Terrorism and America

The terrorist attack on September 11, 2001 brought terrorism to the forefront for most Americans, but terrorism and America have a long history. From both foreign and domestic terrorists, America has suffered terroristic attacks. Not all these attacks have been on American soil, but all have cost American lives.

Terrorist Attacks

Another attack on American soil carried out by Islamic extremist was the first bombing of the World Trade Center in 1993. On February 26, 1993, six men, all linked to an Islamic extremist group, drove a truck loaded with a 1,500 pound bomb into the basement area of the World Trade Center. They then set a timer and left. The blast killed six people and injured over one thousand others. They set out to injure civilians and to do as much damage as possible. These men have been linked to at least three international terrorist organizations.

Another attack was carried out in 1995 in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. These terrorists were of a different breed, they were domestic terrorists. Timothy McVeigh was a former Army soldier. He believed that the US government had committed atrocious crimes following the siege at Branch Davidian Complex in Waco, Texas. In his mind his actions were a justified retaliation against the government. His target was the Alfred P. Murrah Federal Building. He detonated a bomb located in a truck parked outside the building, resulting in the collapse of the north front of the building. One hundred sixty-eight people died as a result of his actions.

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The next attack linking terrorism and America did not happen on American soil. In June 1996, men linked to the Hezbollah group in Saudi Arabia parked a tanker truck in the parking lot adjacent to the Kohbar Towers which housed American servicemen. Although the guards on duty recognized the potential bomb threat and started to evacuate the building, 19 American servicemen lost their lives when the bomb exploded before the building was completely evacuated.

In August 1998, there was a coordinated attack on two American Embassies, one in Kenya and the other in Tanzania. These attacks were orchestrated by Osama Bin Laden, leader in a network of terrorists. Over 200 people were killed and 5,000 injured in these attacks.

Osama Bin Laden struck against the US again in October 2000. It is believed that he arranged for a small group of suicide bombers to use a small boat, loaded with explosives, to carry out this attack. This group of terrorists pulled alongside the USS Cole, a navy destroyer, in a port in Yemen, and detonated the bomb. The blast killed 17 US sailors and injured 39 others.

America’s War on Terror

The attacks on the World Trade Center and the Pentagon on September 11, 2001 led the US government to launch a global war against terrorism. Before this attack, occasional retaliations were executed in regions believed to be infested with terrorist networks. The 9/11 attacks led the American people to demand and immediate response. The invasion of Afghanistan and subsequently Iraq began what has been called the War on Terror. The US hopes that, by fighting terrorists in their home countries, we will avoid another attack on American soil.

President Bush stated that the US war on terror would not end until every global terrorist group has been found, stopped, and defeated. In his statement, he declared war between terrorism and America, a war we intend to win.