As the US continues its long manhunt for Osama bin Laden, victims of the Sept. 11, 2001, terror attacks are in the midst of their own bin Laden pursuit: for his family’s vast fortune.
Victims and survivors of the attack and insurance companies say the bin Laden family failed to cut off ties with their infamous relative after learning he was devising terrorism plots and should be held liable for hundreds of millions of dollars in damages.
Lawyers for the victims and survivors argued last week that bin Laden’s family members were getting off easy in defending against the claims that they turned a blind eye to his sinister ways after learning of his terrorist leanings in 1993.
The lawyers asked a judge in US District Court in Manhattan to let them seek more information to prove their claim. Their lawsuit targets the Saudi Binladin Group, along with numerous banks, charities and individuals worldwide, alleging that they provided material support and assistance to al-Qaeda before Sept. 11.
The Saudi Binladin Group is a construction and engineering company that has expansive holdings in the Middle East. Osama bin Laden once owned a small stake in the company.
The victims and survivors suffered a setback last month when US Judge Frank Maas turned down many of the requests for more information about the financial ties between bin Laden and his family, saying in essence that the plaintiffs had become petty in their requests.
Republican US lawmakers on Friday criticized US President Joe Biden’s administration after sanctioned Chinese telecoms equipment giant Huawei unveiled a laptop this week powered by an Intel artificial intelligence (AI) chip. The US placed Huawei on a trade restriction list in 2019 for contravening Iran sanctions, part of a broader effort to hobble Beijing’s technological advances. Placement on the list means the company’s suppliers have to seek a special, difficult-to-obtain license before shipping to it. One such license, issued by then-US president Donald Trump’s administration, has allowed Intel to ship central processors to Huawei for use in laptops since 2020. China hardliners
Conjoined twins Lori and George Schappell, who pursued separate careers, interests and relationships during lives that defied medical expectations, died this month in Pennsylvania, funeral home officials said. They were 62. The twins, listed by Guinness World Records as the oldest living conjoined twins, died on April 7 at the Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania, obituaries posted by Leibensperger Funeral Homes of Hamburg said. The cause of death was not detailed. “When we were born, the doctors didn’t think we’d make 30, but we proved them wrong,” Lori said in an interview when they turned 50, the Philadelphia Inquirer reported. The
RAMPAGE: A Palestinian man was left dead after dozens of Israeli settlers searching for a missing 14-year-old boy stormed a village in the Israeli-occupied West Bank US President Joe Biden on Friday said he expected Iran to attack Israel “sooner, rather than later” and warned Tehran not to proceed. Asked by reporters about his message to Iran, Biden simply said: “Don’t,” underscoring Washington’s commitment to defend Israel. “We are devoted to the defense of Israel. We will support Israel. We will help defend Israel and Iran will not succeed,” he said. Biden said he would not divulge secure information, but said his expectation was that an attack could come “sooner, rather than later.” Israel braced on Friday for an attack by Iran or its proxies as warnings grew of
IN PURSUIT: Israel’s defense minister said the revenge attacks by Israeli settlers would make it difficult for security forces to find those responsible for the 14-year-old’s death Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Saturday condemned the “heinous murder” of an Israeli teenager in the occupied West Bank as attacks on Palestinian villages intensified following news of his death. After Benjamin Achimeir, 14, was reported missing near Ramallah on Friday, hundreds of Jewish settlers backed by Israeli forces raided nearby Palestinian villages, torching vehicles and homes, leaving at least one villager dead and dozens wounded. The attacks escalated in several villages on Saturday after Achimeir’s body was found near the Malachi Hashalom outpost. Agence France-Presse correspondents saw smoke rising from burned houses and fields. Mayor Amin Abu Alyah, of the