Ali Soufan Biography

He is a former FBI agent who worked on a number of high-profile anti-terrorism cases in the United States and throughout the world. In a 2006 New Yorker story, Soufan was portrayed as getting closer than anybody to averting the September 11 attacks, even indicating that if the CIA had been ready to share intelligence with him, he would have succeeded. After openly chastising the CIA for not sharing intelligence with him that may have averted the attacks, he resigned from the FBI in 2005. He is the Soufan Group's CEO. In 2011, he released The Black Banners: The Inside Story of 9/11 and the War Against Al-Qaeda, a memoir that contains some historical background on al-Qaeda. Soufan was dispatched to Jordan in 1999 to investigate the Jordan Millennium Bombing plan, and while there, he discovered a package of documents given by Jordanian intelligence officers prior to the inquiry, which contained maps identifying the bomb locations, laying on the CIA station's floor. According to a 2006 New Yorker article of him, his discovery humiliated the CIA. He was named chief investigator of the USS Cole bombing in 2000. When he was handed a copy of Fahd al-interrogations, Quso's he spotted a mention to a one-legged Afghan named Khallad, whom he remembered from a source identified as Walid bin 'Attash years before; this helped the FBI locate down Abd al-Rahim al-Nashiri. Soufan was one of eight FBI agents who spoke Arabic after the September 11th attacks, and the only one in New York. Colleagues said he would sit on the floor with suspects, offer them tea, and fight with them in fluent Arabic about religion and politics while gathering information. Soufan got intelligence that the CIA had been suppressing for months while investigating the September 11th attacks in Yemen. According to The New Yorker, Soufan was given the fourth photograph from the Malaysia meeting: a portrait of Khallad, the Cole operation's mastermind. Soufan immediately understood the two schemes were related, and if the C.I.A. hadn't suppressed material from him, he would have figured it out months before September 11th. He was entrusted with interrogating Abu Jandal for five days in Yemen, during which time Jandal handed over the identities of many al-Qaeda members. His interrogation of Mohammed al Qahtani led to terrorist charges being filed against Ali Saleh Kahlah al-Marri in Chicago, whom al Qahtani had described as a cousin. In 2005, Soufan claimed to be an Islamist terrorist and approached Florida doctor Rafiq Abdus Sabir, asking whether he would offer medical treatment to injured Iraq War soldiers. Sabir was caught and sentenced to 25 years in jail for aiding terrorism after agreeing to offer medical care. Soufan had a strong working connection with FBI counter-terrorist agent John P. O'Neill, according to reports.

As a renowned expert and highly sought-after speaker, Ali Soufan's expertise is in high demand. To book Ali Soufan for your next event, conference, or workshop, please contact our speaker booking agency. Our experienced team will work closely with you to understand your specific needs and help secure Ali Soufan's participation. With our professional guidance and seamless booking process, you can ensure a memorable and impactful experience for your audience. Don't miss the opportunity to engage your audience with Ali Soufan's compelling insights and inspire positive change within your organization. Fill out the booking request form to take the first step in securing Ali Soufan for your next speaking engagement.