There are exaggerations about the level of jihadists crossing the border. Yet there's a history of Islamic terrorist groups in Latin America that can't be ignored.
A good catch, and some refreshingly rational discussion of one of the MagaFudds' favorite scary tales.
The alleged "links" between these groups and the cartels are pretty much like all "links" between disparate groups in the criminal underworld; usually temporary and always transactional, "You need a thing? I know a guy..." kind of stuff. The egos and paranoias of various criminal-group leaderships would foreclose any deeper connections than that, and the lawmen know it. But the prospect of such multi-national "Bond Villain" alliances keeps the "national security" money flowing; and legislative bodies not too tight on the accounting.
Thanks much there David. I think at a high level a cartel would calculate it's not worth it. But human smugglers will take money from whoever, and like in the Zetas case, they dont care who they are buying cocaine from. Yes, I like the Harari quote. All best there friend.
Great reporting as always Ioan. Reminds me a little bit about the plot of “Sicario: Day of the Soldado” where politicians use a terrorist attack for political purposes and blame a lax border when in fact the terrorists were home grown. I think the one thing that can be improved is better data system coordination so people that should be detained don’t fall through the cracks and are inadvertently released.
Yeah good point on letting people slip through the crack. I think Sicario was a movie with great action sequences but dubious writing. Best Mr Bobby X.
You have entered into the propaganda shit show we are subject to daily justifying whatever actions the US government chooses to promote. Of course there are thousands of Hamas and Hezbollah terrorists entering the US via the southern border. How else can we justify the support for Israel hoping to send billions more to the country and even troops and military support and support the extermination of Gaza and Hamas. Do not forget the huge numbers of Chinese Communist soldiers that are flooding our border which is just another instance of the China war propaganda coming from our Department of Defense and their leeches who suck on the profits from any war and the pronouncements of the need for readiness against these highly inflated threats. Trying to determine the truth of this type of propaganda is like trying to keep shit from a toilet. Damn near impossible.
The interesting and almost silent discussion is the connection of Jihadi groups and so-called terrorist groups like Hamas and Hezbollah and the drug trade. I dug out the old report from Michael Braun. then assistant administrator and head of operations of DEA in 2008, reporting their concerns about a new connection between cartels and Islamic groups and focused on the Hamas and Hezbollah drug dealings in the " tri-border area in Latin America, where the borders of Brazil, Argentina, and Paraguay join". Syria is really involved in the manufacturing of the "drug of Jihad" captagon which is an enhanced version of fenethylline which ends up being a very strong version of amphetamine. This has spread throughout the Middle East and possibly in South America. The Jihadi's at the border just maybe another drug dealing group to destroy Americans with their own vices.
Hey there Tom. Thanks for the insights. Yes, that's interesting going back to Michael Braun there and that connection with Hezbollah dealing. I guess if religion is the opium of the people then Jihad yes is the hardcore opioid. All best there.
This is excellent work. Your Substack is as good as your books, which is saying a great deal.
Two observations on the article.
The first is having worked as a journalist in the Middle East - Iraq, Turkey, Palestine - is that being a "Hezbollah sympathizer" is about as common as being a Baathist in Iraq or a Republican in the US. It does not indicate any particular terrorist leaning. This is not to downplay the rampant corruption in Lebanese or Iraqi, or American, politics. But it is partly due to the Hezbollah NOT engaging in widespread reprisals against the Lebanese Christian militias when they had the chance.
All this to say, that you get some poor sun-drenched migrant who has paid some character to smuggle him across the border and instead he lands in a dark prison cell. He might very well say the truth and admit to 'a sympathy for Hezbollah'. In the same way an American might if he were in the say position in an Iranian prison cell.
The second observation is the utter shamelessness of some law enforcement officials in trying to raise money by using the latest buzzwords and fashions in copland in their fund raising efforts. Something similar occurred in the fight against match-fixing. Various agencies would come up with the idea that sports corruption was linked to terrorist organizations. Presumably, they would get more money that way. My response? The 'Name One Test'. Challenge the officials to actually name a specific, verified example of a terrorist group using match-fixing to fund their activities. It stopped the rot.
Thank you again for all your work. It is a treat to read it.
Hi there Declan - Thanks so much for reading and this is excellent insight. A good point I hadn't considered about how big Hezbollah is in southern Lebanon. And also like you say over zealous interrogators can always find something. Still, some of the cases look very solid like the explosives found in Mexico City. Great to hear your voice here and keep in touch friend. Best, Ioan
Dear Ioan, I hesitate to mention this to an expert like yourself but just posted my interview with one of the US agents responsible for bringing down the Colombian Super-Cartel in 2009-2013. He had some very interesting things to say about the trans-shipment of hundreds-of-millions-of-dollars in cash and the modus operandi of the group - completely under the radar.
A good catch, and some refreshingly rational discussion of one of the MagaFudds' favorite scary tales.
The alleged "links" between these groups and the cartels are pretty much like all "links" between disparate groups in the criminal underworld; usually temporary and always transactional, "You need a thing? I know a guy..." kind of stuff. The egos and paranoias of various criminal-group leaderships would foreclose any deeper connections than that, and the lawmen know it. But the prospect of such multi-national "Bond Villain" alliances keeps the "national security" money flowing; and legislative bodies not too tight on the accounting.
Thanks there Shaggy, and always good to hear your voice. I should use that "refreshingly rational" as an advert for the Stack! Best friend.
Great article.
The Cartels need a profit model.
Is it worth the trouble ?
The last paragraph reminds me of a good book
Terrorism Works
By Alan Dershowitz
Thanks much there David. I think at a high level a cartel would calculate it's not worth it. But human smugglers will take money from whoever, and like in the Zetas case, they dont care who they are buying cocaine from. Yes, I like the Harari quote. All best there friend.
Great reporting as always Ioan. Reminds me a little bit about the plot of “Sicario: Day of the Soldado” where politicians use a terrorist attack for political purposes and blame a lax border when in fact the terrorists were home grown. I think the one thing that can be improved is better data system coordination so people that should be detained don’t fall through the cracks and are inadvertently released.
Yeah good point on letting people slip through the crack. I think Sicario was a movie with great action sequences but dubious writing. Best Mr Bobby X.
You have entered into the propaganda shit show we are subject to daily justifying whatever actions the US government chooses to promote. Of course there are thousands of Hamas and Hezbollah terrorists entering the US via the southern border. How else can we justify the support for Israel hoping to send billions more to the country and even troops and military support and support the extermination of Gaza and Hamas. Do not forget the huge numbers of Chinese Communist soldiers that are flooding our border which is just another instance of the China war propaganda coming from our Department of Defense and their leeches who suck on the profits from any war and the pronouncements of the need for readiness against these highly inflated threats. Trying to determine the truth of this type of propaganda is like trying to keep shit from a toilet. Damn near impossible.
The interesting and almost silent discussion is the connection of Jihadi groups and so-called terrorist groups like Hamas and Hezbollah and the drug trade. I dug out the old report from Michael Braun. then assistant administrator and head of operations of DEA in 2008, reporting their concerns about a new connection between cartels and Islamic groups and focused on the Hamas and Hezbollah drug dealings in the " tri-border area in Latin America, where the borders of Brazil, Argentina, and Paraguay join". Syria is really involved in the manufacturing of the "drug of Jihad" captagon which is an enhanced version of fenethylline which ends up being a very strong version of amphetamine. This has spread throughout the Middle East and possibly in South America. The Jihadi's at the border just maybe another drug dealing group to destroy Americans with their own vices.
Hey there Tom. Thanks for the insights. Yes, that's interesting going back to Michael Braun there and that connection with Hezbollah dealing. I guess if religion is the opium of the people then Jihad yes is the hardcore opioid. All best there.
Dear Mr. Grillo,
This is excellent work. Your Substack is as good as your books, which is saying a great deal.
Two observations on the article.
The first is having worked as a journalist in the Middle East - Iraq, Turkey, Palestine - is that being a "Hezbollah sympathizer" is about as common as being a Baathist in Iraq or a Republican in the US. It does not indicate any particular terrorist leaning. This is not to downplay the rampant corruption in Lebanese or Iraqi, or American, politics. But it is partly due to the Hezbollah NOT engaging in widespread reprisals against the Lebanese Christian militias when they had the chance.
All this to say, that you get some poor sun-drenched migrant who has paid some character to smuggle him across the border and instead he lands in a dark prison cell. He might very well say the truth and admit to 'a sympathy for Hezbollah'. In the same way an American might if he were in the say position in an Iranian prison cell.
The second observation is the utter shamelessness of some law enforcement officials in trying to raise money by using the latest buzzwords and fashions in copland in their fund raising efforts. Something similar occurred in the fight against match-fixing. Various agencies would come up with the idea that sports corruption was linked to terrorist organizations. Presumably, they would get more money that way. My response? The 'Name One Test'. Challenge the officials to actually name a specific, verified example of a terrorist group using match-fixing to fund their activities. It stopped the rot.
Thank you again for all your work. It is a treat to read it.
Declan Hill
Hi there Declan - Thanks so much for reading and this is excellent insight. A good point I hadn't considered about how big Hezbollah is in southern Lebanon. And also like you say over zealous interrogators can always find something. Still, some of the cases look very solid like the explosives found in Mexico City. Great to hear your voice here and keep in touch friend. Best, Ioan
Dear Ioan, I hesitate to mention this to an expert like yourself but just posted my interview with one of the US agents responsible for bringing down the Colombian Super-Cartel in 2009-2013. He had some very interesting things to say about the trans-shipment of hundreds-of-millions-of-dollars in cash and the modus operandi of the group - completely under the radar.
https://www.crimewavespodcast.com/home/the-ghost-army-the-inside-story-of-the-super-cartel
Cheers, Declan
Hi Declan. Thanks much for sending. I'll check it out and all best there friend. Cheer back, Ioan