|
Trending Topics
|
Some U.S. Officials Fear Iran Is Helping Al-Qaeda
(Los Angeles Times) Josh Meyer - U.S. intelligence officials are struggling to understand the relationship between the new Tehran leadership and the contingent of al-Qaeda leaders residing in the country. Some officials, citing evidence from highly classified satellite feeds and electronic eavesdropping, believe the Iranian regime is playing host to much of al-Qaeda's remaining brain trust and allowing the senior operatives freedom to communicate and plan terror operations. They suggest that President Ahmadinejad may be forging an alliance with al-Qaeda as a way to expand Iran's influence. The Sept. 11 commission said Iran and al-Qaeda had worked together sporadically throughout the 1990s, trading secrets, including some related to making explosives. Iran nurtures such ties, U.S. officials say, to enhance its regional influence and punish Arab political foes through intimidation and violence. Imprisoned top al-Qaeda operatives have told U.S. officials that Iran let Islamic militants traveling to and from Afghanistan and Pakistan pass freely across its borders without passport stamps - including at least eight of the 19 Sept. 11 hijackers. The Sept. 11 panel strongly urged the Bush administration and Congress to investigate the ties between Iran and al-Qaeda.