NTM 1249 | NewTrendMag.org

NewTrendMag.org News # 1249 [ Click on NEWS for back issues ][ OUR BOOKS ]

Dr Kaukab Siddique | Editor-in-Chief

Zulqi'dah 18,1429/ November 17, 2008, #58

Think about it: You can do much good in America as a Muslim if you are a good neighbor, respect women, offer greetings to all, don't speed or tailgate, dress modestly, don't take liquor, cigarettes or drugs, don't use bad language, speak against crime and drugs, help young people in a variety of ways, visit the sick, condemn high intererest rates, stay away from fornication, adultery and homosexuality, and let people know that you are a Muslim. [All this is based on the Hadith of Prophet Muhammad, pbuh.]

Shocking upsurge of the wars in Iraq, Afghanistan and Pakistan [ignored by U.S. media]. Please scroll all the way down. [For adults only].

AFRICA [2 items]
Islamic Victory in Somalia

On November 12, the Islamists seized Merka, a strategic port 90 km (55 miles) southwest of Mogadishu used by the U.N. World Food Programme for food aid deliveries, giving al Shabaab its closest foothold yet to Mogadishu.
Al Shabaab have rejected the U.N.-negotiated pact to set up a power-sharing administration between the government and some "moderate" opposition figures, and ignored a ceasefire

NIGER
One of the richest countries in the world Niger [not to be confused with Nigeria] has uranium but it is owned by France. The people are extremely poverty stricken and European missionaries are busy trying to undermine Islam, the religion of the entire population. [In the prelude to the Iraq war, Bush claimed that Saddam was getting uranium from Niger, which was impossible owing to French ownership.]

Personal: from Kaukab Siddique
Major Pakistani Secularist Paper Attacks Dr. Siddique's Khutba: Claims to Know America better!

Pakistani secularists never fail to amaze me. The daily Dawn, published from Karachi, Pakistan, is their last refuge from the aspirations of the Pakistani people. Compared to Pakistan's Urdu language newspapers like Nawa-e-waqt, Ummat, Jasarat, khabrain and Ausaf, it provides little in depth information and often seems to be a poor copy of American newspapers at least in its content. One of the luminaries of the daily Dawn is a character named Irfan Hussain. In his column published on November 8 [titled "Only in America"], he quoted a summary of one of my khutbas and expressed shock [and some awe] at its contents.

Peculiar to the secularist arrogance is Irfan Hussain's stance that though he lives in Pakistan and I in America, he knows more about America than I do. In fact he bears clownish resemblance to some of my secularized relatives in that when I visit Pakistan, they want to tell me all about America much to my merriment and their surprise.

Irfan Hussain thinks I am a fundamentalist and must, therefore, be opposed to democracy. America, for him, is the greatest country in the world, and Obama's election is symbolic of this greatness. I don't want to be unkind to Mr. Hussain. Perhaps he does not know that I teach at America's oldest Black college and have taught generations of young Black men and women. [By the way, Mr. Hussain, I am an Associate Professor of English and Mass Communication and have a Ph.D from one of Canada's most prestigious universities.]

I know how the election process works in America. It is certainly not democratic. In Chomsky's language, consent is manufactured in America and the electorate is literally bought at a very high price. America has helped me to realize that Islam is the only transformative power in the world today. In fact Islam has saved millions of Americans, including large numbers of women, from neurosis, psychosis and self-hatred.

Mr. Hussain does not understand why I teach U.S. Muslims to stay outside the power structure. It's not because I hate America. This is Allah's land [like all other lands], so how can we hate America? The issue is that the poison of Zionism has entered the American body politic and taken away all that was good in it. Were it not for millions of hard working Americans, this country would collapse. Like a blinded cyclops, it tries to destroy the countries of the Muslim world because it could not catch those who raided it on 9.11 and are now beyond its reach. One cannot change corruption by becoming a part of it.

Islam is already shaping American politics by resisting American military power in Iraq, Afghanistan and Pakistan and by defying Zionism in occupied Palestine. Malcolm X understood before anyone else that America only changes in the face of resistance overseas. Martin Luther King tried hard to change this country from within but without the military failure in Vietnam, the road would have been much longer. Irfan Hussain does not know Malcolm X [and I suspect that he does not know Imam Hussain, r.a.,either]. He sees America as a land of milk and honey where Pakistani immigrants come to become millionaires. He does not know what is in the belly of the beast where a blind Hafize Qur'an resists the blandishments of a superpower and its lackeys.

I teach that we should help the masses of Americans who do not want this system and are in fact its victims. For me the home of a poor American who is honest is more important than the White House.

Our America

Historic Documentation lest we forget why it happened.

'Iraq Was Invaded to Secure Israel,' Says Senator Hollings
By Mark Weber
July 16, 2004

When a prominent American political figure speaks boldly about Jewish-Zionist power, that's news. So the remarks by South Carolina's senior Senator in May 2004 that Iraq was invaded "to secure Israel," and that "everybody" in Washington knows it, are indeed remarkable.
Ernest "Fritz" Hollings, a Democrat who has represented his state in the US Senate since 1966, is now serving his final term in Washington. That fact may also help explain why he's now willing to defy the pro-Israel lobby and speak candidly about its power.
It began with an essay, headlined "Bush's Failed Mideast Policy is Creating More Terrorism," which appeared in the Charleston daily Post and Courier, May 6, 2004.
"With Iraq no threat, why invade a sovereign country?," he wrote. "The answer: President Bush's policy to secure Israel. Led by [Paul] Wolfowitz, Richard Perle and Charles Krauthammer, for years there had been a domino school of thought that the way to guarantee Israel's security is to spread democracy in the area."
Several Zionist organizations, as well as some prominent Jewish political figures, quickly chastised Hollings, and his remarks were denounced as anti-Semitic.
But he didn't back down. Instead, he rose in the Senate on May 20 to defend and explain his essay.
"I don't apologize for this column," he said. "I want them to apologize to me for talking about anti-Semitism." President Bush went to war in Iraq "to secure our friend, Israel" and "everybody knows it," Hollings declared.
Referring to the cowardly reluctance of his Congressional colleagues openly to acknowledge this reality, he said that "nobody is willing to stand up and say what is going on." With few exceptions, members of Congress uncritically support Israel and its policies due to "the pressures that we get politically," he said. The pro-Israel lobby knows "how to make you tuck tail and run." But "not the Senator from South Carolina," he added, referring to himself. To emphasize the seriousness of his remarks, Hollings said: "I have thought this out as thoroughly as I know how, and it worries me that here we are..."
Bush's motive in going to war for Israeli interests, Hollings charged, was to get Jewish support in election campaigns. "President Bush came to office imbued with one thought: reelection. I say that advisedly. I have been up here with eight Presidents. We have had support of all eight Presidents. Yes, I supported the President on this Iraq resolution, but I was misled. There weren't any weapons, or any terrorism, or al-Qaida. This is the reason we went to war. He had one thought in mind, and that was reelection...
"That is not a conspiracy. That is the policy. I didn't like to keep it a secret, maybe; but I can tell you now, I will challenge any one of the other 99 Senators to tell us why we are in Iraq, other than what this policy is here. It is an adopted policy, a domino theory of The [Zionist] Project For The New American Century. Everybody knows it [is] because we want to secure our friend, Israel...
"Let's realize we are in real trouble. Saudi Arabia is in trouble. Israel is in trouble. The United States is in trouble. I am going to state what I believe to be the fact. In fact, I believe it very strongly. They just are whistling by on account of the pressures that we get politically. Nobody is willing to stand up and say what is going on."
Hollings cited the role of the American Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC), the most important pro-Israel lobby group in Washington, in determining US policy in the Middle East. "You can't have an Israel policy other than what AIPAC gives you around here. I have followed them mostly in the main, but I have also resisted signing certain letters from time to time, to give the poor President a chance.
"I can tell you no President takes office -- I don't care whether it is a Republican or a Democrat — that all of a sudden AIPAC will tell him exactly what the policy is, and Senators and members of Congress ought to sign letters. I read those carefully and I have joined in most of them. On some I have held back. I have my own idea and my own policy..."
The Iraq war has been "a bad mistake," said Hollings. "Getting rid of Saddam was not worth almost 800 dead GIs and over 3,500 maimed for life..." This war is "a mistake like Vietnam," he added. "We got misled with the [1964] Gulf of Tonkin [incident]. We got misled here, and we are in that quagmire...
"The entire thing is a mess. Don't give me 'support the troops, support the troops.' I have been with troops, about three years in combat, so don't tell me about troops. I have always supported the troops."

Source: Remarks by Ernest F. Hollings, May 20, 2004. Congressional Record - Senate, May 20, 2004, pages S5921-S5925. See also: Iraq: A War For Israel .

Editorial by Kaukab Siddique: Nov.17, 2008
Americans are in for a Rude Awakening during the Barack Obama Presidency: War will Continue and Spread: Economy will Go Down.

Nuri al-Maliki's clique was installed in Baghdad through "elections" carried out under the shadow of American tanks. No law in the world can justify this regime. Its weakness is now coming out as the so-called mandate for U.S. troops in Iraq is near running out on December 31. [How this "mandate" was obtained is illegitimate too because the UN opposed the invasion of Iraq. Later, faced with a fait accompli, it submitted to the U.S. diktat.]

The al-Maliki clique is now saying that the U.S. military forces should stay in Iraq for AT LEAST THREE MORE YEARS, till the end of 2011. The clique is sounding flustered because the U.S. is giving indications that it will stay PERMANENTLY even after 2011. Maliki is putting up a show of "independence" by asking for permission to try American soldiers under Iraqi law if they commit serious outrages, as they are liable to do. The U.S. is against that "right."

Moqtada al-Sadr is putting up a show too, under Iranian influence, giving the impression that he wants the U.S. forces OUT NOW which is ridiculous given the Shi'ite inability to fight American forces. In fact the U.S. does not bother to stop grand demonstrations by Muqtada's people. Some of Muqtada's men have hooked up directly with Iran much to his [and the U.S.'s] chagrin. The Iranians want to play an important role in Iraq and have invested more than a BILLION dollars in al-Maliki's regime, according to Iranian foreign minister Mottaki. Iran is America's rival in the Shi'a population but certainly not its enemy.

Most observers agree that ONE THIRD of Iraq, including, surprisingly, parts of Baghdad, are in the hands of the Islamic movement known as al-Qaidah in Iraq.This includes Diyala province, Mosul and parts of Anbar. Most of Anbar is under Ba'athist control run by Ibrahim al-Duri, shaheed Saddam Hussain's most trusted and most Islamic lieutenant. Parts of Kurdish areas too are under control and/or influence of Islamic Kurdish groups sympathetic to al-Qaidah.

The U.S. has trained, funded and armed tens of thousands of Shi'ites and used them to decimate the support base of the resistance in the Baghdad area. Among the Sunnis too, after Sunni cities were reduced to rubble, collaborators were picked up, heavily funded and heavily armed by the U.S. to fight al-Qaidah. [This much has come out that more than 80% of al-Qaidah in Iraq is Iraqi, with 20% coming from Arab and African countries as well as a few from Afghanistan, Uzbekistan and Chechnya].

So what of Obama's 16 month withdrawal plan [which would be the end of June 2010]? Firstly it is a violation of the public demand for immediate withdrawal. Secondly it is impossible because the DEMOCRATIC PARTY [Obama's party] has already okayed the funding of the war for the coming years. Unless Obama has a magic trick up his sleeve, there will only be small token withdrawals from Iraq.

Obama is more gung ho than Bush about putting more troops into AFGHANISTAN. He will probably use his popularity in Europe to have more NATO forces sent into Afghanistan. If past history is any help, this mass occupation of an Islamic land by Anglo-American forces will result in the mobilization of resistance in Afghanistan. Forces hostile to the Taliban could join the Taliban if NATO continues its occupation under Obama's pressure. Our observers say that Afghans have enough resilience to accept losses inflicted by the Anglo-American juggernaut to bring about the final decline and fall of America as they did with the Soviet Union. Remember that the USSR inflicted heavier losses, proportionately, on Afghanistan than Germany did on the USSR during World War II.

Obama's biggest coup would be to capture or kill Osama bin Laden and Ayman al-Zawahiri, the symbols of worldwide Islamic resistance. Obama is convinced that they are in Pakistan. War is already raging in Pakistan to destroy their support base. Pakistani Taliban are not battle trained or battle hardened and are suffering heavy casualties as the Pakistani military advances and hits them with its maximum fire power. Entire populations are being displaced by Pakistan's military operations led by General Kayani. If the Pakistani military could destroy Jamia Hafsa and Lal Masjid right in the heart of Pakistan, what can stop it from desecrating all the holy places of Islam, mosques, medressas, homes, in the far away remoteness of Waziristan, Bajaur and Swat?

The Pakistani military is trying to buy Pakistani tribal opponents of the Taliban [the most backward sections of society] as well as Shi'ite tribes which see the majority of Muslims as "sectarians." At a certain future, the Pakistani military will hit the tipping point where all the Islamic groups will have to fight it or accept American hegemony. It is very difficult for Pakistanis living in Lahore, Karachi and Multan too see the Pakistan army as the tool of kufr and Israel. But once that point is reached, groups like Jamaate Islami and Jamaat ad-Da'wa will have to make some hard decisions. Even naive groups like Tablighi Jamaat and non-political medressas [still the great majority] will have to see "Pakistan's existence as an Islamic country is facing extinction" not as a rabble rousing slogan but as a reality which Israel and the Zionists in the American power structure are very willing [and see themselves as able] to bring about.

Letter: Re: New Trend's Critique of Barack Obama & recommendation of Radio program

I listened to a dynamic program on UHURU radio today, explaining how BO is the neo-colonist solution for America. They are on every Sunday beginning at 10 am at Uhururadio.com . Hope you are doing well.

Hajjah Nabila
Philadelphia

Letter: Re: New Trend's critique of BO re: Imam Badi Ali's Questions for BO: Unity requires Qur'an

As-Salaam Elekum Brother!

The article "Imam Badi Ali's Questions" is outstanding in its well-thought out questions ( of urgent global issues) to President-Elect, Mr. Obama. If it was not forwarded to him, it should be, in my opinion, and signed by many other concerned Muslims in the US--or published by many Muslim organizations.
My personal belief is that if the Qur'anic ayat (even if a single ayah is) are violated by Muslims then we all will face the consequences of Allah, Lord Almighty's wrath sooner or later.
Creating and/or working for divisiveness/fragmentation of the Muslim Ummah is a grave, unforgiveable violation of Allah's directive as conveyed to us in the Quran'ic ayah for unity (The Qur'an has clearly labeled "Islam" as our religion and "Muslim" as label for its followers).
My personal conviction is that the global Muslim Ummah will suffer more of the degradation, abuse, destruction that we have witnessed in several past centuries, particularly in the 20th and 21st centuries. The only solution to get back our dignity and humanity--and to get Islam back on the right track again-- is through Unity.
Some Muslims dream of a Khalifat, a global Muslim Nation while at the same time many Muslims do not even know the content of the Qur'an and/or when their actions and utterances violate the Qur'anic ayat. What we have attained is Lord Almighty's Wrath or so it appears.
Once Muslims attain Unity as an Ummah, there is no power on Earth that will be stronger, for then Muslims will, inshallah, be living based on the Qur'an.

Sis: Sofia

Letter: Re: Post-Bush USA: Re Jamaat al-Muslimeen's Resolutions : November 8 Shoora

Kaukab Bhai,

This issue was very informative indeed as usual.

I wish the Muslim leadership could open its eyes and lead us in the right direction at this critical juncture instead of hiding behind false promises and deceptive hopes of a change in the American official policies or the mindset.

Dr. Omar Afzal
[Ithaca, New York]

Letter: Khutba on "No to Obama"

Dear Brother Kaukab:

Assalamu Alaikum:

Congratulations on your excellent Juma' Khutba: " No to Obama"
Politicians who sell their conscience for political advantage do not deserve our support.
Obama's performance before the AIPAC meeting tells the whole story.

Salam.

[Dr.] Ismail Zayid
Canada

Letter: Historic Jericho march in NY Appreciates Jamaat al-Muslimeen's Support

Hi

Yes, I thank you for all the photos, especially as we did not have any of the closing rally on 10-10. I will be adding them to the website this weekend. Thank you also for the link to the article and the solidarity statement from your group. I will add it to the website.

Anne (I was the one with the little sound system)
[New York City]

Letter: Re: New Trend's Comment against Attacks on Sarah Palin So you would have us support the one who calls us TERRORISTS in every stump speech over the one who at least reaches out to all of us. Support for Zionism is going to be there regardless which one of these jokers wins. For you to say that Palin is a good Christian woman is a travesty, and has earned you the SPAM box in my account

Jamilur Rahman
Pennsylvania

Letter: Christian writer Tackles PBS TV's Attempt to Portray Jews as God's Chosen People

Re: the program "God On Trial". I believe this program was trying to figure out if the Jews are still the Chosen people. If one reads the New Testament, one can easily find the answer to that question. Below are a couple of texts that confirm this information.

God's covenant with Israel was conditional from the beginning. Now if you obey me fully and keep my covenant, then out of all nations you will be my treasured possession. Exodus 19:3 If you fully obey the Lord your God and carefully follow all his commands I give you today, the Lord your God will set you high above all the nations on earth...However, if you do not obey the Lord your God and do not carefully follow all his commands and decrees I am giving you today, all these curses will come upon you and overtake you." (Deuteronomy 28:1, 15) "If" is a conditional word. They had a choice and rejected Christ. There are numerous texts in the New Testament that verify this. Jews can be saved as individuals, but as a Nation, they were finished at the cross-their choice.

I really don't see why you felt it necessary to show this program. If anything, it should have aired on a Christian Right television station.

Sincerly,
Carolyn Johnson

Editor's note: The Qur'an affirms the violation of God's Law by the Jews. They are no longer the Chosen People. All humans are God's Chosen People till they violate their Covenant with God. PBS has been violating the American people's trust and funds. Holocaust propaganda is part of PBS's steady diet of lies.

A distinguished critic of Imperialism corrects a Baathist friend
Many Arab Friends don't Understand India's Role: A look at the Alignment of Forces
by Husayn al-Kurdi [San Diego, California]

You need to hit the books a lot harder on the actual Imperialist setup and War Plan. This isn't just about "Hinduism vs. Islam". It IS about the Crusades and the alignment of forces. Soon I will write a review of a book which outlines current USA strategic doctrine so that you can get the picture. This is about the state "India" which you seem to want to defend in the current situation. You ignore the actual faultline between the enemy and the Arab Nation Islamic world.

Of course, Hindus or "Indians" (Hindu or "American") are not automatically disqualified from fighting on the right side, and some do. But support for the "India" entity in the current context is support for a major WILLING and EAGER ally of America against all of ITS enemies in the region and even elsewhere.

We're not talking about Nehru (although the "West" sicced him on China and his succesors on "Bangladesh") in the Non-Aligned Movement "Bandung" period. We are discussing "India" as it is and as it projects itself into the future TODAY.

India is a direct and active part of the division and destruction of what is called the "Third World". Here I must say "To hell with the First Two Worlds and all of their devilish bulls..t". And it is precisely the experiences of the Arab Ba'ath Socialist Party that informs my position on this. Hitler and Stalin can and did both eat s..t and die and neither is an appropriate role model for "Whites" who are sincere in redeeming themselves and their people. What happened to the Blacks, "Red" Indians, Africans, Arabs and others is a lesson "Whites" and EVERYBODY ELSE interested in actually confronting the worldwide enemy must learn from. Them yesterday, "You" tomorrow. What do we do about it all today? That is the question.

It was INDIAN troops who attacked Iraq in the WW I period. India is also still a proud member of the British Commonwealth. India is a prime component of the current Imperialist Plan for world domination and for "victory" on the front line vs. Arabs and Muslim peoples. It is exactly the "Indian traitor comprador regime" which is in question and not some abstraction or some non-existent possibility.

We need to get straight about all of the national state entities, big and small. Russia and China both "sold out" Iraq. They could have vetoed a number of UNSC resolutions, but they are actually following the USA and the "Capitalist Road" and are doing so consciously, willfully and deliberately. Any other, more "positive" interpretation is at fundamental variance with the FACTS OF THE CASE.

Large sections of Pakistan are waging a fierce struggle against THEIR lackey "leaders", including an ongoing armed struggle and the people by and large reject US attacks on their country. The war planners for the enemy draw one of their lines precisely on the frontier between India and Pakistan. I am surprised that someone with your acumen hasn't noticed this.

We neeed to take more accurate notice of what is really going on in the world. Not to do so has fatal consequences. Or do we want to repeat the Hitler and Stalin disastrous defeats because we fail to notice or refuse to recognize things as they really were and are?

Yours for the liberation of the Oppressed and for the Defeat of Imperialism and the Jewish Power AND ITS MISERABLE AND CONTEMPTIBLE "ALLIES"',

Husayn al-Kurdi

War News: By New Trend's Media Monitor
[We strive for accuracy. Corrections are welcome.]
Afghanistan: Taliban control Half the Country: Areas in the West, North and around Kabul also see Increasing Taliban Activity.
Talks with U.S. out of the question, says Talib commander.

November 15, 2008: In an hour long interview with the BBC, Taliban spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid answered questions pertaining to various rumors and propaganda spread worldwide by the Zionist media. He said that half of Afghanistan is now under Taliban control and education for girls has been implemented in these areas. He said the Taliban had nothing to do with the criminal attack on school girls in Kandahar in which acid was used [and which was noted by President Bush to denounce the Taliban.] He said President Elect Obama's plan to send more troops to Afghanistan will not deter the resistance. The U.S., he said, is facing defeat here and increase in troops will not change the situation. He said he does not know Osama bin Laden's whereabout but he knows that Mullah Umar is in a safe place. He categorically rejected western news stories that the Taliban are involved in the drug trade.
[For an interview by a senior Taliban field commander, see below.]

November 14, 2008: U.S. and Pakistani military forces launched a joint operation against the Taliban nicknamed "Lionheart," with the Americans operating in Kunar province [Afghanistan] and the Paks in Bajaur [Pakistan]. [Source Fox TV.] U.S. forces are also going after the Islamic fighters of Jalaluddin Haqqani's group and are reporting that they brought in air strikes which killed 10 Islamic fighters.

Just south of Kabul, gunmen killed two of Karzai's national intelligence officers and one police officer.

November 13, 2008: In the Nangarhar province [extreme south on Pak border] two American tanks were destroyed in a Taliban attack. Two U.S. soldiers were killed and 78 Afghan Karzai troops were wounded. The U.S. says it was a "suicide" attack but the Taliban say roadside bombs were used. After the attack, U.S. forces sealed off the Torkhum-Jalalabad highway. Pakistani [Urdu language] newspapers say that after the ambush, U.S. forces panicked and went on the rampage and fired in all directions with heavy weapons killing 40 civilians and wounding 55 in the area villages.

The same day, British forces came under Taliban attack in the Garmser area of Helmand province [west central Afghanistan]. Two elite troops of the British Royal Marines were killed and the others retreated in great haste.

November 9: A Taliban martyrdom operator drove a white Toyota car into a Spanish armored unit of NATO and then exploded, in the Shindand area, 80 km south of Herat. Two Spanish troops were kiled and 4 wounded.

November 3. In Zabul province, district Chopan, [southwestern Afghanistan], a Taliban unit fought an hour long pitched battle with Karzai's troops heavily armed by the U.S., and routed them. Eight Karzais were killed and three of their oil tankers and 4 trucks set on fire.

In Kabul, A French aid worker was kidnapped and his assistant from Karzai's intelligence agency was killed.

In a radio interview, senior Taliban commander Mullah Sabir said there is no question of talks or negotiations with the U.S. He added that the Jihad will continue until it results in an Islamic state in Afghanistan after the expulsion of the occupiers. [Source: Urdu daily Ummat.]

German troops Need Liquor to survive in Afghanistan:

The German military contingent in Afghanistan was 260,000 gallons of beer and 18,000 gallons of wine during 2007. Reports say they are still too scared to go into Taliban controlled areas.

Pakistan: U.S. Air Attacks Continue

"All murderers are punished unless they kill in large numbers and to the sound of trumpets"- Voltaire

Photo: Gen. Petraeus, Pak PM Gilani & Gen. Kayani
War Rages: Supply Route for NATO in danger: All Out Assault after Petraeus-Kayani Meeting: Pak Taliban score Bajaur Victory

November 16, 2008: In Bajaur a tribal militia organized by the Pakistan army advanced into the Pak Taliban stronghold od Oreyzai under cover of Pak artillery fire. The militia set about setting fire to the homes of militant Islamic leaders. After they had set fire to 16 homes, Taliban units arrived on the scene and attacked the militia and completed routed them after intense fighting. Maulvi Umar [not the Afghan leader] reports nearly 100 militia killed and 25 captured. Pakistan responded with heavy artillery and helicopter gunships, killing 11 civilians, but it was too late. [Pro-regime media are trying to minimize this setback. [The Pak army is again shelling Lo Sam in Bajaur which it had earlier reported captured.]

The International Monetary Fund [IMF] is giving $7,600,000,000 to the Pakistani regime to help it remain stable during the war against Islamic forces.

November 15: Pakistani forces put a ring of steel around the Shabqadar area [near Peshawar], imposed curfew and launched an all out assault on this pro-Taliban population. Tanks and high caliber mortar fire led the way as crack Pakistani units advanced. At least 30 "Islamic extremists" were killed along with 11 civilians. Pakistan lost only 4 troops killed in this successful assault. Civilian losses are expected to rise as Pak tank fire demolished dozens of homes.

November 13: North Waziristan: At about 2 AM, two U.S. missiles slammed into the home of Amir Gul and his medressa next door. He, his son and 11 others were killed in their sleep. The villagers say they were all locals. The U.S. says some were "foreigners" [Arabs]. The attack followed several days of recce by U.S. drones. [Drones have also been flying over the city of Bannu, leading to panic in the public.]

In an upscale area of Peshawar, the Iranian commercial attache, Heshmat Atherzade, was abducted, and his driver, Sajjad Husain, killed.

November 12: In the Charsadda area, a martyrdom operator rammed a bus into the gates of a school occupied by Pakistani troops. The explosion killed 4 Pakistani troops and wounded 10. The remaining troops opened fire killing a rickshaw driver and a passerby down the road and injured 10 civilians. The population is with the Taliban and the Pak administration ordered all shops closed and blocked the roads. President Zardari, Benazir Bhutto's husband, denounced the attack and said that "terrorism and extremism will be eradicated from the country at all costs."

In an upscale area of Peshawar, a U.S. citizen, Stefan Vance and his Pakistani driver were killed when gunmen opened automatic fire on their van. Mr. Vance, according to U.S. embassy spokesman Robertson, was active in a develpment project in FATA [where the fighting is taking place.

Nov. 14: Near the Khyber Pass: Serious concern has been raised by the Taliban capture of an ENTIRE CONVOY of trucks taking supplies of wheat for NATO forces in Afghanistan. The trucks were found later in a ravine devoid of the wheat. One truck with two Humvees for U.S. troops has still not been found. Pakistan runs supplies to NATO troops, thus helping in the occupation of Afghanistan. [Nov. 16: The supply route has been closed for two days. British paper the Observer says fighting in Bajaur could cut the supply route to NATO if the Pak Taliban win. However, the Pak Taliban are poorly armed and are being hit hard by the Pak army.]

IRAQ: Women and Girls Attacking U.S. forces and Shi'ite Troops

A new wave of bomb attacks and martyrdom operations hit U.S. and Shi'ite areas during the time Nov. 4 to 16. Eleven U.S. troops and 159 Shi'ites were killed in the first two weeks of November in the Diyala, Mosul, Baghdad, Ramadi and Tal Afar areas. U.S. forces are carrying out minimal operations, leaving the fighting to the Shi'ites. In the most damaging attack, 7 police officers were killed and 25 wounded in an Islamic attack on Jalawla [Diyala province] on Nov.16.

The capture of an Iraqi girl in her teens who wanted to be a martyr has been helpful to propagandists in the western media. The most important fact which emerged from the British Telegraph paper's report [11.15.08] is that a woman is leading an entire network of young women intent on attacking U.S. and Shi'ite forces to achieve martyrdom. On November 9, a female bomber killed 3 and wounded 8 Shi'ite troops in Diyala province.

According to an American general, 28,000 troops armed by the U.S. are holding down Anbar province but things could change as al-Qaidah, according to the General, is just around the corner. [Gen. John Kelly on Anbar province: "It's not an island... al-Qaidah have become refugees." 10.22.08]

Observers say that the Shi'ite acceptance of three more years of occupation by U.S. troops indicates that the Islamic insurgency is winning.

Teenager Rania Ibrahim captured by Shi'ite troops. {Photo AFP: Nov. 15]

2008-11-18 Tue 18:49:38 cst
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