Brussels Suspect Played Key Role in 9/11 Preparations
One of the terror suspects detained during the raids in Brussels played a role in al-Qaida’s preparations for the Sept. 11, 2001 attacks on the U.S.
Abderrahmane Ameroud surrendered to police Friday after getting shot in the leg at a train station in Brussels. Authorities believe he was part of long-gone plans to carry out another attack in Paris.
Ameroud is a known figure within the Belgian jihadi community for his involvement in the Sept. 9, 2001 assassination of Afghan commander Amhad Shah Massoud, who was the last obstacle for the attack on the U.S two days later.
Two radicalized Belgians disguised as journalists carried out a suicide bombing while interviewing Massoud. Ameroud was sentenced to seven years in prison in 2003 for orchestrating the assassination.
Massoud warned of al-Qaida’s plans to attack western countries months before his death during a speech to the European Union. U.S. intelligence officials believe former al-Qaida leader Osama bin Laden ordered the assassination to remove the strongest opponent against the Taliban, as Massoud would have become a natural ally of the U.S. in the aftermath of 9/11.
Bin Laden gave a pay check to the widow of one of the perpetrators, and he stayed in close contact with her for years after the assassination.
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