Free Republic

The Islamic State in Iraq and Syria (ISIS) uses a 34-page manual to instruct its followers on how to stay invisible on the Internet. The Arabic document was translated and released this week by analysts at the Combating Terrorism Center, an independent research group at the U.S. Military Academy at West Point. It includes warnings to avoid Instagram because it is owned by Facebook, and Dropbox because former secretary of State Condoleezza Rice sits on its board of investors. Famous government leaker Edward Snowden has also criticized Dropbox over its privacy, the document notes. Users are also directed to use...

This is what is happening in Europe, and maybe soon to come to our shores. It is sobering.

Federal and local law enforcement agencies have made dozens of arrests of men and women suspected of ISIS involvement. Analysis shows that they include refugees who entered the United States as refugees. Yet Presidents Obama insists says that 'slamming the door' on Syrian refugees fleeing ISIS would be a betrayal of American values.

GOP presidential candidate Donald Trump says the United States has "absolutely no choice" but to close down mosques where "some bad things are happening." "Nobody wants to say this and nobody wants to shut down religious institutions or anything, but you know, you understand it," Trump said on Fox News's "Hannity" on Tuesday. "A lot of people understand it. We're going to have no choice." Trump said on Monday he would "strongly consider" closing mosques if elected in response to the terrorist attacks in France last Friday that killed at least 129 people and injured hundreds more. Pressed to explain...

Under federal law, the executive branch is expressly required to take religion into account in determining who is granted asylum. Under the provision governing asylum (section 1158 of Title 8, U.S. Code), an alien applying for admission must establish that ... religion... was or will be at least one central reason for persecuting the applicant. Moreover, to qualify for asylum in the United States, the applicant must be a 'refugee' as defined by federal law. That definition (set forth in Section 1101(a)(42)(A) of Title , U.S. Code) also requires the executive branch to take account of the alien's religion: The...

Republican senators Ted Cruz and Jeff Sessions rebuked the Obama administration Tuesday for failing to share with Congress the immigration history of 72 people with terrorist associations living in the U.S. The senators bashed Attorney General Loretta Lynch, Homeland Security Secretary Jeh Johnson and Secretary of State John Kerry for not providing the individuals' personal and family immigration information, which was requested Aug. 12 and expected by Sept. 4. "More than three months later the administration has not provided immigration details on a single one of the 72. It is quite telling that this administration — which seems to have...

These individuals under surveillance, 'being tracked' by the FBI Rep. Tim Bishop (D., N.Y.) warned during a recent speech that up to 40 radicalized U.S. citizens who have fought alongside the Islamic State of Iraq and Levant (ISIL or ISIS) have already returned to the United States, where they could pose a terrorist threat. Bishop claims that of the 100 or so Americans who have traveled to the Middle East to join ISIL's ranks, some 40 have returned and are currently being surveilled by the FBI, according to his remarks, which were filmed and uploaded to YouTube last week. "One...

The former chairman of the House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence says President Obama has no coherent strategy to defeat ISIS, and he alleges one of Obama’s top advisers “lied to the American people” to perpetuate a misguided program allowing tens of thousands of refugees into the U.S. Deputy National Security Adviser Ben Rhodes appeared on multiples Sunday morning news shows. When asked whether the news that one and possibly two of the Paris terrorists came to Europe as refugees would alter the Obama administration’s plan to accept tens of thousands of refugees, Rhodes said there would be no re-evaluation....

New Mexico Gov. Susana Martinez says she’s opposed to the Obama administration’s plan to accept any more Syrian refugees until there’s a clear plan in place to properly vet and place them. "The Governor strongly opposes the Obama Administration’s plan to accept more Syrian refugees until there is a very clear plan in place to properly vet and place the refugees, and the voices of governors and the public can be heard."

The Paris terror attacks may have put a clamp on President Obama's plans to resettle 10,000 Syrian refugees over the next year, as the number of governors saying they won't take them swells. At the same time, top congressional lawmakers are urging the administration to halt the plan. House Homeland Security Committee Chairman Michael McCaul called on Obama to "temporarily suspend the admission of all additional Syrian refugees" pending a "full review," according to a letter obtained by Fox News. The resistance at the state level is coalescing at a rapid clip. So far, governors in at least 17 states...

Minnesota Gov. Mark Dayton isn't objecting to the possible placement of Syrian refugees in his state as long as they undergo rigorous screening first. Dayton released a statement Monday saying he's been assured by the White House that any refugees from the war-torn country would be "subject to the highest level of security checks of any category of traveler to the United States."

Multiple governors across the United States are refusing to allow Syrian refugees to resettle in their states amid safety concerns following the deadly terror attacks in Paris. By Monday afternoon, at least 14 governors said that they would not permit new Syrian refugees to enter their states as part of President Obama’s refugee resettlement plan, citing concerns that terrorists could use the program to gain access to the United States, according to the Washington Post. “Given the tragic attacks in Paris and the threats we have already seen, Texas cannot participate in any program that will result in Syrian refugees–any...

At least 15 Republican governors and one Democratic governor have announced plans to block Syrian refugees from resettling in their states in the wake of last week's terrorist attacks in Paris. Michigan Gov. Rick Snyder and Alabama Gov. Robert Bentley issued statements Sunday saying that they wanted to prioritize the safety of the residents in their states. Texas Gov. Greg Abbott; Louisiana Gov. Bobby Jindal, a GOP presidential candidate; Arkansas Gov. Gov. Asa Hutchinson; Indiana Gov. Mike Pence; Mississippi Gov. Phil Bryant; Illinois Gov. Bruce Rauner; Massachusetts Gov. Charlie Baker; Florida Gov. Rick Scott; North Carolina Gov. Pat McCrory; Ohio...

Donald Trump says he's now more against allowing Syrian refugees into the U.S. than ever, warning it could be a way for terrorists to sneak into the country. "We have no idea who these people are, we are the worst when it comes to paperwork," Trump said Monday on CNBC. "This could be one of the great Trojan horses." Trump has been saying for weeks on the campaign trail that the U.S. should not accept refugees from the civil war torn country, and he says he's only standing by that position stronger in the wake of the horrific terrorist attacks...

"Slamming the door in their faces would be a betrayal of our values," [Obama] said.Six Republican governors have announced that Syrian refugees won't be allowed to resettle in their states in the wake of last week's terrorist attacks in Paris. Michigan Gov. Rick Snyder and Alabama Gov. Robert Bentley issued statements Sunday saying that they wanted to prioritize the safety of the residents in their states. Texas Gov. Greg Abbott; Louisiana Gov. Bobby Jindal, a GOP presidential candidate; Arkansas Gov. Gov. Asa Hutchinson; and Indiana Gov. Mike Pence joined them on Monday. "Michigan is a welcoming state and we are...

EXCERPT "There will be an intensification of the strategy that we put forward but the strategy they we put forward is the strategy that ultimately is going to work," Obama told reporters at a news conference at the close of a Group of 20 summit.

Donald Trump, speaking at a rally on Saturday in Beaumont, Texas, suggested that fewer people would have been killed had more civilians been armed. "When you look at Paris, toughest gun laws in the world, nobody had guns but the bad guys," he said. "Nobody had guns. And they were just shooting them one by one, and then they broke in and had a big shootout and ultimately killed the terrorists. And I will tell you what--you can say what you want, if they had guns, if our people had guns, if they were allowed to carry, it would have...

Ted Cruz led Republican criticism of Obama administration policy on Syria on Saturday, in light of the devastating terror attacks in Paris. "President Obama and Hillary Clinton's idea that we should bring tens of thousands of Syrian Muslim refugees to America: it is nothing less than lunacy," the Texas senator said, in an interview with Fox News....Speaking to reporters ahead of a "rally for religious liberty" in Greenville, South Carolina, Cruz said of the victims of the Paris attacks: "They were not injured by some faceless menace. They were not injured by some abstract and inchoate violent extremism."They were injured...

DALLAS (AP) — A 14-year-old Muslim boy who was arrested after a homemade clock he brought to school was mistaken for a possible bomb will be moving with his family to the Middle East so he can attend school there, his family said. Ahmed Mohamed's family released a statement Tuesday saying they had accepted a foundation's offer to pay for his high school and college in Doha, Qatar. He recently visited the country as part of a whirlwind month that included a Monday stop at the White House and an appearance Tuesday at the U.S. Capitol. "We are going to...

“Clock kid” Ahmed Mohamed and his family announced Tuesday in a news release that they will move to Qatar, less than 24 hours after the 14-year-old met with President Barack Obama at the White House….is this not peculiar? THIS is what we know! “Our family has been overwhelmed by the many offers of support we have received since the unfortunate incident of Ahmed’s arrest. From the White House to Sudan, to Mecca, we have been welcomed by a variety of individuals, businesses and educational institutions, which have all provided Ahmed with real encouragement and the ambition to continue to work...