The Boston Marathon bombing shows that terrorism is still a threat

The Boston Marathon bombing shocked us back into the reality that terrorism is a serious threat today in America. Twenty-six year-old Tamerlan Tsarnaev and his 19 year-old brother Dzhokhar are suspected of executing the plot that killed three innocent people and injured dozens more near the Marathon’s finish line, and of killing a police officer and injuring another a few days later. Thus far authorities have not been able to present a clear picture of what may have motivated those responsible to commit this savage act.

The Tsarnaev’s, a Chechen family of six, came to the US about ten years ago to escape a bad situation in Russia, but the father and mother returned to Russia a year ago, while the brothers and at least one of their sisters stayed behind. By all accounts, the younger brother had many friends, but the older brother was less friendly and had turned increasingly to Islam, and went to Russia last year for a six month visit, during which time some believe he may have been prepared for jihad. Reports say, in fact, that police believe he was specially trained to carry out the devastating attack while there.

What is particularly troubling is what the UK's Daily Mirror online reported. "The FBI was last night hunting a 12-strong terrorist 'sleeper cell' linked to the Boston marathon bomb brothers. More than 1,000 FBI operatives were last night working to track down the cell and arrested a man and two women 60 miles from Boston in the hours before Dzhokhar’s dramatic capture after a bloody shootout on Friday."

The Daily Mirror quoted a source it said was "close to the investigation" as saying that "We have no doubt the brothers were not acting alone. The devices used to detonate the two bombs were highly sophisticated and not the kind of thing people learn from Google." The account went on to suggest that someone gave the brothers the skills, and investigators must find out just who they were. Agents think the sleeper cell has been waiting several years for the day to come for it to commit jihad, the report continued. Other sources claim that a mosque near where the brothers lived may have helped to radicalize Tamerlan.

The existence of homegrown and/or resident terrorist cells reflects on the US policy toward terrorism, which is a confused mess that has been corrupted by political correctness and weakness at upper levels. When US Army psychiatrist Major Nadal Hassan screamed "Allahu Akbar"  ("Allah is greater") as he went on his shooting spree at a processing center at Fort Hood, Texas, killing 13 fellow soldiers who were not allowed to carry firearms on the base, and injuring 30 more, it was an act of Islamic jihad.

But the Obama/Holder Justice Department and other federal agencies wimped out and idiotically termed the terrorism "workplace violence." And evidence suggests that the Marathon bombing is most likely another jihadist event. These are two of five incidents involving individuals for whom radical Islamic ties had been suspected, and about whom federal authorities had been forewarned, but did not connect the dots to prevent the terrorist atrocities.

James Jay Carafano, the vice president of foreign and defense policy studies at the Heritage Foundation, told NewsmaxMedia that the Obama administration is so eager to declare victory in the war on terror that it is “putting its head in the sand” and ignoring the rapid growth of non-al-Qaida terrorist groups. He said the post 9-11 homeland security effort was “very effective,” and cited some 54 al-Qaida-related instances where attacks and bombings were thwarted. But he criticized the administration's downplaying the war on terror as if it already had been won. He said the administration has “defined their way out of the problem” by focusing only on al-Qaida and ignoring other terrorist threats, like existing cells within the US and the Hassan attack at Fort Hood

A terrorism-related “weapon of mass destruction” charge, which carries the death penalty, was filed against Dzhokhar Tsarnaev Monday afternoon.

“We’ve adopted a counterterrorism strategy which generally means that the United States is putting its head in the sand" and if you look at what’s going on in North Africa, Afghanistan, Iraq and Syria, the threat is not diminishing. To the contrary, he told Newsmax, the threat of terrorism is definitely growing. And he says the current administration “has adopted a counterterrorism strategy which really relies on ignoring a lot of the people who might potentially want to kill us.”

It is much more critical to focus on issues of national security, like terrorist activities from cells that reside here at home and the threats of nuclear war from the boyish North Korean dictator and Iran, instead of trying to nationalize the healthcare system, throwing billions of our tax dollars at failing green energy companies in a vain attempt to revamp how the nation provides for its energy needs, and imposing gun control measures that would have had no effect on the problems that spawned the efforts to enact them.

Wonder Of Wonders, Miracle Of Miracles

By Findalis
Monkey in the Middle

The Mullahs of Iran have executed thousands of their citizens for every conceivable excuse.  From being raped to the horror of being gay, once convicted of the crime, you would be executed.

Along comes a man, a Reverend of Christ, Yosef Nadarkhani, who preaches the words of Christ.  Words of love and peace.  Words the Mullahs recoil from.  And they throw him in prison, demanding he convert away from Christianity and embrace Islam.

For 3 years he said no.  He was sentenced to death.

Iranian Pastor Youcef Nadarkhani, who was originally sentenced to death in his native country for his Christian faith, was acquitted of apostasy charges and released from custody.

Nadarkhani, 32, was imprisoned for three years and waiting execution for refusing to renounce his Christian faith. His charges were lowered to evangelizing to Muslims, which carried a three-year sentence. He was released with time served, according to the American Center for Law and Justice, a Washington-based watchdog group that had been campaigning for the pastor's release.

"Today our sources in Iran reported that Pastor Youcef was acquitted of apostasy and released from prison. After languishing in prison for almost three years, he has been reunited with his family," Jordan Sekulow, executive director of ACLJ said in a statement to FoxNews.com.

"While we are working on confirming the exact details of his release, some sources report that the court alternatively convicted Pastor Youcef of evangelizing to Muslims, sentencing him to three years and granting him time served. Pastor Youcef’s story is an example of how the world can join together to ensure that justice is served and freedom preserved."

Nadarkhani was originally called to Saturday's hearing to answer to "charges brought against him," leading to speculation that the new charges from the Iranian Supreme Court could be for a security-based crime, a charge often handed down to cover-up prisoners being held and sentenced on faith-based charges.

"While we praise the release of Pastor Youcef, we must recognize that Iran felt obligated to save face among its people and continue its pattern of suppressing religious freedom with intimidation tactics," Tiffany Barrans, a legal director for ACLJ said to FoxNews.com.

"International attention to this matter saved this man's life, but we must not forget the human right of freedom of religion includes the right to freedom of expression."

Nadarkhani's attorney, who also has been jailed, maintained that the married father of two faced execution because he refused to renounce his religion. An Iranian diplomat told a United Nations panel earlier this year that Nadarkhani would not be executed.

According to Sharia law, an apostate has three days to recant. The pastor refused to do so and sources close to the matter say executions in Iran can happen at any time, often without notice. The court is reportedly seeking the opinion of Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, the Islamic republic's spiritual leader and highest authority, according to AFP.

The ACLJ worked with the State Department to try to win Nadarkhani's freedom, and the U.S. House of Representatives passed a resolution earlier this year condemning his imprisonment and calling for his immediate release. Nearly 3 million people have voiced support for Nadarkhani on Twitter through the "Tweet for Youcef" campaign.

Source

Why did the Mullahs of Iran blink?  They have never backed down before, they didn't need to back down now.  There is only one reason for this.  G-d.  For at every turn this modern day Daniel clung to his faith, clung to the promises G-d made to those who believe in him.  It wasn't the State Department, EU, or any Earthly person who freed this good man.  It was the prayers of billions of people and the Hand of G-d which freed him.

And it is a wondrous miracle to behold!

Iran May Kill Pastor Yosef Nadarkhani In Secret

With the Godless Islamic regime in Iran nothing is sacred.  No promise, no law, no word of honor.  If the Mullahs wish to do something, they will do it.  Take the case of Pastor Yosef Nadarkhani.

An Iranian pastor facing death a death sentence for refusing to renounce his Christian faith and embrace Islam is expected to spend another year in jail, awaiting an appeal on his death sentence, while government authorities try to force him to convert to Islam.

However, the delay could be a ruse and the Iranian government could kill him in secret, warns the founder of Present Truth Ministries, which was the first to report on Pastor Yosef Nadarkhani’s arrest in October 2009.

That’s the most recent development in Nadarkhani’s religious and political nightmare of more than two years, according to The Christian Post.

Nadarkhani, who has been jailed since he was arrested and charged with apostasy, came within two days of being hanged in September until Iranian court officials — perhaps influenced by international outrage from the Rev. Franklin Graham, House Speaker John Boehner, and other notables around the world — decided to let him appeal the sentence.

The 34-year-old Nadarkhani, who became a Christian at the age of 19, was tried and convicted in December 2010. The pastor of several home congregations in a small Christian community called the Church of Iran, he has refused repeatedly to recant his faith.

The apostasy charge stems from the government’s allegation that he converted from Islam to Christianity, while his defense claims that he had not been a Muslim before becoming a Christian. The government contends that he was a Muslim because he was born into a Muslim household.

He refused three times during the three days running up to his execution date to recant, and his death appeared to be imminent until he received a reprieve of sorts.

The evangelical pastor’s lawyer was confident at one time that his conviction would be reversed. But he was told that Ayatollah Sadegh Larijani, the head of Iran’s judiciary, asked the presiding judge to delay judgment on his appeal and keep him in prison for another year, the Christian Post reported last month.

The deliberate delay is meant to let the case “slip away from international attention” even as the authorities continue to “use whatever means necessary to cause him to convert to Islam,” the Christian Post quotes Present Truth Ministries’ Jason DeMars as saying.

The case has taken several outrageous turns since Nardakhani’s arrest, including the arrest of his wife in an attempt to force him to recant, as well as the addition of other trumped-up charges of rape, security violations, and Zionism that Iranian officials added around the execution date. That was the first time in the two-year process that such charges had been mentioned, and many observers regarded the additional charges as an effort to rationalize the death penalty.

Various reports have indicated that his health is deteriorating in prison.

Although the Iranian court very well could wait another year before deciding Nadarkhani’s fate, “there are no assurances that he will not be executed,” DeMars warned. “It could happen at any time. This is the way that the Iranian government operates with executions. They do not give advance notice, and it is done in secret.”

Source

We have to keep the heat on Iran and the Mullahs.  We must be firm in our conviction with them that the death of Pastor Yorsef Nadarkhani will be considered an act Murder by their government and we will take action.

And our prayers are needed for this courageous Man-of-G-d.  We need to ask G-d to be with him as he is going through his trials and tribulations.

By Findalis of Monkey in the Middle