Oklahoma City bombing

The Oklahoma City bombing was a 1995 terrorist attack in which the Alfred P. Murrah Federal Building, a U.S. government office complex in downtown Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, was destroyed, killing 168 people. It is the largest domestic terrorist attack in the history of the United States, and - until the September 11, 2001 attacks - largest terrorist attack of any kind in the nation's history.

The bombing

At 9:02 a.m. CST on Wednesday, April 19, 1995, in the street in front of the Alfred P. Murrah federal building, a rented Ryder truck containing about 5,000 pounds (2,300 kg) of explosive material exploded. The truck bomb was composed of ammonium nitrate, an agricultural fertilizer, and nitromethane, a highly volatile motor-racing fuel—a mixture also known as ANFO (ammonium nitrate/fuel oil). Timothy McVeigh, a Gulf War veteran, was arrested by an Oklahoma highway patrolman within an hour of the explosion after being pulled over for not having a license plate.

Related Topics:
CST - April 19 - 1995 - Ryder - Truck bomb - Ammonium nitrate - Nitromethane - ANFO - Fuel oil - Timothy McVeigh - Gulf War

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At McVeigh's trial, the United States Government asserted that the motivation for the attack was to avenge the deaths of Branch Davidians near Waco, Texas, who he believed had been murdered by agents of the federal government. McVeigh called the casualties in the bombing "collateral damage" and compared the bombing to actions he had taken during the Gulf War. The attack was staged on the second anniversary of the Waco incident. McVeigh is thought to have modeled the bombing on a similar event described in The Turner Diaries, a white supremacist novel that was found with McVeigh when he was arrested. Some have suggested that the date was purposely chosen in these instances as it coincides with the beginning of the American Revolutionary War and hence represents a date for bold action.

Related Topics:
United States Government - Branch Davidians - Waco, Texas - Gulf War - The Turner Diaries - White supremacist - American Revolutionary War

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The effect of the bombing on the city was immense. Beyond the death toll of 168 (including 19 children and one rescue worker), the bomb injured over 800 people and destroyed or seriously damaged more than 300 buildings in the surrounding area, leaving several hundred people homeless and shutting down offices in downtown Oklahoma City. By some estimates, more than one-third of the nearly half-million residents of Oklahoma City knew someone who was killed or injured in the bombing. Over 12,000 people participated in relief and rescue operations in the days following the blast, many of whom developed post-traumatic stress disorder as a result. The national and worldwide humanitarian response was immediate and overwhelming, as was the media response. The area was flooded with rescue workers from around the nation and aid agencies coming to assist the survivors, as well as hundreds of news trucks coming to cover the story.

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The national focus climaxed on April 23, when President Bill Clinton spoke in Oklahoma City. In the weeks following the bombing, rescue efforts ceased, the building was imploded, and media interest shifted to the trials of Timothy McVeigh and one of his accomplices, Terry Nichols.

Related Topics:
April 23 - President - Bill Clinton - Terry Nichols

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Presidential response

Shortly after the incident, President Bill Clinton criticized radio talk show hosts. "They spread hate. They leave the impression that, by their very words, that violence is acceptable." Clinton did not mention anyone by name, but later singled out another conservative radio host G. Gordon Liddy (who had told his listeners to shoot federal ATF officers who had illegally entered their homes in the head rather than the chest because they wear bullet proof vests).http://www.findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m1272/is_n2612_v124/ai_18274649

Related Topics:
Bill Clinton - G. Gordon Liddy - ATF

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