Just out, my Italian Nigergate piece, La Repubblica's Scoop, Confirmed, at The American Prospect.

I'll have some further thoughts up here about the larger story soon. But one thing to keep in mind, is why Pollari, the Sismi chief, chose to speak with Repubblica at this time at all. (In the Repubblica piece, he denied liaising with anyone but Tenet in his formal relationship with the US; but the NSC has now confirmed to me that Pollari did indeed meet with Hadley on September 9, 2002 as Repubblica originally reported earlier today). Does Pollari have reason to think the Fitzgerald indictments are going to shake something loose about the specifically Sismi provenance of the Niger yellowcake claims? Something the Italian government has long denied? Or is Pollari concerned about something else?

Update: Yes, "Nigeria" not Niger in the first reference in my report to a September 2002 Panorama report on Iraq supposedly acquiring 500 tons of uranium, a little noticed story Repubblica unearthed yesterday. It is not a typo. Thanks, though, I appreciate and can often use the proofreading.

Update II: The Prospect has put on-line excerpts of the translation of Monday's Repubblica piece, about a 2001 break in in the Niger embassy Rome. And reader CM has pointed out some translations of Repubblica's Monday's piece and Tuesday's piece from Nur al-Cubicle and Henry Farrell at Crooked Timber, respectively.

Posted by Laura at October 25, 2005 01:24 PM