Did the 9/11 terrorists launch America’s anthrax attacks?
Archived article from Nov 18, 2003
By Richard Gorman
Were the anthrax attacks that killed five and sickened 22 people related to the terrorist attacks of September 11? In his book “The Anthrax Letters: A Medical Detective Story,” bioterrorism expert Leonard A. Cole, an adjunct professor of political science at Rutgers–Newark, draws an unnerving series of parallels between the 9/11 hijackers and the wave of biological terrorism that occurred a week later.
No one has been charged in the anthrax attacks two years ago, although the Federal Bureau of Investigation did identify Dr. Steven J. Hatfill, a former U.S. government bio-defense scientist, as a “person of interest.” Yet Cole believes the FBI was “premature” in narrowing its focus to one scientist with access to a U.S. laboratory.
“I’m concerned that they may have devoted their resources so much toward their one-profile theory that they may have not given enough attention to the possibility of a foreign connection,” Cole says.
In his book, Cole posits a series of suspicious connections, or “dots,” that he believes deserve equal weight with the theory of a lone, disaffected terrorist. Consider:
•The first two of the four anthrax-laced letters recovered were postmarked Sept. 18, 2001, a week after the 9/11 attacks. That means the perpetrator would have had only six days to process the anthrax, select suitable targets, obtain their addresses, write the letters, load the envelopes with bacilli and mail the letters.
•The first victim to die in an anthrax attack worked in the American Media Building in Boca Raton, Fla. The AMI Building housed several tabloids, some of which had “done serious numbers on Osama Bin Laden,” Cole argues. One tabloid, the Sun, was the apparent target of one of the letters. What’s more, six of the 9/11 hijackers lived in the Boca Raton area.
•The real estate agent who helped two of the hijackers find temporary apartments in Delray Beach is the wife of Mike Irish, the editor-in-chief of the Sun. “On some level, we know that she did speak on personal terms regarding her husband. Could she have mentioned that he was the editor of the Sun? She doesn’t recall doing so but acknowledged the possibility.”
The anthrax attacks may have abated, but the story hasn’t ended. Federal authorities are continuing their investigation. They have yet to lodge formal charges against anyone.
“There are many unanswered questions starting with who did it,” Cole says. Then, he adds, there are medical questions surrounding the prolonged recovery of some victims, separate questions about two of the buildings that are still anthrax-laden, and important bio-preparedness concerns.
With two decades of experience writing about biological warfare issues, chemical weapons and biological weapons, Cole was perfectly positioned to tell the story of America’s first anthrax attack. “It was natural for me to want to learn more about it,” he adds. “This is among the most compelling stories I’ve ever been involved with, certainly the most compelling human story I’ve ever written about.”
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