Threat Matrix: Daily Terror Threat - Thread 5

CNN ^ | March 12, 2004

[thecabal]

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- This week's deadly train bombings in Spain will not lead to a rise in the U.S. color-coded terror threat alert system, a Department of Homeland Security spokesman said Friday.

"Based on the current intelligence, we have no specific indicators that terrorist groups are considering such an attack in the U.S. in the near term," said department spokesman Brian Roehrkasse.

[Donna Lee Nardo]

Michael Scott Speicher's Family and a fellow Freeper needs our help (excerpted from another FR thread):

Please Help Us Make Sure the $1 Million for POW Captain Scott Speicher Remains...
Operation Free Spike ^ | 03/16/04 | KristiFlorida

Posted on 03/16/2004 12:47:11 PM EST by KristiFlorida

Hi! My name is Kristina Lade and I am a member of Friends Working to Free Scott Speicher. We recently learned that Secretary Rumsfeld has stated the $1 Million dollars [reward money] that is currently in the Defense Spending Bill for Fiscal Year 2004 is in jeopardy of being discontinued...

We, Scott's friends, family, and supporters have started a petition to let the Government know that this action needs to be stopped...

We hope that you will sign it and pass on this information to anyone else that would be willing to help. We truly need every last signature we can get. Scott and his family need these signatures. All of America's Heroes Past, Present, and Future need them...

To sign the petition, please see MSS' web site at:
http://www.operationfreespike.com

[Letitring]

What bloody wimps. Makes me so angry I could spit!

[virtude]

FYI.

Source: drudgereport.com

Following are the foreign contingents occupying Iraq, with their current strengths:

1. United States: 130,000
2. Britain: 9,000
3. Italy: 3,000
4. Poland: 2,460
5. Ukraine: 1,600
6. Spain: 1,300
7. Netherlands: 1,100
8. Australia: 800
9. Romania: 700
10. Bulgaria: 480
11. Thailand: 440
12. Denmark: 420
13. Honduras: 368
14. El Salvador: 361
15. Dominican Republic: 302
16. Hungary: 300
17. Japan: 240 (rising to 550 by the end of March)
18. Norway: 179
19. Mongolia: 160
20. Azerbaijan: 150
21. Portugal: 128
22. Latvia: 120
23. Lithuania: 118
24. Nicaragua: 113
25. Slovakia: 102
26. Czech Republic: 80
27. Philippines: 80
28. Albania: 70
29. Georgia: 70
30. New Zealand: 61
31. Moldova: 50
32. Estonia: 31
33. Macedonia: 37
34. Kazakhstan: 25

END

[thecabal]

Good catch on that one. It doesn't surprise me that they have shortened their "development" cycle time.

[knak]

saw this on google, can't get to the article though

Taiwan Puts Troops on Alert, Watching Chinese Military
DefenseNews.com (subscription) - 1 hour ago
Taiwan’s defense ministry has put its troops on full alert ahead of the island’s presidential polls and is closely watching China’s submarine fleet and ...

[liberallyconservative]

Me too. I get the distinct feeling that every single nation with any "dog in the fight" is lining up on one side or the other. Yes, there will always be a fair share of countries who want to be political "Switzerlands", but in my book, you're either for us or against us.

My Mom, who often times thinks I take all this info too seriously, stays glued to FNC now. She asked me last night, "I wonder how much longer God is going to let this go on?" I wish I had an answer for her.

[virtude]

"He really needs to get out more amongst the public and listen to us rather than those advisors who represent Big Business (campaign donations). Last time I checked, companies don't vote, citizens do."

AMEN

Allow me to second that Amen...AMEN!! The same goes for his inane immigration policies.

[knak]

Tanker overturns, leaking liquid nitrogen at Agilent - Colorado

brrrr

[knak]

The same goes for his inane immigration policies.

AMEN to that too. I think Bush needs to get out there and let people know more about the terrorists that are trying to kill us. Tell America their motive, what EXACTLY they want. The want us to convert to islam or die. That's it. See if America wants Kerry to negotiate with them.

[knak]

Hikers find bag of explosives stolen last July

EL PASO COUNTY - A bag of explosives stolen from a concrete company in Colorado Springs has turned up near Cheyenne Canyon.

Hikers found the 50-pound bag of ammonium nitrate near Seven Falls on Saturday.

The bag was one of eight 50-pound bags that disappeared in July of last year from a locked trailer at Castle Concrete.

Bomb-sniffing dogs returned to the Seven Falls area on Monday but found no sign of the other seven bags.

Ammonium nitrate is the same material that was used in the Oklahoma City bombings and the first attack on the World Trade Center, although it can't be detonated without several additional components.

Federal authorities are investigating, along with the El Paso County Sheriff's Office and the Colorado Springs Police Department.

[TexKat]

Drug-Resistant TB Found in Netherlands

AMSTERDAM, Netherlands - The first outbreak of a strain of multiple-drug-resistant tuberculosis has appeared in the Netherlands, and officials said they were concerned about a wider outbreak once the European Union expands eastward where the disease is more prevalent.

The Dutch Tuberculosis Foundation said an eastern European TB patient infected six Dutch citizens, two of whom developed pulmonary tuberculosis.

On Tuesday, the World Health Organization issued a report estimating 300,000 new cases per year of multiple-drug-resistant TB around the world, and 79 percent of MDR-TB cases now show resistance to three or more drugs.

The strain was most common in the countries of the former Soviet Union, particularly Kazakhstan, and in Israel, the WHO said.

Jaap Broekmans, director of the Dutch foundation, said the outbreak in the Netherlands was under control "thanks to the swift action by the regional municipal health services." Neither the identity of the patients nor the locality were disclosed.

But Broekmans was concerned about opening the borders on May 1 to people from eastern Europe, where the chance of developing the drug-resistant strain is 10 times higher than elsewhere. He said there are hundreds of cases in the Baltics that will join the EU.

Dutch health authorities are preparing for a more serious outbreak, he said, brought here by infected newcomers.

"The arrival of human carriers means it will come here too, and we need to ensure that our response is swift and effective," he said.

Until now, he said the Netherlands has had five to 10 isolated cases a year, nearly all of them non-Dutch citizens.

[liberallyconservative]

Check out the link below for comments from the Italian Prime Minister's office. He sums up the whole European situation quite succinctly.

http://www.agi.it/english/news.pl?doc=200403161723-1159-RT1-CRO-0-NF82&page=0&id=agionline-eng.italyonline


Italy On Line
Special service by AGI on behalf of the Italian Prime Minister's office

CASTELLI WARNS OF AL QAEDA INFLUENCE ON ELECTIONS
(AGI) - Milan, Italy, Mar. 16 - Al Qaeda could attempt to influence the European election outcome as well as elections in each single country, said Justice Minister Roberto Castelli during an interview with Radio Padania. "If the theory that after these bombings the Spanish voted for the party that promised to withdraw troops from Iraq - said Castelli - were true, then Al Qaeda achieved an extraordinary political victory, promoting change in Spain, a change in international relations and a change in the European makeup. Rightist governments were advancing all over Europe, and now they're influencing countries with bombs, where before the Red Brigadiers, Eta, and separatists had not succeeded". Castelli is concerned about the future scenario: "We're thinking about what could happen, they could launch attacks in France and against the law on the veil, in Italy against the Bossi-Fini law, and even the European elections. If they follow through with this analysis we open up to the possibility for Al Qaeda to rule Europe under threat of it's bombs". (AGI) .
161723 MAR 04

[DAVEY CROCKETT]

Yes this is Oak Ridge. Today there is also a fire at a shopping center in Sweetwater (also some kind of nuke plant there)this seems strange to me that they have had 2 fires in such a short time and believe both to be arson. More tin foil needed...both Sweetwater and Morristown are about 30 mins. from Oak Ridge. I just worry with all that goes on at Oak Ridge. I wonder if this is happening around the country? These were big fires, test run maybe to see how emergency personal respond.

March 16, 2004

By AMELIA GRAHAM
6 News Reporter

SWEETWATER (WATE) -- A fire burned five businesses on Main Street in Sweetwater overnight Monday.

http://www.wate.com/Global/story.asp?S=1715001

Fire destroys South Cumberland Center; downtown businesses, homes evacuated...A portion of the shopping center roof on South Cumberland Drive collapses from fire this morning. The blaze began in the early morning hours and continues to burn. Several businesses and homes in the immediate area are being evacuated at this time.

http://www.zwire.com/site/news.cfm?newsid=11028626&BRD=1613&PAG=461&dept_id=159372&rfi=6

By: Robert Moore February 26, 2004

Will stay alert for any more strange happenings.

[Letitring]

That delaying tactic might be the only way to have a real election anymore. It's bad and going to get worse, imho.

[Calpernia]

This is it NW_AZ http://www.geocities.com/glennallennolen/the_embattled.rtf

There is 147 pages though. I can freep mail you the entire content if you wish.

The Embattled: Horses are Saddled.

by

Glenn Allen Nolen

Copyright 2003 by Glenn Allen Nolen

All Rights Reserved
Dedication


To every man and woman in the military,

Your profession gets hairy.

Trained killing is scary.

May your family never have to bury?


Chapter I

The cavalry rode into range

Aligned two by two.

An order was given to change.

A line formed a new.

Swiftly moving to the left,

They stood tall in the saddle.

A soldier could never have had more heft

Before entering a battle.

With bayonets drawn,

The horse soldiers loomed.

An hour after dawn,

The first cannon boomed.

Their battle-tested leader

Yelled for the bugler to sound something for Saint Peter.

They galloped at speed.

It was time to bleed.

Brave men held their ground

On a rain soaked barren field.

Fear could not be found.

No one raised a shield.

The cavalry simply bounded.

Not one-foot soldier ran.

Their generals were astounded.

As they stood together to the man,

That army managed to hold steady

Concealing their fear.

Every soldier must have been ready.

No one did veer.

It was the Kings pride

Beckoning that battlefield ride.

Why do people have to die

When nations vehemently vie?


1 Is war a permanent fixture?

Do nations have that right?

They can undermine our international societal mixture.

Our destiny should traverse a new height!

Or is war ingrained?

It is something we frame.

Aren't we about drained?

Call it our institution of shame.

Generations of people have been outraged

Protesting against nations that can't behave.

Those aggressive tendencies must be caged

Or civilized society will be stranded at the grave.

Testosterone is the primary reason men shave.

Aggression is something we can learn to stave.

It's time to take a stand.

After all, we are part of the same homogeneous band.

War, more and more, is predominantly staged.

Take it off the societal front page.

Our previous history has already been gauged.

Do we really want to be judged by the wars we wage?

War is something that should never be sought.

Our international society clamors for restraint.

Does anyone really believe war should be taught?

Personally, I don't have that urge to paint.

Ancient civilizations pioneered military service induction.

Were they a little deranged?

Knowledge eliminates the need for death and destruction.

On the evolutionary scale, we have changed.

It is "our attitudes toward war"

That has kept us fighting in more. 1




1. Gwynne Dyer, War (New York: Crown Publishers, 1985), 3.

[TexKat]

Iraq Insurgents Shifting to Soft Targets

CHRISTOPHER TORCHIA

Associated Press

BAGHDAD, Iraq - Drive-by gunmen killed two Europeans working on a water project south of the Iraqi capital Tuesday, bringing to six the number of foreign humanitarian workers cut down in shooting attacks in Iraq over the past two days.

Four American missionaries also working on a water project in the northern city of Mosul were killed in a similar attack a day earlier.

The twin attacks seemed to signal a shift by insurgent gunmen to so-called "soft" targets in their effort to snarl work by the U.S.-led coalition to rebuild Iraq in preparation for the American hand-over of authority to the Iraqis on June 30.

Three Iraqi police officers and a translator working for the U.S. military also were gunned down Tuesday, victims of a long-running rebel campaign to kill those perceived as collaborating with the United States.

At a military ceremony in Tikrit, Lt. Gen. Ricardo Sanchez, the top U.S. commander in Iraq, said the attacks on humanitarian workers were an attempt to intimidate those trying to help the 36-nation U.S.-led coalition.

"Clearly there has been a shift in the insurgency and the way the extremists are conducting operations," Sanchez said in an apparent reference to rebel assaults on civilians. "It is very clear they are going after these targets that might create some splits within the coalition."

The role of Spain in the coalition remained in doubt Tuesday after Prime Minister-elect Jose Luis Rodriguez Zapatero promised to withdraw the country's 1,300 troops by June 30 if the United Nations does not take control of peacekeeping. The Spanish troops operate south of Baghdad.

Honduras, which also was scheduled to end its mission at that time, said Tuesday it plans to bring home its 370 troops and would extend "only if the United Nations asks."

Zapatero's Socialist party was propelled to an upset victory in elections Sunday by anger over terrorist attacks in Madrid last week that killed 201 people. Voters accused Prime Minister Jose Maria Aznar of making Spain a target by supporting the U.S.-led war in Iraq.

On Tuesday, Sanchez said the coalition could manage without the Spaniards.

"It is something we will have to adjust to," Sanchez said. "But it is clearly manageable. It is not a significant military problem for the coalition to be able to cover that area."

The Tuesday killings involved a German and a Dutch national gunned down near the town of Mussayab, 45 miles south of Baghdad, officials said. Their Iraqi driver and a police officer also were killed in the attack. Two police officers were wounded.

Iraqi and U.S. officials earlier said the Europeans were Germans. But the Foreign Ministries of Germany and the Netherlands each confirmed one of their citizens had been killed. Names were not released.

Col. A'ayed Omran, police chief in Mussayab, said the two were water engineers working on a project at Al-Razzaza, a lake near the southern city of Karbala. He said they were carrying weapons because they had been attacked in the same area before.

The four U.S. missionaries slain in Mosul were working on a water-purification project. One of them died on the way to a U.S. military hospital in Baghdad early Tuesday, and a fifth was being treated.

In Mosul on Tuesday, assailants in a car fired on a police vehicle, killing two officers and wounding two others, police said. The gunmen fled. In another shooting in Mosul, gunmen killed an Iraqi woman working as a translator for the U.S. military, the U.S.-led coalition said. Two of her family members were wounded in the attack on their vehicle.

Mosul was a prime recruiting ground for the officer corps of Saddam's army, and U.S. military officials have described the city as a hotbed of guerrilla activity. The CIA and other U.S. intelligence agencies have a unit in the city that is searching for so-called "high value" targets.

The Virginia-based Southern Baptist International Mission Board identified the four dead missionaries as Larry T. Elliott, 60, and Jean Dover Elliott, 58, of Cary, N.C.; Karen Denise Watson, 38, of Bakersfield, Calif.; and David E. McDonnall, 28, of Rowlett, Texas.

McDonnall died Tuesday morning on a helicopter taking him to a military hospital in Baghdad after four U.S. military surgeons worked for six hours to save his life, the mission board said.

McDonnall's wife, Carrie Taylor McDonnall, 26, of Rowlett, Texas, was in critical condition, the board said.

Lt. Col. Joseph Piek, a spokesman for American forces in Mosul, said the five Americans were traveling in one car on the eastern side of Mosul when they were attacked. Iraqi police and the FBI were investigating.

Christian missionaries in predominantly Muslim Iraq are viewed with suspicion by many residents who believe the foreigners are trying to convert them to their faith.

"They knew going into Iraq, they couldn't really share their Christian faith unless somebody asked them," said Larry Kingsley, a church deacon. "They were there in a humanitarian situation. They were people who just had a great heart for helping people out."

In the northern city of Kirkuk, three mortar shells on Tuesday hit the airport compound, where U.S. troops are based. Smoke billowed and sirens blared. There were no reported injuries.

---_

Associated Press reporter Paul Garwood contributed to this report from Tikrit.

[Rushmore Rocks]

Great News, my friend!!!

Thanks for letting us know.

Prayers really do work!

[Revel]

http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1096779/posts?page=1101#1101

[liberallyconservative]

Thanks for those numbers; I've been looking for them.

Found an interesting article about fear of terror attacks at home amongst our allies.


Nations ask: Are we next terror target?
Fear of terror attack grows in countries involved in Iraq after Madrid strike


http://www.thestar.com/NASApp/cs/ContentServer?pagename=thestar/Layout/Article_Type1&c=Article&cid=1079435545767&call_pageid=968332188854&col=968350060724

[MamaDearest]

Thank God for that!!! Please communicate my happiness for her - she has already been through enough!