“No Evidence” that Hussein Was Involved in 9/11 Attacks, Bush Says

By Mike Nartker
Global Security Newswire

WASHINGTON — U.S. President George W. Bush yesterday said that there was no evidence that former Iraqi President Saddam Hussein had been involved in the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks on the United States, but reiterated allegations Hussein and al-Qaeda had been connected (see GSN, Sept. 17).

“We’ve had no evidence that Saddam Hussein was involved with September the 11th,” Bush said during a brief White House press conference.

A recent Washington Post poll found that almost 70 percent of Americans believe that Hussein probably had some connection to the Sept. 11 attacks.

Bush yesterday also alleged that Hussein’s regime had ties with al-Qaeda prior to Operation Iraqi Freedom.  He noted that a suspected al-Qaeda operative, Abu Musab al-Zarqawi, had previously spent time in Baghdad.  Al-Zarqawi was also involved with the militant Islamic group Ansar al-Islam, which is suspected of being connected with al-Qaeda, according to Bush.  U.S. forces reportedly found evidence of Ansar al-Islam’s efforts to develop biological and chemical weapons during raids earlier this year on the group’s bases in northern Iraq.

“There’s no question that Saddam Hussein had al-Qaeda ties,” Bush said.

Bush’s remarks follow a number of similar allegations about prewar links between Iraq and al-Qaeda made recently by senior Bush administration officials.  During an appearance Sunday on NBC’s Meet the Press, Vice President Dick Cheney said that Hussein’s regime had provided al-Qaeda operatives with training in biological and chemical weapons (see GSN, Sept. 15).  Earlier this month, national security adviser Condoleezza Rice said she “absolutely believed” that Iraq and al-Qaeda had been connected, noting both the presence of Ansar al-Islam in northern Iraq and the biological and chemical weapons training provided to al-Qaeda operatives (see GSN, Sept. 8).

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IAEA Raises More Than $20 Million for Nuclear Terrorism Prevention

The International Atomic Energy Agency announced yesterday that it has raised more than $20 million for efforts to prevent nuclear terrorism (see GSN, Sept. 16).

About $23 million has been pledged to the IAEA Nuclear Security Fund in donations from 21 countries and one organization, the agency said.  Of the $23 million, more than $13 million has actually been received, which will go toward strengthening “countries’ nuclear security arrangements against malicious acts,” the IAEA said.

To help prevent nuclear terrorism, the agency is aiding members in identifying and protecting vulnerabilities at nuclear installations and in use, storage and transit of nuclear material, according to an agency press release.  Since September 2001, the IAEA has conducted about 40 advisory missions and has held 60 training sessions.  As part of its efforts against nuclear material smuggling, the IAEA is helping members to improve their ability to detect radioactive material at their borders and to respond to illicit trafficking.

While progress has been made in countering nuclear terrorism, more remains to be done, IAEA Director General Mohamed ElBaradei said.

“On the safety and security front, we can take satisfaction in the degree of progress,” ElBaradei said Monday in his opening remarks to the IAEA General Conference being held this week in Vienna.  “But we must remain vigilant, and clearly much work is still urgently needed,” he said (International Atomic Energy Agency release, Sept. 17).

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U.S. Cities Complain They Receive Federal Funding Too Slowly

The U.S. Conference of Mayors yesterday released the results of a survey finding that 90 percent of cities have not received any of $1.5 billion in U.S. funding approved this year to help first responders prepare for a terrorist attack, according to the New York Times (see GSN, Jan. 24).

The survey, conducted last month among almost 170 cities, also found that more than half of local governments had not been consulted by state officials over how U.S. counterterrorism funding would be spent, the Times reported.  During a press conference yesterday in New York, mayors criticized state governments, not Washington, for the delays in receiving funding.

“Nine-one-one does not ring at the statehouse; it rings at city hall,” said Mayor James Garner of Hempstead, N.Y.  “Cities are the first to respond in a crisis, but last in line for funds.  We need direct funds,” Garner said.

Christine LaPaille, spokeswoman for the National Governors Associated, denied that state governments were needlessly delaying providing counterterrorism funding to cities.  She also said that the Bush administration and Congress had been correct to distribute federal funds through state governments.

“States are the only players sitting at the homeland security table that are in a position to take the lead in formulating regional strategic plans that protect our communities,” LaPaille said (Philip Shenon, New York Times, Sept. 18).

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Congress Advances Defense, Homeland Security Funding Bills

Congressional negotiators reached agreement yesterday on bills to fund the U.S. Defense Department and Homeland Security Department.  The bills will now be sent back to the U.S. Senate and the U.S. House of Representatives for final approval.

In resolving differences between versions of the fiscal 2004 defense appropriations bill, House and Senate negotiators settled on a $368 billion measure that does not include projected spending for military operations in Afghanistan and Iraq.  Those costs would be covered by the $87 billion supplemental request formally submitted this week by the Bush administration (Ken Guggenheim, Associated Press/WTOP Radio, Sept. 18).

The bill would block the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency from implementing its Total Information Awareness project, a controversial antiterrorism program that drew criticism from privacy and civil rights advocates (David Rogers, Wall Street Journal, Sept. 18).

To fund Homeland Security Department activities, House and Senate conferees approved $29.4 billion but dropped contentious plans to set a firm deadline for U.S. airlines to screen passenger airline cargo shipments more rigorously (Carl Hulse, New York Times, Sept. 18).

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