Emergency Enters Seventh Year
Friday, September 5 - According to Homeland Security Watch and the White House President Bush has renewed the Emergency Declaration made in the aftermath of the September 11 attacks. HLSWatch includes a summary of a Congressional Research Office study of the declaration's implications.
Pakistan Protests Ground Attack
Friday, September 5 - Pakistan alleges a Wednesday attack by US forces inside its borders. According to the BBC, "US-led and Nato forces have said they have no reports of any troop incursion. But off the record, US military sources confirm that US commandoes carried out Wednesday's raid against a suspected al-Qaeda target - and say it could signal a tougher approach to cross-border militancy.
Thursday's attack occurred in the village of Mohammad Khel near Miranshah in North Waziristan, local officials said."
Hanna Hits Haiti Hard
Friday, September 5 - At least 137 Haitians were killed in flooding caused by Hanna. The tropical storm is expected to hit the US mainland early Saturday morning. Hurricane Ike has weakened slightly but is predicted to intensify in the next 48 hours. UPDATE: Reuters reports that the Haitian death toll from Hanna is much higher.
Terrorism Charged at GOP Convention
Thursday, September 4 - According to the Los Angeles Times, "As clashes between police and protesters subsided outside the Republican National Convention on Wednesday, county prosecutors charged eight people with conspiring to cause a riot as part of a terrorist act. The eight suspects were arrested in connection with raids of homes in the Twin Cities that were conducted by the Ramsey County Sheriff's Department before the convention began.The charges are highly unusual because of the terrorism aspect. Ramsey County Atty. Susan Gaertner said she could recall no such case in her 24 years with the prosecutor's office."This was the most serious charge that we found that was supported by the evidence," she said. "The terrorism aspect is appropriate. This is not your average criminal charge, but this was not your average crime." If convicted, the suspects could each face up to five years in jail, a $10,000 fine, or both.
Gustav Success Breeds Concern
Thursday, September 4 - Several reports suggest the weakening of Gustav and the strains of evacuation may undermine public cooperation the next time an evacuation is ordered.
Hanna and Ike
Thursday, September 4 - Hanna has weakened to a tropical storm but is expected to reach hurricane strength before landfall early Saturday near the border of South Carolina and North Carolina. The more powerful Ike (currently a Category 4) remains Northeast of the Leeward Islands with Tropical Storm Josephine close behind.
Scientist Indicted for Resisting Detention
Wednesday, September 3 - According to the Washington Post, "Aafia Siddiqui, a Pakistani national who lived in the United States for 12 years, faces a possible life sentence for allegedly grabbing a U.S. Army officer's M-4 rifle while she was detained, shooting at another Army officer and threatening all seven members of an Army and FBI interview team before she was shot and subdued." Siddiqui, age 36, is a US educated scientist suspected of supporting Al Qaeda in planning mass casualty attacks. The arrest of Siddiqui in Afghanistan has prompted considerable sympathy in Pakistani media reports and some official circles.
Chemical Explosion Investigation Begins
Tuesday, September 2 - The Chemical Safety Board has begun its formal investigation of the August 28 explosion at the Bayer CropScience plant in Institute, West Virginia (see prior blogging). According to the Charlestown Gazette nearly an hour transpired before a shelter-in-place order was communicated to the public.
Hurricanes Line Up in Atlantic
Tuesday, September 2 - Gustav came ashore as a Category 2 storm, a reasonable mid-term test of strategic choices, but not yet an intimidating final exam. Hanna and two other likely hurricanes lined up behind it. More on Tropical Storm Ike is available from the National Hurricane Center
Posts
No comments:
Post a Comment