Terrorism: April 17, 2001

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hold back until they wanted to launch a major terrorist operation. 

Terrorists have an easier time operating when there are powerful criminal gangs available to provide weapons, information and transportation services. The Balkans are turning into a terrorists paradise. Albanian gangs in the Balkans have linked up with Colombian gangs to trade drugs (from Colombia) for weapons (from the Balkans.) In addition, the Albanians are offering money laundering in at least one Kosovo based bank. The Albanian gangs have grown rich and powerful as the government in Albania has fallen apart. With Serbs out of Kosovo, and NATO troops reluctant to crack down on criminal activities, the gangs have an easy time operating in Kosovo as well. The communist era armories were looted several years ago and hundreds of thousands of AK-47s and other weapons put into circulation. Criminal gangs have been looking for someone able to buy bulk quantities of these weapons, and have found excellent customers among the Colombian drug gangs and rebel movements. Since the Albanian gangs are already into drug dealing, getting larger quantities of cocaine from Colombia enables

 

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