Spain Arrests U.S. Terror Suspect

Alleged Syrian Arms Dealer Wanted In New York Court For Supplying Colombian Rebels

(CBS/AP)  Spanish police arrested a notorious Syrian arms dealer, who has previously been accused of arming militants from Iraq to Somalia, on U.S. suspicion he supplied weapons to Colombian leftist rebels, Spanish and U.S. officials said. Two other men were arrested in Romania.

Monzer al-Kassar, a longtime resident of Spain whose past also includes allegations of drug trafficking, was arrested Thursday evening at Madrid airport after he arrived on a flight from the southern city of Malaga, the Spanish Interior Ministry said.

A U.S. official in Madrid said al-Kassar is accused of supplying weapons to the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC), a rebel army classified in the United States as a terrorist group. Two other men, Tareq Mousa al Ghazi and Luis Filipe Moreno Godoy, were arrested in a simultaneous operation in Romania, according to the official. He spoke on condition of anonymity.

The U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration called this one of their biggest fugitive cases ever — they've been chasing this al-Kassar for 30 years, CBS News reports.

The indictment makes references to al-Kassar saying that he wanted to see as many Americans killed as possible — and that he had a plan to send 1,000 people to be trained by the FARC, CBS News reports.

Al-Kassar, a wealthy 61-year-old, is also reportedly on the Iraqi government's most-wanted list for allegedly arming insurgents, and has been accused of aiding militants in many of the world's bloodiest conflicts.

He stood trial in Spain in 1995 on charges he supplied assault rifles used by Palestinian militants in the hijacking of the Italian cruise ship Achille Lauro in 1985, but was acquitted for lack of evidence.

Al-Kassar went before a Spanish judge in Madrid on Friday, and U.S. Drug Enforcement Administrator Karen Tandy planned to hold a press conference later Friday in New York to discuss the case, the U.S. official said.

There were no immediate details on extradition proceedings, though Spain and the United States do have an extradition treaty that applies in such cases.

The Spanish ministry said al-Kassar faces charges at the U.S. District Court in New York of conspiracy to provide aid and equipment to a terrorist organization, conspiracy to kill U.S. citizens and officials, conspiracy to acquire and use anti-aircraft missiles and money laundering.

The U.S. official said the men arrested in Romania face the same charges, and that Washington will also be seeking their extradition. He had no other details about them, including their nationalities.

Al-Kassar is on a most-wanted list of 41 people that the Iraqi government released in July 2006. It accuses him of arming insurgents fighting the U.S.-led occupation.

In an interview in October of last year with the British newspaper The Guardian, al-Kassar acknowledged he was friends with a key alleged figure in the Iraq insurgency who was a relative of Saddam Hussein, but insisted he knew nothing of the man's role in fighting against the U.S. occupation.

Al-Kassar said that if the charges were true and he did back the insurgency, it would be "an honor," but he denied the allegations.

"If it were true," al-Kassar told the newspaper, "you would not find me here."

He gave the interview at his palatial home in Marbella, a resort city near Malaga.

[rafterman1]

===it must be killing some of the ignorant left wingers who seem to think we started the war against Islamic terrorists.===

We've been f*cking around in the affairs of the ME for 60 years and now we are paying for that interference. The fact that you don't know this or admit to it is proof of your own ignorance.

===They drew first blood and, as they say, paybacks are a b*tch.===

Unfortunately, our meddling history with the Middle East goes back farther than Sept 11th 2001.

===A bunch of ignorant attention deficient idiots who could barely find their own state capitol in a map are trying to second guess American foreign policy===

A bunch of idiots who could barely find their own state capitol on a map are DIRECTING America's foreign policy.

===I wonder how we would have fared in World War II if we had the same mentality back then... We'd be speaking Deutsch today!===

Ah, that old chesnut, which shows your complete non-unbderstanding of history and WWII.

I love it when righties try to sound educated, as if they are using logic and analysis to back their views when all they end up actually doing is show how truely ignorant they are.

[lastdance2]

Remember this posting by "lars008"

He claimed to be a member of the military.
He gave indications he was a military officer.

In his posting : He posted a form letter.
He wanted military personnel to send to their
Congressman and Senators.

He offered up phony and fraudulent :
"DoD" Directives
Claiming these phony "DOD" directives would
protect them from any form of prosecution.

This idiot, posted this - Several times each day
Each weekend for two weeks.

Its enough, that these people have to be :
Torn away from their families, to fight a war.

Then this fool - Suckers them (unknowingly)
Into committing a criminal act.

Below - I have enclosed the statement by : "lars008"

Copy it - send it off to : Federal Investigators.
Ask for a formal investigation against : "lars008"

This idiot deserves nothing more than a one-way ticket
To the Federal Pen.
Along with a permanent position on : - "Queens Row"
__________________________________

Posted by lars008 at 03:28 AM : May 20, 2007

Appeal for Redress. Sign this Appeal.
An Appeal For Redress is an authorized means for active duty military to submit a grievance to Congress. It can be signed by Active Duty, Reserve, or National Guard military personnel.
It is authorized by DoD Directive 1325.6 and DoD Directive 7050.6.

Posted by lars008 at 03:28 AM : May 20, 2007
__________________________________


Lastdance

[feelfree1]

Related:

"Trial begins for accused CIA terrorists in Italy":

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20070608/ap_on_re_eu/italy_cia_kidnappning_2

[radiob-2009]

like%u2026 I did not have *** with that woman%u2026 hahahaha

Posted by lars008


And we all are thankful for that, we would not want you begetting children and would feel sorry for them if you did. What is the difference between you and Patriot9 or Tuckerndfw? Or are the three of you joined at the hip?

[phydeux1]

I don't mind reading someone ranting on a specific topic, but Lars here seems to be going a bit far afield and ranting on everything that's annoyed him since the salt shaker top fell off into his soup at age 6.

Sorry, but had to report that as abuse Lars.

And I'll bet this guy's defense will be "You've got the wrong guy! I'm a Syrian leprechaun! Can't you see the green hair? My lucky charms are magically delicious, and they're Halal!"

[endofempire]

Give them hell Lars... If is is true that truth often hurts, it must be killing some of the ignorant left wingers who seem to think we started the war against Islamic terrorists. They drew first blood and, as they say, paybacks are a b*tch. Many forgot how much they wanted us to go get our pound of flesh, how much they wanted us to bag us a few "**********"... But now it got too tough, and so we must turn over a new leaf, or was that change the channel? A bunch of ignorant attention deficient idiots who could barely find their own state capitol in a map are trying to second guess American foreign policy... I wonder how we would have fared in World War II if we had the same mentality back then... We'd be speaking Deutsch today!

[lars008-2009]

demonic-rats famous last words%u2026

Democrats will not disappoint
We pledge to make this the most honest, ethical, and open Congress in history. By Nancy Pelosi
http://www.csmonitor.com/2006/1114/p09s01-coop.html
typical new orleans corruption
Rep. William Jefferson pleaded not guilty Friday to charges of soliciting more than $500,000 in bribes while using his office to broker business deals in Africa.
http://apnews.myway.com/article/20070608/D8PKMVN81.html
http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2007/06/08/politics/main2902116.shtml
http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&q=Rep.+William Jefferson%2C D-La&btnG=Search

like%u2026 I did not have *** with that woman%u2026 hahahaha

[lars008-2009]

HAMAS MICKEY MOUSE SAYS
Islamic rule will benefit Christians and Jews
by Itamar Marcus and Barbara Crook - May 14, 2007
The force behind Hamas TV%u2019s controversial Mickey Mouse clone said today that his children%u2019s television program will continue to promote worldwide Islamic supremacy, for everyone's benefit, including Christians and Jews.
In a long interview on Hamas TV, Hazim Al-Sha%u2019arawi, Deputy Director of Al-Aqsa TV and one of the creators of the Hamas children%u2019s TV show Tomorrow%u2019s Pioneers, said that using the program to promote Islamic rule over other religions is actually promoting %u201Cjustice, goodness and world love.%u201D
Al-Aqsa TV and the Palestinian Authority have been under fire since PMW reported last week that Tomorrow%u2019s Pioneers was using a character named Farfur, a knockoff of Disney%u2019s Mickey Mouse character, to convey messages about Islamic supremacy as well as hatred of Jews, Israel and the U.S. Despite public statements by PA Minister of Information Mustafa Barghouti that the show would be taken off the air until it could be reviewed and revised, a new episode of the program %u2013 featuring Al-Sha%u2019arawi as one of the hosts %u2013 ran Friday.
http://pmw.org.il/bulletins_may2007.htm
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5S995NCeaUg

[nadeau4201]

News alert! Who cares what Mitt says. He also says he wants to stay in Iraq "until we win" whatever that means. I bet he wouldn't let one of his sons enlist.
He also said he was against illegally immigration and that English should be the official language, but yet he has a Spanish website. It's called pandering. He's another war *** bible thumper.

[lars008-2009]

NOW CAN WE KILL THEM???
If they can kill us, we can kill them

Qaeda warns of attacks 'worse than 9/11'
http://www.breitbart.com/article.php?id=070530102648.wuwa6k96&show_article=1

Hizbullah Deputy Sec-Gen Sheikh Naim Qassem: We Have Jurisprudent Permission to Carry Out 'Martyrdom' Operations, Fire Missiles on Israeli Civilians From Ayatollah Khomeini
http://memri.org/bin/latestnews.cgi?ID=SD154907

Switching Sides: Inside The Enemy Camp

But then in 2000, well before his arrest, something happened which would make Abas question everything he believed in: a fatwa, a religious edict, was issued by Osama bin Laden.

"It should be understood that killing Americans and Jews anywhere found are the highest act of worship and the highest form of good deeds in the eyes of Allah," Simon quotes bin Laden.

Abas and his fellow commanders were ordered to read the fatwa to their men and make sure they carried it out. The others obeyed, but Abas refused. It was his moment of truth. He firmly believed that jihad was to be fought only on the battlefield in defense of Islam; he had always been taught that the killing of civilians had nothing to do with holy war and that it was forbidden.

The fatwa justified killing non-Muslim civilians everywhere.
http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2007/05/04/60minutes/main2761108.shtml?source=RSSattr=60Minutes_2761108
Cradle-To-Grave Resistance, Lebanese-Style
http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2007/06/07/world/main2897487.shtml

[rushman71]

The hair is green because he was trying to make everyone believe he is Irish.

[bigsk8fan]

"News alert ! Mitt Romney does NOT want a permanent US troop bases in Iraq." Posted by perception5

GWB's biggest mistake was to go to Iraq. It is not very American to attack a country that did NOT attack us or plan to attack us or even aid someone who did attack us (like Al Qaeda).

GWB is a disgrace to what America stands for.

[vinepetal904]

' ... so why are naked people made to exit the trail because of what people will say (when most people can't name the vice president), while terrorists are not allowed to exit the trail because of what people will say (when most people can't even name a terrorist)? ... '

[drummer94]

The D.E.A. wanted this guy more than anyone. Drugs&money.

[rafterman1]

===Please explain what was recruiting the militants to wipe out freedom loving people prior to Bush becoming president===

Just as 9-11 was a call to arms for America, Iraq is a call to arms for people in the ME. After 9-11, military recruitment increased. Same for the terrorists after Iraq. People in the ME who would not have thought about leaving their homes to join the "jihad" were doing so after Iraq. The rational for them is, if Iraq can fall, will they be the next victim of Bush. It doesn't take a genius to figure out that cause-effect.

[rushlimpdrug]

News alert!
Terrorist may be trying to blend in with green hair. Don't fall for it!

[secundus2]

This fellow was tried (but not convicted) in connection with the "Achille Lauro" piracy/killing that occurred in the 1980's. I can't remember exactly, but I believe an American named Klinghoffer was murdered. Al-Kassar has a 30-year record of illegal arms deals; Bush did not "create" him. He is a dyed-in-the-wool enemy of the U.S.

[perception5]

News alert ! Mitt Romney does NOT want a permanent US troop bases in Iraq.

Please read:

WASHINGTON (AP)--Republican presidential hopeful Mitt Romney on Thursday rejected the Bush administration's vision of a decades-long U.S. troop presence in Iraq akin to South Korea and suggested a need for public benchmarks to gauge progress.

"Our objective would not be a Korea-type setting with 25-50,000 troops on a near permanent basis remaining in bases in Iraq," the former Massachusetts governor told the Associated Press.

"I think we would hope to turn Iraq security over to their own military and their own security forces, and if presence in the region is important for us than we have other options that are nearby," Romney said.

Mitt is the man !!

If Americans liked Ronald Reagan they are going to LOVE Mitt Romney.

He is "the person" that can represent ALL Americans...........no doubt about it.

[king77shaw]

why does W look so uncomfortable when talking about the 9/11 commission ? watch - its only a few minutes and speaks for itself.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C9AoaU7LlTk

demand the TRUTH!

[notblue]

It's really interesting how you people are able to blame the hated Bush for "new terrorists". So according to that logic if we actually fight terrorists in all the "right places" then no other new militants will be compelled to join the fight????? What a bunch of horsecrapp! Could it be possible that WHEREVER we choose to FIGHT these barbarians others will join there brothers in Jihad to try to kill the great Satan called America. Please explain what was recruiting the militants to wipe out freedom loving people prior to Bush becoming president? I'm sure the complexity of actually having to answer that question is beyond the limits of the mental midgets that blame all terror related ottrocities on Americas president.