I wrote about Islamberg's training camp in upstate New York last month. It's a closed community that scares the heck out of the locals, who have heard the sound of gunfire and small explosives coming from inside the camp. The feds are finally looking into this group:
A remote Muslim commune nestled in the Catskill Mountains has come under the scrutiny of state and federal authorities for possible ties to terrorism, according to law-enforcement sources.
Officials say Islamberg - a wooded, 70-acre encampment in upstate Tompkins, about three hours north of the city - acts as the headquarters for an outfit called Muslims of the Americas, widely believed to be a front for Jamaat al-Fuqra, founded by radical Pakistani cleric Mubarak Ali Gilani.Reports of gunfire and military-style physical training at the camp have led some investigators to believe that the group's members are preparing for homegrown jihad.
According to one account, a neighbor said he has seen commune members dressed in Port Authority uniforms.
Just great.




Comments (12)
According to one a... (Below threshold)1. Posted by langtry | June 4, 2007 10:57 AM | Score: 0 (0 votes cast)
Sad that it likely took that detail to get authorities to act, but I am glad they are acting!
1. Posted by langtry | June 4, 2007 10:57 AM |
Score: 0 (0 votes cast)
Posted on June 4, 2007 10:57
2. Posted by Joe | June 4, 2007 11:27 AM | Score: 0 (0 votes cast)
Round up time.
2. Posted by Joe | June 4, 2007 11:27 AM |
Score: 0 (0 votes cast)
Posted on June 4, 2007 11:27
3. Posted by jpm100 | June 4, 2007 11:27 AM | Score: 0 (0 votes cast)
There's an easy explanation for the members dressed as port authority agents.
They probably work there.
3. Posted by jpm100 | June 4, 2007 11:27 AM |
Score: 0 (0 votes cast)
Posted on June 4, 2007 11:27
4. Posted by TR19667 | June 4, 2007 11:38 AM | Score: 0 (0 votes cast)
We just don't understand. After all, this is the religion of peace.
4. Posted by TR19667 | June 4, 2007 11:38 AM |
Score: 0 (0 votes cast)
Posted on June 4, 2007 11:38
5. Posted by kim | June 4, 2007 11:48 AM | Score: 0 (0 votes cast)
Yes, the Religion of Peace and Port Authorities. Get it right.
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5. Posted by kim | June 4, 2007 11:48 AM |
Score: 0 (0 votes cast)
Posted on June 4, 2007 11:48
6. Posted by kim | June 4, 2007 11:56 AM | Score: 0 (0 votes cast)
There's got to be a 'Pork Authority' joke in there somewhere.
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6. Posted by kim | June 4, 2007 11:56 AM |
Score: 0 (0 votes cast)
Posted on June 4, 2007 11:56
7. Posted by Scrapiron | June 4, 2007 12:27 PM | Score: 0 (0 votes cast)
Criminal Islamist doing the job (Port Authority) that Americans won't do, or do very poorly.
Time for 24-7 overflights with picture and sound. No different than a terrorists training camp in Iraq. Photo, record and bomb.
7. Posted by Scrapiron | June 4, 2007 12:27 PM |
Score: 0 (0 votes cast)
Posted on June 4, 2007 12:27
8. Posted by jim | June 4, 2007 2:34 PM | Score: 0 (0 votes cast)
Looks like law enforcement should go investigate, and take care of this.
I expect and hope they are already.
8. Posted by jim | June 4, 2007 2:34 PM |
Score: 0 (0 votes cast)
Posted on June 4, 2007 14:34
9. Posted by serfer62 | June 4, 2007 2:54 PM | Score: 0 (0 votes cast)
The religion of piece
another truely target rich enviroment...
9. Posted by serfer62 | June 4, 2007 2:54 PM |
Score: 0 (0 votes cast)
Posted on June 4, 2007 14:54
10. Posted by PeevedGuy | June 4, 2007 3:32 PM | Score: 0 (0 votes cast)
"There's an easy explanation for the members dressed as port authority agents.
They probably work there."
Why doesn't that make me feel better?
10. Posted by PeevedGuy | June 4, 2007 3:32 PM |
Score: 0 (0 votes cast)
Posted on June 4, 2007 15:32
11. Posted by Roy Bazylewicz Jr | June 12, 2007 11:50 AM | Score: -1 (1 votes cast)
This is just another reason why we have to round up all Muslims in this country and put them into internment camps until we can sort out which ones are a threat to us and which ones are not. It was legal to round up the Japs in WWII and put them into internment camps and it is legal for us to do this with the Muslims too.
NEVER FORGET 9/11
NEVER LET IT HAPPEN AGAIN
11. Posted by Roy Bazylewicz Jr | June 12, 2007 11:50 AM |
Score: -1 (1 votes cast)
Posted on June 12, 2007 11:50
12. Posted by Sarge | June 20, 2007 1:02 PM | Score: 0 (0 votes cast)
Well lets be real and tell the rest of the story.
About Islamberg and It's Christian Neighbors
From the Article:
Islamberg: A Terror Compound in NY... or Misunderstood Neighbors?
By Michael Y. Park
Fox News
June 12, 2007
. . . .The doctor at the local clinic in Deposit, John Giannone, now fasts on Ramadan out of respect for the community's beliefs and has maintained a relatively close relationship with the group. When his house was devastated by flooding that nearly wiped Deposit off the map in June 2006, volunteers from Islamberg came down and helped him clear out the debris and clean up the rental home his family had moved into. Giannone says they even did the dishes.
That flood was one occasion when Islamberg shone, according to many. According to several accounts, Islamberg men, women, boys and girls pitched in and helped clear debris, clean people's basements, distribute food and maintain the emergency shelter where residents gathered. On July 4, the Muslims joined the rest of the community for a dinner to commemorate their shared adversity.
"We were all just overwhelmed, and I remember the thanksgiving prayer that was said to bless everyone, no matter who you are and to bring the community together. And in that moment, we were a community, we were together as one," Felber said. "I couldn't see a person that was going to be part of a terrorist group standing in a food line of thanksgiving there serving the community." . . . .
http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,281074,00.html
Well, it is nice to see that you are reading the webpage. I am a veteran of Desert Storm, Southern Watch, Operation Enduring Freedom and Operation Iraqi Freedom. I am also a resident of Islamberg and I have 19 years in the Armed Forces. I have many letters and decorations to prove my loyalty to my country. It is such ashame that the media can paint such an ugly picture to make people believe anything. You are very much welcomed to come to Islamberg. All is invited. I would be glad to show you my awards and decorations. I am a Muslim and a proud soldier that has served and is still serving to protect your rights as an American. Please feel free to come to Islamberg and seek me out. There is no armed guard to greet you. You will be greeted just as all the others that have come to visit. I will be glad to post the most recent pictures of the media that just had an interview with the community.
One thing people must know is that there are thousands of Muslims in the military and are from many of your own communities. We are there fighting terrorism along with our Christian and non religious brethren.
Features: Uncle Sam Wants US Muslims To Serve In the Military
Posted on Thursday, December 28 @ 15:04:46 EST by Morgan Barker
The Pentagon builds Islamic prayer rooms and hires imams to make military life more appealing.
by Richard Whittle, Contributor to The Christian Science Monitor
WASHINGTON As US troops battle Islamic extremists abroad, the Pentagon and the armed forces are reaching out to Muslims at home.
An underlying goal is to interest more Muslims in the military, which needs officers and troops who can speak Arabic and other relevant languages and understand the culture of places like Iraq and Afghanistan. The effort is also part of a larger outreach. Pentagon officials say they are striving for mutual understanding with Muslims at home and abroad and to win their support for US war aims. Among the efforts to attract and retain Muslim cadets:
West Point and the other service academies have opened Muslim prayer rooms, as have military installations.
Imams serve full- and part-time as chaplains at the academies and some bases.
Top non-Muslim officers and Pentagon officials have taken to celebrating religious events with Muslims overseas and here in the US.
"There is a message here, and that is that Muslims and the Islamic religion are totally compatible with Western values," says Deputy Defense Secretary Gordon England in an interview...
For the past two years, Mr. England has hosted an iftar, the feast that ends the daytime fast during the Muslim holy month of Ramadan, at the Army Navy Country Club in Arlington, Va. His guests have included ambassadors, leaders of the Muslim-American community, and Muslims who serve in the US armed forces.
President Bush also hosted an iftar at the White House in October, as he has done for several years. Gen. Robert Magnus, the assistant commandant of the Marine Corps, held one the same month at the Marine Corps Barracks in Washington for defense attachés from predominantly Muslim nations.
The US armed services don't recruit by religion, but the Pentagon estimates at least 3,386 Muslims were serving in the US military as of September. No precise figures are available because, while US service members are surveyed on their religion, they aren't required to disclose it. Advocacy groups put the number at 15,000, saying many are reluctant to reveal their religion. African-Americans represent the largest share of Muslims in uniform, they add.
However uncertain the progress, the military is intensifying its outreach.
On June 6 - the anniversary of D-Day, he notes - Mr. England helped dedicate a new Islamic prayer center at the Quantico Marine Corps Base near Washington, whose 6,100 marines include about 24 Muslims, according to Lt. Cmdr. Abuhena Saifulislam, a Navy chaplain who serves as their imam.
The Marines also have allowed Muslims in their ranks at Quantico some dispensations to make it easier to practice their religion, says Lieutenant Commander Saifulislam, a US citizen born and raised in Bangladesh. During Ramadan, "they're allowed to have some time off to prepare for their fasting break and not to go to physical training" while fasting, he says.
Muslim troops say misunderstandings and friction with non-Muslims in uniform arise sometimes, but practicing Islam in a military at war with extremists who profess the same faith isn't a burden, they add.
Petty Officer Third Class Nicholas Burgos, a Sunni Muslim training to be a Navy SEAL, or commando, says instructors sometimes goad him by calling him "Osama bin Burgos" or asking if he's training to help the Taliban. But "it's all in good fun," he insists.
"It's all about how much mental stress you can deal with while you're in training," Petty Officer Burgos says. "I just laugh or have a smirk on my face."
His father, Asadullah Burgos, is the part-time imam at the US Military Academy at West Point, N.Y., whose roughly 4,000 cadets include 32 Muslims, 12 of whom are foreign students.
"There's been some insults and some taunting, but it's been handled at the cadet level," Imam Burgos says. "Usually that's due to ignorance."
Col. John Cook, the senior chaplain at West Point, says that after media reports about the academy's new Muslim prayer room, he got a call from a self-described "concerned citizen" who fretted that "the Muslims are taking over the world."
"I told him, 'I'm a Christian chaplain, but I have the responsibility to provide for other faith groups,' " Colonel Cook says. Protestant, Catholic, and Jewish cadets all have their own chapels at West Point, he notes.
Marine Sgt. Jamil Alkattan, a Sunni Muslim of Syrian heritage from South Bend, Ind., says his religion, his knowledge of Arabic, and his familiarity with Arab culture were major assets during two tours in Iraq.
Not only was he able to teach fellow marines key Arabic phrases and explain that all Muslims aren't extremists, he says, but he also was able to befriend locals, who brought him vital intelligence. "They would come to me and say, 'I know where bombs are,' and this and that," Sergeant Alkattan says. "I never got to sleep. They would come at night time and tell me, 'Hey, I think these guys [insurgents] are trying to set you guys up,' or, 'I've seen these guys with an IED [improvised bomb].' I think it stopped a lot of things that could have happened."
Under a new Middle East Cultural Outreach Program created by the Marine Corps, Sergeant Alkattan is one of six Arab-American marines selected to be stationed in major American cities as liaisons to the Arab-American community and advisers to recruiters.
The program was conceived by Gunnery Sgt. Jamal Baadani, a Muslim born in Cairo who emigrated to Michigan when he was 10.
"It is not a direct recruiting program," says Sergeant Baadani, but its goal is to educate recruiters to avoid cultural no-nos and foster good relations with Arab-American communities. The "overall objective ... is to develop solid relationships with the Arab and Muslim communities for the 21st and 22nd centuries. This isn't something that's just a Band-Aid treatment."
http://www.veteranstoday.com/article1824.html
Now lets speak about Paul Williams. He never asked to speak to any of the residents. He stood at the top of the road and took his famous picture. He then proceeded to the welcome booth and was greeted there. He never asked for an interview at all. He just ask to snap some pictures which he did. The only pictures he took was of the main lane and of himself. The rest of his pictures he took from our website and what he received from Fox News. He has made up a lie and has to tell many more lies just to cover up his one lie. I ask you to contact him and tell him to return to Islamberg just to interview me and the many other war veterans that have served to defend the honor of OUR COUNTRY THE GREAT USA. They don't want the truth just lies to make money.
Original Red Hatter (2MAPS) (PORT DAWG)
12. Posted by Sarge | June 20, 2007 1:02 PM |
Score: 0 (0 votes cast)
Posted on June 20, 2007 13:02