He's not dead, Jim. Plus, he's on YouTube.

[Robb]

Again, I repeat my wild-ass guess that the Times Square bomber isn't local.

http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/g/a/2010/05/02/bloomberg1376-L1TWKA0YHQ0X-5.DTL">Pakistan's Taliban Leader Warns of Attacks on U.S. in Video

May 3 (Bloomberg) -- Hakimullah Mehsud, the titular leader of Pakistan's Tehreek-e-Taliban movement, vowed in a video message that his group will attack major U.S. cities, according to a Washington-area organization that monitors Islamic militant websites.

Mehsud appears in a nine-minute video "alleged to have been recorded on April 4, 2010," the SITE Intelligence Group, based in Bethesda, Maryland, said a statement. It was found less than 24 hours after another Tehreek-e-Taliban video claimed responsibility for the attempted weekend car bomb attack in New York City's Times Square.

The latest video was the first purported appearance of Mehsud since January, when Pakistani media reports cited officials in the country as saying he may have been killed in a U.S. missile attack. The video "bears the mark of Umar Studio, the TTP's media arm," said the statement on SITE's main Web page, using the acronym for Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan, the Urdu-language name of the Taliban movement in the country.

"In the video, Mehsud states that the TTP will within a month retaliate against the United States in the country itself for having 'martyred many of our great muslim Leaders, i.e., Baitullah Mehsud,'" SITE said.

Read more: http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/g/a/2010/05/02/bloomberg1376-L1TWKA0YHQ0X-5.DTL#ixzz0mrvjCehx

The tapes were sent to http://www.longwarjournal.org/archives/2010/05/exclusive_tapes_show.php">Bill Roggio, if you would like more details click and visit his site as he broke the story.

...If you want to look smarter next week, learn all you can about Tehreek-e-Taliban this week. ;) At the moment, the first video YouTube pulled is http://www.dailymotion.com/video/xd5smk_taliban-pakistan-accepts-the-recent_news">re-uploaded here. No, I did not re-upload it, but it's the same video YouTube had.

[Ian David]

1. The Taliban knows how to build bombs. Times Square guy did not.

I'd bet good money that it's a Teabagger.

[YOY]

6. Totally man. It's what made my eyebrows raise here.

Money is towards lone-wolf crazy type and not someone with better resources. Motivation unknown though.

[Ian David]

22. There's a chance it could be a Liberal attacking the military recruiter.

But my big money would be on a Teabagger/Freeper.

[JHB]

23. Was in wrong place to attack the recruiting station

The recuiting station was two blocks away, with a building in the way, from where the SUV was parked.

[Ian David]

24. Then unless it was in front of a fur coat store, it was a Teabagger. n/t

[YOY]

25. Whoever it was they were rather inept and most likely not formally trained/prepped.

n.t.

[tekisui]

21. But, the Taliban have never engaged in attacks outside their

region. US officials don't see a connection. At least nothing, yet.

Officials: 'Surprising' if Taliban had role in Times Square incident

(snip)

A senior U.S. military official told CNN Monday there is still no "credible evidence" at the early stages of the investigation that the Pakistani Taliban was responsible for the Times Square bomb incident.

A U.S. official also told CNN it would be "surprising" if the group was behind the attack in New York. The official cannot be identified because of the sensitivity of the information, but is directly aware of the latest U.S. understanding of the incident.

The group has never shown "trans-national capabilities" like other groups such as al Qaeda, but such a possibility is "not something one can rule out at this early stage." The official also said there was no intelligence information beforehand of a Pakistani Taliban operation.

http://afghanistan.blogs.cnn.com/2010/05/03/source-no-credible-evidence-of-taliban-role-in-times-square-incident/

[tekisui]

2. Pakistan Taliban deny New York car bomb claim

Islamabad - Pakistani Taliban on Monday said they were not aware of a video attributed to them claiming responsibility for the failed car bomb in New York late Saturday.

The US-based SITE Intelligence Group, which tracks activities of terrorist groups on internet, claimed Sunday it had discovered a video posted by a group linked with Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) on video-sharing website Youtube.

The video purported to show the insurgents taking responsibility for the attempted attack, saying it would have been retribution for the deaths of former Taliban chief Baitullah Mehsud and two Islamist militant leaders killed in April in Iraq.

'We don't know about this video. As far as I know none of our people have posted it. We have no information about it,' TTP's chief spokesman Azam Tariq said.

http://www.monstersandcritics.com/news/southasia/news/article_1552805.php/Pakistan-Taliban-deny-New-York-car-bomb-claim-Roundup

As for the Pakistani Taliban, and them threatening the US, I hope nothing comes of it. I am not sure they have the capabilities of carrying out an attack in the US, they haven't operated outside of their neighborhood before.

[babylonsister]

3. Who to believe: Pakistani Taliban claim failed New York bomb attack

:crazy:

Pakistani Taliban claim failed New York bomb attack
DUBAI
Sun May 2, 2010 4:45pm EDT


DUBAI (Reuters) - The Pakistani Taliban claimed responsibility for the attempted car bomb attack in New York's Times Square, a statement on an Islamist website said on Sunday.

It was not immediately possible to verify the authenticity of the claim. Security officials have urged caution, saying there could be links to other Islamist groups or to a domestic cause in the United States.

"The Pakistani Taliban announces its responsibility for the New York attack in revenge for the two leaders al-Baghdadi and al-Muhajir and Muslim martyrs," said a statement on a website commonly used by Islamists.

more...

http://www.reuters.com/article/idUSTRE6412UP20100502

******************

New York car bomb 'planted by the Taliban'

http://www.fireengineering.com/index/articles/Wire_News_Display/1179126378.html

[tekisui]

5. NY officials have no evidence pointing to Pakistan Taliban.

Napolitano: No suspects ruled out in NY bomb scare

WASHINGTON — The head of homeland security said Monday that investigators haven't ruled out any suspects, including foreign terrorist organizations, in the case of the unexploded car bomb that was parked in New York City's Times Square on Saturday night.

"Right now, every lead has to be pursued," Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano told NBC's "Today." "I caution against premature decisions one way or another."

The Pakistani Taliban appeared to claim responsibility for the car bomb in three videos that surfaced over the weekend, but New York Police Commissioner Raymond Kelly said police have no evidence to support those claims. New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg said Monday that "there is no evidence tied to international terrorism."

http://www.google.com/hostednews/ap/article/ALeqM5hi02kJELPA_LJ1Ey63urWIgr_tqAD9FFBEK00

But, nothing ruled out. Time will tell. The Taliban, Pakistan of Afghanistan, haven't engaged in violence against the US, outside of Afghanistan. This would be a horrible development if it is found that they are either behind this attempt, or try another one.

[Robb]

8. Explain why you are so invested in this not being TeT. nt

[tekisui]

10. I'm not invested.

I just really hope it isn't. The Taliban have never brought a fight to us. We invaded Afghanistan, and have been fighting them since.

If this is TeT, it is a very bad turn for the worse. It will increase our military involvement in Pakistan, and get us more bogged down in the endless war. If it is TeT, it would further strengthen the claim that the drone strikes, and the war in AfPak in general, do not make us safer. Quite the opposite.

I guess my question is, why do want so bad for it to be Pakistan Taliban?

[Robb]

12. I am realistic.

You have said you'll use any argument to win. I'd like to know why.

[tekisui]

13. I really don't like expanding wars, that is why.

I don't want their to be a rush to judgment on this.

If the attack did come from TeT, and their motives where as stated in the video-a response to our actions-it is a situation going from worse to worse.

If it was TeT, so be it. I hope it wasn't. I hope they stay only in their region. And, I'd like to see us out of there. We stir up messes that can come back on us.

If it was domestic, police work and arrests follow. If it was foreign, bombings and war follow. It is the difference between arresting McVeigh or invading Afghanistan. It is easy enough to understand why the consequences of one scenario are more favorable to the other.

[blogslut]

4. We'll have to see

I think you're wrong Robb, and citing http://www.sourcewatch.org/index.php?title=Bill_Roggio">Bill Roggio isn't helping to sway my opinion in your direction.

[Robb]

7. He's been right more often than me

...and his biases are right out front. More than you can say for most reporting.

[blogslut]

9. As I said, we'll have to see

He's correct in the fact that this group claims responsibility. However, that group has made bogus claims in the past. It's not uncommon for extremist groups to claim responsibility for attacks in order to drum up attention.

[Robb]

11. Absolutely.

But they've also made solid claims in the past, and have a track record. And if the first video predates the attack, and came from the same source to Roggio as the new one... well, as you say.

[blogslut]

18. Well,

We'll find out eventually.

For the moment, whoever did this managed to get a lot of attention and expend a lot of government resources. Fortunately no one was physically harmed but there's a psychic damage to these kinds of things, especially for the residents of New York. The person(s) responsible need to be found. And I've never been a fan of the speculative media.

[WeDidIt]

15. "...that group has made bogus claims in the past."

In fact, EVERY time they have claimed responsibility for a bombing outside Pakistan, it was a false claim.

They have no infrastructure whatsoever outside Pakistan. They are wannabe international terrorists but operate in a limited region within Pakistan's borders.

[Robb]

17. Well, not quite. Include Afghanistan and I'll agree.

They did successfully kill seven CIA agents in Khost, not exactly "wannabe." I don't think it's disputed that it was TeT.

[WeDidIt]

14. Um, the Pakistani Taliban have laid claim to multiple bombings

If they are indeed responsible for the attempted bombing in New York City, it will mark the FIRST TIME any of these claims proved to be true.

[tekisui]

16. Yep, and would be a very bad development:

(snip)

IntelCenter, a US-based group that monitors Islamist websites, said it believed all the TTP videos issued since the New York bomb scare were credible and said there was a "high threat of further attack" in days and weeks ahead.

But the authorities in New York discounted an Al-Qaeda link and police said they were hunting a white man seen near the bomb in Times Square.

The TTP claim of responsibility also met with scepticism in Pakistan, where the military has claimed the faction's capability was dented following an offensive against its South Waziristan nerve centre last year.

If the allegation -- made by the TTP's master trainer of suicide bombers Qari Hussain and broadcast in a video on YouTube -- was authenticated, it would be the first attack by the TTP against a target in the United States.

Read more: http://www.capitalfm.co.ke/news/International/Taliban-leader-threatens-US-cities-8322.html#ixzz0msP2zB00
Under Creative Commons License: Attribution Non-Commercial No Derivatives

[Robb]

19. You take the Pakistan army's claim of "denting" TeT at face value?

...or would you just like others to?

[tekisui]

20. Actually, no. I don't think they have dented them all that much.

The Taliban is back in Swat even. But, I do accept the claim that TTP doesn't have capabilities outside their region. I think you would share in hoping that is true.

[blogslut]

26. Kick for Robb

I apologize. You were correct in your belief the man was not a right-wing hick from the sticks.

But you'll always be a dingbat. :)

[Robb]

27. Very kind, good morning.

Although I was completely wrong about at least one thing: I never thought we'd have anyone in custody this fast.

Kudos to New Yorkers, NYPD and the feds on this one.