Tuesday May 20, 2003; 9:32 a.m. EDT
Freeh: I Turned to Bush After Clinton Blocked Khobar Terror Probe
In a blistering indictment of his old boss's negligence in fighting the war on terrorism, former FBI Director Louis Freeh charged Tuesday that ex-President Clinton was so unhelpful during his agency's investigation into the 1996 Khobar Towers bombing that he had to turn to former President Bush.
Writing in Tuesday's Wall Street Journal, Freeh described the Clinton White House as "unable or unwilling to help the FBI" gain access to key witnesses in the Khobar case because it feared exposing the role of Hezbollah and its state sponsor, Iran.
"The only direction from the Clinton administration regarding Iran was to order the FBI to stop photographing and fingerprinting official Iranian delegations entering the U.S. because it was adversely impacting our 'relationship' with Tehran," Freeh complained.
"The FBI recommended a criminal indictment that would identify Iran as the sponsor of the Khobar bombing," the one-time top G-man revealed. "Finding a problem for every solution, the Clinton administration refused to support a prosecution."
In yet another stunning admission, the former FBI Director said that he was so frustrated by President Clinton's refusal to help that he sought out Clinton's predecessor, who, though out of office for more than three years, promptly took action.
"After months of inaction, I finally turned to the former President Bush, who immediately interceded with [Saudi] Crown Prince Abdullah on the FBI's behalf," Freeh revealed.
"Mr. Bush personally asked the Saudis to let the FBI do one-on-one interviews of the detained Khobar bombers. The Saudis immediately acceded," he recalled.
Thanks to Bush's intercession Freeh said his agents were given "direct access to the Saudi detainees."
"This was the investigative breakthrough for which we had been waiting for several years," the former FBI director proclaimed.
Explaining why news of Bush's role in helping the FBI while Clinton sat idle had remained a secret all these years, Freeh said that the 41st president, "typically disclaimed any credit for his critical intervention."
The prosecution and criminal indictment for the Khobar Towers bombers, "had to wait for a new administration," he noted.
Of Bush's son, Freeh observed, "This is a president who is serious about fighting and winning the war on terrorism."
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Freeh: I Turned to Bush After Clinton Blocked Khobar Terror Probe
In a blistering indictment of his old boss's negligence in fighting the war on terrorism, former FBI Director Louis Freeh charged Tuesday that ex-President Clinton was so unhelpful during his agency's investigation into the 1996 Khobar Towers bombing that he had to turn to former President Bush.
Writing in Tuesday's Wall Street Journal, Freeh described the Clinton White House as "unable or unwilling to help the FBI" gain access to key witnesses in the Khobar case because it feared exposing the role of Hezbollah and its state sponsor, Iran.
"The only direction from the Clinton administration regarding Iran was to order the FBI to stop photographing and fingerprinting official Iranian delegations entering the U.S. because it was adversely impacting our 'relationship' with Tehran," Freeh complained.
"The FBI recommended a criminal indictment that would identify Iran as the sponsor of the Khobar bombing," the one-time top G-man revealed. "Finding a problem for every solution, the Clinton administration refused to support a prosecution."
In yet another stunning admission, the former FBI Director said that he was so frustrated by President Clinton's refusal to help that he sought out Clinton's predecessor, who, though out of office for more than three years, promptly took action.
"After months of inaction, I finally turned to the former President Bush, who immediately interceded with [Saudi] Crown Prince Abdullah on the FBI's behalf," Freeh revealed.
"Mr. Bush personally asked the Saudis to let the FBI do one-on-one interviews of the detained Khobar bombers. The Saudis immediately acceded," he recalled.
Thanks to Bush's intercession Freeh said his agents were given "direct access to the Saudi detainees."
"This was the investigative breakthrough for which we had been waiting for several years," the former FBI director proclaimed.
Explaining why news of Bush's role in helping the FBI while Clinton sat idle had remained a secret all these years, Freeh said that the 41st president, "typically disclaimed any credit for his critical intervention."
The prosecution and criminal indictment for the Khobar Towers bombers, "had to wait for a new administration," he noted.
Of Bush's son, Freeh observed, "This is a president who is serious about fighting and winning the war on terrorism."
Read more on this subject in
