Ibn Sheikh al-Libi
Ibn al-Sheikh al-Libi (1963?-2009) was an al-Qaeda training officer, born inLibya. whose interrogation is reported to have been one of the stronger reasons, for the George W. Bush Administration to begin the Iraq War (2003-).[1] He had made a number of statements about [[weapons of mass destruction in Iraqi hands, and to which al-Qaeda might gain access. He is reported to have committed suicide in Libyan detention. [2]
Aliases: Bin Sheik, Ibn al Shaykh al Libi, Ibn al-Shaikh al-Libi, Ibn al-Shaykh al-Liby, Ibn al-Shaikh al-Liby
Early suspicion
U.S. intelligence had been aware of him before his capture. He was a leader of the the Khalden training camp, where Zacarias Moussaoui and Ahmed Ressam. The U.S. government froze his assets on Sept. 23, 2001.[3]
He had been arrested, by Pakistani authorities, in the town of Kohat, on the border with Afghanistan, in late 2001, as he escaped Tora Bora. Early in his January 2002 interrogation by military personnel, he provided actionable information about a truck bomb plan in Yemen, and also gave information on Abu Zubaydah. At this point, a sharp debate began between Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) and Federal Bureau of Investigation personnel aware of the interviews. The CIA approach using harsh methods apparently started once Abu Zubaydah was captured, based in part on the lead from al-Libi[4] Through the process of extraordinary rendition, he was transferred to Egypt, and interrogated there by Central Intelligence Agency and Egyptian personnel. and eventually taken to Cairo, where the CIA enlisted Egyptian intelligence agents to help with the interrogation. He was returned to CIA custody, may have been held in other locations, including Jordan, Morocco and Afghanistan, and "someplace very cold", which, while he was told was Alaska, could have been northern Poland.
In Egyptian hands, and under torture, he said that the Iraqi regime was training al-Qaeda operatives.[5]He disavowed this when returned to the CIA.
Libya
It was reported he was flown by the CIA to Tripoli in early 2006 and imprisoned by the Libyan government. No statements have been made to suggest this might have been an international extradition request by Libya, his country of citizenship.
In Tripoli, Libi joined other member of the Libyan Islamic Fighting Group, a network that had plotted for years from exile to overthrow Muhammar Gaddafi.
References
- ↑ Craig Whitlock (October 27, 2007), "From CIA Jails, Inmates Fade Into Obscurity: Dozens of 'Ghost Prisoners' Not Publicly Accounted For", Washington Post
- ↑ Peter Finn (May 12, 2009), "Detainee Who Gave False Iraq Data Dies In Prison in Libya", Washington Post
- ↑ "Ibn al-Shaykh al-Libi", Globalsecurity
- ↑ .Dana Priest, "CIA Puts Harsh Tactics On Hold", Washington Post
- ↑ Juan Cole (May 12, 2009), "Al-Libi Case Eloquent Testimony against Torture", Informed Comment, Global Americana Institute