Hijacker will shows devotion to Islam, but no sign of terror attacks

BERLIN – The will of hijacker Mohammed Atta underlines the importance of dying "as a good Muslim." But it gives no sign that the man suspected of piloting the first plane to hit the World Trade Center expected to come to such a fiery end.

Found in luggage that never made it onto American Airlines Flight 11 and printed this week by the German news magazine Der Spiegel, the will is dated April 11, 1996.

Atta was away from Germany then, part of a four-year absence from the Hamburg technical college where the 33-year-old Egyptian studied. He returned in 1999, his teachers say, sporting a traditional Muslim beard – and an altered view of the world.

According to the magazine, Atta's will lays out a list of strict instructions for his funeral, instructing those who prepare his burial to remain calm and "pray that I am with the angels."

"Nobody should weep, wail or tear his clothes strike his face for me – these are foolish gestures."

He doesn't identify his heirs, but calls for them to ensure that Muslims are responsible for washing his body and dressing him in simple, white cloth, before burying him near other Muslims, lying on his right side, with his face toward Mecca.

Women and anyone who had fallen out with him should not be allowed to attend, he wrote, though he said that many people should be present at a quick, quiet ceremony.

"Earth should be cast three times over my body, with the words: 'You come from dust, are dust, and return to dust. And from the dust, a new person will rise.' All should then call God's name and witness that I died as a Muslim," the will says.

"All who take part in my burial should ask that I be forgiven."

His estate should be divided according to Islamic rules, with a third going to the poor and his books to a mosque. The will should be executed by Sunni leaders. "Whoever it is, should come from the region where I grew up, or someone who I followed at prayer."

Should the ceremony not follow Islamic codes, "those responsible will be brought to account."

"I want my family and everyone who reads this to fear the Almighty God and not be deceived by what is in life," he wrote. "In my memory, I want them to do what Ibrahim (a prophet) told his son to do, to die as a good Muslim."

Two witnesses signed the will: Abd al-Ghani Muswadi and Munir al-Mutasadik. German media reports identify the second witness as a fellow student in Hamburg.

According to Muslim tradition, it is common to leave such instructions, especially to say not to weep and wail or tear clothes. But it is unusual to ask that those who had fallen out with him not attend the funeral.

AP-WS-10-04-01 1811EDT