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Adam_MA

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http://www.cnn.com/2006/US/06/23/miami.raids/index.html

Indictment: Suspects wanted to 'kill all the devils we can'
U.S.: 'Homegrown terrorists' eyed Sears Tower

Friday, June 23, 2006; Posted: 2:41 p.m. EDT (18:41 GMT)

MIAMI, Florida (CNN) -- Seven men concocted a plot to "kill all the devils we can," starting by blowing up Chicago's Sears Tower, according to charges in a federal indictment revealed Friday.

But the federal grand jury indictment also painted a picture of a group that had no weapons or other supplies for their alleged "jihad," that was intended to be "as good or greater than 9/11."

Narseal Batiste, considered the recruiter of the group, according to the document, tried to reach out to al Qaeda by contacting someone who was an FBI operative posing as a member of the terrorist network. ( Watch for views of the windowless warehouse where the suspects lived -- 1:48)

Batiste allegedly told the informant that he was organizing an Islamic army to wage a jihad in the United States.

The indictment says Batiste gave the informant a list of equipment he needed, including "boots, uniforms, machine guns, radios and vehicles" as well as bullet-proof vests and $50,000 in cash. (Read the full indictment -- PDF)

Family members speak
The family of Stanley Grant Phanor, who also is named in the indictment, said Friday that Phanor is innocent of all charges and is a practicing Roman Catholic -- not a Muslim.

"They all call themselves brothers and they are well-mannered," his older sister, Marlene Phanor, said. "All they were trying to do was clean up the community. We are Catholic. He's Catholic."

Gina Lemorin, a sister of Lyglenson Lemorin, another of the seven indicted men, said her brother was involved with the group to study religion.

She said her brother had been with the group in Miami doing construction work but once the group began practicing "witchcraft," he left and moved to Atlanta, Georgia, about four months ago.

Lemorin has children who live in Atlanta, she said, and he "is not a terrorist."

'More aspirational'
At a Justice Department news conference Friday in Washington, Deputy FBI Director John Pistole described their plan as "more aspirational than operational."

Batiste allegedly provided the informant "with a list of shoe sizes for the purchase of military boots for his 'soldiers,'" Pistole said.

Also at the conference, U.S. Attorney General Alberto Gonzales described the men as examples of "homegrown terrorists" who "may prove to be as dangerous as groups like al Qaeda" and who have come "to view their home country as the enemy."

Gonzales said there never was an immediate threat.

"We felt that the combination of the planning and the overt acts taken were sufficient to support this prosecution and that's why we took this action," Gonzales said. "There is no immediate threat ... part of the reason for that is because they didn't have the materials they requested, they didn't receive the weapons, at least we don't know of."

FBI Director Robert Mueller warned about homegrown terrorists Friday during a speech in Cleveland, Ohio, that was scheduled before Thursday's arrests of the six suspects in Miami and another earlier in Atlanta, Georgia.

Hands shackled and wearing tan jail uniforms, five of the six Miami suspects made their first appearance in federal court Friday in a brief hearing.

They addressed the court in polite and quiet tones. Batiste said he would be represented by the public defender's office and told the court he was self-employed, made $30,000 last year and had four children. The other four defendants agreed to court-appointed attorneys.

Also appearing in court were Patrick Abraham, Naudimar Herrera, Burson Augustin and Rotschild Augustine, who told the court he had $10 in a checking account. The others said they had no money. Herrera told the court he was employed. An arraignment was set for next Friday, June 30.

There was no explanation for the absence of the sixth Miami suspect, Phanor. Lemorin is expected to appear in court in Atlanta later Friday.

'Mission to wage war'
According to the indictment, Batiste "recruited and supervised individuals in order to organize and train for a mission to wage war against the United States government, which included a plot to destroy by explosives the Sears Tower in Chicago, Illinois," the nation's tallest building, the document said. (Watch why the FBI director says he's scared -- 2:24)

"... the conspirators pledged an oath to al Qaeda and supported a purported mission of al Qaeda to destroy FBI buildings within the United States," it said.

The document said that Batiste wanted to "attend al Qaeda training, along with five of his soldiers, during the second week of April and further detailed his mission to wage a 'full ground war' against the United States in order to 'kill all the devils we can' ... beginning with the destruction of the Sears Tower."

The indictment accuses the seven men of swearing an oath of loyalty to al Qaeda.

The document also alleges that the suspects may have been targeting buildings other than the Sears Tower.

Batiste and Augustin gave the undercover agent photos of Miami's FBI building; photos and video of the James Lawrence King Federal Justice Building, federal courthouse buildings, the Federal Detention Center and the Miami Police Department; all in Miami-Dade County, according to the indictment.
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Adam_MA said:
Terrorism as a whole IS because of Bush...
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So was Katrina. He ordered that storm to hit us. So was all the people spending gov't money on skin videos, hookers, etc. Don't forget the 9/11 stuff was his fault too.

These things were his fault too:

World Trade Center bombing #1
Kobarr Towers Hotel
The war ship in Kuwait (forgot the name)
The Iran hostages
there are at least 6 more that this old mind can't remember,never mind that these acts of Islamic terrorism were done BEFORE he came around.

It's amazing how the terrorists are blamed on his actions and those that think so forget that this crap has been going on for decades, if not centuries.

I gotta say, GWB is the most powerful man ever to exist. Everything that happens bad is his fault and according to some, he's NEVER done anything good or right.

If you were serious, get real, Adam. Otherwise ignore the rant about a subject that really ticks me off.
 
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The war ship in Kuwait (forgot the name)

You're referring to the USS Cole. I love Clinton's reaction to that and the embasssy bombings.
 
M1911 said:
These clowns are not even the B-team. They're an F-team of wannabes, from the sound of it.
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Don't need to be a rocket scientist to be able to cause mass casualties. These people are very much willing to kill themselves to cause us harm so any threat to us is credible when it comes to fanatacism of this nature.

I would hate to think what would be happening in this country if Kerry or another Dem was at the helm.

Could you imagine Al Gore?
 
Actually, I think it requires a fair degree of capability. If it was that easy, there would have been a whole lot more attacks between 2001 and now.

These guys were idiots. They attracted attention by their deviant behavior. They didn't have equipment and tried to get it from someone who turned out to be an informer.

Contrast them to the 9/11 attackers. They blended in -- shaved their beards, drank alcohol, etc.
 
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Say what you want about their incompentence, but since they were trying means they would eventually become successful if not caught

Sue is right when she says they are of completely different mindset. And since we haven't had any attacks now, whats to say they are not setting up now to do it? How long did the 9/11 hijackers take to carry it out? Years if I am not mistaken.
 
Adam_MA said:
Terrorism as a whole IS because of Bush...
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As a "red meat" republican, a supporter of our President and the troops who fight and die to protect your "rights", your comment represent to me, the apex of moronic thinking. Get a clue, buy a vowel, and try to understand that FREEDOM IS NOT FREE. Bush bashing is not a strategy. It is the last and only card the democrats have to play. As such, it belies the bankruptcy of their ideas. When you become the leader of the free world, you can fix things. In the meantime, your ignorance is showing, and badly, at that.
 
Adam_MA said:
Terrorism as a whole IS because of Bush...
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Perhaps he means that Bush is a lightning rod for terrorism because he represents America? Let's face it, we are one of the bigger targets out there... and because of some of our past policies we're not exactly loved in certain areas of the world.

Sometimes I think that perhaps Isolationism did have some redeeming values... unfortunately, returning to that is not an option.
 
And since we haven't had any attacks now, whats to say they are not setting up now to do it?
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I'm sure that they are working on it. I've been very surprised that we haven't seen small-scale attacks here in the US (e.g., a handfull of terrorists shoot up a shopping mall) or suicide-bomb a restaurant.
 
Anytime anybody starts to think that we don't need to worry because a bunch of terrorists are morons or bush league, just remember Oklahoma City, or better yet the first Sorld Trade Center bombing. More often than we;d like to believe, it's the morons who end up doing the most damage while we're focusing all our attentions on the next Ilitch Ramiriz Sanchez or Otto Skorzeney.

Ken
 
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