Tuesday, November 10, 2009
Los Alamos Physicist's Property Seized By FBI
Federal agents have seized six computers, two cameras, two cell phones and hundreds of files from a Los Alamos, N.M., physicist who for two decades has criticized the government's nuclear agenda as misguided.
An FBI spokesman in Albuquerque, Darrin E. Jones, said that the action Monday was part of "an ongoing federal investigation" and that he could provide no details.
The physicist, P. Leonardo Mascheroni, said he was told that the seizures were part of a criminal investigation into possible nuclear espionage. Mascheroni also declared his innocence.
If I were a real spy," he said Tuesday in a telephone interview, "I would have left the country a long time ago."
Mascheroni was laid off from the Los Alamos National Laboratory in 1988 and has ever since championed an innovative type of laser fusion, which seeks to harness the energy that powers the sun, the stars and hydrogen bombs.
In recent years, he has repeatedly gone to Congress to question the management of the nation's nuclear laboratories and arsenal, saying his laser was needed to ensure weapon reliability. In theory, its tiny blasts could test arms dependability, eliminating the need for underground explosions.
The secrets of hydrogen bombs and laser fusion can be similar, and the federal investigation appears to center on whether Mascheroni broke federal rules in discussing his proposed laser with a man who called himself a representative of the Venezuelan government.
Venezuela has begun exploring for uranium, but President Hugo Chavez has denied any interest in developing nuclear arms.
Federal and laboratory authorities have previously investigated him twice for security violations, Mascheroni said, adding that each time he was exonerated. He said he saw the disruptive episodes as harassment for his outspoken views.
A jihadist code of ethics?
Leaders of one of the world's most effective jihadist organizations, the Libyan Islamic Fighting Group (LIFG), have written a new "code" for jihad. The LIFG says it now views the armed struggle it waged against Col. Moammar Gadhafi's regime for two decades as illegal under Islamic law.
The new code, a 417-page religious document entitled "Corrective Studies" is the result of more than two years of intense and secret talks between the leaders of the LIFG and Libyan security officials.
The code's most direct challenge to al Qaeda is this: "Jihad has ethics and morals because it is for God. That means it is forbidden to kill women, children, elderly people, priests, messengers, traders and the like. Betrayal is prohibited and it is vital to keep promises and treat prisoners of war in a good way. Standing by those ethics is what distinguishes Muslims' jihad from the wars of other nations."
The code has been circulated among some of the most respected religious scholars in the Middle East and has been given widespread backing. It is being debated by politicians in the U.S. and studied by western intelligence agencies.
In essence the new code for jihad is exactly what the West has been waiting for: a credible challenge from within jihadist ranks to al Qaeda's ideology.
While the code states that jihad is permissible if Muslim lands are invaded -- citing the cases of Afghanistan, Iraq and Palestine -- the guidelines it sets down for when and how jihad should be fought, and its insistence that civilians should not be targeted are a clear rebuke to the goals and tactics of bin Laden's terrorist network.
CNN was given exclusive access to the Abu Salim jail where the code was written to talk to the LIFG prisoners. The jail has a bloody reputation; in 1996 prison guards put down a revolt by allegedly killing more than 1,200 prisoners in less than 24 hours.
READ THE FULL STORY HERE AT CNN
2008 FBI review: Hasan did not pose threat
2008 FBI review: Hasan did not pose threat: "WASHINGTON — Nearly a year before Maj. Nidal Hasan allegedly went on a shooting rampage at the Fort Hood army post in Texas, terrorism investigators conducted an 'assessment' of him before deciding he did not pose a threat.After the shooting, the FBI is doing a new assessment — of its own conduct.The Army psychiatrist is thought to have acted alone despite repeated communications — intercepted by authorities — with a radical imam overseas, U.S. officials said Monday.
The FBI will conduct an internal review to see whether it mishandled early information about the man accused in the bloody rampage that killed 13 people and wounded 29.President Barack Obama was joining grieving families and comrades of the victims Tuesday at a memorial service at the sprawling Texas base. Hasan, awake and talking to doctors, met his lawyer Monday in the San Antonio hospital where he is recovering, under guard, from gunshot wounds in the assault.In Washington, an investigative official and a Republican lawmaker said Hasan had communicated 10 to 20 times with Anwar al-Awlaki, an imam released from a Yemeni jail last year who has used his personal Web site to encourage Muslims across the world to kill U.S. troops in Iraq.
Despite that, no formal investigation was opened into Hasan, they said.Investigative officials spoke on the condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to discuss the case. Republican Rep. Pete Hoekstra of Michigan, the top Republican on the House Intelligence Committee, said it was his understanding Hasan and the imam exchanged e-mails that counterterrorism officials picked up.Officials said Hasan will be tried in a military court, not a civilian one, a choice that suggests his alleged actions are not thought to have emanated from a terrorist organization.Meanwhile, the Washington Post reported Tuesday that Hasan warned his medical colleagues a year and a half ago that to 'decrease adverse events' the U.S. military should allow Muslim soldiers to be released as conscientious objectors instead of fighting in wars against other Muslims.
Hasan made the recommendation in a culminating presentation to senior Army doctors at Walter Reed Medical Center, where he spent six years as an intern, resident and fellow before being transferred to Fort Hood.FBI Director Robert Mueller ordered the inquiry into the bureaus handling of the case, including its response to potentially worrisome information gathered about Hasan beginning in December 2008 and continuing into early this year.Based on all the investigations since the attack, the investigators said they have no evidence that Hasan had help or outside orders in the shootings.Hasan had been watchedEven so, they revealed the major had once been under scrutiny from a joint terrorism task force because of the series of communications going back months.
Al-Awlaki is a former imam at a Falls Church, Va., mosque where Hasan and his family occasionally worshipped.In 2001, al-Awlaki, a native-born U.S. citizen, had contact with two of the Sept. 11 hijackers, and on Monday his Web site praised Hasan as a hero.Military officials were made aware of communications between the Hasan and al-Awlaki, but because the messages did not advocate or threaten violence, civilian law enforcement authorities could not take the matter further, the officials said.
The terrorism task force concluded Hasan was not involved in terrorist planning.Officials said the content of those messages was 'consistent with the subject matter of his research,' part of which involved post-traumatic stress disorder stemming from U.S. combat operations in Iraq and Afghanistan.A law enforcement official said the communications consisted primarily of Hasan posing questions to the imam as a spiritual leader or adviser, and the imam did respond to at least some of those messages.No formal investigation was ever opened based on the contacts, the officials said.They said the decision to bring military charges instead of civilian criminal charges against Hasan did not mean it wasnt a terrorism case.
But it is likely authorities would have had more reason to take the case to federal court if they had found evidence Hasan acted with the support or training of a terrorist group.Investigators tried to interview Hasan on Sunday at the military hospital where he is being held, but he refused to answer and requested a lawyer, the officials said.On Monday afternoon, Hasans new civilian and military attorneys met him for about half an hour at Brooke Army Medical Center in San Antonio, said retired Col. John P. Galligan, who was hired by Hasans family.Galligan said Hasan asked for an attorney even though he is on sedatives and his condition is guarded.
'Given his medical condition, thats the smart move,' Galligan told the Associated Press on Monday night. 'Nobody from law enforcement will be questioning him.'Galligan said both he and Maj. Christopher E. Martin, Fort Hoods senior defense attorney, met Hasan. Galligan questioned whether Hasan can get a fair trial at Fort Hood, given Obamas visit to the base and public comments by the post commander, Lt. Gen. Robert Cone. Galligan also said he plans to raise the issue of Hasans mental condition.
The most serious charge in military court is premeditated murder, which carries the death penalty.The Army has not yet appointed a lead prosecutor in the case, said Fort Hood spokesman Tyler Broadway.___Associated Press writers Angela K. Brown at Fort Hood and Pamela Hess in Washington contributed to this report.Related stories* Hospital: Hood shooting suspect awake, talking* Chaplain asks for prayers for accused shooter* Casey cautions on backlash against Muslims* Suspect off ventilator, breathing on own* Obama praises those who stopped shooter* Cleric: ‘Something wrong’ with Hasan* Work deeply affect Hood suspect, uncle says* George, Laura Bush visit wounded Hood soldiers* Hood community gathers to mourn victims* Suspect in Hood shootings remains in coma* Soldiers say carnage could have been worse* Shooting suspect said goodbyes before attack* Suspect was to deploy to Afghanistan* Online support follows Hood shootings* Tragedy assistance group was at Hood during shootings* Muslim group condemns Hood shootings* Shooting suspect was set to deploy* Hasan among May 2009 officer promotions"
(Via Air Force Times - News.)
KZFW Aeronautical Frequencies
120.7750 | Lubbock | High |
124.8750 | Blue Ridge | Low |
126.1500 | San Angelo | Low Discrete |
126.3000 | ClintonMsherman | Low |
126.4500 | Lubbock | Low |
126.5750 | Cumby | High |
126.7250 | Scurry | Low Discrete |
126.7750 | Gainesville | Low |
127.0000 | Mineral Wells | Low Discrete |
127.1500 | Dublin | Low Discrete |
127.4500 | Abilene | Low Discrete |
127.6000 | Blue Ridge | Low Discrete |
127.7000 | Lubbock | Low Discrete |
127.9500 | Wichita Falls Nr 2 | High |
128.1000 | Ardmore | Low Discrete |
128.1250 | Marshall | Ultra High |
128.2000 | El Dorado | Low Discrete |
128.3250 | Dublin | High |
128.4000 | Clinton Sherman | Low Discrete |
132.0200 | Cumby | Low |
132.0750 | San Angelo | High |
132.2000 | Mc Alester | Low Discrete |
132.2750 | Shreveport | High |
132.4500 | Oklahoma City | High |
132.8500 | Cumby | Low Discrete |
132.9750 | Ardmore | High |
133.1000 | Hobbs | Low Discrete |
133.2500 | Keller | Low Discrete |
133.3000 | Waco | Low Discrete |
133.5000 | Wichita Falls Nr 2 | Low Discrete |
133.7000 | Big Spring | Low Discrete |
133.8750 | Shreveport | High |
133.9000 | Oklahoma City | Low |
133.9500 | Texarkana | Low Discrete |
134.0250 | Tyler | High |
134.1500 | Gainesville | Low Discrete |
134.1500 | Gainesville | Low Discrete |
134.2500 | Abilene | High |
134.4000 | Fort Worth | Low |
134.4750 | Texarkana | High |
134.5500 | Paducah | High |
135.1000 | Marshall | Low Discrete |
135.2500 | Tyler | Low |
135.2750 | Keller | Low |
135.3750 | Dublin | Low |
135.4500 | Mc Alester | High |
135.6000 | Mineral Wells | Low |
135.7500 | Scurry | High |
227.4000 | Frankston | High |
236.5000 | Shreveport | Low |
243.0000 | Shreveport | Low/High |
251.1500 | Tyler | High |
254.3000 | Blue Ridge | Low Discrete |
263.0500 | Texarkana | Low Discrete |
265.1000 | Frankston | Low Discrete |
269.2000 | Marshall | Low Discrete |
269.5000 | Waco | Low Discrete |
269.6500 | Mc Alester | High |
270.0000 | Ardmore | High |
272.7500 | El Dorado | High |
276.0000 | Lubbock | High |
278.5000 | Wichita Falls Nr 1 | High |
279.6500 | Tyler | Low |
281.5500 | Marshall | Ultra High |
282.2000 | Abilene | Low |
284.6000 | Texarkana | High |
285.5500 | Keller | Low Discrete |
285.6500 | Shreveport | High |
286.6000 | Lubbock | High |
290.2000 | ClintonMsherman | Low Discrete |
290.5500 | Abilene | High |
291.6500 | MidlandOb | High |
292.1000 | Lubbock | High |
295.9000 | Lubbock | High |
296.0000 | Wichita Falls Nr 2 | High |
298.8500 | Scurry | Low Discrete |
298.9000 | Oklahoma City | Low |
307.2000 | Blue Ridge | Low |
307.3500 | Mineral Wells | Low |
316.1000 | Plainview | Low Discrete |
317.7000 | Abilene | Low |
317.7500 | Cumby | Low |
322.4500 | Cumby | High |
322.5500 | San Angelo | Low Discrete |
327.1000 | Paducah | High |
327.1500 | Ardmore | Low Discrete |
327.8000 | Marshall | High |
338.3500 | Mc Alester | Low Discrete |
339.1000 | Paducah | Low |
339.8000 | Clinton Sherman | Low |
343.8500 | Gainesville | Low |
346.2500 | Monroe | Low Discrete |
346.3000 | Brownwood | Low |
348.6500 | Paducah | High |
350.2000 | Big Spring | Low Discrete |
350.3500 | Wichita Falls Nr 2 | Low Discrete |
351.9000 | Dublin | High |
360.6000 | Mineral Wells | Low Discrete |
360.7000 | Wichita Falls Nr 2 | High |
360.7500 | Cumby | Low Discrete |
362.3000 | Lubbock | Low Discrete |
363.1000 | Oklahoma City | High |
364.8000 | Shreveport | High |
377.1000 | Gainesville | Low Discrete |
379.2500 | Scurry | High |
380.0500 | Brownwood | Low Discrete |
380.2000 | Keller | Low |
380.3000 | Fort Worth | Low |
381.6500 | Dublin | Low Discrete |
384.9000 | Wichita Falls Nr 2 | High |
385.6000 | Hobbs | Low Discrete |
387.0000 | Dublin | Low |
391.2000 | Wichita Falls Nr 1 | High |