The horrific events of September 11th, 2001, are etched into the memory of millions globally. Amidst the widespread shock and grief, certain unusual occurrences fueled suspicion and speculation. One such incident, observed by a New Jersey resident, involved a group of young Israeli men whose reactions to the unfolding tragedy sparked an FBI investigation and ignited a controversial narrative around “The Dancing Israelis.”
Maria, a homemaker residing in New Jersey, prefers to keep her last name private. From her apartment, she had a clear view of the World Trade Center. On that fateful morning, a call from a neighbor drew her attention to the unfolding disaster after the first plane struck.
Equipped with binoculars, Maria watched in horror as smoke billowed from the Twin Towers. However, amidst the chaos and destruction, a peculiar scene unfolded in the parking lot of her own apartment building, capturing her attention and raising immediate alarm.
Maria recounts observing three young men positioned on the roof of a white van. Their actions were far from what she expected in the face of such a catastrophe. “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 that struck Maria as odd, but 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. This unsettling behavior prompted Maria to note down the van’s license plate number and contact the police, setting in motion a chain of events that would involve the FBI and a statewide alert for the vehicle.
The license plate traced back to a company named Urban Moving. Later that afternoon, around 4 p.m. on September 11th, the van was located on a service road near Giants Stadium in New Jersey. Police officers initiated a stop, discovering five men, aged between 22 and 27, inside. The men were apprehended at gunpoint and handcuffed, marking the beginning of a more intensive investigation.
The arresting officers noted several details that heightened their suspicion. One of the men had $4,700 in cash concealed in his sock. Another carried two foreign passports. A box cutter was also found within the van. However, the most significant revelation came when the five men identified themselves as Israeli citizens.
During questioning, as detailed in the police report, one of the passengers admitted they had been on the West Side Highway in Manhattan “during the incident,” referring to the World Trade Center attack. Sivan Kurzberg, 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 men were identified as Paul Kurzberg, Yaron Shmuel, Oded Ellner, and Omer Marmari.
This incident of “the dancing israelis” remains a controversial footnote to the 9/11 tragedy, raising questions about the men’s motives and their connection to the events of that day. While the full details and implications continue to be debated, the initial observations and subsequent investigation highlight a layer of complexity within the broader narrative of September 11th.
