I just heard the first blast was at 8:51am. A book I am currently reading lists this as the same time the first WTC building was hit. I am having trouble confirming that on the internet, but it definately stoood out in what I heard.
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pg 28, America the Vulnerable (dirty bomb scenario):
"The box will not be picked up until the following day, which is perfect for Hassan's plan to set off the explosive device precisely at 8:51 A.M., the time when the first plane collided into the north tower of the World Trade Center on September 11."
1. Likely an AQ directed operation with classic timed, coordinated, multiple attacks.
2. It is not certain yet if these were coordinated via Al-Zarqawi in Iraq. Z has promised to spread his terror influence to allies in Europe. In a recent communication to OBL, Z allegedly refers to the initiation of some kind of operation and wants OBL's approval to proceed. If Z has coordinated these attacks, then his influence as the defacto operational leader of AQ has been secured and OBL has become more of a figure head.
3. This is the second attack upon a metro-rail system. This indicated a change in prefered targets. Apparently the choice of this target was bolstered by the success of the attacks in Spain last year. It produces high casualities and terror while the target enviromnent provides concealment to the bombers. This shift in tactics away from car bombs to trains suggests that this may be the method used in a future attack here in the US and Europe.
8:49 was the time given on one of the news reports today for the Madrid bombing back on March 11, 2004. So the pattern of timing, it seems, is continuing. Wondering if that coincides with the WTC bombing timing back in 1993?