No Link Between Saddam and Zarqawi
Oct. 5, 2004 — -- — A new CIA assessment undercuts the White House's claim that Saddam Hussein maintained ties to al Qaeda, saying there's no conclusive evidence that the regime harbored Osama bin Laden associate Abu Musab al Zarqawi, Knights Ridder newspapers reported Tuesday.
This comes as Defense Secretary, Donald Rumsfeld, today attempted to distance himself from his earlier comments that there were no links between Saddam Hussein and al Qaeda.
IRAQ NEWS
CIA Finds No Link To Zarqawi
A new CIA assessment undercuts the White House's claim that Saddam Hussein maintained ties to al-Qaida, saying there's no conclusive evidence that the regime harbored Osama bin Laden associate Abu Musab al Zarqawi. (Knight Ridder newspapers)
Contact Lost With Captors: French MP
A French MP behind a failed bid to free two French reporters held hostage in Iraq defended his free lance operation yesterday amid sharp official and media criticism that he may have endangered their lives. (AFP)
3 Decapitated Bodies Said Found in Mosul
Three decapitated bodies have been discovered over the past two days in and around the northern Iraq city of Mosul, a hospital coroner said Tuesday. (AP)
Iraq Militants To Form United Front, Rein In Zarqawi: Report
Militant groups fighting US-led troops in Iraq plan to unite under one umbrella and rein in sectarian attacks by loyalists of suspected Al Qaeda operative Abu Mussab al-Zarqawi, a Kuwaiti daily said Monday. (AFP)
Italy Wants Muslim Troops to Take Over in Iraq
Forces from Muslim countries should gradually take over from troops of the U.S.-led coalition based in Iraq, Italy's Foreign Minister Franco Frattini said yesterday. (AFP)
2 Hostages Executed, Militants Say
A militant group has claimed to have killed two hostages, one a Turk and the other an Iraqi who was a longtime resident in Italy, the Arab news network Al-Jazeera reported yesterday. Two abducted Indonesian women, meanwhile, were freed, diplomats said. The fate of British hostage Kenneth Bigley was still unknown, but his brother Paul Bigley told Britain's Sky News television yesterday he may have been handed over to a new group of militants. (Toronto Star)
Four Car Bombs Kill 20 People, Hurt 113
As U.S. military officials and Samarra residents assessed the damage from a major weekend offensive to rid the city of guerrillas, insurgents took their campaign into the heart of the capital and elsewhere, setting off four car bombs that killed at least 20 people and wounded more than 100. (LA Times)
Fighting Fierce In Baghdad Slum
Heavy fighting erupted between U.S. troops and Shiite militiamen in Baghdad's Sadr City slum on Monday night after car bombs earlier killed at least 26 people in two Iraqi cities. Witnesses said American AC-130 aircraft pounded suspected rebel positions in Sadr City, but there was no immediate word on casualties, and the U.S. military said it had no information on the fighting. (Wire Services)
U.S. Soldiers In Iraq Murder Probe
Four American soldiers have been charged with the murder of an Iraqi general who died in custody last November, the U.S army says. The victim, Maj Gen Abid Hamid Mowhoush was being held at al-Qaim in Iraq, near the Syrian border. A death certificate published by the Pentagon gave the cause as asphyxia due to smothering and chest compression. (BBC)
Contact Lost With Captors: French MP
A French MP behind a failed bid to free two French reporters held hostage in Iraq defended his free lance operation yesterday amid sharp official and media criticism that he may have endangered their lives. (AFP)
Poland Considers Withdrawal From Iraq By End of Next Year
Poland envisions a withdrawal of its troops from Iraq by the end of next year, Polish leaders said Monday. It was the first time the key U.S. ally has indicated a timeframe for pulling its soldiers out of the war-torn nation. (AP)
Gaddafi's Son Trying to Help Free U.K. Hostage
The son of Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi said Tuesday he was using his charity foundation contacts in Iraq to help free British hostage Kenneth Bigley, who has been held by Iraqi militants for nearly three weeks. Saif Gaddafi said he believed the next 48 hours would be crucial for the British hostage's fate. The (Bigley) family called two days ago," Gaddafi said at a news conference at the opening of an art exhibition. (Reuters)
THE WAR ON TERROR
INVESTIGATIONS
Cyprus
Plane Diverted to Cyprus After Bomb Threat
A Lufthansa passenger plane en route to Tel Aviv was rerouted to Cyprus on Tuesday after the airline received a bomb threat, Israeli officials said. The airliner was escorted by Israeli warplanes on its way to Cyprus. (AP)
U.S.
Rumsfeld: Iraq/Al Qaeda Remarks 'Misunderstood'
The US defense secretary, Donald Rumsfeld, today attempted to distance himself from his earlier comments that there were no links between Saddam Hussein and al-Qaida. (The Guardian)
U.S. Steps Up Visa Crackdown Amid Terror Concerns
The United States is stepping up a preelection crackdown on visa violators suspected of posing a terrorism risk, an immigration spokesman said on Monday, but he denied the sweep singled out any ethnic or religious groups. (Reuters)
Pakistan
Next Wave of Al Qaeda Leadership
As the group's Arab core is captured or killed, a new generation of Pakistanis fills the void. (CS Monitor)
Spain
Zapatero to Testify about Madrid Train Bombing
Spanish Prime Minister Jose Luis Rodriguez Zapatero wants to testify before a parliamentary commission on the causes of the Madrid train bombings to help prevent any future attacks, a party official said today. (Reuters)
Indonesia
Indonesian Police Arrest Suspects In Two Bombings
Indonesian police say they have arrested a Muslim militant with links to a deadly car bombing outside the Australian embassy in Jakarta and another in connection with a cafe bombing in central Indonesia. (AP, DPA)
LEGAL DEVELOPMENTS
United States
U.S. Indicts Suspected Shoe Bomb Conspirator
British terror suspect Sajid Badat has been charged with conspiracy and attempted murder in a U.S. indictment that links him to admitted "shoebomber" Richard Reid. The indictment was unsealed on Monday. (Reuters)
Jordan
Jordanian Court Commutes Death Sentence for Al Qaeda Terrorist
The Court of Cassation in Jordan has commuted the death sentence passed against Raed Hijazi, a convicted al Qaeda terrorist, to 20 years imprisonment, judicial sources said on Tuesday. (DPA)
ANALYSIS & OPINION
An Update on the Global War on Terror
Remarks by Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld to the Council on Foreign Relations. (Council on Foreign Relations)
The Two Men in Orange Jumpsuits
The once-innocuous orange jumpsuit, guilty of being nothing more than a fashion eyesore, has come to symbolize torture and death in this New World Order. (Arab News)
Destruction of Iraq and the Gates of Hell
The countries that complied with the U.S. in its war on Iraq have started to withdraw one after the other. (Al Hayat)
A Debate That Avoided Answering the Vital Questions On Iraq
At least it was a wartime debate last Thursday night between President George W. Bush and John Kerry. But it didn't provide much clarity about what either candidate would do as a wartime president to resolve the deteriorating situation in Iraq. On that crucial question, unfortunately, both men are still offering rhetoric rather than reality. (The Daily Star)
Militants' Prime Tool: The Internet
He calls himself Abu Maysara Al-Iraqi, or father of Maysara the Iraqi, and he is a master at being everywhere and nowhere in the virtual world, constantly switching his online accounts and taking advantage of new technologies to issue his communiqués to the world. American Internet sleuths know next to nothing about him: whether Abu Maysara is his real name, whether he is an Iraqi or even whether he is in Iraq. (Strait Times)
Rosy Picture of Conditions In Afghanistan Belies Reality
My quest to help President Bush find Osama bin Laden has taken me into Afghanistan, where I've offended the locals by scrutinizing every unusually tall woman in a burka. But so far, no sign of Osama. What I do see, though, is an Afghanistan that shows real promise in the north - but is falling apart in rural areas of the south. The result is more terrorism and narcotics and more Americans coming home in body bags. (Arizona Daily Star)
Quickening the Tempo in Iraq
The pace of events seems to be quickening in Iraq. When I spoke to administration officials a few weeks ago, I got the sense that the U.S. and the Iraqi governments had no choice but to bide their time so they could train more Iraqi troops and work out political deals with wavering tribal leaders. (NY Times)
Madmen, Rogues & Nukes
Biggest threat: Bush and Kerry agree on their worst nightmare: nukes in the hands of terrorists. So who can best prevent it? (Newsweek)
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.