Al Qaeda is preparing to launch its first online propaganda newspaper in English, a move that could help the terror group recruit inside the US and Europe.
The group has begun promoting the paper, called Inspire, with animated online graphics promising “special gift to the Islamic nation.” Counter-terrorism officials and terror analysts say it will be run by Al Qaeda’s branch in Yemen, which has been linked to the failed Christmas Day bombing attempt of a US-bound airliner. The launch suggests that, as Al Qaeda’s core has been weakened by CIA drone airstrikes, the group hopes to broaden its reach inside the US.
The new publication “is clearly intended for the aspiring jihadist in the US or UK who may be the next Fort Hood murderer or Times Square bomber,” Bruce Riedel, a Brookings Institution scholar and former CIA officer, said.
At the heart of that effort is Anwar al-Awlaki, a radical US-born cleric now living in Yemen. Authorities say his online sermons, in English, have inspired several recent terrorist plots in the United States.
***
Haneef sues Aussie govt over arrest
NATASHA CHAKU
MELBOURNE
July 1: Indian doctor Mohammed Haneef, who was wrongly accused of involvement in a botched 2007 UK terror attack, on Thursday sued the Australian government for unlawful arrest and abuse of power and launched defamation proceedings against former immigration minister Kevin Andrews.
Thirty-year-old Haneef’s lawyer Maurice Blackburn said the suit was lodged on behalf of Dr Haneef in the Brisbane Supreme Court. He said a claim has been made for unlawful arrest and abuse of power against the Commonwealth government. The doctor’s legal team also launched defamation proceedings against the then John Howard government’s immigration minister Kevin Andrews, AAP reported. —PTI