Posted on Thu, Sep. 22, 2005
M O R E N E W S F R O M
• DoD
• US News
• Terrorism
‘Able Danger’ obstruction a concern
The Associated Press
WASHINGTON — The Senate Judiciary Committee chairman said Wednesday that he would look into whether the Pentagon obstructed his committee by refusing to allow testimony from five persons.
They had been expected to testify Wednesday about a link between al-Qaida and four of the Sept. 11, 2001, hijackers — including leader Mohamed Atta — that a secret military unit named “Able Danger” is said to have uncovered more than a year before the 2001 attacks.
“I think the Department of Defense owes the American people an explanation of what went on here,” said Sen. Arlen Specter, a Pennsylvania Republican.
Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld said later Wednesday that an offer was made to do a classified briefing on Able Danger.
“As I understand it, the Judiciary Committee preferred to have an open hearing on a classified matter, and therefore the department declined to participate in an open hearing on a classified matter,” Rumsfeld said.
The Pentagon has acknowledged that some employees recall seeing an intelligence chart identifying Atta as a terrorist before the attacks.
Bryan Whitman, a Pentagon spokesman, said the Pentagon thought it had provided sufficient information on Able Danger to the Senate Armed Services and Intelligence committees, which oversee the department.
Lt. Col. Mark Shaffer, a military intelligence officer who worked on Able Danger, was prepared to testify that he tried on three separate occasions to meet with the FBI to discuss the unit’s findings but was prevented from doing so because of legal concerns by department lawyers, according to Shaffer’s attorney, Mark Zaid, who testified on his behalf.
Zaid also testified on behalf of James Smith, a defense contractor. Zaid said Smith recalled seeing, before the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks, a chart bearing Atta’s picture.
The picture was purchased from a California contractor, Zaid said.
Erik Kleinsmith, a former Army major who worked on Able Danger, said he destroyed documents pertaining to Able Danger in 2000 because he was required to do so under Army regulations.
Rep. Curt Weldon, a Pennsylvania Republican, was the first to assert that Able Danger had identified Atta and three others as being members of an al-Qaida cell.
If correct, the intelligence would change the timeline for when government officials became aware of Atta’s links to al-Qaida.
Slade Gorton, a member of the commission that investigated the attacks, said a review of Able Danger documents found “no charts, no data sets and no analysis identifying Mohamed Atta or any of the other hijackers” before Sept. 11, 2001.
M O R E N E W S F R O M
• DoD
• US News
• Terrorism
‘Able Danger’ obstruction a concern
The Associated Press
WASHINGTON — The Senate Judiciary Committee chairman said Wednesday that he would look into whether the Pentagon obstructed his committee by refusing to allow testimony from five persons.
They had been expected to testify Wednesday about a link between al-Qaida and four of the Sept. 11, 2001, hijackers — including leader Mohamed Atta — that a secret military unit named “Able Danger” is said to have uncovered more than a year before the 2001 attacks.
“I think the Department of Defense owes the American people an explanation of what went on here,” said Sen. Arlen Specter, a Pennsylvania Republican.
Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld said later Wednesday that an offer was made to do a classified briefing on Able Danger.
“As I understand it, the Judiciary Committee preferred to have an open hearing on a classified matter, and therefore the department declined to participate in an open hearing on a classified matter,” Rumsfeld said.
The Pentagon has acknowledged that some employees recall seeing an intelligence chart identifying Atta as a terrorist before the attacks.
Bryan Whitman, a Pentagon spokesman, said the Pentagon thought it had provided sufficient information on Able Danger to the Senate Armed Services and Intelligence committees, which oversee the department.
Lt. Col. Mark Shaffer, a military intelligence officer who worked on Able Danger, was prepared to testify that he tried on three separate occasions to meet with the FBI to discuss the unit’s findings but was prevented from doing so because of legal concerns by department lawyers, according to Shaffer’s attorney, Mark Zaid, who testified on his behalf.
Zaid also testified on behalf of James Smith, a defense contractor. Zaid said Smith recalled seeing, before the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks, a chart bearing Atta’s picture.
The picture was purchased from a California contractor, Zaid said.
Erik Kleinsmith, a former Army major who worked on Able Danger, said he destroyed documents pertaining to Able Danger in 2000 because he was required to do so under Army regulations.
Rep. Curt Weldon, a Pennsylvania Republican, was the first to assert that Able Danger had identified Atta and three others as being members of an al-Qaida cell.
If correct, the intelligence would change the timeline for when government officials became aware of Atta’s links to al-Qaida.
Slade Gorton, a member of the commission that investigated the attacks, said a review of Able Danger documents found “no charts, no data sets and no analysis identifying Mohamed Atta or any of the other hijackers” before Sept. 11, 2001.
