Threat Matrix: April 2008

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[nwctwx]

Afghanistan to Ask NATO for Bigger Army

Afghan officials will go to the NATO summit in Romania Thursday with a request: pay to increase our national Army by 40 percent. A bigger Army, Afghan officials argue, will allow the US and other coalition members to scale back in the coming years.

This appeal comes amid pleas from the US and Canada for other NATO members to commit more to the Afghanistan mission, which many analysts say has floundered over the past year for lack of resources and a coherent strategy. France is expected to contribute another 1,000 forces and Germany is likely to make a bigger commitment.

But American and Afghan government sources with knowledge of the expected Afghan proposal say that an increase from the current authorization of 86,000 Afghan Army soldiers to 120,000 is the only way to create an enduring defense against a resurgent Taliban and elusive Al Qaeda operatives. Read More

	France May Send More Troops to Afghanistan
	Special Operations Increase Possible for Iraq
	Al-Qaeda Grooming Militants Who 'Look Western': CIA Chief

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[BurbankKarl]

LOS ANGELES (KABC) — A teenage gunman from Boyle Heights is at large Saturday.
The boy who put a bullet hole in a police vehicle, fled on foot from the crime around 8:30 p.m. Friday. He was seen running into an alley.
Authorities searched the surrounding area for the suspect until 1 a.m. but never found him.
The teen assailant is described as Latino, 16-years of age and was last seen wearing blue pants and shirt, as well as a black jacket.

[Cindy]

...and I’m sure Israel will be watching (and maybe listening) to Hezbollah.

[Cindy]

Thanks to LucyT for the ping to this thread.

http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1997239/posts

“Iran loses ground in Iraq”
Toledo Blade ^ | Saturday, April 5, 2008 | Jack Kelly
Posted on 04/05/2008 11:08:59 AM PDT by Ernest_at_the_Beach

[Cindy]

Note: The following post is a quote:

http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1997472/posts

Saudi prince gives Cambridge University £8m for Islamic studies centre
London Telegraph ^ | April 6, 2008 | Julie Henry, Education Correspondent
Posted on 04/05/2008 10:22:17 PM PDT by rdl6989

Cambridge University has been given £8 million by a Saudi Arabian prince to establish an Islamic studies centre.

Prince Alwaleed Bin Talal, ranked in the top 20 richest men in the world, with a fortune of about £10 billion, has donated the cash to the university to fund a centre in his name for the study of the role of Islam in the Middle East and globally.

The gift has been recommended by the university’s general board and is expected to be announced in June. advertisement

The grandson of King Ibn Saud and nephew of King Abudllah, the prince counts the Prince of Wales and Duchess of Cornwall among his friends.

With a huge portfolio generating massive returns – he calls his investments his “hundred wives” – the 50-year-old is the biggest single shareholder in Citigroup, the world’s biggest bank.

In 2005 he bought the Savoy Hotel in London for about £220 million. Last year, he became the first person to buy an Airbus A380 superjumbo to use as a private jet, dubbed the “flying palace”.

Prince Alwaleed Bin Talal hit the headlines in 2001 when his offer of cash for the victims of the September 11 attacks in New York was turned down after he criticised American foreign policy. New York’s then mayor, Rudolph Giuliani, rejected a £6.6 million donation when the businessman issued a statement that America had to adopt a “more balanced stance” on Palestine. The row belies the prince’s influence in America, however.

(Excerpt) Read more at telegraph.co.uk ...

[Cindy]

Life is like a chess board lately and the game is still in progress. -Cindy

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http://www.freerepublic.com/tag/china/
http://www.freerepublic.com/tag/pakistan/

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http://www.satp.org
http://www.saag.org

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Note: The following post is a quote:
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1997446/posts

China Expands Military Ties With Pakistan
cbs ^ | 4/5/08 | ISLAMABAD, Pakistan
Posted on 04/05/2008 8:51:57 PM PDT by Flavius

China has taken a significant step in meeting Pakistan’s military needs with the completion of a militarily important naval frigate as part of an $800 million deal, which analysts say will further deepen Islamabad’s reliance on Beijing as a key supplier of military hardware.

(Excerpt) Read more at cbsnews.com ...

[Cindy]

IDF.il
http://www.idf.il

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Note: The following news brief is a quote:

http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-3527958,00.html

IDF uncovers 2 bombs near Jenin; no injuries
Published: 04.06.08, 08:55 / Israel News

An IDF force on patrol southwest of the West Bank city of Jenin uncovered a pipe bomb and another makeshift explosive device. Sappers dispatched to the scene conducted a controlled-detonation of the bombs. No injuries were reported. (Efrat Weiss)

[Cindy]

http://www.freerepublic.com/tag/surenos
http://www.freerepublic.com/tag/sur
http://www.freerepublic.com/tag/gangs
http://www.freerepublic.com/tag/gang

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http://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=surenos&search_type=

[Cindy]

http://www.officer.com/online/article.jsp?siteSection=1&id=40916

“4 Corrections Officers Attacked in California”

Posted: Friday, April 4, 2008
Updated: April 4th, 2008 10:20 AM PDT

The Associated Press

TEHACHAPI, Calif. —

ARTICLE SNIPPET: “All of the state’s prisons were locked down as a precaution Thursday after two inmates attacked four officers at the California Correctional Institution, a corrections official said.

Two sergeants and an officer were treated for lacerations, stab and puncture wounds, said Terry Thornton, a spokeswoman for the Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation. The three men were in stable condition at hospitals. A fourth officer, a woman, suffered unknown injuries and was also taken to a hospital.

The two inmates involved in the attack are members of the Surenos, a Southern California gang, the Los Angeles Times reported on its Web site Thursday, citing corrections officials.

State prisons were to remain locked down until corrections staff could determine whether the stabbing was an isolated incident, Thornton said.”

[Cindy]

http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1997478/posts

“Authorities testing for deadly strain as new bird flu outbreak hits South Korea”
AP ^ | 04/05/08
Posted on 04/05/2008 11:23:01 PM PDT by TigerLikesRooster

[Cindy]

Note: The following post is a quote:

http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/news/1997481/posts

Man swims into Governor-General’s residence and dives in his pool
news.com.au ^ | 6th April 2008
Posted on 04/06/2008 12:25:03 AM PDT by naturalman1975

A MAN has caused a security scare after jumping from a Manly ferry and breaking into the grounds of the Governor-Generals’ official Sydney home. An AAP journalist, who was an eyewitness, said the man jumped off the ferry in Sydney harbour at about 2.50pm (AEST) and swam up to 600 metres towards Admiralty House, dodging four police boats before making it to shore.

“He jumped off the ferry and started swimming,’’ he said.

“The maritime police tried to corner him and lasso him.’’

The witness said the man climbed a wall and was in the grounds of Governor-General Michael Jeffrey’s residence for about 10 minutes before being apprehended.

(Excerpt) Read more at news.com.au ...

[Cindy]

UPDATE:

Note: The following news brief is a quote:

http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-3528014,00.html

Egypt nabs car bomb intended for Sinai terror attack
Published: 04.06.08, 10:35 / Israel News

Egypt’s Al-Ahram Weekly reported Sunday that Egyptian security personnel have intercepted a car bomb headed for a possible terror attack in the Sinai Peninsula. Egypt’s security forces have raised their alert levels this weekend following reports that a Egyptian and Sudanese nationals were planning a car bombing in one of the Sinai Peninsula’s many tourist resorts, reported Al-Ahram.

Careful searches have led to the interception of an additional car bomb, Sunday, in a vehicle driven by two Sudanese nationals. The two are currently being questioned by Egyptian police in order to ascertain their involvement in this recent bombing attempt as well as the earlier suspected one. (Roee Nahmias)

[Cindy]

Previously...

JPOST.com - THE JERUSALEM POST (AP): El-Arish, Egypt - "EGYPT SERACHING FOR 2 SUDANESE SUSPECTED OF PLANNING SUICIDE ATTACKS" (April 4, 2008, 23:33)

Link

[Cindy]

CIA.gov
http://www.cia.gov

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http://www.memri.org/bin/articles.cgi?Page=subjects&Area=reform&ID=SP188508

Special Dispatch Series - No. 1885
April 3, 2008 No. 1885

“Iraqi Liberal Khudayr Taher: Cooperating with the CIA Is a Moral and Religious Obligation; The War on Terror Is the Best Jihad for the Sake of Allah”

ARTICLE SNIPPET: “In an article published on April 1, 2008, in the Arab liberal e-journal Elaph, Iraqi liberal Khudayr Taher, who now lives in the U.S., wrote that American intelligence has done a great service to humanity in helping to defeat Nazism, communism, the Taliban, and Saddam Hussein, and that cooperating with the CIA is a moral and religious obligation.”

[Cindy]

http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1997488/posts

“The Terrorist Roundup for April 6, 2008”
4/6/08
Posted on 04/06/2008 1:36:29 AM PDT by Straight Vermonter

[Cindy]

http://www.freerepublic.com/tag/china/
http://www.freerepublic.com/tag/tibet/

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http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1997487/posts

“China arrests over 2300 Tibetans in Tibet”
Tibetan Center for Human Rights and Democracy ^ | 04/05/08
Posted on 04/06/2008 1:22:38 AM PDT by TigerLikesRooster

[Cindy]

http://www.washingtontimes.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080406/NATION/982673084/1001

Page 1 of 2

“Hayden aims for ‘a more cohesive CIA’”
By Sara A. Carter
April 6, 2008

ARTICLE SNIPPET: “A longtime Pittsburgh Steelers fan and former football coach, he understands that sometimes it’s necessary to shift the game-day strategy based on his players’ input. His ultimate goal: “Build a more cohesive CIA.”

“Terrorism in the 21st century is the kind of threat our country hasn’t faced in a very long time,” Mr. Hayden told The Washington Times.

“The individual safety of Americans is at risk like at no time since probably our own Civil War, and we’re trying to deal with the challenge in a way that doesn’t change our nation’s DNA,” he said.”

[Cindy]

http://www.freerepublic.com/tag/tamiltigers/

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Thanks to Jet Jaguar for starting this thread.

Note: The following post is a quote:

http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1997489/posts

Bombing Kills 12 at Sri Lanka Marathon
AP via brietbart ^ | Apr 6, 2008 | BHARATHA MALLAWARACHI
Posted on 04/06/2008 1:39:37 AM PDT by Jet Jaguar

COLOMBO, Sri Lanka (AP) - A suicide bomber attacked the opening ceremony of a marathon outside Sri Lanka’s capital Sunday, killing a government minister and 11 other people, authorities said. Dozens were wounded.

Officials blamed the bombing, the second this year resulting in the death of a senior government official, on Tamil Tiger rebels.

Minister of Highways and Road Development Jeyaraj Fernandopulle was opening the race at Weliweriya town, 12 miles outside Colombo. He died in a hospital of injuries sustained in the blast, said government spokesman Lakshman Hulugalla, blaming Tamil rebels.

Eleven others were killed—including former Olympic marathoner K.A. Karunaratne and national athletic coach Lakshman de Alwis—and more than 90 were wounded, Hulugalla said.

Rebel spokesman Rasiah Ilanthirayan did not answer calls seeking comment. The Tamil Tigers, listed as a terror group by the United States and European Union, routinely deny responsibility for such attacks

Fighting in Sri Lanka has increased in recent months since the government officially ended a six-year cease-fire in January. The truce had been faltering for more than two years as escalating violence killed about 5,000 people.

The government has vowed to crush the rebels by the end of the year, but diplomats and other observers say the army is facing more resistance than it expected.

The Tamil Tigers have fought since 1983 for an independent homeland for ethnic minority Tamils, marginalized for decades by successive governments run by majority ethnic Sinhalese. More than 70,000 people have been killed in the violence.

Fernandopulle was the fourth Sri Lankan lawmaker to be killed this year. In January, Nation Building Minister D.M. Dassanayake was killed in a roadside bomb attack blamed on Tamil rebels.

One opposition lawmaker was gunned down in Colombo and another died in a bomb explosion in the rebel-held northern region.

[Cindy]

http://www.travel.state.gov/travel/cis_pa_tw/cis/cis_1762.html

“Olympics 2008 Fact Sheet (China)”
U.S. DEPARTMENT OF STATE
Bureau of Consular Affairs

[Cindy]

ADDING links to post no. 277:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jYy_DFYC-S4
“MP Jeyaraj Killed 06/04/2008”
(Added April 5, 2008)

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blog:

http://defencenet.blogspot.com

http://defencenet.blogspot.com/2008/04/minister-jeyeraj-fernandopulle-killed.html

SUNDAY, APRIL 6, 2008
“Minister Jeyeraj Fernandopulle killed in Weliweriya blast”

[Jet Jaguar]

Thanks for the post of the video.

One “combatant” and the rest are all civilian.

Sick.