12 September 2001
Text: Attorney General Ashcroft Remarks at September 12 Media Briefing
(Investigators reviewing intelligence, have received credible leads)
(740)
"Investigators are reviewing intelligence and have received numerous
credible leads," regarding the perpetrators of the September 11
terrorist attacks in New York and Washington, Attorney General John
Ashcroft told reporters at a September 12 news briefing.
In his prepared remarks, Ashcroft detailed how federal, state and
local agencies are working together "to help the victims of this act
of war and to find the people responsible for these terrible acts."
Following is the text of Ashcroft's remarks:
(begin text)
Remarks of Attorney General John Ashcroft
Media Briefing
September 12, 2001
This is a highly coordinated effort.
I want to thank all of the federal, state and local agencies that have
worked tirelessly yesterday and today to help the victims of this act
of war and to find the people responsible for these terrible acts.
Immediately after the first report of a plane crashing into the World
Trade Towers, numerous Federal agencies, coordinating with the White
House, mobilized their resources.
Throughout the day, secure videoconferences took place among the
National Security Council, Department of Justice, the Department of
State, the Department of Defense, the Department of Treasury, FEMA,
the CIA, the FAA, and numerous other federal agencies.
The President and the Vice-President presided over a number of cabinet
and subcabinet meetings and videoconferences. Continuity of government
plans were put into effect.
Within the Department of Justice, our full resources were put into
operation immediately. As I will explain in greater detail in a few
minutes, these resources have been deployed to investigate and to
assist victim survivors and victim families.
But let me stress that this is not simply a Department of Justice
effort.
The response of the federal government across the board has been, I
believe, magnificent. I will turn now to the information that response
has developed.
We will give you whatever information we can. However, we will give
you only facts we can confirm.
You may be hearing things that we have not told you, but some people
have the luxury of speculating. We will not speculate, but only give
you confirmed facts.
Also, we must be careful to protect confidential intelligence sources
and methods so we do not compromise this ongoing investigation.
The four planes were highjacked by between 3 and 6 individuals per
plane, using knives and box cutters and in some cases, making bomb
threats.
A number of the suspected hijackers were trained as pilots in the
United States.
The Department of Justice has undertaken perhaps the most massive and
intensive investigation ever conducted in this country.
The full resources of the FBI, the Justice Department's Criminal
Division, the U.S. Attorney's Offices, the INS, and other components
have been brought to bear.
Throughout the day and into the night last night, Deputy Attorney
General Larry Thompson, Assistant Attorney General Michael Chertoff,
and I were present at the FBI's Strategic Information and Operations
Center (SIOC).
The Justice Department is working closely with investigators, the FAA,
and the intelligence community, including the CIA, the NSA, the
Defense Intelligence Agency, and the Defense Department.
Numerous agencies have assigned personnel to the SIOC at the FBI to
coordinate investigative efforts.
The Justice Department's Terrorism and Violent Crime Section is
coordinating the response of U.S. Attorneys' Offices nationwide.
These agencies have a presence at the SIOC 24 hours a day and are
coordinating efforts both in the United States and worldwide around
the clock.
Investigators are reviewing intelligence and have received numerous
credible leads.
Command posts have been established at all crime scenes. Evidence
Response Teams and the FBI's Disaster Squad have been deployed to the
crash sites.
Recovery of bodies and collection of evidence is ongoing at the
Pentagon and the crash site in Somerset County.
Investigators are working with the National Transportation Safety
Board to recover the black boxes from the crash sites.
The crime scene at the WTC has been secured but is not yet accessible
to investigators.
The United States Attorneys Offices Terrorism units and the FBI's
Joint Terrorism Task Forces are obtaining the passenger manifests,
rental car receipts, telephone logs, video tape from parking garages
and pay phones at all scenes for review and appropriate follow-up
interviews.
All investigative resources of the FBI's laboratory and crisis
response capabilities have been mobilized.
(end text)
(Distributed by the Office of International Information Programs, U.S.
Department of State. Web site: http://usinfo.state.gov)
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