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| More on Abd al-Hadi al-Iraqi capture |
| 2007-04-28 |
| Hat tip Drudge Captured Al-Qaeda leader Abd al-Hadi al-Iraqi is thought to have devised the plan for the July 7 suicide bombings in London and an array of terrorist plots against Britain. Busy lad, wasn't he -- wrote the Jihad Handbook so beloved by wannabee jihadis the world over, handled finances and logistics for Al Qaeda in Iraq from his home somewhere along the Afghan border (on the Pakistan side, of course), and a multitude of terror plots in Britain, too! A former major in Saddam Hussein’s army, he was apprehended as he tried to enter Iraq from Iran and was transferred this week to the “high-value detainee programme” at Guantanamo Bay. Abd al-Hadi was taken into CIA custody last year, it emerged from US intelligence sources yesterday, in a move which suggests that he was interrogated for months in a “ghost prison” before being transferred to the internment camp in Cuba. So he has been wrung dry, then, as some here proposed yesterday. Clever people, those Rantubrgers. ;-) Abd al-Hadi, 45, was regarded as one of al-Qaeda’s most experienced, most intelligent and most ruthless commanders. Senior counter-terrorism sources told The Times that he was the man who, in 2003, identified Britain as the key battleground for exporting al-Qaeda’s holy war to Europe. And so it has proved. The British public and politicians might find it useful to ponder this fact. Abd al-Hadi recognised the potential for turning young Muslim radicals from Britain who wanted to become mujahidin in Afghanistan or Iraq into terrorists who could carry out attacks in their home country. He realised that their knowledge of Britain, possession of British passports and natural command of English made them ideal recruits. After al-Qaeda restructured its operations in Pakistan’s tribal areas he sought out young Britons for instruction at training camps. In late 2004 Abd al-Hadi met Mohammad Sidique Khan and Shehzad Tanweer, from Leeds, at a militant camp in Pakistan and, in the words of a senior investigator, “retasked them” to become suicide bombers. They were sent back to Britain where they led the terrorist cell that carried out the 7/7 bombings, killing 52 Tube and bus passengers. Pakistani intelligence sources said that Abd al-Hadi was also in contact with Rachid Rauf, a Birmingham man now in prison in Pakistan and alleged to be a key figure in last summer’s alleged plot to blow up transatlantic airliners in mid-flight. Abd al-Hadi has also been linked to a number of other foiled al-Qaeda plots to carry out attacks in Britain. But the Security Service, which has previously sent officials to question detainees at Guantanamo Bay, may not have the opportunity to question him directly. The Government’s recently adopted position in favour of closing Guantanamo Bay is likely to act as a bar on agents travelling there. British Intelligence would have to rely on relaying questions it would like asked by American interrogators. Whoops! Not one of Tony's cleverest ideas, allowing his people to say that. Security sources said they assessed Abd al-Hadi as a key operational commander, high up the chain in the al-Qaeda structure who was behind many key plots in the UK. He had a close link with another arrested al-Qaeda figure. He is thought to have been in contact with Osama bin Laden before his capture and might be able to provide information about his leader’s whereabouts. Bryan Whitman, a Pentagon spokesman, said that Abd al-Hadi was a key al-Qaeda paramilitary leader in Afghanistan in the late 1990s, and between 2002 and 2004 led efforts to attack US forces in Afghanistan with terrorist units based in Pakistan. A very busy lad. It appears he made ample use of the training he received in Saddam Hussein's army. What unit was he in at the end, I wonder. I'll bet the CIA interrogators know. US officials said he was associated with leaders of other extremist groups allied with al-Qaeda in Afghanistan and Pakistan, including the Taleban. Michael Scheuer, former head of the CIA’s bin Laden unit and now a senior fellow at the Jamestown Foundation in Washington, told The Times that Abd al-Hadi had been an important figure in developing al-Qaeda’s strategy in the insurgencies in Iraq and Afghanistan and also helped to redirect its terrorist strategy in Europe. Mr Scheuer said: “It is a blow for al-Qaeda, especially in Iraq, where it will have consequences.” Consequences are always good, even though Mr Scheuer went on to explain that someone would be promoted to take Abd al-Hadi's place, although he didn't say whether the newbie would have mastered so many and varied skill sets. |
| Posted by:trailing wife |
| #11 A former major in Saddam HusseinÂ’s army, he was apprehended as he tried to enter Iraq from Iran... Yea, still no connection between Saddam and AlQaida, and AlQaida and Iran. Nothing to see here, time to move on. |
| Posted by: john 2007-04-28 20:12 |
| #10 most buried remains do...... he's dead, Jim |
| Posted by: Frank G 2007-04-28 17:42 |
| #9 Best if Binny-boy just fades away... |
| Posted by: Bobby 2007-04-28 17:41 |
| #8 bin Laden is just another Zit on the face of Islam, if alive he is the Scarlet Pimpernel of Jihad, and if dead he is a Shaheed. Win-win for his rep either way. |
| Posted by: Anguper Hupomosing9418 2007-04-28 14:35 |
| #7 Too bad that the existence of scum like this still won't make Britain review their proscription of the death penalty. If this slimeball had direct contact with bin Laden, you'd think that we'd know whether he's alive or dead by now. I don't see any reason to withhold an announcement of bin Laden's death, so this makes me wonder if Pussbag Numero Uno is still alive. |
| Posted by: Zenster 2007-04-28 13:31 |
| #6 The role of the NYTs is to line your kitty litter box. It can also be used for toilet paper for the liberal left just so long as they don't use too much. |
| Posted by: JohnQC 2007-04-28 09:57 |
| #5 The NYT headline was "C.I.A. Held Qaeda Leader in Secret Prison for Months." As if that was a bad thing. It is a bad thing for the NYTs. They would have preferred he be allowed first to give them an interview then be wrung dry by the CIA. After all that is their role in society - to pre-empt all G2 with a blaring, glaring revelation. |
| Posted by: Jack is Back! 2007-04-28 08:12 |
| #4 A quote from Instapundit... "Hey, wait -- an "al-Qaeda leader" who's also a "former major in Saddam Hussein's army"? But I thought there was no connection between Saddam and Al Qaeda. Or between Al Qaeda and Iran . . . ." Heh. |
| Posted by: BrerRabbit 2007-04-28 05:32 |
| #3 The NYT headline was "C.I.A. Held Qaeda Leader in Secret Prison for Months." As if that was a bad thing. |
| Posted by: Anguper Hupomosing9418 2007-04-28 03:57 |
| #2 I would think that British intelligence had access to him while he was in Iraq before he was shipped to Gitmo. You will notice the arrest earlier this week of several people in Britain. All these people including the six Iraqis arrested in Greece the other day were probably rolled up in preparation for the release of information about Abdal Hadi's capture. |
| Posted by: crosspatch 2007-04-28 03:08 |
| #1 I guess not everybody at the CIA sits around leaking stuff to the media. Good news. Scheuer is always there to remind us that al Queda is tough and powerful in the face of setbacks. He strikes me has having become too enthralled with his subject while studying them. So, his allowance that this capture matters is meaningful. |
| Posted by: JAB 2007-04-28 01:00 |