Key al-Qaida Informant Details Additional Information, Criticizes Ashdown's Refusal to Act in Bosnia-Herzegovina
Defense & Foreign Affairs Special Analysis - February 14, 2005 Monday

From GIS Station Sarajevo. GIS/Defense & Foreign Affairs has been able to study original documents written and signed by a Bahraini Islamist, Ali Hamad, currently imprisoned in Bosnia-Herzegivina, in which he details his involvement with terrorist groups operating in the country. Ali Hamad is currently in Zenica prison, and had been the target of assassination attempts allegedly directed by former Bosnian officials from the Government of the late Alija Izetbegovic. GIS officials have also spoken at length with Ali Hamad.

In his message, which is a prelude to a comprehensive book he has written documenting his involvement in al-Qaida, Ali Hamad also details how he provided information on al-Qaida operations in Bosnia-Herzegovina to the international community's High Representative for the country, Paddy Ashdown; information which Ashdown has failed to acknowledge or act upon. Ali Hamad, who provided unique information to US intelligence agencies enabling the capture of at least two major al-Qaida leaders, has demonstrated his bone fides on numerous occasion, and yet Ashdown has refused to heed his warnings on radical Islamist penetrations of the Bosnia-Herzegovina intelligence and security agencies.

See Defense & Foreign Affairs Daily, August 23, 2004: Document: "Alija Delimustafic Threatens Former al-Qaida Officer Ali Hamad?"

The new document by Ali Hamad was addressed to the editors of the Bosnian Serb newspaper, Glas Srpske, in Banja Luka. Significantly, Ali Hamad chose to make the statement to a non-Government agency, given the ongoing penetration of Government police and intelligence activities at a federal level by pro-Izetbegovic Islamists, supporting those who had sought to have him assassinated. It was understood that Glas Srpske would publish some or all of the document.

The translation of the complete text of the document, undertaken by GIS staffers from the original document, is as follows:

Ali Hamad, Penitentiary Zenica, Sarajevska 36

10 January 2005

To the "Glas Srpske" editors, Banja Luka

Ladies and Gentlemen in the "Glas Srpske," and particularly Dobrila Majstorovic, I accept full cooperation with you with great pleasure, but on one condition: that it be directed to anti-terrorist activity, in the name of justice, peace, love of all regardless of ethnic and religious background; and to be part of a joint struggle against injustice, violence, ethnic hatred and intolerance, as well as against terrorism in all its shapes and colors, especially against Osama bin Laden and his terrorist al-Qaida network, of which I used to be a member once, and against the foreign mujahedin who came to Bosnia-Herzegovina [BH] during the 1992-95 war calling themselves "holy warriors" and "warriors of Allah". Spreading lies and propaganda that they came to this land to offer protection and aid to the assaulted Bosniak Muslims, they murdered and ruthlessly beheaded innocent citizens of B-H for no reason but that they weren't Muslims; their real goal is to spread their network to this region and fire up hatred between the ethnic groups here, using the war as a medium. They have continued their work after the war, perpetrating all sort of inhumane and dirty deeds.

So, if what I've indicated above can be our common purpose, then I support any form of cooperation with you that stays within the bounds of the law.

In this first contact (or second), and I hope it won't be the last, I wish to tell you the following:

From my childhood, and under the extremely difficult conditions in which I grew up in my homeland, I was forced to associate with members, collaborators and fans of the terrorist al-Qaida . I was friends with them for a year and a half, during which they spiritually and psychologically prepared me for terrorist actions, conducting everyday "lectures" (ie: brainwashing). Once they were confident they had prepared me, programmed me robotically, to practice ethnic hatred and hatred of other; once they were convinced I hated the entire world, including myself; once they were certain I had become mercilessly violent and wanted blood and vengeance against just about everyone - they sent me to the war in Afghanistan, giving me the opportunity to express my anger and hatred towards humanity, and exact vengeance on all human brings, innocent or not, only because they were alive and different.

After that, I made a sworn pledge to al-Qaida, in the presence of Osama bin Laden and three of his high-ranking officers. I took the pledge in the town of Jalalabad, Afghanistan. Once my mission in Afghanistan was over, I was ordered back to my home town, where I received orders to go to a new assignment, in B-H.

I arrived in Bosnia-Herzegovina in September 1992, where I operated alongside the mujahedin within the former Army of the Republic of Bosnia-Herzegovina [ARBiH]. As an experienced and trained soldier, I became a commander of a unit located in the village of Bijela Buca, near Travnik.

In 2001, as I was in this institution [prison - tr.], I watched the horrors of the catastrophic terrorist attack on the US on September 11 [2001], which instantly killed 3,000 innocent American citizens. I watched these painful scenes with sorrow in my heart and eyes, thinking: "I can assume who did this inhumanity. I feel horrible. How much longer will innocents be killed only because they aren't Muslims? How much longer will there be violence, nationalism, terrorism? How much longer will there be injustice, hatred, bloodshed and revenge? What have these people done to deserve death? Do they not have right to live, just because they aren't Muslims? No one could do such a thing but Osama bin Laden and his al-Qaida . Remember, my former boss, you and your people will regret dearly that you'd trusted me and picked me for a member. One day I will be famous as your implacable enemy, who will strike mercilessly at the very heart of your al-Qaida . I am your pupil, and the pupil of your school, and you taught me that a promise is a debt ..."

The attack on the US on September 11 changed the entire world, as well as my heart, which had been ill with the disease of terrorism. Because of it, and for several other reasons, I decided firmly and finally to not only quit al-Qaida, but to dedicate my entire being and everything at my disposal to a struggle against violence, ethnic hatred and intolerance, as well as evil people who use terrorism to spill the blood of innocents and destroy their homes. I specifically did this to fight against my former boss Osama bin Laden and the al-Qaida, of which I was a member.

In the name of justice, peace and freedom-loving people whatever their ethnicity or religion, I have decided to offer maximum cooperation to the best of my abilities to all international antiterrorist institutions, and become an active member of the campaign against terrorism, especially against al-Qaida ; in order to prevent the repetition of September 11 in the USA, to protect the lives of innocents, to ensure a better future and maximum protection for my children and all other children - even at the cost of my own life.

From 6 November 2001, to the present day, I have initiated a widespread action, in which I informed many domestic and international institutions, in writing and in official interviews. Among them were the international stabilization forces in B-H, prime minister of B-H, the High Representative Paddy Ashdown, the embassies of the USA, Britain, Italy, Canada and others; Holy Father John Paul II, President of the United States George W. Bush, the US Department of Defense, and the FBI, with which I am still in contact. Therefore, I consider myself obligated to offer maximum assistance, support and cooperation to all international institutions dealing with the problem of terrorism, so they could achieve positive results in suppressing and uncovering the work of al-Qaida and its clones.

I think that my assistance in this matter is necessary and that with that assistance they can achieve what they could not achieve without it, and without me and my knowledge of al-Qaida . My vast knowledge of al-Qaida comes from the fact that I was once one of its officers, I know its modus operandi from experience, I know its rules, its command structure, its active and passive members, its high-ranking operatives, who are spread throughout the world waiting for the green light from their boss to begin attacks and dirty, inhumane attacks. There are such people in this region, too.

Of all the institutions mentioned above I have asked for assistance, protection and maximum physical and political protection, so I could achieve what I promised - to help disable and destroy the main cells of al-Qaida, to bring before the face of justice the leaders, members and associates of that terrorist network.

So far, thanks to me and no-one else, two al-Qaida leaders were found and arrested in Qatar: one of the top brains of the organization, Khaled as-Shayk [sp?], currently at the US naval base in Guantanamo Bay, Cuba; and an al-Qaida financier Mohammed es-Siddiqi.

Had it not been for me and my maximum cooperation, no-one could have found out these two were connected with al-Qaida, nor would they have been arrested, yet no one so much as thanked me.

It is interesting that the High Representative of the international community in B-H Paddy Ashdown, who has shown his teeth to the Serb Republic [RS] and often tells the media that he is not punishing the RS but the criminals and those who protect war criminals, that he has not shown the slightest interest or any teeth to the foreign mujahedin who came to this region during the 1992-1995 war, committed horrible war crimes against the Serb and Croat civilians, and imported from Asia and Africa the terrorism, Wahhabism, Salafism, ethnic hatred and intolerance towards non-Muslims; this is confirmed by something that was nonexistent prior to the war, which is the appearance of domestic mujahedin in all towns and villages of the B-H Federation.

I have written to him [Ashdown] twice, on 12 January 2004 and 19 January 2004; with full responsibility, I told him that al-Qaida has been present in B-H throughout the 1992-1995 war, and that it still has sympathizers in this region, who were given citizenships during the war, and whom I know personally. In these letters, I informed him of my case, and my readiness for maximum cooperation with international anti-terrorist institutions.

I guaranteed to him that with my assistance and cooperation many operatives and active leaders, members and sympathizers of al-Qaida throughout the world would be caught; I offered him the opportunity to disable and destroy the major cells of al-Qaida. Also, after stating that terrorist remnants still reside in B-H, I offered him a specific 10-point program, and guaranteed that its acceptance would cleanse B-H of the remnants of terrorism and evildoers who came here during the war, and now act as good citizens of FB-H, while they are in fact sleepers waiting for the green light from their boss to start committing inhumane deeds and atrocities. I guaranteed that I would give an explanation of every point in my program in official interviews with officials from his cabinet either in this institution [the penitentiary] or another adequate location.

The trouble is that I never received a real response. He never showed any interest for my program, or the problem of terrorism in this region, while at the same time he'd trained his political guns with great interest on the Serb Republic. With great and due respect to Mr. Ashdown, I hope he will show more interest and that he will take more serious steps to resolve this problem, while I herald my readiness for maximum cooperation in advance.

Also interesting is the case with the AID intelligence agency [Agencija za Istrazivanje i Dokumentaciju BiH (Agency for Documentation and Investigation; the ostensible Bosnian federal intelligence agency, but dominated by Islamists -- Ed .], and its former boss. I had three official interviews with AID officials inside this institution, on 9 August, 14 August and 13 September 2002, when I informed them in detail about the war crimes committed by the mujahedin during the war against the Serb and Croat civilians; names of the mujahedin who perpetrated these crimes; and locations where the crimes were committed.

Specifically, I talked about three atrocities: the first one was in the village of Bijela Buca near Travnik, where four foreign nationals (journalists, most likely British) were abducted and killed while performing their work. The perpetrators of this crime are six mujahedin - Algerian E.M., Algerian A.B., Saudi E.M., Lybian E.H., Tunisian E.H., and Egyptian I.M.

I note that this case was closed and forgotten until I reopened it and reminded them of it in 2002.

The other atrocity, a barbarous murder, took place in 1993 in the Croat village of Guca Gora near Travnik. The mujahedin attacked the abovenamed village, and there was a brief firefight which involved even the members of international forces (UNPROFOR), who tried to protect the village and its inhabitants from the attack. But when UNPROFOR members saw the long beards of their attackers and realized they were being attacked by mujahedin, they boarded their troop carriers and ran, saving themselves and leaving the civilians in the village to the mercy of the mujahedin . Some 20 Croat civilians were captured; after psychological and physical mistreatment, they were taken somewhere just outside the village and brutally murdered with bullets, knives, and even a chainsaw. Before that bloody event, in the same village, a mujahid named E.M. used a big knife to slit the throat of a 16- or 14-year old Croat boy before his father's eyes. The father was forced to watch; then his life was taken in the same fashion.

The third atrocity happened the same year, and I witnessed it, in the mujahedin camp in the village of Orasac near Travnik. The mujahedin slit the throat and decapitated a Serb citizen of B-H with a rusty kitchen knife. This was witnessed by four Croat captives, who fortunately survived. The murderer was S.B., assisted by R.A., while E.M. severed the head from the body.

AID officials appeared interested for these crimes and my cooperation in bringing them to light and their perpetrators to justice. They told me we would be in regular contact and promised to take the appropriate measures. I waited for their next visit, but they never came again. Then I found out that the international institutions dealing with the problem of terrorism demanded of the former AID director, K.S., to give them a report on African and Asian persons who arrived in B-H over the last 10 years, and any information about their connections to any terrorist networks. I found out that the former AID director never gave the international institutions any information about these atrocities, nor of my existence as an eyewitness, which means they were covering up important evidence that could have been helpful in anti-terrorist operations.

This illegal action was discovered, which is why the former head of AID was relieved. The problem is that the purpose of this cover-up was never revealed or investigated. This is why I have every reason to accuse the former head of AID that, for whatever purpose unknown to me, he - and his associates who interviewed me - abused the information and testimony I gave them and covered up the aforementioned atrocities, protecting the mujahedin who committed them.

This illegal action of theirs did not defraud me, since I am not a member of this community and have nothing to do with this country except wishing it to be safe, stable and prosperously on its way to Europea integration; they have however defrauded themselves and their own people by protecting criminals and their atrocities, giving them the opportunity to move about freely and endanger the safety of their own people and the state.

I want it to be known that I have no intention of further cooperating with officials who do not want to reveal the truth if it doesn't fit their political, national or religious positions. With all due respect, but also with a great deal of resentment, I appeal to the former head of AID and his men to return my material evidence. They do not need it, but I do.

Anyway, I claim with full responsibility that al-Qaida has been present in B-H throughout the 1992-95 war and that it still has members and sympathizers in this region.

In 2001, the SFOR command in B-H claimed it had evidence that al-Qaida had operated in B-H in that time period. Expert for international law and terrorism Darko Trifunovic claims that members of the al-Qaida terrorist network are still in B-H territory.

Former SFOR commander General Virgil Packett hesitantly expressed doubt that there were live al-Qaida members in B-H, but could not state that categorically. So even though leading anti-terrorist institutions claimed that there were al-Qaida members in B-H, the general admitted that was a fact, though he only called them "sleepers" and not active members. Does this mean that, in his opinion, sleepers aren't dangerous? I tell the general, he is mistaken if he believes there is a difference between active members of al-Qaida and sleepers. The only difference between them is that active members have received the green light for action, while the sleepers are still waiting for it.

For example, the terrorists who perpetrated the September 11 attacks in the USA, who instantly snuffed out the lives of 3,000 innocents, were peaceful sleepers before they received their order to attack.

Preparation for terrorism and waiting for the appropriate time and order to strike are part of operational activities, and may well take years. So, the aforementioned general's opinion that al-Qaida's sleepers were inactive is wrong. If we were to accept it as true, we would have to say that the terrorists who perpetrated the 9/11 attacks were "not a danger" while they were preparing it in secrecy, waiting for the green light.

On 23 July 2004 I sent a letter to the general, openly challenging his wrong opinion and disputing his statements. He never responded, but I think he could not. American intelligence, the CIA, claims there are terrorists in B-H, that B-H is a way station for weapons, financial transactions and documents - everything one needs for terrorist attacks. American lawyer and former political analyst for the US Senate, James Jatras, has evidence based on which he claims that al-Qaida is operating in B-H.

Deputy Minister for security in the B-H Council of Ministers, Dragan Mektic, recently said that investigations have shown that there are seven Afro-Asian persons in B-H under surveillance for links to terrorist networks, who have obtained their citizenships fraudulently. This statement was carried by the media. However, certain high officials who are dealing with the problem of terrorism in this region loudly and strongly deny every report of persons connected with terrorist networks; they are disputing my claims, and the claims of many world institutions, that since the beginning of the war in 1992, B-H has been fertile ground and a haven for international terrorism.

On this occasion I would like to ask several questions, asking those who every so often deny the existence of terrorism in this region to give me specific answers. For security reasons, every state has laws and rules demanding that foreigners who enter its territory must be registered, with their origin, purpose of visit, the length of stay and place of residence, etc. entered into evidence. So I ask the first question: did the foreign mujahedin who came to B-H during the 1992-1995 war, some of whom stayed in the region afterwards, pass through the proper and required procedure? In other words, does anyone in the government then or now know anything about these mujahedin : who they are, where they came from, their real identities, the purpose of their stay in B-H during the war?

If anyone in the authorities thinks he knows the answer to this question, I will be ready to face him and in the presence of foreign journalists and representatives of an international counter-terrorist institution give him the names of at least 50 mujahedin who I know, who operated in B-H during the war; he should then tell me what he knows about them, give me the real identities of at least two, and tell me where they came from.

If the officials decide to answer me and admit they have no information, or have just a little bit on foreign mujahedin who came to B-H during the war, they should have good answers to the following questions. How, then, and based on what can certain high-ranking officials in the B-H government claim there is no terrorism in this country, when they know little or nothing about the pile of foreign mujahedin that came into this country during the war, illegally and without any identity checks? Are these officials excluding the possibility that some of these mujahedin could have been terrorists linked to various terrorist networks? An additional problem is that many of those mujahedin received their citizenship under murky and illegal circumstances.

It is clear the mujahedin did not come to this country - of which they did not know before, leaving their families and homes - during the war in order to shoot marbles on the streets of Sarajevo or get laid? Don't the people who once ran the government in B-H and those who do so know think exactly what many B-H citizens think, that the foreign mujahedin came to B-H during the war to protect and defend the attacked Bosniak people?

Second question: How do the B-H officials interpret the appearance of domestic mujahedin, an occurrence unprecedented before the war?  During and after the war, these domestic mujahedin adopted some very strange opinions, which influenced them so much they even changed their outward appearance - adopting a garb previously unknown in this region, short trousers, long, unkempt beards, etc. - and started aggressively practicing religion.

Under which circumstances did these foreign mujahedin arise, and who taught them these alien ways that made them into a separate sect, obviously distinct from the customs and mentality of the people of this region?

Third question: Who and what was Ahmed Zuhairi, known as "Handala," directly linked to al-Qaida from its foundation, and who fought with the mujahedin in B-H during the war, while at the same time working for the Croatian Government with unknown authority, meeting with the Croatian president Franjo Tudjman several times?

I don't really know who used whom through Ahmed Zuhairi; was it Croatia that used al-Qaida, or the other way around? Or was something entirely different going on?

So, with all due respect, I demand the authorities in B-H do not raise dust about my sincerity, to answer my questions publicly, and prove with arguments their claims that terrorism does not exist in B-H. I will, however, use arguments to prove that al-Qaida has operated in B-H during the 1992-1995 war, and that it still has its members, associates and sympathizers in this country.

Within my struggle against injustice, nationalism, terrorism of any kind and especially al-Qaida, on 11 June 2004 I started writing a book under the working title "International terrorism and al-Qaida in B-H and the world," which I intend to make a road sign to the world in the fight against evil, and help people throughout the world, regardless of their nationality, religion or political affiliation. This book would be of special interest to the youth, giving them advice as to how to resist the seduction of al-Qaida and other terrorist organizations. It would protect them from falling into the dark abyss in which I was, and from which one can climb out of only with great risk and difficulty.

This book of mine will be like an earthquake to al-Qaida and its sympathizers, rocking them at their very foundations. The book will reveal many of al-Qaida's secrets, inhumane and dirty deeds, its high-ranking leaders, members and associates deployed around the world. For the very first time in history, the true face of al-Qaida will be revealed in public, from its 1987 foundation to the present.

What I intend to describe, what I've already almost finished describing (80 percent), will put the readers in my shoes. I will speak of the circumstances under which I was forced to associate with Bin Laden's people and where; about my membership in al-Qaida and how it came about; about the al-Qaida rules and ways of operation; about my first encounter with the al-Qaida leader, Osama bin Laden, and the topic of our conversation; about Bin Laden and his private life, which is filled with oddities and surprises; about his officers and people of importance; about the activities of al-Qaida and its military in Afghanistan, and where they were located; about the Taliban and their origins; about the end of my mandate in Afghanistan and departure to a new mission in B-H. In my book, I will speak about many of Bin Laden's men, deployed around the world, and reveal their missions. I will also speak of some officials from various Islamic countries, who hold positions of power and authority, and who secretly provided support, aid and special favors to members of al-Qaida, based on which al-Qaida prospered and developed its activities to the point where it threatens the world - and all thanks to these officials. In the book, I will also speak of the foreign mujahedin who came to B-H during the 1992-1995 war, who and what they were, their links to al-Qaida, and how they were essentially al-Qaida's infiltration program in this region. I will speak in detail about the mujahedin, from the time they arrived in B-H at the start of the war, to 1997, as well as their organization and activities in B-H.  I will especially address the domestic mujahedin and analyze their emergence, and discuss the links between former B-H authorities and foreign mujahedin during the war and afterwards. I will address some other matters, of which I won't talk about now.

I inform all those who constantly raise dust and doubt in my honesty and truthfulness that my book won't be entertaining fiction, but will include written evidence and arguments. The book will be read at the Hague Tribunal before publication - maybe it is being read there right now. I will be ready to testify and argue before the Tribunal in The Hague about everything that I will cite in the book. This book will be a symbol of my struggle against violence, ethnic hatred and intolerance, a road sign in my sincere battle and sacrifice against evil, and in the name of justice, peace, understanding and love of all, regardless of their nationality, religion or political affiliation.

This book will be the fruit of my sincere repentance, and proof of my great love and friendship for all people, whom my painful tale will counsel to stay away from the fallen path that I walked, and from which I managed to return with much pain and effort. The book will be available to readers in B-H in the spring or summer of this year, and afterwards published in other countries and other languages.

Because of my opposition to al-Qaida and the foreign mujahedin who arrived in B-H during the war, because of my full cooperation with the international anti-terrorist institutions, and because of my book that strikes at the very heart of al-Qaida, I have become a target of vengeance by al-Qaida's members, who are all over the world. Therefore there is a danger I might be attacked while here in prison, and especially after I leave prison, and just by al-Qaida . Unfortunately, truth and justice threaten many, especially those in positions of power who fear my book. Danger to my life and safety also comes from many people who are Muslim, and who venerate Osama Bin Laden and al-Qaida, considering him a defender of Muslims and Islam, whose struggle (terrorism) would (supposedly) restore the lost strength and pride of Islam.

These people consider me a traitor to Muslims worldwide, not aware that my struggle is directed against terrorism worldwide; to replace injustice with justice; to replace violence with kindness; to replace murder with salvation; to replace vengeance with forgiveness; and to have peace for all humanity, understanding, safety, and heavenly, limitless love.

My struggle is not aimed against Islam and Muslims. Quite the contrary. I am a Muslim and very proud of it. But I also love and respect other religions.

It is a fact that my struggle is aimed against evil, against terrorism and al-Qaida, its leader Osama bin Laden, and the mujahedin who came to B-H during the war, and continued to act after the war pretending to be loyal citizens.

Since many consider me an enemy of Islam and Muslims, I have experienced all the perils of my struggle against terrorism here in prison. I don't know what to say on this occasion, except that I am someone who is fighting with insufficient resources, sacrificing himself, in order to make life better for everyone. Member of my nation beat me up from all sides, but members of other nations understand me, respect me and thank me for my efforts and sacrifices.

When night falls in my dark prison cell and when I think of all the threats and dangers to my life, I smile and think, "Will the world allow that my struggle for the betterment of humanity makes my wife a widow, and that my two little girls become orphans? Can telling the truth cost me so much? But I will not give up, ever."

In case I am killed, however, let the humankind know and remember that I was a person who accepted the sacrifice of my life for the sake of justice, peace, and love for all regardless of their ethnicity or religion. If that ever happens, let everyone remember my name, and that I sacrificed myself for justice, peace and love for all; that my life was extinguished only because I fought to protect my children and everyone else's children from evils of terrorism; and that the freedom-loving world did not offer me the necessary physical protection, assistance and support.

I would like to use this opportunity to send a friendly message to my former teacher and master, Osama bin Laden, hoping that the message will reach him:

I am convinced that you are very unpleasantly surprised and that you could have never thought or dreamed that your quiet student could become the most bitter enemy of you and your al-Qaida, a nightmare that keeps your men awake and ruins the enjoyment of their wives.

This has happened. The devil has come to claim his own.

You and your men must accept that I no longer belong to you, but to the international anti-terrorist institutions, in which I could become an active fighter against you and your al-Qaida .

Your greatest enemy, America and Americans, are now my friends, and I am in constant contact with them. It is with great pleasure that I will offer them my maximum support and cooperation to destroy your al-Qaida . I do not regret in the least rebelling against you and your men; this had to happen, because there was nothing in common between us any more. You are still for injustice, and I am for justice. You are for destruction, I am for construction. You stand for hatred and intolerance, I am for great and sincere love for everyone. You are for war and murder of innocents, I am for salvation and peace. You are for revenge even against innocents, I forgive even those who are guilty.

You wish everyone ill, a discord upon the world. I wish everyone well, and understanding for everyone in the world, in every respect, that all become as members of one nation. You want to bury everyone but those who think like you, but I am already working on putting you all in prison, so the humanity would be safe and protected from your evil-doing.

I will use everything I learned in your schools against you and your men. Was I not a good student? I know you and your men are furious with me, and that you cannot wait for me to get out of prison so you could steal from me the rest of my short life, and that you will look for me wherever I go. But I hope the world will never allow your wish to be fulfilled.

So, when I get out of prison, send your hunters after me. But be aware, I will be hunting them as well. I promise you - and a promise is sacred - that if the world takes me seriously and gives me a chance, I shall strike at the heart of your al-Qaida and shake its foundations. My cooperation with the world will lead to capture of your lieutenants and fighters. Even though I am in prison still, I already helped capture two of your important men. If the world does not accept my offer, then I won't be able to fulfill my promise. Pray that this happens.

So, how do you like your fun now? Too painful, is it? But when I have fun with your men, it won't be like having a sweet blonde on a bed of roses. You know well that I am not an easy target like V.L., whom you killed in 1997 because he tried to resign from al-Qaida . So I tell your men, when I get out of prison, they should be as ready as I will be. Your hunters may become the prey, as I could catch them sooner than they could catch me. I do not intend to use weapons when I am released - but if I meet any of your hounds, I will not shoot to wound. My bullets will not miss their heads and hearts; what I learned in your school will serve me well.

I must confess publicly, though I consider you evil, that since I know of myself, I have never met a person with so many virtues, indescribably polite and pleasant, as you were. This is why you managed to conquer the hearts and minds of so many around you, and why your followers love you unconditionally.

I want to tell you that my book will soon be in print. Buy it. Read it. It's not expensive, and you will like it.

Here, I've given you a chance to find out my opinion of you and your al-Qaida from my own pen. I hope you won't be loath to respond to your peaceful and quiet apprentice. Goodbye, forever.

I thank the editors, and especially Ms Dobrila Majstorovic.

Respectfully,

Ali Hamad

Copyright 2005 Defense & Foreign Affairs/International Strategic Studies Association
Posted for Fair Use only.