January 4, 2001: Mohamed Atta Travels to Spain

9/11 hijacker Mohamed Atta flies from Miami, Florida, to Madrid, Spain. He has allegedly been in the US since June 3, 2000, learning to fly in Florida with Marwan Alshehhi. [Miami Herald, 9/22/2001] Spanish authorities will later say he meets Barakat Yarkas, head of a Spanish al-Qaeda cell, on the trip. After Yarkas is arrested in late 2001, an interview with him by a high court judge will indicate that “numerous lines to Sept. 11 principals passed through [him].” [Boston Globe, 8/4/2002] Atta returns to the US on January 10 (see January 10, 2001), and will make a second trip to Spain in July of the same year (see July 8-19, 2001).