I left Al Qaeda because they refused to pay healthcare, says Osama bin Laden's former pilot

No benefits: L'Houssaine Kherchtou testified at a terrorism trial in New York on Wednesday that he left Al Qaeda disgruntled about the lack of health care

A former member of Al Qaeda has claimed that he left the terror group after they failed to pay for his pregnant wife's medical bills.

L'Houssaine Kherchtou testified at a terrorism trial in New York on Wednesday that he was disgruntled at the lack of health care and later began helping a U.S. investigation into two embassy bombings in Africa.

Kherchtou, 46, gave evidence at the trial of Ahmed Ghailani who is accused of helping Al Qaeda in the 1998 attacks that killed 224 people including 12 U.S. citizens.

Prosecutors claim the Moroccan national helped to purchase the truck that was used to deliver the bomb to the embassy in Dar es Salaam that killed 11 people in its explosion.

Kherchtou testified that he joined the terrorist group in 1991 and later became Osama bin Laden's pilot after taking flying lessons and working his way up from training camp instructor.

He claimed that money became scarce for members of Al Qaeda in late 1995 when the group moved to Sudan.

Apparently a number of businesses launched by bin Laden, including mining and gem dealing failed to bring in much revenue.

'At that time I had one girl, one kid, and another on the way. I didn't see no future for those kids in Afghanistan and I decided not to go'

Al-Qaeda leaders decided to relocate to Afghanistan in early 1996 after the Taliban took control of the country but Kherchou remained in Sudan and said he 'decided not to go back with them'.



He said: 'At that time I had one girl, one kid, and another on the way. I didn't see no future for those kids in Afghanistan and I decided not to go'.

When asked by Assistant Manhattan U.S. Attorney Harry Chernoff if he had a dispute with Al-Qaeda leaders about medical treatment for his pregnant wife, Kherchtou became emotional while testifying.

He apparently dropped his head and began to cry, wiping away tears from under his glasses.

Chernoff asked him, 'Did your wife need treatment for her pregnancy and Al Qaeda refused to pay the bill?'

'Osamacare': Bin Laden's organisation is accused of refusing to pay benefits

Kherchtou whispered, 'Yes' and began sobbing, blowing his nose and dabbing his face with a tissue.

At an earlier trial in 2001, Kherchtou had testified that he was horrified to find out his wife was begging on the streets for money to pay for her cesarean section which cost $500 at a Sudanese hospital.

He said that he asked Al Qaeda to pay the medical bills but they refused. He testified that he decided to leave the group after the health care disagreement.

Kherchtou told the jury on Wednesday that he has pleaded guilty to conspiring with bin Laden to kill U.S. citizens but has not been sentenced.

He claimed that he could get away with no prison time at all if he continues to help the U.S. government with its investigations of Al Qaeda.

Although facing a long prison sentence for his crimes, he said that prosecutors have agreed to write to the judge who is due to sentence him to ask for a lenient sentence in return for his information.

After a series of unnamed intelligence officers came to Kherchtou, he said he agreed to cooperate with the Manhattan U.S. Attorney's office in 2000 who were aware of his links with Al Qaeda.

Kherchtou denied having known of the attacks before they happened and that he was in Nairobi for a job interview as a pilot on the day the U.S. embassy was bombed.

Kherchtou says he, his wife and their daughters now live in the U.S.

