The Insider: Daily Terrorism Report

May 3, 2004 -- Today's report includes several articles on the ongoing investigation behind the allegations of Iraqi prisoner abuse by American soldiers —The Washington Post reports that a top Pentagon intelligence officer is leading an investigation into interrogation practices at the Army-run prison Abu Ghraib where the abuse allegedly took place. And Seymour Hersh writes in the latest New Yorker of a fifty-three page report written by an U.S. Army general, obtained by the magazine, which details the condition of the Abu Ghraib facility, specifically finding that between October and December of 2003 there were numerous instances of "sadistic, blatant, and wanton criminal abuses" at the Iraqi prison. And the BBC gauges world opinion, overwhelmingly unfavorable toward such allegations of abuse.

And police in northwestern Turkey said they detained 16 militants over the weekend believed to be linked to the terror network Ansar al Islam, who was preparing to carry out bomb attacks against a NATO summit in Istanbul next month. President Bush is among those expected to attend the June 27-28 meeting.

THE WAR IN IRAQ

11 Troops Die in Iraq; Contractor EscapesIn a daring escape, American hostage Thomas Hamill pried open the doors of the house where he was being held late Sunday morning and ran a half-mile to a military convoy that was passing by, officials and his wife said. Insurgents attacked U.S. forces across Iraq, killing 11 Americans. (AP)

Prisoner Abuse Probe WidenedA top Pentagon intelligence officer is leading an investigation into interrogation practices at an Army-run prison where Iraqi detainees were allegedly beaten and sexually abused, officials announced Saturday. The move came amid allegations that military guards abused prisoners at the behest of military intelligence operatives. (Washington Post)

Iraqi Prisoner Details Abuse by AmericansA former Iraqi prisoner says the allegations that inmates at Baghdad's notorious Abu Ghraib prison have suffered indignities at the hands of their American guards came as no shock to him. (AP)

7 U.S. Soldiers Disciplined in Abuse at Iraqi PrisonSeven more U.S. soldiers have been reprimanded in connection with the alleged abuse of Iraqi prisoners carried out by guards at Baghdad's notorious Abu Ghraib prison, a senior military official said on Monday. (AP)

U.S. Official: Abuse Allegations Are 'a Big Deal'The chairman of the U.S. Joint Chiefs of Staff acknowledged Sunday that allegations that Iraqi prisoners were abused at a detention facility run by the Army have set back efforts to cultivate a positive image for the U.S. military in the region. (Washington Post)

Images of Iraqi Prisoner Abuse Anger Arab WorldOn the streets of Baghdad, the battle for Iraqis' hearts and minds may have ended with the revelation that Iraqi prisoners have been tortured by coalition forces. (CTV)

Iraqi Prisoner Pictures: Your ReactionWhat is your reaction to the images? Are you a serviceman who has witnessed abuse to prisoners in Iraq? (BBC)

Militiamen Attack U.S. Troops in NajafMilitiamen barraged U.S. forces with mortars in the holy city of Najaf on Monday in one of the more intense attacks on American troops, who have been holding back their full firepower to avoid inflaming the anger of Iraq's Shiite Muslim majority. (AP)

U.S., Seeking to Stabilize Iraq, Casts Baathists in Lead RolesTo American officers who chose him, Gen. Amer Bakr al-Hashimi had one overriding qualification for his recent appointment as commander of Iraq's new army: Among 11,000 generals under Saddam Hussein, he was one of a handful who had refused to join Mr. Hussein's Baath party. (NY Times)

Authority of Iraqi General Questioned by MyersIraqi Maj. Gen. Jassim Mohammed Saleh consolidated his military role Sunday, even as Shiites, Kurds and the top U.S. general in Washington questioned whether he was the man to lead Iraqi troops in this predominantly Sunni city. (LA Times)

Falloujans Cheer Changing of GuardAs U.S. Marines continued their withdrawal Sunday from Fallouja's dusty roads, residents sang and waved their head scarves in joy. Many returned to their battered homes, wondering who would rebuild the rubble. (LA Times)

In Honor of … Soldiers Killed in the Line of Duty (ABCNEWS)

THE WAR ON TERROR

INVESTIGATIONS

Saudi ArabiaFive Westerners, One Local Killed in Rampage in Saudi City Five Western engineers working in Saudi Arabia and a local man were killed by gunmen who went on a shooting spree in the Red Sea port of Yanbu, Western and Saudi sources said. (AFP)

Saudi Says Shooting Spree Was 'Act of Madness'A Saudi prince said Monday the killing of five Westerners in a weekend shooting spree was an act of madness and urged citizens to protect foreigners helping to develop the oil-rich kingdom's economy. (Reuters)

After Attack, Company's Staff Plans to Leave Saudi ArabiaThe multinational engineering company whose offices in Yanbu, Saudi Arabia, were hit Saturday by a deadly attack announced Sunday that it would evacuate other people on the project. (NY Times)

TurkeyTurkey Arrests 16 Suspected Al Qaeda Linked Militants Police in northwestern Turkey said they had detained 16 militants believed to be linked to the al Qaeda Islamic extremist network who were preparing to carry out bomb attacks against a NATO summit in Istanbul next month. (AFP)

PakistanPakistan Extends Deadline for al Qaeda Men to SurrenderPakistan has extended by a week a deadline for suspected Taleban and Al Qaeda fugitives hiding in a remote tribal region near the Afghan border to surrender, after none took up an offer of amnesty, a military spokesman said on Saturday. (Khaleej Times)

Pakistan Releases 78 PrisonersPakistan on Saturday released 78 Pakistani and Afghan tribesmen arrested during a recent counterterrorism operation near the Afghan border and extended a deadline for suspected fugitives to surrender. (USA Today)

Mass Al Qaeda Jailbreak Foiled by Karachi PolicePakistani police have foiled a plot by militants linked to al Qaeda to attack a high-security prison and help 30 of the country's most dangerous terrorist suspects to escape. (Telegraph)

Macedonia killings: Pakistani Relatives Seek CompensationRelatives of six Pakistanis allegedly executed by police in Macedonia two years ago in an effort to impress the United States vowed on Sunday to take legal action against the Macedonian government. (Daily Times)

MoroccoMorocco Arrests Three Linked to Casablanca BlastsMoroccan security forces seized three saber-wielding suspects on Saturday in connection with suicide bombings that killed 45 people in Casablanca a year ago, the official MAP news agency said. (Reuters)

ThailandThai Leader Rejects Foreign Criticism of Crackdown On Suspected Muslim MilitantsThailand's leader shrugged off international criticism of his government's crackdown on suspected Islamic militants, saying in speech to the nation Saturday that he had no choice but to use overwhelming force. (AP)

IraqIraq War Opponents Fill Oil-For-Food 'Vouchers' ListCompanies, politicians and pro-Saddam Hussein activists from countries that opposed the war in Iraq figure heavily in a list of about 270 recipients of suspected oil bribes from Iraq under the scandal-plagued United Nations oil-for-food program, investigators say. (Washington Times)

YemenYemen Tries Amnesty for Terrorism SuspectsThe Islamic leaders of Osama bin Laden's ancestral homeland have come up with a unique solution to fighting terrorism - release 246 jailed suspects, put some on the army payroll, and use millions of dollars to pay off tribes that sheltered them. (Washington Times)

PhillippinesTwo Abu Sayyaf Suspects in Philippines Nabbed for Bombing PlotSecurity forces arrested two suspected members of the notorious Abu Sayyaf group allegedly out to bomb the headquarters of the Commission on Elections (Comelec) in Manila, the military said Sunday. (Xinhua)

IranIran Shrugs Off U.S. Terrorism ClaimsIran shrugged off as deceptive and repetitious a US terrorism report condemning the Islamic republic as the world's leading state sponsor of terrorism, Iranian dailies reported on Saturday. (Daily Times)

United StatesAirports to Test New Defenses Against Terrorist InfiltrationThe Transportation Security Administration is launching new measures at selected airports in the country aimed at thwarting terrorists who might use uniforms or identification stolen from airline or airport employees to carry out attacks. (Washington Post)

Al Zawahiri Emerges As Al Qaeda's Real Leader, U.S. SaysA former Egyptian doctor-turned-practitioner of Islamic holy war has emerged as the hands-on operational leader of the al-Qaeda terror network, reducing Osama bin Laden to a figurehead role, a top US counter terrorism official says. (Pak Tribune)

New Terror Chief Keeps Low ProfileFourteen years ago, Frances Townsend strode into a New York courtroom armed with tapes, photos and other government evidence to prosecute mobsters affiliated with the Gambino crime family. Today, the 42-year-old mother of two boys is President Bush's counterterrorism chief. (AP)

LEGAL DEVELOPMENTS

United StatesHarsh Sentence Urged for Bin Laden AideA former federal prison guard wants to set the record straight about an assault by an alleged top aide to Osama bin Laden: He says the stabbing that left a sharpened comb stuck in his left eye was even more brutal that the government has revealed. (AP)

9/11 CommissionContradicting BillBefore the 9/11 Commission, questions about how much warning Clinton gave Bush about bin Laden. (Time)

ANALYSIS & OPINION

Guantanamo — A Holding Cell in War On TerrorThe newest prison in the war on terrorism is a multi-winged $31 million complex of gray concrete and steel designed to hold 100 captives for years to come. It stands in stark contrast to the original detention camp here, a collection of chain-link cages used two years ago to hold suspected terrorists and Taliban fighters caught when their sanctuary in Afghanistan collapsed. (Washington Post)

Calculating the Politics of CatastropheIt is the nightmarish, unpredictable event that both the Bush and Kerry campaigns obsess about in private, yet rarely discuss in public. How would another terror attack before the presidential election, even one that proves a pale shadow of Sept. 11, affect the way voters view the president or his challenger? (NY Times)

Intelligence: A Double GameHas Chalabi given 'sensitive' information on U.S. interests to Iran? He denies it, but the White House is wary. (Newsweek)

Who is Behind the Mazzeh Operation?During the course of this week, a number of incidents happened that have ramifications on Iraq, Syria, Jordan and Gaza. (Al Hayat)

Torture At Abu GhraibAmerican soldiers brutalized Iraqis. How far up does the responsibility go? (New Yorker)

The Nightmare at Abu GhraibThe American military made a strange and ill-starred decision when it chose to incarcerate Iraqis in Abu Ghraib, the prison that had become a byword for torture under Saddam Hussein and a symbol of everything the invasion of Iraq was supposed to end. (NY Times)

Snapshots of WarWhatever the provenance of the photographs showing British soldiers appearing to beat and humiliate an Iraqi prisoner, the real damage has already been done. (Guardian)

Iraq'dThe relevation that U.S. military officials essentially ran a torture chamber at the Abu Ghraib prison complex threatens to deal a fatal blow to any hope we still have of convincing Iraqis that our presence in their country is in their interests. (New Republic)

11-Step Program for Iraq FailureThe Bush team is repeating the mistakes the U.S. made in Vietnam. (LA Times)

Shaping the Muslim MindArab news media may have an anti-American edge but not all news outlets are in agreement on right and wrong in Iraq. (Newsweek)

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