Security officials are warning that an al Qaeda attack is likely at the upcoming Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) summit meeting scheduled to meet in mid-November in Busan, Korea. President Bush is scheduled to attend the meeting.

While there will be heavy security around APEC officials, including President Bush, recent attacks in London indicate that terrorist may target soft-targets, such as transportation centers, or the capital of Seoul. Let's hope the South Koreans pull together security before the meeting takes place.

Al Qaeda has threatened South Korea in the past and a ring of Religion of Peace militants was broken up in that country last year. Members of al Qaeda's Southeast Asian sister-organization, Jemaah Islamiyah, would probably be those most likely to carry out the attacks. more...

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(Lodi, California) The Lodi Muslim community has been rocked by two prominent citizens being implicated in a federal terrorism investigation.

From ABC7News.com:

Hamid Hayat is accused of lying about attending a terrorist training camp in Pakistan. His father, Umer Hayat, was also arrested for lying about his son's involvement.

Muslim leaders in Lodi say since those arrests, a man who'd forged deep ties in the community has now disappeared. Federal prosecutors have revealed they did have a cooperating witness in Lodi, but did not name the person.

In my estimation, we would probably benefit by having more moles.

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(Cairo, Egypt) According to the Egyptian Interior Ministry, two senior police officers were killed by land mines during the massive manhunt for terrorists in the Sinai.

From the Arab News:

Maj. Gen. Mahmoud Adel and Lt. Col. Omar Abdel Moneim were the highest ranked police officers killed in Egypt since a violent insurgency in the mid-1990s and the first slain since about 4,000 security personnel launched a massive sweep Sunday of the northern Sinai for suspects linked to July's triple Sharm El-Sheik attacks and October's bombings at the Taba and nearby Ras Shitan resorts.

Yesterday's blasts occurred after two land mines exploded on the 1,800-meter high Halal mountain, about 60 kilometers south of the Mediterranean coastal town of El-Arish, the Interior Ministry said in a statement.

Also worthy of mentioning is that the indigenous Bedouin tribesmen, steeped in knowledge of hideouts and smuggling routes, have emerged as key suspects sometimes and valuable informers at other times. However, in general, it's believed that the tribesmen collaborate with the terrorists at a level less than originally thought due to significantly different ideologies and interests. For instance, the autonomous Bedouins do not like to have the police looking at their affairs which is exactly what happens if they collaborate with the terrorists. So, unless there are family ties, I suspect the tribesmen don't provide a lot of help to the terrorists.

Posted by: Mike Pechar at 02:58 PM | Comments (1) | Add Comment
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Knowing your enemy is one of the most important parts of waging any war. If you don't know anything about the person you are fighting, they can get away with nearly anything because everything they do will be a surprise. Good knowledge of their personalities as well as their tactics can lead to easily won battles and shorten the necessary combat time.

Lack of knowledge can also lead to fatal mistakes when dealing with your enemy. Two New York Times writers are asking the United States to make just such a fatal mistake. Scott Gerwher and Nina Hachigian have said that in Iraqi prisons, maybe we should "try a little tenderness." By this, they are referring to the practice, during the Viet Nam war, of "turning" prisoners by offering them better and more rations, freedoms and other rewards for information and good behavior. At that time, the system was successful in converting some prisoners and obtaining information from others. As I haven't had time to look it up, I don't know exactly how successful it was, though.

But to propose the same treatment for terrorist POWs is not only wrong, but horribly dangerous. We are simply dealing with a completely different class of people here. While some communist fighters (I use some loosely because I'm not currently aware of the exact figures) were hardcore ideologues, others were just soldiers. And still others were conscripts who had no wish to be there fighting at all. Muslim terrorists, however, are by definition, complete zealots. All of them are so committed to their cause that they are ready to blow themselves up or participate in other types of suicidal attacks in order to kill or injure a few Americans. They aren't just fighting against us because their "generals" ordered them to. They are, each and every one, radically committed to our complete annihilation. That's not to say that the entire Muslim world feels this way. Obviously they don't or we wouldn't be in Iraq to begin with.

This isn't an army that we're dealing with. At least not in any conventional sense of the word. It's a loose confederation of extremists who share the same goal. When they are captured, they continue to be as hostile as possible. Attempting to turn them will not only not work, but will put our troops in unnecessarily dangerous situations as these prisoners attempt to use their newfound kindness against our troops.

As the writers continue to explain about this tactic and the history behind it, they provide, unknowingly, one of the prime reasons that it would fail in Iraq.

So what does this have to do with Iraq? While Chieu Hoi was geared to counter a Communist threat, it was based on universal principles of counterinsurgency that could easily be applied to the current struggle. In fact, Chieu Hoi was something of an import in its own right: it was the brainchild of three men with long experience battling rebels.

We are not fighting a counterinsurgency. The men we are fighting are not rebels. Not in the traditional sense of the word. To label this as an insurgency would indicate that the terrorists we are fighting have some sort of legitimate claim on the Iraqi government or at least some claim to even be in Iraq. But that is not the case. The majority of the terrorists we are fighting are coming from other countries. Their reasons for fighting have nothing to do with insurgency or rebellion.

They designed Chieu Hoi to focus on changing the underlying attitudes of the subjects, not simply on trying to control their behavior. Empirical research in social psychology reveals that efforts to directly control behavior through coercion or bribery usually leave underlying attitudes intact, or even harden them. Thus putting a gun to a man's head and instructing him to support a particular political ideology will work only as long as the gun is present and he is being watched. The preferred method for long-term change is instilling sincere belief in the new political ideology, making the gun and monitoring unnecessary.

Once again, there are numerous problems with the statements above. First and foremost, we are not fighting a political ideology. We are fighting a religious ideology. Regardless what you would like to think, fighting with the terrorists is strictly a religious war. They believe that their religion demands our complete destruction and they are not going to stop at anything short of that.

Which brings us back around to my original point. You can't "deprogram" these people. Religious fanaticism is one of the strongest psychological forces known. Why else would hundreds of people drink poisoned kool-aid?

In addition, running our prisons under the Chieu Hoi model could help reverse the terrible propaganda defeat suffered with the revelations of torture at Abu Ghraib. Nongovernmental groups like the International Red Cross and Amnesty International would praise America, bringing more international support.

I don't buy that for a second. International "aid" groups are not going to praise us no matter what we do. And the whole point in being in Iraq isn't get get a pat on the head from Amnesty International. If that's our motivation, then we need some serious self-evaluation.

The whole idea of "deprogramming" the Iraqi prisoners is, to me, laughable enough that I don't know why a major paper is even taking it seriously enough to run it. But considering the Times hasn't even bothered to run a correction for Krugman's lies of the past two weeks, I guess I shouldn't be surprised. I'm just thankful that they aren't the ones making policy decisions.

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1 We can also thank God that the Bush administration presumably doesn't consult the NY Times for policy advice.

Posted by: Joshua at August 25, 2005 09:22 AM (XPnN/)

2 The left worships at the alter of government, but I wonder where the moonbats like these writers go for spiritual guidance, probably the AP.

Posted by: bill at August 25, 2005 09:36 AM (7evkT)

3 Drew, you make some good points. But this approach is already being taken at Gitmo. And all it has yielded is a few prisoners acting more cooperatively while they're there. As soon as they're released though, most go right back to the same old jihadi behavior and start screaming about their mistreatment. These people, Scott and Nina, are maybe under the assumption that techniques in raising children will work for jihadis? It doesn't even always work on children.

Posted by: Oyster at August 25, 2005 09:44 AM (fl6E1)

4 Heh. I can't recall one time that talking reasonably and offering rewards worked on my 14 year old.

Posted by: Drew at August 25, 2005 09:50 AM (Ml8z/)

5 Michael Yon talks about some baddies who were let out of Abu Ghraib. LTC Kurilla was shot trying to apprehend them in a training exercise. At least one of the terrorists was eunechized.

Posted by: Marcus Aurelius at August 25, 2005 06:16 PM (6IMFK)

6 Damn whinny bunch of liberals in the left-wing news media especialy the New York Pravda? what do they want for them a cell that would put the WALDORF ASTORIA to shame?

Posted by: sandpiper at August 27, 2005 05:25 PM (qMAo+)

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A United Nations official has said that Great Britain will be cited for "human rights violations" if the UK goes ahead with plans to deport renegade clerics and terrorist sympathizers. From the Guardian (UK):

A senior UN representative last night threatened to cite the British government for violation of human rights over its planned deportations of alleged terrorist sympathisers.

Manfred Novak, the UN human rights commission's special investigator on torture, told the Guardian he is seeking permission through the Foreign Office to visit Britain to discuss the issue with the home secretary, Charles Clarke.

In a statement on Tuesday night, Prof Novak said that the government's intention to return radical preachers to their countries of origin, even though some of those countries have a track record of human rights abuses, "reflects a tendency in Europe to circumvent the international obligation not to deport anybody if there is a serious risk that he or she might be subjected to torture".

The Dread Pundit Bluto thinks it's time and past time for the US Justice Department to prosecute the UN under the RICO (Racketeering Influenced and Corrupt Organizations) Act.

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With adequate evidence that the Sinai Peninsula is a hotbed for terrorists, several thousand Egyptian police supported with armored vehicles were mobilized yesterday to search and apprehend perpetrators and anyone with information. The sweep started in the towns of El-Arish and Sheikh Zuayed and a total of about 500 individuals were detained for questioning. El-Arish has been identified as an explosives smuggling center.

In addition to the towns, security forces fanned out on the desert in the operation which is expected to take several days. The manhunt has been called open-ended, whatever that means. Hopefully, it means that they will continue searching and apprehending terrorists until there are none residing anywhere outside the comfy walls of Egyptian prisons.

Companion at I-P.

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Rarely does it please me to post images of dead people. This is an exception. Two days ago the Saudis killed two wanted terrorists, including Saleh Muhammad al-Aoofi (Oufi), the leader of al Qaeda in Saudi Arabia. Saleh Muhammad al-Aoofi was also suspected of involvement in the gruesome beheading murder of American Paul Johnson. Paul Johnson's head was found in al-Aoofi's freezer:

Saudi security forces have killed al-Qaida's top leader in the country as well as five other suspected Islamic insurgents in gun battles.

Thursday's confrontation took place in the capital and Medina, where Prophet Muhammad is buried, in the first major anti-terrorist sweep since King Abdullah took the throne this month, the authorities said.

Saleh Muhammad al-Aoofi, the kingdom's most wanted man, had been leading al-Qaida's branch in Saudi Arabia for more than two years and was believed to have been involved in the June 2004 kidnapping and beheading of American engineer Paul Johnson.

Weeks after Johnson's slaying, Saudi police found his head in a freezer in an apartment where al-Aoofi had been hiding.

Al-Aoofi's death was the latest victory claimed by Saudi authorities in their crackdown on Islamic insurgents in the kingdom, launched after a wave of deadly attacks that began in May 2003.

Saudi police have killed or captured many of the figures on the kingdom's list of most wanted insurgents, and Abdullah vowed to push ahead with the crackdown when he was elevated to king in early August after the death of his half-brother Fahd.

Three more al Qaeda terrorists were captured today in Saudi Arabia. It's been a good week in the Kingdom.

Oh, and if you think I'm being insensitive by showing these images, then surely you haven't seen the propaganda video made by al Qaeda in Saudi Arabia of the Paul Johnson beheading. Click here to see what this piece of human filth was involved in (WARNING: GRAPHIC IMAGE).

WARNING: Graphic images below. more...

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http://sitealansar66.tripod.com/

Who could possibly be responsible? more...

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Wait a second, you mean Goldstein is a J-O-O? Wow, that one came way out of left field......

UPDATE: This post is in the spirit of our e-mail a terrorist conceptual series. Follow the link and e-mail an antisemetic asshole.

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Here's some good news.

From Reuters:

Saudi security forces killed the leader of the kingdom's al Qaeda group in a clash in the holy city of Medina on Thursday, a security source said.

He said security forces had killed Saleh al-Awfi, who was believed to have taken over leadership of al Qaeda in Saudi Arabia last year.

I'm going to have a celebratory donut.

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Three men who attended the same mosque in the L.A. area have been arrested in connection with a terrorist plot to blow up the Israeli consulate and National Guard facilities. Jeff Quinton is covering the story here.

The suspect are Hammad Riaz Samana, 21 from Pakistan; and Levar Haney Washington, 25, and Gregory Vernon Patterson, 21. The latter two had been arrested earlier this month for a string of gas station robberies and, were converts to Islam, and had been found with jihadi material in their home. One of them had served time in Folsom State Prison, and there is a possibility that the plot was hatched by a radical Islamic extremists in the prison known as Jamiyyat Ul Islam Is Saheeh, or The Assembly of Authentic Islam .

The three attended a Jamat-E-Masjidul Islam mosque in Inglewood, a heavily African-American suburb of Los Angeles. The mosque appears to be part of a network of mosques funded by the Saudi Royal family.

It is always interesting to note that every time a Muslim is arrested on terrorism related charges that fellow Muslims first act shocked and then claim a government conspiracy. Stage one complete, prepare for stage two.

KPLC:

LOS ANGELES The president of his mosque says a Pakistani national arrested in a terrorism probe was "a nice kid" and very respectful.

The mosque leader says the arrest of the man (Hammad Riaz Samana) comes as a shock.

Authorities say the suspect, in custody since August second, may be linked to a possible plot to attack the Israeli Consulate, National Guard facilities and synagogues in Los Angeles.

A law enforcement source says his arrest came after investigators found a potential target list at the home of Levar Washington, who's been charged in a series of gas station robberies with another man, Gregory Patterson.

The mosque leader says Washington and Patterson had also attended the mosque but he did not recall all three men associating with one another.

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One of the tiny minority of extremists sends the following message to Jawa readers. Abbas is from Seattle, Washington, and writes [warning: nasty language follows]: more...

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I'm trying to figure out the whole Able Danger/we-knew- about- Atta- being- an- al- Qaeda- member- a- year- before- 9/11 thing. If you have a post about it, or know of a good summary, I'd appreciate it if you e-mailed it to me. A lot of discussion about this, but I'm not sure where to begin. Thanks.

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A man on the FBI's terror watch list was arrested in Maryland last night. WSTM:

TOWSON, Md. Baltimore County police say they arrested a man whose name appears on the national Terror Watch List late last night on the Baltimore beltway.

Federal Bureau of Investigation Baltimore field office spokeswoman Tia Ford identified the man as 27-year-old Muhammad Asif Haider of New York City. She says the Pakistani man was indicted last week in New York on immigration fraud charges.

Baltimore County Police say an officer made a routine check of the watch list when he pulled Haider over near the Reisterstown Road exit of the Beltway and his name was a match. County police are holding Haider until federal officials can interview him.

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Confidential government sources tell the New York Times that the threat of an al Qaeda attack against the U.S. remains substantial and that the mode of attack will likely be a suicide attack. In sum, terrorists continue to target the United States and wish to inflict mass casualties resulting in a psychological victory. All of the targets and methods mentioned in the article have been tried elsewhere by the global jihadi network.

Target: mass transit systems
Method: bombs, derailment, or crashing truck carrying flammable material into trains
Precedent: London, Madrid, Moscow

Target 2: high rise apartments
Method: natural gas explosions from rented apartement
Precedent: Moscow

Report suspicious activity to local authorities. It is far better to be overly cautious and wrong then to be oblivious to the threat and too late.

UPDATE: If you are a Muslim you have an even greater responsibility to report suspicious activities to the authorities. We hope law enforcement will take you more seriously than they did in the U.K.

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