Al-Qaeda Has Rebuilt Itself—With Iran’s Help

David_TheMan

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Why are you mentioning me with this bullshyt.

We know who Osama worked with, the US government.

Bombshell: Bin Laden worked for US till 9/11
In the interview, Sibel says that the US maintained 'intimate relations' with Bin Laden, and the Taliban, "all the way until that day of September 11."

These 'intimate relations' included using Bin Laden for 'operations' in Central Asia, including Xinjiang, China. These 'operations' involved using al Qaeda and the Taliban in the same manner "as we did during the Afghan and Soviet conflict," that is, fighting 'enemies' via proxies.

As Sibel has previously described, and as she reiterates in this latest interview, this process involved using Turkey (with assistance from 'actors from Pakistan, and Afghanistan and Saudi Arabia') as a proxy, which in turn used Bin Laden and the Taliban and others as a proxy terrorist army.

CIA agent alleged to have met Bin Laden in July
Two months before September 11 Osama bin Laden flew to Dubai for 10 days for treatment at the American hospital, where he was visited by the local CIA agent, according to the French newspaper Le Figaro.

The disclosures are known to come from French intelligence which is keen to reveal the ambiguous role of the CIA, and to restrain Washington from extending the war to Iraq and elsewhere.

Bin Laden is reported to have arrived in Dubai on July 4 from Quetta in Pakistan with his own personal doctor, nurse and four bodyguards, to be treated in the urology department. While there he was visited by several members of his family and Saudi personalities, and the CIA.

Triple Cross or Inside Job?
Ali Mohamed … was something of an al Qaeda super-spy who managed to work with terrorists, the Green Berets, the CIA and become an FBI informant, even while ensuring Osama bin Laden’s safe passage around the middle east. For years, Triple Cross alleges, the FBI and specifically [prosecutor Patrick] Fitzgerald, knew about him but allowed Mohamed’s activities to continue unchecked.

Mohamed … was actually responsible for writing portions of the terror network’s training manual and played a key role in the bombings of U.S. embassies in Africa which left over 200 dead…
 

☑︎#VoteDemocrat

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Why are you mentioning me with this bullshyt.

We know who Osama worked with, the US government.
So did Saddam.

Whats your point?

Its like world history ended in 1989 with you. :stopitslime:


Oh, and an article about a "triple cross" disproves your theory.





















NONE OF THIS ADDRESSES IRAN LITERALLY ACTING OUT BECAUSE THIS WAS EXPOSED.

HERES A CLUE. IRAN IS UPSET THIS INFORMATION CAME OUT.
 

Mook

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Napoleon types and argues like a woman

Tens of thousands of soldiers at call is ridiculous to believe.
 
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Why are these individuals sanctioned? @David_TheMan

Iran has a deal with Al-Qaeda.





Treasury Targets Key Al-Qa’ida Funding and Support Network Using Iran as a Critical Transit Point

Treasury Targets Key Al-Qa’ida Funding and Support Network Using Iran as a Critical Transit Point

7/28/2011
WASHINGTON – The U.S. Department of the Treasury today announced the designation of six members of an al-Qa’ida network headed by Ezedin Abdel Aziz Khalil, a prominent Iran-based al-Qa’ida facilitator, operating under an agreement between al-Qa’ida and the Iranian government. Today’s action, taken pursuant to Executive Order (E.O.) 13224, demonstrates that Iran is a critical transit point for funding to support al-Qa’ida’s activities in Afghanistan and Pakistan. This network serves as the core pipeline through which al-Qa’ida moves money, facilitators and operatives from across the Middle East to South Asia, including to Atiyah Abd al-Rahman, a key al-Qa’ida leader based in Pakistan, also designated today.

“Iran is the leading state sponsor of terrorism in the world today. By exposing Iran’s secret deal with al-Qa’ida allowing it to funnel funds and operatives through its territory, we are illuminating yet another aspect of Iran’s unmatched support for terrorism,” said Under Secretary for Terrorism and Financial Intelligence David S. Cohen. “Today’s action also seeks to disrupt this key network and deny al-Qa’ida’s senior leadership much-needed support.”
As a result of today’s action, U.S. persons are prohibited from engaging in commercial or financial transactions with the designees, and any assets they may hold under U.S. jurisdiction are frozen. Treasury designated the following individuals today:
Ezedin Abdel Aziz Khalil
Khalil (a.k.a. Yasin al-Suri) is an Iran-based senior al-Qa’ida facilitator currently living and operating in Iran under an agreement between al-Qa’ida and the Iranian government. Iranian authorities maintain a relationship with Khalil and have permitted him to operate within Iran’s borders since 2005. Khalil moves money and recruits from across the Middle East into Iran, then on to Pakistan for the benefit of al-Qa’ida senior leaders, including Atiyah Abd al-Rahman. Khalil has collected funding from various donors and fundraisers throughout the Gulf and is responsible for moving significant amounts of money via Iran for onward passage to al-Qa’ida’s leadership in Afghanistan and Iraq. He has also facilitated the travel of extremist recruits for al-Qa’ida from the Gulf to Pakistan and Afghanistan via Iran. Khalil requires each operative to deliver $10,000 to al-Qa’ida in Pakistan.
As al-Qa’ida’s representative in Iran, Khalil works with the Iranian government to arrange releases of al-Qa’ida personnel from Iranian prisons. When al-Qa’ida operatives are released, the Iranian government transfers them to Khalil, who then facilitates their travel to Pakistan.

Atiyah Abd al-Rahman
Al-Rahman is al-Qa’ida’s overall commander in Pakistan’s tribal areas and as of late 2010, the leader of al-Qa’ida in North and South Waziristan, Pakistan. Rahman was previously appointed by Usama bin Laden to serve as al-Qa’ida’s emissary in Iran, a position which allowed him to travel in and out of Iran with the permission of Iranian officials.

Umid Muhammadi
Muhammadi is an al-Qa’ida facilitator and key supporter of al-Qa’ida in Iraq (AQI). Muhammadi has petitioned Iranian officials on al-Qa’ida’s behalf to release operatives detained in Iran. Muhammadi has been involved in planning multiple attacks in Iraq and has trained extremists in the use of explosives. He has also received training in Afghanistan on the use of rockets and chemicals.

Salim Hasan Khalifa Rashid al-Kuwari
Al-Kuwari provides financial and logistical support to al-Qa’ida, primarily through al-Qa’ida facilitators in Iran. Based in Qatar, Kuwari has provided hundreds of thousands of dollars in financial support to al-Qa’ida and has provided funding for al-Qa’ida operations, as well as to secure the release of al-Qa’ida detainees in Iran and elsewhere. He has also facilitated travel for extremist recruits on behalf of senior al-Qa’ida facilitators based in Iran.

Abdallah Ghanim Mafuz Muslim al-Khawar
Al-Khawar has worked with Kuwari to deliver money, messages and other material support to al-Qa’ida elements in Iran. Like Kuwari, Khawar is based in Qatar and has helped to facilitate travel for extremists interested in traveling to Afghanistan for jihad.
‘Ali Hasan ‘Ali al-’Ajmi
Al-’Ajmi is a Kuwait-based associate of Khalil who provides financial and facilitation support to al-Qa’ida, AQI and the Taliban. ‘Ajmi has collected money from individuals in Gulf countries and provided these funds to AQI facilitators as well as to the Taliban. He has also supported al-Qa’ida by facilitating travel for individuals associated with the group so that they could take part in fighting in Afghanistan.
 

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Report: Senior al Qaeda facilitator 'back on the street' in Iran | FDD's Long War Journal

Report: Senior al Qaeda facilitator ‘back on the street’ in Iran
By Thomas Joscelyn | January 31, 2014 | tjoscelyn@gmail.com | @thomasjoscelyn
A senior al Qaeda operative based in Iran and known as Yasin al Suri (a.k.a. Ezedin Abdel Aziz Khalil) is “more active than ever” and facilitating al Qaeda’s global operations, Al Jazeera reports.

Al Suri’s role as al Qaeda’s point man inside Iran was first exposed by the US Treasuryand State Departments in 2011. In December of that year, the US government began offering a $10 million reward for information leading to al Suri’s capture.

After the US government’s revelations, the Iranian government detained al Suri. This led al Qaeda to replace him with another seasoned terrorist, Muhsin al Fadhli, who took over as leader of the Iran-based network.

But now, according to US government officials who spoke with Al Jazeera, al Suri is back in the game and even facilitating al Qaeda’s operations inside Syria.

“As head al Qaeda facilitator in Iran, al Suri is responsible for overseeing al Qaeda efforts to transfer experienced operatives and leaders from Pakistan to Syria, organizing and maintaining routes by which new recruits can travel to Syria via Turkey and assisting in the movement of al Qaeda external operatives to the West,” an unnamed State Department official told Al Jazeera.

A US Treasury Department official confirmed the revelation, according to Al Jazeera. “He’s an al Qaeda operative, Al Nusrah is an al Qaeda affiliate, and we know he’s moving money and extremists into Syria for al Qaeda elements there, so I think you can draw that conclusion,” the Treasury official said.

Al Suri operates under an agreement that was struck between the Iranian regime and al Qaeda years ago. He first began working inside Iran in 2005.

It is not clear why the Iranian government would allow al Suri to act as a facilitator for al Qaeda’s operations inside Syria. Al Qaeda and Iran are on opposite sides of the Syrian war.

Iran is backing Bashar al Assad’s regime, a longtime ally of the mullahs, in the bloody sectarian conflict. Al Qaeda’s two official branches, including the Al Nusrah Front, as well as al Qaeda’s allies, are on the other side, battling Iranian operatives, Assad’s forces and proxies. The emir of Al Nusrah, Abu Muhammad al Julani, has verbally attacked Iran and Shiites in general. Other senior al Qaeda jihadists have called for attacks against Shiite-led governments in response to the Syrian conflict. And an al Qaeda-linked group has claimed responsibility for an attack against the Iranian embassy in Lebanon.

The Iranian regime, however, has mastered duplicity and may have unknown reasons for keeping tabs on al Qaeda’s operations. Al Qaeda has also been willing to work with Iran on multiple occasions since the early 1990s, despite the two sides’ fundamentally different theologies and sometime vehement disagreements.

Al Qaeda’s Iran-based network a “core pipeline”

The US government has repeatedly exposed al Qaeda’s Iran-based network in a series of terrorist designations and other official filings. And in May 2013, the State Department noted that this network was tied to al Qaeda’s operations inside Syria.

In July 2011, the US Treasury Department designated several members of the network, saying it was headed by al Suri and operates “under an agreement between al Qaeda and the Iranian government.”

Several months later, in December 2011, the State and Treasury Departments announced a $10 million reward for information concerning al Suri’s whereabouts. “Al Suri’s network has served as a financial conduit, collecting funds from donors throughout the Gulf and moving those funds via Iran to al Qaeda’s leadership in Afghanistan and Iraq,” the Treasury Department’s Assistant Director of Terrorism and Financial Intelligence, Eytan Fisch, said at the time. “Al Suri’s network also serves as the core pipeline for al Qaeda to funnel operatives and facilitators from the Middle East to Afghanistan and Pakistan,” Fisch added.

In February 2012, the Treasury Department designated the Iranian Ministry of Intelligence and Security (MOIS) as a terrorist sponsoring entity for, among other things, supporting al Qaeda and al Qaeda in Iraq’s operations.

After Yasin al Suri was replaced, at least temporarily, as the head of al Qaeda’s network in Iran, the Treasury Department revealed that his replacement was a Kuwaiti named Muhsin al Fadhli. In an October 2012 terrorist designation, Treasury also said that al Fadhli’s deputy is Adel Radi Saker al Wahabi al Harbi, a Saudi who is on the kingdom’s most-wanted list.

In its Country Reports on Terrorism 2012, the State Department said: “Iran allowed AQ facilitators Muhsin al Fadhli and Adel Radi Saqr al Wahabi al Harbi to operate a core facilitation pipeline through Iran, enabling AQ to move funds and fighters to South Asia and to Syria.”

The Iran-based network moves al Qaeda “external operatives to the West”

The State Department official quoted by Al Jazeera says that al Suri’s network assists “in the movement of al Qaeda external operatives to the West.” The Long War Journal has documented two cases in recent years in which a terrorist plot in the West has been tied to al Suri’s Iran-based operations.

Some of the al Qaeda terrorists selected to take part in a 2010 plot against European cities used al Suri’s facilitation network to transit to and from northern Pakistan. The plot, which would have involved Mumbai-style attacks, was thwarted, and afterward leaders of the cell were harbored inside Iran for a time.

In April 2013, Canadian authorities arrested two terrorist suspects who were allegedly plotting to derail a train running from the US into Canada. Royal Canadian Mounted Police Assistant Commissioner James Malizia said that the pair received “support from al Qaeda elements located in Iran” in the form of “direction and guidance.” The al Qaeda operatives who supported the operation are reportedly based in the Iranian city of Zahedan, which is one of the main hubs for al Suri and his operatives.

Egyptian officials have alleged that still another plot, targeting the US Embassy in Cairo and other Western interests, involved al Qaeda’s Iran-based network. The putative May 2013 plot was tied to a terrorist known as Dawood al Assadi, which is one of the aliases used by Muhsin al Fadhli. Egyptian officials also said that members of the terrorist cell responsible for the plot were in contact with Muhammad Jamal al Kashef, a longtime subordinate to al Qaeda emir Ayman al Zawahiri, as well as with other members of Jamal’s network.

Al Qaeda’s Iran-based network continues to operate despite the war in Syria.

And now, according to Al Jazeera’s sources in the US government, the head of that network is operational once again.

Thomas Joscelyn is a Senior Fellow at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies and the Senior Editor for FDD's Long War Journal.

Tags: Al Nusrah Front, Ayman al Zawahiri, Iran, Iran-AQ Network, Jabhat al Nusra, Syria
 

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State Department: Iran continues to host al Qaeda's 'core facilitation pipeline' | FDD's Long War Journal


State Department: Iran continues to host al Qaeda’s ‘core facilitation pipeline’
By Thomas Joscelyn | July 23, 2017 | tjoscelyn@gmail.com | @thomasjoscelyn
5-Iran-linked-AQ-leaders-1023x313.png

The US government has repeatedly identified al Qaeda’s leadership in Iran. From left to right: Yasin al Suri, Atiyah Abd al Rahman, Sanafi al Nasr, Muhsin al Fadhli and Adel Radi al Harbi. Only Yasin al Suri is believed to be alive, but still others continue to operate in Iran.

Since July 2011, the US Treasury and State Departments have repeatedly stated that the Iranian regime allows al Qaeda to maintain a key facilitation network on its soil. This formerly clandestine network is the result of a specific “agreement” between the Iranian government and al Qaeda’s leadership.

On July 19, the State Department once again pointed to the relationship. “Since at least 2009,” State’s Country Reports on Terrorism 2016 reads, “Iran has allowed AQ facilitators to operate a core facilitation pipeline through the country, enabling AQ to move funds and fighters to South Asia and Syria.”

Iran also “remained unwilling to bring to justice senior al-Qa’ida (AQ) members it continued to detain and has refused to publicly identify the members in its custody,” Foggy Bottom said, echoing language found in previous reports.

In its terrorism reports for 2015 and 2014, the State Department implied that al Qaeda’s Iran-based network was a thing of the past, saying the Iranian government “previously allowed AQ facilitators to operate.” But Country Reports on Terrorism 2016, released last week, subtly revised that language.

It is often assumed that the two sides can’t cooperate because of theological differences. However, the relationship has been repeatedly documented by official sources, such as the 9/11 Commission, US courts, intelligence agencies and various others. At times, al Qaeda itself has conceded that there is a level of collusion, despite the group’s blistering anti-Iranian rhetoric. A key al Qaeda defector offered his own explanation of the arrangement in a newsletter published by the Islamic State. After the Islamic State and al Qaeda became bitter rivals, the so-called caliphate even accused al Qaeda of prohibiting terrorist attacks inside Iran.

A document presumably authored by Osama bin Laden in 2007 refers to Iran as al Qaeda’s “main artery for funds, personnel, and communication.” That same letter referred to the “hostages” held by Iran, meaning those al Qaeda figures who were held in some form of detention and not allowed to freely operate. Bin Laden was not against attacking Iran in principle; he simply did not think the costs of such action were worth it.

Iran’s relationship with al Qaeda has survived for years, despite numerous disagreements and conflicts between the two. For instance, one file recovered in bin Laden’s Abbottabad lair shows that he was troubled by Iran’s attempt to expand across the Middle East and he conceived of a plan to combat the Shiite jihadists’ growing footprint. Al Qaeda has also kidnapped Iranian diplomats in order force hostage exchanges. Several high-level al Qaeda leaders were reportedly released as part of one such exchange in 2015, although their status beforehand inside Iran was murky.

Most importantly, the two sides are clearly at odds in Syria and Yemen, where they have fought each other and affiliated proxies for several years.

Yet, throughout all of this, Iran has allowed al Qaeda to maintain a key facilitation hub.

In July 2016, for instance, the US Treasury Department sanctioned three senior al Qaeda leaders “located in Iran.” One of them, Faisal Jassim Mohammed Al Amri Al Khalidi (a.k.a. Abu Hamza al Khalidi), has served as al Qaeda’s “Military Commission Chief” — meaning he was one of the most important figures in the group’s international network. Al Khalidi was identified in Osama bin Laden’s files as part of a “new generation” of leadership al Qaeda groomed to replace their fallen comrades. As Treasury’s July 2016 designations made clear, some of al Qaeda’s most important men continued to operate inside Iran. [See FDD’s Long War Journal report, Treasury designates 3 senior al Qaeda members in Iran.]

Previous designations and other statements by Treasury and State Departments

The State Department’s Country Reports on Terrorism 2016 is the latest instance in which a branch of the US government has officially recognized al Qaeda’s “core facilitation pipeline” inside Iran, or other dealings between the two. In 2009, Treasury acknowledged that several al Qaeda operatives were living inside Iran. Then, beginning in July 2011, both the Treasury and State Departments repeatedly targeted the Iran-based network, saying it operated as part of a formerly “secret deal” between Iran and al Qaeda’s leadership.

Below is a brief timeline of designations and other official statements by the US government.

Jan. 2009: Treasury designated four al Qaeda members in Iran, including Osama bin Laden’s son Saad, who was later killed after relocating to Pakistan. “It is important that Iran give a public accounting of how it is meeting its international obligations to constrain al Qaeda,” Stuart Levey, who was then Under Secretary for Terrorism and Financial Intelligence, said at the time.

July 2011: Treasury targeted Iran’s formerly “secret deal” with al Qaeda, designating six jihadists who were involved in al Qaeda’s operations inside the country. One of them is known as Yasin al Suri, “a prominent Iran-based al Qaeda facilitator” who operates “under an agreement between al Qaeda and the Iranian government.” The agreement was negotiated with Atiyah Abd al Rahman’s permission. Rahman was a top al Qaeda lieutenant who was killed in a US drone strike in mid-2011. “Rahman was previously appointed by Osama bin Laden to serve as al Qaeda’s emissary in Iran, a position which allowed him to travel in and out of Iran with the permission of Iranian officials,” Treasury noted.

“Iran is the leading state sponsor of terrorism in the world today,” David S. Cohen, who was then Under Secretary for Terrorism and Financial Intelligence, said in a press release. “By exposing Iran’s secret deal with al Qaeda allowing it to funnel funds and operatives through its territory, we are illuminating yet another aspect of Iran’s unmatched support for terrorism,” Cohen emphasized.

Dec. 2011: The State Department announced a $10 million reward for Yasin al Suri, making him one of the most wanted terrorists on the planet. “Under an agreement between al Qaeda and the Government of Iran, Yasin al Suri has helped move money and recruits through Iran to al Qaeda leaders in neighboring countries in the region,” Robert Hartung, the State Department Assistant Director for Threat Investigations and Analysis, explained during a briefing.

Feb. 2012: The Treasury Department designated the Iranian Ministry of Intelligence and Security (MOIS) for a number of reasons, including the assistance it provided to al Qaeda and al Qaeda in Iraq. According to Treasury, the “MOIS has facilitated the movement of al Qaeda operatives in Iran and provided them with documents, identification cards, and passports.” In addition, the MOIS has “provided money and weapons to al Qaeda in Iraq (AQI)…and negotiated prisoner releases of AQI operatives.”

July 2012: In its Country Reports on Terrorism 2011, the State Department reported that “Iran remained unwilling to bring to justice senior AQ members it continued to detain, and refused to publicly identify those senior members in its custody.” Iran “also allowed AQ members to operate a core facilitation pipeline through Iranian territory, enabling AQ to carry funds and move facilitators and operatives to South Asia and elsewhere.”

October 2012: Treasury explained that Yasin al Suri had been temporarily sidelined as the chief of al Qaeda’s network in Iran. His replacement was Muhsin al Fadhli, a veteran Kuwaiti operative, who later relocated to Syria as part of al Qaeda’s “Khorasan Group” and was killed in an American airstrike. Treasury named Adel Radi Saqr al Wahabi al Harbi as one of Fadhli’s men inside Iran. Harbi also eventually relocated to Syria, where he served as the military commander of Jund al Aqsa, an al Qaeda front group, until meeting his own demise.

Treasury explained how the deal between the Iranian regime and al Qaeda works. “Under the terms of the agreement between al Qaeda and Iran,” Treasury reported, “al Qaeda must refrain from conducting any operations within Iranian territory and recruiting operatives inside Iran while keeping Iranian authorities informed of their activities.” As long as al Qaeda didn’t violate these terms, “the Government of Iran gave the Iran-based al Qaeda network freedom of operation and uninhibited ability to travel for extremists and their families.”
 

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PART 2:


Treasury’s Cohen explained in a press release that the designation of Harbi “builds on our action from July 2011” and “further exposes al Qaeda’s critically important Iran-based funding and facilitation network.” Cohen added: “We will continue targeting this crucial source of al Qaeda’s funding and support, as well as highlight Iran’s ongoing complicity in this network’s operation.”

May 2013: In its Country Reports on Terrorism 2012, the State Department saidthat Iran “allowed AQ facilitators Muhsin al-Fadhli and Adel Radi Saqr al-Wahabi al-Harbi to operate a core facilitation pipeline through Iran, enabling AQ to move funds and fighters to South Asia and to Syria.” Fadhli “began working with the Iran-based AQ facilitation network in 2009,” was “later arrested by Iranian authorities,” but then released in 2011 so he could assume “leadership of the Iran-based AQ facilitation network.”

Jan. 2014: Treasury and State Department officials told Al Jazeera that Yasin al Suri was once again in charge of al Qaeda’s Iran-based network.

Feb. 2014: Treasury identified another Iran-based al Qaeda facilitator, Olimzhon Adkhamovich Sadikov, who is an Uzbek and part of the Islamic Jihad Union. Sadikov “provides logistical support and funding to al Qaeda’s Iran-based network,” according to Treasury.

Apr. 2014: In its Country Reports on Terrorism 2013, the State Department once again noted that the Iranian regime hosted al Qaeda’s “core facilitation pipeline” and “remained unwilling to bring to justice senior al Qaeda (AQ) members it continued to detain,” while also refusing “to publicly identify those senior members in its custody.”

Aug. 2014: Treasury designated a senior al Qaeda leader known as Sanafi al Nasr, who “served in early 2013 as chief of al Qaeda’s Iran-based extremist and financial facilitation network.” Nasr relocated to Syria in 2013 as part of al Qaeda’s “Khorasan Group” and was killed in an American airstrike in 2015.

June 2016: The State Department’s Country Reports on Terrorism 2015 is released. “Iran remained unwilling to bring to justice senior al-Qa’ida (AQ) members it continued to detain and refused to publicly identify the members in its custody,” the report read. State added: “Iran previously allowed AQ facilitators to operate a core facilitation pipeline through Iran since at least 2009, enabling AQ to move funds and fighters to South Asia and Syria.” The implication of the language (“previously allowed”), which was included in the 2014 report as well, was that al Qaeda no longer operated its facilitation network inside Iran. However, al Qaeda did in fact continue to operate its pipeline inside Iran. Country Reports on Terrorism 2016 removed the phrase “previously allowed” from its summary.

July 2016: The US Treasury Department designated three senior al Qaeda figures “located in Iran”: Faisal Jassim Mohammed Al Amri Al Khalidi (a.k.a. Abu Hamza al Khalid), Yisra Muhammad Ibrahim Bayumi, and Abu Bakr Muhammad Muhammad Ghumayn. Treasury explained that it took the action to “disrupt the operations, fundraising, and support networks that help al Qaeda move money and operatives from South Asia and across the Middle East.”

Thomas Joscelyn is a Senior Fellow at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies and the Senior Editor for FDD's Long War Journal.

Tags: Al Nusrah Front, Al Qaeda, Al Qaeda in Iran, Al Qaeda Network in Iran, Iran, Iran-AQ Network, Jabhat al Nusrah, Syria
 

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NYTimes 2011:

Treasury Says Iran Is Aiding Al Qaeda

Treasury Accuses Iran of Aiding Al Qaeda
By HELENE COOPERJULY 28, 2011

WASHINGTON — The Treasury Department on Thursday accused the Iranian authorities of aiding Al Qaeda and said it was imposing financial sanctions on six people believed to be Qaeda operatives in Iran, Kuwait, Qatar and Pakistan.

Weighing in on the puzzling question of whether Iran’s Shiite regime seeks to help the primarily Sunni Al Qaeda, Treasury officials asserted that the Iranian government had entered into an agreement with operatives of the terrorist group and was allowing the country to be used as a transit point for funneling money and people from the Persian Gulf to Pakistan and Afghanistan.

The officials say they have become convinced that Ezedin Abdel Aziz Khalil, whom they described as a “prominent Iran-based Al Qaeda facilitator,” is operating in Iran under an agreement between Al Qaeda and the government.

“This network serves as the core pipeline through which Al Qaeda moves money, facilitators and operatives from across the Middle East to South Asia, including to Atiyah Abd al-Rahman, a key Al Qaeda leader based in Pakistan,” the Treasury said in a statement.

Mr. Rahman, another of the six people named in the Treasury action, is believed to have recently ascended to the No. 2 position in Al Qaeda, reporting directly to the organization’s new leader, Ayman al-Zawahri, who took over after the death of Osama bin Laden.

“By exposing Iran’s secret deal with Al Qaeda allowing it to funnel funds and operatives through its territory, we are illuminating yet another aspect of Iran’s unmatched support for terrorism,” said David S. Cohen, the Treasury under secretary for terrorism and financial intelligence.

The Treasury action means that Americans are barred from engaging in commercial or financial transactions with the six people. Any assets they might have under American jurisdiction are now frozen, administration officials said, though the officials acknowledged that there were probably few such assets. The officials said the sanctions were nonetheless meaningful because they would serve to demonstrate that Iran was working with Al Qaeda.

Indeed, one senior administration said the action sought to expose both “a key funding facilitation network for Al Qaeda and a key aspect for Iranian support for international terrorism.”

“Our sense is this network is operating through Iranian territory with the knowledge and at least the acquiescence of Iranian authorities,” the official said in a conference call with reporters.

Iran detained several senior Qaeda operatives who fled there after the American invasion of Afghanistan and has kept many of them under house arrest. In 2009, though, American officials learned that Iran had released Osama bin Laden’s son, Saad bin Laden. More recently, intelligence officials say they believe that Iran has agreed to better conditions for Qaeda operatives in Iran, including the organization’s top military strategist, Saif al Adel, who had been held under tight security.

Still, officials admit that they are largely in the dark about what is going on with the Qaeda operatives believed to be in Iran.

The Treasury did not name any Iranian government officials in Thursday’s action. The other men named were Umid Muhammadi, who Treasury said had petitioned Iranian officials on behalf of Al Qaeda to release operatives detained in Iran; Salim Hasan Khalifa Rashid al Kuwari, an operative based in Qatar who Treasury said provided financial and logistical support to Al Qaeda through facilitators in Iran; Abdallah Ghanim Mafuz Muslim Al Khawar, another Qatar-based operative whom Treasury says has helped to facilitate travel for extremists headed to jihad in Afghanistan; and Ali Hasan Ali al Ajmi, described as a Kuwait-based associate of Mr. Khalil who provides financial and logistical support to Al Qaeda.

Any Iranian connection to Al Qaeda and the attacks of Sept. 11, 2001, has long been debated. Al Qaeda, which adheres to a radical Sunni theology, often denounces the Shiite sect that holds power in Iran, and the Qaeda branch in Iraq has often singled out and killed Shiites there. But intelligence officials believe that any cooperation between Al Qaeda and Iran against the United States has been limited and cautious.
 
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