Please ensure Javascript is enabled for purposes of website accessibility
Saudis Can't Dodge 9/11 Lawsuits by Victims' Families
Randy-Reed-Image
By Randy Reed, Operations Manager
Published 6 years ago on
April 4, 2018

Share

A federal court judge has rejected Saudi Arabia’s bid to dismiss lawsuits claiming it helped plan the September 11, 2001, terrorist attacks.

As Reuters news agency reported March 29, “U.S. District Judge George Daniels in Manhattan said the plaintiff’s 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.”

The decision allows claims by families, businesses, insurers, and others who suffered injuries to move forward.

Fifteen of the 19 hijackers involved in the 9/11 attacks came from Saudi Arabia.

Saudi Immunity Revoked in 2016

Saudi Arabia has repeatedly denied involvement in the attacks that claimed nearly 3,000 lives.

Fifteen of the 19 hijackers involved in the 9/11 attacks came from Saudi Arabia.

The Saudi government had immunity from lawsuits in the United States until September 2016 when Congress enacted JASTA, overriding a veto by President Barack Obama.

In his ruling, Daniels said lawsuit plaintiffs could try to prove that Saudi Arabia played a role in preparing two hijackers for the attacks, in which commercial airliners were crashed into New York’s World Trade Center, the Pentagon, and a field in Pennsylvania.

The reporter for Reuters spoke to James Kreindler, a lawyer for many of the plaintiffs.

“We have been pressing to proceed with the case and conduct discovery from the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia so that the full story can come to light, and expose the Saudi role in the 9/11 attacks,” Kreindler said.

9/11 Commission Report

A Washington, D.C.-based analyst interviewed by the Arab News website expressed doubts that the case will reveal Saudi involvement.

Ellen Wald, author of “Saudi, Inc: The Arabian Kingdom’s Pursuit of Profit and Power,” said the case will likely flounder from a lack of evidence.

He points to the so-called “28 pages” of the U.S. government’s 9/11 Commission report from the 2002 investigation, released in 2016 after being classified for years, that effectively cleared Saudi officials of wrongdoing.

“When the 28 pages were released, they didn’t show any evidence linking the Saudi state conclusively to those behind the 9/11 attacks and I think that the major issue going forward is that there doesn’t seem to be evidence to make the case,” Wald said.

However, a story in the New York Times, following the release of the formerly classified section of the report on July 15, 2016, offered a more nuanced assessment.

According to the Times story, “…some former September 11 Commission staff members pointed out that the wording in the group’s final report did not rule out the possibility that lower ranking Saudi officials had assisted the hijackers and said that the commission operated under extreme time pressure and could not run down every lead.”

 

DON'T MISS

Ex-Correctional Officer at Women’s Prison in California Sentenced for Sexually Abusing Inmates

DON'T MISS

Caitlin Clark and Iowa Draw Nearly 5 Million Viewers for Second-Round NCAA Win

DON'T MISS

Canadian School Boards Sue Snapchat, TikTok and Meta for Disrupting Students’ Education

DON'T MISS

California Law Enforcement Agencies Obstruct Transparency Efforts in Use-of-Force Cases

DON'T MISS

No Police Charges for Taylor Swift’s Dad Over Paparazzi Incident in Sydney

DON'T MISS

Biden Administration to Lend $1.5B to Restart Michigan Nuclear Power Plant, a First in the US

DON'T MISS

Tonight’s Biden Fundraiser With Obama and Clinton Already Nets a Record $25 Million

DON'T MISS

Ukrainian Navy Says a Third of Russian Warships in the Black Sea Have Been Destroyed or Disabled

DON'T MISS

Former Sen. Joe Lieberman, Democrats’ VP Pick in 2000, Dead at 82

DON'T MISS

Trump Criticizes Judge and His Daughter After Gag Order in Hush-Money Case

No data was found

Facebook News Tab Will Soon Be Unavailable as Meta Scales Back News and Political Content

8 hours ago

Stock Market Today: Wall Street Rises to More Records to Close Out Its Latest Winning Month

8 hours ago

A Fresno County First: Kerman Council Passes Amended Gaza Cease-Fire Resolution

8 hours ago

UN Top Court Orders Israel to Open More Land Crossings for Aid into Gaza

8 hours ago

How Involved Is Southern California Consulting Firm in FUSD Executive Dealings?

8 hours ago

Biden’s Fundraiser with Obama and Clinton Nets a Record $25 Million, His Campaign Says

9 hours ago

Fresno Unified’s Self-Protection Racket Is Hurting Our Kids

9 hours ago

Rockin’ Out or Laughing, the Valley Has Its Pick of Weekend Events

10 hours ago

Ex-Correctional Officer at Women’s Prison in California Sentenced for Sexually Abusing Inmates

12 hours ago

Caitlin Clark and Iowa Draw Nearly 5 Million Viewers for Second-Round NCAA Win

13 hours ago

PGA HOPE at Riverside Golf Course Introduces Military Veterans to the Game

PGA HOPE, now underway at Fresno’s Riverside Golf Course, is designed to introduce golf to veterans and active duty military members t...

6 hours ago

PGA HOPE at Fresno's Riverside Golf Course
6 hours ago

PGA HOPE at Riverside Golf Course Introduces Military Veterans to the Game

7 hours ago

Cronenworth’s Big Hit Helps Lift the Padres to a 6-4 Win Over Melvin’s Giants

8 hours ago

Shohei Ohtani Reaches 3 Times in Home Debut as the Dodgers Rout the Cardinals 7-1

8 hours ago

Facebook News Tab Will Soon Be Unavailable as Meta Scales Back News and Political Content

8 hours ago

Stock Market Today: Wall Street Rises to More Records to Close Out Its Latest Winning Month

8 hours ago

A Fresno County First: Kerman Council Passes Amended Gaza Cease-Fire Resolution

8 hours ago

UN Top Court Orders Israel to Open More Land Crossings for Aid into Gaza

8 hours ago

How Involved Is Southern California Consulting Firm in FUSD Executive Dealings?

MENU

CONNECT WITH US

Search

Send this to a friend