Mustafa Muhammad Ahmad
Mustafa Muhammad Ahmad, is the presumed alias of a terrorist operative who is believed to have provided funds to
Mohammed Atta, the suspected hijack ringleader in the
September 11, 2001 attacks. Although the identity of this person has been disputed by some, the FBI confirmed that Mustafa Ahmed was British-born
Ahmed Omar Saeed Sheikh, who wired over $100,000 to
Mohammed Atta, the lead hijacker, and who in 2002 was found guilty of the murder of the American investgative journalist,
Daniel Pearl.
'Mustafa Muhammad Ahmad' was named as an alias of a "Shaykh Sai'id" in a list of terrorists and terrorist organisations annexed to
Executive Order 13224, issued in the aftermath of the attacks.
Government sources later claimed Ahmad's identity was
Mustafa al-Hawsawi, then a Saudi named Sa'd Al-Sharif said to be bin Laden's brother-in-law[
1][
2], then a Mustafa Ahmed al-Hawsawi, then an al-Hisawi[
3][
4], then a Shaikh Saiid al-Sharif[
5],then an Ali Abdul Aziz Ali[
6], and the list goes on.
Most recently, the FBI said the most well-known candidate, Shaikh Saiid al-Sharif, doesn't actually exist, but is probably a composite of Mustafa Ahmed Al-Hisawi, Shaikh Saiid al-Masri, and Saad al-Sharif.[
7]. Newsweek, in describing yet another name variation, Mustafa Ahmad Adin Al-Husawi, says the person "remains almost a total mystery," and no one is sure of his name or even if he is one person.[
8]
Ahmed Omar Saeed Sheikh appears to be a master of disguise, as can be seen by the bewildering number of names he is referred to in the media: Sheik Syed, Ahmad Umar Sheikh, Umar Sheikh, Sheik Omar Saeed, Omar Saiid Sheikh, Sheikh Omar, etc... He opened bank accounts using many of his name variations, or even completely unrelated names.[
9][
10]
The Pittsburgh Tribune points to the fact that
"There are many in Musharraf's government who believe that Saeed Sheikh's power comes not from the ISI, but from his connections with our own CIA."[
11]
*
Suspected hijack bankroller freed by India in '99 - CNN*
Court papers cite al-Hawsawi in funding attacks - USA Today*
Sept. 11's Smoking Gun: The Many Faces of Saeed Sheikh - Center for Cooperative Research*
The Daily Excelsior*
CNN
