Islamabad, 11 Jan. 2007 - The Afghan insurgent leader Gulbuddin Hekmatyar has said in an interview broadcast on Thursday on Pakistani television channel GEO TV, that his fighters had helped al-Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden escape from US forces in 2001 in the Tora Bora mountain ranges in Afghanistan. Hekmatyar, a former Afghan prime minister in 1992 and leader of the Hezb-e-Islami militant group, said in the interview that when the US forces began their operation in Tora Bora in 2001, some of his fighters moved bin Laden, al-Qaeda's No. 2, Ayman al-Zawahiri and other associates to "a safe place" where he met them later. The US in 2003 labelled Hekmatyar a wanted global terrorist.
GEO TV did not disclose where or when the interview was conducted. Hekmatyar was speaking in the Pashto language, and the interview was dubbed over in Urdu, Pakistan's main language.
The Afghan insurgent leader, whose whearabouts are unknown, also did not specify where the "safe place" his fighters brought the al-Qaeda leaders. He also said that he no longer had links with the terrorist network.
He also stressed that foreign troops have to leave Afghanistan before the conflict in the country can be solved politically. Reports say that Hekmatyar's fighters are active in eastern Afghanistan along the Pakistani border.
http://www.adnki.com/index_2Level_English.php?cat=Terrorism&loid=
Yemen: Authorities Fear Infiltration By Al-Qaeda Operatives From Somalia
Sanaa, 11 Jan. 2007 - Yemeni navy warships are patrolling the Somali coast with the particular task of intercepting al-Qaeda operatives and Islamist fighters believed to have fled from Somalia after their routing there this month by Ethiopian and Somali government troops and the United States military's airstrikes this week in the south. The conflict in Somalia is greatly worrying the Yemeni authorities, who view it as a possible threat to national security, the Saudi al-Watan newspaper reports.
The Yemeni secret services have alerted their Saudi counterparts to an alleged plan by Islamist terrorists to rearm with Katushka rockets and carry out an attack on a Red Sea locality, al-Watan said.
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http://www.adnki.com/index_2Level_English.php?cat=Terrorism&loid=8.0.375390530&par=0
The Task Force on Future Terrorism formed by the Homeland Security's Advisory Council (HSAC) released its findings today in Washington DC, in the presence of Secretary Chertoff, other US leaders and the media. In his remarks, Task Force chairman Lee Hamilton said the group expect al Qaeda and other Islamic radicals to continue to attempt to attack the US. He said motivations behind these potential attacks are "complex" and include extremist ideologies. He added that while it is impossible to predict with precisions, three elements are to be taken into consideration: Terrorists leadership, political and economic reform in the Muslim world and safe havens (as in Pakistan). Frank Cilluffo, the vice chairman of the Task Force said "home and prison radicalization is very important" in the growth of the threat. He mentioned that a "lexicon" has to be established to engage in the "battle of ideas."
The findings, as announced today, include a variety of assessments and recommendations. It is important that the community of counter terrorism experts review the findings and evaluate it, as they are now a basis for a policy discussion at the level of Government. Two CTB members were consulted during the research sessions: Steve Emerson and myself. Among the points raised by HSAC are the following issues related to the War of Ideas, along with my comments :
1) "There is every indication that the number and magnitude of attacks on the U.S., its interests and its allies will likely increase.".
Comment: It would be important for the CT community to begin working on the parameters of this projection: the almost certainty that the magnitude of attacks will increase.
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