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| Terror Networks | |
| Zarqawi was the pivot man for Istanbul | |
| 2003-11-25 | |
| Looks like Fred called this one right ... The recent bomb blasts in Istanbul are neither isolated incidents nor simply local actions. All indications point towards global Islamic radicals determined to create a Muslim backlash against the West through more suicide attacks in both Turkey and Europe. Initial European intelligence reaction suggests that the Istanbul suicide blasts were the work of the Tauheed group led by a Jordanian national of Palestinian origin, Abu Mosub al-Zarqawi, who, it is speculated, planned, helped finance and executed the attacks in conjunction with Turkish counterparts. Tauheed = Tawhid, which is Zarqawi’s own mob the same way that JI was Hambali’s. Al-Qaeda is basically a terror franchise and al-Tawhid is Zarqawi’s piece of the pie. Al-Zarqawi, known in senior al-Qaeda circles, has recently been the focus of revived United States attempts to link al-Qaeda with Saddam Hussein. Last year, he had a leg amputated in Baghdad after being wounded in Afghanistan. During al-Zarqawi’s two-month stay in Baghdad, the US has claimed, many al-Qaeda affiliates established cells in the city. Al-Zarqawi subsequently disappeared.
I thought Zarqawi was now worth $25,000,000, a sign of just how far he’s moved up in the food chain over the last year. Incidentally, Saif al-Adel is said to have ordered the latest bombings in Riyadh so we have al-Qaeda active on at least three fronts right now: Iraq, Turkey, and Saudi Arabia. Any word out of Afghanistan since the Taliban retook those districts in Zabul? Abu Mosub al-Zarqawi is also thought to have provided weapons and money in connection with the murder of US diplomat Laurence Foley in Jordan last October. He is known to have been very active since the fall of the Taliban government in Afghanistan two years ago, and has variously been tracked in Iran’s Kurdish region, northern and central Iraq, Jordan, Lebanon and Palestine. He is said to have actively developed networks with smaller groups in these regions, and he coordinated his activities, for example, with Hezbollah in Lebanon and Ansar al-Islam, a militant Iraqi Kurdish group in northern Iraq. This month’s Istanbul attacks indicate that he also spent some time in the country making contacts with local radical groups there. The only Turkish al-Qaeda affiliate that I’m familiar with is the Bayat al-Imam crew, but if Zarqawi’s subcontracted the Raiders or the Turkish Hezbollah it would seem to imply that he’s got himself yet another prime source of cannon fodder to make use of. Al-Zarqawi appears to favor US and Jewish targets, as well as their allies. Initially, his main playing field was Palestine, and later on Jordan, where he established a network to bring down the monarchy which, he believes, is hand-in-glove with "Zionist and US interests". They don’t seem to be doing much lately, though that border shooting was also reportedly a Zarqawi operation. This guy has more connections than SPECTRE these days ... Al-Zarqawi spent some time in Afghanistan, where he operated independent training camps for Jordanians. His Tauheed group is a part of bin Laden’s International Islamic Front, an umbrella body that groups organizations which accept bin Laden as a mentor and his pan-Islamic ideology. Interesting, that’s the first solid info on al-Tawhid being part of bin Laden’s International Front. Al-Zarqawi’s known modus operadi, gleaned from the few members of his network who have been captured by European intelligence, does not involve guerilla warfare, thus it is unlikely, as the US now claims, that he has any serious involvement in Iraq. Rather, his networks in different countries aim to take on the interests of the US and its allies, or specifically, in the language of the jihadis, "take on the Jewish and US unholy nexus". I’d still say the Jordanian embassy bombing probably fits his MO, ditto with a lot of the more coordinated suicide bombings like the UN and the Red Cross. Assuming al-Qaeda’s even active in the day-to-day guerrilla war (I’m more inclined to attribute that to the Baathists), my guess would be that al-Hijazi or Abu Iyad is the pivot man there. | |
| Posted by:Dan Darling |
| #3 Zarqawi and Zawahiri are indeed two different people. Zarqawi's up on the State Department's Rewards for Justice page. I think they changed him from $25m back to $5m. |
| Posted by: Fred 2003-11-25 9:00:49 PM |
| #2 Oops, different guy. Al-Zawahiri is Binny's doctor and advisor. Or are they the same guy? It's that damm spelling. Here's the list: Usama Bin Laden The Rewards For Justice Program, United States Department of State, is offering a reward of up to $25 million for information leading directly to the apprehension or conviction of Usama Bin Laden. An additional $2 million is being offered through a program developed and funded by the Airline Pilots Association and the Air Transport Association. Abdelkarim Hussein Mohamed Al-Nasser Indicted in the Eastern District of Virginia for the June 25, 1996, bombing of the Khobar Towers military housing complex in Dhahran, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. $25 million Abdullah Ahmed Abdullah Indicted for his alleged involvement in the August 7, 1998, bombings of the United States Embassies in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania, and Nairobi, Kenya. $25 million Muhsin Musa Matwalli Atwah Wanted in connection with the August 7, 1998, bombings of the United States Embassies in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania, and Nairobi, Kenya. $25 million Ali Atwa Indicted for his role and participation in the June 14, 1985, hijacking of a commercial airliner which resulted in the assault on various passengers and crew members, and the murder of one U.S. citizen. $25 million Anas Al-Liby Wanted in connection with the August 7, 1998, bombings of the United States Embassies in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania, and Nairobi, Kenya. $25 million Ahmed Ghailani Indicted in the Southern District of New York, on December 16, 1998, for his alleged involvement in the August 7, 1998, bombings of the United States Embassies in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania, and Nairobi, Kenya. $25 million Hasan Izz-Al-Din Indicted for his role in planning and participation in the June 14, 1985, hijacking of a commercial airliner which resulted in the assault on various passengers and crew members, and the murder of one U.S. citizen. $25 million Ahmed Mohammed Hamed Ali Wanted in connection with the August 7, 1998, bombings of the United States Embassies in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania, and Nairobi, Kenya. $25m. Fazul Abdullah Mohammed Indicted on September 17, 1998, in the Southern District of New York, for his alleged involvement in the bombings of the United States Embassies in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania, and Nairobi, Kenya, on August 7, 1998. $25m. Imad Fayez Mugniyah Indicted for his role in planning and participation in the June 14, 1985, hijacking of a commercial airliner which resulted in the assault on various passengers and crew members, and the murder of one U.S. citizen. $25m. Mustafa Mohamed Fadhil Indicted in the Southern District of New York, on December 16, 1998, for his alleged involvement in the August 7, 1998, bombings of the U.S. Embassies in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania, and Nairobi, Kenya, and for conspiring to kill U.S. nationals. $25m. Sheikh Ahmed Salim Swedan Indicted on December 16, 1998, in the Southern District of New York, for his alleged involvement in the August 7, 1998, bombings of the United States Embassies in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania, and Nairobi, Kenya, and for conspiring to kill U.S. nationals. $25m. Abdul Rahman Yasin Wanted for his alleged participation in the terrorist bombing of the World Trade Center, New York City, on February 26, 1993, which resulted in six deaths, the wounding of numerous individuals, and the significant destruction of property and commerce. $25m. Fahid Msalam Indicted on December 16, 1998, in the Southern District of New York, for his alleged involvement in the August 7, 1998, bombings of the United States Embassies in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania, and Nairobi, Kenya, and for conspiring to kill U.S. nationals. $25m. Ahmad Ibrahim Al-Mughassil Indicted in the Eastern District of Virginia for the June 25, 1996, bombing of the Khobar Towers military housing complex in Dhahran, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. $25m. Muhammad Atef Indicted for his alleged involvement with the August 7, 1998, bombings of the United States Embassies in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania, and Nairobi, Kenya. $25m. Ali Saed Bin Ali El-Hoorie Indicted in the Eastern District of Virginia for the June 25, 1996, bombing of the Khobar Towers military housing complex in Dhahran, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. $25m. Saif Al-Adel Wanted in connection with the August 7, 1998, bombings of the United States Embassies in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania, and Nairobi, Kenya. $25m. Ibrahim Salih Mohammed Al-Yacoub Indicted in the Eastern District of Virginia for the June 25, 1996, bombing of the Khobar Towers military housing complex in Dhahran, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. $25m. That's everyone on the FBI's Most Wanted Terrorist list. |
| Posted by: Steve 2003-11-25 3:38:27 PM |
| #1 Here is the FBI wanted poster. The Rewards For Justice Program, United States Department of State, is offering a reward of up to $25 million for information leading directly to the apprehension or conviction of Ayman Al-Zawahiri. |
| Posted by: Steve 2003-11-25 2:48:32 PM |