|
Take, for example, Najibullah Zazi. His plot to bomb the New York City subway system late last year unraveled after investigators got a tip and were able to gather information from a Queens imam who was communicating with the 24-year-old Afghan immigrant, as well as others at the same mosque. Zazi, who has said he was recruited by al-Qaida and received training in a camp in Pakistan on how to build a bomb, was arrested in Denver, before he was able to make his planned drive back to New York to set the plot in motion. In contrast, officials allege that Maj. Nidal Hasan acted alone after exchanging e-mails with radical Muslim cleric Anwar al-Awlaki. The shooting spree he is accused of undertaking at Fort Hood killed 13 people and wounded more than two dozen others. Officials have raised concerns that while U.S. authorities were aware that Hasan was communicating with al-Awlaki, that information wasn't passed along to the military. But, since his assault did not include other people, and simply involved him walking into a building on base where he was allowed to be, it still would have been difficult to predict or prevent. The call for more individual jihad is not a new idea to al-Qaida followers on Internet forums. They have been touting the strategy for a year or two, and the foiled Northwest Airlines attack only re-energized the debate. One writer on a jihadi Internet forum scolded those who condemned Abdulmutallab, the alleged perpetrator, as a failure. "From my prospective living in the United States brother Abdulmutallab succeeded. Maybe he didn't achieve his full objective but you do not necessarily need to achieve a grade of 100 percent to pass the class," the writer said in an early January posting on the Ansar al-Mujahideen discussion forum, which is pro-al-Qaida and is now closed to new members. "What Abdulmutallab did was instill a fear in Americans. This is a very significant accomplishment. An increased fear of flying, for example, can cripple the airlines and cause economic problems." Another poster answered: "What did he accomplish? How many billions do you think they will spend to boost security that won't work anyway? He humiliated the Americans, afterward Newark Airport was on lock down for 6 hours because someone walked the wrong way. Success comes in many ways." Gadahn, in his video, took a broader view, telling followers: "Jihad is neither the personal property nor the exclusive responsibility of any single group, organization or individual. ... Instead it is the personal duty of every able-bodied Muslim on the face of this earth."
[Associated
Press;
Copyright 2010 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
News | Sports | Business | Rural Review | Teaching & Learning | Home and Family | Tourism | Obituaries
Community |
Perspectives
|
Law & Courts |
Leisure Time
|
Spiritual Life |
Health & Fitness |
Teen Scene
Calendar
|
Letters to the Editor