Day: August 3, 2009

Australian Somalis take their terrorist training to the next level

~ Ann Corcoran ~ Leave a comment

Update August 6th:   Islamic Scholar says he warned government about radicalization among refugees, here.

Update August 5th:  Suspect causes ruckus in court, here.

Update August 4th:  More from Reuters today, here.

Yes, it seems that what most feared would happen in the US when it was learned that 20 or so Somali young men (former refugees) had left the good life in the US and gone to terrorist training in Somalia has come to pass—in Australia!   One of those arrested today in Melbourne brought his Al-Shabaab training back from Africa and was planning to use it against Australian soldiers.  Hat tip:  Mars.

From The Australian:

Four men – all Australian citizens – were arrested this morning as federal and state police, armed with search warrants, swooped on members of the suspected terror cell this morning in the second-largest counter-terrorism operation in the nation’s history.

Those arrested included a 26-year-old Carlton man, a 25-year-old Preston man, a 25-year-old Glenroy man and a man, 22, from Meadow Heights.

About 400 police raided homes in the northern Melbourne suburbs of Glenroy, Meadow Heights, Roxburgh Park, Broadmeadows, Westmeadows, Preston and Epping. They also raided homes at Carlton in inner Melbourne and Colac in southwestern Victoria.

“Police believe members of a Melbourne-based group have been undertaking planning to carry out a terrorist attack in Australia and allegedly involved in hostilities in Somalia,” a joint police statement said.

The men are expected to be charged with a range of terrorism-related offences.

Authorities believe the group is at an advanced stage of preparing to storm an Australian Army base, using automatic weapons, as punishment for Australia’s military involvement in Muslim countries. It is understood the men plan to kill as many soldiers as possible before they are themselves killed.

Since the men were all Australian citizens, as the missing Minnesota Somalis are American citizens, we can assume they arrived in Australia as refugees and possibly as small children as had the American Somalis.   They obviously didn’t appreciate the generosity of the humanitarians who lifted them out of  African poverty.  The call to take part in Islamic Jihad trumps the good life anyday.

The cell has been inspired by the Somalia-based terrorist movement al-Shabaab, with two Melbourne men, both Somalis, having travelled to Somalia in recent months to obtain training with the extremist organisation, which is aligned with al-Qa’ida.

One of those men has already returned to Melbourne. The other is still in Somalia.

[….]

The suspects include Australians of Somali and Lebanese decent, most of whom are labourers employed in Melbourne’s construction industry, or taxi drivers.

Learn more at The Australian.

Iraqi Palestinians protest at Al Tanaf refugee camp; let’s rethink our offer

~ Ann Corcoran ~ Leave a comment

Well, well, this story inspires more questions about the issue of Iraqi Palestinians efforts to get into the West.  We reported a few weeks ago that approximately 1350 Palestinians from Al Waleed would be coming to the US.  Now those at Al Tanaf are holding a sit-in demonstration to demand resettlement in Italy?

BAGHDAD, (PIC)– Palestinian refugees in Iraq taking refuge in Tanaf refugee camp on the Iraqi-Syrian borders on Saturday staged a sit-in before the UNRWA tent demanding their immediate evacuation from the desert camp.

The 168 refugees asked for immediate mechanism by which they could be transferred from the desert to Italy that announced readiness to accommodate them.

The protestors, who included men, women and children, handed the UNRWA representative a protest note, asking for an immediate end to their tragedy that has been ongoing in the open desert for years.

They said that their sit-in would continue until their demands were met, adding that escalatory steps would be adopted in the event those demands remained unrealized.

I thought these Iraq/Syria camps were administered by the UNHCR (United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees) not UNRWA.  The latter is the UN agency specially set up and specially funded that keeps the whole Gaza Palestinian mess going for decades.  If  UNRWA is in Al Tanaf, then why aren’t they processing these Iraqi Palestinians to Gaza?  Why aren’t the Palestinians demanding they go back to their Muslim brothers in Gaza?

And, how did Italy get into this issue?  I thought Italy was having enough problems with Muslim immigration?

Then this next part really ticked me off!  The Palestinians living in Iraq were friends of Saddam Hussein and living there at his invitation.  Once Saddam met his end, the Shiites who were forced to accomodate the Palestinians took their revenge.  There has NEVER been any suggestion that Americans participated in persecution of Iraqi Palestinians!

Hundreds of Palestinian refugees in Iraq had fled their homes in the wake of the American occupation of Iraq after sectarian militias and the American occupation forces detained and tortured many of them leading to the death of tens of refugees.

Maybe we should re-think admitting 1350 Palestinians if they are promoting the lie that Americans persecuted them in Iraq!   Maybe they aren’t such a safe security bet?

Somali Medicaid fraud: old case but worth reporting

~ Ann Corcoran ~ Leave a comment

Last week I told you that yet to be identified immigrants were arrested in Houston and possibly other cities on medicare fraud charges.  Here is an old case, from 2007, where a Somali woman was convicted of bilking medicaid for $1.5 million.   Sent to me by a reader, I’m posting it now to give you an idea of at least one form these scams may take.

From the Minneapolis Star Tribune:

Indadeeq Omar, the niece of a former Somali president and a prominent member of the Twin Cities Somali community, was convicted Thursday of a wide-ranging health care fraud and money laundering conspiracy after a six-day federal court trial in Minneapolis.

Jurors found that Omar, 44, of Eden Prairie, participated in a scheme that bilked more than $1.5 million in medical assistance payments between 2001 and 2004, ostensibly for interpreting services that were never provided. The indictment says that Omar, her husband, Mohamed Essa, and a former Medica employee named Tou Chaiker Vang conspired to submit phony bills for the services.

Vang, 39, of Maplewood, pleaded guilty in the case and testified against Omar. Essa, 51, has fled and remains a fugitive. That left just Omar to stand trial.

And, to all of you who have asked me over the last two years how certain immigrants seem to have lots of stuff—like nice cars!—it seems this is how Ms. Omar got stuff!

Marti told jurors in his closing arguments that Omar and her husband had spent the money they got from the scheme lavishly. They spent $18,000 to whiten Omar’s teeth. They paid $205,985 in cash for a down-payment on their $600,000 house. They paid $43,000 for a custom Chrysler 300 C sedan. And they paid about $45,000 a year in tuition for their three daughters, ages 9, 15 and 17, to attend the International School, he said.

Omar, who in 2002 received an award for her work with Somali refugees, now faces decades in prison.

I don’t know what happened finally and whether she is in jail or not. Or whether authorities ever found her husband who skipped town (probably skipped to Africa!).  If anyone knows, please let me know!

One boy indicted so far in Phoenix child rape case

~ Ann Corcoran ~ Leave a comment

This is an update of the story we first posted here.  From AP: 

PHOENIX – A 14-year-old boy has been indicted in connection with the rape of an 8-year-old Liberian refugee at a Phoenix apartment complex, authorities said Saturday.

Police say four boys, also from Liberia, lured the girl to an empty storage shed July 16 with the promise of chewing gum. Investigators say the boys restrained her and took turns sexually assaulting her.

The incident ignited an international outcry after it was reported the girl’s father said he was ashamed of her. A family pastor later said that was a misunderstanding. 

[…..]

The girl is now in foster care.

In some parts of Africa, women often are blamed for being raped for enticing men or simply being in the wrong place at the wrong time. Girls who are raped often are shunned by their families.

Diversity is strength, right!

The UK is stirring a hornet’s nest: no assimilation=no welfare

~ Ann Corcoran ~ Leave a comment

This will be fun to watch, a proposal is being put forth in Great Britain to kick out immigrants who don’t learn English and participate in British society.   Hat tip:  Counter Jihad blog.

From the Daily Mail on Saturday:

A highly controversial crackdown on immigrants accused of abusing welfare handouts is to be unveiled by Home Secretary Alan Johnson this week.

He plans to ban wives brought here, mainly from India and Pakistan, from receiving child benefit and a wide range of other state aid unless they learn English, support British values and do voluntary work in the community.

The move could affect up to 80,000 immigrants who are allowed to settle permanently in Britain each year after marrying a UK citizen.

Many come from remote villages in the subcontinent, have little formal education and cannot speak a word of English. Under existing laws, they are automatically given indefinite leave to remain after just two years.

Crucially, that qualifies them to receive state benefits, even if they never become British citizens with UK passports or learn English.

However, Mr Johnson wants to scrap indefinite leave to remain. He intends to force immigrants who use marriage to get into the UK to take a citizenship test. They will not be allowed to take it for at least five years and if they fail, they will be banned from receiving benefits.

Read on.  We will be watching how this plays out!