1. THE DAWN OF THE DEVIL'S DAY
On September 11, 2001,
the bustling city of New York woke up to a typical morning. The sun rose over
the city, casting its golden glow on the streets below. Little did anyone know
that this day would etch itself into the collective memory of an entire nation.
The World Trade Center stood tall, its doors open for another day of business
as usual, while unbeknownst to anyone, a sinister plot was unfolding elsewhere
in the United States. Deep in the shadows, eighteen terrorists, under the
leadership of the notorious al-Qaeda operative, Mohamed Ata, meticulously
initiated their next move of the plan.
On September 11, 2001,
Mohamed Ata and Abdul Aziz Al Omari, both terrorists, arrived at Boston Logan
International Airport around 6:45 am. Shortly after, at 6:52 am, Marwan
al-Shehi called Mohamed Atta from another terminal in the same airport to
confirm their planned attack.
Around 7:03 am, Siad
Zara and his team of terrorists arrived at Newark International Airport. At
7:15 am, Khalid Al Mihdhar and his group came at Dallas International Airport
in Washington. Taking advantage of lenient aviation laws that allowed
passengers to carry small knives less than 4 inches long, they prepared for the
significant attack that would unfold later that day.
Between 7:23 am and
7:28 am, Marwan al-Shehi, along with Faisal Banihammed, Mohammed al-Shehri,
Hamza al-Ghamdi, and Ahmed al-Ghamdi, boarded United Airlines Flight
175. Shortly after, between 7:35 am and 7:40 am, Mohamed Atta and his
group—Abdullah Zeiss al-Omari, Wiley al-Sheri, Waleed al-Sheri, and Satam
al-Shukami—boarded American Airlines Flight 11, the primary suspects in the
terrorist attack.
At Newark
International Airport, terrorists Siad Zara, Ahmed al-Haznawi, Ahmed al-Nami,
and Saeed al-Ghamdi boarded United Airlines Flight 93 between 7:39 am and 7:48
am. Meanwhile, at around 7:50 am, Honey Hanjour and his group—Khalid
al-Mihdhar, Majed Moqed, Nawaf al-Hazmi, and Salem al-Hazmi—boarded American
Airlines Flight 77 at Washington's Dallas airport.
At 7:59 am, American
Airlines Flight 11, carrying 81 passengers, 11 crew members, and five
terrorists, departed from Logan Airport in Boston to Los Angeles International
Airport, following a 14-minute delay.
At 8:00 am, the United
States President, George W. Bush, departed as part of his scheduled engagements
for the day to attend a ceremony at Emma E. Booker Elementary School in
Florida.
Leo Kasun Sapumohotti
Zone Director
Zone B1
Leo District 306 A1
