The Political Conundrum!

For those who follow the workings of Al-Qaida's As-Sahab Media Foundation, it is no secret that As-Sahab has recently been suffering a series of embarrassing technical problems relating to the delayed publication of Al-Qaida's 9/11 seventh anniversary video, titled "Results of 7 Years of the Crusades." The video--which features speeches by (among others) Dr. Ayman al-Zawahiri, Mustafa Abu al-Yazid, and Abu Yahya al-Liby--appeared set for release on September 11, exactly in the same manner as last year and 2006. Excerpts were handed over to Al-Jazeera for airing over Arabic-language satellite news networks.

Yet, a crippling network outage for Al-Qaida appears to have played a role in thwarting As-Sahab's efforts at completing the distribution process. One of the primary Internet discussion forums used by Al-Qaida and its global network of affiliates to distribute their propaganda and recruit supporters--known as "Al-Ekhlaas"--was suddenly knocked offline on approximately September 10. Next on the chopping block were a series of domains used by another competing extremist forum "Al-Hesbah." The ultimate reason for the outage is unknown, however there have been some reports attributing the action to independent efforts aimed at combating Al-Qaida's online activities. For nearly a week, with the "Ekhlaas" website still offline, there has been no word from As-Sahab--resulting in avid speculation among Al-Qaida supporters on the remaining discussion forums.

Today, As-Sahab finally seems to have recovered from its paralysis, and announced the belated distribution of packaged copies of the video "Results of 7 Years of the Crusades." Ironically, this time, the problem would not be technical, but rather the result of human error. Much to the chagrin of Al-Qaida's media gurus, the announcement from As-Sahab (care of the Al-Fajr Media Center) included the wrong password for the packaged video--meaning that users can download but not actually view the film. The solution is as simple as re-publishing the correct password--but nearly 12 hours after the announcement was first issued, As-Sahab still has yet to correct its error. Dozens of users, writing in Arabic, English, and other languages, have flooded extremist chat forums to discuss their frustrations over the password issue. After several hours passed and no response came from As-Sahab or the Al-Fajr Media Center, one user complained impatiently, "We are still waiting..."

Given an organization like As-Sahab which prides itself in its consistency and professionalism, these technical glitches are a reminder of how crude and tenuous the links that bind together Al-Qaida's global media machine actually can be.

Robert Gates will announce a range of punishments for at least five general officers and possibly several colonels for lapses connected with the nation’s nuclear weapons. The identities of the officers are not known yet. Sources declined to identify them until the punishments were officially announced.

Today's DOJ announcement of a major, multinational bust of the Gulf Cartel shows that cooperation across agencies and international borders can yield significant results.

With the growing nexus of the drug trade and terrorist activities, it is no longer possible to view the drug trade as separate from the merging organized crime/terrorist pipelines that we are seeing across Latin America and Asia.

The 15-month "Project Reckoning" operation stretched from Mexico to Italy, yielding 175 arrests, the seizure of $60 million and other benefits. It touched sections of the transnational criminal pipeline in Colombia, Panama, Guatemala, Mexico, the United States.

There is no question the results are particularly good news for Mexico, where the Calderon government is fighting for its survival and the survival of the Mexican state in the face of renewed drug cartel violence.

It is hard to understand why more such operations are not undertaken. Part of the reason is the lack of sustained focus by previous attorneys general on the issue of transnational crime and its long-term impact on the societies in which it operates, including creating conditions that foster an alliance with terrorist organizations (the FARC in Colombia, the Taliban in Afghanistan/Pakistan, the Tamil Tigers etc.)

Attorney General Michael B. Mukasey has gone a long way toward remedying that oversight and neglect, and I hope it continues, regardless of who wins the elections. My full blog is here.

Prague, September 16, 2008

As part of my current European lectures and briefings tour in Europe which began this week at the European Parliament in Brussels I presented a lecture to the Center for International Security in Prague on the war of ideas and global strategies of the Jihadist movements and regimes. I will be reporting on this tour in the near future. Following is an interview with the editor of the news center at (the US-funded) Radio Free Europe based in Prague based on a discussion centered on the ideological confrontation with the Jihadi forces worldwide. The exchanged was edited and sent to news desks in several languages to be broadcast. Below, find the interview and the link to the site.

Air Force Chief of Staff Norton Schwartz delivered an address to the Air Force Association that may be remembered as a landmark in the remaking of the service. Schwartz called for a shift from the fighter pilot-centric service to one that treats unmanned aircraft pilots with equal respect.

Former prisoners of war and civilians who were tortured or held hostage during the 1991 Gulf War could pursue lawsuits against Iraq under legislation the U.S. House of Representatives has approved.

Three American soldiers were charged with murder Wednesday in the deaths of four Iraqis who were bound, blindfolded, shot in the head and dumped in a Baghdad canal last year.

Defense Secretary Robert Gates on Wednesday expressed "personal regret" for recent U.S. airstrikes that killed Afghan civilians, and pledged more accurate targeting in future.

Attackers armed with automatic weapons, rocket-propelled grenades and at least one suicide car bomb assaulted the U.S. Embassy in the Yemeni capital on Wednesday. Sixteen people were killed, including six assailants, officials said.

Vice President Dick Cheney gave former House Majority Leader Dick Armey misleading information to win his support for the U.S. invasion of Iraq, the congressman reveals in a new book about Cheney by a Washington Post reporter.