Azerbaijan says it foils attack on US Embassy

Reprinted: By Simon Montlake
from the October 31, 2007 edition
http://www.csmonitor.com/2007/1030/p99s01-duts.html
Christian Science Monitor

Authorities in Azerbaijan say they have detained a group of heavily armed Islamic militants who were allegedly plotting an attack on the US Embassy in Baku, which closed Monday in response to the threat. The State Department in Washington said there was "specific and credible threat information," but gave no further details.
The detained men were described as being Wahhabis – a Sunni Muslim sect that originated in Saudi Arabia – and their ranks included an Army officer who had supplied assault rifles and grenade launchers, Reuters reported Monday. It quoted a spokesman for the National Security Ministry, Arif Babayev.
Babayev said that part of the militant group was detained at the weekend in the village of Mashtagi, near Baku, including the military officer, who had recently gone absent from his post.
"It was established that the group ... had four Kalashnikov rifles, one Kalashnikov grenade launcher, 20 grenades, rounds and other automatic weapon parts," Babayev said.
The British Embassy in Baku also closed Monday over "local security concerns." The Associated Press reported a statement by the National Security Ministry that the arrests had prevented a wider terrorist plot against national and foreign targets.
"That prevented a large-scale, horrifying terror attack that was being prepared by members of this group against several state structures in Baku and embassies and missions of the countries which are members of the international anti-terror coalition," the ministry said, adding that other members of the group were being sought.
Azerbaijan is a largely secular Muslim republic on the western shore of the oil-rich Caspian Sea. British oil giant BP operates two large oil and gas export projects in Azerbaijani waters that supply energy markets in Western Europe, the Financial Times reported Tuesday from Moscow.
Azerbaijan, with its population of 8m, is a predominantly Muslim republic with borders with Iran, Russia and Georgia….
The arrests come at a time when Azerbaijan is enjoying economic growth of more than 30 per cent amid a growing oil surge.
However, poverty remains widespread. Human rights groups say Islamist religious groups are gaining influence, particularly among the poor.
Azerbaijan's relationship with neighboring Iran may have been the focus of a recent visit to Baku by Central Intelligence Agency director Michael Hayden, Eurasianet.org, a specialist website funded by the Open Society Institute, reported earlier this month. General Hayden met Azerbaijan's president, Ilham Aliyev, on Sept. 28 during what US officials said was a regional tour to discuss security and international terrorism.
Some local analysts believe the US wants to use Azerbaijan as a base for a possible military attack on Iran, according to Euroasianet.org. It also cited Ilgar Mammadov, an independent analyst, as drawing a link between Hayden's visit and the trial of a pro-Iranian militant group.
A preliminary hearing for the government's case against the 15-member group, named after its leader, Said Dadashbeyli, took place at the end of September in Baku, the Turan news agency reported on October 1. Group members are also charged with high treason, illegal arms possession, illegal contact with foreign intelligence services, robbery and other crimes.
The Ministry of National Security alleges that Dadashbeyli, an Azerbaijani citizen, worked with radical Islamic organizations – as yet not publicly named – and Iranian intelligence agents to set up a state with Shar'ia laws. A military group, dubbed the Northern Army of Mehdi, was allegedly formed by several of the defendants, prosecutors allege. Prosecutors also claim that one of the group's members, Jeihun Aliyev, traveled to the Iranian holy city of Qom, where he was offered money by Iranian agents. The money was to be used to mount a propaganda campaign designed to undermine Western and Israeli influence in Azerbaijan.
Earlier this month, Iran hosted a summit for states bordering the Caspian sea, at which leaders from Azerbaijan and four other countries pledged not to allow their territory to be used for attacks against fellow littoral states, Asia Times reported. Russian President Vladimir Putin was among those attending the summit, which played down the issue of disputed national boundaries in the oil-rich inland sea.
Jamestown.org reported last year that Azerbaijan may have been overstating the risk of a possible Al Qaeda attack in Baku as a way of currying favor with the US government. After 2001, Azerbaijani authorities arrested and extradited several foreign militants to Middle East countries. Six Azerbaijani were jailed in 2005 for allegedly plotting terrorist attacks against national and foreign targets on behalf of Al Qaeda. But the government's claims that Baku was a prime target for foreign terrorists should be treated with caution.
Recent trends show that local radical organizations pose more of a danger to Azerbaijan than does al-Qaeda. Yet, the Azerbaijani government is trying to connect the surge of local radicalism with the influence of al-Qaeda. There are several reasons for that. First, the country's regime is trying to show the United States its loyalty concerning the war on terrorism. Thus, the sentencing of al-Qaeda "members" was done in order to demonstrate the activity of Azerbaijan's special services.
Secondly, by exaggerating the danger from al-Qaeda, the Azerbaijani government is trying to portray itself as the one and only pro-democratic force in a region dominated by anti-Western religious extremists. For many years, the current regime in Azerbaijan successfully sold this propaganda, often depicting outbreaks of social unrest as the work of Islamic extremists….
Compared to other Muslim countries such as Jordan, Saudi Arabia, Turkey and Pakistan, al-Qaeda will have a hard time influencing and recruiting local Azerbaijanis for suicide terrorist missions. Furthermore, up to 75-80 percent of the population is Shiite, to which the ideology of al-Qaeda is hostile. Finally, a majority of the mosques, where al-Qaeda usually recruits its followers, are under tight surveillance by the Azerbaijani government.
After gaining independence from Soviet rule in 1991, Azerbaijan fought a war in a disputed breakaway region, the British Broadcasting Corp. reports.
As the Soviet Union collapsed, the predominantly Armenian population of the Nagorno-Karabakh region stated their intention to secede from Azerbaijan. War broke out. Backed by troops and resources from Armenia proper, the Armenians of Karabakh took control of the region and surrounding territory.
In 1994 a ceasefire was signed. About one-seventh of Azerbaijan's territory remains occupied, while 800,000 refugees and internally displaced persons are scattered around the country.

On Life and Living

"Never let the fear of strking out keep you from playing the game."

Sometimes in life the most rewarding opportunities we have are also the most difficult challenges we face. I know that most of you think I'm insane for even coming here to begin with... but you stood by me and supported my choice to leave. Now that I'm here, many of you want me to come home. Understandably, you are worried about my safety. Please let work things out here. I'm not a little girl anymore. I'm smart enough to make decisions for myself... please just trust me one more time. I am working with peace corps to increase my safety and my wellbeing at site. I love you all, and I will keep you posted once I know what's going on.

"World's Oldest Woman" Lives In Azerbaijan

The world’s oldest woman, a 127-year-old living in the former Soviet republic of Azerbaijan, attributes her longevity to a clean and pure environment and the warmth of her family life, Azerbaijani news agency APA has reported.

Bayaz Xalilova has five children, 28 grandchildren and 47 great-grandchildren. Her oldest child is 80, and the youngest is 60. Xalilova has always lived in her native Gadabay District, nearly 400 km west of the capital Baku.

"In my region, the air and water are like cures for illnesses. Had I lived in Baku, or other cities, I would not have not lasted so long," she said in an interview with the agency. Xalilova is also happy with Azerbaijan’s current government. "We had a very difficult life in Soviet times. Today’s government is nice. It cares about the people," she said.

Editor’s Note: Source: Azerbaijani news agency APA, Baku, in Azeri 1201 gmt 26 Sep 07
Reposted from: http://www.eurasianet.org/posts/092707.shtml

I'm FINALLY "Home"

This is the view from my new bedroom window! I'm all moved in and thought you might like to see where I'm staying. I am officially a Peace Corps volunteer now, as I swore in on Thursday last week. I moved to my permanent site on Friday and have been settling in for the last week. Everything is going well here. I like my site, site mates, co-workers and my host organization and family. Everyone here is so nice!! There is plenty for me to see and do here since I’m in a bigger site than most volunteers. So I have been keeping myself busy meeting new people and exploring town. I also now play softball with my site mates since the volunteers here have inter-city tournaments. (I know, me playing sports… scary huh?)
I received mail yesterday for the first time in my new site so I know that the address works properly. It took just under two weeks for me to get mail, as the post office here is an international one. So don’t worry about me getting the letters anymore, I will hopefully be able to send out a few more now that I have a post office that is used to international mailing.
Things are going well at work; I’ve just started so I’m still doing a lot of the initial observations and learning how things here work. I’m fortunate enough to have several co-workers who speak English along with a director that also speaks English.

OK, so since I've now received a billion and one messages asking for items I would like sent I will include a "wants" list since I don't really NEED anything at all. I love letters most of all, so if you want to write me, I think postage is only 90 cents or something like that...

"Wants" (please don't spend a fortune sending me these things, none of them are necessary and I can live perfectly content without all of them, but none the less these are wants... stuff I miss from America or would use here)

-Instant oatmeal (I like plain, peaches & cream, and strawberries & cream, but will eat any flavor) or other dry non-perishable foods (nuts, noodles, instant rice, etc)
-Crystal light packets (the little single serve to go drink mix you add to water or anything like it, generic is fine! I only drink water here)
-Hand sanitizer (if you send please seal in zip lock, as they explode sometimes during flight-- no public bathrooms have soap)
-Books, games, dvd (burned copies don't get stolen in customs), anything entertaining
-Clothes (I'm no longer a 2XL, I'm now just an XL as I've lost 8 kilos since I got here (about 17 lbs) so any T-shirts with American writing or pictures on them (people love that stuff)
-Pocket tissues, toilet paper, or anything of the sort since we have to buy our own, and it makes great packing paper (will roll it up myself so no worries)
-Any instant mixes that you add to water/milk etc (ranch, gravy, Campbell’s soup in a pouch, stroganoff mix, etc)
-White board markers
-Clothes pins (just one or two in a box is fine, as I wash what I wear every day to keep things from piling up)

But most of all, letters are great. I miss you all, I'm doing fine. Work is going all right, and the new site is much cooler in temp than Sumqayit was. I will do my best to keep you all updated as much as possible. I now have 119 pics up on my myspace account for those of you on myspace you are welcome to check them out.

Peace Corps Volunteer To Be!

This week was challenging and bitter sweet. I finally said goodbye to the kids from my english conversation club as we held our finally meeting. (That's them above, posted with their consent and knowledge). We had a tough week with policy and language tests, packing, and preparing to move to our final sites. It's sad knowing I will leave behind all the friends I've already made as I head out to my new town... I will fortunately still have site mates, but sadly one less than what was anticipated. One of my friends chose to go home due to personal reasons this week, and I miss her very much. (I wish you the best of luck wherever life takes you hun!!) I swear in on Wednesday, and will spend the last part of the week traveling to my permanent site.

I have posted my new address on the side of the page, so if you would like to send me letters I would be greatful to have them! I will do my best to keep you all updated as soon as I find a reliable internet cafe at my site. I miss you all, and I'm doing great. Please continue to pray for my safety and success in my site! So the journey begins...

"And now Harry let us persue that flighty temptress, adventure!"