History of Terrorism : Timeline of Terrorist Acts

Compiled by crimsonbird.com at year end 2001.

11/1/55 - The first civilian plane destroyed by a bomber. Jack Gilbert Graham, age 23, put a bomb into his mother's suitcase so he could collect her insurance money. She boarded a United Airlines flight from Denver to Portland. Explosion killed 44 people. Graham admitted guilt, convicted of murder, executed.

1964 - Founding of the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) to support establishment of a Palestinian state. Some PLO members adhered to legal and political methods, and some committed acts of violence.

1967 - Israeli military conquered the West Bank, Gaza Strip, Sanai, and the Golan Heights.

1967 - United Nations Resolution 242 called upon Israel to withdraw unconditionally from occupied Palestinian territories.

1967 - Mohammed bin Oud bin Laden, Yemeni immigrant to Saudi Arabia who eventually became wealthy as the owner of the largest construction firm in Saudi Arabia, was killed in a helicopter accident in Texas. His son Osama bin Laden, the 17th of 52 children, inherited millions of dollars.

1968 - Some members of the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine (PFLP) who wished to abandon political organization and focus on committing terrorist acts broke away from the group to form the new Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine - General Command (PFLP-GC)

1972 - US and USSR signed the anti-ballistic missile (ABM) treaty.

1972 - Terrorists attacked the Olympics in Munich, Germany, killed 2 athletes, and took hostages and a helicopter. Police snipers shot the terrorists but didn't kill them. One of the terrorists threw a hand granade into the helicopter and killed all the hostages. (In response, Israeli Prime Minister Golda Meir authorized 5 secret agents to infiltrate terrorist organizations for the purpose of killing its members without trial. 3 of the 5 agents were killed during their mission.)

9/74 - Ilich Ramirez-Sanchez, alias, Carlos the Jackal, a member of the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine (PFLP), threw a hand grenade into a drugstore in Paris, killing two people and injuring 34.

1974 - the Abu Nidal Organization (ANO) formed by former members of the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO).

12/75 - Carlos the Jackal and associates, armed with guns, burst into OPEC headquarters in Vienna, Austria, during meeting of OPEC oil ministers. Identified himself with, "I am Carlos. You know me." Took 62 hostages. Demanded pro-PFLP statement be read on TV in Austria. Demanded and received an airplane to escape. Flew to Algeria and released some of the hostages. Flew to Libya and released more hostages. Government of Saudia Arabia paid him $40 million in ransom, and the remaining hostages were released. Carlos escaped.

2/76 - Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine (PFLP) expelled Carlos the Jackal for disobeying orders and seeking personal fame. He continued terrorist activities on his own.

1979 - Saddam Hussein became the leader of Iraq.

11/4/79 - 80 Iranian students invaded the US embassy in Tehran, Iran and took 52 US citizens hostage. The abductors demanded that the US extradite the overthrown Shah of Iran, Reza Pahlavi, who was in the US for medical treatment, so that they could execute him. US refused demand. The hostages were held until 1/20/81.

12/26/79 - Soviet invasion of Afghanistan. This incited Osama bin Laden, then 23 years old, who was working in the family construction business, and had, earlier in 1979, graduated from King Abdel Aziz University in Jidda, Saudi Arabia with a degree in economics and civil engineering. Bin Laden and his associate Mohammed Atef, almost immediately travelled from Saudi Arabia to Afghanistan to assist organization of the Mujahedeen rebellion against the Soviet occupation.

4/8/80 - On order of President Carter, US ended displomatic relations with Iran due to failure of negotiations to persuade Iran to release the hostages taken 11/4/79

4/80 - 6 Islamic terrorists seized the Iranian embassy in London. They announced that they would kill a hostage every half hour, and killed two. The British anti-terrorist department SAS raided the embassy and killed 5 of the 6 terrorists. The remainder of the hostages were released unharmed.

1980 - US and 59 other countries boycotted the 1980 Olympics in Moscow to protest the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan

1980-1988 : the Iran-Iraq war.

1/20/81 - Ronald Reagan inaugurated as President of the United States. Four hours after the inauguration, militants holding 54 US citizens hostage in Iran since 11/4/79 released the hostages, after 444 days in captivity. Reagan's foreign policies included aid to the Mujihadeen resistance to the Soviet occupation of Afghanistan.

1981 - US ended diplomatic relations with Libya, and banned travel by US citizens to Libya.

1981 - Members of the Al-Jihad organization assassinated President Anwar Sadat of Egypt.

3/82 - Carlos the Jackal attacked public buildings and transportation facilities in France, in retaliation for the 2/82 arrest of his girlfriend in Paris when she was found with explosives in her car. (After she was released from prison in 1985, he and she went to live in Syria.)

4/18/83 - Hizballah suicide bomber with the support of Iran and Libya crashed a pickup truck full of explosives into the US embassy in Beirut, Lebanon. 63 people killed, of whom 17 were US citizens. Among the 17, 8 worked for the CIA. Imad Mugniyah is a top suspect.

10/23/83 Shiite suicide bombers from the Hizballah organization, with the support of the government of Iran, bombed barracks in Beirut, Lebanon where US Marines and French paratroopers were housed. 299 were killed, including 241 US Marines. Bin Laden's terrorism "teacher", Imad Mugniyah allegedly involved in the planning.

12/12/83 - Shiite suicide truck bomber working for the government of Iran crashed into the US embassy in Kuwait. Additional attacks on the French embassy, apartments of Raytheon Corporation employees, the control tower of the airport, and an oil refinery. Total of 5 people killed (6, including one of the the truck bombers) and 80 injured. (Kuwait later arrested and convicted 17 suspects. When Iraq conquered Kuwait 8/2/90, Iraq released the 17, who have never been recaptured.)

11/20/84 - Truck bomb exploded outside the Aukar, Lebanon annex of the US embassy in Beirut. 24 people killed, including 2 US military personnel. The US attributed the act to to the pro-Iran Hizballah organization. Imad Mugniyah is a suspect.

1984 - Bin Laden moved to Pakistan, co-founded Maktab al-Khidamat organization (MAK) to organize approximately 20,000 anti-Soviet Mujahideen rebels, and to channel overseas funds and weapons to them. The U.S. CIA donated funds to the MAK by channeling it through Pakistan's Inter-Services Intelligence agency (ISI). The U.S. paid about $3 billion to Afghan rebels opposing Soviet occupation.

12/3/84 - Kuwait Airways Flight 221 from Kuwait to Pakistan was hijacked and diverted to Tehran. Hijackers demanded the release of 17 suspects arrested by Kuwait for the 12/12/83 bombing of the US embassy in Kuwait. When the demand was refused, the hijackers killed 2 passengers who were US government employees. Iranian troops entered the plane, arrested the hijackers, released the passengers. Iran later released the hijackers instead of putting them on trial. (Imad Mughniyah alleged to have been involved in the planning of the hijacking.)

6/14/85 - TWA Flight 847 from Athens to Rome was hijacked and diverted to Beirut, Lebanon. Hijackers demanded the release of 500 Shiites imprisoned by Israel and the the 17 suspects imprisoned in Kuwait for the 12/12/83 bombing of the US embassy in Kuwait. Hijackers killed U.S. Navy Diver Robert Stethem and threw his body out onto the airport tarmac. Israel released some Shiite prisoners and some of the hostages were released. In 1987 the US government Hizballah leader Imad Mugniyah as a suspect in the planning, but he was never apprehended. Police in Frankfurt, Germany arrested suspect Mohammed Ali Hamadei, who was convicted in 1989 and sentenced to life in prison in Germany.

8/85 - US government began selling weapons to Iran, to persuade Iran to release hostages, and to (illegally) channel funds to the Contra militants fighting the Sandanista government in Nicaragua. Known in the press as the "Iran-Contra" or "arms-for hostages" scandal. Iran immediately released hostage Benjamin Weir after 495 days of captivity. (Iran released hostages Martin Jenco in 7/86 and David Jacobson in 11/86.)

9/5/95 - The Taliban militia conquered the city of Herat, Afghanistan.

10/7/85 - Hijackers working for the government of Libya raided the Italian cruise ship Achille Lauro near Egypt, took hostages, demanded the release of Palestinians imprisoned worldwide. Hijackers killed US citizen Leon Klinghoffer. Hijackers attempted to fly out of Egypt, US plane forced the plane down. Four suspects imprisoned in Italy. One of the convicts escaped from prison, and the government of Italy released one of them.

12/17/85 - Terrorists working for the government of Libya bombed the airports in Vienna and Rome, killing 20 people.

4/5/86 - Terrorists working for the government of Libya bombed a disco in West Berlin, killing a Turkish woman and a US soldier, and injuring hundreds.

4/15/86 - In retaliation for the disco bombing of 4/5/86, the US, under orders from President Reagan, bombed Benghazi and Tripoli in Libya (Operation El Dorado Canyon). US Bombing of the home of Moammar Qadaffi didn't harm the Libyan leader, but killed his infant daughter. (After the bombing, Libyan militants associated with Abu Nidal retaliated by killing three US citizens employed by the University of Beirut.)

1/2/87 - Hostage negotiator Terry Waite, in Beirut, Lebanon to negotiate with Iranian Hizballah terrorists who were holding hostages, was made a hostage himself. (The United Nations sent another negotiator to meet with the Hizballah. Waite was released 11/91; later the others were released.)

1987 - Founding of the Palestinian anti-Israel terrorist organization Hamas, an acronym for the Islamic Resistance Movement. (Organized mainly in Israel, the occupied territories, and Jordan, tactics have included bombings and suicide bombings. More recently, Hamas has begun using political organization, including running candidates in local elections.)

1988 - Bin Laden reorganized former Mujahedeen members and others into a new organization called al Qaeda -- the Base.

12/23/88 - A bomb onboard 757 airliner Pan Am Flight 103 exploded over Lockerbie, Scotland, killing 270 (259 aboard and 11 town residents). US State Department said that intelligence linked the crime to both the government of Libya and the Palestinian Front for the Liberation of Palestine - General Command (PFLP-GC). Investigators recovered a part of the bomb's timing circuitry, which bore identification marks. The marks indicating that the components were among a lot that Mebo, a private electronics company in Libya, had sold to the Libyan government. 5/3/00 A Scottish court convening in the Netherlands put two Libyan government employees on trial. 1/31/01 the court convicted Abdel Basset Ali Mohmed al Megrahi of planting the bomb, and sentenced him to life in prison. The court acquitted Al Amin Kalifa Fahima.

2/15/89 - The final withdrawal of Soviet troops left Afghanistan. Approximately 15,000 Soviet troops had been killed since the invasion 12/16/89. (After the Soviets left, the Soviet installed leader of Afghanistan, Mohammed Najibullah remained in power until 4/92, a few months after the Soviet Union was abolished 1/92 and ceased to provide him with aid.) (After the Soviet withdrawal, Osama bin Laden went to Sudan to organize rebels there.)

6/30/89 - Military coup in Sudan left the National Islamic Front (NIF) in control of the country.

8/2/90 - Iraq invaded Kuwait, a member state of the United Nations, and annexed it as "the Iraqi province of Kuwait."

1990-1991 - The Persian Gulf War: United Nations coalition forced Iraq to withdraw from occupied Kuwait. 2/24/91 U.S. began bombing Iraq. US introduced new tactic of "softening up" the enemy with a lengthy series of air strikes before ground troops enter. US introduced new policy of trying to avoid damage to most civilian regions while bombing government, military and industrial facilities.

1991 - Saudia Arabia rejected Osama bin Laden's offer of his help in fighting Iraq, and then permitted US troops to use its military bases. Bin Laden was said to have felt insulted and became more determined to declare both the US and Saudi Arabia to be enemies. (After the war ended, US retained troops permanently in Saudi Arabia. Al Qaeda and other critics of the US denounced US military presence in the country in which Mecca and Medina, the two most sacred cities in Islam, are located.)

1992 - Ethnic civil war in city of Kabul, Afghanistan resulted in 50,000 people killed. The Soviet-installed leader Mohammed Najibullah fled. Kajik troops of Mujihadeen Prime Minister Burhanuddin Rabbini and Mujihadeen military commander Ahmed Shah Masood battled with Pashtun troops of warlord Gilbuddin Hekmatyar. (Rabbani and Hekmatyar finally joined forces 6/96 because both were under seige by the Taliban, Hekmatyar endorsing Rabbini as Prime Minister, nevertheless, the Taliban took control of the country 9/96.)

1992 - Osama bin Laden made a proposal to his rivals in the pro-Iran Shiite terrorist organization Hizballah that they set aside their differences, so that they can cooperate in a common objective of killing United States troops stationed in Asia and Africa.

1992 - Bin Laden established legal businesses in Sudan, farms, a tannery, and a construction firm, to increase his available funds, and as fronts for al Qaeda camps he was organizing there.

1992 - Imad Mugniyah allegedly bombed a Christian center in Argentina.

1992 - Hizballah agents bombed the Israeli embassy in Argentina.

1/92 - The Soviet Union dissolved; end of its support for Mohammed Najibullah, the Soviet-installed leader of Afghanistan, however, he remained in power until 9/27/96 when the Taliban overthrew his administration.

12/29/92 - A bomb exploded in a hotel in Aden, Yemen. The hotel had recently been used by US troops preparing to go to Somalia, but all the US troops had already departed. Two Austrian tourists were killed.

2/26/93 Car bomb exploded at 5:12 PM on the second level of parking basement in the World Trade Center, killed 7 and injured hundreds. The bombers also left behind a device designed to release cyanide gas to kill emergency response crews and area residents, but the fire destroyed the cyanide. Bin Laden denied involvement. Ramzi Ahmed Yousef, who had been trained in Afghanistan, was named as an FBI suspect and added to the Ten Most Wanted list, with a $2 million reward. In 1995, Yousef was recognized in Pakistan, arrested, and extradited to the US. Yousef was convicted of planning the 2/26/93 attack and sentenced to life in prison.

8/93 Unsuccessful attampt by the Al-Jihad organization to assassinate Interior Minister Hassan al Alfi of Egypt.

10/93 - 18 U.S. troops involved in the U.S. "humanitarian mission" were killed in Mogadishu, Somalia, when two US helicopters were shot down. The victims were among of 28,000 US troops in Somalia. US news media covered a mob celebrating the killings by dragging the bodies through the streets. (In 1996, the US indicted Osama bin Laden for allegedly training the killers. In 1997, bin Laden admitted involvement in interview with CNN. In 2000, court testimony of al Qaeda defector Jamal Ahmed al-Fadl implicated both Osama bin Laden and Mohammed Atef in planning the killings.)

11/93 - Unsuccessful attampt by the Al-Jihad organization to assassinate Prime Minister Atef Sedky of Egypt.

1994 - Saudi Arabia revoked bin Laden's citizenship.

1994 - Bin Laden's family and relatives publicly "disowned" him due to his crimes.

1994 - Hizballah agents bombed an Israeli cultural center Buenos Aires, Argentina.

8/14/94 Ilich Ramirez-Sanchez, alias, Carlos the Jackal arrested by French Secret Service [DST]. Sentenced to life in prison.

10/12/94 - The Taliban militia conquered the city of Kandahar, Afghanistan.

1995 - The Islamic Jihad organization bombed the Egyptian embassy in Pakistan

1995 - Foiled plot to bomb 12 U.S. airliners. FBI named Khalid Shaikh Mohammed as suspect.

3/20/95 Japanese terrorists of the Aum (or Aum Shinrikyo) cult, which believes that the end of the world is imminent, released Sarin nerve gas into Tokyo subway trains. 12 killed and approximately 5,000 to 6,000 injured. 10/95 Japanese government revoked Aum's classification as a religious organization, but decided not to invoke a law that would have outlawed the organization. Suspect Shoko Asahara, who founded the cult in 1987, imprisoned by the Japanese government.

4/19/95 Timothy McVeigh, of the US anti-government militia American Christian Patriots, caused truck bombing of the Alfred P. Murrah Federal Building in Oklahoma City, killing 168 and injuring hundreds. Many US news commentators accused Islamic militants, who were not involved.

6/95 - Unsuccessful attempt by the Islamic Group organization to assassinate President Hosni Mubarak of Egypt while he was in Ethiopia.

11/13/95 - Truck bombing of US National Guard training center in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. 7 people killed, including 5 US military personnel. (Later, four suspects were convicted by Saudi court and executed by decapitation.)

6/25/96 - Truck bombing of Khobar Towers in Dhahran, Saudi Arabia, a residence of US military personnel. 19 US military personnel were killed. FBI suspects Ahmed Ibrahim al-Mughassil, Ibrahim al-Yacoub and Abdel Karim al-Nasser were indicted.

8/23/96 - Date on bin Laden's written "declaration" of attack against the US. The document was written and published about two months after the bombing in Dhahran, Saudi Arabia. Demands included the removal of US troops from Saudi Arabia, and the overthrow of the government of Saudi Arabia.

9/11/96 - The Taliban militia conquered the city of Jalalabad, Afghanistan

9/26/96 Mujihadeen military commander Ahmed Shah Masood fled from the Afghan city of Kabul, due to the imminant invasion by the Taliban.

9/27/96 - The Taliban militia conquered the capital city of Kabul, Afghanistan. The Taliban acquired power in Afghanistan by overthrowing the government of Mohammed Najibullah, the political leader who had acquired power after the departure of the Soviet invaders, was executed by hanging on a public street.

1996 - Taliban closed Kabul University; male students permitted only high school education. Female students over the age of 12 banned from all schools, and ordered to stay at home most of the time to perform housework. Many other repressive laws enacted.

1996 - After the Taliban takeover of Afghanistan, the Jamiat-ul-Ulema-e-Islam political party in Pakistan assisted organization of terrorist training camps in Afghanistan.

1996 - Responding to a request from the US government, Sudan expelled bin Laden. He returned to Afghanistan, setting up a training facility near the city of Jalalabad, and further organizing al Qaeda as an international network.

5/23/97 - Taliban militia conquered the city of Mazar-i-Sharif, Afghanistan. Eleven diplomats from Iran were executed.

5/24/97 - Pakistan formally recognized the Taliban government.

1997 - CNN interviewed bin Laden. He said, in part, "We declared a jihad against the United States because it is unjust, criminal, and tyrannical." Without directly taking credit for the actions, he mentioned the 1995 killing of 7 US troops in Riyadh and the 1996 killing of 19 US troops in Dharan as examples of the jihad.

February 1998 - Bin Laden published declaration which included the objective: "To kill Americans and their allies, civilians and military, is an individual duty for every Muslim who can do it, in any country in which it is possible to do it."

8/7/98 - A car bomb exploded outside US embassy in Nairobi, Kenya. A few hours later, explosion at US embassy in Dar es Salaam, capital of tanzania. In both attacks, 224 people were killed and almost 5,000 were injured. (Later, a suspect was arrested and he said he was a member of al Qaeda. The US Justice Department indicted 17 member of al Qaeda, including bin Laden, for the two embassy bombings. 4 of the 17 were later arrested and convicted; 13 remained at large.)

8/20/98 - 13 days after the bombings of the U.S. embassies in Kenya and Tanzania, U.S. bombarded several locations in Khost, Afghanistan, and one location in Sudan, with Tomahawk missiles. The attacks were announced on the same day by President Clinton during televised press briefing. The President identified Osama bin Laden and his terrorist training camp as a target in Khost. Bin Laden survived by leaving the destroyed camp in Afghanistan shortly before the attack. One of the missiles launched into Sudan destroyed the country's major pharmaceutical factory warehouse, which the US government asserted to be in use as a terrorist weapons warehouse.

9/11/98 The United Nations announced that it had confirmed an accusation by Amnesty International that the Taliban government of Afghanistan had massacred thousands of people near Mazar-i-Sharif in 8/98. The killings were committed because the victims were of the Hazara ethnic group and of the Shiite denomination of Islam. The UN determined that the number of victims, between 4,000 and 6,000 people, was about three times more than AI had alleged.

11/98 - US Justice Dept indicted Osama bin Laden for the 8/7/98 bombing of the US embassies in Kenya and Tanzania.

12/98 - The Aden Abyan Islamic Army (AAIA) in Yemen took 17 hostages. In a raid by the Yemen police, 4 of the hostages were freed and 13 of the hostages were killed. AAIA leader Zein al-Abideen al-Mehdar was arrested and executed.

1998 - Reporter John Miller of ABC News interviewed bin Laden, who said, in part, "Our battle against the Americans is far greater than our battle was against the Russians. We anticipate a black future for America. Instead of remaining United States, it shall end up separated states and shall have to carry the bodies of its sons back to America."

1/12/99 - In Peshawar, Pakistan, intruders entered the house of Afghan political moderate Abdul Haq, who was not at home. The intruders killed his wife and 11-year-old son.

3/27/99 - In Peshawar, Pakistan, Mohammed Jehanzeb, the secretary of anti-Taliban organizer Haji Qadir, the brother of Adbul Haq, was assassinated.

4/23/99 The Human Rights Commission of the United Nations issued condemnation of persistent human rights abuses by the Taliban government of Afghanistan.

9/99 - On two separate days, Chechen terrorists bombed apartment buildings in Moscow, Russia. 212 were killed.

1/16/99 US Justice Department indicted bin Laden and 11 other members of al Qaeda for killing and conspiring to kill US citizens internatiionally. FBI placed bin Laden in its Most Wanted list, with a reward of $5 million for information leading to his arrest and conviction. (In 2001, the reward was increased to $25 million.)

10/15/99 United Nations Security Council unanimously adopted a resolution imposing sanctions on the Taliban government of Afghanistan. The UNSC said that the Taliban must turn over Osama bin Laden "without further delay to appropriate authorities in a country where he has been indicted, or to appropriate authorities in a country where he will be returned to such a country, or to appropriate authorities in a country where he will be arrested and effectively brought to justice."

2/00 -- An al Qaeda defector, Jamal Ahmed al-Fadl testified in the trial of four men accused in the bombings of the US embassies in Kenya and Tanzania. He revealed many details about the al Qaeda network. The four defendants were convicted. ("Jamal al Fadl, an al Qaeda defector who testified in the trial of four men convicted in the 1998 embassy bombings, illuminated an organization structured with bin Laden and his consultative council at the top, surrounded by committees to handle business enterprises, military training, religious policy and even publicity." -- Washington Post, 9/15/01) Al-Fadl testified that he was born and raised in Sudan, moved to the US, then moved back to Sudan in 1991 to work for an al Qaeda office in Khartoum. He decided to defect after he realized he was in trouble for having embezzled $100,000 from bin Laden's fund. He also testified that bin Laden had tried to buy uranium from black market sources for $1.5 million, presumably in an attempt to develop nuclear weapons.

7/2/2000 - United States National Park Service released a commissioned report concluding that national monuments which attract tourists, such as the Lincoln Memorial and the Washington Monument, are likely targets terrorist attacks.

9/28/00 - Start of the New Intifiada, a Palestinian rebellion against Israeli occupation

10/12/00 - Suicide bombing of the U.S.S. Cole. The ship was refueling at the port city of Aden in Yemen when attacked. A boat filled with explosives got near the Cole and exploded, producing a large hole in the ship. 17 US sailors were killed and 37 were injured. Bin Laden released a videotape, claiming responsibility for attack.

5/26/01 A panel established by the United Nations Security Council accused the Taliban government of Afghanistan of selling opium and heroin to finance the training of terrorists and its war against the Northern Alliance.

5/29/01 - Four followers of bin Laden convicted in the 8/7/98 bombing of US embassies in Tanzania and Kenya. The four men convicted were Rashed Daoud Al-'Owhali of Saudi Arabia, Khalfan Khamis Mohamed of Tanzania, Mohamed Sadeek Odeh of Jordan, and Wadih El-Hage Arlington, Texas. Four men sentenced on 7/10/01 to life in prison.

5/30/01 - Taliban ambassidor to Pakistan told the press that the US has no proof thet bin Laden was involved with the 8/7/98 bombings of US embassies in Tanzania and Kenya.

6/01 - Bombing of a disco in Tel Aviv, Israel killed 21 people, mostly teenagers. Israeli government charged that Ayman Halaweh, a leader of the Hamas organization, was the bomb maker. Afterward, Halawah was killed when his car exploded in Nablus.

8/3/01 - Taliban government of Afghanistan arrested 24 international humanitarian aid workers in Kabul. Incarcerated were 16 citizens of Afghanistans, 4 from Germany, 2 from the US and 2 from Australia. Several were members of Shelter Now International (SNI). Several were accused of trying to propagate Christianity, punishable by long prison terms or execution. (The 24 were freed 11/15/01 by anti-Taliban rebels, and the 8 who were not Afghan citizens were transported out of the country by US helicopters.)

9/11/01 - Hijacked American Airlines flight 11 from Boston to Los Angeles (92 aboard) turned south over Vermont and at 8:45 crashed into 1 World Trade Center (north tower, 110 stories) in New York City. Five alarm fire reported (call for 200 firefighters). Hijacked United Airlines flight 175 from Boston to Los Angeles (65 aboard) turned south over Vermont and at 9:03 AM crashed into 2 World Trade Center (south tower, 110 stories). 9:21 AM, NYC mayor Giuliani ordered lower Manhattan south of 14th Street evacuated, all bridges and tunnels into Manhattan closed, all public and private schools closed, mayoral primary elections cancelled. 9:31 AM, President Bush called the hijackings and collisions "an apparent terrorist attack on our country." Hijacked United Airlines Flight 93 from Newark to San Francisco (45 aboard) made u-turn over northwestern Pennsylvania toward Washington, D.C. and at 9:43 AM crashed into land in southwestern Pennsylvania, 86 miles southeast of Pittsburg. Hijacked American Airlines Flight 77 from Washington to Los Angeles (64 aboard) made 180-degree turn over West Virginia and at 9:45 AM crashed into the Pentagon in Washington, DC. US military declared "threat con delta," highest state of alert. 9:48 AM, Capitol Building and the White House evacuated. 9:49 AM, FAA grounded all US flights. International flights bound for US were diverted to Canada, 17,000 people bound for US stranded in Canada. 9:50 AM, north tower of the WTC collapsed. All 200 of the firefighters who responded to the first alarm were killed. 10:13 AM, UN building evacuated. 10:20 AM, SEC closed US financial markets. 10:22 World Bank closed. 10:29 AM, south tower of the WTC collapsed. 12:04 PM, Los Angeles International Airport evacuated. 12:15 PM, INS declared alert at US borders. 12:15 PM, San Francisco International Airport evacuated. 1:20 PM President Bush transported from Barksdale Air Force Base in Louisiana to an undisclosed location. 1:27 PM, Washington, D.C. declared state of emergency. 2:51 PM US Navy dispatched battleships and aircraft carriers to New York and Washington, DC areas. 4:10 PM, building 7 World Trade Center (47 stories) found to be burning; 5:20 PM, building 7 collapsed. 5:30 PM, secondary collapse of the south tower (bottom 10 floors). Notes: Most of the approximately 50,000 people employed at the WTC were employees of 430 businesses from 26 countries.

9/12/01 - NYC Mayor Giuliani requested that the federal government ship 6,000 body bags to NYC. Collapse of 1 Liberty Plaza in NYC (54 story building, already evacuated) due to the 9/11 attack. FBI assigned 4000 special agents and 400 laboratory technicians to investigate the 9/11 attacks, making this the largest criminal investigation government in history. NATO announced that all member countries will cooperate with the US in anti-terrorist military actions, pursuant to Article 5 of NATO charter, which states thatt an attack on any member country is regarded as an attack on all.

9/13/01 FBI determined that some suspected 9/11 hijackers were trained at flight schools in Florida. Transportation Secretary Norman Mineta announced new FAA regulation prohibiting airline passengers from carrying sharp objects; only airport already in compliance with new procedures may reopen. 1,500 NYS National Guard troops sent to NYC. Congress passed $40 billion emergency funding bill. US military alert status downgraded from delta to charlie (second highest alert level).

9/17/01 - In the US, two murders and the vandalism of a mosque, apparently hate crimes directed at Arab Americans and Muslim Americans

9/18/01 US Congress passed S.J. Res. 23 / H.J. Res. 64 -- "Joint Resolution to authorize the use of United States Armed Forces against those responsible for the recent attacks launched against the United States."

9/20/01 - President Bush, during televized address to a joint session of Congress, issued demands to the Taliban. "These demands are not open to negotiation or discussion." He also said, "From this day forward, any nation that continues to harbor or support terrorism will be regarded by the United States as a hostile regime."

9/27/01 - US Deptartment of Justice released charts with the names and photos of the 19 alleged 9/11 hijackers. FAA announced that all airline passengers will be "patted down" and all carry-on bags will be "dump searched." Up to 5000 National Guard troops will be used to protect airports. Bush asked Congress for $500 million to improve security at 420 airports in the US.

10/2/01 - British Prime Minister Tony Blair announced: "I say to the Taliban, surrender the terrorists or surrender power."

10/5/01 - Acknowledging Pakistan's cooperation with the US in the coalition against the Taliban, the Senate voted to end economic sanctions against Pakistan which had been imposed due to Pakistan's testing of nuclear weapons.

10/6/01 - Bush commented on the Taliban government during radio address, "Full warning has been given, and time is running out."

10/7/01 - US and British forces began bombing Taliban and al Qaeda forces in Afghanistan, early morning Afghan time. Missing persons list for the World Trade Center site revised to list 4,979 missing, 393 confirmed dead, of whom 335 have been identified.

10/8/01 - President Bush announced to the nation: "On my orders, the United States military has begun strikes against Al Qaeda terrorist training camps and military installations of the Taliban regime in Afghanistan." Pennsylvania Governor Tom Ridge sworn in as the director of newly-created the Office of Homeland Security. In Pakistan, pro-Taliban demonstrations turned violent; President Musharraf called out the army.

10/9/01 - On third day of military attacks in Afghanistan, the first civilian casualties. Four Afghan volunteers working for a mine clearing group, with headquarters about 900 feet away from Taliban anti-aircraft artillery (AAA), were killed by US bombing.

10/10/01 - FBI released updated Most Wanted list, including 22 terrorism suspects.

10/16/01 - US anti-terrorism bill to expand police investigative powers was signed into law, despite opposition by libertarians to infringements on personal privacy.

10/18/01 - The four men convicted 5/29/01 of the 8/7/98 bombing of US embassies in Tanzania and Kenya were sentenced in US District Court in New York City to life in prison.

11/13/01 - Northern Alliance of Afghanistan repelled the Taliban from the capital city of Kabul.

11/14/01 - Al Qaeda military commander Mohammad Atef killed by a US laser-guided bomb.

11/17/01 - Afghan President Burhanuddin Rabbani, who was deposed by the Taliban 9/27/96, returned to Kabul to resume his presidency.

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