TEHRAN, August 18 - Survivors of the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks lambasted May for rejecting their request to publish a government report on Saudi possible support for 9/11 attack.
TEHRAN, Young Journalists Club (YJC) - Earlier this summer, a group of 9/11 survivors from the US, along with relatives of some of the over 3,000 people killed in the attacks, told UK Prime Minister Theresa May in a letter that her government had “the unique historic opportunity to stop the killing spree of Wahhabism-inspired terrorists” by releasing the report.
May turned down the requests, arguing that the report included “confidential” content.
The answer was supposed to end the ongoing saga over the report, which was commissioned by former UK Prime Minister David Cameron in December 2015. But it only raised questions and prompted more criticism.
UK, US inaction killing hopes to curb terror’
Outraged by the response from the government, Sharon Premoli, a 9/11 survivor, told The Independent that London and Washington were basically allowing Riyadh to commit crimes “with impunity.”
“[The] response did not convey that much would change in the future for one simple reason: the US and the UK continue to protect Saudi Arabia, allowing them to operate freely, with impunity, even supplying them with lethal weapons, as they go about their usual business of inspiring intolerance, committing genocide and human rights violations,” she added.
“It’s a shameful day for democracy,” Premoli said, adding that May’s government had thrown away the chance “to make real inroads on the global fight against terror” by “putting the cozy relationship with Saudi Arabia before the safety of its owns citizens.”
Protecting Saudis at Brits’ expense
Ellen Sarancini, the widow of a pilot whose plane was hijacked in the attacks, said this was not the first time that the UK government was blocking them to protect the Riyadh regime.
“For 15 years, we have been blocked by our own government who, along with the UK, continue to protect Saudi Arabia at the expense of their citizens,” she said. “The UK report has the potential for ending terrorism by outing those at the center of its funding but refuses to do so.”
Brett Eagleson, whose son John was killed on 9/11, also said the UK was sacrificing its people in order to protect Saudi interests.
Of the 19 hijackers who allegedly carried out the 9/11 attacks, 15 were Saudi nationals and available evidence suggests some of them were linked to high-ranking members of the Saudi royal family,Presstv reported.
Saudis have been the largest buyers of UK-made weapons over the past few years, leading some to believe that May is trying to avoid damaging the highly profitable ties by keeping the report a secret.
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