MetaFilter posts tagged with terrorist

No Terrorists Here

hermitosis — Mon, 10 Nov 2008 17:21:10 -0800

Hundreds of Icelanders make postcards to assure British PM Gordon Brown that they're not terrorists.

Abu Nidal mystery solved

stbalbach — Mon, 27 Oct 2008 07:08:16 -0800

Remember Abu Nidal? The "Bin Laden" of the 70s and 80s, he mysteriously committed suicide in Baghdad on the eve of the 2003 invasion. New documents have come to light suggesting Nidal was working for the USA "trying to find evidence linking Saddam and al-Qa'ida." After the Iraqis discovered his collusion with US intelligence he was initially "interrogated". His end is recorded bleakly: "Upon being asked to accompany those charged with guarding him to a more secure location to continue the interrogation procedures, he requested that he be allowed to change his clothes. On entering his bedroom, he committed suicide. Unsuccessful attempts were made to resuscitate him ..."

And then there were ten

raider — Thu, 25 Sep 2008 20:06:10 -0800

Planning and working toward ultimate goals that appear unattainable or even unrealistic does not militate against a finding that this was a terrorist group The Toronto 18 , long since reduced to 11, is now 10 despite the government's well-compensated mole's protestations. And Stephen Harper's head remains intact.

Bad Company

msalt — Tue, 22 Apr 2008 11:26:25 -0800

The CIA's Odd Man Out: CIA station chief Bob Lady coordinated the secret kidnapping of Islamic militant Abu Omar in Milan and Omar's "extreme rendition" to Egypt where he was tortured. Italy indicted various CIA agents; Lady is on the run in Central America, abandoned by the agency. The twist: Lady opposed the mission all along. And Abu Omar will probably end up with Lady's home in the foothills of the Alps. Lady's boss -- Jeff Castelli, then head of intelligence operations in Italy -- simply received a reprimand and is being groomed for promotion, despite the arrest warrant out for him in Europe. (See "Backchannel Chatter" at end of this article. ) More on Lady's situation from the March, 2007 GQ; Omar's description of these events from the Chicago Tribune.

of T-Shirts and terrorists

cal71 — Fri, 30 Nov 2007 14:15:39 -0800

Fighters and Lovers is a Copenhagen based group that "is greatly in debt to the stylish classic coolness of Palestinian fighter Leyla Khaled and the funky outrageous style of Colombian guerrilla commander Jacobo Arenas. Our work is inspired by the style and principles of these legendary fighters." Their t- have landed them in some hot water with the law. They donated proceeds from their shirts to FARC and the PLFP. After the Santa Claus incident, one wonders if Urban Outfitters would have sold these or if they're more into positive message t-shirt expression nowadays? Of course, had Lovers+Fighters not donated the shirt proceeds to the groups they were advertising, their design would have only been another example of controversial free expression in Denmark, though the U.S. has its own share. Other T-Shirt troubles: Hong Kong T-Shirt Contest A principal in trouble over Intifada "A beer is better than a black man"? Diversity is a no-no Cohen v. California (okay it's a jacket...) There are more, though the lesson seems clear: if you have a statement to make, better learn to make it on a t-shirt

Terrorism or fearmongering?

Dillonlikescookies — Tue, 16 Oct 2007 22:25:23 -0800

Tame Iti, Maori activist, is no stranger to controversy - with his full facial moko he has a face you won't soon forget. But is he a terrorist? Recently, the New Zealand Police force carried out a series of "raids" against a "training camp" in the north island, in the first use of the Terrorism Suppression Act, legislated in 2002. The act itself is not without it's critics but the country seems divided about the raids. Deluded extremists? Harmless Activist? or Real Threat? Some have claimed the raids are politically motivated, enacted by a police force with a declining public image. The whole case is racially loaded The "culture of fear" that is so written about seems to have trickled down somewhat, but time will tell whether it stays with the NZ public. By one account the camps are "amateurish" and with the exception of Tame Iti the most significant charge seems to be possession of a firearm without a license. The police, however, are certainly not helping matters - releasing information suggesting the group intended to start a "race war" and aimed to created an independent state through methods borrowed from the IRA, while keeping quiet on other details. Their press release here Troublesome, to me, is that the police also conducted a "non-raid" of the homes of environmental activists simultaneously, most notably in Christchurch, over a thousand kilometres away. I don't mean to start the thread with strong bent on it, but personally I find this worrying. New Zealand has had it's share of radicals, gun-wielding-forest-living cultists and so on, but the hype that this has reached in the media is unsettling. Worth noting, of course, is the Tuhoe tribe, of which Tame Iti is a member, with unresolved/ignored disputes with the government, which are a significant sticking point. Given this, and the harsh treatment of Tame Iti in regards to the flag protest, was further "radicalization" inevitable? Does the government have a responsibility, not so much to prevent radical groups from acting violently, but instead to incorporate them into public discourse rather than disenfranchise, and thus alienate them and antagonize them? Your thoughts?

a dark wind blows

Flashman — Sat, 30 Jun 2007 11:29:48 -0800

The car is on fire, and there's no driver at the wheel

One man's terrorist is another man's...

hadjiboy — Tue, 12 Jun 2007 10:15:45 -0800

The Naxalites of India

"The station's gaffes have included broadcasting in December 2006 a 68-minute call to arms against Israelis by a senior figure of the terrorist group Hezbollah..."

amberglow — Tue, 22 May 2007 11:21:09 -0800

Al Hurra television, the U.S. government's $63 million-a-year effort at public diplomacy broadcasting in the Middle East, is run by executives and officials who cannot speak Arabic, according to a senior official who oversees the program. That might explain why critics say the service has recently been caught broadcasting terrorist messages, ... from their About US page: Alhurra is operated by non-profit corporation “The Middle East Broadcasting Networks, Inc.” (MBN). MBN is financed by the American people through the U.S Congress. US Govt. Accountability Office abstract about other MBN problems here.

Don't-Buy List

Kirth Gerson — Tue, 10 Apr 2007 13:10:21 -0800

No-fly list? Sure, we remember that. It's caused some inconvenience. Some people you wouldn't think of as terrorists are on it. Then again, some known terrorists are on that list. But that's old hat; now the government has a new terrorist list. it's almost all foreigners, but if your name or part of your name is on it, you might have problems.

you can never quite tell...can you?

Prunedish — Thu, 15 Mar 2007 03:17:19 -0800

Mastermind? admitted planning attacks.... can you believe a verdict from partial transcripts edited by the US defence department that Khalid Sheikh Mohammed planned these attacks?

How the Shoe Bomber do.

Kraftmatic Adjustable Cheese — Mon, 04 Dec 2006 13:00:55 -0800

Window Into a Terrorist’s Isolation. British citizen and convicted shoe bomber Richard Reid plays Trivial Pursuit.

Baby, You Can Drive My Car Bomb

jonp72 — Mon, 31 Jul 2006 11:36:25 -0800

The Poor Man's Air Force: A History of the Car Bomb Part 1 & Part 2. Written by Mike Davis, the two-part essay argues that the first car bomb was actually a horse-drawn carriage filled with dynamite that Italian anarchists used to blow up Wall Street in 1920. (more inside)

"Mr. Shady Nasser, a grad student at Harvard they found for me, was my Arabic consultant."

bardic — Fri, 09 Jun 2006 17:09:13 -0800

An interview with John Updike on Terrorist, his most recent novel. Some reviews: Kakutani, Donohue (USAToday), and fellow novelist Amitav Gosh (Wapo).

Terror and the language.

Neiltupper — Fri, 09 Jun 2006 10:08:00 -0800

I would have thought that these charges could fairly be represented as terrorism, yet in 108 links in Google News, there is no mention of "terror" or any of its derivations. Has the word been hijacked?

Movie plot threats

Afroblanco — Sat, 08 Apr 2006 12:00:47 -0800

Security expert (and personal hero) Bruce Schneier on the subject of movie plot threats : Sometimes it seems like the people in charge of homeland security spend too much time watching action movies. They defend against specific movie plots instead of against the broad threats of terrorism.

This month, Schneier announces a contest for readers of his blog and newsletter - submit the most unlikely, yet still plausible, terrorist attack scenarios you can come up with.

From the announcement : "The prize will be an autographed copy of Beyond Fear. And if I can swing it, a phone call with a real live movie producer."

Quiz time boys and girls

snsranch — Wed, 01 Mar 2006 17:42:30 -0800

Quiz #1 is about survival. #2 is about movies. #1 is a little weird (with its answers) and #2 has no answers! Drove me nuts.

Terror Network Visualization

srboisvert — Wed, 25 Jan 2006 02:30:14 -0800

Terror Network Visualization. An interactive flash visualiztion of known terrorist links

FAA space regulations

gunthersghost — Sun, 08 Jan 2006 19:39:42 -0800

Terrorists not allowed in space (the FAA would like to regulate commercial space flights)

USF Professor acquitted

whatgorilla — Wed, 07 Dec 2005 18:12:48 -0800

USF Professor acquitted of terrorism charges -- After being in prison for 3 years--much of that time in solitary confinement--Sami Al-Arian was acquitted today of 8 "key charges" (there was a hung jury on 9 other charges). In all, there was not one guilty verdict out of the 51 charges against Al-Arian and the three other men. The prosecution brought forth 80 witnesses and recorded over 20,000 hours of tapped phone calls--the defense didn't call a single witness. Now the government is trying to decide whether to retry him on the nine counts or to deport him to Israel--a move his attorney is calling "totally vindictive."

One man's terrorist...

szechuan — Mon, 21 Nov 2005 17:39:18 -0800

The Cult of Zaoui. Algerian Ahmed Zaoui arrived in New Zealand in December 2002, having been convicted in Belgium and France (in absentia) for terrorism-related offences, on a false passport requesting refugee status. He was imprisoned for two years (spending ten months in solitary confinement) as a result of the Security Intelligence Service issuing a security risk certificate, before the NZ Supreme Court granted him bail. He now lives in a Dominican Priory in Auckland under curfew, but manages (accompanied by his crusading young lawyer) to give public lectures, offer eulogies, publish a book of poetry, appear in a music video (wmv), sing onstage at the NZ Music Awards, inspire a fund-raising cookbook "Conversations over Couscous", and has become (depending on your viewpoint) a reluctant or carefully cultivated celebrity.

Forever War

homunculus — Sat, 10 Sep 2005 22:17:42 -0800

Taking Stock of the Forever War. "A terrorist leader four years ago, Osama bin Laden is now an ideology as well — and a viral movement. Terrorist attacks worldwide are on the rise. Iraq could well end up a 'failed' state. Maybe it's time to stop fighting on their terms." Also, Osama bin Laden: Lost at Tora Bora. (bugmenot)

Hooray for freedom fighters

greatgefilte — Tue, 05 Apr 2005 18:54:54 -0800

After decades of denial, official honors for terror bombers of Lavon Affair infamy. See also Liberty, USS.

Al Qaeda Gets Online

fenriq — Fri, 04 Mar 2005 10:45:08 -0800

Al Qaeda Posts Online Magazine
Al Qaeda has, reportedly, published the first issue of an online magazine aimed at recruitment of Muslims to get rid of the infidels and apostates (Americans and Iraqi aides) in Iraq.
Washington-based counterterrorism specialist Evan Kohlmann said the magazine aims at 'conveying the sense that the organization is professional, capable, and really understands what they're doing."
It was designed as 'an attempt to refute the idea that Zarqawi and these people are desperate. . . . It shows that these people have time on their hands and don't have to worry about mobility," he said.

Terrorist Spoof

lilboo — Thu, 20 Jan 2005 20:12:49 -0800

Terrorist Video Bloopers Chicago comedy troupe Teatro Bastardo spoofs the hostage video: Three warnings: 1. Windows Media Player required 2. Funny AND offensive 3. Might be low-bandwidth