[piasa]

Now here's where it gets real interesting:

(snip) The 1993-1994 attempted uranium purchase in Sudan During the third day of the trial, February 7, 2001, Al-Fadl testified that he was directly involved in an attempt to purchase uranium for Usama Bin Laden at the end of 1993 or the beginning of 1994. According to his testimony, Al-Fadl was telephoned by a senior Al-Qa’ida official, Abu Fadhl [most probably Fadl or Fazl] al-Makkee, and was instructed to meet with a contact in Khartoum, Sudan, who allegedly possessed uranium. The witness met first with Abu Abd Allah al-Yemeni (aka Abu Dijana) and was given the name of another contact, Moqadem Salah Abd al-Mobruk, a lieutenant colonel in the Sudanese Army who, according to the testimony, had been a former minister during the Numeiri presidency (1969-83).(5)

Al-Fadl was charged with evaluating the situation, and after conferring with other associates, including his cousin, he met with al-Mobruk. Al-Mobruk referred Al-Fadl to a man named Basheer, and the two met at an office on Jambouria Street in Khartoum, Sudan. When questioned by Basheer as to whether Al-Qa’ida was serious about acuiring uranium, Al-Fadl claimed, “I know people, they [are] very serious, and they want to buy it.” He noted that l-Qa’ida was concerned primarily with the quality of the material and the country of origin, and secondarily with the cost. The arranged price was $1.5 million, plus additional commissions for Basheer and al-Mobruk. At this point, the main issue concerned the method of testing the uranium.

After reporting back to al-Makkee, Al-Fadl was sent to speak with a new contact, Abu Rida al-Suri. This meeting took place at the Ikhlak Company in the Baraka building in Khartoum. Al-Suri instructed Al-Fadl to return to Basheer and report that the organization had an “electric machine” capable of testing uranium. Again through an intermediary, Al-Fadl arranged a meeting with Basheer and, in a small house in the town of Bait al-Mal, north of Khartoum, Al-Fadl and al-Suri were shown a cylinder approximately 2-3 feet tall with a lot of words engraved on it. The men were given a note that Al-Fadl was told to deliver to another contact, Abu Hajer, and then await further instructions. Al-Fadl did not recollect exactly what was written on the paper, only that it was written in English, said “South Africa” on it, and contained a serial number.

The source is worth a good read : - "WMD TERRORISM AND USAMA BIN LADEN," by Kimberly McCloud and Matthew Osborne , CNS Reports, http://cns.miis.edu/pubs/reports/binladen.htm.

[backhoe]

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[piasa]

fyi check out this whole thread

[windchime]

Thank you for the ping!! 'WMD Terrorism and Usama Bin Laden' was, indeed, worth reading.

In relation to the South Africa nuclear weapons program, here is a link to a timeline.

http://cns.miis.edu/research/safrica/chron.htm

This was also interesting:

South Africa's strange handling of Iraq

In this article, first published in Business Day on 11th February, John Kane-Berman raises several questions about South Africa's actions regarding Iraq.

http://www.sairr.org.za/wsc/pstory.htx?storyID=290

The accusation of 'fabricating evidence' is made against Colin Powell/US. To what evidence are they referring and how did Mbeki get the dem talking points so far in advance (February 2003)?

[jriemer]

The men were given a note that Al-Fadl was told to deliver to another contact, Abu Hajer, and then await further instructions. Al-Fadl did not recollect exactly what was written on the paper, only that it was written in English, said “South Africa” on it, and contained a serial number.

If the note was in English and had a serial number it could have been a shipping manifest from a South African Uranium mine.