http://www.freerepublic.com/tag/alqaeda/ en-us Sat, 2 Jan 2010 02:50:43 GMT Focus Forum 15 http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2419308/posts COPENHAGEN – Police foiled an attempt to kill an artist who drew cartoons depicting the Prophet Muhammad that sparked outrage in the Muslim world, the head of Denmark's intelligence service said Saturday. Jakob Scharf, who heads the PET intelligence service, said a 28-year-old Somalia man was armed with an ax and a knife when he attempted to enter Kurt Westergaard's home in Aarhus shortly after 10 p.m. (2100 GMT) on Friday. Yahoo/AP http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2419308/posts#comment Sat, 2 Jan 2010 02:50:43 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2419184/posts WASHINGTON, Jan. 1, 2010 – The U.S. Central Command chief put the Al-Qaida threat in Yemen in perspective during a news conference in Baghdad today. Army Gen. David H. Petraeus praised the Yemeni government for taking on the al-Qaida threat in the country. “The Yemeni president and parliament take this threat very seriously,” he said. “And that is of enormous significance, especially in a country facing such challenges.” Al-Qaida has moved into the area, because they have sustained defeats in other areas, he said. Al-Qaida had operated in Saudi Arabia, but the Saudis cracked down on the group and forced... American Forces Press Service http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2419184/posts#comment Fri, 1 Jan 2010 22:25:32 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2419098/posts White House communications director Dan Pfeiffer writes on the White House blog in response to Cheney's criticism: I think we all agree that there should be honest debate about these issues, but it is telling that Vice President Cheney and others seem to be more focused on criticizing the Administration than condemning the attackers. What is telling, is how it took 4 days for the Administration to figure out how to address the recent terror plot, and only hours to confront Cheney. In the next paragraph, Pfeiffer does as all good Obamadsmen do: Blame the previous administration for where we... Flopping Aces http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2419098/posts#comment Fri, 1 Jan 2010 19:52:54 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2418920/posts Had he not proven incompetent to detonate his lap bomb, Umar Farouk Abdulmullatab would have carried off an air massacre to rival Lockerbie. We would all have ended Christmas day watching TV footage of 300 mangled bodies being picked up around Detroit. The system breakdown was total. His father had reported to the U.S. embassy that Umar had gone extremist, disowned his family and vanished in Yemen. Though the 23-year-old Nigerian had been put on a U.S. terrorist watch list and denied a visa to enter Britain, his U.S. visa was not revoked. Though he had been in Yemen for... Townhall.com http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2418920/posts#comment Fri, 1 Jan 2010 14:08:03 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2418873/posts SANAA: Yemeni forces raided an al-Qa'ida hideout and set off a battle yesterday as the government vowed to eliminate the group claiming it was behind the Christmas bombing attempt on a US airliner. The fighting took place in an al-Qa'ida stronghold in western Yemen, haven for a group that attacked the US embassy in the country in 2008, killing 10 Yemeni guards and four civilians. A government statement said at least one suspected militant was arrested. "The (Interior) Ministry will continue tracking down al-Qa'ida terrorists and will continue its strikes against the group until it is totally eliminated," Deputy Interior... The Australian http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2418873/posts#comment Fri, 1 Jan 2010 10:33:03 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2418575/posts SANA, Yemen — Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab, the Nigerian man accused of trying to bomb an airplane last week, already spoke fluent Arabic by the time he arrived here in Yemen for classes last summer, impressing his instructors with his command of the language he had supposedly come to improve. Then, after six weeks in and out of class, the school got him an exit visa, and on Sept. 21 even arranged for a car that took Mr. Abdulmutallab to the airport, the director said. “After that we never saw him again, and apparently he did not leave Yemen,” the director,... NY Times http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2418575/posts#comment Thu, 31 Dec 2009 20:23:57 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2418416/posts The pilots’ union at American Airlines said Wednesday that the Transportation Security Administration didn’t warn flight crews appropriately during the terrorist attempt on a Northwest Airlines flight on Christmas, Dow Jones reports. The union, the Allied Pilots Association, wrote to American Airlines that “some pilots were left out of the loop” when TSA told some airlines to notify only pilots on inbound transatlantic flights, Dow Jones said. “The TSA should have mandated that information about this security event be passed on to all airborne flights,” the APA wrote. The letter seems contradict Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano’s comments that the... POLITICO http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2418416/posts#comment Thu, 31 Dec 2009 16:53:07 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2418011/posts Col. Noyat, an officer in the Kirkuk Emergency Services Unit, presents the plans for Operation Lion Dragon Hunt to ESU members, recently. The ESU, with U.S. advisors, conducted the raid that led to the capture of 20 people in the area who did not possess proper identification. Photo by Pfc. Jessica Luhrs, 1st Armored Division. KIRKUK — Brig. Gen. Khatub Umer Aref recently led more than 400 Iraqi Emergency Service Unit “Lions” in Operation Lion Dragon Hunt here, proving the skill, determination and professionalism of his unit.The Lions had assistance from Delta Company, 1st Battalion, 30th Infantry, attached to 1st... Multi-National Force-Iraq http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2418011/posts#comment Thu, 31 Dec 2009 00:08:36 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2417833/posts December 30, 2009, 0:00 a.m. Hard Questions, All-Too-Easy AnswersThe law-enforcement mentality reigns supreme once again. By Bill Burck & Dana Perino Janet Napolitano, President Obama’s secretary of homeland security, has been rightly criticized for her declaration that “the system worked” in the thwarted plot to bring down Northwest Airlines Flight 253. Secretary Napolitano and the Obama administration quickly pulled up stakes on that position in the face of ridicule from all corners. Less noticed is the administration’s continuing insistence that another system will work to protect the country from future attacks. This time they have put their unquestioned faith,... National Review Online http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2417833/posts#comment Wed, 30 Dec 2009 19:40:07 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2417699/posts Your thoughts on how the Obama administration is handling Abdul Mutallab in comparison to how it handled Hasan? The embarrassing and leaving-us-open-to-terror saga continues? Napolitano, as we know, emerged with some moronic statements. Your thoughts? McCarthy: Jamie, thanks for having me. It’s a pleasure. It would be nice if the government spent half as much energy focusing on what actually catalyzes jihadist terror as it does denying that there is terrorism. This problem is not unique to Obama officials, but this administration is raising willful blindness to a new level. Basically, unless they catch a guy wearing an al Qaeda... Frontpage Magazine http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2417699/posts#comment Wed, 30 Dec 2009 16:30:20 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2417641/posts Hundreds of al-Qaeda militants are planning terror attacks from Yemen, the country’s Foreign Minister said today. Abu Bakr al-Qirbi appealed for more help from the international community to help to train and equip counter-terrorist forces. His plea came after an al-Qaeda group based in Yemen claimed responsibility for the failed Christmas Day airliner bomb plot. Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab, alleged to be behind the attempt to blow up an American-bound aircraft, spent time in Yemen with al-Qaeda and was in the country only days before the failed attack. Dr. al-Qirbi said, "Of course there are a number of al-Qaeda operatives in... The New Media Journal http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2417641/posts#comment Wed, 30 Dec 2009 15:16:47 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2417534/posts SANAA — Yemen has called for Western help against the "hundreds" of Al-Qaeda militants in the country amid reports on Wednesday that Washington is working with Sanaa to identify possible military targets. "We need more training, we have to expand our counter-terrorism units and this means providing them with the necessary training, military equipment, ways of transportation," Foreign Minister Abu Bakr al-Kurbi told the BBC late on Tuesday, identifying a shortage of helicopters as a particular problem. "There is support, but I must say it is inadequate," he added, referring to existing Western assistance. Kurbi underlined the continuing threat that... AFP http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2417534/posts#comment Wed, 30 Dec 2009 12:11:42 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2417455/posts Liberals are being forced to deal with the cognitive dissonance conjured by the inconvenient truth that Mr. Bush freed al-Shiri from detention and Mr. Obama hunted him down and killed him. We support the targeted killing program because it is the only aspect of Mr. Obama's national security strategy that is reaping concrete benefits. The "blame Bush" mantra, however, is simply a way for Mr. Obama's left-wing supporters to avoid asking hard questions about the future of terrorist detainees. Meanwhile, potential reinforcements continue to flow to the region under the president's detainee-release program. On Dec. 20, six Yemenis arrived in... The Washington Times http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2417455/posts#comment Wed, 30 Dec 2009 06:07:12 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2417308/posts Security: Two of the four leaders allegedly behind the attempted destruction of Flight 253 were released from Guantanamo two years ago. The case for indefinite detention has been made once again, and not in Illinois. Sometimes America's chickens do come home to roost. In a statement released Monday, al-Qaida in the Arabian Peninsula, which counts among its leadership two former Guantanamo detainees, claimed responsibility for the attempted destruction of Northwest Airlines Flight 253. Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab, the crotch bomber, told FBI agents he was trained for his Christmas Day mission in Yemen by top leaders of the group who provided... Investors.com http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2417308/posts#comment Wed, 30 Dec 2009 00:44:43 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2417324/posts A congressman who oversees American intelligence operations, a former CIA operative and an intelligence official agree that Christmas Day's aborted attack on a U.S. airliner proves that the nation's anti-terrorism efforts are flawed. Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano praised the nation's aviation-security system Sunday but backtracked Monday, admitting the system "did not work in this instance." "Clearly, the system did not work," Rep. Pete Hoekstra, R-Mich., told the Tribune-Review yesterday. Hoekstra is the ranking Republican on the House Intelligence Committee. "Success is not a person on a plane with an explosive," he said. "That is a failure. The system designed... PITTSBURGH TRIBUNE-REVIEW http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2417324/posts#comment Wed, 30 Dec 2009 01:12:12 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2417328/posts WASHINGTON — Iraqi forces, aided by U.S. advisors, arrested several suspected terrorists and seized weapons in Iraq in recent days, military officials report. Iraqi Security Forces yesterday arrested 14 suspected terrorists during a series of operations conducted in northern Iraq targeting suspected al-Qaeda in Iraq members. In southwest Baghdad, ISF, aided by U.S. advisors, arrested a suspected AQI explosives operative believed to be planning and conducting homemade bomb attacks throughout Diyala province. Meanwhile, in a separate operation in Jalula, northeast of Baghdad, Iraqi and U.S. forces arrested four suspected AQI members. Also yesterday, while conducting an operation southwest of Kirkuk,... Multi-National Force-Iraq http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2417328/posts#comment Wed, 30 Dec 2009 01:17:55 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2417294/posts WASHINGTON, Dec. 29, 2009 – Iraqi forces, aided by U.S. advisors, arrested nine suspected terrorists today in Iraq, military officials reported. In western Baghdad, Iraqi forces and U.S. advisors searched two residential buildings for a suspected al-Qaida in Iraq leader in the Karkh region. The forces arrested two suspected criminal associates of the targeted leader. North of Baghdad, Iraqi forces and U.S. advisors arrested four suspects. Northeast of Baghdad, Iraqi soldiers arrested two suspects. The security team also discovered two grenades, which were safely destroyed. Meanwhile, Iraqi security forces arrested a suspected terrorist today during an operation in northern Baghdad.... American Forces Press Service http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2417294/posts#comment Wed, 30 Dec 2009 00:25:38 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2417252/posts Terror Suspect Failed to Show for Christmas Eve Air France Flight France today confirmed an ABCNEWS report that it was hunting for a man behind security fears that forced several flight cancellations and delays. The man is suspected of having links to al Qaeda and may have access to a concealable bomb. U.S. law enforcement officials told ABCNEWS that if the suspect is who they think he is, he underwent terrorist training at one of Osama bin Laden's camps in Afghanistan. The ongoing search for the man — who was traveling with a French passport — is one of the... ABC News http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2417252/posts#comment Tue, 29 Dec 2009 23:26:29 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-bloggers/2417194/posts An up and coming news and analysis aggregation site that always provides great links and videos. Top headline now include Freed Gitmo prisoners plotted Northwest Airlines bombing... Ralph Peters: We Keep Lying to Ourselves About Islam... What Next For Flyers, Underwear Checks? Al Qaeda Takes Credit for Plot... FAILED plane bomber bragged to FBI that there are more young men plotting to launch attacks... Homeland committee plans hearing... Poll names Pelosi, congressional Republicans 'losers'... Republicans waste no time in attacking Dems after the failed Christmas Day attack... Joseph Farah: The End of the Democratic Party... Hamas denies rejecting Israel offer,... The Woodward Report http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-bloggers/2417194/posts#comment Tue, 29 Dec 2009 21:35:15 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-bloggers/2417193/posts On Christmas Day, just as Northwest Flight 253 crossed over the Detroit River at the point where Canadian airspace ends and U.S. airspace begins, a Nigerian Muslim, with verifiable Al Qaeda ties, attempted to ignite an explosive chemical mix with the intention of bringing down the plane and violently killing all 278 passengers and 11 crew members on board. Within hours of this attempted terrorist act of war upon American “infidels,” dispatches from Al-Qaeda confirmed what the Nigerian would-be murderer had already confessed to the FBI; that the bomber, whose name is Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab, had been trained in the... The Conservative Camp http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-bloggers/2417193/posts#comment Tue, 29 Dec 2009 21:35:05 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-bloggers/2417155/posts Here's an interesting look at the Jihadist Art Therapy Rehabilitation program from a PBS special: [video embed] According to this Psychology Today article, you can't really call it "art" because that is derogatory and has a negative connotation. There are other restrictions, too: Islamic law prohibits the depiction of people or animals in artwork so drawings are generally abstract, at times integrating text from the Koran or other sources. The calligraphy and depictions of sunrises and flowers do not really reflect the darker emotions confronted in treatment and are images Western therapists might not expect to see. In fact, some... And So it Goes in Shreveport http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-bloggers/2417155/posts#comment Tue, 29 Dec 2009 20:51:16 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2417132/posts The London university where Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab studied has been accused of being “complicit” in the radicalisation of Muslim students. University College London, where Abdulmutallab was recently president of the Islamic Society, has been criticised for “failing grotesquely” to prevent extremists from giving lectures on campus. UCL has been heavily criticised in the past for its relaxed attitude to radical preachers, and security agencies are investigating whether it was there that Detroit bomber Abdulmutallab was recruited by al-Qaeda sympathisers. As recently as last month, Abu Usama, who teaches that homosexuals and apostates should be killed, was due to speak at... Telegraph http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2417132/posts#comment Tue, 29 Dec 2009 20:05:10 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2417131/posts LAGOS: Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab used the internet to overcome loneliness and find "a true Muslim friend".The Nigerian used Facebook and Muslim websites to express doubts about the right age to marry, success in his studies and his struggles as a Muslim surrounded by Western influences."I have no one to speak too (sic)," said one posting from January 2005, when Abdulmutallab was at boarding school. "No one to consult, no one to support me and I feel depressed and lonely. I do not know what to do. And then I think this loneliness leads me to other problems."The Washington Post yesterday... The Australian http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2417131/posts#comment Tue, 29 Dec 2009 20:03:16 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-bloggers/2417009/posts In the wake of the miraculously failed Christmas day Jihadi attack over the skies of Detroit, we are starting to see our governmental mechanisms crank into gear to institute policies to prevent terrorists from attacking us successfully. Never mind that it was that very governmental bureaucracy which enabled the Jihadists to penetrate secure areas with explosives and come close to killing 270 people on Christmas day. It was our incompetent governmental bureaucracies which granted a known Jihadi a visa to enter the United States. It was our governmental bureaucracies which let him get on an airliner without a passport. It... Terror Trends Bulletin http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-bloggers/2417009/posts#comment Tue, 29 Dec 2009 16:49:09 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2417008/posts Dec. 29 (UPI) -- The National Guard is part of the military reserve forces and operates under the authority of the governor and attorney general of each of the 50 U.S. states and may offer an idea for security forces in Afghanistan. Each U.S. state's National Guard may be called to active duty by that state's governor during natural disasters or civil unrest. With the governor's consent, state National Guard units may become part of the National Guard of the United States and serve with active military components during national emergencies. State National Guard units have a long history of... United Press International http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2417008/posts#comment Tue, 29 Dec 2009 16:48:10 GMT