Saudi Linked to 9/11 Found in NZ, Deported to KSA
Charles Johnson
Fri Jun 9, 2006 at 4:12 pm PDT • Views: 335
Rayed Mohammed Abdullah Ali, who lived with 9/11 hijacker Hani Hanjour in Phoenix Arizona, has been discovered taking flying lessons in New Zealand, and deported—to Saudi Arabia. (Hat tip: Jihad Watch.)
A Saudi Arabian linked to one of the September 11 hijackers spent four months in New Zealand before being expelled as a national security risk.
The United States-qualified pilot, Rayed Mohammed Abdullah Ali, was admitted to New Zealand in February on a student visa, saying his dream was to become a commercial airline pilot and that he needed an English language qualification to assist.
Today the Weekend Herald can reveal that on May 29 police and immigration officials raided Ali’s Palmerston North home and deported him. The 28-year-old had recently moved there from Auckland, partly to fly at the Manawatu Aero Club.
A Government statement to be released this morning will confirm that Ali was deported because he “posed a threat to national security”. The Government claimed last night that Ali had lived and trained in Phoenix, Arizona, with fellow Saudi Hani Hanjour in the months before Hanjour is believed to have piloted American Airlines Flight 77 into the Pentagon.
It is only the second time that section 72 of the Immigration Act has been used to deport someone. Its use requires the consent of the Governor-General, and there is no right of appeal.
Police seized Ali’s flight logbook from the aero club, where he had flown several times in Cessna aircraft accompanied by instructors. He was sent back to Saudi Arabia under escort.
Frank says: