Free Republic

COPS fear that 25 British-born Muslims are plotting to bomb Western airliners. The fanatics, in five groups, are now training at secret terror camps in Yemen. It was there London-educated Umar Abdulmutallab, 23, prepared for his Christmas Day bid to blow up a US jet. The British extremists in Yemen are in their early 20s and from Bradford, Luton and Leytonstone, East London. They are due to return to the UK early in 2010 and will then await internet instructions from al-Qaeda on when to strike. A Scotland Yard source said: "The great fear is Abdulmutallab is the first of...

If you research the lifestyle of a great percentage of the Yemenize people, you will see promptly a normal activity is go chew "qat" (cat) every afternoon enmasse. This has an aphetamine type effect on the chewer and it is known to have a variety of disabling diseases, such as heart disease. Some drink alcohol with it. It's perfectly legal in their country. That may be why the first "terrorist" was so unemotional during the flight. As long as these people have easy access to all kinds of drugs and use them repeatedly, how can we expect to bring any...

Note: The following text is a quote: FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASES Sunday, December 20, 2009 United States Transfers 12 Guantanamo Bay Detainees to Afghanistan, Yemen and the Somaliland Region Twelve detainees have been transferred from the detention facility at Guantanamo Bay to Afghanistan, Yemen and the Somaliland region. As directed by the President’s Jan. 22, 2009 Executive Order, the interagency Guantanamo Review Task Force conducted a comprehensive review of each of these cases. As a result of that review, which examined a number of factors, including potential threat, mitigation measures and the likelihood of success in habeas litigation, the detainees were...

LEWISTON — In the early evening on the first day of summer, a large group of Somali boys approached a woman on the corner of Ash and Pierce streets. According to police reports, they intimidated the woman and slapped her in the back of the head before scattering into the downtown. Five days later, shortly after midnight, a man was accosted by a group of Somali boys outside the Big Apple on Main Street. Police reports say several members of the group punched the man and took money from him. They then fled in a car. Later that night, a...

The Islamic Circle of North America has been named in "a list of our organizations and the organizations of our friends" by the Muslim Brotherhood, which is bent on waging "a kind of grand Jihad in eliminating and destroying the Western civilization from within and sabotaging its miserable house by their hands and the hands of the believers so that it is eliminated and God's religion is made victorious over all other religions." They say they want to encourage dialogue via these billboards. Great. I'll start. The billboard says that Islam is "the way of life of Adam, Noah, Abraham,...

FBI agents showed up in the Cedar-Riverside neighborhood of Minneapolis on Saturday afternoon to talk with Somali youth, but they weren't behaving like investigators. What unfolded for a few hours inside the Brian Coyle Center was groundbreaking. The agents, young Somali men and women and Somali elders sat on folding chairs and got acquainted with one another without an immediate crime or crisis hanging over their heads. The event marked another step toward mutual understanding in a tense year that has brought federal indictments against 14 local Somali men accused of providing support to terrorists. A key figure at Saturday's...

The senior terrorist operative killed in a drone strike Thursday in Pakistan was a top Al Qaeda planner involved in plotting attacks around the world, a senior U.S. counterterrorism official told Fox News. The official identified the operative as Saleh al-Somali, the network's external operations chief for plots outside Afghanistan and Pakistan, saying there are “strong indications” al-Somali died. "He was engaged in plotting throughout the world, which, given his role, probably included planning attacks against the United States and Europe," the official said. "He took strategic guidance from Al Qaeda’s top leadership and translated it into operational blueprints for...

The Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) is alarmed by what it perceives as growing anti-Muslim sentiment in Minnesota. Prompted by news of racist fliers being posted in St. Cloud and the candidacy of Lynne Torgerson against Rep. Keith Ellison, the group called for religious leaders to repudiate anti-Muslim acts. In a press release Thursday, CAIR quoted from a Minnesota Independent profile of independent candidate Torgerson, noting that her web site says Islam “is not ‘religion’ recognizable under the First Amendment of the United States Constitution.” (She actually states that one “portion” of Islam, a line in the Quran about “slay[ing]...

"We are told by U.S. officials that a high ranking member of Al Qaeda, not Osama Bin Laden, has been killed today by a U.S. Predator Drone attack."

Long feared by US intelligence, Muslim radicalisation is gaining momentum in the United States, which has had a spate of cases featuring youths recruited and trained overseas for jihad. The latest case - five US nationals arrested in Pakistan on Wednesday on suspicion of plotting an attack - deepened concern that militant Islamist groups are successfully enlisting potential attackers inside the United States, much as they have in Britain. (snip) "We've known for several years that al-Qaeda and its allies like Lashkar-e-Taiba have put a high priority on recruiting assets in the Pakistani communities in the United States, and the...

A parcel of land here that sold for $12,000 two years ago now costs more than $20,000. The price of a nice pair of men's shoes has gone up from $20 to $50. The reason: pirates. The influx of millions of dollars in ransoms has changed life in this coastal Muslim community, driving prices up and creating a schism between the pirate haves and have-nots. As piracy ramps up again with the end of the monsoon season, the lifestyle of the pirates _ big houses, fast cars and easy drugs _ is decried by both religious leaders and ordinary villagers....

TERROR THREAT CLIMBS YES, MUSLIMS WANT TO KILL US! thelastcrusade.org The Obama administration, faced with a sharp increase of recent Islamic terrorism cases on American soil, has concluded that the country confronts a rising threat from homegrown extremism.So reports The Los Angeles Times.Anti-terrorism officials and experts see signs of accelerated radicalization among American Muslims, driven by a wave of English-language online propaganda and reflected in trips of American jihadi wannabes to hot spots such as Pakistan and Somalia. In recent years, Europe has become the front line, the target of successive attacks and major plots, while the U.S. has...

As the United States turns its attention to security threats abroad, the disturbing trend of extremism in America’s Somali communities is a reminder that there are also real and present dangers at home. A growing body of evidence suggests that Somali communities in the Unites States have become fertile ground for terrorist groups to recruit and implant operatives. On November 23, the federal government announced eight more indictments of Somali-Americans in Minnesota on charges of recruiting members of their community to join the al-Shabaab terrorist organization in Somalia. This brings to 14 the number of Somalis from Minnesota who have...

Video description - quote: Al-Qaeda Linked "Al Shabaab" Suicide Bomber Kills At Least 19 In Mogadishu **GRAPHIC** December 3, 2009 -Mogadishu - A suicide bomber disguised as a veiled woman killed at least 19 people, including three Somali government ministers, on Thursday at a medical graduation ceremony in a Mogadishu hotel, witnesses and officials said. It was the worst attack in the lawless Horn of Africa nation since June, when hardline al Shabaab insurgents killed the security minister and at least 30 other people in a suicide bombing at a hotel in the town of Baladwayne. he United Nations-backed government...

December 03, 2009 SNIPPET: "But make sure to watch all the way through as we are treated to the jack booted marching bit all underfed ragtag armies use to seem tougher. Then, as a finale, the ever important riding around bareback on a horse while waving a flag thing." SNIPPET: "Thanks to the akhi over at al Quimmah."

The Dutch navy has arrested 13 Somali pirates who attempted to hijack a cargo ship south of Oman. The EU anti-piracy task force Navfor says the cargo ship - called MV BBC Togo - had barbed wire defences and held off an attack by two fast skiffs. The Dutch warship Evertsen later found a dhow with two skiffs fitting the description in the area. A boarding team arrested the pirates, seizing machine guns, rocket-propelled grenades, ladders and grappling hooks. The pirates may be handed over to Kenya or the Seychelles for prosecution, says the Dutch defence ministry. The attack on...

They slipped away quietly, not telling family or friends where they were going or why. Days later, the young Somali men turned up in their homeland to bear arms with Al-Shabaab, a terrorist group linked to Al-Qaida. Counterterrorism officials worried that they might return to carry out an attack on U.S. soil. A year ago, that was the disturbing scenario unfolding in Minneapolis. It spurred the largest federal anti-terrorism investigation since Sept. 11, and investigators spent months connecting the dots to determine who recruited about 20 local Somalis to jihad. Now it's clear that the Twin Cities disappearances were far...

reginaldo writes to clue us that pirates in Somalia have opened up a cooperative in Haradheere, where investors can pay money or guns to help their favorite pirate crew for a share of the piracy profits. "'Four months ago, during the monsoon rains, we decided to set up this stock exchange. We started with 15 "maritime companies" and now we are hosting 72. Ten of them have so far been successful at hijacking,' Mohammed [a wealthy former pirate who took a Reuters reporter to the facility] said. ... Piracy investor Sahra Ibrahim, a 22-year-old divorcee, was lined up with others...

The recruits gather in scorching desert hideouts in Somalia, use portraits of President Barack Obama for target practice, learn how to make and detonate bombs, and vow allegiance to Osama bin Laden. Training camps in the lawless nation of Somalia are attracting hundreds of foreigners, including Americans, and Somalis recruited by a local insurgent group linked to al-Qaida, according to local and U.S. officials. American officials and private analysts say the camps pose a security threat far beyond the borders of Somalia, including to the U.S. homeland. In interviews with The Associated Press, former trainees gave rare details on the...

<p>NAIROBI, Kenya — The EU's anti-piracy force says Somali pirates have seized a super tanker carrying crude oil from Saudi Arabia to the United States.</p>

The recruits gather in scorching desert hideouts in Somalia, use portraits of President Barack Obama for target practice, learn how to make and detonate bombs, and vow allegiance to Osama bin Laden. Training camps in the lawless nation of Somalia are attracting hundreds of foreigners, including Americans, and Somalis recruited by a local insurgent group linked to al-Qaida, according to local and U.S. officials. American officials and private analysts say the camps pose a security threat far beyond the borders of Somalia, including to the U.S. homeland. In interviews with The Associated Press, former trainees gave rare details on the...

Note: The following text is a quote: Terror Charges Unsealed in Minnesota Against Eight Defendants, Justice Department Announces The Justice Department announced that terrorism charges have been unsealed today in the District of Minnesota against eight defendants. According to the charging documents, the offenses include providing financial support to those who traveled to Somalia to fight on behalf of al-Shabaab, a designated foreign terrorist organization; attending terrorist training camps operated by al-Shabaab; and fighting on behalf of al-Shabaab. Thus far, 14 defendants have been charged in the District of Minnesota in indictments or criminal complaints that have been unsealed and...

Federal authorities are expected to announce charges against eight more people today in a long-running investigation into how perhaps dozens of young men from the Minneapolis area were recruited to join an Al Qaeda-linked group in Somalia. It will be the most significant and public move to date in the case. Charges against the eight people will be announced at a joint FBI-U.S. Attorney's Office press conference in Minneapolis on Monday afternoon, a source said. Some, if not all, of the individuals will be charged with providing material support to terrorists, the source said. Many of those charged have already...

A 24-year-old local Somali man was indicted this afternoon in U.S. District Court in Minneapolis on charges of conspiring to provide support to terrorists. Omer Abdi Mohamed, an unemployed employment counselor and father of a two-month-old boy, also was indicted on charges of conspiracy to "kill, kidnap, maim or injure" people in foreign countries. Mohamed, of Minneapolis, is the sixth Somali man with local ties to be charged in connection with a two-year-old federal counterrorism investigation aimed at finding out who recruited up to 20 local men of Somali descent to return to their homeland and train and fight with...

The FBI is worried a group linked to al-Qaeda is training up a new generation of terrorists. They're thought to be targeting young Somali immigrants, radicalising them to carry out attacks on their home country and possibly the US in the future. The grey high rise flats in Cedar-Riverside, Minneapolis, are clustered together and are home to hundreds of Somali immigrants. It's not clear why teenagers like these are giving up their comfortable lives in America and returning to their war torn homeland. But over the past three years, authorities believe 20 young Somali men have gone back to fight...

A group of young, Somali men posted a video of themselves attacking pedestrians and bicyclists in St. Paul. The suspects openly identify themselves in the video, and then attack unknowing victims. None of the victims have reported any of the attacks. St. Paul police is urging victims to step forward, if they recognize themselves in the video. The video, posted by YouTube user "madbi001," has since been removed from the website and the account has been closed. The Midtown Greenway Coalition reported an incident of assault on the Greenway on Sunday, Nov. 15. A bicyclist was riding along the Greenway...

Monday, November 16, 2009 Islamic Extremists Kill Somali Church Leader Thirteenth Christian Assassinated This Year By Jeremy Reynalds Correspondent for ASSIST News Service WASHINGTON, D.C. (ANS) -- A human rights group has learned that members of al-Shabab (a Somali Islamic extremist group) have killed yet another leader of an underground church in the Somalia capital of Mogadishu. Washington-based International Christian Concern (ICC), reported that on Oct. 10, Pastor Ali Hussein Weheliye was returning home from a worship service when two masked members of al-Shabab ambushed and shot him. He was later taken to Darful Shifa Hospital where he died of...

A chemical tanker with a crew of 28 North Koreans has been hijacked by pirates near Somalia, the European Union's naval force says. The MV Theresa VIII, a Singaporean-operated tanker, was taken on Monday in the south Somali Basin, 180 nautical miles north west of the Seychelles. The vessel had been heading for the Kenyan port city of Mombasa, but was diverted north, the naval force said. The EU naval force (Navfor) operates in the region to protect shipping. Somali pirates, using "mother ships" to launch their small-boat attacks on vessels, have extended their range to an area off the...

SNIPPET: ""Moreover, freedom in America is indivisible from the freedom to practice one's religion. That is why there is a mosque in every state in our union, and over 1,200 mosques within our borders. That's why the United States government has gone to court to protect the right of women and girls to wear the hijab and to punish those who would deny it." -- Barack Obama, Cairo, June 4, 2009 But what about the rights of women like this one -- the right not to wear the hijab? Who is standing up for them? "BREAKING NEWS: Somalia Militants Kill...

"Somali jihadists forcing civilians to watch executions" SNIPPET: "Movies and television? No way. Executions? Bring the whole family -- or else! "Somalis 'made to view executions'," by Mary Harper for BBC News, October 25:" SNIPPET: "Hundreds of people in Somalia have been forced to watch Islamist militants executing two people accused of spying. People in Merca said al-Shabaab militia patrolled the town with loudspeakers, demanding they attend the executions. The militants also ordered schools to close for the day as they were keen for children to watch the two men being shot dead by a firing squad. Most of those...

"Harakat Al-shabab Mujahideen vow they will deflect the fighting to Kampala and Bujumbura" Shabelle: SOMALIA SNIPPET: "MOGADISHU (Sh.M. Network) – the Islamist officials of Harakat Al-shabab Mujahideen have Friday talked about yesterday’s shelling in Somali capital Mogadishu and said that they will deflect the fighting in Mogadishu Kampala and Bujumbura." SNIPPET: "The official of Harakat Al-shabab Mujahideen had threatened to the African Union troops reiterating that they will replace the fighting continuing in Mogadishu to the capital cities of Uganda and Burundi."

A hardline Islamist group in Somalia has begun publicly whipping women for wearing bras that they claim violate Islam as they are 'deceptive'. The insurgent group Al Shabaab has sent gunmen into the streets of Mogadishu to round up any women who appear to have a firm bust, residents claimed yesterday. The women are then inspected to see if the firmness is natural, or if it is the result of wearing a bra. If they are found wearing , they are ordered to remove it and shake their breasts, residents said. Al Shabaab, which seeks to impose a strict interpretation...

I am addressing everyone today to introduce myself. I am Lev Davidson, and I would like to invite you to join me in finding a way to stop illegal immigration. How many people out there even know about the overwhelming number of Somalians living in this country? If it wasn't slapping you in the face you would probably not even notice. I have had the misfortune,of moving to a city with the second largest population of Somalians in the U.S.. It is disturbing to say the least and I can only see it getting worse. Something must be done and...

A 26-year-old man has been charged with making false statements to federal officials investigating the disappearance of as many as 20 Somali men from Minnesota. Abdow M. Abdow, a U.S. citizen of Somali descent, was arrested Friday and made his first appearance Tuesday in federal court in St. Paul. FBI spokesman E.K. Wilson says Abdow's case is related to the investigation of the missing men, who are thought to have gone to join a terrorist group fighting in their homeland.

ARAR – Border Guards detained six Somalis – three males and three females – as they attempted to enter Iraqi territory on foot from the Kingdom Friday. The official spokesman of the Border Guards directorate-general, Lt. Col. Salim Bin Saleh Al-Salmi, said the six were in the Kingdom in violation of residency and labor laws. The foiled attempt to slip into Iraq was seemingly a new tactic, possibly being tested for the first time. “The six Somalis tried to get into Iraq using broad daylight as camouflage,” Lt. Col. Al-Salmi said. “Investigations are continuing to ascertain whether they are on...

Al Shabaab extremists shoot 69-year-old after finding Bibles on him at checkpoint. NAIROBI, Kenya, September 18 (CDN) - The faith journey of a long-time underground Christian in Somalia ended in tragedy this week when Islamic militants controlling a security checkpoint killed him after finding Bibles in his possession. Militants from the Muslim extremist al Shabaab killed 69-year-old Omar Khalafe on Tuesday (Sept. 15) at a checkpoint they controlled 10 kilometers from Merca, a Christian source told Compass. A port city on the Indian Ocean 70 kilometers (45 miles) from Mogadishu, Merca is the main city of the Lower Shabele region....

Your Taxi Driver Might Be A Terrorist!!! Somali Americans Become National Security Problem!!! By Paul L. Williams, Ph.D. thelastcrusade.org A group affiliated with al Qaeda could strike the United States in the near future. That’s grim assessment of FBI Director Robert Mueller, who spoke this week at a meeting of the Senate Homeland Security Committee. Mueller’s remarks represent the first time a senior law enforcement or intelligence official has stated on the record that the al-Shabaab, a Muslim terrorist group with ties to al Qaeda, is no longer content to strike within the East African nation of Somalia. During...

Forget Lions and Tigers The Latest in Big Game thelastcrusade.org Somalia (MNN) ― Somalia's Muslim militants are hunting down converts to Christianity. According to Voice of the Martyrs Canada, Al-Shabaab members have murdered 14 believers since July 15. Compass Direct News reports the September 15 shooting death of 69-year-old Omar Khalafe, an underground Christian who had Bibles in his possession.On the day of his death, Khalafe was carrying 25 Somali Bibles he hoped to deliver to an underground fellowship in Somalia. At a checkpoint controlled by al Shabaab--a rebel group linked with al Qaeda which has taken over large...

An Australian naval ship has thwarted an attack on a merchant vessel in the Gulf of Aden, off the coast of Yemen, by suspected Somali pirates armed with a rocket propelled grenade launcher. The HMAS Toowoomba answered an emergency call from merchant vessel BBC Portugal after it sighted an armed boat approaching on Sept. 20, Australia's Department of Defence said today in a faxed statement. Along with the grenade launcher, staff from the Toowoomba found six AK47 assault rifles, a G3 assault rifle and a large quantity of ammunition. Somali pirates venturing out to sea as monsoon winds abate are...

The prosecution of a Somali teenager accused of leading a pirate attack on an American cargo ship off the coast of Africa was taken off the fast track Thursday after a lawyer said more time will be needed to translate some Somali recordings into English. Abdiwali Abdiqadir Muse appeared briefly in U.S. District Court in Manhattan, where he was brought after his arrest aboard the U.S.-flagged Maersk Alabama in April. Authorities say Muse was the only surviving pirate of a group that he led in an attack off the coast of Africa on the cargo ship, which was carrying humanitarian...

Terrorism: At a time when the public is losing heart on the war in Afghanistan, a decisive strike on Somalia's al-Qaida chief Monday reminds us that victory is possible and President Obama is an able leader on this front.Ten days ago, Obama signed an executive order authorizing U.S. special forces to hunt down and blow away Saleh Ali Saleh Nabhan, a ruthless Kenyan-born terrorist operating out of Somalia. In 1998, Nabhan had a role in the bombing of the U.S. Embassy in Nairobi, Kenya, which left 212 dead, including 12 Americans. The attack was so vicious, it put Osama bin...

MOMBASA, Kenya — The mother of a top al-Qaida fugitive who was killed in a U.S. raid in Somalia demanded today to see her son's body while a Somalia-based group claimed him as their leader and confirmed his death. Saleh Ali Saleh Nabhan, a 30-year-old Kenyan, was wanted for the 2002 car bombing of a beach resort in Kenya and a failed attempt to shoot down an Israeli airliner. Three senior U.S. officials familiar with Monday's commando raid confirmed he was killed. Aisha Abdallah told the Associated Press she wants "to see the body of my son before it is...

Tension is growing within the Minneapolis Somali community as it awaits the next indictments in the federal probe of the disappearances of young men who became fighters in their homeland's ongoing warfare. So far, three Somali men have pleaded guilty to terrorism-related charges. Now several others -- who either know the men or were considering returning to their homeland to fight for a terrorist group -- are waiting to learn whether they, too, have been targeted by federal investigators. Stephen L. Smith, a Minneapolis attorney who has counseled up to 20 local Somalis questioned by federal agents over the past...

A fifth Somali man from Minneapolis apparently has been killed in his war-ravaged homeland, a relative said Friday. Mohamoud Hassan, a 23-year-old former engineering student at the University of Minnesota, reportedly died in the past day or two. "It's real bad news," Hassan's uncle said Friday night. "But that is what happened." The uncle, who did not want to be identified, said he didn't know when Hassan was killed, but added that "it's very recent. Today or last night." The circumstances of Hassan's death were not immediately known. Abdirizak Bihi, a community activist who visited with Hassan's grandmother on Friday,...

Authorities have confirmed the first case of alleged Pakistani involvement with Somali pirates in a revelation that has raised concerns here about a possible link between piracy and suspected terrorist groups. On April 28, a Russian warship apprehended 12 Pak nationals — along with Somali pirates — for attempting to attack a tanker off Somalia’s coast. An investigation, sources said, pointed to Pak nationals having played a 'lead' role. Their nationality was confirmed through identity cards and “evidence” was handed over on May 8 to MSS Rehmat, a Pakistan Maritime Security Agency ship, 12 miles of Gwadar. It’s being examined...

A plan to create what could become the first recreation center in the country designed to comply with Muslim religious beliefs is gaining steam in the Twin Cities. The proposal for a $48 million Muslim Youth and Recreation Center comes from Somali Youth Action of Minnesota, a new nonprofit organization working to reduce youth violence. Early sketches of the project reveal separate swimming pools for men and women, separate exercise rooms, an indoor soccer field and a large multi-purpose room for weddings and other events. The group hasn't purchased land for the proposed center and is just starting to form...

A young Somali man from the Twin Cities pleaded guilty this afternoon in U.S. District Court to lying to federal agents investigating the recruitment of up to 20 Somali Americans over the past two years to fight with a known terrorist group in their war-torn homeland. Kamal Said Hassan, 24, left Minneapolis for Somalia to train and fight with al-Shabaab, a Somali Islamist group that has been identified by the U.S. State Department as a terrorist organization with ties to al-Qaida. Hassan returned to the U.S. last winter, apparently after having a change of heart about the mission, several Somali...

A prominent Minneapolis Somali community leader said Tuesday that he believes the recruitment of young Somali-Americans from the Twin Cities to fight jihad in their homeland has slowed or stopped. Speaking at a workshop to address the issue, Saeed Fahia, executive director of the Confederation of Somali Communities of Minnesota, said the radicalization of Somali youth here is "over." The combination of worldwide media and law enforcement scrutiny, coupled with greater vigilance by parents, has caused the recruiting pipeline here to dry up, he said. "It's come to a halt. People felt this has gone too far," Fahia said. "And...

Overnight gun-battles between rival clans in a pirate stronghold on the coast of Somalia have left at least 17 dead and 30 injured, reports say. Local residents in Haradheere fled as fighting, reportedly over land and the alleged rape of a woman, intensified. Pirates who operate in the area, a port off the shipping lanes linking Europe to Asia, said they were worried the conflict could affect their activities. Somalia, torn by civil war since 1991, lacks an effective central government. "The two clans are fighting over land and a girl who was raped in the forest," a local man,...

Hundreds of police swooped on suspected terrorists in Melbourne early today amid fears suicide attacks were about to be launched on army bases in Australia. Police from around the country were quietly moved to Melbourne before launching their raids on homes in at least seven suburbs. Several men of Somali and Lebanese backgrounds were arrested and were expected to appear in court later on terrorism-related charges. Plot uncovered: A hooded terror suspect is driven to Melbourne police headquarters this morning Police sources said it would be claimed the men were planning to attack a barracks in western Sydney and other...