Posted on 07/28/2008 8:37:15 AM PDT by DAVEY CROCKETT
Is U.S. Bioterror Attack Just A Matter of Time?
The overriding question is whether the U.S. is “ready” for a bioterror attack. The answer could well rely on the “other” question of what bio-agent and what’s the source? In 1991, 40,000 Russian scientists dispersed throughout the World, with knowledge of what the U.S.S.R. was doing in chemical and biological weapons. The question is to whom did they sell their knowledge? Some believe former Soviet scientists sold technology to countries like Iran, Syria, and North Korea. Lurking is the spectre of al-Qaeda, a group that the Pentagon says continues to pursue biological weapons.
Another scenario is an outbreak of a pandemic. How would the U.S. deal with an infectious disease outbreak? The picture, despite reassurances, is not pretty. Until now, the U.S. has experienced two major biological attacks.
In 1984, the Bhagwan Shree Rajneesh and his followers attempted to take over the town of the Dalles, Oregon by contaminating salad bars in the town. In 2001, there was the as yet unsolved mystery of the anthrax letters that killed five people.
But the question of bioterrorism extends to potential threats against our food supply and our clean water resources. It also extends to the threat of outbreaks of diseases in our animals populations. Here, the concern are diseases that attack animals but that can jump to humans. These are referred to as zoonotic diseases. The World Health Organization defines zonnotic diseases as:
Read More
SHIGELLOSIS - SWEDEN: INTENTIONAL EXPOSURE SUSPECTED
****************************************************
A ProMED-mail post
http://www.promedmail.org
ProMED-mail is a program of the
International Society for Infectious Diseases
http://www.isid.org
Date: Fri 26 Sep 2008
Source: The Local [edited]
http://www.thelocal.se/14582/20080926/
Sabotage suspected in mass food poisoning
The victims, which included employees of the
association, its members, and other guests, all
suffered from the illness caused by _Shigella
dysenteriae_ after eating in the office’s
cafeteria several weeks ago, reports the Veckans
Affarer magazine. 5 [people] suffered symptoms so
severe they were admitted to a hospital.
The bacteria are most often spread via
contaminated water and food, but an examination
of the restaurant cafeteria failed to uncover the
source of the outbreak. So far no traces of the
bacteria have been uncovered from any of the
several tests performed in the cafeteria’s kitchen.
According to Veckans Affarer, Saepo is leading
the investigation in cooperation with Swedish
police. “The reason that the police want to
investigate the case is that neither the
department of infectious diseases nor the
environmental department could ascertain the
source of the infection and a group has also
taken responsibility for the outbreak on its
website,” said the Confederation of Swedish
Enterprise’s Marie Rudberg to the magazine.
According to the Metro newspaper, the group
claiming responsibility for the attack is a
left-leaning, internet-based forum, which had
previously staged demonstrations outside of the association’s headquarters.
Security has been [increased] at the restaurant
and health authorities continue working to
localize the sources of the outbreak through
continued interviews with around 300 people who
visited the eatery over several days.
[Byline: David Landes]
—
Communicated by:
ProMED-mail
promed@promedmail.org
[Intentional contamination of food with enteric
pathogens has occurred before. With
salmonellosis, it should be easy to detect the
pathogen in the food vehicle because infection
requires a large inoculum. In shigellosis,
however, a very low inoculum is needed, so it may
be difficult to isolate the organism from its
food vehicle. Whether this episode represents an
intentional biological ‘attack’ remains to be determined. - Mod.LL]
[ProMED-mail has previously reported on a number
of episodes of intentional food poisoning. In
2004 there was an outbreak of food poisoning
associated with the addition of tung oil to soup
served in a cafeteria — students were trying to
make a statement about their dislike of the food
prepared by the cafeteria (see Toxic ingestion,
tung oil - China (Hunan) 20040503.1218). In
2003 a rat poison was added to food at a wedding
in China (see Food poisoning, intentional - China
(Jiangsu) 20031115.2836). In 2002, a tetramine
rat poison was added to food served at a school,
reportedly by a competitor food vendor jealous of
his cousin’s success (see Food poisoning, fatal -
China (Nanjing) (03) 20020918.5347). In 1999,
there was an intention food poisoning related to
the addition of human feces into bakery products
in Romania (see Foodborne illness, intentional - Romania 19990610.0993).
In 1984 there was a large outbreak of _Salmonella
typhimurium_ (751 identified cases) in the state
of Oregon, USA that was due to the intentional
contamination of salad bars by a religious cult
community. (see Bioterrorism - USA, 1984, 1996 19970829.1828 and ref. 2 below)
In 1996, there was an outbreak of _Shigella
dysenteriae_ type 2 involving 12 laboratory
workers from a large medical center in the state
of Texas, USA associated with contamination of
pastries served at breakfast with the
laboratory’s stock culture of _S. dysenteriae_
organisms. (see Shigella, deliberate
contamination? - USA (Texas) 19961119.1946] and ref. 1 below).
References:
1. Kolavic SA, Kimura A, Simons SL, Slutsker L,
Barth S, Haley CE. An outbreak of Shigella
dysenteriae type 2 among laboratory workers due
to intentional food contamination. JAMA. 1997 Aug 6;278(5):396-8.
2. Török TJ, Tauxe RV, Wise RP, Livengood JR,
Sokolow R, Mauvais S, Birkness KA, Skeels MR,
Horan JM, Foster LR. A large community outbreak
of salmonellosis caused by intentional
contamination of restaurant salad bars. JAMA. 1997 Aug 6;278(5):389-95.
- Mod.MPP]
[The HealthMap/ProMED-mail interactive map of
Sweden can be accessed at
http://healthmap.org/promed?v=62.8,16.7,5 CopyEd.MJ]
[see also:
Shigellosis, baby corn - Denmark, Australia ex Thailand 20071004.3290
Shigellosis, Thai baby corn - Australia (QLD, VIC) 20070913.3035
Shigellosis, Thai baby corn - Denmark 20070904.2913
Shigellosis, Mexican baby carrots - Canada: alert, recall 20070822.2741
2005
*##########################################################*
************************************************************
ProMED-mail makes every effort to verify the reports that
are posted, but the accuracy and completeness of the
information, and of any statements or opinions based
thereon, are not guaranteed. The reader assumes all risks in
using information posted or archived by ProMED-mail. ISID
and its associated service providers shall not be held
responsible for errors or omissions or held liable for any
damages incurred as a result of use or reliance upon posted
or archived material.
E. COLI O157, UNIVERSITY STUDENTS - USA (04): LETTUCE
*****************************************************
A ProMED-mail post
http://www.promedmail.org
ProMED-mail is a program of the
International Society for Infectious Diseases
http://www.isid.org
Date: Fri 26 Sep 2008
Source: Michigan State University News [edited]
http://news.msu.edu/story/5678/
Public health officials, with support from MSU (Michigan State
University), have identified a brand of lettuce as the source of the
recent multi-statewide outbreak of _E. coli_ [O157], an outbreak that
sickened a number of MSU students.
The lettuce, which had been distributed nationally by Detroit-based
vendor Aunt Mid’s Produce Company, is identified as shredded and
chopped iceberg lettuce. The affected lettuce products were
immediately removed from MSU’s dining halls, even though there have
been no new cases with symptom onset reported at the university since
20 Sep 2008.
“We will continue to be as cautious as possible, until this issue is
completely resolved,” said MSU University physician Beth Alexander.
On Fri 26 Sep 2008, the Michigan Department of Community Health
reported 26 cases of genetically linked _E. coli_ were spread
throughout 8 Michigan counties. In addition, that same strain has
also been identified in cases in Illinois, New York, Ohio, and
Oregon. Health officials said it was the out-of-state cases that
helped to track down a common distributor of the affected food.
During the week of 22 Sep 2008 MSU made the decision to temporarily
discontinue the service of all cooked turkey products, although state
and local health officials did not recommend it. While turkey had not
been determined as the source of the outbreak, health officials were
considering it an “item of interest.” Turkey products are now being
offered again in MSU’s dining halls.
As part of the effort to trace the source of the outbreak, MSU
students were asked to take part in a case control study. On Thursday
[25 Sep 2008] afternoon, more than 4000 questionnaires were sent to
students in Akers, Holmes, and Hubbard halls, asking them to outline
their food-eating habits for the last 3 weeks. In less than 24 hours,
more than 400 students responded to the call.
—
Communicated by:
ProMED-mail
promed@promedmail.org
[In the above newswire it does not specifically mention that the
outbreak strain has been isolated from the “smoking” lettuce,
although there is a suggestion that more maybe known — “Health
officials said it was the out-of-state cases that helped to track
down a common distributor of the affected food.” The case-control
study has presumably identified lettuce as the significant common
exposure in Michigan. More information is needed about the lettuce
regarding its original source, contamination source and the scope of
its distribution. With respect to its distribution, one also wonders
if there will be more cases identified with a wider geographic
distribution or if the presumably contaminated batches have been used
up (past their sell date/use date and likely to have been discarded
by now). - Mods.LL/MPP]
[see also:
E. coli O157, university students - USA (03): (MI), outside cases 20080925.3025
E. coli O157, university students - USA (02): (MI) 20080923.3001
E. coli O157, university students - USA: (MI) 20080922.2987
E. coli O157 - USA (07): (MA) alert 20080811.2475
E. coli O157 - USA: (OH, MI), unknown source 20080624.1947
E. coli O157, lettuce - USA: (WA) 20080606.1807
E. coli O157, restaurant - USA: (HI) 20080228.0811
2007
26/09/2008 URL:
http://www.thehindu.com/2008/09/26/stories/2008092657571400.htm
_____
Front Page
http://www.thehindu.com/2008/09/26/01hdline.htm
Mob of Muslims attacked train, says Nanavati Commission
Manas Dasgupta
GANDHINAGAR: The Nanavati-Mehta judicial inquiry commission on the Godhra
train carnage has based its conclusion of it being a “pre-planned
conspiracy” on the recorded evidence of over 100 witnesses, who claimed to
having heard a crowd of about a 1,000 Muslims shouting “set the train on
fire and kill the Hindus.” The report said “instigating slogans” were also
made through loudspeakers from a nearby mosque to attack the Hindus.
The evidence recorded by the commission also claimed that a mob of Muslims
attacked the train and stoned the coaches so heavily that the passengers
could not come out. This was to ensure maximum casualties when the S-6 coach
of the Sabarmati Express was “set afire.”
The commission in its 168-page report said the “conspiracy” was hatched by
some local Muslims at the Aman guest house in Godhra the previous night. The
conspirators immediately made arrangements for collecting about 140 litres
of petrol from a nearby pump on the night of February 26, 2002, and the next
day when the train arrived in Godhra, Hasan Lala after forcibly opening the
vestibule between coaches S-6 and S-7 entered S-6 and threw burning rags
setting it on fire.
The report named Moulvi Umerji of the local mosque to be the “mastermind” of
the conspiracy and said Rajak Kurkure, Salim Panwala, Saukatlal, Imran
Sheri, Rafiq Batuk, Salim Jarda, Jabbir, and Siraj Lala were among those who
participated in the conspiracy to “cause harm to the kar sevaks travelling
in that coach.”
It said setting fire to the train was part of a “larger conspiracy” to
“instill a sense of fear” in the administration and create “anarchy” in the
state. It, however, has not named the architects of the “larger conspiracy.”
The commission disagreed with the contentions of the Banerjee commission and
the Jan Sangharsha Manch, which represented the riot victims before the
commission, that the alarm chains could not be operated from outside under
the modified system introduced by the railways in 1995. Quoting a railway
officer of the carriage and wagon department, Ahmedabad, it said the alarm
chain could still be pulled from outside. Quoting a number of surviving
passengers, the commission said they had seen the mob outside the coach
throwing stones and also some “burning rags” and some “inflammable liquid
materials” through the windows. “The passengers had informed the DSP Raju
Bhargava at about 8.30 a.m. that the train was attacked by a mob and many
passengers were injured and killed. Where was the time or reasons for the
passengers to concoct a false story?,” it asked. “Considering the situation
prevailing then, it is highly unlikely that the passengers had any
discussion amongst themselves and they had decided to give a false version
about the attack on the train,” it said. The report said the passengers
immediately after getting down from the coach had given the same version
about the mob attack and throwing of inflammable materials inside the coach
to the district collector.
Godhra station superintendent Katija, who was also present with the district
collector, too had given the same evidence, corroborated by assistant
station master Rajendraprasad Meena, who was present at “A” cabin, near
which the incident took place, and the railway protection force commandants.
The commission said the passengers of the train were attacked the second
time some three hours after the stone throwing and burning incident when the
train was being shunted to detach the two affected coaches. Two mobs of
Muslims of about 700 people started pelting stones on the passengers waiting
at the yard for the train to reassemble and resume their onward journey to
Ahmedabad. The police had to open fire killing two persons and injuring one
to disperse the violent mobs. This refutes the theory that it was an
accidental fire, it claimed.
The commission claimed that there was no evidence to justify that the
karsevaks had been fighting with Muslim vendors at stations before Godhra as
alleged earlier, though there were some minor scuffles with three Muslim
vendors at the Godhra platform. But though there was no “reliable evidence”
to show that any attempt was made by the karsevaks to abduct Sofiabanu,
Salim Panwala had spread a “false rumour” to that effect to collect a mob
that started pelting stones on the passengers.
The commission dismissed as “not worthy of any credence” the Manch theory
that there was no crowd, except a small group of curious on-lookers, no
stone-throwing and no conspiratorial setting of fire.
Without mentioning the Banerjee commission report, the Nanavati commission
rejected the “accidental fire” theory stating that the reasoning that a fire
was caused by the overturning of a burning stove used for cooking by some
karsevaks in the compartment or that it was set off by an electric short
circuit were baseless. There was no space for anyone to burn the stove in
the over-crowded coach carrying more than 200 passengers and any spill-over
of kerosene from the stove, though out of the question, could not have
caused such heavy fire and damage.
Dismissing the short circuit theory, it said in such an event the passengers
would not have climbed up to the upper berths to protect themselves from the
fire as the electric lines were going through the top of the coaches, and
rather would have climbed down on the floor. In such an event, the windows
on the platform side of the coach would not have been closed or the
windowpanes broken by stone throwing.
“The smoke before fire” did not necessarily mean electric short circuit as
propounded by the Manch but because the fire was caused by some inflammable
materials thrown on the floor from outside, it concluded.
It said the central government or the railways had not appeared before the
commission to claim the fire to be accidental and on the contrary the
railway officials and the government railway protection force personnel
present on the spot had stated that the attack was by the Muslim mob and
that the coach was set ablaze by petrol, the report said.
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/world/news/article.cfm?c_id=2&objectid=10533807
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/world/news/article.cfm?c_id=2&objectid=10533807
Malaysian blogger jailed for insulting Islam
7:15AM Wednesday Sep 24, 2008
Malaysia’s leading blogger Raja Petra Kamaruddin has been ordered to spend
two years in detention under internal security laws after being accused of
insulting Islam.
His wife, Lee Abdulah, said the founder of the controversial Malaysia Today
website had been sent to the Kamunting detention centre in northern Perak
state under a detention order signed by the Home Minister.
Abdulah said police had told her “he will remain there for two years with no
trial”.
SALMONELLOSIS, INFANT FORMULA - FRANCE (02): SEROTYPE GIVE
**********************************************************
A ProMED-mail post
http://www.promedmail.org
ProMED-mail is a program of the
International Society for Infectious Diseases
http://www.isid.org
Date: Thu 25 Sep 2008
Source: Eurosurveillance [edited]
http://www.eurosurveillance.org/ViewArticle.aspx?ArticleId=18994
On Thu 18 Sep 2008, the hospital of Nantes in
west France informed the District Health Office
of a case of salmonellosis in an exclusively
bottle-fed infant. On Monday morning, 22 Sep
2008, 2 additional cases of salmonellosis in
infants were reported by the hospital of Niort in
southwest France. The serotype of the 3 cases was unknown at that time.
At the same time, the database of the French
national reference centre (NRC) for Salmonella
showed a recent increase in the proportion of
_Salmonella enterica_ serotype Give isolates from
infants. The overall number of _S._ Give isolates
received by the NRC in 2008 was 19, similar
compared to the same period in previous years.
However, 6 of the recent isolates had been
obtained from infants, whereas this proportion was zero in previous years.
Epidemiological investigations
As of 25 Sep 2008, 5 of the 6 infant cases of
_S._ Give in the NRC database have been
investigated. The infants are between 1.5 and 4.5
months of age and live scattered throughout
France. They developed symptoms between 17 and 28
Sep 2008: all had diarrhea, which was bloody for
4 infants, 4 had fever, and 2 were hospitalized.
The parents of all 5 infants reported feeding
their infants the same brand X of infant powdered
formula milk in the week before onset of
symptoms. The batch number is known for 1 case
and it is the same batch as in the 2 cases
mentioned above. No other common exposures were identified.
The preliminary results of the investigation
strongly suggest the brand X formula milk as the
vehicle of transmission. On 22 Sep 2008, the
authorities and the producer decided to recall
the incriminated batch. On 23 Sep 2008, the
producer initiated the recall of this batch. On
24 Sep 2008, the recall was extended to all
batches since consumers had difficulties
identifying the batch number. Consumers have been
advised not to drink the product and to return it to the place of sale.
Investigations are ongoing, particularly
microbiological examination of the product and
investigations of additional infant salmonellosis
cases. Since the recall, 5 additional cases of
infant salmonellosis have been reported. All 5
infants had consumed the incriminated product
before illness. The isolates of these cases are currently being serotyped.
A European alert was issued by France through the
Rapid Alert System for Food and Feed (RASFF) on
23 Sep 2008. A warning was posted on the European
Early Warning and Response System on 25 Sep 2008,
and information was sent via the European Food
and Waterborne Diseases and Zoonoses Network at
the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC).
[Byline: Jourdan N, Le Hello S, Delmas G, et al]
—
Communicated by:
ProMED-mail
promed@promedmail.org
[_Salmonella enterica_ serovar Give is frequently
found in cattle and pigs but is not frequently
found in humans (ref.5). In a study on salmonella
serovars in dairy cattle in the southwestern USA,
_S. Give_ was present in 4.8 percent of 393
salmonella isolates (there were 1560 fecal
samples, so the overall prevalence of _S. Give_
in the cattle sampled was 1.2 percent — see ref
1 below. _S. Give_ has also been identified in
chicken (ref 2) and pigs (ref 3). There was a
country-wide outbreak of _S. enterica serovar
Give in Germany that was associated with the
ingestion of raw minced pork (ref 4).
Suggested references:
1. Edrington TS, Schultz CL, Bischoff KM,
Callaway TR, Looper ML, Genovese KJ,Jung YS,
McReynolds JL, Anderson RC, Nisbet DJ.
Antimicrobial resistance and serotype prevalence
of Salmonella isolated from dairy cattle in the
southwestern United States. Microb Drug Resist. 2004 Spring;10(1):51-6.
2. Vieira-Pinto M, Tenreiro R, Martins C.
Unveiling contamination sources and dissemination
routes of Salmonella sp. in pigs at a Portuguese
slaughterhouse through macrorestriction profiling
by pulsed-field gel electrophoresis. Int J Food
Microbiol. 2006 Jul 1;110(1):77-84. Epub 2006 Jul 7.
3. Castillo-Ayala A, Salas-Ubiarco MG,
Márquez-Padilla ML, Osorio-Hernández
MD. [Incidence of Campylobacter spp. and
Salmonella spp. in raw and roasted chicken in
Guadalajara, Mexico] Rev Latinoam Microbiol. 1993 Oct-Dec;35(4):371-5.
4: Girardin F, Mezger N, Hächler H, Bovier
PA. Salmonella serovar Give: an unusual pathogen
causing splenic abscess. Eur J Clin Microbiol Infect Dis. 2006 Apr;25(4):272-4.
5: Jansen A, Frank C, Prager R, Oppermann H,
Stark K. [Nation-wide outbreak of Salmonella
Give in Germany, 2004] Z Gastroenterol. 2005 Aug;43(8):707-13.
-Mod.MPP]
[A map of France can be seen at:
http://www.infoplease.com/atlas/country/france.html CopyEd.EJP]
[see also:
Salmonellosis, infant formula - France: alert, recall 20080924.3021
Salmonellosis, serotype Kedougou, infant formula - Spain 20080828.2703
2005
Huh, that made me remember that a hospital, St. Peter’s in New Brunswick, NJ has legionnaires in their water. It made me suspicious because that property is wanted by a developer and the state has been cannibalizing all competing hospitals to reduce state owned hospital competition.
Ping to me for later.
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/global-anti-terror-news/message/15992
“To counter the Jihadi lobbies, you need independence from Petro Dollars”
London, Mideast Newswire
During his summer lectures-tour in Europe, Terrorism expert Walid Phares discussed his most recent book The Confrontation: Winning the War against Future Jihad at the invitation of the Henry Jackson Society, a London-based Project for “Democratic Geopolitics.” Professor Phares, a Fox News contributor and a Senior Fellow at the Foundation for the Defense of Democracies argued that “in the end, there are strong Jihadi lobbies which are derailing international and US efforts to defeat the Terrorist forces.” Phares said his book outlines a number of strategy recommendations at the 7th year of the War on Terror. Among them: Identify the threat clearly as “Jihadism,” an ideology responsible for the spread of violence in the Greater Middle East and inside the West; achieve energy independence; create wider alliances with countries suffering from the same threat even if they are not part of the Iraq or even Afghanistan coalitions; grant significant support to democracy forces within the Arab and Muslim world.
Phares projected that a McCain Administration will continue the efforts against Terrorism but will bring new expertise into the arena. He also projected that a Obama Administration will not engage in dramatic moves before one year and won’t perform its ideological platform before a second term. Phares predicted Obama would eventually meet with Ahmedinijad and Chavez at some point, barring dramatic developments.
continued...
If reposting elsewhere, please credit source of this research as UnitedStatesAction.com
The orthodox As Soennah mosque in The Hague, the home base of the controversial imam Jneid Fawaz, has lost sight of a group of about 20 radical Muslim youth.
Hague council member Abdoe Khoulani of the Islam Democrats had raised the alarm about it to mayor Jozias van Aartsen. The mosque administration is also concerned. According to Khoulani the mosque administration had meanwhile informed the AIVD.
Khoulani says he’s concerned since the youth have extreme ideas about Jihad and the recruitment of people for this war. Khoulani thinks that in it necessary to be alert in order to prevent another Hofstad group. “I am very concerned about what is going on here now.”
Source: Telegraaf (Dutch)
—
Posted By Esther to Islam in Europe at 9/27/2008 03:40:00 PM __._,_.___
Islam In Europe
News and Opinions about the Muslim
and Islamic Community in Europe and the West
http://islamineurope.blogspot.com
Three Turkish teens from Cologne who unsuccessfully tried to overpower two police agent on Tuesday, wanted to start a ‘holy war’ against the Americans in Germany with the service weapons, according to Josef Rainer Wolf, of the Cologne pubic prosecution.
The youth, aged 15 to 17, were arrested and indicted for attempt to murder. Berlin newspaper B.Z. wrote that they had hoped to find sub-machine guns in the police car, in order to commit an attack against the American barracks in Heidelberg. “This shows the danger of Islamist propaganda gives us great concern,” according to a prominent security advisor of the federal government.
According to Wolf the fact that the anti-terrorism police hadn’t caught sight of the youth earlier shows that they had been incited to their act by Islamist hate propaganda on the Internet. The you couldn’t have gotten their extreme opinions from home. Their parents are western oriented Turks.
The youth had made a false emergency call Tuesday evening in order to ambush the police agents. Masked, the youth threatened the agents with dummy grenades and opened fire with an alarm pistol. According to Woolf the youth had planned to kill the agents with knives. The agents, a 26 year old woman and her 38-year old male colleague, kept cool and fired warning shots in the air. They were not injured.
Source: Parool (Dutch)
—
Posted By Esther to Islam in Europe at 9/27/2008 03:39:00 PM __._,_.___
Islam In Europe
News and Opinions about the Muslim
and Islamic Community in Europe and the West
http://islamineurope.blogspot.com
Check your pings please, Granny!
Huh, that made me remember that a hospital, St. Peter’s in New Brunswick, NJ has legionnaires in their water. It made me suspicious because that property is wanted by a developer and the state has been cannibalizing all competing hospitals to reduce state owned hospital competition.<<<
It does not surprise me.
I noticed years ago, that when a meat packing plant gets shut down for some disease, you will see that it has sold, in a short time, a month or so..........
Assad losing control
Syria, once considered one of region’s most stable states, increasingly vulnerable
http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-3603089,00.html
Ronen Bergman
Published: 09.28.08, 11:17 / Israel Opinion
A car bomb blast in south Beirut on December 22, 1994 killed Fouad Mugniyah, Imad Mugniyah’s brother. Three other people were killed in the explosion. At least 15 people sustained serious wounds.
Imad Mugniyah, who thought that the fact someone bothered to kill his brother was suspicious, did not show up at the funeral. In Lebanon, the killing was attributed to Israel, which according to foreign sources hoped to kill Imad Mugniyah during the funeral.
On Saturday, following reports about the huge blast that shook Damascus, and while trying to guess who was behind it, someone mentioned the abovementioned incident. He brought it up in response to the argument that Israel would not be detonating car bombs – or in other words, a very non- surgical strike – in order to achieve operational aims at the heart of enemy territory.
One thing is certain: There is no dull moment for our northern neighbor. It turns out that the state once considered one of the most stable in the Middle East – where leaders always made sure to respond aggressively to any display of opposition, and where streets are replete with secret agents – is particularly vulnerable. And so, President Bashar Assad is losing more and more points in Arab and international public opinion and is being portrayed as someone unable to control developments on his own turf.
So who could have been behind the explosion? On the face of it, this appears to be some kind of mishap or work accident, as according to the reports at least it doesn’t seem like the blast was not aimed at a specific target. If we are indeed dealing with an accident, it might be a Syrian shipment (to Hizbullah, for example) that was handled negligently. This is a problematic assumption as there is no information about arms or ammunition depots in that area.
Syrian opposition sources claim this was a work accident by Syrian security authorities. They argue that the branch specializing in building car bombs packed the vehicle with explosives, but the car blew up because of a technical mishap en route to its destination.
Is al-Qaeda involved?
Various Arab sources immediately blamed Israel’s Mossad. On the face of it, this appears to be no more than a conditioned reflex. At the same time, the area where the explosion took place is a hub of Iranian activity: It is home to offices of Iranian agencies and organizations, including intelligence elements from Tehran.
Iran’s intelligence in Damascus is of immense importance, as it is responsible for part of the coordination with Hizbullah. We can assume that had Israeli intelligence paid attention to what goes on in Damascus, this area would merit special attention.
Another possibility is that this was an act perpetrated by Lebanese elements that object to the ongoing Syrian involvement in their country, despite the seeming withdrawal. A conspiracy theory presented on a global Jihad forum Saturday suggested that the Syrian government carried out the bombing in order to justify a Syrian operation in Lebanon against Syria’s rivals.
Yet another possibility is that we are dealing with a Syrian opposition group that sought to embarrass the regime or kill someone specific.
Who else may be behind the blast? The news of the latest blow to Assad’s prestige prompted great joy on websites affiliated with al-Qaeda that are very hostile to the regime in Damascus. Al-Qaeda has already proven its operational capabilities in the Syrian capital when it attempted to target the American embassy there in 2006.
__._,_.___
September 28, 2008 Anti-Terrorism News - UnitedStatesAction.com
(Iraq) Mayor wounded by bomb in N. Iraq town
http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20080928/wl_nm/us_iraq_mayor_1;_ylt=AlTiJQOlkjF3nIbZgeyBNTJX6GMA
Iraq to take control of Babil from US troops: officials
http://news.yahoo.com/s/afp/20080928/wl_mideast_afp/iraqunrestussecurity_080928092116;_ylt=Aja76wn63yPBhD_6pM64ZGNX6GMA
(Iraq) Captors offer body of British hostage for Iraqis’ release
http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/world/iraq/article4838033.ece
(Iraq) Iran scuppers US deal for key troops in Iraq
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/middleeast/iran/3085883/Iran-scuppers-US-deal-for-key-troops-in-Iraq.html
(Afghanistan) Female police officer shot dead in S. Afghanistan
http://www.kuna.net.kw/NewsAgenciesPublicSite/ArticleDetails.aspx?id=1940752&Language=en
-— Top woman police officer in Afghan south killed
http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20080928/wl_nm/us_afghan_violence_3;_ylt=Aj1cSjuejmZKW2LvOgOvRwvOVooA
Afghan minister does not confirm Taliban talks
http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20080928/wl_nm/us_afghan_taliban_1;_ylt=AutnXZoGyGxBRX9KKTI9lhvOVooA
-— Guardian/Observer: Revealed: secret Taliban peace bid
http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2008/sep/28/afghanistan.defence
—— “Saudis are sponsoring a peace dialogue involving a former senior member of the hardline group”
—— “Britain has provided logistic and diplomatic support for the talks”
— March 29, 2008 - Daily Telegraph: We must talk to the Taliban, says UK Defense Secretary Des Browne
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml?xml=/news/2008/03/29/nbrowne129.xml
(Afghanistan) UK: Ministry of Defense to buy new armored vehicles for Afghanistan
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/newstopics/onthefrontline/3096348/Ministry-of-Defence-to-buy-new-armoured-vehicles-for-Afghanistan.html
(Pakistan) US steps up Pakistan raids to thwart al-Qaeda ‘October surprise’ plot
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/asia/pakistan/3092548/US-steps-up-Pakistan-raids-to-thwart-al-Qaeda-October-surprise-plot.html
(Pakistan) FATA: Taliban imposing fine on women not wearing veil — Mohmand Agency
http://www.dailytimes.com.pk/default.asp?page=2008\09\28\story_28-9-2008_pg1_3
(Pakistan) FATA: ‘Bomber’ held in Bara - Khyber Agency
http://www.dailytimes.com.pk/default.asp?page=2008\09\28\story_28-9-2008_pg1_5
(Pakistan) FATA: Troops kill 20 militants in north-west Pakistan — in Bajaur Agency
http://www.earthtimes.org/articles/show/234449,troops-kill-20-militants-in-north-west-pakistan.html
(Pakistan) FATA: “Battle with the Taliban: Pakistan could defeat militants in months”
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/asia/pakistan/3087245/Battle-with-the-Taliban-Pakistan-could-defeat-militants-in-months.html
-— Comment ignores support for Taliban and Sharia among Pakistani people
— June 2008 TerrorFreeTomorrow.org Pakistan public poll results
http://www.terrorfreetomorrow.org/upimagestft/PakistanPollReportJune08.pdf
— 74.7 percent think “implementing strict Sharia law throughout Pakistan” important for
Pakistan govt (Q8g, page 44)
(Pakistan) NWFP: Taliban evicted from Peshawar suburbs
http://www.dailytimes.com.pk/default.asp?page=2008\09\28\story_28-9-2008_pg1_4
(Pakistan) Punjab: Gunmen Abduct Polish Engineer in Pakistan - in Attock
http://abcnews.go.com/International/wireStory?id=5902188
(Pakistan) South Asia Features: “Taliban, al-Qaeda fight to the death in Pakistan”
http://www.monstersandcritics.com/news/southasia/features/article_1433547.php/Taliban_al-Qaeda_fight_to_the_death_in_Pakistan__News_Feature__
(India J&K) Indian forces kill 11 suspected Kashmiri rebels
http://www.iht.com/articles/ap/2008/09/28/asia/AS-Kashmir-Militants-Killed.php
(UK) Al-Qaeda bid to recruit inmates
http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/uk/crime/article4838032.ece
(UK) Muslim gang firebombs publisher of Allah novel, Martin Rynja — additional report
http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/uk/article4837994.ece
(U.S.) Government: Judge should dismiss Muslim’s lawsuit — Egyptian-born scientist
Abdel Moniem Ali El-Ganayni
http://www.post-gazette.com/pg/08272/915866-455.stm
Hamas to release 30 Fatah prisoners as “Eid” gesture
http://www.kuna.net.kw/NewsAgenciesPublicSite/ArticleDetails.aspx?id=1940797&Language=en
Palestinian Islamic Jihad will not take part in Palestinian govt — official
http://www.kuna.net.kw/NewsAgenciesPublicSite/ArticleDetails.aspx?id=1940739&Language=en
(Algeria) Three militants, two security forces killed east Algeria
http://www.kuna.net.kw/NewsAgenciesPublicSite/ArticleDetails.aspx?id=1940789&Language=en
Somali pirates surrounded by foreign warships
http://asia.news.yahoo.com/080928/afp/080928112937int.html
(Somalia) US destroyer monitoring hijacked ship off Somalia
http://www.iht.com/articles/ap/2008/09/28/africa/AF-Somalia-Piracy.php?pass=true
(Sri Lanka) Suicide bomb kills civilian, wounds 8 in Sri Lanka
http://www.iht.com/articles/ap/2008/09/28/asia/AS-Sri-Lanka-Civil-War.php
(North Korea) U.S. envoy Hill set to visit North Korea: official
http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20080928/wl_nm/us_korea_north_usa_1;_ylt=AgOWjr_Cb_0XNROBQkdNGcSCscEA
Other News:
Iran launches book mocking Holocaust victims
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/middleeast/iran/3086474/Iran-launches-book-mocking-Holocaust-victims.html
(UK) Conservatives would ban sharia courts, says shadow minister
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/newstopics/politics/conservative/3096229/Conservatives-would-ban-sharia-courts-says-shadow-minister.html
(Pakistan) McCain backs Pakistan, Obama says aid wasted
http://www.dailytimes.com.pk/default.asp?page=2008\09\28\story_28-9-2008_pg1_2
Commentaries:
America as the last man standing — speech by Geert Wilders, chairman Party for Freedom, the Netherlands
http://www.jihadwatch.org/archives/022867.php#more
(Netherlands) Wilders: “You have almost lost Europe. I think it’s one minute to 12:00.”
http://www.jihadwatch.org/archives/022866.php
— see also Glenn Beck transcript - scroll down two-thirds of way:
http://transcripts.cnn.com/TRANSCRIPTS/0809/25/gb.01.html
(UK) Scotland: SNP making wrong deal with Muslims
http://www.sundayherald.com/oped/opinion/display.var.2453823.0.snp_making_wrong_deal_with_muslims.php
Phares: Syrian Mukhabarat Perhaps Responsible for Today’s Car-Bomb Attack — by W. Thomas Smith Jr.
http://www.rightsidenews.com/200809272060/global-terrorism/phares-syrian-mukhabarat-perhaps-responsible-for-today-s-car-bomb-attack.html
__._,_.___
If reposting elsewhere, please credit source of this research as UnitedStatesAction.com
http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/uk/crime/article4836948.ece
September 27, 2008
Theives steal private details on military personnel
Kevin Dowling
Personal information about thousands of serving and ex-service personnel
stored on USB portable hard drives in a high-security area of the former
RAF headquarters has been stolen.
The data was stored at the Service Personnel and Veterans Agency at RAF
Innsworth, Gloucester.
Police are investigating the incident which took place last Wednesday.
The MoD said it was treating the breach “extremely seriously”.
continued.
Appeal by the Government of the ChRI
CHECHENPRESS. Publications and Media Department. 26.09.08 g.
CHECHENPRESS received by e-mail the following appeal by the Government
of the ChRI to the EU Headquarters, the President of the General
Assembly of the UN, the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe,
the International Criminal Court and leaders of democratic countries.
Ladies and gentlemen!
The Government of the Chechen Republic of Ichkeria, which is obliged to
democratic values and considers human rights, the rights of nations and
peoples to be fundamental achievements of civilization, addresses itself
to you with the following:
- Taking into account the inhuman suffering of the Chechen people during
the entire period of its history when it was under the control and
influence of the Russian Empire in its different political
manifestations (the USSR, the Russian Federation), such as the repeated
deportations and the incessant military actions during the last 14
years, which demanded more than 200,000 lives, including 40,000
children, according to authoritative international non-governmental
organizations;
- taking into account the zeal and the readiness for self-sacrifice of
the Chechen people in the name of achieving freedom and independence, a
convincing proof of which is the substantial support by the citizens of
the ChRI for the Resistance forces, despite the fact that they thus
subject themselves to terror from the side of the Russian military
formations and special services;
- taking into account the numerous and unpunished war crimes committed
by the occupation forces on the territory of the ChRI;
- taking into account the unquestionable right of the Chechen people to
national sovereignty and independence, not only within the framework of
the declarations of the United Nations “About the Rights of Nations and
Peoples”, but also according to the decision of April 18-20, 1990, by
the supreme body of power in the USSR, the Supreme Soviet of the USSR
(whose legal successor is the RF), which defines an unequivocal
treatment of the rights of the Autonomous Republics: “In the case of a
union state leaving the USSR, an Autonomous Republic which is part of
this union state has the right to determine its future independently”, a
statement which precisely was the justification for the Russian
authorities in their decision to recognize the independent statehood of
Abkhazia and South Ossetia;
- taking into account the unquestionable fact that Russia acknowledged
its military aggression against the ChRI in 1994, Russia’s defeat in
this war and the signing on May 12, 1997 of the “Peace Agreement”
between the RF and the ChRI, in which the sides determined that the
peoples of the RF and the ChRI are ending their century-old conflict and
that the relations between the subjects of this agreement from now on
and forever will be based on international law and that the application
of the armed forces will be categorically excluded from the solution of
disputes;
- and finally, taking into account the existence of attempts by the RF
side to take revenge for the lost war of 1994-1996, the incessant
military operations and punitive actions, as a result of which the
citizens are suffering, as well as in view of the irreconcilability of
the Chechen people with the conditions of the occupation, which are
aggravated even more by a feeling of desperation over the absence of
truth and justice with regard to the war criminals who committed war
crimes in the Chechen Republic during the last 14 years, and furthermore
in view of the alienation between the sides in the military conflict and
the impossibility for the Chechen population to live in freedom and
without fear in its historical native land,
we request the creation of an international military tribunal for the
Chechen Republic.
The Government of the ChRI believes that the absence of juridical and
political consequences of Russia’s terrorist policy in the North
Caucasus only discredits the entire world system of democracy and
provides totalitarian regimes with a feeling of impunity and
omnipotence, visible evidence of which are Russia’s latest actions
against sovereign Georgia.
Chairman of the Cabinet of Ministers of the ChRI
Ahmed Zakayev
http://www.chechenpress.info/events/2008/09/25/1f.shtml
[My unauthorized translation. N.S.]
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/chechnya-sl/
(U.S.) HLF Trial: Enter the Muslim Brotherhood — by Steven Emerson
http://www.investigativeproject.org/article/778
http://www.familysecuritymatters.org/publications/id.1295/pub_detail.asp
__._,_.___
If reposting elsewhere, please credit source of this research as UnitedStatesAction.com
The Ansar al-Islam Organization in Iraq: “The Book of Truth”
spread and was pinned on the mujahideen in order to instigate the people
... The enemy hoped to carry out his plan in causing fights among the
factions ...
http://www.nefafoundation.org/miscellaneous/nefaansarsunnah0708.pdf
Novaya Gazeta
The Mystery Of Special Facility #43
Wednesday morning a prisoner Magomed Khamkhoev, the Ingush, escaped from
a secret military prison facility situated in a prestigious guarded
housing estate named Serebryany Bor. He managed to put his cuffed hands
from his back to the chest. Then he kicked out the door, jumped down
from the second floor, leaped over the fence and ran away through the
kitchen-gardens. Having reached the road he stopped a car easily: the
Tajik odd-job workers, driving in a Gazel car, picked up the bleeding
man wearing boxers and cuffs.
It’s only by 1 p.m. that operative police officers arrived with
half-dead Khamkhoev at Serebryany Bor. He failed to recognize the house
where he had been kept, from the first attempt, and the special unit
officers had to break into several other houses by mistake, laying the
owners down on the floor.
Later one of the neighbors told to the police that on that morning
someone had come to her and asked whether she had seen a man in cuffs in
her kitchen-garden.
By that time the cottage situated at the address Serebryany Bor, Vtoraya
Linia, 43, had been empty. The server used also for delivering data from
the observation point, was taken away. For some reasons, left was the
register with notes of duties. Appearing from the first dates there, the
register has been kept for 5 years.
Other three Ingush men (according to other information, it’s four men)
and one Russian (a friend of one of those missing) have disappeared in
Moscow since September. Magomed Khamkhoev, the last among the kidnapped,
has been living in the capital for several years. Like other missing
Ingush he leads a peaceful way of life and works a child coach in a
freestyle wrestling group. He was kidnapped last Sunday right in the
street, in the face of day. He had brought his wife and child to a
clinic to see a doctor. He stayed in the car with a 5-month-old baby.
When the spouse came back to the car, there was only the crying and cold
baby.
The kidnappers took Khamkhoev in a dark blue minibus of Volkswagen to
some place in the center. It seemed to him they went down in a lift to
some bunker. There he was bashed and shown three dead bodies. He was
told they were other kidnapped.
>From Moscow downtown he was passed to Serebryany Bor and placed in the
basement in a specially fit cage. There they tortured him with electric
shock during two days. Then he was moved to the third floor, to a
utility room sized 1x1.5 m. It’s from there that he managed to escape.
The three-floor cottage made from the red brick is encircled with a wall
of 2-meter-height. Those who have been inside they say there is no smell
of even a bachelor’s life there, let alone a family one. The furniture
in the living rooms is that Spartans. The first floor is equipped with
an observation point where several monitors show what happens inside the
house and in the yard. The cage for prisoners is in the basement. The
bare wires come to the cage from the switchboard also situated in the
basement.
Investigators soon found out that the house belongs to a military unit.
According to some information this is a division of military
intelligence service. Lieutenant colonel Mikhail Ananyev, the unit’s
representative, summoned to site, affirmed that the cottage in
Serebryany Bor was intended to be used as a private resort, but that
idea has not been realized yet. Allegedly Mr. Ananyev had never heard of
any prisoners and he explained that the cage in the house was made for
keeping dogs in it, though no dogs were found either inside or on in the
yard.
Initial hypotheses of the kidnapping, voiced after Khamkhoev’s escape,
were related to possible revenge by Ossetians for Beslan. However,
Magomed Khamkhoev has never had any relation to Beslan’s events. Though,
he might have ill-wishers who are much stronger then the mythical
Beslan’s avengers.
As all the kidnapped Ingush guys, he was an acquaintance of Alikhan
Kalimatov, FSB lieutenant colonel, shot in Ingushetia a year ago.
Kalimatov was an interesting figure. It is still not known what was the
purpose of investigation commissioned to him to be carried out in his
native republic. Officially, he was to investigate the circumstances of
kidnappings of Ingush men that became more frequent after the Beslan’s
school seizure. Allegedly, by September 2007 Kalimatov had found
compromising materials about the top Ossetian authority.
On the other hand, Kalimatov never made a secret out of his critical
attitude towards the Ingush leadership. He had his own game in the
republic and was favorably disposed to some persons who were officially
considered culprits by the authorities. In particular, the lieutenant
colonel gave active protection to Zelimkhan Bataev, the man, considered
to be a head of the criminal group by some, and a people’s hero by
others. Being put on the federal wanted file Bataev had to hide in the
mountains for many years. It’s only in 2007, shortly before his own
death, Kalimatov managed to put him off the wanted file. Zelimkhan
Bataev did not outlive his protector for long – he lived in May this
year. They say he died of a heart attack.
Some of the guys that got missing this autumn were acquainted with
Kalimatov exactly through Bataev’s agency. It appears that all of them
were the lieutenant colonel’s agents somehow. Considering that, the
hypothesis of the Beslan’s people’s avengers looks just silly.
Incidentally, Khamhoev disproves that version too.
We managed to get access to the victim in the hospital, where he is
placed being guarded by the police. Magomed Khamkhoev’s face was damaged
greatly and his wrists are broken with cuffs. He had bruises all over
the body. His spouse was wiping his maimed palms and nails with the
gauze napkins. He was conscious, but spoke with difficulty.
Q: Do you remember the basement where you were brought initially?
A: I don’t remember. It’s somewhere in the city. It took us about 15
minutes to get to Serebryany Bor. But that was night time.
Q: Did they tell you why they took you?
A: No, they did not say anything about that. They only asked about
different people in the republic: Zyazikov, Medov. They asked if know
them personally and what my attitude to them is. That was mainly
abstract questions. They told me “Don’t think that we are cops, we will
handle you without gloves”.
Q: Did they speak Ossetian?
A: They spoke some strange language. I don’t know Ossetian. Maybe it was
it.
Q: Did they mention Beslan?
A: There was no mentioning of Beslan.
Magomed said he had no idea what those people wanted to learn from him,
an ordinary child coach of the freestyle wrestling.
The friends who brought him to the hospital said that while being
tortured in Serebryany Bor, Magomed was also assed about Kalimatov.
P.S. On Saturday night the police guard post was removed from the
Khamroev’s ward, without any explanations given. Same night it became
known about another kidnapped Ingush guy, Markhiev.
Olga Bobrova
26.09.2008
http://en.novayagazeta.ru/data/2008/70/06.html
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/chechnya-sl/
and others:
Needs more research:
Another ‘shot to death in Moscow’:
After Beslan School, why would Ossetians join Russia?
http://georgien.blogspot.com/search/label/South-Ossetia
Wednesday, September 24, 2008
NEWS: Georgia News Digest 09-24-08
click on the headline
A service of the Georgian Foundation for Strategic and International Studies
Attached PDF file easily navigable with Bookmarks pane
Archives and associated files at groups.google.com/group/genewsfiles (from February 2008) and groups.google.com/group/genews (before February 2008)
Events and official interviews, statements, and press conferences
International organizations
Russia-Georgia
South Ossetia and Abkhazia
Domestic
Jonathan Kulick, Ph.D., Director of Studies, Georgian Foundation for Strategic and International Studies, 3a Chitadze, Tbilisi 0108, Georgia (Republic), jonathan.kulick@gfsis.org, office: +995 32 47 35 55, mobile: +995 95 33 33 40, USA voicemail: 310.928.6814
Posted by Ralph H. at 11:43 PM 0 comments
Labels: Abkhasia, Georgia, Georgian Foundation for Strategic and International Studies, Jonathan Kulick, Russia, South-Ossetia
Beslan and American schools threads:
http://www.freerepublic.com/tag/beslan/index
To check later, a quick look and I see several of the warning threads.
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