Famous But Incompetent: We Have Hijackers' IDs - Really! Via NY Transfer News * All the News That Doesn't Fit Saturday November 3 11:15 AM ET (via Yahoo) [for whatever it's worth...] FBI Confirms Hijackers' Identities By PETE YOST, Associated Press Writer WASHINGTON (AP) - The identities of all 19 hijackers in the Sept. 11 attacks, once in doubt, are now clearly established, the FBI says. The bureau's progress in the probe of the attacks emerged as investigators acknowledged difficulty in the investigation of the anthrax attacks, the other terrorist mystery the government is trying to unravel. There was one bit of movement on the anthrax front Friday. FBI agents raided a Trenton, N.J., apartment and detained a man on immigration violations. `The search was conducted based on information that was developed in the course of the anthrax investigation,'' said Sandra Carroll, an FBI spokeswoman. Trenton is where three anthrax-laced letters were mailed. Investigators believe the anthrax culprits could be highly trained technicians with laboratory know-how. FBI Director Robert Mueller appealed to Americans, especially those working in medical labs where anthrax is studied, to contact authorities about suspicious activities. He asked for help in finding who sent the bacteria. `It may well be that there is somebody in the United States who is manufacturing the anthrax,'' he said at a news briefing. `You may be in the medical profession, you may be in some other profession that has something to do with anthrax.'' `If you believe that persons are doing something with anthrax ... and is somewhat suspicious, we're asking you to let us know,'' Mueller said. The type of envelopes that held each of the three letters is particularly intriguing to investigators. The letters were sent in pre-stamped envelopes that are widely used by businesses and school districts and can be purchased at post offices. The envelopes were withdrawn from sale to the general public as part of the investigation, the Postal Service said Friday. Regarding the Sept. 11 attacks on New York's World Trade Center and the Pentagon, the identities of some of the airplane hijackers have been in question. Investigators were not sure whether some were carrying false identification when they boarded planes in Washington, Boston and Newark, N.J. `We at this point definitely know the 19 hijackers who were responsible,'' Mueller said. The FBI released the names and photos of the hijackers in late September. The names were those listed on the planes' passenger manifests and investigators were certain those were the names the hijackers used when they entered the United States. But questions remained about whether they were the hijackers' true identities. The FBI has not disclosed which names were in doubt and Mueller provided no new information on the hijackers' identities beyond his statement to reporters. FBI officials did not return phone calls seeking elaboration. The Saudi Institute, an independent human rights watchdog group that has researched the hijackers' identities, said at least one of the hijackers named by the FBI used stolen identification. Abdulaziz Alomari was identified by the FBI as one of the hijackers of an American Airlines plane that was crashed into the World Trade Center. Ali Al-Ahmed, the Saudi Institute's director, said Alomari used someone else's passport. Mueller also said that investigators know some of the foreign locations where the hijacking plot was hatched and have identified overseas accomplices. He did not identify the places or others involved. Attorney General John Ashcroft said last month that three of the leaders of the hijackers and three accomplices were part of a terrorist network that operated at least since 1999 in Hamburg, Germany, and in the United States. European authorities also have found evidence the hijackers and their accomplices were in Spain and Great Britain. Officials in the Czech Republic said suspected ringleader Mohamed Atta met with an Iraqi intelligence agent in Prague in April. ================================================================= NY Transfer News Collective * A Service of Blythe Systems Since 1985 - Information for the Rest of Us 339 Lafayette St., New York, NY 10012 http://www.blythe.org e-mail: nyt@blythe.org ================================================================= nytjus-11.05.01-04:30:37-341