Hamza al-Ghamdi
Hamza al-Ghamdi | |
---|---|
حمزة الغامدي | |
September 11 terrorist attacks) | |
Nationality | Saudi Arabian |
Relatives | Ahmed al-Ghamdi (brother) |
Hamza Salah Sa'id al-Ghamdi (
Born in Saudi Arabia, Hamza al-Ghamdi left his family to fight in Chechnya and was probably sent to Al-Qaeda training camps in Afghanistan where he was chosen to participate in the 9/11 attacks.
He arrived in the United States in May 2001 on a tourist visa. On 11 September 2001, al-Ghamdi boarded United Airlines Flight 175 and hijacked the plane along with his older brother Ahmed al-Ghamdi and 3 other terrorists so that lead hijacker and trained pilot Marwan al-Shehhi could crash the plane into the South Tower of the World Trade Center.
History
Some reports[specify] say that al-Ghamdi left his home to fight in Chechnya against the Russians in early 2000. (Other reports say he left in January 2001.) He called home several times until late 2001, saying he was in Chechnya.[citation needed][1]
Known as Julaybeeb during the preparations,
In January 2001, al-Ghamdi rented a post office box in Delray Beach, Florida, with another hijacker, Mohand al-Shehri. According to FBI director Robert Mueller and the 9/11 Commission however, al-Ghamdi did not first enter the United States until a London flight on 28 May with Mohand al-Shehri and Abdulaziz al-Omari.
In March 2001, al-Ghamdi was filmed in a farewell video that was aired on al Jazeera. In the video, many future 9/11 hijackers swear to become martyrs, although no details of the plot are revealed. Al-Ghamdi does not speak in the film, but is seen studying maps and flight manuals.
He was one of nine hijackers to open a
Attacks
Al-Ghamdi purchased his own eTicket for
On 30 August, Hamza al-Ghamdi bought his brother,
Hamza and Ahmed al-Ghamdi stayed at the Charles Hotel in
On the morning of 11 September 2001, Hamza al-Ghamdi left the hotel with his brother. The two men shared a
Aftermath
On 22 September 2001, Arab News reported that Hamza al-Ghamdi's father told the Al-Watan newspaper that an "FBI-released" photograph bore absolutely no resemblance to his son.[6] However, the picture al-Ghamdi's father refers to is assumed to have not been a picture released by the FBI, as they did not make the hijacker's pictures available until 27 September 2001.[7]
He appeared in a video released on 8 September 2006, that showed the planning of the attacks.[8]
See also
References
- ^ "Archived copy" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 12 October 2008. Retrieved 6 October 2008.
{{cite web}}
: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link) - ^ Videotape of recorded will of Abdulaziz al-Omari and others
- Sun-Sentinel. Archived from the originalon 4 June 2004.
- ^ US Senate. 25 September 2002. Archived from the original(PDF) on 16 April 2003. Retrieved 10 December 2019.
- New York Times Company. Retrieved 10 December 2019.
- ^ Khashoggi, Jamal (22 September 2001). "Hijacker list raises more questions". Arab View. Archived from the original on 15 May 2011. Retrieved 10 December 2019.
- FBI. 27 September 2001. Archived from the originalon 1 October 2001. Retrieved 10 December 2019.
- Time Warner Company. Retrieved 10 December 2019.
External links
Media related to Hamza al-Ghamdi at Wikimedia Commons