Science Fair Project Encyclopedia
Mustafa al-Hawsawi
Mustafa al-Hawsawi (Arabic: مصطفى الحوساوي, also transliterated in other ways, and has used many aliases) is a member of the militant Islamic organization al-Qaida and an organizer and financer of the September 11, 2001 attacks.
Al-Hawsawi is shrouded in mystery. A series of financial transactions and travels were made under this name in 2000 and 2001, although this may be an alias. This article could be seen as a history of the name "Mustafa al-Hawsawi", which may or may not be used by a single person. Someone using this name has also used the aliases Mustafa Ahmed, Mustafa Muhammad Ahmad, Ahmad Mustafa, Isam Mansour, Mustafa Ahmed Al-Hisawi, Mr. Ali, and Hani (Fawaz Trdng). It has been suggested that al-Hawsawi may be the same person as Ali Abdul Aziz Ali, or may be an alias of the Pakistani terrorist Ahmed Omar Saeed Sheikh, although this is unclear.
Before the 9/11 attacks, al-Hawsawi had apparently worked in al-Qaida's media committee in Kandahar. Then, along with al-Qaida financer Ali Abdul Aziz Ali (or perhaps using that name), al-Hawsawi assisted the hijackers from the United Arab Emirates. He helped coordinate with Mohammed Atta, the ringleader of the operation, to bring the "muscle hijackers" into the United States in 2001. He attempted to help bring the so-called "20th hijacker", Mohamed al-Kahtani, into the United States, but al-Kahtani was unable to enter the country.
Al-Hawsawi also sent funds to the hijackers. In the Summer of 2000, he appears to have sent a total of $109,910 to some of the 9/11 hijackers in a series of wire transfers under a variety of names. The New York Times has suggested that "Mustafa Ahmed" sent a total of $325,000 to the hijackers, but the 9/11 Commission was only able to verify $15,000 of this.
Just before the attacks, al-Hawsawi travelled to Pakistan, knowing that travel would be much more difficult after the attacks. He is believed to have been captured by authorities there in March, 2003, but no information regarding his current whereabouts has been released by U.S. officals.No biographical information for Al-Hawsawi appears to be available on line. However, in the indictment of Zacarias Moussaoui he is said to have been born in Jeddah on August 5, 1968.
Alongside Khalid Shaikh Mohammed, Al-Hawsawi is one of three named and requested by Zacarias Moussaoui's defence team for questioning. However, although the U.S. Federal Government claims to be holding both men, it is refusing Moussaoui's request, citing national security concerns.
External link
The contents of this article is licensed from www.wikipedia.org under the GNU Free Documentation License. Click here to see the transparent copy and copyright details