Village Voice: Giuliani Did Business With Terrorism Supporter

Wow, yesterday was really not a good news day for Rudy Giuliani. In addition to the fact that he used New York City as a private bank account to finance his extramarital affairs, it was also revealed Rudy is linked to a well-known supporter of Osama bin Laden and 9/11 mastermind Khalid Sheikh Muhammad. This was revealed by Rudy expert Wayne Barrett of the Village Voice.

The connection goes like this. Giuliani Security & Safety LLC, a subsidiary of Giuliani Partners, the consulting firm that has made Rudy Giuliani rich, worked for either Qatar's interior ministry or the state-owned company it helps oversee, Qatar Petroleum. The interior ministry is run by a member of the Qatar royal family named Abdallah bin Khalid al Thani. Giuliani went on Larry King with al Thani in late 2001 and vouched for him. The problem is al Thani is alleged to have strong terrorist ties. He is "said to have welcomed Osama bin Laden on two visits to [his] farm, a charge repeated as recently as October 10, 2007, in a Congressional Research Service study." And Barrett notes that many people, including some within the American government, believe al Thani helped "spirit [9/11 mastermind Khalid Sheikh Muhammad] out of Qatar in 1996, just as the FBI was closing in on him." Al Thani is a defendant in 9/11 lawsuits still proceeding in Manhattan federal court.

The fact that Giuliani was working with Qatar, which is a very dubious ally on the war on terror, is troubling.

Again, Barrett notes:

The staff of the 9/11 Commission, meanwhile, noted that the FBI and CIA "were reluctant to seek help from the Qatari government" in the arrest of KSM, "fearing that he might be tipped off." When Qatar's emir was finally "asked for his help" in January 1996, Qatari authorities "first reported that KSM was under surveillance," then "asked for an alternative plan that would conceal their aid to Americans," and finally "reported that KSM had disappeared."

I'll let Barrett summarize and then simply point you to his very long and very good article: "In other words, as incredible as it might seem, Rudy Giuliani—whose presidential candidacy is steeped in 9/11 iconography—has been doing business with a government agency run by the very man who made the attacks on 9/11 possible."

Update: Barrett's previous work on terrorism here.

Comments

9-11 was an inside job.

Posted by: RTMAN on 11/29/07 at 2:13 PM Respond

Rudy Giuliani is the best candidate for the job.

Posted by: Rudy Giuliani on 11/29/07 at 11:06 PM Respond

I do not like Rudy Giuliani for his policies but this article is so misinformed! Qatar is a country with thousands of western businesses working here. The country is anything but a bastion for terrorists. This is an Arab nation that has adopted an American model of unbridled growth, big cars, skyscrapers, Starbuck, shopping malls, supermarkets in lieu of souks. It relies heavily on funds and security from the West. To say that doing business with Qatar is equivalent to doing business with terrorists and leave out the fact that the U.S. central command is located here is just ignorant on the part of the author and poor editing on the part of the Village Voice.

Posted by: bruce Scheer on 11/30/07 at 7:56 PM Respond

I generally agree with the comments made by Bruce Scheer above. I think the idea that a tiny little country like Qatar with a strongly pro Western foreign policy and bastion of press freedom ( remember al Jazeera and it's fearless coverage of the Iraq war ? ) is a terrorism supporter is pretty ridiculous.

In this respect, I am reminded of the hysteria over the Dubai Ports Deal in which anti Arab hyperbole was amalgamated with a considerable deal of factually incorrect information about Dubai being a haven for terrorists and extremists, when in fact, anyone who visits the place will realize, is far from being the case.

Posted by: SAS on 12/01/07 at 7:54 AM Respond