Israel May Be Next al-Qaida Battleground

Breitbart.com ^ | 03/22/06 | STEVEN GUTKIN

[MikeA]

Signs are mounting that al-Qaida terrorists are setting their sights on Israel and the Palestinian territories as their next jihad battleground.

Israel has indicted two West Bank militants for al-Qaida membership, Egypt arrested operatives trying to cross into Israel and a Palestinian security official has acknowledged al-Qaida is "organizing cells and gathering supporters."

Al-Qaida's inroads are still preliminary, but officials fear a doomsday scenario if it takes root.

Palestinians in the West Bank, the Gaza Strip and Lebanon have established contacts with al-Qaida followers linked to Abu Musab al- Zarqawi, the leader of al-Qaida in Iraq, according to two Israeli officials.

Al-Zarqawi has established footholds in the countries neighboring Israel _ Syria, Lebanon, Egypt and Jordan _ and is interested in bringing his fight to Israel, too, the officials said, speaking on condition of anonymity because Israel does not want to identify those involved in the issue.

Tuesday's indictment of two militants on charges of belonging to al- Qaida and receiving funds from the group for a planned double-bombing in Jerusalem was Israel's most concrete allegation to date linking al- Qaida to West Bank Palestinians.

The indictment described in detail how the two, Azzam Abu Aladas and Balal Hafnai, met with al-Qaida operatives in Jordan, arranged for secret e-mail exchanges and received thousands of dollars from al- Qaida to carry out the attack. The indictment came just three weeks after Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas told the London-based Al Hayat newspaper that al-Qaida had infiltrated the West Bank and Gaza.

Still, Mideast watchers warned against overstating the al-Qaida presence because the issue is easily manipulated for political ends.

Israel has a lot to gain by portraying its local conflict with the Palestinians as part of the global war on terror, and Abbas, badly damaged by the recent political rise of Hamas militants, wants "to show that he is needed by the West," said Israeli security analyst Dan Schueftan.

Both Israeli and Palestinian security officials described al-Qaida's activities here as incipient, involving a handful of local militants who reached out to al-Qaida _ often via the Internet _ rather than the other way around. A senior Israeli military intelligence official said he believed there were no more than 20 al-Qaida-linked activists in the Palestinian territories.

Most of them are unhappy with a year-old decision by mainstream Palestinian factions, including Fatah and Hamas, to enforce a cease- fire with Israel, Israeli and Palestinian officials said.

Hamas, struggling to avert an international aid boycott in the wake of its Jan. 25 victory in parliamentary elections, is particularly sensitive about being associated with al-Qaida, despite sharing core beliefs such as the rejection of a Jewish state in the Middle East.

When Ayman-al-Zawahri, al-Qaida's No. 2 leader, appeared in a video earlier this month urging Hamas not to renounce its violent struggle, a Hamas official in Gaza shrugged him off.

The Hamas official said the group had no links to any outside group. He spoke on condition of anonymity, saying the movement did not want to respond formally to al-Zawahri.

By all accounts, Hamas, set to form the next Palestinian government, is not likely to further harm its international standing by joining forces with al-Qaida.

But al-Qaida itself is making an effort "to operate both in the Palestinian territories and inside Israel proper," said Israeli Foreign Ministry spokesman Mark Regev. A Palestinian security official in Gaza agreed that al-Qaida "is in the process of organizing cells and gathering supporters."

If the group succeeds in establishing a full-blown presence, predicted the Israeli military intelligence official, Israel can expect far larger terror attacks than it has seen in the past.

Another Israeli official said a major concern is al-Qaida's activities in Israel's neighbors, especially Jordan, where al-Zarqawi claimed responsibility for the November 2005 bombings of three hotels that killed 60 people.

Al-Zarqawi also claimed responsibility for a Dec. 27 barrage of rockets from Lebanon into northern Israel, provoking Israeli airstrikes on a Palestinian base in central Lebanon.

The Israeli official praised Egyptian security forces for their performance following two bombing sprees in Egypt's Sinai peninsula _ one in October 2004 and another in July 2005 _ that some have blamed on al-Qaida.

He said Egyptian forces arrested two sets of suspected al-Qaida operatives _ one a month ago and another three months ago _ who were trying to enter Israel through Sinai "most probably carrying explosives."

An Egyptian police official at the Egypt-Gaza border would not confirm or deny the Israeli's account, saying, "It's our job to halt any security violations, that's what we've been always doing, nothing less or more."

Some Israeli officials have expressed concern that al-Qaida operatives from Egypt may have entered Gaza after Israel withdrew from the coastal strip last summer.

But Assem Rashed, a former teacher at a Gaza university, said he doubts al-Qaida could find many backers in Gaza.

"People here are against the attacks in Iraq, Jordan and Egypt. I don't think they will survive, or find much support from the public," he said.

___

[MikeA]

This could be what finally undoes Al Qaeda. Al Qaeda should ask Hamas and Islamic Jihad what becomes of the leaders of those terror groups who attack Israel. They end up in cars of twisted, smoking metal. If the Al Qaeda vermin attack Israel, the Mossad will accomplish what the CIA has not and will find Bin Laden and Al Zawahiri and end them. So bring it on!

[CROSSHIGHWAYMAN]

Evil has no common sense.......just hate.

[the anti-liberal]

Everything they have they stole:

What Arab Civilization?

This letter was sent to Carly Fiorina, CEO of Hewlett Packard Corporation, in response to a speech given by her on September 26, 2001.

---

November 7, 2001

Carly Fiorina
Hewlett-Packard
3000 Hanover Street
Palo Alto, CA 94304-1185

Dear Madame Fiorina:

It is with great interest that I read your speech delivered on September 26, 2001, titled "Technology, Business and Our way of Life: What's Next" [sic]. I was particularly interested in the story you told at the end of your speech, about the Arab/Muslim civilization. As an Assyrian, a non-Arab, Christian native of the Middle East, whose ancestors reach back to 5000 B.C., I wish to clarify some points you made in this little story, and to alert you to the dangers of unwittingly being drawn into the Arabist/Islamist ideology, which seeks to assimilate all cultures and religions into the Arab/Islamic fold.

I know you are a very busy woman, but please find ten minutes to read what follows, as it is a perspective that you will not likely get from anywhere else. I will answer some of the specific points you made in your speech, then conclude with a brief perspective on this Arabist/Islamist ideology.

Arabs and Muslims appeared on the world scene in 630 A.D., when the armies of Muhammad began their conquest of the Middle East. We should be very clear that this was a military conquest, not a missionary enterprise, and through the use of force, authorized by a declaration of a Jihad against infidels, Arabs/Muslims were able to forcibly convert and assimilate non-Arabs and non-Mulsims into their fold. Very few indigenous communities of the Middle East survived this -- primarily Assyrians, Jews, Armenians and Coptics (of Egypt).

Having conquered the Middle East, Arabs placed these communities under a Dhimmi (see the book Dhimmi, by Bat Ye'Or) system of governance, where the communities were allowed to rule themselves as religious minorities (Christians, Jews and Zoroastrian). These communities had to pay a tax (called a Jizzya in Arabic) that was, in effect, a penalty for being non-Muslim, and that was typically 80% in times of tolerance and up to 150% in times of oppression. This tax forced many of these communities to convert to Islam, as it was designed to do.

You state, "its architects designed buildings that defied gravity." I am not sure what you are referring to, but if you are referring to domes and arches, the fundamental architectural breakthrough of using a parabolic shape instead of a spherical shape for these structures was made by the Assyrians more than 1300 years earlier, as evidenced by their archaeological record.

You state, "its mathematicians created the algebra and algorithms that would enable the building of computers, and the creation of encryption." The fundamental basis of modern mathematics had been laid down not hundreds but thousands of years before by Assyrians and Babylonians, who already knew of the concept of zero, of the Pythagorean Theorem, and of many, many other developments expropriated by Arabs/Muslims (see History of Babylonian Mathematics, Neugebauer).

You state, "its doctors examined the human body, and found new cures for disease." The overwhelming majority of these doctors (99%) were Assyrians. In the fourth, fifth, and sixth centuries Assyrians began a systematic translation of the Greek body of knowledge into Assyrian. At first they concentrated on the religious works but then quickly moved to science, philosophy and medicine. Socrates, Plato, Aristotle, Galen, and many others were translated into Assyrian, and from Assyrian into Arabic. It is these Arabic translations which the Moors brought with them into Spain, and which the Spaniards translated into Latin and spread throughout Europe, thus igniting the European Renaissance.

By the sixth century A.D., Assyrians had begun exporting back to Byzantia their own works on science, philosophy and medicine. In the field of medicine, the Bakhteesho Assyrian family produced nine generations of physicians, and founded the great medical school at Gundeshapur (Iran). Also in the area of medicine, (the Assyrian) Hunayn ibn-Ishaq's textbook on ophthalmology, written in 950 A.D., remained the authoritative source on the subject until 1800 A.D.

In the area of philosophy, the Assyrian philosopher Job of Edessa developed a physical theory of the universe, in the Assyrian language, that rivaled Aristotle's theory, and that sought to replace matter with forces (a theory that anticipated some ideas in quantum mechanics, such as the spontaneous creation and destruction of matter that occurs in the quantum vacuum).

One of the greatest Assyrian achievements of the fourth century was the founding of the first university in the world, the School of Nisibis, which had three departments, theology, philosophy and medicine, and which became a magnet and center of intellectual development in the Middle East. The statutes of the School of Nisibis, which have been preserved, later became the model upon which the first Italian university was based (see The Statutes of the School of Nisibis, by Arthur Voobus).

When Arabs and Islam swept through the Middle East in 630 A.D., they encountered 600 years of Assyrian Christian civilization, with a rich heritage, a highly developed culture, and advanced learning institutions. It is this civilization that became the foundation of the Arab civilization.

You state, "Its astronomers looked into the heavens, named the stars, and paved the way for space travel and exploration." This is a bit melodramatic. In fact, the astronomers you refer to were not Arabs but Chaldeans and Babylonians (of present day south-Iraq), who for millennia were known as astronomers and astrologers, and who were forcibly Arabized and Islamized -- so rapidly that by 750 A.D. they had disappeared completely.

You state, "its writers created thousands of stories. Stories of courage, romance and magic. Its poets wrote of love, when others before them were too steeped in fear to think of such things." There is very little literature in the Arabic language that comes from this period you are referring to (the Koran is the only significant piece of literature), whereas the literary output of the Assyrians and Jews was vast. The third largest corpus of Christian writing, after Latin and Greek, is by the Assyrians in the Assyrian language (also called Syriac; see here.)

You state, "when other nations were afraid of ideas, this civilization thrived on them, and kept them alive. When censors threatened to wipe out knowledge from past civilizations, this civilization kept the knowledge alive, and passed it on to others." This is a very important issue you raise, and it goes to the heart of the matter of what Arab/Islamic civilization represents. I reviewed a book titled How Greek Science Passed to the Arabs, in which the author lists the significant translators and interpreters of Greek science. Of the 22 scholars listed, 20 were Assyrians, 1 was Persian and 1 an Arab. I state at the end of my review: "The salient conclusion which can be drawn from O'Leary's book is that Assyrians played a significant role in the shaping of the Islamic world via the Greek corpus of knowledge. If this is so, one must then ask the question, what happened to the Christian communities which made them lose this great intellectual enterprise which they had established. One can ask this same question of the Arabs. Sadly, O'Leary's book does not answer this question, and we must look elsewhere for the answer." I did not answer this question I posed in the review because it was not the place to answer it, but the answer is very clear, the Christian Assyrian community was drained of its population through forced conversion to Islam (by the Jizzya), and once the community had dwindled below a critical threshold, it ceased producing the scholars that were the intellectual driving force of the Islamic civilization, and that is when the so called "Golden Age of Islam" came to an end (about 850 A.D.).

Islam the religion itself was significantly molded by Assyrians and Jews (see Nestorian Influence on Islam and Hagarism: the Making of the Islamic World).

Arab/Islamic civilization is not a progressive force, it is a regressive force; it does not give impetus, it retards. The great civilization you describe was not an Arab/Muslim accomplishment, it was an Assyrian accomplishment that Arabs expropriated and subsequently lost when they drained, through the forced conversion of Assyrians to Islam, the source of the intellectual vitality that propelled it. What other Arab/Muslim civilization has risen since? What other Arab/Muslim successes can we cite?

You state, "and perhaps we can learn a lesson from his [Suleiman] example: It was leadership based on meritocracy, not inheritance. It was leadership that harnessed the full capabilities of a very diverse population that included Christianity, Islamic, and Jewish traditions." In fact, the Ottomans were extremely oppressive to non-Muslims. For example, young Christian boys were forcefully taken from their families, usually at the age of 8-10, and inducted into the Janissaries, (yeniceri in Turkish) where they were Islamized and made to fight for the Ottoman state. What literary, artistic or scientific achievements of the Ottomans can we point to? We can, on the other hand, point to the genocide of 750,000 Assyrians, 1.5 million Armenians and 400,000 Greeks in World War One by the Kemalist "Young Turk" government. This is the true face of Islam.

Arabs/Muslims are engaged in an explicit campaign of destruction and expropriation of cultures and communities, identities and ideas. Wherever Arab/Muslim civilization encounters a non-Arab/Muslim one, it attempts to destroy it (as the Buddhist statues in Afghanistan were destroyed, as Persepolis was destroyed by the Ayotollah Khomeini). This is a pattern that has been recurring since the advent of Islam, 1400 years ago, and is amply substantiated by the historical record. If the "foreign" culture cannot be destroyed, then it is expropriated, and revisionist historians claim that it is and was Arab, as is the case of most of the Arab "accomplishments" you cited in your speech. For example, Arab history texts in the Middle East teach that Assyrians were Arabs, a fact that no reputable scholar would assert, and that no living Assyrian would accept. Assyrians first settled Nineveh, one of the major Assyrian cities, in 5000 B.C., which is 5630 years before Arabs came into that area. Even the word 'Arab' is an Assyrian word, meaning "Westerner" (the first written reference to Arabs was by the Assyrian King Sennacherib, 800 B.C., in which he tells of conquering the "ma'rabayeh" -- Westerners. See The Might That Was Assyria, by H. W. F. Saggs).

Even in America this Arabization policy continues. On October 27th a coalition of seven Assyrian and Maronite organizations sent an official letter to the Arab American Institute asking it to stop identifying Assyrians and Maronites as Arabs, which it had been deliberately doing.

There are minorities and nations struggling for survival in the Arab/Muslim ocean of the Middle East and Africa (Assyrians, Armenians, Coptics, Jews, southern Sudanese, Ethiopians, Nigerians...), and we must be very sensitive not to unwittingly and inadvertently support Islamic fascism and Arab Imperialism, with their attempts to wipe out all other cultures, religions and civilizations. It is incumbent upon each one of us to do our homework and research when making statements and speeches about these sensitive matters.

I hope you found this information enlightening. For more information, refer to the web links below. You may contact me at keepa@ninevehsoft.com for further questions.

Thank you for your consideration.

Peter BetBasoo

Web resources:

Brief History of Assyrians
Assyrian International News Agency
Assyrian American National Federation
Assyrian Academic Society
Zinda Magazine
Beth Suryoyo
Nineveh Online
World Maronite Union
Maronite Research Council
World Lebanese Organization
Coptic Web
 

Hosted here.

[Wasanother]

This is why Israel is building a big fence, to keep Al-Qaeda and other terrorist out.

[American Quilter]

Gonna be a lot of dead Al Qaeda fanatics.

[Eric in the Ozarks]

The CIA should sign up for training in the Mossad.

[A Balrog of Morgoth]

Hmmm, guess things aren't working out so well in Iraq for the al-Q types.

[MikeA]

Great letter. Did it receive any response from the former HP CEO?

[conservativehusker]

UNLEASE THE DOGS OF WAR!!! ...

Israel won't P**sy Foot around they will take care of business...The Alqeada will rue the day they mix it up with Israel.

[the anti-liberal]

No:

BetBasoo's response when asked if she had ever responded to his letter:

Carly never responded. But I am sure she reacted to the letter, because -- I cannot prove this but it is extremely coincidental -- HP began an advertising campaign where a cross in the form of a plus sign was used as a symbol. This happened after I published the letter and it spread like wild fire throughout the internet.

You are more than welcome to share this letter with all of your friends.

[MikeA]

But the US news media doesn't like that mean old fence so it just has to stop to please them! We musn't upset David Gregory and Helen Thomas!

[MikeA]

Thanks, I'm going to save that letter in my files. Very informative.

[eureka!]

bump and marking

[the anti-liberal]

You betcha.

This goes very nicely with it, imo:

A summary of the first 100 years of Islam, from the islamic server at USC. Highlighted are the few times they veered from the way of peace:

632: Death of the Holy Prophet. Election of Hadrat Abu Bakr as the Caliph. Usamah leads expedition to Syria. Battles of Zu Qissa and Abraq. Battles of Buzakha, Zafar and Naqra. Campaigns against Bani Tamim and Musailima, the Liar.
633: Campaigns in Bahrain, Oman, Mahrah Yemen, and Hadramaut. Raids in Iraq. Battles of Kazima, Mazar, Walaja, Ulleis, Hirah, Anbar, Ein at tamr, Daumatul Jandal and Firaz.
634: Battles of Basra, Damascus and Ajnadin. Death of Hadrat Abu Bakr. Hadrat Umar Farooq becomes the Caliph. Battles of Namaraq and Saqatia.
635: Battle of Bridge. Battle of Buwaib. Conquest of Damascus. Battle of Fahl.
636: Battle of Yermuk. Battle of Qadsiyia. Conquest of Madain.
637: Conquest of Syria. Fall of Jerusalem. Battle of Jalula.
638: Conquest of Jazirah.
639: Conquest of Khuizistan. Advance into Egypt.
640: Capture of the post of Caesaria in Syria. Conquest of Shustar and Jande Sabur in Persia. Battle of Babylon in Egypt.
641: Battle of Nihawand. Conquest Of Alexandria in Egypt.
642: Battle of Rayy in Persia. Conquest of Egypt. Foundation of Fustat.
643: Conquest of Azarbaijan and Tabaristan (Russia).
644: Conquest of Fars, Kerman, Sistan, Mekran and Kharan. Martyrdom of Hadrat Umar. Hadrat Othman becomes the Caliph.
645: Campaigns in Fats.
646: Campaigns in Khurasan, Armeain and Asia Minor.
647: Campaigns in North Africa. Conquest of the island of Cypress.
648: Campaigns against the Byzantines.
651: Naval battle of the Masts against the Byzantines.
652: Discontentment and disaffection against the rule of Hadrat Othman.
656: Martyrdom of Hadrat Othman. Hadrat Ali becomes the Caliph. Battle of the Camel.
657: Hadrat Ali shifts the capital from Madina to Kufa. Battle of Siffin. Arbitration proceedings at Daumaut ul Jandal.
658: Battle of Nahrawan.
659: Conquest of Egypt by Mu'awiyah.
660: Hadrat Ali recaptures Hijaz and Yemen from Mu'awiyah. Mu'awiyah declares himself as the Caliph at Damascus.
661: Martyrdom of Hadrat Ali. Accession of Hadrat Hasan and his abdication. Mu'awiyah becomes the sole Caliph.
662: Khawarij revolts.
666: Raid of Sicily.
670: Advance in North Africa. Uqba b Nafe founds the town of Qairowan in Tunisia. Conquest of Kabul.
672: Capture of the island of Rhodes. Campaigns in Khurasan.
674: The Muslims cross the Oxus. Bukhara becomes a vassal state.
677: Occupation of Sarnarkand and Tirmiz. Siege of Constantinople.
680: Death of Muawiyah. Accession of Yazid. Tragedy of Kerbala and martyrdom of Hadrat Hussain.
682: In North Africa Uqba b Nafe marches to the Atlantic, is ambushed and killed at Biskra. The Muslims evacuate Qairowan and withdraw to Burqa.
683: Death of Yazid. Accession of Mu'awiyah II.
684: Abdullah b Zubair declares himself aS the Caliph at'Makkah. Marwan I becomes the Caliph' at Damascus. Battle of Marj Rahat.
685: Death of Marwan I. Abdul Malik becomes the Caliph at Damascus. Battle of Ain ul Wada.
686: Mukhtar declares himself as the Caliph at Kufa.
687: Battle of Kufa between the forces of Mukhtar and Abdullah b Zubair. Mukhtar killed.
691: Battle of Deir ul Jaliq. Kufa falls to Abdul Malik.
692: The fall of Makkah. Death of Abdullah b Zubair. Abdul Malik becomes the sole Caliph.
695: Khawarij revolts in Jazira and Ahwaz. Battle of the Karun. Campaigns against Kahina in North Africa. The' Muslims once again withdraw to Barqa. The Muslims advance in Transoxiana and occupy Kish.
700: Campaigns against the Berbers in North Africa.
702: Ashath's rebellion in Iraq, battle of Deir ul Jamira.
705: Death of Abdul Malik. Accession of Walid I as Caliph.
711: Conquest of Spain, Sind and Transoxiana.
712: The Muslims advance in Spain, Sind and Transoxiana.
713: Conquest of Multan.
715: Death of Walid I. Accession of Sulaiman.
716: Invasion of Constantinople.
717: Death of Sulaiman. Accession of Umar b Abdul Aziz.
720: Death of Umar b Abdul Aziz. Accession of Yazid II.
724: Death of Yazid II. Accession of Hisham.
725: The Muslims occupy Nimes in France.
732: The battle of Tours in France.

[Cindy]

ON THE NET...

JPOST.com - THE JERUSALEM POST: "LEBANON NABS AL-QAIDA-AFFILIATED CELL" by Margot Dudkevitch (Updated March 11, 2006)

THE COUNTERTERRORISM BLOG: "THE THEMES OF AL-ZAWAHIRI'S LATEST TAPE" -posted by Daveed Gartenstein-Ross" (March 6, 2006)

CNN.com: "ON NEW TAPE, BIN LADEN'S NO. 2 CONGRATULATES HAMAS" (March 4, 2006)

"internet-haganah.com/jihadi/hamas.html"

"www.memritv.org/Search.asp?ACT=S5&P1=151"

"www.memritv.org/Search.asp?ACT=S5&P1=139"

THE COUNTERTERRORISM BLOG: "AL QAEDA's EXPANSION IN THE PALESTINIAN TERRITORIES" (March 3, 2006)

A Discussion on FREEREPUBLIC.com regading a LONDON TELEGRAPH article: "AL-QA'EDA HAS MOVED INTO WEST BANK AND GAZA, ADMITS ABBAS" (March 3, 2006)

[txhurl]

And by happy concidence Israel has removed her citizens from harm's way in the Gaza strip.

[ImpBill]

Thank you so much for posting your reply. It should be a must read for all. It really puts the "Islam is a religion philosophy of peace" in the proper perspective and that is B.S..

I am not sure what it is going to take for all Westerners to understand that we are in a struggle to the death, but it needs to happen and the sooner the better.

Oh, that our leaders could both understand and expose this blatant FACT.

Book-marked for later use and bumped to the top - In fact your article should have a thread of it's own if I might suggest so.

[CROSSHIGHWAYMAN]

how much snow did you get?

[Rocko]

Bump for later.

[the anti-liberal]

"In fact your article should have a thread of it's own if I might suggest so."

Thanks for the suggestion. I have only posted news items so I'm not sure what the best way to go about posting this as a thread would be - as a 'vanity' perhaps?

[Cindy]

http://www.wnd.com/news/article.asp?ARTICLE_ID=49380

FROM WND'S JERUSALEM BUREAU
"Palestinians charged with membership in al-Qaida
Indictment stokes fears jihad group infiltrated Israel, poised to attack"
Posted: March 21, 2006
2:45 p.m. Eastern

By Aaron Klein
© 2006 WorldNetDaily.com

ARTICLE SNIPPET: "JERUSALEM – For the first time ever, two West Bank Palestinians today were charged with membership in al-Qaida, stoking fears here the global jihad group has infiltrated the Jewish state.

The indictment follows months of warnings by Israeli intelligence officials al-Qaida was able to make it to the area after Israel's withdrawal from the Gaza Strip last summer.



Two Palestinians from the West Bank town of Nablus were charged in a north Samaria military court with recruiting suicide bombers and seeking financing to carry out a large-scale al-Qaida attack inside Israel.

Azzam abu-al-Adas and Balal Hafnawi, both in their 20s, are accused of traveling to Jordan to meet an al-Qaida operative about their planned attack, which included the use of car bombs. They received funding from al-Qaida's Jordan branch, according to a court indictment, and were planning to recruit Palestinians in the West Bank to set up an al-Qaida cell in the territory."

[Mike Darancette]

Signs are mounting that al-Qaida terrorists are setting their sights on Israel and the Palestinian territories as their next jihad battleground.

Going against the country with the best security force in the world, the best small unit ability in the world and the best intelligence operation in the world. Good luck on this al-Qaida.

[Liberal Classic]

'Next' battleground? Israel has been fighting the war on terror longer than anyone else.

[Publius6961]

Israel May Be Next al-Qaida Battleground

That is hilarious!
Hamas will fare no better than every loser group which has tried it so far...

Whether they be from Ocuppied Israel West (Gaza), Occupied Israel East (West Bank), or adjacent muslim areas.

Israel will make ruthlessly short work of them.
Not entirely a bad thing...

[ImpBill]

And also here is the text from the speech given by Ms. Fiorina on September 6th, 2001. You might include it prior to posting the letter in response.

" I’ll end by telling a story.

There was once a civilization that was the greatest in the world.

It was able to create a continental super-state that stretched from ocean to ocean, and from northern climes to tropics and deserts. Within its dominion lived hundreds of millions of people, of different creeds and ethnic origins.

One of its languages became the universal language of much of the world, the bridge between the peoples of a hundred lands. Its armies were made up of people of many nationalities, and its military protection allowed a degree of peace and prosperity that had never been known. The reach of this civilization’s commerce extended from Latin America to China, and everywhere in between.

And this civilization was driven more than anything, by invention. Its architects designed buildings that defied gravity. Its mathematicians created the algebra and algorithms that would enable the building of computers, and the creation of encryption. Its doctors examined the human body, and found new cures for disease. Its astronomers looked into the heavens, named the stars, and paved the way for space travel and exploration.

Its writers created thousands of stories. Stories of courage, romance and magic. Its poets wrote of love, when others before them were too steeped in fear to think of such things.

When other nations were afraid of ideas, this civilization thrived on them, and kept them alive. When censors threatened to wipe out knowledge from past civilizations, this civilization kept the knowledge alive, and passed it on to others.

While modern Western civilization shares many of these traits, the civilization I’m talking about was the Islamic world from the year 800 to 1600, which included the Ottoman Empire and the courts of Baghdad, Damascus and Cairo, and enlightened rulers like Suleiman the Magnificent.

Although we are often unaware of our indebtedness to this other civilization, its gifts are very much a part of our heritage. The technology industry would not exist without the contributions of Arab mathematicians. Sufi poet-philosophers like Rumi challenged our notions of self and truth. Leaders like Suleiman contributed to our notions of tolerance and civic leadership.

And perhaps we can learn a lesson from his example: It was leadership based on meritocracy, not inheritance. It was leadership that harnessed the full capabilities of a very diverse population–that included Christianity, Islamic, and Jewish traditions.

This kind of enlightened leadership — leadership that nurtured culture, sustainability, diversity and courage — led to 800 years of invention and prosperity.

In dark and serious times like this, we must affirm our commitment to building societies and institutions that aspire to this kind of greatness. More than ever, we must focus on the importance of leadership– bold acts of leadership and decidedly personal acts of leadership.

With that, I’d like to open up the conversation and see what we, collectively, believe about the role of leadership."

[conservativehusker]

how much snow did you get?



Here just south of Omaha...9 inches...a little west 14-19...all gone off the streets..most are dry...overall not too bad..thanks for asking...

[the anti-liberal]

Well, here's the 'bloggers and personal' thread What Arab Civilization?.

:^)

[the anti-liberal]

"You might include it prior to posting the letter in response."

Thanks, and I've just done just that.

[petercooper]

bttt

[Sabramerican]

That's a politically incorrect opinion.

The politically correct opinion is that when Jewish kids get blown up in pizza parlors, and when Jews of all ages are blown up in buses, it's not terror nor a result of the Arab/Islamic hatred for infidels and for any manifestation of a Western culture. The Jews had it coming to them for subjugating the poor "Palestinians" who otherwise would lead the World in the Arts and Sciences and would discover cures for the good of all mankind.

When Islamics kill other then Israelis and Jews, then and only then, it's terror.

[backhoe]

"In fact your article should have a thread of it's own if I might suggest so." Thanks for the suggestion. I have only posted news items so I'm not sure what the best way to go about posting this as a thread would be - as a 'vanity' perhaps?

I agree. If you need a hand, drop me a note- but be advised I'm about to become a homemaker in a few minutes and may not be able to respond promptly until I'm free again.

[ImpBill]

Posted Here - bring as many as you can http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-bloggers/1601183/posts

[backhoe]

Cool- thanks!

[Para-Ord.45]

referance ping

[Cindy]

ON THE NET...

THE COUNTERTERRORISM BLOG: "AL QAEDA'S MASTER PLAN" -Posted by Olivier Guitta (April 3, 2006)

WorldNetDaily.com: "PALESTINIANS CHARGED WITH MEMBERSHIP IN AL-QAIDA Indictments stokes fears jihad group infiltrated Israel, poised to attack" by Aaron Klein (March 21, 2006)

"www.internet-haganah.com/jihadi"

[Cindy]

ON THE NET...

FreeRepublic.com - Keyword: "IRAN" (Read More...)

MEMRI.org: "IRAN" (Read More...)

"www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1593657/posts?page=2920#2920" (Note: Re Iran) (Read More...)

FOX NEWS.com (AP): Tehran, Iran: "IRAN PRESIDENT: ISRAEL WILL BE ANNIHILATED" (April 14, 2006)

OSINT.INTERNET-HAGANAH.com (WASHINGTON POST/AP): "AL-QAEDA: 'ELIMINATING ISRAEL IS THE DUTY OF EVERY BELIEVER'" (April 14, 2006)

JPOST.com - JERUSALEM POST: "MASHAAL MEETS WITH AL-QAIDA LEADER" (Updaed April 14, 2006)

BBC NEWS: "MUSLIM WORLD URGED TO FUND HAMAS" (Updated April 14, 2006)

"www.internet-haganah.com/jihadi/hamas.html"

YNETnews.com (AP): "AL-QAEDA NO. 2: WE MUST ELIMINATE ISRAEL" (April 13, 2006)

MEMRI.org - Special Dispatch Series - No. 1133: "RENOWNED KING FAHD UNIVERSITY PROFESSOR ACTIVE IN THE U.S.: AMERICA WILL BE DISSIPATED TO NOTHING; ISRAEL MUST BE DESTROYED" (April 5, 2006)

A Discussion on FREEREPUBLIC.com regarding an AP article via BREITBART.com: "ISRAEL MAY BE NEXT AL-AQAIDA BATTLEGROUND" by Steven Gutkin (March 22, 2006) (Read More...)

WorldNetDaily.com: "PALESTINIANS CHARGED WITH MEMBERSHIP IN AL-QAIDA Indictments stokes fears jihad group infiltrated Israel, poised to attack" by Aaron Klein (March 21, 2006) (Read More...)

[Salem]

---

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MikeFromFR ~
There failed not ought of any good thing which the LORD had
spoken unto the house of Israel; all came to pass. (Joshua 21:45)
Letter To The President In Support Of Israel ~
'Final Solution,' Phase 2 ~
Warnings ~

"The West has given more significance to the myth of the genocide of the Jews, even more significant than God, religion, and the prophets...."—Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad
The Holocaust Chronicle ~



"Palestine is the wrong name for their State. It should be called Anarchy."—FReeper sgtbono2002
"Then let's wait and see what the Arabs do after they take Gaza. There's nothing like Arab reality to break up a Jewish fantasy."—FReeper Noachian
A student told his professor he was going to "Palestine" to "fight for freedom, peace and justice,"—Orwellian leftist code words that mean "murder Jews."
The Nature Of Bruce ~

[Thumper1960]

BTTTFLR

[Nachum]

I can't see how Al Qaeda will be any better than the millions of Arabs that are taught to kill Jews in the Madrassas and Mosques surrounding Israel now. Iran has already been caught sending weapons to them now.

Great letter though.

[SunkenCiv]

From March of this year, very interesting in retrospect.

[Fred Nerks]

Hatred might just drive the fanatics into a fatal error...Israel seems like a bottle neck to me. Where are they going to hide? In tiny little Gaza?

Curious. Wait and see.

[nopardons]

bttt

[nopardons]

bttt

[streetpreacher]

Message to Al-Quaeda: They won't try to win your hearts and minds.

[streetpreacher]

Thank you for providing this invaluable research.

[SunkenCiv]

Iran isn't necessarily after Israel per se; Iran is worried about not being able to dominate the Middle East. Taking out Saddam was a necessity, but his dictatorship version of Iraq was like a cork in a bottle. Iran has a population that is the same as Turkey's, which has the only army in the Middle East (other than the US') which can stand up to Iran's.

Saudi Arabia has 1/3 the population (and five million or so are guest workers, because the Saudis don't like to work for a living) and more armament than can actually be simultaneously used (analogous to the US situation with television sets), but probably can't defend itself.

Egypt is the same size as Iran, but its army can't fight its way out of a wet paper bag.

Iran plans to replace all the gov'ts in the region with theocracies, with itself at the top of the hegemonic pyramid. It will do it through covert means, by proxy, wherever possible (Iraq, Kuwait, Saudi Arabia, Lebanon, Gaza, and Syria, and possibly Egypt, are all currently in play); Turkey is under pressure from the Kurds, and my, isn't it awfully strange that some Kurdish terrorist faction suddenly has the ways and means to blow up stuff in Turkey?

When push gets to shove, I don't think the US will have to worry about Turkish help in the liberation of Iran.

[the anti-liberal]

I'd be interested in where the UN stands in all of this.

Some of my speculative thoughts:

From the UN's perspective, if the US 'fails' in the WOT, the UN may stand to gain in stature in the world as the greatest political power (though it's connected to no country).

I would speculate that the UN, or at least Kofi Annan, has decided that al-Qaeda (and by extension militant Islam) will be the most likely victor and has been aligning itself so as to be in their good graces when they do.

Wild speculation has the UN becoming a strategic foundation and tool for the imposition, implementation and enforcement of Sharia Law upon member and nonmember states. Given the al-Qaeda's stated goal is world domination, it would only make sense, from al-Qaeda's perspective, to use the existing structure that is the UN for their own purpose.

If, strategically, this is what al-Qaeda et al have in mind - and it would make sense for them to, imo - Kofi Annan doesn't necessarily have to be aware of it or in on it, as there are many 'invisible' underlings in any bureaucracy that do the real work of making the machinery run. How many worker bees in the UN are Muslims, how many connected to al-Qaeda - overtly and covertly?

Just making subtle changes in, and interpretations of, law - like what we see here in the States, can be enough: a little there, little here and the next thing you know, the water has come to a boil.

The very fact that the UN is not itself a country and is not connected to or beholden to any country (and hence to any people) may be it's greatest asset from al-Qaeda's point of view.

[Fred Nerks]

Shia or Sunni, or any one of the 78 sects that hate each other?

I found this article fascinating:


http://www.sikhspectrum.com/052004/shia_sunni_18.htm

[Fred Nerks]

When push gets to shove, I don't think the US will have to worry about Turkish help in the liberation of Iran.

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Comforting thought.The Turks are hardly going to assist the mullah's ambitions to rule the world...

[Risha]

bookmarked