{"id":218461,"date":"2026-05-03T20:39:09","date_gmt":"2026-05-03T20:39:09","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/218461\/"},"modified":"2026-05-03T20:39:09","modified_gmt":"2026-05-03T20:39:09","slug":"afghan-businessman-openly-sells-vile-9-11-rug-in-santa-barbara","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/218461\/","title":{"rendered":"Afghan businessman openly sells vile 9\/11 rug in Santa Barbara"},"content":{"rendered":"

The \u201cfinest rug store in Santa Barbara\u201d has sparked fury for proudly selling a product depicting horrific images of the 9\/11 attack on New York City<\/a>, the California Post can reveal.<\/p>\n

Tribal Rugs & Art was promoting one of the items as the centerpiece of its display on the sidewalk on the bustling State Street<\/a> on Saturday afternoon.<\/p>\n

The controversial mat, priced at $450, shows the moment the two planes hit the Twin Towers with parts of the buildings missing where the jets collided.<\/p>\n

Tribal Rugs & Art was promoting one of the items as the centerpiece of its display on the sidewalk on the bustling State Street on Saturday afternoon. Obtained by CA Post<\/p>\n

The store is owned by Masood Azizi, an Afghan native, who has been running the store since 1980, according to his website. Facebook\/Masood Azizi<\/p>\n

The lower portion of it also features what appeared to be references to the US war in Afghanistan, showing tanks, grenades and military helicopters with the date \u201c19-3-03\u201d stitched in.<\/p>\n

Another label in the top corner of the rug simply said: \u201c9-11-01.\u201d<\/p>\n

The rug sparked fury among 9\/11 survivors, with the FDNY commissioner<\/a> during the attacks tearing into it in an interview with The Post.<\/p>\n

Tom Von Essen said: \u201cThe people who created the rug and the people who purchase it are disrespectful imbeciles. For most of us the pain of that day has not gone away.\u201d<\/p>\n

The store is owned by Masood Azizi, an Afghan native<\/a>, who has been running the store since 1980, according to his website.<\/p>\n

In a brief conversation with The Post, he defended the rug claiming it was a nice design and was not glorifying the terror attack.<\/p>\n

He said: \u201cIt\u2019s not actually celebrating. You\u2019re just putting it in the weaving of what happened. So they just leave it on the rug as a memory.\u201d<\/p>\n

Azizi told the Post that it was imported from Afghanistan and touted the rug\u2019s unique appearance, saying it was for sale for $450.<\/p>\n

He added: \u201cIt\u2019s unusual. The design is nice.\u201d<\/p>\n

Azizi told the Post that it was imported from Afghanistan and touted the rug\u2019s unique appearance, saying it was for sale for $450. Obtained by CA Post<\/p>\n

The 9\/11 motif<\/a> is not an uncommon feature for Afghan war rugs, which document such historical incidents. Makers have claimed such depictions are made to symbolize an anti-war sentiment.<\/p>\n

But in America, the products have stirred controversy and backlash for as long as the rugs have been around.<\/p>\n

\u201dIt\u2019s disgusting,\u201d said Ed Cutting<\/a>, a New York City firefighter back in 2003. Others said that while the makers may have innocent motives, the execution is wrong.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s like if we had a market of rugs in the US that had imagery of the bombs blowing up Nagasaki,\u201d a YouTuber commented <\/a>last year on the rugs, referring to the nuclear bombing of Japan in WWII.<\/p>\n

One showed him smiling as he chatted to Olympus Has Fallen star Gerard Butler in 2016. Facebook\/Masood Azizi<\/p>\n

Azizi himself is no strange to controversy, having been hauled through the courts in Santa Barbara over unpaid taxes. Instagram\/@azizi_tribal_rug_and_art<\/p>\n

Azizi himself is no strange to controversy, having been hauled through the courts in Santa Barbara over unpaid taxes.<\/p>\n

He was sentenced <\/a>to three years probation and ordered to pay $30,759 in restitution in 2012 for failing to retain a business permit after failing to pay sales tax for more than two years.<\/p>\n

Photos on Azizi\u2019s social media show him promoting his rugs while catching photographs with celebrities in the rizty enclave.<\/p>\n

One showed him smiling as he chatted to Olympus Has Fallen star Gerard Butler and an unnamed woman back in 2016.<\/p>\n

His website says: \u201cHis longstanding, family-owned business is a staple of Santa Barbara\u2019s famed lower State Street shopping district.\u201d<\/p>\n

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