Gitmo Docs Link Pakistani, Iranian, and Yemeni Intelligence Agencies to al Qaeda

A classified document used by military and intelligence officials in the determination of a Guantanamo detainee's linkages to al Qaeda and associated movements lists the intelligence services of Pakistan, Iran, and Yemen as “associated forces” known to support al Qaeda and allied movements, including the Taliban.

The document, titled “Matrix of Threat Indicators for Enemy Combatants,” was one of more than 700 documents released to select news agencies by WikiLeaks. The document has been published by The New York Times.

On pages 16 and 17, the document lists the “Pakistani Inter-Service Intelligence Directorate,” “Iranian Intelligence,” and “Yemeni Intelligence [PSO]” as “associated forces … with which al Qaeda, the al Qaeda network, or the Taliban had or has an established working, supportive, or beneficiary relationship for the achievement of common goals.”

“Through associations with these groups and organizations, a detainee may have provided support to al Qaeda or the Taliban, or engaged in hostilities against US or Coalition forces,” the document continued.

The intelligence services of Pakistan, Iran, and Yemen are listed among numerous terror groups and entities such as nongovernmental organizations that have been designated by the US government and the United Nations [see the full list below]. The Muslim Brotherhood is also listed in the document among the entities that support al Qaeda.

Pakistan's military and its intelligence service, the Inter-Services Intelligence Directorate, are known to harbor and support various Taliban and allied groups who carry out attacks against US and NATO forces in Afghanistan. The Pakistani government has allowed and aided the Afghan Taliban, the Haqqani Network, and several Pakistani Taliban groups, to organize in Pakistan's cities and border areas. Also, terror groups such as the Lashkar-e-Taiba, the Jaish-e-Mohammad, and the Harkat-ul-Jihad-i-Islami receive direct support. These terror groups are allied with al Qaeda and support their local and global operations.

Iranian intelligence, and the Qods Force, the special operations branch of the Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps, also support terrorist groups in the region and worldwide. Iran's support of terrorists groups such as Hezbollah, Hamas, and Islamic Jihad is well established. The US Treasury Department has also directly linked Qods Force to the Taliban, while al Qaeda operatives are known to use Iran to transit to Afghanistan via safe houses. Hundreds of al Qaeda leaders, fighters, and their families traveled to Iran after the US invasion of Afghanistan, and were placed into protective custody. Meanwhile, some of these al Qaeda operatives coordinated attacks in neighboring countries. Qods Force also maintained contact with al Qaeda's top leaders. For instance, Osama bin Laden's son, Sa'ad, who was being held in Iran, facilitated communications between Ayman al Zawahiri and Qods Force in September 2008 after the deadly attack on the US embassy in Yemen.

Yemeni intelligence, or the Political Security Organization (the PSO), has provided direct support to al Qaeda, according to a senior Yemeni al Qaeda leader, and has sent hundreds of Yemenis to fight with al Qaeda in Iraq against US and Coalition forces. The PSO is known to be riddled with Salafists, al Qaeda sympathizers, and even so-called “reformed” al Qaeda members. The Yemeni government routinely makes deals with al Qaeda and in the past has used al Qaeda fighters as shock troops to battle the Shia Houthis in the north. In 2006, dozens of top al Qaeda prisoners escaped from a PSO jail in Sana'a; the escape is widely believed to have been conducted with the knowledge and support of the PSO.

Both Pakistan and Yemen are considered by the US government to be key allies in the war against al Qaeda and allied movements. The disclosure of the Matrix of Threat Indicators for Enemy Combatants is likely to contribute to the continuing souring of relations between the US and Pakistan.

List of al Qaeda and Taliban associated forces, according to the Matrix of Threat Indicators for Enemy Combatants document:

Afghan Support Committee (Afghan Support Group)
Al-Muhajiroun [ALM]
Al-Itihad Al-Islami [AIAI]
Al-Qaida Network
Ansar al-Islam [AI]
Armed Islamic Group [GIA]
East Africa al-Qaida [EAAQ]
Eastern Turkistan Islamic Party [ETIP]
Gama”a Islamia [GI]
Harakat Al-Mujahideen [HUM]
Hezb-I-Islami-Gulbuddin (AMC Entity) [HIG]
Hizballah Islah Party Islamic Movement of Tajikistan (ACM Entity) [IMT]
Islamic Salvation Front [FIS]
Jaysh Al-Muhammad [JEM]
Libyan Islamic Fighting Group [LIFG]
Moro Islamic Liberation Front [MILF]
Muslim Brotherhood [MB]
Pakistani Inter-Service Intelligence Directorate [ISID]
Anti-Coalition Militia [ACM]
Council of Islamic Courts [CIC]
East Turkistan Islamic Movement [ETIM]
Egyptian Islamic Jihad, Islamic Jihad [EIJ]
HAMAS
Harakat-Ul-Jihad-I-Islami [HUJI]
Hezb-I-Islami-Khalis-(ACM Entity) [HIK]
Iranian Intelligence
Islamic Jihad Union (Islamic Jihad Group) [IJU, IJG]
Islamic Movement of Uzbekistan [IMU]
Jama”at Al-Islami [JI]
Lashkar-e-Tayyiba (and its political wing MDI) [LT]
Maktab Al-Khadimat [MK]
Moroccan Islamic Combat Group [GICM]
North African Extremist Network
Sabotage Battalion of Chechen Martyrs [RSRSBCM]
Salafist Group for Call and Combat [GSPC]
Takfir wa Hijra [TAKFIR]
Tunisian Combat Group [TCG]
Yemeni Intelligence [PSO]
Active Islamic Youth NGO
Al-Akhtar Trust NGO
Al-Haramayn International Foundation NGO (HIF, HIFA)
Salafiya Jihadia (SJ)
Taliban Tunisian Islamic Front [precursor to Tunisian Combat Group, TCG] [FIT]
Zarqawi Network (al-Qaida in Iraq)
African Muslim Association (sometimes Agency) NGO (AMA)
Al-Furqan NGO
Al-Wafa Humanitarian Organization NGO, al-Wafa al-Islamiya, Munathima Wafa lalA”mal al-Agathia, Munathima Wafa lalA”mal al-Ansania, Wafa Global Relief Foundation NGO (GRF) International Islamic Relief Organization NGO [IIRO]
Kuwaiti Joint Relief Committee NGO [KJRC]
Maktab al-Khidmat NGO [MK]
Qatari Joint Committee for Relief NGO Revival of Islamic Heritage Society NGO [RIHS]
Saudi High Commission for Relief NGO [SHCR] Ummah Tameer Nau NGO [UTN]
Benevolence International Foundation (Lajnat Al-Bir Al-Islami) NGO [BIF]
Human Appeal International NGO Jama”at Al-Tablighi NGO [JT]
Lajnat Al-Dawa Al-Islamiya NGO [LDI]
Muslim World League NGO Rashid Trust NGO
Sanabil NGO Taibah NGO World Assembly of Muslim Youth NGO [WAMY]

The full article is available here.