December 2007

Pakistan rejects [International] help in Bhutto probe

29 Dec 2007

Pakistan rejects [International] help in Bhutto probe

ISLAMABAD, Pakistan - Pakistan rejected foreign help in investigating the assassination of Benazir Bhutto on Saturday, despite controversy over the circumstances of her death and three days of paralyzing turmoil.

The Islamic militant group blamed by officials for the attack that killed Bhutto denied any links to the killing on Saturday, and Bhutto's aides accused the government of a cover-up.

President Pervez Musharraf ordered his security chiefs to quell rioting by Bhutto's grieving followers that has killed at least 44 people over three days and caused tens of millions of dollars in damage.

"Criminals should stop their despicable activities, otherwise they will have to face serious consequences," Interior Ministry spokesman Javed Iqbal Cheema said.

Bhutto's Pakistan People's Party called a meeting Sunday expected to choose a new leader, decide whether to participate in Jan. 8 parliamentary elections and hear her last will and testament.

If the party pulls out, it would destroy the credibility of the poll, already being boycotted by rival opposition leader Nawaz Sharif. The U.S. government has pressured Musharraf, who seized power in a coup eight years ago, to push ahead with the election to promote stability in this nuclear armed nation, a key ally against Islamic extremism.

The riots destroyed nine election offices -- along with the voter rolls and ballot boxes inside, the election commission said. The commission has called an emergency meeting for Monday to decide how to proceed.

Questions about Bhutto's assassination have intensified since she died Thursday evening when a suicide attacker shot at her and then blew himself up as she waved to supporters from the sunroof of her armored vehicle outside a campaign rally. The disputes were sure to further enflame the violence and have led to calls for an international, independent investigation into the attack.

Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Rodham Clinton said Friday that an international probe was vital because there was "no reason to trust the Pakistani government," while others called for a U.N. investigation.

Cheema dismissed the suggestion. This is not an ordinary criminal matter in which we require assistance of the international community. I think we are capable of handling it," he said.

Learn more about it from Yahoo/Associated Press at: http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20071229/ap_on_re_as/pakistan

Pakistan Cites Al Qaeda Tie to Bhutto's Death

Dec. 28, 2007

Pakistan Cites Al Qaeda Tie to Bhutto's Death

Government Claims Militant with al Qaeda ties Linked to Bhutto Slaying

PAKISTAN: The Pakistani government released video of former Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto's last moments before her assassination, and announced it has evidence linking a militant leader with links to al Qaeda as responsible for her assassination.

"We have intelligence intercepts indicating that al Qaeda leader Baitullah Mehsud is behind her assassination," Interior Ministry spokesman Javed Iqbal Cheema said. The government claims Mehsud called a follower at 9:15 a.m. to congratulate him. "It was a spectacular job," Mehsud allegedly said. "They were brave boys who killed."

Mehsud is thought to be the commander of pro-Taliban forces in the tribal region of South Waziristan, where al-Qaida fighters are also active.
The announcement came hours after Bhutto was laid to rest after an emotional funeral and a night of violence that has left at least 27 dead across the country...

-- Source/continues:http://abcnews.go.com/WN/story?id=4062365&page=1

Bhutto Assasination in Pakistan (video)

Bhutto Assassinated, 20 Others Dead in Terror Attack

EmergencyNet *FLASH* Report

12/27/2007 - 12:17:14 PM CST

Bhutto Assassinated, 20 Others Dead in Terror Attack

PAKISTAN: Pakistan opposition leader Benazir Bhutto was assassinated Thursday by an attacker who shot her after a campaign rally and then blew himself up. Her death stoked new chaos across the nuclear-armed nation, an important U.S. ally in the war on terrorism.

At least 20 others were also killed in the attack on the rally for Jan. 8 parliamentary elections where the 54-year-old Bhutto had just spoken.

Her supporters erupted in anger and grief after her killing, attacking police and burning tires and election campaign posters in several cities. Security forces have been placed on a state of "red alert" nationwide.

There were no immediate claims of responsibility for the attack. Analysts believe Islamist militants to be the most likely group behind it. Other observors suggest that the attack may be linked to elements within the government.

Watch EmergencyNet News for continuing developments on this important and emerging story.

-- AP, Reuters, and FoxNews contributed to this report

Benazir Bhutto's profile

By ANI, Thursday December 27, 07:43 PM

Previous Reference:

Emergency.Blog : More Than 100 Killed in Attack on Bhutto's Convoy in Pakistan

Killed in Attack on Bhutto's Convoy in Pakistan - More Than 100 Killed in Attack on Bhutto's Convoy in Pakistan Posted by C. L. Staten

http://www.emergency.com/archive/2007/10/entry_278.htm

Previous report from: ERRI DAILY INTELLIGENCE REPORT, EmergencyNet News Service, Tuesday, October 23, 2007, Vol. 13, No. 296

Pakistan's Bhutto receives new threat

KARACHI, Pakistan - Benazir Bhutto received a new death threat Tuesday, her lawyer said, and a top official revealed there apparently were two suicide bombers behind last week's bloody attempt to kill her.

Sen. Farooq Naik, Bhutto's lawyer, said he had received a two-page handwritten letter in the Urdu language from an unidentified person threatening to kill the former prime minister "by any means." The writer claimed to be a friend of al-Qaida, Osama bin Laden and extremists in Pakistan.

The authenticity of the letter could not be confirmed, but Naik said the party was taking it seriously. He said he asked the chief justice of Pakistan to get the government to investigate the threat and protect her.

"We cannot take anything lightly" after Thursday's bombing, he said. Bhutto's homecoming from an eight-year exile was shattered by the blasts that hit her caravan as she traveled through Karachi. She escaped injury, but 136 other people were killed.

Sindh provincial Gov. Ishrat Ul-Ebad Khan said people in custody in connection with seven previous suicide attacks in Karachi were being questioned in prisons in the city and elsewhere in Pakistan in the hope they can provide clues into the bombing.

Happy Holidays

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Russia's Putin Named Time 'Person of the Year'

19 Dec 2007 - 12:00 CST

Putin is named Time 'Person of the Year'

NEW YORK - According to the Associated Press, Time magazine on Wednesday named Russian President Vladimir Putin its 2007 "Person of the Year."

The nod went to the Russian leader because of Putin's "extraordinary feat of leadership in taking a country that was in chaos and bringing it stability," said Richard Stengel, Time's managing editor.

Putin, 55, is enormously popular in Russia, presiding over a resurgent economy flush with revenue from oil and natural gas. But critics say he has moved the country away from Russia's democratic reforms of the 1990s by tightening control of the media, courts and parliament.

"He's the new czar of Russia and he's dangerous in the sense that he doesn't care about civil liberties, he doesn't care about free speech," Stengel said.

Get the whole story at: http://www.time.com/time/specials/2007/personoftheyear/
article/1,28804,1690753_1690757_1690766,00.html

[Emergency.Blog editorial/opinion/comment: If Time magazine were Komsomolskaya Pravda, Putin is 'person of the year'. Otherwise, Gen. David Petraeus and his efforts for freedom of the Iraqi people wins "Person of the Year" honors...in the opinion of Emergency.Blog staff.]

VBIED Attacks in Algeria; Multiple Deaths Reported

20:26, Tuesday December 11, 2007

Al Qaeda 'Behind Attacks'

ALGIERS, ALGERIA: Al Qaeda has claimed responsibility for two bombings in Algeria's capital that killed at least 30 people and left dozens more injured.

A spokesman for the terror group said the attacks were carried out by three suicide bombers in trucks packed with explosives.

One of the explosions targeted the Algerian prime minister's headquarters.

Al Jazeera television said it received a phone call from an al Qaeda spokesman in Islamic North Africa claiming responsibility for both attacks...

Continues/Source: http://news.sky.com/skynews/article/0,,30200-1296529,00.html

U.S. shopping malls boost security after shooting

Dec 7, 2007 -- 02:51 AM US/Eastern

U.S. shopping malls boost security after shooting

USA: Shopping centers across America have stepped up security to protect shoppers during the busy holiday season in the wake of a deadly shooting in a Nebraska mall that left nine people dead.

While several shopping malls increased patrols after a lone gunman fired an assault rifle into a crowded store in Omaha on Wednesday, industry officials acknowledged that such tragedies are difficult to prevent.

Shopping centers, which are considered by security experts a "soft" target for terrorism, already implemented tighter security measures following the attacks of September 11, 2001.

But American shoppers are reluctant to accept even measures that would force them to go through metal detectors or be frisked by guards to enter their beloved malls, said Malachy Kavanagh, spokesman for the International Council of Shopping Centers.

"We hope that we will not get to that point in this country because we live in a free society and respect people's right to travel unimpeded," Kavanagh told AFP.

While Shoppers who were surveyed in focus groups indicated they would rather not have to go through metal detectors, they appeared willing to accept them if the government raised the terror alert level, he said.

Measures installed after September 11 include closer coordination with local police, the use of high-resolution cameras that can read car license plates in parking lots and the inspection of delivery trucks. Some malls even have bomb-sniffing dogs.

The FBI warned just last month of potential Al-Qaeda attacks on US shopping malls during the Christmas season, but conceded that the threats received may not be credible.

"If you look back through the years, this is a tactic and practice of Al-Qaeda to express threats during the Christmas season," FBI special agent Ross Rice said at the time, adding that the information had not been corroborated.

Rice said an FBI bulletin went out to law enforcement agencies to advise them to be vigilant as malls become crowded with holiday shoppers.

But he said he did not think any new security measures would be put in place in response to the threat as most local agencies already increase patrols at malls during this time. "This time of the year is very busy in and around malls and they focus additional security there," he said.

-- Source/continues at: http://www.breitbart.com/article.php?id=071207075053.auvf30tq&show_article=1

Victims/Perpetrator Identified in Mall Shooting

13:03 pm EST December 6, 2007

FOLLOW-UP: Omaha Mall Victims Named By Police

Gunman Bragged In Note: 'Now I'll Be Famous'

OMAHA, NE: The victims of a mall shooting range in age from 24 to 66 and were both customers of Von Maur and employees.

Names of the victims were revealed by Omaha Police Chief Thomas Warren on Thursday:

They are: Gary Scharf, 48, a customer and resident of Lincoln; John McDonald, 65, a customer and resident of Council Bluffs, Iowa; Angie Schuster, 36, an employee; Maggie Webb, 24, an employee; Janet Jorgenson, 66, an employee; Diane Trent, 53, an employee; Gary Joy, 56, an employee; and Beverly Flynn, 47, an employee.

Creighton University Medical Center staff said Joy was the first victim who arrived at their trauma center. He was dead on arrival. Flynn had a gunshot wound to chest and minimal life signs, the doctors said, but emergency medical technicians were doing CPR and she was taken to surgery. After 45 minutes, she was pronounced dead.

The wounded: are Fred Wilson, 61, who was upgraded to serious condition Thursday morning, and Michelle Oldham, 65, who is in critical but stable condition.

Jeff Schafford, 34, and Brad Stafford, 55, were both treated and released.

A fifth person hospitalized after the shooting apparently had a medical condition unrelated, and was not identified, Warren said.

The Assailant

Robert A. Hawkins, 19, opened fire at 1:42 p.m. Wednesday. Warren said surveillance video shows Hawkins entering the second level of Von Maur about six minutes before police received the first call for shots fired. Warren speculated that at least 30 rounds were fired from an SKS rifle. Warren said he believes the weapon was stolen from Hawkins' stepfather. Warren said the gun had two 30-round magazines with the ability to fire rounds quickly.

Hawkins apparently left two suicide notes and a will, prompting Warren to call the shootings premeditated. The chief said people may never know why he went on a rampage. Warren said it appears that the victims were chosen randomly. He said it also appears the mall was chosen because it's a large public place where he'd get a lot of attention... -- Source/article continues at: http://www.wnbc.com/news/14786499/detail.html?rss=ny&psp=news

Nine (9) Reported Dead in Omaha Mall Shooting

EmergencyNet News

12/5/2007 - 16:12:06 PM CST -

Police Say Nine Dead in Mall Shooting

OMAHA, NE: According to Omaha police SGT. Teresa Negron (PIO), nine (9) people have been killed in a shooting at the Westroads Mall. SGT. Negron also said that they believe that the assailant is dead as the result of a "self-inflicted" gunshot wound.

The identity of the perpetrator is not known or not being released as an intense investigation by local, state, and federal officials is currently underway. Numerous witnesses are being interviewed at the time of this report.

EMS personnel said that they have transported a total of seven people to area hospitals. The conditions of those wounded is presently not confirmed, though several are believed to be badly wounded.

These details came from a emergency service press conference held within the past ten minutes at the shooting scene. Watch EmergencyNet News for more information about this still emerging story...

Multiple Victims Reported Shot in Omaha Mall

12/5/2007 -- 14:50:35 PM CST

EmergencyNet News *FLASH* Report

Multiple Victims Reported Shot in Omaha Mall

From the ERRI/EmergencyNet News World Watch Desk

Omaha, NE: According to very preliminary and as yet officially unconfirmed reports, as many as five (5) people have been shot at the Westroads Mall in Omaha, Nebraska.

According to witnesses, "many gunshots" have been fired in the mall and visitors said they saw a man dressed in camouflage and carrying some sort of "long gun" described as a rifle. Numerous shots were said to be fired, witnesses said.

Numerous police and ambulance units have been dispatched to the mall and the exact number of people shot is presently unknown. The mall is said to be in lock-down and surrounded by police cars.

Ambulances have been seen departing the scene with victims. One or more of the victims appeared to witnesses to be in serious condition, as they had been "shot in the head." Another unconfirmed report from the scene said that "there may be fatalities within the mall."

The identity and motive of the perpetrator(s) is not presently known; unconfirmed witness reports suggest that there may have been one or more suspects involved in the incident.

EmergencyNet News is monitoring events in Omaha and will bring you additional details as they circumstances warrant and as they are confirmed by official sources...

Deaths Reported in Utah Mall Shooting 

Shopping Malls Another Vulnerable Target of Terrorism? 

Iran: Nuclear Intentions and Capabilities

Office of the Director of National Intelligence

Iran: Nuclear Intentions and Capabilities

November 2007

Can be found at: http://www.odni.gov/press_releases/20071203_release.pdf