Abu Zubaydah - The Changing Depiction of Abu Zubaydah

The Changing Depiction of Abu Zubaydah

When Abu Zubaydah was captured, the Bush Administration believed he was an unparalleled source of intelligence on al-Qaeda and terrorism plots. Abu Zubaydah was touted as the biggest catch of the War on Terror until the capture of Khalid Sheikh Mohammed. Immediately after Abu Zubaydah’s capture the director of the FBI stated Abu Zubaydah’s capture would help deter future attacks. Also, White House spokesman Ari Fleischer stated Abu Zubaydah could provide a treasure-trove of information about al-Qaeda. Donald Rumsfeld echoed these sentiments claiming Abu Zubaydah was “a man who knows of additional attacks”, who has “trained people to do this”, and was a big fish who had a fountain of knowledge.