France knew about Al Qaeda plot to hijack planes.

news.yahoo.com...

PARIS - France's foreign intelligence service learned as early as January 2001 that al-Qaida was preparing a hijacking plot likely to involve a U.S. airplane, former intelligence officials said Monday, confirming a report that also said the CIA received the warning.

Le Monde newspaper said it had obtained 328 pages of classified documents on Osama bin Laden's terror network that were drawn up by the French spy service, the DGSE, between July 2000 and October 2001. The documents included a Jan. 5, 2001, intelligence report warning that al-Qaida was at work on a hijacking plot.

Pierre-Antoine Lorenzi, the former chief of staff for the agency's director at the time, said he remembered the note and that it mentioned only the vague outlines of a hijacking plot — nothing that foreshadowed the scale of the Sept. 11, 2001 attacks.

"It wasn't about a specific airline or a specific day, it was not a precise plot," Lorenzi told The Associated Press. "It was a note that said, 'They are preparing a plot to hijack an airplane, and they have cited several companies.'"

The Sept. 11 commission's report on the four hijacked flights has detailed repeated warnings about al-Qaida and its desire to attack airlines in the months before Sept. 11, 2001.

Was the information enough to prevent 9/11? I don't know. As they said that it was pretty vague, just mentioning about hijacking planes, but not where, when, and how many are involved.

What does it matter? The White House was fully aware of it as they received a memo in June or July 2001 that such an attack would be very likely to happen within several months time.

However, they did want it to happen and thus did not prevent it. How else should they have gained support for an invasion of Afghanistan and later Iraq.

Originally posted by Mdv2
What does it matter? The White House was fully aware of it as they received a memo in June or July 2001 that such an attack would be very likely to happen within several months time.

However, they did want it to happen and thus did not prevent it. How else should they have gained support for an invasion of Afghanistan and later Iraq.

How can they let it happened? And also with the information thats provided what can you do to act upon it?

It doesn't surprise me that our "allies" would betray us. It doesn't surprise me in the slightest. I will desist.

[edit on 16-4-2007 by SpeakerofTruth]

Originally posted by deltaboy

How can they let it happened? And also with the information thats provided what can you do to act upon it?

i'm absolutely certain that all the web of agencies; FBI, CIA covert ops,
anti-terrorism units, the counter-intelligence branch, the bin-laden unit,
all were tailing and shadowing their Arab/Middle Eastern; men/suspicious targets/cells and potential terrorists...

but just like the government admits-> there was non-communication
between the agencies...no NSA or collective War-Room group to connect-the-dots....which were blatently obvious to everyone in hindsight after 9-11



the french intelligence memo you posted, had nothing substantial...
it only tells us the arch enemies will do harmful things.
Now if the memo said something like,
"Zealots will commandeer aircraft into 3 targets".
then that seems information to be taken differently than plain old hijackings.
Especially after OBLs warning messages to the USA
even as the US Embassy bombings in Africa were underway,
or in light of the 1995 Bojinka operation that was accidently discovered

I never liked the fact that a French film company "just so happened" to be filming a documentary about the FDNY on 9/11.

What the hell do the French care about a fire company in a whole other country?? They just HAD to be filming at 8am in the morning???? They just so happened to have the ONLY footage of the first plane hitting the first tower, which they made millions selling. Please.