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July 10, 2005

Slam-Dunk: The OBL-Saddam-Terrorist Connection

Long, detailed, and devastating. Must-read from the Weekly Standard, again.

Here's a bit. Miltary prosecutors listed these points as evidence that a detainee at Guantanamo is an enemy combatant:

1. From 1987 to 1989, the detainee served as an infantryman in the Iraqi Army and received training on the mortar and rocket propelled grenades.
2. A Taliban recruiter in Baghdad convinced the detainee to travel to Afghanistan to join the Taliban in 1994.

3. The detainee admitted he was a member of the Taliban.

4. The detainee pledged allegiance to the supreme leader of the Taliban to help them take over all of Afghanistan.

5. The Taliban issued the detainee a Kalishnikov rifle in November 2000.

6. The detainee worked in a Taliban ammo and arms storage arsenal in Mazar-Es-Sharif organizing weapons and ammunition.

7. The detainee willingly associated with al Qaida members.

8. The detainee was a member of al Qaida.

9. An assistant to Usama Bin Ladin paid the detainee on three separate occasions between 1995 and 1997.

10. The detainee stayed at the al Farouq camp in Darwanta, Afghanistan, where he received 1,000 Rupees to continue his travels.

11. From 1997 to 1998, the detainee acted as a trusted agent for Usama Bin Ladin, executing three separate reconnaissance missions for the al Qaeda leader in Oman, Iraq, and Afghanistan.

12. In August 1998, the detainee traveled to Pakistan with a member of Iraqi Intelligence for the purpose of blowing up the Pakistan, United States and British embassies with chemical mortars.

13. Detainee was arrested by Pakistani authorities in Khudzar, Pakistan, in July 2002.

On OBL's payroll, part of the Iraqi army, travelling with a member of Iraqi Intelligence to conduct terrorism.

Link? Certainly our MSM didn't think so. The AP had gotten the story through a Freedom of Information Act request and so felt obligated to run... something. But they un-sexed-up the information as much as they could:

But after briefly describing the documents, the AP article downplayed its own scoop with a sentence almost as amusing as it is inane: "There is no indication the Iraqi's alleged terror-related activities were on behalf of Saddam Hussein's government, other than the brief mention of him traveling to Pakistan with a member of Iraqi intelligence."

Oh? Was that all? "No indication" of the Iraqi's involvement in terrorism, except travelling to Pakistan to commit terrorism with a member of Saddam's IIS.

Sort of like saying there was "no indication" of OJ Simpson's involvement in the Rockingham murders, except for his leaving more of his DNA around than Ron Jeremy at a Swank mixer.

The Weekly standard opines:

That sentence minimizing the importance of the findings was enough, apparently, to convince most newspaper editors around the country not to run the AP story.

And there's more, of course. Including Al Gore -- yeahp, Al Gore -- criticizing the first Bush administration in the 2000 campaign for not doing enough to combat Iraq's support of world terrorism.

posted by Ace at 02:29 PM

Comments

Ace, while Stephen Hayes' research remains outstanding, you know as well as I do that, absent verifiable proof that Saddam gave Osama Bin Laden a backrub with a "happy ending", the MSM will never acknowledge whatever ties existed.

Personally, given the complexities of explaining these connections to folks who don't care to hear about them, I think it's a mistake to emphasize them. It's the same problem we had when reporting all the indicators of WMD programs as evidence that massive stockpiles of WMD existed. Only the latter would serve to convince the critics who remain open-minded enough to be convinced.

I think what should be emphasized is the obvious truth: our enemies are our enemies, and a lot of them live in a rough neighborhood. Two crack dealers who walk by each other's houses every day may never stop to talk to each other, but the cops arrest them both if they get the chance.

That, and the WMD argument remains compelling-- even if Saddam had gotten rid of all his weapons, he certainly still wanted them, and would have been eager to buy them off the black market if they ever became available.

Then again, I would have supported a war against Saddam *before* 9/11, so I guess I'm one of those guys who was merely looking for an excuse. Gee, I'm so glad I got 3,000 dead Americans handed to me on a platter so I could finally go kill swarthy brown men for shits & giggles.

Sigh.

Cheers,
Dave at Garfield Ridge

Posted by: Dave at Garfield Ridge on July 10, 2005 02:41 PM

Miltary prosecutors listed these points as evidence that a detainee at Guantanamo is an enemy combatant

Not good salesmanship. If the prosecutors wanted the MSM to spotlight this guy for celebrity status, they should have included the preface that to get him to 'fess up they,

1. threatened to crown him with an assortment thongs from Christina Aguilera's closet, and

2. turned the air conditioner on extra cold (for maximum shrinkage) and laughed at his wiener.

Posted by: capitano on July 10, 2005 03:23 PM

I'm close to your position Dave, but I think it's worth pointing out not just the connections, but more so the MSM's continued willingness to bury and distort.

Can't put enough nails in that coffin. Pointing out their persistent willful dishonesty is absolutely worth the effort.

Posted by: Dave in Texas on July 10, 2005 03:24 PM

Let's get back to these "chemical mortars" a second. Where did these come from? Where did they go?

I mean, to me, that sounds like Iraq was planning a strike on a US embassy in 1998 using WMD's.

How 'bout that?

Posted by: See-Dubya on July 10, 2005 04:05 PM

Was this the same informant that said he was a former soldier who worked extensively with mobile biological weapons vans and worked with Iraqi security to safeguard the "Secret of the Death Vans" before he was detained?

Or is this another detainee?

Well, some may say the 1st detainee lied, but remember, Iraq is as big as California. It is certainly plausible that the terrorist evildoers and "dead-enders" buried vast stockpiles of WMD and then just forgot where they were buried as they attack US soldiers and Iraqis with everything else they've got.

So we have this detainee, a member of the Taliban, claiming he and his "secret agent" Iraqi sidekick went to Pakistan to blow up the Pakistan embassy inside Pakistan. Hmmm! The Pakistan embassy inside Pakistan at a time (1998) when the Pakistanis were the chief sponsors and supporters of Talibani, like the 2nd detainee???

I'm sure that America, credibility on the line purely because all the evildoers that buried the vast stockpiles of WMD forgot where they buried them - have vetted this detainee - and any day, will drop a bombshell on the public of Saddams secret love of the minions of radical Islam.

Posted by: Cedarford on July 10, 2005 08:19 PM

I don't doubt the overall importance and likely accuracy of the report, but point 12, which may be the most important, can't be entirely correct. This guy was going to Pakistan to blow up the Pakistani embassy? That's the only country in the world you can be sure wouldn't have one.

I wonder who screwed that up: the prisoner, the interrogator, the writer of the report, or the Weekly Standard. It's conceivable that the prisoner was planning to attack (e.g.) the Pakistani Foreign Ministry and thought that could be called an 'embassy'. If so, the interrogator or his boss should have sought clarification.

Posted by: Dr. Weevil on July 10, 2005 09:17 PM

"except for his leaving more of his DNA around than Ron Jeremy at a Swank mixer"

Man, that's gold! =D

Posted by: Brian on July 11, 2005 12:38 AM

Maybe it was supposed to be "...for the purpose of blowing up the Pakistan United States and British embassies..." as in "the US and British embassies in Pakistan". A typo satisfies Occam's razor best.

Posted by: dorkafork on July 11, 2005 02:07 AM

Flypaper. It's all flypaper.

Posted by: Patrick O'Hannigan on July 11, 2005 02:16 AM

Yes, everyone knows that fundamentalist muslims loved saddam. he was so good to them and helped advance their causes and all.

Posted by: thomas on July 11, 2005 04:49 PM

Hey Thomas have I got a deal for you. I know this Nigerian general who has a whole lot of money. I'll e-mail you about.

Posted by: Dman on July 11, 2005 05:39 PM

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Mayor Karen is so stung by fan-made AI ads that she's resorting to the shitlibs' go-to demand for an end to criticism -- these ads are "violent" and "hateful" and making me feel unsafe because one video showed AI cartoons throwing tomatoes at me and the tomatoes looked like blood when they squished
This was her actual complaint. The mushed-up tomato looked like blood so it's a death threat and these violent attacks on me must stop. What is dis bitch, CNN?

Podcast: Sefton and CBD are joined by Jeff Carter, candidate for NV treasurer, and seasoned finance professional, for a discussion of the issues facing Nevadans, and the larger financial challenges in America.

TJM explores the movies of David Lean, director of Lawrence of Arabia

Few people remember that Norm MacDonald began his career as a ventriloquist
MacDonald's old partner Adam Egot revealed that MacDonald repurposed a bit with one of his ventriloquist dolls -- that he was a "bad guy" who "didn't believe the Holocaust happened" -- for the Norm MacDonald show, in which he claimed Egot didn't believe in the Holocaust.

Funniest thing I've read about the Virginia mess. Back when they were hustling the referendum through the assembly both Senators, Warner and Kaine, advised them to go slow and play by the rules. Louise Lucas said she respected them but didn't need advice from the "cuck chair" in the corner. The gerrymandering was overturned and Louise is heading for the big house. Edward G. Robinson voice "where's your cuck now?"
Posted by: Smell the Glove

I posted his post on twitter and it's gotten 25K views so far. Thanks, Smell the Glove

Chris
@chriswithans

"Ahhhhh ahh I put my career on the line for Louise Lucas and Jay Jones thinking they'd vault me into presidential contention and we ended up costing Democrats 20 House seats and unleashing a Reverse Dobbs ahhhhh ahhh"

Forgotten 80s Mystery Click That Sums Up the Democrat Communist Party Today
Something is wrong as I hold you near
Somebody else holds your heart, yeah
You turn to me with your icy tears
And then it's raining, feels like it's raining

TJM wonders about world building in stories, mostly The Hunger Games

"It's f**king f**ked."
-- reportedly a genuine comment offered by a "senior Labour source"
Correction: I wrote that Labour is losing 88% (now 87%) of the seats it is "defending." I think that's wrong. The right way to say it is the seats they are contesting -- that is, they don't necessarily already hold these seats, but they have put up a candidate to run for the seat. It's still very bad but not as bad as losing 87% of the seats they already held.

Basil the Great
@BasilTheGreat

🚨ED MILIBAND [a Minister in Starmer's government] SAYS KEIR STARMER WILL RESIGN AS PRIME MINISTER

He has reportedly reassured Labour MP's that Starmer will be resigning following the disastrous results tonight

It's over

"The end of the two party system in the UK" as first the Fake Conservatives and now Labour chooses political suicide rather than simply STOPPING THE INVASION
Incidentally, the only reason this didn't already happen in the US is because of the Very Bad Orange Man (who is right on 85% of all policy calls and extremely, existentially right on 15% of them)

No political party that is NOT also a doomsday religious cult would EVER choose a cataclysmic loss -- and possible extinction as a party -- to support a toxically unpopular favoritism of NON-CITIZEN ILLEGAL MIGRANTS over actual citizen voters.

Only a cult does this.

Now they've lost 84%.

Annunziata Rees-Mogg
@zatzi
If this continues Labour loses 2,148 seats tonight.

That is much worse than the worst case predictions I’ve seen.

Cataclysmic

Update: They've now lost 88% of the seats they're defending. As I mentioned earlier, I think I heard that London will not bail them out, as many of those Labour seats will probably flip to "Muslim Independent" or Green. Detroit's 5am vote will not save them.

Yup, Labour is losing 80% of its seats...

The British Patriot
@TheBritLad

🚨 BREAKING: Labour have lost 80% of all seats contested as of 2:25 AM.<
br> If this continues, Keir Starmer will be out of office next week.

Reform has surged and projected to pick up between 1700-2100 seats.

Wow, up to 1700-2100 seats. It's not incredible that this is happening. It's incredible that the Davos crowd is so absolutely determined to privilege Muslim "migrants" over the actual native population who elects them, no matter how loudly the natives scream that they want to be prioritized, that they will gladly self-extinguish as a party rather than simply representing the interests of their own voters. Astonishing.
Remember, when they call other people "cultists" -- they are the ones so imprisoned in their social reinforcement and discipline bubbles that they will choose political death rather than dare upset the Karen Enforcement Officers of their cult.
Update: Now they've lost 83% of the seats they were defending.

(((Dan Hodges)))
@DPJHodges

Reform are basically wiping Labour out in the North. It's not a defeat. It's not even a rout. Labour are simply ceasing to exist.

Nick Lowles
@lowles_nick

Tonight’s results are calamitous for Labour. Not just for Keir Starmer's leadership, but for the very future of the party

STARMERGEDDON: In early returns, Reform gains 135 seats, Labour loses 90, the Fake Conservatives lose 36 (and I didn't even know they could fall any further), the Lib Dems lose 4, and the Greens gain 6. Note that the only other party gaining seats is the Greens and they're only gaining a handful of seats.
Update: Reform now up 145, Labour down 98.
Labour projected to lose Wales -- where they've ruled for 27 years.
Fulton County Georgia just discovered 400 boxes of ballots for Labour
Update: REF +156, LAB -107, CON -45
Brutal: In four out of five council seats where Labour is defending, they've lost. 80%.
I'm sure it's not this simple, but Reform is straight taking Labour's and the "Conservatives'" seats. They've lost almost exactly what Reform gained. If understand this right (and warning, I probably don't), all of London's council seats are up for election, and Labour might lose hugely there, as their old voters abandon them for Reform, Muslim Indenpendents, and the Greens.
REF +190, LAB -134, CON -56.

Updates on the Labour collapse in council elections -- which wags are calling #Starmergeddon -- from Beege Welborne. There are about 5000 seats up for grabs, Labour is expected to lose 1,800, Reform will probably gain 1,580, up from... zero. So this would be more than that.
People claim that while Labour has adopted the Sharia Agenda to appeal to the million Muslims it allowed to migrate to the country, those voters are ditching Labour to vote for the Muslim Independent Party or the Greens. Delicious. This shadenfreude is going straight to my thighs.
Oh, and if Starmer loses about as badly as expected, Labour will toss him out of a window Braveheart style and replace him. He will announce he is resigning to spend more time with his Gay Ukrainian Male Prostitutes.

Media bias and senationalism are as old as, well, the media:

That was written by Denny O'Neill and illustrated by, get this, Frank Miller. Editor to the Stars Jim Shooter was in charge at the time.
I always thought the gag was original to the comic book, but in fact the "Threat or Menace" headline was a satirical joke about media bias and sensationalism for a long while. The Harvard Lampoon used it in a parody of Life magazine: "Flying Saucers: Threat or Menace?"

Hamas is Humiliating Trump's 'Board of Peace'
[Hat Tip: TC] [CBD]

Tucker Carlson is pretty sure Trump is a wizard