Hamas' Ismail Haniyeh Meets with Turkish Prime Minister

Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan greeted Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh as a visiting dignitary during a 2½ hour meeting in Istanbul Sunday. The two exchanged praises and shared condemnations of Israel's naval embargo on Gaza, meant to cut off weapons supplies to the terrorist-led government there.

"Erdogan stressed that Hamas was a legitimate liberation movement which was elected by the Palestinian people and the well of the Palestinian people must be respected," according to a report posted on Hamas' Al Qassam website. "Erdogan also stressed that ending the siege on Gaza was one of the three conditions that Turkey put to mend relations with Israel."

In May, the Turkish Prime Minister declared his support for Hamas in an interview, declaring it a "resistant movement trying to protect its country under occupation."

On Monday, Haniyeh visited the IHH Mavi Marmara ship docked in Istanbul, along with IHH President Bulent Yildirim.

The Hamas-tied Turkish group IHH was behind the May 2010 confrontation on board the Mavi Marmara that led to the death of eight Turkish citizens and one Turkish-American. The operatives were prepared by Yildirim and other hardcore Islamists to orchestrate a violent confrontation with Israeli commandos enforcing an embargo on the Hamas government.

"We will never surrender our lands or rights as the least we can do out of loyalty to the blood of martyrs of the Freedom Flotilla," Haniyeh told hundreds of Turks.

"The Palestinian cause won a victory with Mavi Marmara," Haniyeh added. "Thanks to Mavi Marmara, all the plots made on us were foiled. I greet all of our martyrs, I commemorate them with prayers. I hope to see you in Jerusalem, I say I hope to see you in Jerusalem, the capital of Palestine. I greet you all on behalf of Hamas and Ezzedeen Al-Qassam [the Hamas military wing]. Allah willing, we will win a victory. If you ask 'when,' my answer will be 'as soon as possible.'"

"But I say from here, from the banks of this sea, and this ship which has become a bright page in the history of the Ummah and the history of Palestine. I say. And I also proclaim the victory of the blood of the martyrs of the ship Marmara over the siege and victory over the Occupation," Haniyeh said, followed by chants of "Allah Akbar" [God is great] from the crowd.

Yildirim pledged future flotillas "until the blockade on Gaza is lifted. Now, the Mavi Marmara continues its mission on the land. Allah willing, after we complete our march in Libya, Egypt, Syria, Yemen and in some several other countries, we will set sail again and reunite with our sisters and brothers in Palestine."

Hamas Reiterates Commitment to Terror

Hamas officials scornfully dismissed a Haaretz report that its military wing had been instructed to end attacks against Israeli targets.

The newspaper had quoted claims from senior sources in Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas' Fatah organization stating that Hamas leader Khaled Meshaal had ordered a de facto ceasefire in the West Bank and Gaza. Meshaal indicated that Hamas would stage nonviolent protests against Israel analogous to those used against Arab autocrats during the "Arab Spring."

The Hamas leadership in Gaza expressed surprise at Meshaal's remarks, stating that "the only way to liberate the occupied lands is through armed struggle." Fathi Hamad, the Hamas interior minister, said the group would not necessarily adhere to Meshaal's approach.

Hamas would never recognize Israel or compromise on the Palestinian refugee issue, Hamad told a visiting Tunisian delegation Thursday.

Indeed, Meshaal continues to emphasize that Hamas retains the terror option: "As long as there is an occupation on our land, we have the right to defend our land by all means, including military resistance."

Israeli defense sources say there is no indication that Hamas has changed its ideology or charter calling for Israel's destruction. While Hamas may have concluded that it is not in its interest to carry out attacks right now, Israeli officials are convinced that if its West Bank cadres think they can stage a major attack, they will, as they have in the past.

Meanwhile, Hamas' propaganda networks continue to spew propaganda in an effort to incite violence. The Middle East Media Research Institute (MEMRI) on Thursday issued a report documenting how Hamas is using Twitter.

MEMRI found that Hamas' military wing included links to YouTube videos glorifying violence and included calls for "a new Holocaust." One tweet linked to a post by senior Hamas official Mahmoud Zahar vowing that "Jews will soon be expelled from Palestine that same way they were kicked out by France, Britain, Belgium, Russia and Germany 'because they betrayed, stole and corrupted those countries.'" He added that the Jews "have no place here amongst us because of their crimes."

Read the MEMRI report here.

Separating Fact from Fiction in Somalia

It is difficult discerning fact from fiction in wartime, especially in Somalia, where the al-Qaida-tied al-Shabaab has been battling the internationally-recognized Transitional Federal Government (TFG) and African Union (AU) forces for control of the country.

Through that lens came word Tuesday that the AU's peacekeeping force AMISOM had defeated al-Shabaab in the capital city Mogadishu.

"We have managed to beat them off," AMISOM commander Maj. General Fred Mugisha, told CNN. "Almost 100% of Mogadishu is in the hands of AMISOM and [the] TFG Government."

Someone should have let al-Shabaab in on the news.

Less than a few hours after the AMISOM forces claimed victory, the terrorist group claimed credit for killing five AU soldiers near one of Mogadishu's markets.

For followers of Somalia, it seems like déjà vu all over again.

Less than five months ago, AMISOM, reportedly secured control over much of Mogadishu after forcing al-Shabaab to retreat. "We have been dreaming of this day for the last three years," Somalia's Prime Minister Abdiweli Mohamed Ali told reporters.

But in the wake of this optimism, attacks by the "defeated" group continued in the Somali capital.

Elsewhere in Southern Somalia, Kenyan military forces, acting in coordination with the TFG and in apparent retaliation for al-Shabaab attacks and kidnappings in Kenya, crossed the border and began engaging the terrorist group. The operation, codenamed Linda Nchi, generated a number of casualties on both sides.

Perhaps more important in this conflict, is who is more effectively controlling the message. In early December, both al-Shabaab and Kenyan military representatives took to the microblogging site Twitter to launch attacks and taunts against the other.

Now, more than ever, it's hard to know who actually is winning versus baseless propaganda.

Report: Radical Sheikh a Key Mediator in U.S.-Taliban Talks

Radical Islamist cleric and longtime Muslim Brotherhood spiritual guide Yusuf al-Qaradawi serves as a "key mediator in secret talks between the U.S. and the Taliban," according to unnamed government sources referenced in a report published late Wednesday in The Hindu.

In early December, the report said, "Qaradawi helped draw a road map for a deal between the Taliban and the United States, aimed at giving the superpower a face-saving political settlement ahead of its planned withdrawal from Afghanistan." The United States is expected to begin pulling out of Afghanistan in 2014.

The Qaradawi-brokered deal calls for significant American commitments, including "the release of prisoners still held by the United States at Guantanamo Bay, the lifting of United Nations sanctions on its leadership and its recognition as a legitimate political group." In return, the Hindu's sources say, the Taliban would be "expected to sever its links to transnational organisations like al-Qaeda, end violence and eventually share power with the Afghan government."

If true, the report raises significant questions about American strategy in the talks and the enhancement of a radical cleric's stature.

Qaradawi repeatedly has lashed out against Jews, glorifying violence against them and calling for Allah to "count their numbers, and kill them, down to the very last one." In 2009, he prayed for the chance to kill a Jew before dying. He has readily encouraged suicide bombing as "the greatest of all sorts of Jihad in the Cause of Allah." And, perhaps most troubling when considering the nature of the talks, Qaradawi actively supported the killing of U.S. servicemen and women, writing in 2003:

"Those killed fighting the American forces are martyrs given their good intentions since they consider these invading troops an enemy within their territories but without their will…Although they are seen by some as being wrong, those defending against attempts to control Islamic countries have the intention of Jihad and bear a spirit of the defense of their homeland."

None of this should come as a surprise to U.S. officials. In September, Wikileaks released U.S. diplomatic cables showing, among other things, the government's awareness of the Doha-based cleric's support for "martyrdom operations" and the Iraqi insurgency.

Judge Dismisses Berkeley Suit

Harassment alleged by Jewish students during political events at the University of California, Berkeley is protected by the First Amendment, a federal judge ruled last week in dismissing a lawsuit filed by two Jewish students.

Jessica Felber and Brian Maissy sued the University of California, Berkeley President Mark Yudoff and others, claiming they all failed to protect the students from verbal and physical assaults.

But the examples enumerated in the suit are not enough to prove liability, wrote U.S. District Judge Richard Seeborg. Instances of intimidation include SJP speakers calling one of the plaintiffs a "terrorist supporter" in front of 100 people at an event and mock checkpoints erected on campus complete with "realistic looking assault weapons."

The conduct of the Muslim Students Association (MSA) and Students for Justice in Palestine (SJP) falls into the category of "pure political speech and expressive conduct, in a public setting," Seeborg ruled, which is protected by the First Amendment. Even if other students found the speech "contained language that plaintiffs believe was inflammatory, offensive or untrue," it is still protected.

Despite Jewish students' complaint to school officials in 2008 saying that they did not feel that the UC police and faculty were doing anything to curb SJP's intimidation and harassment, Seeborg ruled that the university is not at fault.

"Plaintiffs fail to show how defendants have acted with "deliberate indifference" in ignoring wrongful conduct not amounting to protected speech," wrote Seeborg. Some of the episodes highlighted in the case led to arrests, Seeborg wrote, and school officials "engaged in an ongoing dialogue … in an attempt to ensure that the rights of all persons are respected, and to minimize the potential for violence and unsafe conditions."

Felber and Maissy sought a five year ban on MSA and SJP on campus and removal of university funding for those groups. Seeborg ruled that the case did not show "that it [the university] could restrict funding to SJP and MSA without running afoul of serious First Amendment issues."

The pair can amend the complaint to allege specific violations of their rights. Their lawyer, Joel Siegel, said that they are reviewing their options.

Court Finds Iran Aided 9/11 Attacks

Iran was complicit in the 9/11 attacks in ways large and small, a federal judge in New York found Thursday in granting a default judgment in litigation brought by victims' families.

Iran had advanced knowledge of the attacks and provided training, travel assistance and even refuge for al-Qaida before and after 9/11, U.S. District Judge George Daniels found in a 53-page "Findings of Fact." That included Hizballah operatives, the terrorist group's bombing mastermind Imad Mughniyeh.

While none of the defendants contested the case, the plaintiffs garnered information from a slew of experts, including three Iranian defectors and several staff members from the 9/11 Commission. Copies of affidavits from those witnesses can be seen here.

One of those witnesses, Janice Kephart, writes that the evidence shows that 9/11 was "a coordinated, state-sponsored event that probably would not have successfully occurred without the material support of Iran and Hezbollah."

The ruling describes years of cooperation between the Shiite-Iranian government and the Sunni-dominated al-Qaida terrorist group. The alliance dates back to efforts by Sudanese Islamist leader Hassan al-Turabi and was built on the two sides' shared enemies.

Iran's seemingly small gesture of not stamping the passports of al-Qaida operatives who came into the country was strategic and helped them come to the United States. The 9/11 Commission called the move "particularly beneficial to Saudi members of al Qaeda." Iran later provided a safe haven for some al-Qaida leaders and their families after 9/11 in anticipation of the American invasion of Afghanistan.

Hizballah's Mughniyeh, meanwhile, coordinated training for al-Qaida operatives "with Iranian government officials in Iran and with [Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps] officers working undercover at the Iranian embassy in Beirut, Lebanon," Daniels wrote.

Despite the ruling, the plaintiffs are expected to have difficulty attaching any assets to claim their damages. But Daniels' order repeatedly makes clear "there is clear and convincing evidence" that Iran gave support to al-Qaida, both through its own government and through its proxy Hizballah in Lebanon.

Read more in this statement issued Friday by the plaintiffs' attorneys.

Biden's Taliban Claim Draws Rebuke

Vice President Joe Biden's claim that the "the Taliban per se is not our enemy" is drawing criticism and derision.

London's Telegraph ranks it as the fourth most foolish quote from the Obama administration in 2011. Pakistan's The Nation notes that the White House has not tried to correct Biden's reference, so "It is thus clear that Mr Biden's remarks represent Obama Administration policy."

Biden made the remarks during an interview with Leslie Gelb released Monday by Newsweek. The United States invaded Afghanistan and fought the Taliban because the terrorist group would not hand over Osama bin Laden after 9/11. With bin Laden dead and al-Qaida damaged, the American view on Afghanistan has changed, he said. It would be "good enough" to have an Afghanistan which no longer served as "a haven for people who do damage and have as a target the United States of America and their allies."

The Obama administration may not see them as an enemy, but the Taliban "still are a threat to humanity, to any form of progress," Afghan-American journalist Fariba Nawa writes in the Daily Beast.

Nawa, author of Opium Nation: Child Brides, Drug Lords and One Woman's Journey Through Afghanistan, describes life in Afghanistan before, during and after Taliban rule. Schools were closed when the Islamic extremists came to power. Women were beaten and forced to remain indoors and her relatives lived in constant fear of Taliban raids. They welcomed the American invasion and see signs are progress. All of that will be lost in any reconciliation that brings the Taliban back to power

"In some provinces, life is better, especially for women," Nawa writes. "Millions of girls are going to school for the first time, women are in the government, back to teaching, running businesses, and have access to basic health care. Reports that violence against women has risen can be seen as a positive sign, because it means women actually are reporting the violence. During the Taliban time, that violence was state-sponsored."

For Afghans like Nawa and her family, "these 10 years of fighting will have been futile" if any American-brokered deal fails to protect freedom for women.

Hamas Welcomed into the PLO

Months after reconciliation efforts stalled between the rival Palestinian factions Hamas and Fatah, the two groups reached an agreement on Thursday. It calls for Hamas to be admitted into the Palestinian Liberation Organization (PLO), the umbrella group for Palestinian nationalist movements.

"The reconciliation has taken off. It might take time, but we have started," said Azzam al-Ahmed, a top Fatah negotiator, after the meeting between the two groups in Cairo.

According to the agreement, Hamas' supreme leader, Khaled Meshaal, will serve on an election commission along with Fatah leader Mahmoud Abbas, to prepare for the PLO's first ever popular presidential and parliamentary elections. The election would enable Hamas, which currently controls the Gaza Strip, to become a full member of the larger Palestinian Authority.

Hamas, a designated terrorist organization, has long clashed with Fatah, mostly over the latter group's efforts to make peace with Israel. Despite recent progress, the two groups are still not in agreement on every issue, having failed to create a new Palestinian caretaker government.

Similar political differences are likely to postpone PLO elections, but the latest agreement shows both sides are eager and committed to ending their rivalry.

According to their leadership, the Arab Spring is the reason for the renewed efforts at unification. Hamas, in particular, is said to be feeling "emboldened" by the recent success of Islamist parties in places like Tunisia, Morocco, and Egypt.

Other sources indicate that Hamas' new alliance with the PLO is more out of necessity, with the group's primary sponsors, Iran and Syria, falling on hard times. Iran is having difficulty meeting its financial obligations as a result of tough sanctions aimed at halting its nuclear program. And uprisings in Syria are threatening to topple the existing government there. The unrest has even caused Hamas' external leadership to flee Damascus.

As a result of its changing circumstances, Hamas has made statements indicating that it might soften its stance towards Israel and accept a Palestinian state in the West Bank and Gaza only, at least as a first step. Meshaal has also said he would not interfere with efforts by Abbas to continue peace talks with Israel.

Israel, however, remains skeptical.

"No one in the international community should have illusions as to Hamas," Israeli government spokesman Mark Regev said. "This is a movement that is terrorist to the core. When Abu Mazen [Abbas] walks toward Hamas, he's walking away from peace."

Clinton Suggests Islamic Governments Fear Debate

Secretary of State Hillary Clinton hinted at Islamic fear of a religious debate at an international conference last week on religious freedom, according to Neil Munro of the Daily Caller. The effects of the first phase of the "Istanbul Process," a multinational debate on balancing religious freedom and the Organization of the Islamic Cooperation's [OIC] demand for an end to all criticism of Islam wrapped up behind doors without clear results.

"I mean, every one of us who is a religious person knows that there are some who may not support or approve of our religion. But is our religion so weak that statements of disapproval will cause us to lose our faiths?" Clinton asked in what Munro termed a "daring and novel" rebuke of Islamic governments. "And so there is no contradiction between having strong religious beliefs and having the freedom to exercise them and to speak about them and to even have good debates with others," she added.

Many call the meeting a "very bad idea," pointing out how it gives the OIC a platform to continue lobbying against Western ideas of free speech.

The conference was intended to carry out United Nations Human Rights Council Resolution 16/18, which the Hudson Institute's Nina Shea said "was adopted in the place of one that endorsed the dangerous idea that 'defamation of religion' should be punished criminally worldwide." While it ended inconclusively, she argues the OIC still received "a transnational venue … to reintroduce its anti-defamation push," which had been laid to rest by the U.N. resolution.

Others claim that Resolution 16/18 already provided some measure of balance between Western and Islamic demands, by calling for "concrete, positive measures" rather than legal strictures, to combat anti-religious speech. They argue that the meeting was just a follow-up to America's assurances in the resolution.

U.S. Sues Alleged Hizballah Money Launderers

U.S. Attorney Preet Bharara and Drug Enforcement Administration chief Michele Leonhart have announced a new civil money-laundering and forfeiture lawsuit in Manhattan federal court against the Lebanese Canadian Bank [LCB] and two exchange houses. The civil suit alleges that the Lebanese financial institutions helped Hizballah funnel hundreds of millions of dollar from drugs sales, primarily into used car schemes between America and West Africa. A judgment in the government's favor could lead to $483 million in penalties for the institutions and asset forfeitures in the United States.

The complaint alleges a complex, worldwide connection of Hizballah members and businesses. Hizballah functioned as a key importer of South American cocaine into West Africa, where it was later sent to Europe and the United States for sale. The profits were sent through wire transfers to people in the United States, primarily in Michigan and the East coast, to buy American cars for resale in West Africa. From West Africa, Hizballah activists sent the cash in bulk to Beirut, where it was deposited into Hizballah-friendly accounts.

The suit also targets more than 30 American car buyers involved in the trade. The move could be a huge blow to Hizballah, particularly after Iran cut its funding by 40% last year.

The case piggybacks on a recent indictment against Lebanese drug kingpin Ayman Joumaa, who also functioned as a Hizballah financier and worked with the Los Zetas Mexican cartel. The case alleges that Joumaa helped ship hundreds of tons of cocaine from Colombia to Central America, and used fees charged for laundering to fund Hizballah.

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