New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani and Saudi Prince Al-Waleed bin Talal visit the site of 9/11. The prince hands Giuliani a letter and a check for $10 million.
In the letter, bin Talal writes that he is sorry for “the loss of life that the City of New York has suffered” and that he condemns “all forms of terrorism.” The check is a donation to one of the charity funds set up to help 9/11 survivors.
Giuliani accepts the check and the letter, until a press release hits his desk. In a statement, the prince goes on to say that despite the tragedy of September 11, the U.S. should reconsider its position with the Middle East and Palestine.
I believe the government of the United States of America should re-examine its policies in the Middle East and adopt a more balanced stance towards the Palestinian cause… Our Palestinian brethren continue to be slaughtered at the hands of Israelis while the world turns the other cheek.
Prince Al-Waleed bin Talal
The mayor is irritated by the statement and — after talking to the State Department — tells the press that he no longer accepts the $10 million. However, a spokesperson for the prince says Giuliani hasn’t contacted him about rejecting the money.
A spokesman for the prince, Amjed Shacker, who was reached on his cell phone as he prepared to board a plane for Saudi Arabia, said he knew of no such rejection and indeed seemed perplexed to learn of it. “The mayor took the check at 9 a.m.,” he said. “We have no knowledge of that. He accepted the check.”
The New York Times
A couple days go by before bin Talal confirms that the check has been rejected by Giuliani. ”My contribution was for the family and the victims of New York,” he says. ”I will not put blame on Mr. Giuliani… but his decision should be more rational.”
Years later, the U.S. confirms that 15 of the 19 men who hijacked the planes and flew them into the World Trade Center were Saudi citizens. Some of them are believed to have been financially supported by individuals connected to the Saudi government, including Saudi intelligence agents. Donald Trump sold an entire floor of Trump World Tower to the Saudi government three months before 9/11.
Prince bin Talal also has a financial relationship with Donald Trump and claims that he saved Trump from bankruptcy twice in the 1990s.
External Sources
The New York Times, 2 (Archived)
PDF: U.S. Intelligence Report, Part IV, Declassified in 2016 – Saudis & 9/11
Photo: Source unknown, found on Twitter