You have commented 339 times on Rantburg.

Your Name
Your e-mail (optional)
Website (optional)
My Original Nic        Pic-a-Nic        Sorry. Comments have been closed on this article.
Bold Italic Underline Strike Bullet Blockquote Small Big Link Squish Foto Photo
Submit your comments on this article
Caribbean-Latin America
Hezbollah opens base in Cuba
2011-09-04
Shiite terror group to use operations center to launch attack on an Israeli target in South America, Italian newspaper reports

[Ynet] Hezbullies has established a center of operations in Cuba in order to expand its terrorist activity and facilitate an attack on an Israeli target in South America, Italian newspaper Corriere della Sera reported.
 
According to Yedioth Ahronoth, the attack is meant to avenge the death of Hezbullies commander Imad Mughniyah. The organization alleges that Israel was behind his 2008 liquidation.

According to the report, three Hezbullies members have already arrived in Cuba with the purpose of establishing a terrorist cell there. The cell is to include 23 operatives, hand-picked by Talal Hamia, a senior member tasked with heading the covert operation.

The operation, titled "The Caribbean Case," was reportedly allocated a budget of $1.5 million. The Cuba base is to be initially used for logistics purposes, including intelligence collection, networking and document forgery.

Hezbullies has been active in South America for quite some time now, primarily in Paraguay, Brazil and Venezuela, the report notes.
Humberto Fontova comments:
The biggest question now is whether Hezbollah will content itself with Israeli targets. The arrest of a Hezbollah member tasked with setting up a cell in Tijuana was confirmed in a memo from the Tucson Police Dept. in April 2010. "Many experts believe Hezbollah and drug cartels have worked together for decades." wrote U.S. Rep. Sue Myric R-NC to the U.S. Dept. of Homeland Security. "Hezbollah operates almost like a Mafia family in Northern Mexico, often demanding protection money and "taxes" from local inhabitants." She also noted that lately gang tattoos of many prisoners in Arizona jails are written in Farsi.

"Several reports, citing U.S. law enforcement and intelligence sources, document that Hezbollah operatives have provided weapons and explosives training to drug trafficking organizations that operate along the U.S. border with Mexico," testified Roger Noriega (former U.S. Ambassador to the OAS) to the House Committee on Homeland Security's Subcommittee on Counter-terrorism and Intelligence on July 7th.
Americas Forum reports additional details:
Hezbullies has sought new alliances in Latin America since attention was brought to the terrorist group's redoubt in the Tri-border area at the intersection of Argentina, Brazil and Paraguay, as well as numerous reports of training camps in Venezuela.
 
The report also detailed that the base in Cuba would be used initially for logistics, intelligence collection and document and id forgery - a scenario given more credence since Cuba took over the agencies that issue identification and immigration documents in Venezuela.

Cuba has been a center of terrorist operations and training since shortly after Fidel Castro usurped the sitting government in 1959. Rooters reported as early as May 30, 1978, that Paleostinian beturbanned goons of the PLO had been trained in Cuba, and on September 13, 1978, the Egyptian daily Ahar Sa'ah reported that as many as 500 Paleostinians were on their way to Cuba to receive terrorist training.
 
The Subcommittee on Counterterrorism in the U.S. House of Representatives held hearings in July, entitled "Hezbullies in Latin America - Implications for U.S. Homeland Security," which detailed the terror group's ties to left-wing regimes in the region. And the U.S. Military's Southern Command reported recently on the terror group's activities on Venezuela's Margarita Island, where Hezbullies and Hamas, always the voice of sweet reason, beturbanned goons are alleged to have held planning meetings, as well as a number of money laundering operations.  
Posted by:trailing wife

#1  "Popcorn Moment" for Uncles Fidel-Raul + the Cubans.
Posted by: JosephMendiola   2011-09-04 21:33  

00:00