Free Republic

The reason why China is going to the Congo (another Communist country, btw) is because of high-grade uranium and coltan (rare combo mineral used in telecommunications, i.e. cell phones, etc...).

North Korea, Belarus, the Ukraine, Libya, Zimbabwe and Al-Qaeda have ALL been illegally mining and smuggling these resources out of the Congo.

The Congo is a KEY nation regarding funding/"fueling" Al-Qaeda's attack on the West. China is going there to protect her allies and her interests - namely the destruction of the U.S. Keep an eye on the Congo and Africa - there's a LOT more going on there than you'd first think...

No, they're going after Uranium (for obvious reasons) and a rare combo mineral called Coltan, which is used in the telecommunications (cell phones) industry.

There's also a matter of gold, diamond smuggling (Al-Qaeda) and other mineral smuggling going on too. Other countries involved are: Russia, Ukraine, Belarus, North Korea, Libya, Syria, Zimbabwe, China, South Africa and Cuba, not to mention other African countries, but those are proxy states for the previous mentioned countries.

The Congo is rapidly becoming another epicenter in the "War on terror", this time against those who are TRULY sponsoring terrorist organizations.

Bump!

The Congo is a treasure trove of minerals, INCLUDING High-grade URANIUM. North Korea has been trying to buy uranium from the Congo (Communist) for years. Also, Ukranians and other Eastern Europeans have been spotted illegally mining uranium in the Eastern Congo, then smuggling it out.

There's a HECK of a lot more going on in the Congo and the surrounding countries than most folks know about.

http://www.timebomb2000.com/vb/showthread.php?s=&threadid=56101

BINGO!

Interesting that it was a neutron detector, NOT a geiger counter that detected that radiation. BIG honking difference there.

Wonder what European nuclear power plant those tiles came from. Must have been the French, they're always re-decorating... [/sarcasm] :-)

Nice catch!

Here's a tie-in for Libya. Notice the date of the article:

Monday, 10 September, 2001, 06:26 GMT 07:26 UK

Libya 'to buy all Caribbean bananas'

Gaddafi wants to break European 'stranglehold'

By North Africa correspondent David Bamford

Libya is reported to have offered to buy all the bananas produced in the Caribbean region at above market prices.

Caribbean officials say the proposal was made by the Libyan leader, Colonel Muammar Gaddafi, when he hosted a controversial visit to Tripoli just over a week ago by the prime ministers of several Caribbean islands.

It is by no means the first apparently philanthropic gesture that he has made recently.

The three leaders who made the trip - from St Vincent, Grenada and Dominica - have confirmed that the Libyan Government has promised them a $21m package of grants and loans.

A Libyan delegation is due to arrive in the Caribbean later this month to make arrangements.

It has also emerged, by way of representatives sent by St Lucia and Antigua, that Colonel Gaddafi has offered to buy up the total production of Caribbean bananas at above market price.

This is to enable the banana-producing islands to break free from what the colonel is said to have described as the economic stranglehold of Europe and the World Trade Organisation (WTO).

Support for Africa

The Caribbean leaders went to Libya to take part in celebrations marking the anniversary of the 1969 revolution that brought Colonel Gaddafi to power.

Bananas could hold the key to better relations between Libya and the Caribbean

The prime ministers of St Lucia and Antigua pulled out of the trip at the last moment, reportedly in response to pressure from a bemused US State Department.

It is not entirely clear whether Colonel Gaddafi's banana offer will become a reality or indeed what his thinking is in offering it.

It is by no means the first apparently philanthropic gesture that he has made recently.

In the last two years, Libya has been bankrolling a range of impoverished countries in the African Sahara and has begun supplying petroleum to fuel-starved Zimbabwe at knock-down prices.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/hi/english/wo...000/1534934.stm

Can you provide a direct link to the article, please?

The only article I'm seeing when I search is one that is *DIFFERENT* from the one you posted.

Thank you!

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml?xml=/news/2002/12/29/ucord.xml&sSheet=/portal/2002/12/29/ixport.html

Police given powers to create 'health cordons'

(Filed: 29/12/2002)

Police are to receive powers to impose "emergency cordons" across major cities to stop people getting away after a terrorist strike.

Armed officers and military units could enforce the cordons following a biological or chemical attack. Specialist teams based at railway stations and key road junctions would prevent people leaving and spreading infection, according to The Sunday Times.

Police can already clear buildings under anti-terror laws introduced before September 11. But officers may be granted powers to impose the "health cordons" as part of the Government's forthcoming "civil contingencies" bill. A Cabinet Office spokeswoman confirmed that ministers are considering the move.

*****The spokeswoman stressed there were no plans to give police new powers to use force. Officials reportedly believe a major show of force by specially-equipped police and emergency units would minimise any need for the use of force.

The Ministry of Defence confirmed that a 7,000-strong civil contingency reaction force would have the option of carrying arms. Drawn from military reserve forces, primarily the Territorial Army, 500-strong forces will be deployed at 14 centres across Britain in the New Year.

Professor Michael Langman, of the joint vaccinations and immunisation committee which advises on biological threats, warned that panic could spread the impact of a chemical or biological attack. "There will certainly be some panic, with people jumping into their cars with their families to try to flee the city and avoid contamination but they would be stopped," he told The Sunday Times.

London will see a test run of its ability to cope with an attack in the New Year, the Cabinet Office confirmed. The exercise will involve police, other emergency services and hospitals.

It is designed to ensure new systems put in place in the wake of September 11 could cope with a real strike.

What a wonderful article! How wonderful to see Salvation being accepted!

As the Hymn goes "Was blind but now I see..."

Shane,

Nice catch!

ALL,

Do you all remember that mysterious murder down in Tennessee last February? Remember the woman who worked at the TN BMV and was selling fake drivers' licenses to Middle Easterners and that two of them had ties to 9/11 and the WTC?

Guess what! One of those Middle Easterners arrested had a Venezuelan passport - and the guy ONLY spoke Arabic.

Here's the original article, though the link no longer works properly:

She was murdered on Sunday, and the people she sold the fake drivers licenses to may have ties to 9/11. Please also note the ties to Venezuela...

http://www.gomemphis.com/mca/local_news/article/0,1426,MCA_437_982376,00.html

Feds fear license examiner is dead

Woman's co-defendants tied to 9/11, judge told

By Tom Bailey Jr.

baileytom@gomemphis.com

A missing Tennessee driver's license examiner charged with conspiring to provide licenses fraudulently was probably the victim of a "most unusual and suspicious" death, a federal prosecutor said Monday.

Asst. U.S. Atty. Tim Di Scenza also raised the possibility in court that Katherine Smith's five codefendants are involved in terrorism against the United States, citing "connections" to Sept. 11 and the World Trade Center.

A defense attorney, however, protested that the only reason the prosecutor raised the issue of terrorism is that the defendants are from the Middle East.

DiScenza told the court that the same car Smith drove when she was arrested Feb. 5 crashed in Fayette County east of Collierville early Sunday.

Although the gas tank did not explode and the car was only slightly dented from impact with a pole, a fire burned the person inside beyond recognition, FBI agent J. Suzanne Nash testified Monday.

The body had not been identified late Monday, but DiScenza told U.S. Magistrate Judge Diane Vescovo that there was a "great possibility" it was Smith.

While authorities have not determined if foul play was involved in Smith's disappearance, Vescovo described the revelations as "upsetting and disturbing."

Nash testified she was called about the wreck at 1 a.m. Sunday. Smith's family told authorities she'd been missing since Saturday night.

Smith was to have appeared Monday for a detention and probable cause hearing in the conspiracy case against her and Khaled Odtllah, 31, of Shelby County; Sakhera Hammad, 24, of New York City, and Mohammed Fares, Mostafa Said Abou-Shahin and Abdelmuhsen Mahmid Hammad, for whom ages and addresses were unavailable.

Smith had been free on bond since Feb. 5. The other five defendants have been detained since their arrest the same day.

The specter of terrorism and Sept. 11 emerged in Monday's hearing when DiScenza asked Nash if documents seized from the suspects had been examined.

She responded that a visitor's pass for the World Trade Center, dated Sept. 5, 2001, was found in Sakhera Hammad's wallet. Hammad told authorities he was a plumber and worked on the center's sprinkler system, Nash said.

She also said that Abdelmuhsen Mahmid Hammad and Sakhera Hammad said they were cousins, and worked together in the plumbing business.

Nash also testified that Odtllah drove back from New York City to Memphis on Sept. 11.

But Anthony Helm, attorney for Odtllah, asked Nash, "You certainly don't have any indication any of these fellows is a terrorist, do you?"

"Not at this time, no sir," Nash responded.

Helm also argued that Odtllah has many relatives in New York City, suggesting it wouldn't be unusual for him to travel there.

Vescovo continued the hearing until Wednesday for three of the defendants, Abou-Shanin, Abdelmuhsen Mahmid Hammad and *****Fares, primarily to arrange for an Arabic interpreter. The men told the FBI they are in the country illegally. She went ahead with the hearing for Odtllah and Sakhera Hammad.

Nash testified that Odtllah and Sakhera Hammad led the driver's license scheme. She said Odtllah made the arrangements with his friend Smith, and that Hammad drove the people who bought the fraudulent licenses from New York.

She said that Odtllah received $1,000 per license, and that Hammad would receive any amount paid over $1,000.

After two hours of testimony and arguments, Vescovo ordered each man held without bond until their trial.

During the hearing, Di Scenza and Nash revealed details of the government's case against the six defendants.

Smith had told authorities after her arrest that Odtllah, who goes by the nickname "Kal," was a friend, and that he had asked her to help him obtain driver's licenses six or seven times before.

Odtllah has lived in Shelby County two and a half years. Until a few months ago, he owned a Phillips 66 gas station. He also buys and sells cars.

Nash testified that Smith had said she was buying from Odtllah the champagne-colored 1992 Acura that crashed early Sunday.

Nash testified that Smith had assigned four driver's license numbers in the station's computer system using forms filled out by Odtllah. But only Fares's license showed his correct name. The other three applications contained fictitious and "totally untraceable" names, DiScenza said.

"Those kind of IDs are for further criminal activities," DiScenza said.

Nash said Sakhera Hammad told her he came to Tennessee to get driver's licenses only to help people have identification so they can get jobs.

Sakhera Hammad is from Jordan, but has become a U.S. citizen, said his father, Peter Hansen of New York, who attended the hearing.

Odtllah came to the United States from Jerusalem 13 years ago, Helm said.

Nash said Abou-Shahin told authorities he was from Egypt and is a carpenter.

*****Fares has a Venezuelan passport, but speaks Arabic, DiScenza said.

DiScenza said a key question is whether the alleged license conspiracy had a purpose greater than obtaining driver's licenses so illegal immigrants could find work.

Do the circumstances in the case connect the alleged conspiracy to the World Trade Center terrorism, he asked rhetorically.

"Of course not," DiScenza said. "But, you can only have so many coincidences."

Helm argued that the case is not "connected to anything else in the world." He said prosecutors are making the terrorism implications only because the defendants are from the Middle East.

Vescovo said the "completely untraceable" licenses were a great concern to the court.

"What further concerns me greatly is that Ms. Smith's vehicle has been burned and a body is inside," she said.

While no testimony Monday links Odtllah or Sakhera Hammad to Smith's disappearance, Vescovo said, "She is connected to the case against them."

- Tom Bailey Jr.: 529-2388

Amen!

For pity's sake people, the homeless man was trying to sleep in a garage, trying to keep out of the wind.

We ALL need to remember Christ's teachings. Have mercy upon those who are defenseless, hungry, homeless. Have mercy because someday *YOU* may be in need of the generosity of some stranger.

Heaven help you, for we will all be judged by our actions...

Nice catch!

Did you all know that BELGIUM BLOCKED OUR INVESTIGATION OF THIS GUY FOR ALMOST A YEAR!? (Pardon the shouting.)

Link to article: http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml?xml=/news/2001/10/18/wbelg18.xml&secureRefresh=true&_requestid=69295

Belgians block FBI terrorist inquiries

By Ambrose Evans-Pritchard in Brussels

(Filed: 18/10/2001)

BELGIUM is refusing to co-operate fully in the fight against terrorism and has denied FBI investigators access to crucial witnesses.

More than a month after the attacks in America, the FBI is still trying to obtain telephone records and contact addresses needed to track down the al-Qa'eda network in Europe, says the New York Times.

American officials scoffed at Belgian claims yesterday that the dispute was because of the FBI's failure to follow "proper procedure" or that they had been given the material wanted.

An official said: "Belgium signed an agreement to co-operate with America but we're certainly not seeing that kind of partnership yet."

*****Christian de Valkeneer, the Belgian judge in charge of terrorist investigations, has been "working to rule" to prevent FBI agents gaining access to his files. The delays may have allowed crucial leads to dry up.

The Americans are itching to talk to Nizar Trabelsi, a Tunisian arrested by the Belgians two days after the September 11 attacks, but Judge de Valkeneer refused to hand over information about his network of contacts.

According to the confession of Djamel Beghal, an Algerian terrorist now in the hands of the French, Trabelsi was preparing to carry out a suicide bombing mission against the American embassy in Paris.

In contrast Holland, Germany and Spain are working in a "joined-up" operation with the FBI, in some cases allowing Americans to take part in suspect interviews.

*****On Friday a Belgian court ordered the release of two terrorist suspects with al-Qa'eda ties who were caught with car bomb chemicals.

Belgium is a leading centre of Islamic extremists, especially the Algerian GIA Armed Islamic Group, which is linked to al-Qa'eda.

Judge de Valkeneer is no stranger to controversy. He has been accused of dragging his feet in an inquiry into foreign ministry corruption.

I wish that were true, but unfortunately, Iraq *does* have a safety net: France, Russia and China.

Please consider this and then read this next article:

1. Russia recently signed a $40 Billion deal with Iraq re: oil distribution rights.

2. Russia, France and China also recently signed MAJOR oil drilling deals with Iraq. The oil is to be drilled in the "no-fly zones" in northern and southern Iraq AFTER the sanctions have been lifted.

Now, please see what former inspectors have to say (in a nutshell: "Without Security Council unity, the inspections will fail."

Inspectors article: http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&ncid=578&e=3&cid=578&u=/nm/20021114/ts_nm/iraq_inspectors_dc

Oil deals article: http://www.albawaba.com/headlines/TheNews.php3?action=story&sid=233166&lang= e&dir=

(((OldFriend))),

Hang in there kiddo! We'll make it through yet... :-)

Prayers going out for all the Freepers still in harm's way...

Ok, tacky, but I guess I did come out swinging. Truce?

I see the pick, but can't make out the writing. The pic name is "God kills a kitten...". Where's the humor?

If you're endorsing that kind of behavior, I hope God reserves the hottest part of hell for you. The same kind of behavior you endorse, or condone, is the same that you will receive.

I won't pull my punches with some sick animal-torturer freak...

Skooz - I'm right beside you on this one.

I'm not too far from Licking County. I should probably pay that bastard a visit.

It's NOT about PETA, it's about torturing an innocent being. The animal may NOT be sentient, but it can STILL FEEL PAIN. The kitten was just a baby - it didn't deserve to be treated like that. I hope someone beats some sense into bastard...

Anyone who supports this kind of treatment towards animals - e-mail me. I will kick your butt!

(((OldFriend))),

That's ok - I'll pass it along to him! :-)

Stay safe, fellow Freepers! It promises to be a *busy* night...

One of my younger cousins is trapped in his truck by downed power lines. Family, rescue squad and sherfiff are there waiting for the Utility company to show up and shut off the power.

16-y.o. kid was driving the truck when the pole blew over and the lines fell onto his truck. He's scared to death right now, hyperventilating...