Al Qaeda and the Sniper
By Greg Buete
TechCentralStation.com | 10/25/2002

Late Wednesday night authorities began searching for two "people of interest" in relation to the Beltway Sniper. What's interesting is that one of the two "persons of interest" was identified as a Tacoma, Washington man connected with Fort Lewis. Stuck in the middle of this story is something even more interesting. The FBI is also searching a militia training camp in Marion, Alabama, in possible connection to the sniper case.

Step back for a moment. What's the common link between Tacoma, Washington and Marion, Alabama?

It could be James Ujaama, Zain-ul-abidin, and Abu Hamza.

James Ujaama is currently being held without bond as a material witness and has been indicted for attempting to set up a terrorist training camp in Bly, Oregon. Once a model citizen and entrepreneur, Ujaama crossed over into the dark world of Abu Hamza, a man that Assistant U.S. Attorney Andrew Hamilton recently called "perhaps the best known terrorist in the world." Hamza is associated with the Islamic Army of Aden, a Yemeni terrorist group that claimed responsibility for the USS Cole bombing in October of 2000. The FBI believes that Hamza is an al-Qaeda recruiter, whose London mosque was even visited by Zacarias Moussaoui.

The US government believes that after moving to London in the late 1990s Ujaama became a disciple of Hamza, who personally wrote a letter of recommendation that Ujaama used to enter an Afghanistan training camp. For the past five years Ujaama has studied from one of the best terrorists around. In return Ujaama offered his computer expertise to help Hamza maintain militant anti-American web sites. This is nothing new to Ujaama, creator of StopAmerica.org, a Web site that is highly critical of US foreign policy. It wasn't always so; Washington state lawmakers named June 10, 1994, James Ujaama Day, in recognition for his community service. That day he also received a Certificate of Special Congressional Recognition. My, how times have changed.

Enter Semi Osman. Back home, Ujaama was a frequent patron of a mosque in Seattle, whose imam was a vocal Lebanese man named Semi Osman. Searching for an Islamic commune, Osman discovered some property outside of Bly through a friend of his wife. What Osman saw as a commune, Ujaama saw as an opportunity for business with his old master Abu Hamza.

Authorities believe that Ujaama faxed Hamza a proposal to use the property in Bly as a safehouse and terrorist training camp, remarking how the Bly terrain was very similar to that of Afghanistan. An intrigued Hamza sent a pair of operatives to evaluate the Bly property. They were Oussama Kassir, a Lebanese Sweed who claimed to be a hitman of Osama bin Laden, and Haroon Aswat, a British Indian. Looking back, Hamza must have been thrilled at the prospect of a new terror camp in the US. Indeed, he once told ABC News that America's laws make these camps easy to run, "like a picnic." But, alas, the training camp never blossomed as he hoped. In the two weeks that Hamza's trainers occupied Bly not a single recruit showed. The Seattle operators spent their time horseback riding, while Hamza's associates fumed. Oussama Kassir was so frustrated and angry with Ujaama that he threatened to shoot him.

Ujaama eventually returned to London. That could have been the end of the story. However, on September 11, 2001, 19 Middle Eastern hijackers executed the worst terrorist event in history. It was only then that the Bly cell began to unravel.

Part of their bad fortune included a Guantanamo Bay prisoner, Feroz Abbasi, who was able to finger Ujaama to al-Qaeda training camps in Afghanistan. This path led to other members of the Bly cell, including Osman, who was traced to Bly by investigators through a late 1999 routine traffic stop. The word was out. Immigration authorities arrested Osman when he appeared for a citizenship interview in Seattle. He was charged with possessing a handgun with removed serial number, and fraudulently trying to become a US citizen. The FBI obtained a search warrant for Osman's apartment and found weapons, military maps, instructions on poisoning water supplies, propaganda of Abu Hamza, and other materials related to Islamic extremism.

The apartment was located in Tacoma, Washington.

Osman, a Navy reservist, cooperated with authorities. When Ujaama returned to the US, the Feds were watching his every step.

Alabama

Shift to Alabama. Over the summer, Scotland Yard charged Sulayman Balal Zain-ul-abidin, an alleged member of the al-Qaeda network, under Britain's Prevention of Terrorism Act for inviting individuals to undergo terrorist training. Zain-ul-abidin, aka Frank Etim, operated Sakina Security Services, an obvious front for Islamic militancy that included advertising on its Web site a combat course titled "Ultimate Jihad Challenge." The "Ultimate Jihad Challenge" was a two-week course on a 1,000-acre property in Marion, Alabama, called "Ground Zero, USA." The Alabama camp was not owned or operated by Zain-ul-abidin; Authorities believe that the British owners were used by men like Zain-ul-abidin to lure Islamic militants to learn combat training for future Islamic causes. Mark Yates and Berkeley & Associates - the company that operates the camp - have both repeatedly denied any relationship with Sakina Security Services. Both the prosecution and defense in the Zain-ul-abidin case have accepted that Yates ran a legitimate firearms course in Marion. I'm not sure if that will fly with Marion Police Chief Tony Buford. He said he became suspicious when he learned the course used buses and police vehicles as targets.

Although his lawyers deny it, authorities say that James Ujaama designed the Sakina Security Services Web site, which advertised the "Ultimate Jihad Challenge," thus linking Ujaama to Zain-ul-abidin. Furthermore, Zain-ul-abidin is known to have trained bodyguards for Abu Hamza.

At the scene police found Lee Malvo's fingerprint. Not too bright.

Snipers

By Thursday morning the police had found and arrested their two "persons of interest." John Allen Muhammad, aka John Allen Williams, and a juvenile who is possibly Muhammad's stepson, Lee Malvo, were sleeping in their vehicle when police swooped upon them. The case had been broken because the credit card that the sniper asked authorities to transfer $10 million in ransom money had been stolen in a Montgomery, Alabama liquor store double shooting about a month before.

An expert in combat support missions, Muhammad was "connected to" Fort Lewis in Tacoma, Washington - a premier Army sniper training facility. Is it possible that we will learn that Muhammed is linked to the Bly cell or even to naval reservist Semi Osman, who had an apartment in Tacoma, Washington? Why was the FBI searching "Ground Zero USA" in Marion, Alabama? Could Muhammed ever have been recruited to train at "Ground Zero USA" through Zain-ul-abidin's Web site? Last week the FBI questioned detainees at Guantanamo Bay in order to find a possible terrorism link to the sniper. At Guantanamo, did the Feds speak with Feroz Abbasi, and could he have fingered Muhammad as attending an al-Qaeda camp in Afghanistan, or being an associate of Ujaama?

This case changes by the hour so stay tuned. It's possible that the FBI is only looking at "Ground Zero USA" to cover their bases. Given that authorities recently traveled to Guantanamo to question the terrorism angle I suppose it could be a coincidence that John Muhammad is linked to Tacoma, Washington, and Marion, Alabama - but it'd be an awfully big one.


BRITISH MUSLIMS SEEK TERROR TRAINING IN U.S.
The Electronic Telegraph ^ | May 21, 2000 | By Chris Hastings


Posted on 09/20/2001 1:13:46 AM PDT by Uncle Bill


British Muslims Seek Terror Training In US

Electronic Telegraph
By Chris Hastings
May 21, 2000

ISLAMIC fundamentalists in Britain are applying to train in the use of firearms and explosives at a secret terror training camp in the United States.

Dozens of fanatics from across the country are accepting offers of military training sessions so that they can join Islamic combat groups fighting overseas. In what appears to be a shift in policy by the fundamentalists, volunteers are being drilled by former military personnel with live ammunition and real guns. They are also being given crash courses in sniper shooting and hostage taking.

One advert for the course, which appears on the internet under the title The Ultimate Jihad Challenge, states "Due to the arms laws of the UK all serious firearms training must be done overseas. The course emphasis is on practical live-fire training. You will fire between 2,000 and 3,000 rounds of mixed calibre ammunition."

Recruits who sign up are also taught how to open fire on vehicles, survive in the jungle, and shoot at night. The courses, which take place on a 1,000-acre estate in the United States, are run by Sakina Security Services, which takes its name from the Islamic word for tranquillity. But its internet site makes no secret of its support for Jihad, or holy war, waged by Muslim extremists.

The company's operational head is Muhammad Jameel, a British-born Muslim who has strong links with other leading fundamentalists such as Sheikh Omar Bakri Mohammad and Sheikh Abu Hamza. In the past all three men have worked together to raise funds and volunteers for the Islamic cause.

Last year The Telegraph revealed how all three men were involved in special training courses for recruits in the South of England, Nottinghamshire and Scotland. Even then there was a suggestion that some recruits were being taught how to use guns. Last year they shared a platform at a public meeting in London. After more than 500 volunteers watched a video about training camps in Afghanistan, Jameel made a passionate appeal for volunteers and donations.

Omar Bakri said last week "I know Brother Jameel very well. He is extremely trustworthy and honest. As head of Al-Muhjiroun [meaning The Eyes, The Ears], I have overall responsibility for a number of organisations fighting for the Islamic cause. Sakina is one of those."

Most of those who take part in the American sessions will join fighting units in areas like Pakistan, Afghanistan and Chechnya, some of which are controlled by Osama bin Laden, the world's most wanted terrorist. Until now fundamentalist leaders have played down any talk of military training, aware that it would bring them into conflict with the authorities in Britain. They are adamant that they would never target anyone in Britain.

Mr Jameel, who is 6ft 4in tall and claims to be trained in martial arts, was approached by an undercover reporter last week, posing as someone who needed to hire a bodyguard. He claimed he would be able to "sort out" an enemy - for the right fee. Yesterday Mr Jameel was approached for a second time and told the reporter's true identity. He refused to answer any allegations.

Andrew Dismore, the Labour MP for Hendon, will this week refer the military training courses to officials at both the Home Office and the American embassy in London. He said "Obviously, the existence of such training camps and their use by extremists is shocking. The question is, what can we do about it? Unfortunately I imagine that what they are doing is perfectly legal in the United States. But we need to find out more so we can stop this practice."

British Muslims join 'holy war' - Free Republic BBC News

The following window pops up on Sakina Security Services Website:

Al Aqsa Liberation Fund
Checks payable to: F.ETIM
Woolwich Bank
Bank Code: 10-80-02
Account #: 42032012
London, United Kingdom

Trials expose terrorist training camps

US BOMBING OF TERRORIST CAMPS IN AFGHANISTAN - AN ANALYSIS


--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

ISLAMIC TERRORIST GROUPS OPERATING IN THE UNITED STATES

ERRI DAILY INTELLIGENCE REPORT
ERRI Risk Assessment Services
By Steve Macko, ERRI Risk Analyst
August 29, 1997 Vol. 3 - 241

Very few people realize it, but at this very moment, militant Islamic groups that have been officially described as international terrorist organizations -- such as Hezbollah, HAMAS, Palestine Islamic Jihad and others -- are operating very quietly within the borders of the United States, from New York City to San Diego. What these terrorist groups do is acquire money in the U.S. to send back to their parent organizations overseas. They also use their U.S. addresses in order to purchase U.S. equipment, use U.S. internet sites to communicate and U.S. universities to meet and plan.

John O'Neill, the man who formally headed the FBI's counterterrorism unit until 1996 and who now heads those efforts in New York City, said, "Almost every one of these groups has a presence in the United States today. A lot of these groups now have the capability and the support infrastructure in the United States to attack us here if they choose to do so."

By many Islamic militants, the United States is seen as the "Great Satan." And the U.S. has now become a key part of their terrorist network. In the Middle East, you have some bitter rivalries such as Sunni vs. Shi'ite. Or Iranians vs. Arabs. These type of individuals have now eased into America's famed "melting pot."

This issue is a difficult one for law enforcement. Almost all of the estimated 6 million Muslims in the United States are law-abiding citizens. But how do you use some investigative tactics without infringing upon the rights of innocent people?

Here is a nightmare scenario that keeps some risk analysts awake at night:

A Hezbollah terrorist attaches a lightbulb to the rail track of a New York City subway. Within minutes, a train passes and smashes the light- bulb. The deadly toxin anthrax is then released into the subway system carried away by ventilation fans and causes the death of 100,000 people or more.

Peter Probst, a analyst at the Pentagon, said, "The death toll would be horrific. You could cripple the country." Probst wrote a similar scenario in his classified report entitled: "Terror 2000." He added about the anthrax scenario, "And you can't bury the victims. You have to burn them. There would be funeral pyres throughout the city."

A 1996 U.S. Senate report said that a terrorist attack with anthrax or sarin gas or a World Trade Center-type bomb that was "dirtied" with nuclear material is almost inevitable. Most experts say that sooner or later, it's going to happen.

U.S. Secretary of Defense William Cohen said about the same thing at a terrorism conference in April. He said: "This scenario of a nuclear, biological or chemical weapon in the hands of a terrorist cell or rogue nation is not only plausible, it's really quite real."

The U.S. has already seen such efforts toward these kinds of terrorist attacks. The group of men involved in the 1993 World Trade Center bombing that killed six people and injured more than 1,000 included militants from Palestine, Sudan, Egypt and even U.S. citizens converted to the radical Islamic fundamentalism craziness.

That same group convicted of the World Trade Center bombing also planned to bomb other New York City landmarks. The mysterious Ramzi Yousef who is currently on trial for his part in the World Trade Center case, has already been convicted of conspiring to bomb a dozen U.S. airliners in a single day.

U.S. authorities worry about what are called "sleeper cells" of terrorists who await orders from the crazy mullahs in Iran or zealots who have been influenced by jailed Egyptian "cleric" Sheik Omar Abdel-Rahman. Who was given a life sentence for his part in the World Trade Center bombing. Rahman still has his followers even though he is behind bars in a federal prison.

It is known that U.S.-based HAMAS militants have been involved in surveillance operations against prominent Jewish people in the Chicago area. What could their intentions only be?

Central Intelligence Agency Director George Tenet says that such terrorists "are expanding their networks, improving their skills and sophistication and working to stage more spectacular attacks."

Currently, the U.S. Customs Service is said to be investigating a network of U.S.-based Islamic foundations who may be funding Middle East terrorists. One of the foundations under investigation is in Florida. The Customs Service is reportedly searching for evidence in stacks of Arabic documents, encrypted computer files and bank records that have been seized. The foundation is believed to be using the cover of a Mideast think tank that was, at one time, affiliated with the University of South Florida.

Counterterrorism analysts say that what is different about Islamic extremists is the radical crazies who consider the United States to be the "Great Satan." An enemy to Islam that must be punished. And they are quite fanatical about it.

World renown terrorism expert Brian Jenkins of Kroll Associates said, "The fact they are using the United States as a launching pad, a depot and a bank is not new. What is different is the fact it is done so with an open hostility toward the U.S. government and U.S. society."

Orlando-Based Egyptian Travel Agent, Now Held In Jail, Seen As Key Player In Terrorist Movements
NOTE: University of South Florida Above.

Head Of Islamic Jihad Hid Out In Tampa As Teacher At University Of South Florida

Ramadan Abdullah Shallah and his ties to University of South Florida

Suspects trained at S. Florida gyms before terror attacks

Three men held in Central Florida jails

FLORIDA, WHERE THE UNSAVORY GO TO LIE LOW

Hijackers got state IDs legally - Florida and federal officials are reviewing policy

FBI Surprised by Terrorist Flight Training in Florida (Update3)

Florida Terror Ties Grow

Latest: FBI Obtaining Search Warrants In Florida

Osama Bin Laden and Herndon, Virginia

Governor Reno: Lord help Florida