Threat Matrix: Daily Terror Threat - August 2006

[nwctwx]

Syria Tells Troops to Be Ready for Battle
(Full Story)

Syrian President Bashar al-Assad has placed his military on full alert, citing "regional challenges", and vowed to continue supporting the "Palestinian and Lebanese resistance more than ever".

In a speech to mark the Syrian Army national day, Mr Assad said the volatile situation across the Middle East required "vigilance, preparation and readiness" and ordered all units of the armed forces to be on alert.

The comments were interpreted by Israel as a morale booster to the Syrian armed forces and not a call to battle. Israeli intelligence chiefs have assessed that Syria is not in the mood for an open war and is instead content to resupply Hezbollah guerillas in Lebanon.

	Iranian Cleric Asks Muslims to Send Weapons to Hezbollah
	Blair Says Syria, Iran Risk Confrontation
	Iran and Syria Beat the Drums of War

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[backhoe]

Jihad Watch under DOS attack?

( Mail checked & replied to, BTW. )

I can't help but think there was a co-relation to that, the timeout errors here I saw yesterday, and the spam deluge our private email experienced at the same time.

We keep 2 email boxes- one is dummy that is never used, and a subbox that is used as little as possible- the dummy saw not one spam, the other box was filling up faster that I could block or filter it.

I finally got mad enough to back-trace the headers and deluge the ISP's with "your server is one in a chain sending this junk to me- stop it!" emails...

I got back one "we don't know nuffin' about it," one "we are investigating," and one "that account has been banned for spamming" emails, but it stopped shortly afterwards, at around lunchtime.

[Cindy]

Glad it stopped for you.

Our email spam comes and goes.
I am thankful though that mine is usually
100 or less these days and often it's under
25 spam msgs daily.
My husband's is more.

There was a time it used to be about 500 +/-.
That was no fun.

[backhoe]

I really hate spam more than viruses- being a grown man, if I really wanted "T_A_M_D_I_L sofftabs" or "really hot girls" ( no charge for the penicillin-resistant gonnorrhea... ) I would go looking for them on my own- I don't need the unwanted help of strangers.

We used to get hundreds a day, but switching to a better ISP helped a lot- the cable company does pretty good filtering, and you can forward offensive emails, which they will block.

Also use 0spam ( zero spam ) which for a few dollars a month does further filtering and allows whitelisting and blacklisting of specific names or whole domains.

[Cindy]

UPDATE...

ON THE NET...

http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/keyword?k=Germany

http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/keyword?k=trains
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/keyword?k=train

http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/keyword?k=Lebanon

===
===

http://www.spiegel.de/panorama/0,1518,432474,00.html

Login Registrierung

19. August 2006 Druckversion | Versenden | Leserbrief


"GENERALBUNDESANWALT BESTÄTIGT
Mutmaßlicher Bahn-Bomber verhaftet
Erster Erfolg auf der Jagd nach den Bahn-Attentätern: Am Samstagmorgen gelang den Fahndern der Zugriff auf einen der zwei mutmaßlichen Bombenleger. Der Verdächtige soll schon am Sonntag einem Ermittlungsrichter des Bundesgerichtshofs vorgeführt werden.
Kiel/Wiesbaden"

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Note: The following post is a quote:
---

http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1686362/posts

GERMANY: Police detain suspect in July bomb plot-report
Reuters UK ^ | Sat Aug 19, 2006 | Reuters

Posted on 08/19/2006 3:20:50 AM PDT by wolf78

BERLIN (Reuters) - German security forces have taken into custody a suspect linked to last month's failed plot to explode bombs on German trains, a newspaper reported on Saturday.

In a preview of an article to appear in Bild am Sonntag on Sunday, the paper cited security sources as saying one of two suspects in the case had been seized in the northern city of Kiel and was being questioned by police.

Earlier on Saturday, the train station in Kiel was shut down for five hours. Police said the move was linked to the investigation into two bombs that were discovered in abandoned suitcases on trains in Dortmund and Koblenz last month.

Police declined to comment on whether a suspect had been seized and said a statement on the matter was expected later on Saturday from the federal prosecutor's office in Karlsruhe.

Police in Kiel said they would hold a news conference at 5 p.m. (4 p.m. British Time).

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Note: The following post is a quote:
---

http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1686362/posts?page=2#2

Hey, that's great Wolf78.
I hope he talks soon.

I was just getting ready to post this older article on The Threat Matrix:


http://newsimg.bbc.co.uk/media/images/41988000/jpg/_41988218_arabic203afp.jpg

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/europe/5263930.stm

Last Updated: Friday, 18 August 2006, 15:06 GMT 16:06 UK

"German bombs 'mass murder' bid"

ARTICLE SNIPPET: "Police are still trying to work out why the devices did not explode
German police have ruled out blackmail as the reason why two bombs were left on trains on 31 July - and now believe it was a failed terror attack.
The bombs were in identical black cases on trains in Dortmund and Koblenz.

They had been timed to explode 10 minutes before the trains arrived, said federal crime chief Joerg Ziercke.

"We are now working on the basis that this was the work of a terrorist group... and was an attempt to kill a large number of people," he said.

Police want to trace two men seen on CCTV wheeling cases at Cologne station."

===
===

http://littlegreenfootballs.com/weblog/?entry=22164_Details_of_German_Terror_Plot_Released
(August 18, 2006)

http://littlegreenfootballs.com/weblog/?entry=22164_Details_of_German_Terror_Plot_Released#comments

===
===

http://www.dw-world.de/image/0,,2140146_1,00.jpg

http://www.dw-world.de/dw/article/0,2144,2139974,00.html
Germany | 19.08.2006
"Police Arrest One Suspect in Attempted Bomb Attack on Trains"


"A photo released by police shows one of the suspects at the Cologne railway station"

ARTICLE SNIPPET: "A day after the publication of images of two persons believed to be part of a failed terrorist attack on German trains, German police have arrested one of the suspects, according to news reports.

News reports in Germany said that German police had arrested one of the two suspected suitcase bombers at the railway station in the northern city of Kiel on Saturday. The authorities also found explosives at the station, according to German public broadcaster ARD.

German police are hunting for two men suspected of planting two homemade bombs packed into suitcases on July 31 in trains in the western cities of Dortmund and Koblenz. The bombs however failed to detonate.

Investigators first thought that the devices were a blackmail attempt, but analysis of the contents revealed a possible link to Lebanon.

"We are now working on the basis that this was the work of a terrorist group based in Germany and that it was an attempt to kill a large number of people," Rainer Griesbaum, a federal prosecutor, told a press conference Friday."

[Cindy]

Sounds like you have good programs.
Changing ISPs does help for awhile.
Training the Junk Mail to
fetch the junk mail has really helped.

[Cindy]

Oh, well, I see I am not having fun.
My husband has one of his Christian boards hacked and 1 of my little boards got flooded with posts.

Honestly, these sinners need saving.
Why do they pick on us little people?

[Cindy]

That's interesting Velveeta.

I think you did an anagram for Murasel once.
It pops up in the search engines ever so often.

Let's see...if I recall correctly that was "Realm US"

[Cindy]

ON THE NET...

http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/keyword?k=pij

===
===

SNIPPET - QUOTE:
http://www.tkb.org/Group.jsp?groupID=82
GROUP PROFILE

Palestinian Islamic Jihad (PIJ)
Mothertongue Name:
???? ?????? ???????? ?? ??????

Aliases: Harakat al-Jihad al-Islami Fi Filastin

Base of Operation: Israel; Syria; West Bank/Gaza

Founding Philosophy: The Palestinian Islamic Jihad is a violent offshoot of the Muslim Brotherhood, a Sunni, Islamist, religious movement that originated in Egypt and seeks broad social, moral, and political reforms based upon Islam. The PIJ is one faction within a loosely organized, highly secretive group of Islamic Jihad movements that span the Middle East.

The PIJ was founded in the late 1970s by a group of radical Palestinian activists living in Egypt. This group of activists, led by Fathi Shaqaqi, believed that the Muslim Brotherhood movement had become too moderate and had abandoned the Palestinian cause. Inspired by the Shi'a Islamic revolution in Iran, the PIJ blended Palestinian nationalism, Sunni Islamic fundamentalism, and Shi'a revolutionary thought into its ideological agenda, which stressed that Islamic unity could not be achieved until Israel was utterly annihilated and all of Palestine liberated.

The PIJ initially operated out of Egypt, but after the assassination of Egyptian President Anwar Sadat by Egyptian radicals, the PIJ leadership was exiled to the Gaza Strip, where it continued to engage in anti-Israel activities. During the first Palestinian intifada, the PIJ leadership was exiled to Lebanon where it fostered its close ties to Hezbollah and Iran. While several other Islamic Jihad factions emerged in the Palestinian Territories during the 1980s, the group founded by Shaqaqi has remained the dominant faction.

Current Goals: PIJ is dedicated to the violent destruction of Israel. PIJ's radical ideology views its armed struggle against Israel as one battle in a larger worldwide holy war, pitting Islam against all non-believers. PIJ has thus violently opposed the peace process and has actively used suicide bombings against Israeli targets to derail the process. Unlike Hamas, which has built a network of social services, PIJ has focused almost exclusively on violent activities.

The PIJ remains a comparatively small organization with a limited base of support. The PIJ's prominence has fallen since 1995, when Fathi Shaqaqi was gunned down in Malta, purportedly by Israeli Mossad agents. Ramadan Shallah, who replaced Shaqaqi as PIJ's leader, lacks the charisma of the former leader. The PIJ's worldwide activities have further been hampered by a series of arrests and indictments in the United States following the September 11 attacks.

The PIJ has announced that it does not intend to participate in the Palestinian legislative elections scheduled for July 2005. The group has pledged, however, that it is not officially boycotting the elections nor is it asking its members not to participate. The PIJ asserts that “We will not participate so long as the occupation controls the entire electoral process.”

===
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Note: The following text is a quote:
---

http://www.jihadwatch.org/archives/2006/08/012775print.html

August 19, 2006

Jihad backer sentenced in Chicago for fraud

The jihad takes many forms. From AP:

A former grocery store owner already facing three years in prison for aiding a terrorist group got 14 months tacked onto his sentence Friday for swindling a government social welfare program out of $1.4 million (€1.1 million).
Hatem Fariz, 33, must serve a total of 51 months in federal prison under the sentence handed down by US District Judge Milton I. Shadur.

Fariz, who now lives in Spring Hill, Florida, also was ordered to repay the money he siphoned off by swapping cash for government food stamp vouchers.

At the same time, Fariz pleaded guilty in a federal court in Tampa to conspiring to provide financial aid to Palestinian Islamic Jihad, which has been designated by the US government as a terrorist organization.

Posted at August 19, 2006 06:54 AM

[Cindy]

Thanks Calpernia for the ping to this thread:

http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1686388/posts

"Miss Martyr Camp at the Y--Arts & crafts, boating, soccer and martyrdom."
Frontpagemagazine ^ | 8-19-06 | Joe Kaufman

Posted on 08/19/2006 5:33:09 AM PDT by SJackson

[Cindy]

RECAP AND UPDATE:

COUNTERTERRORISM BLOG.org: "REHMAN, RAUF, SUSPECTED LONDON AIRLINE PLOTTERS CAPTURED, AND THE PAKISTANI CONNECTION" by Bill Roggio (August 17, 2006)

WASHINGTON TIMES.com (AP): London - "BRITAIN WARNS CITIZENS TERRORISM THREATS PERSIST" (August 14, 2006)

ABC NEWS - blog - THE BLOTTER: "BRITISH CHARITY RUN BY ALLEGED RINGLEADER'S FAMILY" (August 14, 2006)

WorldNetDaily.com: London - "HUNT FOR CHEMISTRY STUDENT IN BRITISH MASS-TERROR PLOT MI5 security services seeks al-Qaida recruit with expertise in creating liquid explosives" by Gordon Thomas (August 13, 2006)

JIHAD WATCH.org (AFP): New Delhi - "BRITISH BOMB PLOT SUSPECT SUSPENDED BY INDIA'S JET AIRLINES IN WAKE OF ARREST, PREVIOUSLY WORKED FOR GLOBAL SECURITY CORPORATION" (August 13, 2006)

JIHAD WATCH.org (THE DAILY TELEGRAPH): "BABY BOTTLE 'USED AS BOMB'" (August 13, 2006)

JIHAD WATCH.org (AP): "PAKISTAN CAPTURES 17 MORE SUSPECTS, SOME BRITISH NATIONALS, IN AIRLINE BOMB PLOT" (August 12, 2006)

CNN.com: "TERROR PLOT: INTERNET CAFES RAIDED" (August 12, 2006)

INTERNET-HAGANAH.com: "TALKING POINTS" (ARTICLE SNIPPET: "The internet is the home front of the global jihad.") (June 19, 2006)

LittleGreenFootballs.com (Dailytimes.com.pk): "'QUAKE MONEY' USED FOR UK PLOT" (August 12, 2006)

News.BBC.co.uk: "FULL TEXT: MUSLIM GROUPS' LETTER" (Last updated August 12, 2006)

FOX NEWS.com: London - "BROTHERS EMERGE AS KEY SUSPECTS IN U.K. TERROR PLOT" (ARTICLE SNIPPET: "A senior Pakistani security official said the arrest of Rashid Rauf, a British citizen, was followed within days by a telephone call from someone in Pakistan urging the British plotters to execute their plan, "This telephone call intercept in Karachi and the arrest of Rashid Rauf helped a lot to foil the terror plan," said the official, speaking on condition of anonymity. Pakistan's Foreign Ministry said Friday that Rauf was a "key person" in the investigation. His brother, Tayib Rauf, 22, was among the suspects arrested in Britain; police refused to comment on news reports that another brother was also detained.") (August 12, 2006)

WASHINGTON TIMES.com (AP): "BRITISH PROBE EYES BROTHERS, AL QAEDA LINK" by Paul Haven, AP (August 13, 2006)

COUNTERTERRORISM BLOG: "MATIUR REHMAN, THE LONDON AIRLINE PLOT AND THE ROAD FROM PAKISTAN AND TALIBANISTAN" by Bill Roggio (ARTICLE SNIPPET: "As the evidence of the Pakistani connection mounts, reports indicate Pakistani terrorist and al-Qaeda member Matiur Rehman is one of the prime suspects in the London Airline Plot.") (August 12, 2006)

SAAG.org - Search Term "REHMAN"

Google News - Search Term: "Matiur Rehman"

SAAG.org - Search Term: "MATIUR REHMAN"

TERROR TRACKER.co.uk: "BLUEPRINT FOR A NEW DIMENSION OF TERROR" -by Neil Doyle (August 11, 2006)

DEFENSElink.mil (AMERICAN FORCES PRESS SERVICE): Washington - "NORTHCOM WAS ON GUARD AGAINST PLOT TO BOMB PLANES, GENERAL SAYS" by Steven Donald Smith (August 11, 2006)

DEFENSElink.mil (AMERICAN FORCES PRESS SERVICE): Washington - "BUSH: TERROR PLOT TO BOMB PLANES REMINDER U.S. AT WAR" by Steven Donald Smith (August 10, 2006)

ABC NEWS - blog - The Blotter: "THE MAN WHO IS PLANNING THE NEXT ATTACK ON AMERICA" -Alexis Debat Reports (August 9, 2006)

KLTV.com: "EXCLUSIVE: NEW FACE OF TERROR" (August 9, 2006)

ABCnews.go.com/WNT: "EXCLUSIVE: NEW AL QAEDA LEADER PLANNING ATTACK AGAINST U.S." (March 2, 2006)

WASHINGTON TIMES.com: London - "TERROR ROUNDUP WIDENS" by Al Webb (August 12, 2006)

JIHAD WATCH.org (DailyMail.co.uk): "BRITISH JIHAD SUSPECT TABLIGHI JAMAAT MEMBER" (August 11, 2006)

"www.freerepublic.com/focus/news/1676188/posts?page=1037#1037"

BBC NEWS: "US HUNT FOR UK TERROR PLOT LINKS" (Last updated August 11, 2006)

ABC NEWS - The Blotter - blog: "FBI INVESTIGATES AMERICAN CONNECTION TO LONDON TERROR PLOT" (August 11, 2006)

HOT AIR.com - VENT with Michelle Malkin - Blog: "THE RETURN OF TERROR IN THE SKIES" (August 11, 2006)

FOX NEWS.com: London - "UK AGENT INFILTRATED SUSPECTED TERROR CELL THAT PLOTTED TO BLOW UP 10 JETLINERS" (August 11, 2006)

News.BBC.co.uk: "ASSETS OF 'PLANE PLOTTERS' FROZEN" (Last updated August 11, 2006)

News.BBC.co.uk: "'AIR PLOT' SUSPECTS: NAMES RELEASED" (Last updated August 11, 2006)

News.BBC.co.uk: "TWO BRITONS IN PAKISTAN ARRESTS" (Last updated August 11, 2006)

JIHAD WATCH.org (TimesOnline.co.uk): "BRITISH JIHADISTS 'HAD CONVERTED TO DEVOUT FORM OF ISLAM'" (August 11, 2006)

OSINT.INTERNET-HAGANAH.com (GUARDIAN): "'It was really strange'" (August 10, 2006)

JIHAD WATCH.org (CNN): "HEATHROW AIRPORT EMPLOYEE WITH ALL-AREA ACCESS PASS AMONG SUSPECTED JIHADISTS ARRESTED" (August 10, 2006)

SAAG.org - Paper no. 1907: "OPERATION BOJINKA-2006: THE TRAIL TO PAKISTAN - INTERNATIONAL TERRORISM MONITOR: Paper no. 101" by B. Raman(August 11, 2006)

SAAG.org Paper no. 1906: "OPERATION BOJINKA--2006? - INTERNATIONAL TERRORISM MONITOR: Paper no. 100" by B. Raman (August 10, 2006)

DEFENSElink.mil (AMERICA FORCES PRESS SERVICE): Washington - "BUSH: TERROR PLOT TO BOMB PLANES REMINDER U.S. AT WAR" by Steven Donald Smith (August 10, 2006)

DEFENSElink.mil (MERICAN FORCES PRESS SERVICE): Washington - "U.S. REMAINS ON GUARD IN RESPONSE TO TERROR THREAT" by Jim Garamone (August 10, 2006)

CNS NEWS.com: "U.S.-BOUND FLIGHTS TARGETED IN FOILED BOMB PLOT" by Patrick Goodenough (August 10, 2006)

TRAVEL.STATE.GOV - U.S. Department of State: "Public Announcement" (August 10, 2006)

TSA.gov: "Statement By Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff Announcing A Change To The Nation's Threat Level For The Aviation Sector" (August 10, 2006)

Google - News - Search: Various Key Words

[tmp02]

Quick Prep question. Could an electric dryer be used as a Faraday cage? And of course it would be turned off;)

[Cindy]

I don't know, tmp02.

[Cindy]

UPDATE...

WTOP.com (AP): Gaza City, Gaza Strip - "WIFE OF KIDNAPPED CAMERAMAN MAKES PLEA" (August 18, 2006)

MICHELLE MALKIN.com - Weblog: "FOX NEWS' STEVE CENTANNI AND CAMERAMAN KIDNAPPED IN GAZA" by Mary Katherine Ham (August 14, 2006)

Google - Search News: "Centanni"

[Cindy]

Off-Topic.INTERNET-HAGANAH.com: "THE MAN FROM S.O.F.I.R." (August 17, 2006)

INTERNET-HAGANAH.com: "SOMEONE PLEASE BUY THE HOME SECRETARY A PINT...he's earned it." ARTICLE SNIPPET: "We were watching a press conference with John Reid, the Home Secretary, on CSPAN, and he said '...we need to make the Internet a hostile environment for terrorists...'") (August 17, 2006)

[Cindy]

UPDATE...

http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/keyword?k=GlobalJihad
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/keyword?k=Jihad


http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/keyword?k=Iran

---

http://intelligence-summit.blogspot.com/2006/08/iran-launches-military-exercises.html
Saturday, August 19, 2006
"Iran launches military exercises"
TEHRAN, Iran

---

http://www.memritv.org

http://www.memritv.org/Search.asp?ACT=S5&P1=148

http://www.memri.org/iran.html

http://memri.org/bin/articles.cgi?Page=countries&Area=iran&ID=SP125006
Special Dispatch Series - No. 1250
August 16, 2006 No.1250

"‘We Have Reentered the Era of Victory Through Resistance’: Iranian and Syrian Reactions to the Crisis – August 13-14"

SNIPPET: "The following are excerpts from the Syrian press and reactions by Iranian leaders to the crisis in the Middle East and to Security Council Resolution 1701:"

---

http://www.internet-haganah.com/harchives/005698.html
17 August 2006
"Iran Sanctions Violation of the Day"

http://www.qodstv.com

---

Note: The following text is a quote:

http://vitalperspective.typepad.com/vital_perspective_clarity/2006/08/total_informati.html


Total Information Blackout: Iranian Police Destroying Satellite Dishes in Tehran

The Iranian regime apparently has something it feels it must hide. The police is going building to building smashing sattelite dishes. Is it possible the Mullahs worry that the people will find out that they are provoking their destruction? (HT: Judith Apter Klinghoffer).

Police in Tehran have begun dismantling satellite dishes from the city's rooftops - part of a campaign to prevent Iranians from watching Western television. The move follows a recent police order that all satellite dishes - officially banned but tolerated until now - be removed. The campaign against satellite television was launched by the Minister for Culture and Islamic Orientation, Hassan Saffar Harandi, who said "we have to halt the West's cultural offensive," on Iran.

Some observers believe that the clampdown is aimed at keeping the government's control over news regarding Iran's dispute with the international community regarding its nuclear program.

In recent months, all news coverage on the issue in Iran has been done with the approval of the Supreme Council of National Security, prompting people who wish to be informed by non-government sources to watch and listen to television and radio from abroad.

Aug 17, 2006 in Iran | Permalink

[Cindy]

THANKS to Calpernia for the ping to this thread:

http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/news/1686455/posts

"Khamene'i Message Greets Congress of University Students' Society"
Tehran IRNA via StrategicTranslations ^

Posted on 08/19/2006 7:43:03 AM PDT by Calpernia

[Cindy]

o: JohnathanRGalt; backhoe; piasa; All
ON THE NET...

http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/keyword?k=Israel

http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/keyword?k=globaljihad
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/keyword?k=jihad

http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/keyword?k=hezbollah
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/keyword?k=hizballah
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/keyword?k=hizbullah

http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/keyword?k=alaqsamartyrsbrigade



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Note: The following text is a quote:
---

http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1686427/posts


Al-Aqsa: We learned missiles subdue Israel
Ynet News ^ | 08.18.06, 01:14 | Ali Waked

Posted on 08/19/2006 6:43:19 AM PDT by rickylc

Abu Nasser, commander of al-Aqsa Martyrs Brigade in Nablus, encouraged by war results. 'Our brothers demonstrated what we have felt in recent years: Israel falling apart. Next time Iran will be in picture with missiles on Tel Aviv and it will be easier'

The Palestinian terror organizations are looking north and are filled with satisfaction and hope for the next step.

"We learned from Hizbullah that the tools that make a difference are missiles. If achieve expertise in this field, we won't make do with the simple rockets we have. There is no doubt that we can subdue Israel ," Abu Nasser, a commander in the al-Aqsa Martyrs Brigade, Fatah's military wing, told Ynet.

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


12 posted on 08/19/2006 7:56:08 AM PDT by Cindy
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 5 | View Replies | Report Abuse ]

[Cindy]

ON THE NET...

PERSECUTION.ORG
http://www.persecution.org

===
===

Note: The following text is a quote:
---

http://www.assistnews.net/Stories/s06080083.htm

ASSIST News Service (ANS) - PO Box 609, Lake Forest, CA 92609-0609 USA
Visit our web site at: www.assistnews.net -- E-mail: danjuma1@aol.com


Friday, August 18, 2006

Pastors brutally attacked in the Rajasthan state of India

By Michael Ireland
Special Correspondent, ASSIST News Service

RAJASTHAN, INDIA (ANS) -- Two pastors, Pastor Kunjuman Mathai and Pastor Suresh Bhuria have been brutally beaten in Rajasthan, a state ruled by the Hindu Nationalist Bharatiya Janata Party. According to the Washington-DC based human rights group, International Christian Concern (ICC) www.persecution.org the attack took place on July 13, at the Padla bus station in Kushalgar sub-district of Rajasthan’s Banswara district, where Hindu groups had earlier pledged to cleanse all Christian believers.

ICC says that, in fact, within the state of Rajasthan, the assembly led by the BJP recently passed a bill to enact an anti-conversion law, which is awaiting confirmation by the state governor.
Pastor Mathai spoke to ICC about his account. “The attackers first went to the bus stop and asked about me. As soon as we arrived, they stopped us and started beating us. They beat us for more than one hour.” he said.

A media advisory states: "The All India Christian Council (AICC) identified the men as: Keshev Khihuri, Mithalal Katara, and Ramlal Khihuri. The three men, who have already been linked with other anti-Christian activities in the area, beat the pastors with iron rods and stones, and took by force belongings Pastor Bhuria had in his possession while traveling."

"Pastor Mathai had visible injuries on various parts of his body, including congealing of blood in his eyes. He was rushed to a hospital for first aid and medical examination," it says.

The ICC statement adds:"Before fleeing the spot, the three men threatened the pastors saying they would be killed if they registered a complaint to the police. Mathai reports that he sent a complaint by mail to the Kalinjara police station July 18th and the letter was received two days later."

"However, I do not know whether the police have registered our complaint," Mathai said.

Christians in India affirm that Rajasthan, a state located in Northeast India, is one of the most dangerous for Christians.

ICC is a Washington-DC based human rights organization that exists to help persecuted Christians worldwide. ICC delivers humanitarian aid, trains and supports persecuted pastors, raises awareness in the US regarding the problem of persecution, and is an advocate for the persecuted on Capitol Hill and the State Department. For additional information or for an interview, contact ICC at 800-422-5441.

Contact: ICC (International Christian Concern) www.persecution.org.
Jeff King President, 301-989-1708, icc@persecution.org
International Christian Concern
2020 Pennsylvania Ave #941
Washington, DC 20006

** Michael Ireland is an international British freelance journalist. A former reporter with a London newspaper, Michael is Media Director for Strategic World Impact of Bartlesville, Oklahoma and a Special Correspondent for ASSIST News Service of Lake Forest, California. Michael immigrated to the United States in 1982 and became a US citizen in September, 1995. He is married with two children. Michael has also been a frequent contributor to UCB Europe, a British Christian radio station.

** You may republish this story with proper attribution.

[nwctwx]

Report: Al-Qaida No. 2's kin plotted air attack

A son-in-law of al-Qaida deputy Ayman al-Zawahri was the mastermind of a plot to blow up transatlantic airliners unearthed in Britain this month, a Pakistani newspaper said on Saturday.

British police said on August 10 they had foiled a major plot to carry out suicide bombings on aircraft bound for the United States and are questioning 23 suspects.

Pakistan said last week it had arrested seven people, including two British Muslims of Pakistani descent, in connection with the plot.

More...

[Cindy]

Thanks NW.

I wonder what the suspect's name is?

Here are the suspects and other info we know about:

http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1676188/posts?page=1610#1610