Terrorism in the United States
Encyclopedia
A common definition of terrorism
is the systematic use or threatened
use of violence
to intimidate a population or government and thereby effect political
, religious
, or ideological
change. This serves as a list and compilation of acts of terrorism, attempts of terrorism, and other such items pertaining to terrorist activities within the domestic borders of the United States.
Definition of terrorism
There is neither an academic nor an international legal consensus regarding the proper definition of the word "terrorism". Various legal systems and government agencies use different definitions of "terrorism". Moreover, the international community has been slow to formulate a universally agreed...
is the systematic use or threatened
Threatening terrorism against the United States
Threatening terrorism against the United States is a class C felony punishable by 10 years imprisonment under . The elements of the offense are that someone willfully threatens to commit a crime that will result in death or great bodily harm; the threat is made with the specific intent that it be...
use of violence
Violence
Violence is the use of physical force to apply a state to others contrary to their wishes. violence, while often a stand-alone issue, is often the culmination of other kinds of conflict, e.g...
to intimidate a population or government and thereby effect political
Politics
Politics is a process by which groups of people make collective decisions. The term is generally applied to the art or science of running governmental or state affairs, including behavior within civil governments, but also applies to institutions, fields, and special interest groups such as the...
, religious
Religion
Religion is a collection of cultural systems, belief systems, and worldviews that establishes symbols that relate humanity to spirituality and, sometimes, to moral values. Many religions have narratives, symbols, traditions and sacred histories that are intended to give meaning to life or to...
, or ideological
Ideology
An ideology is a set of ideas that constitutes one's goals, expectations, and actions. An ideology can be thought of as a comprehensive vision, as a way of looking at things , as in common sense and several philosophical tendencies , or a set of ideas proposed by the dominant class of a society to...
change. This serves as a list and compilation of acts of terrorism, attempts of terrorism, and other such items pertaining to terrorist activities within the domestic borders of the United States.
1800-99
- November 7, 1837: A pro-slavery mob kills abolitionist Elijah P. LovejoyElijah P. LovejoyElijah Parish Lovejoy was an American Presbyterian minister, journalist, newspaper editor and abolitionist. He was murdered by an opposition mob in Alton, Illinois during their attack on his warehouse to destroy his press and abolitionist materials.Lovejoy's father was a Congregational minister...
, editor of the "Alton ObserverAlton ObserverThe Alton Observer was an abolitionist newspaper established in Alton, Illinois by the journalist and newspaper editor Elijah Lovejoy after he was forced to flee St. Louis, Missouri. Lovejoy left St. Louis, where he edited the St...
". - May 21, 1856: Sacking of LawrenceSacking of LawrenceIn the northern spring of 1856, the Sacking of Lawrence helped ratchet up the guerrilla war in Kansas Territory that became known as Bleeding Kansas.-Background:...
—Pro-Slavery forces enter Lawrence, KansasLawrence, KansasLawrence is the sixth largest city in the U.S. State of Kansas and the county seat of Douglas County. Located in northeastern Kansas, Lawrence is the anchor city of the Lawrence, Kansas, Metropolitan Statistical Area, which encompasses all of Douglas County...
to disarm residents and destroy the town's presses and the Free State Hotel. - May 24, 1856 – May 25, 1856: Anti-slavery Pottawatomie MassacrePottawatomie MassacreThe Pottawatomie Massacre occurred during the night of May 24 and the morning of May 25, 1856. In reaction to the sacking of Lawrence by pro-slavery forces, John Brown and a band of abolitionist settlers killed five settlers north of Pottawatomie Creek in Franklin County, Kansas...
—In response to the sacking of Lawrence, John BrownJohn Brown (abolitionist)John Brown was an American revolutionary abolitionist, who in the 1850s advocated and practiced armed insurrection as a means to abolish slavery in the United States. He led the Pottawatomie Massacre during which five men were killed, in 1856 in Bleeding Kansas, and made his name in the...
leads a group of abolitionists in the murders of five pro-slavery Kansas settlers. - April 14, 1865: pro-slavery Abraham Lincoln assassinationAbraham Lincoln assassinationThe assassination of United States President Abraham Lincoln took place on Good Friday, April 14, 1865, as the American Civil War was drawing to a close. The assassination occurred five days after the commanding General of the Army of Northern Virginia, Robert E. Lee, and his battered Army of...
— Part of a conspiracy by confederateConfederate States of AmericaThe Confederate States of America was a government set up from 1861 to 1865 by 11 Southern slave states of the United States of America that had declared their secession from the U.S...
supporters John Wilkes BoothJohn Wilkes BoothJohn Wilkes Booth was an American stage actor who assassinated President Abraham Lincoln at Ford's Theatre, in Washington, D.C., on April 14, 1865. Booth was a member of the prominent 19th century Booth theatrical family from Maryland and, by the 1860s, was a well-known actor...
, Lewis PowellLewis Powell (assassin)Lewis Thornton Powell , also known as Lewis Paine or Payne, attempted unsuccessfully to assassinate United States Secretary of State William H...
and George AtzerodtGeorge AtzerodtGeorge Andreas Atzerodt was a conspirator, with John Wilkes Booth, in the assassination of Abraham Lincoln. Assigned to assassinate Vice-President Andrew Johnson, he lost his nerve and did not make an attempt. He was executed along with three other conspirators by hanging.-Early life:Atzerodt...
to assassinate President Abraham LincolnAbraham LincolnAbraham Lincoln was the 16th President of the United States, serving from March 1861 until his assassination in April 1865. He successfully led his country through a great constitutional, military and moral crisis – the American Civil War – preserving the Union, while ending slavery, and...
, Vice President Andrew JohnsonAndrew JohnsonAndrew Johnson was the 17th President of the United States . As Vice-President of the United States in 1865, he succeeded Abraham Lincoln following the latter's assassination. Johnson then presided over the initial and contentious Reconstruction era of the United States following the American...
and Secretary of State William SewardWilliam H. SewardWilliam Henry Seward, Sr. was the 12th Governor of New York, United States Senator and the United States Secretary of State under Abraham Lincoln and Andrew Johnson...
in Washington, DC to create chaos for the purpose of overthrowing the Federal Government. Booth succeeded in assassinating Lincoln at Ford's Theater, Seward survived numerous stabbings by Powell who stabbed others as he was chased out of Seward's home, Atzerodt failed to carry out the planned murder of Johnson. Booth was killed by soldiers when he failed to surrender. Eight conspirators were tried and convicted for their role in the conspiracy by a military tribunalMilitary tribunalA military tribunal is a kind of military court designed to try members of enemy forces during wartime, operating outside the scope of conventional criminal and civil proceedings. The judges are military officers and fulfill the role of jurors...
. Four defendants were executed for their roles including Mary SurrattMary SurrattMary Elizabeth Jenkins Surratt was an American boarding house owner who was convicted of taking part in the conspiracy to assassinate Abraham Lincoln. Sentenced to death, she was hanged, becoming the first woman executed by the United States federal government. She was the mother of John H...
the first women ever to be hanged by the U.S. government. - May 4, 1886: Haymarket affairHaymarket affairThe Haymarket affair was a demonstration and unrest that took place on Tuesday May 4, 1886, at the Haymarket Square in Chicago. It began as a rally in support of striking workers. An unknown person threw a dynamite bomb at police as they dispersed the public meeting...
—Anarchists at Haymarket Square in Chicago detonate a bomb during a labor rally, the police respond with gunfire killing twelve people.
1900–59
- 1901 September 6: President William McKinleyWilliam McKinleyWilliam McKinley, Jr. was the 25th President of the United States . He is best known for winning fiercely fought elections, while supporting the gold standard and high tariffs; he succeeded in forging a Republican coalition that for the most part dominated national politics until the 1930s...
assassinated by Michigan born Russian-Polish anarchist, Leon CzolgoszLeon CzolgoszLeon Czolgosz was the assassin of U.S. President William McKinley.In the last few years of his life, he claimed to have been heavily influenced by anarchists such as Emma Goldman and Alexander Berkman.- Early life :...
, in Buffalo, New YorkBuffalo, New YorkBuffalo is the second most populous city in the state of New York, after New York City. Located in Western New York on the eastern shores of Lake Erie and at the head of the Niagara River across from Fort Erie, Ontario, Buffalo is the seat of Erie County and the principal city of the...
. - 1910 October 1: Los Angeles Times bombingLos Angeles Times bombingThe Los Angeles Times bombing was the purposeful dynamiting of the Los Angeles Times building in Los Angeles, California, on October 1, 1910 by a union member belonging to the International Association of Bridge and Structural Iron Workers. The explosion started a fire which killed 21 newspaper...
. The Los Angeles TimesLos Angeles TimesThe Los Angeles Times is a daily newspaper published in Los Angeles, California, since 1881. It was the second-largest metropolitan newspaper in circulation in the United States in 2008 and the fourth most widely distributed newspaper in the country....
building in Los Angeles is destroyed by dynamiteDynamiteDynamite is an explosive material based on nitroglycerin, initially using diatomaceous earth , or another absorbent substance such as powdered shells, clay, sawdust, or wood pulp. Dynamites using organic materials such as sawdust are less stable and such use has been generally discontinued...
, killing 21 workers. The bomb was apparently placed due to the paper's opposition to unionization of its employees; the McNamara brothers were found guilty. - 1915, July 2: Frank Holt (also known as Eric MuenterEric MuenterEric Muenter , also known as Erich Holt or Frank Holt, was an accused, German-born would-be assassin.-Biography:He moved to the U.S. and taught German language courses. Muenter opposed the U.S.'s supplying of armaments to Germany's enemies in World War I...
), a German professor who wanted to stop American support of the Allies in World War IWorld War IWorld War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
, exploded a bomb in the reception room of the U.S. Senate. The next morning he tried to assassinate J.P. Morgan, Jr. the son of the financier whose company served as Great Britain’s principal U.S. purchasing agent for munitions and other war supplies. Muenter was overpowered by Morgan in Morgan's Long IslandLong IslandLong Island is an island located in the southeast part of the U.S. state of New York, just east of Manhattan. Stretching northeast into the Atlantic Ocean, Long Island contains four counties, two of which are boroughs of New York City , and two of which are mainly suburban...
home before committing suicide in prison on July 7. - 1916 July 22: The Preparedness Day bombingPreparedness Day bombingThe Preparedness Day Bombing was a bombing in San Francisco, California on July 22, 1916, when the city held a parade in honor of Preparedness Day, in anticipation of the United States' imminent entry into World War I. During the parade a suitcase bomb was detonated, killing ten and wounding...
kills ten people and injures 40 in San Francisco. The identity of the bombers has never been proven. Radical union leaders were suspected. - 1916 July 30: The Black Tom explosionBlack Tom explosionThe Black Tom explosion on July 30, 1916 in Jersey City, New Jersey was an act of sabotage on American ammunition supplies by German agents to prevent the materiel from being used by the Allies in World War I.- Black Tom Island :...
in Jersey City, New Jersey was an act of sabotage on American ammunition supplies by German agents to prevent the materiel from being used by the Allies in World War I. - 1917, November 24: A bomb explodes in a Milwaukee police station, killing nine officers and a civilian. Anarchists were suspected.
- 1919 1919 United States anarchist bombings1919 United States anarchist bombingsThe 1919 United States anarchist bombings were a series of bombings and attempted bombings carried out by anarchist followers of Luigi Galleani from April through June 1919...
- 1920 Wall Street bombingWall Street bombingThe Wall Street bombing occurred at 12:01 p.m. on Thursday, September 16, 1920, in the Financial District of New York City. The blast killed 38 and seriously injured 143...
- 1921 May 31: During the Tulsa Race RiotTulsa Race RiotThe Tulsa race riot was a large-scale racially motivated conflict, May 31 - June 1st 1921, between the white and black communities of Tulsa, Oklahoma, in which the wealthiest African-American community in the United States, the Greenwood District also known as 'The Negro Wall St' was burned to the...
there were reports that whites dropped dynamite from airplanes onto a black ghetto in Tulsa. The riot killed 39–300 people and destroyed more than 1,100 homes. This account is heavily disputed, however. - 1927 May 18: The Bath School DisasterBath School disasterThe Bath School disaster is the name given to three bombings in Bath Township, Michigan, on May 18, 1927, which killed 38 elementary school children, two teachers, four other adults and the bomber himself; at least 58 people were injured. Most of the victims were children in the second to sixth...
(bombings) killed 45 people and injured 58. Most of the victims were children in the second to sixth grades (7–12 years of age) attending the Bath Consolidated School. Their deaths constitute the deadliest act of mass murder in a school in U.S. history. The perpetrator was school board member Andrew KehoeAndrew KehoeAndrew Philip Kehoe was an American suicide bomber and murderer who perpetrated the Bath School Disaster on May 18, 1927.- Early life :...
. - 1933, October 10, A Boeing 247Boeing 247The Boeing Model 247 was an early United States airliner, considered the first such aircraft to fully incorporate advances such as all-metal semi-monocoque construction, a fully cantilevered wing and retractable landing gear...
is destroyed in midflight over Indiana by a nitroglycerin bomb. All seven people aboard are killed. This incidentUnited Airlines Chesterton CrashOn October 10, 1933, a Boeing 247 propliner operated by United Air Lines and registered as NC13304, crashed near Chesterton, Indiana. The transcontinental flight, carrying three crew and four passengers, had originated in Newark, New Jersey, with its final destination in Oakland, California...
is the first proven case of air sabotage in the history of aviation. The identity of the perpetrator and his rationale for the attack are unknown. - 1940 4 July: Two New York City policemen killed and two critically wounded examining a bomb they had found at the British Pavilion at the World's Fair1939 New York World's FairThe 1939–40 New York World's Fair, which covered the of Flushing Meadows-Corona Park , was the second largest American world's fair of all time, exceeded only by St. Louis's Louisiana Purchase Exposition of 1904. Many countries around the world participated in it, and over 44 million people...
- 1940–1956: George MeteskyGeorge MeteskyGeorge P. Metesky , better known as the Mad Bomber, terrorized New York City for 16 years in the 1940s and 1950s with explosives that he planted in theaters, terminals, libraries and offices...
, the Mad Bomber, placed over 30 bombs in New York City in public places such as Grand Central Station and The Paramount TheatreParamount Theater (New York City)The Paramount Theatre was a noted movie palace located at 43rd Street and Broadway in the Times Square district of New York City. Opened in 1926, it was the premiere showcase for Paramount Pictures and also became a popular live performance venue. The theater was closed in 1964 and its space...
injuring ten during this period in protest of the high rates of a local electric utility. He also sent many threatening letters to various high profile individuals. - 1958 October 12: Bombing of the Hebrew Benevolent Congregation TempleBombing of the Hebrew Benevolent Congregation TempleThe Hebrew Benevolent Congregation Temple, a Reform Jewish temple located on Peachtree Street in Atlanta, Georgia, and known simply as "The Temple," was bombed in the early morning hours of October 12, 1958. An explosion of approximately fifty sticks of dynamite tore through the side wall of the...
of Atlanta, GeorgiaAtlanta, GeorgiaAtlanta is the capital and most populous city in the U.S. state of Georgia. According to the 2010 census, Atlanta's population is 420,003. Atlanta is the cultural and economic center of the Atlanta metropolitan area, which is home to 5,268,860 people and is the ninth largest metropolitan area in...
. The acts were carried out by white racists.
1960s
- 1960: The Sunday Bomber sets off a series of bombs in New York City subways and ferries during Sundays and Holidays, killing one woman and injuring 51 other commuters.
- 1968 April: Students at Trinity College hold the board of trustees captive until their demands were met.
- April 23, 1968 – April 30, 1968: During a student rebellion at New York's Columbia UniversityColumbia UniversityColumbia University in the City of New York is a private, Ivy League university in Manhattan, New York City. Columbia is the oldest institution of higher learning in the state of New York, the fifth oldest in the United States, and one of the country's nine Colonial Colleges founded before the...
members of the New LeftNew LeftThe New Left was a term used mainly in the United Kingdom and United States in reference to activists, educators, agitators and others in the 1960s and 1970s who sought to implement a broad range of reforms, in contrast to earlier leftist or Marxist movements that had taken a more vanguardist...
organization Students for a Democratic SocietyStudents for a Democratic Society (1960 organization)Students for a Democratic Society was a student activist movement in the United States that was one of the main iconic representations of the country's New Left. The organization developed and expanded rapidly in the mid-1960s before dissolving at its last convention in 1969...
and Student Afro-American Society held a dean hostage demanding an end to both military research on campus and construction of a gymnasium in nearby HarlemHarlemHarlem is a neighborhood in the New York City borough of Manhattan, which since the 1920s has been a major African-American residential, cultural and business center. Originally a Dutch village, formally organized in 1658, it is named after the city of Haarlem in the Netherlands...
. - 1968 November: Officials of San Fernando State College held at knife point by students.
- 1969 January 1 – 1970 April 15: 8200 Bombings, attempted bombings and bomb threats attributed to "campus disturbances and student unrest"
- 1969 February: Secretary at Pomona College severely injured by bomb.
- 1969 March: Student critically injured while attempting to bomb a San Francisco State College classroom.
- 1969 August 7: Twenty were injured by radical leftist Sam MelvilleSam MelvilleSamuel Joseph Melville , was the principal conspirator and bomb setter in the 1969 bombings of eight government and commercial office buildings in New York City. Melville cited his opposition to the Vietnam War and U.S. imperialism as the motivation for the bombings...
in a bombing of the Marine Midland BuildingMarine Midland BuildingThe Marine Midland Building is a 51-story office building located at 140 Broadway in Manhattan's financial district. The building, completed in 1967, is 688 ft tall and is known for the distinctive sculpture at its entrance, Isamu Noguchi's Cube...
in New York City. - 1969 August 8: United States Department of CommerceUnited States Department of CommerceThe United States Department of Commerce is the Cabinet department of the United States government concerned with promoting economic growth. It was originally created as the United States Department of Commerce and Labor on February 14, 1903...
Offices in New York City damaged by bombing - 1969 September 18: The Federal Building in New York City is bombed by radical leftist Jane AlpertJane AlpertJane Lauren Alpert is an American former radical who conspired in the bombings of eight government and commercial office buildings in New York City in 1969...
. - 1969 October 7: Fifth floor of the Armed Forces Induction Center in New York City devastated by explosion attributed to radical leftist Jane AlpertJane AlpertJane Lauren Alpert is an American former radical who conspired in the bombings of eight government and commercial office buildings in New York City in 1969...
. - 1969 November 12: A bomb is detonated in the Manhattan Criminal Court building in New York City. Jane AlpertJane AlpertJane Lauren Alpert is an American former radical who conspired in the bombings of eight government and commercial office buildings in New York City in 1969...
, Sam MelvilleSam MelvilleSamuel Joseph Melville , was the principal conspirator and bomb setter in the 1969 bombings of eight government and commercial office buildings in New York City. Melville cited his opposition to the Vietnam War and U.S. imperialism as the motivation for the bombings...
, and 3 other militant radical leftists are arrested hours later.
1970s
- The most active perpetrators of terrorism in New York City were Fuerzas Armadas de Liberacion Nacional (FALN), a Puerto Rican separatist group, responsible for 40 NYC attacks in this decade. The Jewish Defense LeagueJewish Defense LeagueThe Jewish Defense League is a Jewish organization whose stated goal is to "protect Jews from antisemitism by whatever means necessary"...
(JDL), which engaged in attacks against targets it perceived to be anti-Semitic, launched 27 attacks during this period. And, both the Independent Armed Revolutionary Commandos (CRIA), another Puerto Rican separatist group, and Omega-7, an anti-Castro Cuban organization, each were responsible for 16 attacks during this period. - 1970 April: At Stanford UniversityStanford UniversityThe Leland Stanford Junior University, commonly referred to as Stanford University or Stanford, is a private research university on an campus located near Palo Alto, California. It is situated in the northwestern Santa Clara Valley on the San Francisco Peninsula, approximately northwest of San...
over a period of several nights bands of student radicals systematically set fires, break windows and throw rocks. - 1970 May: In reaction to the U.S. Invasion of Cambodia, Kent State ShootingsKent State shootingsThe Kent State shootings—also known as the May 4 massacre or the Kent State massacre—occurred at Kent State University in the city of Kent, Ohio, and involved the shooting of unarmed college students by members of the Ohio National Guard on Monday, May 4, 1970...
, and Jackson State Shootings a Fresno State College computer center is destroyed by a firebomb. While reaction to these three events was massive, most were peaceful. - 1970 August 24: Sterling Hall bombingSterling Hall bombingThe Sterling Hall Bombing that occurred on the University of Wisconsin–Madison campus on August 24, 1970 was committed by four young people as a protest against the University's research connections with the US military during the Vietnam War...
at the University of Wisconsin–MadisonUniversity of Wisconsin–MadisonThe University of Wisconsin–Madison is a public research university located in Madison, Wisconsin, United States. Founded in 1848, UW–Madison is the flagship campus of the University of Wisconsin System. It became a land-grant institution in 1866...
in protest of the Army Mathematics Research Center and the Vietnam WarVietnam WarThe Vietnam War was a Cold War-era military conflict that occurred in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia from 1 November 1955 to the fall of Saigon on 30 April 1975. This war followed the First Indochina War and was fought between North Vietnam, supported by its communist allies, and the government of...
, killing one. Bombers Karleton Armstrong, Dwight ArmstrongDwight ArmstrongDwight Alan Armstrong was an American anti-Vietnam War activist who was one of four persons involved in the August 24, 1970, Sterling Hall bombing on the campus University of Wisconsin–Madison, in an act of political protest against the University's research efforts on behalf of the United States...
, David FineDavid FineDavid Sylvan Fine is an American domestic terrorist who was one of four perpetrators of the August 24, 1970, Sterling Hall bombing on the campus University of Wisconsin–Madison, in an act of political protest to the University's research efforts on behalf of the United States armed forces. The...
, and Leo BurtLeo BurtLeo Frederick Burt was indicted in connection with the 1970 Sterling Hall bombing at the University of Wisconsin–Madison campus, which killed Robert Fassnacht, a physics researcher, and injured several others...
claimed the death of physicist Robert FassnachtRobert FassnachtRobert E. Fassnacht was a physics post-doctoral researcher who was killed by the bombing of Sterling Hall on August 24, 1970 on the University of Wisconsin–Madison campus....
was unintentional but acknowledged that they knew the building was occupied when they planted the bomb. - 1970 November 21: Bombing of the City Hall of Portland, OregonPortland, OregonPortland is a city located in the Pacific Northwest, near the confluence of the Willamette and Columbia rivers in the U.S. state of Oregon. As of the 2010 Census, it had a population of 583,776, making it the 29th most populous city in the United States...
in an attempt to destroy the state's bronze Liberty BellLiberty BellThe Liberty Bell is an iconic symbol of American Independence, located in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Formerly placed in the steeple of the Pennsylvania State House , the bell was commissioned from the London firm of Lester and Pack in 1752, and was cast with the lettering "Proclaim LIBERTY...
replica. The late night explosion destroyed the display foyer, blew out the building doors, damaged the council hall, and blew out windows more than a block away. The night janitor was injured in the blast. The crime remains unsolved, though a number of local anti-war and radical leftist groups of the era remain the primary suspects. - 1970: Jewish Defense LeagueJewish Defense LeagueThe Jewish Defense League is a Jewish organization whose stated goal is to "protect Jews from antisemitism by whatever means necessary"...
linked with a bomb explosion outside of Aeroflot'sAeroflotOJSC AeroflotRussian Airlines , commonly known as Aeroflot , is the flag carrier and largest airline of the Russian Federation, based on passengers carried per year...
New York City office in protest of treatment of Soviet Jews - 1971: Jewish Defense LeagueJewish Defense LeagueThe Jewish Defense League is a Jewish organization whose stated goal is to "protect Jews from antisemitism by whatever means necessary"...
linked to a detonation outside of SovietSoviet UnionThe Soviet Union , officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics , was a constitutionally socialist state that existed in Eurasia between 1922 and 1991....
cultural offices in WashingtonWashington, D.C.Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly referred to as Washington, "the District", or simply D.C., is the capital of the United States. On July 16, 1790, the United States Congress approved the creation of a permanent national capital as permitted by the U.S. Constitution....
and rifle fire into the Soviet mission to the United NationsUnited NationsThe United Nations is an international organization whose stated aims are facilitating cooperation in international law, international security, economic development, social progress, human rights, and achievement of world peace... - 1971 March 1: The radical leftist group WeathermanWeatherman (organization)Weatherman, known colloquially as the Weathermen and later the Weather Underground Organization , was an American radical left organization. It originated in 1969 as a faction of Students for a Democratic Society composed for the most part of the national office leadership of SDS and their...
explode a bomb in the United States CapitolUnited States CapitolThe United States Capitol is the meeting place of the United States Congress, the legislature of the federal government of the United States. Located in Washington, D.C., it sits atop Capitol Hill at the eastern end of the National Mall...
to protest the U.S. invasion of LaosLaosLaos Lao: ສາທາລະນະລັດ ປະຊາທິປະໄຕ ປະຊາຊົນລາວ Sathalanalat Paxathipatai Paxaxon Lao, officially the Lao People's Democratic Republic, is a landlocked country in Southeast Asia, bordered by Burma and China to the northwest, Vietnam to the east, Cambodia to the south and Thailand to the west...
. - 1973 March 4: A failed terrorist attack by Palestinian group Black SeptemberBlack September (group)The Black September Organization was a Palestinian paramilitary group, founded in 1970. It was responsible for the kidnapping and murder of eleven Israeli athletes and officials, and fatal shooting of a West German policeman, during the 1972 Summer Olympics in Munich, their most publicized event...
, with car bombings in New York City while IsraelIsraelThe State of Israel is a parliamentary republic located in the Middle East, along the eastern shore of the Mediterranean Sea...
i Prime MinisterPrime ministerA prime minister is the most senior minister of cabinet in the executive branch of government in a parliamentary system. In many systems, the prime minister selects and may dismiss other members of the cabinet, and allocates posts to members within the government. In most systems, the prime...
Golda MeirGolda MeirGolda Meir ; May 3, 1898 – December 8, 1978) was a teacher, kibbutznik and politician who became the fourth Prime Minister of the State of Israel....
was visiting the city. - 1973 June 1: Yosef AlonYosef AlonYosef Alon was an Israeli Air Force officer who was mysteriously shot and killed in the driveway of his home in Maryland, USA.-Early life:...
, the Israeli Air Force attache in Washington, D.C.Washington, D.C.Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly referred to as Washington, "the District", or simply D.C., is the capital of the United States. On July 16, 1790, the United States Congress approved the creation of a permanent national capital as permitted by the U.S. Constitution....
, was shot and killed outside his home in Chevy Chase, MarylandChevy Chase, MarylandChevy Chase is the name of both a town and an unincorporated census-designated place in Montgomery County, Maryland. In addition, a number of villages in the same area of Montgomery County include "Chevy Chase" in their names...
. Palestinian militant group Black SeptemberBlack September (group)The Black September Organization was a Palestinian paramilitary group, founded in 1970. It was responsible for the kidnapping and murder of eleven Israeli athletes and officials, and fatal shooting of a West German policeman, during the 1972 Summer Olympics in Munich, their most publicized event...
is suspected, though the case remains unsolved. - 1974 June 13: The 29th floor of the Gulf TowerGulf TowerGulf Tower is one of the major distinctive and recognizable features of downtown Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. The tower is named for the Gulf Oil Corporation, which was one of the leading multinational oil companies of its time, consistently ranking among the largest 10 corporations in the country...
in Pittsburgh, PennsylvaniaPittsburgh, PennsylvaniaPittsburgh is the second-largest city in the US Commonwealth of Pennsylvania and the county seat of Allegheny County. Regionally, it anchors the largest urban area of Appalachia and the Ohio River Valley, and nationally, it is the 22nd-largest urban area in the United States...
, was bombed with dynamite at 9:41 p.m. resulting in no injuries. The radical leftist group WeathermanWeatherman (organization)Weatherman, known colloquially as the Weathermen and later the Weather Underground Organization , was an American radical left organization. It originated in 1969 as a faction of Students for a Democratic Society composed for the most part of the national office leadership of SDS and their...
took credit, but no suspects have ever been identified. - 1974 Summer: "Alphabet Bomber" Muharem Kurbegovich bombs the Pan Am Terminal at Los Angeles International AirportLos Angeles International AirportLos Angeles International Airport is the primary airport serving the Greater Los Angeles Area, the second-most populated metropolitan area in the United States. It is most often referred to by its IATA airport code LAX, with the letters pronounced individually...
killing three and injuring eight. He also fire bombed the houses of a judge and two police commissioners as well as one of the commissioner’s cars. He burned down two Marina Del Rey apartment buildings and threatened Los Angeles with a gas attack. His bomb defused at the Greyhound Bus station was the most powerful the LAPDLos Angeles Police DepartmentThe Los Angeles Police Department is the police department of the city of Los Angeles, California. With just under 10,000 officers and more than 3,000 civilian staff, covering an area of with a population of more than 4.1 million people, it is the third largest local law enforcement agency in...
bomb squad had handled up until that time. His personal vendetta against a judge and the commissioners grew into demands for an end to immigration and naturalization laws, as well as any laws about sex. - 1975 December 29: The LaGuardia Airport Christmas Bomb kills 11 and injures 75. The bombing remains unsolved.
- 1976 September 11: Croatian terrorists hijack a TWA airlinerTWA Flight 355TWA Flight 355 was a domestic Trans World Airlines flight which was hijacked by five terrorists, all members of the Croatian National Resistance which was a terrorist Croatian Ustaše emigrant organization, on September 10, 1976....
diverting it to Gander, Newfoundland and LabradorGander, Newfoundland and LabradorGander is a Canadian town located in the northeastern part of the island of Newfoundland in the province of Newfoundland and Labrador, approximately south of Gander Bay, south of Twillingate and east of Grand Falls-Windsor...
, and then Paris demanding a manifesto be printed. One police officer was killed and three injured during an attempt to defuse a bomb that contained their communiques in a New York City train station locker. Zvonko BušićZvonko BušićZvonko Bušić is a Croatian emigrant known for hijacking TWA Flight 355 in September 1976. He was subsequently convicted of air piracy, spending 32 years in prison before being released on parole in July 2008.-Background:...
who served 32 years in prison for the attack was released and returned to CroatiaCroatiaCroatia , officially the Republic of Croatia , is a unitary democratic parliamentary republic in Europe at the crossroads of the Mitteleuropa, the Balkans, and the Mediterranean. Its capital and largest city is Zagreb. The country is divided into 20 counties and the city of Zagreb. Croatia covers ...
to a heroes welcome in July 2008. - 1976 September 21: Orlando LetelierOrlando LetelierMarcos Orlando Letelier del Solar was a Chilean economist, Socialist politician and diplomat during the presidency of Socialist President Salvador Allende...
, a former member of the ChileChileChile ,officially the Republic of Chile , is a country in South America occupying a long, narrow coastal strip between the Andes mountains to the east and the Pacific Ocean to the west. It borders Peru to the north, Bolivia to the northeast, Argentina to the east, and the Drake Passage in the far...
an government, was killed by a car bomb in Washington, D.C. along with his assistant Ronni Moffitt. The killing was carried out by members of the Chilean DINA.
1980s
- 1980 June 3: Bombing of the Statue of LibertyStatue of LibertyThe Statue of Liberty is a colossal neoclassical sculpture on Liberty Island in New York Harbor, designed by Frédéric Bartholdi and dedicated on October 28, 1886...
. At 7:30 p.m., a time delayed explosive device detonated in the Statue of Liberty's Story Room. Detonated after business hours, the bomb did not injure anyone, but caused $18,000 in damage, destroying many of the exhibits. The room was sealed off and left unrepaired until the Statue of Liberty restoration project that began years later. FBI investigators believed the perpetrators were Croatian terrorists seeking independence for Croatia from Yugoslavia, though no arrests were made. - 1980 July 22: Ali Akbar TabatabaiAli Akbar TabatabaiAli Akbar Tabatabaei was an Iranian exile and former press attache to the Iranian embassy in the United States under the Shah who became president of the Iran Freedom Foundation in Bethesda, Maryland after the Islamic Revolution.A critic of Ayatollah Khomeini, Tabatabaei was shot in his Bethesda,...
, an IranIranIran , officially the Islamic Republic of Iran , is a country in Southern and Western Asia. The name "Iran" has been in use natively since the Sassanian era and came into use internationally in 1935, before which the country was known to the Western world as Persia...
ian exile and critic of Ayatollah Khomeni, was shot in his Bethesda, MarylandBethesda, MarylandBethesda is a census designated place in southern Montgomery County, Maryland, United States, just northwest of Washington, D.C. It takes its name from a local church, the Bethesda Meeting House , which in turn took its name from Jerusalem's Pool of Bethesda...
home. Dawud SalahuddinDawud SalahuddinDawud Salahuddin, sometimes spelled Daoud Salahuddin is an African-American convert to Islam most famous for his 1980 killing of Ali Akbar Tabatabai, an Iranian dissident and critic of Ayatollah Khomeini, and his exile in the Islamic Republic of Iran.-Biography and activities:Dawud Salahuddin was...
, an American Muslim convert, was apparently paid by Iranians to kill Tabatabai. - 1981 December 7: James W. von Brunn served 6 years in prison for attempting to kidnap members of the Federal Reserve at their headquarters in Washington, D.C.Washington, D.C.Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly referred to as Washington, "the District", or simply D.C., is the capital of the United States. On July 16, 1790, the United States Congress approved the creation of a permanent national capital as permitted by the U.S. Constitution....
He testified his motive was to raise awareness of alleged "treacherous and unconstitutional" acts by the Federal Reserve. - 1982 January 28: Kemal Arikan, the Turkish Consul-General in Los Angeles, is killed by members of the Justice Commandos Against Armenian GenocideJustice Commandos Against Armenian GenocideJustice Commandos against Armenian Genocide was a secret military organization that operated in various western nations from 1975 to 1987...
. - 1982 May 4: Turkish Honorary Consul Orhan Gunduz was assassinated in his car in Somerville, MassachusettsSomerville, MassachusettsSomerville is a city in Middlesex County, Massachusetts, United States, located just north of Boston. As of the 2010 census, the city had a total population of 75,754 and was the most densely populated municipality in New England. It is also the 17th most densely populated incorporated place in...
by the Justice Commandos Against Armenian GenocideJustice Commandos Against Armenian GenocideJustice Commandos against Armenian Genocide was a secret military organization that operated in various western nations from 1975 to 1987...
. - 1983 November 7: U.S. Senate bombing. The Armed Resistance Unit, a militant leftist group, bombs the United States CapitolUnited States CapitolThe United States Capitol is the meeting place of the United States Congress, the legislature of the federal government of the United States. Located in Washington, D.C., it sits atop Capitol Hill at the eastern end of the National Mall...
in response to the U.S. invasion of GrenadaInvasion of GrenadaThe Invasion of Grenada, codenamed Operation Urgent Fury, was a 1983 United States-led invasion of Grenada, a Caribbean island nation with a population of about 100,000 located north of Venezuela. Triggered by a military coup which had ousted a four-year revolutionary government, the invasion...
. - 1984 Rajneeshee bioterror attack1984 Rajneeshee bioterror attackThe 1984 Rajneeshee bioterror attack was the food poisoning of 751 individuals in The Dalles, Oregon, United States, through the deliberate contamination of salad bars at ten local restaurants with salmonella...
: In what is believed to be the first incident of bioterrorismBioterrorismBioterrorism is terrorism involving the intentional release or dissemination of biological agents. These agents are bacteria, viruses, or toxins, and may be in a naturally occurring or a human-modified form. For the use of this method in warfare, see biological warfare.-Definition:According to the...
in the United States the Rajneeshee cult spreads salmonellaSalmonellaSalmonella is a genus of rod-shaped, Gram-negative, non-spore-forming, predominantly motile enterobacteria with diameters around 0.7 to 1.5 µm, lengths from 2 to 5 µm, and flagella which grade in all directions . They are chemoorganotrophs, obtaining their energy from oxidation and reduction...
in salad bars at 10 restaurants in The Dalles, OregonOregonOregon is a state in the Pacific Northwest region of the United States. It is located on the Pacific coast, with Washington to the north, California to the south, Nevada on the southeast and Idaho to the east. The Columbia and Snake rivers delineate much of Oregon's northern and eastern...
, to influence a local election which backfired as suspicious residents came out in droves to prevent the election of Rajneeshee candidates.. Health officials say that 751 people were sickened and more than 40 hospitalized. All but one of the establishments attacked went out of business. Investigators believed that similar attacks had previously been carried out in SalemSalem, OregonSalem is the capital of the U.S. state of Oregon, and the county seat of Marion County. It is located in the center of the Willamette Valley alongside the Willamette River, which runs north through the city. The river forms the boundary between Marion and Polk counties, and the city neighborhood...
, PortlandPortland, OregonPortland is a city located in the Pacific Northwest, near the confluence of the Willamette and Columbia rivers in the U.S. state of Oregon. As of the 2010 Census, it had a population of 583,776, making it the 29th most populous city in the United States...
and other cities in Oregon. - 1984 July 18: Alan BergAlan BergAlan Berg was a Jewish American attorney and Denver, Colorado talk radio show host. Berg was notable for his largely liberal, outspoken viewpoints and confrontational interview style....
, Jewish lawyer-talk show host was shot and killed in the driveway of his home on Capitol Hill, Denver, Colorado, by members of a White Nationalist group called The OrderThe Order (group)The Order, also known as the Brüder Schweigen or Silent Brotherhood, was an organization active in the United States between 1983 and 1984...
. Berg had stridently argued with a member of the group on the show earlier who was convicted in his murder. - 1985 October 11: Alex OdehAlex OdehAlex Odeh was an Arab-American anti-discrimination activist who was killed in a bombing as he opened the door of his office at 1905 East 17th Street, Santa Ana, California...
, a prominent Arab-American, was killed by a bomb in his office in Santa Ana, CaliforniaSanta Ana, CaliforniaSanta Ana is the county seat and second most populous city in Orange County, California, and with a population of 324,528 at the 2010 census, Santa Ana is the 57th-most populous city in the United States....
. The case is unsolved, but it is thought the Jewish Defense LeagueJewish Defense LeagueThe Jewish Defense League is a Jewish organization whose stated goal is to "protect Jews from antisemitism by whatever means necessary"...
was responsible. - 1985 December 11: computer rental store owner, Hugh Scrutton, is the first fatality of the UnabomberTheodore KaczynskiTheodore John "Ted" Kaczynski , also known as the "Unabomber" , is an American mathematician, social critic, anarcho-primitivist, and Neo-Luddite who engaged in a mail bombing campaign that spanned nearly 20 years, killing three people and injuring 23 others.Kaczynski was born in Chicago, Illinois,...
's neo-ludditeNeo-luddismNeo-Luddism is a personal world view opposing any modern technology. Its name is based on the historical legacy of the British Luddites which were active between 1811 and 1816...
campaign. - 1989 March 1: 1989 firebombing of the Riverdale Press1989 firebombing of the Riverdale PressThe 1989 firebombing of the Riverdale Press was an attack in which two firebombs were thrown at the offices of a weekly newspaper, the Riverdale Press, in the Riverdale community of the Bronx, New York City on Feb. 28, 1989...
. The Riverdale PressRiverdale PressFounded in 1950 by David A. Stein, The Riverdale Press is a weekly newspaper that covers the Northwest Bronx neighborhoods of Riverdale, Kingsbridge, Kingsbridge Heights and Van Cortlandt Village. It is one of a handful of weeklies to win a Pulitzer Prize....
, a weekly newspaper in the BronxThe BronxThe Bronx is the northernmost of the five boroughs of New York City. It is also known as Bronx County, the last of the 62 counties of New York State to be incorporated...
, New York, is firebombed one week after publishing an editorial defending author Salman Rushdie's right to publish The Satanic VersesThe Satanic VersesThe Satanic Verses is Salman Rushdie's fourth novel, first published in 1988 and inspired in part by the life of Prophet Muhammad. As with his previous books, Rushdie used magical realism and relied on contemporary events and people to create his characters...
, which questioned the founding story of Islam.
1990s
- 1993 January 25: CIA Shooting: Mir Aimal Kasi opened fire to cars waiting at the stop light in front of CIA Headquarters in Langley, VA killing two and injuring three others.
- 1993 February 26: First World Trade Center bombing killed six and injured 1,000. The attack was carried out by radical IslamistIslamic extremismIslamic extremism refers to two related and partially overlapping but also distinct aspects of extremist interpretations and pursuits of Islamic ideology:...
Ramzi YousefRamzi YousefRamzi Yousef was one of the main perpetrators of the 1993 World Trade Center bombing and a co-conspirator in the Bojinka plot. In 1995, he was arrested at a guest house in Islamabad, by the Pakistani Inter-Services Intelligence and United States Diplomatic Security Service, then extradited to the...
, a member of Al Qaeda. - 1994 December 10: Advertising executive, Thomas J. Mosser, is killed after opening a mail package from the UnabomberTheodore KaczynskiTheodore John "Ted" Kaczynski , also known as the "Unabomber" , is an American mathematician, social critic, anarcho-primitivist, and Neo-Luddite who engaged in a mail bombing campaign that spanned nearly 20 years, killing three people and injuring 23 others.Kaczynski was born in Chicago, Illinois,...
, being the second fatality of the mailbomb campaign. - 1995 April 19: Oklahoma City bombingOklahoma City bombingThe Oklahoma City bombing was a terrorist bomb attack on the Alfred P. Murrah Federal Building in downtown Oklahoma City on April 19, 1995. It was the most destructive act of terrorism on American soil until the September 11, 2001 attacks. The Oklahoma blast claimed 168 lives, including 19...
: A truck bomb shattered the Alfred P. Murrah Federal BuildingAlfred P. Murrah Federal BuildingThe Alfred P. Murrah Federal Building was a United States Federal Government complex located at 200 N.W. 5th Street in downtown Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, United States. The building was the target of the Oklahoma City bombing on April 19, 1995, which killed 168 people, including 19 children...
in downtown Oklahoma CityOklahoma cityOklahoma City is the capital and largest city of the U.S. state of Oklahoma.Oklahoma City may also refer to:*Oklahoma City metropolitan area*Downtown Oklahoma City*Uptown Oklahoma City*Oklahoma City bombing*Oklahoma City National Memorial...
, killing 168 people-including children playing in the building's day care center. Right-wing terrorists Timothy McVeighTimothy McVeighTimothy James McVeigh was a United States Army veteran and security guard who detonated a truck bomb in front of the Alfred P. Murrah Building in Oklahoma City on April 19, 1995...
and Terry NicholsTerry NicholsTerry Lynn Nichols is a convicted bomber's accomplice. Prior to his incarceration, he held a variety of short-term jobs, working as a farmer, grain elevator manager, real estate salesman, ranch hand, and house husband. He met his future co-conspirator, Timothy McVeigh, during a brief stint in the...
were convicted in the bombing. - 1995 April 24: Timber industry lobbyist, Gilbert P. MurrayGilbert Murray (lobbyist)Gilbert Brent Murray was president of the California Forestry Association, a timber industry lobbying group. He was killed via a mailed bomb by "Unabomber" Ted Kaczynski in 1995. The bomb was addressed to the CFA's previous president, Bill Dennison.-External links:...
, is the third and final fatal victim of the UnabomberTheodore KaczynskiTheodore John "Ted" Kaczynski , also known as the "Unabomber" , is an American mathematician, social critic, anarcho-primitivist, and Neo-Luddite who engaged in a mail bombing campaign that spanned nearly 20 years, killing three people and injuring 23 others.Kaczynski was born in Chicago, Illinois,...
's mailbomb campaign. - 1996 July 27: Centennial Olympic Park bombingCentennial Olympic Park bombingThe Centennial Olympic Park bombing was a terrorist bombing on July 27, 1996 in Atlanta, Georgia, United States during the 1996 Summer Olympics, the first of four committed by Eric Robert Rudolph...
by Eric Robert RudolphEric Robert RudolphEric Robert Rudolph , also known as the Olympic Park Bomber, is a criminal responsible for a series of bombings across the southern United States between 1996 and 1998, which killed two people and injured at least 150 others in the name of an anti-abortion and anti-gay agenda...
occurred in Atlanta, GeorgiaAtlanta, GeorgiaAtlanta is the capital and most populous city in the U.S. state of Georgia. According to the 2010 census, Atlanta's population is 420,003. Atlanta is the cultural and economic center of the Atlanta metropolitan area, which is home to 5,268,860 people and is the ninth largest metropolitan area in...
, during the Atlanta Olympics1996 Summer OlympicsThe 1996 Summer Olympics of Atlanta, officially known as the Games of the XXVI Olympiad and unofficially known as the Centennial Olympics, was an international multi-sport event which was celebrated in 1996 in Atlanta, Georgia, United States....
. One person was killed and 111 injured. In a statement released in 2005 Rudolph said the motive was to protest abortion and the "global socialist" Olympic Movement. - 1997 February 24: 69-year-old Palestinian Ali Hassan Abu Kamal opens fire on tourists at an observation deck atop the Empire State BuildingEmpire State BuildingThe Empire State Building is a 102-story landmark skyscraper and American cultural icon in New York City at the intersection of Fifth Avenue and West 34th Street. It has a roof height of 1,250 feet , and with its antenna spire included, it stands a total of 1,454 ft high. Its name is derived...
killing a Danish national and wounding visitors from the United States, ArgentinaArgentinaArgentina , officially the Argentine Republic , is the second largest country in South America by land area, after Brazil. It is constituted as a federation of 23 provinces and an autonomous city, Buenos Aires...
, Switzerland and France before turning the gun on himself. A handwritten note carried by the gunman claims this was a punishment attack against the "enemies of Palestine". His widow claimed he became suicidal after losing $300,000 in a business venture. In a 2007 interview with the New York Daily NewsNew York Daily NewsThe Daily News of New York City is the fourth most widely circulated daily newspaper in the United States with a daily circulation of 605,677, as of November 1, 2011....
his daughter said her mother's story was a cover crafted by the Palestinian Authority and that her father wanted to punish the United States for its support of IsraelIsraelThe State of Israel is a parliamentary republic located in the Middle East, along the eastern shore of the Mediterranean Sea...
. - 1999 December 31 An arson fire causes one million dollars in damage and destroys the fourth floor of Michigan State University'sMichigan State UniversityMichigan State University is a public research university in East Lansing, Michigan, USA. Founded in 1855, it was the pioneer land-grant institution and served as a model for future land-grant colleges in the United States under the 1862 Morrill Act.MSU pioneered the studies of packaging,...
Agriculture Hall. In 2008 four people that the government claimed were Earth Liberation FrontEarth Liberation FrontThe Earth Liberation Front , also known as "Elves" or "The Elves", is the collective name for autonomous individuals or covert cells who, according to the ELF Press Office, use "economic sabotage and guerrilla warfare to stop the exploitation and destruction of the environment".The ELF was founded...
members were indicted for that incident.
2000s
- 2000 October 13, Firebombing of Temple Beth El (Syracuse)
- 2000: 2000 New York terror attack2000 New York terror attackIn the 2000 New York terror attack, a group of Palestinian-American men attacked Conservative Synagogue Adath Israel of Riverdale in New York City with Molotov cocktails on the eve of Yom Kippur in 2000. Mazin Assi, one of the attackers, was convicted of attempted arson, weapons charges and hate...
Three young men of Arab descent hurled crude Molotov cocktailMolotov cocktailThe Molotov cocktail, also known as the petrol bomb, gasoline bomb, Molotov bomb, fire bottle, fire bomb, or simply Molotov, is a generic name used for a variety of improvised incendiary weapons...
s at a synagogueSynagogueA synagogue is a Jewish house of prayer. This use of the Greek term synagogue originates in the Septuagint where it sometimes translates the Hebrew word for assembly, kahal...
in The BronxThe BronxThe Bronx is the northernmost of the five boroughs of New York City. It is also known as Bronx County, the last of the 62 counties of New York State to be incorporated...
, New York to "strike a blow in the Middle East conflict between Israel and Palestine". - 2001 May 21 The Center for Urban Horticulture at the University of WashingtonUniversity of WashingtonUniversity of Washington is a public research university, founded in 1861 in Seattle, Washington, United States. The UW is the largest university in the Northwest and the oldest public university on the West Coast. The university has three campuses, with its largest campus in the University...
burned. Replacement building cost $7 million ($ today). Earth Liberation FrontEarth Liberation FrontThe Earth Liberation Front , also known as "Elves" or "The Elves", is the collective name for autonomous individuals or covert cells who, according to the ELF Press Office, use "economic sabotage and guerrilla warfare to stop the exploitation and destruction of the environment".The ELF was founded...
members pleads guilty. - 2001 September 11: September 11, 2001 attacksSeptember 11, 2001 attacksThe September 11 attacks The September 11 attacks The September 11 attacks (also referred to as September 11, September 11th or 9/119/11 is pronounced "nine eleven". The slash is not part of the pronunciation...
carried out by Al-QaedaAl-QaedaAl-Qaeda is a global broad-based militant Islamist terrorist organization founded by Osama bin Laden sometime between August 1988 and late 1989. It operates as a network comprising both a multinational, stateless army and a radical Sunni Muslim movement calling for global Jihad...
. The attacks killed nearly 3,000 civilians, and were carried out by Islamic fundamentalists using hijacked commercial airplanes to damage the Twin Towers of the World Trade CenterWorld Trade CenterThe original World Trade Center was a complex with seven buildings featuring landmark twin towers in Lower Manhattan, New York City, United States. The complex opened on April 4, 1973, and was destroyed in 2001 during the September 11 attacks. The site is currently being rebuilt with five new...
, ultimately destroying both 110-story skyscrapers. The PentagonThe PentagonThe Pentagon is the headquarters of the United States Department of Defense, located in Arlington County, Virginia. As a symbol of the U.S. military, "the Pentagon" is often used metonymically to refer to the Department of Defense rather than the building itself.Designed by the American architect...
near Washington, D.C., was also severely damaged. Building 77 World Trade Center7 World Trade Center is a building in New York City located across from the World Trade Center site in Lower Manhattan. It is the second building to bear that name and address in that location. The original structure was completed in 1987 and was destroyed in the September 11 attacks...
of the World Trade Center was also destroyed in the attack. A fourth plane crashed in Pennsylvania before it could reach its target. - 2001 September 18: November – 2001 anthrax attacks2001 anthrax attacksThe 2001 anthrax attacks in the United States, also known as Amerithrax from its Federal Bureau of Investigation case name, occurred over the course of several weeks beginning on Tuesday, September 18, 2001, one week after the September 11 attacks. Letters containing anthrax spores were mailed to...
. Letters tainted with anthraxAnthraxAnthrax is an acute disease caused by the bacterium Bacillus anthracis. Most forms of the disease are lethal, and it affects both humans and other animals...
kill five across the U.S., with politicians and media officials as the apparent targets. On July 31, 2008 Bruce E. Ivins a top biodefenseBiodefenseBiodefense refers to short term, local, usually military measures to restore biosecurity to a given group of persons in a given area who are, or may be, subject to biological warfare— in the civilian terminology, it is a very robust biohazard response. It is technically possible to apply...
researcher committed suicide. On August 6, 2008, the FBI concluded that Ivins was solely responsible for the attacks, and suggested that Ivins wanted to bolster support for a vaccine he helped create and that he targeted two lawmakers because they were Catholics who held pro-choice views. - May 2002 Mailbox Pipe BomberLuke HelderLucas John Helder is a former University of Wisconsin–Stout college student from Pine Island, Minnesota, who earned notoriety as the Midwest Pipe Bomber in May 2002.- Bombings :...
: Lucas John Helder rigged pipe bombs in private mailboxes to explode when the boxes were opened. He injured 6 people in Nebraska, Colorado, Texas, Illinois, and Iowa. His motivation was to garner media attention so that he could spread a message denouncing government control over daily lives and the illegality of marijuana, as well as promote astral projectionAstral projectionAstral projection is an interpretation of out-of-body experience that assumes the existence of an "astral body" separate from the physical body and capable of traveling outside it...
. - 2002 July 4: 2002 Los Angeles Airport shooting2002 Los Angeles Airport shootingThe 2002 Los Angeles Airport shooting was a terrorist attack by a lone gunman on an airline ticket counter at Los Angeles International Airport in Los Angeles, California....
Hesham Mohamed HadayetHesham Mohamed HadayetHesham Mohamed Hadayet was an Egyptian-American terrorist who on July 4, 2002, murdered 2 people and wounded 4 others at Los Angeles International Airport in the 2002 Los Angeles Airport shooting. The two people murdered were Israelis at the El Al ticket counter at the airport, identified as a...
, a 41-year-old Egyptian national, kills two Israelis and wounds four others at the El AlEl AlEl Al Israel Airlines Ltd , trading as El Al , is the flag carrier of Israel. It operates scheduled domestic and international services and cargo flights to Europe, North America, Africa and the Far East from its main base in Ben Gurion International Airport...
ticket counter at Los Angeles International AirportLos Angeles International AirportLos Angeles International Airport is the primary airport serving the Greater Los Angeles Area, the second-most populated metropolitan area in the United States. It is most often referred to by its IATA airport code LAX, with the letters pronounced individually...
. The FBI concluded this was terrorism, though they did not find evidence linking Hadayet to a terrorist group. - October 2002 Beltway Sniper AttacksBeltway sniper attacksThe Washington sniper attacks took place during three weeks in October 2002 in Washington, D.C., Maryland, and Virginia. Ten people were killed and three others critically injured in various locations throughout the Washington Metropolitan Area and along Interstate 95 in Virginia...
: During three weeks in October 2002, John Allen Muhammad and Lee Boyd Malvo killed 10 people and critically injured 3 others in Washington D.C, Baltimore, and Virginia. The pair were also suspected of earlier shootings in Maryland, Alabama, Arizona, Georgia, Louisiana, and Washington state. No motivation was given at the trial, but evidence presented showed an affinity to the cause of the Islamic jihadJihadJihad , an Islamic term, is a religious duty of Muslims. In Arabic, the word jihād translates as a noun meaning "struggle". Jihad appears 41 times in the Quran and frequently in the idiomatic expression "striving in the way of God ". A person engaged in jihad is called a mujahid; the plural is...
. - 2006 March 5: Mohammed Reza Taheri-azarMohammed Reza Taheri-azarIn March 2006, Mohammed Reza Taheri-azar, an Iranian-American, intentionally, as he confessed, hit people with a sport utility vehicle on the campus of the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill to "avenge the deaths of Muslims worldwide" and to "punish" the United States government...
injured 6 when he drove an SUV into a group of pedestrians at UNC-Chapel Hill to "avenge the deaths or murders of Muslims around the world". - 2006 July 28: Seattle Jewish Federation shooting, Naveed Afzal Haq, an American citizen of Pakistani descent, kills one woman and shoots five others at the Jewish Federation building in Seattle. During the shooting, Haq told a 911 dispatcher that he was angry with American foreign policy in the Middle East.
- 2007 October 26: A pair of improvised explosive devices were thrown at the Mexican Consulate in New York City. The fake grenades were filled with black powder, and detonated by fuses, causing very minor damage. Police were investigating the connection between this and a similar attack against the British Consulate in New York in 2005.
- 2008 February: In the first reported incident of animal-rights extremists physically assaulting the family members of animal researchers, six masked activists attempted to force their way into the home of a University of California, Santa Cruz, researcher and injured the researcher's husband.
- 2008 March 3: Four multimillion-dollar show homes place in Woodinville, WashingtonWoodinville, WashingtonWoodinville is a city in King County, Washington, United States. The population was 10,938 at the 2010 census. It is part of the Seattle metropolitan area. There is also a much larger population with Woodinville mailing addresses in adjacent unincorporated areas of King and Snohomish counties...
, are torched. The Earth Liberation FrontEarth Liberation FrontThe Earth Liberation Front , also known as "Elves" or "The Elves", is the collective name for autonomous individuals or covert cells who, according to the ELF Press Office, use "economic sabotage and guerrilla warfare to stop the exploitation and destruction of the environment".The ELF was founded...
is suspected. - 2008 March 6: A homemade bomb damaged a Recruiting Office in Times Square
- 2008 May 4 Multiple nail-laden pipe bombs exploded at a Federal Courthouse in San Diego causing "considerable damage" to the entrance and lobby and sending shrapnel two blocks away. The F.B.I. is investigating links between this attack and an April 25 explosion at the FedExFedExFedEx Corporation , originally known as FDX Corporation, is a logistics services company, based in the United States with headquarters in Memphis, Tennessee...
building also in San Diego. - 2008 July 27 Jim D. Adkisson opened fireKnoxville Unitarian Universalist church shootingOn July 27, 2008, a politically motivated fatal shooting took place at the Tennessee Valley Unitarian Universalist Church in Knoxville, Tennessee, United States...
in the Tennessee Valley Unitarian UniversalistUnitarian Universalist AssociationUnitarian Universalist Association , in full the Unitarian Universalist Association of Congregations in North America, is a liberal religious association of Unitarian Universalist congregations formed by the consolidation in 1961 of the American Unitarian Association and the Universalist Church of...
Church in Knoxville, TennesseeTennesseeTennessee is a U.S. state located in the Southeastern United States. It has a population of 6,346,105, making it the nation's 17th-largest state by population, and covers , making it the 36th-largest by total land area...
, killing two and injuring seven before being tackled to the ground by congregation members. A note found in his SUV indicated this was intended as a suicide attack, and said the church was apparently targeted because of its support of liberal social policies. - 2008 August 2, August 3 University of California-Santa Cruz molecular biologistMolecular biologyMolecular biology is the branch of biology that deals with the molecular basis of biological activity. This field overlaps with other areas of biology and chemistry, particularly genetics and biochemistry...
David Feldheim's home was firebombedIncendiary deviceIncendiary weapons, incendiary devices or incendiary bombs are bombs designed to start fires or destroy sensitive equipment using materials such as napalm, thermite, chlorine trifluoride, or white phosphorus....
. A car belonging to another researcher from that university was destroyed by a firebomb in what is presumed to be related. FBI is investigating incidents as domestic terrorism related to animal rights groups. - 2009 April 8: According to a report in the Wall Street Journal, intruders left malwareMalwareMalware, short for malicious software, consists of programming that is designed to disrupt or deny operation, gather information that leads to loss of privacy or exploitation, or gain unauthorized access to system resources, or that otherwise exhibits abusive behavior...
in power grids, water, and sewage systems that could be activated at a later date. While the attacks which have occurred over a period of time seem to have originated in China and Russia, it is unknown if they are state-sponsored. - 2009 May 31: Assassination of George TillerAssassination of George TillerOn May 31, 2009, George Tiller, a physician from Wichita, Kansas who was nationally known for being one of the few doctors in the United States to perform late-term abortions, was shot and killed by Scott Roeder, an anti-abortion activist. Tiller was killed during a Sunday morning service at his...
. Dr. George TillerGeorge TillerGeorge Richard Tiller, MD was an American physician from Wichita, Kansas. He was the medical director of a clinic in Wichita, Women's Health Care Services, one of only three nationwide which provided abortions after the 21st week of pregnancy .Pro-life group Operation Rescue kept a daily vigil...
, a doctor who provided late-term abortions was shot to death in a Wichita, KansasWichita, KansasWichita is the largest city in the U.S. state of Kansas.As of the 2010 census, the city population was 382,368. Located in south-central Kansas on the Arkansas River, Wichita is the county seat of Sedgwick County and the principal city of the Wichita metropolitan area...
church. Tiller was shot previously in 1993, and his abortion clinic had been bombed in 1985. Alleged assassin Scott Roeder, who believes in justifiable homicideJustifiable homicideThe United States' concept of justifiable homicide in criminal law stands on the dividing line between an excuse, justification and an exculpation. It is different from other forms of homicide in that due to certain circumstances the homicide is justified as preventing greater harm to innocents...
of abortion providers, was arrested for the killing. - 2009 May 25: Crude bomb explodes in a StarbucksStarbucksStarbucks Corporation is an international coffee and coffeehouse chain based in Seattle, Washington. Starbucks is the largest coffeehouse company in the world, with 17,009 stores in 55 countries, including over 11,000 in the United States, over 1,000 in Canada, over 700 in the United Kingdom, and...
in Manhattan's Upper East SideUpper East SideThe Upper East Side is a neighborhood in the borough of Manhattan in New York City, between Central Park and the East River. The Upper East Side lies within an area bounded by 59th Street to 96th Street, and the East River to Fifth Avenue-Central Park...
. On July 14, Kyle Shaw age 17 was arrested and plead not guilty. Police said his motive was to emulate "Project Mayhem" a series of assaults on corporate America portrayed in the movie Fight ClubFight Club (film)Fight Club is a 1999 American film based on the 1996 novel of the same name by Chuck Palahniuk. The film was directed by David Fincher and stars Edward Norton, Brad Pitt and Helena Bonham Carter. Norton plays the unnamed protagonist, an "everyman" who is discontented with his white-collar job...
. Shaw's lawyer claimed he was a "troubled youth". On November 16, 2010, Shaw was sentenced to 3½ years in prison. - 2009 June 1: Arkansas recruiting office shooting2009 Little Rock recruiting office shootingThe 2009 Little Rock recruiting office shooting took place on June 1, 2009, when Muslim convert Abdulhakim Mujahid Muhammad, aka Carlos Leon Bledsoe, opened fire with a rifle in a drive-by shooting on soldiers in front of a United States military recruiting office in Little Rock, Arkansas, in a...
One military recruiter was killed, and another critically injured, by gunshot at a Little Rock, ArkansasLittle Rock, ArkansasLittle Rock is the capital and the largest city of the U.S. state of Arkansas. The Metropolitan Statistical Area had a population of 699,757 people in the 2010 census...
Army/Navy Career Center. The suspect, Abdulhakim Mujahid Muhammad, said he was part of Al-Qaeda in the Arabian PeninsulaAl-Qaeda in the Arabian PeninsulaAl-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula is a militant Islamist organization, primarily active in Yemen and Saudi Arabia. It was named for al-Qaeda, and says it is subordinate to that group and its now-deceased leader Osama bin Laden, a Saudi citizen whose father was born in Yemen...
and upset over U.S. killing of Muslims in Iraq and Afghanistan. - 2009 June 10: United States Holocaust Memorial Museum shooting. 88-year-old James Wenneker von Brunn walked into the U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum in Washington, D.C.Washington, D.C.Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly referred to as Washington, "the District", or simply D.C., is the capital of the United States. On July 16, 1790, the United States Congress approved the creation of a permanent national capital as permitted by the U.S. Constitution....
and shot a guard, who later died. Von Brunn was critically wounded when security guards immediately returned fire. On January 6, 2010, von Brunn died of natural causes at a hospital near where he was imprisoned. Von Brunn was a self-described white supremacist and neo-Nazi. - 2009 November 5: Fort Hood ShootingFort Hood shootingThe Fort Hood shooting was a mass shooting that took place on November 5, 2009, at Fort Hood, the most populous U.S. military installation in the world, located just outside Killeen, Texas. In the course of the shooting, a single gunman killed 13 people and wounded 29 others...
, Army psychiatrist Nidal Malik HasanNidal Malik HasanNidal Malik Hasan, USA is a United States Army officer and sole suspect in the November 5, 2009, Fort Hood shooting, which occurred less than a month before he would have deployed to Afghanistan....
opens fire and kills 13 people at the Fort Hood Army base in Texas in what Secretary of Homeland Security Janet Napolitano described as an act of “violent Islamic terrorism.”
2010-Present
- 2010 February 18: Joseph Stack flew a small plane into an IRS building in Austin, Texas2010 Austin plane crashThe 2010 Austin suicide attack occurred on 18 February 2010, when Andrew Joseph Stack III, flying his Piper Dakota, crashed into Building I of the Echelon office complex in Austin, Texas, United States, killing himself and Internal Revenue Service manager Vernon Hunter. Thirteen others were...
, believed to be in retaliation to the U.S. Government. - 2010 September 1: James J. Lee wearing explosives and carrying a gun took hostages at the headquarters of the Discovery ChannelDiscovery ChannelDiscovery Channel is an American satellite and cable specialty channel , founded by John Hendricks and distributed by Discovery Communications. It is a publicly traded company run by CEO David Zaslav...
in Silver Spring, MarylandSilver Spring, MarylandSilver Spring is an unincorporated area and census-designated place in Montgomery County, Maryland, United States. It had a population of 71,452 at the 2010 census, making it the fourth most populous place in Maryland, after Baltimore, Columbia, and Germantown.The urbanized, oldest, and...
before being killed by police. He was protesting the channel's "anti environmental" message and programming encouraging birth of humans who he called filthy. - 2011 January 6: Three Packages detonate in the mail rooms of two Maryland state government buildings. No serious injuries.
Organized KKK violence
- 1865–77: Over 3000 Freedmen and their Republican PartyRepublican Party (United States)The Republican Party is one of the two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Democratic Party. Founded by anti-slavery expansion activists in 1854, it is often called the GOP . The party's platform generally reflects American conservatism in the U.S...
allies are killed by a combination of the Ku Klux KlanKu Klux KlanKu Klux Klan, often abbreviated KKK and informally known as the Klan, is the name of three distinct past and present far-right organizations in the United States, which have advocated extremist reactionary currents such as white supremacy, white nationalism, and anti-immigration, historically...
and well organized campaigns of violence by local whites in a campaign of terrorist violence that overthrew Reconstructionist governments in the south and reestablished segregation. - 1868 October 22: James M. HindsJames M. HindsJames M. Hinds of Little Rock, represented Arkansas in the United States Congress from June 24, 1868 through October 22, 1868 when he was assassinated by a member of the Ku Klux Klan, namely George A. Clark, Secretary of the Democratic Committee of Monroe County, who was drunk at the time...
, Arkansas congressional representative, assassinated by a member of the Ku Klux KlanKu Klux KlanKu Klux Klan, often abbreviated KKK and informally known as the Klan, is the name of three distinct past and present far-right organizations in the United States, which have advocated extremist reactionary currents such as white supremacy, white nationalism, and anti-immigration, historically...
in Little Rock - 1898 November 10: In the Wilmington Insurrection of 1898Wilmington Insurrection of 1898The Wilmington Insurrection of 1898, also known as the Wilmington Massacre of 1898 or the Wilmington Race Riot of 1898, occurred in Wilmington, North Carolina on November 10, 1898 and following days; it is considered a turning point in North Carolina politics following Reconstruction...
, White supremacists overthrow the biracial Republican government of Wilmington, North Carolina, killing at least 22 African Americans, marking the beginning of the Jim CrowJim Crow lawsThe Jim Crow laws were state and local laws in the United States enacted between 1876 and 1965. They mandated de jure racial segregation in all public facilities, with a supposedly "separate but equal" status for black Americans...
era in North CarolinaNorth CarolinaNorth Carolina is a state located in the southeastern United States. The state borders South Carolina and Georgia to the south, Tennessee to the west and Virginia to the north. North Carolina contains 100 counties. Its capital is Raleigh, and its largest city is Charlotte...
. - 1927: The Ku Klux Klan launch a wave of political terror in AlabamaAlabamaAlabama is a state located in the southeastern region of the United States. It is bordered by Tennessee to the north, Georgia to the east, Florida and the Gulf of Mexico to the south, and Mississippi to the west. Alabama ranks 30th in total land area and ranks second in the size of its inland...
, attempting to undermine African American rights. - December 21, 1951: Harry T. MooreHarry T. MooreHarry Tyson Moore was an African-American teacher, and founder of the first branch of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People in Brevard County, Florida....
, NAACP state director, and his wife are killed by a bomb planted in their home in Mims, FloridaMims, FloridaMims is a census-designated place in Brevard County, Florida, United States. The population was 9,147 at the 2000 census. It is part of the Titusville, Florida Metropolitan Statistical Area.-Geography:Mims is located at ....
by members of the Ku Klux KlanKu Klux KlanKu Klux Klan, often abbreviated KKK and informally known as the Klan, is the name of three distinct past and present far-right organizations in the United States, which have advocated extremist reactionary currents such as white supremacy, white nationalism, and anti-immigration, historically...
. - 1963 June 12: NAACP organizer Medgar EversMedgar EversMedgar Wiley Evers was an African American civil rights activist from Mississippi involved in efforts to overturn segregation at the University of Mississippi...
shot in front of his Mississippi home by member of the Ku Klux KlanKu Klux KlanKu Klux Klan, often abbreviated KKK and informally known as the Klan, is the name of three distinct past and present far-right organizations in the United States, which have advocated extremist reactionary currents such as white supremacy, white nationalism, and anti-immigration, historically...
. - September 16, 1963: 16th Street Baptist Church bombing16th Street Baptist Church bombingThe 16th Street Baptist Church in Birmingham, Alabama was bombed on Sunday, September 15, 1963. The explosion at the African-American church, which killed four girls, marked a turning point in the U.S...
. A member of the Ku Klux Klan bombed a Church in Birmingham, AlabamaBirmingham, AlabamaBirmingham is the largest city in Alabama. The city is the county seat of Jefferson County. According to the 2010 United States Census, Birmingham had a population of 212,237. The Birmingham-Hoover Metropolitan Area, in estimate by the U.S...
, killing four girls. - June 21, 1964: In the Mississippi civil rights worker murdersMississippi civil rights worker murdersThe Mississippi civil rights workers murders involved the lynching of three political activists in Neshoba County, Mississippi on June 21, 1964, during the American Civil Rights Movement....
, three civil rights workers are murdered in Philadelphia, MississippiPhiladelphia, MississippiPhiladelphia is a city in and the county seat of Neshoba County, Mississippi, United States. The population was 7,303 at the 2000 census.- History :...
by the Ku Klux Klan. - March 25, 1965: The Ku Klux Klan murders Viola LiuzzoViola LiuzzoViola Fauver Gregg Liuzzo was a Unitarian Universalist civil rights activist from Michigan, who was murdered by Ku Klux Klan members after the 1965 Selma to Montgomery marches in Alabama...
, a Southern-raised white mother of five who was visiting Alabama from her home in Detroit to attend a civil rightsCivil rightsCivil and political rights are a class of rights that protect individuals' freedom from unwarranted infringement by governments and private organizations, and ensure one's ability to participate in the civil and political life of the state without discrimination or repression.Civil rights include...
march. At the time of her murder Liuzzo was transporting Civil Rights Marchers. - 1966 January 10: Vernon DahmerVernon DahmerVernon Ferdinand Dahmer, Sr. was an American civil rights leader and president of the Forrest County chapter of the NAACP in Hattiesburg, Mississippi.-Early life:...
dies in the firebombing of his own home in Mississippi at the hands of the Ku Klux KlanKu Klux KlanKu Klux Klan, often abbreviated KKK and informally known as the Klan, is the name of three distinct past and present far-right organizations in the United States, which have advocated extremist reactionary currents such as white supremacy, white nationalism, and anti-immigration, historically...
. - 1979 November 3: Members of the Ku Klux Klan and the American Nazi PartyAmerican Nazi PartyThe American Nazi Party was an American political party founded by discharged U.S. Navy Commander George Lincoln Rockwell. Headquartered in Arlington, Virginia, Rockwell initially called it the World Union of Free Enterprise National Socialists , but later renamed it the American Nazi Party in...
fire on meeting of members of a Communist group who were trying to organize local African American workers in Greensboro, North CarolinaGreensboro, North CarolinaGreensboro is a city in the U.S. state of North Carolina. It is the third-largest city by population in North Carolina and the largest city in Guilford County and the surrounding Piedmont Triad metropolitan region. According to the 2010 U.S...
, killing five. See Greensboro MassacreGreensboro massacreThe Greensboro massacre occurred on November 3, 1979 in Greensboro, North Carolina, United States. Five protest marchers were shot and killed by members of the Ku Klux Klan and the American Nazi Party...
. - March 20, 1981: Michael DonaldMichael DonaldMichael Donald was a young African American man who was murdered by two Ku Klux Klan members in Mobile, Alabama, in 1981. The murder is sometimes referred to as the last recorded lynching in the United States.-Lynching:...
was randomly selected to be lynched by two Ku Klux Klan members near his Alabama home. He was beaten, had his throat slit, and was hanged.
Puerto Rican nationalists
- 1954 March 1: United States Capitol shooting incident. Four Puerto Rican nationalists shoot and wound five members of the United States CongressUnited States CongressThe United States Congress is the bicameral legislature of the federal government of the United States, consisting of the Senate and the House of Representatives. The Congress meets in the United States Capitol in Washington, D.C....
during an immigration debate. - 1969 October 14 The Fuerzas Armadas de Liberación NacionalFuerzas Armadas de Liberación Nacional (Puerto Rico)The Fuerzas Armadas de Liberación Nacional was a Puerto Rican clandestine paramilitary organization that, through direct action, advocated complete independence for Puerto Rico. At the time of its dissolution, the FALN was responsible for more than 120 bomb attacks on United States targets between...
(FALN), a Puerto Rican nationalist group, claims responsibility for a small bomb explosion at Macy'sMacy'sMacy's is a U.S. chain of mid-to-high range department stores. In addition to its flagship Herald Square location in New York City, the company operates over 800 stores in the United States...
Herald SquareHerald SquareHerald Square is formed by the intersection of Broadway, Sixth Avenue and 34th Street in the borough of Manhattan in New York City. Named for the New York Herald, a now-defunct newspaper formerly headquartered there, it also gives its name to the surrounding area... - 1975 January 24: FALN bombs Fraunces TavernFraunces TavernFraunces Tavern is a tavern, restaurant and museum housed in a conjectural reconstruction of a building that played a prominent role in pre-Revolution and American Revolution history. The building, located at 54 Pearl Street at the corner of Broad Street, has been owned by Sons of the Revolution in...
in New York City, killing four and injuring more than 50. - 1975 December 29: A bomb set off by FALN in East Harlem, New York permanently disables a police officer while causing him to lose an eye.
- 1977 August 3: FALN bombs exploded on the twenty-first floor of 342 Madison Avenue in New York City, which housed United States Department of DefenseUnited States Department of DefenseThe United States Department of Defense is the U.S...
security personnel, as well as the MobilMobilMobil, previously known as the Socony-Vacuum Oil Company, was a major American oil company which merged with Exxon in 1999 to form ExxonMobil. Today Mobil continues as a major brand name within the combined company, as well as still being a gas station sometimes paired with their own store or On...
Building at 150 East Forty-Second Street, killing one. In addition the group warned that bombs were located in thirteen other buildings, including the Empire State BuildingEmpire State BuildingThe Empire State Building is a 102-story landmark skyscraper and American cultural icon in New York City at the intersection of Fifth Avenue and West 34th Street. It has a roof height of 1,250 feet , and with its antenna spire included, it stands a total of 1,454 ft high. Its name is derived...
and the World Trade CenterWorld Trade CenterThe original World Trade Center was a complex with seven buildings featuring landmark twin towers in Lower Manhattan, New York City, United States. The complex opened on April 4, 1973, and was destroyed in 2001 during the September 11 attacks. The site is currently being rebuilt with five new...
resulting in the evacuation of one hundred thousand people. Five days later a bomb attributed to the group was found in the AMEXAmerican ExpressAmerican Express Company or AmEx, is an American multinational financial services corporation headquartered in Three World Financial Center, Manhattan, New York City, New York, United States. Founded in 1850, it is one of the 30 components of the Dow Jones Industrial Average. The company is best...
building. - May 3, 1979: FALN exploded a bomb outside of the Shubert Theatre in Chicago, injuring five people.
- 1980 March 15 Armed members of FALN raided the campaign headquarters of President Jimmy CarterJimmy CarterJames Earl "Jimmy" Carter, Jr. is an American politician who served as the 39th President of the United States and was the recipient of the 2002 Nobel Peace Prize, the only U.S. President to have received the Prize after leaving office...
in Chicago and the campaign headquarters of George H. W. BushGeorge H. W. BushGeorge Herbert Walker Bush is an American politician who served as the 41st President of the United States . He had previously served as the 43rd Vice President of the United States , a congressman, an ambassador, and Director of Central Intelligence.Bush was born in Milton, Massachusetts, to...
in New York City. Seven people in Chicago and ten people in New York were tied up as the offices were vandalized before the FALN members fled. A few days later, Carter delegates in Chicago received threatening letters from FALN. - 1981 May 16: One was killed in an explosion in the toilets at the Pan Am terminal at New York's JFK airport. The bombing is claimed by the Puerto Rican Resistance Army.
- 1982 December 31: FALN explodes bombs outside of the 26 Federal Plaza in ManhattanManhattanManhattan is the oldest and the most densely populated of the five boroughs of New York City. Located primarily on the island of Manhattan at the mouth of the Hudson River, the boundaries of the borough are identical to those of New York County, an original county of the state of New York...
, Federal Bureau of InvestigationFederal Bureau of InvestigationThe Federal Bureau of Investigation is an agency of the United States Department of Justice that serves as both a federal criminal investigative body and an internal intelligence agency . The FBI has investigative jurisdiction over violations of more than 200 categories of federal crime...
Headquarters and a United States courthouse in BrooklynBrooklynBrooklyn is the most populous of New York City's five boroughs, with nearly 2.6 million residents, and the second-largest in area. Since 1896, Brooklyn has had the same boundaries as Kings County, which is now the most populous county in New York State and the second-most densely populated...
. Three New York Police Department police officers are blinded with one officer losing both eyes. All three officers sustained other serious injuries trying to defuse a second Federal Plaza bomb.
Black militancy
- 1970 October 22: An antipersonnel time bomb explodes outside a San Francisco church, showering steel shrapnel on mourners of a patrolman slain in a bank holdup; no one is injured. The Black Liberation ArmyBlack Liberation ArmyThe Black Liberation Army was an underground, black nationalist-Marxist militant organization that operated in the United States from 1970 to 1981...
is suspected. - 1971: During this year the Black Liberation Army is suspected of killing three policemen one at his desk in San Francisco, shooting four others and opening fire on three patrol cars and rolling a grenade which heavily damages a police car and injures two officers. An attempt is made to bomb a police station. These incidents happen in various cities around the country. In August the group runs a one month long guerrilla warfare school in FayettevilleFayetteville, GeorgiaFayetteville is a town in Fayette County, Georgia, United States. As of the 2010 census, the city had a population of 15,945. The city is the county seat of Fayette County. Fayetteville is located approximately 22 miles from the city of Atlanta....
, GeorgiaGeorgia (U.S. state)Georgia is a state located in the southeastern United States. It was established in 1732, the last of the original Thirteen Colonies. The state is named after King George II of Great Britain. Georgia was the fourth state to ratify the United States Constitution, on January 2, 1788...
. Seven are arrested in January 2007 in connection with the San Francisco desk shooting incident. - 1972 January 22: Two St. Louis policemen, Gregory Foster and Rocco Laurie, are shot in the back by at least three persons; four suspects in the case are members of the Black Liberation ArmyBlack Liberation ArmyThe Black Liberation Army was an underground, black nationalist-Marxist militant organization that operated in the United States from 1970 to 1981...
; one suspect is later killed in a street battle with police; the recovered pistol matches Laurie's. - 1972 December 28: A BrooklynBrooklynBrooklyn is the most populous of New York City's five boroughs, with nearly 2.6 million residents, and the second-largest in area. Since 1896, Brooklyn has had the same boundaries as Kings County, which is now the most populous county in New York State and the second-most densely populated...
, New York bartender is held for $12000 ransom by the Black Liberation Army. - 1973 January 7: After shooting a police officer a week earlier Mark EssexMark EssexMark James Robert Essex killed 9 people, including 5 police officers, and wounded 13 others in New Orleans on December 31, 1972 and January 7, 1973.-Background:Mark James Robert Essex was born in Emporia, Kansas...
a former Black PantherBlack pantherA black panther is typically a melanistic color variant of any of several species of larger cat. Wild black panthers in Latin America are black jaguars , in Asia and Africa they are black leopards , and in North America they may be black jaguars or possibly black cougars A black panther is...
party member shoots nineteen people, ten of them police officers, in retaliation for police killings in and around a Howard Johnsons hotel in New Orleans. He also set fires in the hotel before being killed by police. - 1973: A New York City transit detective is killed and ten law enforcement personnel are shot four by machine gun during the year mostly in and around New York City by the Black Liberation Army. Also two members of that organization are arrested with a car full of explosives. In the next few years there are a number of violent incidents involving this organization but they are more criminal in nature.
Islamic Extremism
- 1977 Hanafi Siege
- 1989 firebombing of the Riverdale Press1989 firebombing of the Riverdale PressThe 1989 firebombing of the Riverdale Press was an attack in which two firebombs were thrown at the offices of a weekly newspaper, the Riverdale Press, in the Riverdale community of the Bronx, New York City on Feb. 28, 1989...
- 1990 Assassination of Meir KahaneMeir KahaneMartin David Kahane , also known as Meir Kahane , was an American-Israeli rabbi and ultra-nationalist writer and political figure. He was an ordained Orthodox rabbi and later served as a member of the Israeli Knesset...
by Egyptian - 1990 Assassination of Rashad KhalifaRashad KhalifaRashad Khalifa was an Egyptian-American biochemist, closely associated with the United Submitters International. He was assassinated in 1990.-Life:Khalifa was born in Egypt on November 19, 1935...
for questioning Koranic verses - 1993 Shootings at CIA Headquarters
- 1993 World Trade Center bombing1993 World Trade Center bombingThe 1993 World Trade Center bombing occurred on February 26, 1993, when a truck bomb was detonated below the North Tower of the World Trade Center in New York City. The 1,336 lb urea nitrate–hydrogen gas enhanced device was intended to knock the North Tower into the South Tower , bringing...
- 1993 New York City landmark bomb plotNew York City landmark bomb plotThe New York City landmark bomb plot was a planned follow-up to the February 1993 World Trade Center bombing designed to inflict mass casualties on American soil by attacking well known landmark targets throughout New York City in the United States. If the attack had been successful, it is likely...
- 1997 Empire State Building shootings
- 1997 Murder of Prison Guard by Haneef Bilal
- 2000 H. Rap BrownH. Rap BrownJamil Abdullah Al-Amin , also known as H. Rap Brown, was chairman of the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee in the 1960s, and during a short lived alliance between SNCC , later the Justice Minister of the Black Panther Party...
(Jamil Abdullah Al-Amin) shoots two police officers - 2000 New York terror attack2000 New York terror attackIn the 2000 New York terror attack, a group of Palestinian-American men attacked Conservative Synagogue Adath Israel of Riverdale in New York City with Molotov cocktails on the eve of Yom Kippur in 2000. Mazin Assi, one of the attackers, was convicted of attempted arson, weapons charges and hate...
- 2000 millennium attack plots2000 millennium attack plotsThe Year 2000 attack plots were terrorist attacks planned to occur on or near January 1, 2000: the bombing of four sites in Jordan, the bombing of Los Angeles International Airport , and the bombing of the USS The Sullivans. The first two plots were foiled by law enforcement agencies; the third was...
- 2001 September 11 attack
- 2002 Los Angeles Airport shooting2002 Los Angeles Airport shootingThe 2002 Los Angeles Airport shooting was a terrorist attack by a lone gunman on an airline ticket counter at Los Angeles International Airport in Los Angeles, California....
- 2002 José Padilla (Abdullah al-Muhajir) Plot
- 2002 Buffalo SixBuffalo SixThe Buffalo Six is a group of six Yemeni-American childhood friends who were convicted of providing material support to al-Qaeda, based on the fact they had attended an Al Qaeda training camp in Afghanistan together in the Spring of 2001.They are:*Mukhtar Al-Bakri,*Sahim Alwan,*Faysal...
- 2002 John Allen MuhammadJohn Allen MuhammadJohn Allen Muhammad was a spree killer from the United States. He, along with his younger partner, Lee Boyd Malvo, carried out the 2002 Beltway sniper attacks, killing at least 10 people. Muhammad and Malvo were arrested in connection with the attacks on October 24, 2002, following tips from alert...
(Washington Sniper) killings - 2003 Columbus Shopping Mall Bombing PlotColumbus Shopping Mall Bombing PlotThe Columbus Shopping Mall Bombing Plot was a plan to blow up an unnamed shopping mall in the city of Columbus in the American state of Ohio. The plot was disclosed by federal authorities on June 14, 2004 when an indictment against Nuradin Abdi was unsealed by the local United States district court...
- 2004 financial buildings plot2004 Financial buildings plotThe 2004 financial buildings plot was a plan led by Dhiren Barot to attack a number of targets in the U.S. and the United Kingdom which is believed to have been approved by al-Qaeda....
- 2005 Los Angeles bomb plot2005 Los Angeles bomb plotThe 2005 Los Angeles bomb plot was a 2005 effort by a group of ex-convicts calling themselves Jamiyyat Ul-Islam Is-Saheed to bomb several military bases, a number of synagogues, and an Israeli consulate in California....
- 2006 Mohammed Reza Taheri-azar SUV attack
- 2006 Sears Tower plot
- 2006 Seattle Jewish Federation shooting
- 2006 Toledo terror plotToledo terror plotIn February 2006, three men in Toledo, Ohio were arrested and charged with conspiracy to provide material support to terrorists in Iraq and engage in violent jihad in their home town, as well as making verbal threats against the President of the United States...
- 2006 transatlantic aircraft plot2006 transatlantic aircraft plotThe 2006 transatlantic aircraft plot was a terrorist plot to detonate liquid explosives carried on board at least 10 airliners travelling from the United Kingdom to the United States and Canada...
- 2007 Fort Dix attack plot2007 Fort Dix attack plotThe 2007 Fort Dix attack plot involved a group of six radical Islamist men who conspired to stage an attack against U.S. Military personnel stationed at Fort Dix, New Jersey. The alleged aim of the group was to "kill as many soldiers as possible"....
- 2007 John F. Kennedy International Airport attack plot2007 John F. Kennedy International Airport attack plotThe 2007 John F. Kennedy International Airport attack plot was an alleged Islamist terrorist plot to blow up a system of jet fuel supply tanks and pipelines that feed fuel to John F. Kennedy International Airport in Queens, New York. These pipelines travel throughout the undergrounds of New York...
- 2009 Little Rock recruiting office shooting2009 Little Rock recruiting office shootingThe 2009 Little Rock recruiting office shooting took place on June 1, 2009, when Muslim convert Abdulhakim Mujahid Muhammad, aka Carlos Leon Bledsoe, opened fire with a rifle in a drive-by shooting on soldiers in front of a United States military recruiting office in Little Rock, Arkansas, in a...
- 2009 Bronx terrorism plot2009 Bronx terrorism plotOn May 20, 2009, US law enforcement arrested four black Muslim men in connection with a plot to shoot down military airplanes flying out of an Air National Guard base in Newburgh, New York and blow up two synagogues in the Riverdale community of the Bronx....
- 2009 Dallas Car Bomb Plot by Hosam Maher Husein SmadiHosam Maher Husein SmadiHosam Maher Husein Smadi is a citizen of Jordan who was arrested on suspicion of planning a terrorist bombing of Fountain Place, a downtown skyscraper in Dallas, Texas, on September 24, 2009....
- 2009 New York Subway and United Kingdom Plot
- 2009 Fort Hood shootingFort Hood shootingThe Fort Hood shooting was a mass shooting that took place on November 5, 2009, at Fort Hood, the most populous U.S. military installation in the world, located just outside Killeen, Texas. In the course of the shooting, a single gunman killed 13 people and wounded 29 others...
- 2009 Colleen LaRoseColleen LaRoseColleen Renee LaRose , also known as JihadJane and Fatima LaRose, is an American citizen charged with terrorism-related crimes, including conspiracy to commit murder and providing material support to terrorists. Most recently, she lived in the Philadelphia suburb of Pennsburg, in Montgomery...
arrested (not made public until March 2010) - 2009 Failed Christmas bombing of Northwest Flight 253 (a.k.a. "Underwear Bomber" incident)
- 2010 Attempted suicide car crash on Whitestone Bridge
- 2010 2010 Times Square car bomb attempt
- 2010 King Salmon, AlaskaKing Salmon, AlaskaKing Salmon is a census-designated place in Bristol Bay Borough in the U.S. state of Alaska. As of the 2000 census the population was 442...
local meteorologist and wife assassination plots - 2010 Alleged Washington MetroWashington MetroThe Washington Metro, commonly called Metro, and unofficially Metrorail, is the rapid transit system in Washington, D.C., United States, and its surrounding suburbs. It is administered by the Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority , which also operates Metrobus service under the Metro name...
bomb plot - 2010 Alleged car bomb plot against Portland, Oregon Christmas tree lighting ceremony
- 2010 Alleged plot to bomb military recruiting center in Catonsville, MarylandCatonsville, MarylandAccording to the United States Census Bureau, the CDP has a total area of , all of it land.-Demographics:In 2010 Catonsville had a population of 41,567...
- 2010 Abu Talhah al-Amrikee death threats to South Park Creators- See: Zachary Adam ChesserZachary Adam ChesserZachary Adam Chesser is an American man who pled guilty to aiding a terrorist organization. In April 2010, under the online username Abu Talhah al-Amrikee, he posted a "warning" to the creators of South Park suggesting that they would be killed for depicting Muhammad in their 200th episode...
- 2011 Alleged Saudi Arabian student bomb plots
- 2011 Manhattan terrorism plot2011 Manhattan terrorism plotThe 2011 Manhattan terrorism plot was an alleged effort by two Muslim Arab-Americans to bomb various targets in Manhattan, New York. The suspects allegedly planned to attack an unspecified synagogue and one of them expressed interest in blowing up a church and the Empire State Building...
- 2011 Lone Wolf New York City, Bayonne,NJ pipe bombs plot.
Failed attacks
- 1920 September 16: The Wall Street bombingWall Street bombingThe Wall Street bombing occurred at 12:01 p.m. on Thursday, September 16, 1920, in the Financial District of New York City. The blast killed 38 and seriously injured 143...
: A suspected attempt to kill financier J.P. Morgan by exploding the first car bombCar bombA car bomb, or truck bomb also known as a Vehicle Borne Improvised Explosive Device , is an improvised explosive device placed in a car or other vehicle and then detonated. It is commonly used as a weapon of assassination, terrorism, or guerrilla warfare, to kill the occupants of the vehicle,...
. Bomb was created by putting scrap metal and 100 pounds of dynamite on a horse-drawn cart and blowing it up on Wall StreetWall StreetWall Street refers to the financial district of New York City, named after and centered on the eight-block-long street running from Broadway to South Street on the East River in Lower Manhattan. Over time, the term has become a metonym for the financial markets of the United States as a whole, or...
. Morgan was out of town but 38 people were killed. Responsibility for the attack has never been firmly established. - 1940 June: Two dynamite bombs were discovered outside of the Philadelphia Convention Hall during the Republican National ConventionRepublican National ConventionThe Republican National Convention is the presidential nominating convention of the Republican Party of the United States. Convened by the Republican National Committee, the stated purpose of the convocation is to nominate an official candidate in an upcoming U.S...
. A total of seven bombs were discovered in the greater Philadelphia area during this period. - 1950 November 1: Assassination attempt on President Harry S. TrumanHarry S. TrumanHarry S. Truman was the 33rd President of the United States . As President Franklin D. Roosevelt's third vice president and the 34th Vice President of the United States , he succeeded to the presidency on April 12, 1945, when President Roosevelt died less than three months after beginning his...
by members of the Puerto Rican Nationalist PartyPuerto Rican Nationalist PartyThe Puerto Rican Nationalist Party was founded on September 17, 1922. Its main objective is to work for Puerto Rican Independence.In 1919, José Coll y Cuchí, a member of the Union Party of Puerto Rico, felt that the Union Party was not doing enough for the cause of Puerto Rican independence and he...
at the Blair HouseBlair HouseBlair House is the official state guest house for the President of the United States. It is located at 1651-1653 Pennsylvania Avenue NW in Washington, D.C., opposite the Old Executive Office Building of the White House, off the corner of Lafayette Park....
in Washington, D.C.Washington, D.C.Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly referred to as Washington, "the District", or simply D.C., is the capital of the United States. On July 16, 1790, the United States Congress approved the creation of a permanent national capital as permitted by the U.S. Constitution.... - 1965 The Monumental Plot – New York Police thwart an attempt to dynamiteDynamiteDynamite is an explosive material based on nitroglycerin, initially using diatomaceous earth , or another absorbent substance such as powdered shells, clay, sawdust, or wood pulp. Dynamites using organic materials such as sawdust are less stable and such use has been generally discontinued...
the Statue of LibertyStatue of LibertyThe Statue of Liberty is a colossal neoclassical sculpture on Liberty Island in New York Harbor, designed by Frédéric Bartholdi and dedicated on October 28, 1886...
, Liberty BellLiberty BellThe Liberty Bell is an iconic symbol of American Independence, located in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Formerly placed in the steeple of the Pennsylvania State House , the bell was commissioned from the London firm of Lester and Pack in 1752, and was cast with the lettering "Proclaim LIBERTY...
, and the Washington MonumentWashington MonumentThe Washington Monument is an obelisk near the west end of the National Mall in Washington, D.C., built to commemorate the first U.S. president, General George Washington...
by three members of the pro-CastroFidel CastroFidel Alejandro Castro Ruz is a Cuban revolutionary and politician, having held the position of Prime Minister of Cuba from 1959 to 1976, and then President from 1976 to 2008. He also served as the First Secretary of the Communist Party of Cuba from the party's foundation in 1961 until 2011...
Black Liberation Front and a QuebecQuebecQuebec or is a province in east-central Canada. It is the only Canadian province with a predominantly French-speaking population and the only one whose sole official language is French at the provincial level....
Separatist. - 1970 March 6 Three members of the Weather Underground are killed when their “bomb factory” located in New York’s Greenwich VillageGreenwich VillageGreenwich Village, , , , .in New York often simply called "the Village", is a largely residential neighborhood on the west side of Lower Manhattan in New York City. A large majority of the district is home to upper middle class families...
accidentally explodes. WUO members Theodore Gold, Diana Oughton, and Terry Robbins die in this accident. The bomb was intended to be planted at a non-commissioned officer's dance at Fort Dix, New JerseyNew JerseyNew Jersey is a state in the Northeastern and Middle Atlantic regions of the United States. , its population was 8,791,894. It is bordered on the north and east by the state of New York, on the southeast and south by the Atlantic Ocean, on the west by Pennsylvania and on the southwest by Delaware...
. The bomb was packed with nails to inflict maximum casualties upon detonation. See Greenwich Village townhouse explosionGreenwich Village townhouse explosionThe Greenwich Village townhouse explosion was the premature detonation of a bomb as it was being assembled by members of the American radical left group, Weatherman – later renamed the Weather Underground – in the basement of a townhouse at 18 West 11th Street between Fifth Avenue and...
. - 1972 Two Jewish Defense LeagueJewish Defense LeagueThe Jewish Defense League is a Jewish organization whose stated goal is to "protect Jews from antisemitism by whatever means necessary"...
members were arrested and charged with bomb possession and burglary in a conspiracy to blow up the Long IslandLong IslandLong Island is an island located in the southeast part of the U.S. state of New York, just east of Manhattan. Stretching northeast into the Atlantic Ocean, Long Island contains four counties, two of which are boroughs of New York City , and two of which are mainly suburban...
residence of the Soviet Mission to the United NationsUnited NationsThe United Nations is an international organization whose stated aims are facilitating cooperation in international law, international security, economic development, social progress, human rights, and achievement of world peace... - 1972 March 7 4.5 pounds of C-4C-4 (explosive)C4 or Composition C4 is a common variety of the plastic explosive known as Composition C.-Composition and manufacture:C4 is made up of explosives, plastic binder, plasticizer and usually marker or odorizing taggant chemicals such as 2,3-dimethyl-2,3-dinitrobutane to help detect the explosive and...
explosives found on a plane by New York City Police Bomb Squad. - 1973 March 6: 1973 New York bomb plot Explosives found in the trunks of cars were defused at the El AlEl AlEl Al Israel Airlines Ltd , trading as El Al , is the flag carrier of Israel. It operates scheduled domestic and international services and cargo flights to Europe, North America, Africa and the Far East from its main base in Ben Gurion International Airport...
air terminal at Kennedy Airport, the First Israel Bank and Trust Company, and the Israel Discount Bank, in New York City. The plot was foiled when the National Security AgencyNational Security AgencyThe National Security Agency/Central Security Service is a cryptologic intelligence agency of the United States Department of Defense responsible for the collection and analysis of foreign communications and foreign signals intelligence, as well as protecting U.S...
intercepted an encrypted message sent to the Iraqi foreign ministry in Baghdad to the Palestine Liberation OrganizationPalestine Liberation OrganizationThe Palestine Liberation Organization is a political and paramilitary organization which was created in 1964. It is recognized as the "sole legitimate representative of the Palestinian people" by the United Nations and over 100 states with which it holds diplomatic relations, and has enjoyed...
's office. The attacks were meant to coincide with visit of Israeli Prime Minister Golda MeirGolda MeirGolda Meir ; May 3, 1898 – December 8, 1978) was a teacher, kibbutznik and politician who became the fourth Prime Minister of the State of Israel....
. Khalid Duhham al-Jawary of the Black SeptemberBlack September (group)The Black September Organization was a Palestinian paramilitary group, founded in 1970. It was responsible for the kidnapping and murder of eleven Israeli athletes and officials, and fatal shooting of a West German policeman, during the 1972 Summer Olympics in Munich, their most publicized event...
was convicted on charges relating to the attacks in 1993 and was released to immigration authorities in 2009. - 1975 September 22: Sarah Jane Moore tries to assassinate President Gerald FordGerald FordGerald Rudolph "Jerry" Ford, Jr. was the 38th President of the United States, serving from 1974 to 1977, and the 40th Vice President of the United States serving from 1973 to 1974...
outside of the St. Francis HotelSt. Francis HotelThe Westin St. Francis is a historic luxury hotel located on Powell and Geary Streets on Union Square in San Francisco, California. The two twelve-story south wings of the hotel were built just before the San Francisco Earthquake, in 1904, and the double-width north wing was completed in 1913,...
in San Francisco. The attempt fails when a bystander grabs her arm and deflects the shot. Moore has stated the motive was to create chaos to bring "the winds of change" because the government had declared war on the left wing. - 1984 According to OregonOregonOregon is a state in the Pacific Northwest region of the United States. It is located on the Pacific coast, with Washington to the north, California to the south, Nevada on the southeast and Idaho to the east. The Columbia and Snake rivers delineate much of Oregon's northern and eastern...
law enforcement there was an abortive plot by the Rajneeshee cult to murder United States AttorneyUnited States AttorneyUnited States Attorneys represent the United States federal government in United States district court and United States court of appeals. There are 93 U.S. Attorneys stationed throughout the United States, Puerto Rico, the U.S. Virgin Islands, Guam, and the Northern Mariana Islands...
for Oregon, Charles TurnerCharles H. Turner (attorney)Charles H. Turner is a former United States Attorney for the District of Oregon. Prior to his presidential appointment as U.S. Attorney, Turner worked under his predecessor, Sidney I. Lezak, for 14 years. He was appointed as Lezak's replacement by President Ronald Reagan.As U.S...
. - April 1985: The FBI arrested several members of a SikhSikhA Sikh is a follower of Sikhism. It primarily originated in the 15th century in the Punjab region of South Asia. The term "Sikh" has its origin in Sanskrit term शिष्य , meaning "disciple, student" or शिक्ष , meaning "instruction"...
terrorist group who were plotting to kill Indian PM Rajiv GandhiRajiv GandhiRajiv Ratna Gandhi was the sixth Prime Minister of India . He took office after his mother's assassination on 31 October 1984; he himself was assassinated on 21 May 1991. He became the youngest Prime Minister of India when he took office at the age of 40.Rajiv Gandhi was the elder son of Indira...
when he visited New York in June. - 1988 April 12: Yu KikumuraYu Kikumurawas allegedly a member of the Japanese Red Army, an armed militant organization.Police arrested Kikumura in Schiphol Airport in Amsterdam in 1986 when they found him carrying a bomb in his luggage...
, a member of the Japanese Red ArmyJapanese Red ArmyThe was a Communist terrorist group founded by Fusako Shigenobu early in 1971 in Lebanon. It sometimes called itself Arab-JRA after the Lod airport massacre...
, is arrested with three pipe bombPipe bombA pipe bomb is an improvised explosive device, a tightly sealed section of pipe filled with an explosive material. The containment provided by the pipe means that simple low explosives can be used to produce a relatively large explosion, and the fragmentation of the pipe itself creates potentially...
s on the New Jersey TurnpikeNew Jersey TurnpikeThe New Jersey Turnpike is a toll road in New Jersey, maintained by the New Jersey Turnpike Authority. According to the International Bridge, Tunnel and Turnpike Association, the Turnpike is the nation's sixth-busiest toll road and is among one of the most heavily traveled highways in the United...
. According to prosecutors, Kikumura planned to bomb a military recruitment office in the Veteran's Administration building in lower ManhattanManhattanManhattan is the oldest and the most densely populated of the five boroughs of New York City. Located primarily on the island of Manhattan at the mouth of the Hudson River, the boundaries of the borough are identical to those of New York County, an original county of the state of New York...
on April 14, the anniversary of the U.S. raid on LibyaOperation El Dorado CanyonThe 1986 United States bombing of Libya, code-named Operation El Dorado Canyon, comprised the joint United States Air Force, Navy and Marine Corps air-strikes against Libya on April 15, 1986. The attack was carried out in response to the 1986 Berlin discotheque bombing.-Origins:Shortly after his...
. - June 1993: New York City landmark bomb plotNew York City landmark bomb plotThe New York City landmark bomb plot was a planned follow-up to the February 1993 World Trade Center bombing designed to inflict mass casualties on American soil by attacking well known landmark targets throughout New York City in the United States. If the attack had been successful, it is likely...
. Followers of radical cleric Omar Abdel-RahmanOmar Abdel-RahmanSheikh Omar Abdel-Rahman , commonly known in the United States as "The Blind Sheikh", is a blind Egyptian Muslim leader who is currently serving a life sentence at the Butner Medical Center which is part of the Butner Federal Correctional Institution in Butner, North Carolina, United...
were arrested while planning to bomb landmarks in New York City, including the UN headquarters. - December 1995: A drum of ammonium nitrate and fuel oil is found behind an Internal Revenue ServiceInternal Revenue ServiceThe Internal Revenue Service is the revenue service of the United States federal government. The agency is a bureau of the Department of the Treasury, and is under the immediate direction of the Commissioner of Internal Revenue...
building in Reno, NevadaReno, NevadaReno is the county seat of Washoe County, Nevada, United States. The city has a population of about 220,500 and is the most populous Nevada city outside of the Las Vegas metropolitan area...
. An anti government tax protester is arrested later. - 2000 January 1: 2000 millennium attack plots2000 millennium attack plotsThe Year 2000 attack plots were terrorist attacks planned to occur on or near January 1, 2000: the bombing of four sites in Jordan, the bombing of Los Angeles International Airport , and the bombing of the USS The Sullivans. The first two plots were foiled by law enforcement agencies; the third was...
, plan to bomb LAX Airport in Los Angeles, CaliforniaLos Angeles, CaliforniaLos Angeles , with a population at the 2010 United States Census of 3,792,621, is the most populous city in California, USA and the second most populous in the United States, after New York City. It has an area of , and is located in Southern California... - 2001 December 12: Jewish Defense LeagueJewish Defense LeagueThe Jewish Defense League is a Jewish organization whose stated goal is to "protect Jews from antisemitism by whatever means necessary"...
plot by Chairman Irv RubinIrv RubinIrving D. Rubin was chairman of the Jewish Defense League from 1985 to 2002. He allegedly committed suicide in jail when awaiting trial on charges of conspiracy to bomb private and government property....
and follower Earl KrugelEarl KrugelEarl Leslie Krugel was the West Coast coordinator of the Jewish Defense League. In 2005, he was sentenced to prison on charges of terrorism after he confessed plotting, with the group's leader Irv Rubin, to blow up the office of Arab-American congressman Darrell Issa and the King Fahd mosque in...
to blow up the King Fahd Mosque in Culver City, CaliforniaCulver City, CaliforniaCulver City is a city in western Los Angeles County, California. As of the 2010 census, the city had a population of 38,883, up from 38,816 at the 2000 census. It is mostly surrounded by the city of Los Angeles, but also shares a border with unincorporated areas of Los Angeles County. Culver...
and the office of Lebanese-American Congressman Darrell IssaDarrell IssaDarrell Edward Issa is the U.S. Representative for , and previously the 48th, serving since 2001. He is a member of the Republican Party. He was formerly a CEO of Directed Electronics, the Vista, California-based manufacturer of automobile security and convenience products...
foiled. - 2001 December 22: British citizen and self proclaimed Al Qaeda member Richard ReidRichard Reid (shoe bomber)Richard Colvin Reid , also known as the Shoe Bomber, is a self-admitted member of al-Qaeda who pled guilty in 2002 in U.S. federal court to eight criminal counts of terrorism stemming from his attempt to destroy a commercial aircraft in-flight by detonating explosives hidden in his shoes...
attempted to detonate the C-4 explosive PETN concealed in his shoes while on a flight from Paris to Miami. He was subdued by crew and passengers with the plane landing safely in BostonBostonBoston is the capital of and largest city in Massachusetts, and is one of the oldest cities in the United States. The largest city in New England, Boston is regarded as the unofficial "Capital of New England" for its economic and cultural impact on the entire New England region. The city proper had...
. - 2004 Financial buildings plot2004 Financial buildings plotThe 2004 financial buildings plot was a plan led by Dhiren Barot to attack a number of targets in the U.S. and the United Kingdom which is believed to have been approved by al-Qaeda....
: Al-QaedaAl-QaedaAl-Qaeda is a global broad-based militant Islamist terrorist organization founded by Osama bin Laden sometime between August 1988 and late 1989. It operates as a network comprising both a multinational, stateless army and a radical Sunni Muslim movement calling for global Jihad...
plan to bomb the International Monetary FundInternational Monetary FundThe International Monetary Fund is an organization of 187 countries, working to foster global monetary cooperation, secure financial stability, facilitate international trade, promote high employment and sustainable economic growth, and reduce poverty around the world...
, New York Stock ExchangeNew York Stock ExchangeThe New York Stock Exchange is a stock exchange located at 11 Wall Street in Lower Manhattan, New York City, USA. It is by far the world's largest stock exchange by market capitalization of its listed companies at 13.39 trillion as of Dec 2010...
, CitigroupCitigroupCitigroup Inc. or Citi is an American multinational financial services corporation headquartered in Manhattan, New York City, New York, United States. Citigroup was formed from one of the world's largest mergers in history by combining the banking giant Citicorp and financial conglomerate...
and PrudentialPrudential FinancialThe Prudential Insurance Company of America , also known as Prudential Financial, Inc., is a Fortune Global 500 and Fortune 500 company whose subsidiaries provide insurance, investment management, and other financial products and services to both retail and institutional customers throughout the...
buildings broken up after arrest of computer expert in Pakistan and plotters in Britain. - 2004 Columbus Shopping Mall Bombing PlotColumbus Shopping Mall Bombing PlotThe Columbus Shopping Mall Bombing Plot was a plan to blow up an unnamed shopping mall in the city of Columbus in the American state of Ohio. The plot was disclosed by federal authorities on June 14, 2004 when an indictment against Nuradin Abdi was unsealed by the local United States district court...
: A loosely organized group of young men planned to carry out an attack on an unnamed shopping mall. - June 2006: The Animal Liberation FrontAnimal Liberation FrontThe Animal Liberation Front is an international, underground leaderless resistance that engages in illegal direct action in pursuit of animal liberation...
targets UCLA professor Lynn Fairbanks with a firebomb due to her research on animals. The bomb was placed on the doorstep of a house occupied by her neighbor and a tenant. According to the FBI, the device was lit but failed to ignite and was powerful enough to have killed the occupants. - 2006 September 11: A man rammed his car into a women's clinic that he thought was an abortion clinic and set it ablaze in DavenportDavenport, IowaDavenport is a city located along the Mississippi River in Scott County, Iowa, United States. Davenport is the county seat of and largest city in Scott County. Davenport was founded on May 14, 1836 by Antoine LeClaire and was named for his friend, George Davenport, a colonel during the Black Hawk...
, IowaIowaIowa is a state located in the Midwestern United States, an area often referred to as the "American Heartland". It derives its name from the Ioway people, one of the many American Indian tribes that occupied the state at the time of European exploration. Iowa was a part of the French colony of New...
causing $20,000 worth of damage to the building. - 2007 April 25: A bomb was left in a women's clinic in AustinAustin, TexasAustin is the capital city of the U.S. state of :Texas and the seat of Travis County. Located in Central Texas on the eastern edge of the American Southwest, it is the fourth-largest city in Texas and the 14th most populous city in the United States. It was the third-fastest-growing large city in...
but failed to explode. - 2009 2009 New York bomb plot
- 2009 December 25: Nigerian citizen and self-described Al Qaeda member Umar Farouk AbdulmutallabUmar Farouk AbdulmutallabUmar Farouk Abdulmutallab , popularly referred to as the "Underwear Bomber", is a suspected terrorist who attempted to detonate plastic explosives hidden in his underwear while on board Northwest Airlines Flight 253, en route from Amsterdam to Detroit, Michigan, on December 25,...
allegedly attempted to blow up Northwest Airlines Flight 253Northwest Airlines Flight 253Northwest Airlines Flight 253 was an international passenger flight from Amsterdam Airport Schiphol in Haarlemmermeer, Netherlands, to Detroit Metropolitan Wayne County Airport in Romulus, Michigan, United States...
in flight over Detroit by igniting his underpants which were filled with the C-4 explosive PETNPETNPentaerythritol tetranitrate , also known as PENT, PENTA, TEN, corpent, penthrite , is the nitrate ester of pentaerythritol. Penta refers to the five carbon atoms of the neopentane skeleton.PETN is most well known as an explosive...
. He has been indicted in a U.S. federal court; charges include the attempted murder of 289 people. Several days later, Al Qaeda’s affiliate in Yemen and Saudi Arabia claimed responsibility for the attempted attack. Addressing America, the group threatened to “come for you to slaughter.” On January 24, 2010 an audio tape that US intelligence believes is authentic was broadcast in which Osama Bin Ladin claimed responsibility for the attempted bombing. The intelligence officials expressed doubt about the veracity of Bin Ladin's claim.. On October 12, 2011 Abdulmutallab plead guilty to all counts against him and read a statement to the court saying "I attempted to use an explosive device which in the U.S. law is a weapon of mass destruction, which I call a blessed weapon to save the lives of innocent Muslims, for U.S. use of weapons of mass destruction on Muslim populations in Afghanistan, Iraq, Yemen and beyond”. - 2010 May 1 2010 Times Square car bomb attempt and plot: A attempted evening car bombing in crowded Times SquareTimes SquareTimes Square is a major commercial intersection in the borough of Manhattan in New York City, at the junction of Broadway and Seventh Avenue and stretching from West 42nd to West 47th Streets...
in New York City failed when a street vendor saw smoke emanating from an SUV and called police. The White House has blamed Tehrik-e-Taliban the Pakistani Taliban for the failed attack and said Faisal ShahzadFaisal ShahzadFaisal Shahzad is a Pakistani American who attempted the May 1, 2010, Times Square car bombing. On , 2010, in Federal District Court in Manhattan he confessed to 10 counts arising from the bombing attempt...
aged 30, an American of Pakistani origin who has been arrested in relation to the incident was working for the group. In July 2010, the Pakistani Taliban released a video featuring Shahzad in which he urged other Muslims in the West to follow his example and to wage similar attacks. On May 3 Shahzad was arrested at Kennedy Airport as he was preparing to fly to DubaiDubaiDubai is a city and emirate in the United Arab Emirates . The emirate is located south of the Persian Gulf on the Arabian Peninsula and has the largest population with the second-largest land territory by area of all the emirates, after Abu Dhabi...
. The device was described as crude and amateurish but potent enough to cause casualties. On May 13 the F.B.I. raided several locations in the Northeast and arrested 3 on alleged immigration violations. Several suspects have bben arrested in Pakistan including the co-owner of a prominent catering firm used by the US embassy. On June 21 Shahzad plead guilty to 10 counts saying he created the bomb to force the US military to withdraw troops and stop drone attacks in a number of Muslim countries. Shahzad said he chose the location to cause mass civilian casualties because the civilians elected the government that carried out the allegedly anti Muslim policies. On October 4, 2010 Shahzad was sentenced to life in prison. During his sentencing, he threatened that “the defeat of the U.S. is imminent” and that “we will keep on terrorizing you until you leave our lands.” Shahzad planned on detonating a second bomb in Times Square two weeks later. - 2010 July 21. Bryon WilliamsByron Williams (shooter)Byron Williams is an American responsible for the July 18, 2010 shootout with California Highway Patrol officers on I-580 in Oakland, California...
captured after shootout with California Highway PatrolCalifornia Highway PatrolThe California Highway Patrol is a law enforcement agency of the U.S. state of California. The CHP has patrol jurisdiction over all California highways and also acts as the state police....
with guns strapped on his body armor alleged to have confessed that he was on his way to kill workers at the American Civil Liberties UnionAmerican Civil Liberties UnionThe American Civil Liberties Union is a U.S. non-profit organization whose stated mission is "to defend and preserve the individual rights and liberties guaranteed to every person in this country by the Constitution and laws of the United States." It works through litigation, legislation, and...
and follow it up with and attack on Tides CenterTides CenterTides Center is a non-profit organization in the United States which provides fiscal sponsorship for progressive groups. Tides Center is classified a 501 tax-exempt organization by the IRS...
allegedly was angry with left wing politics and inspired by conspiracy theories of Glenn BeckGlenn BeckGlenn Edward Lee Beck is an American conservative radio host, vlogger, author, entrepreneur, political commentator and former television host. He hosts the Glenn Beck Program, a nationally syndicated talk-radio show that airs throughout the United States on Premiere Radio Networks...
and hoped the attack would ignite a revolution. - 2011 January 17: Spokane bombing attempt2011 Spokane bombing attempt-Over view:On January 17, 2011, a radio-controlled, shaped pipe bomb was found and defused in Spokane, Washington along the route of that year's Martin Luther King Jr. memorial march...
: A small pipe bomb in a backpack designed to be detonated by remote control and spread shrapnel in a specific direction was discovered during a Martin Luther King Day parade in Spokane, WashingtonSpokane, WashingtonSpokane is a city located in the Northwestern United States in the state of Washington. It is the largest city of Spokane County of which it is also the county seat, and the metropolitan center of the Inland Northwest region...
. The FBI said a racial connection is inescapable.
Alleged and proven plots
- 1940 January: The Christian Front is shut down by the F.B.I. after it was discovered they were arming themselves for a plot to "murder Jews, communists, and 'a dozen Congressmen'" for the purpose of establishing a government modeled after Nazi GermanyNazi GermanyNazi Germany , also known as the Third Reich , but officially called German Reich from 1933 to 1943 and Greater German Reich from 26 June 1943 onward, is the name commonly used to refer to the state of Germany from 1933 to 1945, when it was a totalitarian dictatorship ruled by...
. - 1943 March 31: Clarence Cull arrested and charged with attempting to assassinate President Franklin D. RooseveltFranklin D. RooseveltFranklin Delano Roosevelt , also known by his initials, FDR, was the 32nd President of the United States and a central figure in world events during the mid-20th century, leading the United States during a time of worldwide economic crisis and world war...
by suicide bombing. Cull blamed Roosevelt for lost convoys of Merchant Ships. - 1995 November 9: Oklahoma Constitutional Militia members arrested while in the planning stages for bombings of Southern Poverty Law CenterSouthern Poverty Law CenterThe Southern Poverty Law Center is an American nonprofit civil rights organization noted for its legal victories against white supremacist groups; legal representation for victims of hate groups; monitoring of alleged hate groups, militias and extremist organizations; and educational programs that...
, gay bars and abortion clinics. - 1996 January 1: Members of the Viper Team militia are arrested after they caught surveying government buildings in Arizona.
- 1996 July 13: John J. Ford, 47, of Bellport, Long Island, a former court officer and president of the Long Island U.F.O. Network, and Joseph Mazzachelli plotted to poison local politicians with radiumRadiumRadium is a chemical element with atomic number 88, represented by the symbol Ra. Radium is an almost pure-white alkaline earth metal, but it readily oxidizes on exposure to air, becoming black in color. All isotopes of radium are highly radioactive, with the most stable isotope being radium-226,...
and shoot them if that did not work. They believed the government was covering up knowledge of UFO landings. - 1996 November 11: Seven members of the Mountaineer MilitiaMountaineer MilitiaOctober 11, 1996, seven men having connections with the Mountaineer Militia, a local anti-government paramilitary group, were arrested on charges of plotting to blow up the Federal Bureau of Investigation's Criminal Justice Information Services Division in Clarksburg, WV...
are arrested in a plot to blow up the FBI fingerprint records center in West VirginiaWest VirginiaWest Virginia is a state in the Appalachian and Southeastern regions of the United States, bordered by Virginia to the southeast, Kentucky to the southwest, Ohio to the northwest, Pennsylvania to the northeast and Maryland to the east...
. - 1997 July 4: Members of the splinter militia group the Third Continental Congress are arrested while planning attacks on military bases which they believed were being used to train United NationsUnited NationsThe United Nations is an international organization whose stated aims are facilitating cooperation in international law, international security, economic development, social progress, human rights, and achievement of world peace...
troops to attack U.S. citizens. - 1998 March 18: Members of the North American Militia are arrested in plot to bomb Federal Buildings in Michigan, a television station and an interstate highway intersection.
- 1999 December 5: Members of the San Joaquin Militia are arrested on charges of plotting to bomb critical infrastructure locations in hopes of sparking an insurrection. The leaders of the group plead guilty to charges of plotting to kill a Federal judge.
- 1999 December 8: The leader of the Southeastern States Alliance militia group is arrested in plot to bomb energy faculties with the goal of causing power outages in Florida and Georgia.
- 2000 March 9: The former leader of the Texas Militia is arrested in a plot to attack the Federal Building in Houston.
- 2002 February 8: Two members of Project 7 are arrested plotting to kill judges and law enforcement officials in order to kick off a revolution.
- 2002 May 8: José PadillaJosé Padilla (alleged terrorist)José Padilla , also known as Abdullah al-Muhajir or Muhajir Abdullah, is a United States citizen convicted of aiding terrorists....
, accused by John AshcroftJohn AshcroftJohn David Ashcroft is a United States politician who served as the 79th United States Attorney General, from 2001 until 2005, appointed by President George W. Bush. Ashcroft previously served as the 50th Governor of Missouri and a U.S...
of plotting to attack the United States with a dirty bombDirty bombA dirty bomb is a speculative radiological weapon that combines radioactive material with conventional explosives. The purpose of the weapon is to contaminate the area around the explosion with radioactive material, hence the attribute "dirty"....
, declared as an enemy combatantEnemy combatantEnemy combatant is a term historically referring to members of the armed forces of the state with which another state is at war. Prior to 2008, the definition was: "Any person in an armed conflict who could be properly detained under the laws and customs of war." In the case of a civil war or an...
, and denied habeas corpusHabeas corpusis a writ, or legal action, through which a prisoner can be released from unlawful detention. The remedy can be sought by the prisoner or by another person coming to his aid. Habeas corpus originated in the English legal system, but it is now available in many nations...
. No material evidence has been produced to support the allegation. - 2002 July 26 2002 White supremacist terror plot2002 white supremacist terror plotDuring a 2002 terror plot, a pair of white supremacists planned to bomb a series of institutions associated with African American and American Jewish communities.-Crime:...
: Two white supremacists were convicted of conspiring to start a race war by bombing landmarks associated with Jews and Blacks. - 2002 September 3: An Idaho Mountain Militia Boys plot to kill a judge and a police officer and break a friend out of jail is uncovered.
- 2003 April 24: William Krar is charged for his part in the Tyler poison gas plotTyler poison gas plotThe Tyler poison gas plot was an American attempt at domestic terrorism thwarted in April 2003 with the arrest of three individuals in Tyler, Texas and the seizure of a cyanide gas bomb along with a large arsenal that included at least 100 other conventional bombs, machine guns, an assault rifle,...
, a white supremacist related plan. A sodium cyanide bomb was seized with at least 100 other bombs, bomb components, machine guns, and 500,000 rounds of ammunition. He faces up to 10 years in prison. - 2003 May 1: Iyman FarisIyman FarisIyman Faris is a Pakistani American former truck driver from Columbus, Ohio who was convicted of providing material support to Al Qaeda, for his role in a plot to destroy the Brooklyn Bridge...
pleads guilty to providing material support to Al Qaeda and plotting to bring down the Brooklyn BridgeBrooklyn BridgeThe Brooklyn Bridge is one of the oldest suspension bridges in the United States. Completed in 1883, it connects the New York City boroughs of Manhattan and Brooklyn by spanning the East River...
by cutting through cables with blowtorches. He had been working as a double for the FBI since March, but in October was sentenced to 20 years in prison. - 2005 August 31 2005 Los Angeles bomb plot2005 Los Angeles bomb plotThe 2005 Los Angeles bomb plot was a 2005 effort by a group of ex-convicts calling themselves Jamiyyat Ul-Islam Is-Saheed to bomb several military bases, a number of synagogues, and an Israeli consulate in California....
:Kevin James, Hammad Samana, Gregory Patterson, and Levar Washington were indicted on charges to wage war against the U.S. government through terrorism in California. The men planned attacks against Jewish institutions and American military locations in Los Angeles during the Yom KippurYom KippurYom Kippur , also known as Day of Atonement, is the holiest and most solemn day of the year for the Jews. Its central themes are atonement and repentance. Jews traditionally observe this holy day with a 25-hour period of fasting and intensive prayer, often spending most of the day in synagogue...
holiday. - 2006 February 21: The Toledo terror plotToledo terror plotIn February 2006, three men in Toledo, Ohio were arrested and charged with conspiracy to provide material support to terrorists in Iraq and engage in violent jihad in their home town, as well as making verbal threats against the President of the United States...
where three men were accused of conspiring to wage a "holy war" against the United States, supply help to the terrorist in Iraq, and threatening to kill the US president. - 2006 June 23: The Miami bomb plot to attack the Sears Tower where seven men were arrested after an FBI agent infiltrated a group while posing as an al-Qaeda member. No weapons or other materials were found. On May 12, 2009 after two mistrials due to hung juries five men were convicted and one acquitted on charges related to the plot. Narseal Batiste the groups ringleader was convicted on four charges the only defendant to be convicted on all four charges brought against the defendants.
- 2006 July 7: Three suspects arrested in Lebanon for plotting to blow up a Hudson River tunnelHudson River bombing plotOn July 7, 2006, the FBI announced that they had foiled a plot that was in its "talking phase" by foreign militants to detonate explosives in tunnels connecting New Jersey with Manhattan and drown the New York financial district with a torrent of water. This was unfeasible because the tunnel is...
and flood the New York financial district. - 2006 November 29 Demetrius Van Crocker a white supremacist from rural TennesseeTennesseeTennessee is a U.S. state located in the Southeastern United States. It has a population of 6,346,105, making it the nation's 17th-largest state by population, and covers , making it the 36th-largest by total land area...
was sentenced to 30 years in prison for attempting to acquire SarinSarinSarin, or GB, is an organophosphorus compound with the formula [2CHO]CH3PF. It is a colorless, odorless liquid, which is used as a chemical weapon. It has been classified as a weapon of mass destruction in UN Resolution 687...
nerve gas and C-4C-4 (explosive)C4 or Composition C4 is a common variety of the plastic explosive known as Composition C.-Composition and manufacture:C4 is made up of explosives, plastic binder, plasticizer and usually marker or odorizing taggant chemicals such as 2,3-dimethyl-2,3-dinitrobutane to help detect the explosive and...
explosives that he planned to use to destroy government buildings. - 2006 December 8: Derrick ShareefDerrick ShareefDerrick Shareef, also known as Talib Abu Salam Ibn Shareef, is an accused Islamic terrorist who is charged with trying to trade stereo speakers for handgrenades and a handgun as part of plan to terrorize shoppers at CherryVale Mall in Rockford, Illinois. Last known to reside in Genoa, Illinois,...
, 22, a Muslim convert who talked about his desire to wage jihadJihadJihad , an Islamic term, is a religious duty of Muslims. In Arabic, the word jihād translates as a noun meaning "struggle". Jihad appears 41 times in the Quran and frequently in the idiomatic expression "striving in the way of God ". A person engaged in jihad is called a mujahid; the plural is...
against civilians was charged in a plot to set off four hand grenades in garbage cans December 22 at the CherryVale MallCherryVale MallCherryvale Mall is a shopping mall in Cherry Valley, Illinois, serving nearby Rockford, Illinois. Its four anchor stores are Bergner's, J. C. Penney, Macy's and Sears. CBL & Associates Properties, Inc. acquired the shopping center in 2002. Cherryvale mall has 134 stores consisting of a gross...
in Rockford, IllinoisRockford, IllinoisRockford is a mid-sized city located on both banks of the Rock River in far northern Illinois. Often referred to as "The Forest City", Rockford is the county seat of Winnebago County, Illinois, USA. As reported in the 2010 U.S. census, the city was home to 152,871 people, the third most populated...
. - 2007 March 5 A Rikers IslandRikers IslandRikers Island is New York City's main jail complex, as well as the name of the island on which it sits, in the East River between Queens and the mainland Bronx, adjacent to the runways of LaGuardia Airport. The island itself is part of the borough of the Bronx, though it is included as part of...
inmate offered to pay an undercover police officer posing as a hit man to behead New York City police commissioner Raymond Kelly and bomb police headquarters in retaliation for the controversial police shooting of Sean BellSean Bell shooting incidentThe Sean Bell shooting incident took place in the New York City borough of Queens, New York, United States on November 25, 2006, when three men were shot a total of fifty times by a team of both plainclothes and undercover NYPD officers, killing one of the men, Sean Bell, on the morning before his...
. The suspect wanted the bombing to be considered a terrorist act. - 2007 May 1: Five members of a self styled Birmingham, AlabamaBirmingham, AlabamaBirmingham is the largest city in Alabama. The city is the county seat of Jefferson County. According to the 2010 United States Census, Birmingham had a population of 212,237. The Birmingham-Hoover Metropolitan Area, in estimate by the U.S...
area anti-immigration militiaMilitiaThe term militia is commonly used today to refer to a military force composed of ordinary citizens to provide defense, emergency law enforcement, or paramilitary service, in times of emergency without being paid a regular salary or committed to a fixed term of service. It is a polyseme with...
were arrested for planning a machine gunMachine gunA machine gun is a fully automatic mounted or portable firearm, usually designed to fire rounds in quick succession from an ammunition belt or large-capacity magazine, typically at a rate of several hundred rounds per minute....
attack on Mexicans. - 2007 May 7: Fort Dix attack plot2007 Fort Dix attack plotThe 2007 Fort Dix attack plot involved a group of six radical Islamist men who conspired to stage an attack against U.S. Military personnel stationed at Fort Dix, New Jersey. The alleged aim of the group was to "kill as many soldiers as possible"....
Six men inspired by Jihadist videos arrested in a failed homegrown terrorismHomegrown terrorismHomegrown terrorism is commonly associated with an international organization rather than being a ‘lone wolf’ act committed by isolated and disturbed individuals. It constitutes terrorist attacks from within the target nation, often Western...
plot to kill soldiers. Plot unravels when Circuit City clerk becomes suspicious of the DVDs the men had created and report it to authorities who place an informant in the group. In October 2008 one man pleaded guilty to charges related to the plot. On December 22, 2008 five other men were convicted with conspiracy to kill American soldiers but were acquitted of attempted murder. Dritan, Shain and Eljvir Duka were sentenced to life iin prison. - 2007 June 3: John F. Kennedy International Airport terror plot Four men indicted in plot to blow up jet-fuel supply tanks at JFK AirportJohn F. Kennedy International AirportJohn F. Kennedy International Airport is an international airport located in the borough of Queens in New York City, about southeast of Lower Manhattan. It is the busiest international air passenger gateway to the United States, handling more international traffic than any other airport in North...
and a 40 miles (64.4 km) connecting pipeline. One suspect is a U.S. citizen and one, Abdul KadirAbdul Kadir (politician)Abdul Kadir is a former member of Guyana's parliament, the National Assembly, and was the mayor of Guyana's second-largest city, Linden, from 1994 to 1996...
, is former member of parliament in GuyanaGuyanaGuyana , officially the Co-operative Republic of Guyana, previously the colony of British Guiana, is a sovereign state on the northern coast of South America that is culturally part of the Anglophone Caribbean. Guyana was a former colony of the Dutch and of the British...
. All The airport was targeted because one of the suspects saw arms shipments and missiles being shipped to IsraelIsraelThe State of Israel is a parliamentary republic located in the Middle East, along the eastern shore of the Mediterranean Sea...
from that locale. In a recorded conversation one of the suspects allegedly told an informant that "Anytime you hit Kennedy, it is the most hurtful thing to the United States. To hit John F. Kennedy, wow.... They love JFK – he's like the man". Plot unraveled when a person from law enforcement was recruited. On June 29, 2010 Abdel Nur plead guilty to material support charges. Due to health reasons Kareem Ibrahim was removed from the case and will be tried separately. On August 2 Russell M. Defreitas and Abdul Kadir were convicted for their role in the plot. - 2008 March 26: Michael S. Gorbey who was detained in January 2008 for carrying a loaded shotgun two blocks from the Capitol BuildingUnited States CapitolThe United States Capitol is the meeting place of the United States Congress, the legislature of the federal government of the United States. Located in Washington, D.C., it sits atop Capitol Hill at the eastern end of the National Mall...
has been charged planning to set off a bomb after a device containing can of gunpowder duct-taped to a box of shotgun shells and a bottle containing buckshot or BB pellets was found in the pickup truck he was driving. The pickup truck was moved to a government parking lot where for a three week period the device inside it went unnoticed. Michael Gorbey gets 22 years prison, but he insisted that policePoliceThe police is a personification of the state designated to put in practice the enforced law, protect property and reduce civil disorder in civilian matters. Their powers include the legitimized use of force...
planted weapons. - 2008 October 27 Federal agents claim to thwarted a plot by two white power skinheads to target an African American High School and kill 88 blacks and decapitate 14 more (the numbers 88 and 14 are symbolic to white supremacists) and although expecting to fail try to assassinate Barack ObamaBarack ObamaBarack Hussein Obama II is the 44th and current President of the United States. He is the first African American to hold the office. Obama previously served as a United States Senator from Illinois, from January 2005 until he resigned following his victory in the 2008 presidential election.Born in...
. - 2009 May 20: 2009 New York City bomb plot Three U.S. citizens and one Haitian from Newburgh, New York were arrested in a plot to bomb a Riverdale TempleRiverdale TempleThe Riverdale Temple is a Reform synagogue in the Riverdale neighborhood of the Bronx, New York City. The congregation was founded in 1947.In the 2009 New York City bomb plot, a group of American Muslims planned to blow up the temple...
and a Riverdale Jewish CenterRiverdale Jewish CenterThe Riverdale Jewish Center is an Orthodox synagogue in the Riverdale neighborhood of the Bronx, New York City.The rabbi as of 2011 is Jonathan Rosenblatt...
in The BronxThe BronxThe Bronx is the northernmost of the five boroughs of New York City. It is also known as Bronx County, the last of the 62 counties of New York State to be incorporated...
, New York City in an alleged homegrown terroristHomegrown terrorismHomegrown terrorism is commonly associated with an international organization rather than being a ‘lone wolf’ act committed by isolated and disturbed individuals. It constitutes terrorist attacks from within the target nation, often Western...
plot. It was also alleged that they planned to shoot down military planes operating out of Stewart Air National Guard BaseStewart Air National Guard BaseStewart Air National Guard Base is the home of the 105th Airlift Wing , an Air Mobility Command -gained unit of the New York Air National Guard and "host" wing for the installation...
also in Newburgh. One of the suspects whose parents are from AfghanistanAfghanistanAfghanistan , officially the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan, is a landlocked country located in the centre of Asia, forming South Asia, Central Asia and the Middle East. With a population of about 29 million, it has an area of , making it the 42nd most populous and 41st largest nation in the world...
was said to be "unhappy that many Muslim people were being killed in Afghanistan and Pakistan by the United States Military forces." On October 18, 2010, the four were convicted on most of the charges brought against them. On June 29, 2011 three of the men were sentenced to 25 years imprisonment by a judge who criticized the governments handling of the case. - 2009 September 2009 New York Subway and United Kingdom Plot: Najibullah ZaziNajibullah ZaziNajibullah Zazi is an Afghan-American who was arrested in September 2009 as part of the 2009 U.S. Al Qaeda group accused of planning suicide bombings on the New York City subway system, and has pled guilty as have two other defendants. U.S...
of Denver was indicted on charges of trying to build and detonate a weapon of mass destruction by purchasing hydrogen peroxideHydrogen peroxideHydrogen peroxide is the simplest peroxide and an oxidizer. Hydrogen peroxide is a clear liquid, slightly more viscous than water. In dilute solution, it appears colorless. With its oxidizing properties, hydrogen peroxide is often used as a bleach or cleaning agent...
, acetoneAcetoneAcetone is the organic compound with the formula 2CO, a colorless, mobile, flammable liquid, the simplest example of the ketones.Acetone is miscible with water and serves as an important solvent in its own right, typically as the solvent of choice for cleaning purposes in the laboratory...
and other chemicals. He and two others allegedly planned to detonate the homemade explosives on the New York City subway system. On February 22, 2010 Zazi plead guilty to conspiracy to use weapons of mass destruction, conspiracy to commit murder in a foreign country and providing material support for a terrorist organization. Zazi said he was recruited by al-Qaida as part of a "martyrdom plan". Zazi agreed to cooperate with authorities and has told them that the groups planned to walk into the Times Square and Grand Central stations with backpack bombs at rush hour and then choose which subway lines to attack. Several days later Adis Medunjanin and Zarein Ahmedzay high school classmates of Zazi were indicted and plead not guilty to charges of conspiracy to use weapons of mass destruction, conspiracy to commit murder in a foreign country and providing material support for a terrorist organization. On April 12 a fourth man was arrested in Pakistan. On April 23 Prosecutors said that two Senior Al Queda officials who were reportedly later killed in drone attacks ordered the attacks and Zarein Ahmedzay pled guilty to plot related charges. On July 7 five others were indicted including Al Qaeda leader Adnan Shukrijumah, and it was alleged the United Kingdom was also a target of the plot. While in Pakistan, Zazi, Ahmedzay and Medunjanin were allegedly recruited and directed by Shukrijumah, a former Florida student who is designated as one of the FBI’s most wanted terrorists, to conduct a terrorist attack in the U.S. On August 6 new charges were brought against Adis and 4 others including Shukrijumah. Medunjanin pled not guilty. - 2009 August – September: On September 24 William Boyd and Hysen Sherifi charged with "conducting reconnaissance of the Marine Corps base at Quantico, VirginiaMarine Corps Base QuanticoMarine Corps Base Quantico, sometimes abbreviated MCB Quantico, is a major United States Marine Corps training base located near Triangle, Virginia, covering nearly in southern Prince William County, northern Stafford County, and southeastern Fauquier County...
and obtaining armor-piercing ammunition with the intent to attack Americans". Boyd, two of his sons and several other suspects had been charged on international terrorism charges in August, but at the time there was no indication that they wanted to plot a United States attack. An audio tape of Boyd decrying the U.S. military, discussing the honor of martyrdom, and bemoaning the struggle of Muslims was played at a August hearing. It is the first case of a ring of homegrown terroristsHomegrown terrorismHomegrown terrorism is commonly associated with an international organization rather than being a ‘lone wolf’ act committed by isolated and disturbed individuals. It constitutes terrorist attacks from within the target nation, often Western...
having specific targets. - 2009 September 24: Michael FintonMichael FintonMichael C. Finton, also known as Talib Islam , a convert to Islam and a part-time cook at a fish and chicken restaurant, attempted to bomb the Paul Findley Federal Building and the adjacent offices of Congressman Aaron Schock in downtown Springfield, Illinois, on September 24, 2009...
/Talib Islam a 29 year old man from Illinois charged with trying to kill federal employees by detonating a car bomb at the federal building in Springfield, IllinoisSpringfield, IllinoisSpringfield is the third and current capital of the US state of Illinois and the county seat of Sangamon County with a population of 117,400 , making it the sixth most populated city in the state and the second most populated Illinois city outside of the Chicago Metropolitan Area...
. Charges based on F.B.I. sting operationSting operationIn law enforcement, a sting operation is a deceptive operation designed to catch a person committing a crime. A typical sting will have a law-enforcement officer or cooperative member of the public play a role as criminal partner or potential victim and go along with a suspect's actions to gather...
. He is said to idolize American-born Taliban soldier John Walker LindhJohn Walker LindhJohn Phillip Walker Lindh is a United States citizen who was captured as an enemy combatant during the United States' 2001 invasion of Afghanistan. He is now serving a 20-year prison sentence in connection with his participation in Afghanistan's Taliban army...
. - 2009 September 24: Hosam Maher Husein SmadiHosam Maher Husein SmadiHosam Maher Husein Smadi is a citizen of Jordan who was arrested on suspicion of planning a terrorist bombing of Fountain Place, a downtown skyscraper in Dallas, Texas, on September 24, 2009....
a 19 year old illegal immigrant from JordanJordanJordan , officially the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan , Al-Mamlaka al-Urduniyya al-Hashemiyya) is a kingdom on the East Bank of the River Jordan. The country borders Saudi Arabia to the east and south-east, Iraq to the north-east, Syria to the north and the West Bank and Israel to the west, sharing...
charged with trying the bomb the 60 story Fountain PlaceFountain PlaceFountain Place is a 60-story late-modernist skyscraper in the Arts District in downtown Dallas, Texas. Standing at a structural height of , it is the fifth-tallest in Dallas, and the 15th-tallest in Texas.-Design:...
office tower in Dallas, TexasDallas, TexasDallas is the third-largest city in Texas and the ninth-largest in the United States. The Dallas-Fort Worth Metroplex is the largest metropolitan area in the South and fourth-largest metropolitan area in the United States...
. Charges are based on F.B.I. sting operation in which agents posed as members of an Al Queda sleeper cell. - 2010 January 7 Adis Medunjanin an alleged 2009 NYC Subway plotterNajibullah ZaziNajibullah Zazi is an Afghan-American who was arrested in September 2009 as part of the 2009 U.S. Al Qaeda group accused of planning suicide bombings on the New York City subway system, and has pled guilty as have two other defendants. U.S...
attempts a suicide attack by intentionally crashing his car on the Whitestone Bridge in New York City. He is indicted for this on July 7. Medunjanin has since been charged for his role in an Al Qaeda plot to conduct coordinated suicide bombings on New York's subway system. - 2010 March 28: Nine members of the HutareeHutareeHutaree is a militia movement group adhering to the ideology of the Christian Patriot movement, based in Adrian, Michigan, in the United States.The group was formed in early 2008...
militia indicted in alleged plot to kill a law enforcement official and then bomb his funeral caravan. According to Assistant U.S. Attorney Ronald Waterstreet the group planned to seize several rural counties in southeastern Michigan and use the area to ambush law enforcement officers whom the group believed were agents of the New World Order. On April 1 all nine plead not guilty and several of their attorneys claimed their clients were bragging and were not serious. The groups website claimed that Hutaree means "Christian Warrior." - 2010 May Paul Rockwood Jr. a meteorologist who took official weather observations and his pregnant wife Nancy from King Salmon, AlaskaKing Salmon, AlaskaKing Salmon is a census-designated place in Bristol Bay Borough in the U.S. state of Alaska. As of the 2000 census the population was 442...
compiled a list of 20 targets, including members of the military and media and had moved to the operational phase of their plan plead guilty to lying to FBI about the list and making false statements to the FBI. Under a plea agreement Mr. Rockwood will serve eight years in prison and three years probation while Ms. Rockwood will serve probation. Motive was revenge for alleged descecration of Islam. - 2010 September 20 Sami Samir Hassoun, 22, a Lebanese citizen living in Chicago, was charged with one count each of attempted use of a weapon of mass destruction and attempted use of an explosive device after placing a backpack with what he thought was a bomb near Wrigley FieldWrigley FieldWrigley Field is a baseball stadium in Chicago, Illinois, United States that has served as the home ballpark of the Chicago Cubs since 1916. It was built in 1914 as Weeghman Park for the Chicago Federal League baseball team, the Chicago Whales...
. Alleged plot was foiled by FBI informant. Hassoun discussed other ideas for mass destruction attacks with informant. - 2010 October 27. Farooque AhmedFarooque AhmedFarooque Ahmed is a Pakistani American from Ashburn, Virginia who was arrested by the Federal Bureau of Investigation for allegedly plotting to bomb Washington Metro stations at Arlington cemetery, Pentagon City, Crystal City and Court House...
, 34, a naturalized U.S. citizen indicted for conspiracy to bomb 4 Washington MetroWashington MetroThe Washington Metro, commonly called Metro, and unofficially Metrorail, is the rapid transit system in Washington, D.C., United States, and its surrounding suburbs. It is administered by the Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority , which also operates Metrobus service under the Metro name...
stations with people he thought were al-Qaeda. - 2010 November 26. Mohamed Osman Mohamud a 19-year-old Somali-American is alleged to have attempted a car bombing at a Christmas tree lighting ceremony2010 Portland car bomb plotThe 2010 Portland car bomb plot involved an incident in which Mohamed Osman Mohamud , a Somali-American student, was arrested in an FBI sting operation on November 26, 2010, after attempting to set off what he thought was a car bomb at a Christmas tree lighting in Portland, Oregon. He was charged...
in Portland, OregonPortland, OregonPortland is a city located in the Pacific Northwest, near the confluence of the Willamette and Columbia rivers in the U.S. state of Oregon. As of the 2010 Census, it had a population of 583,776, making it the 29th most populous city in the United States...
. The device was a dud created by the FBI. Motive is reported to be JihadJihadJihad , an Islamic term, is a religious duty of Muslims. In Arabic, the word jihād translates as a noun meaning "struggle". Jihad appears 41 times in the Quran and frequently in the idiomatic expression "striving in the way of God ". A person engaged in jihad is called a mujahid; the plural is... - 2010 December 8. Antonio Martinez, also known as Muhammad Hussain arrested after a sting operation in an alleged plot to bomb a military recruiting center in Catonsville, MarylandCatonsville, MarylandAccording to the United States Census Bureau, the CDP has a total area of , all of it land.-Demographics:In 2010 Catonsville had a population of 41,567...
. The 21 year old suspect is an American who converted to Islam. The suspect was reported to be upset that the military continues to kill Muslims. - 2010 December 21 Internet radio broadcaster Hal TurnerHal TurnerHarold Charles "Hal" Turner is an American white nationalist, Holocaust denier and blogger from North Bergen, New Jersey. In August 2010, he was convicted for making threats against three federal judges with the 7th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals...
sentenced to 33 months in prison after he published the work addresses and photographs of three judges who had upheld gun control laws and advocated for their assassination. - 2011 February 24: Khalid Ali-M Aldawsari a 20 year old Saudi Arabian student arrested for building bombs to use in alleged terrorist attacks. Targets allegedly were home of George W. BushGeorge W. BushGeorge Walker Bush is an American politician who served as the 43rd President of the United States, from 2001 to 2009. Before that, he was the 46th Governor of Texas, having served from 1995 to 2000....
, hydroelectric dams, nuclear power plants, nightclubs and the homes of soldiers who were formerly stationed at the Abu Ghraib prisonAbu Ghraib prisonThe Baghdad Central Prison, formerly known as Abu Ghraib prison is in Abu Ghraib, an Iraqi city 32 km west of Baghdad. It was built by British contractors in the 1950s....
. In Aldawsari's journal he wrote he was inspired by the speeches of Osama Bin Ladin. Alleged plot uncovered when supplier noticed suspicious purchases. - 2011 May 11: In the 2011 Manhattan terrorism plot2011 Manhattan terrorism plotThe 2011 Manhattan terrorism plot was an alleged effort by two Muslim Arab-Americans to bomb various targets in Manhattan, New York. The suspects allegedly planned to attack an unspecified synagogue and one of them expressed interest in blowing up a church and the Empire State Building...
, Ahmed Ferhani resident of Queens, New York and native of Algeria and Mohamed Mamdouh aged 20 also from Queens and Moroccan native arrested in a lone wolf plot against a New York SynagogueSynagogueA synagogue is a Jewish house of prayer. This use of the Greek term synagogue originates in the Septuagint where it sometimes translates the Hebrew word for assembly, kahal...
that had yet to be chosen. It also alleged that they hoped to attack the Empire State BuildingEmpire State BuildingThe Empire State Building is a 102-story landmark skyscraper and American cultural icon in New York City at the intersection of Fifth Avenue and West 34th Street. It has a roof height of 1,250 feet , and with its antenna spire included, it stands a total of 1,454 ft high. Its name is derived...
. The pair were arrested after buying were arrested after buying two Browning semi-automaticBrowning Arms CompanyBrowning Arms Company is a maker of firearms, bows and fishing gear. Founded in Utah in 1927, it offers a wide variety of firearms, including shotguns, rifles, pistols, and rimfire firearms and sport bows, as well as fishing rods and reels....
pistols, one Smith & WessonSmith & WessonSmith & Wesson is the largest manufacturer of handguns in the United States. The corporate headquarters is in Springfield, Massachusetts. Founded in 1852, Smith & Wesson's pistols and revolvers have become standard issue to police and armed forces throughout the world...
revolver, ammunition and one grenade. The pair disguised themselves as Jewish temple goers and pretended to pray. The suspects were said to be "committed to violent jihadJihadJihad , an Islamic term, is a religious duty of Muslims. In Arabic, the word jihād translates as a noun meaning "struggle". Jihad appears 41 times in the Quran and frequently in the idiomatic expression "striving in the way of God ". A person engaged in jihad is called a mujahid; the plural is...
". - 2011 June 23:Abu Khalid Abdul-Latif and Walli Mujahidh are arrested on charges of buying machine guns and grenades and conspiring to attack a federal building housing a Military Entrance Processing Station in Seattle, WashingtonSeattle, WashingtonSeattle is the county seat of King County, Washington. With 608,660 residents as of the 2010 Census, Seattle is the largest city in the Northwestern United States. The Seattle metropolitan area of about 3.4 million inhabitants is the 15th largest metropolitan area in the country...
. - 2011 July 27: AWOL U.S. Army Private, and conscientious objectorConscientious objectorA conscientious objector is an "individual who has claimed the right to refuse to perform military service" on the grounds of freedom of thought, conscience, and/or religion....
, Naser Jason AbdoNaser Jason AbdoNaser Jason Abdo is a Muslim US Army Private First Class who is currently being held without bond for possession of an unregistered firearm and allegedly planning to attack a restaurant frequented by soldiers from Fort Hood.-Early life:Abdo grew up in Garland, Texas and attended Richardson Terrace...
from Garland, TexasGarland, Texas-Climate:* The average warmest month is July.* The highest recorded temperature was in 2000.* On average, the coolest month is January.* The lowest recorded temperature was in 1989.* The maximum average precipitation occurs in May....
was arrested in an alleged plot against Fort Hood, Texas. Materials for up to two bombs were found with jihadist materials in Abdo's motel room. Investigation began when owner of a local gun store called police after becoming suspicious when Abdo asked questions indicating he did not know about the items he was purchasing. - 2011 September 28: Rezwan FerdausRezwan FerdausRezwan Ferdaus is a U.S. citizen, born and raised in Massachusetts, of Bangladeshi descent residing with his parents in Ashland, Massachusetts. He was arrested by the FBI on September 28, 2011, for allegedly plotting to attack The Pentagon and United States Capitol with remote-controlled model...
, a US citizen ,was indicted for allegedly plotting to use remote-controlled aircraft carrying explosives to bomb the Pentagon and the US Capitol. He also allegedly planned to hire people to shoot at people fleeing the Pentagon. Ferdaus was said to be motivated by Al Queada videos and the alleged plot was uncovered by an F.B.I. sting operation. - 2011 October 11: Operation Red Coalition. Alleged plot that was "conceived, sponsored and was directed from Iran" to assassinate the Saudi Arabian ambassador to the United States Adel Al-JubeirAdel al-JubeirAdel A. Al-Jubeir is the Saudi Arabian Ambassador to the United States, and a former foreign policy advisor to King Abdullah bin Abdulaziz of Saudi Arabia. He is a well-known representative of the Saudi kingdom in the West, particularly the United States. Al-Jubeir presented his credentials to...
with a bomb and bomb the Saudi and Israeli embassies in Washington, D.C. It is not known if Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei or President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad had knowledge of the plot. The alleged plot was disrupted by an FBI and DEADEADEA is the commonly used acronym for the Drug Enforcement Administration, a United States law enforcement agency.DEA or Dea may also refer to:- Organizations :* DEA , UK development education charity...
investigation. The investigation began in May 2011 when an Iranian-American approached a DEA informant seeking the help of a Mexican drug cartel to assassinate the Saudi ambassador. Iran has denied the allegations. - 2011 October–November: Georgia terrorist plot2011 Georgia terrorist plotIn 2011, the FBI arrested four men in the U.S. state of Georgia, who were allegedly plotting to deploy explosives and biological weapons to kill a number of American politicians, media figures, Internal Revenue Service employees, and innocent civilians. The four men were Frederick Thomas, 73, Dan...
Four elderly men from a Georgia militia arrested for plotting to buy ricinRicinRicin , from the castor oil plant Ricinus communis, is a highly toxic, naturally occurring protein. A dose as small as a few grains of salt can kill an adult. The LD50 of ricin is around 22 micrograms per kilogram Ricin , from the castor oil plant Ricinus communis, is a highly toxic, naturally...
in preparation for an attack they claimed would "save the Constitution". They allegedly discussed blowing up IRS and ATFBureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and ExplosivesThe Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives is a federal law enforcement organization within the United States Department of Justice...
buildings, dispensing ricin from a plane over Atlanta and other cities, and assassinating "un American" politicians. Informant used to break up alleged plot. - 2011 November 20. Jose PimentelJose PimentelJose Pimentel , also known as Muhammad Yusuf and King James and LeBron, is a naturalized U.S...
aged 27 an American citizen and a convert to Islam from New York City arrested and accused of being the process of building pipe bombs (and one hour away from his building his first bomb) to target post offices police cars and U.S. military personnel returning from abroad in New York City and Bayonne, New Jersey. Was said to be a follower of the late Al Quada leader Anwar al-AwlakiAnwar al-AwlakiAnwar al-Awlaki was an American and Yemeni imam who was an engineer and educator by training. According to U.S. government officials, he was a senior talent recruiter and motivator who was involved with planning operations for the Islamist militant group al-Qaeda...
. The FBI did not consider Pimentel who was said to be radicalized via the internet by enough of a threat to investigate but NYC police considered him a 2 on a threat scale of 1 to 5.
See also
- Allegations of state terrorism committed by the United States
- Domestic terrorism in the United StatesDomestic terrorism in the United StatesDomestic terrorism in the United States between 1980 and 2000 consisted of 250 of the 335 incidents confirmed as or suspected to be terrorist acts by the FBI. These 250 attacks are considered domestic by the FBI because they were carried out by U.S...
- Islamic terrorism
- Crime in the United StatesCrime in the United StatesCrime statistics for the United States are published annually by the Federal Bureau of Investigation in the Uniform Crime Reports which represents crimes reported to the police...
- List of incidents of political violence in Washington, D.C.