In 1939, the official party line of the left was that the National Socialists and Italian Fascists were fellow comrades in the socialist revolution. The liberal press led by New York Times described Moscow's policy as "middle of the road" (Sept. 4, 1939 - Page 1) - even as Moscow's empire extended into Poland and then north to Finland. The "German High Command" were led by 'Herr Hitler' to "occupy" France. Later, the NYT would call them 'Nazi invaders' when they entered Russia.
Ever since the German invasion of Russia, the left has followed Stalin's spin doctors in reclassifying the fascists as right wing counter-revolutionaries.
Not even the tiniest evidence to back that suggestion was ever found
CIA can confirm two Atta visits to Prague--in Dec. 1994 and in June 2000; data surrounding the other two--on 26 Oct 1999 and 9 April 2001--is complicated and sometimes contradictory and CIA and FBI cannot confirm Atta met with the IIS. Czech Interior Minister Stanislav Gross continues to stand by his information.
It's not just Gross who stands by the information. Five high-ranking members of the Czech government have publicly confirmed meetings between Atta and al Ani. The meeting that has gotten the most press attention--April 9, 2001--is also the most widely disputed. Even some of the most hawkish Bush administration officials are privately skeptical that Atta met al Ani on that occasion. They believe that reports of the alleged meeting, said to have taken place in public, outside the headquarters of the U.S.-financed Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, suggest a level of sloppiness that doesn't fit the pattern of previous high-level Iraq-al Qaeda contacts.
Whether or not that specific meeting occurred, the report by Czech counterintelligence that al Ani ordered the Iraqi Intelligence Service officer to provide IIS funds to Atta might help explain the lead hijacker's determination to reach Prague, despite significant obstacles, in the spring 2000. (Note that the report stops short of confirming that the funds were transferred. It claims only that the IIS officer requested the transfer.) Recall that Atta flew to Prague from Germany on May 30, 2000, but was denied entry because he did not have a valid visa. Rather than simply return to Germany and fly directly to the United States, his ultimate destination, Atta took pains to get to Prague. After he was refused entry the first time, he traveled back to Germany, obtained the proper paperwork, and caught a bus back to Prague. He left for the United States the day after arriving in Prague for the second time.
Weekly Standard - Memo from Undersecretary of Defense for Policy Douglas J. Feith
See also:
Abu Nidal, September 11 and Saddam: The terrorist network may be closer knit than we think