Ahmed al-Ghamdi[a](2 July 1979 – 11 September 2001) was a Saudi terrorist hijacker. He was one of fivehijackersofUnited Airlines Flight 175as part of theSeptember 11 attacks.[1][2]
Ahmed al-Ghamdi | |
|---|---|
أحمد الغامدي | |
 | |
| Born | Ahmed Salah Sa'id al-Ghamdi 2 July 1979 Al-Bahah,Saudi Arabia |
| Died | 11 September 2001(aged 22) South Tower,New York City,U.S. |
| Cause of death | Suicidebyplane crash(September 11 attacks) |
| Nationality | Saudi |
| Relatives | Hamza al-Ghamdi(brother) |
Ahmed Al-Ghamdi was born inSaudi Arabiain 1979. He dropped out of school to fight inChechnyaand was probably sent to train inal-Qaedacamps inAfghanistanwhere he would be chosen byOsama bin Ladento participate in the terrorist attacks in America.
He arrived in the United States in May 2001 on a tourist visa and helped plan out how the attacks would take place. On September 11 2001, he boardedUnited Airlines Flight 175and assisted in the hijacking of the plane so that lead hijacker and trained pilotMarwan al-Shehhicould take over the plane and crash it into the South Tower of theWorld Trade Center,as part of the coordinated attacks.
Early activities
editAnImam,[3]al-Ghamdi was from theal Bahah ProvinceofSaudi Arabia,a province in the south west of Saudi Arabia. It is the capital of Al Bahah Province nestled between the resorts ofMeccaandAbha,Al Bahah is one of the Kingdom’s prime tourist attractions. Al-Ghamdi shared the same tribal affiliation with fellow hijackersSaeed al-Ghamdi,Hamza al-Ghamdi,andAhmed al-Haznawi.This group is noted as being some of the more religiously observant of the hijackers, and they are thought to have met each other some time in 1999.
Known asal-Jaraah al-Ghamdiduring the preparations, the only one of the hijackers to use a variation on his own name,[3]al-Ghamdi quit school tofightinChechnyaagainst theRussiansin 2000, and received a US Visa on September 3 of that year. In November, both he andSalem al-Hazmiflew toBeirut,though on separate flights and at different times. Al-Ghamdi flew on the same flight as a seniorHezbollahoperative, although the9/11 Commissioncould find no evidence that either knew the other. His family claims to have last seen him in December.
In March 2001, al-Ghamdi is reported to have met with aJordanianinConnecticutwho has been charged with providing false identification to at least 50 illegal aliens. HijackersMajed Moqed,Hani Hanjour,andNawaf al-Hazmiare reported to have met with him at the same time.[4][5]Inexplicably, this is more than a month before al-Ghamdi first arrived in the United States, according to the FBI and the9/11 Commission.
On May 2, al-Ghamdi moved from White Bear, Minnesota and arrived in Pensacola, Florida with fellow-hijacker Majed Moqed, on astudent visa.He listed the Naval Air Station inPensacola, Floridaas his permanent address on his driver's license.[citation needed]He and Moqed moved in withHani HanjourandNawaf al-HazmiinFalls Church, Virginia.All four later moved into an apartment inPaterson, New Jersey.
He called his parents in July 2001, but did not mention being in the United States.
Attacks
editHis brotherHamza al-Ghamdipurchased Ghamdi's ticket online forUnited Airlines Flight 175on 29 or 30 August, after buying his own. He listed aMail Boxes Etc.address for Ahmed al-Ghamdi.
The brothers stayed at the Charles Hotel inCambridge, Massachusetts.On September 8, they checked out of the hotel, and moved into theDays Hotelon Soldiers Field Road inBrighton,where they remained up until the day of the attacks.[6][7]
On the morning of September 11 2001, Ahmed al-Ghamdi left the hotel with his brother, the two of them sharing ataxicabto get toLogan International Airport.There, al-Ghamdi showed his Virginia ID Card as identification, and boarded Flight 175 where he sat the furthest back of the hijackers, in seat 9D, helped to hijack it, and assisted as the plane crashed into theWorld Trade Center.The brothers pushed the passengers and crew to the back of the plane whileFayez BanihammadandMohand al-Shehrikilled the pilots Victor Saracini and Michael Horrocks allowingMarwan al-Shehhito take control of the plane.
See also
editReferences
edit- ^Unless otherwise sourced, statements in this article come primarily from the9/11 Commission Report.
9/11 CommissionBen-Veniste, Richard;Fielding, Fred F.;Gorelick, Jamie;Gorton, Slade;Hamilton, Lee H.;Kean, Thomas;Kerrey, Bob;Lehman, John F.;Roemer, Timothy J.;Thompson, James R.) (2004). The9/11 Commission Report:Final Report of the National Commission on Terrorist Attacks Upon the United States.W.W. Norton & Company.ISBN0-393-32671-3,also availableonlineArchived2010-08-07 at theWayback Machine - ^"Ahmed al-Ghamdi".www.globalsecurity.org.Archived fromthe originalon 17 June 2019.Retrieved17 June2019.
- ^abVideotape of recorded will ofAbdulaziz al-Omariand others
- ^Associated PressMarch 6, 2002. "Four Hijackers Stayed at CT Motel"
- ^ Mitchell, Derek; Paul Thompson."Mid-March 2001: Hijackers Meet with ID Forger".Complete 911 Timeline.Cooperative Research. Archived fromthe originalon 2 October 2006.Retrieved10 October2006.
- ^Mueller, Robert S., III(09/26/02).Statement for the Record,Joint Investigation Into September 11th: Closed Hearing.
- ^Cullen, Kevin; Anthony Shadid (15 September 2001)."Hijackers may have taken Saudi identities".Boston Globe.Archivedfrom the original on 7 October 2006.Retrieved10 October2006.
Notes
editExternal links
edit- 9/11 Commission Report(archived 7 August 2010)
- news.bbc.co.uk