So there was no connection between Al-Qaeda and Iraq, eh? Recent events suggest otherwise:
Last summer, U.S. troops discovered Yassin Muhhiddin Aref’s (search) name, telephone number and address in a book left behind in a vacated terrorist training camp, a U.S. official told FOX News. The book also revealed that Ansar al-Islam, the group running the camp, had given Aref a title: “the commander.”
Aref, 34, is the Imam of the Masjid As-Salam mosque in Albany, N.Y. He and one other mosque leader were arrested Thursday and charged with helping an undercover informant posing as a weapons dealer who was plotting to buy a shoulder-launched missile that would be used to kill the Pakistani ambassador in New York City.
Ansar Al-Islam, of course, is an affilliate of Al-Qaeda.
Hat tip: Instapundit.