Friday, May 3, 2013
The top 10 ObamaLeaks John Brennan needs to explain
Marc Thiessen | February 6, 2013, 10:40 am
Photo Credit: The White House/Pete Souza
Photo Credit: The White House/Pete Souza
When John Brennan appears for his confirmation hearing as the next CIA director tomorrow, he needs to explain to the Senate these ten major leaks of classified national security information from the Obama administration — including the strange timing of most of these disclosures.
EXPOSURE OF US-ISRAELI ROLE IN “STUXNET” ATTACK ON IRAN. On June 1, 2012, the New York Times reported that “President Obama secretly ordered increasingly sophisticated attacks on the computer systems that run Iran’s main nuclear enrichment facilities.” The story exposed the top secret codename for the program (“Olympic Games”) and the involvement of Israel, a US ally. At one point in the story, the Times directly quotes one of the president’s briefers telling him, “We think there was a modification done by the Israelis,” adding, “Mr. Obama, according to officials in the room, asked a series of questions, fearful that the code could do damage outside the plant. The answers came back in hedged terms. Mr. Biden fumed, ‘It’s got to be the Israelis,’ he said. ‘They went too far’” (emphasis added). In other words, it was leaked by someone “in the room” when the president was briefed on this cover action program.
EXPOSURE OF US-ISRAELI ROLE IN DEVELOPING “FLAME” VIRUS TO SPY ON IRAN NUCLEAR PROGRAM. In addition to the leak to the Times about the Stuxnet virus, a second leak to the Washington Post revealed on June 19, 2012 that the “United States and Israel jointly developed a sophisticated computer virus nicknamed Flame that collected intelligence in preparation for cyber-sabotage aimed at slowing Iran’s ability to develop a nuclear weapon, according to Western officials with knowledge of the effort.”
EXPOSURE OF SAUDI DOUBLE AGENT IN YEMEN. On May 8, 2012, a leak to the Associated Press revealed the role played by a double agent, recruited in London by British intelligence, in breaking up a new underwear bomb plot in Yemen. As a result of this disclosure, the double agent had to be extracted. The leak is being investigated by the Justice Department.
EXPOSURE OF SPECIAL OPERATIONS ACTIVITIES AGAINST AL-QAEDA IN AFRICA. On June 13, 2012, the Washington Post reported: “The U.S. military is expanding its secret intelligence operations across Africa, establishing a network of small air bases to spy on terrorist hideouts from the fringes of the Sahara to jungle terrain along the equator, according to documents and people involved in the project.” The article exposed that “Under a classified surveillance program code-named Creek Sand, dozens of U.S. personnel and contractors have come to [Burkina Faso] in recent years to establish a small air base on the military side of the international airport.” The Burkina Faso foreign minister, caught by surprise by the leak, is quoted as pleading “This cooperation should be very, very discreet. We should not show to al-Qaeda that we are now working with the Americans.” Too late.
EXPOSURE OF SECRET ISRAELI BASING AGREEMENT WITH AZERBAIJAN. On March 28, 2012, a leak to Foreign Policy magazine described how “four senior diplomats and military intelligence officers say that the United States has concluded that Israel has recently been granted access to airbases on Iran’s northern border” which could be used in a raid on Iran’s nuclear program. ABC News reported that Israelis believed the Obama administration was “leaking information to pressure Israel not to bomb Iran.”
EXPOSURE OF CIA TEAMS IN TURKEY HELPING TO DIRECT AID TO ANTI-ASSAD RESISTANCE. On June 21, 2012, a leak to the New York Times exposed the fact that “A small number of CIA officers are operating secretly in southern Turkey, helping allies decide which Syrian opposition fighters across the border will receive arms to fight the Syrian government.”
EXPOSURE OF COVERT ACTION “FINDING” TO ASSIST THE SYRIAN REBELS. A separate leak to Reuters on August 1, 2012 exposed the fact that “President Barack Obama has signed a secret order authorizing U.S. support for rebels seeking to depose Syrian President Bashar al-Assad and his government.” The same information was provided to CNN, which reported, “President Barack Obama has signed a covert directive authorizing U.S. support for Syrian rebels battling President Bashar al-Assad’s forces, U.S. officials told CNN on Wednesday.” (Both stories refer to a Top Secret written “finding” required by law for the president to authorize a covert action “where it is intended that the role of the United States Government will not be apparent or acknowledged publicly.”)
EXPOSURE THAT THE US WAS CONSIDERING JOINT US-AFGHAN SPECIAL OPERATIONS RAIDS INTO PAKISTAN. On June 22, 2012, a leak to the Associated Press exposed the fact that the US was considering launching secret joint US-Afghan commando raids into Pakistan against the Haqqani network.
EXPOSURE OF OBAMA DRONE “KILL LIST.” On May 29, 2012, “three dozen” Obama advisers described for the New York Times intelligence methods and President Obama’s direct participation in the development of a “secret kill list” of terrorists targeted as part of the covert drone campaign against al-Qaeda.
EXPOSURE OF SECRET OPERATIONAL DETAILS OF THE BIN LADEN RAID. And, of course, there were the serial disclosures of classified operational details of the raid that killed Osama bin Laden — which prompted then-Secretary of Defense Robert Gates to visit Obama National Security Adviser Tom Donilon in the West Wing and advise the White House to “shut the [expletive] up.”
See a pattern here? Look at the dates of these leaks:
March 28, 2012
May 8, 2012
May 29, 2012
June 1, 2012
June 13, 2012
June 19, 2012
June 21, 2012
June 22, 2012
August 1, 2012
With the exception of the bin Laden leaks (which began in May 2011) and the exposure of the Israeli basing agreement with Azerbaijan (March 2012), every one of these leaks occurred over a three-month period between May and August of 2012. Six of the most egregious ones took place in just a 25-day period in May/June 2012. All came in the midst of President Obama’s re-election campaign, when he was aggressively making the case for his national security leadership in the war on terror.
Coincidence? Not likely.
Brennan should be asked explain this strange confluence of events. He should be asked whether he has been questioned in the investigations into any of these leaks. He should be asked to provide the intelligence committee with a list of everyone who was “in the room” when the presidential briefing on Stuxnet, which was quoted by the Times, took place. He should be asked who else has been questioned, and whether any senior Obama aides have been told they are the targets of an investigation. He should be asked why so many of these leaks took place in a brief period in the midst of a presidential campaign.
UPDATE: Better make that the top 11 ObamaLeaks Brennan needs to answer for.
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Tags: Afghanistan, Al Qaeda, CIA, drones, Iran, Israel, John Brennan, Obama administration, ObamaLeaks, Osama bin Laden, Pakistan, Saudi Arabia, Syria, Turkey, Yemen
Chicago Law Prof on Obama: "The Professors Hated Him because he was Lazy, Unqualified & Never Attended any of the Faculty Meetings"
Posted by Jim Hoft on Wednesday, March 31, 2010, 10:13 PM
Doug Ross reported this and more:
I spent some time with the highest tenured faculty member at Chicago Law a few months back, and he did not have many nice things to say about “Barry.” Obama applied for a position as an adjunct and wasn’t even considered. A few weeks later the law school got a phone call from the Board of Trustees telling them to find him an office, put him on the payroll, and give him a class to teach. The Board told him he didn’t have to be a member of the faculty, but they needed to give him a temporary position. He was never a professor and was hardly an adjunct.This photo of Barack Obama teaching in Chicago was posted in February 2008 at PrestoPundit. In this class Barack Obama was teaching his students the principles of Saul Alinsky. Notice the flow chart indicating the flow of money and power out of productive businesses (“CORP”) and into the political class (“MAYOR”):
The other professors hated him because he was lazy, unqualified, never attended any of the faculty meetings, and it was clear that the position was nothing more than a political stepping stool. According to my professor friend, he had the lowest intellectual capacity in the building. He also doubted whether he was legitimately an editor on the Harvard Law Review, because if he was, he would be the first and only editor of an Ivy League law review to never be published while in school (publication is or was a requirement).
The heading at the top reads “POWER ANALYSIS”. The sub-heading reads “RELATIONSHIPS BUILD ON SELF INTEREST”. The symbol on the arrow between “CORP” and “MAYOR” is the “$” sign.
Saul Alinsky came up with the idea of power analysis, which looks at relationships built on self-interest between corporations, banks and utilities. Barack Obama was teaching students in Chicago the Alinsky Principles.
Of course, this is not a surprise. After watching the bribes, kickbacks, lies and threats this past year as Democrats fought to take over the health care industry, it’s obvious that the only subject Obama excels at is Alinsky’s Rules For Radicals.
More… Isn’t it a bit odd that the only photo we’ve seen of Obama teaching, he’s explaining the Alinsky principles?
Obama continues the secret US war on whistleblowers
Photo: AFP
US President Obama has continued not only Bush wars and policies, but has continued and expanded the Bush war on whistleblowers, the last hope for many that the truth may prevail. In a sane world if one were to witness a crime or some other clearly egregious or amoral conduct, one would think that one could report it and the guilty would be dealt with, however we do not live in a sane world. For whistleblowers this is the initial dilemma, but due to their consciences or their belief in a higher morality they decide to blow the whistle, almost always knowing that they will suffer for it. Whistleblowers are heroes who risk everything to get the truth out, something which should be rewarded, in a sane world that is.
“Assange,” it is the first word that most
people think about when they hear the word “whistleblower” but this
association is in fact a slightly disingenuous one. Although the making
of the surname of the co-founder of the WikiLeaks organization a
household name worldwide by the global media has done a lot to focus on
the case of WikiLeaks and has helped to keep Julian Assange alive, it
has done little to help the plight of whistleblowers worldwide.
WikiLeaks
and Julian Assange are technically not really whistleblowers
themselves, they are something much worse and I will tell you why in a
minute. What the WikiLeaks organization did was far more insidious than
what any whistleblower could do; they provided an anonymous platform for
whistleblowers who had nowhere else to turn. They gave whistleblowers a
place to at least try to get the truth out, something that is usually
the domain of the Fourth Estate, which has proven since the Bush years
to be incapable or unwilling to go against the government line and to
expose malfeasance and crimes by officials, no matter how egregious.
Why
is WikiLeaks insidious and evil? They of course are not! I say that
from the point of view of the U.S. Government and the Obama
Administration. If you doubt for one instant that the criminals in
Washington are afraid of the truth all you have to do is look at the
reaction to WikiLeaks and the persecution of Mr. Assange and everyone
else connected to WikiLeaks.
The way they have used
almost every method known to man to try to shut down WikiLeaks is a true
real and damning testament not to the “evil” of WikiLeaks but to the
evil of the criminals in Washington hiding in the dark, behind cloaks of
secrecy and the all encompassing mien of “national security.”
The
“case” against Julian Assange (I used the term case which is for lack
of a better word as there is no “case” against him, there are trumped up
“allegations” of a sexual nature involving a ruptured condom but no
official complaint or criminal charges) and WikiLeaks has done perhaps
what it was designed to do and has detracted from the mission of
WikiLeaks by taking the focus away from the actual leaks and putting it
on the leakers. This has been voiced by WikiLeaks principals, by the
Anonymous collective, whistleblower advocates and proponents of
transparency regarding the fabricated Swedish claims and the U.S.
persecution of Julian.
WikiLeaks and Julian Assange are
very fortunate as they have been able to weather the storm, a fact that
must be repeated and respected, as they have survived an all out
sustained and prolonged assault by the full force of the U.S. Government
and all its mechanisms, and have managed to survive. Albeit for Julian,
being forced to seek refuge in an embassy and be deprived of his
freedom may be wanting, he has managed to stay alive and out of the
claws of the U.S. police state.
Their survival is due in
a large part to the media coverage the charismatic Assange has managed
to maintain but for whistleblowers like Bradley Manning and others, fate
has not been so kind. Whistleblowers are usually marginalized, their
reputations are destroyed, many are imprisoned, lose their jobs or have
outright “accidents” leading to their deaths. This is not an
exaggeration but a documented fact.
The motivations of
whistleblowers may be different but the attempt to correct wrongs, for
whatever reason is a noble act and should be rewarded and applauded, in a
sane world this would be the case. What we see now, and I am writing
about the U.S. but this applies to other countries as well, in
particular U.S. lapdogs like the U.K., Australia, Canada, and others, is
that these brave and upstanding individuals are demonized and the very
criminals they are attempting to expose are protected and rewarded. The
hypocrisy and reversal of logic is mind boggling and leaves one gasping
in disbelief.
Currently the Obama Administration is carrying out a shameful and, according to Bill Moyers dot com,
“… unprecedented campaign against whistleblowers, particularly on those
who have divulged information that relates to national security.” Of
course one cannot say shameful or disgraceful or criminally negligent on
U.S. media when referring to the “imperial Executive,” but I think all
of these words apply, and others as well.
Whistleblowers
are individuals who may see criminal activity, waste, violations of
regulations or unethical, immoral or other egregious behavior and
attempt to correct these wrongs but are then demonized by the very
system they are trying to bring in line with what is acceptable, moral
and legal. A system that goes after these individuals, by doing so
proves itself to be either criminally corrupt, morally bankrupt, guilty
as sin or all of the three. In the case of the U.S. this goes all the
way to the Oval office as it has since the Bush coup and the creation of
the all powerful imperial executive.
Moyers and
Company and two of their weriters, John Light and Laureen Sweeney, have
done what most in the U.S. toe-the-line-mass-media have feared to do and
have been negligent in doing, and have reported on six individual
whistleblowers and their plights and theie stories deserve attention and
they must all be applauded and rewarded. These are individuals who
followed their conscience, like Bradley Manning, and have had to pay a
high price for their morality.
The Obama
Administration, following in the footsteps of the first imperial U.S.
president George Bush, has gone after these persons using the Espionage
Act, an archaic law which had only been used three times in U.S. history
until Obama was placed in office. Obama has used it six times against
six individuals.
Citing Moyers and Company, these six
are: Thomas Drake a former senior executive at the U.S. National
Security Agency who was charged under the Espionage Act. He attempted to
report government waste on an NSA program called Trailblazer, which
cost $1.2 billion and one called ThinThread which cost $3 million. He
decided to blow the whistle on waste when the Bush administration began
the illegal warrantless surveillance of American citizens, something he
could not do anything about but which he disagreed with. According to
Moyers he initially faced up to 35 years in prison but eventually
pleaded guilty to a misdemeanor.
2: Stephen Jin-Woo
Kim, a specialist in nuclear proliferation who worked as a contractor
for the U.S. State Department. He made a statement about a North Korean
nuclear test to the U.S. media, in a usual conversation between expert
and press, and was indicted by a Federal Grand Jury, but the case has
not yet been brought to trial.
3: John Kiriakou, was a
CIA agent who followed his conscience when it came to the illegal
interrogation methods and torture that was being carried out by the U.S.
and was sentenced to two and a half years in prison for giving
journalists the names of two former colleagues who tortured detainees.
4:
Shamai K. Leibowitz, who was an FBI Hebrew translator and was worried
that Israel would take the disastrous step of bombing nuclear facilities
Iran. His leak of a wire tap to a blogger cost him 20 months in prison.
5:
Bradley Manning who believe the American public had the right to know
of the crimes being committed by the U.S. in Afghanistan and Iraq. He
leaked documents and videos to Wikileaks. Myers wrote: “A military judge
ruled earlier this month that for Manning to be convicted under the
Espionage Act, the prosecution would have to prove that Manning had
‘reason to believe’ that the files could be used to harm the U.S. or to
aid a foreign power.”
6: Jeffrey Sterling was a CIA
officer who was privy to the details of a plan to derail plans Iran may
have had in building a nuclear bomb. He is cited as a source who
believed that a U.S. plan to sabotage Iran’s nuclear operations may have
in fact brought Iran closer to developing a nuclear weapon. Sterling
has maintained his innocence and the U.S. Justice Department says it has
effectively terminated the case.
These are
unfortunately just some cases which are being prosecuted under the
Espionage Act. The U.S. has myriad ways to deal with whistleblowers,
including outright assassination. There are many different areas where
whistleblowers have attempted to get the truth out and the people behind
the cases are as varied as the information. Sadly the result for most
is violent opposition by the authorities and unjust persecution.
Cases
of whistleblowers and truth proponents being persecuted are too many to
go into here and the sad part is that there are many people who we will
never know about, and who paid the ultimate price.
Of
the loud cases the Valerie Plame affair comes to mind, where CIA Agent
Controller Plame was burned by the New York Times and Karl Rove, leading
to the deaths of possibly hundreds of her previous agents worldwide.
Her husband was a diplomat who was against one of the false pretexts for
invading Iraq.
Then there are thousands of others
including: Daniel Ellsburg and Anthony Russo (Pentagon Papers), W. Mark
Felt (Deepthroat/Nixon), A. Ernest Fitzgerald (Cost overruns/Nixon),
Gregory C. Minor, Richard B. Hubbard, and Dale G. Bridenbaugh (nuclear
power plant flaws), Mordechai Vanunu (Israeli Nuclear Program, 17 years
in prison 11 in solitary confinement), Frederic Whitehurst (FBI
whistleblower), Gary Webb (CIA, Iran Contra, Drug funding) shot twice in
the head, Jesselyn Radack (John Walker Lindh), Katharine Gun (GCHQ Iraq
invasion crimes), Joseph Wilson (Plame Affair, Iraq invasion lies),
Richard Convertino (lack of Bush Administration support in prosecuting
terrorists), Joe Darby (Abu Ghraib), Sibel Edmonds (FBI post 9-11
issues), Bunnatine "Bunny" H. Greenhouse (Halliburton war profiteering),
Mark Klein (NSA illegal surveillance), Karen Kwiatkowski (USAF Iraq
lies), William Sanjour (EPA), Russ Tice (NSA, CIA, DIA), and Linda Tripp
(Clinton).
Then there are those who had knowledge of 9-11 who have been killed:
Barry Jennings, Beverly Eckert, Kenneth Johanneman, Michael H. Doran,
Christopher Landis, Paul Smith, Deborah Palfrey, Major General David
Wherley, Salvatore Princiotta, David Graham, Prasanna Kalahasthi, Wendy
Burlingame, Katherine Smith, Daniel Pearl, Benazir Bhutto, William
Cooper, Michael Zebuhr, Hunter S Thompson, Dan Wallace, Michael Connell
(Bush vote fraud, dead), and then you can add the thousands killed over
the Kennedy assassination and the list goes on and on.
When
writing this I remembered a strange event that happened to me in
Mexico. I met an American woman there who had been living there since
after the Kennedy assassination and she told me a story how a woman ran
up to her house one night and was pounding on the door saying killers
were after her. The woman and her husband let her in and proceeded to
listen to the woman telling a story about how she had witnessed where
the shooting came from during the Kennedy assassination. The couple
thought she was insane but humored her and drove her as far from the
town as they could. The next morning it was reported by the local press
that an unknown woman had been found shot to death in a ditch. The
woman’s husband soon after died mysteriously and she ran to Mexico. I
thought it sounded like a stretch but today I doubt it was.
That
is the problem with government secrecy and the way they marginalize
whistleblowers, people don’t believe you if you talk against those in
power, they either think you are crazy or making things up, then when
you are suicide or killed, it is a coincidence. My own whistleblowing
case in the US which involved hundreds of thousands of dollars in
federal money being stolen by local officials and the murder of a man in
prison ended with the same office I complained to a grand jury against
destroying my life. Unfortunately for me, like many of the people listed
above, no one wanted to listen.
Will the criminals in
power use every instrument they can to get truth seekers? Sure they
will, and do. Will they kill to keep their crimes secret? You bet. Just
ask Julian Assange, credited with being the most prolific whistleblower
in history with a reported 1.2 million individual leaks to his credit.
May
all of these heroes be remembered and honored, for that is what
whistleblowers are, true heroes and of a higher morality than those
around them who would extinguish the light of truth to continue their
nefarious activities in the dark.
The views and opinions expressed here are my own. I can be reached at robles@ruvr.ru.
Al-Qaeda’s Big Fat Iranian Wedding
America’s top spy says the world’s leading sponsor of terrorism and the world’s most infamous terrorist organization are married.
The
Bush administration waged what it called a Global War on Terrorism. Yet
against Iran, the world’s leading sponsor of terrorism, no serious
actions were ever taken. President Obama is waging what he calls
a “war against al-Qaeda and its affiliates.” Yet he and his advisers
are reluctant to articulate what has become indisputable: Iran and
al-Qaeda are affiliated.
Senior Obama officials have come closer to calling a spade a spade: Last week, Director of National Intelligence James Clapper described the relationship between Iran and al-Qaeda as a “longstanding . . . marriage.” But you had to listen carefully to hear him say that.
“Iran has harbored al-Qaeda leaders, facilitators,” Clapper told
a hearing of the Senate Armed Services Committee. They have been “under
house-arrest conditions. [Iran’s rulers] have had this sort of standoff
arrangement with al-Qaeda, allowing [al-Qaeda] to exist [inside Iran],
but not to foment any operations directly from Iran, because they’re
very sensitive about, ‘Hey, we might come after them there as
well.’ . . . So there has been this longstanding, as I say, kind of,
shotgun marriage, or marriage of convenience. I think, probably, the
Iranians may think that they might use, perhaps, al-Qaeda in the future
as a surrogate or proxy.”Not quite a model of analytic clarity but,
as I said, at least it approaches reality (and do note the cryptic
warning about Iran deploying al-Qaeda terrorists down the road — more
about that in a moment). Also last week: The U.S. Treasury Department designated
the Iranian Ministry of Intelligence and Security (MOIS) — which it
described as “Iran’s primary intelligence organization” — as a sponsor
of terrorism. And among the terrorist groups Treasury said MOIS
supports: al-Qaeda. The forms this support has taken: facilitating the
movement of al-Qaeda operatives in Iran; providing al-Qaeda members
“with documents, identification cards, and passports”; and providing
both “money and weapons” to al-Qaeda terrorists in Iraq.
Michael Ledeen and Thomas Joscelyn, my colleagues at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies, have for years been connecting the dots between Iran and al-Qaeda. Former CIA director James Woolsey, now FDD’s chairman, also has long argued that Islamist terrorists, despite their theological and ideological differences, can and do engage in “joint ventures” to accomplish common goals.
Joscelyn has extensively researched this relationship. Back in 2007, he wrote: “No fallacy today is more misguided or more dangerous than the widespread belief that Iran, the world’s premier state sponsor of terrorism, and al-Qaeda are not allies in the terrorists’ war against the West. A corollary myth holds that Hezbollah — Iran’s terrorist proxy and the ‘A-team’ of international terrorist organizations — has also not allied itself with al-Qaeda.”
The terrorist attack that killed 19 Americans at Khobar Towers in 1996 was most likely an Iranian–al-Qaeda joint venture. But the Clinton administration chose to shut down FBI investigators in the belief — misguided but widespread at the time — that more moderate Iranians were coming to power in Tehran and that publicly revealing the Iranian role would impede diplomatic efforts.
Iran also has been implicated in al-Qaeda’s 1998 bombing of America’s embassies in Nairobi and Dar es Salaam. When federal prosecutors indicted al-Qaeda members that same year, they specifically noted that al-Qaeda had forged alliances with “representatives of the government of Iran, and its associated terrorist group Hezbollah, for the purpose of working together against their perceived common enemies in the West, particularly the United States.” And in November of last year, a Washington, D.C., court found that Iran had provided training for the al-Qaeda terrorists at Hezbollah camps in southern Lebanon. The court stated unequivocally that the “government of the Islamic Republic of Iran . . . has a long history of providing material aid and support to terrorist organizations including al Qaeda.”
What about the attacks on New York and Washington three years later? The 9/11 commissioners said they “found no evidence that Iran or Hezbollah was aware of the planning for what later became the 9/11 attack.” However, intelligence obtained by 9/11-commission staffers just before the release of their report — too late for serious examination — showed what Joscelyn called “suspicious flights taken by the muscle hijackers. Some of the flights were routed through Lebanon, where Hezbollah is based and controls the airport. Interestingly, most of the muscle hijackers also transited through Iran en route to the United States.” The commissioners wrote: “We believe this topic requires further investigation by the U.S. government.” Such investigations have not been conducted — or, if they were, their conclusions have never been made public.
America’s top spy says the world’s leading sponsor of terrorism and the world’s most infamous terrorist organization are married.
Director of National Intelligence James Clapper
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Clifford D. May 
Senior Obama officials have come closer to calling a spade a spade: Last week, Director of National Intelligence James Clapper described the relationship between Iran and al-Qaeda as a “longstanding . . . marriage.” But you had to listen carefully to hear him say that.
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Michael Ledeen and Thomas Joscelyn, my colleagues at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies, have for years been connecting the dots between Iran and al-Qaeda. Former CIA director James Woolsey, now FDD’s chairman, also has long argued that Islamist terrorists, despite their theological and ideological differences, can and do engage in “joint ventures” to accomplish common goals.
Joscelyn has extensively researched this relationship. Back in 2007, he wrote: “No fallacy today is more misguided or more dangerous than the widespread belief that Iran, the world’s premier state sponsor of terrorism, and al-Qaeda are not allies in the terrorists’ war against the West. A corollary myth holds that Hezbollah — Iran’s terrorist proxy and the ‘A-team’ of international terrorist organizations — has also not allied itself with al-Qaeda.”
The terrorist attack that killed 19 Americans at Khobar Towers in 1996 was most likely an Iranian–al-Qaeda joint venture. But the Clinton administration chose to shut down FBI investigators in the belief — misguided but widespread at the time — that more moderate Iranians were coming to power in Tehran and that publicly revealing the Iranian role would impede diplomatic efforts.
Iran also has been implicated in al-Qaeda’s 1998 bombing of America’s embassies in Nairobi and Dar es Salaam. When federal prosecutors indicted al-Qaeda members that same year, they specifically noted that al-Qaeda had forged alliances with “representatives of the government of Iran, and its associated terrorist group Hezbollah, for the purpose of working together against their perceived common enemies in the West, particularly the United States.” And in November of last year, a Washington, D.C., court found that Iran had provided training for the al-Qaeda terrorists at Hezbollah camps in southern Lebanon. The court stated unequivocally that the “government of the Islamic Republic of Iran . . . has a long history of providing material aid and support to terrorist organizations including al Qaeda.”
What about the attacks on New York and Washington three years later? The 9/11 commissioners said they “found no evidence that Iran or Hezbollah was aware of the planning for what later became the 9/11 attack.” However, intelligence obtained by 9/11-commission staffers just before the release of their report — too late for serious examination — showed what Joscelyn called “suspicious flights taken by the muscle hijackers. Some of the flights were routed through Lebanon, where Hezbollah is based and controls the airport. Interestingly, most of the muscle hijackers also transited through Iran en route to the United States.” The commissioners wrote: “We believe this topic requires further investigation by the U.S. government.” Such investigations have not been conducted — or, if they were, their conclusions have never been made public.
Strategy: Bury Obama In Investigations!
Strategy: Bury Obama In Investigations!
The
electorate is beginning to realize that Congress is a weak institution
overwhelmed by conflicting agendas and un-American influences.
Conservative legislators are poorly equipped to directly influence
Presidential behavior. Obama is a skilled and brazen liar supported by a
radical media and enabled by a disintegrating American culture. Given
that the President has significantly expanded the Executive Branches
power to rule, how can our representatives corral the corrupt ideology
destroying our Republic?
History shows us that a suspect Executive Administration can be
slowed and in many cases stopped through the skillful and vigilant
investigations provided by congressional committees. Serious
investigation’s focused on not only the President but his entire cabinet
can create an untenable environment for those with much to hide. It’s
time that John Boehner releases the political hounds in our fight
against a corrupt President. In battle life is finite. Republicans must
decide if they want to go out on their feet or their knees. President
Obama’s pride and unlawful predilections are obvious weaknesses and the
time has come for Congress to use its only remaining weapon to protect
what is left of Democracy and our Constitution.The current Administration’s brash execution of its un-American activities must be stopped and it is within the purview of the House Committee on the Judiciary (a Republican-controlled committee) to do so. Pressure must be applied until this administration breaks and falls. Compromise is not an option when dealing with Obama. It is a weakness.
The list of un-constitutional activities and potential criminal acts being perpetrated on our Republic by the Obama Administration is long and growing. It’s time that patriots pressured our remaining allies to go on the offensive against this President. A list of House Judiciary members can be found at www.house.gov. It’s time we do more than vote. It’s time to tell our government what we expect of them. Allowing them to ignore and sanction corruption while our nation slides to absurdity is a sin. We are the greatest country in the world; let us begin to act like it.
It’s time our elected representatives took the fight to the Presidents dinner table. Let Obama feed on inappropriate questions and public embarrassment while entertaining his homey’s. Make him squirm as he attempts to explain his obvious character flaws and criminal behavior to his family while he puts them to bed. Make him think about his criminal legacy every time he sets up for a putt. Make no mistake, America, this is personal. This is our country’s future we are battling for, and there will be collateral damage. Not even a biased media can protect a borderline psychopath President from it. The race card has been overplayed and the alleged war on women was lost to abortionists and the morally bankrupt long before the last election. We can no longer afford to be polite.
A quick look at the complexion of the House Judiciary Committee shows Democrats to be seriously out matched. Democrat ranking member John Conyers, Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee and Rep. Maxine Waters’ ethnic biases may empower these Obama loyalists, but they are all ignorable distractions for the likes of Smith, Issa, and the cadre of conservative Republican leaders running the Judiciary Committee. It is my belief that these men and women can and will, if directed, present a credible challenge to the Executive overreach we are being forced to endure. It just takes a push by an active electorate. Americans who are fed up can out shout a biased media and a complacent entitlement culture.
The greatest disruption and most damaging action our legislators can take to inhibit a sitting President and his Administration is to publicly investigate them. Effective investigations inevitably lead to retirement, resignation and in some cases prison. It can also destroy the political careers of powerful influences destined to seek higher office and continue this destructive legacy.
Let’s splatter the halls of congress and the west wing with Obama’s communist credentials and unconstitutional acts. Let’s tie up MSNBC’s elite journalists with one Executive Administration investigation after another until the man who can’t stand to be questioned is brought to his knees. It’s time our representatives shamelessly take the fight to the White House. It’s time they showed the American public what it means to be courageous. Courageous enough to fall on their swords if necessary.
Welcome to Chicago America. Don’t make the mistake of waiting for the next election to find out your have been outgunned.
Take a look at what the Obama-funded al-Qaeda linked jihadists are doing to their victims in Syria now
NATO allies and the Western media work hard to demonize the Syrian state and ignore barbaric crimes committed by Wahhabi Jihadists, airlifted from all over the world to Syria by NATO member states.
Syria News On April 11, 2013, a Syrian Army helicopter transporting food supplies to villages and Army units was attacked and brought down by NATO’s best assets, the al-Qaeda Free Syrian Army terrorists, using the latest weapons provided by their sponsors. The terrorists rushed to the downed chopper, decapitated the pilots then put their severed heads on the barbecue grill (photo below).
The grilled heads were then placed on metal sticks and paraded through the towns and villages under the control of NATO’s terrorists.
Ironically, Syrian-based media have all been banned in Europe, USA, and Canada. Syrian state and private TV channels were all taken off the air in a decision from the EU & the Arab League in order to cover the news with their own anti-Assad bias.
Meanwhile the USA and its allies are trying to segregate the worst of the savages from the regular savages in order to keep supporting the lesser savages.
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Israel strikes Syria to keep ‘game-changing weaponry’ from reaching Hezbollah
9:41 PM on 05/03/2013
“We can not comment on these reports, but what we can say is that Israel is determined to prevent the transfer of chemical weapons or other game-changing weaponry by the Syrian regime to terrorists, specifically to Hezbollah in Lebanon,” an Israeli spokesman in Washington said, according to Andrea Mitchell.
The Israeli government has been clear that for them, the “red line” would be the transfer of weapons to Lebanon. SCUD missiles in Lebanon could reach not just Israel but also NATO forces in the region.
The target of a strike would probably not be chemical weapons depots: that could cause deadly contamination. The more likely target would be weapon delivery systems or launch systems.
The Israelis had conducted a similar strike in January, when Israelis struck a weapons shipment of some kind that Israelis believed was headed for Hezbollah. In that instance, Israeli fighter jets attacked a convoy of sophisticated anti-aircraft missiles believed on their way to Hezbollah.
Israeli Defense Minister Moshe Ya’alon publicly acknowledged the January airstrike inside Syria in a joint press conference with Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel in Tel Aviv on April 22. Ya’alon said any Syrian delivery of sophisticated weapons to rogue elements like Hezbollah would be a “red line” for Israel and
“when they crossed this red line, we operated. We acted.”
After the January strike, there was no regional expansion of the Syrian conflict. Andrea Mitchell said Friday that that was likely to be the case again, and that Friday’s strike was unlikely to unleash a wider conflict.
The Obama administration has moved very cautiously on Syria, waiting to verify the origins of a possible use of chemical weapons. Obama officials are conscious of mistakes the George W. Bush regime made in acting on unverified intelligence.
Earlier today, before the Israeli strike became public, President Obama had said he did “not foresee a situation” which would put American boots on the ground in Syria.
It was not clear whether the Israelis had asked for or received tacit approval from the U.S. before launching the Friday strike.
White House officials referred all questions to Israel, who reiterated that they will take action to prevent weapons going to Hezbollah.
RUSSIA WARNS AMERICANS: Barack Hussein Obama has been shipping arms to al-Qaeda jihadists in Syria for over a year
Russia
delivered to the Obama administration a list of the names of Syrian
rebels who are members of al-Qaeda groups and who are receiving arms
shipments coordinated by the U.S. (Obama seen foaming at the mouth while Hagel seems to be stuttering more than usual)
Klein Online The list, the officials added, demonstrates how the U.S. is failing in its due diligence of vetting the rebels being supported by the West for ties to al-Qaida and other jihad groups. The information comes amid scores of news media reports that the Obama administration is aiding the rebels, including by coordinating Arab arms shipments.
The arming of Syrian rebels is considered highly controversial. A major issue is the inclusion of jihadists, including al-Qaida, among the ranks of the Free Syrian Army and other Syrian opposition groups.
Just last week, KleinOnline broke the story that the U.S. in recent weeks aided in the transfer of shoulder-launched anti-aircraft missiles, or man-portable air-defense systems, to the Syrian rebels, according to informed Middle Eastern security officials. The Middle Eastern security officials speaking to KleinOnline said the latest U.S.-facilitated weapons transfers signify the most advanced deliveries yet to the Syrian rebels.
Confirming KleinOnline’s exclusive reporting for over a year, the New York Times last month reported that since early 2012, the CIA has been aiding Arab governments and Turkey in obtaining and shipping weapons to the Syrian rebels.
While the Times report claims most of the weapons shipments facilitated by the CIA began after the latest presidential election, Middle Eastern security officials speaking to KleinOnline have said U.S.-aided weapons shipments go back more than a year, escalating before the Sept. 11, 2012, attack on the U.S. facilities in Benghazi.
In fact, the Middle Eastern security officials speaking to KleinOnline since last year describe the U.S. mission in Benghazi and nearby CIA annex attacked last September as an intelligence and planning center for U.S. aid to the rebels in the Middle East, particularly those fighting Syrian Assad’s regime. READ MORE
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president-bashar-assad-is-right-says-the-west-will-pay-for-backing-and-funding-al-qaeda-in-syria
Case Reveals South Korean Spying in Australia
Korean spy’s deportation reveals web of intrigue
Mark Skulley and John Kerin
Australian Financial Review
May 3, 2013
Relations between Australia and South Korea have been strained after the east Asian economic powerhouse was caught soliciting sensitive information from public servants, and the deportation of a South Korean spy for espionage in 2009 was disclosed.
New details of South Korean espionage in Australia were revealed in an unfair dismissal case before the Fair Work Commission brought by a former intelligence officer with the Australian Federal Police, Bo-Rim “Bryan” Kim.
The commission this week rejected an unfair dismissal appeal by Mr Kim, who previously worked part-time at the South Korean consulate-general in Sydney. He then worked as an information technology staffer for the AFP in Sydney before transferring to criminal intelligence for Sydney Airport.
A Fair Work judgment released this week said Federal Police management terminated his employment in August 2012 after the Australian Security Intelligence Organisation recommended revoking his security clearance.
Commissioner Geoff Bull said ASIO alleged Mr Kim had committed an “act of foreign interference” by passing sensitive information to the intelligence services of a foreign government.
“Mr Kim attempted to diminish the complaints made against him on the basis that he had not attempted to gain any benefit from his conduct and some of the allegations made against him were not accurate.
“In any event, Mr Kim was remorseful and recognised his mistakes,” he said in the judgment.
Mr Bull said Mr Kim told ASIO a consular employee who had sought information from him in January 2009 on terrorism responses at Sydney Airport was understood to be an intelligence officer or “secret squirrel”.
“This consulate employee was deported from Australia in March 2009 for espionage,” his judgment said. “Mr Kim had also been invited to and attended a dinner at this consulate employee’s apartment, which Mr Kim did not consider an important enough contact to report.”
In a separate case, an immigrant and senior trade specialist at the Australian Bureau of Agricultural and Resource Economics and Sciences, Yeon Kim, lost his job after an adverse ASIO security assessment against him in 2011.
A Federal Court judgment this year said Dr Kim was alleged to have provided information to an intelligence officer working for what was then described as “country X”.
The information concerned negotiations between Australia and country X on an “important bilateral trade agreement” and its disclosure was alleged to have been an act of foreign interference under the ASIO Act.
The Administrative Appeals Tribunal last year rejected an appeal by Dr Kim over his adverse assessment, but there has been subsequent litigation in the Federal Court on a planned appeal.
In March, Federal Court judge Lindsay Foster refused to extend non-publication orders on details of the case that were sought by the head of ASIO, David Irvine, ruling the information did not go to issues of national security or defence.
Dr Kim, the main author of an ABARES study on the South Korean beef market, is alleged to have met a South Korean diplomat in mid-2010 who was a known officer of that country’s National Intelligence Service.
The Federal Court judgment said Mr Irvine argued in a confidential affidavit country X was well disposed towards Australia, but less so when the economic interests of both countries were at stake.
Mr Irvine’s affidavit said the intelligence service of country X had “taken steps to cultivate Australian officials and public servants to obtain sensitive information relevant to government-to-government negotiations concerning matters of trade”.
ASIO had “addressed its concerns about these matters with the relevant intelligence service and believed that the inappropriate activities of that service within Australia had ceased”.
But South Korea asked ASIO to “do all in its power to prevent any public disclosure”. Mr Irvine argued that disclosure would hurt relations between the two countries and lessen co-operation.
Attorney General Mark Dreyfus while refusing to directly comment on the details of the case said it highlighted that “espionage and foreign interference are key national security risks that require constant vigilance’’.
“Our technological and commercial strengths and close foreign relationships make us an attractive intelligence target’’.
“That is why Australia’s intelligence agencies work tirelessly to protect our economic, diplomatic and security interests’’
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President Declares Disaster for Minnesota
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President Declares Disaster for Minnesota
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Release date:
May 3, 2013
Release Number:
HQ-13-040
WASHINGTON, D.C. -- The U.S. Department of Homeland Security's Federal Emergency Management Agency announced that federal disaster aid has been made available to the State of Minnesota to supplement state and local recovery efforts in the area affected by a severe winter storm during the period of April 9-11, 2013.
The President’s action makes federal funding available to state and eligible local governments and certain private nonprofit organizations on a cost-sharing basis for emergency work and the repair or replacement of buildings and equipment damaged by the severe winter storm in Cottonwood, Jackson, Murray, Nobles, and Rock counties.
Federal funding is also available on a cost-sharing basis for hazard mitigation measures statewide.
Kari Suzann Cowie has been named as the Federal Coordinating Officer for federal recovery operations in the affected area. Cowie said additional designations may be made at a later date if requested by the state and warranted by the results of further damage assessments.
Follow FEMA online at fema.gov/blog, www.twitter.com/fema, www.facebook.com/fema, and www.youtube.com/fema. Also, follow Administrator Craig Fugate's activities at www.twitter.com/craigatfema.
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FEMA's mission is to support our citizens and first responders to ensure that as a nation we work together to build, sustain, and improve our capability to prepare for, protect against, respond to, recover from, and mitigate all hazards.
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Federal Aid Programs for the State of Minnesota Declaration
Last Updated:
May 3, 2013 - 16:55
State/Tribal Government or Region:
Minnesota and Region V
Related Disaster:
Minnesota Severe Winter Storm
Photo of a home in Columbia county flooded by 25 inches of rain in 2 days by Tropical Storm Debby
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Cyber Attack on US Banks and Government Websites Expected on May 7th
May 3, 2013
OpUSA Threatens Banks, Government
Anonymous: ‘We Will Wipe You Off the Cyber Map’
Tracy Kitten
BankInfoSecurity.com
May 2, 2013
Security experts say that OperationUSA, a coordinated online attack against banking and government websites slated for May 7, is a serious threat. As a result, organizations should be upping their distributed-denial-of-service attack mitigation strategies to guard against the attacks, which are being coordinated by the hacktivist group Anonymous.
Experts advise that call-center staff should be educated about DDoS attacks, in case customers call in about online outages or experience difficulty accessing accounts. And network and security teams should actively monitor Internet traffic on May 7 and take steps to block specific IP addresses.
Anonymous has said the attacks are being waged because of perceived social and political injustices. In an April 21 Pastebin post, it states: “Anonymous will make sure that this May 7th will be a day to remember. On that day Anonymous will start phase one of operation USA. America, you have committed multiple war crimes in Iraq, Afghanistan, Pakistan, and recently you have committed war crimes in your own country.”
The group goes on to say U.S. financial institutions will be targeted for attack. “Do not take this as a warning,” the post states. “You cannot stop the Internet hate machine from doxes, DNS attacks, defaces, redirects, DDoS attacks, database leaks and admin takeovers.”
The White House website and eight other federal government sites, plus those of 133 U.S. banking institutions, are listed as targets in an April 24 Anonymous Pastebin post.
Anonymous says it simply plans to take these sites offline: “We will now wipe you off the cyber map.”
Experts say the threat is serious and few of the targeted organizations, other than the top 50 U.S. banking institutions, have made significant investments to withstand the attacks.
OpIsrael vs. OpUSA
And while coordinated DDoS attacks waged by Anonymous last month against organizations in Israel had little impact, experts say similar attacks could be devastating in the United States. That’s because the U.S. Internet infrastructure is much more dynamic. In Israel, the Internet pipeline is much easier to close off and contain, making it easier to block bad traffic, says Marc Gaffan, co-founder of online security provider Incapsula.
During OperationIsrael, the attackers failed to take over enough servers within that nation to effectively launch the attacks, he adds. But the attackers have learned from their mistakes and have likely taken over more U.S.-based web servers and improved the coordination of their attack, says Ronen Kenig, an Israel-based researcher for DDoS-mitigation provider Radware.
“What we know from some of the information that has been shared in forums and other communication channels is that this is going to be very similar to what we saw in OperationIsrael,” he says. “The same groups are involved.”
OperationUSA aims to get widespread attention for Anonymous by accomplishing online destruction and disruption, Kenig says - the same goal OpIsrael set out to accomplish.
OpIsrael’s failure should not lead U.S. organizations to take OpUSA lightly, stresses fraud expert Avivah Litan, an analyst for consultancy Gartner. “This should all be taken very seriously,” she says. “The main message is that they [hacktivists’ attacks] just aren’t going away, and, instead, are getting more organized and more unsettling.”
Leading U.S. banking institutions, which have been battling targeted DDoS strikes since mid-September, are best equipped to withstand the online traffic surge OpUSA could dole out, Kenig says.
“The smaller banks are not prepared, and the government side is not very well prepared, either,” Kenig says. “If a massive attack will come, I’m sure we will see many of the government websites going down.”
Will Izz ad-Din al-Qassam Join?
Security experts are speculating about whether Izz ad-Din al-Qassam Cyber Fighters, the hacktivist group that’s taken credit for the series of DDoS attacks against U.S. banks during the past eight months, will join the OpUSA movement. In some ways, Anonymous and Izz ad-Din al-Qassam share similar goals - to humiliate and annoy the U.S., says Rodney Joffe, senior technologist for online security provider Neustar Inc.
While Izz ad-Din al-Qassam Cyber Fighters has been reluctant to push its DDoS force to full capacity, the attackers behind OpUSA aren’t likely to practice the same discretion, Joffe says.
“I would be surprised if al-Qassam got behind this effort,” Joffe says. “They’ve been very careful not to provoke a response from the U.S. government. They’ve done just enough to be a nuisance. Those behind OpUSA don’t have the same motivations, and they don’t appear to be as sophisticated.”
Dan Holden of DDoS-mitigation provider Arbor Networks says associating itself with Anonymous does not really help Izz ad-Din al-Qassam Cyber Fighters. “However, the one thing that does lead me to think it’s possible would be the much larger impact the attack would have with their involvement,” he adds.
“I would say that if they do become involved, that the likelihood of the attacks being successful goes way up,” Holden adds. “OpIsrael didn’t seem to have a ton of impact, but the defensive capability outside of the banks is likely to be less, and therefore this could be used as an excuse by QCF [Izz ad-Din al-Qassam Cyber Fighters] to expand their efforts and realize a win, so to speak, given the dwindling effect many of their attacks have had lately.”
Without the participation of Izz ad-Din al-Qassam, OpUSA will be less effective, Kenig acknowledges. “This is a serious threat,” Kenig says. “But if the attackers are going to be successful, they will definitely need more botnets. If the Cyber Fighters join the attack and bring their botnet on, the attacks will be significant.”
4 hours ago / 0 notes
Obama is busted even his commie buddies know he is behide all the killings to bad the retards in the usa dont have a brain cell get a clue
Russia delivers another al-Qaida warning to U.S. Jihadists purportedly being armed by Obama administration
Posted on May 1, 2013 at 2:21 PM EST
image
By Aaron Klein
Russia delivered to the Obama administration a list of the names of Syrian rebels who are members of al-Qaida groups and who are receiving arms shipments coordinated by the U.S., according to informed Middle Eastern security officials.
The list, the officials added, demonstrates how the U.S. is failing in its due diligence of vetting the rebels being supported by the West for ties to al-Qaida and other jihad groups.
The information comes amid scores of news media reports that the Obama administration is aiding the rebels, including by coordinating Arab arms shipments.
The arming of Syrian rebels is considered highly controversial. A major issue is the inclusion of jihadists, including al-Qaida, among the ranks of the Free Syrian Army and other Syrian opposition groups.
Just last week, KleinOnline broke the story that the U.S. in recent weeks aided in the transfer of shoulder-launched anti-aircraft missiles, or man-portable air-defense systems, to the Syrian rebels, according to informed Middle Eastern security officials.
The Middle Eastern security officials speaking to KleinOnline said the latest U.S.-facilitated weapons transfers signify the most advanced deliveries yet to the Syrian rebels.
Confirming KleinOnline’s exclusive reporting for over a year, the New York Times last month reported that since early 2012, the CIA has been aiding Arab governments and Turkey in obtaining and shipping weapons to the Syrian rebels.
While the Times report claims most of the weapons shipments facilitated by the CIA began after the latest presidential election, Middle Eastern security officials speaking to KleinOnline have said U.S.-aided weapons shipments go back more than a year, escalating before the Sept. 11, 2012, attack on the U.S. facilities in Benghazi.
In fact, the Middle Eastern security officials speaking to KleinOnline since last year describe the U.S. mission in Benghazi and nearby CIA annex attacked last September as an intelligence and planning center for U.S. aid to the rebels in the Middle East, particularly those fighting Syrian Assad’s regime.
The aid, the sources stated, included weapons shipments and was being coordinated with Turkey, Saudi Arabia and Qatar.
Earlier this month, Reuters further reported Obama allegedly signed a secret order in 2012 authorizing U.S. agencies such as the CIA to provide support to rebel forces in Syria.
The support includes helping to run a secret military communications command center in Turkey to aid rebel groups. The Reuters article also said U.S. citizens are training rebels and possibly giving them equipment, at least since the summer.
The New York Times and Reuters both report the U.S. is working to vet the rebels for inclusion of al-Qaida, but it is not immediately known how successful such vetting has been and whether the rebels directly armed by the U.S. will share their weapons with jihadists within their ranks.
Swiss Intelligence Service Says They Face No Threats
May 3, 2013
Hey, boys and girls. There is at least one place in world where the host nation’s intelligence service thinks there are no threats to their national security. That place, ladies and gentlemen, is Switzerland.
The Swiss Federal Intelligence Service has just published their 2013 Situation Report, which finds that Switzerland faces none of the terrorist or internal security threats that current beset the rest of their European neighbors and, of course, the U.S.
Here, taken word for word, are the highlights of the report:
The most important findings of the 2013 Situation Report:
Switzerland is currently in a quiet and stable situation. The focus is on none of the threats mentioned in the report.
Switzerland continues to be no priority target for jihadist motivated attacks. Swiss nationals abroad are, however, more threatened than in the past by politically and terrorist motivated abductions.
While several hundred jihadist motivated travellers from Europe could be established over the past ten years, less than 20 known journeys were made from Switzerland to jihad areas such as Somalia, Afghanistan/Pakistan and Syria. Of these a third have been confirmed as jihad motivated travel, the reason for the remaining visits is unclear. To date, we have no definite knowledge of persons returning to Switzerland from jihad areas.
Proliferation is one of the great problem areas worldwide and this has repercussions for Switzerland too.
Illegal intelligence continues to be practised in Switzerland, IT resources being increasingly used for that purpose.
The violence potential of right and left-wing extremism continues to exist, but on the whole does not threaten Switzerland’s inner security.
The effects of the dept crisis in Europe and the Arab Spring on Switzerland’s security are currently difficult to predict.
Must be really nice to live in Switzerland!
Eric Holder Threatens Kansas Over Gun Control Nullification http://www.scribd.com/doc/138995467/Eric-Holder-Threatens-Kansas-Over-Gun-Control-Nullification
Eric Holder Threatens Kansas Over Gun Control Nullification http://www.scribd.com/doc/138995467/Eric-Holder-Threatens-Kansas-Over-Gun-Control-Nullification
Newsmax Exclusive: US Hired al-Qaida-Linked Group to Defend Benghazi Mission
Friday, 03 May 2013 12:12 PM
That organization, the February 17th Martyrs Brigade, was paid by the U.S. government to provide security at the U.S. diplomatic mission in Benghazi, Libya. But there is no indication the Martyrs Brigade fulfilled its commitment to defend the mission on Sept. 11, when it came under attack.
The assault claimed the lives of four Americans: Ambassador J. Christopher Stevens, information officer Sean Smith, and former Navy Seals Tyrone Woods and Glen Doherty. Stevens was the first U.S. ambassador killed in the line of duty since 1979.
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Several entries on the militia’s Facebook page openly profess sympathy for Ansar al-Sharia, the hardline Islamist extremist group widely blamed for the deadly attack on the mission. The State Department did not respond to a Newsmax request for an explanation as to why the February 17th Martyrs Brigade was hired to protect the mission.
On April 23, House Republicans released an interim progress report on their investigation into the Benghazi killings. It cited “numerous reports” that “the Brigade had extremist connections, and it had been implicated in the kidnapping of American citizens as well as in the threats against U.S. military assets.”
The report also stated that just a few days before Stevens arrived in Benghazi, the Martyrs Brigade informed State Department officials they no longer would provide security as members of the mission, including Stevens, traveled through the city.
From June 2011 to July 2012, Eric Nordstrom, the regional security officer for Libya at the time, documented more than 200 security threats and violent incidents threatening to U.S. personnel in Libya. Some 50 of those incidents occurred in Benghazi.
Yet despite those threats, repeated requests for additional security from the mission went unheeded by the State Department, for reasons that remain unclear.
Perhaps the biggest question is why the State Department would hire a group that openly displayed its admiration for al-Qaida, and ask it to participate in the defense of its diplomatic mission.
The banner, or “cover photo” of one of the group’s Facebook pages, shows an Islamic fighter, or mujahid, with a portable rocket launcher resting on his shoulder.
The distinctive black flag of al-Qaida can be seen fluttering to the man’s left, attached to the vehicle in which he is riding. The mujahid wears a headband based on the design of the al-Qaida flag. The flag in question features the shahada, or Islamic declaration of faith, and a white circle that is sometimes described as the “seal of Mohammed.”
The flag was made famous by the late Abu Musab al-Zarqawi’s Iraqi al-Qaida affiliate, commonly known as “al-Qaida in Iraq.” The flag originally used by al-Qaida was a plain black flag with the shahada written on it in white. Both flags are widely used by contemporary jihadist groups.
 |
||
| The original cover photo on Facebook page of the February 17th Martyrs Brigade, displaying the al-Qaida banner. |
An Arabic inscription written over the photo reads: “Allah, his prophet and Libya and that’s it.” The cover photo was posted by the site administrator on June 10, 2012., and was the first activity on the Facebook page.
The photo was presumably taken at a massive rally in support of the sharia, or Islamic law, held in Benghazi three days earlier, on June 7. The rally included a military parade featuring units from a large cross-section of the Eastern Libyan militias that spearheaded the 2011 rebellion against Moammar Gadhafi.
Video of the event posted by local sources shows several al-Qaida flags flying at the event. Al-Qaida-inspired accessories, such as headbands and decals, were widely displayed as well. One of the sponsoring organizations of the rally was Ansar al-Sharia. The term Ansar al-Sharia means “supporters of the sharia.” Sharia is Islamic law and regulations.
On June 15, five days after the photo was posted, the February 17th Martyrs Brigade updated the cover photo on the Facebook page, replacing the image with a photo montage featuring its own logo and a masked commando sporting the colors of the new Libyan national flag on a shoulder patch.
The cover photo has been updated several times since then. It is clear, however, that the group has repudiated neither al-Qaida nor its violent ideology.
On June 28, for example, the brigade posted a second graphic bearing a headline title that translates to: “The bearded [man] is suspect until he proves he is not a Muslim!!!”
The graphic features two rows of pictures. The top row consists of bearded Muslim men. The images include some of the leading figures of modern-day jihadism, including al-Qaida founder Osama bin Laden and the founder of al-Qaida in Iraq, Abu Musab al-Zarqawi.
The Arabic text on the graphic states the Muslims are accused of various faults, including “terrorism” and “extremism.”
The second row shows bearded non-Muslims (including Tolstoy, Che Guevara and George Bernard Shaw). The caption suggests the Western world sees the bearded non-Muslims as intelligent, and holds them in high esteem.
To drive home the point, the graphic includes a quotation from the Quran: “Then will we treat Muslims like criminals? What is the matter with you? How do you judge?”
The implication is that the Muslims in the top row, including Osama bin Laden, have been unfairly labeled.
 |
| Graphic from Facebook page of the February 17th Martyrs Brigade |
Several entries on the Facebook page make clear the brigade’s sympathies for the Ansar al-Sharia militia, which allegedly has al-Qaida ties. In the Western media, Ansar al-Sharia has been widely accused of having perpetrated the Sept. 11 Benghazi attacks.
An entry posted Sept. 19, eight days after the Benghazi attacks, laments the death of an Ansar al-Sharia member. It asks God to “receive him amongst the martyrs” and to receive him “into his wide paradise.” The entry points out that the deceased, Adham al-Falastini, previously was a member of the February 17th Martyrs Brigade.
Another revealing earlier post, on June 25, shows a graphic from a now-defunct Ansar al-Sharia Facebook page. It carries a warning from Ansar al-Sharia about the distribution of pens bearing an image of the Virgin Mary. The graphic cautions against propagating beliefs that Muslims should scorn.
 |
| A warning from Ansar al-Sharia about “Virgin Mary pens.” Graphic reproduced on a Facebook page of the February 17th Martyrs Brigade. |
At least two recent entries on the February 17th Martyrs Brigade site feature the Ansar al-Sharia logo. One of these, dated Jan. 29, suggests that Ansar al-Sharia is the target of a “treacherous” plot to get the brigade blamed for various attacks and assassination attempts.
The other, dated Jan. 20, announces that Ansar al-Sharia has begun guarding the western gate of Benghazi “in the service of our religion and…of the Libyan people.”
This news, which is corroborated by other sources, is notable in light of Western news reports claiming Ansar al-Sharia was driven out of the city following the Sept. 11 attack on the U.S. mission.
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| Ansar al-Sharia logo on Facebook page of February 17th Martyrs Brigade |
A more recent entry, March 2, features a graphic celebrating Jabhat al-Nusra, the offshoot of al-Qaida in Iraq that has played a leading role in the Syrian insurrection against the rule of Bashar al-Assad.
Late last year, Jabhat al-Nusra was designated as a terrorist organization by the U.S. government.
In defiance of the U.S. designation, the Arabic on the graphic declares, “We are all Jabhat al-Nusra.”
The accompanying Facebook entry repeats this sentiment, and recites the exploits of the al-Qaida-linked brigade in the Syrian civil war, including “more than 40 martyrdom operations.” Jihadist groups use “martyrdom operations” to refer to suicide bombings.
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| “We are all Jabhat al-Nusra.” Graphic from a Facebook page of the February 17th Martyrs Brigade |
The State Department had hired the February 17th Martyrs Brigade to provide security at the U.S. mission in Benghazi. A document recovered from the mission two days after the attack indicated the State Department had arranged for the Martyrs Brigade to act as a “Quick Reaction Force” to protect the mission.
The Memorandum of Agreement states that “in the event of an attack on the U.S. mission, QRF will request additional support from the 17th February Martyrs Brigade.”
Throughout the summer leading up to the attack, embassy officials repeatedly asked the State Department for additional security. But the State Department actually reduced security, pulling out a military detachment responsible for defending diplomats in Libya.
One reason the requests for additional security may have been denied: They did not fit into the administration narrative that al-Qaida elements no longer posed a threat to U.S. interests.
One diplomatic cable to the mission indicated that the U.S.-based deputy assistant secretary for diplomatic security was “reluctant to ask for [additional security] apparently out of concern that it would be embarrassing to the [State Department] to continue to have to rely on [Defense Department] assets to protect our mission.”
When the mission’s regional safety officer expressed an interest in July 2012 asking State Department official to permit the military security team to continue to protect the mission, Charlene Lamb, deputy assistant secretary in charge of diplomatic security, sent an e-mail that responded: “NO, I do not [I repeat] not want them to ask for the [military security] team to stay!”
Republicans have complained in recent weeks that the Obama administration has been stonewalling their investigation. According to Fox News, four career officials at the State Department and the CIA have retained counsel as they prepare to provide Congress with inside information on the attacks.
"Victoria Toensing, an attorney representing one of the whistleblowers, said they have been threatened by CIA and State Department officials with repercussions if they talk to Congress about what happened in Benghazi. But President Obama said earlier this week he was “unaware” of anyone being discouraged from coming forward to tell Congress their side of the story.
" House Republican Darrell Issa, chairman of the House Oversight Committee, issued a statement on Tuesday: “Over the past two weeks, I have sent four letters requesting that this administration make information available about how lawyers — who already have security clearances and are representing Benghazi whistleblowers — can be cleared to fully hear their clients’ stories. I have yet to receive any responses from the Obama administration.”
The House Republicans’ Interim Progress Report concludes with an ominous warning: “This singular event will be repeated unless the United States recognizes and responds to the threats we face around the world, and properly postures resources and security assets to counter and respond to those threats.
“Until that time, the United States will remain in a reactionary mode and should expect more catastrophes like Benghazi, in which U.S. personnel on the ground perform bravely, but are not provided with the resources for an effective response,” the report stated.
Newsmax Senior Editor David A. Patten contributed to this report.
John Rosenthal is a European-based journalist who writes on EU politics and transatlantic security issues. His new book is The Jihadist Plot: The Untold Story of Al-Qaeda and the Libyan Rebellion. Translations from Arabic provided by Maureen Millington-Brodie.
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