Breakfast on Eternal Flame Sparks Anger in Kiev

John William Narins

Nationalists cooked breakfast on the sacred eternal flame marking the Soviet liberation of Kiev, sparking a scandal in the Ukrainian capital city.

Kiev police arrested 32-year-old Anna Donets this past week as a suspect in the protest at the city’s Park of Glory on Dec. 16. Four women gathered that day around the eternal flame that burns before the monument to the Soviet soldiers who died freeing Kiev from the Nazis. Then the women pulled out a pan and demonstratively used it to fry eggs and hot dogs.

On Tuesday, the press office of an extreme Christian nationalist party called “The Brotherhood” disseminated a link to a video of the event.

The party’s site says that “in prosecuting the girls who participated in this act the state is taking an expressly heathen, anti-Christian position, since the rituals of the Ukrainian state are the rituals of heathen cults — in particular, the placing of memorial wreaths by the Ukrainian president before the eternal flame at the Glory Monument in Kiev several times each year.”

The police have reported numerous outraged calls from people who viewed the video. An attempt to defile a monument to military glory and defense of a country evokes an outcry anywhere, of course. But the local situation is more complex.

The population of the Ukraine is split between ethnic Ukrainians and Russians, between speakers of Ukrainian and Russian. The monument is to Soviet soldiers, including both nationalities. As interpreted by extreme Ukrainian nationalists, the victory of the Nazis returned Ukrainians to their oppression by Russians.

The situation is compounded by the fact that for the countries of the former Soviet Union, as for much of Eastern Europe, World War II is not textbook history, but very much a matter of national pride and a continuing part of life. The war is often mentioned in the news, politicians remember it in their speeches, and it is celebrated ostentatiously on several holidays each year. Veterans are honored and receive special privileges.

The monument where the women demonstrated is a special place in Kiev. At its base is the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier. Leading up to it is the Alley of Heroes, lined with the graves of 34 Soviet soldiers. No one is buried in the tomb itself.

The video shows “a recipe for making eternal eggs.” The song “Once Again the Battle Continues,” recorded in 1974 by a Soviet pro-state pop singer, was added as background music. The end of the chorus is: “And Lenin is so very young, and a young October awaits!”

The women, whose faces are not hidden, came prepared with ingredients and a pan, which they display to the camera. As one of them holds the pan over the flame, police officers who were on duty near the memorial come over to talk to them. Apparently, the women were able to convince them that the action was no big deal. Soon, two more join in, cooking hot dogs on sticks.

The Brotherhood has pointed out to the press that Donets was arrested on Josef Stalin’s birthday, Dec. 21, making her “a victim of the spiritual executioner of the Ukrainian people.” According to reports, Donets is accused of violating Article 296 of the Ukrainian criminal code, which outlaws “hooliganism.” She could face three years in prison.

The police are still on the lookout for the three other participants. Two of the police officers on duty near the monument have been fired, according to reports, and three others have been subjected to disciplinary measures.

CIA Mouthpiece–Part II, Syed Builds on CIA Theme, “Al-Qaeda” Has Infested Quetta

[Here we have part II of Asia Times dispensation of latest dangerous CIA myth, that "Al-CIA-da" has established a "watershed" in the area around Chaman.  As with all CIA "Public Diplomacy" psyops such as this, the well-placed agency writer/patsies, like Syed Saleem Shahzad, follow the traditional tactic of citing his last installment as established fact and self-reinforcing proof of his latest claims.  His words gain credibility when unnamed "security officials" give unsubstantiated leaks that are echoed by current news reports--"al-Qaeda" captured in Chaman, coinciding with British press claims of Iran releasing "al-Q" leaders.  This tactic echoes the mind-bending techniques perfected in Oliver North, Wm. Casey and Otto Reich's Central American "Contra" deception operations.  They have been working on these techniques for a long time--I guess that is why it takes old researchers with long memories like Robert Parry to tie today's CIA deceptions with yesterday's CIA deceptions.

The following line gives away his entire deception, expressing truthfully what he and the spooks would like us to believe.]

“An indication of a strong pro-al-Qaeda LJ presence in the region shows a complete anti-thesis of the grand American designs for an endgame,”

[Keep in mind that the covert government has entrapped us in a Hegelian trap, intending to trick the American people and everyone else into embracing contradictory solutions.  Seen in this light, the CIA mouthpiece's words make it a little easier for us to understand what is going on.  If they want us to believe that "al-Qaeda" has established a beachhead near Quetta, then the opposite of that is the real truth--THERE IS NO ISLAMIST PRESENCE IN QUETTA, except for a few token "Islamists" imported into the area for publicity purposes, such as the alleged IMU terrorists also supposedly captured near Chaman, on the same day as Bugti's 12-16 vehicle convoy was busted allegedly importing heavy weapons.

The US Army/CIA must be getting desperate to attempt such a lame gambit, even though it probably will give them their objective, allowing military actions to flow from Kandahar  into Balochistan.  The flurry of Iran/al-Qaeda/IMU reports will increase and become blurred with those about Shahzain Bugti.]

CIA Mouthpiece Credits “al Qaida” With “Strategic Corridor” Idea

[For those of you who know the work of Asia Times reporter, Mr. Syed Saleem Shahzad (or his Agency counterpart, Mr. Michael Scheuer  SEE:  CIA Sees Dead People), you already know that he is used to introduce false narratives, the “official version” of planned events.  He previously outlined the “Taliban split” psyop that introduced the official story on the TTP to the world.

Now, Syed is setting us up for the next psyop, by introducing the concept of the “strategic corridor” into the media (SEE: ‘Final Solution’ Frenzy – Part Four: Final Solution for Pakistan), only he is doing his usual job of flipping the truth, making claims that it is “al Qaida” who has plans to occupy the western corner of Balochistan, setting us up by introducing the false plot line, in order to justify pursuit by the American/international coalition.

Balochistan: Al-Qaeda’s watershed in the region

A sudden surge in attacks on Afghanistan-bound (through the Chaman-Kandahar border crossing) North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) supplies, a hallmark of al-Qaeda and its allied groups, especially in the ethnically Baloch regions of Balochistan, forced decision-makers for the first time to rethink the serious penetration of al-Qaeda in the region that had been the domain and ownership of the indigenous Pashtun Taliban.

“This is evidence that the situation is clearly slipping out of control,” a senior security official told Asia Times Online. “There was a hope in the past that Pakistan could intervene and talk through the Taliban who run southwestern Afghanistan without any al-Qaeda influence, but if they have opened a theater in Balochistan, that means the situation is taking a new turn and the war theater will flare up.”

“An indication of a strong pro-al-Qaeda LJ presence in the region shows a complete anti-thesis of the grand American designs for an endgame,” the Pakistani security official said.

 

 

 

 

PAF Military Trainer Airplane Crashes Near “Beehive of Activity,” Chaman, Balochistan

[Normally, this would not rate as very newsworthy, but these are not normal times.  The war zone of Kandahar is in the process of "surging" across the border at Chaman, with recent stories of alleged weapons convoys being stopped, along with other stories about "al Qaida"/IMU terrorists being apprehended there, odds are, the military spotter plan was shot down.]

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Pak’s military trainer aircraft crashes; pilots killed

Islamabad, Dec 22 (PTI) A military trainer aircraft crashed while on a flight over a mountainous region in southwest Pakistan today, killing the pilot and co-pilot.

The Mushak aircraft from the Army Aviation Wing crashed in Muslim Bagh area of Balochistan province, the military said in a statement.

“The aircraft crashed due to technical fault,” it said. There were no reports of damage on the ground.

The army has formed a team of senior aviation officials to investigate the incident.

150 Taliban attack five militia posts, 35 killed in fighting

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News Desk

PESHAWAR: At least 11 soldiers and 24 militants have been killed in clashes near the Afghan border in north-west Pakistan, officials have said. About 150 Taliban launched co-ordinated attacks against five Frontier Corps checkpoints in Mohmand tribal region, they said. The Taliban said only two of their fighters had died. The military has launched offensives in the region in recent months, but insurgent attacks have continued. Amjad Ali Khan, administrator of Mohmand, confirmed that 11 soldiers had been killed following initial reports that three had died. He said 12 other soldiers had been injured. Mr Khan said the Frontier Corps paramilitary troops had “repulsed” the militant attacks in the Baizai area which began at 0200 local time. “The troops responded with artillery fire and raids by helicopter gunships, killing 24 militants,” he said. “Seven of their bodies are in our possession.” He said that the fighting ended later Friday morning. However, Sajjad Mohmand, spokesman for the Taliban in Mohmand, told the BBC that only two insurgents had been killed in the clashes. He said they had captured two soldiers alive and held the bodies of six others. Security officials have rejected the claim, saying no soldiers are unaccounted for. Mohmand is a transit point for insurgents crossing between Pakistan and Afghanistan and a stronghold of the Taliban and al-Qaeda. The BBC’s Aleem Maqbool in Islamabad says militants are proving that they can still carry out attacks, despite the military campaign against them. Earlier this month, a twin suicide bomb attack at a government compound in Mohmand’s main town of Ghalanai left 43 people dead. Local officials had been meeting tribal elders to discuss forming an anti-Taliban militia at the time of the blasts. In July, another twin suicide bombing attack, also targeting tribal elders, killed more than 100 people in the village of Yakaghund in Mohmand. Mohmand is one of seven Pakistani tribal areas. Pakistan has faced growing pressure from Washington to launch a major ground offensive in the tribal region of North Waziristan, considered a fortress for militants fighting US-led troops in Afghanistan. Islamabad has denied accusations that it is not doing enough to fight the Taliban in the restive north-west of the country. It says more than 2,400 Pakistani soldiers have been killed fighting Islamist insurgents since 2002. Pakistan supported the Taliban regime in Afghanistan from 1996-2001, but later became an ally of the US when it led an invasion in 2001.

Anti-Taliban Militias On Pakistan’s Front Lines, Using Own Guns and Ammunition

Anti-Taliban militias undeterred by bombs

Men remove debris a day after twin suicide bombings killed 43 people in the tribal district, attacking an anti-Taliban militia and pro-government elders. PHOTO:AFP

PESHAWAR: The leader of a tribal militia in northwest Pakistan, undeterred by a suicide bombing in the area a day earlier, said on Tuesday he was determined to fight off Taliban attempts to seize control of the region.

The bombers attacked the office compound of the top government official in the Mohmand region on Monday during a meeting on ways of strengthening the militias, known as lashkars. At least 40 people were killed and 60 wounded.

“Listen, we are not going to lay down our arms. We will not let the Taliban re-take control of our land. We will fight them,” vowed Dilawar Adezai, whose 1,200-strong militia is one of those set up to help the government fight militants.

Adezai was critical of the level of government support for the militias.

“The government doesn’t even pay for the bullets we fire. It’s very sad. Militants are better off than my men because they get arms and ammunition free and their families receive compensation if they get killed,” he said.

Cash-strapped Pakistan needs all the help it can get in the fight against al Qaeda-linked militants bent on destabilizing its US-backed government.

The army has launched several offensives against militants since last year. But its enemies often melt away when attacked, and suicide bombings persist, scaring away foreign investors needed for the fragile economy.

Pakistani authorities have been encouraging Pashtun tribesmen on the Afghan border to revive traditional militias to counter the rising militancy.

Under a centuries-old tradition, ethnic Pashtun tribes raise lashkars in their semi-autonomous regions to fight criminal gangs and enforce their tribal codes.

The Taliban have hit back by assassinating tribal elders and militiamen and carrying out suicide bombings.

“The Pakistani Taliban is very strong and we are not. There is no match. You have seen what they did with those who stood up against the Taliban,” said Aisamuddin Mehsud, a tribal elder in South Waziristan who resisted government pressure to form a lashkar.

The stakes are high. Some of the world’s most dangerous militant groups have bases and hideouts in the northwest tribal regions. The United States believes its war on militancy cannot be won unless Pakistan removes them.

“You cannot control such a large area for a long time with just soldiers and you have to push residents to take responsibility for the security of their village or town,” said a senior military official in the northwest.

“Tribesmen know their lives are at risk and militants will continue to attack them, but they have to fight for their survival.”

Mohammad Ali Haleemzai, who heads one of the tribal “peace” committees that oversee lashkar operations, seems determined to help keep the campaign going.

“I cannot bear to see my kids become militants or get killed in a bomb blast or fighting,” said Haleemzai, who was in the compound during the Mohmand attack. “This is for the peace. It is a battle for peace and security.”

Political analyst Hasan Askari Rizvi said the lashkar had helped the government prevent militants from returning to areas cleared by the military.

The militias, armed mostly with AK-47 assault rifles, conduct patrols and carry out raids with the police. But long-term success against militancy requires more than bravery.

“You have got to help tribesmen financially and militarily. Their areas need a lot of investments and development and if you don’t, you will lose their support, and that ultimately benefits militants,” said Rizvi.

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