Signs of possible terrorism and the government's response
Debate over whether the U.S. government could have done more to prevent
the Sept. 11 attacks focuses on several incidents:
An al-Qaeda plot to blow up more than
a dozen passenger jets simultaneously over the Pacific Ocean is exposed
in the Philippines after what authorities call a "test bomb" detonates aboard
a Philippine Airlines jet. One passenger is killed; several others are hurt.
The plot also involved plans to fly an explosives-packed small plane into
CIA headquarters in Langley, Va.
U.S. aviation officials issue general
security warnings to airlines and airports.
December 1999, January
In Decmber, 1999, U.S. intelligence
learned of an impending meeting of al-Qaeda supporters in Malaysia, a U.S.
intelligence official said, speaking on condition of anonymity. Malaysian
authorities monitored the January, 2000, meeting, which was attended by
Khalid Almihdhar and Nawaf Alhazmi, two of the hijackers who flew American
Airlines Flight 77 into the Pentagon on Sept. 11, the official said.
At the time, the significance and subject
of the 2000 meeting were not clear, the intelligence official said, but
the CIA informed FBI headquarters, as well as FBI agents in the CIA's counterterrorism
center, that the meeting took place. The meeting gained much greater significance
after the bombing of the USS Cole in Yemen on Oct. 12, 2000. Investigators
learned that Khallad was one of the masterminds, and his associates
including Almihdhar and Alhazmi suddenly took on new importance.
In a report to President Clinton, the
CIA cites increasing signs of terrorist activities.
March 22, 2001
Security officials in the Federal Aviation
Administration warn airlines and airports that U.S. intelligence officials
"cannot rule out the possibility that one or more terrorist groups affiliated
with (Osama) bin Laden" might carry out an attack.
The FAA memo focused on concern that
terrorists would put small bombs in luggage that would be left unattended
in baggage-claim areas or other busy parts of airports. Airports are urged
to watch for those who linger in non-secure areas.
The White House receives a specific
threat from intelligence sources concerning possible al-Qaeda attacks on
U.S. interests overseas.
U.S. embassies in the Middle East and
Africa are put on security alert.
In a briefing, CIA officials tell President
Bush that there are signs of increased activity by al-Qaeda and that bin
Laden's terrorist group might try to hijack U.S. airliners. Most potential
threats seem to be overseas, the officials say.
Bush tells officials that he wants to
know more about the threats, White House spokesman Ari Fleischer said Thursday.
FAA renews warning to airlines about
terrorism concerns. No specific threat is mentioned.
U.S. intelligence sources report to
the White House that there is a "spike" in news about possible terrorist
The State Department issues a worldwide
alert urging U.S. government interests to operate with caution.
FBI officials tell law enforcement agencies
of threats to U.S. targets overseas. They say domestic attacks can't be
FAA reiterates its earlier warning to
airlines and airports that a terrorist group might use explosives in a terminal.
Intelligence officials tell the White
House that non-specific terrorism threats are continuing to increase.
President Bush tells national security
adviser Condoleezza Rice to investigate what's being done about the reports
of terrorism threats.
White House officials meet to discuss
what Rice later calls a "very high concern" about attacks in Paris, Rome
Non-essential travel by U.S. counterterrorism
staff is suspended.
Another "spike" in reported terrorism
threats suggests that Bush might be a target during an economic summit in
Italy, Rice says.
CIA goes on a "full-court press" to
disrupt possible attacks, Rice says.
FAA tells airlines that there are ongoing
terrorist threats overseas and urges "the highest level of caution."
In a memo to FBI headquarters, an agent
in Phoenix urges the bureau to investigate the activities of Middle Easterners
at U.S. flight schools.
None. The memo does not make it beyond
a midlevel unit chief at FBI headquarters in Washington.
The FAA tells airlines that although
there is no specific threat to U.S. civil aviation interests, terrorist
groups are "known to be planning and training for hijackings."
At Bush's home in Crawford, Texas, he
receives a briefing from the CIA indicating that al-Qaeda is interested
in hijacking U.S. commercial airliners. The warning is not specific as to
target, timing and location, Fleischer said Thursday.
Before Bush was briefed, the information
was passed to several agencies, including the State and Defense departments
and the FAA. The FAA warns airlines and airports that supporters of al-Qaeda
or other terrorist groups might attempt hijackings.
FBI and immigration officials in Minnesota
arrest Zaccarias Moussaoui, a French-Moroccan, on immigration charges after
he is reported to be acting suspiciously while training at a flight school.
An FBI agent speculates in notes that Moussaoui might have been interested
in flying a jet into the World Trade Center. After Sept. 11, Moussaoui is
linked to al-Qaeda and charged with being part of the conspiracy that carried
out the attacks.
It's unclear whether the agent's concerns
were passed on to top FBI officials before Sept. 11. FBI officials have
not commented but have said that, in general, the Phoenix memo and the agent's
notes about Moussaoui should have been examined more aggressively.
The CIA, worried that a large al-Qaeda
operation was in the offing, put out an alert on Almidhar and Alhamzi, adding
them to a watch list that INS and State Department officials refer to when
deciding whether to grant a foreigner access to the United States. By this
time, however, they were already in the country, leaving it to the FBI to
track them down.
Weeks prior to Sept.
Electronic intercepts of al-Qaeda members
speaking cryptically of a major attack. Two U.S. intelligence officials,
paraphrasing highly classified intercepts, say they include such remarks
as, "Good things are coming," "Watch the news" and "Tomorrow
will be a great day for us."