Free Republic

State and federal authorities have three men in custody here in what investigators describe as a possible terrorist plot by an obscure Islamic group in California state prisons. FBI officials, who are overseeing the investigation, say they are not convinced that the three men posed a serious threat of violence on their own. But the bureau is continuing to investigate the possibility that they were part of a larger group planning to attack National Guard installations, synagogues and other locations in Southern California. The latest suspect to be arrested is Hamad Riaz Samana, 21, a Pakistani citizen who was taken...

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...

SANTA ANA – A man was sentenced to 70 months in prison today for his role in a domestic terrorism plot to wage war on the United States by attacking Jewish synagogues and military bases. Hammad Riaz Samana is the fourth member of Jami'yyat Ul-Islam Is-Shaheeh, or JIS, a prison-founded group that wanted to make a political statement that also had plans to attack the Israeli consulate in Los Angeles and El Al Israel Airlines at the Los Angeles International Airport. Samana was 21 when he was charged in the case in July 2005, along with the cell's mastermind, Kevin...

Israeli consulate plot mastermind going to jail Ringleader Kevin James was 'architect, mastermind of very troubling offense, judge says AFP Published: 03.06.09, 23:58 / Israel News The ringleader of a radical Islamic group that planned to bomb Israeli assets and US military facilities in California was on Friday jailed for 16 years, justice officials said. Kevin James, 32, pleaded guilty to conspiring to wage war against the United States through terror for his part in the plot, which involved three co-conspirators currently in custody. Prosecutors said the plotters were part of Jam'iyyat Ul-Islam Is-Saheeh (JIS,) which was founded by James...

A third man charged in a plot to attack Southern California military sites and other targets pleaded guilty Monday to a terrorism conspiracy charge. Gregory Vernon Patterson, 23, entered his plea in U.S. District Court in Santa Ana to one count of conspiring to levy war against the U.S. government through terrorism. He also pleaded guilty to conspiring to use a firearm during that offense. Patterson could face up to 25 years in prison when he is sentenced on April 14, prosecutors said. Two other men - Kevin James, 31, and Levar Haley Washington, 28 - pleaded guilty in the...

Two men accused of plotting behind prison walls to launch attacks on military sites, synagogues and other targets in 2005 pleaded guilty Friday to conspiring to wage war against the United States. Washington, Patterson and Samana — who attended the same Inglewood mosque — are accused of conducting surveillance of military sites, synagogues, the Israeli Consulate and El Al airline facilities in the region, as well as doing Internet research on Jewish holidays, prosecutors said in 2005.

Calculating the Risks in Pakistan A small group of U.S. military experts and intelligence officials convened in Washington for a classified war game last year, exploring strategies for securing Pakistan's nuclear arsenal if the country's political institutions and military safeguards began to fall apart. The secret exercise — conducted without official sponsorship from any government agency, apparently due to the sensitivity of its subject — was one of several such games the U.S. government has conducted in recent years examining various options and scenarios for Pakistan's nuclear weapons: How many troops might be required for a military intervention in...

It was not the most spectacular domestic terrorism plot since the Sept. 11 attacks, and certainly not the best-known. But no other case posed such a real and immediate threat as the audacious scheme to attack more than a dozen military centers, synagogues and other sites in Southern California, experts said Thursday. "If you look at the roster of defendants in terrorism cases, it often seems like a casting call. They all have aspirations, but most lack real talent and helpful connections," said Brian Levin, an attorney and director of Cal State San Bernardino's Center for the Study of Hate...

LOS ANGELES (AFP) - Two members of a radical Islamic group accused of plotting to attack US military, Israeli and Jewish facilities in California pleaded guilty to terrorism charges Friday, justice officials said. Kevin James, who formed the extremist group while in a California prison, and Levar Washington, who was recruited by James, pleaded guilty to conspiring to wage war against the United States, the US Attorney's Office announced. Washington, 28, and James, 31, were among four men indicted in 2005 for their alleged roles in a plot to attack American military facilities, Israeli government offices and synagogues in the...

FBI probe uncovers a list of potential Southland targets and suggests a connection between prison groups and Islamic extremists. A Pakistani national has been arrested by authorities in connection with a far-reaching investigation of a possible terrorist plot targeting any of nearly two dozen locations in Southern California, including National Guard recruitment centers, law enforcement sources said Monday. The suspect, identified as Hamad Riaz Samana, 21, of Los Angeles, was quietly taken into custody last week by counter-terrorism officials as part of a probe that began with the arrest of two men in Torrance suspected of robbing gas stations. The...

During the raid to arrest two robbery suspects at a local apartment, police said officers uncovered details of a possible terrorist cell, with alleged plans for an attack in the Southland. Images In an exclusive investigation, Channel 4 News has learned more about the two suspects under investigation by the FBI's counter terrorism task force and an alleged plot that targeted several prominent locations in the Los Angeles area.ANA GARCIA (REPORTER): Is it possible that an Islamic Prison Gang with possible links to Middle Eastern operatives were planning to blow up these targets? El Al Airlines at LAXIsraeli Consulate On...