Former U.S. President Donald Trump has claimed that he warned about Osama bin Laden a full year before the September 11 attacks, saying he mentioned the al-Qaeda leader in one of his books before he “blew up the World Trade Center,” as he put it.
اضافة اعلان
Speaking on October 5 at the 250th anniversary celebration of the U.S. Navy’s founding at the Norfolk Naval Base in Virginia, Trump, 79, addressed thousands of service members despite the ongoing U.S. government shutdown. To the estimated 10,000-strong crowd, he said: “Let’s admit it, this is a campaign rally,” as chants of “USA! USA!” echoed back.
Trump also touched on the government shutdown, which began October 1 after Republicans and Democrats failed to reach a budget agreement, assuring the audience: “I want you to know that despite the shutdown caused by the Democrats, we will make sure…”
However, what stirred heated debate online was his assertion that he had issued a warning about bin Laden a year before the attacks. “Please remember, I wrote about Osama bin Laden exactly one year before he blew up the World Trade Center. I said: You have to watch Osama bin Laden! And the fake news won’t let me say this unless it’s true,” Trump claimed.
He continued: “I told Pete Hegseth that a year earlier. I wrote it in a book — I don’t even recall the exact title — but I can tell you there’s a page in it about a man named Osama bin Laden. I didn’t like him, and I said we should get rid of him. They didn’t do it, and a year later, he blew up the World Trade Center.”
Trump added: “I should take some credit, because no one else will give it to me. They won’t give you recognition, so take it yourself.”
It appears Trump was referring to his 2000 book “The America We Deserve”, in which he briefly mentioned bin Laden, writing:
“Instead of one looming crisis, we face a confusing array of minor crises, flashpoints, and confrontations. We’re no longer playing grandmaster chess against a single opponent, but multiple tournaments against multiple rivals. One day we’re told Iraq is under control, the inspectors have done their job, and everything is fine — the next day bombs start to fall.”
In another passage, he added:
“One day we’re told that a shadowy figure with no fixed address named Osama bin Laden has become public enemy number one, and American warplanes are bombing his camp in Afghanistan. He slips back to his hideout, and after a few news cycles, we move on to a new enemy and a new crisis.”
Thus, while Trump’s writing did not amount to an explicit prediction of the 9/11 attacks, he did point to bin Laden as a potential security threat to the U.S. a year before they occurred, according to Tyla.
