The Insider: Daily Terrorism Report

July 14, 2004 -- A Bulgarian truck driver taken hostage in Iraq in late June has been beheaded by the militant group holding him, the Bulgarian government has confirmed. Arab television station Al Jazeera said the captors threatened to kill a second Bulgarian man by Wednesday evening. Al Jazeera said it received a video showing the execution of the hostage, which showed masked militants from the militant group Al Tawhid carrying out the gruesome killing. Al Tawhid, the group said to be headed by Jordanian terror chief Abu Musab al Zarqawi, has claimed responsibility for the beheading of U.S. businessman Nick Berg and South Korean translator Kim Sun-il.

And a Saudi cleric known to be an associate of al Qaeda terror chief Osama bin Laden turned himself in to Saudi authorities on Tuesday. Khaled Harbi surrendered to Saudi diplomats in Iran and was transported to Saudi Arabia, where he will be held under an amnesty program announced by the kingdom's rulers last month, news reports said Wednesday. The cleric is considered close to Bin Laden because of a 2001 videotape showing a gathering at which a man reported to be Harbi appeared with Bin Laden he spoke glowingly of the success of the Sept. 11 attacks on the United States.

IRAQ NEWS

Bulgarian Hostage Killed In Iraq

Bulgaria says it won't pull its troops out of Iraq, despite a hostage death, but the Philippines says it will. (BBC)

Car Bomb Kills At Least Ten in Baghdad

Car bomb in central Baghdad kills at least 10 and wounds 40, including U.S. soldier. (AP)

Iraq Intelligence 'Seriously Flawed'

British intelligence reports on Saddam Hussein's weapons of mass destruction in the run up to the Iraq war were "open to doubt" and "seriously flawed", the Butler Inquiry said today. (The Guardian)

Hostage Said Safe After Manila Prepares Pull-Out

A Filipino hostage in Iraq is safe and not in danger of beheading, a foreign ministry official said Wednesday after the government began preparations to withdraw its troops in line with the hostage-takers' demands. (Reuters)

Marine Who Vanished Heads Back To U.S.

Marine who vanished in Iraq to head back to United States after debriefing in Germany. (AP)

Bush and C.I.A. Won't Release Paper On Prewar Intelligence Democrats claim the document could help clear up exactly what intelligence agencies told the president about Iraq's weapons. (NY Times)

Pakistan Says No Decision Yet to Send Troops to Baghdad

Hours after the appointment of its top diplomat as special representative of the United Nations secretary-general in Iraq, Pakistan yesterday said it had not taken a final decision to send its troops to Baghdad. (Arab News)

THE WAR ON TERROR

INVESTIGATIONS

Saudi Arabia

Bin Laden Confidant Surrenders

U.S. analysts say Saudi cleric probably doesn't have useful information on any al Qaeda plans. (LA Times)

Iran Told Al Harbi to Surrender or Be Extradited, Source

A Saudi cleric who surrendered to authorities yesterday had little choice, according to an Iranian presidential offices' source who spoke to Asharq Al Awsat. Khaled Al Harbi was told he could voluntarily surrender to Saudi authorities or be extradited to Riyadh, says the source. Al Harbi was being protected by the Iranian Revolutionary Guard which has been resisting pressure by the government to hand over wanted al Qaeda members. A recent agreement between the two countries however allowed for extradition of wanted Saudis and put more pressure on the Revolutionary Guard. When informed about the decision, Al Harbi chose to surrender to the Saudi embassy in Tehran, says the sources. (Asharq Al Awsat)

U.S.

November Elections Won't Be Delayed, Official Says

The United States will not cancel or suspend the presidential election this November in the event of a terror attack or other catastrophic event, the government's top elections official said on Tuesday. (Reuters)

CDC Ships 'Chem-Packs' for Preparation

CDC ships chemical antidotes to states as part of preparation for chemical attack. (AP)

Germany

Visa For Terror Suspect Prompts Inquiry

Germany's foreign ministry has pledged to investigate the procedures that allowed a suspected Algerian terrorist to be granted a visa to live in Germany and remain there after his name appeared on an EU terror list. (Deutsche Welle)

Turkey

Turkish Security Forces Kill 3 "Terrorists" in Eastern Province

Gendarmery teams killed three PKK/Kongra-Gel [Kurdistan Workers' Party/People's Congress of Kurdistan] terrorists in a clash near the Ovacik town of Turkey's eastern province of Tunceli. Sources said on Tuesday (7/13/04) that a clash erupted between Gendarmery Command teams and PKK/Kongra-Gel terrorists in Havacor valley near Yenikonak village in Ovacik. Gendarmery teams killed three terrorists in the clash, sources said. Operations backed by aircrafts are under way in the area. (Anatolia News Agency — BBC Monitoring)

LEGAL DEVELOPMENTS

U.S.

Justice Dept. Report Details Use of Patriot Act Document offered in bid to gain support on hill. (Washington Post)

Spain

Spanish Judge Frees Ex-Guantanamo Prisoner On Bail

A Spaniard held for two years in the U.S. military camp at Guantanamo Bay in Cuba before being handed over to Spain will be released from prison on bail Tuesday, judicial sources said. (Reuters)

Guantanamo

Court Move By British Detainee

British man seized in Africa before being locked up as terrorist at Guantánamo Bay begins legal bid for freedom. (The Guardian)

Afganistan

Afghan Authorities Arrest Two Herat Bombing Suspects

Two people have been arrested on suspicion of involvement in a bombing incident which killed five people and injured more than 30 others. The incident took place in Herat city three days ago. The detainees are being questioned. Confirming the report, the mayor of Herat, Fazel Ahmad Payman, said that a special mission had been appointed to conduct the interrogation. (Voice of the Islamic Republic of Iran — BBC Monitoring)

ANALYSIS & OPINION

Butler Report Publication: Point-By-Point

Main points from prime minister's questions, Lord Butler's news conference and Tony Blair's Commons statement on the WMD intelligence inquiry. (BBC)

In Quotes: Blair and Iraq WeaponsAs the Butler Report is published into the pre-war intelligence on Iraq's weapons, here are some of the key statements made by the prime minister about Saddam Hussein's weapons — before and after the war. (BBC)

The New Groupthink

The partisan groupthink on Iraq runs contrary to what the Senate Intelligence Committee report says. (NY Times)

Suggestion

I hope that high-ranking, and lesser, officials be prosecuted. (Al Hayat)

A Failure of the System

A government cannot go to war on a false pretext. Either Blair apologizes - or there must be a change of leader. (The Guardian)

Who Are Iraq's Hostage-Takers?

The kidnapping of foreigners has become a boom industry in Iraq, fuelled by an array of militant groups opposed to coalition forces and the US-backed interim government. (BBC)

A Terrible Choice

Since last week Filipino truck driver Angelo dela Cruz has been under sentence of death from Iraqi terrorists, who seized him while he tried to earn money for his family back home. He is not the first victim of this bestiality. (Arab News)

Advocates of War Now Profit from Iraq's ReconstructionLobbyists, aides to senior officials and others encouraged invasion and now help firms pursue contracts. They see no conflict. (LA Times)

Carrot Not Stick

In war on terror, Saudis try amnesty. (CS Monitor)

Patriot Act Glance

Examples provided by the Justice Department showing how the Patriot Act has been used in terrorism and criminal investigations: (AP)

Logging On to Terror.Com

While militant and terrorist groups have been using the Internet for almost a decade, its growing popularity as a meeting place for terrorist groups over the past few years has made cyberspace a key battleground in the "war on terror." (Asia Times)

Agencies and War On Terror

Aid agencies have been increasingly co-opted into the war on terror, fatally compromising their neutrality and effectiveness. (The Guardian)

FROM THE THINK TANKS

U.S.A. Adopts Financial Legislation for Counter-Terrorism

Paul J Smith examines how the U.S.A. has enlisted a range of bank-secrecy and money-laundering statutes to restrict the flow of money to terrorist groups. (Jane's Intelligence Review)

The Insider Daily Terrorism Report (DTR) is a summary of major news articles and broadcasts relating to international terrorism and developments in Iraq. The DTR is edited daily from foreign and U.S. sources by Chris Isham, Hoda Osman, and Brinda Adhikari of the ABCNEWS Investigative Unit. The views expressed here do not necessarily reflect those of ABCNEWS.