US governmental response


Military response

The United States government has announced its intentions to engage in a
protracted war against terrorists and states which aid terrorists in
response to the attack. The first target was the Taliban government in
Afghanistan, because they did not turn over Osama bin Laden (prime suspect).
There were some early indications that Iraq may have been involved, but
nothing other than circumstantial evidence had been produced in the month
following the attack. The United States has made it clear that this "War on
Terrorism" will continue after dealing with whomever is responsible for the
September 11 attack, but it is very unclear exactly what that means.

On September 19, 2001 the U.S. sent combat aircraft to Persian Gulf military bases.

There have been reports that U.S. and British special-forces soldiers were
covertly landed in Afghanistan at some time after September 11, presumably
for reconnaisance purposes, and that several of these troops were captured
by the Taliban. As of October 1, all such reports had been officially denied
by the U.S., British, and Afghani governments.

On October 7, at 12:30 PM EDT (9 PM local time), the United States,
supported by Britain, began its attack on Afghanistan, launching bombs and
cruise missiles against Taliban military and communications facilities and
suspected terrorist training camps. See 2001 U.S. Attack on Afghanistan.

Osama bin Laden warned Bush via satellite courtesy of Al-Jazeera, that if
the US uses nuclear weapons, he might also use biochemical/nuclear weapons
in response.

On November, 2001, the Northern Alliance won Kabul, the capital of
Afghanistan over the Taliban forcing them to flee in Kandahar.

Domestic response

Investigations are going on through many branches of many governments,
pursuing tens of thousands of tips. Hundreds of people have being detained,
arrested, and/or questioned so far. The Justice Department wishes to
interview 5000 young men from the Middle East. See Detentions.

$40 billion emergency bill has already been passed. A ~$20 billion bill to
bail out the airline industry also passed. Laws are also being passed that
would trim civil liberties in the United States, to make it easier for the
government to spy on what's happening within the country. USA PATRIOT Act
passed.

On October 10, the FBI released its "FBI Most Wanted Terrorists" list.