Timeline of the September 11 attacks

Last updated

The following timeline is a chronological list of all the major events leading up to, during, and immediately following the September 11 attacks against the United States in 2001, through the first anniversary of the attacks in 2002.

Contents

Background history

DayMonthYear(s)LocationNotes
--1950 Egypt Sayyid Qutb returns to Egypt from a two-year visit to the United States sponsored by the Ministry of Education, and joins the Muslim Brotherhood due to his disgust towards Western culture. [1]
--1951-1965Qutb writes the book Fi Zilal al-Quran while in prison for an assassination attempt against Gamal Abdel Nasser. The book claims that Israel and the Arab states of the Persian Gulf are American satellite states and calls for an Islamist revolution against secularism—including Arab nationalism, socialism, and liberal democracy—to establish a Middle Eastern theocracy rooted in sharia law. [1] The book also concludes that any Muslims who support secularism are kuffar . [2] The book becomes highly influential towards Islamic terrorists. [1]
5Aug1966 Lower Manhattan in New York City, United States Work is started on the original World Trade Center [3]
-- Egypt Sayyid Qutb is executed in Egypt and his brother Muhammad Qutb flees to Saudi Arabia, acquiring a teaching position at King Abdulaziz University in Jeddah.
--1973 Lower Manhattan in New York City, United States Work is completed on the original World Trade Center [3]
--1976Jeddah, Saudi Arabia Osama bin Laden, son of Saudi billionaire businessman Mohammed bin Laden, is radicalized by Qutb while attending King Abdulaziz University for business administration. [4] [2]
--1979 United States The United States first becomes concerned over Islamic extremism after the Iranian Revolution, the Iran hostage crisis, and the Grand Mosque seizure.
--1980 Jeddah, Saudi Arabia Bin Laden completes University [4] [2]
-- Pakistan Bin Laden travels to Pakistan to volunteer and assist the Sunni Mujahideen during the Soviet–Afghan War. He will become increasingly radicalised over the course of his participation in the conflict. [5] [6]
--1981Bin Laden's future deputy Ayman al-Zawahiri, the leader of Jama At al-Jihad, is arrested for his role in the assassination of Anwar Sadat and imprisoned for three years. [1]
--1983 United States Marine Corps barracks, Beirut Airport

'Drakkar' barracks of French 1st Parachute Chasseur Regiment and 9th Parachute Chasseur Regiment, Ramlet al Baida, Beirut

The 1983 Beirut barracks bombings targeting the Multinational Force in Lebanon during the Lebanese Civil War provides inspiration for Bin Laden. [7]
-Oct1984 Republic of Afghanistan (1978–1992) and Pakistan Bin Laden cofounds a network, the Maktab al-Khidamat, with Abdullah Yusuf Azzam in Afghanistan and Pakistan to recruit Muslims for the Afghan resistance. [4] [8]
--1986 Republic of Afghanistan (1978–1992) Bin Laden travels to Afghanistan to lead MAK forces in combat. [8]
-Feb1987 Republic of Afghanistan (1978–1992) Al-Qaeda establishes its first training camps in Afghanistan. [8]
25May Paktia Province, Republic of Afghanistan (1978–1992) Bin Laden withstands a Soviet attack during the Battle of Jaji, establishing his reputation in the Arab world. [8]
8Dec Israel and Occupied Palestinian Territory The First Intifada begins in Palestine. Bin Laden expresses vocal support for the conflict, and begins to advocate in favor of jihad against the West. [9] [10]
--1988 Osama bin Laden forms a computer database of Islamist militants, founding al-Qaeda. [11] He declares that Muslims must protect the holy sites of Mecca and Medina from foreign control as a religious duty. [10]
15Feb1989 Republic of Afghanistan (1978–1992) The Soviet Army completes its withdrawal from Afghanistan, and bin Laden advocates transforming al-Qaeda into a global network to fund jihad. Azzam prefers to focus on the Afghan Civil War and the Israeli–Palestinian conflict. [12] [2]
-May-June Jalalabad, Republic of Afghanistan (1978–1992) Al-Qaeda forces are badly defeated by the Afghan National Army in the Battle of Jalalabad, leading to a drop in membership and reorientation of tactics. [2] [8]
30Jun Sudan, North Africa Omar al-Bashir and Hassan Al-Turabi's National Islamic Front seize control of Sudan in a coup d'état. Al-Turabi would invite bin Laden to stay in the country. [13]
-Nov Saudi Arabia Bin Laden returns to Saudi Arabia and Prince Turki bin Faisal rejects his offer to send al-Qaeda to overthrow the Communist government in South Yemen. [2]
24 Peshawar, PakistanAzzam is assassinated in a car bombing, allowing bin Laden to dominate the organization. [12]
22May1990 South and North Yemen The governments of South and North Yemen merge into the unified Republic of Yemen. Bin Laden runs afoul of the Saudi Interior Ministry for attempting to violently disrupt the unification process. [2]
2Aug Kuwait, West Africa Ba'athist Iraq invades and annexes Kuwait. Fearing an Iraqi threat to Eastern Province oilfields, King Fahd rapidly accepts American military assistance to the opposition of Bin Laden. [2] [14]
-SeptBin Laden makes an offer to Sultan bin Abdulaziz Al Saud to defend Saudi Arabia from Ba'athist Iraq with 100,000 fighters after the Iraqi invasion of Kuwait. He is turned down, and becomes embittered by the intervention of non-Islamic troops from the U.S.-led international coalition in the Gulf War. [15] [2]
5Nov New York Marriott East Side, Midtown Manhattan, New York City El Sayyid Nosair commits the assassination of Meir Kahane at the New York Marriott East Side, one of the first Islamist terrorist attacks in the United States. The FBI subsequently finds documents linking the attack to al-Qaeda, making it the organization's first involvement in attacks in the United States. [16]
-Apr1991 Sudan, East Africa Bin Laden moves to Sudan and begins expanding al-Qaeda using legitimate businesses as front organizations. [13] [10] [17]
--1992 Arabian Peninsula and Horn of Africa Bin Laden begins to target U.S. military forces in the Arabian Peninsula and the Horn of Africa, as well as to consider alliances with Shiite Iranian-backed organizations such as Hezbollah. [17]
27Apr Republic of Afghanistan (1978–1992) The Democratic Republic of Afghanistan collapses after Hezb-e Islami Gulbuddin seizes Kabul, but a new stage of civil war begins when the Peshawar Accords collapse.
29Dec Aden, Yemen, West Africa Al-Qaeda attacks U.S. military forces for the first time in the Yemen hotel bombings in Aden.
26Feb1993 World Trade Center

New York City, New York, U.S.

Ramzi Yousef carries out the 1993 World Trade Center bombing.
3-4Oct Mogadishu, Somalia, Horn of Africa 18 American servicemen are killed by al-Qaeda-trained forces in the Battle of Mogadishu. [17]
9Apr1994Bin Laden's Saudi citizenship is revoked. [10] [17]
-Sept Kandahar, Kandahar Province, Islamic State of Afghanistan Mohammed Omar founds the Taliban in Kandahar.
24-26Dec Houari Boumediene Airport, Algiers, Algeria and Marseille Provence Airport, Marseille, France Armed Islamic Group of Algeria militants attempt to crash Air France Flight 8969 into the Eiffel Tower, influencing al-Qaeda's future planning. [9] [18]
6Jan1995Doña Josefa apartments in Manila, Philippines, Operation Bojinka, a planned terrorist attack, is discovered by the Filipino police in Manila on a laptop computer in an apartment after a fire.
7Feb Pakistan Ramzi Yousef is arrested in Pakistan, and is discovered to have financial links to Bin Laden. [17] [2]
-JunU.S. intelligence links al-Qaeda to an unsuccessful assassination attempt against Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. [17]
8Jan1996As Bin Laden makes bellicose statements regarding United States and Saudi Arabia. Michael Scheuer creates a CIA unit, the Bin Laden Issue Station, to gather intelligence on Bin Laden. [1] [10]
18May Islamic State of Afghanistan Heading from Africa to Asia, Bin Laden moves to Afghanistan providing him a safe haven for al-Qaeda activities. [2]
25JunKhobar Towers,Khobar, Saudi Arabia Al-Qaeda commits the Khobar Towers bombing targeting American servicemen in Saudi Arabia to participate in Operation Southern Watch.
23AugBin Ladin issues a fatwa declaring war on the United States, which is published in the Arabic-language newspaper Al-Quds Al-Arabi in London. [19] The FBI and the U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of New York open a criminal file on him under the charge of seditious conspiracy. [2]
27Sept Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan The Taliban, a radical Islamic movement, rises to power by conquering Kabul and declares the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan.
-NovInformant Jamal al-Fadl reveals the existence of al-Qaeda to the FBI. [2]
23 Grande Comore, ComorosAttackers hijack Ethiopian Airlines Flight 961 and most of the passengers die in the resulting crash landing. [20]
--1998An embassy bombing suspect claims that an 'extensive network of al-Qaeda sleeper agents' is planning a 'big attack' inside the United States. [21]
-- Hamburg, Germany 9/11 hijacker Mohamed Atta and associates are monitored some by US and Germany in their Hamburg apartment. [22] [23] [24] [25] [26] [27] [28] [29]
-FebBin Laden expands religious edict against US and allies by issuing a second fatwa calling on Muslims to join a jihad against Jews and Christians until the United States and Israel evacuate the Middle East, and reiterates the themes in a televised interview with ABC News. [17] [13]
8JunA U.S. grand jury delivers a sealed indictment of bin Laden for "conspiracy to attack defense utilities of the United States." [17]
7Aug Nairobi, Kenya and Dar es Salaam, Tanzania The 1998 U.S. embassy bombings in Kenya and Tanzania bring al-Qaeda to US public attention for the first time.
8-10 Mazar-i-Sharif, Balkh, Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan In Mazar-i-Sharif, the Taliban and Al Qaeda's 055 Brigade massacred between 4,000 and 8,000 people, including 11 Iranian diplomats. Iran threatened to intervene, but relented after mediation by the United Nations.
20 Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan Operation Infinite Reach, U.S. cruise missile strikes on Al-Qaeda training camp in Khost, Afghanistan, in retaliation of Al-Qaeda's U.S. embassy bombings two weeks earlier.
8Oct1999 United States Al-Qaeda is designated as a Foreign Terrorist Organisation by the U.S. State Department. [30] [31] The Federal Aviation Administration instructs airlines to maintain "a high degree of alertness" against the organization. [32]
15 New York City, New York, United States The United Nations Security Council passes a resolution demanding that the Taliban extradite Bin Ladin.
31 Atlantic Ocean, 100 km (62 mi; 54 nmi) south of Nantucket Suicide pilot crashes EgyptAir Flight 990 into the ocean. [33]
-Nov-DecThe 2000 millennium attack plots for bombings in Jordan and Los Angeles International Airport are discovered and prevented.
-DecHijacked in Indian airspace between Kathmandu, Nepal and Delhi, India; landed at Amritsar, India; Lahore, Pakistan; Dubai, United Arab Emirates; and Kandahar, Afghanistan. Indian Airlines Flight 814 hijacked. One passenger dies while the others are released.
12Oct2000 Yemen, West Africa The USS Cole is bombed in Yemen by Al-Qaeda.
10Jul2001FBI Agent Kenneth Williams writes a memo warning that al-Qaeda members are training at flight schools in the United States, and CIA Director George Tenet briefs officials such as National Security Advisor Condoleezza Rice. [32]
6AugPresident George W. Bush receives the President's Daily Brief Bin Ladin Determined To Strike in US warning of an imminent attack on the United States by al-Qaeda. [34]
4SeptThe United States National Security Council prepares a $200 million plan to aid opponents of the Taliban in the Afghan Civil War, but it is not presented to President Bush. [32]
9 Khwājah Bahā ud Dīn (Khvājeh Bahāuḏḏīn), Takhar Province in northeastern Afghanistan Al-Qaeda assassinates Ahmad Shah Massoud, commander of the Northern Alliance.

Planning

DayMonthYear(s)LocationNotes
--1992Germany Mohamed Atta arrives in Germany.
--1994 Philippines Planning on Operation Bojinka begins
--1995GermanyOperation Bojinka foiled, Said Bahaji and Ramzi bin al-Shibh arrive in Germany.
--1996 Marwan al-Shehhi and Ziad Jarrah arrive in Germany.
--1997 Zakariyah Essabar arrives in Germany.
--1998Recruitment of terrorists in Germany starts.
--United States Bill Clinton warned 'bin Laden preparing to hijack US aircraft' inside US. [35]
--1999Hamburg, Germany Hamburg cell is fully formed.
--GermanyGerman authorities monitors call to 9/11 hijacker al-Shehhi, shares information with CIA. [36]
--Germans monitor call mentioning key al-Qaeda Hamburg cell members, including 9/11 hijacker Atta's full name and number. [37]
--9/11 hijacker Jarrah has unofficial wedding; photograph later suggests German intelligence has informant. [38]
--Three 9/11 hijackers obtain US visas. [39]
-- Hani Hanjour obtains pilot's license despite dubious skills. [40] [41] [42] [43]
--GermanyGerman intelligence records calls between 9/11 hijacker al-Shehhi and others linked to al-Qaeda. [29] [37]
--Saudi ambassador's wife gives funds that are possibly passed to 9/11 hijackers. [44]
--United StatesPresident Clinton warned about al-Qaeda operatives living in US. [45]
--Watch list importance is stressed but procedures are not followed. [46] [47]
--United StatesNSA tells CIA about planned al-Qaeda summit involving future hijackers.
--2000Malaysia and United States 2000 al-Qaeda Summit in Malaysia, pilots head to the United States and attend flight training schools.
--2001United StatesRemaining hijackers go to the United States, Zacarias Moussaoui goes to the United States and is arrested, other cell members flee Germany.

September 11, 2001

All times are in local time (EDT or UTC−4).

Time (a.m)

H:M:

LocationNotes
7:59 Logan International Airport, Boston, Massachusetts American Airlines Flight 11 takes off from Boston Logan, bound for Los Angeles
8:14 Logan International Airport, Boston, Massachusetts United Airlines Flight 175 takes off from Boston Logan, also bound for Los Angeles
8:20 Washington Dulles International Airport, Dulles, Virginia American Airlines Flight 77 takes off from Washington Dulles International Airport, also bound for Los Angeles
8:42 Newark International Airport, Newark and Elizabeth, New Jersey United Airlines Flight 93 takes off from Newark International Airport, bound for San Francisco International Airport
8:42–8:46United States airspaceFlight 175 is hijacked
8:46:40 North Tower, World Trade Center, New York City, New York Flight 11 crashes into the North Tower of the World Trade Center between the 93rd and 99th floors
8:50–8:54United States airspaceFlight 77 is hijacked
9:03:02 South Tower, World Trade Center, New York City, New York Flight 175 crashes into the South Tower of the World Trade Center between the 77th and 85th floors
9:28United States airspaceFlight 93 is hijacked
9:37:46 The Pentagon, Arlington, Virginia Flight 77 crashes into The Pentagon
9:59:00 South Tower, World Trade Center, New York City, New York The South Tower collapses
10:03:11 Shanksville, Pennsylvania Flight 93 crashes into a field in Shanksville, Pennsylvania [48]
10:28:22 North Tower, World Trade Center, New York City, New York The North Tower collapses

Rest of September

October

Beyond October

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Al-Qaeda</span> Pan-Islamic Sunni Jihadist terrorist organization (established 1988)

Al-Qaeda is a pan-Islamist militant organization led by Sunni Jihadists who self-identify as a vanguard spearheading a global Islamist revolution to unite the Muslim world under a supra-national Islamic state known as the Caliphate. Its members are mostly composed of Arabs, but also include people from other ethnic groups. Al-Qaeda has mounted attacks on civilian, economic and military targets of the US and its allies; such as the 1998 US embassy bombings, the USS Cole bombing and the September 11 attacks. The organization is designated as a terrorist group by NATO, UN Security Council, the European Union, and various countries around the world.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Osama bin Laden</span> Saudi-born militant and founder of al-Qaeda (1957–2011)

Osama bin Mohammed bin Awad bin Laden was a Saudi-born Islamic dissident and militant leader who was the founder and first general emir of al-Qaeda from 1988 until his death in 2011. Ideologically a pan-Islamist, his organization is designated as a terrorist group by the United Nations Security Council, the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO), the European Union, and various other countries. He is most widely known as the mastermind of the September 11 attacks in the United States.

There were several video and audio recordings released by Osama bin Laden between 2001 and 2011.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Marwan al-Shehhi</span> Emirati terrorist and 9/11 hijacker (1978–2001)

Marwan Yousef Mohamed Rashid Lekrab al-Shehhi was an Emirati terrorist hijacker from al-Qaeda who served as the hijacker-pilot of United Airlines Flight 175, crashing the Boeing 767 into the South Tower of the World Trade Center as part of the 11 September attacks in 2001. He was one of five hijackers aboard the aircraft and one of two Emiratis to take part in the attacks, the other being Fayez Banihammad, who helped him hijack the same plane.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Khalid Sheikh Mohammed</span> Pakistani member of al-Qaeda (born 1965)

Khalid Sheikh Mohammed, often known by his initials KSM, is a Pakistani terrorist and the former Head of Propaganda for al-Qaeda. He is currently held by the United States at the Guantanamo Bay detention camp under terrorism-related charges. He was named as "the principal architect of the 9/11 attacks" in the 2004 9/11 Commission Report.

Said Bahaji, was a citizen of Germany, electrical engineer, and an alleged member of the Hamburg cell that provided money and material support to the perpetrators of the September 11 attacks.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Saif al-Adel</span> Current de-facto Emir of Al-Qaeda (born 1960)

Mohamed Salah al-Din al-Halim Zaidan commonly known by his nom de guerreSaif al-Adel is an Egyptian former special forces officer and explosives expert who is widely understood to be the de facto leader of al-Qaeda. Once a colonel in Egypt's El-Sa'ka Force commandos expelled for his suspected Salafi jihadist allegiances, al-Adel fought the Soviets as an Afghan Arab before becoming a founding member of the al-Qaeda organization. He is currently known to live in Iran along with several other senior members of the group.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Walid bin Attash</span> Yemeni Guantanamo Bay detainee (born 1978)

Walid Muhammad Salih bin Mubarak bin Attash is a Yemeni prisoner held at the United States' Guantanamo Bay detention camp under terrorism-related charges and is suspected of playing a key role in the early stages of the 9/11 attacks. The Office of the Director of National Intelligence has described him as a "scion of a terrorist family". American prosecutors at the Guantanamo military commissions allege that he helped in the preparation of the 1998 East Africa Embassy bombings and the USS Cole bombing and acted as a bodyguard to Osama bin Laden, gaining himself the reputation of an "errand boy". He is formally charged with selecting and helping to train several of the hijackers of the September 11 attacks.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bin Ladin Determined To Strike in US</span> August 6, 2001 intelligence memo

Bin Ladin Determined To Strike in US was the title of the President's Daily Brief prepared by the Central Intelligence Agency and given to U.S. President George W. Bush on Monday, August 6, 2001. The brief warned, 36 days before the September 11 attacks, of terrorism threats from Osama bin Laden and al-Qaeda, including "patterns of suspicious activity in this country consistent with preparations for a hijacking" of U.S. aircraft.

bin Laden family Saudi business family

The bin Laden family, also spelled bin Ladin, is a wealthy family intimately connected with the innermost circles of the Saudi royal family. It is the namesake and controlling shareholder of Saudi Binladin Group, a multinational construction firm. Following the September 11 attacks, the family became the subject of media attention and scrutiny through the activities of Osama bin Laden, the former head of al-Qaeda.

On September 11, 2001, 19 al-Qaeda terrorists took control of four commercial aircraft and used them as suicide weapons in a series of four coordinated acts of terrorism to strike the World Trade Center in New York City, The Pentagon in Arlington County, Virginia, and an additional target in Washington, D.C. Two aircraft hit the World Trade Center while the third hit the Pentagon. A fourth plane did not arrive at its target, but crashed into a field in Pennsylvania after a passenger revolt. The intended target is believed to have been the United States Capitol. As a result, 2,977 victims were killed, making it the deadliest foreign attack on U.S. soil, exceeding Japan's surprise attack on Pearl Harbor in Honolulu, Hawaii, on December 7, 1941, which killed 2,335 members of the United States Armed Forces and 68 civilians. The effort was carefully planned by al-Qaeda, which sent 19 terrorists to take over Boeing 757 and Boeing 767 aircraft, operated by American Airlines and United Airlines.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">September 11 attacks</span> 2001 Islamist terror attacks in the United States

The September 11 attacks, commonly known as 9/11, were four coordinated Islamist suicide terrorist attacks carried out by al-Qaeda against the United States in 2001. That morning, 19 terrorists hijacked four commercial airliners scheduled to travel from the New England and Mid-Atlantic regions of the East Coast to California. The hijackers crashed the first two planes into the Twin Towers of the World Trade Center in New York City, two of the world's five tallest buildings at the time, and aimed the next two flights toward targets in or near Washington, D.C., in an attack on the nation's capital. The third team succeeded in striking the Pentagon, the headquarters of the U.S. Department of Defense in Arlington County, Virginia, while the fourth plane went down in rural Pennsylvania during a passenger revolt. The September 11 attacks killed 2,977 people, the deadliest terrorist attack in human history, and instigated the multi-decade global war on terror, fought in Afghanistan, Iraq, and elsewhere.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Hamza bin Laden</span> Al-Qaeda member, son of Osama bin Laden (1989–2019)

Hamza bin Osama bin Mohammed bin Awad bin Laden, better known as Hamza bin Laden, was a Saudi Arabian-born member of Al-Qaeda. He was a son of Al-Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden, and, following his father's death in 2011, he was described as an emerging leader of the Al-Qaeda organization.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Political views of Osama bin Laden</span>

Osama bin Laden took ideological guidance from prominent militant Islamist scholars and ideologues from the classical to contemporary eras, such as Ibn Taymiyya, Ibn al-Qayyim al-Jawziyyah, Sayyid Qutb, Nizamuddin Shamzai and Abdullah Azzam. During his middle and high school years, bin Laden was educated in Al-Thager Model School, a public school in Jeddah run by Islamist exiles of the Muslim Brotherhood; during which he was immensely influenced by pan-Islamist ideals and displayed strict religious commitment. As a teenager, bin Laden attended and led Muslim Brotherhood-run "Awakening" camps held on desert outskirts that intended to raise the youth in religious values, instil martial spirit and sought spiritual seclusion from "the corruptions" of modernity and rapidly urbanising society of the 1970s in Saudi Arabia.

Mahfouz Ould al-Walid, kunya Abu Hafs al-Mauritani, is a Mauritanian Islamic scholar and poet previously associated with al-Qaeda. A veteran of the Soviet–Afghan War, he served on al-Qaeda's Shura Council and ran a religious school called the Institute of Islamic Studies in Kandahar, Afghanistan, from the late 1990s until the American invasion of Afghanistan in 2001.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Al-Qaeda activities in Europe</span>

The international activities of Al-Qaeda includes involvements in Europe, where members of the group have been involved in militant and terrorist activities in several countries. Al-Qaeda has been responsible for or involved in attacks in Western Europe and Russia, including the 2004 Madrid train bombings, 2010 Moscow Metro bombings, 2011 Domodedovo International Airport bombing, and the January 2015 Île-de-France attacks.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Motives for the September 11 attacks</span> Motivations for terror attacks

The September 11 attacks were carried out by 19 hijackers of the Islamist militant organization al-Qaeda. In the 1990s, al-Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden declared a holy war against the United States, and issued two fatāwā in 1996 and 1998. In the 1996 fatwā, he quoted the Sword Verse. In both of these fatāwā, bin Laden sharply criticized the financial contributions of the American government to the Saudi royal family as well as American military intervention in the Arab world.

At around 9:30 pm on September 11, 2001, George Tenet, director of the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) told President George W. Bush and U.S. senior officials that the CIA's Counterterrorism Center had determined that Osama bin Laden and al-Qaeda were responsible for the September 11 attacks. Two weeks after the terrorist attacks on September 11, 2001, the Federal Bureau of Investigation connected the hijackers to al-Qaeda, a militant Salafist Islamist multi-national organization. In a number of video, audio, interview and printed statements, senior members of al-Qaeda have also asserted responsibility for organizing the September 11 attacks.

In the aftermath of the September 11 attacks on New York City and Washington, D.C., by the al-Qaeda terrorist group, a number of investigations were conducted to determine what intelligence may have existed before the attacks and whether this information was ignored by authorities.

The following is an outline of the series of events that led up the War in Afghanistan (2001–2021).

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