CT Studies | Counterterrorism News for September 16-22, 2007

Intelligence & Counterterrorism News for the week of:

September 16-22, 2007

N.Y. to allow illegals to drive
New York's governor announced yesterday that illegal aliens will soon be able to get state driver's licenses, drawing a strong rebuke from families of victims of the September 11 terrorist attacks who said he is opening a window to another attack…The new rules reverse a 2002 policy designed to correct one of the flaws identified after the terrorist attacks — easy access to driver's licenses, which allowed illegal aliens to blend into society and would-be terrorists to avoid detection…..(Washington Times, 22 Sep 07)

Peace or Jihad? Abrogation in Islam

That there is no compulsion in Islam and that Islam is a religion of peace are common refrains among Muslim activists, academics, officials, and journalists. In an age of terrorism and violent jihad, nowhere, they argue, does the Qur'an allow Muslims to fight non-Muslims solely because they refuse to become Muslim. Proponents of Islamic tolerance point to a number of Qur'anic verses which admonish violence and advocate peace, tolerance, and compromise.…..(Middle East Quarterly, Fall 2007)

Collecting of Details on Travelers Documented

The U.S. government is collecting electronic records on the travel habits of millions of Americans who fly, drive or take cruises abroad, retaining data on the persons with whom they travel or plan to stay, the personal items they carry during their journeys, and even the books that travelers have carried, according to documents obtained by a group of civil liberties advocates and statements by government officials. The personal travel records are meant to be stored for as long as 15 years, as part of the Department of Homeland Security's effort to assess the security threat posed by all travelers entering the country. Officials say the records, which are analyzed by the department's Automated Targeting System, help border officials distinguish potential terrorists from innocent people entering the country……(Washington Post, 22 Sep 07)

U.S. Will Speed Entry Of Refugees From Iraq

About 12,000 Iraqi refugees will be admitted into the United States over the next year as measures to speed up the process begin to take effect, government officials said yesterday. The new target represents an increase in the number and pace of Iraqi refugees entering the country and means that 17 percent of the 70,000 refugees expected to be admitted next year will come from Iraq, officials from the State Department and the Department of Homeland Security told reporters……(Washington Post, 22 Sep 07)

Neo-Nazi Web Site Probed In Jena Case

FBI agents are looking into a neo-Nazi Web site, which has listed the home addresses and phone numbers of the six black teenagers charged in the beating of a white schoolmate in Jena, La., a bureau spokeswoman said last night. The Thursday posting on the site that lists the information also encourages readers to "get in touch, and let them know justice is coming."…..( Washington Post, 22 Sep 07)

FBI Probes Anti-Jena 6 Web Page

The FBI is reviewing a white supremacist Web site that purports to list the addresses of five of the six black teenagers accused of beating a white student in Jena and "essentially called for their lynching," an agency spokeswoman said Saturday. Sheila Thorne, an agent in the FBI's New Orleans office, said authorities were reviewing whether the site breaks any federal laws. She said the FBI had "gathered intelligence on the matter," but declined to further explain how the agency got involved…..(AP, 22 Sep 07)

Feds Target Blackwater in Weapons Probe

Federal prosecutors are investigating whether employees of the private security firm Blackwater USA illegally smuggled into Iraq weapons that may have been sold on the black market and ended up in the hands of a U.S.-designated terrorist organization, officials said Friday. The U.S. Attorney's Office in Raleigh, N.C., is handling the investigation with help from Pentagon and State Department auditors, who have concluded there is enough evidence to file charge…..(AP, 22 Sep 07)

Iraq Probe of U.S. Security Firm Grows
Iraq's probe into a deadly shooting by Blackwater USA in Baghdad last weekend has expanded to include allegations about the security firm's involvement in six other violent episodes this year that left at least 10 Iraqis dead. The incidents include the killing of three guards at a state-run media complex and the shooting death of an Iraqi journalist outside the Ministry of Foreign Affairs…..(Washington Post, 22 Sep 07)

Freed by Revolution, He Speaks for Iran’s Hard-Liners

…Hossein Shariatmadari, who lost his teeth to the boots of the shah’s secret police, is today feared by many of his own countrymen. He has become the voice of hard-line Iran, not only hard-line, but also radical, secretive and uncompromising. He is the general director of Kayhan, a newspaper that offers insight into the most extreme views of Iran’s leaders and into the mind-set and plans of those who are at the center of power…..(New York Times, 22 Sep 07)

Iraq Kurds demand release of Iranian detained by US
The government of Iraq’s autonomous Kurdish region demanded the immediate release on Friday of an Iranian arrested by US troops in a raid that sparked a new row between Washington and Teheran. ‘We consider this action by the Americans to be illegal,’ said a statementfrom the office of regional president Massud Barzani…According to the Kurdish regional government and the Iranian foreign ministry, the detained man is head of ‘cross border commercial transactions’ in the office of the governor general of Kermanshah province in western Iran. He was part of an official delegation that was invited by the Sulaimaniyah authorities…..(AFP, 21 Sep 07)

Are Lost U.S. Weapons In Enemy Hands?

Last month, a government report revealed the U.S. military could not account for 190,000 -- or 30 percent -- of all weapons issued to Iraqi Security Forces between June 2004 and December 2005. Thursday, Pentagon officials said $88 billion in spending in Iraq and Afghanistan is now under audit by the Department of Defense for fraud… CBS News has learned that the CIA has photographic evidence that Austrian-made Glocks intended for Iraqi security forces and paid for by U.S. taxpayers are now in the hands of Iraqi insurgents -- in numbers that the intelligence community believes are in the thousands. According to an intelligence source, the U.S. contractor in charge of the Glocks somehow lost track of an entire shipment. That mysterious disappearance is now part of a massive military bribery investigation centered around a contracting office run out of a small trailer at a military base in Kuwait…..(CBS, 21 Sep 07)

Islamists Stage Rally Against Musharraf

Hundreds of Islamists chanting slogans against Pakistan's military leader rallied outside the Supreme Court on Friday as judges heard petitions challenging President Gen. Pervez Musharraf's right to run for re-election. Musharraf, meanwhile, appointed a new intelligence chief and promoted five other army generals in a shake-up just days after signaling he would resign from the military if he wins a new five-year term as president…..(AP, 21 Sep 07)

Video: Complete message video link

Bin Laden Urges Pakistanis to Expel President

Al-Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden took direct aim at the faltering Pakistani president, Gen. Pervez Musharraf, in a recording released Thursday that could portend greater instability for the nation at a time when it is already experiencing deep political turmoil. Bin Laden, who is believed to be hiding in Pakistan's remote tribal regions, was unusually single-minded in the 23-minute recording. He focused his wrath almost exclusively on the U.S.-allied general and called on Pakistanis to rise up in revolt….(Washington Post, 21 Sep 07)

Germany’s Commercial Ties With Iran Prove Hard to Cut

As European leaders argue about whether to tighten sanctions against Iran, the debate is not just diplomatic. Here in this industrial city, German exporters gathered Tuesday to learn about “market opportunities” in Iran that they complain are drying up. Germany has long been one of Tehran’s largest trading partners, but its exports to Iran plunged nearly 18 percent in the first half of this year…..(New York Times, 21 Sep 07)

Arabs push through UN watchdog vote against Israel

Arab and other Islamic nations, targeting Israel's undeclared nuclear arsenal, pushed through a U.N. atomic watchdog resolution on Thursday calling on all Middle East nations to renounce atomic weapons. The unusual vote was 53-2 but with 47 abstentions by Western and developing states, highlighting reservations that the move politicized the International Atomic Energy Agency's work…..(Reuters, 21 Sep 07)

Statement from "Iraqi Hamas" (9/21/07)

N Korea, Syria hold talks amid suspicions

North Korea and Syria held high-level talks Friday in Pyongyang, the North's state media reported, amid suspicions that the two countries might be cooperating on a nuclear weapons program. The talks took place between Choe Tae Bok, secretary of the Central Committee of the North's ruling Workers' Party, and Saaeed Eleia Dawood, director of the organizational department of Syria's Baath Arab Socialist Party, the official Korean Central News Agency reported……(AP, 21 Sep 07)

Bush Declines to Lift Veil of Secrecy Over Israeli Airstrike on Syria

President Bush pointedly declined on Thursday to discuss an Israeli airstrike in northern Syria on Sept. 6 that Israeli officials say hit a nuclear-related facility that North Korea was helping to equip. Mr. Bush did, however, warn North Korea that the United States expected it to dismantle its nuclear weapons programs and to stop selling weapons or expertise abroad, as it promised to do this year…..(New York Times, 21 Sep 07)

Israel, U.S. Shared Data On Suspected Nuclear Site
Israel's decision to attack Syria on Sept. 6, bombing a suspected nuclear site set up in apparent collaboration with North Korea, came after Israel shared intelligence with President Bush this summer indicating that North Korean nuclear personnel were in Syria... the administration was deeply troubled by Israel's assertion that North Korea was assisting the nuclear ambitions of a country closely linked with Iran, sources said, the White House opted against an immediate response because of concerns it would undermine long-running negotiations aimed at persuading North Korea to abandon its nuclear program….(Washington Post, 21 Sep 07)

U.S. admits nearly 10,000 from "terrorism" states

…The report by the U.S. Government Accountability Office said the State Department's inspector general warned in 2003 that the Diversity Visa Program posed a significant risk to national security and recommended it be closed to people from countries on the U.S. list of state terrorism sponsors. But four years later, the program remains open to people from those nations and little is known about what becomes of them once they enter the United States, the GAO said…..(Reuters, 21 Sep 07)

Two Iraqi soldiers killed, four civilians wounded in Kirkuk

Two Iraqi soldiers were killed and four civilians were wounded in different incidents Thursday night in Kirkuk, northern Iraq……(KUNA, 21 Sep 07)

82 Killed in Afghanistan Violence

A bomb attack Friday against a convoy of French troops killed one soldier and injured many Afghans near the blast, while heavy fighting in southern Afghanistan killed about 75 Taliban fighters and six civilians, officials said. The attack in western Kabul blew the windows out of a civilian bus and set at least one vehicle on fire. At least six civilians were in serious condition, and many others had lesser injuries….(AP, 21 Sep 07)

Bomb wounds foreigners in Algeria

A bomb exploded near a police convoy accompanying foreign workers in Algeria on Friday, injuring nine people including two French and one Italian, official news agency APS reported. Five of the gendarmes and the driver were injured by the bomb in the mountainous area of Bouira, 70 km (40 miles) southeast of Algiers in Kabylie region, APS said, calling it a "terrorist attack"…..(Reuters, 21 Sep 07)

Senior Al-Jazeera Talk Show Host: U.S. Media Has Further Developed Goebbel's Propaganda Methods

In an article in the Syrian government daily Al-Thawra, the host of the Al-Jazeera TV talk show "Opposite Direction," Dr. Faisal Al-Qassim, stated that the U.S. media propaganda machine is employing the methods of Nazi propagandist Joseph Goebbels. The following are the excerpts from the article….(MEMRI, 21 Sep 07)

Saudi Columnists: Centers for Hebrew Studies Are Needed To Deal With Israel

Following an Israeli television interview that aired April 14, 2007 with Prof. Menahem Milson about the novel Girls of Riyadh by Saudi author Rajaa Al-Sanie, Saudi columnist Sa'ud Kabili wrote in the Saudi daily Al-Watan that academic institutions in Arab countries must research Israel, so as to gain information that will serve as a source of power against it. The following are the excerpts from the article….(MEMRI, 21 Sep 07)

Al-Zawahiri to the U.S.: 'Do Not Ask President Bush When The Soldiers Will Return– Ask Instead How Many Will Return'

The Islamist website www.ekhlaas.org/forum/, which is hosted by Layered Technologies, Inc. in Texas, USA, posted, on September 20, 2007, an 80-minute video of Al-Qaeda second-in-command Ayman Al-Zawahiri speaking on the occasion of the sixth anniversary of 9/11. The video was produced by the Al-Sahab media company in the month of Sha'ban, 1428 (August-September 2007), apparently prior to September 11, 2007, and is subtitled in English.….(MEMRI, 21 Sep 07)

39 indicted in four money transfer schemes

Federal officials today indicted 39 people, some of them Pakistani operators of convenience stores in Eastern Shore communities, with a host of charges that include money laundering, conspiracy to bribe public officials and operating unlicensed money transferring businesses that dispatched cash around the world. One of the defendants, Saifullah Ranjha, who lives in Laurel, was also charged with attempting to finance al-Qaida… The sting operations, collectively called Operation Cash-Out, yielded evidence of four separate criminal schemes involving at least 46 people in the U.S., Canada, Spain, Belgium, Britain, Australia and other countries, as well as in Maryland, Wisconsin, New York and New Jersey…In most cases, the money laundering schemes used hawala, a system under which funds are transferred from one place to another, often different countries, through an informal network of people using codes. Although the system is not illegal, U.S. law demands that large money transfers to overseas locations be reported to federal officials and that such businesses have commercial licenses. Since the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks, the hawala system has been suspected of playing a role in financing some terrorist activities……(Baltimore Sun, 21 Sep 07)

U.S. Attorney's Office press release

WP Special Report: A Hawala Primer

Spain Police, FBI Arrest Terror Suspects

Spanish police and the FBI arrested two Pakistani nationals in a joint operation in Madrid and Barcelona on suspicion of being involved in financing international terrorism, the Interior Ministry said Thursday. The men, identified as Anar Muhammad Shan and Preces Mehmood Sandhu, were also held on suspicion of belonging to a terrorist organization….(AP, 21 Sep 07)

Swedish govt must punish blasphemer newspaper

The Makkah-based Muslim World League (MWL) has urged Swedish authorities to punish the Nerikes Allehanda newspaper and its cartoonist for publishing a blasphemous cartoon depicting Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) in a negative way. The 57-member Organisation of the Islamic Conference (OIC) also condemned the latest derogatory cartoon and urged the Swedish government to punish those responsible. OIC Secretary-General Professor Ekmeleddin Ihsanoglu urged Muslims to remain calm and exercise restraint……(Khaleej Times, 21 Sep 07)

Hamas Music Video Glorifies Terror Attacks - in Hebrew

The Hamas Al-Aksa television station in the Gaza Strip this week aired a music video -- in Hebrew -- that mentions chunks of Jewish flesh in black body bags. A translation and video clip was provided by the Middle East Media Research Institute (MEMRI). While it is not unusual for Hamas television to praise suicide bombers or to encourage children to become "martyrs", it is unusual for the radical Islamic group to produce a piece in Hebrew instead of Arabic…..(Crosswalk, 21 Sep 07)

Clashes as Islamic protesters defy Bangladesh emergency

Street clashes broke out in Bangladesh Friday as Islamic activists defied emergency rule to protest over the publication in a major newspaper of a cartoon deemed offensive to Muslims. Thousands of protesters joined the rally in the centre of the capital Dhaka, an AFP photographer at the scene said, even though demonstrations are strictly prohibited under the country's eight-month-old state of emergency…..(AFP, 21 Sep 07)

Bangladesh suspends magazine over controversial cartoon

Bangladeshi police broke up a protest march by hundreds of Muslims after Friday prayers over the publication of a cartoon which they say offended their religion. Bangladesh suspended publication of Alpin, a weekly satire magazine of leading Bengali daily Prothom Alo, and its publishers apologized and appealed for forgiveness…..(Reuters, 21 Sep 07)

39 indictments seen as warning to terrorists
…Whether the indictments affected the financing ability of terrorists is not clear, he said. However, the arrests and indictments send a message to potential terrorists, drug dealers and those thinking about laundering money that "you don't know who you're dealing with," Mr. Rosenstein said. Those transfers were between Maryland, New York, Spain and Australia using an informal system known as "hawala," according to court documents. One, in Barcelona, involved a transfer equivalent to more than $450,000, according to court documents. "Money laundering is a global threat, fuel for criminals to conduct their criminal affairs, and is used to manipulate and erode our financial systems….(AP, 21 Sep 07)

Student Arrested For Fake Bomb At Boston Airport

A woman who walked into Logan International Airport allegedly wearing a fake bomb strapped to chest was arrested at gunpoint Friday, officials said. Star Simpson, 19, had a computer circuit board, wiring and a putty that later turned out to be Play-Doh in plain view over a black hooded sweatshirt she was wearing, said State Police Maj. Scott Pare, the commanding officer at the airport. After a Massachusetts Port Authority official notified state police Friday morning, troopers tracked Simpson down outside Terminal C, where they arrested her and later determined the device was a fake….(CBS4, 21 Sep 07)

Terror tracking group releases info on targets named by Austrian-Canadian jihadist cell

The RCMP arrested a Moroccan named Said Namouh in a town northeast of Montreal on September 12. He’s been charged with conspiring with an Austrian to set off a car bomb. The Austrians and the RCMP worked together on the case. The Post reported this week that those arrested in Canada and Austria were part of a cell that had discussed bombing the Euro 2008 soccer championships…….(National Post, 21 Sep 07)

Austrian-Canadian jihadist cell eyed politicians as well as physical targets

An Austrian-Canadian jihadist cell was targeting European politicians in addition to a number of physical targets in Austria and Switzerland, according to communications obtained by a terrorist watchdog group…"The member of the cell enumerated several physical targets to attack, specifically mentioning the Euro 2008 championships to be held in Austria and Switzerland, UN buildings in Vienna and Geneva, and OPEC's headquarters in Vienna,"….(Canadian Press Blog, 21 Sep 07)

Nuon Chea Said to Have Ordered Torture

Detained former Khmer Rouge leader Nuon Chea allegedly ordered the murder and torture of civilians when the communist group ruled Cambodia in the 1970s, a U.N-backed genocide tribunal said in a statement Friday. The 81-year-old former Khmer Rouge ideologist was arrested and charged Wednesday with crimes against humanity and war crimes in connection with atrocities that caused the deaths of some 1.7 million people during the Khmer Rouge's 1975-79 rule…..(AP, 21 Sep 07)

Qaeda plot to kidnap French in Algeria foiled -paper

Two employees of a French company working in Algeria were urgently sent back to France this month after intelligence suggested that a branch of al Qaeda was planning to kidnap them, newspaper Le Monde reported on Friday. The French daily said Algerian intelligence services had received information in early September indicating that al Qaeda Organization in the Islamic Maghreb wanted to kidnap French people, whom French and Algerian authorities identified as two employees of airport operator Aeroports de Paris….(Reuters, 21 Sep 07)

US resumes Blackwater convoys in Iraq

…A top aide to Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki had earlier conceded it may prove difficult for the Iraqi government to follow through on threats to expel Blackwater and other Western security contractors. The aide, who spoke on condition of anonymity because the investigation into Sunday's shooting was ongoing, said a way out of the Blackwater crisis could be the payment of compensation to victims' families and an agreement from all sides on a new set of rules for their operations in Iraq…..(AP, 21 Sep 07)

Reuters Video: Iraq Challenges Blackwater Line

Iraq Aims to End Immunity of Security Firms

Iraq wants to tighten control over security contractors after a deadly shooting incident involving the U.S. firm Blackwater, ending their long immunity from Iraqi prosecution, the Interior Ministry said on Friday. Spokesman Major-General Abdul-Kareem Khalaf said the ministry had drafted legislation giving it wider powers over the contractors and calling for "severe punishment for those who fail to adhere to the ... guidelines on how they should operate…..(Reuters, 21 Sep 07)

In Lebanon, Staying Alive in Order to Preserve the Government

Lawmakers from the anti-Syrian governing party, the March 14 Movement, took refuge on Thursday in a landmark hotel near the Parliament building in downtown Beirut because they fear assassination plots aimed at eliminating their razor-thin majority in the House. The move reflects just how terrified the legislators are after one of their colleagues, Antoine Ghanem, and six others were killed in a powerful car bombing near Beirut on Wednesday….(New York Times, 21 Sep 07)

US Homeland Security chief promotes anti-bomb training for local police

US police agencies need to understand the latest terrorist bomb-making techniques being used overseas if they are to help thwart domestic bombings, Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff said Thursday. Chertoff, in a visit to Philadelphia, said his agency is training state and local police in several US cities in the wake of terrorist bomb attacks in London, Glasgow and other cities. The Department of Homeland Security has also created a Web site on which they share information gleaned overseas with local bomb squad members and other law enforcement….(AP, Jerusalem Post, 21 Sep 07)

FBI Sees Closer Anti-Terror Cooperation

Trans-Atlantic cooperation against terrorism is improving, FBI Director Robert S. Mueller said Friday, pointing to recent arrests in Germany. Mueller, in Paris for talks, declined to comment on a new recording from Osama bin Laden, in which the al-Qaida chief called on Pakistanis to wage holy war on their president…..(AP, 21 Sep 07)

Middle East Volcano

We do know that Israel carried out an airstrike. How do we know it was important? Because in Israel, where leaking is an art form, even the best-informed don't have a clue. They tell me they have never seen a better-kept secret. Which suggests that whatever happened near Dayr az Zawr was no accidental intrusion into Syrian airspace, no dry run for an attack on Iran, no strike on some conventional target such as an Iranian Revolutionary Guard base or a weapons shipment on its way to Hezbollah in Lebanon. Circumstantial evidence points to this being an attack on some nuclear facility provided by North Korea……(Washington Post, 21 Sep 07)

Lost at Sea

The ultimate strategic effect of the Iraq war has been to hasten the arrival of the Asian Century. While the American government has been occupied in Mesopotamia, and our European allies continue to starve their defense programs, Asian militaries — in particular those of China, India, Japan and South Korea — have been quietly modernizing and in some cases enlarging. Asian dynamism is now military as well as economic…..(New York Times, 21 Sep 07)

Machinist indicted in bomb plot

An Iowa machinist has been formally charged with an alleged securities fraud scheme that involved threats and the mailing of two bombs. John Tomkins of Dubuque was indicted by a federal grand jury in Chicago late Tuesday, The Chicago Tribune reported. Tomkins was arrested in April. He allegedly sent threats to a number of companies and two explosive devices that had not been completely armed……(UPI, 21 Sep 07)

Africa: U.S. Plans No New Bases on Continent, Says Official

The United States' new African military command structure – Africom – will neither base nor deploy U.S. forces on the African continent…Whelan was speaking at an American Enterprise Institute conference in Washington, D.C. She said that apart from the "forward operating site" which the U.S. Defense Department had been operating in Djibouti since 2002, "we will have no bases… and we will not be deploying U.S. forces on the African continent." However, Africom as a command structure "will have a presence…in the form of staff officers" throughout Africa….(All Africa, 21 Sep 07)

Fear Drives Baghdad's Housing Bust

…With hundreds of thousands of Baghdad residents having fled their homes for the relative safety of segregated neighborhoods or foreign countries, a clandestine system of buying and selling property off the books has supplanted more traditional real estate practices. If families being pushed out are lucky, they are able to sell their homes for some small price, as Ismael did. Wait too long, and their houses might be seized at gunpoint. Real estate agent Mahir al-Sultani said business has all but dried up -- ironic, he admits, considering how many people are moving in and out…..(Washington Post, 21 Sep 07)

War privatization worrying trend: German spy chief

An increasing reliance on private security firms in foreign conflicts, with no international oversight to ensure they follow the law, is a worrying trend, Germany's top spy said on Thursday. Iraq said earlier this week that it would review the status of all security companies after accusing employees of U.S. security firm Blackwater of involvement in a Baghdad shooting in which 11 people were killed……(Reuters, 21 Sep 07)

Iraqi has German jail term, terror listing lifted

…Lokman Amin Mohammed, 33, was this week taken off the U.N.'s al Qaeda and Taliban sanctions list at Germany's request, as a reward for cooperating with the authorities and providing evidence in other trials. "At the same time that he's now getting released from prison, he's been taken off the list," said one source familiar with the case. "He's been helping prosecutors in other cases, providing information and so forth, so much so that he now needs some sort of witness protection and therefore needs to be taken off the (sanctions) list."….(Reuters, 21 Sep 07)

Arms Seized in Afghanistan Sent From Iran, NATO Says

A top NATO commander said Thursday that a shipment of weapons intercepted by international forces in western Afghanistan this month clearly came from Iran and almost certainly was sent here with the knowledge of "at least the Iranian military."….(Washington Post, 21 Sep 07)

Security Council extends NATO-led Afghanistan mission

…Fourteen of the council's 15 members approved a resolution that decides to extend the authorization of the International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) for a year beyond October 13, when it was due to expire. But Russia, a veto-wielding council member, said it could not support the text even though it strongly backed ISAF's mission to combat "terrorism" in Afghanistan….(AFP, 20 Sep 07)

Where Military Rules Don't Apply

…Blackwater "has a client who will support them no matter what they do," said H.C. Lawrence Smith, deputy director of the Private Security Company Association of Iraq, an advocacy organization in Baghdad that is funded by security firms, including Blackwater. The State Department allowed Blackwater's heavily armed teams to operate without an Interior Ministry license, even after the requirement became standard language in Defense Department security contracts. The company was not subject to the military's restrictions on the use of offensive weapons, its procedures for reporting shooting incidents or a central tracking system that allows commanders to monitor the movements of security companies on the battlefield. "The Iraqis despised them, because they were untouchable,"….(Washington Post, 20 Sep 07)

What Does Bin Laden Want?

…bin Laden and al Qaeda want power for themselves, and use religious grievances and shifting political demands to try to achieve it. In their worldview, Islam’s chance for a renewed united Muslim caliphate was shattered into impotent warring nations by sneaky 19th-century European colonists. They now want to reunite modern Arab nations into an Islamic empire run by the likes of bin Laden and his sidekick, Ayman al-Zawahiri. And they think they can pull it off for a variety of reasons. First, al Qaeda claims its jihadists drove the Soviet Union out of Afghanistan, leading to the unraveling of the Soviet empire…Second, bin Laden believes we will ultimately prove weak and suffer the Soviets’ fate. That’s why he keeps talking about breaking up our own states on the model of the now-defunct Soviet Union…Third, oil is now sky-high at $80 a barrel. In bin Laden’s view, the longer he is at war, the higher the price of petroleum climbs. That impoverishes Western infidels…..(National Review, 20 Sep 07)

WP Video: Bin Laden Urges Pakistanis to Revolt

CHRONOLOGY: Messages attributed to al Qaeda

Saudi Cleric Salman Al-Odeh Slams 'Brother' Osama bin Laden, Warns Him He'll Be Responsible for Deaths of Millions, Reminds Him He Must Face Allah

The following are excerpts from a religious show featuring Saudi cleric Salman Al-Odeh, which aired on MBC TV on September 14, 2007:"How Much Blood Has Been Shed, And How Many... Have Been Killed... In The Name Of Al-Qaeda?" Salman Al-Odeh: "I say to my brother Osama [bin Laden]: How much blood has been shed, and how many innocent people, children, elderly, and women have been killed, displaced, or banished in the name of Al-Qaeda? Would you be pleased to meet Allah while you bear responsibility for hundreds or even millions of people?" ….(MEMRI, 20 Sep 07)

Bin Laden brands Iraq's Maliki 'traitorous apostate'

Al-Qaeda chief Osama bin Laden branded Iraq's Shiite Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki a "traitorous apostate" in new video that threatens the Shiite Muslim majority in the violence-ravaged country…In it, bin Laden talks of a succession of US-backed government in Iraq since Saddam Hussein was overthrown in 2003 and taunts them for failing to end the US-led occupation of the country…..(AFP, 20 Sep 07)

Fight the U.S., al Qaeda's Zawahri tells Muslims in video

Al Qaeda's second-in-command Ayman al-Zawahri called on Muslims to fight the United States and its allies around the world and praised the operations of Islamist militants in a new video released on Thursday… In a video made to mark the sixth anniversary of the September 11 attacks, Zawahri said: "Stand, o nation of Islam under the victorious banner of the Prophet ... and campaign against the crusader banner of (U.S. President George W.) Bush. "Go forth... to the mujahideen, bear them arms, back them, defend them and don't be intimidated by the power of America for these two blessed attacks have revealed that it is a power of iron and fire, with no faith or morals or principle." Zawahri, who praised the actions of al Qaeda-linked groups fighting in Afghanistan, north Africa, Somalia, Chechnya and Iraq, called on Pakistanis to avenge the killing of a rebel cleric sympathetic to Afghanistan's Taliban in July…..(Reuters, 20 Sep 07)

Al Qaeda Bin Laden Message To Declare War on Pakistan President Musharraf

......(Counterterrorism Blog, 20 Sep 07)

Forthcoming Message from the Head of al-Qaeda, Usama bin Laden, Addressing the People of Pakistan, Titled: “Come to Jihad”

The SITE Intelligence Group has learned that a new message is forthcoming from the head of al-Qaeda, Usama bin Laden, and titled, “Come to Jihad”. Images of deceased jihadi leaders in Pakistan and Waziristan, Abdul Rashid Ghazi, Nizamuddin Shamzai, Nek Muhammad and Abdullah Mahsud, appear in the announcement….(Site Institute, 20 Sep 07)

Bin Laden Tape to Declare War on Musharraf

… The messages are part of a stepped-up propaganda campaign by al-Qaida around the anniversary of the Sept. 11, 2001 attacks against the World Trade Center and the Pentagon…..(AP, 20 Sep 07)

FBI Head, Austria Assess Soccer Security

…Vienna police last week arrested three people suspected of ties to a video posted online in March that threatened Austria and Germany with attacks if they do not withdraw military personnel from Afghanistan. One of the suspects later was released for lack of evidence. Canadian authorities have arrested a fourth suspect believed linked to the video threat…..(AP, 20 Sep 07)

Terrorism case prosecutor turns ire on ex-envoy

…Edward Abington, a former U.S. consul general in Jerusalem and one-time deputy assistant secretary in the State Department's intelligence and research bureau, testified that he was briefed daily by the CIA while serving in the Middle East and never heard of any Hamas links to the Holy Land-backed charities. He also testified that he personally visited the zakat committees and found nothing suggesting Hamas involvement. The purported Hamas link to zakat charities is crucial to the government's case that Holy Land officials knowingly assisted terrorists. But that link relies almost entirely on the testimony of one Israeli agent, identified only as "Avi" during an unusual closed-court appearance……(LA Times, 20 Sep 07)

Que. terror suspect returns to court next month in attempt to secure bail

A 34-year-old Quebec man charged with conspiring to bomb unspecified targets in Vienna, Austria, is still behind bars after making a brief court appearance Thursday in Montreal. Said Namouh was arrested in the small rural town of Maskinonge, northeast of Montreal, last week as authorities in Austria and Canada swept down and arrested a total of four people in a suspected international bomb plot…..(Canadian Press, 20 Sep 07)

Muslim Charity Trial Goes to Texas Jury

Weighing two months of testimony, a jury is attempting to determine whether a Texas-based Muslim charity helped needy people or Middle East terrorists… The five former Holy Land officials are charged with aiding a terrorist group, conspiracy and money laundering. If convicted of the most serious charges, they could be sentenced to life in prison…..(AP, 20 Sep 07)

Military to resist move to end its control over govt’

The military may counter any move that prevents President Gen Pervez Musharraf from seeking re-election by imposing martial law, warns I. A. Rahman, a leading Pakistani intellectual. Mr Rahman, who is visiting Washington, told a group of South Asian journalists that the military in Pakistan was not yet willing to transfer control to a civilian set-up and would resist any move to end its control over political institutions, such as the government. He said the military had tremendous interest in the civilian economy and was not willing to give it up any time soon….(Dawn, 20 Sep 07)

Pakistan Presidential Vote Set for Oct.

President Gen. Pervez Musharraf will seek a new five-year term in a presidential election set for Oct. 6, officials said Thursday, even as opponents urged the courts to stop him from running and vowed to quit Parliament in protest. After the U.S.-allied leader signaled his plan to resign as army chief if re-elected, the Election Commission announced that the ballot by federal and provincial lawmakers would be held Oct. 6…..(AP, 20 Sep 07)

India's Long-Established Ties With Iran Straining Alliance With U.S.

India's long-standing ties with Iran appear to be threatening the beleaguered nuclear energy deal between Washington and New Delhi and, more broadly, their growing strategic alliance…"America is intimidating us. It is none of their business to dictate what we should or should not do with Iran," said D. Raja, national secretary of the Communist Party of India, which lends crucial support to Singh's coalition government but which has launched nationwide street protests against the agreement. "Our suspicions about the nuclear deal have come true. The attempt is to drag India into the American global strategy. We have to resist that. We cannot antagonize our traditional friends for the sake of Americans."….(Washington Post, 20 Sep 07)

Day of mourning for Lebanese MP

Banks, schools and government offices are closed in Lebanon, as the country mourns an anti-Syrian MP who was killed in a car bombing in the capital Beirut. Antoine Ghanim, of the Maronite Phalange party, died with at least six others in the blast in the mainly Christian Sin al-Fil district…..(BBC, 20 Sep 07)

Maliki Denounces Blackwater 'Crime'

…Speaking to reporters at his office in the heavily fortified Green Zone, Maliki called on the U.S. government to sever ties with Blackwater USA, a private security firm whose guards were involved in a shootout in the capital Sunday that left at least nine and as many as 28 people dead. Maliki said a preliminary report into the incident shows that the Blackwater guards were not acting in self-defense when they began shooting. "We will not allow Iraqis to be killed in cold blood," Maliki said. "There is a sense of tension and anger among all Iraqis, including the government, over this crime."…..(Washington Post, 20 Sep 07)

Signs of a Possible Rift in the Iranian Leadership on the Nuclear Issue
As part of Iran's diplomatic efforts to prevent increased sanctions against it in the U.N. Security Council session slated for September 21, 2007, former Iranian Supreme National Security Council secretary Hassan Rohani is planning a trip to meet with European officials, according to reports in the Iranian media. Rohani was in charge of Iran's nuclear dossier during the era of the previous Iranian president, reformist Mohammad Khatami, and was the chief negotiator with the West; currently, he is the representative of Iranian Supreme Leader 'Ali Khamenei in the council…..(MEMRI, 20 Sep 07)

Pakistan troops 'lose faith in war on terror'

Eighteen Pakistani soldiers have been killed by pro-Taliban militants, bringing to more than 1,000 the number who have died fighting their own countrymen in the US-led war on terror. The troops were ambushed at a security post in the country's North Waziristan tribal region, near the Afghan border, on Sunday night. An official said some had had their throats cut…Talat Masood, a retired lieutenant-general, wrote in a newspaper column earlier this week that it had been an "abject surrender". "For all practical purposes, the state has lost its authority and is in full retreat especially in Waziristan and Bajaur,"…..(Telegraph, 20 Sep 07)

When I Return to Pakistan

I am returning to Pakistan on Oct. 18 to bring change to my country. Pakistan's future viability, stability and security lie in empowering its people and building political institutions. My goal is to prove that the fundamental battle for the hearts and minds of a generation can be accomplished only under democracy. The central issue facing Pakistan is moderation vs. extremism. The resolution of this issue will affect the world, particularly South and Central Asia and all Muslim nations. Extremism can flourish only in an environment where basic governmental social responsibility for the welfare of the people is neglected……(Benazir Bhutto, Washington Post, 20 Sep 07)

We must weigh the moral cost of withdrawal from Basra and Baghdad

This week General David Petraeus and ambassador Ryan Crocker have been in London, trying to persuade Britain not to pull all its troops out of Iraq. Last week they were in Washington, trying to persuade Congress and the American public. Strip away a rather thin coat of gloss paint and you do not find Petraeus and Crocker arguing that things will be good in Iraq if we stay. Rather, they argue that things will be even worse in Iraq if the occupying forces precipitately and completely withdraw……(Guardian, 20 Sep 07)

CHRONOLOGY: Messages attributed to al Qaeda

Al Qaeda's second-in-command Ayman al-Zawahri called on Muslims to fight the United States and its allies around the world and praised the operations of Islamist militants in a video released on Thursday. Separately, an Islamist Web site said it would carry a new video from al Qaeda chief Osama bin Laden in which he would declare war on Pakistani President Pervez Musharraf and Pakistan's army. Following is a chronology of major statements attributed to Osama bin Laden, Zawahri or their allies this year……(Reuters, 20 Sep 07)

The Blue Front Line in the War on Terror

Lately, a growing chorus has charged that terrorist threats are overblown and make local police waste limited resources chasing nonexistent bogeymen—even as traditional crime ticks upward in many American cities. This line of thinking is misguided for two reasons. First, as the recently foiled plot to attack U.S. targets in Germany shows, the terrorist threat remains very real. Second, the choice between counterterrorism and traditional crime fighting is a false one……(City-Journal, 20 Sep 07)

Iranian officer 'seized in Iraq'

US-led forces in Iraq say they have arrested an Iranian officer operating in the north of the country. They say the man was a member of the Quds Force - an elite unit of Iran's Revolutionary Guards - and was detained in the Kurdish city of Sulaimaniya. "This individual has been involved in transporting improvised explosive devices," the American military said…..(BBC, 20 Sep 07)

State, DHS grapple with Iraqi refugee crisis

In response to growing criticism about the slow pace and limited numbers of Iraqi refugees being admitted to the United States, the State and Homeland Security departments Wednesday appointed senior advisers to better coordinate the vetting process for applicants, many of whom have worked on behalf of the U.S. government in Iraq and are now targets of the insurgency or sectarian militias there. Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff tapped Lori Scialabba to become his special adviser for Iraqi refugee affairs, while Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice announced James Foley would become senior coordinator for Iraqi refugee issues. Both positions are newly created and do not require Senate confirmation…..(Gov Exec, 20 Sep 07)

S.C. Mom Scoops al-Qaida With Its Videos

Once her son is off to school, Laura Mansfield settles in at her dining room table with her laptop and begins trolling Arabic-language message boards and chat rooms popular with jihadists. Fluent in Arabic, the self-employed terror analyst often hacks into the sites, translates the material, puts it together and sends her analysis via a subscription service to intelligence agencies, law enforcement and academics. Occasionally she comes across a gem, such as when she found a recent Osama bin Laden video _ before al-Qaida had announced it……(AP, 20 Sep 07)

Osprey squadron is off to Iraq

The first combat squadron of tilt-rotor V-22 Ospreys has quietly set off to Iraq, ushering a new and controversial form of aerial technology into 21st-century warfare. A Marine Corps aviation squadron and 10 Ospreys sailed for Iraq on Monday aboard a small Navy aircraft carrier known as an amphibious assault ship, said a Marine Corps spokesman, Maj. Eric Dent. The USS Wasp's departure from the New River Marine Corps Air Station near Jacksonville, N.C., was made under tight security with no advance public notice and no ceremonial speeches by Marine Corps officials. "It was just another workday for the squadron,"….(McClatchy Newspapers, 20 Sep 07)

Explosion in N. Pakistan kills policeman, wounds 4

A policeman was killed and four other people including two policemen were critically wounded Thursday in a bomb explosion in the northern Pakistani lush-green valley. A remote-controlled bomb went off near a security checkpoint in Sawat valley….(KUNA, 20 Sep 07)

Pakistan: 13 soldiers reported missing

While a tribal jirga continued talks with pro-Taliban militants for the release of more that 250 soldiers held hostage in the tribal area of South Waziristan, 13 more paramilitary soldiers have been reported missing in North Waziristan. Official sources said that six soldiers of the Shawal Rifles paramilitary force deserted their unit and refused to take orders in North Waziristan on Tuesday night…..(AKI, 20 Sep 07)

Taliban attack leaves 24 dead in Afghanistan

…Dozens of Islamic fighters attacked a police position in Badghis province on Wednesday, setting off a three-hour gunfight, governor Mohammad Ashraf Nasiri said. "Twenty militants were killed and nine militants were wounded in the fighting," he said. Four police were also killed…..(Times of India, 20 Sep 07)

Afghanistan hands over 11 prisoners

The Afghan authorities on Wednesday handed over 11 Pakistani prisoners to officials of the political administration at the Torkhum border, officials said. The prisoners had been recently released from the Pul-i-Charkhi prison in Kabul. They were immediately shifted to a Landi Kotal lock-up where they would be interrogated by a team of investigators after which they would be allowed to go home…..(Khyber Agency, 20 Sep 07)

The Bank Behind Iran's Missles

Bank Sepah has issued letters of credit and transferred millions of dollars for rocket makers, the U.S. Treasury says. Those transactions may show how Iran finances its nuclear ambitions. On Dec. 23, 2006, the United Nations Security Council slapped economic sanctions on Shahid Hemmat Industrial Group for its role in weapons proliferation as Iran's maker of liquid-fueled ballistic missiles. Known as SHIG, the Iranian firm produces the Shahab III rocket, which has a range of at least 800 miles…Three days after the Security Council ordered a freeze on SHIG's assets to help block Iran from developing nuclear weapons, the maker of the country's longest-range missile was ready to go shopping in Europe. It turned for help to state-owned Bank Sepah, Iran's fifth-biggest lender...On March 25, the U.K. Treasury froze all assets of Bank Sepah International Plc, the bank's London-based subsidiary. The Bank of Italy took similar action against the Rome branch the next day. The central bank also installed commissioners at the branch, ending D'Andrea's stint as a consultant. "The Bank of Italy brings to the attention of intermediaries the reputational and operational risks involved in relations with subjects designated by the sanctions, among them being Bank Sepah,"… Five days later, on April 4, Iran ended the standoff with the U.K. It said it was releasing the British marines and soldiers. Two weeks later, on April 17, the U.K. Treasury loosened some restrictions on the London branch….(Bloomberg, 20 Sep 07)

Hearing on Saudi Arabia Weapon's Sale Cites Kingdom's Terror Ties

…The subcommittee met to explore America's relationship with Saudi Arabia in light of a $20 billion dollar weapons sale being offered by the White House to the member states of the Gulf Cooperation Council. That includes Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, and the United Arab Emirates. The bulk of the sale will be going to Saudi Arabia…Wolosky explained Saudi Arabia's connections to the financing of terrorism and the propagation of extremism. Of the failure to regulate charities that have financed terrorism, he stated: "Passing legislation is one thing, and implementation and enforcement are another. Certain steps announced to increase oversight over problematic Saudi-based charities have not been fully implemented."….(Investigative Project, 20 Sep 07)

Anti-Syrian Lawmaker Killed in Beirut Blast

Antoine Ghanem, 64, a member of the Christian Phalange party, was the eighth anti-Syrian figure killed in Lebanon in the past three years. Fifty-six people were injured in the blast, police said, which shook a Christian neighborhood during the evening rush hour. Members of Lebanon's governing coalition blamed the killing on Syria, which denied responsibility. "This is a clear message to silence the voices of freedom and the revolution of independence, but the Lebanese people will not back off….(Washington Post, 20 Sep 07)

Terror Finance Case: "Operation Cash-Out"

The U.S. Attorney's Office announced today that a federal grand jury indicted 39 defendants and one business in an international money laundering case that includes one person accused of concealing terrorist financing. The terror finance case, "Operation Cash-Out", had an international scope with defendants in United States, Spain, Canada and Belgium, with the use of hawala money-transmitting businesses to launder millions of dollars…..(Counterterrorism Blog, 20 Sep 07)

Iran Warns of October 'Final Response' to Supporters of Israel

Iran pledged to deliver a "final reponse" to the U.S and other supporters of Israel during a religious ceremony next month, the Islamic Republic News Agency reported Thursday. Iranian government spokesman Gholam-Hossein Elham said the message would be sent on Qods Day, held each year on the last Friday of Ramadan, and would arrive during a visit to the Palestinian territories by Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice… Qods Day falls on October 12 this year.…..(Fox News, 20 Sep 07)

Pakistan: Extremist threatens to bomb girls' school

A religious extremist in have threatened to bomb a girls' school in Taxila in Pakistan's Pubjab province, if the teachers and students do not wear veils. The principal of the local government high school received a letter from an unidentified man who threatened to bomb the school if the female students and teachers did not wear veils…..(AKI, 20 Sep 07)

Cartoonist arrested in Bangladesh for blaspheming Islam

BangladeshI police have arrested a newspaper cartoonist over a caption to a cartoon considered blasphemous by Islamic clerics. officials said Wednesday. The interim government was also considering banning the daily Prothom Alo (The First Ray) and putting on trial cartoonist Arifur Rahman, who was arrested overnight from his home in north Dhaka under emergency laws…..(DPA, 19 Sep 07)

Why is Militant Islam Increasing in Popularity?

…Different versions of theories on how not all nations are equally “ready for democracy” are formulated as a defensive reaction. There are attempts at establishing a correlation between the standard of living and the level of democratic development. On the other hand, the spread of, and increase in popularity of, a militant Islamic ideology in the Arab world is explained by poverty, unresolved social problems and lack of civilization prospects for those populations. However, it seems that, so far, all of these explanations cover only part of the problem….(Indian Muslims, 19 Sep 07)

Zionist regime's allies to receive response on World Qods Day

Supporters of the Zionist regime will receive their response during the world Qods Day's rallies, government spokesman, Gholam-Hossein Elham, said Wednesday… Qods Day is held each year on the last Friday of Muslims fasting month of Ramadan after it was nominated by the late Founder of the Islamic Republic, Imam Khomeini, as a day to voice the protest of the Islamic Ummah against the Zionists. The day falls on October 12 this year. "The US loses all opportunities to cooperate with regional and other world states by trying to support a regime (the Zionist regime) which is now at its weakest political and social position,"….(IRNA, 19 Sep 07)

Qaeda car-bomb chief killed in Iraq: US
US-led forces have killed an Al Qaeda militant allegedly responsible for a string of car bombings in Iraq, including an attack which killed 202 people in Baghdad, the military said on Wednesday. Abu Yaqub Al Masri was shot dead on August 31 near the town of Tarmiyah, north of Baghdad….(AFP, 19 Sep 07)