StormWarning’s Counterterrorism

This simply doesn’t make sense to me.  I know, because I’ve read it, that some people, largely among the extreme right, do not consider the death or capture of Osama to be important…I think that at worst, his capture, or better, his head on a stick, is an important symbolic milestone.  But why is his bodyguard until 2000 allowed roam free?  Or be interviewed on CBS 60 Minutes?

Bin Laden will never be captured alive: bodyguard
Osama bin Laden has no intention of being taken alive. He has designated a "special gun" to be shot with in the event of imminent capture, according to one of the Al-Qaeda chief�s former bodyguards…[more]

Dire Prediction From Osama’s Bodyguard
A former personal bodyguard of Osama bin Laden says he is certain the al Qaeda leader is planning an attack on the United States.

In the first television interview since 9/11 with an al Qaeda member close to bin Laden, Abu Jandal tells 60 Minutes correspondent Bob Simon first-hand details about the world’s most wanted man this Sunday, April 2,  at 7 p.m. ET/PT. ..[more]

This "ash-ole" is being interviewed on 60 Minutes (click on the sidebar video).  He knows nothing about bin Laden’s whereabouts?  Something is very wrong with this.

According to this guy, bin Laden is in Afghanistan…not Pakistan…but as previously noted, who can really tell the difference when it comes to the Durand Line?

This is another one that I simply don’t get.  Maybe I’m dense.

Current Affairs, International Issues, Opinions Sphere: Related Content

No Comments »

Don’t let anyone make you believe that just because DPW gave up the fight, that our ports are safe and secure.

‘Dirty Bomb’ Material Smuggled to U.S., GAO Says
Senators said a report that investigators smuggled enough radioactive material to build two “dirty’ bombs into the U.S. called into question the Bush administration’s efforts to secure the borders.

…The reports also accuse the Bush administration of being slow to deploy equipment that would detect radioactive materials and say corrupt foreign border officials and poor maintenance of detection devices have left the U.S. vulnerable to terror plots.

Senator Norm Coleman, a Minnesota Republican who heads the Senate Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations, which held the hearing, said he was “alarmed’ at the ease with which investigators bought the unspecified radiological material and transported it across the northern and southern U.S. borders…

GAO Report

Despite some of the stuff I’ve read recently about how the 5% inspection rate of cargo containers is wrong, those people who make those statement are dead wrong and the Congressmen and Senators are not.  The potential for nuclear proliferation in our ports is a significant and worrisome (<understated>).

Chew on that for a moment or two.  And while you’re at it, consider that OTM’s are continuing to flow through our borders.  It has everything to do with National Security and nothing to do with DPW.

• Technorati dirty bomb

Current Affairs, Federal Policy, National Security, Opinions Sphere: Related Content

1 Comment »

Of all of the downright asinine things to deal with is the latest of the conspiracy theories that Charlie Sheen is running around spouting.

A spirited debunking of Charlie Sheen is provided by Moonage in his post, "Charlie Sheen revisits the 911 Conspiracy theory" but this is such a stupid topic, and so much press type is being consumed by it, I want to comment separately.

What the hell of these people thinking?  Many of us, including myself, were getting dressed the morning of September 11, 2001 (I was watching CNBC) when the first plane hit the World Trade Center, and everyone first thought that it was a small aircraft in a horrible accident.  And then it dawned on us all.  It had been no small plane at all, but a 757.  The fires began to rage, people began to leap to their deaths from the building, and then the second plane hit.  I was shaking, as we all were shaken, as I finished dressing and drove to work.  I’ll never forget the clear blue, cloudless sky that morning as I drove north, seeing a black cloud of smoke rising in the western sky only 30 miles away.  Of course, we all know the rest of the litany of events.  So what the hell is Charlie Sheen and others like him thinking?  This is beyond wacked out Hollywood thinking as Moon writes though.  It is dangerous revisionist thinking that will pollute the minds of many for years to come, and that will sully the memories of those people who perished that day.

No less than New York Magazine is running a lengthy article in its March 27th issue titled "The Ground Zero Grassy Knoll."   Now, as I read this article, I think an attempt to publish an exposé of the ludicrousness of these conspiracy theories without lending any credence to them, there are way too many people like Charlie Sheen running around who for some reason unknown to what I would consider intelligent beings on Earth, believe that it either didn’t happen, or that the events of that day were somehow planned and purposely caused.

From the article:

They keep telling us 9/11 changed everything. But even in this Photoshopped age of unreliable narrators, much remains the same. The assassination of President John Kennedy, the Crime of the Last Century, occurred in plain sight, in front of thousands—yet exactly what happened remains in dispute. The Warren Commission found that Lee Harvey Oswald, fellow traveler of the Fair Play for Cuba Committee, shot Kennedy with a cheap Mannlicher-Carcano rifle from a sixth-floor window of the Texas School Book Depository. The commission found that Oswald, who two days later would be murdered by nightclub owner Jack Ruby, acted alone.

Yet, as with so many such events, there is the sanctioned history and the secret history—players hidden from view. In the Kennedy murder, the involvement of shadowy organizations like the Mafia and the CIA came into question. This way of thinking came to challenge the official narrative put forth by the Warren Commission. It is not exactly clear when the grassy knoll supplanted the sixth-floor window in the popular mind-set. But now, four decades after Dallas, it is difficult to find anyone who believes Lee Harvey Oswald was the lone gunman.

But if Oswald didn’t kill the president, who did? So 11/22 remains an open case, an open wound.

Now here we are again, contemplating the seemingly unthinkable events of September 11. An official explanation has been offered up: The nation was attacked by the forces of radical Islam led by Osama bin Laden and his Al Qaeda jihadists. Again, this narrative has been accepted by many.

But not all…[and the article goes on for 9 full pages]

And then there is the summary list of the conspiracy theories:

The Ground Zero Grassy Knoll

The Plane Truth
9/11 conspiracy theories, from nuts to soup.

Mossad Did It
A common theory, especially in the Arab world, holds that Israel orchestrated the attacks in order to bring the U.S. into conflict with Israel’s enemies. Evidence cited ranges from the arly spurious and deeply anti-Semitic (the oft-heard, oft-refuted canard that Jews were told to leave the towers before the attacks) to the apparently true but unexplainable. (Five men who were seen filming the attacks in Liberty Park were later apprehended and found by the Forward to have ties to Mossad.)

Oilmen Did It
A theory based on the idea that worldwide oil production, having reached its peak, is beginning a long decline, leading to surging energy prices and global economic collapse. The 9/11 attacks, goes this scenario, were orchestrated by Cheney, Bush, and their friends in the oil industry and government, in order to begin a process that would secure further reserves in Iraq and increase the U.S. military presence in the Persian Gulf.

Bush and Cheney Did it
The most basic of conspiracy theories. Bush and Cheney orchestrated the attacks, for much the same reason Roosevelt was sometimes said to have orchestrated Pearl Harbor: in order to begin the conflict that would allow them to realize their global ambitions.

The New World Order Did It
After winning a long struggle against the old Kissingerian pragmatists and balance-of-power devotees, neocon idealists centered at the Council on Foreign Relations initiated the conflict in order to establish the United States as the sole global power.

A Rogue Network Did It
A secret government used Bush and Cheney as patsies in carrying out the attacks. Bush was kept on the run in Air Force One (code-named “Angel”) by an anonymous call saying, “Angel is next.” Bin Laden and his henchmen were CIA plants and double agents. Britain’s MI6 intelligence service was involved. The towers were blown up from inside, by teams of secret government assassins. Even Bush and Cheney are in the dark about why the attacks took place.

Shrinks Did It
Scientologists believe that psychiatry (through a mechanism that remains murky) helped give birth to the suicide attackers “through drugs and psycho-political methods.”

As Moon pointed out, there are people who contend that no plane hit the Pentagon…when oh so many people witnessed it heading right at the Pentagon from I-395!  And afterwards, even I had discussions with people who worked in the building and had luckily either not been there that morning or who had escaped.

So lets do some more debunking of these "it didn’t really happen that way" fools. 

Try Popular Mechanics, 9/11: Debunking The Myths
PM examines the evidence and consults the experts to refute the most persistent conspiracy theories of September 11.  Just a small amount of the article, and then you all can read the rest…"Healthy skepticism, it seems, has curdled into paranoia. Wild conspiracy tales are peddled daily on the Internet, talk radio and in other media. Blurry photos, quotes taken out of context and sketchy eyewitness accounts have inspired a slew of elaborate theories: The Pentagon was struck by a missile; the World Trade Center was razed by demolition-style bombs; Flight 93 was shot down by a mysterious white jet. As outlandish as these claims may sound, they are increasingly accepted abroad and among extremists here in the United States."

Its not just Charlie Sheen (an actor of dubious abilities anyway) who blurt this blather.  As shown by the article in the New Yorker, somehow, supposedly somewhat intelligent people (at least they are educated), ascribe to these conspiracy theories.

• Technorati Charlie Sheen, 9/11

Current Affairs, Opinions Sphere: Related Content

12 Comments »

This is a short post (uncharacteristically).  I’ve beaten the "dead horse deader than a door nail."  People who claim that Afghanistan is stable are somehow missing the mark…people who trust Pakistan, well, I won’t even write those words.  And then there are those who actually think that the Taliban are "dead meat."

Bill Roggio has covered the topic of the Forgotten War in Central Asia quite in depth in his post at Fourth Rail.

I admit that my point of view may differ from Bill’s but what I don’t understand is how we have Hamid Karzai opening the anti-terrorism summit in Turkey by stating that "terrorism is a global menace, but warned that Muslims should not be viewed as terrorists."

Further, at a major gathering of politicians, scholars and military officers in Ankara, Karzai urged the world not to associate terrorism with Islam.

Then there is this from the Washington Post.  "When President Bush lands in Islamabad later this week, it may be the closest he ever comes to being in the same neighborhood as Osama bin Laden. His nemesis is probably only a few hours drive away in Pakistan’s Pashtun belt, now considered to be al Qaeda Central and one of the world’s most dangerous regions.

During the past 12 months or so, CIA and Pentagon officials have quietly modified the line they employed for three years after the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks — that bin Laden was hiding out "in the tribal areas along the Pakistan-Afghanistan border." Now the same officials say with some confidence that he is "not based in Afghanistan." Whatever ambiguity there was in the past is gone: Bin Laden is in Pakistan.

What’s left is the question: What are the United States and its ally, Pakistan, doing about it?

Not enough, according to high-ranking Afghan, Pakistani and Western officials I’ve spoken to here. Indeed, the disastrous policies of the United States and Pakistan, starting with the aftermath of the war in 2001, have only hastened the radicalization of northwest Pakistan and made it more hospitable to bin Laden and his Taliban allies. The region has become a haven for bin Laden and a base for Taliban raids across the border back into Afghanistan which they had fled…

…Bin Laden has fighters and sympathizers down the length and breadth of Pakistan’s Pashtun belt. No Pakistani Pashtun has reason to betray bin Laden, despite the $27 million reward for his head. Thanks to the drug trade in Afghanistan and the suitcases full of cash still arriving from backers in the Arabian Gulf, neither al Qaeda nor the local Pashtuns are short money. The Pakistani army’s failure to offer Pashtuns a greater political role in the national framework has not inspired any loyalty among the tribesmen. And misguided U.S. interventions, such as the January missile strike that killed women and children, do the rest.

Washington’s recent decison to start pulling U.S. troops out of Afghanistan this year has only reinforced al Qaeda’s belief that it is winning. After nearly five years of avoiding capture or death, every single day that bin Laden stays alive is a day that inspires the extremists who protect him and join his ranks…[and there is more]  Pakistani Pashtuns indeed.

I’m sorry, I don’t get it.

• Technorati Taliban, Afghanistan, Osama Bin Laden, Pakistan, Pashtuns

Current Affairs, International Issues, Opinions Sphere: Related Content

No Comments »

This is a continuing story of the insecurity of our southern border with Mexico and some of the surrounding issues.  It is based on a discussion I had with a close friend of mine who is involved in training activities on the border, and some of the revelations from my chat with him.  I’ve gone into some research on the subject and will relate published information so as not to directly disclose some of the things he said to me.

So lets start with an update on the violence in and around Nuevo Laredo.

Four plainclothes federal police agents shot dead…
An ambush attack in Nuevo Laredo, Mexico, has claimed the lives of four plainclothes federal police agents.

Investigators say an unknown number of gunmen sprayed the agents’ unmarked pickup truck with more than 30 bullets. The attack occurred across the street from an elementary school that was just letting out…[more]

…Since the beginning of the year, more than 50 people have been shot and killed in ambush-style attacks in Nuevo Laredo, across from Laredo, Texas. The city of 330,000 has been caught in a turf war between rival drug gangs fighting for billion-dollar smuggling routes into the United States…

These bastards are not simply "pistolerros" working for the drug runners.  There is strong reason to believe that these are Mexican military/Mexican special forces types (renegades) working for the drug runners and cartels.  The incursions are occurring not just sporadically, but every day.  And it isn’t a matter of yards…its a matter of miles into the United States.  American’s are being murdered and kidnapped.  American Border Patrol Agents are being fired upon, and they are outmanned, outgunned, and under trained…until now.

KEY FACTS AND BACKGROUND (please feel free to follow the links and read more)
THE PROBLEM (in a nutshell)
Drug-related violence on the Texas-Mexico border has surged during the past year, the result of intense competition between the Gulf cartel, led by Osiel Cardenas-Guillen, and the Sinaloa cartel, also known as the "Federation," run by Joaquin "Chapo" Guzman Loera and Arturo Beltran Leyva.

Both gangs seek to control long-established drug-smuggling corridors into Texas. Authorities estimate that more than $14 billion in illicit narcotics pass annually through the Laredo area.

The bombs and other paraphernalia are thought to belong to or be destined for the drug cartels in Nuevo Laredo, where a brutal war over control of drug and alien smuggling routes rages. More than 200 people, including the police chief, a city council member and 13 police officers, have been killed in Nuevo Laredo in the past year as part of the drug war.

Nuevo Laredo, across the Rio Grande from Laredo, is the most active port of entry on the Mexican border, with 6,000 trucks crossing daily into Texas carrying 40 percent of Mexico’s exports.

The war since has spread to many parts of the Southwest, led, in part, by a rogue band of Mexican military deserters known as the "Zetas." Trained in the United States as an elite corps of anti-drug soldiers, the Zetas have since signed on as Gulf cartel mercenaries.

Border Patrol Tactical Unit
BORTAC is the Border Patrol’s specially trained tactical unit. This defines it, but it doesn’t describe what this select team is about nor does it capture the drama and excitement of their work. BORTAC is summoned for high-risk and difficult missions-they quell riots, restore order in natural disasters, track terrorists, and intercept human smugglers and drug traffickers.

As I understand it there is now an effort to provide SF training to our Border Patrol Agents so they are better able to deal with the Mexican renegades who were trained by US!

BORTAC headquarters is collocated with its training unit at Biggs Army Airfield in El Paso, Texas. The BORTAC training unit is currently responsible for conducting all INS tactical team training. In addition the unit also provides specialist training to other Federal, state and local law enforcement agencies. As part of a joint Department of State/ Department of Justice training program, BORTAC has also provided tactical team and counter narcotics training to several foreign governments police, paramilitary, tactical, drug, and specialist units, including the El Salvadoran National Police’s Grupo de Respuesta Policial (GRP) tactical unit.

In a comment to one of my earlier posts, it was noted that the Mexicans have Humvees armed with 50 caliber weapons.  BORTAC is better equipped than the basic Border Patrol unit: Because of its national and international responsibilities BORTAC is authorized a wide range of weapons systems not normally available to other BP personnel. The following is a partial list of the approved specialized weapons available for use by BORTAC: Barreta 96D 40 cal. Brigadier Service Pistol, Heckler & Koch (HK) USP40, SIG- Sauer P229 DAO 9mm, Remington 870 12 gauge shotgun with 14" barrel, M4A1 carbine, M-16A1 or A2 5.56mm rifle, M-14 7.62mm rifle, HK UMP40 .40 cal SMG, Remington 700 .308 rifle, Remington M40 XBKS .308 rifle, M-79 40mm grenade launcher (GL), M-203 40mm GL, 37 mm gas guns, HK MP5 A2 or A3 9mm SMG, HK 33A2 rifle, HK53 A2 or A3 rifle, and the Steyr SSG rifle. The Remington shotguns have been specially modified by Scattergun Technologies.

OUR ADVERSARIES - MEXICAN ZETAS
A renegade band of Mexican military deserters, offering $50,000 bounties for the assassination of U.S. law-enforcement officers, has expanded its base of operations into the United States to protect loads of cocaine and marijuana being brought into America by Mexican smugglers, authorities said.

The deserters, known as the "Zetas," trained in the United States as an elite force of anti-drug commandos, but have since signed on as mercenaries for Mexican narcotics traffickers and have recruited an army of followers, many of whom are believed to be operating in Texas, Arizona, California and Florida.

"Ní se acercen" - More Violence in Nuevo Laredo
Included in this post is a link to American Phoenix’s discussion of HR 4437.  Not going into the intricacies of the legislative process, HR 4437 actually incorporated the provisions of HR 4312:

Border Security and HR 4312 and Supporting HR 4312 and Drugs, National Security and the Mexican Border - UPDATE

One of the many provisions of HR 4437 is making it a violation to aide and abet an illegal alien.  The language is as follows:

SEC. 274. (a) Criminal Offenses and Penalties-

  `(1) PROHIBITED ACTIVITIES- Whoever–

`(A) assists, encourages, directs, or induces a person to come to or enter the United States, or to attempt to come to or enter the United States, knowing or in reckless disregard of the fact that such person is an alien who lacks lawful authority to come to or enter the United States;

`(B) assists, encourages, directs, or induces a person to come to or enter the United States at a place other than a designated port of entry or place other than as designated by the Secretary of Homeland Security, regardless of whether such person has official permission or lawful authority to be in the United States, knowing or in reckless disregard of the fact that such person is an alien;

`(C) assists, encourages, directs, or induces a person to reside in or remain in the United States, or to attempt to reside in or remain in the United States, knowing or in reckless disregard of the fact that such person is an alien who lacks lawful authority to reside in or remain in the United States;

`(D) transports or moves a person in the United States, knowing or in reckless disregard of the fact that such person is an alien who lacks lawful authority to enter or be in the United States, where the transportation or movement will aid or further in any manner the person’s illegal entry into or illegal presence in the United States;

`(E) harbors, conceals, or shields from detection a person in the United States knowing or in reckless disregard of the fact that such person is an alien who lacks lawful authority to be in the United States;

`(F) transports, moves, harbors, conceals, or shields from detection a person outside of the United States knowing or in reckless disregard of the fact that such person is an alien in unlawful transit from one country to another or on the high seas, under circumstances in which the person is in fact seeking to enter the United States without official permission or lawful authority; or

  `(G) conspires or attempts to commit any of the preceding acts,

shall be punished as provided in paragraph (2), regardless of any official action which may later be taken with respect to such alien.

The United States is under attack from our southern border.  Whether the mercenaries are current Mexican military or renegade former Mexican military with special forces training, the continuing violence, the murders, the threats and the kidnappings have to cease.  And its not just the Texas border that is under seige.  The Southern California border near Tiajuana has been the site of multiple recent kidnappings.  Here is another long article titled "Lieutenant in Mexican drug cartel a wanted man" that
details the exploits of The Texan called "La Barbie" is a shadowy legend,
described as a smart, bilingual, 32-year-old ladies’ man with a fondness for
Versace clothes, luxury automobiles and hobnobbing at top-drawer nightclubs.

His name is Edgar Valdez Villareal, and he’s a lieutenant in the Sinaloa drug
cartel, Mexican and U.S. authorities say, a ruthless point man in the group’s
battle with the Gulf cartel for supremacy in Mexico’s illicit-drug trade.

Its a war.  Make no mistake about it.  It may be driven my the drug
lords, but its a war nonetheless.  And as my friend Moonage has said, its
time that we treat it as such.

• Technorati
  border security,
  BORTAC, Zetas

Current Affairs, Federal Policy, National Security, Opinions Sphere: Related Content

6 Comments »

I remember reading that Afghanistan was "stable" and that "the Taliban has been erased"…of course, I "read" this when a "so-called expert" from NATO claimed it was so.   Some of what this "expert" wrote:

"I have been to Afghanistan more times than I can remember in the last 3 years and this is the most successful operation that I have ever seen when you see what is going on in Kabul in particular. NATO, in particular, has really stepped up. This is not the opinion of the news media."

Or this:

"…I see Afghanistan as a very successful operation. The drug problem and the representation problem are significant and are of concern. But look at what we have pulled off. They have done credible elections, there is a building boom in Kabul, and it is done under a multilateral framework.

This is a multiyear commitment, and it is a true international effort

The impact of drugs and drug lords is significant and complex. It must be noted that drug cultivation was a problem before the Soviets invaded. I don’t see it as stopping progress in the society as a whole. But it is a tough problem, no doubt about it.

The biggest roadblock to peace and tranquility is that a pessimistic and cynical west will bail on these people.

The Taliban are kaput at this point, and I personally don’t think they will ever come back…

In summary,  this thing is in pretty good shape, IMO…"

I stand on my opinion that this guy didn’t know what he was talking about. So lets just look at some recent "facts."

5 Ambushed, Killed in Eastern Afghanistan
Militants ambushed an influential former governor near his home Saturday, killing him and four others, while three suspected Taliban rebels died in a botched attack on a current governor, Afghan officials said.

The violence came just days after Taliban commander Mullah Omar purportedly threatened a major rebel resurgence…[more]

Taliban rebels team up with drug barons
Taliban rebels determined to keep southern Afghanistan in chaos have teamed up with drug barons against the government and its opium eradication campaign, officials say.

The campaign to destroy opium poppy fields was begun March 8 in southern Helmand, the producer of most of Afghanistan’s opium crop — which makes up nearly 90 percent of the world total — and also one of the provinces worst-hit by a Taliban-led insurgency.

"Terrorists and narcotics are very close; they’re supporting each other," said Helmand province Gov. Muhammad Daud. "When narcotics production is up, terrorism automatically goes up."

Lt. Col. Henry Worsley of the 3,500 British forces deployed in the province agreed. "Taliban and drugs feed each other. You cannot separate them here." [more]

Nine Afghan police die moving Macedonians’ bodies
KANDAHAR, Afghanistan, March 18 (Reuters) - A blast killed nine Afghan policemen as they were bringing back the bodies of four Macedonians kidnapped and killed by the Taliban and dumped in a valley, the Kandahar provincial governor said on Saturday.

In a separate incident, the Taliban claimed responsibility for killing a powerful former governor of the eastern province of Ghazni, who was shot dead along with four bodyguards…[more]

Of course, to all of this, you need to read Andy Cochran’s post on Counterterrorism Blog titled Sebastian Junger Revisits Afghanistan and Points Finger at Pakistan in which he wrote, "…He notes that while Pakistan has captured and turned over key Al Qaeda operatives, it hasn’t turned over a single mid- or high-ranking Taliban official to the U.S. since the attacks. Junger talked with a former Taliban government official with current knowledge of that assistance. He writes that some Pakistani military are training Taliban recruits. The Taliban official gave him the name and phone number of an ISI agent who brings recruits from a region in Afghanistan, inserts them into training camps in western Pakistan, and then sends them back to fight. Junger also writes that the ex-Taliban told him that the Paks are receiving as much money from Osama Bin Laden to not capture him as they are taking from the United States to catch him. If true, this claim indicates both a level of duplicity that must start near the top of the Pakistani government, and a level of resources available to Bin Laden that is extremely high…"

Seems to me that the eradication of the Taliban has been proclaimed way too early…seems to me that notwithstanding proclamations of a "rosy future" for the Afghan people is premature as well. I realize that there are "some" who don’t want to read stuff like this, but that’s what "rose colored glasses" are made for IMO.  As per my last post:

• Long war
• State-less enemy
• Decapitate al Qaeda

Besides, does anyone really want to trust Pakistan?  I know that I never have. 

• Technorati Afghanistan

Current Affairs, International Issues, National Security, Opinions Sphere: Related Content

No Comments »

Recently, we received this in our email:

To: undisclosed-recipients, :
CC:
Subject: CENTCOM Commander’s 2006 Posture Statement
Date: Thu, 16 Mar 2006 13:11:29 -0500

Thread-Topic: CENTCOM Commander’s 2006 Posture Statement

Hi:

We just added this to the CENTCOM website. General John P. Abizaid, commander, United States Central Command, puts out an annual statement on the posture of the United States Central Command.  This is the 2006 posture statement that discusses various topics on the Global War on Terrorism.  Some of the topics include “Nature of the Enemy”, “Situation Overview in Iraq, Afghanistan, and the Horn of Africa", "Other Regional Partnerships" and Iran and Syria."

Read it on the CENTCOM website here:

Although this is also posted on the CENTCOM website, we appreciate being on CENTCOM’s mailing list getting the direct "heads-up."  The entire posture statement is available for anyone who wishes to read it.  I’m going to select what I believe are key points.

From the Introduction

• The Iraqi elections in December were particularly important. Since the dictatorship of Saddam Hussein was removed in 2003, a persistent insurgency in Sunni Arab areas has hampered progress toward civil government. In December’s elections, Sunnis voted in large numbers. While too soon to gauge the impact of this participation on the broader insurgency, the new government will have four years in which to build durable government institutions. Iraqi stability can be achieved through a combination of reliable security forces, an improving economy, and legitimate government. Legitimacy will in part be defined in terms of how Iraq’s leadership manages sectarian violence. Civil unrest must ultimately be handled by Iraqis for Iraqis.

The transition from U.S. led forces to Iraqi led forces is key.  I think that the statement could be characterized as showing progress but also a "wait and see" attitude.  This caution was expressed back in December before the election here in a post titled "Winning in Iraq - The Transition."

From "Global Terrorism and the Long War"

• Defeating al Qaida and associated ideological movements will require significant counterterrorism cooperation among our allies and partners not only within the CENTCOM AOR, but throughout the globe. It will also require the dedication of military, intelligence, and many other components of national power. Our network of allies and agencies will eventually defeat the al Qaida network, but we have yet to master the integration of national and international power to achieve success against this ruthless, borderless enemy. We have long experience with nation state warfare. We must, in the years ahead, learn to organize ourselves to defeat a stateless enemy capable of delivering state-like destruction without having state-like vulnerabilities. Defeating such an enemy requires a careful study of its clearly articulated strategy and vision.

Here again, this is a key point, not always recognized or accepted, and often debated.  Its a key phrase, "…to defeat a stateless enemy capable of delivering state-like destruction without having state-like vulnerabilities…"  Among other previous posts, this issue was covered here in the "War on Terror - Not Just State Sponsored" and here in "The Changing Face of The War on Terror - 2006 QDR."  I believe that this is a critical paradigm shift in how we all see this War on Terrorism.  While there is no question that Iran and North Korea are states that sponsor terrorism and terrorists activities, we fight an amorphous enemy today.  The Nation would be wise to listen to Abizaid.  Further in his statement he said:

• Finally, and most important, this enemy seeks to develop or acquire weapons of mass destruction. If they could develop or acquire a chemical, biological, or nuclear device, they would use it. This is not a guess. This is what they say. Their willingness to use suicide means to deliver such a weapon heightens this threat. There should be no mistake about the stakes in this broader war against al Qaida. The enemy must be deprived of time, safe haven and resources to prevent development and use of mass-casualty producing devices.

Today, we have a much fuller understanding of the al Qaida network than we did on September 11, 2001. It exists in the geographic realm,
but also thrives in virtual space, constituting a global threat. Geographically, it seeks ungoverned spaces inside weak and failing states where it can establish safe havens and training sites. In these areas, military forces – ours or others – can have good effects. But this is a thinking enemy, adapting against our strengths. They have developed virtual safe havens. They have front companies. They employ facilitators and sympathetic charities that move their finances and enable their ideology to spread around the region. It is a secretive, complex network that often hides in plain sight.

Fortunately, the vast majority of the people in the region want nothing to do with the perverted vision of Islam preached by al Qaida. But the power and grip of the al Qaida movement and ideology should not be underestimated. Communism and fascism started with relatively few, but deeply committed adherents, and the hate preached by al Qaida resonates with young men and women of little hope. Its global reach is already disturbingly apparent. In 2005, they enlisted suicide bombers from all over the Middle East and deployed over 500 of them world-wide, killing thousands of innocent civilians, most of whom were Muslims.

From the section titled "Principles of Global Terrorism and the Long War"

• For the first time in our history, the principal enemy facing the United States is not another nation state – it is an ideologically-driven, borderless network. Such an enemy requires new thinking on how we organize and fight. Militarily, we will continue to kill and capture al Qaida leaders, shut down training camps, destroy operational cells, and prevent al Qaida and associated movements from exploiting ungoverned spaces. Certainly, such action requires precision targeting and highly sophisticated intelligence networks of our own. Nonmilitary measures to defeat al Qaida will be increasingly decisive in ultimately bringing about the network’s defeat. In order to counter its fanatical ideology and diminish its sources of strength, all elements of international and national power – diplomatic, political, economic, financial, the private sector – must be used to pressure the entire al Qaida and associated movement network over time. 

"…Kill and capture al Qaeda leaders…"  To me, in simple terms, that mean finding a killing bin Laden…no, I don’t believe that the War on Terrorism will end if bin Laden is killed or captured.  But proof of his death or capture will be a significant symbolic event.

My place here in this post is not to editorialize and comment on each and every segment of General Abizaid’s statement.  Read it, and comment.  Its worth reading in its entirety. 

My summary:

• Long war
• State-less enemy
• Decapitate al Qaeda

Feel free to quote from and/or link to it. Thanks.

• Technorati John P. Abizaid, al Qaida

Current Affairs, Federal Policy, National Security, Opinions Sphere: Related Content

No Comments »

It may not make most peoples’ radar screens, but the much ballyhooed security technology, Radio Frequency ID chips have been found to be vulnerable again.  HUH?

Well, the first chink in the armor came when Johns Hopkins grad students in partnership with RSA defeated the encryption of the basic RFIDs found in smart keys (like in Mercedes Benz cars) and wireless payment tags. While I know the technical argument is that the level of encryption of these forms is basic and that the tags used in higher level applications is logrithmically more complex (I think that’s the right term), it demonstrated a vulnerability that raised few eyebrows. Anyone interested can view the research paper here.

• ( Host note: More from Homeland Stupidity. )

The researchers discovered a critically important fact: the encryption algorithm used by the chip to scramble the challenge uses a relatively short code, known as a key. The longer the code key, which is measured in bits, the harder it is to crack any encryption system.

The implications of the Hopkins finding go beyond stealing cars.

Variations on the technology used in the chips, known as RFID for radio frequency identification, are widely used. Similar systems deduct highway tolls from drivers’ accounts and restrict access to workplaces.

Wal-Mart is using the technology to track inventory, the Food and Drug Administration is considering it to foil drug counterfeiting, and the medical school at the University of California, Los Angeles, plans to implant chips in cadavers to curtail unauthorized sale of body parts.

The Johns Hopkins researchers say that if other radio frequency ID systems are vulnerable, the new field could offer far less security than its proponents promise…

http://www.techtree.com/techtree/jsp/showstory.jsp?storyid=57425&s=ln
http://p2pnet.net/story/3717

Now, however, its been established that even the more sophisticated systems can be compromised by specially written viruses…IMO, if there is one area where today’s terrorists, especially the al Qaeda variety have expertise, it is in computer and IT technologies.

Researchers craft first RFID virus
RFID systems open to viruses

…In an airport scenario, one maliciously crafted tag on a suitcase could infect the scanning system, which could then be instructed to spread the exploit code to all suitcases in the system. This could cause a global RFID infection within 24 hours, researcher Melanie Rieback cautioned…[much more]

A group of European computer researchers have issued a study warning RFID middleware and applications are vulnerable to viruses encoded into a tag’s memory.
…While such virus attacks may be possible in theory, says Ashton, good software development practices would ensure that these vulnerabilities would be extremely unlikely to be found in any RFID network. "There are any number of hurdles that a piece of malicious code would have to overcome [to do any damage]," says Ashton, adding that RFID interrogators alone would detect rogue tags or rogue software on tags as part of the verification process of reading tags.

Nonetheless, Tanenbaum believes that a system using read-write tags are at the greatest risk because a system compromised by a single malicious tag could be used to create many more infected tags. One example is the tag used in RFID-enabled baggage-handling system already in operation at Las Vegas’ McCarran airport. Once infected, baggage tags could be used to infect baggage-handling systems worldwide as bags with infected tags move to and are read at other airports, Tanenbaum claims.

The threat from RFID viruses is compounded further by the interaction that RFID tags enable between physical objects and events and computer systems. "In the past, if these attacks are used on a PC, then it might crash the computer, but RFID merges the real world and the virtual world, and so there is the potential for real and much more severe consequences," he says…[more]

Radio Chip Barcodes Can Carry a Virus: Scientists
…“Everyone working on RFID technology has tacitly assumed that the mere act of scanning an RFID tag cannot modify back-end software and certainly not in a malicious way. Unfortunately, they are wrong,’ the scientists said in a paper.

“An RFID tag can be infected with a virus and this virus can infect the back-end database used by the RFID software. From there it can be easily spread to other RFID tags,’ they said…[more]

Study Says Chips in ID Tags Are Vulnerable to Viruses
Anyone interested can read the paper here.

The focus of attention regarding port security has been the controversy over the DPW deal. The fact is that the RFID technology hasn’t been broadly implemented because of its cost. Ports’ Technology Failure RFID tags could greatly increase port security by tracking international cargo — but no one wants to pay for it.

My associates and I were "intrigued" when we read that RFIDs could be compromised with viruses and malware, but that’s a subject I won’t expand upon. If the "industry" ignores this research paper…well, it probably won’t…but if it does, it will simply be another chink in the armor of the RFID technology that is being shoved down the throats of companies by the likes of WalMart and the FDA, while not ignoring the DoD’s dependence on RFIDs.

Port Security - Tracking Cargo

Added August 5, 2006 by Moon - More from Homeland Stupidity

Federal Policy, National Security, Technology Sphere: Related Content

9 Comments »

This doesn’t make the issue of the DPW management deal any less controversial, but it is clear that there is both bipartisan support and bipartisan opposition to the deal.  THAT makes it quite interesting.

The House Appropriations Committee voted 62-2 to block the Dubai Ports World deal…

The amendment was inserted into an emergency supplemental funding bill for military actions in Iraq and Afghanistan. The bill also includes about $19 billion in disaster assistance for the Gulf Coast in the wake of Hurricanes Katrina and Rita.

The full House could vote on the measure as early as next week. The committee’s approval was bipartisan. Democrat Rep. Jim Moran of Virginia and Republican Jim Kolbe of Arizona cast the only "no" votes…[more]

Former CIA Officer: Dubai Ports Not So Secure

Larry Johnson, a former CIA officer who now heads the Business Exposure Reduction Group (BERG), believes he knows what could be motivating Hunter, Collins and other members of Congress to oppose the DPW deal.

"There is current intelligence that individuals with ties to jihadist terrorist groups have sought refuge in Dubai/UAE, within the last three months," from countries that are considered sympathetic to terrorists, Johnson said. "They felt more secure going to the UAE…"

…"When you look at three of the top world ports for smuggling, counterfeit and contraband activity, those are, by my count, Hong Kong, Dubai and Panama. Dubai Ports World controls two of the three" Johnson said, referring to Dubai and Hong Kong…

Watch Republicans rocking the boat over the ports deal — 1:36

Questions about the deal answered

Watch Hunter explain how ‘great Republicans’ are working to kill the ports deal — 3:27

Watch why a DP World exec believes his company can meet American security standards — 12:10

House Panel Votes to Block Ports Deal

Interesting how Duncan Hunter believes that "great Republicans" are working to kill the ports deal.  This one, especially the political fall-out, in my opinion, is long from being over.

• Technorati Dubai Ports World, port security

Current Affairs, Federal Policy, National Security, Opinions Sphere: Related Content

2 Comments »

Just what is it going to take for the Mexican government of Vincente Fox to control the drug related violence on the Southern border?

Still another attack occurred yesterday in Nuevo Laredo, with two police officers being killed in what was a 20 minute gun battle.

Nuevo Laredo cops are killed; media muzzled       Threats phoned to news organizations produced an effective blackout on        coverage, several journalists said.     State preventative police Cmdr. Victor Berrones Lara, 46, and officer Norberto Vasquez Eguia, 24, died from gunshot wounds suffered in the shooting. Two other officers in the same vehicle, José Plata and José Sanchez, were hospitalized with minor injuries, said a spokesman for the agency, Hector Walle. About a mile south of the ambush site, investigators found an armored Ford pickup abandoned in a ditch, two state officials said in separate interviews. Both spoke only on condition of anonymity.

Inside the truck, officers found two assault rifles — an AK-47 and an AR-15 — with about 1,700 rounds of ammunition. A 9-mm Beretta handgun, black police-style uniforms and military fatigues without insignia also were found…

…Suspected drug traffickers killed a state police commander and another officer Tuesday in a daylight ambush on a highway here, the latest in a wave of violence that refuses to loosen its grip on this city.

The gunfire roared for more than 20 minutes, witnesses said, but hardly a word of the 10 a.m. shootout was heard on radio stations here Tuesday.

Also Tuesday, two men were found shot to death along a dirt road outside Nuevo Laredo.

The men, who hadn’t been identified, were handcuffed and bore signs of torture, police said. In another attack, gunmen shot and killed a man in an SUV.          

Tuesday’s shootings brought the number of killings to more than 40 this  year — the majority drug related.    

Most Nuevo Laredo police reporters got a call by phone or radio after the police shooting which contained the warning, “Ní se acercen” — “Don’t even come close” — said several journalists who asked not to be identified…[more]                       

OPINION: This is drug related terrorism.  This continuing violence along our Mexican border can only lead to more bloodshed and a breakdown in the relationship between Mexico and the United States.  I have much more to write about this subject, but need to secure release on certain communications before doing so.

Current Affairs, International Issues, National Security, Opinions Sphere: Related Content

5 Comments »

In his post, "The Rise of Talibanistan," Bill Roggio highlights the influence that the Taliban (and al Qaeda) have in Hamid Karzai’s democratic Afghanistan.

The Taliban and al-Qaeda provided an embarrassing scene for Pakistani President Pervez Musharraf as President George Bush visited the country last week. Eager to demonstrate Pakistan’s commitment to fighting the Taliban and al-Qaeda in the Federally Administered Tribal Areas on the border with Afghanistan, the Pakistani military launched an offensive against a terrorist camp in Danda Saidgai, North Waziristan. The Islamists responded by murdering a U.S. diplomat in a suicide strike outside the U.S. Consulate in Karachi, as well as launching a counteroffensive against the seat of government in Miranshah, North Waziristan…

…The resurgence of the Taliban is often credited to their resilience in Afghanistan, however the truth is the Taliban is not very popular within Afghanistan proper. The Taliban’s power is derived from Pakistan, as it always has since its inception in the early 1990s. The fighting in Afghanistan is largely being fueled in Pakistan’s lawless border region, and Pakistan has proven unable to establish government control five years after the fall of the Taliban in Afghanistan.[more]

Over on ThreatsWatch, an article by Dan Darling, "Pakistan Steps Up Ops" highlights the attempts by Pakistan to quell terrorist activities in Waziristan (NOTE: a place where the tribes, especially the Pashtun rule).

In a likely effort to dampen criticism that it has lost control of Waziristan, the Pakistani military has mounted a major operation against an al-Qaeda training camp in Saidgai, claiming to have killed 40 mainly foreign terrorists and wounded an additional 20 in an effort to kill a Chechen al-Qaeda leader referred to only as “Imam.” One should note that the discovery of a major al-Qaeda training facility, particularly one housing eight residential quarters, contradicts long-standing Pakistani claims that its northern territories are not a haven for al-Qaeda and its allies…

…As Pakistani journalist Ahmed Rashid noted recently in the Washington Post, al-Qaeda is far from defeated in northern Pakistan…[more]

I won’t even list the number of posts that I’ve written here on this blog regarding the teetering of Afghanistan, despite other people’s "rose colored glasses" outlook on the stability of that country, or my total lack of trust of the Pashtun.  I think that Roggio and Darling provide a great insight into why Afghanistan is far from "out of the woods."

Current Affairs, International Issues, Opinions Sphere: Related Content

No Comments »

With all of the public discussion about the security of U.S. ports recently, perhaps we’ve lost sight of another important component of critical infrastructure security…our Nation’s power plants.

From GAO-04-1064T:  The events of September 11, 2001, and the subsequent discovery of commercial nuclear power plants on a list of possible terrorist targets have focused considerable attention on the plants’ capabilities to defend against a terrorist attack. The Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC), an independent agency established by the Energy Reorganization Act of 1974 to regulate the civilian use of nuclear materials, is responsible for regulating and overseeing security at commercial nuclear power plants. GAO was asked to review (1) NRC’s efforts since September 11, 2001, to improve security at nuclear power plants, including actions NRC has taken to implement some of GAO’s September 2003 recommendations to improve security oversight and (2) the extent to which NRC is in a position to assure itself and the public that the plants are protected against terrorist attacks…

Especially with the recent al Qaeda attempt to attack refineries in Saudi Arabia, and the continuing concern that U.S. nuclear facilities might be a target of terrorism, this is an important topic to explore and keep on the radar screen.  From a new source, ThomasNet.com, we have an article titled "How Vulnerable Are U.S. Power Plants?"…Experts say that an attack on a nuclear power plant, all of which in the U.S. are guarded by private security forces hired by the plants and supervised by the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC), couldn’t lead to a nuclear explosion, according to the nonpartisan Council of Foreign Relations. The danger, they say, is that attackers could cause a meltdown or a fire or set off a major conventional explosion, all of which could spew radiation into nearby cities and towns.

Currently, there are 103 operating commercial nuclear reactors producing electricity in the U.S., located at 64 sites in 31 states…

…from the Associated Press (via Forbes) that reported “a government defense plan for nuclear power plants assumes an attack would come from less than half the number of Sept. 11 hijackers and they wouldn’t be armed with rocket-propelled grenades or other weapons often used by terrorists overseas.”

According to critics of the largely classified, AP-reported security document, such assumptions could make plants vulnerable to a terrorist takeover…[more]

Not surprisingly there is a very recent news release, New NRC Investigation of Security at Wackenhut-guarded Nuclear Plant that there had been "Significant Issues" found at the Turkey Point Nuclear Power Plant in Florida.  According to the news release, Wackenhut is entrusted with security at 30 facilities.  Of concern is this:

According to the NRC, the Augmented Inspection Team (AIT) is investigating "significant issues" at the Turkey Point nuclear power plant "to ensure that the security program is being effectively implemented." However, the NRC statement warns that details of "inspections of security at the nation’s nuclear power plants are not publicly available." In 2004 the NRC publicly announced it will no longer reveal security gaps discovered at nuclear power plants or the subsequent actions taken against plant operators.

"This is more evidence that there are serious questions about whether Wackenhut can keep our nuclear energy or weapons plants safe," said Stephen Lerner, Director of Property Services Division of Service Employees International Union, the nation’s largest security officers’ union.

For posterity and future reference, here are the cited sources for the ThomasNet.com article:

References/Resources

Report Profiles Nuclear-Plant Attackers
by H. Josef Hebert
The Associated Press (via Forbes), Feb. 22, 2006

Time for Chemical Plant Security
New York Times (Select), Dec. 27, 2005

Energy: New Plants, Old Problems
by Jill Jusko
Industry Week, published: Feb. 24, 2006

Nuclear Facilities: Could terrorists target U.S. nuclear power plants?
Council on Foreign Affairs

Resources

Emergency Preparedness for Business: Facility Protection
National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health

Nuclear Plant Safety
PBS series, NOW

Protecting Chemical Plants from Catastrophic Failures, Part 1
by William Wayman
Security Info. Watch, Feb. 10, 2005

Protecting Chemical Plants from Catastrophic Failures, Part 2
by William Wayman
Security Info. Watch, March 16, 2005

Are You Ready? Nuclear Power Plants
FEMA, Jan. 28, 2005

National Security Sphere: Related Content

No Comments »

Its not that I want to see a self-fulfilling prophecy in any way, but if I am nothing, I am consistent.  I have maintained two basic positions regarding Afghanistan:

1) don’t trust the Pashtun tribe…no way…no how…never!

2) the picture in Afghanistan is not as rosy as some people posture (one such person being a NATO employee who has insisted that everything was going well), and that the resurgence of the drug trade would destabilize the country.

Add to that, my belief that the very structure of the Afghan government, that of a relatively weak central government with the real power lying in the provinces where the warlords and drug lords hold the power, puts Karzai in a compromised and possibly tenuous position.  Notwithstanding President Bush’s surprise visit to Kabul this week, how long will Karzai remain if he loses the support of the warlords?

Anyway, Doug Farah has written an insightful post (OK, fine!, it also agrees with my perspective on the subject) on his blog that is summarized on the Counterterrorism Blog:

Pessimism Grows on Afghanistan
…Lt. Gen. Michael Maples, director of the Defense Intelligence Agency; John Negroponte; and the State Department all painted a bleak picture of what is happening in that country, something my sources both in Europe and Pakistan have been worried about-and warning about-for almost a year. And they warn it is likely to get much worse this year.

The causes are multiple: Resources siphoned off to Iraq; a growing opium trade providing massive revenue streams for regional warlords who owe no loyalty to the central government or the democratic process; a rejuvinated Taliban drawing strength from both Pashtuns in Afghanistan-Pakistan border regions and a renewed influx of Arab jihadist fighters and money; and a changing of the guard on the ground as NATO takes over for some of the U.S. Special Forces carrying out the brunt of the combat.

While it is a welcome sign of well-deserved concern that senior leaders are publicly acknowledging the problem, there seems to be little being done to actually try to turn the situation around…[much more]

In case you missed earlier posts regarding Afghanistan:

Afghanistan - Winning and Losing
Post Taliban Afghanistan – The New Parliament
Afghanistan: CENTCOM, NATO and Narcotics
Terrorist Resurrection
Tribal Unrest in Pashtunistan

Current Affairs, International Issues, Opinions Sphere: Related Content

No Comments »

The convergence of the War on Terror with the international narcotics trade is on the radar screen today.  Start with Afghanistan where there is a relatively weak central government with power ceded to the local governments (warlords).

Provided by the Counterterrorism Blog, the U.S. State Department has issued the 2006 International Narcotics Control Strategy Report (INCSR).
The section on Afghanistan discusses the problems that the narcotics/poppy/opium trade are creating for that country:  "…The political and economic situation in Afghanistan is improving, but opium production and the resultant trafficking of opium and its derivatives still accounts for roughly one third of Afghanistan’s total (combined licit and illicit) GDP. Afghanistan’s huge drug trade severely impacts efforts to rebuild the economy, develop a strong democratic government based on rule of law, and threatens regional stability. Dangerous security conditions and corruption constrain government and international efforts to combat the drug trade and provide alternative incomes. However, there was some cause for guarded optimism in 2005. The number of hectares under poppy cultivation dropped 48 percent, from 2004’s record crop of 206,700 to 107,400, according to USG statistics. Opium production, however, dropped only 10 percent because yields rose sharply due to favorable weather. The reduction in planting may be credited to a number of factors, including surplus crop from 2004, public information efforts against poppy cultivation, (including President Karzai’s public statements), promised alternative livelihoods assistance, and the threat of forced eradication and arrest. President Karzai pledged an additional 20 percent reduction in cultivation for 2006. In a significant positive legal development, the GOA extradited a major drug trafficker to the U.S. in October, the first time Afghanistan permitted the extradition of a citizen for drug trafficking…"

On the other side of the Durand Line, we see evidence of Pakistan cracking down on the narcotics traffic.

‘Pakistan on drug war’s frontline’
Pakistan is on the frontline of the war against drugs, being a major transit country for opiates and hashish from Afghanistan, according to a US government report released on Wednesday.

The two-volume International Narcotics Control Strategy Report released by the State Department said in its six-page section on drug and chemical control in Pakistan that increased law enforcement pressure in Afghanistan threatens to shift drug trafficking operations across the border. “Aiming to return to poppy-free status, Pakistan saw a 58 percent decrease in opium poppy cultivation in 2005 to approximately 3.147 hectares, of which 2,440 hectares were harvested,” it pointed out. The Pakistan government, the report said, does not have any evidence of heroin labs in Pakistan, although the US drugs agency, DEA, continues to receive unconfirmed reports about the existence of a few small heroin-producing labs in the country…[more]

I continue to believe that so long as the warlords/drug lords of Afghanistan continue to export opium, the country will remain unstable.  We know that narcotics and terrorism have converged. 

Previously on StormWarning’s Counterterrorism:  Afghanistan: CENTCOM, NATO and Narcotics
Also note the source post by Bob Charles from the CT Blog: CENTCOM, Afghanistan and Drugs

• Technorati narcotics, war on terror, Afghanistan

International Issues, Opinions Sphere: Related Content

No Comments »