built on the banks of nearby Habbaniya Lake. Modeled, he says, after Dubai.

The city, the capital of Anbar province, was once declared the capital of the "Islamic State of Iraq." Al Qaeda fighters and Sunni extremists roamed its narrow alleyways, attacking U.S. Marines who were defending the governor's compound.

The streets were deserted of people, filled instead with filth and knee-deep sewage. Walking for the U.S. military was not an option: They had to run because of the incessant threat of snipers.

Those same streets are now vibrant, exploding with colors from the various children's toys and clothes.

Although the security situation in Ramadi has improved dramatically, appearances can be deceiving. Our escort from the governor's compound to the market was nervous about spending more than a few minutes on the streets, and we weren't able to talk to any of the shoppers and business owners.

Abid, the governor, freely admits that security is still an issue.

"It's not ideal," he says. "We have a lot of work to do. We have to struggle to make it better. Because the enemy -- and when I say the enemy, I mean al Qaeda and their related parties -- they are concentrating on al Anbar because they started in al Anbar."

The province is also the birthplace of the Awakening Councils, or Sons of Iraq, a Sunni militia that formed in 2007, largely made up of former insurgents who turned on al Qaeda. They are credited for being one of the major reasons that violence has fallen across the country.

But as a Sunni, Abid is nervous about the growing influence of Shia Iran, anxious that the government in Baghdad will be the servant of Tehran.

"Now, unfortunately, we trust the American Army more than our army. ... Iran can't manage with the American Army, but they can manage with our security forces easily," Abid says.

He says he pleaded with the United States to wait before drawing down troop levels to 50,000. But it was an appeal that fell on deaf ears in Washington, he says, as President Obama has pledged to end the war.

"If they delay this withdrawing, it could be better for us. If they give us more time, for example, one year, it is very important one year, we are in bad need for one year," Abid says.

There are concerns throughout the country that the U.S. military drawdown is happening when Iraq is especially vulnerable. Inconclusive elections in March left the nation in political paralysis, susceptible to an increase in violence.

Whether Ramadi becomes the next Dubai, slips back into sectarian chaos or ends up somewhere in between will be decided by Iraqis and, perhaps, their neighbors.

(www.cnn.com)

US imposes new North Korea sanctions - official

2010-08-30T19:27:00.000-07:00

US President Barack Obama has signed an executive order mandating new financial sanctions on North Korea, senior administration officials say. The sanctions will hit eight North Korean "entities" and four individuals, targeting the trade in arms, luxury goods and narcotics.

The new sanctions come after the sinking of a South Korean warship in March, in which 46 sailors died. North Korea has denied responsibility for the sinking. But an international investigation blamed Pyongyang for the sinking.

The US Treasury Department said the sanctions were aimed "at freezing the assets of [weapons of mass destruction] proliferators and their supporters thereby isolating them from the US financial and commercial systems".

'Act of war'

Secretary of State Hillary Clinton announced last month that US sanctions against North Korea would be expanded.

The US has tried to drive international efforts to stop North Korea's efforts to build nuclear weapons.

North Korea indicated last year that any attempt to blockade the country would be regarded as an "act of war".

The country has been seeking nuclear weapons for some years and carried out its second nuclear test last year, prompting international condemnation.

The BBC's Laura Trevelyan says current US policy is to ratchet up economic sanctions against the North and carry out joint American-South Korean naval exercises.

But analysts say even as these new sanctions are announced, the State Department is debating whether to take a new approach, as there is little evidence that North Korea is either retreating from its nuclear programme or being less belligerent towards its neighbour South Korea.

Meanwhile, North Korean leader Kim Jong-il has told Beijing he hopes for an early resumption of six-party nuclear talks, China's state media has reported.

The comments came as confirmation that Mr Kim was in China at the weekend, his second visit to the country this year.

Mr Kim, who is believed to be ailing after suffering a stroke two years ago, rarely travels abroad, but last visited China in May.

His son Kim Jong-un, who observers believe is being prepared to take over the leadership, is widely speculated to have accompanied him on his latest visit, but this has not been confirmed.

Correspondents say the trip could have been aimed at securing Beijing's backing for the eventual handover of power.

( www.bbc.co.uk)

Fears Taliban Expanding in Afghan North, West

2010-08-30T02:16:00.000-07:00

Eight Afghan police gunned down at a checkpoint. Campaign workers kidnapped. Spanish trainers shot dead on their base. A spurt of violence this week in provinces far from the Taliban's main southern strongholds suggests the insurgency is spreading, even as the top U.S. commander insists the coalition has reversed the militants' momentum in key areas of the ethnic Pashtun south where the Islamist movement was born.

Attacks in the north and west of the country -- though not militarily significant -- demonstrate that the Taliban are becoming a threat across wide areas of Afghanistan even as the United States and its partners mount a major effort to turn the tide of the nearly 9-year-old war in the south.

The latest example occurred Thursday when about a dozen gunmen stormed a police checkpoint at the entrance to the city of Kunduz, about 150 miles (240 kilometers) north of the Afghan capital, Kabul. Eight policemen were killed, provincial police chief Abdul Raziq Yaqoubi said.

Also Thursday, a candidate in next month's parliamentary elections said 10 of her campaign workers were kidnapped while traveling in the northwestern province of Herat, 450 miles (725 kilometers) west of the capital.

The candidate, Fawzya Galani, said villagers told her armed men had stopped the group Wednesday and drove them off in their two vehicles.

Those incidents followed Wednesday's fatal shooting of three Spaniards -- two police trainers and an interpreter -- at a training base in Badghis province about 230 miles (370 kilometers) northwest of Kabul.

The shooter, who was also killed, was a police driver who local officials said was a brother-in-law of a local Taliban commander.

Earlier this month, 10 members of a Christian medical team -- six Americans, two Afghans, one German and a Briton -- were gunned down in Badakhshan, a northern province that had seen little insurgent activity. The Taliban claimed responsibility.

In an interview aired Monday by the British Broadcasting Corp., top U.S. and NATO commander Gen. David Petraeus said NATO forces had reversed the momentum that the Taliban gained in recent years in the southern provinces of Helmand and Kandahar and in the Kabul area. He said coalition forces would regain momentum in other areas later although tough fighting lies ahead.

Taliban influence in the north and west is not as pervasive as in the south, the insurgency has been slowly expanding its presence in areas such as Kunduz, Faryab and Baghlan since 2007, mostly among Pashtuns who are a minority in the north.

A member of parliament from Herat said security in the province could be worse but it's not ideal, especially in remote villages far from the provincial capital.

"There are a lot of reasons -- political reasons, factional reasons, tribal reasons -- so together the situation is not so good," the lawmaker, Ali Ahmad Jebraili, said. "I hope the government puts professional and proper security measures in place to search vehicles and people for attackers and bombers. When we travel to remote areas, we have to be careful."

In establishing a northern foothold, Afghan authorities believe the Taliban use veterans from southern battlefields to help organize local groups, sometimes with help from the al-Qaida-linked Islamic Movement of Uzbekistan, which provides recruits from among the Uzbek minority.

"The situation is very bad and dangerous in Kunduz but unfortunately the security officials keep saying things are all right," said Mabubullah Mabub, chairman of the Kunduz provincial council. "Over the last two years, the situation has been getting worse."

A study published last spring by the Afghan Analyst Network, an independent policy research organization, said that expanding into the north and west strengthens the Taliban claim to be a legitimate national government fighting on behalf of the Afghan people and not simply the Pashtun community.

It also enables the Taliban to threaten NATO supply lines coming south from Central Asia. Those routes were established to reduce reliance on supply lines from Pakistan, which come under attack from fighters on both sides of the Afghan-Pakistan border.

"Furthermore, there is no doubt that the psychological impact of the north's destabilization upon Western Europe and the U.S. would be considerable, overstretching resources as well as reducing the recruitment pool of Afghan army and police by enabling the Taliban to intimidate the families of volunteers," the study said.

The psychological impact was evident in the reaction in Spain to the killing of the two trainers and the interpreter, a Spanish citizen of Iranian origin.

The leader of the small but important Catalan party -- Convergence and Union -- complained that Prime Minister Jose Luis Rodriguez Zapatero has avoided appearing in parliament as promised to hold a full-blown debate on the Spanish mission and must do so now.

The smaller United Left party called on Zapatero to bring Spain's troops home, saying the NATO effort to defeat the Taliban and stabilize the country had achieved nothing.

The Spanish newspaper El Mundo published a cartoon Thursday showing President Obama and Zapatero standing chest-deep in a pool of quicksand labeled Afghanistan. Obama tells Zapatero: "It's best to sit still, because if you move you sink even more."

Also Thursday, NATO reported that three Afghan civilians were killed the day before by a homemade bomb in Kandahar's Arghandab district, a Taliban stronghold near Kandahar city.

Two Taliban commanders were among a dozen militants killed Wednesday in fighting with a joint Afghan-coalition force in Uruzgan province, the Afghan National Police reported. Four insurgents were captured in the operation, the police said.

(www.military.com)

Afghanistan election: five campaigners for female candidate shot dead

2010-08-29T19:48:00.000-07:00

The bodies of five volunteers working for a female MP have been found riddled with bullets in western Afghanistan, amid a growing campaign of violent intimidation against women running in the country's elections.

The men, aged between 20 and 35, were found dead by villagers in the Adraskan district of Herat province, some distance from where they were kidnapped by gunmen on Thursday while out campaigning for Fauzia Gilani.

The Taliban claimed responsibility for the kidnapping of 10 of her campaign workers as they travelled in remote countryside. Five of the workers were released before the others were found dead.

The insurgent movement has not yet claimed responsibility for the murders, but Gilani – one of hundreds of women running in next month's elections – said she believed the "enemies of Afghanistan" were responsible.

"These people were just my volunteers," she said. "They were just trying to help – I wasn't paying them any money."

She said she did not know whether they were targeted because she is a woman, but said that in western Afghanistan, the "society is controlled by men".

"They are in charge, and they don't want a woman to be above them," she said.

The politician struggled to speak when the Guardian contacted her by phone. She said she was standing next to the bodies of the victims at an Afghan national army base, where they were awaiting collection by their families.

One of the defining features of the campaign has been the attacks and scare tactics directed at women contesting seats nationwide. According to a recent survey of violence and irregularities in Logar province, conducted by the Free and Fair Election Foundation of Afghanistan (FEFA), nine out of 10 threats against specific candidates were directed at women.

In other provinces, women have been "inundated" with threatening phone calls, often delivered late at night by insurgents and political opponents. Ahmad Nader Nadery, director of FEFA, said his organisation's research showed that violence in the run-up to polling was far higher across the country than in last year's presidential election, where widespread insecurity was an essential precondition for extraordinary amounts of voting fraud.

In Herat yesterday, gunmen killed a candidate named as Haji Abdul Manan as he walked from his home to a mosque. "This is an environment of high amounts of intimidation and threats to candidates in general, but specifically to female candidates," Nadery said. "We expect more of this, with an increase in attacks on candidates, as we get closer to the elections."

Nadery said the type of people trying to disrupt women's campaigns varied around the country. "It is very dominant in the south by the Taliban, but it also exists in the north of the country where powerful political figures and warlords are responsible," he said.

Fuazia Kufi, an outspoken women's rights activist and one of Afghanistan's best-known representatives, said the increased interest in politics among women had disconcerted traditional power-brokers.

The minister, from Badakhshan, a relatively liberal province in the north, said: "As women get stronger and they find a voice among the public, there are many people who lose power. There are many traditional people who lose so they try to create problems and trouble."

The murder of Gilani's volunteers proved the need for greater government protection of women in politics, she said. "Fauzia Gilani is a very low-profile MP, so if she is being attacked you can imagine how much more difficult it is for the more outspoken candidates. Although the public is really supporting female candidates, there are certain mullahs who deliver the message not to vote for women. This is even happening in a more open province like Badakshan."

The UN mission in Afghanistan said the killings of Haji Abdul Manan and Gilani's volunteers were "unacceptable", and said those responsible must be brought to justice. "These killings constitute violent intimidation of all electoral candidates and their supporters. This is unacceptable. [The UN] calls upon the Afghan security forces to be on heightened vigilance over the coming weeks leading to the parliamentary elections."

(www.guardian.co.uk)

Coalition: Attacks in Afghanistan leave more than 30 insurgents dead

2010-08-29T19:35:00.000-07:00

Afghan and coalition soldiers killed more than 30 insurgents, including 13 would-be suicide bombers, as they fought off assaults on two military bases and government buildings in eastern Afghanistan, the NATO-led International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) said on Sunday.

The attacks, which happened Saturday morning, were led by Haqqani network insurgents and were against Forward Operating Base Salerno and Forward Operating Base Chapman, ISAF said. Both bases are located in Khost province, a volatile region on Afghanistan's rugged border with Pakistan.

The Haqqani network is a militant group with ties to al Qaeda.

Insurgents clad in U.S. military uniforms and wielding rocket-propelled grenades and small arms launched simultaneous attacks on the two bases, ISAF said. ISAF had previously reported more than 20 insurgents had died in the fighting.

Thirteen of the insurgents killed were wearing suicide vests, ISAF said, adding that Afghan and coalition soldiers followed up on intelligence tips and later captured a commander involved in planning the attacks.

"The insurgents' attempts to attack ISAF or Afghan government facilities were defeated again. The insurgent leadership who direct these ill-conceived attacks far from the actual battlefield knows their low-level fighters have no chance of success against these targets," Brig. Gen. Josef Blotz, an ISAF spokesman, said in a statement.

Separately on Sunday, ISAF said Afghan and international forces captured a senior Taliban commander in Logar province. Zia Ul-Haq is accused of helping foreign fighters and suicide bombers get into the capital, Kabul.

He was captured along with a sub-commander and another insurgent on Wednesday, ISAF said in a statement.

Chapman is the same base where a suicide bomber killed seven CIA officers late last year.

(www.cnn.com)

Iraq special report: 'American soldiers sacrificed a lot. But we sacrificed more'

2010-08-27T20:00:00.000-07:00

In 2003, a month after coalition troops invaded, Jonathan Steele reported from across the country on how ordinary people had reacted to the toppling of Saddam. Before the last US combat troops pulled out last week, he returned to track down the people he had met – and ask how their lives had been affected by the war

In Saddam Hussein's home town of Tikrit, the ruins of the Farouk palace, one of his many mansions, stand bereft and strewn with rubble. It seems only yesterday that I walked through them with the first Iraqi looters in April 2003.

During the night Hellfire missiles from US Cobra helicopters had knocked huge holes in the facade above the Tigris, bringing a triumphant end to the three-week invasion 96 hours after the fall of Baghdad.

Their guns slung, US troops were wandering through the wreckage like tourists, as amazed as we were by the gold-plated bathtaps and marble spiral staircase. Others were too tired to bother, lying on the grass beside their armoured vehicles.

Seven years later little has changed. The taps and furniture have gone, but soldiers' jubilant graffiti remain on the stuccoed walls. "1-10 ADA Ft Hood Texas … Killers," says one. "We weren't the first and we won't be the last," says another.

Surrounded by razor wire and guarded by the new Iraqi police force, the ruins are a reminder of an Iraq that is gone but not forgotten. Everywhere you go in this battered country Iraqis compare their life with what it was under the dictator's rule. The comparison rarely favours the mokhtalin, the word for invaders or occupiers that many use instead of "the Americans" or "the British".

With US combat troops leaving Iraq, I am trying to trace people I spoke to in April 2003. Some have died in sectarian violence. Some joined the exodus of two million refugees abroad or were among the two and a half million forced to flee their homes to safe havens elsewhere in Iraq. Some are hard to find because Iraq had no mobile phone network in those early postwar days and my old notebooks contain only names, ages, job descriptions and a few vague addresses to guide me.

I start in Tikrit, the symbolic capital of Saddam's tightknit family rule. When I visited him in 2003, Dr Bashar al-Duleimi, an ophthalmologist at the main hospital, was protecting the building from looters alongside a team of colleagues. The assault on the nearby Farouk palace had blown in most of the hospital's windows. "If the Americans are ready to offer protection, they can. But we will not ask them," he told me with stiff patriotic pride.

Now, he sits in front of shelves of medical books – mainly in English – and sums up the record of the US presence in Iraq: "We expected more – better infrastructure and better services, yet electricity supply is still only a few hours a day. Petrol is a disaster, with long, long queues."

His hospital has a large generator but ordinary citizens who rely on the public grid and suffer from constant power cuts suffer in the colossal heat. The only improvements are the increased salaries of government employees and access to advanced medical equipment, he says.

The collapse in security is the biggest change since Saddam's time and, like most Iraqis I speak to, he sees the US departure as irrelevant. "I'm happy to see them go. Security won't be worse," he says. Iraq's bloodshed can only be stemmed by Iraqis.

In Tikrit the sectarian violence of 2006 and 2007 was one-sided and rapid. The city had a tiny minority of Shia. Fifty were killed and the rest fled, I was told by a Shia building worker who moved his family to Kirkuk and comes back alone during the week.

What worried Dr Duleimi was the violence within the Sunni community in those years. Some were accused of collaborating with the mokhtalin. Others were targeted for being well-off. "They phoned me and warned I would be kidnapped if I didn't pay. They tried to evacuate Tikrit of all its doctors. Many left but I stayed. They told me the money was needed for the jihad. I said it's illegal and if you were true Muslims you wouldn't do this. But every doctor paid up."

Who the "they" were he could not say, reluctant to name al-Qaida. "Who knows if it's al-Qaida? We don't want to exaggerate their strength. Al-Qaida could be only 500 people. In 1963 the Ba'athists took power in a coup with only 700," he says.

My next stop is Falluja, a city that was heavily damaged and sealed off by US and Iraqi forces for four years. Outsiders can now enter only with permission. I need to alert the police in advance and for my security have a police escort vehicle with mounted machine guns in the back as I drive around.

In no other Iraqi city do Sunnis feel such a sense of conflict. They were trapped in the heartland of resistance to Iraq's new arrivals: first the Americans, and a year later al-Qaida, who were never present in Iraq in Saddam's time.

I first visited the city a day after the first mass shooting of civilians by the Americans anywhere in Iraq. On 28 April 2003 they killed 13 protesters who had been calling for US troops to leave a primary school that they had taken over as a billet. Named The Leader after Saddam, the still dilapidated school in a dusty suburb is now dubbed The Martyrs.

Khalid Ismail, who runs a family carpentry business, was one of the protesting parents. "Someone from behind the crowd fired and the US troops were tense and nervous and fired heavily back," he says. Some analysts saw the incident as the spark that started the nationwide armed insurgency, launching a series of IED attacks on US troops.

In April and November 2004 US troops assaulted the town with overwhelming force on the ground and from the air. Almost every building along the main street is still scarred by multiple bullet holes. Many private houses that were damaged or destroyed have been rebuilt at their owners' expense. The Americans promised some help for public buildings but little materialised, residents say.

Ismail fled with his wife and six children to relatives in Baghdad. He repeats what is to become a refrain in my conversations: security, electricity supply, water and other services have got worse since Saddam; only the economy is better.

The attack in November was approved by Ayad Allawi, a secular Shia and former Ba'athist who defected in the 1970s, and was appointed by the Americans as prime minister in June 2004. "He had no other choice," says Ismail, who, like most Sunnis, voted for Allawi in this year's election. The resistance in April 2003 was "nationalist and honest", but by the end of the year the city had been taken over by "intruders" linked to al-Qaida.

He wants the Americans to stay in Iraq, even though "they humiliated us and made us hate them". The reason? "No one accepts their country to be occupied but we want the US to limit Iran's interference in Iraq. Iran already controls the government in Baghdad." He mentions Iranian troops' brief seizure of a disputed oilfield on the border last December.

Taha Bidawi, a non-Ba'athist chosen as mayor by local people before the Americans entered Falluja, was glad Saddam had been toppled when I talked to him in April 2003. But he found US behaviour provocative, with their checkpoints and patrols, and he wanted US troops to leave the city to Iraqis.

Seven years later, he reflects the confusion and despair of many Sunnis. No longer the dominant group, they feel victims of discrimination by Iraq's new Shia rulers, who often behave as though every Sunni supported Saddam.

Scarred by Saddam's eight-year war with Iran and the relentless state propaganda that went with it, today's fear of Iran is sometimes shorthand for anxiety over the Shia parties that are blocking Allawi from forming the next government, even though his party won the most seats.

But the biggest Sunni traumas of recent years have been the political murders within the Sunni community and the harsh dilemmas of peaceful versus armed resistance. When does co-operation with the mokhtalin become treachery? "The two mayors who followed me were killed," says Bidawi. "The terrorists or people who call themselves mujahideen killed clerics and educated people because they were working within this political process with the Americans. Our people are poor and illiterate. Poverty undermines religious principles and people can become killers. They are told that killing a foreigner is not a sin."

By extension, killing a collaborator amounts to the same thing.

The Shia community was largely spared this internal agony. Shia militias never targeted their own elite on the same scale. With their demographic majority, Shias became the group in charge over time. They could outplay the Americans. For Sunnis it was different.

Bidawi met people from al-Qaida when they arrived in Falluja. He says he told them Iraqis knew better how to resist the Americans "but al-Qaida had an agenda of provoking civil war". He praises al-Sahwa (the Awakening Council), the movement of local tribal leaders who turned against al-Qaida, were paid by the Americans and, at least until last year, put al-Qaida on the defensive.

In November 2004, the Americans detained Bidawi's three sons on suspicion of working with the armed resistance. Two were released when the US assault was over but the elder one spent seven more months in captivity. Bidawi went to the Americans and pleaded for their release. "An American major told me their arrest might help me, and it was partly true," he says. It minimised suspicions that their father was a collaborator.

Although he feels almost everything is worse than under Saddam – unemployment, security, services – he wants the Americans to stay: "We don't have a strong enough army to defend Iraq. Turkish and Iranian planes violate our airspace. Who will help us?"

We meet in Falluja's dilapidated public library, sheltering from the ferocious 44C heat beside a flimsy fan. While we talk, two shots ring out, clearly very close. We take cover in a side room. Four more shots are heard. My driver is in the front yard and realises the shots were fired on the other side of the wall where street vendors have stalls. The last four shots came from police firing into the air to disperse onlookers. One of the first two shots had felled a policeman.

Senior police officers later give us three explanations of the incident: a policeman challenged a vendor for his licence, firing into the air and sending a second bullet into his own neck by accident. Explanation number two has the suspected illegal vendor shooting the policeman. Finally, we are told the vendor is a "terrorist" recently released from US custody. The family of one of his victims had gained a warrant for his arrest by the Iraqis. The shot policeman was trying to exercise it. In the fog of rival stories the only certainty is that a gunman escaped and a policeman is dead. Amid Iraq's continuing violence it is a lesson on the difficulty of discovering motives even for minor clashes.

On to Baghdad, where my trail takes me to a Shia mosque in a middle-class neighbourhood called al-Beyaa on the city's southern edge.

In western minds the dominant image of April 2003 is US marines pulling down Saddam's statue. For Iraqis, an equally dramatic sign of change and the imminent shift of power was the sight of more than a million Shias filling the highway to Kerbala on the annual pilgrimage to the shrine of their revered seventh-century Imam Hussein. Under Saddam pilgrims were forced to use side roads so as not to form potentially political crowds, and they were never shown on television.

Sheikh Mohammed al-Fadhli is one of the clerics I watched in April 2003, doing his best to end the looting in the occupation's early days. At a makeshift checkpoint outside the Ali al-Beyaa mosque his team were stopping and searching vehicles. Goods identified as stolen from government shops were returned. Food was stored in the mosque to be given to the poor.

Today high concrete walls shield the mosque from the main road and a largely Sunni district on the opposite side. The only entrance is guarded by Iraqi troops. But Fadhli says sectarian tensions have eased, many Sunnis have come home to Beyaa, and the militias have gone to ground.

What's the balance sheet of the last seven years, I ask. "This is a time of freedom and democracy," he says. "We used to be limited to holding prayers. Now we're free to give people advice and criticise the government. But there are negatives – sectarianism, civil war, the delay in forming a new government and the explosions. These have become less in recent years.

"Although the Iraqi army is not yet ready to protect us in terms of numbers, equipment and training, it's right for the US to leave," he says. "We want them to leave altogether at the end of next year."

The best protection from sectarian violence, he thinks, would be a strong and inclusive government, a coalition of Allawi's Sunni-supported party along with the two big Shia groups. "Tehran will accept that," he says. "The Iranians exert influence, they have an agenda, but they are not a threat." Saudi Arabia also wants to bring Iraq under its control, he adds.

I hear similar views from Raid Abdul Reda, an archaeologist at the Iraq Museum. I remember him fuming seven years ago after US troops refused to keep a tank outside the building to deter looters. "Yes," he says when I recall the episode, "I asked the American soldiers to chase the looters out and they came in and did, but when I urged them to stay on guard, they refused. 'We are army, not police,' they said. When they left, the robbers returned."

Sectarian violence forced most Sunnis out of Harir, his area of Baghdad. He is a Shia. Although he blames the murders and expulsions on the Mehdi army militias loyal to Moqtada al-Sadr, the nationalist cleric who became the most outspoken critic of the occupation, he voted for Sadr in March. Sadr had eventually persuaded the militias to halt their attacks on Sunnis. He is content with the US withdrawal: "It makes no difference. There were gunmen and explosions before the withdrawal. They will continue afterwards. We need a strong government like Saddam Hussein. We should make people afraid of government."

He blames the Americans for creating insecurity by disbanding the Iraqi army and police in 2003, dividing Iraqis into Sunni and Shia and helping them to turn on each other. He was not happy that the US toppled Saddam. "I expected the occupiers would destroy our country and our civilisation and the evidence is what happened to our museum," he says bitterly.

Like many Iraqis, he sees the country as a victim. "I feel nervous about the influence of Iran, Saudi Arabia, Turkey and Kuwait. They all want to see Iraq destabilised."

Paradoxically, one person who suffered a major family blow was among the least resentful towards the Americans. On a visit to Kadhimiya hospital in those early postwar days I came across five-year-old Ali Mustafa with a leg wound and bandages across his eyes. Playing outside, he had picked up an unexploded US cluster bomb and lost his sight when it detonated.

In the sectarian violence of 2006 his father lost his job in a government office because he could not get to work. The sound of gunfire and bombs terrified the small, blind child. The family left Baghdad for Amara in south-eastern Iraq.

On the phone Mustafa Ghalib, his father, tells me that life has improved since Saddam's time. "We feel freedom and democracy. Under Saddam we couldn't say what we thought, even in front of the family," he says. But the US troops have stayed long enough. "Security will improve when the US withdraws. The foreign forces caused many problems, including making my son blind."

In the narrative of the US military and the Republican party, the war in Iraq has been an American success, crowned by a surge of extra troops in 2007 that is said to have ended sectarian killing and defeated al-Qaida. As I go through my notes I realise that none of my Iraqi interviewees has mentioned the surge, let alone thanked the Americans.

When he sums up their seven-year endeavour in a speech from the Oval Office on Tuesday night, Barack Obama will no doubt be smart enough to find a way of praising US forces while not resiling from his opposition to the war and his criticism of the surge. He could steal the words of Enas Ibrahim, the Iraqi reporter who accompanied me on the trip to Tikrit.

At one point a vast convoy of armoured American trucks carrying containers and military hardware trundled southward in the opposite lane. "How do you feel when you see that?" I ask her.

"I feel happy for them," she answers. "They sacrificed a lot but Iraqis sacrificed more."

(www.guardian.co.uk)

Swiss fighter replacement faces further delays

2010-08-27T19:49:00.000-07:00

The Swiss government is to re-launch its fighter replacement programme and has postponed selecting a winner until after 2015, the Federal Department of Defence, Civil Protection and Sport (DDPS) confirmed to Jane's on 25 August.

The announcement comes less than a week after the DDPS said that it was moving ahead with the CHF2.2 billion (USD2.1 billion) programme and would be submitting its delayed report on the issue to the government in September. The report will be submitted next month as planned, according to a DDPS spokesperson, but the in-service date forecast for the fighters will now be 2020, nearly 10 years after they were first due to enter service.

When the competition to procure at least 22 modern combat aircraft to partially replace the air force's 54 Northrop F-5E/F Tiger II fighter fleet was first launched in January 2008, the winning aircraft was scheduled to enter service in time for the 2010-12 retirement date of the F-5s. This original timetable was put back in March 2009 for unspecified reasons and in December of that year the defence minister, Ueli Maurer, asked the Swiss Federal Council to delay the programme indefinitely so that funds could instead be diverted to the cash-strapped army.

The government will now launch the programme from scratch, according to the DDPS spokesperson.

(www.janes.com)

Fertile land the prize that could reignite ethnic conflict in DR Congo

2010-08-26T20:13:00.000-07:00

Leaving behind the mass of humanity that is Goma, the dirt road climbs steadily as it switchbacks through the emerald hills. Clear streams run in the valleys, and on the slopes both cows and vegetables grow fat from the lush grass and fertile soil.

For more than a decade North Kivu has been at the centre of the fighting in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo. Rebel groups' and foreign armies' lust for mineral riches is usually cited as one of the main causes of the war.

But high up in the vast Masisi territory on the Rwandan border, 50 miles and several hours' drive north-west of Goma, the riches are not under the ground. It is the land itself that is the greatest prize.

And now – after a reduction in open conflict, if not civilian suffering – tensions over land have again risen so high that local government officials and rebel groups say they could spark a new round of ethnic conflict.

The friction stems from the planned homecoming of 54,000 Congolese Tutsis, a minority group in eastern Congo, who have been living in camps across the border in Rwanda since the mid-1990s. The repatriation was agreed by the two countries and the UN refugee agency (UNHCR) earlier this year.

Aid groups questioned the decision, since military operations against rebels are continuing in North Kivu, and nearly 800,000 people remain internally displaced there. But for many local residents, who have been deeply mistrustful of Rwanda's Tutsi-led government since it first sent its army across the border in the late 1990s, the fears are not for the refugees' welfare, but their own.

They believe the refugee numbers have been vastly – and deliberately – exaggerated by Rwanda in an attempt to grab their land and to consolidate the local rule of the CNDP, a powerful Tutsi-dominated rebel group turned political party that controls more of North Kivu than the government.

The fears among ethnic groups such as the Hunde, Nande, Hutu and Nyanga are so strong that some civilians and militias "are arming themselves for when the Tutsis return to try to take their land", according to one senior government official in Masisi territory.

Meanwhile, the CNDP and Rwanda say the overall refugee figure is well over 100,000 when Congolese Tutsis living outside the camps are taken into account, adding to the confused – and highly combustible – situation.

"I can tell you for sure that if these returns happen now there will be catastrophe," said Jason Luneno, president of the civil society of North Kivu. "People say they will protect their land until the last drop of blood is spilled."

The Congolese Tutsis trace their history in North Kivu to before independence from Belgium in the 1960s, when their forebears crossed from Rwanda to escape famine and ethnic clashes, and adopted a new nationality.

But in 1994 the arrival in Congo of fleeing Hutu killers, who had tried to wipe out Rwanda's Tutsi population, caused many Congolese Tutsis to seek sanctuary back across the border when Paul Kagame's Tutsi rebel army had taken power and promised safety.

Since then, much of eastern Congo has been in crisis. The Hutu militiamen created a feared rebel group called the FDLR (Forces Democratiques de Liberation du Rwanda), which remains the major obstacle to stability in North Kivu.

In time, with backing from Rwanda, the CNDP emerged as a powerful – and wealthy – counterforce, with the stated aim of protecting local Tutsis.

Taxes and control of the illegal charcoal trade yielded – and continue to yield – millions of dollars a year, much of it channelled to powerful Rwandan political and army figures. The same elite also imported many of the cattle – or "vaches sans frontières" as locals describe them – that graze the pastures in Masisi.

Following a peace agreement with the Congolese government, CNDP forces were integrated into the Congolese national army last year. But they retained their command structures, and the party continues to run lucrative parallel administrations across much of North Kivu. Together with the Rwandan government, which claims there are tens of thousands more Congolese Tutsis living outside the camps in Rwanda, the party is leading the push for the refugees' return.

"The CNDP is following this closely: nothing should prevent our brothers from coming home," said Rutagarama Ntavutse, leader of the Tutsi community in North Kivu. "The refugees were cow farmers before they left, and had a lot of land. But now people have taken that land. That's why they don't want them back."

But leaders of non-Rwandophone communities in North Kivu tell a different story. Alexis Tussi, chief of the Osso district in Masisi, said many of the refugees who left his area in the 1990s had sold their farms beforehand, so they had no right to the land on their return.

He also claimed that the 54,000 figure used by UNHCR was impossibly high, based on the number of people that fled at the time.

Biiri Ngulu, the king of the Biiri district, further up the road, said that unknown people had recently arrived in his district from Rwanda, claiming to be Congolese refugees, yet they could not speak the local language and did not know the geography. Separate reports from the US-based Refugees International and Enough group earlier this year also mentioned cases of Rwandans falsely claiming to be returning Congolese – a phenomenon that has further raised suspicions among local people.

"War in Masisi always runs around land," Ngulu said. "So this can create another war."

During a heated meeting in Goma in July, designed to ease tensions, Rwandan, Congolese and UNHCR officials agreed that traditional leaders from North Kivu would be allowed to travel to the Rwandan camps to verify the refugees' claims of Congolese nationality.

Salif Kagni, the UNHCR's co-ordinator in eastern Congo, said that when repatriation did occur, it would be voluntary, and would take place only in areas that were considered safe.

But many wonder where is safe. This week reports emerged of a mass rape and assault against 150 women and children in a town in Walikale, where the FDLR is strong. The ongoing Operation Amani Leo (meaning Peace Today) by the Congolese army, backed by the UN, has succeeded in driving the Hutu rebels away from some of the more populated areas in most other parts of North Kivu.

But in numerous villages in Masisi territory, displaced people said they are still too afraid to go back to their homes.

In her hilltop office in Masisi town, territory administrator Marie-Claire Bangwene Mwavita said the area was still far from secure. The FDLR rebels were less than five miles away. Mai Mai rebel groups – community-based militias – were also a threat, as their integration into the national army had failed, she said.

Indeed, Didier Bitaki, spokesman for all the Mai Mai groups in Congo, warned that a formal repatriation of people from Rwanda would be extremely provocative – and dangerous. "These people [the refugees in Rwanda] are not Congolese. When they lived here they claimed they were Rwandan. Now they want to come back. Repatriation is impossible."

One area where the refugees might feel safe is the CNDP stronghold of Kitchanga, several hours' drive from Masisi. Government soldiers – mainly former CNDP rebels – man a roadblock at the town entrance. Others stroll around town with AK-47s and grenade launchers. Many of the non-Tutsi residents look on warily. The soldiers take food from farmers' fields, and force locals to carry heavy loads for them, according to residents. Now, many fear they will to lose their land if the refugees return with the CNDP's blessing.

"The soldiers even broke my window to frighten me," said Etienne Mabudnana, a district chief based in the town, pointing to a shattered pane. "If a chief can be frightened, what about the population?"

( www.guardian.co.uk )

Manila bus siege police ignored elite army unit's offer

2010-08-26T20:03:00.000-07:00

Police handling the armed siege of a tour bus in Manila on Monday made no use of an offer of help from a military squad trained in hostage negotiations. The Philippine capital's police chief told a Senate inquiry he believed his officers could handle the situation.

Eight tourists from Hong Kong were killed on board the bus after it was hijacked by a former policeman. President Benigno Aquino has promised that "someone will pay" for the "many failures" in the operation.

The police action has been officially criticised in Hong Kong, where a three minute silence was held on Thursday for the victims. Philippine Army spokesman Brig Gen Jose Mabanta told the Senate enquiry that a specialist squad had been available and ready to help police, after the bus with 15 tourists on board was hijacked by an armed former police officer demanding his job back.

The team was "highly-trained, highly-equipped" and had experience in hostage situations involving Abu Sayyaf Islamist militants in the southern Philippines, he said.

The offer of help was accepted by the police but the soldiers were never used, he added.

But Brig Gen Mabanta could not say for certain that the outcome would have been different had the police handed over control to the army.

Manila Police's Chief Superintendent, Rodolfo Magtibay, meanwhile told the enquiry he had "honestly believed" that his force's Special Weapons and Tactics (Swat) team was sufficiently able to deal with the situation.

'Many failures'

In his strongest statement yet on the siege, President Aquino said on Thursday: "Someone failed. Someone will pay."

People gathered on Hong Kong's waterfront to honour the eight killed in the hijack

He said there had been "many failures" in the operation but that it would be "unfair to pre-judge" the officers involved, according to the Associated Press.

Monday's siege ended when police marksmen shot and killed the hostage-taker, former Senior Inspector Rolando Mendoza.

Survivors and experts have criticised the police for being indecisive and slow in their handling of the crisis.

In the last hour of the siege, which was being broadcast live on television, police failed in an attempt to board the bus.

In Hong Kong, a sombre mourning service was held on Thursday as the bodies of the eight victims returned home.

Both city officials and the authorities in China have demanded a full enquiry into what went wrong.

Democratic Party legislator Emily Lau expressed disgust at the actions and said the people of Hong Kong people had lost confidence in the authorities in the Philippines to handle the crisis and its aftermath.

She said that if a better trained military team had been available then they should have used it, but that the decision was too late now.

( www.bbc.co.uk )

U.S. soldiers charged with conspiracy in killings of Afghans

2010-08-26T19:41:00.001-07:00

Five U.S. soldiers facing murder charges in the deaths of three Afghan civilians earlier this year have now been charged with "conspiracy to commit premeditated murder," and seven more soldiers have been charged in connection with the probe into the incidents.

The five facing murder charges are Pfc. Andrew Holmes of Boise, Idaho; Spc. Adam Winfield of Cape Coral, Florida; Spc. Michael Wagnon of Las Vegas, Nevada; Spc. Jeremy Morlock of Wasilla, Alaska; and Staff Sgt. Calvin Gibbs of Billings, Montana. They are from the 5th Stryker Brigade.

The alleged killings took place at or near Forward Operating Base Ramrod in southern Afghanistan's volatile Kandahar province.

In June, the five were charged with murder. Holmes was accused of killing Afghan civilian Gul Mudin in January with a grenade and rifle. Winfield is accused of killing civilian Mullah Adahdad in May in a similar manner. Wagnon is accused of shooting to death Marach Agha in February.

Morlock and Gibbs each were charged with three counts of murder and one count of assault involving the same victims as in the cases against Holmes, Wagnon and Winfield.

On Wednesday, the military added conspiracy and other additional charges against the five. Morlock, Holmes, and Winfield were charged with wrongfully using a Schedule I controlled substance.

Charges were also filed against seven other soldiers from the 5th Stryker Brigade, the military said Wednesday, but none involve murder or conspiracy to commit murder.

The seven are Staff Sgt. Robert Stevens, Sgt. Darren Jones, Cpl. Emmitt R. Quintal, Staff Sgt. David Bram, Pfc. Ashton A. Moore, Spc. Adam Kelly and Spc. Corey Moore.

All were charged with conspiracy-related and other charges.

Stevens and Ashton Moore were charged with conspiracy to commit aggravated assault with a dangerous weapon.

Jones was charged with conspiracy to commit assault and battery and conspiracy to commt aggravated assault with a dangerous weapon.

Quintal, Bram, Kelly and Corey Moore were charged with conspiracy to commit assault and battery.

Stevens was charged with wrongfully and wantonly engaging in conduct likely to cause death or bodily harm to other soldiers. Jones, Quintal, Bram, Kelley and Corey Moore were charged with unlawfully striking another soldier.

( www.cnn.com )

U.S. Warns Taliban Planning Attack on Aid Workers in Pakistan

2010-08-26T00:52:00.000-07:00

The Pakistani Taliban are planning to attack foreigners assisting in the aftermath of devastating floods in the country, a senior U.S. official warned Wednesday. "According to information available to the U.S. government, Tehrik-e-Taliban plans to conduct attacks against foreigners participating in the ongoing flood relief operations in Pakistan," the official told the BBC on condition of anonymity.

The Taliban "also may be making plans to attack federal and provincial ministers in Islamabad," the British broadcaster quoted the official as saying.

It is not yet clear what effect the terror warning will have on U.S. involvement in the relief efforts, but Pakistan has assured the U.S. it will press its campaign against insurgents inside its borders despite the extraordinary demands on the country's military from the floods, officials said.

The Tehrik-e-Taliban faction is a key architect of extremist violence that has left more than 3,500 dead in Pakistan over the last three years, according to AFP.

U.S. officials had previously said they had not encountered any hostilities in flying aid to stricken parts of the country.

The U.S. military official leading the American flood relief mission in Pakistan said he was confident that Islamabad would continue the fight but deflected questions about whether the pace or scope of its efforts might change.

Pakistan will maintain a "dedicated, committed struggle against violent extremism," Brig. Gen. Michael Nagata said.

Adm. Mike Mullen, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, said he worries the insurgents will take advantage of the flooding. Insurgent groups could benefit by providing aid that the central government cannot, or by launching attacks or widening their reach during a period when the Army is occupied elsewhere.

At least one of the Muslim charities involved in aid work is alleged to be a front for Lashkar-e-Taiba, a banned militant organization blamed for the 2008 attacks in Mumbai, India.

"There are millions who are affected right now in Pakistan, and the Pakistani military is heavily engaged in responding to the needs that are generated by these floods," Mullen said after an appearance in Chicago, Illinois. "In priorities right now, the Pakistani leadership, civil and military, as well as the Pakistani people, have to take care of the floods."

Other U.S. officials cautioned that Pakistan's army will be stretched thin by flood relief efforts for at least several more weeks.

The United States wants Islamabad to expand its pursuit of insurgents farther into North Waziristan, a border area next to Afghanistan often described as lawless. U.S. officials are hoping for assurances that Pakistan will not rule out that expansion because of the demands of flood relief.

Two U.S. officials spoke on condition of anonymity to describe the delicate military relationship with Islamabad.

On Tuesday, Marine Commandant Gen. James Conway said Pakistan's powerful Army chief, Gen. Ashfaq Pervez Kiyani, had warned him that the Army was preoccupied.

"The Pakistani leadership is consumed with responding to the aftermath of the flood disaster," Conway said at the Pentagon. Conway spoke a day after a trip that included a tour of flooded areas in Pakistan.

"Gen. Kiyani cautioned me that the involvement of his Army in the flood relief will for a time detract from their efforts to secure the Pakistani frontier," Conway said.

The United States has been the most generous contributor to the flood aid, rushing in emergency assistance to support a vital ally in the war against Al Qaida and the Taliban. But rebuilding Pakistan's devastated roads, power grid and other infrastructure will cost billions of dollars, and it is not certain where the money will come from.

The floods began almost a month ago with the onset of the monsoon and have ravaged much of the country, from the mountainous north through to its agricultural heartland. More than 8 million people are in need of emergency assistance, and more than 17 million have been affected.

The United Nations said some 800,000 people were trapped by the floods in areas accessible only by air. It said 40 more heavy-lift helicopters were urgently needed. The U.S. military has dispatched 19 choppers so far.

Nagata spoke to Pentagon reporters by video teleconference from Ghazi air base, where the United States is coordinating relief efforts.

He said U.S. troops are being received warmly in Pakistan, despite widespread anti-American sentiment there. He said there have been no threats or security problems for the approximately 230 U.S. troops involved in the aid effort.

A recent Pew Foundation poll found nearly six in 10 Pakistanis viewed the United States as an enemy; only one in 10 called it a partner.

( www.foxnews.com )

10 States Seek Waiver to Comply With Military Voting Law's Absentee Ballot Rules

2010-08-25T19:37:00.000-07:00

Armed insurgents provide quite enough for our fighting men and women overseas to worry about but this fall's jam-packed election calendar is also ambushing them. Ten states, Washington, D.C., and the Virgin Islands are all seeking waivers exempting them from complying with the new law -- the Move Act -- that requires all states to mail absentee ballots to overseas military voters 45 days before Election Day.

"The waiver process is kind of recognition, probably, that 2010 was going to be a transition year, that some states would have to do things like move their electoral calendar, which is not easy," said Chip Levengood of the Overseas Vote Foundation.

In Delaware, for example, primary day, Sept. 14, 47 days before Election Day, leaving not enough time for officials in Washington to certify a winner, print ballots and ship them to Mazar-I-Sharif fast enough to comply with the new law.

"It's been very clear that some of these states were not going to be in compliance with the Move Act a long time ago," said Eric Eversole, executive director of the Military Voter Protection Project. "And the Department of Justice, each step of the way, has simply not taken the actions to ensure that the Move Act would be implemented in each of the 50 states."

Sen. John Cornyn, R-Texas, who co-authored the Move Act, wrote Attorney General Eric Holder last month to complain that a top Justice Department official had called the law "fairly general" with some provisions "an open question."

"If a state is not in compliance with the statute," Cornyn wrote Holder, "there is little room for 'dialogue' or negotiation, and (the department's) Voting (Rights) Section should take immediate steps to enforce the law."

An assistant attorney general fired back four days later, writing to Cornyn, "The department (is) forming a team of attorneys to monitor state compliance with the act's requirements."

Despite repeated requests by Fox News, the Pentagon refused to make the officer charged with deciding on the 10 states' waiver requests -- Robert Carey, director of the Federal Voting Assistance Program -- available for an interview.

( www.foxnews.com )

Day of violence hits Iraqi cities

2010-08-25T19:32:00.000-07:00

Just after the United States completed its drawdown of combat brigades in Iraq, militants Wednesday launched a wave of bombings across the country, mostly targeting security forces.

At least 48 people died and at least 286 others were wounded in 13 cities. The locations included Baghdad, the capital, and large towns in the northern, western, and southern quadrants of the nation. The only region that appeared to be spared the onslaught was the three-province Kurdish autonomous region in the north.

Investigators don't yet know whether these strikes were coordinated, but a similar series of strikes that occurred in May bore the hallmarks of al Qaeda in Iraq. On that day, 85 people died and more than 300 others were wounded in coordinated shootings and bombings across six provinces.

"The fact that these events coincide with Ramadan only adds to extremists' desires to make a violent statement by murdering others and capturing the day's news," said Maj. Gen. Steve Lanza, the U.S. military spokesman in Iraq..

The latest attacks come as the number of U.S. troops in Iraq has now fallen below 50,000 -- the lowest level since the U.S-led invasion in 2003. The U.S.-led combat mission formally ends August 31, and the remainder of American troops will train, assist and advise the Iraqis.

But the American residual force -- comprising what is to be called Operation New Dawn on September 1 -- is combat-ready. While it has a different mission, it has the same capabilities as combat troops. If requested by the Iraqis, these soldiers can go into combat and can deploy these skills for self-defense.

All American troops are scheduled to pull out at the end of 2011, but the Iraqi government could request that some of them remain.

The departure of the U.S.-led combat mission is a seminal moment in a country that wants to see whether Iraqi police and soldiers can effectively handle the kind of insurgent activity that periodically erupts in this turbulent environment.

Overall violence in Iraq has declined considerably over the past two years compared with the height of the sectarian war between 2005 and 2007. But there has been a recent campaign of bombings and shootings in Baghdad targeting traffic police, Iraqi soldiers and local leaders, and tensions across the country have been exacerbated by a political crisis -- the failure of Iraqi lawmakers to form a government nearly six months after national elections.

"Today's attacks clearly involved planning by extremists, criminals and terrorists to take advantage of the ongoing frustrations of Iraqi people with the government impasse, as well as exploit the changing U.S. mission toward stability operations that takes effect Sept. 1," Lanza said.

Lanza also stressed that the Iraqi government needs to "form now."

Wednesday's attacks reflect the challenges the indigenous police and soldiers face. The deadliest strike occurred in the Wasit provincial capital of Kut, a city southeast of Baghdad. At least 20 people were killed and 90 others wounded when a car bomb targeted a police station.

A suicide car bomber hit a police station in northeast Baghdad, killing at least 15 people and wounding 57 others, the Interior Ministry said. The strike damaged the Qahira police station building and several buildings and houses nearby.

According to eyewitnesses at the scene of the Baghdad suicide attack at the police station, U.S. troops were there. Lt. Col. Eric Bloom, U.S. military spokesman for Baghdad, said American advisers and trainers and forensic support are available to Iraqi forces at their request. In this instance, an American adviser accompanied Iraqi forces, a practice that has been routine.

In Anbar province's capital of Ramadi, west of Baghdad, five people died and 13 were wounded when two car bombs exploded near a passport office. In Muqdadiya, in northern Diyala province, at least three people died and 18 others were wounded when a car bomb targeted an Iraqi police checkpoint.

A parked car bomb exploded in a busy street in the Allawi commercial area in central Baghdad, killing two civilians and wounding seven others.

In the holy Shiite city of Karbala, south of Baghdad, a car bomb targeting a police station killed one person and wounded 30 others. A roadside bomb explosion in central Falluja, west of Baghdad, targeted an Iraqi army patrol, killing one Iraqi soldier and wounding eight people, including three soldiers. In Kirkuk, the tense ethnically diverse city in the north, a car bomb targeted a police patrol, killing one person and injuring eight others.

Other attacks left people seriously injured.

A car bomb exploded outside Dujail police station just north of Baghdad and wounded 20 people, including five police officers.

At least 13 people were wounded in Tikrit in a double roadside bomb attack that targeted an Iraqi Army patrol. They were five soldiers, six civilians and two policemen.

A bomb explosion outside a police station in central Basra in the country's south wounded 10 people. The chief of Facility Protection Services in Samarra was seriously hurt when two bombs went off in quick succession as his convoy passed by in the northern city. The service is in charge of providing security protection to government institutions.

In Baghdad, three roadside bombs exploded, and eight people were wounded, including three soldiers.

In Mosul, in the north, a suicide bomber driving a car tried to attack an Iraqi army security checkpoint but security forces shot and detonated the car. In the Diyala province town of Buhriz, in the north, bombs left outside five homes wounded at least four people, police said. Four policemen and an electoral commission official lived in the dwellings.

The violence underscores the anxiety in Iraq over the tenacity of the insurgents and the progress of the Iraqi security forces.

Lanza said that Iraqi security forces have shown "an enormous will and ability to take on extremists, criminals and terrorists" and are "fully committed and determined" to protect Iraqis.

"The ISF took a blow, but they are not on the ropes and will meet these challenges head on. They are not being pushed out of neighborhoods and are not giving up an inch of ground. When attacked, they take control of the situation and regain immediate security of the area."

Lanza said the military has reiterated "that attacks were likely to occur during this period" and that's "why our top priority in our ongoing role of advising, training and assisting the Iraqi security forces through 2011 is improving their overall operational capabilities."

"Rooting out these extremist, criminal and terrorist cells will remain a top priority for both our ongoing assistance mission and our support for partnered counter-terrorism operations in the months ahead," Lanza said. "There is still difficult work to be done here. This is why we are staying committed in Iraq with a significant military capability to advise, train and assist Iraqi security forces until our mission ends in December of 2011."

Analysts warn that the Iraqi conflict will be persistent for years. Anthony Cordesman, a national security analyst at the Center for Strategic and International Studies, wrote last week that the conflict "is not over" and "is at as critical a stage as at any time since 2003." Iraq, he says, continues to grapple with a "serious insurgency," ethnic tension and great economic challenges.

"Regardless of the reasons for going to war, everything now depends on a successful transition to an effective and unified Iraqi government, and Iraqi security forces that can bring both security and stability to the average Iraqi. The creation of such an 'end state' will take a minimum of another five years, and probably ten," he wrote.

( www.cnn.com )

Militants Storm Hotel in Somali Capital, Kill 32

2010-08-24T20:26:00.000-07:00

MOGADISHU, Somalia -- A homicide bomber and gunmen wearing military uniforms attacked a hotel near Somalia's presidential palace Monday, sparking a running gun battle with security forces. At least 32 people were killed, including six Somali parliamentarians.

A parliamentarian who was at the Muna Hotel said there were "dead bodies all over" and he labeled the scene a massacre.

The multi-pronged assault came less than 24 hours after the country's most dangerous militant group -- al-Shabab -- threatened a "massive" war against what it labeled as invaders, a reference to the 6,000 African Union troops in Mogadishu.

The attack on the Muna Hotel raised the two-day toll to at least 70 people, a high number even by Mogadishu's violent standards. Fighting that rocked Mogadishu on Monday killed 40 people, health officials said.

Somalia's deputy prime minister told The Associated Press that 19 civilians, six members of parliament, five security forces and two hotel workers were killed in the attack -- a total of 32.

Two attackers also were killed, said Abdirahman Haji Aden Ibi, the deputy prime minister. A government statement said 31 people were killed.

An 11-year-old shoe shine boy and a woman selling tea in front of the hotel were among the dead, African Union spokesman Maj. Barigye Bahoku said.

A parliamentarian who was at the hotel when the attack occurred said he had seen at least 20 bodies lying in the corridor of the hotel, including one dead member of parliament. The parliamentarian spoke on condition of anonymity because of fear for his safety.

He said the homicide bomber blew himself up near the reception and then gunmen stormed the hotel, setting off a gun battle that lasted about an hour.

Sheik Ali Mohamud Rage, a spokesman for the al-Shabab militia, said that members of the group's "special forces" had carried out the attack against those "aiding the infidels."

Militant veterans of the Iraq and Afghanistan wars are believed to be helping train members of al-Shabab, which has links to al-Qaida. Tuesday's assault is only the latest in a series of increasingly lethal attacks. Last month the group claimed responsibility for twin bombings during the World Cup final in Uganda's capital, blasts that killed 76 people.

Al-Shabab said the attack was in retaliation for Uganda's role in the African Union force in Mogadishu.

( www.foxnews.com )

Moldovan authorities seize smuggled uranium

2010-08-24T19:48:00.000-07:00

Officials in Moldova seized 1.8 kilograms (about 4 pounds) of smuggled uranium and arrested three of seven suspects, an interior ministry spokesman said Tuesday.

Tipped off in early July, authorities discovered the Uranium 238, known as yellowcake, in a garage in the former Soviet republic's capital of Chisinau on July 20, said Kirill Motspan, director of the ministry's press office.

The smugglers were trying to traffic the uranium with an intent to sell it for more than $11 million. Authorities are still trying to determine the uranium's origin -- Moldova does not produce uranium -- and its intended destination.

However, yellowcake -- a coarse, poisonous powder that gets its name for its often yellow color -- cannot be used to make a nuclear bomb.

It is the most commonly occurring found form of uranium and is not a fissile substance, meaning that it must be enriched in an "elaborate set-up" before it can be used for nuclear weapons, said Xiachun He, a professor of nuclear physics at Georgia State University in the United States.

The uranium 238 alone is not even potent enough to make an effective dirty bomb, the physicist said, since the level of radiation would be too low once scattered as dust.

Motpan said it was his understanding that 1 kilo of uranium costs $6.3 million on the black market and that is what the smugglers were expecting to get.

"Apparently, you can't make anything serious out of this modest amount of radioactive material," Motpan said. "But they were actively looking for a customer."

Acting as buyers, undercover policemen acquired less than one gram of the substance and sent it to the United States for analysis, which confirmed that it was uranium 238, he said.

Motpan also said that along with the uranium, the Moldovan police also discovered a cache with a Makarov pistol, 620 cartridges for a Kalashnikov assault rifle, an F-1 hand grenade, car license plates, Soviet passports, and other documents in the same garage.

Yellowcake became a frequently heard term just before the 2003 invasion of Iraq. The United States and the United Kingdom asserted that Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussein had been trying to procure yellowcake from Niger to make weapons of mass destruction.

Then-President George W. Bush used that claim to bolster support for the war though critics, including diplomat Joseph Wilson, who had published an article about a CIA investigation, said Bush was exaggerating the Iraqi threat.

Motpan said a German atomic center will perform an expert analysis of the seized uranium to establish the enrichment percentage and the country of origin. The radioactive material has been placed in a special container and is under guard.

"We are expecting more information coming out of Russia, Romania and some other countries that can shed light onto this case and those suspects," he said.

( www.cnn.com )

US general: Afghan deadline 'giving enemy sustenance'

2010-08-24T19:44:00.000-07:00

General James Conway said troops in southern Afghanistan were likely to have to remain for a few years. A senior US general has warned President Barack Obama's deadline to begin pulling troops out of Afghanistan is encouraging the Taliban.

US General James Conway, head of the US Marine Corps, said the deadline was "giving our enemy sustenance". Gen Conway warned that US forces in southern Afghanistan will likely have to stay in place for several years.

His comments are likely to fuel debate over US strategy in Afghanistan and Mr Obama's July 2011 withdrawal date.

US administration officials say privately they are not surprised to hear the comments from the general, who, correspondents say, has typical US Marine Corps bluntness - and is also about to retire.

'Intercepted communications'

Gen Conway, who just returned from Afghanistan, said he is concerned the date may signal to the Taliban that the US was preparing to wind down the war.

"In some ways we think right now it's probably giving our enemy sustenance. We think that he may be saying to himself, in fact we've intercepted communications that say, 'Hey, we only have to hold out for so long,'" Gen Conway told a Pentagon news conference.

"I honestly think it will be a few years before conditions on the ground are such that turnover will be possible for us," he said of Marines in the southern provinces of Helmand and Kandahar.

The BBC's Nick Childs says the statements made by the general highlight the manner in which American political and military leaders continue to differ about how fast security can be handed over to the Afghan authorities.

General Conway said that Afghan units "somewhere" may be able to take the lead in security, but not in the south, which the general called the "birthplace" of the Taliban insurgency.

The White House said on Tuesday the president planned to review the Afghan war in December.

"So we're still on the path that the president laid out," said deputy national security adviser John Brennan.

President Obama and his supporters defend the deadline as a way of pushing Afghan leaders to act quickly to take charge of their security.

But General Conway said Taliban foot soldiers would likely suffer a blow to morale after July 2011 passes with no dramatic departure of American forces, "and come the fall we're still there hammering them like we have been".

Foreign troops fighting the Taliban operate under US and Nato command and are supporting Kabul's Western-backed government against a Taliban-led insurgency that has gained strength in recent years.

Attacks from Islamist insurgents have increased on Nato-led forces in Helmand and Kandahar as troops have attempted to secure Taliban strongholds in the region.

The general told the news conference that 30,000 US troops arrived on the ground in Afghanistan earlier this month, putting the number of US troops close to 100,000.

He spoke a day after the US general incharge of training Afghan forces played down prospects for a major transfer of security duties for another year at least.

US Defence Secretary Robert Gates has suggested any troop reduction after mid-2011 would be modest.

( www.bbc.co.uk )

Iran unveils long-range bombing drone

2010-08-24T00:12:00.000-07:00

Iran unveiled the first long-range military drone manufactured in the country on Sunday, state media reported. The unmanned aerial vehicle is capable of carrying out bombing missions against ground targets and flying long distances at a high speed, Press TV said.

Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad attended the unveiling of the drone, dubbed the "Karrar," in a ceremony marking Iran's Defense Industry Day.

In February, Iran inaugurated the production line for two types of drones with bombing and reconnaissance capabilities, the semiofficial Fars news agency reported.

Iran has manufactured its own tanks, armored personnel carriers, missiles and fighter planes since 1992, according to Press TV.

The country successfully tested a radar-evading drone with bombing capabilities in June 2009, Press TV said.

In March 2009, U.S. military officials said U.S. fighter jets in Iraq shot down an unmanned Iranian spy drone aircraft.

At the time, most major state-run media outlets in Iran did not carry news of any incident involving an Iranian drone and Iraq's national security adviser declined to comment.

Unmanned vehicles have become a staple of modern combat.

U.S. military officials have said remotely-controlled drones minimize risk and allow troops to spy on and attack enemy combatants.

Ahead of the drone's unveiling, Iran's defense minister said the country's military planned to reveal a project of "great importance" on Sunday, according to state-run Press TV.

"Iran's defense capability has reached a point which does not need any aid from other countries," Defense Minister Brig. Gen. Ahmad Vahidi said, according to the semiofficial Iranian Students News Agency.

It is not clear whether the unveiling of the long-range drone was the announcement he was referring to.

Vahidi's announcement Saturday came as Iran began fueling its first nuclear energy plant in the southern city of Bushehr, the nation's state media reported.

Press TV said the effort will help the country create nuclear-generated electricity.

But some Western nations have questioned whether the nuclear fuel will be used solely for electricity, suggesting that Iran would eventually try to enrich uranium on its own, providing material for nuclear weapons.

The United States has questioned Iran's motives in continuing to enrich uranium within its borders.

"Russia is providing the fuel, and taking the fuel back out," White House spokesman Robert Gibbs said earlier this month.

"It, quite clearly, I think, underscores that Iran does not need its own enrichment capability if its intentions, as it states, are for a peaceful nuclear program," he said.

Iran has maintained all along that the site will produce energy, but the United States and some other international observers remain unconvinced.

Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov, speaking to Russian reporters in the Black Sea resort of Sochi on Wednesday, brushed off Western concerns about the Bushehr facility, calling it "the most important anchor holding Iran to the nonproliferation regime," according to the Russian news agency RIA-Novosti.

( www.cnn.com )

Deadly blast at Pakistan mosque

2010-08-23T23:54:00.000-07:00

At least 24 people have been killed and 25 injured in a bombing at a mosque in the Pakistani tribal region of South Waziristan, officials say. The blast occurred in the bazaar area of the region's main town of Wana.

Among those killed was a former member of Pakistan's National Assembly, Maulvi Noor Mohammad, officials say. South Waziristan is at the centre of fighting between Pakistani forces and the Taliban, though Wana falls outside the area of the army's campaign.

Mr Mohammad was greeting members of the congregation outside the mosque when the attack happened.

Officials in Wana told the BBC it was carried out by a suicide bomber who walked up to Mr Mohammad and detonated his explosives as they shook hands.

Al-Qaeda link?

The former parliamentarian was a strong pro-Taliban voice and had written several books on jihad which are popular with the region's militants, says the BBC's Syed Shoaib Hasan in Pakistan's capital, Islamabad.

He also ran several bookstores and hospitals in the region.

Maulvi Mohammad recently fell foul of al-Qaeda after Pakistan's security forces killed three of the group's militants in a raid on one of his hospitals.

The militants subsequently threatened to kill him after accusing him of providing information to the authorities.

Though Wana does not fall into the part of South Waziristan where the Pakistan army has recently been conducting operations against militants, Western officials say it serves as a safe haven for the Taliban and al-Qaeda.

It is controlled by Taliban commander Maulvi Nazir, one of the key insurgent commanders in eastern Afghanistan.

Earlier in the day at least seven people were killed in a separate explosion at a tribal council in the Kurram district of north-western Pakistan, close to the Afghan border.

The district is one of the few in Pakistan or Afghanistan where local tribal militias have been able to defeat the Taliban, says our Islamabad correspondent.

( www.bbc.co.uk )

Why Obama's Iraq plan will not change

2010-08-23T23:43:00.000-07:00

The president has already reaffirmed his commitment to the agreement reached by President George W Bush with the Iraqi government - that all US troops would be gone by the end of 2011.

"We will maintain a transitional force until we remove all our troops from Iraq by the end of next year," he said on 2 August.

He also re-stated his own campaign commitment that "by August 31st, 2010, America's combat mission in Iraq [will] end."

It is unlikely, therefore, that he will change this policy. It was well received by the audience of veterans to whom he spoke. It was announced after consultation with US commanders in Iraq.

Nevertheless, the comment by the Iraqi commander, Lt Gen Babaker Zebari, is something of an embarrassment to the administration because it raises doubts that will have to be quashed by events that are, to an extent, unpredictable.

Gen Zebari said: "At this point the withdrawal is going well, because they [US troops] are still here. But the problem will start after 2011. The politicians must find other ways to fill the void after 2011. If I were asked about the withdrawal, I would say to politicians: 'The US army must stay until the Iraqi army is fully ready in 2020.'"

This is not what the general apparently thought in January 2007 (that is, before the surge) when he was chief of staff. During a visit to the US military he reportedly said that most American troops could leave by 2008. Maybe he has been chastened by the top command and, as a former Kurdish guerrilla commander, he knows that military situations ebb and flow, and call for constant adjustments.

Nothing short of civil war

But adjustment is not what President Obama wants. There are no detailed benchmarks for the US withdrawal, unlike the conditions set for the surge in US troops in 2007.

The withdrawal is not benchmark-led. It is based on the domestic political requirements in the US and on assessments that it can work.

The only situation to challenge it would be civil war. Increased violence in terms of bombings and shootings will not stop it.

But there is no doubt that many US observers are worried, especially at the failure of political leaders to form a government after the elections back in March.

Ken Pollack, a former CIA analyst and Clinton administration official (and supporter of the war against Iraq in 2003), said at the Brookings Institution in July: "The big question mark out there is the Iraqi political process.

"Right now I am concerned that by December 2011... the Iraqi political process will not be stable or mature enough to handle a complete withdrawal of US troops.

"The insurgents really are flat on their backs. They can kill people here and there, but they can't mobilise enough force to really threaten one of the other communities. I suspect that the military will be able to keep the insurgency at this level if the political process makes progress. But that is the key."

There are some hopes that the political deadlock might be resolved soon. The outgoing US Ambassador, Christopher Hill, said on Wednesday: "Things may be heading in the right direction."

'Dangerous tasks' remain

Between the end of August this year and the end of December next year, US forces (50,000 of them, at least to start with) will still be in Iraq. And their mission will in fact still include combat, as President Obama indicated in his speech.

"During this period, our forces will have a focused mission - supporting and training Iraqi forces, partnering with Iraqis in counter-terrorism missions, and protecting our civilian and military efforts," he said. "These are dangerous tasks."

Note that the language is carefully chosen. It is not that the troops are ending "combat", it is that their combat "mission" has changed. No wonder that the president also warned: "The hard truth is we have not seen the end of American sacrifice in Iraq."

( www.bbc.co.uk )

Spanish hostages freed by al-Qaeda in North Africa

2010-08-23T23:12:00.000-07:00

Two Spanish aid workers kidnapped nine months ago by al-Qaeda's North African offshoot have been released in Mali. They stopped in Burkina Faso's capital of Ouagadougou, en route to Barcelona, where they arrived early on Tuesday.

Roque Pascual and Albert Vilalta were seized by militants from al-Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb (AQIM) in Mauritania last November. "This has been 268 days of suffering for them and their families," Spain's PM Jose Luis Rodriguez Zapatero said.

A female colleague seized with the men, Alicia Gamez, was set free in March.

Their kidnappers had reportedly demanded a $5m (£3.2m) ransom for Mr Pascual, 50, and Mr Vilalta, 35. It is unclear if any payment was made, and the Spanish government refused to comment on reports that it had paid a ransom.

'Happy and moved'

The two men arrived in Barcelona in the early hours of Tuesday morning. Mr Vilalta was walking with the help of a crutch, after sustaining bullet wounds in one leg when he tried to escape on the day of their capture.

Smiling and waving to friends and supporters, Mr Vilalta said: "Now we are free and I'm very happy and very moved."

Speaking of their kidnappers, he added: "They have treated us well - we have lived like they have, we've eaten like they have, we've slept like they have. But it was very hard in the middle of the desert, they are used to it, but we're not."

"For the rest of my life I will try to make up to you what I put you through," said Mr Pascual, as he waved a fist in the air.

Both men thanked the Spanish government for its diplomatic efforts to secure their release.

Extradition

The release "puts an end to a terrorist action which should never have happened," Mr Zapatero told a news conference.

He said their families were travelling with the Secretary of State for Co-operation, Soraya Rodriguez, to meet them. The organisation for whom they worked, Barcelona-Accio Solidaria, said they were due back in Spain on Monday night.

The prime minister did not give details of the men's release, but it came just days after Omar Ould Sid Ahmed Ould Hama, a Malian militant who was sentenced in Mauritania for kidnapping the Spaniards, was extradited back to his home country - something that AQIM had reportedly demanded.

Al-Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb emerged in early 2007, after an Algerian militant group, the Salafist Group for Preaching and Combat (GSPC), aligned itself with Osama Bin Laden's international terror network.

It has waged a campaign of suicide bomb attacks and ambushes in Algeria, and in recent years has become more active in the Sahara, where governments struggle to impose their authority and gangs of smugglers, bandits and rebels operate alongside the militants.

Last month, the group said it had killed Michel Germaneau, a 78-year-old French hostage being held in Mali, after a cross-border raid involving French and Mauritanian troops failed to free him.

AQIM also killed the British hostage, Edwin Dyer, last year after the UK government refused to give in to its demands.

( www.bbc.co.uk )