CIA warned of threat of 'explosive airplane' years before 9/11, documents show

On the 25th anniversary of the September 11 attacks, the CIA has made public 71 previously classified presidential intelligence briefings from 1998 through September 12, 2001, with 69 never before seen by the public. These documents reveal that American intelligence agencies warned both Presidents Clinton and Bush as early as 1998 about the possibility of al-Qaeda using an aircraft filled with explosives to attack a U.S. city, with Washington identified as a likely target. The briefings demonstrate escalating concerns about Osama Bin Laden and his terrorist network following the 1998 embassy bombings in Africa, though officials lacked specific details about timing or scope of planned attacks.