Archive for September 6th, 2008
Paris Match Taliban photoshoot shocks France
Politicians of the right and left blasted the magazine Paris Match today for publishing a photograph of a Taliban guerrilla dressed in the combat uniform of one of the ten French soldiers killed in Afghanistan last month. The defence minister, Hervé Morin, accused the magazine of taking part in a Taliban propaganda exercise.
The Green politician, Daniel Cohn-Bendit, a leader of the French student revolt 40 years ago, said that Match was guilty of abject voyeurism. The photograph was taken by a Paris Match photographer a few miles from the scene of the ambush in which ten French paratroopers were killed 30 miles from Kabul on 18 August. It showed Taliban fighters, who claimed to be part of the force which attacked the French troops. One of them was entirely dressed above the waist in French uniform, helmet, goggles and bullet-proof vest.
Further pictures in the magazines ten-page spread showed Farouki, the leader of the Taliban force amid seven young men holding assault rifles and other trophies taken from the bodies of the French soldiers.
Anger and revulsion in France at the pictures was deepened when the newspaper Le Monde reported this afternoon that Taliban fighters had cut the throats of four of the French soldiers as they lay wounded on the ground.
(…)
M. Morin accused Paris Match of taking part in a sophisticated Taliban propaganda war.
“Should we really be doing promotion for people who understand the importance of communication in the modern world?” he asked.
“This is a communications war that the Taliban are waging. They understand that public opinion is probably the Achilles’ heel of the international community that is present in Afghanistan.”
Paris Match Taliban photoshoot shocks France – Europe, World – The Independent
So we should ask WHY public opinion does not understand the war in Afghanistan and whose responsibility is it.
And this again confirms the bad role the media is playing in the fight against terrorism. Once again.
A good summary of Dem’s criticism of Palin
Yemen detains terrorist cell accused of plotting attack against Spanish tourists
Yemeni police has detained an Al-Qaeda’s cell suspected of plotting several terrorist actions, including last year’s terrorist attack against a group of Spanish tourists, according to official sources.
An statement by Yemeni Defense Ministry says that security forces found an arsenal with munitions, weapons and other materials used to make car-bombs hidden in the city of Traim Hadrmut, 900 kilometres southwest of the Yemeni capital. It also mentions that during the operation, there was a confrontation between security forces and armed men, with automatic rifles and hand-granades which caused the death of two agens and 5 terrorists. Among others, in the confrontation was killed Salem al-Qaetti, a member of the group which prepared the attack against the Spanish tourists more than a year ago.
The statement concluded announcing the detention of two other suspected terrorists.
Russia sends S-300 to Iran
Somnthing truly interesting considering the moment:
Russia may proceed with plans to sell advanced S-300 air defense systems to Iran under a secret contract believed to have been signed in 2005, a Russian analyst said on Monday. (Russian mobile surface-to-air missile systems – Image gallery)
Commenting on an article in the Sunday Telegraph newspaper saying Russia is using the plans as a bargaining chip in its standoff with America, Ruslan Pukhov, director of Moscow-based Center for Analysis of Strategies and Technologies, said: “In the current situation, when the U.S. and the West in general are stubbornly gearing toward a confrontation with Russia after the events in South Ossetia, the implementation of a lucrative contract on the deliveries of S-300 [air defense systems] to Iran looks like a logical step.”
Russia vende S-300 a Iran | LE GUERRE CIVILI
It is truly interesting because three years ago, the situation was not so worrying. Russia can be a giant with mud around its boots, but its still a giant. And now it has imperialistic consideration, something that it’s not surprising to me at all: we have seen Russia’s evolution since Putin came to power…
It is also truly interesting because three years ago there were no plans yet of the missile defence in Poland and Czech Republic but there were already problems with Ahmadinejad. As you can see here, the first news about the US defence system’s installation in Europe were made public on February 2007. I say this because it’s the reason Russia has given to nearly all its diplomatic problems lately. Even with Georgia.
