Lounsbury: News Flash? al-Qaedah and Iraq not connected....

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June 16, 2004

News Flash? al-Qaedah and Iraq not connected....

It really is a sad statement to the depths to which the U.S. Government has sunk under the current administration that this is news.

See
Sept. 11 Commission Report Says Iraq Rebuffed Al Qaeda
By THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
The New York Times
Published: June 16, 2004
http://www.nytimes.com/aponline/national/AP-Sept-11-Commission.html?hp
and
9/11 Panel Finds No Collaboration Between Iraq, Al Qaeda
By Dan Eggen
Washington Post Staff Writer
Wednesday, June 16, 2004; 9:00 AM
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A45853-2004Jun16.html

I should say it is transparently clear that Bush and Cheney's mendacious and grossly misleading statements re Iraq and al-Qaedah are aimed at the gullible fool segement of the American voting population that is unable to distinguish between Arabs and Muslims, and for whom all of "them" are the same. It is a real pity for it does a real diservice to actually addressing the al-Qaedah issue, as well as Iraq.

Mendacity when done right, and competently has its place in government. When done stupidly and incompetently, it is rather like scoring an own goal. Of course, the current Administration seems to specialise in this.

Now, some key notes from the articles:
From the WP version:
"Although Osama bin Laden briefly explored the idea of forging ties with Iraq in the mid-1990s, the terrorist leader was hostile to Hussein's secular government, and Iraq never responded to requests for help in providing training camps or weapons, the panel's report says.

The findings come in the wake of statements Monday by Vice President Cheney that Iraq had "long-established ties" with al Qaeda, and comments by President Bush yesterday backing up that assertion..... "There have been reports that contacts between Iraq and al Qaeda also occurred after bin Laden had returned to Afghanistan [in 1996], but they do not appear to have resulted in a collaborative relationship," the report says. "Two senior bin Laden associates have adamantly denied that any ties existed between al Qaeda and Iraq. We have no credible evidence that Iraq and al Qaeda cooperated on attacks against the United States." "

The NYT art. rather brief merely notes:
"Bluntly contradicting the Bush administration, the commission investigating the Sept. 11 attacks reported Wednesday there was "no credible evidence" that Saddam Hussein helped al-Qaida target the United States. .....

Bin Laden made overtures to Saddam for assistance, the commission said in a staff report, as he did with leaders in Sudan, Iran, Afghanistan and elsewhere as he sought to build an Islamic army.

While Saddam dispatched a senior Iraqi intelligence official to Sudan to meet with bin Laden in 1994, the commission said it had not turned up evidence of a "collaborative relationship."

The Bush administration has long claimed links between Saddam Hussein and al-Qaida, and cited them as one reason for last year's invasion of Iraq.

On Monday, Vice President Dick Cheney said in a speech that the Iraqi dictator "had long established ties with al-Qaida." "

Electoral gain, of course, not any respect for policy making is what is driving that.

However, in my opinion more relevant and interesting is the following:
" "Contrary to popular understanding," the report says, "bin Laden did not fund al Qaeda through a personal fortune and a network of businesses," and he never received a $300 million inheritance. "Instead, al Qaeda relied primarily on a fundraising network developed over time," the report says.

.....

Since the Sept. 11 attacks and the defeat of the Taliban in Afghanistan, "al Qaeda's funding has decreased significantly," the report says. But the group's expenditures have decreased as well, and "it remains relatively easy for al Qaeda to find the relatively small sums required to fund terrorist operations," the report warns.

Now, the organization is far more decentralized, with operational commanders and cell leaders making the decisions that were previously made by bin Laden, the panel found.

Yet, al Qaeda remains interested in carrying out chemical, biological, radiological or nuclear attacks against the United States, the report says. Although an attempt to purchase uranium in 1994 failed -- the material proved to be fake -- "al Qaeda continues to pursue its strategic objective of obtaining a nuclear weapon," according to the report.

By any means possible, it warns, "al Qaeda is actively striving to attack the United States and inflict mass casualties." "

Emphasis added.

I note the following:
First, some time back I opined that Bin Laden's wealth, according to my understanding, had been exhausted, and that people were unnecessarily obsessing about "Saudi" wealth when more pedestrian funding, including quasi criminal, were more important. It is important to understand this to avoid falling into the trap of fighting a mirage (the great benefactor Bin Laden / the Evil Saudis).

Second, I would hazard the opinion that al-Qaedah funding and recruitment has seen a huge rebound since the fiasco that is Iraq has been underway, making the United States look very much like the giant with clay feet. This is a dangerous perception, and the staggering incompetence in this area desperately needs to be addressed.

June 16, 2004

News Flash? al-Qaedah and Iraq not connected....

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