_____ From: Heyman, Ed [mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] Sent: Wednesday, June 01, 2005 12:32 AM To: Zidenberg, Eric; Bill NoVA Pollack (E-mail) (E-mail); Bob Bowman; bruce tefft; Burch, Christa; D'Andrea, Mike; Dempsey, Linda; Gates, Tom; Larry White; lyons; McClave, Jim; Morris, Bill; Morris, Todd; [EMAIL PROTECTED]; [EMAIL PROTECTED]; Sowell, Charles; Stinson, James; Wagner, Mike; Tim Campen; Hatte Blejer; Phil Pounds Subject: West infiltrates al-Qa'eda message boards in the war on terror West infiltrates al-Qa'eda message boards in the war on terror By Aqeel Hussein in Ramadi, Saleh Al Jibouri and Colin Freeman (Filed: 29/05/2005) Before Abu Dajeneh drove out of the world to martyrdom in an Iraqi car bomb, he prayed, read the Koran and even sent a final email. On an internet message board for al-Qa'eda affiliates, he said farewell to his comrades and that he looked forward to their next meeting, not in cyberspace, but Paradise. The al-Qa'eda message board The al-Qa'eda message board "We will ask each other: 'Are you such-and-such who used to write Allah the Almighty! in such-and-such a message board?" he wrote. "It will be a great day when we reach it." Western terror officials have been monitoring al-Qa'eda message boards for two years, sifting postings about beheadings, suicide bombs and kidnappings. Last week, their attention focused on the claim that Abu Musab Al Zarqawi, who is accused of beheading the British hostage Kenneth Bigley and masterminding the bloody insurgency, had been badly injured in a shoot out with American troops. According to one posting, purporting to be from his official spokesman, Zarqawi was spirited out of Iraq after being treated in a hospital in Ramadi, an insurgent stronghold. Rita Katz, a US terrorism expert who monitors jihadi websites, said that the claim had the ring of truth. "There is only one source of proper information on al-Qa'eda operations in Iraq. If it does not come from him, it is not authentic," she said. "We are fairly sure that Zarqawi was injured as this was on a board used by his official spokesman, Abu Maysarah al-Iraqi." Ms Katz is the director of the Washington-based SITE Institute, which tracks international terror activity. Its Arabic speakers analyse terrorist sites and pass intelligence to law enforcement agencies. Genuine postings, Ms Katz says, appear only on hidden message boards that are password-protected, and whose members know each other so well that they can spot a hacker. Many, nonetheless, have been infiltrated by SITE. Each board is controlled by a webmaster who will accept postings in the name of Zarqawi only from a known email address. "Abu Maysarah emails the message to the webmaster, who recognises his email address and is the only one with authority to post the message," Ms Katz said. "al-Qa'eda in Iraq also watches closely for false messages, and will correct them straightaway." Last week, Abu Maysarah's rapid rebuttal unit was in action within minutes to deny a report on another internet site that a deputy had been nominated for Zarqawi. One way to establish which message boards are genuine is to cross-check claims about terrorist acts. In March, Hasan Abdul Rahman, an Egyptian student, apparently carried out a suicide bombing in Baquba, north-west of Baghdad. Telephone numbers for his family were posted on a board for users to call and congratulate them. Speaking from Egypt, Rahman's brother confirmed that he had gone to Iraq on jihad. "He brought honour to my family. We are hoping he will go to paradise because he fought the Americans who should be forced out of Muslim countries." US records show that a car bomb killed five soldiers at a checkpoint near Baquba on March 17. Ms Katz believes that reports of Zarqawi's injuries are equally likely to be real. "I think his followers feel it is time to prepare for his possible death and begin the hunt for a successor." In Ramadi, locals backed up the message board claims. At the Al Rahma Mosque, frequented by resistance fighters, Friday prayers were devoted to appeals for Zarqawi's speedy recovery. A man who identified himself as Abu Huzayfa, Ramadi's al-Qa'eda spokesman, said: "Abu Musab has been injured and is leading us from his bed. But there are thousands of Zarqawis here among us. We will never give up." [Non-text portions of this message have been removed] ------------------------ Yahoo! Groups Sponsor --------------------~--> Take a look at donorschoose.org, an excellent charitable web site for anyone who cares about public education! http://us.click.yahoo.com/_OLuKD/8WnJAA/cUmLAA/TySplB/TM --------------------------------------------------------------------~-> -------------------------- Want to discuss this topic? 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