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LONDON (Reuters) - Up to 18 suicide bombers may have planned to take part in an Islamist terrorist plot to blow up transatlantic airliners which could have killed more than 1,500 people, a London court heard on Thursday. Prosecutors said a gang of Britons planned to simultaneously explode passenger aircraft in mid-air between London's Heathrow airport and the United States and Canada. They were close to putting their scheme into action when they were arrested in August 2006, the court was told. "It is the prosecution case that these men and others were engaged in a deadly plan designed to...

One billion Muslims to turn into suicide bombers if Makkah, Madina are attacked: NA ISLAMABAD: The treasury and opposition members in National Assembly (NA) Wednesday have made it clear on US that one billion Muslims will turn into suicide bombers if the holiest places of Makkah and Madina are attacked and warned Vetican City will not remain secure if any such  threat is materialized.  They said this unanimously while participating in debate on foreign policy. Opposition legislator Ghulam Murtaza Satti said  US was pursuing double standards. Those talking of launching any military offensive against Makkah and Medina are accursed....

WASHINGTON: Republican presidential hopeful Tom Tancredo says the best way he can think of to deter a nuclear terrorist attack on the US is to threaten to retaliate by bombing Islamic holy sites. The Colorado congressman on Tuesday told about 30 people at a town hall meeting in the state of Iowa that he believes such a terrorist attack could be imminent and that the US needs to hurry up and think of a way to stop it. “If it is up to me, we are going to explain that an attack on this homeland of that nature would be...

Gov Mitt Romney won the 2007 Ames straw poll, receiving 4516 votes, or 31%. In a surprise, Gov. Mike Huckabee finished second with 2587 votes at 18.1% 11. John Cox with 41 votes. 10. John McCain with 101 votes. 9. Duncan Hunter with 174 votes. 8. Rudy Giuliani with 183 votes. 7. Fred Thomson with 203 votes. 6. Tommy Thompson, 1,039 votes, 7.3% 5. Ron Paul with 1305 votes, and 9.1% 4. Tom Tancredo with 1961 votes, 13.7%. 3. Sen. Sam Brownback with 2192 votes and 15.3% Iowa state auditor David Vaudt unofficially certified the results. 14,203 ballots were cast.

In the video that serves as his last will and testament, the youthful, well-dressed Saudi, known only as "Fatima's Fiancé," is laughing and joking with the cameraman who will record his death a few minutes later. "Pray for Allah to make my mission easy," he says, and waves as he climbs into a maroon sedan, grinning broadly. "May Allah make it easy for you," the cameraman says obligingly, and laughs. The scene cuts away to an earlier interview, where the Saudi announces that when he gets to heaven he plans to marry a woman named Fatima, who was allegedly abused...

A new al Qaeda propaganda ad, headlined "Wait for the Big Surprise" and featuring a digitally altered photograph of President George Bush and Pakistan's President Pervez Musharraf standing in front of a burning White House, was posted on the Internet today. The brief clip from al Qaeda's "as Sahab" propaganda arm juxtaposes the doctored photo of Bush and Musharraf along with previously seen images of al Qaeda's top leadership -- Osama bin Laden, Ayman al Zawahri and Adam Gadahn -- as well as a photo of an SUV in a motorcade. There is no additional information provided in the ad,...

Harare, Zimbabwe (AHN) - Zimbabwe will not turn over former Former Former Ethiopian dictator Mengistu Haile Miriam, despite his conviction of genocide. William Nhara, a spokesperson for President Robert Mugabe's government, says, "As a comrade of our struggle, Comrade Mengistu and his government played a key and commendable role during our struggle for independence and no one can dispute that." "The judgment is an Ethiopian judgment and will not affect his status in Zimbabwe. As far as we know there is no extradition treaty between Harare and Addis Ababa." Mengistu, who has been living in exile in Zimbabwe since he...

PRESIDENT BUSH WILL NOMINATE ZALMAY KHALILZAD -- AN AFGHAN MUSLIM CURRENTLY SERVING AS AMBASSADOR TO IRAQ -- AS THE NEW U.S. AMBASSADOR TO THE U.N., ABC NEWS IS REPORTING... DEVELOPING...

A refugee from the Muslim Middle East thinks he has discovered Islam's 20-point plan for conquering the United States by 2020 – a plan revealed in the latest issue of Joseph Farah's G2 Bulletin. Anis Shorrosh, author of ''Islam Revealed'' and ''The True Furqan,'' is a Christian Arab-American who emigrated from Arab-controlled Jerusalem in January 1967. ''The following is my analysis of Islamic invasion of America, the agenda of Islamists and visible methods to take over America by the year 2020,'' Shorrosh says. ''Will Americans continue to sleep through this invasion as they did when we were attacked on 9/11?''...

Main IdeaVirtually every major Western leader has over the past several years expressed the view that Islam is a peaceful religion and that those who commit violence in its name are fanatics who misinterpret its tenets. This claim, while widely circulated, rarely attracts serious public examination. ContentThe documentary consists of original interviews, citations from Islamic texts, Islamic artwork, computer-animated maps, footage of Western leaders, and Islamic television broadcasts. Its tone is sober, methodical, and compelling. Outline of the Documentary IntroductionWe hear from prominent Western leaders that Islam is peaceful and that those who commit violence in its name are heterodox...

It takes courage for leaders to expose flaws in their society. But some are willing to do it IF ALL THE BIG terrorist attacks of the past 35 years — from the Munich massacre to the July 7 London bombings last year — had been carried out by groups of white, English, middle-aged newspaper columnists, I suspect my life might have become quite intolerable in recent years. I would have had to get used to looks of fearful suspicion every time I got on a train or a bus. Whenever I checked in for a flight or sought entrance to...

THE KINGDOM OF SAUDI ARABIA CALLS ON ALL TO ACT IN ACCORDANCE WITH HONEST, CONSCIOUS AND INTERNATIONAL MORAL AND HUMANITARIAN LAWS. IT ALSO WARNS ALL THAT IF THE PEACE OPTION IS REJECTED DUE TO THE ISRAELI ARROGANCE THEN ONLY THE WAR OPTION REMAINS AND NO ONE KNOWS THE REPERCUSSIONS BEFALLING THE REGION, INCLUDING WARS AND CONFLICT THAT WILL SPARE NO ONE INCLUDING THOSE WHOSE MILITARY POWER IS NOW TEMPTING THEM TO PLAY WITH FIRE.

Libyan leader Muammar Qadhafi called for allowing Christians and Jews to perform pilgrimage to Mecca, Islam's holiest place. Speaking following prayers with the presidents of Mali, Sierra Leone, Niger, Mauritania and Senegal on the occasion of the Prophet Mohammed's birthday in Timbuktu, Mali, late on Monday, Qadhafi said "Mecca should be a meeting point to all people except heretics and impure". He said that Christians and Jews are not heretics or impure and "believe in God" and should be allowed to go to pilgrimage in Mecca. Qadhafi challenged Muslim religious leaders to allow US President George W. Bush to enter...

RIYADH, Saudi Arabia - Saudi Arabia's top cleric called on the world's Muslims to reject apologies for the "slanderous" caricatures of Islam's Prophet Mohammed and demanded the authors and publishers of the cartoons be tried and punished, Saudi newspapers reported Saturday. Thousands of Muslims, meanwhile, took to the streets in London and several other European cities to protest the drawings that were first published in a Danish newspaper in September and recently reprinted in other European publications. One depicted the prophet with a turban shaped like a bomb with a burning fuse. Denmark also announced it has temporarily withdrawn its...

Why not nuke Mecca? Congressman Tom Tancredo (R-CO) has brought the issue to the table. The Council on American Islamic Relations (CAIR) has demanded that he apologize to Muslims, and commentators left and right have subjected him to vociferous criticism. Although many have attacked him for the wrong reasons, his suggestion is still wrong. Primarily, of course, it contravenes Western principles of justice which, if discarded willy-nilly, would remove a key reason why we fight at all: to preserve Western ideas of justice and human rights that are denied by the Islamic Sharia law so beloved of jihad terrorists. But...

Nuke Mecca? Nope.By Robert SpencerFrontPageMagazine.com | July 28, 2005 Why not bomb Mecca? Congressman Tom Tancredo (R-CO) has brought the issue to the table. The Council on American Islamic Relations (CAIR) has demanded that he apologize to Muslims, and commentators left and right have subjected him to vociferous criticism. At the same time, however, he seems to have tapped into the frustration that many Americans feel about official Washington’s politically correct insistence, in the face of ever-mounting evidence to the contrary, that Islam is a religion of peace that has been hijacked by a tiny minority of extremists. Although Tancredo’s...

The June payroll jobs report did not receive much attention due to the July 4 holiday, but the depressing 21st century job performance of the U.S. economy continues unabated. Only 144,000 private sector jobs were created, each one of which was in domestic services. Fifty-six thousand jobs were created in professional and business services, about half of which are in administrative and waste services. Thirty-eight thousand jobs were created in education and health services, almost all of which are in health care and social assistance. Nineteen thousand jobs were created in leisure and hospitality, almost all of which are waitresses...

Tom Tancredo, the Colorado congressman who caused an uproar with the suggestion Muslim holy sites could be taken out in response to a nuclear attack on U.S. cities, is making no apologies if people are offended by his frank talk. "Many critics of my statements have characterized them as 'offensive,' and indeed they may have offended some," writes Tancredo in a guest commentary in the Denver Post. "But in this battle against fundamentalist Islam, I am hardly preoccupied with political correctness, or who may or may not be offended. Indeed, al-Qaida cares little if the Western world is 'offended' by...

Hugh, my friend, feel thou not slammed. Just a bit of constructive criticism, Froggystyle. Hosting Hassam Aloush (?) the SoCal head of C A I R for the first two hours of his program today, Hugh unwittingly turned the keys of his radio show over to an organization that has a long track record of apologizing for islamic terror. I’m not sure if Hugh was simply unprepared for the interview, or in his zealousness to deconstruct the Tancredo Option that he decided to swing the conversation in the opposite direction.

Mr. Kamal Nawash who calls himself the “president of Free Muslims Against Terrorism, with 15 chapters across America” is planning to meet the Congressman Tom Tancredo this Wednesday. In a communiqué Mr. Nawash expressed his “understanding of the frustration of the Congressman” when the latter hypothetically said; America should bomb the Islamic Holy Sites in Mecca as a deterrent to Islamic terrorism. He plans to tell the Congressman Tancredo who expressed the sentiment of millions of Americans who on daily bases watch in horror as dozens of innocent people are murdered in the name of Islam, that “many Muslims share...

Just a quick heads up. Hannity announced he will be talking with Tancredo regarding the "Mecca Remark". If I'm not mistaken, it will be one of the segments in the last hour of his radio program. I'll try to provide a link for online feed.

It is probably not a good idea in terms of job security to publicly call your boss a horse's ass. So have some sympathy for Will Adams, spokesman for Colorado Rep. Tom Tancredo. He was asked by reporters to explain the asinine thing the congressman said last week. Adams told them Tancredo is just a "free thinker." By which standard Michael Jackson is just a tad eccentric. Or haven't you heard? Tancredo thinks maybe the United States should bomb Mecca. You know Mecca. City in Saudi Arabia. Birthplace of the prophet Muhammad. Holiest shrine of Islam, a religion practiced by...

Hispanic, Islamic Groups Want Tancredo Out By STEVEN K. PAULSONAssociated Press Writer Hispanic and Islamic groups called on Rep. Tom Tancredo to resign Monday, saying he has embarrassed Colorado by suggesting bombing Islamic holy sites if terrorists launch a nuclear attack on the U.S. They also criticized the GOP congressman's staunch advocacy of tougher immigration controls. "Enough is enough. We're here to say 'Stop,'" Hispanic activist Manolo Gonzalez-Estay told a crowd of about 200 at the state Capitol. Abdur-Rahim Ali, imam of a Muslim shrine in Denver, said Tancredo's statement that "you could take out" Islamic holy sites in...

When U.S. Rep. Tom Tancredo, R-Colo., suggested that bombing Mecca might be an appropriate response to the terrorist threat, he sent shock waves around the world. And he thrilled many of his supporters. I heard from dozens of nuke-happy Tancredo fans, though not all of them had the courage to sign their names. From Don MacEwan: "Islam was and is the religion of terror. ... Putting forth a warning to Islam that mutually assured destruction means their holy city of Medina is nuked if they do not curb their terrorist urges seems to be a prudent step." From Cynthia J....

By now, many people in America - and likely around the world - are familiar with my statements regarding a possible response to a nuclear attack on U.S. cities by fundamentalist Islamic terrorists. Without question, my comments have prompted strong reactions from many quarters, but they have also served to start a national dialogue about what options we have to deter al-Qaeda and other would-be Islamic terrorists. Many critics of my statements have characterized them as "offensive," and indeed they may have offended some. But in this battle against fundamentalist Islam, I am hardly preoccupied with political correctness, or who...

Words of war July 24, 2005 THE TWO leaders of the West's struggle against Islamic terrorism, President Bush and Prime Minister Tony Blair of Britain, rightly emphasize that just a small minority of Muslims embrace terror acts. It is crucial in the struggle against terrorism for mainstream Muslims to isolate and turn against those who kill innocents in the name of their faith. This is why it was so dismaying when a Colorado congressman talked about bombing Islamic holy sites to avenge a hypothetical nuclear attack by terrorists -- as if the faith itself were at fault. Osama bin Laden...

It seems to me that we are in a war with Muslim terrorists, supported by a large percentage of Muslims, but to date we have been fighting it in a defensive and reactive way. How about some ideas on how to go on the offensive, and be proactive. What do we need to do, what can we do to make the enemy pay a price for their aggression? How can we defeat it militarily, politically, psychologically, ideologically, economically?

No apology for discussing retaliation on Muslim holy sites Washington - Rep. Tom Tancredo refused Monday to back down from his statement Friday suggesting that the United States might respond to a radical Islamic terrorist attack by bombing Muslim holy sites. Muslim groups earlier Monday called on Tancredo to apologize and said they want to meet with the Colorado Republican. "I'm not suggesting we do it. I have nothing to apologize for in that respect," Tancredo said. "I'm simply saying to have a good discussion on this issue, a thorough discussion on what is perhaps the most serious kind of...

Congressman John D. Dingell (MI-15), the Dean of the House of Representatives, condemned the recent comments made by Representative Tom Tancredo (CO-06) as “ignorant” and “inexcusable” for a Member of Congress. During a recent interview on Tampa radio station WFLA-AM, Mr. Tancredo said that the US might “take out (Muslim) holy sites” in response to another terrorist attack on the US. When asked if he meant Mecca, Congressman Tancredo responded “yeah.” Said Dingell, “First of all, suggesting the bombing of a holy site of any religion is simply inexcusable for an elected official in the United States Congress and an...

Upset by radio discussion about bombing Mecca The controversial lobby group Council on American-Islamic Relations wants the Republican Party to repudiate Rep. Tom Tancredo's discussion in a recent radio interview about the possibility of the U.S. could bombing Mecca if provoked by a nuclear terrorist attack on American soil. As WorldNetDaily reported, the Colorado Republican clarified his remarks after the interview Friday, saying he was not suggesting that the U.S. should bomb the Islamic holy site as a response to a nuclear homeland attack by al-Qaida. The congressman's press secretary told WorldNetDaily the comments were an off-the-cuff response to a...

One step forward: a group of British imams issued a fatwa against suicide bombers. They are not acting in the name of true Islam and will ride a hot slick razor blade straight to hell. Good; more, please. Alas, there’s also one step back: in the same news cycle Republican Congressman Tom Tancredo mused aloud about the proper response to a nuclear attack on America: dropping ten tons of Murcan ordinance on Mecca. Osama did a little joy-jig after hearing that. As a recruitment tool, it’s better than learning Bush and Sharon are running to Canada to get married. Tancredo’s...

From Qur'an profanation to bombing Mecca Tancredo says No apology for 'Bomb Mecca' remark By Karima Rhanem | Morocco TIMES 7/20/2005 | 2:57 pm Facing mounting criticism, Republican Tom Tancredo on Monday refused to apologize for suggesting the United States could target Muslim holy sites if radical Islamic terrorists set off multiple nuclear attacks in American cities. Tancredo made the remarks during an interview on the Pat Campbell Show in Florida last Thursday discussing what should be done in response to an attack on this country by “extremist fundamentalist Muslims.” Tancredo said one possible response would be to “take...

KUWAIT CITY - Muslims from Indonesia to the Middle East on Wednesday labeled as aggressive and irresponsible a U.S. congressman's suggestion that the United States could "take out" Islamic holy sites if Muslim attackers targeted America in a nuclear strike. Some demanded an apology. Many said the comments fuel Islamic extremism and leave Muslims feeling Americans equate terrorists with all of Islam. "American mentality imagines that a religion is attacking another religion, and here lies the danger," said Syrian political analyst Ahmed al-Haj Ali. He called it "frightening" to "retaliate against the birthplace of Islam for individual criminal acts or...

In the event of a nuclear attack , all of our options stinkBy James Lileks One step forward: A group of British imams issued an honest-to-Allah fatwa against suicide bombers. According to the clerics, terrorists are not acting in the name of true Islam and will ride a hot, slick razor blade straight to hell. Good; more, please. Alas, there's also one step back: In the same news cycle Rep. Tom Tancredo, R-Colo., mused on a radio show about his preferred response to a nuclear attack on America: bombing Mecca. No doubt Osama bin Laden did a jig after hearing...

From Indonesia to the Middle East, Muslims were aghast Wednesday after an American congressman raised the suggestion that the United States could "take out" Islamic holy sites if there was a nuclear attack on it by Muslim fundamentalists. Many said the comments only fuel Islamic extremism and leave Muslims feeling that Americans equate terrorists with all of Islam. "American mentality imagines that a religion is attacking another religion, and here lies the danger," Ahmed al-Haj Ali, a Syrian political analyst, said. He called it "frightening" to "retaliate against the birthplace of Islam for individual criminal acts or acts committed by...

Perhaps Rep. Tom Tancredo had my article in mind when he made his comments on bombing Mecca. The article was sent to him on July 10th by one of my Newsletter list members the same day I sent it out. Although I did not suggest the use of nukes, I did suggest targeting Mecca as a deterrent to Islamic terrorists, and to encourage peaceful Muslims to discourage terrorism and help in the war on terror. What Tancredo said is out of context and I think the whole issue is better explained in context in my article. HOLDING MECCA HOSTAGE by...

Tancredo's "off-cuff" talk off the wall By Diane Carman Denver Post Columnist Colorado U.S. Rep. Tom Tancredo was just talking "off-cuff." It was "an extremely hypothetical situation." Everybody knows he's the kind of guy who "thinks out loud." I was positively dizzy from the spin. It was as if press secretary Will Adams was channeling Scott McClellan. "You're talking about bombing Mecca," the WFLA-AM talk-show host in Florida said to Tancredo on Friday. "Yeah," said the Littleton Republican, who's never been accused of sensitivity. Adams tried to equivocate: There's a "widespread misconception about what he said. Congressman Tancredo is not...

The Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) said today that it is working with leaders of the Colorado Muslim community to set up a meeting with Rep. Tom Tancredo (R-CO) over his recent remarks....'snip'CAIR said local and national Republican leaders should repudiate the congressman's remarks and Tancredo himself should apologize immediately to the people of Colorado and the American Muslim community. The Washington-based council asked Muslims and other people of conscience to contact the Republican Party to ask for an apology and repudiation of the offensive statements.

ISTANBUL, Turkey -- Top U.S. and Turkish officials on Tuesday condemned cooments made last week by Rep. Tom Tancredo that the United States could "take out" Islamic holy sites if there was a nuclear attack on America by Muslim fundementalists.The Colorado Republican refused to apologize Tuesday, telling the Associated Press that his comments had been taken out of context.U.S. State Department spokesman Adam Ereli called the statements Tancredo made Friday "insulting and offensive." He said Americans "respect the dignity and sanctity of other religions."Turkish Foreign Minister Abdullah Gul labeled them irresponsible."This was nothing but a fanatic speaking completely personally, irresponsibly...

He believes bombing of Muslim holy sites has been discussedWASHINGTON - The remarks were hypothetical but the outrage was real.Facing mounting criticism, Rep. Tom Tancredo on Monday refused to apologize for suggesting the United States could target Muslim holy sites if radical Islamic terrorists set off multiple nuclear attacks in American cities.

Many people have been burning up the phone lines to the show today, and firing off e-mails, about a radio interview Tom Tancredo did yesterday with WFLA host Pat Campbell. One of the main complaints made against Hugh today has been that Tancredo's comments were not made in context. Here's a link to WFLA's site, where the audio from the original interview is posted. Listen for yourself. Here's the text of what Pat Campbell asked him, and what he said: PC: Now here's the other thing, too, with the possibility of an attack. I had Juval Aviv on the program...

There has been much speculation about what Tom Tancredo said on the now famous interview last Friday on WFLA-AM in Orlando, Fla. From what I am reading here on FR, much of that speculation is wrong. Tancredo was, in fact, suggesting that we consider (not implement, just consider implementing) a strategy similar to the strategy that Reagan used to win the Cold War. Listen for yourself. HERE If you think Tancredo is a nut case, and you don't want to change your thinking, move along, this clip isn't for you. Just post your thoughts without listening.

WASHINGTON: A Republican congressman said in a radio interview aired by a Florida station that if a multiple-city attack happened in the United States in the next 90 days, as predicted by an Israeli expert, and was found to be the work of extremist Muslims, then “we should take out their holy sites.” Congressman Thomas G Tancredo, Republican from Colorado, was being interviewed by AM 540 WFLA radio host Pat Campbell, who asked him what the response of the United States should be were terrorist attacks on US cities to take place and were attributable to extremist Muslims. The Congressman...

WASHINGTON: A Republican congressman said in a radio interview aired by a Florida station that if a multiple-city attack happened in the United States in the next 90 days, as predicted by an Israeli expert, and was found to be the work of extremist Muslims, then “we should take out their holy sites.” Congressman Thomas G Tancredo, Republican from Colorado, was being interviewed by AM 540 WFLA radio host Pat Campbell, who asked him what the response of the United States should be were terrorist attacks on US cities to take place and were attributable to extremist Muslims. The Congressman...

Clarifying remarks from a radio interview that drew praise from some supporters, Rep. Tom Tancredo, R-Colo., said he was not suggesting that the U.S. should nuke the Islamic holy site Mecca as a response to a nuclear homeland attack by al-Qaida. The congressman's press secretary told WorldNetDaily the comments were an off-the-cuff response to a hypothetical situation. "He doesn't believe that we should go out and threaten to bomb anybody's holy city," said spokesman Will Adams. In the interview this morning with Pat Campbell of WFLA radio in Orlando, Tancredo discussed his request for a briefing from the Justice Department...

The Tancredo Blunder Donald Sensing has all the links that really matter on the Tancredo blunder. (HT: StonesCryOut.) Pastor Sensing notes that I corrected the first post to specifically note that Congressman Tancredo talked of "bombing" Mecca, not "nuking" Mecca. The actual audio is available to anyone now at the website for WFLA 540 in Orlando. Note two things. First, Congressman Tancredo said that if we determined that "extremist fundamentalist Muslims" attacked the U.S. with nukes, then we should bomb Mecca. Why, he should be asked, if "extremist fundamentalist" Muslims are guilty would we declare war on all Muslims? Why...

FBI bulletin outlines possible terrorist plot at Texas border BY ALFREDO CORCHADO AND JASON TRAHAN The Dallas Morning News DALLAS - (KRT) - Dirt roads trace pale lines across a desolate landscape of bald peaks and plunging canyons near Texas' Big Bend and bridge the international boundary at dozens of improvised crossings. For decades, these routes have been used to smuggle drugs and humans. Now there is growing concern they could become deadly conduits for terrorism. The concern is buttressed by a confidential but unclassified FBI intelligence bulletin, obtained by The Dallas Morning News, that contains the vague outlines of...

BRITISH police are considering the possibility that the four key suspects in last week's London attacks may have been tricked into setting off their bombs, a newspaper has reported. "We do not have hard evidence that the men were suicide bombers," a Scotland Yard spokesman told The Sunday Telegraph. "It is possible that they did not intend to die." According to the paper, one police hypothesis is that the bombers were tricked by a "master" who told them they would have time to escape - when in fact the devices were set to go off immediately. "The bombers' masters might...

Suicide bomber kills 4 in Turkey Saturday, July 16, 2005 Posted: 1214 GMT (2014 HKT) Bystanders helped remove the passengers from the wreckage. ANKARA, Turkey (AP) -- A bomb blast, likely caused by a female suicide bomber, devastated a minibus Saturday as it headed toward a popular beach in an Aegean Sea resort town, killing four people, including at least two foreign tourists, a police official said. The blast in Kusadasi, 72 kilometers (45 miles) southeast of the port city of Izmir, tore off the bus' roof and sides. News photos showed body parts scattered next to the bus, which...