Official: Zarqawi Eludes Capture; Computer Discovered

[Roland99]

http://abcnews.go.com/WNT/IraqCoverage/story?id=701049&page=1

April 25, 2005 — Jordanian rebel Abu Musab al-Zarqawi — Iraq's most wanted fugitive — recently eluded capture by American troops, but left behind a treasure trove of information, a senior military official told ABC News.

On Feb. 20, the alleged terror mastermind was heading to a secret meeting in Ramadi, just west of Fallujah, where he used to base his operations, the official said.

Task Force 626 — the covert American military unit charged with finding Zarqawi — had troops in place to grab the fugitive, and mobile vehicle checkpoints had been established around the city's perimeter. Another U.S. official said predator drones were also in flight, tracking movements in and around the city.

A source who had been inside the Zarqawi network alerted the task force to the meeting. Officials deem the source "extremely credible."

That might be good for a .5 pt bump in the approval polls.

[Az_lefty]

1. How do they know they just missed him?

maybe their credible source is just running cover for the elusive Zarqawi. If, he actually exists at all.

[Roland99]

9. Their Magic Curveball...er...8 Ball said so.

[gizmo1979]

22. they don't use a magic eight ball anymore.

They upgraded to super magic 8 ball 3.0.Much more accurate.

[AlCzervik]

2. sure, i bet he reanimated himself and hopped away on his good leg.

[arewenotdemo]

46. lol

[DoYouEverWonder]

3. I love this part

What the task force did find in the vehicle confirmed suspicions that Zarqawi had just escaped. The official said Zarqawi's computer and 80,000 euros (about $104,000 U.S.) were discovered in the truck.

Finding the computer, said the official, "was a seminal event." It had "a very big hard drive," the official said, and recent pictures of Zarqawi. The official said Zarqawi's driver and a bodyguard were taken into custody.

Who writes this crap? The computer had a very big hard drive. So? Anyway, looks like Zarqawi switched to euros. W's gonna be pissed.

[AlCzervik]

8. that laptop probably belonged to someone that has a zarqawi fan site.

[LiberalFighter]

32. YES because the computer had lotsa pics of Zarqawi

Why would someone have lotsa pics of themselves when their goal is terrorism?

[AlCzervik]

41. cause he's a vain mutha fucka?

or it was all planted to make it look like they are going to find him and hence forth end the insurgency.

[LiberalFighter]

48. The only way they could make it look like it belong to him

[Al-CIAda]

18. Laughing my ass off...yes

I guess its food for FOX and the rest of the corporaganda crowd to feed us, but HOW many times did they 'just miss' this joker?

Does ANYONE believe this crap anymore?

[leftchick]

29. I think now they are letting the chimp** write this stuff!

It is pathetic how stupid they think we are.

[uppityperson]

31. "seminal event" meaning?

"seminal event" "very big hard drive", oh JimmyJeff, where are you?

[LiberalFighter]

33. Seminal as in they had a big cum from the very big hard drive?

[uppityperson]

36. Ah ah ah, no sex talk, just allusions

Don't want to get this locked.

[daleo]

42. A big hard drive. That cinches it.

Only Zarquwi could have a big hard drive. An enemy of the immortal Bush must have a big hard drive to be worthy of the hero.

[arewenotdemo]

47. or "seminal event"

Writer probably had scripts for "slutwife stories" rejected.

[SheepyMcSheepster]

51. "a very big hard drive": lol

a big hard drive isn't much without any data stored on it............

i wonder what that one legged dead man kept on his very big hard drive?

[DoYouEverWonder]

64. For some reason it sounds so sexual

like he had a really big dick or something? And we all know how much data is on your average dick.

[Roland99]

65. Cut or uncut?

;)

[Inland]

4. Close only counts with horseshoes and atomic bombs. nt.

[kliljedahl]

5. Yeah the MSM does such a good job

of regurgitating the Bushco propaganda.



Keith’s Barbeque Central

[UpInArms]

55. Eeewww! "incredibly evil"!

Don't forget!

"We believe he is resilient," Vines said. "He is incredibly evil and we can't forget that. So he is dangerous still, but he is on the run."

[alcuno]

6. Zarqawi jumped out of a speeding truck while chased.

The report on ABC News was unbelievable. Literally.

[LiberalFighter]

34. That's odd... I thought they said it was only going 35mph

[alcuno]

40. It slowed down at the underpass.

So he couldn't be viewed from above.

[punpirate]

7. Yup...

... al-Zarqawi was under such pressure that he left a hundred-thousand bucks and his laptop behind. Nearly got him, got him on the run, only a matter of time, we're closin' in on him....

He's leaning on those several hundred tons of VX nerve gas and Niger uranium at this moment, catching his breath....

[Maple]

10. It fascinates me

how bin Laden, Saddam and now even Zarqawi just happen to leave computers loaded with information behind. Like it would be a really difficult thing to remove, so they had to leave it behind.

There's usually a Koran too, carelessly discarded.

[Al-CIAda]

20. But because the Hard Drive was so large, it was difficult to carry.

It must also be full of fictitious incriminating evidence as well. I bet its got him trying to procure nuclear secrets to Iran. Better yet, he is going to give Iran the fictitious nuclear secrets he got from Saddam.

[LiberalFighter]

37. God my hard drive must weigh a ton compared to the smaller hd I have

Which weighs more?? My 10GB, 20GB, 40GB, 120GB or the 300GB?

[Frederik]

35. These people always do that

they are always very careful to leave a trail of evidence wherever they go.

Like my personal favourite, the 9/11 hijackers who left a Koran in a strip club.

[truthisfreedom]

11. hmm. sounds like a planted computer meant to distract us.

[Roland99]

12. BTW, notice this all happened on FEB. 20?? Why release news now?

Trying to bump up ratings or keep from looking like the Keystone Kons?

[peacetalksforall]

13. I don't believe anything they put out. n/t

[meganmonkey]

14. Gee, he's as wily as Osama, isn't he?

:eyes:

The wierdest thing is, these reports do tend to give 'em a bump in the ratings. Yet all these reports imply is that we failed AGAIN in our elusive goals of catching the bad guy (as if catching Zarqawi would solve all our problems anyway)...Ooopps! He's just a few steps away. How 'bout another $80 billion to keep hunting? :puke:

[frictionlessO]

15. They are building his legend. By using the recent "decline" in attacks

that took place in the proceeding time frame. As in, we almost caught him and obviously put a dent in his apparatus for a while because of the money and the comp. Eventually this dis-info becomes proof to those who are easily swayed.

Old as the hills and just as noticable too. What to be on the look out for in the next couple of weeks will be his "new" pics. Vane little fuckers that terrorists are they always keep several recent pics of themselves on their valuable laptops just in case a cyber virgin hits on them in the Al queefa Hotchat room!

This is getting so bad that whatever super duper double purpose they have intended for "Zarqawi" is probably going to backfire in the worst of ways. I think they intended on using the legend as a means of tracking messages back or near to Bin Laden, at least I think thats the official story they'll use when it goes all weird on them.


on edit: spilyng and Gramma

[Roland99]

16. hmm...interesting point of view.

[frictionlessO]

17. I know I wear a pretty tight piece of tinfoil but I swear this is like

some lame Blackford Oates novel... not even good enough for LeCarre or Ludlum.

HEY!! Thats who fucked up the Iraq war plan!! William F Buckley! The Basturd!

[Roland99]

21. heh heh...no, it makes sense

One day, someone will do a full study into the "terror alerts" and other terror propaganda like this and look for patterns.

[alcuno]

26. I want to know how many legs he has.

I know he has at least nine lives. But ABC News reported tonight that he jumped out of a moving truck under an overpass to avoid detection. With one leg or two?

[Roland99]

38. Jack Bauer would be proud!

[daleo]

43. Indeed, a move worthy of James Bond too. n/t

[alcuno]

44. And then he just walked to a nearby safehouse in Ramadi

While his driver was stopped further down the road. Later, the military went to the safehouse and the owner was arrested.

[Frederik]

49. Considering all the dirty bombs he has lying around

he should at least have three legs by now.

[dweller]

50. does he carry a bull-whip?

he's like the ME version of Indiana Jones or something...


dp

[The_Casual_Observer]

19. I wonder if " Zarqawi" read DU on that laptop?

Or did he just author terrorist manifestos and stuff?

What a pack of lies. They treat the public the way they treated them in the 40's to pure bullshit propaganda. Someday down the road they will be replaying bush and wondering how anyone was stupid enough to take him seriously.

[meganmonkey]

23. Maybe our rampant anti-Americanism helped inspire him!

:sarcasm:

[The_Casual_Observer]

24. Sure thing, he is operating right out of the DU "playbook"

for sure.

[Roland99]

25. It's all your fault...dang appeasers.

[Andrushka]

27. FAUX is reporting

"Zarqawi was last seen hopping away through the desert yelling, "Har har! You'll never catch me alive, me pretties!""

This crap is getting stale. Do people still actually believe this crud?:crazy:

[underpants]

53. Man oh Man that is one nimble and agile ONE LEGGED MAN

Zarqawi Eclipsing Bin Laden in Prominence
Wednesday, May 12, 2004
http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,119700,00.html
In 1999, after being released from jail in Jordan, Zarqawi formed an alliance with bin Laden allowing Zarqawi to operate a training camp in Afghanistan for Arab fighters committed to the overthrow of Jordan's moderate monarchy.
During the U.S. invasion of Afghanistan, Zarqawi is believed to have been badly wounded in a U.S. airstrike and fled to Iran. Later, he ended up in Baghdad, where Saddam's regime allowed him to recuperate for several months after having his leg amputated.

But check out how CNN spins itself into the ground trying to cover for Bush five weeks earlier
Tuesday, April 6, 2004
http://www.cnn.com/2004/WORLD/meast/04/06/us.zarqawi/
A U.S. official said Tuesday that al-Zarqawi traveled to Baghdad in May 2002 for treatment of a leg injury but, contrary to previous reports, appears not to have had a leg amputated. The official would not discuss the reason for the change in assessment.
Al-Zarqawi, an associate of Osama bin Laden, had been named by the Bush administration as an al Qaeda member who fled to Iraq from Afghanistan in May 2002 for medical treatment and then stayed to organize terror plots. He came to Iraq with about two dozen al Qaeda terrorists, according to the administration.
Before the U.S.-led invasion of Iraq, President Bush, Secretary of State Colin Powell and other administration officials pointed to intelligence that they said suggested al-Zarqawi had had his leg amputated in Baghdad.

Unfortunately a YEAR before that report CNN said:
http://www.cnn.com/2003/WORLD/meast/04/29/sprj.irq.terrorist.capture/index.html
Zarqawi was said to have received medical treatment in Baghdad in May and June of 2002 after being wounded in Afghanistan during the war. His leg was amputated, U.S. officials say, by a surgeon in Iraq.

[NNguyenMD]

28. I call OBL or Zarqawi getting killed/capture before 2006 midterm elections

[NYC]

45. Again?

Zarqawi has been caught before. (Sometimes with one leg, sometimes with two.)

[underpants]

54. Don't laugh NYC they have captured TWO people previously killed

Some Evidence Suggests Saddam Dead: Bush
Last updated at: (Beijing Time) Friday, April 25, 2003
http://english.people.com.cn/200304/25/eng20030425_115783.shtml
US President Bush said in a television interview Thursday that there is some evidence suggesting Saddam Hussein is either dead or "at the very minimum was severely wounded." Bush also said US troops would remain in Iraq "as long as necessary."

DNA tests after missiles strike 'Saddam convoy'
Sunday June 22, 2003
http://observer.guardian.co.uk/iraq/story/0,12239,982710,00.html
American specialists were carrying out DNA tests last night on human remains believed by US military sources to be those of Saddam Hussein and one of his sons, The Observer can reveal.

Officials suspect Saddam was killed in bombing
Posted 4/10/2003
http://www.usatoday.com/news/world/iraq/2003-04-10-saddam-usat_x.htm
WASHINGTON — U.S. intelligence has no clear information on Saddam Hussein's whereabouts, but the betting in the Pentagon's executive offices is that the Iraqi dictator lies dead under a pile of rubble in Baghdad, according to defense and intelligence officials.

But the theory given most credence is that Saddam died in Monday's bomber attack on a home near a Baghdad restaurant.
"The official take from the Pentagon is that Saddam is 'unfound,' " a senior defense intelligence official said on condition of anonymity. "Most along the E-Ring (the Pentagon's outermost hallway and executive suite) think he's under the rubble."
A Defense Department intelligence official said an abrupt end to an electronic intelligence intercept of Iraqi leadership conversations indicated that Saddam and his sons were at the site at the time of the bombing.
"The signal died when the bombs hit," the official said.

Saddam Captured 'Like a Rat' in Raid
Sunday, December 14, 2003
http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,105706,00.html

Saddam Hussein arrested in Iraq
Sunday, 14 December, 2003, 17:04 GMT
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/middle_east/3317429.stm
______________________________________________________________
Pentagon: 'Chemical Ali' Killed in Attack
Tuesday, April 8, 2003
http://www.newsmax.com/archives/articles/2003/4/7/204930.shtml

WASHINGTON -- The Pentagon believes "Chemical Ali," Saddam Hussein's cousin who ordered a chemical attack on Kurds in northern Iraq in 1988, is dead, Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld confirmed Monday.

'Chemical Ali' reported dead
Monday, 7 April, 2003
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/middle_east/2925375.stm


Officials: Body of 'Chemical Ali' Found in Basra
Monday, April 07, 2003
http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,83383,00.html


'Chemical Ali' Captured in Iraq
Thursday, August 21, 2003
http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,95314,00.html


'Chemical Ali' in U.S. custody
Thursday, August 21, 2003
http://edition.cnn.com/2003/WORLD/meast/08/21/sprj.irq.chemical.ali/
DOHA, Qatar (CNN) -- Ali Hassan al-Majid, the Iraqi general known as "Chemical Ali," is in U.S. custody, military officials tell CNN.

[NYC]

66. Okay, it's a trend.

We repeatedly capture dead people. (I won't complicate the issue by mentioning number of legs. I guess some people are like starfish, dead or alive.)

I suspect it's easier to capture dead people. They must be slower moving.

[Frederik]

30. "extremely credible"

A source who had been inside the Zarqawi network alerted the task force to the meeting. Officials deem the source "extremely credible."

:rofl:

[Javaman]

39. Oh wow, I was waiting for the next episode of 24...

God, these fucking morons, can't they come up with something better than that? I think they are taking their plays from TV now.

prez*: we need to sex up the war on terror....

rummy: well, I have a contact over at 24...

prez*: 24? (out of touch as usual)

rummy: it's a show about a counter terrorist unit that saves the US from various threats...

prez*: well, order them into the field...

Confused looks all around the room.

rummy: excuse me mr. president?

prez*: you heard me, get them out in the field, if we have a counter terrorism unit...CTU...heh heh heh...then why aren't we using them...

rummy has that deer in the headlights look.

rummy: um...suuuuuure...no problem...

prez*: see, I can make the hard decision and stuff...

rummy: uh, riiiight...damn I need a drink...

prez*: hang on there, you know how I feel about that...

everyone has a sheepish look about them...

prez*: no one drinks alone around here! heh heh heh...

the prez* quickly pulls off his right shoe and pps a plug on his heel and chugs down a hidden nip...

[Horse with no Name]

52. This is too funny

*IF* this man left a computer behind, does * actually think that this man isn't intelligent? I mean, the largest military in the world cannot find ONE man--I'd say he was pretty smart.
How many keystrokes would it take to delete the information?
How much fire would it take to melt the laptop?
I'd think a few bullets through the harddrive might render it useless as well.
Or even better, why not just unplug the harddrive and put it in your pocket?
WHY oh WHY do people believe these fairy tales?
No card carrying terrorist mastermind would leave behind something that incriminating and leave it intact.
Next thing we know is that bushcon will start selling beach front condos in Baghdad.:sarcasm:

[nolabels]

57. What the hell did you expect anyway?

The exodus and purge of them spooks in all them various agencies would make it difficult to get good product out anymore.

After all, what self respecting person with a brain would produce it anyway :shrug:

[Javaman]

63. Damn, Abdul, I left my wallet with all the codes in the taxi...

So here we are, just one moment away from catching the Iraqi terrorist mastermind...yeah right.

So am I to believe that in a moment of panic, Zara freaked out and left all of his plans on a laptop in the car that the US was chasing?

There are so many leaps of faith with that, I should be a hurdler. I bet they find the latest and coolest version of tetris. Or more realistically, the ever present solitaire.

Somewhere in a bunker buried deep beneath the Pentagon, two computer hackers try to extract info from the "laptop" Zarqawi left behind...

Hacker: I think I found something, sir...

Officer: What is it?

Hacker: it appears it's his audio transmission...

Officer: can you get it to play?

Hacker: with a few tweaks I think I can get something, hang on...

hacker fiddles and punches in various commands.

Hacker: Okay, here you go, it will be a bit garbled until I can get more filters on it.

Officer: play it.

A crackling washed out audio blurts from the laptops speakers...

"1 pound...(crackle)...2 parts(crackle)powder...(squeal)fuse...(crakle)"

Officer: that's enough, I have heard all I need, he's building a bomb. Get back to me when you run those other filters, I'm going to talk to the president!

The officer leaves. The Hacker tweaks a few more things and plays the recording again.

"1 pound flour, 2 parts sugar to backing powder, infuse vanilla into the mix. Wow, I didn't know cookies could be so complex. Zarqawi out."

[Mark E. Smith]

56. Zarqawi escapes...

...Osama bin Laden is still killing Americans more than 3 and 1/2 years after 9-11, and Crown Prince Abdullah just laughed off Bush's pleas for lower oil prices.

A regular Master of the Arabian Universe that Bush.

[0007]

58. LOL!! Where have I heard these stories before?

[SKKY]

59. This smells very, very fishy...

...Americans thinking about things like senate confirmation hearings, conservative judges. Let's get their eye back on the ball.

[second edition]

60. According to MSNBC- THIS STORY IS TWO MONTHS OLD.

Why are we just hearing about it now?

[underpants]

62. I happened in February--Welcome to DU

:hi:

I am guessing this is a really blatant attempt at diversion.

[EFerrari]

61. I'm reading this thread and listening to Barbara Starr/CNN

breathlessly report this exciting update TWO MONTHS after it happened. She sounds just like a SNL skit to me. Nice to start the day with a belly laugh.