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Terrorism
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U.S. Man Linked to India Terror Strike to Plead Guilty
Wednesday, March 17, 2010The 49-year-old U.S. man accused of acting as a scout for the extremist organization behind the 2008 terrorist siege of the Indian city of Mumbai is expected to reverse his earlier not guilty plea later this ...
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Suspects Plead Not Guilty to Plotting New York Subway Attack
Friday, Feb. 26, 2010Two men pleaded not guilty yesterday to conspiring to use weapons of mass destruction and other charges in connection with a suspected plot to detonate explosives on the New York City subway system, the ...
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Agencies' Frictions Ensnare U.S. Counterterrorism Center, Study Finds
Tuesday, Feb. 23, 2010Interagency friction and other organizational issues have undercut the U.S. National Counterterrorism Center's efforts to assess and craft a unified response to extremist threats facing the United States, ...
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New York Subway Bomb Plot Suspect Pleads Guilty
Tuesday, Feb. 23, 2010 An Afghan man pleaded guilty yesterday to conspiring to use a weapon of mass destruction and other charges in connection with a foiled effort to detonate explosives in the New York City subway system, the Associated Press reported (see GSN, Oct. 1, 2009). Najibullah Zazi, a former Denver airport shuttle driver, told a federal judge he was ready to become a suicide bomber in response to U.S. activities in his home country. "I would sacrifice myself to bring attention to what the U.S. military was doing to civilians in Afghanistan," the 25-year-old defendant told the court. -
Biden Disputes Cheney's Views on Terrorism Threat
Tuesday, Feb. 16, 2010U.S. Vice President Joseph Biden on Sunday disputed assertions made by his predecessor that the United States faced a serious risk of a nuclear strike by al-Qaeda, CBS News reported (see GSN, Feb. 9). ...
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Al-Qaeda Seen as Weakened But Still Dangerous
Tuesday, Feb. 9, 2010The Christmas Day bombing attempt on a U.S. airliner illustrates that drone strikes and other stepped-up antiterrorism measures have not eliminated al-Qaeda's ability and intent to wage new attacks on the ...
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Budget Adds Billions to Fight Terror Threats Abroad
Friday, Feb. 5, 2010The fiscal 2011 budget proposed by U.S. President Barack Obama calls for billions of dollars in heightened counterterror funding, allocating additional money for U.S. special operations units, unmanned ...
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Suspected Al-Qaeda Member Convicted in Shooting Attempt
Thursday, Feb. 4, 2010A suspected al-Qaeda operative, who was reportedly apprehended two years ago in possession of instructions for making a radiological "dirty bomb," was found guilty by a federal jury yesterday of attempted ...
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U.S. Intelligence Community "Certain" of Looming Terrorist Attack Attempt
Wednesday, Feb. 3, 2010 Leaders of the U.S. intelligence community expressed certainty yesterday that al-Qaeda or associated extremist groups would attempt a strike against the United States within six months, the Washington Post reported (see GSN, Jan. 28). "Al-Qaeda maintains its intent to attack the homeland -- preferably with a large-scale operation that would cause mass casualties, harm the U.S. economy or both," National Intelligence Director Dennis Blair told the Senate intelligence committee. The heads of the CIA and FBI and top intelligence officers from the State and Defense departments agreed with Blair's assessment that an attack attempt against the United States in the next half year was "certain." The group said they needed more freedom to take terrorism suspects into custody and conduct interrogations. -
Homeland Security Budget Proposed at $56.3B
Tuesday, Feb. 2, 2010The Obama administration yesterday proposed $53.6 billion in Homeland Security Department funding for fiscal 2011 (see GSN, Sept. 24, 2009). ...
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U.S. Man Pleads Not Guilty to Updated Terror Plot Charges
Thursday, Jan. 28, 2010The Chicago man who is alleged to have performed extensive surveillance of Mumbai for an extremist organization ahead of the 2008 attack on the Indian city pleaded not guilty yesterday to amended federal ...
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Al-Qaeda Still Dangerous But Political Power Waning, Expert Says
Thursday, Jan. 28, 2010Counterterrorism expert Steve Coll said yesterday on Capitol Hill that the terrorist group al-Qaeda should still be considered a danger to national security, but that its political influence is on the ...
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Bin Laden Takes Credit for Failed Plane Attack
Monday, Jan. 25, 2010Al-Qaeda chief Osama bin Laden has apparently issued an audio recording in which he claimed credit for the unsuccessful December bombing of a passenger airplane landing in Detroit and pledged additional ...
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Terrorism Watch Lists Don't Necessarily Bar Entry, Officials Say
Friday, Jan. 22, 2010 WASHINGTON -- U.S. intelligence officials have acknowledged the government knowingly allows foreigners whose names are on terrorist watch lists to enter the country in order to track their movement and activities (see GSN, Jan. 13). In an unusual and startling admission, Michael Leiter, director of the National Counterterrorism Center, disclosed the practice during a Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee hearing Wednesday. "I will tell you, that when people come to the country and they are on the watch list, it is because we have generally made the choice that we want them here in the country for some reason or another," Leiter said. -
Al-Qaeda Seeks to Heighten South Asian Tensions, Gates Warns
Wednesday, Jan. 20, 2010 An al-Qaeda-linked terrorist strike in South Asia could lead to another military conflict between nuclear-armed rivals India and Pakistan, U.S. Defense Secretary Robert Gates warned today (see GSN, Dec. 17, 2009). A handful of organizations within a regional al-Qaeda "syndicate" aim "to destabilize not just Afghanistan, not just Pakistan, but potentially the whole region by provoking a conflict perhaps between India and Pakistan through some provocative act," Gates told reporters in New Delhi, according to Agence France-Presse. "It's important to recognize the magnitude of the threat that the entire region faces," he added, saying the al-Qaeda "umbrella" included the Taliban groups in Pakistan and Afghanistan was well as the Pakistani-based extremist organization Lashkar-e-Taiba, which is believed to have masterminded the 2008 terror attack on the Indian city of Mumbai (Agence France-Presse/Sydney Morning Herald, Jan. 20).