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Feds arrest 3, possibly tied to bomb plot
Fox News, “Feds Arrest 3, Possibly Tied To Bomb Plot”
by Mike Levine
Federal authorities have arrested three New England men in connection with the attempted Times Square bombing, Fox News has learned.
FBI and Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents on Thursday morning executed search warrants in “several locations in the Northeast,” a statement from ICE said.
At least two raids were conducted in Boston suburbs, where two of the men were arrested. The third man was arrested in Maine, while search warrants related to the case were also executed in Camden County, N.J., and on Long Island in New York.
Attorney General Eric Holder said late Thursday that the three men are connected to Faisal Shahzad, the 30-year-old Connecticut man who allegedly drove a car bomb into Times Square on May 1. But, Holder said, the exact nature of those connections is still unclear.
Fox News article continues here.
Days after attempted bombing, Obama to cut NYC anti-terrorism budget by $42 mln
WCBSTV, “White House, NY Lawmakers At Odds Over Funding”
by Magee Hickey
President Barack Obama was expected in Manhattan Thursday to thank the cops who handled the recent Times Square terror. His visit comes the very day the government was set to announce that millions of federal dollars were being slashed from the City’s counter-terrorism budget, just a dozen days after the attempted car bombing, despite the Big Apple being considered by many to be the number one target of Islamic terrorists.
“It’s an absolute direct slap in the face of the people of New York,” Rep. Peter King (R-N.Y.), the ranking member of the House Homeland Security Committee, said on Wednesday.
The city takes a $42 million hit for mass transit security, down 27-percent from last year. Measures like extra patrols on trains and chemical and biological weapons detection systems may have to wait, according to officials, and port security get a big cut as well. On the chopping block are $11.2 million dollars, down 25-percent from last year.
WCBSTV article continues here.
Bloomberg wants ‘Big Brother Britain’ for NYC
WCBSTV, “Bloomberg Wants ‘Big Brother Britain’ For NYC”
by Charlie D’Agata
Mayor Michael Bloomberg has his eye on more security against terror attacks. He went to London Tuesday to check out their surveillance camera system, one of the largest in the world.
Ever since the Times Square car bomb scare on May 1, the mayor’s been looking to build up New York’s camera network.
That means adding to the ring of steel in Times Square, similar to central London’s. The mayor said more NYPD surveillance cameras may prevent another terror scare.
London has 500,000 surveillance cameras, more than any other city in the world.
Bloomberg visited London’s mayor to see how these help Britain fight terror.
WCBSTV article continues here.
Holder: Pakistani Taliban behind Times Square bomb plot
Fox News, “Pakistani Taliban Behind Times Square Bomb Plot, Officials Say”
The investigation into the Times Square bomb plot has revealed that the Pakistani Taliban were behind the failed attack, top Obama administration officials said Sunday.
Despite conflicting claims over the past week from military and law enforcement officials, as well as Taliban leaders, Attorney General Eric Holder and White House counterterrorism adviser John Brennan said that authorities now believe suspect Faisal Shahzad acted at the direction of the Taliban in Pakistan and was probably funded by them.
Brennan told “Fox News Sunday” that Shahzad had “extensive interaction” with the group, which he described as virtually “indistinguishable” from Al Qaeda. He said investigators believe the suspect was trained by the militant network.
Fox News article continues here.
Feds looking for money courier in NYC bomb plot
Google News (AP), “Investigators seek money courier in NYC bomb plot”
by Tom Hays and Rasool Dawar
Investigators of the failed car bombing in Times Square are looking for a money courier they say helped funnel cash from overseas to finance a Pakistani-American’s preparations to blow up the crude gasoline-and-propane bomb in the heart of New York, a law enforcement official told The Associated Press.
Investigators have the name of the courier who they believe helped Faisal Shahzad pay for the used SUV and other materials to rig up a car bomb that would have caused a huge fireball in Times Square if it had gone off, the official told the AP. The official didn’t know how much money may have changed hands.
The official spoke on condition of anonymity Thursday because of the sensitivity of the investigation.
Google News (AP) article continues here.
Justice: Navy SEAL acquitted
Fox News, “Navy SEAL Found Not Guilty of Assaulting a Suspected Terrorist”
Virginia military jury found a Navy SEAL not guilty on charges of punching a suspected Iraqi terrorist.
Matthew McCabe, a Special Operations Petty Officer Second Class, was facing three charges: dereliction of performance of duty for willfully failing to safeguard a detainee, making a false official statement, and assault.
The suspected terrorist McCabe was accused of punching is Ahmed Hashim Abed, who is the suspected masterminded the grisly killings of four American contractors in Iraq six years ago.
Fox News article continues here.
Ann Coulter: Obama’s national security policy- Hope their bombs don’t work
Ann Coulter, “OBAMA NATIONAL SECURITY POLICY: HOPE THEIR BOMBS DON’T WORK”
by Ann Coulter
It took Faisal Shahzad trying to set a car bomb in Times Square to get President Obama, Attorney General Eric Holder and Secretary of Homeland Security Janet Napolitano to finally use the word “terrorism.” (And not referring to Tea Party activists!)
This is a major policy shift for a president who spent a month telling Americans not to “jump to conclusions” after Army doctor Nidal Malik Hasan reportedly jumped on a desk, shouted “Allahu Akbar!” and began shooting up Fort Hood.
After last weekend, now Obama is even threatening to pronounce it “Pack-i-stan” instead of “Pock-i-stahn.” We know Obama is taking terrorism seriously because he took a break from his “Hope, Change & Chuckles” tour on the comedy circuit to denounce terrorists.
Ann Coulter article continues here.
Sources: Shahzad had contact with Awlaki, Taliban chief, and Mumbai massacre mastermind
ABC News, “Sources: Shahzad Had Contact With Awlaki, Taliban Chief, and Mumbai Massacre Mastermind”
by Richard Esposito, Chris Vlasto, and Chris Cuomo
Accused Times Square Bomber Faisal Shahzad linked up with the Pakistani Taliban through the internet, ABC News has been told by law enforcement and intelligence sources close to the investigation. Once the Taliban identified him as more valuable in the U.S. than in Pakistan, they trained him to return to execute his bomb attack.
But according to these sources, Shahzad also had a web of jihadist contacts that included big names tied to terror attacks in the U.S. and abroad, including the figure who has emerged as a central figure in many recent domestic terror attempts – radical American-born Muslim cleric Anwar Awlaki.
Besides Awlaki, sources say Shahzad was also linked to a key figure in the Pakistani Taliban, its Emir Beitullah Mehsud, who was killed in a drone missile strike in 2009. The Mehsuds had been family friends of Shahzad, who is the son of a former high-ranking Pakistani military officer.
ABC News article continues here.
Indian court gives death sentence to Pakistani gunman convicted in 2008 Mumbai attacks
Fox News (AP), “Indian court gives death sentence to Pakistani gunman convicted in 2008 Mumbai attacks”
An Indian court sentenced the only surviving gunman from the 2008 Mumbai attacks to death Thursday, a punishment officials hoped would send a message to archrival Pakistan to stop future violence as fears about the global reach of militancy based on its soil grow.
Judge M.L. Tahaliyani gave Mohammed Ajmal Kasab multiple death sentences for murder, waging war against India, conspiracy and terrorism. He also handed down penalties for over two dozen other offenses ranging to life in prison.
“He shall be hanged by his neck until he is dead,” Tahaliyani said.
Fox News (AP) article continues here.
Last Navy SEAL court martial begins
Human Events, “Last Navy SEAL Court Martial Begins”
by Michelle Oddis
Proceedings began today at Norfolk Naval Base for Petty Officer Matthew McCabe, the last of the three Navy SEALs facing courts martial for allegedly assaulting terrorist Ahmed Hashim Abed, mastermind of the murder and mutilation of four Blackwater security guards in Fallujah in 2004.
Petty Officers Julio Huertas and Jonathan Keefe were found not guilty last month in Baghdad. Huertas and Keefe were charged with failing to protect Abed from any wrong doing, McCabe is the only SEAL to face charges of an actual assault.
McCabe’s defense attorney Neal Puckett told HUMAN EVENTS that the defense is optimistic that McCabe will also be exonerated of all charges, saying that the government has twice tried to prove that an assault took place and have failed.
Human Events article continues here.
We got lucky: Saved by bomber’s incompetence
Fox News, “Times Square Suspect Was Trained, but Picked the Wrong Explosive, Officials Say”
by Jana Winter
Inside the SUV, investigators say they found a complicated but “amateurish-looking” homemade device — a mishmash of household and garden store products including eight bags of sugar nitrate fertilizer — but not ammonium nitrate, which can produce a dynamite-like explosion.
If the device had functioned properly, it probably would have created a deadly fireball — though not nearly as disastrous as an ammonium nitrate device.
Frank Doyle, a former bomb expert and 33-year FBI veteran, said he doubted Shahzad received proper training in Pakistan or elsewhere to build a bomb, particularly when it came to what type of fertilizer he used.
“I would question his degree of training or whatever he knew about it,” Doyle told FoxNews.com. “That’s only one of a series of really serious mistakes he made.”
Fox News article continues here.
No-fly list failed to keep Times Square bomber off plane
Yahoo! News (AP), “Security slip let suspect on plane, near takeoff”
by Eileen Sullivan and Matt Apuzzo
The no-fly list failed to keep the Times Square suspect off the plane. Faisal Shahzad had boarded a jetliner bound for the United Arab Emirates Monday night before federal authorities pulled him back.
The night’s events, gradually coming to light, underscored the flaws in the nation’s aviation security system, which despite its technologies, lists and information sharing, often comes down to someone making a right call.
As federal agents closed in, Faisal Shahzad was aboard Emirates Flight 202. He reserved a ticket on the way to John F. Kennedy International Airport, paid cash on arrival and walked through security without being stopped. By the time Customs and Border Protection officials spotted Shahzad’s name on the passenger list and recognized him as the bombing suspect they were looking for, he was in his seat and the plane was preparing to leave the gate.
Yahoo! News (AP) article continues here.
Up to 8 reportedly in custody in Pakistan in connection with Times Square bombing attempt
Fox News, “Up to 8 Reportedly in Custody in Pakistan in Connection With Times Square Bombing Attempt”
Between four and eight people have been taken into custody for questioning in Pakistan in connection with the investigation of the Times Square bombing attempt, sources told CBS News.
Authorities are not saying who the potential suspects are or where they are being held, but they say there were raids Monday night and Tuesday morning in different locations. Some of them reportedly may be related to suspect Faisal Shahzad, the Pakistani-born U.S. citizen who was arrested overnight in New York.
Also, a man was arrested in Karachi for his connection to the bombing attempt, Pakistani intelligence sources told Fox News.
The capture comes after Shahzad was arrested as he came minutes away from fleeing the U.S. when his Dubai-bound flight was returned to its gate at New York’s Kennedy Airport and U.S. officials escorted him from the plane, along with two other men.
Fox News article continues here.