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A closer look at Islamic extremists and terrorist plots that have links to Pakistan.
» Map of Pakistan's Border Region and Tribal Areas
1993 -- First World Trade Center Bombing: Six Killed, 1,000 Injured | Ramzi Ahmed Yousef was the mastermind. Arrested in Islamabad in 1995 and later convicted, he had spent the previous few years in a Peshawar guest house financed by Osama bin Laden. His uncle, Khalid Sheikh Mohammed, is from Baluchistan and paid some of the costs of this plot. |
1995 -- Bojinka: A Failed Plot to Bomb 12 Airliners Over the Pacific |
Another plot devised by Ramzi Yousef and his uncle, Khalid Sheikh Mohammed. It was based out of Manila, Philippines. |
1998 -- U.S. Embassy Bombings in Kenya and Tanzania |
An alleged coordinator from Tanzania, Ahmed Khalfan Ghailani, was arrested near Islamabad in 2004. Mohammed Sadiq Odeh, later convicted for his role in the attacks, was arrested in Karachi when he tried to return there following the bombing. |
2001 -- Sept. 11 Attacks on the United States |
The alleged mastermind of this Al Qaeda plot, Khalid Sheikh Mohammed, was captured two years later in Rawalpindi. According to the 9/11 Commission, he pitched the idea of hijacking jet planes to Al Qaeda's leadership and offered coordinating support and training from Pakistan. Fellow plotter Ramzi bin al-Shibh was caught in Karachi in 2002. Another high-ranking Al Qaeda member, Abu Zubaydah, was captured in Faisalabad in March 2002. |
2002 -- Bali Nightclub Bombing, 200 Killed |
Riduan Isamuddin, a.k.a Hambali, was the alleged mastermind of this Oct. 12 attack. When arrested in Thailand, he was carrying money received from Pakistani associates. |
2003 -- Assassination Attempts on President Musharraf |
There were two separate attacks in December in Rawalpindi. Abu Farraj al-Libbi, allegedly Al Qaeda's No. 3, is believed to have planned both. He was arrested near Peshawar in May 2005. Matiur Rehman, a member of the Pakistani Sunni extremist group Lashkar-e-Jangvi, is a key suspect in the investigation. He is also believed to have had a lead role in the August 2006 airliner plot (see below). |
2005 -- The London Transit Bombings, 52 Killed |
Three of the four suicide bombers on July 7 were Britons of Pakistani descent; two had visited Lahore and Faisalabad and at least one had contact with radical Pakistani Islamic groups Jaish-e-Mohammed and Lashkar-e-Taiba. |
2006 -- A Plot to Bomb 10 Transatlantic Airliners Using Liquid Explosives |
Suspects were arrested in Britain and Pakistan, including the suspected ringleader, Rashid Rauf, a British national who was apprehended in Bahawalpur. He is linked to the radical Islamic group Jaish-e-Mohammed and is believed to have been acting as the Al Qaeda liaison for the plotters in Britain, where his brother Tayib was also arrested. Rauf is also believed to have been in contact with Lashkar-e-Jangvi's Matiur Rehman, one of Pakistan's most wanted terror suspects. |