On August 19, 1998, “the eve of the American missile strikes [that were a response to the August 7, 1998, African embassy bombings], [Taliban leader Mullah Mohammad] Omar made an irrevocable pledge: ‘We will never hand Osama over to anyone and will protect him with our blood at all cost.’ He repeated this commitment the day of the attack and often thereafter.”
– Roy Gutman, How We Missed the Story, Page 159