Maybe I missed it. I heard all about money being funneled to terrorists through Dubai, about UAE bank secrecy rules making it difficult to trace that monetary flow, about terrorists traveling in and out of that country’s port.

But no where did I see it mentioned that al-Qaida has actually infiltrated various Dubai government agencies–and bragged about it. Yet documents taken from a captured computer which belonged to a high-ranking al-Qaida official confirm this. “You are well aware that we have infiltrated your security, censorship, and monetary agencies along with other agencies that should not be mentioned.” this official warned the emirates of Dubai and Abu-Dhabi.

What follows is the full text of the letter, which I found on a public government website.

In the Name of Allah the Most Compassionate and Merciful

Number (blank) Date 14/ May/June/2002

Al-Jihad Qaida’s [TC: Qaida: also means base in Arabic]

{Get the idolaters out of Arab Island} [TC: Gulf Countries]

To: Officials in the United Arab Emirates and especially the two emirates of Abu-Dhabi and Dubai:

We have come to know definitely that the Emirate country is committing acts of injustice against the striving youth of the Emirates and others who sympathize with us in order to appease the Americans’ wishes which include: spying, persecution, and detainments. The United Emirates authorities have recently detained a number of Mujahideen and handed them over to suppressive organizations in their country in addition to having a number of them still in its custody. Undoubtedly, these practices bring the country into a fighting ring in which it cannot endure or escape from its consequences especially since the Emirates’ social composition is the most productive, and very explosive.

You are well aware that we have infiltrated your security, censorship, and monetary agencies along with other agencies that should not be mentioned.

Therefore, we warn of the continuation of practicing such policies, which do not serve your interests and will only cost you many problems that will place you in an embarrassing state before your citizens. In addition, it will prove your agencies’ immobility and failure. Also, we are confident that you are fully aware that your agencies will not get to the same high level of your American Lords. Furthermore, your intelligence will not be cleverer than theirs, and your censorship capabilities are not worth much against what they have reached. In spite of all this Allah has granted us success to get even with them and harm them.

However, you are an easier target than them; your homeland is exposed to us.

There are many vital interests that will hurt you if we decided to harm them, especially, since you rely on shameless tourism in your economical income!!

Finally, our policies are not to operate in your homeland and/or tamper with your security because we are occupied with others which we consider are enemies of this nation. If you compel us to do so, we are prepared to postpone our program for a short period and allocate some time for you.

Therefore, we ask you to release all the Mujahideen detainees since September incidents and anyone who was detained and suspected of having a connection with these incidents; otherwise, we will be compelled, with no regret, to change our policies towards you.

Al-Jihad Qaida Organization

I found this document March 16, 2006 here: http://fmso.leavenworth.army.mil/documents-docex/Al-Qaida/AFGP-2002-603856-Trans.pdf

It appears to have been subsequently removed. The original pdf file can be obtained here , the English translation here .

However, the Department of Homeland Security won’t let her in. Why? Because when she was forced to do the washing for rebels who had raped her and killed her father she was in effect providing “material support” to terrorists. By law, no one who has provided material support to terrorists can be allowed into the US. Under the Homeland Security’s interpretation of the law “it does not matter whether the support provided was given willingly or under duress”.*

Apparently this is not an isolated case. A family in Sierra Leone was attacked by rebels,

“[a] young family member was killed with machetes, another minor was subjected to burns and the woman and her daughter were raped. The rebels kept the family captive for days in their own home.”*

However the survivors in this family are being denied refuge status in the U. S. because Homeland Security has ruled that they “provided housing” to the rebels who invaded their home.

According to the law, Homeland Security has the authority to make exceptions to the “material support” provision. But apparently they are too frightened to do so, determined not to be labeled weak on terrorism. Nor is Congress brave enough to modify the law for cases of duress. Writes George Rupp, who is president of the International Rescue Committee,

Unfortunately, the actions of Homeland Security go far beyond barring the affected refugees from entering the U.S. They become permanently tainted by suspicions of terrorism and find themselves shut out by other nations that resettle refugees. And the governments now providing these people with temporary asylum might even force them back to the nations they fled.

U.S. policy toward authoritarian governments has been turned on its head: The victims of terrorism are being denied protection and sanctuary. . . . Neither the administration nor Congress seems able to fix the problem for fear of being labeled weak on terrorism. – George Rupp, “Terrorist or Terrorized?” LA Times, March 29, 2006 Such is the insanity to which our current state of fear has brought us. * all quotes from article by George Rupp, “Terrorist or Terrorized?, LA Times, March 29, 2006