Lightning Times

Morning Report: 2013-01-01

Pakistan: Gunmen kill seven charity workers. Fox: 'Gunmen killed five female teachers and two other people on Tuesday in an ambush on a van carrying workers home from their jobs at a community center in northwest Pakistan, officials said. The van was transporting teachers and aid workers from the center in conservative Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province. Two health workers, one man and one woman, were also killed and the driver was wounded.' BBC has more, with a map. Workers at the center say they suspect its vaccination program is the target of the attacks; last month nine health workers were killed during a national polio vaccination drive.

India: Delhi gangrape protests continue. Hindustan Times: 'The capital on Tuesday continued to witness protests against the Delhi gangrape, with a modest gathering at Jantar Mantar demanding strong law against sexual offences. Some people continued their fast demanding stringent punishment for the culprits involved in the gangrape of the 23-year-old paramedic student, who died last Saturday.' Via Rantburg, The cops stated that after throwing the victim out of the moving bus, the accused had tried to crush her under the bus.

Syria: Fighting continues near Aleppo airport, throughout country. Fierce clashes have erupted near the international airport in Syria's second city of Aleppo, officials say. Syrians woke on New Year's Day toc ountrywide aerial bombardment, while President Bashar al-Assad's forces and rebels fighting to topple him clashed on the outskirts of the capital.

Saudi Arabia: Women refuse to segregate. A group of conservative man who wanted to attend the “Saudi Elite and Alienation Issues” lecture this week at the Jeddah Literary Club protested against the presence of women in the same room as men and threatened to leave if they were not moved to another room. However, the women refused to move room and insisted on remaining in the main hall to listen to the lecture.

Azerbaijan: Rent hike prices Russian radar out. Strategy Page:

January 1, 2013: Russia has decided to shut down its Daryal type long range missile detection radar in Azerbaijan after the Azerbaijanis demanded that a new lease increase annual rent from $7 million to $300 million. Russia refused to pay and will shut down the Azerbaijan radar and dismantle it. The ten year lease ended on December 24, 2012. This radar went operational in 1983 and was supposed to be one of seven. But the end of the Cold War halted that project and only one other Daryal radar was built (on the north coast of Russia). That one detected missiles coming in over the North Pole from North America. The radar in Azerbaijan covered all of the Middle East and India. Its role will be assumed by a more recent radar design that recently went into service on the Black Sea coast. Russia had offered to upgrade the Azerbaijan radar and pay more rent, but not $293 million more a year more. In addition, Russia has always paid Azerbaijan $5 million a year for electricity and $10 million a year for other services. About 500 Azerbaijanis were employed at the radar station, in addition to 1,100 Russians.

Morning Report: 2014-04-15

Pakistan Taliban launch jailbreak assault, frees 400. Long War Journal:

The Movement of the Taliban in Pakistan launched a nighttime assault on a prison in northwestern Pakistan, freeing nearly 400 inmates, including "hardcore militants."

A Taliban force estimated at 150 fighters launched the attack on the prison in the district of Bannu at 1:00 a.m. local time and clashed with prison personnel for nearly two hours, according to AFP. The heavily armed Taliban fighters blew open the front gate and lobbed grenades and fired on prison guards during the attack. Other Taliban fighters blocked off the surrounding roads to prevent Pakistani reinforcements from reaching the prison.

Ihsanullah Ihsan, a spokesman for the Taliban Movement of Pakistan, claimed credit for the assault and said the group would provide more details on those who were freed. ...

Afghan Taliban attack embassies. Those guys are on a roll. 'Attackers in Afghanistan launched a coordinated wave of assaults Sunday, targeting a heavily protected district of the capital that includes embassies and the presidential palace, as well as trying to strike an airbase used by American troops, officials said. Government facilities, and the American, German and Russian embassies in Kabul were targeted, NATO's International Security Assistance Force said, saying up to seven locations were attacked.'