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20th hijacker
The 20th hijacker is a possible additional terrorist in the September 11 attacks 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. 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.
Various people associated with Al-Qaeda have either claimed or have been speculated as the possible 20th hijacker in the September 11 attacks.
Investigators have accused Mohammed al-Qahtani, a Saudi national, of being the intended 20th hijacker, and intending to board Flight 93 as its fifth hijacker (and fourth muscle hijacker) on September 11. 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. 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. 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. 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. Additionally, Meléndez-Pérez said that al-Qahtani had refused to answer any questions under oath. After the 90-minute interview, al-Qahtani was formally denied entry into the US under expedited removal and sent back to London on a connecting flight to Dubai at his own expense. Before being deported, al-Qahtani was photographed and fingerprinted through INSPASS. 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. Al-Qahtani's luggage was not checked by inspectors. 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.
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. 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. Military records speculate that Atta was al-Qahtani's intended contact in the United States. According to the FBI, Atta did not leave the airport's parking lot until it was confirmed al-Qahtani was returning to Dubai.
On December 15, 2001, amid the Battle of Tora Bora, al-Qahtani was captured in Afghanistan by Pakistani Army and Frontier Corps forces. Al-Qahtani was with a group of Arabs led by Ali al-Bahlul fleeing to the Pakistan border. After being transferred to US custody, al-Qahtani was transferred to Joint Task Force Guantanamo on February 13, 2002 with an Interment Serial Number of 063. Al-Qahtani claimed to US interrogators that he had been in Afghanistan to pursue his interest in falconry. 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.[citation needed]
On March 3, 2006, Time magazine published a leaked log detailing 49 days of al-Qahtani's interrogations at Guantanamo Bay detention camp from November 23, 2002 to January 11, 2003. The log described al-Qahtani being forcibly administered intravenous fluids, drugs, and enemas, in order to keep his body functioning well enough for the interrogations to continue. The Convening Authority of the Guantanamo Military Commissions Susan J. Crawford asserted that al-Qahtani's interrogations amounted to torture. Crawford's statement was the first time any official of the Bush administration had publicly described the treatment of detainees at Guantanamo as torture.
On March 6, 2022, al-Qahtani was airlifted from Guantanamo by the US military and flown back to Saudi Arabia to a mental health treatment facility after 20 years in American custody. His release was announced by the US Department of Defense the next day.
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20th hijacker
The 20th hijacker is a possible additional terrorist in the September 11 attacks 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. 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.
Various people associated with Al-Qaeda have either claimed or have been speculated as the possible 20th hijacker in the September 11 attacks.
Investigators have accused Mohammed al-Qahtani, a Saudi national, of being the intended 20th hijacker, and intending to board Flight 93 as its fifth hijacker (and fourth muscle hijacker) on September 11. 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. 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. 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. 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. Additionally, Meléndez-Pérez said that al-Qahtani had refused to answer any questions under oath. After the 90-minute interview, al-Qahtani was formally denied entry into the US under expedited removal and sent back to London on a connecting flight to Dubai at his own expense. Before being deported, al-Qahtani was photographed and fingerprinted through INSPASS. 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. Al-Qahtani's luggage was not checked by inspectors. 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.
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. 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. Military records speculate that Atta was al-Qahtani's intended contact in the United States. According to the FBI, Atta did not leave the airport's parking lot until it was confirmed al-Qahtani was returning to Dubai.
On December 15, 2001, amid the Battle of Tora Bora, al-Qahtani was captured in Afghanistan by Pakistani Army and Frontier Corps forces. Al-Qahtani was with a group of Arabs led by Ali al-Bahlul fleeing to the Pakistan border. After being transferred to US custody, al-Qahtani was transferred to Joint Task Force Guantanamo on February 13, 2002 with an Interment Serial Number of 063. Al-Qahtani claimed to US interrogators that he had been in Afghanistan to pursue his interest in falconry. 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.[citation needed]
On March 3, 2006, Time magazine published a leaked log detailing 49 days of al-Qahtani's interrogations at Guantanamo Bay detention camp from November 23, 2002 to January 11, 2003. The log described al-Qahtani being forcibly administered intravenous fluids, drugs, and enemas, in order to keep his body functioning well enough for the interrogations to continue. The Convening Authority of the Guantanamo Military Commissions Susan J. Crawford asserted that al-Qahtani's interrogations amounted to torture. Crawford's statement was the first time any official of the Bush administration had publicly described the treatment of detainees at Guantanamo as torture.
On March 6, 2022, al-Qahtani was airlifted from Guantanamo by the US military and flown back to Saudi Arabia to a mental health treatment facility after 20 years in American custody. His release was announced by the US Department of Defense the next day.