DEAR PEGGY: LETTERS TO THE EDITOR peggy-north@monthlyherald.com
Photo: San
Francisco peace rally, October 26, 2002
Ironically, State department documents as well the powerful Council on Foreign Relations (CFR) which plays a behind the scenes role in US military planning, suggest that Colin Powell’s statements at the UN are fabricated:"The question of Iraqi links to al-Qaeda remains murky, although senior Bush administration officials insist such ties exist… [M]any experts and State Department officials note that any al-Qaeda presence in Iraq probably lies in northern regions beyond Saddam’s control. Many experts say there is scant evidence of ties between al-Qaeda and Iraq, noting that al-Qaeda’s loathing for "impious" Arab governments makes it an unlikely bedfellow for Saddam’s secular regime." (Council on Foreign Relations (CFR) at http://www.cfrterrorism.org/groups/alqaeda3.html )Moreover, in a press conference held together with British Prime Minister Tony Blair in late January 2003, President Bush flatly denied the existence of links between Baghdad and Al Qaeda:[Adam Boulton, Sky News (London):] One question for you both. Do you believe that there is a link between Saddam Hussein, a direct link, and the men who attacked on September the 11th? THE PRESIDENT: I can't make that claim.THE PRIME MINISTER: That answers your question.The president’s answer contradicts the statement made barely a month later by Sec Colin Powell to the UN Security Council where he accused Baghdad of harboring Al Qaeda.
Fabricated Terrorist Warnings: The day following Colin Powell's flopped presentation to the UN Security Council, the Bush administration declared an ‘Orange Code’ Terror Alert. Disinformation was now being fabricated in a totally improvised fashion. Anti-aircraft missiles were immediately deployed around Washington. The media became inundated with stories on Iraqi support to an impending Al Qaeda attack: ‘The nation is now on Orange Alert because intelligence intercepts and simple logic both suggest that our Islamic enemies know the best way to strike at us is through terrorism on U.S. soil.‘ (New York Post, 11 Feb 2003). A fabricated story emanating from the CIA on so-called ‘radioactive dirty bombs’ had been planted in the news chain (ABC News, 13 Feb 2003). Sec. Powell warned that "it would be easy for terrorists to cook up radioactive ‘dirty’ bombs to explode inside the U.S. … ‘How likely it is, I can't say... But I think it is wise for us to at least let the American people know of this possibility.’"(ABC This Week quoted in Daily News (New York), 10 Feb. 2003). Meanwhile, network TV warned that "American hotels, shopping malls or apartment buildings could be al Qaeda's targets as soon as next week…".Following the announcement, tens of thousands of Americans rushed to purchase duct tape, plastic sheets and gas-masks. It later transpired that the terrorist alert was fabricated by the CIA, in all likelihood in consultation with the State Department (ABC News, 13 Feb. 2003). The FBI, for the first time had pointed its finger at the CIA. While tacitly acknowledging that the alert was a fake, Homeland Security Secretary Tom Ridge decided to maintain the ‘Orange Code’ alert: "Despite the fabricated report, there are no plans to change the threat level. Officials said other intelligence has been validated and that the high level of precautions is fully warranted." ( ABC News, 13 Feb. 2003 ). A few days later, in another failed propaganda initiative, a mysterious Osama bin Laden audio tape was presented by Sec. Colin Powell to the US Congress as ‘evidence’ that the Islamic terrorists "are making common cause with a brutal dictator". (US official quoted in The Toronto Star, 12 Feb. 2003). Curiously, the audio tape was in Colin Powell's possession prior to its broadcast by the Al Jazeera TV Network. (Ibid.). Michael Chossudofski. Washington, DC, USA.
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