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February 02, 2006
There Are Millions Of Stories In Our Military and This Is One I Want You To Know
Before I begin I want to give credit to Cao's Blog, Cao is a wonderful woman with a big heart and very smart. She has much more information than I do that you can go and read at her Blog.
Also SuperPatriots.US is the place to be as well if you want to get information and updates.
"The SuperPatriots and Jack images on this site are used by the Blogs and website listed below with written copyright permission and any use by any third party is subject to legal action by SuperPatriots.US". So don't mess with them or me and think you that hate this war can just take the images and use them against those serving our country.
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If you have any feeling inside of you then you will be angered like I was, you will shed tears as I have done and you will know in your heart that an injustice has been done and needs to be corrected ASAP!
They men that ask "why not" instead of why.
Jack Idema is the soldier, who more than a decade ago first warned the Pentagon about the Russian Mafia selling suitcase nuclear bombs to terrorist supporting nations. Suitcase nuke proliferation is reportedly much worse since Idema first told the Pentagon what he learned from the Lithuanian KGB about the illicit traffic. That story by the way, won major awards when reported by CBS "60 Minutes", though CBS chose not to credit their major source - Jonathan K. Idema (Jack).
Jack Idema is a former member of the US Army Special Forces and is a Green Beret. He has operated for the US Government, and trained foreign counter-terrorist forces in Nicaragua against the Sandinistas, in El Salvador with the Ramon Bellosa Immediate Reaction Battalion against the FMLN terrorists, in East Germany and Europe against the Bader Meinhoff Gang, in Thailand with the Thai Special Warfare Command, in Haiti protecting the US Mission against dissidents, in the Middle East against Hezbollah, Hamas and Abu Nidal terrorists, in Lithuania against the OMON terrorists, and numerous other operational areas.
His Special Ops and SF background includes more than two dozen SF, Special Ops, police, counter-terrorist and classified courses and schools. He is an expert in counter-terrorism, intelligence asset development, and hostage-rescue, with more than 25 years' experience in all of these. He's currently employed by the Counter-Terrorist Group U.S. (CounTerr Group) as a CT Operator in a direct action capacity against international terrorism, specifically, Al Qaeda and related terrorist groups.
CounTerr, aka CounTerr Group, is an organization based in the US that leads counter-terrorism activites in support of US government initiatives. Counter Group conducts training, organization, direct action, HUMINT, and advisory services to foreign and domestic agencies. Counter Group has been in operation , in various forms, in various countries, for approximately 27 years. Counter Group began deploying personnel to Afghanistan and other countries just weeks after 9/11 as part of the effort to combat Osama bin Laden, al Qaeda and other terrorist forces such as the Taliban. Counter Group's foreign operating group and CONUS personnel worked in conjunction with Commander Massoud's Northern Alliance, which were primarily responsible for the liberation of Afghanistan with US Army Special Forces and Special Ops units.
During the 2002 war in Afghanistan, his mother died. Jack was chasing Iraqi, Pakistani, Iranian, and Japanese al-Qaida terrorists in Afghanistan. He had been very close to bin Laden, and this was well documented by UPI, books, and other news sources. He did not return to bury his mother until three weeks later. Wounded twice, with nine straight months in combat and/or intelligence operations, Jack Idema served continuously longer than ANY other ground operator in Afghanistan in 2001/2002. When al-Qaida again threatened regional security and the lives of his Afghan friends, Jack returned on what was to be a 30-45 day operation against a single terrorist bomber.
In 2001 Jack Idema was a hero in the war in Afghanistan. Associated Press wrote a story that he saved 300 women and children at an Earthquake in Afghanistan, and he was thanked by the Afghan President. Within a short time later he and his men spend ten years in an Afghan prison from a Taliban judge.
October 2001......Jack Idema and TASK FORCE SABER personnel participated in numerous operations starting in October 2001. These operations included combat advisor and combat medic operations in OPERATION ANACONDA in March 2002, and humanitarian assistance and rescue operations during the 2002 Nahrin earthquake disaster and other similar crises. All of these activities were officially as part of, or attached to, the Northern Alliance Anti-Taliban Forces and the United Front.
During these operations Task Force Saber/7 personnel were repeatedly commended for their actions by U.S. forces such as Task Force 180, high-ranking members of both the Northern Alliance and the Afghan government, including numerous cabinet level Ministers, National Security Council members, Vice-President Kareem Khalili, and even President Karzai himself.
Only a few years later, Idema stands accused of running an illegal jail in what has been termed a freelance search for terrorists. The U.S. government says it did not sponsor or employ him.They are accused of kidnapping and torturing Afghan citizens in their makeshift jail. They could face 15 to 20 years in an Afghan prison. And being there without permission from the U.S. Government....aka Loose cannons........which is a bunch of BS!
See this above, it is from the FBI TO Idema. Yep, the FBI Counter-Terrorist Unit and Counter-Terrorist Watch Command was sending Federal Express packages to and from Jack! Between December 2003 and April 2004 there were far more than a dozen of “urgent priority” packages sent between these two groups.This receipt above, sent by the FBI, billed to a US government account, and sent via a special Federal Express route, called “Sensitive - Courier Alert” marked - “Highest Boarding Priority” - “No Redirect” and a bunch of other spook stuff, was sent by Debbie Brooks of the FBI directly from the FBI’s CT Task Force (CT Watch Command at Headquarters). Notice several things:
1) 4.45 pounds of al-Qaida documents;
2) FBI Sensitive CT account #;
3) “From Room 5712 Category A” - that room handles all sensitive/classified communications for the Counter-Terrorist guys;
4) “Origin” - which gives a phone number at the CT Task Force Command office;
5) “15 Jan 04″ - right during the height of the exchanges, and right during the time when Ashcroft was announcing “special” and “covert” intelligence was finding evidence of new al-Qaida attacks planned on Americans.But wait......hold on those of you reading this....the FBI wants us to believe they had no idea who these guys are!
In 2004......... they participated in, or independently conducted military operations known as OPERATION RUBICON, OPERATION MONK, OPERATION ROADRUNNER, OPERATION ACME, and assisted U.S. and NATO Forces in OPERATION ENDURING FREEDOM. Idema, Bennett and Caraballo were part of TASK FORCE SABER and TASK FORCE 7 implemented by Counterr Group between September 12, 2001 and July 2004. These two activities, hereafter referred to collectively as “Task Force Saber/7,” conducted military and humanitarian operations in support of the U.S. and Coalition War on Terror and ongoing efforts to continue the liberation of Afghanistan and permanently defeat the Taliban and al-Qaida terrorist forces waging a guerilla war and resurgence in Afghanistan.
February and March of 2004............... In February and March 2004, the FBI, through their Washington, D.C. Headquarters and CT Watch Command (Counter-Terrorism Watch- a supposed clearing house for terrorist information), made concerted efforts to co-opt Counterr Group intelligence assets inside al-Qaida. Co-opting an asset refers to one agency attempting to seize total control and operational direction over another organization’s human intelligence source. Counterr Group resisted FBI efforts to co-opt their assets and refused to release their identities. However, Counterr Group continued to pass actionable intelligence to the DOD, DIA, and NSA. The FBI then sought to discredit Counterr Group’s assets and intelligence, and coerce Counterr Group officers and their families with a wide-range of threats.
April and July of 2004........ Between April 2004 and July 2004, Task Force Saber/7 interdicted and captured numerous terrorists in Afghanistan. While some were turned over to U.S. military forces and Afghan Ministry of Defense forces, others were in custody and awaiting transfer to the U.S. military’s TASK FORCE 180 (JTF-180), the U.S. Defense Intelligence Agency, and other classified activities in Afghanistan. Task Force Saber/7 were working with and briefing the U.S. Department of Defense and the Afghan Ministry of Defense on a daily basis, sometimes an hourly basis. Furthermore, Afghan government employees, such as Lieutenant Rasuli, were always operating with Task Force Saber/7 twenty-four hours a day, as were 12 Afghans.
In July 2004........ On July 5th, 2004, the Jack Idema, Brent Bennett, Ed Caraballo and Afghans including Zorro and Ezmerai, were arrested by forces under the control the FBI, and with the assistance of Karzai forces in opposition to the former Northern Alliance and the interim government’s Ministry of Defense. This was orchestrated by Taliban and Hezb-i-Islami forces loyal to Mullah Omar and Gulbideen Hekmatyar, with the knowledge and approval of then Interim President Hamid Karzai. The purpose of this was to prevent a high level Hezb-i-Islami terrorist (Sidiq) from being transferred to permanent U.S. military custody and exposing the depth and breadth of the high level plot. In return, Karzai would receive full support and votes from Hekmatyar controlled areas such as the Konar Province (he later did).
“Mr. Jack” was charged with entering the country illegally, torturing innocent Afghan civilians, and running a private jail.
Middle of August 2004.... Attorney John Edwards Tiffany had arrived from NY with the legal team he assembled. It would not do much good. The Taliban Judge (are you ever "ex-Taliban"?) would ignore the Rule of Law completely. The men were convicted of all charges, in spite of extensive evidence of innocence. The FBI confiscated much of the evidence and eventually all of the evidence in the case, leaving them with no way to defend themselves. They were charged with illegally entering the country, kidnapping, and torture.
The entire trial violated the Afghan Criminal Code, and not one shred of actual evidence was ever presented against the men. No prosecution witnesses testified under oath, no cross examination ever allowed, and even the defense statements were not allowed to be read, nor did the Court provide competent interpreters and most of the time the men had no idea of what was being said in court.
So, you had known terrorists, caught with explosives, detonators, bomb plans to kill diplomats and American soldiers, weapons, ammunition, and all sorts of terrorist related items, including a letter from an al-Qaida relative in GITMO Cuba, and a letter from Mullah Omar, claiming that they were "abused" and "tortured" by Americans (oh, and that they didn't get to go to the bathroom for twelve hours) and the press actually believed them, although they were ALL in perfect health and could not show a single mark or injury. The Red Cross later confirmed that not one single terrorist had any injury or showed any evidence of torture.
On September 16, 2004.... According to Court documents, the Defendants were illegally convicted of all charges in the Primary Court on September 16, 2004 and sentenced to lengthy terms of imprisonment.
In November 2004............... Defendants were granted a Trial de novo (a completely new trial) and the convictions were declared null and void.
On December 1, 2004.... The Court of Appeals of the Islamic Transitional Government of Afghanistan conducted another closed hearing in the case (again to keep it away from media scrutiny). By the end of the hearing, the Afghan Court of Appeals had declared all four Afghans innocent of all charges and three of Idema’s men were ordered released immediately by the Appeals Court after hearing evidence from Afghan government police officers and learning that the FBI was present during torture sessions and illegally seized Petitioners’ evidence in the case for the second time. The American FBI successfully delayed this case for another 30 days and still refused to return the evidence. The US government continues to withhold evidence.
December 17,2004..... eight al-Qaida terrorists implemented an assassination plot and attack on the Idema, Caraballo & Bennett at Pulacharke. One of their motives was to collect a $250,000 reward Osama bin Laden had placed on Idema.Approximately 40 days later, the Appeals Court met again, and repeated that all members of Task Force Saber/7 were “completely innocent,” but that they could not be released because of pressure and coercion by the U.S. Embassy and FBI. Further, the Appeals Court cleared them of all torture charges after hearing covertly recorded statements of the alleged “victims” and seeing evidence linking the “victims” to terrorist leaders and terror plots.
In February 2005.... Idema and his team were found innocent of entering the county illegally when the Appeals Court saw video of their passports being handed to Customs Officials and Border Police.
On February 16, 2005............. al-Qaida terrorists attempted a seventh assassination attempt against them. Seventeen Pakistani, Red Chinese, and Arab terrorists implemented another plan to kill Idema and the two other American POWs. The assassination attempt was interdicted by Northern Alliance officers again, and foiled just twelve hours before their attack on these men.
In March 2005..... The three Americans remaining in prison were found innocent of all charges after an undercover tape was played in which their accusers admitted there was no torture and that it was “all a show for the press.” A second tape was played with the terrorists discussing their plans to bomb Bagram Air base, the US airfield north of Kabul, and plotting to kill several national leaders. Idema and his men were still not released.
But here is the kicker............ The American government will not approve their release!
November 7th week, 2005...... The independent newspaper published by the Massoud Hero Foundation, and the Mujahadeen and Martyrs Group called for the immediate release of American Jack Idema and his Northern Alliance anti-terrorist team.
As Jack and the Task Force Saber 7 say in their sign off
Freedom Endures
TASK FORCE SABER/7
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* Big Dog's Weblog
* Cao's Blog
* Rottweiler Puppy
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If you want to know more about the story,Cao's Blog has a large section devoted to Jack Idema. There's also a timeline here, and of course a huge amount of information if available at SuperPatriots.US, without whose work done none of us would have learned about Jack's story.
Anyone reading this with their own blog can sign up for the weekly Free Jack Idema Blogburst by emailing Cao or Rottweiler Puppy for details. I'd urge everyone to do this.
Posted by Wild Thing at February 2, 2006 12:04 AM
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If you’re looking for pieces on Jack Idema and his team, please click on this link.
One of the biggest problems faced by U.S. Special Forces soldier Jack Idema and the his two compatriots, Brent Bennett and journalist Ed Caraballo is that mud... [Read More]
Tracked on February 4, 2006 07:55 PM
Comments
Nice job, Chrissie.
Posted by: Cao at February 4, 2006 07:55 PM
HI Cao, thank you soooo much. You are doing an awesome job about this.I am grateful to be a part of it.
Posted by: Wild Thing at February 5, 2006 08:44 AM