Saudi intelligence link to Sept 11 hijackers

Washington - Two mysterious Saudi citizens living in California before the September 11 attacks may link the al-Qaida hijackers to Saudi intelligence, according to reports yesterday which are likely to provoke a new row between the US and Riyadh. The possibility of a Saudi intelligence link emerged just hours after widespread reports of bank cheques indirectly linking two of the hijackers to a bank account under the name of a Saudi princess, the wife of the kingdom's ambassador to Washington.

The Saudi embassy angrily denied the suggestion, calling it "untrue and irresponsible". A spokesman said there was no evidence that cheques from Princess Haifa bint Faisal's Washington account went to the hijackers Nawaq al-Hazmi and Khalid al-Midhar.

An FBI investigation leaked over the weekend traced regular monthly bank-certified cheques worth $3,500 (£2,200) from the princess's account to a Saudi woman called Majida Dwaikat starting in early 2000, which was when Mrs Dwaikat's husband, Osama Basnan, befriended al-Hazmi and al-Midhar in San Diego.

The Saudi embassy said it was investigating whether cheques had been sent to Mrs Dwaikat but said the payments could have been intended to help a fellow citizen in need.

Adel Al-Jubeir, a foreign policy adviser to Crown Prince Abdullah, said Princess Haifa is "a very generous woman" who supports many charitable causes. There were reports yesterday that Mr Basnan had written to the Saudi embassy in 1998 to ask for help to pay medical bills for his wife, who he said had a thyroid condition.

However, Newsweek magazine reported yesterday that there was more evidence linking Mr Basnan to Riyadh, saying he visited Houston in April just as Crown Prince Abdullah passed through with a large government entourage. The magazine quoted sources as saying Mr Basnan met "a high Saudi prince who has responsibilities for intelligence matters".

Mr Basnan was convicted of visa fraud in August and was ordered to be deported. He is thought still to be in the US.

Mrs Dwaikat is reported to have signed over many of the cheques from Princess Haifa to a friend, Manal Ahmed Bagader, the wife of another student in San Diego, Osama al-Bayoumi, who had links with the same two hijackers.

Mr al-Bayoumi threw a party for al-Midhar and al-Hazmi when they arrived in 2000, guaranteed the lease on a flat next door to his own and paid their first two months' lease.

Newsweek said Mr al-Bayoumi was believed by some local Muslims to be working for Saudi intelligence. Mr al-Bayoumi claimed to be studying at San Diego university but it has no records of him.

On September 11, Mr al-Bayoumi was studying for a business degree at Aston University, Birmingham. British police questioned him, but he reportedly claimed that he met al-Hazmi and al-Midhar by accident and was simply shown Arab hospitality.

The leaks about Mr al-Bayoumi and Mr Basnan are a symptom of rivalry in Washington. Congress is preparing a report into the September 11 investigation criticising the administration for failing to pursue leads that point to the Saudi establishment. The FBI is also frustrated that its inquiry into the Saudi role was stymied for political reasons.

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