The 9/11 File/CASE 35/September 2001

Foreign governments

“4,000 Jews stayed home”

How a Jerusalem Post headcount became a rumor

A white rose at the names around the 9/11 Memorial reflecting pools in New York, photographed during a September 2019 visit. This is a memorial photograph, not a photograph of the attack.
U.S. Navy / Mass Communication Specialist 1st Class Sarah Villegas · Source & image context ↗

RECORD / AT A GLANCE

False

False. The number came from a Jerusalem Post report that Israel’s foreign ministry had the names of 4,000 Israelis believed to be near the attack sites, not a list of absentees. Hundreds of Jewish people died in the towers, roughly in line with New York’s population.

THE EVENTS / THE INVESTIGATION / THE STORY

The chronology.

READ THE FILE

Evidence & assessment.

01

Where the number came from

A list of Israelis to check on.

↗02

Who actually died

Hundreds of Jewish victims.

↗

Open an article for its evidence, labeled AI assessment and numbered sources. Read the complete static edition ↗

WHAT PEOPLE SAY ABOUT THIS FILE

The claims, rated.

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Sources & limits.

Numbered citations in each article identify the relevant sources. These records have different purposes and evidentiary weight.

  1. U.S. State Department, January 2005: The 4,000 Jews rumor (Internet Archive copy) ↗

    Traces the figure to a Jerusalem Post count of Israelis believed to be near the sites, and compares the Jewish share of victims with New York’s population.

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