Hizbullah Accused of Aiding al-Qaida in September 11 Attacks

The families of victims of the September 11, 2001 attacks have filed a lawsuit against Hizbullah and Iran, accusing them of assisting al-Qaida in conducting the attacks, reported the New York Times on Friday.

The lawsuit included testimonies of defectors from Iranian intelligence, whose identities have not been revealed.

They said that Iranian officials had prior knowledge of the attacks, while one claimed that Tehran was involved in the planning process.

“Iran and Hizbullah helped al-Qaida in planning the attack and facilitated the training and transportation of the hijackers,” stated the lawsuit.

Hizbullah and Iran also provided safe haven to al-Qaida operatives in the Islamic Republic after the attacks, it added.

Prominent Hizbullah military official Imad Mughnieh, who was assassinated in Damascus in 2008, was described of having prepared for the attacks, it continued.

The lawsuit included names of Iranian officials and ministries, as well as members of Hizbullah and al-Qaida.

The lawyers of the families of the September 11 victims demanded that verdicts be issued against the suspects in absentia, adding that they are seeking compensations from Iran for allegedly directly helping and harboring several terrorist attacks in the United States.

Meanwhile, a report on the New York attacks of 2001 stated that there is “strong evidence” that Iran facilitated the escape of several al-Qaida members from Afghanistan before the attacks took place.

It also revealed that in 2000, prominent Hizbullah officials had closely monitored the travels of some of the hijackers who took over the planes that flew into the World Trade Centers in the September 2001 attack.

The report acknowledged however that no concrete evidence has been found to implicate Iran in having prior knowledge of the attacks, adding that more investigations were needed.