Posted on 01/27/2006 9:19:04 AM PST by Ernest_at_the_Beach
Colombian has dismantled a false passport ring with links to al-Qaida and Hamas militants, the acting attorney general said Thursday after authorities led dozens of simultaneous raids across five cities in collaboration with U.S. officials.
In Washington, however, Justice and Homeland Security officials were surprised by the announcement of the investigation, which they said involved people posing as members of Colombia's largest rebel army, the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia, or FARC not al-Qaida or Hamas.
Colombian officials said the gang allegedly supplied an unknown number of citizens from Pakistan, Jordan, Iraq, Egypt and other countries with false passports and Colombian nationality without them ever setting foot in the country.
An undisclosed number of those arrested are wanted for working with the al-Qaida terror network and the militant Palestinian group Hamas, said acting Attorney General Jorge Armando Otalora.
The counterfeit Colombian, Spanish, Portugese and German passports were used to enter the United States and Europe, he said.
But Justice Department spokesman Bryan Sierra said an indictment unsealed Wednesday in Miami charges 10 foreign nationals with smuggling "people that they thought were members of FARC into the United States."
"We are not alleging any connections to any terror organization other than the FARC," said Justice Department spokesman Bryan Sierra.
He said the U.S. will seek to extradite the 10 alleged smugglers, of whom eight have been arrested.
"The operation was, in fact, a sting operation led by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement," he said, adding that Colombian law enforcement were "an active and critical part" of the investigation
The Colombian attorney general's office said 19 people were arrested in Thursday's raids, adding they were carried out in collaboration with U.S. authorities.
Four Jordanian citizens were among those arrested, Manuel Saenz, head of foreign immigration for the DAS secret police, said on Caracol television. Eight people are being sought inside the United States for extradition to Colombia, Otalora said.
Colombian authorities began to covertly trail and film suspects to unveil a criminal network with the help of their U.S. counterparts.
The eight wanted by federal authorities in Florida on charges of abetting illegal immigration rings and collaborating with terrorist groups include a Jordanian national and a DAS detective, Colombian authorities said.
Colombian officials didn't say if they believed any Colombian terrorist groups were involved in the scheme.
U.S. officials have long feared al-Qaida could take advantage of corrupt government officials and weak institutions to launch an attack from south of the border.
___
Associated Press writer Lara Jakes Jordan in Washington contributed to this report.
How Many Buttons Will This Story Push?
January 26, 2006
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Three Iraqis traveled to Colombia in 2002, before our invasion, on Israeli passports supplied by al-Qaeda and Hamas. That sounds like a good indication of a connection between Saddam Hussein and al-Qaeda, I would think. Does anyone wonder what their final destination was, or how they planned on getting there? And does anyone else find it interesting that Hamas and al-Qaeda launched joint operations to send people to the United States back in 2002, or even earlier than that, well before we invaded Iraq? This also tends to put the Hamas victory in the Palestinian Authority elections in a new light. If they're teaming up with al-Qaeda on missions against the US, then we should treat them just the same as we do al-Qaeda, and wipe them out, regardless of their electoral status in the West Bank and Gaza.
The Colombians have identified eight suspects they believe are in the US and want extradited for prosecution. The NSA program just went from an academic exercise to a practical application. The Colombians know that at least eight people snuck through on faked passports and are now in the United States. Do you suppose that an NSA program designed to check international calls might help locate these suspects -- and perhaps help stop a planned attack on an American target? Obviously, this long-term and expensive project by the al-Qaeda/Hamas partnership has some grand mission in mind. They're not traveling to the US for their health; they want to stage new attacks on the American mainland.
How does everyone feel about that international surveillance now? Sounds like a pretty damned good idea, doesn't it?
Sounds like a good connection between Hamas and Al-Queda which has been suspected for months.
This is really going to put Bush in a bind, one one hand we are fighting Al-Queda while in the other is a stack of money to pay them.
Which hand will win?
Excellent news. Amazing how this isn't hitting the main MSM or is it?
Amazing how little attention this is getting, even here....
Caution ....lots of discussion on the reality of the three Iraqi's ...see post #2....in the Blog comments ....
The US Government and the Columbia government have differing views.....
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Contradicting the claims of U.S. officials, acting Colombian Attorney General Jorge Armando Otálora insisted Friday that his country's detectives uncovered evidence that the criminal gang may have supplied false documents to members of al Qaeda and Hamas terrorists.
The U.S. Justice Department denied any links between the counterfeiters and foreign terrorist organizations other than outlawed armed groups in Colombia.
As part of the undercover operation, coordinated with Colombian prosecutors and DAS secret police, operatives working for the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, or ICE, disguised themselves as members of the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia, or FARC, and sought false passports to enter the United States.
The indictment also alleges the defendants offered to help the supposed FARC members buy and sell illegal drugs, as well as to purchase guns and two helicopters. ''I don't know what the Colombian information is based on, but if there was any involvement of Islamic terrorist groups, we would be pursuing it to the hilt,'' said Bryan Sierra, a Justice Department spokesman.
More nfo.
"will the MSM report the story with bias against the Bush administration?"
'You bet your sweet ass they will!'
Excellent Summary!
bump for publicity
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