Newly Revealed 9/11 Evidence Raises Questions About Capitol Targeting
FBI and intelligence officials reportedly unaware of key evidence for decades
Recently surfaced evidence in a lawsuit against Saudi Arabia by 9/11 victims' families has revealed that crucial information, including surveillance video of the U.S. Capitol, was not shared with FBI field agents or top intelligence officials. The evidence includes a 1999 video of Omar al-Bayoumi, an alleged Saudi intelligence operative, filming the U.S. Capitol building while noting security positions and nearby landmarks. Former FBI investigators and CIA analysts who reviewed the footage believe it shows pre-operational surveillance of a potential target.
The video was discovered in Bayoumi's apartment shortly after the 9/11 attacks and sent to the FBI in New York, but never reached field agents investigating the case. Additional evidence included a mathematical formula for calculating an aircraft's descent to hit a target on the horizon. Former FBI agent Danny Gonzalez, who led investigations in San Diego where Bayoumi lived with two hijackers, stated he only learned about these materials years later when an evidence technician contacted him about boxes scheduled for relocation or destruction.
KEY POINTS
- •Capitol surveillance video hidden for years
- •FBI agents never received key evidence
- •Saudi national linked to 9/11 hijackers
Bayoumi met the first two 9/11 hijackers to arrive in the United States nearly two years before the attacks. He helped them relocate to San Diego, co-signed their apartment lease, assisted with opening bank accounts, and introduced them to others who helped them obtain government IDs and enroll in flight schools. The Saudi government maintains these actions were innocent coincidences, while investigators believe Bayoumi provided critical support to operatives who spoke no English and had little exposure to Western life.
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