Posted on 06/11/2004 11:20:55 PM PDT by Jane_N
The US case against David Hicks paints the former stockman as a renegade warrior, bouncing from terrorist groups in Albania and Pakistan, fighting in Kashmir, and then into the hands of Osama bin Laden and al-Qaeda.
According to case, the convert to Islam was, among other things, sounded out by a top bin Laden associate on his willingness to carry out a "martyr mission", meaning a suicide attack.
He also allegedly translated al-Qaeda training materials from Arabic to English and answered questions from an al-Qaeda military commander about the travel habits of Australians.
Despite being thousands of kilometres from his homeland, Adelaide-born Hicks' nationality apparently followed him. One of his alleged aliases was Abu Muslim al Austraili.
According to the US Defence Department's case against Hicks, this is the route taken by the Australian:
On, or about, May 1999 Hicks travelled to Tirana, Albania, where he joined the Kosovo Liberation Army (KLA), a paramilitary organisation fighting on behalf of Albanian Muslims.
"Hicks completed basic military training at a KLA camp and engaged in hostile action before returning to Australia," the US case states.
While back in Australia, Hicks converted from Christianity to Islam and on, or about, November 1999, he travelled to Pakistan where, in early 2000, he joined the "terrorist organisation" known as Lashkar e Tayyiba (LET), also known as Army of the Righteous.
LET is accused of establishing camps, guest houses and schools in Pakistan and Afghanistan "for the purpose of training and supporting violent attacks against property" and Indian military personnel and civilians and other countries.
Hicks allegedly trained for two months at LET's Mosqua Aqsa camp in Pakistan. His training allegedly included "weapons familiarisation and firing, map reading and land navigation, and troop movements".
Then Hicks and LET associates travelled to a border region between Pakistan-controlled Kashmir and Indian-controlled Kashmir.There he "engaged in hostile action against Indian forces".
His performance led to a trip to Afghanistan and al-Qaeda training camps, the US alleged.
On, or about, January 2001, Hicks, "with funding and a letter of introduction provided by LET, travelled to Afghanistan to attend al-Qaeda terrorist training camps".
"Upon arriving in Afghanistan, Hicks went to an al-Qaeda guest house where he met Ibn Sheikh al Libi, a top-ranking al-Qaeda member, and others," the US alleged.
"Hicks turned in his passport and indicated that he would use the kunya, or alias, Muhammed Dawood."
Hicks is then said to have travelled to and trained at al-Qaeda's al Farouq camp, located outside Kandahar, Afghanistan.
"In al-Qaeda's eight-week basic training course, Hicks trained in weapons familiarisation and firing, land mines, tactics, topography, field movements and basic explosives," the US alleged.
He also trained in al-Qaeda's guerrilla warfare and mountain tactics training course.
"This seven-week course included: marksmanship; small teams tactics; ambush; camouflage; rendezvous techniques; and techniques to pass intelligence to al-Qaeda operatives," according to the US.
It was while training at al Farouq that Hicks allegedly spoke with bin Laden.
During one visit, Hicks is said to have questioned bin Laden regarding the lack of English in al-Qaeda training materials.
"Accepting bin Laden's advice, Hicks began to translate the training camp materials from Arabic to English," the US said.
On another occasion, then al-Qaeda military commander Muhammad Atef, also known as Abu Hafs al Masri, allegedly "summoned and interviewed Hicks about the travel habits of Australians".
After the meeting, Atef recommended Hicks attend al-Qaeda's urban tactics training course at Tarnak Farm.
Tarnak Farm included a mock city, where trainees were taught to fight in an urban environment.
Training included "marksmanship; use of assault and sniper rifles; rappelling; kidnapping techniques; and assassination methods".
On or about August 2001, Hicks participated in an information collection and surveillance course in an apartment in Kabul, Afghanistan.
"The course included 'practical application' where Hicks and others conducted surveillance of various targets in Kabul, including the US and British embassies," the US stated.
Following the course Atef interviewed Hicks again and "asked if he would be willing to undertake a 'martyr mission', meaning an attack wherein Hicks would kill himself as well as the targets of the attack".
On, or about, early September 2001, Hicks travelled to Pakistan to visit a friend.
"After watching television footage of the September 11, 2001 attacks on the United States, Hicks returned to Afghanistan to rejoin his al-Qaeda associates," according to the US case.
He arrived in Kandahar and was given a choice of three locations to fight against US and coalition forces, with Hicks choosing to join a group of al-Qaeda fighters near the Kandahar Airport.
"Armed with an AK-47 automatic rifle, ammunition, and grenades, Hicks travelled with his al-Qaeda associates to the Kandahar Airport," the US alleged.
"On or about October 2001, after the coalition bombing operations commenced, Hicks joined an armed group outside the airport where they guarded a Taliban tank.
"After guarding the tank for approximately one week, Hicks, still armed with the AK-47 rifle, ammunition and grenades, travelled with a LET acquaintance to Kunduz, Afghanistan, arriving around November 9, 2001.
"There he joined others, including (American) John Walker Lindh, who were engaged in combat against coalition forces."
Hicks was captured on or about early December 2001 near Baghlan in Afghanistan.
Soon after he was flown to the US military base at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba.
"Hicks completed basic military training at a KLA camp and engaged in hostile action before returning to Australia," the US case states."
And thus confirming Al-Qaeda links to the KLA who Clinton supported when he bombed Serbia.
You may find this interesting...a confirmation of sorts that al-qaeda was involved in Kosovo (through KLA)
Not necessarily. All that is clear is young Muhammad was bouncing around the world joining any group that would give him an opportunity to fight "infidels".
hey I did say of sorts ok...
:)
"And thus confirming Al-Qaeda links to the KLA who Clinton supported when he bombed Serbia."
I'm not surprised. But some Americans will be.
And a ping for you guys, too!
Jane, Hicks was in the Balkans for a few months in 1999. According to your story, he first linked up with Al Qaeda in 2001 in Afghanistan.
And btw, it was NATO (19 countries--at that time--who had to unanimously approve the action) that bombed Serbia. Regardless of the central role that Albright et al had in the diplomatic bungling at Rambouillet, every country in NATO from Greece to France to Iceland had to approve the NATO campaign and did so.
And if you think Clinton supported the KLA, you don't know much about our (thankfully) ex-president. He supported only himself. He cared as little for the KLA as he did for the Serbs or anyone else. Clinton was motivated by a combination of a narcissistic legacy-quest with post-impeachment damage control. Milosevic's past record of war-crimes and ongoing depredations against the Kosovar Albanians gave Clinton an easy target.
However, Clinton's motivations do not lessen the very real crimes committed by the Serbs in Kosovo nor mitigate against the NATO casus belli of promoting regional stability by stopping the ethnic cleansing and preventing a wider conflict.
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