Stating a blindingly obvious point that has somehow escaped the Western media, Army Major General Rick Lynch today said:

"Half the battle is in the battlefield of the media. The terrorists will use the media as a combat multiplier to hide their limited capabilities."

Common sense should have told even the dullest newsperson in the Palestine Hotel that it had no intrinsic military value other than as propaganda, yet each network dutifully carried water for the terrorist insurgency by replaying the "spectacular explosions" over and over.

Odd, given the broadcast media's fascination for brilliant flashes of light and shiny things that there has been an embargo of images from the 9/11 attacks for years. The excuse given is that they don't want to "inflame" the American public. Unfortunately, there seems to be no equivalent concern about inflaming the ignorant, bloodthirsty, and illiterate buffoons who make up the bulk of the "Arab street". more...

Posted by: Bluto at 01:35 PM | Comments (12) | Add Comment
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This week on Infovlad a new and old video were posted from Islamic Army in Iraq. So what is the big deal? IÂ’ll tell you, the new video lacked a header, singing voices and all the other post production details and fancy bells and whistles. Also after Al-Qaeda announced a weekly news program they have failed to deliver the goods. Add to that the capture of their main webmaster and you see why. See itÂ’s not so much the machines but the people to run them as well.

Then terrorists attacked the Palestine hotel attempting to capture journalists or possibly take the building for a 1970's Olympics style operation. They failed, while they killed some people the IraqiÂ’s and Americans they had much bigger plans. Also think about the not so obvious targets there equipment, producers and technicians. So while they are bound to pop up the 2 month drought combined with the low quality release make this Jawa feel pretty good.

Posted by: Howie at 08:45 AM | Comments (12) | Add Comment
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(Riyadh, Saudi Arabia) According to a report in the Arab News, an unnamed source said yesterday that a sweep of a Riyadh neighborhood resulted in the arrest of 13 terror suspects believed to be members of al-Qaeda. Notably, the group is primarily boys under 16, one is a 13-year-old boy, and one is the brother of an al-Qaeda member who is on the government's most-wanted list.

Notwithstanding the importance of rounding up any and all terror suspects, a rational observer has to be somewhat skeptical of the Saudi anti-terrorism commitment given the following:

The arrests in Riyadh coincided with reports of the release of a number of suspects involved in terrorist operations who had given shelter to terrorists after they repented their wrongdoing, said Abdul Mohsen Al-Obaikan, a member of the Shoura Council and the committee of scholars assigned to hold dialogue with the militants.

Consequently, it seems that the Saudi efforts to combat terrorism are more cosmetic than substantive. The efforts are also inconsistent since the Saudis have historically chopped off body parts for less significant crimes. If the terrorists lost a body part every time they were implicated, I guarantee that the glory and honor of terror would be greatly diminished and recruiting would suffer dramatically. No longer would people be predisposed to worship the memory of glorious martyrs in heaven enjoying their 72 virgins. Instead, they would see the martyr-in-training with one arm, one leg, or better yet, missing his manhood. In fact, the loss of manhood would be the recruiting deal-killer since the promised reward of 72 virgins would be meaningless. That is, unless the martyr-in-training found it appealing to have 72 women that he couldn't mount chewing on his ear for eternity.

Companion post at Interested-Participant.

Posted by: Mike Pechar at 01:30 AM | Comments (3) | Add Comment
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Able Danger is heating up.

I'm going to make this an open comment thread. I would like to know what the Jawa faithful have to say about it.

Posted by: Vinnie at 11:38 PM | Comments (13) | Add Comment
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(Cairo) As a result of being a target for terrorists, the popular tourist destination of Sharm El-Sheikh will be a city surrounded by a security fence.

From ArabNews.com:

Egypt has started building a wire fence around Sharm El-Sheikh's tourist spots in a bid to prevent attackers from crossing into the Red Sea resort that was hit by deadly bombings in July, a security official said yesterday. "The fence aims to block cars from entering tourist areas except from four designated points and thus prevent possible terror attacks," the official said on condition of anonymity.

The fence would span 20 kilometers, stand one-and-a-half meters high, and be patrolled by security forces, the official said. He said work started on Saturday but did not say when it would end. Once the fence is complete, access to the city will be restricted to police-monitored entry points, equipped with state-of-the-art explosive detection equipment, he said.

Will these groups now also denounce the Egyptian fence? I think not. The opposition newspaper Al-Wafd in Egypt, however, did ask the question and remarked that the fence would only attract terrorists. We'll just have to wait to see how the rest of the critics respond.

[Update 10/20/05]

(From Ritzy) It seems that news of the fence was incorrect or plans have changed. According to this report, Governor Mustafa Afifi of South Sinai said that 80cm concrete walls are being constructed to keep out the camels and prevent accidents. Evidently, terrorists will continue to be allowed access to Sharm El-Sheikh as long as they don't travel by camel.

Companion post at Interested-Participant.

Posted by: Mike Pechar at 05:27 AM | Comments (10) | Add Comment
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Meanwhile, back in the real world....

Jane deconstructs the antics of our allies the Yemeni gubmint, causing rivers of urine to flow through the mighty halls of that great power's hallowed governmental institutions.

Posted by: Vinnie at 09:05 PM | Comments (2) | Add Comment
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A posting at an Islamic forum on Oct. 3 relayed a command order to "the al Qaeda Organization in America" to strike nuclear power plants in the United States.

Centcom, which translated the original message, is skeptical of the authenticity of it, calling it a "fantasy threat" that would "go unfulfilled". However, a veiled threat was included in Centcom's statement alluding to the ultimate destruction of al Qaeda should they successfully carry out a nuclear attack on U.S. soil.

The message by 'Ayef', who claims to be working under the direction of an al Qaeda leader named 'Abu-Jandal', was directed to 'Abu-Azzam al-Amriki' (Abu Azzam the American)--named as the leader of al Qaeda in America--and other al Qaeda members in the U.S., Europe, and the Middle East. The specifics of the attack, the message implied, would be further designated by Abu-Azzam al-Amriki.

'Azzam al-Armiki' is the nickname of Adam Gadahn, the Orange County California native that appeared in an al Qaeda propaganda film last year. Gadahn, aka 'Abu Suhayb Al-Amriki, Abu Suhayb, Yihya Majadin Adams, Adam Pearlman, Yayah', is wanted by the FBI 'in connection with possible terrorist threats against the United States'.

Ayef claims to be an aide to al Qaeda leader in Iraq, Abu Musab al-Zarqawi. The statement further claimed the al Qaeda has not been in communication with 'Ja'far al-Tayyar' who had been previously assigned the task of blowing up a nuclear reactor in the U.S. for several years. Ja'far al-Tayyar has been presumed killed or captured by the U.S., the message says.

'Ja'far al-Tayyar' is the nickname of Adnan El-Shukrijumah, a naturalized U.S. citizen who set off alarms last year when the FBI announced he was the leader of a suspected plot to detonate a dirty bomb in the U.S.

World Net Daily today ran a story about El-Shukrijumah in which they allege he is the mastermind of a plot to detonate full blown nuclear bombs in the U.S.

Centcom also published the e-mail of the al Qaeda terrorist, 'Ayef', who posted the message.

Here is your chance to e-mail a terrorist with the reminder that if you receive an e-mail back from them, please promptly FORWARD it to me: cade7722@yahoo.com and boda_8899@hotmail.com

Posted by: Rusty at 06:00 PM | Comments (9) | Add Comment
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I was able to catch Mr. Bush's speech via a stream. He presented the Terrorists as they are. But then again we already knew that. Below find a link to the entire transcript and a few choice quotes. If anyone anywhere has any doubt about the GWOT read it!!!!

Transcript via The Whitehouse.

We know the vision of the radicals because they've openly stated it -- in videos, and audiotapes, and letters, and declarations, and websites. First, these extremists want to end American and Western influence in the broader Middle East, because we stand for democracy and peace, and stand in the way of their ambitions. Al Qaeda's leader, Osama bin Laden, has called on Muslims to dedicate, quote, their "resources, sons and money to driving the infidels out of their lands." Their tactic to meet this goal has been consistent for a quarter-century: They hit us, and expect us to run. They want us to repeat the sad history of Beirut in 1983, and Mogadishu in 1993 -- only this time on a larger scale, with greater consequences

Posted by: Howie at 12:14 PM | Comments (27) | Add Comment
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Slate:

But if JI were rational, it wouldn't have attacked the bars and clubs and beaches of Kuta and Jimbaran in the first place. Indonesia is a mainly Muslim society, whose government takes a stern line against the war in Iraq and even Afghanistan

Ok so Hitchens has that part right why is he the only one on the left with his eyes open?

Dr. Sanity has a good explanation.

Hitchens is being logical. Hitchens is trying to appeal to the principles that he believes are the foundation for Leftist thoughtÂ…Â… He is able to see the essential truth about the Islamofascists, and has accordingly supported the war in Afghanistan and the removal of Saddam. He thinks he is supporting the principles of his ideologyÂ… Â… if he thinks for one moment that people like George Galloway and the members of ANSWER or the rest of the lunatic fringe of the Left give one whit for any rational arguments--he is deluding himself

Rational thought has never been a strong point of the Left or the terrorists. The terrorist will blow you up right in the middle of the apology and then dance on your broken body afterward. Trying to ascribe reason to an enemy that doesnÂ’t play that is just silly. The only reason to try and understand the terrorists is so you can kill them first. Oh yes they can use reason or emotion as a tool for the deception of the infidel. Let me be clear it's the terrorists and those who follow them. Don't want to be like evil or anything.

Others: Tim Blair and normblog.

Posted by: Howie at 12:57 PM | Comments (5) | Add Comment
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