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82-673: The club was conceived by Derrick Mickle in April 2000, upon learning of the success of the Washington Renegades RFC , established in October 1998 as the first gay/inclusive ruby club in the United States. Through an outreach effort, he recruited the assistance of Cameron Geddes and Bryce Eberhart to help found and start the club. All three had played for their college rugby teams and leveraged their experiences to shape

164-616: A CIA agent assigned to the FBI's international terrorism division, emailed his superiors at the CIA's Counterterrorism Center (CTC) requesting permission to inform the FBI that Hazmi was in the country and that Mihdhar had a U.S. visa. The CIA never responded. The same day, Margarette Gillespie, an FBI analyst working in the CTC, was told to review material about the Malaysia meeting. She was not told of

246-802: A commercial pilot's license. Hanjour arrived in San Diego on December 8, 2000, joining Hazmi. They soon left for Arizona, where Hanjour took refresher training. Marwan al-Shehhi arrived at the end of May 2000, while Atta arrived on June 3, 2000, and Jarrah arrived on June 27, 2000. Bin al-Shibh applied several times for a visa to the United States, but as a Yemeni, he was rejected out of concerns he would overstay his visa. Bin al-Shibh stayed in Hamburg, providing coordination between Atta and Mohammed. The three Hamburg cell members all took pilot training in South Florida at Huffman Aviation . In

328-566: A few theories that 9/11 was selected by the hijackers as the date of the attack because it resembled 9-1-1 , the phone number used to report emergencies in the United States. However, Lawrence Wright wrote that the hijackers chose the date when John III Sobieski , the King of Poland and Grand Duke of Lithuania , began the battle that turned back the Ottoman Empire 's Muslim armies that were attempting to capture Vienna in 1683. Vienna

410-572: A group of men from Hamburg , Germany, arrived in Afghanistan. The group included Mohamed Atta , Marwan al-Shehhi , Ziad Jarrah , and Ramzi bin al-Shibh. Bin Laden selected these men because they were educated, could speak English, and had experience living in the West. New recruits were routinely screened for special skills and al-Qaeda leaders consequently discovered that Hani Hanjour already had

492-500: A matter for the FBI". By late June, senior counter-terrorism official Richard Clarke and CIA director George Tenet were "convinced that a major series of attacks was about to come", although the CIA believed the attacks would likely occur in Saudi Arabia or Israel. In early July, Clarke put domestic agencies on "full alert", telling them, "Something spectacular is going to happen here, and it's going to happen soon". He asked

574-462: A movement Bingham's death was a catalyst for setting into motion. On top of the many books, movies, television segments and articles about Bingham himself, the Bingham Cup tournament itself has been the subject of numerous documentaries and press articles. Hoagland became a 9/11 activist and, perhaps unexpectedly, a "gay-rugby godmother" and beloved figure of the gay rugby movement. She presented

656-622: A non-profit organization in the State of California soon after, with Mickle, Geddes and Eberhart as its first elected officers. Mickle served as president for the club's first two years and was the driving organizational force behind running the club during those initial years. The club started from an enviable foundation of solid financial resources; a critical mass of players with prior rugby experience; and an experienced coach skilled at developing new players who had little-to-no team sports experience. As word spread through San Francisco's gay community,

738-465: A period of transition, having just relocated back to Afghanistan from Sudan . The 1998 African embassy bombings and bin Laden's February 1998 fatwā marked a turning point of al-Qaeda's terrorist operation, as bin Laden became intent on attacking the United States. In late 1998 or early 1999, bin Laden approved Mohammed to go forward with organizing the plot. Atef provided operational support, including target selections and helping arrange travel for

820-594: A religion that will prevent it from destroying all people. So we tell the Americans as people and we tell the mothers of soldiers and American mothers in general that if they value their lives and the lives of their children, to find a nationalistic government that will look after their interests and not the interests of the Jews . The continuation of tyranny will bring the fight to America, as [the 1993 World Trade Center bomber] Ramzi [Yousef] yourself and others did. This

902-623: A rugby player and local in New York City. The two made plans to start an inclusive rugby club there after Bingham's move. It was on his way back from a planning/business trip to New York City that Bingham became one of the heroes of the September 11, 2001 attacks on the United States. Bingham is believed to have been among the passengers to storm the cockpit of Flight 93 , which was downed in Shanksville, Pennsylvania. Some speculate

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984-571: A segment that aired October 16, 2001. The segment, "Good Sports, Good Men", reported by Mary Carillo and produced by Nick Dolin, is a very personal look at Bingham's relationship with the San Francisco Fog as a member of the club. The title is taken from Bingham's email to the team upon acceptance to the Northern California Rugby Football Union in spring 2001. Given his years playing rugby, Bingham

1066-537: A source of aspiration and inspiration for his teammates. In May 2001, the Washington Renegades hosted an IGRAB International Invitational for gay rugby union teams in Washington D.C., United States. The event was officially a rugby sevens tournament among the existing IGR teams at the time. In addition to the tournament, there were exhibition rugby union (XVs) matches. In the exhibition match between

1148-439: A statement by him on September 16, 2001: "I stress that I have not carried out this act, which appears to have been carried out by individuals with their own motivation". In November 2001, U.S. forces recovered a videotape in which bin Laden, talking to Khaled al-Harbi , admitted foreknowledge of the attacks. On December 27, 2001, a second video of bin Laden was released in which he, stopping short of admitting responsibility for

1230-470: A telephone call mentioning the meeting, Mihdhar, and the name "Nawaf" (Hazmi); while the agency feared "Something nefarious might be afoot", it took no further action. The CIA had already been alerted by Saudi intelligence about Mihdhar and Hazmi being Al-Qaeda members. A CIA team broke into Mihdhar's Dubai hotel room and discovered that Mihdhar had a U.S. visa. While Alec Station alerted intelligence agencies worldwide, it did not share this information with

1312-490: Is a stub . You can help Misplaced Pages by expanding it . This article about a lesbian, gay, bisexual, or transgender -related organization is a stub . You can help Misplaced Pages by expanding it . This article about a sports team in Washington, D.C. is a stub . You can help Misplaced Pages by expanding it . September 11 attacks The September 11 attacks , commonly known as 9/11 , were four coordinated Islamist terrorist suicide attacks carried out by al-Qaeda against

1394-535: Is awarded twice yearly in the spring and fall for excellence in heraldic design. The club is well known in the San Francisco rugby community for sponsoring free "Rugby 101" beginner's clinics, where people who have never played rugby before can try out the game. The club also publishes a guide to fundamentals and another on how to buy a kit for a new player. The San Francisco Fog also promote the culture of rugby by making available many traditional rugby songs and

1476-556: Is my message to the American people: to look for a serious government that looks out for their interests and does not attack others, their lands, or their honor. My word to American journalists is not to ask why we did that but to ask what their government has done that forced us to defend ourselves. Bin Laden orchestrated the September 11 attacks. He initially denied involvement, but later recanted his denial. Al Jazeera broadcast

1558-615: Is often taken to represent clouds, water, or air, suitable for a team named after San Francisco's most famous meteorological phenomenon. The stars (or "mullets") stand for the club's three constituencies: the players, the coaching staff, and the supporters. In 2007, the American Heraldry Society's Fall 2007 Design Award was made to the San Francisco Fog Rugby Football Club for its distinctive coat of arms. The Society's Design Award

1640-406: The 1982 Lebanon War . Some analysts, including political scientists John Mearsheimer and Stephen Walt , also claimed that U.S. support of Israel was a motive for the attacks. In 2004 and 2010, bin Laden again connected the September 11 attacks with U.S. support of Israel, although most of the letters expressed bin Laden's disdain for President Bush and bin Laden's hope to "destroy and bankrupt"

1722-922: The 9/11 Commission in April 2004, then— Attorney General John Ashcroft recalled that the "single greatest structural cause for the September 11th problem was the wall that segregated or separated criminal investigators and intelligence agents". Clarke also wrote: "[T]here were... failures to get information to the right place at the right time". Early on the morning of Tuesday, September 11, 2001, nineteen hijackers took control of four commercial airliners (two Boeing 757s and two Boeing 767s ). Large planes with long flights were selected for hijacking because they would have more fuel. * Eastern Daylight Time (UTC−04:00) Excluding hijackers Including emergency workers Including hijackers At 7:59 a.m., American Airlines Flight 11 took off from Logan International Airport in Boston . Fifteen minutes into

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1804-655: The Arabian Peninsula . In a second 1998 fatwā , bin Laden outlined his objections to American foreign policy with respect to Israel , as well as the continued presence of American troops in Saudi Arabia after the Gulf War . Bin Laden maintained that Muslims are obliged to attack American targets until the aggressive policies of the U.S. against Muslims were reversed. The Hamburg cell in Germany included Islamists who eventually came to be key operatives in

1886-577: The Central Intelligence Agency informed President George W. Bush that its Counterterrorism Center had identified the attacks as having been the work of Al-Qaeda under Osama bin Laden . The United States formally responded by launching the war on terror and invading Afghanistan to depose the Taliban , which rejected U.S. terms to expel Al-Qaeda from Afghanistan and extradite its leaders. The U.S.'s invocation of Article 5 of

1968-723: The INS , the State Department, the Customs Service , and the FBI to put Hazmi and Mihdhar on their watchlists, but the FBI was prohibited from using criminal agents in searching for the duo, hindering their efforts. Also in July, a Phoenix -based FBI agent sent a message to FBI headquarters, Alec Station, and FBI agents in New York alerting them to "the possibility of a coordinated effort by Osama bin Laden to send students to

2050-591: The South Tower . Both collapsed within an hour and forty-one minutes, bringing about the destruction of the remaining five structures in the complex and damaging or destroying nearby buildings. American Airlines Flight 77 flew towards Washington, D.C. and crashed into the Pentagon at 9:37 a.m., causing a partial collapse. The fourth and final flight, United Airlines Flight 93 , also changed course towards Washington, believed by investigators to target either

2132-819: The United States Capitol or the White House . Alerted to the previous attacks, the passengers revolted against the hijackers who crashed the aircraft into a field near Shanksville, Pennsylvania , at 10:03 a.m. The Federal Aviation Administration ordered an indefinite ground stop for all air traffic in U.S. airspace, preventing any further aircraft departures until September 13 and requiring all airborne aircraft to return to their point of origin or divert to Canada. The actions undertaken in Canada to support incoming aircraft and their occupants were collectively titled Operation Yellow Ribbon . That evening,

2214-578: The World Trade Center and the Pentagon. Another video obtained by Al Jazeera in September 2006 showed bin Laden with one of the attacks' chief planners, Ramzi bin al-Shibh , as well as hijackers, Hamza al-Ghamdi and Wail al-Shehri , amidst making preparations for the attacks. Journalist Yosri Fouda of the Arabic television channel Al Jazeera reported that in April 2002, al-Qaeda member Khalid Sheikh Mohammed admitted his involvement in

2296-595: The World Trade Center site (colloquially "Ground Zero") took eight months and was completed in May 2002, while the Pentagon was repaired within a year. After delays in the design of a replacement complex, six new buildings were planned to replace the lost towers, along with a museum and memorial dedicated to those who were killed or injured in the attacks. The tallest building, One World Trade Center , began construction in November 2006; it opened in November 2014. Memorials to

2378-462: The 1998 fatwa , al-Qaeda identified the Iraq sanctions as a reason to kill Americans, condemning the "protracted blockade" among other actions that constitute a declaration of war against "Allah, his messenger, and Muslims". In 2004, bin Laden claimed that the idea of destroying the towers had first occurred to him in 1982 when he witnessed Israel's bombardment of high-rise apartment buildings during

2460-450: The 9/11 attacks were a strategic move to provoke America into a war that would incite a pan-Islamic revolution. Documents seized during the 2011 operation that killed bin Laden included notes handwritten by bin Laden in September 2002 with the heading "The Birth of the Idea of September 11". He describes how he was inspired by the crash of EgyptAir Flight 990 on October 31, 1999, which

2542-459: The 9/11 attacks. Mohamed Atta ; Marwan al-Shehhi ; Ziad Jarrah ; Ramzi bin al-Shibh; and Said Bahaji were all members of al-Qaeda's Hamburg cell. Bin Laden asserted that all Muslims must wage a defensive war against the United States and combat American aggression. He further argued that military strikes against American assets would send a message to the American people , attempting to force

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2624-645: The CIA's Presidential Daily Brief, designated "For the President Only", was entitled Bin Ladin Determined To Strike in US . The memo noted that FBI information "indicates patterns of suspicious activity in this country consistent with preparations for hijackings or other types of attacks". In mid-August, one Minnesota flight school alerted the FBI about Zacarias Moussaoui , who had asked "suspicious questions". The FBI found that Moussaoui

2706-574: The FBI and the State Department to alert the embassies and police departments, and the Defense Department to go to "Threat Condition Delta". Clarke later wrote: Somewhere in CIA there was information that two known al Qaeda terrorists had come into the United States. Somewhere in the FBI, there was information that strange things had been going on at flight schools in the United States.   [...] They had specific information about individual terrorists from which one could have deduced what

2788-520: The FBI. The Malaysian Special Branch observed the January 5, 2000, meeting of the two al-Qaeda members and informed the CIA that Mihdhar, Hazmi, and Khallad were flying to Bangkok , but the CIA never notified other agencies of this, nor did it ask the State Department to put Mihdhar on its watchlist. An FBI liaison asked permission to inform the FBI of the meeting but was told: "This is not

2870-546: The Fog and the Renegades, the two played against each other for the first time in a XVs match. The Fog won 19–0. Bingham was a critical player for the team, and instrumental to the Fog's wins during the tournament. By summer 2001, Bingham was planning to move his public relations business to New York City in fall 2001 and relocated there himself permanently. Inspired by the success of the Fog, Bingham connected with Scott Glaessgen,

2952-597: The Fog as a founding member club. Originally called the International Gay Rugby Association and Board (IGRAB), IGR is currently recognised by World Rugby as the representative organization of the LGBT and inclusive rugby community, up to the point they both have signed a Memorandum of Understanding outlining a commitment between the two organizations to work together to educate and eliminate homophobia in rugby. The Fog formally incorporated as

3034-651: The Fog's most famous member was Mark Bingham , who joined the club in February 2001. Bingham had been a rugby player since his teenage years, and played on the rugby team at the University of California, Berkeley, a team consistently rated among of the best collegiate rugby teams in the United States. Derrick Mickle first met Mark Bingham and Jason Reimuller in fall 1998 while playing on a gay flag football team in San Francisco. The three bonded over their shared experience playing rugby in college. Bored with flag football,

3116-623: The North Atlantic Treaty —its only usage to date—called upon allies to fight al-Qaeda. As U.S. and NATO invasion forces swept through Afghanistan, bin Laden eluded them . He denied any involvement until 2004 , when excerpts of a taped statement in which he accepted responsibility for the attacks were released. Al-Qaeda's cited motivations included U.S. support of Israel , the presence of U.S. military bases in Saudi Arabia and sanctions against Iraq . The nearly decade-long manhunt for bin Laden concluded on May 2, 2011, when he

3198-416: The Pentagon , which contains more than 64,000 workers, a military base which has a big concentration of army and intelligence ... As for the World Trade Center , the ones who were attacked and who died in it were part of a financial power. It wasn't a children's school! Neither was it a residence. The consensus is that most of the people who were in the towers were men who backed the biggest financial force in

3280-632: The San Francisco Fog successfully lobbied IGR for the right to put on the Bingham Cup tournament, a XVs rugby tournament in San Francisco in June 2002. Eight teams traveled to San Francisco during Pride weekend of June 28–29, 2002 to compete over two days with the Fog coming out on top as the Cup's first winners. The event was held in San Francisco's Golden Gate Park. It was organized by Chris Zerlaut, who secured sponsorship from Nike and Guinness. The tournament

3362-557: The U.S. Other motives have been suggested in addition to those stated by bin Laden and al-Qaeda. Some authors suggested the "humiliation" that resulted from the Islamic world falling behind the Western world—this discrepancy was rendered especially visible by globalization and a desire to provoke the U.S. into a broader war against the Islamic world in the hope of motivating more allies to support al-Qaeda. Similarly, others have argued

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3444-454: The U.S. economy and induced global market shocks . Many other countries strengthened anti-terrorism legislation and expanded their powers of law enforcement and intelligence agencies . The total number of deaths caused by the attacks, combined with the death tolls from the conflicts they directly incited, has been estimated by the Costs of War Project to be over 4.5 million. Cleanup of

3526-508: The U.S. to re-evaluate its support to Israel , and other aggressive policies. In a 1998 interview with American journalist John Miller , bin Laden stated: We do not differentiate between those dressed in military uniforms and civilians; they are all targets in this fatwa. American history does not distinguish between civilians and military, not even women and children. They are the ones who used bombs against Nagasaki. Can these bombs distinguish between infants and military? America does not have

3608-551: The United States in 2001. Nineteen terrorists hijacked four commercial airliners, crashing the first two into the Twin Towers of the World Trade Center in New York City and the third into the Pentagon (headquarters of the U.S. Department of Defense ) in Arlington County, Virginia . The fourth plane crashed in rural Pennsylvania during a passenger revolt. The September 11 attacks killed 2,977 people, making it

3690-438: The United States to attend civil aviation universities and colleges". The agent, Kenneth Williams, suggested the need to interview flight school managers and identify all Arab students seeking flight training. In July, Jordan alerted the U.S. that al-Qaeda was planning an attack on the U.S.; "months later", Jordan notified the U.S. that the attack's codename was "The Big Wedding" and that it involved airplanes. On August 6, 2001,

3772-800: The attacks include the National September 11 Memorial & Museum in New York City, the Pentagon Memorial in Arlington County, Virginia, and the Flight 93 National Memorial at the Pennsylvania crash site. In 1996, Osama bin Laden of the Islamist militant organization al-Qaeda issued his first fatwā , which declared war against the United States and demanded the expulsion of all American soldiers from

3854-845: The attacks and said they were carried out because: The events that affected my soul in a direct way started in 1982 when America permitted the Israelis to invade Lebanon and the American Sixth Fleet helped them in that. This bombardment began and many were killed and injured and others were terrorised and displaced. I couldn't forget those moving scenes, blood and severed limbs, women and children sprawled everywhere. Houses were destroyed along with their occupants, high rises demolished over their residents, rockets raining down on our home without mercy...As I looked at those demolished towers in Lebanon, it entered my mind that we should punish

3936-468: The attacks as retaliatory strikes against American atrocities against Muslims across the world. He also maintained that the attacks were not directed against women and children, asserting that the targets of the strikes were symbols of America's "economic and military power". In bin Laden's November 2002 Letter to the American People , he identified al-Qaeda's motives for the attacks: After

4018-408: The attacks, along with Ramzi bin al-Shibh. The 2004 9/11 Commission Report determined that the animosity which Mohammed, the principal architect of the 9/11 attacks, felt towards the United States had stemmed from his "violent disagreement with U.S. foreign policy favoring Israel". Mohammed was also an adviser and financier of the 1993 World Trade Center bombing and the uncle of Ramzi Yousef ,

4100-402: The attacks, bin Laden and Ayman al-Zawahiri released additional recordings , some of which repeated the above reasons. Two relevant publications were bin Laden's 2002 Letter to the American People and a 2004 videotape by bin Laden. [...] those young men, for whom God has cleared the way, didn't set out to kill children, but rather attacked the biggest centre of military power in the world,

4182-469: The attacks, said: It has become clear that the West in general and America in particular have an unspeakable hatred for Islam.   ... It is the hatred of crusaders . Terrorism against America deserves to be praised because it was a response to injustice, aimed at forcing America to stop its support for Israel, which kills our people.   ... We say that the end of the United States is imminent, whether Bin Laden or his followers are alive or dead, for

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4264-522: The awakening of the Muslim ummah [nation] has occurred.   ... It is important to hit the economy (of the United States), which is the base of its military power...If the economy is hit they will become reoccupied. Shortly before the 2004 U.S. presidential election , bin Laden used a taped statement to publicly acknowledge al-Qaeda's involvement in the attacks. He admitted his direct link to

4346-416: The club a few months after the club's first practices. Like all team members who joined the Fog in its first year, Bingham is considered a founding member of the team. Although Bingham had no formal leadership role in the club and was not involved in the organizing efforts to start the club, his charismatic leadership; hard-hitting, but supportive and encouraging playing style; and elevated level of play were

4428-555: The club held its inaugural International Rugby Invitational, which included teams from San Francisco , Manchester , England and Buenos Aires . Also attending were individual players from Chicago , London and Melbourne . In 2002 and 2004, the club participated in the IGRAB Rugby Festival and Mark Bingham Cup, named for former UC Berkeley and San Francisco Fog RFC rugby player Mark Bingham , who died on September 11, 2001. This American rugby union team article

4510-541: The club quickly added players. The club was 40+ players strong, including a handful of non-gay players, when it was admitted to the Northern California Rugby Football Union in spring 2001 with a unanimous vote. The club had its first union match against the Bay Area Barracus on April 7, 2001, one year after the club's conception. The club joined regular Division III union play, in the fall of 2001. The club observed its 20th anniversary on October 14, 2020. Perhaps

4592-774: The cup to the winners of every staged Bingham Cup until her death December 22, 2020 at age 71. The men's side competes seasonally in Division III of the Northern California Rugby Football Union (NCRFU), a division of USA Rugby . It competes in the International Gay Rugby (IGR) season. Within IGR, the club competes every two years for the Bingham Cup, winning the first two tournaments in 2002 (San Francisco, California, United States) and 2004 (London, England). Other tournaments

4674-504: The deadliest terrorist attack in history as well as the deadliest incident for firefighters and law enforcement personnel in American history, killing 343 and 72 members, respectively. The loss of life stemming from the impact of Flight 11 made it the most lethal multi-plane crash in aviation history followed by the death toll incurred by Flight 175. The destruction of the World Trade Center and its environs seriously harmed

4756-598: The deadliest terrorist attack in history. In response to the attacks, the United States waged the multi-decade global war on terror to eliminate hostile groups deemed terrorist organizations, as well as the foreign governments purported to support them. Ringleader Mohamed Atta flew American Airlines Flight 11 into the North Tower of the World Trade Center complex in Lower Manhattan at 8:46 a.m. Seventeen minutes later, United Airlines Flight 175 hit

4838-478: The direction and serious purpose of the club. With the unexpected financial backing of an anonymous donor in summer 2000, the club's organizing efforts accelerated in August and September 2000. The club had its first practice with nine players on October 14, 2000. Later that month, the club teamed up with other gay and bisexual rugby union teams worldwide to create International Gay Rugby (IGR) in October 2000, with

4920-505: The flight, five hijackers armed with boxcutters took over the plane, injuring at least three people (and possibly killing one) before forcing their way into the cockpit. The terrorists also displayed an apparent explosive and sprayed mace into the cabin, to frighten the hostages into submission and further hinder resistance. Back at Logan, United Airlines Flight 175 took off at 8:14 a.m. Hundreds of miles southwest at Dulles International Airport , American Airlines Flight 77 left

5002-414: The game originated. The team's coat of arms consists of three silver stars within a black diagonal stripe on a wavy blue-and-silver background. In heraldry terms, the coat of arms is blazoned " barry nebuly of six argent and azure , on a bend sable three mullets of the first". The coat of arms elements represent various aspects of the club. The patterned background is called barry nebuly, and

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5084-531: The gate at 8:00 a.m., the plane was running 42 minutes late. At 8:46 a.m., Flight 11 was deliberately crashed into the north face of the World Trade Center's North Tower between the 93rd and 99th floors. The initial presumption by many was that it was an accident. At 8:51 a.m., American Airlines Flight 77 was also taken over by five hijackers who forcibly entered the cockpit 31 minutes after take-off. Although they were equipped with knives, there were no reports of anyone on board being stabbed, nor did

5166-751: The hijackers. Bin Laden overruled Mohammed, rejecting potential targets such as the U.S. Bank Tower in Los Angeles for lack of time. Bin Laden provided leadership and financial support and was involved in selecting participants. He initially selected Nawaf al-Hazmi and Khalid al-Mihdhar , both experienced jihadists who had fought in Bosnia . Hazmi and Mihdhar arrived in the United States in mid-January 2000. In early 2000, Hazmi and Mihdhar took flying lessons in San Diego, California. Both spoke little English, performed poorly in flying lessons, and eventually served as secondary "muscle" hijackers. In late 1999,

5248-456: The lead bomber in that attack. In late 1994, Mohammed and Yousef moved on to plan a new terrorist attack called the Bojinka plot planned for January 1995. Despite a failure and Yousef's capture by U.S. forces the following month, the Bojinka plot would influence the later 9/11 attacks. In "Substitution for Testimony of Khalid Sheikh Mohammed" from the trial of Zacarias Moussaoui , five people are identified as having been completely aware of

5330-403: The operation's details. They are bin Laden, Khalid Sheikh Mohammed, Ramzi bin al-Shibh , Abu Turab al-Urduni and Mohammed Atef . Osama bin Laden's declaration of a holy war against the United States, and a 1998 fatwā signed by bin Laden and others that called for the killing of Americans, are seen by investigators as evidence of his motivation. In November 2001, bin Laden defended

5412-464: The oppressor in kind and that we should destroy towers in America so that they taste some of what we tasted and so that they be deterred from killing our women and children. And that day, it was confirmed to me that oppression and the intentional killing of innocent women and children is a deliberate American policy. Destruction is freedom and democracy, while resistance is terrorism and intolerance. Bin Laden personally directed his followers to attack

5494-439: The organization-including Abu Hafs the Mauritanian , Sheikh Saeed al Masri , and Sayf al Adl . One senior al Qaeda operative claims to recall Bin Ladin arguing that attacks against the United States needed to be carried out immediately to support insurgency in the Israeli-occupied territories and protest the presence of U.S. forces in Saudi Arabia. —  9/11 Commission Report , p. 251 On July 13, Tom Wilshire,

5576-471: The participant's presence in the U.S. The CIA gave Gillespie surveillance photos of Mihdhar and Hazmi from the meeting to show to FBI counterterrorism but did not tell her their significance. The Intelink database informed her not to share intelligence material with criminal investigators. When shown the photos, the FBI refused more details on their significance, and they were not given Mihdhar's date of birth or passport number. In late August 2001, Gillespie told

5658-411: The plane's destination was the U.S. Capitol building. Bingham was 31. Carrying on with Bingham's intention, Glaessgen went on to recruit others to found the Gotham Knights , New York City's gay/inclusive rugby club. In the months following the events of September 11, 2001, the club was the focus of much media attention. Significantly, the team was profiled on HBO's Real Sports with Bryant Gumbel in

5740-530: The runway at 8:20 a.m. Flight 175's journey proceeded normally for 28 minutes until 8:42 am, when a group of five hijacked the plane, murdering both pilots and stabbing several crew members before assuming control of the aircraft. These hijackers also used bomb threats to instil fear into the passengers and crew, also spraying chemical weapons to disable any opposition. Concurrently, United Airlines Flight 93 departed from Newark International Airport in New Jersey ; originally scheduled to pull away from

5822-495: The socials form an important part of the atmosphere of the club. Washington Renegades RFC The Washington Renegades are a Division III and Division IV rugby union club based in Washington D.C. Established on October 24, 1998, by Mark Hertzog. In October 1999, the club played its first 15s match against the Roanoke Rugby Football Club. In July 2000, the team competed in a sevens tournament held in London, England , against teams from London and Manchester . In May 2001,

5904-546: The spring of 2001, the secondary hijackers began arriving in the United States. In July 2001, Atta met with bin al-Shibh in Tarragona , Catalonia, Spain, where they coordinated details of the plot, including final target selection. Bin al-Shibh passed along bin Laden's wish for the attacks to be carried out as soon as possible. Some of the hijackers received passports from corrupt Saudi officials who were family members or used fraudulent passports to gain entry. There have been

5986-840: The team competes in include Scrum by the Sea, Seattle Magnitude XVs, and the Wild West Rugby Fest. The women's side competes seasonally in Division I of the Pacific Coast Rugby Football Union, and in tournaments such as the Chico Holiday Classic and the Champagne Classic. After a trip to London and Manchester in January 2001, Pete Arden developed the club's coat of arms , a link to—and reminder of—the culture in which

6068-761: The three had a discussion pondering what it would be like to play for a gay rugby team, unaware of the existence of the Washington Renegades , the London Kings Cross Steelers , the Ponsonby Heroes (Auckland, New Zealand), and the Manchester Village Spartans (Manchester, England, United Kingdom). Mickle kept in touch with the two over the next couple of years, and reached out to them when the club started practices. Bingham and Reimuller eventually joined

6150-550: The world, which spreads mischief throughout the world. — Osama Bin Laden's interview with Tayseer Allouni , October 21, 2001 As an adherent of Islam , bin Laden believed that non-Muslims are forbidden from having a permanent presence in the Arabian Peninsula . In 1996, bin Laden issued a fatwā calling for American troops to leave Saudi Arabia. One analysis of suicide terrorism suggested that without U.S. troops in Saudi Arabia, Al-Qaeda likely would not have been able to get people to commit to suicide missions. In

6232-499: Was a radical who had traveled to Pakistan, and the INS arrested him for overstaying his French visa. Their request to search his laptop was denied by FBI headquarters due to the lack of probable cause . The failures in intelligence-sharing were attributed to 1995 Justice Department policies limiting intelligence-sharing, combined with CIA and NSA reluctance to reveal "sensitive sources and methods" such as tapped phones. Testifying before

6314-524: Was about to happen. None of that information got to me or the White House. [...] by July [2001], with word spreading of a coming attack, a schism emerged among the senior leadership of al Qaeda. Several senior members reportedly agreed with Mullah Omar . Those who reportedly sided with bin Ladin included Atef , Sulayman Abu Ghayth , and KSM . But those said to have opposed him were weighty figures in

6396-555: Was covered by press from around the world, including ESPN. The event was profiled in a two-page article in Rugby World magazine. The Fog A side emerged undefeated, defeating the London Kings Cross Steelers 27–5 in the final. Alice Hoagland, Mark Bingham's mom, presented the Fog with the trophy. The media publicity surrounding Bingham's death had a profound impact on the development gay/inclusive rugby clubs,

6478-590: Was deliberately crashed by co-pilot Gameel Al-Batouti , killing over 200 passengers. "This is how the idea of 9/11 was conceived and developed in my head, and that is when we began the planning" bin Laden continued, adding that no one but Abu Hafs and Abu al-Khair knew about it at the time. The 9/11 Commission Report identified Khalid Sheikh Mohammed as the architect of 9/11, but he is not mentioned in bin Laden's notes. The attacks were conceived by Khalid Sheikh Mohammed , who first presented it to Osama bin Laden in 1996. At that time, bin Laden and Al-Qaeda were in

6560-481: Was highly skeptical the union would accept a predominantly gay rugby team. In his email to the team, Bingham wrote: "We need to work harder. We need to get better...We have the chance to be role models for other gay folks who wanted to play sports, but never felt good enough or strong enough. More importantly, we have the chance to show the other teams in the league that we are as good as they are. Good rugby players. Good partiers. Good sports. Good men." In October 2001,

6642-551: Was killed during a U.S. military raid on his compound in Abbottabad, Pakistan . The War in Afghanistan continued for another eight years until the agreement was made in February 2020 for American and NATO troops to withdraw from the country . Excluding the hijackers, the attacks killed 2,977 people, injured thousands more and gave rise to substantial long-term health consequences while also causing at least $ 10   billion in infrastructure and property damage. It remains

6724-809: Was the seat of the Holy Roman Empire and Habsburg monarchy , both major powers in Europe at the time. For Osama bin Laden, this was a date when the West gained some dominance over Islam, and by attacking on this date, he hoped to make a step in Islam "winning" the war for worldwide power and influence. In late 1999, al-Qaeda associate Walid bin Attash ("Khallad") contacted Mihdhar and told him to meet in Kuala Lumpur , Malaysia; Hazmi and Abu Bara al Yemeni would also be in attendance. The NSA intercepted

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