Thursday, February 16, 2012

Portraits of Valor: Tibor Rubin - MOH Korean War

this is a private post, not the daily war on terror news...

pls watch this, i know little bit long, but it deserved it

i want to hear your thoughts and comments, mine after the video





so, after i saw this report, i'm really hard to find words for now

i'm proud to be hungarian, JUST for Him, and for everyone else who served, fought and died for the U.S. freedom
there are several other hungarians in the same "line", from korean wars, vietnam, iraq etc.
special thx for them for their service!

all of the words in the video, from 11:55....i want to say that too...!

11 soldiers injured in clashes with al-Qaida militants in southern Yemen

Map of Yemen showing Abyan governorate.
Abyan - Image via Wikipedia
ADEN, Yemen, Feb. 16 (Xinhua) -- Armed confrontations broke out on Thursday morning between dozens of al-Qaida militants and Yemeni government forces, leaving at least 11 troops injured in the war-torn southern province of Abyan, a security official said.

The clashes erupted following a botched armed attack by the al- Qaida members against an army patrol of the 119th Armored Brigade in the northeastern suburbs of Zinjibar city, the provincial capital of Abyan, the official told Xinhua on condition of anonymity.

"A total of 11 troops were injured during the clashes with the terrorists using medium and large caliber weapons," the official said on condition of anonymity, adding that "the army soldiers were able to confront al-Qaida members, forcing them to retreat from the region."

A local medic at the Basuhib military hospital in neighboring Aden province, where injured soldiers were taken for treatment, confirmed to Xinhua the toll, saying that "four of them were gravely wounded."

Meanwhile, a close source to the al-Qaida fighters told Xinhua anonymously that "one of our followers was killed and three others were injured during the fiercest gun-battles with army forces this morning."

Abyan, some 480 km south of the capital Sanaa, has been the scene of daily fierce fighting after hundreds of militants from the Al-Qaida in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP) captured Zinjibar and at least three other towns in May 2011.

The ongoing fighting showed the country's fragile security situation days ahead of the presidential elections scheduled on Feb. 21 that would end the rule of outgoing President Ali Abdullah Saleh who is currently in the United States for medical treatment.
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Local al-Qaida leader killed in attack in southeast Yemen

Yemen division 2011-10-23
Image via Wikipedia
ADEN, Yemen, Feb. 16 (Xinhua) -- Tarek al-Dahab, a local leader of the Yemen-based al-Qaida wing, was shot dead in an offensive against his stronghold in the southeastern province of al-Bayda, a security official said Thursday.

The top leader of al-Qaida terrorist group in al-Bayda province, about 170 kilometers southeast of the Yemeni capital Sanaa, was killed overnight after his followers opened fire on military vehicles earlier in the day.

The al-Qaida militants killed the leader of a Republican Guard brigade, the head of al-Bayda's election committee along with his son and two soldiers, the local security official told Xinhua on condition of anonymity.

"Hours after killing the head of election committee, a storming campaign backed by pro-government tribal fighters and special forces of the counter-terrorism units stormed the hideout of al- Dahab and killed him instantly," the official said.

Witnesses also said that dozens of al-Qaida militants imposed a siege on the house of tribal leader Hizam al-Dahab, who participated along with the security forces in the attack against Tarek al-Dahab.

The security situation in al-Manasa area, al-Dahab's native village, some 30 km southeast of al-Bayda's provincial capital city of Rada, is "alarming with a large presence of al-Dahab's followers," according to local residents.

However, a local tribal chief told Xinhua anonymously that " Tarek al-Dahab was killed by his elder brother Hizam in a mosque during family disputes not related to any kind of terrorism or Jihadist arguments."

"Hizam shot down Tarek al-Dahab while he was inside the mosque, " the tribal chief said.

In January, al-Qaida militants commanded by al-Dahab swept into Rada and overran it within hours, marking a significant advance by the extremists towards the capital Sanaa, but he later agreed to quit the city under a tribal mediation.

Since late January 2011, when protests erupted against Yemeni President Ali Abdullah Saleh, militants of al-Qaida in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP) have been working to bolster their presence in the country's remote regions.

The group has taken control of several cities and towns across the restive southern provinces, as the Yemeni government forces engaged in fierce clashes with the terrorists during the past months, leaving hundreds of people killed.

The AQAP, entrenching itself mainly in Yemen's southern provinces of Abyan and Shabwa, is on the terrorist list of the United States, which considers it as an increasing threat to its national security.

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5 policemen injured in suicide bomb attack in Peshawar, Pakistan

Map of Pakistan
Map of Pakistan (Photo credit: Omer Wazir)
ISLAMABAD, Feb. 16 (Xinhua) -- At least five policemen were injured in a suicide bomb attack that occurred Thursday afternoon in Pakistan's northwest city of Peshawar, said local media and police officers.

According to the report by local Urdu TV channel ARY, the attack took place at about 01:00 p.m. (local time) when a suicide bomber blew himself up near a police vehicle in the Sarband area of Peshawar, capital city of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Province in northwest Pakistan.

Talking to media, District Commissioner Officer Peshawar said that a police vehicle was on its routine patrol at the outskirts of the city when it was targeted by a suicide bomber whose identity is yet to be determined.

The injured have been rushed to a nearby hospital. Hospital sources said at least two of the injured policemen were in critical condition.

Heavy contingent of police was dispatched to the blast site and they cordoned off the area for a search operation.

No group has claimed responsibility for the attack yet.

Earlier on Thursday morning another suicide bomb attack was reported in Upper Dir area which is located to the north of Peshawar, in which three local pro-government peace militiamen were killed and seven others were injured.

The two suicide blasts took place shortly after Afghan President Hamid Karzai arrived in Pakistan for a two-day state visit. One of the missions of the visiting Afghan president is said to seek help from the Pakistani side for talks with Taliban.
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AUP detain IED network facilitator in Uruzgan province

URUZGAN PROVINCE, Afghanistan — Afghan Uniformed Police detained an improvised explosive device facilitator in Lublan village, Deh Rawud district, Feb. 12.

The facilitator was responsible for orchestrating a Feb. 4 suicide bombing attack at a police compound; which resulted in the suicide bomber being the only casualty.

Following the police compound attack, the AUP conducted a successful intelligence-driven investigation, which led the AUP to detain two suspects associated with the deceased bomber. The investigators then used information provided by two detainees to identify and locate the primary facilitator of the IED network.

After taking the facilitator into police custody, two IEDs were discovered at his compound and safely reduced.

“The AUP did a remarkable job with their investigation, which led to the apprehension of the IED facilitator, and demonstrated their potential to provide security to the villagers,” said a coalition Special Operations Forces representative.
   


FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
14 FEBRUARY 2012 RELEASE # 020

HEADQUARTERS, COMBINED JOINT SPECIAL OPERATIONS TASK FORCE-AFGHANISTAN
Bagram Airfield, Afghanistan
Article by Mass Communication Specialist 2nd Class Jacob L. Dillon
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R.I.P. - Petty Officer 3rd Class Kyler L. Estrada


DOD Identifies Navy Casualty

            The Department of Defense announced today the death of a sailor who was supporting Operation Enduring Freedom.
            Petty Officer 3rd Class Kyler L. Estrada, 21, of Maricopa, Ariz., died Feb. 14 as a result of a non-combat related training incident in Djibouti.  Estrada, a Navy hospital corpsman, was assigned to the 11th Marine Expeditionary Unit based at Camp Pendleton, Calif.
            For further information related to this release, contact Lt. Cmdr. Tommy Crosby at 011-973-1785-6955.





Lance Cpl. Kyle Draper kneels before a pair of boots and a rifle at a Feb. 17 memorial service aboard USS Makin Island honoring corpsman Petty Officer 3rd Class Kyler L. Estrada, who died in a Djibouti training accident Feb. 14. Estrada, who served with Company I, Battalion Landing Team 3/1, was 21 and a native of Maricopa, Ariz. “Doc died in the company of his brothers,” said company commander Capt. Matt McGirr. The landing team is the ground combat element for the 11th Marine Expeditionary Unit, deployed as part of the Makin Island Amphibious Ready Group to the U.S. Fifth Fleet area of responsibility.





ARABIAN SEA (Feb. 17, 2012) Hospital Corpsman 3rd Class Alexandria Greterman pays respects to Hospital Corpsman 3rd Class Kyler L. Estrada during a memorial service aboard the amphibious assault ship USS Makin Island (LHD 8). Estrada, who was assigned to the 11th Marine Expeditionary Unit (11th MEU), died while conducting night live-fire and maneuver training in Djibouti. (U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist 1st Class David McKee/Released)



11th Marine Expeditionary Unit
Image via Wikipedia

New leader of al Qaeda network in Iran named

Muhsin al Fadhli, who is said to be al Qaeda's new leader inside Iran.



By Thomas Joscelyn - February 15, 2012 - LWJ


A notorious Kuwaiti terrorist named Muhsin al Fadhli has reportedly taken over leadership of al Qaeda's network inside Iran. Sky News reports that al Fadhli assumed the top post in al Qaeda's Iran franchise after Yasin al Suri, who has headed the network for years, was placed under "protective custody" following his exposure by US authorities.

In July 2011, the US Treasury Department designated al Suri and several other al Qaeda operatives who use Iranian soil to move funds and recruits from Gulf countries to Pakistan, Afghanistan, and elsewhere. The Treasury Department said that this network operates as part of a "secret deal" between al Qaeda and the Iranian government. In December 2011, US authorities announced that they were offering a $10 million reward for information leading to al Suri's capture. [See LWJ reports, Treasury targets Iran's 'secret deal' with al Qaeda and US offers $10 million reward for Iran-based al Qaeda financier.]

It was this increased scrutiny, according to intelligence sources cited by Sky News, that led to al Suri's replacement.

Al Fadhli is an especially effective al Qaeda operative who was designated by the US Treasury Department in 2005. Al Fadhli "is considered an al Qaeda leader in the Gulf countries" and "fought alongside the Taliban and al Qaeda in Afghanistan where he served as a bodyguard and second-in-command for an al Qaeda leader," the Treasury Department explained at the time. Al Fadhli "also fought against Russian forces in Chechnya, where he trained in the use of firearms, antiaircraft guns and explosives."

Al Fadhli has long been an elite member of al Qaeda. In early September 2001, Treasury explained, he "possibly received forewarning that US interests would be struck." The Sept. 11 operation was compartmentalized and only select members of the network received advance notice.

Among other nefarious activities, al Fadhli has been a key money man for al Qaeda. According to the Treasury Department's press release in 2005, al Fadhli's "support for terrorism extends to Iraq where he is believed to be providing support to fighters against US and multinational forces and is considered a major facilitator connected to the brutal terrorist, Abu Musab al Zarqawi."
Yasin al Suri, al Qaeda's leader in Iran who was reportedly placed under "protective custody."

Al Fadhli even "requested that tapes be made showing evidence of successful attacks in Iraq" so that he could "solidify the support of key financial backers sponsoring attacks."

Al Fadhli's dossier does not end there. Even before he assisted al Qaeda in Iraq's efforts, al Fadhli was involved in both the Oct. 6, 2002 attack on the French ship MV Limburg and the Oct. 8, 2002 attack against US Marines stationed on Kuwait's Faylaka Island. One Marine was killed during the Faylaka Island shootout.

An al Qaeda operative named Muhammad al Hamati called al Fadhli "in the wake of the attack on the MV LIMBURG, informing him that the first operation on the French oil tanker had been completed," according to the Treasury Department.
An al Qaeda cell responsible for the 2009 plot against Camp Arifjan, a US military installation in Kuwait, also had ties to al Fadhli. That cell was broken up by Kuwaiti authorities before it could launch an attack.

Al Fadhli was a leader of the so-called "Peninsula Lions Brigade," a group of more than three dozen terrorists responsible for the Faylaka Island attack and other plots. He was tried in 2005, in absentia, along with other members of the brigade. In fact, al Fadhli has been tried, acquitted, and retried by Kuwaiti courts on various terrorism charges multiple times.

At one point, al Fadhli was sentenced to 10 years of hard labor in prison. In a separate case, according to a leaked State Department cable written in June 2005, al Fadhli was charged with involvement in al Qaeda's October 2000 USS Cole bombing. That attack was carried out by the same network that bombed the MV Limburg, with help from al Fadhli, two years later.

Although al Fadhli has long been wanted for his al Qaeda role, it is unclear how many charges he was ultimately convicted of in Kuwait. One leaked State Department cable notes "the difficulties in prosecuting Kuwaiti terror financier Muhsin al Fadhli as an example of the dangers inherent in a lack of proper terror finance legislation" inside Kuwait.

Al Fadhli's presence in Iran has long been known. The Arab Times reported in 2009 that Kuwaiti officials were interrogating an al Qaeda recruiter known as "MS" for his involvement in "luring ... youths to fight Jihad against the foreign forces in Afghanistan." The man known as MS reportedly told officials he had met with al Fadhli "several times" and that al Fadhli "lives along the Iran-Afghanistan border."
I
n Kuwait, al Fadhli was closely tied to Sulaiman Abu Gaith, who served for a time as Osama bin Laden's spokesman. Abu Gaith received safe haven inside Iran after the Sept. 11 attacks, but was placed under a loose form of house arrest in 2003. In 2010, the Iranians reportedly freed Abu Gaith from his lax confinement and he may have made his way to Pakistan. [See LWJ report, Osama bin Laden's spokesman freed by Iran.]
Adel Radi Saker al Wahabi al Harbi, Muhsin al Fadhli's deputy.

Kuwaiti and US authorities are not the only ones interested in detaining al Fadhli. Saudi authorities have long targeted him as well. The man Sky News named as al Fadhli's deputy inside Iran, Adel Radi Saker al Wahabi al Harbi, is among Saudi Arabia's most wanted suspected terrorists.
No "specific" details of terrorist plotting
Sky News cited anonymous intelligence officials who believe a terrorist plot involving al Fadhli and al Qaeda's network in Iran may be afoot. Al Qaeda's emir, Ayman al Zawahiri, is reportedly interested in launching a mass casualty attack as retaliation for the killing of Osama bin Laden. However, the details of this putative plot are sketchy.

"We do know that an operation is under way. We assess that the most likely target is to be European. And the most obvious target in Europe for an attack that would attract a lot of attention would be the Olympic Games," a source told Sky News. Iran is reportedly providing training in explosives, safe haven, and funding for the operatives involved.
A secret intelligence memo shown to Sky News reads: "Against the background of intensive co-operation over recent months between Iran and al Qaeda - with a view to conducting a joint attack against Western targets overseas... Iran has significantly stepped up its investment, maintenance and improvement of operational and intelligence ties with the al Qaeda leadership in Pakistan in recent months."

The memo adds that al Fadhli's deputy, al Harbi, "is considered an extremely dangerous field operative; he has fought in the Afghanistan and Pakistan theatres."
The intelligence sources cited by Sky News explained, however, that they lacked "specific" intelligence on al Qaeda's planning. It appears that the report is speculative when it comes to the details of the putative al Qaeda plot.
That said, Iran has provided safe haven to al Qaeda operatives known to be targeting the West. Members of an al Qaeda cell that was plotting Mumbai-style attacks on European cities are known to be currently living in Iran. [See LWJ report, Leaders of German al Qaeda cell living in Iran.]
Iran has provided assistance to al Qaeda in its operations before -- not just in Iraq and Afghanistan, but also elsewhere. As the 9/11 Commission and US courts have previously found, al Qaeda's 1998 embassy bombings in Kenya and Tanzania were modeled after Iran's and Hezbollah's operations in Lebanon in 1983 and 1984. While living in Sudan in the early 1990s, Osama bin Laden approached Iran and Hezbollah, asking for their assistance in executing attacks similar to the 1983 bombing of the US Marine Barracks which had led to the withdrawal of American forces from Lebanon.

Iran and Hezbollah agreed to help, providing training to al Qaeda operatives in camps in Lebanon and Iran. Among the trainees were al Qaeda members who would later plot the embassy bombings. [See LWJ report, DC court: Iran showed al Qaeda how to bomb embassies.]

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Suicide bomber kills one in Upper Dir

PESHAWAR: A suicide bomber targeted Pakistani volunteers in a pro-government militia on Thursday, killing one person and wounding at least three others in an area troubled by Taliban violence, police said.

The bomber was spotted by members of the lashkar and blew himself up after they chased and surrounded him in a market area of Dir town in the northwestern district of Upper Dir near the Afghan border.

“One person was killed. He was the son of local lashkar chief Mutabar Khan and six people were wounded,” police official Mohammad Ayub told AFP.

Another police official, Riaz Mehsud, confirmed the attack but said three people were wounded, not six.

Taliban and other insurgents routinely target members of tribal militias known as lashkars, which support government security forces in fending off militant threat across northwest Pakistan.

from DAWN
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US drone kills several insurgents in Pakistan

thursday morning US drone(s) kills 5 or 7 insurgents in North Waziristan.
here are the different news agencies reports:



from SAMAA:

MIRANSHAH: At least seven people were reported killed in missile strike at a remote area of North Waziristan, SAMAA reports Thursday.

Sources said a suspected US drone fired two missiles on house in Tehsil Sapalga of the North Waziristan trial belt, bordering Afghanistan.

The strike, carried out in wee hours of Thursday, left seven people dead, injuring seven others. They were later taken to nearby hospital, sources said.

Identification of those dead was not immediately known.

------

from DAWN:

MIRANSHAH: A US drone strike targeting a militant compound killed five insurgents in a northwest Pakistan tribal region near the Afghan border Thursday, security officials said.

“Two missiles were fired by a US drone on a compound used by militants in Spalga town near Miranshah and five militants have been killed,” a security official said.

The attack was confirmed by two other security officials in Miranshah, the main town in North Waziristan region, known as a stronghold of Taliban and al Qaeda linked militants.

Security officials said several other militants were wounded but the exact number was not immediately known.

Pakistani officials and a member of his group told AFP that Mansoor who reputedly sent fighters to Afghanistan and ran a training camp in North Waziristan, was killed in a drone strike near the Afghan border.

------

from Bill Roggio - LWJ:

Unmanned US Predator or Reaper strike aircraft killed seven "militants" in the Miramshah area of Pakistan's Taliban-controlled tribal agency of North Waziristan today in the first strike in a week.

The CIA operated drones fired a pair of missiles at a compound used by "militants" in the village of Spalga near Miramshah, according to AFP. SAMAA reported that seven people were killed and seven more were wounded in the strike. The exact target of the strike has not been disclosed, and the identity of those killed is not known.

Senior terrorists are known to have sheltered in the village of Tapi in the past. The US has struck at targets in the village four other times since the end of 2009, according to data on the strikes that has been compiled by The Long War Journal.

Saleh al Somali, al Qaeda's operations chief, was killed in a US drone strike in Spalga on Dec. 9, 2009. Al Somali was a longtime al Qaeda operative who was present in Mogadishu during the nfamous Black Hawk Down incident that resulted in the deaths of 19 US troops and hundreds of Somalis during an operation to detain a warlord in the capital in the fall of 1993.

Al Qaeda's external operations network has been a prime target of the covert US air campaign in Pakistan's tribal areas. The US has targeted al Qaeda and Taliban camps designated to train operatives holding foreign passports, while the leadership of the external operations branch has also been hit hard.

The Haqqani Network, a Taliban group that operates in North Waziristan as well as in eastern Afghanistan, administers the area where today's attack took place. Al Qaeda leaders and operatives, who are closely allied with the Haqqani Network, shelter in the area, as do other terror groups.


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Feb.16., 2012. - ISAF Joint Command Morning Operational Update

KABUL, Afghanistan (Feb. 16) — An Afghan and coalition security force conducted an operation in search of a Taliban leader in Shirin Tagab district, Faryab province, today.

The insurgent leader is the deputy military coordinator for Faryab province. He provides explosives to insurgent leaders and plans attacks.

The security force engaged numerous insurgents who exited their compound armed with heavy machine guns, AK-47 assault rifles and rocket-propelled grenades. Responding to the direct threat the security force killed the armed insurgents, during the operation.

No civilians were harmed during the operation, according to operational reports.

In other International Security Assistance Force news throughout Afghanistan:

North
An Afghan and coalition security force conducted a search for an Islamic Movement of Uzbekistan leader in Dasht-e Qal’ah district, Takhar province, today. The leader was responsible for the Dec. 25, 2011 suicide attack that killed an Afghan government official in Takhar, as well as the movement of weapons, explosives and suicide bombers throughout the area. During the operation the combined force discovered a cache of bomb-making materials which were safely destroyed on site. The security force also detained multiple suspected insurgents during the operation.

South
In Shah Wali Kot district, Kandahar province, an Afghan and coalition security force detained multiple suspected insurgents while searching for a Taliban explosives facilitator, today. The facilitator distributes explosives and weapons to fighters in Kandahar city for use in attacks throughout the area.

East
An Afghan and coalition security force captured a Haqqani network facilitator during an operation in Sabari district, Khost province, today. The facilitator distributed weapons and explosives and planned attacks against Afghan forces. The security force also confiscated a cache of bomb-making material and detained several suspected insurgents.

In Mota Khan district, Paktika province, an Afghan and coalition security force conducted an operation in search of a Taliban leader today. The insurgent leader directs insurgent fighters in attacks throughout Paktika province. Multiple weapons were seized and two suspected insurgents were detained during the operation.

An Afghan and coalition security force captured a Taliban facilitator during an operation in Charkh district, Logar province, today. The facilitator directed attacks against Afghan forces in Logar province. One additional suspected insurgent was detained during the operation.

In Rodat district, Nangarhar province, an Afghan and coalition security force conducted an operation in search of a Taliban leader today. The leader directs attacks, recruits fighters and acquires weapons for Taliban insurgents. During the operation, the security force engaged an individual armed with a grenade, killing the insurgent. One suspected insurgent was also detained during the operation.

An Afghan-led and coalition-supported security force discovered a home-made explosives cache in Muquer district, Ghazni province, yesterday. The cache consisted of 352 pounds (160 kilograms) of HME prepared for use in improvised explosive devices. All of the explosives were destroyed on site.

West
A combined Afghan and coalition security force discovered a drug cache during an operation in Farah-Rud district, Farah province, yesterday. The cache consisted of approximately 233 pounds (106 kilograms) of opium. The security force also seized several firearms and detained one suspected insurgent during the operation. The drugs and firearms were confiscated and will be destroyed at a later date.
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Pakistan's Afghan border remains closed to NATO

Map of Pakistan
Map of Pakistan (Photo credit: Omer Wazir)
The U.S. Embassy says Pakistan's border with Afghanistan remains closed to NATO despite comments by a senior Pakistani official that seemed to indicate the coalition would be allowed to transport some food items.

Pakistan closed the crossings to NATO at the end of November in retaliation for American airstrikes that accidentally killed 24 Pakistani soldiers.

Defense Minister Ahmed Mukhtar said this week that Pakistan would temporarily allow NATO to ship perishable items to its troops in Afghanistan. He said the coalition could transport the supplies "by air or by truck."

But the U.S. Embassy said on Thursday that the crossings remained closed.
U.S. Ambassador Cameron Munter has said the air route remains open.
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