Af/Pak & Other News (11/10/2012)

[dump...@hotmail.com]

Afghan victims say only one U.S. soldier attacked:

http://www.reuters.com/article/2012/11/10/us-usa-afghanistan-trial-idUSBRE8A909620121110



Insider attacks: A soldier’s story as training:

http://www.navytimes.com/news/2012/11/ap-insider-attacks-soldiers-story-training-green-blue-111012/




Taliban suicide bomber attacks Rangers HQ in Karachi:

http://www.longwarjournal.org/threat-matrix/archives/2012/11/taliban_suicide_bomber_attacks.php




Karzai pledges to ‘hunt’ for Malala’s attackers:

http://www.dailytimes.com.pk/default.asp?page=2012\11\11\story_11-11-2012_pg7_3



Female US Marines prepare for front line role:

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/uknews/defence/9666482/Watch-female-US-Marines-put-through-their-paces.html



Italian army aviation fully operational with NH90 in Afghanistan:

http://www.janes.com/products/janes/defence-security-report.aspx?ID=1065973228&channel=defence




USAF releases annual breakdowns of UAV strikes in Afghanistan:

http://alert5.com/2012/11/11/usaf-releases-annual-breakdowns-of-uav-strikes-in-afghanistan/




China and Turkey battle for sales in Pakistani arms fair:

http://www.defensenews.com/article/20121110/DEFREG04/311100003/China-Turkey-battle-sales-Pakistani-arms-fair?odyssey=tab|topnews|text|FRONTPAGE



Iran confirms resumption of nuclear talks with IAEA:

http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/world/2012-11/10/c_131964820.htm



Iran confirms it fired on US drone in Gulf:

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/middleeast/iran/9667231/Iran-confirms-it-fired-on-US-drone-in-Gulf.html



Bahrain Guard forces deploy against unrest:

http://www.boston.com/news/world/middle-east/2012/11/10/bahrain-guard-forces-deploy-against-unrest/QZCI2YsmwQWqJ8Q79OKBlO/story.html



Saudi Arabia seeks to buy 20 C-130J-30 and 5 KC-130J:

http://alert5.com/2012/11/11/saudi-arabia-seeks-to-buy-20-c-130j-30-and-5-kc-130j/



Iraq reconsiders $4 billion Russian arms plans:

http://www.foxnews.com/world/2012/11/10/iraq-reconsiders-4-billion-russian-arms-plans/



Seventeen Turkish Soldiers Killed in Helicopter Crash:

http://www.businessweek.com/news/2012-11-10/seventeen-turkish-soldiers-killed-in-helicopter-crash



Thousands Flee Syria as Fighting Continues:

http://www.israelnationalnews.com/News/News.aspx/161915#.UJ7gDYbAjGs



Syrian Group Fights Effort to Unify Foes of Government:

http://www.nytimes.com/2012/11/11/world/middleeast/syrian-national-council-resists-unification-with-other-groups.html?ref=world&_r=0



Suicide blasts in Syria kill at least 20 troops:

http://www.cbsnews.com/8301-202_162-57548086/suicide-blasts-in-syria-kill-at-least-20-troops/



Mujahideen Shura Council leader slams Hamas, calls for public
dialogue:

http://www.longwarjournal.org/threat-matrix/archives/2012/11/mujahideen_shura_council_leade.php




Armed sailors on board the detained Argentine frigate, ARA Libertad,
threatened to open fire on Ghana Ports and Harbors Authority (GPHA)
officials, if they attempted to move the ship from berth 11 to berth
six, at the Tema Port:

http://www.shiptalk.com/?p=13291




US puts first full-time 'boots on ground' in Poland:

http://www.google.com/hostednews/afp/article/ALeqM5i-MsDXdmdFrgOkFGFShQPyOPG6RQ?docId=CNG.220f3eec0ddffaa706fedfc8d740cee1.4d1



Navy removes top officers of San Diego-based frigate after boozy
Russian port visit:

http://www.washingtonpost.com/national/navy-removes-top-officers-of-san-diego-based-frigate-after-boozy-russian-port-visit/2012/11/03/491dbf86-2603-11e2-92f8-7f9c4daf276a_story.html




SAS war hero jailed after 'betrayal':

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/9669410/SAS-war-hero-jailed-after-betrayal.html




Arrangement Signed for the Spanish Armada Ship Cantabria to Deploy to
Australia In 2013:

http://www.defense-aerospace.com/articles-view/release/3/140037/spain-to-deploy-lpd-to-australia-for-10-months.html



Chinese sub-launched nuclear deterrent at hand-report:

http://www.breitbart.com/system/wire/CNG---f123008f7575a156fb9c945fe5b10c48---221




Exclusive: DSME to build two 3000 tons conventional submarines for ROK
Navy:

http://navyrecognition.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=739



No More Copper Wires: Army CIO To Tell Odierno We Gotta Go to Cloud:

http://defense.aol.com/2012/11/09/no-more-copper-wires-army-cio-to-tell-odierno-we-gotta-move-to/



Top Five Threats to National Security in the Coming Decade:

http://www.nationaldefensemagazine.org/archive/2012/November/Pages/TopFiveThreatstoNationalSecurityintheComingDecade.aspx



Two high profile Washington DC resignations within the span of
hours...:

http://www.flightglobal.com/blogs/the-dewline/2012/11/two-high-profile-washington-dc.html




Gen. David Petraeus’s Resignation Fuels Conspiracy Theories:

http://www.thedailybeast.com/articles/2012/11/09/gen-david-petraeus-s-resignation-fuels-conspiracy-theories.html



FBI probe into biographer’s ‘harassing’ emails uncovered Petraeus
affair:

http://www.boston.com/news/nation/2012/11/10/fbi-probe-into-biographer-harassing-emails-uncovered-petraeus-affair/Qd02NqATEdplZErythw8NP/story.html




Robert Baer on the FBI investigation into the extramarital affair that
caused the resignation of CIA Director David Petraeus:

http://piersmorgan.blogs.cnn.com/2012/11/09/robert-baer-on-the-fbi-investigation-into-the-extramarital-affair-that-caused-the-resignation-of-cia-director-david-petraeus/

[Andrew Swallow]

On 10/11/2012 23:40, dump...@hotmail.com wrote:
> SAS war hero jailed after 'betrayal':
>
> http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/9669410/SAS-war-hero-jailed-after-betrayal.html

[quote]
Sgt Danny Nightingale, a special forces sniper who served in Iraq and
Afghanistan, was sentenced to 18 months in military detention by a court
martial last week.
{snip}
[/quote]

What is this about?
18 months! They could have just confiscated the gun.

Andrew Swallow

[David E. Powell]

This is one of the more depressing stories I've seen actually. What a disgrace. Not to the former SAS guy, but the courts. I agree if they had to take the gun they could have done so quietly without all that nonsense. I'd rather have him live next door to me than that BBC guy that was covered up for. (Or a US equivalent, Jerry Sandusky.)

[Keith W]

Thats the law old boy, illegal possession of a firearm is
a serious crime. he could easily have got 5 years.

The fact that he was a serving soldier is no defence, quite the
opposite in fact as all service personnel are made aware of the
law regarding trophy weapons. The memory loss is a red herring
as the weapon was illegally imported BEFORE he suffered the
injury that caused it.

Keith

[Grantland]

Female US Marines prepare for front line role:

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/uknews/defence/9666482/Watch-female-US-Marines-put-through-their-paces.html

'Love the stripper music. Great punchline to a pathetic joke.

Grantland

[Alex Potter]

On Sun, 11 Nov 2012 08:02:30 +0000, Andrew Swallow wrote:

> What is this about?
> 18 months! They could have just confiscated the gun.

In my view, its a bloody disgrace to treat the man in that fashion.

--
Alex

[Paul J. Adam]

By law, he got off very lightly. Normal mandatory minimum for possession
of a firearm (an absolute offence) is five years with very little room
for manoeuvre allowed.

When you decide to "get tough" and remove judicial discretion, you end
up in cases like this... however, there's possibly more going on than is
immediately obvious, so I wouldn't book a ticket on the outrage bus just
yet.


--
He thinks too much, such men are dangerous.

[Bill]

On Tue, 13 Nov 2012 18:59:22 +0000, "Paul J. Adam"
<paul....@gmail.com> wrote:

>On 13/11/2012 14:08, Alex Potter wrote:
>> On Sun, 11 Nov 2012 08:02:30 +0000, Andrew Swallow wrote:
>>
>>> What is this about?
>>> 18 months! They could have just confiscated the gun.
>>
>> In my view, its a bloody disgrace to treat the man in that fashion.
>
>By law, he got off very lightly. Normal mandatory minimum for possession
>of a firearm (an absolute offence) is five years with very little room
>for manoeuvre allowed.

Which is what I thought at the time, so how come he only got 18
months?

Or has he in fact been sentenced to 'time served' having been 'on
remand' for 9 months or so?

>When you decide to "get tough" and remove judicial discretion, you end
>up in cases like this... however, there's possibly more going on than is
>immediately obvious, so I wouldn't book a ticket on the outrage bus just
>yet.

I'm with you on this one.

[Alex Potter]

On Tue, 13 Nov 2012 18:59:22 +0000, Paul J. Adam wrote:

> By law, he got off very lightly. Normal mandatory minimum for possession
> of a firearm (an absolute offence) is five years with very little room
> for manoeuvre allowed.

True. Bloody knee-jerk reactions from those useless Westminster gasbags
responsible for that, though.

> When you decide to "get tough" and remove judicial discretion, you end
> up in cases like this... however, there's possibly more going on than is
> immediately obvious, so I wouldn't book a ticket on the outrage bus just
> yet.

Possibly, but I doubt it.

--
Alex

[Alex Potter]

On Tue, 13 Nov 2012 21:42:18 +0000, Bill wrote:

> Or has he in fact been sentenced to 'time served' having been 'on
> remand'
> for 9 months or so?

Quite. If that is the case, the CPS should have left the man alone.

--
Alex

[Paul J. Adam]

On 13/11/2012 23:13, Alex Potter wrote:
> On Tue, 13 Nov 2012 18:59:22 +0000, Paul J. Adam wrote:
>> By law, he got off very lightly. Normal mandatory minimum for possession
>> of a firearm (an absolute offence) is five years with very little room
>> for manoeuvre allowed.
>
> True. Bloody knee-jerk reactions from those useless Westminster gasbags
> responsible for that, though.

The nation wanted a strict prohibition on firearms and ruthless
sentences for "gun criminals". The politicians provided what the nation
wanted and very few people were prepared to say "this is a bad idea".

(Yes, I used to have a Firearms Certificate)

Politicians, like newspapers, go with the flow and follow the votes.

>> When you decide to "get tough" and remove judicial discretion, you end
>> up in cases like this... however, there's possibly more going on than is
>> immediately obvious, so I wouldn't book a ticket on the outrage bus just
>> yet.
>
> Possibly, but I doubt it.

There is a thorough and well-organised system - called, with an ironic
smirk, Operation PLUNDER - for trying to prevent those deployed to
foreign lands where illegal goods (firearms, explosives, narcotics,
awful yet cheap counterfeit Marlboro cigarettes...) are plentiful, from
shipping them home for either personal enjoyment or profitable sale.
While it's not foolproof or perfect, it's actually been quite effective,
in part because there is a combination of stick (break the rules and
you're into absolute offence territory with very little mitigation) and
carrot (if you've been tempted and have second thoughts, the amnesty is
generous).


It's possible that Sgt Nightingale really didn't know he had a spare
Glock in his possession, though under UK law that's no excuse (it's five
years' bird for owning it No Matter What and the reduction in sentence
is near-miraculous) but the "it's not my stuff, we're packing it for a
mate" is exactly the sort of story the PLUNDER teams are supposed to
look for and check for malfeasance or simple mistakes: while if it was
missed, then spotted, there are routes to turn it it without prejudice
so hanging onto it is a Bad Thing (and seriously, even I went through my
Iraq kit post-deployment, if only to repack it and stow it in the loft)

However, there are also quite strict rules about not having stray gats
lying around your accomodation: weapons, even gifts from foreign oppos,
need to be declared, registered and properly stored in the unit armoury
from receipt, not "when you get around to it", and this one wasn't - an
unreported saga there.

Why hang on to it? The legal implications of using a non-issue weapon
and ammunition to actually shoot someone... nobody wants to explore that
one which is why nobody is allowed to use non-issue weapons or make
unauthorised modifications to their weapons. They even cracked down hard
on privately-bought Big Stabby Knives bought from the US BX, because (a)
it could be mildly bad if one of OPFOR sued because they were slashed
with a war-crime-ready Rambo Commando Ninja Survival Blade of Doom, (b)
it could get really awkward if someone was injured while using a
privately-purchased Rambo Commando Ninja Survival Blade of Doom and
claimed the MoD were liable for the consequences of using
privately-owned kit.


Also, gifts need to be formally logged: I can't let a contractor buy me
anything more expensive than a Big Mac for lunch without entering it in
the hospitality book so that any evidence of influence or bribery can be
tracked for the record, and a Glock automatic quite literally clocks the
budget at a hundred times that much even retail. If foreign nationals
were bunging our Special Forces troops brown envelopes with five hundred
pounds in small used bills inside, and this wasn't being registered or
noted anywhere, would you feel comfortable?


Some, none or all of this may have any bearing, but it's all the sort of
issues that may have been brought out in the trial and not reported yet
will have affected both the decision to prosecute and the sentencing.
Aspects of this case feel... bloody odd, and I feel there's a lot not
made public in the quest for a dutifully outraged mob.



And fundamentally, this guy is a highly-trained grownup who is meant to
know the rules, one of which is "don't have unlicenced unregistered
firearms sculling around your place of residence", whether at home or
deployed.

[Bill]

On Wed, 14 Nov 2012 00:51:26 +0000, "Paul J. Adam"
<paul....@gmail.com> wrote:

>The nation wanted a strict prohibition on firearms and ruthless
>sentences for "gun criminals". The politicians provided what the nation
>wanted and very few people were prepared to say "this is a bad idea".

I did.

But even though I was in a position to get my views to those in
authority at the time, nobody was listening and it was made very
plain to all concerned that if we (the re-enactors) made too much
noise we'd get in the papers as 'a menace to society' and could well
get any use of firearms in displays banned.

I have to say that our reward was to be more or less left alone to
carry on as we were and a series of special dispensations relating to
various technical aspects of the firearms acts.

>Also, gifts need to be formally logged: I can't let a contractor buy me
>anything more expensive than a Big Mac for lunch without entering it in
>the hospitality book

Thinking about it, we even had Serco pocket diaries logged one
year...

[Alex Potter]

On Wed, 14 Nov 2012 00:51:26 +0000, Paul J. Adam wrote:

> The nation wanted a strict prohibition on firearms and ruthless
> sentences for "gun criminals". The politicians provided what the nation
> wanted and very few people were prepared to say "this is a bad idea".
>
> (Yes, I used to have a Firearms Certificate)
>
> Politicians, like newspapers, go with the flow and follow the votes.

Paul, thanks for taking the time to explain the rules to this civilian
more thoroughly than the Telegraph article.

I still think that, given Sgt Nightingale's medical history and the
reported expert witness's evidence, the court martial was rather less
lenient than it might have been, although perhaps not the absolute
disgrace that I first thought.

--
Alex