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SAUDIS CONTINUE AL QAIDA FUNDING

Prominent and wealthy Saudis cintinue to channel funds to al Qaida in defiance of a ban on such activity.

At a certain point, the United States will have to stop saying ” please” to the Saudi monarchy and take matters into it’s own hands regarding al Qaida’s two key non-member supports – sympathetic fundraisers and religious ideologues in the mosques. If either group is integral to al Qaida’s continued existence and operation and legal-diplomatic means have been exhausted, then members of these groups will be considered lawful targets of war.

CIA OPERATIONS CHIEF RESIGNS

James Pavitt, Deputy Director for Operations at the CIA has resigned.

This in some ways is more serious blow to the CIA in terms of ” spook ” activities than yesterday’s resignation of George Tenet as DCI. Tenet was a political heavyweight rather than a former spymaster like Allen Dulles or William Casey, who were able to immerse themselves in the details of clandestine programs. Tenet would presumably have delegated much of that administrative control and oversight to a career deputy like Pavitt whose tenure in that post preceded September 11.

Postscript: The links to Dulles and Casey are particularly good for those interested in intelligence and historical parallels.

POLITICAL MICROMANAGEMENT OF MILITARY OPERATIONS IN IRAQ ?

Shades of Lyndon Johnson but I have just received an email from Iraq indicating that civilian political control over military operations now extends to the company or even the squad level. Allegedly units must receive the ” go-ahead ” from civilians above the theater commander to initiate ” counterbattery operations” with many restrictions now being placed on counterinsurgency tactics. In one instance a unit took a 150 mortar shells before receiving long-delayed permission from far-away civilian appointees to return fire.

I have no confirmation of this beyond the past reliability of my correspondent but I’m wondering if anyone else has seen similar reports ? This would be to my mind, a terrible way to fight an insurgency and a disservice to American troops in Iraq.

INDONESIA EXPELS NGO CRITICAL OF ISLAMIST TERROR GROUPS

The government of Indonesia expelled members of the International Crisis Group (ICG) that recently authored a report that was highly critical of the handling of Islamist and Separatist violence by the Indonesian military and security services.

UPDATE:

Expulsion garners international backlash.

AS A SIDE BENEFIT TO THE JOSE PADILLA CASE, WE NOW KNOW AL QAIDA HAS IT’S OWN OFFICIAL JOB APPLICATION

Strengthening the administration’s claim that Jose Padilla should be held as an enemy combatant and not a criminal suspect, the Bush administration declassified intelligence information regarding Padilla’s terrorist activities. Included in the report are meetings between Padilla and top-level al Qaida leaders including Mohammed Atef , Khalid Sheikh Mohammed and Abu Zubaydah as well as the mujahedin job application Padilla filled out.

If such things are true I have no problem with Padilla sharing the fate of his comrades in a brig instead of in a civilian prison. If however, Padilla wends his way before a civilian judge a treason charge should be added for his troubles.