White House says Iraq was in Sept. 11 planning: report.

AFP. 3 August 2002

WASHINGTON --The White House continues to maintain that Iraq played a role in the planning of the Sept. 11 attacks, despite grave doubts expressed by US intelligence, The Los Angeles Times reported Friday.

A meeting in Prague between hijacker Mohammed Atta and an Iraqi agent five months before four commercial aircraft crashed into US targets seems to "hold up" evidence of a link between Baghdad and the attacks, an administration official told the daily.

"We're going to talk more about this case," the official was quoted as saying.

But a probe by the Central Intelligence Agency and the Federal Bureau of Investigation several months ago found no "hard evidence" proving any such meeting took place, the daily reported.

That has not stopped US authorities from combing through Atta's possessions, travel and phone records for possible ties to Iraq, the daily wrote.

Implicating Baghdad in the attacks could bolster the White House's case against Saddam Hussein and help justify eventual military action against Iraq.

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