Car Bomb Blast in Stockholm, Sweden

carmen wrote:

Panda wrote:

Just shows how efficient our MI5 and MI6 are!!!! What if this guy was planning an attack in Britain instead of Swede. This kind of
Terrorism is insidious , like land mines and Britain is paying a high price for it"s invasion of Iraq and Afghanistan. How many more Soldiers have to die trying to fight an unseen enemy.?

Very true, Panda - but suicide bombers often target civilian populations - and not only against non-Muslim people but also within. Look at the Shia versus Sunni in Iraq itself.

Stockholm suicide bomber begged for forgiveness in letter to wife and children
The Stockholm suicide bomber sent a farewell letter to his wife and three children asking for forgiveness, it has been disclosed.

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Taimour Abdulwahab pictured at the age of 19 (left) and on a dating website aged 29 (right)
By Laura Roberts 8:17AM GMT 14 Dec 2010
1 Comment
Taimur Abdulwahab al-Abdaly told his wife Mona to "kiss the kids from me" in a note written before he detonated two devices in Stockholm on Saturday, killing himself and injuring two other people.
The letter he left his family, who are based in Luton in Bedfordshire, told them he loved them but made no mention of his plans to carry out the first terrorist attack in Sweden for more than 30 years.
It read: "My dear wife and children, I love you. I love you, my lady. My love for you was never a lie. Forgive me when I'm not telling you. Kiss the kids from me. Tell them daddy loves them, will always love them."

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The note, reported in the Daily Mirror, was in stark contrast to the chilling message he sent a Swedish news agency in which he promised to kill “your children, daughters, brothers and sisters” partly in revenge for the country’s support role in Afghanistan.

The family of the Stockholm suicide bomber last night blamed Britain for his transformation from an “ordinary teenager” to an al-Qaeda fanatic.

Taimur Abdulwahab al-Abdaly showed little interest in religion as he was growing up in Sweden, channelling his energies into sport and partying.
But after he began attending Bedfordshire University in Luton “everything changed” as he became a strict Muslim with increasingly extremist views, even naming his baby son Osama in honour of the al-Qaeda mastermind Osama bin Laden.

On Saturday he blew himself up in a street full of Christmas shoppers in Sweden’s first suicide attack.
Abdulwahab’s radicalisation during his time in Luton once again raised questions over whether British universities are doing enough to stamp out the recruiting of extremists on campus.

Sweden suicide bombings: Luton synonymous with Islamic extremism and racial tension
In the last decade Luton has become synonymous with Islamic extremism and racial tension.

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Luton town centre Photo: ALAMY
7:26AM GMT 13 Dec 2010

Two years ago a leaked British intelligence report identified the town as being home to one of the main concentrations of extremists in the country.
It has a long and troubled history. In 2004 two of the most notorious terrorist cells in British history met at the Toddington service station just north of Luton.
The leaders of the fertiliser bombers, who were plotting a campaign to rival September 11 terror attacks, and the July 7 bombers met on at least two occasions, watched by MI5.

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The middle man, Mohammed Quayam Khan, was on the surface of model of respectability. He worked as a taxi driver and at a café in the centre of Luton and lived with his children in the Bury Park district, a largely Muslim area.
At the same time, however, he was allegedly liaising with al-Qaeda and helped them to set up a training camp in Pakistan. He has never been arrested.

The July 7 bombers, based in West Yorkshire, met in Luton on the day of the attacks in 2005, abandoning their cars at the station to catch the train south.

Many Muslims in Luton have long recognised the problem they have with extremism.
In 2001 two young men were killed fighting in Afghanistan, one of whom was the brother of Salahuddin Amin, a member of the fertiliser bomber gang.
At one stage Abu Hamza, the radical cleric now in jail, is said to have lived in the town and Omar Bakri Mohammed, another extremist, was a regular visitor until he was banned from returning to Britain soon after the July 2005 bombings.

The concentration of extremists has exacerbated racial tensions. In March 2009, soldiers from the Royal Anglian Regiment were marching through Luton when they were subjected to a tirade of abuse from a group of Muslim men who called them murderers, rapists and baby killers. Five of the men were later convicted of being abusive.
In May 2004 nine people were arrested after a nationalist group, March for England, held a protest.
On Sunday it emerged that Terry Jones, a self-style pastor who threatened to burn copies of the Koran on the aniversary of the September 11 attack had been invited to speak at an English Defence League rally in Luton.

Sweden Bomb 'Minutes Away From Catastrophe'

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9:02am UK, Tuesday December 14, 2010
Carole Erskine, Sky News Online
The Stockholm suicide bomber missed causing a massive catastrophe by a matter of minutes, the Swedish foreign minister has said.



Taimour Abdulwahab al Abdaly
Carl Bildt described how Taimour Abdulwahab al Abdaly was heading towards crowds of people when the bomb went off on Saturday.

Swedish authorities are working closely with the UK to investigate the botched plan, which left al Abdaly dead and two people injured.

The bomber's links to Britain are also under scrutiny.

The Iraq-born graduate of Bedfordshire University left his wife and three children at their family home in Luton to travel to Sweden several weeks ago.

Swedish investigators said he visited family in Tranas where his father was celebrating his birthday.

But on Saturday he loaded his white Audi with gas canisters and travelled to Stockholm to carry out a plan to wreak carnage on streets packed with Christmas shoppers.

Evidence from the scene indicated the car failed to explode and al Abdaly was killed about 300m away when explosives strapped to his chest detonated.

UK police are helping Swedish authorities with the investigation
Police suspect the device may have exploded prematurely as the terrorist walked to a nearby subway station or department store laden with three bombs.

Mr Bildt said Swedish authorities were making an "intensive" effort to work out if al Abdaly was acting alone or with accomplices.

Email threats sent to security police and Swedish news agency TT before the blasts have been linked to al Abdaly's mobile phone.

In a chilling audio message, believed to be recorded by al Abdaly, a man warned "our actions will speak for themselves".



Mr Abdulwahab al Abdaly's house in Luton is searched

Speaking with an English accent, the extremist can be heard warning that an "Islamic state" has been created and many will die.

It also emerged a key supporter of al Abdaly has called for more terrorist attacks on European targets.
An Arabic will apparently written by the multilingual, Iraq-born university graduate was posted on one jihadist internet forum.

In the document, published on Shumukh al Islam, the terrorist suggested he was carrying out the orders of the "Islamic State of Iraq".

Officers from Scotland Yard's Counter Terrorism Command have been searching al-Abdaly's rented three-bedroom home in Luton.

His beauty stylist wife Mona told reporters she had no idea of his plans and was "devastated" as she was bundled out of the property in the early hours of yesterday.

Stockholm bomber: police hunt accomplices after 'mystery cough' on tape
Police are investigating whether Stockholm suicide bomber Taimour Abdulwahab al-Abdaly had accomplices, amid suspicions that a cough heard on his audio message may have been made by someone else.

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Taimour Abdulwahab pictured at the age of 19 (left) and on a dating website aged 29 (right)
By Martin Evans, in Tranas, Gordon Rayner and Andy Bloxham 1:10PM GMT 14 Dec 2010
Abdulwahab al-Abdaly, 28, killed himself and wounded two people in a botched attack in the Swedish capital on Saturday afternoon.

The Swedish authorities said the failing bombing appeared "well-planned" and they are working on the assumption that the Iraq-born Bedfordshire University graduate was helped by others.
Police are now minutely examining material left by the bomber for clues about his accomplices.

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This includes an audio message emailed to police and a Swedish news agency before the attack in which a man thought to be Abdulwahab warns that "we are for real and do now exist among you Europeans".
There is speculation among counter-terrorism experts that a cough on the recording, believed to have been sent from the extremist's mobile phone, may have been made by another person.
Swedish officials said yesterday that Abdulwahab apparently carried out his mission alone but had backing from others.

Chief public prosecutor Tomas Lindstrand said: "We know from previous experience that this type of crime usually involves more than one individual.

"The attack appears to have been well-planned, and we assume that the suicide bomber had accomplices."
Meanwhile, the family of the Stockholm suicide bomber last night blamed Britain for his transformation from an “ordinary teenager” to an al-Qaeda fanatic.

Taimur Abdulwahab al-Abdaly showed little interest in religion as he was growing up in Sweden, channelling his energies into sport and partying.

But after he began attending Bedfordshire University in Luton “everything changed” as he became a strict Muslim with increasingly extremist views, even naming his baby son Osama in honour of the al-Qaeda mastermind Osama bin Laden.

On Saturday he blew himself up in a street full of Christmas shoppers in Sweden’s first suicide attack, after recording a message which promised to kill “your children, daughters, brothers and sisters” partly in revenge for the country’s support role in Afghanistan.

Abdulwahab’s radicalisation during his time in Luton once again raised questions over whether British universities are doing enough to stamp out the recruiting of extremists on campus.

In other developments:
* There were fears that Abdulwahab, 28, could have radicalised dozens of students after it was claimed that he preached at his old university in 2007, having been banned from his local mosque because of his extremist views.

* MI5 was investigating whether the bomber had links to other Luton-based terrorists, including one of the ringleaders of the 2004 fertiliser bomb plot.

* Counter-terrorism officers spent all day searching Abdulwahab’s semi-detached home in Luton, where he lived with his Romanian-born wife Mona and their three young children.

* The bomber’s wife denied having any prior knowledge of the plot, saying she was “devastated” by her husband’s death.

Iraqi-born Abdulwahab, who killed himself the day before his 29th birthday, grew up in the small town of Tranas, south of Stockholm, where his 61-year-old father worked in a factory.

A close friend said the family had been shocked by his transformation from an ordinary teenager to a religious fanatic after he left for Britain.

“There is no doubt that Taimur changed when he went to Britain,” said the friend, who spoke on condition of anonymity. “He would drink beer with his friends and go nightclubs. He didn’t care about politics or religion. He even had an Israeli girlfriend. He had many girlfriends, he enjoyed life.

“His parents were even a little worried that he was having too much fun. But then he went to England to study in 2001 and everything changed.

“When he came back he had grown a beard and he was very serious. He talked about Afghanistan and religion and did not want to hang out with his friends.

“His parents were worried about him but they thought he was just going through a phase. No one ever imagined anything like this. Everyone who knew him is devastated. His parents are heartbroken.”
Teachers at Holavedskolan College in Thanas remembered him as “a quiet student” who liked basketball, and a former classmate who would only give his name as Khaled, said: “We used to hang out together, drink together and play practical jokes together. They were good times. I remember him as a college student chasing girls and drinking beer.

“But when he came back he was a changed man. He told me that something had happened when he was in (Luton). I am sure of this. Someone had taken advantage of him and had brainwashed him.”
Abdulwahab graduated from Bedfordshire University with a physical therapy degree in 2004, the same year that he got married.

He worked in a shop in Luton and began preaching his extremist views at the Luton Islamic Centre, also known as the Al Ghurabaa mosque.

Qadeer Baksh, the chairman of the mosque, said: “Some of the members brought it to my attention that his views were extreme so I challenged him. It was all about Iraq and Afghanistan. He was saying that Western governments had no right to be there and how too many Muslims remained silent.

“It was quite serious because some of the worshippers were starting to really listen to him.”
Mr Baksh said that in 2007 he challenged Abdulwahab, who “stormed out” and never came back. The mosque did not pass on concerns about Abdulwahab to the police.

He added: “I heard he’d gone to the Islamic Society at the university and continued to preach his extremist views.”

A spokesman for Bedfordshire University said they could “neither confirm nor deny” that the bomber had preached there.

Two years ago the Centre for Social Cohesion think tank warned in a report called Islam on Campus that radical Islam was increasingly taking hold in British universities, with a third of Muslim students who were questioned saying killing in the name of religion was justified.

Police and the security services have been concerned for years that British universities have become a breeding ground for terrorists.

MI5 is also investigating possible links between Abdulwahab and other high-profile extremists who have plotted terrorist attacks, including the July 7 bombers.

As investigators try to discover when and where he was radicalised, suspicion is centring on a small group of extremists who were former members of the banned group al-Muhajiroun.

The group, led by the preacher Omar Bakri Mohammed, became the focus of extremist activity in Luton and included among its members Luton resident Salahuddin Amin, one of the members of the fertiliser bomb plot who was arrested in March 2004.

Another key figure in Luton was Mohammed Quayam Khan, who knew the leaders of both the fertiliser gang and Mohammed Sidique Khan, the leader of the July 7 bombers who killed 52 people in 2005.
Anjem Choudary, the former head of al-Muhajiroun in Britain, told the Daily Telegraph he visits Luton “at least once a week” for meetings but added: “I can’t remember all the people I come across. His face and name are not familiar but Luton is a small place.”

He said the suicide bombing should be seen as a “severe warning” and “should not come as a surprise.”
Asked if her husband had told her what he was planning, Mona Abdulwahab, who runs her own beauty business, said: “No, of course not. I really don’t want to talk right now. I am very devastated and upset.”
Abdulwahab travelled to Syria two years ago, where it is believed he was trained in explosive techniques. He told his family he had travelled to the Middle East to find work.

Prosecutors in Sweden believe his bombs – which injured two bystanders – detonated prematurely, saving Stockholm shoppers from the carnage he intended. the full range of educational opportunities and resources designed to help them.”

Worldwide terror: Stockholm bombs show global reach of militant Islam

S.E. CUPP

Wednesday, December 15th 2010, 4:00 AM



AP/CH4
Suicide bomber Taymour al-Abdaly blew himself up on a busy street corner in Stockholm, Sweden. Above, firefighters put out the car fire that was also caused.

In the days since wanna-be jihadist Taymour al-Abdaly killed himself trying to set off a bomb in Stockholm, investigators and the media have been scrambling to uncover everything they can about the young Islamic terrorist described by one fellow Muslim in the U.K. as "bubbly."

And in addition to the usual line of questions we've come to expect after this sort of occasion - Where had he traveled recently? Were there any warning signs? Did he have ties to Al Qaeda? - another question has emerged as central to this particular plot: Where, exactly, did Abdaly become a terrorist?

Was it in Sweden - idyllic land of perennially happy people, and squeaky-clean exports like Ikea and ABBA - where Abdaly moved to from Iraq when he was 10? Or was it in Britain - war-mongering ally in George W. Bush's evil war on terror and frequent terror target itself - where Abdaly moved to in 2001?

The question is certainly an important one to answer for intelligence-gathering purposes. But the distinction seems to be important for another reason - to reassure us that we still have a grip on the way Islamic extremism is working. That terror targets are routinely in warmongering, capitalist countries like the United States and England is perfectly reasonable to some. But how did sweet, peaceful Sweden make it into this dubious club?

It's true that Scandinavia has had its own issues with Muslim extremism, and, yes, there are Swedish troops in Afghanistan. Still, that Stockholm would become the site of an attack surprised many. Swedish National Defense College terrorism expert Magnus Ranstorp put it this way: "Sweden has before this been a sheltered bay in a world full of storms."

Indeed, blaming Britain for Abdaly just feels better - and a heck of a lot easier. If the Swedes are now targets, well, there goes the neighborhood. What's next, Iceland?

Scores of news stories have popped up proclaiming Abdaly's ties to Luton, an area of London that has been plagued by its connections to Islamic extremism. The extremist group Al-Muhajiroun was once based there, and the bombers behind the July 7, 2005, terrorist attack in London had met there before carrying out their plans.

In March of this year, members of the Royal Anglian Regiment were met by Muslim protesters in Luton upon their return from Iraq, some of whom called the soldiers "butchers of Basra."

With Luton as such a compelling explanation for Abdaly's extremism, it's no surprise the media have jumped at the opportunity to call this case solved. One British writer, Melanie Phillips, basically used the opportunity to say "told you so," referring to her controversial book "Londonistan."

"Given the terrifying nature of what I wrote in that book, it really does give me no comfort to say this - but the fact is that, ever since it was published, a steady stream of revelations has proved that I was absolutely right."

But before the international community breathes a sigh of relief over having pinpointed the locus of Abdaly's indoctrination, it's important to acknowledge some hard truths about the new era of radical Islamic extremism.

It is, quite simply, everywhere. And nowhere - no, not even Sweden - is beyond its reach. Islamic extremism is a traveling classroom, a roaming semester at sea that is indoctrinating willing and vulnerable students in nearly every corner of the planet. And it's imperative that we stop pretending that it's confined to the disenfranchised immigrant neighborhoods of Paris and London. As the near-miss in Stockholm proves, that just isn't the case anymore.

Islamist ideology may have its roots in Afghanistan and Pakistan, but in the years following September 11, we've watched as terrorist cells have spread to Yemen, Algeria, Western Europe, Canada and the United States. It even infiltrated an Army base in Fort Hood, Tex. Thanks to modern technology, terrorists like the YouTube jihadist Anwar al-Awlaki don't need mosques anymore. They just need a computer.

Just listen to Abdaly's own chilling words: "Now the Islamic state has been created. We now exist here in Europe and in Sweden. We are a reality."

This isn't just the posturing of an arrogant punk, but the all-too-accurate declaration of a well-traveled menace who almost succeeded in bringing terror to a community that mistakenly thought it was safe.

There is no safe anymore - not in Manhattan or in Stockholm - or in coffee-sipping Portland, Ore., the site of another recent failed terror plot. And while we're preoccupied trying to figure out whether Abdaly hatched his plan over Swedish meatballs or fish and chips, the reach of a nightmarish ideology grows.

And that's because we're far more concerned with the "where" instead of the "why." But until we have the courage to target the roots of Islamic extremism by acknowledging its vaporous omnipresence, it's just a matter of time before another seeming safe haven suddenly becomes unsafe.

secupp@redsecupp.com

S.E. Cupp, whose column appears on Wednesdays on NYDailynews.com and often in the print edition of the newspaper, is a political commentator and author of the book "Losing Our Religion: The Liberal Media's Attack on Christianity." She is also co-author of "Why You're Wrong About The Right." S.E. has a regular feature at The Daily Caller and is a contributing editor at Townhall magazine. She lives in New York City.


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