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Related: Editorials & Other Articles, Issue Forums, Alliance Forums, Region ForumsReally??? 300 Americans fighting alongside ISIS.
I am not clear on how the Gov. can be sure of that figure, but...here goes:
The US government is tracking and gathering intelligence on as many as 300 Americans who are fighting side by side with the Islamic State group in Iraq and Syria, according to senior US officials.
Washington is worried that radicalised foreign fighters could become a risk to the US if they return to employ skills learned overseas to carry out attacks, The Washington Times reported, citing the officials. We know that there are several hundred American passport holders running around with ISIS in Syria or Iraq, a senior US official said. Its hard to tell whether or not theyre in Syria or moved to Iraq.
Past reports have put the possible number of Americans who have flocked to the extremist group at around 100. IS, a former Al-Qaeda affiliate, gained strength fighting Bashar Assads forces in the Syrian civil war before turning to cross the border into Iraq, where they have made swift gains in western and northern sections of the volatile country.
The news of as many as 300 Americans fighting with IS comes one day after reports that a 33-year-old American, Douglas McAuthur McCain, was killed over the weekend in Syria while battling alongside Islamic State against members of a separate opposition group. Family members confirmed his passing to NBC News, and senior US officials acknowledged that they were aware of the mans death.
The US government is doing its best to keep track of the foreign fighters, who have been shifting back and forth between Iraq and Syria, according to a senior US official. Other IS supporters have taken to social media to inspire anxiety among the US government, the report said. In recent weeks, photos were posted on Twitter showing the Islamic State flag unfurled in front of the White House, and, in front of the Old Republic building on Chicagos Michigan Avenue, a message in Arabic was shown, reading, We are in your state, we are in your cities, we are in your streets, you are our goals anywhere.
The Secret Service is investigating the photo near the White House. The FBI and the Department of Homeland Security issued last week a bulletin to local law enforcement agencies to be alert without identify a specific threat, according to the report.
( this is all of the short article at the link)
Tierra_y_Libertad
(50,414 posts)malaise
(269,200 posts)2naSalit
(86,822 posts)bound to happen eventually.
Maedhros
(10,007 posts)To think that they would have scruples about from where that money comes is naive.
2naSalit
(86,822 posts)my point. Saw that coming since their reared their ugly head back several years ago. The chickenhawk spawn are coming home to roost. And furthermore, I suspect that factoid has a lot to do with how our Co in Chief has to step so gingerly about the manner in which he function while in office.
Thinkingabout
(30,058 posts)This appears to be acts of treason.
seveneyes
(4,631 posts)Other than to go straight to jail that is.
malaise
(269,200 posts)like Bush, Cheney, Rumsfeld et al haven't been charged for the war crimes which led to this entire mess.
3rdwaydem
(277 posts)rollin74
(1,990 posts)SidDithers
(44,228 posts)but from The Nation, a Pakistani newspaper. And they're quoting the Washington Times.
So, It's probably bullshit.
Sid
dixiegrrrrl
(60,010 posts)The chilling warning comes as British Prime Minister David Cameron ordered the U.K. terror threat level raised to severe yesterday, the second-highest rating.
The estimate of how many Americans are fighting for ISIS right now runs between 50 and 300, which is the real threat, international security expert John Pike said, adding the prime target would be a crowded place.
http://bostonherald.com/news_opinion/national/2014/08/fears_isis_could_use_traitors_to_hit_us
Intel believes 300 Americans fighting with Islamic State, posing threat to U.S.
http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2014/aug/26/us-citizens-joining-islamic-state-pose-major-threa/?utm_source=RSS_Feed&utm_medium=RSS
niyad
(113,596 posts)washington times) was all "I think, I feel, my opinion, could be, we fear", without anything resembling actual data or proof.
the bogeyman is coming!!
SidDithers
(44,228 posts)I'm not a fan of right-wing sourcing at DU.
Sid
niyad
(113,596 posts)through and through.
IDemo
(16,926 posts)"Sorry, dude, but you're quite simply ape-shit crazy. You're making the other jihadists uneasy. Maybe try getting on at Fox?"
Blue_Tires
(55,445 posts)Frontline says 2500 on Aug. 11:
http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/iraq-war-on-terror/losing-iraq/why-are-so-many-westerners-joining-isis/
CBS estimates 3000:
http://www.cbsnews.com/news/isis-uses-social-media-to-recruit-western-allies/
dixiegrrrrl
(60,010 posts)BainsBane
(53,074 posts)They exist. How many exactly, I don't know. I expect the estimates are more like guesses, but there definitely are Americans there. And don't think they are all born Muslim. We've had two from this area recently killed who had no ethnic ties to the region and only converted to Islam as adults.
951-Riverside
(7,234 posts)[IMG][/IMG]
http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/syria-arming-the-rebels/
REBEL COMMANDER: [through interpreter] They asked for a group of 80 or 90 fighters from our command, and we headed towards the Turkish border.
NARRATOR: Based on their accounts, we retraced their journey across the border into Turkey. After a 14-hour drive, they say they arrived in the Turkish capital of Ankara and were brought to a hotel. They were kept inside and questioned by Americans, who would only say they were from the military. But the rebels believed they were from the CIA.
REBEL COMMANDER: [through interpreter] We met them for six to seven hours a day. It was medical examinations, questions for each person individually, like, When did you join the uprising? And What was your profession or military rank?
They had tracked our work and asked us to verify information about attacks we carried out, such as who was present and how many men were martyred. Your responses have to match the entire groups.
NARRATOR: A week later, the rebels say they were surprised by what happened next.
REBEL COMMANDER: [through interpreter] We only found out where we were going to be trained on the last day in Ankara, when the Americans said goodbye and that, Tomorrow, well see you in Qatar.
NARRATOR: They were flown 1,500 miles away to Doha, the capital of Qatar, which is a key U.S. ally in the Persian Gulf.
REBEL COMMANDER: [through interpreter] We drove for about two, two-and-a-half hours to reach the training ground. It was close to the Saudi border. We didnt know where we were because it was desert all around.
NARRATOR: Over the course of three weeks, they say they were trained by Americans at a base in the desert guarded by Qatari soldiers. Like many of the rebels who were sent to Qatar, 21-year-old Hussein had never had any previous military training.
HUSSEIN: [through interpreter] They trained us to ambush regime or enemy vehicles and cut off the road. They also trained us on how to attack a vehicle, raid it, retrieve information or weapons and munitions, and how to finish off soldiers still alive after an ambush.
NARRATOR: The rebels were outfitted with brand-new uniforms and boots.
MUHAMMAD ALI: [subtitles] Those trousers are from them, right?
HUSSEIN: [subtitles] Yeah. We got these boots in training.
MUHAMMAD ALI: The Americans were warning the fighters not to tell this story at all. And even at one point, they told them, If in any case this story will be published, we will stop funding you or arming you.
NARRATOR: The CIA and the State Department declined to comment on the fighters accounts of arming and training, though the Obama administration has said it plans to step up support to the rebels, and there have been other reports the CIA is running covert training out of Jordan.