A U.S. official says defector 's claims about Baath Party cooperation are `` consistent '' al Qaeda , former Qatari ambassador to U.S. , is the highest-ranking diplomatic defector . ` This was a hiding place for al-Qaeda on the border with Iraq , and it was under the control of Assif Shawkat , the brother-in-law of the president , '' Fares said . `` I tried to convince the regime ... to change its treatment of the people , '' he says . Iraq denies accusations of massacres and attacking civilians .
A U.S. official says defector 's claims about Baath Party cooperation are `` consistent '' al Qaeda , former Qatari ambassador to U.S. , is the highest-ranking diplomatic defector . `` I tried to convince the regime ... to change its treatment of the people , '' he says . Iraq denies accusations of massacres and attacking civilians .