Al-Qaida 'bought uranium' in Congo

WorldNetDaily ^ | November 14, 2003 | Staff

[Dan Evans]

A member of al-Qaida bought enriched uranium capable of being used in a "dirty bomb" from the Congolese opposition three years ago, according to sworn testimony by a soldier from the Democratic Republic of Congo.

The testimony, given to investigators looking into the murders of two Congolese opposition figures in France in December 2000, was quoted by the French newspaper Le Progres.

The unnamed soldier said he attended a meeting March 3, 2000 in Hamburg, Germany, between some Congolese men and an Egyptian who went by the name of Ibrahim Abd. During this meeting, Abd acquired two bars of enriched uranium 138.

"I realized it was al-Qaida," Le Progres quotes the man as telling investigators.

According to Le Progres, the man told the German investigators the money paid for the uranium was needed to finance a coup attempt against the late Democratic Republic of Congo president Laurent-Desire Kabila.

The newspaper reports the man has been interviewed by U.S. and French security services. He has not offered any information regarding the source of the uranium.

WorldNetDaily reported Homeland Security officials raised the specter of an al-Qaida "dirty bomb" when it elevated the domestic terror-threat level to high following Bush's ultimatum to Saddam Hussein on March 18.

"Al-Qaida may be in the last stages of planning for large-scale attacks," officials warned in March and in subsequent advisories. "There are many recent indications this planning includes the use of chemical, biological, and/or radiological materials."

[Dan Evans]

With all due respect to WorldNetDaily, this story is just plain goofy. I think a lot has been lost in the translation from Congolese to French to English.

1) There is no such thing as uranium 138.

2) Since when has the Congo had the means to enrich uranium?

3) Who would use enriched uranium in a dirty bomb when a cobalt pencil would be easier to acquire and a thousand times more effective?

[Prodigal Son]

I've never quite gotten a handle on WND. Do they want to be taken seriously or not?

[WackyKat]

They eat people in the Congo. It's the Heart of Darkness!

[Atchafalaya]

Well the 1 is next to the 2; proof, toujours le proof!!!!!

[SpaceBar]

This story doesn't surprise me in the slightest in that it's probably quite accurate. A lesser known but documented fact is that during the early and at least to the mid nineties North Korea was furnishing the then nation of Zaire with scientists, and technical experts for the purpose of exploiting congolese pitchblende deposits. Those are undisputed intelligence facts unclassified and available in any federal repository library.

[JustPiper]

Ping

[Dan Evans]

The major technical accomplishments of the Congo appear to be suckering western journalists and intelligence agencies with bogus stories. An intelligence "fact" simply means that someone told somebody something. It doesn't mean it's true.