Posted on 10/21/2006 9:49:09 AM PDT by cll
WASHINGTON (AFP) - US officials believe Venezuela is emerging as a "potential hub of terrorism" in the Americas, according to a congressional report.
Some US officials say "Venezuela is providing support -- including identity documents -- that could prove useful to radical Islamic groups," says the report a House of Representatives panel.
The report says the Venezuelan government has issued thousands of "cedulas," the equivalent of social security cards, to people from Cuba, Colombia and "Middle Eastern nations that host foreign terrorist organizations."
US officials fear that the Venezuelan government, headed by fierce US critic Hugo Chavez, is issuing the cards to "people who should not be getting them" and they could be used to get visas and gain entry to the United States.
"Recently, several Pakistanis were apprehended at the US-Mexican border with fraudulent Venezuelan documents," said the report, which was released by the subcommittee chairman, Texas Representative Michael McCaul.
"According to senior US military and intelligence officials, Venezuela is emerging as a potential hub of terrorism in the Western Hemisphere, providing assistance to Islamic radicals from the Middle East and other terrorists," the report says.
The report, which focuses especially on the Mexico-Texas border is based on expert opinions, media accounts and testimony from US authorities.
The document appeared three weeks before the November 7 US congressional elections, and amid heated debate over how to deal with the estimated 11.5 illegal immigrants in the United States and how to stop more from entering across the southern border.
The report warns of an "ever-present threat of terrorist infiltration over the Southwest border."
"US immigration and customs enforcement investigations have revealed that aliens were smuggled from the Middle East to staging areas in Central and South America, before being smuggled illegally into the US," it says.
The report says members of the Lebanese militant group Hezbollah, which Washington considers a terrorist organization, "have already entered the US across the southwest border."
It also warns that the Texas-Mexico border region has been experience an "alarming rise" in the level of drug cartel activity, including drug and human smuggling, which has put "significant additional burdens" on US authorities.
He may be a nut, but he's a dangerous nut.
On the plus side, he seems to be losing some of his attraction in LatAm and the candidates he has been pushing in Latin American elections have not won. Also, Spain cancelled its contract with him to supply war materials, partly because he was draggin his heels because he felt the price was too high since the Spanish would have to buy the technology from France or Israel (we wouldn't license it, of course). But I think it was mainly because of Spanish concern over the stability of the country and a fear that they might not get paid after building the jets and other materials Chavez wanted. It certainly wasn't out of any ideological concern, alas, since the Spanish government is very leftist, but was motivated by lack of confidence in the capacities of Venezuela under Chavez.
Anytime a government such as Venezuela's is unreliable about documents we need to react with swift and firm measures. At a minimum, we should immediately ban all Venezuelan documents (including diplomatic ones!!!) for any new entries to the USA, period. The message should be clear: we can't trust your documents, no one with your country's documents may enter. Of course, our spineless weasel pols and bureaucrats will never take even the most elementary such steps to protect America...........
Ping!
Ping
I'd say that it would be very obvious to a Spanish-speaking ICE agent if a Pakistani were to try and cross the border with Venezuelan documents.
But by golly, the BP better not even think about detaining anyone suspicious or else.
Why do they need documents? Just cross the river and get a job.
Just smile, keep nodding and say "si".
lol
But a Pakistani saying "sí" would sound like "dee"...
And all these pakis and hezzies would be given illegal alien amnesty along with the mexicans.
Let's hope this baboon cannot steal the next election.
"The report says members of the Lebanese militant group Hezbollah, which Washington considers a terrorist organization, "have already entered the US across the southwest border."
Anyone heard any "official" response by the White House on this report?
Only in our dreams..
I'm still surprised Rumsfield got away with saying the same thing about the threat of the southern border being used by terrorists almost 2 years ago.
One of these days Sluggo, POW! Right to the moon!
They don't even need Venezuela. They have Mexico. Beheading has become a prominent sport in Mexico already.
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