This is a Who’s who of Saudi personalities who assisted the hijackers while they were in the USA. The list is partial and ongoing, including only the names listed in the sources at the bottom of the page.
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| Photo credit: NARA & DVIDS Public Domain Archive |
Omar al-Bayoumi: He is the most well-known figure in the entire affair. At the time, he was an agent of Al-Mukhabarat al-'Amma, the main Saudi intelligence agency, and provided logistical and financial help to the hijackers al-Mihdhar and al-Hazmi during their stay in California. He first met them on February 1, 2000, at the Mediterranean Gourmet restaurant on Venice Boulevard in Los Angeles, in a non-random meeting, and helped them find accommodation at the Parkwood Apartments in San Diego, the complex where al-Bayoumi himself lived. He lent them money to pay the first rent installments by issuing a cashier’s check in advance. The two hijackers also spent a few days at al-Bayoumi’s apartment before renting one in the same complex. Al-Bayoumi also assigned three other people to assist the two hijackers: the collaborators’ names are Mohdar Abdullah, Mohamed Johar, and Akram Alzamari. The first is Yemeni, the nationalities of the other two are unknown. It is very likely that al-Bayoumi was part of the broader attack organization and thus knew the hijackers’ intentions.
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| Omar al-Bayoumi |
Osama Bassnan: (sometimes transliterated as Osama Basnan) A collaborator of al-Bayoumi who lived across the street from the Parkwood Apartments. After the attacks, he boasted to an FBI source that he had done more for the hijackers than al-Bayoumi himself. According to the 28 pages of the Joint Inquiry declassified in 2016, many in the San Diego Islamic community believed he was an agent of the Saudi intelligence services. As with al-Bayoumi, it is very likely that Bassnan knew the terrorists’ intentions.
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| Osama Bassnan |
Omar Bakarbashat: Yemeni by birth, he had lived only in Saudi Arabia until 2001. Brother-in-law of Bassnan and collaborator of the latter.
Fahad al-Thumairy: (also known as Shaykh al-Thumairy) A high-ranking diplomat at the Saudi Consulate in Los Angeles, he had numerous contacts with the two terrorists. He was also an imam at a mosque in Culver City funded by the Saudi government, known for its extremist views and attended by the two hijackers.
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| Fahad al-Thumairy |
Saleh al-Hussayen: An official of the Ministry of Interior, on the night of September 10, 2001, he stayed in the same hotel as three of the five hijackers of American Airlines Flight 77 (the two who lived in San Diego, plus pilot Hani Hanjour). When questioned by the FBI, he faked a medical emergency to avoid answering.
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| Saleh al-Hussayen |
Abdullah Bin Ladin: Half-brother of Osama bin Laden, he worked as an administrative officer at the Saudi Embassy in Washington. Before September 11, 2001, he was friends with Mohammed Quadir-Harumani, a likely associate of Mohammed Atta and Marwan al-Shehhi.
Abdullah al-Jraithen: Employee of the Ministry of Islamic Affairs and associate of al-Bayoumi.
Khalid al-Sowailem: Head of the Ministry of Islamic Affairs office at the embassy, with whom al-Bayoumi had numerous phone conversations in the months leading up to the arrival of the two terrorists in California.
Musaed Ahmed al-Jarrah: Embassy official who worked in Washington in 1999 and 2000. His duties included overseeing the activities of mosques receiving Saudi subsidies on behalf of the Ministry of Islamic Affairs. He collaborated with al-Bayoumi in assisting the two hijackers. His name surfaced in 2020 when the FBI accidentally forgot to redact his name from a court filing.
Adel Mohamed al-Sadhan: Employee of the Ministry of Islamic Affairs and associate of al-Bayoumi.
Mutaeb Abdelaziz al-Sudairy: Employee of the Ministry of Islamic Affairs and associate of al-Bayoumi.
Smail Mana: (also transliterated as Ismail Mana) Government official who worked for the Saudi consulate in Los Angeles. He met al-Bayoumi just before the latter met the two hijackers at Mediterranean Gourmet.
Omar Abdi Mohamed: Employee of the Ministry of Islamic Affairs assigned to intelligence and information gathering. Between 1998 and 2001, he was involved in money laundering activities on behalf of charities linked to al-Qaeda.
Lafi al-Harbi: Saudi Navy officer who made nine phone calls to the two hijackers between March 11 and March 27, 2000.
Osama Nooh: Saudi Navy officer who had telephone contacts with the two terrorists while they were in the USA.
Sources:
- 28 pages from the Joint Inquiry declassified in 2016
- declaration by former FBI Special Agent Catherine Hunt
- Workplan: Issues Relating to The FBI Informant with Whom 9/11 Hijackers Nawaf al-Hazmi and Khalid al-Mihdhar Resided, declassified in 2015 by the FBI
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