Threat Matrix: February 2007

Previous Thread ^

[Cindy]

http://www.defenselink.mil/news/NewsArticle.aspx?ID=2940

"DoD Establishing U.S. Africa Command"

By Jim Garamone
American Forces Press Service

ARTICLE SNIPPET: "WASHINGTON, Feb. 6, 2007 – The U.S. military will establish a separate U.S. Africa Command to oversee military operations on the African continent, Defense Secretary Robert M. Gates announced during Congressional testimony today."

[Oorang]

Armed attack at Pakistan airport
Tuesday, 6 February 2007

At least one person has been killed and three injured in an explosion in the car park of Islamabad's international airport, Pakistani police say. A senior officer told the BBC the blast occurred after a group of armed men was challenged by security guards. Three of the attackers were injured in an exchange of fire. One tried to throw a grenade, but died when it exploded. Police suspect he was a suicide bomber and are examining whether he was carrying more explosives. Officials said at least one suspected accomplice was arrested.

Series of bombings
The BBC's Barbara Plett in Islamabad says the significance of this bombing is more the target than the human loss. The international airport serves the capital and is used by many foreigners and dignitaries. Last month, a suicide bomber attacked a five-star hotel in Islamabad.

The attacks are the latest in a series of bombings in different parts of the country over the past two weeks that have killed more than 20 people. Unofficially, police are saying they could be connected to militant tribesmen in the border region near Afghanistan, our correspondent says. Militants had threatened to take revenge for recent army air strikes there.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/south_asia/6336379.stm

Pakistan Bomber Aimed for Airport VIP Lounge
February 06, 2007

Pakistani military sources say a suicide bomber blew himself up at the main international airport in Rawalpindi today after being denied access to the area leading to the airport's VIP lounge. Officials say the attacker detonated his bomb in a parking area at the international airport after exchanging gun fire with at least two police officers, who were injured. Officials say at least three people died in the explosion.

Interior Secretary Kamal Shah says the bomber was found with a second pistol. He was carrying three grenades, one of which exploded.

Pakistani sources say Pakistani police and intelligence services had been on high alert in the past few weeks, in expectation of a major terrorist operation or assassination attempt on President Musharraf in revenge for the latest Pakistani army strike against militants in South Waziristan.

While it is not yet clear who was responsible for today's airport attack, officials tell ABC News they do not believe that al Qaeda is behind the attack.

http://blogs.abcnews.com/theblotter/2007/02/pakistan_bomber.html

[Cindy]

MEGA THANKS for finding the Vienna article, Oorang.

I'll add it to this thread (from a person apparently over there) in the wee hours today.


Note: The following post is a quote:

http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1779923/posts


Bomb threat at the Vienna International Centre (U.N.)
Schnucki | Feb. 6, 2007 | Schnucki

Posted on 02/06/2007 12:36:39 AM PST by Schnucki

Sorry for the vanity, but the entrances to the Vienna International Centre (the United Nations offices in Vienna) are temporarily blocked by the police.

Apparently there is some sort of bomb threat and they're investigating.

Here's a webcam link of the area, which shows the traffic pretty much at a standstill around the complex.

1 posted on 02/06/2007 12:36:41 AM PST by Schnucki

[Oorang]

Thanks, I didn't know their was a thread from early this morning.

__________________________

Troops uncover U.S. uniform stash (Iraq)
February 05, 2007

Soldiers from Fort Carson on a recent Baghdad patrol uncovered a huge stash of American uniforms and equipment at a warehouse that could have been used to disguise scores of insurgents for a sneak attack.

The 2nd Brigade Combat Team has had troops in Baghdad and Ramadi since October, and since December has been on the offensive. The soldiers have been countered by an increasingly sophisticated enemy, which in the northern city of Karbala late last month used American and Iraqi uniforms to sneak onto a base and launch a deadly attack that left five Americans dead.

On Jan. 29 in Baghdad, 2nd BCT soldiers and their Iraqi Army counterparts uncovered the gear needed to launch a far larger, and potentially deadlier, attack. “There was enough gear in there to outfit a battalion,” the brigade’s Capt. James Ojeda said in a news release from Iraq.

The work to uncover the equipment started when a senior sergeant from the brigade spotted the American military items for sale in an open market in eastern Baghdad. Troops moved quickly to gather information about how the equipment was being sold and whether more was stored elsewhere.

A search of the neighborhood led soldiers to the warehouse, with enough equipment to stock a stateside Army surplus store. The stash included 200 pairs of military boots, 150 helmets, 150 flak vests, 75 armor plates, remote control for a roadside bomb, meals ready to eat, and a variety of uniforms, including U.S. uniforms, the Army said. Ojeda said the equipment in the warehouse appeared to be in storage for later use rather than being prepared for sale.

Excerpted

http://www.gazette.com/display.php?id=1329633&secid=1

[Cindy]

No, I didn't post it.
I forgot because I ended up looking at something else and later closed off.

[Cindy]

Note: The following text is a quote:

http://www.centcom.mil/sites/uscentcom2/Lists/Current%20Press%20Releases/DispForm.aspx?ID=4484&Source=http%3A%2F%2Fwww%2Ecentcom%2Emil%2Fsites%2Fuscentcom2%2FLists%2FPress%2520Releases%2FCurrent%2520Releases%2Easpx

Title:
COALITION FORCES USE GUIDED MUNITIONS TO STOP INSURGENT ATTACK
Release Date:
2/6/2007
Release Number:
07-01-03P
Description:
CAMP FALLUJAH, Iraq – Coalition forces used guided munitions to stop an insurgent attack 6 km northwest of Khalidiyah Feb. 5.

Coalition forces were attacked with a rocket-propelled grenade which struck a Coalition vehicle. Immediately following the RPG detonation, Coalition forces were attacked with a heavy volume of small arms fire from insurgents in a building across the river. Coalition forces returned fire with small arms fire, machinegun fire and high explosive rounds. When the attack did not cease, Coalition forces used guided munitions against the attackers. The weapon hit the building, destroying it.

The insurgents’ attack continued with small arms fire from an adjacent building and Coalition forces used guided munitions to halt the attack. The weapon struck the building, destroying it and ending the attack.

There were no reports of civilian casualties.

[Cindy]

Adding 1 link to post no. 320:

http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1777773/posts?page=320#320

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http://counterterrorismblog.org/2007/02/us_should_initiate_designation.php

"U.S. Should Initiate Designation Process For Iraqi Parliament Member For Possible Terrorist Activities"
By Andrew Cochran
(February 6, 2007)

[Cindy]

http://www.memri.org/jihad.html

http://memri.org/bin/articles.cgi?Page=subjects&Area=jihad&ID=SP145407

Special Dispatch Series - No. 1454
February 7, 2007 No.1454

"Abu Omar Al-Baghdadi: ‘We Find No [Blood] Sweeter Than That of the Byzantines [i.e. Christians]’"

ARTICLE SNIPPET: "On February 3, 2007, Islamist websites posted a 23-minute audio recording by Emir Al-Muaminin (i.e. Commander of the Believers) Abu Omar Al-Baghdadi, whom Al-Qaeda has appointed "head of the Islamic State of Iraq." The recording, dated February 2, 2007 and titled, "Victory from Allah, Victory is Near," was issued by the Islamic State's media company Al-Furqan. In his address, Al-Baghdadi announces that the jihad arena will be extended beyond the boundaries of Baghdad. He also calls on Sunni youth to join the war against the "Crusader" forces, urges the mujahideen who have not yet done so to pledge allegiance to the Islamic State of Iraq, and declares war on the "Persians," whom he characterizes as an enemy worse than the Christians."

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...and continuing on with this blood thing....

Here's a transcript of MEMRITV.org - Video Clip no. 1374:

http://www.memritv.org/Transcript.asp?P1=1374

1/30/2007 Clip No. 1374

"Lebanese Poet Marwan Chamoun: Jews Slaughtered Christian Priest in Damascus in 1840 and Used His Blood for Matzos"

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and here's the MEMRITV Video clip on this LITTLEGREENFOOTBALLS.com blog:

http://littlegreenfootballs.com/weblog/?entry=24315_Blood_Libel_on_Lebanese_TV&only

[Cindy]

http://littlegreenfootballs.com/weblog/?entry=24327_Breaking-_Operation_Baghdad_Begins

---

http://iraqthemodel.blogspot.com


Note: This blog entry is a quote:

http://iraqthemodel.blogspot.com/2007/02/operation-baghdad-has-started.html

Tuesday, February 06, 2007

Operation Baghdad Has Started!

Minutes after nighttime curfew began in Baghdad at 9 pm we saw breaking news on al-Hurra and al-Jazeera saying that Baghdad's security operation has just started.

The news says the first operation is currently underway in Azamiyah in the northeastern part of the city.
However, it looks quiet here at the moment, except for a sudden increase in activity in the skies with US jet fighters patrolling over the northern parts of Baghdad.

We're now only a few kilometers far from Azamiyah, so if there's going to be some action, we'll certainly hear-or see-it, and we'll keep you updated.

[Oorang]

Indonesia: Poso A New Option For Al-Qaeda, Says Militia Leader

Jakarta, 6 Feb. 2007 - Indonesia's Central Sulawesi has become the chosen location to replace the Philippines' Mindanao island group as a "safe base" for groups linked to al-Qaeda, according to the former leader of the Laskar Jihad militia. In an interview with Adnkronos International (AKI) Jafar Umar Thalib also argued that the Jemaah Islamiyah (JI) terror group, had asked him to collaborate with them, back in 2000. Laskar Jihad was the largest armed group involved in a three-year sectarian conflict that cost 15,000 lives in Sulawesi and it was, in theory at least, dissolved in 2001.

”Poso was chosen as a base by movements linked to al-Qaeda after the failure of Mindanao and the problems of Abu Sayyaf, which has been weakened by the offensive of the Philippines authorities” said Jaafar.

Mindanao, the island to the south of the Philippines, home to four million Muslims, became a base for mujahadeen from abroad after the US attack on the Taliban regime in Afghanistan, in the wake of the Sept 11, 2001 attacks on US targets. The situation changed two years later when the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF), the largest Islamic rebel group in the Philippines, asked for Washington’s intervention to mediate with Manila.

One of the conditions for the US involvement was a promise by the MILF to renounce terrorism and groups associated with terrorist activity. The about-face by the MILF forced the mujahadeen towards the Sulu archipelago, heartland of the local Abu Sayyaf. The archipelago extends from the south of Mindanao as far as Borneo, the island split between Indonesia, Malaysia and Brunei. In recent years -in particular last August - Abu Sayyaf was the target of a major offensive by the Filipino army.

In this framework, according to Jaafar, Central Sulawesi has gradually become the alternative refuge to Mindanao and to the Sulu archipelago.

Jaafar revealed that al-Qaeda was initially eyeing the Molucca islands, scene of a sectarian war which broke out in 1999 and then spread to Sulawesi and which claimed more than 15,000 lives in the course of three years.

Laskar Jihad, the militia led by Jaafar was the largest armed group involved in the conflict and in theory was disbanded in 2001 . ”Yes, al-Qaeda was interested in Ambon [capital of the Molucca islands]. When I was in Ambon, Abu Abdul Aziz Bahadziq visited me and asked me to collaborate with them” said Jaafar, adding that Bahadziq was the Asian right hand man to Osama bin Laden and a close ally of Abu Bakar Bashir, considered the ideologue of Jemaah Islamiyah. ”I did not accept because I did not share the convictions of al-Qaeda and JI” he added. He believes JI then chose Poso, in Central Sulwesi, because it is an ideal conflict zone.

In a recent report, the International Crisis Group [ICG] said that Poso could no longer be considered a theatre of religious tension but seen as a new battle front in the struggle against terrorism in Indonesia. Attacks against Christians, previously thought to be an extension of the sectarian violence between Christians and Muslims in the area, were in fact engineered by the regional terror group JI in its agenda to escalate religious conflict.

ICG noted that in recent years JI had shifted many of its leaders to Poso, including Ustadz [master] Mahumud and Ustadz Riansyahm, two veterans of the anti Soviet campaign in Afghanistan, killed in a police raid last month. What’s more police recently arrested in Poso Hasanuddin, considered the leader of the new JI cell there after having being trained in Mindanao and having fought for years alongside the MILF guerrillas, before moving to Poso in 2002.

http://www.adnki.com/index_2Level_English.php?cat=Terrorism&loid=8.0.383571796&par=0

[Cindy]

ON THE NET...

http://internet-haganah.org/hmedia/26sep06-salafy_forums.html

http://www.internet-haganah.com/haganah/internet.html

[Cindy]

ON THE NET...

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

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

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http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1780281/posts

"Energy Jihad"
Kommersant ^ | Jan. 30, 2007 | Dmitry Butrin, Natalia Grib, and Petr Yozh

Posted on 02/06/2007 1:45:52 PM PST by lizol

"Energy Jihad
// Iran's Ayatollah Khamenei Surprises Russia with "Gas OPEC" Proposal"

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http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1776793/posts


"Putin's Next Stop Will Be the Mideast"
Moscow Times ^ | Wednesday, January 31, 2007 | Anatoly Medetsky / Nabi Abdullaev

Posted on 01/31/2007 8:21:54 AM PST by A. Pole

ARTICLE SNIPPET: "President Vladimir Putin will visit Saudi Arabia, Qatar and Jordan next month, the Kremlin said Tuesday, for a trip likely to focus on oil and gas, arms sales and terrorism."

[Cindy]

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

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http://www.defenselink.mil/news/NewsArticle.aspx?ID=2944

"U.S. Transfers Humvees, Weapons to Afghan National Army"

American Forces Press Service

KABUL, Afghanistan, Feb. 6, 2007

[Cindy]

NOTE; The following text is a quote:

http://www.defenselink.mil/news/NewsArticle.aspx?ID=2945

Coalition Forces Kill Terrorist, Detain 17; Car Bombs Kill 10 Iraqi Civilians

American Forces Press Service

WASHINGTON, Feb. 6, 2007 – Coalition forces killed one terrorist and detained 17 in operations across Iraq this week. In addition, car bombs in Iraq have killed 10 locals and wounded 26 in the past three days.
In raids in Iraq today:

-- In Karabilah, coalition forces killed one terrorist and detained two suspected terrorists while targeting a foreign fighter cell.

-- Coalition forces North of Tarmiyah detained two suspected terrorists reportedly associated with an al Qaida foreign fighter network.

-- Three individuals with suspected ties to a car bomb cell operating near Karmah were captured.

-- During a raid in Ramadi, coalition forces detained six individuals with suspected ties to al Qaida.

-- Two suspects with reported ties to car bomb operations were detained in Baghdad.

-- Coalition forces north of Tikrit captured a suspected al Qaida regional leader and another suspect with foreign fighter affiliations.

Also this week in Iraq, coalition forces used guided munitions to stop an insurgent attack northwest of Khalidiyah yesterday. When coalition forces were attacked with a rocket-propelled grenade and a heavy volume of small-arms fire, the troops used guided munitions against the attackers, who were hiding in two buildings. The guided munitions destroyed both buildings and ended the attack.

In Ramadi on Feb. 3, members of the Albu Obaid Iraqi police station discovered one of the largest weapons cache in the past year while patrolling. The cache consisted of over 300 82 mm mortar rounds, three 152 mm artillery rounds, two bags of homemade explosives, two Katyusha 107 mm rockets, a spool of copper wire used for detonating improvised explosive devices, and other smaller caliber ammunition.

Deadly car bombs have rocked several Iraq communities in the past few days.

Nine Iraqis were killed and 24 wounded yesterday when a pair of car bombs detonated within minutes of each other in eastern Baghdad. The first attack occurred just after noon in the central neighborhood of Rusafa, killing four Iraqi residents and wounding 15. At about 1:10 p.m., a suicide bomber drove into a mechanic's garage in a Karadah neighborhood and detonated a car bomb, killing five residents and wounding nine.

On Feb. 3 in Mosul, a pregnant woman was fatally wounded and two medical personnel were wounded when a suicide bomber drove into an ambulance transporting the woman to the hospital.

(Compiled from Multinational Corps Iraq news releases.)

[Cindy]

Freedom is not free....

http://www.defenselink.mil/news/NewsArticle.aspx?ID=2949

"Top DoD Budget Official Outlines War on Terror Costs"

By Jim Garamone
American Forces Press Service

WASHINGTON, Feb. 6, 2007

[Oorang]

their=there.

There, I fixed it. Guilty of my own pet peeve.

[Cindy]

Thanks to Velveeta for the ping to this thread:

http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1780351/posts

QUOTE:

Oil Explosion in California
2-6-07 | Fox News

Posted on 02/06/2007 4:09:42 PM PST by visualops

Just interrupted Shep Smith....2 [people trapped in burning building

[Cindy]

UPDATE:

http://news.google.com/nwshp?ie=UTF-8&oe=UTF-8&hl=en&tab=wn&q=EXPLOSION&scoring=d

NOTE: The following news brief is a quote:
http://www.pe.com/ap_news/California/CA_Oil_Field_Fire_274103C.shtml

At least 4 injured in Kern County oil field fire; others trapped
The Associated Press

TAFT

At least two people were trapped inside a burning building following multiple explosions at a Kern County oil field Tuesday afternoon, and at least four others were being treated for injuries, emergency workers said.

The explosion occurred just before 2:35 p.m. at an oil field in Taft, about 35 miles southwest of Bakersfield, said Mark Corum, spokesman for Hall Ambulance, which responded to the scene.

Five ambulances were on scene and other emergency workers were expected, Corum said.

One person was being treated for critical injuries and three others were being treated for moderate injuries, he said.

Published: Tuesday, February 6, 2007 15:43 PST

[Oorang]

French Muslims sue magazine over cartoons
February 07, 2007

A FRENCH court will debate the extent of free speech versus religious sensitivities today as Muslim groups sue a satirical magazine that published cartoons of the Prophet Mohammad. The Grand Mosque and the Union of French Islamic Organisations accuse Charlie Hebdo of inciting racial hatred by reprinting the Danish caricatures that sparked violence in the Muslim world last year.

Politicians, intellectuals, secular Muslims and left-wing pressure groups have lined up behind Charlie Hebdo, arguing that Muslim groups have no right to call for limits on free speech. "I just cannot imagine the consequences not only for France but for Denmark and Europe if they lose the case," Fleming Rose, the Danish editor who first published the cartoons said. "It would turn back the clock decades, ages."

Excerpted

http://www.theaustralian.news.com.au/story/0,20867,21185786-23109,00.html

Muslims urged to play key role in refugee affairs
February 07, 2007

KUWAIT: Muslim countries must have a stronger voice, presence and influence in international affairs and especially in international refugee affairs, Antonio Guterres, UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) told reporters yesterday during a press conference in the conclusion of his visit to Kuwait.

He added that out of the nine million refugees in the world, almost five million refugees are Muslims. "We are very worried of the rising intolerance in the world... there is a lot of misperception about Islam and the Muslim world," said Guterres. "This is making it sometimes difficult for us to do our job in the protection, assistance and help to provide solutions to the Muslim refugees worldwide," he added.

Excerpted

http://216.242.66.6/read_news.php?newsid=MjA3NDc=

[Cindy]

...and the cartoon jihad rolls on.