Friday September 28 12:39 PM EDT

Algerian Allegedly Trained Hijackers

By ABCNEWS.com

An Algerian pilot questioned in a British court is accused of training four of the hijackers who crashed planes on Sept. 11 as American authorities glimpse into the mindset of the man considered the ringleader. Letters are found with instructions like, "Make sure that nobody is following you. Make sure that you are clean."

An Algerian pilot arrested in London has been accused of training hijackers involved in the recent attack on the United States as investigators in the U.S. uncovered letters left by the man they believe was the ringleader.

Lotfi Raissi, 27, appeared in a London court today for a hearing on an extradition order from the United States, on charges of giving false information on his application for a pilot's license.

But British prosecutors said American interest in Raissi involved far more serious allegations. They said he trained at the same flight school as four of the pilots involved in the hijacking attacks on Sept. 11, and that he instructed them and helped make arrangements for them.

Raissi was arrested in London on Sept. 21. An international arrest warrant was issued by the United States on Thursday night, and he is believed to have been on the FBI watch list of people wanted for questioning about the attacks. He has been remanded in custody for seven days.

"Mr. Raissi is the subject of a United States government request for his arrest on charges of giving false information," said Raissi's lawyer, Richard Egan. "Whether that is the full extent of their request remains to be seen. He adamantly denies any involvment in the recent appalling tragedies and he is confident that he will be absolved of all involvement."

On the other side of the Atlantic, investigators in the United States are getting a closer look at the mind of the men who they say carried out the attack, thanks to letters they have found believed to have been written by the man they say was the ringleader, Mohamed Atta.

The letters, according to law enforcement sources, were found in various places, including the crash site and in luggage belonging to Atta that did not get on the hijacked flight. They were handwritten in Arabic.

"Check all of your items — your bag, your clothes, knives, your will, your IDs, your passport, all your papers," one of the letters said, according to the sources. "Check your safety before you leave. Make sure that nobody is following you. Make sure that you are clean, your clothes are clean, including your shoes."

"Remember, the battle of the prophet — against the infidels, as he went on building the Islamic state," Atta also wrote, sources said.

"The last night — remind yourself that in this night you will face many challenges. But you have to face them and understand it 100 percent," he also wrote, according to the sources. "Keep a very open mind, keep a very open heart of what you are to face. You will be entering paradise. You will be entering the happiest, everlasting life."

Pakistan Again Seeks Solution

A delegation of senior officials from Pakistan arrived in Afghanistan today in what could be a last-ditch effort to convince the Taliban regime to hand over Osama bin Laden to answer questions about the Sept. 11 attacks on the United States.

So far, Taliban officials have resisted any attempt to force them to give up bin Laden, a Saudi who has made Afghanistan his base of operations. The most they have been willing to do is ask bin Laden to leave voluntarily and on Thursday Afghan officials reportedly delivered that message to him.

The diplomatic effort by Pakistan, now the only nation to recognize the Taliban regime, comes as U.S. law enforcement officials are building a case against bin Laden as the terrorist behind the attacks. More than 6,400 people were killed, or are presumed dead, after four passenger jets were crashed.

On Thursday, the Justice Department released photographs of the 19 suspected hijackers and FBI Director Robert Mueller said some of them had been linked to bin Laden's terrorist network, al Qaeda. Also, a man who once trained at a bin Laden's camp told ABCNEWS that he trained with one of the hijackers.

Besides the effort to draw out bin Laden, U.S. officials tried Thursday to make a case to the American public that the skies are safe again. President Bush unveiled a series of proposed safety measures, including putting federal marshals on planes, as airports around the country enacted strict screening procedures.

Taliban to Bin Laden: Go

The Pakistani delegation in Afghanistan today is being led by Mufti Shamezai, a spiritual mentor to many of the Taliban leaders, who called for a holy war against Americans in 1998 after U.S. rocket attacks on camps in Afghanistan. Now, he is expected to try to convince the Taliban to be more cooperative with the United States.

But the Taliban may say they've done all they can after delivering a message to bin Laden on Thursday.

"Osama has now received the Ulema council's recommendations and their endorsement," the Taliban's ambassador to Pakistan, Abdul Salam Zaeef, said. "We have not lost Osama, but he is out of sight of the people."

Zaeef did not say how the message was conveyed nor where bin Laden was hiding. He also did not indicate bin Laden's reaction to the message.

In another development, civil rights leader Jesse Jackson said he is considering going to Afghanistan to meet with the Taliban. White House officials have said Jackson should not get involved, and the Taliban said Thursday it did not invite Jackson to Kabul, but would accept his offer to mediate.

Taliban Losing Hold in Afghanistan?

Afghanistan's already severe humanitarian crisis appears to be rapidly worsening, as large numbers of Afghans flee their homes and livelihoods in search of food and safety. And that appears to be complicating the Taliban's efforts to maintain its control over most of the country.

On Thursday U.N. Assistant Secretary-General Fracese Vendrell said the Taliban is losing the support of its own people, and called for a change.

"The vast majority of Afghans have been helpless hostages to their own country for far too long trapped in a situation that was not of their own choosing," she said.

Refugees who have fled the country say Taliban fighters are withdrawing from less-populated areas of the country and concentrating their forces around its major cities. They are also trying to recruit locals into the potential fight.

The Taliban faces threats on several fronts, from American and allied forces from the outside, and from Northern Alliance coalition forces in the northeastern part of the country.

Taliban leader Mullah Mohammed Omar Thursday issued a warning to Afghans collaborating with the United States: "Afghans who are brought in by the Americans," he said, "will be treated like those who were brought by the Communists."

Omar also called on Afghans not to flee their homes out of fear of a potential military attack.

"The Taliban are finding it obviously difficult now to mobilize their forces and a number of young people, able-bodied people who could fight are leaving the country," says ABCNEWS producer Rahimullah Yusufzai, who is in the country.

Building Islamic Support

The Bush Administration efforts to court the support of Islamic nations has been showing signs of paying off. Saudi Arabia indicated it will allow U.S. troops and planes to use the nation as a staging ground for military action.

U.S. officials, speaking on condition of anonymity, told the Associated Press today that they have received tacit assurances that Saudi Arabia will allow U.S. forces to use a command center at Prince Sultan Air Base.

President Bush is scheduled to meet today with King Abdullah II of Jordan, who is expected to offer support for the American anti-terrorism campaign and to urge Bush to take a more active role in bringing an end to the violence in the Middle East.

The administration has been trying to build international support to for military action against the Taliban if it does not turn over bin Laden and his associates, and destroy alleged terrorist training camps in the country.

Secretary of State Colin Powell met with Abdullah on Thursday, and also met with Turkish Foreign Minister Ismail Cem, as the administration tried to build support in the Islamic world for its plans.

Current European Union chief Guy Verhofstadt, the prime minister of Belgium, met with Bush to discuss the EU's plans.

"We want to participate in these actions," Verhofstadt said after the meeting.

-- Anonymous, September 28, 2001