9月25日之后。11日，一批新获得的记录提供了受害者家属在法庭上所说的令人信服的证据，证明沙特在袭击中有深刻的共谋关系。现在，随着他们对沙特王国长达十年的诉讼走向审判，这些家庭正在向特朗普政府施压，要求其解密更多他们认为最终可能伸张正义的政府记录。
新披露的记录来自一场涉及一名涉嫌沙特特工的诉讼，包括一段据称在袭击发生两年前包围国会大厦的视频，以及一幅据称显示驾驶飞机前往地面目标的计算的草图，一名家庭成员称之为“确凿的证据”。
是否解密更多记录的决定最终取决于唐纳德·特朗普（Donald Trump）总统，他的政府一直在宣扬政府透明度，他还亲自签署了行政命令，对从所谓的UFO目击到高调的暗杀等记录进行解密。
“我们已经看到他为［约翰·肯尼迪总统］的档案这么做了。为什么不是911文件？”布雷特·伊格尔森的父亲布鲁斯在世贸中心南塔遇难，他在接受美国广播公司采访时说。
“25年后，现在是最终达成决议的时刻，”伊格尔森说，“坐在椭圆形办公室的人有一个历史性的巨大机会来做到这一点。”
伊格尔森获得了纽约国会代表团成员的支持，以迫使政府公布关键记录，包括据称属于奥马尔·巴尤米（Omar al-Bayoumi）和两名劫机者的电话记录。
在联署一封寻求解密这些记录的信的人中，有纽约州共和党众议员尼科尔·马利奥塔基斯（Nicole Malliotakis），她是特朗普的盟友，敦促总统在不到两周的25周年纪念日之前处理此事。
“这可能是我们获得这些信息的最好机会之一，”Malliotakis说。“我认为，希望我们将看到这种透明度来自本届政府。”
白宫发言人安娜·凯利告诉美国广播公司新闻，“特朗普总统正在领导历史上最透明的政府，他的团队正在努力工作，以确定符合这些家庭要求的记录。＂
“确凿的证据”
自2003年以来，这些家庭以这样或那样的形式发起了针对沙特人的法律运动，但直到最近才发现视频、笔记和其他记录，他们说这些提供了沙特政府共谋的无可辩驳的证据——沙特人一直否认这些指控。
Al-Bayoumi是这些记录的核心。
这位沙特国民在袭击发生前的大部分时间里住在美国-名义上是作为一名学生-并在两名劫机者于2000年初抵达加州时向他们提供了“必要的支持”，根据这些家庭的诉讼，al-Bayoumi通过“在他的建筑群中为他们找到一套公寓”和“提供略低于可疑活动报告阈值的资金来帮助他们开设银行账户”来帮助这些人。
据这些家庭说，al-Bayoumi还为劫持者举行了一次聚会，并且“劫持者在al-Bayoumi的公寓里呆了1-2天，然后他们的公寓才准备好。”
“他就是那个人，”伊格尔森告诉美国广播公司新闻。＂奥马尔·巴尤米正在协调和指挥对劫机者的后勤和财政支持．＂
起诉书称，1999年，al-Bayoumi前往华盛顿特区，在那里拍摄了一段被家属称为“令人不寒而栗”的视频，视频显示al-Bayoumi“在美国国会大厦‘蹲点’准备发动袭击”。国会大厦被认为是联航93号航班的目标，这架被劫持的飞机坠毁在宾夕法尼亚州尚克斯维尔的一片田野上。
根据诉讼，在视频中，al-Bayoumi向一名身份不明的观众描述了国会大厦内外的安全态势，强调了它与附近的里根国家机场的接近，并不透明地提到了一个“计划”。
这些家庭还在法庭上出示了al-Bayoumi笔记本上的草图和数学方程，显示了他们所谓的“驾驶飞机到地面目标的视线计算”
沙特人一再否认参与了这些袭击，并在法庭上回答说，他们仍然是“美国的盟友，也是基地组织的死敌。”
王国的律师也在法庭上激烈地反驳了这些家庭对证据的描述，称国会大厦的“外壳”电影是一部“旅游视频，包括艺术品、花坛和白宫草坪上的松鼠的镜头。”他们说，记事本草图“似乎是高中数学作业”，属于al-Bayoumi的孩子。
据信现居住在沙特阿拉伯的Al-Bayoumi“卷入9／11调查，因为他帮助了两名他没有理由怀疑有不法行为的沙特人，”沙特律师说，al-Bayoumi在该案的证词中也表达了这一观点。Al-Bayoumi也否认与沙特情报部门有任何联系。
去年，负责此案的法官裁定，家属提交的证据足够令人信服，可以进行审判，这对沙特人来说是一个重大挫折，也让家属们迈出了他们称之为20年诉讼中“迄今最重大的一步”。
法官指出，沙特人开脱罪责的解释“要么自相矛盾，要么不足以推翻［沙特人］雇用了al-Bayoumi的推断．．．来协助劫机者。”
尽管仍没有证据表明沙特政府高层领导人可能知道袭击计划，但“总的证据表明，巴尤米很有可能知道．．．“在劫机者的计划中扮演的角色，”法官总结道，“以及（他的）雇主沙特阿拉伯王国的相关角色”。
“异乎寻常的讽刺”
对伊格尔森来说，这些材料相当于“确凿的证据”，不应该花近四分之一世纪来挖掘。
“这些信息直到25年后才公之于众，”伊格尔森说。“那些文件中发现的东西应该会让所有人大吃一惊。每个人都应该感到愤慨。”
这些家庭去年在法庭上提交了这一新的证据，此前他们从英国当局那里取回了这些证据，英国当局最初收集这些证据是在纽约和华盛顿袭击事件发生仅10天后，对al-Bayoumi在英国的住所进行突袭的一部分。伊格尔森说，证据被移交给了美国联邦调查局，但后来的情况仍不明朗。
至关重要的是，据这些家庭的律师称，这些证据中的大部分没有提供给9／11委员会，该委员会在2004年发布了一份报告，否认沙特政府“故意”支持基地组织。
专家认为，这一证据不仅可以重塑公众对9月11日袭击的理解，还可以重塑美国随后在中东的地缘政治和军事决策。
克林顿和奥巴马政府时期的反恐官员丹尼尔·本杰明（Daniel Benjamin）表示，巴尤米的记录和其他材料“迫使我们认为，我们关于9·11的整个理论——整个反恐战争——在很大程度上是错误的。”
现任柏林美国学院院长的本杰明说：“布什政府坚持认为，没有任何非国家行为者能够完成像9／11袭击这样复杂的事情，这是它将焦点转向伊拉克和萨达姆·侯赛因的一个主要原因。”“具有极大讽刺意味的是，他们关于需要国家支持的观点可能是正确的——但他们完全误解了国家。”
沙特的诉讼远不是关于袭击责任的最后一个问号。上周，一名军事法官裁定，在关塔那摩湾度过20年后，自称袭击“主谋”的哈立德·谢赫·穆罕默德最终将于2028年6月面临审判。
“反复的障碍”
今年7月，纽约州共和党众议员马利奥塔基斯（Malliotakis）与民主党众议员丹·戈德曼（Dan Goldman）和杰里·纳德勒（Jerry Nadler）一起给一个鲜为人知但权力很大的顾问小组写了一封信，该小组名为公共利益解密委员会（Public Interest declasalization Board），设在国家档案馆内，有权考虑获取敏感政府机密的请求，并就是否解密向总统提出建议。
议员们在这些家庭的要求下发出的请求，哀叹了这些家庭的律师在“从美国执法和情报机构获得这些材料时”面临的“反复障碍”
在这封信中，议员们要求解密“与巴尤米在911事件中的角色直接相关的各种电话记录和分析”，其中包括一部据称属于巴尤米的手机记录，根据这封信，他“借出了这部手机”．．．让劫机者与安瓦尔·奥拉基（Anwar Aulaqi）等同伙保持联系，“高调的美国基地组织追随者，2011年在美国无人机袭击中丧生。
这些家庭的律师认为，这些记录可以帮助他们更好地了解al-Bayoumi和劫机者通信的时间和性质，以及劫机者策划袭击的关键事件。
几周后，董事会回应称，它“正在积极参与机构间磋商，以确定哪些股票（如果有的话）可能仍与这些记录有关。”它敦促耐心，因为“这些讨论仍在继续。”
白宫上周表示，特朗普总统将出席在五角大楼举行的纪念25周年的仪式。副总统JD万斯将前往纽约归零地。
25 years later， 9／11 victims hope newly uncovered records will help illuminate Saudis＇ alleged role
Twenty-five years afterSept． 11， a trove of newly obtained records is offering what families of the victims characterize in court as compelling evidence of deep Saudi complicity in the attacks． Now， as their decade-old lawsuit against the Saudi kingdom marches toward trial， the families are pressing the Trump administration to declassify more government records they believe could finally deliver justice．
The newly revealed records， from a lawsuit involving an alleged Saudi agent， include a video purportedly casing the Capitol two years before the attacks and a sketch that purportedly shows calculations for navigating a plane toward a target on the ground， which one family member called ＂smoking gun evidence．＂
The decision on whether to declassify additional records ultimately lies with PresidentDonald Trump， whose administration has touted government transparency and who has personally signed executive orders declassifying records ranging from purported UFO sightings to high-profile assassinations．
＂We＇ve seen him do it for the ［PresidentJohn F． Kennedy］ files． Why not the 9／11 files？＂ Brett Eagleson， whose father Bruce was killed in the World Trade Center＇s South Tower， said in an interview with ABC News．
＂Now is the moment， 25 years later， to finally bring resolution，＂ Eagleson said， ＂and the man that sits in the Oval Office has a historic and a tremendous opportunity to do it．＂
Eagleson has enlisted the support of members of the New York congressional delegation to press the administration to release key records that include phone logs purportedly belonging to Omar al-Bayoumi， who the families allege is a Saudi intelligence asset， as well as two of the hijackers．
Among those who cosigned a letter seeking the declassification of those records is Rep． Nicole Malliotakis， R-N．Y．， a Trump ally who is urging the president take up the matter before the 25th anniversary， less than two weeks away．
＂This is probably one of the better shots that we have at getting this information out there，＂ Malliotakis said． ＂And I think that hopefully we＇ll see this type of transparency coming from this administration．＂
White House spokesperson Anna Kelly told ABC News， ＂President Trump is leading the most transparent administration in history， and his team is working diligently to identify records that are responsive to these families＇ request．＂
＇Smoking gun＇
The families have waged their legal campaign against the Saudis in one form or another since 2003， but only recently uncovered videos， notes and other records they say offer irrefutable evidence of Saudi government complicity -- claims that the Saudis have long denied．
Al-Bayoumi lies at the heart of those records．
The Saudi national lived in the U．S． for the better part of a decade -- nominally as a student -- prior to the attacks， and provided ＂essential support＂ to two hijackers when they arrived in California in early 2000， according to the families＇ lawsuit， which claims that al-Bayoumi assisted the men by ＂finding them an apartment in his complex＂ and ＂providing funds just below the suspicious activity reporting threshold to help them open a bank account．＂
According to the families， al-Bayoumi also threw a party for the hijackers and ＂the hijackers stayed at al-Bayoumi＇s apartment for 1-2 days， before their apartment was ready．＂
＂He was the man，＂ Eagleson told ABC News． ＂Omar al-Bayoumi is coordinating and directing logistical and financial support to the hijackers．＂
In 1999， al-Bayoumi travelled to Washington， D．C．， where he filmed what the families called a ＂chilling＂ video of al-Bayoumi ＂＇casing＇ the U．S． Capitol for an attack，＂ according to the suit． The Capitol is believed to be the target of United Flight 93， the hijacked plane that crashed into a field in Shanksville， Pennsylvania．
In the video， according to the suit， al-Bayoumi describes to an unidentified audience the security posture inside and outside the Capitol building， highlights its proximity to the nearby Reagan National Airport， and opaquely references a ＂plan．＂
The families also presented in court a sketch and math equation from al-Bayoumi＇s notebook showing what they claim to be a ＂line of sight calculation for navigating a plane to a target on the ground．＂
The Saudis have repeatedly denied having any role in facilitating the attacks and replied in court that they remain ＂an ally of the United States ［and］ a sworn enemy of Al Qaeda．＂
Attorneys for the kingdom also fervently disputed the families＇ characterizations of that evidence in court， dismissing the Capitol ＂casing＂ film as a ＂tourist video that includes footage of artwork， flowerbeds， and a squirrel on the White House lawn．＂ They say the notepad sketch ＂appears to be a high school math assignment＂ belonging to al-Bayoumi＇s child．
Al-Bayoumi， who is believed to now live in Saudi Arabia， ＂became entangled in the 9／11 investigation because he had helped two fellow Saudis he had no reason to suspect of wrongdoing，＂ the Saudi attorneys said -- a sentiment al-Bayoumi shared in a deposition in the case．Al-Bayoumi has also denied any connection to Saudi intelligence．
Last year the judge overseeing the case ruled that the evidence presented by the families was compelling enough toproceed to trial， dealing a major setback to the Saudis and granting the families what they called ＂the most consequential step yet＂ in two decades of litigation．
The judge noted that the Saudis＇ exculpatory explanations ＂are either self-contradictory or ［are］ not strong enough to overcome the inference that ［the Saudis］ had employed al-Bayoumi ．．． to assist the hijackers．＂
And while there remains no evidence that Saudi leaders at the top of its government were likely aware of plans for the attack， ＂the total evidence creates a high probability as to al-Bayoumi＇s ．．． ［role］ in the hijackers＇ plans，＂ the judge concluded， ＂and the related role of ［his］ employer，＂ the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia．
An ＇extraordinary irony＇
For Eagleson， the material amounts to ＂smoking gun evidence＂ that should not have taken nearly a quarter-century to unearth．
＂That information never saw the light of day until 25 years later，＂ Eagleson said． ＂And what was found in those files should blow everyone＇s mind． Everyone should be outraged．＂
The families presented this new body of evidence in court last year after retrieving it from British authorities， who first gathered it as part of a raid on al-Bayoumi＇s home in the U．K． just 10 days after the attacks in New York and Washington． The evidence was turned over to the FBI， Eagleson said， but what became of it later remains murky．
Crucially， according to attorneys for the families， much of this evidence was not made available to the 9／11 Commission， which released its report in 2004 absolving the Saudi governing of ＂knowingly＂ supporting Al Qaeda．
Experts suggest this evidence could reshape the public＇s understanding not only of the attack on Sept． 11， but also the United States＇ subsequentgeopolitical and military decisionsin the Middle East．
Daniel Benjamin， a counterterrorism official during the Clinton and Obama administrations， said the al-Bayoumi records and other materials ＂force us to think that our entire theory of what 9-11 was about -- what the whole war on terrorism was about -- was largely mistaken．＂
＂The Bush administration insisted that no non-state actor could have done something as complicated as the 9／11 attacks， and that was a major reason that it turned the focus on Iraq and on Saddam Hussein，＂said Benjamin， now the president of the American Academy in Berlin． ＂And it is an extraordinary irony that they may have been right about the need for state support -- but they got the state completely wrong．＂
The Saudi lawsuit is far from the last remaining question mark regarding culpability for the attacks． Last week， a military judge ruled that after spending two decades at Guantanamo Bay， Khalid Sheikh Mohammed， the self-proclaimed ＂mastermind＂ of the attack， wouldfinally face trialin June 2028．
＇Repeated obstacles＇
In July， Rep． Malliotakis， the New York Republican， joined Democratic Reps． Dan Goldman and Jerry Nadler in writing a letter to a little-known but powerful advisory panel called the Public Interest Declassification Board， housed within the National Archives， which carries the power to consider requests for sensitive government secrets and make recommendations to the president about whether to declassify them．
The lawmakers＇ request， sent at the behest of the families， bemoaned the ＂repeated obstacles＂ attorneys for the families have faced ＂in obtaining access to these materials from U．S． law enforcement and intelligence agencies．＂
In the letter， lawmakers requested the declassification of ＂various phone records and analyses directly relevant to al-Bayoumi＇s role＂ in 9／11， including records for a cell phone purportedly belonging to al-Bayoumi that he， according to the letter， ＂lent ．．． to the hijackers to keep in touch with his associates such as Anwar Aulaqi，＂ the high-profile American al-Qaeda follower who in 2011 was killed by a U．S． drone strike．
Attorneys for the families believe those records could help them better understand the timing and nature of al-Bayoumi＇s and the hijackers＇ communications and key events in the hijackers＇ planning of the attacks．
The board responded weeks later， writing that it was ＂actively engaged in interagency consultations to determine what equities， if any， may remain in relation to these records．＂ It urged patience as ＂those discussions continue．＂
The White House said last week that President Trump would attend a ceremony at the Pentagon to commemorate the 25th anniversary． Vice President JD Vance will travel to New York to be at Ground Zero．
