Posted on 12/17/2006 4:03:30 PM PST by DAVEY CROCKETT
Iran warns West of 'historic slap' over nuclear drive
http://www.imra.org.il/story.php3?id=32314
Wednesday, January 3, 2007
Iran warns West of 'historic slap' if they launch military action
Iran warns West of 'historic slap' over nuclear drive
Agence France-Presse - 03 January, 2007
President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad has kept up his defiance over Iran's
nuclear
programme, saying Tehran would deal an "historic slap" to Western
nations if
they launched military action.
Ahmadinejad also vowed that Iran would press ahead with its atomic
drive
despite the UN Security Council's decision to impose its first ever
sanctions against the Islamic republic.
"Even if all powers who stood behind Saddam Hussein during the sacred
defence war are resurrected again against Iran, the Iranian nation will
give
them an historic slap in the face," Ahmadinejad said in a speech
broadcast
live on state television Tuesday.
The president was addressing thousands gathered in Ahvaz, the capital
of the
western Khuzestan province which Saddam Hussein invaded in 1980 and
sparked
a devastating eight year war with the Islamic republic.
"The Iranian nation stands by its nuclear rights and will do its best
to
defend them," said Ahmadinejad.
The president shrugged off a resolution passed last month by the UN
Security
Council imposing sanctions over the Iranian nuclear programme, saying
it was
illegal and in any case would not hurt the Islamic republic.
"The resolution lacks validity and is completely political and
unlawful," he
told the cheering audience.
"It is a political resolution adopted under pressure from the United States
and Britain, although the content of the resolution is not very
significant.
"It was adopted with two objectives. Firstly, to create psychological
war
and propaganda against Iran and also to give an opportunity to scare
some
people inside the country under the pretext of a hollow resolution."
Western powers want Iran to suspend uranium enrichment, a process that
they
fear could be used to make nuclear weapons. Iran insists its atomic
programme is entirely peaceful and it has every right to the nuclear
fuel
cycle.
"The Iranian nation seeks the complete exploitation of nuclear energy
as its
undeniable right," Ahmadinejad said.
"The nuclear issue is even more important to us than the
nationalisation of
oil that they (the West) opposed," he said, referring to the
nationalisation
of Iran's oil resources by the Iranian government in the 1950s.
Ahmadinejad did not reveal how he would respond to a bill passed by
parliament that obliges the government to revise its cooperation with
the UN
nuclear watchdog in retaliation to the resolution.
But his government spokesman said Tehran was keeping open the option of
quitting the nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) if Western
countries
step up pressure on the Islamic republic over its atomic programme.
"If we are put under pressure and deprived of our rights we can use our
capacity to decide whether to stay within the treaty or to quit it,
Gholam
Hossein Elham told reporters.
Elham said the government would decide how to revise its cooperation
with
the UN nuclear watchdog based on the attitude taken by the
international
community over the Iranian nuclear programme.
"We want to move within the framework of the treaties that we have
accepted
in a transparent way but being part of a treaty is a neutral thing
based on
duties and rights."
An Israeli newspaper, meanwhile, reported that Israel was on Tuesday to
test
an underground installation in the Negev desert designed to monitor any
attempt by Iran, its arch-foe, to test nuclear devices.
The daily Yediot Aharonot reported that the test will consist of three
strong explosions Israel will deliberately set off in the northern
Negev
using 15 tonnes of liquid explosives, to see how they register on
equipment
at the underground site.
The facility is equipped with seismographs and other equipment able to
detect earth tremors and transmits the data directly to the
International
Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) in Vienna, the paper said.
http://www.twincities.com/mld/twincities/news/16370149.htm?source=rss
Posted on Wed, Jan. 03, 2007
Airport hesitant to grant Muslim prayer room
Somali immigrant leaders also ask directors for signs in native language, exceptions for cabbies
BY EMILY GURNON
Pioneer Press
Somali immigrants passing through Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport want a private place to say Muslim prayers. The airport suggests they share a room with people of other religions.
Like a new couple learning to dance, immigrants and their adopted countries often trip each other up, and the prayer-room issue is just one of the latest tangles between Somali immigrants and other Minnesotans.
"Where you have Christians and Muslims praying at the same time, it will create a problem," said Fuad Ali, a Somali leader who spoke at a meeting of community members and airport officials Tuesday in Minneapolis.
The prayer debate was sparked Nov. 20 when six imams — Muslim religious leaders — were removed from an airplane after they had been seen praying in public. According to witnesses, the men also made anti-American remarks, asked for seat-belt extenders they didn't need and spread out to different areas of the plane.
The imams took another flight the next day.
But the incident drew worldwide attention. Muslims decried the treatment of the men, saying it was discriminatory, embarrassing and fueled by false rumors. Others praised the airline for taking the men off the plane, saying safety must come first in the post-Sept. 11 age.
Ali said Tuesday that he and other Somalis want a prayer room so they will not be faced with a similar incident.
"What can guarantee that will not happen again?" he said.
Airport Director Steve Wareham said if the airport provides a special area for Muslims to use, it potentially would have to accommodate other faiths the same way.
"Our request would be you try the quiet seating area," he told the Somali immigrants.
That existing area is a carpeted room that contains chairs but no religious symbols. It has been used for years but was never obvious to travelers, said airport spokesman Patrick Hogan. The airport intends to install more signs directing people to it on the mezzanine level near the Chili's restaurant, near the entry to the F Concourse.
At the same time, there is no restriction on praying in other parts of the airport, Wareham said.
Other issues continue to rile some Somali immigrants. Minnesota is home to the largest concentration of Somali immigrants in the country. The state estimates about 25,000 Somalis live here, though community leaders say the number is closer to 60,000.
Many of the airport's Somali taxi drivers refuse to accept passengers who are carrying liquor, because their faith forbids it. The airport says it is a customer-service issue and has forced drivers who refuse fares to move to the back of the line, which can mean a wait as long as three hours for another fare.
Wareham said he would recommend to the airport's management operations committee that it hold a public hearing on the matter. He favors stiffening the penalties against cab drivers who refuse fares for any reason other than their own safety.
"To be refused service by a taxi driver is, frankly, seen as an insult, and we don't want our customers to experience it," Wareham said.
Somalis assembled at Tuesday's meeting at the Darul Quba Mosque in Minneapolis also wanted to know whether the airport would provide announcements and signs in Somali.
Probably not, officials said.
"The challenge is not inundating the air with messages people might start to ignore," said Arlie Johnson, an assistant airport director.
At least the issue of the prayer room was met with some accommodation, said Abdirahman Hirsi, imam of the Darul Quba Mosque.
"It's a kind of progress," he said. "And we hope the future will be better."
Emily Gurnon can be reached at egurnon@pioneerpress.com or 612-338-6516.
http://www.twincities.com/mld/twincities/news/local/16386846.htm
A Minnesota man ready to take possession of his free Habitat House, has been stopped, until his trial for talking sex with a person on the internet, that he thought was a 14 year old girl.
He may have gone to see her.
http://gabriellecusumano.townhall.com/g/1f02f779-69c5-43b8-9791-8f412116f782
Bill Gertz has a new book out on spies, there are clips and excerts here, they cover the U.S. caught spies in the last couple years, all very interesting and of course well done.
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20070105/ap_on_re_mi_ea/al_qaida_message
Al-Qaida tells Somali militants to fight
By OMAR SINAN, Associated Press Writer 1 hour, 8 minutes ago
CAIRO, Egypt -
Osama bin Laden's deputy has called on Somalia's Islamic militants to carry out suicide attacks on Ethiopian troops fighting in their country, according to a taped message posted on the Internet Friday.
ADVERTISEMENT
Al-Qaida's No. 2 also implores Muslims worldwide to support Somalia's Islamists with fighters, money and expertise.
"I speak to you today as the crusader invader forces of Ethiopia violate the soil of the beloved Muslim Somalia," Egyptian-born Ayman al-Zawahri said in the recording.
Ethiopian-backed government forces have driven the militants from the capital Mogadishu and much of southern Somalia, ending their six months in power. Many Islamists have retreated to the southern tip of the country where they have vowed to keep fighting, raising the specter of an
Iraq-style guerrilla war.
"I call upon the Muslim nation in Somalia to remain in the new battlefield that is one of the crusader battlefields that are being launched by America and its allies and the
United Nations against Islam and Muslims," al-Zawahri said
"Launch ambushes, land mines, raids and suicidal combats until you consume them as the lions and eat their prey," he added.
The message could not immediately be authenticated, but it aired on an Islamic Web site known for publishing militant material and carried the logo of al-Qaida's media production wing, al-Sahab.
continues.............
January 4, 2007 PM Anti-Terrorism News
Al-Qaeda urges suicide attacks in Somalia
http://www.news.com.au/dailytelegraph/story/0,22049,21015114-5006003,00.html
Audio Message from Dr. Ayman al-Zawahiri Issued by as-Sahab Addressed
to Muslims: "Set Out and Support Your Brothers in Somalia" – January
2007
http://siteinstitute.org/bin/articles.cgi?ID=publications241207&Category=publications&Subcategory=0
New Al-Zawahiri Tape: "Set Out to Support Your Brothers in Somaliaâ€
http://counterterrorismblog.org/2007/01/new_al_zawahiri_tape_set_out_t.php
The Rise & Fall of Somalia's Islamic Courts: An Online History - Bill
Roggio blog post with summary of ICU history, with links to archive
material
http://billroggio.com/archives/2007/01/the_rise_fall_of_som.php
Morocco: 62 Suspected Terrorists Held
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/01/05/world/africa/05briefs-moroccoterror.html?_r=1&oref=slogin
Morocco says busts cell recruiting Iraq fighters
http://www.alertnet.org/thenews/newsdesk/L04444790.htm
(Iraq) Raids yield terrorists, terror leaders, weapons
http://www.centcom.mil/sites/uscentcom1/FrontPage%20Stories/Raids%20yield%20terrorists,%20terror%20leaders,%20weapons.aspx
Philippine police say no specific terror threat received ahead of Asian
summit - govts issue travel advisories
http://www.iht.com/articles/ap/2007/01/04/asia/AS_GEN_ASEAN_Security.php
Canada keeps terrorist warning days before ASEAN summit
http://www.mb.com.ph/MAIN2007010583869.html
France: resolution of Mideast conflict will not end global terror
http://www.israeltoday.co.il/default.aspx?tabid=178&nid=10987
Saudi Arabia Confirms It Spoke with Hizbullah
http://www.israelnationalnews.com/news.php3?id=118819
(DHS) U.S. agency makes changes in anti-terror grants
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/16476505/
(US) Nuclear security director forced to resign over lapses
http://www.cnn.com/2007/POLITICS/01/04/nuclear.dismissal/index.html
(U.S.) Pickle says terrorist attack on the Capitol is inevitable -
Departing U.S. Senate official says "we will be victimized again"
http://www.thehill.com/thehill/export/TheHill/News/Frontpage/010407/pickle.html
CDC report details hospital preparedness for terrorism-related
conditions
http://www.fmlink.com/Home/News/news.cgi?catid=1000&display=article&id=22120
(NY) Court To Decide Fate Of Subway Terror Suspect - Shahawar Matin
Siraj
http://wcbstv.com/topstories/local_story_004141847.html
(NY) Man pleads guilty to misleading US agents about brother's suicide
bombing plans - Mohamed Subeh
http://www.iht.com/articles/ap/2007/01/05/america/NA_GEN_US_Suicide_Bomber_Charge.php
(Jose Padilla) Wiretaps are basis of case linked to 'dirty bomb'
http://www.iht.com/articles/2007/01/04/news/terror.php
'Palestinians Hate America More than Al Qaeda Does'
http://www.cnsnews.com/ViewForeignBureaus.asp?Page=/ForeignBureaus/archive/200701/INT20070104b.html
Commentary: The Iranian who wants an apocalypse
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/opinion/main.jhtml?xml=/opinion/2007/01/05/do0502.xml
After the Danish Cartoon Controversy - Lorenzo Vidino of Investigative
Project on Terrorism on legacy of "cartoon jihad" (with Pernille
Ammitzbøll)
http://www.meforum.org/article/1437
(Australia) Police hunt Aussie trained by al-Qa'ida
http://www.theaustralian.news.com.au/story/0,20867,21013222-5001561,00.html
Bosnia anti-terror team flexes muscles
http://news.bbc.co.uk/go/pr/fr/-/2/hi/europe/6209222.stm
Singapore bans export of luxury goods to North Korea
http://www.zeenews.com/znnew/articles.asp?aid=345811&ssid=51&sid=BUS
Gunmen target three Hamas officials in West Bank as Gaza clashes resume
http://www.usatoday.com/news/world/2007-01-04-palestinians_x.htm
Bombers destroy power, gas lines in southern Pakistan - Balochistan
Liberation Army claims attack
http://khaleejtimes.com/DisplayArticleNew.asp?xfile=data/subcontinent/2007/January/subcontinent_January142.xml§ion=subcontinent&col=
(Indonesia) From Counter-Society to Counter-State: Jemaah Islamiyah
According to PUPJI - IDSS analysis of Jemaah Islamiyah's handbook
http://www.policypointers.org/download_4565.html
Three Entities Targeted by Treasury for Supporting Syria's WMD
Proliferation - U.S. Treasury designates agencies for developing weapons and
missiles
http://www.treas.gov/press/releases/hp216.htm
220 pounds of explosives found in Spain - Bomb found in Basque region
of northern Spain
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/spain_car_bomb
Tunisia: Arrested Militants Hailed From Algeria, Report - Tunisian
security forces killed 12 and arrested 15 near Tunis - entered from Algeria
http://www.adnki.com/index_2Level_English.php?cat=Terrorism&loid=8.0.373290227&par=0
(West Bank) Four dead, 20 wounded as Israeli army rolls into Ramallah
http://news.yahoo.com/s/afp/20070104/wl_mideast_afp/mideastconflict
http://www.iris.org.il/#blog
[the cartoon on this page is perfect]
Thursday, January 4, 2007
Why Are Arabs Upset by Saddam's Execution?
A must-read by Efraim Karsh, summarized by the Daily Alert:
-While Saddam Hussein's execution was greeted with delight by many of his victims - Iranians, Kuwaitis, and Iraqi Shia - it also generated widespread criticism among many Arabs and Muslims. This evokes one of the more confounding paradoxes relating to Saddam - the wide discrepancy between his actual track record and the adulation in which he was held by non-Iraqi Arabs.
-Saddam transformed Iraq into the most repressive police state in the world, where a joke or a reported thought could cost a person his life, where tens of thousands of civilians were brutally murdered by their government, and where millions starved while their unelected ruler spent incredible sums of money on monuments and palaces for himself.
-Saddam embroiled his country in a string of catastrophic foreign adventures that claimed more than one million lives and wrought untold physical and economic wreckage. Upon his ascendance in 1979, Iraq was a regional economic superpower, boasting some $35 billion in foreign exchange reserves. Twenty-three years later, it had been reduced to dire poverty and underdevelopment, with tens of billions in foreign debt.
-Why has such an abysmal record been widely applauded by Arabs and Muslims?
-It is the Middle East's violent political culture that has created and perpetuated the monstrosity of Saddam (and his ilk). Only when this culture is fully eradicated will the region's inhabitants be able to look forward to a better future. Saddam's execution, at long last, sets a precedent of holding a local tyrant accountable for his crimes.
Posted by Barak at 22:20 | Comments (0) | Trackbacks (0)
Ex-PA Minister to Al-Qaeda: "We Hate the Americans More than You"
Remember that Fatah, led by Mahmoud Abbas, has been America's great white hope for for over a decade:
Fatah leader and former PA minister Abu Ali Shahin, responding to a statement by al-Qaeda's deputy leader, Ayman al-Zawahri, criticizing Palestinian Fatah leaders for contacts with the U.S., addressed al-Qaeda on PA TV on Jan. 1, saying:
"Do to Bush whatever you want, and we wish you success....We are fighting the Americans and hate the Americans more than you!"
Posted by Barak in Fatah Abbas at 22:12 | Comments (0) | Trackbacks (0)
Iran's Secret Plan for Mayhem
Here is an important read from Eli Lake, which shows that the Sunni-Shiite understanding of the Iraq conflict is facile:
Iran is supporting both Sunni and Shiite terrorists in the Iraqi civil war, according to secret Iranian documents captured by Americans in Iraq. Iranians captured by American forces were carrying documents that offer insight into Iranian activities in Iraq. The documents show how the Quds Force - the arm of Iran's Revolutionary Guard that supports Shiite Hizbullah, Sunni Hamas, and Shiite death squads - is working with individuals affiliated with Al-Qaeda in Iraq and Ansar al-Sunna. An American official said, "We found plans for attacks [and] phone numbers affiliated with Sunni bad guys."
While the Iranian plans do not extend to cooperation with Baathist groups fighting the government in Baghdad, the news that Iran's Quds Force would be in contact, and clandestinely cooperating, with Sunni Jihadists who attacked the Golden Mosque in Samarra (one of the holiest shrines in Shiism) on February 22 could shake the alliance Iraq's ruling Shiites have forged with Tehran. Many Iraq analysts believe the bombing vaulted Iraq into the current stage of its civil war.
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Posted by Barak at 22:08 | Comments (0) | Trackbacks (0)
Tuesday, January 2, 2007
Noteworthy Headlines
Ahmadinejad: Iran Vows to 'Humiliate' USA
Many believe that one morning we will wake up to the news of a missing US city, and then be forced to conduct an all-out war. What if many simultaneous attacks are planned instead?
Ahmadinejad Aide: Hitler was a Jew
Of course, he was one of the founders of Israel as well
400 Cars Torched in France for New Year's
India: Jihadists Hide Bombs in Toys
Very similar to this story I reported earlier: Explosive Teddy Bears Found in West Bank Bomb Lab
Palestinians Planned to Kill Former Australian PM
1,500 in Minneapolis Protest Ouster of Sharia Government in Somalia
Beheading was the punishment for failing to pray five times daily. Why are there 1,500 Americans who support this? Why are they permitted to be an internal threat?
Ethiopian Forces Take Last Somali Islamic Stronghold
Is there a lesson somewhere in this story for us?
Palestinians in Gaza Renew Internal Clashes, Abductions
Today is apparently back-to-work day all over
New UN Secretary-General: "Israel-Palestinian Conflict Key to Mideast Problems"
The Theory of Palestinian Centrality remains impervious to reality
Huge Demand for Saddam Photos by Palestinians
Release of Up to 80 Jihadists Puts Pakistan Counterterror Efforts 'Back to Square One'
Palestinians in Gaza Attack Cargo Crossing with Mortar Fire
UK: Muslims Refusing to Wash Hands in Hospitals
Because the soap contains alcohol, which they are forbidden from drinking
Revealed: Rudy's '08 Battle Plans
Top-secret misplaced plan calls for Giuliani to raise money while trying to overcome potential negative perceptions about him
9-Year Old Pakistani Boy Hangs Himself 'Like Saddam'
Olmert Recognizes PA Flag
January 5, 2007 Anti-Terrorism News
(Afghanistan) Commander among 18 Taliban killed in Afghanistan: police
http://news.yahoo.com/s/afp/20070105/wl_sthasia_afp/afghanistanunrest_070105115231
(Iraq) Reports: Bush to replace top generals
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20070105/ap_on_go_pr_wh/us_iraq_25
(Iraq) US citizen, two interpreters kidnapped in southern Iraq
http://news.yahoo.com/s/afp/20070105/wl_mideast_afp/iraqunrestuskidnap_070105122017
(Iraq) Five members of Al-Qaeda were killed today in Al-Anbar among
them (Prince) Yamane nationality - Local forces killed 5 terrorists
including Yemeni "nationality prince"
http://www.wna-news.com/inanews/news.php?item.2365.15
Somali, Ethiopian troops prepare "massive" assault - on Kenyan border
town where Islamic militiamen are
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20070105/ap_on_re_af/somalia_221
(Philippines) 3 injured in Cotabato City bomb explosion - police see
Jemaah Islamiyah role
http://newsinfo.inquirer.net/breakingnews/metroregions/view_article.php?article_id=41841
(Philippines) Bomb blast in southern Philippines
http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20070105/wl_nm/philippines_explosion_dc_2
Philippines hunts for Vietnamese terrorist ahead of ASEAN summit
http://news.yahoo.com/s/afp/20070105/wl_asia_afp/aseanphilippinesvietnamusattacks_070105072336
Canada, UK, Australia keep terrorist warning days before Asia summits
http://news.yahoo.com/s/afp/20070105/wl_asia_afp/aseansummitattacks_070105100713
(Pakistan) Gunmen kill Shia leader - Syed Ali Imam Jaffari
http://www.dailytimes.com.pk/default.asp?page=2007\01\05\story_5-1-2007_pg1_5
Pakistan court remands London plot suspect Rashid Rauf in custody
http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20070105/wl_nm/pakistan_security_dc_1
(India) Bangalore Police arrest suspected Kashmiri terrorist
http://in.news.yahoo.com/070105/139/6auu8.html
(India) 30 injured in Indian Kashmir protests over Saddam execution
http://news.yahoo.com/s/afp/20070105/wl_asia_afp/indiakashmirunrest_070105112729
(India) 1993 blast accused detained in Washington
http://www.hindustantimes.com/news/181_1889274,000600010004.htm
(Illinois) Muslim convert indicted in terror plot on US mall - Derrick
Shareef plot to kill Christmas shoppers
http://www.jpost.com/servlet/Satellite?cid=1167467666583&pagename=JPost%2FJPArticle%2FShowFull
Background:
http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,235518,00.html
http://counterterrorismblog.org/2006/12/chicagoarea_man_arrested_for_a.php
(US) Millennium bomber (Ahmed Ressam) changes story
http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/localnews/2003508560_ressamletter04m.html
(US) Warrantless mail searches may be allowed
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/16472777/
White House Official: "US at war with Jihadi Islam"
http://www.dailytimes.com.pk/default.asp?page=2007\01\05\story_5-1-2007_pg7_7
German court opens 9/11 sentencing hearings - Mounir El Motassadeq
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/16481858/
http://www.expatica.com/actual/article.asp?subchannel_id=26&story_id=35351
(Spain) Suspect who 'bankrolled (2004) Madrid massacre' held - Taha
Seghrouchni
http://www.expatica.com/actual/article.asp?subchannel_id=81&story_id=35364
(Spain) 2nd body found from Madrid car bombing; Socialists acknowledge
lack of communication with ETA
http://www.iht.com/articles/ap/2007/01/05/europe/EU-GEN-Spain-Bombing.php
(Spain) Police find explosives outside Basque town
http://www.iht.com/articles/2007/01/04/news/spain.php
(France) Chirac says Iraq war boosting terrorism
http://news.yahoo.com/s/afp/20070105/wl_mideast_afp/francevotepolitics
(France) Corsica blasts kill suspected bomber
http://www.expatica.com/actual/article.asp?subchannel_id=25&story_id=35341
Australia: Stolen Rocket Launchers "Sold To Terror Suspect"
http://www.adnki.com/index_2Level.php?cat=Security&loid=8.0.373724690&par=0
(Australia) Sydney building was rocket target
http://www.news.com.au/story/0,23599,21014523-1702,00.html
Hezbollah sees Saudis mediating in Lebanon crisis
http://news.yahoo.com/s/afp/20070105/wl_mideast_afp/mideastlebanonsaudi_070105112439
Gaza terrorists launch 3 Kassams into w. Negev
http://www.jpost.com/servlet/Satellite?cid=1167467667756&pagename=JPost%2FJPArticle%2FShowFull
North Korea Prepping Another Nuclear Weapons Test - Defense Officials
Tell ABC News 'They've Put Everything in Place'
http://abcnews.go.com/WNT/story?id=2771492&page=1
Russia to write off 80 percent of North Korea's debts: report
http://news.yahoo.com/s/afp/20070105/bs_afp/nkorearussiatradedebt_070105033113
(Thailand) More coup rumors rattle Bangkok
http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20070105/wl_nm/thailand_bombs_dc_10
Egypt plans to fight 'cyber-terrorism'
http://news.yahoo.com/s/afp/egyptterrorisminternet
Egypt's President Hosni Mubarak: Hanging 'makes martyr of Saddam'
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/middle_east/6233951.stm
Libya to build statue of Saddam
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/middle_east/6232859.stm
Related News:
(Netherlands) Imam gives sermon despite court ban
http://www.expatica.com/actual/article.asp?subchannel_id=1&story_id=35354
(Italy) Interior minister says he wants to take close looks at Italy's
mosques and Islamic schools
http://www.iht.com/articles/ap/2007/01/05/europe/EU-GEN-Italy-Muslims.php
Italy: Muslim Community Leader Welcomes Plan To Control Mosques' Funds
http://www.adnki.com/index_2Level.php?cat=Religion&loid=8.0.373699983&par=0
(Minnesota) Booze, dogs too much for some Muslim cabbies - Drivers
refuse service to passengers, Minn. airport officials put up a fight
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/16472393/
(Minnesota) First Muslim Congressman sworn in on Koran - Keith Ellison
http://www.jpost.com/servlet/Satellite?cid=1167467665915&pagename=JPost%2FJPArticle%2FShowFull
Thanks to Milford421 for this report.
Federal Government To Investigate Chautauqua, Erie County Bridges
Federal Government To Investigate Chautauqua, Erie County Bridges
By The Post-Journal Staff
1/3/2007 - BUFFALO — The Federal Railroad Administration will begin
an investigation into railroad overpasses in Chautauqua and Erie
counties.
``A startling pattern of train mishaps give Western New York
residents the right to question whether those responsible for
protecting their safety are sufficiently rigorous in ensuring proper
track management and upkeep is taking place,'' said U.S. Rep. Brian
Higgins, D-South Buffalo and a member of the House of
Representatives Transportation and Infrastructure Committee. ``It is
a relief to hear that a federal, impartial authority is willing to
come in and provide us with answers that can lead to safer rail
transportation in Western New York.''
The investigation, scheduled to begin next week, will involve an
assessment of safety and maintenance records kept by the railroads
that own the track, and a review of safety and maintenance methods.
Following the evaluation, an administration specialist will perform
on-site assessments of the integrity and safety of several
overpasses. Weather permitting, the entire investigation is expected
to take four weeks.
On December 10 a CSX train derailed on an overpass in Cheektowaga.
The next morning a Canadian Pacific Railway train derailed on an
overpass in Buffalo. According to published reports, there have been
18 train derailments in Erie County from January 2005 to September
2006, including the derailment in a Buffalo rail yard of a CSX train
carrying a cask used to transport spent U.S. Navy nuclear fuel.
The responsibility for track inspection is left to the individual
railroad companies. In a Dec. 13 letter, Higgins asked the
administration to step in and analyze recent derailments, identify
bridges that pose potential hazards for future derailments and make
recommendations for action that the railroads can take to guarantee
public safety in Western New York. Higgins' letter regarding
railroad bridge safety comes two months after he revealed that New York state shortchanged Western New York on vehicular bridge funding
by $158 million.
http://post-journal.com/articles.asp?articleID=11024
Thanks to Milford421 for this report.
Guardsmen overrun at the Border
http://www.azcentral.com/12news/news/articles/borderstory0104-CR.html
12 News
Jan. 4, 2007 02:44 PM
National Guard unit stormed while patroling the border
Border attack raises security concerns
A U.S. Border Patrol entry Identification Team site was overrun
Wednesday night along Arizona's border with Mexico.
According to the Border Patrol, an unknown number of gunmen attacked
the site in the state's West Desert Region around 11 p.m. The site
is manned by National Guardsmen. Those guardsmen were forced to
retreat.
Continued.
Al-Qaeda urges suicide attacks in Somalia
http://www.news.com.au/dailytelegraph/story/0,22049,21015114-5006003,00.html
Al-Qaeda urges suicide attacks in Somalia
From correspondents in Dubai
January 05, 2007 12:00
OSAMA bin Laden's top aide has urged Somali Islamists to launch an
Iraq-style guerrilla campaign of suicide and other forms of attacks
against
Ethiopian forces in Somalia.
Ayman al-Zawahri put out the call in an audio tape posted on the
internet
today.
"As happened in Iraq and Afghanistan, when the world's strongest power
was
defeated by the campaigns of the mujahideen troops going to heaven, so
its
slaves shall be defeated on the Muslim lands of Somalia," al-Zawahri
said.
"You must ambush, mine, raid and (carry out) martryrdom campaigns so
that
you can wipe them out," said Zawahri, al-Qaeda's deputy leader.
The tape was posted on a web site used by Islamist militants and
al-Qaeda-linked groups.
Ethiopian forces helped Somalia's interim government rout Islamists in
a
two-week war.
The Somalia Islamic Courts Council, which had imposed sharia law across
much
of the south, abandoned the capital Mogadishu last week in the face of
the
advancing Ethiopian and government forces.
http://www.cnn.com/2007/WORLD/europe/01/05/who.chief.ap/index.html?section=cnn_latest
New WHO chief warns of bird flu
POSTED: 2:33 a.m. EST, January 5, 2007
Story Highlights
• Hong Kong native pledges to be independent of China, any other country
• In 1997 Chan led Hong Kong's public health department in fight against bird flu
GENEVA, Switzerland (AP) -- Dr. Margaret Chan has taken charge of the World Health Organization, accepting the most prominent U.N. post ever filled by a Chinese national, and has promptly renewed the agency's warning that the world must keep up its guard against bird flu.
Chan said Thursday there had been a lull in bird flu infections in recent months, but that cases had begun picking up again in the last few weeks.
"This H5N1 (virus strain) is causing unprecedented damage to the poultry sector, and along the way many people were infected, and more than half of these people died," Chan said. "We must not let our guard down. We must maintain our vigilance."
continues...............
It appears the pandemic is back in the news, or was there all along, but not much written about it.........odd, granny....
http://www.seniorjournal.com/Spotlights/FLUFrame.htm
Government Paying $102.6 Million to See if Peramivir Can Protect Against Bird Flu
HHS says drug has shown effectiveness against a number of influenza strains
January 4, 2006 – There may be a new tool in the war against the bird flu that threatens a world pandemic. At least the government is betting $102.6 million on it. Health & Human Services today announced they have awarded the money to Bio Cryst Pharmaceuticals, Inc., for development of their influenza antiviral drug, peramivir. The funding will also pay to see if it is an effective treatment for the H5N1 virus. Read more...
As H5N1 Virus Concern Grows, U.S. Buys Additional Influenza Vaccine
U.S. wants to prepare to protect 20 million from pandemic
November 20, 2006 – The U.S. government has taken another step toward building a stockpile of vaccine to protect 20 million people in the event of an influenza pandemic. The newest vaccine purchases of 5.3 million doses supplements the existing stockpile of 5.9 million doses of H5N1 vaccine. Health & Human Services Secretary Mike Leavitt today announced the department has awarded contracts totaling $199.45 million to three vaccine makers to the 90-microgram doses. Read more...
CDC Sets Last Week in November as National Flu Vaccination Week
Plenty of vaccine delivered, seniors urged to get shots even if late
Flu Shot Locator
• National Flu Shot Locator (by Zip Code)
November 13, 2006 – The week after Thanksgiving has been designated at National Influenza Vaccination Week by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in an effort to urge Americans – senior citizens in particular – to get a flu vaccination, even if it is in December or later. The primary focus has been on urging shots in October and November. Read more...
Public Health Leaders Want Pandemic Planning Moved to HHS from Homeland Security
American Public Health Association launches its own effort to better inform public
November 7, 2006 - The American Public Health Association today voted to adopt new policy that supports comprehensive national planning for an influenza pandemic and recommends key changes to the current response strategy, including ensuring care for vulnerable populations, such as, senior citizens, and making the Department of Health & Human Services the lead agency for pandemic flu planning, rather than the Department of Homeland Security. Read more...
News on flu and bird flu, from the world.
http://www.pandemic-news.info/
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1762609/posts
US Hunts Al-Qa'eda Suspects Fleeing Somalia
The Telegraph (UK) ^ | 1-5-2006 | Mike Pflanz
Posted on 01/04/2007 5:51:57 PM PST by blam
US hunts al-Qa'eda suspects fleeing Somalia
By Mike Pflanz, East Africa Correspondent
Last Updated: 12:54am GMT 05/01/2007
US Navy warships stepped up patrols off Somalia yesterday, boarding fishing boats and oil tankers to search for al-Qa'eda agents who fled after their Islamic allies were chased into hiding.
At the same time, Washington's chief Africa diplomat, Jendayi Frazer, met Ethiopia's prime minister for the first time since Ethiopian troops led the advance that crushed the Islamic Courts Union that had ruled much of Somalia until a few weeks ago. She hoped that peacekeepers drawn from African nations would be deployed in Somalia "by the end of January".
The US has played a key role behind the scenes. Analysts said this helped the sudden, almost complete rout of the Islamic forces. Their leaders are being hunted near Somalia's border with Kenya, but aid agencies have complained that closing the border leaves 1.8 million Somalis without access to assistance.
Offshore, the USS Ramage, a guided missile destroyer, and the USS Bunker Hill, both from the American Fifth Fleet, were among several vessels sent from the British-led Combined Task Force 150, based in Bahrain, to waters off Somalia.
Cdre Bruce Williams, the task force's Royal Navy commander, said: "Coalition forces will continue routine operations in this unstable area as long as the need exists for our presence."
No British ships are involved, according to the Ministry of Defence.
Security sources in Nairobi said intelligence from US spy satellites had been passed to Ethiopian defence forces ahead of an attack on Tuesday on a convoy in southern Somalia, which was said to include the ICU's leaders.
Four Ethiopian helicopters dropped six bombs on the position, Kenyan police said, but failed to destroy the convoy. The US defence department refused to comment on "intelligence specifics".
Yesterday, Ms Frazer, Washington's under-secretary of state for Africa, said US intelligence believed that the Islamist leaders had been hiding in Mogadishu, but might have fled and their whereabouts were unknown.
"All of us in the international community were quite surprised how fast the [Islamic movement] melted away and lost support," she said.
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1762601/posts
North Korea Prepping Nuclear Weapons Test(They've Put Everything in Place)
ABC News ^ | 01/04/06 | JONATHAN KARL
Posted on 01/04/2007 5:20:00 PM PST by TigerLikesRooster
North Korea Prepping Nuclear Weapons Test
Defense Officials Tell ABC News 'They've Put Everything in Place'
By JONATHAN KARL
WASHINGTON, Jan. 4, 2007 — - North Korea appears to have made preparations for another nuclear test, according to U.S. defense officials.
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1762826/posts
Weapons link to Australian 'plot'(stolen rocket launcher sold to a terrorist)
BBC News ^ | 01/05/07
Posted on 01/05/2007 7:00:51 AM PST by TigerLikesRooster
Weapons link to Australian 'plot'
Australian police have arrested a man they suspect of involvement in the theft of military rocket launchers and their alleged sale to a terror suspect.
Taha Abdul Rahman, 28, was arrested in a Sydney suburb in a joint operation by police and counter-terrorism agents.
He has been charged with 17 offences, including dishonestly receiving stolen property and supplying a prohibited weapon without authorisation.
Police said the arrest was linked to current terrorism-related cases.
Eighteen men are currently in custody awaiting trial after being arrested in Sydney and Melbourne in November 2005 on suspicion of planning an attack on Australian soil.
Search for weapons
Seven rocket launchers were stolen from the Australian military last year. One is believed to have since been found.
Five of the launchers are alleged to have been sold by Mr Rahman to a "person... facing terrorism charges on another matter," Australian Federal Police Assistant Commissioner Frank Prendergast said.
He said the other two launchers were given to another man, without giving details. Media reports suggest the man is not linked to terrorism.
"It is a matter of great importance to us to recover the six outstanding weapons," Mr Prendergast said.
Taha Abdul Rahman was remanded into custody until his next hearing on 10 January.
The coordinated raids in Melbourne and Sydney and subsequent arrests of 18 men in 2005 was the largest counter-terrorism operation staged in Australia.
Police at the time said they had averted a "potentially catastrophic attack", with reports suggesting the Sydney Harbour Bridge and Lucas Heights nuclear reactor were targeted.
There has never been a major terrorist attack on Australian soil, although 88 Australians died in the 2002 Bali bombings, and Australia's embassy in Indonesia was bombed in 2004.
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1762984/posts
U.S. Capitol Officer's Badge, Gun Stolen
nbc4.com ^ | November 29, 2006 | NA
Posted on 01/05/2007 10:57:19 AM PST by neverdem
LAUREL, Md. -- Some criminals have a gun and a badge that belong to an officer who is assigned to protect the Capitol.
Police said two robbers stole the badge and handgun during a liquor store robbery at the Roundabout Fine Wine and Spirits in Laurel, Md., Friday night.
The armed criminals walked in, held up the cashier and then noticed a U.S. Capitol police captain who happened to be there.
Investigators said they took his badge and gun and then ran away.
[Of course, I had to post this find, you will want to see the photos on site that goes with it...granny]
http://people.csail.mit.edu/rahimi/helmet/
On the Effectiveness of Aluminium Foil Helmets:
An Empirical Study
Ali Rahimi1, Ben Recht 2, Jason Taylor 2, Noah Vawter 2
17 Feb 2005
1: Electrical Engineering and Computer Science department, MIT.
2: Media Laboratory, MIT.
Abstract
Among a fringe community of paranoids, aluminum helmets serve as the protective measure of choice against invasive radio signals. We investigate the efficacy of three aluminum helmet designs on a sample group of four individuals. Using a $250,000 network analyser, we find that although on average all helmets attenuate invasive radio frequencies in either directions (either emanating from an outside source, or emanating from the cranium of the subject), certain frequencies are in fact greatly amplified. These amplified frequencies coincide with radio bands reserved for government use according to the Federal Communication Commission (FCC). Statistical evidence suggests the use of helmets may in fact enhance the government's invasive abilities. We speculate that the government may in fact have started the helmet craze for this reason.
Introduction
It has long been suspected that the government has been using satellites to read and control the minds of certain citizens. The use of aluminum helmets has been a common guerrilla tactic against the government's invasive tactics [1]. Surprisingly, these helmets can in fact help the government spy on citizens by amplifying certain key frequency ranges reserved for government use. In addition, none of the three helmets we analyzed provided significant attenuation to most frequency bands.
We describe our experimental setup, report our results, and conclude with a few design guidelines for constructing more effective helmets.
Experimental Setup
The three helmet types tested
The Classical The Fez
The Centurion
We evaluated the performance of three different helmet designs, commonly referred to as the Classical, the Fez, and the Centurion. These designs are portrayed in Figure 1. The helmets were made of Reynolds aluminium foil. As per best practices, all three designs were constructed with the double layering technique described elsewhere [2].
A radio-frequency test signal sweeping the ranges from 10 Khz to 3 Ghz was generated using an omnidirectional antenna attached to the Agilent 8714ET's signal generator.
The experimental apparatus, including a data recording laptop, a $250,000 network analyser, and antennae.
A network analyser (Agilent 8714ET) and a directional antenna measured and plotted the signals. See Figure 2.
Because of the cost of the equipment (about $250,000), and the limited time for which we had access to these devices, the subjects and experimenters performed a few dry runs before the actual experiment (see Figure 3).
Test subjects during a dry run.
The receiver antenna was placed at various places on the cranium of 4 different subjects: the frontal, occipital and parietal lobes. Once with the helmet off and once with the helmet on. The network analyzer plotted the attenuation betwen the signals in these two settings at different frequencies, from 10Khz to 3 Ghz. Figure 4 shows a typical plot of the attenuation at different frequencies.
A typical attenuation trace form the network analyser
Results
For all helmets, we noticed a 30 db amplification at 2.6 Ghz and a 20 db amplification at 1.2 Ghz, regardless of the position of the antenna on the cranium. In addition, all helmets exhibited a marked 20 db attenuation at around 1.5 Ghz, with no significant attenuation beyond 10 db anywhere else.
Conclusion
The helmets amplify frequency bands that coincide with those allocated to the US government between 1.2 Ghz and 1.4 Ghz. According to the FCC, These bands are supposedly reserved for ''radio location'' (ie, GPS), and other communications with satellites (see, for example, [3]). The 2.6 Ghz band coincides with mobile phone technology. Though not affiliated by government, these bands are at the hands of multinational corporations.
It requires no stretch of the imagination to conclude that the current helmet craze is likely to have been propagated by the Government, possibly with the involvement of the FCC. We hope this report will encourage the paranoid community to develop improved helmet designs to avoid falling prey to these shortcomings.
Acknowledgments
The authors would like to thank Andy (Xu) Sun of the MIT Media Lab for helping with the equipment, Professor George Sergiadis for lending us the antennae, and Professor Neil Gershenfeld for allowing us the use of his lab equipment. (Please direct any queries to the authors, NOT these folks)
There's also an informative video, courtesy of Discover Channel's Daily Planet.
http://regimechangeiniran.com/
Iran's Supreme Leader Dead
Michael Ledeen, Faster Please reported that Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, Iran’s Supreme Leader, is dead.
UPDATE: Some sources, evidently including a family member, are reporting that Khamenei, in grave condition, was alive as recently as yesterday. Our source reported that he died today. More to come. It is the middle of the night in Iran.
MORE: Farideh Vafai - spokeswoman for Reza Pahlavi, the son of the former Shah of Iran - made the following comment to PJM Washington Editor Richard Miniter: “We cannot confirm this news. We have heard rumors but so far have no confirmation.” Ms. Vafai was reached at Pahlavi’s Secretariat in Falls Church, VA.
LATE UPDATE FROM RICHARD MINITER:
Banafshef Zand-Bonazzi runs Iran Press News, a New York-based non-profit service which translates the output of Iran’s television, radio and newspapers. When I reached her at home, she seemed confident that the reports of Khamenei’s death were not exaggerated.
“I have looked around the Iranian (Farsi-language) press and have not yet found a confirmation of Khamenei’s death. This does not surprise me, given the atmosphere of the recent elections that highlights the explosive factional tension among the various mullah cliques. Michael Ledeen, who broke the news, has rarely if ever, reported anything incorrectly. I trust his sources. My feeling is that if Khamenei is not yet dead, he will be soon. Rumors of his illness have been circulating for a long time and certainly the way he has been conducting himself recently came across as someone who is putting his affairs in order. He did not show up to give his usual Eid speech last week—this is unprecedented.”
The Eid speech is traditionally given at the end of the pilgrimage (or hajj) season. It has long been a set piece of Persian propaganda efforts and, until this year, only had one star—Khamenei himself.
She added: “I think that after Khamenei’s demise, various factions will be scrambling for the power. It could very well be the beginning of a gangland style battle which leads the Islamic regime to self-destruction. “
UPDATE FROM MICHAEL LEDEEN (Fri. Jan 5):
The source still insists Khamenei is dead, but I cannot find any direct or indirect confirmation. To my knowledge only one person says Khamenei is dead. That said, the regime would have every reason to keep the fact secret, and Khamenei’s physical condition has certainly been grave. In addition to the reports of his emergency hospitalization, his message to the Islamic Community on the Eid festival was released, not publicly read, as he had always done in the past. He has made no public appearances for several days, and Persian web sites have declared—several days ago now—that he cannot carry out his responsibilities and will have to be replaced. The struggle for succession is well under way.
By DoctorZin on January 4, 2007 1:15 PM |
[There are several reports on this and other subjects here]
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