Let’s Talk About Facts, Not Fear

It’s not just debt burdens that are problematic. ‘Rich’ countries in the West are also rapidly debasing their currencies, spawning tomes of regulatory impediments, restricting the freedoms of their citizens, aggressively expanding the powers of the state, and engaging in absurd military folly from Libya to the South China Sea. Once again, this is not the first time history has seen such conditions. In our own lifetimes, we’ve seen the collapse of the Soviet Empire, the tragi-comical hyperinflation in Zimbabwe, and the unraveling of Argentina’s millennial crisis. Plus we can study what happened when empires from the past collapsed. The conditions are nearly identical. Is our civilization so different that we are immune to the consequences?

Derivative Meltdown and Dollar Collapse

Nation states held hostage to financial manipulation are slaves to the central banks. With the demise of the Dollar, the fake debt obligations of the United States must be repudiated. Foreign states are prepared to sever their links to the Dollar reserve currency, by trading directly in the domestic currencies of other countries. Interacting commerce in Dollars with American companies will continue, but the yoke of Federal Reserve Notes legal tender will be rejected when the derivative meltdown explodes.

Central Banks Game Plan: One World Currency

Only those in total denial would claim that the world economies could grow their way out of the debt bubble. Mathematically, the rules of compound interest always destroy the purchasing value of fiat currencies. The era of zero interest rates will end. When the cost to finance debts reverts to normal levels, the bleeding will become a gusher. The world reserve currency status of Federal Reserve Notes will come under enormous pressure. As the central banks consolidate their control over international commerce and the economies of individual countries, the coin of the new realm will shift to a replacement for the U.S. Dollar

European Commission Single Supervisory Mechanism

The lack of enthusiasm for the latest effort to centralize all banking and monitory regulation within the European Central Bank suggests that the surreal struggle for continental unanimity still resides in the minds of banksters. Elites still seek to perfect the class distinguish of century old traditions, into a modern version of feudal serfdom. Globalism is the brainchild of the cabal of international banking. As long as a financial monopoly dominates political institutions, the end result will be more consolidation of the rule of the House of Rothschild.

The Financial Super-Storm of 2013

The destructive whirlwind that hits New York in 2013 will be a financial Frankenstorm. Four years of glorious central-planning “extend and pretend” have enriched the political and financial Aristocracies, and imbued them with a bubble-era hubris that they have indeed gotten away with murder: the $6 trillion the Federal government borrowed over the past four years, the Fed’s $2 trillion in fresh cash, the Fed’s $16 trillion bailout of the banking sector and various perception management manipulations have righted the storm-tossed ship. All those with power in 2008 remain in power and all those with outsized wealth in 2008 still hold their outsized wealth. The global tsunami of borrowed and printed money lifted the water-logged dinghies of the debt-serfs enough to give them hope of better times; meanwhile, their adjusted income has declined 8%: they are poorer while the neofeudal Aristocracy is much wealthier: same as it ever was, right? Except the financial tides and winds have shifted, and the linearity of central planning is about to be disrupted by nonlinear, positive-feedback storms. Let’s list a few of the major storms brewing

US will remain among top players by 2030: US Intelligence

Washington: The US will be the "first among equals" in a world not dominated by a hegemonic power as neither China nor India are likely to topple the American supremacy to create a new international order by 2030, the US intelligence believes.

"The replacement of the US by another global power and the creation of a new international order seem to be the least likely outcome in this time period. "No other power is likely to achieve such a role in the time frame under any plausible scenario," Christopher Kojm, Chairman of National Intelligence Council, told reporters at a news conference. Kojm was responding to questions after the release of 'Global Trend 2030' report of the National Intelligence Council (NIC). Mathew Burrows, Counselor to the NIC and author of the report insisted that Asian giants like China and India are unlikely to replace the US as the world power, because like Washington, Beijing or New Delhi do not have the capacity to form an international coalition or mobilise global opinion on any particular issue. "Well, the economy is one important factor in a country's power. And our main point here is that, the Asian powers... talking here about China and India -- don't have the means like the US does of really pulling together coalitions -- these are coalitions not only of states but also non-state actors -- in dealing with the global challenges. "So in that sense, the US is in a very unique role," Burrows said. He said broadening the definition of power beyond GDP and military spending, the US still in 2030 will stand "head and shoulders" above China, India and all other powers in the world. The US official, in response to another question, said that China is not going to replace the US on a global level. "Being a very large economic power is a very important component, but it isn't -- even if you look historically -- necessarily the largest economic power that always is the superpower. "Britain in the 19th century lost its primacy on the economic side well before the First World War and then the Second World War when it dropped, of course, from being that, the big hegemonic power," Burrows said. Particularly in this world, he said, looking at this growth in global challenges, the US is the only one who can mobilise its forces to deal with it. He said China itself says that it is not a peer competitor of the US. China, he said, cannot expect to actually play the role of organising across regions, non-state and state boundaries. "If you look in the regional section, we do talk about the potential for a lot more US-China competition. Again, you know, China is -- as we say -- the wild card. "Its actions itself can be its worst enemy, particularly if it becomes, as we've seen starting a couple of years back, a lot more aggressive in the neighbourhood, then actually is sowing a lot more support for a continued US role in the region," he said. Kojm said in the world of 2030 most European countries, South Korea and Taiwan and Japan, will have a median age above 45 and ageing countries will face an uphill battle in maintaining their living standards. So, too, will China, whose median age today is younger than that of the United States, but it will be higher than that of the United States by 2030. "Surging economic growth, dramatic power shifts, nationalism and aggressive military modernisation across Asia have amplified rather than diminished tensions and competition among the rising powers and with Japan," he said. "An increasingly multipolar Asia, which lacks a well - anchored regional security framework able to arbitrate and mitigate rising tensions, constitutes potentially a significant threat. China will need to transition to a more sustainable, innovation-based economic model if it is to remain a top-tier player in Asia. "Otherwise, the influence surrounding what has been its remarkable ascendance will dissipate," Kojm said.

Philippines typhoon toll tops 700, hundreds missing

Manila: The death toll from the strongest typhoon to hit the Philippines this year has climbed above 700 with hundreds more missing, many of them tuna fishermen feared lost at sea, the government said on Tuesday. Typhoon Bopha, which unleashed floods and landslides across the main southern island of Mindanao on December 4, has killed at least 714 people and obliterated entire communities, the civil defence office said. It said nearly 1,15,000 houses were destroyed and more than 1,16,000 people remain in crowded government shelters, where they face months of waiting for new housing to be built. A total of 890 people remain missing, but officials have said some of them could be among the 257 corpses that have been retrieved by rescuers but remain unidentified and unclaimed by relatives. The missing also include 313 deep sea fishermen who set off from the country's main tuna processing port of General Santos in Mindanao days before Bopha hit land, and were never heard from again. The United Nations launched an USD 65 million global aid appeal yesterday for the victims of the typhoon, the deadliest natural disaster in the Philippines since Tropical Storm Washi killed 1,200 people on Mindanao's north coast last year.

UK nurse Jacintha Saldanha who duped by Kate Middleton prank call, commits suicide

The King Edward VII Hospital in London has confirmed that the nurse who was the victim of a prank pulled by two Australian DJs about Kate Middleton’s heath status earlier this week has died.

She has been identified as Jacintha Saldanha, 46. Media reports are suspecting suicide, but no one has linked the death to suicide. Dr. Peter Carter, chief executive of the Royal College of Nurses in London, said it is “deeply saddening that a simple human error due to a cruel hoax could lead to the death of a dedicated and caring member of the nursing profession.” Saldanha, who was the one who took the call from the Australian radio personalities and transferred the call to the nurse’s ward where the Duchess of Cambridge was being treated for acute morning sickness. It was announced on Monday that Kate is expecting. On Friday, police in London responded to a call at 9:35 a.m. to reports of a woman found unconscious at a residence on Weymouth Street, in central London. The hospital provided those accommodations for her. Police say they are continuing to try to establish the circumstances of Saldanha’s death and a post-mortem was being arranged. “It is with very deep sadness that we confirm the tragic death of a member of our nursing staff, Jacintha Saldanha,” the hospital said in the statement Friday. Further to the statement, the hospital confirmed that Saldanha was the first person who answered the phone and transferred the call. The hospital confirmed that she was the victim of the hoax by Australian DJs Mel Greig and Michael Christian and that the hospital had been supporting her “through this difficult time.” LISTEN:Radio show makes crank call to hospital treating Kate Saldanha had worked at the hospital for four years and was “an excellent nurse and well-respected and popular with all of her colleagues,” the hospital said. The BBC reports Saldanha was married with two children. Believing that Prince Charles and the Queen were on the phone inquiring about Kate’s condition, private medical information was relayed in a severe breach of privacy. The BBC reported that Saldanha had not been suspended or disciplined by the hospital. John Lofthouse, chief executive at King Edward VII’s Hospital, said: “Our thoughts and deepest sympathies at this time are with her family and friends. Everyone is shocked by the loss of a much loved and valued colleague.” Said Lord Glenarthur, chairman of King Edward VII’s Hospital, said: “This is a tragic event. Jacintha was a first class nurse who cared diligently for hundreds of patients during her time with us. She will be greatly missed.” London police would not confirm details, but they say they are investigating the circumstances of a death of a woman at a central London residence. A Scotland Yard spokesperson told the Toronto Star that it is not being treated as suspicious. It is “unexplained,” the spokesperson said. William and Kate, the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge, reacted with sadness. St. James’s Palace spokesman Nick Loughran said in a statement: “The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge are deeply saddened to learn of the death of Jacintha Saldanha.” “Their Royal Highnesses were looked after so wonderfully well at all times by everybody at King Edward VII Hospital, and their thoughts and prayers are with Jacintha Saldanha’s family, friends and colleagues at this very sad time.” Some people on Twitter are blaming Australian DJs Mel Greig and Michael Christian at 2DayFM 104.1 for their prank call. “I hope the two people responsible for the prank that caused a woman to take her life are very proud of themselves!! Disgraceful!” one Twitter user commented. However, some on Twitter were calling for calm. “Surely it's a bit knee jerk to lay the blame at the two dj's” one person tweeted. Their Twitter accounts have been deleted. Southern Cross Austereo, the media and entertainment company that operates the radio station, said in a statement that “(SCA) and 2Day FM are deeply saddened by the tragic news of the death of nurse Jacintha Saldanha from King Edward VII’s Hospital and we extend our deepest sympathies to her family and all that have been affected by this situation around the world.” The company’s CEO Rhys Holleran has spoken with the presenters and “they are both deeply shocked and at this time we have agreed that they not comment about the circumstances.” The hosts have decided that they will not return to their radio show until further notice “out of respect for what can only be described as a tragedy.” The family of Saldanha issued a brief statement calling for privacy so they can grieve. “We as a family are deeply saddened by the loss of our beloved Jacintha,” the statement read, according to the BBC. Little so far is known about the victim. The Daily Mail found a former neighbour who described her as a “nice, lovely lady.” The Mail reported that the neighbour lived next door to Saldanha, her two sons and partner Benedict Barboza — known as Ben — at an address in Bristol several years ago.

Hassan Rasouli’s end-of-life case in the hands of the Supreme Court

A faint smile flickers over Hassan Rasouli’s face when family members update him on their landmark legal fight to keep him on life support. Or, at least, so the Rasouli family believes. “We reassure him everything is going well,” said his 29-year-old daughter, Mojgan. “My father has become a representative of the value of life. ” But on the other side of a chasm that divides the family from the medical team at Sunnybrook Health Sciences Centre that keeps Mr. Rasouli alive, doctors see a man with no quality of life and no hope of recovery. To them, Mr. Rasouli’s facial movements are involuntary and mechanical; they believe there is no realistic course of treatment to offer, aside from a dignified death. The result is a clash between deeply religious Islamic family members who believe life must be maintained at all costs, and a medical team that believes keeping Mr. Hassan alive borders on torture. Two critical-care physicians at Sunnybrook, Brian Cuthbertson and Gordon Rubenfeld, have taken the case to the Supreme Court of Canada. On Monday, the court will hear arguments in the precedent-setting battle. When it releases its ruling, likely several months from now, it could decide that doctors are free to withdraw life support unilaterally. Alternatively, the court could say the wishes of a patient and his family are paramount. Or, the court could opt for a middle road, giving the last word to a board of neutral arbiters. Lawyers who work with mentally disabled or elderly clients are looking to the Supreme Court to bring clarity to an uneven, emotionally fraught area of law. Jan Goddard, a Toronto lawyer who specializes in the field, said there has been a strong move in recent years for people to create documents expressing their wishes for when they would want to be taken off life support if they are ever incapable of deciding themselves. Ms. Goddard said the Sunnybrook case could throw a wrench into these efforts. “Termination of treatment that supports life is probably the issue most commonly raised by clients making advance directives,” she said. “I wonder what those conversations might be like between lawyer and client – or a person and his or her substitute decision-maker – if the court agrees with the doctor’s position that consent is not required?” Doctors and legislators also hope the court decision will provide much-needed guidance for dealing with people whose brains or minds have been irretrievably damaged. “Every single intensive-care unit has at least one patient who is not benefiting from being kept alive,” said Mark Handelman, a Toronto lawyer who represents families and doctors in end-of-life cases. “Listen, I understand why politicians aren’t debating this – nobody wants another abortion-type debate,” Mr. Handelman said. “But we have to address it. Frankly, I think this debate is going to make the abortion debate look like a Tuesday tea party.” Patients who are in a state of severe brain deterioration, he said, cause moral distress to both medical staff and family members who are trying to do the right thing. “Those beds cost roughly a million dollars a year, and we have an aging population of yuppies with a great sense of entitlement to everything – including health care,” Mr. Handelman added. The clash of interests has been coming for a long time. Medical science can slow the process of death in ways that were once inconceivable. At the same time, ever-more-sensitive instruments can detect minute variations in the brain activity of deteriorating patients. The two advances have collided, creating pressure to keep patients on life support based on their faintest responses to stimuli. Anand Kumar, a Winnipeg physician with experience in end-of-life treatment, said it is theoretically possible to conduct one organ transplant after another, and hook patients up to a succession of machines that remove fluids, cleanse blood and replace failing processes indefinitely.

UN climate conference throws Kyoto Protocol a lifeline

Almost 200 nations extended on Saturday a weakened UN plan for fighting global warming until 2020, averting a new setback to two decades of UN efforts that have failed to halt rising world greenhouse gas emissions. The eight-year extension of the Kyoto Protocol beyond 2012 keeps it alive as the sole legally binding plan for combating global warming. But it was sapped by the withdrawal of Russia, Japan and Canada, so its signatories now account for only 15 per cent of global greenhouse emisions.

“I thank you all for good will and hard work in moving the process forward,” conference president Abdullah bin Hamad Al-Attiyah said as he banged down his gavel repeatedly on a package of decisions at the end of marathon talks. But Moscow’s delegate Oleg Shamanov said that Russia, along with Belarus and Ukraine, opposed the decision to extend the Kyoto Protocol beyond 2012. Russia wanted less stringent limits on unused carbon emissions permits, known as hot air.

A package of decisions, known as the Doha Climate Gateway, would also postpone until 2013 a dispute over demands from developing nations for more cash to help them cope with global warming.

All sides say the Doha decisions fell far short of recommendations by scientists for tougher action to try to avert more heatwaves, sandstorms, floods, droughts and rising sea levels. The draft deal would extend the Kyoto Protocol for eight years. It had obliged about 35 industrialized nations to cut greenhouse gas emissions by an average of at least 5.2 per cent below 1990 levels during the period from 2008 to 2012.

Kyoto would have expired at the end of 2012 without an extension. The United States never ratified it and its main backers are the European Union and Australia. The two-week UN meeting in the Qatari capital had been due to end on Friday but the talks went on into Saturday evening. World carbon dioxide emissions are set to rise by 2.6 per cent this year, and are more than 50 per cent higher than in 1990. Recent growth has come mostly from emerging nations, led by China and India.

DR Congo rebels push forward

M23 rebels march on strategic eastern town of Bukavu after seizing provincial capital of Goma earlier this week.

"President Museveni and President Kagame made it clear that even if there were legitimate grievances by the mutinying group known as M23, they cannot accept the expansion of this war," the statement added. They also cannot "entertain the idea of overthrowing the legitimate government of the DRC, or undermining its authority." Earlier on Wednesday, thousands of government soldiers and police in the DR Congo surrendered to rebels at a stadium in Goma, the main city in the eastern North Kivu province. Troops hand over weapons to the M23 rebels A rebel group seeking to overthrow the Congolese government has focused its aim on seizing the strategic eastern town of Bukavu, which would mark the biggest gain in rebel territory in nearly a decade if it were to fall. The fighters, believed to be backed by neighbouring Rwanda, already have seized the provincial capital of Goma this week and later took the nearby town of Sake on Wednesday. The violence has forced more than 100.000 people to flee, more than half of whom are children, according to the UN children's agency. While they have vowed to overthrow President Joseph Kabila's government, they remain some 1.600km from the capital of Kinshasa in a country of dense jungle with few paved roads. Meanwhile, hundreds of Congolese soldiers who had retreated from Goma days earlier were holed up in Minova, a lakeside city on the road to Bukavu. "We are waiting for orders, but they haven't come yet. We're hungry and have spent five days sleeping in the bush under the rain," said a Congolese army major who spoke on condition of anonymity because of the sensitivity of the matter. Marching on After capturing Goma on Tuesday, the rebels advanced onto the town of Sake on Wednesday. They now say they are preparing to march into Bukavu, the other major city on the border with Rwanda. The M23 then plans to head to Kisangani, and onto the capital Kinshasa. The drive by the rebels was causing some fear in other parts of the country, Al Jazeera's Haru Mutasa reported from Kinshasa. "People are very very nervous about what will happen … and the fact that the army doesn't seem to be in control of the east of the country," she said. Al Jazeera's Nazanine Moshiri reported from a camp near Goma, where 19.000 families had arrived in recent days. "They don't have enough food, they don't have enough shelter for them," she said. Fighting continued not far from the camp, she said, in the town of Sake. The rebels were told to pull out a day after they captured the city, in a joint statement released on Wednesday in the Ugandan capital Kampala after DR Congo President Joseph Kabila met his Rwandan and Ugandan counterparts, Paul Kagame and Yoweri Museveni, to resolve the crisis in Goma. "M23 must immediately stop [its] offensive and pull out of Goma," the three presidents said in the statement. "A plan to this end is being communicated to them," the statement said. The United Nations accuses Rwanda of backing M23 fighters who now control the key eastern town of Goma and take their name after a peace agreement they signed with the Congolese government on March 23, 2009. Kigali denies the charges and Uganda has also dismissed accusations it has aided the rebels. Rwanda for its part accuses Kinshasa of renewing co-operation with Rwandan rebels based in eastern DR Congo. 'Causes of disturbances' "The government of the DRC, on its part, has made a commitment to look expeditiously into the causes of disturbances and address them as best they can," the statement added, read out by Ugandan foreign minister Sam Kutesa. Al Jazeera's Nazanine Moshiri reported on "extraordinary scenes", as the security officers came to hand in their arms. "[The surrendered officers] didn't have a choice," she said. The soldiers were told they had a choice either to have peace in the city, or to leave the city, she said. M23 seized Goma on Tuesday, in a development that raised fears of a new, regional conflict. The capture of the city came after days of fighting with government troops. The peacekeepers were not helping the government forces during Tuesday's battle because they do not have a mandate to engage the rebels, said Congolese military spokesperson Olivier Hamuli. Our correspondent said people appeared to be frustrated with what they see as the UN's lack of action in protecting them from rebel groups. According to a UN official, protesters were throwing stones and burning tires at the premises MONUSCO, as the peacekeeping force is known, in at least three cities on Wednesday. Peacekeepers were on alert and UN staff were re-grouping at secure locations as a precautionary measure, the spokesman said.

International law, the Gaza war, and Palestine's state of exception

Israel's latest assault on Gaza has no legal basis as an occupying power and constitutes a set of war crimes.

Israel also advances novel interpretations of IHL in order to project the legitimacy of dubiously legal or patently unlawful practices in its fight against Palestinian resistance to occupation in all its manifestations. Israel's consistent position over the decades that Palestinian resistance is "terrorism" and that they have no right to fight for freedom extends to the interpretation that Israel's own conduct is not tightly regulated by IHL when engaged in a war against terrorists. However, the Geneva Conventions are considered customary international law, and therefore apply any time and place and on any parties who use armed force to wage war on enemies. Although Hamas' indiscriminate rocket attacks against civilians violate international law, Israel as a de facto occupying power has special obligations in regards to the Gaza Strip and West Bank [GALLO/GETTY] The large-scale military assault launched by Israel on Gaza, and the manner in which both Israeli and Palestinian forces are fighting this war, raise numerous red flags regarding large scale violations of human rights and international humanitarian law (IHL). Such violations have long characterised the Israeli-Palestinian conflict; yet despite post-Cold War improvements in the enforceability of international criminal law, in the Israeli-Palestinian context those who perpetrate human rights violations and war crimes seem largely immune to legal accountability. Certainly, international law offers no panacea for the death and destruction of war; nor does most media coverage of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict devote more than the scantiest attention to the human rights implications of such violence. International law does, however, provide the most important standard against which the conduct of opposing sides can be judged. Such judgments have political currency, if not during the heat of battle then later. As Gaza-based human rights campaigner Raji Sourani described it in the midst of the current violence, human rights is the "skin" to protect civilians from the all-out aggression of those who attack them. International law impacts the present war in Gaza in two key ways. One pertains to whether the violence deployed by each side complies with or violates IHL, in particular the Geneva Conventions of 1949 and their Additional Protocol I of 1977. The other, more complicated issue pertains to the legal status of Gaza and its relationship to Israel, which profoundly affects what kind of violence Israel can deploy there. Since the 1967 conquest of Gaza and the West Bank, Israel has asserted that the Geneva Conventions do not apply to these areas or govern Israel's conduct toward Palestinian inhabitants on several grounds, including that Palestinians are not a High Contracting Party (state signatory). However, the International Committee of the Red Cross, the official guardian and authoritative interpreter of IHL, has consistently maintained that the Fourth Geneva Convention, which governs militarily captured territories and their civilian population, is applicable. This view is endorsed by a vast preponderance of international legal opinion, including United Nations resolutions and the opinion of the International Court of Justice.

Many blame politicians for funnelling money to paramilitary groups at the expense of creating an army and police force

Moataz Billah has just signed a contract to become a member of Libya's fledgling army Moataz Billah wears military fatigues, carries an AK-47 and lives with his comrades in what was once an army barrack. He dropped out of school in his early teens, and says playing a small part in the Libyan revolution gave him a new sense of purpose in life. “I want to become a professional soldier,” he said. Like tens of thousands of young Libyan men who took up arms during last year's uprising against long-time ruler Muammar Gaddafi, the 18-year-old has been waiting for the chance to join an army that is yet to materialise. Many blame the National Transitional Council (NTC) - the body that stepped in to run the country after Gaddafi's ouster - for allowing the national police and army to fall by the wayside. In a country where leaders have historically accentuated regional divides to reinforce their own power, many Libyans believe that politicians have funnelled money to whichever militias served their private interests. For the many Libyans frustrated by the security vacuum, their government’s inability to prevent the killing of the popular US ambassador Christopher Stevens and three of his staff in the city of Benghazi last month was the last straw. Popular anger over the lack of government leadership on security and the rule of law, along with the ongoing impunity of the militias, prompted 30,000 people to take to the streets of Benghazi on September 21. And hundreds of ordinary Libyans have voluntarily handed in their weapons at collections organised over the weekend. Spurred by the protests, President Mohammed el-Megarif, head of the General National Congress (GNC) that took over from the transitional government in August, has promised Libyans that empowering the army and police force is his government’s biggest priority. Waiting for an army Even before the September 11 attack on the US consulate in Benghazi, there were some signs that the new government has already been more proactive than the NTC had been. In early September, Billah signed a contract with the defence ministry. He is now a state employee, and will begin receiving a monthly salary of 900 Libyan dinars ($720) a month. Graffiti in Benghazi warns Libyans of the dangers weapons can be in the hands of the untrained [Yasmine Ryan/Al Jazeera] Billah is a member of the Libya Hourra militia, one of the many militias led by former army officers who defected to fight against Gaddafi. Abdul Wahid Wanis, a captain in Libya Hourra who first joined the Libyan army in 1980, said that the authorities had turned their backs on the many professional army officers who defected to join the revolution, and the many unemployed young men like Billah who were eager to become soldiers. “We have capable people who already had a lot of military experience, and we have new soldiers eager to get more training,” Wanis said. “Most of the people who participated in the revolution were uneducated and unemployed,” he said, arguing that the military offered a rare opportunity for disenfranchised young men to contribute to the new Libya. Nationalising the militias gives young men like Billah the opportunity to serve their nation, rather than tribal or regional interests, he said. It also delegitimises those militias, normally from a non-military background, that have attempted to define themselves as religious guardians, as well as those which have become rogue criminal gangs. Not every militia member aspires to join the security forces. Many have little faith in the national government, and relish the power that owning weapons gives them. Matthew Van Dyke, an American who fought with the Libyan rebels last year, said that many former fighters see their weapons as an insurance policy in case the national government veers off the path of democracy. “Some of those weapons they paid for in money, and some of them they paid for in blood, they will not give them up,” he said. “It’s hard for a guy who’s been working at a café his whole life to go back to working in that café again after he has been driving around with a Kalashnikov in a pickup truck. But that doesn’t mean he wants to go join the army.” In the eyes of the protesters in Benghazi, these men risk posing a longterm threat to the government, particularly when some of them have been allowed to become more powerful than the national security forces. History of distrust Libya's ex-ruler, King Idris I, was deeply wary of the armed forces he forged in the 1950s. He kept the forces weak and divided, creating paramilitary units he believed would be more loyal. That was not enough to protect him from the 1969 coup led by a young Gaddafi. Deeply distrustful of the “treacherous” officers who had helped him come to power, Gaddafi carried out extensive purges, killing or arresting everyone above the rank of colonel. Gaddafi made a watchdog paramilitary force of his own, the Revolutionary Guard. Viewed as the most ideologically loyal to Gaddafi and made up of men hand-picked from his birthplace of Sirte, it was charged with indoctrinating and spying on the rest of the armed forces.

Faraj al-Deirsy, head of Benghazi police, shot dead in the latest attack on Libyan security officials

There have been dozens of attacks on members of the Libyan security forces throughout 2012 [AFP] A top security official in the eastern Libyan city of Benghazi was killed in front of his home overnight, security officials have said, in the latest violence to plague the city. Faraj al-Deirsy, head of Benghazi police, died from multiple gunshot wounds, police and interior ministry sources said on Wednesday. "This happened in front of his house when unknown attackers opened fire and hit him before fleeing," a police source said. An interior ministry official confirmed that Deirsy, in charge of security in Benghazi, had been killed. Libya has been hit by persistent instability since the overthrow of Muammer Gaddafi last year. Authorities are still trying to disarm numerous groups, mostly militias who took part in the uprising, who refuse to lay down their weapons. Wednesday's incident was one of a number of attacks in Benghazi, where local groups have also staged protests demanding more powers for eastern Libya and objecting to what they say is the central authorities' neglect of the region. In September, the US ambassador to Libya and three other Americans were killed in an attack on the US consulate in Benghazi, the cradle of Libya’s revolt that began in February 2011.

Movement for Oneness and Jihad in West Africa says it is punishing France for intervening in Malian security affairs.

Groups linked to an offshoot of Al-Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb (AQIM) control large swathes of northern Mali A Malian group calling itself the Movement for Oneness and Jihad in West Africa (MUJAO) has claimed responsibility for the kidnapping of a French citizen two days ago. Abu Walid Sahraoui, spokesperson for MUJAO, one of the groups occupying northern Mali, said on Thursday: "We claim responsibility for the kidnapping of the Frenchman in south-western Mali near the Mauritanian border." The group said it would post a video of the hostage shortly. Gilberto Rodriguez Leal, 61, was kidnapped on Wednesday and it was reported he was being held by jihadists, without specifying which armed group had him in their possession. The kidnapping of Leal, who was born in Portugal but holds French citizenship, brings to 13 the total number of people held by force in the West African country. Seven of these are French nationals. MUJAO, which describes itself as an offshoot of Al-Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb (AQIM), has not provided details on its demands in exchange for the hostage. "With God's blessing, the mujahedin are holding a Frenchman, whose country wants to lead armies against the Muslim people," Abdoul Hicham, a top MUJAO leader, told the AFP news agency. France has been instrumental in drafting a UN Security Council resolution adopted last month which paves the way for the regional bloc ECOWAS to send troops to Mali to try to wrest control of the country's northern region from the fighters. Mauritania's national news agency ANI reported that Leal was kidnapped on Tuesday night in the town of Diema in the western Kayes region bordering Mauritania and Senegal. But French sources said he was kidnapped in Nioro, further north. Regional security sources told AFP that the hunt for Leal and his kidnappers was underway on Thursday. "The search is continuing. Mali is in contact with its neighbours, especially Mauritania where the kidnappers could take the hostage before returning him to northern Mali," a security official told AFP on condition of anonymity. Fighters linked to al-Qaeda took the entire north of Mali, an area the size of France or Texas, in the wake of the March 2012 coup. They have since enforced a brutal form of sharia law, sparking fears the region could become the Afghanistan of Africa, with fighters carrying out Taliban-stlye attacks beyond Mali's borders. Western governments, fearing they could become targets of the group, are backing regional plans for a military force to intervene in Mali and reclaim control of its north. French foreign minister Laurent Fabius said on Thursday more still needed to be done before troops are deployed. "We are not there yet," he told BMFTV. "Malian forces must first be reconstituted and neighbouring countries must provide elements. This is a matter that is first of all up to the Africans." He added that the French government had intelligence that the hostage Leal was still alive.

U.S., Japan start joint military drills amid China tensions

The U.S. and Japan have begun joint military exercises, amid simmering tensions with China over disputed islands in the East China Sea, BBC News reported. At least 47,000 personnel will take part in the biennial Keen Sword exercise, which runs until 16 November. It is taking place off Okinawa, north of islands both Japan and China claim. The two sides are locked in a diplomatic row over the islands, known as Senkaku in Japan and Diaoyu in China. Japan controls the islands, which Taiwan also claims. The Japanese government's acquisition of three of the islands from their private Japanese owner in September sparked both diplomatic and public protests in China.

Since then ships from both China and Taiwan have been sailing in and out of waters around the islands. The Japanese coast guard on Sunday reported that four Chinese ships were once again spotted in the area. The two countries have held three rounds of talks since the row erupted, Japan's Kyodo news agency reports, with the latest taking place in Wuhan in China. The two sides agreed to hold more talks at vice-ministerial level, the report said. A U.S. statement gave few details of the exercises but said it aimed to "improve interoperability required to effectively defend Japan or respond to a crisis in the Asia-Pacific region". The drills were originally supposed to have seen U.S. and Japanese troops carrying out a mock invasion of an uninhabited island off the southern coast of Japan. In the end, it was decided that this was a bit too provocative to China. In recent weeks China repeatedly has hit out at the plan to hold the exercises. On Monday, Nov 5, a front-page commentary in state-run People's Daily Overseas Edition did not refer to the drills, but criticized the U.S. for its stance over the territorial dispute. The U.S. could not claim to be neutral on the issue while it confirmed its defense commitment to Japan, the paper said, adding that "strategic mistrust" between the countries involved could be intensified.

The Mystery of Arafat’s Death

The body of the late Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat is set to be exhumed on November 26, eight years after his death, as part of an investigation to see if he was murdered, a diplomat said on Monday, Nov 5, according to Reuters. Two senior Swiss forensic experts are already in the West Bank to discuss plans for the exhumation, which is complicated on a technical, legal and political level.

A French court in August opened a murder inquiry into Arafat's death after a Swiss institute said it had discovered high levels of radioactive polonium on the Palestinian leader's clothing, which was supplied by his widow, Suha. Allegations of foul play have long surrounded Arafat's demise. French doctors who treated him in his final days said they could not establish the cause of death. Suha has said she believes he was poisoned and has requested the exhumation so that samples can be taken from Arafat's body to see whether polonium is present. A European diplomat said French magistrates were due to travel to the Israeli-occupied West Bank later this month, with November 26 seen as the likely date for the body to be removed from its limestone mausoleum. Two senior employees of Switzerland's Lausanne University Hospital have travelled to Ramallah and are working closely with the Palestinian Authority and French judicial authorities, said hospital spokesman Darcy Christen. "We have sent our best experts for final consultations," Christen told Reuters. "Scientifically it would still be a viable operation if carried out before the end of November." Eight years is considered a limit to detect any traces of the deadly radioactive substance, according to the Swiss Institute of Radiation Physics, which is part of the public hospital.

The two experts are Patrice Mangin, chief forensic scientist at the hospital, and Francois Bochud, head of the institute. "Their on-site mission is in order to have final consultations so that we can all take a final decision," Christen said. "It is to do the fine-tuning. Things are going rather well." It is still not clear if other members of Arafat's family have given their approval for an exhumation and, with time running out, there is widespread skepticism in the West Bank as to whether his body will ever be removed from the mausoleum. No autopsy was carried out when Arafat died, aged 75, in keeping with his widow's original request. He had been effectively confined by Israel to his compound for two and a half years before flying to France for emergency medical care.

Two Iranian warships docked in Sudan on Monday

Two Iranian warships docked in Sudan on Monday, Iran’s official IRNA news agency reported, less than a week after Khartoum accused Israel of attacking an arms factory in the Sudanese capital. Two people were killed after fire broke out late on Tuesday at the Yarmouk arms factory in the south of Khartoum. Sudanese Information Minister Ahmed Belal Osman said four military planes attacked the Yarmouk plant and Israel was behind it. Asked by Israel’s Channel Two News about Sudan’s accusations, Israeli Defence Minister Ehud Barak said: “There is nothing I can say about this subject.”

IRNA said the helicopter carrier Khark and the destroyer Shahid Naqdi were carrying “the message of peace and friendship to neighbouring countries and were ensuring security for shipping lanes against marine terrorism and piracy”. Iran’s semi-official Fars news agency said the vessels docked in Port Sudan on the Red Sea and the fleet’s commanders were scheduled to meet Sudanese navy commanders.

Also on Monday, a fresh fire broke out at the Yarmouk compound, sending white smoke into the air, two witnesses said. Sudan’s armed forces spokesman was quoted in state media as saying the fire was caused by the spread of flames into different parts of the complex and not by any “hostile action”. Sudan, with close ties to Iran and Sunni jihadis, has long been seen by Israel as a conduit for weapons smuggled to the Hamas-ruled Gaza Strip, via the Egyptian Sinai desert. In May, Sudan’s government said one person had been killed after a car exploded in the eastern city of Port Sudan. It said that explosion resembled a blast last year it had blamed on an Israeli missile strike. Israel declined to comment on the May incident or the 2011 blast, which killed two people. It also neither admitted nor denied involvement in a similar incident in eastern Sudan in 2009.

Iran said in June it had plans to build more warships and increase its presence in international waters, particularly to protect its cargo ships around the world. Pirates in the Gulf of Aden in January hijacked an Iranian ship carrying 30,000 tonnes of petrochemical products to a North African country.

President Barack Obama and Republican challenger Mitt Romney sprinted to an unpredictable finish in the last 48 hours

CONCORD, N.H. -

President Barack Obama and Republican challenger Mitt Romney sprinted to an unpredictable finish in the last 48 hours of a close White House race on Sunday, trying to turn out supporters and woo undecided voters in a handful of toss-up states. The two rivals crisscrossed the country on the next-to-last day of a campaign that polls show is deadlocked nationally, although the president appeared to have a slight edge in the swing states that will decide who captures the 270 electoral votes needed to win on Tuesday.

After months of sometimes bitter attacks and saturation advertising in pivotal states, Obama and Romney pressed their arguments that they offer the best solution to a weak economy and partisan gridlock in Washington.

The two also made direct appeals for votes in a race that may come down to which side does the best job of getting its supporters to the polls. “It’s up to you. You have the power,” Obama told a crowd of more than 14,000 people who filled the downtown streets of Concord, New Hampshire. “You will be shaping the decisions for this country for decades to come, right now, in the next two days.”

In Iowa, Romney urged more than 4,000 people in a Des Moines hall to get out and vote - and convince undecided or former Obama supporters to back him while they are at it. At a later stop in Ohio, he said, “Let’s make sure that we get everyone to the polls.” Romney, the former governor of Massachusetts, renewed his argument that he is the candidate who can offer change and reach out to the opposition party to craft bipartisan agreements. “Accomplishing real change is not just something that I talk about. It’s something that I’ve done,” Romney told supporters in Des Moines. “And it’s something I’m going to do when I am president of the United States.”

Many polls show Obama with a slight but persistent lead in Ohio, Wisconsin, Iowa and Nevada - states that would give him more than the 270 electoral votes he needs, barring any surprises elsewhere. “It’s really a game of inches. It’s extremely close, but things look pretty optimistic for Obama, I would say, if you do the electoral math,” Ipsos pollster Julia Clark said.

A Reuters/Ipsos poll of four pivotal states showed Obama and Romney essentially tied in Florida and Colorado, with Obama holding a statistically meaningless lead in Virginia of 1 percentage point. But in crucial Ohio, Obama had 48 percent to Romney’s 44 percent. “Looking over the last few days, Ohio does seem to be more comfortably on the Obama side,” Clark said. The outcome of Tuesday’s vote will impact a broad range of policy issues facing the president and Congress, including the looming “fiscal cliff” of spending cuts and tax increases that will kick in at the end of the year if a deal cannot be reached.

Thorny foreign challenges such as how to handle Iran’s nuclear ambitions and the Syrian conflict await the winning candidate. Control of Congress is also at stake on Tuesday, with Democrats now expected to narrowly hold their majority in the Senate and Republicans favored to hold control of the House of Representatives. OBAMA’S SWING STATE EDGE Republicans said they see hope in early voting in key states, which mostly shows Democrats casting more early ballots but not at the pace that Obama set in his victory in 2008 over Republican John McCain by 7 percentage points. “What we’re seeing consistently ... is that there is a general underperforming in places where President Obama needs to do well and there’s an over-performing in places where Governor Romney does well,” Romney’s political director Rich Beeson said on “Fox News Sunday.” Obama campaign adviser David Axelrod said Obama’s early leads in states like Nevada, Iowa and the vital swing state of Ohio would hold up on Election Day, even if he does not repeat the size of his victory in 2008. “I’m not suggesting we’re going to win by the same margin we won in 2008. They are comparing themselves to John McCain, who had virtually no ground operation in many of these states,” Axelrod said on “Fox News Sunday.” “So, yes, they are going to do a little better than McCain did, and we may not do as well as we did in 2008, but we’re doing plenty well - and well enough to win this race,” he said. Obama and Romney made stops on Sunday in Ohio, perhaps the most important swing state. As Romney’s plane arrived at the Cleveland airport on Sunday, Air Force Two carrying Vice President Joe Biden was leaving. Ohio is particularly critical for Romney. If he loses the state, he would need a breakthrough in another state where polls currently show him trailing. That reality helped fuel Romney’s stop in Democratic-leaning Pennsylvania, where polls show the race has tightened but Obama still leads. “The people of America understand that we are taking back the White House because we are going to win Pennsylvania,” he told a raucous outdoor rally in the suburbs of Philadelphia, where a crowd estimated at 30,000 had waited hours to see him on a cold evening.

Romney advisers say the trip to Pennsylvania, where Romney only started advertising last week, was a sign of his momentum. “The map has expanded,” Romney senior adviser Ed Gillespie said on ABC’s “This Week” program. “We have been able to expand into Pennsylvania while fully funding and staying current with everything we need to be doing in Florida and Virginia and Ohio.” The Obama camp said the Pennsylvania move was a sign of desperation from a campaign that realizes it cannot win enough electoral votes in the battleground states it has been contesting. “This is a desperate ploy at the end of a campaign. To win Pennsylvania, Governor Romney would have to win two-thirds of the independents. He is not going to do that,” White House senior adviser David Plouffe said on ABC. Both candidates were getting plenty of help in the late stages from their running mates, Biden and Wisconsin congressman Paul Ryan. Obama also got help at his New Hampshire rally from popular former President Bill Clinton. Ryan joined fans holding tailgate parties outside a Green Bay Packers football game in Wisconsin, then visited Minnesota - another Democratic-leaning state where Romney is making a late play. While campaigning in Ohio, Biden joked that the end of Daylight Savings Time in the United States on Sunday was Romney’s favorite day because he could officially turn back the clock.

The U.S. soldier accused of carrying out one of the worst atrocities of the Iraq and Afghanistan wars

The U.S. soldier accused of carrying out one of the worst atrocities of the Iraq and Afghanistan wars was appearing in a military courtroom today, where prosecutors will lay out their case that he killed 16 people, including children, during a predawn raid on two villages in the Taliban's heartland. Staff Sgt. Robert Bales, a married father of two, is accused of slipping away from a remote outpost in southern Afghanistan early on March 11 with an M-4 rifle outfitted with a grenade launcher to attack the villages of Balandi and Alkozai in Panjwai district of Kandahar Province. Nine of the dead were children, and 11 were members of the same family. Six others were wounded, and some of the bodies were set afire. Bales faces 16 counts of premeditated murder, plus other charges of attempted murder, assault and using steroids. Today marks the start of a preliminary hearing before an investigative officer charged with recommending whether Bales' case should proceed to a court-martial. Part of the hearing will be held overnight to allow video testimony from witnesses in Afghanistan. "This hearing is important for all of us in terms of learning what the government can actually prove," said Bales' attorney, John Henry Browne. Bales, 39, joined the Army in late 2001 after the 9/11 attacks and as his career as a stockbroker imploded. He was serving his fourth combat tour after three stints in Iraq, and his arrest prompted a national discussion about the stresses posed by multiple deployments. Another of his civilian attorneys, Emma Scanlan, declined to say to what extent the lawyers hope to elicit testimony that could be used to support a mental-health defense. Bales himself will not make any statements, his lawyers said, because they don't think he would have anything to gain by it. During such hearings, defendants have the right to make sworn or unsworn statements. Making a sworn statement opens the defendant to cross-examination by the prosecutors. No motive has emerged. Bales' wife, Karilyn, who plans to attend the hearing, had complained about financial difficulties on her blog in the year before the killings, and she had noted that Bales was disappointed at being passed over for a promotion. Browne has also said that Bales suffered a traumatic incident during his second Iraq tour that triggered "tremendous depression." Bales remembers little or nothing from the time of the attacks, his lawyers have said. Testimony from witnesses, including an estimated 10 to 15 Afghans, could help fill in many of the details about how prosecutors believe Bales carried out the attack. American officials have said they believe Bales broke the slaughter into two episodes — walking first to one village, returning to the base and slipping away again to carry out the second attack. Some witnesses suggested that there might have been more than one killer. Browne said he was aware of those statements but noted that such a scenario would not help his client avoid culpability. Bales, who spent months in confinement at Fort Leavenworth, Kansas, before being transferred to Lewis-McChord last month, is doing well, Scanlan said. "He's getting prepared," she said, "but it's nerve-wracking for anybody."

Iran and North Korea Sign Tech Agreement To Produce ‘iPhone Killer’

PYONGYANG, NORTH KOREA (The Global Edition) – Iran and North Korea signed a scientific and technological cooperation agreement Saturday, in an effort to join the brightest minds from both countries and to create a smartphone that will finally topple iPhone from its throne, reports Gizmodo. According to pictures coming from military satellites, Iranian state owned tech company AAK, best known for their efforts to compete on the nuclear market, is already said to be working with North Korea’s only company, government-run “Kim LCC” to produce the new smartphone labeled by dictatorships’ experts as “the iPhone killer” and appropriately named ‘iPhoneKilla’. Setting up joint scientific and technological laboratories, exchange of scientific teams between the two countries, and the transfer of technology in the fields of handheld devices is already underway, local sources report. Iranian state TV did not provide further details on the upcoming device, but said it will feature a bigger, brighter screen with both a touchpad and a physical keyboard, rounded square corners, preinstalled applications, and “other neat stuff”. Leaked satellite image of iPhoneKilla sketch This technical accord between Pyongyang and Tehran is likely to raise suspicions in the West, where the general public doubts anyone could make a device “as sweet” as the iPhone. Apple has frequently accused North Korea of providing Iran with advanced portable computer technology capable of targeting Western European geek markets. Last year, Iran denied a TechCrunch report that said that North Korea and Iran appear to have been regularly exchanging sketches of the mobile device, brainstorming icon design ideas, and high resolution screen materials. Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei told Kim, the North Korean Chairman of the Presidium of the Supreme People’s Assembly, that North Korea and Iran have “a common enemy in Apple’s best-selling product.” Iran and North Korea’s joint effort smartphone would use the operating system “Leader”, developed in Iran in the last decade of Ayatollah’s rule. The only North Korean company “Kim” will be in charge of making the hardware for the upcoming device, The Global Edition has discovered. In a recent blog post about the countries’ plans, Gizmodo’s Sam Biddle wrote, “Nobody thinks Iran and North Korea can pull off a real smartphone, but we have to wait and see. If they succeed in their intentions, they will effectively kill the Samsung Galaxy too, because it’s basically the same thing as the iPhone.” According to rumors from Iranian tech community blogs, the price of the new device will not exceed 1,200,284.0000 Iranian rial (12,975,200 North Korean won). This is not the first time that Iran and North Korea were expected to team up. Last year, espionage analysts revealed that the two countries may be developing a tablet together, with the aim to make it affordable to third world countries

Iran and North Korea Sign Tech Agreement To Produce ‘iPhone Killer’

PYONGYANG, NORTH KOREA (The Global Edition) – Iran and North Korea signed a scientific and technological cooperation agreement Saturday, in an effort to join the brightest minds from both countries and to create a smartphone that will finally topple iPhone from its throne, reports Gizmodo. According to pictures coming from military satellites, Iranian state owned tech company AAK, best known for their efforts to compete on the nuclear market, is already said to be working with North Korea’s only company, government-run “Kim LCC” to produce the new smartphone labeled by dictatorships’ experts as “the iPhone killer” and appropriately named ‘iPhoneKilla’. Setting up joint scientific and technological laboratories, exchange of scientific teams between the two countries, and the transfer of technology in the fields of handheld devices is already underway, local sources report. Iranian state TV did not provide further details on the upcoming device, but said it will feature a bigger, brighter screen with both a touchpad and a physical keyboard, rounded square corners, preinstalled applications, and “other neat stuff”. Leaked satellite image of iPhoneKilla sketch This technical accord between Pyongyang and Tehran is likely to raise suspicions in the West, where the general public doubts anyone could make a device “as sweet” as the iPhone. Apple has frequently accused North Korea of providing Iran with advanced portable computer technology capable of targeting Western European geek markets. Last year, Iran denied a TechCrunch report that said that North Korea and Iran appear to have been regularly exchanging sketches of the mobile device, brainstorming icon design ideas, and high resolution screen materials. Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei told Kim, the North Korean Chairman of the Presidium of the Supreme People’s Assembly, that North Korea and Iran have “a common enemy in Apple’s best-selling product.” Iran and North Korea’s joint effort smartphone would use the operating system “Leader”, developed in Iran in the last decade of Ayatollah’s rule. The only North Korean company “Kim” will be in charge of making the hardware for the upcoming device, The Global Edition has discovered. In a recent blog post about the countries’ plans, Gizmodo’s Sam Biddle wrote, “Nobody thinks Iran and North Korea can pull off a real smartphone, but we have to wait and see. If they succeed in their intentions, they will effectively kill the Samsung Galaxy too, because it’s basically the same thing as the iPhone.” According to rumors from Iranian tech community blogs, the price of the new device will not exceed 1,200,284.0000 Iranian rial (12,975,200 North Korean won). This is not the first time that Iran and North Korea were expected to team up. Last year, espionage analysts revealed that the two countries may be developing a tablet together, with the aim to make it affordable to third world countries

US Navy Successfully Tests New Anti-Ballistic Missile over Pacific

The latest upgrade to America’s primary defense against a missile attack from belligerent enemies, assuming one ever launched a ballistic missile against the US, has successfully destroyed a test missile off the coast of Hawaii this week, writes Robert Beckhusen for Wired News. The Raytheon-built Standard Missile-3 interceptor is key to the next phase of an anti-missile shield being built by the United States in and around Europe, Pentagon’s Missile Defense Agency (MDA) announced. “Initial indications are that all components performed as designed,” the agency said in a statement. The Pentagon plans to deploy increasingly capable SM-3 versions up to around 2020 to boost defenses against missiles that could be fired by enemies, specifically at this time, Iran and North Korea. According to the MDA, the test involved a short-range target missile launched on Wednesday from the military’s Kauai-based Pacific Missile Range. The target missile then flew over the Pacific Ocean, where it was tracked by the Aegis cruiser USS Lake Erie, and was then destroyed in mid-flight with a “kinetic” interceptor launched from the ship, “using only the force of a direct impact,” the Pentagon’s statement read. That means the test missile was brought down by blunt-force trauma, writes Robert Beckhusen for Wired News. Raytheon was happy with the results, telling David Wichner of the Arizona Daily Star, “Obviously, we’re very happy and pleased – it was a great day not only for Raytheon, but for the whole industry-government team,” explained Wes Kremer, vice president of Air and Missile Defense Systems for Raytheon. “The [interceptor] does not have a warhead. It’s a kill vehicle, and it maneuvers into the path of the threat, and the threat is destroyed by the kinetic energy of the impact,” Kremer told Beckhusen. “So there’s no warhead, it can’t be a near miss, and then it blows up; so it’s literally a skin-to-skin contact between the kill vehicle and the target.” The interceptor had failed to knock out its target in its maiden intercept test in September, leading to a continuing delay in Raytheon’s production, writes Wichner. The interceptor is due to be deployed on land in Romania by 2015 in the second stage of President Barack Obama’s “phased adaptive” approach to missile defense. It will also be used on ships equipped with Lockheed Martin’s “Aegis” anti-missile combat system. The Aegis system, named after the mythological shield carried by Zeus, ties together sensors, computers, displays, weapons launchers and weapons. A total of 27 specially equipped Aegis warships are set up for ballistic missile defense – 23 in the US Navy and four in the Japanese Maritime Self-Defense Force. What makes this intercept device different from its predecessor is a device called a two-color infrared seeker, which expands the interceptor’s range and helps it find its target more quickly. This is also more maneuverable, owing to “a more flexible throttleable divert and attitude control system” according to the Pentagon statement. As of right now, the SM-3 system and its planned follow-up, the SM-6, have further upgrades in store and are also expected to be installed on more ships like the Lake Erie and the USS Monterrey, currently deployed to the Mediterranean with the SM-3 interceptor missiles on board, reports Jim Wolf for Reuters. By 2020, the upgrades should have progressed to the point to be able to stop intercontinental missiles. Two more tests for the Block 1B are scheduled for later this year and with the near-inevitability of some kind of missile defense shield over Europe implemented in the coming years, the systems better work.

Who Was The Best James Bond?

The Gold Standard: In NPR's survey, most readers chose Sean Connery (above, in Goldfinger), as the best James Bond. Daniel Craig placed second in our survey. It's official: Sean Connery IS James Bond, according to NPR readers who weighed the question this week. The final results show that

, the spy known for his playfulness, his ruthlessness — and his ability to look good in a suit. Today marks the Bond film franchise's 50th anniversary. Six actors have played James Bond in the Eon Productions films that began in 1962, when Connery established the role in Dr. No. He went on to star in six of the first seven Bond films. And more than 50 percent of those who voted think that he made the most of his head start. "Sean Connery," commented reader Pops Parker, is "the clear number one. There is humanity behind the noble facade and the man has an unassuming style." Several others who wrote in followed Connery's name with "of course" — suggesting it's a no-brainer that the man who first immortalized the line "Bond... James Bond" and romped with Ursula Andress and Honor Blackman made the role his own. Who Was The Best James Bond? (Closed) Sean Connery

Sean Connery 56.3% (9,902 Clicks) Daniel Craig

Daniel Craig 27.81% (4,892 Clicks) Pierce Brosnan

Pierce Brosnan 8.17% (1,437 Clicks) Roger Moore

Roger Moore 5.27% (927 Clicks) Timothy Dalton

Timothy Dalton 1.3% (228 Clicks) George Lazenby

George Lazenby 1.15% (203 Clicks) Total: 17,589 "Certainly Sean [Connery]

was a fantastic first Bond,

" says Michael G. Wilson, step-son of original Bond film producer Albert "Cubby" Broccoli, in an interview with Morning Edition's David Greene. "He really set the bar, and everyone else has to measure up to that." Eon Productions, the company that Broccoli co-founded to produce the James Bond films, is now run by Wilson and his step-sister, Barbara Broccoli. The company will soon release its 23rd Bond movie. The current Bond, Daniel Craig, placed a strong second in our survey, with more than a quarter of the votes. Many readers said they like the intensity and the humanity they feel in Craig's portrayal. And for both Craig and Connery, some folks just admit to being enthralled by their good looks and effortless cool. Craig was praised for bringing "Bond back from the dead," as Mark Novak wrote, after Pierce Brosnan's run ended with 2002's Die Another Day. And he did it in Casino Royale, a box office hit that retraced Bond's origins and revived the edge and sophistication that marked Connery's best films. Many voters said Craig's mix of strong acting skills and "physical prowess" won them over. But others docked him a few points because he doesn't share the tall and dark-haired physical traits of the other actors. At 5 feet 10, the blue-eyed and blond-haired Craig is the only Bond to stand less than 6 feet 1. But to NPR reader Brim Stone, Craig's appearance helps to put him ahead of the others — because he is "by far the least concerned with the condition of his hair." Some readers who sided with Connery added that they expect Craig to strengthen his position as more viewers see him in the role. He returns as Bond in Skyfall, which has its U.S. debut in November. Many readers who prefer Pierce Brosnan's portrayal point to his charm, his good looks, and his ability to pull off action scenes like the fencing duel in Die Another Day. Others find him too "suave." But it's indisputable that when GoldenEye was released in 1995, Brosnan breathed fresh life into a franchise that had lain dormant for six years — the longest gap in the Bond films. And it should be noted that if Brosnan hadn't been attached to the NBC TV series Remington Steele in 1987, he would almost certainly have been the Bond who followed Moore. Famously, the burst of publicity over his looming choice as 007 led TV executives not to kill the show, and Brosnan's contract required him to turn the role down. If that hadn't happened, Brosnan might have reached his reported goal of appearing in six Bond films, instead of four. And his case as the best Bond could have been that much stronger. Timothy Dalton and Roger Moore provoked some of the most polarized responses, with Dalton alternately praised for the light-hearted The Living Daylights and shunned for the "disturbingly vicious" License to Kill, to quote commenter David Brown. Impressions of Moore seem to depend on which phase of his career is being considered. Is he the 1970s box office power behind Live and Let Die and The Spy Who Loved Me, or the 58-year-old who chased Grace Jones around Paris in A View to a Kill in 1985? "Roger Moore played the role for too long," wrote Sarah Rasul, boiling down the sentiments of several voters. And perhaps he did. But Moore also set the record for starring as James Bond — an apt seven times. (Connery also played the role seven times, but one of those was the not-quite-official Never Say Never Again, a 1983 remake of his own Thunderball). With the metal-toothed Jaws as his recurring nemesis, Moore put a sense of humor and fun into the role that, for better or worse, made Bond more approachable. Armed with two of the most agile eyebrows ever captured on film, Moore often seemed to invite his audience in on the fun. His successor, Timothy Dalton, brought more subtlety to the role, along with a focus that leads many fans to see his two films as a crucial transition phase. A commenter who wrote in as "Stanford White Cat" says that Dalton, an accomplished stage actor, got Bond back on track from being a "gadget toting womanizer" to the more complex character of an elite spy. Fans of the Ian Fleming novels that introduced the Bond character seem particularly likely to endorse Dalton, thanks to his no-nonsense approach. But Dalton didn't get a chance to build a true body of work, as he appeared in fewer Bond films than anyone except George Lazenby. And then there was one. What to say about George Lazenby? He had the tough job of following Sean Connery, who had become so identified with James Bond that he stepped away from the role to avoid being typecast. After a gap of only two years, the Australian Lazenby stepped into the breach. And 1969's On Her Majesty's Secret Service didn't grab the fans — or the money — that its predecessors had. As perhaps the most athletic Bond, Lazenby had no trouble with the role's physical demands. But his voice was dubbed in sections of the film, and he decided before its debut that he didn't want to continue in the role. Today, Lazenby seems to benefit from fans who are either suckers for an underdog, outright revisionist, or Australian. At 30, he was the youngest actor to play Bond. For our survey, Lazenby figures in one of the funniest comments. It came from Dave J, who wrote, "A vote for lazenby is like a vote for ralph nader." But the remark didn't impress Lois Immerman, who responded with "Two words: BOBSLED CHASE; Lazenby is the MAN." While our informal survey might not have settled this question for all time, it has at least put the actors into perspective, and into a rough pecking order. Each of them have their good points, as our more open-minded readers note. And all of them were at the mercy of the moviemakers behind their projects. Many readers say that the films featuring Connery and Craig benefit from having the best scripts and the strongest cinematography. As Donald Westrich notes, "I never thought I'd say it, but Craig by a nose over Connery.... thanks to the script writers for Casino Royale II, which allowed Craig to invest the Bond character with a depth earlier portrayers never had a chance to explore, even if they'd been capable of doing so." Each Bond film also reflects its era, from the neato gadgetry of the 1960s to the cheesey indulgence of the 1980s. In the 21st century, producer Barbara Broccoli says, Craig "has allowed the audience into Bond's inner life. Into the complexities, the conflicts that Bond expresses in the novels." Spanning 50 years, the Bond films have served as landmarks in many viewers' lives. And their appreciation for the actors who played 007 sometimes changed over the years, as well. As reader Will Wood put it, "I grew up with Moore, and I liked him until I turned twelve, then I saw Connery and he clearly reset the bar for me. When I was in my twenties I decided to read the books, and I have to say, the Ian Fleming character is a restless, angry, violent, heavy drinking, barely in control, and deeply cynical spy fully aware that his license to kill is also a license to be killed." The resourceful and volatile spy portrayed in Fleming's books is also the character that the current version of Bond aspires to, Broccoli says. "And that Bond is, yes, a lot darker," she says, "but he also has vulnerability." Note: Our informal survey was restricted to actors who portrayed Bond in the widely seen Eon/Broccoli-produced films.