Update - 'lone' soldier line is a lie

THE AMERICAN claim that only one 'rogue' soldier was behind the massacre in Afghanistan on Sunday is being described as a lie.

The line that a sole deranged individual carried out the murder of 16 civilians, including children, has been repeated by global media and seemingly accepted as true.

Obviously, this version of the story is less damaging to the reputation of the US's army of occupation.

But eye witness reports spoke of a group of American soldiers who were laughing and appeared drunk.

And AP reported on Monday morning: "Afghans are expressing growing skepticism that a shooting rampage that killed 16 civilians was carried out by a single US soldier.

"Abdul Rahum Ayubi, who is a lawmaker from Kandahar province where the tragedy occurred, said Monday it seemed impossible for one soldier to cover the ground between the houses that were attacked — over a mile (2 kilometers) — and also burn the dead bodies.

"Bismullah Afghanmal, a parliament member, said the reports he received from villagers indicate the shooting before dawn Sunday came from several directions."

Bacha Agha of Balandi village told AP: "One man can't kill so many people. There must have been many people involved.

"If the government says this is just one person's act we will not accept it. ... After killing those people they also burned the bodies."

In a statement, Afghan President Hamid Karzai left open the possibility of more than one shooter.

He initially spoke of a single US gunman, then referred to "American forces" entering houses. The statement quoted a 15-year-old survivor named Rafiullah, who was shot in the leg, as telling Karzai in a phone call that 'soldiers' broke into his house, woke up his family and began shooting them.

"This is an assassination, an intentional killing of innocent civilians and cannot be forgiven," Karzai said.

The original news report from Reuters, later modified to include the official US account, said: "Witnesses told Reuters they saw a group of US soldiers arrive at their village in Kandahar's Panjwayi district at around 2am, enter homes and open fire."


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'Laughing' US troops murder children

THE MURDEROUS reality of neoliberal imperialism was further exposed to the world on Sunday, with news of a massacre of innocent civilians in Afghanistan.

Western forces shot dead 16 civilians including nine children in southern Kandahar province on Sunday, in a rampage that witnesses said was carried out by American soldiers who were laughing and appeared drunk, reports Reuters.

"One Afghan father who said his children were killed in the shooting spree accused soldiers of later burning the bodies, " said the agency.


"Witnesses told Reuters they saw a group of US soldiers arrive at their village in Kandahar's Panjwayi district at around 2am, enter homes and open fire."



The US embassy in Kabul was reported as saying one American soldier had been detained over the shooting. It added that anti-US reprisals were possible following the killings, which come just weeks after US soldiers burned copies of the Koran at a NATO base, triggering widespread anti-Western protests.

Reuters later modified parts of its story to reflect the official US line that only one 'rogue' soldier was involved, while retaining the witnesses' accounts.

But AP reported on Monday morning: "Afghans are expressing growing skepticism that a shooting rampage that killed 16 civilians was carried out by a single US soldier.

"Abdul Rahum Ayubi, who is a lawmaker from Kandahar province where the tragedy occurred, said Monday it seemed impossible for one soldier to cover the ground between the houses that were attacked — over a mile (2 kilometers) — and also burn the dead bodies.

"Bismullah Afghanmal, a parliament member, said the reports he received from villagers indicate the shooting before dawn Sunday came from several directions."

As the USA's allies, Israel, continue to murder Palestinians in Gaza, the hypocrisy of the neoliberal/plutofascist claim to the global moral high ground has never looked so utterly exposed. 

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Police prepare for riots in Oakland, USA

AUTHORITIES in Oakland, USA, are preparing for riots at the end of the trial of former transport policeman Johannes Mehserle who shot dead unarmed train passenger Oscar Grant.

Reports SFGate: "Police are trying to avoid any recurrence of the violence that beset the city on Jan. 7, 2009, six days after the shooting, when rioters smashed storefronts, set cars ablaze and blocked downtown streets. The riot came three days after amateur videos showing the fatal shooting were broadcast and posted on the Internet.

"Friday's police simulation, at the Port of Oakland, was part of a year's worth of preparation for how to respond to a riot, police said.

"Most of the January 2009 protesters arrested came from outside Oakland, but the case nonetheless has raised tension inside the city as well, said Officer Holly Joshi, an Oakland police spokeswoman. Mehserle is white, and the man he killed, Oscar Grant, was black.

"Mehserle shot Grant once in the back while Grant lay prone on the BART platform, where he was being detained after a fight aboard a train. 'This type of situation is very emotionally unique to the community,' Joshi said.

"Oakland firefighters, BART police, paramedics, California Highway Patrol and the city's Public Works Agency participated in Friday's training. If violence does break out during or after the trial, the city may call in police from other jurisdictions.

"Friday's simulation included police in plain clothes posing as protesters and throwing objects at officers. Police have been preparing several tactical strategies.

"In addition, police and city officials have reached out to various parts of the community, including clergy and Grant's family, Joshi said. Mayor Ron Dellums and Assistant Police Chief Howard Jordan met with Oakland businesses Friday morning, during which business owners were instructed on how to contact police and what steps to take if violence occurs.

"Should anything occur, police plan to disseminate information via the Internet and the department's Twitter feed, @oaklandpoliceca, said Officer Jeff Thomason, Oakland police spokesman.

"They're also planning to create a tip line for the public to call in reports about any Mehserle protests or violence, Thomason said.

"Self-described anarchists have already begun posting locations on leftist Web sites for where to gather on the day of the Mehserle verdict."

Flotilla: Israeli lies exposed

ISRAELI lies over the murderous attack on the Gaz flotilla are analysed in a detailed post on Uruknet.

Says the article: "As reports of the massacre hit the wires, prompting outrage around the world, the navy revealed their version of events. At this time there could be no contradiction, as all activists and journalists were being quietly herded to Ashdod without means of communication to the outside world.

"Before they arrived stories of the lynch mob had been widely disseminated. Foreign Ministry Deputy Danny Ayalon terrified the world’s media that morning, announcing the aid flotilla was in fact an "armada of hate and violence in support of the Hamas terror organization. The organizers are well-known for their ties to Global Jihad, Al-Qaeda and Hamas. They have a history of arms smuggling and deadly terror." Israeli PM Binyamin Netanyahu continued in the same vein, "they were mobbed, they were clubbed, they were beaten, stabbed, there was even a report of gunfire. Our soldiers had to defend themselves".

"The IDF information channels were full of accounts from the real victims, Israeli commandos. One frightened young man, still in a state of shock and disbelief reported "we came to talk, but they came to fight". One Naval Special Forces Commander stated on Tuesday that "there were terrorists who wanted to kill us. I cannot explain it any other way." Meanwhile a steady stream of videos was released by the IDF to bolster their story. 13 videos have been uploaded to the their YouTube channel."

Concludes the analysis: "As facts emerge from those onboard the flotilla, more holes are shot through the official version of events. As the façade crumbles, the cover up grows more obvious. Israel may finally be held to account for its crimes. This time it won't go away."

World protests against Israeli massacre

PROTESTERS demonstrating against the Israeli attack on a Gaza-bound aid ship have attempted to storm the BBC in Manchester (above).

Reported the BBC: "More than 800 people marched through the city centre and down Oxford Road, where the crowd surged the BBC's entrance, smashing its front doors.

"One man climbed to the top of the building to plant a Palestinian flag and there were at least three arrests.

"Protesters said they were also angry about the BBC's coverage of Israel.

"Police officers formed a human chain across the BBC's Oxford Road entrance and surrounded the building with police vehicles and officers.

"Protesters from the Palestinian Solidarity Campaign, who organised the demonstration, chanted slogans including: 'BBC tell the truth'.

In London, around 5,000 people joined a protest in Downing Street that turned into a march on the Israeli embassy - though the event was predictably underplayed in the corporate media.

In Bristol, protesters got underneath a delivery lorry having already removed Israeli produce from Tesco and occupying the first storey of M&S.

There were also protests in many other parts of the UK including Sheffield, Birmingham, Falmouth, Brighton, Oxford, Cambridge, Nottingham, Edinburgh, Glasgow, Dundee, Aberdeen, Moffat, Inverness and Banff.

Around the world there were countless demonstrations in, for instance, Scandinavia, France, Turkey, Iraq, Lebanon, Iran, Pakistan and the Zionist state itself.

Global outrage at Israeli terror state

GLOBAL anger is erupting over the Israeli army's murder of unarmed activists trying to bring relief to Gaza.

Protests have been breaking out all over the world, with one planned for Downing Street, London, at 2pm today (Monday).

Thousands of Turkish protesters tried to storm the Israeli consulate in Istanbul soon after the news of the operation broke. The protesters shouted "Damn Israel" as police blocked them.

There are also signs that the imperialist system of which Israel forms a part is trying to prevent opposition to the murders from spreading. It seems Twitter is censoring trending topics about #gaza and #flotilla

Reports Al Jazeera: "Israeli forces have attacked a flotilla of aid-carrying ships aiming to break the country's siege on Gaza.

"More than 10 people were killed and dozens injured when troops intercepted the convoy of ships dubbed the Freedom Flotilla early on Monday, the Israeli military said.

"The Israeli Army Radio had earlier said that up to 16 people had been killed.

"The flotilla was attacked in international waters, 65km off the Gaza coast.

"Footage from the flotilla's lead vessel, the Mavi Marmara, showed armed Israeli soldiers boarding the ship and helicopters flying overhead.

"Al Jazeera's Jamal Elshayyal, on board the Mavi Marmara, said Israeli troops had used live ammunition during the operation.

"The Israeli military said four soldiers had been wounded, two of them moderately, and claimed troops opened fire after 'demonstrators onboard attacked the IDF Naval personnel with live fire and light weaponry including knives and clubs'.

"Free Gaza Movement, the organisers of the flotilla, however, said the troops opened fire as soon as they stormed the ships.

"Al Jazeera’s Ayman Mohyeldin, reporting from Jerusalem, said the Israeli action was surprising.

"All the images being shown from the activists on board those ships show clearly that they were civilians and peaceful in nature, with medical supplies on board. So it will surprise many in the international community to learn what could have possibly led to this type of confrontation," he said.

Met Police killed protester and lied about it

POLICE in London killed an anti-fascist protester, lied about what had happened and completely got away with it.

That was the finding of a secret report into the death of Blair Peach (above) in 1979, finally made public this week.

Reports the NZ Herald: "The report, written by Commander John Cass in 1979, identified the likely killer by his pseudonym Officer E, but concluded that there was not enough evidence to mount a prosecution against him.

"Commander Cass said that that was due to his investigation being frustrated by his colleagues' refusal to co-operate.

"And, while unable to recommend a murder or manslaughter charge, Commander Cass suggested that the officers who lied in an attempt to obstruct the case should be charged with perverting the course of justice. But the then Director of Public Prosecutions, Sir Thomas Hetherington, said at the time there was insufficient evidence to bring any charges.

"The timing of the report is particularly poignant because it comes as the Metropolitan Police wait to discover whether any of its officers will face criminal charges over the death of Ian Tomlinson, who died after being pushed to the ground by a police officer during last year's G20 protests."

In a chilling footnote, The Guardian added that Cass "noted that Archbold, the criminal law bible, states in paragraph 2528 of its 38th edition that "in case of riot or rebellious assembly the officers endeavouring to disperse the riot are justified in killing them at common law if they cannot otherwise be suppressed."

There we have it in black and white - in case there was ever any doubt.

Greek police on trial for killing Alexis

TENSIONS are again running high in Greece with the start of the trial of the policeman accused of murdering 15-year-old Alexis Grigoropoulos.

Ringed by riot police and an anarchist demonstration, the court today postponed the case until Friday, reported AFP.

The trial has been moved out of Athens to the small town of Amfissa for security purposes.

Around 200 anarchists marched through the centre of Amfissa today, chanting anti-police slogans and demanding that the process be held in the capital.

Cop Epaminondas Korkoneas, 38, (pictured) is on trial for voluntary homicide, while his partner Vassilis Saraliotis, 32, is accused of complicity.

One resistance group has threatened to kill Korkoneas, prompting authorities to send more than 400 police to Amfissa, which is 200 kilometres (125 miles) northwest of Athens.

Reported Greek English-language paper Kathimerini: "An extra 700 police officers will be on duty in the town of Amfissa.

"Police have also set up checkpoints on the three roads that lead into the town, located some 200 kilometers north of Athens, amid fears that anarchists or even urban guerrillas might try to disrupt proceedings.

"Officers from Athens, as well as members of the anti-terrorist squad, have been in Amfissa since last week preparing the security measures.

"A number of businesses in Amfissa have adopted extra security measures, such as installing metal window blinds."