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Republished from The Bramford Times: GCIS launches ICON ahead of schedule
LOS
ANGELES - Griffith Colson Intelligence Service launched its ICON
System today, weeks ahead of the scheduled launch for late April. ICON is
the acronym for International Communications and Operations Network,
which enables the GCIS IET (Information Extraction Team) to gather,
decipher and distribute real time information on national security,
intelligence and military topics to the public.
The new system,
which is still in Beta testing, requires a code and strict authorization
for access. Authorized agents utilize the network to gather the latest
information from the Central Intelligence Agency, Federal Bureau of
Investigation, Department of Homeland Security and the Canadian Secret
Intelligence Service, with immediate access to live feeds and
information.
The system combines a variety of sources into an
information network hub where GCIS officers are able to monitor the
incoming information from the various intelligence agencies and then
immediately transfer them to the GCIS IntelCenter Briefing Room for the
public.
“ICON saves us about 40 seconds on a 1 minute briefing,
allowing us to go through more information at a faster rate of speed and
have it available to the public within seconds of gathering it”, said
Brian Colson, Deputy Director of Intelligence for GCIS, ‘The system
remains in testing, but applications and new technologies are being
added during the testing period to keep the process in perpetual
motion”.
The ICON System was designed by The Griffith
Corporation, who has partnered with GCIS on a variety of projects.
Griffith Corp maintains a contract to provide technical and
technological development support for the private intelligence firm.
Responsibility
of the new ICON System falls under the authority of Alysyn Bourque,
Deputy Director of Communications for GCIS.
________________________________________
Griffith Corp preparing to unveil ICON in April for GCIS
LOS ANGELES - The Griffith Corporation announced today that it is
preparing to unveil ICON, which stands for International
Communications and Operations Network, a new system for Griffith
Colson Intelligence Service.
ICON, which replaces the company’s
IRENE (International Response and Emergency Network Enforcement) system,
will be integrated into the GCIS communications network.
“ICON
will allow GCIS to track emergency and counter-terrorism news faster and
more accurately”, said a spokesman for Griffith Corp today, “It will
also enable GCIS to broadcast and transmit emergency information to the
public faster than their current capabilities”.
ICON is still in
the testing phase and is expected to be online in April. Griffith Corp,
which is partnered with GCIS, is the technological development arm of
the intelligence/communications firm. GCIS provides communications and
intelligence network support for federal law enforcement, intelligence
and military information.
LOS ANGELES - The head of Griffith Colson Intelligence Service
said this morning that he believes the United States effort to impose
sanctions on Iran will only prolong the inevitable need to use military
force in order to stop that country’s nuclear development program.
In
a Facebook posting this morning, GCIS Director W. Edward Griffith said
he believes the Obama Administration is “exhausting its op 
tions and
using sanctions to buy time”, but added that military force will be
necessary in the long term.
In the post Griffith said:
“Iran
has already stated its clear and present policy of danger when it comes
to their intentions for Israel. Military force will end up the only
option, no matter how delayed, because sanctions will not work. While
there is a moderate block in Iran and the Iranian people could call for
revolution based on those sanctions, it is doubtful that they will be
effective. When Iran brought its nuclear development project above
ground the other day, I looked at someone in the office and said it’s a
damn good thing I’m not in The White House right now. A concise, swift
airstrike on that facility, as well as their research infrastructure
would have been ordered. This administration may well be exhausting its
options before such a move, but rest assured, before this is over, the
use of military action will be used to eradicate the nuclear capability
threat posed by Iran.”
GCIS is a private intelligence and
security firm that monitors global intelligence and security events
around the clock.
Griffith Corp Chief Preparing to Take Network to Next
Level, Two Channels take the Lead
LOS ANGELES — The Griffith Corporation has reason to smile
this morning, as its Griffith Media Center is enjoying a lead with two
of its primary online television channels.
Chairman/CEO Alysyn
Bourque reported this morning that the company’s Homeland TV Network and
Griffith Broadcasting Network has moved far ahead of their two
competitors.
Homeland TV Network (above) has overtaken its rival channel
HSTV (below)
Homeland TV Network
is enjoying a huge lead over rival Homeland Security Television, with
191,120 to the competition’s 42,825 in the numbers race. Homeland TV is
celebrating its third anniversary. Griffith Corp.’s Homeland TV has long
been the company’s crown jewel, with broadcasting focus centered on
military and homeland security programming.
Griffith Broadcasting Network (above) has taken a substantial
lead in art programming, overcoming rival channel Red Espresso (below)
in a commanding takeover in the numbers game
Griffith
Broadcasting Network (GBN), is an arts channel, with 217,255 to
rival Red Espresso’s 39,272. GBN began as a family programming channel
and seven months ago switched to exclusive arts programming. The channel
sky-rocketed in the numbers.
“We have witnessed steady growth
for these channels”, said Bourque this morning, “It is nice to have the
lead in what we love to do”.
Bourque said the company is now
focused on bringing ArtChix TV into the lead. The channel continues to
explore production of original programs and is still trying to define
its place in the network’s family of channels.
Bourque did say
that the network has been ironing out some technical issues with network
provider Livestream. The last 48 hours have been focused on resolving
compatibility issues between the advertising programming and the
exclusive channel stream.
“We’re working closely with Livestream
to determine the best way to resolve these issues”, said Bourque in a
statement this morning, “We are going to have these issues because the
technology is constantly evolving and we need to constantly adapt. But
it is all a part of the process and we are confident that it will be
resolved shortly”.
Bourque said the network ‘is preparing to go
to the next level, with premium HD broadcasting’, but that it must first
resolve the current technical issues in play.
Griffith Corp. is
also in the process of considering a move out of California to one of
three states currently offering broadcasting contracts and incentives to
bring the network to their regions. The company’s recent partnership
with Griffith Colson Intelligence Service has guaranteed a place for the
company in the security broadcasting field. GCISS operates Griffith
Colson Communications, a channel focused exclusively on intelligence and
national security programming. While both firms are independent, GCIS
serves as Griffith Corp.’s primary security unit and partner in homeland
and national security broadcasting.
-Reported by Samireh
Samadi, ArtChix Magazine
She is confident and has come into her own. She is a sexy corporate
chief, elegant and the epitome of style and class. She is a writer,
human rights advocate and Chief Executive Officer of The Griffith
Corporation.
Alysyn Ayrica Bourque has the world at her
fingertips and she intends on seizing it. She has spearheaded the
design and operations of the new Griffith Media Center and remains the
force to reckon with when it comes to the day to day operations of the
company she founded with company Chairman Will Griffith in 2007.
She
is balanced, socially liberal and fiscally conservative. She remains
committed to the company’s vision of “Investing in People” and she is
the closest person to the Chairman. Alysyn Bourque is a mother as well,
and the children she raises with Griffith are their highest priority.
Since
founding Griffith Corp, Alysyn Bourque has learned much. She has
becomed seasoned and she enjoys a new independence. When the company
was launched, Alysyn was in Griffith’s shadow. She was the woman behind
the chief and was one half of the power couple they had become. Her
new-found independence is all her own. She has earned her own place as
CEO and she no longer walks behind Griffith’s shadow. She is her own
person with her own ideas and life all her own. While she shares the
raising of children and corporate responsibilities with Griffith,
Alysyn Ayrica Bourque maintains her own circle of friends, a
relationship of her own and remains committed to writing. But Griffith
Corp. is a priority to her. She has worked hard to build the company
and a media network that will provide a legacy for their children.
Elegant, Alysyn (left) is
enjoying her life
Since the new launch of Griffith Corp’s media center, Alysyn
Bourque talks to ArtChix Magazine editor Abby Stockli about the vision
of the company, about her children and about the “real” Will Griffith.
Here is what she had to say.
Q: You are back at the helm of The Griffith Corporation as Chief Executive Officer. You’re very diverse?
AA:
The one thing I’ve learned over the years is that nothing is truly
impossible. If we can imagine the possibility of something, no matter
how absurd or extreme, then the potential for it must exist on some
level of our awareness. I may not be qualified to fulfill some areas of
life by the standards of much of our current society, but when I think
about the origins of many of our disciplines and culture I remember
that everything had to start somewhere from a basic premise. Success is
a condition of the soul, not of one’s wealth accumulation. Money has
it’s place, but without character and integrity it is nothing more than
“stuff”. Sure it has a purpose, but that purpose is only as good as
that which is dictated by one’s own inner convictions and eternal
perspective.
We revere those in elite positions…the doctors,
scholars, executives, etc…and rightfully so; they’ve worked and studied
hard to become the best at their positions. But the one thing about
this country that is still hopeful is the fact that, relative to our
Constitution, those people don’t dictate the potential in our lives.
There is always opportunity to build from nothing and become greater
than your beginnings, despite formal education. History has proven
this.
Q: Griffith Corp. recently acquired ArtChix Magazine, launched The Bailey Monthly
and added a new online television station to its broadcasting network.
What are some of your other plans to expand the company’s media reach?
AA:
Well, I don’t want to give away all of our secrets (laughs), but we do
have a lot of new ideas being developed for sure. It will TRULY be a
media venture, expanding into every area of life in one way or
another. We’re also in need of a larger staff, so we’re constantly on
the look out for creative and talented minds who are also not afraid to
put themselves out there for the bigger picture.
Q: Will Griffith is Chairman of the Board. You
know him
probably better than anyone. For all of the publicity surrounding his
art, what is the real Will Griffith like. The father, the man?
AA:
My goal from the beginning has been to stress that, despite everything
we’ve heard or said about him, his role as a father is impeccable and
unwavering. Our children not only respect him as a parent, they
absolutely adore him as a person. He, somehow, finds a balance between
being the firm hand of discipline and being considerate and
compassionate with regards to their own unique personalities. He
allows them the room to develop their own perspectives, while teaching
them the concepts of right and wrong as a framework for becoming good
people.
Like so many of us, he had to find his own way in
life. Not having a good father figure to model after, he found people
in his own life that he, innately, knew he needed to be the epitome of
goodness and virtue to look up to. As a result, he was able to overcome
the negative influences and develop context to his understanding of
life. Despite…or maybe BECAUSE of…his stumblings and poor decisions,
he came out with a perspective that allowed him to pass that same
ideology to his children, giving them the tools to become good people
in turn. In essence, he BECAME the model he needed himself.
Will Griffith has become the very father figure to
their children he needed
Q: What kind of a company leader is Will Griffith?
AA:
I learned early on to trust his instincts. I’m a relatively patient
person. One of my personal mottos is “everything in it’s own time”.
Having spent twenty years watching and learning from those around me
who were successful in business before developing my own business, I
took that experience and followed his lead when we began The Griffith
Corporation.
Will’s experience in the political arena gave him
an incredible instinct when it comes to people. I didn’t understand
many of his initial corporate decisions, but I waited and tried to
glean from his leadership. I discovered that many of his ideas were,
surprisingly, light years ahead of what was already being developed. A
few of our ideas were actually “adopted” (I’m trying to be kind!) by
other entrepreneurs with whom we shared them…the original intention
being, of course, to work with them in their implementation. Oh well,
that’s part of the risk.
I have to admit that if either of us
were software programmers, the online development that would have come
out - even two years ago - would have blown away the competition with
it’s ingenuity and foresight. I can tell you that, even now, if we
could find someone who would be willing to invest their time into
developing some of the ideas we have, he or she would become legendary
in the internet broadcasting world.
Chairman Will Griffith (left)
Q: You founded Griffith Corp with Will in 2007. You’ve had
your struggles. How has Will handled the ups and downs of building a
business?
AA: Initially, we had to struggle with “other
quantities” obstructing our growth and perspective. Most of them were
residue from both of our pasts, and, despite the beautiful people who
supported us through it, we had to fight for everything we now have
both personally and financially. We knew where we wanted to go
business-wise, but we eventually came to understand that none of that
could be achieved until there was balance in our personal lives. Once
that was brought into focus everything else began to fall into place.
The
one thing I can tell people - especially couples, as we had been - is
to never lose sight of the fact that supporting one another no matter
what is the most difficult and important action you can take in
building ANYTHING. It’s hard enough dealing with the failures; it’s
worse - and even destructive - to have to struggle with one another’s
disappointed expectations. Don’t let your expectations of success be
the foundation upon which you stabilize your emotions. Expectations
should be realistic. Read the success/failure statistics to build a
realistic understanding of the realities of business.
More importantly, learn to get over yourself.
Q: Where would you like to see the company in five years?
AA:
Given the people we now have as partners and support personnel, I can
honestly say that we have a serious shot at becoming a premiere media
and human rights network. Our primary focus is the well-being of
people. A corporation is only as solid as the people who are building
it, and we’ve learned early on that if we take care of one another
first, the company will grow from that attention to personal growth.
There is no excuse for treating other human beings with anything less
than compassion and dignity.
Q: What do you see as the core vision of The Griffith Corporation.
AA:
To reiterate, it comes down to investing in people. We have always
been human-rights oriented. Even in raising our children, our primary
focus is not religious or academic, but in giving them the tools to
become GOOD PEOPLE. In the same way, our focus, corporately, is to
equip people around us to become the best at what they do. It’s not
about control, it’s about empowerment. We, of course, want to utilize
talent and offer people opportunities to grow financially as we do, but
if that person becomes destructive to the well-being of others they
have no real place in Griffith Corp. The Prime Directive, as it were,
is to care for people. Everything else is negotiable.
Q: How do you think the Obama administration is handling the economy?
AA:
My own personal instinct is to not trust politicians, even if they’re
in the Office of the President. I’m a Constitutionalist by nature of
my own leanings, but thoughtful in my considerations of the many
legalities which derive from the interpretation of it. Though we are
THE United States, we are not A United States. What I mean is we’re so
busy, individually, fighting our Federal government for states rights
that our Constitution guarantees, but we have yet to work together to
truly make a unified stand to the Fed to enforce those rights. We are
united in purpose, but divided in action.
The one thing that
I am disappointed in is the wedge that the mainstream media is allowed
to drive between us as citizens. The disappointment isn’t in the media,
alone, because, as I tell my children, you can’t blame someone else for
the decisions you make.
We, the citizens of this country,
have ALLOWED ourselves to be deceived. We listen to tidbits and form
life-altering perspectives on so very little information. This is
inexcusable, especially in a freedom-oriented country. We have access
to education, we have opportunities to develop our intellect, we have
the promise of a better life if we CHOOSE to claim it. Obstacles are
not barriers, but challenges to our determination to be stronger, more
intelligent persons.
We have forgotten our origins after
only a little more than 200 years. We’ve gone from being a
freedom-minded people to a rights-minded people. We forget that so
much of what we have is because people wanted the “freedom” to make
their own choices without interference. Now we think it’s our “right”
to have everything given to us. It’s not our right to be educated, it’s
our priority - a decision we must make because we wish to grow and take
advantage of these 80+ years of life we are given.
Until we
take responsibility as individuals, the economy will never be stable
enough, we’ll never be making enough money, we’ll never be truly
satisfied…
CEO ALYSYN BOURQUE (right)
Q: You were in-charge of
the design of the new Griffith Media Center. How will this media center
be different than what you had before?
AA: What we’re
doing now is much more integrative and expansive. It’s primary focus is
media, all other areas of the Corporation are located in separate
websites linked through our networks. Eventually, we’ll have everything
connected more efficiently, but for now we have a place to start, to
profile what we’re offering. As well, we have a team that is dedicated
to their expansion and modernity. In time, the technology will change,
newer features will be added, and there will be more opportunities for
our supporters to interact and become a true part of the growth and
excitement of Griffith Media Center, it’s projects and it’s affiliates.
As well, there is a lot of opportunity for other companies to
advertise through us. We have great incentives and ad-placement, which
can be negotiated through our main office or by contacting us at
griffithcenter@gmail.com.
Q: Thank you Alysyn, so much.
AA: Abby, it’s always a delight to spend time with you. Thank you
By Abby Stockli, Editor, ArtChix Magazine
____________________________________
ArtChix Magazine parent Griffith Corp sees immediate first day growth
Griffith Corp. Chairman Will Griffith is more than pleased, says
Brian Colson, his Executive Vice-President and right hand at the
company.
Less than 48 hours after announcing the acquisition of
ArtChix Magazine, The Griffith Corporation peaked the charts today. At
the close of business Thursday, the web headquarters of the company was
off the charts, it’s growth immediate after news that it was preparing
to launch its new online media center.
Today
also witnessed the launch of The Bailey Monthly, a second online
magazine owned by Griffith Corp. TBM Editor Kelly Colson, wife of Brian
Colson, said the January issue was a testing ground for her people to
begin charting its expansion and development.
Company CEO Alysyn
Bourque is working around the clock, spearheading the design of the new
media center. Griffith Media Center is set to be unveiled this week.
Griffith’s
broadcasting channels are also under program expansion, with Homeland
TV expanding its programming by 50% today. Viewership was up as
ArtChixTV was unveiled earlier this morning.
Griffith Corp. also
announced today that the company would begin its long-awaited stock
buy-back program in April, with the network nearly debt free by then.
-By Ann Myers, Staff Desk, ArtChix Magazine
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REPUBLISHED FROM THE BRAMFORD TIMES:
GCIS Chief responds to former UN Ambassador Bolton's remarks to Israel
LOS ANGELES — GCIS Director W. Edward Griffith responded this
morning to former U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations John Bolton’s
remarks warning that Israel has just two choices: a strike aimed at
Iran’s nuclear facilities, or a nuclear Iran.But Griffith
responded by saying that while Bolton’s remarks are accurate and he
supports military force to shut down Iran’s nuclear development, asking
Israel to “go it alone” is unfair.“Look, Iran’s nuclear
objectives are not just a problem for Israel. They present a clear and
present danger to the national security interests of the United States
and our allies”, said Griffith in a statement, “If Mr. Bolton is
suggesting that the burden of this responsibility rests on the shoulders
of Israel alone he is clearly mistaken. The challenges with regard to
Iran must be met face to face with the United States leading the
effort”.The Director of Griffith Colson Intelligence Service
said it is easy to suggest Israel strike Iran’s nuclear facilities from
the sidelines.“The foreign policy of the United States in both
the Bush and Obama Administrations have been and continues to be no to a
nuclear Iran”, said Griffith, “That policy is being ignored by the
Iranian government and we will be forced, sooner or later, to step to
the plate, hand in hand with Israel, to end this threat”.
*Republished from ArtChix Magazine
GCIS Chief goes door to door in Disaster
Preparedness Campaign
02/27/10
LOS ANGELES — As California fell under a low level Tsunami
Warning today, following the earthquake that devastated Chile, the
Director of Griffith Colson Intelligence Service, a security and
intelligence network firm, was out and about in the rain going door to
door and handing out disaster preparedness manuals.
W. Edward
Griffith took to the Los Angeles neighborhoods this morning in a door to
door campaign to bring greater awareness to emergency and disaster
preparedness and gave out copies of ‘It’s A Disaster…And What Are You
Gonna Do
About It?’, which is published and distributed by
FedHealth.
“You never know when disaster is going to strike”,
said the GCIS chief, “But being prepared for any emergency or disaster
is simply common sense”.
Griffith went door to door, telling
residents that the manuals were a service of GCIS and provided by
FedHealth, urging them to go directly to the section on tsunami and
earthquake preparedness.
He added that these books should be made
available as a part of emergency and disaster preparedness programs and
urged local, state and federal governments to add the book to their
services programs.
For more information on ‘It’s A
Disaster’ and how to obtain additional copies of the book CLICK
HERE
-Reported by Samireh Samadi, Editor,
ArtChix Magazine
 -By W.
Edward Griffith, Director
Griffith Colson
Intelligence Service
As
the world seems to be mourning the murder of Hamas commander Mahmoud
al-Mabhouh, I must ask myself why the media, (who, by the way,
conspiracy theorists are always alleging is controlled by Jewish
elitists), has been targeted as the “bad guy” in this case.
First
of all, while it is not the policy of the United States Government to
endorse or condone political assassinations, the United States has two
former presidents, William Jefferson Clinton and George W. Bush that put
a price on the head of Osama bin Laden BEFORE and after the 911 attacks
on the World Trade Centers. So why is the media treating Mahmoud
al-Mabhouh as some kind of Palestinian martyr rather than the terrorist
commander he was?
Whether or not the Mossad was or was not
involved in the assassination of Mahmoud al-Mabhouh is not the real
question here. The real question is whether or not Mahmoud al-Mabhouh
represented an organization that is a threat to Israeli National
Security, as well as to the National Security of the United States.
So
let’s take a look at Hamas, the organization lead (until his death) by
Mahmoud al-Mabhouh.
What
is Hamas?
Hamas is the largest and most influential
Palestinian militant movement. In January 2006, the group won the
Palestinian Authority’s (PA) general legislative elections, defeating
Fatah, the party of the PA’s president, Mahmoud Abbas, and setting the
stage for a power st ruggle. Since attaining power, Hamas has continued
its refusal to recognize the state of Israel, leading to crippling
economic sanctions. Historically, Hamas has sponsored an extensive
social service network. The group has also operated a terrorist wing,
carrying out suicide bombings and attacks using mortars and short-range
rockets. Hamas has launched attacks both in the Palestinian territories
of the West Bank and Gaza Strip, and inside the pre-1967 boundaries of
Israel. In Arabic, the word “hamas” means zeal. But it’s also an Arabic
acronym for “Harakat al-Muqawama al-Islamiya,” or Islamic Resistance
Movement.
What are Hamas’s origins?
Hamas grew
out of the Muslim Brotherhood, a religious and political organization
founded in Egypt with branches throughout the Arab world. Beginning in
the late 1960s, Hamas’s founder and spiritual leader, Sheikh Ahmed
Yassin, preached and did charitable work in the West Bank and Gaza
Strip, both of which were occupied by Israel following the 1967 Six-Day
War. In 1973, Yassin established al-Mujamma’ al-Islami (the Islamic
Center) to coordinate the Muslim Brotherhood’s political activities in
Gaza. Yassin founded Hamas as the Muslim Brotherhood’s local political
arm in December 1987, following the eruption of the first intifada, a
Palestinian uprising against Israeli control of the West Bank and Gaza.
Hamas published its official charter in 1988, moving decidedly away from
the Muslim Brotherhood’s ethos of nonviolence.
The first Hamas 
suicide bombing took place in April 1993. Five months later, Yasir
Arafat, then the leader of the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO),
and Yitzhak Rabin, then-prime minister of Israel, sealed the Oslo
accords—an Israeli-Palestinian peace pact that eventually unraveled.
Rabin was assassinated by an Israeli right-wing fanatic in November
1995. Arafat died in November 2004.
Who
are Hamas’s leaders?
Since its victory in the 2006
Palestinian legislative elections, Hamas has failed to unify around a
coherent program, exacerbating tensions within the Palestinian
Authority. Ismail Haniyeh, the Hamas prime minister and senior Hamas
figure in Gaza, has appeared at odds with Khaled Meshal, Hamas’s overall
leader who lives in Syrian exile. A Backgrounder profiles these and
other Hamas leaders.
Where does Hamas operate?
Crisis
Guide: The Israeli-PalestinianHistorically, Hamas has operated as an
opposition group in Gaza, the West Bank, and inside Israel. Most of the
population of Gaza and the West Bank is officially ruled by the
Palestinian Authority government, so Hamas’ new role as the
legislature’s controlling party has forced the group to reconsider the
function and scope of its operations. For instance, since taking power
in 2006, Hamas leaders have embarked on several diplomatic visits
throughout the region. Early on, some observers hoped that political
legitimacy—and the accountability that comes with it—could wean Hamas
away from violence. But to date, the group has refused to eschew
violence and remains adamant about reversing the decision by its rival
faction, the more secular Fatah movement, to recognize Israel’s right to
exist. In the summer of 2007, Hamas tensions with the Palestinian
President Mahmoud Abbas, a Fatah man, came to a head and Hamas routed
Fatah supporters, killing many and sending others fleeing to the West
Bank. The result was a de facto geographic division of Palestinian-held
territory, with Hamas holding sway in Gaza and Fatah maintaining the
internationally recognized Palestinian Authority government in the West
Bank town of Ramallah. Egyptian efforts to reconcile the two factions
have come to nothing.
Since coming to power in Gaza, rockets
fired from the Hamas enclave have consistently landed on Israeli cities
near the border, sometimes producing casualties. Israel consistently
alleged that Iranian and other weapons were being smuggled into Gaza
through a series of tunnels, and with Egypt maintained tight control on
the enclaves borders. International aid agencies say this led to severe
shortages. A six-month ceasefire calmed things somewhat in 2008, but
toward the end of the year, Hamas called off the truce and resumed
firing rockets into Israel. The response was an air assault in late
December and, in the first week of 2009, a full blown Israeli invasion
of the territory.
In what does Hamas believe and what are
its goals?
Hamas combines Palestinian nationalism with
Islamic fundamentalism. Its founding charter commits the group to the
destruction of Israel, the replacement of the PA with an Islamist state
on the West Bank and Gaza, and to raising “the banner of Allah over
every inch of Palestine.” Its leaders have called suicide attacks the
“F-16” of the Palestinian people. In July 2009, Khaled Meshaal said
Hamas was willing to cooperate with the United States (WSJ) on promoting
a resolution to the Arab-Israeli conflict. Hamas, he said, would accept
a Palestinian state based on 1967 borders provided Palestinian refugees
be allowed to return to Israel and East Jerusalem be recognized as the
Palestinian capital. The proposal fell short of recognizing the state of
Israel, a necessary step for Hamas to be included in peace talks.
Is
Hamas only a terrorist group?
No. In addition to its
military wing, the so-called Izz al-Din al-Qassam Brigade, Hamas devotes
much of its estimated $70-million annual budget to an extensive social
services network. Indeed, the extensive social and political work done
by Hamas - and its reputation among Palestinians as averse to corruption
- partly explain its defeat of the Fatah old guard in the 2006
legislative vote. Hamas funds schools, orphanages, mosques, healthcare
clinics, soup kitchens, and sports leagues. “Approximately 90 percent of
its work is in social, welfare, cultural, and educational activities,”
writes the Israeli scholar Reuven Paz. The Palestinian Authority often
fails to provide such services, and Hamas’s efforts in this area—as well
as a reputation for honesty, in contrast to the many Fatah officials
accused of corruption—help to explain the broad popularity it summoned
to defeat Fatah in the PA’s recent elections.
How big is
Hamas?
Hamas’s military wing is believed to have more than
one thousand active members and thousands of supporters and
sympathizers. On March 22, 2004, more than two hundred thousand
Palestinians are estimated to have marched in Yassin’s funeral. On April
18, 2004, a similar number publicly mourned the death of Rantisi.
Where
does Hamas’s money come from?
Since its electoral victory to
lead the PA, Hamas has had public funds at its disposal, though it does
not have access to the foreign-aid dollars traditionally provided by
the United States and European Union to the PA. Historically, much of
Hamas’s funding came from Palestinian expatriates and private donors in
Saudi Arabia and other oil-rich Persian Gulf states. Iran also provides
significant support, which some diplomats say could amount to $20
million to $30 million per year. In addition, some Muslim charities in
the United States, Canada, and Western Europe funnel money into
Hamas-backed social service groups. In December 2001, the Bush
administration seized the assets of the Holy Land Foundation, the
largest Muslim charity in the United States, on suspicions it was
funding Hamas.
What attacks is Hamas responsible for?
Hamas is
believed to have killed more than five hundred people in more than 350
separate terrorist attacks since 1993. Not all Hamas’s attacks have been
carried out by suicide bombers. The group has also accepted
responsibility for assaults using mortars, short-range rockets, and
small arms fire. In 1996, Hamas bombings played an important role in
undermining the election hopes of Labor Party leader Shimon Peres, who
represented the succession to assassinated Oslo Accords signatory,
Yitzhak Rabin. (Likud’s Benjamin Netanyahu, who ran against the accords,
won instead). Between 2001 and 2003, in particular, Hamas and its
comrades of Palestinian Islamic Jihad carried out dozens of such
attacks, ultimately leading Israel to begin construction of a barrier
between itself and Palestinian regions.
How does
Hamas recruit and train suicide bombers?
The organization
generally targets deeply religious young men—although some bombers have
been older. The recruits do not fit the usual psychological profile of
suicidal people, who are often desperate or clinically depressed. Hamas
bombers often hold paying jobs, even in poverty-stricken Gaza. What they
have in common, studies say, is an intense hatred of Israel. After a
bombing, Hamas gives the family of the suicide bomber between three
thousand dollars and five thousand dollars and assures them their son
died a martyr in holy jihad.
The recruits undergo intense
religious indoctrination, attend lectures, and undertake long fasts. The
week before the bombing, the volunteers are watched closely by two
Hamas activists for any signs of wavering, according to Nasra Hassan,
writing in the New Yorker. Shortly before the “sacred explosion,” as
Hamas calls it, the bomber records a video testament. To draw
inspiration, he repeatedly watches his video and those made by his
predecessors and then sets off for his would-be martyrdom after
performing a ritual ablution and donning clean clothes. Hamas clerics
assure the bombers their deaths will be painless and that dozens of
virgins await them in paradise. The average bombing costs about $150.
Is
Hamas popular among Palestinians?
According to Palestinian
pollster Khalil Shikaki, in late 2006 Hamas still enjoyed public
backing, though most Palestinians also wanted to see a negotiated
settlement with Israel. According to Lt. Gen. Keith Dayton, the U.S.
security coordinator for Israel and the Palestinian Territories, brutal
internal clashes in Gaza have caused Hamas to lose some goodwill among
Palestinians. In fact, the group has a history of fluctuating approval:
Following the collapse of the peace process in the late 1990s, Hamas’
popularity rose as Arafat’s fell. In the spring of 2002, during a period
of intensified armed conflict between Israeli security forces and Hamas
militants, polls showed that Arafat’s Fatah faction of the PLO and the
Islamists each commanded support from roughly 30 percent of Palestinians
in the West Bank and Gaza (the remaining Palestinians were either
independent, undecided, or supported other factions). But trust in Hamas
reportedly dropped in 2004. In a poll conducted by the Jerusalem Media
and Communication Center (JMCC) after Arafat’s death, 18.6 percent of
Palestinians named Hamas as the Palestinian faction they most trusted,
down from 23 percent a year earlier. Hamas experienced a short-lived
spike in popularity after the Israeli withdrawal from Gaza in August
2005; after a rocket explosion at a Hamas rally September 23, 2005,
 killed fifteen people, Hamas blamed Israel and launched rocket attacks
against it. Israel retaliated with punitive air strikes, which
Palestinians blamed Hamas for provoking. The explosion was revealed to
be an accident. In late 2008 and early 2009, during another violent
flare up which resulted in Israeli land raids into the Gaza Strip,
several news agencies reported that Hamas’ popularity had stayed
constant or even increased. By the end of June, public support for Hamas
in the West Bank and Gaza Strip fell again to 18.8 percent, according
to recent JMCC polls.
Has Hamas
always participated in the Palestinian electoral process?
No.
Hamas boycotted the January 2005 PA presidential elections. But even
prior to its 2006 victory in the PA’s legislative elections, the group
had made strong showings in municipal elections, especially in Gaza. In
December 2004 West Bank local elections, Fatah won 135 seats and Hamas
won seventy-five. In Gaza, where Hamas is based, it won seventy-seven
out of 118 seats in ten council elections held in January 2005. Hamas
appeared to have lost its political momentum in a September 2005 round
of local elections in the West Bank: Fatah, benefiting from the Israeli
withdrawal, took 54 percent of the vote over Hamas’ 26 percent.
So there
you have it. As the United States continues to fight a global war on
terror, which Israel has been doing on a daily basis since their
founding (and throughout their history), how can we mourn the death of a
man who represented everything our nation and our ally of Israel have
been fighting against? Have we forgotten the evils perpetrated by Hamas
already? Do their political gestures and warm embraces from a former
American president (Jimmy Carter) erase the memory of the terrorism
perpetrated by Hamas? They continue their policy  of terror. While Jimmy
carter may be trying his best to look past the terrorism to the humanity
of these people, I would suggest to the former President that his
efforts are without hope. Any terrorist organization or those who belong
to such an organization have forfeited their humanity.
We are a
nation of laws. In some instances, as we have found in our own foreign
policy, those laws do not apply to terrorists. As the Obama
Administration has taken us backward by treating terrorism cases as law
enforcement matters, rather than a war, and prosecuting that war under
the rules of a new kind of warfare that the terrorists themselves
defined on September 11, 2001, I must then stand in opposition to both
the approach and the policy. I must also state quite clearly that the
assassination of Mahmoud al-Mabhouh was unfortunate for his family and
his fellow terrorists, but nevertheless an event in a long string of
events that Hamas put into play through their own deliberate and blatant
acts of terror.
Violence will foster violence. This is certain.
For generations to come, Israelis and Palestinians have a new reason to
be at war. Young Palestinians will be taught that the Israeli’s killed
their leader, without being taught why. It doesn’t matter whether or not
Israel actually murdered Mahmoud al-Mabhouh, because Hamas will make it
“a fact” among their own people.
For my part, I am only one
American with one opinion. I believe that the assassination of Mahmoud
al-Mabhouh was done in an effort to combat terrorism and to send a clear
message to terrorists. We will hunt you. We will find you and you will
be brought to justice. That has been the policy of every president since
Ronald Reagan. Whether or not this was justice will be debated around
the world. According to the laws of Moses so etched upon the walls of
Jewish faith, theology and politics, an eye for an eye is the best
definition that can be given to describe this unfortunate event. How
many Israeli’s have died at the blood-stained hands of Hamas? How many
people around the world, from a variety of countries, have fallen victim
to the terrorist ideology of these extremists? While that number can
only be estimated, as in a previous paragraph, we can look to the
organization’s own charter to see what their ultimate goals are
regarding Israel:
Article 7 of the Hamas Covenant
provides the following quotation, attributed to Mohammed: “The Day
of Judgement will not come about until Moslems fight the Jews (killing
the Jews), when the Jew will hide behind stones and trees. The stones
and trees will say O Moslems, O Abdulla, there is a Jew behind me, come
and kill him. Only the Gharkad tree, (evidently a certain kind of tree)
would not do that because it is one of the trees of the Jews.”
There
is no conclusive evidence that the Mossad is responsible for this
assassination. Whether it is probable is up to conjecture. What I do
know is that while I believe in the human dignity of every individual,
and the protection of their fundamental human rights, I steadfastly
believe that any individual who commits an act of terror forfeits his
human rights and becomes something else entirely. Something evil.
Something bestial. Something that must be put in check for the peace and
dignity of society.
Tonight, Israel may not be safer or more
secure with the death of Mahmoud al-Mabhouh, but we remain with a
fundamental question. Knowing what we know about Hamas, their leaders
and their goals, wasn’t this justified homocide?
ABOUT OUR CONTRIBUTOR:
W. Edward Griffith, known to his friends and associates as
“Will”, is Director of Griffith Colson Intelligence Service
. He is a
member of the International Counter-Terrorism Officers Association,
British Bodyguard Association, and the National Military Intelligence
Association. He also held membership in the International
Bar
Association, where he was a member of the IBA War Crimes Committee from
2009-2010. Mr. Griffith also served as Chairman of The Griffith
Corporation from 2007 to 2010, where he founded Griffith Corporation
Security Service and the Homeland TV Network. He resides in Los Angeles
with his family, where he raises two children with Alysyn.
GRIFFITH CORP. CHIEF ALYSYN BOURQUE ANNOUNCES 2010 HOMELAND TV AWARD WINNERS
LOS ANGELES — Griffith Corp. Chairman and CEO Alysyn Bourque announced the 2009-2010 Homeland TV Award winners today, saying that she was proud of the service and leadership of the recipients in their respective venues.
“Our recipients, like last year, are just outstanding, inspiration and dedicated to this country and our security”, said Bourque, “The Homeland TV Awards is our small way of saying thank you to them and showing our appreciation for everything they do”.
The 2010 Homeland TV Award Winners are:
Bill & Janet Liebsch (FedHealth.net) for Emergency & Disaster Preparedness
Gary Aminoff (Aminoff & Com.) for Security in Business
Steven Emerson (Investigative Project on Terrorism) for Counter-Terrorism Excellence
Don Zinn and WATCHDOGS for Security & Excellence in Social Networking
Each recipient will receive a Certificate and the Homeland TV Award this Summer.
The recipients will also be featured in a tribute video that will begin airing daily on Homeland TV and available on demand at Homeland TV Network.
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