Photo: Katie Lips
As we approach the 15th anniversary of September 11, 2001, our nation, far from having recovered from that day of infamy, is now more violent, more terrorized, more impoverished and more despairing than ever before. That the truth about what happened on that day, when close to three thousand Americans perished, has not been told to the American people, and that justice has not been done, is a primary cause of the devastation our nation and much of the world are currently experiencing.
Fifteen years ago, four planes were hijacked, from Boston, Newark, and Dulles Airport in Virginia. In each case, all the passengers crashed to their fiery deaths. 265 people died on the planes, 125 people were killed at the Pentagon, and 2606 died in the World Trade Center.
This death count does not include the several thousand Americans killed in the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan and other locations in the so-called “war on terror,” nor does it include the hundreds of first responders who have died since 9-11 due to illness caused by the debris which they inhaled as they tried to rescue people and clean up the damage. It also does not include soldier suicides which are now at close to 25 per day in the United States.
This death count does not include the hundreds of thousands of Iraqis, Afghanis, Somalis, Libyans, Pakistanis, Yemenis, Syrians and others who have died in these wars or as “collateral damage” from drone strikes.
Not only have hundreds of thousands of lives been lost in these wars, but the number of deadly terror attacks has been increasing, not decreasing. From Paris, to Brussels, to Baghdad, to San Bernardino, to Orlando, and now to Dallas, mass killings are shattering the order of human affairs.
In Britain, the Chilcot Inquiry of former Prime Minister Tony Blair has concluded that the 2003 invasion of Iraq was NOT a war of last resort, but, by implication, a war of aggression. As the London Guardian put it, “Tony Blair is damned.” Parents and family members of the 179 British soldiers killed in Iraq are now filing suit against him for the deaths of their loved ones in an unnecessary war.
What about Presidents Bush and Obama, as well as former Vice President Cheney, who pursued this war and other wars at the cost of thousands of American lives and the safety of us all?
Remember, although 15 of the 19 hijackers were from Saudi Arabia, the Bush Administration and the Saudi Government waged a massive public relations campaign to place the blame elsewhere, first by placing the blame almost entirely on the bin Laden network, and then focusing on an alleged threat from Iraq, implementing a policy that has plunged the United States into a state of perpetual war for over a decade.
We the undersigned believe that the world has paid too a high price for the cover-up of the events of 9-11. We demand justice for all those who died on September 11th, 2001 and its aftermath. We demand the following:
1. The immediate public disclosure of the 28 pages (the final chapter of the Congressional report by the Joint Inquiry into Intelligence Community Activities before and after the Terrorist Attacks of September 11, 2001), which can help to reveal the Anglo-Saudi apparatus which supported the 9-11 hijackers as they trained and prepared for their attack on the United States
2. Public disclosure of the “Al Yamamah” weapons for petroleum deal negotiated by then British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher and Saudi Prince Bandar which created the sufficient off-the-books finances needed for the 9-11 attacks.
3. A thorough investigation (including the FBI’s release of thousands of pages they have been withholding) of areas which hosted these hijackers, including, but not limited to, Falls Church, VA; Sarasota, FL; San Diego, CA; and Paterson, NJ.
4. A “Chilcot Inquiry” investigation of both the Bush and Obama administrations to determine their complicity in the cover-up and protection of the 9-11 terror apparatus, as well as whether they, like Tony Blair engaged in “aggressive war,” in violation of International law.
5. United States collaboration with Russia to eradicate terrorist networks in the Middle East and Northern Africa, as well as a reconstruction of the region so that the millions of displaced people may return safely to their homes.
Let us honor those who have died as a result of the September 11, 2001 attacks, by dedicating ourselves to creating a world where this never happens again.
Print and distribute a PDF of this petition here.
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