BRING IT!!
Posted on 09/26/2001 12:49:58 AM PDT by CommiesOut
It may turn into a Crusade
Business Times (Malaysia); Sep 26, 2001
BY MUSTAPHA KAMIL
WE CAN only hope it will not come to this. But the truth is, it will take only one misstep, and the impending war between America and Osama bin Laden in Afghanistan may degenerate into a war with Islam.
At this very moment, a large American armada is heading for the Mediterranean to hunt down the Saudi Arabian fugitive and punish the people who have been providing him a place to stay in the Central Asian state for the past several years.
The huge American firepower is going to respond to terrorist attacks on New York City and Washington on September 11 which took more than 6,500 lives, mostly civilians.
Understandably, a furious America has promised a strong response. After pin-pointing Osama bin Laden and his bunch of followers in Afghanistan as those Washington would go after first, America has now said it will not stop there.
President George W. Bush, now enjoying a popularity unheard of by an American president in recent years, has promised even more. America will hunt down terrorist groups wherever they are in the world, he says.
However, he also acknowledged that it will not be a walk in the park for America, even with its mighty military.
Already the wide scope of actions America is going to take and the vast geographical area involved is a drawing some worried comments.
Observers now say the present US Administration may seek to finish what former President Bill Clinton failed to do; that is, finish off Iraqi President Saddam Hussein.
And who knows what may come after that.
As the world knows, in the American lexicon "terrorists" are always Muslims. Naturally, they are found mostly in Islamic countries. And therein lies the danger.
The President may be right after all, that this may really turn into a new and different war.
Dangerously however it may be like a war fought along similar lines a long time ago in the 11th Century. I am referring to the Crusades, which was a war between Islam and essentially the Christians.
The President has slipped his tongue at least once, calling the war which his Administration will wage against Osama a "Crusade", although the White House promptly withdrew that later.
He has also gone to great lengths to invite Muslim nations to join the international coalition that Washington is assembling, so as not to have the American military campaign against Osama and the ruling Talibans in Afghanistan viewed as a war against Islam.
Perhaps Bush deserves credit, for at least attempting to avoid America's response from being turned into a war against Islamic nations.
But on the other end, the Saudi Arabian fugitive is unlike any foe the Americans have faced before.
He is not like Adolf Hitler, or the Japanese, unlike the North Koreans, or Fidel Castro, or Nikita Khruschev, Ho Chi Minh or Saddam.
Whether rightly or wrongly, Osama bin Laden's fight is only motivated by Islam. He and his followers are stateless and claim to only belong to the religion.
The fugitive, now America's most wanted man is also not a fool. He knows how to work on the sensitivities of the Muslims.
Agency reports said he wrote a letter to an Arabic newspaper in Qatar, asking his "Muslim brothers in Pakistan to deter with all their capabilities the American crusaders from invading Pakistan and Afghanistan".
Already public unrest is reported in Pakistan as sections of the nation took to the streets in a display of defiance towards President Pervez Musharraf government's willingness to work with the US. At least one demonstrator has died.
Meanwhile, although many said Osama's brand of Islam is different from those practised in the mostly moderate Muslim nations, the fugitive has one demand that intersects with the desire of many other Muslim nations.
Osama knew exactly which part of the nations' conscience he should strike to gain some form of support. He wants Washington to withdraw its support for Israel or face a holy war. The coalition meanwhile, cannot be seen as having endorsement of the entire international community. The only reason it is not openly criticised is because the world understands America's anger over the September 11 attacks.
The United Nations (UN) has only just begun to make calls for it to be allowed a major role in the long-term international fight against terrorism although it is not known yet what the world body can and should do.
Without the involvement of the UN, there is no worldwide legitimacy in the international coalition now in place to punish terror groups and those supporting them.
That, and the anticipated long drawn campaign, would make it even easier for the radical sections of the Muslim world to say that a prolonged American-led campaign is nothing but a declaration of war against Islam, for as noted, in the western world terrorism is so equated with Islam.
No one supports the recent cruel attacks on civilians in America. In fact, no one should support terrorism. But a response must be well- calculated.
This is not only a new war in terms of those fighting or the way it will be fought. It is a new war in terms of the many meanings that may be made out of it.
If the world is not careful, it may turn into a Crusade.
Copyright © Asia Intelligence Wire
The terrorists didn't get UN approval first. So we don't need to, either. Otherwise, a pretty well written article.
Poor white folks in Indonesia. I hope they have brown shoe polish and turbans handy.
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Indonesia: Islamic Council condemns "seeking out" of US citizens
BBC Monitoring Service - United Kingdom; Sep 26, 2001
Jakarta: The Indonesian Council of Ulemas (MUI) has appealed to Muslims not to abuse the citizens of the US and other Western nations in Indonesia in order to show solidarity with Afghanistan and the Islamic world. Such actions are not in accordance with Muslim values, which bestow mercy on all humanity (Arabic: rahmatan lil alamiin; transliteration as published), and could damage the image of Islam as a religion of peace.
Vice-President Hamzah Haz has also expressed disapproval of plans to seek out US citizens. The vice-president was speaking to the media after attending a limited cabinet meeting at the State Secretariat, Jakarta, yesterday [25 September].
"We must view the problem with a sense of perspective. We have already urged the US not to attack the nation. They're going after the people, not the nation. So, the same applies to us," he said, adding, "It is not possible that the government would do anything to injure the Islamic community in Indonesia."
The MUI statement was issued after a meeting between MUI and 32 Islamic organizations, among them Muhammadiyah, Muslimat NU [Nahdlatul Ulama], Al Washliyah, Al Irsyad, Islamic Mission Council [DDI], ICMI [Indonesian Islamic Intellectuals Association] and KAMHI [United Action of Islamic Students], which between them represent 180 million Indonesians. The six-point joint statement was signed by MUI chair Amidhan and MUI secretary general Din Syamsuddin, plus the leaders of the 32 Islamic organizations. "We call on [Muslims] not to abuse, meaning to seek out or commit any other act that might injure or hurt the citizens of the US and other Western nations here," the statement read.
Various other leaders on Tuesday [25 September] condemned the plans of certain groups to conduct seeking out of foreigners in Indonesia, particularly US citizens, in response to the possibility of US military action against Afghanistan. Vice-President Hamzah Haz, Defence Minister Matori Abdul Djalil, former Justice Minister Muladi and the governor of Yogyakarta, Sultan Hamengku Buwono X, said separately that such actions were indefensible, as not only were they an assault on human rights, but also damaging to international relations.
Not tolerated
Defence Minister Matori Abdul Djalil said that seeking out [of foreign nationals] would bring shame upon the Indonesian nation, and therefore such actions would not be tolerated.
He told foreign journalists that responsibility for safeguarding foreign nationals and the diplomatic and economic assets of other nations in Indonesia lay with Polri [Indonesian Police], not TNI [Tentara Nasional Indonesia - Indonesian National Military Forces]...
HA Thoyfoer, the head of the Central Java branch of the PPP [Partai Persatuan Pembangunan - United Development Party], prohibited party members from participating in any seeking out of foreigners in Indonesia. "I do not permit any PPP supporters to take part in such actions. What would happen if PPP members joined in? Absolute chaos," he told reporters in Semarang.
Provincial government, police and military leaders in Jakarta yesterday at a meeting with religious leaders insisted that sweeping would not occur in Jakarta. Anyone foolish enough to attempt it in Jakarta would be arrested and tried in accordance with the law.
Source: Kompas Cyber Media web site, Jakarta, in Indonesian 26 Sep 01
/BBC Monitoring/ © BBC.
World Reporter All Material Subject to Copyright
Always trust the natural-wog-instinct! When faced with firepower, they drop their rifles, rip-off their boots, and run for the sheep and goats!
Geez, we're dealing with starving, stone-age people that have 40-year-old munitions! Bomb them with food. Make it SPAM! It'll be fun to see what happens!
It isn't the armarents, it's the terrain....FRegards
BRING IT!!
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Osama mocks Bush and demands war
The Scotsman - United Kingdom; Sep 25, 2001, http://globalarchive.ft.com/globalarchive/article.html?id=010925011460
BY JOHN WOODCOCK, PAUL GALLAGHER
Internal unrest in the region was ratcheted higher yesterday by Osama bin Laden's call for Muslims in Pakistan to unite against the "American crusade" he claimed was directed at their faith.
In his first major statement since the bombing, which was faxed to Qatari-based news channel Al Jazeera at its offices in Kabul, bin Laden said members of his faith were on the verge of a jihad, or holy war, under the direction of Taleban leader Mohammed Omar.
The statement was signed by bin Laden and dated Sunday. He has used Al-Jazeera to communicate with the outside world on several occasions in the past. Officials at the station yesterday said they believed the statement was authentic.
The message began: "To our Muslim brothers in Pakistan, peace be upon you."
It went on to refer to three people killed in Karachi during protests against the Pakistani leadership's backing of the US and agreement to its demand to close its borders and cut off ties with the Taleban.
"The news of the death of our brother Muslims in Karachi while expressing their opposition to the crusade of American forces and their allies on Muslim lands Pakistan and Afghanistan has reached us with great sorrow," said the fax.
"We ask God to accept them as martyrs and to join them with the prophets, the caliphs and the martyrs and those of goodwill and to provide for their families.
"Those who are left-behind children are my children and I will, God willing, take care of them.
"It's not a surprise that the Muslim nation in Pakistan will die defending Islam. It is considered on the front line of defending Islam. As Afghanistan was on the front line of defending itself and Pakistan during the Russian invasion more than 20 years ago."
He added: "If God allows you to win, there will be no defeat; if he chooses that you will be defeated nothing will allow you to win."
The Pakistan government yesterday withdrew all its staff from its embassy at Kabul, saying it was a temporary measure made for security reasons. The announcement came as a delegation from the Pentagon was expected to arrive in Islamabad to brief President General Pervez Musharraf's government on US plans to launch a military strike against bin Laden.
The arrival of the delegation is being kept secret to prevent it being targeted by opposition protesters, who are furious at Musharraf's decision to ally himself with America in its war against terrorism.
Suggestions by US Secretary of State Colin Powell that he may show Pakistan the intelligence reports linking bin Laden's Al-Queda network to the attacks have helped to strengthen the Pakistani government in its attempt to persuade the country of the need to support America.
Such evidence would undermine the key objection by opposition groups that action against bin Laden cannot be justified unless he is directly implicated in the attacks.
Musharraf has also been aided by the lifting of sanctions imposed against Pakistan since it carried out a nuclear test in 1998. The lifting clears the way for the country to receive foreign economic aid to ease its crippling debt crisis.
Pakistan's army fears it may have to engage fleeing Taliban fighters if the United States takes military action against Afghanistan, according to provincial government sources.
Sources close to the governor of Pakistan's Northwest Frontier Province, an unruly tribal area along the border with Afghanistan, warned armed Taleban members may attempt to seek safe haven across the border.
There was further good news for the Pakistani government yesterday as America agreed to reschedule repayments of around $379 million of the $3 billion debt owed to the US.
However, Quzi Hussein Ahmad, leader of Pakistan's Jamat-i-Islami party, urged his followers to take up the fight against the government.
The Taleban claimed yesterday it had mobilised 300,000 soldiers as it prepared its defence of Afghanistan. Mullah Muhammad Umar Mujhid said the US would meet the same fate as the Soviet Union if it attempted to invade.
Meanwhile, there are fears that Pakistan's cottage arms industry will continue to find employment for children as young as ten.
Some 25 factories and forges, run mainly by Pathan tribesmen close to the Afghan border, have been turning out weapons for more than 100 years and have thrived on the scrapped ordinance abandoned in the conflicts of recent decades.
The Pakistani authorities turn a blind eye to the gun factories which are in the autonomous tribal areas running along the Afghan border, where Pathans routinely go about their business carrying machine guns and rifles.
With the supply of scrap metal from the Soviet war of the 1980s beginning to dry up, the threatened US bombardment could not come at a better time for the gun factories.
Many of the weapons will end up in the hands of the Taleban forces after being smuggled across the border by Pathan tribesmen.
All Material Subject to Copyright
By Brian Groom in London and Stephen Fidler in Washington
Published: September 25 2001 19:07GMT | Last Updated: September 25 2001 20:54GMT
http://specials.ft.com/theresponse/FT3KUOP12SC.html
The US the UK on Tuesday made clear their plans to wage war on the Taliban but feed the Afghan people in a "bombs and bread" military campaign.
Speaking to reporters in Downing Street's rose garden, UK prime minister Tony Blair gave the the fullest picture so far of the allies' aims in the conflict they are preparing to unleash.
He warned that unless Afghanistan's rulers responded to the US ultimatum to hand over Osama bin Laden, prime suspect for the September 11 terrorist attacks, "we certainly have to power to do very considerable damage to the Taliban regime".
With evidence growing that the US and UK are readying their military forces for action over the next few days, Mr Blair said there were "scores" of terrorist camps in Afghanistan, not just bin Laden's, and he challenged the Taliban regime to ensure they were "verifiably closed down."
"If the regime in Afghanistan refuses to do what they should, then our enemy's friend also becomes our enemy too," he said.
He made clear, however, that "our fight is with that regime, not with the people of Afghanistan" and pledged concerted international efforts to step up food supplies to try to avert a humanitarian crisis.
Britain would work with other countries, aid agencies and the United Nations to get supplies to refugees and those staying inside Afghanistan. The UK government said the focus would be on delivering aid by road, because drops from the air were random and dangerous.
Mr Blair had to intervene to prevent Israel boycotting Jack Straw's official visit to the region. Ariel Sharon, Israel's prime minister, had refused to meet the foreign secretary in protest at an article by Mr Straw in an Iranian newspaper that referred to "Palestine".
In Washington, US officials said proposals to lessen the suffering of Afghans by dropping food supplies had a political as well as a humanitarian dimension.
In their contacts with the US, Middle Eastern governments - with which the US is seeking to build an anti-terrorism coalition - had repeated concerns about conditions in Afghanistan that had become more desperate since the recent pull-out of UN and other agencies.
"Certainly, there has to be big provision of humanitarian assistance because it's transparently needed. But there's a political as well as humanitarian dimension to this," one US official said.
Donald Rumsfeld, US defence secretery, announced that the military campaign would be named Operation Enduring Freedom and said: "It will not be an antiseptic war, I regret to say. It will be difficult. It will be dangerous. And there is . . . the likelihood is that more people may be lost."
The US also welcomed a decision by Saudi Arabia to cut diplomatic relations with the Taliban. That followed a similar move at the weekend by the United Arab Emirates, leaving neighbouring Pakistan - which pulled out its diplmats from Kabul on Monday - as the only country to maintain diplomatic relations with the regime.
In Iran, Mr Straw, making the first visit by a British foreign secretary to the country since the 1979 Islamic revolution, held talks in Tehran with Mohammad Khatami, the country's pro-reform president.
Two earlier rounds of discussions with Kamal Kharrazi, the foreign minister, left ambiguous the issue of how Iran would react to an attack on bin Laden's Afghan bases. Mr Straw said his mission was not to seek military assistance, but to deepen understanding and build a consensus against terrorism.
Additional reporting by Ralph Atkins in Jerusalem and Guy Dinmore in Tehran
September 26, 2001
Bin Laden terror group tries to acquire chemical arms
By Bill Gertz
THE WASHINGTON TIMES
U.S. intelligence agencies have uncovered new information that Osama bin Laden and his terrorist group, al Qaeda, are acquiring from the Russian mafia components for weapons of mass destruction.
Bin Laden, the key suspect in the Sept. 11 terror attacks, also is believed by U.S. intelligence to have a secret nuclear weapons laboratory inside Afghanistan, say officials speaking on the condition of anonymity.
There is no hard evidence that bin Laden or his followers have actually produced chemical, biological or nuclear weapons. A CIA spokesman declined to comment.
But a U.S. official said contacts between bin Laden and the Russian mafia, and efforts to obtain materials used to make weapons of mass destruction, could not be ruled out because of Afghanistan's porous borders. This official suggested that the reports about the contacts could not confirmed independently by U.S. intelligence agencies. Bin Laden has worked with Russian mafia groups in obtaining chemical and biological weapons materials and nuclear components, according to officials familiar with intelligence reports on the contacts.
"There are signs they have been supplying [bin Laden] with chemical and biological materials and nuclear components," said a second official familiar with the reports.
Transporting and then using weapons of mass destruction is difficult, though al Qaeda's use of suicide attackers makes the use of deadly chemical, biological or nuclear weapons somewhat easier, those familiar with terrorist tactics and capabilities say.
U.S. intelligence agencies have information that bin Laden is operating a secret nuclear weapons laboratory somewhere in Afghanistan. The laboratory is believed to be where bin Laden associates are working on developing nuclear or radiological weapons. Radiological weapons are bombs that kill by spreading radioactive material. This is believed to be one of the sites sought for U.S. military strikes, expected in the next several weeks.
A recent foreign intelligence service report stated that al Qaeda has obtained some type of nuclear device, but U.S. intelligence officials said they could not confirm that report. The new intelligence report on bin Laden's contacts with the Russian mafia provide new details on al Qaeda's efforts to obtain weapons of mass destruction.
An FBI court document made public in 1998 in New York stated that al Qaeda has tried to purchase enriched uranium since 1993 "for the purpose of developing nuclear weapons." The State Department's latest report on international terrorism says that al Qaeda "continued" to seek chemical, biological, radiological and nuclear capabilities.
Intelligence officials say classified analysis of the types of chemicals and toxins sought by al Qaeda indicate the group probably is trying to produce the nerve agent Sarin, or biological weapons made up of anthrax spores. Sarin can be produced from the components used to make fertilizer and kills by disrupting the central nervous system. Anthrax is a highly lethal biological weapon that causes death after spores are ingested.
At its height during the Cold War, the Soviet biological weapons program employed some 65,000 persons, and U.S. officials have feared for years that some of the out-of-work biological weapons scientists would sell their expertise to terrorists like bin Laden.
The FBI has obtained specific threats since the Sept. 11 attacks on the World Trade Center and the Pentagon that terrorists plan to retaliate for any U.S. strikes on Afghanistan or terrorists around the world by using chemical or biological weapons, the officials said.
Russian crime groups also have provided bin Laden's Islamic extremists with small arms, the U.S. intelligence officials say. They also are believed to help bin Laden launder the proceeds from drug trafficking.
Larry Johnson, a former State Department counterterrorism official, says contacts between the Russian mafia and bin Laden could be related to drug trafficking and that cooperation between the two is not surprising.
"There has been evidence in the past of links between the Taliban militia and the Russian mob on opium," Mr. Johnson says, noting that the Taliban has been a major patron of bin Laden.
The Russian crime groups purchase opium from Afghanistan and refine it into heroin that is sold in Europe and the United States, he says.
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Transporting and then using weapons of mass destruction is difficult, though al Qaeda's use of suicide attackers makes the use of deadly chemical, biological or nuclear weapons somewhat easier, those familiar with terrorist tactics and capabilities say.
I like black humour.
Yes, expell the Muslims to their country of origins. As for the 7 million or so American Muslims, you need to expell them too, maybe to Saudi, South Africa, Sudan or Bosnia. At the same time, stop doing business with any Muslim companies. And stop investing in Islamic countries.
Once you're successful , these Muslims will then see Japan, Korea, Taiwan and Malaysia as best alternatives for technology, education and trade.
Your success will let USA suffer the greatest economic depression in history. Check this out with the economist in your neighborhood.
And against those who helped them, right?
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Czechoslovakia's links with terrorism of little use to USA - Czech daily
BBC Monitoring Service - United Kingdom; Sep 26, 2001
http://globalarchive.ft.com/globalarchive/article.html?id=010926002983
Text of report in English by Czech news agency CTK
Prague, 26 September: The communist regime in the former Czechoslovakia supported activities which we call terrorism today, selling arms to risky areas, training fighters from various liberation armies and even planning and organizing bomb attacks, the daily Mlada fronta Dnes writes today.
"Until 1989 (the fall of the communist regime) we tolerated, approved and supported terrorism. However, these activities were often hidden under the concept of support for liberation movements," Office for Documentation and Investigation of the Crimes of Communism (UDV) deputy head Pavel Bret tells the daily.
The most dangerous "contribution" of the past regime to international terrorism was the export of the Czech-made plastic explosive Semtex, which has excellent qualities for terrorists since it was hard to discover and was very effective, the daily writes.
"We exported 900 tonnes (of Semtex) to Libya, and 14 tonnes to Vietnam. For comparison, 300 grams of Semtex is enough to explode a Boeing," Interior Ministry archive service head Jan Frolik says.
Experts estimate that about 1,000 tonnes of Semtex got to unauthorized people, the daily adds.
In 1988 the Interior Ministry approved a supply of 200 kg of the plastic explosive agent and 1,000 kg of the explosive to Guinea, the daily writes.
In 1984 Palestinians bought 110 Scorpion machine guns, pistols, ammunition, bugging apparatuses and encryption materials in Czechoslovakia, the daily adds.
In the 1980's Czechoslovakia became a place where terrorists from a number of developing countries were trained, most of them - 400 - from Afghanistan. While others had to pay for the training, about 60 Afghans were paid for by the Czechoslovak cabinet, which called it aid to the Afghani people in their fight against imperialism.
"The list of countries from which people interested in the training came included Palestine, Laos, Vietnam, Afghanistan, Cambodia and African countries, mainly Ethiopia and Angola," Frolik says.
The communist regime also provided training to 130 Arabs, from whom bodyguards for Palestinian Liberation Organization leader Yasir Arafat were selected.
However, the United States has not shown much interest in the Czech secret services' information on the StB communist secret police network of Arab collaborators following 11-September terrorist attacks, the daily writes.
"They were mostly Palestinians, but ideologically they were a different group than what the Americans could be interested in now. Moreover, the network is no longer usable," a secret service officer told the paper.
The list of agents is over 10 years old, and none of those people is in the country any longer. Most of them died before their names appeared in unofficial lists of StB collaborators, the daily adds.
"It is a question whether information from 1969 or 1987 would be relevant today. If you look at the age of the plane hijackers in the United States, is a completely different generation. but maybe the Czech services' information could complete at least a small missing part to the mosaic," former civil intelligence service had Oldrich Cerny is quoted as saying.
According to Frolik, the world does not have to fear terrorists trained in the former Cezchoslovakia.
"Those who returned to Afghanistan were killed because in the meantime the regime in Afghanistan had changed," he says.
"Afghans who were trained by Americans in Pakistan certainly had much better training. To compare it, I would say that our training was poor. In addition, the military equipment was old from today's point of view, and the machine guns they had were not new, but only modernized," Frolik says.
Source: CTK news agency, Prague, in English 0819 gmt 26 Sep 01
/BBC Monitoring/ © BBC.
World Reporter All Material Subject to Copyright
(...) According to the report, boxes of evidence have been piling up from previous terrorist plots, but the FBI has not had translators to decipher them. There is also a shortage of Arab agents. The failures are despite an increase in counterterrorism spending and a decision in 1998 to make terrorism a priority."We started down this road, but we didn't move as fast as the terrorists," said Jamie Gorelick, former deputy to the then attorney general, Janet Reno. (...)
(...) One of the problems has been the shortage of Arab speakers. Last week the FBI director, Robert Mueller, said there was a "critical need" for translators in Arabic, Farsi and Pashto. There has been a big response but the FBI has to ensure that no terrorist uses the post to infiltrate the organisation.
Robert Blitzer, former FBI chief of domestic counterterrorism, estimated that the number of Arab-American agents in the organisations could be as low as 25.
"If you don't have an Arab-American agent on your staff, how the hell do you recruit Arabs?" Mr Blitzer said. "You don't even understand the culture." (...)
http://globalarchive.ft.com/globalarchive/article.html?id=010925010084
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