France - Explosions and shooting in Paris, 13 November 2015 #3

[CARIIS]

I dont know maybe a lot of you knew this, i did not realize that Brussels had actually shut down its metro for the weekend. ,light railway stations will stay closed today. also. "This was due to a threat of an attack by individuals with explosives and weapons at several locations in the capital," Michel told

Reuters

In the annoncement they said the follwoing:
Facilitate follow the safety controls
Do not post rumors: follow the official information from the authorities and police services---------and said this is very serious .

They prestty well go in one ear and out the other for me - closing trnapsortation is big deal , I had thought they were " suggusting" as opposed to making it impossible, I aslo did got the sense that the army is taking over ....................................

 

[cottonweaver]

Hi All,

This is information via my brother who was recently in Syria. I'm not able to explain why he was in Syria other than to say that it was for humanitarian purposes. Also, he returned just last week so this information is current, he is a U.S. citizen and I do have his permission to make this post.
He explained to me the process in which some Syrians receive travel papers/passports.
Syria does not have vast, accurate databases full of citizen data, as the U.S. does.
They do have some type of computerized system but those that work in these offices adhere to very few security measures. This is mostly due to corruption. No surprise.
If a person needs an alias I.D., they simply bribe the clerk. And voila, they now have a new name and verifiable documents. He said that it is a tragic situation on many levels. The clerk's family might not have food or money for medicine, so they gladly accept bribes. It is so commonplace that the practice isn't significantly hidden.
What is so terrifying about this is that the papers aren't fraudulent. They are 100% legit papers granted by the Syrian government.
So sure, we can vet the refugees coming into the U.S., but there is no way to know who these people really are.
However, it was his impression that ISIS doesn't have much of a need for bribes or sending people overseas - for two reasons. 1) The cells are already in the U.S./EU and 2) ISIS has great confidence in their ability to recruit within the U.S./EU.
His thoughts for a solution are two-fold. Firstly, the U.S. should temporarily halt Syrian immigration. Not because it will prevent terrorism but because U.S. citizens need this for their peace of mind. Secondly, implement programs within existing immigrant populations to prevent radicalization from happening.
Thought you might like to hear his account of things.

This is great Thankyou.

BIB for the US & the UK this is the real problem ( not sure about Canada/Aus/NZ and their refugee vetting process - is it just UNCHR in base country first?) the home-grown, risk of radicals already here or already sneaked in. ( Unquantifiable but serious )

For European countries except Britain they have now BOTH problems . Here is the 2015 numbers only
"More than 750,000 migrants are estimated to have arrived by sea so far this year, according to the International Organization for Migration (IOM), but exact numbers are unclear as some may have passed through borders undetected."

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-europe-34131911
there's a great graphic here for the numbers, destinations.

 

[cottonweaver]

ISIS's chilling new tactic: Terror group tells British-based fanatics to stay hidden in the UK and wait until they get a signal to attack

UK jihadis are being ordered by Islamic State to forget travelling to Syria
Instead, they are being told to stay in Britain and wait for signal to attack
Orders were sent over the past few days on encrypted messaging sites
Security sources confirmed they are seeing shift in terror group's tactics
Warnings add to growing fears of attacks in UK following Paris massacre

Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/art...dden-UK-wait-signal-attack.html#ixzz3s7ha9LLW

So this makes ISIS more responsive, fast-acting than our own govts over here.
ie. stricter surveillance and new checks at borders means they do not want to risk detection. We are back to sleeper cells as the main threat again.

 

[cottonweaver]

from the previous link

"And they are being told to take care to target only ‘kuffars’ – unbelievers – and not to kill Muslims in any attack.
This could be a sign that ISIS leadership is concerned about its image following the Paris massacre, in which a number of Muslims were killed including the mother of a young girl. "

Looks like they are not appreciating the Muslim demonstrations & condemnations across Europe we have seen - they aren't saying don't kill Muslims for any other reason......obviously they are slaughtering all types of Muslims in the Middle East.
Again - we go back to the grey zone aims & objectives ....funny that isn't it.

It's going to be very difficult for them pinpoint events which are strictly "kuffar" only, although my Jewish friends here tell me that they are on high alert as - I used to work at a English Jewish girls' seminary BTW


Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/art...dden-UK-wait-signal-attack.html#ixzz3s7ktm9O0

Bear in mind none of these new messages are going to be openly verified by British intell..... so they are not verified as such.... we don't know how credible they are.

 

[cottonweaver]

20 mins ago - Brussels' Friday night raids

Belgian police discovered a cache of weapons and explosives on Friday night when they raided a property in the Vandepeerboom Street area of Molenbeek, Brussels, according to a report in La Capitale.

The Belgian paper reports that a large arsenal of weapons and ammunition was discovered, as well as explosives. At this stage it is not known whether the raid led to any arrests.

The discovery of the arsenal could be the reason for the heightened terror alert in the Belgian capital today.

http://www.theguardian.com/world/li...cluding-alleged-scout-arrested-in-turkey-live

maybe they need to consider state of emergency powers to enable them to carry out some intensive raids now

L’Echo has more details on the search which uncovered a cache of weapons in Molenbeek last night.

A search was conducted on Friday at the home of a suspect placed under arrest, federal prosecutors said on Saturday. Some weapons have been discovered, but no explosives or explosive belt.
[…]
The suspect was arrested Thursday in the series of searches carried out in Brussels. The person concerned is suspected of involvement in terrorist attacks and participation in activities of a terrorist group.

 

[cottonweaver]

More on the Moroccan born Belgian charged with murder in connection with Paris attacks, suspected helper to the Paris fugitive Abdesalem

A Moroccan national has reportedly been charged in Brussels with the murder of 130 people for his alleged part in planning the Paris attacks, writes Rory Mulholland.
He is suspected of helping Salah Abdeslam, the only known attacker to have escaped alive, when he returned to Belgium, reports said.
Named as A. Lazez, a 39-year-old Moroccan national with an address in the Jette district of Brussels, he was arrested this week as he drove a Citroen car in the Brussels region, Derniere Heure newspaper reported.
French police this week reportedly sent a notice to their Belgian counterparts saying Abdeslam, who is the target of a massive manhunt in Belgium, may have been driving a Citroen.
Derniere Heure said traces of blood and a pistol were found in the car.
Police are also trying to determine the meaning of an SMS message Lazez received on his phone while he was in custody, which read" "The Jew is not there.'
One of his brothers had travelled to Syria

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/wor...t-attack-170-hostages-Paris-Belgium-live.html

 

[BUF]

'Paris attack scout' arrested with two others in Turkey, say reports

Turkish police have detained a Belgian man of Moroccan origin on suspicion that he scouted out the target sites for Islamic State in attacks that killed 130 people in Paris, according to the country’s Dogan news agency.
....
The report said two other men, both Syrian citizens, were also detained on a nearby highway on suspicion that they had been sent by Islamic State in Syria to ensure the man’s safe passage across the border and were planning to meet him.

http://www.theguardian.com/world/20...rrested-with-two-others-in-turkey-say-reports

 

[cottonweaver]

19th Nov why "Belgium is a failed state
Brussels’ nest of radicalism is just one of the failings of a divided, dysfunctional country."

From someone who LIVES in Belgium and likes it there ...

http://www.politico.eu/article/belgium-failed-state-security-services-molenbeek-terrorism/

But the more painful question that should be asked is: What do Molenbeek’s failures reveal about the deep dysfunction in the Belgian state? That Molenbeek has been allowed to become a breeding-ground for jihadism says some damning things about formal and informal structures in Belgium, and in particular Brussels.....

The answers are an indictment of the Belgian political establishment and of successive reforms over the past 40 years....
But as events last Friday night in Paris showed, the rest of Europe must pay a price for Belgium’s failures."

 

[ZaZara]

Given recent and ongoing events in Brussels, I have some doubts about the rumor that the missing terrorist is really that sorry.
IMHO that story may well be a fabrication.
"Told a friend from a safe house" ----> safe house ceases to be safe
"Worried about ISIS going after his family" ----> not worried about Belgian authorities doing the same?

I also wonder about the drugs they took. How long would they be under the influence of those? Would he be able to drive from Paris to Brussels, without appearing under the influence of something?

One of my aunts lives in Brussels. I may give her a call to see how she is doing.

 

[ZaZara]

BIB1 - Agreed. The link was from an archive -it's not post Paris - from writings by Wahabbi ISIS -(Wahabbism pre-dates ISIS, but that wasn't the point) Wahabbism may be Medieval in origin but your post that I was replying to was saying something different wasn't it.

BIB2 - So in terms of your post - can you link me to "serious scholar or expert " who is saying that ISIS's views are not a development of medieval Wahabism thereby demonstrating the "greyzone" is not a "specific aim or strategy of ISIS"? ( That was the content of your post that I replied to.)

I was referring to the original article, where the Canadian professor claims that division is a strategic goal of Isis. My objection concerns the fact that she presents this out of context and IMHO does so for a political goal.

 

[CARIIS]

Given recent and ongoing events in Brussels, I have some doubts about the rumor that the missing terrorist is really that sorry.
IMHO that story may well be a fabrication.
"Told a friend from a safe house" ----> safe house ceases to be safe
"Worried about ISIS going after his family" ----> not worried about Belgian authorities doing the same?

I also wonder about the drugs they took. How long would they be under the influence of those? Would he be able to drive from Paris to Brussels, without appearing under the influence of something?

One of my aunts lives in Brussels. I may give her a call to see how she is doing.

If you call tell all of us here wish her well! Does she "believe" this is truly credible or govt just be careful?Would you ask her what impact the level 4 reaaly has.

I am trying to get a sense of are the streets reaaly empty? A minor difference? Private sector (groceries, gas) closed?

How many guards - does it look and feel like her town is being taken over by the miliarty? Are they more concnetrated in certain area? Impact on daily lives of Metro closed?

Media just dont give a real account of what this is like for real people attemtping to "live" their lives. Can anyone "get in trouble for being out and about ? Are there posters of him all over the place? Sightings?

TIA
TIA

 

[Elley Mae]

"Concrete indications for a repeat of the Paris attacks in Brussels"

http://deredactie.be/cm/vrtnieuws.english/News/1.2502130

The measures taken by the federal government centre on 4 different areas:

a general reduction of major events (also to reduce pressure on police services and to have extra capacity available elsewhere)
increased police and military presence on public transport
increased police and military capacity
the installation of a telephone line for those wishing to obtain more information: 1771

...............................


"The result of relatively precise information pointed to the risk of an attack along the lines of what took take place in Paris," Prime Minister Charles Michel told a news conference on Saturday. The Paris carnage left 130 people dead.

"We are talking about the threat that several individuals with arms and explosives would launch an attack perhaps in several locations at the same time," Michel said.

He declined to elaborate, but said the government would review the situation on Sunday

http://uk.reuters.com/article/2015/11/21/uk-france-shooting-belgium-idUKKCN0TA03J20151121

...................................

Belgium warns citizens of 'serious and imminent' threat

http://www.aljazeera.com/news/2015/11/belgium-warns-citizens-imminent-threat-151121032011747.html


The move was made in Brussels after a meeting of top ministers, police and security services.

Prime Minister Charles Michel said the alert was "based on quite precise information" about a planned attack.

http://www.aljazeera.com/news/2015/11/belgium-warns-citizens-imminent-threat-151121032011747.html

 

[Tony1902]

ZaZara, hope you and your Tante stay safe!!

 

[CARIIS]

20 mins ago - Brussels' Friday night raids

http://www.theguardian.com/world/li...cluding-alleged-scout-arrested-in-turkey-live

maybe they need to consider state of emergency powers to enable them to carry out some intensive raids now

They did!! Mali President Ibrahim Boubacar Keita has ordered a 10-day state of emergency and three days of national mourning in the wake of an attack on a luxury hotel that left at least 20 people dead.

I hope it works teh same way so they can do a bit of "housekeepinG"

Washington Post
https://www.washingtonpost.com/worl...71a960-8fc4-11e5-934c-a369c80822c2_story.html

 

[Momoffourboys]

Americans view Paris attacks with empathy, fear and resolve

http://www.nytimes.com/2015/11/21/u...tacks-with-empathy-fear-and-resolve.html?_r=0

 

[Momoffourboys]

Stories of those who died in Paris attacks

They were artists and students, music lovers, parents and newlyweds. The victims of last week's attacks in Paris had varied backgrounds and interests. Among the 130 killed in the attacks, here are some of their stories:

http://abcnews.go.com/US/wireStory/stories-died-paris-attacks-35342031

 

[Momoffourboys]

Paris attacks: 'I survived 9/11 and the Bataclan massacre'

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/wor...I-survived-911-and-the-Bataclan-massacre.html

 

[cottonweaver]

accounts from people living in Brussels

"The sudden attention focused on where I live doesn’t reflect my daily experience of Molenbeek, which is for the most part is a fairly quiet part of town albeit with significant unemployment and deprivation. Now the entire city is in a sort of lock-down, with shops and public buildings closed.
I was awoken by a phone call from my employer who is a British official body telling me that our offices may be closed for security reasons next week. Government ministers are now talking about sending police to search every house in Molenbeek in the near future. It’s a strange feeling."

http://www.theguardian.com/world/li...cluding-alleged-scout-arrested-in-turkey-live

 

[Momoffourboys]

Paris attacks: Andrew Neil’s message to ‘Islamist Scumbags’ in full


Snip

“Well, IS or Daesh or ISIS or ISIL or whatever name you are going by, I’m sticking with IS – as in Islamist Scumbags. I think the outcome is pretty clear to everyone but you. You will lose. In a thousand years time, Paris, that glorious city of lights, will still be shining bright as will every other city like it. And you will be as dust, along with the ragbag of fascist Nazis and Stalinists that previously dared to challenge democracy and failed.”

http://www.independent.co.uk/news/p...ge-to-islamist-scumbags-in-full-a6743071.html

 

[cottonweaver]

"What does it mean to be European in an age of terror?"

" After the Paris terror attack, Charlie Hebdo ran a front cover of a man turned into a fountain by bullet holes. “They may have weapons,” it joked, “we have champagne!” Someone else drove 400 miles to play an instrumental version of “Imagine” for mourners – a song about nothing.

What makes us European? Free speech, dissent and the cult of the conscience
Muslims are not the only Europeans rejecting contemporary consumer culture. Millions of others want to see liberty realigned to morality, in the great Judeo-Christian tradition of ethical inquiry....."

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/wor...h-dissent-and-the-cult-of-the-conscience.html