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greyarcher · Resident Christian Expert

Interesting series that translates loads of documents from Saddam's regime.

Terror Links to Saddam's Inner Circle

Monday , June 12, 2006

By Ray Robison

Prologue:

What was the relationship between Saddam Hussein's inner circle and Islamic terrorists? A newly released document appears to provide evidence that in 1999 the Taliban welcomed "Islamic relations with Iraq" to mediate among the Taliban, the Northern Alliance and Russia, and that the Taliban invited Iraqi officials to Afghanistan.

The document, captured in Iraq but never before seen by the public, offers glimmers of new insight at the Pentagon's Foreign Military Studies Office Web site. The FMSO is a research and analysis center under the U.S. Army's Training and Doctrine Command.

This particular document mentions two men with similar names, each with ties to Pakistani religious schools known as madrassas, Jihad training camps, the Taliban and Al Qaeda.

This original translation by my translator-colleague, who goes by the nom de guerre of "Sammi," comes from a notebook kept by an Iraqi intelligence agent. It provides evidence of a cooperative, operational relationship agreed to at the highest levels of the Iraqi government and the Taliban. The notebook is lengthy and we will present it on the FOX News Web site in a series of postings. It deals extensively with meetings between Maulana Fazlur Rahman, an Al Qaeda/Taliban supporter, and Taha Yassin Ramadan, the former vice president of Iraq, and other unnamed Iraqi officials.

Ramadan also was Saddam Hussein's chief enforcer, making sure Saddam's orders were carried out by Iraqi officials. He is discussed in a 2002 BBC article that stated "Washington showed considerable interest in him well before the Iraq war this spring, after opposition forces claimed he hosted Usama bin Laden's deputy, Ayman al-Zawahri, in Baghdad in 1998. He currently is under detention and facing trial in Baghdad along with Saddam. Also present at the discussion recorded in the notebook is Maulana Fazlur Rahman, a Pakistani cleric described in another 2002 article from the BBC Profile: Maulana Fazlur Rahman as "A pro-Taliban cleric in Pakistan … one of the two main contenders for the post of the country's prime minister." The BBC also said that "Maulana Fazlur Rahman … is known for his close ties to Afghanistan's ousted Taliban regime."

This document appears to have been captured in Iraq in 2003. Sammi adds notes for clarity in parenthesis. I found it necessary, as well, to add informational notes, which are indicated by "RR." The bold typeface is our addition, and indicates emphasis or reference material.

Translator's notes:

The notebook from which this document is taken is 76 pages long, and belongs to someone called Khaled Abd El Majid. It covers events taking place in 1999.
There are two important meetings noted that involve Fazlur Rahman. This is a translation of the first meeting. There is no date, but it can be derived. On page 26/76 the page before this meeting it is mentioned that the person carrying a verbal message from Mullah Omar to Saddam Hussein is arriving on "27/11/1999," a Saturday. The first meeting with the VP is "Sunday 10:30 AM", the following day. The second meeting is dated on page 20/76 as "Sunday 11/28 at 7:45 evening."
Since Arabic is written from right to left, the meeting starts on page 25 of the notebook and ends on page 21. These are hand-written notes and fragmentary in some parts.
There also is a notation regarding Fazlur Rahman Khalil, a Pakistani Taliban leader and Al Qaeda associate, who is not the man in this meeting. The notebook mentions Rahman Khalil on page 72, at the bottom of a list of Islamic clerics coming to Iraq labeled "with him in the delegation". "He" is not mentioned by name. "Very important: Fazlur Rahman Khalil: Leader of the Ansar Movement. Does not have a position inside Pakistan but inside Afghanistan and Kashmir."
Click Here for an Analysis of Document ISGP-2003-0001412

Translation:

Translation for ISGP-2003-0001412 (pdf) follows:

Meeting of Mr. Vice-President with the Pakistani Fazlur Rahman

Location: Office of Mr. Vice-President in Zakoura

Date: Sunday 10:30 AM

Present: Mr. Vice-President, Maulana Fazlur Rahman, Taher Krichi (family name not very clear), Jamal Abdul Razzak

Meeting session

Words of welcoming.

— Questions about the situation in Pakistan

Fazlur Rahman: The situation is good and the Pakistani people have come together to struggle against America.

Vice-President: The new humanitarian method of human rights of the American people in the United Nations. (Fragmented notation)

Fazlur Rahman: What is happening in Afghanistan is a violation of the human rights of this country, where Usama bin Laden is one person and the fate of millions cannot be tied to him. (Translator's note: Probably at that time the U.S. is forcing sanctions or pressures on Afghanistan because it is providing sanctuary to bin Laden)

Vice-President: The American method is clear. First I discover many times some Islamic organizations which are not themselves and Islam is innocent from them (RR: probably means Islamic organizations that he believes do not behave like Islamic organizations). Those could be a cover for the American deviation like Kosovo. Muslims are known where they are and America is one of the fiercest enemies of Islam. Muslims in Palestine are slaughtered and they support the Jews, but they were provided this cover. America wants to control the world through human rights (Translator's note: following word unclear, possibly democracy) and multiple parties so it can form collaborating parties and create unrest. Unrest serves America's purpose. The Security Council is a tool in the hand of America.

Can you blockade a country (RR: probably Afghanistan) because of the presence of one man (RR: probably referring to UBL)? This time she (America) got the resolution from the Security Council and it is number 77 (or 771) (RR: probably UNSCR 771 in 1992 concerning Bosnia) relative to Iraq (RR: probably is making a comparison between 771 and a new resolution on Iraq most likely UNSCR 1284 passed Dec 1999 about WMD and humanitarian efforts). And it is the first time that the parliament of a country (U.S. Congress) speaks after a resolution (unclear) and comes out through the Security Council. It is ignorant to send memos and complain to the Security Council because it is a tool in the hands of America the master of oppression and if we do that it does not mean that we are boycotting the diplomatic process. Also the monetary fund (Translator's note: probably the International Monetary Fund) is in the hand of America and she helps according to her interests. My personal stand is with his (RR: probably UBL) call to fight America.

(Probably Rahman:) I support him body and soul and if it is true (probably referring to the UBL call to "fight America") then it is the right thing to do.

(Probably Rahman:) I personally do not know him and never met him (probably UBL) and he is not the issue. There is the port of Gwadar (in Baluchistan area) under construction in Pakistan, and Europe and America wants to use it instead of (unclear possibly Bankham) to trade with Asia. After the fall of the Soviet Union they wish to expand trade to Central Asia through Afghanistan and Afghanistan is against their wishes (RR: opposed to the US) and they want to bring the Taliban government down.

Vice-President: They are controlling Turkey.

Fazlur Rahman: Gwadar is the shortest road for them and we spoke with the Afghani government. I met Mullah Omar the leader of Afghanistan and he welcomed the establishment of Islamic relations with Iraq and we foresee to tell them about our needs and they would like to have contacts with Russia but they feel that the Russians (unclear) with Afghanistan, they go to America (RR: probably means that the Russians side with the US against the Taliban). And they (RR: probably the Taliban) say that now we do not feel that Russia is our enemy and we do not know why they support the Northern Alliance (RR: non-Pashtun Afghani militant groups seeking to topple the Taliban). They (RR: probably the Taliban) want Iraq to intervene with Russia.

And Russia thinks that the Taliban are supporting the Chechens through providing them 5 million dollars in weapons so the question is from where do they have all this money and weapons and they want Iraq to know their problems and needs.

Concerning Hekmatyar (RR: this is Gulbuddin Hekmatyar, leader of the Islamic Party, a faction that vied for control of Afghanistan before the Taliban victory and has been tied to continued insurgent attacks) I delivered him your letter and his reply was positive for "they are our brothers" (RR: Fazlur Rahman apparently delivered a note from the VP of Iraq to Hekmatyar). But in this case the news from Hekmatyar is that he still has contacts against us so how can we have trust between each other (RR: probably how can the Afghani factions unite). We wish to see Afghanistan as an independent country. We will basically agree with them and later the details will come after Afghanistan is under our control. His (Hekmatyar) answer was positive and he thanks Iraq for its role in this matter (RR: probably for helping as intermediary between him and the Taliban).

Vice-President: Afghanistan has a domestic issue but now we have some insight about it and we feel pain for what is happening. Iraq is the first country which objected to Russia's entering Afghanistan with a "liberating" message, and is this the way you (Russians) are going to deal with the countries you have a friendship agreement with? The Russians were not happy about the message we sent them. Most important is that the situation settles in Afghanistan and that the bleeding between brothers stops. It is better that Afghanistan solves his own problems and not depend on foreign countries.

(Probably Rahman) I support that Afghanistan and the Taliban, from a religious stand point, do not hand over bin Laden

(Probably the VP) The agreement between Afghani parties should not be delayed because the US policy is to keep the world in trouble.

(At the end of page 21, right side)

Fazlur Rahman: One more time concerning Afghanistan I have a suggestion that a delegation should visit Kandahar and a schedule should be set concerning this issue

Vice-President: We will study this in the future.

(Page 21 left side, top.)

Vice-President: Last time you saw Mullah Omar?

Fazlur Rahman: Last July and I proposed to him the subject that I was assigned to and I wanted to meet Mr. President (Saddam Hussein).

Vice-President: I gave Mr. President an overview about Afghanistan and its issues.

End Translation

Analysis:

This document appears to provide evidence that in 1999 the Taliban welcomed "Islamic relations with Iraq" to mediate between the Taliban, the Northern Alliance and Russia. It seems to provide evidence that the Taliban invited Iraqi officials to Afghanistan. According to this notebook, the Taliban did this via Maulana Fazlur Rahman. The notebook later mentions that another man, Fazlur Rahman Khalil, was visiting Iraq as well, although no transcript of that meeting is provided.

There is another document in the Saddam archive that mentions the relationship of Fazlur Rahman to the Taliban and Saddam. It was captured in Afghanistan and used by the U.S. Army in a report about Al Qaeda. The document is posted under the identifying Harmony number AFGP-2002-601693 at the West Point Combating Terrorism Center. The posted translation is described as a July 26, 2002 four-page typed letter from Abu Mus'ab to Abu Mohammed (apparently Al Qaeda or Taliban operatives) in reply to his inquiry about the status of jihad, or holy war, in Afghanistan:

After my release I found that people came from the Sudan and everywhere, and began fighting alongside the Taliban movement, which for Pakistan was a substitute for Hikmatyar. Everyone, even children in the streets knew that they were created and controlled by Pakistan. Their leader Fadhlurahman is a friend of Banazeer, Saddam and Qaddafi. They comprise of the veteran sheikhs (religious scholars) from the schools of Mujaddidi and Mohammed Nabi such as Sheikh Mohammed ‘Omar the movement leader

(Translator "Sammi" note: Fazlur can also be translated as Fadhlur)

This second source emphasizes the connection of Fazlur Rahman to Mullah Omar, which is a long-established friendship. Therefore, we believe the West Point document is referring to Maulana Fazlur Rahman instead of Fazlur Rahman Khalil.

So what is the relationship between Maulana Fazlur Rahman and the Taliban and Al Qaeda? Rahman often is described in news articles as the father or godfather of the Taliban. It seems clear that Rahman was close to Al Qaeda through his friend Mullah Omar, who sheltered Usama bin Laden prior to the allied invasion of Afghanistan. A leading news Web site in India has a 2003 article entitled Beware the Maulana! . It gives an extensive history of Rahman and explains how he helped to organize the men that would later become the Taliban under his friend Mullah Omar. It also describes links to Al Qaeda:

Since 9/11, US suspicions of the Maulana have worsened because of the active role played by the HUM [Translator's note: Harakat ul-Mujahidin] under the name HUM (Al Alami International) and the Harkat-ul-Jihad-al-Islami in the terrorist strikes against French and American nationals in Karachi and Islamabad. There were reports before the U.S. invasion of Iraq that HUM had sent its cadres to Saudi Arabia under the cover of Haj pilgrims and that they were to infiltrate into Iraq to start a jihad against US troops. When an injured bin Laden escaped into Pakistan from Afghanistan in early 2002, Mufti Shamzai, Fazlur Rahman's protégé, gave him shelter at the Binori madrasa in Karachi till last August.

Five Pakistani jihadi organizations are members of bin Laden's International Islamic Front — HUM, HUJI, the Lashkar-e-Tayiba, Jaish-e-Mohammad and the Lashkar-e-Jhangvi. Of these, HUM, HUJI, JEM and LEJ are close to the Maulana. (Note RR - the HUM leader is/was Fazlur Rahman Khalil and it is/was part of a coalition led by Maulana Fazlur Rahman.)

The Institute for Afghan Studies has on its Web site a report of a Deobandi conference held in April, 2001, in Pakistan, organized by Maulana Fazlur Rahman. It states: "The highlight of the three-day conference near Peshawar from April 8 to April 11 was the prominence given to the messages of Qadhafi (RR: Muammar al Qaddafi), the Taleban leader Mullah Omar and the international terrorist, Usama bin Laden." The report indicates the conference "concluded after adopting resolutions challenging the hegemony of the U.S. and its allies in world; demanding an end to U.N. sanctions against Afghanistan, Iraq and Libya, and early withdrawal of U.S.-led Western troops from Arab lands."

As mentioned previously, the notebooks mentions Fazlur Rahman Khalil as a visitor to Baghdad. A good description of Fazlur Rahman Khalil can be found at the Terrorism Knowledge Base.

Fazlur Rehman Khalil, former leader of Harakat ul-Mujahidin (HUM), is one of the most important and prominent terrorists in Pakistan. A student of the radical Binori madrassah in Karachi, Khalil has strong ties to al-Qaeda and the Taliban. He is one of five signatories of Usama bin Laden's 1998 fatwa which attempted to induce Muslims worldwide to kill Americans whenever the opportunity arose. He is a mentor to many members of the Taliban. This mentorship is the result of the extensive network of Al Qaeda-associated training camps which he has established throughout Afghanistan, Pakistan, and Kashmir.

When the HUM came under Pakistani scrutiny, Khalil re-named it Jamiat ul-Ansar, which matches the annotation in the notebook, "Leader of the Ansar Movement." Khalil was named as the recruiter of two Al Qaeda suspects arrested in California last year.

As the terrorism Knowledge Base Web site mentions, Khalil also was a signatory of the notorious 1998 bin Laden fatwa that declared war against all Americans:

On that basis, and in compliance with Allah's order, we issue the following fatwa to all Muslims: The ruling to kill the Americans and their allies — civilians and military — is an individual duty for every Muslim who can do it in any country in which it is possible to do it

The fatwa was signed by five men:

Shaykh Usamah bin-Muhammad bin-Ladin
Ayman al-Zawahiri, amir of the Jihad Group in Egypt
Abu-Yasir Rifa'i Ahmad Taha, Egyptian Islamic Group
Shaykh Mir Hamzah, secretary of the Jamiat-ul-Ulema-e-Pakistan
Fazlur Rahman, amir of the Jihad Movement in Bangladesh (Note RR: this is widely accepted to be Khalil, though he did not sign with the third name.)

Two captured documents — this notebook and the West Point document — seem to provide evidence of the same link between Maulana Fazlur Rahman and the Saddam regime, one captured in Iraq, the other in Afghanistan. The document captured in Afghanistan was used in a Combating Terrorism Center at West Point study about Al Qaeda indicating high confidence in its authenticity. The fact that two private communications captured in different countries with different authors make the same point is a good indicator that each is genuine. It thus lends creditability to the notebook that also indicates an Usama bin Laden associate was scheduled to visit Iraq.

Why would the Taliban and/or Al Qaeda turn to secular Saddam for help? Many commentators have stated that collusion between the two was impossible because of diametric religious and political beliefs. But if you examine the historical context of this document, a clear picture of a desperate Taliban comes through.

This meeting appears to have taken place a few weeks after Pakistani President Pervez Musharraf took over the Pakistani government in a coup that threatened to remove Pakistan's key support for the Taliban. Russia and Iran were supporting the Northern Alliance at war with the Taliban in Afghanistan. At this time it also was widely reported in Pakistan that US forces were about to attack Afghanistan to get Usama. The U.N. and even Arab conferences were making clear their grievances with the Taliban. This is a time when the Taliban and its associates (like both Fazlurs) in the North West Frontier province of Pakistan had few friends.

This series of threats may have spurred the Taliban to seek out Saddam, a mutual enemy of the U.S. and friend of the Russians, if a prior relationship between Saddam and the Taliban did not already exist. Thus, it seems Maulana Fazlur Rahman is a lynch-pin of the relationship between the Saddam regime, the Taliban and Al Qaeda.

The strong ties between Al Qaeda and the Taliban, and their joint responsibility for terrorism, are clear and well documented. This translated notebook segment provides possible evidence that the Saddam regime and the Taliban were planning diplomatic and possibly operational ties with each other. Independent research indicates Maulana Fazlur Rahman and Fazlur Rahman Khalil were both close to the Taliban and Al Qaeda. The Maulana asked the Saddam regime to mediate with the Taliban's enemies to take off some of the pressure. A fair question is what would Saddam have wanted in return? One possible answer is the only thing the Taliban had left to offer: Islamic Jihad and extremists operating for his interests from outside Iraq. Other translations from this notebook appear to expose a commitment between the Saddam regime and the Taliban that goes beyond mediation in order to increase support among Islamic Jihad groups for Iraq via a secret intelligence relationship with the Taliban.

Epilogue:

In researching this article a version of the translation was originally posted at Ray Robison's personal Web site on the morning of March, 28, 2006. According to the Italian news Web site adnki.com, on the night of March 28, 2006, a few hours after the translation was posted, Fazlur Rahman Khalil was kidnapped, beaten and left for dead near Rawalpindi, Pakistan. Commentators on this incident indicate that Khalil had a security detail and only a high level and trusted source could have had access to him.

The author welcomes your comment on the translation and analysis of this document. You can contact Ray Robison by emailing him at: saddamdossier@gmail.com.

Glossary:

Maulana — Islamic religious title

Maulana Fazlur Rahman (alternate spellings: Fadl Ur, Fadlur for Fazlur; Rehman for Rahman) — a Pakistani cleric and politician, and the head of a group of Islamic political parties. He is the subject of the meeting. It is widely claimed that he helped create the Taliban and is good friends with Mullah Omar. He seems to be more of a political operative involved with securing state support for madrassas (religious schools), Jihad camps, and the Taliban. He was a Pakistan Foreign Office official and diplomat.

Fazlur Rahman Khalil (alternate spellings Fadl Ur, Fadlur for Fazlur; Rehman for Rahman) — is a Pakistani cleric directly involved with the operations of madrassas in Pakistan, recruiting terrorists, a known bin Laden associate and cosigner of the 1998 fatwa against the U.S. He seems to be more of a hands-on terrorist trainer, unlike the other Rahman, who is a diplomat. He controlled one of the political parties that were grouped together under the Maulana Rahman. His meeting is not recorded but he is noted for a visit to Iraq. He is close enough to Al Qaeda to be considered an Al Qaeda operative. Two men arrested in California claim to be Al Qaeda recruited by Rahman.

Taha Yassin Ramadan — one of two of Saddam's vice presidents, noted for his ruthless enforcement of Saddam's orders, and for suspicion of meeting with Ayman al Zawahri in 1998.

Gulbuddin Hekmatyar — Mujahideen leader helped to oust the Soviets from Afghanistan, then vied for control with the Taliban.

At the time of this writing, the authors of this article have not identified the other men annotated in this meeting or the author of the notebook other than by name.

GoRocks · Corporal Poster

Sadly, this post, like the report, will be ignored by the Left. They have been spreading the lie that Bush lied for 3 years. Why start listening to the truth now?

greyarcher · Resident Christian Expert

greyarcher · Resident Christian Expert

WASHINGTON — The United States has found 500 chemical weapons in Iraq since 2003, and more weapons of mass destruction are likely to be uncovered, two Republican lawmakers said Wednesday.

"We have found weapons of mass destruction in Iraq, chemical weapons," Sen. Rick Santorum, R-Pa., said in a quickly called press conference late Wednesday afternoon.

Reading from a declassified portion of a report by the National Ground Intelligence Center, a Defense Department intelligence unit, Santorum said: "Since 2003, coalition forces have recovered approximately 500 weapons munitions which contain degraded mustard or sarin nerve agent. Despite many efforts to locate and destroy Iraq's pre-Gulf War chemical munitions, filled and unfilled pre-Gulf War chemical munitions are assessed to still exist."

He added that the report warns about the hazards that the chemical weapons could still pose to coalition troops in Iraq.

"The purity of the agents inside the munitions depends on many factors, including the manufacturing process, potential additives and environmental storage conditions. While agents degrade over time, chemical warfare agents remain hazardous and potentially lethal," Santorum read from the document.

"This says weapons have been discovered, more weapons exist and they state that Iraq was not a WMD-free zone, that there are continuing threats from the materials that are or may still be in Iraq," said Rep. Pete Hoekstra, R-Mich., chairman of the House Intelligence Committee.

The weapons are thought to be manufactured before 1991 so they would not be proof of an ongoing WMD program in the 1990s. But they do show that Saddam Hussein was lying when he said all weapons had been destroyed, and it shows that years of on-again, off-again weapons inspections did not uncover these munitions.

Hoekstra said the report, completed in April but only declassified now, shows that "there is still a lot about Iraq that we don't fully understand."

Asked why the Bush administration, if it had known about the information since April or earlier, didn't advertise it, Hoekstra conjectured that the president has been forward-looking and concentrating on the development of a secure government in Iraq.

Offering the official administration response to FOX News, a senior Defense Department official pointed out that the chemical weapons were not in useable conditions.

"This does not reflect a capacity that was built up after 1991," the official said, adding the munitions "are not the WMDs this country and the rest of the world believed Iraq had, and not the WMDs for which this country went to war."

The official said the findings did raise questions about the years of weapons inspections that had not resulted in locating the fairly sizeable stash of chemical weapons. And he noted that it may say something about Hussein's intent and desire. The report does suggest that some of the weapons were likely put on the black market and may have been used outside Iraq.

He also said that the Defense Department statement shortly after the March 2003 invasion saying that "we had all known weapons facilities secured," has proven itself to be untrue.

"It turned out the whole country was an ammo dump," he said, adding that on more than one occasion, a conventional weapons site has been uncovered and chemical weapons have been discovered mixed within them.

Hoekstra and Santorum lamented that Americans were given the impression after a 16-month search conducted by the Iraq Survey Group that the evidence of continuing research and development of weapons of mass destruction was insignificant. But the National Ground Intelligence Center took up where the ISG left off when it completed its report in November 2004, and in the process of collecting intelligence for the purpose of force protection for soldiers and sailors still on the ground in Iraq, has shown that the weapons inspections were incomplete, they and others have said.

"We know it was there, in place, it just wasn't operative when inspectors got there after the war, but we know what the inspectors found from talking with the scientists in Iraq that it could have been cranked up immediately, and that's what Saddam had planned to do if the sanctions against Iraq had halted and they were certainly headed in that direction," said Fred Barnes, editor of The Weekly Standard and a FOX News contributor.

"It is significant. Perhaps, the administration just, they think they weathered the debate over WMD being found there immediately and don't want to return to it again because things are otherwise going better for them, and then, I think, there's mindless resistance to releasing any classified documents from Iraq," Barnes said.

The release of the declassified materials comes as the Senate debates Democratic proposals to create a timetable for U.S. troops to withdraw from Iraq. The debate has had the effect of creating disunity among Democrats, a majority of whom shrunk Wednesday from an amendment proposed by Sen. John Kerry of Massachusetts to have troops to be completely withdrawn from Iraq by the middle of next year.

At the same time, congressional Republicans have stayed highly united, rallying around a White House that has seen successes in the last couple weeks, first with the death of terror leader Abu Musab al-Zarqawi, then the completion of the formation of Iraq's Cabinet and then the announcement Tuesday that another key Al Qaeda in Iraq leader, "religious emir" Mansour Suleiman Mansour Khalifi al-Mashhadani, or Sheik Mansour, was also killed in a U.S. airstrike.

Santorum pointed out that during Wednesday's debate, several Senate Democrats said that no weapons of mass destruction had been found in Iraq, a claim, he said, that the declassified document proves is untrue.

"This is an incredibly — in my mind — significant finding. The idea that, as my colleagues have repeatedly said in this debate on the other side of the aisle, that there are no weapons of mass destruction, is in fact false," he said.

As a result of this new information, under the aegis of his chairmanship, Hoekstra said he is going to ask for more reporting by the various intelligence agencies about weapons of mass destruction.

"We are working on the declassification of the report. We are going to do a thorough search of what additional reports exist in the intelligence community. And we are going to put additional pressure on the Department of Defense and the folks in Iraq to more fully pursue a complete investigation of what existed in Iraq before the war," Hoekstra said.

scorch · Deist Altruistic Objectivist (DAO)

the libertarian point of view is one of non-intervention.

True non-intervention though. We have several hundred thousand troops deployed world wide, not including iraq or afgahnistan. Although we support afghanistan 100%, and would actually have liked to seen more troops their, but that's another topic.

Why do the American people need to pay for this with their hard earned tax dollars?

The best way to bring about democracy is through free trade. No countries with free trade have ever attacked each other, and free trade, and freedom in general, is the best way to democracy.

The truth is more people have died than will be saved. Many of whom had nothing to do with WMD's, Terrorism, Saddam or whatever fear factor....

If we want to go after terrorist, fine. But no need for a war or occupation(s) for that...

we could have taken saddam out many other ways, if only we supported the ICC more, but alas we are too greedy with our power, like most other things in America. Don't get me wrong, I LOVE IT teh luv

But really we could go around in circles all night long. Its not like this war is all bad, it does have its postives, the bottom line for me is this, I don't want to spend my tax dollars on it. Much in the same way many don't want to spend (and shouldn't have to!) their tax dollars on abortion.

I want small government, geared towards an individualist society.

The end.

Huge Grin

p.s. since GoRocks made the comment, I took the time to read it, not because I am a liberal, but I used to be! And only now (in Memphis) had the time to read it... Coo1

p.p.s. Not to mention the fact that this is evidence gather AFTER THE WAR. Once again forgetting that we have a CLEAR lack of evidence PRIOR to the WAR. AND I WANT MY TAXES BACK!

_______________________________

ok article comments now:

michael1111 · 11:11.tv

i am beginning to like saddam. he is fast becoming my favourite whacky dictator. he always looks so comfy in those suits. and those crazy outburts! 'insane in the membrane- he's hussein, got no brain!" Very Happy

hey, some people like smooth talking ladies men who intentionally deprive children of food and medicine, some like a man who would fry a retard, but me, me??

i like 'em bearded and crazy Very Happy

GoRocks · Corporal Poster

michael1111 · 11:11.tv

afghanistan has a pipeline and important proximity to oil. i am not a liberal.

michael Smile1

scorch · Deist Altruistic Objectivist (DAO)

greyarcher · Resident Christian Expert

Was Saddam Regime a Broker for Terror Alliances?

Sunday , June 25, 2006

Ray Robison

Prologue:

Newly declassified documents captured by U.S. forces indicate that Saddam Hussein's inner circle not only actively reached out to the Taliban rulers of Afghanistan and terror-based jihadists in the region, but also hosted discussions with a known Al Qaeda operative about creating jihad training "centers," possibly in Baghdad.

Ray Robison, a former member of the CIA-directed Iraq Survey Group (ISG), supervised a group of linguists to analyze, archive and exploit the hundreds of captured documents and materials of Saddam's regime.

This is the final installment in a three-part series concerning a notebook kept by an Iraqi Intelligence Service (IIS) agent called Khaled Abd El Majid, and covers events taking place in 1999. The translation is provided by Robison's associate, known here as “Sammi.”

The first two translations from this notebook detailed an agreement between members of the Saddam regime and the Taliban to establish diplomatic and intelligence based cooperation. This final translation further advances the link between the Saddam regime and world-wide Islamic Jihad terrorism.

Click here for more on Ray Robison and the Saddam Dossier

The relationship between the Taliban and Saddam appears to have been mediated by a Pakistani named Maulana Fazlur Rahman. Another document captured in Afghanistan and written by an Al Qaeda operative confirms the relationship between the Maulana and Saddam. The translation provided here includes an early 1999 meeting between the director of the IIS and the Maulana.

Another notebook entry records a meeting with Gulbuddin Hekmatyar, an Afghani Islamic Jihadist and leader of the Islamic Party in Afghanistan. Hekmatyar made news recently with the BBC article Afghan Rebel’s pledge to al-Qaeda that reports on a video statement from Hekmatyar in which he states he will fight alongside A Qaeda. In this translation, Hekmatyar makes specific requests for a “center” in Baghdad and/or Tajikistan.

A third meeting involves an Islamist representing Bangladesh that we believe to be Fazlur Rahman Khalil. Another page of the notebook indicates Khalil is coming or came to Iraq. Khalil is a Taliban/Al Qaeda associate who signed the 1998 fatwa from Usama bin Laden declaring war on the United States.

Editor's notes: "Sammi" puts translation clarifications in parenthesis. Robison (RR) uses parenthesis for clarification and bold-face type for emphasis.

Translation:

Translation for ISGP-2003-0001412 follows (PDF):

Page 70, Left Side:

Saturday 3/20 at 11:45

Met with him Mr. MS4 (translator’s note: MS4 is the code name for the high ranking IIS official).

1. Intelligence and security cooperation.

2. Mr. MS4 informed him that the Iraqi president and Iraqi leadership are interested in him.

3. “We are ready to help you in any country and against your enemies”. (translator’s note: most probably this is MS4)

4. Fadlul Haq - The governor of Peshawar that was assassinated.

(translator’s note: points 5 and 6 are direct quotes from the Afghani)

5. “We are facing a vicious international plot against the Islamic Party and cannot find any country to help us at the time being”.

6. “Iran helped us at the beginning and we brought 2,000 fighters but things changed at the time being. Also the Russians called to help but we do not trust them. Moscow and Iran want the war to drag on.” (RR: this is probably the Taliban vs. Northern Alliance conflict). This is why he is coming to Baghdad for help. Asked Baghdad to help open a center in Tajikistan or in Baghdad and they will bring them (translator’s note: not clear what them refers to) in through Iran or Northern Iraq.

He asked for help in printing Afghani money in Baghdad or help in printing it in Moscow.

Page 69, Right Side:

Stinger missiles have a range of 5 kilometers. (translator’s note: there is only this one sentence on this page)

Page 69, Left Side:

Meeting of MS4 with 6951 on 4/10 at 8 p.m. in room 710.

He (6951) inquired about our relation with Usama (bin Laden).

(translator’s note: The Iraqi answer is not reported.).

He (6951) proposed to the Taliban to form a front with Iraq, Libya and Sudan.

He met some of them in Hajj (Translator’s note: Pilgrimage to Mecca in Saudi Arabia, it is one of the five pillars of Islam) and he came to the conclusion that they do not know anything about Foreign Relations.

The Taliban defense minister is Abdul Razzak (unclear) Association of Muslim Clerics.

They openly claim that they are against America.

He said that he was ready to build relations between the Taliban and Iraq.

(translator’s note: meeting continues on both sides of page 68/76, with questions about Pakistani politics and the other Islamic parties.) The Iraqi official says, “I suggest that the parties come closer together because that means power to Islam against the American and Zionist policies”.

Page 39, Left Side:

Meeting with an Islamist leader from Bangladesh. He promises support to Iraq. He says: “Let them know that I made Bangladesh a second country to Mr. President and we have 125 million (people).” (RR: Although no name is given for this meeting, it is important to note Fazlur Rahman Khalil, noted for meeting with Iraqi officials in the previous article, signed the 1998 fatwa as “Fazlur Rahman, Amir of the Jihad Movement in Bangladesh”. This is a strong indication that this meeting is with Khalil or his representative.)

Page 27, Left side:

(translator’s note: contains notes with information on prior meetings recorded in the notebook.)

The mentioned person (Translator’s note: Fazlur Rahman) arrived to the country on 11/27/1999 and he was hosted in Al Rachid Hotel suite number 526. He will leave on 12/1/1999.

(translator’s comment: note No. 1 in a list of notes.)

He visited Iraq on the beginning of April 1999 and the ex-director of the intelligence, may God rest his soul, instructed him to mediate between the Taliban and the leader of the Afghani Islamic party, Hekmatyar following the request for mediation done by Hekmatyar to the leadership of Iraq during a visit when they met us on 3/19/1999.

End Translation

Analysis:

Because Arabic writing is right to left, the pages in this notebook go in reverse chronological order. The note on page 27 indicates that Hekmatyar met with the IIS on March 19, 1999. The translation of page 70 is dated March 20 and it refers to someone from the Islamic Party, which is Hekmatyar’s group. Therefore it makes sense that the meeting on page 70 is with Hekmatyar.

The note on page 27 also says the meeting was with the director if the IIS, so we believe MS4 is his code-name. It appears that Hekmatyar, a jihadist leader warring with the Taliban for control of Afghanistan at the time, asked Baghdad “to help open a center in Tajikistan or in Baghdad and they will bring them (translator’s note: not clear what them refers to) in through Iran or Northern Iraq.” There is a strong indication that this requested “center” is a jihadist training camp.

From a US Department of State report Patterns of Global Terrorism, 1996:

Gulbuddin Hekmatyar … maintained training and indoctrination facilities in Afghanistan, mainly for non-Afghans. They continue to provide logistic support and training facilities to Islamic extremists despite military losses in the past year. Individuals who trained in these camps were involved in insurgencies in … Tajikistan…

It looks very much like Hekmatyar, a long-time jihad leader and recently self-identified Al Qaeda associate, is asking the Saddam regime for a jihad training camp in Tajikistan and/or Baghdad.

Page 27 tells us that the Maulana Fazlur Rahman was meeting with the IIS Director in early April. The meeting on page 69 fits the time frame, has the code for the IIS director, and the guest speaks for the Taliban indicating that “6951” is the Maulana. According to these notes, the Maulana “proposed to the Taliban to form a front with Iraq, Libya and Sudan.” He also enquires about the IIS relationship to Usama bin Laden.

In researching the Maulana, a third document has been found that demonstrated the relationship between Saddam and the Maulana. The document which appears to be an IIS memo also mentions a relationship with Hekmatyar. There is no government authentication of the document. Because this document matches closely with what we find in the IIS agent notebook we will reference it so that the reader may decide.

The article entitled Exclusive: Saddam Possessed WMD’s, Had Extensive Terror Ties states:

A senior government official who is not a political appointee provided CNSNews.com with copies of the 42 pages of Iraqi Intelligence Service documents. The originals, some of which were hand-written and others typed, are in Arabic. CNSNews.com had the papers translated into English by two individuals separately and independent of each other.

The CNS report includes a translation of a memo from the IIS to Saddam. The memo is dated January 25, 1993. The subject is IIS influence with two groups: the JUI, led by Maulana Fazlur Rahman; and, the Afghani Islamic Party led by Hekmatyar. These are the same two men meeting with the IIS in Baghdad in 1999, according to the notebook.

The document states that the Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam (JUI) depended upon Pakistani support as well as foreign help from Iraq and Libya. It also mentions that the secretary general of the JUI has had a good relationship with the IIS since 1981, and that he is “ready for any mission”.

The IIS document reported on by CNS News also states that the Islamic Party of Hekmatyar relies on Iraqi funding. It says the relationship has existed since 1989 and has improved under Hekmatyar’s leadership. Although this document has not yet been validated by the U.S, government, we can see very specific information, not publicly available before 2004, that matches what we find in the IIS notebook. It indicates a long history of Saddam regime support to Islamic jihad groups, and that the IIS considers them organizations that will take on missions for Iraq’s interests.

Epilogue:

Let’s review what we have learned from the IIS notebook.

• We learned that in 1999 the IIS met with three significant leaders of Islamic jhad from Afghanistan: a warlord and Islamic jihadist; an Al Qaeda leader; and, a man known as the “Father of the Taliban.”

• The Saddam regime and Taliban leadership agreed to diplomatic ties and a secret intelligence service relationship. They discussed security cooperation with Hekmatyar’s Islamic Jihad group. The Taliban representative also agreed to support the Saddam regime in Pakistan’s North-West Frontier, a region sympathetic to and actively involved with the Taliban, Al Qaeda, and the world-wide Islamic jihad movement. An Islamist, most likely the Al Qaeda and Taliban affiliated Fazlur Rahman Khalil, promised the support of Bangladesh.

• We see a request to the Saddam regime for a training center in Baghdad or Tajikistan from a jihad leader accused by the U.S. State Department during the Clinton Administration of running Islamic extremist training camps.

• There is a discussion about transporting something into these centers, including a discussion that appears to mention surface-to-air missiles.

• And, we have numerous statements of Islamic fidelity between Afghani jihad leaders and the Saddam regime, with many statements of mutual animosity towards the United States and intent to cooperate.

This notebook thus provides significant evidence that the Saddam regime collaborated with and supported Islamic jihad elements in Afghanistan at a time when the Taliban and Al Qaeda were attacking United States citizens and their interests and plotting the 9/11 attacks.

In this notebook, we see a Saddam Hussein actively seeking to expand his sphere of influence in a region at the heart of the world-wide Islamic jihad movement.

This now-public relationship between Maulana Fazlur Rahman and Saddam Hussein deserves great scrutiny.

As we researched the Maulana, a picture came into focus that our team was not looking to find: The Maulana is a senior leader of an affiliation of Pakistani groups supportive of Islamic jihad. These groups include the JUI and the Jamaat Islami (JI). The JUI provided direct support to both the planner and paymaster of the 9/11 attacks. The Pakistani government accused the JI of working with Al Qaeda. The Maulana mediated an intelligence pact between the IIS and the Taliban.

Clearly, this evidence indicates that the Maulana was in a position to procure assistance from Iraq for the 9/11 attacks.

Dr. Laurie Mylroie, an expert on Iraq, testified in front of the 9/11 commission in 2003:

After al Qaeda moved to Afghanistan, Iraqi intelligence became deeply involved with it, probably, with the full agreement of Usama bin Ladin. Al Qaeda provided the ideology, foot soldiers, and a cover for the terrorist attacks; Iraqi intelligence provided the direction, training, and expertise…

This notebook demonstrates that Islamic jihad leaders in Afghanistan were seeking IIS assistance and Saddam was giving them that assistance.

greyarcher · Resident Christian Expert

Trail Leads to Iraq as Supplier of Pre-9/11 Manual for Arab Operatives In Afghanistan

Wednesday, July 05, 2006

Ray Robison

Translation | Analysis

An Arab regime, possibly Iraq, supplied how-to manuals for Arab operatives working throughout Afghanistan before 9/11, and provided military assistance to the Taliban and Al Qaeda.

That's the most likely conclusion drawn from an apparent training manual unearthed in captured Iraqi government computer files translated and analyzed exclusively for Fox News, and made public for the first time.

The document, apparently written before the Sept. 11, 2001 terrorist attacks, could bolster the Bush administration's contention that Saddam Hussein was providing support for Islamic extremists who were plotting against America.

The training manual warns, in stark how-to terms, of the dangers of "information leaks," and instructs Arab operatives inside Afghanistan to dress like Afghan tribesmen, to avoid being followed ("Routine is the enemy of security"), to always be armed, and "to behave as if enemies would strike at any moment."

The manual also cautions Arabs to "beware of rapid and spontaneous friendships with Afghans who speak Arabic," and "always make sure about the identity of your neighbors and classify them as regular people, opponents or allies."

That revelation is provided exclusively to Fox News by Ray Robison, a former member of the CIA-directed Iraq Survey Group. ISG supervised a group of linguists to analyze, archive and exploit the hundreds of captured documents and materials of Saddam's regime.

Click here for more on Ray Robison and the Saddam Dossier

Fox News and Robison last week revealed the contents of a 1999 notebook kept by an Iraqi Intelligence Service (IIS) operative. That notebook detailed how Saddam's agents aggressively pursued and entered into a diplomatic, intelligence, and security arrangement with the Taliban and Islamist extremists operating in Afghanistan — years before the 9/11 attacks.

While the training manual revealed today by Fox News does not mention the IIS agent's notebook, the manual does suggest an Arab regime, most likely Saddam, may have provided the military help requested by the Taliban and Al Qaeda.

The manual, declassified and recently released by the Foreign Military Studies Office, advises its Arab readers never to show your "military ID." That strongly suggests that Iraq was sending professional military assistance to Afghanistan before the 9/11 attacks

Translation:

Editor's notes:

The translation is provided by Robison's associate, known here as "Sammi," who puts translation clarifications in parenthesis. Robison uses (RR) for clarification and bold-face type for emphasis.

Translator's notes:

This seven-page document contains instructions for a group of Arab men, military ID holders, and their families. These men appear to be joining other military men already in Afghanistan who are running "hosting places." These facilities appear to be safe houses or training facilities for other Arabs. The work involves receiving Arab men who may or may not choose to stay at the facility.

Even though pre-9/11 Afghanistan was teeming with Arab Mujihadeen who were proud to represent their native countries, the instructions advise the "brothers" to keep a low profile and behave as if enemies would strike at any moment.

Begin Translation for 2RAD-2004-600760-ELC.PDF

In the Name of God the Merciful

Personnel Security:

Respected brother,

Know that one of the main causes of information leaks is from personnel (translator's note: personnel talking), this is why we try to cooperate with you so that neither you or one of your brothers becomes the cause of a catastrophe that might hit one of the brothers or all of them.

Please follow these instructions:

1- Know as much as you need. (translator's note: don't ask too many questions)

2- Don't talk too much; it is said that "silence is wisdom."

3- It is recommended that all personnel wear Afghan clothing so they do not stand out from other people.

4- All the brothers should go to the market by themselves, alone.

5- It is not advised to move alone at night. (At night, walk the streets on foot)

6- As much as possible do not disclose your identity as an Arab.

7- Avoid excitement whether by glorifying or bashing.

8- Avoid being observed (translator's note: being followed and observed) and always notice who is walking behind you or following you from a distance; review the observation manual.

9- All brothers should be always armed even if with a small knife in their pockets.

10- Check your pockets and never leave important papers in them when moving around.

11- Always be careful in personal relations with Afghans or Pakistanis.

12- Avoid giving any information about the locations of your brothers.

13- It is forbidden to discuss work issues with the women.

14- It is forbidden to take children to parks and offices.

15- It is forbidden to talk about your work or the nature of your mission with anybody who is not related to it.

16- Beware of habit in your daily routine because the rule says, "Routine is the enemy of security."

17- If you are moving and have a large amount of money, beware of showing it in the market so you do not attract robbers.

18- Always beware when you are talking about the work because somebody not related to your work, the women or the children, might hear you.

19- Beware of rapid and spontaneous friendships with Afghans who speak Arabic.

20- In public places beware of talking about work issues because some Afghans know Arabic but you cannot notice this.

21- Always be forgiving when you are buying from, selling to or dealing with Afghans and avoid trouble.

22- Children are not allowed to go out by themselves whether to buy stuff or play.

23- Always make sure about the identity of your neighbors and classify them as regular people, opponents or allies.

Security of compounds:

The security of the house or the living quarters is one of the most important aspects of security because the house contains the personnel, the equipment and the important documents. Make the house secure, securing from all those aspects, and it is advisable that these measures be taken seriously. There are important precautions, to the security of the house, that have to be taken before renting but it is not practical to list them here.

(Translator's notes: several instructions for securing the houses are listed, including location, neighborhood, weapons inside, rules for children, night-time policy, and patrolling the surroundings)

Security of the hosting places:

A hosting place is the place where most infiltration takes place. What we mean by hosting place is a public place where people, who most of the time are not related to the work, are received. But in case we are receiving special guests or others, it is not considered a hosting place but it is affiliated to the security of the special offices. (Translator's notes: there are 23 instructions for the security of the hosting places; here are 10)

At the hosting place a room for the security unit is necessary for observation:

1. The hosting place should be away from the living space of the brothers and their meeting areas.

2. Brothers should not go often to the hosting place except for a purpose.

3. It is forbidden to practice any private or secret matter in the hosting place.

4. The hosting place where our brothers are grouped, like Kandahar

a. Anybody who enters it should be known

b. Nobody lives in it unless a known party recommends him

c. Persons living in the hosting place should be organized and authorized by the brother in charge of the hosting place. It should be known where the brother is going and when he is coming back.

5. Brothers living in Kandahar and who repetitively visit the hosting place should abide by the Holy Hadith (a sacred text of Islam), "The virtue of one's Islam is to leave what does not belong to him," and not to start a relation with the brothers living in the hosting place.

6. The brother in charge of the hosting place should assign a private place for each brother living in the hosting place and not leave the decision to the visitor.

7. There should be a schedule for night guard in the hosting place.

8. The communication room should be isolated in the hosting place and not close to the visitor's rooms.

9.The hosting place should have a reception room where the visiting brother is dealt with, before entering the hosting place, and decide if he is going to stay in it.

10. Public meetings are strictly forbidden in the hosting place.

Security of movement:

First: Security of cars and vehicles

Constant movement of cars between the houses of the brothers and their workplace is a big breach which might lead to discovery of those places if the brother driving was not aware of being watched. It is possible that the car itself, with its occupant, might be a target, therefore:

(Translator's notes: several instructions for driving and car security follow; here are a few)

The brothers driving the cars should check their car daily to make sure it does not contain any foreign material or device.
All the brothers driving the cars should be armed and should have their weapons license.
Brothers driving the cars should always be wearing Afghan clothing so their identity cannot be easily discovered.
Brothers driving the cars should not always follow one path and should not have a constant habit in choosing their way.
Second: security of movement and travel inside Afghanistan

Travel is one of the most important security breaches that we should be careful of because of the long absence from the brothers and facing the dangers of the road.

It is absolutely forbidden for a person to travel by himself, and it is preferable that the number of travelers be at least three including a trusted Afghan.
In rest areas a brother should not show his military ID.
The security office should be informed about the travel before the travel, and when you reach your destination you should inform the office for follow up.
(Translator's notes: several instructions for mail and communications security are listed, right out of an intelligence personnel book)

Public meetings security:

The danger of public meetings is that it often groups most of the personnel present in Kandahar. If the enemy manages to know and reach the meeting place, he would have a dangerous opportunity and to make him miss this chance we should follow some precautions.

(Translator's notes: several instructions concerning public meetings security follow)

End Translation

Analysis:

This document supports a few strong conclusions. It clearly proves that an Arab country was providing professional military assistance to Arab operatives in Afghanistan. While the document does not identify the country of origin of these Arab men, it's a logical omission since it wouldn't make sense to name the country in a memo whose purpose is to instruct how to hide one's nationality.

It is important to note, however, that in 1999, Iraq — along with Syria — was again identified by the U.S. Department of State as a government sponsor of terrorism, the only two Arab nations classified as state sponsors of terrorism at that time.

The document also appears to be a professional military intelligence letter of instruction. These men have military IDs. The instruction references an intelligence manual. The letter mentions "trusted" Afghans, so we know they are working in cooperation with forces in Afghanistan. It is highly unlikely that any military would send a semi-permanent contingent with families into Afghanistan for cooperation or training unless the Afghan organization was stable and in control. It therefore seems likely that these soldiers are working closely with the Taliban.

There are media reports of a group of Iraqi soldiers in Afghanistan. Jeffery Goldberg reported for The New Yorker in a February 2003 article entitled The CIA and Pentagon take another look at Al Qaeda and Iraq:

"In interviews with senior officials, the following picture emerged: American intelligence believes that Al Qaeda and Saddam reached a non-aggression agreement in 1993, and that the relationship deepened further in the mid-nineteen-nineties, when an Al Qaeda operative — a native-born Iraqi who goes by the name Abu Abdullah al-Iraqi — was dispatched by bin Laden to ask the Iraqis for help in poison-gas training. Al-Iraqi's mission was successful, and an unknown number of trainers from an Iraqi secret-police organization called Unit 999 were dispatched to camps in Afghanistan to instruct Al Qaeda terrorists."

Unit 999 might sound like it's straight out of a James Bond movie, but there are many references to an actual Iraqi intelligence unit that appears to take on Special Forces missions. Global Security.org, which sources most of its information from declassified U.S. government documents, describes Unit 999:

This "deep penetration" unit, responsible for domestic and international clandestine operations, was headquartered at the army base at Salman Pak, southeast of Baghdad. Unit 999 activities included infiltration of opposition militias in the Kurdish enclave in northern Iraq, a planned effort by the unit to kidnap the U.S. commander General Schwarzkopf from Saudi Arabia during Desert Storm, and sabotage attacks on Iranian oil installations in the 1990s.

This manual provides further evidence that the Iraqi military was active in Afghanistan and working with the Taliban. The Taliban harbored and trained with Al Qaeda. The information in the document matches media reports that U.S. intelligence sources believed the IIS was training Al Qaeda in Afghanistan. It also matches information from other IIS documentation that shows requests from Islamic Jihad groups in Afghanistan for Iraqi military assistance.