Feed: Allah’s drug pushers: Islam, narcotics and the almighty dollar - AggScore: 12.8

Allah’s drug pushers: Islam, narcotics and the almighty dollar

---

blockquoteemIn 2008, the Bush Administrationschairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, Marine General Peter Pace, warned members of the Senate Armed Services Committee that members of radical Islamic groups were active in South America recruiting and training terrorists. Yet, the Democratcontrolled Senate ignored Gen. Paces warning.emblockquotecaption id alignalignleft width137 captionAlQaeda is involved with narcotics in order to finance their terrorism and propaganda operations. Photo Police Timesimg srchttpcdn2b.examiner.comsitesdefaultfilesstyleslargehash247d247df293ea847ad71f0ba80f1e4f4441.jpg alt width137 height89 captionThree suspected alQaeda associates whowereapprehended in WestAfrica by U.S.Drug Enforcement Administration agentsduring an internationalantidrug operation, wereextradited to New York andappeared in federal court in Manhattanlast year, according toreports obtained by the National Association of Chiefs of Polices Terrorismand Narcotics amp Dangerous Drugs committees.While the incident for the most part went unnoticed, theoperation confirms the suspicions of terrorism experts that alQaeda and other terrorist groups are involved in narcotics trafficking to fund their terror operations.The suspects Oumar Issa, Harouna Toure and Idress Abelrahman were charged with conspiracy to commit acts of narcoterrorism and conspiracy to provide material support to a foreign terrorist organization after theyallegedly agreed to transport as much as 1,000 kilos of cocaine. Allegedly, the drugs were earmarked forwestern European countries and the United States.The cocaineinterdiction and arrests occurredalong the traffickers favoriteroute through West Africa to North Africa that serves as a launch pointforexport to Europe. The suspectsweretaken into custodyafter an intense undercoverinvestigation in which informants and agents posed asColombian narcoterrorists who claimed they shared hatred forthe United Stateswith the African suspects.According to the NACOP report, Colombiandrug kingpinsuse the sametransshipment techniques in Africa thattheyve successfullyused in Latin America. The Colombiantraffickersutilized alQaedas protection services in order to make certainshipments arrived at their destinations.DEA officials report thatin this casethey were able to infiltrate the drug operation during the negotiations phase. The undercover DEA agents and informants indicated they were associated withthe Colombia terrorist group FARCand could protect the shipment from West Africa to North Africa and ultimately to Spain.Issa, Toure and Abelrahman claim to be from Mali, but their truenation of origin isstill unknown.Created in 1964, the FARC Fuerzas Armadas Revolucionarias de Colombiais structured as a paramilitary organization, with approximately 10,000 armed guerillas organized into seven blocs, 68 numbered Fronts, nine named Fronts, and four urban militias.The FARC is dedicated to the violent overthrow of Colombias democratically elected government and has been designated as a foreign terrorist organization by the U.S. Department of State. The FARC finances itsterrorist activities through narcotics trafficking and kidnapping for ransom, including the kidnapping of Americans and other foreign nationals.During the Bush Administration, then chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Marine General Peter Pace warned members of the Senate Armed Services Committee that members of radical Islamic groups were active in South America recruiting and training terrorists. Yet, the Democratcontrolled Senate ignored Gen. Paces warning.Today, Terroristsponsoring nation Iran is increasing its presence in Latin America, and Hezbollah, a terrorist organization it sponsors, is making inroads in drug trafficking in Colombia, according to American Forces Press Services spokesperson Donna Miles in a press statement to Chief of Police Magazine, a publication of the National Association of Chiefs of Police.Navy Admiral James G. Stavridis told the House Armed Services Committee that he shares the concerns of Defense Secretary Robert Gates about Iranian activity in Central and South America.Iran has opened six embassies in the region during the past five years and is promoting Islamic activities in the region, according to Miles report.That is of concern, principally because of the connection between the government of Iran, which is a state sponsor of terrorism, and Hezbollah, Stavridis told Congressman.We see a great deal of Hezbollah activity throughout South America, in particular, he said.Much of that activity takes place in the triborder area of Brazil, Paraguay and Argentina, and in the Caribbean, an area previously pinpointed by former Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff General Peter Pace USMCRet in a similar congressional hearing.Stavridis noted in his written statement that the Pentagon supported a Drug Enforcement Administration operation in the triborder area last August that targeted a Hezbollahconnected drug trafficking organization.Two months later, officials from the US Southern Command supported another interagency operation in which several dozen people were arrested in Colombia for theirties to a Hezbollahconnected drug trafficking and money laundering ring.