Terrorist Attacks on Americans
A survey of pre-September 11, 2001, attacks
by David Johnson
International Terrorist Organizations
In the shadowy underworld of international terror, things are not always what they seem. Groups with diverse, even opposing, ideologies and differing goals often help each other when they share a common enemy. And while a terrorist act may be over in a matter of minutes, the planning and the coordination of such an event may take years.
For instance, despite their ideological differences, Middle Eastern terrorist organizations have participated in two international summits—in Beirut, Lebanon, and Teheran, Iran—in the year before the September 11, 2001, attacks, intelligence experts say. Two Palestinians, Musa Abu Marzouq, of Hamas, and Ramadham Abdullah Shallah of the Palestinian Islamic Jihad, organized the conferences, which were called "The Jerusalem Project."
Participants at bin Laden's camps were taught about blowing up a nation's infrastructure, rocket-launching, urban warfare, assassination, and sabotage.
The 400 participants pledged to support the Palestinians and seek Arab control over Jerusalem. They also reportedly agreed that the U.S. has become "a second Israel." Attendees included several Iranian diplomats and intelligence officials; representatives of Osama bin Laden's al-Qaeda; the Lebanese Hezbollah; and individuals from Algeria, Egypt, Jordan, Qatar, Pakistan, Sudan, and Yemen, and at least one person living in the United States.
Highjacking of TWA Flight 847
On June 14, 1985, TWA Flight 847 en route from Athens to Rome was forced to fly to Beirut by gunmen apparently connected to Hezbollah, the Shiite Muslim terrorist group in Lebanon. The group demanded the release of 700 prisoners in Lebanon and Israel.
During the standoff, U.S. Navy diver Robert Stethem was executed and his body tossed from the plane onto the runway. The 17-day crisis ended when the hijackers flew to Algiers and released the hostages. The perpetrators escaped without arrest, yet Imad Fayez Mugniyah, Hassan Izz-Al-Din, and Ali Atwa were indicted for the crime in the U.S. They were placed on the FBI's Most Wanted Terrorists list on Oct. 10, 2001.
Planned Explosion of Pacific Airliners
When a bomb exploded accidentally in a Manila apartment in January 1995, police uncovered a major terrorist plot. Associates of Osama bin Laden had planned to blow up 12 planes as they flew from Southeast Asia to the U.S., crash another aircraft into CIA headquarters, and kill the pope.
Ramzi Yousef, who was later arrested in Pakistan, received a life sentence plus 240 years for his role in the plot and for his complicity in the 1993 bombing at the World Trade Center. Khalid Shaikh Mohammed, of Kuwait, was indicted for this plot and was placed on the FBI's Most Wanted Terrorists list on Oct. 10, 2001.
http://www.infoplease.com/spot/terrorism6.html#twa
ANAV said:We tried ignoring terrorist for eight years during the Clinton administration. Thus, al-Queda thought we were spineless and underestimated our response to 9/11. But Bush unleashed the mighty US military on their asses and wiped out the Taliban and put al-Queda on the defensive rather than the offensive like they had been for many years.
It's amazing when you have a sitting President who cares more about national security than getting a knobber from an intern under the oval office desk.
pidrow said:Aguilar went on to lament the United State’s “resistance” to putting its soldiers under the disposition of “a third country,” though he stated that this is a “constant element in their foreign policy.”
QUOTE=GarzaUK] You seem to forget that these people WANT a war between the west and the east, between christain/judaism and muslim.
Yes...if they are criminals. But I think this one was not the case.teacher said:Pidrow? Do you in any capacity support putting US troops under the disposition of a third country? Dare you to say yes.
I have never seen any evidence to support that Gar -- do you have a link? The statement released by Bin Laden just before the election sounded like it came right out of Kerry's campaign headquarters.What? Al-Queida hoped you would respond by force. You seem to forget that these people WANT a war between the west and the east, between christain/judaism and muslim. Bush has given them everything they ever dreamed of - war. That's probably why Bin Laden was hoping Bush would get re-elected. Oh and Al-Queida is still on the offensive - more deaths in Iraq today.
Squawker said:I have never seen any evidence to support that Gar -- do you have a link? The statement released by Bin Laden just before the election sounded like it came right out of Kerry's campaign headquarters.
That's pretty hateful thing to say about someone that roughly half of American voters chose.Squawker said:The statement released by Bin Laden just before the election sounded like it came right out of Kerry's campaign headquarters.
We all hope that. Things are not going well for us though. Team Bush has helped terrorists recruit and get top notch training. At least that's what the liberal bastion the Pentagon is saying.Connecticutter said:[font=verdana,geneva,lucida,'lucida grande',arial,helvetica,sans-serif] [/font]So this will take a war, but he wants a war he can win. Hopefully, we won't let him do that.
Did you used to be a liberal or something?Connecticutter said:Call me a neo-con...
Since anti-Americanism is the result of opposition to American foreign policies rather than the lack of a free & stable Iraq how is this going to work?Connecticutter said:but if we create a stable, somewhat free Iraq (which we are determined to do), it will undermine the terrorist base.
You mean the Afghani Freedom Fighters?Connecticutter said:As to the Soviet Invasion of Afghanistan - the terrorists were emboldened...
Apparently, when asked, attitudes about our culture are "mostly favorable." While the hardcore religious nuts over there may just as upset with our culture as the hardcore religious nuts here are, apparently for the bulk of the population, our policies are the issue, not oput culture and values.Connecticutter said:It's not so much our foreign policy as it is our cultural influence is disrupting the status quo in the Middle East, thereby threatening those in power.
Connecticutter said:How often do you see two democratic republics go to war against each other?
It gives us information about the pool of potential recruits.Connecticutter said:That's just a poll of random Arabs. This doesn't give us any information about the terrorists, their leaders, and the dictatorships that support them.
Liberal democracies have been rare. There's not much a pool of data to draw your conclusions from.Connecticutter said:In terms of my comments about democratic republics: sure its true that there have been wars between democracies, but its rare.
Simon W. Moon said:It gives us information about the pool of potential recruits.
Simon W. Moon said:Liberal democracies have been rare. There's not much a pool of data to draw your conclusions from.
Since you're advocating staking lives on this proposition, what evidence do you have to back it up?Connecticutter said:The pool of potential recruits gets a lot smaller in a free and open society. It would be harder to recruit someone who has had a taste of freedom, even if they diagree with US policy.
Simon W. Moon said:Since you're advocating staking lives on this proposition, what evidence do you have to back it up?
Simon W. Moon said:• Muslims do not “hate our freedom,” but rather, they hate our policies.
So we should follow the Clinton strategy?Gandhi>Bush said:No, we haven't.
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