FEITH GETS AN OP-ED IN THE WSJ

Douglas Feith, one of the Iraq War criminals, has an op-ed that Booman takes apart and it reminded me of a fact I had forgotten about: Chalabi and the INC were known fuck-ups since 1995.

Coded Cable In 1995 Used Chalabi's Name
Intercepted Iranian Message Involved Plot to Kill Hussein
By Walter Pincus and Bradley Graham
Washington Post Staff Writers
Friday, June 4, 2004; Page A01

Officials yesterday recounted an incident in early 1995 when Chalabi's name turned up in an encrypted Iranian cable reporting a purported CIA-backed plan to assassinate Saddam Hussein, then Iraq's president. The message was intercepted by U.S. intelligence and caused a major political stir in Washington.

The 1995 incident arose at a time when Chalabi was in northern Iraq, working with CIA backing against Hussein.

Shortly after the intercept, Chalabi's militia forces and Kurdish fighters went ahead with an attempted coup, launching a three-city strike against Hussein's troops. But the offensive quickly foundered.

The White House, having warned Chalabi not to proceed because Iraqi intelligence had learned of the operation, declined to provide air power to help him. Hussein's troops crushed the attackers, leaving the CIA angry that it had funded such a fiasco and infuriating top officials in the Clinton administration.