Tag: terrorism

George Mason University Student Charged With Planning ‘Mass Casualty Attack’ Against Jews in New York

A student at George Mason University was arrested this week over claims he was planning a “mass casualty attack” on the Consulate General of Israel in New York, according to court records.

Abdullah Ezzeldin Taha Mohamed Hassan, an Egyptian national who is only 18, allegedly operated several social media accounts that were promoting “radical and terrorist-leaning behavior.”

While the accounts were run anonymously, investigators managed to trace it back to Hassan using his provided email address, phone number and IP address.

According to prosecutors, Hassan regularly posted about “revering Osama bin Laden and Ayman Al Zawahiri” and operated “several pro-ISIS and al Qaeda accounts that promoted violence against Jews.”

After developing an obsession with terrorism, Hassan eventually began the process of planning a “mass casualty attack at the Consulate General of Israel using an explosive device and rifle.”

Hassan discussed his plan in great detail with an FBI informant he believed to be an admirer of his ideological mission.

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Who is the World’s Most Dangerous Terrorist Organization?

Who is the world’s most dangerous terrorist organization?

Look no further than the grand accuser and the one who sits high and mighty in judgment of others.

Earlier this week, Ukraine openly boasted of assassinating a top Russian general outside his home in Moscow.

Lt. General Igor Kirillov was killed when a bomb attached to a scooter was detonated remotely upon him leaving his apartment early in the morning. One of his assistants was also killed.

Russia on Tuesday criticized Ukraine’s Western allies, accusing them of being complicit in the general’s murder. It was easy to come to this conclusion after no one in any official capacity in Washington, London, Paris or Berlin condemned the killing.

Western politicians and media love to characterize Putin as a dictator of the worst sort, a “KGB thug.” I hear a lot of conservative pundits using this same language and I find it laughable in its hypocrisy.

When has Putin ever reached across the Atlantic and assassinated an American general on U.S. soil? I don’t recall ever reading of such an incident but, if I am having a senior moment, please, someone, refresh my memory.

Moscow’s foreign ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova accused the West in a Telegram post of “approval for war crimes by fighters of the Kyiv regime” and said “all those who welcome terrorist attacks or deliberately hush them up are accomplices.”

This also hearkens back to past reports exposing a CIA program to train and assist Ukraine’s special forces and intelligence in sabotage and cross-border targeted assassinations.

Lest you think this is just a clever piece of Russian propaganda, think again. It’s been reported even by a prominent member of the American deep-state media.

Last year, The Washington Post published a report on how Ukraine’s intelligence services were capable of carrying out assassinations inside Russia thanks to support they have been receiving from the CIA since 2014.

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Saudi Suspect Plows Car Into German Christmas Market; U.S. Media Blames [Checks Notes] the Car

An attack on a Christmas market in Magdeburg, Germany, has left at least two people dead and 60-80 injured. According to Die Welt:

A driver drove into a group of people at the Christmas market in Magdeburg. Government spokesman Matthias Schuppe confirmed to WELT that it was an attack. City spokesman Michael Reif also said that the initial report was an “attack on the Christmas market”. The suspected perpetrator is in police custody. WELT learned from security sources that he is a man from Saudi Arabia who was born in 1974.

The Saudi national, who had reportedly been in Germany illegally since 2006, allegedly rented a car and headed to the market two hours west of Berlin, which was teeming with visitors enjoying the Christmas festivities. A suitcase was found on the passenger seat of the vehicle, according to Die Welt, and authorities are currently trying to ascertain whether it contains an explosive device. The terrorist was taken into custody, and it’s not known whether he acted alone. 

A police spokesman said the suspect drove “at least 400 meters across the Christmas market.” A witness said the attack occurred in the market’s fairy tale section. 

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We Don’t Need Terrorism Laws When Murder Is Already Illegal

New York state prosecutors announced on Tuesday that they were charging Luigi Mangione, the alleged killer of United Healthcare CEO Brian Thompson, with murder “in furtherance of terrorism.” The law that they are citing, which was passed a week after the attacks of September 11, 2001, increases penalties for violent crimes meant to “intimidate or coerce a civilian population,” “influence the policy of a unit of government by intimidation or coercion,” or “affect the conduct of a unit of government by murder, assassination or kidnapping.”

Killing and kidnapping, of course, are already illegal. Thompson’s murderer would have gone to prison for a very long time, with or without terrorism laws. A few decades ago, authorities had all the power they needed to investigate and prosecute violent crimes. But the wave of counterterrorism laws, which began in the 1990s and ramped up after 9/11, has allowed the government to create a new realm of special crimes.

Terrorism enhancements, like hate crime enhancements, increase the penalties for certain crimes simply because the motive is politically controversial. Other counterterrorism laws allow the government to treat unpopular First Amendment activities—like talking to unsavory foreign rebel groups, or animal rights activism—as if they were associated with heinous crimes.

The first counterterrorism laws in the United States were concerned with foreign policy and immigration. The Export Administration Act of 1979 allowed the U.S. State Department to designate certain countries as “state sponsors of terrorism,” which subjected them to certain kinds of economic sanctions. The 1990 amendments to the Immigration and Nationality Act allowed authorities to ban any foreigner who “has engaged in a terrorist activity” or “is likely to engage after entry in any terrorist activity” in the United States.

But criminal law continued to treat terrorist crimes like regular crimes. Ramzi Yousef, who killed six people at the World Trade Center in 1993 and plotted to blow up several airliners, was thrown into solitary confinement for life. Timothy McVeigh, who killed 168 people at the Oklahoma City federal building in 1995, was executed. There didn’t have to be any special laws for political violence, because the normal laws against murder and explosives use were enough.

After the Oklahoma City bombing, however, Congress passed the Antiterrorism and Effective Death Penalty Act of 1996. The Clinton administration and its supporters, including the Anti-Defamation League, originally wanted a broad law to crack down on both foreign and domestic terrorism, but Republicans pushed back due to worries about expanding the power of federal law enforcement. As a compromise, the final law banned “material support” for foreign terrorist organizations, meaning that there would be no legal definition of “domestic terrorism.”

But even the ban on supporting foreign terrorists encroached on “activities that would ordinarily be considered constitutionally protected,” according to a February 2024 study by the Center for Constitutional Rights. The definition of “material support” is vague, and the definition of a “foreign terrorist organization” is completely up to the discretion of the U.S. State Department.

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10,000 “Special Interest” Aliens Apprehended at Border This New Fiscal Year

Over 10,000 “special interest” aliens were apprehended at by Border Patrol during the first two-and-a-half months of the new fiscal year, beginning 1 October.

“Special interest” aliens come from countries with known ties to terrorism.

These countries include Iran, Syria, Egypt, Afghanistan, Mali and Nigeria.

Many of these migrants crossed into the US via the southern border with Mexico, although they have also tried to enter US territories like the US Virgin Islands.

In October, for example, Border Patrol apprehended 124 Iranians at various crossing points along the southern border.

Per Breitbart, “According to a source within CBP [Customs and Border Patrol] not authorized to speak to the media, Special Interest Alien crossings into Eagle Pass were once a rarity. Violence in Sinaloa, Mexico, according to the source, is one reason migrants from special interest countries may be choosing to enter the United States in Eagle Pass, Texas. The trend is concerning, the source told Breitbart Texas.”

Donald Trump has promised the largest mass deportation operation in American history beginning on day one when he takes office, on 20 January.

He has already appointed Tom Homan to be his “border czar.” Homan became notorious during Trump’s first term for his tough stance on immigration while in control of ICE. He presided over the controversial “family separation” policy that saw migrant families broken up and deported separately from one another.

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Why is the United States Supporting Islamic Extremists Worse than Al Qaeda?

It is a simple question, but underscores the gross hypocrisy of the United States. Whether you accept or reject the 9-11 narrative that the attack was carried out by Al Qaeda (and, for the record, I do), that attack served as the raison d’etre for the ensuing Global War on Terror aka GWOT. “They hate us because of our freedom,” or so we were told.

While many in the West lump Al Qaeda, ISIS, Hezbollah and Hamas into the same category, the groups spawned by Al Qaeda represent (or represented) something distinct (and more dangerous in my opinion) than Hezbollah and Hamas. Hezbollah and Hamas are not pursuing a “global caliphate.” They simply want the land taken from them by the West and the Zionists. Hamas, in its revised Charter, makes it clear that its war is with the Zionists, not Jews or Judaism:

16. Hamas affirms that its conflict is with the Zionist project not with the Jews because of their religion. Hamas does not wage a struggle against the Jews because they are Jewish but wages a struggle against the Zionists who occupy Palestine. Yet, it is the Zionists who constantly identify Judaism and the Jews with their own colonial project and illegal entity.

17. Hamas rejects the persecution of any human being or the undermining of his or her rights on nationalist, religious or sectarian grounds. Hamas is of the view that the Jewish problem, anti-Semitism and the persecution of the Jews are phenomena fundamentally linked to European history and not to the history of the Arabs and the Muslims or to their heritage. The Zionist movement, which was able with the help of Western powers to occupy Palestine, is the most dangerous form of settlement occupation which has already disappeared from much of the world and must disappear from Palestine.

You will never read a declaration like that from Al Qaeda or its more extreme, lethal descendants — such as, ISIS and Hay’at Tahrir Al-Sham. ISIS was born as a consequence of the US invasion of Iraq is 2003. Its first leader, Abu Musab al-Zarqawi, set the tone for ISIS by attacking and killing Shi’a Muslims in Iraq. Here is a portion of a letter allegedly written by Zarqawi that shows you what he thought of the Shi’a:

3 [sic]. The Shi`a

[They are] the insurmountable obstacle, the lurking snake, the crafty and malicious scorpion, the spying enemy, and the penetrating venom. We here are entering a battle on two levels. One, evident and open, is with an attacking enemy and patent infidelity. [Another is] a difficult, fierce battle with a crafty enemy who wears the garb of a friend, manifests agreement, and calls for comradeship, but harbors ill will and twists up peaks and crests (?). Theirs is the legacy of the Batini bands that traversed the history of Islam and left scars on its face that time cannot erase. The unhurried observer and inquiring onlooker will realize that Shi`ism is the looming danger and the true challenge. “They are the enemy. Beware of them. Fight them. By God, they lie.” History’s message is validated by the testimony of the current situation, which informs most clearly that Shi`ism is a religion that has nothing in common with Islam except in the way that Jews have something in common with Christians under the banner of the People of the Book. From patent polytheism, worshipping at graves, and circumambulating shrines, to calling the Companions [of the Prophet] infidels and insulting the mothers of the believers and the elite of this [Islamic] nation, [they] arrive at distorting the Qur’an as a product of logic to defame those who know it well, in addition to speaking of the infallibility of the [Islamic] nation, the centrality of believing in them, affirming that revelation came down to them, and other forms of infidelity and manifestations of atheism with which their authorized books and original sources — which they continue to print, distribute, and publish — overflow. The dreamers who think that a Shi`i can forget [his] historical legacy and [his] old black hatred of the Nawasib [those who hate the Prophet’s lineage], as they fancifully call them, are like someone who calls on the Christians to renounce the idea of the crucifixion of the Messiah. Would a sensible person do this? These are a people who added to their infidelity and augmented their atheism with political cunning and a feverish effort to seize upon the crisis of governance and the balance of power in the state, whose features they are trying to draw and whose new lines they are trying to establish through their political banners and organizations in cooperation with their hidden allies the Americans.

This screed produced a response from Bin Laden’s deputy, Ayman al-Zawahiri, that is lengthy, but worth a read to appreciate the mindset of the Al Qaeda militants. While Zawahiri is generally supportive of Zarqawi’s view of the Shi’a as apostates from Islam, he, with the full support of Bin Laden, chides Zarqawi for his attacks on Shi’a worshipers and their mosques:

A) I repeat that I see the picture from afar, and I repeat that you see what we do not see. No doubt you have the right to defend yourself, the mujahedeen, and Muslims in general and in particular against any aggression or threat of aggression.

(B) I assert here that any rational person understands with ease that the Shia cooperated with the Americans in the invasion of Afghanistan, Rafsanjani himself confessed to it, and they cooperated with them in the overthrow of Saddam and the occupation of Iraq in exchange for the Shia’s assumption of power and their turning a blind eye to the American military presence in Iraq. This is clear to everybody who has two eyes. . . .

(D) The collision between any state based on the model of prophecy with the Shia is a matter that will happen sooner or later. This is the judgment of history, and these are the fruits to be expected from the rejectionist Shia sect and their opinion of the Sunnis. These are clear, well-known matters to anyone with a knowledge of history, the ideologies, and the politics of states.

(E) We must repeat what we mentioned previously, that the majority of Muslims don’t comprehend this and possibly could not even imagine it. For that reason, many of your Muslim admirers amongst the common folk are wondering about your attacks on the Shia. The sharpness of this questioning increases when the attacks are on one of their mosques, and it increases more when the attacks are on the mausoleum of Imam Ali Bin Abi Talib, may God honor him. My opinion is that this matter won’t be acceptable to the Muslim populace however much you have tried to explain it, and aversion to this will continue.

Indeed, questions will circulate among mujahedeen circles and their opinion makers about the correctness of this conflict with the Shia at this time. Is it something that is unavoidable? Or, is it something can be put off until the force of the mujahed movement in Iraq gets stronger? And if some of the operations were necessary for self-defense, were all of the operations necessary? Or, were there some operations that weren’t called for? And is the opening of another front now in addition to the front against the Americans and the government a wise decision? Or, does this conflict with the Shia lift the burden from the Americans by diverting the mujahedeen to the Shia, while the Americans continue to control matters from afar? And if the attacks on Shia leaders were necessary to put a stop to their plans, then why were there attacks on ordinary Shia?

Won’t this lead to reinforcing false ideas in their minds, even as it is incumbent on us to preach the call of Islam to them and explain and communicate to guide them to the truth? And can the mujahedeen kill all of the Shia in Iraq? Has any Islamic state in history ever tried that? And why kill ordinary Shia considering that they are forgiven because of their ignorance? And what loss will befall us if we did not attack the Shia? And do the brothers forget that we have more than one hundred prisoners – many of whom are from the leadership who are wanted in their countries – in the custody of the Iranians? And even if we attack the Shia out of necessity, then why do you announce this matter and make it public, which compels the Iranians to take counter measures? And do the brothers forget that both we and the Iranians need to refrain from harming each other at this time in which the Americans are targeting us?

My point in sharing these communications between the leaders of Al Qaeda and the leader of ISIS is to give you some appreciation of the depth of their theological conviction that they possessed a unique truth and were empowered by Allah to impose what they believed to be “correct” practices and to punish, by death, those who refused to obey.

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Biden’s Parting Shot at America

The interim between a US presidential election and the swearing in of a new Administration has for most of our history been a non-eventful period where the outgoing Administration winds down operations and the incoming Administration ramps up new personnel before the inauguration.

The 20th Amendment to our Constitution was enacted in 1933 to reduce the “lame duck” period between election and inauguration to January 20th instead of March 4th. Increasing ease in travel and communications made such a long interim unnecessary. However long the transition period, it has been understood that with the new election came a new mandate from the American people and the “lame duck” outgoing administration was meant to quietly quack out its last few days in office without incident.

Then came Biden. In the period since the American people rejected Biden’s neocon interventionists in favor of Donald Trump’s promises to end the wars, the “lame duck” has run roughshod over the will of the American people. Whoever is running Biden – and the answer is unclear – has decided to “Trump proof” foreign policy to bring us to the literal brink of WWIII with Russia. And to top it off, Biden’s people this past week have again unleashed al-Qaeda linked rebels to wreak havoc in Syria!

After solidly opposing the neocon demand that Ukraine be given permission to fire US weapons deep into Russia, President Biden in the waning days of his presidency suddenly reversed course and granted permission. From back in 2022, when Russia first went into Ukraine, Biden had argued against sending offensive weaponry and US troops to fight on Ukraine’s behalf. “Make no mistake,” he said in March of that year, “that’s called World War III.”

Something about losing the popular and electoral vote has led Biden’s people to disregard the threat of WWIII and give the green light for attacks with US missiles deep into Russian territory. Why is this so different than providing tanks or bullets? These missile systems are highly complex and classified and can only be operated by US or NATO personnel. That means that American military officers are shooting American missiles into Russia – something unimaginable even in the depths of the Cold War!

Then, just days ago, we saw the sudden re-emergence of the US former proxies in Syria – extremists whose ties go back to al-Qaeda – sweep halfway through the country in what appears to be a return of Obama’s disastrous “Assad must go” policy. For five years the conflict in Syria had been more or less “frozen,” but Biden’s people have turned it up to a boil.

Why has the Biden Administration suddenly given a green light to these terrorists and how deeply is the CIA involved in stirring up new trouble in Syria? Make no mistake: these US-backed “rebels” would never have made their move without the approval of the Biden Administration.

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Israel-Backed Al Qaeda Terrorists Storm Aleppo

The Syrian Army is pressing ahead with its operations to confront and expel foreign-backed terrorists from the country’s north and northwestern provinces. Reports on the ground say that the Syrian military backed by the Russian Air Force struck the terror groups in villages of Hazarin and Al-Raqeya in the southern countryside of the province of Idlib. Airstrikes also targeted positions of Al-Nusra Front Terror Group around Khan Sheikhoun south of Idlib and Morek in the northern countryside of Hama. The Syrian military says it has reinforced its defense lines with various means of fire, personnel and equipment in areas where clashes are underway with the terrorists. The army also says it’s managed to secure a number of areas including Ma’ardis. According to the Syrian media, nearly terrorists have been killed in three days of fighting. Clashes between the army and the terrorists erupted after attack theory groups, including al-Nusra Front, launched a surprise attack on northern and northwestern parts of Syria on Wednesday.

And reactions and condemnations continue pouring in over the resurgence of foreign-backed terrorism in Syria. The Arab League has issued a statement stressing the need to respect the sovereignty and preserve the territorial integrity of Syria. League Secretary General Ahmed Abu Ghait expressed concerns over the continuous developments that Syria is witnessing and their impacts on civilians. In a phone call, the UAE President Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan said the country stands with Syria and supports it in combating terrorism and unifying its territory. The Iraqi Prime Minister Mohammed Shia al-Sudanian and Foreign Minister Fouad Hussein expressed their country’s support, saying that Syria’s security and stability are linked to Iraq’s national security. In a statement, the Venezuelan Foreign Minister Yivan Gil expressed country solidarity with the Syrian people and government, calling on the international community to condemn terrorist attacks in Syria.

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DJ Performing at ‘Festival of Diversity’ During Stabbing Attack Says He Was Told to Continue Playing Music to ‘Avoid Mass Panic’

The DJ who was performing at a ‘Festival of Diversity’ event in Solingen, Germany where three people were stabbed to death says he was told by “security personnel” to keep playing music in order to “avoid causing a mass panic.”

Eight other people received serious injuries during the incident when the killer began knifing random people, aiming directly for their throats, before subsequently escaping.

German authorities are treating the incident as a terror attack.

DJ Topic, who was performing on stage during the festival as the attack unfolded, told the bizarre story of how he was ordered to carry on playing music so as not to cause distress.

“During my set, security personnel from the city came to me and asked me to please continue playing to avoid a mass panic, as there were already people killed by a stabbing attacker,” he posted on Instagram.

“So I kept playing, even though it was incredibly hard. After about 10-15 minutes, the music was finally stopped, and the people were informed about the incident,” he added.

As to the identity of the perpetrator, one would expect the authorities to put out an accurate description of him given that he is now the subject of a manhunt.

However, rather strangely, the BBC reports that police are finding it “difficult” to say what he looks like because “witnesses are in shock or can’t speak at the moment.”

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Trantifa member pleads guilty to setting off bomb outside Alabama Attorney General’s office

A trans nonbinary Antifa member has pleaded guilty to detonating an explosive device outside the building housing the Alabama Attorney General’s office. 26-year-old Kyle Benjamin Douglas Calvert, of Irondale, had been charged with malicious use of an explosive and possession of an unregistered destructive device in connection to the February incident. 

According to the Trussville Tribune, Calvert changed his plea to guilty last Friday. 

The indictment alleged that Calvert “maliciously damaged, and attempted to maliciously damage, by means of fire and explosive materials, the Alabama Attorney General’s Office,” and that Calvert “knowingly possessed a firearm, to wit: a destructive device… which was not registered to him in the National Firearms Registration and Transfer Record.”  

A detention memo from a US attorney’s office stated, “That device had the characteristics of an IED, and Calvert added a substantial number of nails and other shrapnel to increase its destructive capability.”  

The explosion was set off outside Attorney General Steve Marshall’s office on February 24, at around 3:42am. A person wearing dark clothing, a mask, and goggles was captured on surveillance footage near the statehouse. Law enforcement also found that nearby state buildings had been vandalized with stickers advocating for Antifa and displaying anti-police and anti-Immigration and Customs Enforcement sentiments. 

The FBI linked the man in the video to Calvert after a review of Calvert’s social media. One photo posted by Calvert showed him wearing goggles similar to the ones seen in the footage. Video posted by Calvert showed him detailing a set of stickers that he had purchased, many of which were identical to the ones placed around the Alabama State Capitol. 

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