Mohamed Atta
Atta was born in 1968 in a small town in Egypt's Nile Delta. He was 10 years old when he moved with his family to the Abdeen section of Cairo. Atta studied architecture at Cairo University, graduating in 1990, and continued his studies in Germany at the Hamburg University of Technology. In Hamburg, Atta became involved with the al-Quds Mosque, where he met Marwan al-Shehhi, Ramzi bin al-Shibh, and Ziad Jarrah, together forming the Hamburg cell. Atta disappeared from Germany for periods of time, spending some time in Afghanistan, including several months in late 1999 and early 2000 when he met Osama bin Laden and other top al-Qaeda leaders. Atta and the other Hamburg cell members were recruited by bin Laden and Khalid Sheikh Mohammed for the "planes operation" in the United States. Atta returned to Hamburg in February 2000, and began inquiring about flight training in the United States.
Aqil Agha
Aqil's father, Musa Agha al-Hasi, himself a commander of Hawwara irregulars in the service of Acre's Ottoman governors, had left Egypt for Gaza in 1814. He was not directly related to the Ainawiyeh or Hawwara tribes, but claimed descent from the Hawwara as a matter of convenience and prestige. Musa originally hailed from the al-Bara'asa tribe of Cyrenaica (modern-day eastern Libya). Likewise, James Finn, the British consul in Jerusalem (1846–1863), claims Aqil's family was of Algerian or North African origin. Musa Agha resided in the Galilee around 1820 and married a Turkmen woman. Aqil was born to the couple in the Nazareth area. According to historian Adel Manna, Aqil was born in Gaza. Musa had two other sons, Ali and Salih. Musa died in Gaza in 1830.