The Patriot Act and Guantanamo Bay Prison

The Patriot Act and Guantanamo Bay Prison

March 6, 2006 President Bush signed the Patriot Act.

The Patriot Act

Enhances domestic security against terrorism, enhances surveillance procedures, monitors international money laundering, has a bank secrecy act, enhances protection on the borders, and immigration provisions. The act gives the United States permission to listen into phone conversations, track email accounts, and full access to bank accounts. All these rights are given in the Patriot Act without the need for a warrant.

Guantanamo Bay Prison:

In 2002 the United States contained a military prison to hold unlawful combatants that were captured in Afghanistan and Iraq. Prisoners detained here are suspected terrorist of Al Qaeda. Medical examiners proved that prisoners held in Guantanamo Bay were tortured. Some form of torture reported was staying in stress positions, including being suspended for hours by the arms or tightly shackled for days, prolonged isolation and hooding or blindfolding. Extreme heat or cold, and threats against themselves, their families or friends from interrogators or guards.

The Patriot Act and Guantanamo bay prison, were two forms of the United States fighting against the war on terrorism. 

References:

http://epic.org/privacy/terrorism/hr3162.html

http://georgewbush-whitehouse.archives.gov/infocus/patriotact/

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gitmo

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/25218584/

Bush announces war on Iraq

What Actions did the United States take after 9/11?

What action did the United States take after the 9/11 attacks?

On October 8, 2001 President Bush declared that the United States will fight against the “war on terror”.

The War on terror begun in Afghanistan against the Taliban and Al Qaeda called Operation Enduring Freedom which consisted of strategies of U.S. forces taking control over Afghanistan. It was launched October 2001. Afghanistan was Al Qaeda's safe haven and where all their terrorist training camps were held. The Al Qaeda terrorist group reside in the rough terrain in the mountains of Afghanistan. One goal was to bring down Taliban members in Afghanistan because they worked with and protected Al Qaeda. Also the focus was to gain intelligence from the Northern Alliance, which is an Afghan army assisting the U.S., to find as much information of where the Al Qaeda groups are located and where the training camps are. The U.S. started in the capital of Kabul and large cities like Kandahar to drive the Taliban and Al Qaeda forces to the mountains in Tora Bora. Kandahar is where a large group of Taliban and Al Qaeda members resided. On October 19, 2001 the U.S. special forces had an air strike to drive the terrorist group out of Kandahar and this led to the capture of many Taliban and Al Qaeda members. Once the U.S. troops took over Kandahar they started air strikes in Kabul which led to the U.S. taking over the capital Kabul and driving Taliban and Al Qaeda forces to Tora Bora which was their ultimate goal. The next target was Kondoz province in Afghanistan which the U.S. led air strikes that destroyed 12 tanks, 51 cargo trucks, 44 bunker complexes and 2,000 killed or wounded Taliban and Al Qaeda forces which was a major blow for the terrorist. After the battle of Kondoz it led to 3,500 Taliban and Al Qaeda forces to surrender. 


The next focus was attacks in the mountains of Tora Bora where the United States army drove most of the Taliban and Al Qaeda forces. Tora Bora is a line of mountains connected to the borders of Pakistan.





The Tora Bora mountains was the fortress for Al Qaeda. This is where the terrorist group would meet, this is where their weapons were held, this is where they established their training camps, this is were they dug many caves and it was their hide out. With the help of Afghan forces, against the terrorist groups, they assisted the United States army in fighting in Tora Bora. The fight in Tora Bora started with air strikes but led to U.S. troops on foot climbing the mountains, once they reached Al Qaeda forces few were captured, most fought till the death and some slipped away into Pakistan, and the where abouts of Bin Laden were unknown.The U.S. troops destroyed Al Qaeda forces in Tora Bora and leveled control in Afghanistan. The war in Afghanistan is still ongoing today, but Operation Enduring Freedom lasted from October 2001- March 2002. 

The War on Terror continued and President Bush declared war against Iraq in March 2003. The United States launched Operation Iraqi Freedom. Bush's goal in Iraq was to end Saddam Hussien's rule, and to find weapons of mass destruction. Saddam Hussien's was captured and hung to his death. Weapons of mass destruction were never found. In May 2003 Bush declared major operations of combat was over and it was a start of reconstructing and stabilizing the country of Iraq.

Saddam Hussien's statue being destroyed by Iraqi's symbolizing the end to his rule. 


References:

http://news.bbc.co.uk/onthisday/hi/dates/stories/september/12/newsid_2515000/2515239.stm

http://www.history.army.mil/brochures/Afghanistan/Operation%20Enduring%20Freedom.htm

http://www.china.org.cn/english/2003/Mar/58824.htm

http://www.globalsecurity.org/military/ops/iraqi_freedom.htm


http://theredhunter.com/Map_Afghan_ToraBora.jpg

Sharia Law

What do we know about the terrorist group that plotted the 9/11attacks? Some background information of the terrorist we are dealing with: Sharia law, this is what they believe.

Both the Taliban and Al Qaeda practice Sharia law, which is under Islamic law. Sharia is the sacred law of Islam. It is derived from the divine Qur'an. All Muslims follow Sharia law. The Taliban and Al Qaeda enforce Sharia law.

Taliban and Sharia Law enforced in Afghanistan:

The Taliban were extreme when it came to women: (Here are laws the Taliban enforced against women under Sharia law)

• Women should not wear high heeled shoes.
• Women must not speak loudly in public as no stranger should hear a woman's voice.
• All ground and first floor residential windows should be painted over or screened to prevent women being visible from the street.
• Women should not appear in the streets without a blood relative and without wearing a Burkha.
• The photographing and filming of women are banned.
• Women are not to appear on the balconies of their homes.
• Women were banned from radio and television.
  Punishments for violating these laws were carried out publicly
• In 1996 a woman had her thumb cut off for wearing nail polish.
• In 1996, 225 women were seized and punished for violating the Sharia dress code. The women were lashed on their legs and back.
• Women who commit adultery are stoned under Sharia Law. 

• Punish all non Islamic believers 

It was not only women under Sharia law but everyone in general, for the crime of theft your hand would be amputated, for the crime of killing another you would be executed, for talking back to a political leader your tongue would be cut off. They see people who are not Muslim as the "devils". And to Muslims the "devil" must be killed. These are the laws and and customs that the terrorist group Al Qaeda and the Taliban regieme follow. 

Taliban and Al Qaeda treatment against Women


 The United States Army are currently in Afghanistan fighting against the War on Terror. 
 The United States is fighting against two terrorist groups the Taliban and Al Qaeda, here are some events that these two terrorist groups are responsible for in Afghanistan. 

• The Taliban have stoned a man and women who have been accused of having an affair. The pair had confessed to their affair and they were put in a field with their hands tied behind their backs while 100 Taliban members threw stones at them until they died.
• A woman who committed adultery and was also pregnant, was lashed 200 times then shot in the head.
• A woman who refused to wear a burka to cover her face, was punished by the Taliban by having her face disfigured.

 


References:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sharia

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Taliban

Fields B. Charles, Moore H. Richter. Comparative and International Criminal Justice. Second Edition. Copyright 2005.  


http://www.rawa.org/temp/runews/2010/08/16/afghan-man-woman-stoned-to-death-over-love-affair.html

Al Qaeda: Child terrorist in Training.

Who is Bin Laden?

Who is Osama Bin Laden?


Bin Laden is the seventh son of fifty brothers and sisters, his parents were Syrian. Bin Ladens father was a devoted Muslim and made sure his sons were devoted to Islam. Bin Laden lost his father at the age of thirteen. Bin Laden married at 17 to a relative of his family. Bin Ladens first encounter in Afghanistan was during the Soviet war in which he was part of a "jihad" which means "the holy war." He wanted to protect Afghanistan which was an Islamic Muslim country from the Soviets. Once the Soviet invasion was over he started Al Qaeda which means "the base." The name Al Qaeda came about because Bin Laden made bases in Afghanistan to train  men for the "Jihad" army he was building. Bin Laden and his family had a construction company and thats how he funded Al Qaeda. 

Attacks which Bin Laden plotted:

1993 bombing of the World Trade Center

1995 truck bombing of a Saudi National Guard training center

1998 explosions at U.S. embassies in Kenya and Tanzania

2001 attacks on the World Trade Centers.

Who are the Taliban?

In 1996 the Taliban formed under Mullah Omer who was the leader and founder. They were against the Afghan government, and they support Al Qaeda. The Taliban met with Al Qaeda to receive Bin Ladens support. When the Taliban formed they were disorganized and Bin Laden landed his support by assisting the Taliban with educating them, and training them.  

The Taliban were also known as the “students of Islamic knowledge movement." They came to power during Afghanistan's civil war. They had policies including the treatment of women, and supporters of terrorist groups such as Al Qaeda.

From 1996-2001 the Taliban ruled over Afghanistan and in 2001 once the 9/11 terrorist attacks occurred the United States issued a war against terrorism. The U.S. put pressure against the Taliban to give up where Bin Laden was hiding and the location of Al Qaeda training camps, in which the Taliban refused. By December U.S. troops defeated the majority of the Taliban rule. But today the Taliban still active in Afghanistan with the help of Al Qaeda. 

References:

http://www.who2.com/ask/osamabinladen.html

http://www.globalsecurity.org/military/world/para/al-qaida.htm

http://www.infoplease.com/spot/taliban.html


http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/shows/binladen/who/bio.html

What is Terrorism? Who Took Responsibility for the Attacks on 9/11?

What is terrorism?


The definition of terrorism is the use of violence and threats to intimidate or coerce for a political purpose, the state of fear and submission produced by terrorism, a terroristic method of governing or of resisting a government.

What happened on September 11, 2001?

At 8:46 a.m. A plane crashed into the North Tower of the World Trade Center in New York City. At 9:03 a.m. Another plane smashes into the South Tower of the World Trade Center. By 10:30 a.m. Both Towers collapse to the ground. The third plane crashed into the Pentagon in Washington D.C.

Who took responsibility for the attacks?

The terrorist group Al Qaeda and their leader Bin Laden admitted responsibility for the attacks on 9/11. Bin Laden says in a video, the reason behind the attacks was for the injustices against the Lebanese and Palestinians by Israel. He says that if the United States stops threatening the security of Muslims further attacks can be avoided.


References:

http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/terrorism

http://www.history.com/topics/9-11-attacks/videos?paidlink=1&vid=HIS_SEM_Search&keywords=9%2B11&utm_source=google&utm_medium=cpc&utm_campaign=september%2011&utm_term=9%2011#911-timeline

http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,137095,00.html

What is Terrorism? Who Took Responsibility for the Attacks on 9/11?

What is terrorism?

The definition of terrorism is the use of violence and threats to intimidate or coerce, for political purposes, the state of feat and submission produced by terrorism or terrorization. A terroristic method of governing or of resisting a government. 

What happened on September 11, 2001?

At 8:46 a.m. A plane crashed into the North Tower of the World Trade Center in New York City. At 9:03 a.m. Another plane smashes into the South Tower of the World Trade Center. By 10:30 a.m. Both Towers collapse to the ground. The third plane crashed into the Pentagon in Washington D.C.

Who took responsibility for the attacks?

The terrorist group Al Qaeda and their leader Bin Laden admitted responsibility for the attacks on 9/11. Bin Laden says in a video, the reason behind the attacks was for the injustices against the Lebanese and Palestinians by Israel. He says that if the United States stops threatening the security of Muslims further attacks can be avoided. 

References:

http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/terrorism

http://www.history.com/topics/9-11-attacks/videos?paidlink=1&vid=HIS_SEM_Search&keywords=9%2B11&utm_source=google&utm_medium=cpc&utm_campaign=september%2011&utm_term=9%2011#911-timeline

http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,137095,00.html