Danny Deadlock writes:
DIARY OF A MADMAN
For those interested, take time to read the following information concerning
Usama Bin Laden. Assuming he is the one responsible (whether direct or
indirect), the perceived threat below is information enough to justify stopping
this lunatic immediately. His (presumed) attack on New York has clearly
demonstrated their ability to strike westerners at home. Just over a year ago I
read an article from a security think-tank who said one of the next major
terrorist threats could originate from a "suitcase nuke" brought into the
harbour of a major U.S. city from overseas. Originally I believed we were years
away from such a threat but after today's attack one has to wonder if this
isn't a very "real" possibility. I always try to avoid making political
statements here but under the circumstances I believe the United States
government has no choice but to eliminate this organization (Al-Qa'ida) as soon
as possible.
SIGNIFICANT EVENTS REGARDING BIN LADEN'S INTEREST IN NUCLEAR WEAPONS
September 25, 1998
Bin Laden's aide Mamdouh Mahmud Salim was arrested in Munich, Germany, and
charged with acting on behalf of Bin Laden to obtain nuclear materials. In
particular, Salim reportedly attempted to obtain highly enriched uranium in the
mid-1990s.(6)
August 16, 1998
Israeli military intelligence sources reported that Bin Laden paid over 2
million pounds sterling to a middle-man in Kazakhstan, who promised to deliver
a "suitcase" bomb to Bin Laden within two years. In an attempt to prevent Bin
Laden from obtaining such weapons from Kazakhstan, Israel sent a cabinet
minister to the republic to persuade the Kazakh government to prevent such
exchanges from occurring.(7)
October 6, 1998
The Saudi-owned, London-based Arabic newspaper, Al-Hayat, declared that Bin
Laden had obtained nuclear weapons.(8)
November 13, 1998
Expanding on information in the October 6, 1998 article in Al-Hayat, the Arabic
news magazine Al-Watan Al-Arabi reported that Usama Bin Laden was engaged in a
comprehensive plan to acquire nuclear weapons. From information reportedly
provided by sources that included the Russian intelligence agency, the Federal
Security Service (FSB), the report stated that Bin Laden had forged links with
organized crime members in the former Soviet republics in Central Asia and the
Caucasus.(9)
The Al-Watan Al-Arabi article cited one particular meeting in which an
agreement was negotiated by some of Bin Laden's followers and Chechen organized
crime figures in Grozny, Chechnya. It was referred to as "the nuclear warheads
deal." Bin Laden reportedly gave the contacts in Chechnya $30 million in cash
and two tons of opium in exchange for approximately 20 nuclear warheads.
Sources stated that Bin Laden planned to have the warheads dismantled by his
own team of scientists, who would then transform the weapons into "instant
nukes" or "suitcase nukes."(10)
Al-Watan Al-Arabi also reported that Bin Laden had tried a different route to
acquisition before turning to Chechnya for nuclear weapons. According to the
article, Bin Laden's original strategy was to develop his own "in-house"
nuclear manufacturing complex, in which small, tactical nuclear weapons would
be manufactured from scratch. Beginning in 1993, Bin Laden instructed some of
his aides to obtain weapons-grade uranium that could be used to develop small
nuclear weapons.(11)
December 24, 1998
In an interview with Time Magazine, Bin Laden asserted that acquiring weapons
of any type was a Muslim "religious duty." When asked whether he was seeking to
obtain chemical or nuclear weapons, Bin Laden replied, "Acquiring weapons for
the defense of Muslims is a religious duty. If I have indeed acquired these
weapons, then I thank God for enabling me to do so."(12) He responded similarly
to the same question in an ABC News interview two days later, stating, "If I
seek to acquire such weapons, this is a religious duty. How we use them is up
to us."(13)
The Al-Watan al-Arabi source stated that Bin Laden's team of scientists was
composed of "five nuclear scientists from Turkmenistan," and that the leader of
the team "used to work on the atomic reactor of Iraq before it was destroyed by
Israel in the 1980's." The same source also stated that the scientists were
working to develop a nuclear reactor that could be used "to transform the
fissionable material into a more active source, one which can produce a fission
reaction from a very small amount of material and be placed in a package
smaller than a backpack."(14) In addition, the source stated that Bin Laden had
hired "hundreds of atomic scientists" from the former Soviet Union. Reportedly,
Bin Laden paid the scientists $2,000 per month, an amount much greater than
their wages in the former Soviet republics.(15)
General 1997-1998
As a result of the revelations about Bin Laden's alleged nuclear activities,
intelligence agencies worldwide directed their attention to the apparent
connection between opium production in Afghanistan and Al-Qa'ida's interest in
nuclear weapons. Opium farmers in Afghanistan produced approximately 3,269 tons
of opium in 1997-98. In late 1998, Bin Laden reportedly sent interested parties
to Afghanistan to buy large amounts of opium, probably to raise funds for Al-
Qa'ida.(16)
THE 1993 - 1994 ATTEMPTED URANIUM PURCHASE IN SUDAN
During the third day of the trial, February 7, 2001, Al-Fadl testified that he
was directly involved in an attempt to purchase uranium for Usama Bin Laden at
the end of 1993 or the beginning of 1994. According to his testimony, Al-Fadl
was telephoned by a senior Al-Qa'ida official, Abu Fadhl [most probably Fadl or
Fazl] al-Makkee, and was instructed to meet with a contact in Khartoum, Sudan,
who allegedly possessed uranium. The witness met first with Abu Abd Allah al-
Yemeni (aka Abu Dijana) and was given the name of another contact, Moqadem
Salah Abd al-Mobruk, a lieutenant colonel in the Sudanese Army who, according
to the testimony, had been a former minister during the Numeiri presidency
(1969-83).(5)
Al-Fadl was charged with evaluating the situation, and after conferring with
other associates, including his cousin, he met with al-Mobruk. Al-Mobruk
referred Al-Fadl to a man named Basheer, and the two met at an office on
Jambouria Street in Khartoum, Sudan. When questioned by Basheer as to whether
Al-Qa'ida was serious about acquiring uranium, Al-Fadl claimed, "I know people,
they [are] very serious, and they want to buy it." He noted that Al-Qa'ida was
concerned primarily with the quality of the material and the country of origin,
and secondarily with the cost. The arranged price was $1.5 million, plus
additional commissions for Basheer and al-Mobruk. At this point, the main issue
concerned the method of testing the uranium.
After reporting back to al-Makkee, Al-Fadl was sent to speak with a new
contact, Abu Rida al-Suri. This meeting took place at the Ikhlak Company in the
Baraka building in Khartoum. Al-Suri instructed Al-Fadl to return to Basheer
and report that the organization had an "electric machine" capable of testing
uranium. Again through an intermediary, Al-Fadl arranged a meeting with Basheer
and, in a small house in the town of Bait al-Mal, north of Khartoum, Al-Fadl
and al-Suri were shown a cylinder approximately 2-3 feet tall with a lot of
words engraved on it. The men were given a note that Al-Fadl was told to
deliver to another contact, Abu Hajer, and then await further instructions. Al-
Fadl did not recollect exactly what was written on the paper, only that it was
written in English, said "South Africa" on it, and contained a serial number.
Hajer sent Al-Fadl back to al-Suri, and the two men held another meeting with
Basheer during which they informed him that they were willing to purchase the
cylinder. When questioned by Basheer regarding the method of testing the
uranium, Al-Fadl remembered that al-Suri had claimed to have a machine from
Kenya suitable for such purposes.
Al-Fadl was then instructed to arrange a meeting between al-Suri and al-Mobruk,
after which he was informed that his services were no longer needed. Al-Fadl
received $10,000 for his time and effort and did not take a further role in the
uranium acquisition. However, he did claim that Al-Amin Abd al-Marouf, a member
of the Islamic National Front in Sudan, informed him a few days later that the
cylinder of uranium was to be tested in the town of Hilat Koko, Cyprus. Al-Fadl
testified that he did not know whether the uranium had in fact been tested and
was not privy to any additional information about the transaction.
fbi.gov |
