Below are excerpts from the lists of questions the Family Steering Committee has submitted to the 9/11 Commission.
Please click on the blue link to read the full document.
President George W. Bush
updated May 13, 2004
As Commander-in-Chief on the morning of 9/11, why didn’t you return immediately to Washington, D.C. or the National Military Command Center once you became aware that America was under attack? At specifically what time did you become aware that America was under attack? Who informed you of this fact?
Please discuss the advice and plans of the Energy Advisory Council specifically as they relate to pipeline development and gas/oil exploration in Afghanistan, Iraq and other Middle Eastern countries, and the feasibility of such development or exploration specifically in those two countries in 2001.
Condoleezza Rice
posted April 6, 2004
Regarding the meeting of Abdullah Abdullah (close aide to Massoud and now the Afghan Foreign Minister) in July , 2001, with “some top National Security Council (NSC) and State Department officials,” what information about al Qaeda did he convey?
George Tenet, Director of the CIA
Why didn’t the CIA share vital information about the terrorists with the FBI
Federal Bureau of Investigation
Robert Mueller, FBI Director, September 4, 2001-present
Which hijackers have been positively identified by DNA? Is the FBI in possession of DNA samples for all of the hijackers?
Questions for Director Mueller Regarding the Hijackers
Please explain how the passports of Mohammed Atta and Satam al-Sugam, both on Flight 11, survived the inferno to be found on the street near the World Trade Center.
- Who found the passports and what time where they found?
- Please describe the condition of each passport.
- Please explain how the passports of two hijackers survived the explosion and inferno.
Thomas Pickard and Louis Freeh
posted April 3, 2004
From the questions for Thomas Pickard:
Please explain why the July 10, 2001, Phoenix memo got no farther than FBI headquarters. Why wasn’t the Phoenix memo shared with “threat subgroup” of the interagency Counterterrorism Security Group?
From the questions for Louis Freeh:
Why weren’t the flight schools shut down, or the terrorists deported, if the “FBI Knew Terrorists Were Using Flight Schools” for years, as reported in the Washington Post, September 23, 2001
Richard Clarke
posted April 6, 2004
“ On July 5th, Clarke summoned all the domestic security agencies —the Federal Aviation Administration, the Coast Guard, Customs, the Immigration and Naturalization Service, and the F.B.I.—and told them to increase their security in light of an impending attack. ”
Were plans made to implement immediate counter-measures to deflect an attack?
If so, what were they? If not, why not?
Bill Clinton, former President of the United States
Why wasn’t bin Laden brought to the United States for trial when the Sudan offered to extradite him?
Al Gore, former Vice-President of the United States
Please discuss the intelligence and concerns which spurred your contact with Saudi Arabia in 1999 and 2000 to request that the Saudis and the Royal Family stop funding charities that were contributing to the Al Qaeda…[and] describe the steps the Clinton administration had planned to take in order to convince the Saudis to comply with our request to stop the flow of charitable funds to terrorists
Federal Aviation Administration
posted April 24, 2004
Jane Garvey, Former Director of FAA (follow-up)
Please provide a specific timeline for each of the four aircraft which includes all FAA notifications and responses on the morning of September 11th, and the exact times at which air traffic controllers notified the FAA of a possible hijacking of each aircraft.
North American Aerospace Defense Command
Was NORAD aware of the four hijacked planes veering off course even before being reported by the FAA? If not, please explain why NORAD which monitors 7000 flights a day, was unable to track the four aberrant flights.
United States Strategic Command
Admiral Richard W. Mies
former Commander in Chief, United States Strategic Command
Did USSTRATCOM at any time track the four hijacked planes?
Airports, Airlines and Flight Schools
Administrators
Logan Airport. Boston, MA; Newark, NJ Airport; Dulles Airport, Washington, DC
Specifically, what information/warnings/alerts did you receive regarding the possibility of hijackings between March 1, 2001 and September 11th, 2001? What precautionary actions were taken as a result?
Immigration and Naturalization Service (INS)
posted April 30, 2004
9/11 hijackers, Mohammed Atta and Marwan Alshehhi both received I-20 “Vocational” visas from Huffman Aviation. The OIG report indicates that the school should not have been allowed to issue this type of visa … Why did the INS certify Huffman aviation as a full time vocational school?
Governor Jeb Bush
posted May 2, 2004
1. Why was the Florida National Guard called up in the state of Florida on September 7th, 2001 in order to help handle “civil disturbance” and “acts of terrorism”?
Within months of the Twin Towers collapse, tons of metal from the collapsed towers were sold to scrap yards in New Jersey, which then sold the debris to other recyclers in the United States and overseas. That metal was evidence which could have helped explain the collapse.
Why were the steel beams sold and shipped overseas and not retained as evidence? Was the material examined before it was sent overseas? If not, why not?
Forewarning
posted May 5, 2004
This page includes questions for these people, among others:
Willie Brown, former Mayor of San Francisco who received a warning about 10 PM on the evening of September 10…
High-ranking Pentagon officials who cancelled travel plans for the morning of September 11 “…apparently because of security concerns”
Odigo employees who received IM warning two hours before attack
Randy Glass, government informant, who has indicated that he passed along warnings before 9/11
Ptech
posted May 11, 2004
1. What were the findings and conclusions of the FBI/U.S. Customs investigation code- named Operation Greenquest.?
The company’s Web site reveals a list of customers that is a who’s-who of sensitive government agencies, including the Naval Air Systems Command, NATO, the House of Representatives and the Department of Energy, which handles security for nuclear weapons and material. Experts said Ptech had easy access to the computer systems of those agencies and that a link to terror groups could signal a breakdown in national security.
Congress
posted May 11, 2004
Oversight regarding the CIA, FBI, FAA, NORAD, INS:
1. From 1998 on, what steps did you take in light of the growing terrorist threat to ensure that our security agencies were functioning at their maximum and in tandem with each other for our utmost safety?
Questions about Al Qaeda and State Sponsored Terrorism
July, 2003
1) What connections did our government have with the terrorists prior to 9/11?
- State department negotiations with Taliban re: pipeline through Afghanistan
- Interaction with the Taliban and/or Bin Laden
- CIA training and arming of terrorists
2) What is the state of the Afghan pipeline now?
- When was the deal to construct it finalized?
- Who was involved?
- How is the pipeline being protected?
- Who profits from the connections as the pipeline passes through each country?
- Who has rights to the pipeline?
3) Why isn’t Saudi Arabia on the list of countries sponsoring terrorism?
4) Why are the FBI and CIA seeking to exclude evidence about Saudi involvement with terrorists (See Exclusive: CIA and FBI press Congress to exclude intelligence on the Saudi role with 9/11 terrorists by Linda Robinson and Edward T. Pound: http://www.usnews.com/usnews/usinfo/press/saudi.htm
5) In what ways might our government’s policies toward Saudi Arabia have
contributed to September 11th?
6) Why was Saudi Arabia given preferential treatment above all other nations in immigration? (Visa Express)
- What was the reason for creating the Visa Express?
- Prior to Sept. 11, Visa Express permitted approximately 97 percent of Saudi applicants to obtain visas without face-to-face interviews http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,73485,00.html
7) Why were the Saudi relatives whisked out of America so quickly when
other planes were grounded after the attacks?
- Who gave permission for them to leave?
8) On September 9th the president had a war plan on his desk to go into
Afghanistan.
- What was the origin of this plan?
- Why was this plan drawn up even before the September 11th attacks?
9) Intelligence was told in March of 2001 to back off investigating terrorists.
- Who gave the order?
- Why?
10) Why did Donald Rumsfeld, immediately after the September 11 th attack, say that Saddam Hussein was involved?
11) Does the FBI have proof that it was in fact Al Qaeda that perpetrated 9/11?
- Do they know if the names the hijackers used were their real names?
12) Did Atif Ahmad have a connection to Atta as well as to Moussaoui?
- Is Atif Ahmed a British double agent?
13) What is the truth about the arrest of El Atriss who sold fake IDs to two 9/11 terrorists? There are discrepancies between the NY Times and Washington Post accounts of his arrest and release.
- Atriss is an Egyptian national who committed a crime. Why hasn’t he been deported?
14) Who were the terrorist informants working with the FBI?
- What did the FBI learn from them?
- What were the 9/11 warnings provided by these informants?
- What was done with these warnings to protect the American public?
15) How did and do US energy policies play into Islamic terrorism?
- the Caspian Sea pipeline?
- Dick Cheney’s energy task force?
16) How do corporate and big business interests play into foreign policy decisions?
- Enron pre 9/11; Halliburton, Bechtel pre and post 9/11?
- What are the names of the companies which are getting contracts in foreign countries and how do they influence our foreign policy?
17) What role did American think tanks, which make policy recommendations to the
administration, play in American foreign policy decisions and the proliferation of Al Qaeda?
18) Regarding sharing of intelligence pre and post 9/11:
- Did U.S. intelligence agencies share information about Al Qaeda with foreign governments?
- Did foreign governments share information with our government about Al Qaeda?
- If so, what information was shared about threats within the U.S. and from which countries did it come?
- Who received this information and what did they do with it?
- What changes have been made in sharing intelligence?
19) Why did President Bush specifically request a briefing on Al Qaeda in August 2001?
20) What is the connection between the Bush family and Bin Laden?
21) Regarding the Joint Terrorism Task Force (JTTF), which is a collaboration between the FBI and NYPD, also at times NYS Police, NY/NJ Port Authority PD and the US Secret Service:
- Was the JTTF aware of 20 warnings of an impending terrorist which were mentioned in Joint Intelligence Inquiry testimony?
- What did the JTTF know prior to 9/11 regarding potential terrorist attacks in NYC and specifically, the WTC?
- Was the JTTF informed of any warnings regarding the impending attacks from agencies of foreign governments?
- What was the nature of the warnings?
- What if any security precautions were taken as a result of the warnings?
- What information did the JTTF pass up the chain of command?
22) On the issue of state sponsored terrorism:
- Why did Mahmood Ahmed, Director of Pakistan’s secret service, the (ISI) order Saeed Sheikh to wire $100,000 to hijacker Mohamed Atta?
- What was Mahmood Ahmed’s relationship with Al Qaeda?
- Where did the money come from?
- Did officials in Pakistan know in advance about the terrorist attack?
- On September 11 th , Mahmood Ahmed had a breakfast meeting in Washington, D.C., with House and Senate Intelligence Committee chairmen, Rep. Porter Goss and Senator Bob Graham. What were they discussing?
23) To combat terrorism
- What sanctions can the U.S. place on individuals of non-terrorist states who aided and abetted terrorists through funding or other means?
- If there is no recourse, will the CIA continue to monitor their activities in the future?
- Will the State Department and other allied countries seek to ban their entry into the U.S. and their nations?
- How long does an individual remain a terrorist threat according to our policies?
- Will those individuals be banned from doing business with the U.S.?
- Since September 11th, has our government developed specific policies regarding individual sponsors of terrorism?
24) Were individuals with ties to terrorists or states which sponsor terrorism involved in shorting airline and other stocks which were impacted by the terrorist attacks on September 11th?
September 11 Inquiry: Questions to be Answered
January, 2003
SEC
1. What are the names of the individuals and the financial institutions who placed “put” orders on American Airlines and United Airlines for the 3 weeks prior to 9/11? Who has possession of these monies?
INS
1. Who approved the posthumous visa requests of Atta and Al-shehhi?
2. Whose job was it to check on the validity of student visas? Specifically, Hani Hanjour entered this country on a student visa and never attended class. Who was responsible for this?
3. What countries did the terrorists enter this country from? Specifically, when, where, and how did they enter this country? What country of origin were the terrorists’ passports from? Under what names were their passports?
4. In 1996 Congress gave $800 million to the INS to upgrade its computer systems. To date, those systems remain antiquated. Where is this money? Whose responsibility was it to oversee that this was carried out?
5. Why was the CIPRIS (the Coordinated Interagency Partnership Regulating International Students – created by Congress in 1996) system not used to track foreign students after it was recommended by the National Commission on Terrorism in 1998 and was so effective in trials?
6. Three hijackers obtained visas under an accelerated approval program, called Visa Express at travel agencies in Saudi Arabia. Visa Express had only been in place for three months before September 11, 2001. Saudi Arabia is the only country with known terrorist risks which had this accelerated approval. Who initiated this process and what was the reason given for instituting the program? Why were incomplete and erroneously filled out visa applications of the hijackers approved?
FAA
1. A flight attendant on AA#11 notified her supervisor within the first few minutes of the plane being overtaken. What was the name of this supervisor? What exactly did he do with this information? Why was NORAD not immediately notified? What are the names of the individuals whose responsibility centers upon notifying NORAD in situations like this–on the local, regional, and national levels? Why was the protocol not followed?
2. Why were these four planes able to evade all radar ? Even when the transponders are disconnected, a plane is still able to be located by its “skin” on radar screens.
3. Was there a gun on AA#11? FAA executive summary stated that a gun was fired. This report was thereafter redacted. What is the truth?
4. Where did the information about box-cutters come from? How do we know that the terrorists were armed with these? Furthermore, why was the American public told after 9/11 that box-cutters were allowed on planes, when we have since come to find out that they were specifically listed as airline contraband? Who is responsible for this disinformation?
5. Where are the “black boxes” and the transcripts from all four crash sites? Why has the FBI not invited the NTSB into the investigation?
6. Nine of the hijackers were selected for special security screenings, two for irregularities in identification documents, six for extra-scrutiny by a computer screening program and one because he was traveling with a questionable individual. What exactly were the irregularities in identification? Which two had these irregularities? What is the name of the individual who made the decision to let these two men board the planes? What was done during the course of the detainment of these two individuals? What questions were asked? Was anything confiscated? With regard to the remaining seven hijackers, what was the list of questions asked of them? Who interrogated them? Was anything confiscated? What is the name of the individual who permitted these men to board the planes? Where are the logs and records and incident reports from these detainments?
7. Why was Logan Airport not sanctioned for its repeated failure to meet FAA standards for airline security? If they were sanctioned, how much were they fined? Did they completely pay the fine? What is the name of the individual who was responsible for making sure that Logan Airport met its airport/airline security requirements?
8. Where are all transcripts from Air Traffic Control? Where are all logs and records from the FAA?
9. Why did three foreign owned airline security screening companies have their liability levels capped in the Homeland Security Bill? Who is responsible for this? What was the reasoning?
Port Authority/WTC/City of New York
1. WTC was not up to “code” with regard to their fireproofing. Whose responsibility was it to ensure that these buildings were built to “code”? What is the name of the individual who was responsible to ensure that all buildings were maintained?
2. Why were WTC emergency evacuation protocols not followed?
3. Why were the roof access doors locked?
4. Why were the sprinkler systems locked?
5. Why was there no roof-top evacuation?
6. What is the name of the individual who made the announcement in 2 WTC who told workers to return to their offices?
7. In light of the 1993 bombings, what additional security precautions were put into effect?
8. The Port Authority of NY/NJ owns and operates Newark International Airport. They also owned and operated the WTC. Please explain the failure of the Port Authority to coordinate and act on the information about the second plane heading for the South Tower when they had this information available to them by their own Air Traffic Control Center. They had eleven minutes of notice that the plane was bearing down on Tower Two and yet, they told people that the building was safe and secure.
9. Why won’t the Port Authority in concert with the City of NY release the 9/11 tapes?
10. What was the City of NY and the Port Authority told about these numerous warnings, which occurred over a period of years, and the dozens of warnings in the months preceding 9/11?
11. If they were told nothing about the warnings, why were they told nothing? If they were told, why did the City of NY and the Port Authority do nothing?
12. Why was the World Trade Center steel removed so quickly, without being examined, from the scene of a mass murder? Who ordered the removal of the steel?
Secret Service
1. Why was President Bush not immediately evacuated from the Sarasota school, but rather was permitted to remain in the building after the second building was hit and this nation was under attack? Why was protocol not followed? Was President Bush deemed to be in the “zone of danger”? If so, at exactly, what time was he put in the “zone of danger”?
2. Where is the log and record of the Secret Service agents? Where is the incident report?
NORAD
1. At precisely what time was NORAD notified of each plane being hijacked? What was their response? What is the name of the individual who determined from which bases the F-16s should be scrambled from? What are the names of the pilots of these f-16s?
2. Whose decision was it to not utilize the F-16s’ weapons?
3. Whose decision was it to not fly the F-16s at maximum speed?
4. Why didn’t the F-16s intercept the hijacked airliners?
5. Please draw up a chart of NORAD’s response to the Payne Stewart Lear jet incident vs. the 9/11 incident. Why was protocol not followed on 9/11? What is the name of the individual who did not follow protocol? Where are the transcripts from the F-16s? Where is the log and record from NORAD?
6. What satellites were orbiting North American airspace on 9/11? What exactly does the satellite imaging reveal? What companies own these satellites? Where are the records and logs for these orbits?
FBI/CIA/NSA
1. At a point in time when there was a “high level of chatter” why were the NSA warnings not translated on time? What information was contained in the warnings, specifically?
2. What agency obtained the photo of Atta at the ATM machine in rural Maine less than 48 hours after September 11th? Was Atta under surveillance? Where are the logs and records from the Boston FBI field office for the months June through September?
3. What degree of probable cause was Moussouai being held under when he was arrested in mid-August? What is the name of the individual who turned down the request for the search warrant? What is the name of the supervisor who was overseeing the Moussouai case? Where the transcripts from the original detainment hearing for Moussouai?
4. What is the name of the CIA operative who delivered Bin Laden to an American hospital in Dubai in July of 2001?
5. What is the name of the individual who decided to fly the Bin Laden family back to Saudi Arabia on the night of September 11th?
6. Please give a list of positive defensive postures that this country took on the morning of 9/11.
7. At exactly what time was the shadow government put in place?
8. Was the White House a target on 9/11?
9. At exactly what time was the White House evacuated? Who was in charge of this country on the morning of 9/11?
10. Please explain the United States’ position with regard to the UNOCAL pipeline in Afghanistan and the position of our troops in Afghanistan prior to 9/11.
11. The Hart Rudman Report was issued in 2001, many taxpayer dollars were spent. What steps were taken, if any, to implement some of the changes put forward by that report?
12. “A briefing prepared for senior government officials at the beginning of July, 2001, contained the following language: Based on a review of all source reporting over the last five months, we believe that UBL (Usama bin Laden) will launch a significant attack against U.S. and/or Israeli interests in the coming weeks. The attack will be spectacular and designed to inflict mass casualties against U.S. facilities or interests. Attack preparations have been made. Attack will occur with little or no warning.” How did Bush and his team respond to this dramatic and accurate warning? What intelligence was this heads-up based upon?
13. What did the FBI tell the NYPD in their Joint Terrorism Task Force regarding the numerous warnings about NYC being a terrorist target and the possibility of NYC and the WTC being hit by planes? What is the name of the FBI agent?
14. What interaction did our government have with the Taliban prior to September 11, 2001?
15. Prior to September 11, 2001, were warnings regarding the impending attacks received from agencies of foreign governments? When and from where were they sent? What was the nature of the warnings? What, if any, security precautions were taken as a result of the warnings?