On January 15, 2000, two young Saudis landed at LAX, Los Angeles International Airport. Khalid Al-Mihdhar and Nawaf Al-Hazmi set foot in the United States for the first time: they do not speak a word of English but have the firm intention of learning the language and, above all, how to pilot planes. They were the first two of the nineteen hijackers sent by Al-Qaeda to commit the worst attack perpetrated on American soil, on September 11, 2001. Al-Mihdhar and Al-Hazmi were part of the commando who took control of American Airlines Flight 77 to rush it against the facade of the Pentagon, the headquarters of the Department of Defense in Washington, causing 184 deaths.
During the first months of their American journey, the two men were able to count on a “guardian angel”, a compatriot full of concern who found them a pied-à-terre in the residential complex where he lived in San Diego (California), acted as guarantor for them, advanced their first rent, opened a bank account for them, and put his rich network of contacts at their service.
This man is Omar Al-Bayoumi, a Saudi living in the United States, who says he met them ” by chance “ the 1er February 2000, barely two weeks after their arrival, in an oriental restaurant in Los Angeles. He is omnipresent in the American journey of Al-Hazmi and Al-Mihdhar, for whom he organizes a reception shortly after their installation in San Diego, in February 2000. It is a friend of his who enrolls them in a flight school, another acquaintance who hosts them when they move in June 2000, etc. There are a multitude of coincidences of this type. Enough to make Omar Al-Bayoumi, if not an accomplice, at least a suspect.
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