Al-Qaida feared targeting superships

Confirmed: North Korea has provided sophisticated mines

LONDON – Agents for the British intelligence agency say they have established that Kim Jong-il's regime in North Korea has supplied al-Qaida with sophisticated limpet mines they fear will be used against a "ghost fleet" of 500-plus ships and superships, according to a report from Joseph Farah's G2 Bulletin.

The agents, working in Asia to monitor the latest exchange of gunfire between North Korean and South Korean warships, have reported such an attack would have a disastrous effect on London's shipping insurance market – with the potential of being far larger than the losses in last year's market crash.

The fleet, larger than the combined navies of the U.S. and Britain, is anchored in one of the world's least accessible waterways: the remote Johor Coast at the southern tip of Malaysia.

Fifty miles east of Singapore, it also is close to Indonesia, the launching point, MI6 agents say, for the next attack by al-Qaida terrorists.

The value of the fleet is in the billions of dollars. But in their equatorial backwater they generally are guarded by only a handful of sailors, often armed with no more than a pistol or rifle to ward off any attack.

This has obviously past through the media channels without the hype, having so many ships aligned for a turkey shoot is simply provocative to say the least. Think of how fast the U.K. and the U.S. would swing into action against any nation they seem fit to be dealt with. Could this spark another global economic meltdown, it sure as hell can.

www.wnd.com...

Whoa! Nice find Tristar! That is a significant security loophole there, and if a breach occurs, it could have catastrophic affects on the global economy. According to what you have posted, that is a lot of ships at risk. What percentage of international shipping is tied to that fleet near Singapore and Indonesia?

I am in agreement with that it can start another global meltdown. If this fleet is attacked by terrorists, it could decimate global shipping. Think about how much money will be lost and food, as it lay at the bottom of the sea or rots on the piers. There is already an international food crisis afoot and this will only add to the problem. This seems very serious, and I am surprised that the US or British navies are not in the region as they are in the Persian Gulf? Now that one irks me.

[edit on 17-11-2009 by Jakes51]

Well most incidents that end up on a global scale are almost by rule sparked off from a not so visible target. Remember WW1 , WW2 , Korean War, Vietnam War to mention the least. Given that if anything was to happen the response would be " They have attacked our economic foundation as a nation". Seem's odd that they are left all alone, almost like their inviting an attack to justify any and all responses, similar to how the U.S. had deliberately sent cargo ships during WW2 through known German Sub routes which eventually led to them being sunk and the U.S. officially declaring war on Germany. Sound familiar ?

Now by no means am i stating that this could happen, but it seems that the chess board is well placed into a check mate situation allowing who ever they are expecting to do as has been defined. This would speed up every process in monitoring the global economy as the excuse would be a new and biblical financial crisis.

By the way i have stopped posting in the Alternative News Breaking Section and have decided to spread news across all the sites board areas. This way my contribution can be equally spread to cater for all viewers.

I guess really expensive and modern anti ship missiles would be a bit too obvious and might expose the real bad boys behind the war on terror.

Yes I probably am just saying the first thing that popped into my head on reading the OP but what if I am right? I suspect if there is truth to this then we are entering a new phase in the pretence regarding our government’s best interests and our rights.

Ahh yes the clouds are clearing, if such an atrocity comes we can expect a triple pronged attack on our civil rights, our freedom of expression and a new level of warfare in this wondrous age of eternal war where even the reasons for war changes depending on the political needs at the time.

First it is to defeat terrorism, next it is to enable female children to get educated, and next it is to allow unmolested voting in a country dogged by systemic corruption.

“Launch the missl... Oopsies launch the mines - blame it on him" (points over there)

Nice find OP, starred and flagged

I haven't subscribed to the G2 Bulletin, so I can only comment the open access part.

LONDON – Agents for the British intelligence agency say they have established that Kim Jong-il's regime in North Korea has supplied al-Qaida with sophisticated limpet mines they fear will be used against a "ghost fleet" of 500-plus ships and superships, according to a report from Joseph Farah's G2 Bulletin

For someone, who is a genuine whistleblower and needs protection anonymity is important. The anonymity "British intelligence agency" we find in in this article, doesn't protect anyone. Instead it is designed to give the author credibility.

Journalists quoting these kind of anonymous “high-ranking” or “secret government” sources have fooled us in the past. This kind of reporting is often carefully created government propaganda repeated by media outlets and paid pundits.

Example 1: Valerie Plame
Example 2: Waterboarding KSM

Many more examples can be found on Salon.com. Glenn Greenwald often criticises irresponsible journalists mindlessly repeating anonymous government sources.

If the British intelligence agency would have found real evidence, you would see politicians present them on the world stage. Since this isn't the case, I expect the allegations to be lies.


[edit on 17-11-2009 by Drunkenshrew]

reply to post by Drunkenshrew


I agree with you here, but a simple what if is in the works. I do not mean it could happen now, tomorrow but in the not too distant future when the time is right. Lets face it, having the two international nations parking their cargo maritime armada of a coast without protection in a not so friendly environment is not what i call good strategy. Then again this could all be a global insurance fraud case waiting to happen and at the same time insist on military action through the use of coalition forces against an enemy which has not been fully accepted by the world leaders.

"Kill two birds with one stone"

reply to post by tristar

I believe the area is a traditional waiting point for container ships. In 2002 I spent a holiday in New Zealand. The flight stopped at Singapore. As the plane approached the airport, it flew about 15 minutes over countless gigantic ships. Very impressive sight.



I believe many shipowners can't afford to move their freighters to a safer area.

Wikipedia - Baltic Dry Index

Impact of 2008 financial crisis

On 20 May 2008 the index reached its record high level since its introduction in 1985, reaching 11,793 points. Half a year later, on 5 December 2008, the index had dropped by 94%, to 663 points, the lowest since 1986.[8], though by 4 February 2009 it had recovered a little lost ground, back to 1,316.[9]

These low rates moved dangerously close to the combined operating costs of vessels, fuel, and crews.[10][11] By the end of 2008, shipping times had been already increased by reduced speeds to save fuel consumption, but lack of credit meant the reduction of letters of credit, historically required to load cargoes for departure at ports. Debt load of future ship construction was also a problem for shipping companies, with several major bankruptcies and implications for shipyards.[12][13]

This, combined with the collapsing price of raw commodities created a perfect storm for the world's marine commerce. By October of 2009 the index had recovered to around 2,900, a level that is more historically normal.

Let's hope no one causes trouble.

this is a non story.
these are empty ships and there companies have mothballed them because there was no cargo.

attack would have a disastrous effect on London's shipping insurance market

That is BS break out the hip boots.

With the excess of shipping we have around the world its a wonder that some of the owner of these ships have not sunk them themselves.

With most cargo ships the major loss is not the ship but the cargo that is worth many times more then the ship. and many of these ships are older and slower ships that are not worth using during this global meltdown.
These have no cargo and would be right now worth little more then scrap till they can start hauling cargo again. These ships are costing the shipping companies around $10,000 a month just to store them. plus the lost revenue.
A number of these ships will be towed to the India's or Pakistani wreckers instead of sailing again. Right now the India and the paks can not scrap ships fast enough.

www.moxon.net...

Most of the steel from these ship wreckers goes to India to be made into good to export.
With exports slow the need for the steel from these ships is down.

reply to post by tristar


OK, f North Korea which has always been an a-hole of a country.

Second line is f North Korea.

reply to post by ANNED


I guess your not too familiar with shipping and its effects on the global market. Have you ever considered why the cost of goods goes up when oil goes up. Simply because the cost of transporting rises and the cost falls upon the consumer due to the logistics involved. A quick summary of the billions involved in shipping.

Shipping Companies Sized By Market Capitalization

Shipping Companies Sized By Market Capitalization

supplied al-Qaida ...

when I hear the name "al-Qaida"
that is all that is needed to start smelling a lie in the story .....


just keep an eye on the rats that start to leave the sinking ship

Just a quick look at the other articles on this web site and I find no credible sources for its articles, so it comes as no surprise that there are no supporting links for this one. If you want to read the full article you have to subscribe by paying. This kind of journalism sucks.

Any journalist who took pride in his work would know that Al Qaeda do not operate (if they even exist) in this area. Perhaps the MI6 source meant to say "Jamail Islamaya"

The Singapore coast is heavily patrolled by fast and heavily armed Police launches and they stop and board other craft at will. The Indonesian & Malaysian Navy also have a daily presence protecting these waters as the region is notorious for pirates.

You will not see many Merchant ships in this area registered in either the USA or UK. It is an interesting concept however so worthy of a star

OK Lah?

PEACE,
RK

[edit on 18-11-2009 by Rigel Kent]

reply to post by Rigel Kent


What are you viewing the forest or the tree ?