Welcome! Our goal at Winds of Change.NET is to give you one power-packed briefing of insights, news and trends from the global War on Terror that leaves you stimulated, informed, and occasionally amused every Monday & Thursday. Thursday's Winds of War briefings are given by Matt 'Colt' of Eurabian Times and Steve 'USMC_Vet' of The Word Unheard.
TOP TOPICS
- Three bombings in Amman have killed at least 67 people and wounded as many as 300. The terrorists, thought to be two suicide bombers and a car bomber, struck three five-star hotels popular with Western tourists. The Grand Hyatt, Radisson SAS and Days Inn hotels were hit almost simultaneously. One of the bombers blew up a wedding party. Two of the hotels are on the same main road, about half a mile apart. The third was about a mile away. No claims of responsibility at this time, but the U.S. and Israel have offered assistance. Kofi Annan has cancelled his trip to Jordan. Al-Qaeda have tried to hit the Radisson several times.
- The Australians have thwarted a twin attack. Seventeen people were arrested, including a man who fired on police and was shot himself. Police say they recovered enough chemicals to build fifteen large bombs. Several of the suspects attend one of Australia's well-known radical mosques, and trained in the outback. The police were assisted in their investigations by a tip from a chemical supply company, who said he had sold chemicals for cash to 20-30 Muslim men. Two rival terror gangs are in a race to strike Australia. An Australian terror analyst says that John Howard's announcement that an attack was imminent could have jeopardised the investigation, citing media reports that the two cells went in to a 'flurry of activity' after Howard's remarks.
- France - the situation. The rioting may be losing strength - the number of cars burned halved last night. Sarkozy is ordering the deportation of foreign rioters. One of the government-backed Islamic groups who issued the fatwa against rioting is blaming the Zionist-Nazi alliance for the violence. Imams and Islamic leaders are telling the rioters to go home in the name of Allah. Rioters are reportedly avoiding destroying Muslim-owned property, and have attacked a synagogue. The unrest seems to be spreading, with violence and arson in Belgian and German cities. And the Spanish police think they'll see similar rioting within five years.
- France - the analysis: there are numerous explanations for the unrest out there. The Winds team are a pretty opinionated bunch. Here are a few: Don't blame radical Islam, don't blame multi-culturalism; The Forever Jihad; The French Riots; Europe's coming conflagration; March, 1939.
Other Topics Today Include: Iran's nuclear shennanigans; Fatah group backs Iran on Israel; IDF confirms SAMs in Gaza; Arab League backs Assads; al-Sadr gains clout in Iraq; Alamoudi and his friends; British terror bill defeated; German intel chief warns of dirty bomb attacks; Bakri aides deported to U.K.; Indians arrest Delhi bomber; Russia may build fence in Chechnya; Chinese warn of hotel attacks; senior terrorist killed in Indonesia; and much more.
Iran
- The Indians are going to stand with Russia and China in the UN to oppose referring Iran to the UNSC.
- Not that it matters: the EU-3 oppose it, too.
- Iran is about to announce a Middle East peace plan. Honestly, guys, no-one is going to buy it.
- Our buddies in South Africa are offering nuclear material to Iran.
The Middle East
- Sharon's aides say that the Israeli PM has not ruled out another unilateral withdrawal.
- The al-Aksa Martyrs Brigade, which the media will tell you are 'loosely affiliated' with Fatah, have backed Iran's calls for the annihilation of Israel.
- Israel's Defence Minister has defended Egypt's record against those smuggling arms in to Gaza, in spite of all evidence.
- Hamas are trying to move terror technology from Gaza to Yehuda and Shomron.
- The IDF has confirmed that terrorists in Gaza have smuggled in at least 10 SAMs.
- The Lebanese are pretty adamant: they want the palestinians disarmed.
- The Arab League has urged the Arab world to stand with the Assad government.
- U.S. intelligence have advised the Bush administration not to overthrow Bashar al-Assad on the grounds that his replacement might be even more anti-U.S.
Iraq and the Gulf
- Moqtada al-Sadr is emerging as a political force in Iraq. We should have killed him a year ago.
- The bodies of 58 Shi'ites have been discovered in Tel Afar, briefly held by al-Qaeda. Some of the victims had been decapitated, and others burned.
The Americas
- Mohammed Alamoudi and his many friends - including Joe Wilson.
- The CIA is beginning a criminal investigation in to who told the Washington Post that the U.S. runs a network of 'secret prisons'.
- An analysis of al-Qaeda's presence in the Caribbean.
Europe
- The British government has lost a crucial vote in the House of Commons on whether the police will be able to hold terror suspects for 90 days without trial. A second vote this evening doubled the period from 14 to 28 days.
- A bomb has exploded in Kosovo, outside the office of the Organization on Security and Cooperation in Europe - no-one was injured. Three bombs have exploded outside the OSCE office this year.
- A German intelligence chief was warned of a 'concrete threat' of a dirty bomb attack.
- One of the three terror suspects arrested in Britain last week for planning to attack the White House was in email contact with a jihadi recruiter based in Bosnia.
- Mustafa Setmariam Nasar may have been involved in the Islamic Jihad's bombing of a Madrid restaurant twenty years ago.
- An al-Qaeda communique says that European converts are poised to strike.
- Four of Omar Bakri's lieutenants have been deported to Britain from Lebanon...
Central and Western Asia
- The Indians have made a breakthrough in the Delhi bombings investigation. A jihadi arrested in Kashmir has confessed.
- Police in the Sri Lankan capital of Colombo have found a suicide vest.
- The Israelis are in talks with the Russians to discuss replicating the security fence on the Chechen border.
Australasia and the Orient
- The U.S. says that the Chinese are warning of terrorist attacks on hotels in Beijing this week. This could well be taken in the context of the bombing of the hotels in Amman, and the thwarted plot in Australia.
- Indonesian authorities have killed seven jihadis, including a senior terrorist named Azahari bin Husin. The NYT has an obituary.
- Indonesian authorities also found a recently-abandoned terrorist training camp.
Africa
- The GSPC have turned down the amnesty offer, and released another diatribe.
- A cruise ship attacked by pirates off the coast of Somalia used a sonic weapon to prevent them from boarding.
And finally,
The Deputy Speaker of Russia's Duma has offered to send 'soccer' fans to stop the rioting in France. He says they could end the violence in 48 hours. (Unless the Moscow News have a humour page, this is 100% true...)
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"Iran is about to announce a Middle East peace plan. Honestly, guys, no-one is going to buy it. "
Im sure it will be completely reasonable. Although the first step will be for Israel to withdraw from Gaza and the West Bank, and readmit ten million Palestinians to Israel proper (with all their 'luggage' of course). This is sort of like the Steve Martin plan for becoming a millionare: 'first, get ahold of a million dollars'. The truly sad part is that a lot of Euros and anti-Israel lefties here will consider it perfectly rational.
"Khameini said last week that the solution to the conflict involved, "a national referendum in which all true Palestinians would participate, whether they are Muslims, Jews or Christians, including Palestinian refugees throughout the world," on how to solve the Israeli-Palestinian dispute. "
http://www.jpost.com/servlet/Satellite?cid=1131367042454&pagename=JPost%2FJPArticle%2FShowFull
UN Sponsored Poll on how to end the Israeli Occupation Crisis:
A. Wipe Israel off the map.
B. Remove Israel from the map.
C. Return all Palestinians to Israel while removing all Jews. Change map.
D. Alter map drawn by Zionist Imperialists to reflect the reality of the Caliphate.
Sure. This plan has legs. Attn Khameini: the Palestinians are already voting on their self-determination. When do your people get a real chance?
Liberia voting returns show that a woman is out front, and the first woman to be elected president of an African country may well be established within a few days.
Former Finance Minister Ellen Johnson-Sirleaf's lead has however been challenged by her former soccer star opponent.
Add in the right of return of the expeled jews from the Arab countries and the plan is on the same level as incorperating the Bantustans into South Africa proper which "created" a black majority in South Africa.
I agree a. Im growing increasingly convinced that Israels unilateral withdrawal has simply shifted the Arabs bargaining position from an amicable 2 state solution to a single 'multi-ethnic' state via the right of return: aka destroying Israel via trojan horse. That is depressing. I hope Israel finished their withdrawal, builds their wall, and lets the Palestinians sort out their nation themselves. And god help them if they keep up the intafadah at that point, because any fair-minded person's patience will be dry.