Military analyst's terror warning fell on deaf ears

Washington Times ^ | 8/26/02 | Bill Gertz

[kattracks]

Bill Gertz, defense and national security reporter for The Washington Times, in his new book, "Breakdown" (Regnery Publishing), details pervasive intelligence problems that allowed the United States to be blindsided by Islamist terrorists on September 11.

Kie Fallis arrived at work determined to keep arguing his view that terrorists were about to attack a U.S. target.

[gunnedah]

People in high places in these government entities are to busy politicking to pay attention to their subordinates.To hell with America and its masses we are due once again to thin our population out so be it.Just make sure you protect those of us that are elected you know government must go on at any price.
It is funny how all of the so called leaders in the world are never targeted but yet they have the masses wanting to kill each other.

[eastforker]

Bump to read later,gotta go to work.

[Cachelot]

People in high places in these government entities are to busy politicking to pay attention to their subordinates.

Believe me, the folks placed there by Clinton do pay attention to their subordinates. They see to it that they don't find out too much.

[maica]

Don't miss this!

[TomGuy]

Both the Senate and House Intelligence Committees got information though the 1990s and 2000 regarding the danger of Bin Laden, al-Qaeda, and other terrorists/groups.

Rather than acting on the information they received, those committees did very little except issue reports. After 9-11 attacks, they were too busy fingerpointing to accept the fact that they had received a decade of cautionary advisories. Congress, the Administrations, and the intelligence agencies all fell short. That is disappointing, but moreso, disconcerting. They failed the American people, and they are still too busy pointing fingers to correct the problems.

[not-an-ostrich]

The last sentence in this excerpt is accurate. By inserting "the Cole" they made it specific. Reminds me of a relative whose lies always contain a kernel of truth! Fallis didn't know the specific target but it seems at least an "advisory" was warranted which the article says would have changed the refueling location.

[hoot33]

Thanks for the timely, informative post Sir. Bill Gertz is opening a window uncovering the sorry mess left by the criminal TRIp(ex)OTUS administration, headed by Sandy Berger and Ken Bacon.

The damage to our countries security is almost beyond comprehension methinks.

[Lion's Cub]

Now their Nissan strained to pull the boat, in which they had secreted a bomb containing several hundred pounds of the U.S. military explosive C-14.

I wonder where they got that...

Also, I'm not sure if Yazzi Sufaat has been named before, or identified as a former Maylasian army captain.

This was also new to me:

What alarmed U.S. intelligence at the time was that Malaysian security officials traced the men to the Iranian Embassy there, where they spent the night

I wonder what the interval will be between the fall of Hussein's regime and the fall of the Iranian government? Not very long, I'll bet.

[dennisw]

BTTTTTTT

[mombonn]

But the reason the DIA refused to put out a warning had nothing to do with intelligence. It had everything to do with office politics.

Utterly disgusting.

[Octavius]

The same gov' clowns that did this (GS-14 and higher) you can bet are still employed...you can never get rid of 'em.

[Ben Bolt]

This times very nicely with the interview I heard on a radio show last night . Mr. Gertz ? Thank you for doing the right thing .

[LurkedLongEnough]

It seems that the book "Breakdown" would be interesting to read. I'm wondering how much can really be exposed at this point, though, without national security concerns. What is detailed already is quite enough to frighten me into thinking that I really don't want to know the rest. Just fix the intelligence system for goodness sake.

[philman_36]

A red flag pointing to the Cole bombing appeared in mid-September 2000 when bin Laden issued the videotape that aired on Qatari satellite television, an Arabic-language news service.
BS! There were other "red flags". How about the USS Sullivans?
ATTACK ON THE USS COLE
A third attack, on 3 January, 2000, was intended to blow up the American destroyer, USS Sullivans, as it refuelled in Aden. This was called off when the weight of explosives made the bombers’ boat unseaworthy.

Yemen Attack Warning Terror Suspect in 1998 Allegedly Told of Plans Against a U.S. Warship
Roughly two years later, on Oct. 12, 2000, a small boat carrying explosives bombed the Navy warship USS Cole in Yemen's Aden harbor, killing 17 sailors and injuring 39. Eight months earlier, on Jan. 3, sources tell ABCNEWS, terrorists had attempted to attack the USS Sullivans in the same harbor but their boat sank.
How to Forecast the Next Waves of Catastrophic Terrorism
In December 1999, an al-Qaeda affiliate was involved in a foiled plot to bomb Los Angeles International Airport. At the same time, al-Qaeda operatives were foiled by Jordanian security authorities in their attempt to blow up tourist sites in Jordan, and internal hurdles prevented them from bombing the USS The Sullivans in the Yemeni port of Aden.

[RottiBiz]

Thanks for posting, kattracks. Great Gertz article!

This should be the lead story on every news show tonight. Brit Hume will cover it, but will anyone else?

Can't wait to read Parts 2 and 3.

[sam_paine]

He was treated like an enemy as soon as his resignation was accepted. His access to a computer was immediately cut off, his e-mail account deleted. Supervisors refused to speak to him;

GOOD!! What do you think SHOULD happen when a self-appointed Elvis-with-a-security-clearance leaves the building??? Should his e-mail account have been left open for him to forward notes to the NYT? Should he have had the oppty to use the copier and fax with secret filing cabinets for a week after he quit for his convenience?

Do they really call it the Death Star, though?? That's more in line with the perception of Islamic terrorists than someone I hope is on "our side."

[mikegi]

Iran is the root cause of terrorism in the Middle East. We need to see the mullahs there swinging from lamp posts ... and soon.

[Tailgunner Joe]

fyi

[aristeides]

Yes, I noticed that bit about the Iranian embassy too.

Cole news.