In his book: “Your Government Failed You – Breaking the Cycle of National Security Disasters”, by Richard Clarke, a former national security adviser and counter-terrorism expert revealed a very serious “leak” of classified information within the intelligence community that made Osama Bin Laden, the world’s most dangerous terrorist hard to monitor and track.
This particular leak, by the way cost the United States thousands of lives and hundreds of billions of dollars in monies that might not have to have been spent otherwise on failed efforts to locate him.
As far as I can determine this particular leak, for whatever reason was never fully investigated or pursued by the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) or National Security Agency (NSA) – where it was thought to have originated.
Repeated attempts, over the years, by myself and others to pursue this matter or force an investigation ended in failure every time.
The CIA Inspector General for example never responded to request and letters to investigate this matter. In addition the White House (under the Bush administration) refused to even acknowledge the issue, let alone address it in any real way.
Then in 2008 Richard Clarke made mention of it in a “blip” in his book. At the time he was the highest former government official to even acknowledge the issue. He described it this way:
“Osama bin Laden once routinely communicated over a satellite telephone. The conversations gave us great insight into him and what he was doing (and, interestingly into his relations with his mother).
Then one day someone, who obviously was not thinking, revealed the fact to a newspaper that, exercising no discretion, published it. The calls stopped almost immediately.
Bin laden is now (remember this book was written in 2008) thought to use only face to face communications to avoid interception and tracking. I sometimes wonder if we could have learned enough about 9/11 plot to stop it had Bin Laden continued to use his satellite phone, had the newspapers not published that story, had the leaker been more observant of the laws” (pg 105).
Richard Clarke uses language indicating the leak was prior to 9/11/2001 attack. Probably prior to or immediately following the first cruise missile attack against him on Aug. 21, 1998.
We have been able to trace the story back to an article written in 2001 called: NSA Listens to Bin Laden http://s3.amazonaws.com/911timeline/2001/upi021301.html
Note: Bin Laden’s apparent policy of not using telephones after a newspaper article was written about his phone conversations is described in Daniel Benjamin and Steven Simon “The Age of Sacred Terror”, New York, Random House 2002.
See related article referencing at 2005 article written by the Washington Post – in that piece the leak happened in 1998: File the Bin Laden Phone Leak Under ‘Urban Myths’ http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2005/12/21/AR2005122101994.html
See also: Tracking Use of Bin Laden’s Satellite Phone http://blogs.wsj.com/washwire/2008/05/28/tracking-use-of-bin-ladens-satellite-phone/