Hard News
Bomb blasts at campaign offices in northwest Pakistan kill 11:
Bomb blasts targeting the election offices of two candidates in northwest Pakistan killed at least 11 people and injured 30 Sunday, the latest in a string of terror attacks that have cast a shadow over parliamentary elections slated for mid-May.
Roadside bomb kills three policemen in Afghanistan:
A remote-controlled roadside bomb killed three police officers in eastern Afghanistan on Sunday, an attack the Taliban claimed as the opening round of their spring offensive.
US-led soldiers kill three civilians in eastern Afghanistan: Officials:
The incident took place on Sunday in province's Chaparhar district after US-led soldiers opened fire on people working on a farmland, said Director of Provincial Development Council Malak Mohkam Khan.
Departing French envoy has frank words on Afghanistan:
The Afghan project is on thin ice and that, collectively, the West was responsible for a chunk of what went wrong, though much of the rest the Afghans were responsible for.
'Killing innocents in drone strikes is a war crime':
Killing innocent tribesmen in drone strikes is a war crime in violation of the Geneva Convention, said Peshawar High Court (PHC) Chief Justice (CJ) Dost Muhammad Khan.
UK: Hundreds of anti-drone protesters march against UK flight-control centre:
Marchers protest the navigation from RAF Waddington of unmanned Reaper aircraft in Afghanistan
RAF's role in US drone attacks that killed hundreds of Iraqis:
MoD admits for first time that Britain helped pilot the aircraft from American base
10 killed in Iraq violence:
Gunmen killed 10 people in Iraq, including five soldiers near the main Sunni protest camp west of Baghdad, the latest in a wave of violence that has raised fears the country faces a new round of sectarian bloodshed.
Al-Jazeera banned by Iraq over 'sectarian bias' in coverage:
Qatar-based channel and nine other stations have licences revoked as government claims they fuel bloodshed
At least 7 killed as Syrian rebels, troops clash at military air bases:Activists say:
The Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said at least seven fighters were killed in the fighting in Abu Zuhour, in addition to an unknown number of soldiers.
Syria: Al-Qaeda's battle for control of Assad's chemical weapons plant:
A battle near a factory believed to be one of the Syrian regime's main chemical weapons plants shows just how close such weapons could be to falling into al-Qaeda's hands, writes Colin Freeman.
UK's military chief warns intervention in Syria risks all-out war:
Richards's caution reflects apprehension among American military chiefs. General Martin Dempsey, chairman of the joint chiefs of staff, has warned Congress that any use of force in Syria would be "unlikely to produce predictable outcomes".
Islamist Rebels Create Dilemma on Syria Policy:
In Syria's largest city, Aleppo, rebels aligned with Al Qaeda control the power plant, run the bakeries and head a court that applies Islamic law. Elsewhere, they have seized government oil fields, put employees back to work and now profit from the crude they produce.
International troops should 'be ready operationally' to invade Syria, says John McCain:
A group of nations should get troops ready to invade Syria in order to secure possible stocks of chemical weapons, a senior U.S. senator said on Sunday.
Chemical Weapons Proof Not Needed for Syrian No-Fly Zone: McCain:
The atrocities already committed by Syrian leader Bashar al-Assad are justification enough for such action, which is needed to contain a conflict that is spilling over into other Mideast countries, McCain, an Arizona Republican, said today on NBC's "Meet the Press."
Russian envoy warns on Syria chemical arms 'pretext':
"We must know the truth and have proof and not rely on information reported in the media which is not supported by facts," Bogdanov said
Syria nerve gas claims undermined by eyewitness accounts:
Description of attack in which six rebels died adds to uncertainty about claims that sarin has been used in the conflict
Syrian Official Slams 'American Hysteria' About Chemical Weapons:
"The American hysteria about the use of chemical weapons was caused by the success of the Syrian Arab Army in striking terrorists,"
US, Israel plotting to oust Assad by June, Iranian official claims:
Lt. Gen. Yahya Safawi, a senior adviser to the head of the Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps, was also quoted by IRIB news, an Iranian state broadcasting station, warning Iranians of "hostile tactics" that may be used to damage the unity of the Iranian people and disrupt the elections.
Flames of war against Syria will engulf Israel: Iranian lawmaker:
Alaeddin Boroujerdi said on Saturday that despite the ongoing political and propaganda campaigns against Syria, the ground is not prepared for the US to attack the Arab country because any such war would spread to Israel.
Analysis: No good military options for U.S. in Syria:
Despite President Barack Obama's pledge that Syria's use of chemical weapons is a "game changer" for the United States, he is unlikely to turn to military options quickly and would want allies joining him in any intervention.
Obama Unveils New 'Red Line' for Syria's Chemical Weapons:
Obama has now implied it would take a widespread use of the chemicals to prompt the U.S. to involve itself more deeply in the rebel effort to overthrow Assad, which is the stated objective of U.S. Syria policy.
Israel Minister: US Should Intervene in Syrian War:
Environment Minister Amir Peretz said Sunday action should have been taken long ago due to the high civilian death toll. "We expect whoever defines red lines will also do what is needed, first and foremost the U.S. and of course the entire international community,"
Netanyahu orders ministers to keep mum on Syria:
Prime Minister's instructions follow Ze'ev Elkin's Friday remarks suggesting military option against Assad
Olmert: Iran threat 'exaggerated':
Former Israel PM said he disagreed with the view that Iran in its uranium enrichment program has crossed the red line drawn by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, and that the Iranian nuclear threat has been subject to exaggeration.
Lavrov says Patriot deployment could be directed at Iran:
"The configuration as is being presented in the media really looks like it could be used against Iran," Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said
'Qaeda' Gunmen Kill Five Yemen Soldiers:
Suspected Al-Qaeda militants killed five Yemeni soldiers in an attack on Saturday on a checkpoint southeast of Sanaa, an official said, while two assailants were reportedly killed.
Gunmen surround Libya foreign ministry:
Gunmen have surrounded Libya's foreign ministry in the capital Tripoli to push demands that officials who had worked for deposed leader Muammar Gaddafi's government be banned from senior positions in the new administration.
President says Libya harbours Chadian mercenaries:
Chad's President Idriss Deby said on Saturday that Chadian mercenaries had set up a training camp in neighbouring Libya from where they could seek to destabilise his country, an accusation Libyan authorities denied.
A Warning from Guantánamo - Four Prisoners Are Close to Death, and the Authorities Don't Care:
Four prisoners are close to death, as a result of the prison-wide hunger strike that is on its 80th day, and yet the guard force are behaving with brutality and indifference.
Barbaric force feeding continues at US Gulag:
100 prisoners now on hunger strike at Guantanamo, official says:
19 are receiving liquid nutrients through a nasal tube to prevent dangerous weight loss. House says five of those are at a hospital under observation but that they do not have any life-threatening conditions.
Message from Guantanamo prison cells: Op-Ed:
On Thursday the American Medical Association sent a letter to Chuck Hagel, US defence secretary, condemning force feeding.
U.S. tests out aerial drones in Caribbean drug fight:
The U.S. Navy on Friday began testing two new aerial tools, borrowed from the battlefields of Afghanistan and Iraq, that officials say will make it easier to detect, track and videotape drug smugglers in action.
Tsarnaevs' mother 'on terror watch list', accuses police of murdering son:
The CIA reportedly put Zubeidat on the classified Terrorist Identities Datamart Environment database (TIDE) at the same time that her 26-year-old son Tamerlan was added.
Russia caught Boston bomb suspect on wiretap:
Russian authorities secretly recorded a telephone conversation in 2011 in which one of the Boston bombing suspects vaguely discussed jihad with his mother, officials said Saturday, days after the U.S. government finally received details about the call.
Boston bombers' uncle married daughter of top CIA official:
The uncle of the two suspected Boston bombers in last week's attack, Ruslan Tsarni, was married to the daughter of former top CIA official Graham Fuller
Former CIA officer: 'Absurd' to link uncle of Boston suspects, Agency:
Retired CIA officer Graham Fuller confirmed to Al-Monitor Saturday that his daughter was previously married to an uncle of the suspects in the Boston Marathon attacks, but called rumors of any links between the uncle and the Agency "absurd."
FBI Created 17 False Flag Terrorist Attacks : Video -
According to Judge Andrew Napolitano, in the past 10 years, there've been 20 Terrorist plots against the US. Three of those plots were real but were discovered and stopped by private Americans. The other 17 were created-and then stopped-by the FBI.
Building a police state:
City Of Philadelphia Advises Residents On What To Do If Ordered To 'Shelter In Place':
First and foremost, the city says residents should be prepared to shelter in place for at least three days, which means stocking supplies like medications, food, batteries, drinking water, flashlights and more inside of an emergency kit.
TV titans lose US viewers over slanted stories:
The major TV news networks in the US are losing viewers tired of opinionated coverage and carefully selected stories, according to a recent study by an American nonpartisan thinktank.
2 officers shot outside Italian premier's office:
The shooting "was the tragic gesture of an unemployed man," Interior Minister Angelino Alfano told reporters after briefing Letta and his new Cabinet about the attack.
Protests, Police Clash in Madrid:
Protests between police and demonstrators continued into the night in front of the parliament building in Madrid. Around 1,000 demonstrators tried to shut down the government in a protest over the country's austerity measures and tax hikes.
Spain Is Beyond Doomed: The 2 Scariest Unemployment Charts Ever:
Spain is in a great depression, and it is one of the most terrifying things I have ever seen.
Europe Facing More Pressure to Reconsider Cuts as a Cure:
Unemployment has surpassed Great Depression-era levels in Southern Europe. Recession is drifting to the once resilient economies of the north. Even some onetime hawks on government spending say they cannot cut any more.
Iceland centre-right wins back power:
Coalition talks to begin as voters reject austerity in favour of parties that ruled over 2008 financial collapse.
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"Let us be peace and joy"
Tom Feeley
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