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American Morning

Possibility of Link Between Iraq, Al Qaeda Getting Support from Federal Judge

Aired May 08, 2003 - 08:18   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.


BILL HEMMER, CNN ANCHOR: The possibility of a link between Iraq and al Qaeda getting support from a federal judge here in New York. Yesterday, that judge awarded about $104 million in damages in a lawsuit brought by the families of two of the 9/11 victims, George Smith and Timothy Soulas. The ruling said that the plaintiffs, "Have shown, albeit barely, that Iraq provided material support to bin Laden and al Qaeda."
The plaintiffs are not likely to collect, though. The judge's ruling appears more symbolic than practical.

Attorney Slade McLaughlin, representing the families of both victims, is our guest this morning in Philadelphia.

We want to get to you right now.

Slade, good morning to you.

SLADE MCLAUGHLIN, LAWYER FOR 9/11 VICTIMS: Good morning, Bill.

How are you?

HEMMER: I'm doing just fine, thank you very much.

The judge says you've proven this case, albeit just barely.

What's the link that you're hinging right now between al Qaeda and Iraq, knowing that's been disputed in so many corners?

MCLAUGHLIN: Well, in terms of the just barely, I think the judge actually found that we had proven our case to the point that a reasonable jury could find that our case had been proven to the extent necessary. So I don't think there's any lack of proof here. I think we used a number of different methods of proof and there were a number of strong links.

One of the clearest links was the Samon Pack facility (ph), which is a facility about 20 miles outside of Baghdad where we had evidence that they were actually putting on terror training activities. They were training fundamentalists on how to hijack planes in the exact same manner and method that occurred on September 11. This was being done right in Iraq.

HEMMER: There is another allegation there that says Mohamed Atta met with an Iraqi agent in Prague, Czechoslovakia trying to -- which was then, at the time, a planning meeting for 9/11. MCLAUGHLIN: That's correct.

HEMMER: If you consider that meeting in the Czech Republic, knowing that it's been disputed and there are questions out there as to whether or not this thing ever happened in the first place, how did the judge rule and make that link if so many others in the intelligence community have not so far?

MCLAUGHLIN: Well, I don't know that it was really that disputed. The only disputes about that having taken place were done anonymously. We had information and letters from the Czech Republic which was introduced into evidence at trial indicating that that meeting did, in fact, take place.

So we didn't use the hearsay evidence to prove our case, Bill. There was hearsay evidence. But what we did was we had experts come in, two very highly qualified experts, the former director of the CIA, James Woolsey, and we had a noted Iraq expert, Laurie Millroy, and they took all of the evidence. They looked at it. And both of them came up with the same conclusion and that was that Iraq was involved here. They provided material support and resources.

HEMMER: Slade, what about this connection, though? Fifteen of the 19 hijackers with a link and a connection to Saudi Arabia. Do you go after that royal family next?

MCLAUGHLIN: No. Our case is completed. We have no intention to go against the Saudi Arabian.

HEMMER: So, what, then, about revenue? What about money? Knowing that the assets for the Iraqi regime are largely frozen, how do you get them?

MCLAUGHLIN: Well, we're going to have judgment entered on our award today. We're going to then go to the Office of Foreign Asset Control. We're going to talk to the Treasury Department and we're going to try to get some of those frozen assets. President Bush has released $300 million of those assets to satisfy judgments against Iraq. If we're not successful there, we'll go to the new regime in Iraq, because there is successor liability. And if we're not successful there, we'll then go to other countries in the world who have Iraqi assets and seek to attach them there.

HEMMER: Slade, 10 seconds left here. I know it's early. Have you been contacted by others who are bringing similar lawsuits, knowing the success you've met so far, who want information on how you did your case?

MCLAUGHLIN: Yes. We have been contacted. We've been very cooperative with them, they've been very cooperative with us, with the other lawsuits, and hopefully we can all cooperate so that everybody wins here.

HEMMER: Thank you, sir.

Slade McLaughlin, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. MCLAUGHLIN: Thanks so much.

HEMMER: A lawyer for two of the 9/11 victims in the lawsuit there.

TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com





from Federal Judge>


Aired May 8, 2003 - 08:18   ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
BILL HEMMER, CNN ANCHOR: The possibility of a link between Iraq and al Qaeda getting support from a federal judge here in New York. Yesterday, that judge awarded about $104 million in damages in a lawsuit brought by the families of two of the 9/11 victims, George Smith and Timothy Soulas. The ruling said that the plaintiffs, "Have shown, albeit barely, that Iraq provided material support to bin Laden and al Qaeda."
The plaintiffs are not likely to collect, though. The judge's ruling appears more symbolic than practical.

Attorney Slade McLaughlin, representing the families of both victims, is our guest this morning in Philadelphia.

We want to get to you right now.

Slade, good morning to you.

SLADE MCLAUGHLIN, LAWYER FOR 9/11 VICTIMS: Good morning, Bill.

How are you?

HEMMER: I'm doing just fine, thank you very much.

The judge says you've proven this case, albeit just barely.

What's the link that you're hinging right now between al Qaeda and Iraq, knowing that's been disputed in so many corners?

MCLAUGHLIN: Well, in terms of the just barely, I think the judge actually found that we had proven our case to the point that a reasonable jury could find that our case had been proven to the extent necessary. So I don't think there's any lack of proof here. I think we used a number of different methods of proof and there were a number of strong links.

One of the clearest links was the Samon Pack facility (ph), which is a facility about 20 miles outside of Baghdad where we had evidence that they were actually putting on terror training activities. They were training fundamentalists on how to hijack planes in the exact same manner and method that occurred on September 11. This was being done right in Iraq.

HEMMER: There is another allegation there that says Mohamed Atta met with an Iraqi agent in Prague, Czechoslovakia trying to -- which was then, at the time, a planning meeting for 9/11. MCLAUGHLIN: That's correct.

HEMMER: If you consider that meeting in the Czech Republic, knowing that it's been disputed and there are questions out there as to whether or not this thing ever happened in the first place, how did the judge rule and make that link if so many others in the intelligence community have not so far?

MCLAUGHLIN: Well, I don't know that it was really that disputed. The only disputes about that having taken place were done anonymously. We had information and letters from the Czech Republic which was introduced into evidence at trial indicating that that meeting did, in fact, take place.

So we didn't use the hearsay evidence to prove our case, Bill. There was hearsay evidence. But what we did was we had experts come in, two very highly qualified experts, the former director of the CIA, James Woolsey, and we had a noted Iraq expert, Laurie Millroy, and they took all of the evidence. They looked at it. And both of them came up with the same conclusion and that was that Iraq was involved here. They provided material support and resources.

HEMMER: Slade, what about this connection, though? Fifteen of the 19 hijackers with a link and a connection to Saudi Arabia. Do you go after that royal family next?

MCLAUGHLIN: No. Our case is completed. We have no intention to go against the Saudi Arabian.

HEMMER: So, what, then, about revenue? What about money? Knowing that the assets for the Iraqi regime are largely frozen, how do you get them?

MCLAUGHLIN: Well, we're going to have judgment entered on our award today. We're going to then go to the Office of Foreign Asset Control. We're going to talk to the Treasury Department and we're going to try to get some of those frozen assets. President Bush has released $300 million of those assets to satisfy judgments against Iraq. If we're not successful there, we'll go to the new regime in Iraq, because there is successor liability. And if we're not successful there, we'll then go to other countries in the world who have Iraqi assets and seek to attach them there.

HEMMER: Slade, 10 seconds left here. I know it's early. Have you been contacted by others who are bringing similar lawsuits, knowing the success you've met so far, who want information on how you did your case?

MCLAUGHLIN: Yes. We have been contacted. We've been very cooperative with them, they've been very cooperative with us, with the other lawsuits, and hopefully we can all cooperate so that everybody wins here.

HEMMER: Thank you, sir.

Slade McLaughlin, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. MCLAUGHLIN: Thanks so much.

HEMMER: A lawyer for two of the 9/11 victims in the lawsuit there.

TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com





from Federal Judge>