U.S. Judge Rules That Saudi Arabia Must Face U.S. Lawsuits Over 9/11

People watch the Tribute in Light installation illuminated over lower Manhattan as seen from Brooklyn, marking the 16th anniversary of the 9/11 attacks in New York City, U.S., September 11, 2017. REUTERS/Brendan McDermid

Reuters: Saudi Arabia must face U.S. lawsuits over Sept. 11 attacks

NEW YORK (Reuters) - A U.S. judge on Wednesday rejected Saudi Arabia’s bid to dismiss lawsuits claiming that it helped plan the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks and should pay billions of dollars in damages to victims.

U.S. District Judge George Daniels in Manhattan said the plaintiffs’ allegations “narrowly articulate a reasonable basis” for him to assert jurisdiction over Saudi Arabia under the Justice Against Sponsors of Terrorism Act (JASTA), a 2016 federal law.

The Saudi government has long denied involvement in the attacks in which hijacked airplanes crashed into New York’s World Trade Center, the Pentagon outside Washington, D.C., and a Pennsylvania field. Nearly 3,000 people died.

Lawyers for Saudi Arabia did not immediately respond to requests for comment on the decision. At a Saudi stock market event in New York, asked whether the court decision would have a negative impact on Saudi investment in the United States, Capital Market Authority Chairman Mohammed A. ElKuwaiz declined to comment, saying he had not seen the news.

Daniels’ decision covers claims by the families of those killed, roughly 25,000 people who suffered injuries, and many businesses and insurers.

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WNU Editor: It took only  16+ years to get to this decision .... that will now be appealed thereby spending more years in the courts.