Al Qaeda-Linked Cell Vows to Hit Italy
Reuters

DUBAI (Reuters) - A militant group claiming links to al Qaeda said in a statement Saturday its cells in Italy were ready to strike if the country did not withdraw troops from Iraq before a 15-day deadline given by the group expired this month.
"The truce we had offered you...to withdraw your troops has almost ended. Our cells in Rome and in all other Italian cities are prepared and ready to carry out their mission after the end of the truce on the 15th of this month," said the statement signed by Abu Hafs al-Masri Brigades -- al Qaeda Organization.

"You won't feel safe in your homes. Each place will be a target after the end of the truce and the targets have been defined," the statement said.

The group sent a statement last weekend to the London-based al-Quds al-Arabi newspaper giving Italy a 15-day deadline to withdraw its forces from Iraq or face attacks.

New Threat to Italy : Machine Translated Text
IanLivingston.Com

To people Italian...

The peace on who the direction pursued and in counting...

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Italy 'vigilant' on terror threats
CNN

(CNN) -- An Italian official has reiterated his government's vigilance over threats by terror groups angry at Italy's troop presence in Iraq.

Alfredo Mantovano, an undersecretary in the Interior Ministry, said Saturday that current threats require the country's "maximum attention against the possibility of terrorist attacks in Italy."

His remarks were reported to the Italian news agency ANSA.

He said the Italian security apparatus is doing all that is possible to counter terror dangers.

Mantovano said that even though there is no specific information about a threat, the chances of attempts cannot be excluded because of the breadth of the Islamic terror network.

Unmasking of Qaeda Mole a U.S. Security Blunder-Experts
Reuters

LONDON (Reuters) - The revelation that a mole within al Qaeda was exposed after Washington launched its "orange alert" this month has shocked security experts, who say the outing of the source may have set back the war on terror.

Reuters learned from Pakistani intelligence sources on Friday that computer expert Mohammad Naeem Noor Khan, arrested secretly in July, was working under cover to help the authorities track down al Qaeda militants in Britain and the United States when his name appeared in U.S. newspapers.

"After his capture he admitted being an al Qaeda member and agreed to send e-mails to his contacts," a Pakistani intelligence source told Reuters. "He sent encoded e-mails and received encoded replies. He's a great hacker and even the U.S. agents said he was a computer whiz."

Last Sunday, U.S. officials told reporters that someone held secretly by Pakistan was the source of the bulk of the information justifying the alert. The New York Times obtained Khan's name independently, and U.S. officials confirmed it when it appeared in the paper the next morning.

None of those reports mentioned at the time that Khan had been under cover helping the authorities catch al Qaeda suspects, and that his value in that regard was destroyed by making his name public.

Bin Laden Sent Suspect to U.S., Officials Say
New York Times

WASHINGTON, Aug. 6 - American intelligence officials now believe that Issa al-Hindi, the alleged Qaeda operative now in British custody, was dispatched to the United States in early 2001 by the mastermind of the Sept. 11 plot at the direction of Osama bin Laden to case potential targets in New York City, senior government officials said Friday.

The officials said that Mr. Hindi was the same person as the figure identified in the Sept. 11 commission report as Issa al-Britani. The account of Mr. Hindi's being dispatched to New York was based on claims by the mastermind, Khalid Shaikh Mohammed, while in American custody, the report said. But American officials said on Friday that it is consistent with other evidence that Mr. Hindi headed a three-man team that surveyed the New York Stock Exchange and other buildings in New York, probably in early 2001.

Senior government officials said that Mr. Hindi - the name is thought to be an alias - was believed to have visited the United States several times in 2000 and 2001, the same period in which reconnaissance of financial institutions in New York, New Jersey and Washington that was discovered last week is believed to have taken place.

The Joint Terrorist Task Force of the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the New York Police Department was working on Friday to track Mr. Hindi's movements in New York, focusing on where he lived, anyone with whom he might have come into contact and how long he was there. One law enforcement official said investigators had identified some people in photographs that were included in the surveillance package and those people were being interviewed.

"It's fair to say there is an investigation ongoing to determine specifically where and when he was here," said Police Commissioner Raymond W. Kelly.

The accounts describing Mr. Hindi's role in the plot were provided by six different senior government officials in New York and Washington, all of whom had been briefed about the investigation. The officials, who were interviewed independently but provided accounts that were consistent, included those from law-enforcement and intelligence agencies who specialize in counterterrorism.

Navy Turncoat : Sailor Shares Information With al Qaida
New York Post

August 7, 2004 -- WASHINGTON - A U.S. sailor aboard one of America's high-tech Navy warships sent e-mails to a suspected London-based al Qaeda terrorist and may have revealed sensitive military secrets, authorities announced yesterday.

The traitor sailor, who has not been identified, praised Muslim terror strikes against America and may have turned over detailed plans about the Navy's USS Benfold and more than a dozen other ships in its battle group as they were moving through the Mideast, officials said.

The information about the American sailor was disclosed yesterday by federal prosecutors in Connecticut who said he had been in contact with accused British terrorist Babar Ahmad.

In court papers, prosecutors said the sailor sent a July 2001 e-mail to Ahmad that expressed "enmity towards the 'American enemies' and strong support for" Islamic fighters.

The e-mail also hailed those who attacked the USS Cole and "the men who have brought honor this week to the [religious leaders] in lands of Jihad: Afghanistan, Bosnia, Chechnya, etc."

Prosecutors said, "The response sent from the [Ahmad's] e-mail account praised the [Navy] enlistee's comments."

Al Jazeera Vows to Cover Iraq Despite Closure
Al Jazeera News

Aljazeera has vowed to continue its Iraq coverage despite the one-month closure of its Baghdad office announced by the Iraqi interim government on Saturday.

In a statement Aljazeera expressed regret for the unjustified move, and said it was contrary to pledges made by the Iraqi Government to start a new era of free speech and openness.

Aljazeera made it clear in the statement they hold the Iraqi authorities responsible for the safety of Aljazeera staff in Baghdad and elsewhere in Iraq.

Aljazeera's Baghdad office staff said the decision to close the office had been expected for some time.

They said they had been facing difficulties covering the news from Baghdad and that Iraqi officials had been reacting negatively to requests submitted by the channel.

S.F. Man Says Beheading Video Is a Hoax
AP Via Yahoo

SAN FRANCISCO - A video aired Saturday that purportedly showed an American being decapitated in Iraq was a hoax.

The American, Benjamin Vanderford, reached by The Associated Press in San Francisco, said he videotaped the staged beheading at his friend's house using fake blood.

Vanderford, 22, said he began distributing the video on the Internet months ago in hopes of drawing attention to his one-time campaign for city supervisor. When his political aspirations waned, he thought the video would serve as social commentary.