Six In The Morning

The Lightning Advance That Ended Gadhafi's Rule
How Tripoli Was Taken
By Clemens Höges
The man is finally sitting on the fine sandy beach of Tripoli. The sea is calm and the water a deep turquoise blue. He says that he's a very good marksman, and has a black rifle lying across his knees. Now, after all that's happened, it doesn't bother him anymore to shoot black Africans he believes are mercenaries. But shooting Libyans, says Abu Bakr Uraibi, is still difficult for him. And the first time he killed someone was the most difficult of all.

It happened during the first few weeks of the war, in Jabal Nafusa, a rugged mountain chain southwest of Tripoli. Libyan leader Moammar Gadhafi's generals had dispatched 150 soldiers to close the border to Dahiba in Tunisia. The rebels were bringing in much of their supplies through the small border crossing, and a nearby mountain offered a good vantage point to control the road below.

Chinese general's sensitive spy talk leaked online
Video of general talking about cases kept secret because they were too embarrassing to make public appears on YouTube
Associated Press
guardian.co.uk, Tuesday 30 August 2011

Footage of a Chinese general discussing sensitive spying cases has been leaked on to YouTube in what appears to be an embarrassing failure of secrecy for the usually tightlipped military.

It was not clear when or where Major General Jin Yinan made the comments and China's defence ministry did not respond to questions about the video. Calls to the National Defence University, where Jin is a lecturer, went unanswered.

While some of the cases had been announced before, few details had been released, while others involving the military had been entirely secret.

Julius Malema supporters clash with South Africa police
South African police have fired stun grenades at supporters of controversial ANC Youth League leader Julius Malema ahead of his disciplinary hearing.


Mr Malema, 30, is accused of "sowing divisions" in the party and bringing it into disrepute by calling for Botswana's government to be overthrown.

Once a close ally of President Jacob Zuma, the populist Mr Malema has become a fierce critic.

His supporters threw missiles at police who were blocking them in Johannesburg.

The police have erected a steel gate and barbed wire to close the main street leading to Luthuli House, the African National Congress headquarters where the hearing is being held.

Hundreds of Mr Malema's supporters are outside, chanting and setting rubbish on fire.

'The Crisis Will Be Over in Two to Three Years'
Head of Euro-Zone Bailout Fund

　By Christian Reiermann　
The picture, a Balinese island landscape, is still leaning against the wall where it was a year ago. Back then, the European Financial Stability Facility (EFSF) had just recently been set up, and its chief executive officer, Germany's Klaus Regling, was too busy to hang the souvenir from Indonesia on the wall.

He is still just as busy today. Three European bailout packages later, it is clear that the EFSF and the European Stability Mechanism (ESM), which will succeed it in 2013, will have even more to do in the future. European heads of state and government recently decided to substantially upgrade both funds.
What is now taking shape at the EFSF's offices at 43, Avenue John F. Kennedy in Luxembourg City is the nucleus of a super-authority with which the 17 countries in the euro zone hope to save their currency.

Libya rebels demand Algeria return Gaddafi's family

SAMIA NAKHOUL TRIPOLI, LIBYA - Aug 30 2011
Algeria's Foreign Ministry said Gaddafi's wife Safia, his daughter Aisha and his sons Hannibal and Mohammed had entered Algeria on Monday morning.

The development threatened to create a diplomatic rift just as the rebel National Transitional Council (NTC) worked to consolidate its position as Libya's new government.

An NTC spokesperson accused Algeria said the council would seek to extradite the Gaddafis.

A senior rebel officer also said Gaddafi's son Khamis, a feared military commander, had been killed in a clash outside of Tripoli. The report could not be independently confirmed.

Afghan Taliban victory predicted in letter
　Purportedly written by Mullah Mohammed Omar, leader of the Afghan Taliban, the statement tries to appeal to Afghan moderates and suggests the Taliban doesn't seek to monopolize power.
By Aimal Yaqubi and Mark Magnier, Los Angeles Times
Reporting from Kabul, Afghanistan, and New Delhi— A message allegedly written by the leader of the Afghan Taliban predicts imminent victory as more foreign troops die and Taliban fighters better understand NATO tactics, acquire more weaponry, shoot down more aircraft and kill more senior officials.

The lengthy statement released Monday, signed by Mullah Mohammed Omar, the movement's reclusive, one-eyed leader, follows President Obama's announcement in June that 10,000 American troops will leave this year.

The U.S. drawdown is part of an accelerated withdrawal by foreign troops ahead of a 2014 deadline for transferring security to the Afghans.