"Books on Terrorism"
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First
Strike - TWA 800 and the Attack on America
I appreciate
the acknowledgment that I was given by the authors at the end of their excellent
book which I recommend with some reservation. However, I do not endorse
the conclusion that is reached in the final chapter of the book for the following
reasons. The book provides an excellent description of the salient facts
surrounding the downing of TWA 800. It would have been a superior book had
the authors ended it with two chapters detailing with each of the principal
theories concerning the question of 'who' caused this crash. The terrorist
theory holds that at least two missiles were fired by terrorists from sea
and/or land locations while the friendly fire theory suggests that the plane
was downed by friendly missile fire from naval vessels. Unfortunately the
authors have attempted to include both theories in their final analysis and
have thereby destroyed the credibility of their fine work by ending it with
an unnecessary and wholly fictional dialog describing a scenario that is
not plausible and is not supported by the facts. For the record, the
work for which I was acknowledged suggests the U.S. government knew that
terrorist missile launches were occurring in the Long Island area prior to,
and after, the TWA 800 incident and it had tried unsuccessfully to prevent
the attack that took place on July 17, 1996. James Kallstrom admitted in
a telephone conversation with Reed Irvine of Accuracy in Media that there
were indeed U.S. Naval vessels (believed to be submarines) under Flight 800
on a classified "maneuver". This has led further speculation to the theory
of a friendly fire incident. My research indicates that this "classified
maneuver" was an anti-terrorist operation which unfortunately failed. The
evidence that I gathered and which was available to the authors indicates
that TWA 800 was brought down by the Osama bin Laden organization and that
the downing was one of a series of missile attacks in the NY metropolitan
area from November 1995 through the summer of 1997. At the time of the TWA
800 downing Osama bin Laden had a "formal" agreement with the government
of Iran to attack American and Israeli interests. A war with Iran in 1996
was not in the long term interest of the United States given that in the
Iranian elections a government more inclined to open a dialog with the United
States was moving into power under Present Khatami. Thus in my opinion the
United States government decided to declare that the center fuel tank of
TWA 800 exploded from an ignition source which was unknown and leave matters
at that.
Bin
Laden: Behind the Mask of the Terrorist
Osama bin Laden pretends to be a selfless freedom fighter seeking to rid the
Islamic world of Western dominanceóand the de facto leader of the Muslim
faithful. This biography tells the story of a different man, one whose troubled
childhood and adolescent excesses in sex, money, and alcohol, fractures his
assumed moral superiority, and renders him more human than icon. Based on
information provided by the bin Laden family, extensive independent research,
and an insiderís view developed during his current and longtime residence in the
Middle East, the author brings a thorough knowledge of the regionís politics and
society to the story, and underscores the contradictions that make up the real
Osama bin Laden. Starting on page 192 and continuing
through page 198 the author discusses TWA 800. The conclusions follow those
developed on this website. The author concludes "Osama has never publicly
commented about this (TWA 800). But Jihad Wing (Arabian Peninsula) of the
Islamic Change Movement has openly admitted that it is responsible for blasting
TWA flight 800 out of the sky, and this organization has been closely allied
to Al Qaeda for some
time.
Bin Laden - The Man Who Declared War On
America
"Bin
Laden - The Man Who Declared War On America" in
which Sheikh Omar Rahman declares from his prison cell: "Bring their Planes Down".
An excerpt from page 325 states: The Islamist
terrorists did not arrive lightly at considerations of using weapons of mass
destruction. International terrorism is in the midst of a quest for the super
spectacular terrorist strike. The case of TWA 800 served as a turning point
because of Washington's determination and to a great extent ability to suppress
terrorist explanations and float "mechanical failure" theories. To avoid
such suppression after future strikes, terrorism sponsoring states must raise
the ante so that the West cannot ignore them. The author,
Yossef Bodansky, was the Director of the House Task Force on Terrorism and
Unconventional Warfare and in this capacity was a key advisor to the highest
echelons of the U.S. Government. Bodansky writes that there were two key events
"on the eve" of the TWA 800 downing. First he describes an editorial in the
London Islamist paper 'al-Quds al-Arabi' that spelled out the reasons behind the
escalating terrorist attacks on the United States which concluded by mentioning
the bombings in Riyadh and Khobar as the beginning of these attacks. The editor
of al-Quds al-Arabi, Abdul-Bari Atwan, is personally close to Osama bin Laden.
The second key event was a fax received by al-Hayat in London through al-Safir
in Beirut in which on July 16 the Islamic Change Movement - the Jihad Wing in
the Arabian Peninsula took credit for both the Riyadh and Khobar Towers bombings
. A warning was then issued by the same group on July 17 stating that "the
mujahideen will give their harshest reply to the threats of the foolish U.S.
President. Everybody will be surprised by the magnitude of the reply. The
invaders must be prepared to leave, either dead or alive. Their time is at the
morning-dawn. Is not the morning-dawn near?". TWA 800 exploded in the early
morning in the United Kingdom. On July 18, this group issued a statement
accepting responsibility for the TWA 800 downing. The leaders the Islamic Change
Movement had participated in a June 1996 terrorist planning meeting held in
Tehran and on July 20, 1996 it attended a follow-up conference in Tehran in
which the Islamic Change Movement was singled out for "recent achievements". One
can guess what the "recent achievement" was.
Others
Unknown : The OKC Bombing Conspiracy
In Others Unknown, Stephen Jones, Timothy McVeigh's lawyer in his
trial for the 1995 bombing of the Murrah Office Building in Oklahoma City,
provides the fullest possible account of the worst act of terrorism in American
history. In a complete revision of his 1998 hardcover, Jones tells for the first
time the whole story of his investigation of the case, including what he was
told by McVeigh and what he learned about others involved in the conspiracy. His
account differs significantly from the tale McVeigh is telling as he faces
execution for his crimes. Jones reports in detail what McVeigh told him as the
case progressed; explains why McVeigh did not plead guilty; and shows McVeigh's
real role in the conspiracy and how he obstructed his own defense. This is the
definitive historical record of a heinous act of murderous rage; an account
indispensable to understanding what happened. And, says PublicAffairs CEO and
publisher Peter Osnos: "We think it's important that Tim McVeigh not be given
the final word."
The Third Terrorist - The
Middle East Connection to the OKC Bombing
Timothy McVeigh and Terry Nichols were not the lone conspirators in the Oklahoma
City bombing—the attack that killed nearly 170 people in a few short seconds.
They were part of a greater scheme, one which involved Islamic terrorists and at
least one provable link to Iraq. This book, written by the relentless reporter
who first broke the story of the Mideast connection, is filled with new
revelations about the case and explains in full detail the complete, and so far
untold, story behind the failed investigation—why the FBI closed the door, what
further evidence exists to prove the Iraqi connection, why it has been ignored,
and what makes it more relevant now than ever. Told with a gripping narrative
style and rock-solid investigative journalism and vetted by men such as former
CIA director James Woolsey, Davis’s piercing account is the first book to set
the record straight about what really happened April 19, 1995.
The
New Jackals: Yousef, bin Laden and the Future of Terrorism
The astonishing true story of the most dangerous men
in the world. On 26 February 1993 a massive bomb devastated New York's World
Trade Center, creating more hospital casualties than any event in American
history since the Civil War. Ramzi Yousef, the young British-educated terrorist
who masterminded the attack, had been seeking to topple the twin towers and
cause tens of thousands of fatalities. An intensive FBI investigation into
the crime quickly developed into a man-hunt that took top FBI agents across the
globe. But even with the FBI on his trail, Yousef continued with his campaign of
terror. He bombed an airplane and an Iranian shrine. He tried to kill Benazir
Bhutto, the former Pakistani Prime Minister, and planned to assassinate the
Pope, President Clinton and simultaneously destroy 11 airliners over the Pacific
Ocean using tiny undetectable bombs. He also plotted an attack on the CIA
headquarters with a plane loaded with chemical weapons. His pursuers dubbed
Yousef "an evil genius". During their huge investigation FBI agents
discovered that Yousef was funded and sent on some of his attacks by Osama bin
Laden, a mysterious Saudi millionaire. By the mid-1990s they realized bin Laden
had become the most influential sponsor of terrorism in the world, and agents
now conclude that since the early 1990s a small group of terrorists supported by
bin Laden have dominated international terrorism. These "Afghan Arabs" helped
defeat the Soviets in Afghanistan before killing thousands of people in
campaigns against governments in the West, Africa, the Middle East and Asia.
When bin Laden's followers attacked American embassies in Kenya and Tanzania on
7 August 1998, killing 224 people, the US finally launched cruise missile
strikes in an attempt to destroy his secret organization. Drawing on
unpublished reports, interrogation files, interviews with senior FBI agents who
hunted Yousef, intelligence sources and government figures including Benazir
Bhutto, Simon Reeve gives a harrowing account of Yousef's bombings, offers a
revealing insight into his background, and details the FBI's man-hunt to catch
him. Reeve explains how Yousef was one of bin Laden's first operatives and
documents bin Laden's life and emergence as the leader of a potent terrorist
organization, giving fascinating insights into the man President Clinton has
called "the pre-eminent organizer and financier of international terrorism in
the world today". Highly detailed and yet immensely readable, The New Jackals
sheds new light on two of the world's most notorious terrorists. Reeve warns
that Yousef and bin Laden are just the first of a new breed of terrorist, men
with no restrictions on mass killing. He also offers evidence that bin Laden's
organization may already have chemical and nuclear weapons and explains why the
world could soon face attacks by terrorists with weapons of mass destruction.
Into
the Buzzsaw : Leading Journalists Expose the Myth of a Free Press
In this uneven yet illuminating anthology, editor Borjesson succinctly explains
the journalist's predicament: "The buzzsaw is what can rip through you when you
try to investigate or expose anything this country's large institutions be they
corporate or government want kept under wraps." Indeed, if members of the
general public read this book, or even portions of it, they will be appalled. To
the uninitiated reader, the accounts of what goes on behind the scenes at major
news organizations are shocking. Executives regularly squelch legitimate stories
that will lower their ratings, upset their advertisers or miff their investors.
Unfortunately, this dirt is unlikely to reach unknowing news audiences, as this
volume's likely readership is already familiar with the current state of
journalism. Here, Murrow Award-winning reporter Borjesson edits essays by
journalists from the Associated Press to CBS News to the New York Times. Each
tells of their difficulties with news higher-ups as they tried to publish or air
controversial stories relating to everything from toxic dump sites and civilian
casualties to police brutality and dangerous hospitals. Some, like BBC reporter
Greg Palast's, are merely rants against "corporate" journalism, but others, like
New York Observer columnist Philip Weiss's, will serve as meaningful lessons to
nascent and veteran writers alike. Most of the sentiments here are especially
relevant given the current reports of the war in Afghanistan and questions of
their validity, making this timely and essential reading for students and
scholars of journalism. (Mar.)Forecast: With Bernard Goldberg's Bias riding high
on bestseller lists, Borjesson's offering on news media manipulation is bound to
attract serious attention and sales. Copyright 2002 Cahners Business
Information, Inc.
1000
Years For Revenge: International Terrorism and the FBI - The Untold Story
For most Americans
the true origin of the 9/11 attacks remains a mystery. But as the two jetliners
hit the Twin Towers, three strangers knew exactly what had happened. FBI
agent Nancy Floyd, FDNY fire marshal Ronnie Bucca, and Ramzi Yousef, the
bomb-making terrorist an American judge once called "an apostle of evil,"
had been on a collision course for years—soldiers on opposing sides
of a terror war raging since the late 1980s. Now, in 1000 Years for Revenge
-- a groundbreaking investigative work that reads like an international thriller
-- award-winning journalist Peter Lance reveals how the FBI missed dozens
of opportunities to stop the attacks of September 11, dating back to 1989.
Drawing on interviews with scores of central figures in the story, as well
as hundreds of pages of declassified documents, Lance uncovers startling
evidence of FBI negligence that even a joint congressional committee missed.
Among his revelations: From the early 1990s, Osama bin Laden was running
an active al Qaeda terror cell in New York City -- with blind sheikh Omar
Abdel Rahman as its leader and Ramzi Yousef as its master
bomb maker. The
FBI had sufficient intelligence to capture Yousef before he built the first
World Trade Center bomb in 1993. In 1995, they learned that he had already
set the 9/11 suicide-hijacking plot in motion from Manila -- that he was
planning "to return to the U.S. to attack the World Trade Center a second
time." Yet each time the FBI missed the opportunity to stop him. FBI agent
Nancy Floyd used a key informant to penetrate the cell of Sheikh Rahman --
only to have the operation sandbagged by her FBI supervisor. Most alarming,
in 1991, a confidant of Sheikh Rahman removed the plans for the World Trade
Center from FDNY headquarters -- a fact the FBI knew about, but which the
Bureau ignored. This is a story of heroes: Nancy Floyd, who tried to
bring down the New York terror cell but paid for her efforts with damage
to her career, and Ronnie Bucca, who tried to alert the FBI to the security
threat to New York City from al Qaeda but paid for the agency's negligence
with his life on 9/11. It is also a story of the power of evil: Lance offers
a chilling chronicle of how one man -- the elusive mastermind Yousef -- managed
to defeat the entire American security system in what Lance calls "the greatest
failure of intelligence since the Trojan Horse." An unparalleled work of
investigative reporting and masterful storytelling, 1000 Years for Revenge
will change forever the way we look at the FBI and the war on terrorism in
the twenty-first century.
Holy
War Inc. Inside the Secret World of Osama bin Laden
On
September 11, 2001, the world changed forever as
more than three thousand men, women, and children lost their lives in the
deadliest terrorist attack on American soil. The attack was masterminded by
Osama bin Laden and his Jihad group -- an organization that CNN's terrorism
analyst Peter Bergen calls Holy War, Inc. One of the few Western journalists to
have interviewed bin Laden face-to-face, Bergen has produced the definitive book
on the global Jihadist network, revealing: How bin Laden lives, travels,
and communicates with his "cells." How his role in the crushing defeat of the
Soviet Union in Afghanistan made him a hero to Muslims all over the world. How
the bombings of the American embassies in Africa and the USS Cole in
Yemen were planned and executed. What we can expect from Islamic extremists in
the future. Above all, Peter Bergen helps us to see bin Laden's organization in
a radically new light: as a corporation that has exploited modern technology and
weaponry in the service of global terrorism and the destruction of the West.
Altered
Evidence
What happens in America today when an
investigative journalist uncovers compelling evidence of criminal activity at
the highest levels of the Clinton administration? When the evidence includes
witness statements, government documents and forensic evidence telling a story
of political corruption, cover-up and abuse of power by those who rule the
United States, what happens when one investigative journalist reveals this
evidence that could lead to the imprisonment of the mighty? James Sanders' new
book, Altered Evidence, answers these questions. It is not a book about what
will theoretically happen when a lawless administration is imperiled. It is a
case study of what happened when Sanders ripped the national security cover off
the biggest government scandal since Watergate. Altered Evidence is an
inside look at the current institutional deviancy in the federal bureaucracy and
political structure. It is also the shameful story of major media's inability to
pursue a story that might topple an administration with which they are
politically enamored.
Nightfall
Nightfall is
fiction, but it's based on a true incident--the crash of TWA flight 800, which
occurred on the evening of July 17, 1996, off the coast of Long Island, killing
all 230 people on board. A series of circumstances and coincidences led me to
use this as a subject for this novel. The first coincidence is that a friend of
mine was supposed to pilot that flight but switched off with a friend of his,
Captain Ralph Kevorkian, who died in the crash. The second and most chilling
coincidence is that I'd put my daughter on the same flight--TWA 800 to
Paris--three days before the fatal crash. A third coincidence is that I was out
on the East End of Long Island the night TWA 800 crashed and though I didn't see
the crash, I heard the explosion. The fourth coincidence occurred about two
years later. I was researching my novel, The Lions Game which deals with Mideast
terrorism. As part of my research, I interviewed several members of the Federal
Joint Terrorist Task Force, who had worked the TWA 800 case, and the subject of
TWA 800 came up during these conversations. And finally, I discovered that
neighbors of mine--a married couple and their children--had actually witnessed
the crash from their boat and had been among those interviewed by the FBI. The
official government conclusion as to the cause of the crash was that it was a
mechanical malfunction, which resulted in the explosion of the center fuel tank.
However, about 200 eyewitnesses, including my neighbors, had seen a streak of
light rising from the water toward the airliner seconds before the aircraft
exploded in mid air. The government investigators discounted these eyewitnesses
with the explanation that what they'd seen was an optical illusion. There
appeared to be too many unanswered questions regarding this crash, and I decided
to contact some of the people from the Joint Terrorist Task Force whom I'd
interviewed years before. The more questions I asked, the more I had a feeling
that the 200 eyewitnesses who'd seen this streak of light and the midair
explosion might have actually seen a missile hit the aircraft. It was a series
of coincidences and circumstances that first piqued my interest in the crash of
TWA 800, but it was actually curiosity that ultimately led me to decide to write
about it. Night Fall is fiction but based on known facts, and hopefully I've
been able to at least raise some questions regarding the inconsistencies that
still surround this mystery. The reader will have to draw his or her own
conclusions. --Nelson DeMille
Countdown to Crisis : The Coming Nuclear Showdown with Iran
In this book author Kenneth Timmerman indicates
that Iran may have been behind the downing of TWA 800 - a view with which the
material on this website agrees.. Using his exclusive access to previously classified documents, Iranian defectors
and officials, and high-level sources in the U.S. government and intelligence
community, Timmerman blows the lid off previously unreported threats and our
intelligence community’s failure to deal with these dangers. To get the complete story on Iran’s radical Islamic
regime, Timmerman crisscrosses the globe, taking the reader into secret
terrorist gatherings in Tehran, into tense meetings in the White House, to
debriefings at an obscure CIA outpost in Azerbaijan, to diplomatic face-offs in
the Kremlin, and to many other spots along the way. His extensive investigative
reporting allows him to lay bare the true nature of the Iranian
threat. For Americans interested in the truth about Iran, Countdown to
Crisis may amount to a call for action–or even a case for war.
