Israel On Alert And Gaza Braces For Reprisals

In a story I was just reading that Israel is on alert and Gaza braced for reprisals on Friday as crowds mourned eight teenagers killed by a Palestinian gunman at a Jewish religious school in an attack claimed by the Islamist Hamas.

Residents of the impoverished Gaza Strip were bracing for punitive Israeli military strikes after the attack which shook the faltering peace talks and provoked strong condemnation from around the world.

Thousands gathered in Jerusalem for the funerals of the teenagers killed in the attack carried out by a Palestinian resident of occupied east Jerusalem, who sprayed automatic gunfire at the students before being gunned down by an army officer late on Thursday.

In a rare move, the Organisation of the Islamic Conference -- the Muslim world's biggest political bloc -- also condemned the Jerusalem killings, saying it abhorred "violence and terror."

Police arrested more than 10 relatives and friends of 25-year-old Alaa Hisham Abu Dheim of the Jabal al-Mukaber area, where a mourning tent draped in Palestinian and Hamas flags was set up.
The attack, the first in four years in Jerusalem, was claimed by a senior official of the Islamist movement, which refuses to recognise the Jewish state's right to exist.

"Hamas is responsible for the attack. The Ezzedine Al-Qassam Brigades will officially claim the attack at the right moment," the Gaza official told AFP on condition of anonymity, referring to the group's armed wing.
Thursday's attack came after a surge in violence that left more than 130 Palestinians dead in and around Hamas-run Gaza in eight days. Three Israeli soldiers and one civilian were also killed in the same period.

The army sealed off the occupied West Bank and Israeli police declared a "general state of alert."
Israel's main ally, US President George W. Bush, led a global chorus of outrage, but the UN Security Council failed to agree on a condemnation amid Libyan opposition.
The students -- most of them 15 or 16 years old and including one US citizen -- were shot dead at the Merkaz Harav Yeshiva, a theological school in predominantly Jewish west Jerusalem. Another nine were wounded.
Thousands of people, many clad in the traditional black attire of Orthodox Jews, long curls hanging down from their kippas, attended an emotional funeral ceremony at the school Friday.
"My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?" a rabbi cried out, choking with emotion.

The gunman had entered the school with an AK47 assault rifle and headed for the library, where he opened fire at students gathered for a special evening prayer before being gunned down by law enforcement officers, police said.
The school is considered the centre of Israeli religious nationalism, where the Gush Emunim (Bloc of the Faith) settler movement was born after the 1967 Six-Day War.

Hamas earlier hailed the attack as "heroic" as hundreds of people poured into the streets of Gaza to celebrate the shootings on Thursday. But it also indicated it would consider a truce if Israel meets its conditions.
The White House on Friday denounced as "fairly disgusting" the celebrations in Gaza.
"This was a vicious attack, there is nothing that can explain away this kind of attack. But the most important thing is that the peace process continues and that the parties are committed to it," a spokesman said.

Immediately after the attack, the Lebanese Hezbollah Shiite group said it was carried out to avenge the death of its senior commander, Imad Mughnieh, assassinated in a Damascus bombing on Februaury 12.
Moderate Palestinian president Mahmud Abbas denounced the strike. "We condemn all attacks against civilians, be they Palestinian or Israeli," his office quoted him as saying in a statement.

Israel slammed the attack as aiming to end the chances for peace in the region and vowed to defend itself.
A senior government official stressed nonetheless that peace talks would continue. "Israel will maintain its policy of talking to moderates ... and at the same time fight the radicals of Hamas," the official told AFP.

In a rare move, the Organisation of the Islamic Conference -- the Muslim world's biggest political bloc -- also condemned the Jerusalem killings, saying it abhorred "violence and terror."
Russia's foreign ministry joined in the condemnations but called for Israeli restraint.

"Israel has the right, as with every other state, to defend the lives and the security of its citizens. At the same time, it is evident that innocent civilians must not become victims of the fight against terrorism," it added.

It will surely be a long and violent weekend for the residents of Gaza, and Israel, as it looks like "cooler" heads will not prevail on either side!!

Violent Day In Iraq

Sunday has turned into a very bloody day in Iraq, as attacks across the country injured, or killed many civilians, as well as, killing a U.S. soldier, and injuring three of his comrades.

A suicide bomber struck Shiite pilgrims as they were resting Sunday during a days-long walk to a Shiite shrine, killing at least 40 people and wounding 60. The attack in Iskandariyah, south of Baghdad, was the second of the day against pilgrims traveling to the holy city of Karbala. The pilgrimage marks Arbaeen, the 40th day following the anniversary of the martyrdom of Imam Hussein, one of two revered Shiite figures buried there. The suicide bomber detonated at a tent where pilgrims stop to eat and drink, police said.

Earlier, extremists attacked another group of pilgrims with guns and grenades in the predominantly Sunni Baghdad neighborhood of Dora, killing three and wounding 36, police said. The attacks heightened tension around Arbaeen, when millions of pilgrims descend on Karbala, about 50 miles south of the capital.

Elsewhere, extremists targeted U.S. patrols in two separate attacks in northern Baghdad, one of which killed a soldier and wounded three other troops and a civilian, the military said, without naming the victims. The second bombing wounded three soldiers, the military said.

An explosion also struck a minibus carrying electricity department workers in the northwestern city of Mosul on Sunday, killing two and wounding three, police said.

In Hawija, about 30 miles southwest of Kirkuk, a parked car bomb went off Sunday morning next to a patrol of Sunni tribesmen who aligned with U.S. forces to fight al-Qaida in Iraq, police said. One civilian bystander was killed and 10 people were wounded, including seven tribesmen, police Brig. Sarhad Qadir said.

Sadly as noted the other day after the Green Zone was attacked, we mentioned that perhaps we are seeing a resurgence of violence, as we reached the pinnacle of non-activity, and now the terrorist/insurgents have regrouped, and are going to be hitting back with a vengeance!! Today has done nothing to alleviate that concern!!


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Shiite Violence Redux?

The bombings hit the day after our Thanksgiving Day holiday, and may mean that a new round of violence is going to begin.

Four members of an Iranian-backed Shiite cell confessed to bombing a public market in central Baghdad, a U.S. spokesman said Saturday. He also blamed Shiites for recent attacks on U.S. bases, raising fears that a three-month truce by the most feared Shiite militia may be at an end.

The blast Friday in the al-Ghazl pet market killed at least 15 people, wounded 56 and shattered a growing sense of public confidence that has emerged following a sharp decline in the bombings and shootings that once rattled the Iraqi capital daily.

This latest violence is just one more indication that our "window of opportunity", to remove ourselves from this situation is closing, and may be closing so fast that we will get caught inside, when it all goes to Hell, Again!!


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Good News From Iraq

The following story reports that there is good news from Iraq, and that violence is down. This would be a hopeful sign of progress if the Iraqi government was actually using this time to get itself together, but all accounts show that is not happening.

Rocket and mortar attacks in Iraq have decreased to their lowest levels in more than 21 months, the U.S. military said Monday. In the capital, Iraqi officials said a taxi driver was shot dead by a private security guard hired to protect U.S. convoys. Last month saw 369 "indirect fire" attacks, the lowest number since February 2006. October's total was half of what it was in the same month a year ago. And it marked the third month in a row of sharply reduced insurgent activity, the military said.

Unlike many of the Democratic candidates who wish for our troops to keep dying for "their" political benefit, I support the troops and hope they succeed. However, I still think we should leave as quickly as possible, because of the same reason I mentioned In August, when the Iraqi took a months long vacation, while our men and women were dying to protect their country. It seems that if they cannot or will not fix their own government, then the minute the surge ends and we draw down troops, the violence will ramp up again, and all the lives will have been lost for nothing!

Hopefully, the lull in violence will continue, and truthfully, maybe, just maybe, the Iraqi people really are tired of the killings, and they will take control from the ground up and fix the country themselves, in spite of the inaction of their government officials, that could be the best of all outcomes for everyone invested in seeing Iraq succeed!




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Confllict Between Shiite Factions Increases

The news from Iraq is better is some aspects, such as a report showing that major attacks are nearly halved from a month ago, but the Shiite on Shiite violence that we wrote about the other day, seems to be getting worse by the day.

As political infighting deepens nationwide, the US military fight against insurgents rages. On Saturday, five Americans were killed south of Baghdad, four in one roadside bombings. Those deaths raise the number of US military personnel killed in Iraq to at least 3,690 since March 2003.

The widening split among Shiites parallels the national Iraqi political fissures. On Sunday, Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki called for meetings to begin Monday with the country's main political leaders to fix the national political paralysis.

The jeopardy of our troops being in the middle of not just a civil war, but a series of civil wars has got to be troubling to us all. It is a shame that just as we are making progress militarily against the terrorists/insurgents, an old rivalry is being renewed, which can only spiral out of control, with killings and the reprisal killings which result.

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Ammunition To Lebanon

In a story of another fight against militant terrorists the army of Lebanon continues to fight heavily armed Islamists of the Fatah al-Islam group in Beirut. The United States sent three United States Air Force cargo planes full of ammunition to assist them in there fight. The story can be read in its’ entirety by following the link.
The militants said that there was nerve gas and cluster bombs amongst the cargo and that they would fight back with unconventional weapons if they were attacked with the unconventional weapons. There was no comment from our American spokesman as he said the accusations were groundless.
The militants continue to hide in the Nahr al-Bared Palestinian refugee camp and according to a 1969 Arab agreement the Lebanese army is banned from entering the refugee camp. So these cowards hide behind women and children and bring destruction upon these refugees who have already been through so much suffering.
This is just another example of the destruction that al-Qaeda and fellow terrorists have in store for the whole world. Here they are fighting their Islamic brothers and they do not care that they are destroying their “brothers” homes and lives by their refusal to leave the refugee camp.
The Lebanese leadership says that the Fatah al-Islam group is being directed by the Syrian intelligence agency, so perhaps Speaker of the House, Nancy Pelosi can call her new buddies in the Syrian government and tell them to back off and leave the refugee camp. After all she did take a trip to Damascus and believes it is alright to talk to a leaders of a nation such as Syria, which actively supports terrorists and kills political rivals at will.
A special note to all “peace” activists that in addition to ammunition coming from the United States, there were Arab allies that also sent ammunition and supplies to Lebanon on this trip and have offered further assistance as needed. So we are not trying to get entangled in another Mideast country, at least not with troops on the ground.
The last time our troops were in Beirut many of them were killed. On October 23, 1983, a truck bomb drove into a Marine barracks and killed 241 marines, sailors, and soldiers. It was the worst terrorist attack on Americans until September 11th, and shortly thereafter we left Lebanon. So staying out of Lebanon is probably a pretty good idea seeing as how this poor nation has seen violence and destruction for a long time and our troops would become a focal point for violence.
Lebanon is just another in a long line of nations that must face Islamic extremists who will not be satisfied until only their particular vision of the world is all that is left.
Hopefully mediators will convince these terrorists to leave the refugee camp, but if they cannot, the Lebanese army should be allowed to enter the camp and end their occupation of the camp.

Truck bomb kills 241

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Two Good Arrests, But Officers Injured

I have just finished an excellent story in the Iowa Press-Citizen concerning six people who were arrested after a melee in which two officers were injured.
Please read the whole story in the paper or online, but the short story is that Iowa City Police were called to 921 N. Dodge for a domestic abuse situation. They arrived and after arriving the situation escalated and resulted in an attempt to arrest James Michael Willis, 27 of that address. He pushed officer Laura Wood down injuring her back. Another officer , Matt Hansen, was punched in the face and other officers were injured in minor ways. The following people were arrested for interference with the officers as they tried to arrest Mr. Willis: Demetrius James Bledsoe, 26, same address, Antonio Maurice House, 27, of 913 Willow St., Kimberly Rachel Willis, 24, Adam M. Melcher 31, and Lakisha D. Thomas, 24 of Coralville. Miss Willis was also arrested on escape charges as she fled after being handcuffed and was found 15 minutes later a few houses away.
I went to the reader comments after reading this story and it looks like most of them were favorable toward the police reaction in the situation. In fact, one of the comments was by the person who called the 911 complaint in and he said the man arrested was screaming about killing everyone in the residence, he was using the N word even though he is African-American. In the story it says he was yelling about killing white people when the police arrived, so the situation was bad and while it seems that this young man’s friends like him a lot, as evidenced by their stupidity in trying to interfere with the police, it is also illegal as they now know.
From all of the reporting I think they should be happy that someone did not get shot, because being attacked by several assailants at once would in my estimation make it imperative to stop the violence as quickly as possible. I find the restraint used by these officers as evidence of the high quality training that they receive and the discipline with which they control their emotions. I know that it their job, but think about yourself, if you were in a situation that put you in grave danger would you not react on emotion and not rational thought, it would be “flight or fight time”.
So congratulations to the police on this incident and perhaps it will educate some people not to attack the police. I know a few officers and find them to be good people who do a hard and sometimes dangerous job for and they get too little respect for it most of the time. I quibble sometimes about the occasional speeding tickets which I have received, and that they could be doing something better, but in reality everything that they do to keep the rule of law upheld is the true and right thing to do. These young people better wake up and realize that breaking the law is wrong for anyone, no matter their age or their race, that is what civilized society is all about.
So remember kids alcohol or other substances, loud voices, mingled with threats of bodily violence, will invariably bring a knock at your door by the police, how you respond can get you either a warning or if you choose to be stupid, a night in jail, followed by charges, fines , and perhaps even serious jail or prison time. Worst of all if you escalate it too far, it could have ended in serious injury or even death. May Officers Wood and Hansen get well soon.
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Eleven peace activists who claimed they were justified in staying in the federal courthouse after hours because they wanted to end the war in Iraq were found guilty of trespass by a Linn County judge.
“While wanting to end the further loss of lives is a goal of the utmost importance, the
Court does not find that this goal amounts to justification for the Defendants' actions given the completely speculative nature of the outcome in this case,” Magistrate Judge Jill Ableidinger said in a written order issued Monday afternoon.
She tried all 11 together on April 25, each on a single simple misdemeanor trespass charge.
Ableidinger said the defendants didn't know if Grassley would speak to them, secondly had no way of knowing that a conversation would cause him to act and lastly that if the Senator did what effect, if any, the action would have on saving lives.
Frank Cordaro of Des Moines, a former Catholic priest and seasoned activist, expressed disappointment in the judge's decision. It's been his experience that the judicial branch of the U.S. government sides with the executive branch in war making, Cordaro said. His first arrest dates back to a 1977 protest at the Pentagon.
About two dozen protesters waited outside the office of Sen. Chuck Grassley, which is on the second floor of the federal courthouse in Cedar Rapids, on Feb. 26 hoping to talk to the Senator by phone to convince him to push for an end to the war.
They were participating the Occupation Project, part of the Voices for Creative Non-Violence campaign, which is an effort to stop the war in Iraq.
Grassley was on a plane to Washington, D.C. The war protesters waited, hoping to speak with him by phone. They were repeatedly asked to leave. An hour and a half after the courthouse closed to the public, Cedar Rapids police were called in to arrest the 11 who remained in the hallway.
Ableidinger said they could have attempted to contact the Senator earlier, or waited until the next day.
Sentencing is set for July 6th in Linn County District Associate Court and they face up to 30 days in jail.
In addition to Codaro those convicted include:Andrew Alemeo,19,of Cedar Falls Joshua Casteel, 27, of Cedar Rapids; Megan R. Felt, 20, of Iowa City; Timothy L. Gauger, 36, of Eugene, Ore.; David A. Goodner, 26, of Iowa City; John P. Hornbeck, 25, of Iowa City; Ryan D. Merz, 20, of Maple Plain, Minn.; Conor A. Murphy, 29, of Madison, Wis.; Rosemary M. Persaud, 47, of Iowa City; and Justin N. Riley, 19, of Crystal, Minn.
So we have had two good outcomes in two different stories dealing with law breakers, which shows that no matter what you think your goals are you do not get to violate the law and expect to get away with it.
I am proud of Senator Grassley not caving in and actually talking to these whack jobs. I know if you really want to stop the war in Iraq why don’t you hop a plane and talk to your Al-Qaida buddies and ask them to stop killing our troops and the Iraqi citizens. I am sure if you are so in touch with your feelings about stopping the war, then you really need to go to the source and I am sure you can hold hands in brotherhood with the terrorists, they’ll agree, the killing will stop and then our troops can come home.
There see it really is that easy, isn’t it? Oh right, No it is not! I hope you enjoy your jail time, it will be easier if you pretend you’re the victim’s! Right, I already know that you do, but you are wrong, the victim’s are the poor citizens of Iraq and our troops being killed by your terrorist brethren, or in the story our fine police officers, who were only doing their jobs.