Trump admin decision expected on disclosing key name in 9/11 suit

WASHINGTON — The Trump administration is expected to announce Thursday whether it will release documents in a lawsuit against Saudi Arabia that relatives of 9/11 victims believe may support allegations of Saudi involvement in the 2001 terrorist attacks, according to U.S. officials and other individuals involved in the case.

The long-awaited decision involves whether to disclose the name of a person who allegedly directed two men in California who assisted hijackers in the 9/11 attacks. The 9/11 families and their lawyers believe the person may be a Saudi official, but the name was redacted when a 2012 summary of the FBI’s inquiry into the matter was previously released.

But the decision has pitted President Donald Trump’s efforts to show he’s seeking justice for 9/11 victims against his desire to maintain close ties with Saudi Arabia, already strained in the wake of the killing of journalist Jamal Khashoggi by Saudi agents last year. Trump has worked to preserve the relationship with the Saudis despite widespread criticism in Congress of Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman’s leadership.

Lawyers for the 9/11 families have sought to get the unredacted version released by the FBI, and a deadline for the Justice Department to decide whether to release it has been delayed several times at the government’s request. Most recently the Justice Department obtained a delay until Thursday, and several individuals with knowledge of the case said that the Justice Department would indeed announce its decision on Thursday.

Withholding the name would most likely require invoking the “state secrets” privilege, a provision in U.S. law that allows the government to refuse to release information in lawsuits that could undermine national security.

The administration hasn’t indicated whether it will invoke the privilege. But advocates for the 9/11 families were given some reason for optimism this week when Jim Kreindler, a prominent attorney representing some of the 9/11 families, was a guest of the White House at a ceremony at the Pentagon marking the anniversary of the attacks, several people familiar with his attendance tell NBC News.

The White House referred all questions to the Justice Department. A Justice Department official said the department would indeed meet Thursday’s deadline but would not disclose what the decision will be.

White House officials have previously maintained that the decision about how to handle the legal matter rests with Attorney General William Barr. But the significant implications for the U.S. relationship with close partner Saudi Arabia, combined with Trump’s past record of seeking to influence Justice Department decisions, has raised speculation that he might get more personally involved.

Although 15 of the 19 attackers in the 9/11 attacks were Saudi citizens and mastermind Osama bin Laden was born there, Saudi Arabia’s government has long denied involvement in 9/11. The 9/11 Commission that investigated the attacks found it likely that Saudi government-funded charities did fund the attacks but did not find evidence that the government or senior Saudi officials were involved.

The lawsuit against Saudi Arabia was enabled by a 2016 law called the Justice Against Sponsors of Terrorism Act that allowed for a civil suit against a foreign state if it supports international terrorism against Americans or their property. Former President Barack Obama vetoed the law, warning it could create a precedent for the U.S. or its officials to be sued in foreign courts, but Congress voted to override his veto.