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Syria-Lebanon
Syria rejects Guantanamo spy link
2003-09-24
Syria has angrily rejected American allegations linking it to a US serviceman accused of spying at the Guantanamo Bay detention camp in Cuba.
"Lies, all lies."
Senior Airman Ahmad al-Halabi, 24, who is of Syrian origin, worked as a translator at the US base, where hundreds of suspected members of Al-Qaeda and the Taleban are being held without charge. He faces 32 charges, including helping the enemy, and is accused of contacting Syrian diplomats. The Syrian information minister Ahmad al-Hassan called the allegations baseless and illogical, and said it was incredible that a translator in such a position would not have undergone intelligence screening.
Humm, I’d have to agree with the last part.
"How could Syria have spies in Guantanamo? Is the CIA incapable of finding a trustworthy translator?" news agency AFP quoted him as saying.
Apparently
Depends on how long they were on to him. Sounds like they were tracking him long enough to get the goods, not long enough for him to spill to his handlers. And because they snagged two in the space of a day or two, I'd say they were probably tracking them pretty closely.
Posted by:Steve

#7  The Syrian information minister Ahmad al-Hassan? Is he the cousin of Baghdad Bob? He certainly sounds like it!
Posted by: Cyber Sarge (VRWC CA Chapter)   2003-9-24 7:29:48 PM  

#6  Bet two weeks' pay their "controller" is wishing he'd never been born this week. I'm sure he's already gotten a personal email from the Navy JAG: "Report to Guantanimo for debriefing/trial/prison". Not to mention whatever other information this pair of amateur goofballs have allowed the United States to collect - from their laptops, from their personal papers, and from their eavesdropped converstaions. The amount of sweat pouring forth from Damascus may cause a flood in Galilee.
Posted by: Old Patriot   2003-9-24 6:22:45 PM  

#5  My guess would be "yes."
Posted by: Fred   2003-9-24 1:25:48 PM  

#4  Robert, yes to both. And in a funny coincidence, so is Airman al-Halabi, the Air Force translator who was busted. He lied about becoming a naturalized U.S. citizen. Wonder if they have the same controller?
Posted by: Steve   2003-9-24 1:08:53 PM  

#3  Isn't the chaplain's wife Syrian? Didn't he study in Syria?
Posted by: Robert Crawford   2003-9-24 12:27:30 PM  

#2  Humm, I’d have to agree with the last part.

Unfortunately, no system is foolproof.

"How could Syria have spies in Guantanamo? Is the CIA incapable of finding a trustworthy translator?" news agency AFP quoted him as saying.

I probably would have tried to recruit a Lebanese Christian.
Posted by: Bomb-a-rama   2003-9-24 10:38:13 AM  

#1  I'd hate to be their Syrian controller - short walk to a hole in the desert with a 9mm headache. Mistakes that can be traced back are not forgiven
Posted by: Frank G   2003-9-24 8:43:34 AM  

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