Melissa Johnson

From : Andrew Gilliaar-IN'TERNET

Sent : 27 Jure 2D03 12 47 PM
To : Ma,r Damazer

There is also the matter of concerns expressed by the intelligence services to Andrew Gilligan and other
journalists about the Prime Minister's attempts to make a link between Iraq and al-Qaeda .

Mr Gtlligan's intelligence contacts believed these claims to be untrue and unsupported by evidence.
They leaked him a Top Secret assessment from the Defence Intelligence Staff, dated only two weeks
before the Prime Minister's statement, saying : "White there have been contacts between Al Qaeda and
the regime in the past, it is assessed that any fledgling relationship foundered due to mistrust and
incompatible ideology ." I note that Richard Norton-Taytor, security editor of the Guardian, was also
riefed to this effect .