(Published Wednesday. Written by Terry Strada, widow of Thomas Strada, who was killed in the World Trade Center on 911.)After 15 years of enduring the gut-wrenching heartache from my husband’s murder — along with the murder of nearly 3,000 other innocent souls — we can all now feel a glimmer of hope after learning just before the 15th anniversary of 9/11 that Congress may finally pass a bill that could give me, my children and all other 9/11 families and survivors some chance at accountability for the terror attacks.
For me and our children, this fight is personal. I lost my husband and our three children lost their father. I promised them that I would never stop fighting for justice — not just against the hijackers but those who helped them.
As former co-chair of the 9/11 Congressional Inquiry, former Sen. Bob Graham always reminds us, we know that the 19 hijackers who barely spoke English could not come here and rent cars and apartments for two years; attend flight school; purchase first class airfare to scout out the flights and then later to execute the attacks; without assistance.
We family members and survivors have waited for almost 15 years to stand in a courtroom and hear and see the evidence collected against those that made 9/11 possible. One of the last steps to make that possible is a bill to be voted on Friday in the U.S. House, the Justice Against Sponsors of Terrorism Act, which the Senate passed unanimously in May.
That would give us a pathway to accountability. The bill has been navigated through the House by Rep. Pete King (R-N.Y.) and in the Senate by Sens. Charles Schumer (D-N.Y.) and John Cornyn (R-Texas).
JASTA merely restores a long-established principle of American law that foreign governments do not have immunity for their role in supporting terror attacks on U.S. soil.
That common sense principle was entrenched in our approach to sovereign immunity for nearly 40 years, until recent court decisions introduced confusion. As recently as 2005, in joint court filing by the U.S. Departments of State and Justice, the government stressed that no foreign government would enjoy immunity for its role in the 9/11 attacks.
JASTA does not determine whether the accused foreign state is actually responsible. It just wouldn’t get a free pass on accountability.
Under existing law, a foreign state alleged to be responsible for a car wreck has no free pass and must “face the music.” The same should be so for terror attacks. It is the right thing.
This week, my husband will have been gone 15 years. This week, the House has the opportunity to vote “Yes” on JASTA and “Yes” for terrorism accountability.
It would be a heart-wrenching insult for members of Congress to proclaim “Never Forget” at memorials this Sunday on the 15th anniversary without having passed JASTA. Please show that you stand on our side, the side of American citizens, and do not yield to pressure from powerful foreign influences looking to escape accountability. It’s past time to pass JASTA.
