BELOW SUPERNAV drop zone ⇩

9/11 lawsuit ‘our last chance for justice’: Victim family member

  • New 9/11 evidence alleges ties between hijackers, Saudi government
  • Families of 9/11 victims and rescuers are suing to release video
  • Footage allegedly shows Saudi officials welcoming hijackers to US

MAIN AREA TOP drop zone ⇩

MAIN AREA TOP drop zone ⇩

AUTO TEST CUSTOM HTML 20241114185800

(NewsNation) — The wife of a 9/11 victim says a federal lawsuit against Saudi Arabia over alleged ties to the hijackers is the families’ “last chance for justice” regarding the 2001 attacks.

Terry Strada, whose husband Tom was killed at the World Trade Center, said Tuesday on NewsNation’s “Elizabeth Vargas Reports” that the new evidence, including videotapes and drawings found in a Saudi intelligence agent’s apartment, supports the contention Saudi officials were complicit.

“It is our last chance for justice,” said Strada, national chair of 9/11 Families United. “It is extremely important that the American people know who was behind murdering 3,000 Americans on American soil.”

The evidence allegedly shows the flight trajectory a hijacker pilot could see while approaching the U.S. Capitol. It also links two Saudi officials to providing the first hijackers to arrive in the U.S. with money, housing, cars, and driver’s licenses and signing them up for flying lessons.

Strada alleges these two Saudi officials had close ties to the Saudi embassy in Washington, D.C., and were running an “anti-American, pro-jihadist program” inside the Saudi embassy’s Ministry of Islamic Affairs.

Fifteen of the 19 hijackers were from Saudi Arabia, and all were members of Al Qaeda, then led by Osama bin Laden, who was born in Saudi Arabia and whose family had close ties to the Saudi royal family.

The Saudi government says it was simply helping new Saudi citizens arriving in the U.S. adjust, which Strada calls “garbage.”

Saudi Arabia rejects any connection to the attacks, but Strada said the kingdom refuses to address the evidence in court.

“If you’re so innocent, you have nothing to hide, then come in and show what you have,” she said.

Rather than defending its innocence in court with evidence, Strada says Saudi Arabia refuses to “meet us on the merits” and doesn’t want the families’ evidence to “see the light of day.”

Congress passed a law in 2016 allowing the families’ lawsuit to proceed. Strada urged lawmakers to back additional legislation to prevent the suit’s dismissal.

A federal judge is expected to rule on the lawsuit on whether to release the key piece of evidence. If the judge lets the case move forward, the videos could be used in investigations into Al Qaeda cells in the U.S.

NewsNation’s Joe Khalil contributed to this report.

Elizabeth Vargas Reports

Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed

 

MAIN AREA MIDDLE drop zone ⇩

Trending on NewsNation

MAIN AREA BOTTOM drop zone ⇩

tt

KC Chiefs parade shooting: 1 dead, 21 shot including 9 kids | Morning in America

Witness of Chiefs parade shooting describes suspect | Banfield

Kansas City Chiefs parade shooting: Mom of 2 dead, over 20 shot | Banfield

WWE star Ashley Massaro 'threatened' by board to keep quiet about alleged rape: Friend | Banfield

Friend of WWE star: Ashley Massaro 'spent hours' sobbing after alleged rape | Banfield

Clear

la

57°F Clear Feels like 57°
Wind
4 mph S
Humidity
88%
Sunrise
Sunset

Tonight

Partly cloudy skies this evening will become overcast overnight. Slight chance of a rain shower. Low 52F. Winds light and variable.
52°F Partly cloudy skies this evening will become overcast overnight. Slight chance of a rain shower. Low 52F. Winds light and variable.
Wind
5 mph SSW
Precip
15%
Sunset
Moon Phase
Waxing Gibbous