Synopses & Reviews
"This is the most dangerous man I have ever met. We cannot let this man out on the street."
Assistant U.S. AttorneyPatrick Fitzgerald, 1997
In the years leading to the 9/11 attacks, no single agent of al Qaeda was more successful in compromising the U.S. intelligence community than Ali Mohamed. A former Egyptian army captain, Mohamed succeeded in infiltrating the CIA in Europe, the Green Berets at Fort Bragg, and the FBI in Californiaeven as he helped to orchestrate the al Qaeda campaign of terror that culminated in 9/11. As investigative reporter Peter Lance demonstrates in this gripping narrative, senior U.S. law enforcement officialsincluding the now-celebrated U.S. attorney Patrick Fitzgerald, who personally interviewed Mohamed long before he was brought to groundwere powerless to stop him. In the annals of espionage, few men have moved between the hunters and the hunted with as much audacity as Ali Mohamed. For almost two decades, the former Egyptian army commando succeeded in living a double life. Brazenly slipping past watch lists, he moved in and out of the U.S. with impunity, marrying an American woman, becoming a naturalized citizen, and posing as an FBI informantall while acting as chief of security for Osama bin Laden and Ayman Al-Zawahiri. Known to his fellow terrorists as Ali Amiriki, or "Ali the American," Mohamed gained access to the most sensitive intelligence in the U.S. counterterrorism arsenal while brokering terror summits, planning bombing missions, and training jihadis in bomb building, assassination, the creation of sleeper cells, and other acts of espionage.Building on the investigation he first chronicled in his previous books, 1000 Years for Revenge and Cover Up, Lance uses Mohamed to trace the untold story of al Qaeda's rise in the 1980s and 1990s. Incredibly, Mohamed, who remains in custodial witness protection today, has never been sentenced for his crimes. He exists under a veil of secrecya living witness to how the U.S. intelligence community was outflanked for years by the terror network.
From his first appearance on the FBI's radar in 1989training Islamic extremists on Long Islandto his presence in the database of Operation Able Danger eighteen months before 9/11, this devious triple agent was the one terrorist they had to sweep under the rug. Filled with news-making revelations, Triple Cross exposes the incompetence and duplicity of the FBI and Justice Department before 9/11 . . . and raises serious questions about how many more secrets the Feds may still be hiding.
Review
Praise for 1000 Years of Revenge:“Compelling and briskly told.” Washington Post
Review
Praise for 1000 Years of Revenge :“A brilliant investigative read.” Nicholas Pileggi
Review
Praise for 1000 Years of Revenge“Astounding… a 500-page smoking gun.” Kristin Breitweiser, co-chair, September 11 advocates
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Praise for Cover Up:“A disturbing indictment of those we trust to care for the common good.” Santa Barbara News Press
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Praise for Cover Up:“[Lance] has no reservations about pointing fingers… disquieting.” Toronto Sun
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Praise for Cover Up:“The cumulative evidence is startling.” New York
Synopsis
The story of the most dangerous tripleandndash;agent in US history, by intrepid investigative reporter Peter Lance.Peter Lance, author of the highly acclaimed 1000 Years for Revenge and Cover Up, returns to uncover the story of Ali Mohamedandndash;a trusted security advisor of Osama bin Laden who hoodwinked the United States for more than a decade. As Lance reveals for this first time, this one man served in a series of highandndash;security position within the United States security establishmentandndash;as a Special Forces advisor, FBI informant, and CIA operativeandndash;while simultaneously helping orchestrate the al Qaeda campaign of terror that led to 9/11.
In October 2000, after tricking three U.S. intelligence agencies for almost two decades, Ali Mohamed appeared in handcuffs and a blue prison jumpsuit in a Federal District courtroom on Manhattan's Lower East Side, where he pleaded guilty five times. His crimes included brokering terror summits, financing an attack on two Black Hawk helicopters, training jihadis in improvised bomb building and the creation of secret cells. And yet for decades Mohamed had lived the life of a Silicon Valley computer executive. How did this evildoer move in and out of and around the U.S.? How did he become a naturalized citizen, marry an American woman and infiltrate three of America's top intelligence agenciesandndash;the CIA, the Defense Intelligence Agency and the FBI? With utter complacence, ruthlessness, and ease, and with no small amount of oversight from the outflanked U.S. intelligence community.
From the Able Danger scandal of the Clinton Administration to today's CIA Leakgate, Mohamed appears at nearly every crucial turn of America's terror probes. An important final piece to the 9/11 investigation, Triple Cross penetrates Mohamed's secret past and the dark reaches of Al Qaeda to reveal the danger that still threatens Americaandndash;and the staggering errors of America's homeland security.
Synopsis
Lance uncovers the story of Ali Mohamed--a trusted security adviser of Osama bin Laden who hoodwinked the United States for more than a decade. This one man served in a series of high-security positions within the United States security establishment--as a Special Forces adviser, FBI informant, and CIA operative--while simultaneously helping orchestrate the al Qaeda campaign of terror.
About the Author
Peter Lance is the author of three previous works of investigative journalism, 1000 Years for Revenge, Cover Up, and Triple Cross. A former correspondent for ABC News, he covered hundreds of stories worldwide for 20/20, Nightline, and World News Tonight. Among his awards are the Robert F. Kennedy Journalism Prize and the Sevellon Brown Award from the Associated Press. He lives in California.