Family of John O'Neil alleges links between Bin Laden and Iraq

[veggiemama]

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Lawsuit by former top FBI terror fighter's family alleges al-Qaida ties with Iraq

By JOHN SOLOMON
The Associated Press
9/16/03 1:58 AM

WASHINGTON (AP) -- The Bush administration's claims of ties between Saddam Hussein's regime and al-Qaida terrorists are being tested in federal court, where the family of the FBI's late counterterrorism chief has sued Iraq over the Sept. 11 suicide hijackings.

The wife and children of John O'Neill, who died in the attack on the World Trade Center, allege that Iraq began communicating with al-Qaida as early as 1992, provided training to Osama bin Laden's warriors and sent intelligence agents to work with the terror network in Afghanistan.

The suit accuses Iraq of complicity in the Sept. 11 attacks by providing support to terrorists, and seeks $1 billion in damages.

The Associated Press reported over the weekend, based on interviews with intelligence officials, that the Bush administration has evidence of contacts between Iraqi intelligence and al-Qaida but no proof of direct Iraqi sponsorship of al-Qaida attacks.

EDITED BY ADMIN: COPYRIGHT
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http://www.nj.com/newsflash/iraq/index.ssf?/newsflash/get_story.ssf?/cgi-free/getstory_ssf.cgi?a0429_BC_Iraq-Al-Qaida&&news&iraq

[grasswire]

1. I'm sorry.

I respect the memory of John O'Neill and the plight of his former wife (isn't she his former wife???) and children.

But I have no truck with information provided by Iraqi prisoners, and I don't believe they should grasp on to any documents "found" in the palaces.

[grasswire]

2. on reading the rest of the story...

...here's the nugget graph:

Bush administration officials declined comment on the O'Neill suit. A recently retired intelligence officer who was friends with O'Neill says he fears the family's suit contains rumors and hearsay that have not been corroborated by intelligence.

"John O'Neill was a true American patriot. But given what we know about the alleged Iraq-al Qaida connection, my concern is that his family is now being taken advantage of," former National Security Council official Roger Cressey said.

[DannyRed]

3. Taken advantage of...

By WHOM???

Their lawyer, out to make a buck?

Or by the gov't/NeoCons out to make their case without making their case?

[uhhuh]

4. Huh?

"Documents recently found in the bombed headquarters of the Mukhabarat, Iraq's intelligence service, reveal that an al-Qaida envoy was invited clandestinely to Baghdad in March 1998," the lawsuit states. "The documents reveal that the purpose of the meeting was to establish a relationship between Baghdad and al-Qaida based on their mutual hatred of American and Saudi Arabia."

Ok, but earlier in the piece, it is stated that Iraq and Al Queda had a working relationship since at least 1992.

"The wife and children of John O'Neill, who died in the attack on the World Trade Center, allege that Iraq began communicating with al-Qaida as early as 1992, provided training to Osama bin Laden's warriors and sent intelligence agents to work with the terror network in Afghanistan."
And more:

"The evidence, the sources said, includes statements by Iraqi defectors and al-Qaida prisoners that Iraqi intelligence provided al-Qaida with training in document forgery and chemical and biological weapons in a series of contacts that spiked in 1996, and again after 1998."

I just cut and pasted this info from the same article. Does this make any sense?

Let me highlight the pertinent sentences again:

"The documents reveal that the purpose of the meeting was to establish a relationship between Baghdad and al-Qaida based on their mutual hatred of American and Saudi Arabia."

Do these people even read what they write?

[loudnclear]

12. But when they realize this communication was with the Kurds what will

happen? Will they sue the Kurds?

[Whoa_Nelly]

5. Sounds like a Rove tactic

that will go no where. Bush is basing his re-thefting on the exploitation of Sept. 11. I also have to question who is behind these people filing suit, and what are they really getting out of doing this?

[veggiemama]

8. I reached the same conclusion

and if the court where the case is heard is presided over by one of the Neocon's operatives, then Bushco will have manipulated its case for war on Iraq. And of course, the presstitutes will spin the decision as "proof" of Osama & Saddam's complicity in 9/11.

[sandnsea]

6. Better than a WMD report

A bereaved widow of the WTC attack. And in civil court which only has preponderance of the evidence, not reasonable doubt. And you get 12 of those 70% of Americans who already believe Iraq had something to do with 9/11. And bada bing, you've just won campaign 2004.

[Gore1FL]

7. They should sue Bush and the Carlyle Group

Those connections to the bin Ladens, and other Al Qeada supporters are documented and much easier to prove.

[Moot]

9. Something smells fishy....

John O'Neil hadn't lived with his wife since 1991 and began an affair with Valerie James also in 1991. Valerie James was the one he called just before he died in the WTC on 9/11, not his wife. So as far as the wife is concerned, I don't know if they were actually divorced, but she is either out for the money, only a billion dollars was it or the government is using her. My guess is both. Its a tidy little package where both stand to benefit if they pull it off.

http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/shows/knew/john/timeline.html

in reply to:
"The evidence, the sources said, includes statements by Iraqi defectors and al-Qaida prisoners that Iraqi intelligence provided al-Qaida with training in document forgery and chemical and biological weapons in a series of contacts that spiked in 1996, and again after 1998."

According to the CIA Iraqi defectors are not a dependable source of data as they usually have an agenda. Also, the Iraqi National Congress has been caught red handed in the past doctoring and changing defector's testimonies to suit their agenda. The INC and Chalabi were created and funded by AEI with the specific goal of assuming the leadership of Iraq in the aftermath. It was from Iraqi defectors that much of the chemical and biological disinformation came from, that the GOP used to convince the American public to take us into Iraq in the first place. I am surprised (and yet not)that the press isn't making as much of this, as it is of the forged documents from Africa.

I would also suspect any statements made by Al Qaida prisoners as they tend to say anything while under torture.

I am starting to have my doubts about the quality of the AP press stories. Saying things like, "based on interviews with intelligence officials" or "the sources said" says to me their sources may not be all they are cracked up to be. They do this way too much and in the long run you find it to be false information. It would be more believable if they said something like, an official close to the white house says, or an official from the CIA said, or someone high up in the DoD says and then they give an actual quote. None of that appears in this article. My guess this article is a plant by you know who.

[gandalf]

10. If this lawsuit fails due to lacking evidence, that would undermine

the claim of Bush that Al Q. and Iraq are connected.
The topic was discussed some time ago.
We cannot know if it is the objective of the lawsuit to disprove Bush's ridiculous ideas about Iraq having supported Al Q., but that could at least be a result.

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_topic&forum=125&topic_id=2242

[IndianaGreen]

11. They are suing in order to get the frozen Iraqi funds

and this is why the lawyers are making this allegation of an Iraq/Al-Qaeda connection.

They are SOL because a federal court has already ruled that the frozen funds belong to the current Iraqi administration, which coincidentally happens to be led by Paul Bremer.

You can't sue the Iraqi government because it is the US government!

[kysrsoze]

15. This is why I'm really starting to hate people -

A widow out to make anybody pay, a lawyer just wanting to make some cash and willing to compromise his scruples to do it, and the US Govt willing to do anything to cover up a bunch of sickening lies.

[underpants]

13. One court already held that Iraqi tied (barely) to 9/11

http://www.cnn.com/2003/LAW/09/11/911.lawsuit.iraq/

Baer ruled in May that the plaintiffs had shown there was a link between Iraq and al Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden in the World Trade Center attacks and that damages must be paid by bin Laden, Saddam Hussein and the Iraqi government.

"I conclude that plaintiffs have shown, albeit barely, 'by evidence satisfactory to the court' that Iraq provided material support to bin Laden and al Qaeda," Baer wrote in his May 7 decision.

[leesa]

14. Of course, they have also determined that OBL did 9-11 without any proof

I wouldn't believe one damn word that comes out of this government

[WheresWaldo]

16. LINK TO DOCS FILED IN COURT

Estate of John P. O'Neill v. Iraq, et al (9-11 Iraq link)

http://cryptome.org/oneill-v-iraq.htm

[JohnOneillsMemory]

17. AgitProp. Skimming the surface of emotion. Contradictory evidence under.

This is to pre-empt the story that would point the 'They Let It Happen' finger back at the BFEE as the friends of Saudi-financed terrorism to keep their oil spigots open.
Where is the story here or anywhere that John O'Neill told the authors of 'Bin Laden: The Forbidden Truth' that the reason he couldn't apprehend the most famous terrorist was being stopped by "US oil interests in Saudi Arabia?" There is a soft focus biography of O'Neill that makes much of his being stopped by the hard-ass ambassador to Yemen from investigating the ship bombing there but the book doesn't mention the institutional roadblocks he talked of to those French authors. Now his estranged widow can make a cover-up headline that is exactly the opposite of the truth.

[newyawker99]

18. veggiemama

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