Prime
Minister Theresa May has rejected an appeal by survivors of the 9/11
terrorist attacks to publish a report into the role of Saudi Arabia
in funding Islamic extremism in Britain.
In July, the
government announced that the Home Office report, which was
commissioned by former Prime Minister David Cameron, will not be
published because of “national security reasons” and the “vast
amount of personal information” it contains.
The
announcement that the report, completed six months ago, would be
permanently shelved has sparked widespread condemnation amid claims
the government is trying to cover up substantial evidence of Saudi
Arabia funding terrorist organizations in the UK.
Joining the
chorus of opposition, a group of 9/11 survivors signed a public
letter to May, urging her to publish the report.
“The UK
now has the unique historic opportunity to stop the killing spree of
Wahhabism-inspired terrorists by releasing the UK government’s
report on terrorism financing in the UK which, according to media
reports, places Saudi Arabia at its center of culpability,” the
letter, signed by 15 survivors, read. "The longer Saudi
Arabia’s complicity is hidden from sunlight, the longer terrorism
will continue.”
The British
government has rejected their request, however.
Sharon
Remoli, who was on the 80th floor of the North Tower of the World
Trade Center in New York when the first plane hit, told the
Independent: “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 tolerance, committing genocide and human rights
violations.”
Brett
Eagleson, whose son John died on the 17th floor of the South Tower,
told the newspaper the British government is withholding
potentially-crucial information. “When the UK government had the
opportunity to shed light on the funding of terrorism and had the
opportunity to make real inroads on the global fight against terror,
they have chosen to take the path of least resistance by putting the
cozy relationship with Saudi Arabia before the safety of its own
citizens,” he said. “It’s a shameful day for democracy.”
Although 15
of the 19 hijackers who attacked New York and Washington were
citizens of Saudi Arabia, the authorities in Riyadh have long denied
any official role in the attack.
Britain’s
Tory government has already faced harsh questions over the viability
of its diplomatic ties with Saudi Arabia, especially after it emerged
that Britain continues to sell arms to the Gulf kingdom. Those very
same arms are reportedly being used in the Saudi-led campaign against
Houthi rebels in Yemen, where thousands have been killed.
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