Threat Matrix: Daily Terror Threat

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

Thread Thirty-Nine

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http://www.officer.com/article/article.jsp?siteSection=1&id=32176

"Phoenix Police Took a Page from D.C. Sniper Case"
Updated: August 18th, 2006 01:52 PM PDT
GARY EMERLING
Courtesy of The Washington Times

ARTICLE SNIPPET: "Lessons learned from the Washington-area sniper shootings helped Phoenix authorities track down the two men arrested in connection with a series of similar killings that terrorized residents for the past year.

"What they've developed from [the D.C. sniper case], we've been garnering that information," said Sgt. Andy Hill, a spokesman for the Phoenix Police Department. "You have to learn from those other things. And I'm sure that after these cases, others will learn and glean from what we did."

Police on Aug. 3 arrested Dale Hausner, 33, and Samuel Dieteman, 30, in connection with 37 random shootings that killed seven and injured 17 in the Phoenix metropolitan area.

In the 2002 sniper spree, John Allen Muhammad and Lee Boyd Malvo were linked to 13 shootings, including 10 fatal, in the D.C. area. Muhammad, 45, was found guilty of several of the murders and has received the death penalty. Malvo, 21, was also found guilty of murder and is serving a life sentence."

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http://www.defenselink.mil/news/NewsArticle.aspx?ID=494

Coalition Soldiers Killed in Afghanistan; Forces Kill Extremists, Uncover Weapons

American Forces Press Service

WASHINGTON, Aug. 18, 2006 – Two coalition soldiers were killed in separate incidents in Afghanistan Aug. 16 and yesterday, and coalition forces killed eight extremists and discovered a weapons cache, U.S. military officials reported.
A coalition soldier was killed yesterday during a battle with extremists just west of Asadabad, in Kunar province. In addition, one wounded coalition soldier was evacuated to a nearby coalition treatment facility, where he remains in stable condition.

Reports indicate the fight started when extremists attacked a coalition patrol about seven kilometers east of the coalition forward operating base. In response to the enemy attack, coalition troops pounded extremist positions with direct and joint fires, but have not confirmed how much damage was inflicted.

“Our fallen comrade served and died here so that others may enjoy the fruits of democracy,” said U.S. Army Brig. Gen. James Terry, Combined Joint Task Force 76 deputy commanding general for operations. “He will not be forgotten.”

A coalition member was killed Aug. 16 in southeastern Afghanistan when the vehicle he was traveling in struck a Soviet-era mine. Reports indicate recent rains in the area exposed the old mine, and enemy action was not the cause. The vehicle struck the mine south of Bermel, in Paktika province, while on a routine patrol in the area.

Officials did not release the nationalities of the deceased soldiers. The names of the deceased are being withheld pending notification of next of kin.

Elsewhere, coalition forces killed eight extremists Aug. 16 in the Asadabad district of Kunar province in response to direct small-arms fire. The coalition responded to the attack with small arms, machine gun fire and grenades.

“Our commitment will remain steadfast to defeat this enemy, to ensure the security of the region,” said U.S. Army Lt. Col. Paul Fitzpatrick, Combined Joint Task Force 76 spokesman.

In another operation, coalition forces discovered a weapons cache while searching an extremist compound in the Nika district of Paktika province yesterday. The cache included six rocket-propelled-grenade rounds, a battery, a machine gun barrel, 40 machine gun rounds, a tail boom, a firebox, 70 blasting caps, and several mortar rounds.

“These weapons will no longer be a threat to the lives of Afghan civilians,” Fitzpatrick said. “We will continue to conduct operations to remove these types of deadly weapons wherever we find them to ensure a peaceful existence for the Afghan people.”

(Compiled from Combined Forces Command Afghanistan news releases.)

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http://www.defenselink.mil/news/NewsArticle.aspx?ID=497

Coalition Forces in Iraq Seize Several Weapons Caches, Detain Eight Suspects

American Forces Press Service

WASHINGTON, Aug. 18, 2006 – U.S. soldiers in Iraq seized several large weapons caches and detained eight terrorist suspects in operations yesterday.
Multinational Division Baghdad soldiers from the 172nd Stryker Brigade Combat Team seized a large weapons cache during a cordon-and-search operation in northern Baghdad shortly before 1 p.m. The weapons cache included 21 AK-47 assault rifles, 55 magazines of 7.62 mm ammunition, 2 PKC machine guns, a Russian sniper rifle, tens of thousands of rounds of 7.62 mm ammunition, a fragmentary grenade, four jihadist propaganda magazines, and a martyrdom recruitment poster.

Earlier yesterday, soldiers from 7th Squadron, 10th Cavalry Regiment, 1st Brigade Combat Team, 4th Infantry Division, detained six suspected terrorists north of Baghdad at about 3:30 a.m. The Multinational Division Baghdad soldiers conducted a search of several houses. The suspects are being held for questioning.

Elsewhere, soldiers from 172nd Stryker Brigade Combat Team, assigned to Multinational Division Baghdad, detained two suspected terrorists and seized a massive weapons cache in a warehouse during a search of Nur and Ghazalyia yesterday in support of Operation Together Forward.

The weapons and munitions seized included 272 120 mm mortar rounds, 212 82 mm mortar rounds, 99 60 mm mortar rounds, 33,800 14.5 mm rounds, 5,000 7.62 rounds, 90 5.56 rounds, 165 19 mm rounds, 104 rocket-propelled grenades, 240 23 mm rockets, 200 60 mm primers, 22 107 mm rockets, nine 069B rockets, 11 RPG rounds, two landmines, a .30 caliber shape charge, a crater charge, 11 fragmentation grenades, a machine gun, two AK-47s, a PKC machine gun, an RPK machine gun, two 14 mm machine guns, 20 full AK-47 magazines, ammunition drums, various loose ammunition, 5,000 feet of detonation cord, three bayonets, five 82 mm tubes, four 60 mm tubes, three 60 mm mortar bipods, four 81 mm mortar bipods, two 60 mm mortar bases, an 81 mm base, two land mines, an 81 mm mortar base, an aiming circle, two aiming poles, 54 rocket motors, and various bomb-making materials.

The suspected terrorists were detained for questioning. All munitions and weapons were confiscated for destruction. Five hundred buildings were searched during the operation.

Operations have taken place in Doura, Shula, Ghazaliyah and Ameriyah from Aug. 7-16. During this time, Iraqi army, Iraqi police and coalition soldiers have cleared more than 23,000 buildings, 21 mosques, detained 54 suspected terrorists, seized 326 weapons, registered 341 weapons, found 10 weapons and munitions caches, and removed 900 tons of trash.

(Compiled from Multinational Corps Iraq news releases.)

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http://www.defenselink.mil/news/NewsArticle.aspx?ID=508

Iraqi Forces Capture Three Death Squad Leaders; Kidnap Victims Rescued

American Forces Press Service

WASHINGTON, Aug. 20, 2006 – Iraqi army forces captured three death squad leaders during raids in Baghdad Aug. 18. The captured leaders allegedly participated in a massacre of Iraqi families last month, U.S. military officials reported.
Coalition advisers provided support during the raids, and all three suspects were captured without incident. The men allegedly participated in a July 9 ambush of Iraqi families at a checkpoint in the al Jihad area, officials said.

One of the captured leaders is a senior-level insurgent believed to be the overall organizer of the massacre. Another is a senior-level insurgent leader whose cell allegedly established the al Jihad checkpoint. He and his cell also are believed to be responsible for kidnappings and murders in two Baghdad districts, burning and looting local businesses, and makeshift bomb attacks.

Elsewhere in Baghad, Iraqi army soldiers rescued a kidnap victim after receiving a tip from an Iraqi citizen Aug. 18.
The Iraqi citizen led soldiers from 1st Battalion, 2nd Brigade, 6th Iraqi Army Division, to a Baghdad house where the victims and a weapons cache were located. Two suspected terrorists were detained in connection with the kidnapping.

Inside the building, the soldiers seized two rocket-propelled-grenade launchers, rocket-propelled-grenade rounds, rocket-propelled-grenade charges, a rifle, and hand grenades.

In a separate Aug. 18 incident, Multinational Division Baghdad soldiers rescued three kidnap victims after receiving a tip from an Iraqi citizen southeast of Baghdad.

A young Iraqi man informed a coalition interpreter attached to Company C, 1st Battalion, 61st Cavalry Regiment, 4th Brigade Combat Team, 101st Airborne Division, that there were kidnap victims inside a nearby house.

The soldiers found three victims tied up, blindfolded and lying on the floor with a kidnapper watching over them. They detained the kidnapper without incident, officials said.

(Compiled from Multinational Corps Iraq news releases.)

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http://www.defenselink.mil/news/NewsArticle.aspx?ID=509

U.S. Forces Still Taking Fight to Taliban in Afghanistan, Military Spokesman Says

By Steven Donald Smith
American Forces Press Service

WASHINGTON, Aug. 20, 2006 – Two engagements with Taliban extremists in Afghanistan yesterday demonstrate that the U.S. continues to take the fight to the enemy, a U.S. military spokesman said today.
In the first engagement, three U.S. soldiers died and three others were wounded when a coalition combat patrol engaged a group of Taliban extremists with small-arms and artillery fire after being struck by a makeshift bomb yesterday.

Elsewhere, U.S. forces engaged about 150 extremists in a firefight that lasted nearly four hours in Uruzgan province. A U.S. airman died in this fight. Early reports indicate that the enemy suffered significant losses, officials said.

“These two incidents point out a few things,” said Army Col. Thomas Collins, a Combined Forces Command Afghanistan spokesman. “First, it makes clear that the United States will continue to maintain forces throughout this country, working closely with the Afghan National Security Forces in maintaining a counter-terrorism mission.”

The second point is that the U.S. is seeing an increase in Taliban activity because coalition operations are taking the fight to the extremists and placing pressure on their sanctuaries and disrupting their movements, he said.

“The enemy, of course, will contest this, and they are fighting back,” he said. “In the end, we will continue to push them back and reduce their ability to carry out further attacks all with a purpose of enabling the security Afghanistan needs to rebuild into a society where terrorists can’t flourish.”

About 1,000 members of the coalition are serving with NATO in the southern Afghanistan, primarily out of Kandahar Air Base providing logistics and aviation support, Collins said.

NATO eventually will take over command and control responsibility for all of Afghanistan, and a significant part of the NATO force will be U.S. troops, he said.

“Separate and distinct from the NATO mission, the United States has three of what we call enduring missions conducted under the authority of Operation Enduring Freedom,” he said. “One is to conduct counterterrorism operations anywhere in the country.”

The second mission is to help train and support the Afghan National Army, and the third is to contribute to the overall reconstruction going on throughout Afghanistan, he said.

Collins said Taliban fighters use insurgent techniques because they are not capable of engaging coalition forces in direct military operations. “It’s not like they are mounting an offensive that’s sweeping through the south,” he said. “There are these very localized attacks that give the impression of an offensive.”

ON THE NET...

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

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Thanks to Editor-Surveyor for the ping to this thread.
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http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1685931/posts

Animal extremist tried to bomb director's car ( ALF )
Times Online ^ | August 18, 2006 | Nicola Woolcock

Posted on 08/18/2006 8:38:24 AM PDT by george76

AN EXTREMIST described as the Animal Liberation Front’s main bomber faces life in jail after admitting yesterday that he planted explosive devices outside the home of a company director.

Detectives are now linking Donald Currie to ten similar attacks under investigation in six police force areas.

Currie, 40, pleaded guilty at Reading Crown Court to arson and to possessing explosive substances with intent to endanger life and property.

A senior police source said that Currie was the Animal Liberation Front’s “main active bomber” and described his detention as “a significant blow to animal rights extremism”.

The unemployed psychiatric nurse was arrested days after the bombing incident in March, for which the ALF claimed responsibility on its website.

An improvised bomb made from weedkiller and sugar was left under a car at the house of Caroline Brooks, 45, sales and marketing director of the courier company PDP.

A second device was found in a nearby garden, where it appeared to have been discarded. Neither was detonated but both could have inflicted serious damage.

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

http://www.inatoday.com/leftistbias82106.htm

"LEFTIST BIAS IN VET'S SIGHTS"

August 21, 2006

International News Analysis Today
www.inatoday.com
or
www.internationalnewsanalysis.com

ARTICLE SNIPPET: "Retired Air Force Lieutenant Colonel "Buzz" Patterson warns of a threat to national security developing at home which is as serious and profound as any foreign enemy, and he is preparing to launch a campaign to win the struggle at home.

Patterson made his statements during an exclusive interview with International News Analysis.

A combat veteran pilot and twice New York Times best-selling author, Patterson is Chief Executive Officer of the Center for the Study of Popular Culture, an organization founded by David Horowitz, publisher of the Internet magazine, Front Page, and also a best-selling author.

Patterson is deeply troubled by the steady stream of misinformation about Iraq and U.S. troop actions in that country from the traditional news media, and the unwillingness of the media to examine the motives, tactics, and overall strategy of militant Islamic terror groups.

Patterson stated that celebrity leftists are using their influence and wealth to undermine support for the war on terror, while some academics are attempting to justify militant Islam's war on America.

Self-serving politicians, taking advantage of this anti-American domestic propaganda, are ready to come to power, to undermine the American military, and yield to terrorist pressure, said Patterson.

Should leftist politicians triumph in this year's Congressional elections and fulfill their promise to quickly withdraw from Iraq, U.S. troop morale would plunge, and the entire region would descend into bloody conflict, "a chaotic situation on an epic scale" as Islamic militants press their advantage against a retreating America and its allies, Patterson declared.

Millions could die, as did in Cambodia and Vietnam after America's quick withdrawal from Vietnam, noted Patterson.

At home, the leftist assault on America's defense and intelligence services would follow the course set after the U.S. withdrawal from Vietnam, according to Patterson. A Congressional assault would leave the nation's defenses weakened, and could pave the way for a far-left, "McGovern-type" candidate, who could win the presidency, Patterson told International News Analysis.

America is in a struggle which "will determine the future course of the nation," and a loss to anti-war, pro-terror politicians could deliver a blow to national defense "from which the nation may never recover," warned Patterson."

http://littlegreenfootballs.com/weblog/?entry=22197_Saudis_Demand_Apology
(August 20, 2006)

http://littlegreenfootballs.com/weblog/?entry=22197_Saudis_Demand_Apology#comments

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http://www.arabnews.com/?page=1&section=0&article=76658&d=21&m=8&y=2006

"Shoura Chief Wants Bush Apology"
P.K. Abdul Ghafour, Arab News

ARTICLE SNIPPET: "JEDDAH, 21 August 2006 — Shoura Council Chairman Dr. Saleh Bin-Humaid yesterday called for a public apology from US President George W. Bush for linking Islam and Muslims with fascism and terrorism.

The chairman was referring to a recent statement by Bush branding Muslim extremists “Islamic fascists.” He also warned against deliberate smear campaigns targeting Islam, saying they would have dangerous consequences."

ON THE NET...

http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1676188/posts?page=1693#1693

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http://www.whitehouse.gov/news/releases/2006/08/20060810-3.html

For Immediate Release
Office of the Press Secretary
August 10, 2006

President Bush Discusses Terror Plot Upon Arrival in Wisconsin
Austin Straubel International Airport
Green Bay, Wisconsin

In Focus: Homeland Security

10:54 A.M. CDT

THE PRESIDENT: The recent arrests that our fellow citizens are now learning about are a stark reminder that this nation is at war with Islamic fascists who will use any means to destroy those of us who love freedom, to hurt our nation.

I want to thank the government of Tony Blair and officials in the United Kingdom for their good work in busting this plot. I thank the officials in Washington, D.C. and around our country who gather intelligence and who work to protect the American people. The cooperation on this venture was excellent -- cooperation between U.K. and U.S. authorities and officials was solid. And the cooperation amongst agencies within our government was excellent.

This country is safer than it was prior to 9/11. We've taken a lot of measures to protect the American people. But obviously, we're still not completely safe, because there are people that still plot and people who want to harm us for what we believe in. It is a mistake to believe there is no threat to the United States of America. And that is why we have given our officials the tools they need to protect our people.

Travelers are going to be inconvenienced as a result of the steps we've taken. I urge their patience and ask them to be vigilant. The inconvenience is -- occurs because we will take the steps necessary to protect the American people.

Again, I appreciate the close cooperation between our government and the government of the United Kingdom. The American people need to know we live in a dangerous world, but our government will do everything we can to protect our people from those dangers.

Thank you.

END 10:56 A.M. CDT

Off Topic...

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

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

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http://news.google.com/news?hl=en&ned=us&q=Egypt&btnG=Search+News

http://news.google.com/news?hl=en&ned=us&q=trains&btnG=Search+News

http://news.google.com/news?hl=en&ned=us&q=train&btnG=Search+News

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http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1687170/posts

Egyptian trains collide, many casualties reported
Reuters (excerpt) ^ | August 21, 2006

Posted on 08/20/2006 10:38:44 PM PDT by HAL9000

Excerpt -

CAIRO, Aug 21 (Reuters) - Two trains collided in the Nile Delta north of the Egyptian capital Cairo on Monday and there were many casualties, police and health ministry sources said.
~ snip ~

(Excerpt) Read more at alertnet.org ...

ON THE NET...

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

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http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1687172/posts

Venezuela - Chavez repeats warning to CANTV, says China will help set up telecom network
AP Worldstream ^ | August 21, 2006

Posted on 08/20/2006 10:44:30 PM PDT by HAL9000

Excerpt -

CARACAS, Venezuela, Aug 21, 2006 (AP Worldstream via COMTEX News Network) --
President Hugo Chavez repeated a warning Sunday that he will bring Venezuela's largest telecom back under government control if it doesn't make court-ordered pension payments to ex-employees, and said China will help build a competing, state-run telecommunications network.

Venezuela's largest publicly traded company, CANTV is the dominant provider of fixed-line telephone service in Venezuela. Formerly run by the state, it was privatized in 1991.

~ snip ~

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

ON THE NET...

FBI.gov
http://www.fbi.gov

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

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http://mensnewsdaily.com/2006/08/20/counterintelligence-in-a-dangerous-world/

"Counterintelligence in a Dangerous World"
August 20, 2006
Vox Populi, Jim Kouri
by Jim Kouri, CPP

ARTICLE SNIPPET: "The counterintelligence function involves protecting the country, as well as intelligence agencies, from the activities of foreign intelligence services. The Federal Bureau of Investigation has principal responsibility for countering the activities of foreign intelligence services within the United States in order to protect both classified US Government information and proprietary information held by US industry. The CIA is responsible for coordinating US counterintelligence activities abroad. Each of the military departments also has a counterintelligence element that operates domestically and overseas.

These elements has offensive and defensive missions. Offensively, they attempt to recruit agents within foreign intelligence services to ascertain what, if any, operations are being undertaken against the United States; they monitor the activities of known or suspected agents of foreign intelligence services; and they undertake operations to ascertain the targets and modus operandi of foreign intelligence services.

Defensively, they investigate cases of suspected espionage and prepare analyses for government and industry concerning the foreign intelligence threat. The FBI has principal jurisdiction to investigate suspected espionage within the United States, although all intelligence agencies maintain internal capabilities to undertake preliminary inquiries of their own employees. Military counterintelligence elements have concurrent jurisdiction to carry out counterintelligence investigations of their respective military personnel.

Counterintelligence, as a function of intelligence agencies, however, goes well beyond detecting and monitoring the activities of foreign intelligence services and investigating employees suspected of espionage. Counterintelligence is an integral part of the entire intelligence process.

All agencies that undertake intelligence collection, whether through human or technical means, must be constantly on guard that what they are collecting is genuine. This requires continuous evaluation of their sources as well as the information gathered from them. Intelligence analysts who are familiar with the totality of information on a particular topic are often in a position to detect anomalies."

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