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Home , Abdul Rahman Yasin, Baghdad

H3568 CONGRESSIONAL RECORD — HOUSE June 1, 2004 ‘‘Warmest regards to you, your fam- wick County, which I am proud to rep- ORDER OF BUSINESS ily and staff. resent. Beautiful and historic Bruns- Mr. BURTON of . Mr. Speak- ‘‘Out of the 50-plus emails you’ve re- wick County is the birthplace of the er, I ask unanimous consent that I ceived so far from me, here’s one you’ll world-famous Brunswick stew and is take my Special Order at this time. genuinely enjoy reading, I suspect. now home to the Nation’s largest white The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there ‘‘Gratitude is the subject of my email oak tree. objection to the request of the gen- I am also proud to support H.R. 1775, to you today. Today, I was approved by tleman from Indiana? legislation sponsored by the gentleman Medicare for the $600-per-year low-in- There was no objection. come credit with relation to the Medi- from Virginia (Mr. GOODLATTE), my care prescription drug bill. Thank you, friend and fellow Virginian, which f the President, and the Republicans for would designate the oak tree as the na- THE CONNECTION BETWEEN SAD- assisting America’s poor and disabled tional tree of the . DAM HUSSEIN AND OSAMA BIN The meaningful history of the oak in this way. LADEN ‘‘Others merely want your attention. and magnificent trees such as that of We, however, need your attention. We Mr. and Mrs. Robinson make the oak The SPEAKER pro tempore. Under a thank you for your hard work and long the logical choice for the national tree. previous order of the House, the gen- hours assisting us.’’ Long may the great Brunswick County tleman from Indiana (Mr. BURTON) is Mr. Speaker, I want to point out that white oak stand. recognized for 5 minutes. over 21,000 low-income seniors qualify f Mr. BURTON of Indiana. Mr. Speak- for this $600 exemption in my district er, there has been a lot of concern over IT IS IMPORTANT FOR CONGRESS the past year or so about whether or alone. This constituent’s correspond- TO WORK TOGETHER ence is one example of the seniors who not was tied in with (Ms. JACKSON-LEE of Texas asked are celebrating nationwide the ability and the terrorist net- and was given permission to to have this program in effect this work and al Qaeda. the House for 1 minute and to revise week. There is an article in The Weekly and extend her remarks.) Standard this week called ‘‘The Con- f Ms. JACKSON-LEE of Texas. Mr. nection,’’ and I would urge all of my SUPPORT THE CRANE-RANGEL Speaker, today, June 1, causes me to colleagues to read this article. It shows BILL reflect on two distinct and different oc- a picture of Saddam Hussein, Osama currences. (Mr. BROWN of Ohio asked and was bin Laden, and some other terrorists First of all, we notice across the Na- on the front page of the magazine. The given permission to address the House tion senior citizens confused, not un- for 1 minute.) article is written by a gentleman derstanding and certainly not enrolling named Stephen Hayes, and it follows Mr. BROWN of Ohio. Mr. Speaker, in the so-called prescription drug President Bush came to northeast Ohio an article that was written in the Wall cards. We welcome our pharma- Street Journal last week, and I would to Youngstown last week again to try ceuticals to really work with this Con- to defend his economic program and like to read some information from the gress to produce a guaranteed Medicare two articles that I think verifies with- argue that it is working for Ohio. prescription drug benefit, what the sen- out much doubt that Saddam Hussein Ohio, since President Bush took of- iors have actually wanted for almost 10 and Osama bin Laden, al Qaeda and fice, has lost one out of six manufac- years, in order for the seniors to truly other terrorist organizations were turing jobs and has lost 165,000 manu- get what they deserve, something they working together to try to destroy the facturing jobs overall. In fact, during can count on and something that United States and Western Civiliza- the Bush administration, there have works. been 200 jobs lost in Ohio every single It also causes me to reflect on the tion. day of the Bush administration. wonderful opportunity I had to visit Let me read from the Wall Street The President’s answer: more tax with the troops in Air Force Journal of May 27, 2004: cuts for the wealthy, hoping some of it Base in and on the USS ‘‘One striking bit of new evidence is will trickle down to the Ohio commu- George Washington. It says that the that the name of Ahmed Hikmat nity that is not working, and more political collapse that seems to be oc- Shakir appears on three captured ros- trade agreements, like NAFTA, that curring in is not the fault of our ters of officers in Saddam , continue to ship jobs overseas. soldiers, but bad political policies. the elite paramilitary group run by Mr. Speaker, the answer is not the It is important for Congress to work Saddam’s son Uday and entrusted with failed Bush economic policies, but in- together, to demand full investigations doing much of the regime’s dirty work. stead, the Crane-Rangel bill, which will of the ills that are occurring in Af- Our government sources, who have give incentives to those Ohio and ghanistan and Iraq in order to pay trib- seen translations of the documents, say American companies that do their ute to these hard-working soldiers Shakir is listed with the rank of lieu- manufacturing in this country instead every day on the front line. Let us not tenant colonel. This matters because if of giving big companies incentives to have the ills and the incompleteness of Shakir was an officer in the Fedayeen, ship jobs overseas. our political process undermine the it would establish a direct link between f tribute and the work that has been Iraq and the al Qaeda operatives who done by these fine outstanding United planned’’ the 9/11 attack on the World CELEBRATING THE OAK TREE States military. Trade Center and the Pentagon. (Mr. GOODE asked and was given f ‘‘Shakir was present at the January permission to address the House for 1 2000 al Qaeda ‘summit’ in Kuala minute and to revise and extend his re- SPECIAL ORDERS Lumpur, , at which the 9/11 at- marks.) The SPEAKER pro tempore (Mr. tacks were planned. The U.S. has never Mr. GOODE. Mr. Speaker, it is my MARIO DIAZ-BALART of Florida). Under been sure whether he was there on be- pleasure to announce that the National the Speaker’s announced policy of Jan- half of the Iraqi regime or whether he Register of Big Trees from the con- uary 7, 2003, and under a previous order was an Iraqi Islamicist who hooked up servation group American Forests has of the House, the following Members with al Qaeda on his own.’’ formally given the crown of the Na- will be recognized for 5 minutes each. The fact is he was an officer in the tion’s largest white oak tree, a quercus f elite military of Saddam. He worked alba, to the oak tree in front of The SPEAKER pro tempore. Under a with his son Uday, and he was there Bothwick Hall in Brunswick County, previous order of the House, the gen- when they planned the attack on the Virginia. The national champion oak is tleman from Nebraska (Mr. OSBORNE) is World Trade Center and the Pentagon. 86 feet high, with a circumference of 26 recognized for 5 minutes. Further, the article goes on to say: feet, and a crown spread of 116 feet. (Mr. OSBORNE addressed the House. ‘‘The CIA has confirmed that al The great white oak belongs to His remarks will appear hereafter in Qaeda’s number 2, Ayman al-Zawahiri, George and Mary Robinson from Bruns- the Extensions of Remarks.) met with Iraqi intelligence in Baghdad

VerDate May 21 2004 03:23 Jun 02, 2004 Jkt 029060 PO 00000 Frm 00026 Fmt 4634 Sfmt 0634 E:\CR\FM\K01JN7.057 H01PT1 June 1, 2004 CONGRESSIONAL RECORD — HOUSE H3569 in 1992 and 1998. There is irrefutable sein, to leave the country after estab- A greeter typically meets VIPs upon ar- evidence that the Iraqi regime paid lishing frequent contact with leaders of rival and accompanies them through the Zawahiri $300,000 in 1998, around the Abu Sayyaf, an al Qaeda affiliate in sometimes onerous procedures of foreign Southeast . This Iraqi official had travel. Shakir was instructed to work on time his Islamic jihad was merging January 5, 2000, and on that day, he escorted with al Qaeda. Four sources have con- contact with Abu Sayyaf immediately one Khalid al Mihdhar from his plane to a firmed the payment.’’ before and after they detonated a bomb waiting car. Rather than bid his guest fare- So here again is another connection. in Zamboanga that killed two Fili- well at that point, as a greeter typically ‘‘Since Operating Enduring Freedom, pinos and an American Special Forces would have, Shakir climbed into the car with we have solid evidence Iraq and al soldier. al Mihdhar and accompanied him to the Qaeda discussed safe haven and recip- High ranking Czech officials have confirmed condominium of Yazid rocal non-aggression. We have solid that Mohammed Atta, the lead 911 hijacker, Sufaat, the American-born al Qaeda terrorist met with Ahmed Khalil Ibrahim al Ani, an Iraqi who hosted the planning meeting. evidence of the presence in Iraq of al The meeting lasted for three days. Khalid Qaeda members. Through interroga- intelligence officer, 5 months before the hijack- al Mihdhar departed Kuala Lumpur for Bang- tions of high-level Iraqi detainees, we ing. kok and eventually Los Angeles. Twenty have evidence that al Qaeda members Ansar al-, the Al Qaeda cell formed in months later, he was aboard American Air- visited Baghdad, sought weapons and Northern Iraq in June 2001, has expanded its lines Flight 77 when it plunged into the Pen- training in areas such as poisons, attacks against and has joined with tagon at 9:38 a.m. on September 11. So were gases, and conventional bomb mak- remnants of Saddam’s regime in their insur- Nawaf al Hazmi and his younger brother, ing.’’ gency against Coalition forces. It is believed Salem, both of whom were also present at the Kuala Lumpur meeting. Another item: ‘‘Farouk Hijazi, that the bombing of the U.N. headquarters was a result of a joint operation between Six days after September 11, Shakir was former Iraqi ambassador to , captured in , . He had in his pos- has admitted meeting senior al Qaeda Baathists and the Al Qaeda affiliate, Ansar al- session contact information for several sen- leaders at Saddam’s behest in 1994. It is Islam. ior al Qaeda terrorists: Zahid Sheikh Mo- believed Hijazi met with Osama bin When Osama bin Laden issued a fatwa hammed, brother of September 11 master- Laden and offered him safe haven in against America in February 1998 there is evi- mind Khalid Sheikh Mohammed; Musab Iraq in 1998.’’ That is another example. dence Saddam Hussein paid $300,000 to bin Yasin, brother of Abdul Rahman Yasin, the ‘‘Al Qaeda operatives held in Guanta- Laden’s deputy Ayman al-Zawahiri. Iraqi who helped mix the chemicals for the Mr. Speaker, I submit herewith for first World Trade Center attack and was namo have corroborated reports of a the RECORD the article by Stephen given safe haven upon his return to Baghdad; series of meetings in , , Hayes I referred to earlier: and Mamdouh Mahmud Salim, otherwise home to al Qaeda during the mid-1990s. known as Abu Hajer al Iraqi, described by [From the Weekly Standard, June 7, 2004] Abu Abdullah al-Iraqi,’’ an al Qaeda one top al Qaeda detainee as Osama bin weapons of mass destruction specialist, THE CONNECTION Laden’s ‘‘best friend.’’ ‘‘was sent by Osama bin Laden to seek (By Stephen F. Hayes) Despite all of this, Shakir was released. On WMD training, and possibly weapons, ‘‘The president convinced the country with October 21, 2001, he boarded a plane for Bagh- dad, via , . He never made the from the Iraqi regime. His associates a mixture of documents that turned out to be forged and blatant false assertions that connection. Shakir was detained by Jor- held meetings in Baghdad with Uday,’’ Saddam was in league with al Qaeda,’’ danian intelligence. Immediately following Saddam’s son, ‘‘in April 1998.’’ Another claimed former Vice President Al Gore last his capture, according to U.S. officials famil- example. Wednesday. iar with the intelligence of Shakir, the Iraqi ‘‘Secretary of State Colin Powell’s ‘‘There’s absolutely no evidence that Iraq government began exerting pressure on the presentation to the U.N. in December was supporting al Qaeda, ever,’’ declared Jordanians to release him. Some U.S. intel- 2002 detailed intelligence showing that Richard Clarke, former counterterrorism of- ligence officials—primarily at the CIA—be- Abu Musab Al-Zarqawi, a Jordanian ficial under George W. Bush and Bill Clinton, lieved that Iraq’s demand for Shakir’s re- in an interview on March 21, 2004. lease was pro forma, no different from the re- jihadist and known al Qaeda associate, The editor of the Los Angeles Times la- quests governments regularly make on be- traveled to Baghdad for medical treat- beled as ‘‘myth’’ the claim that links be- half of citizens detained by foreign govern- ment. Among al-Zarqawi’s many tween Iraq and al Qaeda had been proved. A ments. But others, pointing to the flurry of crimes, he is a key suspect’’ we just recent dispatch from Reuters simply as- phone calls and personal appeals from the saw recently on television ‘‘in the ab- serted, ‘‘There is no link between Saddam Iraqi government to the Jordanians, dis- duction and beheading of American Hussein and al Qaeda.’’ 60 Minutes anchor agreed. This panicked reaction, they said, re- Nicholas Berg.’’ Lesley Stahl was equally certain: ‘‘There flected an interest in Shakir at the highest was no connection.’’ levels of Saddam Hussein’s regime. b 1930 And on it goes. This conventional wis- CIA officials who interviewed Shakir in dom—that our two most determined enemies It is believed Saddam Hussein’s neph- Jordan reported that he was generally unco- were not in league, now or ever—is com- operative. But even in refusing to talk, he ew, Yasser al-Sabawi, and their forting. It is also wrong. provided some important information: The Fedeyyen Saddam paramilitary cronies In late February 2004, Christopher Carney interrogators concluded that his evasive an- worked with Al Zarqawi and his accom- made an astonishing discovery. Carney, a po- swers reflected counterinterrogation tech- plices in the abduction, transfer, and litical professor from Pennsylvania niques so sophisticated that he had probably execution of Mr. Berg. That investiga- on leave to work at the Pentagon, was poring learned them from a government intel- tion is still in progress, but the linkage over a list of officers in Saddam Hussein’s ligence service. Shakir’s Iraqi nationality, much-feared security force, the Fedayeen his contacts with the Iraqi embassy in Ma- between Saddam and al Qaeda is rein- Saddam. One name stood out: Lieutenant forced by video and other evidence col- laysia, the keen interest of Baghdad in his Colonel Ahmed Hikmat Shakir. The name case, and now the appearance of his name on lected thus far. There is a high prob- was not spelled exactly as Carney has seen it the rolls of Fedayeen officers—all this makes ability that Zarqawi was the masked before, but such discrepancies are common. the Iraqi intelligence service the most likely man who beheaded Berg. Saddam’s Having studied the relationship between Iraq source of his training. nephew is described as the ringleader of and al Qaeda for 18 months, he immediately The Jordanians, convinced that Shakir suspects in the case. recognized the potential significance of his worked for Iraqi intelligence, went to the Another item: Statements by Iraqi find. According to a report last week in the CIA with a bold proposal: Let’s flip him. defectors have been corroborated by Wall Street Journal, Shakir appears on three That is, the Jordanians would allow Shakir different lists of Fedayeen officers. to return to Iraq on condition that he agree new evidence seized by Coalition troops An Iraqi of that name, Carney knew, had to report back on the activities of Iraqi in- that Saddam’s regime trained non- been present at an al Qaeda summit in Kuala telligence. And, in one of the most egregious Iraqi Arab terrorists at a camp in Lumpur, Malaysia, on January 5–8, 2000. U.S. mistakes by U.S. intelligence after Sep- , South of Baghdad. The intelligence officials believe this was a chief tember 11, the CIA agreed to Shakir’s re- existence of this training camp was planning meeting for the September 11 at- lease. He posted a modest bail and returned verified by U.N. inspectors. A Boeing tacks. Shakir had been nominally employed to Iraq. 707 was used at the camp to simulate as a ‘‘greeter’’ by Malaysian Airlines, a job He hasn’t been heard from since. he told associates he had gotten through a The Shakir story is perhaps the govern- terrorist hijackings. contact a the Iraqi embassy. More curious, ment’s strongest indication that Saddam and Another item: In February, 2003, the Shakir’s Iraqi embassy contact controlled al Qaeda may have worked together on Sep- government of the asked a his schedule, telling him when to show up for tember 11. It is far from conclusive; conceiv- senior Iraqi diplomat, Hisham al Hus- work and when to take a day off. ably there were two Ahmed Hikmat Shakirs.

VerDate May 21 2004 03:48 Jun 02, 2004 Jkt 029060 PO 00000 Frm 00027 Fmt 4634 Sfmt 0634 E:\CR\FM\K01JN7.059 H01PT1 H3570 CONGRESSIONAL RECORD — HOUSE June 1, 2004 And in itself, the evidence does not show months later, prominently cited al Qaeda’s years,’’ and that the evidence was ‘‘quite that Saddam Hussein personally had fore- agreement to collaborate with Iraq on weap- clear on contacts between Sudan and Iraq.’’ knowledge of the attacks. Still—like the ons of mass destruction. The Clinton Justice In all, at least six top Clinton administra- long, on-again-off-again relationship be- Department had been concerned about nega- tion officials have defended on the record the tween Iraq and al Qaeda—it cannot be dis- tive public reaction to its potentially cap- strikes in Sudan by citing a link to Iraq. missed. turing bin Laden without ‘‘a vehicle for ex- The , of course denied any involve- There was a time not long ago when the tradition,’’ official paperwork charging him ment. ‘‘The Clinton government has fab- conventional wisdom skewed heavily toward with a crime. It was ‘‘not an afterthought’’ ricated yet another lie to the effect that Iraq a Saddam-al Qaeda links. In 1998 and early to include the al Qaeda-Iraq connection in had helped Sudan produce this chemical 1999, the Iraq-al Qaeda connection was wide- the indictment, says an official familiar with weapon,’’ declared the political editor of ly reported in the American and inter- the deliberations. ‘‘It couldn’t have gotten Radio Iraq. Still, even as Iraq denied helping national media. Former intelligence officers into the indictment unless someone was will- Sudan and al Qaeda with weapons of mass and government officials speculated about ing to testify to it under oath.’’ The Clinton destruction, the regime lauded Osama bin the relationship and its dangerous implica- administration’s indictment read unequivo- Laden. On August 27, 1998, 20 days after al tions for the world. The information in the cally: Qaeda attacked the U.S. embassies in Africa, news reports came from foreign and domestic ‘‘Al Qaeda reached an understanding with Babel, the government newspaper run by intelligence services. It was featured in the government of Iraq that al Qaeda would Saddam’s son , published an mainstream media outlets including inter- not work against that government and that editorial proclaiming bin Laden ‘‘an Arab national wire services, prominent on particular projects, specifically including and Islamic hero.’’ newsweeklies, and network radio and tele- weapons development, al Qaeda would work Five months later, the same Richard vision broadcasts. cooperatively with the Government of Iraq.’’ Clarke who would one day claim that there magazine ran an article in its On August 7, 1998, al Qaeda terrorists was ‘‘absolutely no evidence that Iraq was January 11, 1999, issue headed ‘‘Saddam + Bin struck almost simultaneously at U.S. embas- supporting al Qaeda, ever,’’ told the Wash- Laden?’’ ‘‘Here’s what is known so far,’’ it sies in Kenya and Tanzania. The blasts killed ington Post that the U.S. government was read: 257 people—including 12 Americans—and ‘‘sure’’ that Iraq was behind the production Saddam Hussein, who has a long record of wounded nearly 5,000. The Clinton adminis- of the chemical weapons precursor at the al supporting terrorism, is trying to rebuild his tration determined within five days that al Shifa plant. ‘‘Clarke said U.S. intelligence intelligence network overseas—assets that Qaeda was responsible for the attacks and does not know how much of the substance would allow him to establish a terrorism moved swiftly to retaliate. One of the tar- was produced at al Shifa or what happened network. U.S. sources say he is reaching out gets would be in Afghanistan. But the Clin- to it,’’ wrote Post reporter Vernon Lieb, in to Islamic terrorists, including some who ton national security team wanted to strike an article published January 23, 1999. ‘‘But may be linked to Osama bin Laden, the hard simultaneously, much as the terrorists he said that intelligence exists linking bin wealthy Saudi exile accused of master- had. ‘‘The decision to go to [Sudan] was an Laden to al Shifa’s current and past opera- minding the bombing of two U.S. embassies add-on,’’ says a senior intelligence officer in- tors, the Iraqi nerve gas experts, and the Na- in Africa last summer. volved in the targeting. ‘‘They wanted a dual tional Islamic Front in Sudan.’’ Four days later, on January 15, 1999, ABC strike.’’ Later in 1999, the Congressional Research News reported that three intelligence agen- A small group of Clinton administration Service published a report on the psychology cies believed that Saddam had offered asy- officials, led by CIA director George Tenet of terrorism. The report created a stir in lum to bin Laden: and national security adviser Sandy Berger, May 2002 when critics of President Bush Intelligence sources say bin Laden’s long reviewed a number of al Qaeda-linked tar- cited it to suggest that his administration relationship with the Iraqis began as he gets in Sudan. Although bin Laden had left should have given more thought to suicide helped Sudan’s fundamentalist government the African nation two years earlier, U.S. of- hijackings. On page 7 of the 178-page docu- in their efforts to acquire weapons of mass ficials believed that he was still deeply in- ment was a passage about a possible al Qaeda destruction.... ABC News has learned that volved in the Sudanese government-run Mili- attack on Washington, D.C., that ‘‘could in December, an Iraqi intelligence chief tary Industrial Corporation (MIC). take several forms.’’ In one scenario, ‘‘sui- named Faruq Hijazi, now Iraq’s ambassador The United States retaliated on August 20, cide bombers belonging to al Qaeda’s Mar- to Turkey, made a secret trip to Afghanistan 1998, striking al Qaeda training camps in Af- tyrdom Battalion could crash-land an air- to meet with bin Laden. Three intelligence ghanistan and the al Shifa pharmaceutical craft packed with high explosives (C–4 and agencies tell ABC News they cannot be cer- plant outside Khartoum. ‘‘Let me be very semtex) into the Pentagon, the headquarters tain what was discussed, but almost cer- clear about this,’’ said President Bill Clin- of the Central Intelligence Agency, or the tainly, they say, bin Laden has been told he ton, addressing the nation after the strikes. White House.’’ would be welcome in Baghdad. ‘‘There is no question in my mind that the A network anchor wondered if it was pos- NPR reporter Mike Shuster interviewed Sudanese factory was producing chemicals sible that the White House had somehow Vincent Cannistraro, former head of the that are used—and can be used—in VX gas. missed the report. A senator cited it in call- CIA’s counterterrorism center, and offered This was a plant that was producing chem- ing for an investigation into the 9/11 attacks. this report: ical warfare-related weapons, and we have A journalist read excerpts to the secretary of Iraq’s contacts with bin Laden go back physical evidence of that.’’ defense and raised a familiar question: some years, to at least 1994, when, according The physical evidence was a soil sample ‘‘What did you know and when did you to one U.S. government source, Hijazi met containing EMPTA, a precursor for VX nerve know?’’ him when bin Laden lived in Sudan. Accord- gas. Almost immediately, the decision to But another passage of the same report has ing to Cannistraro, Iraq invited bin Laden to strike at al Shifa aroused controversy. U.S. gone largely unnoticed. Two paragraphs be- live in Baghdad to be nearer to potential tar- officials expressed skepticism that the plant fore, also on page 7, is this: ‘‘If Iraq’s Sad- gets of terrorist attack in and produced pharmaceuticals at all, but report- dam Hussein decide[s] to use terrorists to at- .... Some experts believe bin Laden ers on the ground in Sudan found aspirin tack the continental United States [he] might be tempted to live in Iraq because of bottles and a variety of other indications would likely turn to bin Laden’s al Qaeda. Al his reported desire to obtain chemical or bio- that the plant had, in fact, manufactured Qaeda is among the Islmaic groups recruit- logical weapons. CIA Director George Tenet drugs. For journalists and many at the CIA, ing increasingly skilled professionals,’’ in- referred to that in recent testimony before the case was hardly clear-cut. For one thing, cluding ‘‘Iraqi chemical weapons experts and the Senate Armed Services Committee when the soil sample was collected from outside others capable of helping to develop WMD. he said bin Laden was planning additional the plant’s front gate, not within the Al Qaeda poses the most serious terrorist attacks on American targets. grounds, and an internal CIA memo issued a threat to U.S. security interests, for al By mid-February 1999, journalists did not month before the attacks had recommended Qaeda’s well-trained terrorists are engaged even feel the need to qualify these claims of gathering additional soil samples from the in a terrorist jihad against U.S. interests an Iraq-al Qaeda relationship. An Associated site before reaching any conclusions. ‘‘It worldwide.’’ Press dispatch that ran in the Washington caused a lot of heartburn at the agency,’’ re- CIA director George Tenet echoed these Post ended this way: ‘‘The Iraqi President calls a former top intelligence official. sentiments in a letter to Congress on Octo- Saddam Hussein has offered asylum to bin The Clinton administration sought to dis- ber 7, 2002: Laden, who openly supports Iraq against pel doubts about the targeting and, on Au- —Our understanding of the relationship be- Western powers.’’ gust 24, 1998, made available a ‘‘senior intel- tween Iraq and Al Qaeda is evolving and is Where did journalists get the idea that ligence official’’ to brief reporters on back- based on sources of varying reliability. Some Saddam and bin Laden might be coordi- ground. The briefer cited ‘‘strong ties be- of the information we have received comes nating efforts? Among other places, from tween the plant and Iraq’’ as one of the jus- from detainees, including some of high rank. high-ranking Clinton administration offi- tifications for attacking it. The next day, —We have solid reporting of senior level cials. undersecretary of state for political affairs contacts between Iraq and Al Qaeda going In the spring of 1998—well before the U.S. Thomas Pickering briefed reporters at the back a decade. embassy bombings in East Africa—the Clin- National Press Club. Pickering explained —Credible information indicates that Iraq ton administration indicted Osama bin that the intelligence community had been and Al Qaeda have discussed safe haven and Laden. The indictment, unsealed a few monitoring the plant for ‘‘at least two reciprocal nonaggression.

VerDate May 21 2004 04:54 Jun 02, 2004 Jkt 029060 PO 00000 Frm 00028 Fmt 4634 Sfmt 0634 E:\CR\FM\A01JN7.049 H01PT1 June 1, 2004 CONGRESSIONAL RECORD — HOUSE H3571 —Since Operation Enduring Freedom, we Qaeda affiliate Ansar al Islam; documents As we draw close to September 13, have solid evidence of the presence in Iraq of recovered in postwar Iraq indicating that when the ban expires, law enforcement Al Qaeda members, including some that have Abdul Rahman Yasin, the Iraqi who has ad- officers from all over the country are been in Baghdad. mitted mixing the chemicals for the 1993 getting together to make sure that —We have credible reporting that Al Qaeda World Trade Center bombing, was given safe leaders sought contacts in Iraq who could haven and financial support by the Iraqi re- their voices are heard, to make sure help them acquire W.M.D. capabilities. The gime upon returning to Baghdad two weeks that the assault weapons ban stays in reporting also stated that Iraq has provided after the attack; any and all reporting and place. Just last week, the Police Chief training to Al Qaeda members in the areas of documentation—including photographs—re- in Raleigh, North Carolina, Jane poisons and gases and making conventional lated to Mohammed Atta’s visits to Prague; Perlov, demanded renewal of the ban. bombs. portions of the debriefings of Faruq Hijazi, She was participating in a Million —Iraq’s increasing support to extremist former deputy director of Iraqi intelligence, coupled with growing indica- Mom March event that is going around who met personally with bin Laden at least the country and said, ‘‘Clearly a con- tions of relationship with Al Qaeda suggest twice, and an evaluation of his credibility. that Baghdad’s links to terrorists will in- It is of course important for the Bush ad- tinued ban on assault weapons will crease, even absent U.S. military action. ministration and CIA director George Tenent make us safer without affecting our Tenet has never backed away from these to back up their assertions of an Iraq-al rights to possess other rifles, pistols, assessments. Senator Mark Dayton, a Demo- Qaeda connection. Similarly, declassifying and shotguns for legitimate purposes.’’ crat from Minnesota, challenged him on the intelligence from the 1990s might shed light This week, the Million Mom March’s Iraq-al Qaeda connection in an exchange be- on why top Clinton officials were adamant ‘‘Halt the Assault Tour’’ will be in St. fore the Senate Armed Services Committee about an Iraq-al Qaeda connection in Sudan on March 9, 2004. Tenet reiterated his judg- Louis, Missouri, and rolling on to and why the Clinton Justice Department in- Texas. I think it is appropriate that ment that there had been numerous ‘‘con- cluded the Iraq-al Qaeda relationship in its tacts’’ between Iraq and al Qaeda, and that 1998 indictment of Osama bin Laden. More this Saturday the tour will be in Texas, in the days before the war the Iraqi regime specifically, what intelligence did Richard the adopted home State of President had provided ‘‘training and safe haven’’ to al Clarke see that allowed him to tell the Bush. In 2000, then Governor Bush said Qaeda associates, including Abu Musab al Washington Post that the U.S. government he would sign an assault weapons ban. Zarqawi. What the U.S. intelligence commu- was ‘‘sure’’ Iraq had provided a chemical During the President’s first 100 days, nity could not claim was that the Iraqi re- weapons precursor to the al Qaeda-linked al here in Congress everybody does every- gime has ‘‘command and control’’ over al Shifa facility in Sudan? What would compel Qaeda terrorists. Still, said Tenet, ‘‘it was thing they can to make sure that they former secretary of defense William Cohen to are pushing through his agenda. Well, inconceivable to me that Zarqawi and two tell the September 11 Commission, under dozen [Egyptian Islamic Jihad] operatives oath, that an executive from the al Qaeda- here we are coming down to the last 100 could be operating in Baghdad without Iraq linked plant ‘‘traveled to Baghdad to meet days before the assault weapons ban knowing.’’ with the father of the VX [nerve gas] pro- expires, and I think it would be very So what should Washington do now? The gram? And why did Thomas Pickering, the nice if the President kept his word and first thing the Bush administration should undersecretary of state for political affairs, actually put it into his agenda for the do is create a team of intelligence experts— tell reporters, ‘‘We see evidence that we last 100 days before it expires. or preferably competing teams, each com- think is quite clear on contacts between Ten years ago, we fought very hard posed of terrorism experts and forensic in- Sudan and Iraq. In fact, al Shifa officials, vestigators—to explore the connection be- here in these halls to make sure the as- early in the company’s history, we believe sault weapons ban was passed. Ten tween Iraq and al Qaeda. For more than a were in touch with Iraqi individuals associ- year, the 1,400-member ated with Iraq’s VX program’’? Other Clinton years ago, I sat up there as a citizen has investigated the nature and scope of administration figures, including a ‘‘senior and was down here lobbying to make Iraq’s program to manufacture weapons of intelligence official’’ who briefed reporters sure the assault weapons ban was mass destruction. At various times in its on background, cited telephone intercepts passed. I find it so hard to believe that brief history, a small subgroup of ISG inves- between a plant manager and Emad al Ani, now I am standing here as a tigators (never more than 15 people) has the father of Iraq’s chemical weapons pro- looked into Iraqi connections with al Qaeda. Congressperson again fighting to make gram. sure assault weapons are not put back This is not enough. We have seen important elements of the Despite the lack of resources devoted to pre-September 11 intelligence available to on to our streets. Iraq-al Qaeda connections, the Iraq Survey the Bush administration; it’s time for the These are the guns we see every sin- Group has obtained some interesting new in- American public to see more of the intel- gle night that our men and women in formation. In the spring of 1992, according to ligence on Iraq and al Qaeda from the 1990s, the service in Iraq are using to fight Iraqi Intelligence documents obtained by the especially the reporting about the August for the democracy of the Iraqi people, ISG after the war, Osama bin Laden met 1998 attacks in Kenya and Tanzania and the but, unfortunately, we may be opening with Iraqi Intelligence officials in . A U.S. counter-strikes two weeks later. second document, this one captured by the up the floodgates to allow criminals, Until this material is declassified, there drug lords, and gangs to be able to and authenticated will be gaps in our knowledge. Indeed, even by the Defense Intelligence Agency, then after the full record is made public, some un- walk into any gun store and to be able listed bin Laden as an Iraqi Intelligence certainties will no doubt remain. to buy assault weapons and the large ‘‘asset’’ who ‘‘is in good relationship with The connection between Saddam and al capacity clips. People keep forgetting our section in Syria.’’ A third Iraqi Intel- Qaeda isn’t one of them. about the large capacity clips, that ligence document, this one an undated inter- f they will be allowed back on the nal memo, discusses strategy for an upcom- streets. ing meeting between Iraqi Intelligence, bin 100 DAYS BEFORE ASSAULT I am asking for the involvement of Laden, and a representative of the . WEAPONS BAN EXPIRES On the agenda: ‘‘attacking American tar- the American people. I hear constantly gets.’’ This seems significant. The SPEAKER pro tempore (Mr. that they feel they are not part of the A second critical step would be to declas- MARIO DIAZ-BALART of Florida). Under government. They have an opportunity sify as much of the Iraq-al Qaeda intel- a previous order of the House, the gen- to be part of the government, but we ligence as possible. Those skeptical of any tlewoman from (Mrs. have to hear their voices. Are you out connection claim that any evidence of a rela- MCCARTHY) is recognized for 5 minutes. there? Do you actually want assault tionship must have been ‘‘cherry picked’’ Mrs. MCCARTHY of New York. Mr. weapons back on the streets in 100 from much larger piles of existing intel- Speaker, as we come back from our ligence that makes these Iraq-al Qaeda links days? Your Members of Congress, your less compelling. Let’s see it all, or as much Memorial Day break, there are less Members of the Senate, the White of it as can be disclosed without compro- than 100 days before the assault weap- House needs to hear your voices. Today mising sources and methods. ons ban will expire here in this Con- you can e-mail. Today you can make a Among the most important items to be de- gress. We have just 100 days to save a phone call. Let your Member know how classified: the Iraq Survey Group documents law that has saved so many lives. We you feel about this. You have an oppor- discussed above; any and all reporting and only have 100 days before we can make tunity to do something. documentation—including photographs—per- sure our police officers are not put at When we talk about terrorists pos- taining to Ahmed Hikmat Shakir, the Iraqi and alleged Saddam Fedayeen officer present risk. We only have 100 days before we sibly being in this Nation, and we are at the September 11 planning meeting; inter- make sure that our communities are spending so much money on homeland view transcripts with top Iraqi intelligence not faced once again with assault security, which we should be doing, officers, al Qaeda terrorists, and leaders of al weapons in their midst. when we talk about the safety on

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