Midsummer Open Threat
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News & views ...
Posted by b on June 21, 2008 at 5:46 UTC | Permalink
« previous pageit is clear - as i sd on the day of the release of the hostages - that a deal went down & that is how it is being reported in switzerland & in france - discreetly i might add
there are a number of configurations that are possible - because farc includes elements open to business of any sort - these elements may have organised the release for money, i think it is far more likely tho that there is a split between the military & political wings of farc & elements decided that the hostages were more trouble than they were worth. given too that chavez has been very clear on this point to farc - drop the hostages - maybe this line is becoming dominant
what is absolutely clear however - that the fascis militia colombia calls an army is & has been completely incapable of any strategic operations let alone - an intelligence operation that would have involved very complex computations
as the swiss press says - the 'military operation' was a masquerade - & i think that the more we find out the more thatwe will understand the truth of that
at least sarkozy & ingrid betancourt had the human decency to thank president chavez for his efforts
Posted by: remembereringgiap | Jul 4 2008 17:37 utc | 102
@annie in 99 - sorry bad link I said:
there is a story behind the FARC hostages freed that has yet to be told.There is no operation in this world that could go as swift as we were told in the FARC case without the usual grease ...
i may not go to heaven. but jessie fucking helms will certainly roast in hell
Posted by: remembereringgiap | Jul 4 2008 21:46 utc | 105
Had the Bush administration exhibited the slightest constraint, they might have constructed a far more cosmetic version of the permanent garrisoning of Iraq. They might have officially turned the mega-bases over to the Iraqis and leased them back for next to nothing. They could have let the stunning facts they had built on the ground speak for themselves. They could have offered "joint commands" and other palliative remedies (as they are now evidently considering doing) that would have made their long-term sovereignty grab look far less significant -- without necessarily being so. But their ability to strategize outside the (Bush) box has long been limited.Think of them as "the me generation" on steroids, going global and imperial. Or give them credit for consistency. They're mad dreamers who still can't wake up, even when they find themselves in a roomful of smelling salts.
Posted by: | Jul 5 2008 3:57 utc | 107
With my schoolboy French I got through the article, roughly; and it is just a marvel see the elaborate deceptions that are presented on American TV.
"Cette libération, arme au poing et façon opération Ninja, ne serait donc qu'une vaste mascarade."
Operation Ninja, indeed. Sheesh.
could be just reading too much into things & wild speculation on my part, but might as well jot it down
this is from the second link in #36 above, the op-ed from the CSIS boys outlining u.s. steps for a post-mugabe zimbabwe
Change requires that the United States mount an intensive diplomatic campaign, one where the United States is a catalyst of international action. The purpose will be to rally international support for moving Zimbabwe rapidly into the post-Mugabe era. To be successful, this initiative must move forward quickly at a high level, targeting a few key audiences and goals.A top priority has to be ending South Africa’s patronage of Mugabe through diplomatic pressure that exploits growing regional dissatisfaction with Thabo Mbeki’s leadership.
last sunday, following mugabe's re-election, there was an AU summit in egypt which mugabe was attending & which there was much expectation on the part of western powers for criticism of mugabe's victory by other african leaders. in fact, one of those leaders, zambia's president levy mwanawasa, who is the current chair of the SADC (southern african development community) and has openly complained about pressures from the west on the issue of zim (see Zambian President Mwanawasa Admits to Being Pressured Over Zimbabwe), suffered a stroke immediately before the summit began. mwanawasa wasn't the healthiest guy, and this wasn't his first stroke, but one has to wonder what role those pressures brought to bear on his ticker. anyway, he was eventually flown to a hospital in paris for more medical attention & then on thursday a radio station in south africa spread the rumor that mwanawasa had died, quoting an official of the sadc. south african president mbeki was told the news at a ceremonial function, announced the death to the attendees & asked for a minute of silence in mwanawasa's memory. immediately the zambian govt denied the "false and malicious rumors" of their president's death.
the issue is still festering, or appears to be. headline on friday was
Zambia asks Mbeki to explain comment on Mwanawasa
LUSAKA, July 4 (Reuters) - Zambia has demanded that South Africa explain why President Thabo Mbeki announced publicly that Zambian leader Levy Mwanawasa had died, state television reported on Friday.South Africa's Foreign Ministry issued a statement on Thursday saying there was a misunderstanding after Mbeki said he had been informed by the executive secretary of the Southern African Development Community (SADC) that Mwanawasa was dead.
...
"Foreign Affairs Minister Kabinga (Pande) has demanded an explanation on why South African President Thabo Mbeki said President Levy Mwanawasa had died," Zambian state ZNBC television said.Pande sent a letter to the South African government asking why Mbeki announced Mwanawasa's death before verifying it with Zambian authorities, said the television.
is it a stretch to connect the two items, since it has apparently caused a regional rift b/w mbeki & zambia?
Posted by: | Jul 5 2008 5:56 utc | 110
r'giap, then a WaPo leak will say McCain was in Colombia at the time, because he
was somehow involved in the hostage ransom deal, then gradually they'll tease it
out of 'French intel sources' that yes, John and Cindy McCain contributed some of
their beer distributor profits to secure the release of the American servicemen,
then McCain will blink back the tears at how proud he is of his wife, when their
election campaign is in such need of funds, to give her own cash to help bring
Americans safely back home, the whole place will turn into pandemonium, McCain
carried around on the shoulders, prime time news on all channels, contributions
from every "patriotic, well-intentioned and deserving" corporation pouring into
McCain's coffers, and with a new slogan, "We'll Bring America Back Home", John
McCain will landslide past that Chicago alterboy in November, like a hurricane.
Posted by: Harold Nim | Jul 5 2008 7:50 utc | 112
b real, no.is it a stretch not at all. reading the 'pressure' link after..move forward quickly at a high level, targeting ... goals.
Posted by: annie | Jul 5 2008 12:41 utc | 114
one has to wonder what role those pressures brought to bear on his ticker
flown to a hospital in paris ?
like one has to wonder what 'those pressures' brought to bear on arafat's 'illness'.
what to make of this added noise ...
"We have received information from a credible source concerning a planned assassination attempt," Mr Tsvangirai spokesman George Sibotshiwe told the international media.
Posted by: annie | Jul 5 2008 12:58 utc | 115
thank you L'akratique 101 and b,103.
Complete with Mossad agents! LOL
i'll say
Posted by: annie | Jul 5 2008 21:29 utc | 116
The comments to this entry are closed.
@ Annie
Excerpts from the Times Online:
Swiss public radio cited an unidentified source “close to the events, reliable and tested many times in recent years" as saying the operation had in fact been staged to cover up the fact that the US and Colombians had paid $20 million for their freedom.
The hostages released on Wednesday, including Ingrid Betancourt, the French-Colombian politician, "were in reality ransomed for a high price, and the whole operation afterwards was a set-up," the public broadcaster said.
The report added said the wife of one of the hostages’ guards had acted as a go-between after being arrested by the Colombian Army. She was released to return to the guerrillas, where she allegedly persuaded her husband to change sides.
The report claimed that the US, which had three citizens among the hostages, had been behind the deal.
French media have also raised questions about Ms Betancourt’s relatively healthy appearance after her release, compared with the gaunt and haggard look of her last video from captivity. French state radio suggested the hostages may have been given food and medicine to return them to health before their release. There was no suggestion that the hostages knew they were to be released.
Dominique Moisi, one of France's leading foreign policy experts, said that it was “probable” that the Farc had been paid money as part of the "infiltration" of their command. “They were bought in order to turn them around, like Mafia chiefs," he said on French state television, as Ms Betancourt's plane was taxiing up to the terminal in Paris.
Meanwhile, Israeli media also reported that military advisers and officers from its intelligence service, Mossad, had helped plan and execute the operation. One of the advisers credited with helping the Colombians is a retired Israeli Army officer named Israel Ziv.
Mr Ziv, who set up his own company after retiring from the Israeli Army in 2005 and was reported to have been paid $10 million, said: “We have an indirect relationship (with the Colombians). Our help is very significant, giving them sophisticated instruments in the anti-terrorist fight. The Colombians are very like us in their determination and creativity.”
Complete with Mossad agents! LOL
Posted by: L'Akratique | Jul 4 2008 17:23 utc | 101