One of the world’s largest military contractors, Raytheon, has developed a system that gives soldiers superhuman hearing. The system, called 3-D Audio, essentially allows soldiers to hear exactly where threats are coming from, and what kind of threat it is — a rocket, gunfire, a Molotov cocktail — just like Marvel Comics’ Daredevil’s radar sense.
If this sounds a bit like your home entertainment’s surround sound system, or your fancy pair of 7.1 surround sound headphones, you’re not wrong. In essence, Raytheon has built the mother of all directional sound setups. As with most military gadgets, exact specifications are hard to come by, but it sounds like 3-D Audio will feature a lot of small, highly-directional speakers. ”Pilots for years have been listening to three or four radios, and when two people would talk at the same time, it would just come across garbled,” says Todd Lovell, a Raytheon engineer. “With the 3-D Audio, we can put those radios in different spatial locations relative to your head.”
At the moment, a military plane or helicopter pilot receives warnings and notifications through a visual display, either in the center of the cockpit or on a head-up display (HUD). Processing this information takes time and distracts the pilot from the task at hand: maneuvering the aircraft. Throw in a bunch of radios, plus chatter from the co-pilot, all coming through the same speakers, and you can begin to imagine the difficulty of piloting a helicopter in a military setting. With 3D-Audio, all of these audio streams are split up into individual, spatially-separated channels that the pilot can tune into — a bit like picking out a single conversation in a crowded room. “You always hear them from where they actually are,” says J.D. Hill, another Raytheon engineer. “You don’t have to interpret anything. It’s all just about reaction and what you hear.”
Reality hurts, Ouch!! The cinema explained that the film had been censored due to initial scenes depicting Pakistan as a failed state and fictionally portraying foreign invasion of Pakistan’s nuclear installations.
The movie starts with the protagonist framed for stealing nuclear warheads from Pakistan, a sequence which has brought the ire of Pakistani authorities.
Target Killed KARACHI: The sequel of the popular GI Joe movie, GI Joe 2: Retaliation has been banned by the Central Board of Film Censors in Islamabad.Karachi based Atrium Cinema posted on it’s facebook page on Friday said that the film, due for release on April 5, 2013, will not be screened due to restrictions by the censor board.
Responding to queries, the cinema explained that the film had been censored due to initial scenes depicting Pakistan as a failed state and fictionally portraying foreign invasion of Pakistan’s nuclear installations.
The movie starts with the protagonist framed for stealing nuclear warheads from Pakistan, a sequence which has brought the ire of Pakistani authorities.
It is a sequel to 2009′s GI Joe: The Rise of Cobra. The movie has non-stop action which got a little over whelming for many critics.
Chinese supplied Norinco SH-1 Truck-mounted 155mm Gun-Howitzer to Burmese Army
While the Burma military is showing off their newly ordered Norinco SH-1 Truck-mounted 155mm Gun-Howitzer and other made-in-China hardware during their 68th Armed Forces Day parade in Naypyitaw, the Kachin Independence Army (KIA) continues to use their made-in-China hardware to fight back the Tatmadaw
United Wa State Army's Chinese supplied M99 12.7mm Sniper Rifle
United Wa State Army's Chinese supplied M99 12.7mm Sniper Rifle
Over reliance on stupid and useless DODO (DRDO) government scientists working on 20 year long projects without any outcome. Only 2.5% Indians pay taxes and the rest live off government subsidies for food, railways, diesel, gasoline,LPG.
India to reject global arms trade treaty
New Delhi is set to reject a global arms trade treaty (ATT) since the agreement is heavily loaded against weapons-importing countries like India, and let exporting nations like the US and China call the shots. The treaty, meant to regulate all transfers of conventional arms around the world, is likely to be passed by the UN General Assembly next week. India's inability to establish an indigenous defence production industry may now become a strategic vulnerability.
New Delhi had several concerns which Indian negotiators, led by Sujata Mehta, who heads the Indian mission at the Conference on Disarmament (CD) in Geneva, fought on, but virtually none of them have been incorporated by the treaty's co-authors, led by Peter Woolacott of Australia. The current round of negotiations in New York is the second and final round. The first round, held last July, didn't have an agreement largely because the US backed out. India wanted the treaty to regulate arms transfers to non-state actors like terror groups. New Delhi's focus was on terror groups that target the nation or even internal insurgent groups like the Maoists but this was shot down. Countries like the US and the UK who supply arms to opposition groups such as in Syria and Libya wanted to retain the flexibility to continue to do so. Terror groups do find mention, but only in the non-binding preamble, and not in the main body. In her remarks, Mehta said, "Without such provisions, the ATT would in fact lower the bar on obligations of all states not to support terrorists and/or terrorists acts ... We cannot allow such a loophole in the ATT." Second, India wanted to preserve bilateral defence cooperation agreements (arms supplies are covered under such pacts) from the ATT's purview. This hasn't found favour with the treaty's authors, either. Mehta said, "Such a loophole in the Treaty would have the effect of strengthening the hands of a few exporting states at the expense of the legitimate defense and national security interests of a large number of importing states." Once this treaty goes through bilateral arms supply agreements could come under this treaty if the exporting country makes an "export assessment" under article 7 that it feels warrants stoppage of supply. This would be disastrous for India, as was evident during the Kargil war in 1999. India and China are the world top arms importers, according to the latest figures by SIPRI. But China itself has climbed to the top five global arms exporters last year — and the bulk of its arms exports are to Pakistan. Given the nature of China-Pakistan relationship, Islamabad is unlikely to suffer even if this treaty comes into effect. On the other hand, for India, it will become the conventional version of the global nuclear suppliers' regime. Once this treaty goes through India will have to provide similar kinds of end-user verification and access to satisfy exporters that it does with nuclear imports. India feels the burden of obligations rests largely on the importers because they have to satisfy the exporters on end-user verification, on keeping national records of weapons and ammunition used, etc. In fact, New Delhi wanted ammunition transfers to stay out of the treaty's scope, but that too fell by the wayside.
The first of six Varshavyanka class (Project 636M) diesel-electric submarines will be delivered to Vietnam in 2013 as scheduled, the submarine designer said on Friday.
The Varshavyanka class is an improved version of the Kilo class submarines, featuring advanced stealth technology, extended combat range and ability to strike land, surface and underwater targets. “The first vessel is undergoing sea trials. It will be delivered to Vietnam this year,” Rubin design bureau general director Igor Vilnit told reporters at the LIMA-2013 arms show in Malaysia. Vietnam ordered a fleet of six Russian-made submarines in 2009 in a step seen as an effort to counterbalance China’s expanding maritime influence in the region. The contract, which also stipulates the training of Vietnamese submarine crews in Russia, is reportedly worth $2 billion. Vilnit says construction on the craft is going according to the schedule specified in the contract. The submarines are being built at the Admiralteiskie Verfi shipyard in St. Petersburg. All six boats are due for delivery by 2016.
The Project 636 class boats displace 3,100 tons, reach speeds of 20 knots, can dive to 300 meters and carry crews of 52 people.The submarines, which feature 533-milimeter torpedo tubes and are armed with torpedos, mines, and Kalibr 3M54 (NATO SS-N-27 Sizzler) cruise missiles, are mainly intended for anti-shipping and anti-submarine missions in relatively shallow waters.
The Anti-Submarine Warfare Continuous Trail Unmanned Vessel (ACTUV). Those quirky sonar operators, who dazzled their captains with their ability to tell the difference between the cavitation of a Soviet submarine and of a distant Blue Whale's lonely call, are somewhat a thing of the past thanks to algorithms and modern computing power but this program takes that all a step further.
"Historically, manned sonars were central to anti-submarine warfare missions. However, the growing number of submarines traversing the world's oceans makes this model unsustainable," said Joe Biondi, vice president of Advanced Technology for Raytheon's Integrated Defense Systems business, whose company won a contract from defense and intelligence giant SAIC to supply its Modular Scalable Sonar System for the new sub hunter.
The Raytheon sonar would search, detect, filter threats and track potential enemy subs. The primary target of the ACTUV will not be Russian or Chinese nuclear-powered subs. Instead, it will be hunting the vast worldwide fleet of some 400 quiet diesel subs. Although nuclear subs can move with far greater speed and possess much greater range than diesels do, they aren't necessarily as quiet as diesels are. SAIC to design the surface ship to carry the Raytheon sensors and is now in the second phase of the program. DARPA describes the ship as an "unmanned vessel that tracks quiet diesel electric submarines for months at a time spanning thousands of kilometers of ocean with minimal human input." The target cost for this is a spectacularly cheap $20 million for each ship, even though they are supposed to be able to operate for 80 days over a range of 6,200 kilometers on a single fuel load and without any people maintaining them.
One of the most interesting aspects of this approach is one that has dogged airborne unmanned aircraft -- how to control them from long distances and avoid hitting other aircraft. The ACTUV would presumably be operated both from shore and from ships at sea and it would need to be able to find and track a sub without running into other surface ships. That's a tall order.
SEOUL: North Korean leader Kim Jong-Un ordered preparations Friday for strategic rocket strikes on the US mainland and military bases after US stealth bombers flew training runs over South Korea.
The order came as US Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel, with tensions soaring on the Korean peninsula, said Washington would not be cowed by Pyongyang's bellicose threats and stood ready to respond to "any eventuality".
Kim directed his rocket units on standby at an overnight emergency meeting with top army commanders, hours after nuclear-capable US B-2 stealth bombers were deployed in ongoing US joint military drills with South Korea.
In the event of any "reckless" US provocation, North Korean forces should "mercilessly strike the US mainland... military bases in the Pacific, including Hawaii and Guam, and those in South Korea", he was quoted as saying by the official Korean Central News Agency (KCNA).
While North Korea has no proven ability to conduct such strikes, Kim argued that the stealth bomber flights went beyond a simple demonstration of force and amounted to a US "ultimatum that they will ignite a nuclear war at any cost".
The United States rarely acknowledges B-2 flights to the Korean peninsula, which remains technically at war. The aircraft, which dodge anti-aircraft defences, bombed targets in conflicts in Serbia, Afghanistan, Iraq and Libya.
Considering the high crash rate of the cheap Sino-Pak Hongdu JL-8 (Karakorum-8), Bangladesh opts for Russian trainers
Bangladesh is planning to buy 24 Yak-130 Mitten jet trainers on $1 billion credit from Russia, Russia’s state arms exporter Rosoboronexport said on Wednesday.
“Bangladesh has a whole list of arms it wants, but so far that is a state secret. I will reveal one little secret: The purchase of Yak-130 warplanes is a very significant subject of negotiations between Russia and Bangladesh,” Rosoboronexport Deputy Chief Viktor Komardin said at the Langkawi International Maritime and Aerospace exhibition (LIMA-2013) that opened in Malaysia on Tuesday.
He added that negotiations on Yak-130s are due to begin later this spring.Russia granted Bangladesh a $1 billion credit during the Bangladeshi prime minister’s visit to Moscow in January.Some 20 Russian companies are taking part in LIMA-2013, which has been held since 1991, including top aircraft manufacturers and the state-owned United Industrial Corporation (Oboronprom), which produces helicopters, aircraft engines and air defense systems.
The Yak-130 is a highly maneuverable aircraft with an extended range of about 2,000 kilometers (1,250 miles) and a maximum speed of 1,060 kilometers per hour (600 miles per hour) in level flight. It can carry a combat payload of up to 3,000 kilograms (6,600 pounds).The Yak-130 has been chosen as a basic aircraft for Russian Air Force pilot training. First deliveries began in 2009.
K-MAX is just plain neat. It's a small one-man chopper built by Kaman Aerospace Corp. – originally for logging operations, where it airlifted tree trunks out of tight areas . It was converted to a remotely piloted vehicle by Lockheed Martin. Tactically, K-MAX allows delivery of supplies to forward outposts by air, without risking human pilots or, worse yet, sending ground convoys through the gauntlet of Taliban ambushes and roadside bombs.
"What stood out most in my mind ... was the permanent scorch marks burnt into the earth up and down 'ambush alley,'" recalled Marine Corps Maj. Kyle O'Connor, who served in Afghanistan in 2004 and 2011. So many improvised explosive devices (IEDs) had gone off in one narrow mountain pass, an unavoidable chokepoint for US supply convoys, that "that stretch of road continually had scars marking where explosions had scorched the earth," O'Connor wrote in a letter endorsing the K-MAX for the prestigious Collier Trophy. "Those memories," he went on, "are what drove me to be part of a program meant to save lives by limiting the amount of exposure our ground convoys had to danger": the unmanned K-MAX, whose first six-month deployment had O'Connor in command.
"Every piece of cargo flown via [K-MAX] is one piece of cargo that doesn't need to put personnel in harm's way going by ground convoy," O'Connor wrote. Unlike manned choppers, "since it was an unmanned system, we were able to conduct flights during inclement weather when other helicopters couldn't fly," added O'Connor, a pilot himself. "We flew during the night, in the rain, dust and high wind." K-MAX is also cheaper than manned choppers, according to statistics from the Navy admiral overseeing the program for the Marines. K-MAX cost "less than $1,400 per flight hour," wrote Rear Adm. Mathias Winter, Naval Air Systems Command (NAVAIR) program executive officer for unmanned aviation, "an order of magnitude less than other manned rotary wing assets in the inventory." A big part of that low cost is that K-MAX has required less than 90 minutes of maintenance on the ground for every 60 minutes in the air, wrote Winter, yet remained mission-capable 94 percent of the time.
K-MAX "saves lives every day by taking Marines and Soldiers out of harm's way and convoys off the road," wrote a third officer, Army Col. Paul Howard, who coordinates K-MAX support from the Army's Research, Development, and Engineering Command (RDECOM). "The need for unmanned resupply with remain in Afghanistan for an indefinite amount of time."
As troop numbers come down and US forces are spread more thinly on the ground, the distance and danger truck convoys must cover will only increase, and aerial resupply – especially aerial resupply with no pilots exposed to danger from the Taliban or the notorious Afghan weather – will only become more attractive.
That said, K-MAX is not a silver bullet for logistics. First of all, it's not a truly autonomous robot: It requires a pair of human operators running it by remote control from the launch site and a third person at the destination to direct it where to drop the cargo, either by remote control or by placing a hockey-puck-sized homing beacon. In between, it flies automatically along a pre-set course, although the operators can always take back control to evade enemy fire or other hazards.
Further, while K-MAX is cheaper than manned helicopters, it still carries a lot less cargo per dollar than old-fashioned trucks. K-MAXes have delivered 2.7 million pounds of cargo in Afghanistan so far -- an impressive figure -- but it took them 932 flights for what amounts to 270 truck loads. (Oshkosh, interestingly, developed an experimental unmanned truck called TerraMax, also for the Marine Corps).
In a place like Afghanistan, of course, those ground convoys aren't so cheap because they require escorts and sometimes get blown up anyway, at a terrible cost not just in property but in human lives. But against a better-armed enemy than the Taliban – one with shoulder-fired anti-aircraft missiles or even just a lot of heavy machineguns – an unmanned aircraft might not be able to evade enemy fire, either.
That's perhaps the reason why the Marine Corps has not ordered more K-MAX aircraft than the two now in service. Nor did K-MAX win the Collier Trophy for which the three officers quoted above endorsed it, although since the winning competitor was the NASA Mars rover, Curiosity, the competition was pretty stiff. Nevertheless, whether on Mars or in Afghanistan, robots are getting ever better at extending human capabilities, without risking human lives, in some very hazardous places.
WASHINGTON: Singapore is expected to announce sometime in the next 10 days that it plans to buy its first squadron --12 planes -- of some 75 of Lockheed Martin's F-35Bs, further bolstering what had been the flagging fortunes of the world's most expensive conventional weapon system.
The Singaporeans are extremely shy about declaring their intentions in public, eager to offer few chances for China and Malaysia to react, but two sources familiar with the program confirmed the likely announcement. Given Singapore's tiny size its choice of which of the three F-35 versions to buy is not surprising. A plane that can take off almost vertically and can land vertically is able to operate from a much smaller footprint than, say the F-35A (the Air Force version) or F-16 Block 60s. And, given Singapore's geography, the F-35B makes great sense for its ability to operate closely with the US Marines -- as well as with F-35Cs operating from our aircraft carriers.
The Singaporeans decision will eventually leave China -- and Russia, still something of a Pacific power -- facing 50 to 100 Australian F-35As, 42 F-35As in Japan, 75Bs in Singapore and however many of the three versions built and fielded by the Untied States are regularly in the Pacific. Then consider the F-35, which offers the first true integrated global supply chain for a major weapon system and offers highly classified capabilities which America had previously not made available to allies. But the underlying reason for the choice of Singapore and the other Pacific countries may be found in the conclusion of these countries about the F-35's effectiveness. One senior official from the region, who has access to the most sensitive classified information about the system, told me recently that the F-35 is "simply undefeatable." And this official said the aircraft is expected to maintain its dominance for at least one quarter of a century.
BEIJING: China has agreed to buy two dozen fighter jets and four submarines from Russia, state media reported on Monday, the country's first large-scale weapons technology purchases from Moscow in a decade.The agreement to buy the 24 Su-35 fighters and four Lada-class submarines was signed just before President Xi Jinping's weekend visit to Russia, said the People's Daily, the Communist Party organ, citing state television.The report, which did not give a value for the purchases, said it was the first time in 10 years China had bought "large military technological equipment" from Russia.
The deal comes as Beijing expands its military reach - it commissioned its first aircraft carrier last year - and is embroiled in a bitter territorial row with Japan over disputed islands in the East China Sea.Two of the submarines will be built in Russia, with the other two to be built in China."The Su-35 fighters can effectively reduce pressure on China's air defence before Chinese-made stealth fighters come online," the report said.China and Russia are expected to co-operate further in developing military technology, the report said, including that for S-400 long-range anti-aircraft missiles, 117S large thrust engines, IL-476 large transport aircraft and IL-78 aerial tankers.
China's defence ministry had no immediate comment on the report.Xi visited Moscow from Friday to Sunday for talks with his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin, his first trip abroad since becoming head of state earlier this month.The countries signed around 30 energy and other agreements during the visit.Xi also met Defence Minister Sergei Shoigu and became the first foreign leader to visit the Russian armed forces' control centre.
Moscow and Beijing, which were once bitter foes during the Cold War, have strengthened cooperation in recent years to counterbalance what they see as US global dominance.Earlier this month China announced a further double-digit rise in its defence budget, raising it by 10.7 per cent to 720.2 billion yuan ($116.3 billion) in 2013.
The international community is still suffering from the INENWS (Iraq Non-Existant Nuclear Weapons Syndrome) which is largely benifitting Iran
Iran has inadvertently confirmed WND’s report that the Islamic regime is working on nuclear weapons at a secret facility known as “Quds,” a name synonymous with the Arabic word for “Jerusalem.”
Satellite images reveal the existence of the secret Quds site, indicating Iran, with North Korean help, clearly crossed the red line and is in the final stage of arming its missiles with nuclear warheads; and Iran not only has made great progress in enriching uranium to weapons grade, but also has succeeded in converting the highly enriched uranium to metal, a key step in making nuclear warheads.
The International Atomic Energy Agency has repeatedly requested inspection of the Parchin military site, where it is believed the regime has tested nuclear bomb components. The regime replied that military sites are off-limits and has stonewalled the IAEA for over a year while satellite images show a great effort to clean up the area. Golpanews, with its connection to the highest levels of the Iranian government, is laying the groundwork for calling Quds a military site and therefore not accessible for inspection by the IAEA.
Quds consists of three facilities:
The first is where the regime’s scientists are enriching uranium to weapons grade. They already have enough plutonium for several bombs and are in the last stage of putting together a nuclear warhead. This site is called “Quds” after Jerusalem, as they believe soon Israel will be destroyed and Jerusalem restored to Muslim rule.
The second, which makes missile warheads, is dubbed “Marty Mughniyah” after the Hezbollah terrorist who, under the command of the regime, conducted multiple terrorist acts that killed hundreds of Americans and Israelis.
The third facility is a vast site that houses over 380 missile depots and launching pads.
LONDON – India has emerged as the world’s largest importer of major conventional weapons worldwide, according to new data on international arms transfers published on Monday. The top five importers of major conventional weapons worldwide are all in Asia: India (12% of global imports), China (6%), Pakistan (5%), South Korea (5%) and Singapore (4%).
India’s arms imports were 109% higher than those of China, the second biggest arms importer. India imported 59% more arms in 2008-12 than in 2003-2007, according to the data released by Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI). Asia and Oceania have accounted for almost half (47%) of global imports of major conventional weapons.
The institute’s release said India improved its long-range military capabilities in 2008-12 with the import of over 100 Su-30MKI combat aircraft from Russia, three A-50EhI airborne early warning aircraft (combining components from Israel, Russia and Uzbekistan), an Akula nuclear-powered submarine from Russia and the first of eight P-8I anti-submarine warfare aircraft from the United States.
Meanwhile, China replaced UK as the world’s fifth largest exporter of major conventional arms worldwide, according to SIPRI. This is the first time China figures in top five of arms exporters since the end of Cold War. Overall, the volume of international transfers of major conventional weapons grew by 17% between 2003-2007 and 2008-12. Pakistan accounted for 55% of Chinese arms exports and is likely to remain the largest recipient of Chinese arms in the coming years due to large outstanding and planned orders for combat aircraft, submarines and frigates from China. Last year also saw the commissioning of China’s first aircraft carrier, Liaoning.
The five largest suppliers of major conventional weapons during the five-year period 2008-12 were the United States (30%), Russia (26%), Germany (7%), France (6%) and China (5%). This is the first time the UK does not figure in the top five since at least 1950, the earliest year covered by SIPRI data. China’s displacement of the UK is the first change in the composition of the top five exporters in 20 years.
Taliban used a water tanker this time :) Welcome home Gen. Mushy.
MIRANSHAH: A suicide bomber rammed a water tanker into a Pakistani checkpost late Saturday, killing 17 soldiers in North Waziristan, the military said.
There was no immediate claim of responsibility for the attack."In last night's attack on a security forces' checkpost in North Waziristan, 17 security forces personnel embraced shahadat (martyrdom)," the ISPR said.Security officials explained the sudden increase in the death toll after it jumped from six by saying that many of the dead had been trapped under the rubble following the blast.
Another 10 soldiers were also wounded in the attack on a check post operated jointly by the regular army and the Frontier Corps paramilitary.
QUETTA: Balochistan Police on Wednesday claimed to have arrested eleven children aged between 11 to 16 years, who were allegedly involved in carrying out the Bacha Khan blast in Quetta, Express News reported.
Capital City Police Officer (CCPO) Quetta Zubair Mehmood at a press conference in Quetta on Wednesday claimed that the detained children had admitted their role in the bomb blast that shook Bacha Khan chowk in Quetta in January. The convicts apparently worked for the little known United Baloch Army (UBA). The blast at Bacha Khan square in January had killed 12 people and injured many others. Sixteen year-old Sabir, among those detained, was particularly used in that blast.
Mehmood said that the children had admitted to receiving Rs3,000 for each of the attacks they carried out. The CCPO said that terrorist organisations exploited the poverty of these children. The CCPO further said that these children were arrested after an exchange of fire between police and militants on Tuesday night. He added that at least eight handlers managed to escape. Police also claimed to have recovered seven rockets, anti-personnel mines, chemicals, safety fuse wires, 10kg of explosive material, and explosive rods.
UBA had lured the children, who came from poor families, to leave packages containing home-made bombs in markets, dustbins and on routes used by police and security forces, Mehmood said. Mehmood said the militants chose the youngsters knowing that police would not suspect small children or garbage collectors. “Some of the children said they did not know what the packets contained and what they are doing,” he said. “They said they were happy they would get a small amount of money for dropping the packets.”
DAMASCUS: A suicide bomb attack on a mosque in central Damascus on Thursday killed 42 people, including a prominent pro-regime Sunni cleric and his grandson, and wounded 84 others, Syria's health ministry said.
"The number of those martyred in the terrorist suicide attack in the Iman Mosque rises to 42 martyrs with 84 injured," a bulletin on state television said, citing the ministry.
Quoting well informed sources, al-Watan stressed that the Syrian army's condition is very well. "The Syrian army has enough manpower and equipment for many years to come in the war to defend Syria," the source was cited by the paper as saying, noting however that "this doesn't mean that Syrians should only be confined to watch the news of battles without taking part each according to his ability." The paper's remarks came following recent talks about a possible declaration of general alert after some prominent clergymen have recently floated the idea in their statements.
Last Friday, prominent clergyman Mohammad Said Ramadan al-Bouti called on Syria's grand mufti to declare the general mobilization to back the Syrian troops in its battles against the "mercenaries. " Bouti's statement was materialized on Sunday when Syria's Supreme Iftaa Council, the highest clergy council in the country, issued a statement calling for a general alert among the public to defend the country. In its statement, the Council called on the Syrian public to support the Syrian army and the youth to join the service to defend the country, the heritage and religion from what the statement branded as the enemies wanting to rip the country in pieces.
The source stressed that "Syria is in a state of a real war and the army is doing its job perfectly, but now it's the citizens' turn to defend their neighborhoods and areas as it happened in east of Aleppo, Hama and Homs and other areas when the citizens, men and women, held up available weapons and formed committees of national defense and armies whose mission was to defend the land" with the help of the army. While the idea of general mobilization doesn't seem sound in the midst of the conflict that has been ripping Syria apart since two years, such move needs to be announced by the president himself to take effect.
Such idea has come as the Syrian troops have become stretched out in urban battles in several Syrian cities as part of the war of attrition the western-backed rebels have been waging. Armed local committees have also been formed over the past months from local people who want to defend their areas against possible rebels' attacks. Yet, most of those committees were formed in areas of minorities who fear the threat of the radical Sunni rebels, particularly with the rising star of al-Qaida-linked Nusra Front that has become the striking rebel force against the government troops.
A recent UN report has warned that the conflict in Syria "is becoming more sectarian," a claim which is totally rejected by the Syrian government.
INS Tarikand (F50), the Indian Navy's third Talwar-classs warship, has successfully completed sea trials in the Baltic exclave of Kaliningrad, Russia, Yantar shipyard spokesman Sergei Mikhailov said. Mikhailov was quoted by RIA Novosti as saying that the frigate sailed in the Baltic Sea on 5 February and completed five voyages that lasted for a number of days until 14 March, as a part of the sea trails.
Launched in May 2011, the frigate is scheduled to undergo state sea trials at the Baltiisk port, Russia, before being delivered to the Indian Navy in the summer of 2013. The delivery follows a $1.6bn contract awarded to Russia in July 2006 to build three additional project 1135.6 Talwar-class frigates, INS Teg (F45), INS Tarkash (F46) and INS Trikand (F50). INS Trikand is armed with eight BrahMos supersonic cruise missiles, Kashtan Air Defence close-in weapon systems and twin 533mm DTA-53-11356 fixed torpedo tube launchers firing SET-65E / 53-65KE torpedoes.
The Yantar Shipyard-built frigate is also fitted with an AK-190 100mm naval gun, Shtil-1 medium-range surface-to-air missile system and 12 barrel RBU-6000 anti-submarine warfare (ASW) rocket to fire 212mm 90R ASW rocket or RGB-60 depth charges. Powered by combined gas turbine propulsion systems, the modified version of the Krivak III-class frigates are 126m-long, capable of cruising at a maximum speed of 30k and can accommodate a crew of 313. INS Teg, the first frigate of the class, was deployed in June 2012 while the second ship, INS Tarkash, arrived at the port of Mumbai, India, on 30 December 2012. The three additional frigates will be deployed with existing warships of the same class, INS Talwar (sword), INS Trishul (trident) and INS Tabar (axe), to support Indian Navy operations.
The newest model of the IDF's most advanced unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) – the Skylark – is expected to enter operational use in the coming months. The Skylark – Generation 2 is currently in its final testing stages and is designed for use in the field by infantry battalions in the IDF Ground Forces.
The Skylark weighs a mere seven kilograms, and is equipped with state of the art cameras that provide visual intelligence of the area of the battlefield in which the battalion operates. The new model of the Skylark has been developed by the Technology and Logistics Branch and the Ground Forces Weapons Department and is being supplied by Elbit Systems. Its integration in the field is expected to provide technological operational advantages, including the use of the Skylark's upgraded cameras. Furthermore, the UAV's communications system will soon be hooked up to the Ground Forces' overall command and control system. The Ground Forces' vision is for every battalion to have an attached Skylark squad to provide field support. The Skylark Unit's responsibilities are also expected to grow to coincide with a significant expansion planned for the use of UAVs in the Ground Forces.
Same scenes will be played out by Pakistan Army Vs Free Sindhi Army, Free Pashtoon Army and Free Baloch Army in KP, Karachi city and entire Balochishtan.
Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu and his Vietnamese counterpart Phung Quang Thanh
Russia is looking to step up naval cooperation with Vietnam in the latter’s strategic Cam Ranh Bay in the East Sea though Vietnam is downplaying it, calling the cooperation “normal.” Asked whether recent bilateral talks on naval cooperation convey a message about the sovereignty dispute in the East Sea, Minister of Defense Phung Quang Thanh said: “It is a normal issue. Other countries [also] want to cooperate with the Vietnamese Navy.” He was speaking at a press conference Tuesday following a visit by his Russian counterpart General Sergei Shoigu on March 4-5. Cam Ranh Port in central Vietnam was used by the US military during the Vietnam War which ended in 1975. After the war, Vietnam and the then Soviet Union signed an agreement in 1979 that allowed the latter to use Cam Ranh as a base until Russia withdrew its forces in 2002.
Cam Ranh Bay is about 13 kilometers from the open sea with waters 18-30 meters deep. The estuary is three kilometers wide and 20 meters deep, making it capable of receiving ships of more than 100,000 DWT. It is strategically located near key shipping lanes in the East Sea, internationally known as the South China Sea, and is close to the strategically important and oil-rich Truong Sa (Spratly) and Hoang Sa (Paracel) archipelagoes. At the press conference, Shoigu underlined the importance of Russia’s naval cooperation with Vietnam and promised to support Vietnam with personnel training and technology transfer once Russia delivers naval vessels. Last August Russia’s Admiralteiskie Verfi shipyard completed the first of six Kilo-class diesel-electric submarines ordered by Vietnam.Shoigu told Thanh at the meeting that Vietnam should approve construction of a five-star resort for Russian soldiers near Cam Ranh Airport. A fifth of the foreign-invested resort’s capacity will be earmarked for Vietnamese soldiers.
The Vietnamese Navy-owned Tan Cang Company would build a commercial repair facility at Cam Ranh Bay, Thanh said.Vietsovpetro, a joint venture between Russia's Zarubezhneft Company and PetroVietnam, would take a stake in the project that is expected to take two or three years, he said.The facility would come up in the bay and serve commercial purposes, he said.Cam Ranh would have three ports – one for the Vietnamese Navy, the repair facility serving ships from all countries, and the civilian Ba Ngoi Port – he said. “As you know, Japan, France, the US, and the former Soviet Union had bases here,” he said at the press conference. “Thus the Russians know well about the strategic position of Cam Ranh Bay. “It’s a deep water port located near international shipping lines, and is a good place to have technical services.” Vietnam would simplify procedures for Russian ships using the services, he promised. Carlyle Thayer, a Vietnam expert with the University of New South Wales in Australia, said bilateral discussions to step up naval cooperation were in line with what was agreed in the past few years. “In 2010 Vietnam asked Russia to assist in upgrading the naval facilities at Cam Ranh Bay mainly in order to service the Kilo submarines when they are delivered. “Top Vietnamese officials noted that Russia would be accorded special treatment because of its status as a strategic partner. “In July 2012 the bilateral relationship was raised to a comprehensive strategic partnership in part due to closer defense cooperation through increase military sales.” There was no possibility that the Russians would be permitted to set up a base at Cam Ranh Bay, he said.
China using North Korea as a decoy for personal gains for fixing its neighbors
SEOUL,-- North Korea's air force has sharply increased jet fighter training flights in the past few days, with the number of sorties reaching as many as 700 on the day South Korea and the United States launched a joint war game earlier this week, a military source in Seoul said Wednesday.
The North's move is seen as part of efforts to beef up combat readiness and to closely monitor joint drills in the South that began on Monday. The drill, called Key Resolve, involves about 10,000 Korean troops and 3,000 American personnel as well as military weapons and equipment, including F-22 stealth jets and B-52 bombers deployed from overseas U.S. bases.
"Flights of North Korean air force's fighter jets and helicopters reached about 700 sorties on March 11," the source said on the condition of anonymity. "It is seen as unprecedented in scale."
The recent sortie is nearly six times more than the maximum number of flights in a day during last year's summer training, the source said.
The impoverished nation is known to have restricted flying time to save hard currency as its fighter jets depend on imported fuel. North Korea is believed to have accumulated about 1.5 tons of fuel for wartime use, according to military officials.
The latest move comes as the communist nation is preparing a mass military drill along its eastern coast, and activities of submarines and warships have also increased along its east and west coasts.
After the U.N. Security Council slapped a new round of sanctions on Pyongyang over its third nuclear test last month, the North Korean leader Kim Jong-un has made a series of visits to artillery troops near the western sea border urging his soldiers to be on high alert and ready for war.
While tensions over a military conflict are rising on the Korean Peninsula, Seoul's defense ministry said on Tuesday there were no signs of an imminent attack or additional nuclear tests for the time being, but he stressed it would strike back if the North launches any provocation on the South.
A suicide bomber has killed at least seven people in an attack on spectators at a buzkashi sports event in north-east Afghanistan.The brother and father of the speaker of the Afghan parliament are said to be among the dead in Imam Sahib district, Kunduz province.
Hundreds of people were watching and the death toll may rise further.Buzkashi is played on horseback and is similar to polo, but uses the headless carcass of a goat instead of a ball. The governor of Kunduz province, Mohammad Anwar Jigdalak, said Abdul Qayum Ebrahimi had been killed in the attack along with his father.
Pashtoon Villagers killed Anwar Din because he was from Rogue Punjabi Pakistan Army
DERA ISMAIL KHAN: A soldier was publicly stoned to death on the order of a tribal court in Kurram region for having an affair with a local woman, government officials and tribesmen said on Wednesday.
Such tribal justice is a stark reminder of the difficulty in establishing a credible civilian administration in Pakistan’s semi-autonomous region bordering Afghanistan, despite a series of military operations in the area and Western nations pouring in millions of dollars to help build infrastructure.Punjab native Anwar Din, 27, was posted last year to the Parachinar area of Kurram agency where he met Intizar Bibi, 19, while manning a check post near her home.
The two embarked on a romantic relationship, tribal sources said, and he tried to elope with her when he was later posted to the disputed Kashmir region. It was not immediately clear what evidence there was, if any, of a romance.“The girl left her home on Monday and met Anwar Din when villagers saw them,” said Munir Hussain, the head of the local jirga, or tribal court, that sentenced Din to death. “We took the girl into custody and took the boy to the local graveyard where he was stoned to death and buried.”
“There were some 40 to 50 people who hit the man with stones till he bled to death,” a local tribesman told AFP on condition of anonymity.A hospital official confirmed that they had received a mutilated body on Tuesday, which was later taken away by paramilitary forces.“It was really a horrific sight. The body had been badly damaged after being hit by stones. Wounds all over and the face could no longer be recognised,” the official said.Din was killed on Monday, Hussain added. A government official, speaking on condition of anonymity, said the jirga had ruled the woman must be shot to death. It was not immediately clear if this had already taken place. The army was not immediately available for comment.
Kurram, the only part of Pakistan’s largely lawless border region that has a significant Shia population, is racked by sectarian violence between Sunni and Shia tribes. Anti-Shia ideology from the Taliban and al Qaeda has meant years of bloody fighting.Bibi is Shia while Din was Sunni, Hussain added.The Federally Administered Tribal Areas have never been fully integrated into Pakistan’s administrative, economic or judicial system.Instead, families and tribes often take justice into their own hands, presiding over ‘jirgas’ or ‘panchayats’, gatherings of elders that hand down punishments including rape, killing and the bartering of women to settle scores and restore honour.
In such tribal justice, women often fair far worse than men.Hussain said that the jirga had also requested that another Pakistani soldier, Saif Ullah, be handed over for helping the couple meet and coordinate the planned elopement.“The army is here for our security but if they engage in such activities we will not let them stay here,” Hussain said. “This is an insult to tribal customs. We will revolt against this.” agencies
TEHRAN (FNA)- Commander of Khatam ol-Anbia Air Defense Base Brigadier General Farzad Esmayeeli on Tuesday said his forces have shooed away a US U-2 high-altitude reconnaissance plane seeking to approach the Iranian airspace on February 10, when Iranians were celebrating the anniversary of the victory of the Islamic Revolution.
Speaking to reporters about Iran's air-defense capability, Esmayeeli said his forces pursue and fulfill four missions, which include discovering, indentifying and detecting aggressive aircraft using 3,600 air defense stations and points which are working under an integrated air-defense system.
He pointed to the achievements of his forces in the last Iranian year (ends on March 20), and said that the air-defense units were able to "discover, identify and detect a U-2 aircraft which uses various types of hi-tech for reconnaissance and intelligence gathering missions".
"On Bahman 22 (February 10) and around noon, a U-2 reconnaissance radar-evading aircraft received our warning signal over the general zone in the Sea of Oman before it could approach Iran's borders," Esmayeeli said, adding that the U-2 plane regarded Iran's warning and complied with its orders and moved away from Iran's airspace.
The commander said that the plane might have intended to take images and gather intelligence over Iran's Southern regions.
The Lockheed U-2, nicknamed "Dragon Lady", is a high-altitude reconnaissance aircraft operated by the United States Air Force (USAF) and previously flown by the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA). It provides day and night, very high-altitude (70,000 feet/21,000 m), all-weather intelligence gathering. The U-2 has also been used for electronic sensor research, satellite calibration, and communications purposes.
It has participated in conflicts such as Afghanistan and Iraq, and supported several multinational NATO operations. The role of the U-2 is increasingly performed by alternative platforms, such as surveillance satellites, unmanned reconnaissance drones and conventional aircraft.
In similar remarks in October, Esmayeeli had stressed Iran's capability to confront US spy planes and drones, and said his forces have so far warned tens of US spy planes, including the advanced Airborne Warning and Control System (AWACS) aircraft, to keep away from Iranian airspace.
Pakistanis murdering a minority community member by stones
ISLAMABAD:Former Afghan spymaster Amrullah Saleh accused Pakistan on Tuesday of taking money from Afghanistan for the recent release of Taliban cadres.
In the programme “Sarhad Ke Us Paar”, the former head of National Directorate of Security (NDS) claimed that the Pakistani government had even offered to mediate between the Afghan government and the Taliban. “Pakistan is no longer denying to having harboured the Taliban leadership, and its government is now putting a high price tag on the Taliban and saying if you pay the price we are going to push these guys for reconciliation and we know what the price tag is,” said Saleh, who is known for his anti-Pakistan statements. Pakistan’s foreign ministry rejected Saleh’s claims outright, saying neither did the government take money from Afghanistan for releasing the prisoners, nor did they offer any mediation.
“Pakistan encourages an inclusive intra-Afghan dialogue and is committed to it,” the foreign ministry spokesperson told.
“Pakistan has monopolised the right to have all sorts of foreign relations itself and when it comes to Afghanistan, they want to create limitations for us; treating us not as a nation, but as sub-nation, as to who we should talk to or who should be our allies,” he added. During the programme, Awami National Party Senator Haji Adeel conceded that Pakistan has made mistakes in the past when “undemocratic people ruled the country”.
“We treated Afghanistan as another province, I think now the policy has changed. Even our establishment, our agencies and our elected government are now following their own tradition.”
China may attack Taiwan using the next North Korean crisis which it will help create.
TAIPEI: Taiwan has received its final two upgraded early warning aircraft from the United States, a move expected to bolster the island’s air defence against rival China, the air force said Sunday.
Analysts say the planes — which have an all-weather early warning and control system platform with upgraded radar, software, avionics and propellers — will further reduce warning time if China launched an air attack on the island.
China has repeatedly threatened to invade Taiwan should the island declare formal independence, prompting Taipei to seek more advanced weapons, largely from the United States.
The arrival of the two new E-2Ks brings the number of the advanced aircraft in the Taiwanese fleet to six. Taiwan acquired four less advanced E-2Ts from the US in 1995 and added two E-2Ks in 2006. The US then agreed to upgrade the four E-2Ts to E-2Ks as part of a $6.5 billion arms sale that upset Beijing in 2008. That deal also included advanced interceptor Patriot missiles, Apache attack helicopters and submarine-launched missiles. The two new planes to be delivered are the last of the four to be upgraded.
The air force declined to provide specifications of the E-2K, which is an improved version of Northrop Grumman’s E-2T, but military experts say it is equivalent to the E-2C 2000 now serving the US navy. Equipped with two eight-blade propellers and a dome on the back which houses antennas for their long-range radars, the planes were transported to the southern port of Kaohsiung Saturday, the air force said. A picture printed in Taiwan’s Liberty Times newspaper showed the two new planes, with their wings folded and fully covered by a white protective plastic sheet, being towed from the harbour to the nearby airport. The paper said the two aircraft are expected to fly to their home base is southern Pingtung county in a week. Ties between Taipei and Beijing have improved markedly since Ma Ying-jeou of the China-friendly Kuomintang party came to power in 2008, promising to boost trade links and allow more Chinese tourists to visit the island.
Iran's North Korean nuclear connection: top Tehran nuclear official was in Pyongyang for test
Is it possible Iran has paid for and outsourced their nuclear program to North Korea? One leading expert say yes. And Iran might be providing their best nuclear scientist as well. Reports that Iran’s leading nuclear scientist, Dr. Mohsen Fakhrizadeh, was present for North Korea’s third nuclear test on Feb. 11 are raising further concerns. Particularly since the latest international negotiations over Iran’s nuclear ambitions concluded this week in Almaty, Kazakhstan, with little more than an agreement to meet again.
The London Times first reported on Feb. 17 that Fakhrizadeh, who despite the terms of U.N. Security Council Resolution 1747, may have traveled “evidently to Pyongyang, most likely via China” to witness North Korea’s third and successful nuclear test. This despite the U.N. calling upon member states to “exercise vigilance and restraint” and “notification” in allowing him entry or transit. Iran has refused to make Fakhrizadeh available for interviews by investigators from the International Atomic Energy Agency. No confirmed image of him has been made public.
If China knowingly permitted him transfer from Iran across China to witness the North Korea test … then it would appear that China or at least some element in China are cooperating with nuclear programs in North Korea and Iran.” The Feb. 11 test has been described by experts as a miniaturized atomic bomb test of a relatively small yield of 6-7 kilotons, mounted on a Nodong missile. This latest demonstration shows Pyongyang has not changed its strident military posture despite its new leader Kim Jong-un’s higher profile. North Korea has been working on warhead designs in its highly secretive program for approximately 25 years.
Ambassador Graham added: “The objective of this test has said to be the development of a compact highly explosive nuclear warhead mated with a North Korean missile. Iranian missiles were developed from North Korean prototypes. It could appear that North Korea is building nuclear weapons for transfer to Iran.”Graham also drew attention to North Korea’s completed uranium enrichment plant, which when visited by American experts in 2010, was described as “stunning and to be better than anything the Iranians have.”He added, “This opens the door via technology sold to North Korea years previously by Pakistani proliferator A.Q. Khan to build a significant number of weapons.” Sanctions are not working. Confronting the “triangular trade,” which refers to the cooperation among Iran, China and North Korea on nuclear programs, is a growing challenge. In addition, Iran may have more than one plan to obtain full nuclear weapons capability. “Indeed, the West could have it all wrong, says Graham. “The Iranians perhaps in fact are going to use their enrichment facilities at Natanz and Qom to fabricate peaceful reactor grade uranium, and have outsourced their nuclear program to North Korea. North Korea might even agree to store the Iranian weapons produced with Iranian money.”
