Al-Qaida Suicide Bombers Plan To Attack Ships In The Mediterranean

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According to our private sources and an article in the UK's Guardian by Seumas Milne and Ewen MacAskill published February 25, 2015 ; Al-Qaida has formed a seagoing unit designed to perform suicide attacks on commercial and possibly naval ships in the Mediterranean Sea. Citing Russian Intelligence Sources the authors of Guardian article and our own sources indicate that al-Qaida (Aqim-al-Qaida in the Islamic Maghreb has formed a 60 man suicide bomber crew. The operatives are dedicated enough for suicide missions but not every mission will be planned as a suicide mission. Planned tactics will include planting of improvised mines and the use of small fast attack craft for determined attacks that could end in a Kamikaze like act. The sources for this information include not only a leaked document from Russia's Federal Security Service but also a number of internal ISIS al-Qaida documents reported on by Middle Eastern journalists. Sources include briefings by Omani Intelligence giving ISIS troop estimates (35,000 by their last reported count) and estimated income ($1.5 million daily). Also among the cited sources United Arab Emirates releases,and reports of confessions by terrorists suspects questioned by Jordan.

Al-Qaida has utilized small craft in suicide mode before against the USS COLE which killed 17 sailors.

Our own analysts believe that if these reports are correct and Al-Qaida does intend to attack commercial shipping in the Mediterranean they may already be contacting shipping interests in a tolls for protection racket, receiving payments through the same Swiss banks that now handle the ransom payments to the Somali Pirates. Really there is nothing new here, this was the game of the Barbary pirates. Some shippers may pay because they operate under open registry flags like Panama and Liberia which can not offer them any naval protection. However unlike Barbary Pirates scheme there is no major Western Shipping power that will receive any benefit from this activity. In the era of the Barbary Pirates British shipping was largely left alone due to the strength of the British navy. British merchant shipping became the safest and preferred carrier in the Mediterranean trades and so the British Navy did not offer routine protection to any other commercial shipping and did not attack the pirates as long as the pirates did not attack British shipping. Today EU, NATO, American, Japanese, South Korean, Australian and occasionally Chinese and even Iranian ships perform escort services off Somalia for any shipping and will respond to calls for help from all shipping. We wouldn't predict a lot of success for Al-Qaida in this endeavor except for straining Western naval capabilities. Either the West will continue to shrink its naval services or finally get angry, increase forces and attack pirate/terrorist strong holds ashore, lose patience with fifth column Muslims within their own borders ,expelling most and put a screeching stop to the whole Islamic conquest movement. Of course the office holders presently in office today having created the monster won't do that but there are some indications in the West that electorates not out numbered by Muslims are changing out office holders. Basically this more hope than trend.