As per SOP, Tom, you're fogging the question and ignoring the hard parts.

Let's stay anchored to the issue: The Bush people specifically and unequivocally claim that there is an Al Qaeda camp in northern Iraq that is allied with Saddam Hussein.

For proof of the US allegation, you offer an article that states that Ansar al-Islam is "suspected of links to the al-Qaeda network" and "The United States also accuses the group of co-operating with the Iraqi Government". In other words, you're saying that the proof of the allegation is the allegation. That may be enough for you, but it's hardly enough for me.

Naturally, you're ignoring the parts you can't answer. No one has ever managed to paper over the fundamental division between the fanatic religious extremism of Al Qaeda and the decidedly secular regime of Saddam Hussein. In bin Laden's latest video he offers tepid support for the Iraqi people's "struggle against the Crusaders", but even then, couldn't resist taking a few shots at the Iraqi government. That's far from a declaration of alliance. Simple logic should tell you that if the connection actually exists, both bin Laden and Saddam would be trumpeting it to the world for, if nothing else, psychological and rhetorical effect. Don't you think that if Saddam could threaten us with retaliation by Al Qaeda, he'd do so? It's remarkable that a guy who's willing to make up the most outrageous claims about everything under the sun hasn't even tried that one.

--Robert