He wrote specifically about 9/11 and those targets, or did he say there would be future terror attacks in the US?
Silverstein had just bought the lease for the twin towers months prior, which is why he would have also gotten insurance at the same time. The amount awarded by the insurance companies was used to build the new world trade center.
The timelines for the Epstein files correlate to when complaints were made about him and there were investigations held.
American Airlines and
United Airlines stocks experienced unusually high levels of bearish betting—specifically through
put options—in the days immediately preceding the September 11 attacks. While these trades appeared "facially suspicious," official federal investigations concluded they had
innocuous explanations and were not based on advance knowledge of the attacks.
Key Findings from Investigations
The 9/11 Commission Report and the
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) conducted exhaustive reviews of over
9.5 million transactions and found no evidence of illicit trading.
- United Airlines (UAL): On September 6, 2001, put option volume was nearly 100 times higher than normal. Investigators traced 95% of these trades to a single U.S.-based institutional investor as part of a complex trading strategy that also involved buying American Airlines stock.
- American Airlines (AMR): A surge in put options on September 10 was largely attributed to a specific options trading newsletter faxed to subscribers on September 9, which recommended the trades.
- Hedge Fund Trading: One major trade involved a New York hedge fund with $2 billion under management. Because the fund also held 29,000 shares of UAL stock, it actually lost $85,000 when the markets reopened, proving the trade was not a bet on the airline's collapse.
Market Context
Speculators had financial reasons to bet against airlines even without foreknowledge of an attack:
- The airline industry was in serious financial trouble prior to 9/11 due to a weakening economy and slumping travel demand.
- Both AMR and UAL had recently posted massive second-quarter losses and warned of continued deficits for the remainder of the year.
- Short selling across the entire market was at record highs at the time.
SFGATE
What did Israel have to gain from the 9/11 attacks?