If Iraq had nothing to do with Al Qaeda, why did Al Qaeda bomb Spain to get their troops out Iraq? This is certainly a worthwhile point. I'll post two key responses to it:
1. I would have had no problem believing that there was a link between al-Qaeda and Iraq, but I am aware of no evidence to this point that would link the two. In fact, this administration has gone out of its way to make the point today that there is no connection between the two.
2. To this day, nobody outside the intelligence communities in Spain and other Western countries knows for sure what the Madrid bombing was all about. The incident certainly didn't bear any resemblance to a typical al-Qaeda attack -- and was carried out by people from an Islamic country (Morrocco) that already has some kind of dispute with Spain that has nothing to do with al-Qaeda. Anyone who speaks Arabic can pick up a phone and credibly claim responsibility for an attack of that sort.
Thanks for the great reply. I'm unable to find your source for the Administration saying there's no Al Qaeda link though. Please post a URL if you have one, I'd like to read that.
As far as evidence linking Al Qaeda to the Spain bombings, the Al Qaeda link to the Madrid bombing was reinforced today:
http://www.iht.com/articles/517862.html Also, from Newsmax: "Al-Zarqawi ... has been linked to a series of terrorist plots, including the attack in Madrid last month, the bombing of the U.N. compound in Baghdad last summer, and the 2002 killing of an American diplomat in Jordan." --
http://www.newsmax.com/archives/ic/2004/4/27/164917.shtml "Excerpts from the WMD conspirator's confession broadcast by ABC's "Nightline" late Monday show that the WMD plot was planned and trained for in Iraq more than a year before the U.S. invasion, with the terror suspect admitting, "After the fall of Afghanistan, I met Zarqawi again in Iraq.""
I've yet to hear any solid denials that Al Qaeda was involved in the Madrid bombing, and people have confessed to Al Qaeda's involvement through arrests or police shoot-outs (bombings) in Spain. Why wouldn't they say something if they weren't involved?