Iran: Quds Force in Venezuela

[greenberetTFS]

That said, I heartily endorse Penn's suggestion to bring back the 12th! My time in that unit was time well-spent, and some of the teams I interacted with there were top-notch. /quote/Zonie............

I couldn't agree more,I feel the same way...... However I liked the flash,thought it was pretty cool myself............

Big Teddy

[AngelsSix]

Originally Posted by Utah Bob

Nope. 12th is just too busy. It offends my sense of Flash Feng Shui.
I say stick with the tasteful, understated, and historic 8th flash..

Now that is funny!!

[incarcerated]

http://www.jpost.com/Home/Article.aspx?id=180600

Report: Hizbullah on US-Mexico border

By JPOST.COM STAFF
07/06/2010 15:12
A Hizbullah terror cell may be operating among drugs cartels around the US-Mexican border, announced US Republican National Committee Representative Sue Myrick, according to a Fox News report.

Myrick requested US Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano create a special team to further investigate the potential problem and threat.

The Republican representative referenced several incidents that show evidence of Hizbullah's efforts to infiltrate the US region with the aid of Mexican drug cartel gangs.

"It is vital we know what is happening on our border, especially as crime and violence continue to rise there and as terrorist plots and threats are increasing inside the US," quoted the Fox News report.

Myrick cited the warming relationship between Iran and Venzuela as proof that Hizbullah members may be collaborating with Latin American drug cartels, who may be utilizing Hizbullah's ability to dig underground tunnels for drug smuggling and in turn, providing funding, document forging and false identities.

The Fox News report referenced Anthony Placido, assistant administrator for intelligence at the Drug Enforcement Administration, testifying at a House Oversight and Government Reform subcommittee in March this year, that some drug smugglers in the US-Mexico region have had relationships with Hizbullah between the 1980s and 1990s....




See also:
http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2010...-nexus-border/

[incarcerated]

http://www.haaretz.com/news/internat...canal-1.324173

Iran, Venezuela plan to build rival to Panama Canal

Sources tell Haaretz that the recent Nicaragua-Costa Rica border incident was a trial balloon by the creators of a plan to build a new canal in Latin America.
Mon, November 15, 2010 Kislev 8, 5771
By Shlomo Papirblat
The recent border dispute between Costa Rica and Nicaragua is a sign of an ambitious plan by Venezuela, Iran and Nicaragua to create a "Nicaragua Canal" linking the Atlantic and Pacific oceans that would rival the existing Panama Canal.

Costa Rica says that last week Nicaraguan troops entered its territory along the San Juan River – the border between the two nations. Nicaragua had been conducting channel deepening work on the river when the incident occurred.

Sources in Latin America have told Haaretz that the border incident and the military pressure on Costa Rica, a country without an army, are the first step in a plan formulated by Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez and Nicaraguan President Daniel Ortega, with funding and assistance from Iran, to create a substitute for the strategically and economically important Panama Canal.

The plan has aroused concern in Washington, and the U.S. has started behind the scenes efforts to foil it....

In recent years, the government of Ortega, a former Sandinista underground member, has tried to gain control of the San Juan River, which lies on the Nicaragua-Costa Rica border. Costa Rica brought the issue before the international court in The Hague, which after careful examination of historic maps, past agreements and terrain features, determined in July 2009 that the river belonged to Nicaragua, and that the border is located on the southern bank of the river. The court also ruled that Costa Rica had the right of free passage on the river.

However, the results of this ruling are not enough to allow for the implementation of the plan formulated by Venezuela and Nicaragua. In order to build a new canal linking the two oceans, they would also need to control the southern bank of the river and the point where the river meets the Atlantic Ocean.

Several weeks ago, Nicaraguan foreign ministry official informed Costa Rica of Nicaragua's plans to do work to deepen the channel of the San Juan River in order to improve shipping on the waterway. Costa Rica did not oppose the plans, on the condition that the work did not harm the river or the bank on the Costa Rican side of the river.

The apparent engineering project was surprisingly placed under the supervision of Eden Pastora, better known as "Commandante Cero", a hero of the former Sandinista underground. This was a hint that the work had more than a simple engineering purpose.

Two weeks ago, Pastora went to a farm of a Costa Rican citizen in the Calero Island area and told the farm owner that the area belonged to Nicaragua. The farm owner objected and subsequently farm workers were allegedly beaten and farm animals were allegedly killed. The farm owner called Costa Rican police who arrived and reported to their commanders that Nicaraguan troops had entered Costa Rican territory and raised a Nicaraguan flag.

Costa Rican President Laura Chinchilla last week called for a special session of the Organization of American States, located in Washington, but, after a day of talks, no resolution was reached. During the talks, Venezuela supported Nicaragua's position while Panama strongly opposed it.

Chincilla announced on Wednesday that she plans to raise the issue before the United Nations Security Council and again demanded that Nicaraguan soldiers withdraw from Costa Rican territory.

Sources in Latin America consider these events, and the power demonstrated by Nicaragua, as a trial balloon by the creators of the "New Canal Plan" – Venezuela, Iran and Nicaragua. Western intelligence agencies are closely following the path of heavy machinery equipment to Nicaragua as well as the activities of Iranians in the Nicaraguan capital Managua.

A U.S. State Department official told Haaretz's Washington correspondent Natasha Mozgovaya on Wednesday that the U.S. is not aware of any plans to build a new canal in Latin America.

In 2007, Chavez announced a plan to build a $350 million road connecting the two oceans and the Iranians have expressed an interest in constructing a port on the Atlantic Ocean. The U.S. did not express concern about either of those initiatives.

[rdret1]

How do they plan to pay for it? The Panama Canal cost $375M almost 100 years ago and is probably almost 6 times shorter than the proposed Nicaragua Canal. Even following the river bed and dredging the costs would be astronomical. None of these three countries are exactly economic power houses right now.

[incarcerated]

http://philadelphia.fbi.gov/dojpress.../ph022511a.htm

Department of Justice Press Release
For Immediate Release
February 25, 2011 United States Attorney's Office
Eastern District of Pennsylvania
Contact: (215) 861-8200

Alleged Supporter of Terrorist Group Extradited from Paraguay

PHILADELPHIA—Moussa Ali Hamdan, 38, a dual citizen of the United States and Lebanon and a former resident of Brooklyn, New York, made an initial appearance in U.S. District Court in Philadelphia today after being extradited from Paraguay. He is being held pending a detention hearing. Hamdan is among several defendants charged in a conspiracy to provide material support to Hizballah, a designated foreign terrorist organization. He was indicted November 24, 2009, along with nine co-defendants. Hamdan was taken into U.S. custody in Asuncion, Paraguay, on Thursday, by U.S. Marshals who escorted him to Washington, D.C., where members of the FBI’s Joint Terrorism Task Force took him into custody.

At the time of the indictment, Hamdan had left the United States. On June 15, 2010, Paraguayan authorities arrested him in the Tri-Border Area (TBA) of Paraguay for the crime of material support of terrorism.

Hamdan is charged in 28 of the 31 counts in the indictment, including conspiring to provide material support to Hizballah in the form of proceeds from the sale of counterfeit money, stolen (genuine) money, and fraudulent passports. According to the indictment, Hamdan and several other defendants were also charged with several counts of transporting stolen goods, trafficking in counterfeit goods, and making false statements to government officials.

According to a related criminal complaint Hamdan began purchasing purportedly stolen cellular telephones from a cooperating witness acting as an agent of the government and participated in the purchase and transportation of purportedly stolen goods on numerous occasions. These stolen goods included cellular telephones, laptop computers, Sony Play Station 2 systems, and automobiles, which the conspirators caused to be transported to destinations outside Pennsylvania, including overseas destinations such as Lebanon and Benin (Africa). Hamdan also allegedly bought counterfeit goods—namely, counterfeit Nike® shoes and Mitchell & Ness® sports jerseys—from the cooperating witness. The complaint details efforts by defendants Moussa Ali Hamdan and his co-defendants to sell the CW counterfeit United States currency for the purpose of raising funds for Hizballah. In total, the conspirators provided the CW with approximately $10,000 in counterfeit United States currency. The complaint also alleges that certain of Hamdan’s co-defendants generated additional funds for Hizballah by selling fraudulent passports. The CW and the defendants participated in the purchase of two fake passports—one from the United Kingdom and one from Canada—for the benefit of Hizballah. Hamdan allegedly agreed to pay $10,000 towards the purchase of these passports, in order to satisfy a debt he owed to the CW....

[SF_BHT]

Originally Posted by incarcerated

http://philadelphia.fbi.gov/dojpress.../ph022511a.htm

Department of Justice Press Release
For Immediate Release
February 25, 2011 United States Attorney's Office
Eastern District of Pennsylvania
Contact: (215) 861-8200

Alleged Supporter of Terrorist Group Extradited from Paraguay

PHILADELPHIA—Moussa Ali Hamdan, 38, a dual citizen of the United States and Lebanon and a former resident of Brooklyn, New York, made an initial appearance in U.S. District Court in Philadelphia today after being extradited from Paraguay. He is being held pending a detention hearing. Hamdan is among several defendants charged in a conspiracy to provide material support to Hizballah, a designated foreign terrorist organization. He was indicted November 24, 2009, along with nine co-defendants. Hamdan was taken into U.S. custody in Asuncion, Paraguay, on Thursday, by U.S. Marshals who escorted him to Washington, D.C., where members of the FBI’s Joint Terrorism Task Force took him into custody.

At the time of the indictment, Hamdan had left the United States. On June 15, 2010, Paraguayan authorities arrested him in the Tri-Border Area (TBA) of Paraguay for the crime of material support of terrorism.

Hamdan is charged in 28 of the 31 counts in the indictment, including conspiring to provide material support to Hizballah in the form of proceeds from the sale of counterfeit money, stolen (genuine) money, and fraudulent passports. According to the indictment, Hamdan and several other defendants were also charged with several counts of transporting stolen goods, trafficking in counterfeit goods, and making false statements to government officials.

According to a related criminal complaint Hamdan began purchasing purportedly stolen cellular telephones from a cooperating witness acting as an agent of the government and participated in the purchase and transportation of purportedly stolen goods on numerous occasions. These stolen goods included cellular telephones, laptop computers, Sony Play Station 2 systems, and automobiles, which the conspirators caused to be transported to destinations outside Pennsylvania, including overseas destinations such as Lebanon and Benin (Africa). Hamdan also allegedly bought counterfeit goods—namely, counterfeit Nike® shoes and Mitchell & Ness® sports jerseys—from the cooperating witness. The complaint details efforts by defendants Moussa Ali Hamdan and his co-defendants to sell the CW counterfeit United States currency for the purpose of raising funds for Hizballah. In total, the conspirators provided the CW with approximately $10,000 in counterfeit United States currency. The complaint also alleges that certain of Hamdan’s co-defendants generated additional funds for Hizballah by selling fraudulent passports. The CW and the defendants participated in the purchase of two fake passports—one from the United Kingdom and one from Canada—for the benefit of Hizballah. Hamdan allegedly agreed to pay $10,000 towards the purchase of these passports, in order to satisfy a debt he owed to the CW....

It is amazing that this article did not even mention the Agency that did them in. It was not the FBI. Oh He was indicted in 2008 not 2009......

I just love the media......

[incarcerated]

http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20110402/...s_brazil_qaeda

Al Qaeda members hide in Brazil, raise money: report

Sat Apr 2, 7:16 pm ET
BRASILIA (Reuters) – Al Qaeda operatives are in Brazil planning attacks, raising money and recruiting followers, a leading news magazine reported Saturday, renewing concerns about the nation serving as a hide-out for Islamic militants.

Veja magazine, in its online edition, reported that at least 20 people affiliated with al Qaeda as well as the Lebanese Shi'ite Muslim group Hezbollah, the Palestinian group Hamas and two other organizations have been hiding out in the South American country.

The magazine said these operatives have been raising money and working to incite attacks abroad. The magazine cited Brazilian police and U.S. government reports, but did not give details on specific targets or operations.

The United States has said Islamic militants have been operating in the border region between Brazil, Paraguay and Argentina. Brazil has denied this, while saying it is aware that some members of Brazil's Lebanese community legally transferred funds to the Middle East.

There has been a warming of relations between Brazil and the United States since President Dilma Rousseff took office in January. She has sought closer U.S. ties after her predecessor, Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, angered the United States with attempts to mediate over Iran's nuclear program.

Veja reported that a Lebanese man named Khaled Hussein Ali, who has lived in Brazil since 1998, is an important member of al Qaeda's propaganda operation and has coordinated extremists in 17 countries.

He was briefly arrested in Brazil in March 2009 after a police investigation that found videos and texts directed at al Qaeda followers. One email found on his computer and sent as spam to email addresses in the United States incites hatred against Jews and blacks, Veja said.

He spent 21 days in prison on charges of racism, inciting crime and gang formation, but was set free because prosecutors did not pursue the charges in court, Veja said.

(Reporting by Raymond Colitt)

[Paslode]

10News.com
Related To Story

Terrorist Group Setting Up Operations Near Border
Hezbollah Considered To Be More Advanced Than Al-Qaida

POSTED: 4:53 pm PDT May 4, 2011
UPDATED: 6:27 pm PDT May 4, 2011

SAN DIEGO -- A terrorist organization whose home base is in the Middle East has established another home base across the border in Mexico.

"They are recognized by many experts as the 'A' team of Muslim terrorist organizations," a former U.S. intelligence agent told 10News.

The former agent, referring to Shi'a Muslim terrorist group Hezbollah, added, "They certainly have had successes in big-ticket bombings."

Some of the group's bombings include the U.S. embassy in Beirut and Israeli embassy in Argentina.

However, the group is now active much closer to San Diego.

"We are looking at 15 or 20 years that Hezbollah has been setting up shop in Mexico," the agent told 10News.

Since the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks, U.S. policy has focused on al-Qaida and its offshoots.

"They are more shooters than thinkers … it's a lot of muscles, courage, desire but not a lot of training," the agent said, referring to al-Qaida.

Hezbollah, he said, is far more advanced.

"Their operators are far more skilled … they are the equals of Russians, Chinese or Cubans," he said. "I consider Hezbollah much more dangerous in that sense because of strategic thinking; they think more long-term."

Hezbolah has operated in South America for decades and then Central America, along with their sometime rival, sometime ally Hamas.

Now, the group is blending into Shi'a Muslim communities in Mexico, including Tijuana. Other pockets along the U.S.-Mexico border region remain largely unidentified as U.S. intelligence agencies are focused on the drug trade.

"They have had clandestine training in how to live in foreign hostile territories," the agent said.

The agent, who has spent years deep undercover in Mexico, said Hezbollah is partnering with drug organizations, but which ones is not clear at this time.

He told 10News the group receives cartel cash and protection in exchange for Hezbollah expertise.

"From money laundering to firearms training and explosives training," the agent said.

For example, he tracked, along with Mexican intelligence, two Hezbollah operatives in safe houses in Tijuana and Durango

"I confirmed the participation of cartel members as well as other Hezbollah individuals living and operating out of there," he said.

Tunnels the cartels have built that cross from Mexico into the U.S. have grown increasingly sophisticated. It is a learned skill, the agent said points to Hezbollah's involvement.

"Where are the knowledgeable tunnel builders? Certainly in the Middle East," he said.

Why have Americans not heard more about Hezbollah's activities happening so close to the border?

"If they really wanted to start blowing stuff up, they could do it," the agent said.

According to the agent, the organization sees the U.S. as their "cash cow," with illegal drug and immigration operations. Many senior Hezbollah leaders are wealthy businessmen, the agent said.

"The money they are sending back to Lebanon is too important right now to jeopardize those operations," he said.

The agent said the real concern is the group's long-term goal of radicalizing Muslim communities.

"They're focusing on developing … infiltrating communities within North America," the agent told 10News.

http://www.10news.com/news/27780427/detail.html

[incarcerated]

http://www.jpost.com/International/A...aspx?id=220879

'Die Welt': Iran building rocket bases in Venezuela

German paper says Iranians paid cash to build mid-range missile launch pads on Paraguana Peninsula; Iranian engineers visited site in Feb.
Monday May 16, 2011
BENJAMIN WEINTHAL
BERLIN – The Iranian government is moving forward with the construction of rocket launch bases in Venezuela, the German daily Die Welt wrote in its Friday edition.
Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez is Teheran’s most important South American ally.

Iran is building intermediate- range missile launch pads on the Paraguaná Peninsula, and engineers from a construction firm – Khatam al-Anbia – owned by the Revolutionary Guards visited Paraguaná in February. Amir al-Hadschisadeh, the head of the Guard’s Air Force, participated in the visit, according to the report. Die Welt cited information from “Western security insiders.”

The rocket bases are to include measures to prevent air attacks on Venezuela as well as commando and control stations.

The Iranian military involvement in the project extends to bunker, barracks and watch tower construction. Twenty-meter deep rocket silos are planned. The cost of the Venezuelan military project is being paid for with Iranian oil revenue. The Iranians paid in cash for the preliminary phase of the project and, the total cost is expected to amount to “dozens of millions” of dollars, Die Welt wrote.

The Paraguaná Peninsula is on the coast of Venezuela and is roughly 120 kilometers from America’s main South American partner, Columbia.

According to Die Welt, the clandestine agreement between Venezuela and Iran would mean the Chavez government would fire rocket at Iran’s enemies should the Islamic Republic face military strikes.

Meanwhile the German press agency (DPA) reported on Friday that Germany will not contest the placement of the Hamburg- based European- Iranian Trade Bank (EIH) on the EU sanctions list at the end of the month. The US Treasury Department sanctioned the EIH last year, saying it was one of the most important institutions in Europe for financing Iran’s missile and nuclear proliferation programs. Germany was the subject of criticism from American, French, British and Israeli officials because it refused to shut the EIH.

The EIH plays a crucial role in facilitating financial transactions for midsize German firms that are active in Iran. German- Iranian total trade amounted to over 4 billion euros in 2010, making German Iran’s No. 1 EU trade partner.

[Roguish Lawyer]

I vote for a new flash based on the RT GA patch.

[ES 96]

Originally Posted by incarcerated

http://www.jpost.com/International/A...aspx?id=220879

'Die Welt': Iran building rocket bases in Venezuela

German paper says Iranians paid cash to build mid-range missile launch pads on Paraguana Peninsula; Iranian engineers visited site in Feb.
Monday May 16, 2011
BENJAMIN WEINTHAL
BERLIN – The Iranian government is moving forward with the construction of rocket launch bases in Venezuela, the German daily Die Welt wrote in its Friday edition.
Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez is Teheran’s most important South American ally.

If Hugo continues with this game it won't be long before he has some "highly motivated" Gringos chewing the Qud there.

[ES 96]

Originally Posted by Roguish Lawyer

I vote for a new flash based on the RT GA patch.

Nice!

RT_GA.JPG

[JJ_BPK]

Isn't this where JFK stepped in and told Cuba to stop their importation of Russian toys??

Do we need to wait until the Shahab-3's are replaced with the Ashoura??

Does the WH think Ahmadinejad is helping protect Chavez from Castro??

[Dusty]

Time to put the hammer down on Achman'sanutjob...


http://www.jpost.com/International/A...aspx?id=220879