shivendrra/consolidated-datasets · Datasets at Hugging Face

text stringlengths 0 82.7M
Osama Bin Laden was relatively unknown in the United States before 9/11, even as he was amassing popularity, followers, and fame in the Middle East during the 1990s.
In 1988, he was one of the founders of al Qaeda, a militant Islamic terrorist organization that organized and carried out the 9/11 attacks.
Bin Laden called for indiscriminate killing of all Americans who, he claimed, were “the worst thieves in the world today” (9/11 Report, page 47).
It was the perfect historical moment for that rallying cry.
Throughout the 20th century, a wave of secular, nationalist revolutions swept through the Middle East, taking root in Egypt, Libya, Iraq, Yemen, and other countries.
While these movements were awash in promising ideology, the new regimes quickly became autocratic and suppressed dissent.
Their critics turned to violent revolution to express their dissatisfaction with the secular governments.
At the same time, social malaise, especially among young men who were struggling to find decent jobs and start their own families in corrupt oil states, provided easy targets for radicalization.
Bin Laden’s message that America was the “head of the snake” and the root of all society’s problems resonated well with the discontent.
By the mid-1990s, Bin Laden was the head of al Qaeda, a multifaceted and highly developed terrorist network carrying out attack after attack on Americans in the Middle East.
It was a new type of terrorism to which the US intelligence agencies struggled to adapt.
Much of the intelligence community had not even imaged the specific type of hijacking and terrorism carried out on 9/11.
They were preparing for threats such as the 1993 bombing of the World Trade Center and bombing in 2000 of the USS Cole.
Much of the intelligence community’s focus was on reactive law enforcement activity rather than proactive countering of terrorism.
A telling quote from the 9/11 commission report focuses on the lack of a proactive response: “The process was meant, by its nature, to mark for the public as the events finished – case solved, justice done.
It was not designed to ask if the events might be harbingers of worse to come.
Nor did it allow for aggregating and analyzing facts to see if they could provide clues to terrorist tactics more generally – methods of entry and finance, and mode of operation inside the United States” (Commission Report, p.
73).
Bin Laden had amassed substantial power due to conditions in the Middle East as well as his charismatic leadership, and the US intelligence community was underprepared for a 9/11 style attack.
In the aftermath of 9/11, these two factors continued to affect US policy in the Middle East, particularly in Iraq.
The immediate response to 9/11 was the George W.
Bush administration’s War on Terror, which began in Afghanistan as a retaliation against al Qaeda for carrying out the attack.
The Bush administration soon expanded the War on Terror into Iraq, and the consequences of these wars continue to affect the Middle East to this day.
Almost 20 years later, the United States is still at war in both Afghanistan and Iraq.
There were domestic long-term effects of 9/11 as well.
Thousands of people struggle with cancer and lasting chronic health problems relating to the toxicity from Ground Zero, the site where the Twin Towers used to stand.
The September 11 attacks also changed American air travel as airlines began to require stringent security checks designed to prevent the types of weapons the hijackers used from slipping through.
Finally, the 9/11 attacks resulted in changes to the federal government and an expansion of executive power.
A new cabinet department, the Department of Homeland Security, was created, and the intelligence community was consolidated under the Director of National Intelligence to improve coordination between various agencies and departments.
New legislation such as the USA Patriot Act expanded domestic security and surveillance, disrupted terrorist funding by cracking down on activities such as money laundering, and increased efficiency within the U.S. intelligence community.
The tragedy of September 11, 2001 will never be forgotten, and the aftermath is still continuing to unfold.
The 9/11 Memorial and Museum opened on the site of the former World Trade Center on September 11, 2011, and features reflecting pools in the footprints of where the Twin Towers once stood.
Katherine Huiskes is a member of UVA's class of 2021, where she studied foreign affairs and history, with a particular interest in policymaking, cybersecurity, and military budgeting.
Help inform the discussion © Copyright 2023.
Rector and Visitors of the University of Virginia The White House 1600 Pennsylvania Ave NW Washington, DC 20500 5:06 P.M. IDT THE PRESIDENT: Good afternoon.
Please have a seat.
I come to Israel with a single message: You are not alone.
You are not alone.
As long as the United States stands — and we will stand forever — we will not let you ever be alone.
Most importantly, the — I know the recent terrorist assault on the people of this nation has left a deep, deep wound.
More than 1,300 innocent Israelis killed, including at least 31 American citizens, by the terrorist group Hamas.
Hundreds — hundreds of young people at a music festival of — the festival was for peace — for peace — gunned down as they ran for their lives.
Scores of innocents — from infants to elderly grandparents, Israelis and Americans — taken hostage.
Children slaughtered.
Babies slaughtered.
Entire families massacred.
Rape, beheadings, bodies burned alive.
Hamas committed atrocities that recall the worst ravages of ISIS, unleashing pure unadulterated evil upon the world.
There is no rationalizing it, no excusing it.
Period.
The brutality we saw would have cut deep anywhere in the world, but it cuts deeper here in Israel.
October 7th, which was a sacred to — a sacred Jewish holiday, became the deadliest day for the Jewish people since the Holocaust.
It has brought to the surface painful memories and scars left by a millennia of antisemitism and the genocide of the Jewish people.
The world watched then, it knew, and the world did nothing.
We will not stand by and do nothing again.
Not today, not tomorrow, not ever.
To those who are living in limbo waiting desperately to learn the fate of loved ones, especially to families of the hostages: You’re not alone.
We’re working with partners throughout the region, pursuing every avenue to bring home those who are being held captive by Hamas.
I can’t speak publicly about all the details, but let me assure you: For me as the American president, there is no higher priority than the release and safe return of all these hostages.
To those who are grieving a child, a parent, a spouse, a sibling, a friend, I know you feel like there’s that black hole in the middle of your chest.
You feel like you’re being sucked into it.
The survivor’s remorse, the anger, the questions of faith in your soul.
Starting at — staring at that empty chair, sitting Shiva.
The first Sabbath without them.
They are the everyday things — the small things that you miss the most.
The scent when you open the closet door.
The morning coffee you shared together.
The bend in his smile, the perfect pitch of her laugh, the giggle of your little boy — the baby.
For those who have lost loved ones, this is what I know: They’ll never be truly gone.
There’s something that’s never fully lost: your love for them and their love for you.
And I promise you, you’ll be walking along some days and say, “What would she or he want me to do?” You’ll smile when you pass a place that reminds you of them.
That’s when you know — when a smile comes to your lips before a tear to your eye — that’s when you know you’re going to fully make it.
That’s what will give you the fortitude to find light in the darkest hours when terrorists believed they could bring down — bring you down, bend your will, break your resolve.
But they never did, and they never will.
Instead, we saw incredible stories of heroism and courage of Israelis taking care of one another.
Neighbors forming watch groups to protect their kibbutz, opening their homes to shelter survivors.
Retired soldiers running into danger once again.
Civilian medics flying across rescue — flying rescue missions.
And off-duty medics at the musical festival caring for the wounded before coming victim — before becoming a victim themselves.
Volunteers retrieving bodies of the dead so families could bury their loved ones in accordance with Jewish tradition.
Reservists leaving behind their families, their honeymoons, their studies abroad without hesitation.
And so much more.
The State of Israel was born to be a safe place for the Jewish people of the world.
That’s why it was born.
I have long said: If Israel didn’t exist, we would have to invent it.
And while it may not feel that way today, Israel must again be a safe place for the Jewish people.
And I promise you: We’re going to do everything in our power to make sure that it will be.
Seventy-five years ago, just 11 minutes after its founding, President Harry S.
Truman and the United States of America became the first nation to recognize Israel.
We have stood by your side ever since, and we’re going to stand by your side now.
My administration has been in close touch with your leadership from the first moments of this attack, and we are going to make sure we have — you have what you need to protect your people, to defend your nation.
For decades, we’ve ensured Israel’s qualitative military edge.
And later this week, I’m going to ask the United States Congress for an unprecedented support package for Israel’s defense.
We are going to keep Iron Dome fully supplied so it can continue standing sentinel over Israeli skies, saving Israeli lives.
We have moved U.S. military assets to the region, including positioning the USS Ford carrier strike group in the Eastern Mediterranean, with the USS Eisenhower on the way, to deter — to defer further aggression against Israel and to prevent this conflict from spreading.
The world will know that Israel is — Israel is stronger than ever.
And my message to any state or any other hostile actor thinking about attacking Israel remains the same as it was a week ago: Don’t.
Don’t.
Don’t.
Since this terrorist attack — terrorist attack took place, we have seen it described as Israel’s 9/11.

Osama Bin Laden was relatively unknown in the United States before 9/11, even as he was amassing popularity, followers, and fame in the Middle East during the 1990s.

In 1988, he was one of the founders of al Qaeda, a militant Islamic terrorist organization that organized and carried out the 9/11 attacks.

Bin Laden called for indiscriminate killing of all Americans who, he claimed, were “the worst thieves in the world today” (9/11 Report, page 47).

It was the perfect historical moment for that rallying cry.

Throughout the 20th century, a wave of secular, nationalist revolutions swept through the Middle East, taking root in Egypt, Libya, Iraq, Yemen, and other countries.

While these movements were awash in promising ideology, the new regimes quickly became autocratic and suppressed dissent.

Their critics turned to violent revolution to express their dissatisfaction with the secular governments.

At the same time, social malaise, especially among young men who were struggling to find decent jobs and start their own families in corrupt oil states, provided easy targets for radicalization.

Bin Laden’s message that America was the “head of the snake” and the root of all society’s problems resonated well with the discontent.

By the mid-1990s, Bin Laden was the head of al Qaeda, a multifaceted and highly developed terrorist network carrying out attack after attack on Americans in the Middle East.

It was a new type of terrorism to which the US intelligence agencies struggled to adapt.

Much of the intelligence community had not even imaged the specific type of hijacking and terrorism carried out on 9/11.

They were preparing for threats such as the 1993 bombing of the World Trade Center and bombing in 2000 of the USS Cole.

Much of the intelligence community’s focus was on reactive law enforcement activity rather than proactive countering of terrorism.

A telling quote from the 9/11 commission report focuses on the lack of a proactive response: “The process was meant, by its nature, to mark for the public as the events finished – case solved, justice done.

It was not designed to ask if the events might be harbingers of worse to come.

Nor did it allow for aggregating and analyzing facts to see if they could provide clues to terrorist tactics more generally – methods of entry and finance, and mode of operation inside the United States” (Commission Report, p.

73).

Bin Laden had amassed substantial power due to conditions in the Middle East as well as his charismatic leadership, and the US intelligence community was underprepared for a 9/11 style attack.

In the aftermath of 9/11, these two factors continued to affect US policy in the Middle East, particularly in Iraq.

The immediate response to 9/11 was the George W.

Bush administration’s War on Terror, which began in Afghanistan as a retaliation against al Qaeda for carrying out the attack.

The Bush administration soon expanded the War on Terror into Iraq, and the consequences of these wars continue to affect the Middle East to this day.

Almost 20 years later, the United States is still at war in both Afghanistan and Iraq.

There were domestic long-term effects of 9/11 as well.

Thousands of people struggle with cancer and lasting chronic health problems relating to the toxicity from Ground Zero, the site where the Twin Towers used to stand.

The September 11 attacks also changed American air travel as airlines began to require stringent security checks designed to prevent the types of weapons the hijackers used from slipping through.

Finally, the 9/11 attacks resulted in changes to the federal government and an expansion of executive power.

A new cabinet department, the Department of Homeland Security, was created, and the intelligence community was consolidated under the Director of National Intelligence to improve coordination between various agencies and departments.

New legislation such as the USA Patriot Act expanded domestic security and surveillance, disrupted terrorist funding by cracking down on activities such as money laundering, and increased efficiency within the U.S. intelligence community.

The tragedy of September 11, 2001 will never be forgotten, and the aftermath is still continuing to unfold.

The 9/11 Memorial and Museum opened on the site of the former World Trade Center on September 11, 2011, and features reflecting pools in the footprints of where the Twin Towers once stood.

Katherine Huiskes is a member of UVA's class of 2021, where she studied foreign affairs and history, with a particular interest in policymaking, cybersecurity, and military budgeting.

Rector and Visitors of the University of Virginia The White House 1600 Pennsylvania Ave NW Washington, DC 20500 5:06 P.M. IDT THE PRESIDENT: Good afternoon.

Please have a seat.

I come to Israel with a single message: You are not alone.

You are not alone.

As long as the United States stands — and we will stand forever — we will not let you ever be alone.

Most importantly, the — I know the recent terrorist assault on the people of this nation has left a deep, deep wound.

More than 1,300 innocent Israelis killed, including at least 31 American citizens, by the terrorist group Hamas.

Hundreds — hundreds of young people at a music festival of — the festival was for peace — for peace — gunned down as they ran for their lives.

Scores of innocents — from infants to elderly grandparents, Israelis and Americans — taken hostage.

Children slaughtered.

Babies slaughtered.

Entire families massacred.

Rape, beheadings, bodies burned alive.

Hamas committed atrocities that recall the worst ravages of ISIS, unleashing pure unadulterated evil upon the world.

There is no rationalizing it, no excusing it.

Period.

The brutality we saw would have cut deep anywhere in the world, but it cuts deeper here in Israel.

October 7th, which was a sacred to — a sacred Jewish holiday, became the deadliest day for the Jewish people since the Holocaust.

It has brought to the surface painful memories and scars left by a millennia of antisemitism and the genocide of the Jewish people.

The world watched then, it knew, and the world did nothing.

We will not stand by and do nothing again.

Not today, not tomorrow, not ever.

To those who are living in limbo waiting desperately to learn the fate of loved ones, especially to families of the hostages: You’re not alone.

We’re working with partners throughout the region, pursuing every avenue to bring home those who are being held captive by Hamas.

I can’t speak publicly about all the details, but let me assure you: For me as the American president, there is no higher priority than the release and safe return of all these hostages.

To those who are grieving a child, a parent, a spouse, a sibling, a friend, I know you feel like there’s that black hole in the middle of your chest.

You feel like you’re being sucked into it.

The survivor’s remorse, the anger, the questions of faith in your soul.

Starting at — staring at that empty chair, sitting Shiva.

The first Sabbath without them.

They are the everyday things — the small things that you miss the most.

The scent when you open the closet door.

The morning coffee you shared together.

The bend in his smile, the perfect pitch of her laugh, the giggle of your little boy — the baby.

For those who have lost loved ones, this is what I know: They’ll never be truly gone.

There’s something that’s never fully lost: your love for them and their love for you.

And I promise you, you’ll be walking along some days and say, “What would she or he want me to do?” You’ll smile when you pass a place that reminds you of them.

That’s when you know — when a smile comes to your lips before a tear to your eye — that’s when you know you’re going to fully make it.

That’s what will give you the fortitude to find light in the darkest hours when terrorists believed they could bring down — bring you down, bend your will, break your resolve.

But they never did, and they never will.

Instead, we saw incredible stories of heroism and courage of Israelis taking care of one another.

Neighbors forming watch groups to protect their kibbutz, opening their homes to shelter survivors.

Retired soldiers running into danger once again.

Civilian medics flying across rescue — flying rescue missions.

And off-duty medics at the musical festival caring for the wounded before coming victim — before becoming a victim themselves.

Volunteers retrieving bodies of the dead so families could bury their loved ones in accordance with Jewish tradition.

Reservists leaving behind their families, their honeymoons, their studies abroad without hesitation.

And so much more.

The State of Israel was born to be a safe place for the Jewish people of the world.

That’s why it was born.

I have long said: If Israel didn’t exist, we would have to invent it.

And while it may not feel that way today, Israel must again be a safe place for the Jewish people.

And I promise you: We’re going to do everything in our power to make sure that it will be.

Seventy-five years ago, just 11 minutes after its founding, President Harry S.

Truman and the United States of America became the first nation to recognize Israel.

We have stood by your side ever since, and we’re going to stand by your side now.

My administration has been in close touch with your leadership from the first moments of this attack, and we are going to make sure we have — you have what you need to protect your people, to defend your nation.

For decades, we’ve ensured Israel’s qualitative military edge.

And later this week, I’m going to ask the United States Congress for an unprecedented support package for Israel’s defense.

We are going to keep Iron Dome fully supplied so it can continue standing sentinel over Israeli skies, saving Israeli lives.

We have moved U.S. military assets to the region, including positioning the USS Ford carrier strike group in the Eastern Mediterranean, with the USS Eisenhower on the way, to deter — to defer further aggression against Israel and to prevent this conflict from spreading.

The world will know that Israel is — Israel is stronger than ever.

And my message to any state or any other hostile actor thinking about attacking Israel remains the same as it was a week ago: Don’t.

Don’t.

Since this terrorist attack — terrorist attack took place, we have seen it described as Israel’s 9/11.