Two FBI Al-Qaeda Experts Recall Watching 9/11 From Yemen: 'We Knew We Could Have Stopped It'

MANHATTAN — Twelve years ago today, FBI agents Ali Soufan and Thomas Donlon were in Yemen hunting for the terrorists responsible for the deadly 2000 bombing of the U.S.S. Cole that killed 17 Americans.
Their mission, which was ultimately successful, was interrupted by news of the worst attack on American soil — an attack they had feared and were risking their lives trying to prevent.

They felt angry and helpless watching the towers collapse on a small television in the American ambassador's quarters: Few people had listened to their warnings about Al Qaeda, and their former boss, John O'Neill, the ex-FBI National Security Chief, was among those missing in the WTC rubble.

More