QandO

April 11, 2004

PDB 6
Posted by McQ

All right, let’s deal with Presidential Daily Briefing 6. The following is redacted text from PDB 6 as provided by Fox News:

Clandestine, foreign government, and media reports indicate Bin Ladin since 1997' has wanted to conduct terrorist attacks in the US. Bin Ladin implied in US television interviews in 1997 and 1998 that his followers would follow the example of World Trade Center bomber Ramzi Yousef and "bring the fighting to America."

After US missile strikes on his base in Afghanistan in 1998, Bin Ladin told followers he wanted to retaliate in Washington, according to a [deleted text] service. An Egyptian Islamic Jihad (EIJ) operative told an [deleted text] service at the same time that Bin Ladin was planning to exploit the operative's access to the US to mount a terrorist strike.

Absolutely nothing new here. As mentioned by Condi Rice, mostly historical. As pointed out here, to include MEDIA REPORTS (so obviously this was no big deep dark secret), Bin Laden had wanted to strike the US since ‘97.

The millennium plotting in Canada in 1999 may have been part of Bin Ladin's first serious attempt to implement a terrorist strike in the US. Convicted plotter Ahmed Ressam has told the FBI that he conceived the idea to attack Los Angeles International Airport himself, but that Bin Ladin lieutenant Abu Zubaydah encouraged him and helped facilitate the operation. Ressam also said that in 1998 Abu Zubaydah was planning his own US attack.

Ressam says Bin Ladin was aware of the Los Angeles operation.

Again, historical in context. Nothing new. A review of what IS known. However what is interesting to point out is that at this time, 9/11 planning, plotting and logistics were probably taking place both in the US and elsewhere (Germany) and apparently no one had a clue.

Although Bin Ladin has not succeeded, his attacks against the US Embassies in Kenya and Tanzania in 1998 demonstrate that he prepares operations years in advance and is not deterred by setbacks. Bin Ladin associates surveilled our Embassies in Nairobi and Dar es Salaam as early as 1993, and some members of the Nairobi cell planning the bombings were arrested and deported in 1997.

Here’s the first thing of any significance to 9/11. The point that Bin Laden “prepares operations years in advance and is not deterred by setbacks.”

So it is not only conceivable, but likely (and we know this for a fact ... now) that 9/11's planning was underway well before the Bush administration.

What would be interesting now would be too look at the Clinton era PDBs and how they were dealing with the threat by Bin Laden and al Qaeda during this time in their administration, knowing that planning and logistics were ongoing here during that time.

Al-Qa'ida members — including some who are US citizens — have resided in or traveled to the US for years, and the group apparently maintains a support structure that could aid attacks. Two al-Qa'ida members found guilty in the conspiracy to bomb our Embassies in East Africa were US citizens, and a senior EIJ member lived in California in the mid-1990s.

A clandestine source said in 1998 that a Bin Ladin cell in New York was recruiting Muslim-American youth for attacks.

Note the dates here. If this was known, and the Clinton administration were as concerned with OBL and al-Qaeda as Clarke would have us believe, why were these people allowed to continue doing business here? Most likely because these were uncorroborated reports, or speculation based on uncorroborated reports. The only facts present are two AQ members in East Africa were US citizens, and, apparently and EIJ member was living in California. The rest are assumptions based on various reports. Obviously, in light of 9/11 they’re true, but in the context of this briefing, they’re simply a historical accounting.

We have not been able to corroborate some of the more sensational threat reporting, such as that from a [deleted text] service in 1998 saying that Bin Ladin wanted to hijack a US aircraft to gain the release of "Blind Shaykh" 'Umar' Abd aI-Rahman and other US-held extremists.

Rather interesting when regarding the shrieking journalists out there trying to make the case, based on this paragraph, that “we knew”, or “he [Bush] knew” they planned on hijacking aircraft.

We had UNCORROBORATED reports making this claim from as far back as 1998. So here we have a 4 year old threat which is supposed to be treated as relevant and immediate?

Nevertheless, FBI information since that time indicates patterns of suspicious activity in this country consistent with preparations for hijackings or other types of attacks, including recent surveillance of federal buildings in New York.

“Suspicious activity consistent with preparations for hijackings” apparently didn’t include arabs in flight schools (not that it necessarily SHOULD have at that time, mind you) and points to the fact that whatever those “suspicious activities” were, they didn’t include the ones which were indeed preparing for hijackings. Note as well, there was a suspicion of “other types of attacks” possible on “federal buildings in New York”, in the same "warning", which obviously had no credibility.

The FBI is conducting approximately 70 full field investigations throughout the US that it considers Bin Ladin-related. CIA and the FBI are investigating a call to our Embassy in the UAE in May saying that a group of Bin Ladin supporters was in the US planning attacks with explosives.

“Bin Laden-related”. It would be nice to know what they considered to be “Bin Laden-related” activities. Again, nothing here which points to an immediate threat or an impending attack.

Note again that this includes the actual wording of the PDB.

These are NOT an “interpretation” from a news source.

I find nothing which remotely points to an “impending attack by Bin Laden”. I see indicators of activites related to him, I see investigations pointed toward him, but nothing that says “September 11, four aircraft hijacked, 4 targets: the WTC, White House and Pentagon or anything that even hints of that.

What I DO see is an administration both aware of Bin Laden/al Queda and the threat and WORKING that threat.

But of course, that’s not being mentioned in the context of the PDB.

It should be.

It further refutes Clarke’s claim that al-Qaeda and Bin Laden weren’t given high enough priority. They're in a PRESIDENTIAL DAILY BRIEFING for heaven sake.

How much higher does Clarke expect it to go?

We see references to overseas investigations (UAE Embassy) and approximately 70 domestic “Bin Laden-related” full field investigations.

Hardly the hallmark of an administration not really concerned with the threat, is it?

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