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9/11 Commission Report 9/11 Commission Report wikipedia.org The 9/11 Commission Report, formally named Final Report of the National Commission on Terrorist Attacks Upon the United States, is the official report of the events leading up to the September 11, 2001 attacks. It was prepared by the National Commission on Terrorist Attacks Upon the United States (informally sometimes known as the "9/11 Commission" or the "Kean/Hamilton Commission") at the request of the President and Congress, and is available to the public for sale or free download. The commission was established on November 27, 2002 (442 days after the attack) and their final report was issued on July 22, 2004. The report was originally scheduled for release on May 27, 2004, but a compromise agreed to by Speaker of the House Dennis Hastert allowed a sixty-day extension through July 26. Findings The Commission interviewed over 1,200 people in 10 countries and reviewed over two and a half million pages of documents, including some closely guarded classified national security documents. The Commission also relied heavily on the FBI's PENTTBOM investigation. Before it was released by the Commission, the final public report was screened for any potentially classified information and edited as necessary. After releasing the report, Commission Chair Thomas Kean declared that both Presidents Bill Clinton and George W. Bush were "not well served" by the FBI and CIA. In addition to identifying intelligence failures occurring before the attacks, the report provided evidence of the following: offered new evidence of increased contact (ISBN 0-393-32671-3). In addition, Barnes and * Airport security footage of the between Iran and al-Qaeda. The report contains Noble has independently published the report in hijackers as they passed through airport security information about how several of the 9/11 hardcover with an index (ISBN 0-7607-6806- * Excerpts from the United Airlines hijackers passed through Iran, and indicates that 4). Flight 93 cockpit voice recording, which officials in Iran did not place entry stamps in recorded the sounds of the hijackers in the their passports. However, according to the Continued on Page 24 cockpit and the passengers' attempts to regain report (Chapter 7), there is no evidence that Iran control was aware of the actual 9/11 plot. Iran has since * Eyewitness testimony of passengers as implemented several widely publicized efforts they described their own final moments to to shut down al-Qaeda cells operating within its family members and authorities on airphones country. and cellphones from the cabins of doomed The Commission Report chose to place airliners blame for failure to notify the military squarely The Commission also concluded 15 of upon the FAA. Ben Sliney, FAA operations the 19 hijackers who carried out the attacks manager at Herndon, Virginia, and Monte were from Saudi Arabia, but found no evidence Belger, FAA Acting Deputy Administrator on the government of Saudi Arabia conspired in the 9/11 both stated to the Commission that military attacks, or that it funded the attackers. liaisons were present and participating in Mohamed Atta, the leader of the attacks, was Herndon's response as the events of 9/11 from Egypt. Two hijackers were from the unfolded. Sliney stated that everyone who United Arab Emirates, and one was from needed to be notified, including the military, Lebanon. According to the Commission, all 19 was. hijackers were members of the al-Qaeda In addition to its findings, the report terrorist organization, led by Osama bin Laden. made extensive recommendations for changes In addition, while meetings between al-Qaeda that can be made to help prevent a similar representatives and Iraqi government officials attack. These include the creation of a National had taken place, the panel had no credible Intelligence Director over both the CIA and the evidence that Saddam Hussein had assisted al- FBI, and many changes in border security and Qaeda in preparing or executing the 9/11 immigration policy. attacks. The report is available free of charge The Commission's final report also online, or can be purchased as a paperback