(ORIGINAL INCOMING FOIA REQUEST LETTER)

• Document Type: FOIA
• Keywords: xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
• Keywords: F-2006-00548
• Keywords: FOIA REQUESTS
• Keywords: CIA RESPONSES
• Collection: FOIA Collection
• Document Number (FOIA) /ESDN (CREST): 0001469060
• Release Decision: RIPPUB
• Original Classification: U
• Document Page Count: 18
• Document Creation Date: June 22, 2015
• Document Release Date: December 8, 2008
• Case Number: F-2006-00548
• Publication Date: May 16, 2002

JUDICIAL WATCH, INC.
501 Sdfool Sbest, SW, Solt 600,
Wsshinglon.O.C. 20024
Tal: (2.02) 646.8172
Faic (202) 64$5199
Fax
001
OD A
Freedom of Information Act
Request
Fax `103 - r/3 -- T3Gc7
Daam MAY 1 6 2002
Urgent For Review G Plea" Comment Please Reply
172
Comments; If you do not receive all pages, please call 202-646=5?
.~ i
 Judicial Watch
Because no one is above the law!
May 16, 2002
VIA CERTM-ED-MAM AND FAX
Central Intelligence Agency
Kathryn I. Dyer
FOIA and Privacy Coordinator
Washington, D.C. 20505
The White House
Office of Administration
Carol Ehrlich, FOIA Officer
5001 New Executive Office Building
Washington, D.C. 20503
National Security Agency
Pamela N. Phillips
Chief, FOIA/PA Services
Office of Information Policy, DC321
Ft. George G. Meade, MD 20755-6248
Federal Aviation Administration
Valerie G. Collins
FOIA Program Director, ARC-40
'800 Independence Avenue, S.W.
Washington, D.C. 20591
Defense Intelligence Agency
Robert P. Richardson
Chief, FOIA Staff
Code SVI-1 (FOIA)
Washington, D.C. 20340-5100
National Security Council
Director
Access Management
392 Old Executive Office Building
Washington, DC 20504
Federal Bureau of Investigation
John M. Kelso, Jr., Chief
FOIPA Section
935 Pennsylvania Avenue, N.W.
Washington, DC 20535-0001
Department of Defense
Freedom of Information and Security Review
Room 2C757
1155 Defense Pentagon
Washington, D.C. 20301-1155
Dcnartment of State
Margaret P. Grafeld
121002
Director, Office of IRM Programs & Services, SA-2
5th Floor
Washington, D.C. 20522-6001
Re: Freedom of Information Act Request.
Dear Sir/Madam:
Pursuant to the Freedom of Information Act (hereinafter, "FOIA"), 5 U.S.C. 552, and its
501 School Street. SW. o Suite 725 P Washington. DC 20024 - Tel: [phone] ? Fax; [phone]
 65/17/02 09:16 FAX [phone] Q003
regulations, we hereby request from the Executive Office of the President (EOP), Office of
Administration (OA), National Security Agency (NSA), National Security Council (NSC), the
Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) and the Federal
Bureau of Investigation (FBI) all correspondence, memoranda, documents, reports, records,
statements, audits, lists of names, applications, diskettes, letters, expense logs and receipts,
calendar or diary logs, facsimile logs, telephone records, call sheets, tape recordings, video
recordings, notes, examinations, opinions, folders, files, books, manuals, pamphlets, forms,
drawings, charts, photographs, electronic mail, and other documents and things, that refer or
relate to the following in anyway:
1) FBI case notes which describe alleged 9-11 hijacker Zacarias Moussaoui as "the type
of person who was capable of flying an aircraft into the World Trade Center". i
2) A "President's Daily Brief"which mentioned the possibility of terrorists, including but
not limited to, Osama Bin Laden and/or Al-Qaeda, hijacking planes.
3) A Phoenix Arizona FBI agent's warning to his superiors, last summer (2001) that
Osama Bin Laden might be sending students to U.S. flight schools.
4) A memorandum from a Phoenix Arizona FBI agent regarding. efforts by terrorists to
place students in American aviation schools.
5) Analysis of the memorandum from the Phoenix agent, done in FBI headquarters in
Washington DC and/or any other FBI office or field office.
6) All communication between President George W. Bush and/or Condoleezza Rice
and/or Secretary of State Colin Powell and/or CIA director George Tenet and/or Secretary
of Defense Donald Rumsfeld and/or FBI Director Robert Mueller and/or Attorney
General John Ashcroft regarding the Phoenix memo and/or efforts by Oasama Bin Laden
to place students in American aviation schools.
7) The enrollment of Zacarias Moussaoui in a Minnesota flight school.
8) Plans by Zacarias Moussaoui and/or Osama Bin Laden and/or Al-Qaeda and/or any
terrorist group to hijack airplanes.
9) Plans by Zacarias Moussaoui and/or Osama Bin Laden and/or Al-Qaeda and/or any
I See David Martin. "What Bush Knew Before Sept. 11," CBS News. May 16, 2002; Flight School Memo Named
Bin Laden," CBS News. May 15, 2002; David Johnston. "Pre-Attack Memo Cited Bin Laden," The New York
Times. May 15, 2002. A1-5.
 05/17/02 09:17 FAX [phone] 12 004
terrorist group to fly airplanes into the World Trade Center_
10) New analytical units within the F.B.I., staffed with new personnel, as a result of the
Phoenix FBI memorandum.
11) The decision to create the "Office of Intelligence" within the FBL
12) An alert(s) issued to Government agencies regarding the possible threat of Osama Bin
Laden and/or Al-Qaeda and/or any terrorist group hijacking airplanes, between February
1, 2001 to October 31, 2001.
13) The decision not to make the alert(s) public.
14) The decision not to inform the public about the threat of Osama Bin Laden and/or Al-
Qaeda and/or any terrorist group hijacking airplanes.
Thank you for your expected cooperation in responding to our request in a timely manner,
which should be within 10 working days, as required under 32 C.F.R. ? 1900.34, 28 ? CFR 16.3
(d)(ii)(iv)(3), and 5 U.S.C. ? 552 (a)(6)(E)(ii)(1), because time is of the essence. The American
public deserves full disclosure of government foreknowledge of the September 112001 terror
attacks on America. Judicial Watch, through a variety of means and media detailed below and
consistent with its legal and public education mission will rapidly and efficiently disseminate the
information obtained under FOIA to the American people. In order to accomplish these aims, it
is critical that the American people have this request answered in a timely manner.
Pursuant to the FOIA, if any portions of the requested documents are claimed to be
privileged, those portions which are not claimed to be privileged should be provided to the
undersigned. This should be done prior to the conclusion of the statutory 20-day period for
response. In addition, under the FOIA there is an absolute requirement to produce those
segregable portions of documents which are not claimed to be privileged, as well as a list
("Vaughn Index") that indicates by date, author, general subject matter, and claims of privilege(s)
v.
zbn-
those documents, or portions thereof, which have been withheld or not provided. Vau
osen 484 F.2d 820 (D.C. Cir 1973), cert. denied, 415 U.S. 977 (1974); Iglesias v. Central
Intelligence A~encv. 525 F. Supp. 547 (D.C. 1981); see generally LaRocca v. State Farm Mut.
Auto. Ins. Co.. 47 F.R.D. 278 (W.D. Pa. 1985).
 We note that President Clinton instructed agencies in October, 1993, to ensure
compliance with both the spirit as well as the letter of the Act. See President Clinton's FOIA
Memorandum, U.S. Department of Justice, FOYAUndate, Summer/Fall1993, at 3. In addition,
Attorney General Ashcroft issued a FOIA Memorandum on October, 12, 1993, which inter alia
states "the Department of Justice and this Administration are committed to full compliance with
the Freedom of Information Act... It is only through a well-informed citizenry that the leaders of
our nation remain accountable to the governed and the American people can be assured that
neither fraud nor goverment waste is concealed." and orders "a presumption of disclosure." See
Attorney General Ashcroft's FOIA Memorandum, U.S. Department of Justice, FOIA Update,
Fall 2000, at p. 1.
Judicial Watch is entitled to a public interest fee waiver for this request. At 5 U.S.C.
? 552 (a) (4) (A) (iii), the FOIA sets forth a two prong test to determine whether a fee waiver
is appropriate. First, the disclosure must be in the public interest by contributing significantly
to the public's understanding of the operations of the government. Schrecker v. Department
ofJustice, 970 F. Supp. 49, 50 (D.D.C. 1997); Fitzgibbon v. Agency for International
Development, 724 F. Supp. 1048, 1050 (D.D.C. 1989); Larson v. Central Intelligence Agency,
843 F.2d 1481, 1483 (D.C. Cir. 1988). Second, the disclosure must not be primarily in the
commercial interest of the requester. Schrecker, 970 F. Supp. at 50; Fitzgibbon, 724 F.2d at
1050; Larson, 843 F.2d at 483.
Judicial Watch, Inc. is a not-for-profit, non-partisan, tax-exempt organization,
organized under Section 501 (c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Service Code, which, as a public
interest law firm, specializes in, among other things, deterring, monitoring, uncovering, and
addressing public corruption in government.
 Judicial Watch, Inc. has no commercial purpose as a 501 (c)(3) not-for-profit organization. It
was organized to improve the ethical and legal standards in government, accountability of
government officials to the rule of law, and public understanding of government operations
and activities.
Judicial Watch, Inc. regularly requests materials under the Freedom of Information
Act ("FOIA") from a number of federal agencies relating to a variety of topics of public
concern, then disseminates this information through a variety of media.
Judicial Watch is a member of the media. 2 One of its main purposes is to
disseminate to the public information that exposes government activities that are contrary to
the law. Judicial Watch, Inc. uses several mechanisms for the dissemination of the
information it acquires which ensures that the information will be quickly available to the
public. Judicial Watch maintains an Internet site, www.JudicialWatch.org on which the
public can view and inspect, among other things, FOIA materials, press releases, responsive
documents, deposition transcripts and court opinions. This website is viewed by over 20,000
people per day on average, and on several occasions, has logged up to 1,000,000 visitors in a
single day. Judicial Watch, Inc.'s Chairman, President, and other employees of Judicial
Watch Inc. frequently appear on nationally broadcast television and radio programs. Judicial
Watch is also a member of the National Religious Broadcast Association and is routinely
2 See Memorandum and Order, Judicial Watch, Inc. v. US_ Department of Justice, Civil Action No. 00-1396
(JR), November 16, 2000.
 issued press credentials by national conventions.
Judicial Watch, Inc. produces live radio programs. "The Judicial Watch Report" airs
nationally once per week on 43 radio stations and the Internet. A separate, hour long, live
Spanish language "Judicial Watch Report" airs twice weekly, since September 2001, from
Miami, Florida on WQBA.- 1140 AM. On October 29, 2001, Judicial Watch also began
broadcasting a two hour daily edition of the radio program "The Judicial Watch Report" on
the USA Radio Network, and on the Internet sites www.USARadio.com and
www.judicialWatch.org.
Judicial Watch also produces and broadcasts a twice weekly television program
concerning legal affairs also entitled the "rhe Judicial Watch Report," which is seen on the
Dish Network and the Liberty Network among others. The producer of the Judicial Watch
Report is Brian Doherty, formerly the producer for the television programs "The O'Reilly
Factor" and "The Drudge Report" on the Fox News Channel.
Judicial Watch also works with other media organizations to publish new stories in the
public interest. Concerning its Enron investigation, Judicial Watch received over 60 press
contacts on March 26, 2002 alone, and cooperated with other news organizations such as the
New York Times, Associated Press, Reuters, Cox Newspapers, United Press International,
Knight Ridder, Chicago Tribune, Houston Chronicle and the Los Angeles Times. As another
example, recently, as a result of FOIA litigation before this Court in Judicial Watch v.
 05/17/02 09:18 FAX [phone]
Department of Health and Human Services C.A. No. 01-1043 (TPJ), Judicial Watch obtained
documents concerning the fundraising practices of Department of Health and Human Services
("DHHS") Director Tommy Thompson, a Republican and former governor of Wisconsin,
Judicial Watch analyzed these documents, conducted additional research, and found that Mr.
Thompson was using his taxpayer financed office, in part, for fundraising activities on behalf
of Republicans and was making his office available to donors with interests before the DHHS.
Judicial Watch subsequently shared its analysis, research, and copies of these documents with
a reporter from The Washington Post, a newspaper that is distributed nationwide, and an
article concerning these documents was subsequently published by the Washington Post. See
Attachment A - Al Kamen, "Photo-Op, Funds-Op, Suit-Op," The Washington Post, Nov. 30,
2001, A39.
Judicial Watch also publishes detailed periodic reports. On September 28, 1998, for
example, Judicial Watch, Inc. released a publication entitled Interim Report on Crimes and
Other Offenses Committed by President Bill Clinton Warranting His Impeachment and
Removal froze Elected Office. This 145-page report is accompanied by nearly 4,000 pages of
supporting documentation, and was crafted, in part, from the raw materials obtained by
Judicial Watch, Inc. through responses to its FOIA requests. This is a distinct work and has
been widely disseminated to the public. On or around August 10, 1999, Judicial Watch
released its legate Status Report, which is 136 pages long and is supported by nearly 1000
pages of exhibits. Another recent Judicial Watch publication is The Judicial Watch Florida
Recount, an independent, non-partisan analysis of the results of Florida's hotly contested 2000
 Presidential election. This document was released on March 22, 2001. Judicial Watch's most
recent publication is The Judicial Watch 2002 "State of the Union" Report, Bush
Administration Ethcs Enforcement: "A Failure of Leadership." published February 1, 2002-
I
Judicial Watch also publishes a monthly newsletter, which is sent to approximately
225,000 individuals. It also utilizes an E-mail Infonet service which sends out updates of
Judicial Watch's activities over the Internet on nearly a daily basis to 17,000 persons. Judicial
Watch also produces several press releases each week which are "blast faxed" to hundreds of
radio and television stations, as well as newspapers throughout the country.
Judicial watch, Inc. is conducting an investigation into the September 11th attack. The
documents sought in our FOIA request are material to our investigation. Judicial Watch
intends to disseminate the responsive documents and information obtained from its
investigation and this FOIA request through its daily and weekly radio programs, its television
program, Internet website and its newsletter. Judicial Watch is currently writing a special
report on the September 11th attacks that is to be published in the next few weeks.
Information sought in this request will be published in Judicial Watch's forthcoming special
report.
Judicial Watch also uses the documents and information from FOIA requests in public
events such as conferences, seminars and speeches. For example, in October of 2001, Judicial
 Watch held its third annual `Ethics in Government Conference" in Miami, Florida. Previous
conferences were held in Pasadena, California (1999), and Washington, DC (2000). Judicial
Watch, Inc. also intends to make the documents and information obtained from this FOIA
request available to researchers, interns, colleges, universities and the media.
In short, Judicial Watch's efforts to expose government corruption make news on almost
a daily basis, and it functions, in part, as a member of the media.
Indeed, there is an unequivocal public interest served by revealing the aforementioned
documents. The American people should be made aware of, among other things, reports,
investigations, decisions, waivers and findings of fact concerning government foreknowledge of
the September 11"` attack on America. According to the statements by government officials,
including White House Press Secretary Ari Fleischer and FBI Director Robert Mueller, the
President of the United States was informed, via the "President's Daily Brief," that Osama Bin
Laden was plotting to hijack American airplanes, but firmly insist that none in government knew
that the planes were to be used as missiles to crash into a building. The President reportedly put
government security agencies on alert. The knowledge these officials claim stems from an FBI
memo written by a Phoenix based agent. The memo was given too little attention, according to
FBI director Robert Mueller, because the FBI lacked adequate analytical capabilities to evaluate
it, which has been remedied for the future by the creation of new departments within the Bureau,
including the "Office of Intelligence-" The American public has a right to know 1) exactly how
much knowledge of a potential terrorist attack their Government officials had beforehand, 2)
how they responded to a potential terrorism attack based on that knowledge, and 3) what steps
have been taken to avert future intelligence and security failures. Una uestiionab ' a
breaking news item that is continuing to unfold the presl, Future government action
and/or inaction in response to future foreknowledge of terrorist attacks could cost lives. This
request is a "life or limb" issue of the greatest urgency. This disclosure will significantly
 contribute to the public understanding of the operations and activities of their government by
informing them of how the government handles suspected terrorist attacks. This request is based
in part on news reports. See David Martin. "What Bush Knew Before Sept. 11," CBS News. May
16, 2002; Flight School Memo Named Bin Laden," CBS News. May* 15, 2002; David Johnston.
"Pre-Attack Memo Cited Bin Laden," The New York Times. May 15, 2002. Al-5. Copies of
which are enclosed with this request 3
Without question, there is a compelling need for the public to understand how the
government responded to prior knowledge of potential airplane hijackings by terrorists, which
turned out to be the most deadly attack of terrorism in history. Hence we submit this request.
Clearly, information that exposes government activity that is contrary to the rule of law
will contribute significantly to the public's understanding of the operations and activities of
government. In fact, according to the Office ofManagement and Budget, Freedom of
Information Reform Act of 1986- Uniform Freedom of Information Act Fee Schedule
Guidelines, ? 67(g), this is one of the categories of activity which courts have characterized as in
the public interest.
Congress has spoken clearly on this subject by amending FOIA so that it can "be liberally
construed in favor of waivers for noncommercial requesters." McClellan Ecological Seepage
Situation, at 1284 (quoting 132 Cong. Rec. S 14298 (Sept.30, 1986). The main purpose of the
amendment, according to Senator Leahy, was to prevent gamesmanship on the part of
government agencies i.e., to "remove roadblocks and technicalities which have been used by
various Federal agencies to deny waivers or reductions of fees under FOIA." Id. (quoting 132
Cong. Rec. S16496, October 15, 1986).
3 See David Martin. "What Bush Knew Before Sept. 11," CBS News. May 16, 2002; Flight School Memo Named
But Laden," CBS News. May 15, 2002; David Johnston- "Pre-Attack Memo Cited Bin Laden," The New York
Times. May 15, 2002. Al-5.
 We request expeditious handling and immediate release of the requested
information in the public interest
In accordance with 32 C.F.R. ? 1900.34 (c), 28 ? .CFR 16.3 (d)(ii)(iv)(3), and 5 U.S.C. ?
552 (a)(6)(E)(ii)(I) we submit this request be granted and expedited because the information is
urgently needed for dissemination so that the public may be informed about actual or alleged
Federal Government government activity.
In addition, we find a compelling need for the requested information given that a
significant part of our operation involves disseminating information as a legitimate news source.
Thus, we assert that the request concerns matters of widespread and exceptional media interests
in which there exist possible questions about the government's integrity (to include senior
government officials) which effect public confidence.
Judicial Watch certifies that in accordance with citation 32 C.F.R. ? 1900.34 (c), 28 ?
CFR 16.3 (d)(ii)(iv)(3), and 5 U.S.C. ? 552 (a)(6)(E)(ii)(I) we have a compelling need for
information sought herein.
Release of the information will promote confidence in our Constitutional Republic, and
contribute to furthering the integrity of the American national government by deterring and/or
sanctioning corrupt activities. The failure to do so will likely result in the further compromise of
important interests of the American people.
Sincerely,
JUDICIAL WATCH, INC.
 05/17/02 09:20 FAX [phone]
CBSNews.com: Print This Story
? BSNES corn
Flight School Memo Named Bin Laden
NEW YORK. May 15, 2002
Pagc 1 of I
A memo by an FBI agent last summer urged the bureau's headquarters to investigate Middle Eastern man
use the schools for
enrolled in American flight schools and named Osama bin Laden, suggesting
terror operations, the New York Times reported Wednesday.
The memorandum said bin Laden's groups might be sending students to the flight schools to place Islamic
militants in the civil aviation industry around the world, the report added, citing government officials.
When four hijacked airliners plowed into the World Trade Center, the Pentagon and a field in Pennsylvania on
Sept 11 of last year, Middle Eastern men trained at U.S. flight schools were at the controls. The attacks killed
more than 3,000 people and destroyed the World Trade Center.
The mastermind was later identified as bin Laden.
According to the Times, the memo's existence had been known for months but it was not until recent weeks that
lawmakers and congressional staff gained full access to it. The memo's direct reference to bin Laden had not
been revealed before by the U.S. government.
"Robert S. Mueller III, who did not become director until two weeks before the attacks, has acknowledged that the
bureau gave the memo too little attention- Mr. Mueller has said the bureau lacked adequate analytical capabilities
to evaluate it, a failing that he has tried to correct by establishing new analytical units within the FBI and staffing
them with new personnel." the Times reported.
The Office of Intelligence within the bureau was formed as a direct result of this memorandum, the newspaper
said.
The memorandum was written by an FBI agent in Arizona conducting terrorism investigations of several Middle
Eastern men who were attending flight school in the area, according to the Times.
"Several lawmakers who have read the Phoenix memorandum described it as the most significant document to
emerge in congressional inquiries into whether the government might have been warned about possible
hijackings. Several senators said the letter represented a warning that went unheeded," the Times reported.
In August, an agent speculated in notes, made when investigators sought to explain why Zacarias Moussaoui was
enrolled in a Minnesota flight school, that he "might be planning to fly a plane into the World Trade Center," the
newspaper said.
Moussaoui. a French citizen, is on trial in Virginia on charges based on the premise that he was to be the 20th
hijacker on Sept. 11.
Law enforcement officials told the Times Tuesday "that when the memorandum was received electronically at
bureau headquarters In late July, counterterrorism agents reviewed it. But they took no action on its central
recommendation, which was to urge the bureau to compile information on the visa applications filled out by
foreign students seeking admission to aviation schools."
QMMII Reuters limited. All Rights Reserved.
- Feed hadc ? Terms of Servlca ? 2--L _S nt
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 CBSNews.com: Print This Story
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Page 2 of 2
a memo to FBI headquarters warning that there were a large number of Arabs seeking pilot, security and airport
operations training. The memo pointed to those statistics at one flight school and urged a check of all U.S. flight
schools to identify any other students from the Middle East.
The memo also makes a passing reference to bin Laden, speculating that al Qaeda and other such groups could
be behind a push for flight training. No evidence. however, was offered to back up that theory.
The FBI failed to make a connection between that warning and the August arrest of Zacanas Moussaoui - a
French citizen of Moroccan descent detained in Minnesota after raising suspicions among his instructors at a
flight school where he said he wanted to know how to fly, but not how to land or take off.
Moussaoul has emerged as the lone defendant charged in the aftermath of the attacks, which killed more than
3,000 people in New York, Washington and Pennsylvania. He is charged with conspiring with bin Laden and the
19 suicide hijackers to attack Americans.
FBI Director Robert Mueller has said repeatedly that he wishes the FBI had acted more aggressively in
addressing the Arizona and Minnesota leads. Mueller has also said that nothing the FBI possessed before Sept.
11 pointed to the plot.
When hijacked airliners plowed into the World Trade Center, the Pentagon and a field in Pennsylvania, Middle
Eastern men trained at U.S. flight schools were at the controls.
Earlier this month, Senate Intelligence Committee Chairman Bob Graham complained that the Justice
Department and CIA had not provided congressional investigators with adequate access to documents and
witnesses for a probe into intelligence failures related to the Sept. 11 attacks.
Graham said through a spokesman Wednesday that the revelations in the FBI memo mark an important discovery
in Congress' investigation into why the FBI, CIA and other U.S. agencies failed to learn of and prevent the Sept
11 plot
"It represents a failure to connect the dots," says Graham spokesman Paul Anderson. 'This was dismissed rather
lightly at FBI headquarters."
On Feb. 6, In his first public comments after the Sept 11 attacks, CIA Director George Tenet told a congressional
hearing that the CIA had seen "spectacular threat reporting about massive casualties against the United States"
in the spring and summer last year, but there was no specific information.
A U.S. Intelligence official, speaking on condition of anonymity, says the CIA had continuously informed
policymakers throughout the summer before Sept. 11 that bin Laden and his network might try to harm U.S.
interests and discussed a range of possibilities that included hijackings.
"That was among the many things that we talked about all the time as a potential terrorist threat," says the
intelligence official. "But when we talked about hijackings, we talked about that in the traditional sense of
hijackings, not in the sense of somebody hijacking an aircraft and flying it into building. We talked about t concern
about the general noise level about al Qaeda planning and we were trying figure out do. We
never had specifics about time, place, MO (method of operation)."
? MMII, CBS WoddwIde Inc. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten. or redistributed. The Associated Press and
Reuters Limited contributed to this report.
? Feedback ? Iamn-aLri-e-m-CA ' P. acv statement
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 ClaSNews.com: Print This Story
3(~BSNEWS.com
What Bush Knew Before Sept. 11
00 14
Page 1 of 2
President Bush was told in the months before the Sept. 11 attacks that Osama bin Laden's terrorist network might
hijack U.S. passenger planes - information which prompted the administration to issue an alert to federal agencies
- but not the American public.
CBS News National Security Correspondent David Martin says the warning was in a document called the
Presidents Dally Brief, which is considered to be the single most important document that the U.S. intelligence
community turns out. The document did not, however, mention the possibility of planes being flown into buildings.
An agent in the FBI's Arizona office did, however, speculate about that, writing in his case notes about Zacarias
Moussaoui that Moussaoul seemed like the type of person who was capable of flying an aircraft into the World
Trade Center.
It was the observation of an agent taking notes as he thought about his case - an observation whose significance
simply did not register at the time.
White House spokesman Ad Fleischer says that while President Bush was told last summer that bin Laden's at
Qaeda network might hijack planes, he did not receive information suggesting that airplanes might be used as
suicide bombs, as they were on Sept. 11.
Fleischer emphasizes that "until the attack took place, I think it's fair to say that no one envisioned that as a
possibility."
The revelation about the presidents security briefing comes as House and Senate Intelligence Committee
Investigators prepare for public hearings beginning next month on whether an intelligence community which
spends $30 billion a year should have been able to provide a more specific warning in advance of Sept. 11.
The New York Times reports that an FBI agent in Arizona warned his superiors last summer that bin Laden might
be sending students to U.S. flight schools.
Investigators have since Sept 11 suspected bin Laden's al Qaede network of masterminding the terror attacks on
America, which killed more than 3,000 people.
"There's been a long-standing awareness in the intelligence community, shared with the president, about the
potential for bin Laden to have hijackings," says Fleischer. "The information the president got dealt with hijackings
in the traditional sense - not suicide bombers, not using planes as missiles."
According to Fleischer, after the information was presented to President Bush, the administration put domestic
agencies on alert in the summer, just months before the Sept 11 attacks.
That alert was not announced publicly but Fleischer suggests it may have prompted the hijackers to change their
tactics.
"The administration, based on hijackings, notified the appropriate agencies and, I think, that's one of the reasons
that you saw that the people who committed the 9-11 attacks used box cutters and plastic knives to get around
America's system of protecting against hijackings," he said.
Fleischer does not say which agencies were put on alert and what they did in response.
In contrast, he says the Bush administration did go public last summer with a warning about terrorist threats on
the Arabian peninsula.
Fleischer's comments followed the New York Times report that an agent at the FBI's Arizona office last July sent
http://www.cbsnews.corn/stories/2002/05/15/attacklprintable509096.shtml 5/16/02
 `05/17/02 09:22 FAX [phone] @1017
But several lawmakers who have read the Phoenix memorandum described it as the most
significant document to emerge in Congressional inquiries into whether the government might have
been warned about possible hijackings. Several senators said the letter represented a warning that
went unheeded.
The memorandum may not be the only internal document embarrassing to the bureau. In
August, an agent speculated in notes, made when investigators sought to explain why Zacarias
Moussaoui was enrolled in a Minnesota flight school, that Mr. Moussaoui might be planning to fly a
plane into the World Trade Center. Mr. Moussaoui, a French citizen, who was soon arrested on
immigration charges, was believed by the United States government to be the intended 20th hijacker
on Sept. 11.
F.B.I. officials have said no information available to investigators before Sept. i 1 could have
prevented the attacks. Even though the Phoenix memorandum referred to Mr. bin Laden's possible
use of flight schools, nothing in the letter forecast the Sept. 11 plot. None of the Middle Eastern
men who were under investigation in Phoenix had any connection to Al Qaeda or to the Sept. 11
attacks, the officials added.
The bureau explanations have not satisfied some lawmakers. Today, Senator Patrick J. Leahy,
Democrat of Vermont and chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee, wrote to Mr. Mueller, the
bureau's director, asking for more information.
Law enforcement officials said today that when the memorandum was received electronically at
bureau headquarters in late July, counterterrorism agents reviewed it. But they took no action on its
central recommendation, which was to urge the bureau to compile information on the visa
applications filled out by foreign students seeking admission to aviation schools.
Several of the Sept 11 hijackers had studied at flight schools in states like Florida and
California. One was Mohamed Atta, who the authorities have concluded was the ringleader of the
plot.
Several lawmakers have expressed disbelief that the memorandum failed to set off alarms at
F.B.I. headquarters.
Today, however, law enforcement officials said the bureau agents who handled the
memorandum were not analysts but investigators who were deeply involved in other high priority
cases at the time, including a terror plot uncovered in France and the hunt for a suspect in the
October 2000 suicide attack on the Navy destroyer Cole in Yemen. The officials said these agents
believed they had little time left to investigate what was regarded at the time as a speculative
memorandum from Phoenix.
With hundreds of foreigners in flight schools around the country, officials at bureau
headquarters regarded the proposed investigative plan as a "sizable undertaking," one official said.
They decided to defer action until they had more time to consider the recommendation.
Instead, bureau officials in Washington referred the memorandum to two field offices. One was
the New York office, where Al Qaeda cases had been investigated. But no action was taken before
Sept. 11.
In addition, bureau officials have said the Phoenix memorandum had other problems. It was not
turned over to an agent in Minneapolis who in August began an investigation of Mr. Moussaoui.
 I of 1 DOCUMENT
Copyright 2002 The New York Times Company
The New York Times
May 15, 2002, Wednesday, Late Edition - Final
SECTION: Section A; Page 1; Column 5; National Desk
LENGTH: 1059 words
HEADLINE: PRE-ATTACK MEMO CITED BIN LADEN
BYLINE: By DAVID JOHNSTON
DATELINE: WASHINGTON, May 14
BODY:
The classified memorandum written by an F.B.I. agent in Phoenix last summer urging bureau
headquarters to investigate Middle Eastern men enrolled in American flight schools also cited
Osama bin Laden by name and suggested that his followers could use the schools to train for terror
operations, government officials said for the first time today.
The memorandum said terrorist groups like Mr. bin Laden's might be sending students to the
schools as the first step in what could be a concerted effort to place Islamic militants in the civil
aviation industry around the world as pilots, security guards or aircraft-maintenance workers.
The memorandum's existence has been known for months, but few details were available until
recent weeks, when some lawmakers and Congressional staff members were allowed to read it.
Before today government officials bad not revealed that the memorandum included direct
references to Mr. bin Laden.
Robert S. Mueller III, who did not become director until two weeks before the attacks, has
acknowledged that the bureau gave the memo too little attention. Mr. Mueller has said the bureau
lacked adequate analytical capabilities to evaluate it, a failing that be has tried to correct by
establishing new analytical units within the F.B.I. and staffing them with new personnel.
One such unit is the Office of Intelligence within the bureau, formed as a direct result of this
memorandum. The purpose of the office is assemble and evaluate information related to terrorist
threats and to disseminate this information within the bureau or to other federal agencies.
The memorandum was written by an F.B.I. agent in Arizona conducting terrorism
investigations of several Middle Eastern men who were attending flight school in the area. People
who have read the memorandum said it did not identify anyone by name as a Qaeda follower, did
not specify which flight schools should be investigated or explicitly predict the Sept. 11 attacks.
 Mr. Moussaoui, who was later charged with conspiring with Mr. bin Laden in the Sept. 11
attacks, represented a puzzling case. Bureau agents believed Mr. Moussaoui might be preparing for
a terrorist action but had no evidence that he had broken the law.
Mr. Moussaoui had told the school's instructors that he wanted to train on a flight simulator trip
from Heathrow Airport in London to Kennedy Airport in New York.
Based on that information, one agent speculated in an internal meeting last August that Mr.
Moussaoui might have intended to crash a plane into the trade center, officials said, confirming a
report first published in this week's issue of Newsweek.
Other agents had different theories, involving 747 aircraft, which Mr. Moussaoui wanted to pilot
in simulation flights. In a final interview with Mr. Moussaoui, the Minneapolis agent confronted
him with the bureau's suspicion that he was preparing for a terrorist operation, but did not ask
whether he meant to fly into the trade center towers.
Mr. Moussaoui insisted he had no plans to break the law.
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LOAD-DATE: May 15, 2002