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Known as "Sheikh Omar", Ahmed Omar Saeed Sheikh (Ahmed Umar Syed Sheikh) is a British citizen, of Pakistani descent, with links to various Islamic-based terrorist organisations, including Al-Qaeda and Harkat-ul-Mujahideen, as well as the Inter-Services Intelligence, Pakistan's intelligence agency. In his youth he attended Forest School Snaresbrook, a public school in North-East London, where he was a contemporary of current England cricket captain Nasser Hussain. He also attended the prestigious LSE university in London.
The London Times describes Saeed Sheikh as "no ordinary terrorist but a man who has connections that reach high into Pakistan's military and intelligence elite and into the innermost circles of Osama Bin Laden and the al-Qaeda organization. According to ABC, Sheikh began working for the Inter-Services Intelligence in 1993. By 1994 he was operating terrorist training camps in Afghanistan and had earned the title of bin Laden's "special son." At the time, the Taliban were beginning to dominate Afghanistan, much due to support received from the Inter-Services Intelligence. In May 2002, the Washington Post reported that the ISI paid Sheikh's legal fees during his 1994 trial in India on charges of kidnap.
A senior-level U.S. government source told CNN in October of 2001 that U.S. investigators believed Ahmed Omar Saeed Sheikh (Ahmed Umar Syed Sheikh), a long time ISI asset, using the alias Mustafa Muhammad Ahmad, sent more than $100,000 from Pakistan to Mohammed Atta, the suspected hijack ringleader of the September 11, 2001 attacks.
"Investigators said Atta then distributed the funds to conspirators in Florida in the weeks before the deadliest acts of terrorism on U.S. soil that destroyed the World Trade Center, heavily damaged the Pentagon and left thousands dead.
In addition, sources have said Atta sent thousands of dollars -- believed to be excess funds from the operation -- back to Syed in the United Arab Emirates in the days before September 11.
Syed also is described as a key figure in the funding operation of al Qaeda, the network headed by suspected terrorist mastermind Osama bin Laden."[1] (http://archives.cnn.com/2001/US/10/05/inv.terror.investigation/)
CNN later confirmed that it was "Ahmed Umar Syed Sheikh, whom authorities say used a pseudonym to wire $100,000 to suspected hijacker Mohammad Atta, who then distributed the money in the United States."[2] (http://archives.cnn.com/2001/WORLD/asiapcf/south/10/08/india.ressa/)
Soon after the money transfer was discovered, the head of Pakistan's Inter-Services Intelligence, Gen. Mahmood (Mahmud) Ahmed resigned from his position. Indian news outlets reported the FBI was investigating the possiblity that Gen. Mahmood Ahmed ordered Saeed Sheikh to send the $100,000 to Atta, while most Western media outlets only reported his connections to the Taliban as the reason for his departure. [3] (http://www.cooperativeresearch.org/essay.jsp?article=essaysaeed)
Moreover, The Wall Street Journal was one of the only Western news organizations to follow up on the story, citing the Times of India: "US authorities sought [Gen. Mahmud Ahmed's] removal after confirming the fact that $100,000 [was] wired to WTC hijacker Mohammed Atta from Pakistan by Ahmad Umar Sheikh at the instance of Gen Mahumd."[4] (http://www.opinionjournal.com/best/?id=95001298) The best coverage came from The Daily Excelsior, reporting "The FBIs examination of the hard disk of the cellphone company Omar Sheikh had subscribed to led to the discovery of the "link" between him and the deposed chief of the Pakistani ISI, Gen. Mehmood Ahmed. And as the FBI investigators delved deep, sensational information surfaced with regard to the transfer of 100,000 dollars to Mohammed Atta, one of the Kamikaze pilots who flew his Boeing into the World Trade Centre. Gen. Mehmood Ahmed, the FBI investigators found, fully knew about the transfer of money to Atta."[5] (http://www.dailyexcelsior.com/01oct18/news.htm)
The Pittsburgh Tribune notes that "There are many in Musharraf's government who believe that Saeed Sheikh's power comes not from the ISI, but from his connections with our own CIA."[6] (http://www.pittsburghlive.com/x/tribune-review/opinion/datelinedc/s_20141.html)
Sheikh rose to prominence with the 2002 killing of American journalist Daniel Pearl. In Pakistan, he was sentenced to death for killing Pearl.
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