“In late December 2000, the CIA informed a small group of cabinet members of its preliminary judgment that bin Laden had ‘supported the attack’ on the [USS] Cole [on October 12, 2000], based on strong circumstantial evidence linking [Abd al Rahim] al Nashiri and [Tawfiq bin Attash, aka] Khallad to al Qaeda. The CIA also said it did not have ‘definitive’ proof bin Laden had directed the attack, and [President Bill] Clinton decided this was an insufficient basis for going to war.” [The 25th of the month used for date sorting purposes only.]
– Roy Gutman, How We Missed the Story, Page 214