Intelligence: The Mythical Military Sleeper Cells

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March 8, 2006: Although for some time now there's been concern about Islamist terrorists secretly enlisting in the U.S. Armed Forces, no evidence has turned up. Apparently a considerable effort was put into determining if there were any al Qaeda "sleepers" in the ranks. Of late, however, rumors are suggesting that a couple may have made it in by pretending to be Christians from Islamic countries. Frankly, this doesn't sound very convincing, since the infiltrators would have to undergo a lot of religious "training" to make the deception credible. But one never knows, and these suspicions are keeping a lot of Department of Defense intelligence personnel gainfully employed. If the suspicions are true, it could also backfire on the Islamists, if their guy decides his "bogus" faith has some attractions. In reality, the men, and some women, from Islamic countries who have joined the American armed forces have been eager to show their patriotism, which is a pattern that goes back generations.

 

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