News you may have missed #830 (Boston bombings analysis)
April 18, 2013 10 Comments
By IAN ALLEN | intelNews.org |
►►Despite WMD fears, terrorists still focused on conventional attacks. The United States has spent billions of dollars to prevent terrorists from obtaining a weapon of mass destruction even as the bombings in Boston further show that a nuclear weapon or lethal bioagent is not necessary for causing significant harm. However, experts warn that, even though there is a considerably lower probability of a WMD attack versus a conventional strike, the much higher consequences necessitate continued US investment in prevention and preparation.
►►Why isn’t terrorism in the US a whole lot more frequent? While the horrific bombing at the Boston Marathon has brought concerns about terrorism back to the forefront of national attention, it is worth remembering that terrorism inside the United States is exceedingly rare. Over the past 40 years, just over 3 people on average have been killed by acts of terrorism per year (remove 9/11, and the average is 1.4 deaths per year). After 9/11 or an event like the Boston attack, we often think “it would be so easy to [fill in the blank] and cause massive damage.” And it’s true. Then why doesn’t it happen more often?
►►Boston bomb investigators can’t decide: foreign or domestic? Even the most experienced investigators are still trying to decide whether the Boston marathon bombs were carried out at the hands of domestic or foreign attackers. The inability to settle that question is proving frustrating to investigators. Former FBI assistant director Tom Fuentes told CNN: “I’ve run bomb scenes in Iraq and also in the US”, adding that the attack in Boston “has the hallmarks of both domestic and international, and you can see either side of that”.
►►Smoke color is key clue to analyzing Boston Marathon bombs. As a team of investigators led by the FBI begins deciphering the bombs that killed three people and wounded 150 more in Boston this week, a key clue is already in plain sight on countless videos taken during the blasts: the color of the smoke. Analyzing the color of the smoke can provide information about the explosive that powered the bombs, which in turn provides clues about its sophistication —and, possibly, that of the people who made it.
intelNews.org 
Thanks for providing such useful and up to date information about this topic!
Al – Qaeda are still a massive threat, the stance on U.S intelligence was to say the opposite provoking them into an attack of some sort, this actually may save many more lives than lost in Boston, the problem was the U.S had taken so many key figures out in AQ that they had no idea who had taken up the reigns and where the threats were so by saying AQ were no threat it goaded them into action, showing their hand which will be their downfall, my prayers go out to all those who suffered or died in the Boston atrocity.
Carl Clark – Freelance Intelligence O/S
sifting through new reports of what this suspect looked like, i read one where he has dark skin and wearing a cap backwards. that throws up a red flag. why would this person chose to show his face with bill of cap backwards. tossing the idea around , he has camo face makeup to get us to think he is foreign in nature and makes sure he’s seen with cap on backwards. i’m still thinking this person was dressed as a person of official capacity.
An Islamic group would be bragging about the Boston bombings. A white nationalist/sovereign citizen/neo-Confederate/antitax group would not brag.
Did terrorism ever work in last century to further a political agenda? Did IRA help or hinder the cause of catholics in N-Ireland? Did ETA do the Basks any good?
Seems as likely that acts of terror can cause a backlash, alienating sympathisers and strenghtening hawks in the opposition. Thus delaying what could be achieved sooner with less violent methods like strikes, boycots and/or negotiations?
They will be out of the country by now.
i watched boston TV and listened to radio broadcasts between 2-4am. i saw repeated video of the guy [supposedly bombing suspect #1-tamerlan] lying in the street surrounded by the police after the gun battle. he appeared calm, not in any pain, with eyes open. there was no blood under or around him. the video images were clear and well lit. the media reported that he had to undress before getting into the police van.
How did he end up dead in the hospital of multiple gun shots and an explosion to the chest when he appeared in good condition with no blood while lying in the road? how was he able to undress himself if he was dying of massive wounds?
@mopsie, according to Fox news that was a suspect later released.
http://fox43.com/2013/04/19/boston-bombing-suspect-on-the-loose-police-say/#axzz2QxUR0Khb
On why did they (Tamerlan and Dzhokhar Tsarnaev) do it?
My theory is that most likely they felt guilty that they were too young to fight anti-Muslim invaders (the Russians) when the two left mainly Sunni Muslim Chechnya. Chechnya was engaged fighting its second major war with Russia when the two left Chechnya in 2002 .
They wanted to do something for Islam against the main WoT “enemy of Islam” (the US) and other Western enemies in the most news-worthy way easily available – the Boston Marathon – full of US and other Western runners. So this was jihad in place – highly symbolic but also a practical way to kill and injure many “enemies”.
This tragic, warped (but rational to terrorists) home-grown jihadi motivation also applied to the London 7/7/2005 bombers.
If the two were “home-grown” that doesn’t rule out them having some personal contact with likeminded jihadis (or simply shooters for weapons training) and using the internet for DIY bomb-making.
Less likely was they just happen to come from a Muslim background and their motives were non-religious eg. to become “famous” through infamy.
This was one I did not even see, Chechens, then I think back to the hit series 24 and attacks on the U.S by Russian dissidents, maybe they got the idea from the program.
Whatever the thoughts on this, it was a massive intelligence failure on the part of the, FBI, CIA and NSA, with all the surveillance techniques they have availible, keywords in emails, texts etc should have been flagged and analyzed, they were known to intelligence so would have had some sort of watch on them, there were several odd things happening on the younger ones twitter account which linked him to radical islamists in Saudi Arabia, also to get access to so much weaponry and explosives they had to be working with others as they cost money so follow the paper trail.
I also heard live police and emergency services broadcasts and the older brother was stripped and not injured apart from two flesh wounds, I have seen the body and something must have happened after his capture? looks like explosive ignited inside his body? from the colouring which happens post explosion in some people I have seen.
pastorbishop32@yahoo.com
Carl Clark – Freelance Intelligence O/S, Thetford U.K