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To: MEG33; Badabing Badaboom; archy; pokerbuddy0; Fred Mertz; aristeides; Mo1; seamole; dogbyte12
Interesting Al Ani meeting update story. New info in the WashPost story.

Obviously an anti-Cheney leak. With some good new info, some misleading about Havel again.

"...In October 2001, after pictures of Atta had circulated publicly, an Arab student who worked as an informant for BIS, the Czech Security Information Service, told the service he had seen Atta meeting with al-Ani in April.

That November, Stanislav Gross, the Czech Republic's interior minister, said publicly that al-Ani and Atta had met in Prague. A short while later, Czech Prime Minister Milos Zeman told Powell that the two had discussed targeting the Radio Free Europe building, not the Sept. 11 targets.

On Dec. 9, 2001, Cheney said on "Meet The Press" that "it's been pretty well confirmed that he did go to Prague and he did meet with a senior official of the Iraqi intelligence service in Czechoslovakia last April, several months before the attack."

But that same month, Czech President Vaclav Havel was retreating from the more definitive accounts provided by his government, saying there was "a 70 percent" chance the meeting took place. Indeed, while Czech officials never officially backed away from their initial stance, officials at various agencies say that, privately, the Czechs have discredited the accuracy of the untested informant who came to them with the information. According to one report, Havel quietly informed the White House in 2002 there was no evidence to confirm the meeting...

6 posted on 10/03/2003 2:05:29 PM PDT by Shermy
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To: Shermy
Havel denied calling the White House about Atta.
7 posted on 10/03/2003 2:12:37 PM PDT by MEG33
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To: aristeides; Allan; Mitchell
IMO, what makes the Atta in Prague story intriguing is the degree to which some wanted to destroy it. Tactics include the completely false planting of the story that Havel debunked the story. Also, the retired Czech Foreign Ministry official trotted out who, when cutting to the chase, said nothing much more than a meeting didn't happen in April.

Also, our govt. must have closely reviewed where Atta was throughout his life. But they only say they have no "evidence" that Atta left in "April"

Well, what about March?
8 posted on 10/03/2003 2:14:40 PM PDT by Shermy
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