Al Quaeda threat on Tokyo

[Maciamo]

Gov't urges vigilance over al-Qaida terror threat on Tokyo

TOKYO — Law enforcement authorities began gathering more information concerning reports Monday that the al-Qaida network is planning terrorist attacks in Japan, while government leaders called for vigilance and caution.

In the statement, Abu Mohammed al-Ablaj, purporting to be an al-Qaida leader, warned the Japanese against sending troops to join the U.S.-led coalition in Iraq.

"If they want to destroy their economic power and be trampled under the feet of the combatants of Allah, let them come to Iraq," he said. "Our strikes will reach the heart of Tokyo."

However, the authorities said they have no plan at this stage to step up security, adding they have not received any concrete information on terrorist groups planning to carry out attacks in Japan.

[Satori]

This sounds like some of the propaganda we hear in the U.S. designed to drum up support for our government's activities in Iraq. People will agree to most anything when afraid. What do you think?

[Maciamo]

I think that Japanese people being affraid of terrorism at home, just for supporting a war that they feel doesn't concern them, are not going to send troops to Iraq and support the US as discreetly as possible to avoid problems. They have already postponed sending troops after the 15 Italians died in combat. It's just not their war.

[Shidenkai]

I'm very sad for Al-quaeda's vords about Tokyo... can Japan control every arabian people?

[heno heno moheji]

I mourn the all Italian soldiers who suffered great misfortune in this incident.
maybe Japan Gorvenment doesnt regard all Arabians as the terrorists for the reason that they are Arabians. of course, Japan Gorvenmet keeps an eye on the doubtful Arabian though.

[Maciamo]

Originally posted by Shidenkai
I'm very sad for Al-quaeda's vords about Tokyo... can Japan control every arabian people?

I think there are very few Arabic people in Japan, which makes it easier for the authorities to control. But a handful of people is enough to cause a lot of problems...

[Shidenkai]

That's true; I think that Arabic people can't have peacefully life in any country: they hate no-arabic or no-muslim people and feel contempt too against occidentalism freedom.

[catriona]

I don't think the danger for Japan would come from arabs. It would be more likely from islamist groups based in Indonesia and the Philippines. Some of these people could move around easily in a large japanese city without being spotted. Anyway, all civilized countries are under threat from terrorism, nowhere is safe. Japan is probably a less likely target than the US or the UK though.

[Timsan]

i think the US led war in iraq is idiotic and pointless.

[Shidenkai]

Fanaticism is standard of middle east peoples; viet nam, Cambogia, Philippines are corrupt with muslim theory and asian people are threaten by them.
My idea is very simple... Japn thought is pure, whitout trash: muslim is unjustified, like a barbarian thing.

[noyhauser]

... woah... thats a really biased statement. I really hope you don't think of Islamic people as corrupt... because that is extremely inflamitory and just about the most bigoted statement I have ever read in these boards.

[Timsan]

When you look at the al-Quaeda and other terrorist organizations who believe that they are committing acts of terorism for God, it just proves more to me that religeon is distructive. Actually I think the only religeons that are not destructive are Shintoism and Buddhism. Catholicism, Christianity, and Islam plague this planet to an extreme.

[FuruiDan]

Its just odd how people can't just put aside all of this stuff. I don't have any problem being around Buddhist people, Islamic, Catholic, etc. Too bad we all can't get along, then again, this is reality and chances are, that will never happen

[Timsan]

i dont have a problem "being around them" but i do have a problem when these people justify actions with religeous dribble drabble. for example: if there is a "god" why did thousands die in the september 11th attacks when there were undoubtably hundreds of christians killed? of course some idiot christian would say "oh its his way of saying more people need to believe in god" or some other b.s. like that. most religeons are a never ending circle of lies that have been going on for centurys.

[Iron Chef]

*sigh* This thread isn't about bashing other people's ideologies or trash-talking religion in general. Do try and stay on-topic and please refrain from swearing (edited above) as well as slandering others in general or watch how quick I turn into a forum Nazi and start deleting...

[Mandylion]

Originally posted by catriona
I don't think the danger for Japan would come from arabs. It would be more likely from islamist groups based in Indonesia and the Philippines. Some of these people could move around easily in a large japanese city without being spotted.

It is hard for any foreigner to slip around in any Japanese city unnoticed, esp. if they tend to meet in groups and stand out. It won't make it any easier to sneak aound in Japan when people from SE Asia are viewed as suspect (I had a friend or Ianian origins be questioned at customs about what his electric razor was for. The official realized he had just made a really stupid request and hurried my friend though the rest of the process).

Not to say a strike in Tokyo couldn't happen, but when it comes to blending into the background, there are many, many more available places to do so than Japan. Catriona is right, the UK or the US is still a much more tempting target.

I think someone has picked up on the idea that since Japan has had a weak stomach for international conflict in the past, dropping a few threats here and there might be just enough to get a few politicians to give up on the whole send-troops-to-Iraq kick they are on.

[senseiman]

Originally posted by Shidenkai
Fanaticism is standard of middle east peoples; viet nam, Cambogia, Philippines are corrupt with muslim theory and asian people are threaten by them.
My idea is very simple... Japn thought is pure, whitout trash: muslim is unjustified, like a barbarian thing.

Its worth mentioning that Vietnam, Cambodia and the Phillipines are not in the Middle East nor are they Muslim countries. Vietnam and Cambodia are mostly buddhist while the Phillipines is mostly christian with a muslim minority only on its southern islands.

[Maciamo]

Originally posted by Shidenkai
Fanaticism is standard of middle east peoples; viet nam, Cambogia, Philippines are corrupt with muslim theory and asian people are threaten by them.

Just in case you didn't know, Vietnam and Cambodia are Muslim countries at all. The Philippines is mainly a (fanatical) Christian nation, with a(nother fanatical) Muslim minority in the South (near Malaysia, which is about 50% Muslim). If there is any threat in East Asia, it is in among a fanatic minority of the 90% Muslims in Indonesia. However most Indonesian Muslim don't take Islam as seriously as in other parts of the world I have noticed. I was startled to see porn cinema everywhere in Java (100% Mulsim), people eating pork, drinking alcohol, women having sex outside marriage as if their religion was fine with it, and few people actually praying at the minaret call. It's very different of what I have seen in the middle east or even among India's Muslims. Never seen a veiled woman in Indonesia either.

[Shidenkai]

Ok, ok, don't kill me! Media in Italy says that Abu Saiaf's"staff" have an operative group in INDONESIA: this is disinformation; but I hate the fanacisism of christian and muslim peoples.