11-septemberoffrens anhöriga är en aktiv ocheffektiv lobbygrupp. För dem gäller det ju främst
att spåra vilka som på olika sätt stött och finansierat
terrordådet. Med det i ryggen tänker de anhöriga
stämma terrorns kapitalstarka bakmän.
På köpet får vi en mängd intressanta avslöjanden.
Igår offentliggjorde New York Times en omfattande
dokumentation av kopplingarna mellan terroristerna
och det saudiska kungahuset....
***
Documents gathered by lawyers for the families of
Sept. 11 victims provide new evidence of extensive
financial support for Al Qaeda and other extremist
groups by members of the Saudi royal family, but
the material may never find its way into court
because of legal and diplomatic obstacles.
The case has put the Obama administration in the
middle of a political and legal dispute, with the
Justice Department siding with the Saudis in court
last month in seeking to kill further legal action.
Adding to the intrigue, classified American intelligence
documents related to Saudi finances were leaked
anonymously to lawyers for the families.
The Justice Department had the lawyers’ copies
destroyed and now wants to prevent a judge
from even looking at the material.
**
But the thousands of pages of previously un-
But the thousands of pages of previously un-
disclosed documents compiled by lawyers for
the Sept. 11 families and their insurers represented
an unusually detailed look at some of the evidence.
Internal Treasury Department documents obtained
Internal Treasury Department documents obtained
by the lawyers under the Freedom of Information
Act, for instance, said that a prominent Saudi
charity, the International Islamic Relief
Organization, heavily supported by members
of the Saudi royal family, showed “support for
terrorist organizations” at least through 2006.
**
A self-described Qaeda operative in Bosnia said
in an interview with lawyers in the lawsuit that
another charity largely controlled by members
of the royal family, the Saudi High Commission
for Aid to Bosnia, provided money and supplies
to the terrorist group in the 1990s and hired
militant operatives like himself.
**
Another witness in Afghanistan said in a sworn
Another witness in Afghanistan said in a sworn
statement that in 1998 he had witnessed an
emissary for a leading Saudi prince, Turki
al-Faisal, hand a check for one billion Saudi
riyals (now worth about $267 million) to a top
Taliban leader.
**
And a confidential German intelligence report
And a confidential German intelligence report
gave a line-by-line description of tens of
millions of dollars in bank transfers, with
dates and dollar amounts, made in the early
1990s by Prince Salman bin Abdul Aziz and
other members of the Saudi royal family
to another charity that was suspected of
financing militants’ activities in Pakistan
and Bosnia.
***