Saddam gave money to terror suspect - claim

Saddam Hussein may have given sanctuary to one of the terrorists suspected of involvement in the 1993 bombing of the World Trade Centre, US intelligence officials claimed today.

Documents found in Saddam’s home town of Tikrit show that Iraq gave money and a home to Abdul Rahman Yasin, believed to have been a player in the attack which killed six people and injured 1,000.

The claim, backed up by law enforcement officials, comes a day after President George Bush said there was no evidence that Saddam was involved in the September 11 terror strike, which destroyed the World Trade Centre’s twin towers.

But the assertion, disclosed by the USA Today newspaper, strengthens the Bush administration’s claims that Saddam’s Iraq had links to terrorists.

Mr Bush alleged yesterday that while Iraq was not directly implicated in September 11, Saddam did have links with al-Qaida, which carried out the attack.

Washington has also repeatedly claimed in the past that Saddam gave financial help to the families of Palestinian suicide bombers who struck in Israel.

Yasin is still on the run and is among the FBI’s most wanted.

The mastermind behind the 1993 attack, Ramzi Yousef, is serving a 240-year jail term.