Iran on the Horizon

By Daveed Gartenstein-Ross

The early twenty-first century is an extremely dangerous time, as the United States is forced to fashion a simultaneous response to multiple global threats.  One of the primary threats we face is the development of weapons of mass destruction by rogue regimes, as both Iran and North Korea appear to be quickly developing their nuclear programs at the same time.

The recent allegations by Americans held captive during the 1979 hostage crisis that Iranian president-elect Mahmoud Ahmadinejad interrogated captives and demanded harsher treatment of them is sure to push Iran into a greater position of prominence in Americans' eyes.  The Washington Times reports on former hostage and retired Army Colonel Charles Scott's comments on viewing Ahmedinejad after the recent elections:

"As soon as I saw his picture in the paper, I knew that was the bastard," said retired Army Col. Charles Scott, 73, a former hostage who lives in Jonesboro, Ga.

"He was one of the top two or three leaders," Col. Scott said in a telephone interview. "The new president of Iran is a terrorist."

President Bush, in turn, has commented that these claims raise "many questions," but that his more immediate concern is preventing a nuclear-armed Iran.  I've noted before on this blog that Israeli intelligence expects Iran's nuclear program to reach the "point of no return" by the end of the year, when Iran may be able to enrich uranium for military purposes.  For his part, Ahmadinejad has vowed to pursue Iran's nuclear program, but has insisted, "Iran's peaceful technology is the outcome of the scientific achievements of Iran's youth.  We need the peaceful nuclear technology for energy, medical and agricultural purposes and our scientific progress."

Fashioning an appropriate response to Iran's nuclear program is difficult.  Any military threats we make will be viewed with skepticism because, with simultaneous conflagrations in both Afghanistan and Iraq, American troops are already overstretched.  Nonetheless, preventing Iran from developing nuclear weapons is crucial to building a more secure future.

Creation of a National Security Section within the FBI

By Dennis Lormel

This week, a series of announcements were made by President Bush, his Homeland Security Advisor (HSA) Fran Townsend, FBI Director Robert Mueller and Attorney General (AG) Alberto Gonzalez describing the establishment of the National Security Service within the FBI. The FBI's Counterintelligence Division, Counterterrorism Division and Directorate of Intelligence will comprise the National Security Service. Director of National Intelligence (DNI) John Negroponte will have significant authority over the newly formed entity. An integral part of the successful formation and implementation of the National Security Service will be who is selected as the Senior Executive responsible for heading up the National Security Service. Considerable discussions are ongoing behind the scenes to select the new intelligence chief. Whoever is selected must be uniquely qualified. He or she must be a leader who will command the respect of peers and subordinates; must possess the understanding and interpersonal skills to deal with the external taskings from DNI Negroponte and balancing them with the internal policies and priorities of the FBI; and possesses the level of operational experience to afford him or her the credibility necessary to succeed. Few people possess these requisite skills. It is imperative that those involved in the selection process to include Director Mueller, AG Gonzalez, HSA Townsend and DNI Negroponte fully vet candadates to ensure the selectee is well rounded and suited to meet the challenges at hand. I have a favorite candidate, who undoubtedly is on the short list. It's not appropriate to mention names at this juncture. I wish those involved in the selection process good luck in pursuading the individual I favor to accept the formidable challenge of leading the National Security Service through its important developmental stage.

DISTURBING NEWS FROM AFGHANISTAN

By Larry Johnson

by
Larry C. Johnson

Taliban fighters linked to Al Qaeda shotdown a U.S. military helicopter on Tuesday reportedly with an RPG. According to FBIS reports, a Taliban spokesman claimed that US forces had inserted seven "spies" into the moutains west of Asadabad and that mujahedin had killed some and were pursuing others. About 12 hours after the chopper was downed and before the crash was announced by US officials, a spokesman for the Taliban movement, Abdul Latif Hakimi, said that the group�s fighters have shot down the aircraft in the village of Shorak. Hakimi said that the group had video of the crash and would post photographs on its Web site. So far nothing has been posted.

We now know from US sources that the helicopter's passengers included members of a Quick Reaction Force who were responding to calls for assistance by US troops on the ground who were fighting Islamic militants.

Beyond the tragedy of the deaths of 16 US military personnel, this incident raises some disturbing issues. The ability of the Taliban to communicate with the outside world about activities in a remote area of Afghanistan is equal to if not better than that of the United States. War is not simply engagements on the ground, it also involves information flow. The Taliban are showing a very sophisticated capability in this regard.

More troubling is the possibility that the Taliban forces knew in advance that US forces were coming into the area and were in a position to ambush our people. That is a counterintelligence problem pointing to possible penetrations of US operational plans. Finally it is clear that Islamic extremists along the Northwest Frontier of Pakistan are stepping up their infiltration of Afghanistan in an apparent bid to derail elections there. This is a war the United States cannot fight alone. Unfortunately it appears that our erstwhile Pakistani allies are not doing their part to stem the tide of Islamic militants entering Afghanistan and to locate and destroy the remnants of Bin Laden's forces that have, until this moment, enjoyed safehaven.

Treasury Designates Senior Syrian Officials

By Matthew Levitt

The U.S. Treasury Department designated two senior Syrian officials "Specially Designated Nationals" (SDN) today under Executive Order 13338 for directing Syria's military and security presence in Lebanon and/or contributing to Syria's support for terrorism.

The designations of Ghazi Kanaan, the former chief of Syrian military intelligence in Lebanon and current Syrian Minister of Interior, and Rustum Ghazali, Kanaan's protege and successor as chief of Syrian military intelligence in Lebanon, are significant steps given the men's prominence in the Syrian hierarchy.

Among the most interesting information made public in the fact sheet that accompanied the designations are revelations about Kanaan's personal role in facilitating Syrian state sponsorship of Hezbollah. According to "information available to the U.S. Government," Kanaan personally delivered a convoy of three rockets from Syria to Hezbollah in Lebanon in 2002. In May 2001, Kanaan met with Hezbollah "security leaders" and secured a pledge from Hezbollah not to excute military operations without first notifying Syria. At that same meeting, however, Hezbollah agreed to continue its "casing and reconnaissance" operations.

For more on Syrian state sponsorship of terror see "Syrian Sponsorship of Global Terrorism: The Need for Accountability." For more on Hezbollah, see �Hizballah Finances: Funding the Party of God."

SENATE NEEDS TO RESTORE CUTS IN COUNTERTERRORISM PROGAMS

By Michael Kraft

By Michael B. Kraft

Apparently the House of Representatives was not listening or not buying the line when President Bush said in his televised address Tuesday night that �there is only one course of action against them (the terrorists): to defeat them abroad before they attack us at home��

The President has repeatedly used the line in the past, including during the election campaign

Nevertheless, on Tuesday night the House passed a FY 06 foreign assistance appropriations bill that cut by about 9 per cent the Administration�s primary program to train foreign civilian counterterrorism and law enforcement officials to help fight terrorists terrorist abroad.

It also cut two smaller, related counterterrorism programs designed to help stop the terrorists overseas.

Hopefully the Senate, where the Appropriations Committee is marking up its Bill this afternoon, will heed the President�s often used phrase and provide full funding for the counterterrorism programs and then prevail in the conference committee on the final version.

Don't Forget Iran in the Africa Equation

By Douglas Farah

While some attention has deservedly been paid to the spread of Wahhabi influence in the pan-Sahel region of sub-Saharan Africa, the competing influence of Iran's radical Shi'ites is almost completely ignored and unexamined. Yet across northern Nigeria, in Sierra Leone, Mali, Guinea, and elsewhere, the Iranian government is pouring in millions of dollars. This includes building mosques, setting up schools and flying thousands of young men to Iran for Islamic training. It is one of the latest incarnations of the traditional competition between the Sunnis in Saudi Arabia and most of the Gulf, and the Shi'ites who dominate in Iran and Iraq.

While the Shi'ia, Iran-backed Hezbollah, through the Lebanese community, has had an influence on West Africa for decades, Iran has not been a traditional player in the local Muslim communities. That may be changing.

It is not clear what inroads have been made because it is so difficult to get into this area. But, as Iran elects more hardline leadership, continues to shelter al Qaeda leaders and becomes increasingly active in Iraq, it is worth considering.

The Iranian leadership is unlikely to give trips, mosques and other financial and spiritual inducements without exacting a quid pro quo. Go here for the complete blog.

Protecting Critical Infrastructure: Europe Looks to the Owners

By Victor Comras

Who�s responsibility for protecting critical infrastructure from terrorist attack? The European Commission opened a major debate on the topic at the June 27th New Defense Agenda meeting in Brussels. And its initial planning calls for a modest 140 million Euro 5 year program (2007 - 2012) to help identify and prioritize vulnerabilities. But the Commission is likely to pass on to owners and operators the actual responsibilities to pay for and implement preventive and protective procedures. Magnus Ovilius, a senior administrator at the Commission's DG Justice, Freedom and Security, told the gathering that it shouldn�t be left up to the bureaucrats in Brussels to determine �what should be done on the ground.� �We don't need to spend a lot of money," he said, arguing that the Commission should limit its role to threat assessment. This might include helping to delineate where and when funds could be spent in a relevant manner.
For its part the EU Commission has already begun work on putting together a Critical Infrastructure Warning Information Network (CTWIN) and is setting up a European Network and Information Security Agency (ENISA). The latter will incorporate aviation and maritime security and inspection oversight. The EU is also considering its role in providing protection for critical infrastructure, such as power plants that have potential trans-boundary effects. However, they will leave to member states the task of delineating local prevention and protection requirements. EU member states are to report back on this by the end of 2005. Details of European thinking on critical infrastructure protection issues are contained in the joint EU Council/Parliamentary report: Critical Intrastructure Protection in the Fight Against Terrorism.

By Walid Phares

               CHOICES OVER IRAQ: QUESTIONS IN PERSPECTIVE

Walid Phares

President Bush is set to address the nation at 8 PM tonight from the historic headquarters of the 82d Airborne Division in North Carolina. His remarks are supposed to cover the current stage of the War on terror and more specifically the ongoing US involvement in Iraq. From a series of interviews on MSNBC and radio shows today here is a summary of my notes:

1. Communications: While the American and Western public would be able to listen to and absorb the US President�s message directly, Arab and Muslim masses will be at the mercy of the �medium� carrying and translating Bush�s address. It is not difficult to guess how networks such as al Jazeera, al Manar and others will cut and paste, then will �analyze for� the people. Hence if the speech is destined to win the hearts and minds on both sides of the Atlantic we can project how at least on one side of the Ocean people will be �updated� about the speech. True that al Hurra and other non-Jihadi media would carry the translation, and true that many Arabs speak English, but nevertheless, we need to factor in the media gap while assessing how Iraqis, Arabs and Middle Eastern would be asked about their reactions

2. Basic attitudes in the US and the West:  You have two schools and a vast mass in between. Those who opposed the principle of War against Terrorism, those who opposed the choice of Iraq and those who disagreed on the prosecution of that War, will continue to criticize the ongoing policies in Iraq, no matter what the situation has evolved into. Do not expect those who didn�t agree on the strategy of taking the war to the Jihadists along with those who believe that the Jihadists will fight the US even more just because American forces have landed in Iraq, to agree with the President and his advisors.

On the other hand, you have those who believe that the current plans and prosecution are the best possible, and that the war is about to be won. Do not expect them to change their views too. In the middle, a large mass of Americans asking an increasing number of questions: In the current equation, these are the people seeking better answers.

3. Initial choice in perspective 

�What are we doing in Iraq?� This is not a question we should only ask when we list the statistics of deaths and expenses. If there is no news from Iraq, ie, bad news, we almost forget we have an army there. But as soon as the first car bomb explodes and we are reminded of the body count, we rush to remember that we have a war going on, and we suddenly re-theorize the premise. The initial strategic choice is just that: a global perspective on the War on Terror. If we have initially rejected the idea to wage unilateral moves, and in this case, in Iraq, our discussion should not be about the tactics and the results. We have to be logical with our choices. If we haven�t agreed to remove Saddam as part of the War on Terror, it is fine. The next logical step is to keep reminding us of the �other choice.� If there was another or a better strategic choice in the global war, let�s not be shy about it. Simply state it: That would be a valid critique of the Administration�s policies. But no alternative-plan is not a plan, and would keep the current one at the top.

If asked, many experts on Jihadism would have proposed different plans or altered plans before the decision to go to war in Iraq. The question today is similar: Now that the war has been launched, what plan would you propose to win that war other than the current process?

4. The War in Iraq: Victory strategy?

But if you were among the supporters of the War in Iraq as launched, as prosecuted and consider it as a generator of positive changes in the region, then your evaluation of the President�s remarks would evolve around the enhancement of the current plans. For there is a major difference between rejecting the strategic choice of a War in Iraq and suggesting policies to win that war. The current debate is confusing the public. For Americans expect from their leaders and experts to provide them with a rational choice: First question: Was the War wrong or it wasn�t. Second question: If the war�s global objective has been approved, either the management of the conflict was wrong or it wasn�t. Third question: Are the current plans perfect or are there better plans for the next stage?

What most Americans and all Iraqis really want from their elites is clarity in explaining: They don�t need the choice to be made for them, they need to select from multiple choices.

Walid Phares

Delusion and Disaster in Central Iraq

By Evan Kohlmann

This evening, President George Bush will present his own view of the ongoing Iraqi insurgency in a televised address to the nation--during which he will reportedly encourage the American public to be patient in expecting further progress and an eventual withdrawal of U.S. military forces.   This message comes on the heels of the stunningly obtuse assessment offered by Vice President Dick Cheney last week that the very same Iraqi insurgency is actually in its "last throes."  Though Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld has tried to be more conservative in his own comments vis-a-vis the insurgents, Pentagon briefings on Iraq are also beginning to take on a fanciful character regrettably reminiscent of Soviet propaganda during the Afghan war of the 1980s.  The BBC even aired an interview this morning with an American military representative who attempted to draw a ridiculous comparison between the security situation in the Iraqi capital Baghdad and that of major Western cities like New York or London.  By professing such faulty logic, we are only successful in deluding ourselves--not the insurgents, nor the vast majority of Muslims in the Middle East.

If President Bush wants the American people to understand why a continued military presence is necessary in Iraq, he must level with them openly and honestly.  Unfortunately, the truth today is that Iraq is a catastrophe of immense proportions.  For months, we have desperately sought to avoid adjectives like "quagmire", fearing the consequences of such pejorative language.  But that is exactly what Iraq has become--a quagmire and a lose-lose scenario that is gradually overshadowing the larger international war on terrorism.  Though perhaps in 2003 there was no pressing threat necessitating an invasion of Iraq, in the meantime, we have unwittingly unleashed a Pandora's Box of ethnic and religious conflict in Iraq and we are left with few palatable options.  Nowadays, the U.S. military can no longer safely withdraw from Iraq without causing the near certain collapse of the nascent Iraqi democratic government and the transformation of Iraq into the next Afghanistan.  It should be noted that both native and foreign-born terrorists hiding in Iraq have openly boasted of their intentions to carry out attacks in Europe and North America if our forces are drained clean from the Sunni Triangle.  Indeed, whether or not President Bush admits as much during his expected address this evening, the reality is that we are stuck in Iraq and we aren't going anywhere soon.

GAO: Homeland Security - Actions Needed to Better Protect National Icons and Federal Buildings from Terrorism

By Andrew Cochran

GAO has issued Report Number GAO-05-790 regarding the need to improve protection of monuments and federal buildings at: http://www.gao.gov/new.items/d05790.pdf

The report addresses: The Statue of Liberty, Liberty Island, Hoover Dam Independence Hall in Philadelphia, Lincoln Memorial, Jefferson Memorial, Mt. Rushmore, and bollards in front of Federal Buildings. Both the General Services Administration and the Department of Interior need to step up their work, the report from the Government Accountability Office finds. GAO recommends that "the Secretary of the Interior (1) link the results of its risk assessments and related risk rankings to its funding priorities and (2) develop guiding principles for balancing security initiatives with Interior�s core mission. Interior did not comment on our recommendations. GAO also recommends that the Administrator of GSA establish a mechanism�such as a chief security officer position or formal point of contact�so it is better equipped to address security related matters related to its federal building portfolio. GSA concurred with the recommendation."

Jeffrey Imm, UnitedStatesAction.com

Lodi Imam Admits to Telling Pakistanis to Fight Americans

By Daveed Gartenstein-Ross

I've written about the early June arrests in Lodi, California here and here.  Along with Hamid and Umer Hayat (the father and son who were charged with lying to federal agents about the son's training at an al-Qaeda camp in Pakistan), authorities also detained two religious leaders in the Lodi Muslim community, Shabbir Ahmed and Mohammed Adil Khan.  In an immigration hearing on Friday, Ahmed admitted to urging Pakistanis to fight Americans in Afghanistan following the 9/11 attacks (story also picked up at Robert Spencer's Jihad Watch):

The spiritual leader of the Lodi mosque who was arrested in a sweep earlier this month admitted to the FBI that when he was in Pakistan he gave speeches to Muslims urging them to fight Americans in Afghanistan in the months following the September 11 attacks.

However, in his immigration hearing on Friday, Shabbir Ahmed told a judge that "it was a requirement of all imams.  If you don't people turn against you.  They sort of force you to say something." . . . .

While he admitted making the speeches against the U.S. invasion of Afghanistan, he said that since he's been in this country he realized he was wrong.  "Having come here, there are true values and respect for human life," Ahmed said, speaking through an interpreter.  "When I saw such a picture, my mind changed.  Now I know what the truth is.  I think there is justice here, respect here."

Comments:  Some countries are dominated by particularly pernicious theological strains that are prone to producing terrorists.  For example, in April 2003 Joel Mowbray examined how Saudi money had touched virtually every stage of the religious development of Asan Akbar, the Army sergeant who killed two of his fellow soldiers and wounded fourteen in a grenade attack in Kuwait.  Hamid Hayat's religious development has not yet been explored in depth, but an important question is what kind of indoctrination led him to train at an al-Qaeda camp.

Read More »

Hostage Taking: A Growing Source of Revenue for the Iraq Insurgency

By Victor Comras

Hostage taking for ransom is now big business in Iraq and is increasingly being used to fund terrorism and the insurgency. While it is often difficult to distinguish kidnap and ransom for terrorism, as opposed to criminal motives, there are increasing indications that insurgent/terrorist groups are now using this tactic to raise funds. Some 200 foreigners in Iraq have been kidnapped since Saddam fell. In addition, several hundred Iraqis have been taken. Initially, most were killed. But, now the numbers of those held for ransom is surpassing those murdered. Ransom usually entails payments from employers or family members and can reach into the hundreds of thousands of dollars. But, there are also indications that governments have engaged in ransom payments. Despite denials from the French, Italian. Phillipines and Australian governments, rumors persist in Iraq and widely among journalists, that discrete ransom payments were, and are, being paid behind the scenes. These payments, when made, are routed to third parties used as middlemen in the negotiations. This shelters the identity of the captors and allows the governments concerned to deny they paid any money to the terrorists. Several journalists in Switzerland and France, continue to maintain that the French government paid up to 12.5 million Euro ($15 million) for the June 11th release of French journalist Florence Aubenas. A similar amount was rumored to have been paid for the release, last December, of Christian Chesnot and Georges Malbrunot. This was substantially above the $1 million allegedly paid by the Italian government to win the release of Italian journalists Simona Toretta and Simona Pari. While both French and Italian government officials maintain their denials, the word has spread throughout Iraq and elsewhere that hostage-taking is an effectively method to raise funds for insurgency and terrorism actions. For its part, the United States seems willing not to interfere in such hostage negotiations, even when a ransom is involved. The US usually holds off from engaging in the matter until after the captive has been released.

Canadian Naji al Kawaiti was taken hostage April 3, 2004 and released May 4, 2004. His captors demanded a $50,000 random. The Canadian MFA admitted playing an important role in his release but refused to indicate whether or not any ransom was paid. Iraqi militants also freed Filipino truck driver Angelo de la Cruz on July 20, 2004, two weeks after taking him hostage. The Philippines withdrew 51 soldiers from Iraq shortly after. Three Romanian journalists and their Iraqi-American guide were freed in late May after nearly two months in captivity. A Swedish national, Ulf Hjertstroem, was kidnapped in early March and released in late May following negotiations on a ransom demand from his captors. And Just a few days ago, Australian Prime Minister John Howard announced that Douglas Wood, a 63-year-old engineering consultant, had been rescued in a military operation. But, there are indications cited in the Australian press that the Australian government may have made cash payments to a senior Iraqi middle-man to locate them and set the stage for the rescue.
For a list of currently held hostages click here.

Iran Khumanists seal off the fortress

By Walid Phares

                         Phares on al Hurra:

            Iran's Khumainists seal off the fortress

NEOCONS DO IT AGAIN IN IRAN

By Larry Johnson

by
Larry C Johnson

From the same crowd who promised us Iraqis dancing in the street and welcoming us as liberators, another cornerstone of the neocon delusional reality has crashed back to earth. I refer of course to Iran's election yesterday, which provided a relatively unknown hardline fundamentalist a decisive victory with over 60% of the vote. Last Monday I appeared with Daniel Pipes on the MSNBC show, "CONNECTED". Pipes described Iran as a place where most of the people are pro-US. Pipes and other neo-con luminaries, such as Michael Ledeen, have pushed the nonsense that Iran is filled with a bunch of neo-westerners eager to throw off the shackles of Islamic extremism. Whoops! Yesterday's election confirms that the force of Islamic fundamentalism remains very strong in Iran. That in turn means that the new Government in Iran is likely to be more aggressive in backing its Shia brethren in Iraq who will press to install Shariah law as the legal basis of the "new" Iraq. It also means that Iran will continue to use terrorism as an integral part of its foreign policy.

Here's a good rule of thumb: Listen to a neocon prediction and then take the opposite position. You will rarely be wrong.

CIA agents wanted by Italy for kidnapping of radical imam

By Lorenzo Vidino

Today Italian newspapers announced that authorities in Milan have indicted 13 CIA operatives for the kidnapping of Abu Omar, a radical Egyptian cleric that "disappeared" from the streets of the northern Italian city in February of 2003. The step represents a major upset to the CIA's "rendition" policy and could create a potential rift with one of its closest allies in the War on Terror.

1364 Versus 1380 and Counting

By Larry Johnson

by
Larry C Johnson

During yesterday's thrashing of Secretary of Defense Rumsfeld by members of the Senate and House, the Secretary sought refuge in the notion that we faced setbacks in World War II and we should take that into account in our current war of terrorism. REALLY? Try this on for size Mr. Secretary, the United States and its allies in WWII defeated the Third Reich, Italy, and Japan in 1364 days (that covers the period from 7 December 1941 until 2 September 1945 when Japan signed the surrender documents). By contrast we are 1380 days since the attacks on 9-11 (and counting). Unlike our grandparents who managed to defeat major Armies in multiple combat theatres, we still cannot find and finish Bin Laden. The insurgency in Iraq rages, and we cannot maintain our recruiting levels. The gap between delusional thinking (e.g., the insurgency is in its last throes) and ground truth is wide. Unfortunately US military forces in Iraq are in the untenable position of not having enough resources to complete the mission while being led by politicians unwilling to make tough, politically unpopular decisions.

What I really want to know is why this country at one time could defeat two of the most powerful military forces in the world simultaneously but today cannot control an insurgency led in part by remnants of a third rate military power. That's a trend line I don't like

Jeffrey Imm Joins Us As Visiting Contributing Expert

By Andrew Cochran

Jeffrey Imm of United States Action is joining us as a Visiting Contributing Expert to help me to manage news links. His site is an excellent source for up-to-the minute news links, and we really appreciate the collaboration.

WOE IS US?

By Larry Johnson

by
Larry C. Johnson

GWOT, which is now WOT, may soon become WOE. GWOT, which stands for Global War on Terrorism, has been supplanted by the term WOT, War on Terrorism. However, the White House reportedly is mulling over using WOE, i.e. War on Extremism. Conceptually this is the right step by the Bush Administration, which has finally conceded that you can not wage war on a tactic (i.e., terrorism). From a public relations standpoint, however, WOE will provide terrific grist for late night comedy shows. Was Jon Stewart behind this?

The conduct of WOE leaves much to be desired. At home in Washington the work of WOE has been shifted increasingly to contractors. Now, as someone who makes a few dollars from Government contracting, I am not against this concept in principle. But a curious phenomena is underway at both the Central Intelligence Agency and the newly minted National Counter Terrorism Center. Work that was once done by Government employees, such as analysis and maintenance of databases, has been turned over to contractors. Friends still inside and friends who have left Government employment to take jobs with the contractors, tell me that outside contractors have become bigger players in tasks that were once performed by insiders. Let be clear that I'm not voicing sour grapes because I did not get a taste of this contracting effort. I did not apply and have no interest on working on these projects.

The ultimate irony is that talented people who were working for $60,000 a year as a CIA analyst are now making close to $100,000 as analysts doing the same job but working under the authority of a contractor. The biggest benefit, so I am told, is that the managers for the private contractors are not the big boneheads that CIA and NCTC professionals were.

Some Legislators have some explaining to do

By Walid Phares

Phares on Radio America today:

Legislators must tell us how to win the war on terror before they measure tactical success"

Washington DC, Radio America, BQ 2:45 PM. Mideast Newswire

Senior Fellow with the Foundation for the Defense of Democracies Walid Phares told Radio America today: "The US Legislators who are unsatisfied with the results against the Jihadists in Iraq may have a point. The current tactics can certainly be improved, even changed. One can also adapt the ongoing strategy in Iraq to the Jihadist offensives.

However, as General Abizaid mentioned weeks ago, this is a war with Salafism, a worldwide movement. Hence before the legislators argue about the prosecution of that conflict in Iraq they must explain to the nation their understanding of the Global War on terror, their views of US policies in the Middle East and how their experts would have propsoed to fight Jihadism worldwide and in Iraq, and in different ways. For if some legislators proceed as if Iraq's conflict is a "consumers war," it simply indicate that they haven't grasped why we are in Iraq, what is the current strategy in Iraq, who is the enemy and what does it want to achieve both in Iraq and against the United States. First, Congress must hold a series of hearings on the entire War on Terror before doing business as usual." -Quote by Mideast Newswire

Three Iraqi Insurgent Factions Announce Merging of Operations

By Evan Kohlmann

Is the Iraqi insurgency really in its "last throes"?  Not if you ask the insurgents... three Islamic militant factions in Iraq--including the Islamic Army of Iraq (IAI), the Ansar al-Sunnah Army, and the Mujahideen Army--have issued a purported statement announcing the start of joint military operations "hand in hand to attack the infidels and their assistants with an iron fist until we break the infidels... so that [we] can teach the infidels and their assistants that continuing their war will only make us stronger, more harmonious, and more unified."  According to the statement dated June 22, the new unified campaign of violence (principally targeting Baghdad and its environs) will utilize "all available means of warfare", including "some martyrs with [suicide] car bombs."  Today, only one day after the joint communique was issued, the Ansar al-Sunnah Army alone has already taken credit for no less than 13 separate military operations, including many in the region of the Iraqi capital.

Zarqawi Announces "Martyrdom" of Top Saudi Al-Qaida Leader in Al-Qaim, Iraq

By Evan Kohlmann

*UPDATED* (2:30pm EST) - A purported communique from Abu Musab al-Zarqawi posted online by the head of Al-Qaida's Media Wing in Iraq claims that Shaykh Abdullah al-Rashood--a top wanted leader of Al-Qaida in Saudi Arabia--has been killed in recent fighting near the western Iraqi city of Al-Qaim.  According to the statement, al-Rashood crossed through "harsh terrain and the borders of the oppressors" and entered western Iraq in late April or early May 2005.  Within days of his arrival, Rashood joined a local Al-Qaida unit known as the "Al-Khair Brigade" in the Iraqi city of Al-Qaim composed of both native Iraqis and foreign fighters.  During subsequent combat operations against U.S. military forces in Al-Qaim, al-Rashood was reportedly the victim of an airstrike "and Allah granted him mercy, blessings, and paradise."

Click to view English translation of communique c/o Globalterroralert.com
Click to view October 2003 video of Abdallah al-Rashood c/o Globalterroralert.com

Nigeria, al Qaeda and Charles Taylor

By Douglas Farah

Last week the U.S. Consulate in Lagos, Nigeria was closed because of possible terrorist threats. This led, in turn, to the closings of the missions of Germany, Italy, Finland, Russia, Sweden, India and Lebanon. U.S. officials were quoted as saying that the reason was that "some kind of terrorist threat" was called into the U.S. facility. The U.S. Embassy in Abuja stayed open, but with a minimal staff.

While it was the first publicly-stated terrorist threat in Nigeria, Al Qaeda's presence there, as well as the growing Saudi-wahhabi influence in the north, is well-known but long downplayed by the diplomatic community. Many see Nigeria's oil--and hence a good relationship with Nigeria--as vital to U.S. security interests. Even after Osama bin Laden named Nigeria as one of the countries that he would target, along with Spain, the policy community declined to make the al Qaeda presence a factor in bilateral relations for fear of upsetting the fragile Obasanjo government. Obasanjo's government is riddled with corruption, faces staggering problems of holding a disperate nation together and the constant threat of revolt from both the north and the south. These are legitimate concerns, and certainly Nigerian oil, and it functionality as a country, are national security issues that are not to be taken lightly.

But the river of Saudi-wahhabi money flowing into the north, to build mosques, madrasas and greatly radicalize a traditionally-tolerant Muslim population, is also a national security problem that influences other aspects of Nigerian national and international life. To read more, go here.

Youssef Nada (Al Taqwa) Says He's Ready to Testify Before Congress

By Victor Comras

According to a press report today out of Lugano Switzerland, UN Designated Al Qaeda Financier Youssef Nada, has indicated a desire to appear before the US Congress to clear his name. Nada, who headed Bank Al Taqwa and other financial schemes implicated in terrorism financing was one of the first individuals designated by the U.S. Treasury Department and by the United Nations Al Qaeda and Taliban Sanctions Committee for his involvement in providing funds to al Qaeda. He now lives in Campione d'Italia (a small Italian enclave on Lake Lugano surrounding by Switzerland). The Swiss Prosecutor's Office was forced to drop charges three weeks ago against Nada for terrorism financing because it lacked sufficient evidence on which to try him.(see my earlier blog)

Nada again proclaimed his innocence in an interview posted this morning in Italian on TicinOnline, a Swiss internet portal. He is appealing personally, he said to President Bush, The US Treasury Department, and Congress to reconsider his case. And he indicated that he is willing to testify before Congress in order to clear up the matter. Perhaps some Congressional Committee should take him up on the offer. But please -- without any grants of immunity!

Al-Qaida in Saudi Arabia Claims April Attack on Airport in Al-Qaseem

By Evan Kohlmann

Al-Qaida's Committee in the Arabian Peninsula has taken responsibility for an alleged sabotage attack in late April on helicopters parked at an airport in Al-Qaseem, Saudi Arabia.  According to a statement dated June 11, Al-Qaida claimed that its operatives breached airport security and destroyed three helicopters in retribution for their role in recent counterterrorism raids.  Al-Qaida also called upon its faithful in Saudi Arabia to "prepare as much jihad power as you can to fight your enemies... Do not let fear deter you from your Jihad� Commence your operations in fighting against the enemies of almighty Allah because if you do, then the truth behind your enemies will be revealed and defeating them will become easier."   

Click to view English translation c/o Globalterroralert.com

Hezbollah drug ring broken up in Ecuador

By Matthew Levitt

One June 21, 2005 Ecuadorian police announced their success in breaking up an international drug trafficking ring led by a Lebanese restaurant owner, Rady Zaiter, residing in Quito, Ecuador. According to the police report, evidence �confirms the relationship between this organization and the terrorist movement Hezbollah.� The document further explains that the criminal ring, which earned millions of dollars by exporting cocaine, sent �up to 70 percent of its profits� to Hezbollah.� Ecuadorian police maintained that each drug shipment was worth around one million dollars.

Zaiter (who also was known under the aliases David Assi Alvarez and Almawla Fares) was arrested in Bogota, Columbia last week, and five other men, from Lebanon, Syria, Nigeria, Algeria, and Turkey, along with one Ecuadorian woman, were detained in Ecuador for their suspected involvement with the cocaine-smuggling ring. Ecuadorian police also seized over 170,000 U.S. dollars, 2,000 euros, vehicles and weapons as part of the operation. In Brazil, nineteen other members of the Hezbollah ring were arrested along with $65 million worth of cocaine.

The drugs, bound for Europe, the Middle East, and the rest of South America, were hidden in suitcases or in the stomachs of couriers. According to the police report, Ecuadorian airport officials were recruited or bribed so that the smugglers could evade security checks.

Dismantling this network is a victory in both the war on drugs and war on terror, but proves that the threat posed by Middle East terrorist networks that use countries throughout the world as hubs for fundraising and recruitment purposes is very real. For more on the threat of the cooperation between drug trafficking wings and terrorist networks, read �Hezbollah: Financing Terror Through Criminal Enterprise.�

Contributing Expert Matthew Levitt Testifies at Sami Al-Arian Trial

By Andrew Cochran

Contributing Expert Matthew Levitt testified yesterday at the Sami Al-Arian trial in Tampa, on the concept of "economic jihad" that he discussed here on June 16. Matthew also identified several founders of PIJ, including Ramadan Abdullah Shallah, a former Tampa resident and director of a Palestinian think tank founded by Al-Arian, and the commander of the PIJ since 1995. And from the AP story on the trial: "Also named by Levitt as founders of the PIJ were Bashir Musa Mohammed Nafi, who worked as a researcher at Al-Arian's think tank until he was deported in 1996, and Abd Al Aziz Awda, known as the spiritual leader of the movement who has spoken at conferences organized by Al-Arian."

Zarqawi Denies the Arrests of His Lieutenants, Declares the Formation of an All-Iraqi Suicide Squad

By Evan Kohlmann

Al-Qaida's Jihad Committee in Iraq--led by wanted Jordanian terrorist Abu Musab al-Zarqawi--has officially denied recent claims that assistants loyal to Zarqawi have been arrested in Mosul and in Madrid, Spain.  The statements came in the wake of an announcement last week by the Iraqi government concerning the capture of senior Al-Qaida leader Abu Talha al-Mosuli (a.k.a. Mohammed Khalaf Shakar).  Al-Qaida's Committee in Iraq has also declared the formation of an all-Iraqi suicide brigade--known as the Al-Ansar Martyrs Brigade--that was created as a branch of another Al-Qaida unit known as the Al-Baraa bin Malik Brigade.

Click to view English translations c/o Globalterroralert.com:
- June 17 denial of the capture of assistants to al-Zarqawi
- June 21 denial of the capture of assistants to al-Zarqawi
- June 21 formation of the Al-Ansar Martyrs Brigade in Iraq

FBI GETS BUM RAP

By Larry Johnson

by
Larry C Johnson

The latest reports bashing the FBI for dropping the ball in dealing with terrorism are misleading and wrong. (news link)

I don't have a dog in this fight because I never worked for the FBI nor do I work on FBI contracts. No financial interest here. My experience is confined to the CIA and the State Department. However I have worked with a variety of FBI agents over the last 16 years on terrorism issues and have had a chance to observe first hand their capabilities and qualifications. The pre-9-11 FBI had significant problems. The Counter Terrorism shop, for example, was known within the FBI as the "latte" division because they were always off to Starbucks for a caffeine fix. Nonetheless, they had some genuine success, better than the CIA in fact, in penetrating the Al Qaeda cells. They had recruited at least 3 informants within the AQ ranks. Part of the 9-11 failure was caused by the refusal of FBI HQs personnel to listen to field agents. Remember the FBI guy in Arizona who raised the red flag about the muslims training as pilots? That memo was filed away and ignored.

In the post-9-11 environment Robert Mueller has faced some daunting tasks. How do you reform a recalcitrant, hidebound bureaucracy? Compared to DOD or CIA the FBI has made the most strides of any of the Federal bureaucracies in ramping up to deal with the terrorist threat. The guys brought in to run the Counter Terrorsim effort since 9-11 have been first rate and have had CT experience. Larry Mefford, for example, headed the FBI counter terror effort in 2003. I worked with him back in 1989 when he was the FBI rep assigned to the Foreign Emergency Support Team (an interagency counter terrorism response cell) at State. Not only was he knowledgeable about terrorism but he knew how to run operations and pursue successful investigations. When Mueller tapped him to lead the CT effort at the FBI Mefford helped lead the charge in getting the FBI ready to respond to terrorist events. When an Iranian backed terrorist team blew up a US military apartment building in Saudi Arabia in 1996 the FBI just gathered up any agents they could find and put them on a plane. In many cases you had guys being sent overseas who had only been outside of their home state in order to go thru FBI training. Mefford instituted "fly" teams, which are FBI agents who have language and culture training to work an investigation in a particular geographic region. In other words, if there is a terrorist incident in Iraq the FBI is sending investigators who have Arabic language and culture training.

The FBI is not just sitting around waiting until something happens. They have been very proactive in ferreting out terrorist plots. I have shared an exercise control group seat with the FBI agent who carried off the sting in China that trapped Muslim terrorists selling drugs to acquire man portable surface to air missiles. FBI has also made some important strides in developing information management systems.

Finally, and most astonishing from my standpoint, the FBI is actually putting out intelligence drawn from investigations. CIA and DIA analysts, for example, are now reading FBI FISA material. That's a first.

While there are problems at the FBI caused by the simple fact it is a Washington bureaucracy, Robert Mueller for my money has been something of a miracle worker in pushing the FBI to a new level of competence. He deserves a lot of the credit for the fact that we haven't been hit again since 9-11.

Saudis Dominant Among Foreign Fighters in Iraq

By Evan Kohlmann

According to data compiled by Globalterroralert.com since June 2003, over 50% of known casualties among foreign fighters in Iraq are Saudi Arabian nationals.  A total of 300 foreign fighters were included in the study, including 165 men from various locations in Saudi Arabia--including Riyadh, at-Taif, Jeddah, Hail, Mecca, and Hafr al-Batin.  Syrian nationals were the next most populous group of foreign fighter casualties in Iraq, numbering 38 or approximately 13%.

Click to view Globalterroralert.com analysis

Saudi Arabia -- Promises, Promises!

By Victor Comras

According to a press report in the June 19th Issue of Arab News, Saudi Maj. Gen Mansour Al-Turki, the Spokesman for Saudi Arabia�s Ministry of Interior announced that �The Interior Ministry is in the final stages of completing the procedures for establishing a department which will track down illegal financial activities.� On its face this looks like good news. But, the problem is that this is the umpteenth time over the last three years that officials have made such an announcement. A look back over the record shows that the Saudi Embassy in Washington has claimed the existence of such a unit since late 2002. Similar annoucements were made in November 2003 and March 2004. Despite these claims US Treasury UnderSecretary Stuart Levey, on May 23, 2005 called Saudi Arabia to task for failing to move ahead with its promised anti-terrorism financing structure. In that speech he said, "For too long, wealthy donors and multinational charities in Saudi Arabia were underwriting terrorism of all kinds, without any meaningful controls. Since 9/11, our government has worked aggressively to press the Saudis to take action against these financiers and to clean up their charitable sector.... We impatiently await the creation of a commission to monitor the charitable sector, and continue to insist that this commission regulate all Saudi charities, without exception of such groups as the Muslim World League and the International Islamic Relief Organization, or "IIRO." Can we hope that this annoucement really presages the establishment of the anti-terrorism financing mechanisms so long promised by Saudi Arabia.

Biometric Travel Documents -- Europe Continues to Argue -- While the US Agrees to Further Postponement

By Victor Comras

A fresh debate is raging in Europe over the efficacy of biometic passports and identity cards. This new debate is just getting started and follows closely on a US decision to grant European Countries an additional year to get their biometric documents in order for visa-less entry into the United States. Biometric document requirements, including digital photographs and integrated chips in passports, were originally to come into effect under the Visit USA Visa Waiver program in October 2004. The chips were to contain essential biometric data for identification purposes. But no-one was ready, so the program was delayed a year. Now Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff has announced a further one year extension until October 2006 for the use of the required biodata inpregnated integrated chips in passports. New passports will have to contain digital photographs, but passports issued without digital photos prior to October 26 will continue to be valid for visa waiver travel, provided the passports are machine readable. Otherwise, travelers will be required to obtain a visa for entry into the United States. The US now provides visa exemptions for 27 countries. Some 15 million people entered the US last year under the waiver program.

This gives Europeans at least another year to argue about privacy issues and the efficacy and cost of biometric documents. New data gathered by government agencies and interest groups around Europe have cast doubt about both cost and effectivenss. A study conducted by a French group � the Forum for Internet Rights, seriously questions whether biometric identity documents can serve to counter terrorism and fraud. They estimated the new documents would cost Europeans some 200 million Euros per year. They also warn that the collection and inclusion of biometric data on travel documents would seriously undercut EU protected personal data privacy safeguards. A similar study by the London School of Economics estimates that the UK�s own biometric identity card system would cost over $500 per card. That report also questions the current reliability of biometric technology. Meanwhile, strong differences continue in national capitals and Brussels as to which technology to use. Well, Europe has another year, at least, during which they can argue for another one year extension. In the meantime please read the disquieting Blog on Fake Documents by Bill West following this posting.

Illegals + Fake Docs + Real Nukes = BIG Problems

By Bill West

The Associated Press and Washington Post today reported that sixteen suspected illegal alien construction workers with false immigration documents were able to enter and work in the Y-12 nuclear weapons plant near Knoxville, Tennessee.

Walid Phares: "Lebanese Elections: The Bottom Line" (UPDATED 6-21)

By Andrew Cochran

Walid Phares asked me to post his assessment of the Lebanese elections:

By sheer numbers, the assessment first: Lebanese Parliament has 128 seats, half Muslims, half Christians.

(1) A Coalition of pro-Saudi Sunni Saadeddine Hariri, anti-American Druse Walid Jumblat, and allies (including few Christians) got 72 seats. It is a majority allowing them to form a Government. (2) Hizbollah got 14, its ally Amal got 15, plus 4 Baathists and pro-Syrians. This bloc will have 33 as a strategic ally to Iran and Syria. (3) General Aoun and his allies got 21 seats. (4) There are 17 independents who can shift in any direction.

By Trends:

The bottom line is that a pro-Saudi power, Hariri, will be leading the Government balancing on the one hand the followers of Iran (Hizbollah), Syria (Amal, Baath, others) with on the other hand Michel Aoun's bloc. The main issue which is of importance to the US is the disarming of Hizbollah. My projection is that Hariri will talk about it, but won't lead the charge. To the contrary, he will shield "the Islamic resistance" while promising Washington that he would act when the time is ripe. Hizbollah and its allies will try to break the unity of the parliament on this issue. Michel Aoun, although unpredictible, may be vocal on the issue of Hizbollah.

Is this situation better than last year? Certainly, since the Syrian army is out, and more anti-Syrians are in the legislative branch, soon in the Government. However, if the US doesn't move fast to lead the disarming of Hizbollah, the situation can be reversed. But how far Hariri would go in that direction?
UPDATE, 6-21: Dr. Phares's complete article, published today in "LebanonWire," is reprinted here with permission and our appreciation (downloadable Word file).

Light Schedule of Congressional Hearings (UPDATED)

By Andrew Cochran

A very light schedule for open terrorism-related hearings this week in the U.S. Congress (Word file), with the U.S. House Homeland Security Committee discussing nuclear material detection technology and an Oil-for-Food hearing at the U.S. House Energy & Commerce Committee. UPDATE: I understand that tomorrow's Senate Banking Committee hearing on regulatory relief for financial institutions will likely include industry complaints about the burdens of the Bank Secrecy Act. Also, the witness for the Oil-for-Food hearing will be the chief of staff for the U.S. mission to the U.N., accompanied by the director of the sanctions unit for the U.S. mission and a U.S. State Department official.

"The time has come" the Walrus said, "To talk of many things..."

By Mike Chandler

The findings of the Gingrich-Mitchel Task Force (GMTF) with respect to how the UN might deal with 'catastrophic terrorism' are quite encouraging. So too is the recognition that the United States can and should play a more active role in this regard. Of particular interest are the recommendations, highlighted by Vic Comras in his posting of the 15th June, about the importance of "naming and shaming". But I must ask why is it that the GMTF is trying to "re-invent the wheel" on this subject and is not concentrating more acutely on the "naming and shaming" authority that the UN Security Council had supposedly already put in place? I speak of the sanctions measures against al-Qaida, the Taliban, and associated individuals and entities and of the (1267) Committee and the Monitoring Group that had, originally, been charged with the responsibility of reporting on what is, and what is not actually being done to implement these measures.

Is it perhaps because the United States was itself instrumental in the demise of the mechanism? Or is it that the Task Force was not fully briefed on that mechanism by the appropriate US Government authorities? Perhaps the GMTF chose simply to ignores the existance of the Monitoring Group and the results achieved during its mandates under resolutions 1390 and 1455? Afterall, it would not, apparently have been the first time according to one of Doug Farah's earlier reports. I was surprised to note that in the body of their report (page 68) the GMTF states that "In January 2004, following the U.S. invasion of Afghanistan, the Taliban collapse and al-Qaeda's dispersal, the council revised UNSCR 1267. UNSCR 1526 focused on assets freezes..." There appears to be somwhat of a 'time warp' here. The council did indeed revise UNSCR 1267 following the collapse of the Taliban. But that was in January 2002 and was largely the result of a Franco-Russian initiative. That initiative put in place the first set of truly global sanctions against the al-Qaida network via UNSCR 1390.

THANKS FOR MAKING MY POINT

By Larry Johnson

by
Larry C. Johnson

My friend and colleague Andy Cochran has tossed down the gauntlet (which I presume is a metal glove for smacking folks upside the head). I think Andy shares my view that torture and abuse of unarmed opponents is bad. The abuse in Iraq of these non-combatants by insurgents is evil. However, when we appear to tolerate such behavior as long as we're inflicting it on the "evil doers" we have lowered ourselves to their level. I prefer we construct a policy and approach that stipulates we will not behave as terrorists. We will not abuse unarmed terrorists who may deserve to die.

I propose we take a page from what Israel did with the trial of Adolf Eichmann, the author of the Final Solution. Eichmann sent millions of Jewish men, women and children to gas chambers. He did so without any pretense of a trial or due process. He did it because he could. When Israel seized the opportunity to snatch this beast from Argentina they resisted the urge to summarily execute him. Instead they put him on trial. They documented the facts substantiating his evil acts. But they also set the clear standard of what differentiated the civilized, lawful State of Israel from the jungle of savagery represented by Eichmann and his ilk.

In waging the war on terror we must maintain the moral high road and ensure that we never give our enemies the opening to argue that we are just like them.

AFRICA?CONNECTING THE DOTS

By Michael Kraft

AFRICA�CONNECTING THE DOTS

By Michael B. Kraft

Recent press reports point to the dangers of terrorism in Africa. The White House turned down British Prime Minister Tony Blair�s efforts to double aid to that continent. A major existing U.S. aid program to Africa has bogged down.

A few key dots.

� Reports of a possible terrorist threat in Nigeria to the US. Embassy drove oil prices to a record high Friday. Nigeria is a major suppler of sweet crude oil to the United States and the temporary closings of the U.S. and British embassies drove prices to over $58 a barrel.

� Up to a fourth of the suicide bombers in Iraq are from North Africa, a senior U.S. military official said last week according to an Associated Press article from Senegal. Algeria was the source of about 20 per cent and neighboring Morocco and Tunisia provided another 5 per cent, said the official who briefed reporters in connection with a military counter terrorism training exercise with nine nations from north and western Africa last week.

U.S. Marines Find Iraqis Tortured by Terrorists: WHERE ARE AMNESTY INTERNATIONAL, HUMAN RIGHTS WATCH, SENIOR DEMOCRATS, AND OTHER MEDIA ELITE (and what about Larry Johnson?)

By Andrew Cochran

Well, what a big surprise - U.S. Marines have uncovered one of the Iraqi terrorists' torture chambers in Iraq, and the terrorists forgot to conduct their usual cleanup before leaving - they left the surviving prisoners there. The New York Times broke the story, which you can read without registration on the International Herald Tribune site. The "torture center (was) equipped with electric wires, a noose, handcuffs, a 574-page jihad manual - and four beaten and shackled Iraqis...they had been tortured with electric shocks and flogged with a strip of rubber for more than two weeks, unseen behind the windows of black glass." The recovered manual included chapters titled "How to Select the Best Hostage," and "The Legitimacy of Cutting the Infidels' Heads."

So where are the cries for relief from prisoners' allies and "human rights activists" at Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch about the grotesque daily torture practiced routinely by the Iraqi terrorists? Funny, the Amnesty website doesn't cite or link to the story as of this post. Same with Human Rights Watch - gee, they must not care about tortured Iraqis on Sunday. Ditto all the senior Democrats - not a word from them. And Tim Russert of "Meet the Press" hit Sen. John McCain today with the standard Gitmo questions, but didn't even mention the NYT story. Neither did Bob Schieffer on CBS's "Face the Nation" this morning (Acrobat file).

And will my fellow CT Blogger Larry Johnson fess up and agree with me that the Iraqi terrorists are the real Champions of Torture? I'm counting on it.

CT Blog Added to "Intelligence, Homeland Security & Counter-Terrorism WebRing"

By Andrew Cochran

We really appreciate the invitation today to join the Intelligence, Homeland Security & Counter-Terrorism WebRing, which his hosted by IntelligenceSummit.org and led by top terrorism expert and Fox News terrorism consultant John Loftus. The IHSCT WebRing site is now in the "Centers & Websites" box in the right sidebar, under the "Today's News" box, and we hope CT Blog readers visit the WebRing often. Just today, John appeared on Fox News to discuss the latest intel on Al Qaeda's newest attempts to recruit drug gangs in Latin America in order to infiltrate the U.S. (large Windows Media file).

YEAH, BUT HE ENJOYED THE GLAZED CHICKEN AND PITA

By Larry Johnson

by
Larry C. Johnson

The point of the outrage over abuses at Guantanamo is that we are a country based on morals and principles that require us to conduct ourselves in an honorable, proper fashion. If we lower ourselves to use the tactics and methods of terrorists we become the very thing we are fighting against. We cannot be content to argue that it only happened to a few. One act of deliberate abuse is one too many.

Today we learn in L.A. Times that a U.S. soldier was badly beaten by the U.S. guards at Guantanamo because they were misled to believe he was a Muslim prisoner who had attacked a U.S. soldier. According to the Times: "Spc. Sean D. Baker, 38, was assaulted in January 2003 after he volunteered to wear an orange jumpsuit and portray an uncooperative detainee. Baker said the MPs, who were told that he was an unruly detainee who had assaulted an American sergeant, inflicted a beating that resulted in a traumatic brain injury."

Hopefully this causes Congressman Duncan "Two Fruit" Hunter to reflect on his idiotic assertion that what a prisoner eats determines how well they are treated. We are confronted with an uncomfortable reality that U.S. soldiers were beating unarmed prisoners. That my friends is the conduct of bullies and cowards. When you have guns and clubs and your opponent is unarmed and you proceed to beat the hell out of your opponent then you are a bully and a coward.

Maybe Representative "Two Fruit" Hunter could take Specialist Baker out for a lunch of glazed chicken and warm pita bread and try to persuade him that his brain damage is no big deal. Maybe it is Hunter who is brain damaged? Too much time at altitude without oxygen Congressman?

The Michigan Jihad: The Case of Ahmad and Musa Jibril

By Evan Kohlmann

A father-son Islamist duo convicted of fraud charges in Michigan have resurfaced in the media, evidently as a result of a 10-page document filed by prosecutors in preparation for an upcoming sentencing hearing.  According to that document, the men were encouraging "anti-American training for a holy war."  The younger of the two men, Ahmad Jibril, was also accused of operating a particularly militant anti-American Internet website--alsalafyoon.com--that urged visitors to "wage holy war."  In an October 2003 article published in Front Page Magazine, I cited several items prominently posted by Jibril on alsalafyoon, including a poem (labeled simply "AL-JIHAD") that read:

"Yes, you're neither Sheikh Osama [Bin Laden] nor Mullah Umar, but don't forget you're a[n] Ummat of fighter Apostle.  Why are you waiting go and thrust in the lines of enemies and have them crushed.  Hit them on the neck and send them to hell... Give them a knife and a bulletful of gun... Fight, Fight, & Fight, it must be our aim."

Click to read more...

Switzerland Files Criminal Charges Against Saudi Businessman For Financing Terrorism

By Victor Comras

According to an AP source story (in French) coming out of Switzerland, the Swiss Federal Prosecutors Office has filed charges against an unnamed Saudi Businessman for his involvement in financing Al Qaeda. The case will now be handled by an investigative judge for possible eventual prosecution in the Swiss Federal Criminal Court of Bellinzone. According to the report, the Swiss government has also acted to freeze several million dollars in related bank accounts in Geneva. From the information provided in the report it appears that the Saudi in question may be none other than Yasin Al Qadi, past President and founder of the Muwafaq Foundation. It should be recalled that the Swiss authorities, just two weeks ago, had to drop similar charges against Youssef Nada as the evidence collected was deemed insufficient to turn the dossier over to an Investigative Judge (the Swiss analog to a US District Attorney). See my Earlier Blog

Meanwhile, al Qadi is reportedly bringing a new legal action in Albanian Courts seeking to unfreeze property frozen there. In October, Albanian authorities seized 22 apartment units and froze his bank accounts and other asset. Al Qadi had earlier convinced Turkish authorities to drop charges against him there. See My Earlier Blog.

Theology of "Economic Jihad" Continues to Drive Fundraising for Terror

By Matthew Levitt

On 4 May 2005, the US Department of the Treasury designated its 400th terrorist or terror financier. Such blocking measures are effective counter-terrorism tools, freezing funds and shutting key nodes in the matrix of terror financing. For example, they force militant groups away from formal finance channels and toward riskier and slower transfer mechanisms such as bulk cash smuggling and human couriers.

But at least one battle in this war on financing cannot be won by shutting down their front organisations alone. Authorities tackling terror organisations also need to address the militant theological principles, used to raise financial support for these groups. 'Economic Jihad' is a theme that features prominently in Jihadist fundraising techniques. The concept is simple: leaders call on their supporters to engage in what they describe as a religious duty to engage in Jihad, if not by physically fighting Islam's enemies then by funding those that do. Proponents of this idea base their position on a Quranic verse in Surah 9 (Al-Tawbah) Verse 41: "Fight with your possessions and your souls in the way of Allah." Several Islamist spiritual leaders have emphasised the importance of 'economic Jihad' as a religious duty for all Muslims, and some Islamist groups have raised tremendous amounts of money using this technique.

Let there be no doubt: cutting off the flow of funds to Jihadist organisations bent on carrying out acts of violence is critical. Shutting down militant organisations is an important part of that strategy, but undermining the theological foundation of 'economic Jihad' is equally important. Unlike the tactical process of shutting down fronts, however, denying terrorists the ability to raise funds under the concept of 'economic Jihad' demands a strategic effort to engage in the battle of ideas in the war on terror.

Continue reading "Countering the Theological Case for 'Economic Jihad' Is Vital."

What Spain's Arrests of Al Zarqawi Associates and Madrid Bombing Suspects Portend for Europe & U.S.

By Andrew Cochran

Walid Phares and I discussed the arrests of 11 Al Zarqawi associates and 5 Madrid bombing suspects yesterday on MSNBC - you can read the interview transcript and see the video on the MSNBC site. The stories on the Spanish Interior Ministry's statement on the arrests reveal the links between the arrests and how the Al Zarqawi group in Iraq and African jihadists are operating in a coordinated fashion, as has been discussed by Contributing Experts Doug Farah, Evan Kohlmann, and Lorenzo Vidino, and also discussed openly this week by a senior military official. Thirteen of the 16 suspects were Moroccans, and at least two of the other suspects were Algerians. This is consistent with the makeup of the core Madrid bombing group of Moroccans and Algerians. The prime suspect among the 5 arrested Madrid suspects, Mohamed Larbi Ben Sellam, was arrested in the same town as one of the Al Zarqawi suspects. Most of the 11 Al Zarqawi suspects were involved in funding operations through street crime (i.e., drugs and robberies), which is consistent not only with the Madrid bombers but also with the activities of three Al Zarqawi associates arrested in Germany this week. Remember that the Algerian GSPC terrorist group has longtime ties to Al Qaeda, has attempted numerous terrorist attacks in Europe and the U.S. (including the Millenium plot), and expressed solidarity with Al Zarqawi months ago. So the arrests in Spain reveal further coordination of Al Zarqawi's network with African-centered terrorist groups with plenty of recruits and operational experience - a recipe for future terrorist hell for Europe and the U.S. The arrests in Spain and Germany also further highlight that Islamic terrorists use under-the-radar mechanisms, outside of banking channels, to finance their operations, and further highlights, as Victor Comras notes below, the U.N.'s current failure as a effective counterterrorism forum. UPDATE: Rusty Shackleford reminds me that Al Zarqawi congratulated the GSPC yesterday for their Mauritania attacks.

Gingrich-Mitchell Task Force Hits Hard on Need to Reform U.N. Handling of Terrorism and WMD Issues

By Victor Comras

The Gingrich-Mitchell Task Force looked closely at the operations of the United Nations from a US interest perspective and concluded, as other international panels before it, that the United Nations response to the three most important challenges to international peace and security �internal state violence including mass murder and genocide, the spread of weapons of mass destruction, and the spread of international terrorism -- is wanting. The UN System, the report finds, �clearly has significant shortcomings as a tool for fighting catastrophic terrorism and the proliferation of WMD�and reducing those shortcomings could pay real dividends for U.S. and international security.�

Much of the blame must fall on the members themselves, the Task Force Report says, and on the way they interact within the UN Framework. But, blame must also be attributable to the institution itself. A principle fault underlying the UN�s weak performance is the absence of the means and the will to enforce compliance with international standards and UN resolutions. This is particularly the case, the Report says, when it comes to preventing the proliferation of WMD and in dealing with terrorism. The 1267, 1373, and 1540 Committees, the Report says, now rely solely on the power of persuasion and the incentive provided by offers to assist states in building their counterproliferation and counterterrorism capacities. �So far, even mild measures, such as �naming and shaming,� are widely seen as inconsistent with what most members believe should be the committees� cooperative, consensual mode of operating." The result, the report concludes, is a growing number of countries in violation of their commitments. To deal with this problem the Gingrich-Mitchell group recommends that the US press hard, within the Security Council, for the adoption of �naming and shaming� authority. �The United States should promote the �naming of names��that is, the United States should push the Security Council to have the 1373 Committee publicly list state sponsors of terror. It should also list those countries failing to make adequate efforts to stanch terrorism emanating from their soil and/or to share information they may possess about terrorist organizations and individuals.� When it comes to preventing WMD from falling into the hands of terrorist, the Security Council should develop, the Report says, a �menu of penalties� that could be considered in cases of violations.

Immigration Angle to the Enhanced SEC NS Role

By Bill West

Victor Comras� excellent post yesterday concerning expanding Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) oversight of US-based companies doing business in �sanctioned� countries poses some interesting potential relative to immigration issues, as well. Such companies doing business in sanctioned countries that file "H" or "L" visa petitions for alien workers might rightfully find those workers subject to closer scrutiny by the Department of Homeland Security (DHS).

Europe is Working on a New Terrorist Tracking System

By Victor Comras

Since the 2004 Madrid Train bombing there has been new momentum behind Europe�s plan to put together a shared information data base designed to deal with cross border threats of terrorism, drug trafficking, organized crime and other criminal activities. The so-called Schengen Information System II (SISII) is scheduled to be up and running by early 2007. When operational it will provide a whole new array of information in formats easily useable by security and enforcement personnel across Europe. This will include the ability to flag and follow persons of interest as they move from one European country to another. The data available will include biometric information making identification easier. The biometric data is now being collected through various channels, including as part of the new European Passport and Visa application process. The system will also use previously collected and collated background information such as criminal records, fingerprints and other historical information related to suspected criminal or terrorist links and activities. It will also be linked to a new common EU Visa data base that will help filter visa applicants to any of the EU participating countries. Promoters of the new system expect that it will also serve to enhance intra-European cooperation and information sharing related to terrorism and criminal investigations.

The current SIS system has only limited information and sharing capabilities and has come in for heavy criticism as inadequate to deal with the vulnerabilities resulting from the Schengen open border policy. The European Commission signed a $55 million contract late last year to build the new system and has won general approval from the countries participating, including those countries expected to join the Schengen system between now and 2007. But, the new system is still viewed by many as protruding too heavily into protected areas of personal privacy guaranteed by various EU rulings. Balancing these conflicting interests will likely engender further national debate and could delay the actual implementation of the new system.

Tightening Oversight over Companies Doing Business in Bad Places

By Victor Comras

Reports are surfacing that the Securities and Exchange Commission has finally begun to take action to carry out a mandate given it in the 2004 Appropriations Act (passed in November 2003) to take a more active interest in overseeing the engagement of American corporations in sanctions-designated areas overseas. This includes countries designated by the State Department as providing support to international terrorism. An Associated Press story put out today indicates that the SEC recently sent letters to US companies, and foreign companies registered in the United States requesting that they disclose any business dealings with terror-supporting countries. This disclosure request apparently also included business activities in other countries subject to US sanctions regulations. Previously, the SEC had taken a more passive stance regarding sanctions measures and terrorism-related issues. Following 9/11 the SEC Division of Enforcement commenced a review of stock and commodity trading activity undertaken prior to the 9/11 attack. They also worked with the FBI to circulate to, and obtain information from, SEC registered companies concerning any dealings they might have had with persons or entities on a confidential �control list� circulated for that purpose. But, the 2004 Appropriations Bill called on the SEC to look more closely at US business activities overseas. It also mandated the creation of a new SEC Office of Global Security Risk. There was concern that American investors might unknowingly be investing in companies with ties to countries that sponsor terrorism or that engaged in human rights violations. The Conference report to the 2004 Appropriations noted that �a company�s association with sponsors of terrorism and human rights abuses, no matter how large or small, can have a material adverse effect on a public company�s operations, financial condition, earnings, and stock prices.� The SEC was slow in setting up and staffing the new office, which only began operations with a director and two staff attorneys at the end of 2004/early 2005. SEC Chairman William Donaldson indicated to Congress several weeks ago that the Global Security Risk Office had finally chosen, and would soon procure an �online global security risk assessment product� that would help it refine its operations. This will enable the SEC to obtain and provide, in useable form, online disclosure information available to current and potential investors. In the meantime the Office has begun �to evaluate company disclosure and pursue enhanced disclosure where appropriate.� This is a subject which bears careful watching!

BACK TO THE FUTURE: DEALING WITH THE LOOMING DEBACLE

By Larry Johnson

by
Larry C Johnson

Wishful thinking is no substitute for empirical analysis and a policy grounded in reality. The Bush Administration is coming slowly and uncertainly to this realization, particularly in Lebanon. Now that the premature euphoria about the birth of democracy has collapsed under the weight of the political realities of that godforsaken country we will now see whether the Administration can keep its counter terrorism policy intact. For starters Lebanon is host to Hezbollah. In the past Lebanon was not identified as a State Sponsor of terrorism because it was under the thumb of Syria. That excuse no longer holds.

So what are our new pals in Lebanon doing? Setting terrorists free!! As my friend Pat Lang observed, "Nobody is saying anything about the dozen or so Jihadi activists who Saad Hariri bought out of jail last week. He paid their fines, bail, etc because he needed the political support of the families and other tribal associates. I guess he has been trying to "line up" both the Shia zealots (Hizb Allah and the Sunni ones as well)."

For people who truly want to understand what lies before us I recommend doing two things: 1) Watch the movie "The Battle of Algiers" and 2) Read the following "Report" by Lawrence of Arabia. It is Deja Vu all over again.

"A Report on Mesopotamia by T.E. Lawrence
By Ex.-Lieut.-Col. T.E. Lawrence
Sunday Times
August 22, 1920

[Mr. Lawrence, whose organization and direction of the Hedjaz against the Turks was one of the outstanding romances of the war, has written this article at our request in order that the public may be fully informed of our Mesopotamian commitments.]

The people of England have been led in Mesopotamia into a trap from which it will be hard to escape with dignity and honour. They have been tricked into it by a steady withholding of information. The Baghdad communiques are belated, insincere, incomplete. Things have been far worse than we have been told, our administration more bloody and inefficient than the public knows. It is a disgrace to our imperial record, and may soon be too inflamed for any ordinary cure. We are to-day not far from a disaster.

Michael Cutler on The Madness of the "Catch & Release" Program

By Andrew Cochran

Michael Cutler asked me to post the following comments:

I spoke with the reporter who wrote this story in the San Diego Union-Tribune last week and thought I would share it with you. He interviewed me in preparation for this article, but the story ran so long that my comments did not make it into the final piece. Nevertheless, he did a great job of reporting on the madness that is the "Catch and Release" program of the Border Patrol.

Law enforcement relies on deterrence in order to prevent violations of law. Sobriety checkpoints are established to not only arrest drunk drivers and seize their cars, but to also persuade drivers to not drink and drive. In order for deterrence to be effective, those who might consider violating the laws in question need to be convinced that the likelihood that they will be caught if they violate the law is significant. They also have to be convinced that there is a great likelihood that if they're arrested, they will be convicted of the crime for which they were arrested. Finally, they have to believe that the punishment to be meted out upon conviction will be great enough to deter their illegal conduct.

Now we come to immigration law enforcement. We have educated would-be illegal aliens and potential terrorists that there is only a moderate potential that they will be apprehended by the appropriate authorities along the border.

Both Lodi Suspects Denied Bail

By Daveed Gartenstein-Ross

Last Thursday, I wrote about the recent arrests in Lodi, California, where Umer Hayat and Hamid Hayat (a father and son) have been charged with lying to federal agents about the son's training at an al-Qaeda camp in Pakistan.  On June 7, a federal judge denied bail to the father, Umer.  On Friday, son Hamid was similarly denied bail on the grounds that he is a flight risk and a danger to the community.

The most recent bail proceeding is evidence of the attention that this case has garnered.  The Sacramento Bee reports that the proceeding "was moved to a ceremonial courtroom at the federal courthouse to accommodate a crowd of about 100 media representatives and spectators."  In the same story, Peter Bergen -- the author of Holy War, Inc.:  Inside the Secret World of Osama bin Laden -- has some relevant comments:

"If the allegations are true, it's significant," said Peter Bergen, who has traveled extensively to research al-Qaida and appears as a terrorism analyst on CNN.  "Second-generation" students of terrorism -- those coming of age after the Sept. 11 attacks -- have been somewhat common in Europe.  But they haven't surfaced in the United States, he said.  If Hamid Hayat's connections to al-Qaida prove true, they could signal terrorists' ability to recruit Americans with highly prized passports that allow them to travel more freely.

Edgy in Jakaarta

By Zachary Abuza

"The embassy has learned that as of June 1, 2005, there were plans by extremists to conduct bomb attacks targeting the lobbies of hotels frequented by Westerners in Jakarta. The attacks were to occur circa noon on an unspecified date," the US embassy announced in a media statement. The Australian government announced a similar warning on the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade�s website. Neither government provided details regarding their warnings. But the Indonesian National Police chief Gen. Dai Bachtiar provided slightly more details in his own warning: "Their [Jemaah Islamiyah�s] communications show they are intensively planning to launch more attacks." He continued, "We think Azahari [JI�s most notorious bomb maker] and his people are just outside Jakarta," Today, the Indonesian press reported that security forces are searching for five suspect vehicles � all with Jakarta license plates - in or coming from the city of Indramayu (along the northern coast of Java, 175 kilometers east of Jakarta). All this builds upon concerns raised several months ago when Indonesian security forces seized a letter from a Sumatra-based JI cell that informed the leadership that the 12 members were prepared to be martyrs and that the bomb materiel had been procured.

Bill West on Deporting Terrorist Suspects: "Al Qaeda and Al Capone"

By Andrew Cochran

In a column in FrontPage Magazine today, Bill West defends the use of immigration law to rid the U.S. of those suspected of terrorists, and Bill reminds us that it was on an income tax evasion charge that mobster Al Capone was eventually sent to prison. It's an excellent response to the Washington Post piece today on the same topic, which gives too much voice to complaints in the Muslim community about "zero-tolerance enforcement." As Bill reminds us, "Deportable is deportable. When it comes to being deportable, legally, there is no 'minor' or 'major;' there is only 'deportable' (or, in the current terminology, 'removable'). No deportation misdemeanors and felonies, it�s all administrative and only one finding if an alien is a violator � removable. There are then appeals and potential application for relief from deportation, and that�s what often ties up cases in litigation for sometimes years. (This is probably not something the immigration defense bar wants to be widely known.)"

WELDON'S WHACKY WORLD PART II: WHAT'S A DIVISION?

By Larry Johnson

by
Larry C Johnson

Representative Curt Weldon's performance on Meet the Press yesterday underscores how off base this guy can be. He is on the House Armed Services Committee, which means he is supposed to oversee the US Military. However, he does not even know the difference between a Division and a Battalion. Where is Radar O'Reilly when we need him?

Here's the exchange with Russert:

REP. CURT WELDON, (R-PA): Well, Senator Biden and I and the six-member delegation I took with us to Iraq were concerned because the level of training of the Iraqi troops has been represented to the American people as being much more competent than it is today. Senator Biden and I probed this issue aggressively with our generals and they agree with us that you have to define what the level of training, in fact, is. And if you look at those troops that have a level one capability, which mean they can operate totally on their own without backup of U.S. support, it's not the size the numbers that are being reported back home here in America.

MR. RUSSERT: How many would you say it is?

REP. WELDON: I think it's around three divisions.

MR. RUSSERT: Which is?

REP. WELDON: Was it 80,000, Joe?

SEN. BIDEN: No, it's much less. It's three battalions.

REP. WELDON: Oh, three battalions.

SEN. BIDEN: Three battalions. You're talking about thousands, Tim. Not tens of thousands.

My good friend and mentor, Colonel Patrick Lang offered the following insights into Weldon's mindnumbing foolishness:

Weldon and Senator Biden "probed this issue aggressively with our generals" and somehow the Vice hairman of the House Armed Services Committee didn't get the distinction between 3 battalions of troops (maybe 3000 men at most) and 3 divisions which according to the Iraqi table of organization quoted in the NY Times today would be about 42,000, not 80,000.

And then there was the famous Weldon portable nuclear device depicted as a mock up. Congressman Weldon showed this thing to a group I was with a while back. Someone in the group who had been trained as a nuclear weapons targeting officer asked how much it weighed. Weldon had no idea. The mock up weighed less than ten pounds. The aluminum foil that represents a dense shielding material like lead weighs little. The real thing would be very heavy. The Special Atomic Demolitions Munition (SADM) that the Army had made for Special Forces to use in blowing up bridges and such behind Soviet lines was the size of a foot locker and weighed about a hundred pounds if memeory serves. It really took two men to carry it any distance.

The ex targeting officer also asked Weldon what he thought the rate of irradiation of the person carrying the bomb would be. No idea there either. I would hazard the guess that if there were enough plutonium in that gun device to achieve critical mass, then the bearer would be receiving a lethal dose with sufficient speed that living long enough to get to the target would be a real issue. Maybe terrorists could be lined up in relays.....

Oh, well. As usual there is perception and then there is reality.

Thanks Pat. Could not have said it better myself.

Light Week for Congressional Terrorism-Related Hearings - U.N. Reform Act Scheduled for U.S. House Floor Action

By Andrew Cochran

With the U.S. House scheduled to act on several appropriations bills and possibly the "Henry J. Hyde United Nations Reform Act" (Acrobat file), it's a light week for open terrorism-related hearings (Word file). The House and Senate homeland security committees are scheduled to hold separate hearings on June 15 on chemical plant security.

WELDON'S WHACKY WORLD AND THE TRUTH ABOUT IRAN

By Larry Johnson

by
Larry C. Johnson

According to Congressman Weldon, Republican from Pennsylvania, the CIA is incompentent because it will not accept as fact the bogus claims of a source who is being spoon fed by a confirmed liar, Manocher Ghobanifar. No doubt that Congressman Weldon is a well meaning American, but he is clearly over his head in dealing with the realities of intelligence.

The conventional wisdom in Washington is that the CIA is rife with buffoons who couldn't find a rogue agent if you stapled one to their forehead. Fortunately this cartoon view of intel is not accurate. Unfortunately the fact that this lie keeps being repeated by the likes of Weldon ends up damaging the morale and effectiveness of the CIA.

Iran represents a threat to the United States. Both Weldon and the CIA agree on that. Unlike Weldon, who is more eager garner headlines than do hard thinking about tough issues, the CIA case officers have put their lives on the line to actually do something about the threat. Unfortunately they cannot talk publicly about their accomplishments. One of my closest friends was involved in a still classified attempt to cold pitch an Iranian intelligence officer who was being targeted by his own government. The Iranians tried to kill him for his effort. The fact is that the CIA has been working diligently behind the scenes and out of the limelight to recruit and manage reliable Iranian intelligence assets. And, best of all, we are having success. Weldon simply lacks the clearances to know what is going on.

The latest bombings in Iran may be a sign that the Sunni insurgency in Iraq also is reaching out to an old enemy to remind them that the ten year war is not over. The bitter rivalry between Iran and Iraq remains in place as far as the Sunnis are concerned. The Western media continues to spread the lie that Iran and Syria are working together to back insurgents. Au contraire. Iran has its own agenda and has been aggressively backing Shia militia. Some of the Shia militia have attacked Sunni targets. Sunnis with links to the insurgents now appear willing to spread the war to Iran. Expect more of the same in the months that come.

Is There Any Way to Give FATF Some Teeth!

By Victor Comras

By FATF standards, the organization has just completed a very successful three day meeting in Singapore. FATF and its Asia/Pacific counterpart organization both conducted a broad review of money laundering and terrorism financing issues. They continued, like the international community generally, to grapple with various aspects of the international financial system that continue to afford criminals and terrorists loopholes they can use to launder money and obtain and transfer funds to support terrorist indocrination, recruitment, maintenance and operations. These include the now well-studied alternative remmittance systems, such as hawala, and the use of cash couriers. They also include non banking institutions that deal in securities and high value commodities, as well as charities that raise and distribute funds. And, then, of course, there are those not- so-few jurisdictions that retain a lax attitude when it comes to actually overseeing and policing their own charities, and banking and financial institutions. All of these issues were discussed in FATF's latest annual report, issued June 10th, and will continue to remain on FAFT's active agenda. They will continue to engender discussion, best practices papers, and even new FATF recommendations, interpretations and guidelines. But unfortunately FATF will likely continue to give too many jurisdictions free passes when it comes to their actually carrying out these strictures. In fact, the only remaining FATF non-compliant or non cooperating countries, as they call them, are Burma, Nigeria and Nauru. And if these were the only countries with lax banking and financial oversight and enforcement, then much of the International Community's concerns about terrorism financing and money laundering would be well in hand. No, its time to give FAFT some real teeth. All countries which lack the means or political will to put in place and actually enforce current international counter--money laundering and terrorism financing standards and practices-- should be identified and subjected to appropriate international measures and pressures to conform. But, even when it comes to Burma, Nigeria, and Nauru, the 33 FAFT member countries have still not been able to agree on any real punitive measures to bring them in line.

The Posada Case ? Goose or Gander?

By Bill West

On Monday, June 13, accused illegal and suspected terrorist alien Luis Posada Carriles, who was born in Cuba and is a naturalized Venezuelan citizen, will have his initial hearing before an Immigration Judge in El Paso, Texas, where he is currently being detained without bond pending removal (deportation) proceedings brought by the Bureau of Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE).

Some Overdue Attention to a Serious Problem

By Douglas Farah

Well, someone is finally paying some attention to an extremely important story. The New York Times today has a nice piece on the growing number of sub-Saharan Africans now turning up as jihadis in Iraq. What is truely alarming is that about one quarter of the 400 foreign fighters captured are from that region. While the pipeline has been known to be open for the past couple of years, drawing militants from Nigeria, Niger, Mali and Mauritania, the intelligence community often dismissed or downplayed the information in my discussions with them. The belief was that EUCOM, the military command responsible for Africa, was hyping its reporting in order to have a terrorist threat in its theater of operations, thereby justifying increased military spending.

That sort of small minded thinking kept more attention from being focused on what is now being recognized as not only a problem but a potentially-grave threat in Iraq as well as West Africa. It is also the same small-minded thinking that led the FBI to dismiss out of hand public statements by Gen. Charles Wald, EUCOM's deputy commander, supporting my findings and more on al Qaeda's presence in West Africa and its use of diamonds. For the rest of the blog, go here.

Michael Cutler on Lodi arrests: Another Case of Immigration Violations

By Andrew Cochran

Michael Cutler asked me to post his comments on the case: Here is another article about the arrest of two men in Lodi, California (a father and son) on criminal charges and two other men, religious leaders who are citizens of Pakistan, for administrative immigration violations, all of whom are believed to be involved in recruiting terrorists to create terrorist "sleeper" cells in the United States. These arrests are consistent with concerns voiced by FBI Director Robert Mueller, Jr. when he testified before the Senate Intelligence Committee this past February about his concerns of terrorist sleeper cells operating in the United States.

I have several thoughts. First of all, the younger of the two men is a native and citizen of the United States. I am certain that there are many other young men scattered around the world in European and other countries, which again raises the significance of the Visa Waiver Program. If these men and women are born in countries that participate in the Visa Waiver Program, they will be elligible to travel to the United Statets without first applying for a visa. I have been a constant critic of this program and these arrests simply reinforce my concerns. The requirement that aliens seeking entry into the United States provides greater opportunity to better screen such aliens before they arrive on our shores. Second, as I have pointed out, the penalty for visa fraud in conjunction with terrorism provides for a maximum period of incarceration of 25 years. Aliens who are exempt the visa requirement cannot be prosecuted for visa fraud if they don't apply for visas.

The Lodi Arrests

By Daveed Gartenstein-Ross

This week two men in Lodi, California -- Hamid Hayat, age 23, and his father Umer -- were arrested on the charge of lying to federal authorities about the son's training at an al-Qaeda camp in Pakistan.  The recently unsealed FBI affidavit outlining why there is probable cause to believe that the two men lied to authorities can be found here.

The sequence of events leading up to this arrest began on May 29, when Hamid Hayat was taking an inbound flight from overseas to the San Francisco airport.  While in flight, it was determined that Hamid was on the federal no-fly list.  Hamid's plane was thus diverted to Japan, where he was interviewed by an FBI agent.  Hamid's status was eventually downgraded from "no fly" to the "selectee list," so that he could continue his travel to the United States.

More Media Appearances Today by Contributing Experts

By Andrew Cochran

The expanding California case, the Sami Al-Arian trial, and the normal pace of events are keeping us busy again today. Walid Phares was on Fox News and ABC Radio this morning; Evan Kohlmann is quoted in this week's "Terror Watch" column in Newsweek; Matthew Levitt is taping an interview for the Joe Scarborough Radio Show today and can be heard at 12:30 on WTNT radio in Washington (webcast link, free registration required); and Zachary Abuza will be on John Batchelor's ABC Radio Show tonight, which runs from 9 pm to 1 am on WMAL in Washington (webcast link).

Madrid Democracy and Terrorism Conference Documents Now on Internet

By Victor Comras

The Club de Madrid has just published the full set of the Madrid Conference papers based on the discussions and conclusions of its various working groups. During the months preceding the Madrid Conference some two hundred experts and scholars exchanged views via a system of password-protected web-logs. These discussions were continued in conference meetings and resulted in the final papers prepared by each working group. They are now available in three separate volumes. The First Volume deals with the Causes of Terrorism, including its psychological roots as well as political, economic, religious, and cultural factors. The Second Volume is on Confronting Terrorism and deals with policing, intelligence, military responses, terrorist finance, and science and technology.
The Third Volume concentrates on a "Democratic Response" to terrorism including the role of international institutions, legal responses, democracy promotion, human rights and civil society. There is a load of excellent material in these volumes for consideration by policy makers, practitioners, advisors, and scholars. I will be posting my own reflections on these materials shortly.

Lodi Terror Case Draws Attention to Alleged Al-Qaida Training Camps in Pakistan

By Evan Kohlmann

The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) has arrested a Pakistani-American father and son living in California after the son admitted to attending an alleged Al-Qaida training camp in Pakistan.  According to an FBI affidavit filed in the case, the younger man admitted to attending a "jihadist training camp" in Pakistan for six months during 2003-2004.  Since 2002, several suspected terrorist training camps affiliated with Al-Qaida have surfaced along the Pakistani-Afghan border in Waziristan.

Click to view video of terror training camp in Waziristan c/o Globalterroralert.com

Some Thoughts on Commodity Controls

By Douglas Farah

Well, FinCEN has finally put out proposed regulations on people dealing in precious metals and precious stones, a tacit admission at least that diamonds and gold are problems in the terror finance world. The regulations are very late, and were called for under the Patriot Act. But they are happening nontheless. It remains to be seen whether regulation will have any impact, or whether reporting requirements will simply add another layer of paperwork in a system where most of the paperwork is useless, unread and unused. Since 9-11, with the fear that they may be blamed for something later, banks have been filing huge amounts of suspicious activity reports and other papers, to show they warned the feds if funding for another set of attacks passed through their institution. The problem is, I am told, that the flood of paper is so huge that it is largely meaningless, because there are not the time, personnel and technical ability to process the information.

If the diamond and precious metal reporting requirements lead to the same situation, then it will be a hollow bureaucratic victory. Rather than regulation, I have been preaching increased intelligence and voluntary cooperation from the different industries. (To read more, go here.)

Contributing Experts on TV Today About New Al Qaeda Arrests, Sami Al-Arian Case (Updated)

By Andrew Cochran

Many of us will be on TV today to discuss the new California case, the Sami Al-Arian case, and other matters. I was on MSNBC at 1:45; Walid Phares was on Fox News at 3:40; Matthew Levitt is taping an interview for CBS News; and Steven Emerson will be on Dan Abrams's MSNBC Show at 6:40 on the Al-Arian case (all times Eastern). Daveed Gartenstein-Ross is on "Radio America" from 3-4 pm Eastern. You can find the criminal complaint in the California cases at Michelle Malkin's site - our tip to her. On Fox News today, Steven Emerson noted two good things in the complaint, that "there was intelligence on Hamid before he came back to the United States which is why he was put on a no-fly list and then allowed to fly pending an interview with the F.B.I...And two, the no-fly list apparently worked in terms of triggering his presence on the plane."

Steven Emerson on the Sami Al-Arian case: "Islamic Jihad on Trial"

By Andrew Cochran

Steven Emerson, with terrorism analysts Brian Hecht and Tally Aharony of The Investigative Project on Terrorism, are covering the Sami Al-Arian trial and prepared the following report for The Counterterrorism Blog:

The widely anticipated trial against former USF professor Sami Al-Arian commenced in the Middle District of Florida Courthouse Monday morning. In the most high profile, post-9/11 terrorism case in the U.S., Al-Arian and three co-defendants are charged in a 53-count indictment (Acrobat file) alleging their involvement in a Tampa-based Palestinian Islamic Jihad (PIJ) cell. In an attempt to secure the courthouse and deal with expected throngs of media and public attention, the U.S. Marshal Service cordoned off the perimeter of the building, placing large yellow barriers at every juncture. Heavily armed federal police monitored the entrances, creating a tense pre-trial atmosphere.

Although the defendant received abundant support over the years from diverse groups of individuals and organizations, when push came to shove, support for Sami Al-Arian at the scene appeared to be low. One local television reporter candidly revealed that the contingency of about a dozen pro-Al-Arian protesters were the same group that is present at almost every protest from environmental issues to anti-war rallies here in Tampa. Support from the Muslim community was even more underwhelming, save for a few family members and Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) official, Ahmed Bedier.

British MP George Galloway is an apologist for Islamic terrorists and a liar (UPDATED 6/8)

By Andrew Cochran

British MP George Galloway, who had the media elite eating out of his hand when he barked at Sen. Norm Coleman's last Oil-for-Food hearing, appeared on Al Jazeera on June 1 and let it fly. Fortunately, the good people of the Middle East Media Research Institute (MEMRI) were watching, and they've released an interview transcript and the video of Galloway's appearance. Read below how this toady for terrorists, this lackey for Islamic extremists everywhere, treats the elected leaders of four countries and the entire nation of Israel, and exposes his idiotic ignorance for the economic system that has produced economic growth and jobs for billions around the world over the past two centuries. He doesn't condemn the terrorists who kill innocent civilians around the world, from the Middle East to Madrid, New York City, or Jakarta; nor does he tell the truth about the murderous intentions of the Islamic extremist network. And this is the inspiration of the European left??!!

"Bush, and Blair, and the prime minister of Japan, and Berlusconi, these people are criminals, and they are responsible for mass murder in the world, for the war, and for the occupation, through their support for Israel, and through their support for a globalized capitalist economic system, which is the biggest killer the world has ever known. It has killed far more people than Adolph Hitler. It has killed far more people than George Bush. The economic system which these people support, which leaves most of the people in the world hungry, and without clean water to drink...Ancient freedoms, which we had for hundreds of years, are being taken away from us under the name of the war on terror, when the real big terrorists are the governments of Britain and the United States. They are the real rogue states breaking international law, invading other people's countries, killing their children in the name of anti-terrorism, when in fact, all they're achieving is to make more terrorists in the world, not less, to make the world more dangerous, rather than less. These are our priorities."

UPDATE, 6/28: Thanks to Clinton Taylor for sending me the link to his American Spectator column of May 27, with new evidence of Galloway's unique approach to the truth during his Senate testimony.

Michael Cutler on Islam's growth south of the border as potential terrorist breeding ground

By Andrew Cochran

Michael Cutler asked me to post the following comments for him:

I received this news article from an old friend, former colleague, and fellow Contributing Expert, Bill West. As you may know, "Der Spiegel," the source for the linked article, is a respected German newspaper.

Several weeks ago I cited the fact that the president of Brazil wanted to establish close diplomatic as well as economic relations with a number of Arab countries, a number of which are associated with various terrorist organizations. This article shows that Mexico is also developing its own significant Muslim faction. What is disturbing is that the most downtrodden of Mexico are the ones who seem to be gravitating to Islam. While many adherents of Islam are peaceful, the truth is that the growth of a large fundamentalist Islamic population may well serve as a fertile group in which to win members over to join al-Qaida. Additionally, members of al-Qaida and other terrorist organizations may find it relatively easy to enter Mexico and hide within these communities in Mexico either in preparation for running the all but nonexistent border between the United States and Mexico or in order to train and direct their new Mexican recruits who may well seek to surreptitiously enter the United States.

Switzerland To Join the EU Schengen Open Border Area: But There Are Still Terrorism Vulnerabilities

By Victor Comras

The Swiss Government has announced that it will adhere to the Schengen Accords and join the EU open internal border space. The "Schengen Area" now includes Austria, Belgium, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Italy, Luxembourg, The Netherlands, Portugal, Spain, Sweden, Iceland and Norway. The decision was widely supported in a Switzerland-wide referendum June 5th. Some 55%voted to remove passport controls along Switzerland's common border with EU countries. According to the federal department, Switzerland will join the Schengen area in 2008 when the Schengen Information System (SIS II) database is in place. That system will supposedly provide fuller access to a common data base for police and investigative agencies concerning criminals and terrorism suspects on the move. For the moment Schengen member countries must rely on a modified version of the original Schengen Information System (SIS) which has limited applicability to tracing the movement of suspected terrorists. The original SIS system was designed more to deal with criminal activity and fugitives from justice. This led France in July 1995, for example, to invoke a safeguard clause (Article 2(2) of the Convention) in order to reintroduce limited border controls to combat terrorism and drug trafficking.

Sami Al-Arian's Defense Targets Contributing Expert Matthew Levitt (UPDATED with defense motion)

By Andrew Cochran

The defense in the upcoming terrorism trial of Sami Al-Arian has filed a motion to block the testimony of Contributing Expert Matthew Levitt (downloadable Acrobat file), thus indicating (to me, at least) their deep concern over the impact of Matthew's testimony. The NY Sun reports today: "A court filing Friday indicated that a former FBI terrorism analyst who is expected to be one of the prosecution's key witnesses, Matthew Levitt, will testify about the group's ties to Tehran and Damascus. 'Tehran began paying Islamic Jihad millions of dollars in cash bonuses for each attack against Israel in the context of the second intifada that began in September 2000,' Mr. Levitt wrote in a summary of his planned testimony. 'On top of funding the activities of the Tampa cell, the Islamic Jihad headquarters in Syria plays a direct operational role in financing and facilitating acts of terrorism targeting Israelis and Jews.'" That summary is included as an exhibit to the defense motion and is avaliable here (downloadable Acrobat file).

$50,000 Reward Announced for Ansar al-Sunnah Commander in Iraq

By Evan Kohlmann

This from the Government Communications Directorate of the Republic of Iraq:

(Click to view photo of Abu Abdullah al-Shafi'i, c/o Globalterroralert.com)

"$50,000 Dollar Reward Announced For Ansar al Sunna Terrorist Leader Abu Abdullah Al-Shafi�i"

"The Iraqi government announced a reward of $50,000 U.S. dollars for information leading to the arrest of Abu Abdullah Al Shafi�i, widely believed to be the leader of the terrorist group Ansar al Sunna (AAS).   The group has taken credit for numerous bombings, assassinations and other terrorist acts in Mosul, Kirkuk, Irbil and Baghdad.  Al Shafi�i played a direct role in organizing and directing attacks that resulted in hundreds of deaths of Iraqi civilians and Iraqi Security Forces.   Intelligence sources believe that foreign Arabs under the direct control of Al Shafi�i actively recruit and train terrorists, as well as provide weapons and financial support for terrorist attacks."

"Purportedly Abu Abdullah al Shafi�i received his terrorist training in Afghanistan at a camp run by terrorist Osama Bin Laden.  Al Shafi�I gained control of AAS in early 2003. AAS is an offshoot of the terrorist group, Ansar al-Islam (AAI).�  The Origins of AAS date back to 2001 when several militant Islamist groups merged to form the AAI and established a terrorist base near the village of Khurmal, located in the mountains of northern Iraq along the Iranian border.   Reports referred that the AAI base was destroyed in 2003 during the last war against Saddam's Regime.   Evidence suggests that prior to its destruction, Al Qaeda terrorists used the Khurmal AAI base for sanctuary."

Congressional Schedule This Week: May 11 Washington Evacuation Incident Among Topics

By Andrew Cochran

This week's schedule of terrorism-related hearings in the U.S. Congress (downloadable Word file) includes a review of the evacuation of White House and Congress on May 11, as reported here as it occurred, as a result of a private pilot's sloppiness and willful ignorance. Also, the U.S. House Judiciary Committee will review the USA Patriot Act.

Tampa PIJ Defendant Sentenced in Separate Fraud Case

By Bill West

This past Friday, Sameeh Taha Hammoudeh, who is one of three codefendants scheduled to begin trial in Federal court in Tampa on June 6 with Sami Al-Arian for allegedly providing support to the Palestinian Islamic Jihad (PIJ), was sentenced along with his wife Nadia after earlier pleading guilty to three Federal felony fraud counts in a separate indictment that was brought last year.

Victor Comras's op-ed in Washington Post: "Following Terrorists' Money"

By Andrew Cochran

Contributing Expert Victor Comras's op-ed in today's Washington Post, "Following Terrorists' Money," (free registration required) points out that the lack of long-term success in stopping terrorist financing is due, in part, because "Turning intelligence into actionable evidence for civil designation or criminal prosecutions, has proved exceedingly difficult. There are heavy constraints on sharing intelligence and, even when it is shared with investigators, special efforts are required to come up with open-source evidence that can confirm the intelligence and stand up in court. This is why the Swiss had to drop its criminal case against Youssef Nada and al Taqwa and why even the successful terrorism funding investigations usually end up with plea bargains on lesser charges." Moreover, other publicly known sources of terrorist funding, such as Ahmed Idris Nasreddin and Yassin Qadi, and large charities, including branches of the Saudi-based Al Haramain Foundation, continue operations untouched. Contributing Expert Doug Farah pointed out here that there were few resources available to translate the huge pile of documents seized from al Taqwa after the 9-11 attacks.

USA Patriot Act Applied to Regulate Jewelers and Dealers, Recognizing Diamonds-Terrorism Link

By Andrew Cochran

The U.S. Treasury Department's Financial Crimes Enforcement Network ("FinCEN") has issued interim final rules to force "dealers in precious metals, stones, and jewels" (large Acrobat file) to establish anti-money laundering programs, pursuant to the Patriot Act and the Bank Secrecy Act. The rule discusses instances where precious stones have been issued for illicit purposes, including money laundering and possible terrorist activity. The rule represents official recognition of Contributing Expert Doug Farah's longtime work in proving terrorists' interests in the diamond trade, especially in West Africa.

Fox News: The UN Unjustly Fired Joseph Stephanides

By Andrew Cochran

Fox News has researched the charges that led to the UN's firing of Joseph Stephanides (the only person fired thus far in the OFF scandal) and found them wanting. Fox News reporters reviewed documentary evidence that Stephanides had acted on the Lloyd's Register Oil-for-Food contract only after receiving higher-level UN authorization for his actions. Our own Contributing Expert, Victor Comras was the first to question the Volcker Commission findings against Stephanides and to challenge the UN's decision to summarily dismiss him. His series of blogs seeking justice for Stephanides date back to February 10, 2005, just 4 days after publication of the first interim Volcker Commission report. His virtually one-man campaign on behalf of Stephanides now appears vindicated, and it's further proof that we can't trust the U.N. to tell us the whole truth about OFF.

Al Zarqawi death rumor (FINAL UPDATE 6-4)

By Andrew Cochran

Bill Roggio tells me that the AKI (Adnkronos International) site reports that AZ is dead. I had just finished a MSNBC interview, and they have picked that up but won't run it without more solid info. As I posted below, AKI quoted an Iraqi general about AZ's injury on May 11. UPDATE: The new AKI story says, "The Jordanian militant Abu Musab al-Zarqawi - al-Qaeda's leader in Iraq - died on Friday and his body is in Fallujah's cemetary, an Iraqi Sunni sheikh, Ammar Abdel Rahim Nasir, has told the Saudi on-line newspaper Al-Medina. He claims that gunfights which broke out in Fallujah in the last few days involved militants trying to protect the insurgency leader's tomb from a group of American soldiers patrolling the area. During a telephone conversation from the city of Fallujah with the Saudi newspaper, Nasir said al-Zarqawi was taken there after being injured in the city of Ramadi around three weeks ago, and may have been treated by two doctors who had worked with his aides in Baghdad. He said the two doctors had stopped a serious haemorrhage in al-Zarqawi's intestines, but that after his condition worsened last week, the militant died on Friday." UPDATE 2: Contributing Expert Evan Kohlmann, currently on travel, e-mailed me to say that AZ and Al Qaeda officially denied the story - will post a link to that site as soon as possible. FINAL UPDATE: Thanks to John Batchelor of ABC Radio for chasing this down with his network - appears to have been disinformation based on a clan rivalry in Jordan - the pros (like Evan and John's friends) didn't put that much stock in the story to begin with - the last twist and something to remember is that the recent Al Zarqawi audio tape was accompanied by a text message to bin Laden about future attacks outside Iraq

SORTING OUT THE IRAQ INSURGENCY

By Larry Johnson

by
Larry C. Johnson

President Bush and Vice President Cheney need to get a grip on reality. The happy talk about the "fading" insurgency in Iraq ignores some harsh realities that bode ill for the future of U.S. interests in the Middle East. The truth is simple--we are fighting an insurgency in the midst of a civil war. The civil war in Iraq is largely sectarian and pits Sunni against Shia. The advantage in this case lies with the Shia, who not only comprise the majority of the population in Iraq but are being directly assisted by their Shia brethren in Iran. The Iraqi Shia, while not a monolithic community, are cooperating with Iranian intelligence officers. The Iranian agents are providing money, intelligence, training, and hit teams. Iran's specialty during the past 25 years was organizing assassination teams that targeted opposition leaders. They are now bringing this skill to the streets of Baghdad. In recent weeks there has been a surge in violence against Sunnis who have not been cooperating with the current Iraqi Government. Clerics are being murdered.

UN Colleagues Question the Merits of The Case Against Stephanides

By Victor Comras

There was much corridor discussion today at the UN over the Secretary General's "Summary Dismissal" of Joseph Stephanides for his role in the 1996 selection of Lloyd's Register for the contract to verify humanitarian goods imported into Iraq under the Oil for Food Program. And the sympathy for Stephanides and his plight was more than evident. His UN colleagues are keenly aware of the intense political environment that surrounded Lloyd's Register's selection, and the minor role Stephanides played in this process. They are generally dismayed by the undue judgment and punishment being imposed on him. This sympathy was also clear within the members of the UN press, several of which attended todays UN Noon Press Briefing and began asking some hard questions. I include some key excerpts from todays Noon Briefing Below:

Newsweek's Reminder: Al Qaeda Financier Had Ties to Saddam Hussein

By Andrew Cochran

As Doug Farah and Victor Comras discussed yesterday, the Al Taqwa organization was heavily involved in funding Al Qaeda and other Islamic extremist groups. Newsweek's story on the Al Taqwa case discusses ties between Youssef Nada, founder and head of Al Taqwa, and Saddam Hussein. The ties are evidenced by the Decmber 2002 letter from then-Treasury Deputy General Counsel George Wolfe to Swiss authorities and then supported in a call from Nada to Newsweek. Newsweek: "The letter also noted that Nada had "personal ties" with Saddam Hussein...He acknowledged that he did go to Baghdad before the first gulf war to try unsuccessfully to persuade Saddam Hussein to withdraw his troops from Kuwait and that investigators had removed a picture of him meeting Saddam from his residence when their raided him in 2001."(sic) The photo of Nada and Saddam is posted on the Newsweek site. Whether these "ties" resulted in any money changing hands from Saddam's regime to Nada and Al Taqwa, and ultimately to Al Qaeda and other groups, is the mega-question that can't be answered in the article. We already know that Al Taqwa was part of the network of players in the Oil-for-Food scandal.

U.S. Financial Regulator Announces Bank Secrecy Act Agreement With States - But What About the Cops and Prosecutors?

By Andrew Cochran

The U.S. Treasury Department's Financial Crimes Enforcement Network ("FinCEN") has announced a series of agreements with state banking agencies to improve the sharing of Bank Secrecy Act information (Acrobat file). This continues a process begun with a January 10 letter from all of the state agencies and the American Bankers Association, disclosed first here on the CT Blog on January 12, in which they asked for "clarity and consistency" in BSA examinations. That effort gathered more momentum in April with a reply from the federal banking agencies and an agreement with the New York state banking agency. It remains to be seen, however, whether this cooperative effort between federal and state financial regulators and the industry will include law enforcement and federal prosecutors. U.S. Justice Department anti-money laundering officials have repeatedly told the regulators and industry that they should "do their job," and that prosecutors will pursue cases if the regulators don't catch weaknesses in BSA compliance programs.

Corby, Bio-Attacks and the War on Terror

By Zachary Abuza

The biological agent, a relative of the anthrax bacteria that was mailed to the Indonesian Ambassador to Australia on Monday was an outrageous act beyond all norms of civil society. The perpetrators must be punished to the fullest extent of the law. This incident is a serious act and one that will have significant diplomatic and political reverberations between the two states for a long time to come. It is a very difficult relationship to begin with. The incident says a lot about the complexity of the bilateral relationship, but it also says something about Indonesia�s own handling of terrorism.

Michael Cutler: Stop the Companies Which Conduct Business With Terrorist-Supporting States

By Andrew Cochran

Michael Cutler asked me to post his comments on the Bloomberg article about foreign companies which maintain operations in countries named by the U.S. as supporters of terrorism:

Yesterday "Deep Throat" came out of the shadows and was revealed to the public. The movie, "All the President's Men" chronicled the unraveling of Presidency of Richard Nixon. In the film, Deep Throat helped the journalists stay on the path that would lead them to the doorstep of the White House and at one point told them to "Follow the money!"

Our nation is embroiled in a battle for survival with ruthless terrorists who seek our destruction. Our government has attempted to cut off the money that is so vital for the terrorists to carry out their deadly missions against our nation and other nations. With banks such as HSBC and Deutsche Bank, which helped finance the building of the Auschwitz concentration camp during the second World War, obviously more concerned with profits than human lives, extending credit to the government of Iran, it is clear that these institutions must be dealt with effectively, yet the administration tiptoes around them.

Scapegoating at the United Nations: The Joseph Stephanides Case

By Victor Comras

The United Nations Spokesman announced this afternoon that UN Secretary General Kofi Annan had "summarily dismissed Joseph Stephanides for serious misconduct." The Secretary General's decision is based on the finding that Stephanides divulged information to the United Kingdom's UN Mission concerning the bidding process for the contract for verification of humanitarian goods imported by Iraq under the oil for food program. The charge stems from the Volcker Commission's first interim report. Nowhere in that report, however, is any allegation that Stephanides acted for personal motives or for personal benefit. In fact, the Interim Reports goes to great lengths to explain that Stephanides actions were part of a much larger effort by key Security Council member countries and senior members of the Secretariat, for political reasons, to divvy up responsibilities for monitoring key aspects of the oil for food program. Stephanides, then a minor working level UN official, acted with the full knowledge and consent of these players. Yet, his is the first, and, so far the only, head to role in the oil for food scandal. There is something wrong here. It starts with the basic fairness of the process under which Stephanides was charged, suspended, and dismissed. It continues with the total disregard of his response to the charges, which was supported by several outside credible sources, including key members of the UK mission; and it relates to the harsh punishment inflicted which, in Stephanides case, clearly exceeds the dimensions of the faults he is charged with. In fact, the whole bidding process, which he is accused of having tainted, was ultimately abandoned by the Security Council. Those in the know knew that it was only a charade in the first place. The key players intended all along that the various functions would be divided. Once the French bank, BNP, had been selected to administer the escrow account, there was no way that another French Company, Veritas (which had submitted the lowest bid) would be given the verification contract. Lloyd's Register had the support of the UK, the US and other key Security Council players. Stephanides was asked to help make that happen, and he did.

Place what Stephanides did, and was charged with, against account in the Volcker second interim report concerning Kofi Annan's son's relationship with Cotecna, which was in plain display before his father, and one can only wonder about the standards of fairness being applied here. In the end one must conclude that Stephanides is being used as a scapegoat to show that the UN means business in dealing with the Oil for Food Scandal so long as it doesnt taint or touch the top floor management. For more details on the Stephanides Case and the selection of Lloyd's Register see my February 10 Blog

Steven Emerson Predicts More Al Qaeda Arrests in U.S. and Discusses "Second Wave" of Al Qaeda in U.S. With Walid Phares

By Andrew Cochran

In an interview this morning on the Fox News Channel about the arrests of the two Al Qaeda sympathizers, Contributing Expert Steven Emerson said that "there are a lot more people like this unfortunately within the militant Islamic community than the U.S. Government wants to admit at this point." He went on with an unsettling forecast: "So there's a much larger or larger conspiracy here. So I think we're going to see other arrests in the near future." Steve and Contributing Expert Walid Phares discussed Al Qaeda's presence in South Florida on television there. Steven Emerson: "Al-Qaida has had a presence in South Florida and continues to have a presence." Walid Phares: "The first wave that did 9/11 had a presence here...The second wave will be more dangerous than the first wave because it is a piece of our society, people who've been recruited by al-Qaida and recruited themselves to al-Qaida. This model may be duplicated in many places in South Florida and around the nation."

The Islamist/Neo-Nazi Connection

By Daveed Gartenstein-Ross

Yesterday, Israeli president Moshe Katzav warned in a speech that Muslim terrorists may plan on using neo-Nazi groups to carry out attacks in Europe. "Let's not be surprised if terror organizations use neo-Nazis for carrying out terror attacks," he told the German parliament.

While there's little evidence thus far of operational links between Islamist terror groups and neo-Nazis, this is an intriguing possibility -- and some white supremacist groups have already made overtures toward the Islamists. For example, Aryan Nations leader August Kreis said of al-Qaeda earlier this year, "You say they're terrorists, I say they're freedom fighters. And I want to instill the same jihadic feeling in our peoples' heart, in the Aryan race, that they have for their father, who they call Allah." Going a step further, Kreis told CNN that he had a message for bin Laden: "The message is, the cells are out here and they are already in place. They might not be cells of Islamic people, but they are here and they are ready to fight."

Swiss al Taqwa Decision a Blow to Terror Finance Fight

By Douglas Farah

The decision of the Swiss government to halt an investigation into Yusef Nada and the al Taqwa network he ran is a serious setback for efforts to prosecute those suspected of funding al Qaeda and other radical Islamist terrorist organizations. News reports say the evidence available, and there is substantial, is not enough to convince the Swiss authorities they can successfully bring a criminal prosecution after investigating for more than three years.

Besides sources and methods questions in intelligence sharing among the Swiss, U.S. agencies and others, a huge problem for all sides is the sheer volume of documents that were seized when al Taqwa and its many affiliates were raided in the months after 9-11. Several rooms piled high with documents, many in Arabic, made it virtually impossible to decipher the operations of an organization that was designed to be opaque from its inception. With only two or three translators available at at time, and no way to determine what was important and what wasn't, the task has proved overwhelming. But it is not irrelevant.

The importance of al Taqwa, especially Bank al Taqwa and its sister bank, Akita Bank International, both registered in the Bahamas, is that the institutions were the financial centers of the Muslim Brotherhood. Here is my full blog for more thoughts.

Swiss Drop their Case Against Al Taqwa and Youssef Nada

By Victor Comras

The Swiss Prosecutors office has been forced to drop its criminal case against Youssef Nada and Al Taqwa for its role in financing al Qaeda and terrorism. The Prosecutors were given a May 31, 2005 deadline by the Swiss Court in Bellinzona to either move ahead with the case or close it. The Swiss government had been working on the case for over three years but continued to lack the hard evidence necessary to bring the case to trial. Swiss Justice Minister Christoph Blocher visited Washington earlier this year to seek additional information from US government sources on the Nada/Al Taqwa case. Its not clear how much info he was able to obtain. Unable to assure themselves that they possessed adequate evidenciary material that would stand up in court, the Prosecutors office chose, in light of the May 31 deadline, to close down the case. In my view this represents a major blow to efforts to hold terrorism financiers criminally responsible for their support of international terrorism. It follows a line of other judicial decisions around the world to drop criminal cases against other identified terrorism financiers such as Yasin al Qadi and al Barakat. It also underscores serious issues related to sharing potentially sensitive source/methods intelligence or to using such intelligence in open court proceedings.
Much intelligence information fails to meet the evidentiary standards required in court, including heresay rules and the right of the accused to have access to/ and to cross examine the source of the information. We must find a practical way to close the gap between intelligence information and useable evidence. (See my earlier oped in the Washington Post) These are likely the most important reasons that this case has not moved forward. Nevertheless, the Prosecutor's Office Spokesman, Mark Wiedmer, more diplomatically stated only "The decision {to drop the charges) result only from factors related to the investigation."