Bin Laden Phone Leak an urban myth

[David Farber <dave () farber net>]

Another urban myth by the USG -- just like WMD

Begin forwarded message:

From: Tim Finin <finin () cs umbc edu>
Date: December 22, 2005 9:06:53 AM EST
To: dave () farber net
Subject: Bin Laden Phone Leak an urban myth

Where was Snopes when we needed him?  All week long I've
been reading and hearing about how we were listening in on
Bin Laden's phone conversations until he wised up when the
Washington Times "leaked" the fact.  Bad Press!!  Now the
Post reports this as an urban myth.  I guess our leaders,
even though they control tremendous intelligence assets, get
some information the old fashioned way -- from a friend of a
friend.

--

  http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2005/12/21/ 
AR2005122101994.html

  File the Bin Laden Phone Leak Under 'Urban Myths'

  Glenn Kessler, Washington Post, Thur 22 Dec 2005

  President Bush asserted this week that the news media
  published a U.S. government leak in 1998 about Osama bin
  Laden's use of a satellite phone, alerting the al Qaeda
  leader to government monitoring and prompting him to
  abandon the device.

  The story of the vicious leak that destroyed a valuable
  intelligence operation was first reported by a
  best-selling book, validated by the Sept. 11 commission
  and then repeated by the president.
        
  A leak alerted Osama bin Laden to telephone surveillance,
  according to President Bush and others.  A leak alerted
  Osama bin Laden to telephone surveillance, according to
  President Bush and others. (AP) Who's Blogging?  Read what
  bloggers are saying about this article.

  But it appears to be an urban myth.

  The al Qaeda leader's communication to aides via satellite
  phone had already been reported in 1996 -- and the source
  of the information was another government, the Taliban,
  which ruled Afghanistan at the time.

  ...



--
 Tim Finin, Computer Science & Electrical Engineering, Univ of Maryland
 Baltimore County, 1000 Hilltop Cir, Baltimore MD 21250. finin () umbc edu
 http://ebiquity.umbc.edu 410-455-3522 fax:-3969 http://umbc.edu/~finin


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