Terming as “unfortunate” the killing of two Indian fishermen by gun shots from an Italian ship, Shipping Minister G K Vasan today said appropriate punishment should be given to the guilty.

“It is a very unfortunate incident. Italian arm guards fired (at) Indian fishermen. This is not acceptable,” Vasan told reporters here, when asked to comment on the incident near Kerala.

Union Minister for Shipping, GK Vasan. Image courtesy PIB

Observing that Director General, Shipping, has ordered an enquiry into the incident, he said it was internationally well-known that when there is a piracy attack, certain protocol should be followed. “It was not followed here.Enquiry will reveal (what happened). Appropriate punishment should be given (to those guilty) as per the law of the land,” he said.

Vasan said there was a suspicion as to why the Italian ship did not report the incident on time. “I am sure proceedings will take place. There is no pressure from Italy. Our fishermen lives are very important”.

Two Indian fishermen, Ajesh Binki (25) and Jalastein (45), were killed on February 15 off the Kollam coast near Kerala when armed guards of Italian ship ‘Enrica Lexie’ fired at their boat.

The preliminary assessment of the marine authorities is that the armed guards aboard the ship might have fired at the fishing boat mistaking it for a vessel belonging to pirates. When asked about several states opposing the proposed
National Counter-Terrorism Centre (NCTC), Vasan said, “It is necessary to put an end to terrorism in the country. Both the Centre and State should cooperate on this”.

Even Kerala Chief Minister Oomen Chandy took a strong stand on the incident and said, “The killing of fishermen is a cruel incident. We will not let it pass till justice is done. We will not allow the culprits to escape from legal proceedings.”

Chief Ministers of non-Congress and BJP-ruled states and even Congress ally Trinamool Congrees had yesterday raised a banner of revolt against the Centre’s proposal to set up an apex counter-terror organisation, saying it struck at the roots of federalism and usurps states’ powers.

Meanwhile, the Italian ship’s crew has refused to be questioned and say they will co-operate only after discussing the matter with their diplomats. The crew is awaiting the arrival of a high-level team of diplomats from Italy to meet officials in Delhi and then advise them on the next step.

Earlier in the day, sources told CNBC-TV18 that the Prime Minister will be consulted as this was a diplomatic matter. PMO sources confirmed that by Saturday there will be some movement on the matter.

Watch video:Sources say the advice of the MEA will also be sought over the killing of Indian fishermen by the Enrica Lexie crew.

Source:http://www.firstpost.com/india/italian-ship-firing-unacceptable-vasan-217695.html

0 Mystery surrounds alleged Bali bomber on trial in Indonesia

He’s known to investigators as the “Demolition Man,” a mysterious figure who appeared in court in Indonesia this week to face prosecution in connection with a deadly Bali bombing that took place nearly a decade ago.

For many, the coming terrorism trial of Muslim militant Umar Patek brings back a whiff of the fear that pervaded the globe after the September 11, 2001, US terror attacks.

Barely a year after the attacks, officials said, Patek allegedly built a collection of bombs, some of which killed 202 people in a Bali nightclub and focused authorities’ attention on an al-Qaeda-linked network that set its sights on causing mayhem in Southeast Asia.

Three other suspects in the attack have already been convicted and executed as Indonesian authorities try to quash the leadership of the regional terror group, known as Jemaah Islamiyah.

Patek was captured last year in Abbottabad, the same Pakistani town where Osama bin Laden was hiding, officials say. His arrest ended a nine-year flight from prosecution that authorities say took him to the Philippines and Pakistan as he sought to mastermind other attacks. He was captured with a $1-million bounty on his head.

The 45-year-old suspect and his activities over the years have been shrouded in mystery. For investigators, the main question remains: What he was doing in Abbottabad?

Indonesian authorities have speculated that the slightly built Patek had sought to meet with bin Laden. Patek denies that claim, insisting he was en route to Afghanistan, and US officials say they believe his stay in the small Pakistani town was coincidence.

His appearance last Monday in a district courtroom in Jakarta was pure theater. Tightly guarded, Patek smiled when he entered the courtroom and even tried to shake hands with prosecutors.

Wearing a white robe and a white cap, he ignored questions shouted by journalists and sat quietly as the indictment was read out by prosecutors.

“His involvement in the Bali bombing...[was] not as big as is being described,” Patek’s chief lawyer, Ashluddin Hatjani, told reporters afterward. “We will challenge that in a defense plea next week.”

Patek, whose real name is Hisyam bin Alizein, faces death by firing squad if convicted of charges that include premeditated murder, hiding information about terrorism, illegal possession of explosives and conspiracy to commit terrorism.

“Umar Patek is really dangerous.... He has caused the death of many people,” lead prosecutor Bambang Suharijadi told the court before the trial was adjourned until next week.

Authorities say Patek and his co-conspirators hid a 1,540-pound bomb in four filing cabinets before loading it in a Mitsubishi L300 van along with a TNT vest bomb. The van was detonated outside two nightclubs along Bali’s popular Kuta tourist beach.

Source:http://businessmirror.com.ph/home/global-eye/23400-mystery-surrounds-alleged-bali-bomber-on-trial-in-indonesia

0 Pollution in Lebanon is rife

Pollution in Lebanon is rife and obvious, from its sea to it rivers and quarries, and this despite the dozens of organizations, NGOs, and committees in the country that purport to protect the environment for current and future generations of Lebanese.
Over the years these entities have failed to make any significant impact on the wellbeing of the environment.
They remain silent until a catastrophe strikes, and then the country is suddenly inundated with statements, condemnations, vows and plans, but nothing on the ground.
The contamination this week that turned Beirut’s river red is just the latest example. Already, the Litani River in the south is contaminated to such a degree that the vegetables that grow around it are liable to cause all kinds of diseases because of the chemicals deposited in the river by farmers, olive tree mills and factories.
The Bekaa’s Qaraoun Lake is another disaster, with animal carcasses mysteriously appearing in its environs.
Meanwhile, the unregulated quarries across Lebanon eat into the country’s natural resources.
In the poorer areas, where the state is absent, ancient trees are chopped down in order to sustain people.

The waterway of Nahr Beirut turned red after a sewage pipe expelled an unidentifiable stream of effluvium into it, Wednesday, Feb. 15, 2012. (The Daily Star/Mohammad Azakir)

These issues flare up in the public conscience at certain times, only to die down again.

A big noise is made, probes are promised but no action is ever taken.
In the 1960s, 33 percent of the country was green. That figure is now less than 12 percent. If these levels of environmental destruction continue, before long the country will be turned to desert.
Yet the Environment Ministry is treated as a luxury, with a budget barely enough to sustain the wages of the few who work there, and some insignificant expenses.
The ministry’s ability to protect the environment, to educate people and to crack down on those who do not abide by its laws, is therefore minimal.
Every minister who tries – and some have put sincere effort into their work – has found that this environmental destruction is protected by parties and politicians.
Therefore any effort to curb environmental violations is met with opposition from whichever politician or party holds a vested interest.
Statements, investigations and promises to prosecute are merely an exercise in semantics. The Lebanese have learned that measures are cosmetic, having never seen the conclusion of an investigation, nor the conviction, let alone the public naming of a perpetrator.
This country needs a state of environmental emergency, with tough laws so the ministry is treated as one of its vital institutions, with the clout to put an end to the violations of nature and rehabilitate its green spaces.
Otherwise our children will wake up immersed in disease, surrounded by deserts, polluted waters and poisoned food.

source:http://www.dailystar.com.lb/Opinion/Editorial/2012/Feb-18/163732-green-conscience.ashx#ixzz1mjaTirNf

11 Trillions In Fake Bonds Held In CHICAGO FED Crates?

why-were-trillions-fake-bonds-held-chicago-fed-crates

0 Michael Rivero Returning to RBN

IMPORTANT ANNOUNCEMENT.
Starting Monday, February 20th, the Michael Rivero radio show returns to Republic Broadcasting, Monday through Friday, from 1PM to 3PM Central Time.

Mike Rivero was named The Anti-Neocon of the month August 2007 by anti-neocons.com for his years of work exposing zionist infiltrations and israeli lies and deceptions on his website WRH (www.whatreallyhappened.com)

His WRH website is among the top ten ranked daily political news sites on the Internet. Rivero is highly critical of the governments of Israel and the infiltration of United States policy by Dual Citizen . Rivero often says on his radio show that "America needs politicians that put America first, second, and third." He is also notable as the host of a radio show.

0 Israeli troops re-arrest Palestinian woman prisoner

Palestinian Territories — Israeli troops on Thursday re-arrested a Palestinian woman who was one of hundreds of prisoners released in October under a swap deal with Israel, the military said.

Haneh Shalabi was arrested in Burqin village near the northern West Bank town of Jenin, on suspicion that she "posed a threat to the area" an army spoksman told AFP.

She was "a global jihad-affiliated operative " he said, adding that she "violently attacked the soldiers who arrested her."

He did not elaborate on Shalabi's alleged affiliations.

On Tuesday, troops in the southern city of Hebron re-arrested another Palestinian, a member of the Islamist Hamas movement, who was also released under the swap agreement.

Under terms of the October swap deal, Israel freed more than 1,000 Palestinian prisoners in a two-stage release in exchange for captive Israeli soldier Gilad Shalit who was snatched by Gaza-based militants in June 2006.

0 If Silver Goes Down All Hell Will Break Loose In The Physical Market: Silver Investment Update

There simply isn't enough physical silver to deal with the demand of a fiat currency crisis. As the paper silver market pushes prices down, all hell will break loose in the physical market.

http://www.FutureMoneyTrends.com

0 ‘Doomsday Preppie’ the new buzzword?

Police, SWAT nab ‘doomsday preppie’

The world seemed to stand still for a few moments.

Every available Worthington police officer and the Columbus SWAT team surrounded the house at 661 Farrington Drive, and Thomas Worthington High School, just a block away, was under lockdown.

The only person who seemed unaware of the noontime drama Feb. 10 was 31-year-old Ryan Velie.

After receiving a call from Worthington Police Chief James Mosic, Velie exited the front door of the house and looked surprised. Yes, he had an arsenal set up inside, but he had no idea that someone had alerted the authorities.

Police took Velie into custody, turning him over to Netcare, a mental-health facility in Columbus. According to police, he later was taken to a state mental-health facility, where he remained on Feb. 14.

Worthington Police Lt. Mike Dougherty said Velie is a “doomsday preppie,” which is someone who stockpiles weapons, food, batteries and other necessities.

“They are stocking up for the ‘big one,’” Dougherty said.

Among Velie’s stash were eight to 10 guns, ranging from revolvers to rifles to an AK-4, which had a 40-round-capacity magazine that was locked and loaded, Dougherty said.

With that much ammunition, the gun is considered a machine gun and possession is considered a felony, he said.

The guns and ammunition were found in Velie’s bedroom and in the basement. Police also found stockpiles of batteries and several “go-bags” ready to put into use if needed.

Velie lives in the house with his mother, Sandy.

On the day of the incident, she reportedly became concerned because her son was wearing a gun in his waistband. She called Netcare to ask for help. He allegedly told Netcare workers that if anyone were to come to the house, he would shoot.

At 11:20 a.m., Netcare notified police, who went to the house, forced Sandy Velie to come out and called SWAT, which immediately set up around the perimeter.

The schools were notified, and Thomas Worthington, Evening Street Elementary, Linworth AP and Kilbourne Middle School went into lockdown mode.

“This was not going to turn out well if he decided to open up on everyone,” Dougherty said.

Everyone was glad when Velie came out peacefully.

“He didn’t know we were there,” Dougherty said.

Police confiscated all of the guns and ammunition, along with materials for making pipe bombs. Dougherty said he hopes Velie never gets them back.

“If he’s got mental issues, that will keep him from getting the guns again, legally,” he said. “But we all know how easy guns are to get.”

Velie grew up on Farrington Drive with his parents and two brothers. All three boys went to Thomas Worthington High School.

His father, Garwin P. “Butch” Velie, died May 17, 2010. He was well-known in the community, having run for the Worthington Board of Education when the boys were young.

Police said Sandy Velie was concerned about Ryan’s guns and bought a gun case and locked them up. He had been working to pry the case open since summer, police said.

Velie will be charged with at least one felony after he is released from the mental-health facility, Dougherty said.

Source:http://www.thisweeknews.com/content/stories/worthington/news/2012/02/14/police-swat-nab-doomsday-preppie.html

0 Sh#t Zionists Say [OFFICIAL VIDEO]

We asked some people "Say something a Zionist has said to you"....

existenceisresistance.org

0 What Is Yellowcake, Anyway?

With all the "unbiased media" flap of Iran announcing they are producing "yellowcake"
I thought an "equally unbiased" explanation of were it comes from?, and what it ACTUALLY IS?, might be helpful to anyone (like myself) that were relatively ignorant of it's "less than dubious" origins.

By Brendan Koerner|Posted Friday, July 18, 2003, at 5:05 PM ET

Yellowcake is milled uranium oxide, known to chemists as U₃O₈. When uranium ore comes out of the mine, it actually contains fairly little of the precious radioactive element. Though some mines in Canada, the world's leading uranium producer, are now yielding ore that contains 20 percent uranium, lower purity levels are more typical. Ore that contains less than 1 percent uranium is not unusual.
The milling process gets rid of the useless minerals that dominate the ore. First, raw ore is passed through a series of industrial-sized crushers and grinders. The resulting "pulped" ore is then bathed in sulphuric acid, a process which leaches out the uranium. After some drying and filtering, the end product is yellowcake: a coarse, oxidized powder that is often yellow in color but can also have a red or gray tint, depending on the number and type of impurities that may remain. Ideally, a drum of yellowcake should wind up looking something like this.
Yellowcake is a first step toward enriched uranium, but it's a long way from being weapons-grade. The powder must still be converted into uranium hexafluoride before it can be enriched, the process that makes the sort of uranium used by nuclear power plants and bomb-makers alike. Because UF₆ can be easily turned into a gas, it is ideal for enrichment, which must be done in a gaseous state.
Despite all the hubbub over Saddam Hussein's efforts to buy yellowcake, the stuff is by no means a rare commodity. Worldwide production is currently around 64,000 tons per year, and that's sure to rise as Central Asian nations like Kazakhstan begin to expand their uranium-mining industries. (By comparison, about 45,000 tons of tungsten, vital to the steel industry, is produced annually.) The competition has depressed yellowcake prices just a tad in recent months; a pound now costs about $10.90, down a dime from what it was trading for this spring.

http://www.slate.com/articles/news_and_politics/explainer/2003/07/what_is_yellowcake_anyway.html

0 Russian official confirms sub "was" armed during blaze

Amongst still unanswered questions regarding the ‘Yekaterinberg' come reports of several possible new near disasters.

Yekaterinburg on fire
Photo: Anonymous commenter

Russian Deputy Prime Minister Dmitry Rogozin has indirectly confessed the Delta-class submarine involved in the fire did have weapons on board, news agency ITAR-TASS reports.

He told reporters, “It was a gross violation of existing regulations for the repairs of nuclear submarines specifically with armaments onboard.”

It is still not clear whether Russian media reports confirm whether these weapons were both torpedoes as well as possible nuclear missiles it is not clear whether this is the case.

“Even though it looks almost 100 percent certain now that conventional weapons were aboard, they could still have posed a great danger because of the vessel’s two nuclear reactors,” Igor Kudrik, Bellona’s advisor on nuclear safety in Russia told Aftenposten.

The submarine was in dry dock awaiting repairs, and all weapons should have been removed from the submarine whilst there.

Organisation Bellona fears that the weapons were left on board to allow the submarine to return to duty as soon as possible.

Leader Frederic Hauge is concerned the fire could have had extreme and wide-spread consequences for both Russia and Norway.

Had there been a danger of nuclear explosion Russia should have evacuated huge portions of the Kola Peninsula, which would have affected huddreds of thousands – Russia ignored this,” Bellona reports him as alleging.

“We're talking about a very serious incident only 200 kilometers from the Norwegian border. At worst, it could have meant radioactive emissions reaching Norway in two hours.”

Mr Hauge has now demanded both countries’ authorities act following the organisation’s examination of documentation relating to the fire.

“We think there are so many serious issues that we are now asking Norwegian authorities require an official response from Russia as to whether there really were nuclear weapons on board. This statement by Rogozin makes clear that [international] notification procedures did not work.

source:http://theforeigner.no/pages/news/russian-official-confirms-weapons-during-sub-blaze/

0 Government will ‘entertain amendments’ to online surveillance bill

New Brunswick Conservative MP John Williamson, the former director of communications to Prime Minister Stephen Harper, said he shares the concerns of Canadians across the country, who are worried about the bill as it currently stands.

“I have concerns about the way the bill is drafted,” Williamson told reporters Wednesday on Parliament Hill.

“It’s too intrusive as it currently stands and does need to be looked at. There’s a lot of concern, I think, across the country,” he said. “It’ll go to committee and we haven’t had a frank discussion on it yet in caucus, so that will come.”

Facing questions Wednesday from interim NDP leader Nycole Turmel about “giving themselves the right to snoop in everybody’s computer,” Harper wouldn’t commit to tabling amendments to the bill but hinted the government is open to amendments.

National Post

CLICK TO ENLARGE.

“We’ve been very clear. We’re working with provinces and with police to attack problems of online pornography, child pornography, but of course we will ensure that Parliament fully studies this bill and that private life is also protected in this regard,” Harper said during question period.

“We want to fix our laws while striking the right balance when it comes to privacy. We will send this legislation directly to committee for a full and wide ranging examination of the best way to do what is right for our children,” added Public Safety Minister Vic Toews in a more tempered response to questions from the opposition.

When pressed further by the Liberals during Question Period, Toews said that: “we will entertain amendments.”

When Toews tabled the bill Tuesday, it was called the Lawful Access Act, but that version was quickly withdrawn and replaced with the Protecting Children from Internet Predators Act.

The name change followed a remark made Monday by Toews, who said a critic of the bill “can either stand with us or with the child pornographers.”

On Wednesday, the NDP’s digital affairs critic Charlie Angus picked up on the name change to accuse Toews of “hiding behind children” and “using child victims as political cover so that minister can treat average Canadians like criminals. Why this abuse of public trust and why this abuse of our child victims?” Angus said in the House of Commons.

Following question period, Calgary Tory member of Parliament Rob Anders, who represents one of the most conservative ridings in the country, said his office has already been hearing from constituents concerned about the bill, and he expects changes are coming to it.

“I imagine there’s probably going to be amendments to it,” Anders said. “I think there’s probably ways to set it up so that you could allow for immediacy in the case of child pornography but still have a way of seeking some warrants. I think that’s probably the way to go.”

Ontario Conservative MP David Tilson said “there’s no question it’s a privacy issue,” and that he still has a number of concerns about the bill that he wants addressed.

‘It’s time Canadians come to grips with the unfortunate truth that the federal government simply isn’t interested in demonstrating any sort of thoughtful leadership when it comes to the pressing digital issues of our day’
Comment from Financial Post‘s Matt Hartley

“I want to be satisfied that if the police are eavesdropping on people that they have permission from the courts. If they don’t have that, well, then I’ll be concerned. So I want to hear more about it first,” Tilson told reporters.

The legislation will require telecommunications companies to hand over personal information of customers, called basic subscriber information, to police without a court order.

In addition to name, address, phone number, email address and name of service provider identifier, the bill will require companies to hand over the Internet protocol address. The opposition parties and Canada’s privacy commissioners say this will allow police to build a detailed profile of people, including law-abiding citizens, using their digital footprint — without any judicial oversight.

The proposed bill will also require Internet service providers and cellphone companies to install equipment for real-time surveillance and will create new police powers designed to access the surveillance data. This means police can order a telecom company to preserve data for a specified period, but must first obtain a warrant to read the actual content.

Canada’s privacy commissioners pleaded unsuccessfully to the government last year to drop the warrantless access to basic subscriber info from the legislation.

Ann Cavoukian, Ontario’s privacy commissioner, is now wading into the name change.

“They’re calling the bill ‘Protecting Children from Internet Predators Act.’ Give me a break. The warrantless access does not just apply to cases of child pornography or child predators. It can apply to something that’s not even a criminal activity. It’s ridiculous to go to these lengths. And why are they doing it? They’re doing it because they want to instil fear on the part of the public and say, ‘Well, if you don’t give us this bill, then all child pornographers, those predators, that’s going to be on your head.’ And that’s what they want the public to fear,” Cavoukian told Postmedia News.

Source:http://news.nationalpost.com/2012/02/15/protecting-children-from-internet-predators-act-vic-toews/

Breaking news - www.breakingnews.com

0 "If the US does not attack Iran ...then Israel will, I assure you" Former Israeli Ambassador

0 ALL EYES On Washington County Maine Today!

0 Silence surrounds the killing of Indian fishermen by Italian ship