Wednesday, February 12, 2014

The IPT Update

12 February 2014

General security, policy
1.  DOD official: US will not allow Iran to acquire nuclear weapon; Iranian TV airs simulated bombing of Tel Aviv, US aircraft carrier; showcases military capabilities, seals report with vow to "trample on the US"
2.  Former US sailor sentenced to 30 years for attempted espionage for Russian Federation
3.  Soldiers say Army's battlefield intelligence network is a life-threatening disaster
4.  House subcommittee releases report on DOD response to Benghazi
5.  Failed Somali pirate prosecution fuels terror trial fears
6.  Lawyers for Boston bombing suspect want trial put off until September 2015
7.  Federal appeals court upholds NC terror sentences
8.  Federal prosecution fighting defense's access to secret papers in terror case
9.  Former Canadian Idol contestant pleads not guilty to terrorism charge
10. Hearing: Al Qaeda's Expansion in Egypt: Implications for U.S. Homeland Security

Air, rail, port, health, energy & communication security
11. US utilities tighten security after 2013 attack
12. Experts warn of coming wave of serious cybercrime
13. Cyber terrorists use DDOS attacks to disrupt exchange platforms, influence stock prices
14. FBI announces new reward program aimed at deterring laser strikes 
15. Hearing:  Bioterrorism: Assessing the threat

Financing, money laundering, fraud, identity theft, civil litigation
16. Goldman Sachs and Deutsche Bank put 'for sale' sign on Iran's old uranium supplier
17. Treasury designates Afghan heroin trafficker

Border security, immigration & customs
18. New policy could allow in Syrians with "limited" terror ties
19. Detainees sentenced in seconds In 'streamline' justice on border

International
20. Suicide bomb instructor accidentally kills Iraqi pupils
21. Egypt says Muslim Brotherhood has military wing
22. US Embassy warns of possible terror attack in Uganda
23. Thai men committed armed robberies targeting "non-believers" to fund domestic acts of terrorism
24. Turkey laws on terror financing under scrutiny at Paris meetings
25. Video footage:  British Muslims 'carried out torture' in Syria
26. Bomb squad alert as 'suspect packages' sent to military recruiting offices in Britain

Comment / analysis
27. Claudia Rosett:  The U.N. Assault on the Catholic Church
28. IPT News:  CAIR Again Shows It Can't Stand Other Muslim Viewpoints
29. Anat Berko:  Dead Terrorists and Palestinian National Imagery

The Investigative Project on Terrorism Update is designed for law enforcement, the intelligence community and policy makers for non-profit research and educational use only.   Quoted material is subject to the copyright protections of the original sources, which should be cited for attribution, rather than the Update.

THE AMERICAS

GENERAL SECURITY, POLICY

1. DOD Official: U.S. Will Not Allow Iran to Acquire Nuclear Weapon
By Nick Simeone American Forces Press Service
IPT NOTE:  Archived video of the committee's hearings is found at http://armedservices.granicus.com/ViewPublisher.php?view_id=2
WASHINGTON, Feb. 11, 2014 – Amid ongoing skepticism among lawmakers about Iran's nuclear intentions, a senior Defense Department official told Congress today the United States will not allow Tehran to build a nuclear weapon, and that if Iran decided to use nuclear talks as a cover for developing one, Washington would be able to detect it.  Elissa Slotkin, principal deputy assistant secretary of defense for international security affairs, told the House Armed Services Committee the military remains prepared for all options if Tehran would decide to secretly develop a bomb while engaging in diplomacy.  "Any comprehensive agreement that we ever negotiate will emphasize verifiable means," Slotkin said. "And importantly, we remain confident that we could tell if Iran was making a dash toward a weapon, and if that decision was made, it would take at least a year" for a nuclear device to be developed…

Iranian TV airs simulated bombing of Tel Aviv, US aircraft carrier
Clip shows simulated strikes on Ben Gurion Airport, Haifa, USS Abraham Lincoln in retaliation for hypothetical attack on Iran
BY ILAN BEN ZION February 8, 2014, 10:02 pm 294
Ilan Ben Zion is a news editor at The Times of Israel. 
Iranian state TV on Friday ran a documentary featuring a computerized video of Iran's drones and missiles bombing Tel Aviv, Haifa, Ben Gurion Airport and the Dimona nuclear reactor in a hypothetical retaliation for an Israeli or American strike on the Islamic Republic.  Iranian drones and missiles are also shown carrying out simulated strikes on the American aircraft carrier USS Abraham Lincoln, downing American aircraft and striking American military targets in the Persian Gulf.  The clip was broadcast amid a clear escalation of anti-American rhetoric and even action by Iran: On Saturday, an Iranian admiral announced that Iran had despatched warships to the North Atlantic, while Iran's spiritual leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei denounced the Americans as liars who, while professing to be friends of Iran, would bring down his regime if they could. He also said it was "amusing" that the US thought Iran would reduce its "defensive capabilities."

#4143 - Iran TV Showcases Military Capabilities, Seals Report with Vow to "Trample on the U.S."
Channel 3 (Iran) - February 6, 2014 - 02:42 Middle East Media Research Institute (MEMRI)

2.  Former Sailor Sentenced to 30 Years in Prison for Attempted Espionage
Department of Justice Office of Public Affairs Monday, February 10, 2014
Robert Patrick Hoffman II, 40, of Virginia Beach, Va., was sentenced today to serve 30 years in prison for attempting to commit espionage against the United States… "Hoffman attempted to spy on behalf of the Russian Federation and betrayed the trust this country placed in him," said Acting U.S. Attorney Boente.   "He was willing to place American lives at risk for personal gain."  After a five day trial that concluded on Aug. 21, 2013, a Norfolk jury found Hoffman guilty of attempted espionage, as charged in the one-count superseding indictment filed on May 8, 2013.   According to court records and the evidence at trial, Hoffman is a U.S. citizen born in Buffalo, N.Y., who served for 20 years in the U.S. Navy until retiring at the rank of Petty Officer First Class on Nov. 1, 2011…

3.  Soldiers say Army's battlefield intelligence network is a life-threatening disaster
By Rowan Scarborough-The Washington Times Sunday, February 9, 2014
An internal memo from the U.S. command in Afghanistan says soldiers are voicing strong complaints about the Army's battlefield intelligence network, for which Congress just slashed spending by 60 percent.  The $28 billion Distributed Common Ground System is too slow and unstable and hurts operations in some cases, say intelligence officers who rely on the computer network to collect and quickly dispense data on hard-to-find insurgents and the homemade bombs they plant.  The "official use only" memo issued in November was in the form of a survey of four combat and support units in Afghanistan.  Soldiers with the 130th Engineer Brigade said that, after training, "the system is still too complex and overwhelming for most to use."…

4.  Republicans investigating Benghazi blame White House, State Dept. for failures
By Karen DeYoung, Washington Post: Tuesday, February 11, 12:08 PM 
IPT NOTE:  Report posted at http://www.investigativeproject.org/ext/11394
Republicans on the House Armed Services Committee largely exonerated the U.S. military from responsibility for failures associated with the September 2012 terrorist attacks in Benghazi, Libya, instead blaming the White House and the State Department for ignoring heightened threats in the area.  The committee majority's conclusions, in a report released Tuesday, do not differ significantly from those reached by other congressional panels that have touched on the military's role in the Benghazi incident.  While the GOP lawmakers said that commanders could have pushed harder to position forces to respond to threats in North Africa in general and Libya in particular, they concluded that no U.S. military assets could have arrived in Benghazi in time to affect the outcome of the attacks, according to committee staff members who briefed reporters on the report…

Subcommittee on Oversight and Investigations Releases Report on DOD Response to Benghazi
Report Details Six Key Findings
House Armed Services Committee Press Release Feb 10 2014
WASHINGTON – The House Armed Services Subcommittee on Oversight and Investigations released a comprehensive report today evaluating the response of the Department of Defense (DOD) to the terrorist attack in Benghazi, Libya on September 11, 2012. Read the Report  http://www.investigativeproject.org/ext/11394  ...

5.  Failed Somali pirate prosecution fuels terror trial fears
By: Josh Gerstein February 10, 2014 01:25 PM EST Politico.com 
The failed prosecution of an alleged Somali pirate — and the fact that that failure could leave him living freely, and permanently, inside U.S. borders — is highlighting anew the risks of trying terror suspects in American courts.  Just a few weeks ago, Ali Mohamed Ali was facing the possibility of a mandatory life sentence in a 2008 shipjacking off the coast of Yemen — an incident much like the one dramatized in the film Captain Phillips. Now, the Somali native is in immigration detention in Virginia and seeking permanent asylum in the United States.  Ali, who was accused of piracy for acting as a translator and negotiator for a crew of pirates, was partially acquitted by a jury in November after a trial in Washington. Prosecutors initially vowed a retrial, but decided last month to drop the rest of the case against him.  That's just the kind of situation that opponents of U.S. criminal trials for Al Qaeda suspects caught abroad have long feared: the government falls short at trial — and the courts eventually order an accused terror figure freed to live legally among Americans…

6.  Lawyers for Boston Bombing Suspect Want to Put Off Trial Until Sept. 2015
By JACOB GERSHMAN Feb 11, 2014 12:08 pm Wall Street Journal Law Blog
Attorneys representing accused Boston Marathon bomber Dzhokhar Tsarnaev are requesting a trial date no earlier than September 2015 — nearly two and a half years after the attack  that left three dead and more than 260 wounded.  The request was discussed in a joint status report that lawyers for Mr. Tsarnaev and prosecutors filed with the federal court in Massachusetts on Monday. Lawyers for the 20-year-old suspect say they need the extra time to review thousands of items of physical evidence…

7.  Appeals Court Upholds NC Terror Sentences
by Abha Shankar  •  Feb 6, 2014 at 1:11 pm
A federal appeals court upheld the convictions and sentences of individuals involved in a North Carolina terror cell that plotted to wage violent jihad overseas. A federal jury convicted Mohammad Omar Aly Hassan, Ziyad Yaghi and Hysen Sherifi on terrorism-related charges in October 2011. The men were sentenced to prison terms ranging from 15 to 45 years.  The three appealed their sentences citing lack of sufficient evidence, their First and Second Amendment rights, and the use information gathered under the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act. The Fourth Circuit Court rejected their claims stating, "The laudable efforts of law enforcement and the prosecutors have ensured that, on this occasion at least, we will not be left to second-guess how a terrorist attack could have been prevented."  Court records and evidence presented at the trial showed that members of the North Carolina terror cell sought to engage in violent jihad and die as martyrs. Daniel Patrick Boyd, the ringleader of the terror cell, had traveled to Pakistan and Afghanistan in 1989 and 1992 to receive military-style training. He joined with mujahideen forces to fight Soviet troops in Afghanistan…

8.  Terrorism Lawyer's Access to Secret Papers Fought by U.S.
By Andrew Harris Feb 11, 2014 1:59 PM ET  Bloomberg News
IPT NOTE:  Court documents posted at http://www.investigativeproject.org/case/624
Federal prosecutors will fight a judge's decision to let a defense lawyer see secret foreign intelligence papers that may have led to evidence against his client, the first such ruling in a U.S. terrorism case.  The government filed a notice of intent to appeal yesterday in federal court in Chicago, where U.S. District Judge Sharon Johnson Coleman last month granted attorney Thomas A. Durkin's request to see applications for intelligence-gathering submitted to the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court.  The judge, who said she was the first to let a defense attorney see such records, put her ruling on hold today pending the outcome of the appeal.  Durkin represents Adel Daoud of Hillside, Illinois, who was arrested in September 2012 and accused of trying to detonate a bomb outside a downtown Chicago bar. The bomb was a phony, part of a Federal Bureau of Investigation sting operation. Daoud has pleaded not guilty… Coleman said in her Jan. 29 ruling that the threat to national security of giving Durkin access to the papers was outweighed by the risk of non-disclosure in Daoud's case…

9.  LIVE: Terrorism trial begins for former Canadian Idol contestant
BY CHRIS COBB, OTTAWA CITIZEN FEBRUARY 10, 2014 11:05 AM
OTTAWA — Pathologist and one-time Canadian Idol contestant Dr. Khurram Syed Sher will be tried by a judge only.  Specifics of the alleged planned attack are likely to be revealed by federal Crown prosecutors at the outset of the trial, which the Crown tried — and failed — to have held in secret.  Because they will rely on overlapping evidence, prosecutors had argued that news media reporting of the Sher trial could prejudice the fair trial rights of the other two defendants.  Following interventions by the Citizen and CBC, who said the ban was excessive and unprecedented, a judge ruled the trial should be open but did ban news media from identifying Sher's alleged co-conspirators, whose trial is expected to start in April.  The 29-year-old London, Ont., doctor, a father of three, has been living in Toronto under strict bail conditions. Police say the arrest of Sher and his co-accused was the culmination of an 11-month undercover operation and allege it had prevented an imminent attack that had been a threat to the Ottawa area and "Canadian security."..

Former Canadian Idol contestant pleads not guilty to terrorism charge
Jim Bronskill, Canadian Press February 10, 2014
OTTAWA — A man who once auditioned for the Canadian Idol TV show has pleaded not guilty to a terrorism charge… Sher, 31, was charged along with two other men in August 2010 with conspiracy to facilitate terrorism.  The others cannot be named due to recently imposed publication ban aimed at ensuring the jury in their trial, slated for April, is not prejudiced.  Following the sensational arrests, police said they seized terrorist literature, videos and manuals, along with dozens of electronic circuit boards allegedly designed to detonate homemade bombs remotely…

10.  Hearing: Al Qaeda's Expansion in Egypt: Implications for U.S. Homeland Security
House Homeland Security Committee, Subcommittee on Counterterrorism and Intelligence
311 Cannon House Office Building Washington, D.C. 20515 Feb 11, 2014 2:30pm

Opening Statements
Rep. Peter King (R-NY), Chairman

Witnesses
Dr. Steven A. Cook, Senior Fellow, Middle Eastern Studies, Council on Foreign Relations
Mr. Thomas Joscelyn, Senior Fellow, Foundation for the Defense of Democracies
Mr. Mohamed Elmenshawy, Resident Scholar at the Middle East Institute

AIR, RAIL, PORT, HEALTH, ENERGY & COMMUNICATION SECURITY

IPT NOTE: For more items, see DHS Daily Open Source Infrastructure Reports http://www.dhs.gov/files/programs/editorial_0542.shtm ; DHS Blog http://www.dhs.gov/news-releases/blog ;  TSA Releases http://www.tsa.gov/press/releases/index.shtm ; TSA Blog http://blog.tsa.gov/

11.  U.S. Utilities Tighten Security After 2013 Attack
PG&E to Build Opaque Fences in Wake of Sharpshooters
By REBECCA SMITH Wall Street Journal Feb. 9, 2014 7:28 p.m. ET [subscription req'd]
The PG&E Metcalf Substation, south of San Jose, California. Talia Herman for The Wall Street Journal
PG&E Corp says it will build opaque fences around critical transmission substations, including at the Metcalf subsidiary that was heavily damaged by gunmen firing from outside a chain-link fence last year.  The San Francisco-based utility, which serves Northern California, is also staffing important locations overnight. The company had eliminated some nighttime shifts after it built a power-system control center in Vacaville, Calif., in 2009.  PG&E and other utilities announced new safety measures after The Wall Street Journal reported last week  http://online.wsj.com/news/articles/SB10001424052702304851104579359141941621778 that the attack on the Metcalf transmission substation raised concerns about the vulnerability of the electric grid to physical sabotage. Jon Wellinghoff, the former chairman of the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, called the incident an act of terrorism.  The attack on the Metcalf substation, south of San Jose, Calif., began after 1 a.m. April 16 by gunmen who took out 17 of the 20 giant transformers that funnel power to Silicon Valley. It took the utility almost a month to repair the substation; no one has been arrested in the incident.  PG&E spokesman Brian Swanson said his company immediately added round-the-clock security at Metcalf and has since decided to beef up staffing at other locations, though he declined to identify the sites…

Assault on California Power Station Raises Alarm on Potential for Terrorism
April Sniper Attack Knocked Out Substation, Raises Concern for Country's Power Grid
By REBECCA SMITH Wall Street Journal, Feb. 4, 2014 10:30 p.m. ET [subscription req'd]

12.  Experts warn of coming wave of serious cybercrime
By Danielle Douglas and Craig Timberg, Washington Post Published: February 9, 2014
The rash of attacks against Target and other top retailers is likely to be the leading edge of a wave of serious cybercrime, as hackers become increasingly skilled at breaching the nation's antiquated payment systems, experts say.  Traditional defenses such as installing antivirus software and monitoring accounts for unusual activity have offered little resistance against Eastern European criminal gangs whose programmers write malicious code aimed at specific targets or buy inexpensive hacking kits online. Armed with such tools, criminals can check for system weaknesses in wireless networks, computer servers or stores' card readers.  Nearly two dozen companies have been hacked in cases similar to the Target breach and more almost certainly will fall victim in the months ahead, the FBI recently warned retailers, according to an official who was not authorized to speak publicly. The names of all of the compromised firms have not been revealed, nor is it clear how manyshoppers have had their credit card numbers and other personal data stolen…

13.  Cyber Terrorists Use DDOS Attacks to Disrupt Exchange Platforms, Influence Stock Prices
Prolexic details DDOS attacks against global markets
Security experts warn that distributed denial-of-service (DDOS) attacks are increasingly used in an attempt to influence stock prices and disrupt exchange platforms.
Eduard Kovacs Softpedia.com
DDOS attacks are used for various reasons. Hacktivists rely on them to raise awareness, companies to disrupt the competition, and they even represent a handy "tool" for extortionists.  However, DDOS protection services provider Prolexic reveals that these types of attacks are posing a significant threat to the financial services industry and trading platforms. "As part of our DDoS attack forensics, we have uncovered a disturbing trend: Many of these malicious attacks appear to be intent on lowering the target's stock price or currency values, or even temporarily preventing trades from taking place," explained Stuart Scholly, president of Prolexic.  Experts say they've found a direct link between DDOS attacks and temporary changes in the valuation of companies. That's because an organization's image is closely associated with its online presence... 

14.  FBI Announces New Reward Program Aimed at Deterring Laser Strikes 
FBI Washington February 11, 2014 Public Information Office (202) 278-3519
The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) today announced a new regional reward program to deter people from pointing lasers at aircraft.   Reported incidents of the federal violation are on the rise. Since the FBI and the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) began tracking laser strikes in 2005, statistics reflect a more than 1,100 percent increase in the deliberate targeting of aircraft by people with handheld lasers.  In an effort to raise public awareness about the issue, the FBI has launched a targeted regional reward program, which will run for 60 days in 12 FBI field offices. As part of the pilot program, the FBI Washington Field Office will offer a reward of up to $10,000 for information that leads to the arrest of any individual who aims a laser at an aircraft… In 2013, there were a total of 3,960 laser strikes reported—an average of almost 11 incidents per day. Industry experts say laser attacks present potential dangers for pilots…

Laser Incidents Targeting Aircraft on the Rise Nationwide; Incidents Up 39 Percent in New York Last Year 
FBI Seeks Public's Help to Identify Individuals Who Aim Lasers at Aircraft; Up to $10,000 Reward Being Offered
FBI New York February 11, 2014 FBI Public Information Office (212) 384-2100
… Many of the New York laser incidents have injured pilots and their crews. The latest injury was reported on December 26, 2013, by a JetBlue pilot on approach to New York's John F. Kennedy International Airport. The JetBlue pilot experienced blurry vision for over a week after being temporarily blinded by a laser…

Houston Second in Nation for Laser Strikes Against Aircraft 
Local, State, and Federal Agencies Respond; Launch Campaign and Offer Up to $10,000 Reward
FBI Houston February 11, 2014  Special Agent Shauna Dunlap (713) 936-7638
… In Houston, there were 126 laser strikes reported in 2013. Only Portland ranked higher with 139 strikes reported. FBI analysis shows laser strikes happen most frequently between midnight and 7 a.m., with the greatest strikes occurring between 3 a.m. and 4 a.m. In many cases, laser strikes are being committed by teens and adults between the ages of 35-45. Most do not comprehend the serious consequences of lasing and, in some cases, are unaware it is against the law…

15.  Hearing:  Bioterrorism: Assessing the Threat
House Homeland Security, Subcommittee on Emergency Preparedness, Response, and Communications
311 Cannon House Office Building Washington, D.C. 20515 Feb 11, 2014 10:00am

Opening Statements
Rep. Susan Brooks (R-IN), Chairman

Witnesses
Dr. Robert P. Kadlec, Former Special Assistant to the President for Biodefense
Dr. Tom Inglesby, CEO and Director, UPMC Center for Health Security
Dr. Leonard Cole, Director, Terror Medicine and Security
Department of Emergency Medicine, Rutgers New Jersey Medical School

FINANCING, LAUNDERING, FRAUD, IDENTITY THEFT, CIVIL LITIGATION

16.  Goldman puts 'for sale' sign on Iran's old uranium supplier
Feb 11, 2014 8:19am EST By David Sheppard Reuters
LONDON (Reuters) - Goldman Sachs and Deutsche Bank are quietly trying to get out of a business few people know they are even in: trading supplies of raw uranium known as yellowcake.  In the last four years, the banks have amassed low-grade stockpiles of the nuclear fuel ingredient larger than those held by Iran, and enough to run China's nuclear plants for a year. Goldman's uranium business can trace its roots back to an apartheid-era South African trading conglomerate that sold Iran its only known source of foreign yellowcake 35 years ago. To this day, that uranium delivery underpins Iran's disputed enrichment program, which western powers fear is aimed at developing atomic weapons, although Iran denies that.  Now, under mounting political scrutiny of Wall Street's role in physical commodities trading, and following a collapse in demand after the Fukushima disaster, both firms have put their uranium trading desks up for sale. But other banks are already lining up to take their place.  The history of Wall Street in uranium markets illustrates just how far banks moved into physical commodities trading during the natural resources boom of the last ten years…

17.  Treasury Designates Afghan Heroin Trafficker
Action Targets Hawaladar with Ties to International Narcotics Trafficking and the Taliban
US Department of the Treasury Feb 11, 2014
WASHINGTON –The U.S. Department of the Treasury today announced the designation of Afghan national Lahore Jan pursuant to the Foreign Narcotics Kingpin Designation Act (Kingpin Act) for his significant role in international narcotics trafficking. Lahore Jan is a known narcotics trafficker in Jalalabad, Afghanistan. He is involved in moving money for the Taliban and other narcotics traffickers using his hawala, a value transfer system, called the Lahore Jan Shanwari Exchange. As a result of today's action, all property and interests in property in the United States or in the possession or control of U.S. persons in which Lahore Jan or the Lahore Jan Shanwari Exchange have an interest is blocked, and U.S. persons are generally prohibited from engaging in transactions with them… For a chart relating to today's actions click …

BORDER SECURITY, IMMIGRATION & CUSTOMS

IPT NOTE:  US Customs & Border Protection,  http://www.cbp.gov/xp/cgov/newsroom/news_releases/  &  

18.  New Policy Could Allow in Syrians with "Limited" Terror Ties
by IPT News  •  Feb 6, 2014 at 5:35 pm For The Record - The IPT Blog  
As many as 3,000 Syrian refugees may qualify for asylum in the United States even if they have provided support to terrorists, Politico reports.  That's because the Obama administration filed two exemptions to immigration laws that won't automatically reject applicants "who provided 'insignificant' or 'limited' material support for terror groups, the report says.  A Department of Homeland Security (DHS) spokeswoman defined that as "insignificant in amount or provided incidentally in the course of everyday social, commercial, family or humanitarian interactions, or under significant pressure."  She offered hypotheticals involving support for relatives who were part of terrorist groups or business owners who serve militants.  The change should not affect people considered to be a threat, a DHS official told Fox News…

19.  Detainees Sentenced in Seconds In 'Streamline' Justice on Border
By FERNANDA SANTOS FEB. 12, 2014 New York Times
TUCSON — "My record is 30 minutes," Magistrate Judge Bernardo P. Velasco of Federal District Court here said one afternoon, describing the speed with which he had sealed the fates of 70 migrants caught sneaking into the country. Each of the accused had 25 seconds, give or take, to hear the charges against him, enter a plea and receive a sentence.  This is a part of the battle against illegal immigration that many Americans have never heard of. Known as Operation Streamline, it is the core of a federal program that operates in three border states, using prosecution and imprisonment as a front-line deterrent to people who try to cross the border illegally. It is part of a broader strategy of increasing the consequences for people who break immigration laws.  Unlike the civil immigration courts spread throughout the country, where deportation cases are handled as violations of the nation's administrative code, the courts used for Operation Streamline treat unauthorized immigrants as criminals and the act of illegally crossing the border as a federal crime...

MIDDLE EAST

20.  Suicide Bomb Instructor Accidentally Kills Iraqi Pupils
By DURAID ADNAN New York Times Feb 11, 2014
BAGHDAD — A group of Sunni militants attending a suicide bombing training class at a camp north of Baghdad were killed on Monday when their commander unwittingly conducted a demonstration with a belt that was packed with explosives, army and police officials said.  The militants belonged to a group known as the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria, or ISIS, which is fighting the Shiite-dominated army of the Iraqi government, mostly in Anbar Province. But they are also linked to bomb attacks elsewhere and other fighting that has thrown Iraq deeper into sectarian violence.  Twenty-two ISIS members were killed, and 15 were wounded, in the explosion at the camp, which is in a farming area in the northeastern province of Samara, according to the police and army officials. Stores of other explosive devices and heavy weapons were also kept there, the officials said.  Eight militants were arrested when they tried to escape, the officials said….

21.  Egypt Says Muslim Brotherhood Has Military Wing
The Accusation Comes Amid a Spreading Insurgency by Smaller, Previously Unknown Groups
Associated Press Feb. 9, 2014 6:12 p.m. ET
CAIRO—Egyptian authorities on Sunday accused the ousted president's Muslim Brotherhood of forming a military wing to stage attacks on security forces in a southern province, as monthslong street rallies by the group's supporters wane but low-level violence steadily rises.  Such a development would cast yet another shadow over an already wavering security situation in the Arab world's most populous country, plagued by a series of bombings and suicide attacks since the army overthrew Islamist President Mohammed Morsi in a popularly backed coup last July.  The Brotherhood has always denied violence and accuses authorities of orchestrating attacks to justify a crackdown that has only intensified since the interim government labeled it a terrorist organization. An al-Qaida-inspired group based in the eastern Sinai Peninsula has claimed responsibility for most of the attacks over the past months.  However, the government's Sunday accusation comes amid what analysts perceive as a spreading insurgency by previously unknown, smaller groups, who use weapons such as Molotov cocktails and homemade grenades to attack security forces. They say the groups were founded by pro-Morsi supporters who are frustrated by the decline in demonstrations and a heavy-handed security crackdown….

22.  U.S. Embassy Warns of Possible Terror Attack in Uganda
Warning Mentions Potential Targets Popular With Foreigners in Kampala
Wall Street Journal By NICHOLAS BARIYO Feb. 11, 2014 12:23 p.m. ET
KAMPALA, Uganda—The U.S. Embassy in Uganda warned of a possible terror attack in the country's capital Tuesday and mentioned potential targets popular with foreigners and wealthy Ugandans.  In a statement, the embassy said that it had received information regarding "a specific terrorist threat to Kampala." It identified the Ugandan National Museum, located around 5 kilometers (3 miles) outside the city center, as a possible target but didn't provide specific details as to why it was singled out.  "The threat information indicates that a group of attackers is possibly in place and ready to strike targets inside Kampala in February or March," the embassy said in a statement, without indicating its source of information. The U.S. Embassy in Kampala declined to elaborate on its statement…

ASIA / PACIFIC

23.  Prosecutors Seek 10- and 15-Year Sentences for Terror Suspects
By Markus Junianto Sihaloho on 9:18 pm February 5, 2014. Jakarta Globe
A Jakarta fruit vendor accused of plotting the failed assassination of Makassar's deputy mayor before committing a string of armed robberies targeting "non-believers" to fund domestic acts of terrorism faces a decade behind bars.  Prosecutors demanded 10 years in prison for Agung Fauzi — a South Jakarta nangka (jackfruit) seller and alleged terrorist who was reportedly involved in nearly a half-dozen failed robbery and terrorist plots before his arrest. His teacher and boss, Agus Widarto, faces 15 years in prison for his alleged role in the crimes… Both men were reportedly part of the Western Indonesia Mujahideen, a domestic terrorist network founded by Abu Roban — a man killed in a May 2013 terrorism raid in Kendal, Central Java. Agung was allegedly recruited in 2012 by Agus, his boss and an avid believer in waging jihad in Indonesia, according to reports in the local news portal TribunNews.com…

EUROPE

24.  Turkey Laws on Terror Financing Under Scrutiny at Paris Meetings
By Selcan Hacaoglu February 11, 2014 Bloomberg News
Turkish efforts to tighten laws to block financing for terrorist groups will be in the spotlight at meetings in Paris starting today, amid U.S. concerns that funds are moving through Turkey to al-Qaeda-linked groups in Syria.  The Financial Action Task Force, or FATF, sponsored by the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development, meets today through Feb. 14 to review global compliance. FATF urged Turkey on Oct. 18 to take further steps to identify and freeze terrorist assets and criminalize terrorist financing.  The meeting comes after the U.S. Treasury said that "funding and foreign fighters" were moving through Turkey to support al-Qaeda affiliates fighting alongside the government in Syria's civil war. The FATF decided not to suspend membership of Turkey last February after the country passed legislation against terrorist financing, which the U.S. ambassador said was inadequate. Turkey is on the FATF's so-called gray list of "high-risk and non-cooperative jurisdictions," along with 10 other countries including Algeria, Indonesia and Yemen…

25.  British Muslims 'carried out torture' in Syria
Video footage emerges which appears to show men from London involved in torture and possible executions
By David Blair 4:34PM GMT 10 Feb 2014 The Daily Telegraph (London)
British Muslims have carried out acts of torture and possibly executions in Syria, according to new video footage posted on social network sites.  Evidence of atrocities committed by British fighters with extreme Islamist groups emerged as another round of peace talks between the regime and the mainstream opposition opened in Geneva on Monday.  The two sides spent the day arguing about the agenda, and no progress has been made. The United Nations hopes to broker another ceasefire in the city of Homs to allow the delivery of aid and the evacuation of civilians from areas besieged by government forces...

26.  Bomb squad alert as 'suspect packages' sent to military recruiting offices
Small but 'viable' explosive device sent to Armed Forces careers office in Berkshire and a simliar package found in Kent
By Ben Farmer, Defence Correspondent, & Martin Evans 7:11PM GMT 11 Feb 2014 Daily Telegraph (London)
Military bomb squad officers are investigating two suspected bombs after a small explosive device was posted to an Armed Forces recruiting office.  Police counter terrorism officers were called to two separate offices around lunchtime on Tuesday after they were sent similar parcels.  Staff at an office in Reading became suspicious of one package and took it into a car park.  Officers on the scene confirmed it was a small but viable explosive device, which had been received in the post and had been made safe, the BBC reported.  Another similar package was found at an Army and RAF careers office in Chatham, Kent and police said it had been "made safe".  No one was hurt at either office…

COMMENT / ANALYSIS

27.  The U.N. Assault on the Catholic Church
A high-profile sex-abuse report is an attempt to bully the church into bowing before the altar of Turtle Bay.
By Claudia Rosett Feb. 9, 2014 5:55 p.m. ET Wall Street Journal
Ms. Rosett is journalist-in-residence with the Foundation for Defense of Democracies and heads its Investigative Reporting Project.


28.  CAIR Again Shows It Can't Stand Other Muslim Viewpoints
by IPT News  •  Feb 11, 2014 at 2:37 pm For The Record - The IPT Blog  

29.  Guest Column: Dead Terrorists and Palestinian National Imagery
by Anat Berko Special to IPT News February 4, 2014
Dr. Anat Berko, PhD, is a Lt Col (Res) in the Israel Defense Forces, conducts research for the National Security Council and is a research fellow at the International Policy Institute for Counterterrorism at the Interdisciplinary Center in Israel. A criminologist, she was a visiting professor at George Washington University and has written two books about suicide bombers, "The Path to Paradise," and the recently released "The Smarter Bomb: Women and Children as Suicide Bombers" (Rowman & Littlefield)

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