Counter-Terrorism: What Connects Trinidad & Tobago and Portugal to Iran?

We are far from ending the War on Terror. As the Global Jihad's deadline for conquering the world nears, we can expect Islamic Terrorist Groups to become chameleons, to change their tactics and to adapt to the new Security environment. If we are serious about not letting these criminals win, there are 3 countries that need to be followed closely: Trinidad and Tobago, Portugal and Iran.

Trinidad and Tobago

This country, the only one in our hemisphere to have suffered an Islamic insurrection in 1990, risks becoming, according to a colleague, another IS/AQ safe haven due to the following characteristics:

• An increase in Syrian/Lebanese citizens
• An increase in Syrian/Lebanese businesses
• An increase in the number of refugees stemming from Syria
• The biggest IS recruitment hub in the Western Hemisphere (+400)

Trinidad and Tobago is trying to counter any Islamist activity, however Islamic lobbying groups are very strong there and their influence in the political sphere is extraordinary (ex: it is said that several politicians are in the JAM's and in the Islamic Front's carnets), so much so that when the Attorney General (AG) – Faris al-Rawi – announced that he would propose amendments to the Anti-Terrorism Act  (Ref: to limit the travel of local Muslims to countries deemed “terror states”) MOTT (Muslims of Trinidad and Tobago) warned the AG that he was treading on dangerous ground. A veiled menace, I'd say.

Rumour has it that the current Trini government is under the control of the Syrian/Lebanese community – does it ring a bell? The same is said of Angola and Mozambique – which makes it harder to counter one of the main global plagues of the 21st century.

With JAM (Jamaat al-Muslimeen) and the Islamic Front on one side and Shiite groups on the other, converting young black (and mulatto) Christians, recruiting them and manipulating politics at their will – by placing cash on the table; it can be said that T&T incurs the risk of being swallowed by Islamists. Then what will this mean for the US and Latin America (a region already in peril)?

Portugal

The word in the streets is that the funds invested by Angolan elites - in the Portuguese economy – stem from terror groups (both Sunni and Shiite). As we have already discussed, through Angola the Lebanese/Syrians get Portuguese residence permits and nationalities – which can be used to reach any place within the European Union.

Portugal is being used as both a Gate and a Laundry Mat – as evidenced by the recent Report  (in Portuguese) on the Espírito Santo Bank (that laundered funds for the Angolan elite [and others] in Dubai and elsewhere) – and with the increase of Lebanese nationals in its territory, if nothing is done now, it will be only a question of time before Lusitania becomes a converting and recruiting centre (of young African males [of all skin shades] in a first stage). Until recently, Portugal had 3 Mosques (two in Lisbon and one in Porto): now it has around 10 mosques, 6 of which are in the capital alone. Who funded these mosques? How many more will be funded? Which politicians allowed for this proliferation and in exchange for what?

This situation must not continue, otherwise Portugal will become a security threat to neighbouring Spain – a country that has so far successfully countered terror attacks – to France (that has enough problems as it is) and to the UK (since they are the oldest European alliance). If the present government will not solve the problem, if President Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa will not address the issue (and will continue to promote dangerous immigration policies), then who will “save” Portugal?

Is Iran following the Saudi Example?

The Trini problem started when Saudi Arabia decided to pay scholarships to students, who'd go to study in the Saudi Kingdom only to return radicalised, and send Imams to preach in the Islands – the same pattern was found in Nigeria, Somalia and other African countries; the same pattern of funding mosques and sending Imams to preach was also found in many European countries (ex: Belgium, Holland, France). Could Iran be doing the same now?

We shall export our revolution to the whole world. Until the cry 'There is no god but Allah' resounds over the whole world, there will be struggle.
Establishing the Islamic state world-wide belong to the great goals of the revolution. -  Ayatollah Khomeini

The Lebanese/Iranians started spreading their operations to Africa, since the 1980's, to France; then they moved on to Latin America, then to the Caribbean, and now Portugal. The reality on the ground is evidence enough that Khomeini's Plan is speeding up...

(This piece was written in cooperation with Cristina C. Giancchini)

[The views expressed in this publication are solely those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the views of Dissecting Society]