June 2007

Update: Thwarted Car Bombing in Central London

29 June 2007

Met Police Press Conference on Thwarted Car Bombing in Central London

At a press conference earlier today DAC Peter Clarke gave the following statement:

"At about 1 am this morning (29 June) a London Ambulance Service crew was called to the Tiger Tiger nightclub in The Haymarket, Piccadilly, London W1 to treat a person who had been taken ill.

"While there they noticed a Mercedes car parked outside the club, in The Haymarket. They also noticed that there appeared to be smoke inside the vehicle.

"The police were called, and Metropolitan Police Explosives Officers went to the scene and examined the car. In the car they found significant quantities of petrol, together with a number of gas cylinders.

"I cannot at this stage tell you exactly how much petrol, because we have not yet had a chance to measure it precisely, but it was in several large containers. There were also a large number of nails in the vehicle. The Explosives Officers disabled a potential means of detonation of the gas and fuel in the vehicle.

"I think it would be right at this stage to pay tribute to the courage and skill of the Explosives Officers, who manually disabled the device, and in so doing not only did their action prevent damage and injury to property but have given us opportunities to gather a great deal of forensic and other evidence from the vehicle.

"As always in these cases, the safety of the public was paramount, and the area around the vehicle was cordoned off.

"The vehicle has now been taken away for detailed forensic examination, which will take some time."

Video of Press Conference: http://www.met.police.uk/news/video/DAC_Peter_Clarke_press_conference_29.06.07_11.45.wmv
(Requires video player to review this tape)

Car Bomb Defused in Central London

08:25 BST - Friday, June 29, 2007

Car Bomb Terror Scare In London

LONDON, ENGLAND: A "massive" explosive device found in a car in central London has been defused, Sky sources say. It is believed that a major terrorist attack in the heart of the capital has been thwarted.

Police were called to reports of a suspicious vehicle parked in The Haymarket area shortly before 2am this morning. The area was cordoned off by police who examined the car. They discovered what appeared to be a potentially explosive device, which was then made safe by specialist teams.

It is believed that the vehicle was a silver Mercedes which contained gas canisters.

The Haymarket is in the heart of London's theatreland and close to the popular shopping area of Regent Street.

An investigation has been launched by the Metropolitan Police's Counter Terrorism Command. Get more on this emerging story from SkyNews at: http://news.sky.com/skynews/article/0,,70131-1272910,00.html

Germany Warns of Terror Threat, Urges Vigilance

Fri Jun 22, 09:29 AM EDT

Germany Warns of Terror Threat, Urges Vigilance

By Sabine Siebold and Iain Rogers, Reuters News Service

BERLIN, GERMANY: Authorities called on Friday for increased vigilance against possible terror attacks and said the kind of threat detected before the September 11, 2001 suicide hijackings in the United States had resurfaced.

Interior Minister Wolfgang Schaeuble said the threat was "serious" and suicide attacks were possible on German soil.

The present situation recalled the summer of 2001 "when obscure threats surfaced which, as we know, became reality," said Deputy Interior Minister August Hanning.

"We are seeing evidence that some action is planned in (the Afghanistan and Pakistan region) but also further afield, in Europe and in the United States," Hanning said in Berlin.

"We are following up all leads and therefore I don't think there is any reason to panic, not at all. But I do think that increased vigilance is needed."

Article continues at: http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20070622/wl_nm/germany_security_dc

Charleston Blaze Kills Nine Firefighters

June 19, 2007 08:41 AM CDT

Charleston Blaze Kills Nine Firefighters

CHARLESTON, S.C.-- Charleston Mayor Joe Riley said it's hard to understand the magnitude of loss after nine firefighters died in a blaze at a furniture store Monday night.

Riley said the firefighters were "brave, heroic, courageous" and died carrying out their duties.

The bodies were taken to the Medical University of South Carolina for positive identification. Riley said the names will be released after the identities are confirmed.

The Charleston County coroner this afternoon plans to release the names of nine firefighters killed in a blaze at a furniture store last night.

This story continues at: http://www.fox21.com/Global/story.asp?S=6677548&nav=2KPp2Qjt

See a video of the fire: http://video.wjla.com/wciv/firevo.wmv

-- The management and staff of ERRI, EmergencyNet News, and Emergency.com would like to send their prayers and condolences for the family, friends, and co-workers of these fallen heros in S. Carolina...

Palestinian Govt. To Dissolve; Fatah/Hamas War Breaking Out

Thursday, June 14, 2007

Abbas to Dissolve Palestinian Authority Government

GAZA CITY, Gaza Strip ? President Mahmoud Abbas will dissolve the Palestinian Authority's government Thursday after fighting between rival parties Hamas and Fatah consumed the Gaza Strip and was expected to call for a state of emergency, sources close to Abbas confirmed to FOX News.

Other aides had said Abbas was also planning to call for the deployment of a multi-national force. However, Abdel Rahim made no mention of that in the news conference.

Abbas considers the Hamas fighters who have seized control of most of the Fatah-allied security headquarters in Gaza to be an "outlaw militia," Abdel Rahim said.

Hamas fighters took control from three of the rival Fatah movement's most important security command centers in the Gaza Strip, and witnesses said the victors dragged vanquished gunmen into the street and shot them to death execution-style... Story continues at: http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,282195,00.html

Multiple Palestinian Factions Fight Each-Other in Gaza

Middle-East - 12 June, 2007

Fighting 'will burn all of us,' Palestinian warns

GAZA: Rival factions killed more than two dozen people Tuesday in bitter fighting that has left Gaza sliding into chaos, Palestinian officials said.

Hundreds of Hamas gunmen attacked a Fatah base in northern Gaza, the home of the Hamas prime minister came under fire and fighting spread to the West Bank.

"If anybody thinks that we will be a winner out of this fire, I think they're wrong," said Palestinian official Saeb Erakat.

Article continues at: http://www.cnn.com/2007/WORLD/meast/06/12/gaza.violence/index.html

Victory at All Costs - 06 June 2007

Quote of the Day - 06 June 2007

"Victory at all costs, victory in spite of all terror, victory however long and hard the road may be; for without victory, there is no survival."

-- Source: Winston Churchill, 1944

Suspected Al-Qaeda Plotter Named in JFK Investigation

June 4, 2007

FEDS TARGET NUKE PHANTOM;
OSAMA HENCHMAN NAMED IN JFK PLOT

NEW YORK, NY: The NY Post is reporting that Al Qaeda's so-called nuclear whiz kid - a "tantalizing terror figure" with a $5 million bounty on his head - was the radical big shot investigators had hoped to snag in their 18-month JFK-plot probe.

The name of "invisible hand" Adnan Gulshair el-Shukrijumah (picture - right), reportedly the man Osama bin Laden tapped to lead a previous scheme to detonate nuclear bombs simultaneously in several U.S. cities, came up at several points in taped conversations during the probe, according to law-enforcement sources familiar with the investigation.

Investigators had yet to collect evidence linking Shukrijumah to the JFK plot, but it's clear his name and efforts were well-known to the suspects...

This story continues at: http://www.nypost.com/seven/06042007/news/nationalnews/feds_
target_nuke_phantom_nationalnews_murray_weiss__larry_celona_and_brigitte_williams_james.htm

Plot to attack JFK Airport Pipeline Thwarted

June 3, 2007

Plot to Attack Airport Pipeline Foiled

By Audrey Hudson, THE WASHINGTON TIMES

WASHINGTON, DC/NEW YORK, NY: Three men, including a former member of the Guyanese parliament, were charged yesterday with plotting to destroy the fuel-supply tanks at New York's John F. Kennedy International Airport and the 40-mile fuel pipeline from New Jersey to the airport in Queens.

The plot was foiled long before it could be carried out, and authorities said the public was never at risk.

The arrested men include Russell Defreitas, a Brooklyn resident who was born in Guyana and formerly was a cargo handler at the airport. Trinidad officials arrested Kareem Ibrahim, a Trinidad citizen, and the former Guyanese government official, Abdul Kadir. A fourth suspect, still at large, was identified as Abdel Nur, a Guyanese citizen.

The arrests were made Friday night after a five-month investigation by the Joint Terrorist Task Force (JTTF), and the men were charged yesterday with conspiracy.

According to the criminal complaint, the men began plotting in January to "destroy buildings, fuel tanks, and fuel pipelines at JFK Airport with explosives." The suspects obtained satellite photographs of the airport and surrounding facilities from Internet sites and traveled frequently between the United States, Guyana and Trinidad to discuss their plans and solicit the financial and technical assistance of others.

The plot was presented to radical Islamic groups in South America and the Caribbean, including senior leadership of Jamaat Al Muslimeen (JAM), which was responsible for a deadly coup attempt in Trinidad in 1990. Mr. Kadir and Mr. Nur "were longtime associates of JAM leaders," the complaint said.

This story continues at: http://www.washingtontimes.com/national/20070603-120959-8080r.htm

146 Police Injured in Pre-G8 Summit Protests

G-8 Protesters Clash With German Police; 25 Cops Seriously Injured

By DAVID RISING, AP, 06.02.07, 15:31 PM EDT

Protesters with black hoods and bandanas covering their faces showered police with rocks and beer bottles Saturday, before the heavily armored officers drove them back with water cannon and tear gas during a rally against an upcoming Group of Eight summit.

Black smoke from burning cars mingled with the sting of tear gas in the harbor-front area of the northern German town of Rostock, where tens of thousands of people had gathered peacefully at the start of the day. The clashes broke out among hundreds of stone-throwing demonstrators and police on the edges of the crowd as the rally progressed.

Some 146 police officers were were reported hurt, 25 of them seriously. Police said they made 17 arrests. Other officially unconfirmed reports suggested that as many as sixty (60) people had been arrested.

It was an unruly start to what is expected to be a week of rallies against the three-day G-8 summit beginning Wednesday in the fenced-off coastal resort of Heiligendamm, 14 miles from Rostock.... Story continues at: http://www.forbes.com/markets/feeds/ap/2007/06/02/ap3781841.html

"Summary and Chronology of ERRI/EmergencyNet News Reports Concerning Anti-Capitalist/Anti-Globalization Protest and Civil Disturbances," and violence at the 28 August 2001 G-8 meeting in Genoa, Italy, which can be found at: http://www.emergency.com/2001/anticapitalist-chrono.htm