Senator Bernie Sanders said in an interview Sunday that the United States needs to find “the root cause” of the 9/11 terror attacks, even if that money trail leads back to Saudi Arabia. At least 15 of the 19 terrorists were Saudi nationals.
In explaining his support of a bill before the Senate that would allow victims of terror to sue foreign governments in federal court, he said there is:
“Some evidence — and we will have to ascertain whether it’s accurate or not — that money from Saudi Arabia actually funded a 9/11 attack…I think that the full extent of the role that Saudi Arabia plays in supporting extremism in this world is something that we should explore.”
He pointed out that Saudi Arabia sends money all over the world to support an extreme form of Islam called Wahhabi.
Sanders supports declassification of a 28-page redacted portion of the 2002 report by the Joint Congressional Inquiry Into 9/11, saying those pages would shed light on whether or not the Saudis funded the attack and alleged connections of certain Saudi officials to the hijackers.
The government of Saudi Arabia is concerned about the bill, and has threatened financial action against the United States if it is passed, such as selling up to $750 billion in Treasury notes and other U.S. assets, according to Saudi Foreign Minister Adel al-Jubeir.
The White House would reportedly veto the bill due to concerns about retaliatory lawsuits against American citizens living abroad. Former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, Bernie Sanders’ opponent for the Democratic presidential nomination, supports the bill.
The families of 9/11 victims did not approve of the president’s position. They wrote in a letter sent Monday to Obama:
“Your place in history should not be marked by a campaign to foreclose the judicial process as a venue in which the truth can be found.”
Featured image screengrab via YouTube
