Before 9/11, US knew Bin Laden was a threat. India-Pakistan tensions were the bigger worry

9/11 has been one of the most horrifying incidents of terrorism to happen on American soil. It claimed 2,977 victims not even accounting for the collective trauma it resulted in.By the time four hijacked planes tore through the American skies, Washington had already spent years watching the rise of Osama bin Laden and al-Qaeda.The problem, as the 9/11 Commission Report makes clear that, in South Asia, American attention was repeatedly pulled towards another crisis.India and PakistanThe Commission report makes it a point to highlight that: "In the State Department, concerns about India-Pakistan tensions often crowded out attention to Afghanistan or Bin Ladin. Aware of instability and growing Islamic extremism in Pakistan, State Department officials worried most about an arms race and possible war between Pakistan and India."Washington knew Pakistan was unstable and it also knew that Islamist extremism was growing there.