1 December 2003
'IRAQ AMBUSH A BANK HEIST, US SAYS
'An ambush on US troops in Iraq's city of Samarra was an attempt to seize new Iraqi banknotes, the US military says.
'"It was a co-ordinated attack on a convoy delivering a significant amount of Iraqi currency," US Colonel Frederick Rudesheim told reporters.
'The US said its soldiers had killed 54 Iraqis and wounded 18 in Sunday's attack, while five US troops were hurt. [See Nov. 2003 diary, under 30 Nov.]
'Residents of the central Iraqi city of Samarra disputed those figures, saying that only eight or nine people died at most.'
(BBC Ceefax)
Mother and Commander fighting terrorism
Stewart Tendler, Times Online (Britain), 1 Dec. 03
'Scotland Yard has appointed its first woman commander of the Special Branch to lead the fight against terrorism at a time of greatly heightened security concern.
'Commander Janet Williams joins Eliza Manningham-Buller, the head of MI5, in the front line of anti-terrorism intelligence, and is in charge of 560 officers responsible for gathering intelligence on terrorist suspects, protecting the Prime Minister and combating espionage.
'Mrs Williams took up her post last week at a time when Special Branch is running 90 counter-terrorist operations a month. Mrs Williams has never worked in the branch before but is a highly experienced counter-terrorism detective. In the 1990s. she was with SO13, Scotland Yard's anti-terrorist branch, investigating IRA and Middle Eastern terrorism. ...'
Bob Barr, "On-Star online to U.S. gov[ernment]", A UPI Outside View commentary, United Press International, 1 Dec. 03
How a car-communication device has been used by the FBI for snooping on vehicles' occupants.
2 December 03
'FOURTEEN ARRESTED IN ANTI-TERROR RAIDS [in UK]
'Fourteen people have been arrested under the Terrorism Act in raids on addresses in London, Cambridge and the West Midlands.
'four men were taken to a central London police station by Anti-Terrorist Branch officers from the Metropolitan Police.
'Six people — four men and two women — were also arrested at two addresses in Cambridge and detained under the Act.
'Four men were held in Walsall and Dudley in raids police said were not connected to the others.'
(BBC Ceefax, p.106)
'ITALY MEDIA LAW OVER FINAL HURDLE
'The Italian Senate has approved a controversial measure which allows Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi to consolidate his control over the media.
'A total of 155 senators voted the media bill into law, with 128 against.
'One provision of the bill is to reverse a court ruling that Mr Berlusconi's Mediaset company must sell off one of its three TV stations by January.
'The left-wing opposition urged Italy's president not to sign the bill, arguing that it was unconstitutional.'
(BBC Ceefax, 2 Dec. 03, p.112)
'US DENIES CAPTURING SADDAM AIDE
'US forces have dened reports that they captured a top Saddam Hussein deputy during a raid in northern Iraq.
'A member of Iraq's Governing Council said earlier that Izzat Ibrahim al-Douri had been caught near Kirkuk.
'But Major Doug vincent of the 173rd Airborne Brigade told reporters with the troops that he was "definitely not captured in today's mission".
'Mr Douri is the highest-ranking regime official still at large other than Saddam Hussein.'
(BBC Ceefax, 2 Dec. 03, p.114)
'US LINKS ATTACKS TO SADDAM HENCHMAN
'A senior aide to Saddam Hussein is thought to be helping co-ordinate attacks on US forces in Iraq, a senior American defence official has said.
'Two captured members of the Ansar al-Islam terrorist group claimed Izzat Ibrahim al Douri was helping run their attacks, the unnamed official said.
'US commanders say hundreds of non-Iraqi members of Ansar have entered Iraq.
'Izzat Ibrahim, Number Six on the US list of 55 most-wanted Iraqis was the father-in-law of Saddam's son Uday.'
(BBC Ceefax, 29 Oct. 03, p.109)
Another character too handy to be "captured", another straw man in CIAberspace? (The real one would have to be kept — perhaps literally — on ice.)
3 December 03
The police are to begin armed patrols in the streets of Birmingham, UK, as an "anti-terrorist" measure in the run-up to Christmas. "Key" sites will be guarded, and checks carried out on motorists at undisclosed locations.
(BBC Ceefax)
Sajid Badat (see Nov. 2003 diary, under 27, 29 Nov.) has been charged with conspiring with "shoe bomber" Richard Reid to cause explosions.
(BBC Ceefax, 3 Dec. 03)
... The charges against Badat were described (by a reporter for British Channel 4 News) as very complicated.
'ID CARD TECHNOLOGY ON TRIAL
'A large-scale test of technology to be used in the new compulsory ID card will begin next month, ministers have said.
Contractors will sample "biometric" information — fingerprints and a facial [cf. below, 4 Dec., FBI CCTV project] and iris scan — from 10,000 volunteers in the six-month trial scheme.
'Each person in the trial will receive a personalised "smart card" carrying information about their physical characteristics on a microchip. [Lucky old sods!!!]'
(ITV Teletext, 3 Dec. 03, p.310)
'BLAIR TO EXAMINE TROOP PROTECTION CLAIM
'[British PM] Tony Blair has vowed to examine claims that UK military vehicles in Iraq do not have full protective equipment.
'Tory MP Andrew Murrison, who recently returned from Iraq after serving as a reservist [!], said he was told not all vehicles receive the proper protection.
'This was a "highly unsatisfactory state of affairs", Mr Murrison said, urging the Prime Minister to take action.
'Mr Blair praised the troops in Iraq, saying they "had all the protection they need"."
(BBC Ceefax, 3 Dec. 03, p.124)
Whenever British forces are preparing to invade a country, a disinformation campaign is launched about the "decrepit" state of the armed forces. (That old Japanese trick.) To make it look good, the Government leadership plays its part by a public "pooh-poohing" of these alleged shortcomings.
Such a performance was carried out, in various phases, during the year before the Iraq invasion. Tanks tested in Oman, and rifles used in Afghanistan, were allegedly not sandproof and performed badly. But they were "to be used again in Iraq". The performance was stepped up just before the invasion, with a soldier's family on ITV breakfast news claiming that troops were going hungry because of bad supply lines; and that the family was having to send its loved one food parcels!
Comedy for the more discerning. Are we in for a repeat show?
4 December 03
'PROJECT "TO BOOST CCTV EVIDENCE"
'The problem of poor quality CCTV footage of crimes is to be tackled by an FBI-led project involving 3,000 visitors to a British science museum.
'Researchers hope to develop a system which can tell whether a face caught on camera matches that of a suspect.
'Visitors to Rotherham's Magna Science Adventure Centre will have three dimensional scans of their heads taken. [They will be volunteers!].
'The two-year project will be used to build a database of facial variations among the general public.'
(BBC Ceefax, p.154)
Cf. yesterday's news item on the test project for identity cards. These two "experiments" are concurrent", and are unlikely to be coincidence. It's further evidence of the US junta's, specifically the FBI's, active interest in the more general British Police-State Experiment.
5 December 03
The US military: A creeping civilian mission
David Isenberg, Asia Times Online
'... a report in the November 23 Los Angeles Times by respected military affairs analyst William Arkin provides the latest evidence that the supposedly inviolate wall keeping the military out of traditional civilian activities is eroding, due [to] the diversion of the military to civilian matters.
'The wall is embodied in the US by the 1878 Posse Comitatus Act, enacted to preclude federal troops from doing the bidding of local politicians in the occupied South following the Civil War. It prohibits the military from conducting domestic law enforcement operations. ... But the law also allows Congress and the president to make exceptions, and over the years they have done so. ...
'... after the September 11, 2001 attacks, the Pentagon picked up extra responsibilities focused on preventing future terrorist attacks on US soil. ...
'Initially, the Pentagon expanded the role of the US Joint Forces Command (JFCOM) ...
'But this was deemed unwieldy, and thus led to the creation of the Northern Command [NORTHCOM], an organization that consolidates all existing military homeland defense and security operations. Concerns about possible violations of the Posse Comitatus Act caused Congress, in the 2002 Defense Authorization Act, to "conduct a study on the appropriate role of the Department of Defense with respect to homeland security".
'Last year, however, the Bush administrations' Homeland Security strategy document said: 'The threat of catastrophic terrorism requires a thorough review of the laws permitting the military to act within the United States in order to determine whether domestic preparedness and response efforts would benefit from greater involvement of military personnel and, if so, how."
'Since then the Defense Department also has been inserted into two very visible new agencies. It transferred about 50 new employees in the new Department of Homeland Security to the White House's newly formed Terrorist Threat Integration Center, which is designed to make sure the Central Intelligence Agency, the Pentagon, the Department of Homeland Security and the Federal Bureau of Investigation share information. [I wish they'd hurry up. I'm getting confused!]
'At Homeland Security's United States Northern Command (Northcom) headquarters at the Peterson Air Force Base in Colorado Springs, more than 200 people will be engaged in gathering domestic intelligence, receiving information from local and state police as well as US intelligence agencies.
'But as Arkin's article makes clear, Northcom is doing more than mere coordinating. "Under the banner of 'homeland security', the military and intelligence communities are implementing far-reaching changes that blur the lines between terrorism and other kinds of crises and will break down long-established barriers to military action and surveillance in the US."
According to Arkin, Northcom has defined three levels of operations, each of which triggers a larger set of authorized activities. The levels are "extraordinary", "emergency" and "temporary". During emergencies, the military can provide similar support, mostly in response to specific events such as the attacks on the World Trade Center. It is only in the case of extraordinary domestic operations that the unique capabilities of the Defense Department are deployed. These include such things as ... bringing in intelligence collectors, special operators and even full combat troops. ... [My emphasis throughout.]
'But ... [f]rom a civil liberties viewpoint, while members of the armed forces take an oath to uphold and defend the constitution, they are not trained, like the police, to uphold Americans' rights to privacy and due process [of law]. Civil libertarians' fears about due process have been heightened since September 11 [2001] by the indefinite detention of citizens and immigrants, and by proposals to try them before secret military tribunals.'
(© 2003 Asia Times Online Ltd)
'WWII BOMB COULD FORCE EVACUATION
'The Metropolitan Police believe an unexploded Second World War bomb may have been discovered in the Shepherd's Bush area of west London.
'Residents have been informed by leaflet that evacuation may not be necessary and, if so, not until Saturday morning [6 Dec.].
'If it does prove to be a bomb, police say they may need to close part of Wood Lane, which includes the main entrance to BBC Television Centre. [My emphasis.]
'That would affect the Central Line tube and access to Loftus Road stadium.'
(BBC Ceefax, 5 Dec. 03, p.121)
Forty people on a train were killed by suicide bombers in Stavropol province, south Russia (north of Chechnya). The Russian Duma (parliament) elections are due on the weekend.
6 December 03
'The Independent wonders if the US claim that 54 guerrillas in the battle in Samarra, Iraq, was "a fabrication ... to generate positive headlines.
'"Evidence emerging suggests that the victims were mostly civilians ... [and] that their numbers were far fewer", it says.'
(BBC Ceefax, p.148, reviews of British papers)
'The US has upgraded its Saudi Arabia security warning, restricting its staff to diplomatic quarters of their cities for all but essential duties. ...'
(ITV Teletext, 6 Dec. 03, p.307)
US Defense Secretary Rumsfeld has visited Kirkuk and Baghdad.
In China, where the number of internet users increased by 32% (to 78 million) over the last year, the 'government is worried people may be influenced by subversive ideas found on the net.'
(BBC Ceefax, 6 Dec. 03, p.154)
They share that worry with the US junta!
7 December 03
'The Sunday Telegraph says it has found the Iraqi colonel behind the infamous claim Iraq could have launched weapons of mass destruction in 45 minutes.
'The weapons were not used because "the bulk of the Iraqi army did not want to fight for Saddam", he tells the paper.
'And people will reveal where the arms are hidden "only when Saddam is caught".'
(BBC Ceefax, p.148, reviews of British papers)
British Channel 4 News this evening led on the above story. The officer, "identified only as Lieutenant al-Dabbah (and with his face suitably and dramatically blacked out, described how they only had rocket-propelled grenades" containing WMD, and the like [What! No nuclear pea-shooters?]. He did not have first-hand knowledge of the weapons, which had been given to Saddam's special militia for last-ditch use [and every last one has now disappeared without a trace?? ...] The weapons are "now buried in the desert", and the Iraq Survey Group could "search for twenty years without finding any". (Ah! How CONVENIENT!! But it doesn't yet rival the tenacity of Col. Blitzenburger's search for the Bavarian Redoubt.) People will only reveal where they are once Saddam is caught. (And that, we have growing confidence, will be on the other side of eternity. Besides, corpses can't talk.)
The Telegraph's editor also spoke on the same Channel 4 News story, saying how he had found this Colonel on his own initiative. We should note two pertinent things, however;
(a) MI6 only claimed (or claimed it claimed) that the "ready-in-45-minutes" applied only to battlefield weapons; either it misled the Blair government into thinking that the criterion applied to strategic weapons, or the Blair government (eager-beaver puppets as they are) misled themselves);
(b) The Daily and Sunday Telegraph are owned by the Hollinger company, which may be a front organization for the intelligence services (British and/or American). The company's board contains such worthies as Henry Kissinger and the Defense Policy Board's ultrahawk Richard Perle. On previous occasions Telegraph reporters have "turned up evidence" against opponents of the empire drive. A paper "showing" rebel Labour Party MP George Galloway had received large sums of money from Saddam was discovered by an intrepid reporter (with a little help from his translator) in the bombed-out ruins of the Iraqi Information Ministry. The building was a shell open to the public at the time, and anyone could have planted it (though subsequent tests are supposed to have shown it was authentic). ...
The Telegraph, a right-wing British newspaper, may thus be used by the "intelligence" services for the occasional publication of agitprop.
8 December 03
'UK'S CHILD PORN RECORD UNDER FIRE
'UK authorities failed to take full advantage of a list they were given by the FBI of child porn site subscribers, the Lib Dems have said.
'Home affairs spokesman Mark Oaten said a lack of convictions and prison sentences suggested the intelligence was not being properly exploited [!].
'A [Government] Home Office spokesman said resources were being made available, but how they were spent was down to the police.
'Mr Oaten said the Ore list ["Ore" is the name of the British "sub-franchise" of Operations Candyman and Avalanche] was "an absolute gift [!!!] to the police.'
(BBC Ceefax, p.124)
Oaten is at best a fool ...
In the UK, four men have been charged with financial offences "related to terrorism", including claims of support for biochem weapons.
9 December 03
Israel trains US assassination squads in Iraq
Julian Borger, The Guardian
'Israeli advisers are helping train US special forces in aggressive counter-insurgency operations in Iraq, including the use of assassination squads against guerrilla leaders, US intelligence and military sources said yesterday.
'The Israeli Defence Force (IDF) has sent urban warfare specialists to Fort Bragg in North Carolina, the home of US special forces, and according to two sources, Israeli military "consultants" have also visited Iraq.
'US forces in Iraq's Sunni triangle have already begun to use tactics that echo Israeli operations in the occupied territories., sealing off centres of resistance with razor wire and razing buildings from where attacks have been launched against US troops.
'US special forces teams are already behind the lines inside Syria attempting to kill foreign jihadists before they cross the border, and a group focused on the "neutralisation of guerrilla leaders is being set up, according to sources familiar with the operations.
'"This is basically an assassination programme. That is what is being conceptualised here. This is a hunter-killer team," said a former US intelligence official, who added that he feared the new tactics and enhanced cooperation with Israel would only inflame a volatile situation in the Middle East. ...
The UK's armed forces must be adapted to deal with terrorism, chief of defence staff Sir Michael Walker said.
He talked of major changes, tough choices and cuts in warships, aircraft and heavy armour.
'IRAQIS TO CREATE TRIBUNALS
'Iraq's interim government has voted to create a tribunal to prosecute members of Saddam Hussein's regime for crimes against humanity, it has been reported.
'It will be formally established by the Iraqi Governing Council after the US administrator for Iraq temporarily [!] cedes legislative authority tomorrow. [The tribunal will be staffed by Iraqis and advised by foreigners. No prizes for guessing what foreigners will be dominant ...]
'Sources in Baghdad said the first cases were likely to include officials on the US cards of 55 most-wanted Iraqis. [Note: 38 of these have been killed or captured by now.]'
(ITV Teletext, 9 Dec. 03, p.307)
The £4.1 million bill for policing Bush's recent visit was paid out of London's council-tax revenues, the local household tax, Sir John Stevens, chief of the Metropolitan police, said.
To the supporters of American imperialism, scraps from the master's table ...
'IRAQ TENDERS "ONLY FOR US ALLIES"
'Companies from countries opposed to the conflict in Iraq will be barred from bidding for new rebuilding contracts worth £11.6bn the Pentagon has said.
'US deputy defence secretary Paul Wolfowitz said the policy was necessary to protect America's "essential security interests".
'The 26 prime contracts cover areas such as oil, power, communications, water, housing and public works centres.
'The ban would exclude firms from countries such as France and Germany [and Russia].'
(BBC Ceefax, p.107)
'The US has rejected an offer by North Korea to freeze its nuclear activities in return for a series of concessions from Washington. ...'
(BBC Ceefax, p.112)
'President Bush has warned Taiwan against any steps towards independence after talks with Chinese prime minister Wen Jiabao. ...'
(BBC Ceefax, p.114)
12 December 03
'[British Home Secretary] David Blunkett threatened to resign from Amnesty International yesterday after it accused ministers of creating a Guantanamo Bay on British soil by holding foreign terror suspects without trial.
'The Home Secretary was furious after the human rights organisation denounced his emergency internment powers, under which 14 men have been jailed, as a "perversion of justice". ...'
(Nigel Morris, "Angry Blunkett threatens to resign from Amnesty", The Independent [Britain])
'GUARDIAN[:] The US has accepted controversial British-brokered plans for independent EU military planning.'
(ITV Teletext, 12 Dec. 03, p.328, reviews of British papers)
'PM Tony Blair has predicted it "may well" not be possible for EU leaders to reach agreement on a new constitution. ...'
(ITV Teletext, 12 Dec. 03, p.304)
... Poland, an American acolyte, is already dubious about agreeing to the constitution, because it will give France and Germany slightly greater voting powers to take account of their much greater populations.
And today Italy's Berlusconi added his voice to the "doubters".
Yes, it looks like the UK and other acolytes of "new Europe" were given the green light, during Bush's UK visit, to sabotage the European Union. ("Old" and "new Europe" were terms first used by US Defense secretary Donald Rumsfeld.)
'Britain has no plans to review the use of cluster bombs, despite criticism by a human rights group [Human Rights Watch] over the deaths of civilians in Iraq, the Government said. ...'
(ITV Teletext, 12 Dec. 03, p.313)
'USA[:] Vice President Dick Cheney's former company [Halliburton] may have overcharged the Army by as much as £39m for petrol [gasoline] in Iraq, Pentagon auditors have found.'
(ITV Teletext, 12 Dec. 03, p.318)
'GUARDIAN[:] The US has accepted controversial British-brokered plans for independent EU military planning.'
(ITV Teletext, 12 Dec. 03, p.328, reviews of British papers)
13 Dec. 03
'US ON VERGE OF FLU EPIDEMIC
'The US could be on the brink of a flu epidemic as a current outbreak of the bug continues to spread and supplies of vaccines run short.
'A batch of 100,000 flu shots for adults have been prepared but 150,000 shots for children will not arrive until January because of delays in packaging.
'Cases are widespread in 24 states and many Americans are rushing to Mexico to buy shots after their cities ran out.'
(ITV Teletext, p.308)
The European Union summit has broken up without agreement on the new constitution.
14 December 03
Saddam Hussein has been captured in northern Iraq, the US military says.
15 December 03
'IRAQ HAD NO WMDs — SADDAM
'Captured ex-dictator Saddam Hussein has told his American interrogators [a CIA team] that Iraq never [sic] possessed weapons of mass destruction, it has been reported.
'The 66-year-old despot was captured without a fight but intelligence officials described him as "defiant".
'Time magazine said Saddam was asked if Iraq had WMDs. He said: "No, of course not. The US dreamed them up itself to have a reason to go to war with us."'
(ITV Teletext, p.304)
16 December 03
'BLAIR/BLIX CLASH OVER IRAQ[i WMD]
'Former UN [chief] weapons inspector Hans Blix has dismissed claims Saddam Hussein had laboratories for developing weapons of mass destruction as just "innuendo". [He was speaking on the BBC News 24 interview programme "Hard Talk".]
'His comments came as PM Tony Blair said the Iraq Survey Group had already found "massive" evidence of secret labs and plans to develop long-range missiles. [Downing Street later clarified his comments as being based on the Group's interim report, published last summer, not on new evidence.]
'Dr Blix said the group had failed to produce any concrete evidence the labs found were working on such weapons.'
(ITV Teletext, p.307)
'CIA LEADING SADDAM INTERROGATION
'... US Defence Secretary Donald Rumsfeld has said.
'He told a Pentagon news conference that CIA chief George Tenet is deciding who should question Saddam, how they do it and what information they should seek. ...'
(BBC Ceefax, 16 Dec. 03, p.112)
[ Just to confirm that Saddam is another avatar in CIAberspace ... ]
I've seen only extremely-limited footage of the "captured Saddam" on British TV news; no evidence of the date it was made ...
... members of the Iraqi puppet government claim to have spoken with him ...
17 December 03
Dozens of people have been killed in suicide car-bomb attacks on police stations in Iraq, in the couple of days since Saddam's "capture".
9/11 Chair: Attack Was Preventable
Randall Pinkston, CBSNews.com, 17 Dec. 03
'For the first time, the chairman of the independent commission investigating the Sept. 11 attacks is saying publicly that 9/11 could have and should have been prevented, reports CBS News Correspondent Randall Pinkston.
'"This is a very, very important part of history and we've got to tell it right", said Thomas Kean. ...
'Appointed by the Bush administration, Kean, a former Republican governor of New Jersey, is now pointing fingers inside the administration and laying the blame. ...'
Dubious Link Between [Mohammed] Atta and Saddam
Michael Isikoff and Mark Hosenball, MSNBC, 17 Dec. 03
'A widely-publicized Iraqi document that purports to show that September 11 hijacker Mohammed Atta visited Baghdad in the summer of 2001 is probably a fabrication that is contradicted by U.S. law-enforcement records showing Atta was staying at cheap motels and apartments in the United States when the trip presumably would have taken place, according to U.S. law-enforcement officials and FBI documents.
'The new document, supposedly written by the chief of the Iraqi intelligence service, was trumpeted by the Sunday Telegraph of London earlier this week in a front-page story that broke hours before the dramatic capture of Saddam Hussein. TERRORIST BEHIND SEPTEMBER 11 STRIKE WAS TRAINED BY SADDAM, ran the headline on the story written by Con Coughlin, a Telegraph correspondent and the author of the book "Saddam: The Secret Life".
'Coughlin's account was picked up by newspapers around the world and was cited the next day by New York Times columnist William Safire. But U.S. officials and a leading Iraqi expert tell NEWSWEEK that the document is most likely a forgery — part of a thriving new trade in dubious Iraqi documents that has cropped up in the wake of the collapse of Saddam's regime.
'"It's a lucrative business", says Hassan Mneimneh, codirector of an Iraqi exile research group reviewing millions of captured Iraqi government documents. "There's an active trade taking place ... You have fraudulent documents that are being fabricated and sold" for hundreds of dollars a piece." ...'
It was claimed that the faked Iraq-Niger uranium-trading documents were produced for sale for a few hundred dollars, too. But these were a key part of the pretext to invade Iraq. They were allegedly sold to Italian intelligence, who passed them on to MI6 ... (and in fact the current document also tries to implicate al-Qaeda in the alleged uranium shipment. That's buttering you bread on both sides!)
The "Atta-Saddam" document is yet another item in the Daily/Sunday Telegraph window of the CIA/MI6 agitprop shop.
And to remind the reader again, The Telegraph is owned by the Hollinger company, on whose board ultrahawk Richard Perle and Henry Kissinger are illustrious members.
'FAILINGS IN POLICE SYSTEM [in UK, re. Huntley Soham case]
'The chief constable whose force investigated allegations of rape and under-age sex against Ian Huntley has admitted there were "system failings".
'David Westwood expressed "deep sorrow" at the Soham murders but said nothing on Humberside Police's computer had pointed to Huntley's murky past.
'He said the Data Protection Act meant vital information [!] was not available when vetting checks were carried out. [Huntley has been convicted of the murder of two girls at whose school he was caretaker.]'
(ITV Teletext, 17 Dec. 03, p.306)
These were allegations from a number of different people about Huntley. This makes malicious allegations seem less likely. ...
Now, is this one prize to be won from the Soham case? Conviction of selected targets by serial allegations which could in future be suitably orchestrated? Preferably of child-molestation, a charge so heinous that it tends to replace rational analysis? I have suggested that Soham may have been used as an experiment in public-manipulation by those who seek to have the most effective methods at their disposal for the running of a police state and the suppression of opposition.)
Cf. "How Huntley slipped through the net", BBC News online, 17 Dec. 03, and "Police chief scraps BBC interview", BBC News online, 18 Dec. 03.
18 December 03
'SAUDI ARABIA[:] American diplomats whose jobs are not essential should leave the country in the light of potential terrorist activities, the US military advised.'
(ITV Teletext, p.318)
'BLUNKETT REJECTS CALL TO END INTERNMENT
'[British] Home Secretary David Blunkett has rejected demands that controversial powers to detain foreign terror suspects without trial be scrapped.
'Mr Blunkett said he would be failing in his duty to protect the public if he abandoned internment powers brought in after the September 11 terror attacks.
'The threat left him with no option but to use the power, Mr Blunkett said.
A Commons committee set up to review the laws said the detentions risked miscarriages of justice and should end.'
(BBC Ceefax, 18 Dec. 03, p.114)
'Iran has signed an agreement with the United Nations which allow tougher inspections of its nuclear industry. ...'
(BBC Ceefax, 18 Dec. 03, p.118)
'POLICE TO SNARE ONLINE PAEDOPHILES
'An international police sting operation has been launched to catch paedophiles who go online for images of children.
'Forces in countries including Britain, Canada and Australia have set up sites appearing to offer child pornography.
'But instead of finding the image they want, users are told they could face 10 years in jail and may have their details circulated in 180 countries.
'Jim Gamble [!], Assistant Chief Constable of the National Crime Squad, wants to hit paedophiles' confidence in the net.'
(BBC Ceefax, 18 Dec. 03, p.120)
Police warned parents today to be on the lookout for a man, dressed in red (no doubt to inflame passions), who has been seen sitting children on his knee and handing out presents. He is believed to live in the North, and to make seasonal trips to the south for this purpose.
Chief Constable Grinch, of the Rottendale Division, commented: "You cannot trust someone who gives away things, expecting nothing in return. He most certainly has some sinister Christian motive ..."
'US COURT OVERRULES BUSH ON TERROR LAW
'President Bush does not have the power to detain an American citizen seized on US soil as an "enemy combatant", a US federal appeals court has ruled.
'Washington judges ruled 2-1 in favour of "dirty bomb" suspect Jose Padilla, who will now be released from military custody into civilian detention.
'Mr Padilla was arrested in May 2002 in Chicago and designated an enemy combatant in June of the same year.
'This meant he lost many of the rights normally granted to US citizens.'
(BBC Ceefax, 18 Dec. 03, p.111)
19 December 03
'INDEPENDENT[:] President Bush has washed his hands of the hunt for weapons of mass destruction, in whose name the US and Britain went to war.
(ITV Teletext, 19 Dec. 03, p.328, reviews of British papers)
"Lead Iraq weapons seeker 'to quit'", New Scientist online, 19 Dec. 03
(ITV Teletext, 20 Dec. 03, p,.318, reviews of British papers)
The above entries are significant in the light of the Anglo-American announcements on a "deal over Libya's WMD. See today's entries below.
An "assassination attempt" has been claimed against Paul Bremer, the US governor of Iraq. His convoy was fired on on 6 December. No-one was injured, and Bremer himself didn't seem to want to play it up.
And well may they be modest. These "attacks" on cabal-men (Wolfowitz was unscathed by one in a Baghdad hotel in October though a US colonel was killed) hardly put them in the same class as the United Nations (22 killed in a suicide truck-bomb attack, including chief official Solana), or the Red Cross (another couple of dozen killed in a similar attack).
And, I remember, US planes "accidentally" destroyed the Red Cross building in Kabul during the campaign against that country, though its roof was clearly marked with a large Red-Cross sign. ...
'AL-QAEDA "TARGETING US" [claims purported Qaeda tape]
'A man purporting to be Osama bin Laden's second-in-command has warned in a tape recording that al-Qaeda is targeting Americans in their homeland [!].
'The man, said to be Ayman al-Zawahiri, added that any governments which support the US will soon have to face their people without American support.
'The tape, broadcast on Arab TV channel Al-Jazeera, had been received by the station earlier through the post.'
(ITV Teletext, 19 Dec. 03, p.308)
"Homeland". Interesting nomenclature by "Zawahiri".
It coincides with a warning from US intelligence officials, reported by ABC, of a "female suicide bomber" loose in New York. The FBI said it didn't have any credible evidence on this. But the White House later issued terror warnings for Los Angeles and several other US cities.
But, just as you thought it was dangerous to go back in the water, comes a nice revelation, just in time for Christmas ...
'LIBYA TO GIVE UP WMDs, [British PM] BLAIR SAYS
'Libya has admitted seeking to develop weapons of mass destruction in the past but has now vowed to dismantle its programme completely, Tony Blair says.
'The decision by leader Colonel Gaddafi followed nine months of talks with the US, UK and United Nations, the PM said.
'Mr Blair, speaking in Durham, said Libya had pledged to limit its missile range to 300km or less.
'The "historic and courageous decision" entitled Libya to rejoin the international community, the PM said.'
(BBC Ceefax, 19 Dec. 03 at 10:30pm GMT, p.104)
Of course it's pure coincidence that this newly-unveiled deal is with a country whose high-grade oil the US particularly covets ...
'INSPECTORS CAN ENTER LIBYA, BUSH SAYS
'Libya is to allow unconditional inspections of its weapons programmes, US President George Bush has said.
'Mr Bush called the move a step "of great importance" in stopping weapons of mass destruction in the global fight against terrorism.
'He said Libya had approached the US in March to see if it could resolve the WMD issue, following successful negotiations on the Lockerbie bombing.
'Libya could now "regain a secure and respected place among nations" he said.'
(BBC Ceefax, 19 Dec. 03, p.105)
... and I take it the US and Britain will now be granting unrestricted access to their own WMD to UN inspectors. These, after all, are rogue states who bilaterally invaded another country (well two, so far, actually: Afghanistan as well as Iraq). Ah yes, and then there were those mailing attacks made with a substrain of Ames anthrax held by the US army and CIA contractee labs ...
(And we shouldn't leave out the kamikaze airliner attacks that incinerated 6,000 business people ... with the facts that don't quite add up ... two and two making something like minus five ...)
'LIBYA "WAS CLOSE" TO NUCLEAR BOMB
'Libya was close to making nuclear arms and had significant amounts of chemical agents before a deal to scrap weapons of mass destruction, UK officials say.
'UK experts visited Libya in October and early December following approaches by Libya to Britain and the US.
'The team saw nuclear projects under way at more than 10 sites, including the enrichment of uranium.
'An American official said Libya's nuclear programme was further advanced than had been believed.'
(BBC Ceefax, 19 Dec. 03, midnight GMT, p.104)
Well, we've seen a fair amount about what the Americans and British say about "Libyan WMD". But what do the Libyans say? Here's something to slake our curiosity ...
'WE'LL LEAD DISARMAMENT — GADDAFI
'Colonel Gaddafi has said Libya will urge states worldwide, especially in the Middle East and Africa, to get rid of weapons of mass destruction.
'Speaking as his agreement to scrap WMDs was announced [by the US and Britain, we don't yet find out what Libya has to say on precisely this matter] the Libyan leader said Libya would help build a world free of mass destruction weapons and terrorism.
'Libya's government said it would adhere to international accords governing nuclear, biological and chemical arms.
'The arms race would not aid security, foreign minister Mohammed Shalqam said.'
(BBC Ceefax, p.105)
20 December 03
Various statements from Libyan ministers and officials tend to confirm to "deal" revealed yesterday (though they deny that the US-UK crushing of Saddam's regime was an influence on their decision).
Talks between Libyan officials and Mohammed ElBaradei, head of the UN's International Atomic Energy Agency, in Vienna, have broken up without a result.
21 December 03
A concerted Christmas propaganda offensive is now underway by the terror-cabal and its US and UK servants ...
'US PLACED ON HEIGHTENED TERROR ALERT
'The US has raised its terror alert level to "high" ["orange"] amid reports extremists are planning attacks to rival or exceed those of September 11.
'Tom Ridge, the Secretary of Homeland Security, said the US had received credible reports of a substantial increase in threats. ['... He cited reports that Osama bin Laden's terrorist network is trying to find holes in US aviation security.']
'He said the US government would be "at the ready 24 hours a day, seven day a week to stop terrorist attacks".
'The alert has been raised to high — the second-highest level — from elevated [yellow].'
(BBC Ceefax, p.104; inserted quote from ITV Teletext, p.303)
This is "Operation Make-The-Most-Of-9/11". The cabal dare not pull another stunt like Sept. 11 (within the USA, anyway), for fear of being caught out. But they intend to milk it for all it's worth, year after year, to promote their twin designs of empire and police state.
'Libya's decision to give up its weapons of mass destruction is a personal triumph for security Tony Blair, [UK] Defence Secretary Geoff Hoon has said. ...'
(BBC Ceefax, 21 Dec. 03, p.105)
Indeed, it is a propaganda coup for the cabal and its minions.
'Several hundred people have been arrested in raids in Iraq, launched after Saddam Hussein's capture last weekend, America's top general [Richard Myers] has said. ..'
(BBC Ceefax, 21 Dec. 03, p.107)
'[British] Home Secretary David Blunkett has defended the policy detaining terror suspects without trial after criticism from the Archbishop of Canterbury ... Dr Rowan Williams ...'
(BBC Ceefax, 21 Dec. 03, p.110)
22 December 03
'TELEGRAPH[:] Tony Blair will seek to use the diplomatic breakthrough with Libya to secure similar concessions on weapons from Iran and Syria.'
(ITV Teletext, p.328, reviews of British papers)
'ITALY[:] Police in Rome have raided an alleged hideout of the Red Brigades left-wing terror group, seizing a huge cache of explosives.'
(ITV Teletext, 22 Dec. 03, p.318)
Why "alleged"? Is this general media-istic caution (prior to any trial and conviction of culprits)? Or is it a specific concern with the machinations of the Berlusconi regime in Italy?
23 December 03
'[UK] GOVERNMENT "CONSIDERS ACTION ON DATA [PROTECTION] ACT"
'The Government is to consider issuing new guidelines over the Data Protection Act after claims people have died because information was not shared. ['... Home Secretary David Blunkett has set up a review of specific aspects of the act, said ex-minister George Howarth. ...']
'The charity Age Concern has called for a review after an elderly couple died weeks after having their gas cut off without social services being told.
'Concern was also raised when it emerged the Act had prompted police to delete files on Soham murderer Ian Huntley.
'Health Secretary Dr John Reid said the workings of the Act would be examined.'
(BBC Ceefax, p.105)
'The US government says it has received a "specific" threat of a possible attack against its interests in Bahrain. ...'
(BBC Ceefax, 23 Dec. 03, p.107)
'Eight Palestinians have been killed when an Israeli army raid on a refugee camp sparked the worst violence in the Gaza Strip for more than two months. ...'
(ITV Teletext, 23 Dec. 03, p.312)
24 December 03
'US MOUNTS ANTI REBEL ATTACKS [in Iraq]
'Explosions have been beard in [and/or to the south of] Baghdad as United States military forces conduct an anti-insurgency operation called Iron Justice [a later version of the page calls it "Iron Grip"].
'American commanders said the 1st Armored Division planned a series of operations over Christmas after getting intelligence about rebel cells.
'A US military spokeswoman said that operations were under way, including "aerial activity and artillery".'
(ITV Teletext, p.314)
25 December 03
'14 DIE IN PAKISTAN BOMBING
'Two suicide bombs exploded moments after Pakistan President Pervez Musharraf's motorcade passed by — the second assassination bid in 11 days. [In that event, Musharraf just missed a bomb on a bridge.]
'At least 14 passers-by were killed and 46 people injured in the blasts in Rawalpindi. The president's car was damaged but he was unhurt.
'The blast came just a day after President Musharraf agreed to step down as army chief by the end of 2004.'
(ITV Teletext, p.305)
It only happened to Napoleon once. ...
Five Palestinians and four Israelis were killed by an army raid and suicide bombers respectively.
(ITV Teletext, 25 Dec. 03, pp.307, 308)
26 December 03
'Following the latest assassination attempt on Pakistan President Pervez Musharraf, The Daily Telegraph reports fears of a "major conspiracy".
'Ex-military officers say a group with "inside information" [!] is targeting a leader whose "security is a shambles".
(BBC Ceefax, p.148, reviews of British papers)
... but who nevertheless shows a rather miraculous ability to survive.
Israel has imposed a total closure on the West Bank and Gaza Strip after a suicide bomber killed four Israelis on Christmas Day.'
(BBC Ceefax)
FLIGHTS RESUME AFTER FRANCE FINDS NO EVIDENCE OF TERROR PLOT
'Air France has resumed flights between Paris and Los Angeles after no evidence was found of a Christmas terror plot to use an aircraft to attack US targets.
'The airline cancelled flights over the past two days after American officials said al-Qaeda may try to board a flight between the French capital and the US.
'But a French diplomatic source said intensive investigation had yielded no hard evidence of a terrorist plot.'
(ITV Teletext, 26 Dec. 03, p.307)
27 December 03
'BREMER REJECTS [British] PM's WEAPONS CLAIM
'Tony Blair's claim that evidence of hidden weapons laboratories had been found in Iraq has been rejected by the Coalition Provisional Authority's chief.
'In a Christmas message to troops, Mr Blair said the Iraq Survey Group had found "massive evidence" of a huge system of clandestine laboratories.
'Paul Bremer denied the claim, saying it sounded like a "red herring" put out to undermine coalition policy in Iraq.
'But when told the PM said it, he said weapons programmes had been uncovered.'
(BBC Ceefax, p.112)
... Bremer was speaking in an interview with Jonathan Dimbleby for British ITV.
'Libya does not appear to have been close to building an atomic bomb, [Mohamed ElBaradei] has said. ...'
(BBC Ceefax, 27 Dec. 03)
28 December 03
'[SUNDAY] TIMES[:] The Secret Intelligence Service [MI6] has run an operation to gain public support for sanctions and the use of military force in Iraq.'
(ITV Teletext, p.328, reviews of British papers)
'UK AIRLINERS TO GET ARMED GUARDS
'Home Office sources say plain-clothes armed "Sky Marshals" are due to fly on British airliners for the first time during the coming week [today is Sunday].
'It follows a Government announcement of "additional security measures on the ground and in the air" following an increased terrorism alert in the US.
'Trained by the Metropolitan Police, the marshals will be carried on a small number of flights "where appropriate".
'All have a police or military background, says a BBC correspondent.'
(BBC Ceefax, 28 Dec. 03, p.104)
'PILOTS WARY OF SKY MARSHALS PLAN
'The British Airline Pilots Association says it will advise members not to fly if they are uncomfortable with the plan for armed sky marshals on airliners.
'Balpa general-secretary Jim McAuslan said: "We do not want guns on planes."
'The union's chairman, Captain Mervyn Granshaw, said: "Pilots are fed up with security initiatives being dreamt up at the Department of Transport."
'A Balpa spokesman said it was more important to improve security precautions on the ground.'
(BBC Ceefax, 28 Dec. 03, p.105)
... Balpa called the Sky Marshals plan "the worst thing you can do"; it will "do more harm than good"; "it's dangerous to have guns on planes".
(ITV Teletext, 28 Dec. 03, p.304)
'Terrorists could be in the final stages of planning an attack in Saudi Arabia, the [British] Foreign Office has warned. ...'
(BBC Ceefax, 28 Dec. 03, p.106)
'A senior Venezuelan official has said his country's troops were not in Colombia when they died in clashes with paramilitaries near the border. ...
'The Venezuelans say they fired on the right-wing paramilitaries when the refused to stop at a border post.
'But Colombia says its neighbour's troops crossed int its territory.'
(BBC Ceefax, p.123)
Is the US cabal encouraging new-right Colombia to put more pressure on Chavez's left-wing government? The one that's charging fair prices for oil exports to the USA?
'Romanian authorities are working with the FBI and western European agencies to clamp down on a surge in internet crime in the former communist state. [Hacking is singled out for mention....
'Under recently-passed laws, maximum penalties run as 15 years in jail for cyber-crime in Romania.'
(BBC Ceefax, p.154)
29 December 03
If you needed any further evidence that the lunatics are running the asylum ...
FBI: Beware Bearers Of Almanacs
CBSNews.com
'The FBI is warning police nationwide to be alert for people carrying almanacs, cautioned that the popular reference books covering everything from abbreviations to weather trends could be used for terrorist planning.
'In a bulletin sent Christmas Eve to about 18,000 police organizations, the FBI said terrorists may use almanacs "to assist with target selection and pre-operational planning." ...'
'... Saddam Hussein has been held at an undisclosed location since his capture by US forces on December 14.'
(BBC Ceefax, 29 Dec. 03, p.122)
>
'A grand assembly of Afghan leaders has begun its final talks on a new constitution after two weeks of debate. ...'
(BBC Ceefax, 29 Dec. 03, p.123)
30 December 03
US expands air marshal plan abroad
'WASHINGTON — The Department of Homeland Security announced yesterday that it will require all foreign air carriers to place an armed guard on any flight over United States airspace if counterterrorism officials ask them to do so.
'The move, described as an "emergency" rules change that is effective immediately, reflects growing concern that the Al Qaeda terrorist network may try to exploit foreign carriers as a gap in US air security by hijacking their planes and flying them into populated areas or high-risk industrial areas. ...
'... effectively extending the US air marshals program to foreign cargo and passenger carriers ...
'... Loiseau said France had begun an "unprecedented" air marshal program even before the Air France incident [see above, under 26 Dec.] as a result of conversations with US officials. ...
'Also anticipating the mandate, Britain announced Sunday that it would place armed sky marshals on some of its passenger planes, over the objections of British airline pilots. [See above, under 28 Dec.] [Pilots' union Balpa now says they can be accepted provided the pilot knows in advance, and is indemnified against their actions.] ...
'Brian Doyle, a Homeland Security spokesman, said US air marshals must pass a nine-week law enforcement training course in Artesia, N[ew ]M[exico], then complete a four-week air marshal finishing course in Atlantic City, N[ew ]J[ersey]. There were just 33 air marshals before the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks. Now there are thousands [my emphasis], though the exact number is classified, as is information regarding which flights are carrying air marshals ...'
'US MOVES TOWARDS CUBA TERROR TRIALS
'An ex-army general has been chosen to oversee military tribunals for foreign terror suspects [!] held at Guantanamo Bay.
'The appointment by US Defence Secretary Donald Rumsfeld is being seen as one of the last major moves before the US navy base detainees are put on trial.
'Retired army lawyer Jon Attenburg will approve charges against the detainees and appoint the members of the military panels that will try them.
'About 660 people are being held at Guantanamo Bay, in Cuba.'
(BBC Ceefax, p.118)
31 December 03
[Financial Times:] Britain's new national identity register could be built by the private sector, risking a row over the security of sensitive details about UK citizens.'
(ITV Teletext, p,328, reviews of British papers)
'NETHERLANDS[:] Investigators zeroed in on an Italian anarchist group as a likely source of four small [and highly ineffective] bombs mailed to European organisations in recent days.'
(ITV Teletext, p.318)
... It is said that the bombs were mailed from Bologna in Italy. (BBC Ceefax, 31 Dec. 03, p.318))
I'm reminded of the Bologna rail-station bombing in 1980 (which on this occasion killed many members of the public. This was carried out at the behest of Italian secret-service elements and ex-fascist elements to discredit the left. Is the Berlusconi regime taking a more modest approach to the EU leaders?
Halliburton loses Iraqi oil deal
CNN.com, 31 Dec. 03
'WASHINGTON (CNN) — Just weeks after a Pentagon audit questioned whether Halliburton overcharged the U.S. government in a contract to bring fuel into Iraq, the Department of Defense has replace the Army Corps of Engineers in overseeing that mission, officials said Tuesday [31 Dec.].
'The Corps will be replace by the Defense Energy Support Center, the energy procurement agent for the Defense Department. That group will take over the mission and open the contract for new bids.
'The Army Corps of Engineers had subcontracted a division of Halliburton — the oil services company once run by Vice President Dick Cheney — to fill that contract, which involved bringing fuel into war-torn Iraq from Kuwait. ...
'The Pentagon said Dec. 11 a routine review of a contract to bring gas from Kuwait to Iraq turned up the potential overcharge by Halliburton subsidiary KBR, which was awarded a no-bid contract in March to rebuild Iraq's oil industry. ...'
'ISRAEL HOLDS SOLDIER OVER SHOT BRITON
'Israel has arrested a soldier in connection with a shooting that left a British peace activist brain dead.
'While observing the Israeli army in Gaza in April, Tom Hurndall, 22, was shot in the head and left in a permanent vegetative state.
'The soldier initially said he returned fire at a man with a pistol but later changed his story, the army was quoted by news agency AFP as saying.
'Israel first announced an investigation into the shooting in October.'
(BBC Ceefax, 31 Dec. 03, p.108)
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