Crossposted from
Moon of Alabama.org
---
In another thread barfly Pat (hat tip) pointed to a NBC news report "Web video teaches terrorists to make bomb vest".
Reluctantly using Internet Explorer, one can see the report online. The accompanying text says:
Posted in a militant Islamic chat room three days ago, a stunningly detailed 26-minute video on how to make a sophisticated suicide bomb vest, along with a demonstration of its kill range, using a mannequin.
...
The person who posted the note and video on the Internet called himself "terrorist007."
The 2:40 long report shows a few scenes from the video and has two experts commenting on it.
There are three chunks of thoughts and serious doubts I have about this report.
The first chunk is through the described posting of the video:
- You can not post videos in a chatroom, not even in a "militant chatroom". You may, in theory, be able to post videos on messageboards, usenet or website comments. But do you know of any messageboard, usenet or website that would allow an anonymous commentator to post a 25 megabyte binary file?
- If this was not posted by an anonymous commentator, it must have been posted by someone in contact with that site's owner. That site does have an Internet Protocol address which you can see while downloading the video. Anybody can just ask here who has control of that IP number and site and who is the Internet Service Provider hosting it.
- So where is that site, who is its owner and who did load up that video? Would this not be a good and easy-to-do story for the by-lined NBC investigative unit? Would not any secret service in this world step on the toes of that site's owner within 24 hours?
Second thoughts go to the experts NBC uses to comment on that video:
- Rick Francona is ex(?)-CIA and ex-Military. He is a seasoned Middle East culture expert:
Lt Col Francona traveled extensively in combat areas as an observer of Iraqi military operations against Iranian forces, and flew sorties with the Iraqi air force.
and sells a book. A review says:
Francona's best anecdote involves his role as translator during Schwarzkopf's negotiations with the Iraqis at the end of the war:
"Good morning, sir," Francona tells an arriving Iraqi general. "I am Major Francona from General Schwarzkopf's staff. If you will step out of the car, I will take you to meet the general, and we can begin."
The Iraqi just sits there, glowering. So Francona, agitated by his recalcitrance, leans in closer and says, in Arabic slang, "Get out of the car, [expletive]."
- Evan Kohlmann is a Terror Expert and has published a book and a few pieces for the neocon National Review. He has a certificate (four courses) from Georgetown University, was co-president of the Georgetown Israel Association and now has his own terror consulting shop at GlobalTerrorAlert.com. There he has also posted parts of the video not shown in the CBS news report (see the 12/20/04 entry).
- Are these experts really experts on video making, suicide bombing or Middle East culture? Are these experts CIA assets, book sellers or NBC paid talking heads? Did Kohlmann, who posted parts of the video two days before NBC published the story, pass the video to them?
Third round of thoughts is to the video itself :
- A man in a US(?) camouflage jacket shows how to put some stuff into a special vest, how to put some glue(?) from a can (with Latin letters on it) on a sheet of explosives(?) and metal balls and how to fix detonators(?) to that vest.
- A large part of both video excerpts are showing at least two test explosions with such vests. Each of the test explosions is filmed through at least three cameras. The tests involve some 30 human shaped targets made from metal sheets and a mannequin figure each.
- Who, in camouflage, has the resources and need to make a video with such extensive, professional tests with three-camera-test-documentation and special made metal dummy targets? Isn't this more likely a counter-terrorist weapon and damage evaluation training video than an easy to distribute "how-to" paper on bomb making?
Could the video be a real terrorist video? Yes, it could be. Would a jihad trainer make a traceable post of 25 megabytes professional made video with the pseudonym terrorist007? Well ahh, ehemm, may be.
But why is NBC underlying all of the report with some Sowjet sounding marching music? Why, when showing steps the video is alleged to describe, do they "smuggle in" a still picture about "mixing explosives" (the one without Arabic subtext)?
How, if your boss said "ultimately the Wild West [of the Internet] must give way to governance and control." and gave you unlimited resources, would this fit your (Dis)Information Warfare campaign and agenda?
So many questions. Where is my tin foil hat again?