Captured al-Qaeda chief a treasure trove of intel

As I reported last week, US forces major al-Qaeda chief in Iraq, Abd al-Hadi al-Iraqi.

He was caught he was caught trying to return to Iraq via Iran to take command of al Qaeda forces there, proof if nothing else that our operations against al-Qaeda in Iraq have met with some success.

As he's continued to be interrogated, several things have come to light.

For starters, it's plain that Iran is once again facilitating the movement of al-Qaeda through Iran, just as they did after the US took out the Taliban in Afghanistan in 2002. Not only that, but it also provides more evidence ( as if that was needed) that Iran is allowing al-Qaeda terrorists operating in Iraq to use Iran's territory as a haven to recruit, arm and then strike US and Iraqi forces from strike from within Iran's borders.

There are also some interesting sidelines that highlight the connections between Hamas and al-Qaeda.

An interesting fact that's come to light as al-Hadi continues to sing showtunes for his interrogators is his involvement in the first al-Qaeda strike against an Israeli target and a major role in the 7/7/ tube bombings in Britain.

Both attacks were done by British Muslims of Pakistani origin.

The tactic of using British Muslims for terrorism attacks is one al Qaeda was quick to seize on. They speak English, carry EU passports and even more importantly, usually have family back in Pakistan that can provide a cover and an alibi for British Muslims traveling back to al Qaeda's headquarters for training.

al-Hadi was apparently in charge of recruiting young British Muslims for al-Qaeda, with notable success.

Two British Muslims, Asif Muhammed Hanif and Omar Khan Sharif, were recruited at the radical Finsbury Park mosque in London. So was Richard Reid, the `shoe bomber' now in US custody.

As other investigations have already revealed, after training in Pakistan, Hanif and Sharif then spent time in Hamas training camps in Gaza before setting out for their mission...blowing up the US embassy in Tel Aviv. Instead, they bombed a Tel Aviv seafront bar, Mike’s Place, killing three Israelis and injuring 60.

Other fruits of al-Hadi's work with British Muslims of Pakistani recruited in Britain's radical mosques were the homicide bombers who pulled off the homicide bombings in London on July 7th, 2005, killing 52 and injuring hundreds.

Al-Hadi's capture also proves something else. Instead of being a fragmented and beaten terrorist army, al-Qaeda is alive and well, thanks to the Muslim nation-states that fund, harbor and protect it and use al Qaeda as shock troops against the West.

On April 25, of this year in a statement to the Pakistani press, Taliban commander Mullah Dadullah stated unequivocally that Osama bin Laden is still alive, and still actively directing al Qaeda operations, no doubt from the safety afforded him and his friends by Pakistan.