U.S. media reported Jan. 29 that Khalid Sheikh Mohammed, one of the masterminds of the 9/11 attacks, will receive the coronavirus (COVID) vaccine next week, possibly months ahead of the average American waiting in line.
U.S. media reported Friday (Jan. 29) that Khalid Sheikh Mohammed, one of the masterminds of the 9/11 terror attacks, will receive the coronavirus (COVID) vaccine next week, possibly months ahead of the average American waiting in line to receive it.
The New York Post reports that the Pentagon confirmed Friday that those suspected of masterminding the terror attack, like Mohammed, and other criminals or suspects held at Guantanamo Bay will begin receiving the vaccine, even as the United States now faces a severe shortage of the vaccine.
A Defense Department spokesman confirmed that officials have signed an order to provide the coronavirus vaccine to “all detainees and prisoners. The vaccines could be administered as soon as next week.
“The (vaccinations) will be administered on a voluntary basis and in accordance with the Defense Department’s priority distribution plan,” Defense Department spokesman Michael Howard told the Post.
Forty convicts are still being held at U.S. military prisons in Cuba, including Mohammed, who masterminded the worst terrorist attack on U.S. soil on Sept. 11, 2001, which killed 2,977 people.
A Defense Department spokesman confirmed that the order was signed Jan. 27 by Terry Adirim, principal deputy under secretary of defense for health, who was sworn in on the day of President Biden‘s inauguration on Jan. 20.
9/11 Survivors Rage Against Ridiculous Priority Vaccination for Criminals
But the move sparked immediate outrage from New Yorkers, who were the biggest victims of the 9/11 attacks.
You can’t make this up; the information we’re getting from the government is ridiculous,” said Tom Von Essen, who served as New York City’s fire chief during 9/11. It’s theater of the absurd that they’re going to send the vaccine to those low-character people in Guantanamo Bay before every resident of the United States gets it.”
On 9/11, 343 firefighters from the New York City Fire Department lost their lives.
Eason said the policy of allowing the 9/11 masterminds to be vaccinated before the majority of Americans is “stupid.
John Feal, the director of Ground Zero’s demolition activities after the 9/11 attacks, was also shocked by the news. He has suffered from a number of 9/11-related illnesses as a result of the attacks and has not yet had access to vaccinations.
“The fact that the 9/11 community doesn’t have access to vaccines and the terrorists (have priority access to vaccines) shows how contrary our (Biden) administration is.” He told the Post. “This is the most ridiculous thing I’ve ever heard. It’s an insult to the people who ran into the World Trade Center and were killed, and to the people who worked for months in the rubble and got sick because of it.”
The average age of that first group of rescuers involved in 9/11 at the Time was 38, and by this year it was 58-59, none of whom had a vaccination date scheduled yet, Feal said. He runs the Feal Good Foundation, which speaks out for 9/11 rescuers and has been pushing Congress to permanently extend the 9/11 Victims Compensation Fund.
Brian Sullivan, a retired Federal Aviation Administration special security officer, also said, “I’m angry. It’s totally beyond outrage. I’m 75 years old. I haven’t gotten the COVID vaccine. They’re about to give it to Mohammed?”
Sullivan added that it’s a scandal that it’s almost the 20th anniversary of the Sept. 11 attacks and these terrorists haven’t been brought to justice. “This news (of giving criminals priority for inoculation) is adding insult to injury. It’s a slap in the face of the families of the 9/11 victims,” Sullivan said.
“This year will be the 20th anniversary, and the terrorists are still in Guantanamo. And now we’re giving them the COVID vaccine. This is insane.” He added.
Two other men accused of being accomplices in the 2002 Bali nightclub bombing – which killed 202 people – will also reportedly be lined up to get the vaccine under a Defense Department order.
Vaccine stocks bottom out for 1,000 New York teachers whose shots were canceled
The Pentagon’s decision comes as states such as New York complain that vaccine stocks are bottoming out, forcing some states to cancel mass vaccination programs, and the Biden Administration has warned that the shortage will continue through 2021.
The Post reported Tuesday (26) that thousands of teachers in New York City had their COVID-19 vaccine appointments canceled due to a reduced supply of the vaccine and a scheduling error.
New York State U.S. Rep. Elise Stefanik, a Republican, said, “It is inexcusable and un-American for President Biden to choose to prioritize convicted terrorists at Guantanamo Bay over vulnerable older Americans or veterans.”
Michael O’Connell, a retired lieutenant with the New York Federal Fire Marshal’s Office, worked in search and rescue when the World Trade Center collapsed. He has since developed sarcoidosis, an immune disorder.
“It’s really a kick in the pants. It’s very sad and very disgusting.” He said.
“These terrorists commit crimes of harm, but leave patriots as people who have to wait to be vaccinated. When the first plane hit the building, we responded in 10 seconds. Now we have to wait a year, and politicians can’t play that way on the coronavirus vaccine.” O’Connell added.
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