A "top 20" al Qaeda planner was in Baghdad several months ago, giving further credence to the Bush administration's assertion of linkage between Saddam Hussein's regime and Osama bin Laden's terrorist organization. U.S. intelligence agencies have verified reports that Abu Musab Zarqawi met with people in Baghdad in the summer after fleeing Afghanistan when the United States began strikes to dislodge the ruling Taliban and kill al Qaeda members. A U.S. official said intelligence agencies are trying to learn more about Zarqawi's visit to Iraq and with whom he met. He is believed to still be in the Middle East, possibly in Syria. "We know he was in Iraq for a period of time several months ago," the official said. "Zarqawi plans terrorist operations. He is in al Qaeda's top 20."
Zarqawi is the head of al-Tawhid, which appears to be al-Qaeda's tentacle in the Paleostinian camps in Lebanon. He used to run an al-Qaeda camp near Herat and he's linked to Abu Qatada... |