Make a bomb in the kitchen of your Mom

Naser Jason Abdo was arrested at America’s Best Value Inn on South Fort Hood Street in Killeen, TX only about 3 miles from the front gate at Foot Hood on an outstanding warrant for child pornography and for being AWOL (absent without leave) from Fort Campbell, Ky.

When his hotel room was searched police found a lot more than child porn. Fox News reported,

Authorities said they found two clocks, spools of auto wire, Winchester .40 caliber ammunition and a handgun in a backpack, according to court documents. They also discovered an article titled “Make a bomb in the kitchen of your Mom,” the same title of a how-to article featured in Inspire, the English-language magazine by the terror group based in Yemen, Al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula.

Al Shabaab Enforces Teaching Radical Jihad in Somali Schools

MOGADISHU (Sunatimes)- Somalia’s extremist group of Alshabab has
ordered public schools to include Jihad subject to the school
curriculum, one of the latest pressing hardship being faced by the
war-weary Somalis.

Sheikh Ali Mohamed Hussein, an Al shabaab Mogadishu mayor has told the
reporters the move is aimed at training young students about the
“importance” of their Jihad version which Somali religious leaders
described as ‘interests follow-up’ not Jihad.

“ People are wanted to take part in the Jihad against the apostate
government and the Christian AMISOM. All schools are supposed to take
these news orders” he said.

Somalia’s ineffective government is busy with clashing itself and
sitting few blocks in Mogadishu as the world community finances their
futile moves. The government was supposed to crash the Al-Qaeda linked
militants beheading people and committing prosecutions in Somalia, but
instead its officials are filling their pockets with corrupt money.

Hundreds of Somalis are dying for hunger as the result of droughts hit
the country at the eyes of Somali government.

The horn of Africa nation has been without central government
since1991 after clan militias and warlords overthrown the dictator
regime of Siad Barre that lastly leashed out to constant violence for
more than 20 years.

The Rest @ Suna Times

Al Qaeda Moves Deeper into Africa

No new news... Al Qaeda is increasingly moving their efforts South and West to their outposts in the Sahel (AQIM) Yemen and Somalia....

-Shimron


Terrorism experts say the world has every reason to be concerned about terrorism in 2011 and beyond. They say al-Qaida may be slowly dying in Afghanistan, but its tentacles around the world live on in very remote areas.

They also say frustration among the poor in the Middle East and Africa could lead to new ethnic and political conflicts. The turmoil, they say, could embolden al-Qaida in the Islamic Maghreb popularly known as AQIM in that region. Al-Qaida in the Islamic Maghreb grew out of an Islamist insurgency movement in Algeria, merging with al-Qaida in 2006 and spreading through the Sahara and the Sahel region.

Ronald Noble, secretary-general of the police organization Interpol, has said those portions of Africa along with Somalia may become the next Afghanistan for al-Qaida.

Former CIA official and counter-terrorism expert Charles Allen says the recent turmoil in the Sahara and Sahel could further embolden al-Qaida, because it could see the unrest as a result of its own campaign.

"They have appealed continuously, whether it is in Yemen or in North Africa, that there are impoverished communities and then there are wealthy oligarchs who control the masses. This is a long standard ideological campaign that has been relatively effective," he said.He says al-Qaida in the Islamic Maghreb or AQIM, along with its affiliates in Yemen and Somalia, has been using this region as a breeding ground for its activities."It functions as an umbrella organization for a disparate collection of Sunni Muslim terrorist elements determined to attack what they see as apostate regimes in Algeria, Tunisia, Libya, Mauritania and Morocco.

The bulk of AQIM forces are located in southern Algeria, northern Mali and Mauritania," he said.Morocco’s ambassador to Washington, Aziz Mekouar is more concerned about the Sahara region in particular because it is now being used by drug traffickers to smuggle drugs to Europe. He says AQIM is trying to take advantage of the situation.

• "We see these Colombian and Mexican drug traffickers using West Africa and the Sahara region to covey drugs to the European markets. That is very dangerous.
• You will see in the future a combination of al-Qaida, drug traffickers, and human traffickers," he said.
• He says the countries of the region should come together to stop this activity and prevent al-Qaida from exploiting the situation.
• Last year, Algeria, Mali, Mauritania, and Niger set up a joint headquarters in southern Algeria to coordinate anti-terrorism efforts.
• The four countries' army chiefs met to establish a joint strategy against al-Qaida.

Allen says the focus in 2011 should be to make it more difficult for the al-Qaida leaders to recruit the unemployed and frustrated youth. That, he says, will require cooperation on a global scale to push for political and social reforms and poverty reduction. It will also require, he says, a global effort to educate the younger generation what he calls the real Islam that he says teaches that killing one person means killing all of humanity.

the Rest @ VOA

al Shabaab moves Jihad into Bihororo Burundi

Bujumbura, Feb 8 : Burundian police have arrested eight Pakistani Muslim preachers in a mosque in the central province of Gitega, according to police and local officials.

A group of eight people calling themselves Pakistani Muslim preachers arrived two days ago and started holding unauthorised meetings, day and night, in the Bihororo mosque," the Daily Times quoted local official Alexis Manirakiza, as saying.

"Residents became suspicious at the presence of these foreigners in a remote area at a time when there is a terror threat from Somali rebels and they informed the police," he added.

A police officer said on the condition of anonymity that all the eight were travelling to the African nation on Pakistani passports."

We're investigating to find out exactly who they are and what they were doing in this part of the world without informing the security services or the administrative authorities," the officer said.

The arrests came less than a week after the US Embassy in Burundi warned its citizens in the central African country that terror organisations, including Somalia's al Qaeda-inspired Shebab, could carry out terror attacks in February.

Security measures have been stepped up in Burundi since last week, with soldiers and police patrolling the streets of the capital.

The Rest @ ANI , via Jihadwatch

Sunni Chiefs Declare Jiahd on Shiite Rebels in North Yemen

SANAA, 24 Oct — The military online website, 26-September Saturday said a number of social and tribal figures in Yemen “have urged the state to open up the door of Jihad to fight Zaydi Shiite rebels in north Yemen,” stressing “Jihad against the insurgents is now a religious duty upon all Yemenis.”

“The rebels are implementing a Satanic agenda for foreign powers, targeting social peace and the nation’s stability and security,” said 26-September and quoted a number of dignitaries as saying “Jihad must be declared against this group of terrorists so that citizens can join the battle.”

The Grand Sheik of Bani Hoshish tribes, Muhammad Bashir said “the rebels committed atrocious crimes in our area last year and I was among a few who talked to them in a bid to bring them back to the right path but in vain.

What they are doing in Sadaa and Harf Sufian today shows they are aiming at destroying everything. They shut down schools in north Yemen as they did in our area last year in order to teach their satanic ideology.”

Sheik Ibrahim Ali al-Maqdeshi from Dhamar said “the insurgents have corrupted on earth and the Islamic ruling must be upheld against them: their hands and legs have to be cut off and then they should be crucified as God has ordained,” adding “this cancer has to be eradicated and all the people in Dhamar are ready and willing to join the ranks of the army.”

The Rest @ Yemen Hearland Tribune

The Mind of the Religious Extremist, Explained to the Humanist

There have been recent attempts by the practitioners of the Humanist Religion (National Public Radio, The various Humanism organizations), to promote the idea that Religion of all or any kind are good, comforting and useful as long as they are constructive toward the ends of the Human development cause; that it is, they make humans and or human society better. Last night there was a television program on Public Television that described the Mormon faith from an anthropological point of view, answering the question "How does the Mormon faith make people better citizens of the world?"

This is not a criticism. It is a clear belief system, no less logical, in human terms, than the extrapolation of Islam, Christian, or Buddhist principles into a system of beliefs which helps us live better as humans. It is an attempt to give God or the Higher power, if there is one that matters, its due as we live out our existence and prepare for inevitable death. In this way of thinking, true faith evolves in our attempt to make an impact beyond ourselves with the life-time we have available.

If this is your belief system, you will have a couple of challenges understanding the mind of those who believe otherwise.

First, you have to know your assumptions, and acknowledge that they may not be universal. You cannot assume that someone who holds to a system other that the Humanist view does it through ignorance. Many Humanists, by default, evangelize through education. Someone who has chosen a different belief system deliberately will not respond, no matter how humanely logical and fair minded your ideas might be. It is not their ignorance or unenlightenment that is the problem. Any education attempt without acknowledging these facts will be understood as hegemony . The very best hope for the Humanist is that their ideas will be tolerated but unsuccessful.

Second, you have to actually read their texts. The Koran, The Bible, The Talmud. Learn what they teach. The Humanist reads and extrapolates principles that work in accordance with a universal but as yet unarticualted Human Standard. The fundamentalist believers of Other faiths believe and try to daily put in practice all the teaching of their texts. They believe that Human life has no real meaning outside their faiths.
Here are some questions to research:

1. Does the Koran teach that all of life is under submission to God, that there is everything not in submission to him that will eventually be brought into Submission? YES
2. Does the fundamental Koran teach that the Spreading of Islam through war is acceptable?YES
3. Does the Koran itself teach that Jihad against non Muslims is an obligation?YES
4. Does the Koran teach that it is acceptable to use alms given by Muslims to support Jihad? YES
5. Can men, under the direction of God, force this on unbeliever?YES

If the Koran teaches these things, then The fundamental Muslim sees the Humanist as in need of redemption, of being brought into Submission to God.

How will the Humanist reason with him?

Next

1. Does the Bible teach that all of life is under submission to God, that everything not in submission to him that will not be brought into Submission? YES
2. Does the fundamental Bible teach that the Spreading of Christianity through war is acceptable? NO
3. Does the Bible teach that sharing Christ is an obligation? YES
4. Does the Bible teach that it is acceptable to use alms given by Muslims to support War? NO
5. Can men, under the direction of God, force this on unbeliever? NO
   

Check me out, verify my Facts. Then decide:

What Should a Humanist Do about Jihad?

The Fundamental Mind Explained to the Humanist

There have been recent attempts by the practitioners of the Humanist Religion (National Public Radio, The various Humanist organizations), to promote the idea that Religion of all or any kind are good, comforting and useful as long as they are constructive toward the ends of the Human development cause; that it is, they make humans and or human society better. Last night there was a television program on Public Television that described the Mormon faith from an anthropological point of view, answering the question "How does the Mormon faith make people better citizens of the world?"

This is not a criticism. It is a clear belief system, no less logical, in human terms, than the extrapolation of Islam, Christian, or Buddhist principles into a system of beliefs which helps us live better as humans. It is an attempt to give God or the Higher power, if there is one that matters, its due as we live out our existence and prepare for inevitable death. In this way of thinking, true faith evolves in our attempt to make an impact beyond ourselves with the life-time we have available. If this is your belief system, you will have a couple of challenges understanding the mind of those who believe otherwise.

First, you have to know your assumptions, and acknowledge that they may not be universal. You cannot assume that someone who holds to a system other that the Humanist view does it through ignorance. Many Humanists, by default, evangelize through education. Someone who has chosen a different belief system deliberately will not respond, no matter how humanely logical and fair minded your ideas might be. It is not their ignorance or unenlightenment that is the problem. Any education attempt without acknowledging these facts will be understood as hegemony .

The very best hope for the Humanist is that their ideas will be tolerated but unsuccessful.

Second, you have to actually read their texts. The Koran, The Bible. Learn what they teach. The Humanist reads and extrapolates principles that work in accordance with a universal but as yet unarticualted Human Standard. The fundamentalist believers of Other faiths believe and try to daily put in practice all the teaching of their texts. They believe that Human life has no real meaning outside their faiths. Here are some questions to research:

1. Does the Koran teach that all of life is under submission to God, that there is everything not in submission to him that will eventually be brought into Submission? YES
2. Does the fundamental Koran teach that the Spreading of Islam through war is acceptable?YES
3. Does the Koran itself teach that Jihad against non Muslims is an obligation?YES
4. Does the Koran teach that it is acceptable to use alms given by Muslims to support Jihad? YES
5. Can men, under the direction of God, force this on unbeliever?YES
   

If the Koran teaches these things, then The fundamental Muslim sees the Humanist as in need of redemption, of being brought into Submission to God.

How will the Humanist reason with him?

Next

1. Does the Bible teach that all of life is under submission to God, that everything not in submission to him that will not be brought into Submission? YES
2. Does the fundamental Bible teach that the Spreading of Christianity through war is acceptable? NO
3. Does the Bible teach that sharing Christ is an obligation? YES
4. Does the Bible teach that it is acceptable to use alms given by Christians to support War? NO
5. Can men, under the direction of God, force this on unbeliever? NO
   

Check me out, verify my Facts. Then decide:
What Should a Humanist Do about Jihad?

Account 98 used by Diverse Jihad groups

Account 98 systems, have been used to fund Jihad activities in the past. They system could also be used to fund activites to radicalize existing Muslim groups in "Pre-Jihad" Countries such as Kenya, Malawi, CAR, Democtratic Republic of Congo, Liberia and Southern Nigeria. CHAD is already under Jihad attack.

I believe that this is how groups became radicalized in Kenya. Radical Muslim groups were largely in the North and Coastal areas. Now there are radical groups very active in Nirobi itself.
A Christian oprhange was recently bulldozed to the ground by An Islamic group that bought the and the orphange was squatting on....where are funds comming from? I believe account 98.

History of Account 98

In 2001, Account 98 was cited in an official Saudigovernment report which extensively detailed

• Saudi financial support to Palestinians, including families of suicide bombers.
• Arab League is also involved in supporting these accounts, which allows the Saudigovernment to pay between 10,000 -20,000 Saudi Riyals to the families of martyrs
• At thetime of the report that 986 families had receivedfunds from the account.
• The funds from Account 98 were passed from Saudi Arabia's IslamicDevelopment Bank directly to the account of the Unified Treasury of the National PalestinianAuthority.

the rest

Let's note here the funding flow - if this system is still in operation, what Banks would be being used in Africa?

• in Somalia?
• in Sudan?
• in Northern Nigeria?
• In Kenya?
• In CAR?
• In Democratic Republic of Congo?

Why Somali Union of Islamic Courts Failed

"But instead of capitalizing on the people's genuine support and willingness to give in and give up everything, they had become power lusty, belligerent and fatwa-crazy. Instead of building bridges with the community, improving services, opening hospitals, winning the trust of international organizations and NGOs to help them with projects to generate employment, they burned all bridges. They alienated the youth by banning all types of entertainment, segregated women and deprived tens of thousands of families from their only livelihood by banning khat without bringing an alternative source of income. They even embittered traditional Islamic scholars with their characteristic Wahhabi style of self-righteousness and condescending attitude to mainstream Islam.

Read the rest from MEMRI

What does a Jihadist Want? Here it is

What follows is a quote from the english translation of a statement by one of the authors of the concept of today's Jihad. Professor Muhammad Qutb, Sayyid’s brother, was a teacher and mentor to the young Osama Bin Laden

Sayyid Qutb was hung in 1966 for trying to overthrow the Egyptian state; but his teachings are used to indoctrinate young Johaids. The reason I post him now is so:

• Christ followers can understand what a soldier of Jihad wants. What is his aim?
• Will he be satisfied if America gets out of Iraq? withdraws support from Israel? Turns over Africa to Isalm?
• What does the Jihadi intend?

Before a Muslim steps into the battlefield, he has already fought a great battle within himself against Satan- against his own desires and ambitions, his personal interests and inclinations, the interests of his own family and of his nation; against anything which is not from Islam; against every obstacle which comes into the way of worshipping Allah and the implementation of the Divine authority on earth, returning this authority to Allah and taking it away from the rebellious usurpers.
Those who say that Islamic Jihad was merely for the defense of the 'home land of Islam' diminish the greatness of the Islamic way of life and consider it less important than their 'homeland'. This is not the Islamic point of view, and their view is a creation of modern age and is completely alien to Islamic consciousness.

What is acceptable to Islamic consciousness is its belief, the way of life which this belief prescribes, and the society which lives according to this way of life. The soil of the homeland has, in itself, no value or weight. From the Islamic point of view, the only value which the soil can achieve is because on that soil Allah's authority is established and Allah's guidance is followed; and thus it becomes a fortress for the belief, a place for its way of life to be entitled the 'homeland of Islam', a centre for the movement for the total freedom of man.

Of course, in that case the defense of the 'homeland of Islam' is the defense of the Islamic beliefs, the Islamic way of life, and the Islamic community.

However, it's defense is not the ultimate objective of the Islamic movement of Jihad but it is a mean of establishing the Divine authority within it so that it becomes the headquarters for the movement of Islam, which is then to be carried throughout the earth to the whole of mankind, as the object of this religion is all humanity and its sphere of action is the whole earth.

As we have described earlier, there are many practical obstacles in the establishing Allah's rule on earth, such as the power of state, the social system and traditions and, in general, the whole human environment. Islam uses force only to remove these obstacles so that there may not remain any wall between Islam and individual human beings, and so that it may address their hearts and minds after releasing them from these material obstacles, and then leave them free to choose to accept or reject it.

We ought not to be deceived or embarrassed by the attacks of the orientalists on the origin of Jihad, nor lose self-confidence under the pressure of present conditions and the weight of the great powers of the world to such an extent that we try to find reasons for Islamic Jihad outside the nature of this religion, and try to show that it was a defensive measure under temporary conditions. The need for Jihad remains, and will continue to remain, whether these conditions exist or not!

So...

Intercessors arise, ask how God would have you pray and do in this time, in this day. The Battle is the Lord's and He will conquer all his enemies. Love the Jihadi and ask Christ for his freedom. Ask God to make His only Son to visit the Jihaidi in dreams and to speak to them the truth of who he is before he offers his immortal soul to the demon of Jihad.

Lord, show them mercy, send them dreams and visions of the Messiah, Christ so that they may live the life you intended for them. Show us how we may move into relationship with them so that Your love may shine.

Intercessor, your job is to be listening, available, usaeable to interceed for those under attack by this counterfeit movement.

-Shimron Issachar

Somoli Jihadis likely escaping to Yemen

Somoli smugglers have been smuggling people to Yemen for generations. Somolis receive automatic asylum from Yemen.Though the war has changed the routs trafficers use, they continue still.

It is possible that Jihadis escaping Somolia have worked their way back north and are using this route to try and escape.

Note the following from a IRIN, a UN News agency

.......Hersi added that the journey from Somalia to Yemen “was a journey of hardships that normally starts from Bossaso, where the migrants stay for two to three months, waiting for a boat. Then they take the boats, which are not safe enough for travelling.

They spend three to four days at sea with little or no food or a change of clothes. “In the boats, they are exposed to the burning sun. When they get near the Yemeni coast, the smugglers throw them in the sea for them to swim ashore.

Sometimes women pay strong male migrants to carry them and their children ashore.” Somalis reaching Yemen get automatic refugee status, because many are fleeing a violent conflict, though not all apply for it. There are currently more than 88,000 registered refugees in Yemen, of whom 84,000 are Somalis. More than 25,800 people have been recorded arriving in Yemen from Somalia this year.

Read more

Radical Islam's coming split: Christian Evangelical Impact

the radical arms of Both Shi'ite and Sunni Islam are already at war. This expanded in Iraq, and there are signs that the war is escalating. This has signifcant implications to Jihad world wide, and the work of Evangelical Christians.

Introduction

Islam has a number of traditions. The two largest groups are Sunni & Shia , in respective order. Radical Shi'ism Islam, led by the government of Iran and it's multinational proxy Hezbollah has been preparing itself for war with the west. However, there are signs that the Largest Islamic group, the Sunnis, are moving to Counter The growth in power of Radical Shi' ism.

1. Evidence is emerging that Saudi Arabia, controlled by Wahhabi Sunni Isalm, is deliberately moving to undermine the price of Iranian oil. This will keep them from being able to fund the expansion of their agenda.
2. A Kuwati Sunni Cleric is drafting a comprehensive strategy for a two fronted war for al Qaida, (a Sunni terrorist group) fighting both America and Shi'ite fronts simultaneously.
3. In Iraq the recent battle with the army of heaven, a Shiite splinter group illustrates that even within groups the forces are are not holding together.

-more to follow

-Shimron Issachar

Al Qaida franchises spread in Africa

Al Qaeda is providing a unifying front for jihadist group across the world, a now continues its growth in Africa.

Al Jazera posted the following on Friday 27/1/07:

"An Islamic group in Algeria has changed its name to al-Qaeda after getting the approval of Osama bin Laden, al-Qaeda leader, according to a statement posted on the internet.

The move on Friday by the Salafist Group for Preaching and Combat (GSPC) marked the latest attempt by Islamic groups exploiting the 'al-Qaeda' brand name and follows the establishment of regional branches in Saudi Arabia and Iraq."

read more from al jazera , a pro Jihadist media group.

In addition there is a new unifying strategy that was proposed by an Imam operating out of Kuwait. This strategy begins to tie all these Al Qaeda franchises (Sunni Islam) into a multi-national Islamic State (Caliphate) that carries out global strategies, collects taxes across country lines, and wages war against both secular Islamic states and non-Islamic states.

It also identifies the rising Shia jihadist movements (Iran - Hamas, etc) as enemies of the new Caliphate, and discusses a war on two fronts - American led West and Iran led Shia Jihad...

The meaning of this, in Africa, is that we need to eventually plan for:

• Tactics used and developed in Iraq to more quickly spread to Multiple locations in Africa (Improvises explosive devices IEDs), suicide bombers, etc. and any new tactics that arise.
• New strategies to be copied quickly. If an NGO or aid group is attacked in one place with success then we can expect that to happen in other locations more quickly.
• Exposure of Jihad funding sources. The Islamic NGOs and more covert methods for funding these activities will begin to be exposed as logistics lines are further stretched.
• Exposure of communication-link methods, such as airline travel patterns for couriers.
• Need to identify potential candidate organizations inside African states that might seek affiliation. Watching their activities as they try to establish Al Qaida contacts.

We will add more to this post later.....

-Shimron Issachar

Jihad in the Horn: US Continutes to Hunt al Quaida in Somalia

Wednesday, 25 January

A U.S. warplane attacked a village in southern Somalia on Monday in an attempt to destroy an al Qaeda cell accused of bombing two U.S. embassies and an Israeli-owned hotel in east Africa.

read more from Yahoo News

U.S. helicopter gunships attacked suspected Al Qaeda terrorists hiding in Somalia Tuesday, a Somali official said, a day after U.S. Special Operations forces launched at least two air attacks

read more
Also - Nigeria and Ehtiopia are planning to sent troops to a UN peac keeping mission in Somalia.



read more from Yahoo News
************************************************
Tuesday, 23 january, 2007 :Ethiopian Army leaving Somalia

NAIROBI, Kenya, Jan. 23 — The Ethiopian troops who helped install Somalia’s fledging government in Mogadishu, the capital, earlier this month began to pull out today, officials said.
read more from the Douglas Farah reported below, the transitional government in Somalia is on very shaky ground and needs immediate assistance from African nations to prevent a reversion to Islamist influence. The presidential palace in Mogadishu has been attacked, presumably by UIC remnants and supporters, and over a dozen explosions and gunfire have been heard in the capital. UPDATE from Reuters: "'Eight mortar shells were fired at Villa Somalia, but only five hit. The other three went into nearby houses,' a senior government source told Reuters, confirming that President Abdullahi Yusuf was inside at the time of the guerrilla-style attack." Reuters also quotes two "ex-fighters" claiming, "Many Islamists have started infiltrating Mogadishu again."
This sounds like a UIC attempt to quickly decapitate the transitional government of its leadership before it gets settled in Mogadishu.

the above quote is from the Counter Terrorism Blog

also, the World Tribune Reports that Sudan may be shopping for Arms in Iran.

"Iranian sources said Teheran has discussed weapons sales to and training for Khartoum's military and security forces. They said Sudan has sought to bolster its military to quell rebellions in Darfour as well as in the south. "There is strong interest in acquiring Iranian missiles, RPGs, UAVs and other equipment," an Iranian source said, referring to rocket-propelled grenades and unmanned aerial vehicles.""
read more

Stay Tuned

-Shimron

*****************************
Saturday, January 20th

Jihad in the Horn: Disease Outbreak Strikes Somali/Kenya Border

THe UN health organization is trying to move into Kismayo because of a Cholrea outbreak.

This yahoo news story tells of current conditions there and furhter west on the Somali border with Kenya.

-Shimron

"OCHA spoke of plans to boost survelliance in the region, the theatre of recent fighting between Ethiopia-backed government troops and Islamist forces, who were ousted from their stronghold in the southern town of Kismayo earlier this month......

......In addition, the agency said cholera has been reported among around 1,000 families that have settled along several Somali-Ethiopia border towns.

"Many of the refugees...[note from Shimron-likely Jihadist Malitia trying to melt into the population]... have settled amongthe local population and are receiving some assistance from them, as well as obtaining casual work in the villages," it said.

"There are no international agencies present in the area and it is not clear to what extent the local authorities are willing to assist," OCHA added in its daily situation update.

So far, Rift Valley fever has killed at least 95 people in Somalia's southern neighbour Kenya, where around 300 other people have been infected since mid-December.

Rift Valley fever patients usually experience fever, generalized weakness, back pain, dizziness, vomiting of blood and extreme weight loss at the onset of the illness.

read more from yahoo news
****************************************

Thusday, January 11, 2007.

The suspected al-Qaida militant who planned the 1998 U.S. embassy bombings in east Africa was killed in an American airstrike, a Somalian official said Wednesday."I have received a report from the American side chronicling the targets and list of damage," said Abdirizak Hassan, the Somali president's chief of staff. "One of the items they were claiming was that Fazul Abdullah Mohammed is dead."Mohammed, 32, allegedly planned the attacks on the U.S. embassies in Kenya and Tanzania that killed 225 people.

-Stay tune on this one -this is stil unconfirmed

-Shimron

..."One resident, asking not to be named for fear of retribution, said: "We are hearing bombardment in Ras Kamboni. It started around 6am and the strike is now continuing. We can't see planes, but we can hear heavy explosions."

Mosa Aden Hersi, who lives 25km from Ras Kamboni, said earlier fighting in the area had triggered a brush fire. At least 35 civilians were killed along with fighters during the battle."..

..."US and Somali officials said on Wednesday that a small American team has been providing military advice to Ethiopian and Somali forces on the ground. The officials provided little detail and spoke on condition of anonymity."...

-from al jazeera

One Jihadist blog is claiming the Somlia war was trumpted up, saying that "funding for the Islamic Courts came from the governments Qatar of Saudi Arabia, Egypt and Iran...."

read more

**************************

Tuesday, January 9, 2007.

The last of the Islamist fighters are hiding in the Boni forest, on the Kenya border, located about 140 kilometers, or 150 miles, away form Kisamyo.

also, from the New York Times;

WASHINGTON, Jan. 8 — A United States Air Force gunship carried out a strike Sunday night against suspected operatives of Al Qaeda in southern Somalia, a senior Pentagon official said Monday night.
The attack by an AC-130 gunship, which is operated by the Special Forces Command, is believed to have produced multiple casualties, the official said. It was not known Monday night whether the casualties included members of a Qaeda cell that American officials have long suspected was hiding in Somalia.
Special Forces units operating from an American base in Djibouti are conducting a hunt for Qaeda operatives who have been forced to flee Mogadishu, the Somali capital, since Islamic militants were driven from there by an Ethiopian military offensive last month.

read the rest from the New York Times here

*****************************

• Saturday, January 6, 2007.

In the Aftermath of the Rout of Jihadist forces in Somalia, Passports from dozens of countries have been found, reports abc News.

There were Sudanese, Pakistani and Yemeni passports, but several American, British and Australian passports were also recovered, according to a "Senior Somali government official."
read more here

On the same day, al Quaida's second in command calls for Jihad warriors from all over the world to join the Somali fight. read more here


This provides the evidence to support the following:

• The Union of Muslim courts have indeed been hiding al Quaida, training recruits from all over for an attack on Ethiopia. When Ethiopia fell, this would have created a combined front with Sudan.
• They had likely planned an attack on Kenya as well.

What may happen next in the near term

• Look for insurgents in Somalia
• Look for terror attacks in Southern Kenya planned in Muslim friendly Northern Kenya, with funds orginally intended to support their attack against Ethiopia.
• Watch certain Islamic Charities (NGOs) funded by Saudi, UAE, and "mission trips" from the Egyptian faithful as they move into Somalia to care for devistation to Islamic assets.
• Expect Sudan to step up incursions on the Ethiopian Western Frontier.
• Expect a full-court-press from the Al Quida public relations front (press, blogs, firendly governments)blaming Ethipia for invading Somalia in an "unprovoked attack."
• Keep an eye on Jihad training camps in Mali andBburkina Fso, and other under governed areas as they step up training of recruits.
• Monitor communication traffic from logistics and operations command control and communication in Zanzibar, Tansania.
• Watch Sierra Leon, Liberia for the rearming of the old blood diamond terror armies - al Quaida still has connections and access there.
• Watch for traning camps in CAR as well.

In the Medium term, look for the situation to develop further while more Jihad recruits are trained and armed in Africa.

-Shimron Issachar

******************************
Friday, January 5, 2007.

Kenya is patrolling theie North East border. It appears many are trying to cross.. One offical reported 600 have tried so far.

Some who have tried to cross carry suitcases of cash and appear to be foreign financiers of Jihad fleeing Somolia. They have not been alowed to cross.

Kenya is com,ing under fire from the UN for not accepting refugees, but apparently persuing Somali and Ethiopian forces have had some small battles near the Kenyan border.

I am concerned is that there is 400 miles or so of mostly forested wilderness, and I pray none will but it is likely that some Jihadists will slip into Kenya.

read more here from the NY Times and here from the Brittish Broad Casting Corporation (BBC)


-Shimron
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Monday, January 1, 2007.


Jihadist Troops ( UIC ) lose their final toe-hold in Kismayo, Somalia, and have been run out, according to the New York Times, and the government is now asseting significant control, ordering the turn in of all military weapons.

read the rest



The Assocaited Press reports "hundreds of Islamic fighters — many of them Arabs and South Asians — were seen fleeing the town."

One source reports Inteligence sources claiming that the Somali Jihadist forces seem to consist of:

• Christian and Muslim Eritreans,
• Syrians
• Libyans
• Yemenis.
• Saudi Arabia and Egypt are alegedly supplying some funding and logistical assistance.
• It is allgeged that some Egyptian intelligence officers are advising the Jihadists on how to contend with Ethiopian armed forces

The Associated Press reports that:

• The Islamic Courts Packed up and left their last location, the Port City of Kismayo
• Some Gunmen then began looting the warehouses where the Council of Islamic Courts had stored supplies, including weapons and ammunition.

Some Analysts report that Kenya has reinforced its northern border and U.S. forces are also said to be in the region, including the sea, to prevent foreign militants aligned with the Islamists from escaping.

-I pray that God shows mercy by not allowing these Jihadist warriors to continue to fight in any way.

-Shimron
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Sunday, Dec 31st. 2006

The Government troops have taken back Baida, then every city south through Mogadishu, the bullet-ridden captial of Somalia. Praise God for answered prayer. The government troops are pressing to the south, again backed by Ethiopian soldiers.

However, there are signs of an Iraq-like Insurgency. The New York Times continutes to provide useful, actinable inteligence to the Jihadists:


"Ethiopian officials have justified the intervention in Somalia by saying that the Islamists were extremists who had their eyes on part of Ethiopia, and said their troops would remain on Somali soil until that threat is wiped out. The Ethiopian and transitional government troops seem to be focused on Mogadishu, but many Somalis suspect that once that city is stabilized, the bulk of the Ethiopian forces will shift to Kismayo. On Friday, Kismayo residents said Ethiopian fighter jets were circling the skies above town."

read the rest from the New york Times


-Shimron
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Wednesday, Dec 27, 2006

According to a leaked UN Report to the Security Council the Iranian-Syrian-Hezbollah axis is making major inroads into Somalia and establishing an alliance with the Islamic Courts Union.

Read the rest of the Annalysis from the Counter Terrorism Blog
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Islamists have withdrawn to defend Mogadishu

Somali government troups are taking back city after city, preparing to bring Mogadishu under seige.

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Monday, Dec 25, 2006

First Round Defeat

"Our forces and that of the [transitional federal government] have broken the back of the international terrorist forces around Baidoa and they are in full retreat now," he added.


Fighters from the Council of Islamic Courts have retreated from the main frontline after a week of artillery and mortar fighting.


read the rest from Al Jazera


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Sunday, 24 December 2006.

Using ther best propaganda tool, al Jazedera, The Islamic Defense Chief sent a call out out for fighters from any country to join him in the war that it now underway.

"We're saying our country is open to Muslims worldwide. Let them fight in Somalia and wage jihad, and God willing, attack Addis Ababa," Yusuf Mohamed Siad, known as Inda'ade, said."

Read the rest of the story by al Jazeera


a side note - they are reposnding to his call

LONDON, Dec. 24 (UPI) -- Immigration officers at British airports will begin lifting the veils of passengers to verify identity, The Scotsman said Sunday.
The order came after it was revealed that suspected killer Mustaf Jama flew from London's Heathrow airport to Somalia using his sister's passport. He is believed to have worn a woman's niqab, which has just a slit for eyes, and was not required to lift the veil.

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-This is the new African Front that Al Quaida talked about in the last few months. There is already a Jihad Front in Sudan. Ethipia is being attacked by three of its four neighbors. Pray that Ethipia stands, or the Sudan front will join the Somalia front, and become one.

Also, we need to watch the Northern Nigeria front. While it will continue its political struggles in Nigeria, it will continue to train and send in fighters to destabilize its neigobors. This includes most notably, Togo and Benin. Its fighters pass Thre Burkina Faso to other West African countries.

-Shimron

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Saturday, 23 December. 2006
The battle for Baida continues. There are Ethipian and Etitrean troops involved. Mortars, tanks and artillary are reportedly in use.

Islamic Courts Union, supported by malitias and outside warriors who call themselves Mujahadin (Holy Warroirs) have taken the whole country except Baida, which may fall soon.
Ethiopia believes that Somalia is training warriors for an invasion accros the Horn of Africa, supported by Al Quaida and possibly Taliban-trained groups. It appears that Islamic recruits from all over at least the region have been training in Somalia for at least this year preparing for a Holy war that some expect to spread much wider than Somalia, perhaps even wider than the Horn of Africa.

How this war got started

This looks like the Second African front for the Jihad.

My long term projection is that the Somalia front will try to join the Sudanese front.

At the swame time, the political fronts will attempt to turn governments in the Jihad

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Islamic Malitia launched an offensive against the transitional government of Samalia in the city of Baida. Government forces repeled the attack.
Read here, here and here for more.

This is a training war, prerparing Islamic Troops for their assault West into Ethiopia. They have been recruiting and training soldiers for a Jihad againsgt Ethiopia for some time. I do not believe that these troops are yet ready for their planned attack. This was unexpected, provoked now because Ethiopian troops have entered Somalia to defend ther tranbsition government troops.

-Shimron Issachar
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"Your safety lies in the following equation: you will not dream of security until we live secure in Palestine and all Muslim lands," Zawahiri said.
"It does not lie in the erroneous equation with which Bush deceives you when he says, 'We strike the terrorists in their countries so that they will not strike in our country'," he added.

read more of Somali Jihdist Threats.


-What he does not tell you is that ALL lands are now or will be Muslim lands, according to his own religious beliefs....The point is, he is telling you that he will never stop trying to kill non-muslims until Islam and Sharia law rule in every land, or until he is killed first

-Shimron

Here is the first skirmish of the war

the BBC reports the following: "An Ethiopian military convoy in Somalia has been ambushed by fighters loyal to the powerful Union of Islamic Courts (UIC), witnesses said on Thursday.
It happened on Tuesday 35km south-west of Baidoa, seat of the weak interim government, who deny it took place. "




read more

The war is underway

-Shimron Islamic Militias Take Another Somali Town By Alisha Read more

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SOMALIA: Clash erupts in the northeast

NAIROBI, 6 Nov 2006 (IRIN) - Forces loyal to the Union of Islamic Courts (UIC) clashed with those who back the self-declared autonomous state of Puntland on Monday in northeastern Somalia, an official said. UIC vice-chairman Sheikh Abdulkadir Ali Umar said the fighting took place near the town of Galinsoor, in Mudug region, 780 km north of the capital, Mogadishu. "Puntland forces in eight technicals [battlewagons] attacked our positions this morning [Monday] on the outskirts of Galinsoor," he said.


Somolians Recruiting Muslim youths in Kenya to fight in Somolia.
The Islamic COurts are preparing for war

-Shimron Issachar


North Eastern Provincial Commissioner, Mr Kiritu Wamae, insists some local leaders were recruiting Kenyan youths for mercenary activities in Somalia.
Wamae refused to apologise over the claims he made on Kenyatta Day after religious leaders gave him a one-week ultimatum to retract the statement failure to which they would organise street protests to demand his sacking.

Wamae stood his ground yesterday and further revealed that the Government had already compiled a list of youths allegedly recruited by troops allied to the Union of Islamic courts in Somalia

read more


Posted to Global security.
Watch this one carefully

-Shimron

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SOMALIA: Islamic Courts warn of possible renewal of civil war
NAIROBI, 9 Oct 2006 (IRIN) - The Union of Islamic Courts (UIC), which controls much of southern and central Somalia, has warned of imminent war between it and SomaliaÂ’s Transitional Federal Government (TFG), which reportedly took a town close to its headquarters in Baidoa on Monday, a senior UIC official told IRIN. click here for more

South Sudan preparing for seccesion

The National Congress Party (NCP) in Khartoum is growing increasingly anxious about national elections in 2009 and referenda to be held in 2011. The referenda will first decide whether the South secedes from the country and second whether the oil-laden Abyei region joins North or South.
Read the rest

The comprehensive peace agreement went into effect in 2005, and most of the key elements have not been implemented.
We need to watch closely to see what actions the military government in Kartoum may do to try and undermine the agreement.
Unless resolution on division of oil fields etc. is accomplished in the bext two years, it is likely the war will erupt again in 2009.

-Shimron

Sudan's assault on its neighbors continues

CHAD- Today 1/15/07

Sudanes Military planes flew into Northern Chad to protect Janjueed militia as they resuppklied and rearmed.

read more m1/10/07

CAR and CHAD- the UN wants to move "a peace keeping mission of 2500 soldiers. They do not yet know if they would be connected to the hoped for mission in Darfu, Sudan

read more

CAR 1/8/07

North-western CAR has been beset by rebel groups who seek to overthrow the regime of President François Bozizé and the situation has been compounded by a spill-over of the civil war from Sudan's Darfur region.

read more

Sudan has supported and encouraged the LRA and alowed them bases in Southern Sudan During this time the LRA led a bloody campaign in Northern Uganda. Now that the LRA is negotiating peace, it has been told it must leave Southern Sudan.

Read more

Phase III of Jihad Assault: Requipping Jihadis

Saturday, 6 January, 2007.

December 2006 The Somali War occured when Ethiopia, which had been watching the Jihadists build an army in Southern Somalia, invaded Somalia and backed the last stand of the UN Sanctioned Somali Transitional Government.

Together they made quick work of the Jihadists and are now cleaning out remote strongholds. in SOuthern Somali near the Kenyan border. Time will tell if an insurgincy will develop there.

This was the next phase of Radical Islam's attempt to retake North Africa by force. There is a consistant plan that has been underway for some time.

The Jihad in Africa had a major set back when they lost in Somalia. More importantly, they lost their ability to deny Jihad was underway....

While they rearm and resupply in the Horh of Africa, there are other areas maturing, getting ready to on they attack.

They have been arming and equipping in other areas for sometime...as you can see in the following reports:

"Since the early 1990s, there has been a rise in activity by Islamist missionaries and NGOs in all four countries of the Sahel. Chad has been the site of considerable stirrings, with locals reporting the presence of large numbers of foreign travelers carrying false identity papers and infiltration by Islamist networks linked to the Sudan. It is the northern region of Mali, however, that has witnessed the most significant influx of foreign Jihadists, with the GSPC penetrating from Algeria and other armed elements moving in from South Asia and the Middle East. "

read more here from bitter Lemons International

We will watch to anticipate their next move

-Shimron

The Picture of a Terrorist Training Camp

the Public Broadcasting Company conducted an internview with Saba Khodada, who trained at an Iraqi terrorist Training Camp in 2001. In the interview he discussuess the presence of Iraqi and non-Iraqi terrorists in training. click here fore more . Though this is 5 years old, It serves to post it now when some in the US are trying to claim that The Iraqi Al-Quida connection was a myth.

Terror Figures in West Africa

Failed States: terror training Camps

How many states are at serious risk of state failure? The World Bank has identified about 30 “low-income countries under stress,” whereas Britain’s Department for International Development has named 46 “fragile” states of concern. A report commissioned by the CIA has put the number of failing states at about 20.
Read the complete article

These states have vast parts of their countires which the cannot or will not control. It is in these places that the Jihdists train and hide.

Three elements can be said to characterize the phenomenon of the “failed State” from the political and legal point of view.

Firstly, there is the geographical and territorial aspect, namely the fact that “failed States” are essentially associated with internal and endogenous problems, even though these may incidentally have cross-border impacts. The situation confronting us then is one of an implosion rather than an explosion of the structures of power and authority, the disintegration and destructuring of States rather than their dismemberment.
Secondly, there is the political aspect, namely the internal collapse of law and order. The emphasis here is on the total or near total breakdown of structures guaranteeing law and order [2] rather than the kind of fragmentation of State authority seen in civil wars, where clearly identified military or paramilitary rebels fight either to strengthen their own position within the State or to break away from it. [3]
Thirdly, there is the functional aspect, namely the absence of bodies capable, on the one hand, of representing the State at the international level and, on the other, of being influenced by the outside world. Either no institution exists which has the authority to negotiate, represent and enforce or, if one does, it is wholly unreliable, typically acting as “statesman by day and bandit by night”.
See the remaining article by Daniel Thürer.


These are the places where terrorist training camps are happening today:

• The Pashtoon regions in both Pakistan and Afghanistan.
• South Lebanon: ( Hezbollah )
• Remote Parts of Mali
• Southern Somalia
• Southern Sudan
• Eritria info

Why is this relevant to evangelical Christian Intercessors? Find out where these states are, and if you are supporting someone in Prayer who is going to or near one, Knowiung what is going on there from research will help diect you prayer.