stayed remarkably
strong through her trauma. They headed east on Avenue de Suffren. Claire drove
fast again, weaving through heavy morning traffic. Conley steadied himself with
the handle above his door. Her gaze was resolute. She seemed anxious to get
started.
"Do you like Paris?" she asked.
"It's one of my favorite places."
The remark seemed to please her.
Ten minutes later they were seated in a café off Place de St.
Sulpice, at a table under a windowed canopy. There were only a few other
patrons, alone and reading newspapers. The space was quiet except for
occasional clinks from the kitchen and pigeons flapping their wings in the
square. Conley set his notepad on the table. They ordered two
café-au-lait, which arrived in short order.
"I've prepared some notes, too," Claire said. She pulled a sheaf
of papers from her purse and placed them in front of her. The stack contained
at least 15 pages, some handwritten, some computer-printed.
Conley was a little taken aback. Claire noticed his reaction.
"I hope I haven't overdone it," she said.
"No, of course not."
Fact was, Conley was impressed. He’d half expected her to be incapable
of full-bore interviews. Could he proceed in French, he asked? He'd done a few
interviews before in the language, when he'd been based in London. He'd read Le
Monde on the plane to bone up.
Claire looked doubtful. "Are you sure?"
"Let's try."
They switched. Conley began by reviewing Bradford's impetus for doing the story,
which he had gleaned from Bradford's e-mail correspondence with Gallagher. It
stemmed from the war on terror.
Opium production in Afghanistan had boomed since the U.S. and allied
invasion in late 2001---an unintended consequence of the ouster of the Taliban.
Now ninety percent of the derivative heroin from Afghanistan that reached
Western Europe transited through Tajikistan. This destabilized Russia's
southern borders and frustrated Western attempts to choke off the financial
base of Islamic terrorist groups like Al Qaeda. Hence the U.S. interest.
Bradford had sought to trace the pipeline from Europe back to Tajikistan and
explain the link to terrorism. Claire confirmed these details. However Conley
didn't want to get too bogged down in geo-politics. This was more about
Bradford.
"Tajikistan is obviously a dangerous place," he observed.
"Did that worry Peter?"
"Somehow it didn't," Claire said, her eyes watering a little as
she recalled.
"Why was that?"
"He seemed to have a clear plan. He said lots of elements were coming
together at once in Tajikistan…and that he might be the only reporter to
understand them."
For now Conley was inclined to agree. Bradford had been on to
something. The country's role in the global heroin trade was important---and
largely overlooked.
With one finger Claire brushed away a tear. However she didn't falter.
"He believed this was his big opportunity.
CHAPTER EIGHTEEN
As a rule Gallagher didn't spend lengthy periods on the Internet. He
employed it mostly for breaking news. This afternoon was an exception. He was
at his desk digging into Tajikistan. What he was finding didn't make sense.
Recent U.S. State Department bulletins, released in January and re-affirmed in
July, presented a confusing picture:
This Public Announcement replaces the Travel Warning dated December 20.
It is being issued to reflect the decrease in incidents of political violence
in Dushanbe and the rest of the country. The Department of State reminds U.S.
citizens, however, that the potential for terrorist actions against Americans
in Tajikistan remains. U.S. citizens should evaluate carefully the implications
for their security and safety before deciding to travel to Tajikistan. The
political security situation in Tajikistan has improved in the last two years.
Nevertheless, terrorist groups allied with al Qaeda, such as the
Islamic Movement of Uzbekistan (IMU), remain active in Tajikistan and
still pose risks to travelers. In the past, the
strong through her trauma. They headed east on Avenue de Suffren. Claire drove
fast again, weaving through heavy morning traffic. Conley steadied himself with
the handle above his door. Her gaze was resolute. She seemed anxious to get
started.
"Do you like Paris?" she asked.
"It's one of my favorite places."
The remark seemed to please her.
Ten minutes later they were seated in a café off Place de St.
Sulpice, at a table under a windowed canopy. There were only a few other
patrons, alone and reading newspapers. The space was quiet except for
occasional clinks from the kitchen and pigeons flapping their wings in the
square. Conley set his notepad on the table. They ordered two
café-au-lait, which arrived in short order.
"I've prepared some notes, too," Claire said. She pulled a sheaf
of papers from her purse and placed them in front of her. The stack contained
at least 15 pages, some handwritten, some computer-printed.
Conley was a little taken aback. Claire noticed his reaction.
"I hope I haven't overdone it," she said.
"No, of course not."
Fact was, Conley was impressed. He’d half expected her to be incapable
of full-bore interviews. Could he proceed in French, he asked? He'd done a few
interviews before in the language, when he'd been based in London. He'd read Le
Monde on the plane to bone up.
Claire looked doubtful. "Are you sure?"
"Let's try."
They switched. Conley began by reviewing Bradford's impetus for doing the story,
which he had gleaned from Bradford's e-mail correspondence with Gallagher. It
stemmed from the war on terror.
Opium production in Afghanistan had boomed since the U.S. and allied
invasion in late 2001---an unintended consequence of the ouster of the Taliban.
Now ninety percent of the derivative heroin from Afghanistan that reached
Western Europe transited through Tajikistan. This destabilized Russia's
southern borders and frustrated Western attempts to choke off the financial
base of Islamic terrorist groups like Al Qaeda. Hence the U.S. interest.
Bradford had sought to trace the pipeline from Europe back to Tajikistan and
explain the link to terrorism. Claire confirmed these details. However Conley
didn't want to get too bogged down in geo-politics. This was more about
Bradford.
"Tajikistan is obviously a dangerous place," he observed.
"Did that worry Peter?"
"Somehow it didn't," Claire said, her eyes watering a little as
she recalled.
"Why was that?"
"He seemed to have a clear plan. He said lots of elements were coming
together at once in Tajikistan…and that he might be the only reporter to
understand them."
For now Conley was inclined to agree. Bradford had been on to
something. The country's role in the global heroin trade was important---and
largely overlooked.
With one finger Claire brushed away a tear. However she didn't falter.
"He believed this was his big opportunity.
CHAPTER EIGHTEEN
As a rule Gallagher didn't spend lengthy periods on the Internet. He
employed it mostly for breaking news. This afternoon was an exception. He was
at his desk digging into Tajikistan. What he was finding didn't make sense.
Recent U.S. State Department bulletins, released in January and re-affirmed in
July, presented a confusing picture:
This Public Announcement replaces the Travel Warning dated December 20.
It is being issued to reflect the decrease in incidents of political violence
in Dushanbe and the rest of the country. The Department of State reminds U.S.
citizens, however, that the potential for terrorist actions against Americans
in Tajikistan remains. U.S. citizens should evaluate carefully the implications
for their security and safety before deciding to travel to Tajikistan. The
political security situation in Tajikistan has improved in the last two years.
Nevertheless, terrorist groups allied with al Qaeda, such as the
Islamic Movement of Uzbekistan (IMU), remain active in Tajikistan and
still pose risks to travelers. In the past, the
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