Free Republic

Al-Qaida had extensive contacts with Iran's Ministry of Intelligence and Security, as well as with an elite military unit which helped the terrorists train and plot attacks against Americans, according to a former intelligence officer who recently fled Iran. Hamid Reza Zakeri, a former inspector and director of Iran's Revolutionary Guards and Ministry of Intelligence, or MOIS, member said models of the World Trade Center, the White House, Pentagon and other United States government buildings "were in our headquarters." In an explosive interview with a London-based Arabic newspaper last week, Zakeri stated that al-Qaida leader and Egyptian terrorist Ayman al-Zawahiri,...

This is breaking news: Ayman al-Zawahiri has officially been named ‘emir’ of Al Qaeda. This makes him the successor of Obama bin Laden, who was taken out by a team of Navy Seals earlier this month. Dutch newspaper De Telegraaf reports that it has read classified documents from the Dutch secret intelligence organization (AIVD). According to the documents, Al-Zawahiri was appointed as Al Qaeda’s new leader during a meeting on May 9, a week after the death of OBL. “On May 9, the leadership of Al Qaeda elected Al-Zawahiri during a meeting in the tribal areas, between Afghanistan and Pakistan”,...

Bin Laden's son running al-Qaeda in Afghanistan: report - NICOSIA, July 29: Osama bin Laden's eldest son is leading al-Qaeda forces in Afghanistan, intensifying speculation that the world's most wanted man is dead or incapacitated, a news report said today. The London-based Arabic daily Asharq Awsat reported Saad bin Laden is now running the show in Afghanistan, according to captured al-Qaeda and Taliban fighters. The report said Saad took charge as al-Qaeda's commander after the United States-led bombing campaign forced the group's withdrawal from bases in Afghanistan. Numerous reports have suggested Osama bin Laden was either killed or wounded in...

When Osama bin Laden was banished from Sudan in 1996, he left the country in a rented Soviet jet — an aged and antique Tupolev flown by a Russian pilot he did not trust. With him were a few bodyguards, his military commander, Saif al-Adel, and two sons named Sa’ad and Omar — both young men in their late teens. Although it was the corrupt Islamic government of Sudan that had robbed Osama bin Laden of much of his vast personal wealth, he blamed America for his misfortunes, according to Pulitzer Prize-winner Lawrence Wright. “He held America responsible for the...

A Michigan referee of an adult-league soccer match died Tuesday, two days after being punched in the head by a player, authorities said. John Bieniewicz, 44, died at Detroit Receiving Hospital from injuries suffered in what police said was an unprovoked attack. The blow left the victim unconscious and not breathing on the field, Livonia Police Chief Curtis Caid said. After the attack, the player fled the field and waved his middle finger at the crowd. Bieniewicz was in critical condition when he reached the hospital and was pronounced dead Tuesday morning.

A video uploaded to Youtube by an Arab-language user called GazaTube claims to show security camera footage documenting the IAF strike that targeted an Islamic Jihad terrorist in Gaza earlier Sunday. The video appears to show a relatively small explosion, possibly by a missile that had pinpointed its target. A bus that had been driving nearby was also damaged – and, apparently, a donkey was badly hurt as well. The terrorist has been identified as Ahmed Sa’ad, who was seriously injured and taken to a hospital. Video http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Uq8j9_wzErA Sa'ad had been riding a motorbike when he was hit by a...

SNIPPET: "Saad Gaya, a 21-year old, admitted Monday that he was part of an al-Qaeda-inspired plot to build fertilizer-based truck bombs and explode them in downtown Toronto." SNIPPET: "With Mr. Gaya, Mr. Khalid, and Mr. Dirie having pleaded guilty in recent weeks, only seven adult accused are headed to trial at this point. More pleas are possible."

Osama bin Laden's son may have been killed by a U.S. missile strike in Pakistan earlier this year, it has emerged. Sa'ad bin Laden was a prominent figure in the relationship between Iran and the al Qaeda terror network. He was held under house arrest in the country for a number of years and fled to Pakistan after being released, US intelligence officials said. A missile fired from an American drone aircraft is believed to have killed him sometime this year, a counter-terrorism official told US National Public Radio. America's intelligence agencies were '80 to 85 per cent' certain Sa'ad...

NPR.org, July 22, 2009 · U.S. officials believe Saad bin Laden — a son of Osama bin Laden — has been killed by an American missile in Pakistan. Saad bin Laden reportedly spent years under house arrest in Iran before traveling last year to Pakistan, according to former National Intelligence Director Mike McConnell. It's believed he was killed by Hellfire missiles fired from a U.S. Predator drone sometime this year. A senior U.S. counterterrorism official tells NPR that without a body to conduct DNA tests on, it's hard to be completely sure. But he characterized U.S. spy agencies as being...

Per Fox News

U.S. officials believe Usama bin Laden's son, Saad bin Laden, was killed in a U.S. airstrike in Pakistan. Sources confirmed to FOX News late Wednesday that officials believe the younger bin Laden was killed by hellfire missiles from a U.S. Predator drone strike earlier this year. The death was first reported by National Public Radio. National Intelligence Director Mike McConnell told NPR that Saad bin Laden reportedly traveled to Pakistan last year after spending several years under house arrest in Iran.

U.S. officials believe Saad bin Laden — a son of Osama bin Laden — has been killed by an American missile in Pakistan. Saad bin Laden reportedly spent years under house arrest in Iran before traveling last year to Pakistan, according to former National Intelligence Director Mike McConnell. It's believed he was killed by Hellfire missiles fired from a U.S. Predator drone sometime this year.

Osama bin Laden's third eldest son, an al Qaeda operative, is no longer under arrest in Iran and is likely in Pakistan, the top U.S. spymaster said Friday. The release or escape of Mr. bin Laden's son, Saad bin Laden, suggests possible collaboration between Iran and al Qaeda and the potential that Saad bin Laden is a go-between. Al Qaeda has been regrouping in Pakistan after the U.S. forced the group out of its base in Afghanistan, and Osama bin Laden is thought to be hiding there. Saad bin Laden "has left Iran," said Director of National Intelligence Mike McConnell...

IRAN SENDS BIN LADEN'S SON TO LEBANON ABU DHABI [MENL] -- Iran was said to have sent the son of Al Qaida chief Osama Bin Laden to Lebanon. Islamic sources said Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps has released Bin Laden's son, Saad. The sources said IRGC released the 27-year-old Saad and sent him to organize cells in Lebanon. "We have been hearing reports that Saad is no longer under house arrest and is now in Syria waiting to enter Lebanon," a source said. The UAE-based Elaph news agency reported that Iran sent Saad to the Syrian-Lebanese border to build cells...

Tehran, Aug. 13: One of Osama bin Laden’s sons, Saad, together with a number of top Al Qaeda commanders, including Seif al Adel, are hiding in Iran and are not in Syria as reported by several Western papers this week, a well informed source said. The source, a top Iranian intelligence official until a few months ago, said Al Qaeda and members of Iran’s powerful Revolutionary Guard, the Pasdaran, are negotiating coordinated actions against the United States and Israel. The Al Qaeda members had been living for the past four years in a neighbourhood in northern Tehran under the surveillance...

A son of Osama bin Laden has gone from Iran to Lebanon with the mission to organize terror attacks against Israel, it was reported yesterday. Saad bin Laden, 27, one of the terror mastermind's eldest sons, was released by the Iranian Revolutionary Guard last Friday, according to the German daily Die Welt. "From the Lebanese border, he has the task of building Islamist terror cells and preparing them to fight with Hezbollah," the paper said, quoting intelligence sources. "Apparently, Tehran is counting on recruiting Lebanese refugees in Syria for the fight against Israel, using bin Laden's help," it added. The...

August 3, 2006 -- A son of Osama bin Laden has gone from Iran to Lebanon with the mission to organize terror attacks against Israel, it was reported yesterday. Saad bin Laden, 27, one of the terror mastermind's eldest sons, was released by the Iranian Revolutionary Guard last Friday, according to the German daily Die Welt. "From the Lebanese border, he has the task of building Islamist terror cells and preparing them to fight with Hezbollah," the paper said, quoting intelligence sources. "Apparently, Tehran is counting on recruiting Lebanese refugees in Syria for the fight against Israel, using bin Laden's...

A son of Osama bin Laden has gone from Iran to Lebanon with the mission to organize terror attacks against Israel, it was reported yesterday. Saad bin Laden, 27, one of the terror mastermind's eldest sons, was released by the Iranian Revolutionary Guard last Friday, according to the German daily Die Welt. "From the Lebanese border, he has the task of building Islamist terror cells and preparing them to fight with Hezbollah," the paper said, quoting intelligence sources. "Apparently, Tehran is counting on recruiting Lebanese refugees in Syria for the fight against Israel, using bin Laden's help," it added. The...

BERLIN (Reuters) - Iran has freed a son of al Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden from house arrest, a German newspaper reported on Wednesday. Die Welt said the Iranian Revolutionary Guard released Saad bin Laden on July 28 with the aim of sending him to the Syria-Lebanon border. It linked the reported move to the outbreak of war between Israel and Lebanese-based Hizbollah.

Any question regarding cooperation between Iran and al-Qaeda should be answered by news that Iran has ‘freed’ Usama bin Laden’s son, Sa’ad bin Laden, in order to get an al-Qaeda foothold from Syria and project it against Israel. The degree to which Usama bin Laden’s son was ‘freed’ on July 28 is directly related to the degree to which he was imprisoned. It should likely be interpreted as a deployment, not a release. According to the German Die Welt article, written by Bruno Schirra, “From the Lebanese border, he has the task of building Islamist terror cells and preparing them...