Threat Matrix: Daily Terror Threat

Threat Matrix: Daily Terror Threat

Thread Twenty-Seven (Index)

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The Threat Matrix

The title refers to a daily report given to the president of the United States detailing the most serious terrorist threats against the country. To tackle those threats, the government has formed a top-notch task force to infiltrate the terror cells and cut off the danger.

"Every morning, the president receives a list of the top ten terrorist threats - this list is known as the threat matrix."

We here at FR are trying to be in conjunction with the daily reports around the world that involve threats. We try to provide a storehouse of information that takes hours of research.

YOU be the judge and get informed!

Expert: Al-Qaida Has Presence In South Florida
Full Story

MIRAMAR, Fla. -- Despite the massive federal, state and local law enforcement effort to stop terrorists from entering the United States, there is no strong evidence of how well it is working.

Many experts are concerned that there are plenty of terrorists or sympathizers already in the country who have been here for years. Some are even citizens.

The Sept. 11, 2001, hijackers were the first wave and now the increasing number of arrests seems to signal a second wave of terrorism in South Florida.

"I will never cower before any master nor bend to any threat."

TM Terrorism Handbook

Link to Thread Twenty-Six

"Code Red Implications:
Code Red - Stay Home and Await Word."
From Tm'er and Freeper ~MamaDearest~

Arabic Links and Resources

TM 'Be on the Lookout'

ExSoldier's Invaluable Tips

Threat Matrix Book List

Godzilla's Summaries

Tracking the Chatter with TM

TM Code of Conduct

Threat Matrix HTML designed by: Ian Livingston

Yes, a book of OBL's writing is being published..........!!!!
granny

By Frank Green
UNION-TRIBUNE STAFF WRITER
July 6, 2005

Books to stack on the
bedside table this
fall: "Harry Potter
and the Half-Blood
Prince," "1776" . . .
"Messages to the
World – The
Statements of Osama
bin Laden"?
A New York-based
publisher of scholarly
and general-interest
titles, many of them
with a leftish political
slant, said yesterday
that it will release a
compendium of the terrorist fugitive's
speeches and written tracts to help the
American public better understand his
bloody guerrilla philosophy.

But the project raises questions about
whether profit earned, however indirectly,
from terrorist activities isn't so much blood
money – akin to reissuing a hate-filled
screed like Adolf Hitler's "Mein Kampf."

It's revenue "made off the words of a
criminal mastermind who murdered
30,000-plus Americans," said Scott
McConnell, editor and publisher of The
American Conservative magazine. " . . . It's
regrettable."

Bin Laden's al-Qaeda terrorist network has
claimed responsibility for the Sept. 11,
2001, World Trade Center and Pentagon
attacks, as well as other atrocities.

"Messages to the World" nevertheless
could find a place on the shelf with kindred
notorious products such as Charles
Manson's music albums ("Way of the Wolf,"
"Live at San Quentin," among others) and
artwork by Richard Ramirez, the so-called
Night Stalker.

Next month, Morning Star Communications
plans to publish "Son of Hope," the prison
journals of "Son of Sam" murderer David
Berkowitz.

Verso Books, which has issued best sellers
by the likes of Noam Chomsky, Rep. Bernie
Sanders, I-Vt., and Alexander Cockburn,
said the 224-page bin Laden hardback will
have an initial press run of 20,000 copies
selling for $24 apiece.

"We've had great interest (in the title) from
book chains and university stores," said
Amy Scholder, Verso's general manager.

Some scholars said yesterday that they
were more concerned about where the
tome's sales revenue might be funneled
than whether the book could be used by
militants in the U.S. as a sort of
inspirational text.

Bin Laden's writings are already
well-represented on the Internet, noted Jim
Phillips, a research fellow specializing in
Middle East affairs at the Heritage
Foundation in Washington, D.C.

"The question is, where does the money go
after people buy the book," said Phillips,
stressing that the work could serve a
valuable educational function if it presents
bin Laden's ideology in a balanced fashion.

If it has a positive spin and promotes the
idea that "people will be happier when the
infidels are killed, that's another thing," he
added.

Verso said yesterday that no money from
the book's sales will benefit bin Laden or
any terrorist organizations.

The publisher "has no interest in
supporting" al-Qaeda, Scholder said.

"Messages to the World" was translated
and edited by Islamic scholar Bruce
Lawrence, a professor of religion at Duke
University.

He has written several books, including
"Defenders of God: The Fundamentalist
Revolt Against the Modern Age."

Lawrence said yesterday that he has no
intention of glorifying bin Laden, whom he
described as "a devil we need to know."

The book traces how the terrorist's
message and strategy have evolved in the
past year, connecting strands of bin
Laden's Koranic scholarship, CIA training,
interventions in Persian Gulf politics and
messianic anti-imperialism that have come
to make up the foundation of al-Qaeda's
deadly program.

"We've heard more about bin Laden
publicly in the last five years than anybody
with an Arabic name," Lawrence said.

However, most translations of bin Laden's
work available in the West have been flat
and stale, and rife with misspellings and
bad punctuation, Lawrence said.

Some of bin Laden's prose "is actually quite
dazzling," he said.

Frank Green: (619) 293-1233;
frank.green@uniontrib.com

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olice cancel G8 protest march

Wednesday, July 6, 2005; Posted: 7:59 a.m. EDT (11:59 GMT)

http://www.cnn.com/2005/WORLD/europe/07/06/g8.main.ap/index.html

EDINBURGH, Scotland (AP) -- Police canceled a planned protest march
Wednesday outside the G8 summit after demonstrators smashed car windows,
threw rocks and attempted to blockade one of the main approach roads to
the exclusive Gleneagles resort hosting the summit.

Tayside Police said it called off the march in the village of
Auchterarder, expected to draw 5,000 or more people, on the grounds of public
safety after consulting with organizers.

But organizer G8 Alternatives accused the police of "disgraceful
behavior" in preventing thousands of people the right to stage a peaceful
protest.

"This is a serious indictment of British democracy," said spokeswoman
Gill Hubbard.

Police said they would turn back busloads of demonstrators who left
Edinburgh early in the morning for the march. Chief Superintendent Iain
MacLeod of Tayside Police said so far some 1,500 protesters had gathered
in Auchterarder. He said discussions continued with the march
organizers to see if some compromise could be reached.

Protesters already in Auchterarder were dismayed by the decision.

"How can they call this a democracy if they are not going to let us
take part in a peaceful protest?" said Marilyn Rooney, 54, from the
Scottish town of Alloa.

"There are no troublemakers here, there has been no trouble here and we
have been enjoying a good atmosphere," she said.

The protests had caused apprehension in Auchterarder, a village of
4,000 people 4 kilometers (2.5 miles) northeast of the Gleneagles summit
venue.

More than 100 activists, many clad in black and covering their faces
with bandanas and wearing hoods, streamed from a makeshift campsite in
Stirling in central Scotland, 22 kilometers (14 miles) southwest of
Gleneagles, where some 5,000 anarchists and anti-globalization protesters
are staying.

An Associated Press Television News cameraman said he saw a group of
about 100 smashing the windows of parked cars and throwing stones at
police. Police said a number of officers were injured, with eight receiving
hospital treatment. Tayside Police said 16 people had been arrested in
the Gleneagles area.

Police superintendent MacLeod said about 60 people had been arrested
following the violence in Stirling, and nine policemen had been
hospitalized. He gave no details of their injuries.

Traffic was snarled as police closed the M9 highway, the main approach
route to Gleneagles from the Scottish capital, Edinburgh.

Police in body armor, helmets and carrying shields formed a chain
across the M9 as dozens of protesters ran along the closed highway. Many ran
up an embankment and escaped across fields when they got to the police
line.

In nearby Bannockburn, protesters -- some wearing black crash helmets
and carrying iron bars -- smashed the windshields of parked cars and
threw rocks at police vans. A group linked their arms through inflated
tire inner tubes and charged a line of riot police blocking the road.
Several attacked a police van, hitting it with iron rods and kicking the
headlights as the vehicle reversed down a street.

Demonstrators pulled a protective iron grille from the windows of a
Burger King restaurant and smashed the glass. One slogan daubed on the
wall said: "10,000 Pharaohs, Six Billion Slaves."

Anti-globalization campaigners have vowed to disrupt the summit of the
leaders of the Group of Eight industrialized nations, who meet later
Wednesday at the tightly secured Gleneagles Hotel. British Prime Minister
Tony Blair, who this year chairs the G-8, arrived in a helicopter at
the hotel after flying back to Britain from Singapore, where he lobbied
for Britain's 2012 Olympic bid.

In Edinburgh, Live 8 organizer Bob Geldof greeted 12 double-decker
buses carrying some 1,000 anti-poverty demonstrators who responded to his
call to converge on the city for a march later in the day.

Geldof made a point of distinguishing between the Make Poverty History
supporters and the violent activists clashing with police.

"These are our people. You must not conflate the two. Some come in
peace and dignity and respect, some just come to make trouble. There is no
similarity between them," he said.

Geldof said he planned to travel to Gleneagles at some stage of the
three-day summit, hoping to address leaders. Asked what his message would
be he said: "Get five minutes' sleep, have a cup of coffee and get
Africa back on the road again."

About 50 "eco-warriors" used tree trunks and branches to block a bridge
in the town of Crieff, where some G8 delegates reportedly were staying.
One protester held up a sign: "G8 Democracy has to wait."

In Edinburgh, several small groups of demonstrators in black roamed
through the streets. Police formed a protective line around the Sheraton
Hotel.

AgriTerror.com Headlines 07/06/2005

Your source for free headlines concerning agricultural terrorism, bio-terrorism ioncidents and alerts, food and water supply threats, and
anything suspicious or unusual we think you should be aware of.

[groceryFAQs] AUSTRALIA - Retailers asked to ‘quarantine’ Snickers and Mars stock

"Masterfoods issued a state-wide recall after its head office in Ballarat, Victoria received third threatening letter which said seven
contaminated bars of Mars and Snickers have been placed on the shelves of some retail outlets in the Sydney Metropolitan area"

"matter was not made public earlier because it was only the third letter that "crystallised" the threat in specific terms by involving
health of the public"

http://www.groceryfaqs.com.au/modules.php?name=News&file=article&sid=220

[The Age] AUSTRALIA - Chocolate bars contain pest poison

http://www.theage.com.au/news/national/snickers-bar-laced-with-pest-poison/2005/07/06/1120329497336.html?onfiltered=true

[Consumer Affairs] USA - FDA Warns Of Contaminated Ice Cream

"may be associated with an outbreak of Salmonella Typhimurium infection in several states"

"FDA is working with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and our state partners to determine the source of the
contaminated product and is issuing this alert to protect the public,"

http://www.consumeraffairs.com/recalls04/2005/fda_salmonella.html

[Globe and Mail] CANADA - Mystery ailments hit Alberta hospital staff

"tests suggest someone is deliberately sneaking tranquillizers into their food or drinks"

http://www.theglobeandmail.com/servlet/ArticleNews/TPStory/LAC/20050706/NURSES06/TPNational/Canada

[groceryFAQs] AUSTRALIA - Retailers asked to ‘quarantine’ Snickers and Mars stock

"Masterfoods issued a state-wide recall after its head office in Ballarat, Victoria received third threatening letter which said seven
contaminated bars of Mars and Snickers have been placed on the shelves of some retail outlets in the Sydney Metropolitan area"

"matter was not made public earlier because it was only the third letter that "crystallised" the threat in specific terms by involving
health of the public"

http://www.groceryfaqs.com.au/modules.php?name=News&file=article&sid=220

[Houston Chronicle] USA - Database might help prevent outbreak

"USDA may use it to quarantine sick livestock"

http://www.chron.com/cs/CDA/ssistory.mpl/business/3250398

[noticias.info] UNITED KINGDOM - Outbreak of Bacterial Kidney Disease

http://www.noticias.info/asp/aspComunicados.asp?nid=81057&src=0

July 06, 2005

113 chemical plants (7 in N.J.) deemed deadliest if attacked

BY ROBERT COHEN AND J. SCOTT ORR
STAR-LEDGER WASHINGTON BUREAU

WASHINGTON — Terrorists could kill more than a million people through an attack on any of seven New Jersey chemical plants, according to a new congressional study that found deadly threats from lax security in general at chemical facilities across the country.

According to the study by the Congressional Research Service, worst-case attacks on any of 113 plants in 23 states would result in 1 million or more deaths. Twenty- nine of the plants are in Texas.

"The report shows that this is not just a problem along the New Jersey Turnpike," said Andy Igrejas of the National Environmental Trust, a nonpartisan watchdog group. "There are plants that put hundreds of thousands — even millions — of people at risk in the Deep South, Midwest and Western states as well."

Rep. Ed Markey (D-Mass.), who requested the report and released it yesterday, urged federal action to tighten security at America's chemical plants.

"The Bush administration needs to understand that the threat is not theoretical. There are nightclubs in New York City that are harder to get into than some of our chemical plants," Markey said.

The report was based on statistics from the Environmental Pro tection Agency that are used to as sess the threats posed by accidental release of chemical stockpiles. Neither the report nor the EPA data identified which plants pose the biggest risks.

According to the report, Texas has 29 major targets, the most of any state, where attacks would re sult in 1 million or more deaths. California and Illinois have 13 each; Ohio has eight; and New Jersey and Florida have seven each.

The report also shows New Jersey has as many as seven other plants that, in a worst-case attack, would lead to between 100,000 and 999,999 deaths, plus 20 plants that would cause 10,000 to 99,999 deaths, 20 others that would cause 1,000 to 9,999 deaths, and 46 that would cause 999 deaths or fewer.

Terrorism experts have de scribed the stretch of northern New Jersey between Newark Lib erty International Airport and Port Elizabeth as the most dangerous two miles in America because of its concentration of people, chemical plants, oil storage tanks, refineries, pipelines, highways, rail links, and port complexes.

After several years of resistance, the Bush administration reversed course last month and said it supports regulating chemical facilities that might be terrorist targets. The administration previously had fa vored industry self-regulation.

Robert Stephan, an assistant secretary at the Department of Homeland Security, told a Senate committee that voluntary safety measures taken by some of the largest chemical companies have been insufficient to safeguard communities. He said the administration is "assessing the need for a carefully measured, risk-based regulatory regime," but he provided no details.

Congressional attempts at regulation have been led by Sen. Jon Corzine (D-N.J.), who for three years has called for a comprehensive system for companies to enhance security procedures and dis close information about their operations.

Corzine and Sen. Susan Collins (R-Maine), who chairs the Committee on Homeland Security and Government Affairs, are working on a compromise measure that would give the Department of Homeland Security the responsibility for securing chemical plants.

"The Congressional Research Service survey requested by Congressman Markey shows once again how important it is for the Congress and the administration to stop talking about the potential consequences of a terrorist assault on one of our chemical facilities and act to create tough, uniform security standards," said Corzine, New Jersey's Democratic gubernatorial candidate. "It's time we move on this issue."

Several diseases on this list, that I would not have considered as terrorism........

BioTerrorismNews.com Headlines 07/06//2005 # 1

Your source for free bioterrorism news as well as updates on outbreaks, quarantines, mystery deaths, epidemics and pandemics.

[groceryFAQs] AUSTRALIA - Retailers asked to ‘quarantine’ Snickers and Mars stock

"Masterfoods issued a state-wide recall after its head office in Ballarat, Victoria received third threatening letter which said seven
contaminated bars of Mars and Snickers have been placed on the shelves of some retail outlets in the Sydney Metropolitan area"

"matter was not made public earlier because it was only the third letter that "crystallised" the threat in specific terms by involving health
of the public"

http://www.groceryfaqs.com.au/modules.php?name=News&file=article&sid=220

[The Age] AUSTRALIA - Chocolate bars contain pest poison

http://www.theage.com.au/news/national/snickers-bar-laced-with-pest-poison/2005/07/06/1120329497336.html?onfiltered=true

[Consumer Affairs] USA - FDA Warns Of Contaminated Ice Cream

"may be associated with an outbreak of Salmonella Typhimurium infection in several states"

"FDA is working with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and our state partners to determine the source of the
contaminated product and is issuing this alert to protect the public,"

http://www.consumeraffairs.com/recalls04/2005/fda_salmonella.html

[Globe and Mail] CANADA - Mystery ailments hit Alberta hospital staff

"tests suggest someone is deliberately sneaking tranquillizers into their food or drinks"

http://www.theglobeandmail.com/servlet/ArticleNews/TPStory/LAC/20050706/NURSES06/TPNational/Canada

[Tahlequah Daily Press] OKLAHOMA - Local officials train for bioterrorism

http://www.tahlequahdailypress.com/articles/2005/07/05/news/top_stories/bioterrorism.txt

[Orlando Sentinel] FLORIDA - Mystery irritant sickens shoppers

"More than 2 dozen complain of breathing problems at Wal-Mart in Daytona Beach"

"Volusia County emergency officials said they decontaminated 26 people "

http://www.orlandosentinel.com/news/local/volusia/orl-locvwalmart04070405jul04,0,4208283.story?coll=orl-news-headlines-volusia

[Tribune news services] CONNECTICUT - FBI: Woman mailed rat poison to justices

http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/nationworld/chi-0507030136jul03,1,6705321.story?coll=chi-newsnationworld-hed

[Deseret News] USA - Film Examines Bioterror Preparedness

http://www.rednova.com/news/health/161809/film_examines_bioterror_preparedness/

[AP] USA - Experts Question Science Behind Bio-Germ

"North Texas businessman peddling a lotion he claims can protect the public from anthrax has garnered support from a veteran
congressman, a respected police chief and a microbiologist at a University of Texas branch known for bioterrorism research"

http://www.rednova.com/news/health/161506/experts_question_science_behind_biogerm/

[Trinidad Express] TRINIDAD - Trinidad: Girl, 10, dies after bout of mysterious illness [ Fever, heart failure, loss of consciousness,
liver+kidney failure, vomiting, pain, loss of consciousness, BP drop, cause unknown, no response to medicine]

http://mathaba.net/0_index.shtml?x=260585

[Herald-Zeitung] TEXAS - County, city ready for hazmat emergency

http://web.herald-zeitung.com/story.lasso?wcd=13213

[Anatolian Times] TURKEY - Turkish village quarantined after anthrax outbreak

"eight villagers were diagnosed with anthrax"

http://www.anatoliantimes.com/hbr2.asp?id=51033

[Xinhua] MONGOLIA - Nine sheep die of Anthrax in Mongolia

http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/2005-07/05/content_3177275.htm

[DukeMed News] USA - Facts About Anthrax

http://www.emaxhealth.com/39/2494.html

[Reuters] INDONESIA - Indonesia polio outbreak worsens with 11 new cases

http://www.alertnet.org/thenews/newsdesk/L06128570.htm

[TODAYonline] ETHIOPIA - Rare outbreak of leishmaniasis kills more than 150 in Ethiopia

http://www.todayonline.com/articles/59862.asp

[AP] CAMBODIA - Cambodia Suffering Deadly Flu Outbreak [ Possibly bird flu ]

"where hospitals are crowded with children with respiratory infections "

http://www.newsday.com/news/nationworld/world/wire/sns-ap-cambodia-human-flu,0,6411536.story?coll=sns-ap-world-headlines

[Reuters] MALI - Cholera outbreak kills 14 in western Mali

http://abcnews.go.com/Health/wireStory?id=907530

[IndiaPost] INDIA - 500 medical teams to counter epidemic threat in Gujarat

http://www.indiapost.com/members/story.php?story_id=4981

[Reuters] JAPAN - Japan bird flu outbreak contained -local official [H5N2]

http://www.alertnet.org/thenews/newsdesk/T124475.htm

[The Herald] GLOBAL - Bird flu outbreak ‘at key stage’ for people

"Asia's bird flu outbreak is at a critical stage where it could easily become a human pandemic and officials should help prevent that by
launching mass vaccinations of poultry, UN health experts warned"

http://www.theherald.co.uk/42466.shtml

[Clarksburg Exponent and Telegram] WEST VIRGINIA - Health officials are preparing for possible flu pandemic

http://www.cpubco.com/cgi-bin/LiveIQue.acgi$rec=19544cbgCurrentLocalNews?cbgCurrentLocalNews

[AFX] GLOBAL - Bird flu pandemic 'just a matter of time'; nations must be better prepared-WHO

"if the virus mutates and erupts among humans in one of Asia's crowded cities, it will be impossible to prevent it from becoming a
pandemic"

http://www.forbes.com/business/feeds/afx/2005/07/05/afx2124614.html

[News and Star] UNITED KINGDOM - Emergency Taskforce Prepares for Bird Flu

http://www.newsandstar.co.uk/news/viewarticle.aspx?id=260368

[Recombinomics] GLOBAL - 2005 H5N1 Recombinant Between Vietnam and Yunnan [ Bird flu ]

http://www.recombinomics.com/News/07040502/H5N1_Recombinant_Vietnam_Yunnan.html

[Recombinomics] USA / NEPAL ? H3N2 California Origins in Nepal [H3N2]

"California strain began to appear at surveillance sites in the US at the beginning of 2005 and quickly spread across the country and then
was found worldwide"

http://www.recombinomics.com/News/06290501/H3N2_California_Nepal.html

[CORDIS RTD-NEWS] EUROPE - European efforts on diagnostics quality assurance for communicable diseases

"since the anthrax incidents in the US in 2001 and recent worldwide terror attacks, the authorities have become aware of the need to be
prepared for dealing with citizens exposed to or infected with bioterrorism (BT) agents"

http://dbs.cordis.lu/cgi-bin/srchidadb?CALLER=NHP_EN_NEWS&ACTION=D&SESSION=&RCN=EN_RCN_ID:24103

[BUSINESS WIRE (Press Release)] USA - Vaccine Researchers Combat Biothreat Agents; Preclinical Safety Testing Aims to Reduce the
Deadly Effects of Ricin Toxin

http://home.businesswire.com/portal/site/google/index.jsp?ndmViewId=news_view&newsId=20050705005541&newsLang=en

Military Expands Homeland Efforts
Pentagon to Share Data With Civilian Agencies

By Bradley Graham
Washington Post Staff Writer
Wednesday, July 6, 2005; A01

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2005/07/05/AR2005070501669.html

A new Pentagon strategy for securing the U.S. homeland calls for
expanded U.S. military activity not only in the air and sea -- where the
armed forces have historically guarded approaches to the country -- but
also on the ground and in other less traditional, potentially more
problematic areas such as intelligence sharing with civilian law enforcement.

The strategy is outlined in a 40-page document, approved last month,
that marks the Pentagon's first attempt since the attacks of Sept. 11,
2001, to present a comprehensive plan for defending the U.S. homeland.

The document argues that a more "active, layered" defense is needed and
says that U.S. forces must be ready to deal not just with a single
terrorist strike but also with "multiple, simultaneous" attacks involving
mass casualties.

The document does not ask for new legal authority to use military
forces on U.S. soil, but it raises the likelihood that U.S. combat troops
will take action in the event that civilian and National Guard forces are
overwhelmed. At the same time, the document stresses that primary
responsibility for domestic security continues to rest with civilian
agencies.

"The role of the military within domestic American society, both by law
and by history, has been carefully constrained, and there is nothing in
our strategy that would move away from that historic principle," said
Paul McHale, the Pentagon's assistant secretary for homeland defense.

Still, some of the provisions appear likely to draw concern from civil
liberties groups that have warned against a growing military
involvement in homeland missions and an erosion of long-established barriers to
military surveillance and combat operations in the United States.

The document acknowledges, for instance, plans to team military
intelligence analysts with civilian law enforcement to identify and track
suspected terrorists. It also recognizes an expanded role for the National
Guard in preparing to deal with the aftermath of terrorist attacks. And
it asserts the president's authority to deploy ground combat forces on
U.S. territory "to intercept and defeat threats."

"It's a mixed message," said Timothy H. Edgar, a national security
specialist with the American Civil Liberties Union. "I do see language in
the document acknowledging limits on military involvement, but that
seems at odds with other parts of the document. They seem to be trying to
have it both ways."

The document, titled "Strategy for Homeland Defense and Civil Support,"
was signed June 24 by acting Deputy Defense Secretary Gordon England
and is now a basis for organizing troops, developing weapons and
assigning missions. It was released late last week without the sort of formal
news conference or background briefing that often accompanies major
defense policy statements.

McHale, in an interview, said the new strategy represents a major shift
from a reactive mind-set that existed before the 2001 attacks. The
emphasis since, he said, has been on pressing U.S. defenses outward to spot
and eliminate threats before they reach U.S. territory.

"The strategy's implementation hinges on an active, layered defense in
depth that is designed to defeat the most dangerous challenges early,
at a safe distance, before they are allowed to mature," the document
says.

The assumption of the need to prepare for multiple, simultaneous
terrorist attacks, McHale explained, marks a change from previous planning
scenarios that had envisioned single strikes. The change is based on what
McHale called a "recurring pattern" of attacks around the world by al
Qaeda and other terrorist groups.

Under the new strategy, U.S. air and naval forces will continue to
improve efforts to scan and patrol approaches to the United States. Some of
the moves began immediately after the Sept. 11 attacks. But maritime
efforts have lagged airspace measures, and even U.S. air defenses will
require further improvementsto deal with potential attacks by low-flying
cruise missiles and pilotless aircraft, the document notes.

The strategy draws a distinction between the "lead" role that the
Pentagon intends to play in bolstering these long-established air and sea
missions and the "support" role still envisioned for U.S. land
operations.

Legal barriers to sending the armed forces into U.S. streets have
existed for more than a century under the Posse Comitatus Act. Enacted in
1878, the law was prompted by the perceived misuse of federal troops
after the Civil War to supervise elections in the former Confederate
states. Over the years, the law has come to reflect a more general reluctance
to involve the military in domestic law enforcement, although its
provisions have been amended from time to time to allow some exceptions,
including a military role in putting down insurrections, in assisting in
drug interdiction work, and in providing equipment, training and advice.

Along with civil liberties groups, many senior Pentagon officials have
tended to be wary of seeing troops operate on U.S. soil. Military
commanders argue that their personnel are not specifically trained in
domestic security, and they worry that homeland tasks could lead to serious
political problems.

Still, the Pentagon has established new administrative structures in
recent years in recognition of a growing military contribution to
homeland defense. It set up the Northern Command in 2002 to oversee military
operations in the United States. It created a new assistant secretary
for homeland defense. And it designated a one-star general on the Joint
Chiefs of Staff to work on the issue.

Additionally, the National Guard has been building small "civil support
teams" to provide emergency assistance in the wake of a chemical,
biological, nuclear or high-explosive attack. By the end of 2007, 55 of the
22-person teams are due -- at least one for each state and U.S.
territory.

The new strategy notes that the Guard "is particularly well suited for
civil support missions" because it is "forward deployed in 3,200
communities," exercises routinely with local law enforcement and is
accustomed to dealing with communities in times of crisis. Indeed, Guard leaders
have welcomed an expanded homeland security role.

But they have also argued for allowing the Guard to retain its overseas
combat missions, concerned that a sole focus on civil support would
undermine the Guard's ability to serve as a strategic reserve and to fight
in future wars.

The new strategy calls for the development of larger sets of "modular
reaction forces" to be staffed by the Guard for dealing with the
aftermath of mass-casualty attacks. Officials said the composition of these
forces is under discussion as part of this year's Quadrennial Defense
Review, a Pentagon-wide reassessment of missions, weapons and forces.

But the homeland defense strategy also explicitly rejects the idea of
dedicating these additional Guard forces to the civil support mission,
saying they will remain "dual mission in nature."

In the area of intelligence, the strategy speaks of developing "a
cadre" of Pentagon terrorism specialists and of deploying "a number of them"
to "interagency centers" for homeland defense and counterterrorism -- a
reference to new teaming arrangements with the FBI and other domestic
law enforcement agencies. The document notes that this represents a
significant departure from the Cold War when Pentagon analysts worked
mostly with the State Department and the intelligence community to combat
the Soviet Union.

"The move toward a domestic intelligence capability by the military is
troubling," said Gene Healy, a senior editor at the Cato Institute, a
nonprofit libertarian policy research group in Washington.

"The last time the military got heavily involved in domestic
surveillance, during the Vietnam War era, military intelligence kept thousands of
files on Americans guilty of nothing more than opposing the war," Healy
said. "I don't think we want to go down that road again."

Do you get the feeling that war is ready to break out all over the world, with us in the middle???
granny

Shortcut to:
http://www.canada.com/national/nationalpost/news/issuesideas/story.html?
id=b594df09-e19a-4a54-8128-b47efad034cf

Hezbollah's Palestinian outreach program

Michael Burrows
National Post

July 6, 2005

Many issues were hashed over during the recent Iranian election
campaign
-- including the country's faltering economy, its isolation on the
world
stage and the growing number of young voters disillusioned with the
revolution that brought the Mullahs to power in 1979.

But among the carefully vetted candidates, one subject remained tabboo:
Iran's ongoing efforts to sabotage peace efforts between Israel and the
Palestinians.

It has long been known in intelligence circles that Iran's terrorist
proxy in southern Lebanon, Hezbollah, has been training Palestinian
terror groups, including Hamas, Islamic Jihad and the Al-Aqsa Martyr's
Brigades. For years, Yasser Arafat looked the other way at the
infiltration of Hezbollah agents. But now that the PA is headed by
Mahmoud Abbas, the Palestinians themselves are complaining about
Hezbollah's presence in the West Bank and Gaza.

Since Israel's strategic withdrawal from Lebanon in May 2000, Hezbollah
has been robbed of its primary adversary and, therefore, its raison
d'etre. Israel's withdrawal to an internationally-recognized border has
also frustrated Hezbollah's masters in Tehran -- who delighted in
fighting a war by proxy against the hated "Zionist Entity."

And so, on instructions from Iran, Hezbollah started a recruiting
campaign, targeting Palestinian militants soon after the outbreak of
the
second Intifada in September, 2000. The first public evidence of Iran's
involvement came to light in January of 2002, when Israeli special
forces executed "Operation Noah's Ark," capturing a 4,000-ton
weapons-laden freighter en route to Gaza from Iran. The Iranian- and
Russian-made weapons on board included Katyusha rockets with a
20-kilometre range, anti-tank missiles, mortars, mines, sniper rifles,
ammunition and more than two tons of high explosives. The interdiction
provided the smoking gun proving Iran's involvement in Palestinian
terror.

Hezbollah's terrorist operations master, and the man tasked with
undermining the nascent peace efforts, is Imad Mughniyah, also known as
Hajj amongst his followers. Mughniyeh, a Lebanese Shiite who first
earned his terrorist spurs as a member of Yasser Arafat's Force 17,
founded Hezbollah as a rival to the Syrian-backed Amal Militia after
the
Palestinians quit Beirut in 1982.

Mughniyeh is responsible for a long list of suicide bombings,
hijackings
and attacks that have cost hundreds of lives, including the bombings
that destroyed a U.S. Marine base and Embassy in Beirut, killing some
300 people. Lacking Osama bin Laden's enormous ego and propensity for
home-made video productions, Mughniyeh has avoided the limelight and
has
no aspirations to appear on Al-Jazeera or CNN.

Mughniyeh is successful because he prefers to pull the strings from the
shadows of Beirut, Damascus and Tehran. He does not venture from these
terrorist sanctuaries because, like bin Laden, he has a place on the
FBI's Most Wanted Terrorists list, as well as a US$5-million price on
his head.

The links between Hezbollah, Iran and the Palestinian terror groups are
based on multiple layers of covert contacts that wind back to the
Iranian Ministry of Intelligence and Security (MOIS) and Pasdaran, the
Iranian Revolutionary Guards Corps.

Both these organizations are tasked with providing material support to
terrorist organizations dedicated to fighting Israel, the United States
and other supposed agents of western imperialism. These shadowy
elements
maintain a presence in most of Iran's embassies worldwide and recently
gained media attention in Canada for their involvement in the murder of
photojournalist Zahra Kazemi. According to sources in the Israel
Security Agency, about 50 squads of six to eight gunmen in the West
Bank, most of them affiliated with the Al-Aqsa Martyrs Brigade, are
directly funded by Hezbollah via Iran.

But Iran's violent, self-serving plans for the Palestinians may be in
jeopardy. According to an Agence France-Presse report, Mr. Abbas has
dispatched a top aide to Lebanon for talks with Hezbollah's leaders.
Abdelfatah Hamayel, who served as a cabinet minister under Abbas during
his time as Palestinian Authority prime minister in 2003, was expected
to urge the Shiite militia to stop funding attacks.

The dispatch of Mr Hamayel is based on the real fear in the Palestinian
camp that Iran will radicalize the conflict with Israel to the point of
no return. Hezbollah is already widely admired amongst the general
Palestinian population. The resulting loss of whatever tenuous control
Mr. Abbas's secular administration possesses will be dealt a fatal
blow,
and the already muted voices of moderation amongst his followers will
be
drowned out for good.

For their part, Western leaders must recognize the significance in the
PA's change of policy and support Mr. Abbas's efforts to prevent Tehran
and its terrorist proxies from derailing the peace negotiations.
Palestinian leaders may sometimes look the other way at terrorism, but
they are at least constrained by the knowledge that they will live with
the consequences. Iran's leaders suffer no such constraints: Their only
interest is bloodshed. And given the result of last week's election,
there seems little chance that will soon change.

C National Post 2005

Copyright C 2005 CanWest Interactive, a division of CanWest Global
Communications Corp. All rights reserved.
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http://www.defenselink.mil/news/Jul2005/20050706_1981.html

Iraqi, Coalition Forces Remain in Hit; More Weapons Found in Baghdad

American Forces Press Service

WASHINGTON, July 6, 2005 – Military officials in Baghdad, Iraq, today said U.S. and Iraqi forces will remain in the Iraqi city of Hit indefinitely to provide a security presence by manning outposts and conducting joint patrols and stabilization operations.
Hit has a population of about 120,000 and is about 100 miles northwest of Baghdad.

Iraqi security forces and U.S. Marines and soldiers from Regimental Combat Team 2, 2nd Marine Division, are there destroying weapons caches and clearing terrorists from the city as part of the final stages of Operation Saif (Sword), which began June 28.

Military commanders called resistance during the operation "light" and "sporadic." They added that there were no major battles or air strikes, no fatalities among Iraqi or American forces, and no disruption of basic utilities or medical treatment for Hit citizens.

Though U.S. Marines and Iraqi soldiers have operated from Camp Hit, a small base on the outskirts of the city, this is the first time combined forces will live and work continuously within the city, officials said. Hit joins the major cities of Ramadi, Habbaniyah and Fallujah in having a persistent presence of Iraqi security forces. Elsewhere, Task Force Baghdad soldiers detained four terror suspects south of Baghdad for questioning and seized 1 million Iraqi dinar and $6,000 in U.S. currency during a house raid July 4. The four suspects are believed to have planned or taken part in a number of kidnappings in the area.

Military officials said no hostages were found at the residence. However, there was evidence of TNT, as well as terrorist propaganda and documents in the home.

In western Abu Ghraib, Task Force Baghdad troops uncovered two weapons caches. One cache, found July 4, contained three rocket-propelled-grenade launchers, seven RPG warheads, two grenades, and 300 rounds of 7.62 mm and 12.5 mm ammunition.

Acting on a tip from a local Iraqi citizen July 1, troops found a cache containing an SA-7 surface-to-air missile, an RPG launcher, a mortar tube, four RPGs, a machine gun, two AK-47 assault rifles with ammunition, and bomb-making materials.

(Compiled from Multinational Force Iraq news releases.)

Related Site:
Multinational Force Iraq

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