Threat Matrix: Daily Terror Threat

I know the initial reports about the Euro sweeps were posted today - I haven't seen any updates. Hopefully they are drugging those guys to get them to talk.

FR has bee real slow. There is a picture there. It just might not be loading on your computer.

(I too am being real slow today)

That was someone else posting about Atlanta - I think that was someone posting a copy of an email or posting from EOM but it wasn't me.

I think the reference is to the new pic of OBL in post #3340.

on another topic - Batchelor is also saying that the Iranian nuclear program may be reaching a "critical" stage.

Update time again:

4/27/04 A Kentuckiana man 75 years old spent 8 days in the hospital diagnosed with flesh eating bacteria

5/02/04 A spill in Warren County sent crude down in Allegheny, PA

5/02/04 Plague was confirmed in two Santa Fe, NM cats

5/03/04 16 cases of whooping cough in outbreak in South Carolina

5/03/04 Pentagon misses deadline of previous week for report on toxic chemical at defense sites nationwide (Perchlorate)

5/03/04 West Nile Virus may have arrived in San Francisco

5/04/04Total of 61 dead from WNV in 2003 in Colorado

5/04/04 Tanker leaks ammonium hydroxide in Yuba City, CA

5/04/04 4-5 houses evacuated in Waterford Township (near Detroit) when a soil testing rod hit some type of nuclear material underground

5/04/04 Tanker truck overturned Genesee County (NY) forcing evacuation of some homes

5/04/04 A valve was blamed for a sewage spill at Camp LeJeune (47,000 gallons near a river tributary)

5/04/04 An accident at a dairy farm spilled 100,000 gallons of manure - nearby St. Croix water deemed safe

5/04/04 Fuel spill in Portland Harbor (Maine) caused by mechanical malfunction

5/04/04 Pt. Huron Times advised of downstream chemical spill which was controlled by 7:00 PM

5/04/04 US Army planning to dump treated VX nerve agent into the Delaware River

5/04/04 Paper company chemical spill at Champlain Channel NY evacuated 100 people

5/04/04 Oil spill near Sand Springs, OK with an oil well fire

5/04/04 Manilla police seize massive haul of ammonium nitrate (in a bus) used for bomb making

5/05/04 1,100 pounds of fertilizer stolen at a French port

5/05/04 18 fall ill with Norovirus in Fairbanks, AK

5/06/04 Radioactive dust detected in a truck leaving a Timken Co. Steel plant - possibly from demolition scrap

5/06/04 Athabaska area evacuated after an ammonia spill at a grain facility in Canada

5/06/04 ARS Virus may spread via sweat, food, sewage, touch

5/06/04 Worldwide SARS update - 27 infected

5/07/04 6 Bulgarian medics sentenced to death after intentionally infection more than 400 children with AIDS virus

5/07/04 Washington State man infects 170 with AIDS virus

5/08/04 Plague identified in rodents in West Texas panhandle

5/08/04 Chemical reaction caused emergency reaction at K-25 plant in Oakridge - liquid sodium mixed with water vapor in air

5/09/04 A cruise ship returned to Sidney, Australia with 140 passengers stricken by stomach virus

5/10/04 Norwegian Crown Cruise Ship has 3rd outbreak of Norovirus with 124 affected by it

5/10/04 African clawed frogs invading San Francisco and evading eradication efforts

5/10/04 Tanker truck overturned in Houston spilling thousands of gallons of gasoline on Beltway E

5/10/04 Two Israeli men arrested in Tennessee after a high speed chase and after tossing a bottle testing positive of fuel source - they had fake IDs and passports didn't add up. They also had "Learning to fly" business cards in their moving truck

5/10/04 15,000 gallons of a mix of 6 flammable chemicals spilled in Indianapolis - the spill was believed to have been intentionally caused

5/12/04 Congo virus suspected in Pakistan - 3 people dead

5/12/04 Anthrax-like disease in North Iraq has killed 6 Iraqis

5/12/04 A person in Detroit diagnosed with rare salmonella found only in Uzbekistan

5/13/04 A Budget rental truck pulled over at Oak Harbor, Washington had traces of TNT on the gearshift and RDX plastic explosives on the steering wheel. Driver and passenger were Israeli nationals (one with Visa violation)

5/13/04 Reports of multiple people in Boston with headaches and nausea

5/13/04 Q fever affects 75 people at Banja Luka (Bosnia & Herzegovina)

5/13/04 Five people in Banaul (Siberia) diagnosed with tick typhus or spotted fever

5/13/04 Bird flu outbreak in pigeons in Altay Region of Siberia

5/13/04 Three fatal cases of plague at Chimborazo, Ecuador

5/13/04 Bird disease trichomoniasis killing hundreds of mourning doves in Coachella Valley

5/15/04 Flu-like virus strikes nursing home at Stockton - 78 residents sick - 19 to hospital

5/15/04 Calgary police seek stolen truck carrying radioactive material

5/17/04 Man's body washes up in water purification plant at Wakayama (dressed entirely in black - with no shoes)

5/17/04 More mosquitoes found with West Nile Virus in Maricopa County, AZ

5/17/04 A small shell containing sarin found and detonated in Iraq

5/17/05 Ukranian officials seize red mercury - arrest two men in Kiev, Ukraine

5/17/04 Bogata, NJ - law enforcement searching for stolen empty tanker and theft of large quantity chemicals (rheocrete) TK Transport in NJ, tage T-852SC, NJ Motor fuel tage 15148

5/17/04 BJ's Wholesale evacuated in Waterbury, suspicious suitcase with traces of nitrate

5/17/04 Highway 95, Roane County, Tennessee closed due to radioactive material spilled on roadway (Stronium 90). There was a FIVE HOUR GAP between the spill and the highway closure

5/17/04 Nine people dead, 33 violently ill after drinking poisoned alcohol (formaldehyde) at Guangznou

5/17/04 Close to 1/4 of the vegetables and fruits in Kaohsiung, China were poisoned

5/17/04 Tanker crash on Interstate 85 Norlina, NC closes highway six hours, cargo was 8100 gallons combo gasoline and diesel

5/17/04 Box of commercial quantity explosives discovered in sand at Revere Beach, Massachusetts

5/18/04 Mystery illness/ parasites afflicting Idahoans (parasites with fiber-like filaments). Thus far it affects 729 people around the country and under a dozen in Idaho

5/19/04 Two pieces highly radioactive nuclear fuel missing at Brattleboro, UT

5/19/04 Quarantine in Southern Kentucky involving hospital and a Walmart - truck driver patient apeared to have smallpox, quarantine later lifted, hospital says threat unfounded per tests, patient isolated and admitted

5/19/04 Large scale chemical/biological/radiological and nuclear training exercise held at Pentagon - called Gallant Fox II

5/19/04 Chicago Mercantile streets closed due to mysterious fumes - 6 people hospitalized

5/19/04 Sarin rocket disposal to begin in July at Umatilla Chemical Depot near Hermiston, Oregon

5/19/04 FReeper granddaugher contracts Fifth's Disease (Parvovirus B19 infection)

5/19/04 Arizona I-40 closed several hours due to nitrous gas

5/20/04 A British person accused in California of threatening to put poisoned baby food on store shelves (he put hydraulic fluid in Gerber orange juice, glass shards in Gerber carrots, and boric acid in Similac formula

5/20/04 A mysterious oil spill is killing Bering seabirds at Kodiak

5/20/04 160 metal drums (previously containing flammable and corrosive fluids) were found in a stolen tractor trailer at Ontario, CA

5/20/04 Woman dies two weeks after being pricked after leaving a baseball game at Coors Field, Denver

5/20/04 Tanker truck hauling fuel ran off road and exploded near Bailey, Colorado

5/20/04 Third case of Whooping Cough at Russell Elementary in MO

5/20/04 Suicidal man in Albuquerque claimed to have dangerous chemicals in his car. The hospital was evacuated. The chemical was calcium carbide - no one was injured

5/20/04 Classified information is missing at Los Alamos Lab. Authorities say it does not jeopardize national security

5/20/04 Five million pounds of raw almonds recalled with salmonella by a California company

5/20/04 Rita Blanco National Grasslands has confirmed plague in prairie dogs

5/20/04 VSV viral disease confirmed in horses at one location in the State of Texas

5/20/04 Oklahoma tests positive for West Nile Virus

5/21/04 Mystery chemicals in Verona Park's well water. The water turned black when chlorine was added

5/21/04 High explosives, grenades and ball razors were discovered in Sri Lanka

5/21/04 Fire truck missing in East Texas town of Poynor

5/21/04 London - some 3800 people in Britain may be harboring the human form of mad cow disease without knowing it

5/21/04 Investigators have linked a box of venomous snakes found in a box in Little Rock with a dead Scottsman (who had no apparent snake bites)

5/21/04 Ebola virus discovered in Sudan claiming at least four lives

5/22/04 Ten cases of hemorrhagic fever (similar to Ebola) confirmed in Southern Sudan

5/22/04 Two Israeli men working for a moving and storage company caused a lockdown at Kings Bay Naval Submarine Base. Military dogs alerted to scent in cab of truck - these men are facing deportation

5/22/04 Model rocket igniters found in Perth home of an Islamic convert that could have been used to set off truck bombs

5/22/04 Thunder Bay police released two people despite the discovery of more than 1/2 ton red phosphorus concealed behind furniture in their rented U-Haul truck. The vehicle had Arizona registration. Both Middle Eastern men had British Columbia drivers licenses

5/23/04 Ellis County, Texas - two children bitten by wild bobcat cubs with rabies

5/23/04 A flu-like virus sickens 60 in Pasco County. Eight were hospitalized

5/24/04 US strain of West Nile Virus found to be more deadly than elsewhere in the world except Israel

5/24/04 13 killed after pesticide truck explodes in Romania

5/24/04 1/3 of the day care class at Fort Monmouth Community Center in NJ comes down with Foot and Mouth Disease

5/24/04 Virus sickens more than 20 attending regional advertising conference in Great Falls in April

5/24/04 Russian scientist died after accidentally sticking herself with a needle laced with Ebola in Siberia

5/24/04 Project Bioshield passed unanimously, speeding up development and stockpiling of vaccines, antidotes and diagnostic devices for potential biological attack in the USA

5/25/04 Large fire at chemical warehouse in Conyers, GA

5/25/04 Federal government to redirect $27 million in federal bio/terrorism preparedness funds from states to cities. Extra funds to LA, San Diego and San Francisco

5/25/04 Fumes cause evacuation at Indiana airport mall. Two workers required decontamination after contact with unknown chemical substance

5/25/04 Contaminated water supply leaves 91 dead, 1600 ill in Pakistan. Source of contamination unknown

5/25/04 FBI agents closed Interstate 65 for two hours at Gardendale and pulled over an 18 wheeler truck. An explosives sniffing dog was called in. The driver was allowed to leave, but received a ticket for an altered tag

5/25/04 A Vancouver BC bus was quarantined after a mystery substance was found (including brown pellets). 19 people were affected - 10 were allowed to go, 9 were hospitalized for observation. Authorities believe it to be phosphane

5/26/04 A stopped Evergreen America truck with a mysterious history container had no reason to enter Alabama. The container was unloaded from Indonesia with 128 pieces of wooden furniture - 10 days later the container was located in Birmingham

5/26/04 A University of Maryland expert says many chemical plants in the US represent serious and vulnerable targets for terrorist attack

5/27/04 A man was stopped at Pleasantville NY with several forms of ID was questioned with live grenades and filled gasoline cannisters

5/27/04 Two bags of explosives were found in the center of Bratislava - 24 hours ahead of a NATO assembly meeting

5/27/04 A container was stolen from the Port of Halifax with unidentified cargo

5/27/04 Four cases of botulism were reported in Volgograd, Russia

5/28/04 NYC doormen receive anti-terrorism training

5/28/04 Biotech tradeshow - June 6 - June 9

5/28/04 Explosives found at Highway 62 (Joshua Tree) CA and the highway was shut down

5/28/04 Bomb squad called to the Arkansas River Bridge in Van Buren with a report of a U-Haul trailer leaving a suspicious black box on the bridge. The box was found to not be explosive or dangerous

5/29/04 Wedding postponed in London when bride and groom are contaminated by mysterious white powder

5/30/04 A thoroughbred horse died of West Nile Virus in VA

5/30/04 A new wheat virus has been found in Queensland which causes streaking and molling of crops and a strain in Kansas causes the wheat to yellow and die. Researchers are boggled

5/30/04 150 visitors ill at Emerald Lake Lodge in Yoho National Park (vomiting and diarrhea)

5/30/04 13 cases of West Nile Virus so far in Texas in 2004 including one horse

5/30/04 A vicious skin infection has broken out in NYC hospitals and onto NY streets - it's a superbug with a killer rash

5/30/04 A man was exposed to radiation in a soil testing device stolen from a Miami construction site

6/03/04 Shreveport Dentist who met a 9/11 hijacker fell mysteriously ill and is on life support

6/04/04 Camden City Hall evacuated after four people found with rashes and blisters on their bodies

6/04/04 36 people in Montreal have died from a virulent infection, Clostridium Difficile, (but the number could be as high as 89)

6/04/04 Three people given first aid after a mysterious odor filled the gift shop at the Crazy Horse Memorial in SD

6/06/04 FBI arrested man in AK Who stored more than 60 - 55 gallon barrels of hazardous chemicals in Salmon, Idaho

6/06/04 An antibiotic-resistant superbug in Australia has killed one man and infected 50 others. It is acquired in the community (and not the hospital)

6/07/04 Anti-Terrorism Drills held at Rockefeller Center

6/08/04 Cruise Ship Island Princess had 400 ill with Norovirus

6/08/04 200 People in Changba, China have diarrhea, fever and dizziness after drinking water

6/08/04 Seven people hurt after being sprayed with unknown chemical during a fight in the Bronx

6/08/04 US Food and Drug Administration approves first blood test for anthrax

6/08/04 Local fisherman finds four pipe bombs and all components to another explosive device stuck in mud under two feet of water near the bank of the Allegheny River

6/08/04 A fourth Pakistani has died of suspected Congo virus in southwestern city of Quetta

Thanks. Thought I was going crazy! There is no link on my computer, it's real slowwww. Think I'll restart and reset the modem and try again. Be right back.

How about Sherman Bin Burnin?

The picture is posted it is not a link. It is also not hosted by FR. It is form some site I am not sure of. Islamic?
Here is a link to the picture:

http://www.chatdubai.net/upload/Array/raad111.jpg

'He's angry and disappointed neither he nor President Carter have been asked to speak

Nancy Reagan is one classy lady. I have nothing but respect for her!

more info on the bombmaker arrested in Italy:

http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1150179/posts

Placemark. Goodnight, everyone.

VERY IMPRESSIVE LIST.

THANKS TONS.

DO YOU HAVE A BUILDING CHRONOLOGICAL OF SUCH FROM X DATE ON?

BLESS YOU FOR ALL YOUR LABORS. AND HEALTH TO GRANDDAUGHTER!

This is so wrong.

Putin: Moscow, Mexico City share approaches to int'l relations

08.06.2004, 05.38

MEXICO CITY, June 8 (Itar-Tass) - Russian President Vladimir Putin has stated that Moscow and Mexico City have equal approaches to the building of the system of international relations.

"Everything concerning the building of an international security system and priorities in the establishment of a contemporary architecture of international relations is supported by our Mexican counterparts. We have common positions and we intend to uphold the need for the formation of an effective system of international relations," the Russian Head of State told a joint news conference.

Putin specially pointed out the identity of the two countries' positions on the role of the United States "as the central instrument" for the process of building a new world order. "This role must grow stronger," the Russian leader maintains.

The talks with Mexican President Vicente Fox Quesada dealt, in particular, with the efforts to settle the situation in Iraq and prospects for the passage of a new resolution on Iraq. "A draft resolution to this effect is being actively discussed in the UN Security Council," Putin said.

Earlier five joint documents have been signed in the presence of Vladimir Putin and Vicente Fox Quesada.

These are a treaty on the transfer of convicts to serve their sentences, an agreement between the two government on the prevention of double taxation as regards income taxes, an agreement on cooperation between Vneshtorgbank and the National Foreign Trade Bank of Mexico, an agreement among Vnesheconombank, Roseximbank and the National Foreign Trade Bank of Mexico on cooperation in the co-financing of export to third countries, as well as a memorandum on cooperation and mutual understanding between the Russian Ministry of Culture and Mass Communications and the Mexican National Council on Culture and Arts for a period from 2004 to 2007.

Russia and Mexico have reaffirmed their accord to contribute to the efforts towards maintenance of the stability of the world petroleum market and promote a dialogue between independent oil producers and the member-countries of the OPEC, says one of the joint statements.

The statement also points out that the sides "are interested in promoting contacts between oil producers and users in the interests of ensuring stability of the international market of hydrocarbons.

Mexico has reaffirmed its support for Russia's bid to join the World Trade Organisation in the belief that "this will contribute to strengthening the international trade system," says another joint statement.

The sides have also agreed "to give instructions to the delegations of their countries to expedite negotiations in Geneva within the framework of the respective working group".

Earlier, in response to a question, the Mexican President told Itar-Tass that Mexico was prepared to build relations with Russia proceeding from the recognition of her status of country with a market economy.

Mexico and Russia "will prioritise efforts to achieve further concrete results in the field of disarmament, specifically, in matters concerning weapons of mass destruction (WMD) as well as non-proliferation and arms control," says one of the joint statements signed here by Vladimir Putin of Russia and Vicente Fox Quesada.

The statement emphasises, "Proliferation, in all its aspects, of all types of WMD bring about a threat to peace and international security".

The sides reaffirmed, in particular, "The great importance of achieving universality and full implementation of the Treaty on Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons and the entering into force of the Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty".

Vladimir Putin has stated that Russia intends to help Mexico to set up a gas industry of its own.

"Joint work on the entire cycle -- geological prospecting, production and delivery of gas -- may be still more interesting. There will be no denying that Russia is the leader in this respect and we can give assistance to Mexico in all these aspects," the Russian President said.

"The ultimate goal is to enable Mexico to establish a gas industry of its own," Putin emphasised.

Vladimir Putin has thanked his Mexican counterpart Vicente Fox Quesada for a warm reception accorded to the Russian delegation in Mexico.

"I want wholeheartedly to thank the President of Mexico and all Mexican counterparts for the invitation (to visit Mexico City) and for the hospitality that we came to feel literally from the very first steps (on Mexican soil)," the Russian Head of State told a news conference here.

On the part of Mexico, there is nothing that would hinder the development of economic relations with Russia, Mexican President Vicente Fox Quesada told a joint news conference.

Fox said Mexico "is prepared to remove all obstacles to new relations in the field of trade and investments". "We do not differentiate countries by the type of their economies and do not see anything that would curb the development of our relations with Russia," the Mexican President said. Fox reaffirmed Mexico's stand in support of Russia's bid to join the World Trade Organisation.

The Mexican President also pointed out that "it is possible to achieve much higher indicators in trade and economic relations than those that are not currently up to the economic potentials of the two countries".

Mexico "Attaches strategic importance to the economy and market of Russia," Fox said, pointing out that Mexico has a unique system of free trade agreements with 42 countries from various parts of the world, which makes cooperation with it highly lucrative to Russian investors. "Mexico, in particular, and Latin America in general become increasingly interesting and important partners both as markets and as democracies that strive for a multi-polar world order," President Fox emphas

http://www.itar-tass.com/eng/level2.html?NewsID=916415&PageNum=0

DoctorZin does a daily coverage thread of Iran.

Lots of info here:

http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1149524/posts

Iran, IAEA Still Far Apart on Nuclear Program

Paul Kerr
Arms Control Today
June 2004

outstanding issues between them so that a “final solution” can be reached at the meeting.

But IAEA Director-General Mohamed ElBaradei, who is preparing a final report for the board on whether Iran has followed through on its safeguards agreement with the agency, told CNN May 16 that “the jury is still out” on whether Iran’s nuclear programs are “exclusively for peaceful purposes” and that Iran should be “more forthcoming” in cooperating with the IAEA’s ongoing investigation. (See ACT, May 2004.)

Under the joint action plan reached between Iran and the IAEA, Iran pledged to provide the agency with detailed information about its gas centrifuge-based uranium-enrichment program by the end of April and to deliver by mid-May a declaration required by the additional protocol to its IAEA safeguards agreement. Tehran has submitted the former but not the latter, Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Hamid-Reza Assefi told reporters May 16.

Safeguards agreements authorize the IAEA to verify that states-parties to the nuclear Nonproliferation Treaty (NPT) are not diverting civilian nuclear activities to military purposes. The additional protocol requires Iran to provide significantly more information about its nuclear activities to the IAEA than its original safeguards agreement and provides the agency with more authority to verify the declaration. Iran has signed the agreement and has pledged to act as if it were in force until it is approved by the Majlis, Iran’s parliament. (See ACT, January/February 2004.)

The April pledge was Iran’s most recent promise to cooperate with the IAEA, which has been investigating allegations made public in August 2002 that Iran was pursuing clandestine nuclear activities. The IAEA board has adopted several resolutions urging Iran to cooperate, most recently in March, and is still seeking Iran’s full cooperation in providing information about its nuclear programs.

As part of an October agreement with the United Kingdom, Germany, and France, Iran agreed to suspend activities related to its uranium-enrichment programs. Tehran announced that it had completed the suspension in April. Tehran also agreed in October to conclude an additional protocol and cooperate with the agency’s investigation.

Iran’s centrifuge programs have caused the most concern. Gas centrifuges have civilian uses, but can also produce highly enriched uranium for use in nuclear weapons.

After the board condemned Iran for violating its safeguards agreement by secretly testing centrifuges with nuclear material, agency inspectors found additional evidence suggesting that Iran has undertaken other undisclosed enrichment activities and conducted work on a more advanced type of centrifuge. (See ACT, March 2004.)

ElBaradei said in a May 14 speech at the Council on Foreign Relations that the agency does not yet have “proof” that Iran has “enriched uranium to the military level.”

Assistant Secretary of State John Wolf told Arms Control Today May 13 that “Iran is still moving in the direction of a nuclear weapons capability” and that the United States has “good reason” to believe Iran is not complying with its additional protocol (see page 14). Wolf did not elaborate, except to say that this belief is not based on intelligence information.

Further complicating the matter, ElBaradei’s report may not provide a complete picture of Iran’s nuclear activities because test results from samples taken from some inspected facilities may not be available in time for the report. Department of State officials have blamed the delay on Iran’s March decision to postpone a visit by IAEA inspectors. (See ACT, April 2004.)

Washington is still mulling over its strategy for the IAEA board meeting. A State Department official interviewed May 17 stated that the United States will “probably” want the board to adopt a resolution condemning Iran’s behavior. The U.S. position on the content of such a resolution will depend on the “detail and tone” of ElBaradei’s report, which will be influential in “shaping the views of other board members,” the State Department official said.

The United States has previously said the board should declare Iran in noncompliance with its safeguards agreement—a finding that requires the board to refer the matter to the UN Security Council. The United States has failed once to persuade the board to declare Iran in noncompliance.

Washington may instead encourage the IAEA board to say it “cannot verify” Iran’s suspension of its centrifuge program because of the country’s demonstrated ability to manufacture relevant components at various locations throughout the country, a State Department official said last month.

Wolf did not say what the United States wants the Security Council to do in the event Iran is referred for noncompliance, nor would he comment on a possible U.S. response in the event that the Security Council fails to act.

http://www.armscontrol.org/act/2004_06/Iran.asp

Rumours of impending apocalypse jolt Iranian capital
Tue Jun 8,12:53 AM ET
TEHRAN (AFP) - The millions of residents of the Iranian capital, all housed on top of a string of seismic faultlines, had up until recently taken their geophysical predicament with a mixture of apathy and sheer ignorance.

But since an earthquake measuring up to 6.1 on the Richter scale jolted the mountains to the north of the shoddy, sprawling city, fears of a looming catastrophe of biblical proportions have set in.

The May 28 earthquake, which measured between 5.5 and 6.1 on the Richter scale, killed 35 people and injured more than 200 in two provinces crossed by the vast Alborz mountain range.

But alarmingly, the quake also shook Tehran. For several seconds, walls vibrated as if a heavy truck was speeding past right outside the door, cracks appeared in the plaster and windows were shattered.

Residents were sent running out onto the streets, with those living in high-rise blocks realising the evacuation took quite long without using an elevator. Thousands chose to spend the night outdoors.

The following day, newspapers carried images of cars crushed by rocks on the main mountain road to the Caspian Sea coast, a popular destination for Tehranis.

With memories of the mass death and destruction of the December earthquake in Bam still fresh, it appears -- for the time being at least -- that the very real dangers of a quake in Tehran have been brought home.

But with fear has come rumour.

With aftershocks still rumbling, news that a quake would hit Tehran on Friday, May 29 at precisely 4:00 pm spread like wildfire. The source of the rumour was supposedly state media, and prompted yet more evacuations.

The truth, however, is hard to bear for many.

"It is impossible to predict the power and timing of an earthquake," insisted Mohsen Ghafori Ashtiani, president of Iran's Seismological Institute.

"These rumours are completely false," added Mahmoud Fatemi Aghda, director of the Natural Disasters Institute. "Since March, the faults under Tehran have not moved."

While last Friday's catastrophe never happened, and even though the experts have been on the air waves urging calm, the rumours keep doing the rounds.

Yet another quake was supposed to come on Wednesday, June 2, with the prediction falsely attributed to a professor, Mohammad Reza Rahimi Tabar, at Sharif university -- one of the capital's most prestigious learning institutions.

Despite yet more denials that the faultlines under Tehran had been "activated" by a tremor in a province to the east, hundreds of students there chose to spend a night under the stars rather than risk being crushed by collapsing dormitories.

The local press has also latched onto the website (http://quake.exit.com) of Zhonghao Shou, a Chinese scientist living in California, who claims he can predict earthquakes by cloud formations apparently caused by the heat given off by strained seismic faults.

As a result, the clouds above the capital are beginning to interest people.

One local press agency then reassured people by claiming there would not be another earthquake within three days. And the pundits are now expecting the worst to come on Tuesday, June 8.

Some people are latching onto the rather alarming statistic that a quake can be expected in Tehran every 150 years.

The last one, residents have noted with trepidation, occurred 170 years ago. This makes it all a question of "when", and not "if".

For when the big one does come, Tehran's residents can be assured of a total catastrophe. According to various studies, notably by Japanese experts, a quake measuring over 6 degrees on the Richter scale could kill more than one million of greater Tehran's 12 million people.

"Since one week, our car is full of water, blankets, biscuits and canned food," explained Ahmad, a young resident here.

But aside from making the obvious preparations, the fear also appears to have sparked some deeper soul-searching, and a new look at a capital marred by anarchic building practices where developers have placed scores of high-rise apartment blocks -- mostly cobbled together by cheap Afghan labour -- on top of seismic faults.

"People are afraid," admitted one local property agent. "They are not buying apartments. The market was stagnating a bit before, but now it's worse."

Thanks for the link Revel. First time for everything I suppose. ZoneAlarm was blocking the picture. There was no red x, nothing. Soon as I shut down ZA and refreshed there it was. Weird.

I’m posting this story although there isn’t a lot of information. I found it interesting that the local news reported the Task Force is being very hush-hush about this. Also, this house is in the same neighborhood where Iyman Faris lived (the Al-Quaida connected hazmat truck driver that wanted to blow up the Brooklyn Bridge).

Terrorism Task Force Searches Northside Apartment

COLUMBUS, Ohio -- Federal agents searching a northside apartment building on Monday came away with items, but did not make any arrests, NewsChannel 4 reported. Just before 6 p.m., agents from the terrorism task force began searching an apartment on Riverview Drive. Agents said they had a sealed search warrant, but were not expecting to arrest anyone during the raid.

Night LC

Was this you?:)

San Francisco police arrest 25 at biotechnology meeting protest
By Bloomberg News
Tuesday, June 8, 2004

San Francisco police arrested 25 protesters who blocked traffic in front of a biotechnology conference where hundreds of demonstrators gathered to try shut down a convention of scientists, executives and politicians.

The demonstrators were arrested at 7:10 a.m. local time for blocking traffic, said Sergeant Neville Gittens. A group called Reclaim the Commons wanted to shut down the conference to protest the proliferation of genetically modified foods developed by biotechnology corporations.

http://business.bostonherald.com/technologyNews/view.bg?articleid=31114

Blue Thunder is a movie about a souped up anti terrorism helicopter that has missles and on board computers. It was built to control crowds.