Al Queda in Iraq.

[g5man]

http://www.cnn.com/2004/WORLD/meast/01/23/sprj.nirq.main/index.html

A U.S. official told CNN that Ghul is a "longtime facilitator, operator" within al Qaeda, and a "significant player."


It is believed that Ghul was captured soon after his arrival in Iraq, the official said.


Earlier Friday, Pentagon sources announced that U.S. forces had captured a man described as a top lieutenant to a man connected to Ansar al-Islam, a Kurdish guerrilla group that U.S. officials say is linked to Osama bin Laden's terrorist network.


Ansar al-Islam is accused of attacking U.S. troops in northern Iraq.


The suspect, identified as Husam al Yemeni, was captured last week along with other suspects during a raid near Fallujah in central Iraq, sources told CNN.


He is said to be a key associate of Abu Musab Al-Zarqawi. Pentagon officials call the capture "significant" and say it suggests they may be getting closer to finding Zarqawi.

This is only the beginning.

[pseudobrit]

Originally posted by g5man
This is only the beginning.

Only the beginning of Osama's lieutenants travelling to Iraq to attack US interests?

I have to say I agree.

Unless you were talking about a presence of Al Qaeda in Saddam's Iraq. Such a connection does not exist.

[g5man]

Originally posted by pseudobrit
Only the beginning of Osama's lieutenants travelling to Iraq to attack US interests?

I have to say I agree.

Unless you were talking about a presence of Al Qaeda in Saddam's Iraq. Such a connection does not exist.

No matter what info I give you, you will never believe it. And that is OK since you are too far gone to come around to REALITY.

The connection has been shown but the person has not been found yet. Please read the article before commenting.

[toontra]

Originally posted by g5man
Please read the article before commenting.

OK. I read the article. There is nothing there to support your intentionally misleading statement that Al Queda was present and active in Iraq pre-war. What is your point, please?

[denjeff]

As far as everyone in international politics believes (exept fot those who have a special agenda) Osama Bin Laden and Saddam were no friends. On the contrary.
Saddam is a sunnite and Osama is a shi’ite. Compare it to catholics and protestants, but then everybody acts like in Northern Ireland. Saddam was known to be very aggressive against the shi'ite majority in his country. The moment the americans entered Iraq, a lot of shi'ite warriors took the opportunity to go to Iraq and fight for their believe. Now, because the americans are no good in maintaining order and peace, al queda is getting a strong basis in the shi'ite population. They want the americans out, and the civilians without a job (which are a lot) and without a perspective are easy persuaded to fight for al queda.
If this situation continues, the USA will be responsible for an augmentation of islam fundamentalism, and maybe more terrorism. But hey, that 's a good thing for Bush, because (just like in Israel) people tend to vote for an aggressive approach in times of insecurity. While only education and a perspective of prosperity are a good way to undermine terrorism (in my point of view).

[mactastic]

So what you're saying is that a guy connected to a guy connected to a group that may or may not have been connected to another group associated with the most wanted man in the world is proof that those two groups planned and worked together? Seems pretty thin to me.

And didn't we give Ansar-al-Islam air cover to oppose Saddam during the 'low-intensity' conflict pre-Dubya Dubya II?

Oh and it is pretty well known that there are al-Qaeda running around in, and indeed have been captured in America. I suppose we should take that as proof that there is a connection between GWB and al Qaeda?

From the article...
Lt. Gen. Ricardo Sanchez declined to provide specific evidence that rebel forces in Iraq were directly linked to bin Laden's terrorist network.


"I think it's probably not appropriate for me to talk about al Qaeda in the sense of a concrete, proven presence," Sanchez said. "We're seeing al Qaeda-like tactics. We believe that there's training that's been conducted for some of the terrorists."


Although the instruction is not happening in Iraq, he said, al Qaeda seems to be training "those elements that are operating in here. And we think that there's also financing that has been taking place."

[zimv20]

i seem to remember al qaeda being in the US. CLEARLY they were operating w/ the cooperation of the US gov't, so CLEARLY bush was in league w/ bin laden :rolleyes:

[g5man]

Here this gives a little more info.
____Hasan Ghul, a key terrorist "facilitator" and the highest-ranking al Qaeda apprehended in Iraq, was captured Thursday and is suspected of trying to link up with elements of Saddam Hussein's ousted regime, U.S. officials said.
____"He was there to do targeting and to check out the situation on the ground," one official said. "He had a lot of experience moving people and money. He has an extensive network of contacts all over the world."
____In the past, Ghul has worked with senior al Qaeda leader Khalid Shaikh Mohammad, one of the key al Qaeda figures involved in the September 11 terrorist attacks who was captured in Pakistan in March 2002.
____Ghul, who is being interrogated at an undisclosed location in Iraq, also was involved in the August 1998 bombings of U.S. embassies in Kenya and Tanzania.
____Officials said Ghul's capture supports claims by Bush administration officials that Iraq has become the front line in the global war on terrorism.
____"His capture is very significant; the world is a safer place because he is off the street," an official said. "It's fair to describe him as a very significant figure in al Qaeda. He's a very serious player."
____Al Qaeda-style bombings, including suicide car bombings, have been carried out regularly in Iraq over the past several months. The most recent bombing involved a pickup truck laden with 1,000 pounds of explosives.


http://www.washingtontimes.com/national/20040123-115833-3850r.htm

The capture of Ghul coincided with U.S. forces' apprehension of an insurgency leader in Iraq with close ties to Abu Musab Zarqawi, an al Qaeda affiliate linked to the terrorist group Ansar al-Islam.
____Ansar al-Islam, composed mainly of ethnic Kurds from northern Iraq with suspected al Qaeda ties, operated in northern Iraq before the U.S. invasion, U.S. officials said.
____U.S. troops captured Husam al-Yemeni on Thursday. He was described by U.S. officials as the leader of an insurgency cell in Fallujah, west of Baghdad. The official said al-Yemeni is the highest-level member of Ansar al-Islam captured to date.
____Zarqawi, a Jordanian operative, attracted attention when Washington named him in the run-up to the war in Iraq last year as a potential link between al Qaeda and Saddam. He remains a high-priority target for U.S. forces in Iraq, where he is suspected of coordinating anti-U.S. operations.

[g5man]

Originally posted by zimv20
i seem to remember al qaeda being in the US. CLEARLY they were operating w/ the cooperation of the US gov't, so CLEARLY bush was in league w/ bin laden :rolleyes:

I know you are being sarcastic, but you do not understand Iraq.

When Saddam was in power, he had control over everything. This is what happens when dictators are in charge and they want to ensure their own survival.

Personally I don't think there are Al Queda here, but if I am wrong I think the Patriot Act will flush them out.:D

[pseudobrit]

Originally posted by g5man
I know you are being sarcastic, but you do not understand Iraq.

When Saddam was in power, he had control over everything. This is what happens when dictators are in charge and they want to ensure their own survival.

Like he had control over the Kurds in the north? Your short-sighted logic based on simple generalisations belies your lack of understanding of the situation.

Personally I don't think there are Al Queda here, but if I am wrong I think the Patriot Act will flush them out.:D

You don't know if there are Al Qaeda here until something blows up.

The PATRIOT Acts have only flushed out our civil liberties.

[g5man]

Originally posted by pseudobrit
Like he had control over the Kurds in the north? Your short-sighted logic based on simple generalisations belies your lack of understanding of the situation.

This is simple. If you had read up and listened to Powell back in January you should know that Al Queda connections were in Baghadad not in the North. There is a connection.



Originally posted by pseudobrit
You don't know if there are Al Qaeda here until something blows up.

The PATRIOT Acts have only flushed out our civil liberties.

Do you know how many people are under survilance? Last I heard about 5000.

[DavisBAnimal]

Originally posted by g5man
This is simple. If you had read up and listened to Powell back in January you should know that Al Queda connections were in Baghadad not in the North. There is a connection.


Didn't Powell just admit a couple of weeks ago that there wasn't any concrete evidence of a Saddam-Al Qaeda link?

[pseudobrit]

He also just admitted that there may not have been WMD in Iraq.

But sanfelipe/Ovi/bond/g5man won't recognise that, because it goes against what he predicted. And we all know he's infalliable.

[zimv20]

Originally posted by DavisBAnimal
Didn't Powell just admit a couple of weeks ago that there wasn't any concrete evidence of a Saddam-Al Qaeda link?

and just today...

US Secretary of State Colin Powell has conceded that Iraq may not have possessed any stocks of weapons of mass destruction before the war last year.

link
(http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/middle_east/3426703.stm)