Surveillance video of the World Trade Center, taken just a few months before the 9/11 attacks, was shown today in a British courtroom.

The video, shot in March 2001, was taken with a hand-held camera. The cameraman zooms into the towers and is then heard making the sound of an explosion, according to news accounts from reporters who were in the courtroom. There is also a shot in which the cameraman flips the camera so a tower appears to be lying on its side.

The video, which may be released to the public, was shown at the sentencing hearing of Dhiren Barot. He is facing a life sentence for his involvement in numerous terrorist plots.

While he is not suspected of direct involvement in the 9/11 attacks, British prosecutors say Barot went on two surveillance missions to the U.S. in 2000 and 2001. He had a special interest in financial targets.

Barot had planned to target a number of important financial buildings, including the Citigroup buildings and New York Stock Exchange in New York City, the Prudential Financial building in northern New Jersey and the International Monetary Fund and World Bank buildings in Washington, D.C.

Click here to view evidence against Barot presented in court.