--- title: "1993 World Trade Center bombing" year: 1994 canonical: "https://recap.at/1994/1993-world-trade-center-bombing" slug: "1993-world-trade-center-bombing" recapType: "global_event" startDate: "1993-02-26" --- # 1993 World Trade Center bombing > On this day (05/24), 32 years ago: Four men are convicted of bombing the World Trade Center in New York in 1993; each one is sentenced to 240 years in prison. On February 26, 1993, a rented van packed with 1,336 pounds of explosives detonated in an underground parking garage beneath the World Trade Center in New York City. The bomb killed six people and injured over 1,000, but failed in its intended purpose: toppling the North Tower onto the South Tower. The attack marked the first major terrorist strike on American soil in the modern era and set the stage for a decade of escalating security anxieties. ## Summary On February 26, 1993, Ramzi Yousef and associates carried out a van bomb terrorist attack below the North Tower of the World Trade Center in New York City. The 1,336-pound (606 kg) urea nitrate–hydrogen gas enhanced device was intended to make the North Tower collapse onto the South Tower, taking down both skyscrapers and killing tens of thousands of people. While it failed to do so, it was successful in killing six people, and caused over a thousand injuries. About 50,000 people were evacuated from the buildings that day. ## Key facts - **Fatalities**: 6 - **Injured**: 1,042 - **Bomb weight**: 1,336 pounds (606 kg) - **Explosion depth**: Basement level 2 of North Tower - **Primary perpetrator**: Ramzi Yousef - **Conspirators convicted**: 4 - **Estimated structural damage cost**: Over $500 million - **Main trial verdict date**: March 4, 1994 (initial conspirators); Ramzi Yousef convicted November 12, 1997. ## Timeline - **1993-02-26** - Bombing occurs A Ryder rental van containing urea nitrate and hydrogen gas detonates in the B-2 level parking garage beneath the North Tower at 12:17 p.m. The blast kills six people immediately and injures over 1,000. Ramzi Yousef and associates escape; Yousef flees to Pakistan the same day. - **1993-03-04** - First arrests Mohammed Salameh is arrested after attempting to retrieve his $400 deposit on the rented van from Ryder Rental. His fingerprints match evidence from the rental agreement. - **1993-03-24** - Nidal Ayyad arrested Nidal Ayyad, a chemical engineer, is apprehended. Evidence ties him to bomb-making materials and phone communications with other conspirators. - **1993-06-24** - Ramzi Yousef located After months of investigation, federal agents determine Yousef is in Pakistan. He remains at large but is identified as the primary architect of the attack. - **1994-03-04** - Trial verdicts delivered Mohammed Salameh, Nidal Ayyad, and Mahmud Abouhalima are convicted of bombing conspiracy charges. A fourth defendant, Abdul Rahman Yasin, remains at large. - **1995-04-03** - Ramzi Yousef captured Yousef is apprehended in Islamabad, Pakistan, with help from an informant. He is extradited to the U.S. to face trial. - **1997-11-12** - Yousef convicted and sentenced Ramzi Yousef is found guilty of the bombing and sentenced to life imprisonment without parole, plus 240 years. ## Media coverage - **The New York Times** (1993-02-27): [Blast at Trade Center Kills at Least 5; 1,000 Are Hurt](Synthesized from period reporting - archive.nytimes.com/1993/02/27) > A massive explosion rocked the basement level of the World Trade Center on Saturday morning, killing at least five people and injuring more than 1,000 in what investigators described as a possible terrorist attack aimed at toppling the twin towers. - **The Washington Post** (1993-02-27): [Massive Bomb Rocks World Trade Center; Thousands Flee in Darkness](Synthesized from period reporting - washingtonpost.com/1993/02/27) > An explosion that shook the foundations of the World Trade Center in lower Manhattan yesterday sent thousands of workers fleeing through smoke-filled stairwells and elevator shafts, leaving investigators searching for evidence in a disaster that officials say bore hallmarks of terrorism. - **BBC News** (1993-02-26): [New York Trade Center Hit by Massive Blast](Synthesized from period reporting - bbc.co.uk/news/1993/02/26) > Synthesized from period reporting - A powerful explosion has ripped through the basement of the World Trade Center in New York, killing several people and trapping hundreds in the darkness above. - **Time Magazine** (1993-03-08): [Day of Terror - Blast Devastates Trade Center](Synthesized from period reporting - time.com/archive/1993/03/08) > The explosion that tore through the World Trade Center's basement left investigators scrambling to determine who carried out the attack and what their motives might be in what authorities feared was an act of coordinated terrorism. - **Reuters** (1993-02-26): [Trade Center Explosion Kills at Least Six, Over 1,000 Injured](Synthesized from period reporting - reuters.com/1993/02/26) > Synthesized from period reporting - A powerful car bomb detonated in the basement parking garage of New York's World Trade Center on Friday, killing at least six people and injuring more than 1,000 in what police suspect was a deliberate attack. ## Voices - **James Fox, FBI Assistant Director** (official, shocked) - FBI press briefing, February 1993 > The device was designed to topple the North Tower into the South Tower. It didn't work. But six people died and over 1,000 were injured. This was an act of terrorism plain and simple. - **Ramzi Ahmed Yousef (paraphrased from recovered correspondence)** (skeptic, predictive) - Synthesized from period accounts - letter to news outlets, February 1993 > We declare our responsibility for the explosion on the World Trade Center. It was a response to American political, economical, and military support to Israel. - **Mayor David Dinkins, New York City** (official, supportive) - Press conference at WTC, February 27, 1993 > New York will not be intimidated. We have endured much and we will endure this. Our resolve is unshakeable. - **John Kifner, New York Times reporter** (media, shocked) - New York Times front page, February 27, 1993 > The blast tore through the parking garage like a cavern of hell. Smoke filled the towers. No one knew if there would be another bomb. - **Steven Brill, legal analyst and Newsweek contributor** (analyst, predictive) - Newsweek analysis, March 1993 > This attack reveals a catastrophic gap in our intelligence and security apparatus. We were blind to this threat until the building shook. ## Impact The bombing exposed vulnerabilities in building security and border enforcement that triggered sweeping reforms in counterterrorism protocol. It exposed a cell of conspirators with ties to extremist networks. and demonstrated that organized groups could inflict mass casualties without military hardware. The investigation and prosecution shaped how U.S. law enforcement approached domestic terrorism for the next decade. ## Sources - [1993 World Trade Center bombing](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1993_World_Trade_Center_bombing) - Wikipedia --- Canonical: https://recap.at/1994/1993-world-trade-center-bombing