Atta planned attack on Radio Free Europe -Czech PM

WASHINGTON, Nov 9 (Reuters) - Mohammed Atta, a suspected pilot in Sept. 11 attacks, discussed plans to blow up the Radio Free Europe building in Prague when he met an Iraqi agent there earlier this year, the Czech Prime Minister said on Friday.

"Atta contacted some Iraq agent, not to prepare the terrorist attack on twins (the World Trade Center twin towers), but to prepare a terrorist attack on just the building of Radio Free Europe," Czech leader Milos Zeman told CNN.

"There were some plans to use the truck standard explosives to destroy the building," said Zeman, who is in Washington for talks with U.S. President George W. Bush, Secretary of State Colin Powell and Vice President Dick Cheney.

Atta, an Egyptian suspected of flying one of the two planes into New York's World Trade Center, met Iraqi agent Ahmad Chalil Ibrahim Samir when he visited Prague in April.

Two weeks after the meeting, Czech authorities expelled Samir, who was listed as a diplomat.

At a briefing Friday, Zeman vehemently denied that the Czech government had any information in advance about the attack on the World Trade Center.

"If the Czech government would know in advance of attack on World Trade Center, there wouldn't be any attack on World Trade Center because we in this case should inform immediately the American government," Zeman told reporters at the National Press Club.

However, he stressed that deadly hijack attacks at the trade center, the Pentagon and in Pennsylvania on Sept. 11 were not isolated events, and could be "the possible start for other terroristic attack."

"Also my country and even my beautiful capital Prague might be the potential center of the terrorists," Zeman said.

The U.S.-funded Radio Free Europe, which has its headquarters in the Czech capital, broadcasts news and other programs to several countries, including Iraq.

Earlier this month, the head of the Czech secret service said the radio station was of great interest to Iraqi intelligence, but did not elaborate.

Zeman said there was good co-operation between intelligence agencies in Prague and Washington.

"What is known by the Czech secret services is known by American secret services, including some details," he said.

Mohammed Atta, a suspected pilot in Sept. 11 attacks, discussed plans to blow up the Radio Free Europe building in Prague when he met an Iraqi agent there earlier this year, the Czech Prime Minister said on Friday.

So, Atta found time in his busy schedule planning the destruction of the WTC and decapitation of the United States government to fly repeatedly to Prague to discuss blowing up a radio station with Iraqi intelligence.

And we know this how?

And this is only coming out now why?

And, knowing this, no attempt was made to apprehend Atta because...?

Smells like bullsh*t to me.

I agree. U.S. intelligence officials said they were "surprised" when the Czechs made news of the meeting public last month. Probably this latest bit is the work of clintonoids in the CIA and FBI who want to let Iraq off the hook and blame the anthrax attacks on "domestic" terrorists and right-to-lifers. They must have leaned on the Czechs and told them to start muddying the water, after their gaffe of letting the cat out of the bag by going public.

Nonetheless, this is not a newly minted story. In Sept., the Czech's were guarding the radio station with armored personnel carriers and soldiers with rifles. A local told us there had been threats against it.

It doesn't seem to me to take the heat off Iraq, because the general intel. before 9/11 spoke to potential attacks upon Americans and American interests, which our intel. people seemed to think meant abroad. Prag is abroad; the station is American . . . This still ties Atta to Iraq. It denies they talked about the twin towers. It doesn't deny the possibility of an anthrax handoff, does it?

So think through the logical implications of that.

"What is known by the Czech secret services is known by American secret services, including some details,"

Implications are legion, probably. 1. We got this intel from the Czech's. 2. Could the talk about a Prag attack by Atta and the Iraqi agent have been disinformation on the part of the terrorists/Iraq, as there were many clues of something big, but not tied to something happening on US soil? 3. You're saying when did we get the info? Initially the thoughts were that the Czechs were watching the Iraqi and not Atta. I did not hear until this post that they had learned what Atta was talking about to the Iraqi agent. But if they jointly threatened Voice of America, then the Czechs presumably let us know about it. If they let us know about it, they probably told us everything they knew about Atta. Yet Atta was allowed into the US, and was allowed to wander all around the US taking flying lessons and etc., as though he had not been CAUGHT by Czech intelligence CONSPIRING with an IRAQI agent (who was considered a serious enough threat he was "sent home" by the Czechs) to BLOW UP an AMERICAN facility. 4. Are you thinking the Czechs should have apprehended Atta? I figured they sent the Iraqi home instead of collaring him because of his diplomatic status. They would have had to move quickly on Atta, since he got on the plane to Newark after the last meeting. I have been taken with how much the Czechs put together on this. But, yeah, better if they had arrested him, before 9/11 and the anthrax mailings. 5. Or are you thinking: what did the CIA/FBI DO with the info the Czechs gave them on Atta?? Besides nothing . . . which seems to be par for the course. Sadly. 6. Implications for what we do about Iraq? I'm interested in hearing strategies . . .

I'm actually not that interested in the Radio Free Europe angle. I think it's probably bogus or, at most, an irrelevancy that is being played up to distract from the larger import of Atta's contact with Iraq (yes, Bob Stevens did "drink straight from a mountain stream," but so what?). The implications I'm thinking about are larger and broader. If Iraq was in on 9/11, how did Saddam Hussein expect to get away with destroying the WTC and decapitating the US government? What is his insurance policy? What does that have to do with the letter sent to Daschle and the sample of weaponized anthrax it contained?

What is his insurance policy? What does that have to do with the letter sent to Daschle and the sample of weaponized anthrax it contained?

. . ."mutual assured destruction" is an operable theory. . . Although I don't think he wanted the Czech intelligence to pick up on the Atta link, did he? . . .I am interested to see how he responds to the Blair message that he must allow inspections of the WMD sites again. How do you see it playing out?

We stall for a few months at least -- we want to do this on our timetable. He has no incentive to strike us first. If he does that, he is a dead man. At some point, we will either just do a few token strikes (if we feel he really has us by the b*lls) or, if we feel we can blunt the impact of any retaliation, we will move in on Iraq. My guess is, we will target his CBW inventory first -- more to protect Israel and to set the appropriate psychological context for the conflict than because it will do anything to protect us -- then proceed to a general bombing campaign and a ground invasion. We will probably offer Saddam's life as a bargaining chip, since we don't really know what he's got up his sleeve. What happens next depends on whether he values his life more than his hold on power. If he is defiant, we will take him out, and we'll find out whether he's bluffing, and just how much damage his sleepers can do.

He has no incentive to strike us first

Agree . . .

If he is defiant, we will take him out, and we'll find out whether he's bluffing, and just how much damage his sleepers can do.

And in the meantime, they're looking for the sleepers, right? (Or just a lone angry guy?). (And still letting a bunch of people come in from that region and across the Mex. border and etc. . . .) My hope is that he'll let the UN inspectors back in. Clinton (the rapist- HA!)did not have a strategy when the inspectors were kicked out. Of course Saddam doesn't want to lose that capability, but if he uses it, he's dead, as you say.

Yeah, I know it's war, but I don't think we can take the hit domestically with bio. Esp. if we are not doing enough to stop it at the borders, etc. Of course, the threat of response HAS to be serious enough to convince him to let the inspectors back in. It's a game of "chicken" with our grannies and kids as the hostages of a potential bio strike. Agree: at a certain point, we may have to respond and so he'll let loose the sleepers.

Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.