I don't know if it's just a dream but wouldn't it be nice to hole up in a luxury hotel somewhere you don't even notice which country you're in and escape from everything in the company of strange and exotic sea monsters? This place is called 'Atlantis' after the mythical ocean kingdom which may or may not have existed somewhere in the Mediterranean, or the Red sea, nobody really knows. Now there is a hotel resort, a celebration of the ocean, with real live sea animal occupants alongside the human guests! You may have heard of the man made islands in Dubai, some are shaped like countries, well Atlantis The Palm is in the middle of a cresent shaped island. There are 17 hectares of water park amusements, and 1,539 rooms. The special attraction is the possibility to connect with a world full of wonder and surprise, based on the as yet undiscovered world of the ocean and beyond. This is the home of the largest open-air marine habitat in the world, with some 65,000 marine animals in lagoons and displays including The Lost Chambers, a maze of underwater corridors and passageways providing a journey through ancient Atlantis. I don't know who would be able to go there in person, but there is also a social interactive video that enables all of us to join in by uploading a profile photo into the Atlantis Perfect Day video – http://www.SpottedInAtlantis.com Choose 3 friends and cast them in your 'Spotted in Atlantis' video for a chance to win the adventure of a lifetime.It's easy and only takes minutes. I think one of the most amazing features of Atlantis The Palm is the fact that the underwater experience is integrated into every aspect of the resort's luxury facilities, such as the restaurant pictured below. But the real stars are not the fixtures and fittings, but the wildlife creatures including Piranha, Giant Arapaima, Moon Jellies, Moray, Eels and more. Some more Atlantis, The Palm, Features • Ray Feeding Guests are waist deep in the Shark Attack pool and can feed the resident Rays • 17 unique bars and restaurants with different themes and cuisines • 4 Michelin starred chef restaurants • Spa • Dive Centre and it goes on. Try the interactive video and see more for yourself. Atlantis Hotel Sponsored PostViral video by ebuzzingThanks for subscribing to Andy Roberts blogAtlantis has been found in DubaiRelated posts:Elche Palm Gardens with Surprising Water Feature Sculpture
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Atlantis has been found in Dubai
http://distributedresearch.net/blog/2011/05/31/atlantis-has-been-found-in-dubai
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May 31 2011, 3:53am | Comments »
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Operation Odyssey Dawn commences to end Gaddafi onslaught on Benghazi
Operation Odyssey Dawn commences with more than 100 Tomahawk missiles launched as mission begins to end Gaddafi onslaught on Benghazi without risking troops on the ground.
This article titled “Operation Odyssey Dawn commences to end Gaddafi onslaught on Benghazi” was written by Mark Townsend, for guardian.co.uk on Saturday 19th March 2011 23.29 UTC The first strikes came out of the late afternoon sky. At 4:45pm GMT it was confirmed that a French Rafale fighter jet had destroyed a Libyan military vehicle, possibly a tank, near Bengazi, the rebel city that pro-Gaddafi troops had attempted to storm. Then, after nightfall, the real offensive began. As more than 100 Tomahawk missiles rained down along the vast Libyan coastline, the Pentagon confirmed that American and British forces were targeting Colonel Gaddafi’s air defence systems in a concerted attempt to enforce the UN no-fly zone, ending his capacity to continue the offensive against the rebel forces. Within minutes the prime minister, David Cameron, declared that British air forces were in action above Libya, joining combat aircraft from several coalition countries. The sheer weight of firepower trained on Libya was designed to intimidate as well as incapacitate. The Tomahawk missiles were fired at supersonic speeds from a British Trafalgar-class submarine and two American warships in the Mediterranean. In total, more than 20 designated Libyan targets were struck. Batteries of Libyan surface-to-air missiles were destroyed. The military communication network, crucial to Gaddafi’s ability to maintain the momentum of his offensive, was severely disrupted. The Pentagon dubbed the offensive Operation Odyssey Dawn, confirming that the intention of the bombardment was to open up airspace for a second wave of strikes by ground-attack aircraft. The battle to save the Libyan revolution, authorised by the UN security council resolution on Thursday night, has begun. State of the art 21st-century weaponry is being pitted against tanks, guns and missiles from the cold war era. Knocking out Gaddafi’s command structure and jamming his military communication networks is likely to happen quickly. Libya’s air defence system is considered antiquated, comparable to the Soviet systems that international forces faced during the Gulf war of 1991, and the Balkans conflict. In fact, much of Gaddafi’s weapons stock is Soviet-era with his air force thought to include up to 80 operational aircraft based around the MiG-23, which was phased out of Russian service 17 years ago. Ground forces rely on Soviet-era weaponry including T-72 tanks that entered production 40 years ago In Tripoli there was panic and defiance. Thousands of Libyans were reported by state TV to have packed into Gaddafi’s heavily fortified compound in the capital to form a human shield against possible air strikes by allied forces. In Benghazi, the streets were eerily quiet as the first rounds of this epic confrontation played out. From a military point of view, the plans finalised earlier in the day in Paris, at a summit of international leaders, were being put into action with impressive speed. Ahead of the operation, a formidable array of firepower was positioned around Libya. In terms of airpower alone, hundreds of jet fighters were placed within easy reach of the North African state. The squadrons included F-16s, used on bombing missions in Afghanistan and Iraq, along with the G4 Tornado ground attack aircraft which forged its reputation attacking Iraqi military sites and runways with smart bombs during the Gulf war. Most of the jet fighters are stationed in southern Italy. The vast US base at Gaeta is less than 600 miles from Benghazi. Six Danish F-16s landed at the base in Sigonella, Sicily, and will be ready for operations on Sunday. France has deployed around 100 warplanes, mainly Rafale and Mirage 2000 jets. Its aircraft carrier Charles de Gaulle will head toward the Libyan coast . Six Canadian CF-18 fighter jets have arrived in Italy. By the time Cameron announced that Britain’s forces were involved, the offensive was fully under way. America’s Vice-admiral Bill Gortney described the strikes as the “first phase in a multi-phase operation”, revealing that the US was in charge of the offensive, but that command would switch to coalition forces in the coming days. Few could have foreseen the weight of firepower that would be directed at Libya, just two days after the UN resolution on a no-fly zone was agreed. The decision to use Tomahawks would have sent a fearsome message to Gaddaffi. During the first Gulf war the sight of cruise missiles sweeping across the Iraqi landscape in broad daylight became one of the enduring images of the 1991 conflict. A Pentagon spokesman said: “The targets were selected based on a collective assessment that these sites either pose a direct threat to the coalition pilots or through use by the regime pose a direct threat to the people of Libya.” He admitted that because the attacks began after nightfall it was difficult to ascertain how successful they had been or, as Gaddafi’s camp is likely to claim, if there have been significant civilian deaths. What is certain is that many of the targets are located on the coast, making their destruction pivotal to the enforcement of the no-fly zone. Analysts had warned that the sudden storming of Benghazi by pro-Gaddafi forces was a military ploy designed to negate the potency of international air strikes but also increase the risk of coalition air strikes inflicting civilian casualties. Moving his ground forces from the flat, exposed terrain of the desert to Libya’s second city and into its streets raised the risk of civilians being killed, they said. Experts warned that the consequences of collateral damage would create a propaganda coup for the Libyan leader, while potentially damaging the conviction of the coalition. Shashank Joshi, an associate fellow of the Royal United Services Institute, an independent thinktank, said: “It makes airpower considerably less effective. Given that some of Gaddafi’s most pernicious weapons – ground-based artillery and tanks – are now intermingled with the urban infrastructure and civilian targets like schools and hospitals, it does blunt one of the international coalition’s greatest strengths, which is advanced fast jets with precision targeted weaponry.” Another concern is to avoid hitting British special forces units, which are likely to be operating in the city to help “light up” targets and offer ground-level intelligence. Paul Smyth, a former wing commander with the RAF, Tornado navigator and founder of defence analysts R3I Consulting, said it was technically possible to hit targets in built up areas from a Tornado, although there were obvious challenges to hitting a tank behind a building while moving at 600mph. However, he said the expansion eastwards of pro-Gaddafi troops sent to crush the rebellion had presented international forces with a golden opportunity to deliver a blow against the Libyan leader. “Gaddafi’s forces have travelled a long distance and require long lines of supply and communication. Whether they have the means required to sustain combat is open to question,” he said. Smyth added that even if Gaddafi’s troops had succeeded in making substantial progress in recapturing Benghazi, the rebels’ determination to hold their positions would have been boosted by the arrival of international force. Among the munitions Britain is now likely to deploy against ground forces is the Brimstone “fire and forget” anti-tank missile with a range of up to 12 miles and the sophisticated Storm Shadow, an air-launched cruise missile that can eradicate static targets from up to 155 miles. It remains a possibility that airborne firepower will be supplemented with unmanned aerial surveillance drones like the advanced US Predator that can loiter above a battlefield before attacking positions with Hellfire missiles. How long the airborne attacks will continue is uncertain. Leaders of the countries involved are clearly hoping to avoid being embroiled in a long-running and resource intensive campaign. Joshi points out: “How long can we stay there? Can we keep Typhoons in southern Europe for the next 10 years? Can we keep a no-fly zone in place, like over Iraq, for 12 years? The political decisions are not in place for that.” But the military campaign in Libya has begun and there is no turning back now. The west is once again at war in the Middle East
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Related posts:Libya rebels on the defensive as Gaddafi forces enter Benghazi Benghazi rebels plead for Libya air strikes as Gaddafi forces advance Libya unrest: Allies assemble arsenal for possible strike against Gaddafi
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March 19 2011, 6:42pm | Comments »
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Jets prepare to deploy despite Libya ceasefire
http://distributedresearch.net/blog/2011/03/18/jets-prepare-to-deploy-despite-libya-ceasefire
Warplanes head for Mediterranean in attempt to increase prussere on Gaddafi as Nato envoys meet to back no-fly zone
This article titled “Jets prepare to deploy despite Libya ceasefire” was written by Richard Norton-Taylor, Nick Hopkins and Robert Booth, for The Guardian on Friday 18th March 2011 20.20 UTC British Tornado and Typhoon ground attack aircraft are expected to fly to bases in the Mediterranean as Britain, France and the US step up military pressure on Colonel Gaddafi despite his announcement of a ceasefire. The UK is also expected to set up a joint command centre with the US and France to co-ordinate operations that will be supported by a number of other countries, including Canada and Denmark. In further evidence of mounting determination to confront Gaddafi, ambassadors from Nato’s 28 member countries are due to meet to lend added support to the UN-backed plans for a no-fly zone. Nato also emphasised humanitarian operations, but suggestions that ground troops from Britain and other countries could be deployed in Libya were dismissed last night. “The absolute priority is to enforce the no-fly zone, and to secure maritime supply routes,” said a defence source. “Nothing else is in the mix at this stage.” Nato secretary general Anders Rasmussen said the UN resolution sent “a strong and clear message from the entire international community” to the Gaddafi regime to stop his “systematic violence against the people of Libya immediately”. To this end, an array of other British military assets, including reconnaissance aircraft and air-refuelling tankers, will be deployed to bases in the Mediterranean. Military commanders in the UK have called the entire effort Operation Ellamy. Though the MoD never talks about special forces operations, it is understood that SAS and SBS soldiers are already on the ground in Libya, providing information on likely first targets for any bombing raids. They could include airfields, supply routes and Libya’s anti-aircraft defence batteries. “Any operations will be highly targeted to ensure that civilian casualties are avoided,” said the source. It became clear that the complexity of co-ordinating joint operations with so many countries would stymie any immediate plans for air strikes to help the rebels. One strategic priority was to find a way of binding in Arab help for any attacks, even though this is likely only to be at a logistical and support level. The prime minister told the Commons that British Tornado and Typhoon aircraft were within hours of being deployed. However, Whitehall sources later admitted that no planes had left the UK, and nor were they likely to until the weekend. The day began with no clarity over the command structure for any operations – and whether they would be led or supported by Nato. These details were being frantically developed in the hours after the UN resolution was passed. General Sir David Richards, chief of the defence staff, worked through Thursday night trying to secure agreement over who would do what and when, before attending the Cabinet meeting in Downing Street. He has been liaising closely with Air Marshall Sir Stuart Peach, chief of joint operations, who is based at the permanent joint headquarters of the three services in Northwood, to the north-west of London.The most likely scenario is that British fighters will be stationed at the British sovereign base at Akrotiri in Cyprus, where the RAF already has E3-D long-range air surveillance aircraft that are monitoring Libyan airspace. Nato is also operating 24-hour surveillance of Libya with Awacs reconnaissance aircraft based in Germany. British fighters may also be stationed at the Nato airbase at Sigonella in Sicily – Canada is sending six fighters there. “Once the decision has been taken about where they go, it won’t take the aircraft long to get there,” said the source. The Royal Navy still has two ships in international waters off Libya – the frigates HMS Cumberland and HMS Westminster. There are no plans to increase the number at this stage. However, the navy is working up a response force task group, which will include up to six different support and warships. That may be deployed in the weeks to come, sources said. The US already has a strong naval presence in the Mediterranean: a battle group of five vessels led by the ageing aircraft carrier USS Enterprise includes the nuclear-powered submarine USS Providence and the destroyer USS Mason, which both entered via the Suez canal last Saturday from the Red Sea. The USS Kearsarge is also in the area with a contingent of US marines on board while the USS Mason, a guided missile destroyer, was in port in Haifa, northern Israel on Wednesday. “Surveillance will be 60% of the strategy if the plan is to dissuade Libyan aircraft from taking off,” said Professor Trevor Taylor, head of the centre for defence management and leadership at Cranfield University. “And ground surveillance will be much more important still if the Libyans start using armoured vehicles because that will multiply the number of targets.” Barak Seener, a Middle East expert at the Royal United Services Institute, added: “Symbolically it’s very important to include an Arab element in any attacks. “Logistically they cannot provide very much, but it is important as a way of countering the accusation that this is an intervention which is colonialist and imperialist in nature.” Diplomats have said Arab countries that could participate in possible strikes might include Qatar and the United Arab Emirates. The Arab League Agency from another era Hillary Clinton claims it was the Arab League’s recent statement on Libya that persuaded her the time was right to back military action in the country – the implication being that, unlike the invasion of Iraq in 2003, western intervention against Gaddafi has been legitimised by regional support. But do the 22 delegates who make up the league – almost exclusively ageing, male and appointed by autocratic governments that enjoy mixed support at best from their people – really represent 360 million Arabs, at a time when power relations in the Middle East are being radically reshaped? When the League of Arab States was founded in 1945, King Abdul-Aziz bin Saud, the then Saudi ruler, grandly declared that it would “enshrine the fondest hopes of the Arab people”. But today the high walls and carefully manicured gardens of the League’s Cairo headquarters feels like an anachronism, especially when contrasted with the grassroots energy that exploded around the corner in Tahrir Square as Egyptians toppled their president. Many are asking whether an institution originally designed to make the lives of British diplomats easier (they preferred dealing with a single Arab agency rather than multiple heads of state), and dominated through the decades by conservative political elites, has any role to play in articulating a unified voice of the Arab people on to to the world stage. At present all 22 Arab countries (alongside the four observer nations of Brazil, India, Venezuela and Eritrea) send one delegate each to the League. In the aftermath of revolutions in Tunisia and Egypt, their individual delegates from each nation stayed in place – shifting their allegiances overnight from a government of dictatorship to a government of the people, with no personnel change deemed necessary. The Libyan delegation has entered more murky waters; at the start of the crisis, Tripoli’s permanent ambassador to the League, Abdel Moneim al-Huny, tendered his resignation in protest at his leader’s “massacres”, and then promptly announced he had been reappointed by the people’s government in Benghazi to represent the Libyan population inside the League. Meanwhile, the Gaddafi regime appointed its own new representative, leaving the institution’s secretary general Amr Moussa with an HR headache. For now, neither of the rival delegates can attend Arab League meetings because Libya’s membership has been suspended, the first such action in the League’s history, although behind the scenes unofficial dialogue is being maintained with both men. The rest of the Arab world areis left with delegates appointed by their own undemocratic regimes, – who appear happy to deploy deploying the language of humanitarian concern in the case of Libya, but are noticeably quieter on brutal crackdowns against protesters in the Gulf and elsewhere. The League’s Chief of Staff, Hisham Youssef, believes that the winds of change blowing through this part of the world will strengthen his institution, not undermine it. “We’re moving in a direction that will hopefully lead to a more democratic region, and that in turn means a more democratic and representative Arab League,” he told the Guardian. Whether he’s right remains to be seen.
guardian.co.uk © Guardian News & Media Limited 2010 Published via the Guardian News Feed plugin for WordPress.
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Related posts:Libya unrest: Allies assemble arsenal for possible strike against Gaddafi Libya uprising continues – live updates Libya protests: ‘Now we’ve seen the blood our fears have gone’
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March 18 2011, 5:32pm | Comments »
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Libya unrest: Allies assemble arsenal for possible strike against Gaddafi
Air and naval forces from north America, Europe and Middle East prepare to implement UN’s no-fly resolution. No to Western military intervention
This article titled “Libya unrest: Allies assemble arsenal for possible strike against Gaddafi” was written by Robert Booth, for guardian.co.uk on Friday 18th March 2011 21.20 UTC Military leaders from north America, Europe and the Middle East are scrambling to draw together a multi-national arsenal of fighter jets, warships and reconnaissance planes ready to strike Libya, after the broad United Nations resolution authorising attacks on Colonel Muammar Gaddafi’s regime. The UK, the US, Canada, France and at least one of the Gulf states look likely to take part in enforcing what has been described as a “no-fly” and “no-drive” zone over Libya. British Typhoon and Tornado fighter jets are expected to deploy from their bases in Lincolnshire and Norfolk this weekend, along with Nimrod surveillance aircraft equipped with sophisticated radar, jamming and listening devices deployed at Sigonella, Sicily, home to a Nato base and US naval air station. It is also possible that Awacs aircraft in Afghanistan could be redeployed, while HMS Cumberland and HMS Westminster are off the Libyan coast. US naval forces have been gathering in the Mediterranean for the last week. A battle group of five vessels led by the ageing aircraft carrier USS Enterprise includes the nuclear-powered submarine USS Providence and the destroyer USS Mason which both entered via the Suez canal last Saturday from the Red Sea. The USS Kearsarge is also in the area with a contingent of US marines on board. The USS Mason, a guided missile destroyer, was in port in Haifa, northern Israel, on Wednesday.Military strategists said air surveillance would play a large part of any coalition operation against Libya. “Surveillance will be 60% of the strategy if the plan is to dissuade Libyan aircraft from taking off,” said Professor Trevor Taylor, head of the centre for defence management and leadership at Cranfield University. “Ground surveillance will be much more important still if the Libyans start using armoured vehicles because that will multiply the number of targets.” The role of the surveillance aircraft becomes more important if the allied forces decide not to blitz Libya’s military assets pre-emptively, but to act only in response to provocation. Nato’s likely support for the operation would allow the use of a flight of Awacs surveillance planes used for command and control and based at Geilenkirchen in Germany. The alliance’s surveillance Awacs planes flying off the Libyan coast are already providing 24-hour coverage of the situation in the air and on the battlefields. The US has a squadron of Boeing 707 jets converted for ground surveillance use based at Robins air force base in Georgia. The surveillance planes have a longer range than fighter jets, which Professor Taylor said would ideally be based much closer to Libya. “I have a feeling they will look to have assets quite close to allow a quick reaction,” he said. France has air bases in Orange and Istres in the south of the country from which it is expected to deploy Mirage and Rafale fighters, or from the island of Corsica, around an hour’s fast flight from Libya. Airborne refuelling tanker aircraft are also ready to depart from Istres, and the Charles de Gaulle aircraft carrier is at the Mediterranean port of Toulon. Canada is expected to deploy six CF-18 fighter planes from a base in Quebec after the prime minister Stephen Harper, said the situation in Libya “remains intolerable”. The CF-18 aircraft’s radar can track targets from great distances, at night and in low visibility. The planes will be supported by as many as 200 Canadian military personnel. Diplomats have said Arab countries likely to participate in possible strikes include Saudi Arabia, Qatar, the United Arab Emirates and Jordan. Of those, Saudi Arabia has the greatest capacity to strike with its 161 attack aircraft including UK-supplied Tornados and Typhoons. The UAE has a force of 142 F-16 and Mirage fighters, Qatar has 12 Mirage 2000 fighters and Jordan has 53 Mirage and Fighting Falcon ground attack aircraft.
guardian.co.uk © Guardian News & Media Limited 2010 Published via the Guardian News Feed plugin for WordPress.
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Related posts:Libya – Gaddafi’s time is running out Libya rebels isolate Gaddafi, seizing cities and oilfields Sarkozy election campaign was funded by Libya, claims Gaddafi’s son
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March 18 2011, 4:54pm | Comments »
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