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U.S. stocks take big hit
(CNN) -- The Dow Jones industrial average suffered its worst point loss in history Monday, the first full day of trading since terrorists attacked the World Trade Center and the Pentagon. The major indexes fell to their lowest levels in nearly three years. The Dow Jones industrial average closed at 8,920, down 684 points for the day, largely because of big losses in stocks such as Boeing and United Technologies, companies that supply parts to airlines. (Full story) In percentage terms, however, the 7 percent drop in the Dow does not even rank among the 10 worst declines in the index's history. The Dow's worst drop by percentage was 22.6 percent on October 19, 1987. Losses in insurance stocks helped send the Standard & Poor's 500 index to its worst finish since October 1998. It closed at 1,038. Claims from the attack have been estimated to be as much as $20 billion, and insurers are expected to bear the brunt of that in the quarter that ends this month. The Nasdaq composite index closed down 115 points at 1,579, a decline of more than 6 percent. Defense, mining and some drug stocks rose. President Bush warned Monday that his anti-terrorism campaign would come at a cost and said that while Osama bin Laden was the "prime suspect" the U.S. mission would target other suspected terrorists and their organizations. (Full story) "We will win the war and there will be costs," Bush said during a visit to the Pentagon to thank military planners. When asked if he wanted bin Laden killed, Bush replied, "I want justice. And there's an old poster out West, I recall, that said, 'Wanted: Dead or Alive.'" (Transcript) During a visit to the Islamic Center in Washington, Bush said an anti-Arab or anti-Muslim backlash would not be tolerated in the United States. He also said those who do try to intimidate innocent Muslims "represent the worst of humankind." About 5,000 people are feared dead in Tuesday's attacks on the Pentagon and the twin towers of the World Trade Center after terrorists turned hijacked passenger jets into flying bombs, crashing them into the buildings. A fourth plane crashed in Stony Creek Township, Pennsylvania, killing everyone aboard.
Latest developments Pentagon sources said planning for possible military action has been "highly compartmentalized" to ensure the fewest number of people possible have access to classified war plans. (Full story) Technicians at Honeywell in Redmond, Washington, have examined the so-called black boxes from United Airlines Flight 93 that crashed in Pennsylvania during Tuesday's terrorist attacks, but the FBI and the manufacturer of the boxes are not saying what information was recovered from the damaged cockpit voice recorder or the flight data recorder. Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak told CNN on Monday that the United States should be "very careful" of taking military action in order to avoid killing innocent people during any retaliation for last week's attack. Mubarak also said the whole world should cooperate in gathering evidence on the people or groups behind the terrorists. Afghanistan's supreme leader, who was warned by Pakistani officials to either turn over bin Laden or face a U.S. attack, said on radio Monday that Afghanistan's Islamic clerics will meet on Tuesday and "they will decide." (Full story) The nation's largest airline, American Airlines, which lost two planes in last week's terrorist attacks, is expected to announce midweek that it is cutting jobs. Northwest Airlines also is expected to announce layoffs as early as Thursday. US Airways said it would lay off about 11,000 employees and Continental is furloughing 12,000 workers. Iran will not support any U.S. military action against neighboring Afghanistan, two top Iranian officials said Monday. Iranian Foreign Minister Kamal Kharazi told CNN, "We do not believe just in order to punish a bunch of terrorists, it is legitimate to attack a country." (Full story) British Prime Minister Tony Blair, French President Jacques Chirac, German Foreign Minister Joschka Fischer, Saudi Foreign Minister Saud al-Faisal and other officials are headed to Washington this week. U.S. Attorney General John Ashcroft Monday offered more details Monday on his plan to streamline federal laws for prosecuting accused terrorists. Ashcroft's proposals include ending the federal statute of limitations on terrorist crimes. The Federal Aviation Administration said Monday it is augmenting its federal air marshal program with law enforcement officers from other agencies. Air marshals are armed plainclothes officers who fly on commercial planes to prevent hijackings. FBI Director Robert Mueller warned Monday against reacting to the terrorist attacks by targeting Arab-Americans. "Vigilante attacks and threats against Arab-Americans will not be tolerated," Mueller said, adding that such behavior goes against the "very principles and the quality of freedom on which our nation was founded." The International Monetary Fund and World Bank have canceled their annual meeting in Washington scheduled for September 29-30. The move reflects security concerns about the event that typically attracts finance ministers and heads of state from around the world. (Full story) New York Gov. George E. Pataki called a special session of the state legislature to consider enactment Monday of "the toughest and most comprehensive package of anti-terrorism laws in the nation." The package would take effect immediately, he said in a statement. Afghanistan's permanent representative to the United Nations, Dr. Ravan Farhadi, told CNN his government, which is fighting a civil war against the Taliban, is offering the United States the support of its 15,000 troops in strikes against bin Laden or the Taliban. (Full story) The Justice Department has issued two new arrest warrants for material witnesses in connection with the attacks, sources told CNN. The warrants were sealed and no details were made public. Two other material witnesses are already in custody after being detained earlier for questioning in the investigation. (Full story) First Lady Laura Bush attended a memorial service for those killed on United Airlines Flight 93 when the hijacked jet crashed near Pittsburgh last week. She told relatives and friends of the victims: "You are not alone." |
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