Ex-Army Officer Reveals Attempts by US Gov'ts to Hide Saudi Links to 9/11

Rasa - A former US army officer and freelance writer disclosed that the US administrations have always attempted to conceal links between Saudi Arabia with the hijackers who caused the 9/11 tragedy, regretting that many American citizens are not aware of Riyadh's role in spreading extremism, support for terrorism and crimes in Syria and Yemen.

News ID: 439459

Date: 09 September 2018 - 19:34

RNA - "Since 9/11, there has been a sustained effort, across both Republican and Democratic administrations, to conceal from the public any indication of Saudi government links to the attacks," Brian McGlinchey told FNA on Saturday.

McGlinchey launched 28Pages.org in July 2014 as an information and activism hub for the nonpartisan movement to declassify 28 pages on Saudi links to 9/11.

"There is now an effort underway to achieve the release of many thousands of other 9/11 documents that are still being kept secret. Members of Congress have introduced resolutions in both the Senate and the House of Representatives urging the wide declassification of additional 9/11 documents, including many that relate to the investigation of possible Saudi government links to the attacks. Survivors and family members of those killed in the attacks have created a website, declassify911.org, to help build support for the declassification effort," he added.

McGlinchey noted that JASTA has enabled a civil lawsuit to move forward, in which 9/11 survivors, family members and insurers are presenting a case alleging that officials of the Saudi government provided financial and other support to the 9/11 hijackers, and seeking financial compensation from the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, saying, "That case is currently in the discovery phase, and the plaintiffs have asked both the US and Saudi governments to produce documents about individuals accused of aiding two hijackers at the direction of Saudi officials."

McGlinchey explained that JASTA was not created to enable government prosecution, but instead to allow victims of terrorism to sue governments for compensation. The case is complex and moving very slowly, but JASTA is making it possible.

He said that one of the most important questions of 9/11 is why the CIA prevented two FBI agents from alerting FBI headquarters that a known al Qaeda operative and future hijacker had obtained a US visa, adding, "Some people believe the CIA was attempting to turn one of more of the future hijackers into double agents who would provide information about al Qaeda to the CIA. If that’s true, the CIA violated a US law that prohibits it from operating inside the United States."

"Since 9/11, there has been a sustained effort, across both Republican and Democratic administrations, to conceal from the public any indication of Saudi government links to the attacks. As recently reported by 28Pages.org, the FBI told a retired agent not to help 9/11 families pursue their lawsuit against Saudi Arabia because the Trump administration wants to have a good relationship with the kingdom. Over and over again, the US government puts the interest of the Saudi government above the right of the American people to have all the facts about the worst terrorist attack ever carried out on American soil," McGlinchey underlined.

According to Fars News Agancy, he referred to the Saudi government's largest foreign government lobbying operations in America, spending many millions of dollars each year, and said, "Its influence spreads even wider than Capitol Hill, thanks to its sponsorship of think tanks and institutes that mold the opinions of journalists, legislators and the public. In June, 28Pages.org reported that the director of a national security program at Syracuse University had registered with the US Department of Justice as a public relations agent of Saudi Arabia."

"Last year, 28Pages.org revealed that Saudi lobbyists had tricked US military veterans into lobbying against JASTA, flying them to Washington without telling them that the lobbying campaign was organized and paid for by the kingdom," McGlinchey said.

He explained that in addition to the US intelligence community, there are many different interest groups who want to preserve close US-Saudi relations, and said, "One of the most prominent is the American weapons industry, which has enriched itself by arming Saudi Arabia and pressuring the US government to maintain its close relationship with the kingdom."

"The American public has a general distrust of Saudi Arabia and is disturbed by the kingdom's violations of human rights. However, the average citizen is not very well-informed about the kingdom's role in spreading Salafist extremism around the world. Nor does the average American realize that the Saudi government, working with the US government, has played a major role in destabilizing Syria. Similarly, thanks to a lack of reporting by US media, most Americans are unaware of the horrible human toll of Saudi Arabia’s intervention in Yemen," McGlinchey concluded.

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