Airbornelawyer
10-13-2005, 09:37
From Various Sources:
More Than 60 Killed in South Russia Clash (http://www.voanews.com/english/CN-RUSSIA-ATTACK-UPDATE-13oct05.cfm). Fierce fighting raged for hours in a city in southern Russia after gunmen launched attacks against government buildings and police stations. Russian news reports say more than 60 people, including 50 militants were killed by the fighting in a region near Chechnya, where Russian troops have been battling separatist rebels for more than a decade. …(from Voice of America News (www.voanews.com/))
South Asia Terrorism Update (http://www.satp.org/satporgtp/detailed_news.asp?date1=10/13/2005#1)
From the RFE/RL Newsline (http://www.rferl.org/newsline/):
Russia
CHECHEN RESISTANCE LAUNCHES MULTIPLE ATTACKS IN KABARDINO-BALKARIA. Armed fighters carried out a series of attacks in Nalchik, capital of the Kabardino-Balkaria Republic, on the morning of 13 October, Russian news agencies reported. Facilities targeted included the local headquarters of the Interior Ministry and the Federal Security Service, and the city's airport. A statement posted on the kavkazcenter.com website identified the attackers as fighters from the Kabardino-Balkar sector of the Caucasus Front. Chechen President Abdul-Khalim Sadullaev announced the appointment of commanders for all sectors of the Western front, including for Kabardino-Balkaria, five months ago. ITAR-TASS quoted Kabardino-Balkaria President Arsen Kanokov as estimating that Russian troops had killed at least 50 of the estimated 150 fighters who participated in the attacks by around midday; local officials said at least 12 civilians had been killed in the fighting and some 64 injured.
RUSSIA SLAMS GEORGIAN PARLIAMENT'S 'ULTIMATUM'... The Russian Foreign Ministry has issued a harshly worded response to the Georgian parliament's 11 October resolution threatening to demand the withdrawal of the Russian peacekeeping forces deployed in the Abkhaz and South Ossetian conflict zones if they do not amend their tactics to conform more strictly with their respective mandates. A statement posted on the Ministry's website on 12 October decries the Georgian resolution as "provocative" and "irresponsible," aimed at undermining peaceful negotiations, and as an attempt to offload responsibility for the existing tensions. It stresses that over the past two years Russia, together with its foreign partners, has made a considerable effort to preserve the "fragile balance" that has been constantly endangered by both militant statements on the part of unnamed Georgian politicians and "direct attempts to resolve the problems of Abkhazia and South Ossetia with the help of military force." In that context, it stresses that the international community considers the recourse to military might unacceptable.
...WHILE LAVROV WARNS AGAINST 'HARSH MEASURES' IN ABKHAZIA AND SOUTH OSSETIA. Briefing journalists after a closed-door session on Russian policy in the CIS on 12 October, Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov appealed to Georgia to not take any "harsh measures regarding Russian peacekeepers in the South Ossetian and Abkhazian conflicts," TV-Tsentr reported.
RUSSIAN ARMY WILL NOT REDUCE ITS PRESENCE IN KALININGRAD. Speaking in Kaliningrad on 12 October, General Yurii Baluevskii, the chief of the Russian Army's General Staff, said that there will be no demilitarization in the Kaliningrad Oblast, RosBalt reported. He said that the presence of Russian troops in the oblast is a symbol of Russian sovereignty over this territory, which is surrounded by NATO forces. "It is pointless to talk about the full demilitarization of the oblast -- there will be none," he said. He also stressed that Russia does not consider NATO an adversary and does not want to confront it, RIA-Novosti reported on 12 October. "Speaking in military terms, we have an army of 1 million people and they have 4-5 million. It is reckless to fight a guy who is four to five times the weight of you," Baluevskii said. Today our army has other goals, Baluevskii continued, saying that "Its target is to discourage a state or group of states from changing the existing political order in the world or changing borders, which are recognized as fixed."
Transcaucasia And Central Asia
GEORGIA DENIES HARBORING ISLAMIC MILITANTS. Georgian Interior Ministry spokesman Guram Donadze has rejected as untrue renewed Russian allegations that militants from Turkey, Jordan, and Iraq continue to retreat to Georgia's Pankisi Gorge to recuperate from wounds sustained while fighting on the side of the Chechen resistance, Caucasus Press reported on 13 October. Donadze said the gorge is totally under the Georgian authorities' control. On 11 October, Russian Deputy Interior Minister Arkadii Yedelev alleged that dozens of "international terrorists" transit Pankisi en route for Chechnya or retreat there after clashes with Russian forces.
Southwestern Asia And The Middle East
AFGHAN LEADER THANKS HIS LITHUANIAN COUNTERPART. President Valdas Adamkus arrived in Kabul on 11 October for a two-day official visit, Radio Afghanistan reported. Karzai told Adamkus that Lithuania's involvement in Afghanistan brings "peace and security," adding that the Afghan national will never forget this assistance, ELTA reported on 12 October. Adamkus also traveled to the Ghor Province in central Afghanistan, where a contingent of Lithuanian forces is commanding a provisional reconstruction team (PRT) as part of the NATO-led International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) presence in the country. During his visit to Kabul, Adamkus also met with Secretary Rice, who praised Lithuania's participation in ISAF.
SIX POLICEMEN KILLED IN SOUTHERN AFGHANISTAN. Six police officers were killed and one is missing after unidentified attackers ambushed them on 11 October in Oruzgan Province, AFP reported on 12 October. Four police vehicles were damaged in the attack. Oruzgan Governor Jan Mohammad told AFP that the attack was "the work of the Taliban," although that group has not claimed responsibility for the act. According to a 12 October report by AIP, the six killed were soldiers who were providing security for a U.S. convoy carrying supplies to the provincial capital Tarin Kot.
From the daily reports of Strategie & Technik, a German defense affairs journal:
13.10.05: Bundeswehr: Unterstützung in Darfur. Die Bundeswehr unterstützt erneut die Afrikanische Union (AU) in ihren Bemühungen um Frieden, Sicherheit und Ordnung in der sudanesischen Krisenregion Darfur durch Bereitstellung von Transportkapazität. Etwa 280 Polizisten aus Ghana werden zur Verstärkung der Überwachungsmission "African Union Mission in Sudan" (AMIS) von Ghana in den Sudan transportiert. Ein Airbus A-310 der Flugbereitschaft der Deutschen Luftwaffe und drei Transall-Flugzeuge C-160 des Lufttransportgeschwaders 61 aus Landsberg werden die Polizisten aus Ghana transportieren.
Bundeswehr: Support in Darfur. The Bundeswehr has renewed support for the African Union in its efforts to bring peace, security and order in the Sudanese crisis region of Darfur by making available transport capacity. Some 280 Ghanaian police will be transported from Ghana to the Sudan to reinforce the observer mission "African Union Mission in Sudan" (AMIS). An A-310 Airbus from the ready flight of the German air force and 3 C-160 Transall aircraft from Air Transport Wing 61 in Landsberg will transport the policemen from Ghana.
13.10.05: Israel: Selbstmorde bei Soldaten nehmen zu. Der Generalstab der israelischen Armee ist über die zunehmende Zahl an Selbstmorden von Soldaten beunruhigt. In diesem Jahr haben sich mindestens 30 Soldaten das Leben genommen, über die Hälfte davon in den letzten drei Monaten. Nach dem derzeitigen Stand nimmt sich alle zehn Tage ein Soldat das Leben. Die Selbstmordrate sei höher als die Zahl der Todesfälle bei militärischen Operationen, Ausbildungs- oder Verkehrsunfällen, heißt es. Meist haben die Soldaten für den Selbstmord Dienstwaffen benutzt.
Israel: Suicides by Soldiers Increase. The Israeli Army staff is unsettled by the increasing number of suicides by soldiers. At least 30 soldiers have taken their lives this year, over half of them in the last three months. As things currently stand, every 10 days a soldier takes his life. Reportedly, the suicide rate is higher than the number of cases of death in military operations, training or traffic accidents. Most of the soldiers committing suicide have used their service weapons.
More Than 60 Killed in South Russia Clash (http://www.voanews.com/english/CN-RUSSIA-ATTACK-UPDATE-13oct05.cfm). Fierce fighting raged for hours in a city in southern Russia after gunmen launched attacks against government buildings and police stations. Russian news reports say more than 60 people, including 50 militants were killed by the fighting in a region near Chechnya, where Russian troops have been battling separatist rebels for more than a decade. …(from Voice of America News (www.voanews.com/))
South Asia Terrorism Update (http://www.satp.org/satporgtp/detailed_news.asp?date1=10/13/2005#1)
From the RFE/RL Newsline (http://www.rferl.org/newsline/):
Russia
CHECHEN RESISTANCE LAUNCHES MULTIPLE ATTACKS IN KABARDINO-BALKARIA. Armed fighters carried out a series of attacks in Nalchik, capital of the Kabardino-Balkaria Republic, on the morning of 13 October, Russian news agencies reported. Facilities targeted included the local headquarters of the Interior Ministry and the Federal Security Service, and the city's airport. A statement posted on the kavkazcenter.com website identified the attackers as fighters from the Kabardino-Balkar sector of the Caucasus Front. Chechen President Abdul-Khalim Sadullaev announced the appointment of commanders for all sectors of the Western front, including for Kabardino-Balkaria, five months ago. ITAR-TASS quoted Kabardino-Balkaria President Arsen Kanokov as estimating that Russian troops had killed at least 50 of the estimated 150 fighters who participated in the attacks by around midday; local officials said at least 12 civilians had been killed in the fighting and some 64 injured.
RUSSIA SLAMS GEORGIAN PARLIAMENT'S 'ULTIMATUM'... The Russian Foreign Ministry has issued a harshly worded response to the Georgian parliament's 11 October resolution threatening to demand the withdrawal of the Russian peacekeeping forces deployed in the Abkhaz and South Ossetian conflict zones if they do not amend their tactics to conform more strictly with their respective mandates. A statement posted on the Ministry's website on 12 October decries the Georgian resolution as "provocative" and "irresponsible," aimed at undermining peaceful negotiations, and as an attempt to offload responsibility for the existing tensions. It stresses that over the past two years Russia, together with its foreign partners, has made a considerable effort to preserve the "fragile balance" that has been constantly endangered by both militant statements on the part of unnamed Georgian politicians and "direct attempts to resolve the problems of Abkhazia and South Ossetia with the help of military force." In that context, it stresses that the international community considers the recourse to military might unacceptable.
...WHILE LAVROV WARNS AGAINST 'HARSH MEASURES' IN ABKHAZIA AND SOUTH OSSETIA. Briefing journalists after a closed-door session on Russian policy in the CIS on 12 October, Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov appealed to Georgia to not take any "harsh measures regarding Russian peacekeepers in the South Ossetian and Abkhazian conflicts," TV-Tsentr reported.
RUSSIAN ARMY WILL NOT REDUCE ITS PRESENCE IN KALININGRAD. Speaking in Kaliningrad on 12 October, General Yurii Baluevskii, the chief of the Russian Army's General Staff, said that there will be no demilitarization in the Kaliningrad Oblast, RosBalt reported. He said that the presence of Russian troops in the oblast is a symbol of Russian sovereignty over this territory, which is surrounded by NATO forces. "It is pointless to talk about the full demilitarization of the oblast -- there will be none," he said. He also stressed that Russia does not consider NATO an adversary and does not want to confront it, RIA-Novosti reported on 12 October. "Speaking in military terms, we have an army of 1 million people and they have 4-5 million. It is reckless to fight a guy who is four to five times the weight of you," Baluevskii said. Today our army has other goals, Baluevskii continued, saying that "Its target is to discourage a state or group of states from changing the existing political order in the world or changing borders, which are recognized as fixed."
Transcaucasia And Central Asia
GEORGIA DENIES HARBORING ISLAMIC MILITANTS. Georgian Interior Ministry spokesman Guram Donadze has rejected as untrue renewed Russian allegations that militants from Turkey, Jordan, and Iraq continue to retreat to Georgia's Pankisi Gorge to recuperate from wounds sustained while fighting on the side of the Chechen resistance, Caucasus Press reported on 13 October. Donadze said the gorge is totally under the Georgian authorities' control. On 11 October, Russian Deputy Interior Minister Arkadii Yedelev alleged that dozens of "international terrorists" transit Pankisi en route for Chechnya or retreat there after clashes with Russian forces.
Southwestern Asia And The Middle East
AFGHAN LEADER THANKS HIS LITHUANIAN COUNTERPART. President Valdas Adamkus arrived in Kabul on 11 October for a two-day official visit, Radio Afghanistan reported. Karzai told Adamkus that Lithuania's involvement in Afghanistan brings "peace and security," adding that the Afghan national will never forget this assistance, ELTA reported on 12 October. Adamkus also traveled to the Ghor Province in central Afghanistan, where a contingent of Lithuanian forces is commanding a provisional reconstruction team (PRT) as part of the NATO-led International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) presence in the country. During his visit to Kabul, Adamkus also met with Secretary Rice, who praised Lithuania's participation in ISAF.
SIX POLICEMEN KILLED IN SOUTHERN AFGHANISTAN. Six police officers were killed and one is missing after unidentified attackers ambushed them on 11 October in Oruzgan Province, AFP reported on 12 October. Four police vehicles were damaged in the attack. Oruzgan Governor Jan Mohammad told AFP that the attack was "the work of the Taliban," although that group has not claimed responsibility for the act. According to a 12 October report by AIP, the six killed were soldiers who were providing security for a U.S. convoy carrying supplies to the provincial capital Tarin Kot.
From the daily reports of Strategie & Technik, a German defense affairs journal:
13.10.05: Bundeswehr: Unterstützung in Darfur. Die Bundeswehr unterstützt erneut die Afrikanische Union (AU) in ihren Bemühungen um Frieden, Sicherheit und Ordnung in der sudanesischen Krisenregion Darfur durch Bereitstellung von Transportkapazität. Etwa 280 Polizisten aus Ghana werden zur Verstärkung der Überwachungsmission "African Union Mission in Sudan" (AMIS) von Ghana in den Sudan transportiert. Ein Airbus A-310 der Flugbereitschaft der Deutschen Luftwaffe und drei Transall-Flugzeuge C-160 des Lufttransportgeschwaders 61 aus Landsberg werden die Polizisten aus Ghana transportieren.
Bundeswehr: Support in Darfur. The Bundeswehr has renewed support for the African Union in its efforts to bring peace, security and order in the Sudanese crisis region of Darfur by making available transport capacity. Some 280 Ghanaian police will be transported from Ghana to the Sudan to reinforce the observer mission "African Union Mission in Sudan" (AMIS). An A-310 Airbus from the ready flight of the German air force and 3 C-160 Transall aircraft from Air Transport Wing 61 in Landsberg will transport the policemen from Ghana.
13.10.05: Israel: Selbstmorde bei Soldaten nehmen zu. Der Generalstab der israelischen Armee ist über die zunehmende Zahl an Selbstmorden von Soldaten beunruhigt. In diesem Jahr haben sich mindestens 30 Soldaten das Leben genommen, über die Hälfte davon in den letzten drei Monaten. Nach dem derzeitigen Stand nimmt sich alle zehn Tage ein Soldat das Leben. Die Selbstmordrate sei höher als die Zahl der Todesfälle bei militärischen Operationen, Ausbildungs- oder Verkehrsunfällen, heißt es. Meist haben die Soldaten für den Selbstmord Dienstwaffen benutzt.
Israel: Suicides by Soldiers Increase. The Israeli Army staff is unsettled by the increasing number of suicides by soldiers. At least 30 soldiers have taken their lives this year, over half of them in the last three months. As things currently stand, every 10 days a soldier takes his life. Reportedly, the suicide rate is higher than the number of cases of death in military operations, training or traffic accidents. Most of the soldiers committing suicide have used their service weapons.