U.S.President Bush speaks during the commencement ceremony for the U.S. Coast Guard Academy in New London, Connecticut, May 23, 2007. (Xinhua/Reuters Photo)
WASHINGTON,
May 23 (Xinhua) -- U.S. President George W. Bush on Wednesday used declassified
intelligence about Al-Qaida chief Osama bin Laden to defend his Iraq war policy.
During a commencement address at the Coast Guard
Academy, New London, Connecticut, Bush mentioned declassified intelligence that
said bin Laden discussed sending a top lieutenant in 2005 to Iraq to set up a
base from which to launch attacks in the United States.
"There's a reason bin Laden sent one of his most
experienced paramilitary leaders to Iraq," he said.
"He believes that if Al-Qaida can drive us out, they
can establish Iraq as a new terrorist sanctuary," Bush added.
The president's address coincided with a push by
Democrats in Congress to force an end to the U.S. military presence in the
region.
So far this month, 81 U.S. military personnel have
died in the Iraq war, bringing the total to 3,432.
Bush vetoed a war-spending bill last month that
included a timetable for withdrawing troops from Iraq.
But timetables have been dropped from revised
war-spending legislation, substituting benchmarks with consequences for Iraqi
leaders.
Both Republicans and Democrats claimed victory
Wednesday as the revised war spending legislation moved forward.
BEIJING, May 23 (Xinhuanet) -- Osama bin Laden
ordered a top lieutenant in early 2005 to form a terrorist cell to plot attacks
outside of Iraq and make the United States the top target, a senior U.S.
official said on Tuesday.
Citing newly declassified intelligence, Frances
Fragos Townsend, the White House homeland security adviser, said the
intelligence backed the Bush administration's assertion that al-Qaida wants
to use Iraq as a staging area for attacks around the world, including the
U.S., so the U.S. troops must stay in Iraq to prevent it from becoming a
"terrorist sanctuary." Full story
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