--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: The attacks of September 11 were made…" description: "\"The attacks of September 11 were made possible, in part, by the fact that U.S. law enforcement had a bias that 'rich Saudis are safe Arabs.' Al Qaeda u..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c42/malcolm-nance-13693_israel_the-attacks-of-september-11-were-made-po_2530927.jpg" --- # The attacks of September 11 were made possible, in part… ![“The attacks of September 11 were made possible, in part, by the fact that U.S. law enforcement had a bias that 'rich Saudis are safe Arabs.' Al Qaeda understood that bias and relied on it to operate freely in the United States for years, even when the terrorists were engaged in activities that the…” quote by Malcolm Nance](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c42/malcolm-nance-13693_israel_the-attacks-of-september-11-were-made-po_2530927.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c42/malcolm-nance-13693_israel_the-attacks-of-september-11-were-made-po_2530927.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c42/malcolm-nance-13693_israel_the-attacks-of-september-11-were-made-po_2530927.jpg) > “The attacks of September 11 were made possible, in part, by the fact that U.S. law enforcement had a bias that 'rich Saudis are safe Arabs.' Al Qaeda understood that bias and relied on it to operate freely in the United States for years, even when the terrorists were engaged in activities that the authorities considered suspicious.” [Malcolm Nance](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/malcolm-nance/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Bias in law enforcement allowed certain threats to evade detection. **In simple terms:** Bias can create security gaps. Key Takeaway Address systemic bias. Themes security bias law enforcement Mood critical concerned Type analytical political When to use this quote - policy making - law enforcement training - community outreach Key Concepts institutional bias terrorism prevention Questions to Reflect On - How can bias be identified? - What reforms reduce such bias? A Different Perspective Bias can be hard to change without reform. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Israel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/israel/) [Law](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/law/) [Law enforcement](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/law-enforcement/) [Saudis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/saudis/) ## Related quotes > [Saudi hijackers first came into contact with al-Qaeda and went through Terrorism 101 when they signed up for the jihad in Afghanistan.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-friedman/saudi-hijackers-first-came-into-contact-with-al-qaeda-and-went/) [Thomas Friedman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-friedman/) > [Al Qaeda has dominated the battlefield of the soul among the disaffected, disenfranchised, and dissatisfied. It promises action instead of discussion.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/malcolm-nance/al-qaeda-has-dominated-the-battlefield-of-the-soul-among-the/) [Malcolm Nance](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/malcolm-nance/) > [Al Qaeda's leaders seek to reverse what they claim are corrupt Islamic practices bookended by the Mongol invasions in 1256 and Ataturk's ending the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/malcolm-nance/al-qaeda-s-leaders-seek-to-reverse-what-they-claim-are-corrupt/) [Malcolm Nance](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/malcolm-nance/) > [A militant's profile lies not in his age, race, culture, or education; anyone can join or be adopted by the al Qaeda network, the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/malcolm-nance/a-militant-s-profile-lies-not-in-his-age-race-culture-or-education/) [Malcolm Nance](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/malcolm-nance/) > [Al Qaeda is a racially diverse organization that is well aware of its dependence on a labor pool dominated by Arab Muslim men. It…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/malcolm-nance/al-qaeda-is-a-racially-diverse-organization-that-is-well-aware-of-its/) [Malcolm Nance](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/malcolm-nance/) > [Sadly, a U.S. invasion of Iraq 'would threaten the whole stability of the Middle East' - or so Amr Moussa, secretary-general of the Arab…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-steyn/sadly-a-u-s-invasion-of-iraq-would-threaten-the-whole-stability-of/) [Mark Steyn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-steyn/) > [There is always the risk that a conflagration in the Middle East becomes larger and more dangerous. In this scenario, we discover that the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ian-bremmer/there-is-always-the-risk-that-a-conflagration-in-the-middle-east/) [Ian Bremmer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ian-bremmer/) > [“Saudis of all sorts recent having to beg princes for favors to secure services that should be a public right”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karen-elliott-house/saudis-of-all-sorts-recent-having-to-beg-princes-for-favors-to-secure/) [Karen Elliott House](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karen-elliott-house/) > [Our president's latest energy initiative was to go to Saudi Arabia and beg King Abdullah to give us a little relief on gasoline prices.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-friedman/our-president-s-latest-energy-initiative-was-to-go-to-saudi-arabia/) [Thomas Friedman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-friedman/) > [“The Red Sea lay beyond, inert, the whole thing doomed. The Saudis were sucking it dry to drink. In the seventies they’d drained a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/the-red-sea-lay-beyond-inert-the-whole-thing-doomed-the-saudis-were/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [We're defending Saudi Arabia? And with all of the money they have, we're defending them, and they're not paying? All you have to do…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donald-trump/we-re-defending-saudi-arabia-and-with-all-of-the-money-they-have-we/) [Donald Trump](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donald-trump/) > [Bin Laden was, though, a product of a monumental miscalculation by western security agencies. Throughout the 80s he was armed by the CIA and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robin-cook/bin-laden-was-though-a-product-of-a-monumental-miscalculation-by/) [Robin Cook](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robin-cook/) > [Hillary Clinton has decided to line up with John McCain in pushing to suspend the federal excise tax on gasoline, 18.4 cents a gallon,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-friedman/hillary-clinton-has-decided-to-line-up-with-john-mccain-in-pushing-to/) [Thomas Friedman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-friedman/) > [In Saudi Arabia, among other countries, Muslims are not free to convert to Christianity, and Christians are not free to practice their faith. The…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ibn-warraq/in-saudi-arabia-among-other-countries-muslims-are-not-free-to-convert/) [Ibn Warraq](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ibn-warraq/) > [You know, in Saudi Arabia, you're innocent until proven Jewish. Female. Guilty! They're guilty!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jon-stewart/you-know-in-saudi-arabia-you-re-innocent-until-proven-jewish-female/) [Jon Stewart](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jon-stewart/) ## More by Malcolm Nance > [Russia's a small country. It's really poor. It has nothing other than oil and weapons sales.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/malcolm-nance/russia-s-a-small-country-it-s-really-poor-it-has-nothing-other-than/) [Malcolm Nance](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/malcolm-nance/) > [The Republicans want an autocracy where the rights of minorities and others are not protected.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/malcolm-nance/the-republicans-want-an-autocracy-where-the-rights-of-minorities-and/) [Malcolm Nance](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/malcolm-nance/) > [I started my career in Naval Intelligence when I entered as a Russian language interpreter sent to DLI, the Defense Language Institute.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/malcolm-nance/i-started-my-career-in-naval-intelligence-when-i-entered-as-a-russian/) [Malcolm Nance](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/malcolm-nance/) > [I have personally led, witnessed, and supervised waterboarding of hundreds of people.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/malcolm-nance/i-have-personally-led-witnessed-and-supervised-waterboarding-of/) [Malcolm Nance](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/malcolm-nance/) > [“However, despite the enormous digital territory and huge number of Internet users, only a few users of what is called the “Surface Web” are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/malcolm-nance/however-despite-the-enormous-digital-territory-and-huge-number-of/) [Malcolm Nance](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/malcolm-nance/) > [Working in the Middle East, daily I face the questions, disbelief, and accusations about how Americans could violate the human rights which they once…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/malcolm-nance/working-in-the-middle-east-daily-i-face-the-questions-disbelief-and/) [Malcolm Nance](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/malcolm-nance/) > [Vladimir Putin is creating an axis of authoritarian regimes that he will lead.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/malcolm-nance/vladimir-putin-is-creating-an-axis-of-authoritarian-regimes-that-he/) [Malcolm Nance](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/malcolm-nance/) > [The 2003 war in Iraq may be considered the greatest error in American policy since the Civil War. Its ramifications are earth-shattering and will…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/malcolm-nance/the-2003-war-in-iraq-may-be-considered-the-greatest-error-in-american/) [Malcolm Nance](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/malcolm-nance/) > [Hamas and Hezbollah operate within geopolitical norms. They can be negotiated and reasoned with. ISIL is a different animal altogether - a religious cult…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/malcolm-nance/hamas-and-hezbollah-operate-within-geopolitical-norms-they-can-be/) [Malcolm Nance](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/malcolm-nance/) > [To help students steel themselves for captivity, SERE used a variety of 'stress and duress' techniques. The military's encyclopedic knowledge of these techniques was…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/malcolm-nance/to-help-students-steel-themselves-for-captivity-sere-used-a-variety/) [Malcolm Nance](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/malcolm-nance/) > [Yes, ISIL is a terror-based insurgent army that seeks to establish a Caliphate, but the group's actual end goal is far from political: ISIL…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/malcolm-nance/yes-isil-is-a-terror-based-insurgent-army-that-seeks-to-establish-a/) [Malcolm Nance](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/malcolm-nance/) > [For an old spy and codebreaker like myself, nothing in the world happens by coincidence.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/malcolm-nance/for-an-old-spy-and-codebreaker-like-myself-nothing-in-the-world/) [Malcolm Nance](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/malcolm-nance/) > [Al Qaeda is a racially diverse organization that is well aware of its dependence on a labor pool dominated by Arab Muslim men. It…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/malcolm-nance/al-qaeda-is-a-racially-diverse-organization-that-is-well-aware-of-its/) [Malcolm Nance](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/malcolm-nance/) > [Vladimir Putin understood, from the Communist era when he was a KGB officer, that the Russian propaganda system of targeting Western media - that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/malcolm-nance/vladimir-putin-understood-from-the-communist-era-when-he-was-a-kgb/) [Malcolm Nance](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/malcolm-nance/) > [For years before my Navy enlistment, I had studied the Soviet Union and the KGB's history of political intrigue in preparation for a career…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/malcolm-nance/for-years-before-my-navy-enlistment-i-had-studied-the-soviet-union/) [Malcolm Nance](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/malcolm-nance/) [Explore all 49 Malcolm Nance quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/malcolm-nance/) ## More Israel quotes > [Humanitarian goods and people must flow in both directions. Gaza cannot and must not be allowed to remain a prison camp.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-cameron/humanitarian-goods-and-people-must-flow-in-both-directions-gaza/) [David Cameron](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-cameron/) > [We could form a government of national unity fighting corruption. The ordinary Afghan is sick and tired of it, because it's she or he…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ashraf-ghani/we-could-form-a-government-of-national-unity-fighting-corruption-the/) [Ashraf Ghani](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ashraf-ghani/) > [The Iranian people have a proud past. They merit a great future.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/condoleezza-rice/the-iranian-people-have-a-proud-past-they-merit-a-great-future/) [Condoleezza Rice](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/condoleezza-rice/) > [In the Green Zone in Iraq you have your radio, you have your food, you have your own electricity, your own toilets. Everything is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elliott-colla/in-the-green-zone-in-iraq-you-have-your-radio-you-have-your-food-you/) [Elliott Colla](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elliott-colla/) > [ \[Islam\] Leaves no room of human legislation in an Islamic state, because herein all legislative functions vest in God and the only function left… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/abul-a-la-maududi/islam-leaves-no-room-of-human-legislation-in-an-islamic-state-because/) [Abul A'la Maududi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/abul-a-la-maududi/) > [I hope that the Palestinians don't make the mistake of unleashing a new intifada. They've tried it twice before, and the consequences were bad…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-segev/i-hope-that-the-palestinians-don-t-make-the-mistake-of-unleashing-a/) [Tom Segev](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-segev/) > [I am a practicing Catholic, but my lineage is Jewish, so if someone asks me if I'm Jewish, I say yes.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neve-campbell/i-am-a-practicing-catholic-but-my-lineage-is-jewish-so-if-someone/) [Neve Campbell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neve-campbell/) > [On the McLaughlin Report, August 26, 1990: 'There are only two groups that are beating the drums for war in the middle East, the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pat-buchanan/on-the-mclaughlin-report-august-26-1990-there-are-only-two-groups/) [Pat Buchanan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pat-buchanan/) > [“Hitler invaded Poland on 1 September 1939. Much to the bafflement of the Allies, however, Pope Pius XII said nothing. He refused to condemn…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cyrus-shahrad/hitler-invaded-poland-on-1-september-1939-much-to-the-bafflement-of/) [Cyrus Shahrad](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cyrus-shahrad/) > [A strong, responsible Israel can become a stabilizer in such a turbulent region.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ehud-barak/a-strong-responsible-israel-can-become-a-stabilizer-in-such-a/) [Ehud Barak](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ehud-barak/) > [Iranians hate Arabs. They're a fairly well-educated population and they have centuries of experience with self-government.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-ledeen/iranians-hate-arabs-they-re-a-fairly-well-educated-population-and/) [Michael Ledeen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-ledeen/) > [It's easy to say, let's go in and get the bad guys. But you have a divided country of Sunnis and Shias. The United…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tulsi-gabbard/it-s-easy-to-say-let-s-go-in-and-get-the-bad-guys-but-you-have-a/) [Tulsi Gabbard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tulsi-gabbard/) > [Islam never differentiates between men and women as regards political rights and puts them on an equal footing. However, even if a woman is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/yusuf-al-qaradawi/islam-never-differentiates-between-men-and-women-as-regards-political/) [Yusuf al-Qaradawi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/yusuf-al-qaradawi/) > [I am a peace supporting Jew.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-dershowitz/i-am-a-peace-supporting-jew/) [Alan Dershowitz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-dershowitz/) > [All Germany was in turmoil. Revolutionaries seized power in the cities of Munich, Hanover and Cologne. One regional German government after another was toppled…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-cross-giblin/all-germany-was-in-turmoil-revolutionaries-seized-power-in-the-cities/) James Cross Giblin [Browse all 16,724 Israel quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/israel/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "The attacks of September 11 were made possible, in part, by the fact that U.S. law enforcement had a bias that 'rich Saudis are safe Arabs.' 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