CIA Had Fix on Hussein: Intelligence Revealed 'Target of Opportunity'

Washington Post ^ | March 20, 2003 | Barton Gellman and Dana Priest

[Humidston]

Please post your picture here since the other thread is locked.

[Busywhiskers]

"Is this some kind of joke or what? If true, will Tenet resign after this blunder? "

Even if they missed the SOB I wouldn't classify the decision as a blunder. Success would yield a pretty cheap victory. If the stike missed him, execute the original plan. The risk was certainly worth it.

The only reason Tenet should resign is if the CIA say mistaked an innocent Wedsnesday night Koran study for a meeting of Iraqi leaders.

[Mr. K]

Too bad they had to go all the way to the top for permission to bomb him. There should be a standing order to take him out next time as soon as they have a fix on him.

[hotpotato]

My question is: why are we hearing these details?

Think about it from the enemies perspective who will hopefully also hear it from us.... "You'll have no rest, no sleep, no peace because we can tag you and within minutes, turn your surroundings into a huge crater... so might as well give it up now as you cannot win."

[BushCountry]

This is the building Saddam was staying in Mosul, that is why he is so screwed!

[dead]

Suppose it is possible that we knocked the prick out with the first bombs.

Obviously, it's very good news. But couldn't it have been too quick?

Couldn't some other henchmen, like his sons or close associates, announce his death, and use that as an excuse to call off the war?

They pretend to be relieved that he's gone and pretend to surrender. Call in the UN. Call off the US invasion. And we're right back to where we started, with a new jerk in the staring role.

And to be really kooky, couldn't the dead Hussein be a phony Hussein.

(I'm just throwing out nutty ideas here...)

[capitan_refugio]

High $20s and low $30s.

The spot market is a fickle thing.
Saudi Arabia said they would make up any shortage.
Hence, in the law of supply and demnd, the supply was instantly increased, and lowered the panic demand we have seen in the past few weeks. Prices drop. It's just stabilization in the market.

[Sabertooth]

To see the article without logging on to the WP, go here, and click on the headline, "CIA Had Fix on Hussein."

[whadizit]

Why in the heck do we put out just who we were after until the outcome is determined. To me, the military is letting out too much info. This is crazy!!

[hotpotato]

They had five key targets according to the news reports, Saddam, his two sons and blank and blank. I suspect one of those blanks was Tariq Aziz. I have wondered in other threads if it wasn't likely that the CIA's method of locating Tariq (as they had to line them all up at the same time) was to provide disinformation to the media with incoming reports that went something like "Aziz is intending to escape to fill-in-the-blank country" "Aziz has been caught" "Aziz is being questioned now" "Aziz has been shot" which would undoubtly result in Aziz showing his face in public before a group of reporters to announce "See! I am alive and still in Baghdad! Bingo. CIA had their tag. Just a thought.... (ok, I'm a fan of spy novels :-)

[Common Tator]

This is the fog of war... a fog induced by our own government.

There is no fog greater than an enemy not knowing if their top leadership is alive or dead.

If the Iraqi commanders are in doubt that Saddam and his two sons are alive, then no Iraqi commander with a brain would launch biological or chemical weapons. How could they argue that Saddam made them do it, if Saddam were dead when they did it?

Unless and until Saddam can get communications back to his commanders, they will likely do nothing drastic. If Saddam and his sons are dead, it is over before it starts. In any event if Saddam is alive he will have to present some proof he is alive and demonstrate the means to commmand to hope to keep any of his forces in line.

[Mitchell]

On the other thread (which wasn't locked), you pointed out:

Somebody is trying really hard to convince us that we are trying to assassinate Saddam Hussein, which seems odd, given how embarassing failure in that task would be, and how likely that outcome seems.

It's interesting that we took the same tack with bin Laden.

As for the apparent assassination attempt on Hussein today, the main point that the media kept bringing out was that this meant that we hadn't really started "the war" yet.

[whadizit]

Absolutely! And, from now on, I hope those "loose lips" in the Pentagon will JUST SHUT UP!!

[FreepEverything]

no worries, we're going in and taking control no matter what, according to Ari

[The Great Satan]

It's an interesting gambit, isn't it?

[two23]

bump

[forest6147]

If saddam is still alive, he have sent orders to blow up the oilfields would'nt he?

[Ciexyz]

CIA disinformation campaign about Tarik Aziz? There's a thought!

[razorbak]

The mosque pic in post 25 reminds me of Clinton for some strange reason.

[Wallaby]

Somebody is trying really hard to convince us that we are trying to assassinate Saddam Hussein, which seems odd, given how embarassing failure in that task would be, and how likely that outcome seems.

Very surprising, indeed.