| September 10, 2007 Edition |
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Al Qaeda's New LookLessons learned from Germany's foiled terror plot.The Weekly StandardStephen Schwartz The foiling of an Islamist terrorist plot this week in Germany is noteworthy for several reasons that may not have been obvious from the headlines. The first is the involvement of an ethnic Turk. On Tuesday, police in the German state of North Rhine-Westphalia seized three men identified as a Turk and two German converts to Islam (under German court rules, their full names were not released). While the activity of converts in terrorism is not new, the Turkish community in Germany has so far been free of the plague of religious extremism. Turkish and Kurdish immigrants to Germany and their offspring have been attracted to nationalist radicalism, but seldom to Islamic fundamentalism. They generally seek and succeed in finding a place in German society. Full Story |
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| QUOTE OF THE WEEK |
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The great use of life is to spend it for something that will outlast it. William James |
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| PROFESSIONAL ARTICLES, EDITORIALS AND OPINIONS |
One Mission at a TimeOperation Marne Huskey is taking the fight to al Qaeda in the Tigris River Valley.The Weekly StandardJeff Emanuel The steady beat of the helicopters' dual rotors could be heard long before the CH-47 "Chinooks" came into view, flying low over the concrete barriers surrounding Combat Outpost (COP) Cleary, southeast of Baghdad. The choppers, resembling a pair of flying buses, glowed ghostly green in the soldiers' night vision goggles (NVGs) as they touched down on the COP's landing zone (LZ) and lowered their ramps to accept passengers. Three platoons of soldiers (about 150 men) from the 3rd Infantry Division's Alpha Company 1-15 (call sign: "Hard Rock") quickly made their way to the rear of the two aircraft, ignoring the bits of gravel and glass that were kicked into the air and blown forcefully outward by the helicopters' massive rotor blades. Full Story Bin Laden Fights to Stay RelevantTimeRobert Baer One conclusion to draw from the new Osama bin Laden video tape is that the mastermind of 9/11 apparently is worrying about his relevance these days. And judging by the transcript, he has good reason to worry about it. Among other things, bin Laden maunders about corporations causing global warming and the Democrats failing to get the U.S. out of Iraq. Full Story The 'surge' is workingCasualties are down and security is improving in Iraq; Washington must give the strategy more time.Los Angeles TimesMax Boot As recently as a month ago, it appeared that Gen. David H. Petraeus and Ambassador Ryan Crocker would be running into a withering fusillade of rhetorical fire when they appeared on Capitol Hill to report on the progress of the "surge" in Iraq. Now that their testimony is upon us, the political environment has become, in military argot, considerably more "permissive." Full Story |
| BREAKING NEWS FOR THE PROFESSIONAL |
Anatomy of a Terror SwoopAuthorities say a spate of arrests has foiled a wave of bomb plots in Germany and Denmark. How the investigation unfolded.NewsweekMark Hosenball and Michael Levitin Until now, Medebach-Oberschledorn was best known for its hiking and biking. A tourist town in a quiet corner of North Rhine-Westphalia, its vacation homes are usually occupied by visitors enjoying its acclaimed mountain scenery. But the picturesque spot achieved less welcome notoriety this week when German authorities arrested three men to avert what German Federal Prosecutor Monika Harms called "serious and massive bombings" on targets that may have included the nearby U.S. Ramstein Air Base and the Frankfurt International Airport. Full Story Iran's Arab UnrestTrouble Along the Iraq BorderNew York PostAmir Taheri Is the Islamic Republic facing a growing revolt by Iran's Arab minority? Until a couple of years ago, the question would have sounded naive. In the '80s, Arab-Iranians fought bravely against Saddam Hussein's forces, even though they were linked to the invading Iraqis by ethnic, tribal, linguistic and religious ties going back 1,300 years. Full Story Flashpoint: No bungle in the jungleOperation Enduring Freedom-Philippines is getting resultsArmed Forces JournalPeter Brookes Whether you agree with it or not, it's likely there will be some changes to the current size and shape of U.S. forces in Iraq over the next year. For reasons from the political to the practical, the current troop surge in Iraq isn't going to last forever. So, as the politicians and policymakers search for a future strategy in Iraq that would be amenable to the American people, Congress, the Pentagon and the White House, it makes sense to open the intellectual aperture pretty wide in the search for good ideas. Full Story U.S.-India Relations Friendlier but Still CoolReal Clear PoliticsRichard Halloran After several decades of mutual suspicion, India and the United States have been inching toward better diplomatic, military, and economic relations with one another. Even so, troubling issues still cloud the horizon. The commanding officer of U.S. forces in Asia and the Pacific, Adm. Timothy J. Keating, was here 10 days ago to nudge that process along. Full Story Checking ChinaNaval Hedge on Beijing's RiseNew York PostPeter Brookes Starting today, the navies of India, Japan, Singapore, Australia and the United States will hold several days of exercises in the Bay of Bengal in the largest multilateral, peacetime naval maneuvers in the Indian Ocean - ever. Naturally, the five participating capitals claim the exercises aren't aimed at any particular country - especially if that country might happen to be a very large Asian nation whose name starts with a "C." Full Story |
| JOB OPPORTUNITIES FOR THE PROFESSIONAL |
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To view the latest contract opportunities at Blackwater, visit our Contract Web Page. TO FILL OUT AN APPLICATION AND SUBMIT YOUR RESUME CLICK HERE Questions regarding Security Consulting or Training at Blackwater (252) 435-2488 or email dcarter@blackwaterusa.com. |
| SECURITY FOR THE PROFESSIONAL |
The WatchmenIn Anbar, the Marines do what they've always done.The Weekly StandardMario Loyola In Iraq's Anbar province most of the U.S. military has moved beyond counterinsurgency and into "stability operations"--but not Company K, 3/3 of the Marines 6th Regimental Combat Team. Not entirely. This flat, grassy, and serenely rural farm country a few miles northeast of Fallujah, near the town of Kharma, is one of the few areas of Anbar province that still has some insurgency left to counter. Full Story Fresh FearsA new Osama bin Laden video appeared. Jihadi web sites crashed. A German plot was foiled. Inside the pre-9/11 jitters.NewsweekMark Hosenball and Michael Isikoff Judging from a new message released this week, Osama bin Laden is still alive and plotting. The latest video-the first since October 2004-shows bin Laden looking unnaturally youthful in at least one respect: the robust state of his bushy black beard, which was streaked with grey three years ago. Some intelligence officials wondered, only half in jest, whether the terrorist leader was using "Just For Men,"a hair dye. Other analysts believed he was wearing a fake beard. If so, that could mean he had shaven to obscure his identity, wherever he's living. Then again, he might be trying to confuse everyone about his whereabouts, which he has done for many years. Full Story War on terror is workingThe Boston GlobeJeff Jacoby If there was one thing we all knew after Sept. 11, 2001, it was that another massacre was coming. The next terrorist attack on US soil, it was asserted time and again, was not a matter of if, but of when. Americans weren't the only ones who expected Al Qaeda to commit another slaughter. Al Qaeda did, too. Earlier this year, terrorist mastermind Khalid Sheikh Mohammed confessed that in addition to 9/11, he had been planning to attack the Sears Tower in Chicago, the New York Stock Exchange, and the Empire State Building, and to blow up US embassies and nuclear power plants. Full Story On the Hunt in SamarraIn northern Baghdad, al Qaeda is the first (and only) enemy.The Weekly StandardJeff Emanuel Though almost a completely Sunni city, Samarra is probably best known for its lone Shia holy site - the Golden Dome mosque, built in 954 AD. It is the burial place of Islam's tenth and eleventh Imams, and was destroyed in February 2006 by al Qaeda in a massive attack that reignited mass sectarian violence in the region. The mosque's twin minarets were destroyed in June of this year, further inflaming Shia throughout the region. Full Story Stand by Our Man in PakistanWashington PostAnthony C. Zinni As the turn of the millennium drew closer in December 1999, Jordanian officials uncovered a terrorist plan to attack U.S. tourists visiting Middle Eastern sites during the New Year holidays. They arrested the suspects and gained valuable intelligence on their plans and leadership. Washington went on red alert, fearing further plots. Full Story |
| TACTICAL TRAINING & INTELLIGENCE RESOURCES FOR THE PROFESSIONAL |
Mirror Image Training: Training to Combat TerrorismMirror Image is a tactical and strategic training course developed and owned by the Terrorism Research Center. TRC instructors have trained hundreds of military personnel that are subsequently deployed to active combat operations, as well as large numbers of first responders, law enforcement, and security professionals. Mirror Image is an intensive one-week classroom and field-training program, designed to realistically simulate terrorist recruiting, training techniques, and operational tactics. During the course, participants will receive insight into the mindset and rationale of the terrorist through hands-on experience with the methods and means terrorist employ, education about terrorist ideologies and the cultural dimensions that influence their decision making process. Military, law enforcement, intelligence, and security professionals will, in turn, be able to see themselves as the terrorists see them and understand the weaknesses in their own environment that the terrorists will seek to exploit, and which all too often they miss. Armed with these insights participants will leave the course better able to anticipate, prevent and respond to multiple terrorist threats.
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| FRANKS REVIEW |
Tactical Equipment EvaluationWiley-X Protective EyewearAlmost everywhere you look you see something that looks like sunglasses hanging on someone's nose and for years we've seen top names in the sunglasses industry. But a few years ago those names started to change. What caused the change was manufacturers who actually made PROTECTIVE eyewear starting to design that eyewear to look a little more stylish. Some succeeded - some didn`t. Today we`re going to look at a few types of eyewear from Wiley-X, one of the leading names in the industry.Full Story Can Be Viewed At: http://www.borelliconsulting.com/evals/other/wileyx.htm
Recreational Equipment ReviewCochran EMC-20H Dive ComputerYou know, every time I hear or read the name "Cochran" I think of a fictional Star Trek character who invented warp drive. Yeah, I'm a Trekkie. What amazed me was how something so complicated could be made to function with such ease of operation. The same is true of the Cochran EMC-20H Dive Computer: it does an awful lot, but the user interface is so simple that even if you don't read the directions you can still use it: just get it wet.Full Story Can Be Viewed At: http://www.borelliconsulting.com/recevals/scuba/cochrandc.htm |
| CHAPLAINS CORNER |
ECHOES...Revolutionary War... Tripoli... French and Indian War... War of 1812... Mexican War... War Between the States... Battle of Belleau Wood... Ardennes-The Bulge... Normandy... Omaha... Guadalcanal... Iwo Jima... Chosin Resivoir... Tet Offensive... Persian Gulf War... 9-11-01... Iraq... Afghanistan...We have fought so many places and so many wars in our short history... Plus the incidents that have gravely, deeply affected us nationally like 9-11. Because I am a person interested in history, especially our history, these and many other names echo through my memory today. I often find myself remembering and meditating on what I know about our stormy history. I find my mind dwelling upon the cost and the sacrifices in casualties. The most fascinating part of our history for me is how many people have been ready and willing to face the danger and make the sacrifices for the goal of liberty with freedom to choose our own course and destiny as best that we are able. http://www.blackwaterusa.com/btw2007/article/091007chaplain.htm |
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| CONTACT INFORMATION |
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The Blackwater Tactical Weekly is a free weekly e-publication. The BTW provides readers valuable information from diverse sources regarding tactical and strategic security issues. Editor-in-Chief – Gary Jackson (btw@blackwaterusa.com) Questions regarding Security Consulting or Training
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