The American Crisis
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia The American Crisis
The first page of the original printing of the first volume
Author(s) Thomas Paine
Language English
Publication date 1776 – 1783
The American Crisis was a series of pamphlets published from 1776 to 1783 during the American Revolution by 18th century Enlightenment philosopher and author Thomas Paine. The first volume begins with the famous words "These are the times that try men's souls". There were sixteen pamphlets in total together often known as "The American Crisis" or simply "The Crisis". Thirteen numbered pamphlets were published between 1776-1777 with three additional pamphlets released between 1777-1783.[1] The writings were contemporaneous with the early parts of the American Revolution, during the times that colonists needed inspiring.
They were written in a language the common man could manage and are indicative of Paine's liberal philosophies. Paine signed them with one of his many pseudonyms "Common Sense". The writings bolstered the morale of the American colonists, appealed to the English people's consideration of the war with America, clarified the issues at stake in the war and denounced the advocates of a negotiated peace.Contents [hide]
1 Contents and Themes
2 See also
3 References
4 External links
[edit]
Contents and Themes
The first of the pamphlets was released during a time when the Revolution was still viewed as an unsteady prospect. Its opening sentence was adopted as the watchword of the movement to Trenton. The famous opening lines are:[2]
These are the times that try men's souls: The summer soldier and the sunshine patriot will, in this crisis, shrink from the service of his country; but he that stands by it now, deserves the love and thanks of man and woman.
The pamphlet, read aloud to the Continental army on December 23, 1776, three days before the Battle of Trenton, attempted to bolster morale and resistance among patriots, as well as shame neutrals and loyalists toward the cause:
Tyranny, like hell, is not easily conquered; yet we have this consolation with us, that the harder the conflict, the more glorious the triumph.
Along with the patriotic nature of The American Crisis, it displayed Paine's strong Deist beliefs, inciting the laity with suggestions that the British are trying to assume powers that only God should have. Paine sees the British political and military maneuvers in America as "impious; for so unlimited a power can belong only to God." Paine states that he believes God supports the American cause, "that God Almighty will not give up a people to military destruction, or leave them unsupportedly to perish, who have so earnestly and so repeatedly sought to avoid the calamities of war, by every decent method which wisdom could invent".
Paine takes great lengths to state that Americans do not lack force, but "a proper application of that force" - implying throughout that an extended war can only lead to defeat unless a stable army was composed not of militia but of trained professionals. But Paine maintains a positive view overall, hoping that this American crisis can be quickly resolved; "for though the flame of liberty may sometimes cease to shine, the coal can never expire."[3]
Monday, October 10, 2011
The Secret Garden By Frances Hudgson Burnett
Sumber: The Secret Garden By Frances Hudgson Burnett
The secret Garden adalah salah satu novel anak terbaik sepanjang masa. Itu versi Qanita sang penerbit. Tapi kayaknya benar juga setelah melihat di Goodreads buku ini sudah berkali-kali dicetak. Setelah membacanya sepintas mengingatkanku pada komik zaman SMP yang pernah aku baca dengan judul yang sama sebelumnya.
Buku ini bercerita persahabatan yang unik dari ketiga orang anak yaitu Mery (10 tahun), Dickon (12 tahun) dan Colin (10 tahun).
Mery adalah seorang anak yang awalnya sangat keras kepala, egois dan manja karena dibesarkan oleh ayah yang memberikan segalanya tampa adanya kasih sayang yang sebenarnya dari orang tua. Mama Mery adalah seorang mama yang tidak mengharapkannya lahir karena Mary terlahir sebagai anak cewek.
Dickon mengclaim dirinya bisa berbicara dengan hewan dan tumbuhan.
Cover Versi Indonesia
Dickon merupakan adik dari Martha pengasuh Mary di Yorkshire. Dickonlah yang banyak mempengaruhi Mary dan Colin menjadi anak yang lebih manis. Dengan seruling kecilnya, binatang-binatang di padang kerangas tunduk dan jinak kepadanya.
Colin adalah anak dari Paman Mery Mr Craven. Ibu Colin meninggal ketika melahirnya, sehingga ayahnya membencinya dan membiarkan Colin tumbuh tampa mendapatkan perhatian dari Mr Craven. Menurut gosip yang beredar di Yorkshire, Mr Craven adalah seorang laki-laki bungkuk yang menyeramkan.
Ketika anak ini dipersatukan dalam the secret garden. Taman yang sudah 10 tahun tidak dipelihara bahkan sengaja tidak diurus oleh pemiliknya karena ada kenangan pahit di balik itu semua. Tampa sengaja Mery mendapatkan kunci the secret garden yang telah dikubur oleh pemiliknya di dalam tanah karena benar-benar ingin ‘mengingkirkan’ the secret garden
The secret garden benar2 membutuhkan imajinasi.Digambarkan sebagai taman yang sangat indah setelah ditanami lagi oleh ketiga anak ini dengan bantun tukang kebun Ben Weatherstaff. Peristiwa demi peristiwa mereka lewati seperti saat mereka melihat pucuk hijau muncul di tanah, mawar sudah mulai menjalar di dinding, dan burung robin telah berkembangbiak.
Buku ini membawa kita kepada keindahan masa kecil yang indah dan bahagia. Sangat indah apabila membayangkan the secret garden benar2 ada.
The secret Garden adalah salah satu novel anak terbaik sepanjang masa. Itu versi Qanita sang penerbit. Tapi kayaknya benar juga setelah melihat di Goodreads buku ini sudah berkali-kali dicetak. Setelah membacanya sepintas mengingatkanku pada komik zaman SMP yang pernah aku baca dengan judul yang sama sebelumnya.
Buku ini bercerita persahabatan yang unik dari ketiga orang anak yaitu Mery (10 tahun), Dickon (12 tahun) dan Colin (10 tahun).
Mery adalah seorang anak yang awalnya sangat keras kepala, egois dan manja karena dibesarkan oleh ayah yang memberikan segalanya tampa adanya kasih sayang yang sebenarnya dari orang tua. Mama Mery adalah seorang mama yang tidak mengharapkannya lahir karena Mary terlahir sebagai anak cewek.
Dickon mengclaim dirinya bisa berbicara dengan hewan dan tumbuhan.
Cover Versi Indonesia
Dickon merupakan adik dari Martha pengasuh Mary di Yorkshire. Dickonlah yang banyak mempengaruhi Mary dan Colin menjadi anak yang lebih manis. Dengan seruling kecilnya, binatang-binatang di padang kerangas tunduk dan jinak kepadanya.
Colin adalah anak dari Paman Mery Mr Craven. Ibu Colin meninggal ketika melahirnya, sehingga ayahnya membencinya dan membiarkan Colin tumbuh tampa mendapatkan perhatian dari Mr Craven. Menurut gosip yang beredar di Yorkshire, Mr Craven adalah seorang laki-laki bungkuk yang menyeramkan.
Ketika anak ini dipersatukan dalam the secret garden. Taman yang sudah 10 tahun tidak dipelihara bahkan sengaja tidak diurus oleh pemiliknya karena ada kenangan pahit di balik itu semua. Tampa sengaja Mery mendapatkan kunci the secret garden yang telah dikubur oleh pemiliknya di dalam tanah karena benar-benar ingin ‘mengingkirkan’ the secret garden
The secret garden benar2 membutuhkan imajinasi.Digambarkan sebagai taman yang sangat indah setelah ditanami lagi oleh ketiga anak ini dengan bantun tukang kebun Ben Weatherstaff. Peristiwa demi peristiwa mereka lewati seperti saat mereka melihat pucuk hijau muncul di tanah, mawar sudah mulai menjalar di dinding, dan burung robin telah berkembangbiak.
Buku ini membawa kita kepada keindahan masa kecil yang indah dan bahagia. Sangat indah apabila membayangkan the secret garden benar2 ada.
Pendiri Apple Steve Jobs Meninggal Dunia
Pendiri Apple Steve Jobs Meninggal Dunia. Miliarder pendiri Apple dan dalang di balik sebuah kerajaan produk yang merevolusi komputasi, telepon dan industri musik, telah meninggal dunia di California pada usia 56. Pekerjaan mengundurkan diri Pendiri Apple Steve Jobs Meninggal Dunia pada bulan Agustus sebagai kepala eksekutif perusahaan ia membantu mendirikan pada tahun 1976, mengutip penyakit. Dia telah berjuang melawan bentuk yang tidak biasa Pendiri Apple Steve Jobs Meninggal Dunia dari kanker pankreas, dan telah menerima transplantasi hati pada 2009.
Pekerjaan menulis dalam surat pengunduran diri:. “Saya selalu mengatakan jika ada yang pernah datang suatu hari ketika aku tidak bisa lagi memenuhi kewajiban dan harapan sebagai CEO Apple, saya akan menjadi orang pertama untuk membiarkan Anda tahu Pendiri Apple Steve Jobs Meninggal Dunia Sayangnya, hari itu telah datang. ” Ia meninggalkan istrinya, Laurene, dan empat anak. Dalam sebuah pernyataan keluarganya kata Jobs “meninggal dengan tenang saat dikelilingi oleh keluarganya … Kita tahu banyak dari kamu akan berdukacita dengan kami, dan kami meminta bahwa Anda menghormati privasi kami selama waktu kita kesedihan”.
Pendiri Apple Steve Jobs Meninggal Dunia
Jobs adalah salah satu pelopor Silicon Valley dan membantu mendirikan klaim wilayah sebagai pusat global teknologi. Dia mendirikan Apple dengan teman masa kecilnya Pendiri Apple Steve Jobs Meninggal Dunia Steve Wozniak, dan dua dipasarkan apa yang dianggap komputer pribadi pertama di dunia, Apple II.
Pendiri Apple Steve Jobs Meninggal Dunia
Dia kembali ke Apple 11 tahun kemudian ketika sedang dihapusbukukan oleh saingan. Yang terjadi selanjutnya Pendiri Apple Steve Jobs Meninggal Dunia adalah salah satu comebacks paling luar biasa dalam sejarah bisnis.
Pekerjaan menulis dalam surat pengunduran diri:. “Saya selalu mengatakan jika ada yang pernah datang suatu hari ketika aku tidak bisa lagi memenuhi kewajiban dan harapan sebagai CEO Apple, saya akan menjadi orang pertama untuk membiarkan Anda tahu Pendiri Apple Steve Jobs Meninggal Dunia Sayangnya, hari itu telah datang. ” Ia meninggalkan istrinya, Laurene, dan empat anak. Dalam sebuah pernyataan keluarganya kata Jobs “meninggal dengan tenang saat dikelilingi oleh keluarganya … Kita tahu banyak dari kamu akan berdukacita dengan kami, dan kami meminta bahwa Anda menghormati privasi kami selama waktu kita kesedihan”.
Pendiri Apple Steve Jobs Meninggal Dunia
Jobs adalah salah satu pelopor Silicon Valley dan membantu mendirikan klaim wilayah sebagai pusat global teknologi. Dia mendirikan Apple dengan teman masa kecilnya Pendiri Apple Steve Jobs Meninggal Dunia Steve Wozniak, dan dua dipasarkan apa yang dianggap komputer pribadi pertama di dunia, Apple II.
Pendiri Apple Steve Jobs Meninggal Dunia
Dia kembali ke Apple 11 tahun kemudian ketika sedang dihapusbukukan oleh saingan. Yang terjadi selanjutnya Pendiri Apple Steve Jobs Meninggal Dunia adalah salah satu comebacks paling luar biasa dalam sejarah bisnis.
Skenario Reshuffle 2011 berbanding 2007, Faktor Ali Mudlori
Skenario Reshuffle 2011 berbanding 2007, Faktor Ali Mudlori
PetaPolitik.Com – Janji Presiden SBY untuk melakukan Reshuffle kabinet bulan depan adalah poin kritis citra kepemimpinannya. Arsip-arsip berita lima tahun yang lalu menunjukkan beberapa hal yang menarik.
Arsip online majalah Gatra dengan kode artikel 104282, memperlihatkan situasi yang mirip-mirip dengan situasi saat ini. Saat itu disebutkan bahwa Presiden SBY akan mengganti para menteri yang sakit dan yang kinerjanya tidak optimal. Poin sakit dan kinerja tidak optimal juga muncul dalam wacana Reshufle 2011 yang disuarakan Staf Khusus Presiden beberapa hari yang lalu.
Uniknya dalam artikel Majalah Gatra tahun 2007 tersebut tersebut nama yang saat ini menjadi pusat perhatian karena menjadi tertuduh dalam kasus suap di Menakertrans. Nama Ali Mudlori adalah tercantum sebagai pimpinan Fraksi PKB yang ikut memberikan masukan bagi Presiden SBY saat Reshuffle 2007, bersama dengan Syarif Hasan dari Fraksi Demokrat, Iskandar Mandji dan Feri Mursyidan Baldan dari Golkar.
Menilik rekam jejak Ali Mudlori yang merupakan anggota komisi VII, sudah tidak aneh lagi jika Ali Mudlori mempunyai kedekatan dengan pengambil kebijakan di bidang Pertambangan dan Sumber Daya Mineral, yang tidak lain juga merupakan wilayah yang sangat dipahami oleh Presiden SBY yang pernah menjabat sebagai Menteri Pertambangan di masa lalu.
Jika Ali Mudlori saat ini berada di ujung tanduk pergeseran kekuasaan, sudah merupakan hal yang pasti jika Muhaimin Iskandar adalah nama yang paling rentan untuk dicopot bulan depan. Kedekatan Muhaimin dengan Ali Mudlori bukan merupakan hal yang asing. Ali Mudlori adalah wakil bendahara PKB yang rumahnya di Lumajang sering menjadi tempat acara-acara penting yang dilakukan oleh Muhaimin Iskandar.
Pilihan Presiden SBY untuk mengganti menteri bulan depan memang beresiko tinggi. Arsip-arsip koran Rakyat Merdeka Februari 2006 mencatat bahwa Ali Mudlori adalah nama yang berani untuk mengusulkan kepada Presiden SBY tentang penggantian pejabat-pejabat Pertamina. Arsip-arsip lama menunjukkan bahwa Ali Mudlori sangat berpotensi untuk mengganggu presiden SBY jika nasib dirinya akan habis dalam persidangan-persidangan kasus korupsi Menakertrans dalam waktu dekat ini.[Djio]
PetaPolitik.Com – Janji Presiden SBY untuk melakukan Reshuffle kabinet bulan depan adalah poin kritis citra kepemimpinannya. Arsip-arsip berita lima tahun yang lalu menunjukkan beberapa hal yang menarik.
Arsip online majalah Gatra dengan kode artikel 104282, memperlihatkan situasi yang mirip-mirip dengan situasi saat ini. Saat itu disebutkan bahwa Presiden SBY akan mengganti para menteri yang sakit dan yang kinerjanya tidak optimal. Poin sakit dan kinerja tidak optimal juga muncul dalam wacana Reshufle 2011 yang disuarakan Staf Khusus Presiden beberapa hari yang lalu.
Uniknya dalam artikel Majalah Gatra tahun 2007 tersebut tersebut nama yang saat ini menjadi pusat perhatian karena menjadi tertuduh dalam kasus suap di Menakertrans. Nama Ali Mudlori adalah tercantum sebagai pimpinan Fraksi PKB yang ikut memberikan masukan bagi Presiden SBY saat Reshuffle 2007, bersama dengan Syarif Hasan dari Fraksi Demokrat, Iskandar Mandji dan Feri Mursyidan Baldan dari Golkar.
Menilik rekam jejak Ali Mudlori yang merupakan anggota komisi VII, sudah tidak aneh lagi jika Ali Mudlori mempunyai kedekatan dengan pengambil kebijakan di bidang Pertambangan dan Sumber Daya Mineral, yang tidak lain juga merupakan wilayah yang sangat dipahami oleh Presiden SBY yang pernah menjabat sebagai Menteri Pertambangan di masa lalu.
Jika Ali Mudlori saat ini berada di ujung tanduk pergeseran kekuasaan, sudah merupakan hal yang pasti jika Muhaimin Iskandar adalah nama yang paling rentan untuk dicopot bulan depan. Kedekatan Muhaimin dengan Ali Mudlori bukan merupakan hal yang asing. Ali Mudlori adalah wakil bendahara PKB yang rumahnya di Lumajang sering menjadi tempat acara-acara penting yang dilakukan oleh Muhaimin Iskandar.
Pilihan Presiden SBY untuk mengganti menteri bulan depan memang beresiko tinggi. Arsip-arsip koran Rakyat Merdeka Februari 2006 mencatat bahwa Ali Mudlori adalah nama yang berani untuk mengusulkan kepada Presiden SBY tentang penggantian pejabat-pejabat Pertamina. Arsip-arsip lama menunjukkan bahwa Ali Mudlori sangat berpotensi untuk mengganggu presiden SBY jika nasib dirinya akan habis dalam persidangan-persidangan kasus korupsi Menakertrans dalam waktu dekat ini.[Djio]
Thursday, October 6, 2011
Joan Baez
Joan Baez
On Tour
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In the late ’60s and early ’70s, Baez came into her songwriting own, penning many songs (most notably “Diamonds & Rust,” a nostalgic piece about her ill-fated romance with Bob Dylan, and “Sweet Sir Galahad,” a song about sister Mimi Fariña’s ( of Richard & Mimi Fariña fame) second marriage, and continued to meld her songcraft with topical issues. She was outspoken in her disapproval of the Vietnam war and later the CIA-backed coups in many Latin American countries.
She was also instrumental in the Civil Rights movement, marching with Dr. Martin Luther King on many occassions and being jailed for her beliefs. In 1963, her performance of “We Shall Overcome” at the Lincoln Memorial just prior to Dr. King’s famous “I Have A Dream…” speech helped confirm the song as the Civil Rights anthem.
In December 1972, she traveled to Hanoi, North Vietnam, and was caught in that country’s “Christmas Campaign,” in which the U.S. bombed the city more times than any other during the entire war. While pregnant with her only son, Gabriel, she performed a handful of songs in the middle of the night on day one of the 1969 Woodstock festival. She is considered the “Queen of Folk” for being at the forefront of the 1960s folk revival and inspiring generations of female folksingers that followed. Nearly fifty years after she first began singing publicly in 1958, Joan Baez continues to tour, demonstrate in favor of human rights and nonviolence, and release albums for a world of devoted fans.
Gravitas
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US network uncovers 'suicide epidemic' among US veterans
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| Iraq-Afghanistan War Measure Faces Bush Veto | Repeat Screenings for Soldiers Find More PTSD |
I wish the White House writers would go on strike.
To Whom It May Concern: I only accept Euros.- Grant Gerver, www.seriouskidding.com
The-World-Is-A-Safer-Place-Without-Saddam News
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US Military Deaths in Iraq at 3864 The Associated Press
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www.iraqbodycount.org
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US soldier killed NE of Baghdad Xinhua, China
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Six die as bomb hits Iraq police convoy CNN
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Sunni sheik claims US killed his men AP
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US general: Roadside bombs down in Iraq AP
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English teacher killed in Afghanistan AP
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Iraq Forces Seize Powerful Sunni Office
The Associated Press -
Thousands of Iraqis apply to live in US AP
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Pakistani caretaker PM due; clashes erupt Reuters
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France denies preparing new Afghanistan troop boost Reuters
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Afghans expanding pomegranate exports AP
Brotherly Love
Howard Krongard, the embattled State Department inspector general who is accused of blocking investigations into security contractor Blackwater Worldwide, abruptly recused himself from all Blackwater inquiries yesterday after a congressional panel confronted him with evidence that his brother is serving on a company advisory board.
Apple Stock Chart
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Pancreatic cancer
Pancreatic cancer is a malignant neoplasm of the pancreas. By the end of 2010 in the United States, it is estimated about 43,140 individuals will be diagnosed with this condition, and 36,800 will die from the disease. The prognosis is relatively poor, but has improved; the three-year survival rate is now about thirty percent, but fewer than 5 percent of those diagnosed are still alive five years after diagnosis. Complete remission is still rather rare.
About 95% of exocrine pancreatic cancers are adenocarcinomas (M8140/3). The remaining 5% include adenosquamous carcinomas, signet ring cell carcinomas, hepatoid carcinomas, colloid carcinomas, undifferentiated carcinomas, and undifferentiated carcinomas with osteoclast-like giant cells. Exocrine pancreatic tumors are far more common than pancreatic endocrine tumors, which make up about 1% of total cases.
What are the Causes and Risk factors of Pancreatic Cancer?
Risk factors for pancreatic cancer include:
- Age (particularly over 60)
- Male sex (likeliness of up to 30% over females)
- Smoking. Cigarette smoking has a risk ratio of 1.74 with regard to pancreatic cancer; a decade of nonsmoking after heavy smoking is associated with a risk ratio of 1.2.
- Diets low in vegetables and fruits
- Diets high in red meat
- Diets high in sugar-sweetened drinks (soft drinks) risk ratio 1.87. In particular, common soft drink sweetener fructose has been linked to growth of pancreatic cancer cells.
- Obesity
- Diabetes mellitus is both risk factor for pancreatic cancer, and, as noted earlier, new onset diabetes can be an early sign of the disease.
- Chronic pancreatitis has been linked, but is not known to be causal. The risk of pancreatic cancer in individuals with familial pancreatitis is particularly high.
- Helicobacter pylori infection
- Family history, 5–10% of pancreatic cancer patients have a family history of pancreatic cancer. The genes responsible for most of this clustering in families have yet to be identified. Pancreatic cancer has been associated with the following syndromes; autosomal recessive ataxia-telangiectasia and autosomal dominantly inherited mutations in the BRCA2 gene and PALB2 gene, Peutz-Jeghers syndrome due to mutations in the STK11 tumor suppressor gene, hereditary non-polyposis colon cancer (Lynch syndrome), familial adenomatous polyposis, and the familial atypical multiple mole melanoma-pancreatic cancer syndrome (FAMMM-PC) due to mutations in the CDKN2A tumor suppressor gene.
- Gingivitis or periodontal disease
Australia and Canada, being members of the International Cancer Genome Consortium, are leading efforts to map pancreatic cancer’s complete genome.
Alcohol
It is controversial whether alcohol consumption is a risk factor for pancreatic cancer. Drinking alcohol excessively is a major cause of chronic pancreatitis, which in turn predisposes to pancreatic cancer. However, chronic pancreatitis associated with alcohol consumption does not increase risk of pancreatic cancer as much as other types of chronic pancreatitis. Overall, the association is consistently weak and the majority of studies have found no association.
Some studies suggest a relationship, with risk increasing with increasing amount of alcohol intake. Risk is greatest in heavy drinkers mostly on the order of four or more drinks per day. But there appears to be no increased risk for people consuming up to 30g of alcohol a day, so most of the U.S. consumes alcohol at a level that “is probably not a risk factor for pancreatic cancer”.
Several studies caution that their findings could be due to confounding factors. Even if a link exists, it “could be due to the contents of some alcoholic beverages” other than the alcohol itself. One Dutch study even found that drinkers of white wine had lower risk.
A pooled analysis concluded, “Our findings are consistent with a modest increase in risk of pancreatic cancer with consumption of 30 or more grams of alcohol per day”.
What are the Symptoms of Pancreatic Cancer?
Pancreatic cancer is sometimes called a “silent killer” because early pancreatic cancer often does not cause symptoms, and the later symptoms are usually nonspecific and varied. Therefore, pancreatic cancer is often not diagnosed until it is advanced. Common symptoms include:
- Pain in the upper abdomen that typically radiates to the back (seen in carcinoma of the body or tail of the pancreas)
- Loss of appetite and/or nausea and vomiting
- Significant weight loss
- Painless jaundice (yellow skin/eyes, dark urine) when a cancer of the head of the pancreas (about 60% of cases) obstructs the common bile duct as it runs through the pancreas. This may also cause pale-colored stool and steatorrhea.
- Trousseau sign, in which blood clots form spontaneously in the portal blood vessels, the deep veins of the extremities, or the superficial veins anywhere on the body, is sometimes associated with pancreatic cancer.
- Diabetes mellitus, or elevated blood sugar levels. Many patients with pancreatic cancer develop diabetes months to even years before they are diagnosed with pancreatic cancer, suggesting new onset diabetes in an elderly individual may be an early warning sign of pancreatic cancer.
- Clinical depression has been reported in association with pancreatic cancer, sometimes presenting before the cancer is diagnosed. However, the mechanism for this association is not known.
Diagnosis
If your doctor suspects pancreatic cancer, you may have one or more of the following tests to diagnose the cancer:
- Ultrasound. Ultrasound uses high-frequency sound waves to create moving images of your internal organs, including your pancreas. The ultrasound sensor (transducer) is placed on your upper abdomen to obtain images.
Computerized tomography (CT) scan. CT scan uses X-ray images to help your doctor visualize your internal organs. In some cases you may receive an injection of dye into a vein in your arm to help highlight the areas your doctor wants to see.- Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI). MRI uses a powerful magnetic field and radio waves to create images of your pancreas.
- Endoscopic retrograde cholangiopancreatography (ERCP). This procedure uses a dye to highlight the bile ducts in your pancreas. During ERCP, a thin, flexible tube (endoscope) is gently passed down your throat, through your stomach and into the upper part of your small intestine. Air is used to inflate your intestinal tract so that your doctor can more easily see the openings of your pancreatic and bile ducts. A dye is then injected into the ducts through a small hollow tube (catheter) that’s passed through the endoscope. Finally, X-rays are taken of the ducts. A tissue or cell sample (biopsy) can be collected during ERCP.
- Endoscopic ultrasound (EUS). EUS uses an ultrasound device to make images of your pancreas from inside your abdomen. The ultrasound device is passed through an endoscope into your stomach in order to obtain the images. Your doctor may also collect a sample of cells (biopsy) during EUS.
- Percutaneous transhepatic cholangiography (PTC). PTC uses a dye to highlight the bile ducts in your liver. Your doctor carefully inserts a thin needle into your liver and injects the dye into the bile ducts. A special X-ray machine (fluoroscope) tracks the dye as it moves through the ducts.
- Removing a tissue sample for testing (biopsy). A biopsy is a procedure to remove a small sample of tissue from the pancreas for examination under a microscope. A biopsy sample can be obtained by inserting a needle through your skin and into your pancreas (fine-needle aspiration). Or it can be done using endoscopic ultrasound to guide special tools into your pancreas where a sample of cells can be obtained for testing.
Staging pancreatic cancer
Once a diagnosis of pancreatic cancer is confirmed, your doctor will work to determine the extent, or stage, of the cancer. Your cancer’s stage helps determine what treatments are available to you. In order to determine the stage of your pancreatic cancer, your doctor may recommend:
- Using a scope to see inside your body. Laparoscopy uses a lighted tube with a video camera to explore your pancreas and surrounding tissue. The surgeon passes the laparoscope through an incision in your abdomen. The camera on the end of the scope transmits video to a screen in the operating room. This allows your doctor to look for signs cancer has spread within your abdomen.
- Imaging tests. Imaging tests may include chest X-ray, CT and MRI.
- Blood test. Your doctor may test your blood for specific proteins (tumor markers) shed by pancreatic cancer cells. One tumor marker test used in pancreatic cancer is called CA19-9. Some research indicates that the more elevated your level of CA19-9 is, the more advanced the cancer. But the test isn’t always reliable, and it isn’t clear how best to use the CA19-9 test results. Some doctors measure your levels before, during and after treatment. Others use it to gauge your prognosis.
Stages
Using information from staging tests, your doctor assigns your pancreatic cancer a stage. The stages of pancreatic cancer are:
- Stage I. Cancer is confined to the pancreas.
- Stage II. Cancer has spread beyond the pancreas to nearby tissues and organs and may have spread to the lymph nodes.
- Stage III. Cancer has spread beyond the pancreas to the major blood vessels around the pancreas and may have spread to the lymph nodes.
- Stage IV. Cancer has spread to distant sites beyond the pancreas, such as the liver, lungs and the lining that surrounds your abdominal organs (peritoneum).
Methods of Treatment
Treatment for pancreatic cancer depends on the stage and location of the cancer as well as on your age, overall health and personal preferences. The first goal of pancreatic cancer treatment is to eliminate the cancer, when possible. When that isn’t an option, the focus may be on preventing the pancreatic cancer from growing or causing more harm. When pancreatic cancer is advanced and treatments aren’t likely to offer a benefit, your doctor may suggest ways to relieve symptoms and make you as comfortable as possible.
Surgery
Surgery may be an option if your pancreatic cancer is confined to the pancreas. Operations used in people with pancreatic cancer include:
-
Surgery for tumors in the pancreatic head. If your pancreatic cancer is located in the head of the pancreas, you may consider an operation called a Whipple procedure (pancreatoduodenectomy). The Whipple procedure involves removing the head of your pancreas, as well as a portion of your small intestine (duodenum), your gallbladder and part of your bile duct. Part of your stomach may be removed as well. Your surgeon reconnects the remaining parts of your pancreas, stomach and intestines to allow you to digest food.
Whipple surgery carries a risk of infection and bleeding. After the surgery, some people experience nausea and vomiting that can occur if the stomach has difficulty emptying (delayed gastric emptying). Expect a long recovery after a Whipple procedure. You’ll spend 10 days or more in the hospital and then recover for several weeks at home.
- Surgery for tumors in the pancreatic tail and body. Surgery to remove the tail of the pancreas or the tail and a small portion of the body is called distal pancreatectomy. Your surgeon may also remove your spleen. Surgery carries a risk of bleeding and infection.
Research shows pancreatic cancer surgery tends to cause fewer complications when done by experienced surgeons. Don’t hesitate to ask about your surgeon’s experience with pancreatic cancer surgery. If you have any doubts, get a second opinion.
Radiation therapy
Radiation therapy uses high-energy beams to destroy cancer cells. You may receive radiation treatments before or after cancer surgery, often in combination with chemotherapy. Or, your doctor may recommend a combination of radiation and chemotherapy treatments when your cancer can’t be treated surgically.
Radiation therapy can come from a machine outside your body (external beam radiation), or it can be placed inside your body near your cancer (brachytherapy). Radiation therapy can also be used during surgery (intraoperative radiation).
Chemotherapy
Chemotherapy uses drugs to help kill cancer cells. Chemotherapy can be injected into a vein or taken orally. You may receive only one chemotherapy drug, or you may receive a combination of chemotherapy drugs.
Chemotherapy can also be combined with radiation therapy (chemoradiation). Chemoradiation is typically used to treat cancer that has spread beyond the pancreas, but only to nearby organs and not to distant regions of the body. This combination may also be used after surgery to reduce the risk that pancreatic cancer may recur.
In people with advanced pancreatic cancer, chemotherapy may be combined with targeted drug therapy.
Targeted therapy
Targeted therapy uses drugs that attack specific abnormalities within cancer cells. The targeted drug erlotinib (Tarceva) blocks chemicals that signal cancer cells to grow and divide. Erlotinib is usually combined with chemotherapy for use in people with advanced pancreatic cancer.
Other targeted drug treatments are under investigation in clinical trials.
Clinical trials
Clinical trials are studies to test new forms of treatment, such as new drugs, new approaches to surgery or radiation treatments, and novel methods such as gene therapy. If the treatment being studied proves to be safer or more effective than are current treatments, it can become the new standard of care.
Clinical trials can’t guarantee a cure, and they may have serious or unexpected side effects. On the other hand, cancer clinical trials are closely monitored by the federal government to ensure they’re conducted as safely as possible. And they offer access to treatments that wouldn’t otherwise be available to you.
Talk to your doctor about what clinical trials might be appropriate for you.
New treatments currently under investigation in clinical trials include:
- Drugs that stop cancer from growing new blood vessels. Targeted drug treatments that work by stopping cancer from growing new blood vessels are called angiogenesis inhibitors. Without new blood vessels, cancer cells may be unable to get the nutrients they need to grow. Blood vessels also give cancer cells a pathway to spread to other parts of the body.
- Pancreatic cancer vaccines. Cancer vaccines are being studied to treat cancer, rather than prevent disease, as vaccines are traditionally used. Cancer treatment vaccines use various strategies to enhance the immune system to help it recognize cancer cells as intruders. In one example, a vaccine may help train the immune system to attack a certain protein secreted by pancreatic cancer cells. Studies of pancreatic cancer vaccines are still in the very early stages.
Drugs rating:
| Title | Votes | Rating | ||
| 1 | Tarceva (Erlotinib) | 40 | (8.0/10) | |
| 2 | Zanosar (Streptozocin) | 0 | (0/10) | |
| 3 | Vantas (Histrelin Implant) | 0 | (0/10) | |
| 4 | Pancreatin 4X (Pancreatin) | 0 | (0/10) | |
| 5 | Mutamycin (Mitomycin) | 0 | (0/10) | |
| 6 | Adrucil (Fluorouracil) | 0 | (0/10) | |
| 7 | Gemzar (Gemcitabine) | 0 | (0/10) |
Prognosis
Patients diagnosed with pancreatic cancer typically have a poor prognosis, partly because the cancer usually causes no symptoms early on, leading to locally advanced or metastatic disease at time of diagnosis. Median survival from diagnosis is around 3 to 6 months; 5-year survival is less than 5%. With 37,170 cases diagnosed in the United States in 2007, and 33,700 deaths, pancreatic cancer has one of the highest fatality rates of all cancers, and is the fourth-highest cancer killer in the United States among both men and women. Although it accounts for only 2.5% of new cases, pancreatic cancer is responsible for 6% of cancer deaths each year.
Pancreatic cancer may occasionally result in diabetes. Insulin production is hampered, and it has been suggested the cancer can also prompt the onset of diabetes and vice versa. Thus, diabetes is both a risk factor for the development of pancreatic cancer and an early sign of the disease in the elderly.
Saturday, October 1, 2011
Al Qaeda's Anwar al-Awlaki killed in Yemen
This Oct. 2008 file photo provided by Muhammad ud-Deen, shows radical American-Yemeni Islamic cleric Anwar al-Awlaki in Yemen. (CBS)
Terrorism in the U.S.
- Officials: Drone likely killed Saudi terrorist
- Al-Awlaki strike plan included jets, special ops
- The killing of a U.S. jihadist
- Al-Awlaki's former mosque in Va. reacts to death
- Obama: Awlaki death "major blow" to terror
Updated at 1:22 p.m. ET
WASHINGTON - In a devastating double-blow to al Qaeda's most dangerous franchise, U.S. counterterrorism forces killed two American citizens who played key roles in inspiring attacks against the U.S., U.S. and Yemeni officials said Friday.
U.S-born cleric Anwar al-Awlaki and Samir Khan, who edited the slick Jihadi Internet magazine, were killed in an air strike on their convoy in Yemen by a joint CIA-U.S. military operation, according to counterterrorism officials. Al-Awlaki was targeted in the killing, but Khan apparently was not targeted directly.
Who was Anwar al-Awlaki?
Multiple terror plots linked to Anwar al-Awlaki
Video: Anwar al-Awlaki urges attacks on Americans
In remarks at Fort Myer, Va., President Obama called the death of the jihadist cleric a "major blow" to al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula, and praised the United States' successful alliance with Yemen's security forces.
"This is further proof that al Qaeda and its affiliates will find no safe haven anywhere in the world," Mr. Obama said. "Working with Yemen and our other allies and partners, we will be determined, we will be deliberate, we will be relentless, we will be resolute in our commitment to destroy terrorist networks that aim to kill Americans, and to build a world in which people everywhere can live in greater peace, prosperity and security."
Obama: Awlaki death "major blow" to terror
Obama, GOP leaders praise killing of Awlaki
Seeking to justify the targeted killing of a U.S. citizen, Mr. Obama outlined al-Awlaki's involvement in planning and directing attempts to murder Americans.
"He directed the failed attempt to blow up an airplane on Christmas Day in 2009. He directed the failed attempt to blow up U.S. cargo planes in 2010," Mr. Obama said. "And he repeatedly called on individuals in the United States and around the globe to kill innocent men, women and children to advance a murderous agenda."
Yemeni intelligence pinpointed al-Awlaki's hideout in the town of Al Khasaf, a Yemeni official said, speaking on condition of anonymity to discuss matters of intelligence. "He was closely monitored ever since," by Yemeni intelligence on the ground, backed by U.S. satellite and drones from the sky, the official said.
His death will deal al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula a serious blow, says CBS News terrorism analyst Juan Zarate, particularly his work to draw young Muslims into the jihadi mindset.
"His role as a propagandist actually will be very difficult to fill," says Zarate.
After three weeks of tracking the targets, U.S. armed drones and fighter jets shadowed the al Qaeda convoy before armed drones launched their lethal strike early Friday. The strike killed four operatives in all, officials said. All U.S. officials spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss matters of intelligence.
Al-Awlaki played a "significant operational role" in plotting and inspiring attacks on the United States, U.S. officials said Friday, as they disclosed detailed intelligence to justify the killing of a U.S. citizen. Khan, who was from North Carolina, wasn't considered operational but had published seven issues of Inspire Magazine, offering advice on how to make bombs and the use of weapons. The magazine was widely read.
2nd U.S. jihadist reported dead in drone attack
A look at al Qaeda's Web magazine
Following the strike, a U.S. official outlined new details of al-Awlaki's involvement in anti-U.S. operations, including the attempted 2009 Christmas Day bombing of a U.S.-bound aircraft. The official said that al-Awlaki specifically directed the men accused of trying to bomb the Detroit-bound plane to detonate an explosive device over U.S. airspace to maximize casualties.
The official also said al-Awlaki had a direct role in supervising and directing a failed attempt to bring down two U.S. cargo aircraft by detonating explosives concealed inside two packages mailed to the U.S. The U.S. also believes Awlaki had sought to use poisons, including cyanide and ricin, to attack Westerners.
The U.S. and counterterrorism officials all spoke on the condition of anonymity in order to discuss intelligence matters.
Al-Awlaki was killed by the same U.S. military unit that got Osama bin Laden. Al-Awlaki is the most prominent al Qaeda figure to be killed since bin Laden's death in May.
U.S. word of al-Awlaki's death came after the government of Yemen reported that he had been killed Friday about five miles from the town of Khashef, some 87 miles from the capital Sanaa.
The air strike was carried out more openly than the covert operation that sent Navy SEALs into bin Laden's Pakistani compound, U.S. officials said.
Special Section: The Killing of Osama Bin Laden
Pictures: Terror attacks since 9/11
Counterterrorism cooperation between the United States and Yemen has improved in recent weeks, allowing better intelligence-gathering on al-Awlaki's movements, U.S. officials said. The ability to better track him was a key factor in the success of the strike, U.S. officials said, speaking on condition of anonymity to discuss intelligence matters.
Al-Awlaki's death is the latest in a run of high-profile kills for Washington under Mr. Obama. But the killing raises questions that the death of other al Qaeda leaders, including bin Laden, did not.
Al-Awlaki is a U.S. citizen, born in New Mexico to Yemeni parents, who had not been charged with any crime. Civil liberties groups have questioned the government's authority to kill an American without trial.
Jameel Jaffer, deputy legal director of the American Civil Liberties Union, condemned the drone attack on Awlaki, saying, "The targeted killing program violates both U.S. and international law.Anwar Al-Awlaki Dead: U.S.-Born Al Qaeda Cleric Killed In Yemen
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SANAA, Yemen — The killings of U.S.-born cleric Anwar al-Awlaki and another American al-Qaida propagandist in a U.S. airstrike Friday wipe out the decisive factor that made the terrorist group's Yemen branch the most dangerous threat to the United States: its reach into the West.
Issuing English-language sermons on jihad on the Internet from his hideouts in Yemen's mountains, al-Awlaki drew Muslim recruits like the young Nigerian who tried to bring down a U.S. jet on Christmas and the Pakistani-American behind the botched car bombing in New York City's Times Square.
Friday's drone attack was believed to be the first instance in which a U.S. citizen was tracked and killed based on secret intelligence and the president's say-so. Al-Awlaki was placed on the CIA "kill or capture" list by the Obama administration in April 2010 – the first American to be so targeted.
Late Friday, two U.S. officials said intelligence indicated that the top al-Qaida bomb-maker in Yemen also died in the strike. Ibrahim al-Asiri was the bomb-maker linked to the bomb hidden in the underwear of the Nigerian man accused of trying to blow up a plane over Detroit on Christmas Day 2009.
The officials spoke on condition of anonymity because al-Asiri's death has not officially been confirmed.
Authorities also believe he built the bombs that al-Qaida slipped into printers and shipped to the U.S. last year in a nearly catastrophic attack.
Christopher Boucek, a scholar who studies Yemen and al-Qaida, said al-Asiri was so important to the organization that his death would "overshadow" the news of al-Awlaki and the other American killed in the strike, Samir Khan.
Khan published a slick English-language Web magazine, "Inspire," that spouted al-Qaida's anti-Western ideology and even offered how-to articles on terrorism – including one titled, "Make a Bomb in the Kitchen of Your Mom."
The voices of Khan and al-Awlaki elevated the several hundred al-Qaida fighters hiding out in Yemen into a greater threat than similar affiliates of the terror network in North Africa, Somalia or east Asia.
President Barack Obama heralded the strike as a "major blow to al-Qaida's most active operational affiliate," saying the 40-year-old al-Awlaki was the group's "leader of external operations."
"In that role, he took the lead in planning and directing efforts to murder innocent Americans," Obama told reporters in Washington, saying al-Awlaki plotted the Christmas 2009 airplane bombing attempt and a foiled attempt in 2010 to mail explosives to the United States.
Al-Awlaki's death was the biggest success in the Obama administration's intensified campaign to take out al-Qaida's leadership since the May killing of Osama bin Laden in Pakistan. The pursuit of al-Awlaki and Friday's strike were directed by the same U.S. special unit that directed the Navy SEALs raid on bin Laden's hideout.
After three weeks of tracking the targets, U.S. armed drones and fighter jets shadowed al-Awlaki's convoy, before drones launched the lethal strike early Friday, U.S. officials said, speaking on condition of anonymity to discuss matters of intelligence.
Al-Awlaki and his comrades were moving through a desert region east of Yemen's capital near the village of Khasaf between mountain strongholds in the provinces of Jawf and Marib when the drone struck, U.S. and Yemeni officials said.
A tribal chief in the area told The Associated Press that the brother of one of those killed witnessed the strike. The brother, who had sheltered the group in his home nearby, said the group had stopped for breakfast in the desert and were sitting on the ground eating when they saw the drone approaching. They rushed to their truck to drive off when the missiles hit, incinerating the vehicle, according to the tribal chief, who spoke on condition of anonymity because he did not want to be associated with the incident.
U.S. officials said two other militants were killed in the strike. But the tribal chief, who helped bury the bodies in a Jawf cemetery, said seven people were killed, including al-Awlaki, Khan, two midlevel Yemeni al-Qaida members, two Saudis and another Yemeni. The differing numbers could not immediately be reconciled.
Al-Awlaki, who was born in New Mexico to Yemeni parents, had been in the U.S. cross-hairs since his killing was approved by Obama last year. At least twice, airstrikes were called in on locations in Yemen where al-Awlaki was suspected of being, but he wasn't harmed.
In July, U.S. Defense Secretary Leon Panetta said al-Awlaki was a priority target alongside Ayman al-Zawahri, bin Laden's successor as the terror network's leader.
Bruce Riedel, a Brookings senior fellow and former CIA officer, cautioned that while al-Awlaki was the "foremost propagandist," for al-Qaida's Yemen branch, his death "doesn't really significantly change its fortunes."
Al-Qaida's branch "is intact and arguably growing faster than ever before because of the chaos in Yemen," he said.
Al-Qaida in the Arabian Peninsula, as the terror branch in Yemen is called, has been operating in Yemen for years, led by a Yemeni militant and former bin Laden aide named Nasser al-Wahishi. Its main goal has been the toppling of Yemeni President Ali Abdullah Saleh and targeting the monarchy in neighboring Saudi Arabia, and its several hundred militants have found refuge among tribes in Yemen's mountainous regions, where the Sanaa government has little control.
Amid the past seven months of political turmoil in Yemen, al-Qaida and other Islamic militants have gained even more of a foothold, seizing control of at least three towns and cities in the south and battling with the army.
Al-Wahishi placed major importance on propaganda efforts.
In the latest issue of Inspire, put out earlier this month, Khan – a U.S. citizen of Pakistani heritage – recounted meeting the Yemeni al-Qaida leader. "'Remember,' he said, as other mujahedeen were busy working on their computers in the background. 'The media work is half of the jihad,'" Khan wrote.
Al-Awlaki gave the group its international voice.
He was young, fluent in English, well-acquainted with Western culture and with the discontent of young Muslims there. His numerous video sermons, circulated on YouTube and other sites, offered a measured political argument – interspersed with religious lessons – that the United States must be fought for waging wars against Muslims.
Downloads of his sermons were found in the laptops and computers of several groups arrested for plotting attacks in the United States and Britain.
Al-Awlaki exchanged up to 20 emails with U.S. Maj. Nidal Malik Hasan, accused of opening fire at the U.S. military base at Fort Hood, Texas, killing 13 people, in a 2009 rampage. Hasan initiated the contacts, drawn by al-Awlaki's Internet sermons.
Al-Awlaki has said he didn't tell Hasan to carry out the shootings, but he later praised Hasan as a "hero" on his website.
In New York, the Pakistani-American who pleaded guilty to the May 2010 Times Square car bombing attempt told interrogators he was "inspired" by al-Awlaki after making contact over the Internet.
But U.S. officials say al-Awlaki moved beyond being just a mouthpiece into a direct operational role in organizing such attacks as he hid alongside al-Qaida militants in the rugged mountains of Yemen.
Most notably, they believe he was involved in recruiting and preparing Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab, the Nigerian who tried to blow up a U.S. airliner heading to Detroit on Christmas 2009, failing only because he botched the detonation of explosives sewn into his underpants.
Yemeni officials say they believe al-Awlaki and other al-Qaida leaders met with Abdulmutallab in a Yemen hideout in the weeks before the failed bombing. Al-Awlaki has said Abdulmutallab was his "student" but said he never told him to carry out the airline attack.
Al-Awlaki began as a mosque preacher as he conducted his university studies in the United States, and he was not seen by his congregations as radical. While preaching in San Diego, he came to know two of the men who would eventually become suicide-hijackers in the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks on the World Trade Center and the Pentagon. The FBI questioned al-Awlaki at the time but found no cause to detain him.
In 2004, al-Awlaki returned to Yemen, and in the years that followed, his English-language Internet sermons increasingly turned to denunciations of the United States and calls for jihad, or holy war. Since the Fort Hood attack, he has been on the run alongside al-Qaida militants.
U.S. terrorism expert Evan Kohlman said al-Awlaki's death doesn't affect al-Qaida in the Arabian Peninsula's military capabilities. "The one area it makes a difference is, it limits the ability of AQAP to put out more English-language propaganda," at least in the short term.
"Al-Awlaki's greatest importance really is a recruiter for homegrown terrorism," he said. "There is no doubt he has provided assistance to recruiting people on behalf of AQAP."
But Kohlman noted that al-Awlaki's sermons and calls for jihad remain on the Web and "in some ways you could say they may be even more effective now because he has been martyred for his cause. ... That is a powerful lesson."
____
AP correspondents Matt Apuzzo, Adam Goldman, Lolita Baldor and AP Intelligence Writer Kimberly Dozier in Washington and Lee Keath and Sarah El Deeb in Cairo contributed to this report.
Two U.S.-Born Terrorists Killed in CIA-Led Drone Strike
By Jennifer Griffin & Justin Fishel 
enior Al Qaeda leader Anwar al-Awlaki and another America-born militant were killed in Yemen early Friday morning by a CIA-led U.S. drone strike, marking the highest-profile takedown of terror leaders since the raid on Usama bin Laden's compound.
Fox News has learned that two Predator drones hovering above al-Awlaki's convoy fired the Hellfire missiles which killed the terror leader. According to a senior U.S. official, the operation was carried out by Joint Special Operations Command, under the direction of the CIA. A total of four people were killed in the attack.
CIA-led drone attack kills terror leader Anwar al-Awlaki and Al Qaeda magazine editor Samir Khan in Yemen, in a strike that used two Predator drones and Hellfire missiles.
This Oct. 2008 file photo by Muhammad ud-Deen shows Anwar al-Awlaki in Yemen.
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President Obama called the strike a major "milestone" in the fight against Al Qaeda and its affiliates.
"The death of Awlaki is a major blow to Al Qaeda's most active operational affiliate," Obama said Friday. "He took the lead in planning and directing efforts to murder innocent Americans ... and he repeatedly called on individuals in the United States and around the globe to kill innocent men, women and children to advance a murderous agenda."
He said the strike is "further proof that Al Qaeda and its affiliates will find no safe haven anywhere in the world."
Al-Awlaki was a U.S.-born Islamic militant cleric who became a prominent figure with Al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula, the network's most active branch. He was involved in several terror plots in the United States in recent years, using his fluent English and Internet savvy to draw recruits to carry out attacks. President Obama signed an order in early 2010 making him the first American to be placed on the "kill or capture" list.
The Yemeni government and Defense Ministry announced al-Awlaki's death, without giving details. But American sources confirmed the CIA and U.S. military were behind the strike on al-Awlaki, whom one official described as a "big fish."
The strike hit a vehicle with other suspected Al Qaeda members inside, in addition to al-Awlaki. According to a U.S. senior official, the other American militant killed in the strike was Samir Khan, the co-editor of an English-language Al Qaeda web magazine called "Inspire."
Khan, in his 20s, was an American of Pakistani heritage from North Carolina. His magazine promoted attacks against U.S. targets, even running articles on how to put together explosives. In one issue, Khan wrote that he had moved to Yemen and joined Al Qaeda's fighters, pledging to "wage jihad for the rest of our lives."
The strike comes after a heavy presence of U.S. drones was spotted in the skies over the region over the last couple weeks, one source told Fox News.
The strike underscores the expanding nature of the drone program, which has migrated beyond the borders of Pakistan into Yemen, Somalia and other countries.
Yemeni security officials and local tribal leaders also said al-Awlaki was killed in an air strike on his convoy that they believed was carried out by the Americans.
Al-Awlaki would be the most prominent Al Qaeda figure to be killed since bin Laden's death in a U.S. raid in Pakistan in May. In July, U.S. Defense Secretary Leon Panetta said the Yemeni-American was a priority target alongside Ayman al-Zawahri, bin Laden's successor as the terror network's leader.
The 40-year-old al-Awlaki had been in the U.S. crosshairs since his killing was approved by President Obama in April 2010 -- making him the first American placed on the CIA "kill or capture" list. At least twice, airstrikes were called in on locations in Yemen where al-Awlaki was suspected of being, but he wasn't harmed. In May, U.S. forces were able to track his truck but were unable to take him out.
Al-Awlaki, born in New Mexico to Yemeni parents, was believed to be key in turning Al Qaeda's affiliate in Yemen into what American officials have called the most significant and immediate threat to the United States. The branch, led by a Yemeni militant named Nasser al-Wahishi, plotted several failed attacks on U.S. soil -- the botched Christmas 2009 attempt to blow up an American airliner heading to Detroit and a foiled 2010 attempt to send explosives to Chicago.
A former intelligence official said that with al-Awlaki gone, the branch "still retains a lot of capability."
But Richard Miniter, author of "Losing bin Laden," told Fox News that al-Awlaki's role will be "hard to replace."
"He understood American society very well. He understood American idioms and pop culture and how to appeal to Americans," he told Fox News. "It's very hard for them to replicate this."
Known as an eloquent preacher who spread English-language sermons on the Internet calling for "holy war" against the United States, al-Awlaki's role was to inspire and -- it is believed -- even directly recruit militants to carry out attacks.
He was not believed to be a key operational leader, but as a spokesman. His English skills gave him reach among second and third generation Muslims who may not speak Arabic.
Yemeni officials have said al-Awlaki had contacts with Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab, the accused would-be Christmas plane bomber, who was in Yemen in 2009. They say the believe al-Awlaki met with the 23-year-old Nigerian, along with other Al Qaeda leaders, in Al Qaeda strongholds in the country in the weeks before the failed bombing.
In New York, the Pakistani-American man who pleaded guilty to the May 2010 Times Square car bombing attempt told interrogators he was "inspired" by al-Awlaki after making contact over the Internet.
Al-Awlaki also exchanged up to 20 emails with U.S. Maj. Nidal Malik Hasan, alleged killer of 13 people in the Nov. 5, 2009, rampage at Fort Hood. Hasan initiated the contacts, drawn by al-Awlaki's Internet sermons, and approached him for religious advice.
Al-Awlaki has said he didn't tell Hasan to carry out the shootings, but he later praised Hasan as a "hero" on his Web site for killing American soldiers who would be heading for Afghanistan or Iraq to fight Muslims. The cleric similarly said Abdulmutallab was his "student" but said he never told him to carry out the airline attack.
In a statement, the Yemeni government said al-Awlaki was "targeted and killed" 5 miles from the town of Khashef in the Province of al-Jawf. The town is located 87 miles east of the capital Sanaa.
The statement says the operation was launched on Friday around 9:55 a.m. It gave no other details.
The Yemeni Defense Ministry also reported the death, without elaborating, in a mobile phone SMS message.
Top U.S. counter terrorism adviser John Brennan says such cooperation with Yemen has improved since the political unrest there. Brennan said the Yemenis have been more willing to share information about the location of Al Qaeda targets, as a way to fight the Yemeni branch challenging them for power. Other U.S. officials say the Yemenis have also allowed the U.S. to fly more armed drone and aircraft missions over its territory than ever previously, trying to use U.S. military power to stay in power.
Anwar Al-Awlaki Dead: U.S.-Born Al Qaeda Cleric Killed In Yemen
NC Muslims tried to change al-Qaida supporter
CIA-led drone attack kills terror leader Anwar al-Awlaki and Al Qaeda magazine editor Samir Khan in Yemen, in a strike that used two Predator drones and Hellfire missiles.
CHARLOTTE, N.C. (AP) — A North Carolina-bred man killed Friday in a U.S. strike on an al-Qaida leader in Yemen described himself as a "traitor to America" as he promoted a Muslim extremist message to the English-speaking world.
Samir Khan was killed along with American-born cleric Anwar al-Awlaki, described by President Barack Obama as a leader of Al-Qaida in the Arabian Peninsula.
A Saudi-born man of Pakistani heritage, Khan left his family in Charlotte for Yemen in 2009 after several years editing a web site praising Al-Qaida leaders.
"I was quite open about my beliefs online and it didn't take a rocket scientist to figure out that I was al Qaeda to the core," Khan wrote in the fall 2010 issue of Inspire magazine, an online publication. "I am a traitor to America because my religion requires me to be one."
Khan's life in Yemen involved helping produce the irreverent, graphics-heavy Internet magazine aimed at recruiting young Muslims to the jihadi cause with articles such as, "Make a Bomb in the Kitchen of Your Mom."
Khan cut off ties with his family when he went to Yemen to join the Islamic version of a gang, even though such ideology runs counter to Islam, said Jibril Hough, spokesman for the Islamic Center of Charlotte.
"Gangs don't operate by rules. People who support terrorist ideology when it comes to killing innocent people do not believe in rules. As Muslims, we believe in rules," Hough said.
Hough said Khan's family was in mourning Friday and did not want to talk about their son, who was 25.
"Even though we don't believe in the path he was going or the way he was thinking, he was still a human being, still a human life, and he was still someone's son," Hough said.
Hough said he called Khan's father in 2008 after Samir's ideology became known and arranged a counseling session, "an intervention of sorts." There were two meetings in Hough's home over the course of a month involving Khan, his father and a handful of other respected members of the Muslim community, Hough said. Each lasted several hours.
"He was very respectful — kind of quiet. He didn't give us a big argument. There was a time or two he tried to state his case. He was pretty much respectful of the circle we'd set up, and he listened," Hough said.
The few words Khan tried to offer then involved defending his view supporting the killing of innocent people, Hough said.
Khan, who came to the U.S. with his family when he was 7, was influenced in his radical views while living in New York as a child and before his family moved to Charlotte when he was a teenager, Hough said.
"The Charlotte community had nothing to do with contributing to his thought process. We did have something to do with trying to stop it with going down that path, and that I feel good about," Hough said. "We didn't turn our head like sometimes we get accused of, not wanting to stop something. ... As a Muslim, I opposed it, but as an American you have to support his right of freedom of speech. It's a fine line in this country."
Staff writer Emery P. Dalesio contributed from Raleigh, N.C.
Anwar al-Awlaki was a radical American-born Muslim
SITE Intelligence Group, via Agence France-Presse — Getty Images
Anwar al-Awlaki was a radical American-born Muslim cleric who became a leading figure in Al Qaeda's affiliate in Yemen. He was killed there on Sept. 30, 2011 by a missile fired from an American drone aircraft.
Mr. Awlaki had been perhaps the most prominent English-speaking advocate of violent jihad against the United States, with his message carried extensively over the Internet. His online lectures and sermons had been linked to more than a dozen terrorist investigations in the United States, Britain and Canada. Maj. Nidal Malik Hasan had exchanged e-mails with Mr. Awlaki before the deadly shooting rampage on Fort Hood, Texas, in 2009. Faisal Shahzad, who tried to set off a car bomb in Times Square in May, 2010, cited Mr. Awlaki as an inspiration.
The strike also killed a radical American colleague traveling with Mr. Awlaki who edited Al Qaeda’s online jihadist magazine. He was identified by Yemen's official news agency as Samir Khan, an American citizen born in Pakistan.
Many details of the strike were unclear, but one American official said that Mr. Awlaki, whom the United States had been hunting in Yemen for more than two years, had been identified as the target in advance and was killed with a Hellfire missile fired from a drone operated by the Central Intelligence Agency.
The strike appeared to be the first time in the United States-led war on terrorism since the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks that an American citizen had been deliberately targeted and killed by American forces.
In 2010, the Obama administration had taken the rare step of authorizing the targeted killing of Mr. Awlaki, even though he was an American citizen — a step that had provoked lawsuits and criticism from human rights groups. He had survived at least one earlier missile strike from an American military drone.
Those drone attacks had been part of a clandestine Pentagon program to hunt members of Al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula, the group believed responsible for a number of failed attempts to strike the United States, including the thwarted plot to blow up a trans-Atlantic jet on Dec. 25, 2009, as it was preparing to land in Detroit.
The American military had stepped up its campaign of airstrikes in Yemen earlier in 2011. Defense Secretary Leon E. Panetta said in July that two of his top goals were to remove Ayman al-Zawahri, Al Qaeda’s new leader after the death of Osama Bin Laden in May, and Mr. Awlaki. A senior administration official in Washington said the killing of Mr. Awlaki was important because he had become one of Al Qaeda’s top operational planners as well as its greatest English-language propagandist.
Background
Mr. Awlaki, born in New Mexico in 1971, served as an imam in California and Virginia. He became the focus of intense scrutiny after he was linked through e-mails with Maj. Nidal Malik Hasan, the Army psychiatrist accused of killing 13 people at Fort Hood, Tex., in November 2009 and then to Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab, the Nigerian man charged with trying to blow up a Detroit-bound airliner in December 2010. He also had ties to two of the 9/11 hijackers although the nature of association remains unclear.
In May 2010, Mr. Awlaki was mentioned by Faisal Shahzad, the Pakistani-American man accused of trying to detonate a car bomb in Times Square. Mr. Shahzad said he was inspired by the violent rhetoric of Mr. Awlaki.
The Obama administration's decision to authorize the killing by the Central Intelligence Agency of a terrorism suspect who is an American citizen set off a debate over the legal and political limits of drone missile strikes, a mainstay of the campaign against terrorism. The notion that the government can, in effect, execute one of its own citizens far from a combat zone, with no judicial process and based on secret intelligence, made some legal authorities deeply uneasy.
Mr. Awlaki's father, Nasser al-Awlaki, who contended that his son was not the terrorist the administration portrays him to be, filed a legal challenge to his son's inclusion on a list of people to be killed by American forces or agents without a trial. The lawsuit was dismissed on Dec. 7, 2010 by a federal judge who ruled that al-Awlaki's father did not have the authority to sue to stop the United States from killing his son.
In addition, the judge held that decisions to mount targeted killings overseas are a “political question” for executive officials to make — not judges. In the 83-page opinion, Judge John Bates of the District of Columbia district court acknowledged that the case raised “stark, and perplexing, questions” — including whether the president could “order the assassination of a U.S. citizen without first affording him any form of judicial process whatsoever, based on the mere assertion that he is a dangerous member of a terrorist organization.”
In an earlier setback, in July the Treasury Department's Office of Foreign Asset Control had announced that it was applying the designation of global terrorist to Mr. Awlaki. That blocked his assets and made it a crime for Americans to engage in transactions with him or for his benefit without a license. The human rights lawyers who filed suit on behalf of Mr. Awlaki's father challenged that regulation as well.
The Road to Jihadist
There were two conventional narratives of Mr. Awlaki's path to jihad. The first was his own: He was a nonviolent moderate until the United States attacked Muslims openly in Afghanistan and Iraq, covertly in Pakistan and Yemen and even at home, by making targets of Muslims for raids and arrests. He merely followed the religious obligation to defend his faith, he had said.
A contrasting version of Mr. Awlaki's story, explored though never confirmed by the national Sept. 11 commission, maintains that he was a secret agent of Al Qaeda starting well before the attacks, when three of the hijackers turned up at his mosques. By this account, all that changed after that was that Mr. Awlaki stopped hiding his true views.
A product both of Yemen's deeply conservative religious culture and freewheeling American ways, Mr. Awlaki hesitated to shake hands with women but patronized prostitutes. He was first enthralled with jihad as a teenager — but the cause he embraced, the defeat of Soviet troops in Afghanistan, was then America's cause too. After a summer visit to the land of the victorious mujahedeen, he brought back an Afghan hat and wore it proudly around the Colorado State University campus in Fort Collins, where he studied engineering.
Later, Mr. Awlaki seems to have tried out multiple personas: the representative of a tolerant Islam in a multicultural United States (starring in a WashingtonPost.com video explaining Ramadan); the fiery American activist talking about Muslims' constitutional rights (and citing both Malcolm X and H. Rap Brown); the conspiracy theorist who publicly doubted the Muslim role in the Sept. 11 attacks. (The F.B.I., he wrote a few days afterward, simply blamed passengers with Muslim names.)
All along he remained a conservative, fundamentalist preacher who invariably started with a scriptural story from the seventh century and drew its personal or political lessons for today, a tradition called salafism, for the Salafs, or ancestors, the leaders of the earliest generations of Islam.
Finally, after the Yemeni authorities, under American pressure, imprisoned him in 2006 and 2007, Mr. Awlaki seemed to have hardened into a fully committed ideologist of jihad, condemning non-Muslims and cheerleading for slaughter. His message became indistinguishable from that of Osama bin Laden — except for his excellent English and his cultural familiarity with the United States and Britain. Those traits made him especially dangerous, counterterrorism officials feared, and he flaunted them.
Family Ties to Yemen
Mr. Awlaki's American accent was misleading: born in New Mexico when his father was studying agriculture there, he had lived in the country until the age of 7. But he had spent his adolescence in Yemen, where memorizing the Koran was a matter of course for an educated young man, and women were largely excluded from public life.
After studying Islam in Yemen, Mr. Awlaki also pursued an American education, earning a bachelor's degree in civil engineering from Colorado State University and a master's in education at San Diego State.
His father, Nasser, was a prominent figure who would serve as agriculture minister and chancellor of two universities and who was close to President Ali Abdullah Saleh, the country's authoritarian leader. Anwar was sent to Azal Modern School, among the country's most prestigious private schools.
He studied civil engineering in Colorado in preparation for the kind of technocratic career his father had pursued. Mr. Awlaki, a fan of Dickens, would later compare Thomas Gradgrind, the notoriously utilitarian headmaster in "Hard Times," "to some Muslim parents who are programmed to think that only medicine or engineering are worthy professions for their children," perhaps hinting at his own experience.
Some family acquaintances say tension arose between Anwar and his father over career choices. But in 1994, Mr. Awlaki married a cousin from Yemen, left behind engineering and took a part-time job as imam at the Denver Islamic Society.
Violence as Religious Duty
Mr. Awlaki had never been accused of planting explosives himself, but terrorism experts believe his persuasive endorsement of violence as a religious duty, in colloquial, American-accented English, helped push a series of Western Muslims into terrorism.
The F.B.I. had first taken an interest in Mr. Awlaki in 1999, concerned about brushes with militants that to this day remain difficult to interpret. In 1998 and 1999, he was a vice president of a small Islamic charity that an F.B.I. agent later testified was "a front organization to funnel money to terrorists." He had been visited by Ziyad Khaleel, a Qaeda operative who purchased a battery for Osama bin Laden's satellite phone, as well as by an associate of Omar Abdel Rahman, the so-called Blind Sheik, who was serving a life sentence for plotting to blow up New York landmarks.
Still more disturbing were Mr. Awlaki's links to two future Sept. 11 hijackers, Khalid al-Midhar and Nawaq Alhazmi. They prayed at his San Diego mosque and were seen in long conferences with the cleric. Mr. Alhazmi would follow the imam to his new mosque in Virginia, and 9/11 investigators would call Mr. Awlaki Mr. Alhazmi's "spiritual adviser."
The F.B.I., whose agents interviewed Mr. Awlaki four times in the days after the Sept. 11 attacks, concluded that his contacts with the hijackers and other radicals were random, the inevitable consequence of living in the small world of Islam in America. But records of the 9/11 commission at the National Archives make clear that not all investigators agreed.
Concerns later focused on Mr. Awlaki's influence via his Web site, his Facebook page and many booklets and CDs carrying his message, including a text called "44 Ways to Support Jihad." Mr. Awlaki's current site, www.anwar-alawlaki.com, went offline after he was linked to Major Hasan, apparently because a series of Web hosting companies took it down.
He left the United States in 2002 for London, where he addressed a rapt audience of young Muslims.
Unable to support himself, he returned to Yemen, where he spent 18 months in prison for intervening in a tribal dispute. He publicly blamed the United States for pressuring Yemeni authorities to keep him locked up and said he was questioned by F.B.I. agents there. After his release, in December 2007, his message became even more overtly supportive of violence.
In January 2010, Mr. Awlaki acknowledged for the first time that he met with Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab, the suspect in the Dec. 25 airliner bomb plot, though he denied any role in the attack, according to a Yemeni journalist. Mr. Awlaki said he had "communications" with the Nigerian suspect in Yemen in the fall of 2009, according to the journalist, Abdulelah Hider Sha'ea.
From his hideout, Mr. Awlaki continued to send out the occasional video message, relying more on the hundreds of audio and video clips that his followers posted to the Web, a mix of religious stories and incitement, awaiting the curious and the troubled.
Mr. Awlaki broke his silence on the uprisings in the Arab world in March 2011, claiming that Islamist extremists had gleefully watched the success of protest movements against governments they had long despised. His four-page essay, titled “The Tsunami of Change,” countered the common view among Western analysts that the terrorist network looks irrelevant at a time of unprecedented change in the modern Middle East.
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