The President

The White House

1600 Pennsylvania Ave., NW
Washington, D.C., 20500

June 6, 2016

As family members who lost loved ones in the September 11th attacks,
and injured survivors of those attacks, we welcome the Administrations
recent statements that it is pressing forward with the long-overdue
declassification review of the 28 pages of the Congressional Joint Inquiry
Report discussing evidence of Saudi government involvement in the attacks.
We recognize that every important journey must begin with a first step, and
we look forward to taking this one along with you and our fellow citizens.
We, are, however, concerned about recent reports that the
declassification review process may include previously unreported referrals,
following the Director of National Intelligences determination, to the
Interagency Security Classification Appeals Panel and then to Congress. As
you know Mr. President, you possess plenary authority to declassify the 28
pages, and these additional processes would present further unnecessary
and unwarranted delays. Moreover, insofar as our claims against Saudi
Arabia are the subject of an ongoing appeal, any further delay in the release
of the 28 pages may improperly disadvantage the 9/11 families in a legal
proceeding that has already been pending for nearly 14 years. The
withholding of key evidence by our own government during the pendency of
our lawsuit has unquestionably helped culpable parties secure dismissals
already, and thereby allowed them to avoid any consequence for their roles
in the murder of our loved ones and grave injuries of many survivors. For
those reasons, we would ask that you act upon the recommendation of your
Director of National Intelligence as soon as it issues. Not a single day of
further delay can be justified.
We also wish to express our concern that the Administrations public
statements in response to our and the American publics calls for
transparency have focused narrowly on the 28 pages alone. As we have
indicated on many occasions, any meaningful effort to provide the American
public with the truth concerning Saudi Arabias role in the emergence of al
Qaeda and events of 9/11 must encompass the full spectrum of evidence
bearing on questions of Saudi culpability, and not merely the 28 pages.
By all public accounts, the 28 pages focus on a very discrete set of
relationships and transactions, relating to Saudi support for two of the 9/11
hijackers once they were already in the United States. While this evidence is
critically important, the broader issue, and the one principally raised by our
lawsuit against the Kingdom, is the extent of Saudi Arabias funding and
patronage of al Qaeda, and role in spreading the jihadist ideology that gave
rise to bin Ladens organization, during the decade leading up to the attacks.

We know as a result of our efforts to secure justice and accountability

through the civil justice system that the body of evidence in the possession
of the United States addressing Saudi support for al Qaeda includes literally
tens of thousands of pages of documents beyond the 28 pages which, like
the 28 pages, still have not been released. As part of our lawsuit, we have
attempted to secure many of these documents through the Freedom of
Information Act (FOIA), but have been confronted with a wall of secrecy in
virtually every case where evidence relating to Saudi involvement is
concerned. It is well past time to tear down that wall and give our families,
the injured survivors, and the American public a fair opportunity to discover
the complete truth.
Moreover, even with respect to the unresolved questions relating to the
involvement of Saudi government employees and officials in operational
aspects of the 9/11 plot itself, we hope and trust that you regard the release
of the 28 pages as only a first step in responding to the public calls for
transparency and accountability. Indeed, we know from a recently
declassified document relating to the 9/11 Commissions work that the
Commission staff conducted further investigations into the individuals and
activities that are reported to be featured in the 28 pages, including contacts
between the hijackers and Saudi government employees that have not
previously been reported publicly.
One critical example of these further investigations is reflected by the
statement in the 9/11 Commissions Final Report that Fahad al Thumairy, a
Saudi cleric who held diplomatic credentials with the Kingdoms Consulate in
Los Angeles and is reportedly a central figure in the 28 pages, was refused
reentry into the United States in 2003 based on a determination by the
State Department that he might be connected with terrorist activity. The
endnotes corresponding to this statement cite several FBI reports and a
State Department memo authored subsequent to the issuance of the Joint
Inquiry Report. These reports, and the underlying evidence that led to the
State Departments determination that Thumairy may be connected to
terrorism, have not been released. For obvious reasons, this additional
evidence bears directly on the question of whether Thumairy, an undisputed
employee of the Saudi government during the relevant period, was at the
center of the U.S. support network for the 9/11 hijackers.
Particularly given the statements that have been made by some
Administration officials analogizing the 28 pages to a preliminary police
report, the records relating to any further investigations of the possible
involvement of the Saudi government or any person with ties to the Saudi
government in the 9/11 attacks should also be designated for prompt
declassification.

For the consideration of your relevant staff members in relation to the

issues raised above, we are including as an attachment to this letter a list of
the categories of documents we believe must be included within the scope of
any declassification of records aimed at providing transparency as to Saudi
Arabias role in the rise of al Qaeda and events of September 11, 2001.
We would also like to take this opportunity to reiterate the request
made in our letter of April 19, 2016 to meet with you to discuss these issues
and the Justice Against Sponsors of Terrorism Act (JASTA), the prompt
passage of which is essential to providing an efficient and fair judicial
mechanism to resolve whether the Kingdom or other Saudi interests should
bear responsibility for the September 11th attacks. Without such a formal
mechanism, the questions are certain to remain and cast a shadow over our
relationship with the Kingdom, as recent developments have underscored.
As you know, this September will mark the 15th anniversary of the
horrific attacks that claimed the lives of our innocent loved ones, and
transformed our Nation and world. We know from our efforts since that day
to pursue justice on behalf of our loved ones that individuals and institutions
that bear culpability for their murders many of them Saudi have never
been held to account. We are encouraged that you have initiated a process
to address that injustice, and look forward to working with you and your
Administration in any way possible towards that goal.
Most respectfully,
Terry Strada, widow of Tom Strada, North Tower
Sylvia Carver, sister of Sharon Carver, Pentagon
Veronica Carver, sister of Sharon Carver, Pentagon
Bill Doyle, father of Joseph Doyle, North Tower
Gordon Haberman, father of Andrea Haberman, North Tower
Alice Hoagland, mother of Mark Bingham, Flight 93
Emanuel Lipscomb, survivor, civilian rescuer, NYC
Marge Mathers, widow of Charles W. Mathers, North Tower
Sharon Premoli, survivor, North Tower
Ellen Saracini, widow of Capt. Victor Saracini, pilot of Flight 175
Matt and Loreen Sellitto, parents of Matthew C. Sellitto, North Tower
Curtis F. Brewer, widower of Carol K. Demitz, South Tower
Kathy Owens, widow of Peter J. Owens Jr, North Tower
Charles G. Wolf, widower of Katherine Wolf, North Tower
Kirsten Breitweiser, widow of Ronald Breitweiser, South Tower
Monica Gabrielle, widow of Richard Gabrielle, South Tower
Lorie Van Auken, widow of Kenneth Van Auken, North Tower
Mindy Kleinberg, widow of Alan Kleinberg, North Tower
Patty Casazza, widow of John F. Casazza, North Tower

Christine ONeill, widow of John P. ONeill, South Tower