http://www.usatoday.com/news/world/2003-04-03-alqaeda-usat_x.htm Fugitive said to be al-Qaeda pilot
By Kevin Johnson and Toni Locy, USA TODAY
WASHINGTON — U.S. authorities believe that a former South Florida resident who is the subject of a worldwide manhunt is a licensed pilot with training in explosives and ties to top al-Qaeda leaders.
Authorities also believe that Adnan El Shukrijumah, known within al-Qaeda as "Ja'far the Pilot," was an acquaintance overseas of Jose Padilla, a former Chicago-area gang member who was arrested last year while allegedly plotting to acquire materials for possible use in a "dirty bomb" attack. A dirty bomb uses conventional explosives to spread radioactive material.
The interrogation of al-Qaeda operations chief Khalid Shaikh Mohammed, the mastermind of the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks, also has helped authorities develop a picture of El Shukrijumah as a well-connected operative with a range of skills that match the terrorist group's continuing interest in staging attacks with planes.
El Shukrijumah has six aliases and is believed to have received his pilot's training abroad, the counterterrorism official said. Authorities also believe El Shukrijumah may have attended an al-Qaeda training camp in Afghanistan.
"What we are concerned about with (El Shukrijumah) is what targets would he be interested in hitting domestically," the official said. "We know al-Qaeda has discussed hitting soft targets."
Information gathered since Mohammed's arrest has intensified investigators' interest in El Shukrijumah. He is described as a slightly built Saudi national who has traveled extensively in the USA, speaks flawless English and has a radical, fundamentalist view of Islam.
Authorities have described El Shukrijumah as a suspected operative with managerial skills similar to those of Mohamed Atta, the lead hijacker in the Sept. 11 attacks.
"I believe Ja'far is a threat to this country," the counterterrorism official said.
Officials say they believe that El Shukrijumah left the USA in the weeks before the Sept. 11 attacks, and that he is hiding overseas. He is believed to hold passports from Saudi Arabia, Canada, Trinidad and Guyana.