On a web site, the terrorists responsible for the killing of 22 people in Khobar has published a detailed account of their deeds, which is said to closely match the experiences of the western survivors. It offers a ghastly view at the murderous mindset of the extremists, but also at the total inceompetence or lack of interest from Saudi security forces.
"We had planned to detonate an explosive-laden truck inside the compound", says the statement posted on the internet, "but because entering the compound was so easy there was no need."
The account continues: "We entered the compound, checked the identities of the occupants, spotted a Swede, then Nimr" - one of the attackers - "cut his throat. We left the body at the main gate for others to see", it says.
They heard security forces outside, who were too afraid to enter the compound until 45 minutes later. The terrorists took their time slaughtering every non-Muslim they could find.
"We killed Filipinos and Hindus", says the account.
"We went to the hotel on the compound, ate breakfast in the restaurant and rested. We then entered the first floor and killed more Hindus" - meaning Indian workers.
Saudis generally hold Indians and other East Asians, employed to do manual tasks in the kingdom, in deep contempt. But these extremists take that mindset quite a few steps further. Those who blabber about the "root causes" of terrorism and thinks this can be justified in the Palestinian conflict: think again. This is human evil in its purest form.
The police is unable to or unwilling to help the expats:
The account claims the attackers had time to conduct a live interview with an Arab TV station before beating back a police attack, then killing an Italian.
On the Sunday morning, it claims, the group left the housing compound at dawn, with one of their number fatally wounded but taking no hostages with them.
The account says the militants then watched the TV coverage of the Saudi special forces attacking the hotel hours after they had left.
The report, as posted on the net for Arabs to read (and it is no doubt widely reported on Arabic TV), is a total humiliation of the Saudi security forces. That, of course, is the intention.
The militants lie and claim they did not kill the Egyptian child who died in the attack. But I trust them when they say they will conduct similar operations in the future.
With a proper application of the stick and the carrot, Israel's prime minister Ariel Sharon has managed to obtain an approval of his compromise Gaza pullout plan in his cabinet, but the actual dismantling of all Gaza and four west bank settlements will require a new vote. Ministers voted 14-7 in favour of the plan, which enjoys support from a clear majority of Israelis.
The compromise persuaded three Likud ministers — Finance Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, Foreign Minister Silvan Shalom and Education Minister Limor Livnat — to support Sharon's plan, which had exposed deep rifts in the party, officials said. Likud members rejected the withdrawal in a May 2 referendum.
In a nod to the hard-liners, Sharon agreed to set up a committee that would review continued funding to Gaza settlement projects already under way. Sharon had previously said it would be "absurd" to continue funneling funds to Gaza settlements.
The moderate Shinui Party also demanded that Sharon follow approval of the plan with a public declaration that the vote to evacuate settlements not be held later than March 2005.
I'm not optimistic that we'll actually ever see any withdrawals under this plan.
As one of those who have grown up in a free and prosperous country thanks to the sacrifices of the many heroes of that day and beyond, I can only offer my thank you to all the veterans and wish we will never have to go through such a war again.
The overwhelming majority of journalists, 46%, can't do math
Here is an amusing news item about President Bush, from the Norwegian press agency NTB, which I found in TV2 Nettavisen.
- Bush must go
The French and Americans disagree about many things, but agree about one: President George W. Bush should not be reelected.
A majority in both countries think that Bush should not have four more years in The White House, shows an opinion poll printed in the French newspaper Journal de Dimanche.
84 percent of the polled in France, and 46 percent of the polled in the USA says that they hope Bush loses the election in November. 68 percent of the French and 42 percent of Americans say they are "absolute opponents of" Bush being reelected. [bold added]
Old Europe, new math!
Despite deep disagreement over the Iraq war, the relationship between Americans and the French is better than you sometimes could think, the poll shows.
Half of the French, and 42 percent of the Americans, say they feel neither antipathty nor sympathy to one another.
Isn't that really touching? "I feel nothing for you" sounds like a great relationship between the two nations! As Chirac said today, commemorating D-Day, the US is France's "eternal ally" after the sacrifices it did sixty years ago. So sweet.
What do you think happened when the remains of an Israeli bus destroyed in a Palestinian suicide bombing was exhibited in various Norwegian cities? Bjørn Stærk explains.
Here's a little roundup of links to blog obituaries, all very thoughtful and touching words at the end of the life of an unlikely, but undeniably great statesman:
Spain's José Luis Rodríguez Zapatero, who rode into government on a wave of Spanish appeasement after the deadly 3/11 Madrid bombings, is in hot water over his decision to award his defence minister José Bono the Cross of Military Merit. What act of military bravery had Bono committed? Withdrawing the Spanish forces from Iraq!
After facing harsh criticism for receiving the award for nothing after no more than six weeks on his post, Bono decided to hand the medal back.
The controversy is now, hopefully tongue in cheek, dubbed "Medalla-Gate" in Spain.
Former US president Ronald Reagan died today June 5th, aged 93, at his home in California. He has been suffering from Alzheimer's disease for the last ten years.
The man who presided over the climax and end of the cold war was never popular in Europe, where he had much the same image as Bush does now, except he was known as a great public communicator.
Growing up in Norway, all I learned about him was the negative portrayal in European newspapers. In hindsight, it is easy to see that he possessed important qualities and visions that were essential in restoring the USA's and the west's pride in itself, along with his British collegue Margaret Thatcher.
