Page 76 - Encyclopedia Of Terrorism

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Arocena, Eduardo (1943– )———49

for the bombings of an abortion clinic and gay think he may have had an associate working with him
nightclub in Atlanta, Georgia. Examination of the in the anthrax hoax. He did manage to keep in contact
letters in these cases, however, led investigators to with many supporters of the antiabortion movement
believe that the suspect had a larger agenda than abor- by posting messages on the “Army of God” Web site.
tion and was more antigovernment and militia-like. Donald Spitz, who maintains the site, claims to not
These incidents were eventually linked to the highly know if anyone aided Waagner and expressed disap-
publicized Olympic Park bombing in 1996 and the pointment in his capture.
bombing of a Birmingham, Alabama, clinic in 1998.
See also ANTHRAX; ANTIABORTION MOVEMENT; ERIC
The suspect named in the case, Eric Rudolph, was
RUDOLPH
found to have links with followers of Christian
Identity—a racist, anti-Semitic, antiabortion, and anti-
gay ideology. Further Reading
Some experts theorize that it is becoming more Juergensmeyer, Mark. Terror in the Mind of God: The
common for antiabortion proponents to be taking a Global Rise of Religious Violence. Berkeley: University
militant antigovernment stance. Since the 1994 of California Press, 2001.
Freedom of Access to Clinic Entrances law, which Kifner, John. “The Nation; Finding a Common Foe, Fringe
made it illegal to obstruct access to reproductive Groups Join Forces.” New York Times, December 6,
health clinics, the number of clinic blockades and 1998.
Martz, Ron, and Kathy Scruggs. “Atlanta Bombings:
arrests decreased dramatically while violent abortion
Looking for Answers; Agents Skeptical of Letter’s
related-crimes increased.
Claims, Writer’s Identity; ‘Army of God’ Claim Is
Also in 1994, The Army of God Manual surfaced.
Doubtful, Could Be a Ruse.” Atlanta Journal and
Similar to one found a year earlier buried in the yard
Constitution, February 27, 1997.
of a woman convicted for the attempted murder of a Nifong, Christina. “Anti-abortion Violence Defines ‘Army
doctor, the manual outlines methods for causing dis- of God.’” Christian Science Monitor, February 4, 1998.
ruption at what it called “abortuaries.” It offers sug- Scruggs, Kathy, and Ron Martz. “Atlanta Bombings:
gestions on how to use the putrid-smelling butyric Looking for Answers; ‘Army of God’ Was Started by
acid to disrupt activities and encourages violent acts Texas Con Man.” Atlanta Journal and Constitution,
like cutting off the thumbs of doctors and firebombing February 25, 1997.
clinics. The manual became a focus of a federal grand
jury investigation into the possibility of a conspiracy.
Abortion rights activists testified that many of the Army of Mohammed. See
methods described in the book have been used to JAISH-E-MOHAMMED.
disrupt clinics throughout the country. Many vandals
tagged the letters “AOG” on abortion clinic walls.
That jury found no evidence, however, of a nation-
wide conspiracy. Army of the Righteous. See
The possibility of a conspiracy became evident LASHKAR-E-TAYYIBA.
again in the autumn of 2001. A spate of letters to repro-
ductive health clinics and professionals threatening
anthrax exposure was credited to the Army of God.
Clayton Lee Waagner, an escapee from an Illinois jail, AROCENA, EDUARDO (1943– )
who was arrested in December of that year, admitted to
mailing more than 500 anthrax hoax letters in two
waves, in late October and November. While he was Eduardo Arocena was the leader of the anti-
never charged with those crimes, he was sentenced to Communist Cuban terror group Omega 7, which
30 years in prison on firearms and robbery charges and carried out several attacks against Cuban government
for escaping from prison. The extent of Waagner’s fear officials in the late 1970s and early 1980s.
campaign while a fugitive from justice has made many Born in Cuba in 1943, in 1965 Arocena fled that
people, including some authorities, suspect that he was country as a stowaway on a cargo boat to Spain. He
receiving aid while on the run. Some authorities also later immigrated to the United States, working in