Tuesday, September 11, 2001

Terrorist attacks generates questions
By John-Mark Day
Staff Reporter

Although television news networks pointed to the attacks Tuesday as terrorist-related, political science professor Manochehr Dorraj said Americans must be careful to not jump to conclusions.

“It could take years to find out (who is responsible),” Dorraj said. “Or it could take days.”

The World Trade Center twin towers collapsed after two hijacked airplanes crashed into them Tuesday. The Pentagon was also heavily damaged by another hijacked aircraft.

CNN and The Associated Press reports attributed the attacks to terrorist Osama bin Laden Tuesday.

“There are good indications that persons linked to Osama bin Laden may be responsible for these attacks,” U.S. intelligence officials told CNN.

Today was the scheduled day for the sentencing of a bin Laden associate for his role in the 1998bombing of the U.S. embassy in Tanzania that killed 213 people, AP reported. The sentencing was to be held at the federal courthouse near the World Trade Center.

Dorraj said even if the attacks are terrorist-related, it may be impossible to ever know the reasons for them.

“In some terrorist instances, the culprits are never caught,” he said. “In this case, they’re dead.”

Jim Wright, former speaker of the U.S. House of Representatives, compared the attack to former attacks on the World Trade Center and in Oklahoma City, but on a larger scale.

“(This is) the largest act of terrorism that has been inflicted on the United States, or possibly anywhere,” Wright said. “It was extremely well planned.”

Dorraj said the attacks looked highly orchestrated and not like the act of an individual.
“This is not the work of a deranged madman,” Dorraj said. “(It looks like) an extensive terrorist network with domestic operatives. This is going to have profound political fallout.”

Any terrorist attack is a call for attention, Rohan Gunaratna of the Center for the Study of Terrorism and Political Violence told the AP.

“The whole idea — the only idea, in some sense — is to bring attention to the cause,” Gunaratna said.

Wright said when dealing with terrorists it is important for the nation to resume daily activities.

“There can be no disruption in daily business,” he said. “To do that would be to let the terrorists have their way.”

John-Mark Day
j.m.day2@student.tcu.edu