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The July 2004 Press Statement Issued By Jack and the Men of TASK FORCE SABER 7 (Naturally, just ignored by the press.)
Note: The statement below was handed out by Jack in court to the press handwritten on yellow legal paper with a smuggled pen. It was more than 21 pages long. Not one press agency or reporter every quoted one word or checked out one single fact. Instead they opted to print the party line, the story AP had already put forth– They were torturers and bounty hunters. The only statements the press ever printed word for word (at least from what we saw) were the words of a Taliban Judge and a Taliban Prosecutor (officially, “a former Taliban”).
VERBATIM TRANSCRIPTION:
“Every American with a son or daughter serving at Bagram Air force Base in Afghanistan, every husband or wife with a spouse, and every American who has a friend serving at Bagram, should remember the terrorist bombing of the Marine barracks in Beirut and remember 9/11.
Then they should ask why the government failed to stop these attacks. The answer is a failure of human intelligence, action, and imaginative daring.
When the FBI was alerted by us to a terrorist threat against the U.S. personnel they failed to act in any positive way against the terrorists, even though one of the terrorists was clearly identified by the name and location. Clearly the FBI was failing to act again.
After contacting the Pentagon we acted, immediately deploying to Afghanistan, where, working with our former Northern Alliance allies, we captured first Ghulamsaki, the terrorist the FBI was informed of previously, and then subsequently captured 95% of the entire al-Qaida and Hezb-i-Islami terrorist operation cell behind the plot. In four different operations and raids, we captured terrorists, explosives, detonators, and vehicles that were to be used in the terrorist plot.
The plot involved the assassination of the Afghan President, Minister of Defense, Minister of Education, two ambassadors, and the leaders of Massoud’s Jamiat Party. Had any of them been successful it would have resulted in certain civil war and the deaths of untold Afghan and American lives.
We now find ourselves imprisoned with terrorists, while the terrorists who were stopped here, have been set free.
These terrorists, who were working directly for Osama bin Laden and Gulbideen Hekmatyar, both on America’s Most Wanted list, now claim they were tortured and abused; now claim we smashed their heads in bloody bags, cut off fingers, poured boiling water on them, hung them upside down and dipped them in boiling water, repeatedly burned them with cigarettes, beat them day and night, and refused to feed them.
Yet when the Afghan intelligence agency took custody of them, and two American FBI agents interviewed them, only a few days after all this heinous torture occurred, only one of the terrorists had any mark or injury whatsoever; Serajan’s “torture” wounds amounted to two small cuts on the front of both his ankles, these incredible minor abrasions were self-inflicted when Serajan attempted to break the plastic flex-cuffs securing his feet during the transport from the terrorists safe-house rented for him with money directly from Osama bin Laden, and later while he was sitting alone in an interrogation room.
Almost all of this was confirmed by the two FBI agents who interviewed myself, my men, and the terrorists. The FBI has now made that report classified.
But to bring this home to Americans, think about this: Four fuel tankers driving into Bagram Air Base (fuel tankers are constantly daily arriving at Bagram) laden with gas and explosives as they passed through the gates. The explosives would never be discovered as the terrorists were using a combination of plastic explosives and incendiary explosives which American bomb dogs could not detect.
The result would have been flaming bodies of hundreds of American soldiers in a scene that would have dwarfed the Beirut Marine barracks bombing and brought back the vision of burning victims plunging to their deaths on 9/11.
My President said, in September 2001, that all Americans were now soldiers, in the war on terror. He called upon each of us to do whatever we could to stop terror and save American lives. I have done that.
The US 9/11 Commission ReportTogether with a few brave Americans and Afghan soldiers who fought with me during the liberation of Afghanistan, we stopped the terror attacks before they occurred. That is something Americans have wanted for years. Action before innocent lives are lost, not FBI investigations after the attack.
In doing so we proved what Thomas Kean [Chairman] of the 9/11 Commission recently said, “it takes most importantly imagination to interdict terrorists and their plots.
Although we saved the lives of hundreds of Americans, and according to the brother of Afghan Minister Yunis Qanooni, “millions of Afghans in what would have been a bloody civil war,” throughout the activities of our group, which was code-named Task Force Saber/7, we were in constant communication with the Pentagon, and had repeatedly requested assistance and the transfer of prisoners to U.S. military custody.
We were constantly told by Pentagon officials that things were being put in place to “protect and support” us. We were constantly told that Task Force 180 and Task Force 176 (180’s successors) would contact us to arrange custody of the terrorists. Had it not been for the July 4th holiday, we believe that would have occurred prior to our supposed arrest.
However, during that time, someone at TF180 put out false and fabricated “wanted posters” saying I was wanted by the FBI. The FBI claims that the poster was a fraud, but have not arrested or even questioned the person that authored this bogus poster.
With both remote-controlled bomb factories located, and armed with the photos and locations of the lead terrorist running the terror plot for bin Laden and Hekmatyar, we were forced to deal with that problem instead of arresting the remaining terrorists.
It should be noted that during this time we were working closely with Afghan Interim Government officials at the highest levels, including, but not limited to; Yunis Qanooni and his brother Chief of Security; Generals Atta, Lodeen, Gulhaider, Wassiq, Dauod, Hazrat Ali all Corps Commanders, and others; Amniat intelligence officers, area police chiefs, and a prominent Afghan ambassador.
In one instance, where Afghan women had to be dealt with, we requested, and were provided with, a female national police detective to speak to the women. This was the only interaction we ever had with Afghan women.
Having to deal with the “wanted poster” situation, we sought counsel of the Pentagon, which stated “it was an overzealous captain” and “we are trying to resolve it.” We then notified the Afghan ambassador who we were working with (he was also a target of the terrorists, and bin Laden’s al-Qaida had severely wounded him during the September 9th, 2001 suicide bombing that killed Commander Ahmad Shah Massoud). We also requested by phone meetings with Amrullah, Chief of NDS, and with President Hamid Karzai. Both these meetings were to be scheduled the day after our arrest. However, three days before our arrest, we met with Marshall Fahim, the Minister of Defense, briefing him on the entire operation, and requested three things; 10 a meeting with General Dauod (MOD intelligence Chief); 2) transfer to MOD custody of the terrorists– if the U.S. did not arrange transfer in 72 hours; and 3) assistance with Bagram Air Base.
Marshall Fahim was showed the poster and he asked if he could discuss it with Ambassador Khalilzad that next afternoon at the Friday July 4th celebration at the U.S. embassy. We agreed and left the poster with him.
On Saturday, and Sunday July 3-4, we repeatedly sent emails to the Pentagon and the U.S. Navy Captain Frank at the U.S. Embassy requesting assistance. Captain Frank, we were told, was to be our liaison at the Embassy. Prior to this we contacted the Canadian government, both at the embassy in Kabul and in Canada, where our U.S. office reached out for Canada’s JTF6. We began discussions with the Canadians because by this time we learned that two of our terrorists had organized and led the killing of Lance Corporal Jaime Murphy on January 27th, 2004, during which Murphy’s ISAF jeep had been attacked on Darlaman Road in Kabul by a suicide bomber.
However, we learned from one of the terrorists that it had not been a suicide bombing. The bombs detonator had malfunctioned, setting off the explosion as the terrorist threw the explosive onto Murphy’s jeep.
Our interest was in confirming; 1) that the Canadians would take custody, and 2) that the Canadians would prosecute if we gave them enough evidence.
We also discussed this with General Attiquallah Lodeen, 3rd Corps Commander in Logar, through his staff because General Lodeen was in Dubai at the time, we felt it was important to get his opinion because the same terrorists had engineered both prior attempts to blow up General Lodeen’s car. And the map of one of the assassination attempts was found in one of the terrorists personal notebooks. General Lodeen’s son brought back the message that we could turn that particular terrorist over to the Canadians.
Unfortunately, the Canadian government did not feel like prosecuting Jaime Murphy’s killers was a top priority, and did not notify us of their decision prior to our arrest.
Two questions will probably arise; first, How did we find the terrorists? Second, How did we get them to cooperate.
First, we had what western government agencies lack in Afghanistan and in regards to al-Qaida– HUMINT, human intelligence. I personally had sources from during the war that were still working with me but would not work with U.S. Agencies, because they knew that many of the interpreters at the embassy, Kabul Compound, and Bagram Air Base were compromised by the Taliban and al-Qaida. In fact our intelligence was so good that we knew in advance that the first terrorist we captured would be carrying a Red Cross message from his brother, an al-Qaida operative currently in GITMO, Cuba. It was in his pocket when we captured him. U.S. intel and the FBI only dreams of information that accurate.
Second, we knew so much about the terrorists before we captured them that during the interrogation it was easy to manipulate and trick them into believing we had already captured their Network and that their terrorist comrades were already cooperating. We kept them awake with 24 hours of non-stop questioning, played loud Rock and Roll music and offered to let them work for us if they would turn over on the others. All that we questioned turned on each other. When one didn’t, we did not beat him, we simple confronted him with two that were cooperating and he quickly decided to join the same team.
Once they told us a little we gave them non-stop Miranda soda and restaurant kabob and promises of a new job working against terrorism.
The soldiers in Iraq that claim their abuse of prisoners was ordered by MI (Military Intelligence) are liars. You only have a few days at most to get actionable intelligence. Let a terrorist sit in a cell and you lose the initiative to find the others. Beat the terrorists and he admits to anything or nothing. Again you lose. Humiliate the terrorist and he hates you and feeds you lies.
Your only way to get the terrorists to talk is sleep deprivation, promises for freedom if he gives up the other terrorists, and convincing the terrorist you are his friend.
Right now the Afghan NDS (intelligence agency) and FBI, have the videotapes of our interrogations. These videos prove we are innocent of the charges of torture. However, Both agencies refuse to allow our attorney’s or us to view the tapes or play them in court. Further these tapes prove that these terrorists were on verge of assassinations and fire bombing Bagram Air Base with a plot that rivaled any terror attacks in recent history, and might have even approached the levels of terror reached on 9/11 had the fuel tankers reached the military housing areas at Bagram Air Base.
FBI interviews with one of the terrorists, which I was present for, also confirm all of this, and took place prior to our first court appearance. Yet those FBI 302’s (field reports) are now classified and unavailable for our defense under direct orders of Washington FBI headquarters.
Two FBI agents who conducted those interviews were field agents working in Khost. They recommended that we be released, that the terrorists be transferred to U.S. custody. And that myself and Task Force Saber/7 be allowed to finish the mission with the FBI. Creating a win-win situation for everyone except al-Qaida.
They met with me approximately six times and indicated they would rather be fighting high-level al-Qaida with us instead of conducting house searches of low-level Taliban soldiers in the south.
Both agents were ordered to drop the case and cease all contact with us by FBI headquarters in Washington.
Had we not been kept in jail, or arrested in the first place we would have interdicted both bomb factories assembling the remote-controlled bombs, and captured both bomb makers. We already had their locations under surveillance and had the area commanders ready to meet us the next morning and assist us with the raids.
We had located the terror cell leader, who was working directly for Hekmatyar and bin Laden. He was in Northern Afghanistan and we would have captured him within 72 hours. We had also located Malawi Kabir and Hekmatyar and were fairly confident that we would have captured or killed them within seven days. Finally, one of the terrorist had agreed to let us use a sensitive intelligence technique with his cooperation, which we believe would have resulted in the exact location of Osama bin Laden. We had already offered the exact location of bin Laden to TF180 in early May, but TF180 was unprepared to act because we only had about 60 hours advance notice of where bin Laden would be, and his capture required more resources than our small team had, primarily transportation resources.
These were the successes of Task Force Saber/7, in each of our intelligence operations and raids which we conducted were 100% successful, with one exception. During the raid of Serajan’s safe house, the most important terrorist escaped (we had not known he was there). He escaped up a ladder on the back wall because, and only because, I stopped the compound assault to keep Afghan soldiers from beating one of the terrorists. [This was caught on videotape by Caraballo]. It shows that I stopped the assault, endangering my own life, to drag two Afghan Northern Alliance soldiers off Serajan.
Later when Serajan agreed to cooperate with us, he said he was doing it because he recognized my voice as the person who stopped the Afghan soldiers from hurting him. This was also fully documented on videotape. ”
READERS NOTE: The rest of the statement will be up as soon as I get it…this statement is also up at the SuperPatriots.us site. The only copies were given to the press and this one was missing the last half of the pages.
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