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American Man Pleads Guilty in Mumbai, Denmark Terror Plots

American citizen David Coleman Headley pleaded guilty Thursday to all 12 federal terrorism charges that were brought against him, including conspiracy to bomb public places in India, to murder Americans and others in India, and to provide material support to the Pakistan-based terrorist group Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT).

A 35-page plea agreement detailed Headley's participation in foreign terrorism conspiracies that included planning the Mumbai terror attacks in November 2008 as well as plotting a subsequent attack on the Danish newspaper facilities of Jyllands-Posten and its employees. The Mumbai terror attacks killed approximately 164 people, including six Americans.

Headley, a Chicago resident born in Pakistan, admitted to attending training camps in Pakistan operated by LeT on five separate occasions between 2002 and 2005. Headley also admitted traveling to India five times between September 2006 and July 2008 under instructions from Lashkar to scout potential sites for terrorist attacks. Several of the sites Headley videotaped on his various reconnaissance missions were later attacked by Lashkar-trained terrorists in Mumbai in 2008 and in Pune last month.

The plea agreement commends Headley for cooperating with the government since his arrest last October: "[Headley] has provided substantial assistance to the criminal investigation, and also has provided information of significant intelligence value." Further in light of Headley's past cooperation and anticipated cooperation in the future, the Attorney General Eric Holder has waived the death penalty against Headley. He will not be sentenced until the government determines his cooperation is complete, which may be years down the road.

Read the full plea agreement here. For coverage of Thursday's plea hearing, see here, here and here.

By IPT News  |  March 18, 2010 at 6:56 pm  |  Permalink

Brotherhood Official Dropped from UN Terror Finance List

Youssef Nada, a key Muslim Brotherhood figure, has been dropped from a United Nations list of alleged terror financiers. Newsweek's Mark Hosenball reports that the move came last week without much notice or explanation and apparently with the blessing of U.S. government officials.

Nada remains on the U.S. Treasury list of terror financiers, and it's unclear whether that may be subject to change. Hosenball spoke with Nada, who said he asked the UN to review his status and "expressed puzzlement as to why he's still on" the Treasury list.

It's a curious decision to Brotherhood watchers who believe Nada has not only served its objectives, but may have raised money for terrorists, allegations which Nada denies. Hosenball quotes Victor Comras, a former State Department adviser, call the UN move a mistake:

"Even though Nada may no longer be involved in funding Al Qaeda, he has made it clear a number of times that he will continue as a major financial supporter of Hamas."

Journalist Douglas Farah notes that Nada has represented himself as the Brotherhood's foreign minister. See Hosenball's full report here.

By IPT News  |  March 18, 2010 at 2:28 pm  |  Permalink

U.S. Treasury Targets Hamas-Controlled Businesses in Gaza

The U.S. Department of Treasury designated two Palestinian businesses as Specially Designated Global Terrorists Thursday for their support of Hamas. The Islamic National Bank (INB) of Gaza provides financial services to Hamas members, including those of the terrorist group's military wing. The Al-Aqsa television station in Gaza is financed and controlled by Hamas, a Treasury release said.

The designation includes the freezing of all assets of Al-Aqsa television and INB held under U.S. jurisdiction and prohibits "U.S. persons from engaging in any transactions" with these organizations.

According to the Treasury press release:

"While posing as a legitimate financial institution, INB is providing Hamas with a means to receive and store large amounts of smuggled cash to use at the organization's discretion."

The INB, meanwhile was established in April 2009 with $20 million in start-up capital. "The INB's board of directors and its senior management consist of high-ranking and prominent Hamas activists," the Treasury statement said. The Palestinian Authority declared that the bank was illegal from the onset, because it did not apply for the necessary licenses and permits.

Al-Aqsa TV, financed and controlled by Hamas, promotes terrorism, the incitement of hatred against Jews and the glorification of martyrdom among adults and children. The Treasury release notes that the station "airs programs and music videos designed to recruit children to become Hamas armed fighters and suicide bombers upon reaching adulthood."

For example, in April 2007 Al Aqsa TV introduced a Mickey Mouse character called Farfour, who asks a young girl on the phone named "Sanabel" what she will do "for the sake of the Al-Aqsa Mosque." The girl replies, "We will annihilate the Jews," and "I will commit martyrdom." See here for the full transcript of the show available from MEMRI.

Under Secretary for Terrorism and Financial Intelligence Stuart Levey reiterated Treasury's commitment "to expose Hamas's efforts to create institutions with the trappings of legitimacy that are in fact controlled by and used to support a terrorist organization."

By IPT News  |  March 18, 2010 at 12:27 pm  |  Permalink  |  Comments ()

Pakistan Issues Terror Charges Against D.C. Five

Formal terror-related charges have been filed against five D.C.-area men who disappeared last November, only to be arrested in Pakistan about a week later. The charges, which include conspiracy to commit terrorism in Pakistan and plotting attacks against a friendly country, could send the men to prison for life.

Howard University dental student Ramy Zamzam reportedly left behind a farewell video before the group left the country last fall. Reports from Pakistan indicate the men wanted to join Al Qaeda and planned to make their way to Afghanistan to fight American troops.

Attorneys for the five entered not guilty pleas. It is unclear when the trial would start, but the Washington Post reports it could take months and, under Pakistani legal procedures, may be closed to the public.

Zamzam has repeatedly claimed Pakistani officials have tortured him and his friends during questioning. But Zamzam has not denied that their ultimate objective was a violent one.

""We are not terrorists," he said outside of court in January. "We are jihadists, and jihad is not terrorism."

The Post report indicates that American law enforcement officials continue with their own investigation, but it is unclear whether charges would be brought here before the Pakistani case is resolved.

By IPT News  |  March 17, 2010 at 9:57 am  |  Permalink  |  Comments ()

Report Dissects Goldstone's Failures

A research center tied to the Israeli military has issued a thorough review of the United Nations "fact-finding" mission on the 2008-09 Gaza war, finding that it ignored evidence about Hamas' use of human shields and its military build-up in Gaza.

The UN's Goldstone Committee issued its report last year on Operation Cast Lead. The report, rife with inaccuracies, accused Israel of violating international law and committing war crimes while largely absolving Hamas' conduct during the Gaza conflict.

In response to these allegations, the Intelligence and Terrorism Information Center commissioned a study to review the Goldstone findings. The results, published in a report this week, detail how a failure to collect accurate information and an anti-Israel bias fed into a pre-conceived perception that only Israel should be scolded for Operation Cast Lead.

Despite a significant body of evidence to the contrary, the Goldstone panel said it "did not find any evidence to support the allegations that hospital facilities were used by the Gaza authorities or Palestinian armed groups to shield military activities and that ambulances were used to transport combatants or for other military purposes."

The Israeli report, titled Hamas and the Terrorist Threat from the Gaza Strip: The Main Findings of the Goldstone Report Versus the Factual Findings, presents evidence that Hamas used hospitals as cover when firing at Israeli troops and stored weapons in them. Other conclusions include:

• Goldstone ignored Hamas' terrorist ideology and ignored the organization's history of suicide bombings and rocket attacks undertaken against Israeli civilians;
• Goldstone ignored Hamas's military buildup in the Gaza Strip during 2007-2009, actions carried out in violation of the Oslo Accords.
• Goldstone ignored the financial and logistical support given to Hamas by Hezbollah, Syria, and Iran.

Perhaps most interesting, is that despite Goldstone's conclusion that Israel deliberately murdered civilians throughout Operation Cast Lead, Hamas implemented a combat doctrine which made massive use of civilians as human shields. As the report explains:

"The tactics included forcing residents to stay at home in neighborhoods where the IDF operated; assimilating terrorist operatives into civilian neighborhoods; exchanging their uniforms for civilian clothing while fighting the IDF; surrounding operatives with children to facilitate their escape from combat zones; making large-scale military use of civilian houses, which included constructing tunnels for assault and escape; situating its military infrastructure within civilian houses and public institutions; turning residential neighborhoods into combat zones; firing rockets and mortar shells from within civilian population centers, including from next to buildings and from roods; and summoning civilians to come to operatives' houses to serve as human shields for terrorist operatives in danger of being attacked by the IDF."

The Goldstone report was controversial from the outset. Haaretz previously reported that one of the four UN team members to visit Gaza dismissed Israeli claims of self defense, saying in the month leading up to the war "something like two" rockets were fired at Israel. The team member also questioned the validity of photographs showing Hamas hid weapons in mosques.

By IPT News  |  March 15, 2010 at 4:54 pm  |  Permalink  |  Comments ()

Report: U.S.-Designated Charity Incorporates in Florida

A Saudi charity and Islamic propagation group whose foreign branches were designated as a Specially Designated Global Terrorist organization by the U.S. Treasury seems to have opened a new office in South Florida. The Global Muslim Brotherhood Daily Report notes that the International Islamic Relief Organization (IIRO) has registered as a non-profit in Florida.

The IIRO has branches in Indonesia and the Philippines. Florida corporate records show that the new entity is headed by Adnan Khalil Basha, the group's Saudi Arabian based Secretary-General, and that it is intended to be the IIRO's American branch.

The IIRO previously operated in Falls Church, Virginia and was run by Sulaiman bin Ali Al-Ali, who has been described as a wealth and well-connected figure in Saudi Arabia. He also directly solicited donations from the Saudi royal family.

Under Al-Ali, the IIRO operated an American branch called the International Relief Organization (IRO) and a D.C. corporation called Sana-Bell. Sana-Bell was designed to generate funds for the IRO. Sana-Bell also shared its address with the now defunct SAAR foundation, a network of businesses connected to Saudi banking interests and the International Institute of Islamic Thought (IIIT).

Al-Ali received $10 million dollars from IIRO headquarters in Saudi Arabia, with the intention of investing it through Sana-Bell to provide a stable income for its American branch. According to the Global Muslim Brotherhood report, a complaint in a civil lawsuit revealed that $3.7 million of this fund was invested into a group with the generic name of Bait ul Mal (BMI – "Treasury House"). BMI was headed by Solomon Biheiri, an Egyptian immigrant who has served on the advisory board of the American Muslim Council. The Global Muslim Brotherhood report also includes court documents that state BMI played a role in conducting financial transactions for Specially Designated (Global) Terrorists, Yassin Kadi, Mousa Abu Marzook, and Mohammad Salah, the latter two being part of Hamas' leadership.

In March of 2002, a U.S. government task force raided the SAAR entities and the Muslim World League, which shared IIRO US' address. In 2006, the Treasury Department designated the Philippine and Indonesian branches of IIRO as terrorist organizations, based on their funding of Al-Qaeda and its affiliates.

Although the organization went dormant in 2002 and had its DC corporate registration revoked, the Global Muslim Brotherhood report says that IIRO has resurrected itself with connections to the Muslim World League. Additionally, the same address is registered to a Florida non-profit organization known as Motamar Al-Alam Al-Islami (Muslim World Congress), which is headquartered in Karachi, Pakistan. The Motamar claims to have Consultative Status with the UN in New York, through the ECOSOF and UNICEF, and Observer Status with the OIC.

For more information, see the Global Muslim Brotherhood report's full write-up here.

By IPT News  |  March 15, 2010 at 4:16 pm  |  Permalink  |  Comments ()

Another American Tied to Al Qaeda in Yemen

This week a 26-year-old American citizen of Somali origin from New Jersey was captured in Yemen after he tried to shoot his way out of a hospital, killing one guard and injuring others. Sharif Mobley was originally arrested in Sanaa, Yemen, in early March and held on charges that he was a member of Al Qaeda. He complained of being ill and was admitted to a hospital for about a week until the shooting episode.

The FBI is investigating Mobley's case, and was asking relatives about him before the shooting.

Sources say that Mobley had a relationship with Anwar Al-Awlaki, a former imam at the Dar al-Hijrah mosque in Falls Church, Va., who has been linked to a series of terror plots. Awlaki is considered an inspiration for Nidal Malik Hasan before the Fort Hood massacre and also is suspected of encouraging failed Christmas Day airline bomber Umar Abdulmutallab.

Mobley previously lived in Philadelphia and Newark, Delaware, where he occasionally worshipped at the mosque of the Islamic Society of Delaware. The Imam of the mosque, Abdel-Hadi Shehata, said Mobley moved to Yemen to learn Arabic and study Islam.

Old friends of Mobley said that he tried to convert them to Islam. One, Roman Castro, said Mobley called him a "'Muslim killer'" in 2006 after Castro served in Iraq.

Sharif Mobley is the latest case of an American who moved to Yemen to join Al Qaeda after becoming radicalized in the U.S. Dennis Blair, U.S. Director of National Intelligence, noted that Yemen is "'re-emerging as a jihadist battleground and potential regional base of operations for al-Qaeda.'"

By IPT News  |  March 12, 2010 at 12:24 pm  |  Permalink  |  Comments ()

British Airways Employee Accused of Terror Plots

A British Airways employee accused of plotting his own suicide bombing and leaking security information, appeared in Westminster Magistrate's Court Thursday. He did not yet enter a plea to charges of terrorist financing and "engaging in conduct in preparation of terrorist acts." Encrypted information about the detailed plot was discovered on his home computer by Scotland Yard investigators following his arrest last month.

Prosecutors allege that Rajib Karim, a British naturalized citizen originally from Bangladesh, used his position at British Airways to advise terrorists on security information pertaining to planning attacks. This included data about suspicious scans, liquid allowances, and computer systems.

They also claim that Karim successfully gathered money in Britain for terrorists in Yemen and Bangladesh. He transferred the funds through a third party and wire services to terrorist associates overseas.

Karim allegedly recruited potential suicide bombers and offered to become one himself. This included offering to join a cabin crew, to gain information about crew training and on-the-job activity.

The alleged offenses started in April 2006 and continued until February 25, 2010. British police have not released additional information about which terrorist organizations he contacted and funded.

By IPT News  |  March 11, 2010 at 4:48 pm  |  Permalink  |  Comments ()

An Awlaki Link for Jihad Jane?

Internet postings provide much of the evidence against a Pennsylvania woman charged with conspiring to provide material support to terrorists and to kill a Swedish target. Colleen LaRose, also known as "Jihad Jane," is accused of using a YouTube account for jihad recruiting. Those YouTube pages have been taken down.

The Jawa Report, however, reports that LaRose had another YouTube account under the name "mzwiidkat." That claim has not been corroborated. An Internet search, however, reveals that this same person is listed as a 'friend' on YouTube's Anwar Awlaki Lectures Channel. Awlaki is the American-born cleric now living in Yemen and considered a charismatic influence over jihadis. Awlaki was in communication with Nidal Malik Hasan before the Fort Hood massacre and is suspected of encouraging failed Christmas Day airline bomber Umar Abdulmutallab.

The Jawa Report also discovered an account on another video site, Daily Motion, under the name FatimaLaRose, a name listed as an alias in the indictment. In addition, the account holder describes herself as a 46 year old woman, which is LaRose's age.

LaRose's icon on the Daily Motion site shows a black flag with SUPPORT OUR TROOPS above the Shahada, the Muslim testimony of faith, and an AK-47. As one Muslim extremist living in Canada has said, '"Support Our Troops" means supporting the mujahideen.

FatimaLaRose lists as her 'favorites' and her 'playlist' a disturbing list of videos, which are likely material to encourage those of pre-existing jihadist bent to engage in terrorism. These and similar videos often appear on terrorist and pro-terrorist websites. The videos show:

Attacks on US troops in Iraq (Iraq Sniper, IED Attack, RKG3 Thrown On An American B6 Armored Vehicle)

Jihadists in Afghanistan,Turkestan, Algeria, Uzbekistan, Chechnya (the Wolves of Chechen) and Palestine

Statements of Jihadist leaders, including Bin Laden

The suffering of Muslims around the world, including at Guantanamo and in Gaza (Bloodshed and Anarchy in Gaza).

According to the indictment, LaRose was instructed by an unnamed co-conspirator nearly a year ago to "go to sweden . . . find location of [Resident of Sweden, hereafter referred to as "RS #1"] . . . and kill him . . . this is what i say to u."

LaRose agreed to do so, saying "i will make this my goal till i achieve it or die trying."

The co-conspirator then told LaRose to kill the target "in a way that the whole Kufar [non-believer] world get frightened." In August, she went to Europe to receive training and try to carry out the murder.

The indictment was unsealed Tuesday even though LaRose had been arrested in October. Also Tuesday, police in Ireland arrested seven men accused of plotting to kill Swedish cartoonist Lars Vilks. His 2007 caricature of the Prophet Muhammed as a dog made Vilks a target of death threats by jihadists. Al Qaeda placed a bounty on his head, the Guardian reports, "with a 50% bonus if Vilks was 'slaughtered like a lamb' by having his throat cut."

By IPT News  |  March 10, 2010 at 12:21 pm  |  Permalink  |  Comments ()

Middle East Student Visa Fraud ICE'd in LA

The Los Angeles office of Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) announced the arrest Monday of Eamon Daniel Higgins for conspiring to commit visa fraud. Higgins was initially charged in a one count criminal information in U.S. District Court in Santa Ana. The information charges that Higgins and other co-conspirators took exams for more than 100 alien students enrolled in southern California colleges. The tests were needed for the students to meet immigration law requirements to remain in the U.S. Per the ICE report, Higgins charged more than $1,000 per examination and did this for students from Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Lebanon, Kuwait, Turkey, and Qatar.

Sixteen of the foreign students linked to the investigation also have been arrested - six on felony immigration fraud complaints and the other 10 for deportation proceedings. Affidavits submitted in support of the criminal complaints detail how this investigation developed and how there may be more significance to the case than the seemingly routine immigration fraud.

The ICE case agent, Daniel Rocha, wrote that in October of 2007 the Daly City, California Police Department retrieved a "dropped" wallet containing various items, including seven fictitious California driver licenses all bearing the photo of a person later determined to be a nephew of Eamon Higgins. The names on the fictitious driver licenses were determined to be all foreign students who had entered the United States on student visas destined to study at schools within the Central District of California.

The investigation led to a search of Higgins' home by federal agents on December 9, 2009. There, agents seized 60 fraudulent California driver licenses bearing the photographs of Higgins and his associates, college examinations completed by Higgins, college exam notebooks and notes relating to the testing scam linked to Higgins, payment information relating to foreign students and computer evidence relating to the visa scam.

The complaint affidavit notes that Higgins, interviewed during the search warrant, admitted his involvement in the visa fraud scheme and provided details. The affidavit indicates Higgins and his co-conspirators were involved in purchasing approximately 500 counterfeit documents to further the fraud and that Higgins had communication with 150 foreign students in conjunction with the scheme. Additionally, the visa fraud allowed many of the foreign students to travel in and out of the United States on their student visas, allowing them to return to their home countries and elsewhere in the Middle East.

The FBI, Los Angeles Police Department and the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department are jointly working on the ongoing investigation. While there is no reported connection to terrorism at this time, all the countries identified as countries of citizenship for the suspect aliens in this case are known special interest source countries from where radical Islamic terrorists have come.

As the 9/11 Commission so aptly described, immigration documents and visas are the lifeblood of foreign terrorists, as important to them as their weapons and training. Those who provide terrorists fraudulent access to visas and immigration status put the nation's security in dire jeopardy. Pursuing this kind of investigation and prosecution is exactly the kind of preemptive security related casework ICE should be doing.

By IPT News  |  March 10, 2010 at 9:58 am  |  Permalink  |  Comments ()