Dirty Wars (121 page)

313
taken into custody and interrogated
:
David E. Sanger and Eric Schmitt, “Threats Led to Embassy Closings in Yemen, Officials Say,”
New York Times
, January 3, 2010.

314
“
He called me at three o'clock
”:

Author interview, Nasser al Awlaki, January 2012. All information and quotations attributed to Nasser al Awlaki come from the author's interview, unless otherwise noted.

314
US forces carried out an air strike
:
Scott Shane, Mark Mazzetti, and Robert F. Worth, “Secret Assault on Terrorism Widens on Two Continents,”
New York Times
, August 14, 2010.

314
According to official accounts
:
Sudarsan Raghavan and Michael D. Shear, “US-aided Attack in Yemen Thought to Have Killed Aulaqi, Two al-Qaida Leaders,”
Washington Post
, December 25, 2009.

314
“
Yemeni and foreign oil targets
”:
Reuters, “Army Kills Dozens of Suspected Al-Qaeda Members,” France24.com, December 24, 2009.

314
“
a huge victory
”:
Christopher Boucek, “Airstrike in Yemen Targets Terror Operatives,” interview with Jeffrey Brown,
News-Hour
, PBS, December 24, 2009.

314
“
doesn't really change anything
”:
Dana Priest, “U.S. Military Teams, Intelligence Deeply Involved in Aiding Yemen on Strikes,”
Washington Post
, January 27, 2010.

315
“
escaped the brunt of criticism
”:
US diplomatic cable 09SANAA2250, from Ambassador Stephen Seche, US Embassy Sana'a, “Yemen Abuzz with Talk of CT Operations; Attention Slowly Turns to U.S. Role,” December 21, 2009, released by WikiLeaks,
http://wikileaks.org/cable/2009/12/09SANAA2250.html
.

315
“
far from his house
”:
CBS/AP, “Ft. Hood Suspect's Cleric Killed in Yemen?” CBSNews.com, December 24, 2009.

315
Shaye's interview was tough
:
“Transcript of interview with al-Awlaki,” from Al Jazeera interview with Anwar al Awlaki, December 23, 2009, released via NBC News, December 23, 2009,
www.msnbc.msn.com/id/34579438/ns/us_news-tragedy_at_fort_hood/t/transcript-interview-al-awlaki/
.

317
singing Christmas carols
:
Peter Baker, “Obama's War over Terror,”
New York Times Magazine
, January 4, 2010.

317
Northwest Airlines Flight 253
:
“Investigators Cross Globe Looking for Details of Plane Bombing Suspect,” FoxNews.com, December 27, 2009.

317
Abdulmutallab's father
:
Seth G. Jones,
Hunting in the Shadows: The Pursuit of al Qaeda Since 9/11
(New York: W. W. Norton, 2012), p. 345.

317
“
every teacher's dream
”:
“Profile: Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab, BBC.co.uk, October 12, 2011.

317
studying Arabic
:
Peter Kenyon, “Going Radical: Yemen a Turning Point for Christmas Bomb Suspect,”
Morning Edition
, NPR, February 19, 2010.

317
enrolled in college
:
Mark Hosenball, “The Radicalization of Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab,”
Newsweek
, January 1, 2010.

317
traveled to the United States
:
Dan Eggen, Karen DeYoung, and Spencer S. Hsu, “Plane Suspect Was Listed in Terror Database After Father Alerted US Officials,”
Washington Post
, December 27, 2008.

317
Islamic institute in Texas
:
Tom Abrahams, “Terror Suspect Attended Classes in Houston,” KTRK-TV Houston,
http://abclocal.go.com/ktrk/story?section=news/local&id=7193124
.

317
“
the real Islam
”:
Andrew Gregory, “Syringe Bomber Umar Abdulmutallab Chilling Text Messages to Dad,”
Mirror
(UK), January 1, 2010,
www.mirror.co.uk/news/uk-news/syringe-bomber-umar-abdulmutallab-chilling-191630
.

317
US Embassy in Nigeria
:
Jill Dougherty, “Official: Dad Warned U.S. of Son but ‘No Suggestion' of Terrorist Act,” CNN.com, December 28, 2009.

317
“
extreme religious views
”:
“Father of Terror Suspect Reportedly Warned U.S. About Son,” FoxNews.com, December 2, 2009.

318
“
Explosive device
”:
Ron French, “Inside Story of Terror on Flight 253,”
Detroit News
, March 18, 2010.

318
cited as evidence
:
Peter Bergen, “Analysis: Similar Explosive on Plane Used in Saudi Attack,” CNN.com, December 27, 2009.

318
sent on a suicide mission
:
Victor Morton, “Awlaki Personally Blessed Detroit Attack,”
Washington Times
, December 29, 2009.

318
“
voice-to-voice communication
”:
Sudarsan Raghavan, “Investigators Scrutinize Yemeni American Cleric's Ties to Plane Suspect,”
Washington Post
, January 1, 2010.

318
“
He was watering trees
”:
Author interview, Mullah Zabara, January 2012. All quotations and information attributed to Mullah Zabara come from the author's interview.

318
one of his “students
”:
Transcript, “Interview: Anwar al-Awlaki,” AlJazeera.com, February 7, 2010.

318
sources in Shabwah
:
Author interviews, tribal members, January 2012.

318
“
Yes, there was some contact
”:
Transcript, “Interview: Anwar al-Awlaki,” AlJazeera.com.

319
“
technical error
”:
Peter Baker and Scott Shane, “Obama Seeks to Reassure US After Bombing Attempt,”
New York Times
, December 28, 2009.

319
AQAP released a video
:
Matthew Cole, Brian Ross, and Nasser Atta, “Underwear Bomber: New Video of Training, Martyrdom Statements,” ABCNews.go.com, April 26, 2010.

320
“
season for second-guessing
”:
Mark Hosenball, “The Radicalization of Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab,”
Newsweek
, January 1, 2010.

320
“
The Obama administration came in
”:
Transcript,
Fox News Sunday
, Fox News, December 27, 2009.

320
“
trying to pretend we are not at war
”:
Mike Allen, “Dick Cheney: Barack Obama ‘Trying to Pretend,'”
Politico
, December 30, 2009.

320
“
in the hands of the law enforcement people
”:
Sam Stein, “Bush Waited Six Days to Discuss Shoe Bomber with No GOP Complaints,”
Huffington Post
, March 18, 2010.

320
“
it makes us less safe
”:
Allen, “Dick Cheney: Barack Obama ‘Trying to Pretend.'”

320
“
A lot of the knuckleheads
”:
Baker, “Obama's War over Terror.”

321
“
Our nation is at war
”:
Transcript, “Inaugural Address,” January 20, 2009, The American Presidency Project,
www.nytimes.com/2009/01/20/us/politics/20text-obama.html?pagewanted=all
.

321
“
We have a growing presence there
”:
Transcript,
Fox News Sunday
.

321
“
Are we sending troops into Yemen?
”:
Transcript, Admiral Mike Mullen at the Naval War College, January 8, 2010,
www.jcs.mil/speech.aspx?id=1312
.

321
“
We've known throughout this year
”:
Olivia Hampton, “Obama: No U.S. Troops to Somalia, Yemen,” Agence France-Presse, January 11, 2010.

321
“
steadily growing military elements
”:
“Report of Inspection; Embassy Sanaa, Yemen,” US Department of State and the Broadcasting Board of Governors Office of the Inspector General, June 2010,
http://oig.state. gov/documents/organization/145254.pdf
.

321
authority to approve all personnel
:
“NSDD-38: Staffing at Diplomatic Missions and Their Overseas Constituent Posts,” text of NSDD-38, June 2, 1982, released by the Office of Management Policy, Rightsizing, and Innovation, April 26, 2005,
www.state.gov/m/pri/nsdd/
.

322
more than two dozen
:
Priest, “U.S. Military Teams, Intelligence Deeply Involved in Aiding Yemen on Strikes.”

322
operating its own drones
:
David S. Cloud (Tribune), “White House Considers Yemen Drone Strikes, Officials Say,”
Los Angeles Times
, November 7, 2010.

322
“
After the December thing
”:
Author interview, Dr. Emile Nakhleh, January 2010. All quotations and information attributed to Dr. Nakhleh come from the author's interview.

322
another round of meetings
:
US diplomatic cable 10SANAA4, from Ambassador Stephen Seche, US Embassy Sana'a, “General Petraeus' Meeting with Saleh on Security Assistance, AQAP strikes,” January 4, 2010, released by WikiLeaks,
http://wikileaks.org/cable/2010/01/10SANAA4.html
. Details of the meetings between Saleh and Petraeus come from this cable.

323
“
100 percent Yemeni forces
”:
Haley Sweetland Edwards, “US Lends Firepower to Yemen Fight,”
Global Post
, January 24, 2010.

323
“
it is believed by most Yemenis
”:
Ibid.

323
take matters into their own hands
:
Author interviews, Special Operations sources, 2010 and 2011.

323
“
Given the unsettled situation
”:
Peter Finn, “Return of Yemeni Detainees at Guantanamo Bay Is Suspended,”
Washington Post
, January 5, 2010.

323
“
unconscionable
”:
Ibid.

323
“
The instability in Yemen
”:
Transcript, “Remarks with Qatar Prime Minister Sheikh Hamad bin Jassim bin Jabr al-Thani After Their Meeting,” Washington, DC, January 4, 2010.

324
more air strikes
:
Robert F. Worth, “Senior Qaeda Figures Killed in Attack, Yemen Says,”
New York Times
, January 15, 2010.

324
formally designated
:
Transcript, press statement from Philip J. Crowley, Assistant Secretary of State, Bureau of Public Affairs, “Designations of Al-Qa'ida in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP) and Senior Leaders,” January 19, 2010.

324
took similar action
:
“U.N. Security Council Sanctions al Qaeda's Yemen Wing,” Reuters.com, January 19, 2010.

324
“
support the U.S. effort
”:
Transcript, Philip J. Crowley, “Designations of Al-Qa'ida in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP) and Senior Leaders.”

324
killed senior AQAP figures
:
Hammoud Mounasser, “Yemen Air Strikes Pound Qaeda Leader's Home: Military,” Agence France-Presse, January 20, 2010.

324
local leader Ayad al Shabwani
:
The first strike was not in Marib but reportedly killed al Shabwani; the second reportedly hit near his home.

324
“
seventeen raids inside Marib
”:
“Air-strikes Target al-Qaida in Yemen,” Voice of America, January 19, 2010.

325
“
Both the CIA and the JSOC
”:
Dana Priest, “U.S. Military Teams, Intelligence Deeply Involved in Aiding Yemen on Strikes,”
Washington Post
, January 27, 2010.

325
“
a very dubious legality
”:
Author interview, Colonel W. Patrick Lang, September 2010.

325
“
Obviously, if U.S. forces are fighting
”:
Glenn Greenwald, “Presidential Assassinations of U.S. Citizens,” Salon.com, January 27, 2010.

326
“
terrorist No. 1
”:
Adam Entous, “U.S. Targets American-Born Cleric in Yemen: Officials,” Reuters, April 6, 2010.

326
“
a decision to use lethal force
”:
To Prohibit the Extrajudicial Killing of United States Citizens, and for Other Purposes, H.R. 6010, 111th Cong. (July 30, 2010). Representative Kucinich cites the statement in his bill. It was not included in the public record of Blair's testimony before the Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence, on February 3, 2010.

326
“
There is some unease about this approach
”:
Author interview, Dr. Emile Nakhleh, January 2010.

326
“
We are very pleased
”:
Priest, “U.S. Military Teams, Intelligence Deeply Involved.”

326
write directly to Obama
:
Author copy of letter from Nasser al Awlaki to President Barack Obama.

328
nomination had been held up
:
Yochi J. Dreazen, “Lawmakers Hold Up a Top General's Nomination,”
Wall Street Journal
, May 1, 2008.