Overview

Waleed al Shehri was one of the so-called “muscle hijackers” of American Airlines Flight 11, flown into the World Trade Center’s north tower as the first of the four 9/11 plane hijackings.National Commission on Terrorist Attacks upon the United States, Thomas H. Kean, and Lee Hamilton. 2004. The 9/11 Commission report: final report of the National Commission on Terrorist Attacks upon the United States. (Washington, D.C.): 231; 437, http://govinfo.library.unt.edu/911/report/911Report.pdf. As a muscle hijacker, Shehri helped to storm the cockpit and keep passengers under controlNational Commission on Terrorist Attacks upon the United States, Thomas H. Kean, and Lee Hamilton. 2004. The 9/11 Commission report: final report of the National Commission on Terrorist Attacks upon the United States. (Washington, D.C.): 227, http://govinfo.library.unt.edu/911/report/911Report.pdf. so that the hijacker-pilot, Mohamed Atta, could take control of the plane. According to reports, Waleed and his brother Wail al Shehri, another muscle hijacker on the flight, likely initiated the hijacking by stabbing two unarmed flight attendants preparing for cabin service.National Commission on Terrorist Attacks upon the United States, Thomas H. Kean, and Lee Hamilton. 2004. The 9/11 Commission report: final report of the National Commission on Terrorist Attacks upon the United States. (Washington, D.C.): 5, http://govinfo.library.unt.edu/911/report/911Report.pdf.

Waleed al Shehri was from Saudi Arabia’s Asir Province, an impoverished region in the country’s southwest.National Commission on Terrorist Attacks upon the United States, Thomas H. Kean, and Lee Hamilton. 2004. The 9/11 Commission report: final report of the National Commission on Terrorist Attacks upon the United States. (Washington, D.C.): 232, http://govinfo.library.unt.edu/911/report/911Report.pdf;
“9/11 Chronology Part 02 of 02,” Federal Bureau of Investigation, accessed July 7, 2017, 2, https://vault.fbi.gov/9-11%20Commission%20Report/9-11-chronology-part-01-of-02/. He was born in the city of Namas, but lived most of his life in Khamis Musayet, where his father was a tribal leader.“9/11 Chronology Part 01 of 02,” Federal Bureau of Investigation, accessed July 7, 2017, 2, https://vault.fbi.gov/9-11%20Commission%20Report/9-11-chronology-part-01-of-02/;
“Profiles of 9/11 Saudi Hijackers Revealed,” Saudi Information Agency, September 11, 2002, https://web.archive.org/web/20071107064223/http://www.arabiaradio.org/english/article.cfm;
National Commission on Terrorist Attacks upon the United States, Thomas H. Kean, and Lee Hamilton. 2004. The 9/11 Commission report: final report of the National Commission on Terrorist Attacks upon the United States. (Washington, D.C.): 524, http://govinfo.library.unt.edu/911/report/911Report.pdf. Reports on his background are conflicting, but according to a CIA report, he allegedly came from a relatively affluent family of 20 children.National Security Archive, “The Plot and the Plotters," Central Intelligence Agency Intelligence Report, June 1, 2003, 37, https://assets.documentcloud.org/documents/368989/2003-06-01-11-september-the-plot-and-the.pdf. A Boston Globe article from 2002 reports that the Shehri children were brought up in the strict tradition of the Wahhabi school of Islam and forbidden any link to the modern world, including access to TV or the Internet. The 9/11 Commission Report suggests that Waleed had begun university studies,National Commission on Terrorist Attacks upon the United States, Thomas H. Kean, and Lee Hamilton. 2004. The 9/11 Commission report: final report of the National Commission on Terrorist Attacks upon the United States. (Washington, D.C.): 232, http://govinfo.library.unt.edu/911/report/911Report.pdf. and another source reports that he dropped out from the teacher’s college in Abha that his brother Wail attended.“Profiles of 9/11 Saudi Hijackers Revealed,” Saudi Information Agency, September 11, 2002, https://web.archive.org/web/20071107064223/http://www.arabiaradio.org/english/article.cfm. The brothers were reportedly recruited into Osama Bin Laden’s network at the Seqeley mosque in Khamis Musayet, where they worshipped, and pledged themselves to engage in violent jihad in the spring of 2000, after which point they traveled to Afghanistan.“Profiles of 9/11 Saudi Hijackers Revealed,” Saudi Information Agency, September 11, 2002, https://web.archive.org/web/20071107064223/http://www.arabiaradio.org/english/article.cfm; Charles M. Sennott, “Before oath to jihad, drifting and boredom,” Boston Globe, March 3, 2002, http://www.webcitation.org/5bTYljW3A?url=http://www.boston.com/news/packages/underattack/news/driving_a_wedge/part1_side.shtml. The 9/11 Commission Report confirms that many of the muscle hijackers were recruited through local mosques.National Commission on Terrorist Attacks upon the United States, Thomas H. Kean, and Lee Hamilton. 2004. The 9/11 Commission report: final report of the National Commission on Terrorist Attacks upon the United States. (Washington, D.C.): 233, http://govinfo.library.unt.edu/911/report/911Report.pdf.

Waleed also reportedly accompanied Wail to an Islamic holy city in Saudi Arabia in either 1999 or 2000, after Wail reportedly became depressed and went to seek help from a religious healer.“Fathers Say 9-11 Suspects Gave No Warning,” ABC News, March 22, 2002, http://abcnews.go.com/2020/story?id=123939;
Charles M. Sennott, “Before oath to jihad, drifting and boredom,” Boston Globe, March 3, 2002, http://www.webcitation.org/5bTYljW3A?url=http://www.boston.com/news/packages/underattack/news/driving_a_wedge/part1_side.shtml;
Mutlaq Al-Buqami, “Al-Shihri says sons missing for 10 months,” Arab News, September 17, 2001, http://www.webcitation.org/5bTh4Uvav?url=http://www.arabnews.com. A CIA report suggests that this trip took place in mid-2000,National Security Archive, “The Plot and the Plotters," Central Intelligence Agency Intelligence Report, June 1, 2003, 38, https://assets.documentcloud.org/documents/368989/2003-06-01-11-september-the-plot-and-the.pdf. whereas the 9/11 Commission suggests that the Shehri brothers had already traveled to Afghanistan by mid-2000.National Commission on Terrorist Attacks upon the United States, Thomas H. Kean, and Lee Hamilton. 2004. The 9/11 Commission report: final report of the National Commission on Terrorist Attacks upon the United States. (Washington, D.C.): 233-4, http://govinfo.library.unt.edu/911/report/911Report.pdf. The 9/11 Commission Report, however, also mentions that some recruits “began to make arrangements for extended absences” before traveling to Afghanistan.National Commission on Terrorist Attacks upon the United States, Thomas H. Kean, and Lee Hamilton. 2004. The 9/11 Commission report: final report of the National Commission on Terrorist Attacks upon the United States. (Washington, D.C.): 233, http://govinfo.library.unt.edu/911/report/911Report.pdf. Given the discrepancy in dates, and given that their father admitted that he “lost track” of them after they left for this alleged trip,Mutlaq Al-Buqami, “Al-Shihri says sons missing for 10 months,” Arab News, September 17, 2001, http://www.webcitation.org/5bTh4Uvav?url=http://www.arabnews.com. it is believed that this trip could have simply been a pretext for their travels to Afghanistan.

Multiple sources report that the Shehri brothers traveled to Afghanistan in the spring of 2000.“Profiles of 9/11 Saudi Hijackers Revealed,” Saudi Information Agency, September 11, 2002, https://web.archive.org/web/20071107064223/http://www.arabiaradio.org/english/article.cfm; Charles M. Sennott, “Before oath to jihad, drifting and boredom,” Boston Globe, March 3, 2002, http://www.webcitation.org/5bTYljW3A?url=http://www.boston.com/news/packages/underattack/news/driving_a_wedge/part1_side.shtml. The 9/11 Commission Report explains that many of the muscle hijackers originally intended to travel to Chechnya to wage jihad against Russian forces there but were instead diverted to Afghanistan, where they volunteered to be suicide attackers after hearing bin Laden’s speeches. The report does not specify if this was the case for the Shehri brothers, but notes that they reportedly met 9/11 architect Khalid Sheikh Mohammed (KSM) when they was working in security at the airport in Kandahar, Afghanistan.National Commission on Terrorist Attacks upon the United States, Thomas H. Kean, and Lee Hamilton. 2004. The 9/11 Commission report: final report of the National Commission on Terrorist Attacks upon the United States. (Washington, D.C.): 233-34, http://govinfo.library.unt.edu/911/report/911Report.pdf. The hijackers underwent basic training in weaponry at al-Faruq, an al-Qaeda training camp near Kandahar.National Commission on Terrorist Attacks upon the United States, Thomas H. Kean, and Lee Hamilton. 2004. The 9/11 Commission report: final report of the National Commission on Terrorist Attacks upon the United States. (Washington, D.C.): 234, http://govinfo.library.unt.edu/911/report/911Report.pdf;
“Profiles of 9/11 Saudi Hijackers Revealed,” Saudi Information Agency, September 11, 2002, https://web.archive.org/web/20071107064223/http://www.arabiaradio.org/english/article.cfm. All of the hijackers volunteered for suicide missions.National Commission on Terrorist Attacks upon the United States, Thomas H. Kean, and Lee Hamilton. 2004. The 9/11 Commission report: final report of the National Commission on Terrorist Attacks upon the United States. (Washington, D.C.): 233, http://govinfo.library.unt.edu/911/report/911Report.pdf.

After completing the basic training sometime in 2000,  Shehri returned to Saudi Arabia, where he obtained a clean passport on October 3, 2000 and a U.S. visa on October 24, on which he claimed Jeddah, Saudi Arabia to be his hometown and “South City” to be his destination in the United States.National Commission on Terrorist Attacks upon the United States, Thomas H. Kean, and Lee Hamilton. 2004. The 9/11 Commission report: final report of the National Commission on Terrorist Attacks upon the United States. (Washington, D.C.): 234-235, http://govinfo.library.unt.edu/911/report/911Report.pdf;
“9/11 Chronology Part 01 of 02,” Federal Bureau of Investigation, accessed July 7, 2017, 93, 98, https://vault.fbi.gov/9-11%20Commission%20Report/9-11-chronology-part-01-of-02/. The Shehri brothers had a relative in the Saudi passport office who provided them their new passports.National Commission on Terrorist Attacks upon the United States, Thomas H. Kean, and Lee Hamilton. 2004. The 9/11 Commission report: final report of the National Commission on Terrorist Attacks upon the United States. (Washington, D.C.): 525, http://govinfo.library.unt.edu/911/report/911Report.pdf. Possibly because of this connection, KSM allegedly directed some of the other hijackers to contact Waleed in order to obtain documentation in Saudi Arabia.National Commission on Terrorist Attacks upon the United States, Thomas H. Kean, and Lee Hamilton. 2004. The 9/11 Commission report: final report of the National Commission on Terrorist Attacks upon the United States. (Washington, D.C.): 526, http://govinfo.library.unt.edu/911/report/911Report.pdf.

Waleed was part of a group that traveled from Saudi Arabia to Lebanon and Iran in November of 2000. While the purpose of this trip is unknown, the 9/11 Commission suggests that they may have met with and sought support from Hezbollah officials.National Commission on Terrorist Attacks upon the United States, Thomas H. Kean, and Lee Hamilton. 2004. The 9/11 Commission report: final report of the National Commission on Terrorist Attacks upon the United States. (Washington, D.C.): 240, http://govinfo.library.unt.edu/911/report/911Report.pdf. The so-called “muscle hijackers” then returned to Afghanistan for special training in late 2000 or early 2001, where they learned to conduct hijackings.National Commission on Terrorist Attacks upon the United States, Thomas H. Kean, and Lee Hamilton. 2004. The 9/11 Commission report: final report of the National Commission on Terrorist Attacks upon the United States. (Washington, D.C.): 235-6, http://govinfo.library.unt.edu/911/report/911Report.pdf. All of the so-called “muscle hijackers” were personally chosen by bin Laden during this time, after which they committed to carrying out a suicide operation and filmed a so-called “martyrdom video.National Commission on Terrorist Attacks upon the United States, Thomas H. Kean, and Lee Hamilton. 2004. The 9/11 Commission report: final report of the National Commission on Terrorist Attacks upon the United States. (Washington, D.C.): 235, http://govinfo.library.unt.edu/911/report/911Report.pdf. The video featuring Waleed al Shehri was released in September of 2007.“New bin Laden video shows 9/11 hijacker,” Independent (London), September 11, 2007, http://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/americas/new-bin-laden-video-shows-911-hijacker-402022.html.

Waleed al Shehri was part of the first pair of muscle hijackers to arrive in the United States. He flew from the Dubai to Florida via London alongside fellow Flight 11 muscle hijacker Satam al Suqami, arriving in Orlando on April 23, 2001.National Commission on Terrorist Attacks upon the United States, Thomas H. Kean, and Lee Hamilton. 2004. The 9/11 Commission report: final report of the National Commission on Terrorist Attacks upon the United States. (Washington, D.C.): 527, http://govinfo.library.unt.edu/911/report/911Report.pdf. They moved into a motel in Hollywood, Florida, on April 30, staying in various motels and apartment complexes in southern Florida in the subsequent months.National Commission on Terrorist Attacks upon the United States, Thomas H. Kean, and Lee Hamilton. 2004. The 9/11 Commission report: final report of the National Commission on Terrorist Attacks upon the United States. (Washington, D.C.): 528, http://govinfo.library.unt.edu/911/report/911Report.pdf;
“9/11 Chronology Part 01 of 02,” Federal Bureau of Investigation, accessed July 7, 2017, 54, 87, https://vault.fbi.gov/9-11%20Commission%20Report/9-11-chronology-part-01-of-02/. Records show that he opened a bank account,“9/11 Chronology Part 01 of 02,” Federal Bureau of Investigation, accessed July 7, 2017, 140, https://vault.fbi.gov/9-11%20Commission%20Report/9-11-chronology-part-01-of-02/. obtained a Florida state driver’s license,“9/11 Chronology Part 01 of 02,” Federal Bureau of Investigation, accessed July 7, 2017, 141, https://vault.fbi.gov/9-11%20Commission%20Report/9-11-chronology-part-01-of-02/. purchased a car,“9/11 Chronology Part 01 of 02,” Federal Bureau of Investigation, accessed July 7, 2017, 140, https://vault.fbi.gov/9-11%20Commission%20Report/9-11-chronology-part-01-of-02/. and even frequented a gym.“9/11 Chronology Part 02 of 02,” Federal Bureau of Investigation, accessed July 7, 2017, 159, 160, 165, https://vault.fbi.gov/9-11%20Commission%20Report/9-11-chronology-part-02-of-02/.

Shehri took several trips in the following months. On May 19, Shehri and Suqami traveled from Fort Lauderdale to Freeport in the Bahamas, but returned the same day after they were turned away by Bahamian officials for not carrying passports.“9/11 Chronology Part 01 of 02,” Federal Bureau of Investigation, accessed July 7, 2017, 143, https://vault.fbi.gov/9-11%20Commission%20Report/9-11-chronology-part-01-of-02/. The 9/11 Commission Report suggests that the trip may have been organized in order to renew Suqami’s immigration status.National Commission on Terrorist Attacks upon the United States, Thomas H. Kean, and Lee Hamilton. 2004. The 9/11 Commission report: final report of the National Commission on Terrorist Attacks upon the United States. (Washington, D.C.): 241-2, http://govinfo.library.unt.edu/911/report/911Report.pdf. On July 30, Shehri flew alone from Fort Lauderdale to Boston, then to San Francisco the following day, returning to Florida the following day via Las Vegas. The 9/11 Commission Report suggests that the purpose of this trip may have been to take a surveillance flight, as he traveled in the same seating and on the same type of aircraft as he would on American Airlines Flight 11: first-class on a Boeing 767. However, if this was indeed the case, he would have been the only muscle hijacker to have taken a surveillance flight, as the other 9/11 terrorists who did so were plot leaders or pilots.National Commission on Terrorist Attacks upon the United States, Thomas H. Kean, and Lee Hamilton. 2004. The 9/11 Commission report: final report of the National Commission on Terrorist Attacks upon the United States. (Washington, D.C.): 242, http://govinfo.library.unt.edu/911/report/911Report.pdf.

On August 26 and 28, Shehri booked first-class tickets on American Airlines Flight 11,“9/11 Chronology Part 02 of 02,” Federal Bureau of Investigation, accessed July 7, 2017, 237, 241, https://vault.fbi.gov/9-11%20Commission%20Report/9-11-chronology-part-02-of-02/. bound from Boston to Los Angeles. On September 3, Shehri and his brother Wail contacted American Airlines to change their seat assignments to the other side of the plane, where they would have a direct view of the cockpit.“9/11 Chronology Part 02 of 02,” Federal Bureau of Investigation, accessed July 7, 2017, 249, https://vault.fbi.gov/9-11%20Commission%20Report/9-11-chronology-part-02-of-02/. On September 5, the brothers flew from Fort Lauderdale to Boston, later checking into a motel in Newton, Massachusetts, where they stayed until the morning of September 11.“9/11 Chronology Part 02 of 02,” Federal Bureau of Investigation, accessed July 7, 2017, 257, https://vault.fbi.gov/9-11%20Commission%20Report/9-11-chronology-part-02-of-02/.

On the morning of September 11, all five hijackers of American Airlines Flight 11 checked in at Boston Logan International Airport sometime between 6:45 and 7:40 a.m. Shehri and two of the flight’s remaining hijackers were selected by a computerized prescreening system at Boston Logan, but were ultimately able to clear the security checkpoint and board the flight without issue. American Airlines Flight 11 departed at 7:59 a.m., scheduled to fly with nonstop service from Boston to Los Angeles. Waleed sat in seat 2B in the first class cabin, next to his brother in seat 2A.National Commission on Terrorist Attacks upon the United States, Thomas H. Kean, and Lee Hamilton. 2004. The 9/11 Commission report: final report of the National Commission on Terrorist Attacks upon the United States. (Washington, D.C.): 2-4, http://govinfo.library.unt.edu/911/report/911Report.pdf.

The plane hijacking on American Airlines Flight 11 is believed to have begun at around 8:14 a.m.National Commission on Terrorist Attacks upon the United States, Thomas H. Kean, and Lee Hamilton. 2004. The 9/11 Commission report: final report of the National Commission on Terrorist Attacks upon the United States. (Washington, D.C.): 4, http://govinfo.library.unt.edu/911/report/911Report.pdf. Based on reports from two flight attendants who made calls before the plane crashed, it started when two hijackers stabbed the two unarmed flight attendants preparing for cabin service. Given their seat location, these hijackers are believed to have been Waleed and Wail al Shehri. The hijackers claimed that they had a bomb, and sprayed pepper spray in the first-class cabinso that the hijacker-pilot, Mohamed Atta, could enter the cockpit and wrest control of the aircraft.National Commission on Terrorist Attacks upon the United States, Thomas H. Kean, and Lee Hamilton. 2004. The 9/11 Commission report: final report of the National Commission on Terrorist Attacks upon the United States. (Washington, D.C.): 5, http://govinfo.library.unt.edu/911/report/911Report.pdf.

At 8:46 a.m. American Airlines Flight 11 crashed into the north tower of the World Trade Center, killing everyone on board and an unknown number of people in the tower.National Commission on Terrorist Attacks upon the United States, Thomas H. Kean, and Lee Hamilton. 2004. The 9/11 Commission report: final report of the National Commission on Terrorist Attacks upon the United States. (Washington, D.C.): 6-7, http://govinfo.library.unt.edu/911/report/911Report.pdf. The 9/11 attacks—including attacks on the World Trade Center, the Pentagon, and the thwarted attack headed for the White House or Capitol—left nearly 3,000 people dead in the single deadliest attack in U.S. history.National Commission on Terrorist Attacks upon the United States, Thomas H. Kean, and Lee Hamilton. 2004. The 9/11 Commission report: final report of the National Commission on Terrorist Attacks upon the United States. (Washington, D.C.): 311, http://govinfo.library.unt.edu/911/report/911Report.pdf.