Al Qaeda terror scout Iyman Faris will serve 20 years in prison on federal charges of looking out for terror targets on behalf of Osama Bin Laden.

According to a statement put out the the Justice Department:

According to Faris’ admission, the operational leader (of al Qaeda) ...told Faris that al Qaeda was planning two simultaneous attacks in New York City and Washington, D.C. The al Qaeda leader spoke with Faris about destroying a bridge in New York City by severing its suspension cables, and tasked Faris with obtaining the equipment needed for that operation. The leader also explained that al Qaeda was planning to derail trains, and asked Faris to procure the tools for that plot as well.

Faris admitted that upon returning to the United States from Pakistan in April 2002, he researched “gas cutters” - the equipment for severing bridge suspension cables - and the New York City bridge on the Internet...

Faris admitted to traveling to New York City in late 2002 to examine the bridge, and said he concluded that the plot to destroy the bridge by severing cables was unlikely to succeed because of the bridge’s security and structure. In early 2003, he sent a message that “the weather is too hot” - a coded message indicating that the bridge plot was unlikely to succeed.

No word yet on when the feds will make Khalid Sheikh Mohammed, the 9/11 mastermind and allegedly Danny Pearl's killer, face justice.