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Thread: Be vigilant this holiday season.

  1. #1
    John Sanderson is offline Lifetime Member

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    Be vigilant this holiday season.

    While surfing the internet in search of news updates nationwide in regard to national security, I came across quite a few stories of terrorists arrested. Now, I don't want to alarm anyone, rather, I wish to raise your awareness to the possability of you witnessing suspicious activity.

    Most (if not all) states have a phone number you can call to report suspected terrorist activities. I suggest you call your local police department, get this number and add it to your contacts in your cell phone and/or roladex as a precaution, so you don't have to search later.

    Here is one article I came across:

    Oregon Christmas tree lighting ceremony
    target of Muslim terrorist


    Mohamed Osman MOHAMUD

    27 November 2010: Mohamed Osman MOHAMUD, 19, was arrested by federal authorities last evening after he dialed a number on a cellular phone that was supposed to detonate a large bomb hidden in a van parked at a crowded annual Christmas tree lighting ceremony in Portland, Oregon. His intent was to kill as many people attending the ceremony as possible. Many of the attendees were young children and their families, packed into Pioneer Courthouse Square.

    The “bomb,” however, did not detonate as the ingredients were inert, substituted for the real thing after the FBI learned of MOHAMUD’S murderous intentions. They successfully infiltrated the plot and derailed his plans well before the bomb could be constructed of real explosives.

    As MOHAMUD dialed the telephone number at 5:40 p.m. Pacific time that would have killed hundreds or perhaps thousands of spectators at the Christmas tree ceremony, the FBI were lying in wait. When the “explosive” laden van failed to detonate, agents swooped in on MOHAMUD, when he began shouting “Allahu Akbar!” and struggled to get away from arresting officers.

    The plan, according to court documents, was for MOHAMUD to flee the U.S. following the detonation of the bomb.

    Mohamed Osman MOHAMUD, a naturalized U.S. citizen from Somalia and resident of Corvallis, Oregon, began his quest for Islamic jihad when he was 15. Federal authorities have been closely monitoring his activities when he first appeared on their radar screen several months ago.

    Since the summer of 2009, MOHAMUD had been in email contact with a suspected terrorist in Pakistan. After discussing the possibility of the Somalia terrorist traveling to Pakistan to engage in jihad, an unnamed accomplice gave MOHAMUD contact details of a terrorist cell overseas to facilitate his murderous plot. Continue reading Oregon Christmas tree lighting ceremony target of Muslim terrorist

    MOHAMUD made numerous unsuccessful attempts to contact his accomplice. Struck by MOHAMUD’s persistence and increasingly violent jihad writings and intent, the FBI substituted an undercover agent last June in place of the U.S. contact who was to assist the Muslim terrorist.

    In July, MOHAMUD met with his accomplice, who was actually the FBI undercover agent, in Portland. He told the agent that he had written articles that were published in “Jihad Recollections,” an Internet publication that promotes violence against all non-Muslims. He stated that he wanted to conduct a holy war against “infidels” since the age of 15, and selected the annual Christmas tree lighting ceremony in Portland’s Pioneer Courthouse Square as his target of choice.

    Despite several attempts by the FBI undercover operative to discourage MOHAMUD, noting that many innocent children would likely be killed, he insisted on pressing forward. According to court documents, MOHAMUD said that he was looking for targeting a “huge mass that will … be attacked in their own element with their families celebrating the holidays.
    John Sanderson

    Task Force Investigations
    Logistics Department

  2. #2
    John Sanderson is offline Lifetime Member

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    Re: Be vigilant this holiday season.

    I remember some early advice, perhaps around the time of the Oklahoma bombing. Don't open packages you're not expecting, or from someone you don't know. This is especially true if there is not return address on it.

    You really should watch the video below.

    News Video: Click Here

    Explosives in packages bound for U.S. discovered overseas


    WASHINGTON -- Authorities on three continents thwarted multiple terrorist attacks aimed at the United States from Yemen on Friday, seizing two explosive packages addressed to Chicago-area synagogues and packed aboard cargo jets. The plot triggered worldwide fears that al-Qaida was launching a major new terror campaign.

    President Barack Obama called the coordinated attacks a "credible terrorist threat," and U.S. officials said they were increasingly confident that al-Qaida's Yemen branch, the group responsible for the failed Detroit airliner bombing last Christmas, was responsible.

    Parts of the plot might remain undetected, Obama's counterterror chief warned. "The United States is not assuming that the attacks were disrupted and is remaining vigilant," John Brennan said at the White House.

    One of the packages was found aboard a cargo plane in Dubai, the other in England. Preliminary tests indicated the packages contained the powerful industrial explosive PETN, the same chemical used in the Christmas attack, U.S. officials said. The tests had not been confirmed.

    In the U.S., cargo planes were searched up and down the Eastern Seaboard, and an Emirates Airlines passenger jet was escorted down the coast to New York by American fighter jets.

    No explosives were found aboard those planes, though the investigation was continuing on at least two.

    Obama's sobering assessment, delivered from the White House podium, unfolded four days before national elections in which discussion of terrorism has played almost no role. The president went ahead with weekend campaign appearances.

    The terrorist efforts "underscore the necessity of remaining vigilant against terrorism," the president said. While he said both packages that contained explosives originated in Yemen, he did not explicitly assign blame to al-Qaida, which is active in that Arab country and long has made clear its goal of launching new attacks on the United States.

    Authorities in Dubai intercepted one explosive device. The second package was aboard a plane searched in East Midlands, north of London, and officials said it contained a printer toner cartridge with wires and powder. Brennan said the devices were in packages about the size of a breadbox.

    While Obama didn't specifically accuse Yemen's al-Qaida branch, Brennan called it the most active al-Qaida franchise and said anyone associated with the group was a subject of concern.

    The radical U.S.-born Muslim cleric Anwar al-Awlaki, who now is in hiding in Yemen, is believed to have helped inspire recent attacks including the Fort Hood shooting, the Times Square bombing attempt and the failed Detroit airliner bombing last Christmas Day. Another American hiding in Yemen, Samir Khan, has declared himself a traitor and has helped produce al-Qaida propaganda.

    Most of the officials spoke on condition of anonymity, citing the ongoing investigation.

    Brennan later told reporters that the explosives "were in a form that was designed to try to carry out some type of attack," but he provided no further details.

    "The forensic analysis is under way," he said, adding, "Clearly from the initial observation, the initial analysis that was done, the materials that were found in the device that was uncovered was intended to do harm."

    Intelligence personnel had been monitoring a suspected plot for days, officials said. The packages in England and Dubai were discovered after Saudi Arabian intelligence picked up information related to Yemen and passed it on to the U.S., one official said.

    U.S. intelligence officials warned last month that terrorists hoped to mail chemical and biological materials as part of an attack on America and other Western countries using the mail. The alert came in a Sept. 23 bulletin from the Homeland Security Department and obtained by The Associated Press.

    In the hours following the discoveries, Yemeni officials and Scotland Yard were investigating and the U.S. issued a 72-hour ban on all cargo from Yemen.

    "As a precaution, DHS has taken a number of steps to enhance security," the agency said in a statement. "Some of these security measures will be visible while others will not."

    U.S. authorities conducted searches of aircraft in Philadelphia, Newark, N.J., and New York City.

    Since the failed Christmas bombing of a Detroit-bound airliner, Yemen has been a focus for U.S. counterterrorism officials. Before that attack, the U.S. regarded al-Qaida's branch in Yemen as primarily a threat in the region, not to the United States.

    The Yemen branch known as al-Qaida in the Arabian Peninsula has since become a leading source of terrorist propaganda and recruiting. Authorities believe about 300 al-Qaida members or cells operate in Yemen.

    The Yemeni government has stepped up counter terrorism operations, with help from the U.S. military and intelligence officials. Mohammed Shayba, general-director of the state airline's cargo department, said the government is conducting an investigation.

    "Those in charge are in constant meetings and they are investigating and taking the issue seriously," he told The Associated Press.

    Source
    King5.com

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    John Sanderson is offline Lifetime Member

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    Re: Be vigilant this holiday season.


    Report Incidents

    Everyone should be vigilant, take notice of your surroundings, and report suspicious items or activities to local authorities immediately.
    Suspected Criminal or Terror Activity

    Report any suspected criminal or terrorist activity to the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI).



    Source: DHS
    http://www.dhs.gov/files/reportincid...terrorism.shtm

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    Re: Be vigilant this holiday season.

    @ John,

    I agree completely with your comments.

    And as complement, a message from IC3 : http://www.ic3.gov/media/2010/101118.aspx ...

    Bye and at Next ...

    Michel

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    John Sanderson is offline Lifetime Member

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    Re: Be vigilant this holiday season.


    In the event you want some insight on how the government protects our communities, click the link below for a free manual from the Department of Justice.

    http://www.cops.usdoj.gov/files/ric/..._terror_v1.pdf

    I hope this is useful.

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    Liz Mason - is offline Private Investigator Forum Member
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    Re: Be vigilant this holiday season.

    Thanks John,

    I have personally been to all these sites and have been on their e-mail list for quite some time now. It's amazing the information they send.

    I also have to tell you that you are an amazing person, it always flabbergasts me as to how much information you find and post for us here on the forums. It is always much appreciated.

    Liz

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