Posted on 05/22/2007 4:31:40 PM PDT by RDTF
WASHINGTON — President Bush, trying to defend his war strategy, declassified intelligence Tuesday asserting that Usama bin Laden ordered a top lieutenant in early 2005 to form a terrorist cell that would conduct attacks outside Iraq — and that the United States should be the top target.
Frances Fragos Townsend, the White House homeland security adviser, said the intelligence bolsters the Bush administration's contention that Al Qaeda wants to use Iraq as a staging area to launch terrorist attacks around the world, including the United States.
In January 2005, bin Laden tasked Al Qaeda operative Abu Musab al-Zarqawi, who was in Iraq, to organize the cell, Townsend said. Al-Zarqawi, the former leader of Al Qaeda's Iraq operations, was killed there in June 2006 by a U.S. airstrike.
"We know from the intelligence community that al-Zarqawi welcomed the tasking and claimed he already had some good proposals," Townsend said.
She said that in the spring of 2005, bin Laden instructed Hamza Rabia, a senior operative, to brief al-Zarqawi on Al Qaeda planning to attack sites outside Iraq, including the United States. She did not disclose where in the United States those attacks were being plotted.
(Excerpt) Read more at foxnews.com ...
By morning, this will all have been debunked as fearmongering by Dubya by the RAT surrender monkeys.
ping
In January 2005, bin Laden tasked Al Qaeda operative Abu Musab al-Zarqawi, who was in Iraq, to organize the cell, Townsend said. Al-Zarqawi, the former leader of Al Qaeda’s Iraq operations, was killed there in June 2006 by a U.S. airstrike.
Gee; remember the election of 2004 when Bin Hidin released the video warning that states that voted republican would be targetted for terrorist attacks? Could they have waited until the inaugeration to see if President Bush was really remaining in power?
There were many of this stuff mentioned in the released documents, but our treasonous media chose to ignore it.
“President Bush, trying to defend his war strategy, declassified intelligence Tuesday asserting that Osama bin Laden ordered a top lieutenant in early 2005 to form a terrorist cell that would conduct attacks outside Iraq — and that the United States should be the top target.”
I question the timing of this release.
/Democrat
NEW LONDON, Conn — President Bush, stressing that Americans face an ongoing threat from terrorists, shared intelligence on Wednesday asserting that Usama bin Laden was working in 2005 to set up a unit inside Iraq to hit U.S. targets.
Much of the information Bush cited in a commencement address at the U.S. Coast Guard Academy described terrorism plots already revealed, but he fleshed out details and highlighted U.S. successes in foiling planned attacks.
Bush said that intelligence showed that in January 2005, bin Laden tasked Abu Musab al-Zarqawi, his senior operative in Iraq, to set up the cell to use Iraq as a staging ground for attacks in the United States. Al-Zarqawi was killed in Iraq in June 2006 by a U.S. airstrike.
This information expanded on a classified bulletin the Homeland Security Department issued in March 2005. The bulletin, which warned that bin Laden had enlisted al-Zarqawi to plan potential strikes in the United States, was described at the time as credible but not specific. It did not prompt the administration to raise its national terror alert level.
http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,274893,00.html
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