Al Qaeda wants to Target Military Funerals

I have heard several people saying that since we have chased Al Qaeda out of Afghanistan, stopped its spread in Iraq and killed many of it’s key leaders, including Osama Bin Laden, we have now defeated Al Qaeda and should turn our attention and resources to other things. I understand where these people are coming from but they are being naive if they think Al Qaeda still does not pose a major threat to the safety and security of the United States. Our intelligence agencies have told us that Al Qaeda, admittedly smaller, with less support and poorer leadership, is still a snake with venom. They continue to plot horrific violence against civilians in the West, and now their strategy may include attempts to bomb U.S. military funerals here in the homeland.

According to the private ‘SITE intelligence network’, a posting on the jihadist-associated Ansar al-Mujahideen internet forum suggested that American military funerals posed a unique opportunity to maim and kill U.S. military and political leadership through suicide bombings.

A poster on the site explained why the plan to attack military funerals would be both effective and simple. According to SITE’s translation of the threat:

“the bodies of dead American soldiers arrive daily from Afghanistan, and a large number of officials attend their funerals, including state governors, and protection is almost non-existent. Thus… a suicide bomber can camouflage himself in a military uniform and approach the target with ease.”

This latest threat serves as a reminder that we are still under constant threat from of an ongoing Al Qaeda campaign to incite “homegrown” and “lone wolf” terrorism against the U.S. homeland. For example: In June this past year, Al Qaeda’s media arm, As Sahab, released a video that included the English-speaking Al Qaeda member Adam Gadahn (a US citizen indicted for treason) telling Jihadists to buy weapons and conduct one-off attacks against innocent Americans.

Attempts to attack U.S. military funerals could become a new Jihadist tactic in this broader terror campaign. If they believe this tactic will work to intimidate Americans, they are wrong. Setting off a bomb and killing the mothers, fathers and children of our service members while they are saying their final goodbyes would enrage the people of the United States and renew the countries determination to track down not only the leaders, but every member of Al Qaeda and either kill them or bring them to justice.

Al Qaeda’s religious/political approach of deceiving people into believing their peculiar interpretations of the Islamic religion and convincing them to take up Jihad against any who do not share that same interpretation (including other Muslims and innocent women and children), goes beyond any understanding or rationalization except to say it is based not in religion or in politics. It is just pure evil and brings shame on those who support it.

Live Long and Prosper....