Author Recounts Terror Methodology In Face Of New Possible Attacks

Talk about straight from the horse's mouth. The quote below is from an interview Yosri Fouda conducted with al Qaeda terror planner Ramzi bin al-Shibh in April 2002 and is recounted in the book Masterminds of Terror by Yosri Fouda and Nick Fielding:

Ramzi bin al-Shibh: "They were all booked [airline seats] in advance. They studied it, and they selected seats, mostly via the Internet, which would allow for maximum mobility and maneuverability. Depending on the interior of the plane and the distribution of members of the crew and security men, the brothers formed, in the way they spread themselves, either the letter L or the letter H.

"Each team had three wings: a pilot sitting in business class, two members sitting as close as possible to the cockpit door to break in at a certain point of time, and two at the back to keep the passengers at bay. It was crucial to consider the first 15 minutes as the golden opportunity to take control of the airplane and steer it to its target.

"Each brother knew exactly what he was supposed to do. The break-in team would seize the earliest opportunity to rush into the cockpit and get rid of everyone inside, whereas the protection team would deal with passengers and security men - slaughtering them if necessary, and moving all passengers to the back. Meanwhile, the pilot would be taking his place inside the cockpit, steering the airplane.

"At worst, all this should be done within a maximum of six minutes - the sooner the better. All the brothers did a great job with the help of Allah, and there was constant contact among the four airplanes to reassure each other and coordinate their action as the pilots were finally on their way."

Special thanks to Ben Venzke, IntelCenter, Alexandria (VA), and to Nena Wiley of Pure Pursuit, Phoenix (AZ)

FMI: www.intelcenter.com