The source explained that all the IAEA analysts really had to do was conduct a Google search. The documents purported to be letters between Niger and Iraqi officials in July 2000 and October 2000 that describe an agreement for the delivery of two lots of 500 tons of uranium over two years.

But the correspondence was on obsolete letterhead, including the wrong symbol for the presidency of Niger, and made reference to state bodies that no longer existed at the time that the letters were written. In addition, an Oct. 10, 2000, letter, allegedly signed by the foreign minister of Niger, had the signature of a man who hadn't served in that position since 1989.

These were all conclusions that, investigators believe, should have been easily deciphered by the CIA much earlier--had it not been for the bureaucratic foul-ups that are just now coming to light.

Terror Watch, written by Michael Isikoff and Mark Hosenball appears online weekly

© 2003