Egyptian Mohamed Atta was 33 years old when he led 18 others in the September 11 attacks in 2001 in Washington and New York. He "initiated" the attacks by piloting the first plane that struck one of the World Trade Center towers in New York, a Boeing 767 operated by American Airlines, killing 1,600 people, including himself and four members of Al-Qaeda who assisted him in the hijacking. However, his mother, with whom the Spanish news site El Independiente conducted an interview in Cairo yesterday and which was viewed by "Al Arabiya.net," mentioned something strange 20 years after his death. She said, "As a mother, I feel that my son is still alive because I do not accept the idea of his death," according to her expression.
**Momentary Stance**
Buthaina Mohamed Mustafa Sharaki comes from a wealthy family involved in agriculture and trade. She is educated and married Mohamed Atta (the father) when she was 14 years old. According to her biography available online, her son Mohamed is the only male among three children; he has two older sisters, one of whom is a doctor and the other a university professor.
The 79-year-old mother stated that her son "is unable to do the things they say he has done" and prayed in front of her interviewer for God to return him to her "alive as I believe," as she perhaps feels he might show up in Afghanistan after the return of the Taliban. Therefore, she told the website, "I pray to God that my son is among them and eventually comes back home," a wish that grew within her since she saw images of the Taliban returning to Afghanistan in late August.
**"I Am Waiting for a Miracle to Bring Him Back to Me"**
She also mentioned feeling that her son was always detained in Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, but her "feeling" of him being alive has now shifted to Afghanistan, "where I do not know where he is now, and he may be detained somewhere, which is why he does not contact us," according to the mother's feelings. She also noted that she does not believe her son is capable of suicide and is convinced that the United States fabricated his alleged actions "to hide the truth forever (...) I want to see my son before I die, and I am waiting for a miracle to bring him to me to hear his voice."
Mohamed's father, an attorney, denied any involvement of his son in the attacks before his death in 2008. He mentioned in several interviews with both Arab and foreign media, including MBC, as shown in a video provided by "Al Arabiya.net" above, that the Israeli Mossad was behind the attacks. He stated that his son called him the day after the attacks but did not specify the location of the call or disclose the nature of the conversation.
