Free Republic

SNIPPET: "Social media is no longer simply a fun way to share updates on the harmless idiosyncrasies of our lives. It can undermine national security, and there ought to be a more robust discussion between the Bay Area technology world and Washington on what to do about it. Cyber-terrorism, especially the potential for electronic tampering with U.S. industrial or military installations, is a paramount national security threat that Washington is working to forestall. We're all working to protect our accounts from hackers. But the cyber-threat getting far less public attention involves the social media networks we use every day and the...

Following are excerpts from an interview with former British MP George Galloway, which aired on Al-Manar TV on July 26, 2011: George Galloway: I support the government of Lebanon's rejection of the fake indictment [for the Al-Hariri assassination]. I know it is fake because we are now into the third incarnation of the identity of the criminals who killed the marrty Rafiq Al-Hariri. The first accusation was against Syria. The second accusation was against Hizbullah. Now all the hostility against the Syrian regime is coming back, and we are returning to accusations of the Syrian regime and of Hizubllah. This...

SNIPPET: "I. When considering the matter of jihadis online, remember that most of what we think we know is based on analyses of the comments made by an handful of vocal activists. The vast majority of jihadis online, be they on forums or social networking sites[i], say nothing. Skillful translations and insightful analyses by definition tell us little about this potentially lethal yet silent majority."

A French comedian has canceled his participation in a festival in Lebanon next month because of concerns for his safety after Hezbollah's TV station claimed he served in the Israeli army. Al-Manar TV said Gad Elmaleh, who is of Moroccan-Jewish descent, was an avid supporter of Israel and showed a purported picture of him wearing an Israeli military uniform. The performer's agent denied the report's claims and said the photo was a fake. Lebanon and Israel technically remain in a state of war, and it is illegal for Lebanese to have contacts with the Jewish State. Israel and the Shiite...

(IsraelNN.com) U.S. Federal Judge Richard M. Berman sentenced on Tuesday a New York resident who broadcast satellite television programming of the Hizbullah terrorist organization to more than a year in prison. Saleh Elahwal pleaded guilty to providing material support to the terrorist organization's Al Manar news network between September 2005 and August 2006. He was sentenced to a year and five months. Israel, the U.S., and many European countries define the Lebanese-based Hizbullah organization a terrorist organization, prohibiting any transaction with a terrorist organization. Elahwal's sentencing comes two months after the main defendant, Javed Iqbal, was ordered by a federal...

December 30, 2008 Note: The following text is a quote: http://www.usdoj.gov/opa/pr/2008/December/08-nsd-1156.html Man Pleads Guilty to Providing Material Support to Hizballah TV Station NEW YORK - Lev L. Dassin, the Acting United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York, announced that Saleh Elahwal, 55, of Matawan, New Jersey, pleaded guilty today in Manhattan federal court to providing material support to Hizballah, a designated Foreign Terrorist Organization. According to the count (Count Two) of the Superseding Indictment to which Elahwal pleaded guilty, and statements made during his guilty plea proceeding before United States District Judge Richard M. Berman: Hizballah ("Party...

SNIPPET: "Hezbollah-controlled Al-Manar television reported that the suspects' job was to collect information on potential targets such as the group's installations and the homes of its leaders. The suspects are among 17 people allegedly belonging to six espionage cells who have been arrested in Lebanon in the past two months on suspicion of transmitting intelligence information to Israel...." SNIPPET: "Israel has expressed reservations about American aid to the Lebanese army and security services, saying those organizations will ultimately be unable to contend with Hezbollah and that any aid is liable to serve Hezbollah's interests."

Note: The following text is a quote: Staten Island Man Sentenced To 69 Months In Prison For Providing Material Support And Resources To Hizballah LEV L. DASSIN, the Acting United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York, announced that JAVED IQBAL, a/k/a "John Iqbal," 45, of Staten Island, New York was sentenced today to 69 months in prison for providing material support to Hizballah, a Foreign Terrorist Organization. The sentence was imposed by United States District Judge RICHARD M. BERMAN in Manhattan federal court. According to the criminal Complaint, Count Two of the Superseding Indictment, to which IQBAL...

Damascus - A delegation from the US Congress arrived in Damascus late Friday for talks with the Syrian officials, a US Embassy spokesman told Deutsche Presse-Agentur dpa. The congressional delegation, chaired by Democrat Representative Adam Smith, will discuss with Syrian officials US-Syrian relations and security cooperation. This is the first US delegation to visit the Syrian capital after US president Barack Obama was sworn in on January 20. Syrian observers expect the visit, and other visits expected to take place in February, aim at breaking the ice between Damascus and Washington. Smith, who has served for 12 years in the...

December 23, 2008 Note: The following text is a quote: http://newyork.fbi.gov/dojpressrel/pressrel08/nyfo122308a.htm STATEN ISLAND SATELLITE TV OPERATOR PLEADS GUILTY TO PROVIDING MATERIAL SUPPORT TO HIZBALLAH TV STATION LEV L. DASSIN, the Acting United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York, announced that JAVED IQBAL, a/k/a "John Iqbal," 45, of Staten Island, New York, pleaded guilty today in Manhattan federal court to providing material support to Hizballah, a designated Foreign Terrorist Organization. According to the criminal Complaint, the count (Count Two) of the Superseding Indictment to which IQBAL pleaded guilty, and statements during the guilty plea proceeding before United States...

Intelligence and Terrorism Information Center at the Israel Intelligence Heritage & Commemoration Center (IICC) November 26, 2008 The international struggle against Hezbollah’s television broadcasts: Germany’s Interior Ministry announced a ban on Hezbollah’s Al-Manar TV station, joining the US, France, Spain, and other countries where the station is banned. Al-Manar’s broadcasts are still distributed worldwide by the Arab and the Indonesian communications satellites.

How The West Was Won The rapid and unexpected decline of the Sunni insurgency in Iraq was officially recognized this week, when Maj. Gen. John Kelly, commanding the Marine Expeditionary Force, turned operational control of Anbar Province over to the Iraqi army and police. Anbar, a vast expanse of desert the size of North Carolina, had been the stronghold of the Sunni insurgency. For years, foreign fighters loyal to al-Qaida had sneaked across Iraq's northwestern border with Syria, into Anbar and down a "rat line" of safe houses in Haditha, Ramadi and Hit. From Fallujah, the arch terrorist Zarqawi...

HonestReporting recently reported about American businesses advertising on Hizbullah's Al-Manar TV station. All three companies cited -- Pepsi, Western Union, and Proctor & Gamble -- have since backed down from advertising on Al-Manar. But it is interesting to compare the companies’ “official explanation.” Proctor & Gamble, for example, wrote that "We don't plan to renew our contract with Al Manar for a variety of reasons, which include the development of other media options to reach our consumers and the confusion surrounding the organization." HonestReporting member Deborah was bothered by the kid gloves attitude toward the Hizbullah terror organization. She wrote...