Copyright 2006 by Patrick B. Briley
Iran's President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad recently pledged in late 2005 to use Iran's weapons capabilities to "wipe Israel off the map" and to "DESTROY AMERICA." Iran's hardliner 'sees the light'. Iran’s pledge to destroy America was not made as a bluff or just because the US has led world nations against Iran’s nuclear weapon program.
AlQaeda and Hezbollah terrorist group leaders aligned with Iran and Syria have also made recent threats against the US. Bin Laden’s last tape warned in January 2006 of attacking, bleeding the US economy and destroying the US if the US does not agree to the terms of Laden’s Islamic truce. The Hezbollah international terror group leader, Hasan Nasrallah, made a speech on Hezbollah’s Al Manar Television immediately after 9/11 warning that America's day of judgment would come.
Bashar Assad, the Syrian leader of Iran’s military ally, also has made threats against the US. Syria Threatens US with Military Retaliation Iran's President Ahmedinejad just attended a terror summit in January 2006 hosted by Syria's leader Assad.
Iran, Syria, Bin Laden and Nasrallah may well soon try to deliver on their threats by attacking US cities with WMDS delivered by AlQaeda and Iranian and Syrian backed Hezbollah terrorists. Syria has been helping Iran arm Hezbollah.
The Islamic terror organizations, AlQaeda and Hezbollah have forged global operational alliances with each other as well as with Iran and Syria. The Egyptian FBI informant Ali Mohammed organized and provided security for the summit meeting in Sudan between Bin Laden and the Hezbollah terror chief Mughniyah, responsible for the killing of 243 Marines killed in the bombing of their Beirut barracks in 1983. Mugniyeh was also responsible with Hezbollah for the bombings of US and French embassies, and Israeli consulates and synagogues in Argentina. Al Qaidah’s links to Iran and Hizbollah
Leaders from Hezbollah met with Hamas, Islamic Jihad and top AlQaeda leaders such as Dr. Ayman Zawahiri at two terror summits in Baghdad in December 2000 and February 2001 to amalgamate and collaborate.
Both AlQaeda and Hezbollah have the capability to conduct surveillance in the US in major US cities. In 2004 the FBI nabbed an Iranian surveillance team while the FBI was watching Israeli consulates in LA, Atlanta and Houston. Close ties have been set up by Iranian officials between Iranian intelligence, AlQaeda and Hezbollah inside Iraq and around the world. Like AlQaeda, Hezbollah surveillance teams have been picked up when operating in Western Europe for Iran. FBI Catches Iranian Surveillance Teams Red-handed
Syria and Iran have their own advanced nuclear and WMD programs. The London-based Jane's Defense Weekly recently reported that Iran and Syria signed a strategic accord meant to protect either country from international pressure regarding their weapons programs. Syria agreed to store Iranian nuclear and WMD materials and weapons if Teheran came under United Nations sanctions. Report: Syria agrees to hide Iran weapons
Syria and Iran have also been the recipients of Pakistan’s (A.Q. KHAN) and Iraq’s WMD research and materials including biological and chemical weapons as well as plutonium that can be used to make dirty radiological bombs. Russia Moved Iraqi WMD
Iran and Syria have been harboring, plotting with, and training Hezbollah and AlQaeda terrorists in the use of missiles, sabotage and likely WMDS in the Bekka Valley of Lebanon. See Iran Continues to train, arm Hezbollah and Bush Again Accuses Iran and Syria of Harboring Terrorists
Hezbollah and AlQaeda are believed to have access to Iranian and Syrian developed WMDS as well as Iraqi WMD materials stored in Iran and in Lebanon’s Bekka valley. AlQaeda and Hebollah are also believed to be sharing their acquisitions and training expertise in the use of WMDS Hezbollah preparing chemical weapons?
CIA Director George Tenet testified before Congress February 24, 2004 that Hezbollah has an extensive network of operatives on American soil and an “ongoing capability to launch terrorist attacks within the US.” This capability would include delivery and use of WMDS in major US cities. According to former Florida Senator Bob Graham of the Senate Intelligence Committee, Hezbollah has 300-400 well-trained and KNOWN terror agents inside the US. Former Deputy Secretary of State Dick Armitage has described Hezbollah as the “A-team” of terrorists, with AlQaeda being on the “B team”. Terrorists at the Gates
Yet in his most recent appearance before Congress, National Intelligence Director, John Negroponte, significantly left out mention of Hezbollah and instead emphasized that the AlQaeda terror network remains the “top concern” of the U.S. intelligence community. He did mention the nuclear activities of Iran and North Korea but said that Iran probably does not yet have nuclear weapons, nor the fissile material needed for producing them. Negroponte calls al-Qaeda, Iraq and North Korea top U.S. concerns
Negroponte may have left out mention of Hezbollah because of the political influence of a close Bush family friend and large contributor strongly loyal and representing Hezbollah, namely Lebanese billionaire Issam Fares. Hezbollah has friend close to White House
Fares has very close financial and personal ties to the Bush administration and used his influence to push for the dropping of Hezbollah from the US terrorist list Nov. 10, 2001. Colin Powell and his close benefactor friend, Issam Fares, have called Islamic terrorists like Hamas and Hezbollah freedom fighters against Israel. He has paid 4 and 5 figure speaking fees and made very large political donations to HW Bush, former Secretaries of State James Baker and Colin Powell, and other members of the GW Bush administration.
But Fares, the deputy prime minister of Lebanon, is also a close associate of Maj. General Ghazi Kanaan. Kanaan is the head of Syrian intelligence in Lebanon and he controls narcotics production and trafficking in the Bekka Valley where Hezbollah and Syria maintain WMDS from Iraq, Syria and Iran.
Negroponte also avoided publicly presenting the fact that Hezbollah and Iran have had significant access to plutonium (for over two years) and detailed, sophisticated nuclear bomb plans as described by the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA). See Iran's Plutonium use dates back to 2003 and U.S. fears North Korea-Iran plutonium deal as well as Iran Said to Have Nuclear Warhead plans
Negroponte’s estimate about Iran’s nuclear bomb capabilities may also have been very wrong because Negroponte did not want to reveal that the Bush administration and EU blundered in negotiations with Iran over enriching uranium. See Iranians Retain Plutonium Plan In Nuclear Deal and EU to Iran: Plutonium's OK for Now
The US and EU intentionally and foolishly allowed Iran to continue pursuing its plutonium production and processing capabilities. Along with the bomb plans that Iran is now known to possess, plutonium can be used to build a more powerful lighter, nuclear bomb with less enriched uranium. This means that Iran may now have a nuclear bomb or is much closer to making a nuclear bomb than what Negroponte is publicly saying. Furthermore, a smaller, lighter nuclear warhead made with plutonium would further extend the range of Iran’s ballistic missiles to be able to hit targets in Europe and Israel.
But what is of even more immediate alarm is that Negroponte did not discuss the likelihood that Iran could have given Iranian plutonium to Hezbollah and AlQaeda terrorists to build very effective, small and well shielded, dirty radiological and toxic bombs to be delivered and detonated in major US cities by well established and long standing KNOWN Hezbollah cells.
If well designed dirty radiological and toxic bombs made with plutonium were detonated (even if dispersed over relatively small areas –a few square blocks, etc) in major US financial, agricultural, energy, water, transportation (ports, roads) or industrial centers or facilities, it would be a crippling blow to the US economy because these centers would not just have to be evacuated, they would have to be abandoned for years until and unless very costly and time consuming cleanup efforts were made.
The bomb grade plutonium 239 and 240 radioisotopes have half-lives of over 24,000 years and 6,500 years respectively. Ingested or inhaled in small quantities (micrograms) plutonium can cause long term and serious organ cancers. In larger quantities (grams) plutonium can not only cause radiation sickness and death, but it is also very chemically toxic. Other radioisotopes of Cesium known to be in the hands of Iran, Syria, AlQaeda and Hezbollah can also be used with plutonium to make deadly and hard to clean up dirty bombs. The fact that plutonium is so hard to clean up and is harmful in such small quantities means that numerous small dirty bombs can be built, shielded, transported and detonated in US cities before detection.
AlQaeda and Hezbollah may also be collaborating to transport and detonate two plutonium-fueled suitcase nukes obtained by AlQaeda and possibly brought into the US. These suitcase nukes can be detonated by a triggering mechanism activated by a clock or by a call from a cell phone.
Intelligence reports based on captured leaders and documents reveal that Al-Qaeda is targeting nine U.S. cities with the highest Jewish populations for attack with suitcase nukes and/or multiple dirty and toxic plutonium type radiological bombs. The FBI has been monitoring radiation levels using CIA developed detection equipment (specifically designed to look for plutonium based nuclear devices) at more than 100 mosques, homes, businesses and other sites in and around at least six of these cities. This is another indication that law enforcement and intelligence agency officials suspect Hezbollah and AlQaeda have brought nuclear or radiological weapons inside the US. Unfortunately, plutonium based dirty radiological bombs can be made transportable and undetectable with shielding and yet powerful enough to be effective especially when multiple ones can be used at the same time. See AMERICAN HIROSHIMA: The search for nukes and How to Listen for the Sound of Plutonium
Every one of the nine US cities mentioned in intelligence reports has a large, strong well-established Hezbollah group sponsored by Iran and Syria, even though not all the cities have an AlQaeda presence.
Hezbollah has had a strong, entrenched organization for over twenty years in most major US and Canadian cities like LA, San Francisco, Chicago, Detroit, New York City, Seattle, Portland, Houston, Dallas, Las Vegas, Miami, Boston, Washington, D.C, Montreal, Quebec, Toronto, Vancouver, etc. Hezbollah has backing and funding from Saudi Wahhabists, Russia and the Communist Chinese. Hezbollah now closely works with Hamas, AlQaeda, and Islamic Jihad terror groups around the world and inside the US.
Saudi radiological bomb expert and terrorist Adnan Shukrijumah and his trainees are still at large and have had the operational support of Hezbollah and AlQaeda cells and Saudi Wahhabbists in these cities as they have moved in and out of the US via Mexico and Canada. Shukrijumah was trained by AlQaeda master bomb maker Abu al-Masri and, like Jose Padilla, was sent into the US by Khalid Mohammed, the mastermind of the 9/11 attacks. Adnan is also an accomplished pilot and visited the Norman Airman flight school where Khalid Mohammed also sent 9/11 hijackers Mohammed Atta, AlShehhi, AlHazmi, and Moussaoui. It is very likely that Adnan could train Hezbollah and AlQaeda terrorists in how to transport (even by plane), plant and detonate dirty radiological and suitcase nuke bomb inside US cities.
Bin Laden sought and received a fatwah ruling from Muslim clerics in 2005 for Islamic religious permission to detonate nuclear devices inside the US. The Quran requires bin Laden’s offer of a truce before Bin Laden can carry out the fatwah to use nuclear weapons in the US. To maintain support from more moderate Muslims in the streets around the world, Bin Laden would be more likely to hit a sin city (gays and film industry) like San Francisco that also has a large Jewish population. AlQaeda has also gone back after missed targets like the Trans America Building in San Francisco repeatedly until they succeed, especially since it is a financial center that Laden would want to destroy to bleed the US economy as strongly implied in his last warning tape to America.
Iran and Syria has said that if Israel or the US attacks Iranian or Syrian WMD (nuclear, chemical and/or biological) facilities, Iran and Syria will retaliate against the US. Many have thought the Iranian and Syrian retaliation would be limited to US interests in Iraq, the Middle East and perhaps Europe. What has been publicly overlooked is the fact that Iran and Syria could and would use their international proxy terror organization Hezbollah to launch WMD attacks, chemical, biological and nuclear, against US cities. As demonstrated in this article, Hezbollah has a solid capability to attack US cities with WMDS including suitcase nukes and dirty radiological bombs with or without the participation of AlQaeda. Hezbollah does not need Bin Laden’s fatwah and religious ruling to retaliate against US cities for Iran and Syria but Hezbollah may well receive AlQaeda’s help anyway.
The window of opportunity for the US and Israel to attack Iran’s and Syria’s WMD and nuclear facilities becomes more problematic by August 2006 when the Russians will have completed advanced air defense missile batteries to protect the facilities. Putin’s Plan for Conflict with Iran
There are more than ten major Iranian and Syrian WMD and nuclear facilities that are deep underground and hardened to withstand bombardment. Recall that Syria has agreed to store Iranian WMD and nuclear materials and weapons. It may well take US nuclear bunker busting bombs dropped from Stealth bombers at high altitude to destroy the Iranian and Syrian facilities. The use of US nuclear bunker busting bombs would be a further excuse used by Iran and Syria to justify to Muslims the unleashing of Hezbollah and possibly AlQaeda WMD and nuclear attacks in US cities.
Copyright 2006 by Patrick B. Briley