US Intelligence Officer: “Every Single Terrorist Attack In US Was A False Flag Attack”
BY THE EVENT CHRONICLE ON MAY 20, 2015 ·

Associated Press Videos
Legions of Foreign Fighters Battle for IS

PANKISI GORGE, Georgia (AP) — One day this April, instead of coming home from school, two teenagers left their valley high in the Caucasus, and went off to war.

In Minneapolis, Minnesota, a 20-year-old stole her friend's passport to make the same hazardous journey.

From New Zealand, came a former security guard; from Canada, a hockey fan who loved to fish and hunt.

And there have been many, many more: between 16,000 and 17,000, according to one independent Western estimate, men and a small number of women from 90 countries or more who have streamed to Syria and Iraq to wage Muslim holy war for the Islamic State.

Abu Bakr Al-Baghdadi, the group's leader, has appealed to Muslims throughout the world to move to lands under its control — to fight, but also to work as administrators, doctors, judges, engineers and scholars, and to marry, put down roots and start families.

"Every person can contribute something to the Islamic State," a Canadian enlistee in Islamic State, Andre Poulin, says in a videotaped statement that has been used for online recruitment. "You can easily earn yourself a higher station with God almighty for the next life by sacrificing just a small bit of this worldly life."

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This file image made from video posted on a militant website Saturday, July 5, 2014, which has been …

The contingent of foreigners who have taken up arms on behalf of Islamic State during the past 3 1/2 years is more than twice as big as the French Foreign Legion. The conflict in Syria and Iraq has now drawn more volunteer fighters than past Islamist causes in Afghanistan and the former Yugoslavia — and an estimated eight out of 10 enlistees have joined Islamic State.

They have been there for defeats and victories. Following major losses in both Syria and Iraq, the fighters of Islamic State appear to have gotten a second wind in recent days, capturing Ramadi, capital of Iraq's largest Sunni province, and the ancient city of Palmyra, famous for its 2,000-year-old ruins.

There are battle-hardened Bosnians and Chechens, prized for their experience and elan under fire. There are religious zealots untested in combat but eager to die for their faith.

They include around 3,300 Western Europeans and 100 or so Americans, according to the International Center for the Study of Radicalization, a think tank at King's College London.

Ten to 15 percent of the enlistees are believed to have died in action. Hundreds of others have survived and gone home; their governments now worry about the consequences.

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Graphic looks at country of origin for foreign recruits in the Islamic State militant forces.

"We all share the concern that fighters will attempt to return to their home countries or regions, and look to participate in or support terrorism and the radicalization to violence," Nicholas J. Rasmussen, director of the U.S. government's National Counterterrorism Center, told a Senate hearing earlier this year.

"Just like Osama bin Laden started his career in international terrorism as a foreign fighter in Afghanistan in the 1980s, the next generation of Osama bin Ladens are currently starting theirs in Syria and Iraq," ICSR director Peter Neumann told a White House summit on combating extremist violence in February.

One problem in choking off the flow of recruits has been the variety of their profiles and motives.

Associated Press reporters on five continents tracked some of those who have left to join Islamic State, and found people born into the Islamic faith as well as converts, adventurers, educated professionals and people struggling to cope with disappointing lives.

"There is no typical profile," according to a study by German security authorities, obtained by AP.

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A Syrian opposition group, which has been verified and is consistent with other AP reporting, fighte …

The study reported that among people leaving that country for Syria out of "Islamic extremist motives," 65 percent were believed to have prior criminal records. They ranged in age between 15 and 63. Sixty-one percent were German-born, and there were nine men for every woman.

In contrast, John G. Horgan, a psychologist who directs the Center for Terrorism & Security Studies at the University of Massachusetts Lowell, found some common traits among American recruits or would-be recruits for jihad. Typically, he said, they are in their late teens or early 20s, though a few have been in their mid-30s.

"From a psychological perspective, many of them are at a stage in their lives where they are trying to find their place in the world — who they are, what their purpose is," Horgan said. "They certainly describe themselves as people who are struggling with conflict. They are trying to reconcile this dual identity of being a Muslim and being a Westerner, or being an American."

Some are driven by religious zeal to protect the caliphate, or Muslim theocracy, that the Islamic State has proclaimed in the one-third of Syrian and Iraqi territory now in its hands; others are thrilled by the chance to join what is tantamount to a secret and forbidden club.

Still others appear to enlist mainly because others do.

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This undated image made from a video released by Islamic State militants appears to show Andre Pouli …

"What they have in common is that they are young, they are impressionable and they are hungry for excitement," Horgan said.

Once recruits arrive in areas held by Islamic State, they appear to receive only rudimentary military training — including how to load and fire a Kalashnikov assault rifle. Nonetheless, they have been involved in "some of the most violent forms of attacks" by the group, including suicide bombings and filmed beheadings of foreigners, said William Braniff, executive director for the National Consortium for the Study of Terrorism and Responses to Terrorism, a multidisciplinary research center headquartered at the University of Maryland.

Areeb Majeed, 23, from a suburb of Mumbai, India, joined Islamic State in May 2014 and fought for six months, killing up to 55 people and taking a gunshot to the chest.

But all was not heroics. He eventually called his parents from Turkey and asked to come home, according to Indian newspapers. Majeed's chief complaint, officials from India's National Investigation Agency were quoted as saying, was that the group didn't pay him, and made him clean toilets and haul water on the battlefield.

Often, though, the foreign combatants use social media to serve as "role models and facilitators for the next volunteers," Braniff said.

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Mohamed Nidalha poses with a passport photo of his son Reda during an interview on Friday, May 15, 2 …

"Before I came here to Syria, I had money, I had a family, I had good friends, it wasn't like I was some anarchist or somebody who just wants to destroy the world, to kill everybody," said Poulin, the Canadian ISIS recruiter.

"Put God almighty before your family, put it before yourself, put it before everything. Put Allah before everything," the bearded and bespectacled transplant from Ontario urges in the video.

Poulin's jihad ended last August; he was reported killed during an assault on a government-controlled airfield in northern Syria.

But not, according to the Canadian Broadcasting Corp., before he had recruited five others from Toronto to come fight for the Islamic State.

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Dahlburg reported from Brussels. Sarah El Deeb in Cairo, Christopher Bodeen in Beijing, Rob Gillies in Toronto, Geir Moulson in Berlin, Ryan Lucas in Beirut, Katy Daigle in New Delhi, Zeina Karam in Beirut and Edie Lederer at the United Nations contributed.

The militant group's ranks have swelled due to its ability to attract thousands of foreigners to wage Muslim holy war.
Sales pitch

Tehran (AFP) - A senior Iranian military official warned on Thursday that any Israeli attack would unleash a firestorm of missiles on its cities fired by the Islamic republic's Hezbollah allies in Lebanon.

The Shiite militia has more than 80,000 rockets ready to fire at Tel Aviv and Haifa, said General Yahya Rahim Safavi, military adviser to Iran's supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.

"Iran, with the help of Hezbollah and its friends, is capable of destroying Tel Aviv and Haifa in case of military aggression on the part of the Zionists," he said, quoted on state television.

"I don't think the Zionists would be so unintelligent as to create a military problem with Iran," the general said. "They know the strength of Iran and Hezbollah."

Last week, a senior Israeli military intelligence official warned of a heightened threat of conflict over the next two years as a result of "escalation" in the region.

In a briefing to foreign journalists at the defence ministry in Tel Aviv, the official referred specifically to Hezbollah, with whom Israel fought a month-long war in 2006, and to Iran's arming of the group.

"The Iranian threat is a tangible threat to Israel," said the official, whose country has not ruled out the use of military force to block any attempt by Tehran to produce a nuclear bomb.

Israel has opposed the efforts of world powers to strike a deal with Iran curbing its nuclear programme in return for an easing of economic sanctions, saying that Tehran cannot be trusted.

Iran has long asserted that its nuclear programme is for peaceful energy purposes, and that international concern about it seeking a nuclear bomb is misplaced.

NowThis
All Officers Indicted In Freddie Gray Case

BALTIMORE (AP) — A grand jury indicted all six officers charged in the case of Freddie Gray, who died of injuries he suffered in police custody, allowing the state's attorney to press ahead with the most serious charges despite criticism that she was part of an "overzealous prosecution."

The indictments announced Thursday were similar to the charges Baltimore State's Attorney Marilyn Mosby announced nearly three weeks ago. The most serious charge for each officer, ranging from second-degree "depraved heart" murder to assault, stood, though some of the lesser alleged offenses had changed.

Gray suffered a critical spinal injury April 12 after police handcuffed, shackled and placed him head-first into a van, Mosby has said. His pleas for medical attention were repeatedly ignored.

Gray's death a week later spawned protests that on two occasions gave way to violence and looting. In the wake of the riots, Democratic Mayor Stephanie Rawlings-Blake implemented a curfew and Republican Gov. Larry Hogan declared a state of emergency.

Mosby said prosecutors presented evidence to the grand jury for the past two weeks. Some of the charges were changed based on new information, but she didn't say what that was. She also did not take questions.

"As is often the case, during an ongoing investigation, charges can and should be revised based upon the evidence," Mosby said.

Attorneys for the officers have said in court documents they are the victims of an "overzealous prosecution" riddled with personal and political conflicts of interest. They said at a minimum, Mosby should be replaced with an independent prosecutor because she had a personal interest in calming unrest in the city that followed Gray's death and because her husband is a city councilman who represents the areas most impacted by upheaval.

Gray's death became a symbol of what protesters say is a pattern of police brutality against African-Americans in Baltimore. Following Gray's death, the Justice Department announced a civil rights investigation of the Baltimore Police Department to search for discriminatory policing practices and examine allegations that officers too often use excessive force and make unconstitutional searches and arrests.

Two officers, Edward Nero and Garrett Miller, were indicted on second-degree assault, reckless endangerment and misconduct in office for "failure to perform a duty regarding the safety of a prisoner" and for an illegal arrest, Mosby said. The indictments do not include the false-imprisonment charge both officers initially faced.

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These undated photos provided by the Baltimore Police Department, show Baltimore police officers, to …

"I'm very glad that the grand jury chose not to indict officer Nero on false imprisonment and one count of second-degree assault. I'm quite confident he will be acquitted of the remaining charges at trial," Nero's defense attorney, Marc Zayon, said.

Caesar Goodson, who drove the van, faces manslaughter and a second-degree "depraved heart" murder charge, as well as misconduct in office and second-degree assault. Sgt. Alicia White, Lt. Brian Rice and Officer William Porter are each charged with manslaughter, second-degree assault and misconduct in office. Those officers also face reckless-endangerment charges.

Ivan Bates, an attorney for White, said he is "looking forward to seeing Ms. Mosby in court and proving that Sgt. Alicia White is innocent."

Nero, Miller and Rice are white; Goodson, Porter and White are black.

Gray was arrested in the Sandtown-Winchester neighborhood of West Baltimore. According to court documents, he made eye contact with a police officer and took off running. He was apprehended two blocks away and arrested for possession of a knife that Miller wrote in charging documents is illegal under a city ordinance.

Mosby said the arrest was unlawful because the knife is legal under state law.

None of the officers secured Gray's seatbelt in the van, a violation of police policy. Soon after he was placed in the van, Goodson made a second stop during which Gray was secured in leg irons because he was "irate," police said.

After a ride that included two more stops, including one to pick up a second passenger, the van arrived at the Western District police station. By that time, Gray was non-responsive.

In the neighborhood where Gray was arrested, the news was received Thursday evening more with a shrug than a cheer.

"We ain't worried about the indictment. We want a conviction," said Michael Banks, 44.

Lisa Logan, an HIV-awareness advocate, said she's glad the case is proceeding. But she doesn't understand why the van driver faces more serious charges than the officers who put Gray in the van.

"Something occurred, some law was broken, so justice is being done," Logan said. "But how and who and how it all broke down, we'll have to wait and see."

Equal-justice advocate Noche Diaz, who said he moved to Baltimore from New York to join the protests, called the indictment "only a first step."

"The only thing that got the charges in the first place was when people rose up and then more people around the country stood up," he said. "There's going to be a need to continue and renew that fight."

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Associated Press Writer David Dishneau contributed to this report.

U.S. vows to continue patrols after China warns spy plane

Wochit
China Navy Warns U.S. Plane: "You Go!"

By David Brunnstrom

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The United States vowed on Thursday to keep up air and sea patrols in international waters after the Chinese navy repeatedly warned a U.S. surveillance plane to leave the airspace over artificial islands China is creating in the disputed South China Sea.

The Chinese navy issued eight warnings to the crew of a U.S. P8-A Poseidon, the U.S. military's most advanced surveillance aircraft, when it conducted the overflights on Wednesday, according to CNN, which was aboard the U.S. aircraft.

When the American pilots responded by saying the plane was flying through international airspace, a Chinese radio operator said with exasperation: "This is the Chinese navy ... You go!"

The Poseidon flew as low as 15,000 feet (4,500 meters), CNN said, and video provided by the Pentagon appeared to have been taken from directly above one artificial island.

The incident, along with recent Chinese warnings to Philippine military aircraft to leave areas around the Spratly archipelago in the South China Sea, suggested Beijing is trying to enforce a military exclusion zone above its new islands there.

Some security experts worry about the risk of confrontation, especially after a U.S. official said last week that the Pentagon was considering sending military aircraft and ships to assert freedom of navigation around the Chinese-made islands.

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An aerial photo taken though a glass window of a Philippine military plane shows the alleged on-goin …

The senior U.S. diplomat for the East Asia, Assistant Secretary of State Daniel Russel, told a media briefing in Washington the U.S. reconnaissance flight was "entirely appropriate" and that U.S. naval forces and military aircraft would "continue to fully exercise" the right to operate in international waters and airspace.

He said the United States would go further to preserve the ability of all countries to move in international waters and airspace.

"Nobody in their right mind is going to try to stop the U.S. Navy from operating - that would not be a good bet," he said.

"But it’s not enough that a U.S. military plane can overfly international waters, even if there is challenge or hailing query ... We believe that every country and all civilian actors should have unfettered access to international waters and international airspace."

A spokesman for China's Foreign Ministry said he was not aware of the incident.

"China has the right to engage in monitoring in the relevant airspace and waters to protect the country's sovereignty and prevent accidents at sea," ministry spokesman Hong Lei said in a regular briefing. "We hope the relevant country can earnestly respect China's sovereignty in the South China Sea."

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A US Navy P-8A Poseidon departs Perth's International Airport on March 28, 2014 in Perth, Australia. …

HIVE OF CONSTRUCTION

Footage taken by the P8-A Poseidon over the new islands, and aired by CNN, showed a hive of construction and dredging activity, as well as Chinese navy ships nearby.

CNN said it was the first time the Pentagon had declassified video of China's building activity and audio of challenges to a U.S. aircraft.

"We were just challenged 30 minutes ago and the challenge came from the Chinese navy," Captain Mike Parker, commander of U.S. surveillance aircraft deployed to Asia, told CNN on the flight.

"I'm highly confident it came from ashore, this facility here," Parker said, pointing to an early warning radar station on Fiery Cross Reef.

Military facilities on Fiery Cross Reef, including a 3,000-metre (10,000-foot) runway, could be operational by year's end, one U.S. commander recently told Reuters, and Washington is concerned China will use it to press its extensive territorial claims at the expense of weaker rivals.

China claims sovereignty over most of the South China Sea, through which $5 trillion in ship-borne trade passes every year. The Philippines, Vietnam, Malaysia, Taiwan and Brunei also have overlapping claims.

Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi last week asserted Beijing's right to reclaim the reefs and said China's determination to protect its interests was "as hard as a rock."

China has also said it had every right to set up an Air Defense Identification Zone (ADIZ) in the South China Sea but that current conditions did not warrant one.

ADIZs are used by some nations to extend control beyond national borders, requiring civilian and military aircraft to identify themselves or face possible military interception.

During the P8-A Poseidon mission, the pilot of a Delta Air Lines flight in the area spoke on the same frequency after hearing the Chinese challenges and identified himself as commercial. The Chinese voice reassured the pilot and the Delta flight went on its way, CNN said.

Delta Airlines did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

(Writing by Dean Yates, additional reporting by Michael Martina in Bejing and David Brunnstrom in Washington; Editing by Paul Tait, Jonathan Oatis and Steve Orlofsky)

'This is the Chinese navy ... You go!'

A U.S. spy plane flying over the disputed South China Sea was warned to leave eight times.
Above artificial islands Beijing's creating