The Muslim Brotherhood and Islamic law in Europe

By Lorenzo Vidino

Over the last few days various contributors to the CT Blog have debated the real aims of the Muslim Brotherhood, especially in the West. Another indication of what the Ikhwan really want came just a few days ago from Sweden, where the country’s largest Muslim organization, the Brotherhood-linked Sveriges Muslimska Förbund (SMF), published a serious of demands addressed to all Swedish political parties (note the text-in Swedish only- “we demand,” not “we ask” or “we suggest”). Among its many demands, SMF stated Swedish Muslims should be given time off work for Friday prayers and Islamic holidays and that imams should approve all divorces between Muslim couples. Basically, SMF is asking for a partial introduction of sharia law in Sweden and the creation of a separate legal system for Swedish Muslim, something politicians from all sides of the Swedish political spectrum and moderate Muslim organizations have immediately condemned as completely unacceptable.

The Swedish case is hardly unique, but mirrors the demand of Brotherhood-linked organizations throughout Europe. For example, in Germany, the Islamische Gemeinschaft Deutschland (IGD), the country’s largest Muslim organization, has stated in its official publication Al Islam (here, page 48): “In the long run, Muslims cannot be satisfied with the acceptance of German family, estate, and trial law. … Muslims should aim at an agreement between the Muslims and the German state with the goal of a separate jurisdiction for Muslims.” In Great Britain, the UK Islamic Mission, has the stated goal of conducting a “continuous campaign for the establishment of Muslim family laws,” and to “establish Islamic social order in the United Kingdom in order to seek the pleasure of Allah.”

The Ikhwan organizations of Europe follow the teachings of Sheik Yusuf al Qaradawi, who outlined the methods that these organizations should follow in order to achieve their goal of establishing sharia in Europe in his book Priorities of the Islamic Movement in the Coming Phase. In spite of the European Brothers’ pro-integration public declarations, Qaradawi urges them: “Try to have your small society within the larger society…Try to have your own ‘Muslim ghetto.’” Qaradawi clearly sees the role that the Ikhwan organizations would play in creating these separated Muslim communities, running the mosques, schools, and civic organizations that will shape the daily life of the desired “Non-territorial Islamic States in Europe,” as Reuven Paz calls them. Qaradawi also suggests that sharia law should govern the relations among inhabitants of these Muslim islands, affirming that Muslim minorities “should also have amongst them their own ulema and men of religion to answer their questions when they ask them, guide them when they lose the way and reconcile them when they differ among themselves.”

Unlike the Salafis, the Brothers use a cunning double-talk when dealing with Western elites, advocating integration and dialogue. Yet the plans of the two movements, two different faces of the same coin, are eerily similar. Abu Qatada, al Qaeda’s “ambassador” to Europe was clear about the mujaheddins’ goal: “Muslims’ target is the West. We will split Rome open. The destruction must be carried out by sword. Those who will destroy Rome are already preparing the swords. Rome will not be conquered with the word but with the force of arms.” This is how Qaradawi sees the same issue: “Islam will return to Europe as a conqueror and victor, after being expelled from it twice…I maintain that the conquest this time will not be by the sword but by preaching and ideology.” Different methods, but same goal. Are we sure the U.S. government should use the Brothers as partners in the dialogue with the Muslim world?

Steven Emerson: Iran Capable of Terrorist Attacks in U.S. Anytime

By Andrew Cochran

Steven Emerson discusssed the new Ayman al-Zawahri video tape and the Iranian danger yesterday on MSNBC. You can see the interview on the Investigative Project of Terrorism website. Here is the transcript:

ALEX WITT: Let’s get perspective on this from terrorism analyst Steve Emerson. Good morning you to, Steve.

STEVEN EMERSON: Good morning, Alex.

WITT: True? Is that true? Have they broken the back of the American military, the U.S. military over there, these suicide bombings?

EMERSON: I think that is more wishful thinking than actual fact. Certainly the insurgency and the suicide bombings have hurt, but I don’t think it has broken the back, no.

WITT: Okay. What about three messages in one week? Any kind of significance or concern to that?

EMERSON: No. It has sort of been the trifecta of Al Qaeda this week. I would say to you that the fact that they all felt emboldened to issue videotaped messages indicates that they feel secure in their environment right now and they are trying to rally the masses and probably trying to instigate immediate attacks against the United States and western forces.

WITT: So to that end then, Steve, have these messages generated any kind of chatter that could possibly point to a terror threat to the U.S.?

EMERSON: I am not aware of any chatter. Of course, intelligence might have picked that up. But at this point, they have basically been very protective in how they get their messages out and they don’t usually create the same type of chatter that might have been used or created two years ago when they were more careless about how they communicated with one another.

WITT: So then what is your sense? I mean just your gut reaction. You know this world pretty well. Do you think they are increasing chatter among themselves or do you think that maybe the inspiration particularly from Osama Bin Laden just isn’t all that pertinent to what they do on a day to day basis?

EMERSON: It is too soon to tell. Remember, the bombings in the Sinai occurred one day after the Bin Laden tape. Of course that took months to plan, but the timing may have been linked- and I emphasize, may have been linked- to the tape itself. I think that these are really rallying cries. They are encouragements. They are basically saying, “This is a green light. Go ahead and attack,” and we will see in the next few weeks whether in fact they have had an effect.

...Especially Given BoNY's History in Money Laundering and Terrorist Financing

By Andrew Cochran

The Bank of New York's activities on behalf of LeT and IKK, as discussed in Evan Kohlmann's post, are inexplicable in light of its history of involvement with Russian money launderers and the Arab Bank. Just nine days ago, BoNY admitted to continued insufficient controls over money laundering, in violation of a 2000 agreement with the Federal Reserve and State of New York, arising from a celebrated Russian money laundering scheme. That agreement cost it $38 million in penalties. BoNY (along with other major NYC banks) has recently been pressured by the Treasury Department to cut certain corrrespondent banking ties, especially since Hamas on the PA elections, and BoNY ended a long-standing relationship with the Arab Bank after that bank was fined for funneling deposits to terrorists and closed its NYC office.

I'm mystified that an institution with BoNY's history would repeatedly jeopardize its reputation this way.

Why is the Bank of New York Collecting Donations for a Designated Foreign Terrorist Organization?

By Evan Kohlmann

As my colleague Victor Comras has written about below, this week, the U.S. State Department finally took the step of naming the Pakistani organizations Jamaat-ud-Dawa and Idara al-Khidmat-e-Khalq (IKK) as banned derivatives of the Specially Designated Global Terrorist (SDGT) entity known as Lashkar-e-Taiba (LET). Last January, the Danish Institute of International Studies published a paper I wrote on the role of Islamic charitable groups in terrorist financing--including a lengthy discussion of LET, Jamaat-ud-Dawa and IKK. These organizations have a militantly anti-American agenda--and according to the U.S. Defense Department--provided direct assistance to Al-Qaida members fleeing Afghanistan in 2001.

Americans might be surprised to learn that--all along--the IKK has been collecting donations from inside the U.S. via the Wall Street branch of the Bank of New York (only steps away from the former site of the World Trade Center). The IKK's website advertised this arrangement openly in English: "FOR TRANSFER OF FUNDS IN US DOLLARS... Please transfer the amount on the routing as follows: To: THE BANK OF NEW YORK. ONE WALL STREET, NEW YORK. NY 10286, USA." Any funds collected by the Bank of New York were then routed on to an "Islamic Banking Account" held at Bank Alfalah Limited in Karachi, Pakistan. For IKK donors in Europe, a corresponding Euro routing system was also established, care of "Bayerische Hypo – und Veriensbank AG" in Munich, Germany.

It remains to be seen whether the Bank of New York will finally close up shop in its dealings with Lashkar-e-Taiba as a result of the latest State Department designation. This case is a reminder that interdicting international terrorist financing remains a major ongoing challenge for U.S. banking institutions and regulators.

Al Qaida targeting Fatah leaders?

By Olivier Guitta

Further confirmation of Al Qaida's expansion in Gaza which I talked about here, here and here, can be seen through the newly released fatwa of Al Tawhid and Jihad in Syria and Palestine, first reported by the Islamist paper Al Quds Al Arabi.

This group which pledges allegiance to Abu Mussab Al Zarqawi, and presents itself as the Al Qaida branch in Syria( i.e Syria and Lebanon) and Palestine, just issued its first fatwa. It calls for the slaughtering of some Fatah apostates including Mohamed Dahlan and Yasser Abed Rabbo. The Jerusalem Post confirmed today that leaflets with this fatwa were distributed in Gaza.

Dahlan in particular is taking these threats seriously and implied that Hamas might be behind this. Hamas of course denied. What is sure is that since Israel left Gaza last summer, Gaza has become a haven and heaven for terrorists of all kinds.

Pakistan Charity Jamaat-Ud-Dawa Added to Global Terrorist List, But Not Its Leaders

By Victor Comras

Last November American soldiers were working along side members of the Pakistan Charity Jamaat-Ud-Dawa to provide needed relief to the victims of the Pakistan/India earthquake. I wrote a blog at that time describing the role Jamaat was playing in this relief effort and their success in implanting themselves in the devastated regions. It was clear then that Jamaat was closely linked to Lashkar-e-Taiba (aka Lashkar E-Tayyiba), an entity designated by the United Nations Al Qaeda and Taliban Sanctions Committee, and the US Treasury for its support of al Qaeda and other terrorist organizations. In fact, Jamaat was established by the same group that led Lashkar-e-Taiba in order to circumvent the sanctions measures that flowed from this designation. Yet, it took the Administration another six months to get around to confirming this linkage and to designating Jamaat as a successor/partner organization to Lashkar-e-taiba.

The State Department issued its notice of designation on April 27th, 2006 pursuant to Executive Order 13224 which blocks all property, and interests in property, of Jamaat-Ud-Dawa and another linked organzation, Idara Khidmat-e-Khalq, that are in the United States or the under the control of U.S. persons. Perhaps one reason for this delay was to allow Jamaat to carry out its important relief activities through the winter months. Cutting them off during this period of disaster relief might have proved counter-productive. But what is still surprising is that no action has yet been taken to designate Lashkar's founder, Hafiz Muhammad Sayeed, who is also the head of Jamaat ud-Dawa. As I pointed out in an earlier blog, holding the leaders responsible, and penalizing them, is even more important and would be a much more effective step then seeking only to close down the charities they run. Experience has shown that you can’t truly shut down these operations unless you also put their leaders and organizers out of business.

Lashkar-e-Taiba was founded in 1989 in the Kunar province of Afghanistan as the military wing of Markaz-ud-Dawa-wal-Irshad (MDI), an Islamic fundamentalist organisation of the Ahle-Hadith sect in Pakistan. The MDI is based in Muridke near Lahore, Pakistan and is headed by Prof. Hafiz Muhammad Sayeed, who is also the Amir of the LeT. Its first presence in Jammu and Kashmir (J&K) was recorded in 1993 when 12 Pakistani and Afghan mercenaries infiltrated across the Line of Control (LoC) in tandem with the Islami Inquilabi Mahaz, a terrorist outfit then active in the Poonch district of J&K. Lashkar has established cooperative ties with religious militant groups throughout the middle east, southeast asia and in areas of the former soviet union. It is believed to have also been active in supporting the insurgency in Chechnya. The organization was designated as a terrorist group by the US Treasury Department in December 2001.. However, Pakistan, then a member of the UN Al Qaeda and Taliban Sanctions Committee was able to forestall a UN decision to also designate the group. Lashkar was finally added to the UN’s consolidated al Qaeda designation list on May 2, 2005, after Pakistan’s tenure on the Al Qaeda Committee had ended.

Zawahiri Tape Transcript: "To the People of Pakistan"

By Evan Kohlmann

Perhaps the most interesting part of Dr. Ayman al-Zawahiri's newly-released video recording comes early in the introduction: a claim that Abu Musab al-Zarqawi's Al-Qaida faction has executed no less than 800 suicide bombing attacks in Iraq over the last three years. The complete English transcript is below:

Dr. Ayman al-Zawahiri - "To the People of Pakistan" - April 2006

"...Muslim brothers everywhere: peace be upon you and the mercy of Allah and His blessings. The first thing that I want to talk to you about is the third anniversary of the American invasion of Iraq. We praise Allah that three years after the Crusader invasion of Iraq, America, Britain and their allies have achieved nothing but losses, disasters and misfortunes. They have become embroiled in Iraq in an unenviable way, despite Bush and Blair's continuous lying. And these losses and misfortunes only happened with the sacrifices of the Mujahideen and their enthusiasm for death in Allah's path. The group Qaida al-Jihad in the Land of the Two Rivers alone has carried out 800 martyrdom operations in 3 years, besides the sacrifices of the other Mujahideen, and this is what has broken the back of America in Iraq..."

Ayman al-Zawahri Continues Propaganda Offensive

By Andrew Cochran

The new 16-minute video tape by Al Qaeda Deputy Ayman al-Zawahri, entitled, "A Message to the People of Pakistan," is the third this week by Al Qaeda leaders, an unprecedented volume of bold propaganda. Our Contributing Experts will break down the tape and analyze it, as they have here this week for the Zarqawi and Bin Laden tapes:

Doug Farah: Zarqawi and bin Laden Tapes Show Growing al Qaeda Propaganda Strength

Bill Roggio: The Military & Propaganda Messages in Zarqawi's Tape and Zarqawi Releases Video Tape (Updated) and Osama bin Laden calls Baghdad the "Epicenter" of Jihad just as the Iraqi Political Stalemate is Resolved

Evan Kohlmann: Notes on the New Zarqawi Video

Steven Emerson: Bin Laden Trying to Rally Muslim Masses to Attack Civilians

Walid Phares: "Troubles" Behind the Zarqawi Video? and Bin Laden's "State of the Jihad" Speech (with the actual Arabic and translation) and New Bin Laden Tape: Ten Main Points

Zarqawi and Task Force 145

By Bill Roggio

The Army Times' Sean Naylor has a fascinating article on Task Force 145, which has replaced Task Force 626 and 121, and the hunt for Abu Musab al-Zarqawi, which I have summarized below:

- Zarqawi was nearly captured in Yusufiyah by Special Operations Forces nine days prior to the release of his videotape. Segments of the Zarqawi's newly released video were uncovered, and Mr. Naylor intimates the insurgent preparing to fire a rocket and was subsequently killed by small arms fire (or more likely sniper fire) was preparing to fire a MANPADS surface-to-air missile.

- TF-145 is comprised of Army Delta Operators, Navy SEALs, U.S. Army Rangers, the 160th Special Operations Aviation Regiment, the Air Force’s 24th Special Tactics Squadron, British Special Air Service, and British paratroopers. Left out are the myriad of intelligence assets likely assigned to TF-145. TF-145 is split up into four regional commands: West, North, South and Black.

- “The O-5 [Lieutenant Colonel] commander of each task force can authorize a raid without seeking TF 145 approval.” Operational tempo is high with over one raid per day being conducted per command, sometimes even higher.

Kenneth Conboy Joins Us As a Contributing Expert

By Andrew Cochran

Kenneth Conboy, nothed author, expert on Southeast Asian terrorism, and Country Manager for Risk Management Advisory in Indonesia, joins us today as a Contributing Expert. Mr. Conboy is responsible for all Indonesian operations for RMA Indonesia, in which capacity he manages risk and security management projects and confidential investigations spanning Indonesia and neighboring countries. Prior to moving to RMA Indonesia, he was Southeast Asian policy analyst and Deputy Director for the Asian Studies Center in Washington, DC, and wrote research papers for the U.S. Congress on U.S. security and economic relations with the countries of Southeast Asia.

Mr. Conboy is the author of 15 books on Southeast Asia and intelligence operations, including The Second Front: Inside Asia’s Most Dangerous Terrorist Network about Jemaah Islamiyah, just released. He has had numerous articles published in such newspapers as "The Wall Street Journal," "The Asian Wall Street Journal" and "The Washington Times." He has been frequently quoted in dozens of news outlets around the world, including "The New York Times," the Associated Press, and CNN.

Links to New State Department Terrorism Report and Tape Transcripts Now in "CT Library"

By Andrew Cochran

One of the features we offered when we opened in January 2005 is a "Counterterrorism Library" with important laws, studies, primary source documents, and important releases by our Contributing Experts. Click on the "CT Library" link in the "Navigation" box in the left sidebar to access it. I've now posted the links to (a) the 2005 "Country Reports on Terrorism," released today by the U.S. State Department (see Michael Kraft's post about this); (b) the transcript of the Bin Laden audio tape released April 23, and (c) the transcript of the Zarqawi video tape released April 27.

Sistani Rejects Militias, COIN in Iraq

By Bill Roggio

Resolving Iraq's militia problem has become a high priority for the Iraqi government and the Coalition. The delay in appointing a new government is directly related to the various political party's fear that former Prime Minister Jaafari was too close to Muqtada al-Sadr and his Mahdi Army militia, and would not reform the police forces believed to be infiltrated with militia members. Jawad al-Maliki, the prime minister designate, has vowed to dismantle the militias by integrating them into the security forces. The proof will be in his nominations for the critical posts of Defense and Interior.

Grand Ayatollah Ali al-Sistani, the senior Shiite leader in Iraq, has also denounced the influence of militias, "Weapons must be in the hands of government security forces that should not be tied to political parties but to the nation... The first task for the government is fighting insecurity and putting an end to the terrorist acts that threaten innocents with death and kidnapping." Colonel Austin Bay reminds us of Sistani's reluctance to interfere in politics, but has had to do so in order to guide the Iraqi political process forward. Most recently he has called for calm after the destruction of the Dome of the Golden Mosque in Samarra and quietly pushed Jaafari to withdraw his nomination for prime minister.

Sadr has so far rejected the calls to disarm, and in an interesting turn of events, the Washington Post's Jonathan Finer reports Sadr "has sent at least two companies, each with about 120 fighters" to the volatile city of Kirkuk. Sadr has no base of support in the city, which is largely dominated by Kurdish dominated units of the Iraqi Army.

While the government works to bring the militias to heel, the Coalition and Iraqi forces continue to conduct counterinsurgency operations in the region in and around Baghdad. Insurgents targeted and killed the sister of Iraqi Vice President Mayson Ahmed Bakir al-Hashimi. Hashimi's brother was killed in Baghdad in mid-April. Iraqi commando forces have killed Hamid al-Takhi, al-Qaeda's commander in Samarra. In Baqubah, the Iraqi Army fended off two major attacks, and killed and captured dozens of insurgents in the ensuing fight. Multinational Forces - Iraq breaks down the fighting:

Great Propaganda No Substitute for Real Victories

By Andrew Cochran

I agree with Doug Farah that the Al Qaeda propaganda machine is rolling at top speed. But sooner or later, they have to win something in Iraq - anything - and they haven't won anything real in Iraq for a long time. The same people who assert that we didn't have enough boots on the ground to control Iraq from the outset (and I count myself in that crowd) have to apply the same standard of strategic success or failure to Al Qaeda in Iraq and Sunni insurgents. Where are their victories? What do they really control for any length of time? What cities fly their flag? Killing people and blowing up infrastructure are not "victories." Right now, I don't see Zarqawi and the MSC really running anything anywhere in Iraq, they haven't for months, and a fancy tape can't change that military fact. Maybe that's why, as Bill Roggio said, "Zarqawi is shown leading the planning session, but there is no video of him actually leading and conducting a strike." Maybe he can't.

Additionnal info on the potential SDGT working in Congress

By Olivier Guitta

Here is some additionnal info to my post and the article I cowrote with my colleague Ilan Weinglass.
I am posting here a portion of the writeup we transmitted to the US Treasury last month regarding the potential Specially Designated Global Terrorist entity Mustafa Khalfi.
Khalfi is currently working among others for Congressman Jim Mc Dermott, famous for his 2002 Baghdad trip expressing support to Saddam Hussein.

Mustafa Khalfi’s Connections to Terrorism

Purpose of this dossier: To show that Mustafa Khalfi has links to Specially Designated Global Terrorist entities (SDGTs), and should not have been allowed to enter the U.S., let alone work at the US Congress because there is a prima facie indication that he should be designated a SDGT.

Mustafa Khalfi:

· Mustafa Khalfi is the editor of the Moroccan newspaper At-Tajdid, published by a Moroccan Islamist group known as the Mouvement de l’Unicité et de la Réforme (MUR).

· Khalfi is also a member of the Islamist Moroccan Parti de la Justice et du Dévelopement (PJD) .
· Khalfi is currently a Fulbright/American Political Science Association Congressional Fellow.

· As part of his fellowship, Khalfi is serving in Representative Jim McDermott’s (D-WA) Washington, D.C. congressional office.

At-Tajdid’s Connection to Interpal and the Union of Good:

· At-Tajdid has a link to the website of the “Union of Good” .

· Clicking on this link gives a choice of English or Arabic.

· Choosing “English” brings up a page on the Interpal website, stating “If you would like to make a donation click here,” with “click here” linked to http://www.interpal.org/web/101.htm . This statement is printed under the Union of Good logo. This is the only link on the web page.

· Choosing “click here” brings up the donation page of Interpal and apparently the Union of Good as a whole. This page contains the following message:
“IMPORTANT NOTE: Web pages relating to international donations are for individuals themselves to make personal donations to any of the participating charities. Any donation that is made to INTERPAL through this web page is distributed with the knowledge and approval of the other members of the Union for Good directly to the charities in Palestine that are implementing the work creation programmes.
This website is temporarily hosted by INTERPAL, London”

· Interpal is a Specially Designated Global Terrorist entity (SDGT) since August 22, 2003, pursuant to executive order 13224.

Zarqawi and bin Laden Tapes Show Growing al Qaeda Propaganda Strength

By Douglas Farah

What is interesting about the new bin Laden and Zarqawi tapes, besides some of the analysis done by my colleagues on the Counterterrorism Blog, is the fact that al Qaeda has grown increasingly adept at getting its propaganda videos quickly enough to be relevant to current events. This is new, and shows increased capacity and increased interest in keeping their message out in front, even it it may hint at internal problems.

Any insurgent/terrorist/guerrilla group that wants to be taken seriously in the broader world must have a medium to reach that world. In El Salvador, the FMLN, one of the most successful of recent insurgent-guerrilla armies had Radio Venceremos, which came on every day for several broadcasts of an hour each. People knew when to tune in and receive the message. The FMLN knew how important that link was and spend blood and treasure to protect the station, improve it and cultivate a loyal following.

In contrast, the FARC in Colombia has had no reach outside its areas of direct control, now mostly the coca-growing regions of the country. In part as a result of this lack of communication, the FARC has made few inroads as a political entity in Colombia. Certainly that is not the whole reason-the wholesale assassination of its political allies has certainly played a role. But the FARC has no method of projecting itself into the broader political debate, it only has violence, and hence is widely reviled.

Al Qaeda, both in bin Laden and Zarqawi, seem to be focusing a great deal of time and resources on staying visible and talking to their followers or potential followers. My full blog is here.

COMING UP: ANNUAL STATE DEPARTMENT TERRORISM REPORT

By Michael Kraft

The State Department will release at mid-day Friday its annual report on global terrorism. The reports have touched off more than their share of controversy in past years but they provide a unique and useful portrait of the international terrorism situation during the previous year.

The “numbers game” – the tally of whether the number of terrorist attacks went up or down tends to dominate the press coverage and interest among those in the counterterrorism field. Advance leaks to the press indicate that the U.S Government terrorism analysts tallied more than 10,000 attacks in 2005, triple the number in 2004.

But to focus on numbers, which actually are contained in a separate companion report expected to be released at the same time, overlooks the more important aspects of the report.

Zarqawi Transcript

By Bill Roggio

CENTCOM provides a full transcript of Abu Musab al-Zarqawi's videotape, titled "This is a Declaration to the People."

Small Steps in the Campaign Against the Abu Sayyaf

By Zachary Abuza

There have been two recent successes in the long-standing fight against the Abu Sayyaf in the Sulu archipelago in the southern Philippines. On 10 April Philippine troops announced that they killed an Abu Sayyaf commander, Amilhamja Ajijul, who allegedly headed the organization's urban terrorism unit, responsible for the 2005 Valentines Day triple bombings. He was also implicated in an October 2002 bombing in Zamboanga that killed a US Special Forces soldier.

Was Today's Suicide Bombing in Egypt Part of Planned Second Wave? (updated)

By Andrew Cochran

The newswires reported a twin suicide bombing outside of a multinational force base in Egypt, just 10 miles from the Israeli border near Rafah, in which only the suicide bombers died. But an attempt today by terrorists to cross the Karni border with a car bomb, which occurred just prior to the Rafah attack, is raising speculation among Palestinian security forces and in the Israeli press that the two events today were linked. The Karni border attempt was thwarted by Palestinian forces at that point, with an exchange of fire that wounded terrorist and Palestinian security personnel. A "large amount of explosives" were found in that car. "YNet News" reports this: "Palestinian security sources claim that there is a direct connection between the attack in Karni and Rafah. Palestinian security forces began investigating the two incidents, despite the fact that the second terror attack took place on Egyptian territory. A Palestinian source said that the PA was not ruling out the possibility that an extremist terrorist organization - one of al-Qaeda's offspring - is responsible for the two incidents. The source said that Palestinian security forces are continuing to scan the Karni area after the occupants of the vehicle, who escaped." And another "Ynet News" article quotes a "senior IDF official" saying, "We can't rule out that an internal Palestinian conflict may have caused the Palestinians to thwart the attack."

Moreover, "The Jerusalem Post" quotes an Egyptian Interior Ministry official as tying both events today to the Dahab attack: "The people who made the attack in Dahab and this attack are the same people. They are not al-Qaeda. They are Beduin. We don't know if they are all from the north." Another Israeli news source cites Egyptian sources for a report that Egyptian security forces have identified 3 Bedouins, two of whom traveled from Cairo the day before the bombing, as the suicide bombers who carried out Monday's attack.

So, were today's Karni and Rafah events a second wave planned by the Dahab terrorists to occur across the Sinai border against Palestinians and Israelis? UPDATE: The Egyptian Interior Minister goes even further, saying that this week's bombings, including today's events, were linked to the 2005 Sharm el-Sheik and 2004 Taba terror attacks. Quoting: "The information we have indicates that (the perpetrators) are Sinai Bedouin, and the latest operations are linked to the previous attacks."

The six degrees of al-Muhajiroun

By Jeffrey Cozzens

Evan Kohlmann's and Steven Emerson’s posts concerning the recent New York City demonstration of the Islamic Thinkers’ Society call to mind the involvement of other al-Muhajiroun-linked personalities in aiding and abetting the global jihad beyond the oft-discussed British suicide bombers of 2003, Hanif and Sharif. The recent trial in the United Kingdom of a group of British citizens accused of planning attacks in that country in 2004 sheds light on the former al-Muhajiroun’s under-researched and ambiguous role in the global jihad.

Muhammad Babar, a confessed member of UK and NY-based al-Muhajiroun networks since the early 1990’s, convicted al-Qa’ida affiliate and “star” witness in the UK trial, has labeled Omar Bakri Muhammad (OBM), the founder of the UK-based al-Muhajiroun, as one of his primary ideological mentors (the other being Abu Hamza al-Masri). Babar claimed that OBM was instrumental to his decision to emigrate from the United States to Afghanistan after 9/11 with the intent of aiding al-Qa’ida members and fighting against coalition forces. This move was very much in keeping with the ‘Covenant of Security’ theology often discussed by OBM, which stipulates emigration from the West prior to fighting against it.

It was allegedly in an al-Qa’ida-linked camp in Malakand, Pakistan, that Babar met the key defendants of the trial, supposedly aiding them in bomb-making and in attempts to smuggle explosives back into the UK. Interestingly, Babar has been tied to Muhammad Siddique Khan, the apparent ring-leader of the 7/7 London bombings. The sum of this information suggests not only tangential linkages between multiple plots in the United Kingdom but also portrays al-Muhajiroun as both a radicalizing agent, at one extreme, and an overseas logistical facilitator for attacks on the West at the other. Accusations that Omar Bakri Muhammad has started a camp in Lebanon for the further indoctrination of Western converts prior to their repatriation should therefore come as little surprise - and it should receive tremendous scrutiny from Western intelligence communities. Even if indirectly, the former al-Muhajiroun and its off-shoots have aided and abetted the global jihad more than previously believed, and it appears that these continue to do so, if only under different names and in different venues.

The Military & Propaganda Messages in Zarqawi's Tape

By Bill Roggio

Abu Musab al-Zarqawi's 34 minute long video tape not only includes numerous political messages, as Dr. Walid Phares explains; but also contains information on al-Qaeda in Iraq's propaganda and military capabilities. Several of the military and propaganda aspects are covered below:

1) MANPADS. First and foremost, as Evan Kohlmann has noted, some of the terrorists standing guard during the scene in the desert are brandishing shoulder-fired surface to air missiles (MANPADS). While this indicates al-Qaeda in Iraq has this capability, very few Coalition aircraft have been shot down in Iraq. The likelihood here is Zarqawi's 'command element' has top priority in fielding these weapons systems.

2) Zarqawi and company are confident. There are a large number of al-Qaeda gathered in the desert, perhaps fifty to one hundred. Also a flat bed truck is pictured with a machine gun mounted on the back (this weapon system is known as a 'technical'). The location of the desert is unknown, but he is very likely operating far from Coalition forces. The location could be in any desert in Iraq, or possibly Syria, Jordan or Saudi Arabia. al-Qaeda in Iraq certainly was confident U.S. warplanes and surveillance platforms were not in the area.

3) Zarqawi's personal weapons. In each of the three different segments of the tape (speech, planning session, desert) Zarqawi is seen with three different weapons. All of the weapons look either new or well kept. The rifle next to Zarqawi in first scene is an AKSU-74 5.54mm assault rifle used by Russian Spetsnaz, paratroopers, tankers, and helicopter crews. This is the same rifle Osama bin Laden is seen with in his video tapes, and provides additional evidence that Zarqawi is modeling his insurgency after Osama bin Laden's glory days in Soviet Afghanistan, as Dr. Phares and Mr. Kohlmann have stated.

Notes on the New Zarqawi Video

By Evan Kohlmann

In the last few weeks, the sudden silence from Al-Qaida in Iraq gave rise to a wave of wild speculation over the whereabouts and condition of most wanted Jordanian terrorist Abu Musab al-Zarqawi. Comments from the son of Dr. Abdullah Azzam in Jordan--along with other similar rumors--caused some to doubt whether Zarqawi was still in charge. Today, Abu Musab al-Zarqawi issued his response to those skeptics, in the form of his first ever videotaped message carried to the world via the Internet. Aside from the content of Zarqawi's speech, there were a number of other important aspects to this video:

1.) Though Zarqawi refers frequently to his new coalition with Iraqi jihadists known as the Mujahideen Shura Council (MSC), he nonetheless continues to identify himself as chief of "Al-Qaida's network in Mesopotamia." This is a further indication of how the MSC is more or less a pr