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Politics : Idea Of The Day -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: IQBAL LATIF who wrote (44830)	10/20/2003 4:04:01 PM
From: IQBAL LATIF	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 50167

Iraqi Weekly: Saddam Ordered Training of Al-Qa'ida Members memri.org The independent Iraqi weekly Al-Yawm Al-Aakher reveals details on the training of Al-Qa'ida members operating under the orders of Saddam's Presidential Palace two months before the September 11 attacks. The following are excerpts from the article: [1] Training At Nahrawan and Salman Pak "An Iraqi officer (L) [only identified by initial] tells us that one day a Land Cruiser belonging to the Personal Security Force (Al-Amn Al-Khass, responsible for the protection of Saddam Hussein) arrived and a senior officer from the Presidential Palace stepped out of it. He was one of those officers who used to stand behind Saddam, which means that he was one of [his] personal bodyguards. After a two-hour meeting with a select group of officers at the Special Forces School, we were informed that we would have dear guests, and that we should train them very well in a high level of secrecy - not to allow anyone to approach them or to talk to them in any way, shape, or form. "A few days later, about 100 trainees arrived. They were a mixture of Arabs, Arabs from the Peninsula [Saudi Arabia], Muslim Afghans, and other Muslims from various parts of the world. They were divided into two groups, the first one went to Al-Nahrawan and the second to Salman Pak, and this was the group that was trained to hijack airplanes. The training was under the direct supervision of major general (M. DH. L) [only identified by initials] who now serves as a police commander in one of the provinces. Upon the completion of the training most of them left Iraq, while the others stayed in the country through the last battle in Baghdad against the coalition forces." Al-Qa'ida Group Headed by a Saudi Cleric "I remember that the leader of the group was a Saudi cleric called [Muhammad], who was a fervent and audacious individual and did not require much training. He was highly skilled, and could fire accurately at a target while riding a motorcycle. Additionally, he used to deliver fiery sermons calling for Jihad and for fighting the Americans anywhere in the world. Surprisingly, this man's picture, alongside the commander of the Special Forces School, was televised several times before the beginning of the war and the fall of the former regime." Training Supervised by the Fedayeen Command "...The Fedayeen command [Fedayeen Saddam under Uday's command] supervised the 100 Al-Qa'ida fighters directly, to the extent that senior Fedayeen officers visited them constantly and inspected them almost daily, especially during the final days when they transferred them, late at night in two red trucks that belonged to the Ministry of Transportation, to an undisclosed destination. I witnessed that with my own eyes because on that day I was the duty officer." Al-Qa'ida Members Participated in Battles Against U.S. Forces "A few days before the beginning of the last war, we were surprised to see the same people whom we had trained return to the Special Forces School and with them 100 additional individuals. The high command asked us to re-train them and to divide them into several groups to be deployed in various areas in Iraq. "Truth be told, most of these individuals competed to go to war and to the front lines. [2] Therefore, under pressure they participated immediately in extremely fierce battles that astonished the Iraqis and the Americans." With the 11th Division in the Area of Al-Kifl "On April 5, 2003 orders were issued to send these individuals to the battle front immediately. About 100 of them were sent to the 11th company division in Nasiriya. And for the sake of history I will say that this division's endurance was due to some formidable fighters, the commanding officer and members of Al-Qa'ida who fought with intensity and brutality that are seldom matched, while they were praising Allah: Allahu Akbar… Allahu Akbar… What I mean by that are the violent battles that took place along the rapid highway for seventeen consecutive days and forced the Americans to withdraw and re-enter from the industrial area of Nasiriya … As for the groups which went to Al-Kifl, they participated in extremely brutal battles. Not many of them retreated and they sacrificed their lives to Apache [helicopter] fire, amid the admiration of the Iraqis and the Americans themselves. The proof is that some of them blew themselves up in the midst of American forces."

To: IQBAL LATIF who wrote (44830)	10/21/2003 9:20:47 PM
From: NickSE	Read Replies (2) \| Respond to of 50167

Whispers of democracy across the Middle East by John Hughes csmonitor.com WASHINGTON – Ever so gently, the breezes of change - we can't yet call them "winds" - are rippling across hitherto repressed parts of the Islamic world. • Saudi Arabia announced last week it will hold elections for municipal councils within a year - its first flirtation with real elections. • In Morocco, King Mohammed VI outlined sweeping changes in polygamy, marriage, and divorce laws, proclaiming: "How can society achieve progress while women, who represent half the nation, see their rights violated and suffer as a result of injustice, violence, and marginalization?" • In Iran, the award of the Nobel Peace Prize to human rights lawyer Shirin Ebadi - the first Muslim woman to win it - gave heart and a fillip to the embattled reform movement. Ten thousand Iranians turned out at the Tehran airport to welcome her home. • Arab intellectuals, in cooperation with the UN, released a report Monday calling for reforms that would advance the cause of women's rights in Arab lands and make governments more accountable. • Afghanistan has virtually finished a constitution that will affirm adherence to Islam, but provide for national elections in 2004, and set up a two-chamber parliament in which women would have a significant role. The draft constitution guarantees the protection of human rights. • In Iraq there's movement toward swifter empowerment of the Iraqi Governing Council, to be followed by a new constitution and national elections, perhaps in 2004. We can be heartened, but not too euphoric. For instance, is Saudi Arabia's foray into municipal electioneering - dramatic in light of the country's nondemocratic history - for real or just showboating for the outside world? In Iran, thousands may have turned out to cheer their new Nobelist's human rights crusade, but it doesn't mean that sour conservative mullahs have seen the light. Afghanistan's quest for stability and democracy could yet go awry. The new constitution must be approved in December by a national assembly made up of diverse elements. Hard line conservatives may press for more Islamic - less democratic - influence. The post- Taliban era has seen improvement in women's rights, but a recent Amnesty International report paints a still-bleak picture. A male-dominated society may be reluctant to afford women equal standing. And warlords are reluctant to surrender their power and embrace democratic ideals that might erode it. As for Iraq, prospects are tantalizing, but the challenges immense. Saddam Hussein remains at large and his diehard gunmen and suicide bombers, in concert with others who seek to undermine the American presence, are taking their toll of US troops, Iraqi citizens, and foreign aid workers and diplomats. The aim is to sabotage economic reconstruction and the building of democratic institutions that could make Iraq a showcase for neighboring Arab countries that have drifted listlessly in repressive backwardness. Pessimistic observers of the Iraqi scene say time is running out, and that Iraqi animosity toward the Americans is mounting, fueled by disappointment over the lack of security and the paucity of jobs. Democratic contenders for the American presidency, in full pursuit of George Bush, and inspired by the success of Howard Dean's anti-war stance with the liberal wing of the party, are strongly criticizing what they see as a postwar muddle. Optimists say things are improving and cite polls suggesting Iraqis believe better days lie ahead. The Economist says: "The shroud of gloom is not as uniform as it looks from afar. America's occupation of Iraq is proceeding messily but progress is being made. ... Step by awkward step, the country is groping towards democracy." The storm cloud that really overshadows this admittedly tenuous movement toward democracy in the Islamic lands of the Middle East is the collapse of any hope for an early breakthrough in the Israeli-Palestinian impasse. Palestinian suicide bombers take innocent Israeli lives. Israeli troops take innocent Palestinian lives in vengeance attacks. And an Israeli wall extends day by day in a direction that makes peace and stability even more difficult. All the more reason to welcome and nurture the tender shoots of democracy whenever and wherever in the Middle East they appear. • John Hughes is a former editor of the Monitor