Aftermath
- Thread starter Gonzo
- Start date
Airspace closed to foreign planes; national day of mourning declared
By Zohar Blumenkrantz, Anat Cygielman and Shlomo Shamir , Ha'aretz Correspondents and Ha'aretz Service
Transport Minister Ephraim Sneh declared Israeli air-space off-limits Tuesday to all incoming and outgoing non-Israeli aircraft in the wake of the attacks on the World Trade Center in New York and the Pentagon in Washington. The ban will be in effect until midnight of Wednedsday. In addition, security in Ben Gurion International Airport has been beefed up.
Prime Minister Ariel Sharon announced Tuesday night that Israel would observe a national day of mourning on Wednesday as a sign of identification with the American people. All flags on state buildings, including schools, are to be lowered to half-mast.
Sharon termed the attack a "turning point" in the battle against international terror, which he said wanted to "destroy our liberty and way of life."
Shortly after reports of the first attack on New York started to come in, the Foreign Ministry ordered most of the staff out of all Israeli diplomatic missions in the United States. The missions were not completely evacuated and a small staff was asked to remain on duty to receive any incoming information and transfer it to Israel and the families of Israelis in the U.S. David Ivry, Israel's Ambassador to the U.S., remained at the embassy in Washington.
Foreign Minister Shimon Peres said Tuesday the measures were carried out at the request of the U.S. administration. Extra police forces were deployed around the Washington embassy and a number of other consulates. Fears were raised that one of the Israeli missions could be a target, especially since Osama Bin Laden is considered a key suspect.
One Israeli confirmed dead so far
One Israeli has so far been confirmed dead in the terror attacks. Daniel Lewin, one of the two founders of the Akamai Technologies, was on the American Airlines Flight 11 from Boston to Los Angles that crashed into the north tower of the World Trade Center.
The Israeli Consulate in New York has set up an operations room where information is being collected about Israeli tourists and temporary residents in New York.
The consular staff believes there are thousands of Israelis in New York at present, and the Twin Towers were a popular tourist attraction. The most popular spot there was the observation platform and restaurant on the top floor from which there was a magnificent view of the entire metropolitan area. However, because of the early hour when the attacks took place, it is unlikely that Israeli tourists were visiting that level of the building or its surroundings, they say.
At the same time, there were offices of Israeli companies and of companies representing Israeli business and financial interests, in the World Trade Center. It is safe to assume, Jewish sources said, that there were persons with Israeli passports working in these offices. The transatlantic telephone lines between Israel and the U.S. were overloaded Tuesday evening, and it was hard to get a connection.
Israeli Air Force placed on high alert
Israel also took several steps to beef up security in case the perpetrators of the attacks in the U.S. are indeed Islamic fundamentalists. Among the steps were:
* Closing Israel's borders to non-Israelis for 24 hours.
* Closing Israel's airspace to all flights except Israeli airplanes protected by Israeli air marshals.
* Tightening the closures around Palestinian towns in case the events in the U.S. encourage local terror attacks.
* Issuing an "unequivocal" message to the Palestinian Authority to cease all terrorist activity.
The Israel Air Force was put on high alert - training flights were canceled and patrol flights were substantially beefed up. Only Israeli planes were allowed into Israeli airspace for landings and those planes had IAF escorts. Steps were also taken to beef up security at the ports, train stations and shopping centers across the country.
Israel offers to send emergency rescue team to U.S.
Sharon held security consultations after the attacks. In a phone call to U.S. Ambassador Israel Daniel Kurzer, he expressed his condolences for the victims in the attack.
Peres told Israeli television: "The entire Jewish people shares the sorrow of the United States ... it is a human tragedy." He said Israel had offered to send an emergency rescue team to the U.S. to help save lives.
Former prime minister Ehud Barak said Saudi-born dissident Osama bin Laden was most likely behind the hijack plane attacks. Speaking to Britain's Sky Television, Barak said governments needed to make a concerted effort to combat terrorism. "Most obviously my guess is a Bin Laden organization ... We have to stand firm against such terrorism," Barak said.
Former prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu called the attacks the worst against the U.S. since the Japanese surprise attack on the Pearl Harbor naval base in World War II. He believed "Islamic militants" could have been responsible.
Italian airport authorities canceled flights Tuesday to the Middle East and recalled flights to the U.S. in the wake of the attacks. Milan's Malpensa airport suspended its check-ins Tuesday afternoon and
canceled the day's three remaining flights to the Middle East - to Beirut, Lebanon, Amman, Jordan, and Tel Aviv, Israel, spokeswoman Laura La Ferla said.
By Zohar Blumenkrantz, Anat Cygielman and Shlomo Shamir , Ha'aretz Correspondents and Ha'aretz Service
Transport Minister Ephraim Sneh declared Israeli air-space off-limits Tuesday to all incoming and outgoing non-Israeli aircraft in the wake of the attacks on the World Trade Center in New York and the Pentagon in Washington. The ban will be in effect until midnight of Wednedsday. In addition, security in Ben Gurion International Airport has been beefed up.
Prime Minister Ariel Sharon announced Tuesday night that Israel would observe a national day of mourning on Wednesday as a sign of identification with the American people. All flags on state buildings, including schools, are to be lowered to half-mast.
Sharon termed the attack a "turning point" in the battle against international terror, which he said wanted to "destroy our liberty and way of life."
Shortly after reports of the first attack on New York started to come in, the Foreign Ministry ordered most of the staff out of all Israeli diplomatic missions in the United States. The missions were not completely evacuated and a small staff was asked to remain on duty to receive any incoming information and transfer it to Israel and the families of Israelis in the U.S. David Ivry, Israel's Ambassador to the U.S., remained at the embassy in Washington.
Foreign Minister Shimon Peres said Tuesday the measures were carried out at the request of the U.S. administration. Extra police forces were deployed around the Washington embassy and a number of other consulates. Fears were raised that one of the Israeli missions could be a target, especially since Osama Bin Laden is considered a key suspect.
One Israeli confirmed dead so far
One Israeli has so far been confirmed dead in the terror attacks. Daniel Lewin, one of the two founders of the Akamai Technologies, was on the American Airlines Flight 11 from Boston to Los Angles that crashed into the north tower of the World Trade Center.
The Israeli Consulate in New York has set up an operations room where information is being collected about Israeli tourists and temporary residents in New York.
The consular staff believes there are thousands of Israelis in New York at present, and the Twin Towers were a popular tourist attraction. The most popular spot there was the observation platform and restaurant on the top floor from which there was a magnificent view of the entire metropolitan area. However, because of the early hour when the attacks took place, it is unlikely that Israeli tourists were visiting that level of the building or its surroundings, they say.
At the same time, there were offices of Israeli companies and of companies representing Israeli business and financial interests, in the World Trade Center. It is safe to assume, Jewish sources said, that there were persons with Israeli passports working in these offices. The transatlantic telephone lines between Israel and the U.S. were overloaded Tuesday evening, and it was hard to get a connection.
Israeli Air Force placed on high alert
Israel also took several steps to beef up security in case the perpetrators of the attacks in the U.S. are indeed Islamic fundamentalists. Among the steps were:
* Closing Israel's borders to non-Israelis for 24 hours.
* Closing Israel's airspace to all flights except Israeli airplanes protected by Israeli air marshals.
* Tightening the closures around Palestinian towns in case the events in the U.S. encourage local terror attacks.
* Issuing an "unequivocal" message to the Palestinian Authority to cease all terrorist activity.
The Israel Air Force was put on high alert - training flights were canceled and patrol flights were substantially beefed up. Only Israeli planes were allowed into Israeli airspace for landings and those planes had IAF escorts. Steps were also taken to beef up security at the ports, train stations and shopping centers across the country.
Israel offers to send emergency rescue team to U.S.
Sharon held security consultations after the attacks. In a phone call to U.S. Ambassador Israel Daniel Kurzer, he expressed his condolences for the victims in the attack.
Peres told Israeli television: "The entire Jewish people shares the sorrow of the United States ... it is a human tragedy." He said Israel had offered to send an emergency rescue team to the U.S. to help save lives.
Former prime minister Ehud Barak said Saudi-born dissident Osama bin Laden was most likely behind the hijack plane attacks. Speaking to Britain's Sky Television, Barak said governments needed to make a concerted effort to combat terrorism. "Most obviously my guess is a Bin Laden organization ... We have to stand firm against such terrorism," Barak said.
Former prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu called the attacks the worst against the U.S. since the Japanese surprise attack on the Pearl Harbor naval base in World War II. He believed "Islamic militants" could have been responsible.
Italian airport authorities canceled flights Tuesday to the Middle East and recalled flights to the U.S. in the wake of the attacks. Milan's Malpensa airport suspended its check-ins Tuesday afternoon and
canceled the day's three remaining flights to the Middle East - to Beirut, Lebanon, Amman, Jordan, and Tel Aviv, Israel, spokeswoman Laura La Ferla said.