FBI: Approach Missing Egyptians with Caution (UPDATE: see post # 685)

ABCNews ^ | 08/08/06 | Brian Ross

[tdewey10]

From the advisory.

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CLASSIFICATION: UNCLASSIFIED
SUMMARY: U//FOUO) AS OF 29 JULY 2006, ELEVEN EGYPTIAN NATIONAL STUDENTS SCHEDULED TO ATTEND AN ENGLISH AND ACADEMICS SKILLS PROGRAM AT AN IDENTIFIED U.S. UNIVERSITY IN MONTANA, FROM 30 JULY 2006 TO 26 AUGUST 2006, FAILED TO REPORT AFTER ENTERING THE UNITED STATES.
....
SUBJ:: JULY 2006 FAILURE OF ELEVEN EGYPTIAN NATIONAL STUDENTS TO REPORT TO AN IDENTIFIED U.S. UNIVERSITY (U//FOUO) WARNING: (U) THIS IS AN INFORMATION REPORT, NOT FINALLY EVALUATED INTELLIGENCE. REPORT CLASSIFIED UNCLAS FOUO.

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FEDERAL BUREAU OF INVESTIGATION

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SOURCE: (U) AN FBI AGENT. TEXT: 1. (U//FOUO) EXECUTIVE SUMMARY. AS OF 29 JULY 2006, ELEVEN EGYPTIAN NATIONAL STUDENTS SCHEDULED TO ATTEND AN ENGLISH AND ACADEMICS SKILLS PROGRAM AT AN IDENTIFIED U.S. UNIVERSITY IN MONTANA, FROM 30 JULY 2006 TO 26 AUGUST 2006, FAILED TO REPORT AFTER ENTERING THE UNITED STATES. 2. (U//FOUO) AS OF 29 JULY 2006, ELEVEN EGYPTIAN NATIONAL STUDENTS SCHEDULED TO ATTEND A SUMMER ENGLISH AND ACADEMICS SKILLS PROGRAM FROM 30 JULY 2006 TO 26 AUGUST 2006 AT AN IDENTIFIED U.S. UNIVERSITY IN MONTANA, FAILED TO REPORT TO THE SCHOOL AFTER ENTERING THE UNITED STATES. THE ELEVEN STUDENTS WERE PASSENGERS ABOARD EGYPT AIRLINES FLIGHT 985, AND ENTERED THE UNITED STATES AT JOHN F. KENNEDY INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT IN NEW YORK, NEW YORK, ON 29 JULY 2006. 3.(U//FOUO) THE FOLLOWING EGYPTIAN STUDENTS WERE SCHEDULED TO ATTEND THE SUMMER 2006 ENGLISH AND ACADEMIC SKILLS PROGRAM AT THE IDENTIFIED U.S. UNIVERSITY. .....
COMMENTS: 1. (U//FOUO) FBI COMMENTS. THE ELEVEN STUDENTS WERE PART OF AN ORIGINAL GROUP OF 20 STUDENTS ATTENDING THE SUMMER PROGRAM AT THE IDENTIFIED U.S. UNIVERSITY IN MONTANA THROUGH AN EXCHANGE PROGRAM WITH MANSOURA UNIVERSITY IN ALEXANDRIA, EGYPT. OF THE 20 APPLICANTS, THREE STUDENTS WERE DENIED A U.S. VISA, AND SIX STUDENTS REPORTED TO THE IDENTIFIED U.S. UNIVERSITY DURING
THE PERIOD OF 30 JULY 2006 THROUGH 31 JULY 2006. ALL SEVENTEEN STUDENTS WERE PASSENGERS ABOARD EGYPT AIRLINES FLIGHT 985, AND ENTERED THE UNITED STATES AT JOHN F. KENNEDY INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT IN NEW YORK, NEW YORK, ON 29 JULY 2006.
......
UNCLASSIFIED CLASSIFICATION: UNCLASSIFIED
CAVEATS: FOUO
TERMS: NONE

[jennyjenny]

Thank you.

[RockinRight]

Drop the PC crap and handle this the right way, please!

[Pete]

Interesting that three were denied Visas.

[tdewey10]

So... who wants to bet that their working with a US based mosque?

[Steel Wolf]

They are from Mansoura University. Anyone know what diverse student groups may or may not have chapters there?

I'm guessing that that have a Document Forger club, one with close connection to the local al-Qa'ida recruiter's office. I'd be surprised if these guys are really 'students' at all. A student visa might be a great way to get into the U.S., but I'm guessing that these guys already have a complete education from the Martyrdom Institute of Technology.

They could have fake names, forged passports, and no history. Worse, they could have friends already here, ready to hide them in safehouses until they're needed.

[tdewey10]

On December 2, 2005, an Egyptian male was detained by Transportation Security Administration (TSA) officials while passing through a security checkpoint at JFK Airport in New York City. Preliminary field testing of the individual's shoes showed a positive hit for explosive materials being contained in the shoes. The shoes were confiscated by TSA officials and turned over to the FBI for further analysis.

Analysis of the shoes was performed at the FBI Laboratory and it was determined that no explosive materials were present in the passenger's shoes. This individual was also interviewed by Special Agents of the FBI and Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) in Waterloo, Iowa, and it was determined that he poses no security threat.


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Dry run?

[tdewey10]

Remember that the Muslim Brotherhood is big in Egypt and has ties to AQ - could be the MB is planning something big to impress AQ.

[Trust but Verify]

They are the right age for students. My kids were born in 1984 and 1985 and both are still in college.

[EnquiringMind]

"THREE STUDENTS WERE DENIED A U.S. VISA"

Three of their friends were denied a U.S. visa. This is getting worse by the minute.

[Steel Wolf]

Remember that the Muslim Brotherhood is big in Egypt and has ties to AQ - could be the MB is planning something big to impress AQ.

The Muslim Brotherhood is big in Egypt, but doesn't really have a history of coming after the U.S. the way Al-Qa'ida does. The last thing MB wants is to give Mubarak enough political cover to send them all to the firing squad. He'd line them all up and gun them down if he thought he could get away with it. If MB attacks the U.S. in a major terrorist attack, Mubarak would have the perfect opportunity to line them all up against the wall.

My money is on 'a homegrown al-Qa'ida inspired group', since apparently no one is in AQ anymore except for UBL and Zawahiri.

[princess leah]

We need to shelve all VISA printing presses and start up AMERICAN EXPRESS machines that ship 1 WAY - OUTBOUND...and no, I'm not talking about Credit Cards! I'd also round up those 6 Egyptian "students" that did go on as I'd bet they are in colution and are the "front guys"!

[tdewey10]

Good Point. From Threat Watch.

Egyptian Terror Group Joins al-Qaeda
Kirk
Ayman al-Zawahiri, Osama bin Laden’s deputy, is putting out the news that Al-Gamaa al-Islamiya, an Egyptian radical Islamist group, is joining al-Qaeda. Aside from some good press (from their point of view), the significance of this is probably minimal. Zawahiri’s more significant Egyptian Islamic Jihad joined al-Qaeda in 1998, making him the number two man under bin Laden. This is partially why al-Qaeda has so many Egyptian members. The Muslim Brotherhood has moderated its tactics in recent years because of the ruthless brutality of Egypt’s security services in cutting down terrorists (domestic ones, anyway; this is probably Mubarak’s sole achievement in 25 years). There simply aren’t that many radical Islamists left alive and breathing non-prison air who aren’t hibernating inside the Brotherhood. This may give al-Qaeda a bit more logistical ability in Egypt, thus potentially making Sinai bombings more likely, but probably not by much.

[Steel Wolf]

So... who wants to bet that their working with a US based mosque?

It's pretty hard for a dozen guys with no resources to just up and disappear into a foriegn country. You need somewhere to go and someone to support you. Not necessarily a mosque, but certainly 'like minded individuals' that may congregate at one.

[hoosiermama]

IIRC: Wasn't there an announcement just this week that an Egyptian terrorist group has just merged with Al Qaida?

[pepperdog]

So why isn't the FBI releasing photos of them? You know they have them. Don't they? Surely they do.

[hoosiermama]

That's it! You were posting while I was typing.

[tdewey10]

lol. Pretty funny.