“Chaired by [Deputy National Security Advisor] Stephen Hadley, the deputies committee held its first meeting on bin Laden and Afghanistan on April 30 [2001]. ‘There will be more attacks,’ CIA briefing slides warned. Al Qaeda was the ‘most dangerous group we face.’ [Deputy Secretary of State] Richard Armitage said that the destruction of al Qaeda […]
4/30/2001
“The full Deputies Committee discussed al Qaeda on April 30 [2001]. CIA briefing slides described al Qaeda as the ‘most dangerous group we face,’ citing its ‘leadership, experience, resources, safe haven in Afghanistan [and] focus on attacking U.S.’ The slides warned, ‘There will be more attacks.’ ” – 9/11 Commission, The 9/11 Commission Report, Page […]
4/30/2001
“Describing the global terrorist threat in 2000, the State Department’s official annual report [titled ‘Patterns of Global Terrorism 2000,’ released on April 30, 2001] made no mention of Saudi Wahhabi proselytizing, and it referred only to ‘allegations’ that Saudi Islamic charities might be aiding terrorists. The Saudi royal family had ‘reaffirmed its commitment to combating […]
4/26/2001
On April 26, 2001, future 9/11 hijacker Mohamed Atta “was stopped on a traffic violation by a Broward County [Florida] sheriff’s deputy and ticketed for driving without a valid license. Atta would skip a scheduled May court appearance, but he and [fellow hijacker Ziad] Jarrah acquired licenses within a week of the stop to avoid […]
4/25/2001
The muscle hijackers–the ones who weren’t training to be pilots, “twelve of whom (out of a total of thirteen) were Saudi nationals–began arriving in the United States in late April 2001, and were in place with the arrival of [pilot Khalid al] Mihdhar on July 4. They had secured their U.S. tourist visas before leaving […]
4/22/2001
While in Quebec at the Summit of the Americas, President George W. Bush respond to a question about a new hemispheric-wide energy plan with: “Part of our issue is to make sure our electricity grids are open enough to handle additional power, say, in the western part of our state and obviously the western part of […]
4/20/2001
A SEIB (Senior Executive Intelligence Brief) headline on April 20, 2001 read: “Bin Laden Planning Multiple Operations.” – Philip Shenon, The Commission, Page 152 […]
4/18/2001
“On April 18 [2001], the FAA [Federal Aviation Administration] warned that Middle Eastern terrorists might try to hijack or blow up a U.S. plane. Air carriers were told to ‘demonstrate a high degree of alertness.’ ” – Peter Lance, 1000 Years For Revenge, Page 403 […]
4/18/2001
“On April 18 [2001], U.S. airlines got a memo from the FAA [Federal Aviation Administration] that they should demonstrate a ‘high degree of alertness’ because Middle Eastern terrorists might try to hijack or blow up an American jet.’ …the threats were so frequent and, often, so vague, they had little impact on security.” – Craig […]
4/16/2001
“As pressure mounted on the Taliban, the moderate wing within its leadership–who despised the Arabs, was opposed to international terrorism, and was secretly willing to negotiate with the United Nations and others–suffered a major setback when their leader, Mullah Mohammed Rabbani, died of cancer in a Karachi [Pakistan] hospital on 16 April [2001]. Rabbani was […]