Strange terrorist incident kills 8, injures 11

From PIX11:

A man described as a "lone wolf" deliberately drove a rented truck into a West Side bike path in lower Manhattan, killing at least eight people and injuring 11 others in the first terror attack in New York City since 9/11, and just blocks from the World Trade Center.

A high-ranking police source tells PIX11 News the suspect has been identified as 29-year-old Sayfullo Saipov, a Tampa, Florida resident who arrived in the United States in 2010 from Uzbekistan, sources tell PIX11 News.

Saipov was brandishing two fake guns when he exited the truck after the multi-block rampage which left a trail of mangled bodies and twisted bikes. He yelled "Allah Akbar," which is Arabic for God is great.

"This was an act of terror — a cowardly act of terror aimed at innocent civilians going about their lives," Mayor Bill de Blasio said. "This action was intended to break our spirit. But New Yorkers are strong. New Yorkers are resilient and our spirit will never be moved by an act of violence.

No other suspects are being sought in the investigation.

Ozone Park dude tries to join ISIS

From the NY Post:

A 22-year-old Queens man has been busted trying to join ISIS, authorities said Tuesday.

Parveg Ahmed was deported back to the US from Saudia Arabia on Monday as he attempted to cross into Syria to joint the militant group, according to a newly unsealed indictment.

The Ozone Park man left a message for his family before traveling overseas, according to court papers, writing: “Forgive me if I was harsh/overbearing. Please remember all that I tried to teach you.”

He faces charges of attempting to provide material support to ISIS and is expected to face arraignment in Brooklyn federal court. If convicted, he faces life behind bars.

After Ahmed was taken into custody, authorities discovered disturbing images “associated with violent” groups on Ahmed’s phone, including “a picture of five men hanging by their necks with the caption ‘Gay men to be hanged,’ texts justifying attacks on the World Trade Center and a picture of the leader of ISIS, Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi.

Rory has an opponent

From the Times Ledger:

Bangladesh-born City Council candidate Mohammed T. Rahman is hoping to make history as the first South Asian Muslim official in the City Council.

Rahman, who worked as a supervisor in the city Department Of Social Services for 21 years before retiring in March, said he was inspired to run amid growing concerns about how the Trump administration’s policies toward Muslims will affect New Yorkers.

Rahman, of Jamaica, is running against Councilman Rory Lancman (D-Hillcrest) in the Sept. 12 Democratic Primary to represent Council District 24, which covers Kew Gardens Hills, Pomonok, Fresh Meadows, Hillcrest, Jamaica Estates, Briarwood and Jamaica.

“New York has one of the largest Muslim communities in the nation, yet there are no elected Muslim officials in the City Council,” Rahman said. “As a result, we see not only a growing distrust of ordinary Muslim citizens, but also a huge disparity in how Council discretionary funds are distributed.”

Rahman said his campaign is part of a growing trend of South Asian-American candidates running for city office, a reflection of the community’s increasing population and influence. The city’s Bengali population has doubled to 100,000 since the 2010 census, Rahman said, and it’s time for new voices to be heard.

“Muslims are slowly being squeezed out of the mainstream by discriminatory practices and attitudes,” he said. “The best way to combat this is to normalize relationships between all of our communities, and integrate Muslims into our system of representative democracy.”

Rahman said he has spent most of his life helping the community as a social worker and he believes he will provide better representation for the community if elected. He said he will be able to better distribute city funding and services and will make certain every community in District 24 gets its fair share.

No, it's not that people hate you

From Yahoo/AP:

After months of searching to find a home for their mosque, a Muslim group settled on a century-old, three-story Tudor in a leafy neighborhood of a New York suburb, a fixer-upper they say would be perfect with the right renovations.

But not long after the sale went through last year, neighbors thought it was perfect just the way it was. A neighborhood group filed an application to have the building designated a city landmark and won final approval last month, meaning any exterior renovations will now have to go through a time-consuming permission process.

While city officials insisted the landmark status wouldn't prevent the home being used as a mosque, the Muslim organization saw something more sinister.

"We feel that we are being targeted," said Arshad Shariff, chairman of the Islamic Community Center of Mid-Westchester. "And unnecessary obstacles and hindrances are being placed because we are Muslim."

No, it's because you were planning to fuck up an historic house that people in the neighborhood are attached to and admire. Get it?

Terrorist worked at preschool

From the Daily News:

One of the two Queens women accused of plotting a homemade bomb strike on American soil worked at a preschool, where officials remained tight-lipped Friday after her arrest on terrorism charges.

Asia Siddiqui, a 31-year-old native of Saudi Arabia, was behind bars Friday, locked up with her best friend and accused sister in jihad Noelle Valentzas, 28.

“We have no comment at this time,” said a worker at 82nd Street Academics in Queens on the day after FBI agents arrested the two Al Qaeda-linked suspects at their homes.

The busts followed a two-year undercover probe, with the terrorist sympathizers accused of amassing bomb-making materials and studying bomb-making manuals while plotting their strike.

The self-identified citizens of the Islamic State — the terrorist organization responsible for beheading Western hostages — have billed themselves as “some bad bitches.”

Axe attack on cops called an act of terror

From CBS 2:

Authorities believe a 32-year-old Queens man Zale Thompson, the man who attacked a group of NYPD officers in Queens with a hatchet before they shot him dead, acted alone. They also said he may have been inspired by this week’s terrorist attack in Ottawa.

“It appears, just from the electronic forensic piece of this, that this is something that he has been thinking about for some time and thinking about with more intensity over recent days,” the NYPD Counter-terrorism Chief John Miller said.

Police obtained a warrant to search Thompson’s computer for clues about Thursday’s daytime assault, which left one officer with a serious head injury.
Thompson’s activity on social media indicated he was a convert to Islam and included rants about injustices in American society and oppression abroad but offered no clear evidence of any affiliation with terror groups, police said.

Sources told CBS 2’s Matt Kozar that Thompson had been visiting websites affiliated with Al Qaeda, ISIS, and Al-Shabaab.

A Facebook page linked to Thompson includes a picture of an Islamic warrior and a quote from the Koran.

On YouTube, Thompson appears to have posted a comment advocating “holy war,” saying “If you’re looking for ‘perfect’ Muslims who never make any mistakes in their jihad, then you will be looking in vain,” CBS 2’s Tony Aiello reported.

Will the tweeders support a homophobic, misogynistic regime?

From the Queens Chronicle:

He’s the deputy prime minister of a backwards Arab nation that lives under Sharia law, oppressing women, gay people and the foreign guest workers who make up nearly 90 percent of his hometown’s population.

He’s Sheikh Mansour bin Zayed Al Nahyan, the deputy prime minister of the United Arab Emirates, a monarchy that won’t even allow Israeli citizens to cross its border, and a member of the royal family in his home principality, oil-rich Abu Dhabi.

And he’s the man to whom Mayor Bloomberg is reportedly about to essentially give more than a dozen acres of Flushing Meadows Corona Park, for free, so that Major League Soccer can build a stadium for a team the sheikh would own.

This is a plan that absolutely must be stopped.

From the Queens Chronicle:

The UAE’s record has the two gay members of Queens’ council delegation vehemently opposing the sheikh’s ownership of the franchise and stadium.

“I urge my colleagues in the City Council and elected officials across the state to join me in saying that New Yorkers will not do business with a murderous regime and we will not sell, trade or giveaway our public assets to those who discriminate and participate in human rights abuses,” said Councilman Danny Dromm (D-Jackson Heights).

Councilman Jimmy Van Bramer (D-Sunnyside) noted the sheikh’s wealth while also blasting his human rights record.

“The potential swapping of public parkland to a family wealthy enough to purchase the vacant land necessary to construct a stadium is deeply troubling,” Van Bramer said. “To do so with the member of a royal family from a country that actively prosecutes gay men, under threat of the death penalty, for having consensual sex is appalling.”

The vast sums of money involved can be tough to process. But here’s one context that may help: Sheikh Monsour has enough cash on hand to rent 13 acres of Flushing Meadows Corona Park for over four billion years if the city and MLS agree to the $1-per-year fee previously reported in Crain’s.

Councilwoman Julissa Ferreras (D-East Elmhurst), whose district includes the chunk of the park affected by the proposal, declined to comment about the potential owner. Ditto state Sen. Jose Peralta (D-East Elmhurst), who would likely call the project up to Albany to approve the alienation of replacement parkland.

But Dromm and Van Bramer jumping ahead of Ferreras on the matter breaks with the common councilmanic practice of deferring to the presiding lawmaker. It leaves Council Speaker Christine Quinn (D-Manhattan) in the odd bind of being AWOL on an LGBT and women’s rights issue.

The speaker’s office did not respond to requests for comment after being given Dromm and Van Bramer’s statements.

Well this puts the tweeders in a bit of a bind, doesn't it? Note that the main outrage is not alienation of public parkland to benefit the bottom line of a billionaire, but rather the policies of a country on the other side of the world. Speaks volumes about our elected officials. Hey, whatever works.

Terrorist pleads guilty

From the Queens Courier:

A Queens man pleaded guilty in New York State Court to charges related to a plot to blow up Manhattan religious institutions, including the largest synagogue in the borough, the Manhattan district attorney’s office announced Tuesday.

Ahmed Ferhani, 27, who was charged with weapon possession, sale of a firearm and conspiracy, is the first person to be convicted of terrorism crimes in a state court since New York anti-terror laws were passed following the September 11 attacks.

Ferhani was arrested in May 2011 after an eight-month undercover operation by the NYPD and investigation by the DA’s office.

According to court documents and his guilty plea, Ferhani planned to bomb Manhattan churches and synagogues to “send a message of violence to ‘non Muslims’,” said the DA’s office.

He told an undercover detective that he wanted to bomb the largest synagogue in Manhattan using grenades or by dressing up as Jewish worshippers and leaving an explosive device inside the building.

Ferhani also told the detective that he wanted to buy guns and was selling drugs to fund the terrorism acts.

He is expected to be sentenced on January 30.

Queens native back home

From NBC:

A 26-year-old Queens man who was banned from flying without explanation while trying to return home after visiting family in Montenegro is finally back in New York.

Samir Suljovic arrived at Penn Station Monday night after spending three weeks fighting to get back to the U.S. He went to Montenegro in July, and when he tried to fly back home out of Vienna, Austria on Oct. 1, airline officials told him he couldn't board the flight, citing orders from the Department of Homeland Security.

Suljovic, who was raised in Queens and lives in Oakland Gardens, believes he was banned from flying because he's Muslim.

Traveling Queens student denied re-entry into USA

From the Daily News:

A Queens man has been trapped in Europe for the last 17 days, says a civil rights group, because his name is allegedly on the no-fly list.

Samir Suljovic, 26, first tried to fly back home to New York from Vienna, Austria, on October 1. Airline agents told the New Yorker that he could not board a return flight at the request of his own government.

On Wednesday, the New York Chapter of the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR-NY) issued a statement that demands that the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) and the U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) allow Suljovic to return home from his current location, Germany.

Suljovic tried to contact the DHS and CBP liaison at JFK International Airport but has not received a response, says the rights group. He was advised to ask for help from the Germany's U.S. embassy. But instead of support he was allegedly interrogated and his cell phone was searched without his consent.

Suljovic, born and raised in Oakland Gardens, Queens, was attending Queensboro Community College, according to CAIR-NY’s statement. He initially traveled to Europe to visit family and friends in Montenegro.

GOP candidate is kinda nuts

"Hi Crappy,

It’s me again…..annoyed at a robocall I got from a Joe Concannon who apparently is running against Tony Avella for his state senate seat. The recording accused Mr. Avella of meeting with Muslim terrorists. I was incensed, knowing that this was very much a twisting of an incident that occurred last week when Mr. Avella, along with Letitia James, left a Muslim rally due to speakers full of hatred and venom.

I decided to call the Concannon people and actually got someone claiming to be Joe Concannon. I told him what the recording said, and he replied that Mr. Avella is sympathizing with and aiding terrorists. I got angry and asked him if everyone who was asked to be a Grand Marshal at an American Muslim rally is then aiding terrorists, without accusing Mr. Concannon of outright prejudice, which I think is the case. He was very insistent that Avella is aiding terrorists and didn’t listen to reason, and when I yelled at him and told him that Avella and Ms. James left the rally, he just told me what an angry person I was and I told him something like that I hope his campaign crashes and burns.

Somehow truth was twisted to suit a swiftboat type accusation by the Concannon people. I called Avella’s office and left a message briefly describing my encounter with this idiot Concannon. The call also said that the Queens GOP wants to return to true American values. I have no idea what that really means, but he’s as bad as those venom spouting haters at the rally that day.

Just so you know, Crappy! Concannon is stooping to very new lows with character assassination to get what will amount to very few votes!! I’m sick of these awful robo calls, they are invasive and intrusive. Someone should stop Concannon who believes his own lies.

Thanks for listening…"

- Ms. Tsouris

Avella leaves Muslim parade in disgust

"On a beautiful September Sunday afternoon, not far from the scene of the infamous Islamic jihad attack in lower Manhattan, Democrat New York State Senator Tony Avella came face-to-face with Muslim hatred for America and he did something that few people have the courage to do. He got up from his seat as a VIP Marshall of the 27th annual New York Muslim Parade and stormed off the stage in disgust! Over one thousand Muslims in the audience and the large group of Muslim community leaders were shocked that the Senator would walk off the stage, even before it was his turn to speak. But, Tony Avella had enough of the blatant tirade of hate against America by "moderate" Muslim dignitaries and his love for America was more important than embarrassing a group of Muslim "wolves in sheep's clothing." Sure, the Muslim cultural jihadi's had the first amendment right to condemn America (which they could never do in their home countries) but Senator Avella had the right to exit, stage left!! Our hats are off to Senator Avella for taking a very public stand on a critically important issue."

Queens terror call released

From NBC:

A Queens terror suspect accused of intentionally crashing his car told police dispatchers he "loved death" as the FBI and NYPD moved in to arrest him on Jan. 7, 2010 for his alleged role in a plot to bomb New York City’s subways, part of frenetic 911 call obtained by NBC New York Tuesday.

Adis Medunjanin is heard on tape as he allegedly drove close to 100 mph along the Whitestone Expressway while counter-terror officials followed him that January day.

“This is Adis …we love death—,“ Medunjanin shouts before continuing in Arabic, “There is no God but Allah, and Muhammad is His messenger.”

Investigators have said after the subway terror plot was foiled, Medunjanin made a last effort to smash his car and call for attacks on Americans.

Mad bomber in Jamaica

From Fox 5:

Police on Monday released surveillance video of a suspect in a string of possible bias-related firebombings in Queens on New Year's Day and announced $12,000 in reward money for information leading to his arrest and conviction.

One clip shows the arsonist tossing a lit Molotov cocktail that spilled its flaming contents onto the lawn in front of a home at 88-20 170th St. that also houses a Hindu temple.

Cops say the firebug is also behind similar attacks that took place at the Al-Khoei Benevolent Foundation Islamic center, the 179th Street Deli and a home at 146-62 107th Ave.

All of the incidents took place between about 8pm and 10:15pm on Sunday.

No one was injured, but the 107th Avenue home caught fire and was badly damaged.

Nassau County police are also investigating a similar incident in which a bottle filled with gasoline was thrown at a house on Glafil Street in Elmont around 9:40pm on Sunday.

The suspect in the Queens cases was described as a black man between 25 and 30 years old, about 5 feet 8 inches and weighing 200 pounds.

When last seen, he was wearing a black jacket and baseball cap, and he fled the scene in a light-colored, four-door sedan.

Police were looking into whether the fires were hate crimes.

Don't let the bomb hit you on the way out

From the NY Post:

Al Qaeda has an opening for a new editor.

Killed along with terror mouthpiece Anwar al-Awlaki was Samir Khan, a former Queens kid turned militant Islamist who published “Inspire,” al Qaeda’s online magazine and recruitment tool.

Khan, 25, was a Saudi-born US citizen, whose family moved to Maspeth, Queens, in 1993, and later to Long Island. He lived the life of a normal New York teen until a month before 9/11, when he traded his street slang and baggy pants for Islamic extremism.

He attended a summer camp at a Queens mosque, and over time became a fundamentalist. Khan and his parents moved to North Carolina in 2004, when he began taking his Islamist crusade to the Internet.

His print/Web magazine spouted al Qaeda’s ideology of attacks on Westerners, and even gave how-to manuals on how to carry one out, such as an article titled “Make a Bomb in the Kitchen of Your Mom.”

Khan moved to North Carolina after spending time in New York, and from there left for Yemen two years ago, according to published reports.

Gay marriage not acceptable to many immigrants

From the NY Times:

Larry Yang, the Korean-American owner of a hardware store next door, said he resented such a public promotion of same-sex marriage. He said many among the large number of Korean-American Christians in Queens felt similarly but feared that if they spoke out they would be demonized by a liberal majority.

The legalization of same-sex marriage in New York State has been embraced by many in the city. But in some neighborhoods heavily populated by immigrants from countries where homosexuality is less accepted, the idea is stirring feelings of unease or, at times, outright disgust.

Sunnyside has been transformed in recent decades, first by immigration, and more recently by urban professionals priced out of Manhattan. As in some other parts of the city, same-sex marriage has laid bare the clash between the social conservatism of many immigrants and the values of the often wealthier and more liberal newcomers to the neighborhood.

Many immigrants in Sunnyside are Muslims from Turkey, where the military, the guardian of the country’s secular state, regards homosexuality as a disorder. On a recent day on 46th Street, a group of men hunched over Turkish newspapers next to a mosque in a part of the neighborhood that includes kebab shops, a Jewish community center, a Romanian restaurant and a Russian hairdresser.

In Flushing, Queens, one of New York’s most polyglot neighborhoods, with one of the largest Asian communities in the country, opponents of same-sex marriage said they had felt sidelined during the debate over it.

...Mr. Yang, the hardware store owner, dismissed the free wedding reception as a cynical ploy.

“It’s a business thing, because a lot of gay people live here,” he said. “I have no problem with my gay customers. But we are Korean. We are conservative. No one says, ‘This gay marriage is a good thing.’ What is this world coming to?”

Should NYPD apologize for undercover cops in mosques?

From the Times Ledger:

City Councilman Daniel Dromm (D-Jackson Heights) said he was shocked by a report that said the NYPD has sent undercover officers into Muslim neighborhoods in the city as a terrorist-prevention measure, even if there is no evidence of criminal activity.

The domestic surveillance operation was revealed in a report by the Associated Press last week.

“I really feel that that’s the role of the FBI and the CIA perhaps if, in fact, they have founded suspicions of terrorist activity,” said Dromm, who is chairman of the Council Immigration Committee.

The AP report said that under CIA veterans David Cohen and Larry Sanchez and with the approval of Police Commissioner Ray Kelly, the NYPD hired immigrant officers to monitor Muslim neighborhoods. The informants would monitor imams’ speeches but also locations such as ethnic bookstores, restaurants, cafés or hookah bars for any signs of radicalism, according to the AP.

Queens has large Muslim communities in Jackson Heights, Astoria and the Flushing area.

City Councilman Peter Vallone Jr. (D-Astoria) said he believed the report was planted by federal agencies jealous of the NYPD’s success. He said the NYPD does not have the manpower to undertake phishing expeditions, but monitors chatter and websites that suggest terrorist activities and works from there. Vallone said the Council Public Safety Committee, which he chairs, also has oversight of all the NYPD’s activities except for those overseas.

“The NYPD is the most scrutinized police department in the world,” Vallone said.

Queens Muslim melee at Playland

Jewish groups get fed the most pork

From the NY Post:

City budget data shows that Jewish affiliated nonprofits have far outpaced their religious counterparts in bringing home taxpayer dough. Jewish groups secured $4.26 million from City Council members in the 2012 budget, far more than Catholic groups, which will take home $517,250, and Islamic/Muslim groups, which secured $19,000.

The numbers reflect a million-dollar bump for Jewish groups, compared to this year’s budget, and a dip of $50,000 for Catholic groups.

The council distributes $50 million in so-called “member items” to nonprofit organizations citywide, and a recent report by Manhattan Borough President Scott Stringer said favoritism is endemic in the flawed system.

Estimates vary, but according to 2008 data from the Association of Religious Data Archives, Catholics, at 62%, make up the bulk of the city’s population, followed by Jews at about 22%, Protestants at 10.7% and Muslims 3.5%.

Bloomberg: Going senile or just an asshole?

From the Daily News:

Mayor Bloomberg practiced his version of verbal jujitsu Wednesday, mangling a greeting to Muslim leaders at a Ramadan gathering with "shalom alaikum."

Hizzoner was shooting for "salaam alaikum" - the traditional Arabic "peace to you" greeting.

"He just got a little confused," one witness said.

From the NY Post:

Mayor Bloomberg yesterday defended the federal decision not to cover cancer-stricken 9/11 first responders under the $2.7 billion Zadroga Act, even as the city's top cop blasted the ruling.

"You don't mess with science," Bloomberg said testily when asked by reporters about the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health's ruling Tuesday that there isn't a clear link between World Trade Center dust and cancer.

"And the standards that science requires are very different than the standards that politics require," Bloomberg went on.