Terrorism: Coming To A Streetcorner Near You

The Mother of all paranoid conspiracy theories: what if neo-Nazis and extremist Muslim fanatics allied to destroy Israel? This may not be as far-fetched as it sounds: the two groups have a common goal. Insight Magazine reports that this may actually have happened. Moreover, the investigation ties Saddam Hussein to a web of financing that supported al Qaeda:

Senior investigators and analysts in the U.S. government have concluded that Iraq acted as a state sponsor of terrorism against Americans and logistically supported the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks on the United States - confirming news reports that until now have emerged only in bits and pieces. A senior government official responsible for investigating terrorism tells Insight that while Saddam Hussein may not have had details of the Sept. 11 attacks in advance, he "gave assistance for whatever al-Qaeda came up with." That assistance, confirmed independently, came in a variety of ways, including financial support spun out through a complex web of financial institutions in Switzerland, Liechtenstein, Italy and elsewhere. Long suspected of having terrorist ties to al-Qaeda, they now have been linked to Iraq as well.

The official says the United States uncovered the key "money-laundering operation" in the months following Sept. 11, 2001, when authorities raided the homes and offices of two Arab bankers, Youssef M. Nada and Ali Himat, principals at Nada Management (formerly al-Taqwa Management). Himat, Nada and the names of both companies are all listed on the U.S. Treasury Department's roll of "Specially Designated Global Terrorists." The lawyer for the two Arab financiers, Pier Felice Barchi, has confirmed to the Swiss press that his clients will be questioned again in coming days. He added that they "have nothing to fear and nothing to hide," although he confirms that authorities seized thousands of pages of documents. Insight's source, who has seen many of those documents, confirms that they detail financial relationships between al-Taqwa and Iraq. The official says the records show al-Taqwa was formed by Nada, Himat, Ahmed Huber and Mohamed Mansour.

In other terrorist news, the Terrorism's Global Impact Summit in Tel Aviv was just full of cheery news:

AL-QA'IDA'S new torchbearers are on the march. The next generation of Islamist leaders is more determined, more ruthless and far more dangerous than its predecessors. And the world is just getting to know them. The chilling prophecy was delivered last week by a panel of the world's leading counter-terrorist experts, who have, since the events of 9/11, watched al-Qa'ida shift like sand dunes in a desert storm. "What they have in store for us is probably more than any of us could bear," one security official told a closed session of the Terrorism's Global Impact summit in Tel Aviv.

And here I thought perhaps they were planning on giving us all a nice, warm fuzzy... something along the lines of a big bear hug with kisses...

"The new generation of leaders are more violent and will drive this campaign in ways that are difficult for us to imagine," says Rohan Gunaratna from Singapore's Defence and Strategic Studies Centre.

Well, that would be the nature of 'surprise' attacks... that they are, well... surprising. Otherwise, what's the point?

"Al-Qa'ida has become an ideology of empowerment," says a former senior CIA officer, who did not want to be identified. "People want to identify with the power symbolised by the brand. The best thing bin Laden could do is to die. It would be the last step in the casting of his legend."

Good God. No wonder he didn't want to be identified. Don't you love the jargon that comes out of these conferences? "Ideology of empowerment?" What the heck does that mean? And now Al Qa'ida (I guess that's how we're spelling it this week) is a brand? They've gone totally corporate on us - they've sold out. I suppose they have a logo and everything. Next thing you know, Osama will have lost that fire in the belly. He'll be sporting Nike gear and working endorsements into the next thrilling video from whatever cave in Afghanistan he's currently hiding in. I can just see it now:

"And the Blasphemer Cheney and his Master, the Great Satan Boosh cannot hide from the wrath of the Jihad. The Armies of Allah will crush the Impure Ones and restore the Garden of The Prophets, which shall last for 2000 years. No Fear: Just Do It."

Cross posted at I Love Jet Noise