Gould,
I did not read that the two terrorist who were arrested in Seattle claimed
to have caused the blackout. Coincidence? Probably, but maybe not.
And you would not have, either. The term "terrorists" can refer to more than
just two people arrested in Seattle. By the way, I have a well founded theory
that it wasn't the Secret Service, either.
By the remote chance that you're not simply smart assing off and really did
miss the terrorists' claim to have caused the blackout, here is the substance:
*******************
Al Qaida claims responsibility for blackout
SPECIAL TO WORLD TRIBUNE.COM
Monday, August 18, 2003
Al Qaida's Abu Hafs Brigades has claimed responsibility for the blackout last
week in the Northeast and Midwest United States. A communiqué by the Abu Hafs
Brigades made reference to Operation Quick Lightning in the Land of the Tyrant
of this Generation."
It was published as "the third communiqué by the "Brigades."
In the first, they accepted responsibility for the downing of an airplane in
Kenya. The second accepted responsibility for the Jakarta bombing of the
Marriott hotel on August 5, 2003.
The new communiqué says that in compliance with the orders of Osama bin Laden
to strike at the American economy, the Brigades struck two important
electricity supply targets on the East coast, according to the Middle East
Media Research Institute. The Brigades say that they cannot reveal how they did
it, because they will probably have to use the same method again soon. The
communiqué also claimed that the operation was meant as a present for the
Iraqi people.
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The following are excerpts from a report by the London-based Arabic daily
Al-Hayat about the communiqué: [1]
The Blackout was 'a Realization of Bin Laden's promise to offer the Iraqi
people a present'
"A communiqué attributed to Al Qaeda claimed responsibility for the power
blackout that happened in the U.S. last Thursday, saying that the brigades of
Abu Fahes Al Masri had hit two main power plants supplying the East of the
U.S., as well as major industrial cities in the U.S. and Canada, 'its ally in
the war against Islam (New York and Toronto) and their neighbors.'
"The communiqué assured that the operation 'was carried out on the orders of
Osama bin Laden to hit the pillars of the U.S. economy,' as 'a realization of
bin Laden's promise to offer the Iraqi people a present.'
'The Americans lived a black day they will never forget'
"The statement, which Al-Hayat obtained from the website of the International
Islamic Media Center, didn't specify the way the alleged sabotage was carried
out. The communiqué read: 'let the criminal Bush and his gang know that the
punishment is the result of the action, the soldiers of God cut the power on
these cities, they darkened the lives of the Americans as these criminals
blackened the lives of the Muslim people in Iraq, Afghanistan and Palestine.
The Americans lived a black day they will never forget. They lived a day of
terror and fear… a state of chaos and confusion where looting and pillaging
rampaged the cities, just like the capital of the caliphate Baghdad, and
Afghanistan and Palestine were. Let the American people take a sip from the
same glass.'
'The U.S. will not live in peace until our conditions are met'
"It added: 'we heard amazing statements made by the American and Canadian
enemies which have nuclear physics universities and space agencies, that
lightning hit and destroyed the two plants. And we are supposed to believe this
nonsense. If the blackout occurred in one or two cities, their lie would have
been credible. But the fact is that the blackout hit the entire East and part
of Canada.'
"The communiqué continued: 'one of the benefits of this strike is that the
U.S. will not live in peace until our conditions are met, such as releasing all
the detainees including Sheikh Omar Abdulrahman, and getting out of the land of
the Muslims, including Jerusalem and Kashmir.'
"The authors of the communiqué said that the strikes aimed at 'hitting the
major pillar of the U.S. economy (the Stock Exchange)… [and] the UN, which is
opposed to Islam, and is based in New York. It is a message to all the
investors that the U.S. is no longer a safe country for their money, knowing
that the U.S. economy greatly relies on the trust of the investor…'
'The gift of Sheikh Osama Bin Laden is on its way to the White House'
"The communiqué mentioned that some economists said the blackout in the U.S.
and Canada would cost the U.S. Treasury no less than ten billion U.S. dollars
and in order to 'break the hearts of U.S. officials, just know that the cost
paid by the Moujahideen to sabotage the power plants was a mere seven thousand
dollars. Die of sorrow!'
"The communiqué ended with: 'we tell the Muslims that this is not the awaited
strike, but it is called the war of skirmishes (to drain the enemy), and that
the American snakes are enormous and need to be consumed and weakened to be
destroyed. We tell the people of Afghanistan and Kashmir that the gift of
Sheikh Osama bin Laden is on its way to the White House; then the gift of Al
Aqsa, and do we know what is the gift of Al Aqsa, where and when? The answer is
what you are seeing!'
[1] Published in English on Dar Al-Hayat website, August 18, 2003,
http://english.daralhayat.com/arab_n...0818-14bdd659-
c0a8-01ed-0079-6e1c903b7552/story.html