SADDAM's ROLE IN 911

It's impossible to tell the story of the Battle of Britain, Guadalcanal, or D-Day without explaining World War II. Equally so, it's impossible to describe the defeat on 911 without explaining the rest of the hidden war between Saddam and the United States. Here's a little of what I've found. It's a lot to read, but I think it's important.

Please take note, that it is not beneficial for anyone in DC to acknowledge Iraq's invovlement in 911. For the Democrats, there's simply a lot more campaign money to be garnered from the anti-war crowd, and for the Republicans...well, let's just say that if Saddam's in 911 is explained to the American people and to the world, then Cheny, Powell, and President Bush's father would be liable for 911 as they didn't remove Saddam when they had the chance. Definately not something they want proven wrong about!

Finally, let's remember that to be a state-sponsor of terror, you don't have to have specifically planned and carried out the attack, but rather one must have sponsored or supported it, and of that....there can be little doubt that Iraq's official position was to support the attack (as seen in the multiple meetings, and the cooperation from various Iraqi embassy officials all along the way-from planning to getting the 911 plot leaders into the US).

"Between 1992 and 1995, Sudanese strongman Hassan al-Turabi set up a number of meetings between former Iraqi Intelligence Service (IIS) Deputy Director Faruq Hijazi and Ayman al-Zawahri, bin Laden's closest adviser. Other IIS-al Qaeda meetings occurred in Pakistan. Sometimes, al Qaeda members would visit Baghdad. " Iraq al Qaeda link comes in focus By Rowan Scarborough THE WASHINGTON TIMES

(NOTE: After Iran's 1979 Islamic Revolution, The Sudan was the second Islamic state to adopt the Sharia laws of Islam as a state laws. The Taliban followed in 1996....after Bin Laden was driven out of The Sudan, went to embattled Afghanistan, supported the Taliban and helped create their govt in the same light as that of the Sudan's. During the 1991 Gulf War, only the Sudan backed Iraq, and afterwards, Iraq created it's largest "diplomatic" office overseas in The Sudan. Sudan was also home to Bin Laden from 1992-after being kicked out of Saudi Arabia for speaking for that govt's violent overthrow. There, he and the Sudanese held bi-annual Islamic conferences that consisted of 3 days worth of radical preaching followed by 2 days of secret meetings. Terrorists, militants, and intel agents from Islamic nations all around the world attended these-particularly those from Iran and Iraq.)

"Intelligence officials told me that the agency also takes seriously reports that an Iraqi known as Abu Wa'el, whose real name is Saadoun Mahmoud Abdulatif al-Ani, is the liaison of Saddam's intelligence service to a radical Muslim group called Ansar al-Islam, which controls a small enclave in northern Iraq; the group is believed by American and Kurdish intelligence officials to be affiliated with Al Qaeda. I learned of another possible connection early last year, while I was interviewing Al Qaeda operatives in a Kurdish prison in Sulaimaniya. There, a man whom Kurdish intelligence officials identified as a captured Iraqi agent told me that in 1992 he served as a bodyguard to Ayman al-Zawahiri, bin Laden's deputy, when Zawahiri secretly visited Baghdad." The CIA and the Pentagon take another look at Al Qaeda and Iraq by JEFFREY GOLDBERG The New Yorker

1992 - Osama bin Laden made a proposal to his rivals in the pro-Iran Shiite terrorist organization Hizballah that they set aside their differences, so that they can cooperate in a common objective of killing United States troops stationed in Asia and Africa. [para from Inside Sudan by Douglass Petterson]

1992 - Bin Laden established legal businesses in Sudan, farms, a tannery, and a construction firm, to increase his available funds, and as fronts for al Qaeda camps he was organizing there. [para from Inside Sudan by Douglass Petterson]

The United States attacked the Zafaraniya manufacturing complex outside of Baghdad with cruise missiles, a move intended to reinforce the UN inspectors' demand for unconditional permission to fly into Iraq. An errant missile hit Baghdad's Rashid Hotel, where a conference of Islamic radicals was being held. The War Against America: A Study of Revenge by Laurie Mylroie (NOTE: Saddam Hussein-who was incredibly paranoid of assassination and had structured the entire regime to prevent such an act-had left the terrorist conference just before the missile hit. He dismissed the claims that it was an accident and assumed that it was an attempt on his life. Afterwards, he had a mosaic of President Bush put on the floor of the entrance to the hotel so that everyone who entered (usually foreigners) had to step on Bush’s face-a serious insult in that culture.)

6/10/92 [1993 WTC bomber ] Salameh makes the first of 40 phone calls to his uncle, Kadri Abu Bakr (a convicted terrorist who spent time in Israeli prison), in Baghdad, formerly no.2 in the PLO's Western Sector. His phone bills go from around $140 a month to $1400+ a month in June, and over $2500 in July! Given Iraq's totalitarian regime, the origin of the calls, and his uncle's past it is extremely likely that the Iraqi IIS was at the very least monitoring his calls and thus complacent in the 1993 WTC bombing. [The War Against America by Laurie Mylroie]

6/21/92 [1993 WTC bomber ] Abdual Rahman Yasin gets a US passport from the American embassy in Amman, Jordan. He'd been living in Baghdad, but had been born in the US. [The War Against America by Laurie Mylroie] [Author's note: after the 1993 WTC attack, the ringleaders (Yasin and Yousef) will escape to Iraq and Pakistan respectively.]

9/1/92 [1993 WTC bomber ] Ramsi Yousef (aka "Rashid the Iraqi") arrives in United States [The War Against America by Laurie Mylroie]

11/18/92 The first phone call related to purchasing the 1993 WTC bomb equipment appears on Ramsi Yousef's phone bill [The War Against America by Laurie Mylroie]

11/30/92 [1993 WTC bomber ] Salameh gets a storage locker to store the 1993 WTC bomb and bomb-making materials. [The War Against America by Laurie Mylroie]

12/1/92 [1993 WTC bomber ] Ramsi Yousef starts making phone calls to arrange his escape from the United States to Pakistan [The War Against America by Laurie Mylroie]

“[throughout the 1990's] References to procurement of false passports from Iraq and offers of safe haven previously have surfaced in CIA source reporting considered reliable. Intelligence reports to date have maintained that Iraqi support for al Qaeda usually involved providing training, obtaining passports, and offers of refuge. This report adds to that list by including weapons and money. This assistance would make sense in the aftermath of 9-11.” Feith memo

“[throughout the 1990's] Bin Laden met at least eight times with officers of Iraq's Special Security Organization, a secret police agency run by Saddam's son Qusay, and met with officials from Saddam's mukhabarat, its external intelligence service, according to intelligence made public by Secretary of State Colin Powell, who was speaking before the United Nations Security Council on February 6, 2003. “

"American intelligence believes that Al Qaeda and Saddam reached a non-aggression agreement in 1993, and that the relationship deepened further in the mid-nineteen-nineties, when an Al Qaeda operative - a native-born Iraqi who goes by the name Abu Abdullah al-Iraqi - was dispatched by bin Laden to ask the Iraqis for help in poison-gas training. Al-Iraqi's mission was successful, and an unknown number of trainers from an Iraqi secret-police organization called Unit 999 were dispatched to camps in Afghanistan to instruct Al Qaeda terrorists. (Training in hijacking techniques was also provided to foreign Islamist radicals inside Iraq, according to two Iraqi defectors quoted in a report in the Times in November of 2001.)" The parenthetic reference to a November 2001 NY Times article, which describes the Salman Pak terrorist training camp outside Baghdad, is notable. A ruling by a Federal Court against the Iraqi regime on behalf of two families of those who died on September 11, 2001 was based partially on that training.”

In 1993, the Iraqi Intelligence Service (IIS) directed and pursued an attempt to assassinate, through the use of a powerful car bomb, former U.S. President George Bush and the Emir of Kuwait. Kuwaiti authorities thwarted the terrorist plot and arrested 16 suspects, led by two Iraqi nationals.

Iraqi MiG-23 aircraft that fled to Iran in the Gulf War have allegedly been refitted by Iran for use by the Sudanese air force against the SPLA in South Sudan. Lt-Gen Abdel Rahman Said, former army deputy chief of staff and now leading the Sudanese opposition Armed Forces Legitimate Command, says Baghdad was a party to the deal, and that the MiGs - 'the only type of Iraqi plane that Sudan can maintain' would go back to Iraq after an unspecified period. He claims Iran has delivered "between 60 and 90 tanks" to Khartoum, as well as long-range howitzers, ammunition and lorries. [Inside Sudan by Douglass Petterson]

2/26/93 The Iraqis, who had the Third World's largest poison-gas operations prior to the Gulf War I, have perfected the technique of making hydrogen-cyanide gas, which the Nazis called Zyklon-B. In the hands of al Qaeda, this would be a fearsome weapon in an enclosed space -- like a suburban mall or subway station-this same form of cyanide was found in the 1993 WTC attack residue and in the seized bomb-making storage unit. It was also found in the Euphrates River by advancing US Marines South of Baghdad in 2003

2/26/93 [1993 WTC bomber ] Ramsi Yousef (aka "Rashid the Iraqi") flees the United States to Pakistan on a fake Pakistani passport with the name Abdul Basit (A Kuwaiti missing since the Iraqi invasion of Kuwait)

3/5/93 [1993 WTC bomber ] Abdul Rahman Yasin flees the United States for Iraq where he lives peacefully until his CBS interview years later. “U.S. forces recently discovered a cache of documents in Tikrit, Saddam’s hometown, which shows Iraq gave [al Qaeda member] Mr. [Abdul Rahman] Yasin both a house and a monthly salary.”

Kuwaiti Intelligence discovered an Iraqi IIS plot to assassinate former President George Bush during his April 1993 visit. [Author's note: in keeping with the tactic of a state-sponsor of terrorism, the attack was to have been carried out by terrorists not IIS operatives.]

“Sometime in early 1993, Bin Laden sent Mohammed Atef to Mogadishu, Somalia to train people how to bring down helicopters with RPG's as was done by the Mujahedeen in Afghanistan when they fought the Soviets.” Losing Bin Laden by Richard Miniter

"Osama bin Laden had dealings with Iraqi Intelligence as early as 1993 in Somalia. During that period, various militant Islamic groups, to include bin Laden and Iraqi intelligence and military operatives, were in Somalia to organize, train and mobilize radical factions within the Somali populace." Iraqs State Sponsorship of Osama bin Laden and the al Qaeda Terror Network Essay by Chris Farrell

(NOTE: Bin Laden claimed this, and it wasn't until late in the Clinton Administration that it was proven. Mohammed Atef-then AQ's military commander and #3 man-went to Somalia and trained warlords in the techniques developed in Afghanistan for bringing down helicopters with RPG's. The result was in fact that the now infamous Black Hawk Down battle came from Somalis trained by Al Queda...exactly as Bin Laden claimed.)

"Resistance started against the American invasion, because Muslims do not believe the U.S. allegations that they came to save the Somalis.A man with human feelings in his heart does not distinguish between a child killed in Palestine or in Lebanon, in Iraq or in Bosnia. So how can we believe your claims that you came to save our children in Somalia while you kill our children in all of those places? " -Osama Bin Laden Interview with Peter Arnett Late March 1997

"After a little resistance, The American troops left after achieving nothing. They left after claiming that they were the largest power on earth. They left after some resistance from powerless, poor, unarmed people whose only weapon is the belief in Allah The Almighty, and who do not fear the fabricated American media lies. We learned from those who fought there, that they were surprised to see the low spiritual morale of the American fighters in comparison with the experience they had with the Russian fighters. The Americans ran away from those fighters who fought and killed them, while the latter were still there. If the U.S. still thinks and brags that it still has this kind of power even after all these successive defeats in Vietnam, Beirut, Aden, and Somalia, then let them go back to those who are awaiting its return. " -Osama Bin Laden Interview with Peter Arnett Late March 1997

6/4/93 24 Pakistani Peacekeepers in Somalia are ambushed, shot to death, skinned, and their remains paraded through the streets by a mob. [Author's note: in 1994/95 it is revealed by the Sudanese govt that an Al Queda operative based in The Sudan, and several other Al Queda operatives including #3 man Mohammed Atef, had gone to Somalia, trained Somalis in tactics that had been learned during the fight against Soviets in Afghanistan, and had they themselves taken part in this attack.]

6/24/93 A wave of arrests in NYC prevents a followup attack to the 1993 WTC attack. The relationships of the conspirators in both attacks are completely intertwined. The second attack was to focus on the UN headquarters, tunnels, and bridges in NYC.

6/27/93 US launches cruise missile at Iraqi intelligence headquarters in retaliation for assassination plot against former President Bush [a plot that had been discovered 3-4 months earlier] [Author's note: while Clinton Administration officials deny that the retaliation strike was tied to the 6/24 wave of arrests in NYC or the 1993 WTC attack, the retaliation strike was the only US attack ever conducted against Iraq with so little warning and military preparation. It was also the only attack to be conducted completely unilaterally (without even the support of the UK), and it was the first attack to draw massive international condemnation despite the claim that it was in retaliation for a terrorist attack that would often be deemed an act of war. Clinton Administration officials claimed that there was nothing found in the 6/24 arrest raid that implicated Iraqi involvement, but it was thought that if Iraq was involved, then attacking the IIS headquarters would serve as a statement or threat of what might happen if Iraqi involvement in further attacks was discovered. Note also that President Clinton never visited the 1993wtc site instead choosing to attend a jobs conference in New Jersey where he didn’t even mention the attack that could have had more casualties than Hiroshima and Nagasaki combined.]

8/8/93 A U.S. HUMMV hits a land mine in a pothole in Somalia. The mine was remote detonated. 4 American MP's were killed. [Author's note: in 1994/95 it is revealed by the Sudanese govt that an Al Queda operative based in The Sudan, and several other Al Queda operatives including #3 man Mohammed Atef, had gone to Somalia, trained Somalis in tactics that had been learned during the fight against Soviets in Afghanistan, and had they themselves taken part in this attack.]

8/22/93 A bomb explodes near a U.S. Army HUMMV destroying the vehicle and seriously wounding 6 American soldiers. [Author's note: in 1994/95 it is revealed by the Sudanese govt that Al Queda operatives including #3 man Mohammed Atef, had gone to Somalia, trained Somalis in tactics that had been learned during the fight against Soviets in Afghanistan, and had they themselves taken part in this attack.]

Mid 1994 Al Queda begins planning to bomb the U.S. embassy in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. Days before the attack, security is stepped up, and a new target is selected-the American barracks in Riyadh. Losing Bin Laden by Richard Miniter

6/1/94 After ABC broadcast the story revealing Abdul Rahman's presence in Baghdad, Iraqi authorities finally take him and several other men at the house to an unknown location.

8/14/94 Ilich Ramirez-Sanchez, alias, Carlos the Jackal arrested by French Secret Service [DST]. Sentenced to life in prison. [Inside Sudan by Douglass Petterson] [Author's note: contrary to US claims that Sudan was a carte blanche state supporter of terrorism, Carlos (the most wanted terrorist in the world at the time) was arrested based on information provided to France by Sudan in an effort to have Carlos removed from their country without being liable to other terrorists for his arrest. Years later, a similar offer is made by Sudan to the United States regarding Osama Bin Laden. The US declines and denies the offer, as does Saudi Arabia. Bin Laden is tipped off and escapes to Afghanistan where he apparently stays to his end.]

10/12/94 The Taliban militia conquered the city of Kandahar, Afghanistan. [Author's note: this occurs after Osama Bin Laden returns to Afghanistan and supports the Taliban instead of the other Afghan warlords, militias, and rebelling Afghan Army units. Soon after, Osama Bin Laden's son will marry Taliban leader Mullah Omar's daughter effectively binding the two men in a family tie.]

The Czech counterintelligence service reported that the Sept. 11 hijacker [Mohamed] Atta met with the former Iraqi intelligence chief in Prague, [Ahmed Khalil Ibrahim Samir]al Ani, on several occasions. During one of these meetings, al Ani ordered the IIS finance officer to issue Atta funds from IIS financial holdings in the Prague office.....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. [Feith memo]

In January 1995, a Philippine National Police raid turned up material in a Manila apartment suggesting that Ramzi Yousef, Abdul Murad, and Khalid Shaykh Mohammad planned, among other things, to crash an airplane into CIA Headquarters. The police said that the same group was responsible for the bombing of a Philippine airliner

Investigators determined in 1995 that Al Queda's Khalid Sheik Mohammed was linked to the February 1993 bombing of the WTC. Federal prosecutors gave CIA a copy of a financial wire transaction for $660 between Qatar and the U.S., dated several days before the blast, from “Khaled Shaykh” in Doha to Muhammad Salameh, one of four defendants convicted in the WTC bombing. With additional information that emerged from the Philippines investigation described below, CIA was able to determine that Khaled was KSM, that KSM was an uncle of Ramzi Yousef, the mastermind of the first WTC bombing plot, and that KSM had married the sister of Yousef’s wife. [Sen Intel Com 911 attack investigation report]

11/13/95 American barracks in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia is bombed by Al Queda [Saudis claim that the bomb was of a military grade and had all the marks of an Iraqi IIS attack, but US intelligence operatives are lead to believe that Iran supported the attack. Given that the bombing takes place immediately after Iraq is forced to submit to new UN measures, there is also strong suspicion that Iraq might have ordered the attack. Openly, the US blames Al Queda for the attack. In an effort to deal justice swiftly, harshly, and possibly to hide a Saudi/Al Queda funding connection, the Saudis immediately round up suspects and execute them before allowing the US to interrogate them.]

11/13/95 National Security Agency intercepts an ominous phone call to Bin Laden. When Bin Laden was on the line, the caller makes a pre-arranged coded reference to the forthcoming attack on the US barracks in Riyadh. Bin Laden became emotional and implored God to bless the caller. The he declared, "This is not the first or the last, The rain starts but with one drop, and it soon becomes a steady downpour. Things will be ready." Losing Bin Laden by Richard Miniter

"Brig. Salim al-Ahmed, an IIS bomb maker, traveled to bin Laden's farm in Sudan and gave instructions on how to build sophisticated explosives. He was observed at the farm in the fall of 1995 and again in July 1996, the year bin Laden left Sudan and established a new base in Afghanistan. " "Mani abd-al-Rashid, IIS director, went to the farm to meet bin Laden during the same time period. ‘The Iraqi intelligence chief and two other IIS officers met at bin Laden's farm and discussed bin Laden's request for IIS technical assistance in: a) making letter and parcel bombs; b) making bombs which could be placed on aircraft and detonated by changes in barometric pressure; and c) making false passport. Bin Laden asked that al-Ahmed, who is skilled in making car bombs, stay at the farm after al-Rashid departed.’" Iraq al Qaeda link comes in focus By Rowan Scarborough THE WASHINGTON TIMES

Khalid Seik Mohammed (Planner of the 911 attack) aka "The Brain" (CAPTURED) Early 1994-January 1995: 9/11 mastermind Khalid Shaikh Mohammed lives in the Philippines for a year, planning the Bojinka plot until the plot is exposed and he has to flee. Plot to hijack planes and suicide-crash them into US buildings is first developed in the plans for Operation Bjoinka (included hijacking a plane and crashing it into CIA HQ or somewhere in DC). Khalid Sheik Mohammed was able to enter the Philippines through the help of Hisham al Hussein, the second secretary of the Iraqi embassy in Manila (later expelled from the Philippines for his frequent phone calls to Abu Sayeef leaders (an Al Queda affiliate terror group). [Exerpted from the Hudson Institute Report: " Saddam’s Hussein’s Philanthropy of Terror" Saddam Hussein’s al Qaeda Connections]

The Philippine government expelled Hisham al Hussein, the second secretary at Iraq’s Manila embassy, on February 13, 2003. Cell phone records indicate that the Iraqi diplomat had spoken with Abu Madja and Hamsiraji Sali, leaders of Abu Sayyaf, just before and just after their al Qaeda-allied Islamic militant group conducted an attack in Zamboanga City. Abu Sayyaf’s nail-filled bomb exploded on October 2, 2002, injuring 23 individuals and killing two Filipinos and U.S. Special Forces Sergeant First Class Mark Wayne Jackson, age 40. As Dan Murphy wrote in the Christian Science Monitor last February 26, those phone records bolster Sali’s claim in a November 2002 TV interview that the Iraqi diplomat had offered these Muslim extremists Baghdad’s help with joint missions.

"In June 1994, Bin Laden met with [Gen.] Faruq al-Hijazi, then the director of the Iraqi Intelligence Department, while in Khartoum. Iraqi concern over bin Laden's militant Islamist zeal restrained their dealings with bin Laden and limited their willingness to provide practical support and cooperation." Iraqs State Sponsorship of Osama bin Laden and the al Qaeda Terror Network Essay by Chris Farrell 11/30/01

Hijazi later became Iraq's ambassador to Turkey. "Hijazi was also Saddam Hussein's personal liaison with bin Laden and is reportedly the man who as early as 1995 came up with the plan to destroy the WTC with hijacked airliners." (NOTE: it appears that Ramsi Yousef, Khalid Sheik Mohammed, and another AQ planner came up with the idea of crashing a hijacked plane, but it seems to have been Iraq's IIS leader/ambassador who suggested the WTC as a target.)

“In testimony before the Joint Inquiry, DCI Tenet mentioned additional evidence developed since September 11 concerning al-Qa’ida’s intention of to use airplanes as weapons: [After 11 September, we learned from a foreign government service that in 1996, Bin Ladin's second-in-command, Muhammad Atif, drew up a study on the feasibility of hijacking US planes and destroying them in flight, possibly influenced by Yousef’s and Mukhtar's unrealized plans [the Bojinka Plot]. . . . Bin Ladin's determination to strike America at home increased with the issuance of the February 1998 fatwa targeting all Americans, both military and civilian. The ideas about destroying commercial airliners that had been circulating in al- Qa'ida leadership circles for several years appear to have been revived after that fatwa, in the early planning stages of the 9/11 plot. We believe that outside events also shaped al-Qa'ida leaders' thinking about an airliner attack. [CLASSIFIED] the October 1999 crash of Egypt Air Flight 990, attributed in the media to a suicidal pilot, may have encouraged al-Qa'ida’s growing impression that air travel was a vulnerability for the United States].” [Sen Intel Com report on 911 attacks]

"Within approximately three years, Iraqi hesitance and concerns regarding bin-Laden evaporated. Pragmatic considerations, driven by the deepening political and social crises in Iraq resulting from UN sanctions as well as growing Shiite revivalism in southern Iraq and Kurdish nationalism in northern Iraq, led Saddam Hussein to reassess cooperation with bin-Laden. Bin-Laden's charities and Islamist social services programs eased the shortfalls in food, medicine and basic necessities resulting from the UN sanctions. " Iraqs State Sponsorship of Osama bin Laden and the al Qaeda Terror Network Essay by Chris Farrell 11/30/01

"Arab "Afghans," Muslim Brotherhood groups and other like-minded fundamentalist Islamists who came to Iraq in support of these new initiatives provided an ideology and structure that met Hussein's domestic political needs and either diffused or suppressed nationalist or splinter movements. Saddam Hussein could claim credit for averting the suffering of the Iraqi people and insuring political instability at the "cost" of allowing bin-Laden a foothold in Iraq through social and religious means." Iraqs State Sponsorship of Osama bin Laden and the al Qaeda Terror Network Essay by Chris Farrell 11/30/01

"On February 18, 1998, after the Iraqis repeatedly refused to permit U.N. weapons inspectors into sensitive sites, President Clinton went to the Pentagon and delivered a hawkish speech about Hussein's weapons of mass destruction and his links to 'an unholy axis of terrorists, drug traffickers, and organized international criminals.' Said Clinton: 'We have to defend our future from these predators of the 21st century. . . . They will be all the more lethal if we allow them to build arsenals of nuclear, chemical, and biological weapons and the missiles to deliver them. We simply cannot allow that to happen. There is no more clear example of this threat than Saddam Hussein.' " Saddams al Qaeda Connection by Stephen F. Hayes

"The following day, February 19, 1998, according to documents unearthed in Baghdad after the recent war by journalists Mitch Potter and Inigo Gilmore, Hussein's intelligence service wrote a memo detailing upcoming meetings with a bin Laden representative traveling to Baghdad. Each reference to bin Laden had been covered with Liquid Paper. The memo laid out a plan to step up contacts between Iraq and al Qaeda. The Mukhabarat, one of Saddam's security forces, agreed to pay for 'all the travel and hotel costs inside Iraq to gain the knowledge of the message from bin Laden and to convey to his envoy an oral message from us to bin Laden.' The document set as the goal for the meeting a discussion of 'the future of our relationship with him, bin Laden, and to achieve a direct meeting with him.' The al Qaeda representative, the document went on to suggest, might be 'a way to maintain contacts with bin Laden.' " Saddams al Qaeda Connection by Stephen F. Hayes

"It was Al Queda's #2, Dr. Ayman Al-Zawahri, who traveled to Baghdad in February 1998 and met with one of Iraq's vice presidents. 'The goal of the visit was to arrange for coordination between Iraq and bin Laden and establish camps in an-Nasiriyah and Iraqi Kurdistan under the leadership of Abdul Aziz,'" Saddams al Qaeda Connection by Stephen F. Hayes

"On February 22, 1998 bin-Laden announced the formation of the 'World Islamic Front for Jihad Against the Jews and the Crusaders,' merging Egypt's Jihad Group, the Islamic Group the Ansar Movement of Pakistani and the Bangladeshi Jihad Movement under one umbrella." (NOTE: the "muscle men" who did the hijacking of Flight 93 that crashed in PA, and the hijackers who took over the plane that hit the Pentagon are all reported to have donned red bandannas or headbands prior to taking the plane. This is characteristic of Egyptian Islamic Jihad, and in keeping with the idea that the different cells taking part in the attack were from different groups that had been pulled together by Al Queda.) Saddams al Qaeda Connection by Stephen F. Hayes

"On February 23, 1998, bin Laden and his deputy, Ayman al-Zawahiri, issued a famous fatwa about the plight of Iraq. Published that day in al Quds al-Arabi, it reads in part: 'First, for over seven years the United States has been occupying the lands of Islam in the holiest of places, the Arabian Peninsula, plundering its riches, dictating to its rulers, humiliating its people, terrorizing its neighbors, and turning its bases in the Peninsula into a spearhead through which to fight the neighboring Muslim peoples. . . . The best proof of this is the Americans' continuing aggression against the Iraqi people using the Peninsula as a staging post, even though all its rulers are against their territories being used to that end, still they are helpless. Second, despite the great devastation inflicted on the Iraqi people by the crusader-Zionist alliance, and despite the huge number of those killed, in excess of 1 million . . . despite all this, the Americans are once again trying to repeat the horrific massacres, as though they are not content with the protracted blockade imposed after the ferocious war or the fragmentation and devastation.'" Saddams al Qaeda Connection by Stephen F. Hayes

"The Americans, bin Laden says, are working on behalf of Israel. 'The best proof of this is their eagerness to destroy Iraq, the strongest neighboring Arab state, and their endeavor to fragment all the states of the region such as Iraq, Saudi Arabia, Egypt, and Sudan into paper statelets and through their disunion and weakness to guarantee Israel's survival and the continuation of the brutal crusade occupation of the Peninsula. '" Saddams al Qaeda Connection by Stephen F. Hayes

"Bin Laden urges his followers to act. "The ruling to kill all Americans and their allies--civilians and military--is an individual duty for every Muslim who can do it in any country in which it is possible to do it." It was around this time, U.S. officials say, that Hussein paid the $300,000 to bin Laden's deputy, Zawahiri. " Saddams al Qaeda Connection by Stephen F. Hayes

"Bin-Laden [himself] reportedly visited Baghdad for consultations in March 1998. Giovanni De Stefano, an international lawyer visiting Baghdad on business, had a chance encounter with bin-Laden in the lobby of the five star Al-Rashid Hotel during which the two men introduced themselves and engaged in polite conversation. De Stefano did not, at the time, recognize bin-Laden's name. Five months after the chance encounter, bin-Laden's suicide bombers attacked the American embassies in Nairobi and Dar-es-Salaam." Tom Walker, “Hotel Clue Points To An Iraqi Connection,” Sunday Times (London), September 30, 2001

"Between April 25 and May 1, 1998, two of bin-Laden's senior military commanders, Muhammad Abu-Islam and Abdallah Qassim visited Baghdad for discussions with Saddam Hussein's son - Qusay Hussein - the "czar" of all Iraqi intelligence matters. 8 Qusay Hussein's participation in the meetings highlights the importance of the talks in both symbolic and practical terms. Iraqi commitments for training, intelligence, clandestine Saudi border crossings, as well as weapons and explosives support to al-Qaeda were a direct result of the meetings." Youssef Bodansky, “Bin Laden; The Man Who Declared War on America”

"An outcome of the April meetings was Iraq's commitment to train a network of bin-Laden's operatives within Saudi Arabia. By mid-June, 1998, bin-Laden' s operatives were at the al-Nasiriyah training camp, receiving a four week course of instruction from the Iraqi intelligence and military on reconnaissance and targeting American facilities and installations for terrorist attacks. Another group was organized and trained for smuggling weapons and explosives into Saudi Arabia - and used their return to the kingdom as the first (successful) operation. A third group of bin-Laden's Saudi operatives received a month of sophisticated guerrilla operations training later in the Summer of 1998." Youssef Bodansky, “Bin Laden; The Man Who Declared War on America”

"Bin-Laden quickly sought to strengthen and reinforce Iraqi support. In mid-July 1998, bin-Laden sent Dr. Ayman al-Zawahiri, the Egyptian co-founder of al-Qaeda to Iraq to meet with senior Iraqi officials, including Iraqi vice president Taha Yassin Ramadan, to discuss and plan a joint strategy for an anti-US jihad. Baghdad pledged their full support and cooperation, on the condition that bin-Laden not incite the Iraqi Muslim Brotherhood against Saddam Hussein's reign. Zawahiri was taken to tour a potential site for bin-Laden's new headquarters near al-Fallujah, and to observe training at terrorist camps run by Iraqi intelligence, to include the training conducted at al-Nasiriyah to bin-Laden's Saudi operatives. Zawahiri assumed responsibility for the al-Nasiriyah training camp in the name of Osama bin-Laden, as part of Iraq's recognition of bin-Laden as the "local authority" in the jihad against the United States." Youssef Bodansky, “Bin Laden; The Man Who Declared War on America”

"August 7, 1998: Terrorists bomb the US embassies in Kenya and Tanzania. The bomb in Nairobi, Kenya kills 213 people, including 12 US nationals, and injures more than 4,500. The bomb in Dar es Salaam kills 11 and injures 85. The attack is blamed on al-Qaeda. [PBS Frontline, 2001] "

"August 20, 1998: The US fires 66 missiles at six training camps in Afghanistan and 13 missiles at a pharmaceutical factory in Khartoum, Sudan in retaliation for the US embassy bombings. [Washington Post, 10/3/01 (C)] The US makes clear the attacks are aimed at terrorists "not supported by any state'' despite obvious evidence to the contrary in Afghanistan. About 30 people are killed in the attacks, but no important al-Qaeda figures. [Observer, 8/23/98, New Yorker, 1/24/00] "

(NOTE: years later, "CIA director George Tenet discussed intelligence on one of the captured embassy bombing conspirators Abu Hajer (aka "The Iraqi") in a letter to Senator Bob Graham dated October 7, 2002. "We have solid reporting of senior level contact between Iraq and al Qaeda going back a decade. Credible information exists that Iraq and al Qaeda have discussed safe haven and reciprocal nonaggression. . . . We have credible reporting that al Qaeda leaders sought contacts in Iraq who could help them acquire WMD capabilities." U.S. officials now believe that Abu Hajer al Iraqi helped bin Laden negotiate a nonaggression pact with Saddam in 1993... A former al Qaeda member testifying for the prosecution [in the Embassy Bombings trial], Jamal Ahmed al Fadl, told the court how he met Abu Hajer and bin Laden in 1989, and that he accompanied Abu Hajer in 1993 and 1994 on trips to Khartoum, Sudan, where the Iraqi native took him to a facility used to produce chemical weapons. It was [this witness] al Fadl who labeled Abu Hajer (aka "The Iraqi") the "best friend" of bin Laden."

"September 1998 (A): US intelligence gives a memorandum to senior officials detailing al-Qaeda's infrastructure in the US. This includes the use of fronts for terrorist activities. [Senate Intelligence Committee, 9/18/02] "

"September 1998 (B): US intelligence finds information that bin Laden's next operation could possibly involve crashing an aircraft loaded with explosives into a US airport. [Senate Intelligence Committee, 9/18/02, Washington Post, 9/19/02] "

"Our missiles could not reach Washington. If they could reach Washington, we would strike." -Saddam Hussein 9/3/98

"September 20, 1998: Mamdouh Mahmud Salim, an al-Qaeda terrorist from the United Arab Emirates connected to the 1998 US embassy bombings, is arrested near Munich, Germany. [PBS Newshour, 9/30/98] In retrospect, it appears he was making one of many visits to the al-Qaeda cells in Germany. [The Base, Jane Corbin, 8/02, p. 147] US investigators later call him bin Laden's "right hand man." [New York Times, 9/29/01] Wadih El-Hage, a former personal secretary to bin Laden, is also arrested in the wake of the embassy bombings. El-Hage had created a number of shell companies as fronts for al-Qaeda terrorist activities"

"Both Saddam Hussein's and Osama bin-Laden's objectives are served through their alliance. They mutually loathe both the House of al-Saud and the United States. Bin-Laden accomplishes, as a non-state actor, what Hussein cannot and vice versa. The existence of an Iraqi-sponsored al-Qaeda capability or "wing," poised to strike at Riyadh or regionally against US interests complicates and narrows counter-terrorism options for the United States and its allies." Iraqs State Sponsorship of Osama bin Laden and the al Qaeda Terror Network Essay by Chris Farrell

"By mid-November 1998, Saddam Hussein came to the conclusion, (with the advice and prompting of his son and intelligence chief, Qusay), that a campaign of terrorist attacks against the United States, under the "deniable" banner of Osama bin-Laden was the most effective means of deflecting U.S. attempts to topple the Hussein regime. Meetings between Iraqi intelligence operatives and bin-Laden in Afghanistan followed shortly. Both parties agreed to joint efforts in a detailed, coordinated plan for a protracted war against the United States. Iraq pledged further assistance with a chemical weapons expert while bin-Laden agreed to hunt down Iraqi opposition leaders who cooperated with the West against Hussein. Bin-Laden reportedly dispatched 400 "Afghan" Arabs to Iraq to fight Kurds." Daniel McGrory, “Hijacker ‘Given Flask by Iraqi Agent’,” The Times (London), October 27, 2001

December 4, 1998: CIA Director Tenet issues a "declaration of war" on al-Qaeda, in a memorandum circulated in the intelligence community. This is 10 months after bin Laden's fatwa on the US, which is called a "de facto declaration of war" by a senior US official in 1999.[New York Times, 9/18/02, Senate Intelligence Committee, 9/18/02]

December 21, 1998: In a Time magazine cover story entitled "The Hunt for Osama," it is reported intelligence sources "have evidence that bin Laden may be planning his boldest move yet - a strike on Washington or possibly New York City in an eye-for-an-eye retaliation. 'We've hit his headquarters, now he hits ours,' says a State Department aide." [Time, 12/21/98]

"In December 1998, the Clinton Administration engaged in a bombing campaign against Iraq that was viewed by many, particularly Islamist leaders, as a political distraction or "Wag The Dog" side-show to diminish or reduce President Clinton's scandals and domestic political trouble. The launching of anti-American Islamist terrorism in retaliation for the bombing campaign was certain. Iraqi trade minister Muhammad Mahdi Salah stated that he expected "terrorist activities" against the United States to increase as a result of the bombing of Iraq." Youssef Bodansky, “Bin Laden; The Man Who Declared War on America”

"Bin Laden was seen in Baghdad's al-Rashid Hotel in December 1998. International lawyer Giovanni Di Stefano, who was in Baghdad at the time to negotiate a contract to represent Iraqi Airlines in Italy and Yugoslavia, met and talked with bin Laden. Western and regional intelligence officers, as well as Iraqi exiles, confirm that bin Laden met with Saddam, who reportedly offered to grant bin Laden a base and asylum in Iraq. Bin Laden, however, already firmly established in Afghanistan, where his money and armed followers had made him an important figure in the regime, declined. Bin Laden did agree to send men to Iraq to receive "special" training." Youssef Bodansky, “Bin Laden; The Man Who Declared War on America”

"The Arabic daily newspaper, Al-Quds al-Arabi, first raised the issue of cooperation between Saddam Hussein's Iraq and Osama bin-Laden's al-Qaeda in a late December 1998 editorial that predicted, "President Saddam Hussein , whose country was subjected to a four day air strike , will look for support in taking revenge on the United States and Britain by cooperating with Saudi oppositionist Osama bin-Laden, whom the United States considers to be the most wanted person in the world." The editorial noted that this type of cooperation was very likely considering that "bin-Laden was planning moving to Iraq before the recent strike."" Youssef Bodansky, “Bin Laden; The Man Who Declared War on America”

"Just weeks after Clinton bombed the daylights out of suspected hideaways for Iraq's weapons of mass destruction, he used his January 1999 State of the Union Address to warn America about both bin Laden and Saddam, mentioning the two terror kingpins almost in the same breath. 'We will defend our security wherever we are threatened - as we did this summer when we struck at Osama bin Laden's network of terror,' Clinton told Congress and the nation. 'The bombing our embassies in Kenya and Tanzania reminds us again of the risks faced every day by those who represent America to the world.' Moments later Clinton segued into the threat posed by Saddam: 'For nearly a decade, Iraq has defied its obligations to destroy its weapons of terror and the missiles to deliver them. America will continue to contain Saddam, and we will work for the day when Iraq has a government worthy of its people.'" 07/17/2003 Clinton-Era Reports Cited Saddam-Bin Laden Ties

"Saddam Hussein dispatched Faruq al-Hijazi to Kandahar, Afghanistan in order to meet with bin-Laden. Hijazi was the former deputy chief of Iraqi intelligence and had first met bin-Laden in 1994. 16 Hijazi offered expanded cooperation and assistance to bin-Laden, as well as a re-extension of the offer of shelter and hospitality in Iraq for al-Qaeda. Bin-Laden agreed in principle to give Iraq assistance in a revenge campaign against the United States, but suggested further study and coordination before committing to a specific course of action or agreeing to a particular terrorist strike. To demonstrate Baghdad's commitment to al Qaeda, Hijazi presented bin-Laden with a pack of blank, genuine Yemeni passports, supplied to Iraqi intelligence from their Yemeni contacts. Hijazi's visit was followed by a contingent of Iraqi military intelligence officials who provided additional training and preparation to the al- Qaeda terrorists in Afghanistan. These Iraqi officials included members of Unit 999 of Iraqi intelligence, who conducted advanced sabotage and infiltration training for seasoned, veteran, al-Qaeda fighters. By January 1999, al-Qaeda terrorists were being trained by Iraqi intelligence and military officers at camps on the outskirts of Baghdad." Youssef Bodansky, “Bin Laden; The Man Who Declared War on America”

"Following the Hijazi meetings, Qusay Hussein dispatched representatives to follow-up with bin-Laden and obtain his firm commitment to exact revenge against America. Baghdad offered an open-ended commitment to joint operations against the United States and its "moderate" Arab allies in exchange for an absolute guarantee that bin-Laden, al-Qaeda and their fundamentalist Islamists would not overthrow Saddam Hussein's regime in Iraq. Israeli sources claim that for the past two years Iraqi intelligence officers have been shuttling back and forth between Baghdad and Afghanistan. According to the Israelis, one of the intelligence officers, Salah Suleiman was captured last October by the Pakistanis near the border with Afghanistan." Janes Defence Weekly Intelligence Report

"In January 1999, Iraq began reorganizing and mobilizing intelligence front operations throughout Europe in support of al-Qaeda. 20 Iraq's intelligence service has operated a network of outwardly legitimate businesses across Western Europe, using them as bases for espionage, terrorism and weapons procurement. Hans Josef Horchem, former chief of West Germany's Bundesamt für Verfassungsschutz (domestic intelligence service) stated that most of the Iraqi intelligence front companies are import-export firms and used-car dealerships. In the Fall of 1990, at least three firms were operating in Hamburg and the German state of Hesse - with roughly seven additional Iraqi front operations in the rest of Europe. 21 Iraq's Unit 999 now increased the intensity of its operations - moving funds and people around Europe and activating previously dormant intelligence contacts and operatives. Together with intelligence officers assigned under diplomatic cover, these activated operatives began scouting safe houses, vehicles, letter drops, communications, arms caches and other logistical requirements for operations. Concurrent with this activation of Iraqi's European intelligence assets, appeared the previously unheard of "Armed Islamic Front," who it turned out, were made up of bin-Laden's "Afghans" and "Bosniaks," that would now conduct terror strikes against both bin-Laden's and Hussein's enemies." Youssef Bodansky, “Bin Laden; The Man Who Declared War on America”

Until March and April of 2000, only one of the four 911 hijacker/pilots had any flight training Hani Hanjour. However, starting in 3/00, all four begin various forms of flight training.

For the 911 plot, there was a pair of "Handlers" or logistics men who arranged for documents, tickets, apartments, cars, food, etc. for the members of the Hamburg cell and for the "Muscle Men" who came in later and were the ones who primarily seized control of the aircraft. These "Handlers" were: Khalid al-Mihdhar and Nawaf Alhamzi.

"On January 5, 2000, Ahmad Hikmat Shakir- an Iraqi VIP facilitator reportedly dispatched from Baghdad's embassy in Malaysia-greeted Khalid al Midhar and Nawaz al Hamzi (the two 911 plot "handlers") at Kuala Lampur's airport, where he worked. He then escorted them to a local hotel, where these September 11 hijackers met with 9-11 conspirators Ramzi bin al Shibh and Tawfiz al Atash. Five days later, according to Stephen Hayes, Shakir disappeared. He was arrested in Qatar on September 17, 2001, six days after al Midhar and al Hamzi slammed American Airlines Flight 77 into the Pentagon, killing 216 people." Exerpted from the Hudson Institute Report: " Saddam’s Hussein’s Philanthropy of Terror" Saddam Hussein’s al Qaeda Connections

"Soon after he was apprehended, authorities discovered documents on Shakir's person and in his apartment connecting him to the 1993 WTC bomb plot and "Operation Bojinka," al Qaeda's 1995 plan to blow up 12 jets simultaneously over the Pacific. A contact at the Iraqi Embassy had gotten Shakir his airport job in the first place. That Iraqi contact told Shakir to report to work on January 5, 2000. He did. There are pictures to prove it. On that day, Shakir facilitated for Khalid al Midhar and Nawaz al Hamzi. But then, after helping the men through the airport, he got into the waiting car with them and sped off to the Kuala Lumpur Hotel. U.S. intelligence officials don't know whether Shakir joined the two in their ensuing activities. They do know that airport facilitators don't typically leave with terrorists. Shakir reported to work at the airport on January 9 and January 10. He never showed up again." The further connections between al Qaeda and Saddam. by Stephen F. Hayes

"Three documents found by the U.S. military in post-war Iraq list Shakir as a Lt. Col. in Saddam's Fedayeen." Wall Street Journal 5/04 (not sure on specific date-sorry)

"Six days after the Pentagon and WTC attacks, Shakir was detained in Doha, Qatar, where he had resurfaced as an employee of the Qatari government's Ministry of Religious Development. Authorities searched Shakir and his apartment and were stunned by what they found: The Iraqi had contact information for Islamic radicals involved in many of the most devastating terrorist attacks of the past decade." The further connections between al Qaeda and Saddam. by Stephen F. Hayes

"These contacts included:" "* Musab Yasin and Ibrahim Suleiman from the 1993 WTC bombing. At the time of that attack, Yasin lived in New Jersey with his brother, Abdul Rahman Yasin. Abdul Rahman Yasin, who badly burned his leg while mixing the chemicals for the WTC bomb, was interviewed by the FBI and, in a costly mistake, released. After it realized its error, the FBI placed him on the list of "Most Wanted" terrorists. But they were too late. Abdul Rahman Yasin had fled the United States for Iraq, where U.S. intelligence officials believe he remains today. Ibrahim Suleiman was a Kuwaiti native whose fingerprints were found on the bombmaking manuals authorities determined were used in planning the 1993 WTC bombing. " The Further Connections Between Al Qaeda and Saddam. by Stephen F. Hayes

" *Zahid Sheikh Mohammed, brother of Khalid Sheikh Mohammed, the September 11 mastermind. Zahid Sheikh Mohammed and his brother are both believed to have planned "Operation Bojinka," the 1995 al Qaeda plot to explode simultaneously 12 airplanes over the Pacific Ocean. U.S. intelligence officials believe that aborted plot may have morphed into the September 11 attacks. " The Further Connections Between Al Qaeda and Saddam by Stephen F. Hayes

"*Abu Hajer al Iraqi who is suspected of involvement in several of these attacks as well as the 1998 embassy bombings. (The telephone number Shakir had for Abu Hajer was actually a number for Taba Investments, a well-known al Qaeda front.) " The Further Connections Between Al Qaeda and Saddam by Stephen F. Hayes

"Ammar al Baluchi, the nephew of Khalid Sheikh Mohammed. According to a report in Time magazine, al Baluchi provided $120,000 to Mohammed Atta and his fellow hijackers. Intelligence officials believe al Baluchi may have had a role in planning the attack on the USS Cole in October 2000. " The Further Connections Between Al Qaeda and Saddam by Stephen F. Hayes

"Al Midhar and al Hamzi were in Malaysia (thanks to the good graces of the Iraqi embassy in Malaysia and specifically the work of Shakir) for an important meeting, an al Qaeda gathering U.S. officials now believe was one of the key planning sessions for both the USS Cole bombing and the September 11 attacks. Two of the masterminds of those plots--Tawfiz al Atash and Ramzi bin al Shibh, respectively--were present. The meeting ended on January 8, 2000 (note: the CIA knew of the meeting, but they didn't have the manpower to monitor it or it didn't rate high enough on their todo list, so they had the Malaysian intelligence services monitor it and report to them.)."

"Iraq will continue to face American aggression against its cities and installations and, in the same way the Americans were forced to declare directly or indirectly their failure in Vietnam,..they will be forced to declare their failure in Iraq." -Saddam Hussein 6/11/00

"According to Czech intelligence sources, Mohammad Atta, the September 11, 2001 hijacking ringleader, met in June 2000 with Ahmed Khalil Ibrahim Samir al-Ani, a consul and second secretary at the Iraqi embassy in Prague. At 43, al-Ani is one of Iraqi's most highly decorated intelligence officers: a special forces veteran and senior leader of Iraq's "M-8," unit - the country's "special operations branch." There are additional reports of a second meeting with another hijacker - Khalid Almihdar. Czech Interior Minister Stanislav Gross has also confirmed that Atta met with al-Ani in early April 2001 in Prague. Atta also reportedly met with Iraqi ambassador to Turkey and former Iraqi deputy intelligence director Farouk al-Hijazi in Prague sometime in early April 2001. Al-Ani was expelled from the Czech Republic earlier in 2001 for espionage activities. Czech Foreign Minister Jan Kavan flew to Washington, DC to deliver the intelligence files on the meetings to Secretary of State Colin Powell." Evan Thomas, “The Manhunt: Cracking The Terror Code,” Newsweek, October 15, 2001.

“Atta went to Prague from Hamburg by bus on June 2, 2000, to meet with al-Ani. The next day Atta left for the United States, where he enrolled in a flight school in Florida. Atta then returned to Prague in April 2001 to once again meet with al-Ani. In April, 2001 Czech authorities forced al-Ani to leave the country for "activities incompatible with his diplomatic status," a euphemism for espionage.” : ABCnews.com, 10/29/01; Daily Telegraph (London) 10/27/01 (Prague confirms hijack leader met Iraqi agent); Boston Globe, 10/25/01 (The Iraqi Factor)

6/3/00 Atta supposedly arrives in the US for the first time, flying from Prague to Newark on a tourist visa issued May 18 in Berlin. [Miami Herald, 9/22/01, Australian Broadcasting Corp. 11/12/01]

“Though the C.I.A. can confirm two Atta trips to Prague, in 1994 and 2000, it cannot confirm the two other visits the Czechs reported, including one on April 9, 2001, with Saddam's top European agent, al-Ani, then vice consul in Prague. C.I.A. chief George Tenet testified that the meeting reported by the Czech service was "possible," but the F.B.I. floated hints that car rental records showed Atta to be traveling between Virginia and Florida that week.” … “Enter the writer Edward Jay Epstein in the liberal online journal Slate: "All these reports attributed to the FBI were, as it turns out, erroneous. There were no car rental records in Virginia, Florida, or anywhere else in April 2001 for Mohamed Atta, since he had not yet obtained his Florida license." You cannot rent a car without a driver's license.” Missing Links Found By WILLIAM SAFIRE

"The CIA reportedly believes Iraq provided falsified genuine passports for the 19 hijackers of the September 11th attacks. Further, senior U.S. intelligence sources say that in the spring of this year, Marwan al-Shehri and Ziad Jarrah - two of Atta's closest associates and members of al-Qaeda's "German cell," met with known Iraqi intelligence agents outside the United States. Newsweek, Periscope: “Hard Questions About an Iraqi Connection,” October 21, 2001.

"Italian security sources have reported that Iraq made use of its Rome embassy to foster and cultivate Hussein's partnership with al-Qaeda. Habib Faris Abdullah al-Mamouri, a general in the Iraqi secret service, and from 1982 to 1990 a member of the "Special Operations Branch," (M-8) charged with developing links with Islamist militants in Pakistan, Afghanistan and the Gulf states, was stationed in Rome as an "instructor" for Iraqi diplomats. Al-Mamouri reportedly met with Mohammed Atta in Rome, Hamburg and Prague. Al-Mamouri has not been seen in Rome since July, shortly after he last met Atta." Daniel McGrory, “Hijacker ‘Given Flask by Iraqi Agent’,” The Times (London), October 27, 2001

“Made aware of bin Laden by Ramzi Youssef and impressed by bin Laden‘s attacks against local and particularly American targets in Saudi Arabia, in 1995 Saddam Hussein sent two of his top intelligence officers to make contact with the bin Laden organization. Farouq Hijazi, then a brigadier general in the General Intelligence Directorate, and Habib Ma‘muri, chief of special operations for the directorate, met with representatives of bin Laden‘s organization at Salman Pak, home of Iraq‘s special weapons research division. Hijazi already knew bin Laden. They had met in 1994 during one of Hijazi‘s numerous visits to Sudan.” Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, 10/19/01 (INC Says Iraqi Ambassador Linked to WTC Attack Tactic); Iraq News, 2/10/99 (Osama Bin Laden and Iraq)

Between April 23, 2001 and June 29, 2001—The original belief was that the thirteen “assistants” to the pilot—Edward Jay Epstein calls them “the Jeddah thirteen” because all but one of them received their visas at the American consulate in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia—arrive in the USA for the first time: ALNAMI, AL-SUQAMI, MOQED, the ALSHEHRI brothers, Ahmed ALGHAMDI, Fayez AHMED/BANIHAMMAD, Salem ALHAZMI, Hamza ALGHAMDI, Mohand AL-SHEHRI, Saeed ALGHAMDI, and ALOMARI. But the sightings of Ahmed ALGHAMDIand MOQED in Connecticut in mid-March conflict with this belief. The government eventually admitted that six of this group entered the U.S. without any record of their entry. To list the ones we know about: Mohand AL-SHEHRI, Waleed AL-SHEHRI, Hamza ALGHAMDI, and ALNAMI enter the U.S. sometime in May; Saeed ALGHAMDI, ALOMARI, and Salem ALHAZMI enter the U.S. sometime in June - Free Republic post: courtesy Ed Erkes post

“According to former officers who have since defected from Iraq and joined the anti-Saddam Iraqi National Congress, these two intelligence officers discussed plans with bin Laden‘s lieutenants on how to improve on and finish the plan of attack made by Ramzi Youssef to bring down the World Trade Center. An official at the Iraqi National Congress told reporters in late October that it was at this meeting that Hijazi and Ma‘muri came up with the idea of hijacking jetliners and turning them into flying bombs.” Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, 10/19/01 (INC Says Iraqi Ambassador Linked to WTC Attack Tactic)

Captured Boeings Used by Iraq to Train Bin Laden Hijackers “Bin Laden‘s men are among a selected group of terrorists who were trained by the Iraqis to hijack and dismantle the warning systems aboard jetliners. The Iraqi military captured several Boeing 707 jetliners from Kuwaiti Airlines in the Gulf war and took them back to Iraq. The planes are now located at the intelligence service training center at Salman Pak. Although the planes have been grounded ever since, they have provided the Iraqi intelligence service with an excellent classroom to give hijackers "hands-on" training with such planes and, more important, to help make pilots familiar with the operating systems in the cockpits of Boeing airliners.” Wall Street Journal (New York) 10/29/01; Aviation Week & Space Technology, 10/01 (‘Well-Trained‘ Pilots Left Little to Chance)

(NOTE: the hijacker/pilots-ie, the Hamburg cell- seems to have trained in Afghanistan in 1998/9. The “Muscle men” hijackers generally seem to have fought in Chechnya during the mid to late 1990’s and were possibly trained in Afghanistan. Surprisingly little is known about their pre-911 plot activities. However it is possible that they were trained in Iraq at the Salman Pak terrorist training camp. UN inspectors saw training on the jetliners, and while the Iraqi Ministry of Information claimed that they were conducting counter-terrorism activities, no one was convinced. During the US invasion, and since then no counter-terrorist teams or any trace of specifically counter terrorist training has ever been found in Iraq. Marines did find plenty of suicide vests and other indications convincing them that the camp was in fact used for terrorist training-in line with the history, rumors, reports, and record of Unit 999….Iraqi Intelligence Service’s unit that tried to kidnap Gen. Schwartzkopf during the 1991 war, and was involved in the assassination attempt on President Bush sr. Unit 999 is also reportedly the unit that trained so many of the “foreign fighters” who are fighting the US forces today.)

“Unit 999 is an ultra-secret Iraqi special forces "deep penetration" unit that is tasked with both domestic and foreign operations. It is part of the Al-Istikhbarat al-Askariyya (Special Branch of Iraqi Military Intelligence). Background: The main headquarters of Unit 999 are located in the base at Salman Pak, southeast of Baghdad. Activities: This unit was tasked with several clandestine missions that included infiltration of Kurdish rebels in the Northern Iraq, sabotage of several Iranian oil facilities in the 1990s, and the attempted kidnapping of General Schwarzkopf during the Operation Desert Storm. Strength: A total of 1,800 troops divided into six battalions. Additional Info: Unit 999 is also tasked with countering the opposition groups of Saddam Hussein's regime. According to some sources, Unit 999 has helped to train both Palestinian and al-Qaeda suicide bombers on how to effectively use chemical and biological weapons.” http://www.iraqinews.com/org_unit_999.shtml

“With all the talk about how little evidence the Bush administration has tying Saddam Hussein to the 9/11 attacks, we're more than a little surprised at how quickly reporters, not to mention the White House, seem to have forgotten about Salman Pak. That's the name of the Iraqi training camp located south of Baghdad where, according to the accounts of at least two Iraqi defectors quoted in the New York Times last November, terrorists from around the world rehearsed airline hijackings aboard a parked Boeing 707 that bore an eerie resemblance to what transpired on 9/11.” -“Salman Pak Iraqs Smoking Gun Link to 9/11?” 8/13/02

"We could see them train around the fuselage," one of the defectors, a five-year veteran of the camp, told the paper. "We could see them practice taking over the plane." -“Salman Pak Iraqs Smoking Gun Link to 9/11?” 8/13/02

“A few days before the Times report, the London Observer revealed that one of the defectors, a colonel with the Iraqi intelligence service, Mukhabarat, had drawn an even more direct link to 9/11. The former Iraqi agent, codenamed Zeinab, told the paper that one of the highlights of Salman Pak's six-month curriculum was training to hijack aircraft using only knives or bare hands. “ -“Salman Pak Iraqs Smoking Gun Link to 9/11?” 8/13/02

“Like the Sept. 11 hijackers, the students worked in groups of four or five, he explained. Zeinab's story has since been corroborated by Charles Duelfer, the former vice chairman of UNSCOM, the U.N. weapons inspection team, which actually visited the Salman Pak camp several times. ‘He saw the 707, in exactly the place described by the defectors,’ the Observer reported. ‘The Iraqis, he said, told UNSCOM it was used by police for counterterrorist training.’ ‘Of course we automatically took out the word 'counter',’ Duelfer explained. ‘I'm surprised that people seem to be shocked that there should be terror camps in Iraq. Like, derrrrrr! I mean, what, actually, do you expect?’ “ -“Salman Pak Iraqs Smoking Gun Link to 9/11?” 8/13/02

“A second defector said that conversations with the hijacker-trainees made it clear they came from a variety of countries, including Saudi Arabia, Yemen, Algeria, Egypt and Morocco. ‘We were training these people to attack installations important to the United States," he added chillingly. ‘The Gulf War never ended for Saddam Hussein. He is at war with the United States. We were repeatedly told this.’” -“Salman Pak Iraqs Smoking Gun Link to 9/11?” 8/13/02

‘We know that at Salman Pak, on the southern edge of Baghdad, five different eyewitnesses - three Iraqi defectors and two American U.N. inspectors - have said - and now there are aerial photographs to show it - a Boeing 707 that was used for training of hijackers, including non-Iraqi hijackers trained very secretly to take over airplanes with knives.’ - Director James Woolsey -“Salman Pak Iraqs Smoking Gun Link to 9/11?” 8/13/02

“Another intriguing coincidence: Salman Pak's hijacking school reportedly opened for business in 1995, the same year al-Qaeda agents in the Philippines hatched a plot to hijack 12 airliners and slam some of them into U.S. landmarks.” -“Salman Pak Iraqs Smoking Gun Link to 9/11?” 8/13/02

“Training is majorly on terrorism. They would be trained on assassinations, kidnapping, hijacking of airplanes, hijacking of buses, public buses, hijacking of trains and all other kinds of operations related to terrorism.” -PBS Interview with Iraqi Exile Sabah Khodada fmr Capt in the Iraqi Army from 1982-1992 (emigrated to US in 5/01)

“Non-Iraqis were trained separately from us. There were strict orders not to meet with them and not to talk to them. And even when they conduct their training, their training has to occur at times different from the times when we conduct the Iraqis our own training.” -PBS Interview with Iraqi Exile Sabah Khodada fmr Capt in the Iraqi Army from 1982-1992 (emigrated to US in 5/01)

“They were special trainers or teachers from the Iraqi intelligence and al-Mukhabarat. And those same trainers or teachers will train the fedayeen, the Iraqi fedayeen, and also the same group of those teachers will train the non-Iraqis, foreigners who are in the camp. Personally, my profession is not this kind of training. My profession is to train people on infantry, typical infantry training, such as training on machine guns, pistols, hand grenades, rocket launchers on the shoulder and this kind of training. The special training that I'm talking about, such as the kidnapping and so, is conducted by those trainers who are not from the army; they are from ... al-Mukhabarat.And there was a person who is very famous. They call him Al-Shaba. [ph]. This is Arabic word means "The Ghost," who was responsible for all the training, and those trainers or the teachers. “ -PBS Interview with Iraqi Exile Sabah Khodada fmr Capt in the Iraqi Army from 1982-1992 (emigrated to US in 5/01)

“I don't necessarily know what kind of training they do, but they were trained exactly at the same locations, and they were trained by the same teachers who were training ... [the fighters for] Saddam. Training includes hijacking and kidnapping of airplanes, trains, public buses, and planting explosives in cities, sabotaging villages, sabotaging houses, assassinations. And the training also included how to prepare for suicidal operations. For example, they will train them how to belt themselves around with explosives, and jump in a place and explode themselves out as part of the suicidal training. I think the trainings of the Arabs was much harsher, and much stricter, than the training of the Iraqis.” -PBS Interview with Iraqi Exile Sabah Khodada fmr Capt in the Iraqi Army from 1982-1992 (emigrated to US in 5/01)

“They will get trained on how to get weapons inside the plane. If there is a security weakness that they know of, they will prefer to get weapons. But I am sure that, before the attack of September 11, those people made a very thorough study. And they learned that getting weapons into the plane might not be a very good idea. But in this camp, I saw them getting trained on this kind of situations where security will not allow you to get weapons into the plane -- then what you need to do is to use all available methods and very advanced terrorizing method.” -PBS Interview with Iraqi Exile Sabah Khodada fmr Capt in the Iraqi Army from 1982-1992 (emigrated to US in 5/01)

“These methods are used to terrorize the passengers and the crew of the plane. They are even trained how to use utensils for food, like forks and knives provided in the plane. ... They are trained how to plant horror within the passengers by doing such actions. Even pens and pencils can be used for that purpose they were trained. They can do it, and they can overcome any plane because they are very well physically trained, and they are very strong, and they can do it. They can overtake a plane in a very efficient manner. ...” -PBS Interview with Iraqi Exile Sabah Khodada fmr Capt in the Iraqi Army from 1982-1992 (emigrated to US in 5/01)

“They will show some of their training. For example, they will show clips of their jumping from the helicopters. But there was also parades, military parades, and they will show off Saddam wearing this explosive around themselves with their masks on. ... I even heard it on Arabic BBC when they were saying, when they were describing them, not as Saddam's fighters -- they describe them as "the terrorists of Saddam" -- wearing explosives and looking like crocodiles, black crocodiles. I'm very surprised that you, in America, don't know about these things.” -PBS Interview with Iraqi Exile Sabah Khodada fmr Capt in the Iraqi Army from 1982-1992 (emigrated to US in 5/01)

“On January 1, 1996, we all met with Saddam personally. And he told us we have to take revenge from America. Our duty is to attack and hit American targets in the Gulf, in the Arab world, and all over the world. He said that openly. When you volunteer to become Saddam's fighter ... they will tell you the purpose of your volunteer[ing] is to attack American targets and American interests, not only in Iraq, not only in the Gulf, [but] all over the world, including Europe and America. That's how Saddam was able to attract those Arabs and Muslims who came to train, because that's exactly what they want to do.” -PBS Interview with Iraqi Exile Sabah Khodada fmr Capt in the Iraqi Army from 1982-1992 (emigrated to US in 5/01)

“Training will include the way they would sit in the plane, how they enter the plane, provided they got the right documents from the top levels of Iraqi Intelligence, such as passports. ... They will, for example, sit in two's, and they will assign who will sit to the right of the other guy, and who will sit to the other side. Two will sit in the front, two will sit in the back, and two will sit, for example, in the middle. They are trained to jump all at one time, and make a declaration that ‘We are going to take over the plane. And nobody [move], don't move, don't make any moves.’” -PBS Interview with Iraqi Exile Sabah Khodada fmr Capt in the Iraqi Army from 1982-1992 (emigrated to US in 5/01)

“They will probably use a pencil or a pen, or even sunglasses or prescription glasses. Somebody will hold the crew members of the plane from their chins upward tightly, and you will pull it on his neck. He will think you are going to slaughter him and kill him. Including in this training is terrorizing by making very, very loud noises and screaming all over the plane. That will take over the planned horror, and will terrorize the plane, including the crew.” -PBS Interview with Iraqi Exile Sabah Khodada fmr Capt in the Iraqi Army from 1982-1992 (emigrated to US in 5/01)

"As of Oct. 2002 al Zarqawi was setting up sleeper cells in Baghdad to be activated in case of a U.S. occupation of the city." Missing Links Found By WILLIAM SAFIRE

This list has been brought to you by Sam Pender author of Iraq's Smoking Gun available on Amazon.com

ABCnews.com, 10/29/01 Daily Telegraph (London) 10/27/01 (Prague confirms hijack leader met Iraqi agent) Boston Globe, 10/25/01 (The Iraqi Factor) Die Welt (Berlin) 9/19/01 (Frankfurt Seen As Hub of Bin-Laden‘s German Network) Observer (London) 10/14/01 (Iraq ‘behind US anthrax outbreaks‘) Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, 10/19/01 (INC Says Iraqi Ambassador Linked to WTC Attack Tactic) AFP (Berlin) 10/25/01 (German Newspaper: Suspected Hijacker May Have Transported Anthrax) Iraq News, 2/10/99 (Osama Bin Laden and Iraq) Patriotic Union of Kurdistan, 9/19/01 (Iraq Kurdish Opposition Site on Bin-Laden‘s Plan to Target Iraqi Kurdistan) Al-Hawadith (London) 1/26/01 (Report Views Bin-Laden‘s Operations, Counter-Terrorism Efforts) Wall Street Journal (New York) 10/29/01 (Anthrax: The Elephant in the Room) Daily Telegraph (London) 10/28/01 (Every day, the case mounts against Saddam) Far Eastern Economic Review, 9/27/01 (The Coming War: Danger Within) Far Eastern Economic Review, 9/27/01 (The Coming War: Thwarted Plots) Independent (London) 10/14/01 (The suicide bomber and the Baghdad conspiracy) Aviation Week & Space Technology, 10/01 (‘Well-Trained‘ Pilots Left Little to Chance) Sunday Telegraph (London) 9/30/01 (Defecting Physicist Claims Iraq Building Chemical, Biological Arsenal) Guardian (London) 10/15/01 (Iraq stockpiled anthrax in run-up to Gulf war) Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, 10/19/01 (Iraq‘s Anthrax Stockpile Highlighted) Peter L. Bergen, “Holy War, Inc.,” The Free Press, New York, 2001, page 37. Laurie Mylroie, “Study of Revenge,” American Enterprise Institute Press, Washington, DC, 2001, page 18-19. Youssef Bodansky, “Bin Laden; The Man Who Declared War on America,” Prima Publishing, Roseville, CA, 2001, page 323. Tom Walker, “Hotel Clue Points To An Iraqi Connection,” Sunday Times (London), September 30, 2001. Daniel McGrory, “Hijacker ‘Given Flask by Iraqi Agent’,” The Times (London), October 27, 2001. Justine Smith, “Investigation Into Saddam’s Fingerprints On The Terror Attacks: The Link,” The Mirror, October 8, 2001. Ferdinand Protzman, “German Terror Expert Says Iraqis Have Front Companies Across Europe,” New York Times, October 30, 1990. Richard Beeston, “Iraq Accuses US of Trying to Settle Old Scores,” The Times (London), October 10, 2001. David Rose, “Focus Special: The Terrorism Crisis: The Iraqi Connection,” The Observer, November 11, 2001. Patrick E. Tyler with John Tagliabue, “Czechs Confirm Iraqi Agent Met With Terror Ringleader,” The New York Times, October 27, 2001. Evan Thomas, “The Manhunt: Cracking The Terror Code,” Newsweek, October 15, 2001. Newsweek, Periscope: “Hard Questions About an Iraqi Connection,” October 21, 2001. Peter Finn, “Czech’s Confirm Key Hijacker’s ‘Contact’ With Iraqi Agent in Prague; Atta Communicated With Diplomat Who Was Later Expelled,” The Washington Post, October 27, 2001. Glen Schloss, “Suspicion Falls on Saddam,” South China Morning Post, October 12, 2001. Chris Hedges, “Defectors Citing Iraqi Training For Terrorism,” The New York Times, November 8, 2001. Dennis Eisenberg, “Saddam Links to Attacks,” The Herald Sun, September 23, 2001. David Rose, “Focus Special: The Terrorism Crisis: The Iraqi Connection,” The Observer, November 11, 2001. The Case That Wasn't Made, By Dave Franklin on 06/29/03 San Diego Union-Tribune, 9/16/01] [South Florida Sun-Sentinel, 9/28/01, San Diego Union-Tribune, 9/16/01] [ABC News, 1/9/02] [AFP, 9/22/01, Focus, 9/24/01, Berliner Zeitung, 9/24/01 [Arab News, 9/18/01, Arab News, 9/20/01] [Guardian, 9/22/01] [Los Angeles Times, 9/1/02] [Time, 12/21/98] [Washington Post, 9/25/01, Arab News, 9/18/01] [Washington Post, 9/25/01] Washington Post, 10/3/01 Infoplease 2000 Election Chronology Scott Malensek list of Al Queda Connections (Australian Broadcasting Corp. Timeline) PBS.org Kosovo Timeline [Arab News, 9/19/01, Washington Post, 9/25/01] [CIA Director Tenet Testimony, 6/18/02] [CNN, 8/30/02, San Diego Union-Tribune, 9/27/02] [USA Today, 2/12/02, CNN, 8/30/02] [Congressional Intelligence Committee, 9/20/02] [Daniel McGrory, “Hijacker ‘Given Flask by Iraqi Agent’,” The Times (London), October 27, 2001.] [Independent, 9/27/01, [Washington Post, 9/25/01] [Arab News, 9/18/01] [New York Times, 12/30/01] [PBS Frontline 10/3/02] [St. Petersburg Times, 9/27/01, Washington Post, 9/25/01 [Sydney Morning Herald, 9/20/01] “Czechs Confirm Iraqi Agent Met With Terror Ringleader,” The New York Times, October 27, 2001. 10/4/01 report by the British govt; Losing Bin Laden by Richard Miniter 5/16/01 Condoleeza Rice list of pre-911 intel threats and assessments Al-Bab.com USS Cole/Investigation report Alif-Ba, September 11, 2002 (State-controlled magazine) Alif-Ba, September 11, 2002 (State-controlled newspaper) Al-Iktisadi, September 11, 2002 (State-controlled newspaper) Al-Jumhuriyah, October 4, 1994 (State-controlled newspaper) Al-Qadisiyah, February 27, 1999 (State-controlled newspaper) Al-Qadisiyah, October 6, 1994 (State-controlled newspaper) Al-Quds Al-'Arabi, June 9, 1995 (State-controlled newspaper) Al-Quds al-Arabi, October 12, 1994 (State-controlled newspaper) Al-Rafidayn, September 11, 2002 (State-controlled newspaper) Australian Ambassador Richard Butler, fmr head of UNSCOM, The Greatest Threat, Iraq, Weapons of Mass Destruction, and the Growing Crisis of Global Security Australian Ambassador Richard Butler, fmr head of UNSCOM, The Greatest Threat, Iraq, Weapons of Mass Destruction, and The Growing Crisis of Global Security Babil, October 8, 2001 Babil, September 20, 2001 (State-controlled newspaper) Baghdad Domestic Service, February 15, 1991 (State-controlled) Baghdad Radio, February 6, 1991 (State-controlled) CENTCOM Senate Intelligence Agency Congressional 911 Investigation Report 12/02 Congressional Intelligence Committee, 9/26/02] Council on Foreign Relations Ctr for Terrorism Research Studies Daniel McGrory, “Hijacker ‘Given Flask by Iraqi Agent’,” The Times (London), October 27, 2001. Free Republic post: courtesy Ed Erkes post Iraq Files Show ‘Al Queda Link’-BBC News 4/23/02, Inigo Gilmore Iraq News Agency, January 30, 1991 (State-controlled) Iraq TV, October 22, 2000 (State-controlled) Leaked classified memo from DoD UnderSec for Policy Douglas J. Feith to Sen. Pat Roberts and Sen. Jay Rockefeller, the chairman and vice chairman of the Senate Intelligence Committee 10/27/03 see also Case Closed by by Stephen F. Hayes The Weekly Standard, 11/24/2003, Volume 009, Issue 11 Losing Bin Laden by Richard Miniter Putting it All Together 8/12/02 Richard Miniter “The Iraq -- Al Qaeda Connections Saddam's Bombmaker by Khidhir Hamza Sec State Colin Powell Address to the UN Senate Intel. Committee 9/18/02 State Department spokesman Richard Boucher ABC News text of document found at Iraqi IIS HQ in Baghdad, -Iraq Files Show ‘Al Queda Link’-BBC News 4/23/02, Inigo Gilmore The Guardian Newspaper online website Timeline of the war in Iraq CNN.com The New Yorker, February 10, 2003 The War Against America: A Study of Revenge by Laurie Mylroie TheHistoryGuy Online UNMOVIC 3/6/03 Unresolved Disarmament Issues report-Dr.Hans Blix US State Department website US State Department timeline of incidents with Iraq Village Voice Cooperativeresearch.org Scott Malensek timeline of American History Crimsonbird.com Saudi -US relations website National Public Radio.org Sudanupdate.org

Alawi isn't the only leader in the Middle East that suspects Saddam of involvement in 9-11.

Here is an interview with Prince Bandar. He is asked if Saddam had anything to do with 9-11. It is interesting. He seems to have some information but doesn't share it.

http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/shows/terrorism/interviews/bandar.html

Your government has no information that he in any way supported, trained, this network?

BANDAR: No. We don't have anything solid of that. We think he's happy with the results. But we don't have anything solid on that.

Solid ... meaning?
BANDAR: Solid, meaning something you can take to the court, or something I can say to you in public on TV.

I tend to agree with Laurie Mylroie's theory about Saddam and 9-11. I am also reading the new book by Stephen Hayes. He details a lot of ties between Saddam and Islamists.
I am still reading the book.

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