Freedom's Fidelity

Saturday, August 09, 2003

More on the Saddam/Osama Connection
Another link between Al-Qeada and Iraq? According to this report, yes.

A high ranking al-Qaeda operative in custody disclosed that Iraq supplied the Islamist militant group with material to build chemical and biological weapons, the White House said today.

"A senior al-Qaeda terrorist, now detained, who had been responsible for al-Qaeda training camps in Afghanistan, reports that al-Qaeda was intent on obtaining (weapons of mass destruction) assistance from Iraq," the White House said in a report.
The 25 page document was released as US President George W Bush holidayed at his Texas ranch.

The Bush administration cited links between al-Qaeda and Saddam Hussein's Baath party regime as justification for attacking Iraq to oust Saddam. The administration also insisted Saddam had chemical and biological weapons and was pursuing nuclear weapons.

The report quoted the unnamed prisoner as saying al-Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden turned to Iraq after concluding his group could not produce chemical or biological weapons on its own in Afghanistan.

"Iraq agreed to provide chemical and biological weapons training for two al-Qaeda associates starting in December 2000," the report said.

"Senior al-Qaeda associate Abu Musab al-Zarqawi came to Baghdad in May 2002 for medical treatment, along with approximately two dozen al-Qaeda terrorist associates.

"This group stayed in Baghdad and other parts of Iraq and plotted terrorist attacks around the world."

The report, quoting the US State Department, also says the fallen regime of Saddam Hussein "provided material assistance to Palestinian terrorist groups, including the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine-General Command, Hamas and the Palestine Islamic Jihad".

One of the many reasons I supported the forcible removal of Saddam Hussein was because of the regime's financial support of global terrorism and the potential that his chemical and biological weapons could find their way into terrorist camps, allowing him to wage war against the United States by proxy. I don't think I ever expected to see hard evidence of close relationship between Saddam and Al-Qeada (and I expected even less that this evidence would come from a friend of the Al Gore family - see my July 14, 2003 post below) but it is becoming increasingly apparent. This really shouldn't matter to most though, unless you are one of those that believed that Saddam was made of too much morality to ever sell chemical and/or biological weapons to terrorists.

posted by Paul  permalink | |