Germany to Reinforce Security in Its Embassies for Fear of Attacks

BERLIN – The German government intends to strengthen security procedures in its diplomatic headquarters in several high-conflict countries, such as Iraq, to prevent possible terrorist attacks, according to an internal document of the German government that was accessed by German weekly Der Spiegel news magazine.

The digital edition of Der Spiegel reported on Monday that German Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier plans to allocate around 200 million euros ($219 million) to strengthen the security of some German embassies and consulates throughout the world.

According to the document, classified as confidential, the first step of the strategy will be to send a team of experts to analyze the security of German embassies and consulates, which will also serve to raise awareness among German diplomats abroad.

Additionally, the German Foreign Ministry plans to provide new armored vehicles and to improve the encryption systems of electronic communications in German missions abroad

Plague found in Flagstaff, officials urge precautions

Two Arrested in Connection with Murder of Mexican University Student

MEXICO CITY – Federal Police officers arrested two purported members of a Mexican kidnapping gang who are suspected of involvement in the abduction and murder of a university student, officials said.

The two were detained while riding a motorcycle on Mexico City’s south side, thanks to field work stemming from the investigation into a kidnapping in the capital, the National Security Commission said Friday.

Felix Fernando Gonzalez, 33, and Citlalli Guzman, 26, were arrested without a shot fired.

The two are alleged members of a gang that operated in southern Mexico City and are suspected of involvement in the kidnap-murder of a female student at the National Autonomous University of Mexico, or UNAM.

In the operation, the police seized a 9mm handgun, ammunition, a penknife, cellular equipment, a motorcycle, and three plastic bags containing marijuana.

The arrest stems from an investigation launched in December that identified the modus operandi and area of operation of the gang allegedly behind the kidnap-murder of the university student.

The detainees also are suspected of involvement in three other kidnappings in 2007, including the abduction of another university stude

Mexico - Caballero is suspect in 100 kidnappings

A 24-year-old crime gang boss suspected of being responsible for at least 100 kidnappings has been arrested in Hidalgo.

Nicolás “El Nico” Trujillo Urieta, a presumed chief of a cell of the Caballeros Templarios, was on his way to enjoy a water park with his family in Atotonilco de Grande when he was arrested by Federal Police

 Originally from Apaxtla de Castrejón in Guerrero, El Nico has been linked to kidnappings in which his victims were held captive in improvised camps in various parts of Michoacán.

He was originally part of the Familia Michoacana but left to join up with Servando Gómez Martínez, leader of the Caballeros, who was arrested February 27 after an extended manhunt

 Evidence from some of El Nico’s victims led to the identification of his whereabouts and subsequent arrest.

He is the second Caballero arrested this week. Municipal police apprehended Jesús Sosa Madrigal, a suspected hitman, in San Pedro Cholula, Puebla, after an anonymous call advised that an armed man had been seen in a local shopping center.

Afghan woman lynched by mob becomes rights symbol

KABUL, Afghanistan - Poets, musicians, actors and activists packed an empty shop in a Kabul mall to commemorate the short life and violent death of a woman who has become a symbol for justice and women's rights in a country that historically elevates warlords and battlefield heroes to national icons.

 

The name of Farkhunda, beaten to death by a frenzied mob apparently in the mistaken belief that she had burned a Quran, has become a rallying cry for Afghans hoping the shocking incident will lead to profound changes in Afghanistan.

Gun attack on Turkish football team bus

Iraqi agents prevent transfer of Iranian refugee to hospital to undergo surgery

NCRI - Mr. Safer Zakery, an Iranian resident of Camp Liberty who is being held illegally in Baghdad’s Ameriya police headquarters for the third week on the pretext of a suspicious car accident, is being prevented from going to a hospital to undergo medical surgery that had been scheduled two months ago.

Mr. Zakery who was not at all guilty in the car accident as testified by traffic police, is practically being taken hostage at the behest of the Iranian regime by the Iraqi agents under the command of Faleh Fayyad.

Mr. Zakery, suffering from BPH, was scheduled to undergo surgery at the hospital today (Sunday) for which he had been waiting for three years. In the verdict that extended his detention, the investigative judge had specified that he should go to the hospital to undergo his surgery.

On Saturday, April 4, in a deceitful measure to prevent Mr. Zakery from undergoing the surgery, police in Ameriya took Mr. Zakery for a medical test at the hospital in Baghdad and then in a fictitious report prepared for the judge stated that the patient has no need for a surgery.

This is despite the fact that the appointment for Mr. Zakery’s BPH surgery on April 5 had been set by the urologist physician in the hospital who visited him on 18 February 2015, after Mr. Zakery had waited a long time have the necessary medical tests done.

The documents relating to his illness, the advice of the specialist physician, and the appointment for surgery have all been provided to the UNHCR, UNAMI, the U.S. officials, and the investigative judge by a representative of Camp Liberty residents.

This anti-human measure, three weeks into the illegal arrest of Mr. Safar Zakery, leaves no doubt that the Iranian regime’s terrorist Qods Force and the mullahs’ regime embassy in Baghdad are behind the hostage taking of Mr. Zakery.

Once again, the Iranian Resistance emphasizes that the illegal detention of Mr. Zakery is a blatant breach of the Memorandum of Understanding signed on 25 December 2011 by the Government of Iraq and the United Nations, as well as a violation of international refugee law.

Considering the fact that obstructing medical treatment is a crime against humanity, whose perpetrators must be prosecuted and put on trial, the Iranian Resistance also calls on the U.S. government, UNAMI and UNHCR that have repeatedly committed themselves to the wellbeing and security of the residents, to act immediately to end the hostage taking, secure the freedom of Mr. Zakery, and transfer him to hospital to undergo the surgery he needs.

Secretariat of the National Council of Resistance of Iran
April 5, 2015