Al-Qaida No. 2: We Have Briefcase Nukes

[ringmastery]

http://apnews.myway.com/article/20040321/D81F0G2G0.html

SYDNEY, Australia (AP) - Osama bin Laden's terror network claims to have bought ready-made nuclear weapons on the black market in central Asia, the biographer of al-Qaida's No. 2 leader was quoted as telling an Australian television station.

In an interview scheduled to be televised on Monday, Pakistani journalist Hamid Mir said Ayman al-Zawahri claimed that "smart briefcase bombs" were available on the black market. It was not clear when the interview between Mir and al-Zawahri took place.

U.S. intelligence agencies have long believed that al-Qaida attempted to acquire a nuclear device on the black market, but say there is no evidence it was successful.

In the interview with Australian Broadcasting Corp. television, parts of which were released Sunday, Mir recalled telling al-Zawahri it was difficult to believe that al-Qaida had nuclear weapons when the terror network didn't have the equipment to maintain or use them.

"Dr Ayman al-Zawahri laughed and he said 'Mr. Mir, if you have $30 million, go to the black market in central Asia, contact any disgruntled Soviet scientist, and a lot of ... smart briefcase bombs are available,'" Mir said in the interview.

[MadProphetMargin]

1. Maybe we didn't invade Iraq enough....

[IronLionZion]

2. scary

Wasn't Pakistan supposed to be closing in on this fool? I bet he bought it from Pakistan's nuclear network.

[BeatleBoot]

3. It's all Bill Clinton's fault

We need to elect Kerry now!

[Lalena]

4. When there was a USSR, they supposedly had suitcase nukes.

There has been a story circulating for a couple of years that USSR had suitcase nukes and many disappeared when the country broke up. Further speculation, prior to 9/11, was that they were being offered to the highest bidders.

[Jose Diablo]

5. If they have suitcase nukes, and thats a big if

then I wonder what effect outing Valerie Plame had on al-Qaida's ability to obtain the nukes.

[sweetheart]

6. rumsfield's plot has been foiled

His plan was to infiltrate a nuclear briefcase package in to the
major capital cities of all world nations and then to detonate them
as an act of preemptive opposition to terrorism.