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FEBRUARY 2001 : (MILAN CELL, SALEH {aka Sayed} CONVERSATION ABOUT GETTING TERRORISTS INTO US) Abu Saleh, unaware of the microphone hidden in his Citroen ZX, mentions to a passenger that "three brothers" will soon need dual-citizenship passports, including one with both Syrian and American nationalities. "Make sure the passports bear stamps," he admonishes the young man, a Tunisian. "The higher-ups want the job to be done properly, to make sure that they won't get caught as they reach their final destination." Six months earlier, in August 2000, a suspected al-Qaida organizer, Abdulsalam Ali Ali Abdulrahman, had paid a brief visit to Abu Saleh in Milan and was overheard referring to "some brothers who entered America thanks to a mail-order-bride magazine trick," but who "claimed to be Egyptians and kept their true identity concealed." It was in the same conversation that Abdulrahman made several cryptic remarks about an impending attack that "will wreak such a great havoc" and "leave them all dumbfounded." - "Milan cell linked to al-Qaida operatives, " By John Crewdson and Tom Hundley, Chicago Tribune via Seattle Times June 30, 2002

FEBRUARY 2001 : (MILAN CELL, SALEH CONVERSATION ABOUT FAILURE TO GET TERRORISTS INTO US) Abu Saleh had a conversation with a man who answered Abdulrahman's telephone in Yemen. "I have heard you are getting into America," Abu Saleh is heard to say. "I'm sorry," replied the voice on the other end, "but we did not manage to get in ... ." "How come, man?" Abu Saleh asked. "This is our goal," the voice replied, "and we have no greater desire. ... We hope and wish to enter clandestinely by land. ... ." Within days of that conversation, however, the electronic and physical surveillance of Abu Saleh was discontinued. One investigator explained that, under the Italian laws, it was necessary to either stop the surveillance after one year or to notify Abu Saleh that he was the target of an anti-terrorism investigation. Fearing that any notification would imperil a concurrent investigation of one of Abu Saleh's alleged lieutenants, the police simply turned off the microphones in Abu Saleh's house and automobile. After Sept. 11, 2001, the law was changed to extend the prenotification period to two years. - "Milan cell linked to al-Qaida operatives, " By John Crewdson and Tom Hundley, Chicago Tribune via Seattle Times June 30, 2002