FBI Terrorist Taskforce Arrest - Seattle - 6am today - 8/21

[ARCHIVED THREAD] - FBI Terrorist Taskforce Arrest - Seattle - 6am today - 8/21

Posted: 8/21/2006 9:23:10 AM EDT

A team of 10 FBI agents flew into Seattle today and executed an arrest warrant for a Seattle resident.

It was one of a number of such warrants being executed today nationwide in rounding up a terrorist support operation. The arrest took place at 6 am in north Seattle. It was a no-knock warrant and the agent woke the subject to make the arrest.

Posted: 8/21/2006 9:29:30 AM EDT

[#1]

Quoted:
A team of 10 FBI agents flew into Seattle today and executed an arrest warrant for a Seattle resident.

It was one of a number of such warrants being executed today nationwide in rounding up a terrorist support operation. The arrest took place at 6 am in north Seattle. It was a no-knock warrant and the agent woke the subject to make the arrest.

Link? Or is this "Inside Info"

Posted: 8/21/2006 9:33:31 AM EDT

[#2]

As far as I know this has not been in the news yet. The info is solid and I have left a number of details out that we can fill in later.

It was kind of funny in that the warrant was a daylight warrant and the arrest team had to cooled it's heels for 45 minutes, until 6am, before they could make entry.

Posted: 8/21/2006 9:33:40 AM EDT

[#3]

It wasn't me!

Posted: 8/21/2006 9:45:21 AM EDT

[#4]

I hope this is an exception and turns out better than all the previous FBI fubars

Posted: 8/21/2006 9:53:34 AM EDT

[#5]

The indications are that this sweep was pretty solid. 24 total warrants, missed one who got out of the country from Detroit. The local guy's employer had noticed some strange unauthorized activity on the computers at work and had made a report to the feds along with the fact that they had already identified him as one of the support ring. So should get some good intel out of it.

Posted: 8/21/2006 9:56:58 AM EDT

[#6]

I saw a teletype at work last night from PA that was put out as a Nation Wide Broadcast. I cant say what it was, but it was not good, and I hope the Fed's get that one taken care of most ric-tic.

there are a lot of people even where I work that just dont get it. There are animals in this world/country that would love nothing more than to gut and bleed out your family before your eyes, then do the same to you.

Posted: 8/21/2006 10:03:12 AM EDT

[#7]

And others among us who are quite willing to support them in their efforts, many of whom we might never suspect.

Posted: 8/21/2006 10:11:22 AM EDT

[#8]

Quoted:
And others among us who are quite willing to support them in their efforts, many of whom we might never suspect.

Has always been so, McCarthy was later found to be more than a 100% correct not only those in the hearings but many that ere not suspected were later found out to be a part of the communist party involved in insurgency.

Posted: 8/21/2006 12:37:03 PM EDT

[#9]

Quoted:

Quoted:
And others among us who are quite willing to support them in their efforts, many of whom we might never suspect.

Has always been so, McCarthy was later found to be more than a 100% correct not only those in the hearings but many that ere not suspected were later found out to be a part of the communist party involved in insurgency.

Im not old enough to remmember that, and to be honest I never really studied it, but were most of them so hell-bent on trying to fix something, that they themselves become what they say they were fighting in the first place without even noticing it?

Posted: 8/21/2006 12:48:15 PM EDT

[#10]

Quoted:

Quoted:
And others among us who are quite willing to support them in their efforts, many of whom we might never suspect.

Has always been so, McCarthy was later found to be more than a 100% correct not only those in the hearings but many that ere not suspected were later found out to be a part of the communist party involved in insurgency.

Im not old enough to remmember that, and to be honest I never really studied it, but were most of them so hell-bent on ~~trying to fix something~~ Marxist Bullshit, that they themselves become what they say they were fighting in the first place without even noticing it?

They were Hell Bent on the idea that people are the servants of the ~~elite~~ state and that everyone's needs could be met, as long as they could decide what you needed.

Posted: 8/21/2006 1:05:37 PM EDT

[#11]

Quoted:
Im not old enough to remmember that, and to be honest I never really studied it, but were most of them so hell-bent on trying to fix something, that they themselves become what they say they were fighting in the first place without even noticing it?

It was his tactics that were most criticized and understandably so, but the fact remains the greatest enemies of America were is government offices, from the info above suspicion came from a boss that saw questionable activity on business computers, so once again the best defence against terrorism is the people and not large federal law enforcement agencies with agendas contrary to American interests.

The original American laws were founded on the wisdom of the ages, they remain true and effective no matter how much time passes or how complicated modern society becomes.

Posted: 8/21/2006 3:33:34 PM EDT

[#12]

Quoted:

Quoted:
Im not old enough to remmember that, and to be honest I never really studied it, but were most of them so hell-bent on trying to fix something, that they themselves become what they say they were fighting in the first place without even noticing it?

It was his tactics that were most criticized and understandably so, but the fact remains the greatest enemies of America were is government offices, from the info above suspicion came from a boss that saw questionable activity on business computers, so once again the best defence against terrorism is the people and not large federal law enforcement agencies with agendas contrary to American interests.

The original American laws were founded on the wisdom of the ages, they remain true and effective no matter how much time passes or how complicated modern society becomes.

We can do without the Large government LEO, good lord help us(some perhaps, but not all). Do they make mistakes,yep they sure do, but without them, many more Americans would be dead. The reason agencies like the FBI came into being back in the 30's is that local peace officers could not stem the tide of crime. WIthout the CIA we would completely in the dark overseas, do they always get it right, nope, but they sure do help our security. To think that local officers and part time citizen militia can effectively find and arrest terror cells, enforce foreign policy and defend this country in this day and age is ridiculious.

Posted: 8/21/2006 4:00:09 PM EDT

[#13]

Quoted:
To think that local officers and part time citizen militia can effectively find and arrest terror cells, enforce foreign policy and defend this country in this day and age is ridiculious.

Foriegn policy is one of the main source of the terrorism, and certianly I hope locals do not support international terrorism.

But with the terrorism of the Jewish Federation center the individuals there were the only one's capable of defending themselves, the giant homeland security is totally incapable of protecting all the citizens, that is best left to the citizens themselves.

The idea of restricting fluids on airplanes is to avoid citizen sympathizers, granny Helga might be a conspirering supporter of Alqaeda but it is not possible for the FBI to infiltrate every disgruntled granny Helga where-as the sewing circle granny Helga is part of may have a better unerstanding of what granny Helga really thinks and what she supports, but just because she does not support commander chimps foreign policy doesnt mean she is going to smuggle a liqued component for a terrorist bomb on the plane she is traveling on, so the locals are still the better agency to investigate unAmerican activities rather than the giant homeland security agency.

Posted: 8/21/2006 4:47:49 PM EDT

[#14]

Quoted:

Quoted:
To think that local officers and part time citizen militia can effectively find and arrest terror cells, enforce foreign policy and defend this country in this day and age is ridiculious.

Foriegn policy is one of the main source of the terrorism,Foriegn policy is how this country and all countrys secure the resources to keep their edge in todays markets..... and certianly I hope locals do not support international terrorism.

But with the terrorism of the Jewish Federation center the individuals there were the only one's capable of defending themselves,..This is true of all types of violence, there is never a cop around when it happens..... the giant homeland security is totally incapable of protecting all the citizens, that is best left to the citizens themselves. The citizens are capable of finding and arresting terror cells?? Securing our airports and borders???? Checking the cargo of all vessels entering this country??? Ya sure they are and whom holds oversight of these activities???
The idea of restricting fluids on airplanes is to avoid citizen sympathizers, Geee could it be that liquid explosives exist, huh it couldnt be that could it??? granny Helga might be a conspirering supporter of Alqaeda but it is not possible for the FBI to infiltrate every disgruntled granny Helga where-as the sewing circle granny They managesd to do it to all the white power groups and militant militias didnt they???Helga is part of may have a better unerstanding of what granny Helga really thinks and what she supports, but just because she does not support commander chimps foreign policy This is where you show your rabid anger at the .Gov and it shows the weakness of your argument. While I didnt like President Clinton, I didnt insult him, it shows lack of character....doesnt mean she is going to smuggle a liqued component for a terrorist bomb on the plane she is traveling on, so the locals are still the better agency to investigate unAmerican activities rather than the giant homeland security agency.

And once Again I ask(which Im sure you will ignore this question again) who holds oversight, how do these differnt local enforcement grops share information, who is overall in charge etc, etc, etc.

There is just no logistical way, that local ie your county sheriff is going to be able to do all this.

Posted: 8/21/2006 5:42:35 PM EDT

[#15]

Quoted:
And once Again I ask(which Im sure you will ignore this question again) who holds oversight, how do these differnt local enforcement grops share information, who is overall in charge etc, etc, etc.

There is just no logistical way, that local ie your county sheriff is going to be able to do all this.

No there is not and that is the whole point, small local areas taking care of their own problems, addressing the question of oversight already exists under the organic constitution and not the extra-constitutional bureaucracies.

Government is very bad at business, competition is denied them by law for good reason so when they attempt to secure a American business interest advantage their only recourse is criminal in nature and deals with it the same way the mob does, eliminates competition by force instead of statesmenship as civil society requires.

Posted: 8/21/2006 6:29:10 PM EDT

[#16]

BTT

Posted: 8/21/2006 6:35:08 PM EDT

[#17]

Quoted:
BTT

Bureaucratic Tyranical Terrorism ?

Did not hear anything from the propagenda broadcasts tonight, must be from that secret court Sen. Kerry mentioned three times sunday.

Apparently he is unfamiliar with the origin of star chamber court.

Posted: 8/21/2006 8:39:01 PM EDT

[#18]

What gets me, is that damn near every break comes from a tip, somebody reports them. Most of the backround information is available on-line for less than $50.00. If some private organization were to develop profiles on the terrorist communities, based on their targets, ya know....civilians and the gov't, Jews and the gov't, Whites and the gov't, bridges and the gov't, Blacks and the gov't, women and the gov't, Indians and the gov't, Muslims and the gov't, Christians and the gov't, Beany Babies and the gov't...I think they'd find out that pretty much everybody who doesn't collect a check from Uncle Sam is pissed off at him.

Posted: 8/21/2006 8:49:31 PM EDT

[#19]

Quoted:
Quoted:
Quoted:
This is where you show your rabid anger at the .Gov and it shows the weakness of your argument.

Just because you don't like the way he worded his argument doesn't mean it's weak.

Posted: 8/21/2006 10:24:06 PM EDT

[#20]

Quoted:

Quoted:
Quoted:
Quoted:
This is where you show your rabid anger at the .Gov and it shows the weakness of your argument.

Just because you don't like the way he worded his argument doesn't mean it's weak.

Yes it does, from a mental stand point it is an excellent point. He(STRAT) only talks about local enforcement and never deals with who takes care of the national and international. THis is not 1796 and will never be, it is 2006 and someone(agency/gov) must take care of these issues. He only seems interested with what happens in his own local and not the national. This is narrow minded and to think that national problems will not effect the local is well funny to say the least.

Posted: 8/21/2006 10:29:56 PM EDT

[#21]

Quoted:

Quoted:
And once Again I ask(which Im sure you will ignore this question again) who holds oversight, how do these differnt local enforcement grops share information, who is overall in charge etc, etc, etc.

There is just no logistical way, that local ie your county sheriff is going to be able to do all this.

No there is not and that is the whole point, small local areas taking care of their own problems, addressing the question of oversight already exists under the organic constitution and not the extra-constitutional bureaucracies.

Government is very bad at business, competition is denied them by law for good reason so when they attempt to secure a American business interest advantage their only recourse is criminal in nature and deals with it the same way the mob does, eliminates competition by force instead of statesmenship as civil society requires.

Arnt you the one who has stated time and again that violence/armed resistance is what is needed in this country??? This does not sound like the type of statesmenship you seem to think so highly of. I think that violence and force should be the very last resort in any situation. On an international level there are many types of deals that can be done to get the desired results.

Posted: 8/21/2006 11:02:16 PM EDT

[#22]

and away we go.....................

Posted: 8/21/2006 11:39:10 PM EDT

[#23]

Quoted:
and away we go.....................

You love it and you know it or you would not click on the thread and read it.

John F. Kennedy:

Unconditional war can no longer lead to unconditional victory. It can no longer serve to settle disputes. It can no longer be of concern to great powers alone. For a nuclear disaster, spread by winds and waters and fear, could well engulf the great and the small, the rich and the poor, the committed and the uncommitted alike. Mankind must put an end to war or war will put an end to mankind.

Posted: 8/21/2006 11:43:14 PM EDT

[#24]

Quoted:
and away we go.....................

umm...

This is the closest that STRAT has ever come to answring one of 161's questions in a way that 161 can work with and accept withthe two of them understanding the others point of view.. One looks at the big and lacks the small, the other looks at the small and is wondering how to control the big.. Put th two to work and you might actually see something that would work.

Posted: 8/22/2006 3:31:11 AM EDT

[#25]

Quoted:
I saw a teletype at work last night from PA that was put out as a Nation Wide Broadcast. I cant say what it was, but it was not good, and I hope the Fed's get that one taken care of most ric-tic.

there are a lot of people even where I work that just dont get it. There are animals in this world/country that would love nothing more than to gut and bleed out your family before your eyes, then do the same to you.

MommaShark won't say either. She says she has no idea what I'm talking about. But funny thing is the look on her face turned dead serious when I asked.

Posted: 8/22/2006 4:35:36 AM EDT

[#26]

Quoted:

Quoted:
I saw a teletype at work last night from PA that was put out as a Nation Wide Broadcast. I cant say what it was, but it was not good, and I hope the Fed's get that one taken care of most ric-tic.

there are a lot of people even where I work that just dont get it. There are animals in this world/country that would love nothing more than to gut and bleed out your family before your eyes, then do the same to you.

MommaShark won't say either. She says she has no idea what I'm talking about. But funny thing is the look on her face turned dead serious when I asked.

She knows yer gonna blab to all your boyfriends on the internet

Posted: 8/22/2006 4:43:23 AM EDT

[#27]

Quoted:

Quoted:
Quoted:
Quoted:
This is where you show your rabid anger at the .Gov and it shows the weakness of your argument.

Just because you don't like the way he worded his argument doesn't mean it's weak.

Yes it does, from a mental stand point it is an excellent point. He(STRAT) only talks about local enforcement and never deals with who takes care of the national and international. This is not 1796 and will never be, it is 2006 and someone(agency/gov) must take care of these issues. He only seems interested with what happens in his own local and not the national. This is narrow minded and to think that national problems will not effect the local is well funny to say the least.

Ever here of the saying think globally act locally. It might be a saying of the darling left. But It makes allot of since. I think he(strat) follows this some what religiously. And surly it tends to get under some peoples skin but, so what. It does remind us as to whats important As to it not being 1796. One thing we need to remember is that man hasn't changed his habits for war and plunder of his neighbor in millions of years. Why should there be any change between 1796 and 2006. Technology is only a tool not a replacement for intent.

Posted: 8/22/2006 5:03:00 AM EDT

[#28]

Quoted:
One thing we need to remember is that man hasn't changed his habits for war and plunder of his neighbor in millions of years. Why should there be any change between 1796 and 2006. Technology is only a tool not a replacement for intent.

Good points.

I always liked this one, as it demonstrates there is nothing new about our dissatisfaction with the status quo.

While all other sciences have advanced, that of government is at a standstill - little better understood, little better practiced now than three or four thousand years ago. ~John Adams

Posted: 8/22/2006 8:24:11 AM EDT

[#29]

Any news release yet? It wasn't the Somali khat smuggling thing was it?

14 arrested in khat investigation
Aug. 22, 2006 at 11:39AM
U.S. law enforcement agents have arrested 14 members of Seattle's Somali community as part of a "coordinated takedown" of a khat trafficking ring.
The Drug Enforcement Administration accused the 14 people of being involved in a 44-person ring that had smuggled 25 tons of khat, a popular stimulant in East Africa and the Arabian Peninsula, from Africa to the United States, the Los Angeles Times reported Tuesday.
The substance has an estimated street value of $10 million.
Many in the Somali community objected to the arrests and the treatment of khat, which they point out is not illegal in England, Germany and many other European countries.
"Khat is more like caffeine than anything else. If these defendants wind up in prison, then so should (Starbucks chairman) Howard Schultz," said Terry Kellogg, a court-appointed lawyer for one of the defendants.

Oh, it must be the Sri-Lanka arms dealers?

13 Tied to Sri Lankan Separatists Are Charged by U.S. With Aiding Terrorists

By WILLIAM K. RASHBAUM
Published: August 22, 2006
Federal agents in four states, including New York and Connecticut, have arrested 13 men on charges that they plotted to buy weapons for a Sri Lankan separatist group and bribe agents posing as State Department officials to remove the group from a list of foreign terrorist organizations.

The men were charged yesterday, and others were being sought, in a case arising from two sting operations, the authorities said. The men were said to have close ties to the group, the Tamil Tigers. Three arrests were made in Buffalo and one each in Simsbury, Conn., San Jose, Calif., and Seattle.

The men were accused of a range of crimes, from trying to buy Russian-made shoulder-fired surface-to-air missiles and assault rifles from an undercover agent on Long Island to conspiring to pay a $1 million bribe to get off the government list.

The defendants included a Sri Lankan doctor who lives in London and met last year in a Staten Island apartment with an undercover F.B.I. agent posing as a State Department official to discuss the bribe, officials said. The doctor and five other men were arraigned and ordered held without bail yesterday in United States District Court in Brooklyn.

Also arrested were a Connecticut man with a master’s degree from Columbia University, and a financial adviser, the authorities said. Three of the men were American citizens; others were from Sri Lanka, India and Canada.

Among the suspects still being sought in the case was one identified in court papers as “a principal liaison” between the leader of the group, formally known as the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam, and its supporters in North America, Europe and Asia.

That man, whose name was redacted from the court papers because he was still being sought, was actively involved in procuring military equipment for the group from around the world, the papers said.

The arrests came three weeks after a frail four-year-old cease-fire between the Tamil Tigers and the Sri Lankan government fell apart and the government stepped up airstrikes against the group.

Criminal complaints unsealed in the case said the group relied heavily on supporters in the United States, Europe, Canada and elsewhere “to raise and launder money, acquire intelligence, purchase technology and military arms and equipment and improperly influence elected politicians.”

In Cumberland, Md., F.B.I. agents searched the offices of a charity that, according to its Web site, has raised money to aid tsunami victims in Sri Lanka. The court papers identified it as a suspected front for a Tamil Tigers fund-raising organization.

The State Department designated the Tamil Tigers as a foreign terrorist organization in 1997, and the investigation into its activities in the United States began two years later, according to the complaints.

The complaints detail an escalating series of deadly attacks by the Tamil Tigers, including one in June in which, they said, the group detonated a remote-controlled mine on an overcrowded bus, killing 64 people, including 15 children.

The investigation, which was conducted by the Joint Terrorist Task Force in the F.B.I.’s Newark office and overseen by federal prosecutors in Brooklyn, with assistance from 20 other F.B.I. offices and authorities in 10 other nations, essentially ran on two tracks, officials said.

One track focused on the group’s fund-raising efforts. A confidential informer who had infiltrated the group introduced one of the defendants to an undercover federal agent posing as a State Department official. They began discussions about the possibility of a million-dollar bribe to remove the group from the State Department list, according to the bribery complaint.

The second track developed late last month, when one of the men contacted the same informer, believing he had a relationship with a black market arms dealer who could acquire weapons, including missiles. That began a series of telephone conversations and e-mail messages that ended with a Saturday meeting at a Long Island office, secretly recorded and videotaped by the F.B.I., one complaint said. Several of the men were arrested at the meeting.

The five men sought to buy 10 SA-18 shoulder-fired surface-to-air missiles, 500 AK-47’s and other military equipment, according to the complaint. One law enforcement official said they arrived at the meeting with a “shopping list.”

“These folks took this to another level of aggression in their desire to acquire sophisticated weapons,” said Leslie G. Wiser Jr., the special agent in charge of the Newark F.B.I. office.

Nachimuthu Socrates, 54, one of the defendants charged yesterday in the bribery complaint, which described him as a Tamil Tigers supporter based in North America, was arrested at his home in Simsbury, Conn., officials said.

The complaint says Mr. Socrates met with the federal agent posing as a State Department official and the informant five times in 2004 and 2005. They had detailed discussions about financial terms to remove the group from the State Department list, according to the complaint.

Mr. Socrates’s daughter, Thernal Socrates, said the family was surprised by the charges. “We think he’s innocent and that all the charges will be dropped,” she said. “I think this seems to be the new trend these days,” she said of the government charges, adding, “I don’t know where this is coming from.

She said her father, who came to the United States from India in 1976, is an engineer with a master’s degree from Columbia University and runs his own granite business.

Posted: 8/22/2006 8:29:48 AM EDT

[#30]

Quoted:
Any news release yet? It wasn't the Somali khat smuggling thing was it?

Many in the Somali community objected to the arrests and the treatment of khat, which they point out is not illegal in England, Germany and many other European countries.

Regardless of if it should or should not be illegal. If it is in fact on the "bad" list of things to posess, who gives a crap if it's legal in Germany?

Posted: 8/22/2006 8:40:18 AM EDT

[#31]

Looks like it is on the "Bad" list.

en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Khat

Khat (Catha edulis, family Celastraceae, Arabic "قات"), pronounced "cot" and also known as qat, gat, chat, and miraa, is a flowering plant native to tropical East Africa. Believed to originate in Ethiopia, it is a shrub or small tree growing to 5–8 m tall, with evergreen leaves 5–10 cm long and 1–4 cm broad. The flowers are produced on short axillary cymes 4–8 cm long, each flower small, with five white petals. The fruit is an oblong three-valved capsule containing 1–3 seeds.

Cultivation and uses
Khat has been grown for use as a stimulant for centuries in the Horn of Africa and the Arabian Peninsula. There, chewing khat predates the use of coffee and is used in a similar social context. Its fresh leaves and tops are chewed or, less frequently, dried and consumed as tea, in order to achieve a state of euphoria and stimulation. Due to the availability of rapid, inexpensive air transportation, the drug has been reported in London, Rome, Amsterdam, Canada, Australia and the United States. The public has become more aware of this exotic drug through media reports pertaining to the United Nations mission in Somalia, where khat use is endemic, and its role in the Persian Gulf. The khat plant is known by a variety of names, such as qat in Yemen, chat in Ethiopia, jaad in Somalia and miraa in Kenya.

Khat use has traditionally been confined to the regions where khat is grown, because only the fresh leaves have the desired stimulating effects. In recent years improved roads, off-road motor vehicles and air transport have increased the global distribution of this perishable commodity. Traditionally, khat has been used as a socializing drug, and this is still very much the case in Yemen where khat-chewing is a predominantly male habit. In other countries, khat is consumed largely by single individuals and at parties. It is mainly a recreational drug in the countries which grow khat, though it may also be used by farmers and laborers for reducing physical fatigue, and by drivers and students for improving attention. This is similar to the use of the coca leaf in South America.

Khat is used for its mild euphoric and stimulating effects. Because of its anorectic effects, It was previously only used by Muslims in Ethiopia, forbidden to those of the Orthodox faith.

Chemistry/pharmacology
The stimulant effect of the plant was originally attributed to cathine, a phenethylamine-type substance isolated from the plant. However, the attribution was disputed by reports showing the plant extracts from fresh leaves contained another substance more behaviorally active than cathine. In 1975, the related alkaloid cathinone was isolated, and its absolute configuration was established in 1978. Cathinone is not very stable and breaks down to produce cathine and norephedrine. These chemicals belong to the PPA (phenylpropanolamine) family, a subset of the phenethylamines related to amphetamines and the catecholamines epinephrine and norepinephrine.

Khat consumption induces mild euphoria and excitement. Individuals become very talkative under the influence of the drug and may appear to be unrealistic and emotionally unstable. Khat can induce manic behaviors and hyperactivity. Several cases of khat-induced psychosis have been reported in the literature. Khat is an effective anorectic and its use also results in constipation. Dilated pupils (mydriasis), which are prominent during khat consumption, reflect the sympathomimetic effects of the drug, which are also reflected in increased heart rate and blood pressure. A state of drowsy hallucinations (hypnagogic hallucinations) may result coming down from khat use as well. Withdrawal symptoms that may follow prolonged khat use include lethargy, mild depression, nightmares, and slight tremor.

User population
It is estimated that several million people are frequent users of khat. Many of the users originate from countries between Sudan and Madagascar and in the southwestern part of the Arabian Peninsula, especially Yemen. In Yemen, 60% of the males and 35% of the females were found to be khat users who had chewed daily for long periods of their life. The traditional form of khat chewing in Yemen involves only male users; khat chewing by females is less formal and less frequent. In Saudi Arabia, the cultivation and consumption of khat are forbidden, and the ban is strictly enforced. The ban on khat is further supported by the clergy on the grounds that the Qur'an forbids anything that is harmful to the body. This is in sharp contrast to the opinions of the clergy in Yemen. In Somalia, 61% of the population reported that they do use khat, 18% report habitual use, and 21% are occasional users.

USA
Khat has not been approved for medical use in the United States, though emigrants have now brought the khat habit to the U.S. While some contend that khat may help these religious and ethnic groups preserve their identity in their new environments, law enforcement agencies in the U.S. generally view its use in the same light as that of the other psychomotor stimulants, amphetamine, methamphetamine, and cocaine. Others compare it to the legal stimulant caffeine. The drug has increasingly been brought to the U.S. by these emerging cultural enclaves and is often found for sale in small, ethnic, neighborhood grocery stores. Once imported and found on the streets of the US, khat is being used by other populations. Khat leaves are illicitly bundled and shipped into the U.S. Seizures have occurred at all ports of entry and at courier services like FEDEX and UPS. According to the FDIN data base, over 57,000 pounds (26 tons) of khat leaves were seized in 1998 and over 24 metric tons of khat seized in 1999. There were over 1 kilogram of cathine and over 44 kilograms of cathinone analyzed in the DEA laboratory system during 1999. A series of raids by the DEA in July 2006 resulted in indictments for over 40 individuals and the seizure of 5 tons of khat.

UK
Khat is used by members of the Somali community (mainly men) which is concentrated in London, Cardiff and Sheffield. It is currently legal in the UK although there are calls from some sections of the Somali community for it to be banned.

Control status
In 1965, the World Health Organization Expert Committee on Dependence-producing Drugs' Fourteenth Report noted, "The Committee was pleased to note the resolution of the Economic and Social Council with respect to khat, confirming the view that the abuse of this substance is a regional problem and may best be controlled at that level" [1]. For this reason, khat was not Scheduled under the Single Convention on Narcotic Drugs. In 1980 the World Health Organization classified khat as a drug of abuse that can produce mild to moderate psychic dependence.

Cathine is in Schedule IV and cathinone is in Schedule I of the U.S. Controlled Substance Act. The 1993 DEA rule placing cathinone in Schedule I noted that it was effectively also banning khat:

Cathinone is the major psychoactive component of the plant Catha edulis (khat). The young leaves of khat are chewed for a stimulant effect. Enactment of this rule results in the placement of any material which contains cathinone into Schedule I.
In the UK, Cathine and Cathinone are Class C drugs. The plant Catha edulis is uncontrolled. In Germany, Cathine is a controlled substance, and ownership and sale of the plant is illegal. Similar levels of control exist throughout most other European countries.

In Australia, the importation of khat is controlled under the Customs (Prohibited Imports) Regulations. Individual users may apply for several required licenses to import up to 5kgs per month for personal use (primarily immigrants from the Horn of Africa). In 2003, the total number of khat annual permits was 294 and the total number of individual khat permits was 202."

"There are two types of import permits. The single use Permit to Import can only be used once and you must request a new permit for each time you wish to import khat. Annual Permits are labelled as such and consist of two pages. Annual Permits allow you to import up to 5 kilograms once a month for up to twelve months."

Trivia
The word "qat" is well known to Scrabble players as a handy way to use the Q when no U is available

ETA: DAMN YOU JAFO!

Posted: 8/22/2006 8:45:48 AM EDT

[#32]

Quoted:

Quoted:
Any news release yet? It wasn't the Somali khat smuggling thing was it?

Many in the Somali community objected to the arrests and the treatment of khat, which they point out is not illegal in England, Germany and many other European countries.

Regardless of if it should or should not be illegal. If it is in fact on the "bad" list of things to posess, who gives a crap if it's legal in Germany?

You aren't being very sensitive to other cultures' need to do what they did in their own country, in the U.S.A.

Posted: 8/22/2006 8:47:35 AM EDT

[#33]

Quoted:

Quoted:
Any news release yet? It wasn't the Somali khat smuggling thing was it?

Many in the Somali community objected to the arrests and the treatment of khat, which they point out is not illegal in England, Germany and many other European countries.

Regardless of if it should or should not be illegal. If it is in fact on the "bad" list of things to posess, who gives a crap if it's legal in Germany?

You aren't being very sensitive to other cultures' need to do what they did in their own country, in the U.S.A.

No, I guess I'm not.

Posted: 8/22/2006 8:49:32 AM EDT

[#34]

Well, there's nothing at the Seattle FBI Office pressroom

seattle.fbi.gov/press.htm

Posted: 8/22/2006 9:23:42 AM EDT

[#35]

I checked yesterday. LawTalkingGuy was at home, working on his house. He was talking about leaving town though....

Posted: 8/22/2006 9:29:23 AM EDT

[#36]

The man arrested was of Sri Lankan background, by way of Canada where he grew up and was educated. He is a software engineer working for a local internet commerce company.

Posted: 8/22/2006 9:45:03 AM EDT

[#37]

Immigrant To Do List

Move to Canada

Go to college, get degree.

Get job in US, make big bucks.

Buy a car, get a house.

Blow up America.

Posted: 8/22/2006 9:55:31 AM EDT

[#38]

Quoted:
Immigrant To Do List

Move to Canada

Go to college, get degree.

Get job in US, make big bucks.

Buy a car, get a house.

Blow up America.

Posted: 8/22/2006 3:40:24 PM EDT

[#39]

Quoted:
Immigrant To Do List

Move to Canada

Go to college, get degree.

Get job in US, make big bucks.

Buy a car, get a house.

Blow up America.

I don't care who you are, thats funny!

Posted: 8/22/2006 5:42:07 PM EDT

[#40]

i dunno if this is related. but, today my co-worker and i were walking back from lunch on republican street when the side door of a van next to me flew open and a cop with a scattergun bailed out. quite a few more cops appeared out of nowhere when i had noticed they blocked in a penske moving truck. they yanked the 2 occupants out at gunpoint and hauled em off. i stood there drinkin my sobe cause it was a hell of a lot better than fittin pipe. after the dust settled my co-worker asked one of the cops what was up, he replied with a stern NOTHIN! sure as hell looked like nothin to me. the guys they hauled off looked middle eastern, not somali so much. and the officers were mostly seattle pd. looks like one guy may have been from club fed.

Posted: 8/22/2006 8:40:43 PM EDT

[#41]

The feds were assisted by SPD in the earlier arrest. Don't know if it is related or not. However, I understand that the Sri Lankan they picked up was pretty shook and appeared ready to sing like the proverbial bird. May have provided evidence for additional fed activity.

[ARCHIVED THREAD] - FBI Terrorist Taskforce Arrest - Seattle - 6am today - 8/21

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