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iraq and al queda -
The dots have been joined by various analysts
who believe there is conclusive proof (or, as one observer puts
it, a probability between 0 and 10) of a connection that would could
lead Iraq to engage terrorists to unleash an unknown weapon against
an unknown country at an unknown time. This probability ("between
0 and 10") is apparently too high. It could happen, but would
it?
Other commentators argue that Iraq, secular dictatorship, and Al
Queda, fanatical islam terrorist group, hate each other. Al Queda
and most fundamentalist terrorist organisations I've heard of, are
passionate in their extreme beliefs and are not just guns for hire.
However, perhaps these two forces could overcome their hatred and
come together in the face of a common enemy, if sufficiently provoked.
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daniel pipes |
Mohammed Atta, one of the hijackers, met with an Iraqi
intelligence agent in Prague. Two of his co-conspirators met
with Iraqi intelligence officers in the United Arab Emirates.
Bin Laden aides met with officials in Baghdad. Further, Saddam
may be behind the recent military-grade anthrax attacks, suggested
by the presence of bentonite, a substance only Iraq uses for
this purpose." Daniel
Pipes, New York Post December 3, 2001 [reprinted in the
Middle East Quarterly] |
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David Rose |
Mohamed Atta, the leader of the 9/11 plotters, met
an Iraqi intelligence officer, Ibrahim al-Ani, in Prague in
April 2001. Some US officials have suggested this meeting did
not happen. But in a signed statement dated 24 February, 2003,
Hynek Kmonicek, the Czech ambassador to the UN, says his government
'can confirm that during the stay of Mohamed Atta ... there
was contact with Mr al-Ani, who was on 22 April, 2001 expelled
from the Czech Republic on the basis of activities not compatible
with his diplomatic status David
Rose
Sunday March 16, 2003, Observer |
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George W Bush Jnr |
"We know that Iraq and the al Qaeda terrorist
network share a common enemy -- the United States of America.
We know that Iraq and al Qaeda have had high-level contacts
that go back a decade. Some al Qaeda leaders who fled Afghanistan
went to Iraq." President
George W Bush, October 7,2002 |
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Colin Powell |
" U.S. Secretary of State Colin Powell told the UN Security
Council, "Iraq harbors a deadly terrorist network headed
by Abu Musab Zarqawi, an associate and collaborator of
Osama bin Laden and his Al Qaeda lieutenant." ...
Zarqawi is connected with Ansar al-Islam, a Kurdish militant
group that operates in northern Iraq outside Baghdad's control...
In May 2002, Zarqawi received medical treatment in Baghdad after
he fled Afghanistan, Powell said. He said that while Zarqawi
was in Baghdad, nearly two dozen other extremists converged
there to establish a base." Detroit
Free Press February 6, 2003 |
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Michael Novak |
" From the point of view of public authorities who must
calculate the risks of action or inaction vis-a-vis the regime
of Saddam Hussein, two points are salient. Saddam Hussein
has the means to wreak devastating destruction upon Paris,
London, or Chicago, or any cities of his choosing, if only
he can find clandestine undetectable “foot soldiers”
to deliver small amounts of the sarin gas, botulins, anthrax
and other lethal elements to predetermined targets. Secondly,
independent terrorist assault cells have already been highly
trained for precisely such tasks, and have trumpeted far and
wide their intentions to carry out such destruction willingly,
with joy. All that is lacking between these two incendiary
elements is a spark of contact... Given Saddam’s
proven record in the use of such weapons, and given his recognized
contempt for international law, only an imprudent or even
foolhardy statesman could trust that these two forces will
stay apart forever. At any time they could combine, in secret,
to murder tens of thousands of innocent and unsuspecting citizens...
Somewhere between 0 and 10, in other words, there already
is a probability of Saddam’s deadly weapons falling into
Al Qaeda’s willing hands. (There are also other branches
of the international terror network). Reasonable observers
can disagree about whether that risk is at 2 or 4 or 8. But
this much is clear. Those who judge that the risk is low,
and therefore allow Saddam to remain in power, will bear a
horrific responsibility if they guessed wrong, and acts of
destruction do occur. " Michael
Novak, American Enterprise Institute, February 10, 2003
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iraq
and al queda