Faulty Intelligence Part 2

James Bamford states that in August 2002, Douglas Feith (see previous blog entries: Why Iraq? Part 2, 3, 4), as Undersecretary of Defense for Policy, set up the Office of Special Plans (OSP) in the Pentagon. "According to a report in London's "Guardian" newspaper, the OSP also forged close ties to a parallel ad hoc intelligence unit within Ariel Sharon's office in Israel." ( James Bamford, "A Pretext for War" p. 307-308) Seymour Hersh writes, "By the fall of 2002, the operation rivaled both the C.I.A. and the Pentagon's own Defense Intelligence Agency, the D.I.A., as President Bush's main source on intelligence regarding Iraq's possible possession of stockpiles on weapons of mass destruction and connection with Al Qaeda." (Seymour Hersh, "Chain of Command" p. 207-208) "In its search for new intelligence, the Office of Special Plans turned to Chalabi's Iraqi National Congress, which constantly sought out Iraqi defectors. The office developed a close working relationship with the I.N.C. and became a conduit for intelligence reports from the I.N.C. to officials in the White House." (Seymour Hersh, "Chain of Command" p. 211)