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9/11-Style Attacks Foiled by Patriot Act
Lost in yesterday's Senate debate and eventual rejection of most of the Patriot Act was one salient fact. Since its inception, the measure has foiled at least three terrorist attacks of 9/11 proportions against the U.S. - and seven other attacks in nations of close allies around the globe. Earlier this year, the White House detailed the chilling al Qaida plots foiled during the four years the Patriot Act was in full force - plots that would have likely proceeded undetected until their final execution, under the kind of rollback the Senate passed on Friday. According to a CNN report in October, the list of plots foiled thanks to the Patriot Act includes:
Story Continues Below In mid-2002 the United States disrupted a plot to use hijacked airplanes to attack targets on the West Coast of the United States. The plotters included at least one major operational planner behind the 9/11 attacks.
In mid-2003 the United States and a partner disrupted a plot to use hijacked commercial airplanes to attack targets on the East Coast of the United States.
In May 2002 the United States disrupted a plot that involved blowing up apartment buildings in the United States. One of the alleged plotters, Jose Padilla, allegedly discussed the possibility of using a "dirty bomb" inside the United States. Bush has designated him an "enemy combatant."
In mid-2004 the United States and partners disrupted a plot to bomb urban targets in Britain.
In 2003 the United States and several partners disrupted a plot to attack London's Heathrow Airport using hijacked commercial airliners. The planning for this alleged attack was undertaken by a major operational figure in the 9/11 attacks.
In the spring of 2004 the United States used intelligence gathered under the Patriot Act to disrupt a plot to conduct large-scale bombings in Britain. Four additional attack plots detailed by the White House targeted U.S. interests in the Middle East. Now that the Patriot Act has been gutted by the Senate, however, plots like those cited above will presumably proceed to their successful completion. Editor's note:
Read more on this subject in related Hot Topics:
9/11 Commission
Inside Cover Stories
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