Posted on 12/17/2006 4:03:30 PM PST by DAVEY CROCKETT
VEVAK learned its methodology from the Soviet KGB and many of the Islamist revolutionaries who supported Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini actually studied at Moscow's Patrice Lumumba Friendship University, the Oxford of terrorism. Documented Iranian alumni include the current Supreme Leader (the faqih) Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, under whose Velayat-e Faqih (Rule of the Islamic Jurisprudent) apparatus it has traditionally operated. Its current head is Cabinet Minister Hojatoleslam Gholam-Hussein Mohseni-Ezhei, a graduate of Qom's Haqqani School, noted for its extremist position advocating violence against enemies and strict clerical control of society and government. The Ministry is very well funded and its charge, like that of the Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps (the Pasdaran) is to guard the revolutionary Islamic Iranian regime at all costs and under all contingencies.
From the KGB playbook, VEVAK learned the art of disinformation. It's not so difficult to learn: tell the truth 80% of the time and lie 20%. Depending on how well a VEVAK agent wants to cover his/her tracks, the ratio may go up to 90/10, but it never drops below the 80/20 mark as such would risk suspicion and possible detection. The regime in Teheran has gone to great lengths to place its agents in locations around the world. Many of these operatives have been educated in the West, including the U.K. and the United States. Iranian government agencies such as embassies, consulates, Islamic cultural centers, and airline offices regularly provide cover for the work of VEVAK agents who dress well and are clean shaven, and move comfortably within our society. In this country, because of the severance of diplomatic relations, the principal site of VEVAK activities begins at the offices of Iran's Permanent Mission to the UN in New York.
Teheran has worked diligently to place its operatives in important think tanks and government agencies in the West. Some of its personnel have been recruited while in prison through torture or more often through bribery, or a combination of both. Others are Islamist revolutionaries that have been set up to look like dissidents - often having been arrested and imprisoned, but released for “medical reasons”. The clue to detecting the fake “dissident” is to read carefully what he/she writes, and to ask why this vocal “dissident” was released from prison when other real dissidents have not been released, indeed have been grievously tortured and executed. Other agents have been placed in this country for over twenty-five years to slowly go through the system and rise to positions of academic prominence due to their knowledge of Farsi and Shia Islam or Islamist fundamentalism.
One of the usual tactics of VEVAK is to co-opt academia to its purposes. Using various forms of bribery, academics are bought to defend the Islamic Republic or slander its enemies. Another method is to assign bright students to train for academic posts as specialists in Iranian or Middle East affairs. Once established, such individuals are often consulted by our government as it tries to get a better idea of how it should deal with Iran. These academics then are in a position to skew the information, suggesting the utility of extended dialogue and negotiation, or the danger and futility of confronting a strong Iran or its proxies such as Hizballah (Hezbollah). These academics serve to shield the regime from an aggressive American or Western policy, and thereby buy more time for the regime to attain its goals, especially in regards to its nuclear weaponry and missile programs.
MOIS likes to use the media, especially electronic media, to its advantage. One of VEVAK's favorite tricks is setting up web sites that look like they are opposition sites but which are actually controlled by the regime. These sites often will be multilingual, including Farsi, German, Arabic French, and English. Some are crafted carefully and are very subtle in how they skew their information (e.g., Iran-Interlink, set up and run by Massoud Khodabandeh and his wife Ann Singleton from Leeds, England); others are less subtle, simply providing the regime's point of view on facts and events in the news (e.g., www.mujahedeen.com or www.mojahedin.ws). This latter group is aimed at the more gullible in our open society and unfortunately such a market exists. However, if one begins to do one's homework, asking careful questions, the material on these fake sites generally does not add up.
Let's examine a few examples of VEVAK's work in the United States. In late October, 2005, VEVAK sent three of its agents to Washington to stage a press event in which the principal Iranian resistance movement, the Mojahedin-e Khalq (MeK), was to be slandered. Veteran VEVAK agent Karim Haqi flew from Amsterdam to Canada where he was joined by VEVAK's Ottawa agents Amir-Hossein Kord Rostami and Mahin (Parvin-Mahrokh) Haji, and the three flew from Toronto to Washington. Fortunately the resistance had been tracking these three, informed the FBI of their presence in Washington, and when the three tried to hold a press conference, the resistance had people assigned to ask pointed questions of them so that they ended the interview prematurely and fled back to Canada.
Abolghasem Bayyenet is a member of the Iranian government. He serves as a trade expert for the Ministry of Commerce. But his background of study and service in the Foreign Ministry indicates that Bayyenet is more than just an economist or a suave and savvy businessman. In an article published in Global Politician on April 23, 2006, entitled “Is Regime Change Possible in Iran?”, Bayyenet leads his audience to think that he is a neutral observer, concerned lest the United States make an error in its assessment of Iran similar to the errors of intelligence and judgment that led to our 2003 invasion of Iraq, with its less than successful outcome. However, his carefully crafted bottom line is that the people of Iran are not going to support regime change and that hardliner President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad actually has achieved greater popularity than his predecessors because of his concern for the problems of the poor and his fight for economic and social justice. To the naive, Bayyenet makes Ahmadinejad sound positively saintly. Conveniently overlooked is the occurrence of over four thousand acts of protest, strikes, anti-regime rallies, riots, and even political assassinations by the people of Iran against the government in the year since Ahmadinejad assumed office. So too, the following facts are ignored: the sizeable flight of capital, the increase in unemployment, and the rising two-figure rate of inflation, all within this last year. Bayyenet is a regime apologist, and when one is familiar with the facts, his arguments ring very hollow. However, his English skills are excellent, and so the naОve might be beguiled by his commentary.
Mohsen Sazegara is VEVAK's “reformed revolutionary”. A student supporter of Khomeini before the 1979 revolution, Sazegara joined the “imam” on his return from exile and served in the government for a decade before supposedly growing disillusioned.
He formed several reformist newspapers but ran afoul of the hardliners in 2003 and was arrested and imprisoned by VEVAK. Following “hunger strikes”, Sazegara was released for health reasons and permitted to seek treatment abroad. Although critical of the government and particularly of Ahmadinejad and KhameneМ, Sazegara is yet more critical of opposition groups, leaving the impression that he favors internal regime change but sees no one to lead such a movement for the foreseeable future. His bottom line: no one is capable of doing what needs to be done, so we must bide our time. Very slick, but his shadow shows his likely remaining ties to the MOIS.
http://www.ocnus.net/artman/publish/article_27144.shtml
European nations fear terrorist strike as holidays near
By Paul Haven
Associated Press
Published December 17, 2006
MADRID -- Western intelligence and security officials say the threat of a terrorist attack by Islamic militants over the Christmas and New Year's holiday travel season is extremely high, with the greatest concern focusing on a possible plot targeting Europe.
While the year-end period is always a time of concern because of the vast number of travelers, authorities' anxiety is palpable this year. European fears that terrorists might be planning something come in the waning days of a convulsive year of foiled plots and high tension.
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A senior French counterterrorism official said "all of the warning lights are red," though intelligence agencies have yet to uncover any specific plan for attack.
"The threat is at its highest level," said the French official, who spoke on condition of anonymity because of the secretive nature of his job. "All [security] services are on tenterhooks. And it's not just us [in France]. Work is under way everywhere but nothing concrete is emerging."
Those fears were echoed in Britain, already on edge after the failed alleged plot in August to bring down commercial jetliners over the Atlantic Ocean.
John Reid, Britain's top law-enforcement official, said last week that it was "highly likely" that terrorists would attempt to mount an attack over the holiday period, when the number of travelers swells. He gave no other details.
The head of Britain's domestic spy agency, MI5, has said that her agents are tracking almost 30 terrorist plots involving 1,600 suspects and that at least five major plots have been thwarted since the July 2005 transit bomb attacks in London.
In Washington, U.S. intelligence and law-enforcement officials, who spoke on condition of anonymity because of the information's sensitivity, said there is no specific, credible information pointing to a holiday threat.
The FBI recently sent a bulletin to state and local law-enforcement officials, urging them to be on the lookout for any suspicious activity around the holiday season, a law-enforcement official said.
According to the intelligence officials, authorities are more concerned about an attack in Europe than the United States right now. But one of the officials noted that worries at the holidays are common since Sept. 11, 2001.
This year, concerns have been heightened because of the deteriorating health of terrorist cleric Omar Abdel-Rahman, who is serving a life sentence for his advisory role in a plot to blow up New York City landmarks, including the United Nations.
Abdel-Rahman has called for retaliation by terrorist sympathizers if he dies in prison.
French Prime Minister Dominique de Villepin announced this month that he has called in reinforcements for beefed-up military patrols of public transportation, train stations and airports. About 250 troops are reinforcing the 780 that usually operate in these areas.
De Villepin promised that a 1,000-person reserve force would also be available in case of emergency. France's alert level remains at red, the second-highest rank out of four.
It was not immediately clear what measures, if any, other European nations were planning. In Spain, police said they would beef up security at airports only if they get word of a specific threat. In Italy, officials said security is always put on high alert during the holiday season, especially around the Vatican and other sites that attract pilgrims and tourists. But they said no extra precautions were being taken this year and there was no word of any specific threat.
http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/nationworld/chi-0612170406dec17,1,544913.story?coll=chi-newsnationworld-hed&ctrack=1&cset=true
Philippine Politician Gunned Down
A Philippine congressman has been shot and killed outside the church where he had been attending his niece's wedding.
Luis Bersamin was shot twice in the head Saturday afternoon, the Manila Times reported. One of his bodyguards was also killed and another was wounded.
Bersamin was about to get into his van outside the Mount Carmel Church in New Manila, Quezon City, when the gunman approached him and fired. After the shooting, the killer escaped on a motorcycle with an accomplice.
The motorcycle was later found abandoned.
Bersamin was vice chairman of the House Committees on Dangerous Drugs and Trade and Industry and had headed an investigation into private armies in Abra Province, which he represented. He was believed to be planning to run for provincial governor instead of seeking a third term in Congress.
http://www.playfuls.com:80/news_10_5504-Philippine-Politician-Gunned-Down.html
"This should be spread to other threads."
Uh, like this one?
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-bloggers/1755486/posts
plane crashes
Small Plane Crashes In North Georgia Cow Pasture
WSBtv.com - Atlanta,GA,USA
But the pilot and his 12-year-old son were able to walk away from yesterday's crash. The plane had taken off from the Winder-Barrow Airport. ...
See all stories on this topic
Plane crashes into Jo'burg flats
News24 - South Africa
Divisional commander Malcolm Midgley said from the scene that the plane - believed to be a Piper Cherokee 140 - crashed into the basement of the four-storey ...
See all stories on this topic
Four from Texas family killed when small plane crashes in Ohio ...
Fort Wayne Journal Gazette - Fort Wayne,IN,USA
AP. A plane crashed in a field, killing four members of a Texas family and raining debris on a nearby apartment complex, authorities said. ...
See all stories on this topic
Two Mexicans among three dead after plane crashes into lake
Hindu - Chennai,India
... another, authorities said. The plane went down into Grand Lake, Federal Aviation Administration spokesman Roland Herwig said. The pilot ...
See all stories on this topic
train derails
Philadelphia Bound Train Derails
CBS 3 - Philadelphia,PA,USA
A spokesman with CSX says no one was hurt and no hazardous material spilled when a freight train derailed early Friday near Marriottsville, Maryland. ...
Train derails in central Iran, 4 injured
Islamic Republic News Agency - Tehran,Iran
A passenger train derailed Sunday morning near the city of Kashan, central Iran, leaving four passengers with slight injuries. The ...
See all stories on this topic
Freight Train Derails Along the Patapsco River
WTOP - Washington,DC,USA
SYKESVILLE, Md. - Firefighters and hazardous materials crews are on the scene of a freight train derailment on the CSX tracks along the Patapsco River near the ...
Train derails north of city
Bucyrus Telegraph Forum - OH, United States
BUCYRUS -- Ten cars from a freight train carrying hazardous materials derailed Saturday morning north of the city, causing a minor leak, the Norfolk Southern ...
Freight train derails near Marriottsville; no leak or injuries—
WMDT - Salisbury,MD,USA
A spokesman with freight carrier CSX says no one was hurt and there was no hazardous material spill when a train derailed early today near Marriottsville. ...
Burlington Northern train derails in Coon Rapids
Minneapolis Star Tribune (subscription) - Minneapolis,MN,USA
About 20 cars of a Burlington Northern train derailed this morning in Coon Rapids, snarling vehicle traffic throughout the area. ...
Retired from chess, Kasparov now aims to CHECKMATE PUTIN
December 18, 2006
ONCE the world's greatest chess player, Mr Garry Kasparov is now employing his formidable skills against his toughest opponent of all - Russian President Vladimir Putin.
At stake, he argues, is the fate of Russian democracy.
Mr Kasparov has devoted himself to politics since retiring from professional chess last year. He regards Mr Putin as a dictator whose authoritarian rule threatens to return Russia to a dark past, reported London's The Times.
Mr Kasparov, 43, is the most prominent name in The Other Russia, a coalition of opposition groups formed in an attempt to break Mr Putin's grip on the Kremlin at the March 2008 presidential elections.
Mr Kasparov compared Mr Putin's Russia to former dictator Augusto Pinochet's Chile and the Communist regimes in Eastern Europe.
He said: 'We are not fighting to win elections in Russia, we are fighting to have elections.'
Though he will not be a contender for the presidency, The Other Russia aims to create the conditions under which an anti-Putin candidate can win. But the fight will be tough.
President Putin enjoys 80 per cent approval ratings and most Russians want him to overturn a constitutional bar on a third term in office.
Many will back whomever Mr Putin endorses to succeed him and the President appears very confident, surrounded in the Kremlin by the siloviki - a hand-picked group of former KGB comrades who dominate Russia's political elite.
The chess grandmaster, however, sees cracks in the Kremlin wall and believes that Mr Putin will give him an opening for a counter-attack. Mr Kasparov argues that, despite the oil riches, the vast majority of Russians are increasingly facing economic hardship.
He said: 'I don't think we are seeing a super-confident Kremlin. It is not one Kremlin any more, the ruling elite is split into many different voices.'
Claiming the poisoning of the former spy, Mr Alexander Litvinenko, in London to be evidence of this power struggle, Mr Kasparov said: 'All the theories about what happened to him have in common that it was initiated by some Kremlin forces.
'The danger is there and that is what Western leaders fail to recognise, that Mr Putin is not in control even in the Kremlin itself.'
But Mr Kasparov is not bothered by the dangers of this game even though critics of the Kremlin have fallen victim to a series of unexplained attacks recently.
He brushed aside concerns for his safety in pursuit of his dream of a more pluralist and democratic Russia even as he moves around with two bodyguards.
'I can calculate the possibilities as a chess player and I have to be honest and say that our chances are not high. But I take this as a moral duty, and when you do something out of moral duty, then who cares?... So I am here, I am fighting and I try to defend our rights. I don't feel that I have the right to be scared.'
http://newpaper.asia1.com.sg:80/news/story/0,4136,119684,00.html
Moscow Researchers Shut Down Six of Twelve Nuclear Reactors
http://www.mosnews.com/news/2006/12/18/moscowreactors.shtml
****** hahahah what are they going to do when we take oil from our own Gulf of Mexico?
Venezuela, Oil Producers Buy Euro as Dollar, Oil Fall
Posted: Monday, December 18, 2006
Venezuelan leader Hugo Chavez is directing a growing share of the country's oil profits into euros as the dollar and crude prices fall.
http://trinicenter.com:80/cgi-bin/selfnews/viewnews.cgi?newsid1166468865,80983,.shtml
December 18, 2006 PM Anti-Terrorism News
New Al Qaeda Message Expected As Terror Anxieties Already High in
Europe
http://blogs.abcnews.com/theblotter/2006/12/new_al_qaeda_me.html
Attacks in Iraq at all-time high, Pentagon says
http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20061218/ts_nm/usa_iraq_report_dc_1
Hamas threatens to resume suicide bombings - Terror group warns if
government toppled, 'all options open'
http://www.worldnetdaily.com/news/article.asp?ARTICLE_ID=53412
Scientists create terror attack sensor net
http://science.monstersandcritics.com/news/article_1234304.php/Scientists_create_terror_attack_sensor_net
Spain jails 7 Islamic radicals arrested in Africa
http://www.jpost.com/servlet/Satellite?cid=1164881919874&pagename=JPost%2FJPArticle%2FShowFull
Syria and Iraq sign security agreement
http://news.yahoo.com/s/afp/20061218/wl_mideast_afp/syriairaqsecurity_061218203517
(Iran) Ahmadinejad Opponents Leading Elections
http://ap.washingtontimes.com/dynamic/stories/I/IRAN_ELECTIONS?SITE=DCTMS&SECTION=HOME
Somali govt lines up peacekeepers, Islamist deadline looms
http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20061218/wl_nm/somalia_conflict_dc_1
Blind Spots on Somalia
http://www.douglasfarah.com/article/138/somalia-and-long-range-threat-assessments
London Times Article Reflects European Appeasement View Towards Somalia
Islamism (my title)
http://www.timesonline.co.uk/article/0,,3-2509558,00.html
TSA Rolls Out Holiday 311 Campaign
http://www.tsa.gov/311/index.shtm
DHS Targets High Risk Hazardous Materials in Transit - New Freight Rail
Security Regulations Will Protect High Threat Urban Areas
http://www.tsa.gov/press/releases/2006/press_release_12152006.shtm
MEMRI: Two Versions on One Meeting: Lebanese Government and
Pro-Hizbullah/Syrian Papers Reflect on Lebanese Prime Minister Al-Siniora's
Meeting With Russian President Putin
http://memri.org/bin/latestnews.cgi?ID=SD140006
Commentary: Naked To Our Enemies - reform of domestic
counter-intelligence resources
http://www.americanthinker.com/2006/12/naked_to_our_enemies.html
Saddam admits Iran gas attacks
http://www.news.com.au/story/0,23599,20950607-1702,00.html
Not having a tv, I haven't seen the Hal Turner show, but have turned him off, on the radio a couple of times.
But, that said, there is often a grain of truth, in the wildest statements.
Keep in mind, if China manages to crash our money, then they will also harm theirs and loose the U.S. as a market.
I would suspect that the President is looking tired/almost sick, due to the fact that China made the threat and wants something from us, such as all the secrets they got from Clinton.
I agree with you, we need all the pieces and I have more than once found something worth posting on a site, that is not on my 'ideal' reading list.
Thanks for letting us know that the rumor was in the works.
Dmitry Kovtun HAD to be walking around with this stuff, I just don't understand why he didn't die first.<<<
You of all people should understand, we do not die, until God is ready for us and says 'come on'.
Glad you are here.
Did you read your freeper mail?
Davey, I would think it is the same Dmitry.
I understand what they are doing, as I worked with the same type clients here, but of course not on their level of money.
From the looks of it, one of them has a good eye/feel for real estate, they choose the land and put a plan on it, then go out and sell the "plan" and call it a project.
25 years ago, a man was fishing and staying at the casinos, he went for a drive and decided that this valley would serve as a nice bedroom town for workers in the casinos, and as there were new casinos planned and each would hire 1500 to 3000 workers, the time was here.
We were already subdivisions, mostly 2 1/2 acre lots and a few parcels in 40 acre parcels, as Crystall Collins had the idea to subdivide it in the late 1950's.
She once told me, she had the idea that poor people would buy it and the very old ranches were being sold, so she got her brothers to go in with her and they bought thousands of acres of land.
She had maps drawn and put in the corner stakes, pieces of wood at first, later units got rebar driven in the ground.
During the 1960's she sold the lots for $300 to $600. each and the ads were every place, she said one of the best, was in the military magazines.
The wives would buy them, as a surprise for the overseas husband and would manage the $10.oo amonth payment.
One wife told me she took it out of the food money.
So the fisherman, bought a couple lots, and split them in half, then resold them for 2 or 3 times what he paid, he followed Crystal's plan, low down and low monthly payments.
I would often list back a parcel in 2 or 3 pieces, the day escrow closed.
But they knew how to raise money, and would find the best lots, for their "Investors" and charge them half, for the leg work, and all was happy, the first seller got the cash they asked for and the secon set of buyers, got the payments and terms, that made the lot affordable.
The guys even extended the water lines, as the lot was worth triple and more, with water.
The first Iraq war, killed us over night, there were several large projects planned and months had been put into getting the plans drawn, the needed approval, for all the utilities, not an easy thing in an area on well water.
When they went to their investors for money, they found many were in Iraq fighting.
Most folks do not really understand what these wars do to the retired man, when they call him up and the family looses the money from his regular job, there were some real hardship cases in southern California.
I had a man cancel 7 escrows, the day his orders came to him. He was on his way and investment property was not important.
I was thinking of the corner 40 acres that I sold a client, he caught me on a cold rainy day, when I went to the office to check for messages on the ans. machine, and was wanting in on the fishermans action, he knew him in Calif........I was the only real estate person he could find.
He paid about $20,000. for 40 acres, with 660' of frontage on Hwy 68, in the middle of the valley.
No one would buy it, as the wash crossed the road onto the west side of the lot and ran down the side, the rest was a very nice parcel and even then it was about $10,000 underpriced.
In the next 5 years, he put a fancy plan on it for a trailer park, senior citizen type, a shopping mall and business offices.
And put a price tag on it of 5.4 million dollars.
Not bad wages for a blue print and 5 years of his life, lots of leg work, but he was good at talking to the planning and zoning, LOL, he could out talk them and they said yes to get rid of him.
I am of the impression that Linvinenko and his gang were up the above type of operation.
Find a good deal, find the investors and take a cut, or a commission and then go on to the next deal.
You do not need a lot of money to be the front man.
In the mid 1960's, I worked in real estate in Ramona california.
There was a man, from the Beverly Hills area, he had found a group of doctors to put up the money for raw land.
The man's wife had a good job, so this guy, would find an extra special parcel of land, the doctors bought it and the guy was taking a 20 % interest in the property as his commission.
They never put a plan on the land, but had it to sell to the subdividers.
10 years later, Ramona exploded and they had the choice parcels already bought.
OK< LOL, there is your info needed to be an investment counselor.
Crocker should serve forever in a locked cell.
For some reason, my google alerts were pulling many links to sites such as Crocker would have had.
Got tired of all the hate.
Did we ever hear what happened with the guy in the midwest, that was stopped in a SUV full of weapons, about 2 years ago, he also had jihad manuals, or that is what I recall.
I think I saw that the man who had the storage sheds of weapons, and bomb making supplies, had been convicted.
LOL, I can remember his case, but not if the storage unit was in Phoenix, or Texas, or was it both.
Bump
But Mr Kasparov is not bothered by the dangers of this game even though critics of the Kremlin have fallen victim to a series of unexplained attacks recently<<<
He sounds brave in print.
and like a fool.
There was something, not that long ago, think it was that Putin denied him a visa to leave the country, said he was a trouble maker.
She also said that Garry Kasparov has also had some incidents as well, against him and his family.<<<
I remember Marina's beating and thought that i had heard more on Kasparov's danger.
What a way to live, with 2 bodyguards, that may run when the attack comes.
What is the difference between the 'old' Russia and that of today?
Seems about the same to me.
TerroristWarning.com Terrorism Headlines 12/18/2006 # 1
Most incident appearing in TerroristWarning.com and TransitSecurityReport.com appear much more quickly at www.GlobalIncidentMap.com
Take Note:[MakFax] RADIOACTIVE - ALBANIA - FBI searches in Albania for radioactive material intended for terrorism attacks
"FBI agents in cooperation with Albanian authorities are investigating eventual smuggling of radioactive material deemed to have been planned for using in terrorist attacks across Europe"
http://www.makfax.com.mk/look/agencija/article.tpl?IdLanguage=1&IdPublication=2&NrArticle=48014&NrIssue=222&NrSection=20
National:
[AP] NEW YORK - Experts analyze suspicious package left in CNN mailbox at UN [White Powder, false alarm]
"Hazardous material officials in yellow suits could be seen along the corridor with large orange plastic bags"
http://www.canada.com/topics/news/world/story.html?id=9e2e9804-6089-4e8b-9ff7-8116346fef92&k=28048
[FOX] USA - FBI Issues Warning to Police After Terrorist Health Scare
"The FBI has sent a bulletin to state and local law enforcement warning of possible terrorist reprisals as the health of an incarcerated terror mastermind fails, FOX News has learned"
"Although the FBI said there is no credible indication that a plan for retribution is in place, the agency sent the warning as Sheik Omar Abdel-Rahman was treated in Missouri for bleeding"
http://www.myfoxwghp.com/myfox/pages/News/Detail?contentId=1775496&version=1&locale=EN-US&layoutCode=TSTY&pageId=3.3.1
[Asbury Park Press ] NEW JERSEY - Threatening letter containing powder sent to Vonage in Holmdel
"Police are investigating the source of a threatening letter containing a suspicious powder — later determined to be nontoxic — discovered Wednesday afternoon in the mail room of Vonage Holdings Corp"
http://www.app.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20061214/NEWS01/612140435/1004/NEWS01
[CBS3] NEW JERSEY - Explosive Device Found Outside Cinnaminson H.S
"fuse on the tube had been lit but it burned out before it ignited the device"
http://cbs3.com/topstories/local_story_348185154.html
[NBC10.com] NEW JERSEY - NJ School, Hospital In Lockdown After Incident
"A Willingboro, N.J., elementary school was quarantined after a teacher received a letter with a substance"
"teacher reportedly had a reaction to a substance found in a letter she opened"
"emergency room at that hospital has not be quarantined as originally reported by the fire company"
http://www.nbc10.com/news/10533882/detail.html
[Worcester Telegram & Gazette] MASS - Powder triggers Hazmat response at AUC
"A state hazardous materials team, firefighters and rescue crews converged on Atlantic Union College late yesterday morning after suspicious-looking white powder was found in a book delivered to the G. Eric Jones Library on the Seventh-day Adventist college campus off Route 70"
http://www.telegram.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20061214/NEWS/612140714/1008/NEWS02
[WKYC] OHIO - Suspicious briefcase causes evacauations
http://www.wkyc.com/news/news_article.aspx?storyid=60626
[El Paso Times] TEXAS - El Paso post office evacuated
"El Paso Fire Department HazMat units were dispatched to the U.S. Postal Service facility near the airport this morning after several viles of a suspicious liquid were found inside a ten-gallon trash can"
http://www.elpasotimes.com/breakingnews/ci_4838718
[Aberdeen American News] SOUTH DAKOTA - Aberdeen: Building evacuated at Northern
"employee walking through the parking lot noticed a box that said "explosives" on it in a car"
http://www.aberdeennews.com/mld/aberdeennews/news/local/16227973.htm
[The Arizona Republic] ARIZONA - Explosive items found in storage unit [12 pipe bombs]
http://www.azcentral.com/community/glendale/articles/1213brk-explosives1213-ON.html
[Land Line] RHODE ISLAND - Trucking student faces deportation [Gee that sounds familiar]
"Instructors at a truck driving school in Rhode Island thought it was suspicious that one of their students – who was going for a CDL with hazmat endorsement – wasn’t interested in learning how to back up"
http://www.landlinemag.com/todays_news/Daily/2006/Dec06/121106/121106-03.htm
See also http://www.corruptionchronicles.com/2006/12/illegal_immigrant_a_terrorist.html
[WND] USA - Beware of illegals seeking hazmat licenses
http://worldnetdaily.com/news/article.asp?ARTICLE_ID=53349
[Minnesota Daily] MINNESOTA - Suspicious package prompts bomb squad [False Alarm]
http://www.mndaily.com/articles/2006/12/13/70277
[Sheboygan Press] WISCONSIN - Police chief: Falls bomb comparable to dynamite
http://www.sheboygan-press.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20061213/SHE0101/612130535/1062/SHEnews
[AP] OKLAHOMA - Building at Tinker AFB evacuated by bomb threat
http://www.kten.com/Global/story.asp?S=5820155&nav=menu410_3
[Star-Telegram] VIRGINIA - Bomb squad destroys possible pipe bomb
http://www.dfw.com/mld/dfw/news/local/16251057.htm
[Rocky Mountain News ] COLORADO - Building evacuated after workers fall ill
"Three people were hospitalized today with allergic-type symptoms possibly linked to a suspicious package received by employees of the federal Department of Housing and Urban Development"
http://www.rockymountainnews.com/drmn/local/article/0,1299,DRMN_15_5216255,00.html
[AHN] USA - Terrorist Use Internet Better Than US Federal Agencies!
http://www.allheadlinenews.com/articles/7005877028
[Ottawa Citizen] CANADA - Pipe bomb closes Walkley Road [Near mall]
http://www.canada.com/ottawacitizen/news/city/story.html?id=90e1d0ad-199a-4c32-9df5-715095bfd1e8&k=68376
[Fresno Bee] CALIFORNIA - Valley terror plot alleged
"Feds say Porterville merchant wanted to buy military arms to send to the Middle East"
http://www.fresnobee.com/263/story/19138.html
International:
[Reuters] IRAQ - Security developments in Iraq, Dec 18
http://www.alertnet.org/thenews/newsdesk/L181995.htm
[Reuters] INDONESIA - US warns of attacks in Indonesia during holidays
"Americans and other Westerners in Indonesia should remain alert to the possibility of militant attacks over the Christmas and New Year period, the US embassy in Jakarta said today"
http://www.businessday.co.za/articles/world.aspx?ID=BD4A344842
[Iran Daily] IRAN - Two Bomb Blasts in Zahedan
"One bomb exploded at 21:30 (1800 GMT) on Thursday night across from the Governor’s Office in a Paykan car, which belonged to a young driver and had been stolen two days earlier.
The bomb exploded while the young driver was in the car, damaging four other cars nearby. Simultaneously, another bomb exploded near Zahedan University, injuring a student from Nahbandan and breaking windowpanes nearby."
http://www.iran-daily.com/1385/2734/html/national.htm#s196053
[AFP] IVORY COAST - COUP - Ivory Coast security forces foil coup plot: army
"Ivory Coast's government army and police on Tuesday announced they had unearthed a plot to topple the west African country's President Laurent Gbagbo in a coup this week"
"course of action included political assassinations of authorities and military chiefs, in particular the president of the republic (and) the armed forces chief of staff"
http://www.reliefweb.int/rw/RWB.NSF/db900SID/STED-6WERNA?OpenDocument
[Kashmir Observer] INDIA - Two Kashmiri Youth Arrested in Delhi [With explosives]
"Delhi police today claimed to have thwarted an attempt to carry out strikes in the capital by arresting two operatives of Pakistan-based Laskhar-e-Taiba with 1.5 kg of RDX"
http://www.kashmirobserver.com/index.php?id=1322
[AFP] AFGHANISTAN - Suicide bomb, US forces kill 13 in Afghanistan
http://www.thedailystar.net/2006/12/13/d61213130595.htm
[The Nation] THAILAND - Insurgents launch three coordinated bomb attacks at Narathiwat market
"insurgents hidden three homemade time bombs in a clothes shop, stationary shop and motorcycle repair shop and detonated the bombs were set to explode nearly at the same time "
http://nationmultimedia.com/breakingnews/read.php?newsid=30021443
See also http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/2006-12/13/content_5479872.htm
[IsraelNN.com] ALGERIA - U.S. Worried over Al Qaeda Attack in Algeria
"The United States has warned Americans in Algiers to "review their security situation" following an Al Qaeda attack on a bus Sunday, which killed two Western executives and wounded nine others, one of them an American citizen"
http://www.israelnationalnews.com/news.php3?id=117324
[Reuters] PHILIPPINES - Philippines says foils bomb plot in the south
http://today.reuters.co.uk/news/CrisesArticle.aspx?storyId=MAN50013&WTmodLoc=World-R5-Alertnet-4
[Reuters] ISRAEL - Pipe-bomb explodes at Hamas rally in Gaza-witnesses
http://www.alertnet.org/thenews/newsdesk/L13294263.htm
[IOL] SOUTH AFRICA - Tip-off leads to pipe bomb arrest
http://www.iol.co.za/index.php?set_id=1&click_id=15&art_id=qw1166015160194B265
[Ynet] INDIA - Warning to Israelis: Al-Qaeda plotting attack in Goa
"Foreign Ministry, Counter-Terrorism Division issue travel warning to Indian region popular among Israeli and Western tourists; Goa’s sites at peak occupancy during December, New Years season "
http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-3339674,00.html
[The Nation] THAILAND - Two shot dead, bomb set off
"Police believed Muslim radicals were behind both attacks"
http://www.nationmultimedia.com/2006/12/14/national/national_30021519.php
[Belfast Telegraph] IRELAND - Vehicle sparks security alert
"Scares like this are designed to cause disruption and mayhem for the people living in Belfast"
http://www.belfasttelegraph.co.uk/news/local-national/article2070892.ece
[AP] SOMALIA - Somalia Islamic Militia Threatens Attack
"A top official of Somalia's Islamic militia vowed Tuesday to launch a "major attack" within a week "
http://www.wral.com/apworldnews/10515132/detail.html
[IsraelNN.com] ISRAEL - 2 Senior Islamic Jihad Terrorists Nabbed
"working toward establishing an explosives factory in Dura. They were also drafting plans to infiltrate Jewish communities, execute suicide bombings and carry out kidnappings"
http://www.israelnationalnews.com/news.php3?id=117304
[Ynet] ISRAEL - IDF stops vehicle on way to carrying out terror attack in Israel
"vehicle loaded with an 8 kilogram (17 pound) bomb at a checkpoint east of Nablus"
http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-3339892,00.html
[AP] AFGHANISTAN - Car bomb kills 1, injures 5 in Afghanistan; 2nd attack by bomber in burka
http://www.cp.org/english/online/OnlineFullStory.aspx?filename=w121511a&newsitemid=25319019&languageid=1
[Xinhua] CHINA - Bomb explodes in hospital in Xinjiang
" A bomb exploded on Friday in a children's hospital in Urumqi, capital of northwest China's Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region, but no fatalities have been reported"
http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/2006-12/15/content_5493638.htm
[AP] ITALY - Italian police arrest 147 in latest security crackdown of Islamic gathering points
"Police have arrested 147 people in raids on Muslim gathering places, including money transfer centers and call centers as part of anti-terrorism measures, but none of those arrested were suspected of terrorism"
http://www.iht.com/articles/ap/2006/12/15/europe/EU_GEN_Italy_Security_Operation.php
[AP] SRI LANKA - Military discovers powerful roadside bomb ahead of convoy in northern Sri Lanka
http://www.iht.com/articles/ap/2006/12/16/asia/AS_GEN_Sri_Lanka_Violence.php
[AP] EUROPE - Europe on terror alert
http://www.torontosun.com/News/World/2006/12/16/2823931-sun.html
See also http://www.eecho.ie/news/bstory.asp?j=236049265&p=z36x5xx8x&n=236050151
[Reuters] PERU - Peru toasts al Qaeda with poisonous bubbly
"Anyone who drunk the stuff would probably be seriously ill"
http://in.today.reuters.com/news/newsArticle.aspx?type=entertainmentNews&storyID=2006-12-16T035244Z_01_NOOTR_RTRJONC_0_India-280469-1.xml&archived=False
[AP] IRAQ - Gunmen Kidnap Aid Workers in Baghdad
http://www.maysville-online.com/articles/2006/12/17/ap/headlines/d8m2smpg0.txt
[Kathi Merini] GREECE - Suspicious parcel sets off alarm at cathedral
http://www.ekathimerini.com/4dcgi/_w_articles_politics_100016_18/12/2006_77899
[ABS-CBN] PHILIPPINES - Four hurt in pillbox blast in Pasig market
http://www.abs-cbnnews.com/storypage.aspx?StoryId=59781
[AP] AFGHANISTAN - 4 suspected insurgents killed, 3 U.S.-led coalition troops wounded in Afghanistan
http://mdn.mainichi-msn.co.jp/international/news/20061218p2g00m0in019000c.html
[KUNA] PAKISTAN - Militants preparing to avenge airstrike on religious seminary in Pakistan
"Security around US and British diplomats and nationals have been beefed up following intelligence reports that militants of an outlawed religious extremist group are planning to avenge the airstrike on its religious seminary last month that killed over 80 alleged militants"
http://www.kuna.net.kw/Home/Story.aspx?Language=en&DSNO=935295
[Xinhua] AFGHANISTAN - 10 suspected militants captured in E. Afghanistan
http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/2006-12/18/content_5502244.htm
[PTI] INDIA - Three militants killed
http://www.newkerala.com/news4.php?action=fullnews&id=67976
[Reuters] NIGERIA - Nigerian militants threaten car bombs in oil delta
"A Nigerian militant group said in an email to media on Monday it would detonate three car bombs in strategic locations in the Niger Delta "any minute from now"
http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20061218/wl_nm/nigeria_militants_dc
[Reuters] IRAQ - Bomb Explodes at Baghdad Market
http://www.fox6.com/news/national/story.aspx?content_id=A2EACBB8-108F-490C-A73D-8486A3015ED9&rss=tick
[Interfax] RUSSIA - Militant arrested in Chechnya
http://www.interfax.ru/e/B/politics/28.html?id_issue=11648444
[AP] SRI LANKA - Mainstream Tamil Tiger rebels kill 3 breakaway members, military says
http://www.iht.com/articles/ap/2006/12/18/asia/AS_GEN_Sri_Lanka.php
[AP] FRANCE - Frenchman expelled from Egypt detained
"A French man arrested by Egyptian officials as a terror suspect — one of a dozen Westerners accused of plotting attacks — was detained Sunday after being expelled from Egypt"
http://www.iht.com/articles/ap/2006/12/17/europe/EU_GEN_France_Egypt_Terror_Suspect.php
[ABC News] MIDDLE EAST - New Al Qaeda Message Expected As Terror Anxieties Already High in Europe
"With European law enforcement officials warning of an imminent holiday terror attack, Web sites associated with al Qaeda announced today that the group's second-in-command, Ayman al-Zawahiri, is about to issue a new statement entitled "the truths about the clash between Islam and atheism."
http://blogs.abcnews.com/theblotter/2006/12/new_al_qaeda_me.html
Feedback on our alerts is always welcome: News@TerroristWarning.com
For more transportation related terrorism and security items please sign up at www.TransitSecurityReport.com
http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/nation/la-na-intel18dec18,1,7973810.story?ctrack=1&cset=true
U.S. seeks to rein in its military spy teams
Special Forces units work in allied countries and clash with the CIA.
By Greg Miller, Times Staff Writer
December 18, 2006
WASHINGTON — U.S. Special Forces teams sent overseas on secret spying
missions have clashed with the CIA and carried out operations in
countries that are staunch U.S. allies, prompting a new effort by the agency
and the Pentagon to tighten the rules for military units engaged in
espionage, according to senior U.S. intelligence and military officials.
The spy missions are part of a highly classified program that officials
say has better positioned the United States to track terrorist networks
and capture or kill enemy operatives in regions such as the Horn of
Africa, where weak governments are unable to respond to emerging threats.
But the initiative has also led to several embarrassing incidents for
the United States, including a shootout in Paraguay and the exposure of
a sensitive intelligence operation in East Africa, according to current
and former officials familiar with the matter. And to date, the effort
has not led to the capture of a significant terrorism suspect.
Some intelligence officials have complained that Special Forces teams
have sometimes launched missions without informing the CIA, duplicating
or even jeopardizing existing operations. And they questioned deploying
military teams in friendly nations — including in Europe — at a
time when combat units are in short supply in war zones.
continued.......
http://www.abs-cbnnews.com/storypage.aspx?StoryId=59782
Duterte: Hired killers paid P5M to kill Nograles
Davao City Mayor Rodrigo Duterte confirmed Monday that hired killers
received P5 million to assassinate House Majority Leader Prospero
Nograles.
Citing intelligence reports, Duterte said the amount was given to
guns-for-hire in Maguindanao and Lanao. He added that artist sketches of the
suspects have been furnished to the National Bureau of Investigation
(NBI), the Philippine National Police and the city government to identify
the killers.
Duterte earlier told the Philippine Star that he received confirmation
about the slay plot from various sources.
"The assassination plot is not a political gimmickry. It is true. And I
do not want Nograles to die. We will do our best to protect him," the
mayor said.
"When you get the same information from more than one or two sources,
there is already cause for alarm," he said, adding that he has asked
Nograles to beef up his security.
Duterte ruled out militant groups behind the slay plot against the
congressman.
Atty. Reynaldo Esmeralda, NBI Deputy Director for Regional Operations,
said the plot was supposed to have been carried out Wednesday night
during the Christmas party of the Association of Regional Executives of
National Agencies, which was held at the Grand Regal Hotel in Davao City.
Nograles was supposed to have attended the occasion but was discouraged
by the NBI.
Esmeralda said the names of four supposed hired guns from Lanao have
surfaced.
Nograles believes that the slay plot might be carried not in this city,
but in Metro Manila.
"I have a feeling sa Manila ako titirahin (I would be attacked in
Manila)," he told the Star a few hours after Abra Rep. Luis Bersamin was
gunned down in front of the Mt. Carmel Church in Quezon City Saturday.
More security for congressmen eyed
Palawan Rep. Abraham Kahlil Mitra on Monday urged Speaker Jose de
Venecia to work on getting more security personnel for congressmen following
Bersamin's murder.
Mitra said the slay attempts against Bersamin, Nograles and Pasig City
Rep. Robert Jaworski Jr. could be election-related, adding that the
upcoming 2007 elections could be bloody.
Last Tuesday, Jaworski survived an assassination attempt after jumping
out of his car several seconds before it exploded and caught fire.
Traces of nitrate, an ingredient in making explosives, were found in the
wreckage.
Jaworski earlier announced his intention to run for mayor of Pasig.
Nograles said he is eyeing reelection in Davao while Bersamin was
reportedly preparing to run for governor in his province.
Despite the slay plot, Nograles said he has not gotten additional
security personnel.
"I will just do my best not to go to places that would make me an easy
(target) for them," he said.
http://www.makingsenseofjihad.com/2006/12/al_qaedas_new_m.html
« "I must have hatred toward everything that is not Islam" | Main | Get Used to It »
Al Qaeda's New Media Brand
Over at the Clearinghouse, they've posted the over-excited message announcing the advent of a new Al Qaeda media project.
Cvc2 Global Islamic Media Front -- Al Qaeda 's media organ -- has just announced (in English and German) the creation of Caliphate Voice Channel, a joint effort between GIMF and members of the al-Firdaws internet forum.
Cvcannouncement
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