Al Qaeda said to focus on WMDs
A key operative and chemical engineer who was reported to have been slain is alive and leading the effort, officials say.
WASHINGTON — After a U.S. airstrike leveled a small compound in Pakistan’s lawless tribal regions in January 2006, President Pervez Musharraf and his intelligence officials announced that several senior Al Qaeda operatives had been killed, and that the top prize was an elusive Egyptian who was believed to be a chemical weapons expert.
But current and former U.S. intelligence officials now believe that the Egyptian, Abu Khabab Masri, is alive and well — and in charge of resurrecting Al Qaeda’s program to develop or obtain weapons of mass destruction.
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For now, the intelligence officials believe, that effort is largely focused on developing and using cyanide, chlorine and other poisons that are unlikely to cause the kind of mass-casualty attack that is usually associated with weapons of mass destruction.
Intelligence officials say they base their current assessments on anecdotal evidence gleaned from electronic intercepts, information provided by informants and captured Al Qaeda members and the tracking of money flows and militant websites. One international counter-terrorism official said there were indications that some operatives had received immunizations to protect themselves against biological agents.
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http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/world/la-fg-khabab3feb03,0,5365070.story
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And, the most important question is why didn’t Al-Qaeda - since its establishment and until this moment - carry out one single operation against Israel?
This is the mystery of mysteries and whoever answers this question will have our undying gratitude.
http://aawsat.com/english/news.asp?section=2&id=11661
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Israelis told to prepare 'rocket rooms' for war
Feb 2 2008
Retired senior officers told Israelis on Saturday to prepare "rocket rooms" as protection against a rain of missiles expected to be fired at the Jewish state in any future conflict. Speaking on radio as part of a military propaganda offensive, retired general Udi Shani said: "The next war will see a massive use of ballistic weapons against the whole of Israeli territory."
Shani was tasked recently with drawing up a report on the way the military authorities operated during Israel's 2006 summer war against Hezbollah in Lebanon. During that conflict thousands of rockets hit Israel, but were limited to the north of the country from where hundreds of thousands of people were evacuated.
Excerpted
http://www.breitbart.com/article.php?id=080202132053.iohfg5ob&show_article=1