Despite heavy resistance and threats from the Saudi Kingdom, a U.S. judge has ruled that family members of 9/11 victims can proceed with lawsuits.
The families of the victims of the September 11, 2001 terror attacks have long sought to hold members of the Saudi royal family accountable for what they say amounts to funding and harboring terrorists. After years of anguish and waiting, the family members’ struggle moved one step closer to reality on Wednesday after a U.S. judge rejected Saudi Arabia’s attempt to dismiss the lawsuits.
“U.S. District Judge George Daniels in Manhattan said the plaintiffs’ allegations “narrowly articulate a reasonable basis” for him to assert jurisdiction over Saudi Arabia under the Justice Against Sponsors of Terrorism Act (JASTA), a 2016 federal law,” Reuters reported. Saudi officials continue to deny any involvement in the terror attacks that killed nearly 3,000 people. The Kingdom has traditionally been immune from these type of lawsuits, but that changed in September 2016 when the U.S. Congress passed the Justice Against Sponsors of Terrorism Act (JASTA), a law that allows victims of terrorism to file lawsuits against foreign nations. The 9/11 families have fought for years to sue the Saudi Kingdom to reveal more details about the role the nation played in the 2001 terror attacks. The Saudi government has opposed JASTA since its inception, at one point threatening to liquidate millions of dollars in U.S. assets.
Judge Daniels also dismissed lawsuits against two Saudi banks and a construction company owned by the Bin Laden family who are accused of financing the terror attacks. Daniels said he lacked the jurisdiction to hold these entities accountable. However, Daniels said there was adequate evidence to proceed with an investigation into two men linked to the Saudi government: Omar al-Bayoumi, an alleged intelligence officer; and former consular official, Fahad al-Thumairy. The presence of the two men and their potential connections to the Saudi government was strong enough evidence to convince Daniels the lawsuits could proceed. “Neither the 9/11 Commission Report, nor any other governmental report, adequately and specifically refutes plaintiffs’ allegations,” he wrote.
Terry Strada, national organizer for the 9/11 Families and Survivors United for Justice Against Terrorism and widow of Cantor Fitzgerald employee Tom Strada, told Courthouse News the ruling brought “tears of joy.”
In March 2017, Activist Post reported that the 9/11 Families and Survivors United for Justice Against Terrorism sent a letter to Attorney General Jeff Sessions asking him to investigate the connection between over 100 Saudi lobbyists, U.S. veterans, and the Trump International hotel. The group, which represents an estimated 6,500 families of 9/11 victims, called on the Department of Justice to investigate a foreign influence campaign by Saudi Arabia which sought to convince veterans to fight against a recently passed law that allows for lawsuits against the Saudi kingdom in relation to the September 11, 2001 terror attacks. Yahoo! News reports that lawyers representing the 9/11 families are accusing Saudi operatives of deceiving hundreds of veterans into lobbying against the bill by warning them that they may be susceptible to lawsuits in foreign countries for their role in military conflicts. The group of over 300 veterans was flown to Washington D.C. and treated to meals and discussion about the fate of JASTA. Veterans were not notified that the financiers of their trip were representatives of the Saudi Kingdom.
In addition, during a recent hearing for the lawsuits against Saudi Arabia, a former FBI agent called attention to the involvement of the Saudi Kingdom. In a six-page statement provided as part of the lawsuit against Saudi Arabia, retired FBI agent Stephen K. Moore says the 9/11 Commission has provided the American public with incorrect statements regarding the FBI’s investigation. Moore is a 25-year veteran of the FBI who retired in 2008. He also led the FBI’s PENTTBOM, or “Pentagon/Twin Towers Bombing Investigation,” a 400-member task force responsible for investigating the 9/11 attacks. Specifically, Moore disputed statements made by the 9/11 Commission regarding the FBI’s investigation into two Saudi hijackers – Nawaf al-Hazmi and Khalid al-Mihdhar, two of the five men accused of crashing American Airlines Flight 77 into the Pentagon. Moore’s statements deal with Hazmi and al-Mihdhar’s connection to Saudi diplomat Fahad al-Thumairy and Omar al-Bayoumi. Thumairy was an imam at a Los Angeles mosque with extreme views, while Bayoumi was a suspected agent of the Saudi government posing as a student.
The role of Saudi Arabia is disputed within the so-called 9/11 Truth community. Some see the pointing of fingers at Saudi Arabia as a distraction from the involvement of officials within the U.S. government and other nations like Pakistan and Israel. There are definitely reasons to suspect these nations and individuals, but that does not mean the role of Saudi Arabia should be completely ignored or dismissed. The 9/11 terror attacks were a coordinated false flag attack involving multiple nations, government officials, and private individuals. At the very least we know that the story paraded around as the “official” account of events is a complete and total lie.
Derrick Broze is an investigative journalist and liberty activist. He is the Lead Investigative Reporter for ActivistPost.com and the founder of the TheConsciousResistance.com. Follow him on Twitter. Derrick is the author of three books: The Conscious Resistance: Reflections on Anarchy and Spirituality and Finding Freedom in an Age of Confusion, Vol. 1, Finding Freedom in an Age of Confusion, Vol. 2 and Manifesto of the Free Humans.
Derrick is available for interviews. Please contact [email protected]
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I personally don’t believe the Saudi government was the main culprit. But nonetheless this is a very positive development, because it will back the Saudis into a corner and give them incentives to release what they do have. A number of the Saudis who were immediately identified as perpetrators on that very day, were later found to be alive, as reported by the BBC. Somebody used fake ID’s to board those planes, which should not surprise anyone. Multiple governments have helped obstruct investigations into the identities of the hijackers. The families of the victims have a right to pursue this in court.
Good reportage hopefully the investigation widens to include the involvement of others like the Mossad and the Bush family. I also would like to see all soldiers and their commanders held accountable for their murder in any war; as a battle plan is premeditation to commit a crime.
never happen but keep tryng.
WHEREWAS Trump on 911 anyway???
https://uploads.disquscdn.com/images/aadad00fa8a0eb54e51d50baebfd634c4bb593aaae152f265b59c0bc0118793c.jpg
NO NO NO YOU DISGUSTING MORONS !!!! WRONG SHITHOLE COUNTRY!!!
ISRAEL DID THIS!!!!
How about the lawsuit against Israel?
Of course they are allowing people to sue Saudi Arabia because it deflects attention from the real culprits on 9/11, the US federal government. Saudi Arabia did not shoot a missile at the Pentagon, how would that even be possible? The US military did it, and all of us here should know that by now. Donald Rumsfeld even told us how they financed it the day before it happened, with the Pentagon’s “missing” $2.3 trillion. And he also admitted afterward the accounting of that missing money was destroyed in the blast. How very convenient. Let’s get real here, Saudi Arabia is not responsible, our own government is.