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Binny and Ayman single out Tappahannock, VA as a target
New intelligence information indicates that al-Qaida leader Osama bin Laden and his top deputy personally approved the suspected terrorist attack plan that led the government to raise the nationâs terror threat assessment this week, U.S. officials told NBC News on Tuesday. The officials said U.S. intelligence agencies had gathered detailed information about the plan, in which they said al-Qaida operatives would hijack foreign airliners and fly them into targets in the United States. In some instances, the intelligence is so detailed as to include specific flight numbers, they said. The Defense Department said Tuesday that it was broadening air patrols throughout the country. Security forces have put several U.S. airports under intense scrutiny, the U.S. officials told NBCâs Jim Miklaszewski, specifically naming Newark International Airport in New Jersey.Jersey was where Sheikh Omar Abdel Rahman ran his operations out of. Any of his flunkies still around? The U.S. officials said the new intelligence indicated that bin Laden himself had approved the most recent plan for major attacks, along with Ayman al-Zawahiri, his deputy. U.S. officials and terrorism experts said that while some of the potential targets might seem unusual, there was a method to al-Qaidaâs plot. For example, the officials said, al-Qaida seems particularly interested in Tappahannock, Va., a tiny town of 2,016 people with no military base or major infrastructure. Such an attack would be intended to generate widespread fear that no one was safe, even in small rural towns, they said. âJust remember that al-Qaida is not just looking to kill as many Americans as possible. Theyâre looking to seriously hurt our nationâs economy,â terrorism specialist Roger Cressey, former chief of staff of the Presidentâs Critical Infrastructure Protection Board, said in an interview. That fits with the story regarding Binnyâs bloodlust from the Turkish al-Qaeda a couple of days ago ... In addition to big cities like New York and Los Angeles, al-Qaida has targeted Las Vegas, the officials said, because of its economic value as the nationâs No. 2 vacation destination and as home to large conventions and trade shows beginning next month. Other possible targets include important infrastructure facilities, such as nuclear power plants and dams. The officials mentioned oil transport facilities at Valdez, Alaska, as a particularly likely target. Posted by: Dan Darling 2003-12-24 |
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