|
| This thread has been locked, it will not receive new replies. |
|
Locked on 02/01/2007 7:40:51 PM PST by Admin Moderator, reason:
New thread: http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1777773/posts |
Posted on 01/02/2007 7:23:18 PM PST by nwctwx
|
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/keyword?k=greece
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/keyword?k=youths
http://www.iht.com/articles/ap/2007/01/04/europe/EU_GEN_Greece_Arson.php
"Cars torched, post office damaged in arson attacks in Greece"
The Associated Press
Published: January 4, 2007
ARTICLE SNIPPET: "ATHENS, Greece: Suspected anarchists damaged a post office and two parked cars in overnight arson attacks, police said Thursday.
No one was hurt in the attacks, carried out in the downtown areas of Exarchia and Kallithea using small gas canisters and gasoline bombs. A motorcycle was also torched, and a group of youths threw a gasoline bomb at a police van near central Athens but missed their target."
Note: The following text is a quote:
https://www.osac.gov/Reports/report.cfm?contentID=61335
you are here: Home > Reports > Consular Affairs Bulletins > Report
Warden Message: The Hague Demonstration
Consular Affairs Bulletins
Europe - Netherlands
4 Jan 2007
Printer Friendly Email Article
Related Reports
20 Dec 2006
The Hague Demonstration December 22
6 Nov 2006
EU Clarifies Carry-On Luggage Restrictions
5 Nov 2006
Warden Message: Hussein Verdict Demonstrations
11 Oct 2006
Worldwide Caution Public Announcement
3 Oct 2006
Islamic Radicalization in Western Europe
U.S. Embassy The Hague released the following Warden Message on January 4, 2007:
This Warden Message is being issued to alert U.S. Citizens traveling to and residing in the Netherlands that the local police have informed the Embassy that a demonstration is scheduled for Friday, January 05, 2007 from 1300 until 1600 hours. The demonstration is being organized by a Kurdish representative and will encompass 50 to 60 Kurdish protestors. The group will gather at the Central Station in The Hague and then march in front of the U.S. Embassy to protest the Baker-Hamilton report. This Warden Message expires on January 15, 2007.
The police will be escorting the group and extra riot police will be on stand by.
As noted in the Consular Information Sheet for the Netherlands, demonstrations are commonplace in the Netherlands and may range in number from a few people to several thousand. Prior police approval is required for public demonstrations, and police oversight is routinely provided. Nonetheless, situations may develop which could pose a threat to public safety. U.S. citizens are advised to avoid areas in which public demonstrations are taking place.
For the latest security information, Americans living and traveling abroad should regularly monitor the Department's Bureau of Consular Affairs Internet web site at http://travel.state.gov, where the current Worldwide Caution, Public Announcements, and Travel Warnings can be found. Up-to-date information on security can also be obtained by calling 1-888-407-4747 toll free in the U.S., or, for callers outside the U.S. and Canada, a regular toll line at 1-202-501-4444. These numbers are available from 8:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m. Eastern Time, Monday through Friday (except U.S. federal holidays).
The U.S. Consulate General in the Netherlands is located at Museumplein 19, Amsterdam, tel. (31)(20) 575-5309. The after-hours emergency telephone number is (31)(70) 310-2209.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/south_asia/6229881.stm
Last Updated: Thursday, 4 January 2007, 10:55 GMT
"'Maoist threats' shut Nepal plant"
ARTICLE SNIPPET: "The Maoists have been accused of extortion in the past
One of Nepal's biggest companies has suspended some operations because of unspecified threats by Maoist rebels."
Buried within the 244 pages of Gitmo detainee abuse investigation reports released by the FBI yesterday was a clue to one of the longstanding mysteries in the War on Terror -- did al Qaeda have a role in the 1996 Khobar Towers bombing?
According to an FBI FD-302 interrogation record dated May 22, 2002, two FBI agents questioned a Gitmo detainee who had been identified by Saudi and Kuwaiti officials as a suspect in the Khobar bombing. p>The detainee had been identified as a Khobar suspect by both Saudi and Kuwaiti intelligence as early as 1996. He was allowed to emigrate to the United States and was living in Buffalo, New York, at the time of the September 11 attacks.
Despite the fact the detainee was known to two U.S. allies as a suspected terrorist, the detainee was able to leave the United States three weeks after 9/11 -- a period when thousands of Muslim men living here had been rounded up and were being held without charge by U.S. officials.
The detainee was eventually apprehended in Afghanistan, the report said.
Excerpted - much more at link
Tucson and University of Arizona police are investigating whether chemicals found on a man near the UA are explosive, officials said Thursday. The man was seen walking with a rifle near 10th and Park and was stopped by police at which time a canister with an unknown chemical was found, said Sgt. Eugene Mejia, a spokesman for the UA Police Department.
Because officers believed that the chemical could be an explosive, the Tucson Police Department's bomb unit was called out. An X-ray has been conducted and it does not appear that the canister is an explosive device, said Sgt. Mark Robinson, a Tucson Police Department spokesman.
The man was apparently rattling off explosive formulas, prompting the bomb unit to check his nearby residence to ensure that there are no explosives there.
http://www.azstarnet.com/sn/hourlyupdate/163221.php
Suspicious package in Norwalk halts train service (Connecticut)
January 4, 2007, 4:17 PM EST
NORWALK, Conn. (AP) _ Metro-North train service was halted Thursday while authorities investigated a suspicious package, police said. Employees at a UPS facility in Norwalk were concerned that the package might contain explosives, so they brought it outside to a safe area, said Norwalk Police Chief Harry Rilling.
"At this point it's been determined that it's not an explosive device," Rilling said. "It was not a danger. It was an inert device. Whatever was in the box was not illegal to possess."
Rilling would not say what was in the box, noting the matter was under investigation. No one was injured.
Police were called shortly before 11 a.m. and the incident was over by 2 p.m., Rilling said. Metro-North trains between two stations in Norwalk were halted in both directions until 2 p.m. Two trains were delayed for about 50 minutes, said Metro-North spokesman Dan Brucker.
Hungary flights evacuated after bomb threat
Jan 4, 2007, 16:58 GMT
Budapest - Two flights of the Hungarian airline Malev had to be evacuated at Budapest's airport Thursday after a passenger threatened to detonate a bomb, a spokeswoman for the airline said.
Krisztina Nemeth said that a passenger threatened to set off a bomb after mistakenly boarding a flight for Kiev, Ukraine instead of his actual flight to Tirana, Albania. The passenger was removed and both flights emptied, although the threat proved empty. Both planes took off several hours later than scheduled.
A Web video of Al Qaeda's No. 2 leader, Ayman al-Zawahiri, surfaced Thursday and called on Muslims throughout the Middle East to wage a jihad against Ethiopian forces occupying Somalia.
"You have to use ambushes and mines, and raids and suicidal attacks until you rend and eat your prey as the lion does with his prey," al-Zawahiri declared.
The statement was part of a five-and-a-half minute video produced by the terrorist group's multimedia arm as-Sahab.
In the video titled "Set Out and Support Your Brothers in Somalia," and translated by the SITE Institute, Zawahiri is seen in a still image from a previous release, while his voice calls on Muslims everywhere — but specifically those Yemen, the Arab Peninsula, Egypt, North Africa and Sudan — to participate in a holy war against secular government forces in Somalia.
Zawahiri says Mujahideen must provide Somali Muslims with men, experience, money and advice to defeat the Ethiopian forces, which he refers to as the "slaves of America."
The message is the latest from Al Qaeda on Somalia. A July 2006 audiotape showing Usama bin Laden called upon Islamists to attack the Somali government.
U.S. Intelligence officials have concluded that all previous tapes from top Al Qaeda types have been genuine. The lastest message is another example of Zawahiri's interest and ability to speak on timely issues outside of Iraq, officials said.
Addressing the Somali Muslims directly, Zawahiri refers to the U.S. military's campaign in Somalia between 1992 and 1994, saying that America has been defeated before, and due to terrorist strikes in Afghanistan and Iraq, the American army is relatively weaker.
Zawahiri also directly calls upon the youth of the radical Egyptian Islamic group al-Gama'a al-Islamiyya to participate in the jihad. He states that these members joined the group to obey Allah, and if they are prevented from that duty, "they must crush the sarcophagus where they were embalmed alive."
Further, Zawahiri also claim a Mujahideen victory over America in Afghanistan and Iraq, and urges patience and steadiness.
http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,241739,00.html?sPage=fnc.world/africa
Updates appreciated regarding the UA man "rattling off explosive formulas."
A war against Iran could be launched within the next two years, a senior adviser to George Bush warned last night. CIA specialist on Iran Reuel Marc Gerecht said there had been a "tidal shift" of opinion towards military action, especially in Israel. He added: "I think it has now become highly likely the Israelis will launch a strike before the end of George Bush's presidency."
An Israeli attack before the US election in November 2008 risks sparking a military explosion in the Middle East. It is likely to be backed up by American and possibly British air support from Iraq. Iran's president Mahmoud Ahmadinejad could retaliate by sending the Republican Guard across the border with Iraq to attack British forces.
Experts warned there would be a massive surge in Iranianbacked suicide attacks.
The UN has voted unanimously to impose sanctions against Iran over its failure to halt its nuclear programme.
Iraqi National – WNA / Baghdad Office/ Anbar rescue Council announced today, Thursday, the killing of five members of the al-Qaeda network of Anbar governorate west of Iraq.
The leader of the Council, Sheikh Hamid Farhan said that the local council forces killed five terrorists among them a Yamani nationality prince in the area of Heet in western Iraq.
Farhan assured that "Council forces tightened her grip on the West Coast" which is facing continued tension on the part of armed groups that operate in that region. The Council of the province of Anbar is supported by the Iraqi government and American forces in the region.
MOROCCAN security forces have dismantled a radical Islamist cell recruiting volunteers to fight in Iraq and arrested 62 people, the Government said on Thursday. "The first elements of the inquiry reveal the existence of ideological links with and financial and logistical support for international terrorist groups," it said in a statement.
Those groups included Al Qaeda, the Algeria-based Salafist Group for Preaching and Combat (GSPC) and other international terrorist organisations, it added. All those arrested were Moroccan.
Morocco, a staunch US ally, says it has broken up more than 50 militant Islamist cells, some linked to Al Qaeda, and arrested more than 3000 people since suicide bombings in the country's financial capital, Casablanca, in 2003.
In August, the Government said it had broken up a cell planning to declare a holy war in northeast Morocco, attack tourist sites and assassinate people who symbolise the state. It said the capture proved the existence of an increasingly sophisticated menace to the stability of the country of 32 million people before parliamentary elections expected this year.
The latest group's links with the GSPC could also alarm anti-terrorism officials already concerned that the GSPC is drawing in growing numbers of radical Islamists in the region and providing them with weapons and military training. Some analysts say the GSPC has been weakened by an Algerian Government crackdown on the movement since more than a decade of civil conflict in the country ended. They also question the threat posed by foreign Islamist fighters in Iraq, saying the country's descent into chaos is now blamed mostly on the work of local sectarian militias.
"You used to hear the Americans say this is all the work of foreigners but now, in terms of the pure terrorist attacks where the goal is to kill civilians, ... most of this is Iraqi led," said Kevin Rosser, a terrorism expert at risk consultancy Control Risks Group.
But Mohamed Tozy, political science professor at Hassan II University in Casablanca, said the idea of fighting the US-led occupation of Iraq still seemed to appeal to young Moroccans, even those who are not fervently religious. "It seems the idea of going to fight in Iraq is no longer so closely tied to Islamism and Jihadism," he said. "Simply being young might now be enough to predispose some people to follow this path."
The Government statement said those arrested in the latest round-up would be brought before judicial authorities in line with Morocco's anti-terrorist laws. Rights groups say hundreds of the people arrested since 2003 have faced ill-treatment or unfair trials, something the Government denies.
http://www.theaustralian.news.com.au/story/0,20867,21014163-1702,00.html
Note: The following text is a quote:
http://www.norad.mil/newsroom/news_releases/2007/010407_a.htm
*UPDATE* Rocket Re-entry over Colorado and Wyoming *UPDATE*
Jan. 4, 2007
Peterson Air Force Base, Colo. - NORAD and U.S. Northern Command are aware that a Russian SL-4 spacecraft launch stage from a commercial satellie launch re-entered the atmosphere over Wyoming through Colorado earlier this morning. The 1st Space Control Squadron, located at Cheyenne Mountain Air Force Station in Colorado Springs, Colorado tracked this re-entry from a launch that occurred 27 December 2006.
As is typical during re-entry, objects like this break up and burn up. However, it is possible that small pieces could reach the ground. The most likely area for these pieces to be located are southwestern Colo., and northwestern N.M. Currently, no damage has been reported and the debris is not believed to be hazardous.
It’s important for everyone to understand that the re-entry of pieces from this rocket is complete. We encourage anyone who believes that they may know the location of a piece from this rocket exercise caution and inform their local authorities immediately for potential recovery operations.
While the re-entry of space debris occurs almost daily, it is statistically unusual for the object to land in populated areas.
The NORAD-USNORTHCOM Command Center informed the National Guard Bureau and Department of Homeland Security of this event so that local authorities and first responders would be aware.
NORAD-USNORTHCOM continues to monitor the situation.
-30-
===
===
Previously...
Note: The following text is a quote:
http://www.norad.mil/newsroom/news_releases/2007/010407.htm
Rocket Re-entry over Colorado and Wyoming
Jan. 4, 2007
NORAD and U.S. Northern Command are aware that an SL-4 rocket body re-entered the atmosphere over Colorado and Wyoming earlier this morning. It is possible that pieces of the object broke off during reentry over states neighboring Colorado. We are also aware of a initial report that a piece landed in Riverton, Wyo., near highway 28, around 6:13 a.m., today. Currently, no damage has been reported and the debris is not believed to be hazardous. NORAD-USNORTHCOM continues to monitor the situation and more information will be provided as it becomes available.
This thread goes with post no. 151:
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1762685/posts
"Russian Rocket Comes Down Over Wyo."
Brietbart/AP ^ | 01-04-07
Posted on 01/04/2007 10:09:26 PM PST by mfnorman
PETERSON AIR FORCE BASE, Colo. (AP)
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/keyword?k=mexico
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/keyword?k=tijuana
===
===
Note: The following text is a quote:
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1762674/posts
Tijuana police force ordered to turn in guns
San Diego Union - Tribune ^ | 1/4/07 | Sandra Dibble
Posted on 01/04/2007 9:09:23 PM PST by NormsRevenge
TIJUANA – The city's entire 2,300-member municipal police force has been ordered to turn in its weapons, leaving doubt Thursday about who would be patrolling this city of more than 1.5 million residents.
The surprise directive from Mexico's Defense Secretariat comes a day after President Felipe Calderon ordered Operation Tijuana, a major offensive against organized crime in the city. More than 3,000 soldiers and federal agents are being sent to the city with the aim of tackling the city's crime problems.
Federal officials were expected to conduct ballistics tests on the weapons, apparently to see if they could link any of the weapons to the many killings that have been attributed to drug cartels.
Dozens of police officers carrying a range of handguns and automatic weapons lined up Thursday at department headquarters on Eighth Street. The Mexican military, which maintains a registry of weapons, routinely checks police weapons, and officers initially thought this was a regular check.
Federal officials have repeatedly said corruption is widespread in Tijuana's department, which is charged with responsible for maintaining public order in the city.
Mayor Jorge Hank Rhon, in a television interview, said that he has ordered the police department to refrain from patrols.
“I can't send them to war without a weapon,” the mayor said.
In the absence of the city officers, the mayor said federal forces will be doing the job of the municipal department.
Thanks to 4butNOmorethan30characters for the ping to this post.
QUOTE:
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1762676/posts?page=52#52
Saudi Arabia Confirms It Spoke with Hizbullah
08:07 Jan 05, '07 / 15 Tevet 5767
(IsraelNN.com) Saudi Arabia and Hizbullah officials both confirmed that delegations from the terrorist organization and the oil-rich nation met last week in Jeddah, the first time there has been contact between the Sunni-ruled kingdom and the Hizbullah Shi'ite party.
"It was a good meeting, and Saudi Arabia is an open field where all the Lebanese sides can meet, and so it is not surprising that this meeting happened," Saudi Ambassador Abdel Aziz Khoja said. Saudi Arabia is trying to defuse the crisis in Lebanon, where Hizbullah has camped out on Beirut streets for more than a month in an effort to topple the government or win concessions for more power in the Cabinet.
Beirut's Al-Akhbar newspaper said the Saudis had invited Hizbullah leader Hassan Nasrallah to the kingdom for last week's annual pilgrimage to Mecca but that he declined on security grounds.
###
http://www.israelnationalnews.com/news.php3?id=118819
52 posted on 01/04/2007 10:50:09 PM PST by 4butnomorethan30characters (Tag _____________________________.)
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/keyword?k=rocketlaunchers
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/keyword?k=rocketlauncher
===
===
Note: The following post is a quote:
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1762704/posts
Rocket launcher only 'chip' nuclear reactor
news.com.au ^ | 5th January 2007 | Paul Carter
Posted on 01/05/2007 12:07:09 AM PST by naturalman1975
THE type of rockets believed stolen from the Australian Defence Force would only chip away at a target like Sydney's Lucas Heights nuclear reactor, a security expert said today. NSW Assistant Police Commissioner Nick Kaldas said the reactor in southern Sydney was one of a number of sites believed to have been considered a target by those in possession of seven missing rocket launchers.
The rocket launchers are the type designed to be fired from the shoulder by infantry. They have enough punch to destroy a car, or even a tank, but not a nuclear reactor.
Security consultant Peter Collins said the easy-to-use single-use rockets could destroy a car, or if fired into a packed train or bus, would cause a blast and shrapnel spray capable of killing people within a five metre radius.
But the former navy intelligence officer said the outdated rocket, which has a range of 220m and is best used on stationary objects, would have almost no effect on a building like the Lucas Heights nuclear reactor.
"It would chip away the exterior but the chance of it penetrating the reactor area of the site would be zero,'' Mr Collins said.
(Excerpt) Read more at news.com.au ...
Adding to post no. 157:
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/keyword?k=rocketlaunchers
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/keyword?k=rocketlauncher
===
===
Note: The following post is a quote:
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1762701/posts
Rocket launcher terror link made
news.com.au ^ | 5th January 2007 | Nick Butterly, Paul Mulvey and Amy Coopes
Posted on 01/04/2007 11:45:00 PM PST by naturalman1975
THE 28-year-old Sydney man today charged for possessing seven rocket launchers was involved in the group last year arrested for plotting to blow up the Sydney Harbour Bridge and Lucas Heights nuclear reactor, Australian Federal Police Commissioner Mick Keelty said.
Taha Abdul Rahman was arrested at a house in Leumeah, in Sydney's south-west, and charged with 17 offences related to the receipt, supply and possession of the weapons.
He appeared briefly in court this afternoon and was remanded in custody until January 10.
Mr Keelty said the arrested man was involved in the group arrested last year for plotting to blow up the Sydney Harbour Bridge and Lucas Heights nuclear reactor but said it was important not to "over-sensationalise" matters before the court.
"Clearly alleged possession of a rocket launcher by a civilian with alleged connections to the other persons before the court is of serious concern,'' he said.
He said the arrested man had no immediate connections to the ADF, and no members of the ADF were said to be under investigation at this point.
The focus of the AFP investigation was now shifting from how the weapon got from the ADF and into the hands of an potential terrorist organisation, Mr Keelty said.
"We still haven't satisfied ourselves that there were other missing weapons and that's the reason why the Department of Defence have announced their audit that's already started to take place and that's an audit that's been joined by ASIO and we think that's an appropriate step,'' Commissioner Keelty said.
The AFP, ASIO and the NSW Police are jointly investigating the theft of the seven rocket launchers from the ADF.
(Excerpt) Read more at news.com.au ...
Add to posts 157 and 158:
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/keyword?k=rocketlaunchers
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/keyword?k=rocketlauncher
===
===
Note: The following post is a quote:
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1762719/posts
Sydney building was rocket target
Herald Sun ^ | 5 January 2007 | Paul Mulvey and Nick Butterly
Posted on 01/05/2007 1:44:28 AM PST by Aussie Dasher
A SYDNEY building was to be the target of a rocket attack after a man allegedly supplied rocket launchers stolen from the military to a suspected terrorist.
Australian Federal Police chief Mick Keelty said the man arrested today over the theft of rocket launchers was allegedly connected to some of the men detained in an anti-terrorism raid last year.
It is understood that one rocket was intended to be used against an unspecified building in Sydney.
The rocket launchers are reportedly of the type designed to be fired from the shoulder by infantry. They have enough punch to destroy a tank.
Taha Abdul Rahman, 28, was arrested at a house in Leumeah, in Sydney's southwest, early today following a joint operation by the AFP, ASIO and the NSW Police over the theft of seven rocket launchers from the Australian Defence Force.
He was charged with 17 offences, including supplying a prohibited weapon.
AFP Assistant Commissioner Frank Prendergast alleged Rahman supplied five of the light anti-armoury weapons to one
(Excerpt) Read more at news.com.au ...
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.
