05-07-09 Daily Intel report
1. Pakistan, US in talks on nuclear security
Aim to keep technology away from terrorists; Uranium may be shipped to America for disposal
By Bryan Bender, Globe Staff | May 5, 2009
http://www.investigativeproject.org/ext/3327
WASHINGTON - US and Pakistani officials have begun behind-the-scenes talks aimed at achieving a greater US role in securing Pakistan's nuclear materials, including a proposal to ship some highly enriched uranium to the United States for disposal, according to two administration officials with direct knowledge of the discussions. If successful, the talks between nonproliferation specialists at the State and Energy departments and their Pakistani counterparts would mark a breakthrough in efforts to persuade Pakistan to accept greater assistance in preventing terrorists from obtaining nuclear fuel or the technology to build a nuclear weapon… The government of Pakistan, which is believed to have as many as 100 nuclear bombs, has been highly secretive about its nuclear activities for fear that the United States might try to destroy its arsenal or that its archenemy, nuclear-armed India, might launch a first strike. But the growing threat to the Pakistani government from the Taliban - and its allies in the Al Qaeda terrorist network - has given Pakistani leaders a new reason to cooperate with the United States, according to the officials…
US seeks Saudi influence on Pakistani leaders
May 5, 2009 - 12:29pm By LARA JAKES Associated Press
http://www.wtop.com/?nid=116&sid=1667608#
RIYADH, Saudi Arabia (AP) - U.S. Defense Secretary Robert Gates said Tuesday that the U.S. wants to enlist Saudi Arabia in helping Pakistan stave off extremist threats from militants advancing on Islamabad. "Saudi Arabia clearly has a lot of influence throughout the entire region, and a long-standing and close relationship with Pakistan," Gates said. Gates, the senior U.S. defense official, arrived in Riyadh on Tuesday afternoon following morning meetings in Cairo with Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak and Defense Minister Hussein Tantawi. Gates was in the Mideast as Pakistan and Afghanistan's leaders arrived in Washington to meet with U.S. President Barack Obama. The defense secretary echoed the Obama administration's goal of enlisting both South Asian nations as full-fledged U.S. allies in the fight against the region's militants… He said the Taliban's recent attacks in Buner _ about 60 miles outside Islamabad _ "perhaps served as a wake-up call to many in Pakistan."…
2. Secret U.S.-Israel nuclear accord in jeopardy
Eli Lake Washington Times Wednesday, May 6, 2009
http://www.investigativeproject.org/ext/3328
President Obama's efforts to curb the spread of nuclear weapons threaten to expose and derail a 40-year-old secret U.S. agreement to shield Israel's nuclear weapons from international scrutiny, former and current U.S. and Israeli officials and nuclear specialists say. The issue will likely come to a head when Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu meets with Mr. Obama on May 18 in Washington. Mr. Netanyahu is expected to seek assurances from Mr. Obama that he will uphold the U.S. commitment and will not trade Israeli nuclear concessions for Iranian ones. Assistant Secretary of State Rose Gottemoeller, speaking Tuesday at a U.N. meeting on the nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT), said Israel should join the treaty, which would require Israel to declare and relinquish its nuclear arsenal… She declined to say, however, whether the Obama administration would press Israel to join the treaty. A senior White House official said the administration considered the nuclear programs of Israel and Iran to be unrelated "apples and oranges." Asked by The Washington Times whether the administration would press Israel to join the NPT, the official said, "We support universal adherence to the NPT. [It] remains a long-term goal." The official spoke on the condition of anonymity because of the sensitivity of the issue...
3. Judge orders release of Guantanamo prisoner
By NEDRA PICKLER – Associated Press May 4, 2009
http://www.investigativeproject.org/ext/3329
WASHINGTON (AP) — A federal judge on Monday ordered a Yemeni man released from Guantanamo Bay after seven years' detention. U.S. District Judge Gladys Kessler says the United States should take all necessary diplomatic steps to release Alla Ali Bin Ali Ahmed. He was picked up seven years ago by Pakistani forces in a prayer house that the United States said was run by a high-ranking al-Qaida operative. Other Guantanamo detainees have been ordered released by the courts but remain at the prison because no other country will accept them. The judge gave the United States until June 15 to report back on the status of his release. Justice Department spokesman Dean Boyd said the decision is under review and that he can't comment yet on whether the government will appeal. The United States argued that Ahmed, held as detainee 692, was associated with al-Qaida and the Taliban. Prosecutors said he traveled to Faisalabad, Pakistan, in October 2001 and stayed at an al-Qaida guesthouse for about four months before being captured during a raid on the house in March 2002...
Floor Statement of Rep. Frank Wolf on Potential Release of Uyghurs Held at Guantanamo Bay Into the United States
Monday May 04, 2009 Contact: Dan Scandling, Jennifer Allen (202) 225-5136
http://wolf.house.gov/index.cfm?sectionid=34&parentid=6§iontree=6,34...
Washington, D.C. -- Rep. Frank Wolf (R-VA) today made the following statement on the floor of the House today regarding the potential release Uyghurs held at Guantanamo Bay into the United States: "Madam Speaker, it is my understanding that President Obama's decision regarding the release into the United States of a number of Uyghur detainees held at Guantanamo Bay since 2002 could be imminent. The New York Times, ABC News and others news outlets have reported that the president will soon release these terrorists into the United States, and yet this Congress has yet to be briefed on this decision. This is unacceptable. "Let's be clear: these terrorists would not be held in prisons but released into neighborhoods. They should not be released at all into the United States. Do Members realize who these people are? There have been published reports that the Uyghurs were members of the Eastern Turkistan Islamic Movement, a designated terrorist organization affiliated with Al Qaeda. "Releasing the Uyghurs is a matter of grave concern - a matter which prompted me to send a letter to the president last Friday detailing my profound reservations about this course of action and the threat it could pose to the American people. In the letter, I called on the President to declassify all information about the capture and detention of the Uyghur detainees, including a threat assessment for each detainee who would be released into the United States. The American people deserve the facts about these detainees and the risk they pose to our communities… "After learning that this decision was imminent, I requested briefings from a number of relevant agencies - but all have told me that the Department of Justice is preventing them from speaking to me directly on this issue. Is the Attorney General preventing agencies from answering Members' questions?...
May 1, 2009 letter to President Obama
http://wolf.house.gov/uploads/Obama%20Guantanamo%20512009.pdf
April 23, 2009 letter to Attorney General Holder
http://wolf.house.gov/uploads/Holder%20Letter%204-23-2009.pdf
March 13, 2009 letter to Attorney General Holder
http://wolf.house.gov/uploads/Holder%20Letter%203-13-2009.pdf
4. Homeland agency pulled back extremism dictionary
Audrey Hudson Washington Times Tuesday, May 5, 2009
http://washingtontimes.com/news/2009/may/05/homeland-pulled-back-extremi...
WASHINGTON — The same Homeland Security Department office that categorized veterans as potential terrorists issued an earlier report that defined dozens of "extremists" ranging from black power activists to abortion foes. The report was nixed within hours and recalled from state and local law enforcement officials. Whites and blacks, Christians and Jews, Cubans and Mexicans, along with tax-hating Americans were among several political leanings listed in the "Domestic Extremism Lexicon" that came out of the Office of Intelligence and Analysis (I&A) in late March. The lexicon lists definitions for key terms and phrases used by Homeland Security analysts "that addresses the nature and scope of the threat that domestic, non-Islamic extremism poses to the United States," the report said. Click here to download a PDF of "Domestic Extremism Lexicon" http://video1.washingtontimes.com/video/lexicon.pdf...
5. Minn. terror suspect seeks release
Associated Press Last update: May 5, 2009 - 3:01 PM
http://www.startribune.com/local/44390292.html?
MINNEAPOLIS - A Minneapolis man held on terror charges for more than five years is asking to be released as he awaits trial. Mohammed Warsame (war-SAHM'-ee), a Canadian citizen of Somali descent, is charged with lying to the FBI and providing material support to al-Qaeda. Prosecutors accused him of attending terrorist training camps in Afghanistan and Pakistan. In federal court in Minneapolis on Tuesday, Warsame's attorney argued that his client has no criminal history and has been a model prisoner…
6. Disruptive Juror In "Liberty City 6" Case Replaced
Jury Requested That Juror No. 4 Be Replaced
They Claimed She Was Disruptive & Not Taking Part In Deliberations
Lisa Cilli Reporting May 5, 2009 10:56 am US/Eastern
http://cbs4.com/local/liberty.city.six.2.1001553.html
(CBS4) ― An uncooperative juror in the "Liberty City Six" terrorism conspiracy case who was described as being disruptive, and offensive has been replaced. The juror in question, juror No. 4, did not report for deliberations Monday as required, and instead told court personnel she was ill with a stomach virus. Defense attorneys said they believe the illness was actually a ruse to avoid further deliberations. U.S. District Judge Joan Lenard replaced the juror Tuesday morning and said the juror had violated her duty by refusing to deliberate and casting doubt on the law. The six defense lawyers jointly asked for a mistrial on Monday because of the jury problems, but Judge Lenard said the request was premature. Tuesday, the judge replaced the juror with an alternate which cleared the way for deliberations to resume. This is the second alternate to be placed on the panel. The first alternate replaced an elderly juror who became ill last week...
7. Suspect in Toronto 18 case pleads guilty
Megan O'Toole National Post Tuesday, May 5, 2009
http://www.nationalpost.com/news/story.html?id=1566651
One of the men accused in the "Toronto 18" terrorism case pleaded guilty to aiding a plot to detonate bombs in the city's bustling downtown core. Saad Khalid appeared in a courtroom in Brampton this week to enter the surprise plea, but few other details emerged in light of a publication ban on the facts surrounding the case, according to a lawyer familiar with the file. A sentencing hearing will be held June 22. Donald McLeod, who represents another of the accused, noted Khalid has become the only one to admit his role in the alleged terrorism plot, which reportedly targeted such high-profile sites as the CN Tower and the Toronto Stock Exchange. Mr. McLeod could not comment on whether Khalid was viewed as a ringleader, but said his plea will not affect circumstances for his own client, Jahmaal James, who was also arrested in a massive anti-terrorism sweep carried out across the Greater Toronto Area in June of 2006… The application for a publication ban, which would cover all of the accused, is set to go before the Supreme Court, Mr. McLeod said. The ban in Khalid's case prevents the news media from reporting on facts or details of his alleged role in the terrorism plot… In December, the accused participated in an alleged terrorist training camp near Washago, Ont., where they simulated warfare with paintball guns, ran obstacle courses in the woods and fired semi-automatic handguns…
Air, rail, port, health & communication infrastructure security
IPT NOTE: For more infrastructure news, see Dep't of Homeland Security Daily Open Source Infrastructure Reports http://www.dhs.gov/xinfoshare/programs/editorial_0542.shtm; Public Safety Canada Daily Infrastructure Report http://www.publicsafety.gc.ca/dir/index-eng.aspx; TSA Press Releases http://www.tsa.gov/press/releases/index.shtm
8. Businesses Prepare Flu Plans: Disinfect And Telecommute
By Michael S. Rosenwald Washington Post Tuesday, May 5, 2009
http://www.investigativeproject.org/ext/3330
… Across the country, businesses took steps last week to prepare for a flu pandemic that public health officials say may be imminent. The corporate lingo being tossed around on conference calls and best-practices tip sheets: preserve continuity of operations and prepare social distancing policies. Translation: Be ready for employees to be sick or unable to get to their desks because they need to care for their children... By all accounts, the planning is calm. In many cases, the procedures being carried out weren't devised on the fly but were set several years ago, either after the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks or the height of the bird flu scare in 2005. Some companies, such as Booz Allen, have opened emergency operations centers and activated response teams. Others haven't gone that far but are prepared to if the situation worsens…
9. 1,000 Pounds of Fertilizer Stolen; Police Searching for Burglars
Clarissa Stephens Shoals Bureau Reporter
April 30, 2009 WHT.com (Huntsville)
http://www.investigativeproject.org/ext/3331
Burglars targeted a Tuscumbia business early Thursday morning. What's most alarming is what the thieves took from business. The stolen property is potential dangerous material. Approximately 1,000 pounds of high-grade nitrate fertilizer was taken from Greens Keepers on Gann Boulevard in Tuscumbia. The company handles fertilization and weed control for residential and commercial lawns. The owner, John Wagner, says he's been in business for twelve years and nothing like this has ever happened… The thieves stacked the bags of fertilizer onto one of the company trucks, attached a trailer to the back, and loaded a lawn mower on it. The crooks also rummaged through the office - grabbing two computers, an iPod, and a cordless phone. The stolen property is valued at several thousand dollars. For Wagner, that's not the most unsettling part. "The cost of the fertilizer is not the issue, it's the quantity and the potential for bad guys," explains Wagner...
10. Police continue look into pistol-packing flight attendant
By Kieran Nicholson The Denver Post 05/05/2009 09:03:22 AM MDT
http://www.denverpost.com/dnc/ci_12292357
A Denver police investigation of a flight attendant who tried to pass through an airport checkpoint this weekend with two guns continues, and the Denver district attorney's office will probably review the case. The flight attendant is being investigated for a "weapons violation" at Denver International Airport that was reported around 9:35 a.m. Saturday, according to a Denver police report. She was taken into police custody when two guns were found in her possession at a DIA checkpoint, said Denver police spokesman Sonny Jackson. The flight attendant was interviewed and released pending further investigation. Police investigators' findings will be passed on to the Denver DA's office, which will review the case to determine whether any criminal charges will be filed, Jackson said. The Transportation Security Administration, part of the the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, also is conducting an investigation into the incident, said Carrie Harmon, a TSA spokeswoman in Denver…
11. Ottawa earmarks $350M for airport security
May 05, 2009 Toronto Star Jim Wilkes
http://www.thestar.com/News/Canada/article/629248
Note: This article has been edited from a previously published version.
Federal state minister (transport) Rob Merrifield has announced more than $350-million in funding to boost security at airports across the country. Ottawa is "committed to the security of our airports and the people who use them," he told reporters today at Toronto's Pearson International Airport. That includes almost $243 million in new funding for the Canadian Air Transportation Security Authority (CATSA) for its operations and to hire more screening and oversight officers. Merrifield said new measures, including $12.8 million for portable screening machines for the 2010 Olympics and Paralympics in Vancouver, will keep Canada's security systems up to date with other countries around the world. There will also be heightened security on the tarmac and baggage handling areas outside airport terminals…
12. MTA A TECH WRECK
AGENCY RUINED $250M SECURITY SYSTEM: SUIT
By BRUCE GOLDING, TOM NAMAKO and LARRY CELONA
New York Post April 28, 2009 --
http://www.investigativeproject.org/ext/3332
MTA bumbling has imperiled a massive post-Sept. 11 security project that's months behind schedule and can't be completed, a blockbuster federal lawsuit charges. Lockheed Martin Corp., one of the nation's leading defense contractors, is asking a federal judge to release it from a deal inked in 2005 to install high-tech surveillance equipment to protect subway riders from potential terror attacks. The original contract was for $213 million, but the price was pushed up by add-ons requested by the MTA, which has already paid out $250 million for the unfinished work. The suit comes as the MTA faces $621 million in additional debt for its day-to-day operations and is hoping Albany bails it out with increased funding. Lockheed is claiming losses of $3 million a month while "key personnel" remain in place on the stalled project, and says it will file a separate suit to recover damages. The company, which was supposed to be done with the job last August, blames the MTA for refusing to let it work inside a series of "under river tunnels," including four beneath the East River linking Manhattan and Queens. Lockheed's Manhattan federal court filing says the contract guaranteed it access to one of the four East River tunnels for at least 55 hours each weekend. "Currently, there is no schedule in place," the suit says. Lockheed also accuses the MTA of failing to clear out existing communication rooms for necessary upgrades…
13. Swedish National Charged with Hacking and Theft of Trade Secrets Related to Alleged Computer Intrusions at NASA and Cisco
US Department of Justice Tuesday, May 5, 2009
CRM (202) 514-2007 TDD (202) 514-1888
http://www.usdoj.gov/opa/pr/2009/May/09-crm-438.html
Philip Gabriel Pettersson, aka "Stakkato," 21, a Swedish national, was indicted today on intrusion and trade secret theft charges. The five-count indictment includes one intrusion count and two trade secret misappropriation counts involving Cisco Systems Inc. (Cisco), of San Jose, Calif., which is a provider of computer network equipment and producer of Internet routers. According to the allegations in the indictment Pettersson intentionally committed an intrusion between May 12, 2004, and May 13, 2004, into the computer system and network of Cisco. During the alleged intrusion some Cisco Internetwork Operating System code was allegedly misappropriated. The indictment also charges two intrusion counts involving the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), including computers at the Ames Research Center and the NASA Advanced Supercomputing Division, located at Moffett Field, Calif. The indictment alleges Pettersson committed these intrusions on May 19, 2004, May 20, 2004 and Oct. 22, 2004…
14. Hackers Breach Virginia Health Database, Demand Ransom
The Virginia Health database has been compromised, and now hackers are holding a $10M ransom for return of the records
Michael Barkoviak - May 5, 2009 3:22 PM
http://www.investigativeproject.org/ext/3333
The Virginia Prescription Monitoring Program has reportedly been compromised, with those responsible deleting records and now wanting $10 million before the records are restored, Wikileaks.org discovered. "I have your [expletive] In *my* possession, right now, are 8,257,378 patient records and a total of 35,548,087 prescriptions," the hacker said in a ransom note. "Also, I made an encrypted backup and deleted the original. Unfortunately for Virginia, their backups seem to have gone missing, too. Uhoh :(For $10 million, I will gladly send along the password." The Virginia Prescription Monitoring Program website is used to help pharmacists track prescription drug abuse, and has the records of 8 million state residents available through the network. The network, along with other portals connected to the Virginia Department of Health Professions, is still unavailable at the moment. State health officials are now working with the FBI to try and identify and locate those responsible for bringing down the network. As the case is ongoing, the FBI hasn't issued a statement regarding the intrusion, though will be looking for sources both in the United States and across the world… ExpressScripts, a pharmacy prescription processor, suffered an extortion attempt in 2008, when hackers threatened to release the personal and medical information of Americans in exchange for money. The company now has $1 million leading to the arrest and conviction of those responsible...
Financing, identity theft, money laundering
15. Charges filed in major fencing operation
Henry K. Lee, San Francisco Chronicle Tuesday, May 5, 2009
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2009/05/04/BAQ517EBV7.D...
(05-04) 16:20 PDT OAKLAND -- A San Francisco man was charged in federal court today with fencing property from stores including Rite Aid, Safeway, Target and Walgreens as part of an elaborate operation that spanned nearly a decade, court records show. Mohammed Abbushi was charged in U.S. District Court in Oakland with conspiracy to transport stolen merchandise and structuring transactions. Abbushi joins six other defendants who were charged with trafficking in baby formula, razor blades, vitamins, over-the-counter medicine and beauty and hygiene products. From 1998 to 2007, members of the operation stole items from stores and sold them to fencers for a fraction of their retail value, authorities said. Investigators who broke up the operation in 2007 seized enough items to fill 20 tractor-trailer trucks, authorities said. The alleged ringleader is Hassan Swaid, 39, of Fremont, president and owner of Rosemont Wholesale warehouse in Hayward. Members of the operation allegedly resold items at the warehouse, and workers there removed security stickers, price tags and bar codes from the goods… Swaid and other defendants are still awaiting trial.
16. Dearborn couple sentenced for food stamp fraud
Paul Egan / The Detroit News Tuesday, May 5, 2009
http://www.investigativeproject.org/ext/3334
IPT NOTE: The gov't's Nov 20, 2008 press release about the guilty plea is posted at
http://www.usdoj.gov/usao/mie/press/2008/2008-11-20_fshalhout.pdf.
Detroit -- A Dearborn man and wife who ran a Detroit convenience store were both sent to prison for food stamp fraud, the U.S. Attorney's Office announced Tuesday. Wasfi Shalhout, 50, was sentenced to 36 months in prison. His wife, Fatima Shalhout, 43, was sentenced to 30 months in prison. The Shalhouts, who ran Ann's Market in Detroit, were sentenced Monday by U.S. District Judge Paul D. Borman. Court was told the couple tried to defraud the federal government of about $1.3 million by paying customers about 50 cents on the dollar for their food stamp benefits, then getting reimbursed by the government for the entire amount…
17. $20M in Tiger weapons seized
Stewart Bell National Post Monday, May 4, 2009
http://www.nationalpost.com/news/story.html?id=1562915
KILINOCHCHI, Sri Lanka -- For a decade, Kilinochchi was a rebel capital, the hub of a vast swath of northern Sri Lanka that was controlled by the Tamil Tigers guerrillas. In January, the town fell to government troops and now a small Sri Lankan flag flies in the town centre amid idle transit buses, flattened buildings and shuttered shops… But the Sri Lankan army got a shock of its own when it began collecting weapons from the fallen rebels: troops seized an astounding array of arms, from assault rifles to artillery guns, even a battle tank. Almost 100,000 small arms have been seized, the army said, as well as almost one million rounds of ammunition and nearly 30,000 rebel land mines. "The amount of weaponry has caught us totally, totally by surprise, because we didn't think smuggling in so many weapons was possible," said Palitha Kohona, Sri Lanka's Foreign Secretary… The Sri Lankan government estimates it has captured rebel armaments worth almost $20-million so far. Almost every day, the military announces more weapons seizures. Some of the weapons are homemade, like a human torpedo that looks like a two-person metal kayak. Others are more sophisticated and could have only come from the global arms market: multi-barreled rocket launchers and surface-to-air missiles. According to Jane's Intelligence Review, Cambodia has been a significant source of the Tamil Tigers' weapons. The rest have come from places such as North Korea, Afghanistan, Lebanon, Turkey and Ukraine... Where did the money come from? The answer is at the heart of police investigations in several countries, including Canada. The RCMP has been looking into the Canadian fundraising operations of the Tamil Tigers since 2002. A senior member of the Tigers who surrendered two weeks ago said the rebels had misappropriated money sent from abroad for humanitarian aid and reconstruction after the 2004 tsunami... Mr. Kohona said foreign aid money has been pumped into northern Sir Lanka, but there is little to show for it on the ground, while the rebels seem to have had no difficulty buying arms… The RCMP filed documents in federal court last month alleging the Tamil Tigers had raised money in Canada through an Ontario non-profit organization called the World Tamil Movement…
18. Justices Limit Use of Identity Theft Law in Immigration Cases
By ADAM LIPTAK and JULIA PRESTON New York Times May 5, 2009
http://www.nytimes.com/2009/05/05/us/05immig.html?
WASHINGTON — The Supreme Court on Monday rejected a favorite tool of prosecutors in immigration cases, ruling unanimously that a federal identity-theft law may not be used against many illegal workers who used false Social Security numbers to get jobs. The question in the case was whether workers who use fake identification numbers to commit some other crimes must know they belong to a real person to be subject to a two-year sentence extension for "aggravated identity theft." The answer, the Supreme Court said, is yes. Prosecutors had used the threat of that punishment to persuade illegal workers to plead guilty to lesser charges of document fraud…
19. $1.4M haul of cigarettes sets record
Seizure shows scope of issue in St. Regis, police say
The Ottawa Citizen May 4, 2009
http://www.ottawacitizen.com/haul+cigarettes+sets+record/1562910/story.h...
CORNWALL — Federal agents from Cornwall have made the biggest illegal cigarette bust in Smugglers' Alley history, a $1.4-million haul of more than 13 million black market smokes. It's a sign of just how lucrative Tobacco Road is once again on the Akwesasne/St. Regis reserve, straddling the Ontario, Quebec and New York borders, and from where police believe much of the $900-million contraband market emanates. All roads from the U.S. St. Regis side of the international Mohawk reserve lead to the nearby St. Lawrence River. And just a few hundred metres away lies one of the most heavily tobacco-taxed — and relatively unguarded — countries in the world: Canada. The record bust happened April 29, after officers from the Canadian Border Services Agency spotted people loading boxes of contraband smokes into a tractor-trailer parked outside a home on Hunter's Road, south of Finch and just north of Long Sault. RCMP arrived on the scene just as the tuck was about to pull away. Inside they found 65,700 cartons or resealable bags of contraband cigarettes. Each carton contains 200 cigarettes and has a street value of $22... Police believe the cigarettes were smuggled by criminal organizations in cars and vans to the Finch-area loading point. From Eastern Ontario, police said they were to be delivered to distributors in Kingston and west to Toronto…
Border security, immigration, customs
IPT NOTE: For more details, see US Customs and Border Protection releases at http://www.cbp.gov/xp/cgov/newsroom/news_releases/ ; US Immigration and Customs Enforcement http://www.investigativeproject.org/ext/2754 , and Canada Border Services Agency http://www.cbsa-asfc.gc.ca/menu-eng.html
20. MEXICO UNDER SIEGE
Sinaloa cartel may resort to deadly force in U.S.
Authorities say Joaquin 'El Chapo' Guzman, the reputed leader of the Mexican cartel, has given his associates the OK, if necessary, to open fire across the border.
By Josh Meyer Los Angeles Times May 6, 2009
http://www.investigativeproject.org/ext/3335
Reporting from Sells, Ariz. — The reputed head of Mexico's Sinaloa drug cartel is threatening a more aggressive stance against competitors and law enforcement north of the border, instructing associates to use deadly force, if needed, to protect increasingly contested trafficking operations, authorities said. Such a move by Joaquin "El Chapo" Guzman, Mexico's most-wanted fugitive, would mark a turn from the cartel's previous position of largely avoiding violent confrontations in the U.S. -- either with law enforcement officers or rival traffickers. Police and federal agents in Arizona said they had recently received at least two law enforcement alerts focused on Guzman's reported orders that his smugglers should "use their weapons to defend their loads at all costs." Guzman is thought to have delivered the message personally in early March, during a three-day gathering of his associates in Sonoita, a Mexican town a few miles south of the Arizona border, according to confidential U.S. intelligence bulletins sent to several state and federal law enforcement officials, who discussed them on the condition of anonymity. The Sonoita meeting is considered one of several signs that Guzman is becoming more brazen even in the face of a Mexican government crackdown on his activities and continued turf rivalries with other traffickers. Information from informants, wiretaps and other sources have prompted a flurry of warnings to authorities in U.S. border states, instructing them to use extreme caution when confronting people suspected of smuggling drugs and illegal immigrants from Mexico or ferrying weapons and cash south from the United States, officials familiar with those warnings said…
MIDDLE EAST / AFRICA
21. Sahara states to mount anti-Qaeda operation: reports
By Lamine Chikhi 05 May 2009 11:39:50 GMT Reuters
Newspapers say Algeria sent arms shipment to Mali; Joint operation against al Qaeda to start soon: reports; Al Qaeda in N. Africa threatening to kill British hostage
http://www.alertnet.org/thenews/newsdesk/L5642234.htm
ALGIERS, May 5 (Reuters) - Algeria has sent military aid to Mali in preparation for a joint operation with states around the Sahara desert to flush out al Qaeda militants, two Algerian newspapers reported on Tuesday. A group called al Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb (AQIM) has threatened to kill a British hostage, believed to be held somewhere in the Sahara region, on May 15 unless Britain releases a Jordanian Islamist it is holding in prison. Algeria, Mali, Niger and Mauritania will soon launch an operation -- the first of its kind to include the four countries -- to tackle the al Qaeda militants, the El Watan and El Khabar newspapers reported, citing unnamed security sources. Algeria is to provide military equipment to its three neighbours to help with the operation, and a first consignment of assault weapons, ammunition, communications gear and fuel arrived in Mali on May 4, El Khabar said. Algeria will provide further shipments of military equipment for the operation, which could start within the next month or two and is expected to last for six months, the two independent newspapers said. States in the region have been discussing a collective response to Islamist militant violence but the operation would be the first time practical steps have been taken on any scale…
Algeria and Mali target al-Qaeda
Story from BBC NEWS: Published: 2009/05/06 12:27:10 GMT
http://news.bbc.co.uk/go/pr/fr/-/2/hi/africa/8035952.stm
Algeria has begun sending military equipment to Mali in preparation for a joint operation against Islamic militants linked to al-Qaeda. The aid includes fuel, weapons and sleeping bags, according to reports in the Algerian media. The operation could involve neighbouring countries Niger and Mauritania, say the reports…
22. Al Qaeda exporting jihad with a hip-hop vibe
Al Qaeda's Somali arm has hip-hop jihad rap and message from "American"
Intel expert says group is trying "to reach audience of potential recruits in America"
Video comes on the heels of purported bin Laden message on Somalia
By Paula Newton May 4, 2009 CNN
http://www.cnn.com/2009/WORLD/africa/05/04/somali.jihad.video
LONDON (CNN) -- The latest video from Somalia's al Qaeda-backed Al-Shabaab wing is as slickly produced as a reality TV show but with a startling message -- complete with a hip-hop jihad vibe. "Mortar by mortar, shell by shell, only going to stop when I send them to hell," the unidentified voice raps on the video, which runs at least 18 minutes. The video also shows a man reported to be Abu Mansoor al-Amriki, dubbed "The American" by al Qaeda. He apparently is now in Somalia training and counseling Somalis from North America and Europe. He speaks in American English. "Away from your family, away from our friends, away from ice, candy bars, all those things is because we're waiting to meet the enemy," says the man believed to be al-Amriki. Watch part of the video »
http://www.cnn.com/2009/WORLD/africa/05/04/somali.jihad.video/#cnnSTCVid...
Intelligence experts say the video was probably made in recent weeks and comes on the heels of an audio message in March purportedly from Osama bin Laden. In that recording, the al Qaeda leader calls on his "Muslim brothers in Mujahid Somalia" to overthrow President Sheikh Sharif Sheikh Ahmed for cooperating with the West…
ASIA / PACIFIC
23. Afghan forces kill senior Taliban commander in Helmand
By Bill RoggioMay 5, 2009 12:15 AM
http://www.longwarjournal.org/archives/2009/05/afghan_forces_kill_s.php
Click map for full view. Taliban presence, by district, in Kandahar, Uruzgan, and Helmand provinces. Information on Taliban presence obtained from open source and derived by The Long War Journal based on the presence of Taliban shadow governments, levels of fighting, and statements from ISAF commanders. Map created by Bill Raymond for The Long War Journal.
Afghan troops killed a senior Taliban commander several days ago in the battleground province of Helmand. The commander, known as Mullah Salam Noorzai, was killed by members of the Afghan National Security force during a raid on a compound north of the contested district of Now Zad on April 28. An aide to Noorzai was killed and another was captured during the operation, according to a press release issued by the US military. Noorzai had a long history in the Taliban. He served as the IV Corps commander in Herat province for several years during the reign of the Taliban government until its fall in 2001. He "was instrumental in the reconstitution of the insurgent effort following the regime's demise" and served as a senior commander in the northern and central regions of Helmand province. The district of Now Zad is a known haven for Taliban fighters and leaders. The districts where the provinces of Helmand, Kandahar, and Uruzgan meet are considered to be either under Taliban control or contested. The Taliban have conducted infantry-styled assaults and built fortifications in the region, and have conducted complex ambushes, according to an after-action report from a US Marine officer that was obtained by The Long War Journal. The US Marines have established a combat outpost in Now Zad in an effort to drive out the Taliban…
24. Up to 500,000 flee as Pakistan prepares to take on the Taliban
Up to 500,000 people are preparing to flee Pakistan's troubled Swat valley after the military gave warning it was about to launch a major operation to retake control of the region.
By Isambard Wilkinson in Islamabad, Ashfaq Yusufzai and Emal Khan in Peshawar
Last Updated: 10:13PM BST 05 May 2009 The Daily Telegraph (London)
http://www.investigativeproject.org/ext/3336
The authorities urged people to leave the area as troops gathered following the collapse of an agreement for militants to lay down their arms in return for the establishment of Sharia law. Thousands took to the roads as Mian Iftikhar Hussain, information minister for the North West Frontier Province (NWFP), said camps would be set up for half a million refugees. Bedraggled men, women in burkas and children piled on to pickup trucks, and led animals through streets in their haste to flee. Clashes between security forces and militants in the north-west of Pakistan's have already created hundreds of thousands of refugees who have sought sanctuary in badly-supplied camps. Fighting between the army and Taliban has continued with 20 civilians reported to have been killed in Swat as a result of mortar and artillery fire from security forces at the centre of Mingora, the district's capital. The army said militants had attacked checkpoints and bases in four different locations in Swat, and that armed militants were now openly patrolling Mingora's streets. Locals said the fighters had recruited young men, broadcast anti-government propaganda via FM radio stations and established trenches and laid mines throughout Mingora...
EUROPE
25. Witness: men joke about bombing US base in Germany
May 5, 2009 - 11:32am Associated Press By NICOLE LANGE
http://www.wtop.com/?nid=105&sid=1656719
DUESSELDORF, Germany (AP) - A group of men were caught on tape discussing bombing a U.S. air base and joking about the reaction once they carried out their plan, a German investigator testified Tuesday. The witness, an agent with Germany's Federal Criminal Police Office, told the Duesseldorf state court that investigators listened to about 30 hours of covertly taped discussions by the men. The suspects used the word "attack" about 40 times and "bomb" 30 times, he said. "Ramstein sounds good," the agent quoted alleged ringleader Fritz Gelowicz, 29, as saying in reference to the U.S. Air Force base. Authorities arrested Gelowicz, along with Adem Yilmaz, 30, and Daniel Schneider, 23, at a rented vacation apartment on Sept. 4, 2007. The fourth suspect, 24-year-old Attila Selek, was picked up in Turkey in November 2007 and later extradited to Germany. Selek and Yilmaz are Turkish citizens; Gelowicz and Schneider are German converts to Islam. The defendants have not entered pleas, normal practice in the German legal system, but lawyers for Gelowicz and Schneider have said they would question whether some of the evidence could be used in court, including the tapes. Lawyers for Selek and Yilmaz raised similar questions. The suspects had planned to attack the air base in 2007 using three car bombs and another bomb hidden in a base airport terminal that could have been remotely detonated with a mobile phone, said the witness, whose name was withheld in keeping with German witness protection laws. He said the group discussed using the anniversary of the Sept. 11 attacks on New York and Washington as a date for their plot, saying "the world will burn," if it worked…
26. Dozens dead in Turkish engagement party massacre
Suna Erdem, Istanbul From Times Online (London) May 5, 2009
http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/world/europe/article6223950.ece
Masked gunmen with automatic weapons stormed an engagement celebration in southeast Turkey last night, killing 44 people, including the would-be bride, groom and several children, in one of the the worst single attacks the country has seen. Recep Tayyip Erdogan, the Turkish Prime Minister, condemned the attack, which wiped out nearly a fifth of the village population, as the apparent result of a family dispute - an account contested by others who said the deaths had a political motive. Turkish media reported that the attackers had wanted the bride to marry someone else. Reports said the groom and the bride's families had previously been enemies in a blood feud. Blood feuds and honour killings are common in the impoverished, highly tribal region, but the systematic nature of the killings and high death toll are unusual for this type of violence. Distraught relatives sobbed on each others shoulders as they recounted how most of the victims were women, children and elderly men in the overnight attack in the small hilltop village of Bilge, in Mardin province near Turkey's border with Syria. Three pregnant women and a one-year-old baby were among the dead… Turkey's Interior Minister, Besir Atalay, said that police had detained eight people, all of them bearing the same name as one of the families. Officials have ruled out links with the rebel Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK), which has attacked the village in the past because most of its population are village guards, paid and armed by the state in the 25-year struggle against the separatist PKK...
27. Bosnia police hunt Muslim ex-fighters to expel them
Tue May 5, 2009 5:23am EDT Reuters
http://www.reuters.com/article/latestCrisis/idUSL5937318
SARAJEVO, May 5 (Reuters) - Bosnian police are hunting foreign-born Muslims who fought in the 1992-95 war and stayed in Bosnia as illegal aliens, a spokesman said on Tuesday. "We arrested two people on Monday night in the central Zenica-Doboj region," said a police spokesman for Bosnia's Muslim-Croat federation, which is coordinating an operation involving all police agencies in the country. He said those arrested were "foreign citizens suspected of illegal residence in Bosnia" and were handed over to the immigration service. Thousands of Islamic fighters fought during the war with Bosnian Muslims against Bosnian Croats and Bosnian Serbs. Most of them left the country under U.S. pressure in the late 1990s but some remained after marrying locally. Local media reported that Syria-born Aimen Awad and Iraqi-born Abdulah Baaura were arrested in the central town of Zenica but the spokesman declined to confirm their names…
28. Talk-show host to sue Home Office over link to neo-Nazis and Muslim preachers of hate in list of 22 banned from Britain
By James Slack Last updated at 12:06 AM on 06th May 2009 The Daily Mail (UK)
http://www.investigativeproject.org/ext/3337
A U.S. radio presenter who is included on the Home Office's list of 22 people banned from entering the UK is suing the British Government for defamation. Mike Savage told the San Francisco Chronicle that being included in such a crowd is no laughing matter - and he is now preparing legal action against Home Secretary Jacqui Smith. 'This lunatic...is linking me up with Nazi skinheads who are killing people in Russia; she's putting me in a league with Hamas murderers who kill Jews on buses,' he said. 'I have never advocated violence. I've been on the air 15 years. My views may be inflammatory, but they're not violent in any way.' He said he has been defamed and endangered by the
