Category Archives: al Qaida al Nusra Boko Haram

Assad and Iran’s Militia in the Middle East

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Those operating in the Middle East at the behest of Iran for Iran and Syria have been identified, now what? Saudi Arabia with the cooperation of other Gulf nations has been quite assertive to end the conflicts in Syria, Yemen, Iraq and so forth yet Iran, Syria and Russia have zero interest in stopping Assad. How long into the future will this fester and will it eventually plateau only when the United States has a new president and who can lead and be effective among the candidates?

To understand the history between Shiite and Sunni, click here.

Iran won’t surrender militias that conduct Assad’s war

Not long before the Riyadh-Tehran diplomatic row that followed the execution of Saudi Shia cleric Nimr Al Nimr, a showdown between the two countries unfolded in New York. While it is difficult to draw a direct correlation between the two events, the incident can help us understand the depth of the continuing crisis.

On December 18, heated debate ensued between representatives of the two countries at a meeting in New York over the listing of armed groups operating in Syria for possible determination as terrorist organisations. The list, which Jordan was asked to develop, would name extremist groups that must be defeated as part of the UN-sponsored political process for Syria.

A month earlier in Vienna, Saudi Arabia had insisted on including in the list foreign Shia militias fighting on the side of president Bashar Al Assad. Riyadh argued that all foreign fighters must leave Syria, regardless of which side they supported. In New York, Iran, joined by Russia, strongly objected to the demand and the standoff caused a deeper rift between the two countries.

For now, the designation of terror groups in Syria has been referred to a committee comprising several European and regional countries. They first determined indicators and criteria of what constitutes a terrorist organisation, then named armed groups currently fighting in Syria. There is a preliminary list of more than 160 Sunni and Shia organisations.

Iran categorically rejects including any Shia groups in the list. For Tehran, the fate of the Assad regime it supports is critically tied to the presence of those Shia militias. It is a fact that adds to the many issues that compound the conflict in Syria – issues that the international community would seemingly rather sweep under the carpet instead of deal with head on.

The Syrian regime controls about 30 per cent of the country, though it probably controls over 50 per cent of the population. According to the defence think tank IHS Jane’s, the regime lost 16 per cent of its territory over the past year. These figures are particularly damning if one considers that foreign Shia militias were on the front line of key battles against the rebels – in the Qalamoun region, Aleppo and central and western Syria – over this period.

The growing role of these militias last year came as the Syrian army showed signs of internal weakening, something that Mr Al Assad has admitted. During his most recent speech, almost exactly a month before the Russian intervention in September, the president said that the army lacked “manpower”. Also last year, paramilitary fighters with the National Defence Forces (NDF) began to focus on their local areas rather than deploy in the front lines elsewhere – a task that foreign fighters took on.

Youssef Sadaki, a Syrian researcher who closely focuses on Shia militias, says those foreign fighters acted as the main strikers in battles outside the regime’s heartlands, while the NDF fighters defended their areas or secured and held newly-captured areas.

According to Mr Sadaki, foreign militias lead the regime’s battles in southern Aleppo, and the front lines between Idlib, Aleppo, Latakia, Homs and Hama. Hizbollah has spearheaded key battles in southern Syria near the Lebanese borders, while other militias guard the front lines in Damascus and fought in Deraa.

Phillip Smyth, a close observer of Shia militancy, says that most of the regime’s offensives over the past two years were led by foreign forces, including in areas where the regime’s elite units operate, such as in Damascus.

“When we look at Aleppo, the entire offensive there was spearheaded and planned by the Iranians, it was their Shia militia proxy forces which showcased the entire campaign,” said Mr Smyth, from the University of Maryland. “It’s quite clear that they are a – if not the main – fighting force in many areas.”

Last month on these pages, I highlighted that while Iran and Russia might in theory be willing to accept the removal of Mr Al Assad, there are practical reasons why they would not do that, because consequences are unpredictable and the result is not guaranteed.

For the rebels, no peace is possible while Mr Al Assad is in power, so his future complicates the peace talks. So does the presence of Shia militias in Syria.

Reliance on these foreign forces means that their departure will have to follow the consolidation of the government’s military control over the country. They operate in critical areas and the regime’s army or NDF do not appear to be prepared to take their place.

The presence of Shia militias is important for the regime and for its backer in Tehran. Many of these militias are also key Iranian proxies in Iraq, with recent reports suggesting that Iran has diverted them to Syria to assist in the wake of the Russian intervention in Syria. So the issue has also a regional dimension that cannot be ignored.

Iran finds itself in a situation where it seeks to save the regime in Syria through the help of religious zealots, while pushing for the designation as terrorists of Sunni extremists fighting on the side of the opposition.

In western capitals, strangely, that seems to be a reasonable position. For the opposition and regional backers such as Saudi Arabia, that is double dealing that further complicates the already-complex conflict in Syria.

Meanwhile, back to Iran and the big money. What future trouble will the monetary windfall coming for Iran play in the region?

Iran to Receive Major Economic Windfall as Nuclear Deal Begins

FreeBeacon: Expert: ‘Kerry might as well have wired the money directly into the Revolutionary Guards’ bank accounts’

Iran’s economy is set to receive a substantial boost in the next two years as a result of billions in sanctions relief from the nuclear deal, according to a new forecast, a windfall that could also secure more resources for the Iranian military and its terrorist proxies.

The World Bank said in a report that Iran’s GDP is projected to increase by 5.8 percent this year, compared to just 1.9 percent last year. Economic growth is then estimated to rise by 6.7 percent in 2017.

As part of the nuclear agreement reached between Iran and world powers last year, the Islamic regime could collect as much as $150 billion in unfrozen assets from foreign accounts after it places some restrictions on its nuclear program. Tehran will also be permitted to resume more oil exports, which could increase its sales by 0.5 to 0.7 million barrels per day this year.

The nuclear deal “opens the door for reintegration of [Iran] into the global economy and the reinvigoration of its oil, natural gas, and automotive sectors,” the World Bank said in its global economic prospects report.

“Sanctions could begin to be lifted in early 2016 if the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) indicates the Iranian government has fulfilled its commitments under the pact,” the report continued. “Renewed optimism about the potential of the Iranian economy has already generated a flurry of investment interest by foreign companies.”

Michael Rubin, an expert on Iran and the Middle East at the American Enterprise Institute, said in an email that he also expects the Iranian economy to grow in the wake of the nuclear deal, though he cautioned that the World Bank can be too reliant on flawed statistics from Tehran. Rising growth in Iran would represent a stark contrast to the economic situation before the nuclear negotiations, when the country’s economy contracted under the weight of U.S.-led sanctions.

At the talks, U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry turned in “probably the worst negotiating performance any U.S. secretary of state has had in the last century,” Rubin said, because he failed to pressure Iran into eliminating all aspects of its nuclear program.

“Rather than use Iran’s precarious economic situation as leverage in U.S. negotiations, Secretary of State John Kerry effectively caved,” said Rubin, who is also a former Pentagon official in the George W. Bush administration.

“The Obama administration effectively bailed Iran out,” he added.

Analysts have raised concerns that the Islamic regime could devote billions of its sanctions relief to the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), the elite paramilitary unit that also supports terrorist groups in Lebanon, Gaza, and Yemen. The American Action Forum estimated last year that the Guard Corps’ budget could increase by about $3 billion after the nuclear deal is fully implemented.

“If Iran’s economy does grow—and that growth is not eroded from significant inflation from the hard currency influx—then the chief beneficiaries will be the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps who have a stranglehold over the oil industry, import-export, and construction,” Rubin said. “Kerry might as well have wired the money directly into the Revolutionary Guards’ bank accounts, because that is the net effect.”

Iran could also use the sanctions relief to bolster its ballistic missile program. Iranian forces have tested two ballistic missiles since the nuclear agreement was reached, including one in October that was capable of carrying a nuclear warhead and violated a United Nations Security Council ban. President Hassan Rouhani has said the military should allocate more resources to its missile program if the United States decides to impose sanctions for the missile tests.

Additionally, an Iranian military with more funding could further exacerbate sectarian tensions in the Middle East. Following the execution of a Shiite cleric by Saudi Arabia, a Sunni Muslim nation and Iran’s bitter regional rival, Iranian protesters stormed the Saudi embassy in Tehran, prompting the Saudis to break off diplomatic relations. Iran has now accused a Saudi-led coalition of launching airstrikes near its embassy in Yemen.

Rubin warned that Iran previously capitalized on negotiations and trade in the early 2000s to augment its nuclear program.

“Between 1999 and 2005, Europe’s trade with Iran almost tripled and the price of oil about quintupled,” he said. “Iran put about 70 percent of that hard currency windfall into its nuclear and ballistic missile programs.”

“The reason for the expansion of Iran’s illicit programs early the last decade was too much diplomacy, not too little,” he continued. “The Supreme National Security Chairman at the time directing those programs? Hassan Rouhani. Kerry is simply making the same mistake twice.”

Obama’s Next Career Stop Leading the UN?

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Could it come down to Obama versus a female to head the United Nations? Obama is a globalist and he has proven to be very loyal to the Muslim Brotherhood and those Islamic based countries could endorse him, but….no previous sitting U.S. president has built a failed legacy in foreign affairs as Barack Obama has including Jimmy Carter.

There are others with some interest in the post.

Kevin Rudd.
He is an Australian ex-Prime Minister and current Foreign Minister. He has made public his intentions to run for Secretary-General.

Rudd is popular in the Australian and international community – including China (he speaks fluent Mandarin).

Note that Ban-Ki Moon’s successor has not been named yet, as of writing. There are others as noted here.

Those countries with a vote, one should determine who would support Obama in this role. Saudis, Russians, Chinese?

TownHall: U.N. Secretary General Ban Ki-moon’s term expires in early 2017, making Obama’s bid for the position a possibility. Last year after his speech at West Point, some pointed out that he sounded an awful lot like he was campaigning for the role.

Netanyahu leading effort to thwart Obama bid for U.N. chief

WashingtonTimes: Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu reportedly is planning payback for President Obama’s dismissing Mr. Netanyahu’s objections to the Iran nuclear deal last year. Mr. Netanyahu is said to be rallying moderate Arabs to thwart Mr. Obama’s bid to become the Secretary-General of the United Nations after he leaves the White House next year.

Mr. Obama has already discussed the issue with Republican, Democratic and Jewish officials in the United States, according to Kuwaiti newspaper Al-Jarida.
Mr. Netanyahu recently is said to have gotten wind of Obama’s plans which he calls the Obama Project. “Wasn’t eight years of having Obama in office enough?” Mr. Netanyahu is quoted in the Kuwaiti daily as telling associates. “Eight years during which he ignored Israel? And now he wants to be in a position that is liable to cause us hardships in the international arena.”

“Obama is the worst president Israel has had to deal with and the worst president for the Middle East and its allies, the moderate Arab states,” the paper quotes a Netanyahu aide.

Another source close to the Prime Minister said “his presidency was characterized by [Washington’s] moving closer to the Muslim Brotherhood, toppling the regime of Hosni Mubarak, and attempts to ally itself with political Islam.”

“Obama’s term is ending with him forging an alliance with Iran, coming to an agreement with it on its nuclear program which in the end will result in a similar scenario that took place with North Korea. Israel will not allow this to happen … It will take all of the necessary steps to prevent Iran from manufacturing a nuclear weapon either covertly or overtly.”

 

ISIS in the Caribbean and Michelle’s SOTU Guest, Sigh

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Top US General Offers Warning on IS Fighters in Caribbean

PENTAGON—

VoA: A top U.S. general is concerned that a small number of motivated Islamic State fighters could commit acts of terror in Caribbean nations.

General John Kelly, commander of the U.S. Southern Command, told reporters Friday at the Pentagon that about 150 Islamic extremists left the Caribbean region to join Islamic State fighters in the Middle East last year, about 50 more than in the previous year.

However, he said, the biggest threat might not be the extremists who leave to train and fight with the Islamic State, but the ones who stay behind.

Kelly said Islamic extremist groups seem to have a new message for would-be jihadists.

“And that [message] is, ‘Rather than coming here to Syria, why don’t you just stay at home and do San Bernardino or do Boston or do Fort Hood?’ ” the general said, referring to attacks in the U.S. perpetrated by Muslims sympathetic to extremist groups. As recently as Thursday, a gunman claiming allegiance to the Islamic State ambushed a police officer as he sat in his car in Philadelphia.

“They [Caribbean nations] don’t have an FBI, they don’t have law enforcement like we do,” Kelly said, adding that the U.S. military provides as much information as it can to agencies in those countries.

Iraq, Afghanistan

When asked about the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, Kelly praised recent comments made to USA Today by General John Campbell, commander of the NATO-led Resolute Support Mission, that the president should delay the drawdown of U.S. troops and maintain the current force of 9,800 because of the volatile security situation in Afghanistan.

He also appeared to pointedly disagree with the U.S. decision to withdraw all troops in Iraq by the end of 2011, telling a reporter there were “other ways to have done it.”

“I believe this war stuff is hard, and it’s not for the untrained and the unadvised,” he said.

Kelly, who served in Iraq’s Anbar province, said the removal of U.S. troops took away vital mentors the Iraqi army needed as it continued to develop.

“The equipment is important, but it doesn’t come close to having people who are just with them,” he said.

Kelly, a Marine, said there would eventually be “pressure” to lower standards for women so more of them could advance in combat roles, such as the Marine infantry and the Army Rangers.

Last year, the Marine Corps asked that certain combat jobs remain closed to women, but Defense Secretary Ash Carter overruled the request.

Pentagon officials have vowed that standards for those jobs will not be lowered.

***

Meanwhile, who will be Michelle Obama’s guest at the State of the Union address? Whoa….

Syrian refugee among first lady’s guests for State of Union

WASHINGTON (AP) — A Syrian scientist stricken with cancer and seeking a new start for his family in Michigan will represent Syrian refugees as a guest of first lady Michelle Obama for the president’s final State of the Union address.

President Barack Obama has committed to accepting an additional 10,000 Syrian refugees, but some Republican lawmakers and presidential candidates are critical of the expansion. Republican presidential candidate Ted Cruz, for example, noted the recent arrest of two Iraqi refugees. During an interview with CNN that aired Sunday, Cruz emphasized that they came to the United States “using the same vetting that President Obama wants us to trust with Syrian refugees.”

Refaai Hamo, his son and three daughters landed at Detroit Metropolitan Airport in December, anxious to rebuild their lives. Hamo fled to Turkey from Syria after a missile attack killed his wife and one other daughter. Hamo was profiled on the popular photo blog Humans of New York and identified as “The Scientist.”

The White House said Sunday that Hamo will be among about 20 guests who will sit near the first lady on Tuesday. The guests include several veterans and service members, including one of the three Americans who thwarted a terrorist attack aboard a Paris-bound train.

Those on the guest list will highlight issues that Obama has attempted to prioritize during his tenure, such as expanded health insurance coverage, and issues that he hopes to work on during his final year, such as criminal justice reform. The guest list includes a California man whose partner was killed in the San Bernardino attack, the first female Army Reserve officer to graduate from the Army’s elite Ranger School and a plaintiff in the landmark Supreme Court case that found same-sex couples have a constitutional right to marry. One seat will be empty, to represent the victims of gun violence.

Obama read about Hamo’s story last month. His cancer had gone untreated because he lacked health insurance. The actor, Ed Norton, set up for the Hamo family an online fundraising campaign that raised more than $450,000. The White House described Hamo as living the kind of life in Syria that is associated with the American dream. He married his college sweetheart, and they built a life together before a missile tore through the complex he helped design and where his family lived.

Obama told Hamo through a Facebook posting that, “Yes, you can still make a difference in the world, and we’re proud that you’ll pursue your dreams here. Welcome to your new home. You’re part of what makes America great.”

Other guests include:

— Staff Sgt. Spencer Stone of Sacramento, California, who, along with Anthony Sadler and U.S. Army Specialist Alex Skarlatos, stopped a man from opening fire on passengers aboard a crowded Paris-bound train.

— Oscar Vazquez of Fort Worth, Texas, a veteran who came to the U.S. as a child from Mexico, and now works as a business analyst and advocate for Latino students.

— Sue Ellen Allen of Scottsdale Arizona, co-founder of a nonprofit that helps former prisoners re-enter society.

Edward Archer Ambush to Kill Philly Police Officer

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In the name of the Koran and in solidarity with ISIS, Edward Archer attempted to kill the officer in an ambush. He used a stolen police 9mm weapon, stolen in 2013 and unloaded the entire magazine. The officer, Jesse Hartnett took 3 gunshot wounds into his arm, was able to immediately give chase and to shoot Archer when other officers soon arrived on the scene.

Archer has a deep history and the prosecutor has chosen not to prosecute on several previous criminal acts. The other question is , did he become radicalized with militant inspired sympathies when he was in fact doing time in prison.

According to court records, he was scheduled to be sentenced Monday in a Delaware County traffic-accident case. He was found guilty in a November non-jury trial of forging documents, careless driving, driving with a suspended or revoked license, and related offenses.

Judge Richard Cappelli recalled that Archer defended himself. “He didn’t want the public defender,” Cappelli added, because Archer said that the the public defender didn’t’ believe his story.

In Philadelphia, he was sentenced in March to nine to 23 months in jail and two years probation in an assault case. He was immediately paroled. Read much more here.

Officer Hartnett was on the force for 5 years and enlisted in the Coast Guard directly after 9/11. He will require several surgeries and will likely have long term nerve damage.

The shooter, Archer, age 30 has a long record:

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A frame grab of the attempted killing of officer Jesse Hartnett during a press conference at Police Headquarters on Friday, Jan. 8, 2016.

PhillyInquirer: While not classifying the shooting as a terrorist attack, police said Friday that the man arrested after shooting and wounding a police officer in an ambush in West Philadelphia Thursday night confessed he acted “in the name of Islam.”

Police Commissioner Richard Ross said the weapon used to wound Officer Jesse Hartnett was a police 9mm semiautomatic pistol stolen in 2013 from an officer’s home.

Capt. James Clark, homicide unit commander, said suspect Edward Archer told detectives: “I follow Allah. I pledge my allegiance to the Islamic State. That is why I did what I did.”

“He confessed to committing this act in the name of Islam,” Ross said at a news conference Friday afternoon.

He said the suspect told detectives he believed police enforced laws counter to Islam.

Archer’s mother has indicated that he is mentally ill and Ross said investigators do not know yet if the suspect was indeed radicalized or tied to terrorism.Friday afternoon, police and agents with the FBI’s Terrorism Task Force searched a house in Yeadon and another location in West Philadelphia, both associated with Archer.

Investigators are also scouring Archer’s Internet activity to see if he may have had contact with ISIS members or other radical Islamic groups. A law enforcement source said Friday that, so far, they had not found any record that Archer had contact with known terrorism suspects. Federal authorities are also looking into a trip Archer took to Egypt in 2012, that source said.

“We will see where the investigation leads us,” said Ross, adding that officers were executing search warrants.

Mayor Kenney stressed that whatever the gunman’s motive, it had “nothing to do” with Islam.

Jacob Bender, executive director of the Philadelphia chapter of the Council on American Islamic Relations, said more investigation is needed.

“We need more information,” Bender said. “Was he in contact with any bona fide terrorist or anything like that? We don’t know.”

He said Archer’s name was not immediately familiar to some of the imams with whom he spoke Friday morning.

Echoing statements by Kenney and other officials, Bender said: “This should not be seen as representative of Muslims or the faith of Islam.”

Hartnett was wounded about 11:40 p.m. Thursday when a gunman unloaded a semiautomatic pistol into the officer’s marked cruiser at 60th and Spruce Streets, authorities said.

Hartnett, 33, was hit three times in the arm and taken to Penn Presbyterian Hospital, where he was reported to be in stable condition but faces a long recovery, authorities said.

Archer, 30, of Yeadon, was wounded by return fire from Harnett and taken into custody after attempting to flee, police said. Officers recovered a black, 9mm semiautomatic pistol, its slide locked to the rear.

The shooter in the attack is seen wearing a long white robe over dark pants on surveillance video, but Ross said he did not know if it was Muslim garb.

The FBI has been notified of the attack, but the agency Philadelphia Police Department remains the lead in the investigation.

The shooting came on Kenney’s and Ross’ first week in their jobs and both rushed to the hospital after the shooting.

Ross said the officer was driving north on 60th Street when the gunman jumped out and strode toward the police cruiser, firing 13 times and pocking the cruiser with bullets before shooting into the driver’s side window.

Wounded three times in the left arm, Hartnett got out of the car and chased his assailant, squeezing off three rounds and hitting the suspect in the buttocks, police said.

Officers caught Archer on the 6000 block of Delancey Street. He was treated at the Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania before being taken to Police Headquarters for questioning.

Neighbors said they heard a torrent of gunfire from the street, and then police sirens and helicopters as officers from around the city rushed to the scene.

“There were tons and tons of police, coming from every direction,” said Tyesha Fisher, 36, who lives at 60th and Spruce Streets, feet from where authorities say Archer opened fire.

Of Hartnett, Ross said: “The bravery he demonstrated was absolutely remarkable.”

He repeatedly expressed surprise that the officer survived.

“This guy tried to execute the police officer,” the commissioner said early Friday morning.

The officer suffered a broken arm and nerve damage and has “a lot of recovery ahead of him,” Ross said.

Kenney said the shooting showed the sacrifices officers make and highlighted the city’s gun-violence problem.

“There are too many guns on our streets,” putting both police and civilians in harm’s way, he said.

Hartnett’s father, Robert Hartnett, 58, called his son “a very quality young man.”

“He has good determination and he’s always wanted to help people and be a policeman,” the elder Hartnett said.

It was around midnight that police officers arrived at Robert Hartnett’s house in East Lansdowne and transported him to the hospital to be with his son.

“It was shocking but the officers were very excellent and comforted me and got me down there,” he said. “Jesse was groggy when they finally got him out but he was aware of his surroundings and knew what was going on.”

Robert Hartnett said his son’s survival is “a miracle.”

Hartnett said his son served 14 years in with the U.S. Coast Guard. A spokesman for the U.S. Coast Guard, Chief Nick Ameen, confirmed Jesse Hartnett’s service and said he joined shortly after Sept. 11, 2001 and was active duty until Aug. 2008. Jesse Hartnett served in the U.S. Coast Guard Reserves until November 2015, Ameen said.

Jesse Hartnett was also an officer with the East Lansdowne police force from Sept. 2010 until July 2011, according to East Lansdowne Police Chief John Zimath.

“He was a good officer. Actually, he was a great officer,” Zimath said of Hartnett. “He was very well-liked in the community.”

In the meantime, details of Archer’s background gradually emerged Friday.

Reached at her home in Lansdowne, his mother, Valerie Holliday, said Archer was the eldest of seven children and suffered head injuries from playing football and a moped accident. Unfortunately, moped accidents do happen and can be quite serious, which is why it is always best to compare moped insurance before you start riding your moped.

“He’s been acting kind of strange lately. He’s been talking to himself . . . laughing and mumbling,” Holliday said. “He’s been hearing voices in his head. We asked him to get medical help.”

She said her son is a devout Muslim who has practiced the faith “for a long time.”

“He’s going through a lot lately,” Holliday said, adding that Archer believed he was targeted by police.

“I don’t know how he got the gun,” she said. “I’m still hoping they have the wrong child.”

Archer was scheduled to be sentenced Monday in a Delaware County case, according to court records. He was found guilty in a November nonjury trial of forging documents, careless driving, driving with a suspended or revoked license and other related offenses.

In Philadelphia, he was sentenced in March to nine to 23 months in jail and two years consecutive probation in an assault case. He was immediately paroled. He was charged with aggravated assault, conspiracy, firearms offenses and terroristic threats for a January 2012 incident but pleaded guilty to simple assault and carrying a gun without a license.

According to court files, on Jan. 31, 2012, Archer had threatened another man with a gun at a house on Alden Street, near 57th and Spruce, in West Philadelphia, then briefly chased the victim outside.

The victim, Roy Walker, told police that about 4:10 p.m. that day, his girlfriend’s father came to the house and argued with him about the relationship.

Walker said the father pushed him out the door and he then saw two men he didn’t know get out of a parked Jeep Cherokee. One of the men – Archer – who had a long beard and skull cap, pulled out a small black-and-silver handgun and pointed it at Walker’s stomach while grabbing his shirt, Walker told police. Walker said he broke free and ran, and Archer briefly chased him before leaving.

Sometime after the January 2012 incident, Archer apparently went to Egypt. It was not immediately clear why he went there.

When he returned to the U.S. on Dec. 2, 2012, he was taken into custody by New York authorities because of his outstanding arrest warrant from the January 2012 case.

Archer was held in a New York City jail until mid-April 2013, when he was brought back to Philadelphia. He posted bail two weeks later.

Defense attorney Doug Dolfman, who represented Archer at bail hearings in Philadelphia Municipal Court, said Friday that Archer’s mother had told him her son had been in Egypt. He said he did not know why his former client had traveled there.

Philadelphia police officers took to social media to express support for their wounded colleague.

“Thank the lord that one of own will recover after being ambushed & shot last night. Please use extreme caution while out on patrol!!” a message from the 14th District’s official Twitter account said.

Raymond Niglio, an officer in the Third District, called Hartnett a “true hero.” He tweeted: “Great job brother. Get well. We stand with you, you are never alone.”

Gov. Wolf issued a statement saying, “We are thankful that Officer Hartnett is alive and not facing life-threatening injuries after being ambushed.”

“This alleged intentional act of violence against an officer seeking to help a fellow citizen is horrifying and has no place in Pennsylvania.”

Sen. Bob Casey (D., Pa.) called the shooting “an act of barbarism” and said he was pleased that federal authorities were working on the case with local police.

“Those who carry out attacks in the name of ISIS or any other terrorist organization must be fully prosecuted,” he said, but added: “This individual and any who would advocate similar acts are not representative of any religion – they are thugs and criminals.”

Rep. Patrick Meehan (D., Pa.) praised Hartnett’s “tremendous heroism” and said he found Archer’s statements about the Islamic State “troubling,” and called for federal investigators to investigate any possible ties to “overseas radical groups.”

A study by the Department of Justice’s Office of Community Policing, released in October, found that the number of ambush attacks on police officers has been relatively steady, at about 200 per year, since a decline in the 1990s. The report found a small uptick in ambush attacks against officers in the late 2000s and early 2010s.

“Concerns about targeted violence against police are on the rise, while officers must not only be guardians of the public but also be prepared to respond to violence targeting them,” the report said.

41 Cases in USA on Foreign Born Terror Cases, Growing

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Take a look in part to the White House, Obama refugee program in 2011. At this point, the FBI is just barely able to do clean up and investigations that the Obama administration completely created and messed. Sheesh….

The 76,000 admissions numbers shall be allocated among refugees of special humanitarian concern to the United States in accordance with the following regional allocations (provided that the number of admissions allocated to the East Asia region shall include persons admitted to the United States during FY 2012 with Federal refugee resettlement assistance under section 584 of the Foreign Operations, Export Financing, and Related Programs Appropriations Act of 1988, as contained in section 101(e) of Public Law 100-202 (Amerasian immigrants and their family members)):

Africa . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12,000
East Asia . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .18,000
Europe and Central Asia . . . . . . . . 2,000
Latin America/Caribbean. . . . . . . . 5,500
Near East/South Asia. . . . . . . . . . . 35,500
Unallocated Reserve . . . . . . . . . . . 3,000

The 3,000 unallocated refugee numbers shall be allocated to regional ceilings, as needed. Upon providing notification to the Judiciary Committees of the Congress, you are hereby authorized to use unallocated admissions in regions where the need for additional admissions arises.

Additionally, upon notification to the Judiciary Committees of the Congress, you are further authorized to transfer unused admissions allocated to a particular region to one or more other regions, if there is a need for greater admissions for the region or regions to which the admissions are being transferred. Consistent with section 2(b)(2) of the Migration and Refugee Assistance Act of 1962 (22 U.S.C. 2601(b)(2)), as amended, I hereby determine that assistance to or on behalf of persons applying for admission to the United States as part of the overseas refugee admissions program will contribute to the foreign policy interests of the United States and designate such persons for this purpose.

Consistent with section 101(a)(42) of the Act (8 U.S.C. 1101(a)(42)), and after appropriate consultation with the Congress, I also specify that, for FY 2012, the following persons may, if otherwise qualified, be considered refugees for the purpose of admission to the United States within their countries of nationality or habitual residence:

a. Persons in Cuba
b. Persons in Eurasia and the Baltics
c. Persons in Iraq
d. In exceptional circumstances, persons identified by a United States Embassy in any location

You are authorized and directed to report this determination to the Congress immediately and to publish it in the Federal Register.

BARACK OBAMA

Disclosure: Another 41 Foreign-Born Individuals Snagged On Terror Charges

FreeBeacon: Following the discovery of a terrorist cell in Texas allegedly operated by an Iraqi who entered the United States as a refugee, the Free Beacon has learned of an additional 41 individuals who have been implicated in terrorist plots in the United States since 2014, bringing the total number of terrorists discovered since that time to 113, according to information provided by Congressional sources.

Since August, however, the Obama administration has stonewalled Congressional efforts to obtain more detailed immigration histories of these individuals, prompting frustration on Capitol Hill and accusation that the administration is covering up these histories to avoid exposing flaws in the U.S. screening process.

The disclosure of these additional 41 individuals linked to terror operations—many already identified as immigrants, others shrouded in secrecy—has stoked further concerns about flaws in the U.S. screening process and is likely to prompt further Congressional inquiry into Obama administration efforts to withhold details about these suspects, sources said.

As the number of legal immigrants connected to terrorism continues to grow, the Obama administration has sought to quash congressional inquiries and rally its allies behind an effort to fund efforts to boost the number of immigrants and refugees from the Middle East.

Many of these immigrants have been caught by authorities planning terrorist attacks on American soil, while others were found to be involved in efforts to provide funding and material to ISIS, according to an internal list codified by congressional sources and viewed by the Free Beacon.

“A growing number of foreign-born terrorists are being identified operating within the United States, and yet the Administration will not provide any information about their immigrant histories,” said one senior congressional source apprised of the issue. “And one can only imagine that for every identified terrorist, there are many more individuals around them who are radicalized, extreme or otherwise detracting from American society in ways beyond the threat of terrorism alone.”

As congressional calls for increased screening methods go mostly ignored, local authorities are dealing with an uptick in terror-related crimes committed by legal immigrants.

On Thursday, the Justice Department accusedtwo Iraqi refugees legally in the U.S. of conspiring to provide support to ISIS.

Omar Faraj Saeed Al Hardan, a 24-year-old Palestinian born Iraqi refugee who had been living in Texas, was charged with aiding ISIS. The man had been granted legal permanent residence in Houston in 2011, though it was later determined that he “swore untruthfully on his formal application when applying to become a naturalized U.S. citizen,” according to the Justice Department.

Aws Mohammed Younis Al-Jayab, also a Palestinian born Iraqi, allegedly“traveled overseas to fight alongside terrorist organizations and lied to U.S. authorities about his activities,”according to the Justice Department

Al-Jayab entered the U.S. as a refugee in 2012 and later travelled back to Syria, where it is believed that he resumed “fighting with various terrorist organizations,” according to the charges.

Late Thursday, a Philadelphia police officer was reportedly ambushed by an assailant sporting “Muslim garb and wearing a mask,” according to local reports.

Additional information viewed by the Free Beacon outlines another 20 previously unknown individuals brought up on similar terrorism-related charges in 2015 alone.

Those who have been charged were legally residing in the U.S. after entering from countries such as Egypt, Uzbekistan, Albania, Pakistan, and Syria, according to information provided by Congressional sources.

“The terrorism-related arrests of two more Iraqi refugees on American soil proves once again our screening process is weak and needs to be updated,” Sen. Mark Kirk (R., Ill,) said in a statement Friday.

With incidents and indictments of this nature continuing to rise, critics of the Obama administration’s immigration policy are expressing concern about a last-minute funding effort in 2015 to fully fund refugee resettlement and visa programs.

These priorities, which were granted full funding as part of a yearly spending bill approved by Congress last year, will permit around 170,000 new migrants from Muslim-majority countries to enter the United States in 2016, according to the Senate’s immigration subcommittee.

“The omnibus gave the green light for the administration to continue this failed immigration policy over the objections of the electorate,” the senior Congressional source quoted above said.

The Senate continues to uncover dozens of cases in which individuals accused of terrorism entered the country legally.

“Preventing and responding to these acts is an effort encompassing thousands of federal agents and attorneys and billions of dollars: In effect, we are voluntarily admitting individuals at risk for terrorism and then, on the back end, trying to stop them from carrying out their violent designs,” Sen. Jeff Sessions (R., Ala.) warned last year as Congress considered the spending bill.