Group claims responsibility for murder of US diplo

And it wasn't the Sun City Music Makers.

A group calling itself the Partisans of Monotheism in Sudan claimed responsibility Friday for the shooting death of an American diplomat and his driver early New Year's Day.

"The soldiers of monotheism carried out their operation in killing the U.S. diplomat John Micahel Granville and his Sudanese driver, who sold his faith for nothing in this earthly life, ... in Riyadh neighborhood east of Khartoum," the group said in a statement posted in Arabic and English on several Islamist Web sites. The group misspelled Granville's middle name, which is Michael. The Web sites reported the group, also called Ansar Al-Tawhid, is new.

CNN cannot independently verify the authenticity of the statement or the legitimacy of the group. The State Department was unaware of the claim, spokesman Sean McCormack said Friday, adding that the investigation into the deaths is in the initial stages.

Global Infidelilty. There's a new one for you.

"Here is the global infidelity harming the Nation of Islam with collaboration with the people of division and hypocrisy in order to push the people away from the path of God and to humiliate the men and violate the honor of the Muslim woman and violate the honors of Muslims in order to raise the banner of the cross above the land of Sudan, but the soldiers of monotheism swore to their God not to give in to this earthly life except their faith," Friday's statement began.

"We ask God to consider this act blessed to his generous being and we ask [the] almighty to please the hearts of the believers and please our Mujahedeen brethrens all over the lands of the Muslims," it said.

It was a "street argument" nothing more said the Sudanese Foreign Ministry back when it all went down. I'll guess I'll just have to wait and see what this guy comes up with about this Muslim claim of responsibility by the "Partisans of Mononucleotides or whatever the freaks are calling themselves. (There's a catchy name for you. You gotta wonder just who is making this stuff up over that at AQHQ, no? Speaking of, has anybody heard from Adam Gadahn recently?)

Spokesman Ali As Sadeq said the streets of the city were packed with cars leaving a New Year's celebration, and a dispute broke out between people in two cars, one of which was carrying foreigners. The argument escalated, and a Sudanese fired on the car carrying the foreigners, he said.

I'm not expecting much from Mr. As-Sadeq. Not if he is the same Ali As Sadeq calling for the release of some terror scumbag named Sami Al Hajj from Gitmo.

The Government ahs (sic) called on the American Administration to set free the Sudanese national, Sami Al Hajj, who has been in detention IN the Guantanamo Bay prison for years without trial or specific charges directed against him. In a memorandum to the American administration, handed to the American Embassy in Khartoum, the Sudanese Government has confirmed its readiness to receive its subject, Sami, upon his release. The official Spokesman for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, ambassador Ali Al Sadeq, pointed out in a statement to the Sudan News Agency that the memorandum has explained that Sami has not been known for any fundamentalist positions and that in case he is released he would pose no threat to the American security. He said three Sudanese subjects had been released earlier and have posed no threats at the internal and external levels.

Ri-i-i-ight.

(Curious about Sami al Hajj now? I was. The wICKipedia account of Captive 345 as Mr. Hajj is known at Camp Gitmo can be found here. Here's a juicy bit...)

Al Hajj was captured in Pakistan, on December 15, 2001. He was on his way to work in Afghanistan as a cameraman for Al Jazeera and had a legitimate visa. He is being held as an "enemy combatant" and is currently the only journalist to be held in Guantanamo. Since going on a hunger strike January 7, 2007 he has lost over 55 pounds and is in a questionable state of health.

The response of his so-called "employer": (and I'm not buying it for one second.)

Al-Jazeera has responded that al-Hajj reported his passport stolen in Sudan in 1999, and that anything done with the passport after that date was likely the work of identity thieves.

Two words. Likely story.