Free Republic

SNIPPET: "While these various elements of the jihadist network are distinct, the Internet brings them together, especially at the grassroots level. Videos, websites and online magazines indoctrinate aspiring militants in the jihadist ideology and provide a forum for like-minded individuals and groups."

In a move that was decried by the U.S., France, and Arab countries, Russia and China on Saturday vetoed a U.S.-backed proposal at the UN Security Council to condemn Syrian leader Bashar al-Assed for violence against Syrian citizens. The resolution that had demanded that Assad resign was backed by the Arab League, and the League on Saturday night called on Arab countries to shut down their embassies and consulates in Syria, and remove Syrian ambassadors from their countries. U.S. Ambassador to the UN Susan Rice said that Washington was "disgusted" by the vetoes. The vetoes followed a particularly bloody night...

Scientists are confirming a recent and rare invasion from Mars: meteorite chunks from the red planet that fell in Morocco last July. This is only the fifth ...

In Tunisia, the country that had the highest percentage of mini-skirts in the Arab world, Islamism got 40% of the vote. In Morocco, which was once considered a pillar of Arab secularism, the Islamists won 30%. Meanwhile, some 70% of Egypt’s new Parliament is in the hands of the Muslim Brotherhood and the salafists, who praised Osama bin Laden last April. In Libya, Islamic law supporters and former al-Qaeda bosses took power after Gaddafi’s fall. The Syrian National Council, the opposition group to Assad’s rule, has 19 members: 15 Islamists, 2 Christians and 2 Druze.

King Abdullah of Saudi Arabia formally called for the formation of a Gulf Union on a backdrop of regional unrest and growing tensions with rival Iran. "I ask today that we move from a phase of cooperation to a phase of union within a single entity," Abdullah said during his address at the opening session of the six-member Gulf Cooperation Council conference in Riyadh. "You must realise that our security and stability are threatened and we need to live up to our responsibilities," said King Abdullah. "Our summit opens in the shadow of challenges that require vigilance and a united...

PHOTO CAPTION - SNIPPET: "Officials believe that more members of the so-called Düsseldorf cell may still be at large." SNIPPET: "Halil S. is a man who knows his way around computers. When he went online..." SNIPPET: "German security officials allege that the 27-year-old is the fourth member of the so-called "Düsselfdorf Cell." The group is believed to be the al-Qaida cell currently active in Germany and tasked with carrying out a major attack in Europe. Three other members of the cell, Moroccan Abdeladim el-K. and two accomplices, were arrested in late April and are being held in custody. Authorities believe...

RABAT, Morocco (AP) — The leader of an Islamist party that has never before participated in Morocco's governments was chosen by the king as the country's new head of government on Tuesday. The Justice and Development Party won the most votes Friday in a national election prompted by the pro-democracy demonstrations that swept this North African kingdom of 32 million earlier this year as part of the regionwide Arab Spring. King Mohammed VI received Abdelilah Benkirane, the secretary general of the Justice and Development Party, in the mountain town of Midelt on Tuesday and named him head of government with...

Morocco Elections: Success in Crossing the ThresholdBy Morocco News Agency StaffRabat, Morocco --- November 26, 2011 ... Initial results, as announced by Morocco Interior Minister Taieb Cherqaoui, indicate that voters’ turnout in the 2011 parliamentary elections stood at around 45% nationwide. This turnout thus exceeds the magic 37% of the 2007 parliamentary elections. Data collected and analyzed by the Moroccan Interior Ministry pointed out to a building voters’ momentum toward the closing of the elections. Voting started slow. By noontime, voter turnout stood at 11.5%. However, by 3pm (15:00 GMT) , voter turnout stood at 22.4%, and at 5 p.m....

Islamist PJD Party Wins Morocco Poll Abdelilah Benkirane's PJD party will be the single biggest party in the new chamber. Morocco's moderate Islamist Justice and Development Party (PJD) has won parliamentary elections, say officials. According to provisional results, the PJD won 80 seats in the 395-seat assembly, Interior Minister Taib Cherkaoui told a news conference. That would make it the largest party and give it the right to lead a government. The poll is part of reforms which King Mohamed VI hopes will defuse protests prompted by the Arab Spring. "We thank the Moroccans who voted for the PJD and...

Supernatural things are coming your way , The stuff dreams are made of but won't fade away \o/ , The supernatural exposed in and through you , Watch now as "I" come into view ! The Ancient of Days The I AM That "IS ONE" ! A Fullness , a Gladness , My Entire Kingdom , For when ever "I" show My Face , There in the midst you shall find "My" Grace , Abounding , Abiding , Sweet and True , The "ALL of ME " all over you ! Genesis 28:10-19 Amplified Bible (AMP) 10And Jacob left Beersheba...

The Arab League voted to suspend SyriaÂ’s membership at its meeting on Saturday and said it would impose economic and political sanctions against the regime of Bashar al-Assad as well as call for the withdrawal of Arab ambassadors from Damascus. The Arab foreign ministers meeting at the LeagueÂ’s headquarters in Cairo also called on the Syrian army to cease its involvement in the killing of civilians and invited the Syrian opposition for transition talks. Opponents of Assad were hoping that the Arab League would suspend SyriaÂ’s membership after Assad pressed ahead with a military crackdown on the unrest despite an...

WASHINGTON, Nov. 4, 2011 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Three European aid workers continue to be held by al-Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb (AQIM) after being kidnapped from refugee camps controlled by the Polisario Front near Tindouf, Algeria last week. According to reports, Polisario members in the camps helped the kidnappers by supplying weapons and directions to the victims' location. The two Spanish and one Italian hostages are being held at an undisclosed location. They remain alive, though no demands or conditions for their release have been made, despite considerable efforts by the international community. Agence France Press (AFP) reports that "less than...

A Moroccan court found on Friday the chief suspect guilty in the April 28 bombing of a Marrakesh café and sentenced him to death, The Associated Press reported. 17 people were killed in that terror attack, including Israeli citizen Michal Weitzmann Zikri and her husband Masoud Zikri, a native of Morocco. The two were in the country to celebrate Passover with Masoud’s family. They were survived by their two-year-old son, who was with his grandparents at the time of the attack. Michal was six months pregnant when she was killed. Prosecutors had accused Adel al-Othmani of dressing like a tourist...

Five foreign men were arrested during a courthouse break-in early on Wednesday and police said they found photographs of public buildings, water systems and malls from various U.S. cities in their van. The men, at least three of whom were in their 20s, will be questioned by a joint terrorism task force including the FBI and immigration authorities, officials said. Bexar County spokeswoman Laura Jesse said three men were found inside the 120-year-old Bexar County Courthouse, a landmark in downtown San Antonio and two in a large recreational vehicle parked in front of the building. She said all five were...

CHICAGO (MarketWatch) -- Five Moroccan nationals arrested Wednesday for breaking into a San Antonio courthouse were found to have pictures of public buildings, water systems and malls across the country, Reuters reports. While they were nabbed by local police, the suspects will be interrogated by a joint terrorism task force that includes the FBI and immigration enforcement authorities, the wire service reported.

SNIPPET: "Rabat — Morocco's security forces have broken up a five-member terrorist cell that used to operate in the cities of Salé (near Rabat) and Casablanca, National Police Department said on Saturday in a statement. The statement added that the dismantled cell includes a member linked to the former emir of al Qaeda network in northern Iraq. The cell, which pledged allegiance to Ayman Al-Zawahiri, used Internet to forge close ties with al Qaida, especially in Syria, Iraq, Turkey, Yemen and Somalia, it said." SNIPPET: "To carry out their plans, the members of the cell contacted, via Internet, experts in...

The last place she'd seen Mbarek Lafrem was in the bathroom stall of a Hell's Kitchen bar, where he would leave her stripped and unconscious, lying on the filthy floor in a growing pool of blood. "The last picture I have of him is him breaking into my stall," Lafrem's beautiful victim told the Post in an exclusive interview. "And I remember screaming." The brave young woman -- a pediatric nurse with a whispery voice and long blonde hair -- had sat sobbing softly in a Manhattan courtroom yesterday as she saw Lafrem for the second and final time, as...

Morocco said yesterday it had broken up a three-man cell with links to Al Qaeda which planned to carry out attacks on security headquarters and Western interests in the kingdom. "The members of this cell intended to join camps of Al Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb (AQIM) outside Morocco to undergo military training with the aim of returning to the kingdom to carry out criminal acts," the interior ministry said. The cell, which called itself the Al Battar Squadron, "included a former detainee under anti-terrorist legislation, and was headed by one of the most active individuals on jihadist Internet sites...

DCNS launches Moroccan FREMM frigate 18:57 GMT, September 14, 2011 Lorient | On 14 September 2011, DCNS launched the FREMM multimission frigate for the Royal Moroccan Navy. The launch took place at DCNS's Lorient shipyard in the presence of senior Moroccan and French officials and is a major milestone in the construction of the vessel, scheduled for delivery in 2013. DCNS today launched the FREMM multimission frigate for Morocco. The event at the Group's Lorient shipyard was attended by Admiral Laghmari, Inspector General of Royal Moroccan Navy, Admiral Verwaerde of the French Navy and Patrick Boissier, Chairman & CEO of...

First SIGMA class frigate transferred to the Royal Moroccan Navy Written by defenceWeb Tuesday, 13 September 2011 The SIGMA class frigate Tarik ben Ziyad was yesterday transferred to the Royal Moroccan Navy after completing sea trials and outfitting. The SIGMA (Ship Integrated Geometrical Modularity Approach) frigate, built by Damen Schelde Naval Shipbuilding (DSNS) in Vlissingen, the Netherlands, was handed over to Rear Admiral Mohamed Laghmari, the Commander in Chief of the Royal Moroccan Navy on time and on schedule. After commissioning, the crew will continue with another three weeks of Sail Safety Training in Den Helder and the North Sea....

The Obama administration finally highlights Iran’s key role in supporting al Qaeda On July 28, the Treasury Department designated six al Qaeda operatives involved in shipping money and men from the Persian Gulf to senior al Qaeda leaders in Afghanistan and Pakistan. The move targets a node of the global terror network that is critical to its overall strength, freezing any of its financial assets under U.S. jurisdiction and prohibiting any transactions with the operatives. Of the many conduits for al Qaeda funds and personnel across the world, the U.S. government believes this one is the most important. “This network...

Italy's parliamentary commission has approved a draft law banning women from wearing veils that cover their faces in public. The draft law was sponsored by Souad Sbai, a Moroccan-born member of Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi’s conservative Freedom People party. The law, which was passed by the constitutional affairs commission Tuesday, would prohibit women from wearing a burqa, niqab or any other garment that covers the face. It would also sentence anyone who forces women to cover their faces in public to up to one year in prison and fine them $43,000. The Italian news agency ANSA reports the opposition voted...

In the capital Rabat, hundreds of protesters chanted the slogan "May God bless the life of my people" and carried placards demanding a "change that marks a break with the past," according to a Reuters witness. "This protest is not meant to be a response to the allegiance ceremony. It is our response to the overall political climate in the country," said Mohamed al-Aouni, an activist from the February 20 Movement, which has held almost weekly protests demanding reform. "We will continue to press for a parliamentary monarchy, freedom, social justice and dignity," Aouni said. About 4,000 people protested in...

IT isn’t news anymore when an Arab ruler facing mass protests pledges sweeping reforms. But Morocco’s July 1 constitutional referendum may be the most significant development in the Arab world all summer. For the first time since the Arab Spring began, a population broadly embraced its leader’s reforms and scaled back antigovernment demonstrations. In the weeks before the referendum, over 100,000 people had taken to the streets; after the vote only about 10,000 did. A sizable majority of Moroccans approved the new Constitution, which calls for King Mohammed VI to cede half his power to a prime minister appointed from...

The February 20th movement, a pro-reform group, had called for a boycott of the vote, denouncing the new constitution as a superficial gesture that would leave the king's power intact and stave off real change. "The numbers the government is using have nothing to do with reality," insisted Amal Albaghdadi, a Rabat native and organiser with the February 20th movement. "I have come out to say enough with poverty, discrimination, and lack of freedoms. We want real democracy." "We were never allowed to express our concerns about the constitution," said protester Lekbari Mohammed, Rabat native. "These are false results because...

SNIPPET: "Shanti was arrested by u.s. Customs and Border Protection in Blaine, Wash. ..." SNIPPET: "Both were from Morocco. It's unclear why Shanti would need to jump the border so often. But a LinkedIn account listed in Shanti's name lists a string of jobs in Canada, Dubai, and Jordan, so it may have been work-related."

(CNN) -- Coalition forces in Afghanistan say that a recent security operation in the southeast part of the country suggests an influx of foreign fighters may be underway, just as the Taliban begins its "fighting season" against NATO troops. And intelligence analysts say it seems a growing number of Europeans are among them. On the night of May 8, a joint NATO-Afghan force encountered a group of militants in a place called Qalat, a district in Zabul province in southeastern Afghanistan. Ten militants were killed, according to a statement Tuesday from the International Security Assistance Force (ISAF). The combined force...

SNIPPET: “A second man has been charged in connection with threats made last year against the producers of the Comedy Central program “South Park.” Jesse Curtis Morton, (aka Younus Abdullah Mohammad) is charged with communicating threats. Morton helped run a website, RevolutionMuslim, with Zachary Chesser. Chesser is serving a 25-year prison term after pleading guilty to a similar charge and to trying to provide material support to the Somali terrorist group al-Shabaab.” SNIPPET: “In an interview on CNN before the “South Park” controversy, Morton said Islam commands Muslims to terrorize disbelievers. “The Koran says very clearly in the Arabic language...

A mainly desert territory in north-west Africa, Western Sahara is the subject of a decades-long dispute between Morocco and the Algerian-backed Polisario Front. The territory is phosphate-rich and believed to have offshore oil deposits. Most of it has been under Moroccan control since 1976. Western Sahara fell under Spanish rule in 1884, becoming a Spanish province in 1934. Nationalism emerged in the 1960s, as nomadic Saharans, or Saharawis, settled in the region. Polisario was set up on 10 May 1973 and established itself as the sole representative of the Saharan people. Some 100,000 refugees still live in Polisario's camps in...

Two men from East Elmhurst, Queens have been arrested and charged with plotting to blow up a Manhattan synagogue. Mayor Michael Bloomberg was joined by top city law enforcement officials at City Hall earlier today in announcing the arrests of Ahmed Ferhani, 26, and Mohamed Mamdouh, 20. Ferhani, who is from Algeria, and Mamdouh, was is from Morocco, are both charged with engaging in terrorism, weapons possession and hate crimes. An arraignment is expected later today. Police Commissioner Ray Kelly says the men told undercover officers that they hated Jews and wanted to kill them. He also says they had...

We Islamaphobes are truly a loathsome lot – sowing dissention and hatred wherever we go. But Peter Burr, M.D., recently elected chair of the Williamson County, TN. Democratic Party, is on our case. Last week, Geert Wilders, a member of the Dutch parliament and a trenchant critic of Islam, spoke at two events in Nashville. In a commentary in the Tennessean (“Outside Agitators Should Not Define American Values”) Burr excoriated Wilders in language Democrats usually reserve for the Tea Parties and the Boy Scouts of America. Anyway, I thought “outside agitators” became passé with Spiro Agnew’s departure from the national...

Two Americans have been arrested by New York City police for allegedly plotting to attack a synagogue in the New York area, Fox News has learned. One source described the case as the latest example of “homegrown” radicalization. The two men were identified as Mohammad Mamdouh, of Moroccan descent, and Ahmed Serhani, of Algerian descent. Serhani allegedly made a general statement about wanting to attack a synagogue –- though no specific synagogue was mentioned, according to initial information obtained by Fox News. With a history of drug dealing, Serhani was hoping to make enough money to purchase weapons and possibly...

Washington, April 29, 2011 – World Bank Group President Robert B. Zoellick is visiting Tunisia and Morocco from May 2 – 6 with a special focus on how to support Tunisia during its political transition and to find out how economic and governance reforms can create jobs and opportunity in both countries. Zoellick will meet civil society representatives in both countries to learn about the new importance of social accountability and how civil society can play a role in helping citizens influence what they can get from economic development and gain better access to opportunities. Zoellick’s visit to Tunisia follows...

MARRAKESH – A bomb killed 14 people including foreigners in Morocco's bustling tourist destination of Marrakesh, officials said on Thursday, in an attack that bore the hallmark of Islamist militants. The blast ripped through a cafe overlooking Marrakesh's Jamaa el-Fnaa square, a spot that is often packed with foreign tourists. A Reuters photographer said he saw rescuers pulling dismembered bodies from the wreckage. If the bombing is the work of Islamist militants, it will be the first time they have carried out a major attack in Morocco since 2003, when a series of suicide bombings in the commercial capital, Casablanca,...

What struck me most about this contract is that we are going to teach the Moroccans "critical thinking skills."

In an excellent documentary called Stolen, which sets out to document a family reunion in the sole region in Africa where Spanish is spoken, filmmakers Ayala and Fallshaw uncover a bigger story than they had originally planned. What they find is a pocket of slavery still practiced in Western Sahara, Morocco, Mauritania, and elsewhere in Arab-African societies. The initial impetus for the film is the re-union of a generational family under UN auspices, a service the UN provides if the correct paperwork is filled out; family members long separated are brought together for a joyous 5-day reunion. What the documentarians...

06 April 2010 "WHAT'S GOOD ABOUT THERE BEING A GENUINE AMERICAN AL-QAIDA MOVEMENT?[1]" SNIPPET: "They write in English and their websites have RSS feeds, that's what. Reduces our overhead, improves our cash flow - thanks guys!"

RABAT, Morocco – King Mohammed VI said Wednesday that Morocco will revise its constitution for the first time in 15 years, aiming to strengthen democracy in the face of a push across the Arab world. In a rare TV and radio speech to the nation, the popular monarch said a new commission would suggest constitutional revisions to him by June, and the overall project would be put to Moroccan voters in a referendum. "By launching today the work of constitutional reform, we embark on a major phase in the process of consolidation of our model of democracy and development," said...

ROME (AP) - Italian police on Friday arrested six Moroccan men suspected of inciting hatred against Pope Benedict XVI for converting a Muslim journalist in Italy to Catholicism.Stefano Fonsi, head of Brescia police's anti-terrorism squad in northern Italy, said the suspects allegedly banded together and met privately with the goal of stirring up religious hatred against non-Muslims, including the pope.Investigators say they found literature exhorting Muslim immigrants against integrating into Italian society and saying the pope should be punished for having baptized the journalist during an Easter vigil ceremony in St. Peter's Basilica.The investigation grew out of security checks ahead...

Morocco's King Mohammed said on Monday he would not cede to "demagoguery" a day after thousands of Moroccans took to the street to demand he give up some of his powers to a newly elected government. The monarch, addressing a ceremony for long-awaited appointments of members of the advisory Social and Economic Council, said he wanted "irreversible" reforms, but they must be formulated in accordance with the "Moroccan model." Morocco is a constitutional monarchy with an elected parliament, but the king is empowered to dissolve the legislature, impose a state of emergency and have a key say in government appointments...

Successful Launch of Second Multi Mission Frigate for the Royal Moroccan Navy (Source: Damen Schelde Naval Shipbuilding; issued Feb. 4, 2011) At Damen Schelde Naval Shipbuilding in Vlissingen, on February 2, the second Multi-Mission Frigate under construction for the Royal Moroccan Navy, was rolled out of the assembly hall. The 98 metre-long ship has been constructed entirely on land at the DSNS yard at Vlissingen-East and is now ready, on schedule, to be completed at the Vlissingen-City shipyard. Heavy Lifting and Transport company Mammoet Europe B.V., moved the 1700 ton vessel from the assembly hall to the pontoon after which...

In Morocco, not far from the Atlantic coast and away from major tourist attractions, lies a remarkable and enigmatic megalithic site. The Mzora stone ring (also spelled variously as Msoura/Mezorah) is situated roughly 11km from the nearest town of Asilah and about 27km from the ruins of ancient Lixus. It is not easy to reach and a small display in the archaeological museum at Tetouan is the most the majority of visitors see or hear of this very interesting site. Plutarch, in the first century CE, may have referred to Mzora in his Life of Sertorius. He describes the Roman...

Decades of autocratic government and a lack of free elections are, of course, the main drivers of the political upheaval in Egypt. But did the sinking dollar and skyrocketing food prices trigger the massive unrest now occurring in Egypt — or the greater Arab world for that matter? In addition to Egypt, the people have taken to the streets to varying degrees in Algeria, Jordan, Libya, Morocco and Yemen. Local food riots have even broken out in rural China and other Asian locales. While the mainstream media focus on the political aspects of this turmoil, they are overlooking the impact...

Discontent is ample in Morocco, the poorest, least developed North African nation, and many are inspired by developments in Egypt. Meanwhile, Morocco's King Mohammed VI rests in his French luxury chalet. Morocco so far has been spared from larger protesting groups as those in Tunisia and Egypt, much thanks to the King's quick reversal of boosting prices for basic foods. The same move proved a good assurance for authorities in neighbouring Algeria. But discontent is very widespread in Morocco. Despite an economic boom over the last years and some careful reforms ordered by King Mohammed VI - most prominently regarding...

“An earthquake has shaken the region.” The above headline from an Israeli newspaper describes with unfailing accuracy the pivotal events now taking place in the Middle East. In Egypt, the Arab world’s largest and most populous country of more than 80 million, massive demonstrations involving tens of thousands of people began on Tuesday in what was billed as a “Day of Anger” and are continuing despite a ban by a very rattled government. Smaller protests are likewise occurring in Jordan, Libya, Morocco and Algeria. The domino effect so feared by Middle Eastern strongmen after Tunisian protesters chased their president from...

Meeting with violent Salvadoran gangs in Honduras. Seeking radioactive material at a university in Hamilton, Ontario. Running an import-export business and teaching English — wife and child in tow — in Morocco. Hiding out in Suriname. *snip* — or, to be more precise, the rumored trail — of an American citizen who spent part of his youth in Brooklyn, went to college in Florida and has long been on the Federal Bureau of Investigation’s most-wanted list, a senior Qaeda operative who over the last seven years has been portrayed as part wraith, part James Bond, and large-scale bogeyman. On Wednesday,...

CASABLANCA, Morocco (AP) -- A man with explosives hidden on his body blew himself up in an Internet cafe after the owners prevented him from looking at terror Web sites, the Interior Ministry said Monday. The man was killed and four people were injured in the Sunday night blast in a Casablanca slum, said ministry spokesman Abderrahman Achour. One of the wounded was the dead man's companion, who was hospitalized with burns and a throat injury. Both men were carrying explosives. But officials believe the cybercafe may not have been their target and that the explosion was an accident, Mokhtar...

Recent events in Tunisia, Lebanon and Egypt spell a dangerous new trend in the region. There have been major developments in Tunisia, Lebanon and Egypt, each of which is of tremendous importance. In Tunisia, a popular uprising fueled by unemployment, economic suffering and long-term discontent has overthrown the dictator, but not necessarily the dictatorship. In 55 years of independence, the country has been governed by two dictators, the current one being Zine al-Abedin Ben Ali, who has been president for 23 years and was a key power in the regime even before that. Is this going to spread? Does it...

Last November, a Belgian F-16 pilot hit a power line in Morocco during a training flight. As a consequence, parts of Morocco and Algeria were cut of from electricity for a while.The 350th squadron, which is based in Florennes, deployed to Sidi Slimane Air Base in Morocco with seven F-16s. They were preparing for a NATO operation in Afghanistan (ISAF), the latter which has a similar landscape. During a training mission, a pilot was flying too low and ended up hitting a power line. The aircraft could still land safely.

Last week, I attended the Marrakech Film Festival....The opening gala, complete with red carpet and paparazzi, was staged in a swanky convention hall surrounded by five-star hotels. The requisite stars made appearances.... [....] When the men awaken to discover the women missing, the entire village is mobilized to hunt them down. Their escape route, which runs along the beach, is entirely exposed, and they are brought back in a fishing boat. Watching the men of the village gather around the two women in a circle on the beach, I ought to have realized what was about to happen, but somehow...