The "Spiegel" article is today's, "Die Welt"'s was datelined yesterday.
The surprise witness for the prosecution in the Hamburg Qaida trial is considered unreliable by federal government security experts. The former Iranian agent with the assumed names "Toni" and "Hamid Reza Zakeri" had already had contact with the Federal Intelligence Agency [BND, lj] in 2002, however, after extensive interrogation had been classified in most areas as not credible. In testimony to officials of the Federal Intelligence Agency shortly before the end of the Hamburg trial he had charged accused terror accomplice Abdelghani Mzoudi of having supported the assassins of September 11th as a logistician . In addition, the witness claimed Iranian authorities were informed of the attacks up front. Because of his statement, Mzoudi's verdict, planned for last Thursday, was postponed.
© DER SPIEGEL 5/2004
"Der Spiegel"....Sicherheitsexperten halten neuen Zeugen im Qaida-Prozess für unglaubwürdig
Terror process: State's attorney held back information
An alleged secret agent made statements about September 11th in October 2003 - credibility of the Iranian shall be checked
by Claus Hornung
German federal lawyers have passed on information about the attacks of September 11th, which they have known about since October 2003, until only just before the planned pronouncement of judgement. The State's Attorney, Bruno Jost, explained on Thursday before the Hanseatic Higher Regional Court that an alleged former Iranian secret agent had already claimed in October 2003 to be able to make statements about the attacks on the World Trade Center.
The man, who uses the cover name Hamed Reza Zakiri, was interrogated by Jost in connection with the murder of Iranian-Kurdish opposition figures in 1992 in the Berlin restaurant "Mykonos". On the objection of the angered presiding judge, Klaus Rühle, why this hadn't been passed on, Jost explained he hadn't seen any cause to. He deals exclusively with the Mykonos case. Only when Zakiri mentioned at lunch last week that Al Qaida plans to murder, the in Hamburg accused, Abdelghani Mzoudi, Jost got the Federal Criminal Investigation Agency (BKA) involved, who, in turn, informed the Hamburg court.
Since Zakiri has been assured confidentiality, two BKA officials testified about Monday's Zakiri interrogation before the court yesterday. In it they explained that Mzoudi, who is on trial for abetting in the murder of thousands and the membership in a terrorist organisation, coordinated the communication between the backers of September 11th. This had been admitted to in an e-mail from an Iranian secret service agent in December 2003 that had been passed on to Zakiri. After Mzoudi had been released from custody in December following anonymous exonerating testimony, Al Qaida had decided to liquidate him.
Zakiri, himself, claims to have seen a document from Al Qaida in Teheran in the summer of 2001, which spoke of actions in the USA which could provoke retaliation. In the same year, Zakiri claims to have fled from Iran because he was afraid that his eight-year employment as double agent for the CIA would be exposed. The USA still owed him 1.2 million dollars for his work. After his flight the American authorities didn't want to help him, however.
The BKA officials Andy N. and Thorsten W. didn't want give any opinions of Zakiri's credibility after repeated requests from Rühle and the defense. "We simply asked our questions in an unbiased manner."
According to officials, Zakiri has not made any direct financial demands, but made any further statements dependent on the 'securing of his livelihood'. Mzoudi's defenders pointed out that Zakiri had already told parts of his story to a Saudi-Arabian newspaper in February, 2003. In the report a CIA employee is also quoted, who describes Zakiri as a "monumental fairy tale teller". At the next trial date on January 29th, the court wants to question Zakiri personally. State's attorney Walter Hemberger stated, because of the assured confidentiality, this can be considered only "as a wish", however.
Artikel erschienen am 23. Jan 2004
"Die welt"....Terrorprozess: Bundesanwalt hielt Informationen zurück
Translated by longjack