Jeremy Scahill - Dirty Wars

278 one-pound bomb:CBS/AP, “Saudi Bombmaker Key Suspect in Yemen Plot,” CBSNews.com, November 1, 2010.

279 Asiri’s brother:“Profile: Al-Qaeda ‘Bomb Maker’ Ibrahim al-Asiri,” BBC.co.uk, May 9, 2012.

279 delivering a personal letter:US diplomatic cable 09JEDDAH343, from Consul General Martin R. Quinn, US Consulate in Jeddah, “Presidential Assistant Brennan’s Sept. 5 Discussion with Saudi Interior Minister Prince Naif,” September 11, 2009, released by WikiLeaks, http://wikileaks.org/cable/2009/09/09JEDDAH343.html.

279 “I met with Prince Mohammed bin Nayef”:Transcript, interview with Gloria Borger, State of the Union with John King , CNN , January 4, 2010.

279 “We’re very concerned”:Transcript, Meet the Press, NBC, January 3, 2010.

279 “There was no indication”:Ibid.

279 sat face to face:US diplomatic cable 09SANAA1669, from Ambassador Stephen Seche, US Embassy Sana’a, “Brennan-Saleh Meeting September 6, 2009,” September 15, 2009. Released by WikiLeaks, http://wikileaks.org/cable/2009/09/09SANAA1669.html. Details of this meeting between Brennan and President Saleh come from this cable.

280 subsequent classified cable:Ibid.

280 “doesn’t mean a damn thing”:Author interview, Colonel W. Patrick Lang, February 2011.

281 “initiative to help Yemen”:Reuters, “US Offers Yemen Help in ‘Fight Against Terrorism,’” AlArabiya.net, September 7, 2009.

281 authorizing plans:Author interviews, Special Operations sources, May–July 2010.

281 “Not enough people”:“Al Qaeda Extends to Somalia, Yemen,” Washington Times, September 10, 2009.

281 “under more pressure”: Eight Years After 9/11: Confronting the Terrorist Threat to the Homeland, Hearing Before the Senate Committee on Homeland Security and Government Affairs, 111th Cong. (September 30, 2009) (testimony of Michael Leiter, Director, National Counterterrorism Center), video available at www.senate.gov/fplayers/I2009/urlPlayer.cfm?fn=gov-taff093009&st=840&dur=8355.

281 “witnessed the reemergence”:Ibid.

282 convened a meeting:Sunlen Miller, “A Look at the President’s Meetings on Afghanistan and Pakistan,” ABCNews.go.com, November 10, 2009.

282 seven-page secret order:Marc Ambinder, “Obama Gives Commanders Wide Berth for Secret Warfare,” TheAtlantic.com, May 25, 2010.

282 permission slip:Mark Mazzetti, “U.S. Is Said to Expand Secret Actions in Mideast,” New York Times, May 24, 2010.

282 “more systematic and long term”:Ibid.

282 “reluctant to allow such an expansion”:Ambinder, “Obama Gives Commanders Wide Berth.”

283 intelligence gathering:Mazzetti, “U.S. Is Said to Expand Secret Actions.”

283 “cannot or will not be accomplished”:Ibid.

283 “The temptation for the leadership”:Author interview, Colonel W. Patrick Lang, February 2011.

283 “Pentagon is already empowered”:Author interview, Special Operations source, May 2010.

284 “insulate the president”:Author interview, former aide to Special Operations commander, May 2010.

284 discreet trip to Yemen:“Yemen, U.S. Talks on Cooperation in Military, Combating Terror Fields,” President Saleh website, October 4, 2009, www.presidentsaleh.gov.ye/shownews.php?lng=en&nsid=7743.

284 “cooperation between the U.S. and Yemen”:“Senior Military Official Visits Yemen,” press release from the US embassy in Sana’a, Yemen, October 4, 2009, http://yemen.usembassy.gov/smov.html.

284 “implementation of some special operations”:Muhammad al Ahmadi, “Al Qaeda to Respond to Obama’s Strategy in Yemen,” al-Ghad, December 6, 2009.

284 “We’re developing geostrategic principles”:Bob Woodward, Obama’s Wars (New York: Simon and Schuster, 2010), pp. 227–228.

285 Soldier Readiness Processing Center:Ana Campoy, Peter Sanders, and Russell Gold, “Hash Browns, Then Four Minutes of Chaos,” Wall Street Journal, November 9, 2009.

285 prosecuted for war crimes:Brooks Egerton, “Fort Hood Captain: Hasan Wanted Patients to Face War Crimes Charges,” Dallas Morning News, November 17, 2009.

285 complained to friends:James McKinley Jr. and James Dao, “Fort Hood Gunman Gave Signals Before His Rampage,” New York Times, November 8, 2009.

285 “It’s getting harder”:Dana Priest, “Fort Hood Suspect Warned of Threats Within the Ranks,” Washington Post , November 10, 2009.

285 imminent deployment:Staff and wire reports, “Suspect Was to Deploy to Afghanistan,” Army Times, November 5, 2009.

286 “did not alert”:Scott Shane and James Dao, “Investigators Study Tangle of Clues on Fort Hood Suspect,” New York Times, November 14, 2009.

286 “ordered nor pressured”:Sudarsan Raghavan, “Cleric Says He Was Confidant to Hasan,” Washington Post, November 16, 2009.

286 “is a hero”:Anwar al Awlaki, “Nidal Hassan Did the Right Thing,” Imam Anwar’s blog, anwar-alawlaki.com, November 9, 2009.

286 “not recruited by Al-Qaida”:“MEMRI TV Clip No. 3240: AQAP Video Features American-Yemeni Cleric Anwar al-Awlaki Calling On American Muslims to Either Leave or Follow the Example of Nidal Hassan,” transcript of AQAP-produced video featuring Anwar al Awlaki, November 2011, transcript from Middle East Research Institute (MEMRI), December 20, 2011, www.memritv.org/clip/en/3240.htm.

286 “undertake a full review”:Transcript, “Weekly Address: President Obama Calls for Comprehensive Review of Events Leading to Tragedy at Fort Hood,” November 14, 2009.

286 “most destructive terrorist attack”:Agence France-Presse, “Army Base Shooting Was ‘Terrorist Attack’: US Lawmaker,” November 18, 2009.

286 call for preemptive strikes:Jordan Fabian, “Lieberman: Yemen Will Be ‘Tomorrow’s War’ If Pre-emptive Action Not Taken,” Briefing Room (blog), The Hill, December 27, 2009, http://thehill.com/blogs/blog-briefing-room/news/73651-lieberman-yemen-will-be-tomorrows-war-if-preemptive-action-not-taken.

287 Wild West Domains:Author search, August 2011, http://who.is/whois/anwar-alawlaki.com/.

287 “They shut down my website”:Anwar al Awlaki, interview with Al-Malahem Media, aired May 23, 2010, transcript provided by MEMRI, www.memrijttm.org/clip_transcript/en/2480.htm.

287 landed in Sana’a:Transcript, “Grand Jury Focuses on NC Man Tied to Jihad Magazine,” Morning Edition with Steve Inskeep, NPR, August 18, 2010.

287 “He’s a Christmas child”:Author interview, Sarah Khan, April 2012. All information and quotations attributed to Sarah Khan come from the author’s interview.

287 Samir’s grandparents’ house:Ibid.

287 classmates recall:Matthew Chayes, Anthony M. Destefano, Robert E. Kessler, Greg Lacour, and Victor Manuel Ramos, “Samir Khan, al-Qaida Figure, Grew Up on Long Island,” Newsday, October 7, 2011; Timothy Bolger, “Slain al Qaeda Mouthpiece Samir Khan’s Westbury Roots,” LongIsland-Press.com, October 6, 2011.