,
19 tweets,
4 min read
Read on Twitter
Good morning from New York.
After a long break due to the government shutdown, the 9/11 liabilities suit against Saudi Arabia resumes this afternoon at 3 p.m. Here's the agenda for the hearing, which I'll be live-tweeting.
Where we left off last year. courthousenews.com/fbi-declassifi…
After a long break due to the government shutdown, the 9/11 liabilities suit against Saudi Arabia resumes this afternoon at 3 p.m. Here's the agenda for the hearing, which I'll be live-tweeting.
Where we left off last year. courthousenews.com/fbi-declassifi…
One development since the last hearing:
U.S. District Judge Analisa Torres, a federal judge in SDNY, joined the plaintiffs suing Saudi Arabia. I just reached out to her chambers, and she declined to comment.
U.S. District Judge Analisa Torres, a federal judge in SDNY, joined the plaintiffs suing Saudi Arabia. I just reached out to her chambers, and she declined to comment.
Generally bustling in SDNY's ceremonial courtroom - presumably chosen to accommodate the victim families and other spectators - for today's hearing in the 9/11 liabilities case against Saudi Arabia.
The hearing is expected to begin shortly.
The hearing is expected to begin shortly.
U.S. Magistrate Judge Sarah Netburn entered. The attorneys are introducing themselves.
"I want to particularly welcome the family members who are here," Judge Netburn says.
She notes that she reserved the ceremonial courtroom to accommodate them.
She notes that she reserved the ceremonial courtroom to accommodate them.
Spoiler:
"I'm not going to rule from the bench today," Netburn announces. "So I'll start with the ending first."
The agenda, at the top of this thread, is mostly discovery matters, including Saudi Arabia's bid to seal documents.
"I'm not going to rule from the bench today," Netburn announces. "So I'll start with the ending first."
The agenda, at the top of this thread, is mostly discovery matters, including Saudi Arabia's bid to seal documents.
An attorney for Saudi Arabia claimed to have turned over every piece of paper on Omar al-Bayoumi and Fahad al-Thumairy, a reputed intelligence officer and former consular official, respectively, allegedly tied to 9/11 hijackers Khalid al-Mihdhar and Nawaf al-Hazmi.
Steve Pounian, for the plaintiffs, is up now saying that's not true. He says he requested a document "repeatedly" and it has not been produced "to this day."
Pounian: Saudi Arabia claims that Thumairy only worked at California's King Fahad mosque, which the kingdom characterized as a private charity.
Pounian says that they obtained records from the mosque showing that 7 out of 12 directors were tied to the Saudi gov't.
Pounian says that they obtained records from the mosque showing that 7 out of 12 directors were tied to the Saudi gov't.
Pounian: The Saudi government effectively "took control of" the King Fahad mosque in 1997 until at least August 2001.
They want docs about Thumairy's chain of command - who's above him and who's below him.
They want docs about Thumairy's chain of command - who's above him and who's below him.
Pounian says that Saudi Arabia refuses to turn over documents about its financing of the mosque.
"At this time, your honor, the hijackers were at the mosque," Pounian said, adding later: "This is where they found shelter in Los Angeles."
"At this time, your honor, the hijackers were at the mosque," Pounian said, adding later: "This is where they found shelter in Los Angeles."
Pounian also seeks more information on the kingdom's financing of Bayoumi, whom he says had 6 different job titles, "each of which was completely phony."
"There's no evidence that he was doing any actual work for the kingdom. The question is: What was he doing for the kingdom?"
"There's no evidence that he was doing any actual work for the kingdom. The question is: What was he doing for the kingdom?"
"Why were they paying him a salary?" Pounian asks.
Earlier in the hearing, Pounian said that 30-year FBI vet Michael Rochford asserted that "Bayoumi and Thumairy were tasked with assisting the hijackers."
"The only reasonable conclusion is that someone in the Saudi government gave them that task," Pounian says.
"The only reasonable conclusion is that someone in the Saudi government gave them that task," Pounian says.
The hearing is now in a brief recess.
There is a lot that happened between that, much very technical, regarding what discovery Saudi Arabia must provide at this stage. The case was only authorized into jurisdictional discovery.
There is a lot that happened between that, much very technical, regarding what discovery Saudi Arabia must provide at this stage. The case was only authorized into jurisdictional discovery.
I'll loop back to some of that later. The final part of the hearing relates to Saudi Arabia's motion to seal documents.
Judge Netburn said the New York Times filed a letter on this matter, presumably seeking press access.
Judge Netburn said the New York Times filed a letter on this matter, presumably seeking press access.
Saudi Arabia's attorney Andrew Chun-Yang Shen cited "international comity" for keeping docs sealed.
The kingdom identified 145 docs that it produced and designated confidential. It wants to seal 73 of those, claiming protection for 63 of those under the Vienna Convention.
The kingdom identified 145 docs that it produced and designated confidential. It wants to seal 73 of those, claiming protection for 63 of those under the Vienna Convention.
Judge Netburn ends the proceedings without a ruling, before addressing the 9/11 victim families.
"I am incredibly sympathetic to the fact that it's 2019 and this process is still in the beginning phases," she says, predicting a few weeks before her decision.
"I am incredibly sympathetic to the fact that it's 2019 and this process is still in the beginning phases," she says, predicting a few weeks before her decision.
"I see my job as both an effort for closure for this incident, this tragedy," Netburn says, but also an effort to protect "the rule of law."
"And with that, we are adjourned," she said. "Thank you everybody."
"And with that, we are adjourned," she said. "Thank you everybody."
