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165 thoughts on “Tunisian Attack

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  • Mick McNulty

    Close-up images of ISIL make it clear even through their balaclavas and keffiyehs that many of these men do not have beards. Therefore they cannot be Muslim fundamentalists who do not shave. As others claim presumably these forces come from the IDF, the US Army, Special Ops from NATO countries under US insistence, and western and Islamic mercenaries. One probable reason they are soon routed by serious resistance such as they face from the Kurds is they cannot risk leaving behind casualties whose real identities could be discovered, especially by independents. So they flee, and their atrocities are directed at those without the means to resist which fits the western narrative perfectly. Perfectly because the west is ISIL.

  • Suhayl Saadi

    “Therefore they cannot be Muslim fundamentalists who do not shave.” Mick McNulty, 2:22pm

    There are certainly many dirty tricks/undercover/deniable ops going on and Turkey (and Saudi et al) have been facilitating the throughput and more of Sunni Jihadis of various sorts into Syria/Iraq.

    However, don’t you think that is you were an undecover Special Forces soldier, or a spook or whatever, you would at least grow a very little beard just to fit in? Also, are there not Islamists who are clean-shaven? Of course there are. The terrorist who committed the massacre on Tunisia’s beach on Friday was clean-shaven. I’m not sure that in these sorts of circumstances, the facial hair of an individual is not a very reliable marker of their true allegiance.

  • Suhayl Saadi

    It would be useful to hear from Craig what his eye-witness contact saw, esp. if it’s different from what is being reported in the MSM. The MSM itself seems to be issuing mixed reports on this matter – which might suggest that if for whatever reason(s), there is an attempt to cover up, it’s not proving entirely successful.

    It may have been a team, a la Mumbai.

    It may have been a lone gunman, a la Breivik.

    However, one guy with a Kalashniknov can kill many, many people, scores of people, esp. if those people are not themseelves armed and there is nowhere really for them to run. Breivik was on an island and had a number of guns. This one was on a beach and it seems to have taken 30 mins for armed police to engage him. I’m not sure how long it would take armed police to engage a nutter with a Kalashnikov in the UK (granted that here the standard police tend not to be armed whereas in Tunisia they are armed) in say, a shopping mall or a street not close to an airport, etc.? Probably a similar time, I would imagine. The terrorists who did Charlie Hebdo were able to ecsape the scene, having killed an armed cop.

  • Mark Golding

    Mick McNulty – probable two years or more ago I was derided as messenger from a paid UK mercenary working out of Dubai and training ISIS commanders in communications.

    Sadly this contact has gone dark.

  • Rehmat

    According to Tunisian news agency, three persons, one in police uniform, came by a boat, and carried out the shooting. One was killed, another arrested and the third escaped – how interesting!

  • Suhayl Saadi

    Well, Rehmat, if one recalls the attack on Mumbai, that too was by boat, that time from Pakistan, and that atrocity was likely to have been organised by Pakistan’s ISI. If you’re going to attack an open beach it makes sense to arrive by boat.

    I see a swimmer has found the shooter’s mobile ‘phone in the sea.

    I don’t think this attack would make Tunisia more likely to agree to host a US base on its territory. Agreeing to such a base surely massively would increase the likelihood of further attacks. On the other hand, the attack has destroyed Tunisia’s (and maybe by association also Morocco’s) tourist industry – a major sector in their economy – and that in turn could help to destabilise the fragile post-2011 uprising government made up of both secular and (relatively ‘moderate’) Islamist politicians.

  • Anon1

    To clarify, I posited a number of ‘alternative’ theories that were likely to appear on the thread (almost all of which have subsequently appeared on the thread), in a rather light-hearted manner, so Craig’s uncharacteristically OTT reaction at 12:18pm yesterday can only really be explained by his prospective SNP candidature and his wish not to be seen as a host for crackpots and conspiracy theorists.

    I received an immediate deletion of my comment and a rather bizarre reply about “provoking” anti-Semitism (which was not at all what I was doing), presumably because Craig hopes the SNP will believe that the various loonies on here are really double agents trying to make his blog look bad. Can’t say I blame him given his ambitions, but it looks like I was to be the fall-guy. And Habbabkuk and Res Diss who were brought into this quite unnecessarily.

    In any case, all the crackery that was expected has come out, without any encouragement from me.

  • doug scorgie

    Alcyone
    27 Jun, 2015 – 10:11 pm

    “Also, his painting of Anon/Resident dissident and Habby by the same brush only serves to reinforce stereotypes and is disrespectful of the individual commenter.”
    …………………………………………………….

    Interesting pseudonym Alcyone indicating you are a female poster.

    Welcome to the blog.

    Is this a likeness of you by the way:

    https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alcyone#/media/File:Herbert_James_Draper_-_Halcyone_(1915).jpg

  • doug scorgie

    RobG
    28 Jun, 2015 – 1:11 pm

    “There’s going to be a lot of people bricking themselves now, because if Janner does go on trial the names of other high level abusers might be revealed…”
    ……………………………………….

    Yes RobG, which is why I predict his early exit from the land of the living.

  • Anon1

    “Close-up images of ISIL make it clear even through their balaclavas and keffiyehs that many of these men do not have beards. Therefore they cannot be Muslim fundamentalists who do not shave.”

    Well we have our own Islamo fundy in the form of Guano (none so zealous as the convert) who can’t sport more than an embarrassing bit of ginger bumfluff, so I think your theory falls down on the fact that many grown men simply cannot achieve a beard.

  • doug scorgie

    Suhayl Saadi
    28 Jun, 2015 – 3:37 pm

    “However, don’t you think that if you were an undercover Special Forces soldier, or a spook or whatever, you would at least grow a very little beard just to fit in?”
    …………………………………………………..

    A good point Suhayl but only if they are trying to infiltrate an Islamist group.

    If they are there to train the Islamist group and organise attacks they wouldn’t need to “fit in”.

  • doug scorgie

    “Tunisia [in 2013] reportedly rejected the U.S.’s request to host AFRICOM for several reasons. On a local level, Tunisia feared that fundamentalist militias would take such an agreement to be a a declaration of war by the Tunisian government. This would certainly attract retaliative attacks compromising both national security and Tunisia’s main source of income, tourism.”

    http://www.tunisia-live.net/2013/06/12/why-tunisia-could-host-the-u-s-militarys-african-headquarters/
    …………………………………………………………….

    So now the US will have its desired base! You can bet on it.

  • RobG

    @Doug Scorgie
    28 Jun, 2015 – 8:35 pm

    Even if Janner is on the way out, this still clears the way for a trial against him, whether he’s in attendance are not.

    I haven’t had time today to try and get to the bottom of it all. This is from the Guardian piece that was published this afternoon:

    “Janner is to face justice in a trial of the facts following a review from an unnamed QC, the Crown Prosecution Service will announce on Monday.

    It will be the first time that allegations against Janner – which have been investigated in the past in three failed police investigations – will be aired in a courtroom.”

    Who’s the ‘unnamed QC’ who was brave enough to go against Alison Saunders, the director of public prosecutions? Saunders herself, if the trial goes ahead, will almost certainly have to resign. When Saunders quashed the case earlier this year, Leicestershire police said they would take legal action against her (almost unprecedented stuff), which is probably what’s resulted in our aforementioned ‘unnamed QC’ overturning the ruling.

    There’s still loads of unanswered questions in all this, and apparently a lot of it will be revealed tomorrow.

    Whatever is revealed, watch Theresa May – our most bent Home Secretary since Leon Brittan – doing everything she can to keep it under the covers, along with the little boys.

  • fedup

    So now the US will have its desired base!

    The base in Djibouti is already in full swing and no oversight given the geography and the demography involved.

  • Suhayl Saadi

    Doug, yeah beards or no beards, they’re almost certainly there, training their C21st versions of the ‘Afghan Mujaheddin’, in Jordan, Turkey and elsewhere. Peshawar, redux. But the snuff movies are of ISIS, no? What I’m saying is, firstly bearsd indicate very little excpet possibly the presence in certain proportions of either testosterone or else a good make-up artist and secondly, actually, a related point is that Jihadists/Islamists are not ‘traditional’ at all but rather are postmodern in provenace.

    Anon1, I didn’t know you knew Guano. How do you know what he looks like?

  • Nick Turner

    There are some inconsistencies in this story. Look at:

    http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-3142059/I-two-bullets-haven-t-slept-Hero-Tunisian-policeman-reveals-finally-killed-gunman-praying-street.html

    The gunman strolling along the beach is of no interest to most of the group behind him. People are not running for their lives and many are not looking at him at all. He is not casting a shadow and the day looks pretty dull. In other pictures, the sunlight is intense and the shadows dense and sharp. That means that the stroll-along-the-beach photo could not have been taken on the same day. Curious.

    The ‘Horrifying amateur footage of Tunisia attacks unfolding’ looks to be pure CGI from beginning to end. The bland colouring and lack of detail is the giveaway. The same is true of the gunman-running-along-the-beach video.

    In another picture, the gunman aimlessly wanders the brilliantly lit street, looking for somewhere to pray and get shot; his shadow is intense and there is a lot of ‘ghosting around him that you do not seen in other pictures. The shadows cast by the gunman and the wall are inconsistent with the same sun angle. That has to be fake as well. There is a claim from a poster on the Chris Spivey site that he took a screenshot of that photo three days before the Tunisian incident occurred.

    Strange days.

  • Mary

    3 days later, from the BiBiCee

    ‘Tunisia gunman Seifeddine Rezgui ‘did not act alone’
    27 minutes ago

    The gunman who killed 38 at a beach near the Tunisian city of Sousse had help in carrying out the attack, officials have said.

    Interior ministry spokesman Mohamed Ali Aroui said authorities were “sure” that Seifeddine Rezgui had had accomplices.

    On Sunday the BBC learned that at least 30 of the dead were from the UK, the majority of those killed.’

    http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-africa-33307738

    Tunisia attack: Theresa May urges parents to report ‘radicalised’ kids to police
    29 June 2015
    http://www.mirror.co.uk/news/uk-news/tunisia-attack-theresa-urges-parents-5966458

    That excludes of course any young British Jews who went off to fight with the IDF last July in the war on Gaza.

    Agent Cameron

    ‘Britain is “united in shock and grief”, the prime minister has said, as it emerged the British death toll in the Tunisian attack will rise above 30.

    A total of 38 people were killed by a gunman with links to Islamic State extremists on a beach near Sousse.

    Writing in the Daily Telegraph, David Cameron urged a fightback, vowing the UK would show “unshakeable resolve” in dealing with extremism.

    He stressed the need to reject those who condone the “extremist narrative”.’

    http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-33307279

    ~~~

    PS
    Armed Forces Day 26 June 2015
    Sousse attack 26 June 2015

    Just saying.

  • Mary

    O/T They have seized the Marianne. The poor, poor Palestinians.

    Note that the boat was in international waters.

    ‘Israel intercepts Gaza-bound boat
    2 hours ago

    A boat with pro-Palestinian activists sets sail from Crete, Greece. Photo: 26 June 2015

    The flotilla is the latest in a series of attempts by activists to breach Israel’s naval blockade of Hamas-run Gaza

    The Israeli Navy has intercepted a Gaza-bound vessel sailed by pro-Palestinian activists and diverted it to an Israeli port, the military says.

    It says it acted in international waters to prevent the “intended breach of the maritime blockade” imposed since 2007 against the Hamas-run territory.

    There was no violence as the navy searched the boat, Israel says.

    The activists said they wanted to draw attention to the blockade, which Israel says is a necessary security measure.

    They said the vessel was carrying humanitarian aid, including medicine and solar panels.

    The boat intercepted on Monday is believed to be Marianne – the lead vessel of a four-strong flotilla.

    “In accordance with international law, the Israeli Navy advised the vessel several times to change course,” the military said in a statement, the AFP news agency reports.

    “Following their refusal the Navy visited and searched the vessel in international waters in order to prevent their intended breach of the maritime blockade of the Gaza Strip.”

    The vessel is currently being escorted to the port of Ashdod.

    The flotilla is the latest in a number of protest voyages against Israel’s maritime blockade.

    In 2010, nine Turkish activists were killed aboard another vessel amid clashes as Israeli commandos boarded the boat.

    Ten Israeli soldiers were injured in the incident on the Turkish-owned ship Mavi Marmara as it attempted to breach the blockade.

    It caused a deep rift between Israel and Turkey, who were former allies.’

    http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-middle-east-33307420

  • Mary

    O/T also but good on the Scots, again.

    ‘Pop-up Cinema in Glasgow Gives Alternative Message on Armed Forces Day
    June 27 2015

    Resist Militarism Network and Veterans For Peace UK have collaborated today in erecting a pop-up cinema in Glasgow city centre to draw attention to a campaign to raise the British Army recruitment age from 16 to 18.

    The cinema screened Action Man: Battlefield Casualties, which has been viewed over 300,000 times in just 36 hours. The series of dark, satirical adverts showing three toy soldiers complete with anti-depressants, wheelchairs and body-bags has received wide praise from veterans and civilians alike, who have commented on its brutal honesty.

    /..
    http://resistmilitarism.com/2015/06/27/pop-up-cinema-in-glasgow-gives-alternative-message-on-armed-forces-day/

    Hat tip to John Hilley’s twitter. https://twitter.com/johnwhilley

  • Abe Rene

    The terrorist may have acted alone, but he must have been prepared and equipped by others, stopping whom must be a priority. He appears to have been led astray and radicalised by a group of young Islamists, so the methods of such groups need to be examined so that they can be countered.

  • Mary

    Anyway, all’s well. St Theresa is going out to Tunisia. Await further sound bites and photo ops.

  • Habbabkuk (la vita è bella)

    “O/T They have seized the Marianne. The poor, poor Palestinians.

    Note that the boat was in international waters.

    ‘Israel intercepts Gaza-bound boat
    2 hours ago

    A boat with pro-Palestinian activists sets sail from Crete, Greece. Photo: 26 June 2015”
    ______________________

    It is pleasing to note (isn’t it?) that the vessel was diverted to Ashdod peaceably and without anyone on either side having suffered any harm. Both those on the vessel and the Israeli interceptors are to be congratulated for showing restraint and good sense.

  • Porkfright

    Indy is running a story about more than one gunman. “Authorities sure gunman did not act alone”. Seems the story has morphed for some reason. Wonder why?

  • Porkfright

    Which part of “The boat was in International Waters” don’t you understand, Habakkuk?

  • Habbabkuk (la vita è bella)

    Porkfright

    I understand all parts of it, Porkfright.

    The Israeli Navy intervened before the vessel entered territorial waters, thus avoiding a potentially more serious incident.

    Any more questions?

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