The US Congress has released a long-classified section of the official report on the 9/11 attacks which discussed potential links between some of the hijackers and Saudi Arabia but said the links were not independently verified. The White House has said that the report shows no evidence of Saudi complicity.
The 28 pages of the report on the 2002 investigation focus on potential Saudi links to the 2001 aircraft attacks on the United States, in which nearly 3,000 people died.
Saudi Arabia’s ambassador to the United States, Abdullah al-Saud, said the country welcomed the release.
We hope the release of these pages will clear up, once and for all, any lingering questions or suspicions about Saudi Arabia’s actions, intentions, or long-term friendship with the United States
Called the ‘28 pages’, the documents were part of a 2002 congressional inquiry into the 9/11 Twin Tower attacks, that were classified after the report was completed.
The report was issued by the House of Representatives Intelligence Committee after years of wrangling in Washington between Congress and different administrations, Republicans and Democrats, and urging by families of those killed.
However, the release of the previously classified pages is unlikely to end the controversy over the role of Saudi Arabia, an important US partner in the Middle East. Many US officials who opposed their release had worried they would damage diplomatic relations. Fifteen of the nineteen 9/11 hijackers were Saudi citizens.
According to various FBI documents and CIA memorandum, some of the 9/11 hijackers, while in the United States, apparently had contacts with individuals who may be connected to the Saudi Government
The alleged Saudi contacts included links between Saudis in California and a statement that a man who was reportedly a Saudi Interior Ministry official stayed at the same Virginia hotel as one hijacker in September 2001.
President Barack Obama’s administration sent a declassified version of the 28 pages, redacted to protect intelligence sources and methods, to Congress on Friday morning. The House intelligence panel released it a few hours later.
The decision to declassify the report has been a result of massive support for its release by family members and survivors of the attack, who pleaded with President Obama to release the pages.
The Saudi government has, on its part, also asserted that the report should be released so that they can thwart the allegations, reported The Hill.
“We’ve been saying since 2003 that the pages should be released,” said Nail Al-Jubeir, director of communications for the Saudi embassy. “They will show everyone that there is nothing there.”
Former Senator Bob Graham, who chaired the committee said:
It is going to increase the questioning of the Saudis’ role supporting the hijackers. I think of this almost as the 28 pages are sort of the cork in the wine bottle. And once it’s out, hopefully the rest of the wine itself will start to pour out.
Lawyers for the families of the attack victims released a statement on Thursday.
While the 9/11 families and survivors welcome this first step, they wish to reiterate that true transparency requires the release of a far greater body of evidence of possible Saudi involvement in the 9/11 attacks and rise of al Qaeda, and prompt passage of the Justice Against Sponsors of Terrorism Act (JASTA).
15 of the 19 9/11 hijackers were Saudi citizens, which is also indicative of the country’s support of extremists, asserted a report in The Hill.
This comes after US State department officials said that its allies have opposed a bill that would allow families of the 9/11 victims to file lawsuits against Saudi Arabia.