Pagel ofl

Mike Hurley

From: Mike Hurley

Sent: Monday, March 01, 2004 8:56 AM
To: Philip Zelikow
Cc: Mike Hurley
Subject: Assassination of Masood Link to 9/11 Attacks

Philip:

I pulled the following paragraph from James Bamford's review (Washington Post
Book World, Sunday, February 29) of Steve Coil's book Ghost Wars.

"Many believe that the assassination ofMassoud was one of Osama bin Laden's last
acts before the suicide attacks that morning, Sept. 11. Knowing that the United States
would quickly come after him, and knowing that Massoud was Washington's warlord
in Afghanistan, the theory goes, bin Laden wanted to eliminate his enemy before that
enemy could lead America's war against bin Laden."

I thought you might be interested. This is a topic that came up frequently during
our foreign travel interviews.

FYI: I thought the rest of Bamford's piece was pretty bad. Seems to have
missed most of the significant points Ghost Wars describes.

3/1/2004
washingtonpost.com: Sowing the Whirlwind Page 1 of3

washingtonpost.com

Sowing the Whirlwind Mortgage Rates

How the CIA's Central Asian missions helped pave the way for Osama bin
Laden.

Reviewed by James Bamford

Sunday, February 29, 2004; Page BW03

GHOST WARS

The Secret History of the CIA, Afghanistan, and bin Laden, from the Soviet
Invasion to September 10, 2001
Refinance White
By Steve Coll. Penguin. 695 pp. $29.95 Rates are Low!
"This is Morning Edition from NPR News. I'm Bob Edwards. The fate of Cliclf. Your Current Rate
Afghan opposition leader Ahmed Shah Massoud remains uncertain two days
after he was attacked in his home in Northern Afghanistan. Massoud's
followers insist that the assassination attempt failed and that he is still alive. 499*
But there's widespread speculation that he died from his wounds. NPR's
Michael Sullivan reports "On the morning of Sept. 11, 2001, many 5,00-
Americans paid little attention to the radio story of the possible assassination 5.99*-
of Ahmed Shah Massoud. Afghanistan was a distant place with a convoluted
history: tribal factions, warlords, the Khyber Pass, curved daggers and faded
memories of downed Russian helicopters. Network news organizations 6!99%
throughout the summer and into the fall were leading their evening broadcasts
with an assorted mix of sex and blood stories — Gary Condit and killer sharks.
They had no time for horseback-riding Tajiks or warring factions in the Hindu
Kush.
Less-than-Perfect Credit OK
But listening to the story that morning was a little like putting one's ear to an
iron track and hearing the vibrations of a huge train rapidly approaching.

"This is not the first time that Ahmed Shah Massoud's enemies have tried to kill him," said Michael
Sullivan from Islamabad, Pakistan, as the broadcast continued. "A spokesman said there have been
numerous attempts by the Taliban to assassinate the charismatic commander in the past few years....
Opposition spokesmen say Massoud was seriously injured when two suicide bombers posing as
journalists detonated a bomb hidden in their TV camera during an interview with Massoud on Sunday..
.. Opposition spokesmen have accused the Taliban of being behind the suicide bombing and hint that
Saudi fugitive Osama bin Laden may also be involved. The assassins, they say, are Arabs who had come
from the Taliban-controlled capital, Kabul." As the broadcast was being heard in bedrooms and at
breakfast tables around the country, few realized what they were hearing was the prologue to a war only
minutes away. Many believe that the assassination of Massoud was one of Osama bin Laden's last acts
before the suicide attacks that morning, Sept. 11. Knowing that the United States would quickly come
after him, and knowing that Massoud was Washington's warlord in Afghanistan, the theory goes, bin
Laden wanted to eliminate his enemy before that enemy could lead America's war against bin Laden.

In Ghost Wars, The Washington Post's managing editor, Steve Coll, takes a long -- and long overdue --

http://www.washingtonpost.com/ac2/wp-dyn/A8776-2004Feb26?language=printer 3/1/2004