Sunday, January 29, 2012
Canadian Muslim Family Found Guilty On All Counts of Murder In Honor Killing of Daughters
The Shafia family in Canada can now plan on five prayers daily to allah on the cold wet concrete floor of a Canadian prison ....five prayers daily for the rest of their lives. So much for having your family dishonored.
This is good news - it's good to see that these pigs were upset at their sentences, it's good to know that the Canadians didn't buy the bullshit of the defense on this.
And what's even better....look at what the judge told the convicted assasins:
“a sick notion of honour that has absolutely no place in any civilized society,”
“It is difficult to conceive of a more despicable, more heinous crime. The apparent reason behind these cold-blooded, shameful murders was that the four completely innocent victims offended your completely twisted concept of honour, a notion of honour that is founded upon the domination and control of women.”
Good for the judge. I hope he has a good bodyguard.
The story is from The Globe and Mail.
Shafia family all found guilty of first-degree murder in 'honour killings'
The murder trial of three Afghan-Canadians accused of drowning four relatives in a so-called “honour killing” came to a cathartic end Sunday afternoon as the defendants were convicted on all charges.
Before the trio were led away in handcuffs and shackles to begin automatic sentences of life imprisonment with no possibility of parole for 25 years, each proclaimed their innocence, and they were visibly upset.
Mr. Justice Robert Maranger of Superior Court was unmoved.
Their crimes stemmed from “a sick notion of honour that has absolutely no place in any civilized society,” he told the packed courtroom.
“You have each been convicted of the planned and deliberate murder of four members of your family,” the trial judge said, citing a verdict that was “clearly supported by the evidence presented at this trial.
“It is difficult to conceive of a more despicable, more heinous crime. The apparent reason behind these cold-blooded, shameful murders was that the four completely innocent victims offended your completely twisted concept of honour, a notion of honour that is founded upon the domination and control of women.”
Staring hard at the defendants, the judge said:
“There is nothing more honourless than the deliberate murder of, in the case of Mohammad Shafia, three of his daughters and his wife, in the case of Tooba Yahya, three of her daughters and a stepmother to all her children, in the case of Hamed Shafia, three of his sisters and a mother.”
Half an hour later, a large crowd gathered under a cold sun to watch as businessman Mohammad Shafia, 59, his second wife Tooba Mohammad Yahya, 42, and their eldest son, Hamed, 21, were for the last time taken away in a police van. Boos rang out as they were led from the courthouse.
The verdict was reached shortly after 1 p.m. Sunday afternoon and delivered about an hour later.
In all, the seven-woman, five-man jury had deliberated just over 15 hours, spread over two days, sequestered on the second floor of the historic Frontenac County Court House in downtown Kingston.
After the proceedings ended, defence lawyer David Crowe said he was “disappointed” with the outcome and there would be an appeal.
Right to the end, the killers maintained they were not guilty.
“We are not criminals, we are not murderers, we didn't commit the murder and this is unjust,” Mr. Shafia said in Dari, his words relayed through a translator.
“Your honourable justice, this is not just,” his wife said through tears. “I am not a murderer, and I am a mother – a mother.”
Their son spoke in English: “Sir, I did not drown my sisters anywhere,” he said.
Mr. Shafia, Ms. Yahya and Hamed Shafia were convicted of murdering sisters Zainab, Sahar and Geeti Shafia, aged 19, 17 and 13, whose bodies were found in a submerged car at a Rideau Canal lock, just east of Kingston, in June, 2009.
The fourth person in the vehicle was Mr. Shafia’s first wife, Rona Amir Mohammad, 53, who had entered Canada illegally, posing as his cousin, but who in fact was part of a polygamous marriage and who by every indication had desperately wanted to escape from it.
The trial attracted enormous attention, the chief reason being that in the history of Canada, and probably every other Western country, it was unique.
There have been other murder charges involving so-called “honour killings” – homicides of women slain out of a perverse desire to “purify” families of disgrace created by supposedly immoral conduct. But not on this scale, and not involving parents who were willing to wipe out half their family for the sake of their honour, and then lie about it.
Outside court, lead prosecutor Gerard Laarhuis said the guilty verdicts reflected Canadian values that he hoped would resonate.
Syria Declares War On Damascus Suburbs
Holy crap. The Syrian military literally has gone to war today on the suburbs of the capital of Damascus, trying to regain control of an area that has been taken over by rebel units and protesters. The results so far is about 12 killed but that will certainly rise as the day goes by.
From the report at Breitbart:
The Syrian military launched an offensive to regain control of suburbs on the eastern edge of Damascus on Sunday, storming neighborhoods and clashing with groups of army defectors in fierce fighting that sent residents fleeing and killed at least 12 people, activists said.
Violence elsewhere in the country killed at least 17 more people, including six soldiers in a roadside bombing south of the capital.
But the heaviest fighting was focused in a belt of suburbs and villages on the eastern outskirts of Damascus, where government troops reinforced by dozens of tanks and armored vehicles battled with armed defectors who have grown increasingly bold, staking out positions and setting up checkpoints in recent days.
Some of the fighting on Sunday was only two miles (four kilometers) from Damascus, in Ein Tarma, making it the closest yet to the capital as President Bashar Assad's regime pushes to uproot protesters and dissident soldiers who have joined the opposition.
"There are heavy clashes going on in all of the Damascus suburbs," said Rami Abdul-Rahman, director of the British-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, who relies on a network of activists on the ground. "Troops were able to enter some areas but are still facing stiff resistance in others."
Are we actually understanding all of this? We are seeing Syrian troops actually fighting firefights within just a few miles of where Bashir Assad is housed. We are no longer just seeing some protests in some obscure little town in bumfuck Syria but an organized rebel front that has been able to encroach upon the very capital of the country.
This really is amazing how quickly the Syria government and military have lost ground and I see an urgent call going out to Iran at any time.
Syrian army launches offensive on Damascus suburbs
BEIRUT (AP) - The Syrian military launched an offensive to regain control of suburbs on the eastern edge of Damascus on Sunday, storming neighborhoods and clashing with groups of army defectors in fierce fighting that sent residents fleeing and killed at least 12 people, activists said.
Violence elsewhere in the country killed at least 17 more people, including six soldiers in a roadside bombing south of the capital.
But the heaviest fighting was focused in a belt of suburbs and villages on the eastern outskirts of Damascus, where government troops reinforced by dozens of tanks and armored vehicles battled with armed defectors who have grown increasingly bold, staking out positions and setting up checkpoints in recent days.
Some of the fighting on Sunday was only two miles (four kilometers) from Damascus, in Ein Tarma, making it the closest yet to the capital as President Bashar Assad's regime pushes to uproot protesters and dissident soldiers who have joined the opposition.
"There are heavy clashes going on in all of the Damascus suburbs," said Rami Abdul-Rahman, director of the British-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, who relies on a network of activists on the ground. "Troops were able to enter some areas but are still facing stiff resistance in others."
The ten-month uprising against Assad, which began with largely peaceful demonstrations, has grown increasingly militarized recently as more frustrated protesters and army defectors have taken up arms against the regime.
The assault on the suburbs seemed to be a sign of the growing presence of dissident soldiers closer to Damascus, and the regime's rising concern about the situation. Although the tightly controlled capital has been relatively quiet since the uprising began, its outskirts have witnessed intense anti-regime protests and army defectors have become more visible and active in the past few months.
The military has responded with a withering assault on a string of Damascus suburbs in a bid to stamp out the resistance, leading to a spike in violence has killed nearly 100 people since Thursday.
The rising bloodshed has added urgency to new attempts by Arab and Western countries to find a resolution to the 10 months of violence, which according to the United Nations has killed at least 5,400 people as Assad seeks to crush persistent protests demanding an end to his rule.
The U.N. is holding talks on a new resolution on Syria and next week will discuss an Arab League peace plan aimed at ending the crisis. But the initiatives face two major obstacles: Damascus' rejection of an Arab plan that it says impinges on its sovereignty, and Russia's willingness to use its U.N. Security Council veto to protect Syria from sanctions.
Arab League Secretary-General Nabil Elaraby told reporters in Egypt on Sunday that contacts were under way with China and Russia.
"I hope that their stand will be adjusted in line with the final drafting of the draft resolution," he told reporters at before leaving for New York with Qatari Prime Minister Hamad bin Jassim.
The two will seek U.N. support for the latest Arab plan to end Syria's crisis. The plan calls for a two-month transition to a unity government, with Assad giving his vice president full powers to work with the proposed government.
The Arab League on Saturday halted the work of its observer mission in Syria because of the escalating violence, until the League's council can meet to decide the mission's fate. Arab foreign ministers were to meet Sunday in Cairo to discuss the Syrian crisis in light of the suspension of the observers' work and Damascus' refusal to agree to the transition timetable, the League said.
U.N. chief Ban Ki-moon said he was "concerned" about the League's decision to suspend its monitoring mission and called on Assad to "immediately stop the bloodshed." He spoke at an African Union summit in Addis Ababa Sunday.
While the international community scrambles to find a resolution to the crisis, the violence on the ground in Syria has continued unabated.
On Sunday, activists said three civilians including a 16-year-old died in fierce fighting in the suburb of Kfar Batna. There was heavy shelling there and in the nearby suburbs of Saqba and Arbeen, they said.
"Troops this morning stormed Kfar Batna, Hammouriyeh and Ein Tarma," said an activist who identified himself as Mohammad Doumani, based in the Damascus suburb of Douma. "It looks like the regime has launched an operation to regain control of those areas."
Doumani said dozens of families were fleeing Ein Tarma and nearby areas for Damascus. Amateur videos posted on the Internet showed residents, including women and children, fleeing on foot carrying bags stuffed with belongings as the crackle of gunfire echoed in the background.
The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said at least 23 people were killed in Syria Sunday, most of them in fighting in the Damascus suburbs and in the central city of Homs, a hotbed of anti-regime protests. The dead include 10 soldiers who were killed in an ambush in Idlib, it said.
The Local Coordination Committees activist network said 29 people were killed on Sunday, including 12 who were killed in the suburbs of the capital.
Syria's state-run news agency said "terrorists" detonated a roadside bomb by remote control near a bus carrying soldiers in the Damascus suburb of Sahnaya, killing six soldiers and wounding six others. Among those killed in the attack some 12 miles (20 kilometers) south of the capital were two first lieutenants, SANA said.
In the Iraqi northern Kurdish city of Irbil, about 200 members of Syria's Kurdish parties were holding two days of meetings to explore ways of supporting efforts to topple Assad.
Abdul-Baqi Youssef, a member of the Syrian Kurdish Union Party, said representatives of 11 Kurdish parties formed the Syrian Kurdish National Council that will coordinate anti-government activities with Syria's opposition.
"This is a good start to unify the Kurds in Syria and to drive the revolution forward for the sake of getting rid of Bashar Assad," Youssef said by telephone.
While the Kurds support the broader Syrian opposition movement's efforts to overthrow the regime, they also want opposition leaders to "guarantee our national rights before the fall of the regime," Youssef said.
Kurds make up 15 percent of Syria's 23 million people and have long complained of discrimination.
Taliban and U.S. Begin Peace Talks In Qatar
Apparently the U.S. and the Taliban have begun negotiations in Qatar aimed at an end of the War in Afghanistan. Isn't that just peachy.
From the article at DAWN:
Taliban negotiators have begun meeting with US officials in Qatar, where they are discussing preliminary trust-building measures aimed at ending the war in Afghanistan, The New York Times reported on Sunday.
Citing several former Taliban officials, the newspaper said these measures included a possible prisoner transfer.
The Afghan government is expecting a delegation from the Qatar government to visit Kabul to explain its role in the talks, said High Peace Council secretary Aminundin Muzaffari.
The former officials said that four to eight Taliban representatives had traveled to Qatar from Pakistan to set up a political office for the exiled Afghan insurgent group, the report said.
The comments suggested that the Taliban, who have not publicly said they would engage in peace talks to end the war in Afghanistan, were gearing up for preliminary discussions, the paper said.
I'm interested in the "prisoner transfer." What does that mean? Does the Taliban hold more than one U.S. soldier? What do you suppose the Taliban want in exchange for the one U.S. soldier? One Taliban fighter? Or do you suppose this is going to be like negotiating with the likes of Hamas or Hezbollah where they want 1,000 of their guys exchanged for one of our guys?
Mark my words, any peaceful settlement to the War in Afghanistan will be violated by the Taliban within six months of signing - it will be sooner than that if American troops are withdrawn faster. The Taliban live for one thing - complete and total rule of Afghanistan and anything less than that is unacceptable...so instead of calling these "peace" negotiations, let's just call it a surrender.
Taliban, US negotiators meet in Qatar: report
WASHINGTON: Taliban negotiators have begun meeting with US officials in Qatar, where they are discussing preliminary trust-building measures aimed at ending the war in Afghanistan, The New York Times reported on Sunday.
Citing several former Taliban officials, the newspaper said these measures included a possible prisoner transfer.
The Afghan government is expecting a delegation from the Qatar government to visit Kabul to explain its role in the talks, said High Peace Council secretary Aminundin Muzaffari.
The former officials said that four to eight Taliban representatives had traveled to Qatar from Pakistan to set up a political office for the exiled Afghan insurgent group, the report said.
The comments suggested that the Taliban, who have not publicly said they would engage in peace talks to end the war in Afghanistan, were gearing up for preliminary discussions, the paper said.
US officials would not deny that meetings had taken place, and the discussions seemed to have at least the tacit approval of Pakistan, which has thwarted previous efforts by the Taliban to engage in talks, The Times noted.
Saturday, January 28, 2012
Can It Get Any More Nuts In Egypt? Egyptian Member of Parliament Calls For Al Qaeda's Zawahiri to Return
You know, I called out President Obama for his ridiculous and perverted support of the Arab Spring in Egypt for JUST THIS DAMN REASON, in that the country is now spiraling down into a complete theocratic islamic madhouse with some fucked up Egyptian member of parliament now calling for al Qaeda's leader, Ayman al-Zawahiri, to return to the country. So, we go from a peaceful Egypt living basically in harmony with the other power in the region, Israel, to a country now headed up by the Muslim Brotherhood who is seeking the return of one of the masterminds of 9/11 in America...al Zawahiri.
Once again, Barack Hussein Obama, you have made your muzzie father proud and the legions of minions across the world just another step closer to annihilating the country that you supposedly lead.
The story is from The Long War Journal.
Islamist Egyptian MP calls for Zawahiri's return
A member of the newly elected Egyptian parliament has called for al Qaeda's emir to return to the country "with his head held high and safely."
Aboud al Zomor, who served as the first emir of the Egyptian Islamic Jihad and was later imprisoned for his role in President Anwar Sadat's assassination, said that he welcomes Ayman al Zawahiri's return to Egypt and that he would be given safe haven, according to a report published yesterday in Al-Sharq Al-Awsat. The report was translated from Arabic by the Foundation For Defense of Democracies.
"When asked if he saw any danger in al Zawahiri's return, al Zomor said that 'he was not a threat to Egypt, the likes of al Zawahiri differed with the previous regime and they were only a danger for this regime and not for Egypt, and now he is liberating Afghanistan and Iraq...'" the report stated. Zomor also lamented that the US would be opposed to Zawahiri's return to Egypt.
Zomor denied having direct contact with members of al Qaeda, and claims to have renounced violence.
"I've distanced myself from that currently because I took the political line and closed the page on the past, as a result of which doors to peaceful action opened for us," he told Al-Sharq Al-Awsat.
Zomor is one of the primary founders of the Egyptian Islamic Jihad, the terrorist group that merged with al Qaeda. Zawahiri succeeded Zomor as the group's emir and presided over its merger with bin Laden's terror group in the 1990s.
Zomor, who was freed along with his brother Tarek from prison in 2011 after serving more than 20 years for their role in assassinating Sadat, now leads the Building and Development Party, a Salafi Islamist political party that won 16 seats in Egypt's recent parliamentary elections. His party is allied with Al Nour; together they make up the Islamist Bloc, which won 127 of the 498 seats. Both Zomor's party and Al Nour call for sharia, or Islamic law. The Muslim Brotherhood's Freedom and Justice Party, which also calls for Islamic law, won 235 of the seats in parliament, giving Islamist parties 362 total seats. The newly elected parliament will appoint the committee to craft Egypt's new constitution.
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