Threat Matrix: Daily Terror Threat

Afghanistan Calls for Crackdown at Border
(Full Story)

Pakistan needs to do more to crack down on terrorism along the Pakistani-Afghan border, a spokesman for Afghan President Hamid Karzai said Tuesday.

Rahim Karimi said in the news conference that Afghanistan need greater "cooperation" from both its eastern neighbor and the international community in its battle against Islamic militants.

Coalition and Afghan forces have in recent days been fighting fierce battles against Taliban fighters near the Afghan-Pakistan border.

	Soldiers Kill 5 Militants in Afghanistan
	Joseph Farah: Real Bad News in Afghanistan
	Karzai Urges Coalition Forces to Show Restraint
	Zawahri's New Video Calls Muslims to Support Mujahideen

Thread Thirty-Six

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Note: The following text is a quote:
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http://www.usdoj.gov/opa/pr/2006/May/06_crm_298.html

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
WEDNESDAY, MAY 17, 2006
WWW.USDOJ.GOV
CRM
(202) 514-2007
TDD (202) 514-1888
Money Laundering Indictment Unsealed Against Major Internet Gambling Site Operators, Alleges $250 Million In Online Wagers

WASHINGTON, D.C.—The U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia unsealed an indictment yesterday against William Scott, Jessica Davis, Soulbury Ltd. and WorldWide Telesports, Inc., (WWTS) for offenses related to the laundering of an estimated $250 million worth of Internet gambling wagers, Assistant Attorney General Alice S. Fisher announced today. This indictment underscores the Justice Department’s commitment to attacking illegal Internet gambling concerns by using federal anti-money laundering laws.

The 12-count indictment, filed April 7, 2005, alleges that from April 1998 through the date of the indictment, Scott and Davis operated WWTS, one of several entities through which they illegally enticed gamblers to send funds from the United States to Antigua with the intent that these funds would be used for wagers on Internet casino games and sporting events, such as the National Football League’s Super Bowl and the National Collegiate Athletic Association’s men’s basketball championship tournament, as well as baseball, hockey and other sporting events. The indictment alleges that wagers were placed by toll-free telephone numbers and through www.BetWWTS.com and other Internet websites controlled by the defendants. Soliciting such wagers over the Internet violates the Wire and Travel Acts. The indictment also alleges that by causing funds to be sent from places within the United States to places abroad with the intent to promote Wire and Travel Act violations, Scott and Davis engaged in a money laundering conspiracy.

Furthermore, the indictment specifies subsequent financial transactions made by Scott with the proceeds of this illegal gambling activity as separate money laundering violations, as well as alleges his failure to report foreign bank accounts to the Internal Revenue Service.

According to the indictment, Soulbury Limited is one of the “shell” corporations that Scott used to hide his personal profits from the illegal gambling enterprise, including $10 million of illegal proceeds that Scott attempted to hide in Guernsey, an independent state off the coast of France. The United States, with assistance from the Guernsey government, was able to restrain $7 million of these laundered gambling proceeds from the U.S. correspondent account of a foreign bank in a parallel civil forfeiture action filed in the District of Columbia in December 2003. Funds for wagers to be placed on, or funds paid out from, “offshore” Internet gambling sites violates U.S. law and such activities present a threat to the integrity of the country’s financial system.

Scott and Davis are fugitives. The two were previously charged in a March 20, 1998, criminal complaint filed in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York, as a result of an FBI investigation into Wire Act violations for operating WWTS.

This case is being prosecuted by Trial Attorney Mark Yost of the Asset Forfeiture and Money Laundering Section of the Criminal Division. The related civil forfeiture action is being pursued by Deputy Chief Linda Samuel, Senior Trial Attorney Jack de Kluiver and Trial Attorney Robert Stapleton of the section’s International Program Unit. The case is being investigated by the Internal Revenue Service Criminal Investigation’s International Grand Jury Task Force.

###

06-298

http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1635606/posts?page=235#235

Let's add these links to go with the article you posted, STARWISE.
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ON THE NET...

http://news.google.com/news?hl=en&q=%22school%20bus%22&btnG=Google+Search&sa=N&tab=wn

http://news.google.com/news?hl=en&tab=wn&ie=UTF-8&ncl=http://www.sptimes.com/2006/05/20/Hillsborough/School_bus_ride_takes.shtml

http://www.foxnews.com
http://www.cnn.com
http://www.wtop.com

===
===

UNRELATED TO ARTICLE ABOVE and ON THE NET...

http://www.pressconnects.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20060521/NEWS01/605210371/1006

NEWS
"Bus 'hijacking' a learning experience
Students assist emergency personnel in drill"

By Liz Hacken
Press & Sun-Bulletin

ARTICLE SNIPPET: "OWEGO -- Concerned on-lookers watched from bleachers as firefighters nimbly crawled into the shattered windows of an overturned school bus, rescuing victims who needed medical treatment. Emergency medical technicians were on hand to treat their injuries, even if the most severe wounds were only a few smears of red paint.

Although the exercise Saturday for Tioga County emergency responders was just a drill, the preparation and lessons were real."

ARTICLE SNIPPET #2: ""School buses are soft targets," Quaranta said. "You can have problems of this magnitude at any time.""

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/africa/5001540.stm

Last Updated: Sunday, 21 May 2006, 00:09 GMT 01:09 UK

"Paris and Rabat in security pact"

ARTICLE SNIPPET: "France and Morocco have agreed to work together to combat terrorism, drug trafficking and illegal immigration.
French Interior Minister Nicolas Sarkozy agreed the deal with his Moroccan counterpart, Chakib Benmoussa.

Mr Sarkozy was in Morocco as part of an African tour, widely seen as a prelude to his presidential bid next year.

He has already visited Benin and Mali, where there were street protests over his tough immigration policy, designed to keep out "unskilled" foreigners.

French MPs have already backed Mr Sarkozy's immigration bill but it can only become law after it has been passed by the Senate."

http://www.wtopnews.com/?nid=104&sid=672025

"Witness Says Gun Tied to Sniper Shootings"
May 19th - 4:41pm

By STEPHEN MANNING Associated Press Writer

ARTICLE SNIPPET: "ROCKVILLE, Md. (AP) - A federal ballistics expert testified Friday that most of the bullets used in the 2002 Washington-area sniper shootings were fired by the rifle found in the back of John Allen Muhammad's car.

The testimony of scientist Walter Dandridge of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives was central to the prosecution's case against Muhammad for six of the sniper shootings in Maryland.

Another key element will likely come next week. Muhammad's accomplice, Lee Boyd Malvo, was expected to plead guilty to the same six slayings and testify Monday against Muhammad, according to a person close to the case who spoke on condition of anonymity because the deal was not final.

Neither Malvo's attorney, Tim Sullivan, nor Montgomery County prosecutors would discuss Malvo.

Both men have already been convicted in Virginia. Malvo, who was 18 when the two were arrested, was sentenced to life in prison. Muhammad, 45, was sentenced to death.

The pair is also suspected of earlier shootings in Maryland, Alabama, Arizona, Georgia, Louisiana and Washington state."

Traveled to the midwest last week via airplane. The ONLY hijab garbed people I saw were at the Detroit airport. It's always fascinating to watch other travelers and locals at flight transfer points along the way.

Mexican union worker seeks shelter in Canada

Snip: A union leader at the centre of a labour crisis in Mexico has sought shelter from the storm in Canada, creating yet another awkward situation between the two countries.

The Mexican government removed Napoleon Gomez Urrutia from his post as head of the National Union of Miners and Metalworkers (Los Mineros) in February, accusing him of masterminding a $61-million money laundering scheme involving workers' funds.

Swiss agent who saved El Al plane fears colleagues

Snip: Covassi, 35, admitted that he is weary after details of the plot have been published in Switzerland and Israel. Covassi's fear stems not from Muslims' revenge, but rather from his own country's intelligence services that "may cause me trouble," as he said.

Osama group in boy slave racket

Snip: The children, all Christians, had fallen into the hands of Gul Khan, a wealthy Islamic militant and leading member of Jamaat-ud Daawa, a group linked to the al-Qa'ida terrorist network.

34 illegals rounded up in NY - going back to Mexico

Snip: The immigrants were part of a bust at a Springville business. Immigration officials say that 34 illegal immigrants either forged documents or used someone else's legal immigration papers to seek employment at Schictel's Nursery.

Immigrants, reconquistas and economic systems

Snippets: A growing "reconquista" movement demands the return of "Aztlan.," as radicals call southwestern states that were "stolen" from Mexico, causing it to remain impoverished, they claim. "Atzlan is California. Atzlan is this country," a student ranted to Sean Hannity of Fox News. "This country was ours, and we want it back."

If La Raza, MeCha and the other reconquistas were to "take back' these lands, they would likely impose the same disastrous policies that have enfeebled Mexico. They would squander, rather than capture, America's prosperity and opportunity -- turning America's gold into lead, like a reverse King Midas. Countless poor Mexicans would still be drawn to the magnetic North. And our immigration problems would simply move to the southern borders of Oregon, Idaho, Utah, Colorado and Oklahoma.

Thanks for the post about the high school graduation prayer. God bless our graduating students! They are our hope, our future!

LA skid row population grows

Snip: A growing number of immigrants are bedding down each night in parks, abandoned buildings and cardboard boxes, finding refuge in camouflaged encampments under freeway overpasses and bridges. Mostly from Mexico and Central America, many entered the United States illegally in search of a steady job - and fell far short.....

Getting to the US LEGALLY is no easy task for foreigners

Snip: There is a backlog of applications for green cards, which gives an immigrant legal resident status for a certain period of time, and also for applications for citizenship, for which immigrants typically can apply after holding a green card for three to five years.

The U.S. Immigration and Citizenship Services office estimated in 2004, the latest year in which statistics are available, there was a backlog of 3.8 million applications.

An illegal alien who can legally sue

Snip: Caballero's attorney, Victor Covelli of Belmar, says his client was worried that he would be deported when he filed suit against fellow illegal immigrant, Ricardo Martinez. Complicating the issue, Caballero was also suing to collect from a special New Jersey fund for anyone injured in an accident with an uninsured driver. But like those police who handled the accident and let Martinez go with only a traffic ticket, court officers looked the other way and did not arrest and deport Caballero when he testified in his lawsuit.

Caballero lost twice, when courts ruled he was not a legal resident and therefore had no right to the special accident fund. But last week, the state Supreme Court ruled in his favor, declaring him a resident even though he was here illegally.

How did the Supreme Court reach such a conclusion? Well, consider this line of reasoning from the opinion authored by Supreme Court Justice James Zazzali:

"We recognize the apparent paradox that exists when an undocumented alien intends to remain in this state but that alien, because of his or her illegal status, is subject to deportation at any time ... The fact that an undocumented alien may some day be forced to return to his or her homeland does not necessarily defeat the intent to remain. That is especially true in light of the uncertain nature of deportation."

New Jersey Supreme Court...

Justice James R. Zazzali

Justice Zazzali was nominated by Governor Christine Todd Whitman to serve on the Supreme Court on May 18, 2000. He was confirmed on May 25, 2000 and sworn in on June 14, 2000 by Chief Justice Deborah T. Poritz.

Justice Zazzali was born in Newark on June 17, 1937. He attended Seton Hall Preparatory School and was graduated from Georgetown College in 1958 and Georgetown Law Center in 1962. He served his clerkship with the Honorable Lawrence A. Whipple. He is admitted to the New Jersey, New York and District of Columbia bars.

Justice Zazzali served as Chief of the Appeals Division of the Office of the Essex County Prosecutor; General Counsel to the New Jersey Sports and Exposition Authority; Receiver for Bloomfield College; Chairman of the New Jersey State Commission of Investigation; Vice-Chairman of the Disciplinary Review Board, and as New Jersey Attorney General.

He was appointed by the United States District Court as Special Master for the county jails in Essex, Monmouth and Bergen Counties. He also served, at the request of the United States State Department, on delegations to the United Nations conferences. He was engaged in the practice of law in Newark and Trenton in the firm founded by his late father and his brother – Zazzali, Fagella & Nowak.

He is a former Adjunct Professor at Seton Hall Law School, former Associate Editor of the New Jersey Law Journal, and a contributor to various magazines, newspapers and law journals.

Justice Zazzali is married to the former Eileen Fitzsimmons of New York. Their children are Mara, James Jr., Robert, Courtney and Kevin.

ON THE NET...

http://www.cdc.gov/ncidod/diseases/virlfvr/virlfvr.htm

===
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ON THE NET...

Thanks to RushmoreRocks and fanfan for pinging me to this article:
---

http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1636022/posts

http://www.mirror.co.uk/news/tm_objectid=17105921&method=full&siteid=94762&headline=killer-bug-air-scare--name_page.html

20 May 2006
"KILLER BUG AIR SCARE"
By Stephen Moyes

ARTICLE SNIPPET: "A WOMAN who arrived in London on a flight from Africa yesterday is reported to have died from the deadly and contagious ebola virus.

Panic has spread among cabin crew and hospital staff after the death of the 38-year-old Briton.

The unnamed woman is understood to work at an embassy in the African kingdom of Lesotho.

Before boarding a Virgin Atlantic flight from Johannesburg to Heathrow she visited a doctor complaining of flu-like symptoms.

She was allowed to fly, but during Flight VS602 to the UK she suffered a violent fit which left her unconscious.

Cabin crew and passengers rushed to her aid but towards the end of the flight she began to vomiting.

When the Airbus A340-600, carrying 267 passengers and crew, touchdown at Heathrow she was rushed to nearby Hillingdon Hospital, West London.

Her symptoms matched those of the viral haemorraghing fever, ebola. The results of a post mortem are awaited."

Note: The following text is a quote:
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http://www.defenselink.mil/news/May2006/20060521_5185.html

Afghan, Coalition Forces Kill 20 Enemy Fighters During Firefight

American Forces Press Service

BAGRAM AIR BASE, Afghanistan, May 21, 2006 – Afghan and coalition forces killed 20 enemy fighters during a May 19 battle in southern Afghanistan, military officials here reported today.
Combined Forces Command Afghanistan officials reported yesterday that a U.S. servicemember was killed and six others were wounded in the attack. A command statement today said seven U.S. servicemembers were wounded in the firefight in addition to the fatality.

About 50 fighters attempted to ambush a joint coalition force patrolling in the Cahar Cineh district in Uruzgan province, officials said. Afghan and coalition forces repelled the attack with small-arms fire, killing 20 enemy fighters.

All seven wounded U.S. servicemembers were evacuated to a coalition medical facility. Officials provided no information on their condition.

"Coalition and Afghan forces are well-trained and committed to the security and prosperity of the Afghan people and will not be defeated in combat," said Army Maj. Gen. Benjamin C. Freakley, commander of Combined Joint Task Force 76.

"This joint team fought with bravery and tenacity and took the fight to the enemy," he said. "My condolences to the family and comrades of the U.S. soldier killed in this fight. Their sacrifice for the safety and stability of the Afghan people will not be forgotten."

(From a Combined Forces Command Afghanistan news release.)

Note: The following text is a quote:
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http://www.defenselink.mil/news/May2006/20060521_5186.html

Muqdadiyah Raid Successful; IED Cache Found in Mosul

American Forces Press Service

FORWARD OPERATING BASE SPEICHER, Iraq, May 21, 2006 – Iraqi soldiers from 2nd Battalion, 2nd Brigade, 5th Iraqi Army Division, and U.S. troops from 3rd Heavy Brigade Combat Team, 4th Infantry Division, captured a small arsenal and detained several men yesterday in Muqdadiyah, military officials at this Tikrit base reported today.
The soldiers worked together using numerous forms of information to compile a solid operation to capture enemy force cell members and recover whatever munitions they possessed.

The large cache found included 19 mortar rounds, more than 4,000 small-arms rounds, 34 pounds of bulk explosives, hand grenades, various improvised explosive device-making materials, propaganda materials, rocket-propelled-grenade warheads, and a launcher.

An explosive ordnance disposal team destroyed most of the cache on site and recovered many other pieces for study and future destruction.

Twelve men, all suspected of terrorism in the Diyala province, were detained and taken to a nearby Iraqi detention facility.

Iraqi and coalition forces reported no injuries, including none to the enemy.

In other news, Task Force Band of Brothers soldiers seized a large cache of weapons, explosives, munitions and other IED-making components during a raid in Mosul, officials here also reported today.

Soldiers from the 172nd Stryker Brigade Combat Team conducted a cordon and search of a suspected car-bomb factory, where they found items, including 17 AK-47 assault rifles, four RPG launchers, nine submachine guns, four land mines, 15 60 mm mortar rounds, five hand grenades and two cases of ball bearings.

An explosive ordnance disposal team destroyed the cache in the basement of the building where it was found.

(Based on releases from Multinational Division North.)

Note: The following text (minus the photos) is a quote:
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http://www.defenselink.mil/news/May2006/20060521_5191.html

Tips Lead Coalition Forces to IED Factory

American Forces Press Service

WASHINGTON, May 21, 2006 – Based on tips, coalition forces located and killed six terrorists, detained three and destroyed a safe house and multiple weapons caches in Ramadi during a search May 17 for a wanted terrorist known as the "Prince of IEDs," military officials in Baghdad reported today.

During a search in Ramadi May 17 for a wanted terrorist known as the "Prince of IEDs," coalition forces seized a civilian pickup truck filled with weapons, including machine guns, one rocket-propelled grenade launch tube, six RPG rounds, a suicide vest, an AK-47 assault rifle and a DSHKA heavy machine gun used for anti-aircraft.
The troops began taking fire immediately upon their arrival at the site where the al Qaeda leader and his associates were allegedly building improvised explosive devices.

During the course of the fighting, the troops took direct fire from various areas. They neutralized the threat with small-arms fire, killing six and detaining three terrorists, one of whom was wounded and medically evacuated.

The troops ultimately destroyed the identified safe house, which contained a large amount of lethal material, with precision bombs.

The forces also attacked a second safe haven, neutralizing the threat by ground and damaging the structure with air strikes.

After securing the targeted safe house, the troops found one heavy machine gun, two medium machine guns, rifles, a pistol, artillery shells, IED material, large oxygen tanks configured as IEDs, a suicide vest, rocket propelled grenades and one launcher.

Large amounts of discarded automobile parts were also present in the structure further, indicating that cars were likely being configured into vehicle-borne IEDs in keeping with the tips provided to coalition forces.

Also, troops discovered equipment and material used for making remote-controlled IEDs. The terrorists' equipment, weapons and ammunition were destroyed by ground charges and air strikes.

The troops also found an unharmed 8-year-old boy inside the safe house after they either killed or detained the terrorists. He told the soldiers he was being held against his will by these terrorists who abused and made him conduct minor tasks.

The forces took the boy to their base, provided care, and then arranged for transportation to take him back to his residence.

The targeted " Prince of IEDs" is reported to be a financier, an IED maker and a bomb facilitator for al Qaeda in Iraq in Ramadi.

Coalition forces are currently assessing the identities of the dead and detained.

One terrorist received a gunshot wound to his shoulder and was evacuated to a medical facility for further treatment.

(Based on a Multinational Force Iraq news release.)

"We recognize the apparent paradox that exists when an undocumented alien intends to remain in this state but that alien, because of his or her illegal status, is subject to deportation at any time ... The fact that an undocumented alien may some day be forced to return to his or her homeland does not necessarily defeat the intent to remain. That is especially true in light of the uncertain nature of deportation."

The litigant has defied American immigration law, should not be here except for the inability of our Department of Immigration to enforce existing laws, should have been deported rather than adjudicated, and now sucks even more resources out of this country than to which he is now nor has ever been entitled IMHO.

All those credentials and this decision????????? Pathetic!

Mexico bars immigrants from thousands of jobs

Restrictions south of the border prohibit non-natives from official posts

MEXICO CITY - If Arnold Schwarzenegger had migrated to Mexico instead of the United States, he couldn’t be a governor. If Argentina native Sergio Villanueva, firefighter hero of the Sept. 11 attacks, had moved to Tecate instead of New York, he wouldn’t have been allowed on the force.
Even as Mexico presses the United States to grant unrestricted citizenship to millions of undocumented Mexican migrants, its officials at times calling U.S. policies “xenophobic,” Mexico places daunting limitations on anyone born outside its territory.
In the United States, only two posts — the presidency and vice presidency — are reserved for the native born.

Ping!

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