WASHINGTON, Sept 19: Osama bin Laden targeted the heads of the US Defense Department, State Department, CIA and FBI, and offered a nine million dollars bounty for the assassination of four top intelligence officials, a congressional investigator said on Wednesday.

In Aug 1999, US intelligence agencies obtained information that Osama bin Laden’s organization had decided to target the top officials at the State and Defense departments and the CIA, said Eleanor Hill, staff director of the joint inquiry team set up by the House and Senate intelligence committees to investigate the Sept 11 tragedy.

“‘Target’ was interpreted by intelligence community analysts to mean ‘assassinate’,” she said at the first public hearing held by the joint investigation.

In Nov 1998, intelligence agencies received information that Osama and his senior associates had agreed to offer a reward of nine million dollars each for the assassination of four top intelligence agency officials, Hill said.

In Feb 2000, intelligence information said Osama bin Laden was making plans to assassinate US intelligence officials, including the FBI director, she said.

Hill listed those among the threat reports that US intelligence agencies were receiving about possible attacks planned by Osama and his network prior to Sept 11.

In March 2000, intelligence agencies had information that targets Osama’s network might strike included the Statue of Liberty in New York, skyscrapers, ports, airports, and nuclear power plants, Hill said.

There were also reports of potential threats from Iraqi suicide pilots, terrorists using pilotless planes, and an American Al Qaeda member who wanted to blow up the Egyptian presidential palace by flying an explosives-laden hang glider into it.

In Feb 1999, intelligence agencies had information that Iraq had formed a “suicide pilot unit” that it planned to use against British and US forces in the Gulf, Hill said.

“The CIA commented that this was highly unlikely and probably disinformation,” she said.

In 1997, the FBI and CIA became aware of reports that a terrorist group had bought an unmanned aerial vehicle. They were concerned the group would use the drone to attack a US embassy or visiting US delegation overseas, Hill said.—Reuters