Posted on 12/27/2004 2:34:00 AM PST by drt1
The airplane is a Gulfstream V turbojet, the sort favored by CEOs and celebrities. But since 2001 it has been seen at military airports from Pakistan to Indonesia to Jordan, sometimes being boarded by hooded and handcuffed passengers....In this case, the agency is flying captured terrorist suspects from one country to another for detention and interrogation....
(Excerpt) Read more at msnbc.msn.com ...
You might be interested in this one too - even mentions an old FR thread from around 9/11
Siddiqui the female al Qaeda suspect on the FBI most wanted list was one who disappeared in Pakistan under disputed circumstances, by the way.
Suspect in Cole Bombing Arrested : 27 Year Old Microbiology Student - Active in Al Qaeda Network
What! Just one! We need a fleet of these planes!
It's as if Priest took her Christmas vacation to Las Vegas, and upon her return to Washington she convinced a senior editor to publish a story about gambling in Nevada.
She can't be this naive. I'm wondering if there isn't some kind of vendetta being played out on the pages of the WP?
Here's another oddball but apparently unrelated item from around the time of that Paki airport incident:
OCTOBER 16, 2001 : (ALZEEDI AVIATION, SAUDI PILOT) According to an Asharq Al-Awsat newspaper phone interview with Alzeedi in Morocco, Alzeedi said the FBI agents and FAA officers met him in Morocco and were suspicious about his intention following the purchase of the planes. "We have given them all information and explained to them the details of the purchase of the two planes," he said. His 3 Saudi assistants, Rami Muqaddam, Muhammad Allaf and Vice Chairman Raid Baghdadi accompanied Alzeedi. "We are based in Morocco and train pilots. At present 15 Saudis are being trained," he told the Arabic daily. Since the attacks, the FBI has questioned employees of a Nashville hotel where Alzeedi stayed, as well as the broker who was involved in the sale of the two planes, and seized records of Zidi Aviation. A top FBI official told AP on Sunday that "The FBI wants to interview Alzeedi in connection with a matter remains totally unrelated to the hijackings," FBI assistant director John Collingwood said in Washington. Alzeedi said he and his three assistants were in the US on Aug. 4 to purchase the two planes and stayed there till Aug. 28, which was the date of delivery of the two aircraft. We stayed at the Nashville hotel and the Hilton hotel. After leaving the plane in Portland, they boarded an Air Moroc flight to Casablanca. "We planned to return to the US in September to accept the order of our planes but had to delay our departure because of the unfolding events." Alzeedi was suspected by the FBI of moving the two planes to an unknown place. "I had not taken them to any unknown place but flew it to Portland [Maine] airport. They knew that," he said. Alzeedi is a former Saudi Arabian Airlines’ pilot. He served the airline for 13 years. ArabNews- FBI quizzes Saudi pilot for buying two planes
It wouldn't be the first- seems like Washpo reporter Pincus has been at it for some time.
That story out of Pakistan also first appeared about the time lefty prof Noam Chomsky showed up in Pakistan, railing against the US and spewing assorted conspiracy theories. HE was there in October 2001.
And I think Seymour Hersh came out with his tale about that night jump in Afghanistan then, asif he had just got off the phone with spec op guys who had nothing better to do after a jump than talk to a "journalist." According to Seymour the jump was a disaster.
Here's a Washpo-related leak that's fairly recent and happens to concern the same general talking point topic- another disgruntled employee probably got offered a book deal :
DRUDGE: CIA Has Run Secret Facility for al-Qaida Detainees at Guantanamo
Drudge Report / WaPo ^ | December 16, 2004
Posted on 12/16/2004 7:26:14 PM PST by West Coast Conservative
CIA Has Run Secret Facility for al-Qaida Detainees at Guantanamo... WASH POST splash on Friday, newsroom sources tell DRUDGE: Under a presidential directive and authorities approved by administration lawyers, the CIA is allowed to capture and hold certain classes of suspects without accounting for them in any public way and without revealing the rules for their treatment... Developing...
My semi-sincere apologies if the profanity offends the delicate sensitivities of fellow Freepers. As the old saying goes..."Loose lips can sink ships"...or interfere with the good-guys.
Also, ex intel committee senator Graham came out with some whining complaint this weekend. It's the intel committee Democrats past and present that have been trying to undermine the administration's war effort in a very coordinated way, so it's interesting that he took tim eoff from the holidays to make an appearance when all this is bubbling up. I forgot what he was whining about, maybe someone remembers.
Here's another thing, I know for a fact that Gulfstream publishes, annually, a pocket sized reference directory that lists all G-1 thru G-5 tail numbers and owners. Most corporate pilots carry them or know how to get one.
Wow, I wish I could remember some of the planes I used to fly. This will be fun. Thanks.
I'm just amazed the Dems think they can capitalize on the issue among those who support the idea of fighting terrorists. Like I am going to shed tears over the idea of one of those head-lopping hijacking types getting less-than-Ramada Suites treatment.
SNOW: All right. Now, last Tuesday, somebody leaked to Fox News's Sean Hannity a Democratic staff memo that laid out a strategy for making political hay out of Intelligence Committee investigations of the White House.
Among the key points in the memo: "Pull the majority along as far as we can on issues that may lead to major new disclosures regarding improper or questionable conduct by administration officials." And, "Prepare to launch an independent investigation when it becomes clear we have exhausted the opportunity to usefully collaborate with the majority. The best time to do so will probably be next year."
Senator Roberts, your reaction?
ROBERTS: Well, the one thing you didn't show was "to pull the trigger," which I think is an interesting term. I was stunned by this memo, shocked by this memo. We have a 30- year history in the Intelligence Committee of nonpartisan activity, dating clear back from the Frank Church days. And what this memo has done is really poisoned the well.
Our leader, on Friday, got up, Bill Frist, the majority leader, and asked, "Would somebody please disavow this strategic partisan attack plan?" It's been a week, and we have had nobody, except a couple Democrat members and Senator Miller from Georgia, publicly state that this should not be done.
This is really, in the words of Bob Kerrey, who is the former vice chairman and a Democrat and from Nebraska and a good friend, said this tears at the comity of this very important committee because of the importance of the committee in regards to our national security. I'm very upset about this.
You can always count on America's press to do their bit - exposing the evil American government and its diabolical attempts to defeat the worldwide terror movement. Don't you know that their mothers are proud of them.
That's why in these hearings they have now and then they keep trying to get officials to try to defend themselves or the administration with classified info and we keep hearing from these officials "Senator, you have read the reports- you know I cannot answer that in a public session. Close the hearing and we can talk" or words to that effect.
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