January 24, 2012

al-Arabia:

Algerian security foiled a terrorist al-Qaeda plot to carry out suicidal attacks on U.S. and European ships in the Mediterranean from the eastern costs of Algeria.

The aborted plan, which was to be implemented by al-Qaeda Organization in the Islamic Maghreb, aimed at destabilizing Algerian national economy as well as attracting expansive media coverage, sources told the Algerian newspaper Echorouk.

According to the sources, a cell working under the leadership of the spokesman of al-Qaeda’s wing in the Maghreb Qassemi Salah al-Din, also known as Mohamed Abu Salah, is behind he plot.

The cell, sources add, purchased a boat with a powerful engine and was planning to load it with explosives. A suicidal operative was to sail with the boat towards the targeted foreign ships. The terrorist who was to carry out the operation was granted the right to choose the target.

The cell involved in the plot was made up of three members — H. Rabeh, T. Belal, and M. Tarek — who all hail from the city of Annaba in northeastern Algeria.

Investigations revealed that the three cell members used to frequent internet cafes and browse Jihadist websites and used fake names. After arousing suspicion with their strange behavior, electronic crime authorities started tracking them down.

According to the investigations, members of the now disbanded cell were originally recruited by now detained terrorist A. Soufian, also known as Abu Muslim al-Jazaeiri and who also hails from Annaba.

Soufian was in touch with terrorist Daghdagh Ahmed, also known as Abdel Illah, the head of the political and foreign relations committee in al-Qaeda.

Based on the detainees’ confessions, Soufian is trusted in all Jihadist forums for the inciting articles he posts on websites popular among Jihadists especial Menbar al-Tawhid and al-Jihad, run by Abu Mohamed al-Maqdissi, one of the most prominent jihadists known for inciting terrorist activists.

January 12, 2012

I don't believe we should desecrate the bodies of any one, not even Taliban scumbags. The guy responsible should have his weekend pass revoked, or maybe busted down a stripe. But let's put this into perspective, while the world is outraged today over the alleged incident how much front page coverage is this going to get?

Al Qaeda's North African wing said it will kill its European hostages if France and its allies attack its bases in northern Mali, according to a statement carried by Mauritania's ANI news agency on Thursday.

December 12, 2011

It's almost as if you reward a behavior with money that that behavior will not only continue but get worse:

Mauritania on Sunday urged that no ransom be paid for European hostages held in the Sahel region by Al-Qaeda's North African wing, at a meeting of European and African defence ministers.

Twelve Europeans, six of them French, are now being held hostage in the arid and poor region south of the Sahara by Al-Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb (AQIM) and by a breakaway faction of the militant group.

"I ask everyone to work to dry up the sources of terrorism and to push the kidnappers into a corner by not paying ransom," said Mauritania's defence minister, Ahmedou Ould Ideye, at the opening of the meeting.

November 09, 2011

This is unsurprising, yet still bad news:

"We have been one of the main beneficiaries of the revolutions in the Arab world," said [AQIM leader] Belmokhtar, an Algerian national.

"As for our acquisition of Libyan armament, that is an absolutely natural thing," he said, without elaborating on the nature of the weapons purportedly acquired.

November 01, 2011

Img. credit: Aaron Zelin

I haven't spoken much about the uprising in Libya because, frankly, any one who wanted to kill Gadhafi -- friend or foe -- is someone I'm not going to be too critical of before the deed is done. Moreover, the idea that Islamists wouldn't be part of any coalition opposed to Gadhafi is unimaginable. But being part of a coalition speaks little about an overall movement.

So, it's not that I have been skeptical of reports that al Qaeda sympathizers were in the midst of those opposed to the Libyan regime -- clearly, they are -- it's just that I didn't think that this was necessarily an indication that the whole movement was tainted.

But this report over at al-Wasat is pretty disturbing:

the admin of the official Facebook page of the Libyan uprising (17 February Intifada) posted AQIM’s most recent video message from Shaykh al-Hasan Rashid al-Bulaydi. This is no doubt a worrying sign.

October 06, 2011

A million dollars worth of Libyan anti-tank missiles were seized.

Algiers, 6 Oct. (AKI) - Algeria says it killed eight Al-Qaeda terrorists and wounded another three in a military operation along the border with Niger, according to a local news report.

Algerian authorities said the operation dismantled a major network that smuggled arms from Libya. Four people were arrested, including some Libyan citizens.

h/t switch_d

September 27, 2011

CNN

Madrid, Spain (CNN) -- Civil Guards arrested five Algerian men early Tuesday in northern Spain on suspicion of providing logistical and financial support for Islamic terrorist activities, Spain's interior ministry said.

The suspects, aged 36 to 49, allegedly supported "terrorist groups that operate in the Algerian area of the Maghreb, specifically for al Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb,"[AQIM flag above R..ed] a ministry statement said.

They also had suspected links to Islamic militants in Italy, France and Switzerland

Spanish authorities have said repeatedly in the past few years that the group known as al Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb is of key concern, because of its operational base in northern Africa, just across the Mediterranean Sea from Spain and southern Europe.

Last week, Civil Guards arrested a *Cuban man on Spain's Mallorca Island in the Mediterranean for allegedly recruiting and indoctrinating others for Islamic terrorist activities.

*More on Cuban man arrested, and released but must check in, here on forum

UPDATE: Those arrested are, googlish translate: Mohamed Talbi, Hakim Anniche, Mounir Aoudache, Abdelghaffour Benchohra Bensaoula and Ahmed

September 23, 2011

Three arrested including an "active blogger" on jihadist websites

RABAT (Reuters) - Moroccan security has arrested three people, including an active blogger on jihadist websites, who had planned to receive training at an al Qaeda camp abroad in order to carry out attacks in Morocco, the Interior Ministry said on Friday.

The suspects, who were to be trained in camps of al Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb (AQIM), had "planned to assassinate members of the security services in order to seize their weapons and use them in planned sabotage acts", the state news agency MAP said, citing a statement from the Interior Ministry.

MAP said the cell was led by "one of the most active individuals on jihadist websites with links to al Qaeda and who managed to forge close relations with leaders of terrorist organisations in Yemen, Afghanistan, Somalia, Libya, Iraq and elsewhere"

Should prove interesting to find out who this active jihadist blogger is..

h/t Berger

September 16, 2011

I'm becoming more and more bullish about our chances of deteriorating AQ Central's operational capacity.

But AQIM? Not so much.

May 01, 2011

Something important appears about to be breaking.

Stand by...

Update: Osama Bin-Laden is Dead!!!!!

President Obama will give a statement in a few minutes.

Hooray!

Update II: Sources say we are in possession of his body and his identity is confirmed.

Live CNN Feed here.

Update by Vinnie: Reports have him being killed in a mansion outside Islamabad. Waiting to confirm.

Multiple news outlets reporting that this was a ground operation and that Bin Laden was taken out by a sniper.

UPDATE by SH: In Obama's speech, he stated U.S. special forces[UPDATE: Navy Seals...F*ck Yeah!] took out OBL, after firefight. Hence, the reason we have his body.

A tribute to our finest and bravest who carried out this operation, God Bless You!!

Updated again by Howie: Great news. He was shot in the head by a Navy Seal.

Update (AP): Maybe it wasn’t a drone strike after all:

CBS: Osama was “shot in the head.”

UPDATE: Reports state one of OBL's sons was also killed.............AND a female human shield. How very cowardly of alQaeda..use a woman...pussies!

UPDATE again by SH: Reports state OBL has been buried at sea...

Sux al-Qaeda members and supporters can't go to a designated burial ground for OBL......NOT Swim in the fecking sea and find him somewhere if you want to mourn...just sayin..

Watch out for sharks and stuff...

Update by Matt Damon: THE HUNT ENDED TODAY!

Update by Jane: First vid of compound here, computers recovered.

Update: Video of the outside.

Yay!

Dag nabbit the Dead Osama image wasn't "real". Shucks.....

April 29, 2011

More hypocrisy from Facebook[googlish translate]:

Yasir Elhadi's FB wall

The 3 who "liked" his comment:
Abu Abdullah, the common[googlish translate]
Amatu'lah SD
Yassine Uzumaki

Related:
Sandcrawler PSA: Facebook is Facist!
Al Qaeda (AQIM) Releases Another Video of French Hostages Kidnapped Last Year (Update: Video added)

Facebook and Youtube sux jihadi testes, it's true!

April 28, 2011

Via AJ

Al-Qaeda's North African arm has released a video showing four French nuclear workers kidnapped last year in north Africa urging France to pull its troops out of Afghanistan.

A copy of the video, distributed on Tuesday by SITE, a US-based terrorism watchdog, shows a series of photographs of Pierre Legrand, Daniel Larribe, Thierry Dol and Marc Furrer with armed men standing behind them.

Over the photos is recorded an audio track that appears to be the men reading a prepared statement, one by one.

"We urge the president of the French republic, Nicolas Sarkozy, to respond positively to al-Qaeda's demand he withdraw French troops from Afghanistan, as the French have really no interest in the war in Afghanistan," they say.

According to the voices, the recordings were made on April 11, 12 and 13.

Reacting to the video, Laurent Wauquiez, France's minister for European affairs, told the French news network BFM-TV that Paris would "not allow its foreign policy to be dictated by kidnappers".

Prayers they will be released unharmed and returned to their families..sigh

UPDATE: Video:

Previous:

AQIM to hostages, say cheese

Just really like the gif's

Honest!

Developing

ABC

A massive explosion ripped through a cafe popular among foreign tourists in the Moroccan city of Marrakech on Thursday, killing 14 people and wounding 20 in what the government called a suspected criminal act.

If confirmed as terrorism, the blast in the iconic Djemma el-Fna square would be Morocco's deadliest bombing in eight years.

The explosion just before noon tore the facade off the two-story terracotta-colored Argana cafe, leaving awnings dangling. Panicked passersby dragged away bodies and tried to put out flames with fire extinguishers, witnesses told The Associated Press.

Notice the al-Qaeda flag.

March 26, 2011

I've had a bad feeling about the whole "no fly zone" business since the beginning, and this doesn't make me feel any better about it.

"This is very serious. AQIM is becoming a genuine army, the best equipped in the region," he said.

The foreign policy of the Obama administration is nothing short of

March 09, 2011

Come on Sammy, what is wrong with you and Anwar al-Awaki?

Wired: Tomorrow, Rep. Peter King convenes his hearing on the radicalization of the American Muslim community. One group is hoping all the scare talk about the — complete with some serious and “expert” scare talk about all those jihadis among us. But there are some other experts out there with a very different perspective on the subject: actual domestic radicals. Turns out, American jihadis are really disappointed in American Muslims for their utter disinterest in al-Qaeda. And no wonder: more than 99.9 percent of U.S. Muslims want nothing to do with the radicals, new statistics show.

Unfortunately, no homegrown terrorists seem willing or able to testify, either because they’re subpoena-shy, in federal prison or playing a high stakes game of hide-and-seek with American drones in Yemen. They’re a chatty bunch, though, and have left a record of their thoughts on Muslims and their representatives here in the United States.

Take Samir Khan, for instance. Before fleeing to Yemen to edit the jihadist magazine Inspire, he freelanced media support for al-Qaeda from his home in North Carolina via the internet. Khan was quick to bemoan American Muslims’ disinterest in his concept of jihad, playing it off as the product of distraction rather than disagreement.

“It is the culture of hating death and loving wealth,” Khan wrote of American Muslim culture in a post to his “Ignored Puzzle Pieces of Knowledge” blog, using a play on Osama Bin Laden’s classic catch phrase. “They don’t want to fling themselves into the spears of the enemies when they could be playing their PlayStation 3 or enjoying their favorite television show or sport whilst eating their favorite dinner meal.”

It was a sentiment he later echoed in the pages of Jihad Recollections, an English-language screed Khan published with fellow extremists. It became the template for Inspire. “Their Islam is limited to the more ‘acceptable’ parts of the Qur’an and Sunnah, whilst they shun Islam’s more controversial or antagonistic teachings,” Khan wrote of those promoting “moderate” Islam. “We find many of our fellow Muslims in America that are absolutely blinded by the inspiring play of American politics, the comfortable practice of ‘moderate’ Islam, and the denunciation of the Islamists.”

Answer: Not one!

Samir Khan AKA A Martyr Allah Willing has spent a lot of time glorifying the death of this or that poor Muslim sucker whom they sent to murder their fellow Muslim brothers. Its about time he put his money where his mouth is, Allah willing of course.

It seems that Allah is willing, Samir Khan not so much.

And after that aks yourself why Ghadafi released all those al-Qaeda just when he got really worried you might become free?

January 08, 2011

Via SMH

Heavily armed members of Niger's security forces were combing the centre of the capital Saturday after gunmen abducted two Frenchmen from a restaurant in front of shocked diners and staff.

Two armed men burst into the Toulousain restaurant in the city centre when it was crowded with diners late Friday and forced the two men to follow them, staff and diners told AFP.

They were taken to a four-by-four vehicle with Benin plates in which other armed men were waiting and then driven off at speed. The incident happened between 10:30 pm and 11:30 pm (2130 and 2230 GMT).
Advertisement: Story continues below

A security source in Niger confirmed the abduction, while a police source said that one of the two abducted men had arrived that same day to attend a wedding.

A French foreign ministry spokesman in Paris told AFP late Friday: "We are aware of this information, we are fully mobilised both in Paris and in Niamey to check it."[...]

Witnesses said both abductors wore turbans and one customer at the restaurant said the two had fair skin and had spoken Arabic.

"When they came in they fell on the two Frenchmen and they shouted, 'You and you, follow us'. In their rush, one of the attackers lost his turban.

Let's hope they all will be released...unharmed.

December 28, 2010

A 46-year-old Indiana grandmother is under investigation for her possible ties to suspected and convicted international terrorists, FoxNews.com has learned.

Muslim-convert Kathie Smith, 46, a U.S. citizen living in Indianapolis who has blogged about her granddaughter, last year married a suspected German jihadist, and has been flying back and forth between the U.S. and Germany as recently as two weeks ago.

A pro-jihadist video featuring Smith and her husband – alongside photos of members of the Islamic Jihad Union charged with plotting failed terror attacks against U.S. targets in Germany -- is being investigated by the Indiana Intelligence Fusion Center. The center is a counterterror intelligence clearinghouse staffed by law enforcement officers from local and federal agencies, including the FBI and Department of Homeland Security.

...On Facebook, he is "friends" with the notorious Al Qaeda English-language online magazine Inspire, thought to be principally authored by American-turned-Muslim radical Samir Khan. Salahudin also has used his online posts to call for the deaths of U.S. citizens, military and government leaders, and recently joined in on another user’s thinly veiled threats against Condoleezza Rice, according to postings discovered by FoxNews.com and screen shots provided by the Jawa Report, a watchdog blog that has been following the online activities of Smith and her husband.

Here's the video in question. I've quite a bit more here. Will add some updates.

Jihad Kathie's husband is also known as Salahudin Ibn Jafar in many places. He's a longstanding Jihadi propagandist and al-Qaeda supporter. What kind of folks does he hang out with. Well, despite his furious scrubbing of his Scribbed account the last few days. And it was way late scrubbing. We can see some familiar faces.

Among them Yousef al-Khattab of Revolution Muslim as well as Samir Khan of al-Qaeda.

He follows.

His followers.

So somewhere this dude is running around Germany with Jihad on the brain, a large assault rifle and feeling the heat.

November 06, 2010

Internet Anthropologist:

It seems that the UPS/FEDEX attack has historical roots and much more sinister tactics than have been disclosed.
The address names on the UPS and FEDEX package were Pierre l'Ermite and Diego Gelmírez and the street address was that of only one synagogue in Chicago. Whom are they?

Pierre l'Ermite, is AKA Peter the Hermit, 1050-1115, a French monk. In 1095 he instigated the First Crusade. With help from the Byzantine emperor Alexius I he and his irregular band took Jerusalem.

Diego Gelmírez of Santiago de Compostela conceived of a N African invasion route intending to unite the reconquest of Spain (from Muslims) with the Crusades to the Holy Land, forming a single Mediterranean-wide crusading theatre. He was one of the most famous Spanish monk-warriors leading the expulsion of Muslims from Spain.

Why a package on two different carriers? To increase the chance of success in case one was discovered, and, to double the potential effect of a tactic that would likely be closed off after the attack.

Oh yeah, never mind.

October 11, 2010

Alternate headline: ROP needs money, mujahideen & women bags:

Via Telegraph

The group is also demanding 7 million euros (£6.1 million) and the release of Islamic militants being held in France as part of their conditions[Why did they leave this out in the headline?...never mind....ed]

Seven captives – five French citizens and two Africans – were abducted in Niger a month ago before being taken to neighbouring Mali.

The kidnappings marked an escalation of tensions between Paris and al-Qaeda's north African network, known as al-Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb (AQIM), which executed 78-year-old French hostage Michel Germaneau in July.

But a French intelligence source yesterday described the terms for the hostages release as "unrealistic

It is rather ironic they demanded this now, especially after the failed US attempt to rescue aid worker Linda Norgrove. Also, as somewhat stated in the article, France also attempted to rescue hostage Michel Germaneau and failed . Later AQIM murdered him. Some reports say he was murdered before the rescue attempt.

Remember, it isn't those who fail in attempting rescue that kill hostages it is the animals who kidnap them in the first place.

September 30, 2010

Al-Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb (AQIM) has released a video showing hostages they kidnapped in Niger.

DAKAR, Senegal (AP) — A tape released Thursday on a jihadist forum shows the first images of a group of hostages including five French citizens since they were seized two weeks ago in Niger by an al Qaeda offshoot and taken into the desert.

The four-minute tape shows still images of the hostages sitting cross-legged in the sand with a gently sloping dune behind them. French officials believe the seven hostages are now in the bordering West African nation of Mali.

The hostages were grabbed in the middle of the night on Sept. 16 from their guarded villas in the uranium mining town of Arlit in Niger where they were working for French nuclear giant Areva.

The French Foreign Ministry said the tape was encouraging because the images show the hostages alive.

Someone has to hold the trump card, but it shouldn't be AQIM. Just sayin.

Thanks to Mean Kitteh

Previous:
France Accuses Spain of Financing Terror Through Ransom
AQIM Claims Abduction Of French In Niger

September 22, 2010

Update on this post

Google News

DUBAI (AFP) – Al-Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb claimed the abduction of French citizens in Niger and said it will make demands to France regarding them, Al-Jazeera television reported on Tuesday.

"In announcing our claim for this operation, we inform the French government that the mujahedeen will later transmit their legitimate demands," AQIM spokesman Salah Abi Mohammed said in an audio tape played by Al-Jazeera.

"We also warn (the French government) against any sort of stupidity," he added, in reference to any possible military operation, as French military planes scouring the desert on Tuesday in an effort to locate the seven.

The statement also said Algerian Abdelhamid Abou Zeid had led the kidnap operation.

The Niger government said earlier in the day that the kidnappers were "affiliated" to a group headed by Abou Zeid, AQIM's leader in northern Mali.

Related:
Paris probes al Qaeda abduction claim of French nationals

French authorities are probing an al Qaeda claim that its North African branch is responsible for the kidnapping of seven hostages - including five French nationals - in northern Niger, as the search for the hostages in one of the world’s most hostile regions entered its sixth day.

The seven hostages - employees of the French nuclear group Areva and construction firm Vinci - were kidnapped last week in Arlit, a mining town in uranium rich northern Niger.

September 18, 2010

Dropping like flies ain't they?

NOUAKCHOTT (Reuters) – Mauritanian military forces killed 12 members of al Qaeda's North African wing and suffered two fatalities in fighting in the desert along the border with Mali, a Mauritanian security source said on Saturday.

The clash is the latest sign of an escalation in the battle between Saharan countries and al Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb (AQIM), the chief suspect in the kidnapping of seven foreigners, including five French citizens, in Niger on Thursday.

The fighting continued on Saturday as Mauritanian forces encircled around 20 AQIM vehicles in the border area, the Mauritanian source told Reuters. In addition to those killed, four Mauritanian troops were also wounded in the fighting.

"The operation was launched because the opportunity presented itself. It was not planned long in advance," said a second security source in the Mauritanian capital Nouakchott who knew the background to the mission.

The French Foreign Ministry said there was no connection to Thursday's kidnappings, in which a French employee of nuclear firm Areva and his wife were seized.

"This action is independent of the kidnapping of Areva employees. There are no French forces on the ground," a ministry spokesman said in Paris.

Thanks to Zionisthore#3 & WhoCaresAnymore for above image.

September 07, 2010

Interesting news about a recent posting from al Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb (AQIM) which calls for Morocco to take back the Spanish cities of Ceuta and Melilla. The two cities are geographically in North Africa, but are Spanish enclaves not under the sovereignty of Morocco.

Zawya:

In a statement signed by "Abou Walid Almaghrebi Alansari" and published August 27th on several Islamist and nationalist web forums, AQIM said the coastal cities should be "recovered by force" from the control of Spain, and turned into an "area of attrition" against the "occupying crusade enemy" and "stealer of Andalusia".

Al-Qaeda is hoping to take advantage of last month's Spain-Morocco border tensions for propaganda purposes, argued Moroccan researcher Mohamed Darif. The message appeared within days of a demonstration by Moroccans in Ceuta.

"Al-Qaeda is always trying to make use of current events and issues in order to replenish its image by presenting itself as the defender of Islam and Muslims, rather than as a terrorist organisation," Darif said.

Will this work in Morocco? Doubtful. But still it's interesting to see how groups like AQIM, with little popular support, understand their own limitations and reach out in PR campaigns to potential allies.

August 15, 2010

The woman in the center of image below, Alicia Gamez, was released in March:

Google News

[...]Malian sources added that the 52-year-old Hamma "was about to be extradited to Bamako".

The extradition appeared to be part of efforts to obtain the freedom of two Spaniards still in the hands of the Al-Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb (AQIM), the North African branch of Osama bin Laden's terror network.

The group released 39-year-old Alicia Gamez in March but still holds Roque Pascual, 50, and Albert Vilaltam, 35, in northern Mali[...]

The leader of the cell, Algerian Abdelhamid Abu Zeid, "is currently doing everything possible to endanger the lives of the two Spanish hostages," a Malian official involved in negotiating their release said.

AQIM announced in July that it had killed 78-year-old French hostage Michel Germaneau, abducted in northern Niger on April 19, in revenge for the killing of six of its members in a failed Mauritanian-French rescue raid.

Feckin terrorist bastardos anyway.

Previous:

AQIM Says: Look At My Girthy Balls
Terrorists Take Three Spanish Hostages

July 20, 2010

Post Chronicle:

Al Qaeda's No. 2 leader mocked President Barack Obama for voicing confidence over victory in Afghanistan, in an Internet message posted on Monday.

Ayman al-Zawahri also said Arab government leaders allied to the West were more harmful to the Palestinians than Israel.

"Poor Obama comes to Kabul and he promises that Taliban shall not return to power ... You poor man, can you promise that your hordes will return safely to America?" a speaker who sounded like Zawahri said in an audio recording
posted on Islamist websites often used by al Qaeda.

Obama made his first trip to Afghanistan as president in March, delivering a rousing speech to U.S. troops and telling them he was confident they would have success in their mission.

Working on the audio.

May 14, 2010

From SITE

Al-Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb (AQIM) released a communiqué claiming the capture of a French national, Michel Germaneau, on jihadist forums on May 13, 2010. The group also provided an audio from the captive, his picture, and a copy of his identification card. AQIM reported in the communiqué that Germaneau was captured in northern Niger on April 22,

May 10, 2010

Click image to view video:

Radicals preaching at Mosque+online Facebook ehadi+online ehadi forums+YouTube & other video sites=recipe for homegrown terror.

April 16, 2010

Update on Al Qaeda: "We Will Murder French & Italian Hostages if You Don't Release our Brothers"

BBC

An Italian couple who were being held hostage in the west African country of Mali by al-Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb have been released.

Local officials said Sergio Cicala and Philomene Kaboure were picked up by an army patrol in the eastern Gao region.

Italy's foreign minister said they were "in the hands of Malian authorities" and were being taken to a "safe place".

Mr Cicala and Mrs Kaboure - who is also a citizen of Burkina Faso - were seized in December in neighbouring Mauritania.

February 06, 2010

Good news: al Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb (Northwest Africa) did not kill Italian Sergio Cicala and Pierre Camatte, from France as they had promised.

Bad news: they're giving Italy and France 25 more days to exert pressure on the government of Mali to release members of AQIM. After that the two hostages will be murdered.

France and Italy have a long tradition of caving in to the demands of terrorists over hostages. While this may save the lives of today's hostages, it also leads to more hostage taking. Such a strategy leads to more hostage taking and deaths.

We demand the hostages be set free without any conditions or any quid pro quo. Hostage taking is barbaric and exposes al Qaeda as the murderous thugs that they are. If you support this, you too are a barbarian.

Unfortunately for Muslims, the taking of slaves and hostages in battle was a practice endorsed by Muhammad. The practice is clearly evil. Either Muhammad wasn't a prophet, or his example (sunnah) in many cases should not be followed.

January 20, 2010

Happy 1-Year Anniversary Mr President. Please take to heart that you are still more popular than Al-Qaida in the Arabian Peninsula.

Ansar al-Mujahideen English Forum Presents: A Statement Marking the One Year Anniversary of the Founding of Al-Qaida in the Arabian Peninsula

Feel free to read their dribble below the fold.

Ansar al-Mujahideen English Forum Presents:

A Statement Marking the One Year Anniversary of the Founding of Al-Qaida in the Arabian Peninsula

In the name of Allah, the Most Kind, the Most Merciful.

All praise be to Allah, and may peace and blessings be upon the Messenger of Allah, Muhammad ibn Abdullah, and upon his family, his Companions, and those who follow his footsteps until the day of Judgment.

To proceed:

Every once in a while an important event takes place, the significance of which is not immediately apparent. It is only after a period of time passes that the enormity of the event is fully recognised. Such an event took place exactly one year ago today: on January 20th 2009.

On that day an announcement was posted to the jihadist forums, informing the Believers of the merger of two branches of the al-Qaida organisation: the branches in Yemen and Saudi Arabia.

This new organisation would be known as Al-Qaida in the Arabian Peninsula, and would be lead by Amir Abu Basir – Nasir al-Wahayshi (may Allah protect him), along with his deputy Sheikh Abu Sufyan – Said al-Shihri (may Allah protect him)

This merger was in accordance with the command of Allah, the Exalted, who said:

"...and fight the polytheists collectively, as they fight you collectively" (Al-Tawbah: 36)

And it was in accordance with the authentic hadith of the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) who said:

"A Believer to another Believer is like a building whose different parts strengthen each other"

Indeed, one of the main objectives of Al-Qaida in the Arabian Peninsula is to carry out the last request of the Prophet, peace and blessings be upon him, who said:

"Expel the polytheists from the Arabian Peninsula"

There was a certain amount of enthusiasm on the jihadist forums, people recognised the leadership potential of Amir Abu Basir (may Allah protect him), and looked forward to him slowly rebuilding the capabilities of the Mujahideen of the Arabian Peninsula. Outside of jihadist circles however, the announcement barely raised an eyebrow.

Very few people could have predicted that in just twelve short months Amir Abu Basir (may Allah protect him) would have made Al-Qaida in the Arabian Peninsula a household name, an inspiration to Muslims the world over, and a nightmare from which the Zionist-Crusaders and the Arab Apostates cannot seem to awaken from.

In twelve short months Al-Qaida in the Arabian Peninsula have achieved the following:

1.) Targeted the heads of Disbelief even while they hid behind their Palace walls, in the operation which targeted Muhammad bin Nayif. Every one of the Idol Kings of the Arabs will now sleep less soundly: knowing that the Lions of Tawhid are coming for them soon!

2.) Sent the Western world into a spin, forcing the infidels to spend many billions of dollars upgrading their airport security, following the operation of Umar al-Farouq (may Allah free him)

3.) Revealed the treachery of the Yemeni army, their disregard for the blood and honor of the Muslims, their complicity in the crimes of the Zionist-Crusaders; and therefore the obligation of fighting them.

4.) Clearly identified their long and short-term objectives, and proved the religious legitimacy of their acts with stirring speeches from Sheikh Ibrahim al-Rubaish, Commander Muhammad ibn Abdur-Rahman al-Rashid and Sheikh Abu Zubair Adil al-Abab (may Allah protect them all)

5.) Set a wonderful example for the Ummah to follow, with the martyrdom of Abul Khair - Abdullah Hassan al-Assiri, Abu Tamim al-Azdi - Yusuf al-Shehri, and Abu Omar al-Najdi - Raed al-Harbi (may Allah have Mercy on them all)

In conclusion, we congratulate all Mujahideen, especially those in the Arabian Peninsula, on their many victories during 2009, and look forward to even more from them in 2010, with the permission of Allah.

Truly they have warmed the hearts of the Believers who had begun to despair of the situation in the Arabian Peninsula ever being improved.

Our Lord! Protect the leaders of Al-Qaida in the Arabian Peninsula!

Our Lord! Grant their Mujahideen one of the two best things: Victory or Martyrdom!

Our Lord! Grant victory to the Mujahideen in the Arabian Peninsula, in Iraq, in Afghanistan and Pakistan, in Somalia, in the Caucasus, in the Islamic Maghreb, and all around the world!

Our Lord! Humiliate the Zionist-Crusaders and the Apostates, foil their plans, sow discord among them, and shatter the illusion of their might!

"Our Lord! Pour down patience upon us, make our feet firm, and grant us victory over the Disbelieving people!" (Al-Baqarah: 250)

And our final prayer is: All praise be to Allah, the Lord of the worlds.

Don't Forget Us in Your Prayers

December 18, 2009

Terrorists just lost some funding....how sad...not! Hmmm, wonder if they will squawk like birds beings they are no longer in the safety of their home territory.

Via NYT

Federal prosecutors in Manhattan unsealed narcotics and terrorism charges on Friday against three West Africans they identified as associates of Al Qaeda and a related terrorist group.[ ed...al Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb(AQIM)]

While the United States Drug Enforcement Administration has long maintained that Al Qaeda has been involved in drug trafficking, officials at the agency said the case represented the first time such charges had been brought against people linked with the group.

The three men — identified as Oumar Issa, Harouna Touré and Idriss Abelrahman — were arrested on Wednesday in Ghana and flown to the United States on Thursday night, law enforcement officials said.

Rusty sez "Selling drugs to the infidels is halal."

Visit our AQIM archives here. Quite a nasty bunch of ass maggots.

Update by Howie, er, I mean Darth Dandapeerofpak: The good news just keeps coming. Algerian security forces kill 3 members of AQIM.

Hooray!

December 09, 2009

This from al-Jazeera:

A spokesman claiming to represent al-Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb (AQIM) has claimed responsibility for the kidnappings last month of four Europeans in Mali and Mauritania.

The brave Mujis must have waded through a hail of gunfire to be able to get these prized possessions.

Two units of the valiant mujahedeen managed to kidnap four Europeans in two distinct operations: the first in Mali where Frenchman Pierre Camatte was seized on November 25, and the second in Mauritania where three Spaniards were held on November 29

I assume these Europeans, probably evil Zionist Jews, were their to train the government armies in anti-terrorism tactics in the regions efforts to defeat AQIM. No? Volunteers delivering humanitarian aid? Oh.

Impressive AQIM. Real impressive. Now everyone hold your index fingers and thumbs together in the shape of a diamond and say it with me.

I wish the best for the hostages.

October 12, 2009

A man of unknown religious persuasion, of course. Probably a Unitarian. There is a substantial Unitarian minority in Algeria, right?

And yes, the Large Hadron Collider at Cern which he was connected to would be the same one from Angels and Demons. I'm not sure it's irony, but it's ironical that the terrorist behind the plot in that novel/book was a Christian -- a person in a group that is statistically least likely to be a terrorist.*

Not that you could actually build an anti-matter bomb; and his colleagues at Cern claim his job was not one that would bring him into contact with any material that could be used for explosives.

His ties to terrorism should be classified as aspirational. Meaning, he seems to have been gung ho for al Qaeda in North Africa but he had not yet made the transition from fan to player.

But still, dude! A nuclear physicist working for al Qaeda would not be considered a good thing.

Telegraph:

The 32-year-old French scientist of Algerian descent, who had also been employed by British government laboratories, was allegedly in contact with the Islamic Maghreb (AQIM), a mainly Algerian militant network that associates itself with al-Qaeda.

“In his exchanges with the AQIM, he spoke of plans for attacks in general, but we’re not talking on an operational level, it was not a case of means or dates,” a magistrate, who asked not to be named, alleged....

The physicist was seized hours before he was due to travel to Switzerland, where he works between Cern, the European Organisation for Nuclear Research, near Geneva, and the Federal Polytechnic Institute, in Lausanne....

And it looks like his brother was involved, too.

I'll leave this as your exit quote on the banality of evil.

A colleague described the physicist as “a considerate person and exceptionally clever” man. The colleague, who did not wish to be named, said the physicist had been unwell this year, and was on leave from February until July because of a bad back.

September 08, 2009

A Canadian diplomat who was held hostage by al Qaeda's North African affiliate believes he was betrayed. Robert Fowler, who was taken hostage by al Qaeda in the Islmic Maghreb, believes the circumstances leading to his capture is evidence that someone with knowledge of his diplomatic mission gave that information to the terrorist network.

What circumstances? Fowler was traveling within an area deemed "safe" by the U.N. -- one where al Qaeda normally does not operate. Because of this, he was traveling without body guards. And he thinks this is why al Qaeda hit him when they did. They also seemed to know who he was when they captured him.

But who could have tipped al Qaeda off? Fowler speculates to the CBC:

It could be the government of Niger, could be an al Qaeda sympathizer in the U.N. office in Niger, in the U.N. office in West Africa, in the ... secretariat building in New York.

UPDATE: Oh, yeah.

August 25, 2009

This article from the World Tribune notes that the Algerian government is promoting Sufi Islam as a peaceful alternative to the more traditional Salafi version of Sunni Islam -- the variant followed by al Qaeda:

Officials said the regime of President Abdul Aziz Bouteflika has approved the expansion of the Sufi network in Algeria. Sufi represents a mystical and peaceful practice of Islam that focuses on prayer and meditation....

Officials said the pro-Sufi policy was part of a drive by the Bouteflika regime to battle the Al Qaida Organization in the Islamic Maghreb. Bouteflika has offered amnesty to AQIM operatives who surrender to authorities.

The Islamic Affairs Ministry was also prepared to allow Sufis to distribute literature, CDs and books to schools and mosques. Officials said the Sufis were expected to appeal to young Muslims.

Except when it's not.

I'm betting that if one was to run a statistical analysis of the relationship with Islamic school of thought with members of terror organizations that Salafis would vastly outnumber Sufis -- and even those Shia backed by the Iranian state.

But, this does not mean that Suffism inevitably leads to "peace".

For instance, the Naqshbandi Sufi Army, an insurgent group in Iraq responsible for the deaths of many Americans and many more Iraqis.

So, I guess I welcome the move in Algeria to expand the Sufi base. If those are my only two alternatives, I'll take the one that is less violent.

But what I'd welcome more is freedom of religion which would allow Algerians to leave Islam -- or join with it -- altogether if that is what they wished.

Thanks to Nathan.

April 22, 2009

Update on AlQaeda Kidnaps Six Westerners (Identified: 2 Canadians, 1 Brit, 1 German, 2 Swiss)

Al Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb (AQIM) has released four hostages but unfortunately the Brit and other Swiss(male) is still being held. The article doesn't state if monies or demands were met.

Al-Qaeda's North African[AQIM] branch on Wednesday released in Mali two Canadian diplomats, a German and a Swiss tourist kidnapped several months ago, but held on to two other Europeans.

The kidnappers released Robert Fowler, UN special envoy to Niger and his assistant Louis Gay, who were snatched in December last year in Niger and two female tourists out of a group of four nabbed in January.

"Four of the six hostages were released," said a security source in the northern town of Gao, speaking on condition of anonymity[...]

Al-Qaeda of the Islamic Maghreb has said it intended to unify armed Islamist groups in Tunisia, Algeria and Morocco as well as emerging groups in countries bordering the Sahara.

They include Senegal, Mauritania, Mali, Burkina Faso, Niger, Nigeria, Chad, Sudan, and Eritrea.

The North African branch has raised concerns among Western countries after claiming a series of deadly suicide bombings in Algeria and other attacks in the region as well as several kidnappings.

April 20, 2009

Is Ace writing for Reuters these days? Because my headline isn't that far off of the one Reuters used:

Crackdown on al Qaeda hits Algeria's potato crop

The gist of the story being that since AQIM uses a lot of fertilizer bombs the Algerian government has imposed strict controls leading to a price increase which, in turn, means less fertilizer used on the potato crop.

Also, less ammonium nitrate based bombs.

Heartache.

Let them go organic and eat arugula!

April 18, 2009

Sentences range from 2 to 20 years.

The tribunal in Sale, near Rabat, sentenced the men Thursday night. Their ringleader, Abdelkrim Makhloufi, was jailed for 20 years for forming a criminal gang and plotting terrorist acts, incitement and holding unauthorized meetings.

According to the prosecution, the convicts belonged to a cell of al-Qaeda of the Islamic Maghreb and had ties with Algeria's Salafist Group for Preaching and Combat, which linked up with Osama bin Laden's al-Qaeda and has sought to spread out across north Africa.

April 02, 2009

Al Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb (AQIM) apparently said the hostages are in good health.(What
else would they say...) - see original post - Al Qaeda Kidnaps 6 Westeners(Update)

Two Canadians were kidnapped in December, the other four, who included tourists from Britain, Germany, and Switzerland, were kidnapped in January.

BRUSSELS, April 2 (Reuters) - Six Western hostages held by al Qaeda's North African arm are in good health, Malian President Amadou Toumani Toure said on Thursday, adding he was optimistic and should be able to give concrete information soon.

"I heard before leaving Bamako yesterday that the hostages are all doing well. We are working on the ground to free these men and women so that they can return to their families," Toumani Toure told a news conference in Brussels. The president of the West African nation said he could not go into detail for reasons of confidentiality, but hoped the situation would be resolved soon.

Related:
N.Africa Qaeda Demands Hostages-For-Militants Swap

February 02, 2009

A leader of al Qaeda in the Islamic Maghred (AQIM) has surrendered to Algerian authorities. I wonder if he was looking for treatment for the plague?