Free Republic

Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX) on Thursday ripped U.S. Senate Democrats for blocking his bill that would revoke the U.S. citizenship of those who join the ISIS terrorist organization, noting that they are abandoning something Hillary Clinton supported when she was Secretary of State. The Democrats blocked Cruz’s bill on Thursday, a bill that would revoke citizenship from Americans who join ISIS. Cruz’s bill is very similar to one that then Sen. Scott Brown (R-MA)—who is now running in New Hampshire against Sen. Jeanne Shaheen (D-NH)—and then Sen. Joe Lieberman (I-CT) offered a couple of years ago.“As then-Secretary of State Hillary...

It could spark terrorism! Mayor Bloomberg will urge Gov. Cuomo to veto legislation that would legalize the sale of sparklers outside New York City, arguing that terrorists could resort to using even kiddie fireworks to ignite a bomb. And that’s a risk not worth taking, City Hall officials said. The mayor opposes the measure, which the Legislature passed last week, even though it wouldn’t apply to the five boroughs, where a ban on sparklers — and all other fireworks — would remain in effect. The bill would allow the sale of sparklers and other small “novelty” fireworks only in counties...

Its hero and editor are dead, but the al-Qaida magazine, Inspire, continues to do just that. According to the complaint filed in federal district court in New York, Quazi Mohammad Rezwanul Ahsan Nafis, 21, a student from Bangladesh arrested Wednesday and charged with trying to blow up the Federal Reserve Bank of New York in ManhattanÂ’s Financial District, was the latest Islamist militant to try to follow the example of the radical cleric Anwar al-Awlaki and the English-language magazine, Inspire, created in his honor. Quazi Nafis, who came to the United States last January on a student visa, had big...

Federal authorities today for the first time asserted a direct link between one of the Pakistani men detained in Massachusetts last week and the alleged Times Square terror bomber. In an immigration court hearing this afternoon, a government witness testified that alleged bomber Faisal Shahzad’s cell number was programmed into Aftab Ali Khan’s phone. The government also contended that Shahzad’s first name was found on an envelope in Khan’s Watertown room. An Immigration and Customs Enforcement agent also testified that Khan’s wife, U.S. citizen Lila-Charlotte Fatou Sylla of Cambridge, had told ICE that the couple’s marriage was a sham “purely...

Faisal Shahzad had one last moment in the spotlight yesterday before being shipped off to a lifetime behind bars for his attempt to explode a car bomb in Times Square last May. Not surprisingly, he took full advantage of his soapbox and captive audience. "Brace yourselves," he warned, "because the war with Muslims has just begun. Consider me the first droplet of the flood that will follow. The defeat of the US is imminent and will happen in [the] near future." First droplet? Sorry, Faisal, but that war started on Sept. 11, 2001. And most New Yorkers get it. Still,...

 As Dan reported here earlier, would-be Times Square bomber Feisal Shahzad was sentenced to life-imprisonment earlier today. Defiant and remorseless to the end, Shahzad made a number of chilling statements, but the most interesting moment came when Judge Miriam Goldman Cedarbaum asked him — in a “you can’t possibly be serious” sort of way — whether he really believed the Koran wanted him to kill innocent people. “The Koran gives you the right to defend,” he replied, adding, ”That’s all I’m doing.” It would be nice if Western apologists for Islam and its sharia law would listen to that — even...

New York (CNN) -- A judge in Manhattan sentenced Faisal Shahzad to life in prison for the botched Times Square car bombing as the 31-year-old Pakistani-American defiantly warned in court to "brace yourself, the war with Muslim

NEW YORK (AP) — The Pakistani immigrant who tried to set off a car bomb in Times Square was sentenced Tuesday to life in prison, a mandatory penalty that left him defiant as ever and the judge who sentenced him determined to send a message to anyone who might want to follow in his path. Faisal Shahzad came to court to tell Americans he felt no remorse about his May 1 bombing attempt, and he sparred with U.S. District Judge Miriam Goldman Cedarbaum. Judge Cedarbaum said her sentence was very important "to protect the public from further crimes of this...

PHOTO CAPTION: "Banner for the Al Qaeda 313 Brigade website/forum. Pictured, from left to right, are Mustafa Abu Yazid, Abu Laith al Libi, and Ilyas Kashmiri." ARTICLE SNIPPET: "A website connected to al Qaeda's military arm in Pakistan has sprung up on the Internet in the past month. The website, called Al Qaeda Brigade 313, at www.aqbrigade313.com, was registered on June 2, 2010, and became active in early July. The site has 86 registered users and five administrators, according to a report at the Open Source Center that was obtained by The Long War Journal. The website contains a forum...

New footage has emerged showing the Times Square bomber Faisal Shahzad meeting the leader of the Pakistani Taliban, Sky News reported Friday. It shows Shahzad and Hakimullah Mehsud shaking hands and hugging sometime before the failed attack in New York on May 1. During the video, Shahzad's voice was also heard. He said: "Today, along with the leader of Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan Hakimullah Mehsud and under the command of Amir al-Mumineen Mullah Mohammed Omar Mujahid (may Allah protect him), we are planning to wage an attack on your side, inshallah." Last month, in a statement read out in a U.S. court,...

Arab TV station Al-Arabiya aired segments from a 40-minute video filmed in Pakistan of the failed Times Square bomber Faisal Shahzad. Within the video he vows to seek revenge and stated that the Muslim war has just started. “Eight years have passed since the Afghanistan war and you shall see how the Muslim war has just begun and how Islam will spread across the world”, Shahzad says within the video. The video also shows the logo of Umar Studios, a media organization that is infamous for making Pakastani Taliban propaganda.

It would be an understatement to say that Faisal Shahzad, the would-be Times Square bomber, pleaded guilty last week. “I’m going to plead guilty a hundred times over,” Shahzad told the judge. Why so emphatic? Because Shahzad is proud of himself. “I consider myself a Mujahid, a Muslim soldier,” he said. This got some fist pumps in right-wing circles, because it seemed to confirm that America faces all-out jihad, and must marshal an accordingly fierce response.... ...If you look at what Shahzad actually said, the upshot is way less grim.... Here is how Shahzad explained his role in the holy...

Faisal Shahzad, Jihadi, Explains Terrorism by Daniel Pipes June 25, 2010 Jaw-dropping court testimony by Faisal Shahzad, the would-be Times Square bomber, singlehandedly undermines Obama administration efforts to ignore the dangers of Islamism and jihad. Shahzad's forthright statement of purpose stands out because jihadis, when facing legal charges, typically save their skin by pleading not guilty or plea bargaining. Consider a few examples: Naveed Haq, who assaulted the Jewish Federation building in Seattle, pleaded not guilty by reason of insanity. Lee Malvo, one of the Beltway Snipers, explained that "one reason for the shootings was that white people had tried...

The DOJ is running up against the limits of the civilian justice system After the initial spate of chest-beating, we hadn’t heard much from the Justice Department about the case of would-be Times Square bomber Faisal Shahzad and the many ways it illustrates how splendidly the criminal justice system performs in terrorism cases — even the cases of enemy combatants who could otherwise be held indefinitely and interrogated for intelligence purposes. Now comes word from the U.S. attorney’s office for the Southern District of New York that Shahzad has been indicted. He is charged with ten terrorism counts, ranging from...

A Pakistan-born U.S. citizen pleaded guilty Monday to carrying out the failed Times Square car bombing, saying he wanted it known that unless the U.S. stops attacking Muslim lands, "we will be attacking U.S." Faisal Shahzad, 30, entered the plea in U.S. District Court in Manhattan just days after a federal grand jury indicted him on 10 terrorism and weapons counts, some of which carried mandatory life prison sentences.

NEW YORK (AP) -- A Pakistan-born U.S. citizen has pleaded guilty in federal court to a charge accusing him of plotting the failed Times Square car bombing. Faisal Shahzad (FY'-sul shah-ZAHD') entered the plea to the first of 10 charges in an indictment, but said he plans to plead guilty to all of them.

The U.S. military is developing plans for a unilateral attack on the Pakistani Taliban in the event of a successful terrorist strike in the United States that can be traced to them, The Washington Post reports. Planning for a retaliatory attack was spurred by ties between alleged Times Square bomber Faisal Shahzad and elements of the Pakistani Taliban, the Post said in an article posted on its website Friday night, quoting unidentified senior military officials. The military would focus on air and missile strikes but also could use small teams of U.S. Special Operations troops currently along the border with...

www.whitehouse.gov/the-press-office/remarks-assistant-president-homeland-security-and-counterterrorism-john-brennan-csi # Note: The following text is a quote: Home • Briefing Room • Statements & Releases The White House Office of the Press Secretary For Immediate Release May 26, 2010 Remarks by Assistant to the President for Homeland Security and Counterterrorism John Brennan at CSIS “Securing the Homeland by Renewing American Strength, Resilience and Values” Thank you very much John, and I would like to take a moment to express my appreciation to CSIS for inviting me back. You invited me here a little after six months after I came into this administration and I greatly appreciate the invitation...

U.S. intelligence has strong reason to believe that the Pakistani Taliban is actively plotting to hit interests in the U.S. and American targets overseas, a U.S. official told CNN Thursday. The concerns about the group that authorities say directed the Times Square bombing plot are coming from multiple streams of information, including from Faisal Shahzad, the Times Square bombing suspect, the official said.

ABC News has learned that President Obama will replace the Director of National Intelligence, Admiral Dennis Blair (ret.) His resignation will come as soon as tomorrow, sources tell ABC News. For several weeks President Obama has been holding serious conversations about whether to ask Blair to step down and has interviewed candidates to replace him. After a discussion this afternoon between the president and Blair in the Oval Office about the best way forward, Blair offered to resign and the president said he would accept, sources told ABC News. Multiple administration sources tell ABC News that Blair’s tenure internally has...