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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."