Habbush letter

The Habbush letter, or Habbush memo, is a handwritten message dated July 1, 2001, which appeared to show a link between Al Qaeda and Iraq's Saddam Hussein government. It purports to be a direct communication between the head of Iraqi Intelligence, General Tahir Jalil Habbush al-Tikriti, to Saddam, outlining mission training which Mohammed Atta, one of the organizers of the September 11 attacks, supposedly received in Iraq. The letter also claims that Hussein accepted a shipment from Niger, an apparent reference to an alleged uranium acquisition attempt that U.S. President George W. Bush cited in his January 2003 State of the Union address.

The letter has been widely considered a fabrication since it was first made public in December 2003. In 2008 journalist Ron Suskind claimed that the White House ordered the CIA to create the forgery. Two of Suskind's sources denied having knowledge of anyone in their chain of command ordering the forging the letter [ [http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/26050915/ Author stands by his claim of White House forgery] ] . Former CIA officer Philip Giraldi alleged that the Pentagon was behind the forgery. The controversy that erupted as a result of Suskind's allegations has so far led to an investigation by the House Judiciary Committee. [House Committee on the Judiciary. [http://judiciary.house.gov/news/080811.html Review of Allegations of Bush Administration’s Forged Iraq Intelligence] August 11, 2008]

Background

On December 13, 2003 (the day of Saddam Hussein's capture by US forces), "The Daily Telegraph" of London ran a front-page story that not only claimed Saddam Hussein had trained one of the hijackers behind the September 11 attacks, but also that his government, assisted by a "small team from the Al Qaeda organization", was expecting to receive a suspicious consignment from the country of Niger. This exclusive article, and a second piece, were both written by Con Coughlin, executive foreign editor to the paper.Coughlin, Con. [http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/middleeast/iraq/1449442/Terrorist-behind-September-11-strike-was-trained-by-Saddam.html Terrorist behind September 11 strike was trained by Saddam] "Daily Telegraph". 13 December, 2003] Coughlin, Con. [http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/middleeast/iraq/1449441/Does-this-link-Saddam-to-911.html Does this link Saddam to 9/11?] "Daily Telegraph". 13 December, 2003]

Coughlin's information came from a secret intelligence memorandum, purportedly handwritten during the time of Saddam Hussein and discovered only later by the newly formed Iraqi Interim Government, which summarized an operational relationship between Mohamed Atta, a known associate of al-Qaeda and one of the organizers of the aforementioned attacks, and the Iraqi Intelligence Service. The letter was signed by General Tahir Jalil Habbush al-Tikriti, chief of IIS, and directed to the president of Iraq. Coughlin said that he had received this document from a "senior member of the Iraqi interim government", though this person "declined to reveal where and how they obtained it." [Transcript. [http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/3710880/ The Capture of Saddam Hussein] "Meet The Press". December 14, 2003]

The letter

Habbush's July 1, 2001, letter is labeled "Intelligence Items" and is addressed: "To the President of the Ba'ath Revolution Party and President of the Republic, may God protect you." It continues:

cquote|

Mohammed Atta, an Egyptian national, came with Abu Ammer [the real name behind this Arabic alias remains a mystery] and we hosted him in Abu Nidal's house at al-Dora under our direct supervision.
We arranged a work program for him for three days with a team dedicated to working with him... He displayed extraordinary effort and showed a firm commitment to lead the team which will be responsible for attacking the targets that we have agreed to destroy.

Initial reaction to the letter

Interim Prime Minister of Iraq Ayad Allawi was quoted in the original report, offering personal assurance over the document's authenticity: "We are uncovering evidence all the time of Saddam's involvement with al-Qaeda.... But this is the most compelling piece of evidence that we have found so far. It shows that not only did Saddam have contacts with al-Qaeda, he had contact with those responsible for the September 11 attacks."

The story was quickly picked up and repeated by several conservative columnists in the US, including syndicated columnist Deroy Murdock [Murdock, Deroy. [http://www.nationalreview.com/murdock/murdock200312150842.asp On the Interrogation List] "National Review". December 15, 2003] and William Safire. [Safire, William. [http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=9904EEDB103CF936A25751C1A9659C8B63 From the 'Spider Hole'] "New York Times". December 15, 2003] Safire talked about the document in an Op-ed for the "New York Times", claiming Saddam had attempted to cover-up his links to 9/11 by assassinating Abu Nidal, who the letter claims was with Mohammed Atta in Iraq. Stephen F. Hayes, a staunch proponent of Mohamed Atta's alleged Prague connection, ignored the letter entirely.

Three weeks later, in an interview with the "Rocky Mountain News", Vice President Dick Cheney spoke more broadly on Saddam Hussein and al-Qaeda link allegations:

We haven't really had the time yet to pore through all those records in Baghdad. We'll find ample evidence confirming the link, that is the connection if you will between al Qaida and the Iraqi intelligence services. They have worked together on a number of occasions. [M.E. Sprengelmeyer. [http://web.archive.org/web/*/http://www.rockymountainnews.com/drmn/politics/article/0,1299,DRMN_35_2565269,00.html Transcript of interview with Vice President Dick Cheney] "Rocky Mountain News". January 9, 2004]

Doubts

Investigative journalist Michael Isikoff spoke with current and former US officials, including an Iraqi document expert who was at that time reviewing thousands of Operation Iraqi Freedom documents, all of whom deemed the letter a probable fabrication. [Isikoff, Michael. [http://web.archive.org/web/*/http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/3741646/ Dubious Link Between Atta and Saddam] "Newsweek." December 19, 2003.] "The problem with this, say U.S. law enforcement officials, is that the FBI has compiled a highly detailed time line for Atta's movements throughout the spring and summer of 2001 based on a mountain of documentary evidence, including airline records, ATM withdrawals and hotel receipts. Those records show Atta crisscrossing the United States during this period—making only one overseas trip, an 11-day visit to Spain that didn't begin until six days after the date of the Iraqi memo."

Isikoff continued: "Ironically, even the Iraqi National Congress of Ahmed Chalabi, which has been vocal in claiming ties between Al Qaeda and Saddam's regime, was dismissive of the new Telegraph story. 'The memo is clearly nonsense,' an INC spokesman told Newsweek."

Origin

A thriving trade?

In the article "Terror Watch: Dubious Link Between Atta And Saddam" by Isikoff and Hosenball, at Newsweek, Dec 17 2003, an Iraq document expert named Hassan Mneimneh , as well as ' US Officials ' think the document is probably part of "a thriving new trade in dubious Iraqi documents". They quote Mneimneh as saying '"There's an active document trade taking place ... You have fraudulent documents that are being fabricated and sold" for hundreds of dollars a piece' [http://www.newsweek.com/id/60443]

Ron Suskind allegation

According to Ron Suskind in his 2008 book "The Way of the World":

"The White House had concoted a fake letter from Habbush to Saddam backdated to July 1, 2001. It said that 9/11 ringleader Mohammed Atta had actually trained for his mission in Iraq . . . The letter also mentioned suspicious shipments to Iraq from Niger set up with al Qaeda's assistance. Th idea was to take the letter to Habbush and have him transcribe it in his own neat handwriting on a piece of Iraq government stationery, to make it look legitimate. CIA would then take the finished product to Baghdad and have someone release it to the media."

(pg 371, The Way of the World, Suskind)

Suskind goes on to describe what happened next. Richer talks to Maguire, a CIA Iraq expert, who says that this plan will not work - Habbush will not sign anything himself because the insurgency would harm his family. This, by Suskind's account, leads to the Whitehouse telling the CIA directly to hand write the letter itself. Suskind's book says that this new order then passed down eventually to the Iraq Operations Group for it to be carried out. Maguire left for Baghdad to help run the CIA station there and was not involved directly in the mission, other than discussing the mission with Richer.

Suskind's evidence includes, according to an interview he gave on August 7 2008, on-the-record statements from two CIA agents, Robert Richer, John Maguire, and others. He also claims to have tape recorded statements to back up his claims. [ [http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=93319762 Interview with Suskind] NPR. August 7, 2008.] ]

According to the tape recorded interview with Richer, former CIA deputy chief of clandestine operations, Richter saw a letter on White House stationery, passed down the ranks of the CIA through George Tenet, then CIA director, "probably" to James Pavitt, the Deputy Director of Operations, who passed it to his chief of staff, who passed it to Richter. Richter said that the letter might or might not have come from the vice president's office, but he wasn't sure. The letter described what the White House wanted Habbush to say in a forged letter. Suskind published a partial transcript on his web site on August 8. [ [http://www.ronsuskind.com/thewayoftheworld/transcripts Interview with Robert Richer] ]

In a taped interview on Fox News' "Hannity & Colmes" show [http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,405641,00.html] , which aired on August 15, 2008, Suskind said "We are putting up all the transcripts. They're on my Web site, and I think they're all over the Internet at this point."

On August 5, 2008, the White House issued the statement on behalf of George Tenet, Robert Richer and John Maguire, addressing Suskind's allegation. Tenet said:

It is well established that, at my direction, CIA resisted efforts on the part of some in the Administration to paint a picture of Iraqi-Al Qa'ida connections that went beyond the evidence. The notion that I would suddenly reverse our stance and have created and planted false evidence that was contrary to our own beliefs is ridiculous. [Blackledge, Brett. [http://www.webcitation.org/5Zx3o2vZH CIA officials deny fake Iraq-al-Qaida link letter] AP. August 5, 2008.]

The CIA issued its own statement on August 22, 2008 saying that Suskind's allegations regarding Habbush "did not happen", [ [https://www.cia.gov/news-information/press-releases-statements/hardly-the-way-of-the-world.html] ] and former Director Tenet followed the same day with a second statement saying that Suskind's charges were "demonstrably false in every regard." [ [http://www.georgetenet.us] ]

Suskind also contends that Habbush, who still carries a $1 million reward for his capture and appears as the Jack of Diamonds on the US military's deck of most-wanted Iraqi playing cards, was secretly resettled in Jordan by the CIA with $5 million in US taxpayers money.

Philip Giraldi allegation

Former CIA officer Philip Giraldi, writing in "The American Conservative" magazine, has claimed to have a reliable source who tells him that Suskind's basic story about the White House ordering the forgery is correct, but some of the detail is wrong.Giraldi, Philip. [http://www.amconmag.com/blog/2008/08/07/suskind-revisited/ Suskind Revisited] , "American Conservative." August 7, 2008.] His source claims that Dick Cheney ordered the forgery, but not from the CIA, instead using the Office of Special Plans, an office created by Donald Rumsfeld and run by Douglas Feith. [Borger, Julian. [http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2003/jul/17/iraq.usa The spies who pushed for war] "The Guardian". July 17, 2003.]

Giraldi writes that "Tenet is for once telling the truth when he states that he would not have undermined himself by preparing such a document while at the same time insisting publicly that there was no connection between Saddam and al-Qaeda."

Subsequent reactions

Professor Juan Cole posits that Habbush crafted the letter himself, and that the CIA "authenticated" it in bad faith through onetime asset Ayad Allawi — whom journalist Con Coughlin contacted to vouchsafe the document's authenticity after it was leaked to him. [Cole, Juan. [http://www.juancole.com/2008/08/was-abu-nidal-forgery-aimed-at-refuting.html Was Abu Nidal Forgery Aimed at Refuting Joe Wilson?] Informed Comment. August 06, 2008]

Author Joe Conason noted that Ayad Allawi had visited CIA headquarters in Langley just days before speaking with Con Coughlin of the "Telegraph". [Joe Conason Joe Conason [http://www.salon.com/opinion/conason/2008/08/08/suskind/ New evidence suggests Ron Suskind is right] Salon. August 8, 2008.]

Con Coughlin, in a blog post highly critical of Suskind, confirmed that he had indeed received the letter from Ayad Allawi. He also calls the letter a 'leak' and says he got it in November of 2003, in Baghdad. [Coughlin, Con. [http://blogs.telegraph.co.uk/con_coughlin/blog/2008/08/19/the_great_wmd_conspiracy_theory_unravels The Great WMD Conspiracy Theory Unravels] "Daily Telegraph". August 19, 2008]

Congressional investigation

The House Judiciary Committee is now investigating the allegations. Chairman John Conyers stated, "I am particularly troubled that the decision to disseminate this fabricated intelligence is alleged to have come from the highest reaches of the administration. The administration’s attempt to challenge Mr. Suskind’s reporting appears to have been effectively dismissed by the publication of the author’s interview recordings and transcripts. I have instructed my staff to conduct a careful review of Mr. Suskind’s allegations and the role played by senior administration officials in this matter.” [Jason Leopold, "Congress To 'Review' Charges CIA Prepared Forged Iraq, 9/11 Letter," "The Public Record" (11 August 2008).]

Quotes

Financial Times (UK) quoted:

New York Times (US) quoted:

See also

*Mohamed Atta's alleged Prague connection
*Niger uranium forgeries
*Iraq War misappropriations
*Iraq War

References

External links

* [http://www.ft.com/cms/s/7c6225f8-673a-11dd-808f-0000779fd18c.html Whispers of a Watergate for Bush]
* [http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/blog/2008/08/05/BL2008080501703.html?hpid=opinionsbox1 Dan Froomkin - A White House Forgery Scandal? - washingtonpost.com]
* [http://www.opednews.com/maxwrite/diarypage.php?did=8479 What the Iraq Forgery Says About 9/11]
* [http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/worldnews/article-1041916/Bush-faked-letter-linking-Iraq-9-11-led-US-Britain-war-Pulitzer-prize-winner-claims-explosive-new-book.html Spy chiefs warned Blair and Bush Saddam had no WMDs, Pulitzer prize winner claims in explosive new book]
* [http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/26050915/ Author stands by his claim of White House forgery - MSNBC]
* [http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/blog/2008/08/06/BL2008080601864.html The White House's Weak Denials - Washington Post]
* [http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/discussion/2008/08/08/DI2008080802640.html Live Discussion with Ron Suskind]
* [http://www.democracynow.org/2008/8/13/the_way_of_the_world_ron.html Democracy Now Interview with Ron Suskind by Amy Goodman]
* [http://www.democracynow.org/2008/8/14/after_ron_suskind_reveals_bush_admin.html Democracy Now Interview with Ron Suskind by Amy Goodman Part II]
* [http://www.ronsuskind.com Ron Suskind Website for His Book The Way of the World]