Said Bahaji
Encyclopedia
Said Bahaji was an alleged member of the Hamburg cell
that provided money to the perpetrators of the September 11 attacks.
father and a German
mother in 1975. The family moved to Morocco when he was nine years old. He came to Hamburg
in 1995. He enrolled in an electrical engineering
program at a technical university in 1996. He spent five months in the German army and then received a medical discharge. He lived in a student home during the weekdays and he spent weekends with his aunt, Barbara Arens. Both of them loved computers, and he called her his "high-tech aunt". She saw that he was secular until other students introduced him to radical Islam. She later put an end to the weekend visits.
On November 1, 1998, he moved into an apartment in Germany with future hijackers Mohamed Atta
and Ramzi bin al-Shibh. The Hamburg cell
was born at this apartment.http://www.newsday.com/news/nationworld/world/la-012702atta.story
They met three or four times a week to discuss their anti-American feelings and plot possible attacks. Many al-Qaeda members lived in this apartment at various times, including hijacker Marwan al-Shehhi
, Zakariya Essabar
, and others. He apparently served as the group's Internet
expert.
He had already been under investigation by German intelligence for his connections with Mohammed Haydar Zammar
, a radical Islam
ic cleric. Through this, German intelligence was able to learn some of the activities of Atta and others, but the investigation was eventually dropped for lack of evidence.
In October 1999, he got married at the Al-Quds Mosque in Hamburg. Atta, Jarrah, Shehhi, Zammar, and bin al-Shibh all attended his wedding.
In late 1999, Atta, Shehhi, Jarrah, and bin al-Shibh decided to travel to Chechnya
to fight against the Russia
ns, but were convinced by Khalid al-Masri
and Mohamedou Ould Slahi
at the last minute to change their plans. They instead traveled to Afghanistan
to meet with Osama bin Laden and train for terrorist attacks. There are conflicting reports as to whether he went with them; some news reports say that he went, but the 9/11 Commission Report says he stayed in Germany and helped cover for them in their absence. When the group returned to Germany, he was put on a border patrol watch list.
He told his employer in June 2001 that he was going to an internship for a software company in Pakistan
. His aunt, Barbara Arens, says that she was suspicious and that she went to the police and pleaded to them "to do something." She says that police took no action against him.
Al-Qaeda leader Khalid Sheikh Mohammed told him in August that if he wanted to go to Afghanistan, he should go in the next few weeks, because it would soon become more difficult. He left Germany
on September 4, 2001, just a week before the attacks, and flew to Karachi
via Istanbul
.
During the October 2009, Pakistan military operation
against terrorists in South Waziristan
, his German passport was found in a captured militant town.
Hamburg cell
The Hamburg cell was, according to U.S. and German intelligence agencies, a group of radical Islamists based in Hamburg, Germany that included students who eventually came to be key operatives in the 9/11 attacks...
that provided money to the perpetrators of the September 11 attacks.
History
He is a German citizen, and was born to a MoroccanMorocco
Morocco , officially the Kingdom of Morocco , is a country located in North Africa. It has a population of more than 32 million and an area of 710,850 km², and also primarily administers the disputed region of the Western Sahara...
father and a German
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
mother in 1975. The family moved to Morocco when he was nine years old. He came to Hamburg
Hamburg
-History:The first historic name for the city was, according to Claudius Ptolemy's reports, Treva.But the city takes its modern name, Hamburg, from the first permanent building on the site, a castle whose construction was ordered by the Emperor Charlemagne in AD 808...
in 1995. He enrolled in an electrical engineering
Electrical engineering
Electrical engineering is a field of engineering that generally deals with the study and application of electricity, electronics and electromagnetism. The field first became an identifiable occupation in the late nineteenth century after commercialization of the electric telegraph and electrical...
program at a technical university in 1996. He spent five months in the German army and then received a medical discharge. He lived in a student home during the weekdays and he spent weekends with his aunt, Barbara Arens. Both of them loved computers, and he called her his "high-tech aunt". She saw that he was secular until other students introduced him to radical Islam. She later put an end to the weekend visits.
On November 1, 1998, he moved into an apartment in Germany with future hijackers Mohamed Atta
Mohamed Atta
Mohamed Mohamed el-Amir Awad el-Sayed Atta was one of the masterminds and the ringleader of the September 11 attacks who served as the hijacker-pilot of American Airlines Flight 11, crashing the plane into the North Tower of the World Trade Center as part of the coordinated attacks.Born in 1968...
and Ramzi bin al-Shibh. The Hamburg cell
Hamburg cell
The Hamburg cell was, according to U.S. and German intelligence agencies, a group of radical Islamists based in Hamburg, Germany that included students who eventually came to be key operatives in the 9/11 attacks...
was born at this apartment.http://www.newsday.com/news/nationworld/world/la-012702atta.story
They met three or four times a week to discuss their anti-American feelings and plot possible attacks. Many al-Qaeda members lived in this apartment at various times, including hijacker Marwan al-Shehhi
Marwan al-Shehhi
Marwan Yousef Mohamed Rashid Lekrab al-Shehhi was the hijacker-pilot of United Airlines Flight 175, crashing the plane into the South Tower of the World Trade Center as part of the September 11 attacks....
, Zakariya Essabar
Zakariya Essabar
Zakariya Essabar is, according to the governments of the United States, Germany, and other countries, a member of al-Qaeda and an associate of many of the organizers of the September 11 attacks.-History:...
, and others. He apparently served as the group's Internet
Internet
The Internet is a global system of interconnected computer networks that use the standard Internet protocol suite to serve billions of users worldwide...
expert.
He had already been under investigation by German intelligence for his connections with Mohammed Haydar Zammar
Mohammed Haydar Zammar
Mohammed Haydar Zammar is a Muslim jihadist who served as an important al-Qaida recruiter. He claims to have recruited many of the organizers of the September 11, 2001 attacks. He is detained in Far'Falastin.-Early history:...
, a radical Islam
Islam
Islam . The most common are and . : Arabic pronunciation varies regionally. The first vowel ranges from ~~. The second vowel ranges from ~~~...
ic cleric. Through this, German intelligence was able to learn some of the activities of Atta and others, but the investigation was eventually dropped for lack of evidence.
In October 1999, he got married at the Al-Quds Mosque in Hamburg. Atta, Jarrah, Shehhi, Zammar, and bin al-Shibh all attended his wedding.
In late 1999, Atta, Shehhi, Jarrah, and bin al-Shibh decided to travel to Chechnya
Chechnya
The Chechen Republic , commonly referred to as Chechnya , also spelled Chechnia or Chechenia, sometimes referred to as Ichkeria , is a federal subject of Russia . It is located in the southeastern part of Europe in the Northern Caucasus mountains. The capital of the republic is the city of Grozny...
to fight against the Russia
Russia
Russia or , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia. It is a federal semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects...
ns, but were convinced by Khalid al-Masri
Khalid al-Masri
Khalid al-Masri is the name of a person alleged to have approached two 9/11 hijackers on a train in Germany and suggested that they contact an alleged al Qaeda operative in Duisburg....
and Mohamedou Ould Slahi
Mohamedou Ould Slahi
Mohamedou Ould Slahi or Salahi is a Mauritanian who has been detained at Guantánamo Bay detention camp since August 4, 2002...
at the last minute to change their plans. They instead traveled to Afghanistan
Afghanistan
Afghanistan , officially the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan, is a landlocked country located in the centre of Asia, forming South Asia, Central Asia and the Middle East. With a population of about 29 million, it has an area of , making it the 42nd most populous and 41st largest nation in the world...
to meet with Osama bin Laden and train for terrorist attacks. There are conflicting reports as to whether he went with them; some news reports say that he went, but the 9/11 Commission Report says he stayed in Germany and helped cover for them in their absence. When the group returned to Germany, he was put on a border patrol watch list.
He told his employer in June 2001 that he was going to an internship for a software company in Pakistan
Pakistan
Pakistan , officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan is a sovereign state in South Asia. It has a coastline along the Arabian Sea and the Gulf of Oman in the south and is bordered by Afghanistan and Iran in the west, India in the east and China in the far northeast. In the north, Tajikistan...
. His aunt, Barbara Arens, says that she was suspicious and that she went to the police and pleaded to them "to do something." She says that police took no action against him.
Al-Qaeda leader Khalid Sheikh Mohammed told him in August that if he wanted to go to Afghanistan, he should go in the next few weeks, because it would soon become more difficult. He left Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
on September 4, 2001, just a week before the attacks, and flew to Karachi
Karachi
Karachi is the largest city, main seaport and the main financial centre of Pakistan, as well as the capital of the province of Sindh. The city has an estimated population of 13 to 15 million, while the total metropolitan area has a population of over 18 million...
via Istanbul
Istanbul
Istanbul , historically known as Byzantium and Constantinople , is the largest city of Turkey. Istanbul metropolitan province had 13.26 million people living in it as of December, 2010, which is 18% of Turkey's population and the 3rd largest metropolitan area in Europe after London and...
.
Aftermath of the attacks
He and cohort Ramzi bin al-Shibh were charged with 5,000 counts of murder by German officials. Bin al-Shibh has since been arrested, but Bahaji is still at large.During the October 2009, Pakistan military operation
Operation Rah-e-Nijat
The Operation Rah-e-Nijat was a Pakistani military operation against the Taliban and other Islamist rebels in the South Waziristan area of the Federally Administered Tribal Areas that began on June 19, 2009; a major ground offensive was subsequently launched on October 17...
against terrorists in South Waziristan
South Waziristan
South Waziristan is the southern part of Waziristan, a mountainous region of northwest Pakistan, bordering Afghanistan and covering some 11,585 km² . Waziristan comprises the area west and southwest of Peshawar between the Tochi River to the north and the Gomal River to the south, forming...
, his German passport was found in a captured militant town.
External links
- The Final 9/11 Commission Report
- Tracking the Threat.com
- Interpol red notice on Bahaji
- Interpol notice of UN sanction on Bahaji
- Wanted poster on Bahaji at the Defense Intelligence AgencyDefense Intelligence AgencyThe Defense Intelligence Agency is a member of the Intelligence Community of the United States, and is the central producer and manager of military intelligence for the United States Department of Defense, employing over 16,500 U.S. military and civilian employees worldwide...
, in jpg format
