Home > Panel Reveals U.S. Missteps Ahead of 9/11
By HOPE YEN, Associated Press Writer
WASHINGTON - At a two-day hearing this week, the federal
commission investigating the Sept. 11 attacks revealed U.S.
authorities had numerous opportunities to stop the hijackers,
including many face-to-face encounters.
The missteps included miscommunications about al-Qaida operatives
dating back to the mid-1990s, hijackers who were allowed to
repeatedly enter the United States even with false or the wrong
visa papers, and missed chances to stop suspects at airport
security checkpoints despite warning signs.
"We were asleep. Opportunities were lost," said former New Jersey
Gov. Thomas Kean, a Republican who chairs the bipartisan National
Commission on Terrorist Attacks Upon the United States. "The
hijackers analyzed our system and developed a plan they felt sure
would beat it in every case, and 19 out of 19 succeeded."
Congress established the commission to study the nation’s
preparedness before Sept. 11, 2001, its response to the attacks,
and to recommend ways to prevent such disasters.
The errors documented by the commission date back to just after
the 1993 World Trade Center bombings and continued until the
fateful day in 2001. The panel found airline security stopped nine
of the 19 hijackers on the day of the attacks but let them go.
All five of the hijackers on American Airlines Flight 77 at Dulles
International Airport outside Washington were flagged as security
risks. All that was required then was that their checked bags be
searched for explosives. None was found, so they were allowed to
board.
Three of them also had carry-ons that set off alarms on X-ray
belts. However, despite one or two additional checks, they
successfully got on the plane with pocket knives and box cutters.
That plane crashed into the Pentagon (news - web sites).
Three of the five hijackers on American Airlines Flight 11 from
Logan International Airport in Boston, as well as one hijacker on
United Airlines Flight 93 from Newark International Airport in New
Jersey, also were stopped as potential security risks. But they
were allowed to board after their baggage tested negative for
explosives.
The panel also found FBI (news - web sites) and CIA (news - web
sites) officials did not share knowledge about al-Qaida or played
down that information with customs, immigration and FAA (news -
web sites) officials.
Consequently, some of the hijackers escaped capture despite
questioning by customs officials after they submitted improper
visa forms or acted suspiciously. The commission said if military
intelligence were shared about al-Qaida and their tendency to
travel on Saudi passports, authorities would have known to stop
them.
But at least two and as many as eight of the hijackers were
allowed to enter on fraudulent visas. Six of the hijackers eluded
detection even though they overstayed their visas or failed to
attend the English language school for which their visas were
issued.
"The evidence is pretty damning," said Michael Greenberger,
director of the Center for Health and Homeland Security at the
University of Maryland. "There were many signals to the White
House that we were in a state of high danger in the summer of
2001, yet no leadership was exercised to shake the agencies down."
Two known al-Qaida operatives were on a special terrorist watch
list known as Tipoff, but airline officials were unaware because
it was separate from the FAA’s list of people barred from flying.
A former FAA official acknowledged at Monday’s hearing he had not
known until this week that Tipoff existed.
"The question is, can you take an institution like the FBI and
change its culture so it is focused on prevention of acts of
terrorism rather than prosecution of criminal acts," said former
Rep. Lee Hamilton, D-Ind., the panel’s vice chairman. "That’s a
major question in homeland security."
The panel faces a May 27 deadline. It wants two more months to
complete its work but faces resistance from House GOP leaders and
the Bush administration. They fear the process could become too
politicized if it’s released in the days near the November
elections.
Kean has said many midlevel officials clearly could have prevented
the attacks, but has reserved judgment on top officials in the
Bush and Clinton administrations. The panel is seeking interviews
with Bush and Clinton and plans to meet soon with national
security adviser Condoleezza Rice (news - web sites).
"We’ll pursue every lead and follow the trail wherever it goes,"
he said. "When our report comes out, we’re not going to mince
words."