TERRORISM TIMELINE

1972 Munich Olympics-1972 During the 1972 Olympic Games in Munich, Germany, 8 Palestinian terrorists shot and killed two Israeli athletes and kept 9 people hostage. Eventually, another gunfight broke out killing 5/9 terrorists and all 9 of the hostages. Their mission was to try and take hostage these people in order to release over 200 prisoners in Israeli jails

US Embassy Truck Bombing-1983 A vehicle packed with many explosives was driven up to a US Embassy in Beirut. This event kills 63 people. The ones held responsible were a group called the Islamic Jihad.

TWA Flight 847-Lebanon 1985 A flight was hijacked by a group of terrorists. They were also trying to release prisoners in Israeli prisons. The plane did end up landing.

Pan Am Flight 103 Bombing-Scotland 1988 A terrorist who flew previously on this plane left a bomb packed in a small radio case on the plane. The bomb exploded mid-flight during the next flight. This was to take revenge on an America; an American warship had shot down a Palestinian passenger plane mistaking it as a war plane.

WTC First Bombing-NYC 1993 Muslim terrorists led out this attack. They drove a large truck filled with explosives into the underground parking garage of the WTC. Their plan was to take down the entire structure, but failed. This event resulted in 6 dead and more than 1,000 people injured.

Oklahoma Car Bombing-1995 A car was pulled up to federal office building in Oklahoma. The car was then detonated. This massive explosion killed 168 people. 

Khobar Towers Bombing-Dhahran, Saudi Arabia 1996 Another event similar to the WTC bombing; an Islamic Movement was responsible for driving a truck up to a U.S. military compound. They then detonated the truck killing 19 U.S. soldiers and injuring more than 500 people.

WTC Plane Attack 9/11-NY 2001 A group of al Qaeda terrorists’ hi-jacked 4 commercial planes leaving for long cross-country journeys. The terrorists crashed two planes into each one of the WTC buildings in Manhattan, New York; eventually causing them to collapse. Later on, another plane flew into the U.S. Pentagon building, and another in a rural Pennsylvania area. This is considered the biggest terrorist attack in history with over 3,000 deaths and thousands of injuries.

Madrid Train Bombing-2004 In Madrid, Spain on an early morning (7:37am), 10 bombs went off on four different trains in the city’s center. This event caused 191 deaths, and over 1,800 injuries.

London Bus Bombing-2005 During an early morning rush hour, four terrorists detonated four bombs; 3 in underground trains and one in a double-decker bus in London. 52 people were killed, including the four bombers, and over 700 were injured. This was the U.K.’s first suicide attacks.

Boston Marathon Bombing-2013 At the Boston Marathon in 2013, two pressure cooker bombs went off at the finish line, and another a couple hundred yards down Boylston Street. This event caused 3 deaths, hundreds of injuries, and a huge heartbreak at a famous worldwide event.

Underwear Bomber-2010 A Nigerian man had put plastic explosives inside his underwear; attempting to blow up the plan he was boarding, departing for Detroit, MI. He was caught and admitted

SOME MAPS

The twin towers at the lower Manhattan tip The twin towers at the lower Manhattan tip. The smoke is seen from a satellite image.

REFLECTION I have learned that a lot of terrorism takes place in other places besides the U.S. We are not al Qaeda’s only target. Airplanes were hi-jacked way before 9/11. I am surprised that the U.S. embassies were unguarded enough for the bombers to succeed their mission. Its very good to know that the underwear bomber was caught. That could have a been a treacherous outcome. Why do people feel the need to continue terrorism?

RESOURCES http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/1279086/Madrid-train-bombings-of-2004 http://www.oklahomacitynationalmemorial.org/ http://life.time.com/history/munich-massacre-1972-olympics-photos/ www.bbc.co.uk/onthisday/hi/dates/stories/july/7/newsid.../4942238.stm   http://abcnews.go.com/Archives/video/april-18-1983-us-embassy-bombed-beirut-9808367 http://americanhistory.about.com/library/fastfacts/blffterrorism6.htm http://creepingsharia.wordpress.com/2008/06/15/twa-flight-847/ http://www.fbi.gov/about-us/history/famous-cases/uss-cole http://www.usnews.com/news/blogs/press-past/2013/02/26/the-1993-world-trade-center-bombing-a-new-threat-emerges http://www.theguardian.com/world/2012/may/09/underwear-bomber-working-for-cia