| Reminder : Preparing for Terror? 1997 Al Qaeda Tape Shows World Trade Center and Other Landmarks |
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March 3, 2003 - ABCNEWS has obtained video footage that Spanish and American authorities say was used as a "target tape" in preparation for the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks on the World Trade Center. The 29-minute tape, shot in the summer of 1997, shows the exterior of both towers, along with the lobby and observation deck of the South Tower, which were open to tourists. It also shows other New York landmarks, including the Empire State Building, the Brooklyn Bridge and Times Square. It was shot by Ghasoub al-Abrash Ghalyoun, a Syrian national who was arrested when Spanish authorities broke up a suspected al Qaeda logistics cell in 2002. The cell had direct ties to top deputies of Osama bin Laden, and helped finance hijack leader Mohamed Atta in Hamburg, Germany, according to Spanish and American authorities. They believe the tapes may have been delivered to al Qaeda's leadership in Afghanistan several months after Ghalyoun's trip. "If you wanted to use one word, I would say they were target tapes," said Gustavo de Aristegui, a member of the Spanish parliament and former chief of staff of the National Police. On the tape, Ghalyoun and another man are heard discussing the footage in Arabic. "We are at the twin towers of Manhattan. This is the inside of one of the twins, the entrance," one of them is heard saying. |
| This is a good reminder for those who want to dismiss the current threat because the information is years old. |
Bump!
This is an excellent example of why the age of intelligence is irrelevant. Thanks.