Iran & the Middle East

• Hamas has revealed their new military leadership structure publicly, led by Mohammed Deif. Many believe the motivation is to allow them to declare victory in Gaza.

• European Union Foreign Ministers tell Iran to return to talks over their nuclear-related activities, or face the United Nations Security Council.

• Small bombs damaged 15 pipelines and an oil well in southwest Iran, an act the local government was blaming on seperatist guerrillas from the Arab minority in Iran.

• According to reports, Iran has also encountered difficulty in dealing with Kurdish rebels, who are said to have killed 120 Iranian police officers over the last five months.

• A high ranking Kuwaiti official, Muhammad Yousef Al-Mlaifi, has proclaimed that Hurricane Katrina was one of the soldiers of Allah.

• While the hardline Islamic Clerics in Iran have gained power, they are keeping a weary eye on a growing and restless middle class.

• The Sharm al-Shaikh bombers have been identified as Mahmud Muhammad Hamad, Muhammad Oda Said and Musa Ghunaim, all three Egyptians from al-Arish.

• Syrian security forces clashed with members of Jund al-Sham, an Islamic militant group, in the village of Jibrin. Five militants, believed to be plotting terror attacks, were killed in the fighting.

• Saudi authorities killed one suspected terrorist and wounded another in a shootout in Dammam, Saudi Arabia.

• Lebanon has charged four pro-Syrian Generals with murder, in the killing of former Prime Minister Rafik al-Hariri. Those detained include Major General Jamil al-Sayyed, former head of General Security, Major General Ali Hajj, ex-chief of police, Brigadier General Raymond Azar, former military intelligence chief, and Brigadier General Mustafa Hamdan, the head of Lebanon's Republican Guard. What if Syria is guilty?

• The U.S. is expected to put additional pressure on Syria at the United Nations in coming weeks and months in an effort to help Lebanon rebuild politically.

• Mahmoud Abbas is weak, Hamas is emboldened and growing in popularity after the Israeli withdrawal from Gaza. Is there a risk of a Palestinian Civil War?

• Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei is calling for a continued jihad against Israel.

America Domestic Security & the Americas

• Four men, led by the leader of a radical Islamic prison gang, were indicted on federal charges of plotting terrorist attacks against targets in the United States.

• A man of Yemeni decent was sentenced in New York to 45 years in prison and fined $ 750,000 for conspiring to provide material support to Hamas and al Qaeda.

• Texas A&M professor and former chief economist in the Labor Department during the first Bush term, Morgan Reynolds, is raising doubts about the official version of the collapse of the World Trade Center and hinting at it being an inside job.

• Despite skepticism and the failure to locate any chart identifying Mohammed Atta, three more people have come forward to validate claims made that Able Danger had identified Atta.

• U.S. District Judge Nina Gershon has upheld three lawsuits accusing the Arab bank, based in Jordan, of funneling money used in terrorist attacks. The move paves the way for victims families and survivors to seek millions in damages.

• A stolen fuel tanker containing 1,400-2,000 gallons of highly flammable Jet-A fuel is raising concerns among officials in Greenville, Kentucky and the FBI has been notified.

Africa

• Task Force Horn of Africa is busy rebuilding Tadjoura school in Djibouti.

• Recolonizing Africa

• Are Libya and the United States forging a closer alliance to fight terrorism?

Russia & Central Asia

• Former Russian Security Council Secretary Ivan Rybkin discusses the prospects for peace in Chechnya, and says that "all the problems of Russia are reflected there [Chechnya] in an enlarged, hypertrophied form as in a drop of water."

• Russia is so pleased with the recent Peace Mission 2005 military exercises conducted with China, they are proposing the war games be expanded to include other members of the SCO. Aside from Russia and China, Uzbekistan, Kyrgyzstan, Kazakhstan and Tajikistan are members of the SCO.

• U.S. and Afghan forces raided a Taliban hideout in the Uruzgan province, killing 9 Taliban militants in the fighting.

• In the Zabul province of Afghanistan, U.S. forces have killed Taliban commander Thor Mullah Manan.

• Russia has revised their financiers of terrorism list, which now includes more than 1,300 groups and individuals.

• Proliferation & Pakistan

• An explosion outside a Russian military base in the Dagestan capital of Makhachkala killed three people, including one soldier. The attackers fled the scene.

Far East & Southeast Asia

• South Korea continues to insist that North Korea's nuclear plans are not an issue, and shouldn't overshadow disarmament discussions. Not surprisingly, North Korea agrees.

• Chinese officials are issuing a new warning to the United States about any attempts to upgrade Taiwan with a missile defense system.

• The Kuwait-based organization Revival of Islamic Heritage Society (RIHS) and Moulana Ataur Rahman, an imam of a mosque in Britain are believed to have funded the August 17th bombings across Bangladesh.

• Filipino authorities are warning of more terror attacks.

• U.S. Congressional delegates just returning from a trip to North Korea, have warned Pyongyang that America is growing impatient with the diplomatic route that has enabled North Korea to delay, distract, and cancel six party talks.

Europe

• EU Security Commissioner Franco Frattini is warning that "terrorist attacks against democratic countries will continue." Frattini believes that European freedom has been deliberately targeted by al Qaeda.

• The radical Islamist group Hizb ut-Tahrir, who Prime Minister Blair wants to ban, has been secretly recruiting young Muslims in Britain.

• Islamic radicals threaten Sweden on a videotape.

• The British Transportation Police (BTP) is considering re-establishing their own firearms unit, which would enable armed officers to patrol the subways and rail networks in London.

• Counter-terrorism: Why the French do it better

The Global War

• Ayman al-Zawahiri released a new al Qaeda tape shown on al-Jazeera, as did Mohammed Sidique Khan, the ringleader of the July 7th bombings of the London subway.

• The U.N. Security Council is scheduled to meet on September 15th to discuss the necessity of preventing conflict and stopping those who advocate terrorism, particularly related to Africa.

• The Congressional Research Service Report for Congress titled "Al Qaeda: Profile and Threat Assessment" (PDF) was recently published. The report, written by Kenneth Katzman (not to be confused with Joe), discusses the evolution of al Qaeda and the threat level posed.

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