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."
___
On the Net:
National Commission on Terrorist Attacks Upon the United States:
http://www.9-11commission.gov
