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re: Al-Qaeda ( القاعدة, al-qāʿidah)- FBI Co*k it Up - Again- Wrong PHOTO
"You are going to have good intelligence and bad intelligence, but the problem is when that bad intelligence is used to charge and detain people or to build cases against others," said Ben Wizner, the attorney for Khaled el-Masri, the German who was sent to a secret prison and, according to Wizer, has suffered because of the trauma. "This faulty intelligence and disregard for the legal process has damaged and disrupted the lives of innocent people."
It is unclear exactly how Makkawi's life has been affected. The former Egyptian army officer who worked in a counterterrorism unit has yet to come forward and did not respond to several emails sent by the AP
Still, in May a man who identified himself as Makkawi sent a handful of emails to journalists and commentators, saying he had been mistaken for al-Adel. In one email to the pan-Arab newspaper Asharq Al-Awsat, which publishes an English edition in London, he claimed he was a colonel in the Egyptian army, has long been an opponent of al-Qaida and other jihadist groups and has been mistaken for al-Adel ever since settling down in Pakistan.
He says he and his family have been branded enemies of both the United States and al-Qaida - an unenviable position.
In an earlier message to the newspaper in July 2010, the same man criticized al-Qaida and Pakistan: "There is an immoral extortion campaign against the U.S. and its allies and the Islamic movement being led by Pakistan, for its own motives. Pakistan has all of these international terrorists in its hands."
Pakistani authorities have said they have no knowledge of Makkawi's whereabouts.
It is easy enough to understand how the FBI might have originally mistaken Makkawi for al-Adel.
A tip may have come from a detainee at the U.S. prison camp in Guantanamo Bay, who told investigators he met with a "Muhammad Ibrahim Makkawi, aka (al-Adel)," according to secret documents released by WikiLeaks. Others who say they know both men say al-Adel might intentionally be using Makkawi's name as revenge for Makkawi's pointed criticism of al-Qaida and other jihadist groups.
But photographs provided to the AP by people who say they knew both al-Adel and Makkawi show two different men. The FBI's photo of al-Adel shows a slender man with thin hair, full lips and delicate features; a picture of Makkawi shows a stout man with a round face, bulbous nose and thick, curly hair.
Noman Benotman, a former jihadist with links to al-Qaida and now an analyst at the London-based Quilliam Foundation, says he has met both al-Adel and Makkawi.
Describing Makkawi as "well-educated, short-fused and unpredictable," Benotman said the last time he saw Makkawi was in Jalalabad, Afghanistan, around 1994.
Benotman said the last time he saw al-Adel was in 2000 in Kandahar, Afghanistan. He said he was impressed with his knowledge of military strategy and country profiles.
"The big difference between them is that Makkawi hates al-Qaida, hates these jihadist groups, and in particular hates the Egyptian jihadist groups where Zawahiri came from," said Benotman, referring to the Egyptian eye doctor who has succeeded bin Laden as head of the terror network.
Both al-Adel and Makkawi are Egyptian, reportedly served in the Egyptian army and were accused of links to jihadist groups.
But Makkawi reportedly severed all ties with extremist groups after growing disillusioned with their goals and strategies.
Specializing in counterterrorism operations, Makkawi was one of several army officers accused in 1987 of forming a jihadist group. Although he was released without charge after six months in jail, he was sacked from his army job and struggled to find consistent work afterward. In 1988, he reportedly sued the Egyptian interior ministry and demanded compensation. When the suit failed, he went to see family in Saudi Arabia, then went to Afghanistan, and eventually settled in Pakistan.
Two British officials, who spoke to AP on condition of anonymity because they aren't authorized to discuss intelligence matters, confirmed that Makkawi is a different man from al-Adel and said he is not wanted as a terror suspect by the British government. Britain has no such public "most wanted" terrorist list.
"Makkawi is a different man to el-Adel," one of the officials said.
El-Zayat, Makkawi's lawyer in the 1987 case, also told the AP the men were two different people and that al-Adel's real name is Mohammed Salah Zidan.
There is no mention of the name "Mohammed Salah Zidan" on al-Adel's profile.
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