Bathiudeen Slaps PRECIFAC, Appoints Tainted Officer To Top Post At Ministry

November 28, 2015

In a shocking case showcasing gross abuse of ministerial powers, Lanka Sathosa Chief Engineer K Ariyawansha, whose services was terminated over a multi-million rupee fraud has been re-appointed to a top-post in the Industry and Commerce ministry by minister in charge of the subject Rishard Bathiudeen.

Minister Bathiudeen

Lanka Sathosa too comes under the same ministry. Ariyawansha has been appointed as a senior consultant to the ministry.

The Presidential Commission of Inquiry to Investigate and Inquire into Serious Acts of Fraud, Corruption and Abuse of Power, State Resources and Privileges (PRECIFAC), which investigated the scam of over Rs 20, 000 million in Lanka Sathosa ordered Ariyawansha to be sacked and also to keep him out of employment from any state institution in the future.

Despite this order he has been recalled to duty by Industry and Commerce Minister Rishard Bathiudeen and Ministry Secretary T N Tennakoon. He has been appointed to a top post in the ministry.

A group of Sathosa employees last night petitioned the PRECIFAC against the minister’s decision to recall Ariyawansha.

Auditors and senior officers of Sathosa in a petition to the commission stated that Ariyawansha had been involved in several financial frauds at Lanka Sathosa which was proved during presidential commission’s investigation.

Instead of filing action against Ariywansha who was under an affiliated institution under the Industry and Commerce Ministry, Bathiudeen has re-appointed him directly to the ministry staff.

Sathosa officials now say that Ariyawansha is resorting to threats against Sathosa officers who gave evidence before the commission in connection with the case.Read More

Four women Mahinda most disliked

Mahinda incurred heavy expenditure to create a rift between the then United States Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and Samantha Power working through Lobby Ford entity in the United States and win over Clinton. Mahinda was told by his Advisors on Foreign Affairs and International Relations that during the 2008 election campaign of Barack Obama Samantha Power had described Hillary as a monster and had insulted Hillary noting there was a rift between Samantha and Hillary.

by Upul Joseph Fernando 

(November 27, 2015, Colombo, Sri Lanka Guardian) A glance to the past of Mahinda Rajapaksa’s Presidency that spanned nearly a decade would reveal that there were four female names he mostly disliked. The first of that four was Chandrika Kumaratunga. The second was United States Ambassador to the United Nations Samantha Power. The third was United Nations Human Rights Commissioner Navi Pillay. The fourth was former United States Ambassador to Colombo Michele J.Sisson. Of the four, Mahinda mostly hated or disliked Samantha Power. Whenever Mahinda met with his Cabinet colleagues he used to repeat, “That thin woman in the White House is the person who is creating all these problems for me”.

Mahinda incurred heavy expenditure to create a rift between the then United States Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and Samantha Power working through Lobby Ford entity in the United States and win over Clinton. Mahinda was told by his Advisors on Foreign Affairs and International Relations that during the 2008 election campaign of Barack Obama Samantha Power had described Hillary as a monster and had insulted Hillary noting there was a rift between Samantha and Hillary.

So Mahinda waited till a battle erupted between Samantha and Hillary, but it never occurred. Thereafter, Mahinda pinned hopes on Hillary’s successor John Kerry. Kerry told the Senate that Sri Lanka would get pushed to the lap of China if the United States proceeded with war crimes charges against the South Asian island nation and also stated in a report that such a stance would be detrimental to the interests of the United States. What Mahinda gathered from that situation was that Kerry would overpower Samantha’s powers.

Whatever Mahinda dreamt and thought, Samantha Power was not ready to loosen her grip on Sri Lanka. The United States Ambassador Michele J. Sisson who was in Colombo at that time acted on the instructions of Samantha Power. At the time, the United National Party (UNP) experienced division and tension and with the late Sobhitha Thera creating a climate to introduce a common candidate to establish a just society, Michele J.Sisson visited the Naga Viharaya to meet Sobhitha Thera. The incumbent President Maithripala Sirisena was recognized for his services as Health Minister by the Harvard University under a USAID Programme and awarded a Harvard accolade when Michele was the US Ambassador in Colombo. When Mahinda announced the conducting of a Presidential Election, Michele left Colombo to work as the second-in-command to Samantha Power. Today she is the US Deputy Ambassador to the United Nations.

Samantha Power visited Colombo in 2010 and met Mahinda. She told him to draw up a mechanism to probe war crimes in the country. Mahinda started to hate her from that point. Thereafter, United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon’s Panel visited Colombo to investigate war crimes allegations. The UN Resolution against Sri Lanka on war crimes surfaced during the period Mahinda was trying to gather China and Russia to halt such exercise. While American Experts claimed that Mahinda’s popularity was increasing in the face of a war crimes resolution against the island nation, Samantha Power executed her agenda in Sri Lanka through Michele.

Rev. S.J. Emmanuel 

When the all-powerful Samantha Power visited Sri Lanka this week, Mahinda was just an ordinary Member of Parliament. Moreover, the Government had lifted the ban on eight Tamil Diaspora Organizations to coincide with Power’s visit. These Tamil Diaspora Organizations had dealings with Power in the past. The Rajapaksa Government banned these organizations being jubilant over Indian Congress Government’s refusal to grant the visa to Rev. S.J. Emmanuel who headed the largest Tamil Diaspora Organization. However, just two months before the last presidential election, the Spokesman for the Global Tamil Forum visited India. That was after Narendra Modi’s Bharatiya Janata Party assumed office.

Mahinda’s ouster and the de-proscription of Tamil Diaspora Organizations by the Maithri-Ranil Government is a victory for Samantha Power’s agenda. When civilians were massacred in Sri Lanka, the United States maintained silence being unable to halt the war. Power had to embrace that defeat. Hence in 2010 Power arrived in Colombo as a defeated character. However, this time she arrived in Colombo with a victory smile.

Crimes OIC arrested on bribery charge remanded

November 28, 2015

The officer-in-charge (OIC) of the Crimes Unit of the Narahenpita Police Station who was arrested for soliciting a bribe of Rs 2.5 million has been remanded till November 30 after being produced before court. 

The police officer was arrested by sleuths of the Commission to Investigate Allegations of Bribery or Corruption yesterday at around 3.30pm yesterday (27) in the Kohuwala area. 

The Crimes OIC had requested for the bribe from a doctor in order to refrain from lodging a case against the latter regarding a certain transgression.

He was arrested upon accepting the sum of Rs 2.5 million.      

Head of Dialog, called to the CID

Nov 28, 2015

Reports reaching us from police headquarters confirm that the CID is trying to take legal action against the chief executive officer of the Dialog Company and the Director General Dr. Shridhar Saaripuththa Hans Wijesuriya alleged for hiding evidence.

During the investigation of the murder of Wasim Thajudeen the CID focused its attention to the mobile conversations and it was revealed that it was the Dialog Company which has issued many sim cards to the alleged perpetrators.
 
Although the CID has requested the required data from the Dialog Company, so far the dialog has failed to provide. The CID has demanded these caller communication data during the 2012 period.
 
Mobitel & Etisalat
Apart Dialog the CID found sim cards issued by Mobitel & Etisalat companies and reports reaching us confirm that both the companies have provided those details to the CID. The Dialog Company has told the CID that since these data’s has been deleted from their database and they don’t have a way to retrieve and provide those. Despite Mobitel and Etisalat has provided these data to the CID a doubt has emerged why dialog could not provide these. Due to this problem the CID is unable to continue the investigation forward.
 
Hans’s father in law
The father in law of Hans Wijesuriya, Sunimal Fernando was serving as a consultant to the former president Mahinda Rajapaksa. Due to this both Hans Wijesuriya and Sunimal Fernando were great allies of the former president.
 
The former president’s son Namal’s name was also dragged into the murder of Wasim Thajudeen. The CID has focused its attention that Dialog failing to provide data was due to the relationship between Hans Wijesuriya and the president’s consultant.
 
Statement given by Hanz
When we inquired Hans Wijesuriya that can his company provide caller data of the sim card owned by the Dialog Company he said if a written request is made his company can provide these data. When we questioned Hans Wijesuriya why your company failed to provide the mobile caller data, he said that in order to give those data we need the telephone number of the person who called. After getting the number he said he would take action to provide those through his media secretary.
 
However following that there were no more calls from them he said.

Tahir Elci: Kurdish lawyer shot dead in Turkey

Published on Nov 28, 2015

Channel 4's Foreign Affairs Correspondent, Jonathan Rugman, sat down with Kurdish lawyer Tahir Elci on October 24th. Elci died after being shot during a press conference today.

Tahir Elci: Kurdish lawyer spoke of death threats

SATURDAY 28 NOVEMBER 2015

Channel 4's Foreign Affairs Correspondent, Jonathan Rugman, sat down with Kurdish lawyer Tahir Elci on October 24th. Elci died after being shot during a press conference today.

Edward Snowden meets Arundhati Roy and John Cusack: ‘He was small and lithe, like a house cat’

The Indian novelist recalls an extraordinary encounter in a Moscow hotel with the NSA whistleblower

Arundhati Roy with Edward Snowden and John Cusack. Photograph: Ole Von Vexhull

Roy with (from left) Daniel Ellsberg, Edward Snowden and John Cusack. Photograph: Courtesy of John Cusack

Edward Snowden-Talk to me: a conversation special-Saturday 28 November 2015

The Moscow Un-Summit wasn’t a formal interview. Nor was it a cloak-and-dagger underground rendezvous. The upshot is that John Cusack, Daniel Ellsberg (who leaked the Pentagon Papers during the Vietnam war) and I didn’t get the cautious, diplomatic, regulation Edward Snowden. The downshot (that isn’t a word, I know) is that the jokes, the humour and repartee that took place in Room 1001 cannot be reproduced. The Un-Summit cannot be written about in the detail that it deserves. Yet it definitely cannot not be written about. Because it did happen. And because the world is a millipede that inches forward on millions of real conversations. And this, certainly, was a real one.

Edward Snowden Meets Arundhati Roy and John Cusack ‘He Was Small and Lithe, Like a House Cat’ by Thavam Ratna

The U.S. Air Campaign in Syria Is Suspiciously Impressive at Not Killing Civilians

The Pentagon says it has killed 20,000 suspected Islamic State fighters, with only two cases of collateral damage. Something doesn’t add up.

BY MICAH ZENKO-NOVEMBER 25, 2015

To intensify the U.S.-led coalition’s war against the Islamic State, also known as ISIL, the Pentagon is considering further loosening the rules of engagement (ROEs) that are intended to minimize civilian casualties and expanding the target sets that can be bombed. On Nov. 19, Secretary of Defense Ashton Carter told MSNBC that the U.S. military was “prepared” to change the ROEs, and indeed the following day it was reported that the coalition was seeking to increase airstrikes by “changing a policy to protect against civilian casualties in Islamic State-held territory.” The prospect of more bombs being dropped on more Islamic State-connected targets was also endorsed this past week by presidential candidates Hillary Clinton, Donald Trump, and Chris Christie.

Although largely missed by the presidential candidates, the ROEs against the Islamic State have already been significantly relaxed. The week ending on Nov. 17 was the most intensive seven-day period of airstrikes — with 980 bombs dropped — since Operation Inherent Resolve (OIR) began in August 2014, according to U.S. Central Command (Centcom). Moreover, OperationTidal Wave II — an escalating series of strikes against Islamic State-controlled oil infrastructure — now includes the bombing of hundreds of oil tankers, which had not been targeted previously because, according to OIR spokesman Col. Steve Warren, “the truck drivers, themselves, probably not members of ISIL; they’re probably just civilians.” Now, those trucks are being shredded by A-10 Thunderbolt II and AC-130 Spectre gunships 45 minutes after leaflets are dropped on them reading, “Get out of your trucks now, and run away from them.”

The assumption of those endorsing relaxed ROEs is that a higher number of bombs falling on a larger array of targets will accelerate the destruction of the Islamic State. But that’s fantasy. The coalition’s 8,300 airstrikes may have destroyed more than 16,000 Islamic State targets and killed more than20,000 suspected Islamic State fighters — including “one mid- to upper-level ISIL leader every two days” — but this is wholly insufficient. Does Carter really believe that with just a little more air power, this enormous militant army will soon be degraded and destroyed?

The first problem with this theory is that large militant armies are not defeated, either exclusively or primarily, with air power. Military and civilian policymakers repeat the mantra that “you can’t kill your way out” of the problem posed by such adversaries, but then continue to call upon air power to do just that. This is despite the fact that all of the militant armies and terrorist groups that have been bombed and droned for the past 14 years have survived. None have been completely destroyed, which is allegedly the strategic objective against the Islamic State. Moreover, the size of the al Qaeda-affiliated groups that the United States claims to be at war with have either stayed flat or grown, while the total number of State Department-designated Foreign Terrorist Organizations has grown from 34 in 2002 to 59 in 2015.

However, the larger concern with this mindset is the assured growth of collateral damage and civilian casualties that will accompany significantly loosened ROEs. Last month, Lt. Gen. Bob Otto, the U.S. Air Force’s deputy chief of staff for intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance, observed that the coalition was “challenged in finding enough targets that the airplanes can hit that meet the rules of engagement.” However, he added an important caveat: “If you inadvertently — legally — kill innocent men, women, and children, then there’s a backlash from that. And so we might kill three and create 10 terrorists.”

There was a revealing indicator made public last week of just how challenging it is for pilots to prevent civilian harm while conducting “dynamic targeting” strikes — meaning against unplanned and unanticipated targets in a compressed timeline — despite all the checks and balances in place. Late on Friday, Centcom issued a press release that summarized the findings and recommendations of an investigation into an attack of an Islamic State checkpoint on March 13, near Hatra, Iraq, which “likely resulted in the deaths of four non-combatants” even though “all reasonable measures were taken to avoid unintended deaths of or injuries to non-combatants by reviewing the targets thoroughly prior to engagement.” This was only the second time, in 16 months of bombing, that the command has acknowledged civilian harm; the other being in May when Centcom published an investigation of a November 2014 strike against the so-called Khorasan Group that “likely led to the deaths of two non-combatant children.” In other words, everybody within the command structure, including the pilot of the A-10, did what they were trained to do, and four civilians were still unintentionally killed at an Iraqi checkpoint.

To truly appreciate how this could have occurred, it is useful to dig into the 56-page redacted report of the investigation that Centcom released on Friday. Most importantly, the U.S. military was only made aware of the allegations of civilian casualties by an April 2 email from an unidentified woman who claimed that her black Kia Sorrento 2011 sedan — “that consisted of the Driver, two women and three children” — was destroyed when “a Missile of International Air Forces stroke [sic] the Checkpoint.” The woman requested compensation for her car as “I have lost all my money and this car was all I have…. Thank you for concern.”

Prompted only by this email — as one command element put it, “the 609th AOC has not received a corroborating open source report of civilian casualties matching this strike location/time” — an initial civilian casualties (CIVCAS) credibility assessment concluded that the woman’s claim was credible. From there, an investigating officer was directed to “conduct a thorough review of the JTM [Joint Target Message] targeting and tasking cycle to determine if any errors occurred or process changes are required.” This investigation was conducted between April 22 and June 1, and consisted of extensive audio and video reviews, and interviews with all of the participants.

The investigation demonstrates how routine the events at the Islamic State checkpoint near Hatra were on that fateful day. The black Kia Sorrento and a GMC Suburban drove up to the checkpoint, pulled off to the side of the road, and the occupants of both vehicles began to “interact and act like they are associated with the [Islamic State] checkpoint personnel” for 40 minutes while seven other vehicles passed through the checkpoint. The person responsible for the final sign-off of the strike was the director of the Combined Air and Space Operations Center at Al Udeid Air Base, referred to as the Target Engagement Authority (TEA). The TEA makes clear that he authorized a strafing of the checkpoint personnel and that a single GBU-38 bomb be dropped on a guard shack. However, when he reviewed the target “at no point was there any discussion of vehicles in association with this strike,” and he did not “grant the authority to strike any vehicles.”

At this point, the report becomes heavily redacted, making it impossible to determine the specific chain of responsibility. However, it is clear that the A-10 pilot, after conducting multiple passes over the checkpoint, requests that the JTM be updated to include the two vehicles and all of the enemy passengers, or EPAX, since “these two vehicles appeared to be a part of the checkpoint.” The “Dynamic Targeting Chief” then checks with an unnamed “Battle Director” and verbally updates the JTM to authorize the A-10 to strike the vehicles. (This whole updating process takes only 80 seconds.) The A-10 pilot then repeatedly strafes “the EPAX and vehicles” and drops one bomb on the guard shack. The pilot later estimated “that time of flight of the [redacted] rounds is 3-4 seconds, from trigger squeeze to impact.” The investigating officer determined that “there is no evidence that the aircraft had any opportunity to detect civilians prior to their strike.” The presence of a child was only determined later by an imagery analyst and that “the small signature is only visible for approximately one second before rounds impact” and only by “pausing this tape on a large debriefing screen and measuring shadow height.” Needless to say, this degree of review and inspection is impossible when bombing a dynamic target.

The report ultimately reaches the critical conclusion, “The NCV [Non-Combat Victims] = 0 objective was not met,” (bold included in original), but then fully redacts the details of the “three execution errors leading to this objective not being met.” The reader can only wonder what those errors were or what corrective steps were implemented to ensure that they were not made again. Interestingly, the identity of the sender of the April 2 email was never determined, and there was no further communication from her. Thus, no financial compensation was ever offered for her destroyed Kia Sorrento nor was any given to the families of the four civilians killed. Who knows if any of the Iraqis impacted by the civilian casualties became more sympathetic to the Islamic State or felt alienated by coalition airstrikes?

On Sunday, President Barack Obama was specifically asked about “expanding the rules of engagement versus [the Islamic State].” To which Obama replied: “If we’re not careful about it … then you can alienate the very populations that you need to win over, because ultimately those are the folks who are going to have to drive ISIL out, stomp it out all the way.” The president seems to understand the dangers of dynamic targeting and collateral damage — and yet the paucity of publicly released investigations or claims of such events belies that there’s a real, ongoing problem here. Let’s restate the facts: 8,300 airstrikes, 16,000 Islamic State targets destroyed, more than 20,000 Islamic State fighters killed — and only two claims of collateral damage. Either the U.S.-led coalition is really, really, really good at bombing these days, or they are shooting first and not asking questions later.

Photo credit: SAMEER AL-DOUMY/AFP/Getty Images

Brussels terror expert has applauded Israel’s atrocities

A tribute to those killed by Islamic State during its attack on the Bataclan concert venue in Paris. (Roberto Maldeno/Flickr)-----------------------Claude Moniquet

David Cronin-26 November 2015

These are busy days for the Brussels-based “terrorism expert” Claude Moniquet. Ever since it emerged that a few men from Belgium took part in the recent attacks on Paris, his “analysis” has been much in demand by the media.

Brussels Terror Expert Has Applauded Israel’s Atrocities by Thavam Ratna

Source: Colorado shooter politically motivated, said ‘no more baby parts’ after attacking Planned Parenthood

By Peter Holley, Sandhya Somashekhar, Lindsey Bever and Wesley Lowery- November 28

The gunman suspected of storming a Planned Parenthood clinic and killing a police officer and two others told the officers who arrested him “no more baby parts,’’ after being taken into custody, according to a law enforcement official.

Source Colorado Shooter Politically Motivated, Said ‘No More Baby Parts’ After Attacking Planned Parenthood... by Thavam Ratna

Iran seeks $25bn investment from energy 
companies
The investments are related to sanctions relief brought by the nuclear deal between Iran and major Western powers 


Saturday 28 November 2015

Iran seeks $25bn in investments from several energy companies, Tehran told foreign executives on Saturday as the government outlined new contractual terms.

hOil Minister Bijan Zanganeh opened a two-day conference in the capital attended by BP, Shell, Total of France, ENI of Italy, Repsol of Spain, OMV from Austria and other major oil and gas companies.

The new investments are part of the sanctions relief related to the nuclear deal between Iran and major Wester powers. The sanctions expect to be lifted in early 2016.

The new Iran Petroleum Contract will replace "buy-back" agreements in which foreign companies were paid a set price for all oil and gas they helped Iran exploit. Iran at that point took over production.

The new contract will instead launch joint ventures for crude oil and gas production with international companies being paid a share of the total output, officials said.

The Iranian partner in a joint venture must have a majority stake of at least 51 percent.

Zanganeh said consultations with international companies led to the new contracts, which would initially be four years in length at the exploration phase, extendible for a further two years.

Iran will have between five and seven years to pay back initial sums invested by the foreign companies once production starts but cooperation and development in commercially viable fields could go on as long as 25 years, officials said.

"The contract models introduced today are not perfect or ideal, but an effective and responsive model for both sides," Zanganeh said, noting that $25 billion of foreign investment would constitute "success".

“Like any other human creation it may need amendment and development," he said of the new contract.

Iran has the world's fourth largest oil and second-largest proven gas reserves and its energy industry has been under-developed since the Islamic revolution in 1979.

No US companies present

Asked why no US companies attended Saturday's event, Zanganeh said there was no bar on them considering Iran's energy market but American firms were put off because sanctions are still in place.

"The atmosphere and climate is ready for the presence of these companies in development of Iran's oil industry but they themselves have problems for being present in Iran," he said.

Iran is scheduled in February to hold a conference in London regarding investment and the new contracts which, if sanctions have by then been lifted, could attract US energy giants.

An oil embargo imposed in 2012 by the US and European Union as punishment for Iran's disputed nuclear programme - it denies ever seeking to develop a bomb - severely damaged Tehran's energy industry and sales income.

Stephane Michel, president of exploration and production for Total in the Middle East and North Africa, described the contract and project offers as an "important milestone" for Iran but said further analysis was needed before any deal.

"We need to look at what was presented to better understand how it's going to work and to make up our mind," he said. "But it's good to be able to do that now, based on facts.

"It's complex and we need to study first the length of the contracts and second who the partners would be, both in development and operations." 

Iran produces about 2.8mn barrels of oil per day, compared to 4.0 million bpd in 2011, following US and other Western pressure on buyers to steer clear of the country.

The nuclear deal, however, has paved the way for new tie-ups and 152 international companies were at Saturday's event, organisers said, along with 183 Iranian firms.

Despite low crude prices Iran is intent on reclaiming lost market share and has pledged to increase output by 500,000 bpd once sanctions are lifted, independent of OPEC guidance.

Iran's regional rival Saudi Arabia has refused to cut its output despite crude prices falling massively in the past year.