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SENATE REPORT SAYS HUSSEIN NEVER HAD AL-QAEDA TIES
SADDAM HUSSEIN NEVER WORKED WITH BIN LADEN OR AL-ZARQAWI, DESPITE CLAIMS BY TOP U.S. OFFICIALS 9 September 2006 As the 5th anniversary of the attacks of 11 September 2001 approach, the US Senate's Intelligence Committee has issued a report officially finding that Saddam Hussein never collaborated with al-Qaeda in any sense. In fact, he was hunting Abu Musab al-Zarqawi, who would later name his organization "Al-Qaeda of Mesopotamia" or as per Pentagon briefings "Al-Qaeda in Iraq". Hussein was suspicious of the Islamist radicalism of al-Qaeda and did not view them as friendly to his regime and its interests. While the Jordanian terrorist leader Abu Musab al-Zarqawi was reportedly in Iraq prior to the 2003 invasion, it is thought he was there in an effort to undermine Hussein's secular regime, and Hussein made serious attempts to capture or kill him. These findings demonstrate that the claims made by both Pres. Bush and VP Cheney prior to the 2003 invasion, that there were direct and meaningful ties between the Hussein regime and the terrorist network, were unfounded. Opponents of the Bush administration have begun calling for apologies and for information about exactly where, if in any place, the erroneous intelligence was located, which could have led to such high-level propagation of misleading statements. A recent poll has reportedly shown that 43% to 46% of Americans still believe the Bush administration's long-standing claim that there were direct ties between Osama Bin Laden and Saddam Hussein's regime and that Hussein was responsible for the 9/11 attacks. Despite the continued promotion of the claim of a direct link, and a poll showing that more than 70% of military personnel in Iraq still believed the claim, the White House now says the report contains "nothing new". The report also included findings that there is no evidence and no new evidence that Saddam Hussein attempted to acquire weapons of mass destruction (WMD) between the 1990s dismantling of his arsenal and the 2003 US-led invasion that toppled his regime. Vulnerable incumbent senator Rick Santorum (R-PA) has been making avowed claims that shells of weapons left over from the 1980s Iran-Iraq war, many provided by the US, then an ally, are proof of the presence of WMD in March 2003. The 356-page report included numerous findings on the nature or "character" of US intelligence analysis. For instance, it stipulates that there may have been "intermittent" interest on the part of Osama Bin Laden to work with Iraq, but that Saddam Hussein did not reciprocate and was not interested in collaborating with religious fundamentalists, whom he distrusted. [s]
RELATED STORIES: While prisoner abuse has been a widely reported charge, with shocking images and public outrage to keep attention on the subject, there has been relatively little similar public outrage expressed over situations where civilians have died in questionable circumstances. The Washington Post reports there has been a tendency not to investigate many such deaths, with top officials saying "in private" that there's "a tendency to consider Iraqi civilian deaths an unintended consequence of combat operations". [Full Story] MOST WANTED INSURGENT LEADER KILLED IN AIR-STRIKE Reports from Baghdad suggest Abu Musab al-Zarqawi was killed by a US airstrike on 7 June 2006. The official announcement was made by Iraq's prime minister Nouri al-Maliki, and was later confirmed by US Gen. Casey. The White House issued a statement of cautious relief, saying the removal of Zarqawi could be a moment of hope for Iraq, but will not end the ongoing sectarian and insurgent violence. [Full Story] NO WMD, JUSTIFICATIONS FOR WAR IN QUESTION David Kay, chief weapons inspector for the Iraq Survey Group, who recently left his post, reports there was no evidence to indicate the presence of any weapons of mass destruction, any stockpiles, or any competent programs to develop such weapons. Kay said evidence was found that indicated there had been programs in the past, but that it appeared that all the weapons had been destroyed, and that the programs were in disarray, and no production facilities existed. [Full Story] |
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