US drone strike kills eight in Pakistan’s tribal region

Monday, December 22, 2008

A suspected United States military air strike launched by a remote-controlled and unmanned CIA aircraft on Monday morning killed at least 8 militants. Media reports claim that in two separate attacks, three missiles were fired by US drones at South Waziristan’s Karikot and Shin Warsak villages, a tribal area in northwest Pakistan, well-known as center of Taliban and Al-Qaeda activity. The site of the attack is about nine miles (15 km) from the town of Wana in South Waziristan, an ungoverned tribal region.

South Waziristan is the southern part of Waziristan, a mountainous region of northwest Pakistan, bordering Afghanistan and covering some 11,585 km² (4,473 mi²). It comprises the area west and southwest of Peshawar between the Tochi River to the North and the Gomal river to the south, forming part of Pakistan’s Federally Administered Tribal Areas (FATA). The North-West Frontier Province lies immediately to the east. The region was an independent tribal territory from 1893, remaining outside of British-ruled empire and Afghanistan. Tribal raiding into British-ruled territory was a constant problem for the British, requiring frequent punitive expeditions between 1860 and 1945. The region became part of Pakistan in 1947.

A senior security official said that “two vehicles fitted with guns were destroyed,” adding that “the eight people killed were all inside the vehicles.” Pakistani intelligence said they believed the extremists killed were members of local Pakistani Taliban groups. The reports also said that the missiles “targeted vehicles mounted with anti-aircraft guns, and one missile missed its intended target and landed near a house.” A local official said nine other extremists were wounded in the drone strike.

Agence France-Presse has reported that “a missile attack late last month by a US jet killed Rashid Rauf, the alleged Al-Qaeda mastermind of a 2006 transatlantic airplane bombing plot, as well as an Egyptian Al-Qaeda operative, security officials have said.” US unmanned drones have launched not less than 20 missile attacks in Pakistan Afghan border or tribal areas since August. The strikes have raised tensions between Washington and Islamabad.

In November, Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani viewed these missile strikes as flagrant violation of Pakistan’s sovereignty and territorial integrity. He announced his government was considering “a number of options to counter attacks”. BBC has reported, however, that Pakistan “has been reluctant to move either diplomatically or militarily to stop these strikes.” “This has fuelled speculation that the attacks may be part of a secret pact between Pakistan and the US,” it added. Meanwhile, President George W. Bush, last week, said that “you know very well that when it comes to certain matters, the U.S. government doesn’t discuss operations.” He ruled out consultations with other governments, including Pakistan, prior to drone strikes operations.

Thursday, April 5, 2007

All four quarterfinal matches occurred Thursday in the UEFA Cup, with all three Spanish sides remaining in the competition winning their games. Only one match ended in a draw, that being the game between AZ Alkmaar and Werder Bremen.

Monday, March 12, 2007

24 of 26 Swiss Cantons rejected the proposal for a single health insurance system, in which premiums would be based on income and wealth. The vote on Sunday was the latest in a series of attempts to cut rising costs and ease the financial burden on citizens.

Around 71% of voters rejected the reform. Turnout was at about 46%, slightly above the Swiss average.

As expected, voters in the main German-speaking part of the country turned down the planned reform, which was supported by the centre-left but opposed by the centre-right as well as the business community, parliament and the government.

Opposition in the French and Italian speaking regions was less pronounced. The cantons Jura and Neuchâtel in the French speaking regions voted in favor of the proposed reforms.

Health insurance premiums are higher in southern and western Swiss cantons than in German-speaking areas.

The Swiss Interior Minister Pascal Couchepin said an important part of the Swiss Population appeared to be opposed to “a revolution” in health insurance but he said that he wanted current reforms currently under discussion in the Swiss Parliament to go ahead. He called on all sides, especially health insurers and the cantonal authorities, to make efforts to reduce spending on health insurance and aim for a greater cost efficiency. Currently Switzerland has 87 private insurers providing mandatory basic health care coverage for Swiss residents under a 1996 law. But costs have sky-rocketed. Over 100,000 people are not covered by health insurance due to non payment.

Opponents to the initiative argued that a single insurance system would lead to complacency and create a two-tier system, in which the wealthy would be the only ones available to afford to have additional private insurance coverage.

Supporters of the initiative said a single health insurer would increase the system’s efficiency and allow for annual savings of at least 300 million Swiss Francs (about $245 million) in administrative costs. Currently, the funding system is unbalanced, since many clients on low incomes use state subsidies to pay their premiums, according to the Green Party and the Social Democrats.

The initiative to unite all the insurance companies and introduce premiums based on wealth and income was the most recent in a series of attempts over the past ten years to reduce the public spending on health care. A proposal, similar to this recent proposal, to modify the funding system of the health insurance companies was rejected by 73% of voters in 2003.

Switzerland has the most expensive health system in Europe. Switzerland’s expenditure on health care was 11.6% in 2005, in front of Germany and France but behind the United States.

Monday, September 24, 2007

A woman found herself £226,000 richer, one the biggest ever payouts to a female client, after placing a series of bets on last weeks Champions League games, despite knowing nothing about football.

Kathrin Rotmann, 33, placed a £1,000 bet based on her tactics of supporting “teams that are strong and winning”.

“I am delighted. I only ever bet on football — last year I won £35,000 with one bet. I just keep a track of those teams which are playing well and bet on them. It was very exciting when the results went my way.”

She was delighted when she saw her bet multiply in front of her eyes, when her 226-1 odds of wins for Arsenal, Man United, Rangers, Slavia Prague, Barcelona, Roma, Fenerbahce and PSV come in on television.

The exact amount won was £226,834.36.

Friday, September 21, 2007

In Boston, Massachusetts a 19-year-old woman with an LED device attached to her clothing was arrested at Logan International Airport, Terminal-C by the Massachusetts State Police. Massport spokeswoman Lisa Langone described the device as a fake bomb strapped to her chest. The woman was identified as Star Simpson, a second year student from Hawaii attending the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT). Simpson was asking for information on her boyfriend’s arriving flight from Oakland at an information desk when the police were notified.

Police say that the device was made from a computer circuit board (in fact a white breadboard as used in MIT course 6.002 (Circuits and Electronics) laboratory kits), LED lights forming a “star” shape, and wiring. The wiring was connected to a 9V battery, allowing the device to light up. According to Maj. Scott Pare of the Massachusetts State Police, Simpson stated that she had created the device as a piece of art that she created to stand out at a career fair. It was attached to the front of a black sweatshirt with a hood that Simpson was wearing, the sweatshirt had “Socket to me, Course VI” written on the back. She was holding Play-doh. She was arrested at about 8:00 a.m. Police say that the device was part of “art” and that Simpson is cooperating with the investigation.

“This is a serious event and was handled quickly and safely. She claims this was art and just wanted to display the art. She didn’t understand the seriousness of the situation and she is lucky we did not use deadly force because we had machine guns on scene,” said authorities during a press conference at 11:00 a.m. today.

“She’s extremely lucky she followed the instructions or deadly force would have been used. And she’s lucky to be in a cell as opposed to the morgue,” said Pare.

Pare later said that, “[Simpson] did seem a bit upset that she was in custody. However, she was rational, and she did answer all questions as required.”

Simpson reportedly arrived to at the airport via the subway. She was wearing the device during her trip on the subway, and had in fact been wearing the device during an MIT job fair the previous day.

Simpson was arraigned today on charges including disturbing the peace and possessing a hoax device. Assistant Suffolk District Attorney Wayne Margolis requested a $5,000 cash bail, stating that Simpson had shown “a total disregard to understand the context of the situation…an airport post-9/11.” Ross Schreiber, Simpson’s defense attorney, called the amount “completely unreasonable” on the grounds that she had not pretended the circuit was anything else and that she was a student in good standing at MIT. Simpson pleaded not guilty to the charges and was released on $750 bond.

Fellow MIT classmates reportedly describe Simpson as “impulsive” and “creative.”

Saturday, May 19, 2012

Lai Changxing, dubbed the Bandit King, has been given a life sentence for years of smuggling and corruption that added up to billions of US dollars or Pounds sterling. The Chinese court described the values as “massive”.

Lai smuggled goods worth more than £2 billion into Xiamen, bypassing more than £1 billion in import duty. He paid 64 local officials a total of almost £4 million in bribes, giving him effective control of the city from 1995 to 1999. He fled China after becoming a wanted man in 1999 and went to Canada via Hong Kong; the following year, Premier Zhu Rongji said “If Lai was executed three times over, it would not be too much”.

As head of the Yuanhua Group, Lai smuggled in cars, chemicals, oil, cigarettes, and other goods. He distributed bundles of cash to the poor, owned and played for his local football team, built stadia, owned a bulletproof Mercedes that once belonged to President Jiang Zemin, and attempted to construct a tower that would have been the nation’s tallest building. He attained local popularity for funding construction projects including schools, hundreds of tower blocks, and the local airport.

As well as money, officials were offered alcohol and prostitutes. Many were offered time at Lai’s seven-storey brothel, the Red Mansion, and feasted at a replica of the Forbidden City.

State TV has broadcast footage depicting a banquet table with a tiger skin laid upon it, cars given to officials, a young woman alleged to have been donated as a lover, and a sackful of gold rings. The case’s prominence was such that Liu Liying, boss of the national Central Discipline Inspection Committee, took charge of bringing Lai down.

Subsequent investigations have examined more than 1,000 suspects with police at one stage turning over an entire hotel to the probe, filling rooms with suspects. National newspaper The People’s Daily has suggested it is the most serious economic crime in modern Chinese history. He was the nation’s top car importer and one of the main traders in oil and imported cigarettes.

Hundreds of officials have been convicted and it is estimated hundreds more remain. Fellow life-sentence prisoners from the case include the city’s deputy mayor and its head of customs. The nation’s former vice-minister for security, Li Jizhou, has a suspended death sentence. Other suspects have killed themselves.

Upon his escape from the nation Lai became China’s most-wanted fugitive. Twelve years of negotiations ended with a Chinese promise Lai would be spared the death penalty, and Canada extradited him last year. Numerous lower-ranking members of Lai’s empire have already been given life imprisonment or death sentences. With execution off the table, the court gave Lai the highest sentence possible: in addition to the life term, he received fifteen years for bribery and had all his possessions confiscated.

The court justified the “double sentence” on the grounds “the sums involved are unusually large, and the details are extraordinarily serious”. “The crimes involve massive sums and particularly serious circumstances,” court officials told Xinhua. Lai had denied corruption at his trial, although he accepted exploiting loopholes to avoid import duty.

“I don’t have a good family background,” Lai said previously in a press interview. “I have to do things step by step by myself. That’s how people came to respect me. I never fussed about big money.” Lai was born as one of eight siblings in the midst of famine.

Monday, December 3, 2007

At Thanksgiving dinner David Shankbone told his white middle class family that he was to interview Reverend Al Sharpton that Saturday. The announcement caused an impassioned discussion about the civil rights leader’s work, the problems facing the black community and whether Sharpton helps or hurts his cause. Opinion was divided. “He’s an opportunist.” “He only stirs things up.” “Why do I always see his face when there’s a problem?”

Shankbone went to the National Action Network’s headquarters in Harlem with this Thanksgiving discussion to inform the conversation. Below is his interview with Al Sharpton on everything from Tawana Brawley, his purported feud with Barack Obama, criticism by influential African Americans such as Clarence Page, his experience running for President, to how he never expected he would see fifty (he is now 53). “People would say to me, ‘Now that I hear you, even if I disagree with you I don’t think you’re as bad as I thought,'” said Sharpton. “I would say, ‘Let me ask you a question: what was “bad as you thought”?’ And they couldn’t say. They don’t know why they think you’re bad, they just know you’re supposed to be bad because the right wing tells them you’re bad.”