War Without End

Bolero · Posted: Sun Sep 28, 2003 5:27 pm Post subject:

If this blatant censorship weren't so tragic it would almost be amusing as to how obvious they are. I wonder whether those watching this program realized what happened.

abu afak

Warhammer

PSCM USCGR · Posted: Fri Oct 17, 2003 10:12 pm Post subject:

http://www.cantcryhardenough.com/

Leedsman · Posted: Fri Oct 17, 2003 10:23 pm Post subject:

While I deplore what happened on 9/11 as an act of barbarism by extremists I also deplore the subsequent barbarism of the USA in Afghanistan and Iraq. In both these countries many, many more innocent people were killed that in the US on 9/11. So who are the real terrorists?

Warhammer · Posted: Sat Oct 18, 2003 9:43 am Post subject:

Many of the families of the victims of September 11, condemn the US government actions against Afghanistan and Iraq:

Statement On the Second Anniversary of 9/11

Two years ago today our loved ones were tragically murdered in an act of terror that shook the United States and the world. In the time since their deaths, as we continue our personal paths of grieving, we are comforted by the thoughtful and compassionate response of people all over the world who have offered sympathy and support to the victims of these terrible attacks. But much about the US government's approach to responding to our loved ones' deaths stands in stark contrast to the common sense words and comforting actions of ordinary people. On this two-year anniversary, we stop to reflect on the dangerous course of current policies and to call for a new approach to 9/11 that is focused on bringing about true security and justice.
[read the statement..]

http://www.peacefultomorrows.org/voices/voices.php?id=P211

Alpha

Subj: Urgent for Neil Mackay Regarding His Israeli Mossad 9/11 Story in Sunday Herald
Date: 11/2/03 1:30:38 PM Pacific Standard Time
From: MORRIS434
To: neil.mackay

Dear Mr. Mackay,

Your article (included below) about the Israeli Mossad agents connected to 9/11 is absolutely excellent.. In his book "By Way of Deception", former Israeli Mossad agent Victor Ostrovsky mentions that the Israelis had information about a coming bombing attack on US interests in Lebanon and did not convey the full extent of such beforehand (with an apparent motivation similar to what you present in your article below with regard to the tragic 9/11 attack). In your excellent article, you also did not include mention of the warning that was given to Israelis at the World Trade Center as conveyed in Israel's Haaretz newspaper (here is that article):

http://www.warwithoutend.co.uk/middle-east-and-asia/2003/09/28/israeli-company-says-workers-warned-2-hours-before-911.php

Israeli Company Says Workers Warned 2 Hours Before 911

RePortersNoteBook memo: This story showed up a couple of years ago. It is interesting that it's back. Are they trying to explain it away? After reading all the comments on the Internet.

Also the first two arrests on 911 were Israeli nationals. About a week later on the David Letterman Show, Dan Rather reported his disgust of "Middle Easterners" jumping on top of a truck from the George Washington Bridge in celebration. He knew they were Israelis who were arrested on the spot. The first group were a bunch of Israelis on a terrace a few blocks form the World Trade Center, video taping the falling of the twin towers and laughing about it. This bizarre behavior prompted a resident in an adjacent building to call the police. When these arrests happened CBS and the rest of the mainstream press did report it accurately, by pointing out they were Israeli nationals. Now the new vernacular is "Middle Easterners." I wonder why?

--------------------------------------------------------------------
http://www.haaretzdaily.com/hasen/pages/ShArt.jhtml?itemNo=77744&contrassID=
/has%5C

Israel's Odigo Says Workers Warned 2 Hours Before 911

Yuval Dror
Ha'aretz Daily
9-21-3

Odigo, the instant messaging service, says that two of its workers received
messages two hours before the Twin Towers attack on September 11 predicting
the attack would happen, and the company has been cooperating with Israeli
and American law enforcement, including the FBI, in trying to find the
original sender of the message predicting the attack.

Micha Macover, CEO of the company, said the two workers received the
messages and immediately after the terror attack informed the company's
management, which immediately contacted the Israeli security services,
which brought in the FBI.

"I have no idea why the message was sent to these two workers, who don't
know the sender. It may just have been someone who was joking and turned
out they accidentally got it right. And I don't know if our information was
useful in any of the arrests the FBI has made," said Macover. Odigo is a
U.S.-based company whose headquarters are in New York, with offices in
Herzliya.

As an instant messaging service, Odigo users are not limited to sending
messages only to people on their "buddy" list, as is the case with ICQ, the
other well-known Israeli instant messaging application.

Odigo usually zealously protects the privacy of its registered users, said
Macover, but in this case the company took the initiative to provide the
law enforcement services with the originating Internet Presence address of
the message, so the FBI could track down the Internet Service Provider, and
the actual sender of the original message.

http://www.warwithoutend.co.uk/middle-east-and-asia/2003/02/16/israeli-spy-rumors-fly-on-gusts-of-truth-with-9-11.php

Sunday Herald - 02 November 2003

http://ww1.sundayherald.com/37707

Five Israelis were seen filming as jet liners ploughed into the Twin Towers

on September 11, 2001 ...

Were they part of a massive spy ring which shadowed the 9/11 hijackers and

knew that al-Qaeda planned a devastating terrorist attack on the USA? Neil

Mackay investigates

------------------------------------------------------

THERE was ruin and terror in Manhattan, but, over the Hudson River in New

Jersey, a handful of men were dancing. As the World Trade Centre burned and

crumpled, the five men celebrated and filmed the worst atrocity ever

committed on American soil as it played out before their eyes.

Who do you think they were? Palestinians? Saudis? Iraqis, even? Al-Qaeda,

surely? Wrong on all counts. They were Israelis - and at least two of them

were Israeli intelligence agents, working for Mossad, the equivalent of MI6

or the CIA.

Their discovery and arrest that morning is a matter of indisputable fact.

To those who have investigated just what the Israelis were up to that day,

the case raises one dreadful possibility: that Israeli intelligence had

been shadowing the al-Qaeda hijackers as they moved from the Middle East

through Europe and into America where they trained as pilots and prepared

to suicide-bomb the symbolic heart of the United States. And the motive? To

bind America in blood and mutual suffering to the Israeli cause.

After the attacks on New York and Washington, the former Israeli Prime

Minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, was asked what the terrorist strikes would

mean for US-Israeli relations. He said: "It's very good." Then he corrected

himself, adding: "Well, it's not good, but it will generate immediate

sympathy [for Israel from Americans]."

If Israel's closest ally felt the collective pain of mass civilian deaths

at the hands of terrorists, then Israel would have an unbreakable bond with

the world's only hyperpower and an effective free hand in dealing with the

Palestinian terrorists who had been murdering its innocent civilians as the

second intifada dragged on throughout 2001.

It's not surprising that the New Jersey housewife who first spotted the

five Israelis and their white van wants to preserve her anonymity. She's

insisted that she only be identified as Maria. A neighbour in her apartment

building had called her just after the first strike on the Twin Towers.

Maria grabbed a pair of binoculars and, like millions across the world, she

watched the horror of the day unfold.

As she gazed at the burning towers, she noticed a group of men kneeling on

the roof of a white van in her parking lot. Here's her recollection: "They

seemed to be taking a movie. They were like happy, you know ... they didn't

look shocked to me. I thought it was strange."

Maria jotted down the van's registration and called the police. The FBI was

alerted and soon there was a statewide all points bulletin put out for the

apprehension of the van and its occupants. The cops traced the number,

establishing that it belonged to a company called Urban Moving.

Police Chief John Schmidig said: "We got an alert to be on the lookout for

a white Chevrolet van with New Jersey registration and writing on the side.

Three individuals were seen celebrating in Liberty State Park after the

impact. They said three people were jumping up and down."

By 4pm on the afternoon of September 11, the van was spotted near New

Jersey's Giants stadium. A squad car pulled it over and inside were five

men in their 20s. They were hustled out of the car with guns levelled at

their heads and handcuffed.

In the car was $4700 in cash, a couple of foreign passports and a pair of

box cutters - the concealed Stanley Knife-type blades used by the 19

hijackers who'd flown jetliners into the World Trade Centre and Pentagon

just hours before. There were also fresh pictures of the men standing with

the smouldering wreckage of the Twin Towers in the background. One image

showed a hand flicking a lighter in front of the devastated buildings, like

a fan at a pop concert. The driver of the van then told the arresting

officers: "We are Israeli. We are not your problem. Your problems are our

problems. The Palestinians are the problem."

His name was Sivan Kurzberg. The other four passengers were Kurzberg's

brother Paul, Yaron Shmuel, Oded Ellner and Omer Marmari. The men were

dragged off to prison and transferred out of the custody of the FBI's

Criminal Division and into the hands of their Foreign Counterintelligence

Section - the bureau's anti-espionage squad.

A warrant was issued for a search of the Urban Moving premises in Weehawken

in New Jersey. Boxes of papers and computers were removed. The FBI

questioned the firm's Israeli owner, Dominik Otto Suter, but when agents

returned to re-interview him a few days later, he was gone. An employee of

Urban Moving said his co-workers had laughed about the Manhattan attacks

the day they happened. "I was in tears," the man said. "These guys were

joking and that bothered me. These guys were like, 'Now America knows what

we go through.'"

Vince Cannistraro, former chief of operations for counter-terrorism with

the CIA, says the red flag went up among investigators when it was

discovered that some of the Israelis' names were found in a search of the

national intelligence database. Cannistraro says many in the US

intelligence community believed that some of the Israelis were working for

Mossad and there was speculation over whether Urban Moving had been "set up

or exploited for the purpose of launching an intelligence operation against

radical Islamists".

This makes it clear that there was no suggestion whatsoever from within

American intelligence that the Israelis were colluding with the 9/11

hijackers - simply that the possibility remains that they knew the attacks

were going to happen, but effectively did nothing to help stop them.

After the owner vanished, the offices of Urban Moving looked as if they'd

been closed down in a big hurry. Mobile phones were littered about, the

office phones were still connected and the property of at least a dozen

clients were stacked up in the warehouse. The owner had cleared out his

family home in New Jersey and returned to Israel.

Two weeks after their arrest, the Israelis were still in detention, held on

immigration charges. Then a judge ruled that they should be deported. But

the CIA scuppered the deal and the five remained in custody for another two

months. Some went into solitary confinement, all underwent two polygraph

tests and at least one underwent up to seven lie detector sessions before

they were eventually deported at the end of November 2001. Paul Kurzberg

refused to take a lie detector test for 10 weeks, but then failed it. His

lawyer said he was reluctant to take the test as he had once worked for

Israeli intelligence in another country.

Nevertheless, their lawyer, Ram Horvitz, dismissed the allegations as

"stupid and ridiculous". Yet US government sources still maintained that

the Israelis were collecting information on the fundraising activities of

groups like Hamas and Islamic Jihad. Mark Regev, of the Israeli embassy in

Washington, would have none of that and he said the allegations were

"simply false". The men themselves claimed they'd read about the World

Trade Centre attacks on the internet, couldn't see it from their office and

went to the parking lot for a better view. Their lawyers and the embassy

say their ghoulish and sinister celebrations as the Twin Towers blazed and

thousands died were due to youthful foolishness.

The respected New York Jewish newspaper, The Forward, reported in March

2002, however, that it had received a briefing on the case of the five

Israelis from a US official who was regularly updated by law enforcement

agencies. This is what he told The Forward: "The assessment was that Urban

Moving Systems was a front for the Mossad and operatives employed by it."

He added that "the conclusion of the FBI was that they were spying on local

Arabs", but the men were released because they "did not know anything about

9/11".

Back in Israel, several of the men discussed what happened on an Israeli

talk show. One of them made this remarkable comment: "The fact of the

matter is we are coming from a country that experiences terror daily. Our

purpose was to document the event." But how can you document an event

unless you know it is going to happen?

We are now deep in conspiracy theory territory. But there is more than a

little circumstantial evidence to show that Mossad - whose motto is "By way

of deception, thou shalt do war" - was spying on Arab extremists in the USA

and may have known that September 11 was in the offing, yet decided to

withhold vital information from their American counterparts which could

have prevented the terror attacks.

Following September 11, 2001, more than 60 Israelis were taken into custody

under the Patriot Act and immigration laws. One highly placed investigator

told Carl Cameron of Fox News that there were "tie-ins" between the

Israelis and September 11; the hint was clearly that they'd gathered

intelligence on the planned attacks but kept it to themselves.

The Fox News source refused to give details, saying: "Evidence linking

these Israelis to 9/11 is classified. I cannot tell you about evidence that

has been gathered. It's classified information." Fox News is not noted for

its condemnation of Israel; it's a ruggedly patriotic news channel owned by

Rupert Murdoch and was President Bush's main cheerleader in the war on

terror and the invasion of Iraq.

Another group of around 140 Israelis were detained prior to September 11,

2001, in the USA as part of a widespread investigation into a suspected

espionage ring run by Israel inside the USA. Government documents refer to

the spy ring as an "organised intelligence-gathering operation" designed to

"penetrate government facilities". Most of those arrested had served in the

Israeli armed forces - but military service is compulsory in Israel.

Nevertheless, a number had an intelligence background.

The first glimmerings of an Israeli spying exercise in the USA came to

light in spring 2001, when the FBI sent a warning to other federal agencies

alerting them to be wary of visitors calling themselves "Israeli art

students" and attempting to bypass security at federal buildings in order

to sell paintings. A Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) report suggested

the Israeli calls "may well be an organised intelligence-gathering

activity". Law enforcement documents say that the Israelis "targeted and

penetrated military bases" as well as the DEA, FBI and dozens of government

facilities, including secret offices and the unlisted private homes of law

enforcement and intelligence personnel.

A number of Israelis questioned by the authorities said they were students

from Bezalel Academy of Art and Design, but Pnina Calpen, a spokeswoman for

the Israeli school, did not recognise the names of any Israelis mentioned

as studying there in the past 10 years. A federal report into the so-called

art students said many had served in intelligence and electronic signal

intercept units during their military service.

According to a 61-page report, drafted after an investigation by the DEA

and the US immigration service, the Israelis were organised into cells of

four to six people. The significance of what the Israelis were doing didn't

emerge until after September 11, 2001, when a report by a French

intelligence agency noted "according to the FBI, Arab terrorists and

suspected terror cells lived in Phoenix, Arizona, as well as in Miami and

Hollywood, Florida, from December 2000 to April 2001 in direct proximity to

the Israeli spy cells".

The report contended that Mossad agents were spying on Mohammed Atta and

Marwan al-Shehi, two of leaders of the 9/11 hijack teams. The pair had

settled in Hollywood, Florida, along with three other hijackers, after

leaving Hamburg - where another Mossad team was operating close by.

Hollywood in Florida is a town of just 25,000 souls. The French

intelligence report says the leader of the Mossad cell in Florida rented

apartments "right near the apartment of Atta and al-Shehi". More than a

third of the Israeli "art students" claimed residence in Florida. Two other

Israelis connected to the art ring showed up in Fort Lauderdale. At one

time, eight of the hijackers lived just north of the town.

Put together, the facts do appear to indicate that Israel knew that 9/11,

or at least a large-scale terror attack, was about to take place on

American soil, but did nothing to warn the USA. But that's not quite true.

In August 2001, the Israelis handed over a list of terrorist suspects - on

it were the names of four of the September 11 hijackers. Significantly,

however, the warning said the terrorists were planning an attack "outside

the United States".

The Israeli embassy in Washington has dismissed claims about the spying

ring as "simply untrue". The same denials have been issued repeatedly by

the five Israelis seen high-fiving each other as the World Trade Centre

burned in front of them.

Their lawyer, Ram Horwitz, insisted his clients were not intelligence

officers. Irit Stoffer, the Israeli foreign minister, said the allegations

were "completely untrue". She said the men were arrested because of "visa

violations", adding: "The FBI investigated those cases because of 9/11."

Jim Margolin, an FBI spokesman in New York, implied that the public would

never know the truth, saying: "If we found evidence of unauthorised

intelligence operations that would be classified material." Yet, Israel has

long been known, according to US administration sources, for "conducting

the most aggressive espionage operations against the US of any US ally".

Seventeen years ago, Jonathan Pollard, a civilian working for the American

Navy, was jailed for life for passing secrets to Israel. At first, Israel

claimed Pollard was part of a rogue operation, but the government later

took responsibility for his work.

It has always been a long-accepted agreement among allies - such as Britain

and America or America and Israel - that neither country will jail a

"friendly spy" nor shame the allied country for espionage. Chip Berlet, a

senior analyst at Boston's Political Research Associates and an expert in

intelligence, says: "It's a backdoor agreement between allies that says

that if one of your spies gets caught and didn't do too much harm, he goes

home. It goes on all the time. The official reason is always visa

violation."

What we are left with, then, is fact sullied by innuendo. Certainly, it

seems, Israel was spying within the borders of the United States and it is

equally certain that the targets were Islamic extremists probably linked to

September 11. But did Israel know in advance that the Twin Towers would be

hit and the world plunged into a war without end; a war which would give

Israel the power to strike its enemies almost without limit? That's a

conspiracy theory too far, perhaps. But the unpleasant feeling that, in

this age of spin and secrets, we do not know the full and unadulterated

truth won't go away. Maybe we can guess, but it's for the history books to

discover and decide.

------------------------------------------------------------------------

Copyright © 2003 smg sunday newspapers ltd. no.176088

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

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Alpha · Posted: Mon Nov 03, 2003 4:46 pm Post subject: Mossad and 911

Subj: Mossad and 911
Date: 11/3/03 4:23:20 AM Pacific Standard Time
From: hectorpv@comcast.net
To: hectorpv@comcast.net
Sent from the Internet (Details)

Friends,

Mossad and 911

This piece (from a Scottish newspaper) summarizes some of the information that points toward Israeli prior knowledge of the 9/11 atrocities. Most of this information became public in 2001 but has since sunk into the memory hole. It’s simply taboo. Since simply pointing out the neoconservatives’ leading role in the war on Iraq brings on the lethal charge of "anti-Semitism," even though all of the evidence comes from published sources, it is clear that it would be absolutely verboten to move into more secretive areas. Obviously, the circumstantial evidence of an Israeli connection to 9/11 is strong; in fact, I would say it is obvious. The fact that Israelis, with apparent Mossad connections, managed to take photographs from across the Hudson River of the jet liners hitting the Twin Towers and that Israeli spies (some posing as "art students") lived in close proximity to the 9/11 Islamic terrorists obviously points to some connection. [See my essay on the subject from April 2002, "The Israeli spy ring and September 11," www.thornwalker.com/ditch/towers_5.htm ]

As the following article points out: "But there is more than a little circumstantial evidence to show that Mossad – whose motto is ‘By way of deception, thou shalt do war’ – was spying on Arab extremists in the USA and may have known that September 11 was in the offing, yet decided to withhold vital information from their American counterparts which could have prevented the terror attacks."

Now this article states that Israeli intelligence simply knew about the attacks, not that Israel in any way facilitated such attacks. The intrepid Justin Raimondo made a more reasonable assessment of the information when he wrote: "At the very least, the mechanics of what is obviously a covert operation directed by Israel imply a certain degree of foreknowledge. At worst, the details of this complex and by-no-means completely uncovered spy ring may wind up pointing to active (albeit one-sided) Israeli collusion with the mass murderers of 9/11. While the first conclusion is a virtual certainty, the second is, admittedly, speculation. What's scary is that such theorizing is not without a certain basis in fact." [http://www.antiwar.com/justin/j032202.html ]

There is an old adage that when a crime is committed, the first question to be asked is 'Cui bono? Obviously, Israel has been the big beneficiary from 911.

The neocons began the effort to implement the war on Iraq immediately after 911 took place. Was it simply a case of serendipity? Would Israel allow such an event to take place, if it were aware of it? Would Israel dare to try to facilitate such an event?

For years stories have circulated that Israeli agents--especially its foreign intelligence agency the Mossad--have infiltrated Arab terrorist networks and have sometimes actually been involved in deceptive terrorist activities intended to appear as the work of Arabs. For example, it has been alleged that the Mossad had thoroughly infiltrated the nefarious terrorist group Abu Nidal and even facilitated some of its terrorist activities for Israel's benefit. [Patrick Seale, Abu Nidal: A Gun for Hire (New York: Random House, 1992)]

In the notorious Lavon Affair, Israel's deceptive terrorism was actually acknowledged by the Israeli government. In July 1954 Egypt was plagued by a series of bomb outrages directed mainly against American and British property in Cairo and Alexandria. It was generally assumed that this was the work of Arab nationalists, which had the effect of heightening tensions at a time when Egypt was negotiating with Britain over the evacuation of its military bases in the Suez Canal Zone. Egyptian police were able to capture and identify one of the bombers, which in turn led to the round up of an Israeli spy ring, consisting of Israeli and Egyptian Jews. Israel responded to the spy scandal by declaring it an "anti-Semitic" lie. As the public trial progressed, it was evident that Israel had indeed been behind the bombing. Eventually, the spying was admitted in Israel and Israeli's Defense Minister Pinhas Lavon was brought down by the scandal, although he may have largely been a scapegoat.

The belief that Israel might engage in such deceptive terrorism against the United States was expressed in a 2001 study by the Army's School of Advanced Military Studies (SAMS). A poignant reference to this study appeared in a front page article in the Washington Times on September 10, 2001, one day before the horrific attack The article read: "Of the Mossad, the Israeli intelligence service, the SAMS officers say: 'Wildcard. Ruthless and cunning. Has capability to target US forces and make it look like a Palestinian/Arab act.'" [http://www.cooperativeresearch.org/timeline/2001/washingtontimes091001.html ]

Since significant circumstantial evidence points to a connection with Israel, one might think it would be investigated thoroughly. But, of course, such an investigation is precluded by the "anti-Semitic" taboo. Note that this whole story is much too dangerous for the American media and any investigative reporter to handle. Contrast this with all the publicity given to wild charges about Saddam’s possession of WMD or his connection to al-Qaeda. As a matter of fact, evidence of Israeli malevolence is even too taboo to be investigated thoroughly by organs of the US government—as was the case of the Israeli attack on the USS Liberty in 1967, in which in which 35 American sailors were killed, Therefore, it would seem that the fear of being caught would not exist to deter Israel from engaging in actions harmful to the US. The only thing that would possibly restrain Israel would be some love for the United States. But, of course, such "love," did not prevent Israel from attacking the Liberty nor of selling American intelligence secrets obtained from Pollard to the Soviet Union, which endangered (and, in fact, cost) American lives. In short, Israel is willing to take measures destructive of American lives to advance its own interests.

The only major media outlet that gave attention to the Israeli "art student" spying was, ironically, the pro-war Fox News, in articles presented by reporter Carl Cameron. Some telling quotes from Cameron.

"Evidence linking these Israelis to 9/11 is classified. I cannot tell you about evidence that has been gathered. It's classified information." -- US official quoted in Carl Cameron's Fox News report on the Israeli spyring. [http://www.whatreallyhappened.com/spyring.html ]

"Investigators within the DEA, INS and FBI have all told Fox News that to pursue or even suggest Israeli spying ... is considered career suicide." Carl Cameron, as quoted in The Spies Who Came In From The Art Sale,[http://atlanta.creativeloafing.com/2002-03-13/fishwrapper.html]

Fox was under intense pressure from pro-Israeli lobbying groups, such as the Anti-Defamation League and the Orwellian-named Committee for Accuracy in Middle East Reporting, to stop reporting on the issue of Israeli spies. Fox obliged and removed the Cameron reports from its web site. [http://atlanta.creativeloafing.com/2002-03-13/fishwrapper.html]

A final intriguing tidbit regarding Israel and 9/11 that might not mean anything, but then . . .

A private security company called ICTS, owned by an Israeli, Ezra Harel, is said to have provided security services to all the airports where the 911 planes were hijacked. Many of its personnel are said to be ex-Shin Bet officers. (Israel’s internal security service.) [http://afrocubaweb.com/news/israelispying.htm ]

.

____________________________

http://ww1.sundayherald.com/37707

Sunday Herald - 02 November 2003

Five Israelis were seen filming as jet liners ploughed into the Twin Towers on September 11, 2001 ...

Were they part of a massive spy ring which shadowed the 9/11 hijackers and knew that al-Qaeda planned a devastating terrorist attack on the USA? Neil Mackay investigates

THERE was ruin and terror in Manhattan, but, over the Hudson River in New Jersey, a handful of men were dancing. As the World Trade Centre burned and crumpled, the five men celebrated and filmed the worst atrocity ever committed on American soil as it played out before their eyes.

Who do you think they were? Palestinians? Saudis? Iraqis, even? Al-Qaeda, surely? Wrong on all counts. They were Israelis – and at least two of them were Israeli intelligence agents, working for Mossad, the equivalent of MI6 or the CIA.

Their discovery and arrest that morning is a matter of indisputable fact. To those who have investigated just what the Israelis were up to that day, the case raises one dreadful possibility: that Israeli intelligence had been shadowing the al-Qaeda hijackers as they moved from the Middle East through Europe and into America where they trained as pilots and prepared to suicide-bomb the symbolic heart of the United States. And the motive? To bind America in blood and mutual suffering to the Israeli cause.

After the attacks on New York and Washington, the former Israeli Prime Minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, was asked what the terrorist strikes would mean for US-Israeli relations. He said: "It’s very good." Then he corrected himself, adding: "Well, it’s not good, but it will generate immediate sympathy [for Israel from Americans]."

If Israel’s closest ally felt the collective pain of mass civilian deaths at the hands of terrorists, then Israel would have an unbreakable bond with the world’s only hyperpower and an effective free hand in dealing with the Palestinian terrorists who had been murdering its innocent civilians as the second intifada dragged on throughout 2001.

It’s not surprising that the New Jersey housewife who first spotted the five Israelis and their white van wants to preserve her anonymity. She’s insisted that she only be identified as Maria. A neighbour in her apartment building had called her just after the first strike on the Twin Towers. Maria grabbed a pair of binoculars and, like millions across the world, she watched the horror of the day unfold.

As she gazed at the burning towers, she noticed a group of men kneeling on the roof of a white van in her parking lot. Here’s her recollection: "They seemed to be taking a movie. They were like happy, you know ... they didn’t look shocked to me. I thought it was strange."

Maria jotted down the van’s registration and called the police. The FBI was alerted and soon there was a statewide all points bulletin put out for the apprehension of the van and its occupants. The cops traced the number, establishing that it belonged to a company called Urban Moving.

Police Chief John Schmidig said: "We got an alert to be on the lookout for a white Chevrolet van with New Jersey registration and writing on the side. Three individuals were seen celebrating in Liberty State Park after the impact. They said three people were jumping up and down."

By 4pm on the afternoon of September 11, the van was spotted near New Jersey’s Giants stadium. A squad car pulled it over and inside were five men in their 20s. They were hustled out of the car with guns levelled at their heads and handcuffed.

In the car was $4700 in cash, a couple of foreign passports and a pair of box cutters – the concealed Stanley Knife-type blades used by the 19 hijackers who’d flown jetliners into the World Trade Centre and Pentagon just hours before. There were also fresh pictures of the men standing with the smouldering wreckage of the Twin Towers in the background. One image showed a hand flicking a lighter in front of the devastated buildings, like a fan at a pop concert. The driver of the van then told the arresting officers: "We are Israeli. We are not your problem. Your problems are our problems. The Palestinians are the problem."

His name was Sivan Kurzberg. The other four passengers were Kurzberg’s brother Paul, Yaron Shmuel, Oded Ellner and Omer Marmari. The men were dragged off to prison and transferred out of the custody of the FBI’s Criminal Division and into the hands of their Foreign Counterintelligence Section – the bureau’s anti-espionage squad.

A warrant was issued for a search of the Urban Moving premises in Weehawken in New Jersey. Boxes of papers and computers were removed. The FBI questioned the firm’s Israeli owner, Dominik Otto Suter, but when agents returned to re-interview him a few days later, he was gone. An employee of Urban Moving said his co-workers had laughed about the Manhattan attacks the day they happened. "I was in tears," the man said. "These guys were joking and that bothered me. These guys were like, ‘Now America knows what we go through.’"

Vince Cannistraro, former chief of operations for counter-terrorism with the CIA, says the red flag went up among investigators when it was discovered that some of the Israelis’ names were found in a search of the national intelligence database. Cannistraro says many in the US intelligence community believed that some of the Israelis were working for Mossad and there was speculation over whether Urban Moving had been "set up or exploited for the purpose of launching an intelligence operation against radical Islamists".

This makes it clear that there was no suggestion whatsoever from within American intelligence that the Israelis were colluding with the 9/11 hijackers – simply that the possibility remains that they knew the attacks were going to happen, but effectively did nothing to help stop them.

After the owner vanished, the offices of Urban Moving looked as if they’d been closed down in a big hurry. Mobile phones were littered about, the office phones were still connected and the property of at least a dozen clients were stacked up in the warehouse. The owner had cleared out his family home in New Jersey and returned to Israel.

Two weeks after their arrest, the Israelis were still in detention, held on immigration charges. Then a judge ruled that they should be deported. But the CIA scuppered the deal and the five remained in custody for another two months. Some went into solitary confinement, all underwent two polygraph tests and at least one underwent up to seven lie detector sessions before they were eventually deported at the end of November 2001. Paul Kurzberg refused to take a lie detector test for 10 weeks, but then failed it. His lawyer said he was reluctant to take the test as he had once worked for Israeli intelligence in another country.

Nevertheless, their lawyer, Ram Horvitz, dismissed the allegations as "stupid and ridiculous". Yet US government sources still maintained that the Israelis were collecting information on the fundraising activities of groups like Hamas and Islamic Jihad. Mark Regev, of the Israeli embassy in Washington, would have none of that and he said the allegations were "simply false". The men themselves claimed they’d read about the World Trade Centre attacks on the internet, couldn’t see it from their office and went to the parking lot for a better view. Their lawyers and the embassy say their ghoulish and sinister celebrations as the Twin Towers blazed and thousands died were due to youthful foolishness.

The respected New York Jewish newspaper, The Forward, reported in March 2002, however, that it had received a briefing on the case of the five Israelis from a US official who was regularly updated by law enforcement agencies. This is what he told The Forward: "The assessment was that Urban Moving Systems was a front for the Mossad and operatives employed by it." He added that "the conclusion of the FBI was that they were spying on local Arabs", but the men were released because they "did not know anything about 9/11".

Back in Israel, several of the men discussed what happened on an Israeli talk show. One of them made this remarkable comment: "The fact of the matter is we are coming from a country that experiences terror daily. Our purpose was to document the event." But how can you document an event unless you know it is going to happen?

We are now deep in conspiracy theory territory. But there is more than a little circumstantial evidence to show that Mossad – whose motto is "By way of deception, thou shalt do war" – was spying on Arab extremists in the USA and may have known that September 11 was in the offing, yet decided to withhold vital information from their American counterparts which could have prevented the terror attacks.

Following September 11, 2001, more than 60 Israelis were taken into custody under the Patriot Act and immigration laws. One highly placed investigator told Carl Cameron of Fox News that there were "tie-ins" between the Israelis and September 11; the hint was clearly that they’d gathered intelligence on the planned attacks but kept it to themselves.

The Fox News source refused to give details, saying: "Evidence linking these Israelis to 9/11 is classified. I cannot tell you about evidence that has been gathered. It’s classified information." Fox News is not noted for its condemnation of Israel; it’s a ruggedly patriotic news channel owned by Rupert Murdoch and was President Bush’s main cheerleader in the war on terror and the invasion of Iraq.

Another group of around 140 Israelis were detained prior to September 11, 2001, in the USA as part of a widespread investigation into a suspected espionage ring run by Israel inside the USA. Government documents refer to the spy ring as an "organised intelligence-gathering operation" designed to "penetrate government facilities". Most of those arrested had served in the Israeli armed forces – but military service is compulsory in Israel. Nevertheless, a number had an intelligence background.

The first glimmerings of an Israeli spying exercise in the USA came to light in spring 2001, when the FBI sent a warning to other federal agencies alerting them to be wary of visitors calling themselves "Israeli art students" and attempting to bypass security at federal buildings in order to sell paintings. A Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) report suggested the Israeli calls "may well be an organised intelligence-gathering activity". Law enforcement documents say that the Israelis "targeted and penetrated military bases" as well as the DEA, FBI and dozens of government facilities, including secret offices and the unlisted private homes of law enforcement and intelligence personnel.

A number of Israelis questioned by the authorities said they were students from Bezalel Academy of Art and Design, but Pnina Calpen, a spokeswoman for the Israeli school, did not recognise the names of any Israelis mentioned as studying there in the past 10 years. A federal report into the so-called art students said many had served in intelligence and electronic signal intercept units during their military service.

According to a 61-page report, drafted after an investigation by the DEA and the US immigration service, the Israelis were organised into cells of four to six people. The significance of what the Israelis were doing didn’t emerge until after September 11, 2001, when a report by a French intelligence agency noted "according to the FBI, Arab terrorists and suspected terror cells lived in Phoenix, Arizona, as well as in Miami and Hollywood, Florida, from December 2000 to April 2001 in direct proximity to the Israeli spy cells".

The report contended that Mossad agents were spying on Mohammed Atta and Marwan al-Shehi, two of leaders of the 9/11 hijack teams. The pair had settled in Hollywood, Florida, along with three other hijackers, after leaving Hamburg – where another Mossad team was operating close by.

Hollywood in Florida is a town of just 25,000 souls. The French intelligence report says the leader of the Mossad cell in Florida rented apartments "right near the apartment of Atta and al-Shehi". More than a third of the Israeli "art students" claimed residence in Florida. Two other Israelis connected to the art ring showed up in Fort Lauderdale. At one time, eight of the hijackers lived just north of the town.

Put together, the facts do appear to indicate that Israel knew that 9/11, or at least a large-scale terror attack, was about to take place on American soil, but did nothing to warn the USA. But that’s not quite true. In August 2001, the Israelis handed over a list of terrorist suspects – on it were the names of four of the September 11 hijackers. Significantly, however, the warning said the terrorists were planning an attack "outside the United States".

The Israeli embassy in Washington has dismissed claims about the spying ring as "simply untrue". The same denials have been issued repeatedly by the five Israelis seen high-fiving each other as the World Trade Centre burned in front of them.

Their lawyer, Ram Horwitz, insisted his clients were not intelligence officers. Irit Stoffer, the Israeli foreign minister, said the allegations were "completely untrue". She said the men were arrested because of "visa violations", adding: "The FBI investigated those cases because of 9/11."

Jim Margolin, an FBI spokesman in New York, implied that the public would never know the truth, saying: "If we found evidence of unauthorised intelligence operations that would be classified material." Yet, Israel has long been known, according to US administration sources, for "conducting the most aggressive espionage operations against the US of any US ally". Seventeen years ago, Jonathan Pollard, a civilian working for the American Navy, was jailed for life for passing secrets to Israel. At first, Israel claimed Pollard was part of a rogue operation, but the government later took responsibility for his work.

It has always been a long-accepted agreement among allies – such as Britain and America or America and Israel – that neither country will jail a "friendly spy" nor shame the allied country for espionage. Chip Berlet, a senior analyst at Boston’s Political Research Associates and an expert in intelligence, says: "It’s a backdoor agreement between allies that says that if one of your spies gets caught and didn’t do too much harm, he goes home. It goes on all the time. The official reason is always visa violation."

What we are left with, then, is fact sullied by innuendo. Certainly, it seems, Israel was spying within the borders of the United States and it is equally certain that the targets were Islamic extremists probably linked to September 11. But did Israel know in advance that the Twin Towers would be hit and the world plunged into a war without end; a war which would give Israel the power to strike its enemies almost without limit? That’s a conspiracy theory too far, perhaps. But the unpleasant feeling that, in this age of spin and secrets, we do not know the full and unadulterated truth won’t go away. Maybe we can guess, but it’s for the history books to discover and decide.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Alpha

http://free.freespeech.org/americanstateterrorism/9-11/MassiveIsraeliSpyRing.html

Alpha

Subj: September 11: Prior Knowledge and Deliberate Inaction
Date: 4/3/04 5:33:48 PM Pacific Standard Time
From: hectorpv@comcast.net
To: hectorpv@comcast.net
Sent from the Internet (Details)

Friends,

September 11: Prior Knowledge and Deliberate Inaction

I am including this piece by Doug Giebel only for its comments about the possibility that Bush administration insiders had foreknowledge of the 9/11 terrorism but deliberately allowed it to happen. It is a very cogent argument.

Giebel writes:

"Prior to 9/11, it seems plausible the Bush team in fact expected an attack, either at a U.S. installation overseas or on home ground. The air inside the Beltway was rife with warnings from many reliable sources. To believe no such attack could be on the horizon was to believe in the Tooth Fairy, and these Republicans are realists. There is no Santa Claus because THEY are Santa Claus. Bush insiders expected an attack, wherever it occurred, would be similar to earlier assaults on the World Trade Center or the <U.S.S>. Cole. In other words, the event would do damage, only not on a massive scale -- merely sufficient damage to justify pointing a finger at Iraq."

In short, US authorities did not have to have foreknowledge of the specifics of the impending attack. Rather, they simply wanted to allow any type to attack, which could be used to provide a pretext for war against Iraq. Thus, they deliberately ignored warnings about terrorism. However, there would be no reason for them to expect the great devastation that did occur, the probability of which was very low.

Giebel continues that "the Bush White House did not foresee the expected ‘event’ (in this case, 9/11) would exceed their expectations, giving them a sensational and emotional excuse for taking on Saddam Hussein. This is not to suggest the Bush Administration rejoiced (as bin Laden did) when the twin towers fell and the Pentagon burned; they simply took advantage of the situation. Unfortunately, with no link between Iraq and the 9/11 terrorists, it became necessary to delay invading Iraq until action against bin Laden and the Taliban had satisfied the national desire for revenge."

Some individuals with considerable expertise, such as German intelligence expert Andreas von Bülow, have argued that the US government (and/or Israel) actually staged the entire attack. But if this were the case it would seem that the conspirators would have made it appear that it was committed by Iraqi agents. Since this was not the case, it would seem that the Al Qaeda terrorists were real. And it seems that Israel was aware of these terrorists. We know that some Mossad agents lived on the same street in Florida as Mohammed Atta and that other Mossad agents filmed the burning Trade Towers from across the Hudson. These occurrences would definitely seem to be other than pure coincidence. http://www.chroniclesmagazine.org/Chronicles/August2003/0803CIA.html http://www.thornwalker.com/ditch/towers_5.htm

It seems reasonable to assume that if the Mossad were keeping surveillance on the Islamic terrorists, Bush administration insiders were aware of this. (Naturally, President Bush would be totally unaware of what was going on.)

Does this theory attribute an impossible evil cynicism to the Bush administration insiders? Giebel writes: "Is it cynical to imply the Bush Administration had so little interest in the loss of human life it would tolerate a modest loss to terrorists in return for the capture of Iraq? Not according to the evidence. The Bush Administration has shown little interest in the loss of non-military lives in Afghanistan and Iraq. Our government avoids ‘body counts’ of ‘collateral damage.’ Similarly, there have been no major reservations about putting U.S. troops in harm's way; and the current plan to permanently keep approximately 100,000 of our troops in Iraq will result in more losses for years to come. To the Bush team, such losses are acceptable."

Given the numerous lies the Bush neocons have put out regarding the non-existent WMD and the non-existent Saddam-Al Qaeda ties, it is apparent that they believe that the ends justify the means.

__________________________

http://www.counterpunch.com/giebel03292004.html

March 29, 2004

Candide in the Wilderness

How Bush Administration Policy Was Made

By DOUG GIEBEL

In this best of all possible political worlds, might and money triumph over adversity. Until the dramatically expected appearance of Richard Clarke, Lady Luck was blowing almost daily on the dice of George W. Bush and the Bushvolk. How did they work their magic? Was the table rigged? Short of climbing into the skulls of Bush Administration brainiacs, it is possible to speculate as follows.

Not "All" About Oil

It is no secret. Some neo-conservatives in the Bush Administration pined for the United States to overthrow Saddam Hussein well before George W. Bush began his first bid for the White House. The goal: to appropriate Iraq as a major foothold for U.S. military power and influence in the heart of the Middle East. In the years following the first Gulf War, Iraq had succumbed to inspections, sanctions and military strikes. There was virtually no chance Saddam Hussein would or could attack the United States. The problem: How to convince U.S. politicians and the public that an invasion of Iraq was an acceptable course to follow.

Contrary to conspiracy theorists, there is no evidence the Bush Administration war-seekers planned the terrorist crimes of 9/11; nor does it seem likely that those involved in carrying out the attacks knew (a) of the plans to take out Saddam Hussein's government; (b) how the administration would react to their September Surprise.

In the weeks before September 11, 2001, the Cheney-Rice-Rumsfeld-Wolfowitz group ignored advice from Clinton Administration insiders. Instead, as Clarke, O'Neill and the record show, they had their sights on Saddam's Iraq. Warnings of impending terrorism in briefings given by members of the Clinton Administration to the incumbent Republicans were dismissed or ignored because the new kids on the block had a cocksure sense of their own self worth. They knew Iraq was where they were going. They weren't quite certain how to get there.

Prior to 9;/11, it seems plausible the Bush team in fact expected an attack, either at a U.S. installation overseas or on home ground. The air inside the Beltway was rife with warnings from many reliable sources. To believe no such attack could be on the horizon was to believe in the Tooth Fairy, and these Republicans are realists. There is no Santa Claus because THEY are Santa Claus. Bush insiders expected an attack, wherever it occurred, would be similar to earlier assaults on the World Trade Center or the <U.S.S>. Cole. In other words, the event would do damage, only not on a massive scale -- merely sufficient damage to justify pointing a finger at Iraq.

Lady Luck arrived unexpectedly for both George W. Bush and Usama bin Laden. Just as the terrorists could not have foreseen the complete collapse of the World Trade Center, so the Bush White House did not foresee the expected "event" (in this case, 9/11) would exceed their expectations, giving them a sensational and emotional excuse for taking on Saddam Hussein. This is not to suggest the Bush Administration rejoiced (as bin Laden did) when the twin towers fell and the Pentagon burned; they simply took advantage of the situation. Unfortunately, with no link between Iraq and the 9/11 terrorists, it became necessary to delay invading Iraq until action against bin Laden and the Taliban had satisfied the national desire for revenge.

Is it cynical to imply the Bush Administration had so little interest in the loss of human life it would tolerate a modest loss to terrorists in return for the capture of Iraq? Not according to the evidence. The Bush Administration has shown little interest in the loss of non-military lives in Afghanistan and Iraq. Our government avoids "body counts" of "collateral damage." Similarly, there have been no major reservations about putting U.S. troops in harm's way; and the current plan to permanently keep approximately 100,000 of our troops in Iraq will result in more losses for years to come. To the Bush team, such losses are acceptable. On October 17, 2003,Rep. Tom Delay expressed the administration view, declaring, "We'll pay any price and bear any burden to advance the cause of human liberty. After the shock and of awe of major combat the price and burden of human hope shift from the battlefield to the town hall and the town market. And that hope Mr. Chairman cannot come in the form of a promissory note. It's our fight and now it's our job."

Later, when asked if the war was worth the lives of 564 U.S. soldiers killed, Secretary Rumsfeld said, "Oh, my goodness, yes. There's just no question ...25 million people in Iraq are free." (March 14, 2004)

My suggested scenario explains why the administration did not seem especially concerned about an impending event of terrorism and why alarms sounded by people in the field were ignored or under-valued. It also renders more clearly the possible reasons why President Bush would object to setting up the 9/11 Commission and why the commission has been stonewalled. Successful strategists take advantage when the unexpected arrives unexpectedly.

Weapons of Mass Destruction

Pre-invasion, their statements to the contrary, Bush Administration leaders knew there were few or no weapons of mass destruction in Iraq. In revving up the siren to wail that Saddam Hussein possessed WMD capable of killing "thousands" and "millions" of human beings, administration officials knew its fear-inducing claims were patently untrue.

Whatever their failings, those who led us into war may be risk-takers, but they are not foolhardy. The everyday behavior of President Bush, Donald Rumsfeld, Paul Wolfowitz and others with membership in The Project for the New American Century demonstrates their collective interest in remaining in power through the re-election of George W. Bush and beyond. In politics, very little happens that is not calculated with at least one hand on the pulse of public opinion. Being there: that's what politics is all about.

In this context, the often-cited Wolfowitz statement in Vanity Fair makes sense. He said, "The truth is that for reasons that have a lot to do with the U.S. government bureaucracy we settled on the one issue that everyone could agree on which was weapons of mass destruction as the core reason [for invading Iraq]." Still hurting from the criminal acts of 9/11, Americans would be more easily persuaded of Saddam Hussein's evil designs if he were portrayed as posing the most alarming threat possible: his possession of weapons of mass destruction to be used against U.S. cities and other targets. As we know, the argument, although quite absurd, carried the day. (Why "absurd"? Because Saddam's nation had been under sanctions, military overflights and attacks for a dozen years. Iraq had no air force and no navy capable of reaching the United States. The best our neo-con fear-mongers could muster was the specter of unmanned drone aircraft that were in reality incapable of flying from Iraq to the <U.S.A>.)

How much damage were Bushvolk willing to risk? Facing the potential use by Hussein's forces of tons of supposedly highly-lethal weapons of mass destruction would have meant taking extraordinary risks with the lives of U.S. and "coalition" troops. Invading forces met by such formidable opposition would likely have resulted in a nightmarish slaughter of the "liberators" and stain the Bush record for all time. Would these otherwise-circumspect political creatures really take that chance? Logically: no, they would not. And they didn't.

No WMD were used against coalition forces during the invasion, and they have not surfaced to be used against those forces during the occupation. Why not? Common sense would lead one to believe that if the weapons really existed and posed a threat so immediate that invasion was necessary, Saddam Hussein would have used those weapons in a heartbeat to repel invasion and to wipe out the occupiers.

Another major "clue" to the WMD mystery can be addressed by recalling the Pentagon's unusual strategy to "embed" reporters with the invading troops. According to some estimates, approximately 2,700 "embedded" reporters worked the march to Baghdad and beyond, a staggering number, especially if there were any real fear of encountering weapons of mass destruction. Embedded journalists were perhaps even more likely to be killed or injured than the troops engaged in actual combat. Their reports of battlefield casualties from WMD related-causes would have horrified the nation and the world. It seems certain this army of reporters would never have been invited along for the ride if invasion had not been viewed by Pentagon brass and others as the relative "cakewalk" it turned out to be.

Note also that on February 7, Australia's newspaper The Age reported, "Australian troops fighting in Iraq were told in an official briefing days before entering the country that Saddam Hussein did not have the capability to launch weapons of mass destruction against its neighbours." The news must have relieved anxiety for Aussie troops. Surely if Australia knew, the U.S. knew. This reinforces retired State Department weapons expert Greg Thielmann's statement to 60 Minutes that Saddam posed no real threat, not even to his immediate neighbors.

After considering those years of bombings, sanctions and intelligence gathering, the Bush Administration was quite certain an invasion of Iraq would be successful and would immeasurably enhance its prospects for a second four-year stint in the White House. At home, a "war budget" would block funding of social programs disfavored by the White House. The semi-secret plan to build permanent U.S. bases in Iraq would move forward following the selection of a "democratically-elected" group to govern Iraq according to U.S. needs and wishes. Today: Iraq. Tomorrow: The Middle East and beyond.

The unaccomplished mission went forward; Iraq was invaded as planned and desired.

Weapons of mass destruction had everything (and nothing) to do with it.

Protecting Iraq

On March 23, 2004, the Chicago Tribune ran a short article by foreign correspondent Christine Spolar in which she revealed the U.S. military is building "an enhanced system" of fourteen (14) "enduring bases" that are "designed to last for years.

Experts were correct to believe the U.S. should have employed a much larger military force when invading Iraq, especially for maintaining civil order once the occupation began. On the other hand, chaos has the advantage of demonstrating to occupation critics the need for a permanent U.S. military presence. It remains to be seen whether, under U.S. control, an effective Iraqi army and police force can ever be established. Although Iraq poses no real danger to the United States as a nation, a simmering Iraq gives the Bush Pentagon an excuse for maintaining a significant number of U.S. military bases on Iraqi soil. Better safe, they might argue, than sorry.

Two redundant questions regarding a "rebuilt" Iraqi military:

1. Will an Iraqi air force be re-established capable of repelling threats from outside the country?

2. Will the Iraqi military be independent and provided with military hardware (tanks, missiles, etc.) capable not only of repelling attacks from foreign entities and also capable of launching an invasion of neighboring nations?

Consider. In May 2003, Secretary Rumsfeld said, "We'll have as many forces in the country as is necessary to see that there is a secure environment.'' Nearly one year later Rumsfeld ruminated, "[M]y personal view is that the Iraqis are going to be better able to provide for their own security, more likely to make progress with respect to their economic and--and--and essential service side of the equation if, in fact, there's an Iraqi face on the government and that they have a voice and some important role in governing their country."

The Iraqi military will not be revived to the extent it could pose a "danger" or an "imminent threat" to anyone outside its borders. In all matters foreign and domestic, there will be an "Iraqi face" and they will have "some important role" in the nation's affairs.

Interviewed on ABC's This Week program, Secretary of State Powell said, "We will continue to have 100,000 troops there, helping them with their security as their own security forces show greater ability to protect the population. We'll also have a very large embassy." (March 14, 2004)

In February 2004, General Richard Myers, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, seconded Rumsfeld, stating it is unlikely an Iraqi government will ask the U.S. to leave Iraq. Then Myers added, "And our help's going to be needed for some time. If nothing else, think about the external threats to Iraq. Certainly, the new Iraqi army's not going to be up to that in terms of size, or their training."

These revealing statements set forth Iraq's future, the performance of which will be stage managed by the United States, not for a year but, in Gen. Jay Garner's words, "the next few decades. (Congress Daily, February 6, 2004)

If Iraq is threatened from outside, the U.S. will come to the rescue with our military might including continued use of National Guard and Reserves. Should those forces dwindle, re-introduction of the military draft will follow. By means of this political strategy, employment figures at home will be boosted, giving President Bush a means of claiming an improved economy as new workers are hired to fill the shoes of those sent east in combat boots.

Rebuilding Iraq's infrastructure will drag on for years. The contracts granted to U.S. corporations will continue as long as our semi-privatized military and our palatial embassy remain in Iraq. Delaying and prolonging reconstruction has advantages. Men sitting endlessly in line to fill their cars' gas tanks will not be making mischief somewhere else. Families who must wait hours for electricity to come on are tied to their homes by necessity. Water is necessary for life. Its absence weakens the healthy and debilitates those who are ill. Unpurified water may cause sickness among those who are not immune to impurities. Negatively rationing water leads to restricted activity and cloudy mental processes. Our model here: the old Hollywood westerns: He who controls the energy and water supplies controls the territory.

The cowboys are in charge. To borrow from President Bush, we will be in Iraq "As long as it takes." Whether a compliant press will ever ask President Bush and John Kerry for their views on this issue seems doubtful. The cost of building and maintaining at least 100,000 troops on ground in Iraq is unknown, as are estimates of the number of lives that may (surely will) be lost over a period of (say) fifty years. Will our grandchildren and great-grandchildren be wounded or murdered in Baghdad? Perhaps these matters are not to be discussed in polite patriotic society. Is "Bring the Troops Home" already a lost cause?

How does the Bush Administration respond to the question of lives lost as a result of our good-will efforts to remake Iraq in our own image? Neo-con Bush booster William Kristol, Chairman of the Project for the New American Century, gave what might be the answer when he told the Diane Rehm Show, "I am very comfortable defending the morality of the current situation." Kristol's comfortable position is cold comfort to those who must serve in harms way and those who suffer loss as the war of occupation drags on for decades, draining money and blood from Americans.

The Bush Administration was quite aware no weapons of mass destruction posed a threat to our invading and occupying forces. The Big Lie was bigger than most folks realized. Contrary to critics who believe the administration has no "plan" for post-invasion Iraq, the plan is obvious to any willing to examine what has happened, what is happening and what is being said. The years those neo-conservatives spent dreaming of their golden opportunity to appropriate Iraq were not spent in idleness. The puzzle fits.

Oh, and one more thing . . .

Oil.

Doug Giebel is a writer and analyst who lives in Big Sandy, Montana. His essay "When Professors Cheat" is soon to be published by Mellen Press. He welcomes comments at dougcatz@ttc-cmc.net.

Weekend Edition Features for March 20 / 21, 2004

War Without End

The global war against terror, news about the illegal invasion of Iraq, the corporate puppet presidents, the war criminal Tony Blair, September 11th 2001, the USS Liberty and New World Order crimes against humanity.

Israeli Spy Rumors Fly on Gusts of Truth with 9/11 - page 5