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Turkey blames Kurdish militants for Ankara bomb, vows response in Syria and Iraq

By Ercan Gurses and Humeyra Pamuk1 hour ago

Firefighters prepare to extinguish fire after an explosion in Ankara, Turkey, February 17, 2016. REUTERS/Ihlas News Agency

By Ercan Gurses and Humeyra Pamuk

ANKARA/ISTANBUL (Reuters) - Turkish Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu blamed a Syrian Kurdish militia fighter working with Kurdish militants inside Turkey for a suicide car bombing that killed 28 people in the capital Ankara, and he vowed retaliation in both Syria and Iraq.

A car laden with explosives detonated next to military buses as they waited at traffic lights near Turkey's armed forces' headquarters, parliament and government buildings in the administrative heart of Ankara late on Wednesday.

Davutoglu said the attack was clear evidence that the YPG, a Syrian Kurdish militia that has been supported by the United States in the fight against Islamic State in northern Syria, was a terrorist organization and that Turkey, a NATO member, expected cooperation from its allies in combating the group.

Within hours, Turkish warplanes bombed bases in northern Iraq of the Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK), which has waged a three-decade insurgency against the Turkish state and which Davutoglu accused of collaborating in the car bombing.

Turkey's armed forces would continue their shelling of recent days of YPG positions in northern Syria, Davutoglu said, promising that those responsible would "pay the price".

"Yesterday's attack was directly targeting Turkey and the perpetrator is the YPG and the divisive terrorist organization PKK. All necessary measures will be taken against them," Davutoglu said in a televised speech.

President Tayyip Erdogan also said initial findings suggested the Syrian Kurdish militia and the PKK were behind the bombing and said that 14 people had been detained.

The political arm of the YPG, denied involvement in the bombing, while a senior member of the PKK said he did not know who was responsible.

The attack was the latest in a series of bombings in the past year mostly blamed on Islamic State militants.

Turkey is getting dragged ever deeper into the war in neighboring Syria and is trying to contain some of the fiercest violence in decades in its predominantly Kurdish southeast.

The YPG militia, regarded by Ankara as a hostile insurgent force deeply linked to the PKK, has taken advantage in recent weeks of a major Syrian army offensive around the northern city of Aleppo, backed by Russian air strikes, to seize ground from Syrian rebels near the Turkish border.

That has alarmed Turkey, which fears the advances will stoke Kurdish separatist ambitions at home. It has been bombarding YPG positions in an effort to stop them taking the town of Azaz, the last stronghold of Turkish-backed Syrian rebels north of Aleppo before the Turkish frontier.

Hundreds of Syrian rebels with weapons and vehicles have re-entered Syria from Turkey over the last week to reinforce insurgents fending off the Kurdish-led assault on Azaz, rebel sources said on Thursday.

KURDISH MILITIA DENIAL

The co-leader of the YPG's political wing denied that the affiliated YPG perpetrated the Ankara bombing and said Turkey was using the attack to justify an escalation in fighting in northern Syria.

"We are completely refuting that. ...Davutoglu is preparing for something else because they are shelling us as you know for the past week," Saleh Muslim told Reuters by telephone.

Turkey has said its shelling of YPG positions is a response, within its rules of engagement, to hostile fire coming across the border into Turkey, something Muslim also denied.

"I can assure you not even one bullet is fired by the YPG into Turkey ... They don't consider Turkey an enemy," he said.

The co-leader of the PKK umbrella group, Cemil Bayik, was quoted by the Firat news agency as saying he did not know who was responsible for the Ankara bombing. But the attack, he said, could be an answer to "massacres in Kurdistan", referring to the Kurdish region spanning parts of Turkey, Syria, Iraq and Iran.

Turkey has been battling PKK militants in its own southeast, where a 2-1/2 year ceasefire collapsed last July and pitched the region into its worst bloodshed since the 1990s. Six soldiers were killed and one wounded on Thursday when a remote-controlled handmade bomb hit their vehicle, the military said.

WARNING TO RUSSIA

Davutoglu named the suicide bomber as Salih Necar, born in 1992 and from the Hasakah region of northern Syria, and said he was a member of the YPG.

A senior security official said the alleged bomber had entered Turkey from Syria in July 2014, although he may have crossed the border illegally multiple times before that, and said he had contact with the PKK and Syrian intelligence.

Davutoglu also accused the Syrian government of a hand in the Ankara bombing and warned Russia, whose air strikes in northern Syria have helped the YPG to advance, against using the Kurdish militant group against Turkey.

"I'd like to warn Russia, which is giving air support to the YPG in its advance on Azaz, not to use this terrorist group against the innocent people of Syria and Turkey," he said.

"Russia condemned yesterday's attack, but it is not enough. All those who intend to use terrorist organizations as proxies should know that this game of terror will turn around like a boomerang and hit them first."

Russian President Vladimir Putin's spokesman, Dmitry Peskov, told a teleconference with reporters that the Kremlin condemned the bombing "in the strongest possible terms".

(Additional reporting by Seyhmus Cakan in Diyarbakir, Daren Butler and Ece Toksabay in Istanbul, Orhan Coskun in Ankara, Dmitry Solovyov in Moscow; Writing by Nick Tattersall; Editing by Mark Heinrich)

Cliven Bundy, 4 others, face federal indictment in Nevada

By LISA BAUMANN7 hours ago

FILE - In a Wednesday, Jan. 27, 2016 file photo, rancher Cliven Bundy speaks to media while standing along the road near his ranch, in Bunkerville, Nev. A federal grand jury in Nevada indicted Cliven Bundy and four others Wednesday, Feb. 17, 2016, on 16 charges related to an armed standoff near his ranch in 2014 over unpaid grazing fees. Bundy is accused of leading "a massive armed assault" of 200 followers to stop federal law agents who were rounding up about 400 of Bundy's cattle on federal lands in April 2014, according to documents filed by U.S. attorneys Wednesday. (AP Photo/John Locher, File)

A federal grand jury in Nevada indicted Cliven Bundy and four others Wednesday on 16 charges related to an armed standoff near his ranch in 2014 over unpaid grazing fees.

The 69-year-old Nevada rancher was arrested Feb. 10 in Portland, Oregon, where his sons, Ammon and Ryan Bundy, are jailed and accused of organizing the occupation of Malheur National Wildlife Refuge. In the takeover, which lasted nearly six weeks, they had demanded that public lands be turned over to locals and that two area ranchers serving sentences for arson be freed.

Ammon Bundy, of Idaho, Ryan Bundy, of Nevada, Ryan Payne, of Montana, and Peter Santilli of Ohio, were also indicted by the Nevada grand jury Wednesday.

The charges against them and Cliven Bundy include: conspiracy to commit an offense against the United States, conspiracy to impede or injure a federal officer, weapon use and possession, assault on a federal officer, threatening a federal law enforcement officer, obstruction, extortion to interfere with commerce, and interstate travel in aid of extortion.

"This indictment sends a resounding message to those who wish to participate in violent acts that our resolve to pursue them and enforce the law remains unwavering," Nevada FBI Special Agent in Charge Laura Bucheit said in a written statement.

Cliven Bundy is accused of leading "a massive armed assault" of 200 followers to stop federal law agents who were rounding up about 400 of Bundy's cattle on federal lands in April 2014, according to documents filed by U.S. attorneys Wednesday.

Upon learning of the roundup, Bundy said he was "ready to do battle," with the Bureau of Land Management and that he would "do whatever it takes" to protect his property, according to documents.

The others allegedly organized and recruited followers and acted as leaders in the incident.

Federal officials have said Bundy unlawfully allowed his cattle to graze on federal public lands for more than 20 years, refusing to pay grazing fees and ignoring federal court orders in 1998 and in 2013 to remove his cows or have them removed by the government.

Court documents say on April 12, 2014, federal officials were outnumbered four to one by armed Bundy followers and wishing to avoid a firefight, diffused the situation by abandoning the cattle to Bundy.

"The rule of law has been reaffirmed with these charges," said U.S. Attorney Bogden. "Persons who use force and violence against federal law enforcement officers who are enforcing court orders, and nearly causing catastrophic loss of life or injury to others, will be brought to justice."

Ammon Bundy's lawyer, Mike Arnold, told The Oregonian Wednesday evening he had anticipated the indictments but declined comment on the specific charges, saying he hadn't yet read them.

"It's important for the public to remember that there is a constitutional presumption of innocence in America,'" Arnold said in an email to The Oregonian. "A government charge is proof of nothing. That's what courts and trials are for."

Five counts of criminal forfeiture are also included in the indictment which would require the forfeiture of property derived from the proceeds of the crimes totaling at least $3 million, as well as the firearms and ammunition possessed and used on April 12, 2014.

Federal authorities said two years ago that Bundy owed more than $1.1 million in fees and penalties for letting cows graze illegally for decades on public land near his ranch. A Bureau of Land Management spokesman said last week an updated accounting has not been made.

Cliven Bundy and the other defendants are currently in custody in Oregon. Arraignments on the charges have not yet been set.

Trump, Savage, others derided by major newspapers

Published: 15 hours ago

President Obama and Texas ranch owner John Poindexter (Credit: Houston Business Journal report, August 15, 2010, via DC Whispers)

At least two major newspapers are taking to task any skeptics of the way Justice Antonin Scalia’s death was handled by Presidio County, Texas, officials on Feb. 13.

The Los Angeles Times and the San Antonio Express-News have run articles critical of radio hosts Michael Savage and Alex Jones as well as Donald Trump and the immigration watchdog group Americans for Legal Immigration PAC.

L.A. Times reporter Matt Pearce issued a stinging rebuke, writing that Scalia’s death is “getting the full conspiracy theory treatment.”

“Officials said Scalia’s family did not want an autopsy. There was nothing to stop local authorities from doing one anyway had they deemed the death suspicious, but they didn’t. Scalia’s cause of death was declared by a county judge in a phone call.

“As unusual as that might sound — and as tantalizing as it might be to conspiracy theorists — it appears to be allowed under Texas law.”

Pearce said the outrage was fueled by Donald Trump, who commented during an interview with Michael Savage that questions surrounding Scalia’s death would not go away but would only intensify.

Martin Kuz of the San Antonio newspaper also defended the odd way in which the death was handled, though he did not name any particular conspiracy theorist.

“Texas has no coroners, and most of its rural counties, including Presidio, lack a medical examiner, a dual predicament common in sparsely populated areas of the country,” he wrote. “The Texas Code of Criminal Procedure assigns the duties of a county coroner to a justice of the peace.

“Authorities followed the code’s guidelines on inquests by contacting Presidio County’s two local judges to seek a declaration of death. Both were out of town, and as stipulated by the code, officials then contacted the county judge.”

The criticisms prompted ALIPAC to send out a release Wednesday defending its call on Sunday for an immediate autopsy and toxicology report on Scalia’s body. The statement reads as follows:

“Both articles attempt to disparage anyone from questioning the handling of Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia’s unexpected and unexplained death and lack of autopsy and toxicology reports, with specific personalities targeted in the articles including presidential candidate Donald Trump, radio show host Michael Savage, Infowars show host Alex Jones, and ALIPAC’s President William Gheen.

“Why are these major newspapers arguing against proper law enforcement investigations of Scalia’s cause of death?”

Justice Scalia was found dead by millionaire Democratic Party donor and Obama ally John Poindexter near America’s unsecured, dangerous, porous, and cartel-controlled Southern Border, and for Gheen, Savage and Jones these were all red flags.

Savage came right out and asked on his radio show Monday, “Was Scalia murdered?”

Savage called for an investigation on the level of the presidentially appointed probe into President John F. Kennedy’s assassination in 1963.

“We need a Warren Commission-like federal investigation,” he said. “This is serious business.”

Gheen is equally skeptical.

“Scalia was considered to be a solid vote against Obama’s amnesty orders that 26 states including Texas are suing to stop as well as many other lawsuits relevant to Obama’s agenda,” he said. “The Supreme Court was expected to vote on Obama’s clearly unconstitutional amnesty orders in the next few weeks, making Scalia one of Obama’s main political stumbling blocks since GOP Speaker Paul Ryan, Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, and many other Republican lawmakers in Congress have recently capitulated to Obama and voted to fund all his programs with the Omnibus funding bill last December.”

Gheen said the newspapers are engaging in ad hominem attacks, stooping to name-calling against anyone who feels forensic investigations, autopsies, and toxicology reports are prudent when top government officials are found dead for causes unknown.

“We stand by and repeat our call for an immediate, thorough forensic examination of Scalia’s body by multiple law enforcement agencies responsible for the national security of our nation,” he said. “We also contend that any decisions rendered by the Supreme Court without Scalia’s replacement confirmed by the U.S. Senate will be deemed as illegitimate by large numbers of American citizens who are expressing doubts about how Scalia died and how his death has been handled. This mishandling of the tragic death of Justice Scalia puts our national security and government officials at greater risk while further undermining confidence in our government at a time of historic distrust and disappointment with Washington, D.C., institutions and the media.”

If foul play or accidental poisoning was involved with the death of Scalia, much of that evidence has already been destroyed or corrupted when his body was washed and embalmed at a funeral home less than 24 hours after his body was discovered.

Gheen said ALIPAC is now considering releasing an open letter to Scalia’s family requesting that his they order an autopsy of his remains to help settle some of these widely held concerns.

Read more at http://www.wnd.com/2016/02/scalia-skeptics-blasted-as-conspiracy-theorists/#HwUfTbt8lAp7R6oo.99

A ground operation by Saudi and Turkish troops in Syria may trigger an open confrontation between regional powers, the head of the Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO) said Tuesday.

Russian President Vladimir Putin participates in CSTO and Supreme Eurasian Economic Council summits in Moscow.

CSTO Members Warn of Sharp Rise in Global Terrorist Threat

MOSCOW (Sputnik) — Saudi Arabia said earlier it was ready to send armed forces to Syria if the deployment is agreed with the US-led coalition. Reports last week claimed that Turkey had sent its troops over the border. It also intensified shelling of Kurdish positions in northern Syria earlier this week.

"Mass shelling of the Syrian territory by Turkey, Ankara’s and Riyadh’s plans to start ground operations in Syria may upgrade the Syrian crisis to a new, dangerous level – a direct military confrontation between countries in the region," CSTO Secretary General Nikolai Bordyuzha told reporters.

The military alliance of former Soviet republics – Russia, Armenia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, and Uzbekistan – fears that Saudi and Turkish boots on the ground in Syria would pose a threat to CSTO member states, Bordyuzha added.

Tensions in the region have escalated in the past months after regional powers openly sided with opposing warring parties in Syria. Meanwhile, a diplomatic breakdown between Saudi Arabia and Iran in January split Middle Eastern nations along the lines of Sunni-Shiite religious divide.

Luis Miguel 1162 61587 Lima	RE: ARE WE NOW IN THE END TIMES? 2/18/2016 2:18:46 PM
	Cliven Bundy, 4 others, face federal indictment in Nevada By LISA BAUMANN7 hours ago FILE - In a Wednesday, Jan. 27, 2016 file photo, rancher Cliven Bundy speaks to media while standing along the road near his ranch, in Bunkerville, Nev. A federal grand jury in Nevada indicted Cliven Bundy and four others Wednesday, Feb. 17, 2016, on 16 charges related to an armed standoff near his ranch in 2014 over unpaid grazing fees. Bundy is accused of leading "a massive armed assault" of 200 followers to stop federal law agents who were rounding up about 400 of Bundy's cattle on federal lands in April 2014, according to documents filed by U.S. attorneys Wednesday. (AP Photo/John Locher, File) A federal grand jury in Nevada indicted Cliven Bundy and four others Wednesday on 16 charges related to an armed standoff near his ranch in 2014 over unpaid grazing fees. Related Stories Nevada rancher indicted on 16 counts over 2014 armed standoff Reuters Nevada rancher Cliven Bundy to stay behind bars in Oregon Associated Press Cliven Bundy, called 'lawless and violent,' to stay in jail Associated Press The Latest: Rancher Cliven Bundy to stay behind bars Associated Press Cliven Bundy charged in 2014 standoff at Nevada ranch Reuters Bad News For Insurance,Great News For North DakotaFreeRateReport Sponsored  The 69-year-old Nevada rancher was arrested Feb. 10 in Portland, Oregon, where his sons, Ammon and Ryan Bundy, are jailed and accused of organizing the occupation of Malheur National Wildlife Refuge. In the takeover, which lasted nearly six weeks, they had demanded that public lands be turned over to locals and that two area ranchers serving sentences for arson be freed. Ammon Bundy, of Idaho, Ryan Bundy, of Nevada, Ryan Payne, of Montana, and Peter Santilli of Ohio, were also indicted by the Nevada grand jury Wednesday. The charges against them and Cliven Bundy include: conspiracy to commit an offense against the United States, conspiracy to impede or injure a federal officer, weapon use and possession, assault on a federal officer, threatening a federal law enforcement officer, obstruction, extortion to interfere with commerce, and interstate travel in aid of extortion. "This indictment sends a resounding message to those who wish to participate in violent acts that our resolve to pursue them and enforce the law remains unwavering," Nevada FBI Special Agent in Charge Laura Bucheit said in a written statement. Cliven Bundy is accused of leading "a massive armed assault" of 200 followers to stop federal law agents who were rounding up about 400 of Bundy's cattle on federal lands in April 2014, according to documents filed by U.S. attorneys Wednesday. Upon learning of the roundup, Bundy said he was "ready to do battle," with the Bureau of Land Management and that he would "do whatever it takes" to protect his property, according to documents. The others allegedly organized and recruited followers and acted as leaders in the incident. Federal officials have said Bundy unlawfully allowed his cattle to graze on federal public lands for more than 20 years, refusing to pay grazing fees and ignoring federal court orders in 1998 and in 2013 to remove his cows or have them removed by the government. Court documents say on April 12, 2014, federal officials were outnumbered four to one by armed Bundy followers and wishing to avoid a firefight, diffused the situation by abandoning the cattle to Bundy. "The rule of law has been reaffirmed with these charges," said U.S. Attorney Bogden. "Persons who use force and violence against federal law enforcement officers who are enforcing court orders, and nearly causing catastrophic loss of life or injury to others, will be brought to justice." Ammon Bundy's lawyer, Mike Arnold, told The Oregonian Wednesday evening he had anticipated the indictments but declined comment on the specific charges, saying he hadn't yet read them. "It's important for the public to remember that there is a constitutional presumption of innocence in America,'" Arnold said in an email to The Oregonian. "A government charge is proof of nothing. That's what courts and trials are for." Five counts of criminal forfeiture are also included in the indictment which would require the forfeiture of property derived from the proceeds of the crimes totaling at least $3 million, as well as the firearms and ammunition possessed and used on April 12, 2014. Federal authorities said two years ago that Bundy owed more than $1.1 million in fees and penalties for letting cows graze illegally for decades on public land near his ranch. A Bureau of Land Management spokesman said last week an updated accounting has not been made. Cliven Bundy and the other defendants are currently in custody in Oregon. Arraignments on the charges have not yet been set.
	"Choose a job you love and you will not have to work a day in your life" (Confucius)
	+2

Luis Miguel 1162 61587 Lima	RE: ARE WE NOW IN THE END TIMES? 2/18/2016 5:02:14 PM
	CSTO Chief Warns About All-Out War in Middle East © AP Photo/ Halit Onur Sandal 16:30 16.02.2016 A ground operation by Saudi and Turkish troops in Syria may trigger an open confrontation between regional powers, the head of the Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO) said Tuesday. © SPUTNIK/ CSTO Members Warn of Sharp Rise in Global Terrorist Threat MOSCOW (Sputnik) — Saudi Arabia said earlier it was ready to send armed forces to Syria if the deployment is agreed with the US-led coalition. Reports last week claimed that Turkey had sent its troops over the border. It also intensified shelling of Kurdish positions in northern Syria earlier this week. "Mass shelling of the Syrian territory by Turkey, Ankara’s and Riyadh’s plans to start ground operations in Syria may upgrade the Syrian crisis to a new, dangerous level – a direct military confrontation between countries in the region," CSTO Secretary General Nikolai Bordyuzha told reporters. The military alliance of former Soviet republics – Russia, Armenia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, and Uzbekistan – fears that Saudi and Turkish boots on the ground in Syria would pose a threat to CSTO member states, Bordyuzha added. Tensions in the region have escalated in the past months after regional powers openly sided with opposing warring parties in Syria. Meanwhile, a diplomatic breakdown between Saudi Arabia and Iran in January split Middle Eastern nations along the lines of Sunni-Shiite religious divide. Read more: http://sputniknews.com/world/20160216/1034846590/csto-operation-syria.html#ixzz40XWx1qgn
	"Choose a job you love and you will not have to work a day in your life" (Confucius)
	+2

Luis Miguel 1162 61587 Lima	RE: ARE WE NOW IN THE END TIMES? 2/18/2016 5:22:15 PM
	Hezbollah says Turks and Saudis dragging whole region into war AFP Last updated: February 17, 2016 Hezbollah chief Hassan Nasrallah, seen on screen as he addresses the crowd in Beirut on February 16, 2016, said Turkey and Saudi Arabia "are not ready to accept a political solution" in Syria © Anwar Amro - AFP CONFLICT Hezbollah chief Hassan Nasrallah on Tuesday accused Ankara and Riyadh of dragging the entire region into war and said "victory" was imminent for his Shiite Lebanese group and its Syrian regime allies. "They (Turkey and Saudi Arabia) are ready to drag the region into a war," Nasrallah said in a video address to supporters in the southern suburbs of Beirut, a Hezbollah bastion. He said the two countries have been pushing to send in international ground forces because they "are not ready to accept a political solution to the conflict in Syria, which is why they want to continue the war and destroy it". Nasrallah said Riyadh and Ankara planned to intervene directly because their allies "the Islamist rebels on the ground have suffered successive defeats" at the hands of Kurdish and Syrian regime forces. He also said victory for President Bashar al-Assad's forces, backed by Hezbollah, Iran and Russia was coming. "In the days ahead and for the decade to come... we will proclaim victory alongside the Syrian army," he said. He also vowed "to prevent Daesh (Arabic acronym for the Islamic State group), Al-Nusra Front (the Syrian Al-Qaeda affiliate), America, Saudi Arabia, Turkey and their pawns from occupying Syria and Israel to realise their ambitions." On Saturday, Turkey said that it could, alongside fellow international coalition member Saudi Arabia, mount a land operation against IS in Syria. Syria's ally Iran, which has sent thousands of "military advisers" into Syria, warned Tuesday that the deployment of Saudi troops would violate "international law". (yourmiddleeast.com)
	"Choose a job you love and you will not have to work a day in your life" (Confucius)
	+2

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Turkey blames Kurdish militants for Ankara bomb, vows response in Syria and Iraq

Cliven Bundy, 4 others, face federal indictment in Nevada

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SCALIA SKEPTICS BLASTED AS 'CONSPIRACY THEORISTS'

Trump, Savage, others derided by major newspapers

Published: 15 hours ago

A ground operation by Saudi and Turkish troops in Syria may trigger an open confrontation between regional powers, the head of the Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO) said Tuesday.

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Turkey blames Kurdish militants for Ankara bomb, vows response in Syria and Iraq

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Cliven Bundy, 4 others, face federal indictment in Nevada

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WND EXCLUSIVE

SCALIA SKEPTICS BLASTED AS 'CONSPIRACY THEORISTS'

Trump, Savage, others derided by major newspapers Published: 15 hours ago

A ground operation by Saudi and Turkish troops in Syria may trigger an open confrontation between regional powers, the head of the Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO) said Tuesday.

Like us on Facebook!

Trump, Savage, others derided by major newspapers

Published: 15 hours ago