Threat Matrix: December 2006

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[nwctwx]

Fighting Jihad in Cyberspace
-Full Story-

The setting is familiar to anyone who watches the evening news. A large, executive-style desk, a laptop perched on top, a logo in the background and a screen showing shifting images to reinforce the newsreader's message. The only difference is the presenter, who is swathed in an Arab headdress and masked to hide his identity, and the subject of the broadcast, a call for an Islamic state for Iraq and a vow to use Iraq as a launching pad to crush the "Zionists" in Israel.

Welcome to the "Voice of the Caliphate", the latest offering from the Global Islamic Media Front, widely regarded as the mouthpiece of al-Qaeda and the worldwide jihadist movement.

Distributed over the internet, the mock news format is just one of many employed by al-Qaeda's highly sophisticated propaganda arm.

	Mystery Surrounds Zawahri’s Silence
	HizbAllah Offensive in Lebanon: Day One
	Significant Terrorist Incidents, 1961-2003: A Brief Chronology

Thread Forty-Three

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[Oorang]

Sky sources say a man has been arrested after series of bombings killed two people in Bangkok
Updated: 19:17, Sunday December 31, 2006

Two Britons are among more than 30 people injured by bomb attacks in the Thai capital of Bangkok, it has been reported. Authorities earlier confirmed that two people were killed in the series of blasts. A total of nine bombs exploded in the city, forcing the cancellation of New Year celebrations.

People in Bangkok have been warned to avoid moving around the city, which is now in security lockdown. As well as the two British nationals, the foreigners hurt in the blasts were two Serbians, a Hungarian and a US national.

Sky sources have revealed that police in Thailand arrested a man following the first six blasts. Map of Thailand It is believed he was carrying an explosive device when he was arrested. One bomb was planted under a seat at a bus stop outside a shopping mall. Another went off near a police booth. A third was placed in a rubbish bin at a market in the port district and wounded five, including a 10-year-old child.

Bar worker Somrak Manphothong, who was near the shopping mall bomb, said: "I heard a loud explosion and thought it was fireworks. "I ran there and saw a bleeding woman at the bus stop. Another guy was lying on the floor covered in blood and his wife was shaking his body." The bombings are the last in a year of unrest in Thailand which has seen a military coup and mounting Muslim insurgency in its southernmost provinces.

http://news.sky.com/skynews/article/0,,30200-1245588,00.html

[Oorang]

Sorry about the double post. I think my computer has the hiccups.

[appalachian_dweller]

>> Thailand: Suspected Islamic militants shot dead Buddhist teachers and then set their bodies ablaze <<
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1760664/posts

killjoy,
Do you think this ties in with the ealier bombings?

[appalachian_dweller]

>> A total of nine bombs exploded in the city <<

Nine??!! Damn!

Very much an AQ MO. They got one of the perps. How many more are still in the wind?

Oorang, thanks for that very important follow up information!

killjoy, please lay low and stay safe!

I would advise the rest of us to be on guard. If you have plan to go out, by all means go and enjoy yourselves. Just be aware of your surroundings and know how to exit the area/building quickly.

AD

[appalachian_dweller]

More info on the Bangkok bombings....

COORDINATED BANGKOK BOMBS KILL 2; New Year's Eve Countdown cancelled
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1760636/posts


AD

[Oorang]

Greek Plane Forced To Divert To Ireland After Bomb Threat
December 31st 2006

A Greek Olympic Airlines plane diverted to Shannon Airport in south-western Ireland Sunday following a bomb threat, but hours later was allowed to fly on after a search revealed nothing.

The plan's owners Olympic Airlines said in Athens that all 183 passengers and the 12-member crew were evacuated at Shannon as security experts searched the plane.

A man speaking English with a "strong Arab accent" had twice rung Athens airport to issue warnings of an attack in connection with the execution Saturday of former Iraqi leader Saddam Hussein. Greek Transport Minister Michalis Liapis was among passengers aboard the flight from New York to Athens.

http://www.playfuls.com/news_10_6941-ROUNDUP-Greek-Plane-Forced-To-Divert-To-Ireland-After-Bomb-Threat.html

Army seizes huge cache of explosives in Assam (India)
Sunday, December 31, 2006

KOKRAJHAR: The army has seized a huge cache of explosives from two alleged arms suppliers in Assam's Chirang district. Acting on a tip-off, the army arrested Pradeep Basumatary and Bangal Mushahary from a place near Runikhata and seized from them 90 pieces of assorted explosives weighing nearly two kg last night, sources said on Sunday.

The duo allegedly supplied arms to major insurgent groups of Assam like the ULFA and NDFB as well as an underground group of Meghalaya, the sources said. Several gelatine sticks, nine detonators and small arms were also seized from the duo. They reportedly confessed that the arms and explosives were bought from a company based in Hyderabad and then supplied to rebels in the northeast. The two men are being interrogated, the sources said.

http://www.dnaindia.com/report.asp?NewsID=1072058

New Year's Eve bomb arrests in India
1555 GMT (2355 HKT), December 31, 2006

NEW DELHI, India - Police arrested two suspected terrorists with improvised explosive devices on New Year's Eve at a busy railway station in New Delhi. New Delhi Police spokesman Ravi Pawar said the two are believed to be linked to Lashkar-e-Tayyiba.

The group, based in Pakistan, has been behind previous terrorist attacks and is believed to be associated with al Qaeda. The U.S. State Department lists it as a terrorist organization. Pawar said Friday's incident is "under investigation" and that the explosives "have gone for testing."

http://edition.cnn.com/2006/WORLD/asiapcf/12/31/india.arrests/

[appalachian_dweller]

Thanks O for the information. Helps greatly with situational awareness.

>> A man speaking English with a "strong Arab accent" had twice rung Athens airport to issue warnings of an attack in connection with the execution Saturday of former Iraqi leader Saddam Hussein. <<

We all knew this was coming.

Remember folks, it's always darkest just before dawn. I fear we have some very dark days in front of us.



All's quiet around here.

[nwctwx]

I may not be able to get the next TM online until Tuesday the 2nd. I am currently in Montreal using wireless internet in the hotel lobby. I am scheduled to go back to CT tomorrow and fly home on Tuesday morning. I will try to do what I can but it looks like I may not have the chance before Tuesday. Hope everyone had a nice Christmas, and Happy New Year!

[Cindy]

That's just fine nw.
I hope you have had an enjoyable time off.

[appalachian_dweller]

Thanks for all your wonderful efforts Ian! Don't sweat it. Relax and enjoy your New Years.

And Stay Safe!! That goes for all TMers and FReepers.

[Cindy]

Thanks to Nick Grace (GLOBAL CRISIS WATCH http://www.globalcrisiswatch.com ) for the following link:



Al-Zawahiri video with English subtitles:
http://www.globalcrisiswatch.com/aq/061231_zawahiri.rm

[Oorang]

Bomb Squad Detonates Device Found In San Bruno (California)
12/31/06 11:30 PST

A bomb squad detonated an explosive device found at a San Bruno residence on Saturday after people in the surrounding area were evacuated from their homes, a police sergeant reported. San Bruno police Sgt. Troy Fry said seven residences were evacuated near the 600 block of Green Avenue in San Bruno around 3 a.m. on Saturday after the discovery.

The device, which was unspecified, was detonated without injury, according to the sergeant. It turned up as a result of a joint investigation involving San Bruno police and a narcotics task force from the San Mateo County Sheriff's Office. A sheriff's bomb squad detonated the device, Fry reported.

http://cbs5.com/localwire/localfsnews/bcn/2006/12/31/n/HeadlineNews/EXPLOSIVE-DEVICE/resources_bcn_html

Possible Explosive Device Found Near Bridge In DC Suburb...Developing...
Posted December 30, 2006 06:51 PM

Tipped off by an anonymous caller, police found a possible explosive device on the banks of the Anacostia River in Colmar Manor, Maryland, on Saturday at approximately 1:30 PM.

The package appeared to be a box with protruding wires, connected to a trip wire. The fire department used a water canon to disable it, and found what appeared to be six sticks of dynamite inside the box.

It is not known if the package was connected to a detonator; it has not been confirmed that the material inside the box was dynamite. The device has been sent to a lab for further tests. Colmar Manor is a small town approximately 6 miles from Washington, DC. The device was found near Bladensburg Road bridge over the Anacostia River. Bladensburg Road is a byway into the capitol. Maryland Park Police and officers from nearby Cottage City responded to the call.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2006/12/30/possible-explosive-device_n_37466.html

[Oorang]

Take your time and enjoy your holiday.

[appalachian_dweller]

Re: #1633

THANKS for the info Oorang.

Regarding the device found near the bridge in DC:

>> The device was found near Bladensburg Road bridge over the Anacostia River. Bladensburg Road is a byway into the capitol <<

Into and OUT of the capital. Trying to cut off escape routes????


Worried here...

[Oorang]

Hunt for Al-Qaeda men in Mogadishu
December 31, 2006

SOMALIA’s prime minister has asked clan elders in Mogadishu to surrender Al-Qaeda suspects who are believed to be sheltering in the city after his forces, with Ethiopian military support, drove out Islamic militias which controlled the capital.

Excerpted

http://www.timesonline.co.uk/article/0,,2089-2524247,00.html

U.S. agencies missing links between illegal immigration and terrorism

SNIP:"The Southwest border may not be a priority target for a terrorist attack, but it is prime territory for the cultivation, recruitment, transportation and stashing of terrorist cell members," Samaniego concluded.

SNIP:Additionally troubling to U.S. authorities are the growing cultural similarities between Mexican drug cartels and established terrorist groups.

http://www.sbsun.com/news/ci_4917538

[Oorang]

I looked for another source, with more information, for that news and struck out. If/when I find something I'll be sure to ping you a_d.

[Cindy]

Ping to Oorang's post regarding "Greek Plane Forced to Divert to Ireland After Bomb Threat"

http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1747324/posts?page=1627#1627

[appalachian_dweller]

Thanks O! DC is the back yard. Anything goes down I'll need to know about it.

Locked n loaded here. Night vision at the ready as well.