Terrorism: No Country Can Guarantee Safety To Its Citizens Against Terrorist Attacks, What Is The Solution?

Terrorism: No Country Can Guarantee Safety To Its Citizens Against Terrorist Attacks, What Is The Solution?

(NSI News Source Info) February 22, 2009: TERRORISTS CAN appear anytime and anywhere and commit heinous crimes against humanity. Now the question is what compels a particular community to think and organise itself to act against humanity? The simple answer is conservativeness.

When a community wholly rejects and discards the liberal concepts laid down by religion, it compels the people to live conservatively. Conservatives do not accept modernity and thus try to emphasise the traditional lifestyle. Conservative leaders are responsible for propagating against liberalisation of religious concepts. The best example is provided by the Taliban culture in Afghanistan. Taliban wants the entire community to go back to the Dark Ages. Everybody knows that terrorism originates from such pockets alone. Terrorist camps are organised for young men where they are imparted intensive training in use of weapons, brainwashed and finally sent in different directions to commit horror just to fulfil the ambitions of conservatives. In Afghanistan, the Taliban has destroyed hundreds of schools and banned women from pursuing education. All the declarations of Taliban in Afghanistan are against humanity. But unfortunately the whole world is viewing it helplessly. No one is able to eradicate such elements. Terrorists are attacking and killing people and destroying property all over the world. The ultimate question is what the solution to terrorism is. How can terrorist activities be stopped? There is no concrete answer to this question with any government. But there are many options to get rid of terrorism in future.

The first option is to educate the conservatives and enlighten them.

Secondly, a complete ban on child labour is needed .

Thirdly, free education for boys and girls up to the 10th standard should be enforced.

Fourthly, a ban on religious activities and propaganda on the part of the conservatives should be imposed.

Fifth; all the operational terrorist camps should be destroyed irrespective of their religious and state leanings. Theoretically the said options seem to be a simple and ideal solution to terrorism. But practically it is not possible in the near future. Again the question how to get rid of terrorism without delay arises. Again the answer is ’not known’. Even then there is the ultimate way left to tackle the problem. Only the ’United Nations’ can authoritatively take action against any state encouraging terrorism. Without delay, the UN must take military action and destroy all terrorist camps around the world and enforce the international law strictly. This is the only way to avoid criticism, because when a state takes military action against terrorists, it comes under criticism from various quarters. For example, after the 9/11 incident, US attacked Afghanistan to destroy terrorist camps but it could not eradicate the Taliban and the other terrorists organisations in Afghanistan and Pakistan. On the other hand, the US came under criticism for various reasons.

In the same way, if India takes military action against Pakistan or Afghanistan or PoK to destroy terrorist camps, other powerful countries including US will counsel peace. They will try to mediate, call upon the two sides to cease fire and undertake other measures. The problem will remain unsolved. The very intention behind forming UN is to maintain peace globally and protect humanity. Whenever there was a crisis the UN has not come forward practically except for arranging discussions in the Security Council and the General Assembly. That will not work any more. Nations like US, China, Russia, Japan, Germany and England who strongly advocate fight against terrorism should come forward and send their troops under the joint command of the UN to attack and demolish terrorist camps wherever they are. Thus UN must act and act now. Nobody can question its action.

Russia Begins To Capture New Arab Arms Markets - Reports

Russia Begins To Capture New Arab Arms Markets - Reports

(NSI News Source Info) MOSCOW - February 22, 2009: Russia is beginning to capture new arms markets of Arab countries that were earlier oriented to the West, the head of the Russian Federal Service for Military and Technical Cooperation said. "Russia is beginning to enter new armaments markets where our presence was previously considered as hardly probable. In particular, some Persian Gulf countries, including Qatar and Kuwait, are displaying certain interest in the development of military and technical cooperation," Mikhail Dmitriyev said on the eve of an international defense exhibition opening on Sunday in the United Arab Emirates. The Idex-2009 international defense exhibition and conference will take place in Abu Dhabi from February 22 through 26. Russian military systems and technology will be exhibited over an area of 546 square meters, including 84 square meters to be used to showcase the latest developments in Russian ammunition. At the same time, Russia has signed and is implementing large-scale deals with Algeria, stepped up cooperation with Libya and Syria, he said. "We are switching to the establishment of partnership relations and cooperation within the general policy of developing and strengthening versatile contacts with the Arab and Islamic world." Russia exported $8 billion worth of armaments and military hardware in 2008 and is planning to increase arms exports by 6% to $8.5 billion in 2009. The most popular types of weaponry bought from Russia are Sukhoi and MiG fighters, warships, air defense systems, helicopters, battle tanks, armored personnel carriers and infantry fighting vehicles. Russia exports weapons to over 80 countries. Among the key buyers of Russian-made weaponry are China, India, Algeria, Venezuela, Iran, Malaysia and Serbia.

Taliban "Using Advanced SAS Rifle Against Pakistan Army"

Taliban "Using Advanced SAS Rifle Against Pakistan Army"

By Ben Bland Telegraph UK

(NSI News Source Info) February 22, 2009: I've just got back from a fascinating briefing at the Pakistan High Commission in Singapore, during which a senior diplomat claimed that pro-Taliban fighters were attacking the Pakistani army with an advanced assault rifle that is normally only used by the SAS. The diplomat said that he didn't know what the rifle was called but cited its use as an example of how the Pakistan army is being outgunned by fighters from Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), a pro-Taliban umbrella group based in the North West Frontier Province, on the border with Afghanistan. The diplomat added that MI6 agents and several foreign journalists had been shown the weapons in question but that the Pakistani army still had no idea who was providing the militants with such advanced hardware. It's important to point out that I'm not a military expert and I have no way of verifying his claim. The diplomat was trying to explain the immense difficulties that Pakistan faces in trying to defeat these militants, who he said received much better salaries than the government soldiers. Despite backing the principle of American support for Pakistan's fight against terrorists in the border regions, diplomats at the briefing said that the regular missile attacks by unmanned US drones were "undermining our credibility" with the local population. Although the drone attacks are intended to take out "high-profile" targets, they often cause civilian casualties and one diplomat said that "this collateral damage is adding more recruits to Al-Qaeda and the Taliban". The Pakistani officials said it would be better if the US worked with the Pakistani army and intelligence personnel, who have better on-the-ground knowledge, rather than acting alone. It is evident that there are many tensions between the Pakistani government and the US and it is not obvious that the arrival of Barack Obama in the White House will necessarily help to ease them. Several times during the election campaign, Obama vociferously defended America's right to take unilateral military action against suspected terrorists within Pakistan's borders. Obama often appeared more fervent on the issue than George W. Bush. However, the diplomats stressed that, with the appointment of seasoned diplomat Richard Holbrooke as America's special envoy to Pakistan and Afghanistan, there had been a clear change of tone in the US administration, which was now "listening rather than dictating". The main thrust of the briefing was that Pakistan should be seen as a victim of terror and not a cause. Pakistan was ready to take the fight to the militants, while being prepared to reach compromise deals where possible, the diplomats explained. However, with the economic crisis hitting Pakistan hard (this week the government had to ask the IMF for another $4.5bn loan, in addition to the $7.6bn rescue package it received in November), the government needs more financial aid and military assistance from the Americans to continue the fight.

JLTV Edges Closer To Entering Technology Development

JLTV Edges Closer To Entering Technology Development

Joint Light Tactical Vehicle Army/Marine Corps Preproposal Conference

By David Branham, PEO Land Systems Public Affairs Officer

(NSI News Source Info) February 22, 2009: The Army and Marine Corps co-hosted a three-day preproposal conference Feb. 19-21 at Selfridge Air National Guard Base, Mich., to inform industry of the U.S. Government’s acquisition strategy for the Joint Light Tactical Vehicle (JLTV) program. JLTV is a joint Army-Marine Corps program with the Army designated as the lead service. The conference came two weeks on the heels of the Army’s Feb. 5 release of a request for proposal (RFP), which invited suppliers, through a full and open competition process, to submit proposals for the development of a JLTV family of vehicles (FoV). The Office of Naval Research Combat Tactical Vehicle Technology Demonstrator is tested on the unimproved roads of the Nevada Automotive Test Center, Nev. The JLTV FoV and companion trailers can perform multiple mission roles. They will be designed to provide protected, sustained, networked mobility for people and payloads across the full range of military operations. JLTV provides a vehicle platform that will use, to the greatest degree possible, solutions and technology being developed in the Army's Future Combat Systems program; Tank Automotive Research Development and Engineering Center (TARDEC); Army Research Lab; and Office of Naval Research as well as commercial industry advances. The JLTV FoV will be used by all U.S. military services. Several foreign governments have already expressed a strong interest in joining the development of the JLTV vehicles. Presentations included the earned value management process that the JLTV program will use to control cost, stay on schedule and achieve performance objectives. The conference included many presenters from all program areas of expertise that gave industry detailed guidance on how to craft their proposal to address the four important evaluation factors: technical; logistics commonality; cost; and past performance-small business participation. The government also shared lessons learned from various research efforts and displayed vehicles developed under the Army’s Future Tactical Truck System Advanced Concept Technology Demonstration, and Office of Naval Research Combat Tactical Vehicle Technology Demonstrator. Despite a Midwest snowstorm and frigid temperatures in the teens, the conference was attended by more than 200 Industry representatives, along with international attendees. “Today was a great meeting at Selfridge, and we are excited to be part of this program,” said Kenneth G. Juergens, JLTV Program Director for the Northrop Grumman-Oshkosh Truck Corporation Team, who traveled to the conference from Oshkosh, Wis. Northrop Grumman and Oshkosh Corporation announced a teaming arrangement last fall. Several industry teaming efforts also have been formed to compete for JLTV contracts along with a few companies whose partnering plans are yet unannounced. They are: -- Northrop Grumman and Oshkosh Corp. -- General Tactical Vehicle, a Joint Venture between AM General & General Dynamics Land Systems (GDLS) -- Lockheed Martin and BAE (formerly Armor Holdings) -- BAE Systems and International Military and Government (IMG), LLC, an affiliate of Navistar International Corporation (International Military and Government LLC is a wholly-owned subsidiary of International Truck and Engine Corporation) -- Boeing, Textron and SAIC -- DRS Sustainment Systems Inc. and Force Protection Inc. “I got a lot out of this,” said Michael Franklin, a member of the BAE Systems Team, who traveled from just outside Los Angeles, Calif., to attend the conference. “You can only get so much information from a [Army’s JLTV] Web site. This forum allowed time for networking and just talking with others, which I found very helpful.” "This was an important investment of time for key industry representatives to come to Selfridge. They could fully understand the entire scope and direction of the JLTV effort and hear the government’s “lessons learned” during more than three years of precursor research and development efforts,” said Colonel John “Steve” Myers, Project Manager, Joint Combat Support Systems. Asked what’s next in the JLTV way ahead, Myers said the government will convene an evaluation board in April to review industry proposals to the JLTV RFP. “The board, comprised of subject matter experts from across the Department of Defense, will evaluate submitted proposals, and we expect to make three contract awards based on ‘best value’ to the government in July 2008,” Myers said. “This will then launch the planned contract performance of the Technology Development Phase wherein the JLTV prototypes will be developed and tested.” A system development demonstration phase is planned to get underway in 2011 for the JLTV. Two contractors will complete the design and development of the JLTV FoV and companion trailers and ultimately compete to produce and field multiple JLTV variants. “Pre-proposal conferences like this one are essential in ensuring we are as open and transparent as we possibly can be,” said Lieutenant Colonel Wolfgang Petermann, JLTV Army Product Manager. “Every large, medium and small business represented here goes away with the same amount of information, knowing it is a level playing field.” “It is exciting to see how far we have already come in this program,” said Lieutenant Colonel Ben Garza, Marine Corps JLTV Program Manager. “We have an achievable schedule, and the overwhelming turnout by industry shows how successful this program is going to be.”

U.S. Must Maintain Leadership In Aeronautical Technology With Fifth Generation Fighter Jets F-22 And F-35, Dropping F-22 Would Be The Biggest Blunder

U.S. Must Maintain Leadership In Aeronautical Technology With Fifth Generation Fighter Jets F-22 And F-35, Dropping F-22 Would Be The Biggest Blunder In Military History

(NSI News Source Info) KADENA AIR BASE, Japan - February 22, 2009: When Lt. Col. Lance Pilch climbs into his F-22 fighter jet, he is confident that he's about to fly the most advanced, fastest and stealthiest thing in the air. He boasts that to even compare his fighter to the workhorses of the Air Force, the battleworn F-15s and F-16s, is unfair. Squadron commander Lt. Col. Lance Pilch speaks in front of a U.S. Air Force F-22A Raptor at Kadena Air Base in Okinawa, southwestern Japan, Thursday, Feb. 12, 2009. He boasts that to even compare his fighter to the workhorses of the Air Force, the battleworn F-15's and F-16's, is unfair. At $140 million a pop, the F-22 is the most expensive fighter ever built. And even before seeing combat, it might fall prey to President Barack Obama's pen. "People often forget, the F-16 and F-15 are 30-plus-year-old aircraft," he said, as several of the dull gray fighters in his 12-plane squadron buzzed overhead on their way to training over the Pacific. "You don't drive a 30-year-old car. You trade it in after six or seven years." But you don't necessarily buy a Ferrari. At $140 million a pop, the F-22 is the most expensive fighter ever built. And even before seeing combat, it might fall prey to President Barack Obama's pen. In one of the new president's first major decisions on U.S. defense spending, future funding for the radar-evading stealth fighter will soon be on the block, affecting nearly 100,000 jobs spread across virtually every state in the U.S. and impacting military planning for decades to come. Opponents say the more than $65 billion F-22 program is sucking money away from other, more immediate needs and might be better spent on a different plane altogether. The F-35 Joint Strike Fighter, which is under development, is seen by some as more versatile, more realistic and, more importantly, cheaper, at about $80 million per plane. Doubters in the Defense Department, including Defense Secretary Robert Gates, have been hesitant to build more than the 183 F-22s the U.S. is now committed to. That is a huge cut from the fleet of 750 originally planned in the late 1980s, when the plane was being developed as a counterbalance to advanced fighters produced or planned by the Soviet Union. "Spending more on outrageously overpriced weapons and unproven notions of hypothetical warfare will only make our massive problems worse," said Winslow Wheeler, of the Center for Defense Information. "Instead, we need to demand wholesale changes - first in the bloated girth of our defense budget, and second, but more importantly, in the thinking behind how it all goes together." Obama must decide by March 1 whether to spend $523 million on more of the planes. That would still fall far short of the total 381 F-22s the Air Force had until recently said it wanted to build. In a further compromise, the Air Force said this week that it was willing to go lower. For the moment, the F-22 is narrowly winning the battle on Capitol Hill. On Jan. 4, 44 senators, fearing the economic impact in their home states, urged Obama in a joint letter to continue production of the F-22. Before that, some 200 House members did the same. Lockheed Martin Corp., the prime contractor for the F-22, says that 95,000 jobs connected to the F-22 would be lost by 2011 if Obama does not extend funding. Proponents say that, economics aside, the F-22 represents what the U.S. needs to maintain air superiority in the future. The fighter can fly at supersonic speeds without using afterburners, meaning that it can reach and stay in a battlespace faster and longer without being easily detected. It is also easier to maneuver and provides much better visibility and electronic information systems to keep the pilot informed about targets, and able to pass that information on to others in battle. In tests against other fighters, it has proven to be virtually unbeatable, with the only "kills" marked as a result of clear pilot error. "The F-22 is extremely good at three things," squadron commander Pilch said. "No. 1, it's extremely good at defense, that's what it was built for. It can defend an island, or a region or a country very, very well, better than anything I know. No. 2, it's very good at offense. It can strike deep, fast and precisely, better than any other fighter in the inventory. Finally, it is great at situational awareness passing, just an overall awareness of the battlespace and making those around the F-22 better." "We are looking 10, 20, 30 years into the future at the capabilities other countries are trying to evolve," he said. None of this, however, has been tested in real combat. The F-22, which was not ready in the earlier days of the Iraq or Afghanistan conflicts, has only been deployed on a short-term basis overseas three times - twice for training in southern Japan, and once to an airshow in England. The claims of its air superiority are characterized by some as "future-war-itis" - the desire by planners to be prepared to overwhelm any potential threat that may arise in the future, despite the high costs involved. No one denies, however, that the F-15 fleet is aging and will need to be phased out at some point. The F-35 Joint Strike Fighter will not be able to assume that role for many years to come. With pressure to retire more F-15s growing, Defense analyst Rebecca Grant said strategic necessity justifies keeping - and expanding - the F-22 fleet, despite the cost. "In the last two decades, the U.S. has used airstrikes to contain dictators, punish aggression, turn around international violations of sovereignty and stop regime-inflicted humanitarian disasters. No-fly zones squelched Iraqi military activity for a decade," she wrote in a research paper for the Lexington Institute earlier this month. "There's no reason to think the U.S. will depend less on airpower for conventional deterrence in the future."

British Muslims Providing Taliban With Electronic Devices For Roadside Bombs To Kill British Troops

British Muslims Providing Taliban With Electronic Devices For Roadside Bombs To Kill British Troops

British Muslims are providing the Taliban with electronic devices to make roadside bombs for use in attacks against British forces serving in southern Afghanistan, The Telegraph can disclose.

(NSI News Source Info) February 22, 2009:Electronic devices such as "mobile phones filled with explosives, which could kill or seriously injure British soldiers patrolling on foot, and more sophisticated devices that can be used against military vehicles." British Muslims providing Taliban with electronic devices for roadside bombs to kill British troops....With fellow countrymen like these, who needs enemies?

Quite ingenious these British Muslims; combining their Western heritage (e.g.., technology) with their jihadi blood-lust, they can sure be quite creative. "British Muslims 'providing Taliban with electronic devices for roadside bombs,'" by Con Coughlin for the Telegraph, February 21: British Muslims are providing the Taliban with electronic devices to make roadside bombs for use in attacks against British forces serving in southern Afghanistan, The Telegraph can disclose. The devices, which enable Taliban fighters to detonate roadside bombs by remote control, are either sent to sympathizers in the region, or carried by volunteers who fly to Pakistan and then make their way across the border. Details of how British electronic components have been found in roadside bombs were given to David Miliband, the Foreign Secretary, when he visited British troops at their military compound at Lashkagar, in Helmand province, earlier this week. In a briefing on British operations in southern Afghanistan by Brigadier Gordon Messenger, the Royal Marine commander of the British battlegroup, Mr Miliband was shown examples of the crude, home-made devices that are being used in attacks against British patrols. They included mobile phones filled with explosives, which could kill or seriously injure British soldiers patrolling on foot, and more sophisticated devices that can be used against military vehicles. Explosives experts who have examined the devices say they have found British-made electronic components that enable Taliban insurgents to detonate their home-made, road-side bombs by remote control. The electronic devices smuggled into Afghanistan from Britain range from basic remote control units that are normally used to fly model airplanes to more advanced components that enable insurgents to conduct attacks from up to a mile away from British patrols. "We have found electronic components in devices used to target British troops that originally come from Britain," a British explosives officer told Mr Miliband during a detailed briefing on the type of improvised explosive device (IED) used against British forces. When asked how the components had reached Afghanistan, the officer explained that they had either been sent from Britain, or physically brought to Afghanistan by British Muslims who had flown over. The disclosure is the latest in a string of suggestions from British commanders about the connections between British Muslims and violence in Afghanistan.

FACTBOX-Facts About Insurgency In Pakistan's Swat Valley

FACTBOX-Facts About Insurgency In Pakistan's Swat Valley

(NSI News Source Info) February 22, 2009: Taliban fighters have agreed a "permanent ceasefire" in Pakistan's northwestern Swat valley, a senior government official said on Saturday. The announcement was made one day after Taliban commander Maulana Fazlullah held talks with his father-in-law, Maulana Sufi Mohammad, a radical Muslim cleric freed by the government to negotiate peace in the valley. Supporters of Pro-Taliban cleric Sufi Muhammad march in Swat's main city of Mingora on Wednesday, Feb. 18, 2009 in Pakistan. A hardline cleric led hundreds of supporters in a peace march in Pakistan's Swat Valley on Wednesday aimed at convincing Taliban militants to lay down their weapons under a pact with the government. Here are some facts about the Taliban insurgency there. * Islamist militancy emerged in Swat, an alpine beauty spot, in the 1990s when Maulana Sufi Mohammad took up arms to impose sharia law in Swat and neighbouring areas of Malakand, Dir as well as in the Bajaur tribal region on the Afghan border. * Mohammad was arrested after he returned to Pakistan having led thousands of fighters to Afghanistan in 2001 in a vain attempt to help the Taliban resist U.S.-backed forces. * Pakistani authorities released him in 2008 in a bid to defuse another uprising that broke out in late 2007, this time led by his son-in-law Maulana Fazlullah, who has ties with other Pakistani Taliban factions and al Qaeda. * Fazlullah called his men to arms after a military assault began on the Red Mosque in Islamabad in mid-2007 to put down a armed movement that was seeking to impose Islamic law in the capital. Fazlullah used illegal FM radio to propagate his message and became known as Mullah Radio. * The Pakistan Army deployed troops in Swat in October 2007 and used artillery and gunship helicopters to reassert control. But insecurity mounted after a civilian government came to power a year ago and tried to reach a negotiated settlement. * A peace accord fell apart in May. Since then hundreds of people, including soldiers, militants and civilians have been killed in battles. * Militants unleashed a reign of terror, killing and beheading politicians, singers, soldiers and opponents. They have banned female education and destroyed nearly 200 girls' schools. * Around 1,200 people have been killed since late 2007 and between 250,000 and 500,000 people have fled the valley, leaving the militants in virtual control. * Pakistan offered on Feb. 16 to introduce Islamic law in Swat valley and neighbouring areas of the northwest in a bid to take the steam out of the Taliban insurgency. * Under Nizam-e-Adl or Islamic system of justice, all judicial laws contrary to Islamic teachings stand cancelled and the courts will decide cases in line with Islamic injunctions. * Unlike the Taliban courts, which have been summarily handing out severe punishments like chopping off hands of thieves and stoning to death adulterers and rapists, there will be a system of appeal on the decisions handed out by courts in Swat and neighbouring districts. Ordinary judges, with a knowledge of Islam, will officiate and analysts said the courts are unlikely to hand down Taliban-like sentences.

India Sidesteps US Invite For Trilateral Meet On Afghanistan-Pakistan

India Sidesteps US Invite For Trilateral Meet On Afghanistan-Pakistan

(NSI News Source Info) February 22, 2009: India has sidestepped a US invitation for a ringside seat at a trilateral US-Pakistan-Afghanistan conference scheduled for next week in Washington. This will be Richard Holbrooke’s first exercise in the US’ attempt to stabilize the Af-Pak region.

In this photo made Tuesday Feb. 17, 2009, and released Saturday, Feb. 21, by US Military, showing Brig. Gen. Michael A. Ryan, U.S. Forces Afghanistan, center, as he offers his condolences to families of those killed during a U.S. military operation targeting insurgents near Herat province. The joint U.S. and Afghan investigation discovered weapons and ammunitions at the target site, according to the U.S. Army. Brig. Gen. Ryan also met with key village leaders to convey his commitment to security in the region and throughout Afghanistan.

The conference is part of a more comprehensive strategic review of US policy for the region. While it has a strong military component, the exercise could also explore the possibility of an eventual deal with some version of the Taliban.

The meeting will see high level delegations from Pakistan and Afghanistan led by the two foreign ministers who will participate in the conference. India will be kept in the loop by the US and Afghanistan, but during Holbrooke’s visit, India also made its interests in Afghanistan and its stability very clear. India will officially keep its position of an “interested bystander” watching the unfolding events in this theatre. India sought and received an assurance from the US that its decisions and policies in this region would not make India a “target”. In other words, India doesn’t want to be unpleasantly surprised by a set of events that adversely affects Indian interests in Afghanistan. The US right now is furious with Afghanistan president Hamid Karzai for consistently hitting out at America but is equally wary of the Pakistan government particularly after the ill-advised “peace deal” with the Taliban in Swat Valley. It’s no secret the Obama administration wants Karzai to go. Therefore, the coming elections in Afghanistan, originally scheduled for May but which may now be delayed until August, will be crucial to whether Karzai can manage to hold on. The Obama inauguration saw four invitees from Afghanistan who might be alternative candidates backed by the US — former foreign minister Abdullah Abdullah, former finance minister Ashraf Ghani, former interior minister Ali Ahmed Jalali and governor of Nangarhar Gul Agha Shirzai. It is widely believed that one of these four men would be supported by the US in the coming elections. India will not get into domestic Afghan politics but will resist attempts to rope in the Taliban into the governing structure, because that would be tantamount to giving the Pak army carte blanche in exercising its policy. Ultimately, any attempt at stabilization in the region would necessitate working hard on the Pakistani system, which is where Holbrooke will find his greatest challenge.

Sri Lanka: Rebel Air Raid Thwarted By Air Defense System

Sri Lanka: Rebel Air Raid Thwarted By Air Defense System

(NSI News Source Info) February 22, 2009: THE timely activation of the air defense system in the Sri Lankan capital of Colombo had thwarted last night's Tamil Tiger air raid in the city, the Sri Lanka Airforce said today.

An air defense search light is seen during an attack by Tamil Tiger rebels in Colombo, Sri Lanka, Friday, Feb 20, 2009. Two rebel aircraft launched a surprise raid on the Sri Lankan capital late Friday, an act of defiance by the beleaguered Tamil Tiger rebels in the face of a punishing military offensive in the north. The military shot down both planes, one of which crashed into a government office building, killing one person and wounding more than 40 others.

"The activation of the air defense system prevented the LTTE suicide attack", Wing Commander Janaka Nanayakkara, the airforce spokesman said.

The Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) carried out an air raid targeting the Sri Lanka Airforce headquarters and the Airforce base at Katunayaka outside the capital near the only international airport.

The LTTE's small aircraft hit the Department of Inland Revenue building in downtown Colombo, which is close to the Sri Lanka Airforce headquarters. The military said the rebel plane was hit by the anti-aircraft gun fire before it rammed into the 13th floor of the Inland Revenue building. At least two people died and over 50 others were injured.

"The two planes were carrying around 150 grams of C4 explosives", Nanayakkara said adding that if the rebel bomber had succeeded in hitting his intended target, the destruction would have been massive.

The second rebel airplane which had targeted the Katunayaka airbase was shot down with its pilot killed.

Ranjith Siyambalapitiya, deputy minister of finance said the attack on the Revenue Department had not damaged its data bases and the damage could be restored by next Tuesday.

"Only the 13th floor suffered direct damage and other floors had felt the impact", Siyambalapitiya added.

The last night's air raid was the first rebel military response to their successive military defeats when they lost Kilinochchi, their administrative capital early in January.

Now government troops are in their last hold of Mullaithivu and are on the verge of completely crushing the Tiger rebel challenge.

Oshkosh To Feature Global Heavy Equipment Transporter At Idex 2009

Oshkosh To Feature Global Heavy Equipment Transporter At Idex 2009

(NSI News Source Info) February 22, 2009: Oshkosh Defense will be showcasing its Global Heavy Equipment Transporter (HET) at this year's Idex exhibition.

The Oshkosh Heavy Equipment Transporter (HET) is an advanced, hardworking and effective transport system that sets the benchmark for performance and cost efficiency. It's designed to rapidly deploy battle tanks, fighting and recovery vehicles, or armored vehicles, construction equipment, and their crews so they arrive in mission-ready condition. The HET saves wear and tear on your heavy equipment while cutting transportation costs.

Come see and learn about this vehicle's powerful transport capabilities, designed to haul main battle tanks, as well as fighting and recovery vehicles, armored vehicles, and construction equipment quickly and safely to mission sites. Oshkosh leadership also will be on hand to discuss its new office in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, which expands on the company's commercial and Defense presence of more than 50 years in the region.