The Insider: Daily Terrorism Report

Nov. 20, 2003 -- — Today, suicide bombers hit Turkey again, this time at the British Consulate and the headquarters of the HSBC bank in Istanbul with devastating results — so far 27 dead including the British Consul General and hundreds injured. Today's bombing was highly coordinated with one vehicle crashing through the British Consulate gates that had opened for the Consul General who was getting into his car to exit the compound. The timing of the attacks on the British targets also appeared to coincide with the visit of President Bush to the U.K. This marks the second time in six days that suicide bombers have struck in Turkey .

THE WAR ON TERROR

ISTANBUL BOMBING

Turkey Terror Bombing Kills 27 PeopleTruck bombings strike London-based bank, British consulate in Turkey, killing 27 and hurting 450. (AP)

Caller Says Al Qaeda Behind BlastsA caller to Turkey's semi-state Anatolian news agency has claimed responsibility for two blasts in Istanbul in the name of Osama bin Laden's al Qaeda network and of a small Turkish Islamist group, CNN Turk has said. (Reuters)

About IBDA — Group Takes Responsibility for Blasts (Forsnet)

Bombers Target U.K. InterestsThe U.K. Foreign Secretary Jack Straw has said the latest explosions in the Turkish city of Istanbul have all the hallmarks of al Qaeda and groups associated with it. (BBC)

Bush, Blair Defiant as Turkey Blasts Dominate VisitAllies George W. Bush and Tony Blair stood defiantly side by side on Thursday, saying that deadly blasts in Istanbul proved the need to press on with the war against terrorism and justified the war in Iraq. (Reuters)

Six Arrested for Turkey Synagogue Blasts Authorities arrested six people Wednesday in connection with the suicide bombings of two Istanbul synagogues as opposition leaders accused Turkey's government of being too lenient toward Muslim radicals. (AP)

Greece Boosts Security After Turkey BlastsGreek police tightened security around U.S., British and Israeli companies and embassies on Thursday after deadly explosions rocked Istanbul in neighboring Turkey, police officials told Reuters. (Reuters)

REGIONAL REPORTS

PakistanAl Qaeda Men Caught In Waziristan Not Given To U.S.Federal Information Minister Sheikh Rashid said on Wednesday the two key al Qaeda members arrested from Waziristan had not been handed over to the United States. (Daily Times)

Saudi Arabia Bid to Smuggle Arms Into Kingdom Foiled Saudi authorities have foiled an attempt to smuggle explosives, including 300 dynamite sticks, into the southern border region of Jizan, al Riyadh newspaper reported yesterday. (Arab News)

Conference on Terrorism in Riyadh Some 100 experts from all over the world will gather to examine the threat of terrorism and discuss the role of Islam in countering terrorism, extremism and violence at an international conference here next February. (Arab News)

United StatesU.S. Food System Said To Be Vulnerable To Terrorism A simple handkerchief wielded by a resourceful terrorist could cause billions of dollars of damage to America's food system and untold terror in the nation's kitchens, senators were told Wednesday. (AP)

NYPD to Have Access to Interpol Data The NYPD is the first police department in the country to have direct access to a global database to track terrorists and other criminals, Interpol announced Wednesday. (AP)

ItalyItaly Orders Expulsion of 7 Terror SuspectsItaly has ordered the expulsion of seven North Africans accused of being connected to militant Islamic groups. The decision follows the interior ministry announcement that it was deporting a Senegalese Islamic spiritual leader who has publicly supported Osama bin Laden. (VOA)

IndonesiaIndonesian Cleric Freed From Jail, Vows to Continue Raids On "Vice Dens"The head of a hard-line Indonesian Muslim group has been released from prison after serving a sentence for inciting violence and vowed that his group would continue raids against what it sees as vice dens. (AFP)

AfghanistanAfghan Security Worries Envoy Incoming U.S. ambassador seeks more vigilance along Pakistani border. (Washington Post)

LEGAL DEVELOPMENTSHouse Plan OKs Terror Emergency Plan A House committee approved legislation Wednesday that would provide for expedited special elections in the event of a terrorist attack that killed or incapacitated at least 100 House members. (AP)

Lawyer Faces New Terror-Related ChargesFederal prosecutors filed new charges yesterday against the defense lawyer Lynne F. Stewart, who had succeeded in getting a federal judge to dismiss earlier charges that she had helped one of her clients, a convicted terrorist, pass messages from prison. (NY Times)

Five Years Sought for Terror SuspectProsecutors sought five years in prison Wednesday for a terror suspect who claims he served as Osama bin Laden's bodyguard in Afghanistan and allegedly helped plan attacks in Germany. (AP)

Terror Suspect Abu Qatada Boycotts Appeal Hearing A radical Muslim scholar named by Britain as the inspiration for the lead Sept. 11 hijacker boycotted the first day of his appeal before a tribunal yesterday against his detention without trial. (Reuters)

British Detainee Resolution Near Secretary of State Colin Powell said Wednesday he expects a resolution soon on the issue of British detainees being held by the U.S. military in Guantanamo Bay, Cuba. (AP)

Counter-Terror Trainer Acquitted of Arms ChargesA Canadian who ran a counter-terrorism school in the United States was acquitted on Wednesday of charges he illegally stockpiled warheads in a case his lawyers said was driven by post-Sept. 11 paranoia. (Reuters)

ON THE WEB'Al Qaeda University' for Jihad Sciences on the InternetA new attempt to recruit bombers for suicide operations is now being done through what is called 'Al Qaeda University for Jihad Sciences," reports Asharq Al Awsat. In a statement posted on the Islamic Media Center's website, which in the past published Osama Bin Laden's statements, an alleged al Qaeda member called Ahmed Al Watheq Billah said that the "the new university has schools for electronic jihad, training on weapons, booby-trapped cars and use of arms." (Asharq Al Awsat)

TERROR FINANCINGU.S. to Sharpen Focus on Terror FundingUnited States to sharpen focus on alternative ways terrorists may raise, move money. (AP)

The 2003 National Money Laundering StrategyThe 2003 National Money Laundering Strategy continues to expand the framework for identifying, disrupting, and dismantling global terrorist financing and money laundering operations. (Dept. of Treasury)

WAR ON TERROR — ANALYSIS & OPINION

Al Qaeda's Reach Grows, With Help From WebSuspects were named Wednesday in blast that killed 25 in Turkey. Experts see Islamists joining terror group. (CS Monitor)

'Parallels' to Al Qaeda Cited in Istanbul Synagogue Blasts Investigators identify 2 bombers from same eastern province. (Washington Post)

Istanbul Bombings The Turkish newspapers continue to be full of contradictory reports on the background and perpetrators of the two bombings outside Istanbul synagogues last Saturday. (Arab News)

THE WAR IN IRAQ

Five Killed in Suicide Blast in Northern IraqA pro-U.S. politician is assassinated in southern Iraqi port city of Basra. (AP)

Iraqis Say Saddam Not Leading Attacks A former Iraqi general who claims to be part of the insurgency against U.S. troops says the guerrilla war around this ``Sunni Triangle'' city is being waged by small groups fighting on their own without direction from Saddam Hussein or others. (AP)

CIA Will Examine Raw Data on Iraq CIA Director George Tenet has ordered investigators to substantially widen their internal probe of Iraq intelligence to consider whether the agency missed telltale signs that Iraq had gotten rid of its weapons of mass destruction before the U.S.-led invasion last March. (USA Today)

U.S. Offers $10 Million to Stop or Kill Hussein AideAmerican officials offered a $10 million reward on Wednesday for information leading to the death or capture of a senior member of Saddam Hussein's government believed to be directing attacks against American troops. (NY Times)

Iraqi says Saddam's Fedayeen Planning Attacks in KuwaitAn Iraqi who surrendered to authorities in Kuwait claimed he was a member of Saddam's Fedayeen and said the group was planning assassinations and attacks in Kuwait during the coming month. His statements were published by a number of Kuwaiti newspapers today. (Elaph)

U.S. Drops 'Smart' Bombs in Baghdad Show of ForceMilitary destroys vacant buildings that it says were used by insurgents. (LA Times)

Old Favorites Play In New Iraq Strategy Tanks, F-15s head to back to work on front lines. (USA Today)

More Proof of Iraq-Qaeda Link, or Not?Late last month, a top Pentagon official fired off the latest salvo in the politically charged debate about whether there were links between Saddam Hussein's government and the Qaeda terrorist network. (NY Times)

Iraq Tenders to Favor U.S. AlliesThe U.S. government has pledged greater transparency in awarding new contracts for rebuilding post-war Iraq. (BBC)

U.S. Authorities Scramble to Rebuild Iraq's ArmyDecision to disband the force is seen by many as a major postwar mistake. (Washington Post)

War Critics Astonished As U.S. Hawk Admits Invasion Was Illegal International lawyers and anti-war campaigners reacted with astonishment yesterday after the influential Pentagon hawk Richard Perle conceded that the invasion of Iraq had been illegal. (The Guardian)

WAR IN IRAQ — ANALYSIS & OPINION

Only a True End To Occupation Will Bring PeaceThe new U.S. tactics won't work - bombing civilians and handing over power to an unelected body will strengthen Iraqi resistance. (The Guardian)

The Missing LeaderAll the members of the transitional ruling council were reportedly disappointed and angered by Colin Powell's statements. The reason is that he bluntly said that the occupation authority had not found a leader among the council's members, and went as far as forgetting all sense of diplomacy when he said that it was impossible to find an Iraqi Karzai. (Al Hayat)

The Insider Daily Terrorism Report (DTR) is a summary of major news articles and broadcasts relating to international terrorism and the war in Iraq. The DTR is edited from foreign and U.S. sources by Chris Isham, Hoda Osman, and Brinda Adhikari of the ABCNEWS Investigative Unit. The outside views expressed here do not necessarily reflect those of ABCNEWS.