Suspicious Men Arrested (Israeli movers in Tennessee)

Just stumbled upon this story and thought it deserved posting, because it's unlikely to be picked up by the wires. Could be nothing to it, but might bear watching. The "Israeli movers" reminded me of "Urban Moving Systems" and the White Van. (See, for instance, ABC News: "Were Israelis detained on September 11 Spies?" http://more.abcnews.go.com/sections/2020/dailynews/2020_whitevan_020621.html)

May 9

Two Israeli men have been arrested after evading Unicoi County, Tennessee sheriff`s deputies, driving eratically on a two lane highway, and littering. But, there may be more to their apprehension than that. Sheriff Kent Harris says the stories they`ve been telling investigators simply don`t add up.

The two men led authorities on a three-mile high speed chase in a rented moving truck. Lt. Ron Arnold says one of the men had a fake Florida i.d. and passports found didn`t add up. The FBI is now testing a bottle thrown from the truck during the pursuit. Robert White, the community member who found the bottle, says it had a powder and liquid in it. Sheriff Harris says the substance didn`t test for any type of drug, but did for a fuel source.

The driver, 23-year old Samuel Dahan and passenger 19-year old Almaliach Noar claim they were delivering furniture and were headed to Boston, Massachusetts.

Authorities found a couple of "learning to fly" business cards during a search of the moving truck. Both men are being held in seperate cells pending a bond hearing Monday morning. Investigators have determined both men are living in the United States legally.

http://www.wcyb.tv/newsread.asp?newsid=4381

who throw vials of powder and liquids out the windows during pursuit?

Nothing to see here folks, move along, move along !

Someone needs to clue them in that "drugs" and
"fuel sources" are not disjoint categories.

... stopped by a county sheriff's deputy near Cloudcroft, NM, sometime around April, 2003. When the sheriff asked to look in the truck, there was just a bunch of very bad furniture and about fifty boxes of documents.... The two claimed to be delivering the furniture to someplace in central Texas, and when told how far off course they were, changed their story, saying they were delivering the furniture for someone else to a location in Deming, NM. That's when they were arrested.

The two (and the evidence) in that instance were turned over to the INS and the story promptly died. It was only reported on by a small NM newspaper, and then only because the reporter was doing routine reporting of the sheriff's arrest logs. There was no follow-up report that I could find.

I remember that story, along with the report
of Israel announcing its intention to conduct
assassinations in the US.
Trying to find that story- I know I saved it.
BHN

But the one I am looking for was an actual
press release that revealed a statement
that Israel had announced that it fully intended
to carry out assassinations here in the US-
Sounds like the moving vans are the official
Israeli undercover military mode of transportation
for Israeli spys and militia living among us.
Think they were planning a hit on the Grand Ole Opry
to incite some vengeful patriotism from the Heartland?
I think if the dark underside of US/Israeli relations
ever comes to light, all hell is gonna break loose in
this country.
Sibel Edmunds...we need to know what you know.
BHN

But, there was a long story in the Las Vegas Sun this weekend on Israeli organized crime moving into the country, principally into LA and Las Vegas. The leaders are very visible, but the footsoldiers may not be.

But, given the locations where some of these Israelis have been arrested, they're not far from secure installations--Tennessee is, after all, where Oak Ridge is located. The two in NM were arrested not too far from Holloman AFB (location of the sole stealth fighter squadron), and Oregon or Washington state might indicate an interest in Hanford, or Boeing.

Curiouser and curiouser.

On edit, here's the story you were looking for, I believe:

http://www.whatreallyhappened.com/ARCHIVE/United%20Press%20International%20Israel%20to%20kill%20on%20U_S_,%20allies''%20soil.htm

Cheers.

My server wont allow me permission to
visit that link...
Would you be so kind as to cut and paste the
content in a PM? I know that is the one I am looking for.
Pretty please?
BHN

... check your PM in a couple of minutes.

Cheers.

BHN :hi:

... was the one in Ruidoso, NM. The story was also mentioned in a column by Wayne Madsen on CounterPunch, shortly after the news report.

I emailed Madsen about one small inaccuracy in his column, and when he emailed me back, said that there had been other stories about similar occurrences, one in Oregon or Washington state, I think.

One thing for sure--someone in the government has connected all the dots on this one, and they aren't talking....

had forgotten about that one.

Yes, never any follow up. Very odd, that.

Let's see, who benefits from the US sending in the Marines, Army, Air Force, Navy and National Guard to harness a sovereign nation rich in oil and two whomping big rivers? Hmmmmmmmm. Wonder if anyone benefiting from heavy US fire on Islamic peoples might want to assure the US population stays pissed off about anything....

I always thought there was more to the story about the September 11th
story where the Israeli people were photographing the WTC.
Maybe these are connected and we will find out some more.

That's a crackpot, anti-Semitic theory that has caused grief for Jews all over the world since 9/11. But if that is what you believe then please don't pretend to be intrigued by this new and "really weird" information. Just come right out and tell us you suspect Jewish involvement in 9/11. I would sleep better knowing that someone of your ilk is out in the open.

{Sorry but I couldn't find an appropriate smiley for this one ...}

Wanna come help me out on this thread? http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_topic&forum=104&topic_id=1566859

that Israeli intelligence had late word that something was supposed to happen at the WTC that morning. Doesn't mean they had anything to do with what did happen, or that they hadn't shared information with the US. Or maybe nothing happened and the story of Israelis at the WTC is a complete fabrication. It's hard to tell when, instead of a story being properly investigated, it gets shouted down with immediate accusations of anti-semitism. I'd really like to know who reported that story in the first place, whether there is any credible evidence at all, and if so, if that evidence could only be interpreted one way--I really have never seen anything about it that could be taken seriously. Is there a de-bunking that has been done? It would be good to point people to it if you know of one. But if you just accuse people of anti-semitism, they won't stop suspecting that Israel may have been involved, but they will stop talking in public. And that will leave only whispered talk of unproven allegations growing larger and larger behind closed doors. If I tell someone that the Protocols of the Elders Zion are a fabrication, and show them the true story of that lie, that is much better than if I accuse them of racism and try to shame them into silence. In the first instance, they will be glad that I showed them the truth so that they are not left looking foolish. In the second instance, all I have shown them is that I am as intolerant as I accused them of being, and they are left with the same belief as before.

the Fox reports on the Israeli spy ring, which Fox scrubbed from their website within weeks of airing, bowing to intense pressure.

Uncomfortable topic or not, Israel spies in the US. Deal with it.

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buncha shit - like a lot of what Fox telecasts.

they are in fact FAUX NEWS reports that were scrubbed shortly after being published. Now I'm sure you believe that FAUX NEWS is a trusted source for fair and balanced news. Go ahead and give it a read (no you will not go blind) then come back and talk to me!

:wtf:

most of the media do not lie outright on their own accord, not even FOX.
The problem with much of the media including FOX is that they uncritically report what pro-GovCorp interest groups put out, that they cooperate with those groups in not reporting certain undesired information (or put positive spin on such information), and that they cooperate with those groups in ephasizing and spinning certain desired information (if only in order to distract the public from important issues).

Don't you think that the very fact that FOX first published the linked article, and then retracted it, is rather suspicious?

Was FOX as bad in 2001 when that article was published, as it is these days? Today they probably wouldn't even start investigating such a story. Back then apparently they did, and then they changed their mind.

If there are actual lies in that article, it shouldn't be to hard to point out. If there aren't any lies in the article, then who cares who published it?

Many of them speak Arabic. I've heard that they did try to share some information but that our government wasn't interested. I suppose these Israelis might be spies, or they might be organized crime or they might be a few 007 wannabees on tourist visas. I don't think that would automatically implicate Israel or Mossad. I think what some people on this thread are upset about is the underlying assumption that Israel is secretly out to get us; an assumption that might be anti-Semitism or just everyday paranoia. I spend a lot more time worrying about whether Bush* has the best interests of America at heart (he doesn't) and less about whether Israel does.

that all nations spy on all other nations. If a nation isn't being spied on, it means that nation is considered too unimportant to world events to matter. Surely there are US spies in Israel, too. And if there aren't, then there should be. There's nothing sinister in that--it's just how nations check up on the veracity of what they are officially told.

Some spying. This who thread is bizarre and worth a laugh if it wasn't the meanness of intent.

Israelis are typically bad drivers, and often stray over the white line. A three mile high speed chase? You gotta be kidding. At high speeds three miles takes less than five minutes. So they had the music on and didn't notice the cops. They threw an empty bottle of shoe polish out the window not even knowing that they were being observed. And all this in the state of Tennessee.

Does that make them spies? Maybe they were chasing down some of those diplomats to assassinate. They usually live in Tennessee.

It is the most likely scenario. Doesn't mean the others can be ruled out.

Israelis are typically bad drivers

Really? I have only met a few Israelis over here (mostly students) so I wouldn't know.

Maybe they were chasing down some of those diplomats to assassinate.

Of course Mossad is not looking to assassinate diplomats. OTOH they should be trying to assassinate Hamas fundraisers and Neo-Nazis. If they're not, what are they for?

Mossad has hired incompetent agents before. Two were captured trying to assassinate Khaled Meshaal a couple of years ago. http://www.cnn.com/WORLD/9710/13/israel.hamas/

I don't know if the Israelis in the article are Mossad or not. Who knows? Israel is not out to get the USA, as someone suggested, but they are capable of doing anything to keep the money flowing, as they should be.

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Remember the story about the "White Van"? Why would a group of Israelies be cheering and taking pictures of the WTC attack if they weren't involved in it?

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It would be foolish to discount their complicity before one second
of investigation has been done.

Also remember during the Camp David peace talks when the Bush advisors told the Israeli delegation to "be ready to walk out" of the meeting?

Why would they do this unless they had a plan?

Came pretty much right on time.

The strange case of the Israeli movers detained on 9/11 is fact. It is also reported that the FBI stated at least 2 of the men were connected with the Mossad. As for why they were videotaping the distruction of the world trade center and alegedly cherring, that is still open to conjecture.

Imagine if a group of american "tourists", some with ties to the CIA were found in Tel Aviv taping and cheering a suicide bombing of an Israli bus. Wouldn't suspicion be natural... Imagine Israeli public outcry to such american calousness, and deservidly so.

But in the case of our "art student/movers" we recieve only silence and all questions are met with the usual retort of "anti-semetic".

'anti-Semitism.'

the closer you get to collective guilt, blood libel and advocating mass murder, the louder the cries of anti-Semitism. Or don't you believe that some cries of anti-Semitism might be provoked by lies?

anti-Semitism has nothing to do with it

... and then someone calls you on it.

This cause and effect relationship you've discovered is really mind blowing. :P

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Let's keep our eye on the ball.

hatred of jews.

Nor is pointing out the fact that there are several suspicious cases involving rental vans, suspicious cargo, suspicious stories, and Israelis.

so I guess I'm anti-Semitic, then--whatever. just calling it the way I see it: Israeli involvement in 9/11.

...upon itself, was the event being filmed by five Israelis who had been traveling together in a white van? Second question: Did one or more of these individuals admit to being part of Mossad?

Answers:

<http://abcnews.go.com/sections/2020/DailyNews/2020_whitevan_020621.html>

<http://members.fortunecity.com/911/september-eleven/israelis-arrested-9-11.htm>

<http://www.washingtonpost.com/ac2/wp-dyn?pagename=article&node=&contentId=A3879-2001Nov22¬Found=true>

<http://www.rumormillnews.com/cgi-bin/archive.cgi?read=21587>

<http://www.americanfreepress.net/03_17_02/120_Spies_Deported/120_spies_deported.html>

"Crackpot and anti-Semitic"? Why...because you say so? Because you personally have a knee-jerk reaction anytime a post mentions Israelis or Israel in a fashion YOU determine to be negative in any way?

I'm personally VERY far from ever being an anti-Semite, but it does bother me that information and/or facts of this sort cannot be discussed in an open forum. How do you respond to that?

To say that people from Israel might have been involved in the WTC tragedy?

That's just plain silly. People from the US could have been involved, too! Just because someone said that someone from Israel could have been involved does not, in any way, condemn an entire country.

I happened to watch the entire 9-11 debacle as I caught the breaking news as I was on the computer. It was reported for several hours that the Palestinians were taking credit for this. Later, it was reported that that was not the case. I am not convinced it was an act from Bin Laden's Al Queda either. The evidence is not forthcoming and we have not been privvy to any sure evidence. Remember this is the lying , secret fascist presidency--why should we believe anything they say, or imply or try to connect the wrong dots for us.

One could say it was anti-Muslim to blame the Taliban or Bin Laden also if one cares to think back and forth that way, yet a great majority of people believe it was the fundamentalist muslims who attacked us and they are certain it was them crazy, whacko, religious Arabs. --we have nothing but word of mouth, and circumstantial evidence, much of that an absurdity also.

I just remember reading that some people were detained taking photos of WTC and being held by the police. They happened to be Isreali.

I find it offensive beyond belief to be accused of anti-semitism for
repeating a news report and wondering about the outcome. It sounds to me that you are way too paranoid for your own good.

involvement, but no one accuses them of being Anti-Christian?

from belladonna

Cloudcroft chief stops Israelis with suspicious cargo
By Michael Shinabery
Staff Writer

CLOUDCROFT — That they were speeding through the school zone first got his attention.
That they had Israeli driver's licenses and expired passports made him suspicious.

Cloudcroft Police Chief Gene Green stopped the 2-ton van on Thursday, for speeding. Initially, Green thought the truck was commercial because of exterior markings. But when he found it was out of Chicago, he asked for documentation such as logs books and manifests.

"They said this is a U-Haul truck and handed me a rental agreement (for) in-town delivery only in Illinois, (which) had expired two days before," Green said.

He called for backup, and Otero County Sheriff's Deputy Billy Anders, who patrols the Sacramento Mountains, arrived, along with Capt. Norbert Sanchez and Det. Eddie Medrano.

"We got them out and started digging a little deeper," Green said, "got permission to search the truck. They claimed they were hauling furniture from Austin to Chicago."

When officers advised the men they were not exactly en route from one town to another, Green said the two men claimed they were Deming bound.

"But they couldn't give us an address in Deming they were going to," he said. "Once we got into the truck, they had some junk furniture I wouldn't have given to Goodwill."

Also inside the vehicle were, Green said, "50 boxes" they claimed was a "private" delivery, but the men insisted they had no "idea what was in them."

http://www.informationclearinghouse.info/article3484.htm
The following was filed 4/9/04 2:34pm

The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) terminated the Operational Emergency at the East Tennessee Technology Park at 1:00pm Sunday. Activities have moved into the recovery phase. Road blocks and evacuation of areas surrounding the East Tennessee Technology Park ordered by the Tennessee Emergency Management Agency on Saturday are also no longer in effect.

Personnel who work at East Tennessee Technology Park in Oak Ridge should report for work as usual Monday morning. The exception will be for personnel who work in the Powerhouse area.

Visual inspections conducted by DOE, TEMA, and TWRA identified no impact to areas surrounding the park, including waterways, as a result of yesterday's fire.

The following report was filed Saturday, May 8, 2004:

The nuclear facility, K-25 is in the park, but the Department of Energy confirms the fire in NOT at K-25. Toxco is located inside the city of Oak Ridge, but in Roane County.

The fire began just after 1:00pm Saturday afternoon. The Tennessee Emergency Management Authority says it's a sodium hydroxide fire.

A former expert with the Occupational Safety and Health Administration tells VOLUNTEER TV sodium hydroxide is NOT radioactive. At most, it can cause irritation to your eyes, nose and throat. Vapor clouds can spread to about a quarter mile from the reaction, but sodium hydroxide dries in the air and usually does not cause any serious injuries.

There is a precautionary evacuation underway in the region. TEMA is evacuating people who live within a half mile around the East Tennessee Technology Plant. A shelter has been set up by the Red Cross at the Roane State Community College in Harriman in the gym. Officials will be there to guide and assist anyone who needs help.
http://www.volunteertv.com/Global/story.asp?S=1851034&nav=4QcHMxPv

... of the story not posted above:

"At that point, the officers called for drug-sniffing and bomb-sniffing dogs. The men were turned over to the Immigration and Naturalization Service, and U- Haul recovered the truck.

"Contents of the boxes remain unknown, pending investigation."

My imagination must have been running away with me when I said the boxes contained documents.

Like you, it would be interesting to know the contents.

could be there will be extra attention focused on this to distract the public from the aging torture story. can't let the sheeple get bored for a second.

See this thread:

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_topic&forum=102&topic_id=542943

Why assume it has anything to do with terrorism or national security? Could just be ordinary criminal activity.

http://www.tricities.com/servlet/Satellite?pagename=TRI%2FMGArticle%2FTRI_BasicArticle&c=MGArticle&cid=1031775361945&path=/news/localnews&s=

<snip>

"Two Israeli's are being held in the Unicoi County Jail after a high speed chase.

Unicoi County authorities say 19-year old Almaliach Naor and 23-year old Samuel Dahan were arrested for reckeless driving, evading arrest and carrying false Florida driver's licenses. Both men are from Tel Aviv, Israel."

this is bizarre

...I think it depends on the circumstance of the individual tourist. When someone arrives on a tourist visa, they're given a form I-94 which records their arrival/departure date. If you want to visit longer, you can apply to extend your stay. These guys were in the U.S. legally, which meant they probably haven't overstayed their departure date. Violating the law or taking a job while on a tourist visa will usually get you kicked out though.

My ex-wife came to the U.S. from Nicaragua on a tourist visa in 1982. She never went back. Long story/short, she will take her oath of U.S. citizenship tonight at 8:00 in Miami. She plans to register to vote as a Democrat immediately following the ceremony. :thumbsup:

Detained Israelis to have court date today


http://johnsoncitypress.com/default.asp?SectionID=DETAIL&ID=34438

<snip>

Two Israeli nationals held here without bond in the Unicoi County Jail will appear in Unicoi County General Sessions Court this morning, Sheriff Kent Harris said Sunday.
Harris said the FBI ordered him to hold the duo without bond pending an investigation following a high speed chase through a remote area of Unicoi County Saturday afternoon in which the pair reportedly threw several items out of a rented Ryder truck, Harris said. “They ignored my blue lights for two and one half miles and they were traveling 20 miles an hour over posted speed limits,” he said.

One man’s passport had expired and the other had a fake identification card, the sheriff said. By Sunday morning, Harris had identified the man who refused to give his first name as Almaliach Naor who was in the company of Shnuel Daran, 22, both from Israel and living in Miami, Fla.

“Our investigation has revealed they were on their way to Boston, Massachusetts,” Harris said. “Also, a vial of an unknown substance appears to be some kind of accelerant because when shook, it becomes warm,” he said. “I enlisted Ed Herndon, our homeland security officer, and the Tennessee Highway Patrol to run (preliminary) tests and the FBI has asked we package the vial up and send it to a crime lab. which we are inthe process of doing.”

A combing of the confiscated Ryder Truck “produced an odor of a liquid on a side panel of some kind that we will also send to the lab,” Harris said. “Other than that, the truck was clean,” he said.

<snip>


“This is still a very suspicious case,” Harris said Sunday as he reiterated the comment he made Saturday concerning the matter: “We’re living in a very different time. We all need to be vigilant when it comes to homeland security.”

Israeli Terrorism Specialists To Help With DNC
Government To Pay $25 Million For Security

POSTED: 7:10 am EDT May 10, 2004

BOSTON -- Israeli suicide terrorism specialists and crowd-control tacticians will help to train Boston police officers in preparation for the Democratic National Convention in July, according to an operational plan obtained by the Boston Sunday Globe.

....

(despite headline, no further details about what "Israeli suicide terrorism specialists")

http://www.thebostonchannel.com/politics/3286686/detail.html

I just feel like making everyone paranoid:


Date 10 May 2004
A chemical fire at the Department of Energy`s former K25 plant in Oak Ridge, Tennessee caused a number of evacuations Saturday.
The emergency management agency there ordered a half mile evacuation within the radius of the East Tennessee Technology Park.
Officials say the chemical fire did not involve any radioactive material.
Officials say the fire will have to burn itself out.
The K25 plant used to be the uranium enrichment site for the weapons plant.
It`s currently being converted into an industrial park.

http://www.wcyb.tv/newsread.asp?newsid=4384

Hey, I'll play!

Did some Map Quest--but they would have been off the most direct route, maybe 30 miles from the rental place where they got picked up. Haven't seen which way they were headed or what time they rented the truck.

From: http://sundaygazettemail.com/section/APNews/News/ap0211r

William B. Lawson, one of the lawyers appointed to represent the Israeli men, said they rented a truck and were hauling furniture to Massachusetts and West Virginia, but accidentally got off the interstate and got lost.

...

Lawson said the vial contained a "fuel source,'' but he added that it hasn't been identified and authorities were treating it with caution.

Harris said the liquid in the 12-ounce plastic container was thick, like liquid drain cleaner. It will be sent to either East Tennessee State University or the FBI's crime lab in Knoxville to be tested.

....

based on new info from the link in:

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_mesg&forum=102&topic_id=543413&mesg_id=546469&page=

( http://johnsoncitypress.com/default.asp?SectionID=DETAIL&ID=34466 )

And now the truck is from Plantation, but they have a storage locker near where they were pulled over (14 miles away) in NC. According to that local paper, it's also on a different road than reported earlier.

So, who the hell knows wtf.

Another story:

http://cgi.citizen-times.com/cgi-bin/story/regional/54643

Harris said early Monday afternoon he was waiting on the results of tests on the liquid substance in the brown container. The bottle contained a "gooey liquid" and some sort of pellets. The bottle appeared as if it had once held pesticides of some sort, but the label was missing. Field tests done by officers turned up no evidence of drugs. "We don't know exactly what's in it yet," Harris said.

...

and:

The card read: "Learn how to fly" and "Fulfill your dream of flying" and listed the name and number of a Florida flight instructor.

...

The Florida flight instructor, Nissan Giat, said he met Naor at a moving company where the Israeli man works. Giat said he gave Naor one of his cards, but the man didn't express interest in flying lessons.

-------

A weird one, eh?

No telling what they may be up to. The war in Iraq is going badly for the Bush regime, time to call out the shadow government and its allies.

Sunday 09 May 2004, 22:23 Makka Time, 19:23 GMT

Sharon was scheduled to address a pro-Israeli advocacy group
Related:
Bush sings Sharon's praise
Bush endorses Sharon's Gaza plan

Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon has cancelled a visit to Washington in the wake of his party's rejection of a US-endorsed Gaza pullout.

"The prime minister has decided not to go to Washington. He will be having consultations here in Israel regarding the disengagement plan," his office said on Sunday, referring to the initiative voted down by the right-wing Likud party one week ago.

cancel plans to visit DC shortly before 911 too?

this should be one of the leading news stories. Just think if these people had been Syrian or Iranian.

Things are going so poorly that only another terra attack will save Chimp. If the Islamic terrorists won't cooperate then Chimp&Co have to turn to our friends to get things moving. So the Israelis will stage the must have attack as a favor.

--who else besides BushCo benefits from these "terrorist attacks"?? (as in having a whole oil pipeline aimed in their direction) Think real hard . . .

Location of the Democratic National Convention.

Construction of a pre-placed bomb/wmd (re:Chechnya)? Plan for revitalization terra attack while killing off the opposition?

Hope the Demos plan on keeping some of their key people off-site to form the nucleus for a future party.

extremely far-fetched idea.

As far fetched as attacking a US ship in international waters for 75 minutes? http://www.ussliberty.org /

As far fetched as the Mossad setting up fake Al Qaeda cells in the Occupied Territories. http://www.smh.com.au/articles/2002/12/07/1038950239070.html

Nothing the Likud party or its friends in Mossad could come up with would surprise me. Such an ugly combination of paranoia, Machiavellian scheming and "we are a special case" white supremacism.

I would hope they would refrain from faking terror attacks in the US. Nothing could be more damaging to world Jewry than such an atrocity. Even Mossad can stuff up.

Calling critics of Israel anti-semitic benefits noone, and plays into the hands of real anti-semites.

http://johnsoncitypress.com/default.asp?SectionID=DETAIL&ID=34466

<snip>

"Two Israeli nationals being held here without bond on a variety of charges placed over the weekend were appointed lawyers Monday by Unicoi County General Sessions Court Judge David Shultz."

<snip>

"At the request of Assistant District Attorney General Fred Lance, Shultz did not set bond at the brief morning hearing. However, he said he would consider the matter later Monday or today after the Israeli authorities were notified.

Harris said late Monday he was traveling to Mars Hill, N.C., to search a storage building the pair had rented from Triple A Storage, 1393 U.S. Highway 19. “We found a receipt in their truck, and we’ve received permission to inspect it,” Harris said. “One of the suspects will accompany us over there.”

Harris said upon further investigation, the Ryder truck was rented in Plantation, Fla., not Mars Hill, N.C., as previously thought. At the direction of the FBI, Harris said the vial has been sent to the director of Emergency Management for Tennessee in Sevierville. He said federal authorities had ruled out any federal charges, “unless the liquid in the vial is an illegal substance,” Harris said. State charges “are still intact,” he said."

MARS HILL - Federal agents investigating two Israeli men charged with eluding Tennessee authorities found only furniture in searching a storage unit in Madison County Monday, according to the Unicoi County, Tenn., sheriff.

~snip~

They got lost, big time," Lawson said. "It doesn't seem like they have anything to hide."

Harris said early Monday afternoon he was waiting on the results of tests on the liquid substance in the brown container. The bottle contained a "gooey liquid" and some sort of pellets. The bottle appeared as if it had once held pesticides of some sort, but the label was missing. Field tests done by officers turned up no evidence of drugs. "We don't know exactly what's in it yet," Harris said.

The men maintain the container did not come from the truck, according to Harris. The Ryder truck contained old furniture.

~snip~
more:http://cgi.citizen-times.com/cgi-bin/story/regional/54643

yesterday- cause of security concerns. Our local N.C. news broadcast said that the FBI checked the guys out and determined they found nothing suspicious and no reason for feds to detain them however, the local authorities in TN are concerned and still holding them.

http://cgi.citizen-times.com/cgi-bin/story/news/54610

some information that might be useful on this thread:

there are a plethora of scam moving companies that operate out of florida. some of them are owned by americans that employ young men from israel that visit the states after completing military obligations in their country. they have a really bad job - dealing with people who have been ripped off, who have lost and broken furniture and household goods, who have had their possessions held hostage... and the police are often called. a lot of what these moving companies do is illegal, no spying necessary. and, i'd imagine that at any given time, you could find a hundred or more u-hauls, ryder trucks, etc with 2 young israeli drivers that would prefer not to chat with the police, anywhere in the country.

Daniel Hopsicker, author of Barry and the Boys and Welcome to Terrorland: Mohammed Atta the the 9/11 Cover-up in Florida has published a new story about the moving van mystery:

The MadCowMorningNews has learned exclusively that the ‘learn to fly in Florida’ business card is that of Nissan Giat, also an Israeli military veteran, he said, as well as a free-lance flight instructor in the Miami area, working out of the Fort Lauderdale Executive Airport.

“These guys aren’t terrorists, they belong to the Israeli military,” he protested, in a telephone interview Monday night.


...The attorney said the men accidentally got off the Interstate and got lost while hauling furniture to Massachusetts and West Virginia. "They got lost, big time," Lawson said. "It doesn't seem like they have anything to hide."

County Sheriff Kent Harris wasn’t buying it.

“The furniture in the moving van was so old that its hard to see why anybody would want to move it anywhere,” he told us. “Also it was three miles before we could get them to pull over. Why would they flee?”

Also casting doubt on the Israeli attorney’s version of events was the Sheriff’s revelation that the men had rented a storage unit in nearby Mars Hill, North Carolina, seemingly contradicting the story of two foreigners wandering lost in America.

more:
http://www.madcowprod.com/index.html

http://cgi.citizen-times.com/cgi-bin/story/news/54694

<snip>

"A bottle that authorities say was tossed onto a Tennessee highway during a chase Saturday contained a latex stripper and an acid compound but didn't pose any threat of explosion, according to the FBI and authorities in Unicoi County.

"It's really no more than littering to be honest," said Thomas Browne, supervisor at the FBI's Johnson City, Tenn., office.

Two Israeli men arrested as a result of the chase remained jailed Tuesday afternoon. Immigration officials planned to hold them for a hearing because of a problem with their passports, said Unicoi County Sheriff Kent Harris. Harris said the men had tourist passports, but they were apparently working in the U.S. moving furniture."

<snip>

"An official from Immigration and Customs Enforcement could not be reached Tuesday to comment on the status of the men."

An important piece which debunks the debunkers:

http://archive.salon.com/news/feature/2002/05/07/students/

The extreme sensitivity of the Israeli art student story in government circles was made clear to this reporter when, in the midst of my inquiries at DEA and elsewhere, I was told by a source that some unknown party had checked my records and background. He proved it by mentioning a job I had briefly held many years ago that virtually no one outside my family knew about. Shortly after this, I received a call from an individual who identified himself only by the code name Stability. Stability said he was referred to me from "someone in Washington." That someone turned out to be a veteran D.C. correspondent who has close sources in the CIA and the FBI and who verified that Stability was a high-level intelligence agent who had been following the art student matter from the inside.

Stability was guarded in his initial conversation with me. He said that people in the intelligence committee were suspicious about my bona fides and raised the possibility that someone was "using" me. "Your name is known and has been known for quite a while," Stability said. "The problem is that you're going into a hornet's nest with this. It's a very difficult time in this particular area. This is a scenario where a lot of people are living a bunker mentality." He added, "There are a lot of people under a lot of pressure right now because there's a great effort to discredit the story, discredit the connections, prevent people from going any further . There are some very, very smart people who have taken a lot of heat on this -- have gone to what I would consider extraordinary risks to reach out. Quite frankly, there are a lot of patriots out there who'd like to remain alive. Typically, patriots are dead."

...

But to what end? What was the value? What was to be gained? "Unknown, unknown," Stability said. "You could be anywhere from D.C. to daylight on that one. Even on our side, you have to take all the stuff and draw it all out and clean out all the chaff. I will tell you that from those who are working ground zero of this case, it is a difficult puzzle to put together, and it is not complete by any means." Even the spooks are baffled; they have no answers.

...

Apparently, at least some agents in FBI remain quite concerned about the art student problem. According to several intelligence sources, including Stability, on Dec. 3, 2001, six separate FBI field offices simultaneously forwarded communiqués to FBI headquarters inquiring into the status of the investigation. The FBI agents wanted to have a "clarification" as to what was going on.