Posted on 12/17/2006 4:03:30 PM PST by DAVEY CROCKETT
VEVAK learned its methodology from the Soviet KGB and many of the Islamist revolutionaries who supported Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini actually studied at Moscow's Patrice Lumumba Friendship University, the Oxford of terrorism. Documented Iranian alumni include the current Supreme Leader (the faqih) Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, under whose Velayat-e Faqih (Rule of the Islamic Jurisprudent) apparatus it has traditionally operated. Its current head is Cabinet Minister Hojatoleslam Gholam-Hussein Mohseni-Ezhei, a graduate of Qom's Haqqani School, noted for its extremist position advocating violence against enemies and strict clerical control of society and government. The Ministry is very well funded and its charge, like that of the Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps (the Pasdaran) is to guard the revolutionary Islamic Iranian regime at all costs and under all contingencies.
From the KGB playbook, VEVAK learned the art of disinformation. It's not so difficult to learn: tell the truth 80% of the time and lie 20%. Depending on how well a VEVAK agent wants to cover his/her tracks, the ratio may go up to 90/10, but it never drops below the 80/20 mark as such would risk suspicion and possible detection. The regime in Teheran has gone to great lengths to place its agents in locations around the world. Many of these operatives have been educated in the West, including the U.K. and the United States. Iranian government agencies such as embassies, consulates, Islamic cultural centers, and airline offices regularly provide cover for the work of VEVAK agents who dress well and are clean shaven, and move comfortably within our society. In this country, because of the severance of diplomatic relations, the principal site of VEVAK activities begins at the offices of Iran's Permanent Mission to the UN in New York.
Teheran has worked diligently to place its operatives in important think tanks and government agencies in the West. Some of its personnel have been recruited while in prison through torture or more often through bribery, or a combination of both. Others are Islamist revolutionaries that have been set up to look like dissidents - often having been arrested and imprisoned, but released for “medical reasons”. The clue to detecting the fake “dissident” is to read carefully what he/she writes, and to ask why this vocal “dissident” was released from prison when other real dissidents have not been released, indeed have been grievously tortured and executed. Other agents have been placed in this country for over twenty-five years to slowly go through the system and rise to positions of academic prominence due to their knowledge of Farsi and Shia Islam or Islamist fundamentalism.
One of the usual tactics of VEVAK is to co-opt academia to its purposes. Using various forms of bribery, academics are bought to defend the Islamic Republic or slander its enemies. Another method is to assign bright students to train for academic posts as specialists in Iranian or Middle East affairs. Once established, such individuals are often consulted by our government as it tries to get a better idea of how it should deal with Iran. These academics then are in a position to skew the information, suggesting the utility of extended dialogue and negotiation, or the danger and futility of confronting a strong Iran or its proxies such as Hizballah (Hezbollah). These academics serve to shield the regime from an aggressive American or Western policy, and thereby buy more time for the regime to attain its goals, especially in regards to its nuclear weaponry and missile programs.
MOIS likes to use the media, especially electronic media, to its advantage. One of VEVAK's favorite tricks is setting up web sites that look like they are opposition sites but which are actually controlled by the regime. These sites often will be multilingual, including Farsi, German, Arabic French, and English. Some are crafted carefully and are very subtle in how they skew their information (e.g., Iran-Interlink, set up and run by Massoud Khodabandeh and his wife Ann Singleton from Leeds, England); others are less subtle, simply providing the regime's point of view on facts and events in the news (e.g., www.mujahedeen.com or www.mojahedin.ws). This latter group is aimed at the more gullible in our open society and unfortunately such a market exists. However, if one begins to do one's homework, asking careful questions, the material on these fake sites generally does not add up.
Let's examine a few examples of VEVAK's work in the United States. In late October, 2005, VEVAK sent three of its agents to Washington to stage a press event in which the principal Iranian resistance movement, the Mojahedin-e Khalq (MeK), was to be slandered. Veteran VEVAK agent Karim Haqi flew from Amsterdam to Canada where he was joined by VEVAK's Ottawa agents Amir-Hossein Kord Rostami and Mahin (Parvin-Mahrokh) Haji, and the three flew from Toronto to Washington. Fortunately the resistance had been tracking these three, informed the FBI of their presence in Washington, and when the three tried to hold a press conference, the resistance had people assigned to ask pointed questions of them so that they ended the interview prematurely and fled back to Canada.
Abolghasem Bayyenet is a member of the Iranian government. He serves as a trade expert for the Ministry of Commerce. But his background of study and service in the Foreign Ministry indicates that Bayyenet is more than just an economist or a suave and savvy businessman. In an article published in Global Politician on April 23, 2006, entitled “Is Regime Change Possible in Iran?”, Bayyenet leads his audience to think that he is a neutral observer, concerned lest the United States make an error in its assessment of Iran similar to the errors of intelligence and judgment that led to our 2003 invasion of Iraq, with its less than successful outcome. However, his carefully crafted bottom line is that the people of Iran are not going to support regime change and that hardliner President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad actually has achieved greater popularity than his predecessors because of his concern for the problems of the poor and his fight for economic and social justice. To the naive, Bayyenet makes Ahmadinejad sound positively saintly. Conveniently overlooked is the occurrence of over four thousand acts of protest, strikes, anti-regime rallies, riots, and even political assassinations by the people of Iran against the government in the year since Ahmadinejad assumed office. So too, the following facts are ignored: the sizeable flight of capital, the increase in unemployment, and the rising two-figure rate of inflation, all within this last year. Bayyenet is a regime apologist, and when one is familiar with the facts, his arguments ring very hollow. However, his English skills are excellent, and so the naОve might be beguiled by his commentary.
Mohsen Sazegara is VEVAK's “reformed revolutionary”. A student supporter of Khomeini before the 1979 revolution, Sazegara joined the “imam” on his return from exile and served in the government for a decade before supposedly growing disillusioned.
He formed several reformist newspapers but ran afoul of the hardliners in 2003 and was arrested and imprisoned by VEVAK. Following “hunger strikes”, Sazegara was released for health reasons and permitted to seek treatment abroad. Although critical of the government and particularly of Ahmadinejad and KhameneМ, Sazegara is yet more critical of opposition groups, leaving the impression that he favors internal regime change but sees no one to lead such a movement for the foreseeable future. His bottom line: no one is capable of doing what needs to be done, so we must bide our time. Very slick, but his shadow shows his likely remaining ties to the MOIS.
http://www.ocnus.net/artman/publish/article_27144.shtml
http://www.dailytimes.com.pk/default.asp?page=2006\12\28\story_28-12-2006_pg4_2
Baath party threatens to retaliate if Saddam executed
AMMAN: Saddam Hussein’s Baath Party threatened Wednesday to retaliate if the ousted Iraqi leader is executed, warning in an Internet posting it would target US interests anywhere. The statement appeared on a Web site known to represent the Baath, which was disbanded after US-led forces overthrew Saddam in 2003. The site is believed to be run from Yemen, where a number of exiled members of the party are based. “Our party warns again of the consequences of executing Mr President and his comrades,” the statement said. “The Baath and the resistance are determined to retaliate, with all means and everywhere, to harm America and its interests if it commits this crime,” the statement added, referring to Baath fighters as “the resistance.” “The American Administration will be held responsible for any harm inflicted on the president because the United States is the decision-maker (in Iraq) and not the puppet Iraqi government.” ap
http://www.dailytimes.com.pk/default.asp?page=2006\12\28\story_28-12-2006_pg4_6
Iraqis fear execution would fuel violence
BAGHDAD: Many Iraqis said on Wednesday they would welcome a swift execution of Saddam Hussein but others expressed fears that carrying out the death sentence now would further fuel sectarian violence.
An Iraqi appeals court on Tuesday upheld Saddam’s death sentence for crimes against humanity and said he should hang within 30 days. It comes amid raging violence between Saddam’s fellow Sunni Arabs and majority Shiites.
“This is a just sentence because Saddam oppressed the Iraqi people but I think it came at the wrong time because we’re living through a cycle of violence,” said Baghdad resident Mohammed Nasir.
Edward Iskander, a 37-year-old shopkeeper, agreed.
“I just hope they let him die naturally because if we execute him, his followers will unleash mayhem,” Iskander said as he opened his small food store in central Baghdad’s Karrada district. Some people fear Saddam’s die-hard followers, who form part of the Sunni Arab insurgency, will produce a bloody backlash if he is executed. But others say his death will end their hopes and their fight.
“I think his death will end violence from Sunnis and they’ll be forced to negotiate for reconciliation. We desperately need to turn this page in history,” said Akram Salman, a 21-year-old mathematics university student.
Shi’ites and Kurds, Saddam’s main victims during his 24-year rule, have been keen to speed up the execution but some minority Sunni Arabs, who had been the ruling elite for decades, are nostalgic for his return.
There were no major celebrations or protests against the decision as many Iraqis, struggling to live through sectarian violence and shortages in basic services, had expected the Nov. 5 death sentence to be upheld.
Iraqi newspapers squeezed in headlines and small articles on the announcement late on Tuesday by the head of the Iraqi High Tribunal, Aref Abdul-Razzaq al-Shahin, but no editorials focused on the decision.
It remains unclear when Saddam will be executed for his role in the killings of 148 Shi’ite villagers after a failed 1982 assassination attempt against him in the village of Dujail, but al-Shahin said the sentence must be carried out within 30 days.
Although many Iraqis anxiously wait to see if it may help ease violence or improve their lives, laundry owner Yusif Ali said he just wanted to enjoy the moment when it comes.
“I’m very happy that justice was finally done,” Ali said. “All I ask the government is for a broadcast of his execution.” reuters
http://www.haaretz.com/hasen/spages/806517.html
Last update - 21:49 27/12/2006
Russia links Israeli businessman to murder of ex-spy Litvinenko
By Reuters
Russia's prosecutor-general said Wednesday that Leonid Nevzlin, Russian-born businessman currently living in Israel, could have ordered the poisoning of former Russian agent Alexander Litvinenko.
Nevzlin is the former CEO of the bankrupt Yukos Oil Company and current chairman of the Diaspora Museum in Tel Aviv.
Nevzlin's spokesman dismissed the suggestion as "ridiculous".
"A version is being looked at that those who ordered these crimes could be the same people who are on an international wanted list for serious and very serious crimes, one of whom is ... Leonid Nevzlin," the prosecutor-general's office said in a statement.
Nevzlin, one of the most senior men in the business empire of jailed Russian oil tycoon Mikhail Khodorkovsky, saysRussian authorities' charges against him are fabricated.
"Everyone knows the KGB's methods. These statements are ridiculous and do not warrant a response," Nevzlin's spokesman Amir Dan said in Israel of the latest allegations.
Dan said in late November that Litvinenko had been investigating alleged wrongdoing by the Russian authorities in connection with YUKOS before his death.
Before his eventual death from poisoning by radioactive polonium in London on Nov. 23, Litvinenko made a statement accusing Russian President Vladimir Putin of his murder. The Kremlin has dismissed Litvinenko's allegations as "nonsense".
A spokeswoman for London police, who are investigating Litvinenko's murder, declined to comment on the Russian prosecutor-general's statement.
Nevzlin gained a controlling stake in YUKOS when Khodorkovsky handed him a 60 percent share in the holding company that controlled the firm.
YUKOS has been driven into bankruptcy by massive back tax claims.
/hasen/objects/pages/PrintArticleEn.jhtml?itemNo=806517
http://www.haaretz.com/hasen/spages/806603.html
Last update - 10:08 28/12/2006
Egypt transfers arms to Fatah, with Israel's approval
By Amos Harel and Avi Issacharoff, Haaretz Correspondents
Egypt transfered a large quantity of arms and ammunition to Palestinian Authority security organizations in the Gaza Strip on Wednesday, with Israel's approval.
The move was carried out in an effort to bolster Fatah affiliated groups, following recent clashes with paramilitary organizations belonging to the ruling Hamas movement.
The shipment included 2,000 AK-47 rifles, 20,000 magazines and two million rounds of ammunition. The arms and ammunition were transfered from Egypt to Israel through the Kerem Shalom crossing, in coordination with the Israel Defense Force and with the government's authorization.
The four trucks carrying the weapons were accompanied by Military Police, and crossed into the Gaza Strip through the Karni crossing, where PA security personnel received the shipment.
Senior members of various Fatah affiliated groups in the Gaza Strip have complained of their inferior firepower when confronted by Hamas forces.
One of the main reasons they point to for their inability to counter Hamas is the fact that the radical Islamic organization controls most of the smuggling of arms into the Gaza Strip through tunnels running from Sinai to Rafah in the South.
The issue of reinforcing the Fatah forces was the subject of discussions among Israeli, Egyptian and American officials. A decision was made during the meeting between Prime Minister Ehud Olmert and PA Chairman Mahmoud Abbas on Saturday.
During the meeting, Abbas also promised to deploy men from his Presidential Guard along the Philadelphi Route to prevent smuggling, and also in the northern Gaza Strip, to prevent the targetting of Israeli towns with Qassam rockets.
Abbas traveled to Egypt Wednesday for a meeting with President Hosni Mubarak. At the end of their meeting, Abbas said that Israel has not rejected the possibility of establishing a "back channel" - closed to the media, but not secret - through which negotiations could be held toward a permanent settlement.
Abbas said that this matter was raised in his meeting with Olmert and that the Israeli leader had promised to evaluate his proposal.
The Palestinian leader added that the Americans have also not rejected this option.
The proposal for a back channel involves the participation of Quartet representatives in the talks, and Abbas said that the visit of Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice to the region in January will "be the right time to manifest this idea and discuss it seriously."
Palestinian sources told Haaretz Wednesday that Abbas is trying to revive the idea of negotiations for a permanent settlement, because he is wary of an initiative to set up a Palestinian state with interim borders.
The same sources said that the Palestinian leadership is closely following the proposal put forth by Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni, which is backed by the U.S. and which Hamas may be willing to accept in return for a complete cease-fire for a five-year period
http://www.haaretz.com/hasen/spages/806765.html
Last update - 08:36 28/12/2006
Israel to impose limits on bank accounts of security prisoners
By Amos Harel, Haaretz Correspondent
Israel will impose limits on the transfer of funds from the territories to Palestinians held in its prisons for security-related offenses, starting on February 1.
According to the new rules, the maximum sum per month each such inmate may receive will be NIS 1,300. In addition, control of funds distribution will no longer be in the hands of the prisoners' leadership, but will be handled by the prison authorities.
The adoption of the new rules is angering the Palestinian inmates.
The decision to alter the regulations governing money transfers was made following a number of meetings in recent months between representatives of the Justice Ministry, the Shin Bet security service, the Israel Prison Service and the Postal Bank, whose branches are used for inmates' accounts.
The law passed by the Knesset about a year and a half ago that forbids funding of terrorist activity served as catalyst for the start of the talks. The transfer of funds to militants held for terrorist activities, even after the fact, could be considered to be retroactive support for terrorist activities. The Postal Bank there were concerns that under the existing regulations on money transfers, it services would be considered as aiding and abetting terrorist activities.
Currently, there is no effective control over money transfers to security prisoners. These are received by the prisoners' leaders in the wings of various prisons, and depending on group affiliation, the funds are dispersed.
Prison Service Commissioner Ya'akov Ganot had expressed his concerns regarding the existing lack of controls, particularly in connection with Israeli Arabs serving sentences for participation in security-related violations. Ganot ordered a freeze on the transfer of funds from the Palestinian Authority to these inmates several months ago.
Deputy State Attorney Shai Nitzan has formulated the following new regulations:
* Each inmate held for security violations will receive funds into an individual bank account, in which no more than NIS 1,300 per month may be deposited. The figure is set according to the maximum that security inmates are allowed to spend in the prison canteen each month.
* Any one making a deposit will have to identify himself, so Israel will be able to block transfers from an individual identified as belonging to a militant group.
* Inmates will not be allowed to keep funds in their accounts for colleagues. This will strip inmate leaders of a major source of power.
* A computerized system will be set up in the Postal Bank that will include data on every inmate. The Prison Service is funding half the cost of the system, which will allow the "marking" of accounts belonging to inmates imprisoned for security-related violations. In return for the measures it has undertaken, the state has promised the Postal Bank immunity from prosecution if it is accused of aiding terrorist activities.
A senior source in the Prison Service said the new regulations, in addition to assisting in maintaining the law, will likely weaken the leadership of the Palestinian inmates.
"There will no longer be a situation in which vast sums of money are deposited without controls, or that a prisoner is released and he has large sums of money in his account," the source said.
The Prison Service has begun informing inmates in various prisons of the new regulations, provoking considerable anger.
A security source involved in the decisions said the new regulations constitute an improvement, but the maximum sum allowed to each inmate is still too high.
"The Prison Service is still trying to buy calm among the inmates through the money allowed them," he said. "We should have limited the monthly allowance to several hundred shekels, which will meet their minimum needs. That is what inmates held for criminal offenses are allowed to spend, and there is no reason why a terrorist held in our prisons should be allowed more, even if the money arrives from the Palestinian side."
http://www.haaretz.com/hasen/spages/806545.html
Last update - 08:25 28/12/2006
Three Iranians seeking conversion to Judaism denied Israel visas
By Yoav Stern, Haaretz Correspondent
Three Iranians interested in converting to Judaism recently left their native country, but have been unable to find any entity to assist them.
The three Shi'ite Muslims left Iran and approached the Israeli embassy and Jewish communities in Azerbaijan, but were rejected. It is impossible to convert to Judaism in Iran, as they would be considered heretics, a crime punishable by death. They are now waiting in a makeshift city in Turkey for a United Nations hearing on their application for refugee status.
The three left Iran two months ago and immediately approached the Israeli embassy in Baku. According to N., they were given a chilly reception. N. points out that embassy officials did not invite them into the building, but talked to them on the street.
"We told them we want visas to Israel in order to convert," N. recounts. "They told us that if we are not Jewish, our parents aren't Jewish and we have no family members in Israel, we cannot get visas."
The three also did not receive warm welcomes in Baku synagogues. At one place of worship, they were laughed at, at another - locked out. They were told there is no rabbinical court that can handle conversion in Baku.
N. says he became interested in other religions while still a practicing Shi'ite, and learned that Judaism was the basis of the other religions. N. wrote to the United Nations: "Since I stopped obeying the Muslim commandments, my soul has sought a way home. In order to be a complete Jew, it is necessary to undergo official processes."
Iran does not officially allow its citizens to travel to Israel, although many of the 25,000-strong Jewish community have done so through Turkey.
The three potential converts are now waiting for a February hearing date, and dependent on financial help from their families. "The Iranian authorities are aware of our plans. They can't hurt us so they are trying to harm our families." They hope to get assistance from some Israeli or Jewish institutions.
Contact with the three is mostly through e-mail and the occasional phone call from N., who always verifies at the beginning of each call that recent e-mails really originated in Israel and not with Iranian security forces.
The Foreign Ministry stated that the three approached the Baku embassy on a weekend when offices were closed, and have not returned. They would have been helped during regular office hours. The ministry also noted that Israeli law prohibits entry to Israel for the purposes of conversion, although there is an appeals committee to examine specific cases.
assorted interesting reading:
http://schneier.com/blog/
Me and my passports
Shahida at UK Customs
Serious questions have been raised over Britain's border security after a BBC journalist entered the UK twice on fake and stolen passports.
Shahida Tulaganova obtained 20 illegal passports - each from an EU country, including the UK - within months.
Those in the trade told her to travel via sea or bus, saying port security was less stringent than airports.
The Home Office said it works closely with the EU to tackle the crime, taking the issue of false documents seriously.
In 2004, 8,285 fraudulent documents were detected at UK ports of entry, according to Home Office figures.
Entering the UK on a fake or stolen passport carries a maximum sentence of 10 years in jail, while making a false statement to obtain a passport can lead to a prison sentence of up to two years.
Shahida travelled across Europe to obtain her false documents for her Panorama investigation.
They ranged in price from just #250 to more than #1,500. Some were provided within several days, while others took weeks.
She found her first illegal passport dealer in the centre of London - through an advertisement in a Russian language newspaper.
The dealer - Henry - provided her with a genuine Czech passport, by getting someone who looked like her to apply for one, using her photo.
Forgery detection
Shahida's investigation poses questions over the number of non-EU nationals entering Britain on illegal passports. She uses Poland as an example.
"Since [Poland] country joined the EU less than two years ago a quarter of a million Poles have left and legally registered for work in Britain," she says.
"But if my contacts are right, many of these may not have been Poles at all, but illegal immigrants using fake passports."
SHAHIDA'S PASSPORTS
UK, Germany
France, Italy
Sweden, Denmark
Finland, Estonia
Netherlands, Belgium
Spain, Portugal
Greece, Slovenia
Czech Republic, Poland
Austria, Slovakia
Lithuania, Latvia
Shahida enters Britain via boat - from Spain to Portsmouth - on a fake Latvian passport, and then later on the Eurostar using a stolen Estonian passport.
Despite information on stolen passports being registered to a central Interpol database, her Estonian passport goes undetected.
The Home Office says there is a "comprehensive bilateral exchange of information between member states regarding the issue of lost and stolen EU passports".
It maintains that in addition to this, all immigration officers are highly trained in identifying false documents.
"All our immigration officers at British ports are trained in forgery detection techniques and have access to specialist forgery detection equipment," a spokesperson said.
The government has also introduced biometric e-passports with images securely stored inside chips, in an attempt to combat forgery and improve the security of British passports.
#
Panorama: My Fake Passports and Me was broadcast on Monday, 4 December, 2006 at 2100 GMT on BBC One.
Story from BBC NEWS:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/go/pr/fr/-/2/hi/uk_news/6169678.stm
Published: 2006/12/01 17:00:27 GMT
© BBC MMVI
Six dead in rig helicopter crash
Six bodies have been recovered from the sea after a helicopter crashed off Morecambe Bay in Lancashire.
A rescue operation was launched after the Eurocopter AS365N carrying seven people came down 24 miles offshore.
The aircraft took off from Blackpool Airport and was ferrying Centrica staff on gas rigs in the bay back to shore.
Two crew members and five rig workers were aboard. RAF rescue helicopters, coastguard and RNLI crews, and a rig support vessel joined the search.
The bodies of six men have been recovered and were brought ashore, Lancashire Constabulary said.
The search was continuing for the other missing person, a spokesman added.
Emergency phone numbers for relatives to contact - 01772 410772/410774.
Detective Superintendent Mick Gradwell told BBC News 24: "There was a very quick rescue response because people were on the drilling platform waiting to be picked up and they actually saw the helicopter ditch in the sea."
He said the witnesses were being transported back to be interviewed as investigators from the Civil Aviation Authority and other agencies tried to establish the cause of the crash.
Families contacted
The helicopter, operated by industry transport firm CHC, left Blackpool at about 1800 GMT.
Det Supt Gradwell said conditions were cold but it was not very foggy when it crashed some 40 minutes later.
It had picked up passengers at two platforms and was heading for a third.
He said police were unaware of any emergency calls having being received.
Centrica said it is contacting all families connected with its Morecambe Bay gas fields.
Relatives of Centrica employees can call a dedicated helpline on 01524 864585.
The rescue is being co-ordinated by Liverpool coastguards and lifeboats from Fleetwood and Barrow have been sent to the scene.
Rescue helicopters from RAF Valley and RAF Leconfield were called out.
Gas was discovered in the area in 1974 and extraction operations began 11 years later. There are about 143 Centrica staff working on the platforms at any one time.
Story from BBC NEWS:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/go/pr/fr/-/2/hi/uk_news/6213141.stm
Published: 2006/12/28 06:18:51 GMT
© BBC MMVI
New Yorkers given rabies warning
By Matt Wells
BBC News, New York
Health officials in New York are warning residents to stay away from stray animals over the holiday period.
The advice follows a large increase in the reported number of rabies cases, including seven in December alone.
The outbreak is centred on the borough of Staten Island, which lies off Manhattan, where 35 animals have tested positive for the virus during 2006.
Rabies is highly infectious and usually passed on by a bite. In humans, it is almost always fatal if left untreated.
The borough of Staten Island - which sits just off the southern shore of Manhattan - has a large population of racoons and other wild animals which are susceptible to the virus.
But alarm bells really began to ring when a man was bitten in November by a rabid kitten which he had tried to rescue from the streets.
He was successfully treated - in fact, it has been more than 50 years since any New Yorker contracted rabies.
However, the spike in animal cases found during December has prompted the city health commissioner to issue a stark warning for people to stay away from strays, and to take their own pets to be vaccinated.
The authorities hope that by footing the bill for the vaccination programme over the next six months, they will prevent the disease from spreading to other boroughs.
There were no reports of rabies cases on Staten Island during 2005.
One local politician has called for an emergency task force to be set up to try to track down the source of the current outbreak.
Story from BBC NEWS:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/go/pr/fr/-/2/hi/americas/6213289.stm
Published: 2006/12/28 02:08:20 GMT
© BBC MMVI
US wary of Somali 'terror' links
By Martin Plaut
BBC Africa editor
The United States has closely followed the gains made by Somali government forces, supported by Ethiopian armour and troops, against Islamist militiamen.
Washington is determined to prevent the spread of fundamentalist Islam to Africa and has been deeply concerned by the rise of the Union of Islamic Courts.
The US has seen the fight against terrorism as its highest priority in Africa ever since 7 August 1998, when two car bombs exploded outside the American embassies in the Kenyan capital, Nairobi, and Dar es Salaam in Tanzania.
Al-Qaeda claimed responsibility for the explosions, which killed more than 250 people and left 4,000 wounded.
Since then US officials say they have found links between key supporters of the UIC, and the attacks on the US embassies.
'Threat'
"We continue to be concerned about the state of security in the sub-region in eastern Horn of Africa; the threat that in some ways Somalia poses in terms of criminality and arms coming out of there, as well as the issue of terrorists' safe haven," the US Secretary of State for African Affairs, Jendayi Frazer, said while visiting Kenya earlier this year.
The UIC leadership has denied links to al-Qaeda, but there is evidence to suggest that some supporters of the UIC were indeed connected to the embassy attacks.
The US developed a strategy to tackle the Islamists. First Washington supported the warlords who controlled the Somali capital, Mogadishu.
But in June the militia of the Islamic Courts drove out the warlords, who are believed to have escaped to an American ship waiting offshore.
Since then the US has given diplomatic backing to the Somali transitional government at the United Nations, pressing for an African peacekeeping force to be sent to strengthen its position.
The Americans have worked closely with Ethiopia, using troops based in neighbouring Djibouti.
There is no suggestion that American forces are involved in the current Ethiopian offensive in Somalia, but Washington has satellite images and intelligence information that would be extremely useful to Addis Ababa as it attempts to crack the Islamic Court's hold on Somalia.
Story from BBC NEWS:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/go/pr/fr/-/2/hi/africa/6212321.stm
Published: 2006/12/27 13:26:54 GMT
© BBC MMVI
More news than one can read:
http://www.schneier.com/crypto-gram-0612.html
Instead of a hundred pings, I posted them to all.
Twin Cessna Down In PA After Pilot Reports Icing
Two Persons Lost In C414 Crash
A Cessna 414 crashed Tuesday afternoon during an emergency landing
attempt
at John Murtha Johnstown-Cambria County Airport (KJST) in Pennsylvania.
Officials say the two persons onboard the piston twin were killed.
The FAA reports the plane was heading from Morgantown, WV to New
Jersey's
Teterboro Airport when the pilot reported ice accumulating on the
plane.
Officials say the plane impacted the runway at JST, and exploded in
flames.
Media reports state the plane was registered to Wharf Place LLC in
Morgantown.
The accident in Pennsylvania was the second involving a C414, also
known as
a Chancellor, in 24 hours.
Another C414 went down Monday night on its second approach to land at
Gwinnett County Airport near Atlanta, GA. Authorities say fog was in
the
area at the time of the crash.
Three persons were killed in the Georgia accident.
FMI: www.faa.gov
aero-news.net
Two planes back into each other at San Diego airport; no injuries
SAN DIEGO (AP) - Officials say two Southwest Airlines jets
simultaneously
pulling out from their gates at San Diego International Airport bumped
into
each other's tails today.
No injuries are reported.
A Southwest spokeswoman says the planes were returned to their gates
and the
passengers were taken off. The planes -- one bound for Las Vegas, the
other
headed to San Jose -- were grounded for inspection. Officials say there
was
no significant damage.
Southwest says 72 passengers on the Las Vegas flight and 125 aboard the
San
Jose flight waited nearly an hour before transferring to other planes.
The cause of the fender-bender is under investigation.
[unknown url]
[there is a tape link on site]
http://www.mercurynews.com/mld/mercurynews/news/special_packages/iraq/16330205.htm
Posted on Wed, Dec. 27, 2006
Abducted contractors appear in videotape
By Hannah Allam
McClatchy Newspapers
BAGHDAD, Iraq — Four American security contractors and an Austrian co-worker who were kidnapped in southern Iraq six weeks ago appear to be in good physical condition in a videotape that was shot two weeks after they were taken captive.
The footage, which hasn't been made public, is the first proof that all five men survived their abduction Nov. 16 in an ambush in the town of Safwan. The clip was shown to McClatchy Newspapers in Baghdad on Tuesday night on condition that the provider's name and other identifying details be withheld for security reasons.
The provider said the video was shot in response to a demand for proof that the men were alive before negotiations for their release could begin. The provider was confident that the men are still living and remain in the hands of a little-known Shiite Muslim militant group that calls itself the "Mujahedeen of Jerusalem Company."
Representatives of the U.S. military, the American Embassy and the men's employer, the Kuwait-based Crescent Security Group, said they hadn't known of the video and called it the first significant development since the kidnapping.
"The families were relieved and glad to hear some news," said a Crescent Security representative who also asked to withhold his name because of security concerns. "I feel good there's a tape out there, but I'm more happy that it's a means to communicate with the kidnappers."
In the video, which runs for one and a half minutes, each of the men repeats the same presumably scripted demand: that American forces withdraw from Iraq. None of the captors appears in the video, and no ransom demand, explicit threat or deadline is given. Three of the hostages are shown together, while the other two appear in separate shots that may have been taken elsewhere.
The video begins with a shot of the three with their hands cuffed in front of them, standing in a row against a backdrop of gold-colored drapes. The men identify themselves as John Young, 44, of Kansas City, Mo., Jonathan Cote, 23, of Gainesville, Fla., and Bert Nussbaumer, 25, of Vienna, Austria.
All three wear identical white short-sleeved undershirts, gray pajama-like pants and socks. The video shows all three men, then zooms in on each hostage's face as he speaks.
Young, with a mustache and calm demeanor, blinks rapidly several times before beginning. He looks directly into the camera and gives his name, age and hometown.
"I work in private security in Iraq," Young says. "I am asking the people of my country to please help me and my friends out of Iraq and to pressure the government to remove troops from Iraq."
Next is Cote (pronounced "Ko-TAY"), who's the only hostage with visible signs of injury. He has slight bruising and swelling around his nose and red splotches on his face. He speaks calmly.
"I work for a private security company," Cote says. "I'm asking the American people to put pressure on the government to leave Iraq to help me and my friends get out of here."
The last of the trio is the dark-haired Nussbaumer, who speaks with a thick accent and describes himself as an "Austrian citizen." His voice is the least clear, but he appears to say, "I want you to get me and my friends out of Iraq."
The video then cuts to a shot of a fourth hostage, who identifies himself as "Josh Munz, from California, USA." He's clean-shaven and doesn't appear to be handcuffed. He also is dressed in nondescript pajama-style clothing and speaks before a white backdrop - not the same golden curtains as the previous scene.
"I was in the United States Marine Corps, in Haditha and Fallujah," Munz says, referring to two predominantly Sunni Muslim towns where fighting has been fierce.
The clip then cuts to a similar white backdrop, but of a different material. The last man appears to be sitting down, though his legs aren't visible. His hands aren't cuffed.
The hostage identifies himself only as "Paul," though it's clear he's Paul Reuben, a former Minnesota police officer whose family had previously released his name and photo. His twin, Patrick Reuben, said in an e-mail that the brothers had turned 40 on Nov. 24, eight days after the kidnapping. Paul Reuben alludes to his birthday in the video.
"I'm 39 years old, or 40; I'm not quite sure of today's date," he says. "I'm from Buffalo, Minnesota. I'm married. I have twin daughters - they're 16 - and I have a stepson that's 16."
Reuben is dressed differently from the other hostages, wearing a dark-blue tracksuit with orange stripes along the shoulders. He grins nervously when he flubs a line at the end of his recorded statement.
"I'm asking America to release us by getting our troops out of America," he says.
Then Reuben turns his gaze from the camera, apparently in response to someone who points out the error. He gives a little laugh and says, "I'm sorry, out of Iraq."
He then gestures off-camera, asking in a clearly enunciated voice, "Do over? No good."
The camera zooms in for a close-up of Reuben's face and the video ends with a tight shot of his toothy smile.
The digital date on the recording is 14-4-2006, indicating that the captors hadn't set the timer properly or had changed it. There's no way to tell for sure when the video was filmed. The hostages' hair seems unkempt, but they generally appear in good health and with access to shaving supplies.
The provider of the video said he thought that the group was holding the hostages in different locations, because of the change in backgrounds. Other than the colors of the backdrops, there are no distinguishing characteristics of the location.
The provider allowed McClatchy Newspapers to record the audio but didn't permit copying of the video. It wasn't clear whether the provider would be involved in future negotiations for release of the hostages.
The audio recording of the tape, available online at www.mcclatchydc.com, was made available to Crescent Security on Wednesday so that relatives wouldn't be caught by surprise. The Crescent representative said family members were advised not to comment until investigators had reviewed the matter.
The men were part of a Crescent Security convoy that had just crossed the Kuwaiti border into Iraq on an assignment for the Italian military when gunmen in several vehicles swarmed the group and made off with 14 hostages and 19 of the convoy's 43 heavy trucks.
Two security contractors - a Briton and a Chilean - were left behind unharmed, the Crescent spokesman said. Nine Asian truck drivers who were among those seized also were released, leaving just the four Americans and the Austrian.
A company statement says the convoy was ambushed by "suspected militia dressed in Iraqi Police uniforms."
Two main Shiite militias - the Mahdi Army and the Badr Organization - are active in the south, but neither has claimed responsibility. Militia leaders frequently blame splinter groups for unauthorized abductions and attacks.
Shortly after the kidnappings, an Iranian satellite TV channel aired a video from an obscure group that calls itself the "Mujahedeen of Jerusalem Company."
A masked man said the group had carried out the ambush and demanded the withdrawal of American forces from Iraq in return for the prisoners' release. Because the tape didn't show the contractors or any other proof that the group was holding them, the claim didn't cause much of a stir among U.S. investigators.
© 2006 McClatchy Washington Bureau and wire service sources. All Rights Reserved.
http://www.mercurynews.com
http://jta.org/page_view_breaking_story.asp?intid=6228
Egypt: Shalit alive
Egypt said an Israeli soldier held hostage in the Gaza Strip is alive.
“We are working to release him and we know that he’s alive,” Egyptian Foreign Minister Ahmed Aboul Gheit told reporters Wednesday about Cpl. Gilad Shalit during a visit to Israel.
Egypt has been the main mediator in efforts to recover Shalit, who was abducted by Hamas and other Palestinian gunmen in a June 25 cross-border raid.
Shalit’s captors have demanded that Israel release some 1,400 Palestinian prisoners in exchange for the soldier.
Israel has signaled that it could agree to a less lopsided swap.
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