Europe-wide Terror Plot Thwarted

Source Article HERE.

From YNetNews: Members of a terror cell nabbed in Barcelona last weekend are suspected of planning to hit public transportation targets in several European cities, Spanish newspaper El Pais reported over the weekend. According to the testimony of a police informant, the 14-member terror cell affiliated with al-Qaeda planned to strike cities in Spain, Germany, France, Portugal, and Britain. The police source said the suspects focused their attention on public transportation targets, including subways, in various cities across Europe. "If we strike at subways, rescue forces won't be able to get there," one cell member reportedly told the police informant. The cell planned to send two pairs of would-be-attackers to the Barcelona subway carrying bags packed with explosives. The terror suspects planned to detonate the bombs using remote controlled devices.



Security officials in Barcelona estimated that the terror attack was scheduled to be carried out in the next two weeks. According to the report, other cell members were tasked with similar missions in other European cities based on the same modus operandi. After the 12 Pakistanis and 2 Indian nationals were arrested in connection with the plot, 4 suspects were released due to lack of evidence against them. During the operation, security forces also recovered explosive devices and other means aimed at producing explosive devices.

IDF Anti-Terror Activity in Judea and Samaria

Source Article HERE.

From Israel MFA: (Communicated by the IDF Spokesman) In the past week, IDF (Israeli Defense Forces) continued to operate against terrorist organizations in Judea, Samaria and the Jordan Valley in order to prevent terrorist attacks on the Israeli home front and in the Judea and Samaria region. On Thursday evening (24 January), two terrorists infiltrated into the yeshiva of Kibutz Kfar Etzion and stabbed two Israeli civilians. The two counselors were lightly-to-moderately injured, and were transferred to the Hadassah Ein Kerem hospital in Jerusalem. Other counselors present on the scene came to their defense, overpowered the terrorists and killed them. At the same time in a different location, Palestinian gunmen opened fire at a Border Police checkpoint in Jerusalem, killing a 20 year-old Border Policeman and severely injuring a Border Policewoman.

On Friday, January 18, 2008, Ahmed Muhamad Ibrahim Sanakra, a senior Tanzim terror operative was killed during a joint IDF and ISA operation in Nablus. Four wanted Tanzim terror operatives were also arrested. Sanakra was responsible for manufacturing explosive devices and detonating them against IDF forces in Nablus. Sanakra was responsible for dispatching and executing dozens of shooting attacks against forces in Nablus. In addition, he was involved in planning and executing suicide bombings against the Israeli home front as well as recruiting suicide bombers and manufacturing explosive belts.

On Monday night, January 21,2008, during a joint IDF and ISA arrest operation in the city Tulkarm, a Tanzim terror-operative, Murad Al-Bassa, opened fire at the IDF force injuring the battalion commander Lieut. Col. Nir Bar-On, who fired back at Al-Bassa and killed him.

On Wednesday, January 23, 2008, nine tons of fertilizer containing potassium nitrate was discovered in Jericho during a joint IDF, Civil Administration, Border Police and ISA operation. Potassium nitrate is a banned substance in the Gaza Strip and in Judea and Samaria due to its use by terrorists for the manufacturing of explosive devices and Qassam rockets. In addition, on Wednesday, in a joint IDF, Civil Administration and ISA activity aimed at seizing illegal materials, the forces discovered illegal substances in two factories to the east of Nablus.

In the past week, IDF forces arrested 50 wanted Palestinians in the Judea, Samaria and the Jordan Valley.

German Court Convicts Terror Suspect

Source Article HERE.

From AP: A German court on Thursday convicted a man of helping al-Qaida in Iraq and sentenced him to nearly six years in prison. The state court in Schleswig found Redouane El Habhab, a 38-year-old German of Moroccan heritage, guilty on six counts of supporting a foreign terrorist organization, and ruled that he also founded a terror group himself. During his trial, which opened in July, federal prosecutors accused El Habhab of raising money for al-Qaida in Iraq and helping supply fighters for the insurgency there. "The financial support and (people) smuggling directly benefited al-Qaida in Iraq," presiding judge Matthias Hohmann said as he read the verdict, sentencing El Habhab to five years and nine months in prison. The defendant showed no reaction as he listened.

Prosecutors also charged that he helped form a terrorist group in Sudan that aimed to set up a training camp, and Hohmann said the court was satisfied that "this group was founded." During the trial, the defendant acknowledged taking an oath of loyalty to al-Qaida founder Osama bin Laden but said he had no direct contact to his organization. The defense team had sought El Habhab's acquittal, arguing that there was insufficient evidence to support the charges, and said it planned to appeal the verdict.

Iraq Announces Major Offensive in Mosul

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Iraqi Prime Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki gestures as he announces during a press conference in Karbala, 80 kilometers (50 miles) south of Baghdad, Iraq, Friday, Jan. 25, 2008 that the government was sending troops to Mosul, Iraq

From AP: The Iraqi prime minister announced on Friday that the government was preparing to strike back against al-Qaida in the northern city of Mosul after two days of deadly bombings killed nearly 40 people. He promised the fight "will be decisive." U.S. and Iraqi forces have staged many operations against insurgents north of Baghdad where levels of violence remain high even as they drop elsewhere in the country. The announcement by Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki came after warnings by the U.S. military that Mosul was the last major city where al-Qaida maintains a strong presence after largely being driven from Baghdad and other major population centers.

"Today, our troops started moving toward Mosul ... and the fight there will be decisive," al-Maliki said during an address in the Shiite holy city of Karbala. He did not say how many troops were being sent or provide more details in his wide-ranging speech, an apparent attempt to show his beleaguered administration was assuming control of the situation in Mosul with the U.S. military in the background. "Now we have a real army. The days when the militants could do anything in front of our armed forces are gone," al-Maliki said.

Interior Ministry spokesman Maj. Gen. Abdul-Karim Khalaf later told The Associated Press that 3,000 police were being sent as reinforcements for the 16,000 policemen already in Mosul to combat insurgents. But he gave no date for the start of the operation due to security concerns. He also said additional soldiers would be sent to the area but provided no specifics.

Al-Maliki traveled to Karbala, 50 miles south of Baghdad, a day after a roadside bomb targeted a senior aide of Iraq's Shiite spiritual leader Grand Ayatollah Ali al-Sistani in the city. The aide, Abdul-Mahdi al-Karbalai, escaped with a wound to the arm, but two of his bodyguards were killed and two were wounded, according to local police. Al-Maliki met with the white-turbaned cleric, who wore a bandage on his right forearm.

Al-Qaida and its supporters would find themselves without a major base of operations if ousted from Mosul, which occupies transport crossroads between Baghdad, Syria and other points. Al-Qaida first started to lose its footholds in the western Anbar province after Sunni tribes turned against them and joined the U.S.-led fight. The military successes then began to pile up in Baghdad and other central regions - forcing many insurgents to seek new havens in the north.

The U.S. military said Friday that American and Iraqi troops had cleared a roadside bomb-infested route between Baqouba and Khan Bani Saad, a strategic village on the northern outskirts of Baghdad. Thirty roadside bombs were removed from the road and surrounding areas along with 12 booby-trapped houses, 11 car bombs and six weapons caches, the military said in a statement. The troops also killed an estimated 41 suspected al-Qaida in Iraq militants, although the military stressed the exact number could not be confirmed because many were killed in aerial bombardments and their bodies were removed before ground forces arrived.

Pakistani Forces Battle Militants, Kill 40

Source Article HERE

From Reuters: Pakistani forces have cleared militant strongholds from three areas in the South Waziristan region of Pakistan on the Afghan border. During the fighting, 40 militants and 8 soldiers were killed, the military said on Thursday. The army is sending in reinforcements and tanks after a week of fighting with militants loyal to a Taliban commander the government said was behind the assassination of opposition leader Benazir Bhutto last month. The clashes, in which nearly 150 militants and more than 20 government soldiers have been killed, raise concern about the nuclear-armed country in the run-up to a February 18th election that could weaken President Pervez Musharraf.

Security forces carried out operations in three parts of South Waziristan, the military said. "These areas have been cleared of militant strongholds and hideouts," a statement said. "Forty miscreants have been killed in the last 24 hours and 30 miscreants have been apprehended while many injured." Eight soldiers were killed and 32 wounded. The fighting is in strongholds of militant chief Baitullah Mehsud, who the United States has also said was behind Bhutto's assassination in a gun and bomb attack in Rawalpindi on December 27th. Mehsud has been blamed for a string of attacks in a suicide bomb campaign that intensified after commandos stormed a radical mosque complex in Islamabad last July. On Wednesday of last week, his men attacked and captured another fort in Waziristan.

Security forces have been battling al Qaeda-linked militants in South Waziristan for several years. The mountainous region, occupied by conservative, independent-minded Pashtun tribesmen, has never come under the full authority of any government. Militants in South and North Waziristan also attack U.S. and NATO forces and Afghan government troops across the border in Afghanistan.

Admiral William Fallon, the head of the U.S. military's Central Command, visited Pakistan for talks with army chief General Ashfaq Kayani on Tuesday. Fallon told reporters in Florida last week that Pakistan was increasingly willing to fight Islamist militants and accept U.S. help, without saying what kind of support. The United States has already announced plans to step up training of Pakistan's Frontier Corps, a paramilitary force recruited from tribal lands.

Centcom Press Release - Jan 23

COALITION DISRUPTS AL-QAEDA; 15 TERRORISTS KILLED
Coalition Forces killed 15 terrorists Tuesday and Wednesday during operations targeting al-Qaeda in Iraq (AQI) networks north of Baqubah. On Tuesday, Coalition Forces conducted an operation targeting an alleged leader for the AQI network operating in the Diyala province. The targeted individual is believed to be an IED specialist involved in coordinating IED and suicide-vest attacks in the region. Reports also indicate the targeted individual has ties to several AQI senior leaders. As Coalition Forces arrived in the target area, they observed several individuals reach for their weapons. Coalition Forces fired warning shots in an attempt to get the men to cease their actions, but they did not comply. Perceiving hostile intent from the armed men, Coalition Forces engaged, killing two terrorists, including the wanted individual. Upon clearing the area, the ground force discovered IEDs and grenades, which were safely destroyed, along with a vehicle in the target area.

Coalition Forces returned to the region on Wednesday, targeting another alleged leader of the Diyala network associated with the terrorist killed during operations on the previous day. As Coalition Forces arrived in the target area they observed a group of enemy personnel moving into fighting positions. Responding in self-defense, the ground force called supporting aircraft to engage the hostile force, killing 10 terrorists. Coalition Forces continued to clear the area and called for the occupants of the target building to come out, but they did not comply. Several terrorists were then observed maneuvering toward Coalition Forces and they engaged the perceived hostile threat, killing 3 terrorists.

As Coalition Forces secured the building, they discovered a cache of weapons including machine guns, military style assault vests, RPG propellant and various ammunition. Nearby, the ground force discovered additional weapons caches including RPGs, artillery and mortar rounds, improvised IEDs, and suicide-vest materials. All of the weapons were safely destroyed on site.

Jose Padilla Sentenced To 17 Years

From Boston Herald & AP: MIAMI - Jose Padilla, once accused of plotting with al-Qaida to blow up a radioactive "dirty bomb," was sentenced Tuesday to 17 years and four months on terrorism conspiracy charges that don’t mention those initial allegations. The sentence imposed by U.S. District Judge Marcia Cooke marks another step in the extraordinary personal and legal odyssey for the 37-year-old Muslim convert, a U.S. citizen who was held for 3 1/2 years as an enemy combatant after his 2002 arrest amid the "dirty bomb" allegations. Prosecutors had sought a life sentence, but Cook said she arrived at the 17-year sentence after considering the "harsh conditions" during Padilla’s lengthy military detention at a Navy brig in South Carolina. "I do find that the conditions were so harsh for Mr. Padilla ... they warrant consideration in the sentencing in this case," the judge said.

Cooke also imposed prison terms on two other men of Middle Eastern origin who were convicted of conspiracy and material support charges along with Padilla in August. The three were part of a North American support cell for al-Qaida and other Islamic extremists around the world, prosecutors said. The jury was told that Padilla was recruited by Islamic extremists in the U.S. and filled out an application to attend an al-Qaida training camp in Afghanistan. Cooke said that as serious as the conspiracy was, there was no evidence linking the men to specific acts of terrorism anywhere.

Padilla was added in 2005 to an existing Miami terrorism support case just as the U.S. Supreme Court was considering his challenge to President Bush's decision to hold him in custody indefinitely without charge. The "dirty bomb" charges were quietly discarded and were never part of the criminal case. Cooke sentenced Padilla's recruiter, 45-year-old Adham Amin Hassoun, to 15 years and eight months in prison and the third defendant, 46-year-old Kifah Wael Jayyousi, to 12 years and eight months. Jayyousi was a financier and propagandist for the cell that assisted Islamic extremists in Chechnya, Afghanistan, Somalia and elsewhere, according to trial testimony. Both also faced life in prison.

The Justice Department praised prosecutors and investigators in the long-running case. "Thanks to their efforts, the defendants' North American support cell has been dismantled and can no longer send money and jihadist recruits to conflicts overseas," Kenneth L. Wainstein, assistant attorney general for national security, said in a statement. The men were convicted after a three-month trial based on tens of thousands of FBI telephone intercepts collected over an eight-year investigation and a form Padilla filled out in 2000 to attend an al-Qaida training camp in Afghanistan. Padilla, a former Chicago gang member with a long criminal record, converted to Islam in prison and was recruited by Hassoun while attending a mosque in suburban Sunrise.

Jurors in the criminal case never heard Padilla's full history, which according to U.S. officials included a graduation from the al-Qaida terror camp, a plot to detonate the "dirty bomb" and a plot to fill apartments with natural gas and blow them up. Much of what Padilla supposedly told interrogators during his long detention as an enemy combatant could not be used in court because he had no access to a lawyer and was not read his constitutional rights.

Attorneys for Hassoun and Jayyousi argued that any assistance they provided overseas was for peaceful purposes and to help persecuted Muslims in violent countries. But FBI agents testified that their charitable work was a cover for violent jihad, which they frequently discussed in code using words such as "tourism" and "football."

Iraqi Parliament Considers Amnesty

From AFP: Iraq's parliament gave a first reading on Monday to a draft law that offers a general amnesty to thousands of detainees held in US and Iraqi prisons in a bid to boost national reconciliation. The detainees, mostly Sunni Arabs, are being held without charge. Most have been detained for more than a year on suspicion of backing the anti-US insurgency. Their detention is seen as fuelling animosity between the Shiite and Sunni communities in Iraq and the US military in particular has been strongly advocating their release in the wake of a growing alliance of Sunnis with American forces.

MPs said the bill will not apply to those sentenced to death or convicted of terrorism, premeditated murder, kidnapping, robbery with aggravating circumstances, incest, drug trafficking, forgery, rape, sodomy or the smuggling of antiquities. It will also not apply to anyone formally charged with these crimes. Sadiq al-Rikabi, an adviser to Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki, said when the cabinet approved the bill on December 26th, it would apply to "as many detainees as possible", including those held for corruption and other financial crimes.

The second reading of the law is scheduled for four days' time whereafter it will be put to the vote. Around 26,000 detainees are held in two US prisons and thousands more in Iraqi-run detention centres. The US military holds the detainees at Camp Cropper near Baghdad international airport and at Camp Bucca near the southern port city of Basra.