September 11th: The Day Innocence Died :: September 11 Terrorism Essays

September 11th, 8:45 a.m.: A large plane, possibly a hijacked airliner, crashes into one of the World Trade Center towers, tearing a gaping hole in the building and setting it afire. 9:03 a.m.: A second plane, apparently a passenger jet, crashes into the second World Trade Center tower and explodes. Both buildings are burning. 9:30 a.m.: Bush, speaking in Florida, says the country has suffered an "apparent terrorist attack." 9:43 a.m.: An aircraft crashes into the Pentagon, sending up a huge plume of smoke. Evacuation begins immediately. 9:45 a.m.: The White House evacuates. 10:05 a.m.: The south tower of the World Trade Center collapses, plummeting into the streets below. A massive cloud of dust and debris forms and slowly drifts away from the building. 10:10 a.m.: A portion of the Pentagon collapses. 1:27 p.m.: A state of emergency is declared by the city of Washington. 1:30 p.m. The country wants answers. First shock, then terror, followed by sorrow, and lastly rage. How could such an act be committed on American soil? This country asks this question in disbelief. The US demands answers and revenge for this act of evil. Who is to blame for the possible tens of thousands of deaths? The only way to answer this question is to look at the people that could do such an act and what possible reasons they would have for doing it. This county as a hole looks over seas for answers, they look to a county called Afghanistan that harbors a terrorist called Osama bin Laden. "Bin Laden, an Islamic fundamentalist and the son of a Saudi billionaire, has been on the FBI's Ten Most Wanted Fugitive list since 1999, and the U.S. State Department has offered a $5 million reward for his arrest." Quoted from www.cnn.com. Most U.S. prosecutors say bin Laden is the leader of a group called al Qaeda (Arabic for "the Base"), this is a network blamed for successful and failed terrorist strikes on the U.S. Some are the millennium-bombing plot, last year's attack on the USS Cole, in Yemen killing 17 U.S. sailors and wounding 39, and the nearly simultaneous bombings of the U.S. embassies in Tanzania and Kenya. Bin Laden, a Muslim believes that he is fighting a holy war in the name of his religion. Muslims are Followers of the Islam religion. They believe that Allah is the One True God.