The Al Qaeda Manual (continued)


UK/BM-28 TRANSLATION

FIFTH LESSON

MEANS OF COMMUNICATION AND TRANSPORTATION


Second Means: Meeting in-person:

This is direct communication between the commander and a member of the Organization. During the meeting the following are accomplished:

1. Information exchange
2. Giving orders and instructions
3. Financing
4. Member follow-up

Stages of the In-Person Meeting:

A. Before the meeting
  B.   The meeting [itself]
  C.   After the meeting
       
     

A. Before the Meeting:

The following measures should be taken:

1. Designating the meeting location
2. Finding a proper cover for the meeting
3. Specifying the meeting date and time
4. Defining special signals between those who meet

1. Identifying the meeting location:

If the meeting location is stationary, the following matters should be observed:

i. The location should be far from police stations and security centers.
  ii.   Ease of transportation to the location.
  iii.   Selecting the location prior to the meeting and learning all its details.
  iv.   If the meeting location is an apartment, it should not be the first one, but one somewhere in the middle.
  v.   The availability of many roads leading to the meeting location. That would provide easy escape in case the location ware raided by security personnel.
  vi.   The location should not be under suspicion (by the security [apparatus])
  vii.   The apartment where the meeting takes place should be on the ground floor, to facilitate escape.
  viii.   The ability to detect any surveillance from that location.
  ix.   When public transportation is used, one should alight at some distance from the meeting location and continue on foot. In the case of a private vehicle, one should park it far away or in a secure place so as to be able to maneuver it quickly at any time.

If the meeting location is not stationary, the following matters should be observed:

i.
The meeting location should be at the intersection of a large number of main and side streets to facilitate entry, exit, and escape.
  ii.  
The meeting location (such as a coffee shop) should not have members that might be dealing with the security apparatus.
  iii.  
The meeting should not be held in a crowded place because that would allow the security personnel to hide and monitor those who meet.
  iv.  
It is imperative to agree on an alternative location for the meeting in case meeting in the first is unfeasible. That holds whether the meeting place is stationary or not.

Those who meet in-person should do the following:

i.
Verifying the security situation of the location before the meeting
  ii.  
Ensuring that there are no security personnel behind them or at the meeting place
  iii.  
Not heading to the location directly.
  iv.  
Clothing and appearance should be appropriate for the meeting location.
  v.  
Verifying that private documents carried by the brother have appropriate cover.
  vi.  
Prior to the meeting, designing a security plan that specifies what the security personnel would be told in case the location were raided by them, and what [the brothers] would resort to in dealing with the security personnel (fleeing, driving back ,...)

2. Finding a proper cover for the meeting: [The cover]
i.
should blend well with the nature of the location.
  ii.  
In case they raid the place, the security personnel should believe the cover.
  iii.  
should not arouse the curiosity of those present.
  iv.  
should match the person's appearance and his financial and educational background.
  v.  
should have documents that support it.
  vi.  
provide reasons for the two parties’ meeting (for example, one of the two parties should have proof that he is an architect. The other should have documents as proof that he is a land owner. The architect has produced a construction plan for the land)

3. Specifying the Meeting Date and Time:
i.
Specifying the hour of the meeting as well as the date.
  ii.  
Specifying the time of both parties’ arrival an the time of the first party's departure.
  iii.  
Specifying how long the meeting will last.
  iv.  
Specifying an alternative date and time.
  v.  
Not allowing a long period of time between making the meeting arrangements and the meeting itself.


4. Designating special signals between those who meet

If the two individuals meeting know one another's shape and appearance, it is sufficient to use a single safety sign. [In that case,]the sitting and arriving individuals inform each other that there is no enemy surveillance. The sign may be keys, beads, a newspaper, or a scarf. The two parties would agree on moving it in a special way so as not to attract the attention of those present.


If the two individuals do not know one another, they should do the following:

a. The initial sign for becoming acquainted may be that both of them wear a certain type of clothing or carry a certain item. These signs should be appropriate for the place, easily identified, and meet the purpose. The initial sign for becoming acquainted does not [fully] identify one person by another. It does that at a rate of 30%.

b. Safety Signal: It is given by the individual sitting in. the meeting location to inform the second individual that the place is safe. The second person would reply through signals to inform the first that he is not being monitored. The signals are agreed upon previously and should not cause suspicion.

c. A second signal for getting acquainted is one in which the arriving person uses while sitting down. That signal may be a certain clause, a word, a sentence, or a gesture agreed upon previously, and should not cause suspicion for those who hear it or see it.



B. The Stage of the Meeting [itself]: The following measures should be taken:

1. Caution during the meeting.

2. Not acting unnaturally during the meeting in order not to raise suspicion.

3. Not talking with either loud or very low voices ([should be] moderate).

4. Not writing anything that has to do with the meeting.

5. Agreeing on a security plan in case the enemy raids the location.


C. After the Meeting: The following measures should be taken:
1. Not departing together, but each one separately.

2. Not heading directly to the main road but through secondary ones.

3. Not leaving anything in the meeting place that might indicate the identity or nature of those who met.


Meeting in-person has disadvantages, such as:
1.  
Allowing the enemy to capture those who are meeting.
   
2. Allowing them [the enemy] to take pictures of those who are meeting, record their conversation, and gather evidence against them.
   
3. Revealing the appearance of the commander to the other person. However, that may be avoided by taking the previously mentioned measures such as disguising himself well and changing his appearance (glasses, wig, etc.)

 
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