U.S. Weighs Military Trial for Moussaoui

— -- Officials Weigh Military Tribunal for Moussaoui

W A S H I N G T O N, Nov. 12 — U.S. officials, concernedthat a public trial of accused Sept. 11 conspirator ZacariasMoussaoui might prove embarrassing or hamper anti-terrorismefforts, are weighing the option of dismissing charges andinstead trying the Frenchman before a military tribunal.

A senior Defense Department official and sources familiarwith the case said Monday that Pentagon and JusticeDepartment officials have been discussing the option of havingMoussaoui face a military tribunal instead of standing trial asplanned before a jury in federal court in Virginia.

No decision has been made, but talks have been taking placeamid concerns over requests made by Moussaoui and his team ofstand-by lawyers who are seeking access to evidence andwitnesses viewed by the government as sensitive.

One source familiar with the case said the idea of droppingcivilian charges had been debated ever since the defense askedfor access to some senior al Qaeda members in U.S. custody.

They include Abu Zubaydah and Ramzi bin al-Shaibah, knownas Binalshibh in the West. Zubaydah and Bin al-Shaibah arebelieved to be the two most senior al Qaeda members capturedsince the United States launched a war on terrorism to destroythe network it blames for the deadly Sept. 11, 2001, attacks.

Bin al-Shaibah is named as a co-conspirator in the indictment that charges Moussaoui with six counts of conspiracy— four of which carry the death penalty — in the attacks.

Zubaydah, one of Osama bin Laden's top deputies, and Binal-Shaibah, are being interrogated outside the United States.

Moussaoui, who was arrested in August 2001 on immigrationcharges, denied involvement in the hijacked airline attacks butadmitted to being a member of al Qaeda.

Moussaoui's trial has been delayed twice and is now due tobegin next June.

Moussaoui, who is not an attorney but is acting as his ownlawyer, and the court-appointed counsel named to assist himhave filed sealed requests to the federal court to get accessto Bin al-Shaibah and Zubaydah.

The government, particularly the Defense Department, doesnot want to permit access and has cited national securityconcerns in arguing their point.

The Bush administration last year disclosed that it wouldconsider trying terrorism suspects who are not U.S. citizens inmilitary tribunals rather than in civilian courts. Defendantsdo not enjoy the same rights in military tribunals as affordedto them in civilian courts.

Moussaoui's team has argued that the Frenchman of Moroccandescent would be denied his constitutional rights if he is notpermitted access to witnesses who may be able to prove hisinnocence.

Lawyers familiar with the case say District Judge LeonieBrinkema has the option of requiring the government to producethe evidence or the witnesses.

The government could refuse, and possibly drop the chargesand bring Moussaoui before a military tribunal, the lawyerssaid. Alternatively, if the government refuses, Brinkema coulddismiss the case and the government could then find a way tomake Moussaoui face charges in a military tribunal, the lawyersadded.

"Either way, he's going to face charges," one lawyer said. Lawyers familiar with the case shrugged off the possibilitythat the government would be wary of a public outcry that couldresult if authorities brought Moussaoui before a militarytribunal.

"Who cares about Moussaoui?" another lawyer said.

The Pentagon and Justice Department have been at odds for awhile over how best to handle the case. Defense officials,already angry that some classified documents were mistakenlyhanded over to Moussaoui a few months ago, do not wantsensitive information released at a public trial.

Moussaoui's lawyers said they did not know if thegovernment planned to dismiss civilian charges. JusticeDepartment officials did not answer requests for comment.

Several Justice Department officials, including MichaelChertoff, chief of the department's Criminal Division, havepushed hard to keep Moussaoui in the civilian court system.They won out initially but it was unclear if that would changegiven the requests made for access to people like Binal-Shaibah.

— Reuters

U.S. Intelligence Believes Most Al Qaeda Leaders Relocated to Pakistan

W A S H I NG T O N, Nov. 12 — U.S. intelligence believes most of al Qaeda'ssurviving leaders have relocated to Pakistan, although a few haveslipped away to countries in Asia and North Africa, defense andcounterterrorism officials say.

Last week's CIA strike on al Qaeda's chief operative in Yemencrossed one "top 20" target off U.S. lists. But several keymembers of the terror group's leadership remain alive and free,although U.S. officials believe many are laying low in Pakistan toavoid the worldwide dragnet.

Pakistan was the obvious rallying site once U.S. andanti-Taliban forces overran Afghanistan last year: It is easy toreach but difficult to police. Because of concerns that a U.S.military presence would anger the Pakistani populace, U.S. forcescannot operate with the impunity they enjoy in Afghanistan.

But some of al Qaeda's senior operatives have been on the move — presenting a danger and an opportunity, say U.S. counterterrorismofficials. As mobile operatives cross borders to meet with cells toplot attacks, they often must pass through airports and securitycheckpoints, spend money and make phone calls, all of which exposethem to potential detection and capture.

In Pakistan, al Qaeda operatives are believed to have goneeither to the wild mountainous region along the Afghan border, orto the cities, particularly Karachi.

Osama bin Laden's whereabouts and status remain unknown,although many CIA and military officials say they assume he isalive. Their best bet: He is in the mountains along the border. Hisrecent communications give no clues to their origins, and officialssay it is possible they were made some time ago.

Bin Laden's chief deputy, Egyptian doctor Ayman al-Zawahri,spent most of 2002 in limbo, finally re-emerging to speak on anaudio tape released last month that referred to recent events.Al-Zawahri is believed to be in Pakistan. Officials won't say ifthey think he is with bin Laden.

Two al Qaeda operations chiefs are out of the picture: MohammedAtef, killed in a U.S. airstrike near Kabul a year ago, and AbuZubaydah, captured in the Pakistani city of Faisalabad in March.Officials have identified seven senior operatives who have beenkilled since the Sept. 11 attacks, and several more who have beencaptured.

President Bush spoke Monday of the global effort to catchal Qaeda's leaders.

"Some of the terrorists met their fate in caves and mountainsof that country," he said in a Veterans Day speech at the WhiteHouse. "Others were a little luckier, and they're now in custodyanswering questions. Yet many trained killers are still scatteredamongst 60 nations, and ridding the world of this threat requires adifferent kind of strategy."

Others have risen to replace those lost, particularly KhalidShaikh Mohammed, the alleged Sept. 11 mastermind, and Abd al-Rahimal-Nashiri, allegedly al Qaeda's Persian Gulf chief and one of twomasterminds of the USS Cole bombing in 2000.

Mohammed is still believed to be in Pakistan, a U.S. defenseofficial said Friday, speaking on condition of anonymity. Mohammed's aide, another alleged Sept. 11 plotter named RamziBinalshibh, was captured in a raid in Karachi in September.

Al-Nashiri, who was in Afghanistan when the war started, isthought to have escaped to Yemen, which would have required a tripby boat or plane, or a long overland journey through severalcountries. He is probably the top-ranking al Qaeda operative inYemen, particularly since the CIA killed chief Yemen operative QaedSalim Sinan al-Harethi in a missile strike Nov. 3. Two other top al Qaeda operatives have also been on the move,according to officials:

Abu Musab Zarqawi: He fled Afghanistan during the war, goingfirst to Iran, then to Baghdad in Iraq for medical treatment, andthen on to Syria, officials said. His presence in Iraq and Iran ledto American invective against those nations, although it is unknownwhether he had contact with either government. Zarqawi, aJordanian, was convicted in absentia in connection with a plot tobomb tourist spots in Amman, Jordan, during millenniumcelebrations.

Abu Zubair al-Haili: This corpulent senior Saudi operativeallegedly helped al Qaeda foot soldiers escape from Afghanistan,but he was caught in Morocco in June.

Other key players remain in Pakistan, defense officials say:

Shaikh Saiid al-Sharif: Bin Laden's alleged financial chief andkey financier of the Sept. 11 attacks is also known as MustafaAhmed al-Hisawi.

Tawfiq Attash Khallad: A Yemeni missing his right foot, Khalladhas been linked to both the USS Cole attack and two Sept. 11hijackers. A CIA officer once described him as "a major-leaguekiller."

Abu Mohammad al-Masri: U.S. officials have tied al-Masri to the1993 attacks on U.S. soldiers in Somalia and the 1998 East Africaembassy bombings. An Egyptian on the FBI's most wanted list, he isalso known as Abdullah Ahmed Abdullah.

Still others are thought to have escaped to nearby countries:

Saif al-Adil: Bin Laden's alleged security chief went fromAfghanistan to eastern Iran, defense officials said. He's wantedfor his alleged role in the Somalia attacks and the East Africaembassy bombings.

Mohammad Omar Abdel-Rahman: The son of the "blind sheikh"convicted in connection with a plot to bomb New York landmarks in1994, the younger Abdel-Rahman is thought to have remained inAfghanistan, the officials said.

— The Associated Press

U.S. Army Reservist Starts Terror Prevention Training Company

Y O R K, Pa., Nov. 12 — Looking to help groups protect themselvesagainst a potential terrorist attack, a lieutenant colonel in theU.S. Army Reserves has started a company to help businesses andother groups assess their weaknesses.

David C. Ruff started WMD Consulting Group in Spring GardenTownship in September. Although no group has officially retainedhis company's services yet, Ruff said he plans to help evaluategroups and train them how to prepare.

"Many companies have not had to deal with this kind of thing,so they are not prepared for it," Ruff said. Places such as publicutilities, schools and churches are also prime targets, he said.

Ruff also has knowledge of explosives, as a commander of the45th Explosive Ordnance Disposal Detachment.

He said hospitals could be better protected if they put concretebarriers around buildings; and retail establishments might want totrain employees how to get out of a store in the event of a bombthreat, he said.

He said he also often recommends hiring guards or installingalarm systems.

"It all comes down to money and what a company is willing tospend," Ruff said. "My job is just to give the overview of thethreat."

— The Associated Press