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July 31, 2003
Dan's Winds of War: July 31/03

Welcome! Our goal is to give you one power-packed briefing of insights, news and trends from the global War on Terror that leaves you stimulated, informed, and occasionally amused every Monday & Thursday. Today's "Winds of War" is brought to you by Dan Darling of Regnum Crucis.

TOP TOPICS

  • As Andrew noted on Monday, there was recently a coup attempt in the Philippines. While the actual plot was foiled, about 70 of the plotters (members of the Filippino equivalent of the Special Forces) managed to escape and then proceeded to seize control of a major commercial center in Manila, holding the Australian ambassador and 2 Americans hostage. The plotters finally surrendered, but are claiming a moral victory. It appears that the renegade soldiers had some significant backing within elements of the Filippino government, as at least one cabinet member has been detained in connection with the plot.

  • Something extremely weird took place recently took place in Malawi. First, five al-Qaeda operatives, including a member of the Saudi royal family, were arrested by the CIA and the Malawian National Intelligence Bureau, as they were on a watch list of people linked to Fazul Abdullah Mohammed. A judge initially tried to block the deportation order, but all five suspects were placed in US custody and presumably en route to Guantanamo, prompting a riot in Blantyre that got so far out of hand that the government had to call in the army to restore order. But no sooner are things back to normal in Blantyre than do the five individuals in question turn up in Sudan, claiming that they have been cleared of all charges.

  • RFE/RL has a fairly thorough analysis up of Iran's relationship with al-Qaeda and a plausible explanation why the nation is behaving in the manner it is.

Other Topics Today Include: Iraq and Iran updates; President Bush's press conference; more possible hijackings; thwarted attack against the US Embassy in Ottawa; seiges underway in Monrovia and Buchanan; battles against the Taliban and warlords in Afghanistan; al-Qaeda's brain trust, terrorist training camps and shoot-outs in Saudi Arabia; a raid on al-Muhajiroun; Equatoria Guinea's new god, a peaceful transition of power in Sao Tome; Australia's planned deployment in the Solomon Islands; an update on the kidnapped Algerian tourists; and a satire by Mark Steyn on how today's BBC might take the news of Mussolini's death.

read the rest! »
 

Posted by Winds of Change at July 31, 2003 01:00 PM | TrackBack
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