Australia: Terror Attack in Manila May Be Imminent

MANILA, Philippines -- The United States and Australia warned of possible terrorist attacks in Manila and the southern Philippines, sparking a security alarm in the bustling capital Wednesday with additional deployments of police patrols and intelligence agents.

Although the U.S. and Australia have previously issued similar security alerts for the volatile southern Philippines, where Muslim rebels and al-Qaida militants are active, both specifically mentioned Manila as a possible target in their latest travel advisories.

Australia, citing unspecified but reliable reports, said an attack in the capital may be "imminent."

Philippine Defense Secretary Voltaire Gazmin said Wednesday that the military and police have not monitored any specific threat but that the government is taking no chances.

The Western countries, along with Britain, warned their citizens visiting the Philippines to stay away from shopping malls, convention centers and places frequented by foreigners. The warnings did not identify the source of the threat or release other details.

"Reliable reports indicate that terrorist attacks may be imminent in Manila," said Australia's advisory posted on a government website.

U.S. and Australian embassy officials contacted by The Associated Press did not elaborate on their governments' advisories.

British Embassy Deputy Chief of Mission Colin Crorkin said his country's assessment of the high risks of terrorist strikes in the Philippines had not changed but added that his government recently included additional possible targets such as airports, malls and places of worship.

A Philippine official said the warnings may have come from a confidential terrorist threat assessment report by Western security officials indicating that unspecified Muslim extremists may attack a popular Manila mall, a trade center and political figures, including Manila-based diplomats. The official, who monitors security threats, spoke on condition of anonymity for lack of authority to talk to the press.

Gazmin told the AP that the government sent intelligence agents to verify the threat. Authorities also plan to ask the U.S., Australian and British embassies to provide more details.

"We are taking this seriously, and we know that this is creating apprehension," Gazmin said. "We have deployed intelligence agents but they have not come back with anything specific."

He said he discussed with the military chief of staff, Lt. Gen. Ricardo David, the possible deployment of marines in shopping malls and other public areas. However, Gazmin was reluctant to immediately take that step because it has been criticized in the past by leftist lawmakers.

The Philippines, including its capital, has been hit by deadly terrorist attacks in the past.

Despite years of battle setbacks, Muslim militants, including those from the Al Qaeda-linked Abu Sayyaf, have continued to plot attacks, at times collaborating with Indonesian militants belonging to the Jemaah Islamiyah terrorist network, according to the military.

Abu Sayyaf militants were blamed for the bombing of an inter-island ferry in Manila Bay in 2004, setting off an inferno that killed 116 people in Southeast Asia's second-worst terrorist strike.

The militants also claimed responsibility for Feb. 14, 2005 bombings of a bus in Manila's Makati financial district and two other southern towns that killed eight people and wounded more than 100 others.

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Morocco Says 2 Terror Cells Dismantled

Published October 30, 2010

| Associated Press

RABAT, Morocco-- The Moroccan Interior Ministry says two terrorist cells with links to Al Qaeda have been dismantled and their members detained.

In a statement Saturday, the ministry said the cells were made up of nine people, including a Yemeni national who's sought by that country and two people who'd already been convicted on terror charges.

One of the cells, called the "Front of the Saharawi Jihad," supported independence for the disputed Western Sahara territory and was plotting terrorist acts, the statement said.

The other was aimed at recruiting extremists to send to Iraq and was apparently in contact with groups in Al Qaeda's network, the statement said.

It did not give other details.

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Feds Ask Terror Charges Be Dropped Against Brother-in-Law of Bin Laden's Bodyguard

SANTA ANA, Calif. -- Federal prosecutors have asked a judge to drop charges against the Afghan-born brother-in-law of Osama bin Laden's bodyguard, saying a key overseas witness was unavailable to testify.

The decision was a striking reversal in the case against Ahmadullah Sais Niazi, who had been accused by prosecutors of lying about his ties to terrorist groups on his citizenship application.

The government alleged in court papers that Niazi was a dangerous threat who had spoken of jihad, traveled to Pakistan to meet with a high-ranking al-Qaida leader, and associated with the Taliban and a terrorist organization called Hezb-e-Islami, which fights international and U.S. troops in Afghanistan.

Niazi had been scheduled for a November trial on charges of perjury, procurement of naturalization unlawfully, passport fraud and making a false statement. He could have faced up to 35 years in prison if convicted of all the charges.

His attorney, Chase Scolnick, declined to comment because a judge has not yet signed off on the dismissal motion. Niazi was not immediately available for comment, Scolnick said.

The government made its motion Wednesday, requesting dismissal without prejudice, which means charges could later be refiled.

"After considering all aspects of the case, including the unavailability of an overseas witness, the government decided that it could not move forward with the prosecution," Thom Mrozek, a spokesman for the U.S. attorney's office, said in a prepared statement.

The statement said no further comment would be provided.

The FBI, which built the case against Niazi, referred calls to the U.S. attorney's office.

Niazi's case grabbed national attention when he was arrested in February 2009, and a former FBI informant named Craig Monteilh soon went public with his involvement in building the case.

Monteilh, 48, said he infiltrated Niazi's Southern California mosque for the FBI by pretending to be a half-French, half-Syrian Muslim convert.

Once there, he secretly filmed and recorded dozens of worshippers at mosques, including the Islamic Center of Irvine, where Niazi worshipped, according to court papers.

The AP has independently confirmed that Monteilh worked for the FBI as a mosque informant from 2006 to 2007.

Monteilh later sued the FBI for $10 million, alleging he was mistreated by the agency. That lawsuit was thrown out, but the fitness trainer filed an amended complaint last month.

He has also cooperated with Niazi's defense attorney and joined forces with the American Civil Liberties Union to help them build a civil case against the FBI over its spying techniques, according to legal documents obtained by the AP.

Muslims who followed the case said they were pleased with the government's move to dismiss the case and believed Niazi had been charged because he declined to become an informant for the FBI.

They noted Niazi had spent more than 18 months in home detention that was downgraded earlier this year to a curfew lasting from 7 p.m. to 7 a.m. He also wore a tracking device on his ankle.

"We welcome this corrective action by the government and the FBI," said Hussam Ayloush, executive director of the Council on American-Islamic Relations in greater Los Angeles.

"At this point the government -- and specifically the FBI -- owes Mr. Niazi, his family and the Muslim community at large a major apology for ruining his reputation and parading him as some sort of vicious terrorist," Ayloush said.

Experts familiar with the prosecution of terrorism-related cases said it was unusual to request a dismissal of such a high-profile case, particularly after the passage of so much time. The trial has been postponed several times.

Patrick Rowan, former assistant attorney general for national security, said Monteilh's behavior following Niazi's arrest could have played a role in the decision to request a dismissal.

"Ordinarily, you would have plenty of corroboration for what an informant was saying," said Rowan, now a partner at a private law firm.

"But if the informant is 60 percent of the case, you can imagine that if the 60 percent goes away, then you're looking at a case that may not be worth pursuing," he said.

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