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FARC's Efforts to Assassinate Uribe Described in Seized Computers
2008-04-23 21:04:00
The Colombian publication El Tiempo has published the text of further documents provided by the government of Colombia and described as taken from the FARC computers of the late Raul Reyes seized by Colombia after its raid on Reyes' camp in Ecuador May 1. They describe FARC's efforts to assassinate Colombian President Alvaro Uribe . The documents include an e-mail from April 15, 2002, which states that FARC failed in an attempt against President Uribe in Barranquilla in an incident in which FARC detonated...(read more)
More About: Computers

The Muslim Brotherhood and the Electoral Process
2008-04-23 17:24:00
If one wants to get a more realistic picture of how the Muslim Brotherhood and its international legacy organizations view voting and the democratic process than the usual platitudes of their public discourse, it is well worth reading the Guide to Voting in Islam, posted by the Muslim Association of Britain. This document and commentary on its content was first posted on the Global Muslim Brotherhood Daily Report, available for a free subscription. Because in political Islam there is no difference...(read more)
More About: Process , Electoral

Reality Hits Jimmy Carter in the... Face
2008-04-23 16:51:00
Palestinian foreign minister Riyad al-Malki delivered a Niagara Falls-magnitude of cold water to Jimmy Carter today, pronouncing his meeting with Hamas leaders worthless. More quotes : "The only thing he achieved was permission on the part of Khaled Meshaal of Hamas to deliver a letter from a detained Israeli soldier to his family. Nothing else. Hamas offered nothing to president Carter. They reiterated the same positions. There was no change on the part of Hamas." Actually, by acting as a yellow-bellied,...(read more)
More About: Reality , Jimmy Carter , Face , Hits

AN AMERICAN WARNING - PLEASE READ AND SHARE WITH YOUR FRIENDS
2008-04-23 05:52:00
An American Warning 4/22/08PLEASE SHARE By David Robertson Well, all I can say is WOW. As many of you know, I continually research threats to Americans and our Country. My method, is to take numerous sources and overlap them? apply Occam's Razor ? which of course is a line of reasoning that says the simplest answer is most often correct. Now? a big area of concern would be that of the North American Union/Community. I?ve shown a plethora of data that shows that, all things being equal, this is probably going on. Today... that "probably" is more likely a certainty. It kind of started as NAFTA during the Clinton administration. Keep in mind that Clinton is a Bildeberger. However, in 2005, the Bush administration signed the SPP without any congressional oversight or public knowledge. Bush as well... very connected with the CFR either by family or affiliation. We?ve seen in recent years a plan for something called the NAFTA Superhighway which is oddly enough, attached directly to the ...
More About: International , Friends , China , Read

Obama and the Joyce Foundation
2008-04-23 04:00:00
The press is finally starting to notice Barack Obama 's problem with gun owners. Politico notes that Obama served on the board of directors for the Joyce Foundation , which has given millions of dollars to gun-control groups. In fact, Politico's Kenneth Vogel reports that Obama thought about taking over as head of the Joyce Foundation, but decided to focus on politics instead. The Joyce Foundation gave $21 million to anti-gun groups while the senator served on the board, yet now the head of the Joyce...(read more)

Rising Female Bombers in Iraq: An Alarming Trend
2008-04-23 03:22:00
The rise of female bombers in Iraq is now garnering greater media attention. The wow-factor of Muslim women strapping on the bomb is important today because these women pose a security threat to U.S. coalition forces in Iraq as well as Iraqi civilians and security forces. This dangerous trend should not surprise us. The latest television report of this phenomenon appeared tonight on FOX News with Britt Hume's Special Report at 6pm and will air again at 10pm. While an alarming trend, it is worth noting...(read more)
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U.S. Treasury Designates More FARC Leaders as Drug Kingpins
2008-04-22 21:14:00
The U.S. Treasury continued to target the Colombian FARC narco-terrorist group, by designating entities and individual FARC leaders under the Foreign Narcotics Kingpin Designation Act. The action freezes any assets under U.S. jurisdiction and prohibiting U.S. persons from conducting business transactions with the designated persons. From the Treasury press release : "Today's designations focus on a FARC financial network that involves two Colombian money exchange business, Cambios El Trebol and Cambios...(read more)
More About: Farc , Drug , Leaders

Radicalization on the web in Europe
2008-04-22 21:09:00
European authorities are taking very seriously the threat of radicalization over the web. I just wrote an article for the Middle East Times on that topic. Here is an excerpt: A few months ago Bernard Squarcini the head of the DST (Direction de la Surveillance du Territoire), the French equivalent of the FBI, told the French daily Libération regarding Islamic radicalization: "An ideological transformation can be done in three months on the Web. An individual can at night auto-radicalize himself via...(read more)
More About: Europe , Radicalization

More Adventures in the Parallel Universe: Journalism, Secrecy and Getting I
2008-04-22 18:45:00
Journalism and official counterterrorism are in many ways similar. They each have important functions - journalism, to keep us informed, and counterterrorism, to keep us safe. They each have the dual goal of getting the facts right, and protecting their sources and methods. Viewed this way, you would think that there would be mutual respect between the two industries, even if they occasionally clash. Unfortunately, this is not the case. Despite the fact that journalists rely on confidential sources...(read more)
More About: Universe , Journalism , Adventures , Secrecy

Adventures in the Parallel Universe
2008-04-21 19:40:00
I have some thoughts on Andrew Cochran’s latest post , in which he expresses annoyance with Bill Maher’s recent comments about the Pope. Unlike Andrew, I come at this issue as a proud secular humanist, and someone who has chosen not to bring any religion into my household, lest my wife divorce me. Andrew’s post refers to the recent exchange on Counterterrorism Blog between Fahana Ali and me, over whether the Danish editors should apologize for running the anti-Islam cartoons. I...(read more)
More About: Universe , Adventures

Egyptian Concerns About Hamas
2008-04-21 19:02:00
Notwithstanding former President Carter’s embrace of Khaled Masha'l last week, there is little optimism in the region that Hamas is poised to change its stripes. Indeed, after Carter’s departure, Hamas officials rolled back his amazing assessment that the terrorist organization was finally prepared to accept the right of Israel to “live as a neighbor next door in peace.” Judging from the official statements on the Carter visit, Israel is not under any illusions about Hamas....(read more)
More About: Egyptian , Concerns

A Note of Caution on the Proscription of JI in Indonesia
2008-04-21 18:43:00
Today in sentencing Abu Dujana and Zarkasih, two leaders of Jemaah Islamiyah arrested in mid-2007, the court, for the first time, designated JI as an illegal organization. My colleague Johnathan Winer lauded the decision, but I add some caution. First some background. Despite the UN Securuty Council’s 1267 Committee designation of JI, Indonesia failed to uphold its obligation under international law or proscribe it under domestic law. The principle reason why JI has not been outlawed is parliamentary...(read more)
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New Insights on the MB Convictions in Egypt
2008-04-21 18:08:00
A few days ago Jeff Breinholt, my colleague on the Counterterrorism Blog noted a valuable new web resource, the Global Muslim Brotherhood Report, open to responsible researchers who are willing to provide a name and institutional affiliation. Today the site gives a rundown on an extremely interesting case in Egypt , where five leaders of the international Muslim Brotherhood were sentenced in abstentia to10 years in prison for terrorism and money laundering. Those convicted include some of the oldest...(read more)
More About: Convictions , Insights

One Difference Between Muslims and Catholics
2008-04-21 17:29:00
The terrible insults of the Catholic Church and Pope Benedict XVI by HBO talk show host Bill Maher reminded me of the recent mini-debate here by Farhana Ali and Jeffrey Breinholt over the reaction in the Muslim world over the re-publication of cartoons depicting Mohammed is a way that Muslims deem offensive. As a Catholic loyal to my Church and to the Pope as the Vicar of Christ on Earth, I am personally insulted by Maher's slander, and I support calls by other Catholics for HBO to fire him. His...(read more)
More About: Difference

Indonesia Bans Jemaah Islamiyah As Malaysia Arrests Leaders On Way to Syria
2008-04-21 17:03:00
When Jemaah Islamiyah leaders Agus Purwantoro and Abu Husna were captured in Malaysia in mid-April they were seeking false travel documents in preparation for meetings in Syria with an unspecified "international terrorist network," according to reports citing Indonesia n and Malaysia police. Abu Husna was alleged to be the current leader of JI as of the time of his arrest. What were these two senior JI officials doing going together on a high-risk mission to Syria, which ultimately led to their being...(read more)
More About: Arrests , Leaders

Remembering the Beirut Embassy Bombing: April 18, 1983
2008-04-19 01:47:00
Twenty-five years ago today a late model GMC truck packed with explosives slammed into the U.S. Embassy in Beirut and crashing through the lobby door. In his memoir See No Evil former CIA operative Robert Baer, who devoted much of this career to identifying the perpetrators of the bombing, “Even by Beirut standards, it was an enormous blast…” Often overshadowed by the bombing of the Marine Barracks in Beirut only six months later (as well as the many suicide vehicle bombs since),...(read more)
More About: April , Remembering , Bombing

What about Sami? NY Times Buys Into American Ikhwan Lobbying on Behalf of
2008-04-18 19:50:00
The New York Times today became the latest tool in an aggressive lobbying campaign aimed at sabotaging a terror investigation in northern Virginia. The campaign to free Sami Al-Arian started last year, led by the Council on American -Islamic Relations (CAIR), the Muslim American Society (MAS), and other American Islamist groups after the Palestinian Islamic Jihad (PIJ) operative was held in contempt of court for refusing to comply with consecutive grand jury subpoenas. He now is defying his third...(read more)
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A Deeply Disturbing Report on the Lack of Strategic Thinking
2008-04-18 17:42:00
The General Accounting Office recently released a devastating report on the lack of a coherent strategy governing the U.S. approach to dealing with the terrorist threat from Pakistan's Federally Administered Tribal Areas (FATAs). This is true FIVE YEARS after the development of such a strategy was "stipulated by the National Strategy for Combating Terrorism (2003), called for by an independent commission (2004), and mandated by congressional legislation (2007)." Why this is not major news is beyond...(read more)
More About: Report , Strategic , Thinking , Lack

Banning Murder
2008-04-18 04:00:00
Los Angeles, California, almost banned murder. Almost. It turns out the City Council realized that a symbolic 40-hour ban on homicides might just be the dumbest thing anyone's ever tried to do to fight crime, because murder is already illegal. But that didn't stop activist Earl Ofari Hutchinson from urging the council to take the "bold step." You know what would be a really bold step? The City Council banning plea bargains for 40 hours. That's right: eight hours a day for five days banning...(read more)
More About: Murder

NEFA Foundation: Videos of Pakistan Terror Training Camp, UK Airline Bomb P
2008-04-17 21:35:00
Two new items have been added to the NEFA Foundation online multimedia library : - Video footage of a terrorist training camp in northwestern Pakistan run by the Islamic Jihad Union (IJU). The video shows the production and testing of explosives, and the recruitment of young children as fighters. On May 25, 2005, the U.S. State Department announced the designation of the IJU as a Specially Designated Global Terror ist (SDGT). The IJU is a breakaway faction of the Islamic Movement of Uzbekistan (IMU)...(read more)
More About: Videos , Training

Al-Qaida's Finances: Evidence of Organizational Decline?
2008-04-17 20:50:00
The latest issue of the Combating Terrorism Center at West Point's excellent online journal, CTC Sentinel , was released today, inlcuding an article in which I present a snapshot of al Qaeda's continuing ability to raise funds through traditional methods, even as the al Qaeda core itself is reportedly short on cash. A reverse directional flow of funds from disparate al Qaeda cells back to al Qaeda senior leadership in the Afghanistan-Pakistan area may suggest a further degeneration of the al Qaeda...(read more)
More About: Finances , Evidence

Ridicule Needed
2008-04-17 18:10:00
Jeffrey Imm and Matt Levitt are dead-on about the audacity of Jimmy Carter in meeting with Hamas. My diagnosis: the US needs to look to political activists on the Left and borrow their techniques, if we are ever to fully exploit soft-power tools like economic sanctions. So far, we have lacked the discipline, and the willingness to practice an aggressive form of peer pressure. The symptoms are on public display. In the Holy Land Foundation trial in Dallas , American prosecutors had to deal with a...(read more)
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The War in Afghanistan: More Help Needed
2008-04-17 18:01:00
Greater international support is needed to secure and stabilize Afghanistan , a crucial front in the global war on terrorism. The February 18 Pakistani election provides an opportunity to isolate extremists along the border. The U.S. should work with NATO countries on a joint approach to Pakistan and consider appointing a high-level envoy to coordinate policies between Afghanistan and Pakistan....(read more)
More About: Middle East

The Truth About Philly
2008-04-17 04:00:00
If you know someone who lives in Philadelphia, send this to them. If you live in Philadelphia, listen now or lose later: Your elected officials and local media aren't telling you the truth about new gun control laws they want to impose on you, and you deserve to know the whole story. Mayor Nutter and the City Council say the city will enforce these new rules, including a ban on many semi-automatic rifles, a one-gun-a-month restriction, and a bill that would turn crime victims into criminals if they...(read more)
More About: Truth , Philly , The Truth

Al Qaeda Officially Hates The Counterterrorism Blog
2008-04-16 22:04:00
When I started this website in January 2005, I never envisioned that that Al Qaeda would target us for a hit piece over the Internet. Well, voila , the blessed day has arrived. The wonderful folks at the SITE Intelligence Group found the item below on Al-Ekhlaas, one of Al-Qaida's central messaging forums on the Internet, which has begun a new series in English titled, "Watching and Monitoring the Jihad Media Watchers." They passed along the item below to Evan Kohlmann , who sent it to me, and I...(read more)
More About: Blog , Al-Qaeda , Counterterrorism

Experts Discuss Outlook and Options for U.S. Policy Towards Iran
2008-04-16 19:52:00
At a panel on Capitol Hill yesterday, Contributing Experts Matthew Levitt and Walid Phares , along with Prof. Yonah Alexander and Dr. Milton Hoenig, discussed the range of options available to the U.S. and the West in dealing with Iran . I will post a more detailed summary of the discussion within the next week, but in the meantime, please review the excellent story by reporter Matt Korade in today's edition of Congressional Quarterly's Homeland Security . The story was written for subscribers, but...(read more)
More About: Outlook , Policy , Options

Somali Jihadists Clarify Stance on the United States
2008-04-16 19:19:00
For many months there was a debate inside the State Department and elsewhere in the policy community on how seriously to take the _jihadist_ threat from al-Shabaad al-Mujahideen Movement in Somalia, and whether the group was really linked to al Qaeda. Ultimately, the group was designated by the Treasury Department as a terrorist entity in February. This was the right decision, in my opinion. What I find interesting is how unable we often are to believe people when they say they want to kill us, even...(read more)
More About: United States , United , States , The United States , Jihadists

Legitimizing Hamas: Carter's Visit Sends the Wrong Message
2008-04-16 18:59:00
Yesterday, former President Jimmy Carter embraced West Bank Hamas leader Nasser Shaer, and today he is scheduled to meet Mahmoud Zahar, an avowedly militant Hamas leader from Gaza, in Egypt. The parade of Hamas meetings concludes tomorrow, with the former President meeting the overall head of Hamas, Khaled Mishal, in Damascus. As I write in today's Weekly's Standard online: Imagine the Alice in Wonderland scene that will take place later this week, when U.S. Secret Service agents entrusted with protecting...(read more)
More About: Message , Wrong , Visit

Of Art and Science and the Epistemology of Counterterrorism
2008-04-16 16:48:00
Is counterterrorism more of an art than a science? That question may be irrelevant, since Americans take pride in practicing both effectively. We have plenty of world-class artists, as well as experts who tell us what art is meaningful and most likely to withstand the test of time, and why. We lead the world in government-sponsored scientific research. Few qualified scientists today have not been tempted to relocate to the U.S., for such a move would allow them to most effectively practice their...(read more)
More About: Science , Counterterrorism , Epistemology

Bloomberg, Wal-Mart and You
2008-04-16 04:00:00
New York City Mayor Mike Bloomberg ’s latest volley in his war on gun ownership is convincing Wal-Mart that they need to film every firearm purchase. The goal, according to the mayor, is to reduce crime. But we know gun control doesn't equal crime control. And this reeks of a public relations stunt instead of a crime-fighting measure. Gun owners who buy a firearm at Wal-Mart , or any other gun store for that matter, already go through a background check before the purchase can be made. What's...(read more)
More About: Wal Mart