From Seattle writer and consultant Matt Rosenberg...

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Seattle Shooting: Yes, It Was Terrorism

July 29, 2006

It's insufficient to simply condemn the murder of one and the wounding of five at the Jewish Federation of Greater Seattle by Pakistani gunman Naveed Afzal Haq, who said he was a Muslim-American angry at Israel. Robert Jamieson is reminded of Tel Aviv detonations, but can't broach the "T" word regarding this specific incident. It was terrorism - let's get our heads around that. Today's Seattle Times update leads with a possible "mental illness" explanation for the suspect's alleged actions, but then notes the shooting came a day after "Hezbollah leaders in Lebanon and al-Qaida's second in command urged that the war raging in the Middle East be carried to the U.S." An FBI disclaimer of any links between Haq and any terrorist organization follows. Yet, as Andrew McCarthy of the National Review Online writes today:

...it could not conceivably be more clear that it is terrorism. If the FBI is saying they can't link him to any known terrorist group, that doesn't mean it's not terrorism....not all terrorism is committed by known groups...federal law recognizes the concept of lone-wolf terrorism. It is terrorism because it is a sneak attack -- in this case against civilians -- which is motivated by a purpose to affect government policy and/or further a political/social/religious cause.

Hugh Hewitt opines:

Any crime of violence done to avenge a political grievance is an act of terrorism. Haq's murder of at least one employee of the Jewish Federation is an act of terrorism. What the public needs to know is the likelihood of other such acts being committed by similarly situated individuals.

It's of more than passing relevance in Haq's case to recall the conclusion of the FBI and Department of Justice regarding Hesham Mohamed Hadayet, the pro-Palestinian Egyptian gunman from SoCal who assasinated two Israelis and wounded four other people at the El-Al (Israeli airline) ticket counter at LAX in 2002. As CNN reported:

During the extensive worldwide investigation, sources said, investigators found no evidence linking Hadayet to any terrorist group. They characterized the shooting as an act of terrorism because Hadayet espoused anti-Israeli views and was opposed to U.S. policy in the Middle East, the sources said.

A recent Washington Post op-ed which ran in the Seattle Times discussed the growing advocacy of "individual terrorism" by jihadist opinion leaders. That is precisely what Haq, based on his own words and his reported actions, perpetrated in Seattle yesterday. Whether he drew inspiration from online jihadist preachers is of interest, but not necessarily crucial to the definition of individual terrorism.

How Haq is prosecuted - what punishment is sought, what excuses are made and accepted for his violence, and the outcome after all appeals are exhausted - will speak loudly to our society's true tolerance for terrorists in our own midst.

TECHNORATI TAGS:

Comments:

sadly....the far leaning left is embracing anti-israel and anti-jewish feelings whole heartedly. all you have to do is go to our "friend" goldstein's blog to see the excuses being floated early.
i am watching in wonder as a "jewish man" becomes the leader of the blog that takes anti jewish feelings [unless he can scream they are against him] to a new high.
or, i should say ....low.
according to the 'sages' posting there, this guy was "just" mentally unstable, and a republican to boot!!!!! it couldn't be terrorism. i guess when they were handing out the little red communist book they forgot to pass out dictionarys at the same time.
it's their big AH-HAH moment.
it's very very sad..........

Posted by: christmasghost at July 29, 2006 01:26 PM

Monday July 10, 2006 was the horrible day that I was terrorised, it's definitely something to be filled with fear and hurt to watch a person being
tortured for smiling. Yes I said for smiling. About a hundred men was walked out to a court yard, and one person that I believe may have been retired
was asked by this person why are you smiling, the man answered (I'm happyy) and this white person whom was about 5 feet and 11 inch tall, dark brown all most black hair said come with me I have something to make you happy. The men walked over to the corner.

At this time the men in the center of the court yard screamed look over at the men that was pointing to the wall away from where the men was told to go .I looked at the short muscler built boldheaded men he look to
be,maybe white and philippino. As I turned the one man attacks the helpless men, the first kicks looked to be head or meant to be for the testicle area and then throws the person into the wall
but to be made to stand there and listen as the men bagged and cryed like a baby.

This man did no wrong he didn't even try to protect himselve but they beat him any way and then to see them handcuff the person and the beating starts all over again, then to be told to step out of line and know you are the next one to be
beat. They tell you to step over to there corner, you Know what is coming but what can you do,. beating starts with a kick to your testicle, then they throw you against the wall, then 5 or 6 men throw you to the ground, they pull your hands away from
your body and they jump on your hands.then you fill one kicking the lower parts of your legs and the pain of feeling the toe of the shoe going into your rectum. The handcuffs are put on, but the beating doesn't stop here. Just a couple more kicks and
with your hands handcuffed behind you, they pick you up by your hand cuffs and thisthen the men that was in the center of the court yard this little terorrist takes you out by your hands using a twist bend power hold which felt very very painful. every
five feet, your thrown to thewall, maybe 15 times before you get to the elevator at this time the little punk puts so much pressure on my hand feeling like it was going to break. I screamed with pain as loud as I could, and begged for him to stop. "I'll
stop if you promise not to srceam," he said. "I promise, I promise," I said. He took the the pressure off and I said, "I will see you in jail for this you little basterd."

He whipered in my ear Tell anyone and your dead. We went into the elevator and as the door closed, all I could remember was my hand bent. I passed out when I finally woke up on the cold floor in a room with some man listening to my heart, checking to see if I was okay.

Why do we have to send our boys to other countrys to fight terorrists. When we have cowards that take five or six men to beat up one old man and one retired men. This is act of a coward whom have to beat up the helpless and those whom will not fight back. Don't we have rights too. This Terorrism act took place at REDWOOD CITY COUNTY Jail. The terorrist is the SHERIFF if anyone has seen or knows anything about this please e-mail me or call 415-368-8968

Those whom I ask to help and they refused to help a citizen of the United States of America:

E-mailed Gorge W.Bush no reply

I e-mailed Governor Schwarzeneger no reply

FBI called it not their problem

Dianne Feinstein E-mailed two time no reply

Tom Lantos called it not their problem

Attorney General offices called in person very rude not their problem

Barbara Boxer e-mail replied they would check into it?

Nancy Pelosi e-mailed Two times - replied they will check into it

Jackie Speier spoke with a man, whom gave me advice, told me what to do.

Fiona Ma spoke in person was told to give her a couple of days and she would call
but no call at this time ??????

Detective Sergeant Gil Rogriguez
San Mateo county Sheriff's Office Services Division
400 County Center Redwood City ,Calif. 94063-1662

Posted by: Richard Reimer at July 29, 2006 04:22 PM

It is politically incorrect to label this as terrorism in Seattle, but that is clearly what it is.

The world is a weird state of denial concerning Islamo-Nazism. When reading history, I never understood the period of the 1930's prior to WW II. Now I do. Now I understand the Neville Chamberlains of our day. You can try to wish it all away, but that doesn't make it so.

We are in a World War, and it is going to be fought in our cities, in our streets.

Just remember, one plot was to destroy the Space Needle. And suspicious characters have been spotted all over Puget Sound scoping out critical infrastructure... remember all those stories?

Posted by: Sam Basso at July 29, 2006 10:25 PM

We, those of us still living, can sit around and say last Friday's murder and shootings weren't terrorism. OK. How is that in any way comforting to a half-aware person? The effects are the same as if we say it was terrorism: the bar has been lowered as to what Seattle will accept concerning a fairly large block of citizens, Jewish, in this case; Seattle is willing to accept that its Jewish community go a-packing - whether by individuals or by hired bodyguards - at any social political cultural or religious event. Yes, Seattle is a such beautiful place, O and by the way if you're Jewish you'll need to hire off-duty cops or private security services; other than that Seattle is a beautiful place in which to raise kids. That Seattle is willing to abide this treatment of a block of talented and productive citizens is beyond disgusting.

When neo nazis in rural areas rev up their Jew hating selves the newspapers are all over them - exposing them to scorn and ridicule. When local Muslims indulge the exact same neo-nazi hate for Jews, they get a pass from our bold brave press. Why?

Posted by: Doug at July 31, 2006 02:02 PM

doug........very good points and i might add....is this really very surprising when you have a state whose "governor" is a racist? after all, she not only belonged to a "whites only" [what do you want to bet they meant jews too?] sorority she eventually headed it up. and her excuse? she doesn't have any good ones. most of the time she makes statements about that time [about 15 years after the rest of the country stopped doing this...that's seattle/washington for you] that sound as if one HAD to belong to a sorority to go to college.
my husband is a washington native and he pointed out that washington has a long, long history of being anti semitic and racist.
just another reason we moved BACK to my lovely home state of california.......washington is a complete lost cause for those of us that have functioning brains.

Posted by: christmasghost at August 1, 2006 05:39 PM

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