U.S. officials have said the government has “evidence” that the White House and Air Force One were both initially targeted by terrorists who hijacked four airliners Tuesday.
Officials said American Airlines Flight 77, which took off from Dulles International Airport in Washington, D.C., and was enroute to Los Angeles, was originally supposed to be flown into the White House, but instead crashed into the Pentagon about an hour after two other airliners were flown into the twin towers of the World Trade Center.
ABC News reported that White House spokesman Ari Fleischer made the statements but did not say how officials know the White House and President Bush’s plane were original targets of terrorist attacks.
Attorney General John Ashcroft also said today that the White House and Air Force One were original terrorist targets.
Secretary of State Colin Powell, during a news conference today, was asked about the new information.
“I don’t have anything to add to that,” Powell said during his briefing. “I’ll let Ari handle that.”
Analysts told ABC Fleischer’s statements “made a lot of sense” because of the precision of the other terrorist attacks.
Both planes that struck the twin 110-story World Trade Center towers were very well-placed to cause the most damage. By comparison, the American Airlines jet that struck the Pentagon hit a portion of the building under construction and, hence, lightly populated.
A fourth plane hijacked yesterday – United Airlines Flight 93, from Newark, N.J., to San Francisco, which crashed about 80 miles southeast of Pittsburgh – was believed headed to the White House as well, according to other unconfirmed sources.
Meanwhile, congressional leaders receiving attack updates and briefings today are saying they are being told by administration officials that the attacks may not be over.
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