Once they were allied. Now documents and witnesses reveal some of the
bonds that united them.
Osama bin Laden is "a creature" of the United States Central
Intelligence Agency, according to an analyst, who knows the complexity
of the case. Nicaraguan political analyst and sociologist Oscar René Vargas,
is convinced that Bin Laden was trained by the CIA to face the Soviet
occupation of Afghanistan, and later supported the CIA in financing of
the "Nicaraguan Contras", who fought in the Eighties against
the Sandinista regime (1979-1990). In an interview published by the Nicaraguan
newspaper " El Nuevo Diario ", Vargas explained that the CIA
sent Bin Laden to Afghanistan to fight with the Taliban guerrillas against
the "Evil Empire" (the ex- Soviet Union), without suspecting
that in time they would have differences, and that Bin Laden would
punish them by bombing American embassies.
Also, a recent American investigation, presented to the
Congress of this country in recent hours, suggests it is " highly probable" that
Bin Laden and his followers have acquired some of the Stinger antiaircraft
missiles, that can be shot with a portable launcher, that the United
States provided to the Islamic combatants who fought against the Soviet
Union in Afghanistan in the decade of 1980. The document, drafted by
terrorism expert Kenneth Katzman, of the Congressional Research Service
of the Library of the Congress of the United States, establishes that
Bin Laden and his followers represent "an increasingly important
threat to the American interests in the Middle East and in the rest of
the world ".
In such an explosive moment, it would be very difficult them American
forces to find to Bin Laden, if retaliation is attemped.
For the most wanted [Bin Laden] it is easy to hide in Afghanistan, a
remote and mountainous country, torn by war.
An intelligence source in Pakistan -- who spoke on the condition of
anonymity-- told The Associated Press that heard that Bin Laden had left
the place he had been in Afghanistan, just minutes after the attacks
in the United States.
Historical Points:
Now that indications point to Islamic terrorists as responsible for
the attacks, a question arises: Why are they so determined to attack
the United States.
American Troops in Saudi Arabia. The American troops arrived there by
invitation of King Fahd to protect his kingdom, rich in oil but weak
militarily weak, after Iraq invaded Kuwait in 1990. For Osama bin Laden,
the presence of the United States in a country that holds the most sacred
sanctuaries of the Islam has been perhaps the most powerful reason for
its anti-American attacks.
the sanctions and aerial attacks supported by the U.S.A. against Iraq.
Many Muslim states also see Saddam as a threat for the stability of the
region, but considers the campaign of sanctions too severe.
The military and political support from the United States to Israel.
Whereas the military actions of the United States in the Gulf are a
burning subject for a relatively small number of Islamic extremists,
the solid North American support to Israel in its conflict with the
Palestinians is condemned by most of the Muslim world.
The confrontation of the United States with the Taliban. The interpretations
of the Islamic law by the Taliban in Afghanistan, criticized by many
students of the Islam, and their decision to lodge to Bin Laden, places
to them in a collision course with the United States.