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Man's best friend has always been thought of as his dog. But really our best friend is God the father. Shadd and Chico remind me of that every day. We hope we can bring that into your lives every day also. Amen! Amen!

Friday, January 22, 2010

Victory for the Muslim Brotherhood!

1. Victory for the Muslim Brotherhood
BY THOMAS JOSCELYN, Weekly Standard


In a controversial move, the Obama administration has decided to lift Tariq Ramadan's ban from the United States. Who is Tariq Ramadan? By birth, he is the grandson of Hassan al Banna - the founder of the Muslim Brotherhood (MB). By word and deed, he is today a leading member of the European branch of the MB. The MB is the mother organization for some of the terrorist groups that became part of al Qaeda's core, including Ayman al Zawahiri's Egyptian Islamic Jihad. Osama bin Laden himself was first wooed to the dark side by Muslim Brothers teaching in Saudi Arabia. The MB has also spawned other hardcore jihadist organizations, including Hamas. While the MB's descendents have publicly disagreed over tactics at times (for example, Zawahiri has taken issue with Hamas's participation in Palestinian elections), they still share the same long-term strategic vision: the re-establishment of an Islamic Caliphate capable of ruling the Muslim world and challenging the West. And that is what Tariq Ramadan believes in too. At the Counterterrorism Blog and on his own website, Douglas Farah explains:As noted in this extensive review of "Brother Tarik: The Doublespeak of Tarik Ramadan," by French journalist Caroline Fourest, the definitive look at Ramadan's cannon, he is intent on saying one thing to Western audiences while something else to his followers. They often do not match up. This is typical of the Muslim Brotherhood. It is eager to use the freedoms that would never exist under the caliphate is so desires to create, in order to promote its totalitarian vision. It demands the right to be heard while being unequivocal in its unwillingness to view as equal anyone who does not embrace its view radical Islamism. 

2  Hizbullah and Syria reportedly raise alert levels fearing Israeli attack

Hizbullah and Syria have raised their alert levels fearing an attack by Israel on Lebanon,A-Sharq Al-Awsat reported on Friday.
According to the London-based paper, Hizbullah was monitoring with concern Israel's build-up of troops on the northern border ahead of a military drill.
Hizbullah deputy head Naim Kassem said that there was still a possibility Israel would launch an offensive in Lebanon, but stressed that Hizbullah could not say for sure that such an attack would happen soon.
The paper further stated that Syria had called up reservist soldiers, including Syrian natives residing in Lebanon.

3. 120 ALLEGED AL-QAEDA ARRESTS ACROSS TURKEY

Wire services are buzzing this morning with news that Turkish police arrested 120 alleged al-Qaeda members during simultaneous predawn raids in 16 provinces.
Al-Qaeda has occasionally attacked foreign targets in Turkey -- the 2003 bombings in Istanbul, the 2008 U.S. consulate attack -- and police occasionally round up small cells. Today's raid is unusually large; unnamed security sources told the BBC police seized weapons, fake identity cards and "camouflage clothing."
Gazianstep pistachios
I would caution a bit of skepticism until we hear more about the identities of the suspects. My initial reaction is that at least some of the detainees are Kurds -- PKK members, perhaps -- rounded up under the guise of a big nationwide al-Qaeda dragnet. Indeed, many of the raids happened in provinces with notable Kurdish populations: Sanliurfa, Van, Malatya.
There are two ways to interpret those locations. They're close to Turkey's Syrian and Iraqi borders, so the detainees could really be al-Qaeda members -- foreign fighters, perhaps, or Turks returning from Iraq.
On the other hand, as I said above: Al-Qaeda generally attacks foreign targets in Turkey, so it doesn't make much sense to run an al-Qaeda cell in southeastern Turkey. Gaziantep is known for its pistachios, not its multinational corporations and splashy five-star hotels.
Turkish newspapers don't really seem to care about the arrests. I can't find the story in any of the major Turkish-language papers; English-language papers in Turkey are mostly reprinting wire reports. Everyone's more interested in last year's Turkish-Armenian rapproachement, which has apparently collapsed; and civil-military relations, which we'll write more about later today.





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