Rep. Issa (R-CA) Among Targets of Jewish Terrorist Bomb Plot (mine)

LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - The chairman of the militant [TERRORST] Jewish Defense League and a follower have been arrested in an alleged plot to bomb a major Los Angeles area mosque and the office of a Republican California congressman, among other targets, federal officials said on Wednesday.

JDL Chairman Irv Rubin, 56 and group member Earl Krugel, 59, who were arrested on Tuesday night, were charged with conspiring to bomb the King Fahd Mosque in the Los Angeles suburb of Culver City, the offices of Southern California Congressman Darrell Issa, who is the [CHRISTIAN] grandson of Lebanese immigrants and the Muslim Public Affairs Council office in the Mid-Wilshire section of Los Angeles.

``Last night's arrests confirm that we meant what we said: if you cross the line from expressing your political or religious beliefs to committing violent acts against those whose beliefs are offensive to you, then you will likely end up facing federal prosecution on charges carrying extremely long prison sentences,'' said John Gordon, U.S. Attorney for California's Central District.

The two men face one count each of conspiring to destroy a building by means of an explosive and possession of a destructive device during and in relation to a violent crime, according to an affidavit filed in the U.S. District Court in Los Angeles. If convicted each could face 35 years in prison.

Officials said the two men plotted with a third, a former JDL member, to make and detonate bombs. The third man, who was approached last October told authorities of the plot, officials said. No bombs were detonated and no one was injured.

A complaint against the two men said that Krugel told the informant the bombings were necessary because ``Arabs need a wake-up call.'' At that meeting Rubin added that the JDL needs to let people know they are ``alive in a militant way.''

The complaint added that the unnamed source was asked to photograph the Muslim Public Affairs Council and help purchase bomb components and that Krugel said he would build the bombs at his residence. The source would then place the explosives.

When the source asked Krugel how the bombings might affect human beings, he allegedly said: ``C'est la vie,'' Gordon said.

``The affidavit makes clear their primary motivation was to ... terrorize Muslims or Arabs and alert the national if not the local community to JDL's commitment to attack those targets,'' Gordon said.

The source told officials he was led to believe one bomb was to be placed in the offices of the Muslim Public Affairs Council (MPAC). He arrived at Jerry's Famous Deli in the Los Angeles suburb of Encino with 5 pounds (2.2 kg) of explosive powder in his vehicle ready for delivery to Krugel.

The MPAC, which also has a Washington, D.C. office, describes itself as a public service agency working for the civil rights of American Muslims.

However at the deli meeting the two men said they had changed their targets and bombs were instead to be placed at the Culver City mosque and Issa's office. Gordon said he believed Issa, a Christian American of Lebanese descent, was targeted because he made statements the JDL disagreed with.

There was no specific time frame for when the bombs were to be detonated, however they were expected to be set off ``in the near future. Things were fluid,'' Gordon said.

Issa was not made aware of the plot because authorities only learned of it moments before the arrests, Gordon said.

Because the informant wore a wire when he met the two men, federal agents followed and arrested them a short time later. A search of Krugel's Reseda, California house turned up bomb making materials including caps, pipes and fuses and a dozen firearms. The bombs were adequate to cause ``considerable damage'' to the areas where they were to be detonated and possibly death to people in the vicinity, officials said.

Issa, who appeared at a press conference Wednesday flanked by several Jewish congressmen, thanked law enforcement officials for their quick action and said he had ``no way of knowing'' why he had been a target of the JDL. ``Like most Americans, my hope and wish is for a peaceful resolution to the Middle East conflict. Unfortunately, there are extremists on both sides who oppose a peaceful resolution.''

``I describe myself as an American,'' he said, when asked about his ethnic background. ``I'm an American, somebody who served in the military both as an enlisted man and as an officer, who does have an Arabic surname.'' He said he had grown up in a Jewish neighborhood.

Several Jewish congressmen stood by him and denounced the Jewish Defense League and urged prosecution of the suspects.

``This is a small group of wackos,'' said Rep. Gary Ackerman, a New York Democrat. ``They get more attention than they deserve but they can't get more punishment than they deserve.''

The JDL was founded by Rabbi Meir Kahane, who was assassinated in New York in 1990. Prior to his death he founded the extremist KACH party in Israel which advocated the expulsion of all Arabs from Israel and Israeli-occupied territories. The party was later outlawed.

We've had a few threads on this. This is another lame attempt at you. Count on you to visit or start "Evil Jooos" threads.

I'll reply as if you're serious-minded. I searched and found ONLY the AP article posted with 300+ replies. That article contained little information. There was a time, evidently long before you signed up, FR welcomed new threads, posts of new articles especially on topics which got a lot of interest.

In the AP story thread I saw people saying this was a PR move by the administration to please Arab allies. That's laughable and clearly motivated by irrational hate--the kind of hate which would characterize real, rather than imagined, anti-semetism. Now here you are bringing that same false "anti-semetite" slander with you and directing it at me rather than the administration.

I find it ironic someone would claim to be of a "Jewish Defense League", wrap himself in religion (like Osama?) and American patriotism while plotting to destroy (not "militant" as Reuters and AP describe--but in acts of TERROR) a mosque, as well as offices of a legal representative of the United States government, representative of Marines fighting (and dying) in the anti-terror war in Afghanistan.

This person, regardless of religious identity or ethic heretage, is a THUG. This person is anti-Islamic. This person evidently is either anti-Christian or anti-Lebonese. This person is a terror suspect. He is a disgrace to humanity, to the religion and rich enthic tradition he attempts to hijack for evil purposes. All of the reported planned acts would be hate crimes if carried out. Further, his group appears it may be a terrorist operation, not unlike Al Queda if given have a chance. Luckily our governement foiled the plot.

I'm tired of all slander on these threads. You're here DEFENDING a would-be anti-American terrorists against a representative of your own government because you need to paint me as anti-semetic. It's probably a label better used for youself.

If I looked, would I find you were among those claiming the IDF-admitted to boobytrap which killed five school-age Palestinian children was "actually" set by those same kids?

If you looked you would find that I've been critical of blind defenders of Israeli policy, right *or wrong*, critical of those who would delibrately overlook Israel's mistakes in their all out war against anything remotely Islamic or Arab or Palestinian. I've asked honest questions--requested explanation of why there is no outrage over 800 dead Palestinians but murders of one-fourth as many Israeli's is brandished like a weapon. Instead of answers or even discussion I'm smeared, I'm told there are no innocent Palestinians, that Islam is evil and so on. It brings out the hate.

I'm really thinking there are people here who wouldn't know real Anti-Semetism if it hit them in the face. You, evidently, are at the top of that list today.

Or, perhaps I have it wrong... perhaps there are posters here on FR who are anti-semetic themselves and the fear the best hope they have stir some anti-Jewish sentiment (and undermind FR while they're at it) is to be a rabid, radical, extremist militant so-called "defender". It wouldn't be the first (or last) time infiltrators have made use of such tactics.

So what would you say, then, if someone came into every thread discussing Muslim terrorism and claimed that everyone there was guilty of "hatred" toward Arabs, condemning their comments as inappropriate?

That's what tires me out about these Israeli sycophants. If you want to try to justify the actions of terrorists, well, go ahead. But it's just downright cowardly to turn it into an accusation of bigotry against those who don't particularly like terrorism.

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