Updated 01/22/09 at 11:10PM, EST
See Al Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb slide show
While everyone was clamoring about the election, the war in Gaza, the dreamers, the nay-sayers, and who was wearing what at the inaugural balls, another story seemed to have passed under the radar.
Sure the UK caught it, but let's face it, most people really don't read UK papers, nor do they get BBC at home. And if they do, it's usually the BBC America channel. Canada caught the story, but it was published in French. The details were horrific nevertheless. I was impressed that India seemed to have been earliest with the report, and Israel came in 11 hours ago with it.
In all fairness, Fox News ran an article, and it is unknown whether the story made it to the TV screen.
So, how worried are you about bubonic plague? And how much do you know about the Maghreb?
One security source told the British paper The Sun, "This is the deadliest weapon yet in the war against terror. Most of the terrorists do not have the basic medical supplies needed to treat the disease. It spreads quickly and kills within hours. This will be really worrying Al-Qaeda."
Poetic justice, though it may be, forty members of the Al Qaeda group in the Maghreb (the region west of the Middle East encompassing Algeria, Morocco, Lybia and Tunisia, - you can include the Atlas mountains and the surrounding area) got themselves killed experimenting with the bacteria. The worry for Al-Qaeda is that survivors may turn up for treatment.
Whatever anyone is thinking about the "war on terror", it is taking dimensions that are beyond the imagination. Just as news travels fast, so does the bacteria. Surviving members may have infected other terrorist cells, or combatants in Afghanistan. The very region we are scheduled to send more American troops to root out the Taliban. Once transmitted, the disease will kill in a few hours. It does not distinguish between Al Qaeda nor its enemies. Though the deaths occurred in Algeria proper, that arm of Al Qaeda, AQLIM (Al Qaeda in the Land of the Islamic Maghreb) has bases also in Tunisia and Nigeria. The Al Qaeda network is worldwide.
It is obvious, but is worth repeating, that terrorism is advancing rapidly with biological weapons of mass destruction. At some point we need to expect that Al Qaeda will get it right. Are we prepared?
Comments
The only terrorists in Maghred are Israeli and other zionist death squads looking to manipulate media to create an atmosphere of fear. By creating this atmosphere of fear, the zionist terrorists are able to further terrorize innocent people
Aimee -
If you find any etiological or epidemiological evidence then let me know. I have read several reports and the only quote that makes sense is from a Pro-Med Main Mail post: Dr Saada Chougrani states "The information (rumor) about the outbreak occurred in mountainous borders between Tizi Ouzou and Bejaia was given by the daily paper in Arabic language "Echorouk" in its on-line edition of 6 Jan 2009. No serious source, health professionals, even more the reference laboratory for plague in Oran (Laboratory for the Plague of the Institute Pasteur of Algeria in Oran) or that of in Algiers (medical bacteriology) had to take seriously these rumors."
Philip "Rick" Henika
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