On September 11th 2001 two planes flew into the World Trade Center in New York and one plane flew into the Pentagon in Washington DC. Within days the US government and media were blaming Osama Bin Laden and his Al Qaeda network. Bin Laden was thought to have moved to Afghanistan in May 1996 after being expelled from Sudan. When two US embassies in Africa were blown up on August 7th 1998. Clinton had responded on August 20th by launching missles at Sudan and supposed terrorist training camps in Afghanistan. Immediately after 9/11, ">international aid agencies in Afghanistan feared feared a massive US attack and left the country. On September 17th, a Pakistani delegation arrived in Afghanistan to try to persuade the Taliban to hand over Osama Bin Laden, but the Taliban denied that Bin Laden took part in the WTC attacks. Afghanistan's neighbors all feared for the worst as the US "dismissed as inadequate a ruling by Afghanistan's senior clerics that Bin Laden would be asked to leave the country". On September 24th the Taliban claimed to have mobilized 300,000 troops in preparation for U.S. strikes on the country and in response the Pakistan foreign ministry pulled out all of its diplomatic staff from Kabul. On September 25th Saudi Arabia cut off diplomatic ties with the Taliban. As the world waited for the US attacks to begin, US Special forces had already deployed in Afghanistan. The official US line on September 29th was that the US would offer aid to opponents of the Taliban, but wouldn't try to choose the countries next rulers. On October 5th US Troops deployed to Uzbekistan. On October 6th, the Taliban claimed that its forces shot anti-aircraft fire at an American plane and on October 7th the US air war had begun.
US Governments Official Timeline | Center for Cooperative Research Timeline | AP Post-Sept. 11 Chronology