Wasn’t ISIS supposed to simply be a localized Middle East problem?
(ABC News) Police said they thwarted a plot to carry out beheadings in Australia by supporters of the radical Islamic State group by detaining 15 people and raiding more than a dozen properties across Sydney on Thursday.
The raids involving 800 federal and state police officers — the largest in the country’s history — came in response to intelligence that an Islamic State group leader in the Middle East was calling on Australian supporters to kill, Prime Minister Tony Abbott said.
Abbott was asked about reports that the detainees were planning to behead a random person in Sydney.
“That’s the intelligence we received,” he told reporters. “The exhortations — quite direct exhortations — were coming from an Australian who is apparently quite senior in ISIL to networks of support back in Australia to conduct demonstration killings here in this country.”
Several of the Islamists made an appearance in court, and we learn
Commonwealth prosecutor Michael Allnutt alleged the plan to commit the act was designed to “shock, horrify, and terrify†the community.
“I don’t think I’ve seen much worse,†he said. (snip)
While the claims remain unconfirmed, it’s understood the plot involved abducting a random Australian, execute them by beheading in a public place, possibly Martin Place in Sydney’s CBD, and film the act and post on social media.
The ABC reported suspects arrested in Brisbane had purchased machetes, balaclavas and military fatigues.
Opposition Leader Bill Shorten said today’s events reminded Australians “how close to home the threat of terrorism can beâ€.
The Australian government thinks there are at least 100 citizens actively supporting Islamic extremism and extremist groups. It may not seem like much, but what can one person do with a bomb or an illegal “assault rifle”? Gun grabbers here in the U.S. want to restrict everyone’s rights, and even confiscate weapons, every time a shooting occurs.
Meanwhile, we learn that a Yemeni born NY State resident, Mufid A. Elfgeeh, was arrested in May and “faces three counts of trying “to provide material support to a foreign terrorist organization” (namely, ISIS), one count of attempting to kill officers and employees of the United States, two counts of having an unregistered firearm silencer and one for possessing guns or silencers “in furtherance of a crime of violence.”” Interestingly, the police seemed to understand his links to ISIS way back in early 2013, when they started their investigation. Why didn’t our president understand the danger?
Ed Morrissey notes This is one reason why the rise of a terrorist state is not just a local issue, or a regional issue. Terrorist states do not want to just be “left alone,†but will spread their terror and destruction until stopped. There is plenty of room for rational and legitimate debate on the most effective way to deal with ISIS and its genocidal army, but ignoring it or shrugging it off as a problem for the Arabs to solve won’t do anything but make our options much more limited and much more costly when we finally do deal with the problem.
The Jawa Report notes the French busting an ISIS recruiting ring.
ISIS has also released a new video threatening attacks on the US
Islamic State in Iraq and Syria has released a new video warning the United States that ISIS fighters are ready and waiting if President Barack Obama sends troops, as his top general said may happen if the current strategy of airstrikes fails.
The slick, 52-second video entitled Flames of War shows militants blowing up tanks and images of wounded U.S. soldiers. It then shows a clip of Obama saying that combat troops will not be returning to Iraq, ending with a text overlay that reads “fighting has just begun.”
The House voted to authorize the use of force to aid Syrian rebels, 273-156, with 71 Republicans and 85 Democrats voting against. The Senate is supposed to vote on it today, probably after Harry Reid yammers at the Koch brothers for being on his lawn.
[…] The Pirate’s Cove reminds us that a Rochester, NY store owner was arrested on terrorism charges when it was discovered he planned to help ISIS, and the French have busted an ISIS ring as well. Now we’re going to arm Syrian rebels while we send thousands of US troops into the center of the Ebola outbreak. […]
Already in the US we have 250,000 supporters of the sovereign citizen movement, men and women who have killed more Americans than ISIS. Many more share their ‘values’. Before 9/11, the Oklahoma City bombing was the worst US terrorist attack in history, committed by right-wing Christian terrorists.
In Pennsylvania, a manhunt is on right now for a cowardly right-wing survivalist, Eric Frein, who assassinated an innocent police office and wounded another. Schools in the area are shut down out of terror, knowing that a right-wing terrorist is roaming the area.
In June, right-wingers Jerad and Amanda Miller killed at least three innocent Americans in Las Vegas.
Nothing but crickets from the right-wing media on these domestic terrorists. I guess because they’re ‘your’ terrorists.
You report on a putative plot in Australia, but ignore successful terrorist attacks in the US committed by right-wing domestic terrorists.
Mr. Elfgeeh was arrested in May, and part of the charges were:
“…two counts of having an unregistered firearm silencer and one for possessing guns or silencers “in furtherance of a crime of violence.â€
Did Los Federales violate Mr. Elfgeeh’s Second Amendment rights?
Nice try Jeffery.
No one really knows where the “sovereign citizen” movement fits ideologically, but clearly it does not line up with conservative values.
Timothy McVeigh was not a Christian. In a 1996 interview he said that he was raised in the Catholic faith, but had fallen away from that but maintained some “core values.” What those “core values” were he declined to say. In a 2001 interview, McVeigh said he was more “agnostic than atheist” and that “science was his religion.”
That should sound familiar to you.
Eric Fein is accused of shooting two police officers. He is a survivalist, but whether that means he has right or left leaning views is unknown. One difference is that while I haven’t seen anyone on the right praising his killing of the two cops, the left continually promotes and loves Mumia Abu-Jamal, the cowardly cop killer from Philadelphia.
The Millers were not right wing at all. In fact, they were kicked out from the Bundy ranch stand off because their views did not line up with the conservatives on the ground there.
While the right does have a fringe element to it, that fringe element is dismissed and condemned by conservatives. The left, on the other hand, has extremists and fringe elements to it as well, but those elements are embraces by the left.
But I bet it is nice to know that your views lined up with those of Timothy McVeigh, eh Jeffery?
Jerad Miller was a wackadoodle who espoused all sorts of crazy conspiracy theories. He was part of neither left nor right. If you want to play the game, Jeff, he was a 9/11 Truther, which is a left leaning belief. He was virulently anti-religious, just like you lefties. But, I won’t blame you guys, because he was in a nutty world of his own.
PS: I do like how you minimize the threat from radical Islamists, but, I’m not surprised. You lefties hate, loathe, despise, your fellow Americans who have different political beliefs, but have little problem with radical Islamists.
Nice try, guys. When one of your borderline psycho right-wing, white supremacist, anti-government, 2nd amendment fetishists goes off the reservation and starts killing folks, you no longer claim him (or her). How fine a line is it between the right-wingers at the Bundy ranch who were threatening to shoot Federal agents if they lawfully carried out their duties and the Millers et al? If you don’t understand that Miller was the poster boy for far-right extremism you’re in Denial.
But to you, all Muslims support ISIL if they don’t disavow them hourly.
Any American is much more likely to catch a bullet from the likes of the Millers or Frein or be blown up by McVeigh, Nichols or Rudolph than a beheading from Muhammad.
Yet, when Homeland Security suggested they keep an eye on right-wing extremists the conservasphere went batshit crazy.
Abu-Jamal was convicted and sentenced and his case has been reviewed by multiple higher courts and his conviction repeatedly confirmed. His death sentence was reduced to life in prison. Since a Black activist in Philly in 1981 suspected of shooting a white policeman was convicted, you can probably understand some suspicions about how the case was handled, right? It wouldn’t be the first time a Black man was convicted for a crime he didn’t commit.
McVeigh was a military veteran, enraged by what he saw as the tyranny of gov’t in the early 90s, a militia supporter, a 2nd Amendment fetishist, anti-taxes, anti-government, NRA member, registered Republican etc. And you were very selective concerning his religion. Raised a Catholic, confirmed in 1985, and requested a Catholic Priest and received the sacrament at his execution. He killed almost 200 innocents. So which of his views align with mine?
Teach, Again you attack the messenger and not the message. Just because I don’t think that ISIS is a great threat to the US doesn’t mean I hate America and Americans. That’s the kind of thing that McVeigh would say. McVeigh was more of a threat than 30,000 ISIS members. And there are even more McVeighs walking around the US today – but you prefer to drop bombs in Syria.
Right.
We do that because despite their claim that they are right wing or right leaning, their actions are not.
Thanks for making our case.
We condemn and distance ourselves from those who claim to be politically leaning to right because their actions don’t mesh with the right.
You take a left leaning, cop killing coward and make excuses for him. The left has always embraced his actions and continues to do so to this day.
There are none so blind as those who will not see.