US probing new war fronts: Phillipines and Colombia

[John Paramo <albatrosrojo2000@xxxxxxxxx>]

Frontlines International Weekly Newswire Nr.5
Boletin de Noticias Internacionales de Frontlines Nro.
5

Bilingual (English-Spanish) ? Bilingüe (Ingles ?
Español) Version en Español sera distribuida manana,
Febrero 26

Produced by Frontlines Newspaper and Left Party
Producido por el periodico Frontlines y el Partido de
Izquierda

Please post, reproduce, forward with credit to:
Re-envie, publique y reproduzca dando credito a:

http://www.sf-frontlines.com and
http://www.leftparty.org

February 25, 2003

000===000===000

1. US GOVERNMENT PROBING TWO NEW FRONTS OF THE
WORLDWIDE OFFENSIVE by Gina Alvarez GOBIERNO DE EEUU
PRUEBA DOS NUEVOS FRENTES EN SU OFENSIVA MUNDIAL
-0-
2. ANTIWAR DIRECT ACTION, ITALIAN STYLE
US MILITARY CONVOYS FACE ITALIAN ANTIWAR MASS
BLOCKADES
By News Services and Frontlines Staff
ACCION DIRECTA, ESTILO ITALIANO
CONVOYES MILITARES DE EEUU SE ENFRENTAN A BLOQUEOS
MASIVOS

0=0=0=0=0=0=0=0=0=0=0=0=0=0=0=0=0=0=0=0=0=0=0=0=0=0=0=0=0=0=0=0=0=0=0

1. US GOVERNMENT PROBING TWO NEW FRONTS OF THE
WORLDWIDE OFFENSIVE by Gina Alvarez

This past week brought us the news of the US sending
Special Forces into combat on two new fronts in their
worldwide political / military offensive: Philippines
and Colombia

The Department of Defense disclosed a new agreement
with the Philippines government to send into combat
about 350 US Special Forces, supported by around 450
GI?s as logistical support with a force of 1,000
marines with Cobra assault helicopters and Harrier
warplanes as a backup.

The US forces will directly intervene in combat
together with Philippines? armed detachments to hunt
down a 250-strong guerrilla group, allegedly linked to
Al Qaeda.  The group was responsible recently for the
killing of 3 American citizens.

The three American citizens were kidnapped by the
guerrilla group and killed during a shootout with
government forces that attempted to free them a few
weeks ago.

In a similar development, the US announced the sending
into combat of a force of about 350 Special Forces in
Colombia, in an attempt ? together with the Colombian
Armed Forces ? to rescue three members of a crew of an
spy plane working for the CIA, recently captured by
units of the FARC (Revolutionary Armed Forces of
Colombia) one of the major left wing guerrilla groups
in the country.

Apparently the three CIA operatives were captured by
the FARC after the plane they were on was either shot
down by guerrilla antiaircraft guns or experienced a
mechanical failure that forced its descent into a
FARC-occupied zone.  After a shootout with the plane?s
crew that killed two members of the CIA team, the FARC
announced the capture of the three survivors.

Both in the Philippines and in Colombia, the US has
maintained a number of military forces for more than a
year as part of its anti-terrorist campaign in the
Philippines and as part of Plan Colombia in South
America, which was originally designed, allegedly,  to
fight against drug trafficking.  Those US Forces have
intervened in combat missions before, but were legally
barred from shooting unless they were shot at first.

The new agreements with Colombia and the Philippines
allow US Forces to take an offensive role and de facto
to direct the military operations.

What are the reasons that compelled the US government
to directly intervene in a military conflict in the
Philippines where tens of thousands of government
forces keep isolated and surrounded within a small
geographical area a ragtag guerrilla group of just 250
armed fighters?

Some observers pointed out that ever since a previous
government in the Philippines successfully asked the
US to withdraw its bases some years ago, the US has
been looking for a political reason to re-assert its
presence and military influence in the Philippines,
seen as a springboard to the rest of Asia in its
present political/military offensive.  This
operations, critics assert, is just the beginning of
that process of re-insertion in the region.

Why will the US government get involved in the ongoing
struggle between the Colombian government and its
armed forces with the 10,000-strong left wing FARC
guerrillas, who were allegedly never involved in
direct attacks on US interests outside Colombia?

Uribe Velez, President of Colombia, has called
repeatedly for the US to deploy a force comparable to
that being deployed against Iraq, in the northern and
southern areas of Colombia, to eliminate the threats
of ?terrorism? from the FARC and the ELN (another of
the major guerrilla forces active in the area) and to
stop illegal drug trafficking.  Uribe Velez compared
the threats of the FARC and ELN to those of Iraq or Al
Qaeda.

Analysts insist on the fact that the presence of US
military forces in Colombia is related to the
protection of US oil interests in the country and also
as a pressure point against Colombia?s neighbor,
Venezuela, home of the third largest oil and gas
reserves on the planet.

Additionally, while the attention of world public
opinion is centered on the impending US war against
Iraq, the US government is probing the reaction to
additional military moves in other regions of the
world.  Presently, the US maintains military and naval
forces in 59 countries around the world.  An increase
of 16 countries since 9/11.  A number of countries ?
including Colombia and its neighbor Venezuela - are
considered targets of the political/military offensive
of the US.

0=0=0=0=0=0=0=0=0=0=0=0=0=0=0=0=0=0=0=0=0=0=0=0=0=0=0=0=0=0=0=0=0=0=0=0=0

2. ANTIWAR DIRECT ACTION, ITALIAN STYLE
US MILITARY CONVOYS FACE ITALIAN ANTIWAR MASS
BLOCKADES
By News Services and Frontlines Staff

The Berlusconi government ran into mass opposition
long before the US declared war on Iraq.  As soon as
it was elected, the government faced massive
opposition of union federations that rocked the
country with two powerful general strikes in the last
year alone.

The anti-capitalist movement brought out massive
demonstrations of more than 600,000 people and has
denounced the policies of the Italian government in
its complicity with the G8 and the rest of the
European ruling class.

On February 15, more than 2 million Italians,
particularly youth and working class people, poured
unto the streets of Rome to protest Bush?s war against
Iraq and Berlusconi?s support for it.

Now, anti-war protesters are vowing and preparing to
block all movement of US arms by rail between American
bases in Italy, calling the convoys "trains of death."


Demonstrators have squatted on railway tracks and
organizers are planning a full-scale assault on
similar convoys this week. 

Italy's Defense Ministry has given the US clearance to
use military bases and ports in line with NATO
commitments. 

Local polls show 70 per cent of Italians oppose war
even if sanctioned by the United Nations. 

The Italian labor union representing almost 90 per
cent of dock workers says it will boycott the loading
and unloading of all shipments of US arms into and out
of Italian ports.

00--00?00?00?00?00?00?00?00?00?00?00?00?00?00?00?00?00?00?00

Visit the site of Frontlines newspaper at
http://www.sf-frontlines.com  to read the latest
issue. Get more information about the Left Party and
join us in the struggle for international social
change, working class politics and socialism by
visiting our site at: http://www.leftparty.org
 
Visite el sitio en la red del periodico Frontlines:
http://www.sf-frontlines.com  para leer el ultimo
numero de nuestra publicacion (tambien lo publicamos
en espanol). Obtenga mas informacion y unase a nuestra
lucha internacional por el cambio social, una politica
de los trabajadores y por el socialismo, visitando la
pagina del Partido de Izquierda (Left Party):
http://www.leftparty.org

For more information or to send tips, news and
messages to our staff: Para mas informacion o para
enviar noticias y mensajes:

alternative@xxxxxxxxxxxxx

If you would like to received these newswire directly,
envie un e-mail to: Si desea recibir este boletin the
noticias Internacional directamente, envie un e-mail
a:

FrontlinesNewspaper-subscribe@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

00?00?00?00?00?00?00?00?00?00?00?00?00?00?00?00?00?00?00?00



------------
¡Internet GRATIS es Yahoo! Conexión!
Usuario "yahoo", contraseña "yahoo". 
Desde Buenos Aires, 4004-1010.
Otras ciudades: http://conexion.yahoo.com.ar/avanzados.html

~~~~~~~
PLEASE clip all extraneous text before replying to a message.