Judicial Watch Uncovers New State Department Records Confirming Arab Smuggling ‘Cells,’ Al Qaeda Leader in Mexico

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For more than a decade the U.S. government has known that “Arab extremists” are entering the country through Mexico with the assistance of smuggling network “cells,” according to State Department documents obtained by Judicial Watch that reveal among them was a top Al Qaeda operative wanted by the FBI. Some Mexican smuggling networks actually specialize in providing logistical support for Arab individuals attempting to enter the United States, the government documents say. The top Al Qaeda leader in Mexico was identified in the September 2004 cable from the American consulate in Ciudad Juárez as Adnan G. El Shurkrjumah. The cable was released to Judicial Watch under the Freedom of Information Act.

The new intelligence records were released as a result of an ongoing JW investigation into the critical national security threats on the southern border, specifically those created by Islamic terrorists teaming up with Mexican drug cartels to infiltrate and attack the U.S. In response to JW’s reporting in the last two years the Obama administration—through various spokespeople, including FBI Director James Comey—has vehemently denied that Islamic terrorists are operating in Mexican towns near American cities or entering the U.S. through the famously porous southern border.

The State Department documents, which include substantial redactions supposedly to protect classified and personal information, contradict this. JW obtained them as part of an investigative series into Shukrijumah, an Al Qaeda operative also known as Javier Robles. In December, 2014 Shukrijumah was killed by the Pakistan Army in an intelligence-borne operation in South Waziristan. But before he died Shukrijumah helped plan several U.S. attacks, including plots to bomb Oprah Winfrey’s studio and detonate nuclear devices in multiple American cities. For years Shukrijumah appeared on the FBI’s most wanted list and, despite being sought by the agency, he crossed back and forth into the U.S. from Mexico to meet fellow militant Islamists in Texas. JW has reported that, as one of the world’s most wanted terrorists, Shukrijumah piloted an aircraft into the Cielo Dorado airfield in Anthony, New Mexico. (Read more from “Judicial Watch Uncovers New State Department Records Confirming Arab Smuggling ‘Cells,’ Al Qaeda Leader in Mexico” HERE)

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WATCH: John Kerry ADMITS We Are Giving Money to Terrorists

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By Matthew Lee. It’s likely that some of the billions of dollars in sanctions relief granted to Iran under a landmark nuclear deal will go to groups deemed to be terrorists, U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry said on Thursday. But, he added, he doesn’t believe Iran will be able to use the freed-up cash to boost funding of malign activities if it is serious about revamping its economy.

Kerry said on the sidelines of the World Economic Forum the U.S. or others can do little to prevent the now-unfrozen assets from getting into the hands of the Iran Revolutionary Guard Corps or “other entities” that Iran has supported in the past. But since nuclear-related sanctions were lifted on Iran last weekend, Kerry said, there is no evidence yet to suggest such transfers have occurred.

“I think that some of it will end up in the hands of the IRGC or other entities, some of which are labeled terrorists,” he told CNBC television in an interview. “You know, to some degree, I’m not going to sit here and tell you that every component of that can be prevented. But I can tell you this: Right now, we are not seeing the early delivery of funds going to that kind of endeavor at this point in time.” (Read more from “John Kerry Just Confirmed We Are Giving Money to Terrorists” HERE)

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Congress Moves to Block Payment to Iran of $1.7 Billion in Taxpayer Funds

By Adam Kredo. Congress is considering legislation that would bar the Obama administration from moving forward on a cash payment to Iran of $1.7 billion in taxpayer funds, according to a copy of the legislation provided to the Washington Free Beacon.

Obama administration officials confirmed to the Free Beacon earlier Thursday that it is using a taxpayer-funded account to pay Iran $1.7 billion as part of a settlement agreement reached with the Islamic Republic ahead of the release of five imprisoned Americans.

Critics of the agreement allege that the administration agreed to the payment to spur Iran to release the five Americans, who were freed over the weekend.

The news has sparked outrage on Capitol Hill and prompted Sen. Jerry Moran (R., Kan.) to file legislation Thursday afternoon that would bar the administration from moving forward on the payment until Iran pays millions in judgments awarded to the U.S. victims of its global terrorist network, according to the bill.

“The United States should not be funding governments that openly violate human rights, proudly disregard U.N. Security Council resolutions, and call for the destruction of America and its allies,” Moran said in a statement. “This bill directs the U.S. government to put justice for American victims of Iranian terrorism ahead of compensation for the Iranian regime.” (Read more from “Congress Moves to Block Payment to Iran of $1.7 Billion in Taxpayer Funds” HERE)

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2015 Saw ‘Most Violent’ Persecution of Christians in Modern History

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The brutal, worldwide persecution of Christians during the past year makes 2015 “the most violent and sustained attack on Christian faith in modern history,” according to a watchdog organization that has been monitoring Christian persecution for decades.

Open Doors, an organization founded in 1955 to assist persecuted Christians, publishes an annual “World Watch List,” documenting attacks on Christians and ranking the most hostile national environments for believers.

“The 2016 World Watch List documents an unprecedented escalation of violence against Christians, making this past year the most violent and sustained attack on Christian faith in modern history,” Open Doors CEO David Curry said at the rollout of the list.

Persecution in “continuing to increase, intensify and spread across the globe,” he said.

At the top of the Watch List, for the 14th consecutive year, stands North Korea, where an estimated 50,000 to 70,000 Christians are imprisoned in labor camps. Carrying on as one of the last holdouts of Communist totalitarianism, North Korea bears a particular hatred for Christians, who are a constant reminder of accountability to a higher power than the state. (Read more from “2015 Saw ‘Most Violent’ Persecution of Christians in Modern History” HERE)

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Former US Marine Freed From Iran: ‘I Feel Alive for the First Time’ [+video]

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Photo Credit: Fox News Amir Hekmati, one of the Americans freed from Iran in a prisoner swap, said Tuesday he couldn’t wait to return to his home in Michigan.

“I feel alive for the first time,” the 32-year-old retired Marine told reporters outside a hospital in Germany, one day after an emotional reunion there with his family . . .

Hekmati, Washington Post reporter Jason Rezaian and pastor Saeed Abedini arrived late Sunday at the U.S. military’s Landstuhl Regional Medical Center for treatment. A fourth American released in exchange for the U.S. pardoning or dropping charges against seven Iranians opted to stay in Iran, and a fifth American was released separately.

Hekmati was detained in August 2011 on espionage charges. Hekmati says he went to Iran to visit family and spend time with his ailing grandmother. After his arrest, family members say they were told to keep the matter quiet.

He was convicted of spying and sentenced to death in 2012. After a higher court ordered a retrial, he was sentenced in 2014 to 10 years on a lesser charge. (Read more from “Former US Marine Freed From Iran: ‘I Feel Alive for the First Time'” HERE)

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Oldest Christian Monastery in Iraq Is Razed

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The oldest Christian monastery in Iraq has been reduced to a field of rubble, yet another victim of the Islamic State group’s relentless destruction of ancient cultural sites.

For 1,400 years the compound survived assaults by nature and man, standing as a place of worship recently for U.S. troops. In earlier centuries, generations of monks tucked candles in the niches and prayed in the cool chapel. The Greek letters chi and rho, representing the first two letters of Christ’s name, were carved near the entrance.

Now satellite photos obtained exclusively by The Associated Press confirm the worst fears of church authorities and preservationists — St. Elijah’s Monastery of Mosul has been completely wiped out.

In his office in exile in Irbil, Iraq, the Rev. Paul Thabit Habib, 39, stared quietly at before- and after-images of the monastery that once perched on a hillside above his hometown of Mosul. Shaken, he flipped back to his own photos for comparison.

“I can’t describe my sadness,” he said in Arabic. “Our Christian history in Mosul is being barbarically leveled. We see it as an attempt to expel us from Iraq, eliminating and finishing our existence in this land.” (Read more from “Oldest Christian Monastery in Iraq Is Razed” HERE)

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‘Fast and Furious’ Rifle Capable of Taking Down Helicopter Found in ‘El Chapo’ Cache

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A .50-caliber rifle found at Joaquin “El Chapo” Guzman’s hideout in Mexico was funneled through the gun-smuggling investigation known as Fast and Furious, sources confirmed Tuesday to Fox News.

A .50-caliber is a massive rifle that can stop a car or, as it was intended, take down a helicopter.

After the raid on Jan. 8 in the city of Los Mochis that killed five of his men and wounded one Mexican marine, officials found a number of weapons inside the house where Guzman was staying, including the rifle, officials said.

When agents from the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives checked serial numbers of the eight weapons found in his possession, they found one of the two .50-caliber weapons traced back to the ATF program, sources said.

Federal officials told Fox News they are not sure how many of the weapons seized from Guzman’s house actually originated in the U.S. and where they were purchased, but are investigating. (Read more from “‘Fast and Furious’ Rifle Capable of Taking Down Helicopter Found in ‘El Chapo’ Cache” HERE)

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NONE of the Seven Iranians Freed in the Prisoner Swap Have Gone Back to Iran

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None of the Iranians freed in the prisoner swap have returned home and could still be in the United States, it has been reported.

The seven former inmates, who were released as part of a deal with the Islamic republic, did not show up to get a flight to Geneva, Switzerland, where the exchange was set to take place on Sunday.

Three of the Iranians have decided to stay in the United States, ABC reported, with some moving in with their families. However it is not known where the other four are.

Three of the Americans who had been detained in Iran – Washington Post journalist Jason Rezaian, former U.S. Marine Amir Hekmati and Christian pastor Saeed Abedini – left Tehran at around 7am the same day, but weren’t met by their counterparts in Switzerland . . .

Six of the seven have dual citizenship and all of them had been convicted or charged with crimes related to selling sensitive equipment to Iran. (Read more from “NONE of the Seven Iranians Freed in the Prisoner Swap Have Gone Back to Iran” HERE)

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Shocking Video Shows Swedish Woman Being Harassed and Groped by Gang of ‘Migrant’ Men

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By Sara Malm. This is the moment a young woman documents street harassment in Sweden, with at least two men asking her for sex after another allegedly groped her.

The video has emerged on social media this week, and is believed to have been filmed in Södermanland County, west of Stockholm.

The young woman appears to have been groped by one of the men’s friend as she is walking in the street, and has begun filming as she confronts the men.

However, instead of an apology for their friend’s behavior, one of the men asks her for sexual favors, appearing to take her for a prostitute.

The shaky video is likely to have been filmed in recent months as there is snow on the ground where the woman confronts the men. (Read more from “Shocking Video Shows Swedish Woman Being Harassed and Groped by Gang of ‘Migrant’ Men” HERE)

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‘German Girls Are Just There for Sex’ What Migrant Told Woman as He Groped Her in Street

By Nick Gutteridge. Horrific details of another bout of sex attacks allegedly carried out by recently arrived refugees provoked more fury across the country tonight as calls to clamp down on mass migration continued to grow.

Police reports from the city of Dortmund released today claimed that a recently arrived refugee told one young woman that German girls are “just there for sex” after he approached her in the street and offered her money to sleep with him.

They also described a shocking incident in which three migrant men seemingly tried to impose Sharia Law on the streets of Germany, attempting to stone two women in public.

The disturbing reports are just the latest in an avalanche of revelations about refugee sex crimes to emerge since the sickening attacks in Cologne, when 1,000 migrant men went on the rampage raping and robbing women out celebrating New Year’s Eve.

The latest reports from Dortmund paint a terrifying picture of a city where it is now unsafe for women to go out at night for fear of being attacked and raped by refugees. (Read more from “‘German Girls Are Just There for Sex’ What Migrant Told Woman as He Groped Her in Street” HERE)

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Three Americans Reportedly Kidnapped in Baghdad

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By Abigail Williams and Elisha Fieldstadt. The U.S. State Department was working Sunday to locate three Americans in Iraq after a report that they had been kidnapped in Baghdad.

Dubai-based news service Al Arabiya reported that three Americans had been kidnapped by “militias” in the Iraqi capital. The Arab news agency cited their own sources.

U.S. officials said they were looking into it.

“We are aware of reports that American citizens are missing in Iraq,” said State Department spokesman John Kirby. “We are working with the full cooperation of the Iraqi authorities to locate and recover the individuals. The safety and security of American citizens overseas is our highest priority.” (Read more from “Three Americans Reportedly Kidnapped in Baghdad” HERE)

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Beloved American Missionary Among 28 Killed in Al Qaeda Attack

By CNN Wire. An American who died in a terror attack in Burkina Faso moved halfway across the world with his wife to run an orphanage and women’s crisis center.

Michael James Riddering was one of 28 people killed after terrorists opened fire Friday night at a cafe in the capital, Ouagadougou.

The al Qaeda-linked militants then raided a luxury hotel across the street, shooting some and taking others hostage in an overnight siege that lasted hours.

Sheltering Wings, a missionary group that supports Riddering’s orphanage, provided a detailed account of his ordeal. It said the Florida resident and his wife, Amy Riddering, worked at the orphanage in Yako, 115 kilometers (70 miles) from the capital. (Read more from “Beloved American Missionary Among 28 Killed in Al Qaeda Attack” HERE)

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Czech Leader: Muslim Integration ‘Practically Impossible’ in Europe

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Czech President Milos Zeman, known for his fiery anti-migrant rhetoric, said on Sunday it was “practically impossible” to integrate the Muslim community into European society.

“The experience of Western European countries which have ghettos and excluded localities shows that the integration of the Muslim community is practically impossible,” Zeman said in a televised interview.

“Let them have their culture in their countries and not take it to Europe, otherwise it will end up like Cologne,” he added, referring to the mass New Year’s Eve assaults on women in Germany and elsewhere.

“Integration is possible with cultures that are similar, and the similarities may vary,” pointing out that the Vietnamese and Ukrainian communities had been able to integrate into Czech society.

Zeman, a 71-year-old leftwinger and the first-ever directly elected president of the Czech Republic, has repeatedly spoken out against the surge of migrant and refugee arrivals in Europe. (Read more from “Czech Leader: Muslim Integration ‘Practically Impossible’ in Europe” HERE)

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