9/11 Families United Statement on Announced DOJ Investigation and U.S. Senate Investigation of PGA-LIV Pact

Washington, D.C.9/11 Families United released the following statement in response to recent announcements by the U.S. Department of Justice and members of the U.S. Senate that they intend to investigate the PGA Tour’s deal with the Saudi-funded LIV Golf Tour.  Please attribute the following statement to Terry Strada, National Chair of 9/11 Families United:

“We are pleased to see and welcome these investigations into the circumstances surrounding the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia’s attempted acquisition of one of America’s cherished institutions – the PGA Tour.  9/11 Families United has long called into question the Saudi’s use of sportswashing with the LIV Golf Tour, and this announcement proves that we are not alone in our fight for truth and accountability with the Kingdom which has relied on an ‘army’ of paid consultants and lobbyists spanning several years to evade any responsibility for the brutal attack on our country and murder of our loved ones.”

“Wealthy Saudi citizens along with Saudi-government controlled banks and charities were conduits to promote Wahhabism and underwrite terrorism for years leading up to the terrorist attack on our nation – and the House of Saud in power on 9/11 is still in power today.  It’s the same government which recently declassified U.S. intelligence reports confirm that agents on its payroll provide necessary assistance for the 19 Islamist hijackers to carry out their heinous attack on America.”

“As previous court documents made clear, LIV Golf was never about economics for the Saudis and there has never been a rational economic reason for spending billions on golf. As even the PGA Tour’s Commissioner agreed only months ago, the Kingdom is using LIV Golf to improve the Kingdom’s standing in the world, and now the the Kingdom is leveraging LIV to take over the PGA Tour, giving it an even larger sportswashing enterprise.  Make no mistake, 9/11 Families United is committed to its pursuit of justice and accountability for the murder of our loved ones and we will not stop until the Kingdom takes responsibility for its role in the 9/11 attacks.” 

The announcement of these investigations into the PGA Tour-LIV Golf deal comes after 9/11 Families United recently requested the Department of Justice to investigate any potential FARA violations committed by any consultants or lobbyists working for LIV Golf as a former consultant was forced to retroactively file a FARA registration due to the revelation that the Saudi’s Public Investment Fund was overseeing some of their work.

Terry Strada and 9/11 Families United were the first to call the world’s attention to the Saudi’s attempted sportswashing using professional golf.  One year ago, 9/11 Families United sent a letter to the American golfers participating in the Saudi-funded LIV Golf league expressing outrage towards the golfers for selling out their fellow Americans by participating in the multi-billion dollar “sports washing” campaign. 

About 9/11 Families United:

9/11 Families United is an organization consisting of family members of those murdered in the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001, as well as many of those who survived, were injured in or sickened from the attacks, a community that numbers well over 10,000.  More information is at www.911familiesunited.org.

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