The horrific events of September 11th, 2001, are etched into the memories of millions worldwide. While the collapse of the World Trade Center towers remains the most potent image of that day, some eyewitness accounts offer chillingly different perspectives. One such account, from a New Jersey homemaker named Maria, led to the investigation of five young Israelis and their potential links to Israeli intelligence, centering around what became known as the “5 Dancing Israelis” incident.
From her apartment building in New Jersey, Maria, who preferred not to disclose her last name, had a clear view of the World Trade Center. Shortly after the first plane struck the North Tower, a neighbor alerted her to the unfolding tragedy. Grabbing her binoculars, Maria turned her gaze towards the unfolding catastrophe in Lower Manhattan. Amidst the smoke and chaos, something profoundly unsettling caught her attention.
Maria recounted seeing three young men kneeling on the roof of a white van parked in her apartment complex’s parking lot. “They seemed to be taking a movie,” she stated, describing how the men were filming or photographing themselves with the burning World Trade Center as a backdrop. It wasn’t just the act of filming during such a tragedy that disturbed Maria; it was the expressions on their faces. “They were like happy, you know… They didn’t look shocked to me. I thought it was very strange,” she explained.
এতটাই troubled by their demeanor, Maria noted down the van’s license plate number and contacted the police. Her call quickly escalated the situation, bringing the FBI into the picture, and a statewide alert was issued for the van.
The license plate traced back to Urban Moving Systems. Later that afternoon, around 4 p.m. on September 11th, police located the van on a service road near Giants Stadium off Route 3 in New Jersey. Inside, they found five men, aged between 22 and 27. The officers, with guns drawn, apprehended and handcuffed the men.
The arrest revealed several details that heightened suspicion. One passenger had $4,700 in cash concealed in his sock. Another carried two foreign passports. A box cutter was discovered in the van. However, the most startling revelation was the men’s identification as Israeli citizens.
‘We Are Not Your Problem’
According to the official police report, one of the men admitted to being on the West Side Highway in Manhattan “during the incident,” referring to the World Trade Center attack. Sivan Kurzberg, identified as the van’s driver, reportedly told the officers, “We are Israeli. We are not your problem. Your problems are our problems. The Palestinians are the problem.” The other individuals were identified as Paul Kurzberg, his brother, Yaron Shmuel, Oded Ellner, and Omer Marmari. This statement, coupled with the earlier observations of seemingly celebratory behavior, fueled intense scrutiny and debate surrounding the “5 dancing israelis” and their possible motives that day.
