The Return of al Andalus

One of the geographical locations desired for bin laden and al queda is Andalus. Or the Iberian Pennisula.

This fact bounced through my feeble mind as I read about the terror plot to attack French, Portuguese, Spanish and German metro systems. By the grace of Allah, Buddha and the player to be named later, this was discovered and stopped.

The modern day Spain/Portugal/Andorra was under Islamic control from 711 to 1492. This is another element of radical Islamic control of Europe. This would provide a restored sense of pride and strategic control of the Straight of Gibraltar

Some background:

Al Andalus
(or Al-Andalus; AlAndalus, pronounced 'al-an-da-loose') This is the name given to Spain by the Moors who conquered most of the Iberian Peninsula, beginning in 711 AD and lasting until 1492. The origins of the name remain unclear to this day. The most common interpretation is that it derives in some way from the Vandals who controlled Iberia before the arrival of the Moors or from their name for the lands they inhabited. The Moors' Al-Andalus encompassed all of the Iberian Peninsula except for the extreme north-west. As their territory shrank over the centuries, the name was retained and the last area of Moorish occupation became Andalucía. We offer for your enjoyment the following legend: According to Moslem legend, when Allah was creating the earth and dealing out good and bad, each place was given five wishes. The land of Al-Andalus asked for a clear sky, a beautiful sea full of fishes, ripe fruit and fair women. All these were granted, but a fifth wish ? for good government ? was not granted because to have done so would have created heaven on earth.

The cowardly attacks on Madrid on 3/10 were two-fold, get Spain out of Iraq and re-establish Al Andalus. The first was successful as the Spaniards ran from Iraq. Alas, the Spanish failed to understand al-queada is a patient foe who is willing to gut it out. As for the second, I hope the Spanish have the tenacity as they have with the Basque nationals to withstand their attacks.
Some more facts from the Jerusalem Center for Public Affairs:

Large parts of the Iberian Peninsula were under Islamic rule from 711 until 1492, with the final eviction of the Moors from what they called al-Andalus, and the memory of Islamic rule in Spain has become increasingly part of the discourse in radical Islam.

Osama bin Laden has written: "We request of Allah...that the [Islamic] nation should regain its honor and prestige, should raise again the unique flag of Allah on all stolen Islamic land, from Palestine to Andalus." Bin Laden's mentor, Abdullah Azzam, established that the Islamic obligation to wage jihad in order to recover lost Islamic territories applies to Andalusia.

Sheikh Yusuf Qaradawi, the spiritual head of the Muslim Brotherhood, has written that while Islam was twice evicted from Europe - from al-Andalus and from Greece - it is now in the process of returning.

A children's magazine published by Hamas, the Palestinian branch of the Muslim Brotherhood, called on Palestinian children to restore the city of Seville to Islamic rule as well as the rest of what was once Islamic Spain.