Twenty-five years after 9/11, whistleblowers sound alarm on Afghans

Sept. 11 redux? Twenty-five years later, whistleblowers sound the alarm on Afghan ‘allies’

Published September 11, 2026 8:00am ET Updated September 11, 2026 10:39am ET

On the 25th anniversary of 9/11, has America forgotten the lessons from that attack?

The hijackers’ absurdly inadequate visa applications were nonetheless approved by the State Department because, as the head of the issuing office was wont to say, “People gotta get their visas!” A gate agent issued Mohammed Atta a boarding pass despite the terrorist’s suspicious behavior because he didn’t want to appear prejudiced.