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Hard News
25 dead in fresh northern Nigeria violence: An attack Thursday in restive northern Nigeria where suspected Islamists stormed a police station and stole nearly $60,000 from a bank killed 20 insurgents and five officers, the local police chief said Friday. Libya: 1 Killed as Gunmen Attack Army Post Near Tripoli: "Following the assault, a car packed with more than 50kg of TNT explosives were found," the battalion commander told the state-run Libyan News Agency. Libya: Benghazi police station bombed: "Around six o'clock this morning, an explosive device placed under one of the windows of the building exploded, causing severe damage," said station commander Colonel Matar Mohammer. Thousands of South Sudanese rebels surrender after thaw with Sudan: The South Sudan Liberation Army (SSLA), one of the largest rebel groups in the new country, and two other militia groups said they had accepted an amnesty offer from President Salva Kiir. French defense minister visits northern Mali, affirms commitment to 1,000 troops by year-end; France's defense minister reaffirmed Friday that his country will keep 1,000 of its troops in Mali to fight radical Islamic militants even after the arrival later this year of more than 12,000 United Nations peacekeepers. Pakistan: 11 Killed In Bombing At Pakistan Political Gathering: An explosion at a political party meeting in the city of Karachi has killed 11 people and wounded some 50 others. Gunmen Kill 10 Iraq Security Forces Members : Gunmen killed five army intelligence soldiers in two attacks west of Baghdad while others shot dead five anti-Qaida militiamen north of the Iraqi capital on Saturday, police and doctors said. Iraqi soldiers retake control of Sunni town north of Baghdad, 3 attacks near Sunni mosques: Iraqi soldiers backed by tanks retook control of a Sunni town north of Baghdad on Friday after gunmen withdrew without a fight, although violence erupted at three Sunni mosques and clerics called for the formation of a tribal army to protect Sunni cities. Iraq PM Maliki warns of 'plague of sectarianism': Nouri Maliki said sectarian conflict had returned to Iraq "because it began in another place in this region" - an apparent reference to Syria. Syrian troops make gains amid new strategy: The rebels have made gains, but it seems the military is now on the offensive and picking battles that would ensure control over strategic territories. Obama: proof of Syrian chemical weapons would be 'game-changer': President stops short of saying red line had been crossed "Evidence" of Syria chemical weapons use not up to U.N. standard: The type of evidence, needed to show definitively if banned chemicals were found, has not been presented by governments and intelligence agencies accusing Syria of using chemical weapons against insurgents. Russian envoy warns on Syria chemical arms 'pretext': "We must check the information immediately and in conformity with international criteria and not use it to achieve other objectives. It must not be a pretext for an intervention in Syria," added Bogdanov, according to an Arabic translation of his remarks. Western Intervention in Syria's Already Started: A "soft" intervention in Syria by the West's long started, evidenced by the existence of a Western-backed rebel faction in Syria itself. Syria: Alledged 'victims of chemical attack foam at mouth' - Video - Warning: contains disturbing images: The video claims to show victims of a Syrian regime assault on Aleppo on 13 April, and was posted online by Niazi Habash, a British-trained doctor. Syria chemical weapons - Q&A: What evidence is there that chemical attacks have taken place, which agents were used and what does it mean for the war? Damascus claims Al-Qaeda used chemical rocket in Aleppo attack: Damascus has claimed that Al-Qaeda-linked terrorists used a chemical rocket - possibly smuggled from Turkey - to attack Aleppo last month. But Western nations accused Damascus of using chemical weapons, and are mulling a military intervention. Syria: Chemical weapons used by rebels came from Turkey: The chemical weapons used by rebels in the Aleppo countryside likely arrived from Turkey, Syrian Information Minister Omran al-Zoubi charged on Saturday. Hezbollah Prepares for Attacks by Jabhat al-Nusra in Lebanon: The latest statement released by Jabhat al-Nusra threatening to launch harsh strikes against Hezbollah, in Beirut in the city's southern suburb and across Lebanon, is being taken seriously at the national security level and by Hezbollah. Further risks to Lebanon should Syria crisis linger: Bogdanov: Russia opposes attempts to use countries neighboring Syria to interfere in the 2-year-old conflict and is worried that any prolonging of the crisis risks widening divisions in the Arab state and its neighbor Lebanon, Deputy Foreign Minister Mikhail Bogdanov said Saturday. Jordanians torch U.S. flag to protest troop deployment: Jordanian protesters torched a U.S. flag at a demonstration in Amman Friday against an American troop deployment in Jordan in connection with the war in neighboring Syria as hundreds also rallied in other cities. Yemen: 5 troops, 2 Qaeda militants killed: A Yemeni security official says five soldiers and two al-Qaeda militants have been killed in fighting in the central town of Radda, and a senior intelligence officer was gunned down in a drive-by shooting in the south. Report: Abbas to start consultations on creating unity government: Abbas called upon all Palestinian factions and organizations to cooperate in order for him to issue two presidential decrees, one for formation of a technocrat government, and one for setting a date for elections British Mandate boss said Jews were 'like Nazis': Newly published records reveal British High Commissioner of Palestine viewed Jewish fighters in 1940s as analogous to Nazis. Bahrain rejects US report on human rights: The strategic tiny kingdom of Bahrain, home to the US Fifth Fleet, has been hit since February 2011 by a wave of Shia-led protests calling for the ouster of Prime Minister Sheikh Khalifa bin Salman al-Khalifa in office since 1971. Anti-drone protestors march against UK flight-control centre: Organisations protest the navigation from RAF Waddington of unmanned Reaper aircraft in Afghanistan Inhumane force feeding continues as : Official number of Guantanamo Bay hunger strikers jumps to 100: The official number of hunger strikers at Guantanamo Bay reached 100 on Saturday - three more than the day before. Twenty of the detainees are receiving enteral feeds, five of whom are being observed in a detainee hospital. Arrest made in White House ricin case: Everett Dutschke, 41, was arrested after days of speculation that he, and not another local man with whom he had been feuding - and who had himself had earlier been arrested in the case - had mailed the letters earlier this month. Boston bombing suspects' mom in terror database: About 18 months before the Boston Marathon bombings, the CIA added the mother of the two suspects to a terrorism database after Russian authorities raised concerns that she and her oldest son were religious militants, the Associated Press reported. Bring on the drones: In the wake of the Marathon bombing Boston Police Commissioner Ed Davis say surveillance drones might be a useful tool to help thwart a similar act of terror at next year's race. Mayor Bloomberg : "You're Never Going to Know Where All Our Cameras Are": "We made major investments in camera technology, not withstanding objections of some special interests," the mayor emphasized today. Mayor Bloomberg Is a Surveillance-State Extremist: "Look, we live in a very dangerous world," he said. "We know there are people who want to take away our freedoms. New Yorkers probably know that as much if not more than anybody else after the terrible tragedy of 9/11." Homeland Security aims to buy 1.6 billion rounds of ammo: The Homeland Security Department wants to buy more than 1.6 billion rounds of ammunition in the next four or five years. It says it needs them - about the equivalent of five cartridges for every person in the United States - for law enforcement agents in training and on duty. Reps challenge DHS ammo buys, say agency using 1,000 more rounds per person than Army: "It is entirely ... inexplicable why the Department of Homeland Security needs so much ammunition," Chaffetz, R-Utah, said at a hearing. Billions Proposed for New Border Security. Where Would the Money Go?: The U.S. spent nearly $18 billion dollars on immigration enforcement agencies last fiscal year, more than all other law enforcement agencies combined. Iceland proved there is a way of dealing with financial crisis : Iceland has been praised for its handling of the financial crisis, during which politicians allowed banks to fail, rather than bailing them out. Economic expert Margaret Bogenrief explained why in the case of the EU the solution is unlikely to help Austerity Brings Unemployment to New Highs in Spain and France - So Why Do Pols Keep Pushing It in the U.S.?: As if there were not already abundant proof of the failure of austerity in the eurozone, the BBC reports that both Spain and France have hit new unemployment milestones.
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"Let us be peace and joy"
Tom Feeley
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