The United States expects Iran to surrender major Al Qaida insurgents believed connected to the suicide strikes in
Saudi Arabia earlier this month.
U.S. officials said the Bush administration has obtained assurances that
Teheran will arrest and extradite Al Qaida insurgents in Iran. The officials
said Iran could extradite at least one Al Qaida suspect to Saudi Arabia over
the next few weeks.
Officials said the United States has exerted heavy pressure on Iran to
surrender an unspecified number of Al Qaida operatives. They said Washington
has relayed intelligence information to Teheran that identifies Al Qaida
members in Iran connected to the May 12 suicide strikes in Riyad.
The insurgents were said to include the son of Osama Bin Laden as well
as Seif Al Adel, regarded as the new military operations chief of Al Qaida.
Another Al Qaida insurgent said to be in Iran is Abu Musab Al Zarqawi,
believed to have ordered the assassination of a U.S. diplomat in Jordan in
October 2002.
Over the weekend, Iran acknowledged that Al Qaida members have been in
the country. Iranian officials said several Al Qaida members have been
arrested.
"There are efforts being made that would be very productive in regards
to Iran and ourselves, with the understanding of the Al Qaida cell that
allegedly came from Iran and had something to do with the Saudi Arabia
attacks," Senate Select Intelligence Committee chairman Pat Roberts said on
Sunday in a television interview. "I think we're going to make some progress
on that."
"There could be some better news on Iran that will be coming out," Sen.
Jay Rockefeller, a member of the Senate Select Intelligence Committee, said.
The White House plans to host a meeting on Tuesday to discuss U.S.
policy toward Iran, officials said. The meeting could decide whether the
administration supports legislation in Congress to finance a campaign to
undermine the regime in Teheran.
The Bush administration appears split over the significance of Al
Qaida's presence in Iran and the U.S. response toward the Islamic republic.
Officials said the Defense Department has assessed that Al Qaida has an
active and large presence in Iran while the State Department has determined
that the organization is largely idle in that country.
The White House meeting is also expected to discuss Iran's nuclear
weapons program. Some in the administration have urged the White House to
press for a determination that Iran has violated the Nuclear
Non-Proliferation Treaty by concealing nuclear facilities. The International
Atomic Energy Agency is scheduled to discuss Iran in a board of governors
meeting in June.
