Terror Trends BulletinAl Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP), the Al Qaeda affiliate in Yemen may be close to launching a terrorist attack, according to US intelligence agencies…
The threat from AQAP comes as counterterrorism operations in Yemen have evidently been interrupted by mass demonstrations against the 32-year rule of President Ali Abdullah Saleh.
US officials have articulated worries that the unrest sweeping the Arab world could hinder counterterrorism efforts.
More and more, we are seeing evidence that the rebel forces that NATO has intervened on behalf of are Islamist Jihadis, some with links to Al Qaeda with some of those being veterans of the war against US forces in Iraq and Afghanistan…We have collected a series of articles on this subject matter for our readers’ review:
Decoding Libya
by Andrew McCarthy
It has come to light in just the last few days that commanders of the “rebels” (you know, those secular freedom fighters who are supposedly better for us than Qaddafi) include one Abdul-Hakim al-Hasadi. And, I’ll be darned, it turns out that Hasadi is a jihadist who fought the United States in Afghanistan, and was detained for years until our forces turned him over to Libya.
http://www.nationalreview.com/articles/263138/decoding-libya-andrew-c-mccarthy?page=1
Egyptian Joins Jihad on Libyan Front
AFP
http://www.asiaone.com/News/AsiaOne%2BNews/World/Story/A1Story20110326-270200.html
Libyan Rebel Commander Admits His Fighters Have Al Qaeda Links
By Praveen Swami
Abdel-Hakim al-Hasidi, the Libyan rebel leader, has said jihadists who fought against allied troops in Iraq are on the front lines of the battle against Muammar Gaddafi’s regime.
Jihadis who fought U.S. in Iraq, Afghanistan now enjoy American support in Libya
By Byron York
Evidence is emerging that United States forces are waging war in Libya on behalf of rebels whose ranks include jihadis who fought against the U.S. in Afghanistan and Iraq.
Why is Obama Helping Al-Qaeda Terrorists Overthrow Gaddafi?
By Jim Hoft
A 2007 West Point study showed that the Benghazi-Darnah-Tobruk region in Libya was a world leader in Al Qaeda suicide bomber recruitment.
The leader of the Libyan rebel forces fought against the US in Afghanistan until he was captured in 2002. He also admitted that his fighters have Al-Qaeda links.
US Troops Join Al Qaeda, Rebels in Libya
By Pamela Geller
http://atlasshrugs2000.typepad.com/atlas_shrugs/2011/03/us-troops-join-al-qaeda-rebels-in-libya.html
Suspected Abu Sayyaf Jihadist terrorists kidnapped three fishermen in the southern Philippines and called their employer to demand ransom.
Boat captain Renato Panisales and two crewmen were fishing off southern Sulu province Saturday when Abu Sayyaf gunmen approached on a motorboat and abducted them at gunpoint. The terrorists called the captives’ fishing company in nearby Zamboanga city on Sunday to demand ransom.
In a separate kidnapping, three Abu Sayyaf gunmen seized restaurant caretaker Rolando dela Cruz on Monday in Lamitan town on Basilan island near Sulu. They fled aboard a jeep, which the terrorists later burned.
Army troops and police pursued the kidnappers, who were pressured into abandoning Cruz near a remote village in Basilan’s Tuburan town late Monday. Government forces handed the victim back to Lamitan town officials.
Cruz’s kidnappers were believed to be led by Abu Sayyaf commander Nurhassan Jamiri, who has been blamed for kidnappings, bombings and beheadings in predominantly Muslim Basilan.
Al-Qaida-linked Abu Sayyaf, notorious for bombings, kidnappings for ransom and beheadings, is blacklisted by Washington as a terrorist organization. U.S.-backed offensives have taken out several of its top leaders and hindered its ability to launch bombings and other attacks.
A recent government threat assessment report said the 410 remaining Abu Sayyaf fighters, who remain without a central leader, have been hounded by funding problems, forcing them to kidnap even poor victims to get ransom.
The new kidnappings and a recent deadly bombing in Sulu indicate the danger posed by the terrorists despite their many battle setbacks and underscore the difficulty of fighting terrorism.
Intelligence reports show the kidnappers and the fishermen were moving about in Sulu’s coastal town of Patikul, where the Abu Sayyaf has mountain strongholds.
Patikul officials were trying to establish contact with the kidnappers to negotiate because a rescue attempt might danger the hostages.
The militants killed at least six hostages whose families failed to pay ransom immediately last year, according to the government report.
At their strongest, the Abu Sayyaf seized 21 people, mostly European tourists, from the Malaysian resort of Sipadan in 2000, and abducted three Americans and 17 Filipinos from the Philippines’ Dos Palmas resort the following year.
The Sipadan hostages were freed, reportedly for huge ransoms. One of the three American hostages from Dos Palmas was beheaded, while a second was killed during an army rescue attempt. The third American was wounded but freed in the army rescue operation.
The Pakistani terrorist group linked to Al-Qaeda called Lashkar-e-Taiba is expanding its operations in Europe and the U.S., according to information in aNew York Times article pointed out by the Jihad Watch blog.
Lashkar-e-Taiba is most known for carrying out 10 simultaneous attacks in Mumbai, India on November 26, 2008 that killed 164 people. The attackers arrived using speedboats and carried out various shootings and bombings on “soft” targets including hotels, a restaurant and a Jewish community center.
According to the report, Lashkar-e-Taiba is no longer just targeting India but is fighting U.S. soldiers in Afghanistan and wants to carry out attacks in Europe and the United States. It is also increasing its fundraising in Germany and the United Kingdom. The group has previously pledged to “plant a flag” in Tel Aviv and Washington, D.C.
Read more at the Christian Action Network:
Terror Trends Bulletin 