As the U.N. yesterday completed its probe of the assassination of former Lebanese Prime Minister Rafik Hariri, not yet releasing the results, former senior and serving U.S. intelligence officials again insisted that the killing was done by Syria or Syrian proxies.
The Feb. 14 blast killed 16 and wounded 100, according to UPI news accounts.
The murder galvanized opposition elements in Lebanon which immediately demanded that Syria withdraw its forces.
But U.S. intelligence officials also accuse Syria of attempting to engineer a cover-up of the blast. The Syrians prepared a cover story in advance, one serving U.S. intelligence official said.
Just hours after the assassination, a bearded man appeared on Al-Jazeera satellite television broadcast claiming responsibility for the act, according to various U.S. news accounts.
The man was identified by. Lebanese security forces in a public statement as Ahmed Abu Adas, allegedly a Islamic extremist.
Abu Adas named "Victory and Jihad" as the group responsible, but U.S. intelligence officials said that the group did not exist. It is entirely bogus said one. One serving U.S. analyst noted that Adas did not recite any Koranic verses which are a trademark of suicide bombings. Apparently the Syrians overlooked that, he said.
Lebanese security forces raided the Beirut home of Adas, but found no one. According to a report in the Lebanon Daily Star, several neighbors said Abu Adas was reclusive, did not have a job and prayed five times a day at a nearby mosque. They said he had not been seen for several weeks.
Security forces said they confiscated computers, tapes and documents and detained family members for questioning. All this, said U.S. intelligence officials, was an elaborate charade, put in motion by Syria, to defect attention from its own responsibility in the killing.
According to one former senior CIA official, Adas had been in Syrian custody for months before the Hariri blast. They simply dressed him up, gave him a script, and thrust him out in the limelight one U.S. government official said.
The blast occurred just before noon as Hariri's motorcade was proceeding down a beachfront road -- a busy area of banks and hotels.
Lebanese officials first claimed that the blast was caused by a suicide bomber but U.S. officials said that the bomb had been planted underground and detonated mechanically.
Several U.S. intelligence officials said it was an inside job since there were decoy cars in the Hariri convoy and yet the killers clearly knew in which car Hariri was riding.
Hariri's convoy was equipped with devices to jam radio signals designed to detonate a bomb but that device could have been thwarted by a counter device left in a nearby car, according to former CIA official, Larry Johnson.
Johnson added, The explosive was placed on the route way in advance.
The blast left a huge crater, as well as many burning vehicles, according to UPI accounts.
Hariri had been a trusted person or intermediary for the CIA for some years, according to two former senior CIA officials.
Hariri had strong ties to some Salafis in Saudi Arabia and the agency grew annoyed with Hariri for allegedly not having warned the United States in advance of possible attacks inside the continental United States, which resulted in the massacres of Sept. 11, these sources said. Hariri had been a leading politician since the end of the civil war in 1990, and was prime minister for most of the last 15 years.
His death quickly ratcheted up U.S. opposition to the Syrian presence in Lebanon, and Syria recently declared that it would withdraw its forces in two stages. Before he died, Hariri had joined calls by opposition leaders for a withdrawal of Syrian troops from Lebanon.
Officials have since played down the claim. Shortly after the attack, Justice Minister Adnan Addoum said the claim could be an attempt to mislead investigators, and the interior minister later suggested a suicide bomber backed by "international parties" may have been responsible.
Dia'a Rashwan, an Egyptian expert on militant groups, ruled out the possibility that the videotape was made by militants because Abu Adas did not use Quranic verses commonly used by those who carry out attacks in Iraq and Israel. According to these sources,
This one sounds like a lot of BS. Syria had more to loose with Hariri dead than alive. Just 'who' is this 'one serving' individual? Does that 'serving official' have a name? I'm sorry but this latest sounds like an Israeli orchestrated black propaganda opera at play. I don't buy the Syria thread, not at all.
Posted by: J | 22 January 2011 at 11:58 AM
A bunch of rumors. Most likely unfounded.
When was this stuff written? Right after the incident?
Raimonod's recent piece seems more qualified: The Assassins of Lebanon - Who's to blame for the death of Rafiq Hariri?
Posted by: b | 22 January 2011 at 12:19 PM
Possible Israeli connection mentioned a few years ago at Syria Comment. Apparently the person who may have recruited him worked closely with the brother of a member of an Israeli spy ring...
http://faculty-staff.ou.edu/L/Joshua.M.Landis-1/syriablog/2006/06/ahmed-abu-adas-jund-al-sham-and-mossad.htm
Posted by: Sisyphus | 22 January 2011 at 12:31 PM
some argue parts of the CIA is an Israeli asset, to wit:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Assassination_of_Rafic_Hariri
"Jürgen Cain Külbel
Jürgen Cain Külbel, a former German criminal investigator of the GDR (the former communist East Germany), maintains in his book "The murder of Hairiri", that the CIA and the Mossad are responsible for Hariri's murder.[20] In an interview with Global Research, Külbel maintains that one hour before Hariri's murder Hariri's jamming device for remote control bombs, which was installed in his car, was turned off. And that Israel as the inventor and sole manufacturer of this device was the only one in position to turn it off, thereby making Hairiri's motorcade susceptible to remote control bombs. Külbel furthermore alleges that both the USA and Israel wanted to bring down the Syrian government, and that they needed an event such as the assassination of Hariri in order to weaken Syria and have it vulnerable and ready for a possible invasion, like the 2003 US invasion of Iraq. In the interview Külbel maintains that Detlev Mehlis, the first UN prosecutor, casually worked with the CIA and neo-con think tanks.[20] "
Posted by: WILL | 22 January 2011 at 02:42 PM
I agree with Colonel Lang that while obviously someone knows who killed Hariri, the numerous parties who are rendering opinions probably do not and are only guessing. I too have heard from my intelligence contacts that Syria was behind it, but when I pressed for evidence I was told it was based on "who benefits most" analysis. Even by that standard the tale is by no means clear as there are many possible beneficiaries and many with motives. Facts in the case appear to be subject to whatever kind of spin one wants to employ.
Posted by: Phil Giraldi | 22 January 2011 at 04:01 PM
I recall at the time of his death the mainstream press pushed the Syria connection hard.
Posted by: frank durkee | 22 January 2011 at 04:13 PM
Or the CIA did it and blamed the Syrians. It says they were upset with him for not warning about attacks in continental US. Personally I don't think the US could be that successfully duplicitous without Israeli assistance.
Posted by: par4 | 22 January 2011 at 05:18 PM
I agree with Col. Lang that it is reasonable to belive that except for those who did it (and some may have had "accidents" to neaten things up in the meantime) no one really knows...yet.
Using a cui bono approach, my hypothesis was and is that Israel did it. Why? Keep things in turmoil in the Middle East: a "strategy of tension" to divide the Arabs (still more than they usually are).
Posted by: Clifford Kiracofe | 22 January 2011 at 07:00 PM
I have always thought that Syria masterminded the assassination with Hizbullah providing the logistical support. Regardless of who was behind the assassination, the U.S. opinion that his death ALONE of all the murders in Lebanon deserves "justice" is delusional. This idea that Israel and the U.S. share that they can dictate a "peace" without concessions is an insanity that never stops.
Posted by: Simon | 22 January 2011 at 08:40 PM
To: Phil Giraldi; and Col. Lang and everyone.
The first of a string of assassinations in Lebanon started in earnest January 24th 2002, with the assassination of Mr. Elie HOBEIKA by a joint effort of CIA/MOSSAD, who used Asef SHAWKAT in the execution...
Asef SHAWKAT is SMI's liaison with American Intelligence. Following that assassination, evidence was washed away by the Syro-Lebanese apparatus of SHAWKAT...., within hours...., funerals, mornings, and reactions were forcefully muted...and everyone in Lebanon obliged with the Syrian version of events and the MSM complied and moved on....This is very important because it was instrumental when it came to the decision to assassinate Hariri few years later..., because the Syrians and their Lebanese lackeys thought and were absolutely convinced that the reaction to Hariri's assassination would be similar to that of 2002...
You are right that the Syrians assassinated Hariri and Asef SHAWKAT is the Mastermind...., but he got precious HELP from a CIA/MOSSAD devious and clever but very typical covert approach... in order to have "your" enemy do your bidding unbeknown to him... In other words, Asef SHAWKAT was Bamboozled into carrying out the HIT on HARIRI....and here is how:
After UNSC 1559 of 2004, Hariri was convinced to support it by the Saudis, CHIRAC and others. He was made to believe that its execution will be made to happen, come hell or high water...and Syrians/Alawites will be probably be ousted should they obstruct UNSC 1559...
Following that, Hariri started or was "pushed", "nudged" into funneling money to very extreme opposition figures in Syria... Sunni groups which were completely penetrated by Asef SHAWKAT's military intelligence... Israel and USA...knew full well that Asef SHAWKAT had penetrated these extreme Sunni Groups in Syria and abroad...and CIA/MOSSAD/OSP KNEW FULL WELL the inevitable and well predicted reaction of SHAWKAT's military intelligence Killers and the Syrian Regime to that Capital Offense to the Alawites.... VOILA.... Rafic HARIRI is TOAST...
STL is a TOOL, first to get what we want from Syria... I.E. complete cooperation, Hence the assassination of Imad F. MOUGHNIEH in Damascus by Asef SHAWKAT's Goons... then STL covers for Syria's deeds and moves on with STL, defaming, de-legitimizing HIZBULLAH, and to make them hold the bag...because the US has a score to settle with Hizbullah since 1983...
That's all there is to it... All this is in a day's work in the Black Covert Ops. in the Levant...
All these are first hand info's which I witnessed personally myself since 2000...because of where I stand... and it's not over till it's over... There are many Chapters to go....
Good Day to All here.
Posted by: Sam Will | 23 January 2011 at 09:57 AM
Sam Will,
May I ask 'where'[location] you say you 'witnessed personally myself since 2000' statement? What does your 'where you stand' statement denote? Are you saying you were a part of covert black ops? Are you now or were you part of Asef Shawkat's inner staff, or Israeli Mossad perhaps to have such a 'vantage point'?
Your say you 'witnessed personally' and your 'because of where I stand' statements intrigues me immensely.
Posted by: J | 23 January 2011 at 12:37 PM
The usual suspects, sources, officials, authorities, reports nary a concrete reference amongst them. I'm with Pat, Clifford and Sam Will. Who really knows, but it does seem like trite all in a days work intrigue from all sides. Wasn't there a good one a while back, some top terrorist sap whose phone blew his head off, turns out his brother was the Israeli asset. And who can top the Americans or the Israelis in the electronics, tho I guess GCHQ and the CSE have a trick antenna or two. In any event, if its got a chip, chances are its got a trap door, and I don't think they lead to Arab - or Persian - capitals, unless the software says go. . .
Back in the cui bono dept, who really benefits from an M.O. used every day: delegitimation, renaming, attack, infliction of chaos to the point of requisite victim debilitation?
Need to bomb the shit outta Gaza, the Palestinians and the democratically elected government there? And keep the screws on after, aside from the smuggling opportunities?
Call it Hamas and bombs away, the world joins in.
Call Lebanon Hizbullah, sitr, presto it needs to be dealt with, like the WAPO says, whatever the risks. . . . what, PEOPLE live there? That's why they drop cluster bombs on villages?, not just inventory cycling, repeat sales? Terrorist shouldn't hide there then . . .
Dialectically of course, GOI = antisemtism victim, so the usual M.O. is strictly verboten, call victim services at once.
Posted by: Charles I | 23 January 2011 at 01:32 PM
The Special Tribunal for Lebanon is the exception among all the U.N. courts operating at present. It is the only one with the sole purpose of identifying and trying the perpetrators of a political assassination.
The other U.N. courts, for the former Yugoslavia, Rwanda, Sierra Leone and Cambodia, deal with ethnic cleansing, genocide, and other war crimes and crimes against humanity.
(see www.un.org/en/law/index.shtml).
I agree with Col. Lang that the list of suspects is long. Apart from yesterday's and today's western favourites, Syria and Hizbullah, respectively, I personally have two others: Al Qaida clones or sympathizers trying to strike at Saudi Arabia as well as Syria and personal or business enemies.
Posted by: Lars Moller-Rasmussen | 23 January 2011 at 04:44 PM
J,
If you have specific questions about the content of my quick brief here... I will be glad to respond.... I cannot give you more than that!
Posted by: Sam Will | 24 January 2011 at 04:00 AM
Sam I have a specific ?, well, 2. Who is Sam Will? What were/are you at the time of your observations?
Posted by: Charles I | 24 January 2011 at 12:31 PM
Charles I,
Very cute... this is the only thing you ain't getting, and it's easy to understand why...
Posted by: Sam Will | 24 January 2011 at 03:12 PM