TERRORIST MANUAL Part 1 of 2 -- Osama bin Laden

TERRORIST MANUAL Part 1 of 2 -- Osama bin Laden

CAUTION: The "TERRORIST MANUAL" contains
despicable graphic content

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"The Americans" June 5, 1973

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Soundtrack: famous broadcast by
Gordon Sinclair "The Americans" June 5, 1973

Visitors since 9/12/2001

Source: Abdullah Ali Al-Salama, Military Espionage in Islam, pp 253-258

Osama bin Laden has emerged as the prime suspect behind the World Trade Center, Pentagon and Pittsburgh attacks. These excerpts are from a terrorism manual that U.S. investigators say has been used by followers of terrorist leader Osama bin Laden.

The manual, "Military Studies in the Jihad Against the Tyrants," was seized in May 2000 in Manchester, England at the home of a bin Laden follower and suspect still being sought in the conspiracy that led to the bombings of the American Embassies in Kenya and Tanzania in 1998. An English translation of the 180-page Arabic document was placed into evidence during the recent embassy bombing trial in New York federal court. The manual instructs Jihad members on an array of terrorist techniques, including:

Page 1: The Jihad (Holy War)

Page 2: Military Organization

Page 3 - 4: Financial Precautions and Forged Documents

Page 5: Security Measures In Public Transportation

Page 6: Special Operations and Weapons

Page 7 - 8: Guidelines for Beating and Killing Hostages

Page 1 - Page 2 - Page 3 - Page 4 - Page 5 - Page 6 - Page 7 - Page 8

See also:

• TERRORIST MANUAL Part 2 of 2
• TERRORIST MANUAL (180 pages - one file) new 9/10/02

• bin Laden Killing and Training Manuals Part 1 Al Qaeda's Grocery Lists and Manuals of Killing. Reporters for The New York Times collected over 5,000 pages of documents from abandoned safe houses and training camps destroyed by bombs. This article is the first of several examining documents left behind in Afghanistan by Islamic militants. 3/17/02 ( added here 10/9/02)

• How-to Book of Terrorism NY Times Article
• The Americans Transcript of Broadcast by Gordon Sinclair
• CIA Fact Sheet -- Osama bin Laden (Unclassified)
• FBI Ten Most Wanted -- Osama bin Laden
• Who Is Osama bin Laden? BBC News
• WTC Attack photos

Other links:

• 200 jump, fall and plunge to death from WTC USA TODAY estimates that at least 200 people jumped to their deaths that morning, far more than can be seen in the photographs taken that morning. Nearly all were from the north tower, which was hit first and collapsed last. Fewer than a dozen were from the south tower. 9/6/02
• Why bin Laden is Dead? The news first came from sources in Afghanistan and Pakistan almost six months ago: the fugitive died in December and was buried in the mountains of southeast Afghanistan. Pakistan's president, Pervez Musharraf, echoed the information. The remnants of Osama's gang, however, have mostly stayed silent, either to keep Osama's ghost alive or because they have no means of communication. 7/11/02
• Towers Withstood Impact, but Fell to Fire, Report Says. Towers Withstood Impact, but Fell to Fire, Report Says. The incredible energy generated by this blaze was estimated to be three to five gigawatts at its peak. A typical nuclear power plant generates about one gigawatt. All of that energy was converted to deadly heat that began weakening the steel. 3/29/02
• Pentagon Attack Slideshow New Photos Show Attack on Pentagon. A series of five photos obtained today show the first available images of the Pentagon as a plane hijacked by terrorists slammed into the building the morning of Sept. 11. www.washingtonpost.com March 7, 2002
• Why are Muslims so upset with the U.S.? The Core of Muslim Rage Because the real answer is rooted in something very deep. It has to do with the contrast between Islam's self-perception as the most ideal and complete expression of the three great monotheistic religions — Judaism, Christianity and Islam — and the conditions of poverty, repression and underdevelopment in which most Muslims live today. 3/6/02
• Are We What We're Not? Good NYTimes article about us after 9/11, 1/6/02
• What Would Jesus Do About Bin Laden? Not to mention, Buddha, Moses and Machiavelli, Newsweek 12/22/01
• Firefighters Raising Flag at WTC Photo and Article by Ricky Flores 12/10/01
• Why more bin Ladens and Talibans will come NY Times 12/2/01
• Firefighters Raising Flag Photo - Painting - Article 11/2/01
• WHAT IS JIHAD - JIHAD EXPLAINED The Institute of Islamic Information & Education 10/30/01
• We Are All Alone - Except For the British NY Times 10/26/01
• Why tribal rules won't let Afghanistan turn over bin Laden NY Times 10/21/01
• A letter to Osama bin Laden Orlando Sentinel 10/18/01
• CDC - Anthrax 10/15/01 (good)
• Our paradise of trivia, celebrity, consumption and cosmetic-surgery is now our home of paranoia of potential mortal threats -- Season of the Witch NY Times 10/14/01
• War on Terrorism London Sunday Times 10/14/01 (best incisive review I've found)
• What Is Anthrax and How Can You Get Infected? (2) good articles 10/13/01
• Bin Laden Wants U. S. To Strike Back Disproportionately NY Times 10/13/01
• FBI Most Wanted Terrorist List 10/11/01
• New York Times Front Page 10/8/01
• This Is a Religious War NY Times 10/7/01
• Text of Evidence Against bin Laden released by British government 10/4/01
• Bin Laden -- From Rich to Evil NY Times 9/30/01
• What are the peace groups smoking? The Orlando Sentinel 9/28/01
• Index of bin Laden Articles NY Times 9/26/01
• Jackleg ragtag Taleban cannot exist without bin Laden London Times 9/26/01
• Bin Laden is a modern tactician of rare genius London Independent 9/24/01
• Countries supporting USA against terrorism Toronto Star 9/24/01
• Internet Terrorist Attack Rumors - True or False? NY Times 9/23/01
• What is Islam and why the Holy War? London Independent 9/21/01
• How Did Afghans Become Bad Guys? Wall Street Journal 9/19/01
• $500 SkFriends Red Cross Pledge 9/18/01
• Unsung Heroes -- WHAT WE FIGHT TO PROTECT by Maggie Gallagher 9/18/01
• Holy Warriors Escalate an Old War on a New Front NY Times 9/16/01
• Bomb Afghanistan and Bin Laden Wins by Tamin Ansary 9/15/01 (True)
• New York Times Front Page 9/12/01
• How To Book of Terrorism NY Times 4/5/01
• CIA Fact Sheet -- Osama bin Laden (Unclassified)
• FBI Ten Most Wanted -- Osama bin Laden
• www.skfriends.com Our home page

April 5, 2001

Osama bin Laden 'How-to Book of Terrorism'

By ALAN FEUER and BENJAMIN WEISER, NY Times

When testimony in the embassy bombings trial showed that three men had based their surveillance of the American Embassy in Kenya from an improvised darkroom in a cramped Nairobi apartment, it sounded like something taken from a manual called Terrorism 101.

As it turns out, that might be exactly what happened.

The manual has 18 chapters and runs about 180 pages. It is a thick and excruciatingly detailed document — part philosophical treatise, part training guide, part "Spy vs. Spy" from a back issue of Mad magazine.

It was recently introduced at the trial of four men accused of joining Osama bin Laden in a terrorist conspiracy that led to the bombings of the American Embassies in Kenya and Tanzania in 1998. Written in Arabic, it covers topics that include advice for Islamic warriors on how to lie low in Western cultures (shave beard, don't be chatty) and explicit guidelines on committing assassinations, using everything from car bombs to clubs to a lethal stew of spoiled meat, green beans and corn.

The document, "Military Studies in the Jihad Against the Tyrants," was seized in Manchester, England, by the authorities last May at the home of a suspect still being sought in the terrorism case. It was placed into evidence, along with an English translation, without any explanation to the jury.

But as the government rested its case yesterday in Federal District Court in Manhattan, it seemed likely that prosecutors would argue that testimony in the last two months had shown that the bombings conspiracy, and the role of the four men in it, followed a detailed script, drawn in specifics or spirit from the manual exhibited in Courtroom 318.

In one chapter, it notes that explosives are "believed to be the safest weapon" because they allow warriors to "get away from enemy personnel and to avoid being arrested."

"In addition," the manual advises, "explosives strike the enemy with sheer terror and fright."

It opens with a warning: "Belongs to the guest house. Please do not remove it from the house except with permission." (Prosecutors have asserted that in the late 1980's Mr. bin Laden ran guest houses in Afghanistan where he trained young militants who wanted to join his organization.)

The bulk of the text is a series of "lessons" on the specifics of a successful terrorist strike: forged documents, safe houses, arms and ammunition, transportation, codes and ciphers, surviving interrogation. And booby traps.

In Lesson 16, "Assassinations Using Poisons and Cold Steel," the authors explain how to kill with knives, ropes, blunt objects and even by spraying a lethal chemical brew on a potential victim's prayer beads.

Less graphic is the advice offered in Lesson 10 on what information to gather about a target for assassination: his name, age and residence; his job and routes to work; how he spends his free time; the physician who treats him; the stores where he shops. And finally, "ways of sneaking into his house."

While the manual has a somewhat clinical tone — one section bears the heading "Guidelines for Beating and Killing Hostages" — some passages seek to justify coldblooded deeds. It says, for example, that "religious scholars" have permitted the torture of a hostage, especially one who insists on withholding "news, information and secrets of his people."

Two traditional transgressions are not allowed, even during the stress of espionage: drinking wine and fornication. "There is nothing that permits those," the manual warns. But the manual says that undercover agents may forgo traditional Muslim appearance or consolidate prayers to better blend into a foreign country.

It advises suspicion should someone suddenly excuse himself to use the restroom. (An enemy agent once came back with a pistol, it explains.)

"Important note," the manual declares elsewhere. "Married brothers should observe the following. Not talking with their wives about their jihad work."

The manual lists 11 ideal characteristics for those participating in "special operations," like assassinations. One should be fit, canny and clever, with a tranquil and calm personality that "allows coping" with the psychological traumas of bloodshed and mass murder.

The authorship of the manual has never been fully explained, but there are clues. The home in which it was found belongs to the fugitive Anas al- Liby, who has been accused of working closely with Ali A. Mohamed, a former sergeant in the United States Army assigned to Special Forces at Fort Bragg, N.C., from 1986 to 1989.

Prosecutors have said that Mr. Mohamed trained Mr. bin Laden's group in Afghanistan, where he also translated military manuals from English into Arabic. Agents have seized from Mr. Mohamed's home in California a computer file that resembles a digest of terrorist training methods, including the use of explosives, assassination and surveillance techniques.

There have been previous accounts of a multivolume "Encyclopedia of Afghan Jihad," which was said to have been seized by Jordanian authorities. Other terrorist manuals have been uncovered over the years, and even introduced at previous trials. But the manuscript introduced in the bombings case appears to be different.

A government official in Washington who closely monitors terrorism and was read portions of the document said it did not appear to be from the encyclopedia and might be a more localized training document.

"Such manuals," the official said, "show that these guys aren't stupid in how they set up their organization."

Throughout the trial, the government has offered evidence that in some cases tracks the manual precisely — "blasting and destroying the embassies" — and in other cases seems inspired by its guidance.

For example, the government showed that three suspects studied targets in Nairobi before the blast and developed photographs in a tiny apartment after cloaking the windows with blankets. ("It is risky to use an outside film processing service," the manual counsels.)

Prosecutors also showed that Mr. bin Laden's group used blasting caps and detonation cords (from Lesson 15: "Care and caution must be used while handling), and that members fled with fake travel papers (from Lesson 3: "All documents of the undercover brother, such as identity cards and passport, should be falsified").

There was also testimony about the use of code words: "tools" for weapons, "potatoes" for hand grenades, and "soap" for TNT.

And, "If an indictment is issued and the trial begins," the manual suggests that the warrior "complain of mistreatment while in prison" and "take advantage of visits to communicate with brothers outside."

"The importance of mastering the art of hiding messages," it goes on, "is self-evident here."

Testimony has suggested that in some instances, these rules were broken.

When on the telephone, the manual says, an adherent "should not talk about any information that might be of use to the enemy."

But in a recorded phone conversation, one of the defendants told his wife to send "10 green papers." She asked if he meant money.

"Thank you very much," the man on the telephone said, sarcastically.

"That's only for you," his wife said, laughing. "Nobody else is listening."

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