Mohammed Atta

Mohammed Atta Have-Sayed ( محمدعطاالسيد ), (born on September 1st, 1968 Kafr El-Sheik, Egypt - September 11th 2001 with New York) is one of the people implied in the terrorist attacks of September 11th, 2001 to the the United States. FBI quotes it as being the coordinator of these terrorist acts and the pilot of the first plane, the Vol 11 American Airlines which was crushed against the World Trade Center. According to the French secret services, Mohamed Atta, remained in Bosnia-Herzégovine on several occasions between 1994 and 1999.

He was also known under the identities of Mehan Atta, Mohamed Atta, Mohammad El-Amir, and Mohamed El Sayed, inter alia…

Biography

Youth and studies

Mohammed Atta was born on September 1st, 1968 in Kafr el Sheikh, a city of the Delta of the Nile in Egypt. Egyptian of birth, he was also holder of a passport of Saudi Arabia. He grew in a rather strict family with Gizeh in the suburbs of the Cairo. His/her father, lawyer, wish that his/her children be well educated. Mohammed is thus a studious pupil and obtains high notes. In 1990, it receives the diploma of architecture of the university of Cairo.

After having worked during two years with the town planning of Cairo, it settles in Germany, with the assistance of a family met in Cairo, to continue its studies. Of 1993 with 1999, it thus follows studies of city planning to the Université of Hamburg. Contrary to many his comrades jihadists, it remains applied in its studies and carries out them until the end.

In Germany, it finds an employment as salesman of cars while studying the history of the landscapes of Alep, city of the north of the Syria. It also writes a thesis on the aspects of the conflict of Arab civilization vis-a-vis modernity, in particular the impact of the turns on the urban development. Later, it is invited by its reader Dittmar Machule in Alep for three days of archaeological visit .

Although Egyptian, it is recorded in Germany like national of the United Arab Emirates. A German friend will describe it like an intelligent person having some religious beliefs but also like somebody in anger vis-a-vis the Western policy with respect to the the Middle East, including the Accords of Oslo and the first war of the Gulf. In an televised interview, his/her friend Ralph Bodenstein, who travelled, worked and spoke much with him, will say

The American board of inquiry into the attacks of September 11th, 2001 specifies that

During its stay in Germany, Atta becomes more and more monk, especially after his Pèlerinage with the Mecque in 1995. A German terrorist originating in Syria Mohammed Haydar Zammar states to have met it and have recruited for Al-Quaïda. Atta starts to take part in prayers of group at the university. It is made lawyer of a jihad violent one and, whereas it belongs to a group trying to create bonds between the East and the Occident, it is shown not very enthusiastic to build such bonds. Nevertheless, among the people who surround it, it appears like an intelligent, charismatic but intolerant person, and knowing to make decisions.

The enrollment with Al-Quaïda

It is by attending the Qud mosque in Hamburg that Atta meets Mohammed Haydar Zammar. Zammar is a known figure of local Islam (and German and American security services). It fought in Afghanistan and preaches a hard jihad, but he is also recruiter for the Al-Quaïda account.

November 1st, 1998, Atta changes apartment and settles with the terrorists Said Bahaji and Ramzi Binalshibh to the 54, Marienstraße. It is the founding document of the cell of Hamburg .
The terrorists meet 2 or 3 times per week to discuss their feelings anti-American. With these meetings find themselves, in addition to Mohammed Haydar Zammar, other future terrorists such as Marwan Al-Shehhi, Zakaria Essabar, Mounir Al-Motassadeq, Ziad Jarrah, Abdelghani Mzoudi, etc For this period, a total of 29 members of the Al-Quaïda network will announce this address as being theirs, the lease being in the name of Atta. It is during the first half of 1999, last in this apartment, that Mohammed Atta and his/her companions truly will radicalize themselves, under the impulse of Zammar. They also receive the frequent visit of Khalid Sheik Mohammed, near to Usama Bin Laden and person in charge with Al-Quaïda of the external operations , i.e. attacks.

At the end of 1999 Atta, Al-Shehhi, Jarrah, Bahaji, and Binalshibh decide to travel in Chetchnia to fight the Russians but were convinced by Khalid El-Masri and Mohamedou Ould Slahi at the last minute to change their plan and to travel rather in Afghanistan to meet Usama Bin Laden for terrorist attacks. This information was collected by an intense monitoring of the apartment of Marienstrasse , and phone-tappings by the German the CIA and secret services.

The November 29th, 1999 , Mohammed Atta goes up on board the flight TK1662 of the Turkish Airlines of Hamburg to Istanbul then changes plane and takes the flight TK1056 in direction of Karachi to the Pakistan. Atta needs two days of voyage to join its final destination, a camp of Al-Quaïda drive with Tarnak close to Kandahar in Afghanistan.

The German services of investigation have the conviction that Mohammed Atta as 2 other hijackers followed a drive in the Al-Quaïda camps to Afghanistan of at the end of 1999 to at the beginning of 2000; this was also confirmed by the federal director of the agency anti crimes Klaus Ulrich Kersten, like by vidéos discovered in October 2006 showing Atta reading its will on January 18th, 2000.

On its return the February 24th, 2000 , Atta takes the flight TK1057 of Karachi towards Istanbul and the flight TK1661 for Hamburg. Immediately after their arrival, Atta, Al-Shehhi, and Jarrah declare their passports stolen, which will erase any trace of their stay in Afghanistan.

Atta and the other hijackers then start to act in a more Western way: they shave the beard and avoid holding of the radical remarks. At the beginning of 2000, the CIA places Atta under monitoring to Germany, of the agents follow it and see it buying great quantities of chemicals. In March 2000, during its stay in Germany, Atta contacts 31 various schools of flight in the United States, to request information on courses of piloting.

At the end of 2000, before entering to the the United States, Atta goes to Prague (in Czech Republic) by plane but will be seen refusing the entry in the country because of a nonvalid visa. Atta thus turns over to Germany to obtain a Czech visa with Bonn then takes a bus for Prague where there will remain one night before taking a flight towards the United States the next day.

Atta enters to the United States the June 3rd, 2000 . At this time, the CIA ceases supervising it and it is difficult to know if the FBI or another security service takes over in the monitoring of Mohammed Atta on the American territory.

In July, Atta and Marwan Al-Shehhi fit in the flying school " Huffman" with Venice in Florida, Atta declares being one go down from the Saoudi royal family and presents Al-Shehhi like its bodyguard.

All two pass their FAA certificate of piloting in November. The November 5th Atta buys a video on the cockpit of the Boeing 747-200 and Boeing 757-200 in a store for pilots with Batavia in the Ohio.

The December 11th, 2000 Atta also buys a video of the cockpit of the Airbus A320 and Boeing 767-300ER in the same store in Ohio. The December 21st Atta and Marwan obtain their license of piloting, the 26 and 27 Atta and Marwan give up a Piper Cherokee which finished its race on a main road of the airport of Miami, and the December 29th they move towards the airport of tender offer-Locka and follow courses of piloting on Boeing 727 using a simulator of vol.

The cellphone of Atta will be recorded busy a call to the embassy of the Morocco to Washington the January 2nd, 2001 just before Al-Shehhi leaves the country. Atta takes the plane for the Spain the January 4th to meet Binalshibh and goes back to the United States the January 10th 2001.

During its stay in the United States he travels to Lilburn in Georgia for unknown reasons, and is registered with Al-Shehhi with courses of back in shape in a club, they remain in the surroundings during several months and the April 3rd all two rent a P.0. box with " Virginia Beach" in Virginia.

The April 11th Atta and Al-Shehhi rent an apartment with Coral Spring in Florida, the April 16th Atta is stopped for driving license nonvalid, it begins the administrative approaches then and obtains some May 2nd with Lauderdale Lakes in Florida.

The June 27th, 2001 Atta takes a flight of Fort Lauderdale to Boston, Massachusetts or it spends the day there before continuing for San Francisco for a short stay, then it goes to Las Vegas. The June 28th Atta arrives at the international airport of McCarran to Las Vegas to meet the 3 others there pilot and rents a Chevrolet Malibu at an agency of hiring to Alamo. The June 29th it rents a room with EconoLodge in 1150 South on Las Vegas boulevard, there it presents its chart AAA ( American Automobile Association ) to profit from a reduction and pays 49,50 $ in liquid for the night. During its stay in unquestionable Las Vegas think that it would have rented a video camera with Delray in Florida.

The July 8th, 2001 Atta is filmed withdrawing 1000 Francs Suisse of a distributer, the same day it buys a knife of the Suisse army and some chocolates with the airport of Zurich.

After a short stay in Zurich Atta arrives at Madrid on July 9th in the morning by the flight 656 of the Iberia Airlines, there remain five hours in the airport and take a room in hotel with Barajas city being in the vicinity or he will be accompanied by a 41 year old man who is recorded under the name of Iqbal Afzal Admat and shows an Irish passport. The recordings of the hotel will show that they passed from long telephone calls towards Hamburg to plain Germany but also Manchester to the kingdom.

The morning of the July 9th, 2001 Atta rents a silver Hyundai and goes to the east of Madrid towards the beaches of the Mediterranean to Tarragona. According to the American services and the Spanish police force, Atta would have traversed nearly 2000 km during its 12 days in Spain for secret appointments and it would have rented a room with Sant Jordi in Tarragona and with Salou on the Mediterranean coast, it would have also met there the future hijackers Wail and Waleed Al-Shehri .

While Atta traverses the first 300 km in Spain, his/her comrade of room in Germany Ramzi Binalshibh, takes the weekly flight charter of Hamburg with Reus city in the North-East of Spain, in Catalonia. Its plane lands at 7 o'clock in the morning the July 9th, 2001 and 3 hours later, Binalshibh accompanied by another man roll in the surrounding of the Monica hotel in the coastal town of Cambrils. The meeting of Atta and Binalshibh will be reported for the first time by the Spanish newspaper El Pais .

According to the declarations of the manager of the Pere hotel Gum, the receptionist present this day will refuse in spite of the many free rooms their to rent a room because she did not like Binalshibh: concerning the other man remained in the car the receptionist states not to have could identify it. The two men go then in another hotel to the " Tropicana " who is complete being but the receptionist agrees to telephone in other hotels to help them to find two rooms free; she finds two rooms free and the two men turn over to the Monica hotel where this time the receptionist agrees their to rent a room. Binalshibh records for two and Gum confirms that it there spent the night and left the next morning.

The identity of the friend of Binalshibh remains a mystery for the investigators, but its description would correspond to that of Saïd Bahaji, 26 years, of German nationality, but of Moroccan origin, against which a mandate of international stop was launched by the German police force. Official American confirms them that according to the declarations of the manager of the hotel that Ci could not identify it with certainty, it could thus act of Atta. Atta would have left Madrid on July 9th on board a rented car, but would have been recorded in a hotel of the area of Salou only on July 13rd, 2001.

Quotation of Paul Virilio

“The Tour Montparnasse is infinitely more solid than Twin Towers of New York: its core is in Béton. Moreover, the Terroriste Mohammed Atta, that which struck the first tower of the World Trade Center, knew something of it. It was Architecte and, in the thesis which it had made with Hamburg, it denounced the principle of verticality suitable for the Urbanisation. For him, the tower, it was like the Donjon Château X of the Occident. ” ( Humanity of the April 10th 2004 - heading " They have dit".)

Random links: