TERRORISM: A Corporate Fascist Imperialist State Joint VENTURE to Justify Monopolistic Aggression! Terror Flowers May not Bloom Without Money Power Ca

TERRORISM: A Corporate Fascist Imperialist State Joint VENTURE to Justify Monopolistic Aggression! Terror Flowers May not Bloom Without Money Power Captured by the ruling Hegemony. Terror Network May Not Work Without mainstream political Administrative Favour. governments Work Together to Terrorise Enslaved people to capture Resources. Subversion is Always Designed with Surgical Precision. Hegemony Agencies Work Together to flood Blind nationality and Launch Hatred Campaign.Harvesting GREEN REVOLUTION of TERROR is Mandatory to Tame Hostile Demography and Nationalities. Just Look, How Pentagon and white House Planned 9/11 to Justify Oil Field capture game in Middle East!How Brahaminical Hegemony Used Communal Riots and Then, Terror Strikes to Hold Power. How nuclear Super Power Hindutva Ally with Zionist White Galaxy Order to Implement Post Modern MANUSMRITI Apartheid Agenda against Black Untouchables,Aboriginal, Indigenous and Minorities Worldwide. How the KILLING FIELDS are created! How CIVIL Wars and wars Masterminded! How Indo US Nuke deal and FINMIN RBI Anti national activities Justified By passing Parliament and Constitution! How violated are human and civil rights. Always the Victims are Branded as Terrorists! How the Corporates, MEDIA and MNCs use the Mind control and Brainwashing techniques! TERRORISM Creates Space for the Ruling Hegemony for More and More Genocide. Warmonger BUSH is the Path Finder!




Troubled Galaxy Destroyed Dreams: Chapter 100

Palash Biswas

It has been the same story all the way in History! SHUDRAYAN in India and Hundred years of War in the West, the CRUSADE followed by renaissance created the base of Post Modern Galaxy Order on the Base of the Heritage of Roman Empire! Greek Mythology as well as Hindutva Literature creted sublime Myths of Mass Destruction which have been well translated in Post Modern Science and technology. thus, Information explosion happens the best tool of Escalation of Global Market, galaxy capitalism!

TERRORISM is the most relevant concept to enslave Modern Times!

Terrorism by the Power hegemony!
Terrorism of the Power Hegemony!

Terrorism for the Power Hegemony!

TERRORISM: A Corporate Fascist Imperialist State Joint VENTURE to Justify Monopolistic Aggression! Terror Flowers May not Bloom Without Money Power Captured by the ruling Hegemony. Terror Network May Not Work Without mainstream political Administrative Favour. governments Work Together to Terrorise Enslaved people to capture Resources. Subversion is Always Designed with Surgical Precision. Hegemony Agencies Work Together to flood Blind nationality and Launch Hatred Campaign.Harvesting GREEN REVOLUTION of TERROR is Mandatory to Tame Hostile Demography and Nationalities. Just Look, How Pentagon and white House Planned 9/11 to Justify Oil Field capture game in Middle East!How Brahaminical Hegemony Used Communal Riots and Then, Terror Strikes to Hold Power. How nuclear Super Power Hindutva Ally with Zionist White Galaxy Order to Implement Post Modern MANUSMRITI Apartheid Agenda aginst Black Untouchables,Aboriginal, Indiginous and Minorities Worldwide. How the KILLING FIELDS are created! How CIVIL Wars and wars Masterminded! How Indo US Nuke deal and FINMIN RBI Anti national activities Justified By passing Parliament and Constitution! How violated are human and civil rights. Always the Victims are Branded as Terrorists! How the Corporates, MEDIA and MNCs use the Mind control and Brainwashing techniques! TERRORISM Creates Space for the Ruling Hegemony for More and More Genocide. Warmonger BUSH is the Path Finder!

Nothing but Terrorism justifies the War against Terrorism!

Nothing but the excuse of Terror changes the Indian Ocean zone into the War zone right into our Heart!

Terrorism justifies Indo US Nuclear Deal, the strategic re alliance in US lead and US Military Presence in every corner of South Asia!

Provided if the Governments are genuine enough to address the problem of Terrorism how the Terror network survives despite Free hand to security agencies and Omnipresent US Military might allied with National Armies?

If Paresh Barua or Arvind rajkhova have been allowed to stay and lead Anti India Activities in a soft state like Bangladesh directly under US control, how you may control them while they shift the bases in CHINA,into the safe lap of the sleeping Dragon!did the diplomacy and foreign Policy of Government of India failed or the anti national GOI tried its best to use the ULFA as a pet Animal to strike favourable deals in North East? If there happens to be any china Link, how it came out to emerge suddenly as a Bolt from the Blue? Provided if China interferes in Indian internal affairs as the story floated, is the anti national Indian state power capable of thwarting threat to national Integrity and unity as it fails miserably to address the nationalities at home and may not deal with terrorists despite AFPSA continued since 1958!

FREEsenSEX shoots up amidst national calamities! Why? Why Indian Nationalities pitted against one another in a Civil War like situation while RBI and FINMIN open all the Floodgates of Relief and Concessions to the Capitalists to feed the Hungry Money Machine pumping in National revenues without the consent of the Parliament. We all know, the Global Recession began with the failure of US Banking and Insurance system! Then, tell me how the government of India dares to enhance FDI in Insurance sector from 26 percent to maximum 49 percent? Oil Prices slump and Inflation is manipulated. FOREX is pumped into Private sector. SBI and LIC used to save FREE FALL!every thing was overlooked through unwanted incidents in Maharashtra and Terror strikes in ASSAM!

If RSS is up against TERRORISM why it defends Hindutva Bomb? How the Maharashtra nationality Icon Bal Thakre voices HINDUTVA defending Sadhvi Pragya Singh?

Tell me , how the ruling hegemony brands Mahashweta as a Naxalite, our friend and journalist working in The Statesman, SUKUMAR MITRA as well as Katyani , a Hindi Poet, as Maoists! How?

How the Terrorism is linked with ISLAM while USA has declared an undeclared War against Islam under the cover of War against Terrorism! Any Terror strike anywhere in this planet is bound to justify US Pro activism to save its worldwide Corporate Zionist White interests. Nothing but TERRORISM justifies Capture and enslavement of Natural as well as human resources!

It is the the Concept as well as Designed terrorism which justifies the pending long shopping lists of Arms from US Zionist Weapon Market! It justifies Mass destruction witnessed in Middle East, east Europe and Africa and now we are destined to witness in our own Killing fields!

If there is no Terrorism, you would see how all bloody Nuclear Biological Chemical Warfare become so irrelevant! IRAQ, AFGHANISTAN, PAKISTAN, KOSOVO, SOMALIA and a large part of every continent Africa, Americas, Asia, Europe and Australia face unprecedented repression just because the Terror Networks wer located there by NATO, PENTAGON and WHITE HOUSE?

What is the Real story behind 9/11? What the investigation open up?
You have your eyes open and see how PENTAGON, NASA, WORLD BANK, IMF, GATT, EC, WTO, CIA, ISI, MOSSED, M16, RAW work together!

TERRORISM IS AN ESSENTIAL PHENOMENON TO RUN THE POST MODERN FASCIST IMPERIALIST CORPORATE GALAXY ORDER!

Swings of Indices upwards despite no reprieve from Global recession prove well how TERRORISM suits the Galaxy Hegemony and its national anti national agents!

TERRORISM always helps the STATE POWER to wipe out Unwanted Demography! It helps to tame the hostile resisting Masses, Intelligentsia, Demography and nationalities!

Religion, Myths, Rituals, Superstition, totems and the holy Scripts are the best tools of Ruling Hegemony having the Ultimate Killing Instinct to wipe out all Human as well as civil rights! Global Warming roots here only!

Demonetisation continues even today. How Saddam Hussein was Demonised, just remember! How the Nazis and fascists demonised the Jews to wipe out the from this earth! How Intense HATRED CAMPAIGN helped British empiere to divide and rule. While they could not sustain themselves as an Empire they masterminded the Holocaust in south Asai. In Independent India , we have already witnessed Sikh Genocide folowed by Hatred Sikh campaign launched jointly by so called mainstream political parties!

We all know, how aboriginal people all over Americas and Africa have been massacred under Best adventure Myths of Human Civilisation!

Despite bearing the heritage of DRAVID culture and History of aboriginal India inhibited by indigenous Negroids, we converted ourselves in Aryan Brahaminical Psyche of intense Dravid hatred. It is a uncrossable North and south India within India.Majoritarian Democracy and electoral system created unchallengeable space for Micro Minority only three percent of the total population, Brahmins to dominate every sphere of life in Independent India. Age Old MANUSMRITI predestined inherent injustice and inequality with dividing the HINDU society in more than six thousand castes! Thus, Brahmins harvest on the Enslaved social fabrics sharing with a few powerful castes with varying equations in every region or state. The Aboriginal, Indigenous people and minorities out of HINDUTVA lead the resistance often and mercilessly crushed as it happened in Telengana and Naxalbari! Not Ideology, it was simply the demography which was chosen for repression and Annihilation. Thus, the Brahaminical Communists always betrayed any Insurrection, peasant movement and trade union movement. And it is the history! Nationalities do not oblige the Enslavement prescribed by HINDUTVA, thus they are always termed as TERRORISTS! This is the root Cause of Insurgency in Himalayan region from Kashmir to north East, which is never addressed but the ruling Hegemony chooses the simplest way of military solution or striking deals with splinter groups which create more space of Terror network. Recent flare up of Gorkhaland Movement is a classic case of Deal Making by ruling Hegemony, nevertheless, while the Terror network remains intact. We may see the alliances of different terrorist groups working with central Government and state governments as long as their interests suit!

How may you be sure that a Particular terror strike is not instituted by the State Power and the ruling Hegemony? We have seen how communal riots were used for political gains. We have seen communal flare up in Maharashtra during Parliament session while Economy and Polity had been stressed most. We have see how Amaranth shrine diverted the NUKE Opera in Indian Parliament. We have also witnessed communal flare up against Taslima Nasreen with surgical precision and accurate timing in Marxist ruled KOLKATA!

Why we may not raise a point on the timing of terror strikes and the designs involved!

In India, the ancient holy scripts VEDAS and UPANISHADS launched the original HATRED campaign. We may see the traces in recent mainstream XXXXX literature in India even today. It was not Warmonger President BUSH, but INDRA was the incarnation to kill the Indigenous Aboriginal Leaders and insurrections under cover of myths and rituals! Which is further empowered by MANUSMiRITY and Indian Brahaminical Polity! Indra, the greatest FUCKER, known womaniser could launch War and civil War anytime to defend the hegemony of Heaven! He controlled the Weapon Industry. The PANDAVAS also got their weapons from gods led by Indra. This is the same mythical story we read in Greece and Rome. Anglo Saxon Dominance continues as well as continues the Aryan dominance while Negroids all over the world are targeted for annihilation on the name of democracy and development. Project Next President of America, Black and Muslim Origin Barrack Obama is also targeted for assassination as he wants that Martin Luther Kings Dream may come true! CU Clux Clan is resurgent as Zionism and Hindutva are also experiencing Resurrection. The CRUSADE continues!

Nationalities wer always demonised in every part of the world as nationalities are being branded as Terrorists nowadays! In India so many gods including the incarnation of VISHNU, MARYADA PURUSHOTTAM RAMA were engaged in SHUDRAYAN , free killing and enslavement of Indigenous and aboriginal Dravid and Negroid masses! The present day Brahmin rulers have also created SEZ, Nuclear Parks, Chemical Hubs, Retail Chains, Multi Plexes, Corporates, MNCS, Builders, Promoters, BiG dams, Infrastructure, IT and so on to kill our people and only our people. Provided we resist, we are liable to be branded as Naxalite as Mahashweta di has been, Maoists as ktayayani and Sukumar have been or as Terrorists as whole lot of indigenous aboriginal and minorities are predestined to be branded!

We have lost the HEAVEN!


SIT begins probe into Assam blasts

The Special Investigating Team (SIT), constituted to look into Thursday's serial blasts in Assam, on Sunday began its probe and is likely
to explore HuJI-ULFA links in the strikes.

Headed by IGP (Special Task Force) R Chandranathan, the SIT started investigations to ascertain the identity of the culprits behind the deadly blasts in which 81 people were killed.

"Last night, we handed over all the papers and clues ascertained so far to the SIT which has started investigations," IGP (Law and Order) Bhaskar Jyoti Mahanta said.

Sources in the SIT said the investigations were on to explore the HuJI-ULFA links in the blasts and the authenticity of the SMS sent to a private satellite channel by so-called Islamic Security Force (Indian Mujahideen) claiming responsibility for the bombings.

Police said so far five persons have been arrested and several others detained. Meanwhile, Principal Secretary (Home) Subhas Das said police have got vital clues during investigations.

Refusing to divulge details, Das was hopeful that the police would soon zero in on the culprits responsible for the blasts.

Gujarat cops to question sadhvi on Modasa blast

Gujarat police will question Malegaon blast accused Sadhvi Pragya Singh Thakur on her possible role in Modasa blast, through Mumbai ATS,
which is to conduct a narco test on her.

Sources said Mumbai police have framed a list of at least 40 questions for the sadhvi's narco analysis. Two of the questions pertain to Modasa blast. "She would be asked whether she has any links with the blast at Modasa and how many times has she visited the town," a source said.

Gujarat police remain non-committal on the issue. "We would only comment after the tests are over," Sabarkantha DSP R B Brahmbhatt said. "Pragya's narco analysis and brain mapping are on and we can say something only afterwards."

Mumbai police had picked up Pragya for her alleged role in the Malegaon blast from Surat, where she had been living since 2002. Pragya's motorbike was used in the blast which killed six people at Malegaon on September 29.

Pak, Bangla groups may be behind Assam blasts: CM Gogoi

Assam chief minister Tarun Gogoi on Sunday said that the needle of suspicion for Thursday's serial blasts in the state points towards
insurgent groups based in Bangladesh and Pakistan.

"Although we are yet to reach at a conclusion, the needle of suspicion points towards Bangladesh and Pakistan-based insurgent groups," Gogoi said.

"These are the forces inimical to Assam...Since they are using their (foreign countries) soil, the outfits are bound to listen to them," he said.

Without naming any particular group, Gogoi admitted that the army and other agencies had given inputs about possible attacks but being able to pinpoint the culprits is important.

"There are such inputs every time but the need of the hour is to improve the intelligence network," he said.

Announcing that a special task force will be set up soon in the state to deal with terrorists, Gogoi said action will be taken against civil and police officials if they were found neglecting duties which could have resulted in the blasts.

After Hurriyat, LeT invites Ban Ki-moon to Kashmir Valley

After the moderate faction of the Hurriyat, militant outfit Lashker-e-Taiba on Sunday invited UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon to visit
Kashmir to take stock of the situation in the Valley.

LeT chief Qari Abdul Wahid, in a statement hailed Secretary General's statement calling for resolution of the Kashmir issue through dialogue.

"In fact, it is the responsibility of the world body to play a role in resolving the long-standing issue," he said.

"We invite the UN Secretary General to visit Kashmir and see for himself the situation there," the statement said.

On Friday, Mirwaiz Umer Farooq, chairman of the moderate faction of the Hurriyat Conference, requested Ki-moon to visit the Valley.

NCP joins Raj campaign, talks about 'redrawing of balance'

The 'Raj Thackeray effect' seems to have rubbed on NCP too with the Sharad Pawar-led party advocating "sons of the soil" ideology and
warning that if there was no "redrawing of balance" between Maharashtrians and others, "the people will themselves do it".

Union Minister and senior NCP leader Praful Patel also rejected demands for removal of Maharashtra Chief Minister Vilasrao Deshmukh as also immediate detention of Thackeray under the National Security Act in the wake of attacks on north Indians.

Patel, whose party is a major partner in the Congress-led Maharashtra government, saw nothing wrong in party leader Chhagan Bhujbal's advocacy of "sons of the soil" slogan. He also asked non-Maharashtrians to respect the sentiments and culture of the state.

In an interview to Karan Thapar for 'Devil's Advocate' programme for CNN-IBN, he made a veiled attack on the lack of development in certain states from where people migrate to Mumbai which was predominantly Maharashtrian 30-40 years ago.

Patel downplayed Prime Minister Manmohan Singh writing a strongly worded letter to Deshmukh on the situation in the wake of attack on some north Indians.

"The Prime Minister, as the custodian of the entire nation, is well within his moral authority to speak and ask the Maharashtra government that such things should not happen," Patel said.

Asked whether there was a need for redrawing of balance between Maharashtrians and non-Maharashtrians in the state, Patel said "if you do not do that, sooner or later you will not need a Raj Thackeray to do that, the people themselves will do it."

Return Singur land to farmers: Mamata

Coming back to Singur almost a month after the Tata Motors announced the pullout of its Nano car project, Trinamool Congress chief Mamata
Banerjee on Sunday demanded return of the land to farmers who had been "forced" to part with it for the project.

She said, "to this day the West Bengal government's deal with the Tatas for the project has not been made public."

"If the government had abided by the September 7 Raj Bhavan agreement on the project, the contents of the deal would have been known to the people, which the government does not obviously want," Mamata told a well-attended rally.

She said any future industry in the area would have to be set up only after a global tender was floated. "We are not against industry as we had said earlier. Had we been so, we would have also put obstacles on the path of the Jindal Steel's plant coming up at Salboni."

At Salboni, Sajjan Jindal, the head of the JSW Steel, had reached a consensus with the local people which the Tatas had not done in Singur, Mamata said.

The Singur movement was a landmark in the struggle against forcible acquisition of land in the country. The authorities would think twice before embarking on forcible land acquisition, she claimed.

Chinese media questions Chandrayaan's success

India's Chandrayaan mission may have evoked a good bit of national pride and come in for praise from different quarters worldwide including
the White House in Washington. But a large section of the Chinese media has raised questions published articles questioning the success of Chandrayaan.

The articles question the contention of Indian Space Research Organisation, which said that Chandrayaan had an apogee of 37,800km with an orbital period of 73 hours. The articles in the Chinese media state that the apogee was only around 16,400 km with an orbital tour of 11 hours.

Most of the articles have been published in websites and blogs popular with the military and nationalist politicians. They include bulletin boards of websites that are linked to government organizations. But the general newspapers have refrained from taking a critical view of the Indian space mission. Most of them are copies of a single article.

The critical articles claim they were the result of analysis of data released by www.n2yo.com, which is a site devoted real time tracking of satellite launched across the world and contains a lot of technical information. Interestingly, the website of US government's National Aeronautics and Space Administration has published an article on Chandrayaan without raising any doubts about it.

Most of the articles are copies of a single piece using almost similar text. The headline common several of the pieces in different websites are: "Orbit not very normal; has India's Chandrayaan-1 run into problem?"

A search on the Chinese search engine, Baidu and the Chinese version of Google throws up several websites where the same article has been pasted. It seems someone or some agency has gone into a good deal of effort to ensure that the article is widely circulated across several media networks including those that represent government agencies.

Some of the Chinese sites also published Chinese versions of another English article, which described Chandrayaan mission as a case of major success in a country that has not been able to curb human rights violations and address the problem of poverty adequately. The source of this second article has not been clarified.

Narrow escape for Paswan; mine blast on convoy route

Union Steel Minister Ram Vilas Paswan had a close shave on Sunday when a landmine blasted his security vehicle in Baroa in the Maoist-infested West Midnapore district shortly after West Bengal Chief Minister Buddhadeb Bhattacharya, passed through the area of attack that left six policemen injured.

Paswan along with his deputy Jiten Prasada and industrialist Sajjan Jindal were travelling in the same government vehicle when the powerful landmine blast triggered by suspected maoists damaged the police's Maruti Gypsy. One of the six injured policemen was in a critical condition.

All the VVIPS were safe, police said.

Paswan said it was a miraculous escape for them as the escort vehicle was just a few metres ahead of them.

The attack occured at Barao, 17 km from here after the leaders' convoy of vehicles was returning from Salboni after they attended the foundation-laying ceremony of a steel project here on Sunday.

IGP (Western Range) Kuldeep Singh told PTI that the blast from a directional mine occurred minutes after the chief minister's convoy had passed.

"It was a powerful blast and under its impact, the overhead high tension line snapped and fell on one of the spare pilot cars, partially burning it," he said.

Former chief of Lok Janshakti Party's West Bengal unit, Valmiki Paswan, who was travelling in Paswan's convoy, said the blast occurred in front of the convoy's pilot vehicle, just after the chief minister's convoy had crossed the spot.

"While travelling, I suddenly heard a loud blast and saw thick smoke billowing. A high tension wire fell on the pilot car which overturned. When our car came near the pilot car, we saw the driver lying limp in a pool of blood and a couple of policemen bleeding profusely. Even as they were groaning in pain, they asked us to hurry on," Valmiki Paswan said.

US Navy intercepts missile shot from Hawaii base

U.S. Navy officials say one of two short-range ballistic missiles shot from a military facility in Hawaii in a defense system test was hit by an interceptor missile fired from a Navy ship.

Vice Adm. Samuel J. Locklear says Saturday's trial marked the first time that the Navy _ rather than the Pentagon's Missile Defense Agency _ oversaw the firing of a so-called Standard Missile-3 interceptor against a ballistic missile target.

The San Diego-based U.S. Third Fleet had command and control of the mission, in which two target missiles were fired from the Pacific Missile Range Facility on Kauai island.

An SM-3 fired from the USS Paul Hamilton directly hit the first target missile. Another ship, the USS Hopper, failed to intercept the second target missile that was fired.

Tamils issue:'DMK should have exerted more pressure on Centre'

Accusing the Tamil Nadu Government of not exerting "much" pressure on the Centre over the Sri Lankan Tamils issue, the CPI on Sunday said it will reach out to like-minded parties to press the state administration to convene another all-party meeting on the matter.

Party TN unit chief D Pandian said the DMK-led Government should have "exerted more pressure on the Centre" on the Sri Lanka Tamils issue as it was one of the resolutions passed by the all-party meeting on October 14.

"The Centre has not assured the DMK that it will try to bring an end to the war. None of the resolutions passed in the meeting has been taken seriously by the Government. But the Chief Minister now says he is satisfied with the decisions taken by the Centre," he said here.

"Even (External Affairs Minister) Pranab Mukherjee when he came to Chennai did not give any assurance that the war will be stopped in Sri Lanka," Pandian said.

The CPI will write to all the like-minded parties and pressurise the Government to convene another all-party meeting on the Tamils issue to demand the Centre to "immediatly stop military assistance" to the island nation.

"The military assistance being provided to Sri Lanka should be stopped. The Centre should do it immediatly because it is fully in its hands," Pandian said.

The CPI leader also said the Centre and the State Governments should take steps to distribute the relief items and money collected for the affected civilians through religious organisations.

"The Government should make sure that only the affected get relief. So, it should be distributed through religious organisations in Lanka," Pandian said.







PARADISE lost!

Statn is the combined Indigenous Aboriginal Mainstrem stripped of Human and civil rights , straving and dying! If we survive in calamities, we are predestined to be killed or tortured! United Nation charter may not protect us!

Paradise Lost is an epic poem in blank verse by the 17th-century English poet John Milton. It was originally published in 1667 in ten books; a second edition followed in 1674, redivided into twelve books (in the manner of the division of Virgil's Aeneid) with minor revisions throughout and a note on the versification. The poem concerns the Judeo-Christian story of the Fall of Man; the temptation of Adam and Eve by the fallen angel Satan and their expulsion from the Garden of Eden. Milton's purpose, stated in Book I, is to "justify the ways of God to men"[1] and elucidate the conflict between God's eternal foresight and free will.

In the early nineteenth century, the Romantics began to regard Satan as the protagonist of the epic. Milton presents Satan as an ambitious and proud being who defies his creator, omnipotent God, and who wages war on Heaven, only to be defeated and cast down. Indeed, William Blake, a great admirer of Milton and illustrator of the epic poem, said of Milton that "he was a true Poet, and of the Devil's party without knowing it." [2] Some commentators regard the character of Satan as a precursor of the Byronic hero.[3]

Milton worked for Oliver Cromwell and the Parliament of England and thus wrote first-hand for the Commonwealth of England. Arguably, the failed rebellion and reinstallation of the monarchy left him to explore his losses within Paradise Lost. Some commentators such as the artist and poet William Blake say that he sympathized with Satan in this work, in that both he and Satan had experienced a failed cause.[citation needed]

Milton incorporates Paganism, classical Greek references and Christianity within the story. The poem grapples with many difficult theological issues, including fate, predestination, and the Trinity.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Paradise_Lost

Paradise Lost
BOOK 1
THE ARGUMENT

OF Mans First Disobedience, and the Fruit
Of that Forbidden Tree, whose mortal tast
Brought Death into the World, and all our woe,
With loss of Eden, till one greater Man
Restore us, and regain the blissful Seat, [ 5 ]
Sing Heav'nly Muse,that on the secret top
Of Oreb, or of Sinai, didst inspire
That Shepherd, who first taught the chosen Seed,
In the Beginning how the Heav'ns and Earth
Rose out of Chaos: Or if Sion Hill [ 10 ]
Delight thee more, and Siloa's Brook that flow'd
Fast by the Oracle of God; I thence
Invoke thy aid to my adventrous Song,
That with no middle flight intends to soar
Above th' Aonian Mount, while it pursues [ 15 ]
Things unattempted yet in Prose or Rhime.
And chiefly Thou O Spirit, that dost prefer
Before all Temples th' upright heart and pure,
Instruct me, for Thou know'st; Thou from the first
Wast present, and with mighty wings outspread [ 20 ]
Dove-like satst brooding on the vast Abyss
And mad'st it pregnant: What in me is dark
Illumin, what is low raise and support;
That to the highth of this great Argument
I may assert Eternal Providence, [ 25 ]
And justifie the wayes of God to men.

Say first, for Heav'n hides nothing from thy view
Nor the deep Tract of Hell, say first what cause
Mov'd our Grand Parents in that happy State,
Favour'd of Heav'n so highly, to fall off [ 30 ]
From thir Creator, and transgress his Will
For one restraint, Lords of the World besides?
Who first seduc'd them to that foul revolt?
Th' infernal Serpent; he it was, whose guile
Stird up with Envy and Revenge, deceiv'd [ 35 ]
The Mother of Mankind, what time his Pride
Had cast him out from Heav'n, with all his Host
Of Rebel Angels, by whose aid aspiring
To set himself in Glory above his Peers,
He trusted to have equal'd the most High, [ 40 ]
If he oppos'd; and with ambitious aim
Against the Throne and Monarchy of God
Rais'd impious War in Heav'n and Battel proud
With vain attempt. Him the Almighty Power
Hurld headlong flaming from th' Ethereal Skie [ 45 ]
With hideous ruine and combustion down
To bottomless perdition, there to dwell
In Adamantine Chains and penal Fire,
Who durst defie th' Omnipotent to Arms.
Nine times the Space that measures Day and Night [ 50 ]
To mortal men, he with his horrid crew
Lay vanquisht, rowling in the fiery Gulfe
Confounded though immortal: But his doom
Reserv'd him to more wrath; for now the thought
Both of lost happiness and lasting pain [ 55 ]
Torments him; round he throws his baleful eyes
That witness'd huge affliction and dismay
Mixt with obdurate pride and stedfast hate:
At once as far as Angels kenn he views
The dismal Situation waste and wilde, [ 60 ]
A Dungeon horrible, on all sides round
As one great Furnace flam'd, yet from those flames
No light, but rather darkness visible
Serv'd onely to discover sights of woe,
Regions of sorrow, doleful shades, where peace [ 65 ]
And rest can never dwell, hope never comes
That comes to all; but torture without end
Still urges, and a fiery Deluge, fed
With ever-burning Sulphur unconsum'd:
Such place Eternal Justice had prepar'd [ 70 ]
For those rebellious, here thir Prison ordain'd
In utter darkness, and thir portion set
As far remov'd from God and light of Heav'n
As from the Center thrice to th' utmost Pole.
O how unlike the place from whence they fell! [ 75 ]
There the companions of his fall, o'rewhelm'd
With Floods and Whirlwinds of tempestuous fire,
He soon discerns, and weltring by his side
One next himself in power, and next in crime,
Long after known in Palestine, and nam'd [ 80 ]
Beelzebub. To whom th' Arch-Enemy,
And thence in Heav'n call'd Satan, with bold words
Breaking the horrid silence thus began.

If thou beest he; But O how fall'n! how chang'd
From him, who in the happy Realms of Light [ 85 ]
Cloth'd with transcendent brightness didst out-shine
Myriads though bright: If he Whom mutual league,



United thoughts and counsels, equal hope
And hazard in the Glorious Enterprize,
Joynd with me once, now misery hath joynd [ 90 ]
In equal ruin: into what Pit thou seest
From what highth fall'n, so much the stronger prov'd
He with his Thunder: and till then who knew
The force of those dire Arms? yet not for those,
Nor what the Potent Victor in his rage [ 95 ]
Can else inflict, do I repent or change,
Though chang'd in outward lustre; that fixt mind
And high disdain, from sence of injur'd merit,
That with the mightiest rais'd me to contend,
And to the fierce contention brought along [ 100 ]
Innumerable force of Spirits arm'd
That durst dislike his reign, and me preferring,
His utmost power with adverse power oppos'd
In dubious Battel on the Plains of Heav'n,
And shook his throne. What though the field be lost? [ 105 ]
All is not lost; the unconquerable Will,
And study of revenge, immortal hate,
And courage never to submit or yield:
And what is else not to be overcome?
That Glory never shall his wrath or might [ 110 ]
Extort from me. To bow and sue for grace
With suppliant knee, and deifie his power,
Who from the terrour of this Arm so late
Doubted his Empire, that were low indeed,
That were an ignominy and shame beneath [ 115 ]
This downfall; since by Fate the strength of Gods
And this Empyreal substance cannot fail,
Since through experience of this great event
In Arms not worse, in foresight much advanc't,
We may with more successful hope resolve [ 120 ]
To wage by force or guile eternal Warr
Irreconcileable, to our grand Foe,
Who now triumphs, and in th' excess of joy
Sole reigning holds the Tyranny of Heav'n.

So spake th' Apostate Angel, though in pain, [ 125 ]
Vaunting aloud, but rackt with deep despare:
And him thus answer'd soon his bold Compeer.

O Prince, O Chief of many Throned Powers,
That led th' imbattelld Seraphim to Warr
Under thy conduct, and in dreadful deeds [ 130 ]
Fearless, endanger'd Heav'ns perpetual King;
And put to proof his high Supremacy,
Whether upheld by strength, or Chance, or Fate,
Too well I see and rue the dire event,
That with sad overthrow and foul defeat [ 135 ]
Hath lost us Heav'n, and all this mighty Host
In horrible destruction laid thus low,
As far as Gods and Heav'nly Essences
Can perish: for the mind and spirit remains
Invincible, and vigour soon returns, [ 140 ]
Though all our Glory extinct, and happy state
Here swallow'd up in endless misery.
But what if he our Conquerour, (whom I now
Of force believe Almighty, since no less
Then such could hav orepow'rd such force as ours) [ 145 ]
Have left us this our spirit and strength intire
Strongly to suffer and support our pains,
That we may so suffice his vengeful ire,
Or do him mightier service as his thralls
By right of Warr, what e're his business be [ 150 ]
Here in the heart of Hell to work in Fire,
Or do his Errands in the gloomy Deep;
What can it then avail though yet we feel
Strength undiminisht, or eternal being
To undergo eternal punishment? [ 155 ]
Whereto with speedy words th' Arch-fiend reply'd.

Fall'n Cherube, to be weak is miserable
Doing or Suffering: but of this be sure,
To do ought good never will be our task,
But ever to do ill our sole delight, [ 160 ]
As being the contrary to his high will
Whom we resist. If then his Providence
Out of our evil seek to bring forth good,
Our labour must be to pervert that end,
And out of good still to find means of evil; [ 165 ]
Which oft times may succeed, so as perhaps
Shall grieve him, if I fail not, and disturb
His inmost counsels from thir destind aim.
But see the angry Victor hath recall'd
His Ministers of vengeance and pursuit [ 170 ]
Back to the Gates of Heav'n: The Sulphurous Hail
Shot after us in storm, oreblown hath laid
The fiery Surge, that from the Precipice
Of Heav'n receiv'd us falling, and the Thunder,
Wing'd with red Lightning and impetuous rage, [ 175 ]
Perhaps hath spent his shafts, and ceases now
To bellow through the vast and boundless Deep.
Let us not slip th' occasion, whether scorn,
Or satiate fury yield it from our Foe.
Seest thou yon dreary Plain, forlorn and wilde, [ 180 ]
The seat of desolation, voyd of light,
Save what the glimmering of these livid flames
Casts pale and dreadful? Thither let us tend
From off the tossing of these fiery waves,
There rest, if any rest can harbour there, [ 185 ]
And reassembling our afflicted Powers,
Consult how we may henceforth most offend
Our Enemy, our own loss how repair,
How overcome this dire Calamity,
What reinforcement we may gain from Hope, [ 190 ]
If not what resolution from despare.

Thus Satan talking to his neerest Mate
With Head up-lift above the wave, and Eyes
That sparkling blaz'd, his other Parts besides
Prone on the Flood, extended long and large [ 195 ]
Lay floating many a rood, in bulk as huge
As whom the Fables name of monstrous size,
Titanian, or Earth-born, that warr'd on Jove,
Briareos or Typhon, whom the Den
By ancient Tarsus held, or that Sea-beast [ 200 ]
Leviathan, which God of all his works
Created hugest that swim th' Ocean stream:
Him haply slumbring on the Norway foam
The Pilot of some small night-founder'd Skiff,
Deeming some Island, oft, as Sea-men tell, [ 205 ]
With fixed Anchor in his skaly rind
Moors by his side under the Lee, while Night
Invests the Sea, and wished Morn delayes:
So stretcht out huge in length the Arch-fiend lay
Chain'd on the burning Lake, nor ever thence [ 210 ]
Had ris'n or heav'd his head, but that the will
And high permission of all-ruling Heaven
Left him at large to his own dark designs,
That with reiterated crimes he might
Heap on himself damnation, while he sought [ 215 ]
Evil to others, and enrag'd might see
How all his malice serv'd but to bring forth
Infinite goodness, grace and mercy shewn
On Man by him seduc't, but on himself
Treble confusion, wrath and vengeance pour'd. [ 220 ]
Forthwith upright he rears from off the Pool
His mighty Stature; on each hand the flames
Drivn backward slope thir pointing spires, and rowld
In billows, leave i'th' midst a horrid Vale.
Then with expanded wings he stears his flight [ 225 ]
Aloft, incumbent on the dusky Air
That felt unusual weight, till on dry Land
He lights, if it were Land that ever burn'd
With solid, as the Lake with liquid fire;
And such appear'd in hue, as when the force [ 230 ]
Of subterranean wind transports a Hill
Torn from Pelorus, or the shatter'd side
Of thundring Ætna, whose combustible
And fewel'd entrals thence conceiving Fire,
Sublim'd with Mineral fury, aid the Winds, [ 235 ]
And leave a singed bottom all involv'd
With stench and smoak: Such resting found the sole
Of unblest feet. Him followed his next Mate,
Both glorying to have scap't the Stygian flood
As Gods, and by thir own recover'd strength, [ 240 ]
Not by the sufferance of supernal Power.

Is this the Region, this the Soil, the Clime,
Said then the lost Arch-Angel, this the seat
That we must change for Heav'n, this mournful gloom
For that celestial light? Be it so, since he [ 245 ]
Who now is Sovran can dispose and bid
What shall be right: fardest from him is best
Whom reason hath equald, force hath made supream
Above his equals. Farewel happy Fields
Where Joy for ever dwells: Hail horrours, hail [ 250 ]
Infernal world, and thou profoundest Hell
Receive thy new Possessor: One who brings
A mind not to be chang'd by Place or Time.
The mind is its own place, and in it self
Can make a Heav'n of Hell, a Hell of Heav'n. [ 255 ]
What matter where, if I be still the same,
And what I should be, all but less then he
Whom Thunder hath made greater? Here at least
We shall be free; th' Almighty hath not built
Here for his envy, will not drive us hence: [ 260 ]
Here we may reign secure, and in my choyce
To reign is worth ambition though in Hell:
Better to reign in Hell, then serve in Heav'n.
But wherefore let we then our faithful friends,
Th' associates and copartners of our loss [ 265 ]
Lye thus astonisht on th' oblivious Pool,
And call them not to share with us their part
In this unhappy Mansion, or once more
With rallied Arms to try what may be yet
Regaind in Heav'n, or what more lost in Hell? [ 270 ]

So Satan spake, and him Beelzebub
Thus answer'd. Leader of those Armies bright,
Which but th' Onmipotent none could have foyld,
If once they hear that voyce, thir liveliest pledge
Of hope in fears and dangers, heard so oft [ 275 ]
In worst extreams, and on the perilous edge
Of battel when it rag'd, in all assaults
Thir surest signal, they will soon resume
New courage and revive, though now they lye
Groveling and prostrate on yon Lake of Fire, [ 280 ]
As we erewhile, astounded and amaz'd,
No wonder, fall'n such a pernicious highth.

He scarce had ceas't when the superiour Fiend
Was moving toward the shoar; his ponderous shield
Ethereal temper, massy, large and round, [ 285 ]
Behind him cast; the broad circumference
Hung on his shoulders like the Moon, whose Orb
Through Optic Glass the Tuscan Artist views
At Ev'ning from the top of Fesole,
Or in Valdarno, to descry new Lands, [ 290 ]
Rivers or Mountains in her spotty Globe.
His Spear, to equal which the tallest Pine
Hewn on Norwegian hills, to be the Mast
Of some great Ammiral, were but a wand,
He walkt with to support uneasie steps [ 295 ]
Over the burning Marle, not like those steps
On Heavens Azure, and the torrid Clime
Smote on him sore besides, vaulted with Fire;
Nathless he so endur'd, till on the Beach
Of that inflamed Sea, he stood and call'd [ 300 ]
His Legions, Angel Forms, who lay intrans't
Thick as Autumnal Leaves that strow the Brooks
In Vallombrosa, where th' Etrurian shades
High overarch't imbowr; or scatterd sedge
Afloat, when with fierce Winds Orion arm'd [ 305 ]
Hath vext the Red-Sea Coast, whose waves orethrew
Busiris and his Memphian Chivalry,
While with perfidious hatred they pursu'd
The Sojourners of Goshen, who beheld
From the safe shore thir floating Carkases [ 310 ]
And broken Chariot Wheels, so thick bestrown
Abject and lost lay these, covering the Flood,
Under amazement of thir hideous change.
He call'd so loud, that all the hollow Deep
Of Hell resounded. Princes, Potentates, [ 315 ]
Warriers, the Flowr of Heav'n, once yours, now lost,
If such astonishment as this can sieze
Eternal spirits; or have ye chos'n this place
After the toyl of Battel to repose
Your wearied vertue, for the ease you find [ 320 ]
To slumber here, as in the Vales of Heav'n?
Or in this abject posture have ye sworn
To adore the Conquerour? who now beholds
Cherube and Seraph rowling in the Flood
With scatter'd Arms and Ensigns, till anon [ 325 ]
His swift pursuers from Heav'n Gates discern
Th' advantage, and descending tread us down
Thus drooping, or with linked Thunderbolts
Transfix us to the bottom of this Gulfe.
Awake, arise, or be for ever fall'n. [ 330 ]

They heard, and were abasht, and up they sprung
Upon the wing, as when men wont to watch
On duty, sleeping found by whom they dread,
Rouse and bestir themselves ere well awake.
Nor did they not perceave the evil plight [ 335 ]
In which they were, or the fierce pains not feel;
Yet to thir Generals Voyce they soon obeyd
Innumerable. As when the potent Rod
Of Amrams Son in Egypts evill day
Wav'd round the Coast, up call'd a pitchy cloud [ 340 ]
Of Locusts, warping on the Eastern Wind,
That ore the Realm of impious Pharaoh hung
Like Night, and darken'd all the Land of Nile:
So numberless were those bad Angels seen
Hovering on wing under the Cope of Hell [ 345 ]
'Twixt upper, nether, and surrounding Fires;
Till, as a signal giv'n, th' uplifted Spear
Of thir great Sultan waving to direct
Thir course, in even ballance down they light
On the firm brimstone, and fill all the Plain; [ 350 ]
A multitude, like which the populous North
Pour'd never from her frozen loyns, to pass
Rhene or the Danaw, when her barbarous Sons
Came like a Deluge on the South, and spread
Beneath Gibralter to the Lybian sands. [ 355 ]
Forthwith from every Squadron and each Band
The Heads and Leaders thither hast where stood
Thir great Commander; Godlike shapes and forms
Excelling human, Princely Dignities,
And Powers that earst in Heaven sat on Thrones; [ 360 ]
Though of thir Names in heav'nly Records now
Be no memorial blotted out and ras'd
By thir Rebellion, from the Books of Life.
Nor had they yet among the Sons of Eve
Got them new Names, till wandring ore the Earth, [ 365 ]
Through Gods high sufferance for the tryal of man,
By falsities and lyes the greatest part
Of Mankind they corrupted to forsake
God thir Creator, and th' invisible
Glory of him that made them, to transform [ 370 ]
Oft to the Image of a Brute, adorn'd
With gay Religions full of Pomp and Gold,
And Devils to adore for Deities:
Then were they known to men by various Names,
And various Idols through the Heathen World. [ 375 ]
Say, Muse, thir Names then known, who first, who last,
Rous'd from the slumber, on that fiery Couch,
At thir great Emperors call, as next in worth
Came singly where he stood on the bare strand,
While the promiscuous croud stood yet aloof? [ 380 ]
The chief were those who from the Pit of Hell
Roaming to seek thir prey on earth, durst fix
Thir Seats long after next the Seat of God,
Thir Altars by his Altar, Gods ador'd
Among the Nations round, and durst abide [ 385 ]
Jehovah thundring out of Sion, thron'd
Between the Cherubim; yea, often plac'd
Within his Sanctuary it self thir Shrines,
Abominations; and with cursed things
His holy Rites, and solemn Feasts profan'd, [ 390 ]
And with thir darkness durst affront his light.
First Moloch, horrid King besmear'd with blood
Of human sacrifice, and parents tears,
Though for the noyse of Drums and Timbrels loud
Thir childrens cries unheard, that past through fire [ 395 ]
To his grim Idol. Him the Ammonite
Worshipt in Rabba and her watry Plain,
In Argob and in Basan, to the stream
Of utmost Arnon. Nor content with such
Audacious neighbourhood, the wisest heart [ 400 ]
Of Solomon he led by fraud to build
His Temple right against the Temple of God
On that opprobrious Hill, and made his Grove
The pleasant Vally of Hinnom, Tophet thence
And black Gehenna call'd, the Type of Hell. [ 405 ]
Next Chemos, th' obscene dread of Moabs Sons,
From Aroar to Nebo, and the wild
Of Southmost Abarim; in Hesebon
And Horonaim, Seons Realm, beyond
The flowry Dale of Sibma clad with Vines, [ 410 ]
And Eleale to th' Asphaltick Pool.
Peor his other Name, when he entic'd
Israel in Sittim on thir march from Nile
To do him wanton rites, which cost them woe.
Yet thence his lustful Orgies he enlarg'd [ 415 ]
Even to that Hill of scandal, by the Grove
Of Moloch homicide, lust hard by hate;
Till good Josiah drove them thence to Hell.
With these came they, who from the bordring flood
Of old Euphrates to the Brook that parts [ 420 ]
Egypt from Syrian ground, had general Names
Of Baalim and Ashtaroth, those male,
These Feminine. For Spirits when they please
Can either Sex assume, or both; so soft
And uncompounded is thir Essence pure, [ 425 ]
Not ti'd or manacl'd with joynt or limb,
Nor founded on the brittle strength of bones,
Like cumbrous flesh; but in what shape they choose
Dilated or condens't, bright or obscure,
Can execute thir aerie purposes, [ 430 ]
And works of love or enmity fulfill.
For those the Race of Israel oft forsook
Thir living strength, and unfrequented left
His righteous Altar, bowing lowly down
To bestial Gods; for which thir heads as low [ 435 ]
Bow'd down in Battel, sunk before the Spear
Of despicable foes. With these in troop
Came Astoreth, whom the Phoenicians call'd
Astarte, Queen of Heav'n, with crescent Horns;
To whose bright Image nightly by the Moon [ 440 ]
Sidonian Virgins paid thir Vows and Songs,
In Sion also not unsung, where stood
Her Temple on th' offensive Mountain, built
By that uxorious King, whose heart though large,
Beguil'd by fair Idolatresses, fell [ 445 ]
To Idols foul. Thammuz came next behind,
Whose annual wound in Lebanon allur'd
The Syrian Damsels to lament his fate
In amorous dittyes all a Summers day,
While smooth Adonis from his native Rock [ 450 ]
Ran purple to the Sea, suppos'd with blood
Of Thammuz yearly wounded: the Love-tale
Infected Sions daughters with like heat,
Whose wanton passions in the sacred Porch
Ezekiel saw, when by the Vision led [ 455 ]
His eye survay'd the dark Idolatries
Of alienated Judah. Next came one
Who mourn'd in earnest, when the Captive Ark
Maim'd his brute Image, head and hands lopt off
In his own Temple, on the grunsel edge, [ 460 ]
Where he fell flat, and sham'd his Worshipers:
Dagon his Name, Sea Monster, upward Man
And downward Fish: yet had his Temple high
Rear'd in Azotus, dreaded through the Coast
Of Palestine, in Gath and Ascalon [ 465 ]
And Accaron and Gaza's frontier bounds.
Him follow'd Rimmon, whose delightful Seat
Was fair Damascus, on the fertil Banks
Of Abbana and Pharphar, lucid streams.
He also against the house of God was bold: [ 470 ]
A Leper once he lost and gain'd a King,
Ahaz his sottish Conquerour, whom he drew
Gods Altar to disparage and displace
For one of Syrian mode, whereon to burn
His odious off'rings, and adore the Gods [ 475 ]
Whom he had vanquisht. After these appear'd
A crew who under Names of old Renown,
Osiris, Isis, Orus and their Train
With monstrous shapes and sorceries abus'd
Fanatic Egypt and her Priests, to seek [ 480 ]
Thir wandring Gods disguis'd in brutish forms
Rather then human. Nor did Israel scape
Th' infection when thir borrow'd Gold compos'd
The Calf in Oreb: and the Rebel King
Doubl'd that sin in Bethel and in Dan, [ 485 ]
Lik'ning his Maker to the Grazed Ox,
Jehovah, who in one Night when he pass'd
From Egypt marching, equal'd with one stroke
Both her first born and all her bleating Gods.
Belial came last, then whom a Spirit more lewd [ 490 ]
Fell not from Heaven, or more gross to love
Vice for it self: To him no Temple stood
Or Altar smoak'd; yet who more oft then hee
In Temples and at Altars, when the Priest
Turns Atheist, as did Ely's Sons, who fill'd [ 495 ]
With lust and violence the house of God.
In Courts and Palaces he also Reigns
And in luxurious Cities, where the noyse
Of riot ascends above thir loftiest Towrs,
And injury and outrage: And when Night [ 500 ]
Darkens the Streets, then wander forth the Sons
Of Belial, flown with insolence and wine.
Witness the Streets of Sodom, and that night
In Gibeah, when the hospitable door
Expos'd a Matron to avoid worse rape. [ 505 ]
These were the prime in order and in might;
The rest were long to tell, though far renown'd,
Th' Ionian Gods, of Javans Issue held
Gods, yet confest later then Heav'n and Earth
Thir boasted Parents; Titan Heav'ns first born [ 510 ]
With his enormous brood, and birthright seis'd
By younger Saturn, he from mightier Jove
His own and Rhea's Son like measure found;
So Jove usurping reign'd: these first in Creet
And Ida known, thence on the Snowy top [ 515 ]
Of cold Olympus rul'd the middle Air
Thir highest Heav'n; or on the Delphian Cliff,
Or in Dodona, and through all the bounds
Of Doric Land; or who with Saturn old
Fled over Adria to th' Hesperian Fields, [ 520 ]
And ore the Celtic roam'd the utmost Isles.
All these and more came flocking; but with looks
Down cast and damp, yet such wherein appear'd
Obscure some glimps of joy, to have found thir chief
Not in despair, to have found themselves not lost [ 525 ]
In loss it self; which on his count'nance cast
Like doubtful hue: but he his wonted pride
Soon recollecting, with high words, that bore
Semblance of worth, not substance, gently rais'd
Thir fainting courage, and dispel'd thir fears. [ 530 ]
Then strait commands that at the warlike sound
Of Trumpets loud and Clarions be upreard
His mighty Standard; that proud honour claim'd
Azazel as his right, a Cherube tall:
Who forthwith from the glittering Staff unfurld [ 535 ]
Th' Imperial Ensign, which full high advanc't
Shon like a Meteor streaming to the Wind
With Gemms and Golden lustre rich imblaz'd,
Seraphic arms and Trophies: all the while
Sonorous mettal blowing Martial sounds: [ 540 ]
At which the universal Host upsent
A shout that tore Hells Concave, and beyond
Frighted the Reign of Chaos and old Night.
All in a moment through the gloom were seen
Ten thousand Banners rise into the Air [ 545 ]
With Orient Colours waving: with them rose
A Forest huge of Spears: and thronging Helms
Appear'd, and serried shields in thick array
Of depth immeasurable: Anon they move
In perfect Phalanx to the Dorian mood [ 550 ]
Of Flutes and soft Recorders; such as rais'd
To hight of noblest temper Hero's old
Arming to Battel, and in stead of rage
Deliberate valour breath'd, firm and unmov'd
With dread of death to flight or foul retreat, [ 555 ]
Nor wanting power to mitigate and swage
With solemn touches, troubl'd thoughts, and chase
Anguish and doubt and fear and sorrow and pain
From mortal or immortal minds. Thus they
Breathing united force with fixed thought [ 560 ]
Mov'd on in silence to soft Pipes that charm'd
Thir painful steps o're the burnt soyle; and now
Advanc't in view, they stand, a horrid Front
Of dreadful length and dazling Arms, in guise
Of Warriers old with order'd Spear and Shield, [ 565 ]
Awaiting what command thir mighty Chief
Had to impose: He through the armed Files
Darts his experienc't eye, and soon traverse
The whole Battalion views, thir order due,
Thir visages and stature as of Gods, [ 570 ]
Thir number last he summs. And now his heart
Distends with pride, and hardning in his strength
Glories: For never since created man,
Met such imbodied force, as nam'd with these
Could merit more then that small infantry [ 575 ]
Warr'd on by Cranes: though all the Giant brood
Of Phlegra with th' Heroic Race were joyn'd
That fought at Theb's and Ilium, on each side
Mixt with auxiliar Gods; and what resounds
In Fable or Romance of Uthers Son [ 580 ]
Begirt with British and Armoric Knights;
And all who since, Baptiz'd or Infidel
Jousted in Aspramont or Montalban,
Damasco, or Marocco, or Trebisond,
Or whom Biserta sent from Afric shore [ 585 ]
When Charlemain with all his Peerage fell
By Fontarabbia. Thus far these beyond
Compare of mortal prowess, yet observ'd
Thir dread commander: he above the rest
In shape and gesture proudly eminent [ 590 ]
Stood like a Towr; his form had yet not lost
All her Original brightness, nor appear'd
Less then Arch Angel ruind, and th' excess
Of Glory obscur'd: As when the Sun new ris'n
Looks through the Horizontal misty Air [ 595 ]
Shorn of his Beams, or from behind the Moon
In dim Eclips disastrous twilight sheds
On half the Nations, and with fear of change
Perplexes Monarchs. Dark'n'd so, yet shon
Above them all th' Arch Angel: but his face [ 600 ]
Deep scars of Thunder had intrencht, and care
Sat on his faded cheek, but under Browes
Of dauntless courage, and considerate Pride
Waiting revenge: cruel his eye, but cast
Signs of remorse and passion to behold [ 605 ]
The fellows of his crime, the followers rather
(Far other once beheld in bliss) condemn'd
For ever now to have thir lot in pain,
Millions of Spirits for his fault amerc't
Of Heav'n, and from Eternal Splendors flung [ 610 ]
For his revolt, yet faithfull how they stood,
Thir Glory witherd. As when Heavens Fire
Hath scath'd the Forrest Oaks, or Mountain Pines,
With singed top thir stately growth though bare
Stands on the blasted Heath. He now prepar'd [ 615 ]
To speak; whereat thir doubl'd Ranks they bend
From wing to wing, and half enclose him round
With all his Peers: attention held them mute.
Thrice he assayd, and thrice in spight of scorn,
Tears such as Angels weep, burst forth: at last [ 620 ]
Words interwove with sighs found out thir way.

O Myriads of immortal Spirits, O Powers
Matchless, but with th' Almighty, and that strife
Was not inglorious, though th' event was dire,
As this place testifies, and this dire change [ 625 ]
Hateful to utter: but what power of mind
Foreseeing or presaging, from the Depth
Of knowledge past or present, could have fear'd,
How such united force of Gods, how such
As stood like these, could ever know repulse? [ 630 ]
For who can yet beleeve, though after loss,
That all these puissant Legions, whose exile
Hath emptied Heav'n, shall fail to re-ascend
Self-rais'd, and repossess thir native seat?
For mee be witness all the Host of Heav'n, [ 635 ]
If counsels different, or danger shun'd
By me, have lost our hopes. But he who reigns
Monarch in Heav'n, till then as one secure
Sat on his Throne, upheld by old repute,
Consent or custome, and his Regal State [ 640 ]
Put forth at full, but still his strength conceal'd,
Which tempted our attempt, and wrought our fall.
Henceforth his might we know, and know our own
So as not either to provoke, or dread
New warr, provok't; our better part remains [ 645 ]
To work in close design, by fraud or guile
What force effected not: that he no less
At length from us may find, who overcomes
By force, hath overcome but half his foe.
Space may produce new Worlds; whereof so rife [ 650 ]
There went a fame in Heav'n that he ere long
Intended to create, and therein plant
A generation, whom his choice regard
Should favour equal to the Sons of Heaven:
Thither, if but to pry, shall be perhaps
Our first eruption, thither or elsewhere: [ 655 ]
For this Infernal Pit shall never hold
Cælestial Spirits in Bondage, nor th' Abyss
Long under darkness cover. But these thoughts
Full Counsel must mature: Peace is despaird, [ 660 ]
For who can think Submission? Warr then, Warr
Open or understood must be resolv'd.

He spake: and to confirm his words, out-flew
Millions of flaming swords, drawn from the thighs
Of mighty Cherubim; the sudden blaze [ 665 ]
Far round illumin'd hell: highly they rag'd
Against the Highest, and fierce with grasped arms
Clash'd on thir sounding Shields the din of war,
Hurling defiance toward the vault of Heav'n.

There stood a Hill not far whose griesly top [ 670 ]
Belch'd fire and rowling smoak; the rest entire
Shon with a glossie scurff, undoubted sign
That in his womb was hid metallic Ore,
The work of Sulphur. Thither wing'd with speed
A numerous Brigad hasten'd. As when Bands [ 675 ]
Of Pioners with Spade and Pickax arm'd
Forerun the Royal Camp, to trench a Field,
Or cast a Rampart. Mammon led them on,
Mammon, the least erected Spirit that fell
From heav'n, for ev'n in heav'n his looks and thoughts [ 680 ]
Were always downward bent, admiring more
The riches of Heav'ns pavement, trod'n Gold,
Then aught divine or holy else enjoy'd
In vision beatific: by him first
Men also, and by his suggestion taught, [ 685 ]
Ransack'd the Center, and with impious hands
Rifl'd the bowels of thir mother Earth
For Treasures better hid. Soon had his crew
Op'nd into the Hill a spacious wound
And dig'd out ribs of Gold. Let none admire [ 690 ]
That riches grow in Hell; that soyle may best
Deserve the precious bane. And here let those
Who boast in mortal things, and wond'ring tell
Of Babel, and the works of Memphian Kings
Learn how thir greatest Monuments of Fame, [ 695 ]
And Strength and Art are easily out-done
By Spirits reprobate, and in an hour
What in an age they with incessant toyle
And hands innumerable scarce perform.
Nigh on the Plain in many cells prepar'd, [ 700 ]
That underneath had veins of liquid fire
Sluc'd from the Lake, a second multitude
With wondrous Art found out the massie Ore,
Severing each kind, and scum'd the Bullion dross:
A third as soon had form'd within the ground [ 705 ]
A various mould, and from the boyling cells
By strange conveyance fill'd each hollow nook,
As in an Organ from one blast of wind
To many a row of Pipes the sound-board breaths.
Anon out of the earth a Fabrick huge [ 710 ]
Rose like an Exhalation, with the sound
Of Dulcet Symphonies and voices sweet,
Built like a Temple, where Pilasters round
Were set, and Doric pillars overlaid
With Golden Architrave; nor did there want [ 715 ]
Cornice or Freeze, with bossy Sculptures grav'n,
The Roof was fretted Gold. Not Babilon,
Nor great Alcairo such magnificence
Equal'd in all thir glories, to inshrine
Belus or Serapis thir Gods, or seat [ 720 ]
Thir Kings, when Ægypt with Assyria strove
In wealth and luxurie. Th' ascending pile
Stood fixt her stately highth, and strait the dores
Op'ning thir brazen foulds discover wide
Within, her ample spaces, o're the smooth [ 725 ]
And level pavement: from the arched roof
Pendant by suttle Magic many a row
Of Starry Lamps and blazing Cressets fed
With Naphtha and Asphaltus yeilded light
As from a sky. The hasty multitude [ 730 ]
Admiring enter'd, and the work some praise
And some the Architect: his hand was known
In Heav'n by many a Towred structure high,
Where Scepter'd Angels held thir residence,
And sat as Princes, whom the supreme King [ 735 ]
Exalted to such power, and gave to rule,
Each in his Hierarchie, the Orders bright.
Nor was his name unheard or unador'd
In ancient Greece; and in Ausonian land
Men call'd him Mulciber; and how he fell [ 740 ]
From Heav'n, they fabl'd, thrown by angry Jove
Sheer o're the Chrystal Battlements: from Morn
To Noon he fell, from Noon to dewy Eve,
A Summers day; and with the setting Sun
Dropt from the Zenith like a falling Star, [ 745 ]
On Lemnos th' Ægean Ile: thus they relate,
Erring; for he with this rebellious rout
Fell long before; nor aught avail'd him now
To have built in Heav'n high Towrs; nor did he scape
By all his Engins, but was headlong sent [ 750 ]
With his industrious crew to build in hell.
Mean while the winged Haralds by command
Of Sovran power, with awful Ceremony
And Trumpets sound throughout the Host proclaim
A solemn Councel forthwith to be held [ 755 ]
At Pandæmonium, the high Capital
Of Satan and his Peers: thir summons call'd
From every Band and squared Regiment
By place or choice the worthiest; they anon
With hunderds and with thousands trooping came [ 760 ]
Attended: all access was throng'd, the Gates
And Porches wide, but chief the spacious Hall
(Though like a cover'd field, where Champions bold
Wont ride in arm'd, and at the Soldans chair
Defi'd the best of Paynim chivalry [ 765 ]
To mortal combat or carreer with Lance)
Thick swarm'd, both on the ground and in the air,
Brusht with the hiss of russling wings. As Bees
In spring time, when the Sun with Taurus rides,
Pour forth thir populous youth about the Hive [ 770 ]
In clusters; they among fresh dews and flowers
Flie to and fro, or on the smoothed Plank,
The suburb of thir Straw-built Cittadel,
New rub'd with Baum, expatiate and confer
Thir State affairs. So thick the aerie crowd [ 775 ]
Swarm'd and were straitn'd; till the Signal giv'n.
Behold a wonder! they but now who seemd
In bigness to surpass Earths Giant Sons
Now less then smallest Dwarfs, in narrow room
Throng numberless, like that Pigmean Race [ 780 ]
Beyond the Indian Mount, or Faerie Elves,
Whose midnight Revels, by a Forrest side
Or Fountain some belated Peasant sees,
Or dreams he sees, while over-head the Moon
Sits Arbitress, and neerer to the Earth [ 785 ]
Wheels her pale course, they on thir mirth and dance
Intent, with jocond Music charm his ear;
At once with joy and fear his heart rebounds.
Thus incorporeal Spirits to smallest forms
Reduc'd thir shapes immense, and were at large, [ 790 ]
Though without number still amidst the Hall
Of that infernal Court. But far within
And in thir own dimensions like themselves
The great Seraphic Lords and Cherubim
In close recess and secret conclave sat [ 795 ]
A thousand Demy-Gods on golden seats,
Frequent and full. After short silence then
And summons read, the great consult began.




The End of the First Book.
Terrorism
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Terrorism
Definitions
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v • d • e



--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
The image above is proposed for deletion. See images and media for deletion to help reach a consensus on what to do.Terrorism is the systematic use of terror especially as a means of coercion.[1] There is no internationally agreed definition of terrorism.[2][3] Most common definitions of terrorism include only those acts which are intended to create fear (terror), are perpetrated for an ideological goal (as opposed to a lone attack), and deliberately target or disregard the safety of non-combatants. Some definitions also include acts of unlawful violence and war.

Terrorism can also be a form of unconventional warfare or psychological warfare. The word is politically and emotionally charged,[4] and this greatly compounds the difficulty of providing a precise definition. One 1988 study by the US Army found that over 100 definitions of the word "terrorism" have been used.[5] A person who practices terrorism is a terrorist. The concept of terrorism is itself controversial because it is often used by states to delegitimize political opponents, and thus legitimize the state's own use of terror against those opponents.

Terrorism has been used by a broad array of political organizations in furthering their objectives; both right-wing and left-wing political parties, nationalistic, and religious groups, revolutionaries and ruling governments.[6] The presence of non-state actors in widespread armed conflict has created controversy regarding the application of the laws of war.

While acts of terrorism are criminal acts as per the United Nations Security Council Resolution 1373 and domestic jurisprudence of almost all countries in the world, terrorism refers to a phenomenon including the actual acts, the perpetrators of acts of terrorism themselves and their motives. There is disagreement on definitions of terrorism.

Contents [hide]
1 Origin of term
2 Key criteria
3 Pejorative use
4 Definition in international law
5 Types of terrorism
6 Politics and terrorism
6.1 Democracy and domestic terrorism
7 Perpetrators
7.1 Terrorist groups
7.2 State sponsors
7.3 State terrorism
8 Tactics
9 Responses to terrorism
10 Mass media
11 History
12 See also
13 Further reading
13.1 UN conventions
13.2 News monitoring websites specializing on articles on terrorism
13.3 Papers and articles on global terrorism
13.4 Papers and articles on terrorism and the United States
13.5 Papers and articles on terrorism and Israel
13.6 Global Muslim public opinion on terrorism and political violence from the World Values Survey
13.7 Other
14 Footnotes



[edit] Origin of term
Main article: Definition of terrorism
See also: State terrorism
The word "terrorism" was first used in reference to Austin and Cameron during the Presidential elections. In many countries, acts of terrorism are legally distinguished from criminal acts done for other purposes, and "terrorism" is defined by statute; see definition of terrorism for particular definitions. Common principles among legal definitions of terrorism provide an emerging consensus as to meaning and also foster cooperation between law enforcement personnel in different countries. Among these definitions there are several that do not recognize the possibility of legitimate use of violence by civilians against an invader in an occupied country and would, thus label all resistance movements as terrorist groups. Others make a distinction between lawful and unlawful use of violence. Ultimately, the distinction is a political judgment.[7] In November 2004, a United Nations Security Council report described terrorism as any act "intended to cause death or serious bodily harm to civilians or non-combatants with the purpose of intimidating a population or compelling a government or an international organization to do or abstain from doing any act." (Note that this report does not constitute international law.)[8] U.S. Department of Defense (DoD) defined terrorism as: “The calculated use of unlawful violence or threat of unlawful violence to inculcate fear; intended to coerce or to intimidate governments or societies in the pursuit of goals that are generally political, religious, or ideological.” [9]


[edit] Key criteria
Official definitions determine counter-terrorism policy and are often developed to serve it. Most government definitions outline the following key criteria: target, objective, motive, perpetrator, and legitimacy or legality of the act. Terrorism is also often recognizable by a following statement from the perpetrators.

Violence – According to Walter Laqueur of the Center for Strategic and International Studies, "the only general characteristic of terrorism generally agreed upon is that terrorism involves violence and the threat of violence." However, the criterion of violence alone does not produce a useful definition, as it includes many acts not usually considered terrorism: war, riot, organized crime, or even a simple assault. Property destruction that does not endanger life is not usually considered a violent crime, but some have described property destruction by the Earth Liberation Front and Animal Liberation Front as violence and terrorism; see eco-terrorism.

Psychological impact and fear – The attack was carried out in such a way as to maximize the severity and length of the psychological impact. Each act of terrorism is a “performance,” devised to have an impact on many large audiences. Terrorists also attack national symbols to show their power and to shake the foundation of the country or society they are opposed to. This may negatively affect a government's legitimacy, while increasing the legitimacy of the given terrorist organization and/or ideology behind a terrorist act.[10]

Perpetrated for a political goal – Something all terrorist attacks have in common is their perpetration for a political purpose. Terrorism is a political tactic, not unlike letter writing or protesting, that is used by activists when they believe no other means will effect the kind of change they desire. The change is desired so badly that failure is seen as a worse outcome than the deaths of civilians. This is often where the interrelationship between terrorism and religion occurs. When a political struggle is integrated into the framework of a religious or "cosmic"[11] struggle, such as over the control of an ancestral homeland or holy site such as Israel and Jerusalem, failing in the political goal (nationalism) becomes equated with spiritual failure, which, for the highly committed, is worse than their own death or the deaths of innocent civilians.

Deliberate targeting of non-combatants – It is commonly held that the distinctive nature of terrorism lies in its intentional and specific selection of civilians as direct targets. Specifically, the criminal intent is shown when babies, children, mothers, and the elderly are murdered, or injured, and put in harm's way. Much of the time, the victims of terrorism are targeted not because they are threats, but because they are specific "symbols, tools, animals or corrupt beings" that tie into a specific view of the world that the terrorist possess. Their suffering accomplishes the terrorists' goals of instilling fear, getting a message out to an audience, or otherwise accomplishing their often radical religious and political ends.[12]

Disguise – Terrorists almost invariably pretend to be non-combatants, hide among non-combatants, fight from in the midst of non-combatants, and when they can, strive to mislead and provoke the government soldiers into attacking the wrong people, that the government may be blamed for it. When an enemy is identifiable as a combatant, the word terrorism is rarely used.[citation needed]

Unlawfulness or illegitimacy – Some official (notably government) definitions of terrorism add a criterion of illegitimacy or unlawfulness[13] to distinguish between actions authorized by a government (and thus "lawful") and those of other actors, including individuals and small groups. Using this criterion, actions that would otherwise qualify as terrorism would not be considered terrorism if they were government sanctioned. For example, firebombing a city, which is designed to affect civilian support for a cause, would not be considered terrorism if it were authorized by a government. This criterion is inherently problematic and is not universally accepted, because: it denies the existence of state terrorism; the same act may or may not be classed as terrorism depending on whether its sponsorship is traced to a "legitimate" government; "legitimacy" and "lawfulness" are subjective, depending on the perspective of one government or another; and it diverges from the historically accepted meaning and origin of the term.[14][15][16][17] For these reasons this criterion is not universally accepted. Most dictionary definitions of the term do not include this criterion.


[edit] Pejorative use
The term "terrorism" and "terrorist" (someone who engages in terrorism) carry a strong negative connotation. These terms are often used as political labels to condemn violence or threat of violence by certain actors as immoral, indiscriminate, unjustified or to condemn an entire segment of a population.[18] Those labeled "terrorists" rarely identify themselves as such, and typically use other euphemistic terms or terms specific to their situation, such as: separatist, freedom fighter, liberator, revolutionary, vigilante, militant, paramilitary, guerrilla, rebel, or any similar-meaning word in other languages and cultures. Jihadi, mujaheddin, and fedayeen are similar Arabic words that have entered the English lexicon.

This is further complicated by the moral ambiguity that surrounds terrorism. On the question of whether particular terrorist acts, such as murder, can be justified as the lesser evil in a particular circumstance, philosophers have expressed different views: While, according to David Rodin, utilitarian philosophers can in theory conceive of cases in which evil of terrorism is outweighed by important goods that can be achieved in no morally less costly way, in practice utilitarians often universally reject terrorism because it is very dubious that acts of terrorism achieve important goods in a utility efficient manner, or that the "harmful effects of undermining the convention of non-combatant immunity is thought to outweigh the goods that may be achieved by particular acts of terrorism." [19] Among the non-utilitarian philosophers, Michael Walzer argued that terrorism is always morally wrong but at the same time those who engaged in terrorism can be morally justified in one specific case: when "a nation or community faces the extreme threat of complete destruction and the only way it can preserve itself is by intentionally targeting non-combatants, then it is morally entitled to do so." [19]

In his book "Inside Terrorism" Bruce Hoffman wrote in Chapter One: Defining Terrorism that

"On one point, at least, everyone agrees: terrorism is a pejorative term. It is a word with intrinsically negative connotations that is generally applied to one's enemies and opponents, or to those with whom one disagrees and would otherwise prefer to ignore. 'What is called terrorism,' Brian Jenkins has written, `'thus seems to depend on one's point of view. Use of the term implies a moral judgment; and if one party can successfully attach the label terrorist to its opponent, then it has indirectly persuaded others to adopt its moral viewpoint.' Hence the decision to call someone or label some organization `terrorist' becomes almost unavoidably subjective, depending largely on whether one sympathizes with or opposes the person/group/cause concerned. If one identifies with the victim of the violence, for example, then the act is terrorism. If, however, one identifies with the perpetrator, the violent act is regarded in a more sympathetic, if not positive (or, at the worst, an ambivalent) light; and it is not terrorism."[4]
The pejorative connotations of the word can be summed up in the aphorism, "One man's terrorist is another man's freedom fighter." This is exemplified when a group that uses irregular military methods is an ally of a State against a mutual enemy, but later falls out with the State and starts to use the same methods against its former ally. During World War II, the Malayan People’s Anti-Japanese Army was allied with the British, but during the Malayan Emergency, members of its successor, the Malayan Races Liberation Army, were branded terrorists by the British.[20][21] More recently, Ronald Reagan and others in the American administration frequently called the Afghan Mujahideen freedom fighters during their war against the Soviet Union,[22] yet twenty years later when a new generation of Afghan men are fighting against what they perceive to be a regime installed by foreign powers, their attacks are labelled terrorism by George W. Bush.[23][24] Groups accused of terrorism usually prefer terms that reflect legitimate military or ideological action.[25][26][27] Leading terrorism researcher Professor Martin Rudner, director of the Canadian Centre of Intelligence and Security Studies at Ottawa's Carleton University, defines "terrorist acts" as attacks against civilians for political or other ideological goals, and goes on to say:

"There is the famous statement: 'One man's terrorist is another man's freedom fighter.' But that is grossly misleading. It assesses the validity of the cause when terrorism is an act. One can have a perfectly beautiful cause and yet if one commits terrorist acts, it is terrorism regardless."[28]
Some groups, when involved in a "liberation" struggle, have been called terrorists by the Western governments or media. Later, these same persons, as leaders of the liberated nations, are called statesmen by similar organizations. Two examples of this phenomenon are the Nobel Peace Prize laureates Menachem Begin and Nelson Mandela.[29][30][31][32][33][34][35]

Sometimes states that are close allies, for reasons of history, culture and politics, can disagree over whether members of a certain organization are terrorists. For example for many years some branches of the United States government refused to label members of the Irish Republican Army (IRA) as terrorists, while it was using methods against one of the United States' closest allies (Britain) that Britain branded as terrorist attacks. This was highlighted by the Quinn v. Robinson case.[36][37]

Many times the term "terrorism" and "extremism" are interchangeably used. However, there is a significant difference between the two. Terrorism essentially threat or act of physical violence. Extremism involves using non-physical instruments to mobilise minds to achieve political or ideological ends. For instance, Al Qaeda is involved in terrorism. The Iranian revolution of 1979 is a case of extremism. A global research report An Inclusive World (2007) asserts that extremism poses a more serious threat than terrorism in the decades to come.

For these and other reasons, media outlets wishing to preserve a reputation for impartiality are extremely careful in their use of the term.[38][39]


[edit] Definition in international law
There are several International conventions on terrorism with somewhat different definitions.[40] The United Nations sees this lack of agreement as a serious problem.[40]


[edit] Types of terrorism
In the spring of 1975, the Law Enforcement Assistant Administration in the United States formed the National Advisory Committee on Criminal Justice Standards and Goals. One of the five volumes that the committee was entitled Disorders and Terrorism, produced by the Task Force on Disorders and Terrorism under the direction H.H.A. Cooper, Director of the Task Force staff.[41] The Task Force classified terrorism into six categories.

Civil Disorders – A form of collective violence interfering with the peace, security, and normal functioning of the community.
Political Terrorism – Violent criminal behaviour designed primarily to generate fear in the community, or substantial segment of it, for political purposes.
Non-Political Terrorism – Terrorism that is not aimed at political purposes but which exhibits “conscious design to create and maintain high degree of fear for coercive purposes, but the end is individual or collective gain rather than the achievement of a political objective.”
Quasi-Terrorism – The activities incidental to the commission of crimes of violence that are similar in form and method to genuine terrorism but which nevertheless lack its essential ingredient. It is not the main purpose of the quasi-terrorists to induce terror in the immediate victim as in the case of genuine terrorism, but the quasi-terrorist uses the modalities and techniques of the genuine terrorist and produces similar consequences and reaction. For example, the fleeing felon who takes hostages is a quasi-terrorist, whose methods are similar to those of the genuine terrorist but whose purposes are quite different.
Limited Political Terrorism – Genuine political terrorism is characterized by a revolutionary approach; limited political terrorism refers to “acts of terrorism which are committed for ideological or political motives but which are not part of a concerted campaign to capture control of the State.
Official or State Terrorism –"referring to nations whose rule is based upon fear and oppression that reach similar to terrorism or such proportions.” It may also be referred to as Structural Terrorism defined broadly as terrorist acts carried out by governments in pursuit of political objectives, often as part of their foreign policy.
In an analysis prepared for U.S. Intelligence[42] four typologies are mentioned.

Nationalist-Separatist
Religious Fundamentalist
New Religious
Social Revolutionary

[edit] Politics and terrorism
Terrorism is currently, and has been historically, an important issue in politics around the world. Parties on the right of the political spectrum are usually more security focused then parties on the left. It is therefore perceived that terrorist threats or acts are beneficial to the electoral results of the right wing parties.[43]


[edit] Democracy and domestic terrorism
The relationship between domestic terrorism and democracy is complex. Such terrorism is most common in nations with intermediate political freedom and that the nations with the least terrorism are the most democratic nations.[44][45][46][47] However, one study suggests that suicide terrorism may be an exception to this general rule. Evidence regarding this particular method of terrorism reveals that every modern suicide campaign has targeted a democracy- a state with a considerable degree of political freedom. The study suggests that concessions awarded to terrorists during the 1980s and 1990s for suicide attacks increased their frequency.[48]

Some examples of "terrorism" in non-democracies include ETA in Spain under Francisco Franco, the Shining Path in Peru under Alberto Fujimori, the Kurdistan Workers Party when Turkey was ruled by military leaders and the ANC in South Africa. Democracies, such as the United States, Israel, and the Philippines, also have experienced domestic terrorism.

While a democratic nation espousing civil liberties may claim a sense of higher moral ground than other regimes, an act of terrorism within such a state may cause a perceived dilemma: whether to maintain its civil liberties and thus risk being perceived as ineffective in dealing with the problem; or alternatively to restrict its civil liberties and thus risk delegitimizing its claim of supporting civil liberties. This dilemma, some social theorists would conclude, may very well play into the initial plans of the acting terrorist(s); namely, to delegitimize the state.[49]


[edit] Perpetrators
Acts of terrorism can be carried out by individuals, groups, or states. According to some definitions, clandestine or semi-clandestine state actors may also carry out terrorist acts outside the framework of a state of war. However, the most common image of terrorism is that it is carried out by small and secretive cells, highly motivated to serve a particular cause and many of the most deadly operations in recent times, such as 9/11, the London underground bombing, and the 2002 Bali bombing were planned and carried out by a close clique, composed of close friends, family members and other strong social networks. These groups benefited from the free flow of information and efficient Telecommunications to succeed where others had failed. [50] Over the years, many people have attempted to come up with a terrorist profile to attempt to explain these individuals' actions through their psychology and social circumstances. Others, like Roderick Hindery, have sought to discern profiles in the propaganda tactics used by terrorists.

It has been found that a "terrorist" will look, dress, and behave like a normal person, such as a university student, until he or she executes the assigned mission. Terrorist profiling based on personality, physical, or sociological traits would not appear to be particularly useful. The physical and behavioral description of the terrorist could describe almost any normal young person.[51]


[edit] Terrorist groups
Main articles: List of designated terrorist organizations and Lone wolf (terrorism)

[edit] State sponsors
Main article: State-sponsored terrorism
A state can sponsor terrorism by funding or harboring a terrorist organization. Opinions as to which acts of violence by states consist of state-sponsored terrorism or not vary widely. When states provide funding for groups considered by some to be terrorist, they rarely acknowledge them as such.


[edit] State terrorism
Main article: State terrorism
“ Civilization is based on a clearly defined and widely accepted yet often unarticulated hierarchy. Violence done by those higher on the hierarchy to those lower is nearly always invisible, that is, unnoticed. When it is noticed, it is fully rationalized. Violence done by those lower on the hierarchy to those higher is unthinkable, and when it does occur is regarded with shock, horror, and the fetishization of the victims. ”
— Derrick Jensen [52]

The concept of state terrorism is controversial. [53] Military actions by states during war are usually not considered terrorism, even when they involve significant civilian casualties.[citation needed] The Chairman of the United Nations Counter-Terrorism Committee has stated that the Committee was conscious of the 12 international Conventions on the subject, and none of them referred to State terrorism, which was not an international legal concept. If States abused their power, they should be judged against international conventions dealing with war crimes, international human rights and international humanitarian law.[4] Former United Nations Secretary-General Kofi Annan has said that it is "time to set aside debates on so-called 'state terrorism'. The use of force by states is already thoroughly regulated under international law"[54] However, he also made clear that, "...regardless of the differences between governments on the question of definition of terrorism, what is clear and what we can all agree on is any deliberate attack on innocent civilians, regardless of one's cause, is unacceptable and fits into the definition of terrorism."[55]

State terrorism has been used to refer to terrorist acts by governmental agents or forces. This involve the use of state resources employed by a state's foreign policies, such as the using its military to directly perform acts of considered to be state terrorism. Professor of Political Science, Michael Stohl cites the examples that include Germany’s bombing of London and the U.S. atomic destruction of Hiroshima during World War II. He argues that “the use of terror tactics is common in international relations and the state has been and remains a more likely employer of terrorism within the international system than insurgents." They also cite the First strike option as an example of the "terror of coercive dipolomacy" as a form of this, which holds the world "hostage,' with the implied threat of using nuclear weapons in "crisis management." They argue that the institutionalized form of terrorism has occurred as a result of changes that took place following World War ll. In this analysis, state terrorism exhibited as a form of foreign policy was shaped by the presence and use of weapons of mass destruction, and that the legitimizing of such violent behavior led to an increasingly accepted form of this state behavior. (Michael Stohl, “The Superpowers and International Terror” Paper presented at the Annual Meeting of the International Studies Association, Atlanta, March 27-April 1, 1984;"Terrible beyond Endurance? The Foreign Policy of State Terrorism." 1988;The State as Terrorist: The Dynamics of Governmental Violence and Repression, 1984 P49).

State terrorism is has also been used to describe peace time actions by governmental agents or forces, such as the bombing of Pan Am Flight 103 flight. The concept is also used to describe political repressions by governments against their own civilian population with the purpose to incite fear. For example, taking and executing civilian hostages or extrjuducial elimination campaigns are commonly considered "terror" or terrorism, for example during Red Terror or Great Terror [43]. Such actions are often also described as democide which has been argued to be equivalent to state terrorism[56] Empirical studies on this have found that democracies have little democide.[57][58]


[edit] Tactics
Main article: Tactics of terrorism
Terrorism is a form of asymmetric warfare, and is more common when direct conventional warfare either cannot be (due to differentials in available forces) or is not being used to resolve the underlying conflict.

The context in which terrorist tactics are used is often a large-scale, unresolved political conflict. The type of conflict varies widely; historical examples include:

Secession of a territory to form a new sovereign state
Dominance of territory or resources by various ethnic groups
Imposition of a particular form of government
Economic deprivation of a population
Opposition to a domestic government or occupying army
Terrorist attacks are often targeted to maximize fear and publicity. They usually use explosives or poison, but there is also concern about terrorist attacks using weapons of mass destruction. Terrorist organizations usually methodically plan attacks in advance, and may train participants, plant "undercover" agents, and raise money from supporters or through organized crime. Communication may occur through modern telecommunications, or through old-fashioned methods such as couriers.


[edit] Responses to terrorism
Main article: Responses to terrorism
Responses to terrorism are broad in scope. They can include re-alignments of the political spectrum and reassessments of fundamental values. The term counter-terrorism has a narrower connotation, implying that it is directed at terrorist actors.

Specific types of responses include:

Targeted laws, criminal procedures, deportations, and enhanced police powers
Target hardening, such as locking doors or adding traffic barriers
Pre-emptive or reactive military action
Increased intelligence and surveillance activities
Pre-emptive humanitarian activities
More permissive interrogation and detention policies
Official acceptance of torture as a valid tool

[edit] Mass media
Media exposure may be a primary goal of those carrying out terrorism, to expose issues that would otherwise be ignored by the media. Some consider this to be manipulation and exploitation of the media.[59] Others consider terrorism itself to be a symptom of a highly controlled mass media, which does not otherwise give voice to alternative viewpoints, a view expressed by Paul Watson who has stated that controlled media is responsible for terrorism, because "you cannot get your information across any other way". Paul Watson's organization Sea Shepherd has itself been branded "eco-terrorist", although it claims to have not caused any casualties.

The mass media will often censor organizations involved in terrorism (through self-restraint or regulation) to discourage further terrorism. However, this may encourage organisations to perform more extreme acts of terrorism to be shown in the mass media.

There is always a point at which the terrorist ceases to manipulate the media gestalt. A point at which the violence may well escalate, but beyond which the terrorist has become symptomatic of the media gestalt itself. Terrorism as we ordinarily understand it is innately media-related.

—Novelist William Gibson[60]


[edit] History
Main article: History of terrorism
The modern English term "terrorism" dates back to 1795 when it was used to describe the actions of the Jacobin Club in their rule of post-Revolutionary France, the so-called "Reign of Terror".


[edit] See also
List of terrorist incidents
List of terrorist organisations
9/11
7/7
Abortion clinic bombers
Agent provocateur
Christian Terrorism
Colombian Armed Conflict (1960s–present)
Communist Terrorism
Conspiracy theory
Counter-terrorism
Cyber-terrorism
Destructive cult
Domestic terrorist (United States)
Eco-terrorism
False flag operations
Hate crime
Hate group
Hirabah
Indoctrination
Islamic Terrorism
Middle east
Narcoterrorism
Northern Ireland
Nuclear 9/11
Propaganda
Strategy of tension
Suicide attack
Symbionese Liberation Army
Ten Threats identified by the United Nations
Terror bombing
Terrorism insurance
Terrorist Screening Center
Unconventional warfare
Weather Underground
World Trade Center

[edit] Further reading
Wikiquote has a collection of quotations related to:
TerrorismKöchler, Hans (ed.), Terrorism and National Liberation. Proceedings of the International Conference on the Question of Terrorism. Frankfurt a. M./Bern/New York: Peter Lang, 1988, ISBN 3-8204-1217-4
Köchler, Hans. Manila Lectures 2002. Terrorism and the Quest for a Just World Order. Quezon City (Manila): FSJ Book World, 2002, ISBN 0-9710791-2-9
Laqueur, Walter. No End to War - Terrorism in the 21st century, New York, 2003, ISBN 0-8264-1435-4
Lerner, Brenda Wilmoth & K. Lee Lerner, eds. Terrorism : essential primary sources. Thomson Gale, 2006. ISBN 9781414406213 Library of Congress. Jefferson or Adams Bldg General or Area Studies Reading Rms LC Control Number: 2005024002.
Lewis, Jeff, Language Wars: The Role of Media and Culture in Global Terror and Political Violence, Pluto Books, London, 2005.
Lieberman, David M. Sorting the revolutionary from the terrorist: The delicate application of the "Political Offense" exception in U.S. extradition case, Stanford Law Review, Volume 59, Issue 1, 2006, pp. 181-211
Sunga, Lyal S., US Anti-Terrorism Policy and Asia’s Options, in Johannen, Smith and Gomez, (eds.) September 11 & Political Freedoms: Asian Perspectives (Select) (2002) 242-264.
Charles Tilly, Terror, Terrorism, Terrorists in Sociological Theory (2004) 22, 5-13 online
Christian Buder, "Die Todesstrafe, Tabu und Terror", VDM-Verlag, Saarbrücken, 2008, ISBN 978-3-8364-5163-5
Arno Tausch 'Against Islamophobia. Quantitative analyses of global terrorism, world political cycles and center periphery structures' Hauppauge, N.Y.: Nova Science Publishers (for info: https://www.novapublishers.com/catalog/), 2007

[edit] UN conventions
United Nations: Conventions on Terrorism
United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime: "Conventions against terrorism". Archived from the original on 2007-08-05. "There are 12 major multilateral conventions and protocols related to states' responsibilities for combating terrorism. But many states are not yet party to these legal instruments, or are not yet implementing them."

[edit] News monitoring websites specializing on articles on terrorism
Insurgency Research Group - Multi-expert blog dedicated to the study of terrorism, insurgency and the development of counter-insurgency policy.
A reliable and daily updated Open Sources Center that includes a "Terrorism" section. by ISRIA.
Diplomacy Monitor - Terrorism
Jihad Monitor

[edit] Papers and articles on global terrorism
Audrey Kurth Cronin, "Behind the Curve: Globalization and International Terrorism," International Security, Vol. 27, No. 3 (Winter 2002/03), pp. 30-58.
Stathis N. Kalyvas, The Paradox of Terrorism in Civil Wars (2004) in Journal of Ethics 8:1, 97-138.
Prof. Troy Duster "From Theatre of War to Terrorism"
Syed Ubaidur Rahman "Thousands of Muslims gather to denounce terrorism"
Hans Köchler, The United Nations, the International Rule of Law and Terrorism. Supreme Court of the Philippines, Centenary Lecture (2002)
Hans Köchler, The United Nations and International Terrorism. Challenges to Collective Security (2002)
GTD, successor to the Terrorism Knowledge Base
Global War on Terrorism / Strategic Studies Institute
Terrorism Research Center - Terrorism research site started in 1996.
Terror Finance Blog - Multi-expert website dealing with terrorism finance issues.
Terrorism Research - International Terrorism and Security Research
Scale invariance in global terrorism
Security News Line: Global Terrorism and Counter-terrorism www.debriefed.org
The Evolution of Terrorism in 2005. A statistical assessment An article by Rik Coolsaet and Teun Van de Voorde, University of Ghent
Terrorism/Anti-terrorism - An analysis on the causes and uses of terrorism
[61] "Al Qaeda's New Front," PBS "Frontline" January 2005. In the aftermath of the 9/11 attacks, the locus of the investigation quickly shifted to Europe and the network of radical Islamic jihadis who are part of "Eurabia," the continent's expanding Muslim communities. Since 9/11 America has been spared what authorities feared and expected: a second wave of attacks. Instead Europe, once a logistical base for Islamic radicals and a safe haven, has itself become the target.
Teaching Terrorism and Counterterrorism with lesson plans, bibliographies, resources; from US Military Academy
"European Union’s Security With Regard to the International Situation After September 2001". Archived from the original on 2007-05-14. - Special Report on Terrorism in the European Union on 'Analyzing EU'
Germany's contribution to the fight against global terrorism
"Al Qaeda Today: The New Face of the Global Jihad," by Marlena Telvick, PBS Frontline, January 2005.[62] Former CIA caseworker Dr. Marc Sageman explains how Al Qaeda has evolved from an operational organization into a larger social movement, and the implications for U.S. counterterror efforts.
The Intelligence & Terrorism Information Center- www.terrorism-info.org.il

Quantitative World System Studies Contradict Current Islamophobia: World Political Cycles, Global Terrorism, and World Development. Arno Tausch, Innsbruck University - Faculty of Political Science and Sociology - Department of Political Science, Turkish Journal of International Relations, Vol. 6, No. 1 & 2, Spring-Summer 2007, available at: http://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=976864

[edit] Papers and articles on terrorism and the United States
Library of Congress – Federal Research Division The Sociology and Psychology of Terrorism. by Robert L. Worden, Ph.D.
Leonard Peikoff on Terrorism This article was published in the New York Times on October 2, 2001.
Ivan Arreguín-Toft, "Tunnel at the End of the Light: A Critique of U.S. Counter-terrorist Grand Strategy,"Cambridge Review of International Affairs, Vol. 15, No. 3 (2002), pp. 549-563.
The Terrorism Index - Terrorism "scorecard" from Foreign Policy Magazine and the Center for American Progress
The reality show: the Watch, the Fight
Most Wanted Terrorists- Rewards for Justice
Law, Terrorism and Homeland Security. A collection of articles.
"The Security Constitution," UCLA Law Review, Vol. 53, No. 29, 2005
The Enemy Within, PBS Frontline October 2006
"The Man Turned Away" by Charlotte Buchen and Marlena Telvick, PBS Frontline, October 2006.[63] To his family in Jordan, Raed Mansour al-Banna was a beloved son who wanted to make it in America. To his American friends, he was a sweet guy with a charming smile who loved to party. To the families of the 166 people he killed in Hilla, Iraq, he was a murderer.

[edit] Papers and articles on terrorism and Israel
Ariel Merari, "Terrorism as a Strategy in Insurgency," Terrorism and Political Violence, Vol. 5, No. 4 (Winter 1993), pp. 213-251.
Israel Global Terror desk
Victims of Palestinian Violence and Terrorism since September 2000

[edit] Global Muslim public opinion on terrorism and political violence from the World Values Survey
Arno Tausch (2008) “Muslim Values, Global Values: Empirical Data from the 'World Values Survey” Social Science Research Network, New York

[edit] Other
About the Qassam-sderot media center
Paradise Poisoned: Learning About Conflict, Development and Terrorism from Sri Lanka's Civil Wars by John Richardson
Ontologies of Weapons of Mass Destruction and Terrorism
The Supreme Court of India adopted Alex P. Schmid's definition of terrorism in a 2003 ruling (Madan Singh vs. State of Bihar), "defin[ing] acts of terrorism veritably as 'peacetime equivalents of war crimes.'"[64]
Jack Goody What is a terrorist? Published in: journal History and Anthropology, Volume 13, Issue 2 2002 , pages 139 - 142 DOI: 10.1080/0275720022000001219
Schmid and Jongman (1988): "Terrorism is an anxiety-inspiring method of repeated violent action, employed by (semi-)clandestine individual, group, or state actors, for idiosyncratic, criminal, or political reasons, whereby — in contrast to assassination — the direct targets of violence are not the main targets. The immediate human victims of violence are generally chosen randomly (targets of opportunity) or selectively (representative or symbolic targets) from a target population, and serve as message generators. Threat- and violence-based communication processes between terrorist (organization), (imperiled) victims, and main targets are use to manipulate the main target (audience(s), turning it into a target of terror, a target of demands, or a target of attention, depending on whether intimidation, coercion, or propaganda is primarily sought".[65]
Staff. U.S. Terrorism in the Americas an Encyclopedia "on violence promoted, supported and carried out by both the U.S. government and its servants in Latin America

[edit] Footnotes
^ "Terrorism". Merriam-Webster's Dictionary (1795).
^ Angus Martyn, The Right of Self-Defence under International Law-the Response to the Terrorist Attacks of 11 September, Australian Law and Bills Digest Group, Parliament of Australia Web Site, 12 February 2002
^ Thalif Deen. POLITICS: U.N. Member States Struggle to Define Terrorism, Inter Press Service, 25 July 2005
^ a b Hoffman, Bruce "Inside Terrorism" Columbia University Press 1998 ISBN 0-231-11468-0. Page 32. See review in The New York TimesInside Terrorism
^ Dr. Jeffrey Record, Bounding the Global War on Terrorism(PDF)
^ "Terrorism" 3. Encyclopædia Britannica. Retrieved on 2006-08-11.
^ Khan, Ali (1987). "A Theory of International Terrorism" (PDF). Social Science Research Network. Retrieved on 2008-07-11.
^ "UN Reform". United Nations (2005-03-21). Archived from the original on 2007-04-27. Retrieved on 2008-07-11. "The second part of the report, entitled "Freedom from Fear backs the definition of terrorism - an issue so divisive agreement on it has long eluded the world community - as any action "intended to cause death or serious bodily harm to civilians or non-combatants with the purpose of intimidating a population or compelling a government or an international organization to do or abstain from doing any act.""
^ FM 100-20, Military Operations in Low Intensity Conflict, 5 December 1990; and Joint Pub 1-02, Department of Defense Dictionary of Military and Associated Terms, 12 April 2001, as amended through 9 June 2004.
^ Juergensmeyer, Mark (2000). Terror in the Mind of God. University of California Press, 125-135.
^ Juergensmeyer, Mark (2000). Terror in the Mind of God. University of California Press.
^ Juergensmeyer, Mark (2000). Terror in the Mind of God. University of California Press, 127-128.
^ "Terrorism in the United States 1999" (PDF). Federal Bureau of Investigation. Retrieved on 2008-07-11.
^ "AskOxford Search Results - terrorist". AskOxford. AskOxford. Retrieved on 2008-07-11.
^ Cambridge International Dictionary of English
^ Dictionary.com
^ Online Etymology Dictionary
^ B'Tselem Head of ISA defines a terrorist as any Palestinian killed by Israel
^ a b Rodin, David (2006). Terrorism. In E. Craig (Ed.), Routledge Encyclopedia of Philosophy. London: Routledge
^ Malayan People's Anti-Japanese Army Britannica Concise
^ Dr Chris Clark "Malayan Emergency, 16 June 1948". Archived from the original on 2007-06-08., 16 June 2003
^ Ronald Reagan, speech to National Conservative Political Action Conference 8 March, 1985. On the Spartacus Educational web site
^ President Meets with Afghan Interim Authority Chairman
^ President Discusses Progress in War on Terrorism to National Guard White House web site February 9, 2006
^ Sudha Ramachandran Death behind the wheel in Iraq Asian Times, November 12, 2004, "Insurgent groups that use suicide attacks therefore do not like their attacks to be described as suicide terrorism. They prefer to use terms like "martyrdom ..."
^ Alex Perry How Much to Tip the Terrorist? Time Magazine, September 26, 2005. "The Tamil Tigers would dispute that tag, of course. Like other guerrillas and suicide bombers, they prefer the term “freedom fighters.”
^ TERRORISM: CONCEPTS, CAUSES, AND CONFLICT RESOLUTION George Mason University Institute for Conflict Analysis and Resolution, Printed by the Defense Threat Reduction Agency, Fort Belvoir, Virginia, January 2003
^ Humphreys, Adrian. "One official's 'refugee' is another's 'terrorist'", National Post, January 17, 2006.
^ Theodore P. Seto The Morality of Terrorism Includes a list in the Times published on July 23, 1946 which were described as Jewish terrorist actions, including those launched by Irgun which Begin was a leading member
^ BBC News: PROFILES: Menachem Begin BBC website "Under Begin's command, the underground terrorist group Irgun carried out numerous acts of violence."
^ Eqbal Ahmad "Straight talk on terrorism" Monthly Review, January, 2002.



"including Menachem Begin, appearing in "Wanted" posters saying, "Terrorists, reward this much." The highest reward I have seen offered was 100,000 British pounds for the head of Menachem Begin"
^ NEWS: World: Middle East: Sharon's legacy does not include peace[dead link]BBC website "Ariel Sharon will be compared to Menachem Begin, another warrior turned statesman, who gave up the Sinai and made peace with Egypt."
^ Lord Desai Hansard, House of Lords 3 September 1998 : Column 72, "However, Jomo Kenyatta, Nelson Mandela and Menachem Begin — to give just three examples — were all denounced as terrorists but all proved to be successful political leaders of their countries and good friends of the United Kingdom."
^ BBC NEWS:World: Americas: UN reforms receive mixed response BBC website "Of all groups active in recent times, the ANC perhaps represents best the traditional dichotomous view of armed struggle. Once regarded by western governments as a terrorist group, it now forms the legitimate, elected government of South Africa, with Nelson Mandela one of the world's genuinely iconic figures."
^ BBC NEWS: World: Africa: Profile: Nelson Mandela BBC website "Nelson Mandela remains one of the world's most revered statesman"
^ Quinn v. Robinson (pdf), 783 F2d. 776 (9th Cir. 1986)(PDF), web site of the Syracuse University College of Law
^ Page 17, NORTHERN IRELAND: TP , T , S 11 (PDF) Queen's University Belfast School of Law
^ "Guardian Unlimited style guide".
^ "BBC editorial guidelines on the use of language when reporting terrorism" (DOC).
^ a b "Definitions of Terrorism". United Nations. Archived from the original on 2007-01-29. Retrieved on 2008-07-11.
^ Disorders and Terrorism, National Advisory Committee on Criminal Justice Standards and Goals (Washington D.C.:1976)
^ Hudson, Rex A. Who Becomes a Terrorist and Why: The 1999 Government Report on Profiling Terrorists, Federal Research Division, The Lyons Press,2002
^ a b "McCain adviser says terrorist attack would boost campaign", The Guardian (2008-06-24). Retrieved on 2008-06-24.
^ "Freedom squelches terrorist violence: Harvard Gazette Archives".
^ "Freedom squelches terrorist violence: Harvard Gazette Archives" (PDF).
^ "Poverty, Political Freedom, and the Roots of Terrorism" (PDF) (2004).
^ "Unemployment, Inequality and Terrorism: Another Look at the Relationship between Economics and Terrorism" (PDF) (2005).
^ Pape, Robert A. "The Strategic Logic of Suicide Terrorism," American Political Science Review, 2003. 97 (3): pp. 1-19.
^ shabad, goldie and francisco jose llera ramo. "Political Violence in a Democratic State," Terrorism in Context. Ed. Martha Crenshaw. University Park: Pennsylvania State University, 1995. pp467.
^ Sageman, Mark. 2004. "Social Networks and the Jihad". Philadelphia: University of Pennsylvania Press. Ch. 5 pp. 166-167
^ Library of Congress – Federal Research Division The Sociology and Psychology of Terrorism
^ Endgame: Resistance, by Derrick Jensen, Seven Stories Press, 2006, ISBN 158322730X, pg IX
^ Pds Sso
^ The Legal Debate is Over: Terrorism is a War Crime | The New America Foundation
^ Press conference with Kofi Annan & FM Kamal Kharrazi
^ Kisangani, E. (2007). "The Political Economy Of State Terror" (PDF). Defence and Peace Economics 18 (5): 405–414. doi:10.1080/10242690701455433. Retrieved on 2008-04-02.
^ DEATH BY GOVERNMENT By R.J. Rummel New Brunswick, N.J.: Transaction Publishers, 1994. Online links: [1][2][3]
^ No Lessons Learned from the Holocaust?[dead link], Barbara Harff, 2003.
^ The Media and Terrorism: A Reassessment Paul Wilkinson. Terrorism and Political Violence, Vol.9, No.2 (Summer 1997), pp.51-64 Published by Frank Cass, London.
^ his blog William Gibson's blog, October 31, 2004, retrieved April 26, 2007.
^ frontline: al qaeda's new front | PBS
^ frontline: al qaeda's new front: al qaeda today | PBS
^ FRONTLINE: the enemy within: new reality: the man turned away | PBS
^ http://www.sacw.net/hrights/judgementjehanabad.doc
^ "Academic Consensus Definition of "Terrorism," Schmid 1988, United Nations website". Archived from the original on 2007-06-27.. For more detailed information, see: Schmid, Jongman et al. Political terrorism: a new guide to actors, authors, concepts, data bases, theories, and literature. Amsterdam: North Holland, Transaction Books, 1988. ISBN 1412804698
Retrieved from "http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Terrorism"
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Terrorism

The 9/11 Investigation By David Corn
This article appeared in the August 4, 2003 edition of The Nation.

July 24, 2003

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Take Action Write a Letter Subscribe Now Text SizeAAAThe attacks of September 11 might have been prevented had the US intelligence community been more competent. And the Bush Administration is refusing to tell the public what intelligence the President saw before 9/11 about the threat posed by Al Qaeda.


Watch for David Corn's forthcoming The Lies of George W. Bush: Mastering the Politics of Deception, due out from Crown Publishers this September.

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These are two findings contained in the long-awaited, 800-page final report of the 9/11 joint inquiry conducted the Senate and House intelligence committees, which was released on July 24. As is traditional in Washington, the contents of the report were selectively leaked before it was officially unveiled. And several news outfits noted that the report contained "no smoking guns" and concluded, as the Associated Press put it, that "no evidence surfaced in the probe...to show that the government could have prevented the attacks." Those reports were wrong--and probably based on information parceled out by sources looking to protect the government and the intelligence community.

In the report's first finding, the committees note that the intelligence community did not have information on the "time, place and specific nature" of the 9/11 attacks, but that it had "amassed a great deal of valuable intelligence regarding Osama bin Laden and his terrorist activities," and that this information could have been used to thwart the assault. "Within the huge volume of intelligence reporting that was available prior to September 11," the report says, "there were various threads and pieces of information that, at least in retrospect, are both relevant and significant. The degree to which the [intelligence] community was or was not able to build on that information to discern the bigger picture successfully is a critical part of the context for the September 11 attacks." One Congressional source familiar with the report observes, "We couldn't say, 'Yes, the intelligence community had all the specifics ahead of time.' But that is not the same as saying this attack could not have been prevented."

The final report is an indictment of the intelligence agencies--and, in part--of the administrations (Clinton and Bush II) that oversaw them. It notes, "The intelligence community failed to capitalize on both the individual and collective significance of available information.... As a result, the community missed opportunities to disrupt the September 11 plot by denying entry to or detaining would-be hijackers; to at least try to unravel the plot through surveillance and other investigative work within the United States; and, finally, to generate a heightened state of alert and thus harden the homeland against attack. No one will ever know what might have happened had more connections been drawn between these disparate pieces of information.... The important point is that the intelligence community, for a variety of reasons, did not bring together and fully appreciate a range of information that could have greatly enhanced its chances of uncovering and preventing Osama bin Laden's plan to attack the United States on September 11, 2001."

The committees' report covers many missed--and botched--opportunities. It shows that warnings and hints were either ignored or neglected. Some of this has been covered in interim reports released last year and in media accounts. But the final report does contain new information and new details that only confirm an ugly conclusion: A more effective and more vigilant bureaucracy would have had a good chance of detecting portions of the 9/11 plot. "The message is not to tell the intelligence community," said the source familiar with the report, "that you didn't have the final announcement of the details of the September 11 attacks and therefore you could not prevent it. We have to have an intelligence community that is able to connect dots and put the pieces together and investigate it aggressively."

An example: The FBI had an active informant in San Diego who had numerous contacts on 2000 with two of the 9/11 hijackers, Nawaf al-Hazmi and Khalid al-Mihdhar. And he may also have had more limited contact with a third hijacker, Hani Hanjour. In 2000, the CIA had information that al-Hazmi and al-Mihdhar--who had already been linked to terrorism--were or might be in the United States. Yet it had not placed them on a watch list for suspected terrorists or shared this information with the FBI. The FBI agent who handled the San Diego informant told the committees that had he had access to the intelligence information on al-Mihdhar and al-Hazmi, "it would have made a huge difference." He would have "immediately opened" an investigation and subjected them to a variety of surveillance. It can never be known whether such an effort would have uncovered their 9/11 plans. "What is clear, however," the report says, "is that the informant's contacts with the hijackers, had they been capitalized on, would have given the San Diego FBI field office perhaps the intelligence community's best chance to unravel the September 11 plot. Given the CIA's failure to disseminate, in a timely manner, the intelligence information on...al-Mihdhar and al-Hazmi, that chance, unfortunately, never materialized." (The FBI's informant--who is not named in the report--has denied any advance knowledge of 9/11, according to the report, but the committees raise questions about his credibility on this point, and the Bush Administration objected to the joint inquiry's efforts to interview the informant.)

The CIA was not the only agency to screw up. So did the FBI. In August 2001, the bureau did become aware that al-Mihdhar and al-Hazmi were in the United States and tried to locate them. But the San Diego field office never learned of the search. The FBI agent who was handling the informant in San Diego told the committees, "I'm sure we could have located them and we could have done it within a few days." And the chiefs of the financial crime units at the FBI and the Treasury Department told the committees that if their outfits had been asked to search for these two terrorists they would have been able to find them through credit card and bank records. But no one made such a request.

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About David Corn
David Corn is Mother Jones' Washington bureau chief. Until 2007, he was The Nation's Washington editor and is co-author, with Michael Isikoff, of Hubris: The Inside Story of Spin, Scandal, and the Selling of the Iraq War.

Corn's work has appeared in the Washington Post, the New York Times, the Los Angeles Times, Harper's Magazine and many other publications. His books include The Lies of George W. Bush: Mastering the Politics of Deception (a New York Times bestseller), Blond Ghost: Ted Shackley and the CIA's Crusade and the novel Deep Background.

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> VERMONTERS CALL FOR AN INVESTIGATION [view list]
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> VERMONT'S OWN DENNY MORRISEAU ON THE WTC COLLAPSES [video]
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> RESEARCH BY STEVEN E. JONES, Ph.D AND KEVIN RYAN
> SENATOR PATRICK LEAHY INDICATES THAT BUSH HAD CLEAR WARNINGS ABOUT 9/11 AND ALLOWED 9/11 TO HAPPEN. [read quotes]
> VOTER'S GUIDE TO THE QUESTION OF A NEW 9/11 INVESTIGATION (A REVIEW OF SOME OF THE PROBLEMS WITH THE OFFICIAL STORY)
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> WHAT IS THIS ALL ABOUT? [one introduction]
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WELCOME TO OUR WEBSITE



"We to this day don't know why NORAD [the North American Aerospace Command] told us what they told us," ... "It was just so far from the truth. . . It's one of those loose ends that never got tied."

Thomas H. Kean, the former New Jersey Republican governor and co-chair of the 9/11 Commission. [full article]

How can we be satisfied with the 9/11 Commission Report when the leaders of the 9/11 Commission say that they were lied to?

Update January, 2008: Hamilton and Kean say that the CIA stonewalled the investigation of the 9/11 Commission: [read article]

Purpose of this Site

The purpose of this site is to introduce questions that have been raised about 9/11 and to connect those who believe that a new, thorough, and truly independent forensic investigation is needed. The supporters of this website, while agreeing on the need for such an investigation, come from a number of perspectives and do not endorse any particular view on what actually happened on and surrounding 9/11/2001.

It must be emphasized that some of the questions about 9/11 are more controversial than others. Some issues are compelling to some supporters of a new investigation but not to others. Supporters of a new investigation have no agenda other than securing a new investigation that will address all legitimate questions that our government has not yet addressed.

What Really Happened on September 11, 2001?

The Government's Official Version of Events

The government's Official Version of 9/11 events, which some refer to, legitimately, as "the official conspiracy theory", is that:

> All of the events of September 11, 2001 were brought about entirely and exclusively by a conspiracy of Arab terrorists.

> There was no negligence on the part of U.S. government officials, either prior to 9/11, on 9/11, or after 9/11, that required subsequent disciplinary or corrective action.

> And there was no complicity (including any deliberate failure to act) on the part of the Bush Administration or any individuals within the U.S. Government.

Supporters of the Official Version of events deny that important questions remain unanswered or that a new 9/11 investigation is needed.

The alternatives

There is a wide spectrum of views among doubters of the Official Version.

> At one end are those who believe that the U.S. Government failed to respond properly to intelligence indicating that the 9/11 attacks were coming, or that there were unexplained failures to follow established procedure on 9/11 (such as procedures to intercept wayward aircraft), or that there were failures to protect people on and after 9/11. They believe that the failures on 9/11 need to be explained, and that steps should be taken to prevent similar failures in the future.

> In the middle of the spectrum, some believe that the failure to respond to the pre-9/11 intelligence was deliberate, that certain individuals within the U.S. Government "let it happen on purpose" ("LIHOP"). And some believe that individuals within the U.S. government helped the Arab terrorists achieve their goals.

> Those at the other end of the spectrum believe that individuals within the U.S. Government, or connected to people within the U.S. Government, actually planned the attacks ("made it happen on purpose" or "MIHOP"), and that any Arab terrorists were only patsies.



Supporters of a new investigation include those whose concerns relate only to the failure of the government to fully explain the events of 9/11, including structural failures, and those who question aspects of the government's response to the events of 9/11, including false statements by the EPA regarding the air quality in New York following the attacks. This group believes that these questions must be answered in order to prevent the deaths and illnesses that should have been avoided on 9/11 even in the absence of any pre-9/11 negligence or complicity on the part of any government officials. It is not necessary to suspect that there were controlled demolitions or any complicity of government officials in 9/11 in order to conclude that there must be a new investigation. See our Voter's Guide to Ballot Question 2.

The belief commonly shared by critics of the Official Version of 9/11 Events

Across the spectrum of critics, essentially all agree that:

> The 9/11 Commission Report failed in explaining the events on and surrounding 9/11.

> A new, thorough, and fully-independent forensic investigation is warranted.

> Without such an investigation, the threat of another attack like 9/11 remains unabated, and mistakes made in response to 9/11 may be repeated.

Why Doubt the Official Version of 9/11 Events?

Many questions have been raised about the Official Version of 9/11 Events. For a review of many of the important questions, complete with links to source material, see this Introduction to the Evidence and our Voter's Guide to Burlington Ballot Question 2.

Also see the following discussions:

procedural and intelligence questions and

physical anomalies and questions.

Shortly after 9/11, Colin Powell said on "Meet the Press" that a paper outlining the evidence supporting the government's identification of the alleged perpetrators would soon be released. Such a paper was never released. When later asked about the paper, White House Press Secretary Scott McClellan denied that Colin Powell had promised one.

Consider who was running the 9/11 Commission.

Consider the "experts" and the changing official collapse theories: Kevin Ryan article.

The 9/11 Commission Report failed to address numerous points that are inconsistent with the official story, and seems to have distorted many others. [more]

A review of the 9/11 Commission Report.

Here is another list of reasons to doubt the official story.

Here are links to over 250 "smoking guns" reported by mainstream sources.

The Pentagon estimates that it is spending approximately $6.8 billion per month on the Iraq war [source]. Only $15 million was budgeted for the 9/11 Commission, and $16 million was allocated to the investigation by the National Institutes of Standards and Technology. In other words, the amount the U.S. government allocated to investigating 9/11 is less than what is spent on the Iraq war every four hours.

If you are new to this issue, you are encouraged to view the films and read the articles and books that are referenced in this website and to visit the websites and other materials linked throughout the site.

Even members of the 9/11 Commission felt that they were lied to by the Pentagon. [Read article]

Osama Bin Laden is not even wanted by the FBI in connection with 9/11. [more]

Listen to 2/22/07 Vermont Public Radio interview with Kyle Hence, producer of "9/11 Press for Truth"

"Jersey Widow, New England Filmmaker Urge Support for 9/11 Ballot Measure", Seven Days, 2/21/07



Why is this so important?

There is general agreement among those calling for a real investigation of 9/11 that the 9/11 Commission did not adequately study the failures of 9/11 or identify those individuals responsible for such failures. Are we any safer now than we were before 9/11?
Potentially far more important are the policies adopted by our government for which 9/11 is cited as justification, including:
> the USA Patriot Act (reportedly written prior to 9/11);
> warrantless wire-tapping (reportedly commenced long before 9/11);
> torture, secret prisons, and extraordinary renditions;
> the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq;
> the Military Commissions Act of 2006 and the suspension of habeas corpus;
> expanded and unchecked presidential powers.
The president has used 9/11 repeatedly to justify his tools in the "War on Terror", and Congress has willingly granted all of his requests. Would any of this have been possible without 9/11?
If any significant part of the Official Version of 9/11 events is false, isn't exposing such falsehood the most effective way, if not the only way, to restore our civil liberties and reverse the Bush Administration's foreign policies? If the government's version of events is correct, shouldn't we be allowed to see the supporting evidence?
Some commentators suggest that the real threat to our freedom is not coming from foreign terrorists. [Paul Craig Roberts essay]
Discuss this with others. Think critically. Ask questions. Reach your own conclusions.
A large and growing number of current and former government officials, including members of the military and intelligence agencies, now doubt the official version of 9/11 events. [read more]
The "Jersey Girls", a group of widows of victims of 9/11 who were largely responsible for the creation of the 9/11 Commission, are calling for the release of information that they feel is necessary in determining what the U.S. government really did and did not do prior to 9/11. [Sign their online petition.]
Lorie Van Auken, one of the Jersey Girls, has said: "Only an honest re-evaluation of how the 9/11 attacks could have happened will allow us to reverse the adverse consequences of overreaching laws and the existing loop holes in our security systems in order to allow us to be safer in the future." In the new film 9/11 Press for Truth, the Jersey Girls explain their extreme disappointment with the job done by the 9/11 Commission.
What do other families of survivors say? [read article]
As of October, 2006, a substantial majority of Americans now have doubts about the Official Version of 9/11 events. [view poll results.]
"We didn't want to scare people." Christie Todd Whitman, head of the EPA, answering charges that she, with the assistance of the Bush Administration, deliberately withheld information about the toxicity of the air in New York City following the attacks. Thousands of New Yorkers are now sick and dying as the result of this toxic air, which they were told was safe to breathe.
The supporters of this site encourage you to consider competing viewpoints. A website that disputes many claims of the critics of the official story and offers links to many other similar sites is www.debunking911.com. As you consider the competing viewpoints and responses to questions, ask yourself whether all of the questions are really answered (are any of the Jersey Widows' questions answered?), and whether the answers are credible and authoritative.
Finally, note this point by the creator of the debunking site just referenced: "If you ask me today: 'Some have argued that some leaders in the U.S. government knew in advance that attacks were planned on or around September 11, 2001, and that they consciously failed to take action. Do you agree or disagree with this argument?' I would say yes." http://www.debunking911.com/zogby.htm
If you agree that a new 9/11 investigation is warranted, please help make it happen.
A new investigation will NOT happen unless we all join together and demand it.
If, after reviewing the facts, you are not convinced that a new investigation is warranted, please write to the administrator of the site to share your thoughts on this. We would appreciate the opportunity to understand your reasoning and compare it with ours.
FURTHER MATERIAL FOR CONSIDERATION
> DAVID RAY GRIFFIN'S NEW (MAY, 2007) BOOK, "DEBUNKING 9/11 DEBUNKING", IS THE MOST THOROUGH AND COMPELLING COMPILATION OF EVIDENCE THAT THE OFFICIAL 9/11 STORY IS NOT TRUE. [more info]
> ROSIE O'DONNELL SPEAKS OUT [see article and video clips]
> DEFEND HABEAS CORPUS
> IMPEACHMENT SITES: www.vtimpeach.com http://www.impeachbush.tv/
http://portland.indymedia.org/en/2006/07/342801.shtml http://impeachcheney.org/
http://www.vt911.org/

/11 Commission
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
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The commission's sealSee also: 9/11 Commission Report
The National Commission on Terrorist Attacks Upon the United States, also known as the 9/11 Commission, was set up on November 27, 2002 "to prepare a full and complete account of the circumstances surrounding the September 11, 2001 attacks", including preparedness for and the immediate response to the attacks.
The commission was also mandated to provide recommendations designed to guard against future attacks.
Chaired by former New Jersey Governor Thomas Kean, the commission consisted of five Democrats and five Republicans. The commission was created by Congressional legislation, with the bill signed into law by President George W. Bush.
The commission's final report was lengthy and based on extensive interviews and testimony. Its primary conclusion was that the failures of the U.S. Central Intelligence Agency and Federal Bureau of Investigation permitted the terrorist attacks to occur and that had these agencies acted more wisely and more aggressively, the attacks could potentially have been prevented.
After the publication of its final report, the commission closed on August 21, 2004. The commission was the last investigation by the federal government into the events of 9/11, with the exception of the NIST report on the collapse of Building 7.
Contents [hide]
1 History
2 Members
3 Officials called to testify
4 Report
5 Criticism
6 Commission recommendations
7 Work of commissioners after the commission ceased its functions
8 See also
9 References
10 Further reading
11 External links
11.1 Critical essays, books and films


[edit] History
This section does not cite any references or sources.
Please help improve this section by adding citations to reliable sources. Unverifiable material may be challenged and removed. (December 2007)
The National Commission on Terrorist Attacks Upon the United States was set up on November 27, 2002, by President George W. Bush and the United States Congress, but only after continued persistence by four women who were left widows because of the attacks [1]; and were invited to the signing in of the Commission. The 9/11 Commission was in session for more than a year and a half and released its final report on July 22, 2004.[1]
By the spring of 2003, after an initial startup of only $3 million, the White House was stalling on a crucial $11 million funding request that would have lead the Commission through its target date of the final report: 27 May, 2004. As a comparison, $50 million was marked into the investigation of the Columbia space shuttle crash.[1]

[edit] Members
The members of the commission were:
Thomas Kean (Chairman) - Republican, former Governor of New Jersey
Lee H. Hamilton (Vice Chairman) - Democrat, former U.S. Representative from the 9th District of Indiana
Richard Ben-Veniste - Democrat, attorney, former chief of the Watergate Task Force of the Watergate Special Prosecutor's Office
Fred F. Fielding - Republican, attorney and former White House Counsel
Jamie Gorelick - Democrat, former Deputy Attorney General in the Clinton Administration
Slade Gorton - Republican, former U.S. Senator from Washington
Bob Kerrey - Democrat, President of the New School University and former U.S. Senator from Nebraska
John F. Lehman - Republican, former Secretary of the Navy
Timothy J. Roemer - Democrat, former U.S. Representative from the 3rd District of Indiana
James R. Thompson - Republican, former Governor of Illinois
The members of the commission's staff included:
Philip D. Zelikow, Executive Director/Chair
Christopher Kojm, Deputy Executive Director
Daniel Marcus, General Counsel
Janice Kephart, Counsel
Al Felzenberg, Spokesman[2]
President Bush had initially appointed former Secretary of State Henry Kissinger to head the commission, but he withdrew shortly afterward because he would have been obliged to disclose the clients of his private consulting business.[3]

[edit] Officials called to testify
Then government officials who were called to testify before the commission included:
George W. Bush - President; refused to testify under oath
Dick Cheney - Vice President; refused to testify under oath
Colin Powell - Secretary of State
Donald H. Rumsfeld - Secretary of Defense
Condoleezza Rice - National Security Advisor
Richard Armitage - Deputy Secretary of State
Paul Wolfowitz - Deputy Secretary of Defense
Past government officials who were called to testify before the commission included:
Bill Clinton - former President; refused to testify under oath
Al Gore - former Vice President; refused to testify under oath
Madeleine Albright - former Secretary of State
William Cohen - former Secretary of Defense
Sandy Berger - former National Security Advisor
Richard A. Clarke - former chief counter-terrorism adviser on the U.S. National Security Council in the George W. Bush and Bill Clinton administrations
President George W. Bush, Vice President Dick Cheney, former President Bill Clinton, and former Vice President Al Gore all gave private testimony without oaths. President Bush and Vice President Cheney insisted on testifying together, while Clinton and Gore met with the panel separately. As the National Security Advisor, Condoleezza Rice was not required to testify under oath because the position of NSA is an advisory role, independent of authority over a bureaucracy and does not require confirmation by the Senate.

[edit] Report
The cover of the final 9/11 report, which can be purchased in bookstores across the United States and around the worldMain article: 9/11 Commission Report
The commission issued its final report on July 22, 2004. After releasing the report, Commission Chair Thomas Kean declared that both Presidents Bill Clinton and George W. Bush had been "not well served" by the FBI and CIA.[4] The commission interviewed over 1,200 people in 10 countries and reviewed over two and a half million pages of documents, including some closely-guarded classified national security documents. Before it was released by the commission, the final public report was screened for any potentially classified information and edited as necessary.
Additionally, the commission has released several supplemental reports on the terrorists' financing, travel, and other matters.

[edit] Criticism
Main article: Criticism of the 9/11 Commission
The commission was criticized for significant alleged conflicts of interest on the part of commissioners and staff.[5] Further, the commission's report has been the subject of much criticism by both the commissioners themselves and by others.[6][7]
The commission members were appointed by George W. Bush as well as Congress, which led to the criticism that it was not a commission truly independent from the U.S. government whose actions it was supposed to review. The commission stated in its report that "[their] aim has not been to assign individual blame," a judgment which some critics believed would obscure the facts of the matter in a nod to consensus politics.
In addition, commissioners believed that key agencies of the U.S. government, including The Pentagon, the FAA and NORAD were deliberately deceiving them,[8] and that the CIA was deliberately impeding the work of the commission.[9] On the whole, the chairmen of the commission believed the commission was set up to fail.[10]

[edit] Commission recommendations
Parenthetic numbers refer to page numbers in the Commission Report
1. The U.S. government must identify and prioritize actual or potential terrorist sanctuaries. For each, it should have a realistic strategy to keep possible terrorists insecure and on the run, using all elements of national power. (367)
2. United States should support Pakistan’s government in its struggle against extremists with a comprehensive effort that extends from military aid to support for better education, so long as Pakistan’s leaders remain willing to make difficult choices of their own. (369)
3. United States and the international community should make a long-term commitment to a secure and stable Afghanistan, in order to give the government a reasonable opportunity to improve the life of the Afghan people. Afghanistan must not again become a sanctuary for international crime and terrorism. The United States and the international community should help the Afghan government extend its authority over the country, with a strategy and nation-by-nation commitments to achieve their objectives. (370)
4. The problems in the U.S.-Saudi relationship must be confronted, openly. The United States and Saudi Arabia must determine if they can build a relationship that political leaders on both sides are prepared to publicly defend—a relationship about more than oil. It should include a shared commitment to political and economic reform, as Saudis make common cause with the outside world. It should include a shared interest in greater tolerance and cultural respect, translating into a commitment to fight the violent extremists who foment hatred. (374)
5. The U.S. government must define what the message is, what it stands for. We should offer an example of moral leadership in the world, committed to treat people humanely, abide by the rule of law, and be generous and caring to our neighbors. America and Muslim friends can agree on respect for human dignity and opportunity. (376)
6. Where Muslim governments, even those who are friends, do not respect these principles, the United States must stand for a better future. One of the lessons of the long Cold War was that short-term gains in cooperating with the most repressive and brutal governments were too often outweighed by long-term setbacks for America’s stature and interests. (376)
7. We need to defend our ideals abroad vigorously. America does stand up for its values. The United States defended, and still defends, Muslims against tyrants and criminals in Somalia, Bosnia, Kosovo, Afghanistan, and Iraq. • Recognizing that Arab and Muslim audiences rely on satellite television and radio, the government has begun some promising initiatives in television and radio broadcasting to the Arab world, Iran, and Afghanistan. These efforts are beginning to reach large audiences. The Broadcasting Board of Governors has asked for much larger resources. It should get them. • The United States should rebuild the scholarship, exchange, and library programs that reach out to young people and offer them knowledge and hope. Where such assistance is provided, it should be identified as coming from the citizens of the United States. (377)
8. The U.S. government should offer to join with other nations in generously supporting a new International Youth Opportunity Fund. Funds will be spent directly for building and operating primary and secondary schools in those Muslim states that commit to sensibly investing their own money in public education. (378)
9. A comprehensive U.S. strategy to counter terror-ism should include economic policies that encourage development, more open societies, and opportunities for people to improve the lives of their families and to enhance prospects for their children’s future. (379)
10. The United States should engage other nations in developing a comprehensive coalition strategy against Islamist terror-ism. (379)
11. The United States should engage its friends to develop a common coalition approach toward the detention and humane treatment of captured terrorists. (380)
12. Pre-venting the proliferation of [weapons of mass destruction] warrants a maximum effort—by strengthening counterproliferation efforts, expanding the Proliferation Security Initiative, and supporting the Cooperative Threat Reduction program. (381)
13. Vigorous efforts to track terrorist financing must remain front and center in U.S. counterterrorism efforts. The government has recognized that information about terrorist money helps us to understand their networks, search them out, and disrupt their operations. Intelligence and law enforcement have targeted the relatively small number of financial facilitators—individuals al Qaeda relied on for their ability to raise and deliver money—at the core of al Qaeda’s revenue stream. (382)
14. The United States should combine terrorist travel intelligence, operations, and law enforcement in a strategy to intercept terrorists, find terrorist travel facilitators, and constrain terrorist mobility. (385)
15. The U.S. border security system should be integrated into a larger network of screening points that includes our transportation system and access to vital facilities, such as nuclear reactors. The President should direct the Department of Homeland Security to lead the effort to design a comprehensive screening system, addressing common problems and setting common standards with systemwide goals in mind. (387)
16. The Department of Homeland Security, properly supported by the Congress, should complete, as quickly as possible, a biometric entry-exit screening system, including a single system for speeding qualified travelers. It should be integrated with the system that provides benefits to foreigners seeking to stay in the United States. (389)
17. We should do more to exchange terrorist information with trusted allies, and raise U.S. and global border security standards for travel and border crossing over the medium and long term through extensive inter-national cooperation. (390)
18. Secure identification should begin in the United States. The federal government should set standards for the issuance of birth certificates and sources of identification, such as drivers licenses. (390)
19. The U.S. government should identify and evaluate the transportation assets that need to be protected, set risk-based priorities for defending them, select the most practical and cost-effective ways of doing so, and then develop a plan, budget, and funding to implement the effort. The plan should assign roles and missions to the relevant authorities (federal, state, regional, and local) and to private stakeholders. In measuring effectiveness, perfection is unattainable. But terrorists should perceive that potential targets are defended. They may be deterred by a significant chance of failure. (391)
20. Improved use of “no-fly” and “automatic selectee” lists should not be delayed while the argument about a successor to CAPPS continues. (393)
21. The TSA and the Congress must give priority attention to improving the ability of screening checkpoints to detect explosives on passengers. (393)
22. As the President determines the guidelines for information sharing among government agencies and by those agencies with the private sector, he should safeguard the privacy of individuals about whom information is shared. (394)
23. The burden of proof for retaining a particular governmental power should be on the executive, to explain (a) that the power actually materially enhances security and (b) that there is adequate supervision of the executive’s use of the powers to ensure protection of civil liberties. If the power is granted, there must be adequate guidelines and oversight to properly confine its use. (394-5)
24. There should be a board within the executive branch to oversee adherence to the guidelines we recommend and the commitment the government makes to defend our civil liberties. (395)
25. Homeland security assistance should be based strictly on an assessment of risks and vulnerabilities. Now, in 2004, Washington, D.C.,and New York City are certainly at the top of any such list. We understand the contention that every state and city needs to have some minimum infrastructure for emergency response. But federal homeland security assistance should not remain a program for general revenue sharing. It should supplement state and local resources based on the risks or vulnerabilities that merit additional support. Congress should not use this money as a pork barrel. (396)
26. Emergency response agencies nationwide should adopt the Incident Command System (ICS).When multiple agencies or multiple jurisdictions are involved, they should adopt a unified command. (397)
27. Congress should support pending legislation which provides for the expedited and increased assignment of radio spectrum for public safety purposes. (397)
28. We endorse the American National Standards Institute’s recommended standard for private preparedness…. We also encourage the insurance and credit-rating industries to look closely at a company’s compliance with the ANSI standard in assessing its insurability and creditworthiness. We believe that compliance with the standard should define the standard of care owed by a company to its employees and the public for legal purposes. (398)
29. We recommend the establishment of a National Counterterrorism Center (NCTC), built on the foundation of the existing Terrorist Threat Integration Center (TTIC). Breaking the older mold of national government organization, this NCTC should be a center for joint operational planning and joint intelligence, staffed by personnel from the various agencies. (403)
30. The current position of Director of Central Intelligence should be replaced by a National Intelligence Director with two main areas of responsibility: (1) to oversee national intelligence centers on specific subjects of interest across the U.S. government and (2) to manage the national intelligence program and oversee the agencies that contribute to it. (411)
31. The CIA Director should emphasize (a) rebuilding the CIA’s analytic capabilities; (b) transforming the clandestine service by building its human intelligence capabilities; (c) developing a stronger language program, with high standards and sufficient financial incentives; (d) renewing emphasis on recruiting diversity among operations officers so they can blend more easily in foreign cities;(e) ensuring a seamless relationship between human source collection and signals collection at the operational level; and (f) stressing a better balance between unilateral and liaison operations. (415)
32. Lead responsibility for directing and executing paramilitary operations, whether clandestine or covert, should shift to the Defense Department. There it should be consolidated with the capabilities for training, direction, and execution of such operations already being developed in the Special Operations Command. (415)
33. Overall amounts of money being appropriated for national intelligence and to its component agencies should no longer be kept secret. Congress should pass a separate appropriations act for intelligence, defending the broad allocation of how these tens of billions of dollars have been assigned among the varieties of intelligence work. (416)
34. Information procedures should provide incentives for sharing, to restore a better balance between security and shared knowledge. (417) 35. The president should lead the government-wide effort to bring the major national security institutions into the information revolution. (418)
36. Congress should address [the dysfunction system of intelligence oversight].We have considered various alternatives: A joint committee on the old model of the Joint Committee on Atomic Energy is one. A single committee in each house of Congress. (420)
37. Congress should create a single, principal point of oversight and review for homeland security. Congressional leaders are best able to judge what committee should have jurisdiction over this department and its duties. But we believe that Congress does have the obligation to choose one in the House and one in the Senate, and that this committee should be a permanent standing committee with a nonpartisan staff. (421)
38. We should minimize as much as possible the disruption of national security policymaking during the change of administrations by accelerating the process for national security appointments. (422)
39. A specialized and integrated national security workforce should be established at the FBI consisting of agents, analysts, linguists, and surveillance specialists who are recruited, trained, rewarded, and retained to ensure the development of an institutional culture imbued with a deep expertise in intelligence and national security. (425-6)
40. The Department of Defense and its oversight committees should regularly assess the adequacy of Northern Command’s strategies and planning to defend the United States against military threats to the homeland. (428)
41. The Department of Homeland Security and its oversight committees should regularly assess the types of threats the country faces to determine (a) the adequacy of the government’s plans—and the progress against those plans—to protect America’s critical infrastructure and (b) the readiness of the government to respond to the threats that the United States might face. (428)

[edit] Work of commissioners after the commission ceased its functions
Months after the commission had officially issued its report and ceased its functions, Chairman Kean and other commissioners toured the country to draw attention to the recommendations of the commission for reducing the terror risk, claiming that some of their recommendations were being ignored. Co-chairs Kean and Hamilton wrote a book about the constraints they faced as commissioners titled Without Precedent: The Inside Story of the 9/11 Commission.
The book was released on August 15, 2006 and chronicles the work of Kean (Commission Chairman) and Hamilton (Commission Vice-Chairman) of the 9/11 Commission, which some consider one of the most important independent government commissions in American political history.
In the book, Kean and Hamilton charge that the 9/11 Commission was "set up to fail," and write that the commission was so frustrated with repeated misstatements by officials from The Pentagon and the Federal Aviation Administration during the investigation that it considered a separate investigation into possible obstruction of justice by Pentagon and FAA officials.[11]

[edit] See also
9/11 conspiracy theories
9/11 Commission Report
September 11, 2001 radio communications
War games in progress on September 11, 2001
[edit] References
^ a b c Lance, P. Coverup:what the government is still hiding about the war on terror. Regan Books, 2005
^ Jehl, Douglas (8 August 2005, corrected 9 August). "Four in 9/11 Plot Are Called Tied to Qaeda in '00", New York Times, Arthur Ochs Sulzberger Jr.. Retrieved on 2006-08-07.
^ Cable News Network (13 December 2002). "Kissinger resigns as head of 9/11 commission", CNN Inside Politics, Time Warner. Retrieved on 2006-08-07.
^ Shovelan, John (23 July 2004). "9/11 Commission finds 'deep institutional failings'", Australian Broadcasting Corporation. Retrieved on 2007-02-02.
^ Associated Press, Feb. 3, 2008, "Ties between White House, Sept 11 Chief", http://hosted.ap.org/dynamic/stories/S/SEPT_11_COMMISSION?SITE=CAVEN&SECTION=HOME&TEMPLATE=DEFAULT , archived at: http://www.commondreams.org/archive/2008/02/04/6826/
^ CBC News, August 21, 2006, http://www.cbc.ca/sunday/911hamilton.html
^ Eggen, Dan. "9/11 Panel Suspected Deception by Pentagon", Washington Post, 2 August 2006. Retrieved on 2007-02-02.
^ Eggen, Dan. "9/11 Panel Suspected Deception by Pentagon", Washington Post, 2 August 2006. Retrieved on 2007-02-02.
^ "Panel Study Finds That C.I.A. Withheld Tapes Mark Mazzetti", New York Times, December 21, 2007
^ CBC News, August 21, 2006, http://www.cbc.ca/sunday/911hamilton.html
^ "Book: Sept. 11 Panel Doubted Officials", Associated Press (4 August 2006). Retrieved on 2007-02-02.
[edit] Further reading
Hawala: An Informal Payment System and Its Use to Finance Terrorism, by Sebastian R. Müller (Broschiert - Dec. 2006), ISBN: ISBN-10: 3865506569, ISBN-13: 978-3865506566
Without Precedent: The Inside Story of the 9/11 Commission, by Thomas H Kean and Lee H. Hamilton (Random House, August 2006) ISBN 0-307-26377-0
The Commission: The Uncensored History of the 9/11 Investigation, by Philip Shenon (the Twelve - Jan. 2008), ISBN 0466580755
Analysis of The Commission by the Federation of American Scientists Project on Government Secrecy
[edit] External links
9/11 Commission Official Web Site
The Complete 9/11 Commission Report (7 MB PDF)
Free audio version of the 9/11 Commission report, from LibriVox.
9/11 Commission staff biographies
The full text of the 9/11 Commission Report in a searchable on-line format or downloadable eBook
Search the 9/11 Commission Report indexed by individual paragraphs
9/11 Public Discourse Project (Set up by Commission members following completion of report)
Video excerpts from the final staff report hearing
Map showing connections between Kean, Gorelick and Lehman to major corporations
Governor Tom Kean, a biography of 9/11 Commission Chairman Thomas Kean by Alvin S. Felzenberg, Rutgers University Press.
9/11 Commission Recommendations
Congressional Research Service, 9/11 Commission Recommendations: Implementation Status, Dec. 2006
Opening of The Path to 9/11 (based on the 9/11 Commission Report), ABC, September 10, 2006, including disclaimer.
Stonewalled by the C.I.A. Op-Ed piece written by Thomas Kean and Lee Hamilton in the January 2, 2008 edition of the New York Times (accessed January 2, 2008)
[edit] Critical essays, books and films
The Five Unanswered Questions About 9/11, a book by John Ridgeway, Seven Stories Press.
"9/11 Commission Report: An exercise in escapism", an article by G. Parthasarathy, The Hindu Business Line, July 30, 2004.
The 9/11 Commission Report: Omissions and Distortions, a book by David Ray Griffen.
"Whitewash as Public Service: How The 9/11 Commission Report defrauds the nation", by Benjamin DeMott, Harper's Magazine, October 2004.
"The Final Fraud", an article by Michael Kane, Fromthewilderness.com, 2004.
9/11: Press for Truth
"9/11 and the British Broadcasting Conspiracy"
"The Commission: The Uncensored History of the 9/11 Investigation", a book by Philip Shenon.
[hide]v • d • eSeptember 11 attacks

Timeline Planning · September 11, 2001 · Rest of September · October · Beyond October

Victims Casualties

Hijacked airliners Flight 11 · Flight 175 · Flight 77 · Flight 93

Sites of destruction World Trade Center · The Pentagon · Shanksville, Pennsylvania

Effects and aftermath Immediate aftermath · Airport security · Audiovisual entertainment · Closings and cancellations · Conspiracy theories · Detentions · Economic effects · Impact on popular culture · Reactions · Rumors · Local health effects · Post-9/11

Response U.S. military response · U.S. government response · Rescue and recovery effort · Financial assistance · Operation Yellow Ribbon · Memorials and services

Perpetrators Responsibility · Organizers

Miscellaneous Communication · WTC collapse · Slogans and terms · Patriot Day · Stairwell A

Inquiries U.S. Congressional Inquiry · 9/11 Commission Report · PENTTBOM Inquiry

Retrieved from "http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/9/11_Commission"
Categories: 9/11 Commission | 2002 establishments | Clinton administration controversies | George W. Bush administration controversies | United States national commissions
Hidden category: Articles needing additional references from December 2007
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/9/11_Commission

Thursday, October 30 2008 - Truth Movement News
Richard Gage, AIA, AE911Truth.org to Speak in Madrid

October 29, 2008
Richard Gage, de Arquitecto e Ingenieros por la verdad sobre el 11-S
Richard Gage, de Arquitects and Engineers for 911 truth viene al Colegio oficial de Arquitectos en Madrid :
FECHA: Viernes 7 de noviembre a las 19:00 h.
FUNDACIÓN ARQUITECTURA COAM, C/ PIAMONTE Nº 23, MADRID.
En ingles con traduccion simultanea.
Entrada gratuita
609954536 para informacion
Richard Gage, de Arquitectos e Ingenieros por la verdad sobre el 11-S.
Análisis técnica sobre el desplome de los tres edificios en Nueva York el 11 de Septiembre de 2001, Conferencia-Debate


500 Arquitectos e Ingenieros Colegiados demandan una nueva investigación del 11 de Septiembre de 2001.

"Plan por la Verdad"
Richard Gage, Tour Europeo, 2008

Hace más de siete años desde el 11 de Septiembre de 2001 y los detalles de ese horrible día están empezando a decaer en la mente del público, pero son pocos los que niegan que los cambios en política interior y exterior de todo el mundo después del 11-S sigan afectando a nuestras vidas.

read more


Thursday, October 30 2008 - Politics & 9/11

Palo Alto Weekly Coverage of 9/11 Truth Candidate


October 28, 2008

Tuesday, October 28, 2008, a press conference was held in front of the incumbent, Anna Eshoo's office, the new TV AD was shown to the only journalist, Don Kazak, who came to the conference pretty last minute event. I have known Don Kazak for years; he has written a few stories about my activism before. Here is what he wrote:

(Posted at paloaltoonline.com/news/show_story.php?id=9825)

read more


Wednesday, October 29 2008 - Truth Movement News

Scholars for 9-11 Truth & Justice Misrepresented in Draft Bill Sent to 8 House Members

http://stj911.org/press_releases/Misrepresentation.html

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact: Victoria Ashley, STJ911 committee member
Phone: 510-769-5109
Site: www.STJ911.org
Email: stj911@gmail.com

Scholars for 9-11 Truth & Justice Misrepresented in Draft Bill Sent to 8 House Members

Berkeley, CA, October 22, 2008 -- On October 18, 2008, an OpEdNews article titled, "8 House Members View Draft Bill on Independent Science/Tech Probe of WTC 1, 2, 7 Collapses," was published by four members of the group Scholars for 9/11 Truth & Justice (STJ911.org). The authors of the article and draft bill are not spokespersons for Scholars for 9/11 Truth & Justice, and therefore are individually responsible for it.

read more


Wednesday, October 29 2008 - Research/Evidence

The Facts Speak For Themselves

Thanks to www.historycommons.org, DHS, and simuvac. This is dedicated to the 9/11 Truth Movement.

Jon Gold
9/25/2008
Updated 10/29/08

Before I begin, I would like to say that theorizing about what happened on 9/11, when you're not being given answers to your questions about that day by the people who SHOULD be able to do so, is PERFECTLY normal. As is suspecting that the reason these answers aren't being given is "sinister" in nature. As Ray McGovern said, "for people to dismiss these questioners as "conspiratorial advocates", or "conspiratorial theorists"... that's completely out of line because the... The questions remain because the President who should be able to answer them, WILL NOT." When you think about everything this Administration has done in almost 8 years, the idea that they might not be giving us the answers we seek because of something "sinister" is not crazy. In fact, it's the most logical conclusion one can come to at this point. After seven plus years of obfuscation, spin, lies, and cover-ups regarding the 9/11 attacks, it is unavoidable to think that criminal complicity is the reason why.


read more


Monday, October 27 2008 - 9/11 Consequences

Sept. 11 First Responders to Visit W Va School
Congratulations to John Feal, who was given the key to the city of Buchannon. Also, if you haven't donated to The "Congress Is Shameful" 9/11 First Responder Fund-Raiser, time's a runnin' out. - Jon Gold



– Ed.


West Virginia Department of Education
October 21, 2008

BUCKHANNON, W.Va. -- John Feal, founding president of the FealGood Foundation and a demolition expert who worked at Ground Zero following the Sept. 11, 2001 terrorist attacks, will bring his message to Upshur County students and residents on Friday, Oct. 24. Feal and up to seven other first responders will meet with students at Buchannon Upshur High School beginning at 8:30 a.m. The group will meet with the community later in the day.

Feal, like 70 percent of 9/11 workers, suffers from post-9/11 illnesses. One of his feet had to be amputated after being crushed by an eight-ton steel beam. He also suffers from a respiratory syndrome called World Trade Center Cough and posttraumatic stress disorder.

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Monday, October 27 2008 - 9/11 A/V Galleries

The Assassinations of the 1960s as “Deep Events”


October 17, 2008
by Peter Dale Scott

For over two years now I have been speaking and writing about what I call deep events. I mean by deep events the traumatic and unexpected episodes that recur periodically in US history and alter it, nearly always for the worse. These deep events can never be properly analyzed or understood, because of an intelligence dimension which results in a socially imposed veil of silence, both in the government and in the Mainstream Media.

The more that I look at these deep events comparatively, ranging over the past five decades, the more similarities I see between them, and the more I understand them in the light of each other. I hope in this paper to use analogies from the murder of JFK and 9/11 to cast new light on the murders of Martin Luther King and Robert F. Kennedy.1

I began this analysis in 2006 by comparing the JFK assassination with 9/11. I drew attention to over a dozen similarities, of which today I will be focusing on only four ...

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Monday, October 27 2008 - Resources and Materials

The Made-for-TV Election, with Martin Sheen



Once again, America is at the Crossroads.

But how do we pick Presidents? The Ballot Box or the TV box?

Watch how TV writes the scripts, directs the action,
and casts winners in the most significant elections
in the last forty years -- 1980 and 2008 -- then ask yourself:

"Is this any way to pick a President?"

The Dream Ticket. The Obama Phenomenon. The October Surprise. Hillary's
Tears. The Ron Paul Fiasco. America Held Hostage. Joe the Plumber. Early Calls.
The Made-for-TV Election with Martin Sheen DVD

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Saturday, October 25 2008 - Truth Movement News

Second International Conference on 9/11 Truth - Japan


DRG arrived Japan!

with my good old friend Yumi Kikuchi who's holding the

SECOND INTERNATIONAL CONFERENCE ON 9/11 TRUTH
http://2nd911.globalpeace.jp/english.html

They're going to have lectures in Akita(up north), Kobe(near Osaka), Osaka and Nagoya(also close from Osaka) starting on 27th, and the main conference will be held in Tokyo on Monday, November 3 which is our national holiday.

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Friday, October 24 2008 - Resources and Materials

Stealing America: Vote by Vote -- A Film that Documents the Crisis in our Electoral System



A feature documentary film from Concentric Media

Watch or Download: Click here

The vote you save may be your own!

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Wednesday, October 22 2008 - Resources and Materials

End of America Movie-My America Project; Concerns about deployment of military on U.S. soil growing


"My sense of alarm comes from the clear lessons from history that, once certain checks and balances are destroyed, and once certain institutions have been intimidated, the pressures that can turn an open society into a closed one turn into direct assaults; at that point events tend to occur very rapidly, and a point comes at which there is no easy turning back to the way it used to be."
~ Naomi Wolf

The End of America: Movie and Action Campaign

"The framers of our Constitution fully understood that it can happen here. Patriots like Madison, Paine, and Franklin would certainly applaud Naomi Wolf and recognize her as a sister in their struggle."
~ Mark Crispin Miller, author of FOOLED AGAIN

Also from Naomi, October 21, 2008, Concerns about deployment of military on U.S. soil growing -- while mainstream media buries its head in the sand
The following is the spin of military spokespeople in response to questions about the deployment of the First Brigade on US soil for the first time in over 200 years.

The Army Times initially reported that the First Brigade would handle domestic crowd control and subduing 'unruly individuals' and that they had 'lethal and nonlethal technologies' to do so. Then it issued a correction declaring that the 'nonlethal' package was not for domestic crowd control. Then after a hue and cry was raised by many citizens, Northern Command (NorthCom) offered a wholesale revision of their mission – and the mainstream media is eating it up. Here is an excerpt from the articled linked to in the previous sentence ...

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Tuesday, October 21 2008 - Resources and Materials

James Gourley Published in "The Journal of Engineering Mechanics"
Introductory comments from Reprehensor, editor of 911Blogger.com:
The following article by James Gourley reports the great news that another piece has been published in a mainstream technical Journal. This follows the publication in April, 2008 in the Bentham 'Open Civil Engineering Journal' and in August, 2008 in 'The Environmentalist'. It also recounts the extra hurdles that critics of the official WTC collapse theories have to jump along the way.

– Ed.


The Journal of Engineering Mechanics has recently published a paper I authored. It can be found here, beginning on page 915: (PDF 224kb)

Normally, such a publication would be announced here at 911Blogger to let everyone know we are still making progress publishing criticisms of the official fairy tale in mainstream technical journals, in the hopes of reaching more members of the scientific and engineering community.

While I am excited this paper will be reaching new audiences, and I would like to share that fact with you, I am writing today for a different purpose.

Not much is ever written about what we go through to get these papers published. The publication of this paper is a case study in the struggles we face. I'd like to relate to you exactly what I had to go through to get this paper published, and what influences the substance of it have already had. I hesitate to reveal some of the information below, but as will become clear, the Journal of Engineering Mechanics personnel have demonstrated a complete lack of scientific ethics, and I feel like I have no choice but to publish exactly what occurred in the lead up to my paper's publication.

read more
http://www.911truth.org/



9-11 Investigation: Key 9-11 Facts And Assumptions Challenged By ...16 Dec 2006 ... 9-11 Investigation: key facts and assumptions about the 9-11 tragedy ..... But Zelikow’s 9/11 Commission report fails to mention this memo. ...
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www.nytimes.com/2008/02/04/books/04thom.html - Similar pages
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Terrorism in India
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Jump to: navigation, search
Terrorism in India can be attributed to many low intensity conflict within its borders. If terrorism can be defined as "peacetime equivalent of war crime", then these sites of low intensity conflicts are prime spots for terrorism in India. The regions with long term terrorist activities today are Jammu and Kashmir, Central India (Naxalism) and Seven Sister States (independence and autonomy movements). In the past, the Punjab insurgency led to militant activities in the Indian state of Punjab as well as the national capital Delhi (Delhi serial blasts, anti-Sikh riots). As of 2006, at least 232 of the country’s 608 districts were afflicted, at differing intensities, by various insurgent and terrorist movements. [1]

Terrorism in India has often been alleged to be sponsored by Pakistan. After most acts of terrorism in India, many journalists and politicians accuse Pakistan's intelligence agency, the Inter-Services Intelligence of playing a role. Recently, both the US and Afghanistan have accused Pakistan of carrying out terrorist acts in Afghanistan.[2]

Contents [hide]
1 Northern and Northwestern India
1.1 Bihar
1.2 Punjab
1.3 New Delhi
1.3.1 Delhi security summit
1.4 Uttar Pradesh
1.4.1 Ayodhya crisis
1.4.2 Varanasi blasts
2 Northeastern India
2.1 Nagaland
2.2 Assam
2.3 Tripura
2.4 Manipur
2.5 Mizoram
3 South India
3.1 Karnataka
3.2 Andhra Pradesh
3.3 Tamil Nadu
4 Chronology of major incidents
4.1 Indian Railways
5 References and notes
6 See also
7 Notes
8 External links



[edit] Northern and Northwestern India
[edit] Bihar
Although terrorism is not considered a major issue in the state, existence of certain groups like the CPI-ML, Peoples war, MCC,Ranvir Sena and Balbir militias is a major concern as they frequently attack local policemen and politicians. Poor governance and the law and order system in Bihar have helped increase the menace caused by the militias. The Ranvir Sena is a militia of forward caste land owners which is taking on the might of powerful Naxalites in the area. The State has witnessed many massacres by these caste groups and retaliatory action by other groups. All the militias represent interest of some caste groups. The main victims of the violence by these groups are helpless people (including women, old and children) who are killed in caste massacres. The state police is ill equipped to take on the Ak-47, AK-56 of the militants with their vintage 303 rifles. The militants have used landmines to kill ambush police parties as well. The root cause of the militant activities in the state is huge disparity among different caste groups. After Independence, land reforms were supposed to be implemented, thereby giving the low caste and the poor a share in the lands which was till then held mostly by high caste people. However, due to caste based divisive politics in the state land reforms were never implemented properly. This led to growing sense of alienation among the low caste. Communist groups like CPI-ML, MCC and People's War took advantage of this and instigated the low caste people to take up arms against establishment which was seen as a tool in the hands of rich. They started taking up lands of rich by force killing the high caste people. The high caste people resorted to use of force by forming their own army Ranvir Sena to take on the naxalites. The State witnessed a bloody period in which the groups tried to prove their supremacy by mass killings. The Police remained a mute witness to these killings as it lacked the means to take any action. However now the Ranvir Sena has significantly weakened with the arrest of its top brass. The other groups are still active. Many a times politicians use these groups for their advantage.
There have been arrests in various parts of the country, particularly those made by the Delhi and Mumbai police in the recent past, indicating that extremist/terrorist outfits have been spreading their networks in this State. There is a strong suspicion that Bihar is also being used as a transit point by the small-arms, fake currency and drug dealers entering from Nepal and terrorists reportedly infiltrating through Nepal and Bangladesh.

[edit] Punjab
During the 1970s, the Indian Green Revolution brought increased economic prosperity for the Sikh community in Punjab. This propensity kindled an age old fear in the Sikh community - that of being absorbed into the Hindu fold and led to the rise of Sikh militants. The insurgency intensified during 1980s when the movement turned violent and the name Khalistan resurfaced and sought independence from the Indian Union. Led by Jarnail Singh Bhindranwale, they began using militancy to stress on their demands. Soon things turned bloody with India alleging that neighbouring Pakistan supported these militants, who, by 1983-4, had begun to enjoy widespread support among Sikhs.
In 1984, Operation Blue Star was conducted by the Indian government to stem out the movement. It involved an assault on the Golden Temple complex, which Sant Bhindranwale had fortifed in preparation of an army assault. Indira Gandhi, India's then prime minister, ordered the military to storm the temple, who eventually had to use tanks, helicopter gunships, artillery and chemical weapons. After a seventy-four-hour firefight, the army successfully took control of the temple. In doing so, it completely damaged some portions of the Akal Takht, the Sikh Reference Library and some damaged to the Golden Temple itself. According to Indian government sources, eighty-three army personnel were killed and 249 injured. Militant casualties were 493 killed and eighty-six injured.
During same year, the assassination of Indira Gandhi by two Sikh bodyguards, believed to be driven by the Golden Temple affair, resulted in widespread anti-Sikh riots, especially in New Delhi. Following Operation Black Thunder in 1988, Punjab Police, first under Julio Ribeiro and then under KPS Gill, together with the Indian Army eventually succeeded in pushing the movement underground.
In 1985, Sikh terrorists bombed an Air India flight from Canada to India, killing all 329 people on board Air India Flight 182. It is the worst terrorist act in Canada's history. The Pakistani government is suspected to have played a part in the bombing.
The ending of overt Sikh militancy in 1993 led to a period of relative calm, punctuated by militant acts (i.e. the assassination of Punjab CM, Beant Singh in 1995) attributed to half a dozen or so operating Sikh militant organisations. These organisations include Babbar Khalsa International, Khalistan Commando Force, Khalistan Liberation Force and Khalistan Zindabad Force.
Support for Khalistan is still widespread among Sikh communities in Canada and the United Kingdom.

[edit] New Delhi
Main article: 29 October 2005 Delhi bombings
Three explosions went off in the Indian capital of New Delhi on October 29, 2005 (two days before the Hindu festival of Diwali ) which killed more than 60 people and injured at least 200 others. The high number of casualties made the bombings the deadliest attack in India of 2005.It was followed by 5 bomb blasts on 13th September 2008.

[edit] Delhi security summit
Main article: 2007 Delhi security summit
The Delhi summit on security took place on February 14, 2007 with the foreign ministers of China, India, and Russia meeting in Hyderabad House, Delhi, India to discuss terrorism, drug trafficking, reform of the United Nations, and the security situations in Afghanistan, Iran, Iraq, and North Korea.[3][4]
The Indian Foreign Ministry released a statement on behalf of all three governments saying, "We shared our thoughts on the political, economic and security aspects of the global situation, the present world order and recent developments in various areas of mutual concern. We agreed that co-operation rather than confrontation should govern approaches to regional and global affairs. There was coincidence of views against terrorism in all its forms and manifestations and on the need to address financing of terrorism and its linkages with narco-trafficking."[3]

[edit] Uttar Pradesh
[edit] Ayodhya crisis
Main article: 2005 Ram Janmabhoomi attack in Ayodhya
The long simmering Ayodhya crisis finally culminated in a terrorist attack on the site of the 16th century Babri Masjid -Ram Janmabhoomi Hindu temple in Ayodhya on July 5, 2005. Following the two-hour gunfight between Lashkar-e-Toiba terrorists based in Pakistan and Indian police, in which six terrorists were killed, opposition parties called for a nationwide strike with the country's leaders condemning the attack, believed to have been masterminded by Dawood Ibrahim.

[edit] Varanasi blasts
Main article: 2006 Varanasi bombings
A series of blasts occurred across the Hindu holy city of Varanasi on 7 March 2006. Fifteen people are reported to have been killed and as many as 101 others were injured. No-one has accepted responsibility for the attacks, but it is speculated that the bombings were carried out in retaliation of the arrest of a Lashkar-e-Toiba agent in Varanasi earlier in February 2006. On April 5, 2006 the Indian police arrested six Islamic militants, including a cleric who helped plan bomb blasts. The cleric is believed to be a commander of a banned Bangladeshi Islamic militant group, Harkatul Jihad-al Islami and is linked to the Inter-Services Intelligence, the Pakistani spy agency.[5]

[edit] Northeastern India
Northeastern India consists 7 states (also known as the seven sisters): Assam, Meghalaya, Tripura, Arunachal Pradesh, Mizoram, Manipur, and Nagaland. Tensions exists between these states and the central government as well as amongst the tribal people, who are natives of these states, and migrant peoples from other parts of India. The states have accused New Delhi of ignoring the issues concerning them. It is this feeling which has led the natives of these states to seek greater participation in self-governance. There are existing territorial disputes between Manipur and Nagaland. There is a rise of insurgent activities and regional movements in the northeast, especially in the states of Assam, Nagaland, Mizoram and Tripura. Most of these organizations demand independent state status or increased regional autonomy and sovereignty. Many of these are said to be China sponsored.

[edit] Nagaland
The first and perhaps the most significant insurgency was in Nagaland from the early 1950s until it was finally quelled in the early 1980s through a mixture of repression and co-optation. The National Socialist Council of Nagaland-Isak-Muivah (NSCN-IM), demands an independent Nagaland and has carried out several attacks on Indian military installations in the region. According to government officials, 599 civilians, 235 security forces and 862 terrorists have lost their lives between 1992 and 2000.
On June 14, 2001, a cease-fire agreement was signed between the Government of India and the NSCN-IM which had received widespread approval and support in Nagaland. Terrorist outfits such as the Naga National Council-Federal (NNC-F) and the National Council of Nagaland-Khaplang (NSCN-K) also welcomed the development. Certain neighbouring states, especially Manipur, raised serious concerns over the cease-fire. They feared that NSCN would continue insurgent activities in its state and demanded New Delhi scrap the ceasefire deal and renew military action. Despite the cease-fire the NSCN has continued its insurgency[citation needed].

[edit] Assam
Organizations listed as terrorist groups by India
Northeastern India
National Socialist Council of Nagaland-Isak-Muivah (NSCN-IM)
Naga National Council-Federal (NNCF)
National Council of Nagaland-Khaplang
United Liberation Front of Asom
People's Liberation Army
Kanglei Yawol Kanna Lup (KYKL)
Zomi Revolutionary Front

North India
Babbar Khalsa
Bhindranwala Tigers Force of Khalistan
Communist Party of India (Maoist)
Dashmesh Regiment
International Sikh Youth Federation (ISYF)
Kamagata Maru Dal of Khalistan
Khalistan Armed Force
Khalistan Liberation Force
Khalistan Commando Force
Khalistan Liberation Army
Khalistan Liberation Front
Khalistan Liberation Organisation
Khalistan National Army
Khalistan Guerilla Force
Khalistan Security Force
Khalistan Zindabad Force
Shaheed Khalsa Force

Kashmir
Lashkar-e-Toiba
Jaish-e-Mohammed
Hizbul Mujahideen
Harkat-ul-Mujahideen
Farzandan-e-Milat
United Jihad Council
Al-Qaeda
Student Islamic movement of india
Central India
People's war group
Balbir militias
Naxals
Ranvir Sena
v • d • e
After Nagaland, Assam is the most volatile state in the region. Beginning 1979, the indigenous people of Assam demanded that the illegal immigrants who had emigrated from Bangladesh to Assam be detected and deported. The movement lead by All Assam Students Union began non-violently with satyagraha, boycotts, picketing and courting arrests. Those protesting frequently came under police action. In 1983 an election was conducted which was opposed by the movement leaders. The election lead to widespread violence. The movement finally ended after the movement leaders signed an agreement (called Assam Accord) with the central government in August 15, 1985. Under the provisions of this accord, anyone who entered the state illegally between January 1966 and March 1971 were allowed to remain but were disenfranchised for ten years, while those who entered after 1971 faced expulsion. A November 1985 amendment to the Indian citizenship law allows non citizens who entered Assam between 1961 and 1971 to have all the rights of citizenship except the right to vote for a period of ten years. New Delhi also gave special administration autonomy to the Bodos in the state. However, the Bodos demanded for a separate Bodoland which led to a clash between the Bengalis, the Bodos and the Indian military resulting in hundreds of deaths.
There are several organizations which advocate the independence of Assam. The most prominent of which is the ULFA (United Liberation Front of Assam). Formed in 1971, the ULFA has two main goals, the independence of Assam and the establishment of a socialist government. The ULFA has carried out several terrorist attacks in the region targeting the Indian Military and non-combatants. The group assassinates political opponents, attacks police and other security forces, blasts railroad tracks, and attacks other infrastructure facilities. The ULFA is believed to have strong links with Nationalist Socialist Council of Nagaland (NSCN), Maoists and the Naxalites. It is also believed that they carry out most of their operations from the Kingdom of Bhutan. Because of ULFA's increased visibility, the Indian government outlawed the group in 1986 and declared Assam a troubled area. Under pressure from New Delhi, Bhutan carried a massive operation to drive out the ULFA militants from its territory. Backed by the Indian Army, Thimphu was successful in killing more than a thousand terrorists and extraditing many more to India while sustaining only 120 casualties. The Indian military undertook several successful operations aimed at countering future ULFA terrorist attacks, but the ULFA continues to be active in the region. In 2004, the ULFA targeted a public school in Assam killing 19 children and 5 adults.
Assam remains the only state in the northeast where terrorism is still a major issue. The Indian Military was successful in dismantling terrorist outfits in other areas, but have been criticized by human rights groups for allegedly using harsh methods when dealing with terrorists.
On September 18, 2005, a soldier was killed in Jiribam, Manipur, near the Manipur-Assam border by members of the ULFA.

[edit] Tripura
Tripura witnessed a surge in terrorist activities in the 1990s. New Delhi blamed Bangladesh for providing a safe haven to the insurgents operating from its territory. The area under control of the Tripura Tribal Areas Autonomous District Council was increased after a tripartite agreement between New Delhi, the state government of Tripura, and the Council. The government has since been brought the movement under control though certain rebellious factions still linger.

[edit] Manipur
In Manipur, militants formed an organization known as the People's Liberation Army. Their main goal was to unite the Meitei tribes of Burma and establish an independent state of Manipur. However, the movement was thought to have been suppressed after a fierce clash with Indian security forces in the mid 1990s.
On September 18, 2005, six separatist rebels were killed in fighting between Zomi Revolutionary Army and Zomi Revolutionary Front in the Churachandpur District.
On September 20, 2005, 14 Indian soldiers were ambushed and killed by 20 rebels from the Kanglei Yawol Kanna Lup (KYKL) terrorist organization, armed with AK-56 rifles, in the village of Nariang, 22 miles southwest of Manipur's capital Imphal. "Unidentified rebels using automatic weapons ambushed a road patrol of the army's Gorkha Rifles killing eight on the spot," said a spokesman for the Indian government.
On June 9, 2007, Eleven people have been killed[6] Eleven people have been killed in Moreh near the border with Myanmar.
Trouble started on Saturday after local residents recovered the bodies of five Kuki tribespeople with bullet wounds.
Angry Kukis attacked the local police station, where the bodies were kept, and razed several houses belonging to the rival Meitie ethnic group. Later in the evening, police recovered the bodies of six Meitie fishermen.
Currently there are 19 separate rebel groups operating in Manipur.

[edit] Mizoram
The Mizo National Front fought for over 2 decades with the Indian Military in an effort to gain independence. As in neighbouring states the insurgency was quelled by force.

[edit] South India
[edit] Karnataka
Karnataka is considerably less affected by terrorism in spite of having many places of historical importance and the IT hub of India, Bangalore. However, recently Naxal activity has been increasing in the Western Ghats. Also, a few attacks have occurred, major ones including an attack on IISc on 28th December 2005 and serial blasts in Bangalore on 26th July 2008.

[edit] Andhra Pradesh
Andhra Pradesh is one of the few southern states affected by terrorism, although of a far different kind and on a much smaller scale. The terrorism in Andhra Pradesh stems from the People's War Group or PWG, popularly known as Naxalites. The 'PWG, has been operating in India for over two decades with most of its operations in the Telangana region in Andhra Pradesh. The group is also active in Orissa and Bihar. Unlike the Kashmiri insurgents and ULFA, PWG is a Maoist terrorist organisation and labor rights is one of its primary goals. These idelogical extremists aim to create equality in the society by attacking the rich and powerful landlords. Having failed to capture popular support in the elections, they resorted to violence as a means to voice their opinions. The group targets Indian Police, multinational companies, landlords and other influential institutions in the name of the rights of landless labor. PWG has also targeted senior government officials, including the attempted assassination of former Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister Chandrababu Naidu. It reportedly has a strength of 800 to 1,000 well armed militiants and is believed to have close links with the Maoists in Nepal and the LTTE of Sri Lanka. According to the Indian government, on an average, more than 60 civilians, 60 naxal rebels and a dozen policemen are killed every year because of PWG led insurgency. Currently the ban on the Naxalites has been lifted in the state which has led to a drastic drop in killings.

[edit] Tamil Nadu
Tamil Nadu had LTTE Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam militants operating in state Tamil Nadu up until the assassination of former Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi. LTTE had given many speeches in state Tamil Nadu led by TamilSelvan and other Eelam members. LTTE leader Velupillai Prabhakaran has carried out speeches in Tamil Nadu as well. Tamil Tigers have been receiving many donations and support from India. Tamils have been supplying oil, money, hazardous materials etc ... to Tamil militants as well.
The following are Listed Terrorist Organizations banned in India
Black Tigers
Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam
Tamil Tigers
and major listed incidents
Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi
Central Bank Bombing in 1996
Coimbatore bomb blasts, Feb 14 1998 Car bomb in Dindivanam 4 April 2007

[edit] Chronology of major incidents
[show]v • d • eTerrorism in India since 2001

Indian Parliament attack – Srinagar – Mumbai 2003 – Ayodhya – Delhi 2005 – Varanasi – Jama Masjid – Mumbai 2006 – Malegaon – Samjhauta Express – Mecca Masjid – Hyderabad – Uttar Pradesh – Jaipur – Bangalore – Ahmedabad – 1st Delhi 2008 – 2nd Delhi 2008 – Western India – Agartala – Imphal – Assam

Status of major terror incidents
Incident Fatalities Status of the case (Arrests made/ Cracked/ Verdict given)
March 12, 1993 - Bombay bombings, 257 deaths. Verdict given
February 14, 1998 - Coimbatore bombings 46 deaths. Verdict given
October 1, 2001 - Terrorists attack Jammu-Kashmir assembly complex killing about 35. unknown
December 13, 2001 - Attack on the parliament complex in New Delhi 7 deaths. Verdict given
September 24, 2002 - Terrorists attack the Akshardham temple in Gujarat killing 31. unknown
March 13, 2003 - A terrorist bomb attack on a commuter train in Mumbai kills 11 people.[7] 11 deaths unknown
May 14, 2003 - Terrorists attack an army camp near Jammu, killing more than 30, including women and children. 30 deaths unknown
August 25, 2003 - Simultaneous car bombs in Mumbai 52 deaths unknown
August 15, 2004 - Bomb explodes in Assam, killing 16 people, mostly school children. 16 deaths unknown
July 5, 2005 - Shri Ram Janmabhoomi attack in Ayodhya 0 deaths unknown
October 29, 2005 - Three powerful serial blasts in New Delhi at different places just two days before Hindu festival Deepawali[8]. About 70 people died in this incident. 70 deaths unknown
March 7, 2006 - At least 21 people killed in three synchronized terrorist attacks in Varanasi in Shri Sankatmochan Mandir and Varanasi Cantonment Railway Station. 21 deaths unknown
July 11, 2006 - At least 200 people killed in a series of 7 train bombing during the evening rush hour near Mumbai. more than 200 deaths. unknown
September 8, 2006 - at least 37 people killed and 125 injured in a series of bomb blasts in the vicinity of a mosque in Malegaon, Maharashtra 37 deaths. unknown
May 18, 2007 - at least 13 people were killed, including 4 killed by the Indian police in the rioting that followed, in the bombing at Mecca Masjid, Hyderabad that took place during the Friday prayers. 13 deaths unknown
August 25, 2007 - at least 42 people were killed in two blasts in Hyderabad's Lumbini park and a restaurant. The police reportedly managed to find and defuse another bomb in the same area. 42 deaths unknown
May 13, 2008 - at least 63 were killed in 9 bomb blasts along 6 areas in Jaipur. 63 deaths unknown
July 25, 2008 - at least 2 were killed and 20 injured in 8 low intensity bomb blasts in Bangalore. 2 deaths arrests have been made
July 26, 2008 - 56 were killed and over 110 injured in 17 serial bomb blasts in Ahmedabad. 29 deaths arrests have been made
September 13, 2008 - at least 15 were killed and over 110 injured in 5 bomb blasts in Delhi markets. 21 deaths. unknown
September 27, 2008 - 1 killed and at least 17 injured in bombings at Mehrauli area 2 bomb blasts in Delhi flower market. 1 death. unknown
September 29, 2008 - 10 killed and 80 in bombings in Maharashtra and Gujarat bomb blasts. 10 deaths. unknown
October 1, 2008 - 0-4 killed and up to 100 injured in Agartala bombing. 4 deaths. unknown
October 21, 2008 - 17 killed and at least 40 injured in Imphal bomb blast. 17 deaths. unknown
October 30, 2008 - 45+ killed and at least 300 injured in Assam bomb blast. 77 deaths. unknown-

To date, at least 666 people have been killed in terror strikes in India since 2001.
[edit] Indian Railways
India has hundreds of thousands of miles of railway track, and over 14,000 trains criss-cross the country every day. These are tempting targets for many of the groups described above, and attacks on trains, whether direct assaults, bombings or deliberate derailing through sabotage are common. Some are listed below.
Brahmaputra Mail train bombing - 1997
Kurnool train crash - 2002
Rafiganj rail disaster - 2002
Godhra Train Burning - 27 February 2002
Jaunpur train bombing - 2005
Bombay Suburb Train Blasts - 11 July 2006
Samjhauta Express bombings - 18 February 2007
[edit] References and notes
^ India Assessment – 2007
^ http://www.hindustantimes.com/StoryPage/StoryPage.aspx?sectionName=&id=faf54bd2-af68-4655-a747-28f7d1fc5cfa&&Headline=%E2%80%98Pak+the+problem%2c+not+the+solution%E2%80%99&strParent=strParentID
^ a b 'Big three' hold key Delhi talks BBC News
^ Foreign Ministers of India, China, Russia meet to take forward strategic ties New Kerala
^ [1][dead link]
^ [2][dead link]
^ TIMELINE: Major terrorist attacks in India since 2003
^ 55 killed in three blasts in Delhi
[edit] See also
Operation Blue Star
Terrorism in Kashmir
Naxalites
Lashkar-e-Toiba
Bombay Blasts
Islamic terrorism
Communalism (South Asia)
[edit] Notes
^ "Sleeping over security". (26 August - 8 Sep) Business and Economy, p 38


[edit] External links
Database of terrorist incidents in India (January 2000 to July 2006)
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Terrorism_in_India
Terrorism in India: Where the problem lies?
Terrorism in India has grown to a great extent in the last two decades. But the government is still lagging behind in implementing strong and adequate measures to combat terrorist activities. Common men should also come forward to curb this menace..
CJ: Dhananjay Tripathi , 16 May 2008 Views:5028 Comments:6
PINK CITY turned red on May 13 by the terrorist strike, killing more than 70 persons (as per government report) and leaving more than double the number as injured. The terrorist attack on the Pink City is not only an attack on humanity, but once again terrorist groups have proved that they do not have any ideology, except spreading violence and terror and they have no other cause but to harm humanity.

Religions do not give permission of mindless killing of innocent people, and those who are indulging in such activities have nothing to do with any religion. Nothing can be achieved by making humanity to bleed, and those who swear by the name of political goal are nothing but inhuman and should be treated in a very strong manner. No stone should be left unturned to bring these enemies of humanity to book.

Huji, which is a suspected terrorist outfit in the Jaipur attack, drew inspiration from Osama Bin Laden and established with the assistance of Bin Laden’s International Islamic Front (IIF) in 1992. Earlier Harkat-ul-jehad-al-Islami (HujI) and Harkat-ul-

Mujahedeen (HuM) were under the single banner of Harkat-ul-Ansar (HuA). The United States (US) department put HuA under the list of international terrorist organisation as this group kidnapped some European and American tourists from Kashmir in early 1990s. Afterwards, HuA was splinted into two groups, HujI and HuM.

Presently, both are involved in terrorist activities in Kashmir Valley and in Pakistan. In Bangladesh, HuA works as HujI-Bangladesh. The primary objective of HujI is to establish Isalmic Hukumat in Bangladesh (Islamic Rule) and they have a close connection with Taliban. They get assistance from Osama Bin Laden and major part of funding comes to them from Laden’s IIF. According to the available report of Bangladesh CID Police of 1999, IIF has sanctioned some 0.40 million US dollars to HujI for recruitment and training of cadres. The strength of Huji-Bangladesh can be estimated by the fact that it provides largest number of cadre to fight in Afghanistan from outside Afghanistan.

The blasts in Jaipur also reveal many things, which in the past have been considered by our government but never been implemented at a serious level. India is facing the problem of terrorism from last two decades, but still we failed to zero it on. The intelligence gathering in India is not at all satisfactory. It has never come to notice that security agencies have unearthed any mission of terrorists except in our Bolloywood movies. From Parliament to Judiciary, everything in this nation is targetted and we swung into action after strike takes place and then get relax for another to happen. At national level, there is a need of a high-level anti-terrorist squad, which should have its branch in every state. Not making a serious allegation, but intelligence system of our nation requires a proper overhauling.

There is also a need for a trained group/task force for handling the situation, which arises after such blasts and strikes. It must consist of security personnel, doctors, nurses, and they should always be on alert. Life can be saved if we have an expert team, rushing at the site of blast to assist the victims. In the Jaipur blasts, we have seen how lack of blood is standing between life and death of many who are injured. This is a pathetic situation, although many people donate blood, but why things are not in order despite of the fact that India is a nation where at any time such strike can take place? We are well aware of this reality but still we have no emergency plan at national level. This team can make a difference in handling grim situations and government must think over it.

It is also necessary to have a centralised system of information gathering and disbursement. There is a need for one or two toll free phone numbers, which any body can take information from about victims after such strike or in the case of natural calamity. It is far from understanding that why until date government has not thought of such a mechanism for a country like India, which is not only big in geographical term, but has vast population and diversity in the terms of languages as well. It is also necessary that if anybody has any suspicion then he or she can call a toll free number and can share the information with the government. No such method is available. Even if someone finds something suspicious, he chooses to remain quiet, as majority do not want to deal with local ’khaki’ clad. Government must provide an option to those who want to share any information without being harassed. Unfortunately as of now, no such thing exists in our nation.

Fighting with terrorism should not only be the duty of government and role of civilians, and civil society is equally significant. Firstly, strong movement is required against all fundamentalist ideologies. We have seen how Hindu fundamentalists went on rampage during the Gujarat riots that needed to be opposed in a strong way. Secondly, unity in diversity should be encouraged at all possible levels. Still demagogue like Raj Thackerray are openly spitting venom and encouraging violence act against fellow human beings. This is a known reality that many of those who are targetted by Raj’s hooligan cadres are from minority community. These regional chauvinists are the real adversary of ‘one India’. No scope should be given to these hate-preachers in our country. Some reports indicate that HujI got good recruits from post riots in Gujarat.
Other Articles by Dhananjay Tripathi
PM's US visit: Some questions
Indian Mujahadeen: A dangerous trend for India
It’s time we banned the VHP
The Singur fiasco: Who would ultimately win?
Politics of terrorism begins after blasts
more >> Many times, it is noticed that police randomly pick people from minority community on false charges, this need to be condemned and should be avoided at any cost. This is the third point that no Indian citizen should feel insecure just for belonging to any religion, caste, or sect. The spirit of secularism and unity in diversity must be championed by all and sundry. Lastly, we must also be attentive and be more alert and should never hesitate in informing the police of any suspicion (although a centralised system is necessary). We should reject all type of fundamentalist attitude and approach and must tell them that enough is enough, and hate-mongers do not have any place in this nation.

Finally, I want to pay my sincere homage to all those who had lost their lives in this blast. I express my deepest condolences to the family and friends of the victims, and want to assure them that they are not alone, this entire nation is equally depressed at the loss of lives. Put a brave face against the enemies of humanity and do not let them succeed in their motive of terrorising us.http://www.merinews.com/catFull.jsp?articleID=134107
India fears the dawn of Hindutva terror
By Siddharth Srivastava
NEW DELHI - Hindus linked to militant extremist groups have recently been arrested for plotting terror crimes targeted at Muslims - an as-yet unexplained, and perhaps unprecedented, incident in post-independence India.
Hindu radicalism and ultra-nationalist extremism are nothing new to Indian politics, but such right-wing activism has now taken a turn for the dangerous. Across India there is talk of the emergence of "Hindu terrorism" - specifically, a pan-India militant Hindu network set on avenging Islamic fundamentalism and jihadi terrorist attacks.
Contrary to usual assertions by Indian security agencies - that

Muslim outfits are behind most terrorist strikes - it has emerged that recent bomb blasts in India are likely the handiwork of anti-Muslim "Hindutva" groups bent on violent revenge.
These findings have shed a disturbing light on the fatal attacks on Indian Muslim worshippers and mosques over the past few years.
The word "Hindutva" has been coined for those who believe that India should follow laws and principles of the majority Hindu faith. So far, the most virulent form of Hindutva was unleashed in the state of Gujarat, where the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) chief minister Narender Modi backed deadly attacks on Muslims by Hindu rioters in which thousands died. The BJP has long been considered sympathetic to ultra-Hindu sentiment.
The new twist to the allegedly Hindu-linked terror attacks has come with last week's arrests of Hindu activists, including women, on charges of plotting to bomb and kill Muslims in at least two Indian states.
The police have arrested 36-year-old Pragya Singh Thakur, a sadhvi (ascetic) known to be closely associated with radical Hindu groups, along with two male counterparts, on charges of orchestrating powerful bomb blasts in Malegaon, in the western state of Maharashtra, and Modasa town in Gujarat.
Both attacks were directed at Muslim gatherings during the holy month of Ramadan (September). Five people were killed in Malegaon and one died in Modasa. The result has been simmering Hindu-Muslim communal tensions.
Pragya was detained in Indore, in the central Indian state of Madhya Pradesh, and is now being interrogated. Pragya's father, Chandraprakash Thakur, admitted his shame. "If she is sentenced to life imprisonment, I will neither be happy nor sad," he was quoted as saying.
Maharashtra's anti-terrorism squad has also detained five other Hindus, including four men and a woman. The men include three retired army soldiers, including one major. At least one was reportedly trained as a bomb-maker, suggesting a further link between terrorism and ex-servicemen.
Pragya and the rest are reportedly associated with radical Hindu outfits - Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP), Bajrang Dal and the Rashtriya Swayamsewak Sangh - that keep close connections with the BJP.
Investigations by Mumbai police have also raised suspicions about several Hindu radical groups' involvement in blasts in Thane, in Maharashtra state, and orchestrating riots.
Senior security officials have confirmed to Asia Times Online that given the spate of recent terror attacks, there has been a concerted effort by agencies across the country to crack down on terror elements, irrespective of religion.
Coordinated phone-tapping, an exchange of ground-level information and the cultivation of new informers is yielding results, according to reports. Recently, Delhi police apprehended a Muslim youth suspected of being involved in the September bomb attacks in the capital.
A series of recent bombings in cities across India, including Delhi, Mumbai, Bangalore, Hyderabad, Ahmedabad and Varanasi have killed and maimed thousands.
India is in the midst of an ugly phase of terror attacks in which soft targets such as crowded markets have been chosen for killing civilians.
There is also evidence that the latest Islamic terror cells are increasingly homegrown. This is due to increased security forces along India's borders with Pakistan; infiltration is down and cross-border terrorist activity has been effectively reduced.
This has led to a rise of India's own militant Muslim groups, many of which operate under the umbrella of an outfit called the Indian Mujahideen.
Militancy is also nothing new to India. Indian freedom fighters such as Bhagat Singh and Chadrashekar Azad led daring attacks on British rulers in pre-1947 colonial India. In the 1980s and 1990s, India grappled with Sikh militancy. There are also longstanding Hindu extremist outfits, such as the Ranvir Sena in Bihar, but they generally fight in caste-driven conflicts usually related to property disputes.
Maoists attacks, especially in Bihar, Uttar Pradesh and Andhra Pradesh, are also related to alleged oppression by higher castes and exploitation by landlords.
Right-wing Hindu outfits usually make the news for their strong-arm tactics against trends they consider to be un-Indian culture or in deference to the West. In the past, these acts have included punishing couples caught in public and cracking down on Valentine's Day celebrations and women adorned in revealing clothes.
Additionally, Hindu extremists have attacked cinemas featuring movies perceived to be too sexually explicit and have destroyed works by artists such as M F Hussain which the groups claim insult Hindu sentiments.
Recent bomb attacks against Muslims are a totally different matter - the result of deep-seated angst and militant philosophy. Further investigations into attacks on the Jama Masjid (mosque) in Delhi, as well as on Muslim worshippers in Hyderabad and the India-Pakistan "peace train", the Samjahauta Express, may provide more clues as to the motivation to target Muslims.
The Indian government has been rattled by the latest revelations, and leading political parties the BJP and Congress have sought to use the situation to their advantage.
Provincial elections are due in Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Rajasthan and Delhi in November. In each of these important electorates, the BJP and Congress are in a head-to-head battle that will set the tone for national elections next summer.
The BJP has been on the back foot, caught between its pro-Hindutva strategy and condemning terrorist violence.
"A terrorist is a terrorist irrespective of his religion or caste. The BJP objects to the term 'Hindu terrorists'. By condemning the majority, one seeks to gain the minority vote," said BJP vice president Yashwant Sinha.
According to a statement released by the VHP, "We see the government's hand behind this. No one uses the word 'Islamic terrorism'. This is vote-bank politics, meant to appease Muslims."
The Congress, meanwhile, sees the turmoil as an opportunity to win Muslim votes.
"I ask the BJP leadership to come clean on their links with these outfits and their activities," said Congress general secretary Digvijay Singh. "[The] Malegaon and Modasa blasts are just one example. Members of Hindu fundamentalist outfits have been making bombs in Kanpur. Indore has become the epicenter of Hindu terror. Investigations into the Samjhauta blast also revealed bombs from Indore."
Mudslinging aside, the stark reality is that terrorism in India is spreading across communal and religious lines. This trend does not auger well.
Siddharth Srivastava is a New Delhi-based journalist. He can be reached at sidsri@yahoo.com
(Copyright 2008 Asia Times Online (Holdings) Ltd. All rights reserved. Please contact us about sales, syndication and republishing.)
http://www.atimes.com/atimes/South_Asia/JJ31Df02.html
Excessive pressure from India will only be to the advantage of LTTE ”

V.S. Sambandan

The LTTE is trying to extricate itself militarily based on the “emotional outpourings in Tamil Nadu,” saysSivanesathurai Santhirakanthan



— Photo : V.S.Sambandan

An example: The Eastern Province is a great precedent as it has also created a situation in which the LTTE can be defeated, says Sivanesathurai Santhirakanthan.
Sivanesathurai Santhirakanthan (nom de guerre Pillayan), Chief Minister of Sri Lanka’s sensitive Eastern Province, is a rebel in transition. A former member of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE), he split from the group in 2004 when LTTE’s then special commander for the eastern districts of Batticaloa and Amparai, V. Muralitharan (Karuna) formed the Tamil Makkal Viduthalai Puligal (TMVP). In an exclusive interview to The Hindu, Mr. Santhirakanthan welcomed the Eastern Provincial Council elections held this May, as “an excellent practical step.” Equally important, he said, is “to strengthen the Council” and win peoples’ confidence. He is of the view that the LTTE was trying to extricate itself militarily based on the “emotional outpourings in Tamil Nadu.” Any “excessive pressure” from India when Sri Lanka is going through a “critical phase”, he said, “will only be to the advantage of the LTTE again.” Here are the excerpts from an hour-long interview held on October 22 at the Chief Minister’s Secretariat in the capital of the Eastern Province, Trincomalee.
It is 156 days since you were sworn in Chief Minister. How are these initial days?

I spent the first 150 days on administrative matters. After I took charge, we brought in changes in education and agriculture, which will come to fruition in the years ahead. Although not fully satisfied, we are confident that we can usher in reforms in administration, education and agriculture, and then progress further.
You fought for decades for a separate, unified Tamil Eelam, but now you are the first Chief Minister of a de-merged Eastern Province. What are your present views against those realities?

We started the armed struggle to solve our grievances as we lost confidence in governments. I joined the struggle for those reasons. The Tamil people lost a lot due to the armed struggle. At one stage it entered a phase in which Tamils had no prospect for development. This was also because Tamil organisations were unable to unite all Tamils for a single-minded struggle. Moreover, as some of our armed groups, particularly the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) indulged in excessive terrorism, the just demands of our people went unappreciated. At one phase, this terrorism spread to foreign soil, with the assassination of India’s Rajiv Gandhi, and as everyone points out, it became impossible to assert the rights of our people effectively.
Several issues surfaced after the ceasefire [in 2002]. The three ethnicities live in the Eastern Province [Tamils, Sinhalese, and Muslims]. If merged, a new problem, i.e., the predominance of Tamil people will increase, leading to other complications. Therefore, I consider this as an excellent practical step as it has restored some faith in the people, who are happier than they were. Adequate powers should be given to an organisation that has been fighting for 20 years to empower its people. Only by strengthening this Provincial Council, can we win peoples’ confidence and prevent them from thinking along alternative courses of action. Empowering Tamils through elections is a welcome democratic precedent. We owe a debt of gratitude for that. There can be major changes in the North, only if people see evidence of the benefits of further administrative powers in the East. This is a very good opportunity, [but] we can satisfy the Tamil people only if we utilise this properly.
You seek more powers; do you think there is a difference between the Eastern Province and the others in terms of administrative powers?

This is where the problem lies. The Provincial Councils were created to solve Tamils’ problems. The people here needed the powers. The others did not have the need for extensive powers. The other provinces also face problems. I am not saying that they do not, but the war was for powers for people in the North and the East. Isn’t this meant to solve that war? The situation is not the same as in other provinces. This is a special Provincial Council. The needs are different.
Are you confident that the trajectory is towards that end, particularly given the view that in this province where there was no democracy, but a war for nearly 30 years, and that elections were held after decades?

True, there was no democracy because of the conflict. What was the cause of the conflict? Rights. Everyone should understand that. Now as the Chief Minister, I cannot assume that the powers will come overnight. We only want powers that will enable us to implement policies that we would like to for the benefit of the people. That is all. We do not want far-reaching powers, such as secession. We can deliver to the people and win their confidence only if powers are devolved.
Can you specify the powers, and the difficulties of not having them?

For example, we have to protect the people. This is a complicated issue. Sri Lanka is at a critical phase, so is the Provincial Council system and the issue of powers to the Councils. It is against this backdrop that I have started work. At this critical point, our demands must be fair. Whether they like it or not, Sinhalese, some of them, have also come to the view that Tamils should be given powers. The political leaders have also acted favourably. They have put in place a Provincial Council, and are making efforts to devolve powers.
The LTTE is killing people, and abductions are going on. It is a complicated situation.
In this setting, if India exerts excessive pressure, and if the trajectory changes, it will only be to the advantage of the LTTE again. At the same time, if the people are affected by the military actions to tame the LTTE, it causes dissatisfaction. It should not go in favour of the LTTE. We are in a very complicated situation of determining what the alternative plan could be. I will not say that it is a very difficult situation, as there will be other ways to deal with the problem if there is larger agreement.
What do you consider as the three important powers?

Police powers are important, particularly for the eastern province. I do not deny that there are complications in implementing this. A recent decision to appoint a special DIG for the Eastern Province is a very good development. Similarly, there are very few Tamil people in the police because of the conflict. We have a great responsibility of instilling confidence in them. I acknowledge that there are practical problems, but it is a responsibility to start the process.
Regarding finance, although we have powers, the central government is implementing projects that we can implement. These are some direct powers for us under the 13th amendment. If I were to be specific, if the 13th amendment is implemented, the rest will follow, democracy will be strengthened. The people also will gain the mindset that necessary powers will have to be given and politicians will follow suit.
So is the issue of land, where there are several interlinked issues, but we do not want to make a big issue of it. If we gain confidence that issues relating to our province will not be relegated, it is a big achievement.
What do you expect as confidence-building measures?

We have the confidence; otherwise, we will certainly not be here. The very creation of the Eastern Province is a confidence-building measure. It should not end there, it is important to strengthen the Province, step-by-step, and win peoples’ satisfaction. It is important that the confidence we have is not broken.
What are the major lessons you draw from the armed struggle and political life?

In an armed struggle, we execute orders, nothing more; but in politics, particularly as Chief Minister, I will act according to the needs of the people, and perform in a way to win voters’ confidence. In the armed struggle, one thinks of destroying the opponent, but one cannot think like that in politics. One has to reach the ends politically. There is a huge difference.
The Eastern Province is cited as an example of a region that emerged from war to democracy. What is your view?

Yes. The eastern province is an example. It is welcome that those who were in an armed liberation struggle were brought into democracy. It is also a great precedent as it has also created a situation in which the LTTE can be defeated. Concurrently, there is a great responsibility for all to welcome cadres into democracy and take them forward. That is why I reiterate that it is the changes that happen here that will rapidly instil confidence among other people. If some unpleasant incidents occur here, then it will not be possible to create the required confidence among the people there [in the northern districts].
How much confidence have you gained in the present process, in percentage terms?

We are functioning at a confidence level of about 65 per cent - 70 per cent. The remaining has to come.
Do you see any link between the current military situation in northern Sri Lanka, and the recent political developments in India?

The feeling for sufferings of the Tamils is natural. The civilians there [in the northern districts] face difficulties. The changing political situation in Tamil Nadu, coupled with excessive propaganda, resulted in emotional outpourings in Tamil Nadu. The mixture of emotions and politics is what is creating this big eruption. We have to take steps to stop that. There are also diplomatic moves on this front. The LTTE is trying to escape using this opportunity. The Tamil people [in the Northern Province] should be allowed to go where they want to go. The LTTE does not let them go, and they don’t give them food. The Tamil people have to be protected.
http://www.hindu.com/2008/10/27/stories/2008102755911100.htm
Congo aid to cross into battle zoneStory Highlights
Aid groups expected to travel into rebel-held territory in DR Congo
Brown warns world cannot allow Congo to become "another Rwanda"
Four-day old cease-fire announced by the rebels seems to be holding

(CNN) -- Aid groups are expected to travel into rebel-held territory in the Democratic Republic of Congo Sunday to tend to tens of thousands of people displaced in the latest bout of rebel fighting in the east of the country.

A crowd of refugees gathesr at the entrance to a USAID center near Goma.
British Prime Minister Gordon Brown warned that the international community cannot allow Congo to become "another Rwanda" where 800,000 died during a 1994 genocide.
Western diplomats shuttled between Goma -- the scene of some of the worst fighting -- and Kigali, in neighboring Rwanda, to meet with leaders in order to get a peace process back on track.
"The immediate needs are obvious," said British Foreign Secretary David Miliband and French Foreign Minister Bernard Kouchner in a joint statement Sunday.
"We saw them yesterday. The cease-fire last Wednesday needs to be bolstered. The humanitarian needs for food, shelter, water and health care must be met through universal provision and secure routes for delivery."
A four-day old cease-fire announced by the rebels seemed to be holding Sunday. But residents, fearful of fresh violence, continue to flee their homes and overwhelm aid centers.
The latest fighting broke out on October 24 when Congolese rebels led by renegade Tutsi General Laurent Nkunda launched renewed attack in the eastern province of North Kivu.
It came days after a tenuous week-old U.N.-brokered cease-fire between rebels and government forces fell apart.
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The fighting between Nkunda's rebels and Congolese army regulars displaced thousands of civilians almost immediately, the United Nations said.
Many of the displaced fled to Goma, the capital of North Kivu, which borders Rwanda and Uganda.
Nkunda is the leader of the National Congress for the Defense of the People (CNDP). His rebel forces declared a cease-fire late Wednesday after four days of fighting.
The fighting is based on ethnic grievances.
Nkunda says he is fighting to protect his Tutsi community from attacks by Rwandan Hutu rebels.
During the 1994 genocide in Rwanda, the country's Hutu majority killed 800,000 Tutsis and moderate Hutus, according to the United Nations.
When Tutsis came to power in Rwanda, those Hutus crossed the border into Congo -- and feared returning home. They believed they would be targeted for revenge by Tutsis.
So, they remained in the jungles of eastern Congo, where they preyed on local residents .
In May 2005, it was reported that Rwandan Hutu rebels in eastern Congo carried out hundreds of summary executions, rapes, beatings and kidnappings of Congolese civilians in the province of South Kivu, according to GlobalSecurity.org.
http://edition.cnn.com/2008/WORLD/africa/11/02/congo.conflict/

BMS refutes allegations of its involvement in Malegaon blasts
Nashik (PTI): Bhonsala Military School, whose name cropped up during the investigation of September 29 Malegaon blasts for allegedly providing venue to the blasts accused for holding a meeting, has refuted allegations of its involvement in the explosions.
BMS' chief secretary Prakash Pathak in a release said that the school's name is being unnecessarily being dragged in connection with the Malegaon blasts by media giving the reference of a meeting held in the institution's premises in September.
"We had provided venue to the said organisation (name not mentioned) for the meeting as per rules after receiving a written application by it," Pathak said in the release.
The institute so far never participated in any anti-national or anti-social activities directly or indirectly and it was improper to malign image of such an institute, he said.
BMS, run by Central Hindu Military Education Society, was formed in 1937 in Nashik and has been providing military training to its students. The institute started its Nagpur branch 15 years ago.
Joined at the hips by fear of terrorism
By Kuldip Nayar, Special to Gulf News
Published: November 01, 2008, 00:01

THERE is no terror, Cassius, in your threats," Julius Caesar tells him. Pakistan could have told India the same thing at the meeting of joint anti-terror mechanism: recent bomb blasts at Malegaon and Modasa were not the doing of "Muslims from across the border."
Nor did the Pakistani delegation point it out that India had its own Hindu terrorists, led by a woman and trained by some ex-army men belonging to an old military school. The meeting, fourth in the series, was "positive", although quiet.
On the day the representatives of India and Pakistan met at New Delhi, the Prime Ministers of the two countries discussed terrorism at Beijing. Both reiterated that they were committed to working together to clamp down on terrorist forces.
"Terror is a common enemy of both India and Pakistan," said Manmohan Singh of India and Yousuf Raza Gilani of Pakistan concurred with him. The equation between the two holds promise for the future. What creates doubts in the mind is that a similar exercise was gone over more than a year ago. But it never got translated into joint anti-terror mechanism. The army dragged its feet. General Pervez Muharraf was then the army chief. However, his successor General Ashfaq Parvez Kiyani has put the end of terrorism on top of his agenda, an essential pre-requisite for any development. This may mean the end of infiltrators into India.
But if the policy has changed the reasons are not difficult to comprehend. One, the terrorists have become a menace for Pakistan itself. But the most important development is the change in the attitude of the rulers. President Asif Ali Zardari is at the helm of affairs. His approach to Pakistan's problems with India is different from that of the earlier regimes. He wants to befriend India.
Hawk
I saw this happening from close quarters when I heard the National Security Advisers of the two countries. At a small dinner given by the Pakistan High Commissioner at Delhi, they said certain things which were unbelievable. India's National Security Advisor M.K. Nayaranan admitted that he was a hawk but had come around to believe what Singh told him: "India and Pakistan were destined to be together." I do not know what transpired between the two during official meetings but Pakistan's National Security Adviser Mahmud Ali Durrani told me that the talks were more successful than he ever expected.
It looks as if the clouds of hostility that overcast India and Pakistan are thinning. Both Singh and Zardari have reached some understanding on how to fight terrorism in the two countries when they met at New York.
Both Narayanan and Durrani were asked to prepare the ground which they did at Delhi. The joint mechanism will be built on it in the days to come. It is obvious that the different agencies operating in the two countries will have to fall in line. In the next few days, the Pakistani training camps, which are a sore point with India may be dismantled.
All these measures are laudable. But they are only the means, not the end by itself. The end is normal relations between the two countries. This is not possible until both curb radicals, Hindus and Muslims, in their own territory.
India, a secular polity, is under pressure. Hindutva is gaining ground. Despite their anti-national activities, New Delhi is reluctant to take action against Hindu nationalist groups which have spread all over.
It is already a bit too late because the politics of hate is spreading as has been seen in Bihar and Maharashtra where the lumpen are fighting on the streets.
This trend is reminiscent of MQM's violence in Karachi and it is tearing apart the society in both countries and creating fear in the minds of ordinary people. How will the joint mechanism check those who have communalised terrorism in India and politicised it in Pakistan?
The entire South Asia requires a common mechanism to fight the growth of disruptive tendencies. India had kept them in check with some courage and determination. But lately it looks as if politics has taken over because of the impending elections. India cannot fail South Asia when liberal, democratic values are beginning to matter in the region.
Strong state
For that reason, Islamabad cannot afford to talk to the Taliban in the North-Western Frontier Province and the federally administered tribal area. This would look like buying peace. It makes no sense to New Delhi if the Taliban are won over for the time being. They will resume pushing their archaic thinking after having consolidated themselves.
It is a pity that Nawaz Sharif, former Prime Minister, who is all for a strong and viable Pakistan, favours a settlement with the Taliban. He should have drawn a lesson from what has happened to Asfandyar Wali Khan, the NWFP leader. He, along with his family, has taken refuge in London because the Taliban tried to kill him and threatened to eliminate the entire family. They are against any liberal thought. Nawaz Sharif's Muslim League should stand by Pakistan Peoples Party to eliminate the Taliban who have a dream to rule both Pakistan and Afghanistan. The region's dream is different.
Kuldip Nayar is a former Indian High Commissioner to the UK and a former Rajya Sabha member.
http://www.gulfnews.com/opinion/columns/world/10255903.html
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Terrorism has no religion, don’t politicise it: victims
November 2nd, 2008 - 3:59 pm ICT by IANS -
Guwahati, Nov 2 (IANS) Middle-aged Kuddus Ali and young Biplap Das are both writhing in pain and still look dazed with most part of their faces and limbs bandaged - victims of the murderous terror strikes in Assam last week.The two are lying side by side at a hospital in Guwahati - the room also shared by dozens of other blast victims, some of whom could possibly be maimed for life.
“Terrorism has no religion… we both are victims of terrorist attacks. Like me, all these people lying here suffered the pangs of the deadly explosions,” Das said seething with anger.
A deadly wave of bombings Thursday killed 77 people and wounded 300 in Guwahati, Kokrajhar, Bongaigaon and Barpeta.
Ali is equally aghast at the wave of bombings and more so as he is the only breadwinner of the family.
“I would say I am lucky to have survived the blast as I came to know later that a few other people waiting by my side were blown up into pieces. But I don’t know how I am going to support my wife and two children now,” Ali, a vegetable vendor, said with a voice choked with emotion.
But both Das and Ali are peeved at the way some political parties and leaders were trying to project the bombings on communal lines.
“We don’t want the deadly bombings to be politicised. We are the sufferers and politicians are only interested in media publicity for votes. Please ask them not to play politics at our expense,” said another injured blast victim who escaped with limb injuries.
“Terrorists are terrorists, be it Hindus or Muslims. They should be caught and hanged, but don’t communalise the terror strikes,” said Das.
Equally distraught are the legal fraternity in Assam - the blast near the Chief Judicial Magistrate’s court in Guwahati killed at least three lawyers and wounded dozens.
“We don’t want politicians to come here… we are capable of solving our own problems,” shouted an angry lawyer when Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader L.K. Advani visited the court Friday.
Advani had to make a hasty retreat from the Guwahati court. Home Minister Shivraj Patil was also forced to leave a blast site in Kokrajhar after angry locals shouted anti-government slogans.
What has irked most is Advani’s statement at a press conference in Guwahati where he said: “I know people are angry (referring to locals in Guwahati’s Ganeshguri area setting ablaze ambulances, fire tenders, and police vehicles after the blasts), but then they should not take to violence as a means to protest. There are democratic ways… let this anger remain in your heart and you can vent that anger through the ballot while voting.”
“Advani came here and sought votes while the state was bleeding,” said Congress MP from Guwahati Kirip Chaliha.
Local newspapers, too, gave bold headlines about Advani seeking votes.
Meanwhile, locals across the state are protesting against terror in various forms - lighting candles in streets and homes, musical processions playing sombre pieces on violins, and silent processions, besides some organizations calling shutdowns.

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http://www.thaindian.com/newsportal/world-news/terrorism-has-no-religion-dont-politicise-it-victims_100114140.html
Black Thursday: Saga of mindless terrorism
Guest Column
Nani Gopal Mahanta
Thursday, October 30, will go down as the most tragic day in contemporary socio-political history of Assam. Never ever had the people of Assam witnessed such ghastly acts of terrorism, which have probably claimed more than 100 lives, not to talk about the injured or wanton destruction of property.
The selection of four places for the blasts is significant as Barpeta, Kokrajhar, Bongaigoan and Guwahati represent the heterogeneous socio-political demographic mosaic of Assam. The sole purpose of the attack apparently was to rupture people’s faith in the system and create an unbridgeable gap between the Hindus and Muslims in the region.
Various disturbing questions come to the minds of the common public — who did it and why, how long would innocent people bear the brunt of mindless terrorism? Or, how long would the government give excuses for not being able to tackle the menace notwithstanding the fact that Assam is one of the worst terror-affected states for the last three decades?
Apparently, this incident has a strong connection with the serial blasts that took place in Bangalore, Ahmedabad, Jaipur and Delhi recently. The same pattern was followed here with explosions taking place within a gap of 10-15 minutes, hitting vital areas, targeting innocent civilians and breaking down the economic base of the state.
The pattern of the serial blasts, the magnitude, the precision of target, use of explosives, number of casualty, et al indicate that no local militant outfits can cause such damage on its own. Outfits like Ulfa has never targeted ethnic people in such a systematic manner. Nor does it have the teeth to hit back with such magnitude after the recent decline.
In a message forwarded to the various news channels, a group called Islamic Security Force (ISF) — a frontal group of the Indian Mujahideen (IM) has claimed responsibility for the serial blasts. Although it may be too early to form opinions on the involvement of Islamic fundamentalist forces, nevertheless, the needle of suspicion definitely falls on the jihadi forces. It is the Indian Mujahideen that claimed responsibility for the serial blasts in various parts of the country. There is a probability that the outfit planned to strike Assam in collaboration with the ISF, formed in Bodoland area in 2000.
The timing of the blasts needs to be looked into. The Indian Mujahideen seems to be very ideologically indoctrinated and bent on taking revenge for alleged injustice and wrongs committed on the Muslims in various parts of India particularly in Gujarat. The group must have been provoked to carry out subversive activities in the light of present polarisation between the indigenous communities and immigrant Muslims in Udalguri and Darrang districts where more than 60 people were killed.
However, it is also true that such an amorphous group cannot conduct such a major operation without logistical and tactical support of the local organisations. Here the involvement of Ulfa or other organisations could be vital. The serial blasts have shown the government’s total failure in tackling terrorism both in its policy and strategy.
According to eyewitnesses, it took more than 40 minutes for the fire brigade, ambulance and the police to reach the blast site in Ganeshguri. Coupled with the fact that the fire vans ran out of water only earned the wrath of the public. It’s an inexcusable crime on the part of the government for paying scant attention to the issue of disaster management. Many precious lives could have been saved had it given some serious attention to civil defence.
Terrorism of the present nature in India requires total restructuring of police, intelligence and other security forces. On top of that, the political will, which is required to tackle the menace of fundamentalism and other jihadi challenges, is sadly lacking.
http://www.telegraphindia.com/1081101/jsp/northeast/story_10047916.jsp
World: Asia
Baptist church and hostel attacked in India
Guwahati, in northeastern India, was the scene of bomb blasts that damaged a Baptist Church. The pastor was injured and his home severely damaged by terrorist attack.
Sunday, November 02, 2008By Anonymous User
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Guwahati, the gate way to the North East bore the brunt of a series of bomb blasts, with most of the casualties from the four blast that went up in the city. A dozen blasts in Guwahati, Barpeta Road and Kokrajahr have left more than 75 people dead and thousands wounded.
The Baptist Church at Guwahati the first Church in the North East which was established in 1845 was damaged and its Pastor injured in the blast. The Lewis Memorial Boys Hostel attached to the Church lost two of its inmates, one a final year B.Sc student and the other a 2nd year B.Com student.
Former Treasurer of the Council of Baptist Churches in Northeast India, Rev. M. Haokhothong, said: "Around fifteen shops belonging to the Guwahati Baptist Church in Panbazar were gutted in the fire after the blasts.
"The façade of the church building and half of the pastor's quarters were engulfed in the fire and the pastor was also injured in the explosions," Rev. Haokhothong added.
AICC Public Affairs national secretary, Dr. Sam Paul, condemned the barbaric terror strikes. "There is no place for terror in civil society. Every Indian citizen must be united to terrorism in the country." Dr. Paul also appealed to the public to maintain peace and calm and cooperate with security forces to fight terror.

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While fascism arrived in India in 1925 with Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh, it modern avatar was aroused when L.K.Advani came to the fore in Gujarat in 1990. India has not been the same since.The Catholic Bishops’ Conference of India (CBCI), the All India Christian Council and other bodies have condemned the blasts and expressed condolences to the bereaved families of death victims and injured persons.
Life is limping back, however the shadow of fear hangs at every corner and crick of the city with citizens fearing to venture out, and even if they do so there is an eerie they might not get back.
http://www.speroforum.com/site/article.asp?idCategory=33&idsub=122&id=16607&t=Baptist+church+and+hostel+attacked+in+India
India wishes to address all issues with Pakistan: Mukherjee





Ajay Kaul
Tehran, Nov 2 (PTI) Observing that it has been pursuing a policy of "positive and substantial" engagement with Pakistan, India today said it wishes to address all issues that have affected bilateral ties and make progress towards enhancing physical connectivity and upgradation of economic ties.
External Affairs Minister Pranab Mukherjee said here that New Delhi wanted to see peace, stability and development in Pakistan as it is in India's interest.
He, however, said terrorism is a major problem for the region as well as world and in this regard referred to the attack on Indian Embassy in Kabul in July in which five personnel of the mission, including two diplomats, lost their lives.
"In recent years, India has pursued a policy of positive and substantial engagement with Pakistan," Mukherjee said inaugurating a seminar on 'India and Iran: Ancient civilisations and modern nations' here.
"We wish to address issues that have affected our ties over the last several years," he said, adding, "we also wish to make progress in areas such as enhancement of physical connectivity and upgradation of economic ties." He said through the mechanism of the composite dialogue, the two countries have addressed a number of serious issues of bilateral interest.
On terrorism, Mukherjee said it constitutes one of the "most serious threats" to global peace.
Citing the case of Kabul Embassy attack in which 50 people, including several young Afghan girls, were also killed, he said "terrorists may claim to act on behalf of religion, but in truth they have no religion, because the essence of religions is peace and universal brotherhood, and not violence and the violation of human rights." PTI
Nepal, India agree to combat terrorism

Kantipur Report

NEW DELHI, Nov 2 - The two-day Home Secretary level talks between Nepal and India concluded here on Saturday with both sides agreeing to further activate existing mechanisms and exchange security related information to combat terrorist activities.
Both sides reviewed the implementation of the decisions taken at the previous meetings and held focused discussion on the issues relating to security, border management and training, provisioning and capacity building.
The discussions on security related issues centered on effective cooperation in combating terrorist activities including activities of insurgent groups, circulation of fake currency notes, and institutionalising the mechanism for real-time exchange of security related information between the two countries.
The 13-member Nepalese delegation was led by Dr Gobinda Prasad Kusum, Secretary at Home Ministry, while the Indian Home Secretary Madhukar Gupta led the Indian team.
Indian side had expressed serious concerns over alleged involvement of Pakistan's Inter-Services Intelligence's involvement in fake Indian currency circulation in Nepal. Nepali side, however, had stressed on the fact that all terrorist and criminal activities should be construed as terrorist activities instead of pointing finger at a certain group.
"Instead of pointing finger just at ISI we stressed that all those involved in criminal activities be treated as criminals," said Joint Secretary Mod Raj Dotel, spokesperson at Home Ministry, after the meeting.
Indian government has offered its support and cooperation in matters relating to training and strengthening of Nepal Police, Armed Police Force and other officials to help combat cross border criminal activities. It also agreed to set up a Police Academy with an estimated investment of Rs 1.5 billion in Nepal.
During the meeting, the Indian side also raised the issue of security of Indian aircrafts. Sources said Indian government has received intelligence reports that its aircraft could be hijacked from Kathmandu airport.
"They have stressed on the need of aircraft security. But we have asked them to sit for negotiations together with concerned civil aviation ministries of both countries," said Dotel.
Posted on: 2008-11-01 21:13:05 (Server Time)
http://www.kantipuronline.com/kolnews.php?&nid=165262
Are Muslims terrorists?
People with limited understanding have severely tarnished the image of Islam all over the world. Post September 11, there has been a considerable amount of prejudice against the Muslim community. That Islam is a religion of violence, is a fallacy..
CJ: Maasoom Dhillon , 2 days ago Views:422 Comments:12
THE METRO doors swished open, bringing with it the usual throng of jostling people, I singled out one man, a bearded Muslim, clad in white and carrying a black briefcase. A very inconspicuous briefcase and yet I couldn’t get my eyes off it and the man who it belonged to.
I thought and then seconds later felt deeply ashamed of myself. Though ingrained in my mind that all Muslims are not terrorists, what were the chances of this man not being one? My thoughts tumbled over each other and refused to stop until finally at the next station the man in question got off the metro. No blast took place. No bodies lay scattered. What remained was the sense of discomfiture I felt. I had just incriminated an innocent man because of his religion.
But am I entirely to be blamed for my thoughts? Haven’t Muslims become synonymous with terrorism? Newspapers and TV channels carry stories of bomb blasts all over India by people who are incidentally Muslims. So if all Muslims are not terrorists how come all terrorists are Muslims? The answer eludes me.
But what I realise now is that the average Muslim has more to worry about than I do. Not only are they subjected to prolonged security checks at metros and airports but a simple task of getting a visa also seems more like an interrogation. However, they are not only incriminated as terrorists but also end up as casualties in terror attacks. Reason? Terrorism has no religion. What a paradox!
If I had put myself in the place of the man carrying the black briefcase I would have known exactly how it felt to have people shooting suspicious ( maybe even hostile ) looks at me. He, most likely, has to face many challenges everyday and overcome many fears -- fear of being looked upon as a fanatic, fear of losing his job because of his faith, fear of becoming a casualty and the list is endless.
People with limited understanding have severely tarnished the image of Islam all over the world. Post September 11, there has been a considerable amount of prejudice against the Muslim community. Consequently, many American Muslims have denounced terrorism and have formed online forums and held rallies not only to make their voices heard but also to create awareness amongst those who see Islam as evil. That Islam is a religion of violence, is a huge misconception.
Even though Muslims are implicated for various terrorist plots, one must not judge all by the actions of a few.
NDTV reported that between 2004 -2008, more than 4000 people in India have died in terrorist attacks. Not all can be blamed on Islamic groups. What is frightening is the traces of what is known as reprisal terror. According to Mr Dileep Padgaonkar, member of National Commission for Minorities, there is virtually no control over the kind of hate speech and hate literature of many of the Hindu organizations, whether in Orissa , Karnataka or elsewhere. Most of these organizations indulge in rioting and communal violence but now they have simply gone up one notch and engaged in actual terrorism.
The level of intolerance is so high that there is a vicious circle, one kind of terrorism followed by another. Drastic measures need to be taken by the Indian government to curb terrorism rather than concentrating on what religious organization a terrorist belongs to. One should remember that when terror strikes, people of all faiths suffer.
http://www.merinews.com/catFull.jsp?articleID=145908
November 02, 2008


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Home > 2008 Issues > November 02, 2008

Appeasing terrorists will not bring unity
By OP Gupta, IFS (Retd)
All Muslims are not jehadi terrorists but all Islamic terrorists arrested so far from Indonesia to the USA are Muslims, mostly Sunnis. The Al Qaeda is a Sunni organisation claiming to derive its ideological inspiration from the Deoband Islamic seminary located in western UP, India. Abu Basher, 26-year-old, arrested in connection with the Ahmedabad blasts is a post-graduate of this Deoband madrasa.
Leftist Hindus and Indian media till recently were boasting that Indian Muslims were untouched by the Islamic terrorism taking place in the West and whatsoever Islamic terrorism was taking place in India was not being done by Indian Muslims but by non-Indian Muslims sent by Pakistan. This myth has now been exploded by arrest of dozens of Indian Muslims hailing mostly from Azamgarh.
In the year 2007 about 2300 Indians, mostly Hindus, were killed in terrorist attacks in India as against 13611, mostly Muslims were killed in Iraq, and, 4673 killed in Afghanistan. So under leadership of Manmohan Singh, India acquired the third rank in the world in 2007 on the Islamic terrorist toll list. During the last six months 47 bombings suspected to have been planned and executed by the Students Islamic Movement of India [SIMI] and its offshoot Indian Mujahideen [IM] in collaboration with the Bangladesh-based HUJI and Pakistan-based ISI and Lashkar-e-Toiba [LeT] were reported in seven major cities of India. The Islamic terrorism is no longer limited to J&K. It is now spread all over India— Agartala, Assam, Jaipur, Varanasi, Lucknow, Kanpur, Mumbai, Hyderabad, Coimbatore, Kolkata, Delhi, and Chennai. On September 26, 2008, Army killed seven Bangladeshi Harkat-ul-Jihad-al-Islam [HUJI] terrorists in Basbari, Dhubri. During the NDA regime number of such attacks was far and few which has galloped under the UPA regime.
While discussing the Islamic terrorism there are four basic facts which, we Hindus, whether rightist or leftist, should not lose sight of. Firstly, jehadi terrorism is taking place all over the world so it is not a Hindu vs. Muslim issue but it is a Muslim vs. kafirs [all non-Muslims] issue. It is not due to Hindu-Muslim divide in India though it gets aggravated by this age-old divide. Jehadi Muslims pick up local issues just to increase their local acceptability, for example, Kashmir, Ayodhya, Gujarat riots etc in India, and, ‘unholy presence of kafir Americans on holy land of Saudi Arabian peninsula’, Chechnya, Israel-Palestine etc in the Arab world. In Islamic countries like Afghanistan, Algeria, Gulf countries, Iraq, Pakistan, Saudi Arabia, Tunisia etc where there is neither the RSS nor the Bajrang Dal or the Vishwa Hindu Parishad, jehadi Muslims are conducting terrorist activities as in their eyes rulers of those Muslim countries are not “true Muslims,” or, those rulers are puppets of Christian states [such as USA]. In Pakistan Sunnis are killing Shias and vice versa.
Secondly, all Muslims are not jehadi terrorists but all Islamic terrorists arrested so far from Indonesia to the USA are Muslims, mostly Sunnis. The Al Qaeda is a Sunni organisation claiming to derive its ideological inspiration from the Deoband Islamic seminary located in western UP, India. Abu Basher, 26-year-old, arrested in connection with the Ahmedabad blasts, is a post-graduate of this Deoband madrasa and hails from Azamgarh. No wonder Al Qaeda has time and again denounced Shias as its enemy.
Thirdly, there are about 125 ayats in the Quran which some Muslims quote as Quranic sanction to wage perpetual war against kafirs, to justify violence against kafirs. The jehadis are waging jehad so as to convert the whole world into an Islamic state where nizam-e-mustafa and shariah laws shall prevail, and, where all kafirs including Marxist Hindus, pseudo-secular Hindus and other non-Muslims would have been subjugated and reduced to second class status of dhimmi with no human rights and, no free press and, where civil courts shall be subordinate to shariah courts. But there is a sizeable chunk of Muslims all over the world who do not agree with such Al Qaeda interpretation of the Quran, and they interpret the same ayats to mean waging war not against kafirs but against evils present inside one’s own mind. They interpret the same ayats for self-purification, i.e. jehad-e-al-akbari. Such Muslims are invariably denounced by jehadi or fundamentalist Muslims as ‘non-Muslims’ or ‘not true Muslims,’ and, they are, like kafirs legitimate target for killing by jehadis. Sir Syed Ahmad Khan was also declared a kafir for advocating English education to Indian Muslims. There is ‘holier than thou’ war going on within the Muslim community all over the world. In India the Hindu samaj should come forward to help moderate Muslims win their war against fundamentalist Al Qaeda types.
Fourthly, leftist Hindus and Indian media till recently were boasting that Indian Muslims were untouched by the Islamic terrorism taking place in the West and whatsoever Islamic terrorism was taking place in India was not being done by Indian Muslims but by non-Indian Muslims sent by Pakistan. This myth has now been exploded by arrest of dozens of Indian Muslims hailing mostly from Azamgarh district of eastern Uttar Pradesh. On ground of bringing Muslim youth into national mainstream lest they become easy prey to al Qaeda recruiters, the Manmohan Singh government through the 15-Point Programme, the Sachhar committee and the Rangnath Mishra Commission concocted justifications to reduce educational, employment and economic opportunities of young Hindus by 15 per cent. This reduction is applicable to all categories of Hindus including SCs, STs, OBCs and Marxists. Arrest of homegrown Indian Muslim terrorists has shattered these premises of the Congress Party.
Another argument which is advanced to justify Islamic terrorism is that Muslim youth are driven to terrorism because of lack of modern education, no stake in the system, poverty, denial, deprivation, and discrimination practiced against them in Hindu India. This myth has also got shattered as all the perpetrators of the
9/11 bombing of the World Trade Centre, New York were neither illiterate nor poor. Jehadi terrorists in EU and in UK are educated and enjoy better life standards than that prevailing in countries of their parents. Islamic terrorists arrested in India have been found to be better educated than average Indian Muslims; they are computer engineers, mechanical engineers, medical doctors, post-graduate students, MBAs and even employees of the Hindustan Aeronautics Ltd [HAL].
On October 6, 2008, Hasan Gafoor, Police Commissioner of Mumbai, briefing about arrest of 20 suspects, all Muslims, told that many were well educated and one, Mohammad Mansoor Asgar Peerbhoy was a software expert in Yahoo India at annual salary of Rs19 lakh!
On October 4, 2008, Mohammad Surti a Congressman and a former Minister in the Gujarat government was sentenced to 20 years RI along with a dozen other Muslims for organising the 1993 bomb blasts in Surat. Was Surti a poor and deprived Muslim? On October 12, 2008 Jaleel Muhammed, a general secretary of Kerala Youth Congress alleged that president of Kerala Youth Congress, T. Siddique was a SIMI mole. Does it mean that on analogy to pseudo-secular demand to ban Bajrang Dal, the Congress Party should be banned being a party of persons convicted as terrorists?
So the hard fact is that Islamic terrorists are not driven to violence against kafirs by poverty but by their religious ideology which is put into their minds by mullah while teaching them Quran mostly in madrasas whether in India or in the EU or in the USA. One should remember that many terrorists arrested in India are in their twenties.
Jehadi Muslims often cite the following Quranic verses out of many as proof to justify their brand of Islam: Surah (II.39): “And (as to) those who disbelieve in and reject My communications, they are the inmates of the fire, in it they shall abide.” Surah (III.10): “(And for) those who disbelieve, surely neither their wealth nor their children shall avail them in the least against Allah, and these it is who are the fuel of the fire.” Surah (III.12): “Say to those who disbelieve: You shall be vanquished, and driven together to hell; and evil is the resting place.” Surah (V. 33): “The punishment of those who wage war against Allah and His apostle and strive to make mischief in the land is only this, that they should be murdered or crucified or their hands and their feet should be cut off on opposite sides or they should be imprisoned; this shall be as a disgrace for them in this world, and in the hereafter they shall have a grievous chastisement.” Surah (IX.5): “So when the sacred months [Ramadhan] have passed away, then slay the idolaters wherever you find them, and take them captives and besiege them and lie in wait for them in every ambush, then if they repent and keep up prayer and pay the poor rate [zazia], leave their way free to them; surely Allah is Forgiving, Merciful.” Surah (IX.14): “Fight them; Allah will punish them by your hands and bring them to disgrace, and assist you against them and heal the hearts of a believing people.”
Mahatma Gandhi tried all along his life to bridge the Hindu-Muslim divide but he failed and all attempts made after the Partition of 1947 in this regard have so far failed because it is the following interpretation of the Quran which prohibits Muslims from befriending kafirs: Surah (III.28): “Let not the believers take the unbelievers for friends rather than believers; and whoever does this, he shall have nothing of (the guardianship of) Allah, but you should guard yourself against them, guarding carefully; and Allah makes you cautious of (retribution from) Himself; and to Allah is the eventful coming.” Surah (III.73): “And do not believe but in him who follows your religion.” Surah (al-Maida 5:51): “O ye who believe! take not the Jews and the Christians for your friends and protectors: They are but friends and protectors to each other. And he amongst you that turns to them (for friendship) is of them. Verily Allah guideth not a people unjust.” Surah (IV.144): “O you, who believe, do not take unbelievers for friends rather than the believers; do you desire that you should give to Allah a manifest proof against yourselves?”
Till such interpretations are taught in Indian madrasas how can harmony between Muslims and non-Muslims develop and prosper?
There are many ayats [3.64], [4.116], [26.213] etc which make it an unpardonable crime [shirk] to associate any other god with Allah. So when Gandhians sing ‘Ishwar Allah tero naam’, ‘Ram-rahim eik hai, naam dharao du’ and ‘Krishna-Karim eik hai, naam dharao du’, ‘Kaashi-Kabaa eik hai, naam dharao du’ etc., they irritate and annoy fundamentalist Muslims who take these songs as direct insult of the Quran. More Gandhians sing such songs more wide they make the divide. If a Hindu sings these Gandhian songs associating other gods with Allah in an Islamic country, in all probability, he will make himself vulnerable to charge of blasphemy, put behind the bars and most likely get beheaded.
The above ayats of the Quran are also interpreted to prohibit a Muslim to support a kafir vis-à-vis another Muslim; therefore, police forces all over the world find it very difficult to get information from Muslim community on Muslim suspects. This shows scriptural basis why Muslims of Hyderabad, Jamia Nagar, Delhi and Azamgarh offered non-cooperation and resistance on one pretext or the other to police actions against Islamic terrorists. This is the reason Islamic terrorists get safe sanctuary in Muslim localities as bulk of locals shall not report about them to kafir police. Therefore police has to plant human intelligence in addition to electronic ones and the field officers should be exposed to intra-Islamic polemics. This subject of intra-Islamic polemics has been covered in more details in my book Vedic Equality & Hinduism.
Here lies the relevance of sane advice of Arif Muhammad Khan [The Pioneer, October 11, 2008] that the Islamic terrorism has to be fought on ideological plane too, a new strategy has to be worked out and that, the Al Qaeda interpretations will have to be banished from India. AG Noorani, a brilliant intellectual of India, in his thought-provoking article “The Koran and Muslims” [Frontline, July14, 2006] has made a strong case for modernisation in Islam. He pleads to free the Indian Muslim community from the clutches of obscurantist mullahs and ulemas. This can be done only by dialogue and debate, not by ban, not by legislation.
In India madrasas are the main places where Muslim youngsters are exposed to the Quran. Many Islamic terrorists have been found to hail from Azamgarh which has over 300 madrasas. So the Indian state must ensure that Al Qaeda interpretations of Quran spreading hatred against kafirs are not taught there to young Indians. Spreading hatred in madrarsas against any community is violative among others of Section 153A of IPC. Imams of mosques are paid by wakf boards which, in turn, receive money from the government out of taxes collected from we Hindus so they are civil servants subject to conduct rules. Therefore we Hindus have a right as well as duty to ensure that our money is not being used to spread hatred against us or to protect persons suspected by police to be terrorists. An amount of Rs 700 crore out of taxes collected from we Hindus is earmarked for madrasas this year 2008-09.
Till the September 13, 2008 blasts in Delhi, police had not been so active in getting at terrorists except a few foot soldiers here and there mainly because Prime Minister Manmohan Singh has been cautioning IPS officers against being pro-active in fighting Islamic terrorism by preaching them to avoid profiling any minority community while fighting terrorism. Prime Minister has denied a free hand to police officers in tackling terrorism. After 9/11 attack of 2001 there has been no terrorist attack in the USA because unlike Manmohan Singh, President Bush never gave such silly sermons to US police restricting their operational freedom.
On October 14, 2008, at the National Integration Council meeting Manmohan Singh said: “At the same time it is important that in trying to counter terrorism wrong methods and means are not adopted. Any impression that any community, or sections amongst them, are being targeted, or that some kind of profiling is being attempted should be avoided. The means are as important as the ends. This is vital, as otherwise it could lead to a major polarisation of society.” Addressing the annual conference of DGPs, PM had said in November 2006: “Wherever the police and security forces have handled such situations with sensitivity, they deserve our fullest appreciation. Our police and security establishment must remain steadfast in its commitment to preserve and protect communal peace and harmony.”
By giving such sermons to desist from profiling a community, he has openly accused Indian police of profiling Muslims and thus demoralised them. By such statements Manmohan Singh has himself put the Muslim community in focus. This Manmohan advisory on one hand has given encouragement to jehadi elements, and, on the other has discouraged police officers to be pro-active. No wonder India under Manmohan Singh is perceived as a soft state. No Hindu leader of prominence has singled out the entire Muslim community for being terrorist or being unpatriotic. It is Muslim leaders and Muslim organisations who allege that the Muslim community is being targeted, that there is Muslim-bashing, etc. It is thus self goal by Muslim leaders. It is thus the Prime Minister, seekers of Muslim votes and Muslim leaders who are communalising the fight against terrorism and in the process are giving bad name to the entire Muslim community.
Smt Zubeida Qureshi, mother of Abdus Qureshi, another terror suspect has proved to have much taller stature as an Indian than Mushirul Hasan or MJ Akbar when she openly said: “Hang my son in front of me if he is guilty.” [HT, Sept 18]. Unlike Hasan and Akbar she did not argue innocence of her son till he was proven guilty by a court.
Since only Muslims are members of SIMI and IM it is simple common sense that police could arrest/detain only Muslims and only those Muslims who fall within the zone of suspicion but this has caused a great amount of anger among GP [gulamiat pasand] Hindus who keep asking, why only Muslims are being arrested, why not some Hindus are also being arrested just to “balance.” It is this sick ‘balancing psychology’ which is forcing Sitaram Yechury, Lalu Prasad Yadav, Paswan etc to ask for a ban on the Bajrang Dal and the VHP though saner advice of MK Narayanan, NSA is that doing so will not be legally sustainable.
People like Amar Singh, general secretary, Samajwadi Party, MJ Akbar, many Muslim leaders and some GP Hindus have rushed to accuse the Delhi Police of framing ‘innocent’ Muslims’. Doubts have been cast on September 19 police encounter at L-18 Batla House flat of Jamia Nagar in which police Inspector MC Sharma and two terrorists [Atif and Shahid] were killed. Some suspected to be involved in the Delhi blasts were arrested and based on their interrogation a list of 13 suspects, all Muslims was drawn up by the Delhi Police. On Sept 24 Mumbai Police arrested five suspects all Muslims hailing from Azamgarh.
The very allegation that ‘innocent Muslims’ are being framed by police shows their total ignorance of Indian legal-administrative system and is therefore deliberate mischief on their part to obstruct police investigation: firstly, because it is the judiciary which determines the innocence or guilt of the accused, not the police. Secondly, police arrests/detains only those who fall within the zone of suspicion. Those accusing police of framing innocent Muslims are thus creating gulf between different sections of people on ground of religion and, creating disaffection towards public authority [i.e. police] and thus are creating new obstructions impeding pace of police investigation. So DGPs should examine merits of booking such mischief mongers u/s 153A and 186 of IPC. To invoke Section 186 courts have held that it is sufficient if there is any act obstructing the execution [here police investigations] of any act by a public servant [(1956) 58 Bom LR 1021].
It was most unfortunate on part of Mushirul Hasan, VC, to have rushed with tax-payers’ money to defend persons suspected by police to be terrorists. If he is so interested to defend terror suspects, he ought to have resigned first and used his private money to defend them. Teachers of Jamia Milia University have unethically started collecting funds for legal defence of its students [Zia-ur-Rahman, BA(Eco) and Md Shakeel MA(Eco)] suspected by the Delhi Police to be involved in terrorism. One state organ is standing up against another state organ in fighting terrorism and, thus, the Indian State under the UPA government is a divided house. Amar Singh was quoted [October 7]: “Shoot them if they are terrorists but if they are innocent then they should be given justice.” One may ask Mr Singh, Who will decide whether they are innocent, and, who will give justice to them”? Not the police, but only the courts can decide based on evidence collected by the police. Amar Singh should know that under Indian law no convict can be shot dead by the State so he is simply fooling the people by saying “shoot them”.
Communal violence in my view erupts as accumulated pent-up anger against propaganda by missionaries and mullah against Hindu gods which they unleash with a view to preparing ground for conversions. By getting Swamiji murdered Christians have self-invited wrath of Hindus in Kandhamal and by publishing Satya Darshini in Karnataka. General body of Hindus gets angry more by running down of their religion by missionaries and mullah than by conversion per se. The NDA Chief Ministers who want to avoid the predicament of receiving letters under Article 355 in which Naveen Patnaik, Chief Minister, Orissa and BS Yeddyurappa, Chief Minister, Karnataka have landed should direct their DGPs to take firm actions against missionaries and mullahs u/s 153A and 298 of IPC as soon as they are reported to be running down Hindu gods and Hinduism. Such actions under existing laws would on one hand not allow build up of Hindu anger, and, on the other would get them rich electoral dividends.
The Administrative Reforms Commission headed by Congressman Moily has recommended adopting new tougher laws to fight terrorism but UPA ministers have been opposing new tougher laws. POTA or POTA-like new tougher laws and a federal agency to fight terrorism are the need of the hour. The UPA government has been soft on Islamic terrorists therefore those Hindu voters who wish to keep India free of such terrorism must not vote to the Congress Party, to Communist parties or to parties of Lalu Prasad Yadav, Ram Vilas Paswan, Mulayam Singh Yadav etc as Islamic terrorists enjoy their patronage. Terrorists are entering into India riding on warm shoulders of the Congress Party in Assam and the CPM in Tripura and in West Bengal.
If we Hindus want that we and our women and children should be safe in markets, on streets and in our temples we must vote out the UPA parties lock, stock and barrel in the coming elections. This is the surest way to save our children and ourselves from Islamic terrorism.
[The writer retired in the rank of Secretary to the Government of India in the Indian Foreign Service (1971 batch). He has served as Ambassador to Finland, Estonia, Jamaica, Tunisia and Tanzania and, as Consul General, Dubai and Birmingham (UK).]

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India's position on Terrorism


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Hijacking of Indian Airlines Flight IC-814


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India's contribution in combating Terrorism


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On Global Terrorism


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"Our message is loud and clear: The life of every Indian citizen under our dispensation is precious. In our fight against terrorism, we will be guided by the principle of 'Zero Tolerance'." - Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee, October 16, 1999





November 2, 2008


Statement by Mr. V. K. Nambiar, Permanent Representative, on Threats to international peace and security caused by terrorist acts at the Security Council - March 04, 2004

Statement by Mr. K. Kalavenkata Rao, Member of Parliament and member of the Indian delegation - Measures to Eliminate International Terrorism at the Sixth Committee of the 58th session of the UN General Assembly - October 15, 2003

Joint Statement of the India-US= O /> Joint Working Group on Counterterrorism - July 12, 2002

Recent terrorist attacks in Jammu & Kashmir

Terrorist attack on Indian Parliament

The Prevention of Terrorism Ordinance, 2001

Working document submitted to UN by India on the draft comprehensive convention on international terrorism

Information & Press Releases on terrorist attacks on World Trade Center & Pentagon

Prime Minister Vajpayee's address to the nation on terrorist attacks on America - September 14, 2001

Prime Minister's letter to U. S. President Bush on terrorist attacks on America - September 11, 2001

India condemns terrorist attacks on World Trade Center, New York & Pentagon, Washington, DC - September 11, 2001
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Joint U.S.-India Statement on Counter-terrorism Working Group - June 26, 2001

External Affairs Minister Jaswant Singh's statement in Parliament on Taliban's cultural vandalism - March 02, 2001

Resolution adopted by both Houses of Indian Parliament on Taliban's decree to destroy all religious statues in Afghanistan - March 02, 2001

India - U.S. Statement on Joint Working Group on Counter Terrorism - September 26, 2000


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="LEFT">Statement by the Home Minister L. K. Advani on situation in Jammu & Kashmir in Parliament - August 9, 2000


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="LEFT">The Education of a Holy Warrior - New York Times,
June 25, 2000
In a Pakistani religious school called the Haqqania madrasa, Osama bin Laden is a hero, the Taliban's leaders are famous alums and the next generation of mujahedeen is being militantly groomed. (Complete text)


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="LEFT">Countering the changing threat of International Terrorism - US National Commission on Terrorism Report - June 5, 2000


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="LEFT">Patterns of Global Terrorism: 1999 (South Asia Region) - U.S. State Department Report - May 1, 2000


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="LEFT">Joint U.S.- India Statement on Counter-terrorism Working Group - February 8, 2000
India and the United States have a shared interest in strengthening a regime to counter international terrorism. This working group is intended to enhance the effectiveness of our efforts to counter international terrorism worldwide. (Complete text)


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India identifies all five hijackers of Indian Airlines flight IC-814 - January 6, 2000
L.K. Advani, Union Home Minister, while addressing a press conference has said that the Mumbai Police have arrested four Pakistani intelligence operatives based in Mumbai, who assisted the five hijackers of the Indian Airlines plane. He further added that during interrogation of these four operatives, they have confirmed that the Indian Airlines hijack was a Pakistani intelligence operation executed with the assistance of Harkat-ul-Ansar. All five hijackers are Pakistani nationals. (Complete text)


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Measures to eliminate international terrorism - Statement by Mr. Kamalesh Sharma, Permanent Representative to the United Nations on November 16, 1999


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Press Release on Pakistan's support of cross border terrorism - November 10, 1999
India once again called upon the Pakistan to abandon their irresponsible support of cross-border terrorism. (Text)


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="LEFT">UN Security Council Resolution 1269
The Security Council unanimously adopted a resolution on October 19, 1999 unequivocally condemning all acts, methods, and practices of terrorism and calling on states to strengthen international cooperation in fighting terrorism and bringing terrorists to justice. (Complete text)

Working Group on International Terrorism: Adoption of Convention on Financing of Terrorism - Statement by India to the United Nations in New York on October 6, 1999

Working Group on International Terrorism - Statement by India to the United Nations in New York on September 27, 1999

Statement by Jaswant Singh, External Affairs Minister in the UN General Assembly - September 22, 1999
"Terrorism is a menace to which open societies are vulnerable; it becomes particularly difficult for democracies to counter when terrorists are armed, financed and backed by governments or their agencies, and benefit from the protection of state power. Cross-border terrorism, sponsored from across our borders, has taken the lives of thousands of our citizens, and ruined, those of countless others. We will counter it, as we have done over the past decades, using the methods available to a democracy. India will defeat such forces. That is both our duty and our obligation to our citizens." (Complete text)


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India signs the International Convention for the Suppression of Terrorist Bombings, 1997 - September 17, 1999
The Convention which was adopted by resolution 52/164 of the General Assembly on December 15, 1997 requires States to either prosecute or extradite those accused of terrorist bombings within their territory (Complete text)

External Affairs Minister writes to Russian Foreign Minister on terrorist activities in Dagestan - September 13, 1999

External Affairs Minister writes to the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Kyrgyz Republic, Mr. Muratbek Imanaliev on recent terrorist activities in that region - September 01, 1999

Prime Minister Vajpayee writes a letter to the President of Afghanistan - August 25, 1999
Prime Minister condemned the brutal massacre of innocent people, torching of houses, use of incendiary bombs, destruction of crops and deliberate displacement of women and children perpetrated by the Taliban forces backed by Pakistan on the people and to all Afghans. (Text of letter)

The Union Cabinet approves signing and ratification of the international convention for the Suppression of Terrorist Bombings - August 5, 1999

We must join hands to fight terrorism - Speech by Mrs. Vasundhara Raje, Minister of State for External Affairs, at the international conference "Terrorism: Threat to the 21st Century", January 11, 1999

Measures to eliminate international terrorism - Statement by Mr. Rup Chand Pal, Member of Parliament at the United Nations Sixth Committee, November 12, 1998

Profile of terrorist violence in Jammu & Kashmir

Terrorist violence in Jammu & Kashmir

Killings in terrorist violence

Kidnappings by terrorists

Criminal acts of extortion & lootings by militants

Destruction of property by militants

Recovery of weapons from militants



India: Under the terror radar

With five serial blasts rocking the nation in just ten months this year, it is crystal clear that not only the intelligence agencies have failed miserably but there is also a lack of coordination between the Centre and state government..
CJ: Biplob Ghosal , 2 days ago Views:271 Comments:1
SERIAL BLASTS in India have become inevitable and follows a deadly pattern. Even before the nation recovers from the last terror strike, renewed blasts at public places rips the nation again and what follows is the same meaningless promises of curbing terrorism by the government and the unsavory blame game of our dear politicians.
The entire nation has been in a state of shock after frequent blasts, most recently being the Assam blasts, which claimed 66 lives and left over 100 injured.

Just few months back, over 100 people were killed and several injured in serial blasts in Delhi, Jaipur, Bangalore and Ahmedabad.

Indian Mujahideen: A new name, but game is the same

The cracking of Ahmedabad blast case has also resulted in solving the mystery of Indian Mujahideen (IM), which is the hardline faction of Student Islamic Movement of India (SIMI). SIMI broke away with it in 2005 to protest against its radical stance. IM’s radical approach included declaring a full-scale war on India.

With IM entering the scenario, foreign terrorist organisations such as Harkat-ul-Jihad-al-Islami, Lashkar-e-Toiba and others are keeping a low profile.

This organisation has darkened the face of terror in India. Their innovative ideas, use of local items in making bomb rather than RDX and daring attacks in the major cities have questioned the efficacy of the country’s security system.

Today, no Muslim leader accepts that SIMI members are involved in such inhuman attacks. But irony is that no one denies that SIMI mislead some of the educated Muslim youth for vendetta against those who were unjust to Muslims.

Events like Babri Masjid demolition (1992), Mumbai riots (1993), Gujarat riots (2002) allowed SIMI to brainwash a section of angry, educated Muslim youths into retaliation.

All-India Ulema Association president Maulana Athar Ali said in an interview to a leading newspaper, “We knew the boys had religious leanings but realised their extreme way of interpreting Islam only after the demolition of the Babri Masjid.”

Nature of devices, attacks

The nature of the recent attacks has been quite different from the earlier attacks. The terrorist now have started using low intensify bombs made up of substances such as ammonium nitrate, Neogel-90, gelatin sticks, iron pellets and bolts, which are easily available in the local market.

They now attack through serial blasts, which creates more panic, as it hits almost every part of a particular city. Dustbins, cycles and tiffin boxes are being used to carry and place the bombs, which makes it very difficult for anyone to detect it.

Not only this, the terrorists attack with chilling ruthlessness. They targeted hospitals in Ahmedabad to maximise casualties - a fine example of their cold-blooded planning and execution.

Political scenario amidst blasts

After the blasts ripped apart our cities, our Prime Minister and other leaders of the ruling party came in front of the media to vehemently condemn the blast.

PM appealed for calm. Condoling the tragic loss of innocent lives in the serial blasts, Sonia called the terror attacks a "crime against humanity." These are a few words, which have been repeatedly uttered by our honourable ministers in one way or the other, after every blast. But what has been done?

After the recent Delhi blasts, it seemed that our honourable home minister Shivraj Patil is more interested in changing his outfits rather than taking some stringent action against terror or visit the blast victims.

It seems he only has words as action and that too the same oft-repeated phrases to console the nation. As blasts continue to rock the nation, he repeats this similar lines, such as after Jaipur blasts he said, “Nothing should be done, which would create hurdles and misunderstanding and is unhelpful in the work of investigating agencies.” Similarly, after Bangalore and Ahmedabad serial blasts he said, “Such acts have been trying to create panic among people of our country, but this would not deter the government from dealing with anti-national elements.”

Compensation: A protective shield for the ministers

Our ministers sanction an ex-gratia of Rs three to five lakh (depending on their generosity) to the kin of those killed in the blasts and Rs 50,000 to those seriously injured in the attacks. But these ministers forget to see, whether the compensation has reached the concerned person or it’s just lying under the files.

The victims of the 2005 Delhi blasts, which shrouded the capital in darkness during Diwali, the festival of lights are clear examples of irresponsibility of the government. The hero of the 2005 Delhi blasts - Kuldeep Singh, who risked his life to save 60 people on the DTC bus he was driving lost his eyes and was promised an ex-gratia of Rs three lakh, but the tragedy is that even after four years of the tragedy, he is still waiting for the amount. Not only him, there are many victims who are still waiting for the compensation.

The blame game of the political parties

A political blame-game erupts after each blasts with the opposition holding the ’soft, weak and apathetic’ approach of the United Progressive Alliance (UPA) government responsible for such terror acts and demanding re-introduction of the Prevention Of Terrorism Act.

The demand for the execution of Parliament attack accused Afzal Guru comes up over and over again after each blast.

The ‘Hindutva’ leader Narendra Modi demands re-introduction of the anti-terror law POTA, saying it is "the need of the hour,"while LK Advani accuses UPA of being soft on terrorism saying that UPA has such a dismal record in discharging this responsibility that it instills no confidence whatsoever. He claims that terrorists feel they have nothing to fear as long as the UPA government is in power. But is the opposition being constructive?

At a time, when there should be a political consensus on the issues related to national interests, Bhartiya Janta Party’s indulgence in attempting to cash in on the tragedy is not befitting its status as the main opposition party.

Government struggles to check rise in terror strikes

The latest terror strikes in September 2008 carry an insidious message for the Manmohan Singh led UPA government. The terrorists have shown their ability to strike at will and carry out violence in a manner that could see Congress pay a heavy political price in next year’s general election.

The government has struggled haplessly in the face of previous strikes with most of the cases still unsolved.

The ease with which the bombs are being detonated has deepened the sense of insecurity and suspicion in the country.

Other Articles by Biplob Ghosal
Mohammad Asif cleared of drug charges
Delhi Daredevils clinch the much needed win
Marsh, Sangakkara help Kings XI beat Deccan Chargers
Aarushi's murder: Crime of passion or Honour-killing?
Cracks in the fortification of CPM in West Bengal
more >>


With the government failing to make a breakthrough, there is loss of trust between communities - a natural consequence of such blasts and rising polarisation.

While some of the ministers, such as Lalu Prasad and Ram Vilas Paswan and their new friend, Mulayam Singh Yadav, try to favour SIMI, but thanks to the UPA government and the Supreme Court the fundamentalist outfit is being seen as a threat to the integrity of India, and the ban on the militant outfit has been stayed.

Self protection: Only option for the citizens

Over 650 innocent people have been killed in terror attacks in India in a span of eight years. This clearly reflects the weakness of our government in checking the terror attacks.

Thus, in such a state the last option for the public is self-policing. The citizens have to be on alert and remain cautious while going out from their places, as our security agencies and government both are sleeping. Our lack of awareness is a major reason for our plight. So, to save our own lives we need to be prepared!


http://www.merinews.com/catFull.jsp?articleID=146802


Palash Biswas



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