Malaysian Police: Planned Attacks ISIS-like.

Malaysian Police Arrest 19 In ISIS-Like Attack Plots Here is a special report from CNN. The Malaysians are playing down any possible direct connection with the horror regime now overrunning Mesopotamia, but there are ominous echoes of my thought experiment in the novel Vanished Flight 777. My strong suggestion is that we should watch for the possibility that Islamic terrorists hijacked Flight MH370 in March of this year, that they have taken it someplace into hiding, and are weaponizing it for an attack on civilization that would rival 9/11 in scope and effect. Possible targets mentioned (but these are just some) include St. Peter's Basilica in Rome, St. Paul's Cathedral in London, the Eiffel Tower in Paris (which has been the subject so far of numerous Arab/Islamic terror plots foiled by French police), and so on. To learn the fictional outcome of the plot in my novel, read the book. It's available in print and e-book formats (see list at bottom right).

Malaysian Police: Bank Theft From MH370 Victims.

Bizarre MH370 Twist. The vanished Boeing 777 that disappeared into thin air on 8 March 2014 does not seem to want to stay out of the news. Here is a cold-blooded, mysterious crime reported by Malaysian authorities, related to the MH370 Vanishing. Kuala Lumpur police report that a bank official, her husband, and a wanted Pakistani suspect appear to have stolen money from the accounts of four missing Chinese passengers of the ill-fated aircraft.

Connect the Dots: Radical Islam and Ebola, Two Deadly Viruses.

Mixed Messages of Horror. The beheading, recorded on public video, of kidnapped U.S. journalist James Foley is clearly a message full of threats to the West. In the video, the murderer of Foley appears to be a dark-skinned man with a British accent, who waves the execution knife toward the camera (minutes before using it on Foley), and names U.S. President Barack Obama by name. The video then briefly shows another kidnapped Western journalist who may be next if ISIS/L threats are not minded. The mixed message really is from Africa, where the current Ebola threat is still growing, and where the West would be foolish not to devote every possible resource to preventing Islamic extremists from spreading the virus in yet another terror attack—potentially a threat of Biblical proportions (to mix religious metaphors, and why not?). This is precisely the type of proactive foresight and planning I call for in my novel and thought experiment Vanished Flight 777.

Maliki Out, Crisis Averted For Now.

Maliki Update. Amid considerable whining, Nouri Al-Maliki stepped down as prime minister of Iraq after eight years. While U.S. and Western governments spent many billions preparing Iraq for its new independence, it appears the Shia run Al Maliki government squandered much of its opportunity, since its ill-prepared army broke and ran—some 40,000 well-trained, well-equipped troops at Mosul, in the face of about 800 ISIS thugs arriving in Japanese-made pickup trucks. But wait—appearances may be deceiving. Explanation follows shortly. Maliki's departure averts a possible coup I saw coming. Iran and Egypt both signed on their approval for the new man, who appears to be simply a faceless clone of Maliki without the notoriety. Essentially, unless this man pulls off a miracle (doubtful), he buys a few weeks' time before the rump state of Iraq's condition once again looks dire. But hold on—it's not really. More in a moment.

One has to hope that the example of the Kurds will be taken up by others in the region who do not want to become slaves of the fanatical, Taliban-like misery under ISIS/L. President Obama actually should go against his word on this one issue, and let U.S. forces act like a Kurdish air force. The Kurds are largely modern, and motivated as ISIS/L terrorists swarm around their borders. The Shia in the south have not yet been tested, but one may expect a spirited defense against any Sunni radicalism, with blessings from the mullahs at Qom. The Saudis and Emiratis as usual are sitting on the fence, playing both sides as their wealthy subjects cynically slip funds to the ISIS/L terrorists, even as the royal families tacitly approve counter-measures to stabilize the volatile region despite their sympathies with the extreme Sunni positions of ISIS/L. For the royals, it is a game of survival, as they always have, by playing enemies and allies against each other.

As I have suggested before, layers of convenience go deep here. So, for now, the Turks seem to be accommodating the Kurds, but the moment this ISIS/L anomaly starts being peeled back, Turkey and other powers, including Iran, will most likely become hostile once more to the idea of a Kurdish nation, since they stand to lose significant pieces of territory from such a development. Then again, perhaps they too will become as realistic and pragmatic (Realpolitik) as the West is reluctantly starting to comprehend. In any case, while I had foreseen a possible coup should Maliki stay, there may yet be some dramatic move in the Shia regions around Baghdad and Basra to undo the artifical Iraqi state in favor of a native Shia hegemony. A prime candidate, who has long been groomed for this task, including by Qom, is the black-turbaned Shia cleric Bani Al Sadr, who has long had a private sectarian army—which was deployed with vehemence in Falluja and elsewhere during the U.S. presence.

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