NEW YORK, June 9: Amidst increasing criticism of the Bush administration’s war on Iraq two of the highest-ranking leaders of Al Qaeda in American custody have told the CIA in separate interrogations that the organization did not work jointly with the Saddam government.

In a report on Monday, the New York Times quoting senior intelligence officials said that Abu Zubaydah, an Al Qaeda planner and recruiter until his capture in March 2002, told investigators last year that the idea of working with Mr Hussein’s government had been discussed among Al Qaeda leaders, but that Osama bin Laden had rejected the suggestion.

In his debriefing, Zubaydah said Osama had vetoed the idea because he did not want to be beholden to Mr Hussein, according to an official who has read the CIA’s classified report on the interrogation, the Times said.

Separately, Khalid Sheikh Mohammed, the Al Qaeda chief of operations until his capture on March 1 in Pakistan, has also told interrogators that the group did not work with Mr Hussein, officials said.

The Bush administration has not made these statements public, though it frequently highlighted intelligence reports that supported assertions of links between Iraq and Al Qaeda.

Several officials told the paper that Zubaydah’s debriefing report was circulated by the CIA within the American intelligence community last year, but his statements were not included in public discussions.