U.S. Cites Big Gains Against Al-Qaeda

Source Article HERE.

From 'Washington Post': Less than a year after his agency warned of new threats from a resurgent al-Qaeda, CIA Director Michael V. Hayden now portrays the terrorist movement as essentially defeated in Iraq and Saudi Arabia and on the defensive throughout much of the rest of the world, including in its presumed haven along the Afghanistan-Pakistan border. In a strikingly upbeat assessment, the CIA chief cited major gains against al-Qaeda's allies in the Middle East and an increasingly successful campaign to destabilize the group's core leadership.


While cautioning that al-Qaeda remains a serious threat, Hayden said Osama bin Laden is losing the battle for hearts and minds in the Islamic world and has largely forfeited his ability to exploit the Iraq war to recruit adherents. Two years ago, a CIA study concluded that the U.S.-led war had become a propaganda and marketing bonanza for al-Qaeda, generating cash donations and legions of volunteers. All that has changed, Hayden said in an interview with 'The Washington Post' this week that coincided with the start of his third year at the helm of the CIA.

"On balance, we are doing pretty well," he said, ticking down a list of accomplishments: "Near strategic defeat of al-Qaeda in Iraq. Near strategic defeat for al-Qaeda in Saudi Arabia. Significant setbacks for al-Qaeda globally -- and here I'm going to use the word 'ideologically' -- as a lot of the Islamic world pushes back on their form of Islam," he said.

The sense of shifting tides in the terrorism fight is shared by a number of terrorism experts, though some caution that it is too early to tell whether the gains are permanent. Some credit Hayden and other U.S. intelligence leaders for going on the offensive against al-Qaeda in the area along the Afghanistan-Pakistan border, where the tempo of Predator strikes has dramatically increased from previous years. But analysts say the United States has caught some breaks in the past year, benefiting from improved conditions in Iraq, as well as strategic blunders by al-Qaeda that have cut into its support base. "One of the lessons we can draw from the past two years is that al-Qaeda is its own worst enemy," said Robert Grenier, a former top CIA counterterrorism official who is now managing director of Kroll, a risk consulting firm...

Read more HERE.

[Editor's Note: I reported on this situation as early as March 16th (see HERE). Terrorism expert Gilles Kepel essentially confirmed my views HERE in early April.]

The President Has Kept Us Safe

Source Article HERE.

By: THANE ROSENBAUM

From 'Wall Street Journal': With President Bush-bashing still a national pastime, it's notable how much international terrorism has been forgotten, and how little credit the president has received for keeping Americans safe.

This is a difficult issue for me. I didn't vote for President Bush – twice. And as a human-rights law professor, the events at Abu Ghraib and Guantanamo Bay, along with various elements of the Patriot Act and the National Security Agency's wiretapping of Americans, are all greatly troubling to me.

Yet I live in Manhattan and I was present on Sept. 11, 2001 – admittedly 100 blocks from the murder scene, but I was here, trembling along with the rest of America. Remember those days?

Everyone on 9/12 and thereafter – here in New York City and in cities across America – was quite certain that the next terrorist strike was imminent. The stock market collapsed on such fears, and Las Vegas odds makers weren't betting on safer days ahead. We endured interminable delays at airport security checkpoints. Even grandmothers were suddenly suspects.

Sarin and anthrax – the nerve gas and poison, respectively – entered our national vocabulary. Venturing into subways and pizza shops became a game of psychological Russian roulette – with an Islamic twist. Macy's and Zabar's seemed like inevitable strategic targets. Our fears were no longer isolated to skyscrapers – from now, all aspects of daily life would evoke terror.

We would come to familiarize ourselves with the color-coded scale of threat conditions issued by the Department of Homeland Security. (Was it safe to go out on orange, or did we have to wait until yellow?)

Each American city adopted its own visions of trauma. There were new categories of vulnerable public spaces. Our worst terrorism nightmares were projected onto local landmarks: Rodeo Drive, the Sears Tower, the French Quarter, River Walk, the Golden Gate Bridge, the Space Needle. Suddenly, living in rural, outlying areas seemed like a sensible lifestyle choice.

We all waited for terrorism's second shoe to drop, and, seven years later . . . nothing has happened.

Other cities around the world became targets: Madrid, Glasgow, London and Bali; the entire nation of Denmark; and, of course, Jerusalem and Tel Aviv. Here in America, however, the focus moved from concerns over counterterrorism measures and the abuse of presidential authority to the war in Iraq, the subprime mortgage crisis, the failing economy, the public meltdown of Britney Spears, and now, the presidential elections.

All this time Americans have been safe from suicide bombers, biological warfare and collapsing skyscrapers, while the rest of the world has been on red alert. And yet President Bush is regarded as the worst president in American history? Sorry, I must be missing something here.

Yes, there are those who maintain that our promiscuous misadventures in Iraq, Afghanistan and Israel have rendered America even less safe. That the president has further radicalized our enemies and alienated our nation. That the animosity for America now, improbably, runs even deeper. Whatever resentments and aspirations gave rise to 9/11 have grown and will not be easily dissipated. For this reason, no one should draw comfort in the relative safety of our shores.

Maybe so. But when a professed enemy succeeds as wildly as al Qaeda did on 9/11, and seven years pass without an incident, there are two reasonable conclusions: Either, despite all the trash-talking videos, they have been taking a long, leisurely breather; or, something serious has been done to thwart and disable their operations. Whatever combination of psychology and insanity motivates a terrorist to blow himself up is not within my range of experience, but I'm betting the aggressive measures the president took, and the unequivocal message he sent, might have had something to do with it.

Americans, admittedly, have short time horizons and, perhaps, even shorter attention spans. Our collective memory has historically been poor. But had there been another terrorist attack or, even worse, a dozen more in cities all over America – a fear that would not have been exaggerated on 9/12 – would we have allowed ourselves the luxury of quarreling over legally suspect counterterrorism measures, even though such internal debates are credits to our liberal democracy and constitutional freedoms?

Terrorism is now largely off the table in the minds of most Americans.

But in gearing up to elect a new president, we are left to wonder how, in spite of numerous failed policies and poor judgement, President Bush's greatest achievement was denied to him by people who ungratefully availed themselves of the protection that his administration provided.

Mr. Rosenbaum, a novelist, essayist and law professor at Fordham, is the author of "The Myth of Moral Justice" (Harper Perennial, 2005).

U.S. Deaths Near Lowest Level Of 5-Year Iraq War

Source Article HERE.

From 'USA Today': This May has been one of the least violent months of the Iraq war. Eighteen U.S. servicemembers have been identified as having died in Iraq so far in May, according to the Pentagon. To date, the least deadly month of the five-year war was February 2004, when 21 U.S. troops were killed in a 29-day period. The number of wounded also has fallen. Overall, militant attacks in Iraq have dropped to levels not seen since spring 2004, U.S. military spokesman Rear Admiral Patrick Driscoll said this week. Attacks are down 70% since President Bush ordered a U.S. troop increase, or "surge," early last year.

Al-Sadr agreed to a truce this month after two months of clashes with U.S.-backed Iraqi security forces. The fighting followed an Iraqi government decision to rein in al-Sadr's Mahdi Army and other Shiite militants. Iraqi forces have also stepped up the offensive against Sunni militants, including al-Qaeda, in the northern city of Mosul. "We're seeing progress because we're getting more capability out of the Iraqi security forces," said Lt. Gen. Lloyd Austin, the No. 2 U.S. commander in Iraq.

The U.S. ambassador to Iraq, Ryan Crocker, who has been guarded in making proclamations of success, said last week that al-Qaeda in Iraq has "never been closer to defeat than they are now." CIA Director Michael Hayden, speaking to 'The Washington Post', cited gains against the group: "Near strategic defeat of al-Qaeda in Iraq. Near strategic defeat for al-Qaeda in Saudi Arabia. Significant setbacks for al-Qaeda globally."

Iraqi President Jalal Talabani also has sounded an upbeat tone. Talabani criticized Iraqi Army Chief of Staff Babakir Zebari for saying his forces would not be ready to handle security on their own for four years. Instead, Talabani predicted last week that Iraqi military forces would be able to maintain control of the country by year's end. Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki told a United Nations conference in Sweden on Thursday that "Iraq has achieved major success in the battle against terrorism."

The U.S. death toll for May marks a dramatic decline from 126 deaths in May 2007, when U.S. forces were battling for control of Baghdad. Injuries among U.S. troops also are at their lowest level this year. Thirty-one Americans were hurt in combat last week, the Pentagon said. That's down from a recent peak of 130 in a single week in March, at the height of the fighting against Shiite militants.

Fewer Iraqis are also dying. Seventy-eight people died in bombings across Iraq in April, the lowest level since November 2004, when 75 died, according to the Brookings Institution, a Washington think tank that tracks the data. After five grim years, however, Iraqis are cautiously optimistic.

Former Al-Qaeda Terrorist Denounces Violence

Source Article HERE.

From 'Special Report w/ Brit Hume': A former Al Qaeda mastermind who is incarcerated in Egypt is now denouncing most violence in the name of Allah. The New Yorker Magazine says the terrorist best known as "Doctor Fadl" attempts to define new rules for holy war. He writes that it is forbidden for Muslims to kill civilians, jihad is not required against an overwhelmingly strong enemy and that God praises those who simply move away from unbelievers, rather than fight them. Fadl says the 9/11 hijackers were wrong, prompting reprisals that have killed tens of thousands of Muslims. "What good is it if you destroy one of your enemy's buildings, and he destroys one of your countries?" Fadl's writings reportedly have further eroded Al Qaeda’s standing among many Muslims, particularly in Egypt.

You can read The New Yorker article HERE.

Iraq Rising

Source Article HERE.

From 'FrontPage Magazine': A fascinating scene played out in Basra, Iraq, last week. Troops from the Iraqi Army stood sentinel over the once restive city as followers of rogue cleric Muqtada al-Sadr muttered dispiritedly that they had been driven from power. In this Sadrist fiefdom, the erstwhile epicenter of a Shiite insurgency that many doubted could be contained, the Iraqi army was now law.

Credit this remarkable transformation to Operation Sawlat al-Fursan, also known as operation Charge of the Knights, which began with little fanfare and much skepticism in late March. A make-or-break test for the government of Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki and the Iraqi armed forces, the operation was largely led by the Iraqi Army and Iraqi Security Forces. Their success in routing militia elements in cities like Basra would reveal much about what could realistically be expected from Iraq.

Democrats were anything but optimistic. Presumptive nominee Barack Obama allowed that the operation had “resulted in some reduction in violence” but insisted, counterintuitively, that this only strengthened the case for rushed troop withdrawals. Hillary Clinton, never one to be pinned down on policy substance when grandstanding is an option, offered her standard refrain that the “surge has failed to accomplish its goals.” More candid was Joe Biden, who back in April was prepared to call a victory ... for Sadr. Of Basra, he pronounced, it “looks to me like, at least on the surface, Sadr may have come out a winner here.” In the Democrats’ dismal exegesis, the surge had failed, Iraq was doomed, and withdrawal was the only viable option.

But despair, like hope, is not a policy. Two months on, the Democrats’ fatalism on Iraq looks woefully off base. By all significant indicators, Iraqi security forces have turned the tide against Shiite insurgents. Their improbable control of Basra is only the latest sign of the shifting balance of power. On the strength of the success in Basra, the military reports that violence in Iraq has plunged to its lowest level in over four years. Even the New York Times – no instinctive friend to the Bush administration – reports of Basra that with “Islamist militias evicted from their strongholds by the Iraqi Army, few doubt that this once-lawless port is in better shape than it was just two months ago.” Basra has indeed produced a winner. But contra Joe Biden, it’s not Muqtada al-Sadr.

Just as Shiite die-hards have suffered a devastating reversal, their Sunni counterparts in al-Qaeda are also in retreat. Witness the results in Mosul. Considered by the U.S. and Iraqi forces to be the terrorists’ last urban stronghold in Iraq, Mosul less than a month ago was a soulless Shari’a state...

Read the rest HERE.

Attacks In Iraq Reach 4-Year Low

Source Article HERE.

From 'Wall Street Journal': U.S. and Iraqi military officials said violence in Iraq has decreased significantly in recent weeks to levels not seen in four years. That offers some hope to officials that Iraqi security services may be making gains, following recent Iraqi-led military campaigns in Basra in the south, Baghdad's Sadr City, and Mosul in the north. U.S. military spokesman Rear Admiral Patrick Driscoll said at a news conference here Sunday that weekly attacks in Iraq are down (Editor's Note: from 1600 attacks per week a year ago) to March 2004 levels, which were about 300 attacks a week.


Children play in Sadr City as Iraqi Army distributes food

Iraqi Defense Ministry spokesman Maj. Gen. Mohammed al-Askari said that after the most recent military operations in Mosul, extremist group al Qaeda in Iraq was in a "confused state." Officials have said the group had gravitated to the city after being challenged elsewhere in the country. But Adm. Driscoll cautioned that al Qaeda was still a threat and said it was too early to "pop the champagne bottle."

A significant difference about the drop in violence announced Sunday: It came following concerted efforts by Iraqi security forces backed up by American and allied firepower -- not the other way around, as has been mostly the case in the five-year Iraq war. In late March, violence soared as Iraqi forces moved against Shiite militias in Basra and elsewhere in the south. That triggered protests and reprisals in Sadr City.

Residents in Basra and Mosul increasingly have reported that their cities are more peaceful after the Iraqi-led operations. In Sadr City, sporadic fighting continues. U.S. and Iraqi officials blame that on criminal elements, who aren't obeying a recently agreed truce. As evidence of the fragility of the relative quiet, however, lawmakers loyal to Muqtada al Sadr said Saturday that the truce was being threatened by government crackdowns against his followers there.

We Are Making Progress in Iraq

By NECHIRVAN BARZANI

Source Article HERE.

Nechirvan Barzani

From 'Wall Street Journal': While the media offers mostly images of violence, and many Americans have grown weary of the war in Iraq, I bring hopeful news to Washington this week as I meet with the administration and members of Congress. Since 2003, we have built the Kurdistan Region as a model for democracy and a gateway for development for all of Iraq. We are willing partners in this transition toward an Iraqi government that is representative of all its people. Through our peshmerga forces, we provide some of the most effective units against al Qaeda and other terrorist groups. We Kurds are committed to a federal, democratic Iraq at peace within its borders and with its neighbors.

We are working with Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki and the Iraqi leadership in Baghdad on the difficult issues facing our country. Our relationship with Iraq's federal government has never been better. And progress is being made on an oil law, the status of disputed territories, the proper role for Iraq's neighbors to play, and on relations between the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) and Turkey.

First, the oil law. We will now start negotiations using a draft drawn up in February of 2007. We'll also establish a process to send the national oil law, the revenue sharing law, and the laws concerning the Iraqi National Oil Company and the Oil Ministry in Baghdad to parliament as one package – to be voted up or down. New oil contracts will be approved based on agreed-upon guidelines. The oil exploration contracts the KRG has already signed won't present a problem, because they were negotiated based on the highest standards of transparency.

There is also progress in settling the status of Kirkuk and other disputed territories. Previous Iraqi regimes expelled Kurds, Turkmen and Christians from Kirkuk, and gerrymandered provincial borders to change its demography. Article 140 of the Iraqi Constitution establishes a legal process to remedy this injustice. We are encouraged that the United Nations Special Representative of the Secretary General is helping to develop a proposal regarding the implementation of Article 140.

As we resolve internal issues, we also understand the importance of a peaceful relationship with all our neighbors, based on mutual respect and noninterference in internal affairs. To that end, we will continue reassuring our neighbors that a federal Iraq is not a threat. But we will also continue to encourage our neighbors to do what they can to stop terrorists from infiltrating Iraq. We think it is imperative that Middle Eastern states send their diplomatic representatives to Iraq, and for these states to proactively prevent terrorists from slipping across their borders. Unprovoked and recurring bombardment of the Kurdistan Region by Turkey and Iran must stop.

There has also been a historic step forward in KRG-Turkish relations. On May 1, I represented my government in the first high-level, official bilateral meeting with Turkey. Held in Baghdad, the meeting was conducted in a cordial atmosphere, and both sides stressed similar views on a wide range of issues. We reiterated to our Turkish colleagues our commitment to good neighborly relations, which is underscored by the growing Turkish investment in the Kurdistan Region. Our talks also focused on the need for practical steps and continued dialogue on all outstanding issues, including the problem of the PKK.

We Kurds understand and share America's frustration with the pace of political progress in Iraq. We are doing all we can to create security, stability and prosperity. While progress has not come fast enough, Iraq remains a worthy cause. As Americans debate the future of the U.S. role in Iraq, allow me to say that America's mission remains vital to the stability and security of our region. A precipitous withdrawal of U.S. forces could be calamitous. We welcome a U.S. presence in the Kurdistan Region as part of any redeployment of forces.

The Kurdish people of Iraq suffered under Saddam Hussein. And we fought and died alongside Americans to liberate our country. There is no ambiguity about the depth of gratitude that Kurds feel for America's sacrifices in Iraq. Americans who have been killed or wounded in Iraq are heroes to me and to all of Iraq's Kurds. We will never forget what you have done for us.

Mr. Barzani is prime minister of the Kurdistan Regional Government of Iraq

Morocco DA Asks Jail Time For 27 Terror Suspects

Source Article HERE.

From 'AP': A Moroccan prosecutor on Tuesday urged a court to impose prison sentences ranging from 10 to 20 years for alleged members of a militant cell accused of supporting insurgents in Iraq and plotting terrorist bombings. The prosecutor said the 27 suspects plotted to disrupt law and order in Morocco and recruit men willing to fight in the name of radical Islam. The defendants, many of them from the town of Tetouan in northern Morocco, have all denied any ties to al-Qaida or any other terrorist group. The case is being heard by the criminal court in Sale, near the capital, Rabat, that specializes in handling terrorism cases. The trial is scheduled to resume on May 27th.

Some suspects traveled to Iraq, while others went to a militant training camp in neighboring Algeria using fake identity papers, said the prosecutor, who was not identified by name. Those in the group had regular contact with people in Iraq and Syria by Internet and cell phone, he said. The prosecutor said some in the group tried to acquire ammonia to make explosives or plotted to blow up ships in the Straits of Gibraltar between Morocco and Spain. He said some former members carried out suicide bombings in Iraq and others collected funds to support bombers.

Defense lawyers insisted their clients were not part of the alleged terror cell or had been coaxed into confessions by police. Morocco, which is a largely moderate Muslim kingdom and strong U.S. ally, has seen a rise of radical Islam in recent years. It has jailed hundreds of suspected militants under anti-terror laws passed in 2003 after a string of bombings in Casablanca that killed 45 people.

French Judge Files Preliminary Charges

Source Article HERE.

From 'International Herald Tribune': Judicial officials in France say an anti-terrorism judge has filed preliminary charges against nine people suspected of financing terrorism. The officials say the nine face preliminary charges of association with a terrorist enterprise and financing terrorism. The ruling came on Tuesday. The officials say eight of the suspects were detained Friday and a ninth was arrested over the weekend. Two other suspects were detained Friday in Germany and the Netherlands as part of a three-country police sweep. French authorities suspect the detainees collected funds for the Islamic Movement of Uzbekistan, which the United States calls a militant group with close ties to al-Qaida.

MNFI Press Release - May 20

SUSPECTED IED MAKER DETAINED IN AL-WAHIDA
In the early morning hours of May 19th, Coalition Forces successfully captured an alleged improvised explosive device (IED) cell leader who is believed to be involved in an IED attack that killed two Georgian soldiers earlier this month. Using information from a tip provided by a local citizen, Coalition Forces comprised of Georgian soldiers with the 13th Light Infantry Battalion, 1st Georgian Brigade, and U.S. Soldiers from the 2nd Brigade Combat Team, 1st Armored Division, conducted the successful mission. “No longer will this cell leader be able to order attacks and move weapons across Iraq. His networks are rendered ineffective and the people of al-Wahida will be safer because of his capture,” said Captain Don Makay, Task Force Petro Commander, a native of Annapolis, MD. The 2nd BCT, 1st Armored Division, from Baumholder, Germany, has been deployed in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom since April in the Mada’in Qada, in southeastern Baghdad Province.

COALITION DETAINS HVI IN DIWANIYAH PENINSULA AREA
Coalition Forces detained two individuals, one of whom is a battalion-level high value individual (HVI) on May 17th in the Diwaniyah Peninsula area, approximately 40 kilometers southeast of Baghdad. Soldiers with Company B, 2nd Battalion, 6th Infantry Regiment, attached to 1st Battalion, 76th Field Artillery, 4th Brigade Combat Team, 3rd Infantry Division, captured the HVI during a Sons of Iraq checkpoint verification mission. The HVI is a suspected al-Qaeda in Iraq (AQI) leader who has been involved in kidnapping civilians for ransom and using the money to fund terrorist operations. He is also believed to have conducted IED attacks on Coalition Forces.

“The apprehension of (the HVI) is a terrific accomplishment by the Soldiers of Bravo Company, 2-6 Infantry,” said Maj. Mark E. Brock, executive officer for 1-76th FA. “The work of these outstanding Soldiers has ensured the continued prosperity of the citizens of Diwaniyah... the people of Diwaniyah area can enjoy the benefits of greater peace and security for their local community.” The unit was conducting SoI checkpoint verification in the Samara Jungle and Diwaniyah areas, collecting biometric data system information using the handheld interagency identity detection equipment (HIIDE). The checkpoint mission was conducted due to recently approved contracts for new SoI. As part of the effort, the unit is verifying locations of SoI checkpoints as well as collecting HIIDE information for the data system.

CITIZENS LEAD SOLDIERS TO 3 CACHES IN MADERIYAH
Once a haven for insurgents to conduct operations and store weapons, the community of Maderiyah lived in fear. Now, citizens have turned against insurgents and are providing intelligence to secure their community, leading to the recovery of numerous weapons caches. On May 16th, citizens led Soldiers from Battery B, 1st Battalion, 9th Field Artillery, 2nd Brigade Combat Team, 3rd Infantry Division, to three separate caches. “Local Iraqis are tired of the violence and fighting... and have come to see the benefits of assisting the Coalition and (Iraqi Army’s) efforts in their community,” said Lt. Col. R.J. Lillibridge, commander of 1st Battalion, 187th Infantry Regiment, 3rd Brigade Combat Team, 101st Airborne Division (Air Assault), attached to 2nd BCT, 3rd ID. “The benefits of assisting the Coalition and Government of Iraq clearly outweigh any benefit to supporting or tolerating the insurgency.”

The first cache consisted of (4) rocket-propelled grenades, (6) RPG warheads and (6) RPG boosters. The second cache contained (1) box of ammunition, (1) 73-round belt, (100) belt-linked rounds of 7.62 ammunition, (250) loose pistol rounds, (6) SKS magazines, (4) AK-47 magazines, (2) AK-47 butt stocks, (2) bayonets, (3) flasks of gunpowder, (2) spools of wire and (1) rifle with bayonet. The third cache contained (500) rounds of 9 mm ammunition and (1,000) rounds of PKC machine-gun ammunition. All the munitions in the caches were serviceable, said Capt. Richard Aaron, commander of Battery B, 1-9th FA. The three caches were discovered within a five-kilometer radius of each other and the contents were taken to Patrol Base W-1 for disposal.

The same day, a member of the local Sons of Iraq brought a cache to Soldiers stationed at PB W-1. That cache consisted of an IA uniform, a 57 mm projectile, a bag of TNT, a roll of wire, (200) anti-personnel and anti-vehicle pressure plates, a night vision scope, a rifle scope and ten CDs. All items were secured by an explosive ordnance disposal team for disposal. The four caches discovered on May 16th are the latest finds across the area. Over the past week, Battery B Soldiers have removed 13 caches from the Maderiyah area. “The recovery and removal of these caches from the area helps to continue the ever-increasing security and stability in the area, as it removes the opportunity or potential to attack Coalition and IA forces from the area,” Lillibridge said. The cooperation of reporting caches continues to build trust between Coalition Forces and local residents, added Aaron, a native of Middleboro, MA.

Justices Rule Against Man In Terrorism Case

Source Article HERE.

From 'AP': The U.S. Supreme Court on Monday ruled against a man convicted of conspiring to detonate explosives at the Los Angeles International Airport during the Millenium holiday travel rush. In its 8-1 decision, the court upheld Ahmed Ressam's conviction on an explosives charge, one of nine convictions that resulted in a 22-year prison sentence. At issue was whether Ressam should be convicted of carrying explosives during the commission of another serious crime, in Ressam's case, lying on a U.S. Customs form when he crossed the border in December 1999. Writing for the majority, Justice John Paul Stevens said that "the most natural reading" of federal law goes against Ressam. The San Francisco-based 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals had set aside Ressam's conviction on the explosives count. The appeals court said the law required proof that the explosives were carried "in relation to" the underlying crime of filing a false form. Prosecutors established no such relationship, the appeals court said. The case is U.S. v. Ressam, 07-455.

FBI Most Wanted Terror Suspect Jailed In Yemen

Source Article HERE.

From 'AP': A Yemeni-American on the FBI's Most Wanted list of terror suspects was jailed in Yemen after an appeals court upheld his 10-year prison sentence, officials said Monday. Washington had offered a reward of up to $5 million for information leading to Jaber Elbaneh's arrest, but Yemeni law forbid his extradition after police arrested him in 2004. Elbaneh, who has been accused of belonging to al-Qaida, has been convicted of plots to attack oil installations in Yemen and of involvement in a 2002 attack on the French tanker Limburg off Yemen's coast that killed one person. Yemeni authorities allowed Elbaneh to go free during an appeals process — even after he was convicted, jailed, escaped from prison and turned himself in.

The United States put pressure on Yemen to imprison Elbaneh, and FBI chief Robert Mueller raised the issue in meetings last month with Yemeni leaders in San'a, a security official said Monday on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to talk to media. However, the official said Yemen continues to refuse Washington's request that it hand over Elbaneh and Jamal al-Badawi, the al-Qaida mastermind of the USS Cole bombing in 2000 that killed 17 American sailors. On Sunday, Elbaneh was sent to a maximum-security prison in the capital San'a, an official from the state prosecutor's office said on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to talk to media. It is the same facility Elbaneh and 22 other convicts escaped from in February 2006 by digging a tunnel to a nearby mosque.

In May 2003, U.S. prosecutors charged Elbaneh in absentia with conspiring with a group known as the "Lackawanna Six" to provide material support or resources to a foreign terrorist organization. Yemeni authorities arrested him in 2004, but he escaped from prison less than two years later. Last year, a Yemeni court charged Elbaneh in absentia for plotting to attack oil installments in the country. He was sentenced to 10 years in prison. Elbaneh turned himself into Yemeni authorities in December, but never went back to jail. Yemen is Osama bin Laden's ancestral homeland and has an active al-Qaida presence despite government efforts to destroy the network.

Palestinians Ambivalent About Bin Laden Support

Source Article HERE.

From 'PR-Inside': In his latest message to the world, Osama bin Laden portrays himself as the only true defender of the Palestinians. But Palestinian leaders, even the Islamic militants of Hamas, on Monday expressed little enthusiasm for the bear hug from the fugitive al-Qaida leader. The moderate Palestinian government in the West Bank fears its quest for independence could be sullied by perceived links to terrorism, and the rival Hamas regime in Gaza, labeled a terrorist group by the U.S. and Israel, sees al-Qaida as too extreme.

"Al-Qaida and bin Laden have caused huge damage to the image of Muslims and Arabs all over the world, and with his frequent statements about the Palestinians he just damages our image," said Nimr Hamad, an adviser to Mahmoud Abbas, the moderate Palestinian president in the West Bank. The Palestinians have a "deep interest in convincing the Western world of the justice of our national cause," Hamad said. If the Palestinians are seen as "on bin Laden's side, we will definitely lose."

Bin Laden's 22-minute speech, posted on an Islamic militant Web site late Sunday, criticized Arab states for not waging war against Israel. "Those (Arab) kings and leaders sacrificed Palestine and Al-Aqsa to keep their crowns," bin Laden said, referring to the Al Aqsa Mosque in Jerusalem, one of Islam's holiest sites. Israel is weak, he charged, but the Arabs have not fought "even a single serious war to get Palestine back." He even ridiculed the leader of the Lebanese Shiite group Hezbollah, which fought a bloody war with Israel in 2006, for not doing more and for allowing the deployment of U.N. peacekeepers in southern Lebanon "to protect the Jews." He attacked Arab leaders interested in negotiating with Israel: "They have decided that peace with the Zionists is their strategic option, so damn their decision." That would include Abbas, who is holding peace talks with the Israeli government.

Bin Laden and his deputy, Ayman al-Zawahri, regularly launch verbal assaults on Arab leaders in the recordings they dispatch from their hideout, believed to be somewhere on the wild frontier between Afghanistan and Pakistan. But recent messages have increasingly focused on the Palestinians, perhaps in an attempt to appeal to a broad Muslim audience for whom the Palestinian-Israeli conflict is a pivotal issue. In Sunday's recording, bin Laden mentioned the blockade of Gaza, which was imposed by Israel and Egypt last June after the Hamas militant group seized control of the area. Israel has tightened the sanctions in recent months to try to halt daily rocket fire at Israeli towns, leading to widespread shortages of fuel and basic goods in Gaza.

Bin Laden called on militants in Egypt to take action: "They are the only ones close to its borders and they must work on breaking this blockade," he said. Egypt has a short border with Gaza, including a key a crossing. But even the Hamas militants who rule Gaza appeared uneasy about bin Laden's support. Like al-Qaida, Hamas belongs to the Sunni stream of Islam, and the two share a fundamentalist interpretation of their religion and open antipathy toward Israel and the West. As an offshoot of the Muslim Brotherhood, Hamas -- like al-Qaida -- holds pan-Islamic beliefs, though mixed with Palestinian nationalism. But the two groups are different in key areas. Hamas does not seek to subvert secular Arab regimes as al-Qaida does. Instead, it has tried to work inside the international system rather than trying to overturn it.

Speaking Monday, spokesmen for Hamas tried carefully to distance themselves from bin Laden while not openly criticizing him. Spokesman Sami Abu Zuhri said Hamas would also like to see Western influence in the Middle East eradicated. But he cited "a difference in method" between the two groups and said Hamas was focused on the fight with Israel. "We are with all efforts against the foreign occupation in the area, but we confirm that Hamas' work has always been in Palestinian lands," Abu Zuhri said. As for bin Laden's statements on the Palestinians, he said, "What Osama bin Laden said is an expression of Arab feelings that all nationalist and Islamic groups have expressed. There's nothing new in this." Ayman Taha, another Hamas spokesman, said Hamas wanted the blockade of Gaza's border with Egypt broken by nonviolent means, saying Hamas wanted nothing to "harm our relationship with Egypt."

Asked if bin Laden's call to break the blockade might lead to violence along the border anyway, Taha said, "It could be -- but I don't want to talk about it any more." Last January, Hamas blew up the border wall with Egypt, allowing hundreds of thousands of people to cross. The border stayed open for nearly two weeks. Both Israel and Abbas' government have alleged that al-Qaida is active in Gaza, and some small Palestinian militant groups have claimed ties to the organization. But it is unclear whether any real links exist. Hamas denies there is any al-Qaida presence in the territory.

While there have been some small pockets of public support for bin Laden in the Palestinian territories -- the government suppressed small celebrations after the September 11th attacks -- he has never enjoyed the widespread popularity of other anti-Western Arab leaders, such as Saddam Hussein. Hani al-Masri, a Palestinian analyst in the West Bank, said bin Laden's statements "don't serve the Palestinians in any way. Bin Laden is perceived in the world as a terrorist, and any connection to the Palestinians will harm the Palestinians," he said.

Morocco Arrests 11 Plotting Belgium Terror Attack

Source Article HERE.

From 'International Herald Tribune': Moroccan security services have arrested 11 people accused of plotting attacks in Morocco and Belgium and having links to Iraq's insurgency, the Moroccan state news agency reported Monday. The suspects, including a Moroccan living in Belgium, were arrested in the cities of Nador and Fez, the MAP agency reported, citing unidentified police officials. The report did not say when the arrests took place. They are accused of having links to cells sending fighters to Iraq's insurgency and to camps of an Algeria-based militant group that calls itself Al-Qaida in Islamic North Africa. The report said authorities believe the suspects were planning attacks in Morocco and Belgium, without elaborating.

In Brussels, Lieve Pellens, a spokeswoman for the Belgian Federal Prosecutors Service, said that her office was "not aware" of the case, and was contacting Moroccan authorities. A Moroccan court is already investigating a terrorism cell dismantled in the northern city of Tetouan and accused of supporting insurgents in Iraq. Last week, the court said it was broadening its investigation into the cell to include the relatives of some of the 27 people accused of "recruiting Moroccans for Iraq" and "forming a criminal gang with the goal of preparing and committing terrorist acts." The group was headed by Ahmed Safri, a Swede of Moroccan origin who returned to his native country to organize a support team that sent several fighters to Iraq, authorities say.

Several suspects testified Thursday, and some acknowledged they had traveled to Iraq but said they did not go with the intent to join the insurgency against the U.S.-led coalition forces there. The trial resumes Tuesday. Morocco is a relatively moderate Muslim nation and popular tourist destination allied with the U.S. that has seen a rise of political and extremist Islam in recent years. Suicide bombings in Casablanca in 2003 killed 45 people and hundreds of suspected Islamic militants are behind bars.

Iraqi Al-Qaeda Commander 'Seized'

Source Article HERE.

From 'BBC': A senior al-Qaeda commander in the northern Iraqi city of Mosul has been captured, Iraqi police say. They say the man, Abdul Khaliq Sabawi, was seized in Salahuddin province, to the south of Mosul's Nineveh province. In recent days, Iraqi troops have been carrying out major operations in Mosul - seen as the last urban stronghold of the Sunni insurgency in Iraq. Al-Qaeda has claimed responsibility for some of the bloodiest insurgent attacks in Iraq since the 2003 US-led invasion. Its militants are believed to have regrouped in Mosul since the beginning of the US military "surge" last year.

And in a related story...

Former Hussein General Arrested

Source Article HERE.

From 'CNN': A top militant who once served as a general in the military under Saddam Hussein was arrested on Monday, Iraqi officials said. Abdul Khaleq al-Sabawi, al Qaeda in Iraq (AQI) leader in the Nineveh province city of Mosul, was arrested in Tikrit, according to Iraq's Interior Ministry. Interior Ministry spokesman, Major General Abdul Karim Khalaf said al-Sabawi is now being interrogated. Khalaf didn't elaborate on the operation, but said no shots were fired during the arrest.

The arrest is considered part of the Mother of Two Springs offensive against AQI in Mosul because Nineveh officers carried out the raid. The Mother of Two Springs operation focuses on militants in the Mosul area. Iraqi government officials call Mosul the last big urban stronghold for AQI. The operation has netted 1,330 detainees since the start of last week's crackdown, with 240 of them being released, Khalaf said. He said the operation has been "smooth," and no shots have been fired. Five roadside bombs were detonated against security forces without serious casualties since the offensive started, Khalaf said.

Last week, Iraqi Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki announced an amnesty plan in Nineveh for some militants. Gunmen would be paid and would avoid jail if they gave their medium and heavy weapons to security forces. The amnesty plan -- which began May 16th and will be in effect for 10 days -- applies to people who were "duped and carried weapons" against security forces, but "whose hands are not covered in blood." Those who have committed crimes against civilians do not qualify for the amnesty.

American Al-Qaeda Adam Gadhan May Be Dead

Source Article HERE.

From 'Counterterrorism Blog': Al-Qaida's As-Sahab Media Foundation has released the second audio recording of Usama Bin Laden in the space of only three days -- this time, openly addressed "to the Islamic nation." But, perhaps what is most interesting about Bin Laden's latest set of audio recordings is not what they contain -- but rather, what they inexplicably lack: the English-language subtitles and matching transcript that have, until recently, been a customary feature of professional-quality As-Sahab videos.

An analysis of the history of As-Sahab recordings and their evolution over time would seem to indicate that the responsibility for creating these English-language products fell largely on the shoulders of one man alone: Adam Gadahn (a.k.a. "Azzam al-Amriki"), the California native who was recruited by Al-Qaida computer specialists living in Garden Grove in the late 1990s, and who later traveled on to Pakistan seeking to join his new hero Usama Bin Laden. Gadahn's voice and, more recently, his face have been an integral part of As-Sahab releases since their first video production in 2001, "The Destruction of the U.S.S. Cole" (a.k.a. "State of the Ummah"). He has frequently appeared as a freely identified commentator in As-Sahab videos, with clips of him speaking in English juxtaposed amid footage of Usama Bin Laden and Dr. Ayman al-Zawahiri.

In January 2008, the U.S. military used a Predator drone to launch an airstrike on a house in Mir Ali, Pakistan, which was suspected to be hiding several high-ranking Al-Qaida leaders and operatives. Within days, Al-Qaida issued a series of statements and video recordings acknowledging that the airstrike had caused serious casualties, including Abu al-Laith al-Liby -- a senior Al-Qaida leader considered to be the "Field Commander" in charge of foreign mujahideen military operations across large swaths of southern Afghanistan. But according to NEFA Foundation sources inside Pakistan, the legendary Abu al-Laith was not the only loss suffered in the strike at Mir Ali. These sources indicated that a host of other less-senior-but-still-significant Al-Qaida members were also inside the house at the time, including Abu al-Laith's deputy, a Somali holding Australian or U.S. nationality, two Kuwaiti jihadis, and -- most interesting of all -- none other than Adam Gadahn himself. Al-Qaida has never confirmed nor denied reports of Adam Gadahn's death, and that has only added to the growing mystery surrounding his whereabouts.

This much can definitively be said: there has been a palpable decline in the efforts of As-Sahab to provide English-language translations since the January airstrike in Mir Ali. When As-Sahab recently released a two-part online Q&A session with Dr. Ayman al-Zawahiri, it was only able to produce an English translation for the first segment. Even the limited translations As-Sahab has managed to cobble together recently appear somewhat different linguistically from previous work attributed to Adam Gadahn.

Read more HERE.

MNFI Press Release - May 19

MND-B SOLDIERS PREVENT IED ATTACK, SEIZE MUNITIONS
MultiNational Division – Baghdad Soldiers killed an IED emplacer and seized munitions in Baghdad on May 18th. Soldiers from 1st Brigade Combat Team, 4th Infantry Division, discovered the weapons cache on the rooftop of a building during a dismounted patrol in the Shurta area of West Rashid at approximately 3:35 p.m. Soldiers found (30) 120 mm mortar rounds, (12) 60 mm mortar rounds, (120) pounds of homemade explosives, several rocket-propelled grenade rounds, an SKS rifle, an RPG launcher, (10) mortar fuses, (30) shotgun shells, a hand grenade, two electric blasting caps, a Tommy gun, IED-making materials, and numerous Iraqi Army and Police uniforms.

At approximately 9:40 p.m. north of Baghdad, Soldiers from 3rd Brigade Combat Team, 4th Infantry Division, witnessed a criminal emplacing an IED. Soldiers fired at the criminal and killed him. “Taking these weapons out of the hands of those seeking to harm the Iraqi people and Iraqi Security and Coalition forces saved countless lives,” said Col. Allen Batschelet, chief of staff, Multi-National Division – Baghdad and the 4th Infantry Division. “Our Soldiers remain ‘Steadfast and Loyal’ in removing these threats,” he said, invoking the division motto.

ISOF DETAINS 2 TERRORISTS IN BAGHDAD
Iraqi Special Operations Forces (ISOF) detained two terrorists in the al-Ghazaliya area of Baghdad on May 18th. ISOF conducted the operation to detain al-Qaeda in Iraq (AQI) terrorists suspected of murder, kidnapping, emplacing IEDs, and forcing local Iraqis out of their homes. One of the men is suspected of murdering a 24-year-old woman on December 10th, 2007. AQI in this area of Baghdad is responsible for numerous kidnappings and murders of local Iraqi citizens.

3 AL-QAEDA SUSPECTS DETAINED IN BAGHDAD, MOSUL
Coalition Forces targeted the AQI facilitation network during operations in two major cities on Monday, detaining three suspected terrorists. Using information obtained from operations on April 3rd and May 11th, Coalition Forces targeted a foreign terrorist facilitator believed to operate in Mosul and detained two suspected terrorists. In Baghdad, Coalition Forces detained one suspected terrorist during an operation targeting a suicide bombing facilitator.

IRAQI RESIDENTS TURN IN MUNITIONS TO IA; MND-B SOLDIERS ELIMINATE THREAT
Local residents turned in a variety of munitions to Iraqi Army (IA) soldiers in the New Baghdad district of Baghdad on May 17th. At approximately 2:50 p.m., the Iraqi Army soldiers were conducting an “amnesty drop” mission and were distributing food and water to local residents when they were approached by several civilians, reportedly from the nearby Sadr City district. The civilians turned in (6) 155 mm rounds, (2) 120 mm rounds, (1) 127 mm rocket and (1) 57 mm rocket. The citizens indicated they were taking the initiative, showing they want peace and an end to the violence. The munitions were taken to a nearby Joint Security Station for disposal.

Also in New Baghdad at approximately 12:20 a.m. on May 18th, MultiNational Division – Baghdad (MND-B) soldiers from the 4th Brigade Combat Team, 4th Infantry Division, observed an armed man exiting a vehicle near their position. The man armed the weapon and took aim at the MND-B observation point. The soldiers defended themselves and killed the man. “Our soldiers are true professionals,” said Col. Allen Batschelet, chief of staff, MND–B and the 4th Infantry Division. “They took quick, decisive action and eliminated the threat to themselves and the local community.”

Iraq To Execute Al-Qaeda Leader In Bishop Murder

Source Article HERE.

Archbishop Rahho

From 'Reuters': A leader of al Qaeda in Iraq has been sentenced to death for the killing of Chaldean Catholic Archbishop Paulos Faraj Rahho, whose murder in March drew worldwide condemnation, the Iraqi government said on Sunday. The Iraqi Central Criminal Court imposed the death sentence on Ahmed Ali Ahmed, known as Abu Omar, Iraqi government spokesman Ali al-Dabbagh said in a statement. Rahho, the archbishop of the northern Iraqi city of Mosul, 390 km (240 miles) north of Baghdad, was abducted on February 29th after gunmen attacked his car and killed his driver and two guards. His body was found in a shallow grave two weeks later.

At the time, Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki blamed al Qaeda and vowed to bring the bishop's killers to justice. His Shi'ite Muslim-led government has been accused by members of Iraq's dwindling Christian minority of not doing enough to protect them from violent persecution. Chaldeans belong to a branch of the Roman Catholic Church that practices an ancient Eastern rite and form the biggest Christian community in Iraq. Dabbagh said Ahmed was a leader of Sunni Islamist al Qaeda and had been sought for his involvement in a number of "terror crimes against the people of Iraq". He described Rahho as an advocate of peace and tolerance among Iraqis.

When Rahho's body was found on March 13, police said it was not clear whether the 65-year-old clergyman, known to be in poor health, had been killed or died of other causes. A number of Christian clergy have been kidnapped and killed and churches bombed in Iraq since the 2003 U.S.-led invasion. A former archbishop of Mosul, Basile Georges Casmoussa, was kidnapped in 2005 but later released after a day in captivity.

'High Value Target' Killed In Pakistan

Source Article HERE.

From 'MSNBC': Senior U.S. and Pakistani officials said that a Predator attack on Wednesday in a village in northwest Pakistan was not insignificant, that a “high-value target... an Arab” was among those killed. U.S. officials believe the unnamed target was planning attacks outside Pakistan, “so we nailed him,” in the words of one. By all accounts, on Wednesday evening, two male guesthouses in the village of Damodola were struck by Hellfire missiles fired from Predator drones. The drones are normally operated by the CIA. Inside the guesthouses were local fighters along with several “foreigners,” including the Arab fighter, according to the U.S. officials and locals. Although the number of missiles fired remains uncertain, recent attacks have involved multiple volleys from multiple Predators. Predators now carry up to six Hellfires.

The attack is the second on male guesthouses, known as hujras, in Damodola in the Bajaur Agency near the Afghanistan border. On January 13th, 2006, Predators fired multiple volleys of Hellfires at a guesthouse, killing 18 people. The target in that attack was al-Qaida’s Number 2, Ayman al-Zawahiri, but he had already left and a week later ridiculed the attacks as just the latest U.S. failure in the war of terror.

One senior U.S. official said there were “no household names — no Bin Laden, no Zawahiri, no Sayed Sheikh (Al-Qaida’s Number 3) struck,” but a second official said in spite of that, the main target was “high value.” Moreover, said the second official, “This guy was planning attacks, so we nailed him.” A second official said the presence of a high-ranking al-Qaida official, an Arab, in an area dominated by local jihadi organization presupposed a planning session.

Militants quickly disposed of the bodies, with locals saying dozens of their number “suddenly appeared” and surrounded the entire town. They wouldn’t allow villagers to enter the building before all the bodies were retrieved from the rubble of the two-room guesthouse, part of a compound owned by a local leader. “As usual, militants retrieved bodies of the foreigners and buried them at an undisclosed location,” claimed a local resident of Damodola who is close to tribal militants. U.S. officials have said the quick burial is done partly for religious reasons, but also to hinder the identification of those killed.

Villagers claimed that before the attack around 30 people, some of them Arabs, were staying in the compound. The death toll estimates ranged from 11 to as many as 30, but with so many bodies disposed of so quickly there was no official count. Another villager, Sherzada, said most of the bodies were disfigured beyond recognition. “All the bodies were split into pieces and scattered in the building,” he said in a telephone interview after visiting the destroyed house. Local representatives of the Taliban dismissed the possibility that the men killed were planning any attacks and said the men were there to attend the wedding of an Arab fighter to a local woman.

The government of Pakistan denied any knowledge of what happened. Military spokesman Maj. Gen. Athar Abbas told The News, an English-language Pakistani newspaper, that he was not aware of any such incident. He also said that Pakistan had not carried out the attack and that Pakistan’s regular army had no presence in Bajaur. Pakistani officials have quietly said that under new arrangements with the United States, the CIA must first “consult” with Pakistan before an attack. In the past, the CIA was only required to “inform” the Pakistanis. However, say U.S. officials, the agreement also gives the U.S. more latitude in identifying suspected al-Qaida targets, and hence a continued free hand in taking them out.

Blasts Rock MA Town After Police Find Explosives

Source Article HERE.

From 'Boston Globe': More than 30 explosions have rattled windows in East Bridgewater, MA, since the State Police bomb squad descended on a yellow Colonial-style home Thursday evening and allegedly found a cache of pipe bombs, according to police and neighbors. The largest blast came just after midnight, when authorities blanketed the area with automated phone calls warning residents to brace themselves. "It rattled the windows," said Jim Widenfeller, who lives a fifth of a mile away. "It really rocked the neighborhood."


MA bomb squad operates robot to disarm explosives - May 16.

The owner of the yellow Colonial, Michael Ambrose, was arraigned today in Brockton District Court on charges of intimidating a witness, possession of one OxyContin pill, and 35 counts of possessing infernal machines. Defense attorney John Creedon said after the arraignment that there was no evidence to suggest that his client was “psychotic or threatened to kill anyone.” Creedon described the explosives as a hobby for the 41-year-old landscaper who “is interested in chemistry and has been building various types of pipe bombs since his high school years.”

State Fire Marshall Stephen Coan said the pipe bombs were "very dangerous with the potential for great harm" that required the State Police bomb squad and several other agencies to work “long hours to stabilize the area and render safe those devices. This is one of the largest quantities of hazardous devices that has been found in one location in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts in recent memory,” Coan said.

Officers executed a search warrant at Ambrose’s East Street home after receiving a tip from an Easton gun shop owner named James Sheppard, according to an East Bridgewater police report filed today in court. Sheppard told police that three weeks ago Ambrose “came into my shop in Easton saying that he gets drunk and makes booms.” Sheppard dismissed Ambrose’s talk as nonsense until the gun dealer visited his East Bridgewater home Thursday to inspect an all-terrain vehicle he was selling, according to the report. Sheppard saw the explosives and went to police.

According to his defense attorney, Ambrose does not have a criminal record. He has licenses to possess firearms and a carry concealed weapons. Officer found eight rifles, shotguns, and handguns when they searched his home, according to the report. Ambrose has run his own landscaping business for the last 17 years, Creedon said. He was the object of a 2005 restraining order filed in Plymouth Probate and Family Court by the mother of his daughter, who is now 5 years old. The couple also have a 6-month-old baby, according to Creedon, who did not know the child’s gender.

Police, fire, and emergency vehicles converged on Ambrose’s home Thursday at 6 p.m. Police marked off a 250-foot perimeter around the yellow house and evacuated the nearest homes. Neighbor Julie Aldrich said this morning that she has lived on East Street her entire life and never met Ambrose. “What was he planning to do with all of that stuff?” Aldrich asked. “I hope they find that out. We all want to know that.”

10 Arrested In 3-Country Terror Probe

Source Article HERE.

From 'Boston Globe': A three-country police sweep yesterday instigated by France netted 10 people suspected of financing terrorist movements - and threw the spotlight on Al Qaeda-linked militants with roots in Uzbekistan. Eight suspects were detained in France, one in Germany and one in the Netherlands, said a senior French police official who was only authorized to discuss the arrests on condition of anonymity. The suspects' names and nationalities were not given but officials said they were Turkic-speaking. The primary languages in Turkey and most countries in Central Asia are Turkic. The official said French police believe the suspects collected funds for the Islamic Movement of Uzbekistan, a militant group said by the United States to have close ties to Al Qaeda. But a Turkish Islamic extremist group may also be linked to the case.

The Dutch National Prosecutor's office said the suspect arrested in the Netherlands is thought to have received funds collected for a movement led by Metin Kaplan, an Islamic militant accused of attempting to overthrow Turkey's secular regime. Another French police official said Kaplan "supports all jihad movements," including the Islamic Movement of Uzbekistan. The official, also only authorized to discuss the matter on condition of anonymity, said all 10 suspects arrested were named in a single French probe into "financing Islamic terrorism."

Linguistic and ethnic ties and shared Islamic extremist goals between the Turkish and Uzbek groups make financial links between them "likely," said Louis Caprioli, former head of counterterrorism at the French anti-terror agency DST. He said the arrests appear to reflect a strategy among terror cells in Europe of diversifying the national origins of their members to better avoid detection.

French police described the arrests as "preventative" because the funds thought to have been collected were not known to have been used to carry out terror attacks. In the Netherlands, the National Prosecutor's office confirmed in a statement the arrest, at France's request, of a 48-year-old Turkish man in the southern city of Tilburg. France is seeking his extradition. A German prosecutor confirmed the arrest of a 35-year-old foreign man in Weil am Rhein, near Germany's borders with France and Switzerland.

Normalcy Returns To Baghdad Suburb Of Sadr City

Source Article HERE.

From 'Relief Web': Residents of Baghdad's mainly Shia district of Sadr City are breathing a sigh of relief as a ceasefire between Shia militiamen loyal to Moqtada al-Sadr and US-backed government forces has brought to an end seven weeks of clashes that left daily life all but paralysed. Schools, government offices and businesses have re-opened, mine clearing operations have begun and aid teams are bringing much needed relief items to those who had been cut off.

"We went through very bad and hard days since the clashes began," said Ammar Wathiq Yousif, a 39-year-old father-of-two from Sadr City. "We weren't able to leave our home and it was very hard to get food and other essentials. But since yesterday, when Iraqi security forces came into the area and the militants left, we've returned to our normal lives; I can drive my taxi in the streets, my two daughters have gone back to school and businesses have re-opened," he added.

But Yousif, like many of the other 2.5 million people living in this run-down area on the eastern side of the capital, complained about poor public services and a dilapidated infrastructure. "We've only returned to our normal daily suffering, which is of course better than what we've been through the past few weeks. We lack many basic services, electricity is available for about six hours a day at best, and some streets are frequently flooded with sewage," he said.

A 10-point truce agreement came into effect on May 11th, but it was shaky from the start with sporadic clashes occurring in different parts of Sadr City. However, order was restored when Iraqi security forces fully took over the area on May 16th. The main points of the agreement stipulate that Iraqi forces would take over security in Sadr City and would refrain from seeking U.S. help to restore order. In return, the Mahdi Army militia would stop fighting U.S. and Iraqi forces in the area.

On May 17th, Iraqi authorities said they had already begun clearing mines planted by militants around Sadr City to trap Iraqi and U.S. forces. "Our military engineering teams started mine clearing operations on Friday [May 16th] and so far have managed to dismantle 50 mines and roadside bombs," Maj. Gen. Qassim al-Mousawi, an Iraqi Army spokesman, said in a statement. "We are still in the first phase of the campaign and it will last for the coming few days to purge Sadr City from all these explosives. Residents are cooperating with our teams effectively," al-Mousawi said. He added that the Iraqi government had allotted US$150 million to improve public services in Sadr City and create job opportunities.

Awad Khalaf Hadi, a spokesman of al-Zahra, a non-governmental organisation in Sadr City, said that aid teams had resumed the delivery of relief items to areas they had been unable to access for weeks. "Now, the municipality teams can go out and work normally in the streets, and we can reach all those in need and all the hospitals. Schools and other government offices are open after being deserted," Hadi said.

MNFI Press Release - May 18

IP FIND LARGE MUNITIONS CACHE IN MOSUL
Iraqi Police in Mosul discovered a buried weapons cache of nearly 500 rounds of munitions while acting on intelligence, May 18th. An inventory of the unearthed items consisted of (120) 60 mm, (220) 82 mm and (100) 120 mm rounds as well as (50) artillery rounds with rockets. All materials were taken to 1 West for exploitation. “The Iraqi Police are becoming increasingly proficient in discovering these caches,” said Maj. Peggy Kageleiry, spokesperson for MultiNational Division - North. “The Iraqi Police are paving the way for a safer and more prosperous nation.”

COALITION DETAINS 15 TERROR SUSPECTS
Coalition Forces captured three wanted terrorist suspects and detained a dozen additional men during operations targeting al-Qaeda in Iraq (AQI) leadership and financiers on Saturday and Sunday. Coalition Forces targeted AQI senior leaders and their associates during a series of operations in Mosul on Sunday, capturing two wanted men and four additional suspects. The men are believed to be close associates of a terrorist leader in the city. Also on Sunday in Mosul, Coalition Forces conducted an operation to disrupt a planned suicide car bombing attack and detained two suspected terrorists.

Coalition Forces conducted two operations on Sunday in Tikrit, about 100 miles north of Baghdad, targeting individuals who finance AQI. They captured a wanted man who allegedly leads a terrorist attack cell in addition to funding terrorist operations, and discovered a large sum of U.S. money on the scene. Five additional suspects were detained in the operations. In Abu Ghraib, about 15 miles west of Baghdad, Coalition Forces detained one suspected terrorist during a Saturday operation targeting associates of an AQI leader in the Northern Belt around Baghdad.

COALITION KILLS 6 ENEMY PERSONNEL
Coalition forces killed six enemy personnel and destroyed a weapons cache near Khan Bani Sa’ad with air strikes on May 17th. While attempting to disarm a discovered IED, 5th Iraqi Army Division soldiers received small arms and rocket propelled grenade fire. The attack resulted in the death of one IA soldier. Following the attack, Coalition Forces observed four criminals with multiple weapons next to a house suspected of containing a weapons cache. The Coalition used an Air Force jet to engage the building with precision guided munitions destroying the cache and killing the four enemy personnel. A vehicle thought to have been involved in the attack was engaged by a Coalition helicopter. The vehicular engagement resulted in five secondary explosions and the death of two suspects.

MULTINATIONAL SOLDIERS DISCOVER CACHES
Multi-National Soldiers discovered two weapons caches in separate operations on May 15th and 16th. Coalition Forces discovered a cache of rockets on May 15th south of a forward operating base. Soldiers from 4th Brigade Combat Team, 3rd Infantry Division, discovered the cache during a patrol. The cache consisted of (12) 42 mm rockets; (3) 57 mm projectiles; (8) rocket bodies; (8) 120 mm rockets and (10) fuses. The cache was destroyed in a controlled detonation by an explosive ordnance disposal team.

Multi-National Soldiers from 3rd Brigade Combat Team, 101st Airborne Division (Air Assault), found a cache near the Qaqa Apartments in Mahmudiyah, about 26 kilometers southwest of Baghdad on May 16th. A tip from a local citizen led the Soldiers to a cache comprised of (450) 7.62 mm armor-piercing rounds, (1) 60 mm mortar system, (15) rocket-propelled grenade motors, (96) mortar cartridges and (10) pounds of mortar propellant bags. Explosive ordnance disposal personnel transported the items to a Coalition forces forward operating base for disposal.

MNFI Press Release - May 16

IA CAPTURES SPECIAL GROUPS CELL LEADER IN HUSAYNIYAH
The Iraqi Army (IA) captured a mid-level Special Groups cell leader in Husayniyah, responsible for coordinating improvised explosive device (IED), rocket and smallarms fire attacks against Iraqi Security and Coalition Forces, approximately 30 km north of Baghdad on May 15th. Iraqi Army soldiers conducted the operation to capture the Special Groups cell leader whose cell conducted attacks against the Iraqi Security Forces and Coalition Forces as recently as April 22nd. These criminals emplaced explosively-formed penetrators (EFPs) and conducted indirect fire attacks against static Coalition force positions. Three additional suspects were detained.

ISOF CAPTURES TERRORIST IN MOSUL
The Iraqi Special Operations Forces (ISOF) captured a terrorist in western Mosul, Iraq, on May 15th. The ISOF conducted the operation to capture a member of the Islamic State of Iraq (ISI) -- a front organization for AQI -- responsible for IED emplacements and providing information to the ISI about the Iraqi Army and Iraqi Police. Six other suspects were detained in the operation. “Iraqi Special Operations Forces, partnered with Coalition forces, will continue to pursue terrorists who threaten innocent Iraqi citizens,” said Col. Bill Buckner, MNC-I spokesman.

Basra Security Situation Improves

Source Article HERE.

From 'Centcom': The security environment in Basra, Iraq, has improved dramatically since the 1st Iraqi Army Quick Reaction Force fought its way into the city on April 1st. Criminal elements had taken over parts of the city and imposed their own rule on the city. "This city was being held hostage by a small group of criminal militias," said Marine Corps Col. Robert F. Castellvi, military training team advisor for the 1st Iraqi Army Quick Reaction Force. Music and Western influence were prohibited; women faced death threats if they ventured outside their homes dressed in anything other than a full burkah; and intersections were used as mortar positions.

In less than a month, life in Basra couldn't be more different. The Iraqi soldiers continue to pursue criminals and outlaws through Basra's neighborhoods, but as Quick Reaction Force 1, formerly 1st Brigade, moves through neighborhoods such as Jumhuriya, the sound of gunfire is no longer common. "The people are happier now," said Marine Corps Maj. Robert S. Washington, senior military transition team advisor for 2nd Battalion, Quick Reaction Force 1. "They can go out; they can go to the markets." Stores opened early in the morning as the soldiers cleared houses next door, looking for weapons, bombs and wanted criminals. Children walked to school past Iraqi army Humvees and posed for pictures with soldiers.

In Jumhuriya, local citizens volunteered information that led to the arrest of nearly 10 suspected local gang members and the discovery of illegal weapons and improvised explosive devices. "[The Iraqi soldiers] are getting a lot of their information by going out and talking to the local civilians," Marine Corps 2nd Lt. Matthew S. Weant, staff intelligence advisor for the Iraqi battalion. "We've had people lead us directly to weapons caches and IEDs; even bringing them to us."

There is more to be done in Basra. The Iraqi government and coalition forces are working with local leaders to address issues with sanitation, infrastructure and economy that will provide long-lasting improvements to the quality of life for local residents. Recently, local officials opened an open-air market in the neighborhood of Jameat in an effort to boost the local economy. Local Iraqi security forces continue to hold the ground taken by the quick-reaction force to guard against a possible resurgence of criminal activity. But, boosted by the confidence of success, they say they are ready for whatever may happen.

Two Men In Campus Terror Arrest

Source Article HERE.

From 'BBC': Two men have been arrested at the University of Nottingham campus under the Terrorism Act, police have said. Police said the men, aged 30 and 22, were arrested on Wednesday morning. One is reported to be a student and the other a former student. They are being questioned while premises connected to them, including campus property, are searched. Police said it was a joint operation between Nottinghamshire Police and the Midlands counter-terrorist unit. Superintendant Simon Nickless from Nottinghamshire Police said officers had been working alongside community representatives to "offer support and reassurance". He said the operation has been "low-key" and the community's response to it had been "calm and rational".


University of Nottingham

A uniformed presence is in place at the main Trent building, which houses the schools of English, modern languages and philosophy as well as management offices. Jonathan Ray, a spokesman for the university, said the institution "has been co-operating fully from the outset throughout this inquiry". "Nottinghamshire Police have stressed that there is no risk to the university community or to the wider public," he said. "Here, at the institution, we fully accept that this sort of police operation is necessary and reasonable for the welfare of our communities."

IA, GoI, Local Govt. Provides Aid to Sadr City Residents

Source Article HERE.

From 'MNFI': Residents in Sadr City continue to receive humanitarian aid from their local government, the Government of Iraq (GoI), Iraqi Army (IA) soldiers and Multinational soldiers with the help of the recently opened Civil Military Operations Center (CMOC) and the Iraqi Assistance Center at Joint Security Station Thawra 1. At the CMOC, local government officials, GoI officials and the Iraqi Army receive guidance from Multinational soldiers to plan and carry out operations to better the infrastructure and essential services as well as supply food, water and other necessities to the people of Sadr City.

“The CMOC has done an exceptional job bringing together all of the Iraqi officials, allowing them to take leadership in repairing some of the damages caused by the recent fighting,” said Lt. Col. Frank Curtis, who serves as the commanding officer of the 432nd Civil Affairs Battalion, 360th Civil Affairs Brigade, Multinational Division – Baghdad. “The Iraqi Army plans and executes missions in coordination with Coalition Forces, but the Iraqis determine the locations and plan the missions.”

Area citizens are beginning to use the center more to help deal with the issues they might have. They can show up in person and receive help dealing with their problems. To date, 114,000 liters of water have been handed out and approximately 46,000 meals have been given to the area’s residents. Iraqi Army soldiers bring the items to the community and deliver them to the people on the streets. Large appliances, such as 64 generators and 15 stoves, have also been provided for the local residents.

Although the aid provided is needed by those in the area, there is currently not a humanitarian crisis in Sadr City. The problem has more to do with costs than with supply, said Lt. Col. Gerry Messmer, who serves as the division chief of staff for civil military operations with Company A, Special Troops Battalion, 4th Infantry Division. “Because of restrictions in vehicle movement, there is a reduction of food in some of the markets, but not to critical levels,” said the Interlaken, NY, native. “What this has done, in the free market society that they have, is raised prices. The Iraqi Army is taking food and water in to help the poorer people and defray the expensive costs in the markets.”

The CMOC is also working to improve essential services such as trash cleanup, and the water and sewer systems. Officials are working to identify leaks in the sewer and water pipes. IA soldiers have not forgotten about providing medical care to those in Sadr City. They have been bringing such services to the streets of Sadr City on a regular basis. “The 11th IA Division doctors have done at least one medical engagement a week, treating the local people,” said Messmer. They have seen more than 2,500 people over the last three weeks out on the streets in Sadr City. They go to different locations with their vehicles and set up a mobile medial office to treat people right there on the streets, he added.

Residents seeking reparations for damages caused during the recent fighting can go to the Iraqi Assistance Center on a walk-in basis to receive assistance from soldiers with the 432nd CA Bn. There are interpreters and an Iraqi lawyer on site to help. The center also provides the ability track their loved ones, who have been detained, said Curtis. “If it’s damage caused by U.S. forces, we pay to have it repaired, and if it’s damage caused by the Iraqi Army or the Iraqi Police, they pay for the damages,” said Messmer. “We’ve paid out over $25,000 in damage claims to people.”

Those seeking reparations from the Iraqi security forces are helped by the Iraqi lawyer, who also gives them legal advice and helps to educate them about the Iraqi legal system, Curtis said. “Over the past three weeks, we’ve seen over 600 people,” he added. “Currently, between 80 and 90 people are coming for help each day.” While the IA, GoI and Coalition plan to continue with the current aid they are providing, they are also planning for the future. “We plan to renovate schools and clinics and then refurbish and revitalize the Jamilla Market, a wholesale market that supplies most of Baghdad,” said Messmer.

Ultimately, it is all about Iraqis helping themselves and other Iraqis. “The people see this,” said Curtis, “and they recognize that they can support their government’s efforts to give them a better, more stable community.”

MNFI Press Release - May 15

COALITION CAPTURES WEAPON SMUGGLER, 3 OTHERS
Coalition forces captured a suspected weapons facilitator and three other suspected criminals in the Mansour district OF Baghdad on Thursday, May 15th. Based on information stemming from two raids in early March, Coalition Forces targeted a known criminal suspected of smuggling illegal weapons into Iraq, resulting in attacks against Iraqi and Coalition Forces. Coalition Forces entered the targeted individual’s location where he was detained along with one of his associates without incident. After questioning the targeted individual, he revealed the location of another suspected criminal in the neighborhood. Coalition Forces moved to the second location, entered the identified building, and detained two additional suspected criminals without incident.

COALITION TARGETS AQI IN MOSUL, CAPTURE WANTED MAN
Iraqi and Coalition Forces continued to pressure al-Qaeda in Iraq (AQI), detaining 14 suspects while targeting terrorist operations on Thursday. Coalition Forces joined with Iraqi Forces in targeting terrorist elements in Mosul and the surrounding area. They detained one suspected terrorist while targeting AQI operatives in an area southeast of Mosul. During operations in Mosul, Coalition Forces captured a man who allegedly facilitates car bombings and is suspected of bringing AQI foreign terrorists into the country. Two additional suspects were detained in the operations. About 100 miles south, Coalition Forces in Bayji captured three wanted men and detained seven additional suspects. Two of the wanted men are alleged foreign terrorist facilitators associated with suicide bombings, and the other is believed to be part of a car-bombing network in the Tigris River Valley.

COALITION FORCES KILL 2 TERRORISTS, DETAIN 3
Coalition forces killed two terrorists and detained three suspects during an operation targeting an AQI bombing network on Thursday. Fifteen miles west of Baghdad, Coalition Forces targeted an individual suspected of facilitating vehicle bomb attacks. While detaining the three terrorist suspects and securing the compound, a vehicle approached carrying two men who resided at the same house. Coalition Forces ordered the men to halt and to keep their arms raised in surrender. The men refused to comply, dropping their arms abruptly. Perceiving hostile intent, Coalition Forces engaged, killing the two men and later destroying the vehicle to prevent its future use in terrorist activities. Further search of the compound revealed a rifle and a case of hand grenades that were moved to a safe location and destroyed.

Iraqi Police Performance Improving

Source Article HERE.

From 'Centcom': Iraqi Police in Wasit Province have made significant capacity gains in recent months to improve security for the citizens of Iraq. Their planning ability has greatly improved and their effectiveness increases daily, said Col. Peter Baker, commander of the 214th Fires Brigade. Much of the improvement is due to the actions of Maj. Gen. Hannin al-Ameer, the provincial director of police, appointed in September. “He is very competent,” Baker said. “He has taken a large force and made immediate and long-term improvements – not an easy task for a unit of that size.”


Spc. Joseph Fluty maintains security at Iraqi checkpoint.

One significant turning point for the force happened during the late-March Shia uprising: the firing of 134 Iraqi Policemen – both troopers and officers – from IP Emergency Response Unit 4, said 1st Lt. Lynette Jefferson, a platoon leader for the 511th Military Police Company, attached to the 214th FB, of Fort Drum, NY, the unit responsible for training Iraqi Policemen. “It was due to a variety of circumstances,” she said. “Some had militia ties, some weren’t coming to work and some just weren’t doing their jobs.”

“The flare-up in early March was an opportunity for [Hannin] to assess the quality of his forces,” Baker said. “It had a huge positive effect on the force.” The leadership of the unit was changed as well, not because of corruption, but to improve the unit, Jefferson said. “The current leadership is more disciplined and training-focused,” she said. “They’re taking their jobs more seriously.”

The change in leadership at ERU 4 has trickled down to change the attitudes of the police officers on the ground, as well, said Sgt. Melissa Overton, a squad leader with the 511th MP Co. “They seem more disciplined in training with us,” she said. “They want to learn better skills.” They are also more open to conducting joint patrols with Coalition forces, she added. “Before [the firings], it was ‘yes, but not today,’” she said. “Now, it’s ‘how many do you need, we’ll go now.’”

One example of this new spirit became evident during an operation in the Zuwarijat district of al-Kut, 163 kilometers southeast of Baghdad, April 26. Iraqi Police, in support of Iraqi Army elements and Coalition forces, entered the neighborhood and established a permanent joint presence with the IA – something the Iraqi Security Forces had been unable to do before. “When they went there [Zuwarijat] before [March 4], they had no plans or means to stay,” Baker said. “This time they planned to go in and stay. It’s had a huge effect on the population. “Now when we go in, people ask if we will stay,” he said. “The reinforcements and improvements that we have made are a sign.”

The company’s mission has been to train IP on the ground in their stations around al-Kut. The close relationship they have developed definitely helps all those involved, Golden said. “They’re more willing to learn, and we’re willing to teach,” he said. “We are working on a train-the-trainer program, so that Iraqi Policemen can do the training at the stations as the Americans supervise.” Baker praised the work of the 511th MP Co. with the IP in Wasit. “Much of what they do has a direct result on the Iraqi Police, and that translates into better security,” he said.

Centcom News Feed - May 15

IRAQI TROOPS SEIZE IEDs IN EAST MANSOUR
Alert Iraqi Army soldiers and Iraqi Policemen prevented potential improvised explosive device (IED) attacks in the East Mansour District of Baghdad when they stopped a vehicle that was being used by criminal forces to transport IEDs in the area at about 1 p.m. on May 7th. Soldiers from 3rd Battalion, 54th Brigade, 6th Iraqi Army Division, along with Jamia Iraqi Policemen, conducted a traffic stop after noticing a suspicious individual driving down a road. After stopping the vehicle, the alert soldiers and policemen discovered the deadly weapons in the vehicle. The forces fired at the man and wounded him. Inside the vehicle, the forces seized three tanks of oxygen that were set up as IEDs. An explosive ordnance detachment arrived on the scene and detonated the device.

Iraq: Ceasefire Signed With Sadrists

Source Article HERE.

From 'International Herald Tribune & AP': Representatives of firebrand cleric Muqtada al-Sadr and lawmakers from Iraq's main Shiite political bloc signed a four-day cease-fire on Monday in an effort to end seven weeks of fighting in Baghdad's Sadr City slum. It was unclear if the agreement would be respected by all the extremists who have been fighting in Sadr City. Al-Sadr is thought to have influence over some of the militants, but not all of them. Many of those fighting Iraqi and U.S. forces are thought to have splintered away from al-Sadr's Mahdi Army. The U.S. military has repeatedly said its clashes are with rogue elements of al-Sadr's militia and that the majority of the 60,000-strong Mahdi Army did not openly participate in the fighting. Instead, it adhered to a general cease-fire ordered last August by al-Sadr.


U.S. soldiers from 3rd-BCT, 4th ID in Sadr City - May 8.

The fighting was concentrated mostly in the southern part of the Shiite slum that is home to about 2.5 million people, and Iraqi officials have reported that hundreds of people have died in the fighting. Clashes began in late March after militants responded to a crackdown by Iraqi troops in Sadr City by firing hundreds of mortars and rockets at the heavily fortified Green Zone housing the government and Western embassies. "We have signed the agreement today," said Khalid al-Attiyah, the deputy parliamentary speaker from the main Shiite political bloc, United Iraqi Alliance. Al-Attiyah said the cease-fire went into effect on Sunday and Iraqi forces will be allowed to enter the area as early as Wednesday to "take over the security there."

The statement said "the government will decide on the number of Iraqi forces to be deployed in Sadr City to achieve security, in order to refrain from asking help from foreign forces," a reference to the U.S. military. "Any attack against residential areas, government offices and the Green Zone are prohibited from Sadr City or from another area," the agreement said. The cease-fire stipulates that Iraqi forces have the right to "impose the law and to pursue illegal situations."

"No one and no side has the right to interfere in the work of these forces," it said, adding that the government retained the right to pursue "those who carried out armed attacks against the government." Sheik Salah al-Obeidi, an aide to al-Sadr, stressed that the Sadrists rejected conditions set by Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki to disband the Mahdi Army and hand over their weapons. "We have agreed on cease-fire and to end displaying arms in public," al-Obeidi said. "But we did not agree on disbanding the Mahdi Army to hand over its weapons.

Al-Obeidi showed a document signed by al-Sadr to an Associated Press reporter that authorized the delegation to sign the cease-fire agreement. The Sadrist movement said that they do not have any "medium or heavy weapons and that the government forces were free to raid and search any suspected place." The agreement also allowed the government to clear Sadr City of roadside bombs. It said another entrance to Sadr City will be opened and that the government will be allowed to reopen their offices. The agreement also called on both sides to refrain from using media outlets to provoke tensions. It said al-Maliki will supervise a committee which will monitor any violations.

Key Al-Qaeda Member Killed In Afghanistan

Source Article HERE.

From 'Reuters': A prominent member of al Qaeda was killed in fighting with U.S.-led forces in Afghanistan, the group said in a statement posted on an Islamist website on Sunday. Abu Suleiman al-Otaibi, formerly one of the group's leaders in Iraq, was killed in a "fierce battle with the worshipers of the cross" in Paktia, it said without giving the date of the battle. Another al Qaeda member, identified as Abu Dejana al-Qahtani, also died in the fighting, it added. Afghan officials said they had no information on the report. But the government earlier said in a statement that "five opposition" fighters were killed on Saturday in Paktia during an operation involving Afghan and U.S.-led troops. The leader of al Qaeda in Afghanistan Mustafa Abu al-Yazid said Qahtani left Iraq about six months ago without giving further details. Otaibi was the head of the judiciary at the self-styled Islamic State in Iraq, a group started by al Qaeda and fellow Sunni militant groups. Violence has been at its worst level in Afghanistan since 2006, the bloodiest period since the removal of the al Qaeda-backed Taliban in 2001.

Market Opening Spurs Return Of Prosperity In Basra

Source Article HERE.

From ' American Forces Press Service': BASRA, Iraq (May 7, 2008) – Citizens of Basra, the third-largest city in Iraq, celebrated the opening yesterday of a central market that demonstrated a return of peace and prosperity to an area that until recently was a stronghold of Shia militias. Schools closed early as families from the Jameat district gathered with local dignitaries, investors and media to watch the ceremonial opening of the Jameat Market, Multinational Corps Iraq officials reported. "I am pleased to open the Jameat Market, which is an excellent example of the many projects contributing to the rebuilding of Iraq," said Nigel Haywood, the British consular general in southern Iraq. "This project will help establish prosperity in Basra."


Iraqi children at opening of Jameat Market, Basra - May 6.

The market was built on the site where the Jameat police station was destroyed Dec. 25, 2006. The construction of the market was paid for by coalition reconstruction funds, in conjunction with the provincial council. Local Iraqis built the market, which was completed on March 23 at a total cost of about $1 million, officials said. The market is expected to open for business within 30 days, and vendors already have rented many stalls, officials said. Traditionally, markets are a community focal point in Iraqi culture, and officials are considering proposals for similar markets in other areas of Basra.

Hassan Butt Arrested At Manchester Airport

Source Article HERE.

From 'The Hindu News': Former radical Islamist Hassan Butt, who claimed that he had helped 200 British Muslims train for jihad, was arrested on terrorism charges at Manchester airport, police said. "Our counter-terrorism unit arrested one person under the Terrorism Act. Officers are currently searching three addresses. No armed officers were involved in the arrest on Friday," a spokeswoman for Greater Manchester Police said without identifying Butt's identity.


Hassan Butt

Twenty-seven-year-old Butt has gained notoriety for his inflammatory comments claiming that "he had recruited the jihadis to fight in Afghanistan" but he later retracted his statements. In an interview with Prospect magazine in August 2005, the second generation British Pakistani had said he would be honoured to be called a terrorist. He had told the magazine: "I would agree to being called a radical and one day I may even be called a terrorist, if Allah permits me. That is something which would be an honour." He had cautioned that thousands of young Muslims were preparing to unleash fresh 'terror' on Britain's streets. Following the 2007 Glasgow airport attack, he alleged on BBC2's Newsnight that "most Muslims believed terrorism give them an admission to paradise" and that "anything that is not an Islamic way of life is a legitimate target".

Major Terror Strike Averted on India-Pak Border

Source Article HERE.

From 'The Peninsula (Qatar)': The Indian Army plans a massive operation to weed out infiltrators from areas along the India-Pakistan border after foiling a major terror strike in Samba in Jammu and Kashmir yesterday, a day after a gun battle between the security forces and militants left six killed. One militant who had attacked the Samba garrison, 45 km from Jammu, yesterday morning was killed in a gun fight with the troops. The militant was believed to be part of the group that had managed to sneak onto the Indian side last Thursday, and then killed six people, including two soldiers and a photojournalist, in a gun battle here on Sunday. The militant's body was recovered and the army found one AK-47 rifle, eight rifle grenades, 270 rounds of AK-47 rifle ammunition and 10 magazines of the automatic assault rifle, one under barrel grenade launcher (UBGL) - all sufficient to kill dozens of people.

Lt Col S D Goswami, defence spokesperson based in Jammu, said the two terrorists killed in Sunday's gun battle and one more shot down yesterday had the task of carrying out a massacre, the spokesman said. The army said the intrusion of the militants on Thursday, their subsequent attempts to reach the Jammu-Pathankote highway, and yesterday’s attack pointed towards their design to execute a massacre along the lines of the 2002 Kaluchak incident in which terrorists had killed more than three dozen people, mostly the family members of soldiers. "This nefarious design has been effectively foiled," Goswami said.

"The meticulous and well-planned operation, conducted under the overall supervision of Lt Gen Vinay Sharma, general officer commanding of the Rising Star Corps, was not only able to save the lives of civilian hostages held by the terrorist group but also managed to avoid collateral damage to civilian property in the heavily populated civil built-up area," he said. The next step, according to army sources, is to conduct mopping-up operations along the entire border belt in the Samba sector to find out if there were more infiltrators than the three already killed in the two operations.

"The idea is to look for tell-tale signs of the movement of the militants in the area," a senior army officer said, requesting anonymity. "A fresh alert has been sounded for the troops guarding the LoC (Line of Control) as militants might attempt to cross over from other areas as well," he said. The Northern Command of the army that guards the LoC in Kashmir has asked its units for greater vigil, the army source said. Instructions have also been issued for greater vigil against terrorist attacks in crowded areas, army camps and key installations, the official said.