Inside Al-Qaeda's Files
The discovery of computer materials belonging to al-Qaeda operatives in Pakistan led American officials to warn of threats to specific facilities inside the U.S. Several hard drives and 51 computer discs recovered in Pakistan provide evidence that al-Qaeda has conducted extensive surveillance of U.S. targets. Surveillance reports found on the computers contain some 500 photographs of targeted buildings and discussions about how to hit them. A senior U.S. law-enforcement official gave TIME's Adam Zagorin a partial inventory of the material, including descriptions of potential attacks in the terrorists' words

RUSSELL MUNSON / CORBIS
NEXT


DATA GATHERED
A major focus of both the surveillance reports and the photographs was New York City and nearby New Jersey. The discs contain photos of public and private heliports and helicopter cockpits, controls and locking mechanisms on doors that separate the cockpit from passengers. The terrorists had also scanned brochures of New York City tours

POSSIBLE PLOT
The discs contain specific material related to a heliport in the New York financial district, suggesting possible airborne attacks on a variety of high-profile institutions The terrorists labeled photos depicting "views" of "downtown" and "midtown"
FROM THE AUG. 16, 2004 ISSUE OF TIME MAGAZINE; POSTED SUNDAY, AUG. 8, 2004

GET THE MAGAZINE — TRY 4 ISSUES FREE!