19 years on, and we still don’t know the names of those who helped aid and finance the 9/11 al Qaeda terrorist attacks on New York and Washington that killed 2,977 men, women and children and injured 6,000 more.
A compelling tangle of evidence has emerged over the years. But the last, best chance to obtain actual answers in our lifetime is likely the immense lawsuit brought by thousands of 9/11 victims and families that’s now inching through U.S. District Court in New York City.
The principal target of the personal injury and wrongful death lawsuit is the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia “for knowingly providing material support and resources to the al Qaeda terrorist organization and facilitating the September 11th attacks” in 2001. To haul the Saudis into court to face that accusation, it took an extraordinary act of Congress, including a 2016 override of President Obama’s veto, that changed federal laws relating to terrorism and foreign sovereign immunity.
Enactment of the Justice Against Sponsors of Terrorisms Act ensured the 9/11 victims their day in court. But extreme secrecy in the courtroom, insisted upon by the FBI and the Department of Justice, has left the case’s extensive public docket virtually devoid of new information of substance.
