The Insider: Daily Terrorism Report

Feb. 24, 2004 -- — A new al Qaeda tape purported to be the voice of al Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden's deputy, Ayman al Zawahiri denounces France's head scarf ban in schools and warns the U.S. of future terror attacks. The Arab television networks Al Arabiya and Al Jazeera both aired two different portions of the tape on Tuesday. In the tape, Zawahiri strongly criticizes the French government's recent decision to ban headscarves in schools as part of an "ongoing campaign against Islam." Zawahiri also went on to pick apart President George Bush's January State of the Union address, saying Bush's statement that U.S. troops had caught more than two-thirds of al Qaeda's top suspects and that Iraq gained its freedom because of U.S.-led coalition forces were "lies and allegations."

Plus, the New York Times reports today that the CIA may have received important data on one of the Sept. 11, 2001 hijackers — sixteen months before the attacks. American investigators were given the first name and mobile phone number of United Airlines Flight 175 hijacker Marwan al Shehhi in 1999, American and German officials said today. The 9-11 Commission said today that it has received information on the 1999 tip and is actively investigating the issue.

THE WAR ON TERROR

INVESTIGATIONS

New Al Qaeda Audio TapeBin Laden Deputy Warns of More Attacks On the U.S.An audiotape purported to be the voice of Osama bin Laden's right-hand man warns of new attacks against the United States and dismisses President Bush's claims that the al Qaeda network has been crushed. (Reuters)

United StatesC.I.A. Was Given Data On Hijacker Long Before 9/11American investigators were given the first name and telephone number of one of the hijackers two and a half years before the attacks, officials say. (NY Times)

Panel Probes Tip On Sept. 11 HijackerFederal commission investigates whether tip on hijacker two years before Sept. 11 was followed. (AP)

U.S. Force That Got Saddam Heads to Afghanistan The top-secret U.S. commando team that spearheaded the capture of Saddam Hussein is heading for Afghanistan in the latest sign that the hunt for Osama bin Laden is coming to a head. (Chicago Sun-Times)

Controversial Terror Research Lives On The government is still financing research to create powerful tools that could mine millions of public and private records for information about terrorists despite an uproar last year over fears it might ensnare innocent Americans. (AP)

Few Answering the Threat of Terrorism Public forum today at GMU aims to accelerate preparedness. (Washington Post)

PakistanPakistan Detains 25 in Al Qaeda OffensivePakistani troops backed by helicopters and artillery detained 25 people, including Arabs, in raids on hideouts of al Qaeda and Taliban militants Tuesday in a remote tribal area near the Afghan border, officials said. (Reuters)

Minister: Bin Laden Will Be Handed to U.S. If Caught in PakistanPakistan indicated that it will hand over Osama bin Laden to the United States if he is caught on its soil. (AFP)

Taliban Says Mullah Omar, Bin Laden and Zawahri in AfghanistanIn a statement released yesterday, the Taliban denied that Mullah Omar, Osama bin Laden and Ayman al Zawahri were in Pakistan and insisted they were alive and inside Afghanistan planning for attacks against the U.S. Previous reports indicated bin Laden and Mullah Omar were sighted in an area close to the Pakistani city of Quetta, in the mountains over the road to Chaman crossing, leading to and Kandahar. (Al Hayat)

SpainSpain Arrests Two Men Suspected of Helping Al QaedaSpanish police arrested two Algerian men suspected of forging passports for members of Islamic militant group al Qaeda, police sources said Monday. (Reuters)

United KingdomU.K. Terror Suspects 'Face Arrest'Jack Straw has given details to MPs about the release of five of the British detainees at Guantanamo Bay. (BBC)

CanadaCanada Warned of Terror ThreatsPM's national security adviser tells of warnings about civil airliners. (Toronto Star)

EgyptCanadian Detained in Egypt For Link to Terrorist Khadr An Egyptian-born Canadian believed to have connections to al Qaeda ally Ahmed Khadr is being detained by authorities in Egypt after he was taken into custody on his way home from a religious pilgrimage. Asharq Al Awsat is reporting according to diplomatic sources at the Canadian embassy in Cairo that there are secret diplomatic talks between the two countries regarding the case. (National Post, Asharq Al Awsat)

LEGAL DEVELOPMENTS

United StatesSupreme Court Rejects Appeal in Secret Sept. 11 CaseThe U.S. Supreme Court on Monday allowed the Bush administration to keep secret all documents in the case of a Middle Eastern man detained for immigration violations after the Sept. 11, 2001 attacks. In keeping with its record of declining to hear cases challenging the government's secrecy rules in connection with the Sept. 11 attacks, the court rejected without comment the appeal of a man, identified only by the initials "M.K.B." (Reuters)

GUANTANAMOAmnesty Barred From Guantanamo TrialsAmnesty International and two other leading human rights organizations protest to Pentagon about its decision not to let them attend planned trials of al Qaeda suspects held at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba. (The Guardian)

THE WAR IN IRAQ

Reports: Zarqawi's Assistant Killed by Coalition ForcesAn assistant of Abu Mus'ab Al Zarqawi, a Jordanian called Nidhal Arabiyat Agha Hamza, was killed by coalition forces north of Baghdad, according to Iraqi sources who spoke to Al Hayat, which also published a picture of Hamza's body. An Iraqi newspaper published by the IGC member Iyad Allawi called "Baghdad" also reported that Hamza was killed and claimed according to its sources that he was responsible for the suicide bombings of the Kurdish parties in Erbil earlier this month. (Al Hayat, Baghdad)

U.N. Chief Says Iraq Elections Could Be Held Within a YearSecretary General Kofi Annan said that credible national elections could be held in Iraq by the end of this year or early in 2005. (NY Times)

Iraq Leaders Want to Start Election PlansIraq leaders call for immediate start to preparations for elections after U.N. report. (AP)

Rumsfeld Warns Iran, Syria About Helping MilitantsU.S. Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld warned Iran and Syria about militants crossing their borders into Iraq on Monday after meeting with the chief U.S. overseer and his military commanders on plans to shift security responsibilities to Iraqis in the face of intensified attacks. (AFP)

Pentagon to Probe Halliburton Unit for Alleged Fraud in Iraq Deals The Pentagon said yesterday it opened a criminal investigation of fraud allegations against a unit of Vice President Cheney's former firm Halliburton Co., including possible overpricing of fuel delivered to Iraq. (Reuters)

ANALYSIS & OPINION

Progress On Detainees Defense Secretary Donald H. Rumsfeld broke new ground in recent remarks on detainees at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba. (Washington Post)

Breakfast at Talabani's "Don't scorn us, come back soon," said Patriotic Union of Kurdistan (PUK) leader Jalal Talabani, as he waved goodbye from the porch of the house that once served as Iraqi Deputy Prime Minister Tariq Aziz's residence now the PUK headquarters in Baghdad. (Daily Star — Lebanon)

Another Try in Iraq The report of the United Nations' fact-finding mission on Iraq yesterday returned the Bush administration to the drawing board. (LA Times)

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.