Since 2011, Congress has repeatedly introduced a bill that would let 9/11 victims sue the
government of Saudi Arabia, and just days before the 15th anniversary of the attacks
it finally passed both the Senate and the House . Many allege that not only did Saudi
nationals and government officials have a role in the attacks, but that the United States
has worked to hide Saudi involvement.
So, is there any proof of Saudi involvement in September 11th?
Well, in the final 9/11 Commission Report, the US government claimed to have "found no
evidence that the Saudi government as an institution or senior Saudi officials individually funded
[al-Qaeda]".
Nonetheless, fifteen of the nineteen hijackers, as well as Osama bin Laden, were Saudi nationals,
raising serious suspicions over Saudi involvement.
For several years, an alleged 28 classified pages from a 2002 Congressional Joint Inquiry
into 9/11 were suggested to contain direct evidence of this Saudi involvement.
And in fact, when the pages were finally released in 2016, they stated that "While in the United
States, some of the September 11 hijackers were in contact with, and received support
or assistance from, individuals who may be connected to the Saudi Government," as well
as suggesting that “Saudi Government officials in the United States may have other ties to
al-Qaeda and other terrorist groups."
But despite these vague statements in the released documents, the current White House
press secretary maintained that there was still no evidence that the Saudi government
and senior Saudi officials actually funded al-Qaeda.
Still, these pages are not the only alleged evidence presented by those who believe there
was involvement.
In 2012, two former U.S. Senators testified that they had seen classified information,
confirming the allegations against Saudi Arabia.
One senator referred to Omar al-Bayoumi, who before the attacks was listed by the US Government
as a suspected Saudi operative living in the United States.
In 2000, al-Bayoumi allegedly befriended two of the eventual al-Qaeda hijackers, and helped
them find an apartment, which he co-signed for.
Two months before the attacks, he left the United States for the UK.
Perhaps suspiciously, one of al-Bayoumi’s close associates, Osama Bassnan, was reported
to have been receiving regular payments from the wife of Saudi Arabia’s ambassador to
the US.
According to memos released by The National Archives from the 9/11 Commission, al-Bayoumi
may have even held ties to terrorist groups.
Nonetheless, these claims are categorically denied by the FBI.
And until recently, the United States has been reticent to allow 9/11 victims to pursue
Saudi Arabia in court.
In 2002, families of 9/11 victims, calling themselves Families United to Bankrupt Terrorism,
put forth a lawsuit for $116 trillion dollars against Islamic and Saudi businesses and individuals.
Therein they accused members of Saudi royalty of actively supporting and funding al-Qaeda
and bin Laden.
However, in 2008, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit refused to hear the
group’s case, citing the 1976 Foreign Sovereign Immunities Act, which prevents US citizens
from suing foreign countries.
The bill that was just passed through Congress removes several restrictions from the Act,
allowing victims’ families to sue.
Although the legislation has cleared the House and Senate, President Obama fought against
it, and has threatened to veto.
White House officials have warned that Americans overseas may be at risk of retaliatory legislation
by Saudi Arabia.
The Saudi foreign minister warned Congress that the country may withdraw as much as 750
billion dollars of its assets held in the US, to avoid the seizure of funds by potential
lawsuits..
But even with this bill passed, and despite many suspicious links between Saudi nationals
and the 9/11 attacks, there may not actually be any proof to help 9/11 victim’s families.
With Saudi Arabia’s shaky record of sponsoring terrorism and human rights abuses, naturally
many Americans have developed a distrust for the country.
But the US and Saudi Arabia government heavily rely on each other militarily and economically,
so it’s not surprising that the U.S. is seemingly eager to defend its ally.