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Chronology: All time shown below are approximate Eastern Daylight Times. Wednesday, September 26, 2001 The
Investigation (CNN) Also Today: The FBI began conducting background checks of all truck drivers licensed to carry hazardous materials.
8:30 pm - Rev. Jesse Jackson stated that Afghanistan's Taliban leaders had invited him to lead a "peace delegation" to Afghanistan. Rev. Jackson stated that he was considering the meaning of the invitation and told reporters "If we can do something to encourage them to dismantle those terrorist bases, to choose to hand over the suspects and release the Christians rather than engage in a long bloody war, we'll encourage them to do so." White House spokesman Ari Fleischer stated, "I would just reiterate what the president has said, that he will not engage in any negotiations or discussions" with the Taliban." [See: Jesse Jackson mulls invitation from Taliban (CNN)] 5:15 pm - Meeting with a group of Muslim and Arabs in the White House, President Bush urged Americans to show tolerance for Muslims, Arab-Americans, Sikhs and others. "I have told the nation more than once that ours is a war against evil, against extremists, that the teachings of Islam are the teachings of peace and good," stated President Bush. [See: Bush Urges Americans Show Religious Tolerance (Reuters)] 12:30 pm - In a Voice of America interview, Mullah Mohammad Omar, head of Afghanistan's Taliban government stated that the United States could not defeat his forces in an attempt to capture Osama bin Laden. "Even if it (the United States) were twice as strong, or twice that, it would not be strong enough to defeat us. We are confident that no one can harm us if God is with us," stated Mullah Omar. [See: Taliban Leader Says U.S. Cannot Defeat His Movement (Reuters)] 10:45 am - Taliban leader Mullah Mohammad Omar stated that the likelihood of U.S. attacks had decreased since Washington had been unable to provide proof that Osama bin Laden had been involved in terrorist attacks against the United States. [See: Taliban Leader Says Chance of U.S. Attack Lessens (Reuters)] 7:30 am - Reuters reported it had obtained a memo from the Russian government to the United Nations stating that Osama bin Laden maintained at least 55 bases in Afghanistan supporting some 13,000 men. [See: Russian Memo Lists Bin Laden Camps in Afghanistan (Reuters)] 7:00 am - NATO officials met to discuss plans by member nations to support the United States in the "war on terrorism." On Sept 12, NATO voted to consider the attacks on the U.S. as an assault on all member nations, if the attacks proved to have been initiated by forces outside the United States. Deputy U.S. Defense Secretary Paul Wolfowitz presented evidence that the attacks had originated abroad. [See: NATO Seeks Joint Response to Attacks on U.S. (Reuters)] 4:40 am - The former U.S. Embassy in Kabul, Afghanistan was set on fire by anti-American demonstrators. Associated Press reported the protestors chanted, "Long live Osama. Down with America," and "Anyone who supports America is a traitor." The embassy had been vacant since 1989 when it was abandoned near the end of the Afghan-Russian war. [See: Former U.S. Embassy in Kabul torched (CNN)] 2:00 am - Leaders of Afghanistan's Taliban appealed to the American people to "use common sense" in deciding whether Osama bin Laden had been involved in the terrorist attacks of Sept. 11. "You accept everything your government says, whether it is true or false," stated Taliban leader Mullah Mohammad Omar. [See: Wounded Taliban Left Isolated on Almost All Fronts (Reuters)]
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