Advocates for victims of the Sept. 11 terror attack are questioning whether a Saudi diplomat’s visit to a New Jersey mosque could be linked to the terrorist plot.
NorthJersey.com reports that Mussaed Ahmed al-Jarrah visited the Al-Tawheed mosque on Jersey City’s West Side Avenue just weeks before the attack.
The official purpose of the trip was to award a $1 million gift from a Saudi prince to the mosque. But families of 9/11 victims are questioning whether al-Jarrah had anything to do with the attack.
According to a court filing earlier this year, the FBI indicated that al-Jarrah, who was assigned to the Saudi Embassy in Washington, D.C., was one of several Saudi officials who provided money, housing and other assistance during the summer of 2001 to the 9/11 jihadists.
It is unclear if his visit to the Jersey City mosque or the donation had anything to do with the terror plot.
The donation was only reported by the Qatar-based Islamic news service, Al Jazeera, according to NorthJersey.com. The monetary gift wasn’t brought up when the mosque’s imam, Alaa Al-Sadawi, was convicted on federal currency manipulation charges in 2013 after he was caught fundraising for a charity that reportedly helped support Osama bin Laden’s al-Qaida network.
Now, families of 9/11 victims are raising those questions in court as part of an ongoing lawsuit, which claims Saudi Arabia financially assisted the group responsible for the attack.
On Thursday, Magistrate Judge Sarah Netburn released a 40-page ruling that included a witness list of two dozen Saudi officials, including members of the royal family and al-Jarrah.
Netburn did not agree with the Saudis’ argument that their officials had diplomatic immunity. But her decision to side with the victims’ families doesn’t mean the Saudis are guaranteed to give depositions. They are expected to challenges the witness list.
According to NorthJersey.com, al-Jarrah’s trip to Jersey City coincided with the New Jersey arrival of key members involved in the attack, including ringleader Mohamad Atta, Khalid al-Mihdhar and Nawaf al-Hazmi. It is unclear if al-Jarrah ever met the people who carried out the plot, but lawyers for the victims’ families want to investigate.
“Is it a coincidence that Atta, Mihdhar and Hazmi are in the neighborhood?” said Andrew Maloney, a former federal prosecutor who is part of the legal team representing the 9/11 victims' families in their lawsuit.
Maloney noted that he believes it’s “highly likely” that Atta, Mihdhar and Hazmi visited the Al-Tawheed mosque in Jersey City, though he has no proof.
“These guys have their support networks,” Maloney told the outlet.
The mosque’s manager Kamel Hadd said the mosque was not involved in the terror plot. He said the donation was used to expand the facility and build a school.
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