THE COLE CONSPIRACY On The History Channel(R)

THE COLE CONSPIRACY On The History Channel(R)

Sunday, October 9th at 8:00 p.m. ET/PT

'Before there was 9/11, there was 10/12'

NEW YORK, Sept. 27 /PRNewswire/ -- If September 11, 2001 was the day the war on terror was launched, then its seeds were planted October 12, 2000 on the shores of the poor Middle Eastern country of Yemen. That was the day two suicide bombers struck the USS Cole, killing 17 American sailors and alerting some U.S. officials as to the seriousness of Osama bin Laden's intentions. It was the clear precursor to the biggest disaster in U.S. history, 9/11, and the connections between the two attacks are stunning. The Navy granted THE HISTORY CHANNEL and its production team unprecedented access to the USS Cole -- for the first time, viewers can see the attack, the investigation, and the long-term consequences of the bombing through the eyes of those who lived it in THE COLE CONSPIRACY airing Sunday, October 9th at 8:00 p.m. ET/PT on The History Channel.

The USS Cole pulled into port in Aden, Yemen on a sweltering morning, intending to re-fuel and then head on to patrol the Persian Gulf as a strong show of American presence there. According to the first-hand account of Navy fireman Raymond Mooney, who was keeping watch aboard the Cole as it re-fueled, a tiny boat with two men aboard came speeding toward the ship. The men smiled and waved to Mooney and he waved back "because that's how it was back then," and then came up to the side of the Cole and detonated explosives that blew a 40-by-60-foot hole in the side of the ship. The blast killed 17 sailors, wounded 39 more, and critically damaged the ship. THE COLE CONSPIRACY offers an intense, dramatic re-creation of the attack, the frantic aftermath, and the three days of heroic efforts to save the ship, interspersed with the first-hand accounts of many of those on board.

But the attack is only the beginning of the story. The investigation that followed led American officials straight to the man who has become the face of danger in today's world: Osama bin Laden. THE COLE CONSPIRACY dissects the investigation along with a number of FBI and counterterrorism officials, detailing their efforts and ultimate frustration over the slow-footed reaction to the bombing by the U.S. government, a level of hesitation that appears to have done little to dissuade the exponentially greater disaster that occurred in New York a year later.

Key elements of THE COLE CONSPIRACY: * The story of John O'Neill, the FBI Agent who doggedly pursued Al-Qaeda and bin Laden for years before and months after the Cole bombing, and predicted the attacks on the World Trade Center. O'Neill became more and more frustrated over the lack of attention being paid by the government and he finally quit his life's work only to meet a cruel, tragic, and ironic fate just week later.

* The failed efforts to track Khalid al-Midhar, an alleged Cole co- conspirator who, after the bombing, obtained a U.S. visa, entered the United States, and helped fly American Airlines flight 77 into The Pentagon on September 11, 2001.

* Thorough dramatic re-creations of the efforts of the sailors on board to save the Cole, fueled by a desire not to let the terrorists win. "We were not gonna let the ship be a trophy sitting there in Aden harbor for al Qaeda," said James G. Parlier, Command Master Chief of the USS Cole.

* The emotional reactions of the stunned crew in the aftermath of the attack, as they had to deal with the loss of comrades, the effort to save a severely damaged ship, and the fear of further attacks as they sat defenseless in Aden harbor.

* A timeline of the events and struggles that ensued from the Cole bombing to 9/11, including the 2000 elections, the reactions at the highest levels of the Bush Administration, and the efforts of former Terrorism Czar Richard Clarke to get key decision makers to act on the al-Qaeda threat before it was too late.

Executive Producer for The History Channel is Carl H. Lindahl. THE COLE CONSPIRACY is produced by Story House Productions for The History Channel.

Now reaching more than 88 million Nielsen subscribers, The History Channel(R), "Where the Past Comes Alive(R)," brings history to life in a powerful manner and provides an inviting place where people experience history personally and connect their own lives to the great lives and events of the past. The History Channel has earned six News and Documentary Emmy(R) Awards and received the prestigious Governor's Award from the Academy of Television Arts & Sciences for the network's "Save Our History(R)" campaign dedicated to historic preservation and history education. The History Channel web site is located at www.HistoryChannel.com. Press Only: For more information and photography please visit us on the web at www.historychannelpress.com.

Source: The History Channel

CONTACT: Jennifer Mann, +1-917-270-9759, Jennifer.mann@aetn.com; Ashley Gillen, +1-212-907-9445, Ashley.gillen@aetn.com

Web site: http://www.historychannel.com/

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