PENTTBOM
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PENTTBOM is the codename for the Federal Bureau of Investigation's probe into the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks on New York City, New York, and Washington, D.C., the largest criminal inquiry in United States history. Its name stands for 'Pentagon/Twin Towers Bombing Investigation'. The investigation was launched on September 11, 2001 and involved 7000 of the FBI's special-agent total of 11,000.[1].
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[edit] Identifying the hijackers
The FBI was able to identify the 19 hijackers within a matter of days as few suspects made any effort to conceal their names on flight, credit card, and other records.[2].
[edit] Identical letters
Additionally three of the hijackers carried an identical handwritten letter (in Arabic) that was found in three separate locations: the first, in a suitcase of hijacker Mohamed Atta that did not make the connection to American Airlines Flight 11 that crashed into the North Tower of the World Trade Center; the second, in a vehicle parked at Washington Dulles International Airport that belonged to hijacker Nawaf al-Hazmi; and the third at the crash site of United Airlines Flight 93 in Shanksville, Pennsylvania.
According to the testimony before the House Intelligence Subcommittee on Terrorism and Homeland Defense on October 3, 2001 given by J. T. Caruso -- the Deputy Assistant Director of the FBI's Counterterrorism Division, "translations of the letter indicate an alarming willingness to die on the part of the hijackers." [3]
[edit] Passports recovered
According to testimony by Susan Ginsberg, a staff member of the National Commission on Terrorist attacks upon the United States, in the January 26, 2004 Public Hearing:
- "Four of the hijackers passports have survived in whole or in part. Two were recovered from the crash site of United Airlines flight 93 in Pennsylvania. These are the passports of Ziad Jarrah and Saeed al Ghamdi. One belonged to a hijacker on American Airlines flight 11. This is the passport of Satam al Suqami. A passerby picked it up and gave it to a NYPD detective shortly before the World Trade Center towers collapsed. A fourth passport was recovered from luggage that did not make it from a Portland flight to Boston on to the connecting flight which was American Airlines flight 11. This is the passport of Abdul Aziz al Omari."
- "In addition to these four, some digital copies of the hijackers passports were recovered in post-9/11 operations. Two of the passports that have survived, those of Satam al Suqami and Abdul Aziz al Omari, were clearly doctored. To avoid getting into classified detail, we will just state that these were manipulated in a fraudulent manner in ways that have been associated with al Qaeda. "
[edit] WTC site
The passport of hijacker Satam al-Suqami was found a few blocks from the World Trade Center.[4] [5]
[edit] Flight 93
According to the 9/11 Commission, the passports of two of the hijackers Flight 93 were also found intact in the aircraft's debris field. [6]
[edit] Atta's luggage
The passport of hijacker Abdulaziz Alomari was found in Mohamed Atta’s left-behind luggage.[7]
When examining Mohamed Atta's left-behind luggage, the FBI found important clues about the hijackers and their plans. His luggage contained papers that revealed the identity of all 19 hijackers, and provided information about their plans, motives, and backgrounds.[8] The FBI was able to determine details such as dates of birth, known and/or possible residences, visa status, and specific identity of the suspected pilots. However, none of these documents have been scrutinized by independent legal experts.[9]
[edit] Linking the hijackers to al Qaeda
The investigators were quickly able to link the 19 men to the terrorist organization al Qaeda, by accessing their intelligence agency files. The New York Times reported on September 12 that: "Authorities said they had also identified accomplices in several cities who had helped plan and execute Tuesday’s attacks. Officials said they knew who these people were and important biographical details about many of them. They prepared biographies of each identified member of the hijack teams, and began tracing the recent movements of the men." FBI agents in Florida investigating the hijackers quickly "descended on flight schools, neighborhoods and restaurants in pursuit of leads." At one flight school, "students said investigators were there within hours of Tuesday’s attacks."[10] The Washington Post later reported that "In the hours after Tuesday’s bombings, investigators searched their files on [Satam] Al Suqami and [Ahmed] Alghamdi, noted the pair’s ties to [Nabil] al-Marabh and launched a hunt for him."[11]
On September 27, 2001, the FBI released photos of the 19 hijackers, along with information about the possible nationalities and aliases of many.[12]
On the day of the attacks, U.S. intelligence agencies also intercepted communications that pointed to Osama bin Laden.[13] It was quickly asserted that Osama bin Laden was responsible for the attacks, and other suspects were ruled out. Although he denied the attacks at first, Osama bin Laden has since admitted full and sole responsibility for the attacks.
[edit] Later FBI testimony
In his Congressional testimony on February 6, 2002, Dale Watson, the Executive Assistant Director of the FBI over counterterrorism and counterintelligence, declared that "The evidence linking Al-Qaeda and Bin Laden to the attacks of September 11 is clear and irrefutable."[14] However, in a speech at the Commonwealth Club on April 19, 2002, FBI Director Robert Mueller said: "In our investigation, we have not uncovered a single piece of paper - either here in the United States, or in the treasure trove of information that has turned up in Afghanistan and elsewhere - that mentioned any aspect of the September 11 plot."[15]
The FBI's Ten Most Wanted page includes Osama bin Laden, however no mention is made of 9/11 specifically: "Usama Bin Laden is wanted in connection with the August 7, 1998, bombings of the United States Embassies in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania, and Nairobi, Kenya. These attacks killed over 200 people. In addition, Bin Laden is a suspect in other terrorist attacks throughout the world." When asked why this is, Rex Tomb of the FBI's public affairs unit is reported to have said, "The reason why 9/11 is not mentioned on Usama Bin Laden's Most Wanted page is because the FBI has no hard evidence connecting Bin Laden to 9/11."[16]
[edit] Press Releases
September 11, 2001: FBI opens investigations[1]
September 14: FBI releases list of 9/11 hijacker suspects [2]
September 27: FBI releases photographs of 9/11 hijacker suspects [3]
September 28: FBI releases four-page letter believed to be written by the hijackers [4]
October 4: FBI releases partial timeline for Boston, Massachusetts-based hijackers [5]
[edit] External links
- FBI's 9/11 Team Still Hard at Work from The Washington Post June 14, 2004
- FBI PENTTBOM suspects
- Translation of hijacker letters
- PENTTBOM timeline
[edit] See also
Responsibility for the September 11, 2001 attacks
[edit] References
- ^ Federal Bureau of Investigation - FBI History
- ^ Federal Bureau of Investigation - Facts and Figures 2003
- ^ Federal Bureau of Investigation - Congressional Testimony
- ^ Attack on America
- ^ Las Vegas Review Journal, September 16, 2001.
- ^ National Commission on Terrorist Attacks Upon the United States
- ^ National Commission on Terrorist Attacks Upon the United States
- ^ Dorman, Michael. "Unraveling 9-11 was in the bags", Newsday (New York), April 17, 2006.
- ^ Reaves, Jessica (January 2, 2002). The Case Against Zacarias Moussaoui. Time.
- ^ AFTER THE ATTACKS: THE SUSPECTS; Hijacking Trail Leads F.B.I. to Florida Flight School - New York Times
- ^ NucNews - September 21, 2001
- ^ Press Release. Federal Bureau of Investigation (September 27, 2001).
- ^ "Latest on the attacks on America, 7:00 p.m.", CBS News, September 11, 2001.
- ^ Federal Bureau of Investigation - Congressional Testimony
- ^ FBI: Bin Laden Not Wanted for 9/11?
- ^ FBI: Bin Laden Not Wanted for 9/11?
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