Tribute to the military

Wednesday, August 30, 2006

Know the Enemy

Courtesy of Dallas News with permission of the Author, Rod Dreher.

Forty years ago, the godfather of Islamic terrorism was executed, says Rod DREHER, and America today is no closer to understanding his apocalyptic vision.....

Two days from now, the country will observe the anniversary of Hurricane Katrina and its catastrophic aftermath. What will pass unnoticed on that day is the 40th anniversary of a hanging of a revolutionary in Cairo, an event that is incalculably more important to the present and future of the United States than any meteorological event.

The pious life and martyr's death of Sayyid Qutb, and the legacy the Islamic theologian left behind, extend a powerful challenge to the West. Until we provide an answer to him and his followers, we can't hope to prevail in the war of ideas with Islamic extremists. And most of us have no idea who this man even was.


Sayyid Qutb (pronounced KUH-tuhb) has been called "the philosopher of Islamic terror." He rose from humble origins in rural Egypt to become an influential theologian and leading light of Egypt's fundamentalist Muslim Brotherhood movement. He advocated global Islamic rule imposed by the sword.

Also Online: English translation of 'Milestones.'

The Egyptian dictator Gamal Abdel Nasser ordered him hanged for treason Aug. 29, 1966.

Yet, his ideas have spread like a prairie fire over the parched landscape of Islam's last generation. As writer Paul Berman observed, Qutb was "the intellectual hero of every one of the groups that eventually went into al-Qaeda."

We Americans have a bad habit of assuming that there's nothing to radical Islam but fury, grievance and bloodlust. We think of jihadist leaders as wild-eyed mullahs far removed from our experience. It's a fatal form of condescension. Qutb may have been a madman by our lights, but he was no fool – and, in important ways, he had our number.

Americans also cherish the idea that lack of understanding is at the root of conflict – and that there are few disputes that can't be worked out by people getting to know each other. Not so with Qutb, whose sojourn in America as a foreign exchange student between 1948 and '50 radicalized him and confirmed his hatred for Western materialism and freedom.

Qutb spent most of his time in the Colorado State College of Education in Greeley, Colo. The pathologically prudish Egyptian scholar was shocked by the morality of Greeley's women, appalled by its racism and scandalized by the wealth of American society.

As Lawrence Wright writes in The Looming Tower, his acclaimed new book about the roots of 9/11:

"Qutb saw a spiritual wasteland, and yet belief in God was nearly unanimous in the United States at the time. It was easy to be misled by the proliferation of churches, religious books and religious festivals, Qutb maintained; the fact remained that materialism was the real American god. 'The soul has no value to Americans,' he wrote to one friend. 'There has been a Ph.D. dissertation about the best way to clean dishes, which seems more important to them than the Bible or religion.' Many Americans were beginning to come to similar conclusions. The theme of alienation in American life was just beginning to cast a pall over the postwar party. In many respects, Qutb's analysis, though harsh, was only premature."

It is tempting to laugh at the Islamic pietist overwhelmed by the sensuality of the Rocky Mountain Gomorrah. But when Qutb returned to Egypt, his ardor to fight Western cultural hegemony led him to write: "We are endowing our children with amazement and respect for the master who tramples our honor and enslaves us. Let us instead plant the seeds of hatred, disgust and revenge in the souls of these children."

Qutb believed that if Muslims accepted democracy, capitalism, civil liberties and the Western way of life, they would commit spiritual suicide. He dedicated the rest of his life to convincing Muslims that their only hope rested in surrendering totally to a stringent form of Islam.

But why, according to Qutb, are modernity and Islam irreconcilable?

Because modernity was only made possible by a fundamental theological error that guaranteed man's alienation from God and from his nature. This alienation had reached a point of crisis worldwide, with the world's richest and most powerful nations producing masses of well-fed, well-off people who are rootless, miserable, hedonistic and self-destructive.

This was not a novel insight. As Paul Berman points out in his 2003 book Terror and Liberalism, many Western thinkers of the same era were writing about alienation amid the freedom and plenty of modern society. Qutb located the source of the modern world's ills in Christianity's separation of the world into sacred and secular realms, creating what he called a "hideous schizophrenia" that caused Western man to split the material realm from the spiritual.

Islam holds the two to be one under God's sovereignty. But this unnatural divorce had material benefits for the West, enabling it to leapfrog far ahead of the Islamic world in science and technology. The West's success made it powerful, true, but its culture grew increasingly debauched, and its people were turning into moral and spiritual wrecks. Yet – and here, Mr. Berman writes, is where Qutb is most original – the all-powerful West was in the present day imposing its false and destructive ideals on the weakened Muslim world.

What is to be done? Lenin famously asked about Czarist Russia. Qutb's answer to the same question about the West was, in part, "Milestones," a Leninist-style tract advocating worldwide Islamic revolution.

In this thin volume, Qutb argues that the Islamic nation must overthrow modernity if it wishes to continue to exist. Only Islam, with its divinely given law regulating all aspects of daily life, is capable of rightly ordering the soul and body, and of being most true to God-given human nature. He believed the West, whether or not it realized it, was engaged in a fight to the death against Islam. Though the conflict had military, economic and cultural aspects, for Qutb, this was essentially a religious war.

"Milestones" calls for the subjugation of all non-Islamic peoples, the total crushing of all non-Islamic institutions and entities, and the universal imposition of harsh sharia law. Reading "Milestones" as a guide to the mentality of jihadists is a bone-chilling exercise (even more so when you consider that Muslim teens participating in a 2004 quiz competition at the Dallas Central Mosque were assigned "Milestones" as part of their contest reading).

His is the voice of the genocidal utopian, an apocalyptic idealist who – like Lenin, Stalin, Hitler and Mao – will stop at nothing to create an earthly paradise on the bones of the Crusaders, Zionists, moderate Muslims and sundry infidels.

It's difficult to imagine why anybody fell for Nazism or communism, but neither ideology could have gone anywhere if it didn't speak deeply to the hopes, needs, fears and passions of millions. As fanatical as Qutb's Islam sounds – as fanatical as it is – it provides an explanation for the misery and backwardness so much of the Muslim world lives in today. It gives its followers dignity and solidarity, a focus for their anger, a sense of purpose and of being on the right side of history. It holds out the false promise, that old siren song, that perfect happiness and oneness can be achieved in this life, once the Enemy has been destroyed. And it is a vision that Qutb gave witness to by courageously sacrificing his life.

What are we to do? There are no easy answers, but we should begin by jettisoning as folly the naive idea that all Muslims want the same things the liberal West wants. Followers of Qutb's brand of Islam hold that our wealth, secularity and freedom, especially for women, are evidence of our corruption.

While Qutb's prescriptions are quite mad, his diagnosis of the Western spiritual and psychological condition was serious, and it requires a serious response. If we Westerners cannot look at the world we've created for ourselves and understand that Sayyid Qutb was not all wrong, we will never figure out how to convince the Islamic masses he lived and died for that their holy martyr was a false prophet.

Rod Dreher is an assistant editorial page editor. The views expressed here are his own. His e-mail address is rdreher@dallasnews.com .

Find a link to an English translation of Sayyid Qutb's "Milestones" at DallasNews.com/Extra.

Technorati Tags: 'War on Terror' ... Terrorism ... Russia ... al-Qaeda ... Bin Laden ... Milestones ... Islamofascism ... Osama Bin Laden ... Caliphate ... Domestic Terrorism ... Islamist ... Sayyid Qutb ... Islamic Theologian ... Muslim Brotherhood ... Mullahs ... Lenin ... Czarist ... Islamic revolution ... religious war ... holy martyr ...

Tuesday, August 29, 2006

US Must Remain "Committed" to Fighting Terrorism

Courtesy of the United States Department of State - U.S. Must Remain "Committed" To Fighting Terrorism, Rice Says: Nexus of terrorism and weapons of mass destruction greatest threat

By Carolee Walker, Washington File Staff Writer

Washington – The world must stay united in fighting terrorism and weapons of mass destruction, particularly in Iran, Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice said in a radio interview August 29. Yet the “really devastating problem for the world would be if America loses its will or loses its nerve or loses its commitment,” Rice said.

“If America remains committed, we will meet these challenges.”

Rice said she encourages looking at events from a historical perspective before assessing success or failure in Iraq or the Middle East.

“I would ask that we think back on the times when it also seemed impossible and yet the success did emerge,” Rice said. In the Cold War, for example, Rice said there was no reason to believe that the United States would stay steadfast and that 50 years later the Soviet Union would collapse peacefully. “There are people living today, among them the president's father, who fought Japan,” Rice said. “And yet when the president sits across from the prime minister of Japan, he sits across from a democratic friend.”

Rice was interviewed on the Doug Wright Radio Show before addressing the annual American Legion Convention in Salt Lake City, where she accepted the American Legion Auxiliary Woman of the Year award.

Each year, the American Legion Auxiliary presents a Woman of the Year award recognizing the significant contributions of women in advancing the quality of life for others and making a positive impact on the men and women of America’s armed forces, veterans and their families.

The transcript of Rice’s radio interview and her remarks to the American Legion are available on the State Department Web site.

(The Washington File is a product of the Bureau of International Information Programs, U.S. Department of State. Web site: http://usinfo.state.gov)

Lodi Terror Case: Two US Citizens denied entry until cleared

Courtesy of News 10 Sacramento

A new twist has surfaced in the Lodi terrorism case involving other family members. The attorney father and his son said the two were not allowed into the United States upon returning from an extended stay in Pakistan. This is unprecedented because the two are United States citizens. The attorney indicates that this is unconstitutional. We will have to wait and see how this plays out, best assured that this case will be closely scrutinized by those who are concerned with the federal government’s use of powers. Please go to News 10 Sacramento for additional news on this case: New Twist In Lodi Terrorism Case

Saturday, August 26, 2006

Baghdad operation improving security

Courtesy of Armed Forces News Service:

BAGHDAD — Operation Together Forward, the Iraqi-led operation to reduce violence in Baghdad, is progressing well and improving the security situation around the Iraqi capital, a Joint Staff official said Aug. 23.

Over the last five weeks, the number of incidents of sectarian violence in Baghdad has decreased steadily, Army Brig. Gen. Michael D. Barbero, deputy director of regional operations for the Joint Staff, said at a Pentagon news conference. This success is a direct result of the efforts and dedication of Iraqis, he said. “I attribute it to an Iraqi goviernment that has committed itself to ending sectarian violence, and I attribute it to the capability of the Iraqi security forces,”

Barbero said. “Two-thirds of the forces on the ground in Baghdad are Iraqi security forces. The feedback … from the population in the areas we’ve cleared are all very positive about removing the threat of this violence, the performance of the Iraqi security forces, and their confidence in the government.” As the operation progresses, Iraqi forces take more and more responsibility for areas and missions, Barbero said. Last week, Iraqi forces were the lead for security for the annual Shiite pilgrimage to Baghdad, and U.S. leaders say they did a superb job.

Barbero added Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki announced that Iraqi security forces will be able to assume responsibility for more provinces in the coming year. “We see continued improvement of the Iraqi security forces -- by now, about 275,000. The numbers, the capability and the equipping increase continuously,” Barbero said. The operations in Baghdad are important because 90 percent of sectarian violence in Iraq occurs within 30 miles of the city, the general said.

Border operations are also crucial, he explained, as Iranian influence is strong among extremist groups. Training and equipping border police will do a lot to decrease the Iranian influence, and the U.S. will continue to support the Iraqi border forces as they develop capabilities, Barbero said.

Operations targeting the extremist groups in Baghdad also will help solve the problem of Iran, because it will cut off that country’s direct influence into Iraq, he said. In addition to targeting extremist groups, the U.S. is working on refocusing the Iraqi Police to hone their civil policing skills, so they will be ready to take over security in the city when operations conclude, Barbero said.

After areas are cleared of violence, civil works and economic development will be brought in to improve the overall situation in the city, he said.

In other news throughout Iraq:

(Courtesy Armed Forces Information Service)

Joint Effort Decreases Terrorist Activity

Courtesy of DefendAmerica, a Department of Defense publication

Not found in the Mainstream Press because it does not support the liberal bias of America's journalists and MSM:

Joint Effort Decreases Terrorist Activity

BAGHDAD, Aug. 25, 2006 — As part of Operation Together Forward, Iraqi army soldiers and soldiers from Multi-National Division - Baghdad mounted a combined operation in a Baghdad neighborhood to decrease terrorist activity and protect law-abiding residents. Story

UN backs away from disarming Hezbollah

What is up with the United Nations? Has it been officially confirmed that the United Nations is an appeaser and apologist organization? Are they really in cahoots with Islamofacists based in Lebanon and Gaza, who commit terrorist acts and kill innocent civilians on behalf of their supports and providers; Iran and Syria?

Lets review the the events of last month's conflicts. Hezbollah and Hamas attacked Israel last month and took hostages. Israel struck back. Hezbollah and Hamas responded by firing thousands of rockets at Israel. Israel countered the rockets. And, the world community said Israel did not have the right to protect itself.

Along came the United Nations and Europe countries to broker a peace treaty and provide the "backbone" of a peacekeeping forces for Lebanon. Today, UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan made an outlandish statement that the UN peace keepers will not disarm Hezbollah.

"It is generally accepted that the disarmament of Hezbollah cannot be done by force," Annan said. "The troops are not going there to disarm Hezbollah, let's be clear on that." Source - AP News story courtesy of CBN News Service

To make matters worst, according to the Jerusalem Post, the sponsor of terror in the Middle East, Iran, has moved things up several notches in the past few months. Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad calls for the annihilation of the State of Israel on almost a daily basis.

Giora Eiland, Israel's former national security adviser, told The Jerusalem Post on Thursday that Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, if he ever became the supreme decision maker in his country, would "sacrifice half of Iran for the sake of eliminating Israel,"

Eiland also believes that Ahmadinejad,"has a religious conviction that Israel's demise is essential to the restoration of Muslim glory, that the Zionist thorn in the heart of the Islamic nations must be removed. And he will pay almost any price to right the perceived historic wrong. Source - Courtesy of The Jerusalem Post: Iran leadership poses threat

Tell me, is there something wrong with this picture or is the United Nations an enabler of terror, fascism, and oppression. This sure is reminiscent to the workups of the Fascist anti-Semitic Third Reich almost 60 years ago. And the world community sits by making apologist and appeaser solutions. The UN and world community sits back and does nothing, the hands on the "Doomsday Clock" for Israel moves forward.

Technorati Tags: HizbollahMiddle EastTerrorismAhmadinejadIranState Sponsored TerrorismIslamIsraelMartyrdom fightersFighters of MuhammadFreedomPoliticsMultilateral EngagementDétenteContainmentUNappeasersTerrorTerrorismTerroristWar on TerrorIslamic ExtremistsJihadHoly WarMuslimsRadical IslamIslamistsFundamentalist MilitantsIslamic WorldKafir

Thursday, August 24, 2006

Assad Warns on Deploying UNIFIL and threatens Golan

Special Dispatch - Syria/Lebanon
August 25, 2006
No. 1265

Syrian President Al-Assad on Deploying UNIFIL at Lebanese-Syrian Border: "If [Lebanon] Wants to Destroy Relations Between Syria and Lebanon, It is Free to Do So - and to Bear the Responsibility"

To view this Special Dispatch in HTML, visit: Syrian President Al-Assad's views on UNIFIL .

The following are excerpts from an interview with Syrian President Bashar Al-Assad, which aired on Dubai TV on August 23, 2006.

TO VIEW THIS CLIP, VISIT: Al-Assad Video Clip on MEMRI TV .

"This [Lebanese] Movement Consists of Some Figures who are Known Historically for Their Relations with Israel"

Bashar Al-Assad: "This [Lebanese] movement consists of some figures who are known historically for their relations with Israel, since the Israeli invasion of Lebanon. Others have begun collaborating with the Israeli position - not necessarily with Israel itself, but we do not necessarily have all the information. They did this through Resolution 1559. The Israeli officials said that they themselves had worked hard to bring about this resolution. Yet [these Lebanese figures] supported this resolution. Resolution 1680, which deals a blow to Syrian-Lebanese relations... For whose sake was this resolution adopted? For Syria? For Lebanon? It was for the sake of Israel. The recent war has exposed these positions."

[...]

"As is well known, they accepted the first Franco-American draft, and if the situation on the ground had not changed, this draft would have become Resolution 1701. These forces have carried out all these plots against the resistance. With regard to the resistance that concerns us as Arabs - and I'm not talking about resistance as an internal Lebanese issue, but as an issue that now concerns any Arab citizen, and you can see Hizbullah flags everywhere... They conspired with Israel in both directions."

[...]

"Loyalty to One's Country Means Rejecting Foreign Interference, Through Any Embassy"

Bashar Al-Assad: "Loyalty to one's country does not just mean [not] being a known agent of another country. Loyalty to one's country means rejecting foreign interference, through any embassy - and I am always clear on this - and through any foreign government that tries to interfere directly. I have said this very clearly to the Europeans several times. I said to them: Any person on whose behalf you interfere - we will consider him to be unpatriotic. You must stop interfering and sending messages. This matter is closed, as far as we are concerned. We are very sensitive when it comes to foreign interference. Apart from this, everybody is here. If we wanted to prevent them from talking, as some claim, they would all be in prison. This is not the case. We have taken a few steps, and we are not claiming we have achieved a lot. We have taken some steps that are reasonable, given our circumstances. Some think these steps are less than they should be, and others think they are more than they should be. Let us stay in the middle. We must act with caution. We are not operating in a normal climate. No one, Syrians or others, should doubt that there are daily attempts to interfere in Syria's domestic affairs. We cannot be naive and say: Everything is fine, everybody is patriotic. This is not a matter of good intentions."

[...]

Deploying UNIFIL "Would Violate Lebanon's Sovereignty"

Interviewer: "How do you view the deployment of UNIFIL on your border with Lebanon?"

Bashar Al-Assad: "This would mean creating hostility between Syria and Lebanon. First of all, this would violate Lebanon's sovereignty. No country in the world would accept the deployment of soldiers of other nationalities at its border passes, unless it is at war with another country, like in the Golan or South Lebanon. This is normal. First of all, this would mean taking away Lebanese sovereignty - and they are constantly talking about Lebanese sovereignty - and giving it to others. The other issue is that this would be hostile to Syria. Naturally, this would create problems between Syria and Lebanon."

Interviewer: "But Mr. President, they fear that Syria would be used as a conduit for weapons that would reach elements that they don't want these weapons to reach. People might infiltrate through this border, and help one group of Lebanese against another. This may justify their apprehensions and the presence of such a force."

Bashar Al-Assad: "If there is a Lebanese army, it should be responsible for that. Why should the Lebanese army be responsible for protecting Israel?"

If [Lebanon] Wants To Destroy Relations between Syria and Lebanon, It is Free to Do So - and to Bear the Responsibility

Interviewer: "Mr. President, are you calling upon the Lebanese government to reject the deployment of an international force along the border between Lebanon and Syria?"

Bashar Al-Assad: "I am calling upon it to bear the responsibility like any other country. It will bear the responsibility. If it wants to destroy the relations between Syria and Lebanon, it is free to do so, and to bear the responsibility. There are elements within the Lebanese government and among the majority who strive towards this."

[...]

Interviewer: "Is it possible that we will see armed resistance in the Golan?"

Bashar Al-Assad: "Like I said... Same answer... The people will decide. I reiterate: If peace does not restore the rights, this will be the natural and obvious option. Things will take this course, whether we like it or not."

Interviewer: "Mr. President, you say that the people will decide. Is the people ready... I am sure you can sense the sentiments of the people. Is the people ready now for armed resistance in the Golan?"

Bashar Al-Assad: "There are always different currents and opinions. Some people talk enthusiastically about getting into this today, while others say we must prepare ourselves. However, this war has emphasized that option."

*********************

The Middle East Media Research Institute (MEMRI) is an independent, non-profit organization that translates and analyzes the media of the Middle East. Copies of articles and documents cited, as well as background information, are available on request.

MEMRI holds copyrights on all translations. Materials may only be used with proper attribution.

The Middle East Media Research Institute (MEMRI)
P.O. Box 27837, Washington, DC 20038-7837
Phone: (202) 955-9070
Fax: (202) 955-9077
E-Mail: memri@memri.org

Search previous MEMRI publications at www.memri.org

... ... ...` ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ...

Syria threatens the Golan: Wake up call for the free world

Special Dispatch-Syria
August 25, 2006
No. 1264

Syrian Government Press Threatens War in the Golan: "Those Who... Call for Peace Must Always Support the Resistance"

To view this Special Dispatch in HTML, visit: 'Those who ... call for peace must always support the resistance .

In an August 15, 2006 speech, Syrian President Bashar Al-Assad repeatedly emphasized that resistance is the way to peace, and that Syria would liberate the Golan "by [its] own hands." In the days following the speech, the Syrian media published articles in a similar vein.

The following are excerpts:

Assad: "Resistance and Peace Constitute One Axis, Not Two"

Reiterating arguments made by President Assad, the Syrian government paper Al-Thawra stated in an editorial that anyone who supports peace must support the resistance as well, since resistance is the way to achieve peace: "Syria does not believe in the slogan 'resistance for the sake of resistance,' but in the practical and realistic principle of 'resistance for the sake of peace,' because resistance, among its other results, helps to create a climate that is conducive to achieving a just peace.

"So those who support peace and call for peace must always support the resistance, since slogans and initiatives of peace without resistance generate [nothing but] arrogance and haughtiness on the part of Israel, which has disdained such initiatives [in the past]. Every time the Arabs made a step towards peace, the Israelis took [several] steps towards war...

"Syria never abandoned [the option of] peace, just as it has [never] laid down its weapons... The Arabs made many peace initiatives, [but] these initiatives always met with a negative response on Israel's part, to the point where every Arab peace initiative was rewarded with an Israeli massacre against the Arabs. Israel [thus] showed that it was not interested in peace. [Its] governments did not believe in the obligation of returning occupied territories to their owners, and [they] received full support and [extensive] assistance from the U.S...

"Syria has always believed in peace. It was the Israeli side that foiled [every] attempt to make progress... Israel must learn from the [outcomes] of its recent aggression against Lebanon, and understand that its military strength, great though it may be, will not lead [it] towards peace and does not reflect a desire for peace...

"In any case, the victory of the Lebanese resistance [i.e. Hizbullah] and the victory of the resistance in Palestine and Iraq will cause the way of the resistance to spread. Past experience has shown [us] that [an approach which] regards resistance as an unfeasible option [only] harms the peace [process]. The moral of the present [war] is that victory of the resistance is the way towards peace. Did not [our] President Bashar Al-Assad say that 'resistance and peace are one axis, [not two]'?"(1)

Mufti of Damascus: "The Arab Nation and Islam... Will Not Rest... Until the Golan is Restored to Syria"

Mufti of Damascus Sheikh Bashir 'Abd Al-Bari spoke in a similar vein at a ceremony marking the Al-Israa Wa Al-Mi'raj (Muhammad's night journey from Mecca to Jerusalem and his ascension to heaven): "This year, the anniversary [of Muhammad's night-journey] occurs while our nation is engaged in a bitter struggle and holy jihad against the enemies of Allah and humanity - the traitorous and despicable Zionists who are occupying the Holy Land and the Al-Aqsa Mosque...

"The Lebanese resistance [i.e. Hizbullah] and its leader Hassan Nasrallah have taught the Zionist enemy a bitter lesson that it will never forget. They have proved that the nation of Arabism and Islam has sworn to [its members] that it will never rest until the rights are restored, until Palestine and holy Jerusalem are restored to [the Muslims], until South Lebanon is restored to its owners, and until the Golan, which is waiting with determination and patience, once more becomes a part of the homeland, Syria - no matter how long this takes."(2)

Syrian Government Daily: 'We Will Fight [Israel] as the Lebanese Resistance Fought [It]"
An article in the Syrian government daily Al-Thawra threatened that Syria will not allow Israel to occupy the Golan forever, and that the Syrian people will fight Israel in every part of the Golan:

"This time, Israel's considerations were mistaken, since it is unaccustomed to confronting the Arab resistance fighters face to face. [In the past], its military power allowed it to hunt [the fighters] from a distance, but now things have changed. The oppression, murder and destruction [perpetrated by Israel], and its lack of regard for the position of the other side, have prompted the resistance fighters to confront death... and to fight, without any fear of death, for their rights, their homeland, and for a cause they believe in and are [willing to] die for. Consequently, they [succeeded in] scaring the enemy and defeating him, and presented him with a reality that he never imagined he would have to confront...

"[Israel's] pretext for [starting] the war was [its desire to] liberate the two prisoners, [but its real goal] was to implement [U.N.] resolution 1559 by force. But the heroic resistance [i.e. Hizbullah] broke [the enemy's] might, rubbed the [noses] of its best fighters in the dirt of South Lebanon, and turned the mightiest tanks in the world into coffins for the [Israeli] soldiers.

"The outcomes of this aggression will have far-reaching political and military repercussions for this [Israel], which will be even more severe than its humiliating military defeat. What the enemy encountered today in South Lebanon, it will encounter tomorrow on the Golan front.

"We Syrians say to the occupiers...: 'We will not allow you to occupy our land, to deport its people and to enjoy its riches forever. You must realize that our people will fight you just as the Lebanese resistance fought you in Maroun Al-Ras, Bint Jbeil, Ita Al-Sha'b, and other places. Our Syrian people will fight you in Jabal Al-Sheikh, Mas'ada, Majdal Shams, Ein Qinya, Banyas, Za'ura, Al-Nukheila, Waset, Al-Qal'a, Qna'aba, Tel-Sha'ban, Kafer Tufah, Al-Darbashiya, Hafar, Al-Jumruk, Tiberias, Al-Hamma and in all [other] places in the Golan - on every plateau, on every hill, and in every valley.

"Some of the wise intellectuals in Israel have already realized this truth. It seems that the blows [dealt to Israel] by the resistance, Israel's experience in South Lebanon, and the terrible military, political and psychological blows that the Zionist entity received as a result of its attack on Lebanon have caused some of the intelligent people in [Israel] to wake up.

"I attentively read what [the Israeli columnist] Gideon Levy recently wrote in [the Israeli daily] Ha'aretz: 'Had Israel returned the Golan at the suitable time, and had it signed a peace agreement with Syria, this war would not have broken out. Peace with Syria would have guaranteed peace with Lebanon.' Levy added: 'The claim made by some Israelis, who say "why should we return the Golan when Syria is sitting quietly" is a stupid one. This approach is harmful and silly...

The insupportable notion that [Israel] can hold on to the Golan forever without paying the price of occupation may [one day] blow up in our faces in all its enormity...

"Levy believes that Israel must [offer] the Golan in return for peace, and that this [move] will serve Israel better than a thousand acts of war, no matter how daring. But [returning the Golan] takes more courage than starting a war.'...

"Having [read Gideon Levy's] ideas - though I disagree with some of the details - I see them as the awakening voice of reason. My question now is whether this voice can reach the ears of the decision makers in the Zionist entity. Is it possible that they might open their minds to new ideas? Will they understand that the [Arab] rights will have to be restored sooner or later, whether they like it or not?

"The choice is now in the hands of the leaders of the oppressive entity... Will they listen to the ideas that have begun to be heard [in their country] and to the voice of reason which forbids them to usurp the rights of others? Or will they be forced to hear this voice by means of resistance, as in Lebanon and Palestine?"(3)

Syrian Government Daily Harshly Criticizes Arab Leaders

An article in the Syrian government daily Teshreen harshly criticized the Arab leaders as well as forces in Lebanon which "from the very beginning of the war, expressed their hatred towards the resistance, relinquished [the option of resistance] and referred to it as 'uncalculated adventurism'". The article said: "[Had we taken] this way... the [Arab] nation would have remained meek and humiliated, obeying its masters in the U.S., in the West and in Israel." The writer added that the Arab leaders are like "chicks gathering around their ugly mother... as though they have forgotten that the U.S. despises its agents and gets rid of them once they have outlived their usefulness..."(4)

Endnotes:(1) Al-Thawra (Syria), August 22, 2006.(2) Teshreen (Syria), August 21, 2006.(3) Al-Thawra (Syria), August 16, 2006.(4) Teshreen (Syria), August 21, 2006.

*********************

The Middle East Media Research Institute (MEMRI) is an independent, non-profit organization that translates and analyzes the media of the Middle East. Copies of articles and documents cited, as well as background information, are available on request.

MEMRI holds copyrights on all translations. Materials may only be used with proper attribution.
The Middle East Media Research Institute (MEMRI)
P.O. Box 27837, Washington, DC 20038-7837
Phone: (202) 955-9070
Fax: (202) 955-9077
E-Mail: memri@memri.org

Search previous MEMRI publications at www.memri.org

Technorati Tags: HizbollahMiddle EastTerrorismAhmadinejadAyatollah JannatiIranState Sponsored TerrorismIslamAmericaAnti USEnglandIsraelMartyrdom fightersFighters of Muhammad ... Freedom ... Politics ... Multilateral Engagement ... Détente ... Containment ... UN ... appeasers ... TerrorTerrorismTerroristWar on Terror ... CounterterrorismIslamic Extremists ... JihadHoly WarMuslimsRadical Islam ... Islamists ... Fundamentalist Militants ... Islamic World ... Sharia law ... Kafir

Wednesday, August 23, 2006

Syria warns against deployment of troops (on Lebanese side of the border)

As reported by Reuters, Syria warns against deployment of troops on the Lebanese side of the Syrian - Lebanese border. It does not take a rocket scientist to figure out why.
BEIRUT, Lebanon - Israel's foreign minister said Wednesday the situation in Lebanon was "explosive" while Syria's president says the deployment of international troops along the Syria-Lebanon border would be a "hostile" act. For the rest of the story, Syria warns against deployment of troops
Related stories:

Breaking: Dutch Police Arrest 12 Plane Passengers

Just in from KFMB Channel 8, the voice of Southern California. Details are still sketchy. Headline feed reads: Dutch Police Arrest 12 Plane Passengers - Dutch F-16s escorted a Northwest Airlines flight bound for India back to an airport here Wednesday after the pilot radioed for help, and police arrested 12 passengers who had aroused suspicions, authorities said.

More information at KFMB Channel 8 Morning News>>

Also reporting courtesy of Matt Drudge at The Drudge report:

8

KFMB San Diego, channel 8 is reporting that the Marine Corps has denied four Marines accused of killing an Iraqi civilian in Hamdania, Iraq, the option of going straight to trial even though they apparently waved their article 32 hearing to go to trial. Defense lawyers claimed that perhaps this was a sign that prosecutors don't have a solid case. The generals and administrative weenies will keep the pressure on until those eight lads break, regardless of the truth.

According to Camp Pendleton spokesman Lt. Col. Sean Gibson the move was made "to make a fair and impartial decision on the disposition of these cases."

Lt. Col., save it for the MSM, libs and anti-war groupies.

The seven Marines and one Navy corpsman allegedly went into Hamdania, and among other things took a man from his home, tied him up and shot him without provocation April 26. The men ---- all accused of premeditated murder, kidnapping and related offenses ---- were first detained in late April in Iraq. All were jailed in the Camp Pendleton brig on the same day in May, and all were charged on the same day in June. Soon, 12 men ---- 11 Marines and one sailor ---- were pulled from their units, kept on house arrest in Iraq, then returned to Camp Pendleton two weeks later.

Eight of the men were jailed and charged on June 21 with premeditated murder, a charge which carries the possibility of the death penalty if they are convicted. The other four men, including platoon commander 2nd Lt. Nathan Phan, were restricted to the local base ---- but not jailed.

On of the defense attorneys, Joseph Casas said he views the recent decision by the Marines to bringing charges in the assault case as a pressure tactic to get the men not accused in Awad's death to tell what they know about the alleged slaying.

It sure as hell makes me wonder what is going on with this case.

More from KFMB channel 8>>

More information courtesy of Nationally syndicated talk-show host, Michael Savage:

Demand for immediate trial signals change in Pendleton 8

Military Justice on trial

Monday, August 21, 2006

Pulitzer Prize Recipient Joe Rosenthal Passed Away, 08/21/2006

Courtesy of a good friend Jerry W. who emailed me on our loss:

http://abcnews.go.com/US/wireStory?id=2336647

Photographer Joe Rosenthal, Who Won Pulitzer Prize for Photo of Iwo Jima Flag-Raising, Dies


In a file photo with the Iwo Jima Memorial in the background, Pulitzer Prize winning photographer Joe Rosenthal poses for photographers Wednesday, June 28, 1995 in Arlington, Va., during a ceremony honoring photographers who lost their lives covering military conflicts around the world. Rosenthal won a Pulitzer Prize for making the photo that the Iwo Jima Memorial is modeled after. Rosenthal died Sunday, Aug. 20, 2006. He was 94. (AP Photo/Doug Mills)

By JUSTIN M. NORTON

SAN FRANCISCO Aug 21, 2006 (AP)— Photographer Joe Rosenthal,
who won a Pulitzer Prize for his immortal image of six World War II servicemen raising an American flag over battle-scarred Iwo Jima, died Sunday. He was 94.

Rosenthal died of natural causes at an assisted living facility in the San
Francisco suburb of Novato, said his daughter, Anne Rosenthal.

"He was a good and honest man, he had real integrity," Anne Rosenthal said.

His photo, taken for The Associated Press on Feb. 23, 1945, became the model for the Iwo Jima Memorial near Arlington National Cemetery in Virginia. The memorial, dedicated in 1954 and known officially as the Marine Corps War Memorial, commemorates the Marines who died taking the Pacific island in World War II.

The photo was listed in 1999 at No. 68 on a New York University survey of 100 examples of the best journalism of the century.

The photo actually shows the second raising of the flag that day on Mount Suribachi on the Japanese island. The first flag had been deemed too small.

On the Net:

More on Rosenthal:

http://www.newseum.org/warstories/interviews/mov/journalists/bio.asp?ID32

_______________________________________________________

News and Views for putting America first.
Hosted by: http://www.3.9cpm.com/

Ed Evans

MGySgt., USMC (Ret.)
Not as lean, not as mean, but still a Marine.

http://community.webshots.com/user/photo8069http://donelsonchristianchurch.org/

http://marines.togetherweserved.com/usmc

PUT AMERICA FIRST!

Stop being a good Democrat. Stop being a good Republican. Start being a good American.” Immigration -- "There can be no divided allegiance here. Any man who says he is an American, but something else also, isn't an American at all. We have room for but one flag, the American flag... We have room for but one language here, and that is the English language... and we have room for but one sole loyalty and that is a loyalty to the American people." - Pres. Theodore Roosevelt, 1907

-- "A man who thinks of himself as belonging to a particular national group in America has not yet become an American, and the man who goes among you to trade upon your nationality is not a worthy son to live under the Stars and Stripes." -- Pres. Woodrow Wilson

Spread the word about the sacrifices, dedication and hard work of our Marines, Sailors, Soldiers and Airmen and their collective efforts to accomplish a challenging but worthwhile mission in Iraq: http://www.imef-fwd.usmc.mil/

For the straight scoop on Iraq, forget the mainstream media, check out Michael Yen's in-country Online Magazine at http://www.michaelyon-online.com/?BMIDS=17052130-30c03440-115850.

Please pray Psalm 91 on this day, and every day, for our Armed Forces
standing in harm's way around the world in defense of our liberty,
and for the families awaiting their safe return.

Pray also for the defeat of our enemies, foreign and domestic.

God Loves Marines

http://www.godlovesmarines.com/

Friday, August 18, 2006

News from the Middle East 8/18/2006

There is much 'news' coming from the Middle East; however, it appears some questions may soon be answered as to what are we actually facing. For example, do you remember the ruckus about the cartoons? So does Egypt.
    Egypt's top Islamic cleric demands jail time for editor over Prophet cartoons.
    Saturday, August 19, 2006.
    Egypt's top Islamic leader on Friday called for the editor of Jyllands-Posten, the Danish daily that published cartoons of the Prophet Mohammad, to be imprisoned and for his newspaper to be closed down. "The satirical drawings of the Prophet Mohammad are one of the most serious crimes ever committed. The editor should be imprisoned for one, two or three years," Grand Sheikh Mohammad Sayyed Tantawi told Danish newspaper Berlingske Tidende in an interview.
They are half a day ahead of us. There is also this article which speaks of a 'possible' failed terrorist attack in Germany.
    Investigators link 'failed bomb attack' on German trains to Lebanon.
    Saturday, August 19, 2006.
    by Richard Heister.
    WIESBADEN, Germany: German investigators said on Friday they suspected that homemade bombs found on two trains last month were a failed terror attack. In the wake of the revelation, Interior Minister Wolfgang Schaeuble warned he could not rule out an attack on the German public transport system to rival the bombings in Madrid and London which killed dozens of passengers.
Jonah Goldberg has written a must read article about the conditions in the Middle East in comparison to the conditions Nazi Germany in the 1930's-40's. It is chilling.
    The swastika and the scimitar.
    Thursday, August 18, 2006.
    The Jews everywhere are "the Muslim's bitter enemies," said a prominent Islamic leader. Throughout history, the "irreconcilable enemy of Islam" has conspired and schemed and "oppressed and persecuted 40 million Muslims," he said. In Palestine, the Jews are establishing "a base from which to extend their power over neighboring Islamic countries." And, he proclaimed, "this war, which was unleashed by the world Jewry," provided "Muslims the best opportunity to free themselves from these instances of persecution and oppression."
And that's just the first paragraph.

That should be enough to keep you busy for now. If you would care to read about the Military actions in Iraq and Afghanistan, please go to DoD Daily News or DoD Daily News-2. The second one is where you will find the more lengthy, detailed articles. However, there are many good articles on the homepage (the first one). Thank you, and have a nice day.

Category: Egypt, Germany, Israel, Middle East and Blogger News.

France now sending 10 officer and 200 troops

3220.gifAfter all the posturing during the peace talks at the United Nations, France may send only 10 officers and 200 troops to Lebanon? When the negotiations first started, one did not need a crystal ball to figure that there was not going to be a new, tough, 15,000 strong UN force to manage the Lebanese border and keep Hezbollah at bay. Imagine trying to get Euro-weenies to carry their weight and do something other than drink wine and talk BS.

frenchie.JPGFolks, France never wanted anything more than the right to claim command credit and to demand their share of the new UN support contract to feed and supply the additional 13,000 Blue Hats in Lebanon. Color me surprised that France disappointed the apologists at the United Nations with their significantly small troop contingent.

French President Jacques Chirac left open the possibility that France might eventually provide more soldiers. He did say that 1,700 French troops already positioned near Lebanon would be made available to the United Nations but would not be placed under UN control. It is quite probable that France's reconsideration of troop commitment was due to their fears over "reprisals from Syria or Iran" not to prevent hostilities between Islamofacists and Israel.

Lets face it, Chirac is trying to cover his dhimmis ass, if hostilities should break out in Lebanon or if Syria organizes a second front resistance. Chirac is not concerned about Israel's safety or that of the civilians in Lebanon when Hezbollah decides to run amok again. Chirac figures that the less French troops in the area, the less they can get hurt from running over each other as they stampede to the rear.

The white flag waving does not stop with France. The whole peace process was ill planned by the United Nations. There were no provisions to disarm Hezbollah and no meaningful rules of engagement. This is another half-assed United Nations operation destined to failure before it gets off the ground.

I hate to say this, but, Israel had better stand by for Act Two.

And the world of public opinion will condemn Israel instead of the the aggressors no matter what happens.

For additional information, please read:

Technorati Tags: HizbollahMiddle EastTerrorismFranceUNUnited NationsIranIslamTerroristAnti IsraelJacques ChiracChiracMartyrdom fightersFighters of Muhammadterrorterrorismterroristwar on terror
newsInsurgencyterror cellcounterterrorismislamic extremists jihadholy warIslamistsmuslims

Wednesday, August 16, 2006

Will Syria attack the Golan?

According to an article in NewsMax, 'Syria President Assad Threatens War', Syrian President Bashar Al-Assad has threaten to attack Israel to take back Golan. There appears to be some credence to that threat, as, Syria has staged it's military forces on the boarder near Golan Heights region.

After the dhimmis apologist and appeasement security agreement that worked out by the United Nations, Israel has begun to withdraw much of it's forces from their "high ground" in Lebanon. The Lebanese military who was unable to tame Hezbollah in the past is taking up key positions along Litani River, 18 miles from the Israeli border. However, Hezbollah has said point blank that they will not disarm. Sure sounds to me that it status quo in the Middle East. And the Islamos are dancing in the streets that they were victorious against Israel, you know, the country that was attacked by Iranian proxies, Hamas and Hezbollah..

There are no checks and balances to prevent Hezbollah from re-grouping, re-arming and moving back into a combat offensive posture. United Nations General Secretary, Kofi Annan, has urged the United Nations Security Counsel to ignore Hezbollah treaty violations and appears to embolden hostilities in the region.

Hezbollah appears to be playing a good public relations game, reminiscent of the rise of the Third Reich of Germany during the 1930s with their offer of (Iranian sponsored) reconstruction monies to each of displaced southern Lebanon families and are encouraging Lebanese youth to participate in educational youth programs; like the rise of the Storm Troopers and youth party in Germany. This is the making of a perfect storm in the Middle East.

Enter Syria, who shows open hostility toward Israel. The Syrian government daily Al-Thawra claimed Hezbollah had achieved a military victory over Israel, which "forced the Americans to make huge diplomatic efforts aimed at preventing [the victory] from being translated into a new political reality.” Syria is small enough not to invoke the wrath of the global community nor the involvement of the United States. Iran will sit idly by and supply the necessary arms and perhaps a few covert troops like they supplied to Hezbollah.

Does Iran's proxy government of Syria smell blood in the water? Do they believe that they have a "chance" of defeating Israel? T he world body of the United Nations appears to have no sympathies for the State of Israel. Would the ambivalence of the United Nations and world opinion hold off America from becoming involved if Syria decides to escalate a war with Israel for the Golan? Is Syria willing to gamble on it?

From a military strategist point of view, the timing may be perfect to escalate a Syria - Israeli war. Syria may get a pass from Kofi Annan and the dhimmis and apologists of the world.

Does anyone "see" the battlefield possibly taking shape? What would be the outcome?

Will Syria Attack Israel for Golan?

Monday, August 14, 2006

Breaking News: All AWOL Egyptian Students in Custody

According to Yahoo News: Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE)agents arrested the remaining two AWOL exchange students at an apartment building in Richmond, Virginia last evening (Sunday night.)

For a recap of the events, last Wednesday, one of the Egyptian students was arrested in Minneapolis and two were detained in Manville, N.J. On Thursday, two were arrested in Dundalk, Md., and one was arrested at O'Hare International Airport in Chicago. Three more were arrested Friday in Des Moines, Iowa.

The students were to attend a month long program at Montana State University in Bozeman, Mont. A group of 17 students arrived in New York on July 29. Six reported to Bozeman on time as they were supposed to. Why the remaining 2/3 of the students chose to go missing has yet to be revealed.

When it was obvious that something was wrong, Montana State University notified Department of Homeland Security officials about the missing Egyptian exchange students. DHS has a system in place to track foreign students who do not comply with their student visas. The tracking system was developed after the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks.

Federal officials continue to put out the caveat that none of the students pose a terrorism risk.

You may view the original FBI BOLO provided courtesy of Northeast Intelligence Network. The authenticity of the FBI BOLO has not yet been verified.

This case certainly has been rather strange. The FBI continuously downplayed the event and was noticeably vague when releasing information about the missing students. Northeast Intelligence Network obtained pictures of the missing students and an FBI BOLO, but, of course our mainstream press was asleep and did not run them.

One question I would like to see answered, "Why were 3 of the original 20 students who applied denied visas?"

Technorati Tags: Homeland SecurityIllegal AliensWar on terrorStudent VisasMontanaEgyptFBIBorder SecurityInternational TravelTerrorism

Sunday, August 13, 2006

2 Missing Egyptian Exchange Students remain unaccounted for on FBI BOLO

Agents Arrest 3 Exchange Students In Des Moines:
Immigration officials have now picked up all but two of the 11 Egyptian exchange students who came to the U.S. for a summer course in Montana but never showed up for classes.

U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents tracked three of the students to Des Moines. They were arrested at about 8 p.m. Friday, and are being held in the Polk County Jail.

Others were picked up earlier in New Jersey, Maryland, Chicago and Minnesota. They were part of a group of 17 who arrived in New York July 29 en route to a month-long program at Montana State University in Bozeman. Six reported on time, but the 11 others were no-shows.
Federal officials continue to say that the students are not considered terrorism risks.

However, Northeast Intelligence Network. earlier posted a copy of a FBI BOLO that they obtained will background on the missing Egyptians. The following is an excerpt of that BOLO:
The eleven students were part of an original group of 20 students attending the summer program at the identified U.S. University in Montana through an exchange program with Mansoura University in Alexandria, Egypt. Of the (original) 20 applicants, three students were denied a U.S. visas (this is news to me.) Six of the remaining seventeen students reported to the identified U.S. University during the period of 30 July 2006 through 31 July 2006. All seventeen students were passengers aboard Egypt Airlines Flight 985, and entered the United States at John F. Kennedy International Airport in New York, New York, on 29 July 2006.
You may view the FBI BOLO at Northeast Intelligence Network. The authenticity of the FBI BOLO has not yet been verified.

This case continues to have strange goings on. I have yet to put my finger on it (the odd ring to this unfolding story.) The FBI continuously downplays the event and is noticeably vague when releasing information about the missing students. Northeast Intelligence Network obtained pictures of the missing students and an FBI BOLO, but, our mainstream press did not run them.

As I said in an earlier post, either the FBI does not know anything, or, there is a situation that we are not supposed to be privy to. Has an OPSEC blanket been thrown over this case of the AWOL exchange students? Why were 3 of the original 20 students denied visas? Why are these significant items of interest not being reported in the mainstream press?

Technorati Tags: Homeland SecurityIllegal AliensWar on terrorStudent VisasMontanaEgyptFBIBorder SecurityInternational TravelTerrorism

Why they hate us

“Why ‘they’ hate us” by Glib Fortuna as cross-posted from Stop the ACLU with Glib's permission. You gotta read this and also visit Stop the ACLU for more. Respectfully, Bosun

Filed under War On Terror, Border Control/Homeland Security

This isn’t some surrenderous lament or an exercise in self-flagellation we’ve come to expect from “our betters” in the media and the academy. This is the truth.

Islamists want to dominate the entire planet down to the last man. There is no desire to live in peace with neighbors, or even fellow countrymen or co-religionists who don’t swallow the agenda. It’s as simple as that.

We hear the Islamists represent only a small percentage of the overall population. So what if that’s true anyway? One percent equals more than 10 million people worldwide…and sympathy for indiscriminant slaughter in the name of Allah enjoys a far higher approval rating than 1%, even in nations where Muslims live free. It doesn’t matter if this “small percentage” doesn’t represent “most” Muslims, just like it doesn’t matter that the New York Times does not represent the American mainstream thought. Like the New York Times shapes media coverage the world over despite the truth that it represents the worldview of no one outside a university campus or a newsroom, the Islamists dominate the direction of the Muslim world, regardless of who they actually “represent.” Why else would the new Iraqi leadership feel the need to be on record as, if not supporting Hezbollah, at least not being against them despite the fact that they attacked a sovereign nation with no provocation?

We hear lies about “frustration” conceived by poverty and “policies” of other nations that perpetuate the dysfunction in the Arab/Muslim world. But this isn’t an economic issue. Many Arab countries sit on massive wealth, yet their people still live in poverty because the tyrants that run these countries have no intention to care for, or even treat humanely, its own Muslim citizenry. Not only that, the profile of many of the Islamist terrorists are that of middle-class, Western-educated people who can hardly be described as acting out in response to “oppression.”

It’s not about “envy” either. The Islamists do not desire what we have, they want to destroy it and replace it.

It’s not about our “decadence” either. Yes, they may pretend to despise our “prostitutes” (you know, women who wear pants), but the 9-11 killers could be found boozing it up in strip clubs the night before they declared all-out war on America. The Saudis and Saddam are known to have had huge porn collections and liquor supplies to rival the amount of oil underneath their soil.
It’s not about Israel either. Yes, Israel provides a nice whipping boy, especially since a still-raging anti-Semitism in places that should know better (hello Europe) makes for ripe fields of sympathy among the elites of the Euro-American media. Yes, Israel does highlight the shamefulness of Arab-Muslim society — they have flourished in what was a barren backwater with no natural resources amid a history of unbroken aggression from every inch of its border. Surrounding Israel are failed states of tyranny and pathology. Israel’s prosperity is an inconvenient window into the soul of the Arab world who just can’t seem to produce societies that bless the world, when their tiny neighbor did so despite arriving, in many cases with the clothes on their backs. Islamist hatred of Israel is not born of envy, but of shame. Even so, what do India, Indonesia and the Philippines have to do with Israel? The terrorists operate there why?

We hear about any number of “root causes” — but none of those things are the reason that Islamists do what they do. There is only one reason — domination wherever they are, subjugating all others under the Sword of the Prophet.

So how do we win? Enough with the view of “polite society” which harbors an assumption that we can “negotiate” with Islamists (what do we negotiate away?). There’s only one way. Complete annihilation of Islamism and the creation of a state of affairs in which these terrorists scurry back into their dirty holes because they know they cannot win.

Sadly, every time a news dolt puts on her glasses to look intelligent and leans toward some “expert” during a “hard-hitting” interview that it sure to finally “get down to the bottom” of this burning question — “Why do they hate us?” — we show that we live in fear and ignorance and don’t have the will to win. Even worse, we are now seeing proof every day that the news media has been working with our enemies in a worldwide propaganda campaign that can only lead to our hastened demise.

Technorati Tags:homeland security ... War ... War on terror ... Axis of evil ... Military ... Hizbullah ... Lebanon ... Israel ... Hezbollah ... Sharia ... Jihad ... Islamic law ... Middle East ... Bin Laden ... monotheism ... al-Qaeda ... Hamas ... Terrorism ... Radical Islam ... Islamists ... Attitudinal problem ... Liberalism ... Freedom ... Politics ... Multilateral Engagement ... appeasers

Thursday, August 10, 2006

6 of 11 missing Egyptian exchange students now in custody

According to news reports, 6 of the 11 Egyptian exchange students who failed to show up for their college program are now in custody after three additional students were arrested Thursday. Previously one was arrested in Minneapolis and two turned themselves in when they heard on the news that the were being sought for immigration violations.

On Wednesday, Chicago police detained one student at O'Hare International Airport as he was attempting to book a flight to Montana. That student was causing a disturbance at the ticket counter and was trying to fly from Chicago to Bozeman, Montana, on a ticket issue for a New York to Bozeman.

When the Delta ticket agent ran the ticket, she discovered that the traveler was really one of the missing Egyptian exchange students. The student was taken into custody for immigration violations with no further problems. Source: CBS Channel 2 News

Two other students were also arrested Wednesday in suburban Baltimore by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents. Source Breitbart.com, 6 Egyptian Students in Custody

The FBI maintains that none of the missing Egyptians pose a threat or are considered dangerous. But, who really knows except for them and any terror organizations out there they may or may not be affiliated with.

So far, the missing students pictures and names have remained unmentioned by the media. However they did appear in the Canadian Free Press, 'Have you seen these men?' and Northeast Intelligence Network. Northeast Intelligence Network also posted a copy of a FBI BOLO regarding the missing Egyptians. The following is an excerpt of that BOLO:

The eleven students were part of an original group of 20 students attending the summer program at the identified U.S. University in Montana through an exchange program with Mansoura University in Alexandria, Egypt. Of the 20 applicants, three students were denied a U.S. visa, (this is new to me) and six students reported to the indentified U.S. University during the period of 30 July 2006 through 31 July 2006. All seventeen students were passengers aboard Egypt Airlines Flight 985, and entered the United States at John F. Kennedy International Airport in New York, New York, on 29 July 2006.

You may view the FBI BOLO at Northeast Intelligence Network. The authenticity of the FBI BOLO has not yet been verified. But, after dealing with Northeast Intelligence Network for the past couple years, they have been accurate.

This case has some strange going on and I have not been able to put my finger on it. The FBI is continuously downplaying the event and has been particularly distant with releasing information. Either the FBI does not know anything, or, there is an ongoing situation that we are not supposed to be privy to.

Technorati Tags: Homeland SecurityIllegal AliensWar on terrorStudent VisasMontanaEgyptFBIBorder SecurityInternational TravelTerrorism

Airline threat: Homeland Security Press Brief, 08/10/266

For Immediate Release
Office of the Press Secretary
Contact 202-282-8010
Washington, D.C.
August 10, 2006

Secretary Chertoff: Good morning. We'd like to provide you with the latest information that we have on recent events in the United Kingdom, and an update on the actions that we are taking to protect our citizens and to keep air travel safe and secure. We want to be as open as possible with the public about the facts; at the same time, it's important, I'm sure you'll understand, that we preserve confidentiality of matters that are necessary in order to complete this investigation. And we also have to respect the demands of the British legal process, which puts certain restrictions on what can be said about ongoing cases.

As I think you're all aware, British authorities have arrested 21 individuals who are now in custody who are alleged to have engaged in a plot to detonate liquid explosives on board multiple commercial aircraft departing from the United Kingdom and bound for the United States. This plot appears to have been well planned and well advanced, with a significant number of operatives. The terrorists planned to carry the components of the bombs, including liquid explosive ingredients and detonating devices disguised as beverages, electronic devices, or other common objects.

While this operation was centered in Great Britain, it was sophisticated, it had a lot of members, and it was international in scope. This operation is, in some respects, suggestive of an al Qaeda plot, but because the investigation is still underway, we cannot yet form a definitive conclusion. We're going to wait until all the facts are in.

We believe that the arrests in Britain have significantly disrupted this major threat. But we cannot assume that the threat has been completely thwarted, or that we have fully identified and neutralized every member of this terrorist network.

There is currently no indication of any plotting within the United States; nevertheless, as a precaution, the federal government is taking immediate steps to increase security measures, with respect to aviation.

First of all, the United States government has raised the nation's threat level to our highest level of alert -- Severe, or Red -- for commercial flights originating in the United Kingdom and bound for the United States. We've made this adjustment to coordinate our alert level with that currently enforced in Britain. In Britain, as you've heard, they are now operating as their highest level, which is called Critical.

Second, as a precaution against any members of the plot who may still be at large, and recognizing the fact that we still have yet to take the investigation to its conclusion, we want to make sure that there are no remaining threats out there, and we also want to take steps to prevent any would-be copycats who may be inspired to similar conduct. Accordingly we are raising the threat level, or we have raised the threat level, with respect to aviation in general, to High, or Orange. That will cover all in-bound international flights, other than flights from Great Britain, and it will cover all flights within the United States itself.

We're taking some additional specific steps. In light of the nature of the liquid explosive devices which were designed by the plotters, we are temporarily banning all liquids in carry-ons in aircraft cabins. That means no liquids or gels will be allowed in carry-on baggage. Any liquids or gels have to be checked have to be checked as part of baggage to go into the hold. There will be exceptions for baby formula and medicines, but travelers must be prepared to present these items for inspection at the checkpoint, and that will allow us to take a look at them and make sure that they're safe to fly.

We are taking this step of preventing liquids from getting into the cabin to give us time to make adjustments in our current screening tactics, based upon what we learn from this investigation concerning the nature of the devices that these individuals were constructing.

We might also add that in order to expedite and ease the process of going through this new screening regime, travelers would be wise to pack as lightly as possible for their carry-on, and to minimize clutter so that we can make the process go more quickly.

Additionally, the Transportation Security Administration will be implementing a series of additional security measures, some of them visible and some of them not visible, to ensure the security of the traveling public and the nation's transportation system.

TSA is immediately implementing these changes to airport screening, including the prohibition against liquids and gels of any kind in carry-on baggage. And apart from these other measures, federal air marshals are being sent to the United Kingdom to provide expanded mission coverage for flights between the United Kingdom and the United States.

United States Customs and Border Protection will be increasing enforcement efforts in the international arrival areas, including the use of advanced targeting tools; special response teams, including baggage and aircraft search teams; baggage x-ray equipment; specially trained canine units; and explosive detection technology. These measures, again, will be constantly evaluated and updated as circumstances warrant.

Now, we recognize these measures are going to be inconvenient. But they are proportionate to the very real threat to the lives of innocent people that was posed by this plot. And what is important here is that we are taking every prudent step to thwart new tactics of terror. Today, air traffic is safe. And air traffic will remain safe precisely because of the measures we are adopting today. People should be patient, but they need not cancel their travel plans. They simply need to be aware there may be some delays and they may want to check with their carriers to see whether they ought to adjust their arrival times at airports.

As always, we ask the American public to remain aware and vigilant, and report any activity that they think is suspicious to local authorities or other appropriate law enforcement agencies.

The work in this investigation has been a remarkable example of interagency coordination in the federal government. We've had numerous intelligence components and law enforcement components working together seamlessly in a coordinated fashion to address this emerging threat and to take the steps necessary to protect the American public from it. I also have to give special thanks to our partners, the British government. They have been terrific, in terms of close information sharing and close coordination, recognizing that both countries, which are bound together with great common feelings of culture, are also, unfortunately, bound together by being targeted through terror. But because of the close working relationship between the British government and the U.S. government, we have managed to make sure that the people of both countries and the people of the world are safer.

The American public can be assured that the United States government will continue to do everything in its power, under the leadership of President Bush, and in cooperation with our British and other allies, to defend our nations and our world. We will continue to provide updates throughout the day and the next few days, as appropriate.

And now I'd like to turn to Attorney General Gonzales.

Attorney General Gonzales: Thank you, Michael. Let me begin by repeating and emphasizing something that Secretary Chertoff said, and that is, we have a very serious investigation that is proceeding in the United Kingdom. And we want to be very, very careful, as we try to inform and educate the American public, about saying too much that might, in any way, jeopardize that investigation or subsequent prosecution. And so we ask for your patience in asking and receiving information. We'll try to be as forthcoming as we can, as quickly as we can. But again, we don't want to do anything that may, in any way, jeopardize or adversely affect an investigation or prosecution in the United Kingdom, or perhaps even in this country.

Now, since 9/11, the threat reporting has consistently shown that there is a vicious and determined enemy that is intent on harming American lives. And every day is September 12th for those of us tasked with protecting America. And we know that our counterparts abroad feel the same way.

Today's announcement is a true testament to the hundreds of hours of patient work by British authorities. Their vigilance has led to the unraveling of this deadly plot by terror cells based in the U.K. -- a plot, as Mike indicated, designed to detonate bombs aboard commercial airliners en route to the United States, potentially killing hundreds of innocent people. On behalf of the American people, I want to thank the British authorities for their tremendous efforts to disrupt this deadly scheme.

Although the law enforcement investigation is ongoing, I want to update you on the preliminary information that we have available at this time. We will, as Secretary Chertoff indicated, continue to provide additional information as it becomes available. The perpetrators who were arrested overnight were extremists who had gone beyond just stating a desire to kill Americans. Their plotting turned to action as they took several steps to carry out their deadly plan. Their focus appears to have been on the use of liquid explosives.

We are still assessing the links to al Qaeda. However, a plot of this sophistication is suggested of al Qaeda tactics, as Secretary Chertoff mentioned.

From the beginning of the investigation, we have been in constant contact with our counterparts in the U.K. We share the same philosophy of prevention, a sense of urgency to dismantle these terrorist cells before an attack occurs. The FBI and other law enforcement intelligence agencies have worked closely with our colleagues at MI-5 on all aspects of this case, and they have aggressively pursued every domestic lead that has arisen from the intelligence that led to these arrests.

As Secretary Chertoff said, while there is currently no indication of any plotting within the United States, the federal government is taking immediate steps to increase security measures in the aviation sector. The FBI, the Department of Homeland Security and the entire intelligence community will continue to aggressively pursue every lead and shred of intelligence that arises from this or any other terrorism case. This has been our practice since 9/11. And today is no different from any other day, in that sense.

The American people should know that everything that can be done to protect them is being done by law enforcement and intelligence professionals around the country and abroad. We ask that people continue on with their normal lives, but with some extra patience as the professionals do their jobs, especially at the airports around the country.

As we have stated many times before, we are a nation at war. Today's actions are a stark reminder that the threat is real and that we have a deadly enemy who still wakes every morning thinking of new ways to kill innocent men, women and children, and dreams every night about wreaking the destruction on freedom-loving countries.

Our enemies should know that we are just as equally intent on stopping them. We will continue to work around the clock with our colleagues around the world to dismantle their operations one person at a time.

Assistant Secretary Hawley: First, I'd like to thank the traveling public and our partners at the airports and airlines, law enforcement and our own transportation security officers and all the people involved in this change-over. It normally takes us about four weeks to roll out a change at a security checkpoint, and this one came about in a little bit more than four hours in the middle of last night. And so this was a surprise to many of us, and as such is difficult to implement. And I think we are going to see over the next day or two as the public becomes aware and we all get used to the process that it is going to get better, but in the next couple of days, we ask for your patience, and we thank you for your understanding.

This was strong and immediate action, and it was cooperative with -- among airlines, airports, law enforcement to do much more than you can see at the checkpoint. These changes sound complicated, but it is very, very simple. The major change is that passengers are no longer allowed to bring liquids through the checkpoint and onto the plane. That is the big change. Other than that, it is getting used to the new process. And we're very confident that as time goes one, that will occur.

A couple of pointers: de-clutter your bag. If you let the TSOs have a clear view of what's in the bag with their x-ray, you'll move right on through. That is something very easy to do as you pack your bag -- leave the liquids at home, drink them, de-clutter your bag.

And last, I'd say enjoy your trip. I think this is what TSA was created for -- to be flexible, to work with others in the community, to scale up security where needed in certain areas and be flexible and adjustable. And we look forward to delivering on that commitment.

Secretary Chertoff: Let me just echo that. It does seem a little odd maybe to hear somebody say enjoy your trip, but the whole point of this exercise is to continue to maintain the level of safety and security in air travel in this country that we have had since September 11th. Now, sometimes to do that, we have to be taking steps that do cause a little bit of inconvenience. But with patience and with cooperation -- and so far I think we've seen that from the traveling public -- what we will deliver to the public is the thing which is most important, which is the ability get on the plane, get about your business or enjoy your holiday and do so with confidence that we are searching out people who want to do harm to innocent travelers.

Let me just introduce everybody else up here, and then we'll take some questions in various people's area of expertise. We have Marian Blakey, who is the head of the Federal Aviation Administration; you know Bob Mueller, the Director of the FBI; and Scott Redd, who is the head of the NCTC. So with that, if you'll raise your hands, and I'll direct questions.

Yes, Pete.

Question: Mr. Secretary, you talked about the design of the devices by the plotters. Can you say whether they went beyond the design stage and had actually built their devices? And can you say whether they had made reservations, bought tickets? How far along were they?

Secretary Chertoff: I would say that this plot was well advanced. In other words, they had accumulated and assembled the capabilities that they needed, and they were in the final stages of planning before execution. I don't want to get very specific for investigative reasons about each individual step. But this is not a case where this was just in the initial thought stage. There were very concrete steps underway to execute all elements of this plan.

Question: So they had built the bombs?

Secretary Chertoff: I'm not going to get that specific because I'm going to honor that original observation I made about not compromising the British case or the investigation, but they had accumulated the capabilities necessary and they were well on the way. This was a well advanced plan.

Yes.

Question: Secretary Chertoff, you praised British authorities. What do you know about when they learned about this plot? And when did they inform the United States?

Secretary Chertoff: Let me -- again, I'm going to be a little bit circumspect and say that some of the threads which led to this investigation have been pursued by British authorities for a considerable period of time. However, it is only recently -- certainly within the last two weeks, maybe less -- that the investigation revealed that this planning was taking the direction of targeting the United States. And so in that much more recent period of time, we've obviously become much more involved from the United States' standpoint and been working much more closely with the British to follow what appeared to be an accelerating plan to carry out a very, very serious terrorist act.

Yes.

Question: I wonder if we could talk about the upcoming anniversary of 9/11, and whether this was in any way related to that? Was that a possible target date? And if not, can you say anything about when this plot would have come to fruition? And speaking of 9/11, can you compare this plot with that one in terms of scope -- the number of airlines, the number of planes, the number of potential victims and so forth?

Secretary Chertoff: That's about five questions. We're all obviously mindful about September 11th. I can't tell you that that was a particular date that was in the mind of the people involved in this plot, nor can I tell you that they would have waited that long. I think we were really getting quite close to the execution phase. I can tell you our general experience, certainly when you deal with al Qaeda -- and again I want to caution that we've not yet concluded this is al Qaeda -- but our general experience is that they're not necessarily motivated by anniversaries the way sometimes people project.

In terms of seriousness, it's obviously hard to compare a plot that was frustrated, thank God, with a plot that was unfortunately executed. It is reminiscent -- but again, I don't want to overdraw the comparison -- with a plot that was hatched by Khalid Shaykh Muhammad in the 1990s, in which he envisioned detonating bombs on I think it was 11 airliners, many of them traveling over the Pacific. And that's been well publicized, so that's obviously a known historical fact.

Yes.

Question: Mr. Secretary, maybe you -- Mr. Mueller or Mr. Redd might answer this -- if this isn't an al Qaeda footprint, is there any evidence that leads you to believe that there is -- there are other organizations with the capability to do something like this?

Director Mueller: Well, this had the earmarks of an al Qaeda plot. As the Attorney General and Secretary Chertoff have said, we have no indication at this point in time of plotting within the United States aligned at all, or at all intersecting the plotters in the U.K. But that does not mean that there are not others around the world that have the same aspirations and would undertake the same type of plotting.

Question: You mentioned the 11 planes in that -- in the KSM plot -- do you know how many planes were actually targeted in this plot? And can you give us the airlines that were targeted, as well?

Secretary Chertoff: Again, the investigation is still at a relatively early phase. The British are conducting the investigation. I don't feel that we can confidently give you a number. Clearly what was envisioned were multiple explosions in multiple aircraft. But I think it would be speculative for us to come up with a number -- to fix a number onto that.

Question: Can you name the airlines, at all?

Secretary Chertoff: What I prefer to say is this: It's clear that they were searching to look at possible options, in terms of scheduled passenger airline flights. It does appear that towards the end, shortly before we brought this down, they had focused on a number of airlines involved, which have specific routes between Britain and the United States, and which are U.S.-flagged carriers. We have talked to the airlines in question. In fact, we've talked to all the airlines that operate internationally and domestically because we want to make sure that everyone is fully aware of what the dimensions of this planning was. And I can tell you the airlines have been very, very deeply committed to working with us to elevate the level of security to protect their passengers.

Beverly.

Question: Mr. Secretary, there is so much emphasis here on liquids. Was the fear that they were planning actually to assemble a bomb on board the aircraft by mixing liquids?

Secretary Chertoff: I would say certainly one of the considerations or one of the concerns we had is the possibility of bringing on board a number of different components of a bomb, each one of which would be benign, but when mixed together would create a bomb. And as we assess exactly what the design of these devices was or the plan design was, I think it will give us a better ability to tailor our countermeasures in order to pick up what appears to be a quite sophisticated conception of how to execute a terrorist bombing plot.

Yes.

Question: Regardless of whether this does turn out to be al Qaeda or not, could you talk about the suspects in Britain, and whether those people were homegrown folks who -- are British citizens or from Britain, as opposed to people who came from elsewhere and moved there?

Secretary Chertoff: Yes, I think we're going to let -- this is really a sensitive area for the British legal system. I think we're going to let them discuss the nature of the defendants. But I do think a point that's very important is this: This was a very sophisticated plan and operation. This is not a circumstance where you had a handful of people sitting around coming up with dreamy ideas about terrorist plots. The conception, the large number of people involved, the sophisticated design of the devices that were being considered, and the sophisticated nature of the plan all suggests that this group that came together to conspire was very determined and very skilled and very capable.

And the reason I emphasize that is become we are taking some very serious and inconvenient measures, and I think the public is entitled to understand we're doing this because we recognize this was a plot that is certainly about as sophisticated as any we've seen in recent years, as far as terrorism is concerned.

Question: When the threat alert system was created, the Red level was supposed to indicate an imminent threat. Do you believe that there's an imminent threat against the United States at this point? If not, why didn't we just go to code Orange like we did a year ago? And from your viewpoint, what's the difference in operational levels between Red level and Orange level?

Also, a quick follow-up. Are there any concerns about threats against any other modes of transportation in the United States?

Secretary Chertoff: What we tried to do this year, as we did last year with July 7th was to be as precise and sculpted as we could reasonably be, in terms of the alert level. We did go to Orange in the aviation system domestically and every place outside of flights from Britain to the U.S. precisely because we have no specific indication of a threat in those channels of air travel. But given what we don't know, and given the possibility of copycats, we thought it prudent to raise the alert level generally in aviation. We don't believe that logic extends to raising it generally in the country.

Now, as far as Red, the British made a determination -- and obviously they are in the best position, given their knowledge of what's going on in their investigation -- that even with the 21 arrests, it is still prudent to consider the likelihood of attack at being at the highest possible level for travel from Britain to the United States. And I think that, based in significant part, certainly, on that judgment, and with our own assessment, that seemed a prudent step to take with respect to this fairly defined subset of air travel, which was, after all, the objective of a sophisticated plot.

Question: So, in other words, there's no evidence right now to indicate that there's going to be an imminent attack on the United States?

Secretary Chertoff: I would say that with respect to travel from the U.K. to the United States, given the fact that the arrest activities in Britain are still underway, prudence suggests that we treat that particular route of travel -- U.K. to the U.S. -- as being at the highest level of being under threat.

Apart from that, we're certainly at a heightened alert-level elsewhere, but we don't have any specific reason to believe that there is a threat to other routes of air travel. But, again, we always have to be careful that -- we don't necessarily know everything. We're going to learn a lot more in the course of the investigation, and I would rather have more protection and then scale it back as we become more reassured than underestimate the problem and find out, God forbid, that we have made a tragic mistake.

Yes.

Question: Mr. Secretary, because you said the substances were benign, is there any type of detection device that we have or could be created to detect these liquid explosives?

Secretary Chertoff: Well, here's where I'm going to resist the temptation to give a recipe to terrorists about how to try to maximize their ability to succeed. Obviously, we're always assessing and examining the challenge posed by different kinds of improvised explosive devices. We do use various kinds of techniques for different kinds of bomb-making, but when we do see a sophisticated design, we want to make sure that we have properly engineered our countermeasures to be able to detect it.

And so while we're in the process of assessing that -- and, you know, honestly, some of these are pretty difficult -- we want to, frankly, take the most protective stance, and that's why we have, for the time being, excluded liquids from the cabin.

Yes, in the back.

Question: Yes, are the air marshals just going to Britain for flights coming this way, or are they going to other European cities, as well?

Secretary Chertoff: Well, we have air marshals all over the world. We're going to continue to have air marshals operate in the system, but we will be focusing, at least in the short term, on putting extra air marshal resources in this particular route because we know this was the focal point of the conspiracy that is in the process of being disrupted.

Question: Mr. Secretary, just back to the Red versus Orange -- the Red would seem to indicate that you or the British authorities believe that some of the people involved are still at large. Is that the case? Or is this just precautionary?

Secretary Chertoff: I think it's a recognition of the fact that, particularly at this stage of the arrest and the takedown, there is sufficient uncertainty about whether the British have scooped up everybody -- that we do think it's prudent to regard this particular target, this particular route, as still being at the highest level of risk. It doesn't mean that we know for a fact there are people out there who are still active, but as anybody who's been involved in these investigations knows, we're going to learn more things, and the British are going to learn more things in the next hours and days.

And given the amount of planning and effort that was put into this plot, I think it would be a little bit risky to assume that everything is shut down and the threat has gone away. So, you know, we spent a lot of time thinking about this. We certainly put a great deal of weight on the views taken by the British because it is, after all, their investigation. Principally it is their -- the folks who are on the ground, and certainly when they express a concern that prudence requires the highest level of protection and the highest level of concern for this particular route, I think we're well advised to give a lot of weight to that.

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