Was a West Coast terror plot thwarted in late 2001-early 2002? The Military Outpost quotes President Bush today:
Since Septemeber 11th, the United States and our coalition partners have disrupted a number of serious al Qaeda terrorist plots, including plots to attack targets inside the United States.
Let me give you an example:
In the weeks after September 11th, while Americans were still recovering from an unprecedented strike on our homeland, al Qaeda was already busy planning its next attack. We now know that in October 2001, Khalid Sheik Muhammed, the mastermind of the September 11th attacks, had already set in motion a plan to have terrorist operatives hijack an airplane using shoe bombs to breach the cockpit door, and fly the plan into the tallest building on the West Coast.
We believe the intended target was Liberty Tower [Library Tower], in Los Angeles, California.
Since Septemeber 11th, the United States and our coalition partners have disrupted a number of serious al Qaeda terrorist plots, including plots to attack targets inside the United States.
Let me give you an example:
In the weeks after September 11th, while Americans were still recovering from an unprecedented strike on our homeland, al Qaeda was already busy planning its next attack. We now know that in October 2001, Khalid Sheik Muhammed, the mastermind of the September 11th attacks, had already set in motion a plan to have terrorist operatives hijack an airplane using shoe bombs to breach the cockpit door, and fly the plan into the tallest building on the West Coast.
We believe the intended target was Liberty Tower [Library Tower], in Los Angeles, California.
Since Septemeber 11th, the United States and our coalition partners have disrupted a number of serious al Qaeda terrorist plots, including plots to attack targets inside the United States.
Let me give you an example:
In the weeks after September 11th, while Americans were still recovering from an unprecedented strike on our homeland, al Qaeda was already busy planning its next attack. We now know that in October 2001, Khalid Sheik Muhammed, the mastermind of the September 11th attacks, had already set in motion a plan to have terrorist operatives hijack an airplane using shoe bombs to breach the cockpit door, and fly the plan into the tallest building on the West Coast.
We believe the intended target was Liberty Tower [Library Tower], in Los Angeles, California.
Rather than use Arab hijackers as he had on September 11th, Khalid Sheik Muhammed sought out young men from Southeast Asia, whom he believed would not arouse as much suspicion. To help carry out his plan, he tapped a terrorist named Hambali, one of the leaders of an al Qaeda affiliated group in Southeast Asia called J-I [Jemaah Islamiya]. J-I terrorists were responsible for a series of deadly attacks in Southeast Asia, and members of the group had trained with al Qaeda. Hambali recruited several key operatives, who had been training in Afghanistan. Once the operatives were recruited, they met with Usama bin Laden, and then began preparations for the West Coast attack.
Their plot was derailed in early 2002, when a Southeast Asian nation arrested a key al Qaeda operative. Subsequent debriefings and other intelligence operations made clear the intended target, and how al Qaeda hoped to execute it. This critical intelligence helped other allies capture the ringleaders, and other known operatives who had been recruited for this plot.The West Coast plot had been thwarted.
As it becomes safe to disseminate the information, I suspect we’ll be hearing more and more details of further thwarted attacks.
And just as the threat of the Soviet Union was discounted during the Cold War (and anyone who dared criticize them ridiculed), expect the news of additional failed attacks to be downplayed and mocked by the left.
Update: Well, that didn’t take long! Be sure to read the comments below the post; they prove the point I made above.
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