Threat Matrix: Daily Terror Threat

Threat Matrix: Daily Terror Threat

Thread Thirty-One (Index)

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The Threat Matrix

The title refers to a daily report given to the president of the United States detailing the most serious terrorist threats against the country. To tackle those threats, the government has formed a top-notch task force to infiltrate the terror cells and cut off the danger.

"Every morning, the president receives a list of the top ten terrorist threats - this list is known as the threat matrix."

We here at FR are trying to be in conjunction with the daily reports around the world that involve threats. We try to provide a storehouse of information that takes hours of research.

YOU be the judge and get informed!

Home grown Islamists may hit US: FBI chief
Full Story

WASHINGTON -- The United States could be attacked by "home grown" Islamist terror groups, the FBI's chief has warned.

FBI Director Robert Mueller told the London Financial Times newspaper in an interview published Thursday that the United States could face attacks from "home-grown terrorism" very similar to the July 7 bombings in London that killed 52 people and wounded another 700, Mueller said.

When asked if the United States could face such attacks from "home-grown groups", Mueller answered emphatically: "Absolutely, it could," the Financial Times said.

"I will never cower before any master nor bend to any threat."

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TerroristWarning.com Terrorism Headlines 10/06/2005 # 1

National:

[ABC News] USA - Espionage Case Breaches the White House

http://abcnews.go.com/WNT/story?id=1187030&page=1

[KWTX] TEXAS - Fort Hood Service Center Closed After Suspicious Substance Found

http://www.kwtx.com/home/headlines/1889077.html

[AP] CANADA - Death Toll From Canada Outbreak Now at 16

"cause of the outbreak at the Seven Oaks Home for the Aged remains unknown"

http://www.breitbart.com/news/2005/10/05/D8D244U8C.html

[AP] NORTH CAROLINA - Feds Charge Three Working at Fort Bragg With Immigration Violations

"Three people who taught foreign languages at a school at Fort Bragg were arrested on immigration charges"

http://ap.tbo.com/ap/breaking/MGB7UGV2GEE.html

[AP] USA - Cheney Urges Patience in Decades-Long War on Terror

http://ap.tbo.com/ap/breaking/MGB1SQY2GEE.html

[NBC News and news services] USA - White House scare over suspicious package

http://msnbc.msn.com/id/9597893/

[NBC4.tv] CALIFORNIA - 'Suspicious Device' Prompts Evacuation In Long Beach

"cylinder-type device with a timer attached to it"

http://www.nbc4.tv/news/5059211/detail.html

[WND] USA / MEXICO BORDER - Is border fence needed to protect U.S. security?

http://www.wnd.com/news/article.asp?ARTICLE_ID=46659

[U.S. Coast Guard] FLORIDA - Migrant Smugglers Thwarted by Coast Guard, DHS Partners

http://www.military.com/NewsContent/0,13319,78163,00.html

[AFP] USA / IRAN - Iran Issues Threat To US Interests

"The Americans should know that if they put more pressure on our country, Iran will be obliged to use all means to disrupt the situation and endanger its interests,"

http://www.spacewar.com/news/iran-05zzzza.html

[Voices Magazine] USA / IRAQ - Top Generals Urge Public Support for Iraq Policy

http://voicesmag.com/Archives/News/oct2005/top_generals_public_support_iraq_100305.htm

[Voices Magazine Jim Kouri] USA - JDL Leader Sentenced to 20 Years For Terrorist Plot

"admitted his role in two criminal conspiracies to manufacture and detonate bombs at a mosque and a Congressman's field office "

http://voicesmag.com/Archives/kouri/jdl_leader_sentenced_20years_100505.htm

[NewsHour Extra] USA - FBI Targets MS-13 Street Gang

"Congress also has begun working on legislation to make gang crimes federal offenses with mandatory minimum sentences, after rumors surfaced that MS-13 may have had connections to al-Qaida"

http://www.pbs.org/newshour/extra/features/july-dec05/gangs_10-05.html

[WCPO] OHIO - Live Pipe Bomb Found In Colerain Township

http://www.wcpo.com/news/2005/local/10/05/pipebomb.html

[The Mercury] PENNSYLVANIA - Officials: No bomb found in vehicle

http://www.pottstownmercury.com/site/news.cfm?newsid=15337551&BRD=1674&PAG=461&dept_id=18041&rfi=6

[The JHU Gazette] USA - Physicians Ill-Prepared to Diagnose or Treat Bioterrorism Diseases

"More than one-half of 631 physicians tested were unable to correctly diagnose diseases caused by agents most likely to be used by bioterrorists, such as smallpox, anthrax, botulism and plague"

http://www.jhu.edu/~gazette/2005/03oct05/03illpre.html

[U.S. Department of the Treasury] USA - Treasury Designates Seven Al Qaida Associates [Egyptian Islamic Jihad]

http://www.treas.gov/press/releases/js2960.htm

[NorthJersey.com] NEW JERSEY - State police pull out of anti-terror office in N.J.

"decimating the agency's investigative ability and bringing its terror probes to a virtual standstill"

"It's totally, definitely and completely irresponsible. It's not a game that's being played - this is the health and well-being of New Jersey we're talking about"

http://www.northjersey.com/page.php?qstr=eXJpcnk3ZjczN2Y3dnFlZUVFeXk2MDYmZmdiZWw3Zjd2cWVlRUV5eTY3ODY1NDEmeXJpcnk3ZjcxN2Y3dnFlZUVFeXky

[Government Technology] NEW JERSEY - New Jersey Receives Port Security Grants

http://www.govtech.net/magazine/channel_story.php/96855

[Rocky Mountain News] COLORADO - State has plan for avian flu

"Centers for Disease Control in Atlanta estimates that up to 100 million Americans could be infected during a pandemic, and 89,000 to 207,000 could die"

http://www.rockymountainnews.com/drmn/local/article/0,1299,DRMN_15_4130045,00.html

International:

[ABC News Online] AUSTRALIA - Police escape injury during Melbourne van blast

"Firefighters say suspicious bags with wires attached were seen in a white van before it burst into flames at Kew in Melbourne's east this morning"

http://www.abc.net.au/news/newsitems/200510/s1475652.htm

[SMH] AUSTRALIA - 'Bomb' van explodes as police retreat [photo]

http://www.smh.com.au/articles/2005/10/06/1128191818751.html?from=top5

[BBC] SRI LANKA - Bomb blast in Sri Lanka capital

"bomb in a parked van outside a newspaper office of a Tamil political party "

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/south_asia/4314500.stm

[B92] KOSOVO - Bomb destroys UN vehicle in Kosovo

http://www.b92.net/english/news/index.php?&nav_category=&nav_id=33034&order=priority&style=headlines

[Trinidad Express] TRINIDAD / TOBAGO - US issues warning for citizens to avoid PoS next week

"US Citizens are advised to avoid the downtown Port of Spain vicinity during the period October 9-12 as a precautionary measure due to a pattern of bombings which have occurred in public locations on the 10th or
11th of each of the previous three months"

http://www.trinidadexpress.com/index.pl/article_news?id=106549508

[AP] IRAQ - Video Shows Beheading of Two Iraqi Men Alleged to Be U.S. Spies

"video showing two Iraqi men being beheaded for allegedly spying for the United States was posted on a militant Islamic Web site Wednesday"

http://ap.tbo.com/ap/breaking/MGBE4H91GEE.html

[Japan Today] JAPAN - Anthrax, resistant TB not stored properly at many Japanese labs

http://www.japantoday.com/e/?content=news&cat=1&id=351256

[IHC Report] USA / SYRIA - US State Department Official: Syria Actively Supports Terrorism

http://www.infoisrael.net/cgi-local/text.pl?source=2/a/i/021020051

[MENL] SYRIA / RUSSIA - SYRIA PREPARES FOR S-18 DELIVERY

"Syria has been finalizing arrangements for the receipt of S-18 surface-to-air missiles from Russia"

http://www.menewsline.com/stories/2005/october/10_02_3.html

[AP] ISRAEL - PA: Security forces will stand firm

http://www.jpost.com/servlet/Satellite?pagename=JPost/JPArticle/ShowFull&cid=1128219508282

[Taiwan Journal] TAIWAN / USA / CHINA / JAPAN - Military experts at conference urge closer ties with US, Japan

"to counter China's growing military threat in the Taiwan Strait"

http://www.gio.gov.tw/taiwan-website/4-oa/20051005/2005100501.html

[Welwyn and Hatfield TImes] UNITED KINGDOM - White powder shock for villager [False Alarm]

"frightened man from Danesbury Park Road, Welwyn, feared it was anthrax and called the police"

http://www.whtimes.co.uk/content/whtimes/news/story.aspx?brand=WHTOnline&category=News&tBrand=herts24&tCategory=newswhtnew&itemid=WEED05%20Oct%202005%2010%3A40%3A35%3A287

[London Free Press] AFGHANISTAN - Afghan bomb kills boy, injures Canadians

http://lfpress.ca/newsstand/News/International/2005/10/06/1250483-sun.html

[AP] TURKEY - Nations Struggle to Infiltrate al-Qaida

"Turkish intelligence agents are infiltrating mosques, monitoring underground Web sites and investigating Islamic front charities but are having little success penetrating al-Qaida's tight-knit cells"

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20051005/ap_on_re_mi_ea/infiltrating_al_qaida;_ylt=An1Itf49pmfcTsTAyS8DcvxvaA8F;_ylu=X3oDMTBiMW04NW9mBHNlYwMlJVRPUCUl

[BBC] UNITED KINGDOM / IRAN / IRAQ - Iran 'behind attacks on British'

"Britain has accused Iran of responsibility for explosions which have caused the deaths of all eight UK soldiers killed in Iraq this year"

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/middle_east/4312516.stm

[AKI] SUDAN - AL-QAEDA MAY STILL BE OPERATING TRAINING CAMPS IN SUDAN, PRELATE SAYS

http://www.adnki.com/index_2Level.php?cat=Terrorism&loid=8.0.215351001&par=0

[AFX] IRAQ - US general warns of increased Baghdad insurgent attacks ahead of Oct 15 vote

http://www.forbes.com/finance/feeds/afx/2005/10/05/afx2261566.html

[Intl Crisis Group] EGYPT - Reforming Egypt: In Search of a Strategy

http://www.crisisgroup.org/home/index.cfm?id=3718&l=2

[Daily Standard] IRAN - General Panic ... Meet Brigadier General Qassem Suleimani, the commander of Iran's anti-American Qods Force

http://www.weeklystandard.com/Content/Public/Articles/000/000/006/156kncex.asp

[part one]------------ INFLUENZA VIRUS, 1918 PANDEMIC STRAIN: RECONSTRUCTION (02) ********************************************************** A ProMED-mail post ProMED-mail is a program of the International Society for Infectious Diseases ---------------------------------- Sponsored in part by Elsevier, publisher of Tuberculosis ------------------------------------ Date: Thu 6 Oct 2005 From: ProMED-mail Source: Nature, 437, 794-795 (6 Oct 2005) / doi: 10.1038/437794a [edited] ____________________________________________________________ [The following special report amplifies the information contained in the BBC News item posted yesterday and considers some of the issues and concerns raised by this singular achievement. The correct references for the 2 papers published simultaneously in Nature and Science are the following: Jeffery K. Taubenberg et al. Nature 437, 889-893, 2005; and T. M. Tumpey et al. Science 310, 77 80; 2005. - Mod.CP] ______________________________________________________________ The recreation of one of the deadliest diseases known could help us to prevent another pandemic. Or it might trigger one, say critics. ---------------------------------------- It is thought to have killed 50 million people, and yet scientists have brought it back to life. In this issue of Nature, scientists publish an analysis of the full genome sequence of the 1918 human influenza virus. And in this week's Science, researchers describe how they used that sequence to recreate the virus and study its effects in mice. ------------------------------------- Some scientists have already hailed the work as giving unprecedented insight into the virus. Working out how it arose and why it was so deadly could help experts to spot the next pandemic strain and to design appropriate drugs and vaccines in time, they say. But others have raised concerns that the dangers of resurrecting the virus are just too great. One biosecurity expert told Nature that the risk that the recreated strain might escape is so high, it is almost a certainty. And the publication of the full genome sequence gives any rogue nation or bioterrorist group all the information they need to make their own version of the virus. Jeffery Taubenberger of the Armed Forces Institute of Pathology in Rockville, Maryland, is the lead author of the sequencing study. He says the work was necessary and the risks were low. The paper gives details of the final three genes; the sequences of the rest have already been published. [see: Characterization of the 1918 influenza virus polymerase genes. Jeffery K. Taubenberg, Ann H. Reid, Raina M. Lourens, Ruixue Wang, Guozhong Jin & Thomas G Fanning. Nature 437, 889-893, 6 Oct 2005 ______________________________________________________________ ]. ------------------------------------- The full sequence is strong evidence that the 1918 flu virus is derived wholly from an ancestor that originally infected birds. In contrast, the viruses that caused the flu pandemics of 1957 and 1968 arose when human and avian flu viruses infected the same person at the same time, allowing their genes to mix. ----------------------------------- All 8 of the genome segments from the 1918 virus differ in important ways from other human flu sequences, suggesting that none of the genome came from a strain that had previously infected people. "It is the most bird-like of all mammalian flu viruses," says Taubenberger. Pinpointing exactly which genetic mutations allowed the virus to jump to humans will enable scientists to recognize other bird viruses that could trigger a pandemic. Taubenberger's team has already identified 25 changes in the protein sequences of the 1918 strain that have been present in subsequent human flu viruses. These mutations are likely to be particularly important, he says. One such change, in the polymerase gene PB2, was found in the virus isolated from the only human fatality in a 2003 outbreak of H7N7 bird flu in the Netherlands. ------------------------------------- In the paper in Science (T. M. Tumpey et al. 310, 77 80; 2005), Terrence Tumpey at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) in Atlanta, Georgia, and his co-workers have used Taubenberger's sequence to recreate the complete 1918 virus. When they used the strain to infect mice they found it was extremely virulent, and after 4 days had generated 39 000 times more virus particles in the animals' lungs than a modern flu strain. "I didn't expect it to be as lethal as it was," says Tumpey. All the mice died within 6 days of infection with the 1918 virus and none with a contemporary virus. ------------------------------------- The researchers compared the complete 1918 virus with strains in which some genes had been replaced by those of contemporary strains. They found that replacing the haemagglutinin gene, which helps the virus to enter cells, made it unable to kill mice. Replacing all 3 of the polymerase genes, which allow the virus to replicate, significantly reduced its virulence. The haemagglutinin gene is essential, says Tumpey. "But no single change or gene is the answer," adds Taubenberger. "It's a combination effect." Future research will involve testing reconstructed viruses with and without certain mutations, to see which are the most important for virulence. --------------------------------------- Information from this type of study will hopefully be of use in vaccine and drug design, but so far the work is more about obtaining a basic understanding of the virus than any immediate health benefits. ---------------------------------------- The studies have been praised as ground-breaking. "It's a landmark," says Eddie Holmes, a virologist at Pennsylvania State University in University Park. "Not only is this the 1st time this has been done for any ancient pathogen, but it deals with the agent of the most important disease pandemic in human history." The team got permission to do the work from CDC head Julie Gerberding and Anthony Fauci, director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, based in Bethesda, Maryland. But the studies have sparked fears among other researchers. "There most definitely is reason for concern," says Richard Ebright, a bacteriologist at Rutgers University in Piscataway, New Jersey, who serves on biosecurity panels. "Tumpey et al. have constructed, and provided procedures for others to construct, a virus that represents perhaps the most effective bioweapons agent now known." ------------------------------------------------------- "This would be extremely dangerous should it escape, and there is a long history of things escaping," says Barbara Hatch Rosenberg, a molecular biologist and member of the Federation of American Scientists' Working Group on Biological Weapons. "What advantage is so much greater than that risk?" ______________________________________________________________ Ebright agrees that there is a significant risk, "verging on inevitability", of accidental release of the virus into the human population, or of theft by a "disgruntled, disturbed or extremist laboratory employee". And there is the danger that a hostile nation might reconstruct its own version of the virus, he says, pointing out that any of these scenarios could result in a large number of deaths [including, however, many in the nation that released the virus. - Mod.JW] [continued]

[continued - part 2 - 1918 Flu]----------------------------- Ebright also believes that using an enhanced biosafety level-3 lab for the work was inadequate. If the researchers were going to do the work at all, they should have used level 4, the strictest biosafety condition, he says. ------------------------------- This requires experimenters to wear full body suits. In 2003, he points out, a SARS virus escaped accidentally from a level-3 lab in Singapore, and in 2004, 2 further escapes occurred from such labs in Beijing. Tumpey counters that enhanced level 3, which requires upper body suits and respirators, is safe enough. Disgruntled employees aren't a concern either, he says, because he is the only one who works with the virus. The few researchers with access to the lab undergo extensive background checks, and retina and fingerprint scans are used to prevent any unauthorized entry to the lab. He adds that even if the virus did escape, it wouldn't have the same consequences as the 1918 pandemic. ______________________________________________________________ Most people now have some immunity to the 1918 virus because subsequent human flu viruses are in part derived from it. And, in mice, regular flu vaccines and drugs are at least partly effective against an infection with reconstructed viruses that contain some of the genes from 1918 flu. _______________________________________________________________ The other potential threat comes from the availability of the full genome sequence, which has been put on the GenBank database -- a condition of the paper's publication. Anyone can order DNA to be made to a certain sequence, points out Jonathan Tucker, a policy analyst at the Center for Nonproliferation Studies in Washington DC. There are currently no governmental controls on what sequences can be used, says Tucker, although some DNA synthesis companies now screen their orders for pathogenic sequences. ------------------------------- If someone wants to reconstruct the virus, says Taubenberger, "the technology is available". Philip Campbell, editor-in-chief of Nature, says that although he did not seek advice on whether to publish the work, he has done so for previous flu-virulence and pathogen genome papers. He says that the benefits clearly outweigh the risks. Donald Kennedy, editor-in-chief of Science, agrees about the merits of publication. "I think we are going to depend on this kind of knowledge," he says. --------------------------------------- The US National Science Advisory Board for Biosecurity (NSABB) reached a similar conclusion about both studies, after calling an emergency meeting last week to consider the risks. But, concerned about public fears, it asked the authors of both papers to add a passage to the manuscripts stating that the work is important for public health and was conducted safely. Campbell says he is worried that government agencies will start seeking to be involved in the publishing process. ------------------------------------------ "We are happy to cooperate with the NSABB to consider the principles by which dual-use results can be published responsibly," he says. "But government bureaucracies and committees may push to avoid perceived risks, at the potential expense of benefits to public security." ______________________________________________________________ Taubenberger admits that there can be no absolute guarantee of safety. "We are aware that all technological advances could be misused," he says. "But what we are trying to understand is what happened in nature and how to prevent another pandemic. In this case, nature is the bioterrorist." ------------------------------- [Byline: Andreas von Bubnoff] -- ProMED-mail -------------------------------- [see also: Influenza virus, 1918 pandemic strain: reconstruction 20051005.2901 Influenza activity update & 2005/2006 vaccine reco... 20050915.2726 2004 ---- Influenza A virus, virulence, 1918 pandemic strain 20041007.2754 Influenza A virus, virulence, 1918 ... (02) 20041008.2757 Influenza A virus, virulence, 1918 ... (03) 20041009.2769, Influenza A virus, virulence, 1918 ... (04) 20041011.2780, Influenza A virus, virulence, 1918 ... (05) 20041013.2790, Influenza A virus, virulence, 1918 ... (06) 20041013.2793, Influenza A virus, virulence, 1918 ... (02) 20041015.2810] .....................cp/pg/jw

TerroristWarning.com Terrorism Headlines 10/07/2005 # 1

National:

[New York Sun] USA / SAUDI ARABIA - Senate Will Probe Saudi Distribution Of Hate Materials

"The American government is demanding that Saudi Arabia account for its distribution of hate material to American mosques"

"dozens of mosques in major cities across the country, including New York, Washington, and Los Angeles, were distributing documents, bearing the seal of the government of Saudi Arabia, that incite
Muslims to acts of violence and promote hatred of Jews and Christians"

http://www.nysun.com/article/20998

[AFP] USA - Bin Laden to surface after new attack on US soil: ex-CIA expert

http://www.breitbart.com/news/2005/10/05/051006013432.k4e6rfb7.html

[AHN] USA - FBI Discloses A 'Specific Threat' Against New York City

http://www.allheadlinenews.com/articles/7000410179

[Times Online] NEW YORK - New York subway on alert after 'credible threat' of attack

http://www.timesonline.co.uk/article/0,,7374-1815565,00.html

[AP] NEW YORK - Television Station Held Subway Threat Story Over Security Concerns

http://ap.tbo.com/ap/breaking/MGBSI1CVHEE.html

[AP] USA - Bush: 10 Al-Qaida Attacks Stopped

http://www.nbcsandiego.com/news/5064741/detail.html

[AFP] USA - Three Al-Qaeda strikes foiled in US since September 11: Bush

http://news.yahoo.com/s/afp/20051006/wl_afp/usattacksbush_051006164052;_ylt=AmeHBR6gcPh2Ud2TbwZ4AjOs0NUE;_ylu=X3oDMTA3b3JuZGZhBHNlYwM3MjE-

[Reuters] USA - White House details 10 terror plots in Bush speech

http://www.alertnet.org/thenews/newsdesk/N06698778.htm

[The Australian] AUSTRALIA / USA - PM not aware of foiled al-Qaeda plots

http://www.theaustralian.news.com.au/common/story_page/0,5744,16843195%255E1702,00.html

[FCW] USA - Google: Fit for intelligence work?

http://www.fcw.com/article90984-10-03-05-Print

[ClickOnDetroit.com] MICHIGAN - Bomb Squad Called For Device Found In Barn

"Firefighter Makes Discovery Beneath Car"

http://www.clickondetroit.com/news/5066487/detail.html

[GCN] USA - TSA seeks technology to round up the usual suspects

http://www.gcn.com/vol1_no1/daily-updates/37222-1.html

[BBC] USA - CIA head rejects 9/11 blame game

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/americas/4314268.stm

[AP] OKLAHOMA - Bomber's Roommate Held Briefly After Attack

http://www.channeloklahoma.com/news/5060237/detail.html

[AP] USA - Senate: Treat Suspects Like POWs

http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,171394,00.html

[Village Voice] USA - Marines: Looking for a Few Good Aliens?

"U.S. Marine recruiter accused of selling and delivering counterfeit documents to illegal aliens in order for them to join the service"

http://villagevoice.com/news/0540,gillison,68594,2.html

[Angus Reid Global Scan] USA - Americans Split Over Homeland Security Success

"45 per cent of respondents say the Department of Homeland Security has made Americans safer, while 49 per cent disagree"

http://www.angus-reid.com/polls/index.cfm/fuseaction/viewItem/itemID/9261

[UPI] USA / MEXICO BORDER - Minutemen arrival chases away smugglers

"Al Garza, president of the Minuteman Civil Defense Corps of Texas, said the civilian volunteers will stay at their posts until relieved by the National Guard"

http://www.washtimes.com/national/20051004-104448-5748r.htm

[AP] NEW YORK - One dead, several injured in blast at home for migrant workers

http://www.wcax.com/Global/story.asp?S=3944804

[KVOA] ARIZONA - The U.S. Border Patrol is getting new stations in Willcox and Sonoita

http://kvoa.com/Global/story.asp?S=3939697&nav=HMO6HMaY

[AP] IDAHO - Seven illegal aliens arrested for working at Mountain Home AFB

http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/local/aplocal_story.asp?category=6420&slug=ID%20Immigration%20Arrests%20Idaho

[NWI Times] ILLINOIS - Cops find, detonate car bomb

http://www.nwitimes.com/articles/2005/10/06/news/top_news/96b207b7f506ba4086257092001a02d1.txt

[Witchita Eagle] KANSAS - Billboard seeks public's help spotting terrorists

http://www.kansas.com/mld/kansas/news/local/12813930.htm

[ClickOnDetroit.com] MICHIGAN - Doctors Label Source Of Mysterious School Illness

"Doctors are labeling a mysterious illness at a Pittsfield Township high school as psychosomatic"

"Several students passed out and went to the hospital"

http://www.clickondetroit.com/news/5065510/detail.html

[Mens News Daily - Jim Kouri] USA - Feds, Local Cops Arrest 59 Smugglers in 11 Cities

http://mensnewsdaily.com/blog/kouri/2005/10/feds-local-cops-arrest-59-smugglers-in.html

[AP / KHOU] TEXAS - Several injured in Formosa plant explosion

http://www.khou.com/topstories/stories/khou051006_mh_plantexplosion.cae87da6.html

[AP] CANADA - Plane Carrying Viruses Crashes in Canada

http://www.breitbart.com/news/2005/10/06/D8D2QNPG2.html

[AP] USA - Bush Presses Vaccine Makers to Prepare for Possible Bird Flu Pandemic

http://ap.tbo.com/ap/breaking/MGBYJ3LVHEE.html

[Gainesville Sun] FLORIDA - Al-Qaeda in N. Florida? Commissioner says so

http://www.gainesville.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20051006/LOCAL/51006009/1078/news

International:

[Fox News] AFGHANISTAN - U.S. Snags Al Qaeda No. 2's Letter to Zarqawi

"Muslim terrorists have developed a detailed plan for creating an Islamic state centered on Iraq and including neighboring countries as well as the destruction of Israel"

http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,171513,00.html

[Reuters] MIDDLE EAST - Al Qaeda puts job ads on Internet - Arab paper

http://today.reuters.com/news/newsArticle.aspx?type=worldNews&storyID=2005-10-06T131639Z_01_HAR647328_RTRUKOC_0_US-QAEDA-JOBS.xml

[AP] EGYPT - Egypt Warns Hamas Over Weapons

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20051006/ap_on_re_mi_ea/israel_palestinians;_ylt=AsA8VG3bZ_acGYh4syt5By5vaA8F;_ylu=X3oDMTBiMW04NW9mBHNlYwMlJVRPUCUl

[Times Online] IRAN / UNITED KINGDOM - Iran brands British bomb claims 'fantasy'

http://www.timesonline.co.uk/article/0,,7374-1813621,00.html

[Pajhwok Afghan News] AFGHANISTAN - Arab escapee vows jihad against US

http://www.pajhwak.com/viewstory.asp?lng=eng&id=7158

[AP] AFGHANISTAN - Taliban Spokesman: Chief Hiding in Afghanistan [Mullah Mohammed Omar]

http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,171301,00.html

[Reuters] PAKISTAN / AFGHANISTAN - Pakistan to consider Afghan request for Taleban spokesman

http://www.khaleejtimes.com/DisplayArticle.asp?xfile=data/subcontinent/2005/October/subcontinent_October199.xml&section=subcontinent

[DPA] ALGERIA - Two dead in terrorist attacks in Algeria

http://www.khaleejtimes.com/DisplayArticle.asp?xfile=data/middleeast/2005/October/middleeast_October129.xml&section=middleeast&col=

[AFP] SPAIN - 'Spanish Taliban' gets six-year jail term

http://news.yahoo.com/s/afp/20051005/wl_afp/spainafghanistanjusticeqaedaguantanamo_051005135354;_ylt=Au0dxcI7BgQu4lATFG48gZuQOrgF;_ylu=X3oDMTBiMW04NW9mBHNlYwMlJVRPUCUl

[Reuters] THAILAND - Man beheaded on eve of Ramadan in south Thailand

http://today.reuters.com/news/newsArticle.aspx?type=worldNews&storyID=2005-10-05T125703Z_01_DIT545604_RTRUKOC_0_US-SECURITY-THAILAND.xml&archi

[AP] THAILAND - 'Militants' kill 5 Thai soldiers

http://www.cnn.com/2005/WORLD/asiapcf/10/05/thailand.south.ap/index.html

[Crosswalk.com] IRAQ - Zarqawi Said to Call for Intensification of Terror During Ramadan

http://www.crosswalk.com/news/1355003.html

[AP] ROMANIA -Romania Deports Alleged Qaeda Cell

http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2005/10/06/terror/main917335.shtml

[Reuters] ROMANIA - Romania expels al Qaeda suspects to prevent attack

http://www.alertnet.org/thenews/newsdesk/L06116876.htm

[Christian Science Monitor] ITALY - Want to check your e-mail in Italy? Bring your passport [Antiterror law]

http://www.csmonitor.com/2005/1004/p07s01-woeu.html

[IOL] IRAQ - US forces bomb Iraq's Euphrates bridges

"US-led forces have bombed eight bridges on the Euphrates River in western Iraq to stop insurgents using them"

http://www.int.iol.co.za/index.php?set_id=1&click_id=123&art_id=qw1128610260414B262

[PakTribune.com] PAKISTAN - 2 killed in bomb explosion

http://paktribune.com/news/index.php?id=121440

[UNI] INDIA - 2 soldiers, 3 militants killed, explosives seized in Kashmir

http://www.newkerala.com/news.php?action=fullnews&id=30796

[PTI] INDIA - Five hurt as explosives explode in police station

http://www.hindu.com/thehindu/holnus/002200510061565.htm

[Ya Libnan] LEBANON / GERMANY - Jund El Sham Threatens to kill Mehlis

"group calling itself Jund El Sham, threatened to slaughter German Prosecutor Detlev Mehlis, who is heading a U.N. team investigating Rafik Hariri's assassination"

http://yalibnan.com/site/archives/2005/10/jund_el_sham_th.php

October 6, 2005 NIGHT Anti-Terrorism News

Al Qaeda Letter Snagged
http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,171513,00.html
U.S. intercepts message from network's No. 2 to leader of Iraq's
terrorist insurgency Zarqawi

New York subway system on alert
http://www.cnn.com/2005/US/10/06/newyork.subways/index.html
New York City's subway system went under heightened alert Thursday
after officials received information from the FBI about a "specific
threat," Mayor Michael Bloomberg said. There were indications that a
terrorist attack on New York's subway system is possible "in the coming days,"
said New York Police Commissioner Raymond Kelly. Both he and Bloomberg
declined to give further details, citing security concerns. "There is a
possibility that this particular threat may be resolved in the coming
days," said Mark Mershon, assistant director of the FBI's New York field
office. It was the first specific threat against the city's subway
system, Bloomberg said. But the threat did not mention specific subway
stations, he said. "It was more specific as to target," he said. It was
more specific as to timing, and some of the sources had more information
that would lead one to believe that it was not the kind of thing that
appears in the intelligence community every day." Bloomberg urged New
Yorkers to be vigilant.

Security Tightened on New York Subways After Threat
http://www.kxtv.com/storyfull3.aspx?storyid=13502
The threat reportedly involved information that 19 operatives had been
deployed to the city to place bombs in the subway.

NYPD source tells FOX that plot involves 19 operatives who have been
deployed to place bombs in subway
http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,171491,00.html

(DC Subway) Metro: No Threat Here
http://www.wjla.com/news/stories/1005/266545.html

LA Transit Officials Increase Security In Wake Of NYC Threat
http://www.nbc4.tv/news/5068075/detail.html

(San Francisco) BART increases security after threat against NYC subway
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2005/10/06/MNG7RF3IBL6.DTL

US offers $10m reward for Bali bomb suspect
http://www.stuff.co.nz/stuff/0,2106,3436121a14955,00.html

Full details on foiled terror strikes classified : White House
http://news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&u=/afp/20051006/pl_afp/usattacksbushdetails_051006175909
Bush said in a speech earlier that the United States and its partners
had disrupted at least 10 "serious Al-Qaeda" terrorist plots since
September 11, including three in the United States, plus five more attempts
to case targets or inflitrate operatives onto US soil. His spokesman
Scott McClellan said later that one of the foiled attacks Bush was
referring to involved Jose Padilla who has been accused of plotting with
Al-Qaeda to blow up apartment buildings, hotels and gas stations and to use
a radiological "dirty bomb." He was also referring to Iyman Faris, a US
truckdriver who has admitted to plotting to carry out attacks for
Al-Qaeda, including on the Brooklyn Bridge in New York, McClellan said.
"There are other incidents that are still classified," said McClellan

(UK) Manchester properties raided in IRA investigation
http://www.guardian.co.uk/Northern_Ireland/Story/0,2763,1586246,00.html?gusrc=rss

Transcript of President Bush's Statement on War on Terror
http://www.whitehouse.gov/news/releases/2005/10/20051006-3.html

Student Leader: Hinrichs Not Muslim
http://www.channeloklahoma.com/news/5063479/detail.html

-

This article is dated but still could be relevant:

Bin Laden, Columbus, and the Jews
By Reuven Koret October 12, 2001

"Let the whole world know that we shall never accept that the tragedy of Andalusia be repeated in Palestine," Osama bin Laden said in his taped cave-side address. "We cannot accept that Palestine will become Jewish."

The allusion to Andalusia evidently refers to the Christian re-conquest of Spain from Muslims in 1492, when Ferdinand and Isabella led the Spanish forces in seizing control of the glorious Moorish palace of Alhambra, a turning point in the drive to expel the Moors from the European continent.

It was not a good year for the Jews either, as it marked the royal edict expelling them from Spain. It was in this year, too, that Christopher Columbus departed Europe, bound to find what would come to be called America.

In bin Laden's remark we see the extent to which historical humiliations inform his thinking. He seeks to avenge the defeat of the Muslims at Granada by the Catholics, and the defeat of the Muslims by the Jews in Palestine. We see, too, how he thinks in symbols: Andalusia 1492 is being repeated in modern-day Israel.

Columbus Day, October 12, commemorates the European "discovery" of America in 1492, and 1492 represents the year in which Islam began to be pushed out of Spain. In bin Laden's mind, these two events are inextricably linked.

On October 12, 2000, the USS Cole was attacked at sea by two suicide bombers on a speedboat.

Exactly one year earlier, on October 12, 1999, a covert operation to send 60 Pakistani commandos to Afghanistan to capture or kill bin Laden was aborted when a military coup overthrew Pakistani Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif.

Exactly one year before that, on October 12, 1998, the late Eqbal Ahmad, a follower of bin Laden and a Professor at Hampshire College, gave a presentation at the University of Colorado in Boulder. He said: "History unfortunately recognizes and accords visibility to power and not to weakness. Therefore, visibility has been accorded historically to dominant groups. In our time, the time that began with this day, Columbus Day."

Professor Ahmad explained: "The time that begins with Columbus Day is a time of extraordinary unrecorded holocausts. Great civilizations have been wiped out. The Mayas, the Incas, the Aztecs, the American Indians, the Canadian Indians were all wiped out. Their voices have not been heard, even to this day fully. Now they are beginning to be heard, but not fully. They are heard, yes, but only when the dominant power suffers, only when resistance has a semblance of costing, of exacting a price. When a Custer is killed… that's when you know that there were Indians fighting."

I have no clue whether the FBI warning that a major attack by bin Laden's al-Qaeda this weekend has anything to do with the historical significance of October 12. But for him and his followers, this is considered a holy day of revolution, when the weak communicate through terror to the strong, when the tribes strive to overturn the colonial powers. The fact that an assassination attempt against him was thwarted on that very day by virtue of a revolution must have appeared to him as a divine validation.

Columbus Day, October 12, is a dangerous day for the enemies of bin Laden, and I pray that it passes without serious event. But even if the present FBI alert proves to a false alarm, the legacy of the war against Columbus and what he stands for, will continue to animate bin Laden and his allies.

http://www.israelinsider.com/views/articles/views_0162.htm

UNDIAGNOSED RESPIRATORY DEATHS - CANADA (ONTARIO) (03): LEGIONELLOSIS CONFIRMED *************************************** A ProMED-mail post ProMED-mail is a program of the International Society for Infectious Diseases Sponsored in part by Elsevier, publisher of Tuberculosis ______________________________________________________________ Date: 6 Oct 2005 From: ProMED-mail Source: Globe and Mail [edited] ______________________________________________________________ The disease that has killed 16 people at a Toronto nursing home has been identified. The current outbreak at the nursing home is likely Legionnaires' Disease, officials said Thu [6 Oct 2005]. ------------------------------------- 3 of the 16 people who died at the 7 Oaks Home for the Aged tested positive for the pneumonia-type illness, Dr. David McKeown, Toronto's medical health officer, told a press conference on Thursday. --------------------------------------- Dr. McKeown said there have been no new deaths since Wednesday and it appears that the cases have been waning. -------------------------------------- The bacteria that cause the illness are found in water, the health officials said. Legionellosis is not an airborne disease, they said. ----------------------------------------- Toronto Mayor David Miller emphasized that the city's general population has never been at risk because of the outbreak. ------------------------------------- "In identifying the source we are now able to move effectively to address it." ------------------------------------- All 16 people who died of the respiratory illness that surfaced on 25 Sep [2005] were elderly, and frail from other medical problems. The latest victims were 3 men, who were 75, 84 and 89, and 3 women, who were 85, 92 and 96. In all, 70 residents were affected, along with 13 staff members and 5 visitors. --------------------------------------- The name "Legionnaires' disease" came from an illness that swept through a convention in 1976 in Philadelphia. That convention was held by the American Legion of Pennsylvania. Eventually, the bacterium responsible for the disease was isolated and [called] "_Legionella pneumophila_." -------------------------------------- Since the until-now mystery illness appeared, officials have taken pains to emphasize that it is in no way comparable to the severe acute respiratory syndrome [SARS] in 2003 that killed 44 people in the city. ------------------------------------------ On Thursday, Ontario Premier Dalton McGuinty issued a word of caution against those tempted to compare the death of the residents with the outbreak of SARS. Mr. McGuinty insisted that medical experts have concluded that the [bacterium] was contained and that it posed no threat of spreading. ------------------------------------------ The Premier insisted that there was nothing unusual about the recent outbreak which was not "dissimilar to what happens from time to time" in long term care homes. ---------------------------------------- Toronto's economy was hit hard following the SARS outbreak, as tourists stayed away in droves. [Byline: Allison Dunfield] ________________________________________________________________ -- ProMED-mail --------------------------------------------- [In ProMED-mail post Undiagnosed respiratory deaths - Canada (ON)(02) 20051005.2908, Dr. Steve Berger mentioned: "Regarding the outbreak of respiratory illness at a facility for senior citizens in Ontario, legionellosis appears to have been discounted on the basis of negative urinary antigen tests. Most such tests are designed to detect only _Legionella pneumophila_ serogroup 1. Additional procedures, such as culture and serology, should be performed in order to rule out other strains of Legionella." ______________________________________________________________ From the above newswire, it appears that Dr. Berger's comment was right on target, and further testing of autopsy specimens confirmed Legionella as the etiologic agent of this outbreak. ----------------------------------- Background information on legionellosis in Canada is available on the Gideon website: ______________________________________________________________ [Cases reported in] Ontario (percent of total cases in Canada) 60 in 1991; 39.1 in 1992; 32.2 in 1993; 45.3 in 1994; 44.6 in 1995; 40.7 in 1996; 55.6 in 1997; 50 in 1998; 31.3 in 1999; 72.4 in 2000; 41.7 in 2001 ______________________________________________________________ Notable outbreaks [of legionellosis in Canada]: 1. Memish ZA, Oxley C, Contant J, Garber GE. Plumbing system shock absorbers as a source of Legionella pneumophila. Am J Infect Control 1992 Dec ;20(6):305- 9. 2. Loeb M, Simor AE, Mandell L, Krueger P, McArthur M, James M, Walter S, Richardson E, Lingley M, Stout J, Stronach D, McGeer A. Two nursing home outbreaks of respiratory infection with Legionella sainthelensi. J Am Geriatr Soc 1999 May ;47(5):547-52. [The outbreaks were in 1994.] 3. Abbas Z, Nolan L, Landry L, Galanis E, Egan C. Investigation of an outbreak of Legionnaires' disease in a hospital under construction: Ontario, September-October 2002. Can Commun Dis Rep 2003 Sep 1;29(17):145-52. - Mod.MPP] __________________________________________________________________ [see also: Undiagnosed respiratory deaths - Canada (ON)(02) 20051005.2908 Undiagnosed respiratory deaths - Canada (ON): RFI 20051003.2889] ..........................mpp/pg/jw *##############################################

New York subway system on alert
Same intelligence led to U.S. raid in Iraq, military source says

Thursday, October 6, 2005; Posted: 7:32 p.m. EDT (23:32 GMT)
http://www.cnn.com/2005/US/10/06/newyork.subways/index.html

Mayor Bloomberg: "We ask that the public remain vigilant. If you see
something, say something."

A well-placed U.S. military official told CNN on Thursday that the same
intelligence also led to a raid against suspected al Qaeda operatives
in Iraq.

Raymond Kelly.

Both he and Bloomberg declined to give further details, citing security
concerns.

No arrests have been made in Manhattan, but operations continue outside
the city, Kelly said, without mentioning where.

And Bloomberg said that officials "do not have any reason to believe"
that any of the plotters "are in New York at this point in time"

"There is a possibility that this particular threat may be resolved in
the coming days," said Mark Mershon, assistant director of the FBI's
New York field office.

It was the first specific threat against the city's subway system,
Bloomberg said. But the threat did not mention specific subway stations, he
said.

"It was more specific as to target," he said. It was more specific as
to timing, and some of the sources had more information that would lead
one to believe that it was not the kind of thing that appears in the
intelligence community every day."

Bloomberg urged New Yorkers to be vigilant.

"If you see something, say something. Call 311 or 911, if it's an
emergency," he said, urging vigilance. (311 is New York City's phone number
for government information.)

Bloomberg said he still plans to travel on the subway Thursday evening
and Friday. "I have no problems with my daughters taking the subway any
more than me," he said.

An average 4.5 million commuters use New York's subway system daily.

Kelly said that briefcases, baby strollers, luggage and other
containers will draw particular attention, and he asked the public to curtail
their use if possible.

In addition to more bag searches, the city has significantly increased
police presence -- uniformed and undercover -- on the subways and at
station entrances, Kelly and Bloomberg said.

Source: Iraq connection
The highly classified operation involving the U.S. intelligence
community and the U.S. military was carried out against suspected al Qaeda
operatives south of Baghdad, CNN has learned from a well-placed U.S.
military official.

"Significant intelligence was also gathered in this raid, along with al
Qaeda operatives who were rounded up," CNN's Jamie McIntyre reported,
citing the official who spoke on condition of anonymity.

Few other details were provided about the raid, which occurred in the
town of Musayyib, in the lawless area nicknamed "The Triangle of Death."
But the official said the raid was the result of the same intelligence
about the threat to New York's subway system.

The news came 10 days after the arrest of nine people in France
allegedly plotting attacks on the Paris subway, an airport and an intelligence
agency's headquarters.

"We can't be too careful, and the precautions that New York City has
taken are appropriate and make a good deal of sense," said Sen. Charles
Schumer of New York, a Democrat. "We cannot be in a situation where we
don't turn over every stone. But the bottom line is that in the post-911
world, you can't be too careful."

In July, London's public transportation system was attacked twice. At
least 52 people died and 700 people were wounded when four men detonated
bombs aboard subway trains and a double-decker bus on July 7. The
morning rush-hour attacks made it the city's bloodiest day since World War
II.

Nobody was killed when simultaneous attacks were carried out on three
London subway trains and a bus two weeks later, on July 21.

In a speech Thursday, President Bush said that since September 11,
2001, the United States and its allies have thwarted 10 al Qaeda attacks
worldwide, three of them inside the United States

[Note, parts of post removed]

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