Sim-O

BBC:

An Israeli general wanted for alleged war crimes escaped arrest in the UK because British police feared an armed confrontation at Heathrow airport.
Documents seen by BBC News reveal that Major General Doron Almog was flown back to Israel after officers refused to board his plane in September 2005.

He stayed on board for two hours after a tip-off that he was facing detention.

Police were concerned about a potential clash with Israeli air marshals or armed personal security on the plane.
…
Officials tipped off the general and he and his wife refused to leave the El Al flight for the two hours it sat at the London airport’s terminal.

The documents now show Det Supt John MacBrayne, who was responsible for the operation, could not get confirmation that his team had the right to board the plane.

El Al, Israel’s national airline, had refused permission.

I find it hard to believe that police going to arrest someone as they are getting off a plane at an airport and no-one thought to ask “what do we do if he won’t get off?”
Incredible. It really is.

Related Posts:
Israel has no war criminals…
Israeli fearful of war crimes accusations

Labels: Israel, The Police

Labels: Odds and Sods

The world can piss off today. But you, can go and read one of these, if you want:

Chicken Yoghurt
Criag Murray
Mike Power
Desert Peace

Labels: Odds and Sods

…but nothing will change.
Iain Dale:

I think I am often far too lax at letting insulting comments through. It’s not done deliberately; it’s usually a question of not having enough time to read each and every comment in full. If I’m busy I’ll skim read and if I don’t see an f*** or worse, it often gets through.
…
Many people who comment on here do so anonymously because they are civil servants or cannot be identified for other reasons. Others use the anonymous facility to hurl abuse. I believe in freedom of speech and hate censoring, but I know I must be harder on anonymous comments, and I shall try to be.

Update: Screen shot removed because my comment was let through. Whether Iain read it or not is another thing…

Labels: Blogging, Twats That Talk Bollox

The Guardian:

Saudi Arabia’s rulers threatened to make it easier for terrorists to attack London unless corruption investigations into their arms deals were halted, according to court documents revealed yesterday.

Previously secret files describe how investigators were told they faced “another 7/7” and the loss of “British lives on British streets” if they pressed on with their inquiries and the Saudis carried out their threat to cut off intelligence.

Labels: Law/Legal, Saudi Arabia

19 March is the 5th anniversary of the invasion of Iraq.
Not much to celebrate really, is there.

This blogswarm will promote blog postings opposing the war in Iraq and calling for a full withdrawal of foreign occupying forces in Iraq. Five years of an illegal and catastrophic war is five years too many. On the March 19 anniversary of the conquest of Iraq by the Bush Administration, there needs to be a loud volume of voices countering the pro-war propaganda from far too many politicians and corporate media outlets.

Via Justin

Labels: Blogging, Iraq

“I’m not ‘man’, I’m not ‘dude’. I am Officer Rivieri!”

Not anymore.

Via Bloggerheads

Labels: The Police

I bet the Yanks don’t have a problem with ‘friendly’ fire that day.

Source

Labels: Ahmadinejad, Iran, Iraq

Independent:

A laptop containing the medical records of more than 5,000 patients has been stolen from a hospital, it was revealed today.

The computer was taken from the outpatients department at Russells Hall Hospital in Dudley, West Midlands, on January 8.

It contains a database with information on 5,123 anticoagulation patients, the hospital said.

Letters have been sent to those affected and police have launched an investigation.

A username password is needed to get into the laptop and another username and password is needed to open the database, apparently.

I hope they were one of the more imaginative public servants.

Labels: Government, Health

Guardian.co.uk:

“The British government appears to have “rolled over” in response to Saudi pressure to drop an investigation into alleged bribery in arms deals, a senior judge said today.

Two high court judges are reviewing the decision of Robert Wardle, the director of the Serious Fraud Office (SFO), to drop the investigation into allegations of bribery and corruption in contracts between BAE Systems and Saudi Arabia. BAE and a Saudi national security adviser, Prince Bandar, deny the accusations.
…
There were repeated efforts by the UK ambassador to Saudi Arabia and personal overtures from Tony Blair. Irresistible pressure forced them to drop the prosecution,” Rose said.

The prime minister “stepped over the boundary between what is a permissible exercise and impermissible attempts to influence or dictate a decision on the investigation by expressing his view,” she said. “This is the clearest case of intervention that goes too far.”

Rose said Wardle and Goldsmith both explained in December 2006 that they had decided to drop the investigation after being repeatedly told the move was essential to safeguard national and international security.

She said the real reason for dropping the investigation “was not national security but the commercial situation”, and called the decision unlawful and based on “tainted advice”. Rose argued that there was no imminent risk to the public, and that national security could not be a factor that “trumps all”.

She said Blair and other officials intervened after renewed threats by the Saudi royal family to cancel a proposed order for Eurofighter Typhoon aircraft and withdraw security and intelligence cooperation if the investigation continued. The deal was signed last September.

Labels: Blair, Law/Legal, Saudi Arabia