From one of my favorite Bloggers, Michael Yon:
Iraqi Islamic Party: "Al Qaeda is Defeated"
"Al Qaeda in Iraq is defeated," according to Sheik Omar Jabouri, spokesman for the Iraqi Islamic Party and a member of the widespread and influential Jabouri Tribe. Speaking through an interpreter at a 31 October meeting at the Iraqi Islamic Party headquarters in downtown Baghdad, Sheik Omar said that al Qaeda had been "defeated mentally, and therefore is defeated physically," referring to how clear it has become that the terrorist group’s tactics have backfired. Operatives who could once disappear back into the crowd after committing an increasingly atrocious attack no longer find safe haven among the Iraqis who live in the southern part of Baghdad. They are being hunted down and killed. Or, if they are lucky, captured by Americans.
Colonel Ricky Gibbs, the American brigade commander with responsibility for the Rashid District in south Baghdad today told me, "So goes South Baghdad goes Baghdad." General Petraeus had told me similar things about the importance of South Baghdad. In fact, Rashid is quickly developing into what might be one of the final serious battlegrounds of the war.
During the meeting, another member of the Iraqi Islamic Party said that al Qaeda has changed its strategy now that fomenting civil war between Sunni and Shia has backfired. Al Qaeda has shifted targets, now trying to generate friction between tribes. This time, however, the tribes are onto the game early, and they are not playing.
At least this is being mentioned in some of the mainstream media outlets like CNN. (I'll update this post as links become available.)
CBN News has a great clip of the interview.
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November 2, 2007 , by
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Personal disclaimer: I'm not posting this information to cause panic. But rather to highlight various press and blogger accounts of al-Qaeda's desire to use WMD as a weapon of terror inside the United States. In my opinion, if such a plot were to be carried out, the retaliatory strikes by the U.S. would be devastating to any hostile nation states harboring Islamic terrorist organizations. The plan would ultimately backfire on those who carried it out.
The Jawa Report has two posts pertaining to al-Qaeda's possible execution of a plot to attack using a nuclear weapon inside the United States. The attack is supposedly going to occur during Ramadan, the muslim holiday which begins this year on September 24th.
A Pakistani journalist says that his sources in al Qaeda and the Taliban are claiming that nuclear material has already been smuggled across the Mexican border into the U.S. and that an operation bigger than 9/11 will be carried out during Ramadan–which begins later this month.
Hamid Mir, who is the only journalist ever to interview both Osama bin Laden and Ayman al Zawahiri, claims that he learned this information on a recent trip to Afghanistan last month.
Read more: Al Qaeda Will Nuke US in Late September.
Terrorist, Adnan G. El Shukrijumah, May be al-Qaeda's Trigger Man:
Many reports indicate that Adnan G. El Shukrijumah, the cell leader responsible for carrying out the plot, is already in the United States and has been for some time. Furthermore, there is speculation that Adnan smuggled a nuclear device into the U.S. across the Mexican border. He is wanted for questioning by the FBI: details here.
The other Jawa Report post details the account of a reader who may have come into contact with Adnan, in Austin, Texas, earlier this year.
A Jawa Report reader e-mailed us about a possible sighting of Adnan G. El Shukrijumah, a man wanted by the FBI in connection with a plot to detonate a dirty bomb in the United States. A few days ago we ran a story about reports of an imminent attack by Adnan G. El Shukrijumah (aka, Adnan Al-Shukri Jumaa).
The reader, who some of you have met in the comments section before, also commented about it over at Ace of Spades HQ. Ace has those comments reprinted here. She has spoken with the FBI.
Read more: Al Qaeda Dirty Bomber Spotted in Austin, Texas?
Adnan Shukrijumah Past and Present:
Muslims Called to Leave the United States:
During a press interview in Pakistan on September 17th, a top al-Qaeda commander, Abu Dawood, based in Pakistan issued a call to all muslims, living in the United States, to leave. Specifically in the New York and Washington, D.C. area.
The new al-Qaida field commander in Afghanistan is calling for Muslims to leave the U.S. – particularly Washington and New York – in anticipation of a major terror attack to rival Sept. 11, according to an interview by a Pakistani journalist.
Abu Dawood told Hamid Mir, a reporter who has covered al-Qaida and met with Osama bin Laden, the attack is being coordinated by Adnan el-Shukrijumah and suggests it may involve some form of weapon of mass destruction smuggled across the Mexican border.
"Our brothers are ready to attack inside America. We will breach their security again," he is quoted as saying. "There is no timeframe for our attack inside America; we can do it any time."
More at WorldNetDaily.
al-Qaeda Authorized to Use Nuclear Weapons Against the United States:
In August CNN's, Christiane Amanpour, wrote about the grave threat Osama bin Laden still posed to the United States:
LONDON, England (CNN) — Nearly five years have passed since the September 11 terrorist attacks, yet Osama bin Laden — the world's most-wanted terrorist — remains a dangerous fugitive, his words and actions inspiring jihadists across the globe.
It's hard to fathom that bin Laden would remain so relevant today, when in the days after the attacks, the Bush administration and much of the world was determined to get him.
In the report, Amanpour quotes Michael Scheuer, the former head of the CIA's bin Laden unit. He had this to say:
Michael Scheuer, who once headed the CIA's bin Laden unit, says bin Laden has been given permission by a young cleric in Saudi Arabia authorizing al Qaeda to "use nuclear weapons against the United States … capping the casualties at 10 million."
"He's had an approval, a religious approval for 10 million deaths?" I asked him.
"Yes," Scheuer responded.
Full text: Amanpour: Bin Laden still deadly relevant.
From Drudge Report via Jihad Watch (November 12th, 2004):
Osama bin Laden now has religious approval to use a nuclear device against Americans, says the former head of the CIA unit charged with tracking down the Saudi terrorist. The former agent, Michael Scheuer, speaks to Steve Kroft in his first television interview without disguise to be broadcast on 60 MINUTES Sunday, Nov. 14 (7:00-8:00 PM, ET/PT) on the CBS Television Network….
Even if bin Laden had a nuclear weapon, he probably wouldn't have used it for a lack of proper religious authority - authority he has now. "[Bin Laden] secured from a Saudi sheik…a rather long treatise on the possibility of using nuclear weapons against the Americans," says Scheuer. "[The treatise] found that he was perfectly within his rights to use them. Muslims argue that the United States is responsible for millions of dead Muslims around the world, so reciprocity would mean you could kill millions of Americans," Scheuer tells Kroft.
Scheuer says bin Laden was criticized by some Muslims for the 9/11 attack because he killed so many people without enough warning and before offering to help convert them to Islam. But now bin Laden has addressed the American people and given fair warning. "They're intention is to end the war as soon as they can and to ratchet up the pain for the Americans until we get out of their region….If they acquire the weapon, they will use it, whether it's chemical, biological or some sort of nuclear weapon," says Scheuer.
More: Saudi cleric blesses Bin Laden's use of nuke against U.S.A.
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September 18, 2006 , by
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From the Syrian Arab News Agency (SANA):
Damascus, Sep. 12 (SANA),
Syrian Anti-Terror Forces Thwart Terrorist Operation that Targeted the American Embassy in Damascus
Syrian anti-terror forces on Tuesday morning thwarted a terrorist operation by a terrorist Takfiri group of four gunmen who tried to storm the American embassy in Damascus using hand grenades and machines guns.
The guards assigned to protect the American embassy clashed with the terrorists, killing three of them and wounding the fourth.
The terrorists used in their terrorist operation a car they were in and another booby-trapped car that parked in front of the embassy door to detonate it. Competent experts from anti-terror forces dismantled the explosive charge and the timing devices inside the car.
Investigations are still underway into this terrorist incident.
Read the rest here, but there's more:
Damascus, Sep. 12 (SANA),
Interior Minister: The Terrorist Operation Failed to Achieve its Aims
Syrian Minister of Interior General Bassam Abdul Majid stressed that the terrorist operation that targeted the American embassy in Damascus Tuesday morning has failed to achieve any of the aims or premeditated dimensions plotted by the criminal sides that stood behind it.
The Minister, in statements at the scene of the terrorist incident, praised the role of anti-terror forces in thwarting this terrorist operation and their alertness to protect the nation and citizens.
He said that the preliminary investigations revealed that the two cars used in this incidents were stolen, adding that investigations area underway to divulge those who are behind this terrorist operation.
The Interior Minister indicated that the scene of the terrorist operation is a public street that any car can use and stop for moments, a thing exploited by the terrorist group.
A Syrian guard assigned to protect the American Embassy was killed, and another wounded in the clash:
Damascus, Sep. 12 (SANA),
One of Anti-Terror Forces was Martyred, Others Wounded in the Terrorist Operation That Targeted US Embassy in Damascus
Following to preliminary information on the terrorist operation that targeted the American embassy in Damascus Tuesday morning, one Syrian security guard assigned for the protection of the American embassy in Damascus was martyred in the clash between anti-terror forces and the terrorist Takfiri group, another was wounded along with a policeman of the embassy guards and a security employee in the embassy.
Another 11 citizens were also injured in this terrorist operation, seven of them were workers of a technical workshop of the Syrian Telecommunication Establishment who were on a repair mission in the area, a man and a woman of Iraqi nationalities in addition to a Chinese citizen who was on the roof of his house in the area.
The wounded were taken to public hospitals for treatment.
Via CNN World:
DAMASCUS, Syria (CNN) — Syrian security forces killed four attackers Tuesday outside the U.S. Embassy in Damascus after a car exploded near the walls of the American compound, the Syrian Information Ministry said.
There was no claim of responsibility for the attack, but an al Qaeda offshoot group called Jund al-Sham — or Soldiers of Lebanon — is suspected, said Imad Moustapha, Syrian ambassador to the United States.
The radical fundamentalist group has been blamed for several attacks in Syria in recent years, Moustapha said.
One Syrian security guard protecting the embassy was killed in the attack, Syria's state-run news agency SANA reported.
Syrian authorities wounded and arrested another suspected attacker, the ministry said. No American diplomats were harmed.
SANA reported 13 others were wounded, including an embassy policeman, a security worker and 11 civilians, among them two Iraqis and a Chinese.
"The State Department confirms an attack by unknown assailants," U.S. State Department spokesman Kurtis Cooper said from Washington. "The event appears to be over and handled by local authorities … on the scene."
The Syrian Information Ministry said none of the staff was wounded and the embassy incurred no damage.
Video footage from the scene showed the burned-out wreckage of a car and blood-soaked streets near the embassy, which in a residential area of the Syrian capital.
The armed attackers apparently tried to storm the embassy with hand grenades and machine guns after detonating a car bomb near the compound walls, according to the ministry and the state-run news agency.
Read the entire CNN article here.
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September 12, 2006 , by
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From South Asian News:
Kabul - In an operation launched by Afghan coalition forces in eastern Afghanistan, a known al-Qaeda facilitator and six other suspected al-Qaeda associates were detained, coalition forces said.
The commander of the Hizb-i-Islami militia in Hafezan in the eastern province of Nangarhar, Gulbuddin Hikmatyar, was arrested after credible intelligence led Afghan and coalition forces to his compound, the statement said.
No shots were fired and there were no injuries reported.
Hikmatyar, the former prime minister of Afghanistan, announced jihad or holy war against what he called the US invasion of Afghanistan four and half years ago and the joint opposition of the Afghan government by Taliban and al-Qaeda in the fight against coalition forces.
Two other al-Qaeda suspects were arrested last week in the south- eastern province of Khost.
Read more: Seven al-Qaeda suspects arrested in eastern Afghanistan.
Bill Roggio has some very good background information about Hekmatyar:
On the day of the fifth anniversary of the 9-11 attack, Coalition forces score a high value target in Afghanistan. Gulbuddin Hekmatyar, the commander of Hezb-i-Islami and ally of al-Qaeda and the Taliban, has been captured during a joint U.S. and Afghan Army raid in “eastern Afghanistan.” Hekmatyar, contrary to his rhetoric gave up to the Coalition forces without a fight. Hekmatyar's arrest is said to be part of an 'ongoing operation.'
Hekmatyar has been designated by the U.S. Department of State as a "Specially Designated Global Terrorist" and "has participated in and supported terrorist acts committed by al-Qa'ida and the Taliban." The 9-11 Commision report indicates Osama bin Laden kept lines of communication open with Hekmatyar. "bin Laden apparently kept his option open, maintaining contacts with Gulbuddin Hekmatyar, who, though an Islamic extremist, was also one of the Taliban's most militant opponents," states the report.
Read more: Gulbuddin Hekmatyar Reported Captured.
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September 11, 2006 , by
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Update (September 9th, 2006):
- Clinton's lawyer pressures ABC to "yank the film". Strangely enough there's also speculation that the letter may be a fake.
- Peggy Noonan recalls the sounds of 9/11.
- Redstate has the video clips from the film that democrats don't want you to see.
Update: Blackfive weighs in with 9/11 Truthers & Clintonistas in the Crosshairs.
Uncle Jimbo says:
On top of this ABC has a miniseries that follows the completely feckless response of Clinton’s national security team to 8 years of provocation by bin Laden and AQ. The Clintonistas are predictably appalled at having the inherent weakness of the current Democrat party on national defense so brutally exposed. They have been coasting on nostalgic feel good memories of peace and prosperity when the stock market soared, there was a Hummer in every driveway, and people worldwide loved us. Except the internet bubble burst draining away all that faux-prosperity, as it turned out we weren’t actually at peace we were just failing to act as our enemies continued to attack us, and trust me nobody loved us then either.
Update: Another e-mail from the executive director of the Democratic National Committee
Note: I'm not a registered democrat and I actually wrote a letter via their website encouraging ABC to air the film as scheduled. They obviously didn't read my letter.
It would seem that the entire demcratic party machine is rallying against this movie. Which begs the question, what are they so worried about, and why are they trying to shield the public from seeing it?
Dear Fellow Democrat,
This is it: crunch time for getting the slanderous ABC television docudrama "The Path to 9/11" yanked off the air. The network schedule has this slanderous attack on Democrats slated to start on Sunday night, September 10, at 8 o'clock — and as long as it stays on the schedule, we have work to do.
http://www.democrats.org/pathto911/send
Here's the good news: the suits at ABC and the Walt Disney Company have started panicking under pressure, thanks to your ferocious response to the outrageous decision to put this irresponsible miniseries on the air. But until Disney quits defending its plan to broadcast conservative propaganda — fraudulently presented to Americans as "based on the 9/11 Commission Report" — the company should plan to keep taking every bit of heat we dish out.
Here's a quick catch-up on developments over the last 48 hours:
- President Clinton, through his attorney, rebuked ABC for producing a "factually and incontrovertibly inaccurate" miniseries — and walked the network through three make-believe scenes in the "the Path to 9/11" that defame people and misrepresent events during his administration.
- Clinton's spokesman later stepped up the pressure, condemning Disney as "despicable" for "airing a fictional version of what is a serious and emotional event for our country. No reputable organization," he said, "should dramatize 9-11 for a profit at the expense of the truth."
- The families of September 11 victims have weighed in on the controversy, telling "entertainers" not to "promote misleading or incorrect information as fact to the public."
- House and Senate Democratic leaders hammered Disney president and CEO Robert Iger, in letters that questioned the company's commitment to its "reputation … as a corporation worthy of the trust of the American people and the United States Congress."
- Scholastic has pulled teaching materials off its website and has scrambled to adopt a plan to help teachers show students "the differences between factual reporting and a dramatization," but is still encouraging teachers to show their students this propaganda.
Thanks for helping to make all this happen by joining over 150,000 Americans who told Disney president Robert Iger to keep this cheap right-wing miniseries off our airwaves. But our work isn't done. Before we deliver your letter today, tell your family, friends, neighbors and colleagues to insist that Disney and ABC live up to its duty to tell the truth:
http://www.democrats.org/pathto911/send
Thank you,
Tom
Tom McMahon
Executive Director
Democratic National Committee
Update (Sept. 8th):
Democratic efforts to censor
FREE SPEECH (again)
Below is a copy of an e-mail that is being circulated by the democratic party.
Hi,
The ABC television network — a cog in the Walt Disney empire — unleashed a promotional blitz in the last week for a new "docudrama" called "The Path to 9/11". ABC has thrown its corporate might behind the two-night production, and bills it as a public service: a TV event, to quote the ABC tagline, "based on the 9/11 Commission Report".
That's false. "The Path to 9/11" is actually a bald-faced attempt to slander Democrats and revise history right before Americans vote in a major election.
The miniseries, which was put together by right-wing conservative writers, relies on the old GOP playbook of using terrorism to scare Americans. "The Path to 9/11" mocks the truth and dishonors the memory of 9/11 victims to serve a cheap, callous political agenda. It irresponsibly misrepresents the facts and completely distorts the truth.
Join me in telling Walt Disney CEO Robert Iger to keep this propaganda off the air.
http://www.democrats.org/page/
petition/pathto911/ftvala
Thanks!
Please allow me to translate the meaning of the langauge used in the e-mail:
The ABC television network — a cog in the Walt Disney empire — unleashed a promotional blitz in the last week for a new "docudrama" called "The Path to 9/11". ABC has thrown its corporate might behind the two-night production…
Translation: We're VICTIMS of "big business" again.
…and bills it as a public service: a TV event, to quote the ABC tagline, "based on the 9/11 Commission Report".
That's false. "The Path to 9/11" is actually a bald-faced attempt to slander Democrats and revise history right before Americans vote in a major election.
Translation: Only WE are allowed to revise history, and only WE are allowed provide a public service.
The miniseries, which was put together by right-wing conservative writers, relies on the old GOP playbook of using terrorism to scare Americans.
Translation: We're being VICTIMIZED by the vast right-wing conspiracy again. And since we're not strong on national security, we'll resort to accusing republicans of scaring the public instead of drawing up an effective plan of our own.
"The Path to 9/11" mocks the truth and dishonors the memory of 9/11 victims to serve a cheap, callous political agenda. It irresponsibly misrepresents the facts and completely distorts the truth.
Translation: We think Fahrenheit 9/11 was a much more accurate and honorable portrayal of the failures that led to the September 11th. So much so, we invited its producer to sit with us at our 2004 national convention.
Also on the story:
Good commentary:
Update (Sept. 8th):
Stephen of MediaBlog over at NRO is reporting that senate democrats may have issued a veiled threat regarding Disney's broadcast license if they don't cancel the mini-series.
This is simply outrageous. I guess free speech is only good enough for liberals and terrorist statesmen that agree with their cause. The democrats are making complete jackasses of themselves. You can't revoke a television network's broadcast license because they air a film containing views you don't agree with.
Update (Sept. 7th):
LGF has links showing the democratic party is officially trying to censor ABC network programming.
Update (Sept. 6th):
Hugh Hewitt may have evidence that ABC may have edited the film under pressure from liberals.
I had to interrupt a busy workday to post this example of utter hypocrisy from democrats.
This party has been campaigning as the vanguard of free speech in its opposition to NSA wiretaps, its defense of the New York Times after the paper revealed classified information about counter-terror programs that help to keep us safe, and its opposition to the renewal of the USA Patriot Act.
From UPI :
WASHINGTON, Sept. 6 (UPI) — An upcoming TV mini-series about the origins of the Sept. 11 plot is provoking angry complaints from Democrats about the portrayal of the Clinton administration's response to terrorism.
"The Path to 9/11," a five-hour dramatization laying out the history of the Sept. 11 plot from the first bombing of the World Trade Center in 1993, will be aired over two nights on the anniversary of the attack next week by ABC Television.
The movie is billed as a dramatization based on the report of the U.S. commission that investigated the events of Sept. 11 and circumstances leading up to it. According to a disclaimer shown at the beginning of each episode, it "has composite and representative characters and incidents, and time compressions have been used for dramatic purposes."
But a portion of the film showing an aborted effort to capture al-Qaida leader Osama bin Laden before the 1998 bombings of two U.S. embassies in East Africa has aroused the ire of some of the officials portrayed.
Here's where the hypocrisy begins:
And Rep. Louise Slaughter, D-N.Y., called on ABC to show disclaimers throughout each episode, not just at the beginning. "ABC has a responsibility to make clear that this film is not a documentary, and does not represent an official account of the facts surrounding the Sept. 11 attacks," she said.
I don't recall democrats calling for disclaimers throughout Michael Moore's Fahrenheit 9/11? Furthermore, the Clinton liberals are doing everything they can to prevent ABC from airing the film "as-is." That in and of itself should tell you this is going to be one good film.
The mini-series is actually an accurate portrayal, albeit re-enacted, of what really happened in the years leading up to the terrorist attacks of September 11th, 2001. It's time the country learned the truth about what happened instead of buying into the liberal myth that it was all George W. Bush's fault.
In one scene, CIA operatives working with Ahmed Shah Masud (sic), the charismatic Afghan mujahedin leader who fought al-Qaida and their Taliban sponsors, are assembled on a hillside above bin Laden's residence at Tarnak Farms. "It's perfect for us," says "Kirk," a composite character representing several of the CIA operatives and analysts involved in the hunt for the terrorist leader.But the team is forced to abort the mission when Berger hangs up on them in the middle of a conference call, after telling them he cannot give the go ahead for the action."I don't have that authority," he says."Are there any men in Washington," Masud asks Kirk afterwards in the film, "or are they all cowards?"
Former national security advisor to President Clinton, Sandy Berger, had this to say:
"The incidents depicted did not happen," said Berger in the statement. "They are not contained in the Sept. 11 Commission report, which is the most authoritative review of the events before and after the attack."
This coming from a man who plead guilty to stealing classified documents from the National Archive. (I wonder what he was trying to hide…)
Read the entire UPI article: Analysis: Sept. 11 miniseries under fire.
Other commentaries: Blackfive, Hugh Hewitt, Little Green Footballs, HotAir, JunkyardBlog, Sticky Notes.
Posted on:
September 9, 2006 , by
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(H/T: Blackfive, Canadians Ambushed - Scott Kesterson video)
Sangin, Helmand Province, Afghanistan:
Alpha Company, 2nd Platoon "Red Devils", from Edmonton, Alberta taking care of business after coming under enemy fire. Another fine example of the tough-fighting and good work coalition troops are doing in Afghanistan…
WARNING: Contains graphic language.
More videos and stories from Afghanistan from Scott Kesterson can be found on his blog at KGW's Afghanistan blog and the video archive.
Posted on:
August 9, 2006 , by
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From CNN World:
Four al Qaeda suspects captured
(CNN) — Four suspected al Qaeda operatives believed to be involved in planning attacks against Afghan and Coalition forces in eastern Afghanistan were captured in a raid early Saturday in Khowst Province, according to a Coalition spokesman.
Col. Thomas Collins said their capture "should put all terrorists on notice."
"Each day we gain greater intelligence and greater ability to find terrorists who offer nothing to the Afghan people but fear and intimidation," Collins said.
"Extremist-related documents" and two rifles were confiscated in the raid, he said.
The Coalition forces encountered no resistance and no troops were wounded on the mission, he said.
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July 29, 2006 , by
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From CNN World: Somali minister assassinated
With Ethiopian troops said to be in Somalia to support the government, and Eritrea believed by many to be arming the Islamists, many Somalis are bracing for war.
In Mogadishu, another mysterious plane landed on Friday, fuelling suspicions the Islamists were receiving weapons deliveries. Their militia blocked roads near the airport as unidentified cargo was unloaded.
Residents said several trucks came to collect the delivery from the airport. "The people couldn't enter the airport because security was so tight," resident Hawo Hussein said.
"The Islamists are arming themselves and now we have to wait for fighting," said another resident, Abdullahi Ali.
Read more about Eritrea in the CIA World Fact Book.
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July 28, 2006 , by
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