Definitely. Another freeper suggested we pack a little bag and money, wallet, etc., for a quick get-away in case there's a knock at the door or a bullhorn telling us to get out, so we did that.
I feel quite safe here though, truly. Just trying to keep people who aren't aware of what's going on up to date on stuff.
Amazing how few neighbors were curious about the hours long sirens and funny smell this morning. We all had our windows open; well most of us did. We made lots of phone calls this a.m.
Things appear to be relatively quiet outside of Iraq and Afganistan. No new incidents of aircraft lazing.
Let me know if you want on or off the Ping list.
01/06/04 Current National Homeland Defense threat level is YELLOW
1. Attack threat windows - America
01/06/04 Primary Window: January 19-21, 2005 - Presidential inauguration
01/06/04 Secondary windows:
Feb. 6 Super Bowl in Jacksonville, Fla.
11/23/04 This post is being maintained for a historical track - Godzilla
ACSA has predicted a nuclear attack within the next 3 months. This window ends approximately 02/23/05
2. Attack Indicators
01/06/05 U.S. intelligence monitors are picking up less terror threat talk than a year ago, Homeland Security Secretary Tom Ridge said Thursday. A variety of factors could be contributing to the lull, Ridge said, and he warned that terrorists "are strategic actors and long-range planners" who could be merely lying low before striking again.
"There certainly is a diminution, reduction in the amount of intelligence, and the decibel level is lower," Ridge told reporters, comparing information picked up over the past several months to the similar period a year ago.
Ridge offered no single explanation for the drop, saying it could be stepped-up U.S. efforts to boost security, increase military action, disrupt terrorist leaders and their finances or, simply, the "hardening of America." "Could be any of those and none of those," he said. "I suspect it's probably all of them."
http://www.nj.com/newsflash/national/index.ssf?/base/national-36/1105045741146740.xml&storylist=national
3. Current Terrorist Operations
Al-Qa'ida / OBL
01/03/05 There is an intelligence bulletin just out about a type of watch that could be used as a terror weapon.
snip... According to U.S. intelligence sources, Al Qaeda is trying to obtain watches with a hidden butane lighter and watches with an altimeter built in, that together would be used to bring down commercial airliners. .snip
http://abclocal.go.com/wabc/news/wabc_010305_altimeterwatchwarning.html
Iran
01/03/05 U.S. military warplanes flew over Iranian air space, raising Tehran's concerns preparations are being made to knock out its nuclear facilities, according to Iranian news media reports.
The U.S. jets reportedly flew out of bases in Afghanistan and Iraq, with the latest coming Saturday when a fighter buzzed at low altitude an area in the northeastern province of Khorrasan, which borders Afghanistan.
http://www.worldnetdaily.com/news/article.asp?ARTICLE_ID=42225
Iran had better be feeling the squeeze. Aircraft coming from two different areas. US has not confirmed if this did occure, however there is a very good chance that this did happen. Early intelligence gathering, find the communications nodes and command centers for middle of the night wake-up calls from F-117 and B-1 Stealth aircraft gps guided munitions. - Godzilla
Iraq
01/03/05 Abu Mus'ab al-Zarqawi, whom the US occupation authorities declared to be the "target number one" in Iraq, has been arrested in the city of Baakuba, That was our hope anyway. This report initially gained some traction, however, nothing further has panned out and there are other indicators that AZ is still doing his thing.
Indonesia
Monitoring - AQ attack watch through 02/15/05
Australia and Japan issue warnings on 15 Dec. over threat to a foreign hotel in Indonesia, hotel identified as Hilton Hotel in Jakarta. Uncertain if tsunami relief will impact terror plans. - Godzilla
01/06/05 A radical Islamic group once headed by the alleged leader of a Southeast Asian terrorist group has set up a relief operation in tsunami-stricken Aceh province, Indonesia, and one expert warned it might try to stir up sentiment against U.S. and Australian troops also distributing aid there.
http://asia.news.yahoo.com/050106/ap/d87ejvfg2.html
Kuwait
Monitoring - AQ attack watch through 03/15/05
US Embassy on 15 Dec.: Credible information that terrorist groups are developing near-term plans for attacks against unspecified targets in Kuwait.
01/04/05 Kuwait breaks up army cell plotting attacks on friendly forces - two weeks after US heightened terror warning. At least 15 soldiers and officers questioned - 4 detained - after extradition from Syria of Kuwaiti heading for Iraq to fight Americans http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/middle_east/4144129.stm
Israel
01/06/05 Continuing rocket attacks originating from Gaza and S. Lebanon. Additional concerns that Gaza may become the next haven for AQ. Just because Israel may be pulling out of Gaza doesnt mean that it wouldnt in a heart-beat go back in premptively if it feels threatened.
Europe - General
12/23/04 Monitoring - AQ attack watch through 01/12/05
Several agencies have intercepted electronic communications pointing to Al Qaida's plans to launch a major attack over the next two weeks, Western intelligence sources said. Some targets in Western Europe include NATO headquarters in Brussels, a railroad hub packed with holiday travelers and Istanbul, Turkey. Other leading al-Qaida targets include Moscow or St. Petersburg. The sources said al-Qaida cells in Europe are flushed with operatives that fought the U.S.-led coalition in Iraq.
http://www.geostrategy-direct.com/geostrategy-direct/
Algeria
01/04/05 Algeria's second largest Islamic rebel group, blamed for the brutal killings of thousands of people in the mid-1990s, has been virtually wiped out after security forces killed and arrested its top members. The arrest of Nourredine Boudiafi and the death of Younes Chaabane, who had replaced him at the head of the Armed Islamic Group (GIA), all but dismantled a group already weakened by internal dissent, authorities said Tuesday. The developments came six months after the killing of Nabil Sahraoui, leader of the larger and more active Salafist Group for Preaching and Combat (GSPC), North Africa's top extremist group that has ties to al Qaeda.
snip
http://www.reuters.com/newsArticle.jhtml?type=worldNews&storyID=7232524
Thailand
Monitoring - AQ attack watch #1 through 01/31/05
Thai intel has reportedly warned about terrorist threats in Bangkok during the latter part of Dec. and early Jan.
Monitoring - AQ attack watch #2 through 12/31/05
Terrorists are plotting attacks next year at tourist resorts across Thailand, according to documents found in the house of a fugitive leader of the country's Islamic insurgency, a senior security official said. The documents show that in 2005, the militants plan to attack "soft targets" such as the tropical beach resorts of Pattaya and Phuket, which draw tourist from around the world.
http://www.trackingterrorism.com/Default.asp?dismode=article&artid=1305
This area was among the hardest hit as a result of the tsunami of Dec 26, 2004. Must watch carefully. Godzilla
Spain
01/05/05 Spanish police arrested 131 suspected Islamic terrorists in 2004, and nearly half of them, or 62 suspects, were linked to the Madrid train bombings of last March 11, the Interior Minister announced. Jose Antonio Alonso said 42 other suspects were connected to an unsuccessful plot to blow up the courthouse that handles terrorism cases. < snip >
A second group of Islamic suspected terrorists were arrested in the so-called Operation Nova, which authorities say planned to blow up the National Court in central Madrid with a truck bomb. The court investigates and tries cases of terrorism, and houses the offices of the principal judges involved in anti-terror investigation.
http://edition.cnn.com/2005/WORLD/europe/01/05/spain.arrests/
P.S Someone please tell German Guy that these are not Americans or Jews that have been arrested, but Moslems -Godzilla
Yemen
01/05/05 Monitoring - AQ attack watch through 03/01/05
Britain closed its embassy in Yemen on Wednesday because of "specific security concerns" and warned that terrorists were in the end stage of planning assaults against British targets in the country. ..snip..
As of Dec. 30, "there is specific information that terrorists are in the final stages of planning attacks against British targets and other Western interests in Yemen," the statement added, warning Britons to be vigilant in public places, such as hotels.
http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&cid=540&ncid=721&e=6&u=/ap/20050105/ap_on_re_mi_ea/britain_yemen
Saudi Arabia
Monitoring - AQ attack watch through 02/28/05
Call for attacks on oil infrastructure in Iraq and Gulf region by Osama bin Laden
Pakistan
01/06/05 Ongoing operations against reminant Taliban and AQ forces.
Phillipines
01/06/05 Troops in the Zamboanga peninsula captured Toting Hanno, alias Jacaria an alleged member of the Abu Sayyaf kidnap gang with a $20,000 reward on his head offered by the US government, an official said. Excerpted
http://www.manilatimes.net/national/2005/jan/07/yehey/top_stories/20050107top6.html
Russia
01/05/05 Twelve internationally wanted active members of the Hizb-ut-Tahrir terrorist organization were detained on Russian territory, Russian Interior Minister Rashid Nurgaliyev said at a press conference in Moscow on Saturday. "The terrorists were detained in the Moscow and Tyumen regions, Tatarstan, Bashkiria and Udmurtia," the minister noted
http://nyjtimes.com/cover/01-03-04/TerrorOrganizationMembersCaptured.htm
United States
01/05/05 A burgeoning East Boston-based street gang made up of alleged rapists and machete-wielding robbers has been linked to the al-Qaeda terrorist network, prompting Boston police to ``turn up the heat'' on its members, the Herald has learned.
MS-13, which stands for La Mara Salvatrucha, is an extremely violent organization with roots in El Salvador, and boasts more than 100 ``hardcore members'' in East Boston who are suspected of brutal machete attacks, rapes and home invasions. There are hundreds more MS-13 gangsters in towns along the North Shore, said Boston police Sgt. Detective Joseph Fiandaca, who has investigated the gang since it began tagging buildings in Maverick Square in 1995.
snip
.
http://news.bostonherald.com/localRegional/view.bg?articleid=61903
Godzilla - These folks have been in the news alot lately. Huge question is how OBL is reconciling that these are infidels whos values are completely alien to Islam? This linkage is probably one of the things DHS and intel folks are evaluating.
4. Attack method.
11/23/04 No real change in the preferred method of choice of AQ which are bombs - the bigger the better. With the exception of 9/11, car/truck bombs have been widely used. However, aircraft are also still in the mix. There are special concerns regarding the use by terrorists of the following types of vehicles:
1. Uhaul type cargo trucks.
2. Gasoline / Propane supply / tanker trucks.
3. Emergency vehicles (ambulances, police cars, fire trucks)
Current alerts out for at least two stolen fuel/tanker trucks, a stolen crop duster and about a hundred propane tanks. It is uncertain if the thefts are linked to terrorism at this time, however they could be adapted for use in a terrorist attack.
5. Personnel
01/06/05 Nothing significant.
6. Significant meetings canceled:
01/06/04 No new cancellations.
7. Security has been heightened in specific cities
01/06/04 NYC is at a locally declared ORANGE where it had been since. 9/11/01.
GENERAL: Ongoing work to upgrade security at sea ports and airports.
8. Military operations.
01/06/05 Potential allied air incursions into Iran (see above), unconfirmed at this time.
9. Dept of Homeland Scty. / State Department
01/05/05 PUBLIC ANNOUNCEMENT
U.S. DEPARTMENT OF STATE
Office of the Spokesman
This information is current as of today, Thu Jan 6 15:24:04 2005.
Israel, the West Bank and Gaza
January 5, 2005
This Public Announcement is being issued to alert U.S. citizens to security concerns during the upcoming Palestinian elections, especially in the West Bank and Gaza. This Public Announcement expires on January 18, 2005.
In light of the existing travel warning and the continuing unsettled security situation in the West Bank and Gaza, the Department of State remains concerned for the safety of Americans traveling in the West Bank and Gaza and continues to warn U.S. citizens to depart Gaza immediately and to defer travel to Israel, the West Bank and Gaza. We are particularly concerned that some Palestinian extremist elements, especially in Gaza, may attempt acts of violence against international election observers in an effort to undermine the Palestinian Authoritys ability to conduct free and fair elections on January 9, 2005. American citizens are urged to carefully review the existing travel warning for those areas. ....snip....
http://travel.state.gov/travel/cis_pa_tw/pa/pa_israelwestbankgaza.html
10. Suspicious Domestic Incidents Not Currently Linked to Specific Terrorism Attempts
01/05/05 Federal authorities on Tuesday used the Patriot Act to charge David Banach, 38, with interfering with the operator of a mass transportation vehicle and making false statements to the FBI. He is the first person arrested after a recent rash of reports around the nation of lasers being beamed at airplanes.
http://apnews.myway.com/article/20050105/D87DUR3O0.html
Note - no further lazing incidents have been reported since the arrest. - Godzilla
01/05/05 Federal authorities searched Wednesday for a man using a Middle Eastern name and possibly bogus construction credentials to try to purchase large quantities of an explosive ingredient used by Timothy McVeigh to blow up the Oklahoma City federal building.
http://www.boston.com/dailynews/005/wash/Feds_search_for_Middle_EasternP.shtml
01/03/05 Miami Police have evacuated the Graham Building and the Metro Justice building in Miami after witnesses reported seeing an unidentified person run away from a U-Haul truck. Police have cordoned off the area around the truck. The bomb squad has responded and sent a robot to investigate the truck. It peered in the window with a camera to feed back video to police.
http://www.local10.com/news/4042119/detail.html No explosives were found but the driver behaved in an irrational manner before running away. A very suspicious incident - Godzilla
01/03/05 A 9-year-old boy playing in the woods beside his grandparents' home found three rocket-propelled grenades, police and his family said. Children have reportedly played in the woods over past 35 years and never encountered the grenades. It is suspected that they were recently placed there.
http://abclocal.go.com/wpvi/news/01032005_nw_rocket_grenade.html
01/06/04 LEOs are still looking for stole tankers, propane tanks and a crop duster that could potentially be used for terrorist attacks - Godzilla