Just an update on the latest events in Afghanistan.

______________________________________________________

Taliban hang 7-year-old boy accused of being a spy, suicide bomber kills 40 at Afghanistan wedding

BY Corky Siemaszko

DAILY NEWS STAFF WRITER

Originally Published:Thursday, June 10th 2010, 6:58 AM

Updated: Thursday, June 10th 2010, 1:09 PM

Twisted Taliban militants took terror to a new low by accusing a 7-year-old boy of spying - and hanging him high.

That outrage drew immediate condemnation from the Afghan president, who called the execution a "crime against humanity."

"I don't think there's a crime bigger than that, that even the most inhuman forces on earth can commit," Hamid Karzai said Thursday. "A 7-year-old boy cannot be a spy. A 7-year-old boy cannot be anything but a 7-year-old boy

The execution happened Tuesday in the embattled Helmand province, said Dawoud Ahmadi, a spokesman for the provincial governor.

"The innocent boy was not a spy, but he may have informed the police or soldiers about planted explosives," Ahmadi told Central Asia Today.

"If this is true, it is an absolutely horrific crime," added British Prime Minister David Cameron, while on a stop in Kabul. "I think it says more about the Taliban than any book, than any article, than any speech could ever say."

The victim was reportedly the grandson of a tribal elder.

The Taliban has targeted tribal leaders who have supported the Karzai government or took part in U.S. directed reconstruction programs.

Hanging is a favorite Taliban terror method for getting rid of enemies - and sending a message to other would-be opponents.

Nor is this the first time the Taliban has killed kids. Three years ago, they strung up a 70-year-old woman and a child in the Musa Qala district on trumped up spying charges, Ahmadi said.

As news of the hanging unfolded, the war-torn country was hit with further tragedy as a suicide bomber hit a wedding party, killing at least 40 and severely wounding more than 70 people.

Several children were among the dead and wounded. Bits of flesh and severed limbs covered the site.

A Taliban spokesman denied responsibility for the deadly attack.

The governor of the province rejected the denial.

"The Taliban are doing two things at once," Gov. Tooryalai Wesa said.

"On one side they target people who are in favor of the government, then at the same time they don't want people to know their real face."

Violence is on the rise in June as the U.S. prepares a major summertime operation to cleanse the region of Taliban commanders.

At least 17 U.S. service members have been killed in the past four days, including four Americans who died Wednesday when insurgents in Helmand province's Sangin district - one of the most volatile in the country and where the 7-year-old boy was hanged - shot down a NATO helicopter.

Taliban hang 7-year-old boy accused of being a spy, suicide bomber kills 40 at Afghanistan wedding

Classy people that Taliban. I can see why they have so many defenders around here.

cant see where anyone have defended them

i have a dislike for all senseless killings,as im sure most people do

Has anyone conquered the afghani's,i dont think so,and i dont think anyone will.The reports that the country now has untold mineral wealth will mean the USA wiill stay longer than is healthy for them,all in the name of "the war on terror,fighting it off shore"while everyone else will cry poor and bail out.But without american troops there the taliban will take over pakistan with their next objective to stir up dissent in india.

Pakistan is a nuclear power. Don't think the world would let the Taliban take over the buttons, the Indians would certainly be a tad peeved.

Pakistan is a nuclear power. Don't think the world would let the Taliban take over the buttons, the Indians would certainly be a tad peeved.

true,thats why i think the USA will be there for a long time. And if the americans can dig into the aleged mineral wealth discovered,it'l pay their way.

Has anyone conquered the afghani's,i dont think so,and i dont think anyone will.The reports that the country now has untold mineral wealth will mean the USA wiill stay longer than is healthy for them,all in the name of "the war on terror,fighting it off shore"while everyone else will cry poor and bail out.But without american troops there the taliban will take over pakistan with their next objective to stir up dissent in india.

Alexander the Great and Genghis Kahn. PS the mineral wealth is an old story.

Despite the USA pouring approximately $80bn into Afghanistan ...

Why the Taliban is winning in Afghanistan

As Washington and London struggle to prop up a puppet government over which Hamid Karzai has no control, they risk repeating the blood-soaked 19th-century history of Britain's imperial defeat.

In 1843, shortly after his return from Afghanistan, an army chaplain, Reverend G R Gleig, wrote a memoir about the First Anglo-Afghan War, of which he was one of the very few survivors. It was, he wrote, "a war begun for no wise purpose, carried on with a strange mixture of rashness and timidity, brought to a close after suffering and disaster, without much glory attached either to the government which directed, or the great body of troops which waged it. Not one benefit, political or military, has Britain acquired with this war. Our eventual evacuation of the country resembled the retreat of an army defeated."

It is difficult to imagine the current military adventure in Afghanistan ending quite as badly as the First Afghan War, an abortive ­experiment in Great Game colonialism that slowly descended into what is arguably the greatest military humiliation ever suffered by the west in the Middle East: an entire army of what was then the most powerful military nation in the world utterly routed and destroyed by poorly equipped tribesmen, at the cost of £15m (well over £1bn in modern currency) and more than 40,000 lives. But nearly ten years on from Nato's invasion of Afghanistan, there are increasing signs that Britain's fourth war in the country could end with as few political gains as the first three and, like them, terminate in an embarrassing withdrawal after a humiliating defeat, with Afghanistan yet again left in tribal chaos and quite possibly ruled by the same government that the war was launched to overthrow.

Certainly it is becoming clearer than ever that the once-hated Taliban, far from being swept away by General Stanley McChrystal's surge, are instead regrouping, ready for the final act in the history of Hamid Karzai's western-installed puppet government. The Taliban have now advanced out of their borderland safe havens to the very gates of Kabul and are surrounding the capital, much as the US-backed mujahedin once did to the Soviet-installed regime in the late 1980s. cont...

somnamnah

Has anyone conquered the afghani's,i dont think so,and i dont think anyone will.The reports that the country now has untold mineral wealth will mean the USA wiill stay longer than is healthy for them,all in the name of "the war on terror,fighting it off shore"while everyone else will cry poor and bail out.But without american troops there the taliban will take over pakistan with their next objective to stir up dissent in india.

Alexander the Great and Genghis Kahn. PS the mineral wealth is an old story.

These two certainly controlled the valleys where the majority of the population tilled the land. Not sure even these historic " greats " controlled the hills and mountains.

Just an update on the latest events in Afghanistan.

______________________________________________________

Taliban hang 7-year-old boy accused of being a spy, suicide bomber kills 40 at Afghanistan wedding

BY Corky Siemaszko

DAILY NEWS STAFF WRITER

Originally Published:Thursday, June 10th 2010, 6:58 AM

Updated: Thursday, June 10th 2010, 1:09 PM

Twisted Taliban militants took terror to a new low by accusing a 7-year-old boy of spying - and hanging him high.

That outrage drew immediate condemnation from the Afghan president, who called the execution a "crime against humanity."

"I don't think there's a crime bigger than that, that even the most inhuman forces on earth can commit," Hamid Karzai said Thursday. "A 7-year-old boy cannot be a spy. A 7-year-old boy cannot be anything but a 7-year-old boy

The execution happened Tuesday in the embattled Helmand province, said Dawoud Ahmadi, a spokesman for the provincial governor.

"The innocent boy was not a spy, but he may have informed the police or soldiers about planted explosives," Ahmadi told Central Asia Today.

"If this is true, it is an absolutely horrific crime," added British Prime Minister David Cameron, while on a stop in Kabul. "I think it says more about the Taliban than any book, than any article, than any speech could ever say."

The victim was reportedly the grandson of a tribal elder.

The Taliban has targeted tribal leaders who have supported the Karzai government or took part in U.S. directed reconstruction programs.

Hanging is a favorite Taliban terror method for getting rid of enemies - and sending a message to other would-be opponents.

Nor is this the first time the Taliban has killed kids. Three years ago, they strung up a 70-year-old woman and a child in the Musa Qala district on trumped up spying charges, Ahmadi said.

As news of the hanging unfolded, the war-torn country was hit with further tragedy as a suicide bomber hit a wedding party, killing at least 40 and severely wounding more than 70 people.

Several children were among the dead and wounded. Bits of flesh and severed limbs covered the site.

A Taliban spokesman denied responsibility for the deadly attack.

The governor of the province rejected the denial.

"The Taliban are doing two things at once," Gov. Tooryalai Wesa said.

"On one side they target people who are in favor of the government, then at the same time they don't want people to know their real face."

Violence is on the rise in June as the U.S. prepares a major summertime operation to cleanse the region of Taliban commanders.

At least 17 U.S. service members have been killed in the past four days, including four Americans who died Wednesday when insurgents in Helmand province's Sangin district - one of the most volatile in the country and where the 7-year-old boy was hanged - shot down a NATO helicopter.

Taliban hang 7-year-old boy accused of being a spy, suicide bomber kills 40 at Afghanistan wedding

Classy people that Taliban. I can see why they have so many defenders around here.

cant see where anyone have defended them

i have a dislike for all senseless killings,as im sure most people do

Yes, I don't recall anyone defending the Taliban....Hoever, I have read quite a few posts that defend Israelis when their people kill Arab children, though.

[

Classy people that Taliban. I can see why they have so many defenders around here.

cant see where anyone have defended them

i have a dislike for all senseless killings,as im sure most people do

Yes, I don't recall anyone defending the Taliban....Hoever, I have read quite a few posts that defend Israelis when their people kill Arab children, though.

Just read through some of the old Afghanistan threads.

cant see where anyone have defended them

i have a dislike for all senseless killings,as im sure most people do

Yes, I don't recall anyone defending the Taliban....Hoever, I have read quite a few posts that defend Israelis when their people kill Arab children, though.

Just read through some of the old Afghanistan threads.

Yes do read back & see the result would be the same.

None have cheered or tried to justify in the Taliban in a way that HC points out the zealots do in other threads.

None ever said hurray for the Taliban or al qaeda

Only ever was said that invasion of any country by anyone does not equal fair nor tit for tat.

That killing well over 5000 more of our own sons & daughters while chasing a supposed handful who caused the death of 3000....all the while bankrupting our country was a great idea?

Without even bringing in the numbers of innocents that were destroyed in the other country while the chase continues.

Senseless killing as DB pointed out has always been the complaint. Regardless of the way the zealots try to paint it as support for either side

[

Classy people that Taliban. I can see why they have so many defenders around here.

cant see where anyone have defended them

i have a dislike for all senseless killings,as im sure most people do

Yes, I don't recall anyone defending the Taliban....Hoever, I have read quite a few posts that defend Israelis when their people kill Arab children, though.

Just read through some of the old Afghanistan threads.

How about the loonies constantly making excuses for Hamas and Al-Qaeda? The modern day Neville Chamberlains seem quite content to agree with them. 

Just an update on the latest events in Afghanistan.

Taliban hang 7-year-old boy accused of being a spy, suicide bomber kills 40 at Afghanistan wedding

Classy people that Taliban. I can see why they have so many defenders around here.

"The pacifist is surely a traitor to his country and to humanity as is the most brutal wrongdoer"

Theodore Roosevelt

Hypocritical, pseudo-pacifists are even worse.   

Standard conservative arguments.

If you sympathise with the Palestinians you're pro-terrorist and anti-Semitic. If you thought the invasion of Iraq was wrong you hate our troops and are pro-terrorist... (this is gonna come up a lot, it's a real favourite).

If you think Haliburton robbed America blind you're pro-terrorist, if you think the Taliban may not have been as bad as the Zimbabwe regime you're pro-terrorist.

Oh, and anti-American, boy are those guys anti-American. But don't think you're going to get all the credit. Former Prime Minister John Howard made it very plain people like me were Anti-Australian and hated our troops if we had doubts about Iraq. This included my 90 year old father who fought for his country overseas for 6 years and devoted a large part of his life to veterans and veterans widows associations.

Standard liberal pap. Perhaps thou doth protest too much? 

All protesters are long haired hippie draft dodgers. Don't you read the "liberal" press?

Not any more. There is no draft to dodge. That is why there is so few anti-war protests these days. They never had anything to do with integrity.

Standard conservative arguments.

If you sympathize with the Palestinians you're pro-terrorist and anti-Semitic. If you thought the invasion of Iraq was wrong you hate our troops and are pro-terrorist... (this is gonna come up a lot, it's a real favorite).

If you think Haliburton robbed America blind you're pro-terrorist, if you think the Taliban may not have been as bad as the Zimbabwe regime you're pro-terrorist.

Oh, and anti-American, boy are those guys anti-American.

The anti-Iraq mob seem to be more grassroots based than the 60s/70s protesters. It hasn't attracted the college crowd who seem to be more interested in qualifying for IT jobs.

They still get a good turn up though, I doubt the term "so few" is correct. (Feel free to prove your point with links )

The vote seems to have been a way of getting people's protest across as well, none of the Bush/Howard/Blair coalition survived the electoral process. (I know Bush was finished anyway, but his party lost out).

 Thai Visa Liberal exposed as host of radio show.

 

 

They still get a good turn up though, I doubt the term "so few" is correct. 

You must have been on some good stuff in the 60s if you can't remember those protests. These nowadays are pathetic.  

I was working up country, and can honestly say I never saw one, other than on TV news which was even less liberal then than it is now.

So what sort of turn up do they get? You seem to be trying to dodge this issue with typically conservative adroitness.

They still get a good turn up though, I doubt the term "so few" is correct.

You must have been on some good stuff in the 60s if you can't remember those protests. These nowadays are pathetic.

I actually agree with you!

I think this is partly why much of the world is so frustrated with America... The population just seem to be taking it, like an apathetic, mind controlled mob. If the US can get away with anything and just face a rally of housewives, the world is not looking very healthy.

Growing up in the UK, It is a source of pride to me that our 'riots' are so anarchic, or have been. What's the point of a protest without making the govt scared of the people?!!!

Being 25% Greek also... I feel a great deal of pride in the Greek people trying to rise up against the octopus of trans national control that is the EU and its banker controlled clique at the top. F*** me, the birth place of democracy reduced to a 'debtor zone' in some orwellian human farm.

Sadly I see no signs of a US recovery in moral terms... lets see whats on the US top ten:

electropop 1 "California Gurls" Katy Perry Featuring Snoop Dogg vid

electroschmaltz 2 "OMG" Usher Featuring will.i.am video

schmaltzraplovewank 3 "Airplanes" B.o.B Featuring Hayley Williams video

whineypsuedowank 4 "Billionaire" Travie McCoy Featuring Bruno Mars video

nocommentcrap 5 "Find Your Love" Drake video

dittocrap 6 "Your Love Is My Drug" Ke$ha video

brainumbshite 7 "Alejandro" Lady Gaga video

cantbebotheredtolook 8 "Cooler Than Me" Mike Posner video

moaningwhitetrash 9 "Not Afraid" Eminem video

yawnanotherlovesong 10 "Break Your Heart" Taio Cruz Featuring Ludacris

nope. no sign of recovery there yet. Not a single tune about bombing brown people. The USA is still the cultural blackhole of the world.

Come on UG! Bring back the 60's anti-establishment spirit!

Here's 10 minutes surfing, apologies for the lack of editing and adding of links due to laziness but it's all there.

2002

On September 24, Tony Blair released a document describing Britain's case for war in Iraq. Three days later, an anti-war rally in London drew a crowd of at least 150,000] and probably around 400,000

On October 26, protests took place in various cities across the world. Over 100,000 people took part in a protest in Washington. 50,000 people took part in a demonstration in San Francisco

On November 9, demonstrations were held against the war at the end of the first European Social Forum in Florence, Italy. According to the organizers, 1,000,000 people were in attendance. Local authorities put attendance at 500,000.

2003

In San Francisco, between 150,000 and 200,000 people attended the demonstration. The San Francisco police had originally estimated the crowd size at 55,000, but admitted later that they had badly underestimated the number and changed their estimate to 150,000.

In Washington, "at least tens of thousands", or "several hundred thousand" people demonstrated through the city, ending with a rally at The Mall.

On February 15, millions of people protested, in approximately 800 cities around the world. Listed by the 2004 Guinness Book of Records as the largest protest in human history, protests occurred among others in the United Kingdom, Italy, Spain, Germany, Switzerland, Ireland, the United States, Canada, Australia, South Africa, Syria, India, Russia, South Korea, Japan, and even McMurdo Station in Antarctica. The largest demonstration this day occurred in London, where 2,000,000 protesters (about 1 in 30 of the population) gathered in Hyde Park;

They still get a good turn up though, I doubt the term "so few" is correct.

You must have been on some good stuff in the 60s if you can't remember those protests. These nowadays are pathetic.

I actually agree with you!

Is 2004 nowadays? However, in the 60s they had protests every 2 days, not every 2 years. I'm sure that you can find enough welfare cheats and nut cases if you wait long enough between protests, but not a lot of college students (and they actually had something to do instead).

[

I think this is partly why much of the world is so frustrated with America... The population just seem to be taking it, like an apathetic, mind controlled mob. If the US can get away with anything and just face a rally of housewives, the world is not looking very healthy.

While it is true that there are many who just abuse bicycles on their way to grabbing more cupcakes ......there are also many who do not....

This was 9-12-2009

The point is: 1,000,000 or 2,000,000 ... it doesn't scare the politicians!!!

Needs Bangkok style action.

The USA needs a revolution to remind them just how bad it is to live under the threat of war.

The point is: 1,000,000 or 2,000,000 ... it doesn't scare the politicians!!!

Needs Bangkok style action.

The USA needs a revolution to remind them just how bad it is to live under the threat of war.

No argument here....The politicians know citizens bought more guns & ammo here in the last couple of years than all of the Chinese & Indian armies combined.

So it is not like they do not know the populace is armed.

I am not sure what it would take for a Bangkok type start up... but I do feel once started it would be a waterfall of folks jumping in & it would be in no way as calm as Bangkok. But I also feel as romantic as a revolution sounds there is nothing the govt would like more than to institute martial law & beat back such an uprising. But the start is IMO not something that will happen anytime soon.

Because....

The financial crisis has had many facets but the one that will be seen more & more and is already materializing is a very large sector is now dependent on the govt handouts. Which is no problem for a govt that prints fiat at will as it is back by nothing and unlimited in supply.....But it does stop many from biting the hand that they perceive is feeding them all the while forgetting it is the same hand that caused the famine.

cant see where anyone have defended them

i have a dislike for all senseless killings,as im sure most people do

Yes, I don't recall anyone defending the Taliban....Hoever, I have read quite a few posts that defend Israelis when their people kill Arab children, though.

Just read through some of the old Afghanistan threads.

Yes do read back & see the result would be the same.

None have cheered or tried to justify in the Taliban in a way that HC points out the zealots do in other threads.

None ever said hurray for the Taliban or al qaeda

Only ever was said that invasion of any country by anyone does not equal fair nor tit for tat.

There are several here who have written "I would do the same if you invaded my country". Sounds like something you and Harcourt may have written. Perhaps you only support the Taliban on some of the things they do, but not all? Why not use this opportunity to clarify? I can help get you started...

Do you support the Taliban killing Americans?

Do you support the Taliban in throwing poison in the face of school children?

Do you support the Taliban killing Brits? or Canadians?

Do you support the Tabilab poisoning water at schools where girls attend classes?

People with something important to protest about. 

I think this is partly why much of the world is so frustrated with America... The population just seem to be taking it, like an apathetic, mind controlled mob.

You know I have to say just one more thing about this statement...........

You say the world is so frustrated with America? Yes many here as I said feel a loss of country & constitution too but.........

Do you realize it is you all who are the problem? You all are the mind controlled...

Do you realize we the people will not stop our occupation as consumers because it is after all cushy?

Do you realize it is you the Russians & you the Chinese & you the Brits etc etc etc who have the power to stop it anytime you want?

As long as you keep the USD as the world reserve currency & purchase oil with USD... it is you that fund the invasions & the military industrial complex not us living here getting by... but you.

The day you all stop buying bonds & treasuries & running to the dollar as some kind of safe haven & realize it is paper backed by a hollow promises then & only then might your frustration subside.

Better now than later........