This article has been posted to DoctorZin’s New News Blog!
Posted on 08/06/2004 10:36:07 AM PDT by HAL9000
ISLAMABAD, Aug 6 (Reuters) - U.S. officials revealed the name of captured al Qaeda suspect Mohammad Naeem Noor Khan while he was still cooperating with Pakistani authorities, a Pakistani intelligence source has told Reuters.Khan e-mailed comrades on Sunday and Monday as part of a Pakistani sting operation against Osama bin Laden's network, the source said on Friday. But his name appeared in the New York Times on Monday following anonymous briefings by U.S. officials, raising suggestions their disclosure could have jeopardised the sting.
"He was cooperating with interrogators on Sunday and Monday and sent e-mails on both days," the intelligence source told Reuters. Khan was moved to a new location on Monday evening, he said.
U.S. officials revealed Khan's name in anonymous briefings with journalists after New York and Washington were put on high alert for a possible al Qaeda attack.
The officials said the alert was prompted after Khan's capture in Pakistan last month yielded documents, computers, surveillance reports and sketches. A string of arrests in Britain this week also resulted from Khan's detention.
"After his capture he admitted being an al Qaeda member and agreed to send e-mails to his contacts," the source said. "He sent encoded e-mails and received encoded replies. He's a great hacker and even the U.S. agents said he was a computer whiz."
The source said Khan had intended to hack into both the Federal Bureau of Investigation's website and a British official website to destroy them.
Interior Minister Faisal Saleh Hayat, in an interview with Reuters on Friday, drew a veil over Khan's contribution to the recent breakthroughs against al Qaeda in Pakistan, Britain and the United States.
"This is a very sensitive subject. We must be very careful, we must exercise extreme caution in coming out with such names and such information," the Pakistani minister said.
"This name Khan keeps on cropping up time and again. I really cannot throw any light on this individual if at all he does exist."
Not good.
It makes bush's team look too eager for a win....
New York Times ?????????
Loose friggin' lips syndrome.
Since we know newspapers have no qualms about printing sensitive information, the blame should fall on those "U.S. officials" who are so eager to receive plaudits for their work that they blab about these things right away.
I'd rather not know anything for the sake of secrecy than know a little bit and have the investigation compromised.
Ridge did this to protect criticism of him perhaps? If so, very bad show.
So9
I have been griping about this kind of thing for a long time...We need to quit giving the store away and hold our cards closer to the vest...They are treasonous vipers out there who would just as soon see us all die...and some of them work for the Slimes,the Post, congress, state,etc
Conducting foreign policy and intelligence operations via the different media sources is very bad policy. Leaks and counter leaks confuse foreign nations while confusing the electorate in the upcoming election.
Over the last weekend the criticism arose about the "old information" seeming to prompt current security crackdowns. Not an unreasonable criticism on its face.
Was the release of the Khan information made for a domestic public relations battle??
once again: THE MEDIA is to blame
My fears exactly. I would hope the Bush administration would be more responsible than that, but they took such a beating in the media over the heightened alert that some political minded official may have stupidly leaked this info.
On the other hand, maybe this is intentionally placed disinformation but I don't see the benefit of this.
Bet it was hatch
"But his name appeared in the New York Times on Monday following anonymous briefings by U.S. officials, raising suggestions their disclosure could have jeopardised the sting."
I'm sorry this does not say Bush officials, it says U.S. officials and that would included any person who collects their living wage from the tax payers.
"Ridge did this to protect criticism of him perhaps? If so, very bad show."
Read very carefully, "IF" it were Ridge or the administration this article would have said that, however in order to imply such it says "U.S. officials".
If this was a leak from an "anonymous U.S. official" (as oppose to intentional disinformation) then the Bush administration better be investigating this 24/7 and take immediate action.
I saw on another thread were the NYT was being blamed.....
U.S. Accuses British Man of Terrorist Conspiracy (Had plans of classified Naval group movements )
Article is mostly about Ahmad but has this:
Babar Ahmad, a 30-year-old college employee arrested by British authorities Thursday, was described as a cousin of suspected Al Qaeda member Mohammed Naeem Noor Khan — whose recent arrest in Pakistan triggered a spate of terrorism alerts last weekend in New York, New Jersey and Washington.
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