Article

2007-07-12 Terror Networks

Top intelligence and law enforcement officials have been told to assemble in the Situation Room

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Posted by 3dc 2007-07-12 02:26|| || Front Page|| [4 views ] Top
File under: al-Qaeda

#1 Hizb-ut-Tahrir is holding a huge rally today in Indonesia. Jihadism is in the air.

I have always believed that al-Qaeda doesn't widely recruit; their purpose was to inspire disconnected terror cells. I believe that most terror is mosque based, even if terror talk originates in parking lots.

Posted by McZoid 2007-07-12 04:11|| 2007-07-12 04:11|| Front Page Top

#2 London attackers' use of the Internet left important clues that are being used to decode other e-mails that had initially been deemed unimportant

Good heavens! Does this mean that Chimpy Bushitler McHalliburton is illegally monitoring the internet? I'm not worried about my your safety, I'm worried about the fascist bible-thumpers taking over and making me say the Pledge of Allegience - even with the unconstititional "under You-Know-Who" part!

Light the torches! Get the pitchforks! Heat up the tar!

Posted by Bobby McMoonbat 2007-07-12 07:29|| 2007-07-12 07:29|| Front Page Top

#3 I wonder if closing and controlling those border thingies would help matters?

/sarc

Posted by Natural Law 2007-07-12 08:27|| 2007-07-12 08:27|| Front Page Top

#4 I wonder what sort of savagery will have to be directed against the West before it finally puts Muslim majority nations on notice that terrorist atrocities committed by their native citizens will incur massive airstrikes upon population centers or vital infrastructure. We could play it humanely and simply bomb out some major freeway interchanges or bridges in order to impose hardship upon vast numbers of Muslims.

Collective punishment? Yew betcha. After all, isn't that what Islam is all about? Whatever it takes, we need to begin attaching a palpable price tag to countenancing terrorism. Muslims must be made to feel the West's pain. Nothing else will yield any substantial results. We simply do not have any luxury of planting democractic seeds around the MME (Muslim Middle East) with a vague hope that they will somehow sprout in time to dissuade further terrorist attacks. Iraq should have served us final notice that such a process is far too glacial.

Way too many of these Islamic countries either physically abet terrorism or turn a blind eye to its machinations within their borders. After a few disproportionate retaliations I can assure you that these rogue nations would be scrambling to contain their terrorist populations.

Posted by Zenster">Zenster 2007-07-12 09:13|| 2007-07-12 09:13|| Front Page Top

#5 Savagery on a scale only barely imagined Zen.

Posted by DarthVader">DarthVader 2007-07-12 09:15|| 2007-07-12 09:15|| Front Page Top

#6 Savagery on a scale only barely imagined Zen.

I continue to wonder why the West's political leadership blindly refuses to properly anticipate this eventuality and act pre-emptively. Islam's core doctrine demands that Muslims escalate to even the most hideous levels of barbarity in their pursuit of a global caliphate. Willfully ignoring this basic incontrovertible fact is tantamount to self-imposed collective suicide. The West's sole obligation to itself is penalizing Islam's continued pusuit of violent global domination with a death sentence.

Posted by Zenster">Zenster 2007-07-12 09:28|| 2007-07-12 09:28|| Front Page Top

#7 I wonder if the bastards vaporize Scottsdale with a Russian backpack, if that will be enough for Washington to get serious.

Posted by Besoeker 2007-07-12 09:56|| 2007-07-12 09:56|| Front Page Top

#8 I have this mental image of everyone putting on their suit jackets like firemen's turnout coats and sliding down the brass pole into their seats...

Posted by Seafarious">Seafarious 2007-07-12 10:04|| 2007-07-12 10:04|| Front Page Top

#9 Besoeker, read up on suitcase nuclear bombs.

First, the probability that any portable nuclear devices were lost prior to or after the breakup of the Soviet Union appears low; the scenarios of loss offered by the special commission in 1996 are actually the least plausible among other possible scenarios. This does not mean that the threat does not exist, but rather that at this moment, it is probably not the most immediate threat to the home security of the United States or to U.S. armed forces abroad.

Second, even if any devices were lost, their effectiveness should be very low or maybe even non-existent, especially if the loss occurred during the period of the greatest risk, in the early 1990s. Without scheduled maintenance, these devices apparently can produce only minimal yield and eventually possibly no yield at all, and can only serve as a source of small amounts of weapons-grade fissile materials.
[emphasis added]

They are probably no longer a threat. Unemployed Russian nuclear scientists helping a rogue Islamic nation are a more likely problem. All of this points towards why stopping Iran remains our top priority.

Posted by Zenster">Zenster 2007-07-12 10:07|| 2007-07-12 10:07|| Front Page Top

#10 I was kinda upbeat today. Should have stayed on the p0rn sites. Damn !

Posted by wxjames 2007-07-12 10:09|| 2007-07-12 10:09|| Front Page Top

#11 You don't need a myth (suitcase nukes) only the real thing - fissile material (ie. spent fuel,) Plenty of that in Pakistan. All you need there is a willing ISI type, some radical military types and a friend of AQK. Or you could go to any pipeline company and borrow their welding inspector. It ain't hard when you think about it.

Posted by Jack is Back!">Jack is Back! 2007-07-12 10:37|| 2007-07-12 10:37|| Front Page Top

#12 I have this mental image of everyone putting on their suit jackets like firemen's turnout coats and sliding down the brass pole into their seats... and manning their deadly control-alt-delete weapons!

Posted by RD 2007-07-12 10:43|| 2007-07-12 10:43|| Front Page Top

#13 Collective punishment? Yew betcha.

You notice how militaristic and aggressive the Germans and Japanese have been since ~~we bombed the crap out of their former cities~~ the non-PC application of warfare in the "fire and iron rain" '43-'45 period? Notice how much their general population really wants to get back into that frame of mind?

Posted by Procopius2k 2007-07-12 11:08|| 2007-07-12 11:08|| Front Page Top

#14 Notice how much their general population really wants to get back into that frame of mind?

Nuttin' like a little friendly behavioral modification to win hearts and minds.

Pavlov: Does that name ring a bell?

Posted by Zenster">Zenster 2007-07-12 11:24|| 2007-07-12 11:24|| Front Page Top

#15 You don't need a myth (suitcase nukes) only the real thing - fissile material (ie. spent fuel,)

Do you mean a dirty bomb, Jack is Back?

Posted by trailing wife 2007-07-12 11:41|| 2007-07-12 11:41|| Front Page Top

#16 Without scheduled maintenance, these devices apparently can produce only minimal yield and eventually possibly no yield at all, and can only serve as a source of small amounts of weapons-grade fissile materials

I'm not particularly impressed by the technical content of that article. Check the Wikipedia article on suitcase bombs and the other links it contains. In any case, there would be at least a critical mass of weapons grade fissile material, which is not a "small amount", and it would not degrade in time.

If polonium initiator or tritium booster technologies were used, then I agree that the weapons would be useless without regular maintenance. However, since these weapons were in the hands of the KGB, it's likely that the claims of a six month maintenance cycle are bogus since regular maintenance of polonium initiators in the field is quite problematic. The maintenance cycle of tritium is much longer, it's got a twelve year half-life.

I'd guess that a relatively modern, sophisticated suitcase nuke intended for covert operations would contain neither polonium nor tritium. It would have modestly more than critical mass, say 25%, and an electronic neutron generator.

Posted by Spaick Glavise9101 2007-07-12 12:14|| 2007-07-12 12:14|| Front Page Top

#17 Spaick Glavise9101 == KBK

Posted by Spaick Glavise9101 2007-07-12 12:15|| 2007-07-12 12:15|| Front Page Top

#18 The maintenance cycle of tritium is much longer, it's got a twelve year half-life.
Which means it's probably "use it or lose it" time.

Posted by Rex Mundi 2007-07-12 12:22|| 2007-07-12 12:22|| Front Page Top

#19 Zen -- I love where you've taken this thread with comment #4. I'm a big believer in Disproportionate (and predictable) Response as the only way. Then, the enemy can "do the math" and know that, "OK, if I blow up 10 westerners I'm going to lose, instantly 10 blocks of down-town Medina. Is it worth it?". (This is made somewhat tricky because they don't value life -- the equations will never work out to our advantage. So I think retribution HAS to be destroying their land/property. I suggest that even better would be to TAKE land in response -- but I don't expect support in that idea.)

Additionally -- I screamed when we had that debate in the 90's about whether it is appropriate for the US to always be prepared for a Two-Front War. That preparedness is an important deterrant at the higher state-level. We said no at the time, "One front readiness should be enough". That sent a clear signal and makes it easier for nations -- from Venezula to China -- to make bad decisions because they feel they might be able to take advantage with no consequences.

Posted by Captain Lewis 2007-07-12 13:05|| 2007-07-12 13:05|| Front Page Top

#20 I wonder what sort of savagery will have to be directed against the West before it finally puts Muslim majority nations on notice that terrorist atrocities committed by their native citizens will incur massive airstrikes upon population centers or vital infrastructure.

So far I haven't seen anything that Western elites aren't willing to overlook.

Posted by gromgoru 2007-07-12 13:34|| 2007-07-12 13:34|| Front Page Top

#21 Suitcase nukes are as Z. described them, I believe... My concern about those would be the fissile material used strategically for a "dirty bomb" in a confined space's air system... e.g. subway or mall....

Posted by BigEd 2007-07-12 13:37|| 2007-07-12 13:37|| Front Page Top

#22 I suggest that even better would be to TAKE land in response -- but I don't expect support in that idea.

Captain Lewis, you most definitely have support from some of us here at Rantburg. You certainly have mine to begin with. A well-known participant here named .com advocated appropriating a certain narrow strip of Eastern Saudi Arabia. Namely, as I recall, the Ghawar Field, representing some 30% of Saudi reserves.

Saudi Arabia's dissemination of radical Wahabbist Islam has cost this world untold billions, if not trillions, of dollars. America has taken the biggest economic hit in all of this and would be more than justified in compensating itself by securing its own piece of the Middle East's oil patch.

I would just as soon see a coalition of democratic nations depose the House of Saud and take possession of all Saudi Arabia. The shrines at Mecca and Medina could be held as physical hostages against further terrorist attacks. Any Muslim atrocities would cause cancellation of that year's haj and thereby punish the entire Islamic world for its continued support for terrorism. Additionally, should a dirty bomb or biochemical attack upon the West take place, the shrines would be similarly contaminated as retaliation. Any nuclear terrorist attack would result in, first Medina, and then Mecca being obliterated as a stark object lesson in how unwise such barbarism is.

If anything, the hostage shrines would also represent the ultimate jihadi flypaper. I would like to see large perimeter kill zones covered by unmanned automatic weapons and land mines surrounding them, but that's just me.

OFF TOPIC: I wanted to thank you for expressing your personal concern that Bush's own religious feelings may be preventing him from properly discerning Islam as a political ideology. I've maintained this for some time and been belabored here for it thoroughly. It remains one of the few explanations for why Bush continues to insist that Islam has been "hijacked" when, in reality, terrorists are merely following fundamental Koranic doctrine.

Posted by Zenster">Zenster 2007-07-12 14:01|| 2007-07-12 14:01|| Front Page Top

#23 So far I haven't seen anything that Western elites aren't willing to overlook.

I agree, gg, and it disturbs the living hell out of me. It is why I believe America and Europe's political elite have become a traitor class. The 9-11 atrocity should have been all that was required to initiate total war.

Posted by Zenster">Zenster 2007-07-12 14:07|| 2007-07-12 14:07|| Front Page Top

#24 Elites value their treasure more than they value the lives of the volkes. Always has it been thus.

Posted by Rex Mundi 2007-07-12 14:34|| 2007-07-12 14:34|| Front Page Top

#25 First, any nuke requires periodic maintenance (three or four times a year), and major overhaul every two to five years. If the fissionable material isn't sealed in an airtight case filled with some noble gas, there will be considerable corrosion on the surfaces. These surfaces are usually kept in mirror-bright condition to facilitate neutron exchange, thus keeping the reaction going. Even a LITTLE corrosion can reduce the neutron exchange level to below critical. I doubt the islamists, with their in'sallah ideas about maintenance, could keep any weapons in the top-notch condition they need. One of the reasons the AK-47 is so prized in the islamic world is because it requires minimum maintenance.

Second, if the West wants to target areas for retaliation, I would recommend mosques. After all, these are the center of the enemy's intelligence, supply, recruitment, and probably training. With each terrorist attack, whether successful or not, the West should destroy 25 mosques - one each in the 25 most disruptive islamist nations. Do it on Friday, to get the best return on the investment. That should start a chain reaction that will lead to the utter destruction of islam.

Posted by Old Patriot">Old Patriot 2007-07-12 14:38|| http://oldpatriot.blogspot.com/]">[http://oldpatriot.blogspot.com/] 2007-07-12 14:38|| Front Page Top

#26 With each terrorist attack, whether successful or not, the West should destroy 25 mosques - one each in the 25 most disruptive islamist nations. Do it on Friday, to get the best return on the investment. That should start a chain reaction that will lead to the utter destruction of islam.

Works for me, OP. It would be a fine starting point. I especially concur with you on punishing failed attacks just the same as successful ones. All of Islam's crapulence needs to carry a price tag.

Posted by Zenster">Zenster 2007-07-12 14:50|| 2007-07-12 14:50|| Front Page Top

#27 The situation room....to monitor and deal with crises at home and abroad and to conduct secure communications with outside (often overseas) persons....Looks like the crisis is abroad.....Mexico/Pemex gas infrastructure blown up??..Pakistan??....Turkey/Iraq invasion????....Lebanon becoming hizbollah state soon?

Posted by Dopey Unorong1772 2007-07-12 16:07|| 2007-07-12 16:07|| Front Page Top

#28 I like the way you think OP.

Posted by JohnQC 2007-07-12 19:13|| 2007-07-12 19:13|| Front Page Top

#29 Interesting...no sad to read the comments of the barking moonbats on the Blotter. The bushitler-hating moonbats are convinced this is a ploy to: raise presidential approval ratings, or divert attention from the sex scandal, or divert attention from the Iraq Report, etc..

The barking moonbats are so hate filled they are truly irrational.

Posted by anymouse">anymouse 2007-07-12 19:53|| 2007-07-12 19:53|| Front Page Top

#30 Natural Law - "I wonder if closing and controlling those border thingies would help matters?"

Wouldn't be prudent as we must keep the southern border open so that our good amigos from the south can come here to pick our sacred lettuce heads for us.

Posted by Jorge Arbusto 2007-07-12 20:14|| 2007-07-12 20:14|| Front Page Top

23:32 Verlaine
23:29 Mike N.
23:18 JosephMendiola
23:02 JosephMendiola
23:02 JosephMendiola
22:54 JosephMendiola
22:51 PlanetDan
22:49 Glenmore
22:45 Zenster
22:33 Zenster
22:18 Fred
22:17 Old Patriot
22:14 JohnQC
22:03 JohnQC
22:01 jds
21:58 jds
21:58 JohnQC
21:57 Abu do you love
21:53 Gary and the Samoyeds
21:50 Zenster
21:49 JosephMendiola
21:40 JosephMendiola
21:36 JosephMendiola
21:17 Asymmetrical T