Victory for 9/11 Families Against Saudia Arabia

The 9/11 tragedy will not end with a whimper.

In a stunning 45-page ruling, Manhattan federal Judge George B. Daniels “DENIED” Saudi Arabia’s motion Thursday to throw out a lawsuit filed by loved ones of the Sept. 11, 2001, terror attacks.

This means the case against the Kingdom can commence — including legal discovery of al Qaeda terror cells in Boston, New Jersey, Florida, Virginia, and Phoenix.

“This case is unprecedented,” said Brett Eagleson, who was 15 years old when his dad, Bruce, died when the Twin Towers collapsed in New York City.

“It’s a huge day. Justice is winning,” he said, adding that the announcement, more than a year in the making, comes two weeks before the 9/11 anniversary that will remain a painful day forever.

He thanked the Herald for staying on the story “through thick and thin” and vowed to carry this case right into a trial in memory of his dad and all the loved ones left to pick up the pieces. Many Massachusetts families are plaintiffs in this suit, Eagleson has said.

“It has been nearly 25 years since the largest terrorist attack in United States history, which took the lives of nearly 3,000 innocent people. Today’s decision by the Honorable George B. Daniels to deny the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia’s motion to dismiss ensures that the plaintiffs may continue their long pursuit of truth and justice,” a statement from the law firm of Kreindler & Kreindler LLP, which represents plaintiffs, reads.

“The Court’s finding that the plaintiffs presented ‘reasonable evidence as to the roles played by Bayoumi, Thumairy, and KSA [ Kingdom of Saudi Arabia] in assisting the hijackers’ paves the way for these critical issues to be fully examined at trial, and for all responsible parties for this act of terrorism to be held accountable,” the statement to the Herald adds.

He was referring to al Qaeda’s Southern California terror cell.

As the Herald has reported, Saudi national Omar Al Bayoumi was seen on video casing the Capitol in the summer of 1999, pointing out Congress, the Washington Monument, the skyline and jotting down in a notebook a formula to calculate the rate of descent. He was on a student visa and has long since returned to the kingdom.

The 9/11 Commission was never aware of this evidence, and it is now part of the lawsuit against Saudi Arabia that can now pick up steam.

The 9/11 families also want Al Bayoumi to face justice in a trial of his own.

The Saudi government has stated that no government officials, “senior or otherwise — gave any ‘direction’ to Omar Al Bayoumi or Fahad Al Thumairy to ‘assist’ … 9/11 hijackers.” Any contact, the Saudis add, was “innocent motives … to help fellow Saudis” new to San Diego.

Those Saudis, Nawaf Al Hazmi and Khalid Al Mihdhar, were the first 9/11 hijackers to set up shop in America after landing in Los Angeles, according to multiple reports. Bayoumi and Thumairy, both Saudi officials, are accused of assisting them, court documents allege.

The hijackers plowed American Airlines Flight 77 into the Pentagon on 9/11. All 64 people aboard, including five hijackers, were killed. Another 125 victims on the ground also died.

Of all the 19 hijackers, 15 were citizens of Saudi Arabia. They were all affiliated with al Qaeda and hijacked four jets.

American Airlines Flight 11 and United Airlines Flight 175 — both out of Logan International Airport in Boston — slammed into the north and south towers of the World Trade Center in Manhattan 18 minutes apart, beginning at 8:45 a.m. on 9/11.

United Flight 93 crashed last in Shanksville, Pa., at 10:03 a.m. after heroic passengers rushed the cabin to confront the terrorists. Forty passengers and crew perished when the jet crashed soon after.

That’s the jet that was allegedly destined for Washington, D.C.