The CIA has declassified more than 100 pages of presidential intelligence briefings from the years preceding the September 11, 2001 terror attacks, including a 1998 memo warning President Bill Clinton about a potential Al-Qaeda attack involving the hijacking of a commercial airliner.
The agency described Friday’s release of 71 presidential briefs as its largest disclosure in 25 years of intelligence concerning Al-Qaeda leader Osama Bin Laden and the events that preceded the attacks.
The documents, many of which remain heavily redacted, include warnings about “potential US targets” and reports from “questionable sources” indicating that Bin Laden was preparing to attack the United States. The 1998 briefing said a possible operation had been identified in which two accomplices may have successfully bypassed security during a trial run. A memo dated September 10, 1998 stated that Bin Laden’s “preferred option is to strike the US on its own soil in Washington” and “may fly an explosive-packed airplane into a US city.”
Other briefings detail the CIA’s developing assessment of Al-Qaeda and its leader, including his determination to bring “war to America.” Despite gaps in the intelligence available at the time, CIA analysts continued warning White House officials about the terror network’s plans and capabilities.
A briefing dated August 6, 2001, during George W. Bush’s presidency, stated that Bin Laden was “determined to strike” the United States and could rely on Al-Qaeda terrorists already living in the country. The document also noted that the FBI had identified activity “consistent with preparations for hijackings or other types of attacks, including recent surveillance of federal buildings in New York.”
Another assessment, dated August 28, 2001, described Bin Laden’s operations as “expert and flexible” while noting that they remained vulnerable to short-term delay and disruption. It said Al-Qaeda emphasized “careful planning, tight security practices and flexibility” and relied on “sound operational practices” that enabled it to threaten the United States “even in a heightened security environment.”
CIA Director John Ratcliffe said he approved the declassification “in an act of exceptional transparency” to “honor the memory of those we lost on that tragic Tuesday.”
The release comes as Americans across the country commemorate the 25th anniversary of the September 11 attacks in which nearly 3,000 people were killed.
(Arutz Sheva-Israel National News’ North American desk is keeping you updated until the start of Rosh Hashanah in New York. The time posted automatically on all Israel National News articles, however, is Israeli time.)
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