MPAC Trains TSA Screeners

An Islamist organization whose stock in trade is criticizing U.S. counter-terrorism efforts has been invited to train Transportation Safety Officers at Los Angeles International Airport.

According to a press release by the Muslim Public Affairs Council (MPAC), the organization recently completed training for 2,200 officers charged with protecting our nation's air security. According to the release, the two-month training course highlighted "the diversity of Muslims around the world from cultural dress to language and tenets," and "taught the TSOs how to properly handle a Quran and discussed the different ways Muslim women and men choose to cover or dress."

Reliance upon MPAC to improve airport security is misplaced. The organization has not only defended designated terrorist organizations, but criticized U.S. counter-terrorism efforts including those aimed at securing airports.

Unquestionably the largest failing of airport security in the United States was the Sept. 11 attacks. Two years before those attacks, a July 1999 issue of Al-Talib, an Islamist student newspaper at UCLA of which MPAC's Edina Lekovic served as managing editor, described Osama bin Laden as a "great Mujahid" and as a "freedom fighter and philanthropist." This, despite the fact that bin Laden had already issued a global fatwa against the United States.

Since those attacks, MPAC has denounced any attempts to improve airline security. Criticizing U.S. law enforcement efforts at preventing terrorism, MPAC has argued that "our nations citizens—particularly Muslim, South Asian and Arab Americans—have experienced repeated erosions of their civil liberties in our nation's airports, and in their houses of worship through intrusive and questionable law enforcement techniques."

Despite being a vocal critic, MPAC continues to be invited to assist the law enforcement community in fashioning security policies. Earlier this year, MPAC representatives met with Department of Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano. During that meeting the groups "expressed concerns about DHS policies, such as racial, ethnic, and religious profiling at airports and the border, that have eroded the government's trust and credibility with the communities."

The criticisms reached a fever pitch following last year's failed bombing on Christmas Day by Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab. While law enforcement was working to prevent another attack, MPAC was criticizing every such effort.

Days after the attack, Lekovic condemned the use of profiling at airports to identify potential terrorists: "It doesn't work. It's unconstitutional, and it's discriminatory." The TSA eventually caved to pressure from MPAC, and repealed a policy that would allow for additional screening of passengers that came from countries that were likely to be home to Islamist radicals.

MPAC was one of the first groups to criticize the use of full-body scanners, arguing that "the result is that America is now less free and no safer than it was before the Christmas attack." The Islamic Shura Council of North America urged Muslims to refuse the advanced imaging technology and instead be subjected to a pat down, a recommendation which MPAC touted. Again, the TSA caved to critics, allowing for passengers to opt-out of the full body scans.

And now, MPAC is actually training security officers at a major American airport. What's next?

South American Nations Recognize Independent Palestine

Three South American nations unilaterally recognized a Palestinian state in the 1967 borders, provoking "regret and disappointment" from Israel and concern from the United States about the future of international peace negotiations. Argentina, Brazil, and Uruguay joined Costa Rica, Cuba, Nicaragua, and Venezuela in recognizing an independent Palestinian state, by either declaration or conducting an agreement with an independent Palestinian identity.

In particular, the action risks rewarding Palestinian terror groups for their recalcitrance in entering negotiations and undermining the potential of negotiations to provide a lasting peace. Israel has long equated a Palestinian state with a negotiated agreement recognizing its security needs.

The action also contravenes the Oslo Agreement between Israel and the Palestinians, which forbids the Palestinians from conducting foreign relations as an independent entity.

The move also follows Brazil's stated effort to pursue an independent course in its foreign policy, by defending Iran and agreeing to negotiate with terrorist groups rejected by Israel and the United States. Despite American statements that the move was "severely misguided" and "regrettable," the Brazilian foreign ministry declared that the recognition is "in line with Brazil's historic willingness to contribute to peace between Israel and Palestine."

Anti-Semitic Responses to Israel Forest Fire in Arab Press

Israel's largest forest fire brought out a flurry of anti-Semitic assaults from Arab media, targeting Jews and the Jewish state's legitimacy, as well as the nation's Western allies. According to Haaretz, the Jerusalem Post, and Arab media sources, a range of commentators called for Israel's destruction and attributed the fire to divine retribution for Palestinian grievances.

Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh called the fire in Northern Israel a "strike from Allah," while Hizballah al-Manar news outlet cheered the mass causalities among the Israelis. Comments in the al-Manar article chided Arab governments for helping Israel and noted, "Now would be a perfect time to surprise the zionists with an attack, hit them while they are down, like they do," and "[there] should be a Bell ringing to attack the zioentity at such a moment on all fronts to eliminate it from the face of this planet." The comments also condemned Turkish help for Israel and repeated classic anti-Semitic themes like "Zionist, its [sic] time to run again."

Palestinian news outlets such as Al-Watan also contained virulent criticism of Israel and threats to the United States. Journalist Raafat Asalia declared, "In a few days Israel will reveal the true causes behind these fires which everyone hopes will burn up all of Israel." "What will Israel and its allies do with the Wrath of God upon them and the winds from God continuing to increase the fires which sweep its forests?" Egyptian blogger Abdel Hakim al Maghrabi asked in "Wrath of Allah," an editorial. "What will Israel and all its Western allies do if the Wrath of God continues upon them with earthquakes which in one second are able to destroy Israel? Indeed, destroy America in the glory of its power, so that it will be as if it never were."

A new terrorist organization, Ma'sadat al-Mujahideen, even claimed the attack on Israel. However, this is a highly unlikely scenario as a 14-year-old Israeli Druze teenager has confessed to accidentally starting the fire.

An Arab-Israeli writer for the Jerusalem Post, Khalid Abu Toameh, translated and posted numerous quotes from average commentators on Arabic news websites. "Thank Allah for this new Holocaust and shame on the Egyptian authorities who rushed to save the Zionists while continuing to lay siege against our brothers in the Gaza Strip," stated one writer. "To Hizballah, Hamas and all Arabs: This is a golden opportunity to get rid of Israel. The sea and fire are in front of the Jews and weapons are behind them."

British trial illustrates Awlaki's influence

The case of Roshanara Choudhry, a British Islamist who was radicalized largely online, demonstrates the "importation of the lone jihadi" concept into British jihadist circles, according to the latest issue of the Jamestown Foundation's Terrorism Monitor. This lone jihadi idea, espoused by Yemeni-American al-Qaida cleric Anwar al-Awlaki, played a central role in Choudhry's trial and highlights the difficulty that British officials have in halting his growing online influence.

Choudhry had been a model student in King's College, where she was headed for honors at her university despite humble beginnings as one of five children of a Bangladeshi immigrant tailor. However, around her third and fourth years, Choudhry began to become disillusioned with her educational program and soon dropped out. She later told police that this was because of the university's presentation of an award to Israeli President Shimon Peres and for its department dedicated to countering radicalism, which she viewed as "against her religion."

Around November 2009, Choudhry discovered the speeches of Awlaki through "her own research." According to Choudhry's police interview, she quickly absorbed Awlaki's ideas that "as Muslims we're all brothers and sisters and we should all look out for each other and we shouldn't sit back and do nothing while others suffer." In addition, the interview states that she was particularly taken by al-Awlaki's speeches as "he explains things really comprehensively and in an interesting way so I thought I could learn a lot from him and I was also surprised at how little I knew about my religion so that motivated me to learn more."

Around April 2010, Choudhry became heavily influenced by the ideas of Abdullah Azzam, an early al-Qaida ideologue who preached the message of global jihad and also profoundly affected Awlaki. Around this time, she decided it was her duty to strike MP Stephen Timms and to become a martyr, which she learned from Awlaki's speeches was the "best way to die… and an Islamic teaching."

Choudhry's case was also at the center of a rising trend of lone jihadists. Bilal Zaheer Ahmand, from the English town of Wolverhampton, posted a threat to British MPs who had voted for the Iraq War and praised Choudhry on the same website that contributed to her radicalization, Revolution Muslim. Mohammed Gul, a 22-year-old London student who was allegedly uploading radical videos to a website and who was in contact with extremists abroad, have also made it to trial in the United Kingdom.

According to Peter Clarke, the former head of London's Counter Terrorism Command, Choudhry's actions highlighted the fact that "we are nowhere near getting the counter-narrative [to jihad] through."

Helen Thomas: "Zionists" Control Congress, White House, Hollywood…

Veteran journalist Helen Thomas isn't content merely to stand by the comments she made earlier this year that led to ouster at Hearst Newspapers. Thomas resigned shortly after telling a rabbi in June that Jews should "get the hell out of Palestine" and "go home" to "Poland, Germany and America and America and everywhere else."

Thomas went further during remarks in Dearborn, Mich. on Thursday, in analyzing "the whole question of money in politics."

"Congress, the White House and Hollywood, Wall Street are owned by the Zionists. No question, in my opinion," she told 300 people gathered at a community center. "They put their money where their mouth is….We're being pushed into a wrong direction in every way."

"I can call a president of the United States anything in the book, but I can't touch Israel," Thomas said in an interview with the Detroit Free Press.

Arab-Americans and Islamists reacted in a variety of ways to Thomas' prior slurs. In October, the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) gave her its 2010 "Lifetime Achievement Award." CAIR spokesman Ibrahim Hooper asserted at the time that Thomas had apologized for the June comments urging Israeli Jews to "get the hell out." (Neither Hooper nor CAIR appear to have said anything about Thomas' comments in Dearborn.)

Last month, the American-Arab Anti-Discrimination Committee (ADC) gave Thomas a "courage in journalism" award.

At least one institution is backing away from Thomas after this latest rant. Wayne State University is dropping its Helen Thomas Spirit of Diversity Award. As a public university, Wayne State encourages free speech and open dialogue, and respects diverse viewpoints," a school statement said. "However, the university strongly condemns the anti-Semitic remarks made by Helen Thomas …"

Lashkar-E Tayyiba, al-Qaida Linked to Alleged Passport Forgery Plot

Officials in Spain and Thailand continue to investigate an alleged counterfeiting conspiracy linked to Lashkar-E Tayyiba (LeT) following this week's arrest of 10 people on suspicion of providing false European passports to terrorists. Spanish officials called the group "an important passport operation for al-Qaida" and said the arrests had weakened its ability to operate. Seven members of the alleged plot were arrested on Tuesday and Wednesday in Barcelona; the other three were arrested in Bangkok during the same period.

Spanish officials said the arrests came after an 18-month investigation. The suspects - eight Pakistanis, a Nigerian and a Thai - were part of a network with branches in London and Brussels. Muhammad Athar Butt, a 42-year-old Pakistani who was the alleged ringleader, was arrested in Thailand on Tuesday.

Authorities said the operation also provided counterfeit passports to the Tamil Tigers, a terrorist group defeated last year by Sri Lankan government forces.

Terror organizations would ask the counterfeiters to provide forged passports based on age and nationality, the Spanish officials said. The counterfeiting network would steal passports from tourists (usually in Spain) and send them to Thailand. From there, the passports would be forwarded to the terrorist organizations. Authorities there found equipment used to produce fake passports and immigration stamps.

Spanish police seized 50 cell phones, nine passports and a computer in raids on suspects' homes in Raval, a downtown Barcelona neighborhood that is home to many Pakistani immigrants. In January 2008, Spanish police arrested 14 Pakistani men in Raval in connection with a coordinated suicide bomb plot targeting the city's subway system and other locations in Britain, France, Germany and Portugal.

Tip May Have Thwarted LeT Sanctions in Pakistan

Sanctions targeting a Pakistani-based terrorist group may have been minimized after a government official tipped the group off in advance. That disclosure, reported by the Guardian, is among the hundreds of thousands of State Department documents released by the WikiLeaks website.

In January 2009, Pakistani President Asif Ali Zardari told the American ambassador in Islamabad of his suspicions that the chief minister in Pakistan's Punjab province alerted Lashkar-e-Tayyiba (LeT) leaders that United Nations sanctions against the group were imminent. The minister's brother, Nawaz Sharif is a government opposition leader.

The sanctions came in response to LeT's suspected role behind the November 2008 terrorist attacks in Mumbai.

Zardari "discussed his increasing frustration with Nawaz Sharif's government in the Punjab, whom he believed had tipped off Jamaat ul-Dawa (JUD) about the assets freeze ordered by the federal government," a secret State Department cable said. JUD is the charity arm of LeT.

As a result, officials found JUD "bank accounts contained surprisingly small amounts," the cable said.

The cables also discussed efforts to diffuse tensions between India and Pakistan in the wake of the terrorist attack.

One month later, a briefing in anticipation of a visit by Special Envoy Richard Holbrooke, described Zardari as "far from perfect," but still a "pro-American and anti-extremist; we believe he is our best ally in the government."

Though Pakistan had arrested LeT and JUD leaders and closed their camps, U.S. officials remained uncertain whether the ISI, Pakistan's intelligence service, had "abandoned its policy of using these proxy forces as a foreign policy tool."

Since those cables were written, American David Coleman Headley, who played a significant role scouting targets for the Mumbai attacks, told Indian investigators that rogue elements in the ISI worked hand-in-glove with LeT, including coordination during planning of the attacks.

Sanctions Hurting, But Not Yet Changing Iran

Widespread banking and economic sanctions against Iran are drying up investments and fomenting internal discord, two top government officials testified before a congressional committee Wednesday. But they acknowledge that, so far, the restrictions have not had the desired effect of persuading the Islamic Republic to back off its ambitions for a nuclear weapon.

A new round of talks between Iran and ambassadors from the U.S. and other nations is scheduled for next week in Geneva. "The international community is unified in its belief that a nuclear-armed Iran would have grave implications for the stability of the Gulf region, the broader Middle East, and the global economy," said State Department Under Secretary for Political Affairs William F. Burns."

Burns was joined before the House Foreign Affairs Committee by Stuart Levey, Treasury's Under Secretary for Terrorism and Financial Intelligence, who detailed the various sanctions imposed by the U.S. and the United Nations, and his office's efforts to enforce them. Treasury officials have visited 24 countries in recent months to persuade governments and businesses to watch out for possible violations.

As a result, "Iran has dramatically reduced access to financial services from reputable banks, and is finding it increasingly difficult to conduct major transactions in dollars or euros," Levey said. "With great regularity, major companies are announcing that they have curtailed or completely pulled out of business dealings with Iran."

Iran has taken to trying to hide its role "in transactions by removing or stripping their names from transaction documents," Levey said. Oil companies are not investing in new projects in Iran and other contracts have been canceled.

That's contributing to an escalating unemployment rate, especially among people younger than 30 years old. That is helping fuel internal political dissatisfaction and the Iranian Revolutionary Guard – a key target of the sanctions plan – "is taking increasing control over significant portions of the Iranian economy," Levey said.

Treasury Targets Pakistan-Based Terrorists

The Treasury Department designated three senior terrorists on Thursday for their involvement with the Pakistan-based jihadist groups Lashkar-e Jhangvi (LJ) and Jaish e-Mohammed. The designations freeze any assets the three have under U.S. jurisdiction and bar Americans from engaging in financial transactions with them.

One of the three is Mati ur-Rehman, described by Treasury as a planning director of al-Qaida, was linked to an August 2006 plot to destroy British airliners flying to the United States. Rehman has also been implicated in plots targeting the U.S. consulate in Karachi, a former Pakistani president and that country's former prime minister.

Treasury also designated Amanullah Afridi, who last year became head of LJ. Afridi "has prepared suicide jackets for al Qa'ida operations, trained suicide bombers and trained the assassin" of a Pakistani cleric, a Treasury statement said. The third terrorist is Abdul Rauf Azhar, who has served as JEM's intelligence coordinator. According to Treasury, Azhar was assigned to organize suicide attacks in India and "has served as a JEM official involved with terrorist training camps."

Read more about Jaish e-Mohammed here. Read more about Lashkar-e Jhangvi here.

Brotherhood Opts Out of Egypt's Election Runoff

The Muslim Brotherhood announced Wednesday that it will boycott the second round of this year's national election in Egypt, citing rampant rigging by the ruling National Democratic Party (NDP).

This latest move comes just days after the Brotherhood lost big in the first round of Egypt's Parliamentary elections—going from its current position with 88 seats to failing to win any seats outright. Twenty-six of the Brotherhood's candidates did make it to the run-off round. With Wednesday's news, these individuals will not continue to contest the seats in the December 5^th runoff.

Though officially banned, the Brotherhood has continued to participate in Egyptian politics by running its candidates as independents. But in an atmosphere that, according to the Brotherhood, was filled with intimidation and voter fraud on the part of the NDP, not even that could change the final tally.

According to official reports, Egypt's government has staunchly defended the fairness of the Nov. 28^th election. Instead of fraud, NDP officials point the losses to the opposition party's failure to impact legislation since making astounding gains in 2005's Parliamentary elections.

Although the Brotherhood had just risen to prominence as a serious contender in domestic Egyptian politics over the past five years, the ideological movement of the Muslim Brotherhood has long been far-reaching.

The Islamist group has helped lead to the creation of numerous political parties across the Arab world in its own image—including in Jordan, Syria, and Yemen—while also spawning a multitude of groups currently active in Europe and the United States. The designated terrorist group Hamas also identifies itself as a "wing" of the Muslim Brotherhood.

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