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The 20th hijacker is a possible additional terrorist in the September 11 attacks of 2001 who, for unknown reasons, was unable to participate. The 20th hijacker, though not present during the actual attacks, is said to have been deeply involved in the preparations.[1] There were many variations of the 9/11 plot, with the number of terrorists fluctuating with available resources and changing circumstances. In the end, there were 19 hijackers: three of the planes were taken over by five members each and the fourth was hijacked by four people. The latter plane, United Airlines Flight 93, crashed into a field near Shanksville, Pennsylvania, due to the resistance from passengers before it could reach its target in Washington, D.C.

Hijackers

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Various people associated with Al-Qaeda have either claimed or have been speculated as the possible 20th hijacker in the September 11 attacks.

 
Mohammed al-Qahtani during his imprisonment at the Guantanamo Bay detention camp c. 2008.[2]

Mohammed al-Qahtani

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Investigators have accused Mohammed al-Qahtani, a Saudi national, of being the intended 20th hijacker. These allegations stem from circumstances surrounding al-Qahtani's failed attempt to enter the United States shortly before the September 11 attacks.

Having originally flown out of Dubai on August 3, 2001, al-Qahtani had disembarked a Virgin Atlantic flight from London Gatwick Airport and arrived at Orlando International Airport the following day.[3] With a one-way ticket and $2,800 in cash, al-Qahtani was questioned by immigration agent José Meléndez-Pérez on suspicion of being an illegal immigrant.[3][4] Al-Qahtani had been stopped by another immigration agent before Meléndez-Pérez, but al-Qahtani could not communicate with the agent nor did he properly fill out necessary travel documents.[3][5] Meléndez-Pérez described that upon being questioned via an interpreter employed by the Department of Justice, al-Qahtani was belligerent and frequently changed his reasons for arriving to Orlando.[3] Additionally, Meléndez-Pérez said that Al-Qahtani had refused to answer any questions under oath.[3][5] After the 90-minute interview, al-Qahtani was formally denied entry into the U.S. under expedited removal and sent back to London on a connecting flight to Dubai at his own expense.[6][3][5][7] Before being deported, Al-Qahtani was photographed and fingerprinted through INSPASS.[3][5] Though al-Qahtani's Saudi passport was determined to be genuine by immigration inspectors, later investigations found that it featured a fraudulent stamp associated with Al-Qaeda.[5] Al-Qahtani's luggage was not checked by inspectors.[8] Meléndez-Pérez later testified that al-Qahtani had turned to him and another inspector and said "I'll be back." in English before boarding his return flight.[3][4]

After the September 11 attacks, circumstances surrounding the incident raised suspicion among the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) and its counterterrorism experts. The FBI had reportedly discovered that a phone call had been placed from the Orlando International Airport to a known phone number associated with Al-Qaeda on the day of the incident.[9] In addition, the FBI had obtained surveillance footage of the airport's parking lots and found a rental car that they identified as belonging to Mohamed Atta, the ringleader of the attacks.[9][5] Military records speculate that Atta was Al-Qahtani's intended contact in the United States.[2][9] According to the FBI, Atta did not leave the airport's parking lot until it was confirmed al-Qahtani was returning to Dubai.[5]

Capture

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On December 15, 2001, amid the Battle of Tora Bora, Al-Qahtani was captured in Afghanistan by Pakistani Army and Frontier Corps forces.[2][4] Al-Qahtani was with a group of Arabs led by Ali al-Bahlul fleeing to the Pakistan border.[2] After being transferred to U.S. custody, Al-Qahtani was transferred to Joint Task Force Guantanamo on Feburary 13, 2002 with an Interment Serial Number of 063.[2] Al-Qahtani claimed to U.S. interrogators that he had been in Afghanistan to pursue his interest in falconry.[4][10] According to author Jane Mayer, investigators could not pinpoint al-Qahtani's identity until July 2002, when a routine fingerprint analysis matched with al-Qahtani's fingerprints taken in Orlando.

Mohammed al-Qahtani, a Saudi Arabian citizen, is often referred to as the 20th hijacker. It's believed that he was sent to the U.S. to replace Moussaoui's role in the attacks after Moussaoui's arrest. José Meléndez-Pérez, a U.S. Immigration inspector at Orlando International Airport, refused his entry into the U.S. in August 2001. He was later captured in Afghanistan and imprisoned at the U.S. military prison known as Camp X-Ray at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba.[11] In January 2009, Susan J. Crawford asserted that Qahtani's interrogation at Camp X-Ray amounted to torture.

9/11 Commission's findings

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In the 9/11 Commission's final report, Al-Qahtani is first introduced as "The operative likely intended to round out the team for [United 93]".[12] The 9/11 Commission reported that in a purported conversation between Mohamed Atta and Ramzi bin al-Shibh, the two referred to Al-Qahtani as "the friend who is coming as a tourist" whom Mustafa al-Hawsawi was sending as “the last one” to “complete the group.”[13] Meléndez-Pérez believed that al-Qahtani had posed as a typical Saudi tourist seeking to visit Walt Disney World.[3]

Meléndez-Pérez's testimony in front of the 9/11 Commission was influential in their assessment of a possible 20th hijacker and al-Qahtani's importance to the attacks. After Meléndez-Pérez's testimony, Commission member Richard Ben-Veniste stated “It is entirely plausible to suggest your actions in doing your job efficiently and competently may well have contributed to saving the Capitol or the White House and all the people who were in those buildings, those monuments to democracy,”.[14]

Zacarias Moussaoui

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Zacarias Moussaoui, a French citizen of Moroccan origin, has widely been referred to as the 20th hijacker. Moussaoui may have been considered as a replacement for Ziad Jarrah, who at one point threatened to withdraw from the scheme because of tensions amongst the plotters. Plans to include Moussaoui were never finalized, as the al-Qaeda hierarchy had doubts about his reliability. Ultimately, Moussaoui did not play a role in the hijacking scheme. He was arrested about four weeks before the attacks.[1] Moussaoui is now serving a life sentence for his involvement in the 9/11 attacks. He pleaded guilty in 2005 to collaborating with the other hijackers.[citation needed]

Ramzi bin al-Shibh

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Ramzi bin al-Shibh allegedly meant to take part in the attacks and may have been the intended hijacker-pilot of American Airlines Flight 77, but he was repeatedly denied a visa for entry into the US.[15] His role as one of the four hijacker-pilots preceded Hani Hanjour.

According to the BBC, Fawaz al-Nashimi claimed to have been the "20th hijacker". An al-Qaeda video has been released from a US intelligence organization, showing al-Nashimi justifying attacks on the west. The U.S dismissed al-Nashimi's claims as propaganda.[16] He was also known as Turki bin Fuheid al-Muteiry and took part in a May 29, 2004, attack on oil facilities in Khobar, Saudi Arabia. He was killed in a June 2004 shootout with Saudi Arabian security forces.[17]

Other possible candidates

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The other al-Qaeda members who allegedly attempted, but were not able, to take part in the attacks were Saeed al-Ghamdi (not to be confused with the successful hijacker of the same name), Tawfiq bin Attash, Ali Abdul Aziz Ali, Mushabib al-Hamlan, Abderraouf Jdey, Zakariya Essabar, Khalid Saeed Ahmad al-Zahrani, Ali Abd al-Rahman al-Faqasi al-Ghamdi, Saeed al-Baluchi, Qutaybah al-Najdi, Zuhair al-Thubaiti, and Saud al-Rashi. Khalid Sheikh Mohammed, the attack's alleged mastermind, had wanted to remove at least one member – Khalid al-Mihdhar – from the operation, but he was overruled by Osama bin Laden.[18]

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The Saudi Arabian novelist Abdullah Thabit wrote a 2006 novel titled Terrorist Number 20 that became a bestseller. The book recalls his teenage years as a religious extremist and was inspired in part by Ahmed al-Nami, one of the 9/11 hijackers and a fellow resident of Abha who was vaguely familiar to Thabit. In April 2006, three months after the release of the book, Thabit was forced to move from Abha to Jeddah with his family after receiving death threats.[19]

See also

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References

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  1. ^ a b Sciutto, Jim (February 4, 2015). "New allegations of Saudi involvement in 9/11". CNN. Archived from the original on March 1, 2019. Retrieved April 23, 2015.
  2. ^ a b c d e "Recommendation for Continued Detention Under DoD Control (CD) for Guantanamo Detainee, ISN US9SA-000063DP (S)" (PDF). October 30, 2008.
  3. ^ a b c d e f g h i Meléndez-Pérez, José E. (January 26, 2004). "Statement of Jose E. Melendez-Perez to the National Commission on Terrorist Attacks Upon The United States". 9-11commission.gov. Retrieved May 1, 2024.
  4. ^ a b c d Mayer, Jane (2008). The Dark Side: The Inside Story of How the War on Terror Turned Into a War on American Ideals. New York: Anchor Books. p. 190. ISBN 978-0307456298.
  5. ^ a b c d e f g Eldridge, Thomas R.; Ginsburg, Susan; Hempel II, Walter T.; Kephart, Janice L.; Moore, Kelly (August 21, 2004). 9/11 and Terrorist Travel: Staff Report of the National Commission on Terrorist Attacks Upon the United States. p. 30.
  6. ^ Arena, Kelli; Redman, Justine; Shaughnessy, Larry (January 27, 2004). "Customs agent tells of stopping '20th hijacker'". CNN. Retrieved May 1, 2024.
  7. ^ Medina, Daniel A. (August 5, 2021). "Fate of Guantanamo detainee tests Biden's pledge to close facility | CNN Politics". CNN. Retrieved May 1, 2024.
  8. ^ Eldridge, Thomas R.; Ginsburg, Susan; Hempel II, Walter T.; Kephart, Janice L.; Moore, Kelly (August 21, 2004). 9/11 and Terrorist Travel: Staff Report of the National Commission on Terrorist Attacks Upon the United States. p. 31.
  9. ^ a b c Mayer, Jane (2008). The Dark Side: The Inside Story of How the War on Terror Turned Into a War on American Ideals. New York: Anchor Books. p. 191. ISBN 978-0307456298.
  10. ^ Zagorin, Adam; Duffy, Michael (June 20, 2005). "Inside the Interrogation of Detainee 063". TIME. Retrieved May 1, 2024.
  11. ^ Shenon, Philip (January 27, 2004). "Panel Says a Deported Saudi Was Likely '20th' Hijacker". The New York Times. Archived from the original on October 22, 2015. Retrieved April 23, 2015.
  12. ^ The 9/11 Commission Report: Final Report of the National Commission on Terrorist Attacks Upon the United States (Authorized ed.). New York: Norton. 2004. p. 11. ISBN 978-0-393-32671-0.
  13. ^ The 9/11 Commission Report: Final Report of the National Commission on Terrorist Attacks Upon the United States (Authorized ed.). New York: Norton. 2004. p. 248. ISBN 978-0-393-32671-0.
  14. ^ Lytle, Tamara (January 27, 2004). "9-11 PANEL LAUDS OIA AGENT". Orlando Sentinel. Retrieved May 1, 2024.
  15. ^ Smith, Elliot Blair (September 17, 2002). "U.S. blood 'all over his hands'". USA Today. Archived from the original on July 14, 2012. Retrieved February 13, 2007.
  16. ^ "'Al-Qaeda video' of 20th hijacker". BBC. June 21, 2006. Archived from the original on August 20, 2006. Retrieved June 21, 2006.
  17. ^ Shrader, Katherine (June 21, 2006). "al-Qaida Video Shows Alleged 20th Hijacker". Associated Press. Archived from the original on June 29, 2011. Retrieved June 23, 2006.
  18. ^ Kean, Thomas; et al. (July 22, 2004). Final Report of the National Commission on Terrorist Attacks Upon the United States (PDF). US Government Printing Office. p. 237. ISBN 0-16-072304-3. Archived from the original (PDF) on August 31, 2006. Retrieved October 5, 2006. Mihdhar complained about life in the United States. He met with KSM, who remained annoyed at his decision to go AWOL. But KSM's desire to drop him from the operation yielded to Bin Ladin's insistence to keep him.
  19. ^ "Interview with Abdullah Thabit in Washington Post - R A Y A - agency for Arabic literature". rayaagency.org. Archived from the original on July 14, 2018. Retrieved January 9, 2012.


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