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Tuesday, August 08, 2006 

11 Egyptian Men Disappear, Authorities Worried More About PC Effects

(NY Post) August 8, 2006 -- Eleven Egyptian students who
were supposed to travel to a Montana university after flying to JFK
airport late last month disappeared in New York, spurring federal
authorities to issue a nationwide alert, officials said yesterday.
Here is the part where we practically vomit out Political Correctness:
Kolko said there is no reason to believe the missing students, all men around 20 years old, represent a threat.

At this point, all they have done is not show up for a scheduled
academic program, and their visas have been revoked," Kolko said.
"We do not know of any association with any terrorist or criminal groups. There is no threat associated with these men. We have simply asked law enforcement's assistance in locating them so that the FBI and ICE may interview them."
What planet are we on where 11 (count them: ELEVEN!) Arab men, all in their 20's suddenly go missing the minute they hit the ground, and they all happen to be from the same place, yet it's not a cause for concern? I think we can safely say that there is a great cause for suspicion that these guys are working towards an effort that would be adverse to the interests of most Americans. I might be wrong here, but if it walks like a duck, quacks like a duck, and looks like a duck....?

Here is the real kicker though:
[Montana State University Provost David Dooley] added, "We're very disappointed by this. It would be regrettable if the misadventures or irresponsibility of a number of students damaged these kinds of programs."
Well, I hope they don't blow something up and kill people with their "misadventures". The "damage to the programs" this might cause is, frankly, the least of my concerns.

UPDATE:
(AP) WASHINGTON - The last two of the 11 Egyptian exchange students who failed to show up at their college program were apprehended Sunday in Richmond, Va., customs officials said.

Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents arrested Mohamed Saleh Ahmed Maray, 20, and Mohamed Ibrahim Fouaad El Shenawy, 17, at an apartment building in Richmond on Sunday night. Virginia State Police and the Richmond Police helped locate the students.

Last Wednesday, one of the Egyptian students was arrested in Minneapolis and two were detained in Manville, N.J. On Thursday, two were arrested in Dundalk, Md., and one was arrested at O'Hare International Airport in Chicago. Three more were arrested Friday in Des Moines, Iowa.

The students were to attend a monthlong program at Montana State University in Bozeman, Mont. A group of 17 students arrived in New York on July 29. Six reported to Bozeman on time.

After Montana State repeatedly tried to contact the missing students, it notified
Homeland Security Department officials and registered the Egyptians as no-shows in a system to track foreign students developed after the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks.

None of the students is considered a terrorism risk.

Good job goes out to the FBI, INS, and other agencies able to make this happen so fast. I appreciate the fact that they insist no terrorism risks are involved, but if nothing else, conceder this a test run for if there were terrorism risks involved. I think they handled this with due diligence and efficiency.

3:06 AM |

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