'CIA bomber was always loyal to al-Qaida'

The Jerusalem Post ^ | 01/05/2010 | AP via Jerusalem Post

[ErnstStavroBlofeld]

The suspected Jordanian double agent who killed eight people on a CIA base in Afghanistan was recruited by his country's intelligence agency after it threw him in jail to coerce him into helping them track down al-Qaida's No. 2 leader, counterterrorism officials in the Middle East said Tuesday.

Three Middle Eastern counterterrorism officials said 32-year-old physician Humam Khalil Abu-Mulal al-Balawi was jailed for three days after he signed up for a humanitarian mission to the Gaza Strip with a Jordanian field hospital following Israel's offensive there. At that time, authorities were aware that al-Balawi had posted fiery writings on militant Web sites, calling on Muslims to join a holy war against Israel and the United States.

The officials spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to comment on an operation involving the CIA.

The Jordanian Intelligence Directorate wanted al-Balawi, who was respected among al-Qaida and other militants for his Web writings, to help them and their CIA allies capture or kill Ayman al-Zawahri, Osama bin Laden's right-hand man, according to a counterterrorism official based in the Middle East.

Another counterterrorism official in the Middle East confirmed the account of al-Balawi's jailing and said his allegiance was to al-Qaida from the start - not with his Jordanian recruiters or their CIA friends - and never wavered. He also spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to comment on an operation involving the CIA.

The other counterterrorism officials gave identical accounts of how and when al-Balawi was recruited.

Jordanian intelligence thought he had been persuaded to support US and Jordanian efforts against al-Qaida.

[gr8eman]

Maybe we should change the name to Central Political Agency.

[Enchante]

I don’t know what it takes to believe that a devout jihadist has not only abandoned the cause but is willing to work with the CIA to oppose it....... but I would think at a minimum there would have to be some horrible event such as an AQ terrorist attack killing one’s own family members......

How could anyone possibly believe this guy had flipped against Al Qaeda????? I don’t know what he said to his Jordanian handlers but it was just words, words, words.....

I imagine that trying to find any jihadist to betray their sick movement is one of the hardest things in the intel world...... but how could anyone believe his change of heart just b/c he was jailed for a few days, whatever? There would have to be some total disillusionment with jihadist goals and methods, but most ppl who are disillusioned probably just try to distance themselves from the cause -— who would agree to infiltrate and provide info for the CIA unless they had some unremitting hatred for the Al Qaeda ldrs etc?

[DJ Taylor]

Let's connect the dots here. There was only one Arab there who could have gotten on that CIA post and into a room with seven high level CIA officers without being searched and that was none other than...Ali bin Zaid, a relative of Jordan's King Abdullah.