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Monday, February 28, 2011

2011-02-28 Californians Support North African Revolts

Support rallies around the world for the people struggling for their freedom in North Africa. I am using my diary today to highlight two in California for which I have great videos. They didn't win any Oscars last night but they should have.

There was a lively rally in support of the people fighting the Gaddfi regime in San Francisco this weekend. TomVeeTV posted this comment and video to YouTube:
Over one thousand people demonstrate their solidarity with the revolution currently going on in Libya and other North African/Middle East nations. Ladies and gentlemen the world is changing.


There was an earlier rally in support of the Egyptian people in sleepy Los Angeles on February 5th. This was posted by jdmk3



Sunday, February 27, 2011

Google Supports Revolts | Anonymous does too!

I am blogging today from the So. Cal. Linux Expo [SCALE9x]. I am promoting Anonymous, among other things to the Linux and Free Software communities. While I was here yesterday, someone attending the conference told me what Google did to support the popular uprisings in Iran a few years ago.

He said that at before that time there was basically nothing in the way of computer based Farsi translation but Google had a project in the lab which they rushed into production to support the struggle then rapidly developing in Iran.

"We feel that launching Persian is particularly important now, given ongoing events in Iran" said Google principal scientist Franz Och in a statement on Goolge's Official Blog.

After Wael Ghonim was released from the custody of Mubarak's thugs, he said he would like to return to work at Google if he was not fired. Outgoing Google CEO Eric Schmidt tweeted back "We're incredibly proud of you, @Ghonim, & of course will welcome you back when you're ready."

Just why founder Larry Page is now stepping in to replace Eric Schmidt as Google CEO is not clear but rumor has it that differences over Google's China policy played a big role. Schmidt opposed the decision by founders Page and Brin to pull out of China over government censorship.

When the revolution developed in Egypt, Google engineers worked over the first weekend after January 25th with Twitter to setup a Speech to Tweet service with 3 international phone numbers that helped Egyptians get the word out in spite of the Internet blockage set up by the Egyptian regime. They are doing the same thing now in Libya. They started that Speech-to-Tweet service shortly after the uprising began against Gaddfi in Libya. As before the service and the phone numbers have been constantly posted on Al Jazeera.

They have also supported a proxy service to help people in Libya get around Gaddfi's Internet shutdown at this critical time.

Apparently Google's Wael Ghonim had initialed a project which greatly improved Google's Arabic translation ability a few months before the current wave of protests in North Africa and the Middle East started in Tunisia. Google's Arabic translation service has played an important role in these uprisings and probably has saved more than a few lives.

On another front, Anonymous has just released Anonymous : Survival Guide for Citizens in a Revolution
Version 1.0

From the introduction:
This Guide is for civilians who feel they are about to be caught up in a violent uprising or revolution to overthrow the oppressive government of their country. Although a revolution in favor of the people is a joyful thing when seen from the outside, it can be a bloody mess for those inside it.

Most of all we suggest:

* Don't panic, stay cool headed.

* Take a break and rest if your body needs to relax, lack of sleep is a major weakening factor.

* Avoid consuming mind altering substances like alcohol and drugs. They will cloud your judgment and ability to think and act rationally. You are also arming the regime with propaganda that the crowd is made up of a bunch of intoxicated rioters. Don't allow your movement to be portrayed in an unfavorable light.

This guide will give you some basic ideas and tips for how you and your friends/neighbors/family can stay safe in the violent turmoil around you. It is not a ready-made recipe, but it contains general
survival tactics and strategies.

Here are the links to my articles at WL Central:
2011-02-24 Arming Gaddfi
2011-02-14 Senior Egyptian army officers ordered massacre
2011-02-13 Tales of Tyrants: Ben Ali, Mubarak & Suleiman
2011-02-12 Algeria Protesters Defy Ban, Demand Change
The Mubarak Screw Up & the Suleiman Danger
2011-02-10 Mubarak is Defiant
2011-02-10 Mubarak Expected to Step Down!
2011-02-09 The Google Search for Wael Ghonim
2011-02-08 The New Egyptian Normal: Thousands Demonstrate in Cairo, Alexandria
2011-02-06 Tunisia's Revolution Continues
2011-02-04 Tunisian Anonymous activists take on Egyptian cause
2011-02-04 Protesters roar back with "Day of Departure" for Mubarak
2011-02-03 Algerians plan Feb 12 protest against 19- year-long state of emergency
2011-02-01 Jordan's King Sacks Government as Protests Grow
2011-02-01 Tunisian Islamic Leader Returns as EU Freezes Ousted President's Assets
2011-02-01 Army Vows Not to Shoot as Protesters make Million Man Marches in Cairo, Alexandria Today [UPDATE: 2]
2011-01-30 Million Egyptian Protest Planned as Resistance Continues
2011-01-29 No Internet? No Problem! Anonymous Faxes Egypt
2011-01-28 In Jordan Thousands Demand New Government
2011-01-28 Mubarak Refuses to Step Down!
2011-01-28 Egypt is on Fire!
2011-01-27 Libya is in Revolt as Gaddafi Worries
2011-01-27 Algerians Plan Big Protest Rally for February 9th
2011-01-27 Tunisia Protests Continues as a Warrant is Issued for Ben Ali
2011-01-27 Tens of Thousands Rally in Yemen, Demand Change
2011-01-27 Mubarak Blinks as Egyptian Protests Continue for 3rd Day

North African Hacker Humor

Here is a recap of my other DKos diaries on the Internet, North Africa and Anonymous:
Secret U.S. Intelligence Source on Middle East Revealed !
Arming Gaddfi

Algeria's 19 year long State of Emergency to end soon, President says
Senior Egyptian Army Officers Ordered Massacre!
Tales of Tyrants: Ben Ali, Mubarak & Suleiman
UPDATE: Egypt's Mubarak Has Resigned! - The Mubarak Screw Up & the Suleiman Danger
BREAKING: Mubarak is Defiant
The Google Search for Wael Ghonim
Tunisia's Revolution Continues
Google Goes Rebel, Supports Egyptian Protest
Tunisian Anonymous activists take on Egyptian cause

Act Now to Stop Mubarak's Thugs From Killing More! w Petition
Act Now to Stop Mubarak's Thugs From Killing More!
They Should Have Helped That Street Vendor
Million Egyptian Protest Planned as Resistance Continues
Huffington Post Disses the Jasmine Revolution Redux
No Internet? No Problem! Anonymous Faxes Egypt
Egypt is on Fire!
North African Revolution Continues
Egypt Protests Continue, Tunisia Wants Ben Ali Back
BREAKING: Protesters Plan Massive "Day of Wrath" in Egypt Today
Tunisians Thank Anonymous as North Africa Explodes
Huffington Post Disses the Jasmine Revolution
Tunisia: A Single Tweet Can Start A Prairie Fire!
Anonymous plans Op Swift Assist in Tunisia
Arrested Pirate Party Member Becomes Tunisian Minister
Is Libya Next? Anonymous Debates New Operation
Tunis: This Photo was Taken 66 Minutes Ago
The WikiLeaks Revolution: Anonymous Strikes Tunisia
EMERGENCY: DKos Must Act Now to Protect Tunisian Bloggers!
Free Software & Internet Show Communism is Possible
BREAKING - Digital Sit-Ins: The Internet Strikes Back!
Cyber War Report: New Front Opens Against Internet Coup d'état
Operation PayBack: 1st Cyber War Begins over WikiLeaks
The Internet Takeover: Why Google is Next
BREAKING: Goodbye Internet Freedom as Wikileaks is Taken Down
BREAKING NEWS: Obama Admin Takes Control of Internet Domains!
Things Even Keith Olbermann Won't Cover - UPDATE: VICTORY!!!
Stop Internet Blacklist Bill Now!
Sweet Victory on Internet Censorship: Senate Backs Off!
Internet Engineers tell the Senate to Back Off!
Why is Net Neutrality advocate Free Press MIA?
Obama's Internet Coup d'état
Julian Assange on Threat to Internet Freedom

Saturday, February 26, 2011

Secret U.S. Intelligence Source on Middle East Revealed !

At the White House Press Briefing yesterday, Friday, 25 February 2011 Press Secretary Jay Carney inadvertently reveals the top secret source of CIA intelligence on North Africa and the Middle East.

This is followed by a plug for my documentary Vietnam: American Holocaust



If you like this you will probably love the documentary I made with Martin Sheen
Vietnam: American Holocaust
You can get it from Amazon or you can get it directly from me.

Here are the links to my articles at WL Central:
2011-02-24 Arming Gaddfi
2011-02-14 Senior Egyptian army officers ordered massacre
2011-02-13 Tales of Tyrants: Ben Ali, Mubarak & Suleiman
2011-02-12 Algeria Protesters Defy Ban, Demand Change
The Mubarak Screw Up & the Suleiman Danger
2011-02-10 Mubarak is Defiant
2011-02-10 Mubarak Expected to Step Down!
2011-02-09 The Google Search for Wael Ghonim
2011-02-08 The New Egyptian Normal: Thousands Demonstrate in Cairo, Alexandria
2011-02-06 Tunisia's Revolution Continues
2011-02-04 Tunisian Anonymous activists take on Egyptian cause
2011-02-04 Protesters roar back with "Day of Departure" for Mubarak
2011-02-03 Algerians plan Feb 12 protest against 19- year-long state of emergency
2011-02-01 Jordan's King Sacks Government as Protests Grow
2011-02-01 Tunisian Islamic Leader Returns as EU Freezes Ousted President's Assets
2011-02-01 Army Vows Not to Shoot as Protesters make Million Man Marches in Cairo, Alexandria Today [UPDATE: 2]
2011-01-30 Million Egyptian Protest Planned as Resistance Continues
2011-01-29 No Internet? No Problem! Anonymous Faxes Egypt
2011-01-28 In Jordan Thousands Demand New Government
2011-01-28 Mubarak Refuses to Step Down!
2011-01-28 Egypt is on Fire!
2011-01-27 Libya is in Revolt as Gaddafi Worries
2011-01-27 Algerians Plan Big Protest Rally for February 9th
2011-01-27 Tunisia Protests Continues as a Warrant is Issued for Ben Ali
2011-01-27 Tens of Thousands Rally in Yemen, Demand Change
2011-01-27 Mubarak Blinks as Egyptian Protests Continue for 3rd Day

North African Hacker Humor

Here is a recap of my other DKos diaries on the Internet, North Africa and Anonymous:
Arming Gaddfi

Algeria's 19 year long State of Emergency to end soon, President says
Senior Egyptian Army Officers Ordered Massacre!
Tales of Tyrants: Ben Ali, Mubarak & Suleiman
UPDATE: Egypt's Mubarak Has Resigned! - The Mubarak Screw Up & the Suleiman Danger
BREAKING: Mubarak is Defiant
The Google Search for Wael Ghonim
Tunisia's Revolution Continues
Google Goes Rebel, Supports Egyptian Protest
Tunisian Anonymous activists take on Egyptian cause

Act Now to Stop Mubarak's Thugs From Killing More! w Petition
Act Now to Stop Mubarak's Thugs From Killing More!
They Should Have Helped That Street Vendor
Million Egyptian Protest Planned as Resistance Continues
Huffington Post Disses the Jasmine Revolution Redux
No Internet? No Problem! Anonymous Faxes Egypt
Egypt is on Fire!
North African Revolution Continues
Egypt Protests Continue, Tunisia Wants Ben Ali Back
BREAKING: Protesters Plan Massive "Day of Wrath" in Egypt Today
Tunisians Thank Anonymous as North Africa Explodes
Huffington Post Disses the Jasmine Revolution
Tunisia: A Single Tweet Can Start A Prairie Fire!
Anonymous plans Op Swift Assist in Tunisia
Arrested Pirate Party Member Becomes Tunisian Minister
Is Libya Next? Anonymous Debates New Operation
Tunis: This Photo was Taken 66 Minutes Ago
The WikiLeaks Revolution: Anonymous Strikes Tunisia
EMERGENCY: DKos Must Act Now to Protect Tunisian Bloggers!
Free Software & Internet Show Communism is Possible
BREAKING - Digital Sit-Ins: The Internet Strikes Back!
Cyber War Report: New Front Opens Against Internet Coup d'état
Operation PayBack: 1st Cyber War Begins over WikiLeaks
The Internet Takeover: Why Google is Next
BREAKING: Goodbye Internet Freedom as Wikileaks is Taken Down
BREAKING NEWS: Obama Admin Takes Control of Internet Domains!
Things Even Keith Olbermann Won't Cover - UPDATE: VICTORY!!!
Stop Internet Blacklist Bill Now!
Sweet Victory on Internet Censorship: Senate Backs Off!
Internet Engineers tell the Senate to Back Off!
Why is Net Neutrality advocate Free Press MIA?
Obama's Internet Coup d'état
Julian Assange on Threat to Internet Freedom

Friday, February 25, 2011

Libyans are spilling their blood for us all!

The brute force approach to popular uprisings is now being tried in earnest in Libya. In using artillery, aircraft and navy on peaceful protesters Colonel Gaddfi is attempt to break the protest movements with massive violence.

If he is successful, this type of violent response to popular uprising will almost certainly be used elsewhere with all the terrible consequences for humanity. If he fails and is hopefully executed for his war crimes, the reigning powers around the world will favor more peaceful methods of resolving contradictions.

Colonel Gaddfi is not the only head of state that counts human life cheap. What he has been doing this week using large caliber military weapons against unarmed civilians, US Presidents do as a matter of course, week in and week out. This week US air assaults on the Afghan village of Heelgal killed 64 civilians including many children according to Afghan President Karzai. It was hardly noticed because the spot light is on the innocent blood being spilled by Gaddfi this week and because, with an estimated 8 million civilians killed by the US military since the Korean War, US presidents using military power on civilians isn't exactly news.

When Secretary of State Clinton made the rounds on the TV talk shows Sunday morning talking about events in Libya and complaining that it is wrong to turn to violence to solve political problems, most of the world knew they were listening to a hypocrite. The United States has led the world in using massive violence to resolve political problems.

Nor am I implying that the other world leaders are any less squeamish in applying massive violence if it will resolve their political problems. What I am saying is that the abhorrence for Gaddfi's violence that has been displayed by most world leaders, including our own, is mostly for public consumption.

They know that we are facing a world economic crisis of historic proportions. It's root cause is a world economy that has been organized to benefit a select handful at the expense of the majority. This system has insurmountable internal contradiction that can not be solve unless the rich and powerful are dispossessed and the world economy is re-organized to benefit the world.

They are having none of that. They will fight that with their last dying breath. The other day an Indiana Official suggested that peaceful protesters in Wisconsin be shot. They are like Gaddfi on a world scale in that they would sooner bring disaster and suffering for all rather than give up their privilege.

In Tunisia the general of the army refused to use massive violence on the protesters and the revolution succeeded in ousting the dictator. In Egypt the junior officers refused to open fire with their tanks and the revolution succeeded in ousting the dictator. And while all the leaders of the US, UK and EU are now claiming to welcome and even champion these popular democratic movements, it is a sham. That's not why they have supported these dictators all these years.

If massive violence can contain the wave of mass rebellions that now has reached even the state house in Wisconsin, they won't mind the bloodshed. They just haven't had the opportunity yet. Gaddfi gives them that opportunity.

That is why they have so far been so anemic in their response to Gaddfi. They secretly want him to succeed. They are hoping he will succeed and they won't act until it is clear to all [as is quickly becoming the case] that he has failed. You can count on it. If he can put a lid on things, restore the status quo and with it, the oil flow, they may put him back on the pariah list but they will allow him to stand and continue to do business with him.

This is a test and fate or history has selected the Libyan people to take it. But all of us will be drastically affected by the outcome. The unarmed Libyan protesters that have braved machine gun, anti-aircraft and artillery fire to take many of Gaddfi's fortresses around the country are giving their all, their very lives in many cases, to show that even massive violence won't stop the people's movement forward.

If Gaddfi's violence fails Governor Scott will negotiate with the demonstrators in the Wisconsin state house, if it succeeds he will send in the police. If Gaddfi's violence succeeds, many more will die in Yemen and Bahrain and everywhere else that people resist tyranny. If he fails, the powers that be everywhere on the planet will be less likely to follow his lead and try and massive violence approach.

Those brave Libyans who fate chose to brave machine gun fire to win their freedom are braking that machine gun fire for all of us.

Tunisian Anonymous activists take on Egyptian cause

Al Jazeera says this about the video piece which they showed for the first time yesterday evening and put on YouTube minutes later. It describes how "Tunisian members of Anonymous, the same group of hackers that targeted anti-WikiLeaks sites" are now supporting the struggle in Egypt. The piece features an interview with the Tunisian hacker anon.m. It is less than 2 minutes long.
Social media played a crucial role in organizing the uprising in Tunisia, and now, activists there are focusing their technical skills on helping anti-government protesters in Egypt.

Tunisian hackers say they will attack website belonging to the Egyptian government in solidarity with the pro-democracy activists protesting in Cair, Alexandria and Luxor.

Nazanine Moshir reports from Tunis.



Arab language news video on Tunisian Anonymous members. Can someone please translate. I want to know what they are saying.

Anonymous Attacks Tunisian Government over Wikileaks Censorship



Anonymous | Opération Egypte (#opegypt) French Video
Anonymous - Operation Egypt - Press Release.

Operation Egypt - irc.anonops.ru opegypt SSL # 6697.

Operation Egypt: Anonymous attacking government websites in Egypt. The Egyptian People living under inhumane conditions, his basic rights such as freedom of speech, freedom of religion, freedom of association and free access to information is violated. By imposing censorship to his people and denying them the simplest freedoms, the government has proved to be criminal and in fact became the target and the enemy of Anonymous ...


This article on January 25 claims OpEgypt is a Success!!

Anonymous  - Operation Egypt
The Anonymous poster gives the URLs for two downloads and the Anonymous Operation Egypt's chat line. The one of the downloads is a 160 page manual on how to circumvent Internet censorship and filtering.

The second download is a 86MB Anonymous "Care Package" uploaded on January 20, 2011. It contains a number of software tools for circumventing Internet censorship and other tools for securing communications and a number of How-To Guides including How to IRC, How to climb a fence, How to deal with tear gas, How to defend against dogs, make wheatpaste, run from cops, military hand signals as well as a cut out Guy Fawkes mask.

Here is a another "How To" that is being distributed on the Internet, printed out and circulated on the ground from an Anonymous source.


Mao Tse Tung famously said "A Single Spark Can Start a Prairie Fire" and lately it has become very fashionable to remember this phase in connection with events in North Africa. Most people who are now raising it are doing so in support of a new domino theory and point to the street vendor who burned himself up in protest that so propelled events in Tunisia and by extension the rest of North Africa and now the Middle East as the spark. Given the inflammatory nature of his original act, it is easy to apply Mao's saying in that way and given our general lack of understanding of the internal organization of these revolutions, it is easy to see them as the more or less spontaneous result of the terrible conditions the people face, the dry grass or tinder, as many commentator have put it.

But outrages and heroic acts of rebellion happen all the time as a result of Imperialist oppression. They don't generally lead to "prairie fires", and I don't think that is what Mao was talking about. In his paper "A Single Spark Can Start a Prairie Fire", Mao was addressing the communist party and party strategy. He was speaking to the critical role of the conscious element, the professional revolutionaries that make a study of revolution and it's tools and are willing to go wherever a spark has flared among the dry kindling and fan those sparks into a roaring fire. I think he was saying that a very small group, a spark, can make a very big difference in the outcome of events.

The hacker group Anonymous certainly didn't cause events in North Africa and they aren't the force behind it. The importance of what they have done, however, should not be underestimated. They have kept the Internet more or less open in spite of the best efforts of totalitarian regimes in Tunisia and Egypt to cut it off, and they showed activist how to use the Internet, and provided tools with which they you use the Internet without ending up in some dark dungeon. One writer assessed the role of Anonymous in the Tunisian Revolution this way:

Let’s take the Internet out of the equation. Groups of Tunisian protesters would not have been able to organize themselves so quickly; images of unrest in other towns and cities across the country would not have been there to galvanize the ranks of rioters by showing them their compatriots were taking the fight to the authorities; Ben Ali would have found it easier to kill the unrest in its infancy as state television would have spoon-fed viewers the official line while international channels would not have been able to broadcast mobile phone footage they retrieved from the web. Word would have spread more slowly, buying Ben Ali precious time.

The same can be said about events in Egypt, furthermore, one international body that has been consciously spreading the practical lessons of the Tunisian Revolution to Libya, Algeria and Egypt has been Anonymous. The role of Anonymous is not a sideshow but has been absolutely critical to the development of these movements.

Here are the links to my articles at WL Central:
2011-02-04 Protesters roar back with "Day of Departure" for Mubarak
2011-02-03 Algerians plan Feb 12 protest against 19- year-long state of emergency
2011-02-01 Jordan's King Sacks Government as Protests Grow
2011-02-01 Tunisian Islamic Leader Returns as EU Freezes Ousted President's Assets
2011-02-01 Army Vows Not to Shoot as Protesters make Million Man Marches in Cairo, Alexandria Today [UPDATE: 2]
2011-01-30 Million Egyptian Protest Planned as Resistance Continues
2011-01-29 No Internet? No Problem! Anonymous Faxes Egypt
2011-01-28 In Jordan Thousands Demand New Government
2011-01-28 Mubarak Refuses to Step Down!
2011-01-28 Egypt is on Fire!
2011-01-27 Libya is in Revolt as Gaddafi Worries
2011-01-27 Algerians Plan Big Protest Rally for February 9th
2011-01-27 Tunisia Protests Continues as a Warrant is Issued for Ben Ali
2011-01-27 Tens of Thousands Rally in Yemen, Demand Change
2011-01-27 Mubarak Blinks as Egyptian Protests Continue for 3rd Day

Here is a recap of my other DKos diaries on the Internet, North Africa and Anonymous:

Act Now to Stop Mubarak's Thugs From Killing More! w Petition
Act Now to Stop Mubarak's Thugs From Killing More!
They Should Have Helped That Street Vendor
Million Egyptian Protest Planned as Resistance Continues
Huffington Post Disses the Jasmine Revolution Redux
No Internet? No Problem! Anonymous Faxes Egypt
Egypt is on Fire!
North African Revolution Continues
Egypt Protests Continue, Tunisia Wants Ben Ali Back
BREAKING: Protesters Plan Massive "Day of Wrath" in Egypt Today
Tunisians Thank Anonymous as North Africa Explodes
Huffington Post Disses the Jasmine Revolution
Tunisia: A Single Tweet Can Start A Prairie Fire!
Anonymous plans Op Swift Assist in Tunisia
Arrested Pirate Party Member Becomes Tunisian Minister
Is Libya Next? Anonymous Debates New Operation
Tunis: This Photo was Taken 66 Minutes Ago
The WikiLeaks Revolution: Anonymous Strikes Tunisia
EMERGENCY: DKos Must Act Now to Protect Tunisian Bloggers!
Free Software & Internet Show Communism is Possible
BREAKING - Digital Sit-Ins: The Internet Strikes Back!
Cyber War Report: New Front Opens Against Internet Coup d'état
Operation PayBack: 1st Cyber War Begins over WikiLeaks
The Internet Takeover: Why Google is Next
BREAKING: Goodbye Internet Freedom as Wikileaks is Taken Down
BREAKING NEWS: Obama Admin Takes Control of Internet Domains!
Things Even Keith Olbermann Won't Cover - UPDATE: VICTORY!!!
Stop Internet Blacklist Bill Now!
Sweet Victory on Internet Censorship: Senate Backs Off!
Internet Engineers tell the Senate to Back Off!
Why is Net Neutrality advocate Free Press MIA?
Obama's Internet Coup d'état
Julian Assange on Threat to Internet Freedom

Anonymous Hacks Security Company Hired to Investigate It

Under the title Anonymous Hacks Security Company HBGary, Dumps 50,000 Emails Online readwriteweb.com broke this story yesterday:
A security company that's been working with the government to track down the cyber-activists involved with Anonymous has now become the target of that very group.

HBGary's website has been defaced and its CEO Aaron Barr has had his social media accounts hijacked and his personal information leaked online - all in retribution for his claims that he had infiltrated Anonymous, the loosely-affiliated collective of hacktivists.
I also have heard from Anonymous sources that they got copies of all the source code for the company's security products. Maybe they need to hire some computer security experts themselves. The article goes on:

The actions by Anonymous follow a recent story in The Financial Times in which Barr claimed that he had "penetrated Anonymous as part of a project to demonstrate the security risks to organisations from social media and networking." In the article, Barr identified people he said were key members of the Anonymous "hierarchy," including a co-founder in the U.S. and leaders in Britain, Germany, the Netherlands, Italy and Australia. Barr claimed he had discovered these individuals' identities via Facebook and Internet Relay Chat (IRC).

Anonymous dispute Barr's findings, claiming the group has no such hierarchy or leadership. Anonymous also contends that Barr was poised to sell some of this data to the FBI. Law enforcement in the U.S. and Europe have been tracking Anonymous, with several arrests made late last month.

In a very tongue-in-cheek press release on the AnonNews site, Anonymous writes that "Mr Barr has successfully broken through our over 9000 proxy field and into our entirely non-public and secret insurgent IRC lair, where he then smashed through our fire labyrinth with vigor, collected all the gold rings on the way, opened a 50 silver key chest to find Anon's legendary hackers on steroids password."

Less tongue-in-cheek, the hacking of Barr's social media accounts and the hijacking of HBGary's website. Tweets from Barr's hacked account include links to torrents of over 50,000 HBGary emails. The tweets also claim that hackers have full administrative access to the company's website, all its financials, and its software products.

HBGary founder Greg Hoglund has told Krebs on Security that Anonymous "didn't just pick on any company, but we try to protect the US government from hackers. They couldn't have chosen a worse company to pick on." For its part, Anonymous contends that HBGary couldn't have picked a worse group to pick on.



Here are the links to my articles at WL Central:
2011-02-06 Tunisia's Revolution Continues
2011-02-04 Tunisian Anonymous activists take on Egyptian cause
2011-02-04 Protesters roar back with "Day of Departure" for Mubarak
2011-02-03 Algerians plan Feb 12 protest against 19- year-long state of emergency
2011-02-01 Jordan's King Sacks Government as Protests Grow
2011-02-01 Tunisian Islamic Leader Returns as EU Freezes Ousted President's Assets
2011-02-01 Army Vows Not to Shoot as Protesters make Million Man Marches in Cairo, Alexandria Today [UPDATE: 2]
2011-01-30 Million Egyptian Protest Planned as Resistance Continues
2011-01-29 No Internet? No Problem! Anonymous Faxes Egypt
2011-01-28 In Jordan Thousands Demand New Government
2011-01-28 Mubarak Refuses to Step Down!
2011-01-28 Egypt is on Fire!
2011-01-27 Libya is in Revolt as Gaddafi Worries
2011-01-27 Algerians Plan Big Protest Rally for February 9th
2011-01-27 Tunisia Protests Continues as a Warrant is Issued for Ben Ali
2011-01-27 Tens of Thousands Rally in Yemen, Demand Change
2011-01-27 Mubarak Blinks as Egyptian Protests Continue for 3rd Day

North African Hacker Humor

Here is a recap of my other DKos diaries on the Internet, North Africa and Anonymous:
Google Goes Rebel, Supports Egyptian Protest
Tunisian Anonymous activists take on Egyptian cause

Act Now to Stop Mubarak's Thugs From Killing More! w Petition
Act Now to Stop Mubarak's Thugs From Killing More!
They Should Have Helped That Street Vendor
Million Egyptian Protest Planned as Resistance Continues
Huffington Post Disses the Jasmine Revolution Redux
No Internet? No Problem! Anonymous Faxes Egypt
Egypt is on Fire!
North African Revolution Continues
Egypt Protests Continue, Tunisia Wants Ben Ali Back
BREAKING: Protesters Plan Massive "Day of Wrath" in Egypt Today
Tunisians Thank Anonymous as North Africa Explodes
Huffington Post Disses the Jasmine Revolution
Tunisia: A Single Tweet Can Start A Prairie Fire!
Anonymous plans Op Swift Assist in Tunisia
Arrested Pirate Party Member Becomes Tunisian Minister
Is Libya Next? Anonymous Debates New Operation
Tunis: This Photo was Taken 66 Minutes Ago
The WikiLeaks Revolution: Anonymous Strikes Tunisia
EMERGENCY: DKos Must Act Now to Protect Tunisian Bloggers!
Free Software & Internet Show Communism is Possible
BREAKING - Digital Sit-Ins: The Internet Strikes Back!
Cyber War Report: New Front Opens Against Internet Coup d'état
Operation PayBack: 1st Cyber War Begins over WikiLeaks
The Internet Takeover: Why Google is Next
BREAKING: Goodbye Internet Freedom as Wikileaks is Taken Down
BREAKING NEWS: Obama Admin Takes Control of Internet Domains!
Things Even Keith Olbermann Won't Cover - UPDATE: VICTORY!!!
Stop Internet Blacklist Bill Now!
Sweet Victory on Internet Censorship: Senate Backs Off!
Internet Engineers tell the Senate to Back Off!
Why is Net Neutrality advocate Free Press MIA?
Obama's Internet Coup d'état
Julian Assange on Threat to Internet Freedom

Libyans are spilling their blood for us all!

The brute force approach to popular uprisings is now being tried in earnest in Libya. In using artillery, aircraft and navy on peaceful protesters Colonel Gaddfi is attempt to break the protest movements with massive violence.

If he is successful, this type of violent response to popular uprising will almost certainly be used elsewhere with all the terrible consequences for humanity. If he fails and is hopefully executed for his war crimes, the reigning powers around the world will favor more peaceful methods of resolving contradictions.

Colonel Gaddfi is not the only head of state that counts human life cheap. What he has been doing this week using large caliber military weapons against unarmed civilians, US Presidents do as a matter of course, week in and week out. This week US air assaults on the Afghan village of Heelgal killed 64 civilians including many children according to Afghan President Karzai. It was hardly noticed because the spot light is on the innocent blood being spilled by Gaddfi this week and because, with an estimated 8 million civilians killed by the US military since the Korean War, US presidents using military power on civilians isn't exactly news.

When Secretary of State Clinton made the rounds on the TV talk shows Sunday morning talking about events in Libya and complaining that it is wrong to turn to violence to solve political problems, most of the world knew they were listening to a hypocrite. The United States has led the world in using massive violence to resolve political problems.

Nor am I implying that the other world leaders are any less squeamish in applying massive violence if it will resolve their political problems. What I am saying is that the abhorrence for Gaddfi's violence that has been displayed by most world leaders, including our own, is mostly for public consumption.

They know that we are facing a world economic crisis of historic proportions. It's root cause is a world economy that has been organized to benefit a select handful at the expense of the majority. This system has insurmountable internal contradiction that can not be solve unless the rich and powerful are dispossessed and the world economy is re-organized to benefit the world.

They are having none of that. They will fight that with their last dying breath. The other day an Indiana Official suggested that peaceful protesters in Wisconsin be shot. They are like Gaddfi on a world scale in that they would sooner bring disaster and suffering for all rather than give up their privilege.

In Tunisia the general of the army refused to use massive violence on the protesters and the revolution succeeded in ousting the dictator. In Egypt the junior officers refused to open fire with their tanks and the revolution succeeded in ousting the dictator. And while all the leaders of the US, UK and EU are now claiming to welcome and even champion these popular democratic movements, it is a sham. That's not why they have supported these dictators all these years.

If massive violence can contain the wave of mass rebellions that now has reached even the state house in Wisconsin, they won't mind the bloodshed. They just haven't had the opportunity yet. Gaddfi gives them that opportunity.

That is why they have so far been so anemic in their response to Gaddfi. They secretly want him to succeed. They are hoping he will succeed and they won't act until it is clear to all [as is quickly becoming the case] that he has failed. You can count on it. If he can put a lid on things, restore the status quo and with it, the oil flow, they may put him back on the pariah list but they will allow him to stand and continue to do business with him.

This is a test and fate or history has selected the Libyan people to take it. But all of us will be drastically affected by the outcome. The unarmed Libyan protesters that have braved machine gun, anti-aircraft and artillery fire to take many of Gaddfi's fortresses around the country are giving their all, their very lives in many cases, to show that even massive violence won't stop the people's movement forward.

If Gaddfi's violence fails Governor Scott will negotiate with the demonstrators in the Wisconsin state house, if it succeeds he will send in the police. If Gaddfi's violence succeeds, many more will die in Yemen and Bahrain and everywhere else that people resist tyranny. If he fails, the powers that be everywhere on the planet will be less likely to follow his lead and try and massive violence approach.

Those brave Libyans who fate chose to brave machine gun fire to win their freedom are braking that machine gun fire for all of us.

Thursday, February 24, 2011

Arming Gaddfi

The young United States had barely thrown off it's own colonial shackles when in 1805 it flexed its nascent imperial powers against what is now Libya. U.S. Marines captured the Eastern Libyan city of Darnah, raise the U.S. flag over it and forced the ruler in Tripoli to sign a commercial treaty with the U.S. before withdrawing. Since those days, wherever US Marines fight and kill, from Vietnam to Afghanistan, they proudly remember those early battles to put down the Barbary pirates and insure favorable trade relations "on the shores of Tripoli."

Robbed of piracy as an income source the three areas which make up present day Libya, Tripolitania, Fezzan, and Cyrenaica, fell back under the control of the Ottoman Empire which had pretty much ran things there since the middle of the 16th century anyway. Libya rotted as a backwater of "the sick man of Europe" until Italy invaded and united the three areas as its colony in 1911. When Italy lost WWII, it lost its colony. It became the Independent and United Kingdom of Libya in 1951.

It stayed a kingdom until 1969 when a 27 year old army captain Muammar Gaddafi led a military coup d'état, installed himself as dictator and promoted himself to colonel. Military power put Gaddfi in control and he has always shown a keen interest in increasing it plus he has the petrol dollars to buy lots. This has long made him a most favored customer of the international arms industry.

In the beginning Colonel Muammar Gaddfi had gotten much of his weaponry from Russia and the Soviet Bloc. His reputation as a terrorist, his so-called socialism, his pursuit of WMD and the mistaken belief that he really was the "revolutionary" that he pretended to be all made him off limits to western arms merchants. But Gaddfi has shown a tremendous desire for all kinds of expensive violent instruments, and now we can see why, and he had billions in oil money to pay for it, so this was not a status that could be allowed to stand.

So in the first half of the last decade the US, UK and EU insisted that Libya get rid of weapons that were a danger to them, namely it's nuclear weapons program, WMD and ballistic missile programs. These are weapons that most countries want for their national defense precisely because they can be used against an external threat. By 2005 Libya had met the disarmament requirements of the great powers. Since then those powers have been involved in a mad scramble to re-arm Libya with the type of weapons most useful to Gaddfi in suppressing his own people, weapons that are being used with terrible efficiency today.

President George W. Bush ended the US trade embargo against Libya in 2004. President Bush sent Senator Joe Biden on Air Force Two to go and meet with Gaddfi. Of the deal he did with Gaddfi Biden said "The president of the United States asked me to go. He cut a deal with Gadhafi, directly. It was a smart thing to do." Biden called Gaddfi "the most candid guy I ever spoke with."

Access to oil was always the principal reasons these great powers wanted to restore relations with Gaddfi but sale of weapons was also high on the list. In October 2004 EU foreign ministers went even farther than Bush and ended an 18 year restriction on the sale of weapons to Libya.

Bush used the desire of U.S. companies to participate in the destruction of Gaddfi's chemical weapons to get the U.S. into that game. In September 2005 he waived some defense export restrictions on Libya to allow them to do this and also refurbish eight C-130H transport planes that had been purchased by Libya in the 1970's but never delivered. At the time Bush's spokesman claimed that a decision had not been reached to deliver the planes to Libya however they were being refurbished.

Republican congressman from Pennsylvania Curt Weldon became a principal U.S. contact with Gaddfi about this time. He had long considered Saif Gaddfi his friend and says that Gaddfi's offer to give up WMD after the US invaded Iraq came to him through Saif in a London meeting in 2003. He was with Saif Gaddfi in Houston, Texas when Saif made his first trip to the U.S. and had a private meeting with Secretary Rice at the State Department. One day earlier President Bush made the first ever call by a U.S. President to Gaddifi, who had only been running Libya since Nixon was in the White House. Relations with Gaddfi were warming up nicely.

Congressman Curt Weldon became a big Gaddfi booster and led three US Congressional Delegations to Libya. Of these trips he writes:

I led the 1st US Congressional Delegation into Libya in January 2004. My Delegation met with Col Ghadaffi for almost 3 hours resulting in his invitation to me to return in March to speak to the entire Libyan population at the Annual Great Jamahiriya. ( I told Col Ghadaffi that I would return and speak but would bring a good friend with me – Senator Joe Biden. Joe accepted my Invitation and spoke on the second day of the Great Jamahiriya.

On my 3rd trip to Libya Saif and I Co-Chaired the 1st Multi-National Conference in Tripoli sponsored by the Oceans Security Initiative (OSI) which was attended by 300 representatives from over 30 nations. Saif and I had already Co-Chaired an earlier Conference by Satellite feed between our two nations. Libya is a success story for the United States.

I am proud to call Saif Ghadaffi my friend.

His friend now has a lot of blood on his hands. Monday he got on Libyan state run TV, made a rambling 40 minute speech and promised "rivers of blood" would flow with "thousands" of deaths if the uprising did not stop:

"The army now will have a fundamental role in imposing security and bringing normality into the country," he said. "We will destroy all these elements of sedition. We will not give up any inch of the Libyan territory."

This turn to military power by the so-called moderate Saif Gaddfi should come as no surprise to U.S. officials. Wikileaks has made available state department cable 09TRIPOLI960 dated 2009-12-14 from the Tripoli embassy that noted Saif Gaddfi increasing sway in military matters:

Comment: The concerted attention that xxxxxxxxxxxx devoted to military and security issues during recent meetings with Emboffs suggests that Saif is beginning to insert himself into the political-military and security spheres. The discussion of Khamis' requests in particular may indicate that Saif is trying to curry favor with his little brother. Given the fact that the "Khamis Brigade" is considered the best-equipped and most capable of defending the regime, it seems only natural that anyone intent on assuming power would try to align himself with Khamis.

That same cable gives us an example of how they might get around certain bothersome export restrictions:

xxxxxxxxxxxx sought an explanation on the USG refusal of the sale of Little Bird helicopters to the Libyan military, and designated for the "Khamis Brigade." Stating that the Libyan military was still very interested in purchasing the aircraft, he suggested the helicopters have all armament removed so they could be categorized as "non-lethal equipment." DATT informed him that the Libyan military was free to purchase a number of other helicopter systems that the Defense Security Cooperation Agency had already cleared for Libyan military purchase. xxxxxxxxxxxx insisted that the Libyan military wanted to purchase the Little Bird helicopters.

When you've got oil money and powerless citizens you can afford the very best helicopters. This week Gaddfi is using his helicopters in a very lethal manner. They are being used to shoot unarmed Libyan protesters from the air.

After he left congress, Curt Weldon became the center of an FBI probe into alleged conflicts of interest while in office. That didn't stop him from becoming a principal in a private American defense consulting firm that did business with Libya, Defense Solutions. There he helped to broker deals between Libya and Russian and Ukranian weapons suppliers. Paradoxically, it was the "War on Terror" and efforts to rearm Afghanistan and Iraq, which had much Soviet-era weaponry, that created the ambiguities and loopholes that allowed this new arms trade to flourish. In the GWOT Effect of Arms for Dictators, the Center for Defense Information writes.
As a policy of the “global war on terror” (GWOT), it has been the Bush Administration's practice to sell arms to governments who pledge allegiance to the “war on terror” despite often being deemed by the State Department as having questionable human rights records, being undemocratic, and even, having supported terrorism at one point
.
The Libyan people are now paying the very terrible costs of that very profitable policy.

To get the profitable contracts, Defense Solutions boasts an impressive list of advisers such as retired four-star general, White House drug czar and NBC News military analyst Barry R McCaffrey.

No one should expect Barry McCaffrey to be squeamish about selling Gaddfi the tools of mass murder. Especially since he is paid up to $10,000 a month for his advice. While still in uniform, he was the author of the infamous "Highway of Death" that ended the first Gulf War by mowing down tens of thousands who were fleeing Kuwait. From Barry McCaffrey and War Crimes:
Most recently, Seymour Hersh writes in the New Yorker that a two-star general ordered a massacre against a five-mile line of retreating Iraqi soldiers, and did so two days after a ceasefire went into effect. Hundreds of soldiers were murdered, men and boys who posed no threat and didn’t know the war was still on. Many civilians, including children, were also shot. The numbers are still unclear because the corpses were buried quickly by the tank-bulldozers

McCaffrey's job now is to open doors like those of his friend David H. Petraeus, the commanding general in Iraq to Defense Solution's offerings. “That’s what I pay him for,” Timothy D. Ringgold, chief executive of Defense Solutions told the NY Times. General Petraeus has been a big advocate of increased U.S. weapons sales abroad.

Under Bush's policies, relations with Gaddfi improved and companies like Defense Solutions got rich. On 30 July 2006, President Bush removed Libya from the State Department's list of countries sponsoring terrorism and shortly after that full diplomatic representation was restored.

In December 2007 representatives of Lockheed Martin, Boeing, Raytheon and about 19 other U.S. companies made a visit to Libya sponsored by the National U.S.-Arab Chamber of Commerce. Lockheed Martin may be the Pentagon's biggest supplier but they are happy to sell to Gaddfi too. Thomas Jurkowsky, a Lockheed spokesman said about his company's war making capabilities "The opportunities to leverage that expertise in Libya cannot be overlooked." About the trip Christian Today said.

Major U.S. companies are jockeying for tens of billions of dollars in infrastructure and other big projects in oil-rich Libya, as ties between the former foes warm.

In January 2008, the former foes got even closers as Foreign Minister Mohammed Abdel-Rahman Shalgam met with Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice and became the highest ranking Libyan official to visit Washington in 35 years.

"We don't speak anymore about war or confrontation or terrorism," Shalgam said after signing a U.S.-Libyan science and technology cooperation pact. "No, the contrary: Wealth of the people, cooperation, investments, peace and stability."

Apparently human rights wasn't on the agenda either.

Two years ago the U.S. military ended decades of isolation and started building relations with Gaddfi. In January 2009 the Pentagon and Gaddfi's government signed a "non-binding statement of intent" aimed at developing bilateral military ties. A few months later they were already trying to sell Gaddfi the type of equipment he is using now in the violent suppression of his people. From Reuters:
"We will consider Libyan requests for defense equipment that enables them to build capabilities in areas that serve our mutual interest," said Lt. Col. Elizabeth Hibner of the Army.

As examples, she referred to systems used for border and coastal security as well as "theater airlift," by implication aircraft such as Lockheed Martin Corp's C-130 Hercules that can ferry forces and equipment.
"Theater airlift" would include the capability to fly in mercenaries from Chad to carry out mass murder in Libya. "Coastal security" might include naval capabilities that allow Gaddfi to fire on rebellious coastal towns from ships, as he has been doing, "border security" probably would include small caliber weapons and vehicles that the mercenaries are using once the "theater airlift" got them there. Gaddfi has planes made by Boeing and Lockheed Martin in his fleet. Boeing sold three 737 airliners to the first private Libya airline and began delivering in October 2006. What they would not consider selling to Libya are what might be called "weapons of national defense", the types of weapons that small countries would need to defend against imperial power.

"Initial contacts between the two militaries have been very positive," Hibner goes on to say.

Now that President Obama and Secretary Clinton are complaining that unlike with Egypt or Tunisia, they have no leverage or contact with the Libyan military we have to wonder just when it all went south.

Six months after this "initial contact," Vice Admiral Jeffrey Wieringa, head of the Defense Security Cooperation Agency was peddling Humvees to a Libya delegation in his Washington office. Libya was not yet cleared for the sale of lethal weapons. "We've got some modest, non-lethal efforts ... that is progressing at a reasonable pace right now," he said. Wieringa's security cooperation agency brokers government-to-government arms sales with 218 countries or entities. War is big business.

The United States may be the biggest arms merchant in the world but because of the embargo it is a relative new comer to the Libyan arms bazaar. It is scrambling to catch up. The European Union has gotten more of the business. In the two year built up to Gaddfi's massacre EU countries granted €687.6 million worth of Libya arms licenses. Belgium granted €18 million of licenses and Bulgaria €3.7 million. In 2009, the latest year for which we have figures, Malta shipped €79.7 million of small arms to Gaddfi's regime. Now the streets of Tripoli "are littered with the bodies of scores of protesters shot dead by security forces," and Malta is dealing with the blow-back of refugees trying to escape the hell that they so profitably helped to create. Belgian granted €4.4 million in permits for anti-personnel chemicals used to put down rebellions and Italy granted €2.6 million for bomb fuses, including improvised bomb fuses.

Italy was the leader in what is known in the arms industry as "big ticket items." Italy granted €107.7 million of licenses for military aircraft. Gaddfi is now using his military aircraft to slaughter unarmed demonstrators from above. France granted €17.5 million worth and Portugal €14.5 million. Portugal also granted €4.6 million of permits for drones.

In an effort to cover-up the massacre and stifle the opposition. Gaddfi has attempted to cut off all communications between Libya and the outside world including Internet, cell phones and even landlines. Internally he has been jamming the signals of Al Jareeza and other broadcasters. No doubt the €43.2 million in electronic jamming equipment from Germany and €20.7 million from England have been very helpful to him. Now as 10,000 or so EU citizens try to flee to safety, EU officials told EU Observer that their efforts to help them have been hampered by the jamming of mobile phone, Internet and GPS services by Gaddfi.

Knowing that there is big business in small arms, in 2008 Romania okayed the sale of 100,000 of them to Gaddfi, and while the UK did block the sale of 130,000 Kalashnikovs to Libya because they feared they would end up in Sudan.From U.S. state department cable dated 2008-08-18 out of the Tripoli embassy 08TRIPOLI650:
Comment: The fact that York Guns and GOL officials have been vague about the intended end-use of the 130,000 Kalashnikov rifles raises potentially troubling questions about the extent to which Libya is still involved in supplying military materiel to parties involved in the Chad/Sudan conflict. End comment.

The UK is certainly not missing this party. On his most recent trip to the Middle East, UK premiere David Cameron took along Ian King, the CEO of top British arms merchant BAe Systems and other executives from weapons producers Rolls Royce and Thames as part of his delegation.

We can expect to find out a lot more about US, UK and EU complicity with this massacre once Muammar Gaddfi is forced from power. As British journalist Robert Fisk wrote in the UK Independent last week "If what we are witnessing is a true revolution in Libya, then we shall soon be able - unless the Western embassy flunkies get there first for a spot of serious, desperate looting - to rifle through the Tripoli files ... and reveal some secrets which ... [the UK government] would rather we didn't know about."

In the light of these recent atrocities by Gaddfi, the Campaign Against Arms Trade is calling for an arms embargo against Libya. Campaign spokeswoman Sarah Waldron said
"Government ministers claim they wish to support open and democratic societies in the Middle East but at the same time are aiding authoritarian regimes and providing the tools for repression.

They don't just approve the sale of this equipment - they actively promote it.

There should be an immediate arms embargo - but more importantly we should be asking why these exports were ever licensed in the first place."

The US, the UK and the EU have a special responsibility for ending Gaddfi's violence against the Libyan people because it is their oil money that is paying for it. For four decades they took Libya's oil and they gave the money to Gaddfi knowing full well that it was not serving the people who were the true owners of the oil. Then they supplied Gaddfi with the weapons with which to maintain this robbery.

This is not a civil war that is happening in Libya. Very few Libyans will fight for Gaddfi. That is why he has to hire mercenaries. This is a massacre of a largely unarmed people by a small cliche around one madman that has been enabled by great power money for mercenaries and weapons. The true responsibility for this mass murder lies as much with these great powers as it does with the madman.



United States Rep. Curt Weldon (R, PA) shakes hands with Libyan leader Col. Muammar Gadhafi after their meeting in Sirte, Libya March 3, 2004. The Libyan leader said that Libya has turned the page on terror and weapons of mass destruction and seeks better relations with the United States. Other U.S. Congressman L-R: Rep. Sylvestre Reyes (D,TX), Weldon, Gadhafi, Rep. Nick Smith (R, MI), Rep. Solomon Ortiz (D, TX). (UPI Photo/Kenneth R. Timmerman)....Photo 100 - Weldon and Qaddafi: ..From left to right:

Here are the links to my articles at WL Central:
2011-02-13 Tales of Tyrants: Ben Ali, Mubarak & Suleiman
2011-02-12 Algeria Protesters Defy Ban, Demand Change
The Mubarak Screw Up & the Suleiman Danger
2011-02-10 Mubarak is Defiant
2011-02-10 Mubarak Expected to Step Down!
2011-02-09 The Google Search for Wael Ghonim
2011-02-08 The New Egyptian Normal: Thousands Demonstrate in Cairo, Alexandria
2011-02-06 Tunisia's Revolution Continues
2011-02-04 Tunisian Anonymous activists take on Egyptian cause
2011-02-04 Protesters roar back with "Day of Departure" for Mubarak
2011-02-03 Algerians plan Feb 12 protest against 19- year-long state of emergency
2011-02-01 Jordan's King Sacks Government as Protests Grow
2011-02-01 Tunisian Islamic Leader Returns as EU Freezes Ousted President's Assets
2011-02-01 Army Vows Not to Shoot as Protesters make Million Man Marches in Cairo, Alexandria Today [UPDATE: 2]
2011-01-30 Million Egyptian Protest Planned as Resistance Continues
2011-01-29 No Internet? No Problem! Anonymous Faxes Egypt
2011-01-28 In Jordan Thousands Demand New Government
2011-01-28 Mubarak Refuses to Step Down!
2011-01-28 Egypt is on Fire!
2011-01-27 Libya is in Revolt as Gaddafi Worries
2011-01-27 Algerians Plan Big Protest Rally for February 9th
2011-01-27 Tunisia Protests Continues as a Warrant is Issued for Ben Ali
2011-01-27 Tens of Thousands Rally in Yemen, Demand Change
2011-01-27 Mubarak Blinks as Egyptian Protests Continue for 3rd Day

North African Hacker Humor

Here is a recap of my other DKos diaries on the Internet, North Africa and Anonymous:
BREAKING: Mubarak is Defiant
The Google Search for Wael Ghonim
Tunisia's Revolution Continues
Google Goes Rebel, Supports Egyptian Protest
Tunisian Anonymous activists take on Egyptian cause

Act Now to Stop Mubarak's Thugs From Killing More! w Petition
Act Now to Stop Mubarak's Thugs From Killing More!
They Should Have Helped That Street Vendor
Million Egyptian Protest Planned as Resistance Continues
Huffington Post Disses the Jasmine Revolution Redux
No Internet? No Problem! Anonymous Faxes Egypt
Egypt is on Fire!
North African Revolution Continues
Egypt Protests Continue, Tunisia Wants Ben Ali Back
BREAKING: Protesters Plan Massive "Day of Wrath" in Egypt Today
Tunisians Thank Anonymous as North Africa Explodes
Huffington Post Disses the Jasmine Revolution
Tunisia: A Single Tweet Can Start A Prairie Fire!
Anonymous plans Op Swift Assist in Tunisia
Arrested Pirate Party Member Becomes Tunisian Minister
Is Libya Next? Anonymous Debates New Operation
Tunis: This Photo was Taken 66 Minutes Ago
The WikiLeaks Revolution: Anonymous Strikes Tunisia
EMERGENCY: DKos Must Act Now to Protect Tunisian Bloggers!
Free Software & Internet Show Communism is Possible
BREAKING - Digital Sit-Ins: The Internet Strikes Back!
Cyber War Report: New Front Opens Against Internet Coup d'état
Operation PayBack: 1st Cyber War Begins over WikiLeaks
The Internet Takeover: Why Google is Next
BREAKING: Goodbye Internet Freedom as Wikileaks is Taken Down
BREAKING NEWS: Obama Admin Takes Control of Internet Domains!
Things Even Keith Olbermann Won't Cover - UPDATE: VICTORY!!!
Stop Internet Blacklist Bill Now!
Sweet Victory on Internet Censorship: Senate Backs Off!
Internet Engineers tell the Senate to Back Off!
Why is Net Neutrality advocate Free Press MIA?
Obama's Internet Coup d'état
Julian Assange on Threat to Internet Freedom

Wednesday, February 16, 2011

Are "mutinous officers" are being executed in Egypt now?

That is the extremely troubling question that has been raised by an email that came my way this afternoon.

I seems that my earlier post Senior Egyptian Army Officers Ordered Massacre! here at the WikiLeaks Central has caught the attention the activists that are making the Egyptian revolution. About it, On Thursday, 17 February, 2011, 1:39 AM, Mona Knoleif wrote:
Could this be true? This is contrary to what I heard from people who assured me that the army was initially refusing to even deploy on the streets let alone fire at demonstrators. What I heard is that they only agreed to deploy if mubarak appoints a deputy, declares that he will not run again and replaces the government of businessmen who ran Egypt as if it were their own private business. After he did all that, the army agreed to deploy.
However, I do not trust the military one bit and this report is very very worrying.
The revolution still has a long way to go. We must all be very alert, very aware and not drop our guard for one minute.
I have also heard runours that so-called "mutinous officers" are being persecuted and may be even executed. HELP! URGENTLY!!
Please post this on April 6th, We are all Khalid Said etc as I do not have access to facebook right now and distribute as widely as possible.

I have heard nothing before about these terms or any terms being demanded by the army before it would deploy. But it was quite late in deploying and apparently these terms were met.

Most troubling is that Mona says "have also heard rumors that so-called "mutinous officers" are being persecuted and may be even executed."

These rumors, if true, certainly make sense if my interpretation of events on the night of January 30th in Tahrir Square is correct, but are much worst than my prediction that "the military dictatorship will quietly discipline and replace the mutinous officers and soldiers."

This email with the Subject: From Wikileaks re the Egyptian revolution URGENT

Tuesday, February 15, 2011

Algeria's 19 year long State of Emergency to end soon, President says

President Abdelaziz Bouteflika promised through official APS news agency that he would lift the state of emergency which has been in force for the last 19 years in Algeria "in the very near future," Government opponents, who have been inspired by the uprisings in Tunisia and Egypt have been pushing for its end. The promise to lift the banned on public demonstrations is seen as a bid stave off unrest.

Opposition groups in Algeria are calling a major protest on February 12 and they have recently made repeal of the emergency powers one of their main demands. As the anti-government forces in Tunisia have given an example, hundreds have been willing to publicly protest the ban on public gatherings in Algeria.

The state of emergency was imposed in 1990 after brutal fighting with Islamic fighters left tens of thousands dead but many people feel that the government's justification for holding such extraordinary powers has long pasted.

According to France24 Bouteflika told a meeting of ministers:
"In order to stop any unfounded speculation on this subject, I ordered the government to immediately draw up appropriate provisions which will allow the state to continue the fight against terrorism until its conclusion, and with the same effectiveness," the agency quoted him as saying.

Bouteflika said protest marches, banned under the state of emergency, would be permitted everywhere except the capital.

"The capital is an exception in this respect for well-known reasons of public order and certainly not in order to prevent any form of expression," he said.

Bouteflika also said the government should adopt new measures to promote job creation, and that Algerian television and radio, which are controlled by the state, should give airtime to all political parties, the official APS news agency reported.

Many rulers throughout North Africa and the Middle East are looking at the recent uprisings of the people in Tunisia and Egypt and taking steps to quiet the opposition in their countries. It remains to be seen if Bouteflika's promise will be kept.

And while the President has promised to lift the ban "in the very near future" the government warned on Wednesday that it would be in effect for the planned protest. The Washington Post reports:
Opposition leaders, human rights groups, unions, students and jobless workers are planning a march Feb. 12 in Algiers, the capital. They want the government to lift the state of emergency that has been in effect since 1992, end its ban on new political parties and generally be more transparent.

But Deputy Prime Minister Nouredine Yazid Zerhouni reminded organizers Wednesday that the march is "officially banned."
"Those who are calling for this march must take responsibility for damage or for things getting out of hand,"
Zerhouni told reporters, adding that the government had no plans to lift its state of emergency

So the stage is set for a revolutionary confrontation between the authoritarian Algeria government and it's freedom loving people on Feburary 12th.

A week ago we wrote of the Algerian opposition in:
2011-01-27 Algerians plan big protest rally for February 9

Here are the links to my articles at WL Central:
2011-02-13 Tales of Tyrants: Ben Ali, Mubarak & Suleiman
2011-02-12 Algeria Protesters Defy Ban, Demand Change
The Mubarak Screw Up & the Suleiman Danger
2011-02-10 Mubarak is Defiant
2011-02-10 Mubarak Expected to Step Down!
2011-02-09 The Google Search for Wael Ghonim
2011-02-08 The New Egyptian Normal: Thousands Demonstrate in Cairo, Alexandria
2011-02-06 Tunisia's Revolution Continues
2011-02-04 Tunisian Anonymous activists take on Egyptian cause
2011-02-04 Protesters roar back with "Day of Departure" for Mubarak
2011-02-03 Algerians plan Feb 12 protest against 19- year-long state of emergency
2011-02-01 Jordan's King Sacks Government as Protests Grow
2011-02-01 Tunisian Islamic Leader Returns as EU Freezes Ousted President's Assets
2011-02-01 Army Vows Not to Shoot as Protesters make Million Man Marches in Cairo, Alexandria Today [UPDATE: 2]
2011-01-30 Million Egyptian Protest Planned as Resistance Continues
2011-01-29 No Internet? No Problem! Anonymous Faxes Egypt
2011-01-28 In Jordan Thousands Demand New Government
2011-01-28 Mubarak Refuses to Step Down!
2011-01-28 Egypt is on Fire!
2011-01-27 Libya is in Revolt as Gaddafi Worries
2011-01-27 Algerians Plan Big Protest Rally for February 9th
2011-01-27 Tunisia Protests Continues as a Warrant is Issued for Ben Ali
2011-01-27 Tens of Thousands Rally in Yemen, Demand Change
2011-01-27 Mubarak Blinks as Egyptian Protests Continue for 3rd Day

North African Hacker Humor

Here is a recap of my other DKos diaries on the Internet, North Africa and Anonymous:
BREAKING: Mubarak is Defiant
The Google Search for Wael Ghonim
Tunisia's Revolution Continues
Google Goes Rebel, Supports Egyptian Protest
Tunisian Anonymous activists take on Egyptian cause

Act Now to Stop Mubarak's Thugs From Killing More! w Petition
Act Now to Stop Mubarak's Thugs From Killing More!
They Should Have Helped That Street Vendor
Million Egyptian Protest Planned as Resistance Continues
Huffington Post Disses the Jasmine Revolution Redux
No Internet? No Problem! Anonymous Faxes Egypt
Egypt is on Fire!
North African Revolution Continues
Egypt Protests Continue, Tunisia Wants Ben Ali Back
BREAKING: Protesters Plan Massive "Day of Wrath" in Egypt Today
Tunisians Thank Anonymous as North Africa Explodes
Huffington Post Disses the Jasmine Revolution
Tunisia: A Single Tweet Can Start A Prairie Fire!
Anonymous plans Op Swift Assist in Tunisia
Arrested Pirate Party Member Becomes Tunisian Minister
Is Libya Next? Anonymous Debates New Operation
Tunis: This Photo was Taken 66 Minutes Ago
The WikiLeaks Revolution: Anonymous Strikes Tunisia
EMERGENCY: DKos Must Act Now to Protect Tunisian Bloggers!
Free Software & Internet Show Communism is Possible
BREAKING - Digital Sit-Ins: The Internet Strikes Back!
Cyber War Report: New Front Opens Against Internet Coup d'état
Operation PayBack: 1st Cyber War Begins over WikiLeaks
The Internet Takeover: Why Google is Next
BREAKING: Goodbye Internet Freedom as Wikileaks is Taken Down
BREAKING NEWS: Obama Admin Takes Control of Internet Domains!
Things Even Keith Olbermann Won't Cover - UPDATE: VICTORY!!!
Stop Internet Blacklist Bill Now!
Sweet Victory on Internet Censorship: Senate Backs Off!
Internet Engineers tell the Senate to Back Off!
Why is Net Neutrality advocate Free Press MIA?
Obama's Internet Coup d'état
Julian Assange on Threat to Internet Freedom