Threat Matrix: Daily Terror Threat - July 2006

[nwctwx]

Bin Laden Says Will Take Fight to America
(Full Story)

Al Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden said his group reserved the right to fight the United States on its land and warned Washington and the world community against sending forces to Somalia, according to an Internet audio tape.

"We will fight its (U.S.) soldiers on the land of Somalia ... and we reserve the right to punish it on its land and anywhere possible," said the speaker, who sounded like the Saudi-born militant.

"We warn all of the countries in the world not to respond to America by sending international troops to Somalia," he said of the African nation where Islamists' power is rising.

	2nd Tape in Two Days Endorses al-Masri as Leader in Iraq
	SITE Institute: Preliminary Summary of July 1 Tape
	Audio and Video Tapes From Usama bin Laden

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[Cindy]

ON THE NET...

http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&q=bin+Laden+%2B+coward&btnG=Google+Search

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http://www.buffalonews.com/editorial/20060729/1040021.asp

"Bin Laden was scared under fire, his friend says"
By JAMES GORDON MEEK
New York Daily News
7/29/2006

Associated Press

"A new documentary airs interviews with those who knew Osama bin Laden, shown in 1998."

ARTICLE SNIPPET: "WASHINGTON - Osama bin Laden talks tough, but other mujahedeen laughed at him in Afghanistan because he would get scared and bolt when under fire, a new documentary claims.

"When bin Laden used to hear the explosions, he used to jump. He used to run away," his longtime friend Hutaifa Azzam says on "CNN Presents: In the Footsteps of Bin Laden."

"I still remember that me, and my elder and younger brothers, we used to laugh," says Azzam, the son of Abdullah Azzam, bin Laden's mentor in radical Islam.

Abdullah Azzam and bin Laden jointly created a mujahedeen support organization that later became al-Qaida.

Azzam was assassinated in 1989, with Hutaifa's two brothers, in a bombing tied to Egyptians close to bin Laden.

Hutaifa's CNN interview - as well as interviews of others who had known bin Laden from childhood to when he made the FBI's Ten Most Wanted list - was his first with a Western broadcaster.

The documentary, airing Aug. 23, is based on CNN terrorism expert Peter Bergen's book, "The Osama bin Laden I Know.""

[Cindy]

ON THE NET...

http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/keyword?k=holocaust
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/keyword?k=berlin

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Note: The following post is a quote:
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http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1674942/posts


Vandals Deface Berlin's Holocaust Memorial
AP ^ | July 31, 2006

Posted on 07/31/2006 1:19:11 AM PDT by West Coast Conservative

Vandals scratched a swastika into one of the slabs of Berlin's Holocaust memorial, police said Sunday.

Security officers found the swastika Saturday morning, police said. The damage was swiftly repaired.

The memorial _ a vast field of more than 2,700 gray slabs situated close to the Brandenburg Gate in the heart of Berlin _ opened to the public in May 2005. Open around the clock, it drew some 3.5 million visitors in its first year, authorities said.

In a separate incident, a 42-year-old man was detained after he was seen painting a swastika on the facade of the Swiss Embassy in Berlin, police said.

[Cindy]

ON THE NET....

http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1659022/posts?page=1929#1929
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Note: The following text is a quote:


http://www.assistnews.net/Stories/s06070114.htm


Thursday, July 27, 2006

Somalia: Igniting Jihad in the Horn of Africa

By Elizabeth Kendal
World Evangelical Alliance Religious Liberty Commission (WEA RLC)
Special to ASSIST News Service

MELBOURNE, AUSTRALIA (ANS) -- As this is being written, the alliance of Islamist militias known as the Islamic Courts Union (ICU) which has taken control of Mogadishu and most of southern Somalia, is threatening jihad against Ethiopian armed forces that have crossed into Somalia to defend Somalia's UN-backed Transitional Federal Government (TFG) holed up in the regional town of Baidoa. (For background and prayer needs, see: WEA Religious Liberty Prayer bulletin 386 at link 1.)
There is every indication that this confrontation, though presently paralysed, will soon break out into open war involving Ethiopia, Somalia and Eritrea. It will be both a conventional territorial war and a religious war. The conflict will doubtless attract a further influx of foreign jihadis and inflame Islamic zeal and identification amongst the region's Muslims (and other traditional enemies of Ethiopia), seriously impacting and escalating the already perilous situation faced by Christians in the Horn of Africa.

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ENTER, ETHIOPIA

On 20 July, Stratfor Intelligence opined that when the ICU captured the regional town of Burhakaba, just 81km (37 miles) south of Baidoa, on 19 July, it was probably testing Ethiopia's commitment to the TFG, testing to see how (or if) Ethiopia would respond to a potential attack on Baidoa. The Ethiopians responded by sending troops across the border on 20 July, in a convoy of over 100 trucks and armored vehicles, to defend Baidoa and the TFG.

Ethiopia, a predominantly Christian nation, has entered Somalia twice before, in 1993 and 1996, to put down Islamist groups seeking to establish a Sharia government. Ethiopia has concerns that an Islamist government in Somalia would foment increased agitation in Ethiopia's already restive Ogaden region. (Ogaden, which borders Somalia, has a population of around four million mostly ethnic Somalis. Somalia invaded but failed to capture Ogaden in 1977-78. The Ogaden National Liberation Front (ONLF, a group of ethnic Somalis) is fighting for independence from Ethiopia.)

Also, Ethiopia already has one hostile neighbour in Eritrea. The last thing Ethiopia wants to have is two hostile neighbours co-operating with each other against it – possibly on two fronts, north and southeast. (Somaliland, which has an unrecognized but stable, democratic and secular government, is not hostile to Ethiopia, is fighting against terrorism and Islamism, and is also greatly threatened by the current situation in Southern Somalia.)

Baidoa is about 150 kilometers (100 miles) southeast of the Ethiopian border, and about 250 kilometers (155 miles) northwest of the Somali capital of Mogadishu. Ethiopia cannot extend past Baidoa without dangerously stretching its supply lines and risking a painful, Iraq-style conflict. The ICU meanwhile, cannot match the military force of the Ethiopian Army – at least, not on its own. If the ICU is to engage the Ethiopian Armed Forces it would need to move thousands of militants out of Mogasdishu, north to fight at Baidoa, and the ICU can't do that without leaving Mogadishu vulnerable to the warlords the ICU deposed. So for the time being, the opposing forces are paralysed in a stand-off. However, there is evidence that this may soon change, and that possibly the Islamists are preparing for a much wider conflict, beyond Somalia's borders.

SOMALIA PREPARES FOR WAR

J. Peter Pham (Ph.D) writes a regular "Strategic Interests" column for World Defense Review (http://reportingwar.com/). He is an expert in terrorism and political violence, and, according to his profile, "his research interests lie at the intersection of international relations, international law, political theory, and ethics, with particular concentrations on the implications for United States foreign policy and African states as well as religion and global politics." He is particularly interested in the rise of militant Islamism is Sub-Saharan Africa and has been warning about the situation in Somalia for some time.

Dr Pham notes that the Somali Islamists, like the Taliban of Afghanistan, are reinforced by foreign jihadis, including Arabs, Afghans, Pakistanis, Kashmiris, Palestinians, and Syrians. He also notes that Somalia has long been a place a refuge and shelter for foreign terrorists and that while Sheikh Hassan Dahir 'Aweys, the Chairman of the ICU's majlis al-shura (or parliament) is a known, designated terrorist, he is only one of several high-profile terrorist leading the charge in Somalia.

According to Dr Pham, ICU military commander Adan Hashi 'Ayro trained in Afghanistan with al-Qaeda before returning to Somalia after 9/11. Pham describes him as "a cold-blooded killer with a number of terrorist hits to his 'credit', including four foreign aid workers in Somaliland, ten former Somali military officers, and most spectacularly, Abdul Qadir Yahya Ali, the internationally-respected founder of the non-governmental Center for Research and Dialogue in Mogadishu, who was killed in front of his family last year." Pham continues, "Another close collaborator of 'Aweys is Hassan Turki, who was responsible for subversive activities in eastern Ethiopia and who is closely linked with al-Takfir wal-Hijra ('Excommunication and Exodus'), a group so extreme that it considered Osama bin Laden too moderate and tried to kill the al-Qaeda leader in 1996 when he was living in Sudan." (Link 2)

Dr Pham gives an ominous account of the weapons being stockpiled by the Somali Islamists. He says, "According to the Monitoring Group set up under United Nations Security Council Resolution 1407 embargoing arm shipments to the former Somalia, on March 5 of this year, the Islamists were shipped, via Eritrea, 200 boxes of Zu-23 anti-aircraft ammunition, 200 boxes of B-10 anti-tank ammunition, 200 boxes of DShK anti-aircraft ammunition, 200 boxes of Browning M2 50-caliber heavy machine gun ammunition, ammunition for the ZP-39 anti-aircraft gun, 50 rocket propelled grenade launchers, 50 light anti-armor weapons, 50 M-79 grenade launchers, and communications equipments to be mounted on 'technicals'. This was followed two days later by a consignment of 1,000 short-version AK-47 automatic rifles, 1,000 pairs of binoculars, 1,000 remote-control bombs, 1,000 anti-personnel mines, and ammunition for 120mm mortars. To put this arsenal into context – and appreciate its offensive nature – none of the potential foes faced by the Islamists within Somalia use military aircraft or tanks." (Link 2)

It is important to note that Sheikh Hassan Dahir 'Aweys is a veteran of the 1977-78 Ogaden War for a Greater Somalia. During that war, Somali government forces, bolstered by large amounts of Soviet military aid, invaded Ogaden, captured much of it, but were unable to hold it and were eventually forced to retreat. BBC Monitoring reported recently that in a recent BBC Somali Service interview, Aweys voiced his support for the idea of Greater Somalia, by claiming Ethiopia-occupied Somali territory. (Link 3)

According to Reuters, "Sheikh Sharif Ahmed, who is considered a moderate, told a gathering of ex-military officers, some of whom fought Ethiopia in [the] 1977-78 [Ogaden] conflict, to prepare for war. 'You will be joined by the Islamic Courts militia in defending the country and our religion against our enemies,' he said to chants of 'God is great!'" (Link 4)

ISLAMISTS CALL FOR JIHAD

On Monday 24 July, Islamists told crowds rallying in a Mogadishu football stadium that God has commanded that they fight the Ethiopian troops. The demonstrators responded by setting fire to an Ethiopian flag to cries of "God is great!" (Link 5)

Also on 24 July a medium-sized Russian-built cargo plane with no recognizable markings landed in Somalia's capital Mogadishu. Residents reported seeing large boxes unloaded. Reuters reports, "Onlookers and journalists were prevented from entering the area by hundreds of heavily-armed Islamist militiamen guarding the airport with dozens of battle-wagons."

TFG Deputy Prime Minister Ismail Mohamed Hurre told Reuters, "The plane was carrying anti-aircraft missiles and other weapons donated by Eritrea to the Islamists". An ICU official however, who asked not to be named, said that the plane was not carrying weapons, only "small sewing machines, which were a gift from a friendly country." (Link 4)

"AL QAEDA MOVES TO AFRICA"

Dr Pham's most recent column (published 27 July) is entitled "Al Qaeda moves to Africa", and should be read along with his earlier columns on Africa, especially "Militant Islamism's Shadow Rises over Sub-Saharan Africa" (4 May).

Dr Pham got the title for this most recent column from a four-page article with the same name, "Al Qaeda moves to Africa", by Abu Azzam al-Ansari, published in the June edition of the Saudi jihadi magazine Sada al-Jihad (Echo of Jihad). An English translation of that article can be found at link 6.

Links
1) Religious Liberty Prayer Bulletin - No. 386 - Wed 12 Jul 2006
SOMALIA: DESPERATE PLIGHT OF CHRISTIANS
http://www.worldevangelicalalliance.com/prayerfocus/view.htm?id=600

2) Sheikh Aweys Won’t Go Away (At Least by Himself)
J. Peter Pham, Ph.D. 6 July 2006
http://reportingwar.com/pham070606.shtml

3) Analysis: Splits emerging in Somali Islamist movement.
BBC Monitoring 6 July 2006
http://www.ogaden.com/Islamistmovement.htm

4) Mystery plane fuels Somalia war fears
By Mohamed Ali Bile and Guled Mohamed.
MOGADISHU (Reuters) 26 July 2006
http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/somalia_dc
Experts see proxy war under way in Somalia
By MOHAMED SHEIKH NOR Associated Press Writer. 26 July 2006 http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/ap/world/4073986.html
ALSO http://edition.cnn.com/2006/WORLD/africa/07/26/somalia.ap/

5) Somali Islamists say told by God to fight Ethiopia
By Guled Mohamed. MOGADISHU (Reuters) 24 July 2006
http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20060724/wl_nm/somalia_dc

6) Global Research in International Affairs (GLORIA) Center
The Project for the Research of Islamist Movements (PRISM)
Occasional Papers. Volume 4 (2006), Number 2 (June 2006).
Director: Reuven Paz1
Africa: The Gold Mine of Al Qaeda and Global Jihad
By Reuven Paz and Moshe Terdman
http://www.terrorism-info.org.il/malam_multimedia/English/eng_n/pdf/rp_0606.pdf

Elizabeth Kendal is the Principal Researcher and Writer for the World Evangelical Alliance Religious Liberty Commission (WEA RLC) www.worldevangelical.org/rlc.html. This article was initially written for the World Evangelical Alliance Religious Liberty News & Analysis mailing list.


Elizabeth can be contacted by e-mail at rl-research@crossnet.org.au.


** You may republish this story with proper attribution.

[Cindy]

Well now, this is NOT nice....

Note: The following text is a quote:
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http://www.jihadwatch.org/archives/2006/07/012444print.html

July 30, 2006

Iranian general: "We have to keep this sacred hatred of the enemies of Islam alive in our hearts until the time of revenge comes"

"Until the time of revenge comes": a time which the Iranian regime would like to hasten as much as possible, as their self-assigned August 22 deadline on responding to the nuclear issue draws closer. From AFP: "Top Iran general says hopes to avenge Muslim deaths"



TEHRAN (AFP) - The head of Iran's Revolutionary Guards said he hoped the Islamic republic could one day "avenge the blood of innocent people in Palestine, Lebanon, Iraq and Afghanistan".
"We have to keep this sacred hatred of the enemies of Islam alive in our hearts until the time of revenge comes," General Yahya Rahim Safavi was quoted as saying by the semi-official Fars news agency.
"I hope our nation can one day avenge the blood of innocent people in Palestine, Lebanon, Iraq and Afghanistan," he said, adding: "I ask God to arouse the dignity of Muslims and destroy America, Israel and their associates."
[...]
"I ask God that the crimes and atrocities of Zionists hasten the annihilation of this regime. Hezbollah and Lebanese people are invincible and this cancerous tumor... should die," he added, calling on "clerical leaders in the Islamic world (to) clarify the duty of Muslims against Israel."


Posted at July 30, 2006 08:20 PM

[backhoe]

"Spies may have stolen U.S. bioweapons"

Here's the latest on the 'net:

PREPARING FOR BIOTERROR:
( My snarky comment? "Well, it's not a secret anymore- thanks, Post..." )

Here's an old file of mine, with tons of information if you dig through all the links:

Nuclear, Biological, & Chemical Warfare- Survival Skills, Pt. II

My 2 cents? Nasty as chemical agents are, the one to fear is biological agents. Tech level about the same as brewing beer.

[Cindy]

THANK YOU backhoe.

Your comment is not "snarky."
WaPo is about as pro-American as the
aclu. (Note: This comment is NOT highly
classified.)

[Cindy]

http://littlegreenfootballs.com/weblog/?entry=21854_Indonesias_Tiny_Minority_of_Extremists&only

July 28, 2006
"Survey reveals Muslim views on violence
Ridwan Max Sijabat, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta"

ARTICLE SNIPPET: "Up to 1.3 percent of Indonesian Muslims nationwide admit using violence against people or objects they consider contradictory to their beliefs, a survey found, with more than 40 percent ready to wage war for their faith.

Acts of violence in the survey on religion and violence by the Center for Islamic and Social Studies (PPIM) ranged from 0.1 percent of respondents admitting their involvement in demolishing or arson of churches constructed without official permits, to 1.3 percent who committed "intimidation" against those they considered had blasphemed Islam.

The survey spanned 1,200 Muslims in 30 of the country's 33 provinces.

"The percentage looks very small but it is very high in its real figure when you note that 85 percent, or 200 million, of the country's 230 million population are Muslims," PPIM researcher Jajat Burhanudin said Thursday during the release of the results."

[Cindy]

TODAY'S UPDATES AND RECAP:
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http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/news/1674908/posts?page=403#403


http://www.ynetnews.com
http://www.jpost.com
http://www.haaretz.com
http://off-topic.internet-haganah.com/
http://www.foxnews.com

http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/keyword?k=israel
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/keyword?k=2006israelwar

http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/keyword?k=globaljihad
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/keyword?k=jihad

http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/keyword?k=iran
http://www.memri.org/iran.html
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/keyword?k=syria
http://www.memri.org/syria.html
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/keyword?k=lebanon
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/keyword?k=gaza

http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/keyword?k=hezbollah
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/keyword?k=hizballah
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/keyword?k=hizbullah

http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/keyword?k=hamas

http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/keyword?k=alqaeda
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/keyword?k=alqaida

[Cindy]

http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1674959/posts


"TRIPLE GUISE GAL; ON LAM IN ID-THEFT SCAM (ID theft crimes to double)"
NY POST ^ | July 30, 2006 | BRAD HAMILTON

Posted on 07/31/2006 3:53:35 AM PDT by Liz

[nwctwx]

How the Fighting Stops: Achieving a Sustainable Ceasefire in Lebanon
Briefing: 10:30am EDT - Noon EDT

Live Webcast

[Godzilla]

placemark

[freeperfromnj]

Trucker seized after threat to blow up city

http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1675200/posts

[freeperfromnj]

Atlanta office buildings reopened

http://www.dfw.com/mld/dfw/news/nation/15164701.htm

[Cindy]

Thanks nw.
Will there be a url to a transcript of this webcast?

[Cindy]

ON THE NET...

http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/keyword?k=newyork
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/keyword?k=detroit
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/keyword?k=cleveland


http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&q=%22Sekou+Fofana%22&btnG=Google+Search

http://blogsearch.google.com/blogsearch?hl=en&ie=UTF-8&q=Sekou%2BFofana&scoring=d
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THANKS FreeperFromNJ for pointing to this incident.
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http://www.cleveland.com/news/plaindealer/index.ssf?/base/lake/1154162019182370.xml&coll=2

More From The Plain Dealer | Subscribe To The Plain Dealer
"Driver accused of blast threat says he was taunted"
Saturday, July 29, 2006
Jim Nichols
Plain Dealer Reporter

ARTICLE SNIPPET: "A Detroit truck driver broadcast a threat to blow up another trucker and detonate a cargo of explosives in Cleveland on Thursday because other drivers were taunting him, the State Highway Patrol said Friday.

Sekou Fofana, 36, was arraigned Friday and held in Lake County Jail on inducing panic charges, said Trooper C.J. Coyne-Hall.

The Ivory Coast native and former New York City cab driver faces penalties for the fourth-degree felony charges ranging from probation to 18 months in prison, and fines of up to $5,000.

Fofana announced over a citizens-band radio that his semitrailer was loaded with explosives and he would "blow up Cleveland," another truck driver told the patrol.

Troopers and officers from five Lake County municipalities pulled over Fofana in Willoughby at 4:43 p.m. Authorities shut down Interstate 90 during rush hour, closing westbound lanes for more than an hour and eastbound lanes for 15 minutes. Trooper Jim Smith, the arresting officer, said traffic backed up for miles in each direction.

A bomb squad searched the truck and found only pallets of magazines."

[Cindy]

http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&q=%22Sekou+Fofana%22&btnG=Google+Search

http://blogsearch.google.com/blogsearch?hl=en&ie=UTF-8&q=Sekou%2BFofana&scoring=d

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stepping back in time...

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/africa/3149255.stm

Last Updated: Friday, 15 August, 2003, 01:07 GMT 02:07 UK


"Liberia food supplies secured"

ARTICLE SNIPPET: "Rebel forces have handed control of the port in Liberia's capital, Monrovia, to West African peacekeepers.

Although much of the food in the port's warehouses has been looted during two months of fighting, deliveries of badly-needed food, water and medicines can now be stepped up.

After weeks of conditions, deadlines and delays, the first wave of some 200 US Marines arrived at Liberia's international airport to back up the peacekeeping operation.


I'm leaving right now
Sekou Fofana
Rebel commander

Screaming jets from the warships which have dominated the horizon since President Charles Taylor went into exile on Monday circled the capital, as tens of thousands of people took to the streets, cheering.

"This operation today is going to be an important one," American ambassador John Blaney said at the airport.

"You are going to see American boots on the ground, and a firm commitment to uphold humanitarian concerns in this country."

Rebel retreat

BBC correspondent in Liberia Alastair Leithead says the strong show of force will help persuade the rebels to pull out of Monrovia.

At the port, the rebel commander Sekou Fofana shook hands with the American ambassador before retreating.

"We have no reason to doubt the credibility of the Americans, and we have no reason to doubt the credibility of the peacekeepers, so we will leave as we have said. I'm leaving right now," Mr Fofana said."

[Cindy]

ON THE NET...

http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&q=%22Ivory+Coast%22&btnG=Google+Search

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

[Cindy]

FYI...I don't know how common a name Sekou Fofana is and the two articles listed about may be about 2 separate people. Interesting, either way.

[Cindy]

ON THE NET...

http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/keyword?k=china
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/keyword?k=bunker

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Note: The following post is a quote:


http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1675268/posts

Shanghai Constructs Underground Bunker Capable Of Sheltering 200,000 People
Local6.com ^ | July 31, 2006 | The Associated Press.

Posted on 07/31/2006 1:04:17 PM PDT by Halgr

local6.com Shanghai Constructs Underground Bunker Capable Of Sheltering 200,000 People

POSTED: 2:20 pm EDT July 31, 2006 UPDATED: 2:24 pm EDT July 31, 2006

SHANGHAI, China -- Shanghai has constructed a massive underground bunker complex capable of sheltering 200,000 people from a nuclear attack, a local newspaper reported.

The million-square-foot complex connects to shopping centers, office buildings, apartment buildings and the subway system via miles of tunnels, the Shanghai Morning Post said in an exclusive report.

The newspaper said the complex has water, electricity, lighting, ventilation and protective doors, and can support life for as long as two weeks.

The Saturday report didn't say when the complex was finished or whether it was built with any specific threats in mind.

(Excerpt) Read more at local6.com ...

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Note: The following post is a quote:

http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1674850/posts

Shanghai Builds Vast Bunker To Shield Against Terrorism Attack
The Telegraph (UK) ^ | 7-31-2006

Posted on 07/30/2006 6:19:57 PM PDT by blam

Shanghai builds vast bunker to shield against terrorism attack


(Filed: 31/07/2006)


The authorities in Shanghai, which is the Chinese financial hub, have built a huge underground shelter against the eventuality of terrorism or industrial accidents.

The vast 968,400sq ft subterranean complex could accommodate 200,000 people for up to 15 days.

It is linked to government offices, commercial and residential areas and the transport system by a labyrinth of tunnels.

The bunker can protect occupants from "nuclear radiation, poisonous gases, explosions and other disasters," the state's news agency Xinhua reported yesterday.

"In peacetime, parts of the bunker could be used as garages, warehouses or commercial facilities," added a civil defence official.

The mayor of Shanghai, Han Zheng, ordered an overhaul of the city's civil defence programme because of fears about Islamic terrorism in the disputed Xinjiang province and an increase in the number of industrial accidents resulting in chemical leaks.

The bunker is more modern than Beijing's underground city - which is a 20-mile network of tunnels built under the order of Chairman Mao following the 1969 Sino-Soviet border conflict.

[nwctwx]

Will there be a url to a transcript of this webcast?

Yes, probably tomorrow. We just got the video online as well, it covers the whole briefing from this morning.

(On Demand Video) How the Fighting Stops: Achieving a Sustainable Ceasefire in Lebanon