Oct. 21: Anwar al-Awlaqi, an Al Qaeda leader labelled a “dangerous threat” by the United States, was invited to a luncheon at the Pentagon in the months after the 9/11 attacks, the US military said on Wednesday.
Awlaqi, a Yemeni-American cleric, was brought to the Pentagon as part of an effort by the office of the secretary of defence (OSD) to reach out to the Muslim community after the September 11, 2001 attacks, the military spokesman, Col. Dave Lapan, said.
“Our understanding thus far is that this was an informal outreach conducted by the OSD staff in the aftermath of 9/11 in an effort to gain a better understanding of Islam,” he said. The account of the lunch with military officers and defence officials was first reported by Fox News, which cited the FBI documents and sources. A current employee of the defence department told the FBI in 2009 that she had helped arrange the invitation after hearing Awlaqi speak in Alexandria, Virginia.
The US has authorised the targeted killing of Awlaqi, an American citizen who is believed to be linked to three plots against the US, including a shooting rampage at Fort Hood in 2009, a failed bid to blow up a US-bound airliner on Christmas Day and an attempt to set off a car bomb in New York’s Times Square.