Page:Substitution for the Testimony of Khalid Sheikh Mohammed.pdf/23

 42. Sheikh Mohammed met Hani Hanjour for the first time in September or October 2000, before the U.S.S. Cole bombing. Hanjour had just arrived in Afghanistan and had been at the al-Faruq camp for two weeks when he was urgently directed to report to Sheikh Mohammed. Sheikh Mohammed was in Karachi at that time and Hanjour presented a letter from Abu Hafs indicating that Hanjour was a trained pilot and should be sent to the U.S. along with the other 9/11 operatives. Sheikh Mohammed gave 2-3 days worth of training to Hanjour, including how to encode communications and apply for a visa. Hanjour was relatively easy to instruct because he already had pilot training and had already lived in the U.S. According to Sheikh Mohammed, Hanjour was one of the best-prepared operatives sent by Sheikh Mohammed to the U.S. Before Hanjour left Karachi, Sheikh Mohammed told him that he (Sheikh Mohammed) wanted Hanjour to pilot the plane that would strike the Pentagon. Sheikh Mohammed wanted the hijackers to strike the Pentagon and, given that the Pentagon would be a tough target because it is not a tall building, Sheikh Mohammed figured that Hanjour would be the best qualified of the pilots. Sheikh Mohammed sent Hanjour first to Saudi Arabia to obtain a new passport with a U.S. visa, and Page 23 of 58