Germany - Manhunt underway for 7 ‘Iraqi’ ISIS-linked suspects after tip about planned NYE attacks in Munich.

Germany - Manhunt underway for 7 ‘Iraqi’ ISIS-linked suspects after tip about planned NYE attacks in Munich. (RT).

Acting on a tip-off from a "friendly intelligence agency,” German police are hunting seven suspected terrorists, possibly Iraqi nationals linked to Islamic State, who allegedly planned to blow themselves up in Munich train stations on New Year's Eve.

Just hours before midnight, Germany received a tip-off from US and French intelligence about a group of five to seven Iraqi would-be suicide bombers armed with Kalashnikovs who planned to blow themselves up at two train stations in Munich in an attack similar to those that killed 130 people in Paris, regional broadcaster Bayerischer Rundfunk reported.

According to the broadcaster, American and French intelligence services possibly received their information from the same source.

According to Bavarian Interior Minister Joachim Herrmann, the tipoff indicated that Islamic State (IS, previously ISIS/ISIL) was behind the planned attacks.

Munich police chief Hubertus Andrae told a news conference Friday that German officials had received a "very concrete" tip that suicide attacks were planned on New Year's Eve at two train stations.

"We received names. We can't say if they are in Munich or in fact in Germany," Andrae said.

"At this point, we don't know if these names are correct, if these people even exist, or where they might be. If we knew this, we would be a clear step further," he added.German police lifted their imminent attack alert in Munich on Friday afternoon. Read the full story here. More here.

Afghanistan - pro-government armed men behead Four IS terrorists to revenge comrades.

Afghanistan - Nangarhar province, pro-government armed men behead Four IS terrorists to revenge comrades. (khaama).

A group of pro-government armed men have beheaded four members of the terrorist group of Islamic State (IS) or Daesh in eastern Afghanistan to revenge.

The incident took place in Achin District of Nangarhar province which is a stronghold of the militant group in the country’s east.

Haji Ghalib Mujahid, governor of Achin District says Daesh captured four members of the pro-government forces during a gun battle and later beheaded them.

He said the pro-government armed men who also had five members of Daesh in their custody did the same to revenge. “They beheaded four of them and put their dead bodies on the side of the road,” Mujahid said.

According to the district governor, two of the four militants belonged to Tirah valley while the two others were from Orakzai Agency of Pakistan.

The pro-government armed men under the leadership of MP Haji Zahir Qadir mobilized against Daesh when their insurgency and brutality surged in parts of Nangarhar.

Qadir says he grabbed arms against insurgents to secure his people and defend his country.

This is first time that pro-government forces behead members of Daesh in Afghanistan. Hmmm.....'A Head for a Head'.

HT And Source:

In Afghanistan’s Nangarhar province, pro-government armed men behead IS militants to revenge https://t.co/MZpissbEKa pic.twitter.com/bpfIEGd0lp

— TRACterrorism.org (@TRACterrorism) December 27, 2015

Major terrorist attacks coming to the U.S.?

Major terrorist attacks coming to the U.S.? (RT).

The FBI has launched an investigation after 150 prepaid mobile phones were bought from local Walmarts in Missouri. This comes after the theft of dozens of propane tanks in the area.

ABC 17 News reached out to law enforcement in Ava, Missouri and has confirmed through a news release that last Saturday a man purchased a large amount of cell phones from a Walmart there.

Police said they reached out to Walmart employees at the Lebanon and confirmed the same man had also purchased about 60 cell phone at that Walmart earlier that day.

They released the man after they found they had no legal reason to detain him.

The latest report is in addition to four other reports of similar incidents in Columbia, Jefferson City, Macon and Lebanon. Authorities in all five cities said they had contacted FBI agents. However, The FBI only confirmed it is investigating three of those reports.

The large number of purchases took place at six Missouri Walmarts at least, authorities say, according to KRCG13.

On Thursday, a television station in Cape Girardeau reported that the FBI was investigating more suspicious phone purchases in Cape Girardeau and Jackson. ABC 17 News reached out to the police departments in both cities to confirm these reports and has not heard back.

ABC 17 News confirmed Thursday someone tried to buy a suspicious number of phones at Wal-Mart East in Jefferson City over the weekend as well.

ABc 17 News reported Wednesday that 100 prepaid cell phones were also purchased at two Missouri Walmarts over the weekend, and employees reported the incidents to authorities.

The Columbia Police Department was notified on Monday of a suspicious purchase at the Walmart on Conley Road. According to the police report, several men bought multiple phones around 9:30 Friday night.

ABC 17 New talked to a witness who didn't want to be identified said the men paid with cash.

"Right then and there I knew there was not something adding up about this. It's not right, it doesn't make any sense," he said. "Who's going to order 50 phones for Christmas? Who does that?"

"I think on the surface that is suspicious," said Paul Fennewald, the former Missouri Homeland Security Coordinator. "If I had seen the same thing, I probably would have called somebody also."

A large portion of the phones were bought by “three men with accents” at one Walmart near the town of Lebanon, Jefferson City police said. The purchases were made very late, at 3:50am local time on Saturday, authorities said for 59 of the phones. Although the three men were questioned by authorities, nothing further could be done, as there were no grounds for detention.

It was then that the FBI was notified by the Laclede County Sheriff.
The second instance of large purchases was registered on Monday by police in Columbia, two hours north of Lebanon. Five or more men were behind that purchase, which occurred last Friday at 9:30pm.

The same issue is being investigated by Macon Police, where a purchase happened on Saturday, as well as Jackson Police, who are investigating the purchase of 48 prepaid phones on Friday, and Cape Girardieu, where 10 cell phones were purchased, according to KFVS.

The FBI is not ruling anything out, and has asked Missouri residents to notify authorities if they witness anything out of place.

Further to the mobile phone scare, agents are now drawing a connection to the disappearance of dozens of tanks of highly flammable propane gas around locations in Missouri. This elevates the possible connection to a potential terrorist plot, as the local mood seems to indicate.

Here’s another lovely tidbit from a local newspaper report; Minnesota is believed to have produced more would-be foreign fighters than any other state. Read the full story here.

Top Law Enforcement Official: 'Islamic Terrorists Have Infiltrated U.S. Through Mexico.'

Top Law Enforcement Official: 'Islamic Terrorists Have Infiltrated U.S. Through Mexico.' HT: JudicialWatch.

A few days ago a top law enforcement official finally confirmed that Islamic terrorists have infiltrated the United States through Mexico, a story that Judicial Watch broke last year as part of an ongoing series involving the dangerously porous southern border.

Last October JW reported that four members of the militant group Islamic State of Iraq and Greater Syria (ISIS), who entered the U.S. through the Mexican border, were arrested in McAllen and Pharr Texas. Then, over the summer, JW reported that Mexican drug cartels are smuggling foreigners from countries with terrorist links into a small Texas rural town near El Paso and they’re using remote farm roads—rather than interstates—to elude the Border Patrol and other law enforcement barriers.

During a visit to Laredo a few days ago the Director of the Texas Department of Public Safety (DPS), Steven McCraw, answered a question from a member of the public who asked if any suspected ISIS terrorists had ever been apprehended on the Mexican border. A local news outlet published McCraw’s answer: “Individuals that come across the Texas/Mexican border from countries with a known terrorism presence and the answer to that is yes." Read the full story here.

FBI Wanted Islamic Jihad leader in Cairo for talks with Egyptian officials & discuss the kidnapping of four Hamas members.

Islamic Jihad leader in Cairo for talks with Egyptian officials. HT: IMRA.

Islamic Jihad leader in Cairo for talks with Egyptian officials - Sept. 2, 2015 2:55 P.M. (Updated: Sept. 2, 2015 2:55 P.M.) http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=767387

GAZA CITY (Ma'an) -- Islamic Jihad leader Ramadan Shallah arrived in Cairo late Tuesday to meet with Egyptian officials, a source from the group said.

Shallah, who was accompanied by his deputy, Ziad Nakhala, visited Egypt to discuss the ceasefire agreement reached after Israel's military offensive last summer and the opening of the Rafah crossing.

The Islamic Jihad officials were also due to discuss the kidnapping of four Hamas members in Sinai on Aug. 19, the source said.

Egyptian officials told Ma'an that the four members were taken hostage by the IS-affiliated Sinai Militant militant group as a bargaining chip to force Hamas to release some 50 Salafists currently imprisoned in Gaza.

Negotiations have reportedly begun between Hamas and the militant group, with the involvement of both Palestinian and Egyptian mediators.

The Egyptian-brokered truce came into effect on August 26, 2014, with the sides pledging to resume indirect contacts within a month to pin down a lasting ceasefire and discuss crunch issues. Follow-up talks were delayed several times and never formally resumed.

In August, the military wing of the Islamic Jihad movement, the al-Quds Brigades, said the group would no longer continue to commit to the ceasefire agreement if prisoner Muhammad Allan, then in the critical stages of a hunger strike, died.

'Arafat did not die of poisoning' - French experts.

'Arafat did not die of poisoning' - French experts. (France24).

French experts reexamining evidence have confirmed their earlier conclusion that the 2004 death of Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat was not the result of poisoning, a prosecutor told AFP Monday.

The prosecutor for the western Paris suburb of Nanterre said the experts found there was no foul play in Arafat's death, which sparked immediate and enduring conspiracy rumours.

A centre in the Swiss city of Lausanne had tested biological samples taken from Arafat's personal belongings given to his widow after his death, and found "abnormal levels of polonium" – an extremely radioactive toxin, but stopped short of saying that he had been poisoned by polonium.

French experts "maintain that the polonium-210 and lead-210 found in Arafat's grave and in the samples are of an environmental nature," Nanterre prosecutor Catherine Denis said.

The reevaluation of earlier data "disproves the hypothesis of an acute ingestion of polonium-210 in the days preceding the appearance of symptoms," she said. Read the full story here.


Arafat's personal doctor : "Arafat died of AIDS" by Ibn-Khaldun

@Wellofgrief @MFS001 @roepme @ynkutner Indeed he did. http://t.co/ajnDB4bRus Here's more proof http://t.co/jfRsRStk4z

— IsraelMatzav (@IsraelMatzav) March 17, 2015

Pakistani 'explosives' Boat Had 'Costly Cargo' to be Moved to India, for Obama's Visit?

Pakistani 'explosives' Boat Had 'Costly Cargo' to be Moved to India, for Obama's Visit? (NDTV)

A suspicious fishing boat carrying explosives from Pakistan was intercepted by Indian Coast Guard in Arabian Sea near Indo-Pak maritime boundary but it sank after the crew on board set it on fire. We bring you 10 interesting points.

1. Intercepts were picked up about "costly cargo" to be shipped to India, say sources. The National Technical Research Organisation picked up a conversation from Karachi. 

2. The intercepts revealed that the boat was carrying arms and explosives to be transferred to another boat. 

3. A second intercept was picked up at around 12 noon on December 31 about a suspicious boat. The inputs were shared with the local marine police and Coast Guard. 

4. The boat was spotted around 365 km west of Porbandar in Gujarat. 

5. Sources say the explosives-laden fishing boat was about 10 to 15 km into Indian waters.  

6. When the Pakistani vessel was intercepted, it was "sitting quietly without lights", said sources. 

7. The Coast Guard reportedly asked the ship to switch on the lights and let it board the ship for verification. But the ship tried to move away, which is when the Coast Guard ship gave chase. 

8. The "hot pursuit" lasted for about an hour. The boat allegedly slowed down because it was low on fuel. 

9. Several loud explosions followed and a massive fire erupted on the boat. Four men were seen on the boat before it sank. 

10. Indian forces and police have been on high alert in preparation for US President Barack Obama's visit later this month for the Republic Day parade.

More on this story here and here.

Leaked DHS Report Reveals 13 Foreign Suspected Terrorists Illegally Entered Canada from US.

Welcome to Canada !

Leaked DHS Report Reveals 13 Foreign Suspected Terrorists Illegally Entered Canada from US. (Breitbart).

At least 13 men from Africa with terrorist-related records illegally entered Canada from the U.S. since 2010, according to a leaked Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Intelligence Information Report exclusively obtained by Breitbart Texas.

The data pertains only to one small region of the vast U.S.-Canadian border. The report reveals that as of September 9, 2014, there have been 155 encounters in the area “involving 344 ethnic Somalis, 21 ethnic Ethiopians, five ethnic Kenyans, two ethnic Djiboutians, two ethnic Nigerians, and one ethnic Sudanese and Congolese subjects who have attempted or succeeded in entering Canada illegally near the Pembina, ND Port of Entry (POE) since June 2010.

These encounters INCLUDE 13 SUBJECTS WITH TERRORIST-RELATED RECORDS [Emphasis Added] who have utilized this method of circumventing designated POEs.”

The report lists several ethnic Somalis who have U.S. addresses and official Alien Registration Numbers issued by the U.S. government, who the report indicates are either included, or should be included, into the Terrorist Screening Database. Read the full story here.

Video - Terrorist group ISIS Justifies Its War on Yazidis: We Called on Them to Convert to Islam First

British female ISIS terrorist(22): "I will be the first female who beheads an Brit or American"

British female ISIS terrorist (22): "I will be the first female who beheads a Brit or American" (HLN). [GoogleTranslate].

A young British woman with ties to Islamic State (IS) has announced on Twitter that she wants to be the First female executioner who beheads a British or American prisoner .She did that a day after the video surfaced in which the American journalist James Foley is decapitated by a British IS-jihadist.

Khadijah Daren, from London, moved in 2012 to Syria.

Recently, she made ​​a stir after she had Her toddler son to pose with a Kalashnikov in his arms.

 On Twitter, she used the name Muhajirah fi Sham, which means "immigrant in Syria."

Yesterday she tweeted: "" Any left 4 da da execution of journalist plz. Allahu Akbar. UK must b shaking up haha. I wna b da 1st UK woman 2 kill a UK or US teror rist "

Read:." Looking for links to the video of the beheading of the journalist Allahu akbar The UK should now be shocked, haha I want... first British woman to a British or American terrorist murders. "

Murder Lee Rigby Dare converted to Islam when she was a teenager.

She began to visit In London last year a mosque in Lewisham  that is linked to the killers of Lee Rigby, the British soldier who was stabbed to death in the street by two Islamic extremists. Who declared that they retaliated with the murder of the British troops who had slain Muslims. More here : Mirror.

On her Twitter post Dare homages to Islamist terrorists and she asks tips to her son to learn the Quran. She  also post pictures of heads of men on stakes, presumably victims of IS militants. She is married to a Turkish man she met in Sweden.Hmmm....Notice there's Always a Turkish link.

@MFS001 Looks like Aussie Jihadist Preacher "Musa Cerantonio" is her mentor. He is 2nd person on her followers list.
— IndoPacificInstitute (@IPacInstitute) August 21, 2014

Video - 'Canadian values' in your Toronto neighborhood - Al Quds Rally in Toronto.

HTand more at BlazingCatfur.

Video - Antisemitic fest started at Toronto 'AlQuds' day, attacking Harper gov.

Terrorist Watchlist Guide Revealed.

Terrorist Watchlist Guide Revealed. HT: Matzav; The Intercept.

The Obama administration has expanded the national terrorist watchlist system, so that “irrefutable evidence or concrete facts are not necessary” to be labeled a terrorist by the government.

Under the guidelines, both “known” and “suspected” are tracked by the government.

Terrorism is broadly defined to include destruction of government property or damaging computers used by financial institutions.

The guidelines also note that “‘walk-in,’ ‘write-in,’ or postings on social media sites” can be used to place someone on the watchlist.

Having a family member who has already been designated a terrorist under the watchlist guidelines can also be sufficient for getting a person on the list, too.Hmmm......I Wonder how Hamas members manage to travel to Turkey and Qatar? Read more at The Intercept.

"Home Sweet Home" - Hamas leader's three sisters live secretly in Israel as full citizens

"Home Sweet Home" - Hamas leader's three sisters live secretly in Israel as full citizens.(Telegraph).

Israel regards Ismail Haniyeh, the Palestinian Hamas prime minister, as an enemy of state. But three of his sisters enjoy full Israeli citizenship, having moved 30 years ago to the desert town of Tel Sheva. Some of their offspring have even served in the Israeli army, the force responsible for decades of Israeli occupation in Gaza and the West Bank, an occupation that the Islamist movement, Hamas, was founded to fight.

The Daily Telegraph tracked down the Haniyeh sisters, Kholidia, Laila and Sabah, to a town in southern Israel. That they live in Israel is a closely guarded secret and nowhere is it guarded more secretly than Tel Sheva, a town inhabited mainly by Israeli Bedouin on the edge of the Negev desert.

Another member of the clan, Yousef Abu Ruqia, 50, who works as secretary in the municipal council, explained how the Haniyeh sisters came to Tel Sheva.

"In a small community like ours there were not enough women to go round, so some of the men would go and look for wives elsewhere,'' he said.

"The Haniyeh sisters were Palestinians living in Gaza. Back then it was possible for people to visit Gaza easily, so Kholidia was the first to be married and move to Tel Sheva, and then Laila and then Sabah.''

He said he remembered the time, 25 years ago, when their younger brother, Ismail, would come to visit his sisters. "There was another brother, Khaled, who came here to work laying tiles and each year, at the holiday after Ramadan, Ismail would come and visit his brother and sisters."Read the full story here.

Here's a confirmation of the story from Carl in Jerusalem dating to 2006 :

According to the Telegraph, who tracked down the sisters, some of their children have even served in the IDF

Video - "Yes We Can" - Security cameras allegedly record IAF strike on Gaza terrorists.

Video - "Yes We Can" - Security cameras allegedly record IAF strike on Gaza terrorists.HT: Jpost.
 

 Footage in unverified YouTube video reportedly shows Friday strike targeting two Popular Resistance Committees members. 

According to Palestinian radio station Bian, the video depicts an Israeli strike targeting Popular Resistance Committees members Usama Hasumi and Muhammad Fasiah.

On Friday, the IDF named the two as casualties in an IAF strike carried out in northern Gaza. 

The military said Hasumi and Fasiah were involved in rocket attacks on Israel in recent weeks and had been planning more attacks on Israeli citizens.Read the full story here.

Breaking - Attack on Pakistan Karachi Airport Leaves at Least 23 Dead.

RT @AFPphoto: Smoke rises from the airport in Karachi this morning after militants launch brazen attack pic.twitter.com/reWHLH3IyH
— Muschelschloss ☕ (@Muschelschloss) June 9, 2014

Breaking - Attack on Pakistan Karachi Airport Leaves at Least 23 Dead.(NBC).

Ten gunmen disguised as police guards attacked a terminal at Pakistan's busiest airport with machine guns and a rocket launcher during a five-hour siege that killed 13 people as explosions echoed into the night, while security forces retaliated and killed all the attackers, officials said Monday.

The airport attack came as a separate suicide bombing in the country's southwest killed 23 Shiite pilgrims returning from Iran, authorities said.

No one claimed responsibility for the attack on the Jinnah International Airport in Karachi, named after the founder of Pakistan, nor the suicide bombing in Baluchistan province. However, the attacks come as government-led peace talks with the local Taliban faction and other militants have floundered in recent weeks.Read the full story here.

Update:

The army had earlier said it had retaken control of Jinnah International Airport's old terminal and that all 10 attackers had been killed.

Most of the dead terminal staff were airport security guards.

No group has so far claimed responsibility for the assault.

An ASF spokesman earlier told Agence France-Presse that the gunmen had reached the runway and that a "gun battle is continuing between terrorists and [armed] forces".

There were also reports of at least two huge blasts at the airport.

Sarmad Hussain, an official with Pakistan International Airlines, told AP: "I was working at my office when I heard big blasts - several blasts - and then there were heavy gunshots."

#Pakistan Taliban claim responsibility for #Karachi Airport attack that left 28 dead incl 12 attackers.

— Yannis Koutsomitis (@YanniKouts) June 9, 2014

UPDATE: #Taliban claims responsibility for #Pakistan airport attack, 3 militants still inside as blasts heard. More http://t.co/sASRSj6K2X
— RT (@RT_com) June 9, 2014

UPDATE: Death toll climbs to 26 in #KarachiAirport attack http://t.co/sASRSj6K2X
— RT (@RT_com) June 9, 2014

#Karachi airport - 05gmt http://t.co/eNL78Ix5qC pic.twitter.com/odAX6OTZ4u via @bbcworldservice
— Muschelschloss ☕ (@Muschelschloss) June 9, 2014

RT @BBCBreaking: 'Gunfire resumes' at Karachi airport in Pakistan after attack that left 23 dead http://t.co/dVg2HJTVz1
— Muschelschloss ☕ (@Muschelschloss) June 9, 2014

The New NATO Sec. General is a Promoter of Hamas.

The New NATO Sec. General is a Promoter of Hamas. HT: INN. By Dr. Manfred Gerstenfeld.

As time passes, it becomes increasingly clear how absurd the choice of former Norwegian Labor Party Prime Minister Jens Stoltenberg as NATO’s next Secretary General is. The new Hamas-Fatah agreement brings to mind the many ways Stoltenberg, his government and Labor have directly and indirectly promoted Hamas’ interests.

Hamas calls for the murder of Jews in its party platform.[1] In January 2006, it won a majority in the only Palestinian general elections. The European Union and the U.S. classify Hamas as a terrorist group.[2] Both ended contacts with Palestinian officials after Hamas formed a new Palestinian government led by Ismael Haniyeh in March 2006. The United States and the E.U. then also cut off aid to the Palestinians.[3]

During Israel’s Cast Lead Operation in 2008, two Norwegian physicians and extreme left activists Mads Gilbert and Erik Fosse, went to Gaza and assisted in the treatment of wounded Gazans. They traveled to Gaza as part of the humanitarian organization NORWAC, which is supported financially to a great extent by Norway’s Foreign Ministry.[16] Gilbert and Fosse were frequently interviewed by the international media and claimed that Israel was attacking civilians and compared it to the God of the Dead and the Underworld, Hades from Greek mythology.[17]


The Gazan hospital where they worked was used as Hamas headquarters. However, the Norwegian physicians did not mention this once in their multiple international press interviews. In their book Eyes in Gaza, these two Hamas propagandists tell how Stoltenberg called the physicians when they were in Gaza and expressed support on behalf of the government and the Norwegian people. “We are very proud of you,” said Stoltenberg.[18]

I have already documented elsewhere many other reasons why Stoltenberg is such a poor choice as Nato Secretary General.[20] As time passes, additional arguments supporting this will most likely come to the surface.Read the full story here.

Video: Islamist terrorists strangulate young Syrian girl in public, for not obeying Sharia law.

Video: Islamist terrorists strangulate young Syrian girl in public, for not obeying Sharia law.(pressTv).WARNING VIDEO CONTAINS GRAPHIC AND VIOLANT IMAGES 18+


A grisly video has emerged showing 'Islamic' animals terrorists operating in Syria strangulating a young girl in public.

In the video, a  hooded executioner strangulates the young girl to death using a piece of metal wire in an unidentified location.

The girl has been put to death because of her refusal to recognize the rigid-minded beliefs promoted by Takfiri groups in Syria.

Earlier this month, a disturbing video emerged showing al-Qaeda-linked militants in Syria’s central province of Homs beheading a man believed to have been a Shia supporter of the government.

The so-called Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, which posted the video, said the beheading was conducted by militants from the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL).

Since the beginning of the crisis in Syria in March 2011, many similar videos have emerged, depicting horrendous crimes, including decapitation and cannibalism, committed by the foreign-backed Takfiri militants against the people in Syria.

A video footage posted online on January 26, showed several mutilated bodies in the western suburb of Aleppo that reportedly belong to the civilians who were executed by ISIL militants.

Another video posted online on May 12, 2013, showed Takfiri militant, Khalid al Hamad, known by his nom de guerre, Abu Sakkar, eating an organ of a dead Syrian soldier.

GOP Senator Apologizes for McCain Tantrum at Syrian Christian Leader Meeting

The 'Islamist' destruction of the idols: Syria’s patrimony at risk from extremists.

The 'Islamist' destruction of the idols: Syria’s patrimony at risk from extremists.HT: The Independent.

Extremists in Syria have started to destroy archaeological treasures such as Byzantine mosaics and Greek and Roman statues because their portrayal of human beings is contrary to their religious beliefs.

The systematic destruction of antiquities may be the worst disaster to ancient monuments since the Taliban in Afghanistan dynamited the giant statues of Buddha at Bamiyan in 2001 for similar ideological reasons.

In mid-January the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL), an al-Qa’ida-type movement controlling much of north-east Syria, blew up and destroyed a sixth-century Byzantine mosaic near the city of Raqqa on the Euphrates. The official head of antiquities for Raqqa province, who has fled to Damascus and does not want his name published, told The Independent: “It happened between 12 and 15 days ago. A Turkish businessman had come to Raqqa to try to buy the mosaic. This alerted them [ISIL] to its existence and they came and blew it up. It is completely lost.”

Other sites destroyed by Islamic fundamentalists include the reliefs carved at the Shash Hamdan, a Roman cemetery in Aleppo province. Also in the Aleppo countryside, statues carved out of the sides of a valley at al-Qatora have been deliberately targeted by gunfire and smashed into fragments.

Professor Maamoun Abdulkarim, general director of antiquities and museums at the Ministry of Culture in Damascus, says that extreme Islamic iconoclasm puts many antiquities at risk. An expert on the Roman and early Christian periods in Syria, he says: “I am sure that if the crisis continues in Syria we shall have the destruction of all the crosses from the early Christian world, mosaics with mythological figures and thousands of Greek and Roman statues.”

Homs Old City has suffered serious damage and is still held by the rebels, while the immense Crusader fortress of Krak des Chevaliers has been battered by government air strikes. The great church at St Simeon has been turned into a military training area and artillery range by rebels.

He says that there is “a mafia from Turkey, Iraq and Lebanon hiring hundreds of people to strip sites”. Among what are known as the Dead Cities in Idlib province in northern Syria, once prosperous and then mysteriously abandoned 1,000 years ago, there are signs that thieves have brought in antiquities experts to advise them about the best places to dig, going by the orderly nature of the excavations.Hmmmm.....Turkish 'Mafia' has no probs working with the 'Islamists', you think it's the same guys that looted 'Occupied' Cyprus?Read the full story here.

More on Turks and looting of Art in 'Occupied Cyprus' here.

US Syrian-American 'Emergency Taskforce' Tied To US Muslim Brotherhood; Group Is Close With US State Department.

US Syrian-American 'Emergency Taskforce' Tied To US Muslim Brotherhood; Group Is Close With US State Department.HT: GMBR. (TIP).by John Rossomando.

The head of a major Syrian-American group said in a podcast earlier this month that American and other Western policymakers should not be concerned about the rise of the Islamic Front in Syria and should actively engage it.

The Islamic Front formed last month after seven Islamist rebel groups formed broke ranks with the Free Syrian Army (FSA), now the Syrian Rebel Front (SRB). The coalition's charter clearly states that it aims to replace the Assad regime with an Islamic state and that it rejects democracy and secularism.

"We have not seen serious engagement by the West with the biggest sort of united opposition armed element on the ground, and that's something I think they definitely should do. That's not to be written off," Syrian Emergency Taskforce Executive Director Mouaz Moustafa said in the podcast. "They should also be seen as the best hope against al-Qaida and the extremists in Syria and also against Hizballah and Assad."

His group has close ties with the U.S. State Department and holds regular meetings with it and with members of Congress.

Moustafa urged his listeners not to "pass judgment" on the Islamic Front based on its name alone.
"The focus now is to depose the regime and kick out people like Hizballah and the Iranian Revolutionary Guard, and others that are killing us. And so that's the best way to describe their ideology," Moustafa said.

"I think the international community and the West and in general must engage with the Islamic Front and need to be more pragmatic and realistic about what is going on ground in Syria in order to bring them on board with whatever political solution will happen in the future."

Many Islamic Front battalions have fought alongside Jabhat al-Nusra and the Islamic State of Iraq and Greater Syria (ISIS), al-Qaida's two factions in Syria, or have endorsed them in interviews or on social media.

Hassan Aboud, the head of Ahrar Al-Sham, a faction of the Islamic Front, told Al-Jazeera in a June 8 interview that the main differences between his group and Jabhat al-Nusra came down to tactics.

Abu Muhammed al-Husseini, the head of al-Sham's political office in Raqqa, agreed, telling Reuters in July that his group differed from al-Nusra only on "operational details."

Suquor al-Sham, Ahrar al-Sham Movement, Jaish al-Islam and Suqour al-Sham – all components of the Islamic Front – signed a declaration with Jabhat al-Nusra in September saying they aimed to establish "the rule of sharia and making it the sole source of legislation" and unite the anti-Assad forces in "an Islamic framework."

According to its website, the  SETF has a both a Board of Trustees and Board of Directors “consisting of Syrian American professionals from across the United States.” Of seven board members named, four are known to have a history of close ties to the US Muslim Brotherhood:Read the full story here.