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Stars and Stripes Forever? Or will the Hammer and Sickle fly triumphantly over American Soil? Be aware. Be wary. Understand what you are seeing and do not allow yourselves to become complacent. The country you save may be your own.

Al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP) is growing and security experts believe it now poses the greatest danger to the West. Based in Yemen, the terrorist group is believed to number about 1,000 members, up from an estimated 200 a few years ago. It is led by Nasir al-Wuhayshi, a former aide to al-Qaeda’s late founder Osama bin Laden. AQAP has claimed responsibility for several attacks, including an attempt to blow up a U.S. commercial airliner on Christmas Day in 2009. The group is also at the heart of the latest security alert that saw the U.S. close embassies and...

t wasn’t just any terrorist message that triggered U.S. terror alerts and embassy closures—but a conference call of more than 20 far-flung al Qaeda operatives, Eli Lake and Josh Rogin report. The crucial intercept that prompted the U.S. government to close embassies in 22 countries was a conference call between al Qaeda’s senior leaders and representatives of several of the group’s affiliates throughout the region. snip Several news outlets reported Monday on an intercepted communication last week between Zawahiri and Nasser al-Wuhayshi, the leader of al Qaeda’s affiliate based in Yemen. But The Daily Beast has learned that the discussion...

The US State Department has ordered citizens and non-emergency government staff to leave Yemen "immediately" due to security threats. --SNIP-- The BBC's Abdullah Ghorab, in Sanaa, says the Yemeni capital has been experiencing unprecedented security measures, with hundreds of armoured military vehicles deployed to secure the presidential palace, vital infrastructural buildings and Westerns embassies in the capital. Our correspondent says that a security source confirmed Yemeni intelligence services had discovered that tens of al-Qaeda members had arrived in Sanaa over the past few days from other regions in preparation for the implementation of a large plot. The source described the...

August 5, 2013 Terror Threat Intelligence Not New Agencies knew of threat to embassies, officials for months Bill Gertz Intelligence regarding al Qaeda plans to attack U.S. embassies, officials, and interests last Sunday was known for months by U.S. intelligence agencies but was used only recently to trigger the closure of embassies and issuance of public warnings of impending attacks. Al Qaeda “chatter” about coming terrorist operations, mainly against 22 U.S. embassies and consulates, and threats to attack or bomb officials in the Middle East and elsewhere was widely reported in classified intelligence reports over several months. The report said...

SNIPPET: "New York City is the center of a public uproar as Internet blogger Pamela Gellar rises with an “anti-jihad” ad campaign." SNIPPET: "Gellar and her group are protesting the Jihad, which in definition is the religious duty of Muslims. According to the Dictionary of Islam, jihad is defined as “A religious war with those who are unbelievers in the mission of Muhammad . . . enjoined especially for the purpose of advancing Islam and repelling evil from Muslims.” The literal meaning of jihad, according to the British Broadcasting Network, “is struggle or effort, and it means much more than...

SNIPPET: "Abu Baseer al-Wuhayshi, the leader of al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP), encouraged support for Anwar al-Awlaki in an audio message..." SNIPPET: "AQAP threatens attacks in US if any harm comes to Awlaki."