MidnightWatcher – Prophecy in Motion

That lobotomy rears its ugly head again in an article by the Associated Press titled, “Why did boarding school graduate join al-Qaida?” It’s easy enough for the writers of the article to ask the question, but finding the answer must have been as complicated as interdimensional quantum rocket science. Note to the AP: When one of Moeed Abdul Salam’s Muslim companions was impressed enough with him to state that his Qur’anic recitation “was very good,” it shouldn’t really be all that difficult to figure out why a well-educated Westerner who lived and breathed the Qur’an decided to partake in the joys of jihad. Here are a few clues to whet the appetites of any aspiring investigative reporters who may be out there …

Sura 3:151, “We shall cast terror into the hearts of those who disbelieve …”

Sura 4:89, “Have no unbelieving friends. Kill the unbelievers wherever you find them.”

Sura 5:51, “O you who believe! do not take the Jews and the Christians for friends …”

Sura 8:12b, “… terrorize and behead those who believe in scriptures other than the Qur’an.”

Sura 9:14, “Fight them, Allah will punish them by your hands and bring them to disgrace …”

Sura 9:123, “O ye who believe! Fight those of the disbelievers who are near to you, and let them find harshness in you …”

By CHRIS BRUMMITT and GENE JOHNSON – “Moeed Abdul Salam didn’t descend into radical Islam for lack of other options. He grew up in a well-off Texas household, attended a pricey boarding school and graduated from one of the state’s most respected universities.

But the most unlikely thing about his recruitment was his family: Two generations had spent years promoting interfaith harmony and combating Muslim stereotypes in their hometown and even on national television.

Salam rejected his relatives’ moderate faith and comfortable life, choosing instead a path that led him to work for al-Qaida. His odyssey ended late last year in a middle-of-the-night explosion in Pakistan. The 37-year-old father of four was dead after paramilitary troops stormed his apartment.

His Nov. 19 death went largely unnoticed in the U.S. and rated only limited attention in Pakistan. But the circumstances threatened to overshadow the work of an American family devoted to religious understanding…

And his mysterious evolution presented a reminder of the attraction Pakistan still holds for Islamic militants, especially well-educated Westerners whose Internet and language skills make them useful converts for jihad.” Read more.

By Jim Barnett – “Washington (CNN) — An imam and leader of the Shiite Muslim community in Trinidad and Tobago was sentenced to life in prison for conspiring to attack a New York airport by exploding fuel tanks and fuel pipelines under the airport, the Justice Department said Friday.

Kareem Ibrahim and several other co-conspirators believed the 2007 planned attack would cause extensive damage to John F. Kennedy International Airport and to the New York economy, as well as kill many people, officials said.

Ibrahim, 65, was convicted in May by a federal jury on multiple terrorism offenses after a four-week trial.

The plot originated in 2006 when Russell Defreitas, a naturalized U.S. citizen from Guyana who used to work at JFK as a cargo handler, planned the attack and then recruited others, according to officials. In May 2007, Defreitas gave Ibrahim video surveillance and satellite imagery of the targets because Ibrahim had connections to militant leaders in Iran, the Justice Department said.

During cross-examination at trial, Ibrahim admitted he advised the plotters to present the attack plan to revolutionary leaders in Iran and to use operatives ready to engage in suicide attacks at the airport, according to the Justice Department. On one of the recorded conversations entered into evidence, Ibrahim told Defreitas the attackers must be ready to ‘fight it out, kill who you could kill and go back to Allah.'” Read more.

No paradise with 72 virgins for this jihadist. He’ll have to settle for prison, with 72 non-virgins …

By Lisa Rogers – “A man thought to be an Islamic extremist is believed to have shot the windows out of at least two businesses in Alabama City early Sunday to lure police officers to the area and engage them in a shootout.

Luis Ibarra-Hernandez, 21, from Albertville, was charged today with attempted murder, according to a news release from the Gadsden Police Department.

‘After the man was taken into custody, he reported that he knew he must do something extreme to draw attention to Islam and himself, so he planned to shoot police officers,’ Gadsden Police Capt. Regina May said.

Gadsden police officers responded to alarm calls for glass breakage after doors were shot out about 1:30 a.m. Sunday at AutoZone and Rainbow Food Mart near the intersection of 27th Street and West Meighan Boulevard.

While investigating the broken doors and determining they were shot out, officers heard gunfire and spotted a man near the old CVS building.

The man knew he had been seen and ran toward the Cathedral of Praise Church parking lot, then started firing rounds at the officers.” Read more.

“GREENBELT, Md. – A former U.S. Army soldier has been charged with attempting to provide material support to terror group al Shabaab, the Department of Justice announced Monday.

Craig Benedict Baxam was arrested Friday upon return to his home state of Maryland after he was captured in Africa during an alleged attempt to reach Somalia, where the terror group is based.

Baxam, 24, joined the Army in 2007 and served in Baghdad and Korea. During his enlistment, he completed eight months of advanced intelligence and cryptology training, the Justice Department said in a press release.

According to court papers, Baxam secretly converted to Islam days before leaving the Army, one month ahead of completing his deployment in Korea. He returned to Maryland in July 2011 and reportedly sought to move to Somalia to join al Shabaab.

Baxam allegedly flew to Kenya using money from his retirement savings account, and carried several hundred dollars in cash to give al Shabaab as an offering after crossing the border into Somalia, the Justice Department said.

‘The complaint alleges that Craig Baxam intended to travel to Somalia and join the terrorist organization Al-Shabaab,’ U.S. Attorney Rod J. Rosenstein said in a statement.” Read more.

According to this wannabe jihadist, dying while blowing up kafir businesses and infidel policemen is a great Islamic way to obtain a glorious death.  But according to Barack Obama, Eric Holder and Janet Napolitano, he isn’t really a Muslim, no matter what he says …

“A suspected Islamic extremist has been arrested over an alleged plan to attack businesses and a police station in Florida, US authorities have said.

Sami Osmakac, 25, a naturalised US citizen who was born in the former Yugoslavia, was arrested in Tampa on January 7 following a sting operation.

According to the US justice department he allegedly tried to create a car bomb and obtain an assault rifle and explosives.

His arrest followed a months-long surveillance during which the Kosovo-born suspect was closely monitored by law enforcement officials.

Officials said Mr Osmakac has been charged with one count of attempted use of a weapon of mass destruction, which they identified as explosives.

‘The perseverance and diligence of law enforcement caused this investigation to conclude in a successful manner,’ US Attorney Robert O’Neill said in a statement.

‘I would like to commend them for their hard work. This investigation was also predicated, in part, by assistance from the Muslim community. I would like to thank them as well.’

Mr Osmakac allegedly met with an undercover FBI employee from whom he tried to acquire an AK-47-style automatic rifle, Uzi submachine guns, high capacity magazines, grenades and an explosive belt.

During one meeting, when told by the undercover operative that he could change his mind and back out of the plot, Mr Osmakac is said to have replied: ‘We all have to die, so why not die the Islamic way?'” Read more.

“We are fighting to destroy the enemy. We are dealing with evil at its roots and its roots are America.” – Jamaat ul-Fuqra

“WASHINGTON – A radical jihadist group responsible for nearly 50 attacks on American soil is operating 35 terrorist training camps across the nation, but the U.S. government refuses to include the organization on the State Department’s list of foreign terrorists.

Jamaat ul-Fuqra, known in the U.S. as ‘Muslims of America,’ has purchased or leased hundreds of acres of property – from New York to California – in which the leader, Sheikh Mubarak Gilani, boasts of conducting ‘the most advanced training courses in Islamic military warfare.’

In a recruitment video captured from Gilani’s ‘Soldiers of Allah,’ he states in English: ‘We are fighting to destroy the enemy. We are dealing with evil at its roots and its roots are America.’

Though Gilani and his organization is suspected of committing assassinations and firebombings inside the U.S., and is also suspected of the beheading murder of Wall Street Journal reporter Daniel Pearl in Pakistan, the terrorist camps spread through the country continue to expand in numbers and population.

A documentary called ‘Homegrown Jihad: Terrorist Training Camps Around the U.S.’ provides compelling evidence of how ‘Muslims of America’ operates with impunity inside the U.S. In the video, producers visited some camps, attempted to visit others and interviewed neighbors and local police officials. It also include excerpts of the ‘Muslims of America’ recruitment video.

The recruitment video shows American converts to Islam being instructed in the operation of AK-47 rifles, rocket launchers and machine guns and C4 explosives. It provides instruction in how to kidnap Americans, kill them and how to conduct sabotage and subversive operations.” Read more.

Flashback: ‘What Are You Waiting For?’ – Al-Qaeda Calls on US Muslims to Buy Guns and Start Killing Americans – “I’ve believed for some time now that when this does come it will, with the right ‘triggering event’, not be isolated. It will be wide-scale. As we all know, there are millions upon millions of Muslims living in Western nations today. If an event were to occur in the world that would be eschatologically pivotal for Muslims this would be sure to awaken any radical elements within the Muslim population, regardless of where they live, and even radicalize some of those who were previously considered “moderate”. The arrival of al Mahdi, for example, could become the ‘triggering event’ that has the potential to precipitate a sudden surge in Islamic terrorism all over the globe. If we are complacent into believing that any such scenario could never happen or is highly unlikely, we don’t need to look far before we come face to face with the sobering reality that Islamic terrorist cells are, today, already forming within our own borders.” Read more.

Flashback: New Study Shows That 80% of Mosques in America Teach Jihad Violence and Islamic Supremacism – “This study is extensive and detailed. Look over all the data. Above all, call upon your elected officials and the media to take notice — at very least, to ask pointed questions from local mosque leaders about the books they’re using and what they’re teaching in general. Call on them to require honest, verifiable answers. It is likely, however, that this study … will be ignored.” Read more.

Flashback: Top Syrian Cleric Warns West: We Have Suicide Bombers Who Are ‘Already In Your Countries’ – “Syria’s top Sunni Muslim cleric has warned Western countries against military intervention, threatening to retaliate with suicide bombings in the United States and Europe if his country comes under attack. Grand Mufti Ahmad Badreddin Hassoun gave a speech and told the U.S. and Europe that ‘we will prepare suicide bombers who are already in your countries if you bomb Syria or Lebanon.’… Hassoun’s comments follow another warning by Syrian Foreign Minister Walid al-Moallem, who threatened ‘tough measures’ against any country that recognizes the newly formed opposition Syrian National Council.” Read more.

Flashback (Video): Hezbollah Terrorists Working with Mexican Drug Cartels – Read more.

Flashback (Video): Middle Eastern Terrorists Plan US Attack ‘Worse Than The World Trade Center’ From Latin American Countries – Read more.

By Robert Spencer – “Abdel Hameed Shehadeh wanted to join the U.S. Army so that he could turn and kill American soldiers. Instead, he has exposed a jihad network of impressive proportions that, if his assertions are true, should end the rush toward politically correct self-deception in the way law enforcement officials approach the problem of jihad terrorism in the United States.

The criminal complaint against him says that he ‘and several other individuals’ were being charged ‘in connection with a plot to travel overseas and wage violent jihad against the United States and other coalition military forces.’ Shehadeh had planned to wage this jihad from within the U.S. military: in 2008, he went to a recruiting station in Times Square and attempted to join the Army, so that he could, according to law enforcement officials, get training that he could use ‘to fight beside fellow Muslims against their enemies, including United States military forces.’

But things didn’t work out that way. Shehadeh got caught, and quickly began cooperating with authorities. He gave FBI agents a lengthy interview that fills a 22-page report that his lawyers are now trying to deep-six: although Shehadeh gave the interview in an attempt to get a better deal for himself, he quickly started worrying about ‘how much I incriminated myself,’ and so now wants the report suppressed.

Those he named no doubt also want his report suppressed. According to the New York Daily News, Shehadeh was ‘a fount of information.’ Among the jihad plotters he mentions in the report are ‘Brooklyn teachers of the Islamic orthodoxy Salafism’ and Muslims who ‘delivered pro-jihadist speeches at mosques or ranted in online chat rooms.’

Salafism is a form of hardline Islam that calls for the imposition of Islamic law in its fullness, including stonings, beheadings, amputations, and warfare against unbelievers. Salafis just made a strong showing in Egypt’s elections. But in the U.S., the Islamic establishment insists that all Muslims happily accept constitutional freedoms and pluralism, and that anyone who suggests otherwise is a venomous ‘Islamophobe.’ If Shehadeh’s claims are true, however, Salafism is Read more…

Here’s an update to this story on the ‘peanut butter and jelly’ jihadist. Not only has Tarek Mehanna been convicted, we’re now learning that he’s a full-fledged doctor, having obtained his degree from the Massachusetts College of Pharmacy and Health Sciences. Yet another nail in the coffin to the liberal lie that poverty and lack of education are the root cause of Islamic terrorism …

“Washington: A federal jury on Tuesday convicted a US man of conspiring to kill American soldiers in Iraq.

Prosecutors alleged that Tarek Mehanna, who hails from the Boston suburb of Sudbury, travelled to Yemen in 2004 seeking terrorism training, Xinhua reported.

Mehanna, an Egyptian descent, has been held without bail since he was indicted on terrorism charges in November 2009.

The 29-year-old had a doctorate degree from the Massachusetts College of Pharmacy and Health Sciences.

After failing to get training there, he returned to the US and started distributing propaganda materials of Al Qaeda.

Defence lawyers argued that Mehanna did not provide support to Al Qaeda but was expressing his own views in opposition to US foreign policy, particularly to the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan.

But a number of Mehanna’s former friends testified against him that he had promoted extreme ideology, endorsed the Sep 11, 2001 terrorist attacks.” Read more.

“A Lebanese immigrant will admit to dropping a backpack he thought held a bomb into a busy street’s trash bin near Chicago Cubs’ home ground Wrigley Field.

Sami Samir Hassoun, 23, also talked about poisoning Lake Michigan, bombing a landmark skyscraper and assassinating the then Mayor of Chicago.

He initially pleaded not guilty to charges that he received a fake bomb he believed was real from undercover FBI agents last year.

But attorneys have now told a federal judge he will plead guilty under an agreement worked out with prosecutors – a deal experts say may reflect the enormous odds he would face a trial.

At a hearing in Chicago, U.S. District Judge Robert Gettleman set a date of February 14 for Hassoun to change his plea.

But neither side offered details about exactly what charges he would plead guilty to, and government and defence attorneys declined to comment after the hearing.

Hassoun has a strong incentive to reduce his potential prison time via a plea deal.

A conviction on just one of the charges against him – attempting to use a weapon of mass destruction – carries a maximum life prison term.” Read more.

And this is just one of 30 different dealerships across the US suspected of supporting the Lebanese terror organization Hezbollah. Although it is unclear if others are also Muslim-owned, it’s just a matter of time now before CAIR and their leftist enablers decry local and federal law enforcement as power-hungry ‘Islamophobes’ looking for a scapegoat …

“TULSA, Okla. — Tulsa police and federal agents are searching a car dealership in midtown for evidence of ties to an alleged money laundering scheme which funnels funds to Hezbollah terrorists.

KRMG has confirmed that police and agents raided the Ace Auto Mart business located at 5717 E. 11th St. in Tulsa, as well as the home of the business owner.

We have identified that owner as Mohammad Soukieh. His home is located in the 10500 block of S. Sandusky Ave. in Tulsa.

The searches were related to a civil lawsuit filed in the federal Southern District of New York by Asst. U.S. Attorney Preet Bharara.

Read the filing here.

The suit alleges a massive money-laundering scheme centered around a Lebanese bank which the feds say funnelled a total of nearly $250 million to Hezbollah, considered a terrorist organization.

In a press release, Bharara wrote that this was a ‘massive, international scheme in which Lebanese financial institutions, including a bank and two exchange houses linked to Hizballah, used the U.S. financial system to launder narcotics trafficking and other criminal proceeds through West Africa and back into Lebanon.

‘As part of the scheme, funds were wired from Lebanon to the United States to buy used cars, which were then transported to West Africa. Cash from the sale of the cars, along with proceeds of narcotics trafficking, were then funneled to Lebanon through Hizballah controlled money laundering channels.

Substantial portions of the cash were paid to Hizballah, which the U.S. Department of State designated as a Foreign Terrorist Organization in 1997.'” Read more.

We shouldn’t be surprised.  According to the “Panderer-in-Chief” and great supporter of the Muslim Brotherhood who was himself raised in the tradition of Islam and now employs Islamists in the White House, “Islamic terrorism” does not exist in America …

“Sen. Susan Collins on Wednesday blasted the Defense Department for classifying the Fort Hood massacre as workplace violence and suggested political correctness is being placed above the security of the nation’s Armed Forces at home.

During a joint session of the Senate and House Homeland Security Committee on Wednesday, the Maine Republican referenced a letter from the Defense Department depicting the Fort Hood shootings as workplace violence. She criticized the Obama administration for failing to identify the threat as radical Islam.

Thirteen people were killed and dozens more wounded at Fort Hood in 2009, and the number of alleged plots targeting the military has grown significantly since then. Lawmakers said there have been 33 plots against the U.S. military since Sept. 11, 2001, and 70 percent of those threats have been since mid-2009. Major Nidal Hasan, a former Army psychiatrist, who is being held for the attacks, allegedly was inspired by radical U.S.-born cleric Anwar al-Awlaki, who was killed in a U.S. drone strike in Yemen in late September. The two men exchanged as many as 20 emails, according to U.S. officials, and Awlaki declared Hasan a hero.

The chairman of the Senate Homeland Security Committee, Connecticut independent Sen. Joe Lieberman, said the military has become a ‘direct target of violent Islamist extremism’ within the United States.

‘The stark reality is that the American service member is increasingly in the terrorists’ scope and not just overseas in a traditional war setting,’ Lieberman told Fox News before the start of Wednesday’s hearing.

In June, two men allegedly plotted to attack a Seattle, Wash., military installation using guns and grenades. In July, Army Pvt. Naser Abdo was accused of planning a second attack on Fort Hood. And in November, New York police arrested Jose Pimentel, who alleged sought to kill service members returning from Iraq and Afghanistan.

Both Pimentel and Abdo also allegedly drew inspiration from al-Awlaki and the online jihadist magazine Inspire, which includes a spread on how to ‘Make a Bomb in the Kitchen of Your Mom.’

Rep. Peter King of New York, the Republican chairman of the House Homeland Security Committee, said military service members are ‘symbols of America’s power, symbols of America’s might.’

‘And if they (military personnel) can be killed, then that is a great propaganda victory for al Qaeda,’ King told Fox News.

King said there is also evidence that extremists have joined the services.” Read more.