Wtcphotosequence

Timeline History of Terrorist Attacks in the United States

By jwe134
  • New York City

    New York City
    TNT bomb planted in unattended horse-drawn wagon exploded on Wall Street opposite House of Morgan, killing 35 people and injuring hundreds more. Bolshevist or anarchist terrorists believed responsible, but crime never solved.
  • New York City

    New York City
    bomb set off in historic Fraunces Tavern killed 4 and injured more than 50 people. Puerto Rican nationalist group (FALN) claimed responsibility, and police tied 13 other bombings to the group.
  • Tehran, Iran

    Tehran, Iran
    Iranian radical students seized the U.S. embassy, taking 66 hostages. 14 were later released. The remaining 52 were freed after 444 days on the day of President Reagan's inauguration.
  • Lebanon

    Lebanon
    1982%u20131991
    Lebanon: Thirty US and other Western hostages kidnapped in Lebanon by Hezbollah. Some were killed, some died in captivity, and some were eventually released. Terry Anderson was held for 2,454 days.
  • Beirut, Lebanon

    Beirut, Lebanon
    U.S. embassy destroyed in suicide car-bomb attack; 63 dead, including 17 Americans. The Islamic Jihad claimed responsibility.
  • Beirut, Lebanon

    Beirut, Lebanon
    Shiite suicide bombers exploded truck near U.S. military barracks at Beirut airport, killing 241 marines. Minutes later a second bomb killed 58 French paratroopers in their barracks in West Beirut.
  • Kuwait City, Kuwait

    Kuwait City, Kuwait
    Shiite truck bombers attacked the U.S. embassy and other targets, killing 5 and injuring 80.
  • East Beirut, Lebanon

    East Beirut, Lebanon
    Truck bomb exploded outside the U.S. embassy annex, killing 24, including 2 U.S. military.
  • Beirut, Lebanon

    Beirut, Lebanon
    Kuwait Airways Flight 221, from Kuwait to Pakistan, hijacked and diverted to Tehran. 2 Americans killed.
  • Madrid Spain

    Bombing at restaurant frequented by U.S. soldiers, killed 18 Spaniards and injured 82.
  • Beirut, Lebanon

    Beirut, Lebanon
    TWA Flight 847 en route from Athens to Rome hijacked to Beirut by Hezbollah terrorists and held for 17 days. A U.S. Navy diver executed.
  • Mediterranean Sea

    Gunmen attack Italian cruise ship, Achille Lauro. One U.S. tourist killed. Hijacking linked to Libya.
  • Rome, Italy, and Vienna, Austria

    Airports in Rome and Vienna were bombed, killing 20 people, 5 of whom were Americans. Bombing linked to Libya.
  • Athens, Greece

    Athens, Greece
    A bomb exploded aboard TWA flight 840 en route from Rome to Athens, killing 4 Americans and injuring 9.
  • West Berlin, Germany

    West Berlin, Germany
    Libyans bombed a disco frequented by U.S. servicemen, killing 2 and injuring hundreds.
  • Lockerbie, Scotland

    Lockerbie, Scotland
    N.Y.-bound Pan-Am Boeing 747 exploded in flight from a terrorist bomb and crashed into Scottish village, killing all 259 aboard and 11 on the ground. Passengers included 35 Syracuse University students and many U.S. military personnel. Libya formally admitted responsibility 15 years later (Aug. 2003) and offered $2.7 billion compensation to victims' families.
  • New York City

    New York City
    Bomb exploded in basement garage of World Trade Center, killing 6 and injuring at least 1,040 others. In 1995, militant Islamist Sheik Omar Abdel Rahman and 9 others were convicted of conspiracy charges, and in 1998, Ramzi Yousef, believed to have been the mastermind, was convicted of the bombing. Al-Qaeda involvement is suspected.
  • Oklahoma City

    Oklahoma City
    Car bomb exploded outside federal office building, collapsing wall and floors. 168 people were killed, including 19 children and 1 person who died in rescue effort. Over 220 buildings sustained damage. Timothy McVeigh and Terry Nichols later convicted in the antigovernment plot to avenge the Branch Davidian standoff in Waco, Tex., exactly 2 years earlier.
  • Riyadh, Saudi Arabia

    Car bomb exploded at U.S. military headquarters, killing 5 U.S. military servicemen.
  • Dhahran, Saudi Arabia

    Dhahran, Saudi Arabia
    Truck bomb exploded outside Khobar Towers military complex, killing 19 American servicemen and injuring hundreds of others. 13 Saudis and a Lebanese, all alleged members of Islamic militant group Hezbollah, were indicted on charges relating to the attack in June 2001.
  • Nairobi, Kenya, and Dar es Salaam, Tanzania

    truck bombs exploded almost simultaneously near 2 U.S. embassies, killing 224 (213 in Kenya and 11 in Tanzania) and injuring about 4,500. 4 men connected with al-Qaeda 2 of whom had received training at al-Qaeda camps inside Afghanistan, were convicted of the killings in May 2001 and later sentenced to life in prison. A federal grand jury had indicted 22 men in connection with the attacks, including Saudi dissident Osama bin Laden, who remained at large.
  • New York City, Arlington, VA., and Shanksville, PA.

    New York City, Arlington, VA., and Shanksville, PA.
    hijackers crashed 2 commercial jets into twin towers of World Trade Center; 2 more hijacked jets were crashed into the Pentagon and a field in rural Pa. Total dead and missing numbered 2,9921: 2,749 in New York City, 184 at the Pentagon, 40 in Pa., and 19 hijackers. Islamic al-Qaeda terrorist group blamed.
  • Aden, Yemen

    Aden, Yemen
    U.S. Navy destroyer USS Cole heavily damaged when a small boat loaded with explosives blew up alongside it. 17 sailors killed. Linked to Osama bin Laden, or members of al-Qaeda terrorist network. Photo: United States Navy and Marine Corps security personnel patrol past the damaged destroyer USS Cole following the October 12, 2000, terrorist bombing attack on the ship in Aden, Yemen. AFP/CORBIS.
  • Karachi, Pakistan

    Bomb exploded outside American consulate in Karachi, Pakistan, killing 12. Linked to al-Qaeda.
  • Riyadh, Saudi Arabia

    Riyadh, Saudi Arabia
    Suicide bombers killed 34, including 8 Americans, at housing compounds for Westerners. Al-Qaeda suspected.
    AFP PHOTO/Bilal QABALAN
  • Riyadh, Saudi Arabia

    May 29%u201331, Terrorists attack the offices of a Saudi oil company in Khobar, Saudi Arabia, take foreign oil workers hostage in a nearby residential compound, leaving 22 people dead including one American.
  • Riyadh, Saudi Arabia

    June 11%u201319, Terrorists kidnap and execute Paul Johnson Jr., an American, in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. 2 other Americans and BBC cameraman killed by gun attacks.
  • Jeddah, Saudi Arabia

    Terrorists storm the U.S. consulate, killing 5 consulate employees. 4 terrorists were killed by Saudi security.
  • Amman, Jordan

    Suicide bombers hit 3 American hotels, Radisson, Grand Hyatt, and Days Inn, in Amman, Jordan, killing 57. Al-Qaeda claimed responsibility.
  • Damascus, Syria

    An attack by four gunman on the American embassy was foiled.
  • Athens, Greece

    The U.S. embassy was fired on by an anti-tank missile causing damage but no injuries.
  • Algeria

    More than 60 people are killed, including 11 United Nations staff members, when Al Qaeda terrorists detonate two car bombs near Algeria's Constitutional Council and the United Nations offices.
  • Afghanistan

    Four American servicemen are killed when a roadside bomb explodes near a U.S. military vehicle in Farah Province.
  • Iraq

    A suicide bomber kills at least 20 people, including three U.S. Marines, at a meeting between sheiks and Americans in Karmah, a town west of Baghdad.
  • Deadliest terrorist strikes in the United States

    26 Feb to Present
    Deadliest terrorist strikes in the United States date attack and location fatalities injuries
    11 Sep 2001 crashing of hijacked planes into World Trade Center, New York City, New York, Pentagon in Alexandria, Virginia, and site in Pennsylvania 2,993 8,900
    19 Apr 1995 truck bombing of federal building, Oklahoma City, Oklahoma 169 675
    16 Sep 1920 bombing near bank in New York City, New York 38 300
    1 Oct 1910 b
    Online at: http://www.johnstonsarchive.net/terrorism/wrjp255i.html