Wikileaks: Bin Laden body was flown To US military mortuary

US President Barack Obama (2nd L) and Vice President Joe Biden (L), along with members of the national security team, receive an update on the mission against Osama bin Laden.

Emails leaked from the US-based global security think tank, Stratfor, obtained by hacker group Anonymous suggest that Osama Bin Laden was not buried at sea but instead flown to US for cremation.

The whistleblower website Wikileaks has released the email belonging to Stratfor vice president for intelligence Fred Burton, in which he says “Reportedly, we took the body with us. Thank goodness.” 

“Body bound for Dover, DE on CIA plane. Than (sic) onward to the Armed Forces Institute of Pathology in Bethesda,” a subsequent email on the same day stated. 

Burton goes on saying that “If body dumped at sea, which I doubt, the touch is very Adolph Eichman like. The Tribe did the same thing with the Nazi's ashes. We would want to photograph, DNA, fingerprint, etc.” 

However, in his last communication on the subject with George Friedman, Stratfor’s chief executive, Burton said “Down and dirty done, He already sleeps with the fish…” 

The email is among a trove of five million messages hacked from the firm. Stratfor subscribers include major corporations, military officials and international government agencies. The US weekly business magazine Barron's has likened Stratfor to a "shadow CIA". 

Anonymous posted online the names, e-mails and credit card numbers of thousands of Stratfor subscribers, including those of former US secretary of state Kissinger and vice president Dan Quayle.

Wikileaks: Bin Laden body was flown To US military mortuary

US President Barack Obama (2nd L) and Vice President Joe Biden (L), along with members of the national security team, receive an update on the mission against Osama bin Laden.

Emails leaked from the US-based global security think tank, Stratfor, obtained by hacker group Anonymous suggest that Osama Bin Laden was not buried at sea but instead flown to US for cremation.

The whistleblower website Wikileaks has released the email belonging to Stratfor vice president for intelligence Fred Burton, in which he says “Reportedly, we took the body with us. Thank goodness.” 

“Body bound for Dover, DE on CIA plane. Than (sic) onward to the Armed Forces Institute of Pathology in Bethesda,” a subsequent email on the same day stated. 

Burton goes on saying that “If body dumped at sea, which I doubt, the touch is very Adolph Eichman like. The Tribe did the same thing with the Nazi's ashes. We would want to photograph, DNA, fingerprint, etc.” 

However, in his last communication on the subject with George Friedman, Stratfor’s chief executive, Burton said “Down and dirty done, He already sleeps with the fish…” 

The email is among a trove of five million messages hacked from the firm. Stratfor subscribers include major corporations, military officials and international government agencies. The US weekly business magazine Barron's has likened Stratfor to a "shadow CIA". 

Anonymous posted online the names, e-mails and credit card numbers of thousands of Stratfor subscribers, including those of former US secretary of state Kissinger and vice president Dan Quayle.

African unity not beneficial to hegemonic powers: Ahmadinejad

Iran’s President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad (R) and Malian President’s Special Envoy Alpha Oumar Konare talk during a meeting in the Iranian capital, March 6, 2012.

Iran’s President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad has highlighted the significance of unity among African nations, insisting that a united and powerful Africa will disappoint hegemonic powers.

President Ahmadinejad made the remarks in a Tuesday meeting with visiting Malian President’s Special Envoy Alpha Oumar Konare. 

Hegemonic powers seek to revive their colonial domination over the globe in a different form, and they have made a comprehensive plan for such efforts, President Ahmadinejad added. 

The envoy, for his part, conveyed the message of Mali President Amadou Toumani Touré to the Iranian president. 

He praised Iran’s viewpoints on relations with African countries, in particular during President Ahmadinejad’s presidency. 

He said that the union of the African countries and their close cooperation with sovereign states like Iran, which seek a real change in the world, is not to the benefit of hegemonic powers. 

The expansion of ties with African countries in political, economic and cultural fields has been among the top priorities of President Ahmadinejad's administration.

Iran President Ahmadinejad says world thirsty for new order

Iran's President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad

Iran's President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad says the world currently has more thirst than ever before for a new global order, a desire grounded on high human principles and justice.

Iranians are among few nations that have the ability to fulfill such a global and historical desire, said President Ahmadinejad on Tuesday. 

He added that the Iranian people have always pursued a universal approach to global developments while they have never sought to impose supremacy over other nations. 

The Iranian chief executive emphasized that we are currently at a historical turning point. A new human life era will initiate after the intentional or unintentional passage of the critical milestone. 

Ahmadinejad urged the Iranian nation to enhance its unity and make use of its great potentials to transfer its scientific progress to other nations.

UK new visa rules disadvantages workers

The Unite Union has urged the UK government to drop reforms of overseas domestic worker visas, announced by the Home Office, warning that such an act will cause the migrant workers being trapped with abusive employers.

According to a consensus forged across the political parties in 1998, migrant domestic workers could leave their abusive employers without the fear of being deported. But under the new changes in the coalition government policy, domestic workers are expected to suffer in silence because of being fearful of becoming “illegal.” 

“These changes will consign migrant domestic workers to a life of abuse at the hands of their employer and force them to suffer in silence with no hope of justice. We do not need to re-learn the lessons that prompted political parties to come together fourteen years ago and protect domestic workers,” said Unite assistant general secretary Diana Holland. 

“We urge the government to drop these changes and recognise that turning the clock back will only serve to trap vulnerable workers in abusive employment.” 

Unite also expressed its determination to join forces with Justice 4 Domestic Workers, the TUC union, Kalayaan organization, Anti-Slavery International in order to organize a campaign against controversial changes to migrant domestic worker visas. 

Meanwhile, a research conducted by the Kalayaan, which provides advice, advocacy and support services in the UK for overseas domestic workers, found that of the 326 people who had registered with them in 2011, 54% experienced psychological abuse, 18% physical and 7% sexual abuse.

Britain admits funding Syria rebels

The UK government has acknowledged that it has provided an extra GBP 2 million to the Western-backed rebels fighting the popular government of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad.

Prime Minister David Cameron told a hearing at the House of Commons Liaison Committee on Tuesday afternoon that his government provided cash and equipment to foreign-backed rebels in Syria under such names as ‘aid agencies’ operating on the ground to help deliver emergency medical supplies and food. 

The acknowledgement is yet another proof that the rebellion in the Middle Eastern Arab country has its root somewhere in Britain and France, where the governments of Cameron and French president Nicholas Sarkozy built the foundation of a military strike against former Libyan government of dead dictator Muammar Gaddafi. 

The two European countries tabled the first draft resolution at the UN Security Council, which called for a no-fly zone over Libya and later it turned out to become an all-out war against a sovereign member of the international community. 

The same scenario is being made about Syria, where David Cameron said “Britain would this week, continue to secure a United Nations Security Council resolution demanding an end to the violence and immediate humanitarian access”. 

The Prime Minister made three key pledges “to help Syrian citizens, promising more humanitarian assistance, to hold those responsible for slaughter to account and to bring about the political transition that would put a stop to the killing”. 

However, Cameron failed to mention the fact that his country’s spying apparatus MI6 was the prime financier of terrorist snipers who kill people from the roofs of the buildings in some cities and towns in Syria. 

He also failed to mention another fact that the UK’s former police chief, assistant commissioner John Yates has been deployed to Bahrain, where the ruling family of al-Khalifa regime is brutally killing and torturing people who have come out against corruption and inequality. 

John Yates resigned last year from his post at Scotland Yard in the wake of the phone-hacking scandal. 

In a show of solidarity with the regime thugs, Yates said that “Bahraini police had faced extraordinary provocation during last year's turmoil”. 

Yates described the Bahrainis’ call for free speech and an elected government as vandalism and rioting.

‘US military condones culture of rape’

Female service members in the US military

The US military has been accused of showing a high degree of tolerance for sexual violence and condoning a culture of rape, according to several women who have served in the US armed forces.

Eight current and former female US soldiers filed a lawsuit in US District Court in Washington on Tuesday, alleging that they were raped or sexually harassed while serving in the military. 

The women have also claimed in the lawsuit that they faced retaliation when they complained about the abuse. 

The lawsuit accuses US military commanders of showing a "high tolerance for sexual predators in their ranks" and failing to take action to tackle the problem. 

US Defense Secretary Leon Panetta, former defense secretaries Robert Gates and Donald Rumsfeld and former Navy secretaries are among the defendants. 

The US Defense Department admitted in January that the number of rape cases in the military is around 19,000 a year.

Israel asks US for bunker-buster bombs, refueling aircraft

US Secretary of Defense Leon Panetta (L) and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu met in Washington on Monday, March 5, 2012.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has requested the United States to approve to sell GBU-28 bunker-buster bombs and advanced refueling aircraft to Israel, reports say.

A top US official said on Tuesday that Netanyahu made the request during a Monday meeting with the US Secretary of Defense Leon Panetta in Washington. 

The American official said that US President Barack Obama ordered Panetta to work directly with Israeli Defense Minister Ehud Barak on the issue, indicating that the US government was inclined to approve the request soon. 

The US refused to sell bunker-buster bombs and refueling aircraft to Israel during the presidency of George W. Bush, as it estimated that Israel would use them to strike Iran's nuclear energy facilities. 

Washington provides Tel Aviv with nearly 3 billion dollars in military aid each year. 

On February 27, David Sanger, a prominent American journalist, wrote in the New York Times that the US had provided Israel with the military technology and arms to aid Tel Aviv in a possible attack against Iran’s nuclear facilities aimed at sabotaging its nuclear energy program. 

The US and Israel claim Iran is seeking to acquire a military nuclear technology have several times threatened to attack Iran. 

Iran has strongly rejected the allegations and argues that, as a signatory to the nuclear Non-proliferation Treaty (NPT) and a member of the IAEA, it has the right to develop and acquire nuclear technology for peaceful purposes.

Police clash with anti-US protesters in Philippines

A police officer (C) tries to evade protesters from the women's group Gabriela during an anti-US protest in front of the US embassy, Manila, March 7, 2012.

Protesters in the Philippines have clashed with police during an anti-US demonstration in the capital Manila against an upcoming joint US-Philippines military exercise.

The scuffles broke out in front of the US embassy on Wednesday. 

The protest came shortly after the government announced plans to hold a large-scale military drill with the United States between April 16 and 27. 

Approximately 4,500 American soldiers and 2,300 members of the Philippine Armed Forces will participate in the exercise. 

A computer-simulated command post exercise, multiple field training exercises, medical, veterinary, engineering humanitarian and civic assistance projects are expected to be put into practice during the military drill.

Ron Paul calls for complete pullout of US forces from Mideast

US Republican presidential hopeful Ron Paul

US Republican presidential hopeful Ron Paul has denounced the US military presence in the Middle East, calling for a full withdrawal of American troops from Iraq and Afghanistan.

Speaking on the so-called Super Tuesday - the second Tuesday in March when voters take part in a 10-state race to choose their party’s presidential candidate, Paul said the current US-led wars and the presence of the US military in the Middle East are in violation of the American Constitution. 

Paul, who was speaking to his supporters in North Dakota, added that he would significantly cut the US military budget, with his priority being the US “overseas spending” if elected president. 

“Spend the money here at home if you have to but not overseas,” he said. 

Paul noted that he would cut overseas spending as the US wars have caused all sorts of problems for Americans, including a skyrocketing national debt for the country. 

“Just in these past 10 years, these wars that we're fighting in the Middle East, over 8,500 Americans have died, 44,000 have come back with serious injuries, and amputations and all kinds of problems, hundreds of thousands looking for help because of [the] post-traumatic stress syndrome, at the same time, economically, it's been very damaging. It has added $4 trillion to our national debt,” Paul further said. 

He went on to say to his crowd of supporters, “that is what you're inheriting. This is the reason why it is so important, if you're talking about peace and prosperity, you have to change the Constitution and have a lot less war and make a lot more sincere effort to promote the cause of peace.” 

The US Republican presidential contender also criticized the US President Barack Obama administration for violating individual liberties through its introduction of the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) and the so-called Web Privacy Bill of Rights. 

The NDAA which was signed into law by President Obama on New Year’s Eve codifies that US citizens can be detained indefinitely without charge and without trial.

Wikileaks document reveals: US-led NATO troops operate inside Syria

Syrian rebels are seen in the centre of Idlib, northwestern Syria, February 24, 2012.

A document released by the WikiLeaks website has revealed that undercover US-led NATO forces are operating inside Syria against the Syrian government.

WikiLeaks released a confidential email from an analyst working for the US-based intelligence firm Stratfor, in which he claims to have attended a meeting in the Pentagon with several NATO officials from France and Britain in December last year. 

The analyst says he learned that US-led NATO troops are already on the ground in Syria, training armed gangs. 

"SOF [special operation forces] teams (presumably from the US, UK, France, Jordan and Turkey) are already on the ground, focused on recce [reconnaissance] missions and training opposition forces," the analyst claimed in the letter. 

The Stratfor analyst goes on to say that "the idea ‘hypothetically’ is to commit guerrilla attacks, assassination campaigns" to overthrow the Syrian government. 

This comes despite claims by the Western military alliance denying the deployment of forces to Syria. 

In addition, armed gangs in the country recently said they have received military hardware from France and Britain to attack government forces. 

Syrian President Bashar al-Assad said on Tuesday that the people of Syria are determined to crush terrorist groups and pursue the reforms in the country. He added that foreign forces are seeking to undermine the Syrian government. 

Syria has been experiencing unrest since mid-March 2011. Hundreds of people, including security forces have been killed since then. 

The United States, Britain and France and countries such as Saudi Arabia, Qatar and Turkey have supported measures against Assad’s government.

Libya threatens to use 'force' to foil east autonomy bid

Mustafa Abdel Jalil, the leader of Libya's transitional government

The leader of Libya's transitional government, Mustafa Abdel Jalil, has threatened to use force in order to foil autonomy bid for eastern sector of the oil-rich North African country.

“We are not prepared to divide Libya. They should know that there are infiltrators and remnants of Gaddafi's regime trying to exploit them now and we are ready to deter them, even with force,” Abdel Jalil said on Wednesday during a conference in the western city of Misratah. 

Abel Jalil’s warning comes as day after a meeting attended by some 3,000 people in the eastern city of Benghazi declared the oil-rich region of Cyrenaica autonomous, raising fears of the country’s breakup following the downfall and killing of former Libyan dictator, Muammar Gaddafi, in October 2011. 

"The interim council of Cyrenaica was established under the leadership of Sheikh Ahmed Zubair al-Senussi (an NTC member) to manage the region's affairs and defend the rights of its population," read a statement following the meeting. 

Cyrenaica, where the country’s popular revolution against Gaddafi’s four-decade-long rule erupted last year, stretches from the central city of Sirte to the Egyptian border in the east. 

It is also one of the three states, Libya was divided into in line with the 1951 constitution adopted under late King Idris. 

Abdel Jalil has accused some Arab countries of supporting and financing the tribal leaders, who have declared autonomy in the east of the country. 

"Some sister Arab nations unfortunately are supporting and financing this sedition that is happening in the east," Abdel Jalil told reporters at a press conference in the capital Tripoli on Tuesday. 

"What is happening today is the start of a conspiracy against the country...This is a very dangerous matter that threatens national unity," he warned. 

Jalil, however, did not name the countries alleged to be involved.

Six UK troops killed in south Afghanistan

Six British soldiers have been killed when their armored vehicle was caught in a powerful explosion in the troubled southern Afghanistan.

Britain’s Ministry of Defense said on Wednesday that the soldiers were killed on routine patrol northwest of Durai Junction in Helmand province when their vehicle was struck on Tuesday evening. 

All six soldiers were killed, five from 3rd battalion the Yorkshire Regiment and one from 1st Battalion the Duke of Lancaster’s Regiment. 

Britain reportedly has around 9,500 soldiers in Afghanistan, making it the second largest force in the country after the United States. 

The latest deaths bring to 404 the number of British soldiers killed in war-battered Afghanistan since the US-led invasion of the country in 2001. 

The British government has been under pressure to detail its withdrawal strategy but has refused to set out its plans until the United States makes a decision. 

Insecurity continues to rise across Afghanistan despite the presence of some 130,000 US-led forces in the Asian country. 

The United Nations announced on February 4 that 2011 was the deadliest on record for Afghan civilians. The death toll rose eight percent compared to the year before and was roughly double the figure for 2007. 

Overall, 3,021 civilians died in violence related to the war and 4,507 were wounded in 2011. Of the deaths, the UN attributed 77 percent to militant attacks and 14 percent to US-led foreign troops and Afghan forces. Nine percent of the cases were classified as unknown.