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American Morning

Investigation into Al Qaeda Super Cells

Aired July 31, 2002 - 09:16   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
PAULA ZAHN, CNN ANCHOR: Some of Osama bin Laden's bodyguards have been captured, leading to speculation that the al Qaeda's leader is dead, and they have been detained at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba since February. And officials say it's not likely they would have been separated from their leader if he were alive. But even without bin Laden, al Qaeda is able to carry out deadly terror attacks through so- called super cells.

Mike Boettcher joins us now from Atlanta. He has been covering this story in a special CNN investigation.

Good morning, Mike, thanks for being with us.

MIKE BOETTCHER, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well good morning, Paula.

We've known for several months since the coalition push against terrorists that al Qaeda operatives have gone back to their home countries, but we haven't known how they've been operating. Now we have a new glimpse on those operations.

Coalition intelligence sources, judging from interrogations of al Qaeda prisoners they now hold, believe that super cells are forming across North Africa all the way to Northeast Asia. Why are they called super cells? Because these are al Qaeda operatives who are forming alliances on the ground with other terrorist groups, giving them more push, more impact.

Now they will revert to smaller-scale and medium-scale tactics, and those tactics are contained in the 11-volume encyclopedia of jihad which CNN has been allowed to photograph. Inside of this 11-volume encyclopedia are numerous tactics showing how to assassinate subjects, how to use poison, how to make bombs. And in one instance, we are told by coalition intelligence sources that al Qaeda operatives in these super cells have been detected buying cyanide.

Now there is a chapter in the 11-volume encyclopedia that shows how to use cyanide to poison operatives. Now these will be more frequent attacks, we're told, and they will be carried out in a fashion to create fear around the world.

Now Rohan Gunaratna is a Research Fellow at St. Andrews University at the Center for the Study of Terrorism. He concurs with the notion of a super cell.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ROHAN GUNARATNA, ST. ANDREWS UNIVERSITY: Instead of taking strategic targets, al Qaeda has now decided to take small-scale and medium-scale targets. And we have seen since 9/11, al Qaeda has conducted a dozen attacks on small- and medium-scale targets.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BOETTCHER: Now one other tactic that will be used, according to coalition intelligence sources, earlier this year they found a startling discovery in Karachi, Pakistan, a house that was basically an academy for making letter bombs. So there is a fear that terrorism will be spread through the mail once again -- Paula.

ZAHN: Mike, is there any sense of just how many operatives there are out there making up these super cells?

BOETTCHER: Well in the cells in North Africa and in the Far East, several hundred people; but they're super cells because they are growing with alliances with other groups. For example, we are developing a story now about al Qaeda and its desire to become involved in the conflict in Israel between Israel and the Palestinian groups there. Al Qaeda is forming alliances on the ground in that region, specifically to launch larger-scale attacks against Israel. And, Paula, we're developing information on that and we'll have more for you how that's exactly operating in the next few days.

ZAHN: And do we know how far away they are from, you know, really sealing these alliances or are they already sealed?

BOETTCHER: Well we've already felt them. For example, in Morocco a cell was rolled up there by authorities but they're still many operatives left in Morocco. They were going to attack U.S. and British ships in the Strait of Gibraltar. They were operating independently. And that's the thing about these super cells, they are making their own decisions about targets. But in the case of Morocco, they're still getting money from a central money source. The Morocco cell got $300,000 wired to it within a few months -- Paula.

ZAHN: It's absolutely frightening. I know you have a full report tonight on Wolf Blitzer's show at 5:00. We'll look forward to that.

Mike, thank you...

BOETTCHER: You're welcome.

ZAHN: ... so much for that update and look forward to seeing the documentary.

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