WASHINGTON, 15 September — US President George W. Bush led an angry nation in mourning yesterday for the thousands of dead and missing in this week’s aerial assaults, somberly vowing to bring the perpetrators to justice “at an hour of our choosing” as Congress started authorizing the use of force.
Some 35,000 reservists were called to duty and Congress approved $40 billion to fund military and recovery operations in the wake of Tuesday’s attacks by hijacked commercial aircraft on the Pentagon and the World Trade Center.
In New York, “ground zero” for the worst attack ever on American soil, rescue efforts were hampered by driving rain. The president visited the city later in the day.
Joined by former Presidents Bill Clinton, George Bush, Jimmy Carter and Gerald Ford, as well as his election rival of last year Al Gore at a church service, Bush expressed the nation’s anguish and grief as well as determination to hit back. “This nation is peaceful, but fierce when stirred to anger. This conflict was begun on the timing and terms of others; it will end in a way and at an hour of our choosing,” Bush said in his brief address.
As the president pledged retaliation, investigators scrambled to track the perpetrators of Tuesday’s carnage and their supporters. Authorities released 19 names of people they said hijacked four planes in an operation that took great skill and careful planning.
The Justice Department amended earlier reports that 18 hijackers were involved, saying it had determined there were in fact 19, seven of whom were pilots.
Abdullah ibn Awad Aboud Binladen, head of the Binladen family, has denounced the attacks against US installations and said they violated the teachings of Islam. “We as a family condemn these operations even if our son has a link with them,” he said in a press statement. “As we have stated before (on Feb. 19, 1994) our family has no relation with Osama Bin Laden’s activities and behavior,” he added. The Binladens conveyed their condolences to the victims’ families. Hundreds are confirmed dead and almost 5,000 reported missing in Tuesday’s attacks, which demolished the soaring twin towers of New York’s World Trade Center and tore a giant hole in the heart of the Pentagon.
Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld activated 35,000 reservists to provide “strike-alert” jet fighter protection and perform other duties at domestic military bases. Bush officially declared a national emergency, citing a “continuing and immediate threat” to the nation. “A national emergency exists by reason of the terrorist attacks at the World Trade Center, New York, and the Pentagon, and the continuing and immediate threat of further attacks on the United States,” he said.
Trying to build a global alliance against those who attacked the United States, Secretary of State Colin Powell asked five governments to take a stand on Washington’s side and try to cut off funds going to extremist organizations. Powell spoke to the foreign ministers of Japan, India, Saudi Arabia, Tunisia and Morocco, a senior State Department official said.
“The basic message for people is to take a stand, to share information, to cut any support activities that may be going on, and that we are in this together for the long haul and there will be more things that we all have to do in the future, so get ready for more requests,” the official added. “One of the things we’re talking about is stopping the money — any money flows connected with these organizations we want stopped,” he said.
In most cases, the United States is sending a standard message without specifics, but in the case of Pakistan and others it is presenting a list of requests for action, said the official. Powell’s request was made to Foreign Ministers Makiko Tanaka of Japan, Jaswant Singh of India, Prince Saud Al-Faisal of Saudi Arabia, Habib Ben Yahya of Tunisia and Muhammad Benaissa of Morocco, he said.
Star News television network said India yesterday handed over information on terrorist training camps inside Afghanistan to the United States. The network said details were provided about Asababad, Sarkanar, Ghazni, Jalalabad, Khost, Paktya and Kandhar camps.
