US Rep – No Plot to Poison Food at Fort Jackson

Newsmax reports an Army probe into allegations of verbal threats involving a base’s food supply has revealed that none of the five soldiers detained was involved in any plot to poison food at the base, according to congressman Joe Wilson.

U.S. Rep. Joe Wilson, R-S.C., said Sunday information he received as a member of the House Armed Services Committee showed there was no plot. The five Muslim soldiers who were connected to a translator training program had been detained in December while the Army investigated.

“The investigation revealed that there was not an effort to poison food,” Wilson said. The probe also showed the men had not been disloyal.

Four of the soldiers were discharged from the Army for petty crimes, Wilson said, and the fifth was returned to his National Guard unit in Virginia.

None of the soldiers has been identified.

via Newsmax – Read Full Article.

Military On Heightened Alert Against Abu Sayyaf – Philippines

The military has been instructed to go on  heightened alert in southwestern Mindanao, particularly in Sulu and Basilan, to prevent a repeat of Saturday’s attack by Abu Sayyaf bandits on a community in Basilan that left 11 people dead.

Deputy Presidential Spokesperson Gary Olivar announced on government radio station dzRB that the attack was made in retaliation for the military’s recent assault and killing of Abu Sayyaf leaders led by Albader Parad.

The people should be more careful because retaliatory attacks have happened because of the successful pursuit of their group and the killing of one of their top leaders. But they should not be alarmed because the military and police readiness level is higher to protect them,  Olivar said.

In a statement, he said the military was directed to go after the perpetrators and to assist families affected in last Saturday’s attack on a village in Maluso, Basilan, said to be the worst attack on civilians in nine years.

Read Full Article

al Qaeda – We Will Blow Up The Earth from Below Your Feet

Qasim al-Raimi, a top military commander for al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula, is threatening new terror attacks against the US and warned Americans that the group ”we will blow up the earth from below your feet.”

The statement goes on to say, ”You have attacked us in the midst of our household, so wait for what will attack you in the midst of yours”, according to a translation of the message from the SITE Intelligence Group, which monitors militant Web sites.

The phrase, “‘we will blow up the earth from below your feet.” is an interesting choice of words. One can’t help but wonder if this is a signal to launch an attack, or a clue into the type of attack the terrorist group is planning.

al Qadea – We Will Blow Up The Earth from Below Your Feet.

Abu Sayyaf Terror Leader Albader Parad Killed

The military claimed a major victory in its war against the Abu Sayyaf Sunday when Marines assaulted the bandits’ lair and killed six of them, including a top leader with a $5-million bounty on his head.

“We have confirmed that one of the six bodies belonged to Albader Parad as confirmed by four independent civilian sources,” Lt. Gen. Ben Dolorfino, the Western Mindanao Command chief, told the Philippine Daily Inquirer by phone.

One Marine was killed while three other soldiers were wounded in a fierce two-hour gun battle at Barangay Karawan in Maimbung, Sulu, the military said.

The US government had a bounty of $5 million on Parad’s head. The Philippine government’s bounty was P7 million.

“It’s a very significant gain in our campaign against terrorism because we all know that Albader Parad is one of their influential leaders,” Dolorfino said.

“This will have a very big demoralizing effect on the other members and shows that they cannot hide forever from the arms of the law,” he added.

via Abu Sayyaf Leader Albader Parad Killed – Read Full Article.

Fort Jackson – Alleged Attempt by Soldiers to Poison Food Supply

UPDATE: Jawa takes a well-balanced approach to this story.

“So until all the facts are known, a caution about making more out of this than what is known is certainly reasonable. But to dismiss the whole thing out-of-hand and claim that there is nothing to see here flies in the face of the fact that two months after this incident, there is still an open investigation. Bravo to CBN and Fox for making this investigation public and let’s see what investigators actually turn up in this case.”

Fox News is reporting Fort Jackson authorities are investigating an alleged attempt to poison the food supply at the base. Amazingly, if the reports are true, the investigation has been going on for nearly 2 months.

The U.S. Army is investigating allegations that soldiers were attempting to poison the food supply at Fort Jackson in South Carolina.The ongoing probe began two months ago, Chris Grey, a spokesman for the Army’s Criminal Investigation Division, told Fox News.The Army is taking the allegations œextremely seriously, Grey said, but so far, “there is no credible information to support the allegations.

“The suspects were part of a Arabic translation program called “09 Lima” and use Arabic as their first language, two sources told Fox News. Another military source said they were Muslim. Grey would not confirm or deny the sources information.

via Source – read Full Article.

From CBN News – Five Muslim Soldiers Arrested at Fort Jackson in South Carolina

CBN News has learned exclusively that five Muslim soldiers at Fort Jackson in South Carolina were arrested just before Christmas. It is unclear whether the men are still in custody. The five were part of the Arabic Translation program at the base.

The men are suspected of trying to poison the food supply at Fort Jackson.

A source with intimate knowledge of the investigation, which is ongoing, told CBN News investigators suspect the “Fort Jackson Five” may have been in contact with the group of five Washington, DC area Muslims that traveled to Pakistan to wage jihad against U.S. troops in December. That group was arrested by Pakistani authorities, also just before Christmas.

Coming as it does on the heels of November’s Fort Hood jihadist massacre, this news has major implications.

Source – Read Full Article

WLTX Reports

Officials at Fort Jackson tell News19 that before Christmas several soldiers were detained in an ongoing investigation.

News19 was told Thursday evening that the U.S. Army Criminal Investigation Division is handling the investigation.

Several national news organizations are reporting that several soldiers tried to poison food kept at the base.

The media relations staff at Fort Jackson tells us that no one was poisoned and they are working to find out if any of the reports are true.

5-8 Officers May Be Disciplined In Ft. Hood Case

The Los Angeles Times is reporting between five and eight Army officers are expected to face discipline for failing to take action against the accused Ft. Hood shooter, Maj. Nidal Malik Hasan, over a series of behavioral and professional problems in the years leading up to the November rampage.

Read Full Article

Officials Investigate Threat on Fort Benning

It’s being reported that on Thursday a solider at Fort Benning discovered a suspicious package and a note threatening a massacre similar to the Nov. 5 attack at Fort Hood.

The anonymous note and package –  reported by The Army Times as a box of 20 hollow-point bullets — were found Thursday morning outside a motor pool area at Fort Benning, located near Columbus.

“There may be an update Monday,” said Jackson Saturday. “But at this time there is an ongoing investigation of the incident.”

The discovery coincided with a visit from Gen. David Petraeus, commander of U.S. Central Command, who was in town for Officer Candidate School graduation. The threat prompted a criminal investigation and greater police presence on the Army base, the Army Times reports.

According to a witness on the scene, a box of 20 hollow-point shells and a handwritten note were found under the 197th Infantry Training Brigade.

“The note said ‘tell the commanding general to call off all charges or there will be a re-enactment of Fort Hood,’ ” a witness told Army Times. Army psychiatrist Nidal Hasan is charged in the Nov. 5 shooting deaths of 13 fellow service members.

Read Full Article.

Report Suggests U.S. Needs Hit Squads

A recent report from the U.S. military’s Joint Special Operations University argues that the American government should set up something like a “National Manhunting Agency” to go after jihadists, drug dealers, pirates and other enemies of the state according to an article on The Danger Room. What are your thoughts?

America’s military, intelligence and law-enforcement agencies already devote thousands of people and billions of dollars to tracking down top terrorists and insurgents. But even the most successful of these efforts — like going after Iraqi militant leader Abu Musab al-Zarqawi — have been “ad hoc” efforts, with units cobbled together from different corners of the government. Report author and retired Lt. Col. George Crawford instead would like to see a permanent group with clear authority, training, doctrine and technology to go after these dangerous individuals. These “manhunting teams would be standing formations, trained to pursue their designated quarry relentlessly for as long as required to accomplish the mission,” he writes.

Read Full Article At The Danger Room

Taliban Use Stolen U.S. Gear Against U.S.

Some Taliban fighters have been able to ward off attacks by U.S. aircraft by wearing special infrared patches on their shirts that signal that they are friends rather than foes.

The patches, which can also help suicide bombers get close to U.S. targets, are supposed to be the property of the U.S. government alone, but can be easily purchased over the Internet for about $10 each. Also available online: night-vision goggles and military-grade communications systems like the ones used by the terrorists who attacked the Indian city of Mumbai last year.

While stealing uniforms is as old as warfare itself, the Internet has made purchases of military equipment much easier and increased the risk to U.S. forces in Iraq and Afghanistan.

Some of the patches have been stolen during raids on U.S. resupply convoys in Afghanistan and Pakistan. But they can also be purchased in the United States and sent overseas with little detection.

In a recent investigation, the U.S. Government Accountability Office (GAO) bought patches using fake names and a front company with only a valid credit card. The patches reveal an American flag when looked at with an infrared light and were designed to avoid friendly fire during nighttime battles.

Jonathan Meyer, assistant director of forensic audits and special investigations for the GAO, told The Washington Times, “Based on our conversations with the Department of Defense, terrorists have used U.S. uniforms and the infrared patches to get close to U.S. and allied forces on the battlefield and at bases. This is more of a potential suicide-bomber risk.”

Source

U.S. Cyberattack Console Aims to Turn Grunts into Hackers

The U.S. military is putting together a suite of hacking tools that could one day make breaking into networks as easy for the average grunt as kicking down a door.

That’s the word from Aviation Week, which snuck an unusual peek inside a “U.S. cyberwarfare attack laboratory.” There, researchers are building a “device” that would “weaponiz[e] cyberattack for the non-cyberspecialist, military user.”

In recent years, Defense Department officials have thumped their chests, hard, about how good the Pentagon is at hacking enemy networks. But discussing specific online attacks — ordinarily, that’s done mostly inside of secure facilities. A 2008 Danger Room post on an unclassified Air Force research project to give cyberwarriors “full control” of “any and all” computers set of a frenzy inside the service. Generals were pelted with questions about how such supposedly-sensitive information was allowed to escape into the public sphere. Since then, there have been increased calls within military circles to show off at least some of what the armed forces’ network attackers can do. It’s an effective way of detering potential foes online, the logic goes.

The device described to Aviation Week is designed “to tap into satellite communications, voice over Internet, proprietary Scada [supervisory control and data acquisition] networks — virtually any wireless network.” And it would be able to do so in a way that makes sense to n00bs.

via U.S. Cyberattack Console Aims to Turn Grunts into Hackers | Danger Room | Wired.com.

China Military Build-up Seems Focused On U.S.

China’s build-up of sea and air military power funded by a strong economy appears aimed at the United States, the chairman of the U.S. Joint Chiefs of Staff said on Monday.

Admiral Michael Mullen said China had the right to meet its security needs, but the build-up would require the United States to work with its Pacific allies to respond to increasing Chinese military capabilities.

“They are developing capabilities that are very maritime focused, maritime and air focused, and in many ways, very much focused on us,” he told a conference of the Navy League, a nonprofit seamen’s support group, in Washington.

“They seem very focused on the United States Navy and our bases that are in that part of the world.”

China in March unveiled its official military budget for 2009 of $70.24 billion, the latest in nearly two decades of double-digit rises in declared defense spending.

Source