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

MATTHEW MCDERMOTT / POLARIS
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PRUDENTIAL PLAZA
DATA GATHERED
Terrorists conducted heavy surveillance of the parking garage beneath the structure in Newark, N.J. They noted the repeated entry of black limos but doubted whether trucks and vans would be allowed in. Reports include extensive information on the New Jersey Transit and PATH passenger-rail systems, maps of the network and train timetables

POSSIBLE PLOT
Vehicle-borne improvised explosive device The operatives would use traditional methods of attack. They propose acquiring a black limo, gutting all but its front seats and filling the empty portion presumably with explosives. They also discuss using an oil truck to ram through the front entrance
FROM THE AUG. 16, 2004 ISSUE OF TIME MAGAZINE; POSTED SUNDAY, AUG. 8, 2004

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