A Review of the FBI's Handling of Intelligence Information Related to the September 11 Attacks (Chapter Reading)

I read from the FBI's Office of the Inspector General (OIG) report which was publicly released in June 2006. This section of the report concentrates on the intelligence community data which the IG report puts in chronological order before the September 11th 2001 terrorist attacks. There are eight major data points reported by the IG, including the first cable regarding al-Mihdhar in Malaysia, the discussion between CIA and FBI employees about Malaysia meetings, cables regarding al-Hazmi’s travel to the United States and the OIG findings regarding the FBI’s knowledge about Khalid al-Mihdhar and the Malaysia summit meetings held by major Al Qaeda leadership and their affiliate, Jemmah Islamiyyah, which are a Salafist group based in Indonesia. The FBI OIG found that the CIA did not share significant pieces of this information with the FBI and that al-Mihdhar had a U.S. visa and that al-Hazmi had traveled to Los Angeles. A Review of the FBI's Handling of Intelligence Information Related to the September 11 Attacks: Chapter Five, Part Three (Factual chronology regarding Hazmi and Mihdhar)

I read from the FBI's Office of the Inspector General (OIG) report which was publicly released in June 2006. This section of the report concentrates on the intelligence community data regarding two Al Qaeda operatives, Khalid al-Mihdhar and Nawaf al-Hazmi while in San Diego, California. This section of the report covers both al-Mihdhar and al-Hazmi entering the United States thru Los Angeles, their connection to a Saudi government employee, Omar al-Bayoumi, their association with an FBI asset beginning in May 2000 and information gleaned from the FBI asset. A Review of the FBI's Handling of Intelligence Information Related to the September 11 Attacks: Chapter Five, Part Three (Khalid al-Mihdhar & Nawaf al-Hazmi In San Diego

In this section of the report, I read from the The FBI Office Of The Inspector General Report, Chapter Five, Chapter Two, Section C: FBI detailers to the CIA Counterterrorist Center. This area details the FBI agents tasked to the CIA's Counter-terrorism center unit, Bin Laden Issue Station "Alec Station". A Review of the FBI's Handling of Intelligence Information Related to the September 11 Attacks

I read from the FBI's Office of the Inspector General (OIG) report which was publicly released in June 2006. In this section of the chapter, the report describes background information relevant to the interactions between the CIA and the FBI and the ways in which they exchanged intelligence. The chapter begins with a discussion of the CIA’s authority and mission, organization, forms of communications, and ways in which the CIA passed intelligence to the FBI. It also discusses the role of the FBI’s employees who were “detailed” to work at the CIA. The section im reading from is Chapter Five: Two September 11 Hijackers: Khalid Al-Mihdhar and Nawaf Al-Hazmi: Chapter 2 Part B: Background on the CIA. A Review of the FBI's Handling of Intelligence Information Related to the September 11 Attacks: Chapter Five: Two September 11 Hijackers: Khalid Al-Mihdhar and Nawaf Al-Hazmi: Chapter 2 Part B: Background on the CIA

I read from the FBI's Office of the Inspector General (OIG) report which was publicly released in June 2006. In this section of the chapter, the report describes the third potential opportunity for the FBI to acquire information about Nawaf al-Hazmi and Khalid al-Mihdhar which occurred in January 2001, when a joint FBI/CIA source identified an al Qaeda operative (Khallad) in photographs of the January 2000 Malaysia meetings that Hazmi and Mihdhar had attended. However, the FBI has asserted that it did not learn of the source’s identification of the al Qaeda operative at the Malaysia meetings until much later in 2001, just before the September 11 attacks. This section of the report describes the events surrounding this third opportunity for the FBI to focus on Hazmi and Mihdhar. A Review of the FBI's Handling of Intelligence Information Related to the September 11 Attacks: Chapter Five, Part Three (Mihdhar’s Association With Khallad, The Purported Mastermind Of The Cole Attack: Background)

I read from the FBI's Office of the Inspector General (OIG) report which was publicly released in June 2006. In this section of the chapter, by mid-2000, Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) personnel arranged for FBI Legal Attaché (Legat) Office personnel overseas to meet a source who had substantial information on Bin Laden and his operatives and operations. Beginning in 2000, the CIA and FBI began to debrief the source on a regular basis. Over the course of several months, the source frequently was shown photographs and asked to identify people in them. The source described an individual known as “Khallad” as a trusted senior Bin Laden operative with potential connections to the East African embassy bombings. A Review of the FBI's Handling of Intelligence Information Related to the September 11 Attacks: Chapter Five, Part Three (Mihdhar’s Association With Khallad, The Purported Mastermind Of The Cole Attack: Source’s identification Of Khallad)

I read from the FBI's Office of the Inspector General (OIG) report which was publicly released in June 2006. In this section of the chapter, the Office of the Inspector General concluded that the evidence shows that the FBI was not made aware that during the early January 2001 debriefing the source identified Khallad in the photographs of the Malaysia meetings. Due to the OIG’s lack of complete access to CIA employees and documents, we were unable to fully examine why the CIA did not inform the New York agents that the source had identified Khallad in the Kuala Lumpur photographs at the early January debriefing. A Review of the FBI's Handling of Intelligence Information Related to the September 11 Attacks: Chapter Five, Part Three (OIG Conclusions Regarding Whether The FBI Was Aware Of The Source’s Identification Of Khallad In The Kuala Lumpur Photograph)

I read from the FBI's Office of the Inspector General (OIG) report which was publicly released in June 2006. In this section of the chapter, the Office of the Inspector General discusses the meeting between FBI and CIA at the New York FBI Office to discuss the Cole investigation. Toward the end of the meeting, FBI agent Margaret Gillespie (in the OIG report she is Donna) produced three Kuala Lumpur surveillance photographs and asked the agents if they recognized Fahad al-Quso in any of the photographs. "Donna" said she told the agents that the photographs had been taken in Malaysia around the Millennium. "Donna" said she provided Khalid al-Mihdhar’s name to at least some of the agents present. A New York agent tentatively identified one of the pictured individuals as al-Quso, but he could not make a definitive identification. This caused some participants to question whether the CIA were intentionally with holding information relating to the Al Qaeda Kuala Lumpur Meeting. A Review of the FBI's Handling of Intelligence Information Related to the September 11 Attacks: Chapter Five, Part Four (FBI And CIA Discussions About The Cole investigation In May And June 2001: June 11,2001)

I read from the FBI's Office of the Inspector General (OIG) report which was publicly released in June 2006. In this section of the chapter, the fifth and final opportunity for the FBI to locate Khalid al-Mihdhar and Nawaf al-Hazmi occur in late August 2001, when it was informed that Mihdhar and Hazmi had traveled to the United States. The FBI learned in August 2001 that Mihdhar had entered the United States in July 2001 and that Mihdhar and Hazmi had previously traveled together to the United States in January 2000. On August 29, the FBI began an investigation to locate Mihdhar, but it did not assign great urgency or priority to the investigation. The New York FBI criminal agents who wanted to participate in the investigation were specifically prohibited from doing so because of concerns about the wall and the procedures to keep criminal and intelligence investigations separate. The FBI did not locate Mihdhar before the September 11 attacks. A Review of the FBI's Handling of Intelligence Information Related to the September 11 Attacks: Chapter Three, Section E (Continuing Review Of The Malaysia Meetings In July And August 2001)

I read from the FBI's Office of the Inspector General (OIG) report which was publicly released in June 2006. In this section of the chapter, On August 21, Mary (Margaret Gillespie) located the CIA cables referencing Nawaf al-Hazmi’s travel to the United States on January 15, 2000. Mary checked with a U.S. Customs Service representative to the CTC about Hazmi’s and Mihdhar’s travel. She discovered that Mihdhar had entered the United States on July 4, 2001, and had not departed. In addition, she confirmed that Hazmi had traveled to the United States in January 2000. A Review of the FBI's Handling of Intelligence Information Related to the September 11 Attacks: Chapter Three, Section E (Discovery Of Khalid al-Mihdhar’s Entry Into The United States)