Families of 9/11 victims confronted former presidents George Bush, Barack Obama and Joe Biden at the Ground Zero NYC memorial during the 25th-anniversary commemoration on Friday, September 11, 2026.
They accused them of covering up Saudi Arabia’s alleged role in the terrorist attacks.
Terry Strada, the widow of 9/11 victim Tom Strada, drew cheers from the crowd as she accused the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia – where 15 of the 19 hijackers originated – of fomenting ‘anti-American terrorism’ and sending its agents to support the hijackers.
‘And still we have no justice for the role that Saudi Arabia played in your murder,’ she said.
Vice President JD Vance and all the living former presidents, including Bill Clinton, sat feet away as she spoke at the memorial service.
‘For 25 years, administration after administration, including leaders in front of us here today, chose to protect the Saudis instead of standing with the 9/11 families,’ she said.
‘They broke promises both public and private. It has been one betrayal after another.’
Strada said Donald Trump ‘can still change that,’ urging him to ‘tell the Saudis to stop lying’ and make clear they cannot be friends with the USA while denying their role in the attacks.
She then addressed Vance directly, thanking him for attending and asking him to ‘carry that message back’ and stand with the families and survivors.
Another relative, who lost his aunt Lisa Marie Terry in the attacks, told the crowd that ‘for 25 years the Deep State has hidden the truth’ and issued a direct plea: ‘President Trump, you’re our last hope. Release the unredacted files that implicate Saudi Arabia while what’s left of the victims’ families are still alive to see it.’
