http://www.javno.com/en-world/al-qaeda-tried-to-destroy-wtc-with-help-of-fbi_237816
THIS DAY IN HISTORY
Al-Qaeda Tried To Destroy WTC With Help Of FBI? Two terrorists parked a van filled with explosives in an underground garage, but failed to destroy the Twins. By Mladen Starčević. Translated by Karmen Horvat

Ramzi Yousef and Eyad Ismoli parked their red van in an underground garage of the World Trade Centre North Tower on February 26, 1993. They stepped outside, gazed at each other, lit a 60-metre fuse and walked away.

Twenty minutes later, at 12:17 hours, the bomb made a 30 mete hole through four underground concrete stories, killing six and injuring 1,042 people.

Smoke of the explosion went up the stairs all the way to the 93 rd floor, but the Twins were left standing, probably to Yousef and Eyad`s disappointment.

Their plan was based on the idea that the North Tower would collapse towards the South and on its way down, it would hit the South Tower. Yousef would have been in Pakistan several hours later, and if he had parked their van, carrying 600 kilos of explosives, a bit closer to the foundations of the building, i.e. several stories lower, their plan might have worked.

An investigation showed that a group trained in Al-Qaeda camps in Afghanistan was involved in the attack. It is believed that the mastermind behind the bomb attack was Yousef`s uncle Khalid Shaikh Mohammed Ali Fadden, who became one of the prime suspects for the attach on September 11, 2001.

Building owners and FBI were aware of the bomb attack

Later, in 2008, it was proven in court that the agency which owned the WTC, New York`s Port Authority was aware of the bomb attack. It was proved that the agency bears 68 percent of the responsibility and terrorists 32 percent. The agency was aware of the bomb attack, but decided to ignore the “extreme and potentially catastrophic weakness which would be useful for any terrorist who would decide to explore and exploit it”, which the American media reported extensively about.

They wrote about an evaluation which Port Authority commissioned the Scotland Yard for. In 1985, it showed that not only was an attack possible, but likely, and that the attackers would most probably use the underground garage for the operation.

At the same time, analysts drafted an unbelievable script, according to which terrorists would park their vehicle, packed with explosives, under the WTC and detonate the bomb after leaving the building. This is exactly what happened eight years later.

Port Authority now owes some 100 million dollars of compensation to attack victims. Still, the precise amount the agency has to pay has not yet been defined.

Material raised by Emad A. Salem, an informer of the American FBI, helped the verdict. He claims that the FBI was notified of the terrorists` intention of destroying the WTC, backing it up with recorded material. However, the top of the agency created a plan, according to which the explosive mass would be replaced with harmless powder and the bomb would not be useable.

According to media reports, Salem, an Egypt military official who infiltrated the group which planned the attack, was supposed to have replaced the explosives, but the one of FBI officials cancelled the plan, who transferred Salem to a different assignment.

SIDEBOX:
Fatal disregard Eight years before the attack, English Scotland Yard conducted a security estimate of the WTC. It was concluded that not only was an attack possible, but likely, and an attack script was assembled, which matches the actual attack in details. The WTC owners absolutely ignored the reports of analysts.