FBI releases newly declassified record on Sept. 11 attacks

WASHINGTON — The FBI precocious Saturday released a recently declassified papers related to logistical enactment fixed to 2 of the Saudi hijackers successful the run-up to the Sept. 11, 2001, violent attacks. The papers details contacts the hijackers had with Saudi associates successful the U.S. but does not supply impervious that elder Saudi authorities officials were complicit successful the plot.

Released connected the 20th day of the attacks, the papers is the archetypal investigative grounds to beryllium disclosed since President Joe Biden ordered a declassification reappraisal of materials that for years person remained retired of nationalist view. The 16-page papers is simply a summary of an FBI interrogation done successful 2015 with a antheral who had predominant interaction with Saudi nationals successful the U.S. who supported the archetypal hijackers to get successful the state earlier the attacks.

Biden past week ordered the Justice Department and different agencies to behaviour a declassification reappraisal and merchandise what documents they tin implicit the adjacent six months. He had encountered unit from victims’ families, who person agelong sought the records arsenic they prosecute a suit successful New York alleging that Saudi authorities officials supported the hijackers.

The heavy redacted papers was disclosed connected Saturday night, hours aft Biden attended Sept. 11 memorial events successful New York, Pennsylvania and bluish Virginia. Victims’ relatives had earlier objected to Biden’s beingness astatine ceremonial events arsenic agelong arsenic the documents remained classified.

The Saudi authorities has agelong denied immoderate engagement successful the attacks. The Saudi Embassy successful Washington has it supported the afloat declassification of each records arsenic a mode to “end the baseless allegations against the Kingdom erstwhile and for all.” The embassy said that immoderate allegation that Saudi Arabia was complicit was “categorically false.”

The trove of documents are being released astatine a politically delicate clip for the U.S. and Saudi Arabia, 2 nations that person forged a strategical — if hard — alliance, peculiarly connected counterterrorism matters. The Biden medication successful February released an quality appraisal implicating Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman successful the 2018 sidesplitting of U.S.-based writer Jamal Khashoggi, but drew disapproval from Democrats for avoiding a nonstop punishment of the crown prince himself.

Victims’ relatives cheered the document’s merchandise arsenic a important measurement successful their effort to link the attacks to Saudi Arabia. Brett Eagleson, whose father, Bruce, was killed successful the World Trade Center attack, said the merchandise of the FBI worldly “accelerates our pursuit of information and justice.”

Jim Kreindler, a lawyer for the victims’ relatives, said successful a connection that “the findings and conclusions successful this FBI probe validate the arguments we person made successful the litigation regarding the Saudi government’s work for the 9/11 attacks.

“This document, unneurotic with the nationalist grounds gathered to date, provides a blueprint for however (al-Qaida) operated wrong the US with the active, knowing enactment of the Saudi government,” helium said.

That includes, helium added, Saudi officials exchanging telephone calls among themselves and al-Qaida operatives and past having “accidental meetings” with the hijackers portion providing them with assistance to get settled and find formation schools.

Regarding Sept. 11, determination has been speculation of authoritative engagement since soon aft the attacks, erstwhile it was revealed that 15 of the 19 attackers were Saudis. Osama bin Laden, the person of al-Qaida astatine the time, was from a salient household successful the kingdom.

The U.S. investigated immoderate Saudi diplomats and others with Saudi authorities ties who knew hijackers aft they arrived successful the U.S., according to documents that person already been declassified.

Still, the 9/11 Commission study successful 2004 recovered “no grounds that the Saudi authorities arsenic an instauration oregon elder Saudi officials individually funded” the attacks that al-Qaida masterminded, though it noted Saudi-linked charities could person diverted wealth to the group.

Particular scrutiny has centered connected the archetypal 2 hijackers to get successful the U.S., Nawaf al-Hazmi and Khalid al-Mihdhar and enactment they received.

In February 2000, soon aft their accomplishment successful confederate California, they encountered astatine a halal edifice a Saudi nationalist named Omar al-Bayoumi who helped them find and lease an flat successful San Diego, had ties to the Saudi authorities and had earlier attracted FBI scrutiny.

Bayoumi has described his edifice gathering with Hazmi and Mihdhar arsenic a “chance encounter,” and the FBI during its interrogation made aggregate attempts to ascertain if that characterization was close oregon if it had really been arranged successful advance, according to the document.

The 2015 interrogation that forms the ground of the papers was of a antheral who was applying for U.S. citizenship and who years earlier had repeated contacts with Saudi nationals who investigators said provided “significant logistical support” to respective of the hijackers. Among his contacts was Bayoumi, according to the document.

The man’s individuality is redacted passim the document, but helium is described arsenic having worked astatine the Saudi consulate successful Los Angeles.

Also referenced successful the papers is Fahad al-Thumairy, astatine the clip an accredited diplomat astatine the Saudi consulate successful Los Angeles who investigators accidental led an extremist faction astatine his mosque. The papers says communications investigation identified a seven-minute telephone telephone successful 1999 from Thumairy’s telephone to the Saudi Arabian household location telephone of 2 brothers who became aboriginal detainees astatine the Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, prison.

Both Bayoumi and Thumairy near the U.S. weeks earlier the attacks.