Category: War on Terror

No way, Amnesty

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HUMAN rights group Amnesty International is calling on Australians and others to write to Indonesian authorities urging them to halt plans to execute three Bali bombers. Sure!. Just a little bit after they ask Australians to write to Indonesian authorities seeking the retrial of Muslim cleric Abu Bakar Bashir in the interests of the human rights of the Bali dead. In fact if Amnesty agitated for his retrial I might consider writing such a letter asking them to postpone the execution of the three bombers until Bashir is convicted and ready for the bullet as well. Silence them in one hit…a message to other followers of the insanity.
War on Terror

Diggers Attacked in Iraq

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ASLAVTwo men armed with a Rocket Propelled Grenade (RPG) launcher and machine-gun have fired on members of the Overwatch Battle Group – West (OBG(W)) during a patrol in Dhi Qar Province. No Australian soldiers were wounded in the weekend attack. Anti-Iraqi Forces gunmen fired an RPG round which hit the bar-armour of an Australian Light Armoured Vehicle (ASLAV). The grenade did not detonate and rounds from the machine gun failed to damage the Australian vehicles. Australian soldiers returned fire with their rifles and the ASLAV responded with its 25mm main armament. The attackers fled the scene. OBG(W) Commanding Officer, Lieutenant Colonel Jake Elwood said his soldiers reacted well during the brief engagement.
Enhancements to the ASLAV – notably the bar armour, spall liners and curtains, and the Remote Weapon Station (RWS) has increased the firepower and crew survivability of the Australian Army vehicle. These additional safety provisions were part of a rapid acquisition program that the Army undertook in 2004-05. The spall liner provides additional safety against projectiles and spall that may penetrate the baseline armour. The horizontal hardened-metal of the bar-armour is also designed to trap an RPG round and detonate its warhead at a stand-off distance allowing the explosive energy to dissipate or deflecting the shaped charge from detonating directly against the vehicle’s armour plate. “In addition to the ASLAV’s bar armour, what saved lives today is the excellent training that Australian soldiers receive. When they came under fire they immediately took cover, returned fire, and pursued the insurgents forcing them to flee,” LTCOL Elwood said.
The attack occurred approximately 50 km north of Camp Terendak during a routine patrol in Dhi Qar Province. The OBG(W) patrol was visiting a town to meet with local leaders and discuss potential future community support projects.
“This incident is another reminder that Iraq remains a dangerous place and that our troops are facing very real threats every day. The OBG(W) will continue their important task supporting the Iraqi Security Forces and working to help the Iraqi people in Dhi Qar and Al Muthanna Provinces improve their lives,” he said.
From Defence Media
War on Terror

RIP Razz

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RazzDuring a patrol in southern Afghanistan last week, an SOTG vehicle was hit by an IED, wounding two soldiers. The wounds were assessed as slight. A spokesman for Defence, Brigadier Andrew Nikolic said the wounded soldiers were provided with first-aid by their fellow soldiers and evacuated to a nearby ISAF hospital for further treatment. “One of the two soldiers received specialist medical care but due to nature of his injuries is to return to Australia for further treatment,” Brigadier Nikolic said. The remaining soldier is expected to make a complete recovery and will remain on duty in Afghanistan. During a later route clearance task an EDD and his handler encountered a second IED. The bomb detonated on discovery, resulting in the slight wounding of the handler and the death of the dog, who was named Razz. The handler continued with his duties. Defence Spokesperson Brigadier Andrew Nikolic said Razz was a veteran of the 2002 Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting and the 2006 Melbourne Commonwealth Games. He joined Defence after beginning his career with Customs. Brigadier Nikolic said the actions of Razz and his fellow EDDs had saved lives. The pic is of Razz during training in Australia From Defence Media
War on Terror

Greenspan delivers

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The Left have latched onto Alan Greenspan saying Iraq is all about oil however he didn’t actually say that. He just said it was a part of the mix. From the Washington Post
Greenspan, who was the country’s top voice on monetary policy at the time Bush decided to go to war in Iraq, has refrained from extensive public comment on it until now, but he made the striking comment in a new memoir out today that “the Iraq War is largely about oil.” In the interview, he clarified that sentence in his 531-page book, saying that while securing global oil supplies was “not the administration’s motive,” he had presented the White House with the case for why removing Hussein was important for the global economy. “I was not saying that that’s the administration’s motive,” Greenspan said in an interview Saturday, “I’m just saying that if somebody asked me, ‘Are we fortunate in taking out Saddam?’ I would say it was essential.”
Uh uh…the Left have gone from a loud roar to a muted mutter and then this;
JOHN Howard gets a big tick, as does Bob Hawke. Peter Costello is up there too, bracketed with Ian Macfarlane as “unusually perceptive on global issues”. But when former US Federal Reserve chairman Alan Greenspan discusses the remarkable transformation of the Australian economy since the mid-1980s, there are no accolades for Paul Keating. Not a single one.
I’m prepared to give Keating some credit for Australia’s economy but as he is the politician who defines hubris in Australia I’m happy that he doesn’t rate a mention with Greenspan. I trust he’s fuming and hope he has some comment in the media about it all. Every mention of Keating in the media helps the Coalition cause and this;
“Prime Minister John Howard impressed me with his deep interest in the role of technology in American productivity growth. “Whereas most heads of government steer clear of such detail, he (Mr Howard) sought me out on numerous visits to the US between 1997 and 2005. “He needed no prodding from me on monetary policy.”
Keating must be beside himself with rage……brings a smile to my lips just thinking about it! Loud applause and ‘told you so……..muted muttering……the sounds of silence. That’ll be the last time the left quote Greenspan
Politics, War on Terror

Missionary fools

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Missionaries are still stuffing up the world. Not content with the negative effects of their zeal in South America, South Africa and the Pacific islands over the past 200 odd years they have recently been the source of millions of dollars in funding for the Taliban. Just imagine how many locals and westerners the Taliban can slaughter with 20 plus million dollars “We went to spread God’s love and carry out his wishes,” freed hostage Lyu Kyung-sik said after arriving. “All of us returned from being on verge of death and have been given our lives back.”
…many harshly criticised the suburban Seoul Saemmul Church that dispatched the group for having a naive world view and putting their Government in a bind. Websites of the country’s main Protestant groups have been flooded with messages saying the group and church were to blame for ignoring government warnings and making an ill-advised mission to an obvious danger spot.
I would’ve left them there. A senior Taliban leader said Seoul had paid $US20 million ($25 million) for their release. The South Korean Government denied paying any ransom but has been criticised internationally for striking a deal through direct talks with the Taliban. The Government said it had only agreed to pull out a small contingent of military engineers and medical staff and to end South Korean missionary work in Afghanistan in return for the release of the hostages. Good result all round – for the Taliban
War on Terror

Amazing!

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From the India Times BANGALORE: Indian doctor Mohammed Haneef has been at the receiving end of the Australian Federal Police (AFP) treatment for the last 21 days. However on Monday, he chose to bail out the AFP which was facing an embarrassing allegation of tampering his personal diary.
Haneef told his cousin Imran Siddiqui and his lawyers that news reports were false and AFP officers had not done anything like that. The media had reported that the officers wrote the name and contact details of alleged suicide bomber Kafeel Ahmed in Haneef’s diary and later quizzed him during an interview. The incident occurred soon after Haneef was arrested at the Brisbane International Airport on July 2. The reports even said Haneef had replied that it was not his handwriting. “I spoke to him today. He said it was speculation. He told me he himself had written the address of his cousin,” Imran who is in Australia to help Haneef, told TOI.
I just know that the Australian media are currently writing retractions and an apology to Keelty…I just know it! Presuming the report is accurate one might well ask “What else have the media misinterpreted in their rush to make the AFP and Howard look bad?”
War on Terror

Drone makes its mark

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INSURGENTS TERRORISTS firing rockets at a British base in southern Iraq were spotted and tracked by an Australian unmanned spyplane, then obliterated with a guided bomb from a US fighter jet.
In a stunning demonstration of the capabilities of the new ScanEagle unmanned aerial vehicle, the Australian operators tracked the insurgents for half an hour as they fired one rocket then drove to a different location to fire another. They were not aware they had been spotted until a 227kg JDAM guided bomb exploded in their midst.
The images from May 1, recorded from an altitude of about a kilometre, show men from three vehicles hastily setting up a rocket launcher then firing at one of the British bases. The camera follows as the men hop back in their vehicles and drive away, stopping some distance away to take another shot. The live images were also viewed in the British headquarters where frantic efforts were being made to retaliate. That came in the form of a US F-16 jet, which sent a GPS-guided bomb into the insurgents’ position. Good one, guys.
Defence, War on Terror

AMA miss the point

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FOREIGN doctors, which comprise up to 40% of the medical workforce, could avoid Australia because of the way Mohamed Haneef’s case has been handled, the Australian Medical Association says. Good. Clearly the only doctors who won’t come here because of the way we are treating Haneef will be those associated with terrorism. They will see that we are serious about keeping an eye on them and subsquently stay away. Doctors are generally smart and educated – aren’t they? They’ll work that out pretty quick for sure…..hang on…..AMA….they’re doctors as well. Ah well, must be a political statement.
War on Terror

Haneef vs the Commonwealth

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The beat-up of the week must go to Brisbane’s Courier Mail with an article on the front page claiming Moslems in Queensland are sleeping overnight in mosques as they are “gripped by fear and anger over what they claim is racist and unjust treatment of terror suspect Mahomed Haneef” Wow, amazing. Not the doubtful fact that they are “gripped by fear” but the fact that journalist Tanya Chilcott says so. The case is moving away from the guilt or not of Haneef and has swung clearly towards inflicting the most damage the players and journalists can on the government. Agendas are flying quicker than cliches at a writers conference. Haneef’s lawyer, Stephen Keim, SC, yesterday defended his decision to leak the the transcripts of the interviews between Haneef and the AFP, insisting he had not broken the law.
“If they feel I have committed any offence or done any wrong, they know where I am – let them take action against me,” he told the Seven Network. “What I have done is perfectly legal, perfectly ethical.”
and perfectly politically motivated. Not being legally qualified I have no comment on the legality of his actions other than in my opinion I think they are a bit doubtful. Stephen Keim is also an ex President of Queensland Council for Civil Liberties, he is, or was, a paid up member of the ALP and has a track record of speaking out against the establishment, particularly when it’s a conservative establishment Just for once I like one of these accused terrorists or supporters to be defended by a lawyer whose sole motivation is the defence of his client. And pigs might fly. Chris Merritt in the Australian argues that authorities are over reacting to the leaking of the documents;
It matters not at all that Keim, like all leakers, had a barrow to push. What matters is the veracity of the information he has placed on the public record.
It does matter that he has a barrow to push – it taints his motives. Which barrow is he pushing? His clients or his own? I watched him on TV last night and deduced he was more into civil liberties than responsibilities and that he considered he was striking a blow for these liberties in attacking a government that had the temerity to charge suspected terrorists or supporters with charges under the new anti-terrorist laws. The leaked documents record the interviews between Haneef and the AFP only. They do not relate what the AFP have been told by their British counterparts and what they know from their own intelligence. This AFP intelligence may amount to not much at all but but it might be significant; whatever the case, time alone will tell. The litany of agendas and opinions rolled out by the media means little at the moment Both Sheridan and Steketee are predictable in their responses. Sheridan writes about everyone being outraged at the length of incarceration;
Imagine if the authorities had someone in custody who was genuinely a terrorist and the terror plot was in the 36,000th piece of encrypted information on his computer. And imagine if they released this terrorist after getting through 10,000 such pieces of information and a terrorist outrage occurred that they could have prevented. Every citizen would be outraged at such fecklessness.
Reasonable point. We need to accept that this is the case. The AFP work overtime trying to sort through confiscated computers knowing full well that the internet is the chosen means of communication for the terrorists. Miss and encrypted email and people die. The case against Mohamed Haneef, based on guilt by association, points to a slippery slope, says Mike Steketee The entire terrorist concept is a slippery slope and I for one accept that the rights we defend are at risk. They are put at risk by the terrorists not us and while the authorities only apply the anti-terrorist laws to people suspected of being terrorists or on the periphery of such organizations then I’m not alarmed. What is wrong with “guilt by association” if it’s tested in court and proven? It’s been around for hundreds of years and generally referred to as “Consorting with Criminals” If you lay down with dogs you get fleas…if you consort with criminals you are most probably heading that way and if you associate with people who blow up innocent citizens then there is a case to answer. I’d rather the authorities spend their energies guaranteeing my right, and those of my fellow citizens, to live without being subject to suicidal killers, before any other rights.
General Musings, War on Terror
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