Thursday, April 1, 2010

Afghanistan War News Updates -- April 1, 2010

TO AFGHANISTAN - U.S. Marines board a U.S. Air Force C-17 Globemaster III cargo aircraft flight from Camp Manas, Krygzstan, to Camp Leatherneck, Afghanistan, March 24, 2010. The Marines, assigned to the 1st Marine Division's Headquarters Battalion, are deploying to Afghanistan to support the International Security Assistance Force. U.S. Marine Corps photo by Lance Cpl. Sarah B. Novotny

Harvesting Democracy in Afghanistan -- Time Magazine

We flew into Marjah over a patchwork of poppy fields — not exactly a sea of poppies, but plenty of them. It was two weeks before the harvest, and the last blossoms were floating away in the dusty haze of Helmand province, leaving the prohibitively weird-looking, blue-gray bulbs bald and ready for processing, like an army of alien vegetative creatures. We landed in a wheat field just across the road from the district governor's pathetic headquarters. It was Day 45 after the operation to retrieve Marjah from the Taliban had begun, and the highest-ranking U.S. military official, Admiral Mike Mullen, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, was paying a congratulatory visit to the area.

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More News On Afghanistan

Afghanistan war: Battle for Kandahar as much political as military -- Christian Science Monitor
Q+A - NATO sees Kandahar battle as Afghan turning point -- Reuters

UK soldier killed in Afghanistan -- BBC
Bicycle bomb kills 13 in southern Afghanistan -- USA Today/AP
Bombing kills 13 in Afghan village -- L.A. Times
17 reported dead in south Afghan blast -- AP

Afghanistan's New Bumper Drug Crop: Cannabis
-- Time Magazine
UN: Afghanistan is World's Top Hashish Producer -- Voice of America
Afghanistan Has World Lead in Hashish Production, UN Reports -- Business Week/Bloomberg
U.N.: Afghanistan 'world's biggest producer of hashish' -- CNN
Afghanistan world’s top cannabis source - U.N. -- RAWA
UN: Afghanistan Is World's Largest Hashish Producer -- Radio Free Europe
Afghanistan now world's top cannabis source: U.N. -- Reuters

Karzai lashes out at West over Afghan elections -- Reuters
Afghan president blames foreigners for vote fraud -- AP
Afghan parliament's lower house rejects Karzai election proposals -- Washington Post
Lawmakers Resist Karzai’s Move on Election Panel -- New York Times

Hamid Karzai’s brother to stay in power despite heroin trade claims -- Times Online
Afghanistan's only rock band thrives in Kabul -- New York Times
U.S. campaign to reform Kandahar is rife with pitfalls -- David Ignatius, Washington Post opinion
The U.S. Timetable Isn't Right for Afghanistan -- Wall Street Journal

World News Briefs -- April 1, 2010



Haiti Promised $10bn In Aid – Double What It Asked For

Countries and aid organisations come up with twice the sum Haiti's president wanted to rebuild after earthquake

Donors have pledged nearly $10bn (£6.6bn) in aid to Haiti, more than double the amount requested by the country's president after the January earthquake that devastated the capital, Port-au-Prince.

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MIDDLE EAST

Major powers agree to pursue new Iran sanctions.

Turkish court frees 9 officers in army coup plot.

Blast in Yemeni prison allows 40 prisoners to escape.

ASIA

Pakistan clash kills 6 soldiers, 20 militants.

Defector suggests North Korean shake-up.

Pakistani lawmakers target presidential powers.

Young Thai protesters shed culture of restraint.

AFRICA

A Nigeria 'Taliban' leader tells of a desire to fight the U.S.

Chad, UN at odds over peacekeeping force.

South Sudan's main party pulls out of elections.

EUROPE

Russia's Medvedev promises 'crueler' measures. Medvedev outlines anti-terrorism strategy for North Caucasus.

Chechen rebel Doku Umarov claims responsibility for Moscow blasts.

E.U. finds Serbia censure lacking.

AMERICAS

UN Haiti donor pledges surpass targets at almost $10bn.

18 gunmen killed in attacks on Mexican army bases.

Border violence threatens Americans.

TERRORISM/THE LONG WAR

Ft. Hood suspect apparently being moved to jail.

Combating terrorists a personal challenge to Putin.

Could the Hutaree militia have spawned a Timothy McVeigh?

ECONOMY/FINANCE/BUSINESS

Oil rises above $84, extending 2-month rally.

China, Taiwan move closer to trade pact by June.

Japan: Toyota sales rise as business confidence climbs.

Military And Intelligence News Briefs -- April 1, 2010



Drone Wars: The Legal Debate Continues -- The Danger Room

Last week, the State Department’s top legal adviser laid out the administration’s case for using drones to fight al Qaeda and its allies. Now the drone war is starting to generate some real legal debate.

In the new issue of Joint Force Quarterly, Amitai Etzioni, professor of international relations at The George Washington University, has a piece that outlines a moral and legal case for using drones to attack what he terms “abusive civilians” (his term for unlawful combatants). “To negate the tactical advantages abusive civilians have and to minimize our casualties, we must attack them whenever we can find them, before they attack us,” he writes. Drone strikes, he adds, “are a particularly well-suited means to serve this goal.”

Read more ....

MILITARY AND INTELLIGENCE NEWS BRIEFS

The USA’s New Littoral Combat Ships (LCS) -- Defense Industry Daily

LCS Alternative Weekly -- New Wars

How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love China’s Carrier Killing Missile -- Defense Tech

Review Set for Major U.S. Radiation Detection Program -- Global Security Newswire

How Much Will Each F-35 Cost? -- CDI

Why the F-22 and the PAK-FA have the “Right Stuff” and why the F/A-18 and the F-35 do not -- Air Power Australia

Defense Acquisitions: Assessments of Selected Weapon Programs -- U.S. GAO (Hat Tip: Defense Industry Daily)

Green Hornet to take flight on Earth Day -- Navair

Report: U.S. Should Offer Cybersecurity Incentives -- Defense News

Obama appoints veteran IT consolidator to DOD -- Computer World

Annals of crime: the FBI's continuing computer woes
-- Spy Talk/Washington Post

Active Duty Generals and Politics Don't Mix -- Armchair Generalist

ICC To Investigate Violence After 2007 Kenya Election


ICC To Investigate Kenya Election Violence. Will Leaders Cooperate? -- Christian Science Monitor

The International Criminal Court has told Luis Moreno Ocampo to investigate the role of senior politicians in 2008 Kenya election violence. But some are already suspected of working to undermine the ICC.

The International Criminal Court in The Hague, Netherlands, has given its prosecutor Luis Moreno Ocampo the green light to investigate the role of senior politicians in Kenya's post-election violence that killed 1,300 Kenyans in 2008.

Read more ....

More News On The ICC Investigation Of The 2008 Kenyan Election Violence

Crimes against humanity inquiry over Kenyan election killings -- Times Online
International criminal court to investigate violence after 2007 Kenya election -- The Guardian
Court Authorizes Inquiry of Kenyans -- New York Times
Hague court prosecutor to investigate Kenya violence -- Washington Post
Kenya’s Rights Activist Proud of Roll Leading to ICC Investigation of Post- Election Violence -- Voice of America
Ruling means Kenyan leaders could face charges -- CNN
ICC judges order Ocampo to probe Kenya poll chaos -- Daily Nation
Why Hague judges chose to probe -- Daily Nation

My Comment: 1,300 people were murdered. Hundreds of thousands had to flee their homes.

Someone has to be made accountable for these crimes.

Mobile Nuclear Reactors Could Provide Power and Jet Fuel for Military, DARPA Says

Navy Aircraft Could nuclear-powered carriers use their reactors and seawater to provide jet fuel for their aircraft? U.S. Navy/Stephen Rowe

From Popular Science:

Making U.S. Navy carrier groups and Army bases more self-sufficient and energy-efficient could mean turning to mobile nuclear reactors. The Pentagon's DARPA scientists have put forth the modest proposal of deploying miniature reactors to convert hydrogen and carbon into military jet fuel, as well as providing power, The Register reports.

Read more ....

My Comment: Going nuclear .... even on a small scale .... has been on the table for as long as I can remember. But I suspect that with concerns over energy supplies growing, what was once considered a "far-off" idea is now a practical approach towards insuring reliable energy supplies and sources for the military.

Imagine Being A POW For 12 Years



Colombian Hostage Released After 12 Years -- Foreign Policy Blog

Pablo Emilio Moncayo, a soldier, was only 19 when he was kidnapped by the leftists Colombian rebel group FARC. Last night, at age 32, he was released. He looks to be in good health, with only a minor parasitic condition.

It's pretty unimaginable to think about: the idea of being held captive for a decade in the jungle. Not least for Moncayo's family; his father spent the last decade campaigning for his release -- even walking across the country, his body wrapped in chains, to protest his son's continued captivity. Moncayo became a symbol of the injustice of it all -- and also a symbol of the critiques that many held (and still hold) of the hostage policies of the Alvaro Uribe government, namely that it has conducted armed rescue efforts in the past and has been reluctant to offer concessions in exchange for prisoner release.

Read more ....

More News On The Release Of Sgt. Pablo Emilio Moncayo

Colombian hostage suffered from parasitic illness, gets family time -- AFP
It is so wonderful to see civilisation, says hostage released after 12 years -- The Independent
Hostage freed after 12 years in Colombian jungle -- Times Online
Footage shows hostage 'moments before release' -- BBC
Colombia's FARC rebels release captive held 12 years -- L.A. Times
In Colombia, FARC rebels release their longest-held hostage -- Christian Science Monitor
Ahead of election, Colombian rebels release hostages -- L.A. Times

My Comment: When I read this story yesterday, for some reason I was wondering if he was going to get back pay? .... but 12 years in captivity .... nah .... freedom is priceless and I doubt that his "back-pay" is his number one priority right now.

Oceanology: Tethered Antenna Keeps Subs In Touch

There's a sub below (Image: Brooke Ocean Technology)

From New Scientist:

ROBOTIC submarines have always had trouble when it comes to picking up GPS signals and communicating with their operators. That's because radio signals do not travel far underwater. If the submarines do not surface regularly in order to check their position, they run the risk of drifting off-course.

This problem could now be solved, thanks to a wing-like antenna that piggybacks on small submarines. The antenna ascends to the surface on a tether as and when needed, enabling satellite communications, including GPS readings. It can even carry a camera to serve as a kind of periscope for the sub's controller.

Read more ....

My Comment: The interesting line in this report is the last one ....

.... the US navy is interested in using autonomous submarines to watch for seaborne attacks ....