Intelligence

Iraqi officer tied to al Qaeda - 9/11 commissioner

Reuters AlertNet - Iraqi officer tied to al Qaeda - 9/11 commissioner

20 Jun 2004 17:10:21 GMT

By Peter Kaplan
WASHINGTON, June 20 (Reuters) - The commission investigating the Sept. 11 attacks has been given new evidence that "a very prominent member" of al Qaeda served as an officer in Saddam Hussein's militia, a panel member said on Sunday.

Republican commissioner John Lehman told NBC's "Meet the Press" program that the new intelligence, if proven true, buttresses claims by the Bush administration of ties between Iraq and the militant network believed responsible for the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks on America.

Lehman said the information, contained in "captured documents," was obtained after the commission report was written that stated there was no evidence of a "collaborative relationship" between Iraq and al Qaeda.

"Some of these documents indicate that (there was) at least one officer of Saddam's Fedayeen, a lieutenant colonel, who was a very prominent member of al Qaeda," Lehman said.

"That still has to be confirmed, but the vice president (Dick Cheney) was right when he said that he may have things that we don't yet have," said Lehman, a former Navy secretary. "And we are now in the process of getting this latest intelligence."

Cheney and U.S. President George W. Bush continued to insist that Iraq had ties to al Qaeda after the commission report issued last week found no evidence that Iraq collaborated with al Qaeda.

Lehman did not say whether the additional information was given to the commission in response to demands from the panel's chairman, Thomas Kean, and vice chairman, Lee Hamilton. The two called on Cheney late last week to turn over any intelligence reports that would support the White House's insistence.

The Bush administration has been accused by critics of using faulty intelligence about alleged weapons of mass destruction and Iraqi links to al Qaeda to push the nation to war.

Lehman said there was no evidence Saddam was involved in the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks on America. But he said the recent information about the Fedayeen officer "demonstrates the difficulty that we've had in this commission."

"We're under tremendous political pressures -- everything we come out with, one side or the other seizes on in this election year," Lehman said.

The conclusion of the commission staff report, released last Wednesday, contradicted Bush administration contentions before and after the U.S.-led war on Iraq. The president argued a connection with al Qaeda constituted an unacceptable threat to the United States.

Some officials, including Cheney, have suggested an Iraqi role in the Sept. 11 attacks carried out by al Qaeda. Bush later ruled out that possibility, but many Americans still believe it, and critics have accused the administration of misleading the public.

Bush's Democratic challenger, Sen. John Kerry of Massachusetts, said last week the president owed the American public "a fundamental explanation about why he rushed to war for a purpose it now turns out is not supported by the facts."

Democratic commission member Richard Ben-Veniste told the NBC program he hoped Cheney would provide "on a current basis" information "with respect to the individual that John Lehman has talked about."

Ben-Veniste also claimed there was no political motivation behind the commission's conclusions.

"This was not an effort to discredit or modify someone else's statements," he said.

June 20, 2004 at 04:34 PM in Al Qaeda | Permalink | TrackBack (39) | Top of page | Blog Home