As 9/11 USVSST Fund claimants approach the 25th anniversary of the horrific terrorist attacks of September 11:
Zero arrests for the thousands of loved ones murdered.
Damaging legislative proposals (EJVTA Act & AVTCA Act) for USVSST widows and children, brought forth by congressional leaders who promised otherwise.
USVSST Fund disparities (for the most vulnerable victim populations) continue unabated and unaddressed.
As the 25th anniversary of the September 11 atracks approach, 9/11 USVSST Fund claimants ask:
Where is the justice for our thousands of murdered loved ones?
What about the unfulfilled promises made by our leaders in Congressâwho once vowed to protect the Widows and Children victims of 9/11?
When will the glaring disparities in the USVSST Fund be addressed?
USVSST Fund News: If we stand as one, we can get it done.
@Nysportssteve1 Yes, it varies and is dependant upon a variety of fluid circumstances, but... there are distribution scheduled for 2026. Seek/ask an attorney.
As 9/11 USVSST Fund claimants approach the 25th anniversary of the horrific terrorist attacks of September 11:
Zero arrests for the thousands of loved ones murdered.
Damaging legislative proposals (EJVTA Act & AVTCA Act) for USVSST widows and children, brought forth by congressional leaders who promised otherwise.
USVSST Fund disparities (for the most vulnerable victim populations) continue unabated and unaddressed.
As the 25th anniversary of the September 11 atracks approach, 9/11 USVSST Fund claimants ask:
Where is the justice for our thousands of murdered loved ones?
What about the unfulfilled promises made by our leaders in Congressâwho once vowed to protect the Widows and Children victims of 9/11?
When will the glaring disparities in the USVSST Fund be addressed?
USVSST Fund News: If we stand as one, we can get it done.
Is this moment in history a potential opportunistic crossroad for the USVSST Fund as it relates to all Fund Claimants. Elements within the current administration may allow for a much needed and healthy examination of all aspects of the fund - with an open-minded, unbiased, and non-conflicted stance. Whether you agree or disagree with the ability and/or need for anyone (any entity) to perform this task - we should at the very least - seek to achieve this for the potential good of all USVSST Fund Victims.
To this end - we would welcome a full DOGE review, and forensic analysis of the Fund, its administrators, legal, concerned parties, past/present/future legislation, asset allocation, DOJ, GAO, OFAC... involvement - and/or any other such facets pertaining to the Fund. The goal should be the establishment of a durable, fair, and equitable framework - for all claimants within the Fund. One where all voices will be heard equally. Let's work together to put a permanent framework in place that does this for all claimants, now, and in the future. We continue to work to this end. Sunlight may be the only true disinfectant. Anybody in opposition to this is likely part of the issue, or worse, culpable in creating them. Keep in mind the timely narrative that is spreading, "the louder someone yells - the more they have to hide." We look forward to potentially being part of any solution that could benefit all USVSST Fund Claimants.
We encourage all USSST Fund Claimants to join us and direct message âïž @DOGE and ask them for a full DOGE review of all aspects of the USVSST Fund
USVSST Fund News - If we stand as one - we can get it done.
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Special Master's Announcement Regarding Authorization of Lump Sum Catch-Up Payments for Certain Victims of the 1983 Beirut Barracks Bombing and 1996 Khobar Towers Bombing
January 31, 2025
On January 31, 2025, Special Master Mary Patrice Brown began authorizing lump sum catch-up payments for certain victims of the 1983 Beirut barracks bombing and 1996 Khobar Towers bombing. The USVSST Fund also began issuing letters to these claimants specifying their upcoming payment amounts.
The Fairness for 9/11 Families Act directs the Special Master to make the lump sum catch-up payments from the reserve fund in amounts equal to those calculated by the Comptroller General, Government Accountability Office GAO).
Special Master's Announcement Regarding Authorization of the Fifth Distribution
December 31, 2024
Special Master Mary Patrice Brown authorized fifth-round payments for all eligible claims by January 1, 2025.
On December 30, 2024, the USVSST Fund issued letters to all eligible claimants specifying their upcoming payment amounts. In January 2025, the USVSST Fund will begin issuing fifth-round payments on a rolling basis.
As the Special Master previously announced, the total amount available for the fifth distribution is $1.035 billion. By law, the USVSST Fund must divide this amount in half, allocating 50 percent ($517.5 million) for 9/11-related claimantsâ payments, and the other 50 percent ($517.5 million) for non-9/11-related claimantsâ payments.
No caring person would never dismiss PTSD of any kind, we do not. The 50/50 split is unfair for sure - we are against it đŻ It should be pro-rata. One wouldn't give 80% of their love, food, and resources to one child and 20% to the other. That's what the 50/50 split essentially does.
We hear there is talk in relevant Legislative Circles that some of the language in the aforementioned bill cited above will not make it to any potential final draft. #USVSST Fund claimants can only hope that the "niche language tailored to institutional beneficiaries and/or minority interest stakeholders within the fund" is what's on the chopping block. All SST Victims seeking a semblance of justice within the #USVSST Fund should contact their lawyers, Congressional Leaders, and the Special Master of the fund - Mary Patrice Brown, and demand fair and equitable attorney fees, treatment, and Pro-rata payments within the fund. Let's fix the #USVSST Fund together - before it's too late. #USVSST Fund News - if we stand as one - we can get it done.
VERY IMPORTANT: The current version of the proposed bill U.S. Representatives Josh #Gottheimer (NJ-5), Mike #Lawler (NY-17), Dan #Goldman (NY-10), and Nicole #Malliotakis (NY) Introduced related to the United States Victims of State Sponsored Terrorism Fund (USVSST Fund) will potentially weaken the rights of the vast majority of victims receiving distributions from the USVSST Fund. They have been made aware of this fact on numerous occasions. The Bill is a Trojan-Horse designed to alter language in a subtle way that could strip away the rights of the most vulnerable class of people within the #USVSST Fund - victims such as widows and children. It deteriorates justice and accountability to the vast majority of victims of state-sponsored terror attacks by potentially facilitating inequitable distributions within the #USVSST Fund - which in all fairness, and according to the current law - should be being distributed on a Pro rata rata basis. The letter of the law is not being followed. Tell your Congresional Leaders & and lawyers to kill the existing bill. They sadly use 9/11 victims and their families as the poster children for victims of terrorism - but in reality often hurt the vast majority of USVSST Fund participants with niche language tailored to institutional beneficiaries and minority interest stakeholders within the fund. Deliberate or not, the bill in its current form potentially does exactly the opposite of its title line - "Providing justice and accountability to victims of state-sponsored terror attacks."
When the Representatives above say that the bill has been broadly endorsed by 9/11 victimsâ advocacy groups, " they likely really mean it has been endorsed by the attorney's that represent said groups. The same attorney's that make hundreds of millions of dollars, perhaps later even Billions of dollars from the USVSST Fund distributions - regardless of how they are distributed. Ask your Congressional Leaders and lawyer's why the legal language related to the USVSST Fund is seemingly always in need of "tweaks" that can potentially erode victims rights - and thereafter - see if they come up with and adequate answer for you. If we stand as one - we can get it done. USVSST Fund News.
There could only be a handful of plausible explanations as to why Congressional Leaders would cowardly turn their backs on 9/11 Widows & Children - and none of them are seemly. We all know them well... Unless those Leaders in a position to remedy this miscarriage of JUSTICE - do so immediately - it is reasonable to assune that outside forces are exercising influence over the process - is it not. #USVSST Fund News. If we stand as one - we can get it done.
What will happen to vulnerable populations like 9/11 widows and children within the #USVSST Fund if the current 50/50 split structure in the #USVSST Fund is maintained and the "410,000" potentially additional 9/11 Victims cited below come into the USVSST Fund? Presumably, these additional 410000 Victims will be directed by Special Master Mary Patrice Brown to the 9/11 side if/when added. Will the fund divide 50% of the distributions to several thousand plus deserving SST Victims on one side & 50% of the disbursements to the potential upwards of half a million equally deserving 9/11 Victims on the other side? Perhaps it's time to "fund the fund" on a Pro rata basis with additional monies (preferably from the alleged perpetrators responsible for 9/11) or... from the government overseers/agencies that managed the aftermath of the Murders of our loved ones lost on 9/11. How is a 50/50 split within the #USVSST Fund being advocated for, adamantly defended, viewed as moral, seen as sustainable, and most important of all - considered legal?
Details related to he additional estimated "410,000" deserved 9/11 Victims that could potentially come into the USVSST Fund cited just below:
"An estimated 410,000 people, including first responders, cleanup crews, and survivors, were exposed to toxic air and chemicals at Ground Zero in the days and weeks following the 9/11 attacks. This exposure led to a range of health concerns for many, including:
Cancer
Over 15,000 people in the 9/11 community have been diagnosed with WTC-related cancers, and more than 2,000 have died from them. Some cancers linked to exposure to Ground Zero include thyroid cancer, prostate cancer, and pancreatic cancer.
Respiratory illnesses
These include interstitial lung diseases, chronic respiratory disorder, reactive airways dysfunction syndrome (RADS), chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), chronic cough syndrome, upper airway hyperreactivity, chronic rhinosinusitis, chronic nasopharyngitis, and chronic laryngitis.
Other illnesses
These include gastroesophageal reflux disorder (GERD) and sleep apnea.
Mental health conditions
These include posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and other mood, thinking, and behavioral conditions related to trauma."
Unless there is a separate Victims Fund for the aforementioned "410,000" deserving potential claimamts - which is highly unlikely - these deserving "collateral" 9/11 Victims will in all likelihood end up on the 9/11 side of the USVSST Fund in the future. This is coming SST Victims. We urge all USVSST Fund claimants to ask their Congressional Leaders & PEC lawyers... to advocate for funding the fund on a Pro rata basis - before it is too late. Twenty-three years later, sadly - the only "modicum" of JUSTICE that 9/11 (and other) United States Victims of State Sponsored Terrorism are currently receiving, is via the #USVSST Fund. The potential massive dilution of the fund, as well as the current 50/50 split structure within the fund is unsustainable & ethically immoral. These, and other critical issues are seemingly being ignored by those Congressional leaders in (new-found) power who have the ability to meaningfully weigh in on such matters - despite their personal historical promises made to SST Victims. It has been suggested that one of the reasons for this may be that lawmakers are essentially kicking the proverbial "can down the road" on such issues as there is a general lack of "appetite" politically to "rock the boat" and burn capital based on the related politics of altering the USVSST Fund structure in the current political climate. If true - we find this inexcusable, indefensible, and to the detriment of all SST Victims. USVSST Fund News. If we stand as one - we can get it done.
If/when these potential estimated "410,000" deserved 9/11 Victims cited above are allowed into the "eligible for future distributions" within the #USVSST Fund - the 9/11 side would potentially receive much less than 1/100th (much less than 1% - sound familiar) of what the other side of the fund would receive - if such a scenario happens under the current inequitable 50/50 split mechanism. With Special Master Mary Patrice Brown continually - in her own words - notifying "new claimants that they are eligible for future distributions" #USVSST Fund claimants should rightfully expect a continued stream of "new claimants" to enter the fund. Note: To date, there are a total of 17,514 claimants in the United States Victims of State Sponsored Terrorism Fund - 12,225 on the 9/11 side, and 5,289 on the other side "related to other acts of terrorism." Under the current 50/50 split mechanism- the 9/11 side currently receives approximately 30% of the funds distributed within the #USVSST Fund, and the other side "related to other acts of terrorism" (the significantly lower population side) receives approximately 70% of all funds distributed to claimants within the #USVSST Fund. How is this continued 50/50 division of distributions considered fair and equitable by the powers that be - the same powers that perennially seek to "use" 9/11 Widows & Children as their "poster child" every time need to rally the public for a related cause or introduce terrorist... related legislation? ALL SST Victims should rightfully expect "new claimants" deserving entry to continue to flow into the fund per the Special Master's directive that "The USVSST Fund continues to accept applications to be considered for future payment rounds, the timing of which will depend on the availability of funds. In general, claimants must submit applications not later than 90 days after the date of obtaining the final judgment." Again, we urge all USVSST Fund claimants to ask their Congressional Leaders & PEC lawyers... to advocate for funding the fund on a Pro rata basis - before it is too late. We feel all deserved claimants (new or otherwise) should receive fair and equitable treatment under the law. USVSST Fund News: If we speak as one - we can get it done.
Can one Lawmaker, lawyer, DOJ spokesperson, and/or related advocacy group (Special Master included)... give one good reason for distributions within the #USVSST Fund to not be disseminated on a Pro rata basis - as directed by law. Not that you would need a LAW to understand that this would be the most fair and equitable manner in which to divide #USVSST Fund distributions. It appears that special interests can be the only reason the letter of the law is not being currently followed when it comes to USVSST Fund dispersments. After all - a rising tide lift all boats equally - does it not? Such inequity currently within the #USVSST Fund is causing the revictimization of vulnerable groups of United States Victims of State Sponsored Terrorism - namely widows and children. This has to be addressed. We ask all USVSST Fund participants to contact their Congressional Leaders and lawyers and ask them why they are allowing/defending an unfair 50/50 split when Pro rata distributions are fair and equitable for everyone concerned. Ask yourself, why is it that we continually need to fight for everyone to be treated equally under the law?
BREAKING NEWS: Special Master, Mary Patrice Brown of the U.S. Victims of State Sponsored Terrorism Fund allegedly broke the law by not distributing funds within the USVSST Fund on a Pro rata basis. Now, certain #CongressionalLeaders (we will reveal them soon) may be trying to submit legislation to cover this up and change existing/clear language on Pro rata distribution within the fund. The office(s) of some of the highest ranking Congressional Leaders, The Special Master & #DOJ... have been alerted. Let's see what they do. In short, the majority of victims within the #USVSST Fund were apparently denied fair and equitable distributions by the Special Master of the fund. The current 50/50 split within the USVSST Fund facilitates a disproportionate distribution as it relates to the fund. To simply illustrate: If you have five dependent children, do you give 70%+ of your material support such as food, clothing, and shelter to just one of them? This is an illustration of exactly what happens to 9/11 victim's, and others... when the letter of the (existing) Law is not being followed in the USVSST Fund. Contact your attorney's, Congressional Leaders & the Special Master and demand equal JUSTICE for all United States Victims of State Sponsored Terrorists within the USVSST Fund. If we stand as one, we can get it done!
Aparently, between the SEC, DOJ & GAO... gestures - it looks like a fraction of the #BINANCEâŻfunds will ultimately reach USVSST Fund Claimants.
Ask your Congressional leaders and 9/11 PEC... lawyers if this is true and if anything can be done to facilitate the fairest USVSST Fund distributions.
@JosephAMorales@zerohedge We heard $2 billion was earmarked for the USVSST FUND, but other Victims are vying for it. Only time will tell - no distributions are planned for 2024 according to the special master of the USVSST fund
USVSST Fund News
Ask your lawyers and Congressional leaders to help!
The âRaceâ to Claim $3.5 billion in Afghanistan Assets Related to Bidenâs Executive Order 14064 & A Secret âFramework Agreementâ between USVSST Fund Lawyers & Others Impacting Potential Case Deposits.
An appeal brief filed by Kreindler & Kreindler LLP & Sher Tremonte LLP highlighted a troubling âFramework Agreementâ letter (written to the Honorable Sarah Netburn filed on March 22, 2022, by Sean P. Carter on behalf of the law firm Cozen OâConnor) in connection with the Havlish group and insurance company plaintiffs âraceâ to claim the entire $3.5 billion in Afghanistan assets Biden earmarked for âVictims of Terrorismâ for themselves. Potentially to the detriment of 99% of SST Victims.
The submitted framework letter to the District Court stated that they, the Havlish/insurance plaintiff group, and certain other groups of 9/11 plaintiffs had reached an âagreement in principleâŠâ ââŠpursuant to which, if the Court were to grant them the $3.5 billion in seized assets from the Afghanistan Central Bank (DAB assets), they would manage a distribution of the these assets among themselves and any other plaintiffs that would join in this agreement.â The letter further inferred â perhaps rightfully so â that an expeditious resolution of the proposed framework agreement might mitigate any âpotential complications and burden on the Court arising from dueling proceedings absent prompt actionâ to the benefit of all concerned â by thwarting other claimants âunrelated to the 9/11 attacksâ from âbringing new claims and unjustifiably attempting to cut in line ahead of the 9/11 plaintiffs.â When taken at face value, one would think that all related SST Victims stood to be properly represented.
Letâs break this down â lawyer(s) representing insurance companies interests and a relatively small group of plaintiffs (guided by a plaintiff executive committee (PEC) lawyer group) are essentially saying to Judge Netburn â donât worry, we have reached an âagreement to resolve virtually all the issues raised by the Taliban judgment applications and Da Afghanistan Bank (âDABâ) turnover proceedingsâ and you can trust us to distribute these assets to all participating claimants, including other concerned Sept. 11 plaintiff groups. Many thousands of whom are claimants in in the USVSST Fund. And as a bonus, all this will save the court a ton of âpotential complications and burden.â Note: This Framework Agreement â the full terms of which the Havlish group and insurance company plaintiffs âhave refused to discloseâ remains âopaqueâ and âinherently inequitableâ according to the attorneys who filed the appeal brief mentioned at the opening of this post. Their understanding of how the proposed Framework Agreement would (in part) potentially be enforced is as follows:
âA) The forty-seven families constituting the Havlish Plaintiffs and the seven Doe Plaintiffs would receive close to the full value of their judgments (i.e., around $36 million per family), consuming a total of nearly $1.8 billion of the $3.5 billion.
B) The Federal Insurance Plaintiffs would receive nearly $600 million of DAB Assets (or nearly twenty percent of the full value of their compensatory damages judgments).
C) The approximately two-thirds of estates of victims of the 9/11 Attacks who might feel constrained to join the Framework agreement would share in the remaining $1.1 billion, receiving only one percent of what each of the forty-seven Havlish families stand to receive. *â â* Insofar as these are not the Framework Agreementâs current terms, that is a function of the secrecy surrounding the Agreement. Indeed, in an August 21, 2022â Note: Paragraphs A, B & C above have been edited for flow of content but precisely retain the original narrative.
Notwithstanding the Havlish Plaintiffsâ counsel having undeniable foresight in their diligent application & holding of prioritized âdefault judgment motions they had brought against the Taliban...â very early on - letâs translate the âframework agreementâ highlighted in the Kreindler & Kreindler & Co. appeal brief for what is appears to relay in its current state as follows:
The Havlish/insurance plaintiff group is asking the Honorable Sarah Netburn to essentially trust them â that they will judiciously give 47 very deserving 9/11 families who tragically lost loved ones in the 9/11 attacks, close to 100% of âthe full value of their judgmentsâ â the insurance companies will get ânearly twenty percent of the full value of their compensatory damages judgmentsâ and thousands of 9/11 Victims in the USVSST Fund (and elsewhere) would potentially get âonly one percent of what each of the forty-seven Havlish families stand to receive,â that is, if would be participants under duress hurry up and sign on âto the only game in town.â We wish we had a dollar for every time we have heard veiled ultimatum threats such as this. Note: Kreindler & Kreindler, a lawyer for the 9/11 families of many years was âremoved from the PECâ (the 9/11 plaintiff executive committee of which the Havlish lawyers are still a part of) in connection with a âleak of a deposition transcript in the 9/11 multidistrict litigationâ that outed Saudi diplomat, Musaed al Jarrah, who has according to reports, âlong been secretly implicated in a leadership role in the 9/11 plot. His name didnât become public until May 2020 when it was disclosed by a government filing error in the case. The âembarrassmentâ cited by Netburn appears to refer to the fact that FBI agents allegedly âfound numerous child porn images on Jarrahâs computer in 2004-2005.â These are the types of people 9/11 Victims are currently fighting in court for a âmodicum of justice.â It is interesting to note that Kreindler & Kreindler, a former PEC law firm, is apparently opposed to (or not yet a signatory of) the yet to be disclosed framework agreement in its currently understood form. To the best of our knowledge â no 9/11 families were ever given any say in the framework agreement language â much less shown it. This begs the question â why isnât there a âsteering-committeeâ made up of a diverse group of USVSST Fund claimants associated with the USVSST Fund?
A New York times article related to the framework agreement letter states as follows: âThe letter about the framework agreement was filed by Sean P. Carter, a lawyer representing a group of insurance companies. It said the plaintiff groups involved wanted the court to deliver a final judgment in favor of the insurers, which could account for the remainder of the Afghan bank assets Mr. Biden had left behind. The Havlish group and insurance company plaintiffs would then transfer some [some seemingly being the operative word] of those funds to the other Sept. 11 plaintiff groups.â Note: It is our understanding that legal firm(s) representing the âgroup of insurance companiesâ mentioned herein have allegedly done much of the âheavy liftingâ as concerns certain 9/11 related legal matters, (institutional or otherwise) and this is perhaps part of the reason Insurance Companies are being given deferential treatment over the lives of actual Victims - who lost their lives. If true, we find this stance appalling. Either way, it is very telling that 9/11 Plaintiff Executive Committee lawyers are taking a subrogate role to bedfellow Insurance Company lawyers who seem to be now taking the lead for the âVictims of Terrorismâ Biden left the $3.5 Billion behind for. Another undeniable influence may be that Insurance companies are widely known to have a âhuge Washington lobbying machineâ as well.
Repetition for emphases: In the letter to the court, Carter in part wrote: âDear Judge Netburn: We write on behalf of Plaintiffs in the Burnett, OâNeill, Havlish, Hoglan, Grazioso, and Federal Insurance actions to advise the Court that we have reached agreement in principle on a framework (to be finalized this week) that will provide a straightforward, prompt, and largely frictionless [frictionless for who â insurance companies and 47 families?] path for the Court to resolve âvirtually all the issues raised by the Taliban judgment applications and Da Afghanistan Bank (âDABâ) turnover proceedings.â Also note, we have not seen a complete âframework agreementâ letter to take a final position on, but one thing is clear â the cadre of plaintiff attorneys herein do not appear to be representing the best interest of the majority of USVSST Fund Claimants as relates the $3.5 billion in assets âleft behindâ by Bidenâs Executive Order.
Carterâs letter partially asserts: The âframework agreement presents the best approach available under the circumstances to secure relief for all 9/11 plaintiffs who have asserted interests in the turnover proceedings; eliminates the risk many of them may otherwise face of having no basis to participate in distributions of blocked DAB funds found subject to turnoverâŠâ We cannot argue that this mitigation of âriskâ is not untrue for a select few, but it sharply brings into question the sincerity, and integrity of the process as relates to the greater good for all SST Victims.
Clearly, the contemplated âstructureâ of the framework agreement (if such an agreement is binding) for disseminating the seized $3.5 billion in Afghanistan assets related to Bidenâs Executive Order falls woefully short in securing the promised ârelief for all 9/11 plaintiffs,â except that is, for all but the âone-percenters.â And this framework was touted âas the most just and expeditious means of seeking to perfect their [9/11 Victims] interests as to the blocked Taliban funds.â Expeditious perhaps, but âReliefâ cannot and should not be defined as potentially giving 99% of the $3.5 billion of the seized assets to 1% of SST Victims.
Such backdoor carveouts â expedited by âquestionable,â nontransparent legal framework grounds â are immoral, and have not âeliminated the riskâ to the âmanyâ (U.S Victims of State Sponsored Terrorism Fund claimants) as quoted/implied. Instead, the murky process has sadly further divided the entire SST Victim community. PEC lawyers⊠seemingly having a part in handing out leftover scraps to 99% of SST Victims (many of whom they currently personally represent) is an affront, and re-victimization of all USVSST Fund claimants.
USVSST Fund News seeks the immediate, public disclosure of the complete terms & conditions of any potentially existing âFramework Agreementâ that decides the financial future of thousands of SST Victims.
A Message to All SST Victims â Please, for everyoneâs sake - if you donât get off the couch and keep call your lawyers & Congressional leaders â nothing is ever going to change. If they say donât worry, we got you â do the opposite - and ask them what YOU can expect for justice â in any form you may seek â then hold them to it. Remember, not one person has been convicted related to 9/11 crimes.
Additional Billions in potential losses to 99% of SST Victims due to other pending priority âJudgmentâ facilitated cases - two of which are sited below:
âA group of 47 families [Havlish] of Sept. 11 victims sued Clearstream Banking SAâ (to be Contâd)
âHavlish v.650 Fifth Ave. Co.â (to be Contâd.)
U.S Victims of State Sponsored Terrorism (USVSST) Fund News: If we speak as one â we can get it done.