# 25 years of warnings, now declassified

> The CIA has released 71 President's Daily Brief items on Bin Ladin, dated from 1998 through the day after 9/11.
- Title: 25 years of warnings, now declassified · Cia | Shortify
- Summary: The CIA has released 71 President's Daily Brief items on Bin Ladin, dated from 1998 through the day after 9/11. The warning signal was not missing. It was…
- Keywords: cia, 9/11, declassified, intelligence, bin ladin, technology, startups, years, warnings
- Source: Cia — https://cia.gov/stories/story/cia-releases-presidents-daily-briefs-in-commemoration-of-the-25th-anniversary-of-9-11/seventy-one-declassified-presidents-daily-brief-products
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- Topics: cia, 9/11, declassified, intelligence, bin ladin, technology, startups
## 71 briefs, finally public
On the 25th anniversary of 9/11, the CIA declassified 71 President's Daily Brief products about Bin Ladin and terrorism. The full collection runs 101 pages.
## The clock starts in 1998
The earliest item is dated February 13, 1998, on terrorists seeking WMD capability. The last is September 12, 2001, a four-page situation report titled "Bin Ladin's Tracks".

> Situation Report: Bin Ladin's Tracks
## 1998 was the loudest year
Twelve briefs land between June and December 1998 alone, on targets for anti-US attacks, threats inside the US, his North America infrastructure, and his location.

> Reports That Bin Ladin is Planning Attacks Inside the US
## Hijacking, named in 1998
A one-page brief dated December 4, 1998 is titled "Bin Ladin Preparing To Hijack US Aircraft and Other Attacks". That is nearly three years before the attacks.

> Bin Ladin Preparing To Hijack US Aircraft and Other Attacks
## The nuclear question kept returning
At least eight briefs track his pursuit of chemical, biological, radiological and nuclear weapons, from July 1998 through a cluster of four in February 2001.

> Afghanistan: Bin Ladin's Interest in Biological and Radiological Weapons
## Watching the Taliban waver
Analysts kept testing whether Kabul would give him up. Briefs swing from "no evidence Taliban plans to hand over Bin Ladin" to strains, clashes, and Omar balking at surrender.

> Terrorism: Omar Sees Bin Ladin as a Problem but Balks at Surrendering Him
## Disruptions did not stop him
Foiled millennium plots in Jordan, arrests in Rome, Pakistani pressure. Each time the follow-up brief says the same thing: the network is still active and still planning.

> Bin Ladin: Determined and Capable Despite Setbacks
## The Cole, then the summer
Five briefs in October 2000 and January 2001 chase who bombed the USS Cole. By June and July 2001 the president is getting snapshots of anti-US threats.

> Snapshot of Recent Usama Bin Ladin-Related Anti-US Terrorist Threats
## August 6, 2001
The most famous brief in the set is two pages: "Bin Ladin Determined To Strike in US". Three more follow that month, including one on how expert and flexible his operations were.

> Bin Ladin Determined To Strike in US
## Key takeaway

The warning signal was not missing. It was steady, specific, and spread across three and a half years of daily briefs to the president.