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MADDY SAUER, ABC NEWS BLOTTER - Early this week, as banners on extreme
Islamist websites announced a message of good news to come shortly from
Al Qaeda leadership, terrorism analysts and the media began speculating
that it might be the first message in over a year from Osama bin Laden
to his followers. As it turned out, it was yet another message from his
top deputy Ayman al-Zawahiri that was more academic than threatening.
Almost six years after the attacks of September 11th, bin Laden has
continued to elude capture and has remained a thorn in the side of US
anti-terror efforts. . .
The world last heard from bin Laden in June 2006 when he issued an audio
statement praising the efforts of fellow terrorist Abu Musab Zarqawi who
had been recently killed in Iraq. There has been no new video of bin
Laden since October 2004. The last time there was a lengthy gap between
his statements was between December 2004 and January 2006.
Meanwhile, his followers often make claims that their leader is alive
and well. Last month, top Taliban Commander Mansoor Dadullah, who
recently led the graduation ceremony of suicide bomber recruits, told Al
Jazeera that bin Laden is "alive and active" and that the Al Qaeda
leader had even sent him a condolence letter when his brother, another
top Taliban commander, was killed by coalition forces. . .
http://blogs.abcnews.com/theblotter/2007/07/whatever-happen.html
BS ALERT - It's a curious thing that, over the past 10 - 12 days, the
news from Iraq refers to the combatants there as "al-Qaida" fighters.
When did that happen? Until a few days ago, the combatants in Iraq were
"insurgents" or they were referred to as "Sunni" or "Shia" fighters in
the Iraq Civil War. Suddenly, without evidence, without proof, without
any semblance of fact, the US military command is referring to these
combatants as "al-Qaida". Welcome to the latest in Iraq propaganda. . .
But what is even more notable is that the establishment press has
followed right along, just as enthusiastically. I don't think the New
York Times has published a story about Iraq in the last two weeks
without stating that we are killing "Al Qaeda fighters," capturing "Al
Qaeda leaders," and every new operation is against "Al Qaeda.". . . If
your only news about Iraq came from The New York Times, you would think
that the war in Iraq is now indistinguishable from the initial stage of
the war in Afghanistan -- that we are there fighting against the people
who hijacked those planes and flew them into our buildings: "Al Qaeda."
What is so amazing about this new rhetorical development -- not only
from our military, but also from our "journalists" -- is that, for
years, it was too shameless and false even for the Bush administration
to use. . . After his 2004 re-election was secure, even the President
acknowledged that "Al Qaeda" was the smallest component of the "enemies"
we are fighting in Iraq. . . Even for the "smallest" group among those
we are fighting in Iraq, the president described them not as "Al Qaeda,"
but as those "affiliated with or inspired by al Qaeda." Claiming that
our enemy in Iraq was comprised primarily or largely of "Al Qaeda" was
too patently false even for the President to invoke in defense of his
war.
http://bsalert.com/news/1913/News_Media_Now_
Referring_To_Iraqis_as_Al-Quaida.html
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MADDY SAUER, ABC NEWS BLOTTER - Early this week, as banners on extreme
Islamist websites announced a message of good news to come shortly from
Al Qaeda leadership, terrorism analysts and the media began speculating
that it might be the first message in over a year from Osama bin Laden
to his followers. As it turned out, it was yet another message from his
top deputy Ayman al-Zawahiri that was more academic than threatening.
Almost six years after the attacks of September 11th, bin Laden has
continued to elude capture and has remained a thorn in the side of US
anti-terror efforts. . .
The world last heard from bin Laden in June 2006 when he issued an audio
statement praising the efforts of fellow terrorist Abu Musab Zarqawi who
had been recently killed in Iraq. There has been no new video of bin
Laden since October 2004. The last time there was a lengthy gap between
his statements was between December 2004 and January 2006.
Meanwhile, his followers often make claims that their leader is alive
and well. Last month, top Taliban Commander Mansoor Dadullah, who
recently led the graduation ceremony of suicide bomber recruits, told Al
Jazeera that bin Laden is "alive and active" and that the Al Qaeda
leader had even sent him a condolence letter when his brother, another
top Taliban commander, was killed by coalition forces. . .
http://blogs.abcnews.com/theblotter/2007/07/whatever-happen.html
BS ALERT - It's a curious thing that, over the past 10 - 12 days, the
news from Iraq refers to the combatants there as "al-Qaida" fighters.
When did that happen? Until a few days ago, the combatants in Iraq were
"insurgents" or they were referred to as "Sunni" or "Shia" fighters in
the Iraq Civil War. Suddenly, without evidence, without proof, without
any semblance of fact, the US military command is referring to these
combatants as "al-Qaida". Welcome to the latest in Iraq propaganda. . .
But what is even more notable is that the establishment press has
followed right along, just as enthusiastically. I don't think the New
York Times has published a story about Iraq in the last two weeks
without stating that we are killing "Al Qaeda fighters," capturing "Al
Qaeda leaders," and every new operation is against "Al Qaeda.". . . If
your only news about Iraq came from The New York Times, you would think
that the war in Iraq is now indistinguishable from the initial stage of
the war in Afghanistan -- that we are there fighting against the people
who hijacked those planes and flew them into our buildings: "Al Qaeda."
What is so amazing about this new rhetorical development -- not only
from our military, but also from our "journalists" -- is that, for
years, it was too shameless and false even for the Bush administration
to use. . . After his 2004 re-election was secure, even the President
acknowledged that "Al Qaeda" was the smallest component of the "enemies"
we are fighting in Iraq. . . Even for the "smallest" group among those
we are fighting in Iraq, the president described them not as "Al Qaeda,"
but as those "affiliated with or inspired by al Qaeda." Claiming that
our enemy in Iraq was comprised primarily or largely of "Al Qaeda" was
too patently false even for the President to invoke in defense of his
war.
http://bsalert.com/news/1913/News_Media_Now_
Referring_To_Iraqis_as_Al-Quaida.html
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