Fresh Air, Jonathan Landay and Daniel Benjamin

By: Terry Gross

Narrated by: Terry Gross

Journalist Jonathan Landay and former White House Director of Counterterrorism Daniel Benjamin on this edition of Fresh Air. Jonathan Landay co-wrote an article called "Officials' Private Doubts on Iraq War. The piece appeared yesterday in newspapers owned by the Knight-Ridder-Tribune News Service, including the Philadelphia Inquirer. Landay and co-writers say that "Intelligence professionals and diplomats...privately have deep misgivings about the administration's double-time march toward war." Misinformation includes distortion of Saddam Hussein's ties with al-Qaeda, overstatement of international support, and understatement of repercussions of a Middle East war. Daniel Benjamin has co-authored the new book, The Age of Sacred Terror with Steven Simon, the former Senior Director of Counterterrorism. Benjamin and Simon began writing the book more than a year before September 11, 2001. As Director and Co-Director at the National Security Council, they saw the rise of al-Qaeda. They warned about the new generation of terrorists. The book still sets out to accomplish its original goal: to understand the enemy. Additionally, the authors wish to explain how we let our defenses down and what to expect in the future. (Broadcast Date: October 9, 2002)Want more Fresh Air?

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