DUBAI, DECEMBER 26: A London-based Arab magazine said on Friday that Al Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden has vowed to launch a ‘‘back-breaking attack’’ on the US by February, confirming an earlier message by the militant network. The weekly al-Majalla said it received an e-mail from Abu Mohammed al-Ablaj, a little known Al Qaeda member, saying bin Laden would release a video tape in which he affirms his group’s determination to fight the US.
‘‘A messenger of bin Laden informed him (Ablaj) that the Al Qaeda leader will appear on a televised tape after the execution of an operation which bin Laden described as back-breaking and which would change the order of things,’’ al-Majalla said in a report in its latest edition.
‘‘They (Americans) should prepare...their coffins, hospitals and graves. The coming days will be full of surprises and great events which will make them a historic example,’’ the magazine quoted Ablaj as saying.
Could this be dismissed as rhetoric? "Sure, but look at the whole picture. Clearly, al Qaeda is intent on striking inside the US, and they are working on their own operational timetable. Just because a threat did not materialize at a specified time, that does not diminish the threat itself."
"The recent assassination attempts against [Pakistan President] Musharraf are clearly an attempt by al Qaeda to gain a base of strategic military operations." These attempts illustrate that al Qaeda has much larger objectives than simple hit and run strikes, and they are operational worldwide, including within the United States."
Meanwhile, network analysts continue to find elusive communications suggesting attacks on America and within America. The image above is being circulated on a number of terrorist forums .Network Analyst,Sean Osborne notes that there are obvious references within this image showing (from top to bottom) Saudi Arabia with the Black Flag of Jihad flying from its center, Iraq with a strange slash/marking in the western desert near the Syrian border, and most disturbing, what appears to be an image in the lower right corner perhaps depicting a stadium with fire or flames coming from its center.
Combined with all intelligence being gathered by network analysts as of this writing, it is evident that al Qaeda intends to execute terror operations within the United States, and also has operatives already in place to assist them (a Jihad "Fifth Column" as previously reported). Continued vigilance is required by everyone in the United States. (For a threat specific matrix, please consult the detailed Terror Alert Update located at www.stevequayle.com ).