Posted on 06/15/2003 2:47:58 PM PDT by knighthawk
A HIGH-RANKING member of the al-Qaeda terrorist network operated for up to a year in Japan before the attacks on the US of September 11, 2001, and examined potential Japanese targets, new investigations by US and Japanese security agencies have revealed.
Security authorities believe the senior al-Qaeda operative was closely involved in planning the September 11 strikes that hit New York and Washington, Japan's Kyodo news agency reported yesterday.
The operative was in Japan to raise funds and develop al-Qaeda's support base and also visited a number of Japanese public facilities, the investigators said.
This suggested the group might have been targeting Japan for a possible terrorist strike, they said.
This is the first time any direct link has been made between al-Qaeda operations and Japan.
Japan's National Police Agency and Justice Ministry have stepped up information-sharing and co-operation with the FBI and the CIA on the case, believing the operative's long-term presence in Japan is a clear indication he had substantial domestic support.
This led to their belief that al-Qaeda sympathisers might still be active in Japan, Kyodo said.
The four agencies are co-operating to track radical Islamic elements operating out of Japan.
The Japanese Government has been a constant and vocal supporter of US foreign policy in recent years. It contributed $US11 billion ($16.5 billion) to the clean-up effort after the first Gulf War in 1991 and was strong in its commitment to President George W.Bush's hunt for terrorists in Afghanistan, and the Iraq war earlier this year.
Japan's strict immigration laws mean foreign national or religious groupings remain small-scale and without influence, although Japan's security organisations have been concerned about acts of terrorism for some time.
The country's experience with terrorism in recent decades has been primarily domestic, notably the sarin gas attacks on the Tokyo subway system by the religious sect Aum Shinrikyu.
The Justice Ministry's 2002 international terrorism report said there was "the strong possibility of mass-killing terror attacks" in Japan should al-Qaeda terrorists have already have infiltrated the country.
Rather interesting thought there....
Seeing as how the terrorists all have a common denominator, Islam,
they wouldn't be that hard to "keep an eye on"
DOH
Shinjuku Station at morning rush hour? Tsukuba Science City? The Palace?
It's coming a-part fast, isn't it ?
No doubt we have a contingency plan for occupation of the Saudi oil fields and pipelines. Won't need their "permission" either, LOL!
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