French
President Francois Hollande has called the Paris attacks an ‘act of
war’ by the Islamic State and called on the global community to step up
its fight against the terrorist regime by bombing Syria. Simone Del
Rosario reports from Paris.
...........
November 18, 2015
Amb. Marc GinsbergFmr. U.S. Ambassador to Morocco; White House Middle East Adviser
France Cries ISIS -- Obama Cries Uncle -- A Field Guide to a Better Battle Against ISIS
Posted: 11/18/2015 10:10 am EST Updated: 1 hour ago
Based
on President Obama's defiant ("I know better than everyone") defensive
crouch at his post-Paris attacks G-20 Turkey press conference don't
expect a sea change in White House policy against ISIS. Just think of
more sloppy spit across the ISIS swamp. Better yet, designate it
"Leading From As Far Behind as Possible, Version 2.0."
It was
Obama at his most unappealing - setting up the red herrings and
imaginary (if not imaginative) policy alibis that is his want in a vain
attempt to silence his growing chorus of ISIS critics. The president's
stubborn insistence that anyone daring to challenge his failing,
slap-dash anti-ISIS strategy that has squandered so much and produced so
little is merely playing politics: "W" wannabees bent on repeating the
historical error of the Iraq invasion.
If only, as Obama whined in
Anatalya, his ISIS critics would cease engaging in petty "political
games or offering shallow solutions..." by challenging him on ISIS, life
would be well and good for all. It's akin to him asserting that between
birth and death there is nothing in between, case closed!
Smearing
anyone who smells the malodorous odor of a failing Syria/Iraq/ISIS
policy a mile away is a self-serving falsehood Obama frequently resorts
to when cornered. By persisting in this un-presidential conduct Mr.
Obama camouflages his own failures no longer able to be hidden - sinking
to the low level of Politician-in-Chief rather than rising to a
respected Commander-in-Chief as ISIS pounds at our doorstep.
French prosecutor: 9th suspect in Paris terror attacks being sought
France
made an unprecedented demand Tuesday that its European Union allies
support its military action against the Islamic State group after the
attacks in Paris.
by Tiffany Wilson
Tuesday, November 17, 2015 03:33PM
GERMANY (KGO) --
Authorities
are seeking a ninth suspect in Friday's attacks in Paris, a French
prosecutor's spokeswoman told ABC News. The spokeswoman did not reveal
any details about the suspect's identity.
France took
unprecedented action Tuesday when it invoked the Mutual-Defense article
of the EU Treaty. Now all 28 member nations must help France in its war
against ISIS.
French Defense Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian said all
27 of France's EU partners responded positively, and they could help
"either by taking part in France's operations in Syria or Iraq, or by
easing the load or providing support for France in other operations."
"Every country said: I am going to assist, I am going to help," Drian said.
Arriving
for talks in Brussels with his EU counterparts, Greek Defense Minister
Panagiotis Kammenos told reporters that the Paris attacks were a
game-changer for the bloc.
"This is Sept. 11 for Europe," he said.
French
President Francois Hollande has vowed to forge a united coalition
capable of defeating the jihadists at home and abroad. NATO allies were
sharing intelligence and working closely with France, NATO chief Jens
Stoltenberg said.
Noting that victims of the Paris attacks came
from at least 19 nations, Hollande says the international community, led
by the U.S. and Russia, must overcome their deep-seated divisions over
Syria to destroy IS on its home turf.
Russia’s military forces are stepping up their airstrikes against the Islamic State as new information has confirmed an explosive device was behind the crash of the A321 jet in Egypt’s Sinai desert. Murad Gazdiev has the latest.
..........
Plane crash in Sinai a terrorist attack - Russian Security Service
The Russian plane crash in Sinai, Egypt, was caused by a terrorist attack as traces of explosives have been found in the wreckage of the plane, Federal Security Service director Aleksandr Bortnikov told President Vladimir Putin.
“We can say that that [Sinai plane crash] was a terror act,” Bortnikov told Putin. According to the FSB chief, experts analyzed passengers’ belongings as well as the parts of the plane. “After the examination on all these objects, we have found traces of a foreign-made explosive substance,” Bortnikov said.
“During the flight, a homemade device with the power of 1.5 kilograms of TNT was detonated. As a result, the plane fell apart in the air, which can be explained by the huge scattering of the fuselage parts of the plane,” he added.
Russia will act in accordance with Article 51 of the UN Charter, which provides for countries’ right to self-defense, Putin said. “Those who attempt to assist criminals should be aware that the consequences of such attempts will be entirely their responsibility,” he added.
ISIS says Russia targeted over Syria campaign, shows alleged Sinai jet 'bomb'
An image of alleged parts of a “bomb” used to take down a Russian passenger plane over Egypt's Sinai, killing all 224 people onboard, was posted by Islamic State’s magazine.
A soft drink can and what appeared to be a detonator and switch allegedly made up the parts of an improvised homemade bomb, a photo published online on Wednesday by Dabiq magazine suggests.
Another photograph showed passports said to belong to Russian passengers killed in the bombing, with the documents allegedly obtained by Islamic fighters.
The authenticity of the images has not been verified.
Reports Egypt detained 2 airport workers suspected of aiding bomb plant on Russian plane denied
A report that Egypt is holding two employees of Sharm el-Sheikh Airport on suspicion of assisting those who planted the explosive device on the Russian jet that crashed in Sinai have been denied by Egyptian authorities and other airport officials.
"Seventeen people are being held, two of them are suspected of helping whoever planted the bomb on the plane at Sharm al-Sheikh Airport," one of the officials apparently told Reuters.
The reports, however, were promptly denied first by Egyptian authorities, and later by one of the airport employees, who spoke with RIA Novosti.
“I have been here [in the airport] during these days, so I can say that no one was detained. In the first days after the tragedy, many people were questioned, but no one was arrested,” he said.
ISIS releases video claiming revenge ‘downing’ of Russian passenger jet over Sinai
A new Islamic State video shows a Russian-speaking jihadist praising his “Sinai brothers” for “taking down” a Russian passenger jet and threatening more attacks, while both Russia and Egypt say the group doesn’t possess the means to shoot down a plane.
In the newly-released video, five Islamic State (IS, formely ISIS/ISIL) jihadists are seen sitting outside as one of them praises militants in the Sinai Peninsula for allegedly bringing down the Russian A321 passenger jet with 224 people on board.
Surrounded by four fellow jihadists, a Slavic-looking man speaking both in Russian and Arabic, addresses President Vladimir Putin, warning the Russian leader that he would regret targeting ISIS in Syria.
With a knife in hand, he threatens to continue taking down planes, invading countries, and killing people in retaliation for Russia’s military operation in Syria.
Islamic State first attempted to claim responsibility for bringing down the Airbus 321 shortly after the plane crashed en route from Egypt’s Sharm-el-Sheikh to St. Petersburg on October 31.
However, the claim was quickly rejected by both Russian and Egyptian officials as “unlikely.”
‘Bogus bomb detectors’ used in Sharm el-Sheikh hotels before Sinai plane crash
Bomb detectors used in Sharm el-Sheikh hotels as part of security procedures introduced to tackle terrorism have been exposed as “fake” by experts, it has emerged.
Hundreds of Britons are still stranded in the Egyptian resort after a plane carrying 224 people crashed in Sinai last week.
Foreign Secretary Phillip Hammond announced on Monday it is “highly likely” a bomb planted by Islamic State (IS, formerly ISIS) supporters caused the disaster.
A number of hotels in the resort have been using a wand-like aerial attached to a box to screen luggage.
Guards have been using the devices to sweep hotel guests, cars and luggage to ensure no explosive devices are kept in rooms or taken on to planes.
Experts, however, have revealed the supposed bomb detectors offer “no protection” whatsoever against terrorism.
This revelation means a bomb could have easily been smuggled into a hotel and planted in a passenger’s luggage before the Russian jet crashed last week.
According to the Mail Online, the devices were being used to protect at least five top hotels in Egypt catering for Britons.
An Israeli F-16 during an exercise on November 25, 2013. (Ofer Zidon/Flash90)
Israel
reportedly carried out an airstrike Wednesday near the airport in the
Syrian capital Damascus, according to Israel’s Channel 2 TV, which cited
Syrian media reports.
The
reports were unconfirmed but according to Syrian opposition groups, the
target was a weapons shipments likely intended for Lebanese terror
group Hezbollah, Israeli Channel 10 said.
Israel is reported to
have been behind a series of air raids on Syrian soil, since the Syrian
civil war began in March 2011, aimed at preventing advanced weapons
shipments from Iran from reaching arch-enemy Hezbollah via Syria.
Jerusalem
has not openly admitted to being behind such operations. It has,
however, warned that it will not permit the Lebanon-based terror group
to obtain what it calls “game-changing” advanced weaponry.
Israeli airstrikes hit near Damascus airport – Syrian state TV
Israeli
airstrikes have hit targets near Damascus International Airport and in
the town of Dimas near the Lebanon border, Syrian state TV reports.
"The
Israeli enemy committed aggression against Syria by targeting two safe
areas in Damascus province, in all of Dimas and near the Damascus
International Airport," the report said, adding that there were no casualties.
The
victory of the pro-presidential party in the parliamentary elections in
Turkey inspired Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan to make sharp
statements against Russia, the German newspaper Der Spiegel wrote.
The
President issued "a friendly warning" to Moscow regarding Russian
airstrikes in Syria and said that those who would fuel the conflict
in the Middle East would soon find themselves in this fire.
Inspired
by his party's victory in the parliamentary elections, President Recep
Tayyip Erdogan apparently decided that his country can play a more
serious part in resolving regional problems and said that "political
uncertainty" in his country is over, Der Spiegel wrote.
On
November 2, the ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP) regained its
parliamentary majority, gathering 49.4% of the votes. The Organization
for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) and a number of other
international institutions stated that the election was unfair and
reported cases of violence, which had significant influence on the
process.
The latest U.S.
patrol in the disputed South China Sea occurred in advance of President
Barack Obama's visit to the region next week to attend Asia-Pacific
summits where he is expected the reassert Washington's commitment to
freedom of navigation and overflight in the area.
China claims
most of the South China Sea, through which more than $5 trillion in
global trade passes every year, and the United States has said it will
continue conducting patrols to assure unimpeded passage. Vietnam,
Malaysia, Brunei, the Philippines and Taiwan have rival claims in the
region.
In the latest mission, which occurred overnight on Nov.
8-9, the bombers flew "in the area" of the Spratly Islands but did not
come within the 12-nautical-mile zones that China claims as territory
around islands it has built in the chain, said Commander Bill Urban, a
Pentagon spokesman.
"The B-52s were on a routine mission in the SCS (South China Sea)," taking off from and returning to Guam, Urban said.
Chinese ground controllers contacted the bombers but the aircraft continued their mission unabated, Urban said.
At
least 23 people have been killed by shelling in the Syrian city of
Latakia. Another 65 were injured, RIA Novosti reported citing a source
in local police.
“Twenty-three people have been killed and at least 65 hospitalized with injuries of varying degrees,” the police source said.
RT’s Lizzie Phelan reports from Syria that the attack took place in a very densely-populated part of Latakia.
“All of the reports so far are suggesting that all of those killed and injured are civilians,” she said.
The missiles that struck the city were most likely fired from Grad multiple-launch rocket system, Phelan added.
“Initial reports suggest that the attack was carried out by the Al-Qaeda branch, Al-Nusra Front,” RT's reporter said.
There are conflicting reports on the number of casualties coming from the port city of Latakia at the moment.
Meanwhile AFP cites Syrian state TV as saying there were "22 people killed and 62 wounded" in the attack on eastern neighborhoods of Latakia.
Earlier state news agency SANA reported 12 people died and 57 were injured when two mortar rounds struck residential areas.
WASHINGTON — The former National Security Agency contractor who
disclosed a highly classified surveillance program has had his U.S.
passport revoked, an official said Sunday.
Edward Snowden's passport was annulled before he left Hong Kong for
Russia and while that could complicate his travel plans, the lack of a
passport alone could not thwart his plans, the U.S. official said. If a
senior official in another country or with an airline orders it, a
country could overlook the withdrawn passport, the official said.
The U.S. official would only discuss the passport on the
condition of anonymity because the official was not authorized to
discuss the matter.
Snowden's allies said he was heading toward Ecuador, where the
foreign minister said the government had received a request for asylum.
State Department spokeswoman Jen Psaki refused to comment on
Snowden's passport specifically but said individuals facing arrest
warrants could have their passport withdrawn.
WASHINGTON -- A petition asking
President Barack Obama to pardon admitted state secret leaker Edward
Snowden has passed 100,000 signatures.
The petition posted on Whitehouse.gov
calls the former National Security Agency contractor a "national hero."
It says he should immediately be pardoned for any crimes in "blowing
the whistle" on classified government programs to collect phone records
and online data.
![Reuters]({"default":"//img-s-msn-com.akamaized.net/tenant/amp/entityid/AA1QA0a.img?h=34&w=34&m=6&q=60&u=t&o=t&l=f&f=png","dpi":1.4}){kind=small}
![Subi reef, located in the disputed Spratly Islands in the South China Sea, is shown in this handout Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS) Asia Maritime Transparency Initiative satellite image taken August 8, 2012, and released to Reuters October 27, 2015.]({"default":{"load":"default","w":"27","h":"20","src":"//img-s-msn-com.akamaized.net/tenant/amp/entityid/BBmVZXt.img?h=281&w=378&m=6&q=60&o=f&l=f&x=456&y=100"},"dpi":1.4})
