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al-Qaida Operative: Jordan Attack Planned

Posted on: Friday, 30 April 2004, 06:00 CDT

DUBAI, United Arab Emirates - A man identified as al-Qaida operative Abu-Musab al-Zarqawi said on a tape aired Friday that his terror group did indeed plan an attack on Jordan's secret service building, but didn't have a chemical weapon as the Jordanian authorities have alleged.

Jordanian state television has broadcast confessions of a group of plotters allegedly linked to al-Zarqawi who said they were plotting al-Qaida's first chemical bomb attack, which would have been directed against Jordan's secret service building in Amman.

"The (allegation) that there was a chemical bomb to kill thousands of people is a mere lie," the reported voice of al-Zarqawi says on a tape broadcast via an Islamic site on the Internet.

"God knows, if we did possess (a chemical bomb), we wouldn't hesitate one second to use it to hit Israeli cities such as Eilat and Tel Aviv," the voice said.

Al-Zarqawi confirmed that his group did plan to attack the Jordanian intelligence building, calling it "the source of all evils in our home."

"Yes, there was a plot to demolish the Jordanian General Intelligence building," the voice said. "Jordan has turned itself into a hidden base of supplies for the occupying army in Iraq."

The voice said the General Intelligence building in Amman is the "Arabs' Guantanamo detention camp" - a reference to the prison for terror suspects at the U.S. Naval base in Cuba.

The building is a "big data base used by the enemy of Islam to track down holy warriors," the tape said.

The voice could not be immediately authenticated as that of al-Zarqawi, a Jordanian wanted by the United States for allegedly organizing terrorists to fight U.S. troops in Iraq on behalf of al-Qaida.

U.S. officials have offered a $10 million reward for al-Zarqawi's capture.

Jordanian officials say the plot was foiled when security forces arrested six militants in at least two police raids since late March. Four other militants died in a shootout with police in Amman last week.

The plotters are alleged to have been planning to strike other buildings in Amman, such as the U.S. Embassy and the prime minister's office.

Jordanians held a mass demonstration against the plot on Thursday in which Queen Rania took part. The marchers carried banners pledging support for Jordan's royal family and chanted slogans against terrorism.

The discovery of the plot caused widespread fear in Jordan, a moderate Arab nation that is closely allied to the United States, has a peace treaty with Israel, and enjoys relative stability in the Middle East.

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