May 18, 2004

NEW YORK (AP) -- The man who was formerly in charge of the World Trade Center says he'd never been told by the FBI that Islamic militants might hijack a jetliner.

Alan Reiss told the federal panel investigating the attacks that he'd been more focused on bioterrorism threats.

Meanwhile, a commission member is suggesting the attack was a victory for Osama bin Laden over the U.S. government. To the applause of victims' relatives, panel member Bob Kerrey said the suicide hijackers defeated the FBI, the CIA, the INS and Customs officials.

The panel is holding two days of hearings in New York.

Also Tuesday, a member of the federal panel offered the assessment that 911 operators didn't know enough about what was happening on September 11th and they were overwhelmed by the number of calls they were getting.

The commission says rescuers were forced to make rapid-fire, life-and-death decisions based on incomplete communications.

The commission is turning its attention to New York to see if local missteps led to deaths that might have been avoided at the World Trade Center. Up to now, the commission had been focusing on federal failures.

It's already an emotional day for family members of attack victims. Scores of them are on hand at the New York hearing. Within 20 minutes of the start, they were seen dabbing their eyes and offering each other support.

Some family members have pictures of their loved ones pinned to their chests. They watched as the commission showed footage of the first hijacked plane slamming into the tower, and played videotaped testimony from survivors.

Copyright 2004 by The Associated Press. All rights reserved.