Threat Matrix: July 2007

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[nwctwx]

Threat Matrix:
July 2007

June 2007

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Preparedness

US Steps Up Security Following Attack in Britain

Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff made appearances on several television talk shows.

He told ABC's This Week program there is no indication of a linkage between the events in Britain and any specific attacks on the United States. "We do not have, at this point, specific, credible intelligence that there is an attack, a particular attack, focused on this country," he said.

But at the same time, speaking on CNN's Late Edition program, Chertoff said U.S. authorities are concerned about the threat of terrorism, especially in the coming months. "We have had a number of al-Qaida leaders quite publicly talking about how they want to carry out their threats against the West. So, given that and given the history that we have had over past summers, with attacks in Britain, I think we were clearly focused on this as a possibility," he said. Full story...

	More United Kingdom Attacks Possible
	More US Air Marshals on Flights to Europe
	Officials: Car Bomb Plot Bears al Qaida's Trademark

[185JHP]

BTTT

[Velveeta]

Equipment stolen from parked airplane (FL)

MANATEE —Navigational equipment was stolen from an airplane parked at Manatee Airport.

To get at Scott Mitchell’s Garmin GNS-430, a combination communication radio, navigation radio and GPS with moving map, valued at roughly $10,000, the thieves had to cut through thick Plexiglas on the pilot side window of his 1968 Mooney single-engine airplane, which was parked under a rented shade hangar.

The Manatee County’s Sheriff’s Office filed a report on the case, but had not located the machine Friday, Mitchell said.

http://www.bradenton.com/local/story/97555.html

[Velveeta]

Witnesses Saw Man Pouring Suspicious Powder On Mailboxes (Ohio)

Witnesses saw a man pouring some kind of powder all over mailboxes on Wayne Avenue in Dayton Friday evening, police said.

The powder was white and came from a small, plastic vial, police said.

Police said they do not know what was in the vial and postal inspectors were called to investigate.

Even if the powder is harmless, the suspect could still face federal charges for tampering with a mail box, police said.
http://www.whiotv.com/news/13682461/detail.html

[Cindy]

http://www.youtube.com/user/SayfulAdel

PROFILE for SayfulAdel - QUOTE:
http://www.youtube.com/user/SayfulAdel

Videos | Favorites | Playlists | Groups | Subscriptions

SayfulAdel Channel

Subscribe
SayfulAdel
Style: Biography
Joined: July 05, 2007
Last Login: 4 hours ago
Videos Watched: 65

Subscribers: 5
Channel Views: 113
Men said to them (the believers): “A great army is gathering against you, so fear them!” But it (only) increased their faith and they cried: “Allah is Sufficient for us! Most Excellent is He in Whom we trust!”
Name: Sulieman
City: In the heart of a green bird InshAllaah
Interests and Hobbies: Islam
Movies and Shows: As Sahab Media
Music: Nasheed
Books: Al Quran

###
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http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&q=bin+Laden+%2B+Green+Bird&btnG=Search

[Cindy]

###
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ON THE NET...

http://www.newamerica.net/publications/books/in_the_belly_of_the_green_bird

“In the Belly of the Green Bird”
By Nir Rosen, New America Foundation
Free Press | May 2006
288 pp. | ISSN: 0743277031

ARTICLE SNIPPET: “In the Belly of the Green Bird is a searing report, unlike any other book about the American experience in Iraq. Almost everything covered in the Western media has been at least one or two steps removed from the minds and acts of the people who will determine the future of Iraq. Some of them are peaceful, some are violent. Some of them hate one another with the intensity of ancient enemies. The depth of discord between Sunnis and Shias is difficult to fathom without listening to them. Their anti-Americanism is much more recent, but not much less intense. The divisions within this cobbled-together country, much like those within Yugoslavia after Tito, are simply too intense to contain.
Selected reviews of In the Belly of the Green Bird are available below:”
Publishers Weekly

[Cindy]

That’s interesting Velveeta.
Updates appreciated.

I wonder if someone is going to use the equipment and/or use the equipment to disrupt communications...or just fencing stolen property.

[Cindy]

Yep, tampering with a mail box IS a federal crime.
Updates appreciated on this, too.

[Cindy]

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

#

http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1866152/posts

“John Edwards seeks help from Iran, Syria in stabilizing Iraq”
IHT ^ | 7/14/07 | IHT

Posted on 07/14/2007 11:15:38 PM PDT by freedom44

[callmejoe]

The AP stories about the UBL tape are ending with this curious sentence.

http://cbs4.com/national/topstories_story_195163547.html

. . .At the end of the broadcast, images of the Sept. 11 attacks were shown, and a voice could be heard saying, “In a few days, the crusaders’ landmarks were flattened.”

At the risk of stating the obvious, from start to finish, the planes hit the buildings and the towers both collapsed all within 102 minutes.

Even if the quote has been taken out of context from the previous narration or previous images, and there is a rational explanation for phrasing it that way while running images of that specific day (and not a “few days” prior), it may still have a double meaning.

[Velveeta]

I’ll be looking for those updates, especially regarding the GPS

[Cindy]

THANK YOU Velveeta.
I appreciate it.

I’ve kind of been dividing my time in the hellish sludge of the internet and a lot of gardening lately.

[Cindy]

http://www.mnf-iraq.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=12854&Itemid=128

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
RELEASE No. 20070715-03
July 15, 2007

“Operation Eagle Ares brings 46 into custody”
2nd BCT, 10th Mountain Division (LI) PAO MND-C

PRESS RELEASE SNIPPET: “FORWARD OPERATING BASE MAHMUDIYAH, Iraq — Iraqi and U.S. Soldiers nabbed 46 men suspected of involvement with al Qaeda affiliated terror networks July 12 under the cover of darkness, east of Lutifiyah, Iraq.

Troops of the 4th Brigade, 6th Iraqi Army Division and Soldiers of the 2nd Battalion, 15th Field Artillery Regiment, 2nd Brigade Combat Team, 10th Mountain Division (Light Infantry) out of Fort Drum, N.Y., air assaulted in the area, and then began searching reeds along canals for weapons caches.

The combined air assault detained 29 men on the Iraqi army’s list of persons of interest, and 14 others who were identified by sources as terrorists. Three other men detained were taken for questioning on suspicion of terrorist activity.”

[callmejoe]

While the MEMRI analysis at the link dismissed this claim of responsibility for the Madrid train attacks for several technical reasons, this same front group claimed responsibility for the London 7/7/05 attacks a year later.

“Winds of Martyrdom” (the title of today’s UBL tape) sounds somewhat like “Winds of Black Death” (the name they used to describe the threatened 2004 operation in this statement).

And as the summer 2006 ten-plane threat showed, they have not given up on using planes.

http://memri.org/bin/articles.cgi?Page=archives&Area=ia&ID=IA16604

The Alleged Al-Qa’ida Statement of Responsibility for the Madrid Bombings: Translation and Commentary
By Yigal Carmon*

On March 12, 2004, the pro-Saddam pro-bin Laden London daily Al-Quds Al-Arabi [1] published the alleged statement by the Abu Hafs Al-Masri Brigades of Al-Qa’ida, in which the brigades claimed to be responsible for the March 11, 2004 bombings in Madrid.

It should be noted that the Abu Hafs Al-Masri Brigades claimed responsibility for the August 2003 blackout in the U.S. (which was a large-scale technical failure), calling it “Operation Quick Lightning in the Land of the Tyrant of This Generation.” [2]

The following is the translation of the statement, followed by commentary:

… and we promise the Muslims in the world that the strike of the Winds of Black Death (the anticipated strike on America) is now in its last phase [of preparation]. [It is] 90% [complete], Allah willing… Soon (when it suits the Jihad warriors), the believers [i.e. Muslims] will rejoice at Allah’s victory.

[JellyJam]

Thanx ... I know I’m worrying too much. In fact, an airport is probably the safest place to be right now, what with all the security.

[Cindy]

Good for the Egyptians.
Great bust.

[Cindy]

Note: The following text is a quote:

http://www.travel.state.gov/travel/cis_pa_tw/tw/tw_932.html

Travel Warning
United States Department of State
Bureau of Consular Affairs
Washington, DC 20520

This information is current as of today, Sun Jul 15 2007 00:19:32 GMT-0700.

SAUDI ARABIA

June 14, 2007

This Travel Warning updates information on the security situation in Saudi Arabia and reminds U.S. citizens of recommended security precautions. It supersedes the Travel Warning issued December 19, 2006.

Due to concerns about the possibility of additional terrorist activity directed against American citizens and interests, the Department of State continues to warn U.S. citizens to defer non-essential travel to Saudi Arabia. The United States Mission in Saudi Arabia remains an unaccompanied post as a result of continued security concerns. Non-emergency employees and all dependents of the U.S. Embassy Riyadh and Consulates General Jeddah and Dhahran were ordered to leave the country on April 15, 2004. An armed attack on the U.S. Consulate General in Jeddah occurred on December 6, 2004, resulting in casualties among the non-American staff and damage to consulate facilities. On November 13, 2005, the Consulate General in Jeddah closed the visa section for security reasons that require the assistance of the Government of Saudi Arabia to resolve. On May 12, 2006 a lone gunman fired shots at the U.S. Consulate in Jeddah. There were no injuries. The consular section remains open for American citizen services.

Terrorist groups continue to target housing compounds and other establishments where Westerners may be located. Saudi Government facilities are also targets. In addition to car bombs and armed assaults involving multiple gunmen against such facilities, terrorists have used ambush attacks to kidnap and/or assassinate individual Westerners. In February 2007, four French residents of Saudi Arabia returning from Madain Saleh were killed in a shooting incident while resting on the side of the Tabruk-Medina highway, approximately 17 km north of Medina. In February 2006, there was a terrorist attack on Saudi oil facilities in Abqaiq in the Eastern Province. There were no U.S. citizens or Westerners injured in this attack.

American citizens who choose to visit or remain in Saudi Arabia despite this Travel Warning are strongly urged to avoid staying in hotels or housing compounds that do not apply stringent security measures including, but not limited to, the presence of an armed guard force, inspection of all vehicles, and a hardened security perimeter to prevent unauthorized vehicles from approaching the facility. American citizens are further advised to exercise caution and maintain good situational awareness when visiting commercial establishments frequented by Westerners or in primarily Western environments. Keep a low profile, varying times and routes for all required travel, and ensure that travel documents and visas are valid. American citizens are also advised to exercise caution while driving, entering or exiting vehicles.

U.S. citizens who travel to or remain in Saudi Arabia despite this Travel Warning are strongly urged to register with the U.S. Embassy in Riyadh or the Consulates in Jeddah and Dhahran through the State Department’s travel registration website, https://travelregistration.state.gov , in order to be included in the Mission’s warden network. Updated travel and security information for Saudi Arabia is issued periodically via the warden network.

From time to time, the U.S. Embassy and Consulates in Saudi Arabia may restrict the travel of official Americans or suspend public services for security reasons. In those instances, the Embassy and Consulates will keep the local American citizen community apprised through the Warden System and make every effort to provide emergency services to U.S. citizens. Warden messages can be found on the U.S. Embassy Riyadh website: http://riyadh.usembassy.gov .

Updated information on travel and security in Saudi Arabia may be obtained from the Department of State by calling 1-888-407-4747 from within the U.S. or Canada or, from outside the U.S. or Canada, on a regular toll line at 1-202-501-4444. For additional information, consult the Department of State’s Consular Information Sheet for Saudi Arabia, the Worldwide Caution Public Announcement, and Middle East and North Africa Public Announcement at http://travel.state.gov .

[Cindy]

SNIPPET - QUOTE:

http://www.travel.state.gov/travel/cis_pa_tw/cis/cis_1149.html

U.S. Department of State
Bureau of Consular Affairs
Washington, DC 20520

Consular Information Sheet

Please click on this link to read important information you should see before you travel abroad

Jordan

Americans planning travel to Jordan should read Intercountry Adoption Jordan , Avian Flu Fact Sheet and Worldwide Caution Public Announcement available on the Department of State web site at http://travel.state.gov

[Cindy]

SNIPPET - QUOTE:

http://www.travel.state.gov/travel/cis_pa_tw/cis/cis_1108.html

U.S. Department of State
Bureau of Consular Affairs
Washington, DC 20520

Consular Information Sheet

Please click on this link to read important information you should see before you travel abroad

Egypt

Americans planning travel to Egypt should read Avian Flu Fact Sheet and Worldwide Caution Public Announcement available on the Department of State web site at http://travel.state.gov

[Cindy]

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

#

http://memri.org/bin/articles.cgi?Page=subjects&Area=jihad&ID=SP165607

“Special Dispatch Series - No. 1656”
July 13, 2007 No.1656

Islamist Websites Monitor No. 118-123

[Cindy]

http://www.metimes.com/storyview.php?StoryID=20070714-103610-5911r

“Cairo metro on alert after bomb threats”
AFP

July 14, 2007

ARTICLE SNIPPET: “CAIRO — Metro stations in Cairo are on high alert after several bomb threats were made against a single station, a security source said Saturday.

Bomb squads and sniffer dogs have been deployed and metal detectors installed at metro stations around the capital, the source said.

“There were a series of phone calls made threatening to bomb the Shubra Al Kheima station [in northeast Cairo],” the source said, with the latest coming Thursday.

The increased security measures, which include bag searches, have been going on for days but were never officially announced by authorities.

“So security has been heightened at all stations in Cairo as a preventative measure. The police take these matters very seriously,” the source said.

No arrests have been made, as police focus their investigation on the gritty and impoverished industrial suburb of Shubra Al Kheima.”