Tehran: West Caving on Iranian Nuclear Program

Iranian and United Nations officials claimed to have made progress in negotiations over Tehran's nuclear program on Tuesday. But initial reports have provided little substantive information beyond an announcement that representatives of the Iranian regime and the U.N.'s International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) will meet again next week in Vienna, Austria.

Iranian officials waxed optimistic, claiming the West is coming to terms with the inevitability of Iran's nuclear program. In a New York Times interview, Hamidreza Taraghi, an adviser to Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, bragged that Tehran had managed to skew the current nuclear negotiations in its favor by making uranium enrichment (a potential path to nuclear weapons) a reality that the West cannot stop.

Taraghi told the Times that Iran had convinced the West of the importance of a fatwa against the possession of nuclear weapons that Khamenei issued. Iranian officials emphasized that edict during last month's negotiations in Istanbul.

American officials countered that they brought up Khamenei's fatwa in an effort to provide the Iranians a "face-saving" way to reach a compromise. But Iranian negotiators left Istanbul believing they had prevailed. "We have managed to get our rights," Taraghi said. "All that remains is a debate over the percentage of enrichment."

That may be posturing. But a new analysis by Anthony Cordesman of the Center for Strategic and International Studies suggests the Islamist regime has good reason to believe it has the upper hand in the nuclear standoff.

The IAEA's own reports show "that Iran has moved far beyond the point where it lacked the technology base to produce nuclear weapons," Cordesman writes. "Iran has pursued every major area of nuclear weapons development, (and) has carried out programs that have already given it every component of a weapon except fissile material." Moreover, "there is strong evidence that it has carried out programs to integrate a nuclear warhead on [to] its missiles."

Cordesman finds that Iran's nuclear efforts are diversified and can be concealed from international inspectors. Even if it were to suspend uranium enrichment, Tehran could "pursue nuclear weapons development through a range of compartmented and easily concealable programs without a formal weapons program."

Even if Tehran agreed to controls on its current enrichment facilities or saw them destroyed in a military strike, it would not necessarily put an end to the regime's nuclear capability. It "would take an amazing amount of intelligence access to prevent" Iran from creating replacement enrichment facilities if its existing programs were destroyed in bombing raids, Cordesman writes.

In short, "Iran could appear to agree to arms control or appear to have had its programs destroyed and still go on creating better future enrichment capability."

Read the full article here.

Similar to FBI cutoff, DOJ urged to sever ties with CAIR

At a May 10^th House of Representatives meeting, the Department of Justice (DOJ) was urged to officially sever ties with the Council on American Islamic Relations (CAIR), as reported by The Daily Caller.

Citing CAIR's designation as unindicted co-conspirator in the Holy Land Foundation (HLF) trial, The Committee Report of Fiscal Year 2012 Commerce, Justice, Science Appropriates Bill urges Attorney General Eric Holder to wholly disengage with CAIR.

The section reads, "The Committee acknowledges the Attorney General's refusal to attend certain meetings knowing that CAIR officials would be present, as indicated in testimony before the Committee on February 28, 2012. The Committee understands that the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) has an existing policy prohibiting its employees from engaging in any formal non-investigative cooperation with CAIR. The Committee encourages the Attorney General to adopt a similar policy for all Department officials."

Passed in The U.S. House of Representatives on May 10^th, the bill's Committee Report similarly echoes the FBI cutoff with CAIR in 2009, also citing CAIR's HLF involvement.

However, the FBI does not entirely adhere to this official severance of ties.

The Committee Report also advises the FBI to sever ties with other unindicted co-conspirators in terror-linked cases, "The Committee also encourages the FBI to adopt similar policies, where appropriate, with regard to other individuals and organizations identified as unindicted co-conspirators in terrorism related cases."

Both CAIR and The Islamic Society of North America (ISNA) are listed on the HLF case documents of unindicted co-conspirators and/or Joint venturers.

However, the FBI still routinely meets with unindicted co-conspirators of the HLF case, specifically CAIR and ISNA.

As recent as May 2012, U.S. Attorney Wilfredo A. Ferrer, U.S. Attorney Norman Heming and an FBI official met with representatives from CAIR's Florida Chapter "to discuss issues of mutual concern" as part of the DOJ "outreach effort to strengthen relations with the Muslim community."

"Being able to meet face-to-face is the best way to address issues," CAIR South Florida's Executive Director Nezar Hamze stated.

Similarly, in February 2012, the Public Affairs Office of the FBI Director Robert Mueller met with both The Muslim Public Affairs Council (MPAC) and ISNA to discuss the anti-Muslim bias in training materials used by the FBI.

"We welcome and appreciate Director Mueller's commitment to take positive steps towards eradicating such materials and rebuilding trust and an open dialogue," ISNA President Imam Magid stated.

Since the FBI continues to meet and cooperate with unindicted co-conspirators in the HLF case in "non-investigative" circumstances, the likelihood of the DOJ adhering to this recommendation appears distant.

Samir Khan Releases Advice for Mujahideen

Jihadi forums have released a new guide with practical advice for aspiring mujahideen, posthumously attributed to former al-Qaida propagandist Samir Khan. In "Expectations Full," Khan recommends carrying out attacks at home, but provides advice about how to function in foreign jihads.

"I strongly recommend all the brothers and sisters coming from the West to con­sider attacking America in its own backyard," Khan says in the section, "Why not the West?" "The effect is much greater, it always embarrasses the enemy, and these type [sic.] of individual decision-making attacks are nearly impossible for them to contain."

To emphasize the point, he goes into detail about the various difficulties encountered by mujahideen in foreign combat. In the section "Base-to-Base," Khan describes how endless training can be boring and end without ever seeing combat, the ultimate goal. "This is why I strongly recommend those brothers in the West to wage jihad inside their countries since they can choose when to fight and when not to," he states. "In the lands of jihad however, you get to taste the fruits of sabr [patience]," he adds.

Khan also gives a lot of other practical military advice. He tells would-be warriors to follow rules about not using electronics on base, to avoid giving out personal details that would be useful to spies, and to follow domestic politics in their chosen land of jihad. He also says it's ok to be scared when facing aerial bombardment.

Hygiene and comfort matter too. Would-be warriors should shower regularly and be especially careful to wash their feet, he says. They should also bring medicines and bug spray, avoid overeating, and recite prayers to ward of magical jinn [spirits] conspiring with the disbelievers against them.

Although killed more than 8 months ago, Khan's influence is still being felt. "Expectations Full" is his first and possibly last independent release. The recently released final issue of al-Qaida's English-language magazine, Inspire, also contained Khan's lengthy last testament.

CAIR Officials Demonize America on Iranian TV

Two officials representing the Council on American-Islamic Relations' New York chapter (CAIR-NY) turned to an Iranian television station this week in order to propagate the dangerous and oft-repeated narrative that the U.S. is at war with Islam and hostile to Muslims.

The narrative—said to be one of the most potent tools in recruiting Muslims to violent jihad—was first put forth by CAIR-NY head Zead Ramadan in an interview Monday with Iranian state-controlled Press TV. During the discussion, Ramadan compared the situation of Muslims in America to that of Jews under Nazi rule.

"In Nazi Germany, they targeted the minority, the Jewish minority," Ramadan told Press TV by phone. "I don't think we will ever get there, but I don't think we should allow the road to continue to be built towards that direction because the comments that are being made against Muslims are very eerily echoing the comments that were being made against Jews by Nazis."

The steady increase in anti-Muslim rhetoric can largely be blamed upon "election season" in general Ramadan said, but in particular, Republicans should be seen as the primary offender.

"[W]henever you think that America, the land of the free, is going to grow up and go beyond it [racism], more intolerant, extremist voices come out," Ramadan lamented. "And the easiest target, the minority, the easiest target has been the Muslim people.

"Every time there is an election cycle, some people like Newt Gingrich, Santorum, and even Mitt Romney had made very negative comments about Muslims and that makes people think that if someone is running for president, he could make negative comments and he is spreading negative rhetoric about Muslims… I think it's very dangerous," he added.

Ramadan's message cannot be brushed off as a personal rant of one rogue leader. Just one day earlier, a similar theme was echoed by fellow CAIR-NY official, Cyrus McGoldrick, to the very same Iranian outlet.

In the Sunday interview, McGoldrick, the group's Civil Rights Manager, accused the FBI of using "tremendous resources" to demonize Muslim Americans and of not spending a "fraction" of the amount on real security measures.

They are using "tremendous resources, tremendous resources to spy on Muslims, to demonize Muslims, and to entrap Muslims. I think it would be great if they spent a fraction of that money, protecting Muslims and all American citizens," McGoldrick said.

Because of this, "the real American ideals are now being lost," he concluded.

Strangely absent in McGoldrick's comments about ideals is a discussion of how minorities are treated in Press TV's state-sponsor, Iran, and how treatment of Muslims in America compares to that of ethnic minorities elsewhere.

Such realities have never stopped CAIR from routinely taking to the channel to promote the "America is against Muslims" narrative. They join a group of fringe academics, far left activists, and Islamist extremists who agree with the Islamic Republic's propaganda about the so-called Western and Zionist "War on Islam."

ISNA to Host Ghannouchi

A major American Islamist organization close to the Obama administration will host Tunisian Islamist Rachid Ghannouchi at its national conference in late August. The invitation is one of the Islamic Society of North America's (ISNA) most visible engagements with Islamist politics taking charge in the Middle East.

Despite ISNA's insistence that Ghannouchi is "an advocate of religious tolerance and freedom, women's rights, [and] non-violent leadership," the chief of Tunisia's Ennahda party has an extremist record.

Ghannouchi was denied a visa to the United States in the 1990s and much of this decade for a series of violently anti-American comments. He was only admitted into the country last year for a whirlwind tour, which included the Muslim Public Affairs Council (MPAC) and several think tanks, after his party won power in Tunisian elections.

Since then, the Ennahda party won a plurality in Tunisian parliamentary elections, and Ghannouchi has hosted a visit by Hamas Prime Minister Ismail Haniyeh and advocated for the repatriation of Tunisian al-Qaida members from prisons overseas.

He has also voiced support for Palestinian terrorism and the political legitimization of Hamas. The Arab Spring "will achieve positive results on the path to the Palestinian cause and threaten the extinction of Israel," he said in a May 2011 interview with the Al Arab Qatari website. "The liberation of Palestine from Israeli occupation represents the biggest challenge facing the Umma [Muslim nation] and the Umma cannot have existence in light of the Israeli occupation."

In 2009 he stirred up controversy with calls to "strike terror" into the hearts of Israelis with Qassam rockets. In June 2001, he appeared in an al-Jazeerah panel discussion in which he blessed the mothers of Palestinian suicide bombers:

"I would like to send my blessings to the mothers of those youth, those men who succeeded in creating a new balance of power…I bless the mothers who planted in the blessed land of Palestine the amazing seeds of these youths, who taught the international system and the Israel [sic] arrogance, supported by the US, an important lesson. The Palestinian woman, mother of the Shahids (martyrs), is a martyr herself, and she has created a new model of woman."

This week, Ghannouchi plays host to radical cleric Yusuf al-Qaradawi, who is influential with the Muslim Brotherhood and has expressed a desire to kill a Jew, hailing Qaradawi as "Sheikh of the revolutionaries" for support of Arab Spring uprisings.

Egypt's Presidential Hopefuls Declare Israel an Enemy

In an unprecedented televised debate for Egyptian presidential candidates, the two frontrunners aggressively attacked each others' credentials but found common ground in their opposition to Israel, which both called an "enemy."

"Israel is an enemy," said Abdul Monheim Aboul Fotouh, an Islamist formerly associated with the Muslim Brotherhood who was jailed by Hosni Mubarak's government.

His leading opponent, liberal nationalist Amr Moussa, sought to tread more lightly on the Israel issue, stating, "It is a country that advocates an aggressive stance but I do not want to choose these emotive expressions. The responsibility of the president is to be removed from this and make the right decision for the country."

Both men strongly agreed, however, Egypt's peace treaty with Israel, considered vital to stability in the region, contained elements they considered unfair to Egypt and would be renegotiated.

The candidates' claims reflect a consistent theme in Egyptian political discourse since Mubarak's ouster last year. Israeli officials have thus dismissed the most recent statements as mere campaign rhetoric.

"In Egypt, you are seeing more pluralism and democracy that (sic) at any time in its recent history but when it comes to Israel there is only one discourse," said Yigal Palmor, a spokesman for the Israeli foreign ministry. "I think it is quite obvious that the populist thing to do is to bash Israel as strongly as you can. The more you bash Israel, the more points you gain, regardless of whether you are Islamist or secular."

Nevertheless, Israel remains wary of mixed messages emanating from Egypt. Although Moussa has asserted that he can't envision the treaty being canceled "under any circumstances," he declared the 1978 Camp David accords – the treaty's foundation – to be "dead and buried" last month. Both candidates have also pledged to seek a revision to the clause in the treaty only allowing for one Egyptian military division to be stationed in the Sinai.

Though it recently allowed Egypt to increase its military presence in the Sinai in response to a growing number of Islamist militants there, Israel said the treaty itself is not open to negotiation.

"It is widely known that Egypt has sent more troops than officially allowed by the treaty and it has done so with Israel's consent," one official said. "We would agree to such ad hoc arrangements from time to time, but we would regard any attempt to open up specific articles of the treaty totally differently. It would cast a cloud and shadow over the whole treaty."

Israel is reserving judgment on the Egyptian elections until a new president is in office. Relations with Israel are currently not at the forefront of the country's agenda and the topic was only briefly discussed in the four-hour debate Thursday.

Islamist Extortion and the Media

It's always interesting when an accepted fact becomes acknowledged.

"Media outlets tiptoeing around Islam" is an example, Islamist Watch research fellow David Rusin writes this week at PJ Media. Those who follow the BBC have known for years that it treats Islam with greater deference than other faiths. But its director-general came out and directly said so during an interview in February.

Christianity is considered fair game for satire and criticism because it is "a pretty broad- shouldered religion," the BBC's Mark Thompson said. British Muslims, on the other hand, already feel "isolated" and see similar treatment of their faith as "racism by other means."

And the more radical among them react violently to such perceived slights.

"Without question," Thompson said, explaining that viewer anger such as "'I complain in the strongest possible terms,' is different from, 'I complain in the strongest possible terms and I am loading my AK47 as I write.' This definitely raises the stakes."

Rusin calls this "the most in-depth admission yet of the BBC's double standards with respect to faith."

He cites a series of examples dating back years to show that Thompson's admission, while admirably direct, was hardly revelatory. That includes a 2006 internal memo that showed, among other things, that the BBC would approve showing a Bible being thrown in the trash, but not a Quran, to avoid offending British Muslims.

The situation by no means is isolated to the United Kingdom. Though most major newspapers wrote about the controversy surrounding Danish cartoons lampooning the prophet Mohammed, but only a couple saw fit to show the images to their readers. In 2008, Random House publishing dropped plans at the last minute to publish a novel about Mohammed's child-bride, citing fear of violent reactions predicted by a University of Texas professor.

A British publisher's home was firebombed after he picked up the rights to the fictional account.

But Rusin takes to task those agreed to defend free speech for their double standards and for empowering the very people who pose the threat.

"Those who muzzle themselves to appease Islamists have surrendered their freedom, but when a behemoth such as the BBC does so, it chips away at the liberty of all," he writes. "Powerful media entities that succumb to fear do not only embolden jihadists and help keep the citizenry in the dark about key issues; they also set a precedent that the less powerful often follow, a kind of trickle-down self-censorship that infects public life."

Pelosi Hires Editor of Tarnished Liberal Blog

House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., has hired the leader of a controversial liberal blog accused of promoting anti-Semitic and anti-Israel positions, the Free Beacon reports. Faiz Shakir will move from editor in chief of the Center for American Progress' "ThinkProgress" blog to a senior adviser for Pelosi and her director of new media.

Jewish organizations alleged that ThinkProgress writers had used both the blog and their personal Twitter accounts to promote radically anti-Israel ideas and even anti-Semitism. They claim that ThinkProgress writers have stated that Jews and Jewish organizations are leading the campaign for war with Iran, and that Jewish Americans suffer from dual loyalties to America and Israel.

Following an investigation, ThinkProgress apologized for "inappropriate" language writer Ziad Jilani used on his Twitter account, including accusing "Israel-Firster" Jews of being more loyal to Israel than America. Jilani left the staff after the incident, but ThinkProgress maintains that its blog has not been used to attack Jews or Israel.

Those conclusions ignore abundant evidence that ThinkProgress has hosted anti-Semitism and one-sided anti-Israel attacks. In a post last November, writer Ali Gharib cited anti-Semitic and virulently anti-Israel blog SM Palestine in a post criticizing America for following existing laws, which ended aid for UNESCO after it recognized Palestine as an independent state.

In another post last September, Gharib quoted anti-Israel journalist Max Blumenthal, who described Israel's values as "hatred of the other, a reliance on violence to seize land, and a legacy of ethnic cleansing." He also highlighted Blumenthal's comments that "what Israel did to the Palestinians in 1947 and '48 – and continues to do – is analogous to the Texans' treatment of the Comanches and Mexicans during the 19^th century [Emphasis by Gharib]."

In a July interview conducted by Gharib and Jilani, ThinkProgress played host to former Jewish American leader Henry Siegman, who said that "the U.S. is captive to Israel's Plans." During the interview, ThinkProgress writers suggested that Palestine be allowed to join the International Criminal Court and take Israelis to trial for war crimes. Siegman agreed and also argued that peace would only come when Israel is forced to "pay a price" for its policies, and when that "cost gets serious enough" to force the Israelis into an agreement.

Egyptian Islamist Promises Jerusalem-Based Caliphate

An independent Islamist promised that the Muslim Brotherhood would destroy Israel and form a new Caliphate with its capital in Jerusalem, reports the Middle East Media Research Institute (MEMRI). The speech, given May 1 before thousands of Muslim Brotherhood members and leaders at Cairo soccer stadium, including MB presidential candidate Mohamed Mursi, contradicts assurances of political pragmatism and moderation by the Islamist group.

"We can see how the dream of the Islamic Caliphate is being realized, Allah willing, by Dr. Mohamed Mursi, and his brothers, his supporters, and his political party. We can see how the great dream, shared by us all … The United States of the Arabs will be restored, Allah willing," said Safwat Higazi, a self-acknowledged anti-Semite with ties to the Brotherhood.

Higazi also announced that the newly established Islamic state would not have its capital in Egypt's seat of government in Cairo, or in the Islamic holy cities of Mecca or Medina. Rather, it will be in Jerusalem.

"Our cry shall be 'Millions of martyrs march toward Jerusalem," he said, echoing other speeches he has given on Egyptian television stations for years. Another speaker then led the crowd in a chant of "Banish the sleep from the eyes of the Jews, come on, you lovers of martyrdom, you are all Hamas… Brandish your weapons, say your prayers, and pray to the lord."

The clip should come as a surprise to no one, Raymond Stock, an American translator and academic who spent two decades in Egypt, told the Jerusalem Post.

"This is what the Muslim Brotherhood really stands for: the extermination of Israel – and Jews everywhere – as well as the spread and control of radical Islam over the world," he said. "How anyone can fail to see this boggles the mind – yet its denial is virtual dogma in the global mainstream media, US government and Western academia today."

Maryland Man Pleads Guilty in Terror Plot

A Maryland teenager of Pakistani origin pleaded guilty Friday to conspiracy to provide material support to terrorists. Mohammad Hassan Khalid, 18, was charged in October along with Algerian-born Ali Charaf Damache, aka "The blackflag" in connection with a scheme to support, recruit, and coordinate a terrorist cell to wage violent jihad in Europe.

"Today's plea, which involved a radicalized teen in Maryland who connected with like-minded individuals around the globe via the Internet, underscores the evolving nature of violent extremism today," Lisa Monaco, Assistant Attorney General for National Security, said in a Justice Department press release.

Court records show that Khalid and Damache conspired with Colleen R. LaRose (also known as "Jihad Jane"), Jamie Paulin Ramirez, and others to develop "a violent jihad organization … divided into a planning team, a research team, an action team, a recruitment team, and a finance team, some of whom would travel to South Asia for explosives training and return to Europe to wage violent jihad."

LaRose pleaded guilty in February 2011 to plotting to kill a Swedish cartoonist and to recruiting people to wage terrorist attacks. She faces up to life in prison. Ramirez pleaded guilty the following month to one count of conspiracy to provide material support to terrorists.

In addition to recruiting jihadist online, Khalid and others also solicited funds for terrorists and recruited women who could use Western passports to travel to Europe in support of their jihadi objectives.

In a July 2009 electronic communication Damache suggested to Khalid that their group train "either with AQIM [Al Qaida in the Islamic Maghreb] or ISI [Islamic State of Iraq]" in their efforts to become "a professional organized team." Damache further instructed Khalid to recruit online "some brothers that can travel freely … with eu passports …. [A]nd i also need some sisters too." He also told Khalid that "sister fatima [Colleen LaRose] will be in charge of other sister care … [W] e have already organized everything for her…. [W]e are will[ing] to die in order to protect her no matter what the risk is."

According to the plea memorandum, Khalid sought money online to support terrorism on behalf of LaRose. He then helped delete her online posts espousing jihad after the FBI interviewed her. Khalid also sent an electronic questionnaire to a woman asking her about her beliefs and intentions about violent jihad. He forwarded the questionnaire to LaRose and asked her to confirm if her "brothers" are "REAL mujahids."

Khalid faces a maximum 15 years in prison and a $250,000 fine. Damache is being held in Ireland where he is being prosecuted on a separate, unrelated charge.

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