Helmke leaving Brady Camp; Melson clings to ATF post

Paul Helmke, president of the anti-gun Brady Campaign who tried to stir up a boycott of Seattle-based Starbucks Coffee last year because it caters to armed patrons, has announced he is leaving that job in July.

http://www.examiner.com/gun-rights-in-seattle/breaking-helmke-leaving-br...

Article by Dave Workman

Three bombs planted at an irrigation site in southern Thailand blew up Friday, killing at least two people.

Police say the first two bombs detonated, killing two workers in Narathiwat province. Several others were wounded.

Officials said police responding to the scene tried to defuse a third device, but it also exploded.

The attacks wounded 13 people, including at least four police officers.

About 4,500 people have been killed in southern Thailand since Islamist insurgents began their uprising in 2004.

Article by VOA News

A series of bomb blasts ripped through three Burmese cities Friday, wounding at least two people.

A Burmese government official says a bomb blew up in a house in the administrative capital of Naypyidaw. The home was located across from a market but no one was hurt.

Another explosion destroyed a car in a market in Mandalay, Burma's second largest city. Officials and residents said at least two people were hurt.

Residents said an explosion took place in Pyinoolwin, a city to the east of Mandalay. They said it appeared to take place at an unoccupied house.

For the third time this year, Zimbabwe police have arrested a Cabinet minister from Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai's Movement for Democratic Change.

The MDC said police arrested Jameson Timba in Harare Friday on allegations he had undermined the authority of President Robert Mugabe of ZANU-PF.

A police spokesman in Harare confirmed the arrest but said he had no information on possible charges.

Timba this week accused Mr. Mugabe of lying about the outcome of a regional summit on Zimbabwe's tense political situation.

The European Union has expanded its financial and travel sanctions against Syria and moved to condemn its brutal crackdown on anti-government protesters.

The EU on Friday announced it froze the assets and banned European travel of seven more individuals and four companies, bringing its overall list to 34, including Syrian President Bashar al-Assad. Among others, the new sanctions targeted three commanders of Iran's Revolutionary Guard the EU accused of supporting Assad's three-month effort to quell dissent in the Arab nation.

Members of the 1st Commando Kandak conducted clearing operations in Shalay Valley, Khas Konar District, which led to the deaths of nine insurgents and the discovery of a weapons cache in, June 23.

The commando-led operation was designed to neutralize the insurgents’ ability to operate freely in the valley and allow military forces to focus on governance and development, increasing the stability of the villages in the valley.

A combined Afghan and coalition security force killed two insurgents and detained several suspected insurgents while searching for a Taliban leader in Sar-e Pul District, Sar-e Pul province, yesterday.

The leader is the Taliban appointed governing official for attacks in Balkh province. He organizes attacks against Afghan security forces and coordinates roadside bomb acquisition, construction and emplacement throughout the province.

U.S. Army Spc. John Rocha wiped the sweat from his sun-beaten face and then took another step through the river valley. It was June 15, another 100-plus degree day in northeastern Afghanistan.

Rocha and his fellow soldiers combed the rugged terrain along the narrow highway, looking for enemy threats for what they hoped was the last of hundreds of combat patrols through the area.

Soldiers in an austere province in Afghanistan received much needed provisions thanks to the joint efforts of the Alaska and New York Air National Guard units during their first formation airdrop.

Members of the 774th Expeditionary Airlift Squadron dropped approximately 20,000 pounds of cargo to soldiers on the ground in the Oruzgan province June 22. The aircrews were tasked to perform two back-to-back missions, which tested their skills and strengthened them as a team.