U.S. prosecutors charges Somali national for supporting terrorist organizations

U.S. prosecutors charges Somali national for supporting terrorist organizations

2011-07-06 05:56:30 GMT+7 (ICT)

NEW YORK (BNO NEWS) -- A Somali national on Tuesday was indicted on charges of providing material support to al-Shabaab and al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP), two U.S.-designated foreign terrorist organizations, prosecutors said.

Ahmed Abdulkadir Warsame, also known as "Farah" and "Khattab," was also charged with conspiring to teach and demonstrate the making of explosives, possessing firearms and explosives in furtherance of crimes of violence, and other violations.

On April 19, Warsame was captured in the Gulf region by U.S. military forces and was questioned for intelligence purposes for over two months after he waived his Miranda rights.

"As alleged, Ahmed Warsame was a conduit between al Shabaab and al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula - two deadly terrorist organizations - providing material support and resources to them both," said Preet Bharara, U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of New York.

From at least 2007 until April 2011, Warsame conspired to provide and provided material support to al-Shabaab, resulting in the death of at least one person. He also allegedly fought for the terrorist organization in Somalia in 2009.

The defendant is also suspected of providing explosives, weapons, communications equipment, expert advice and assistance, and training to al-Shabaab. It is alleged that Warsame used destructive devices, machine guns, and an AK-47 assault weapons in crimes of violence in Somalia.

Furthermore, the indictment alleged that from about 2009 until his arrest, Warsame provided money, training, communications equipment, facilities, and personnel to AQAP while he was in Yemen during the last couple of years.

The defendant also received explosives and other military-type training from AQAP and served as the middle man in a weapons deal with AQAP on behalf of al Shabaab, according to the nine-count indictment. Four of the charges carry a maximum sentence of life imprisonment.

AQAP is based primarily in the tribal areas outside of the capital city Sana'a, which remains outside the control of the Yemeni government. The terrorist organization has orchestrated high-profile attacks since 2009.

Most notably, AQAP sent Nigerian-born Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab who attempted to detonate an explosive device aboard a Northwest Airlines flight on December 25, 2009. This was the first attempted U.S. homeland attack by an al-Qaeda affiliate since the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks.

Al-Shabaab was the militant wing of the Somali Council of Islamic Courts that took over most of southern Somalia in the second half of 2006. Despite efforts from the Somali and Ethiopian government, the group has continued its violent insurgency in southern and central Somalia.

In addition, the criminal organization was likely responsible for a wave of five coordinated suicide car bombings in October 2008 that simultaneously hit targets in two cities in northern Somalia, killing at least 26 people and injuring 29 others. Al-Shabaab has been accused of conducting the twin suicide bombings in Kampala, Uganda, on July 11, 2010, that killed more than 70 people.

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