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 Mohammod Youssuf Abdulazeez, a Kuwaiti-born naturalized U.S.
citizen, died on Thursday in a firefight with police after a rampage
at two military facilities in Chattanooga, Tennessee.
The 24-year-old engineer traveled to Jordan, from around April to
November, U.S. government sources and friends of Abdulazeez in
Chattanooga told Reuters. One childhood friend, speaking on the
condition of anonymity, said he went there for a job opportunity.
Investigators will try to establish if he was part of an
organization or the latest "lone wolf" militant, radicalized U.S.
Muslims acting on their own who President Barack Obama has said pose
a greater risk to the country than a large-scale operation.
Friends were shocked by the actions of Abdulazeez, who they said
lived about 150 miles (241 km) away in Franklin, Tennessee, but had
returned to his hometown to visit family for the holy fasting month
of Ramadan, which ended Thursday.
"He was a friend of mine, a good Muslim. But there were no red
flags, nothing unusual. It is shocking," said another childhood
friend, who prayed with him at the Islamic Center of Greater
Chattanooga over the past month.
 A little more than 24 hours after the shooting, the FBI said it
continued to investigate it as an act of terrorism and that it was
"premature" to speculate on the motive.
"We are exploring all travel that he has done and we have asked our
intelligence partners throughout the world to provide us with any
information they may have," Ed Reinhold, FBI special agent in
charge, said during a news conference.
Born to Palestinian parents and raised in a Chattanooga suburb,
Abdulazeez may have family in Jordan and may have made several
stops, said a government source, adding that a visit to Yemen, long
viewed as a training ground for Islamic militants, has not been
ruled out.
Law enforcement officials have said they are investigating whether
Abdulazeez was inspired by Islamic State or similar militant groups.
Islamic State had threatened to step up violence during Ramadan.
But the Federal Bureau of Investigation said Friday it had no
indication that the attack was linked to that group.
'A HAPPY HOME'
Abdulazeez sprayed gunfire at a joint military recruiting center in
a strip mall, riddling the glass facade with bullet holes, then
drove to a Naval Reserve Center about 6 miles (10 km) away, where he
killed the Marines before he himself was shot dead. Three other
people were injured.
He wore a vest that law enforcement officials said may have been
used to hold extra ammunition and had two long guns and a handgun.
The Marine Corps identified the four slain Marines as Gunnery
Sergeant Thomas Sullivan of Hampden, Massachusetts; Staff Sergeant
David Wyatt of Burke, North Carolina; Sergeant Carson Holmquist of
Polk, Wisconsin; and reservist Lance Corporal Squire Wells of Cobb,
Georgia.
The SITE Intelligence Group, which tracks extremist groups, said
Abdulazeez blogged on Monday "life is short and bitter" and that
Muslims should not miss an opportunity to "submit to Allah." Reuters
could not independently verify the postings.
Investigators believe family or psychological issues may have
contributed, according to a government source, who was not
authorized to speak on the record.
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Years ago, his father, Youssuf Abdulazeez, an engineer who attended
Texas A&M University, came under investigation by a Joint Terrorism
Task Force for possible connections to a militant group, one source
said. But he was cleared of any association with terrorism or
wrongdoing.
His son attended high school in a Chattanooga suburb and graduated
from the University of Tennessee in 2012 with an engineering degree.
In 2013, he was hired as an engineer at an Ohio nuclear plant and
spent 10 days there before he was let go. A spokesman for the
FirstEnergy Corp, which owns the plant, did not say why he was
dismissed and would not confirm media reports that he had failed a
background check.
While friends and the family's neighbors said there were no signs
that warned of his rampage, not all was going well for the young
man. In April, he was arrested and charged with driving under the
influence.
The family also appears to have undergone upheaval in 2009, when the
mother, Rasmia Abdulazeez, petitioned for divorce and alleged abuse
of her and the children, according to court documents. The suit was
dismissed and the couple signed a post-nuptial agreement.
One of the childhood friends said Mohammod's family life was good
and called it "a happy home."
But at least one of his four siblings complained of the difficulty
they faced being Muslims at their high school, saying they were
harassed by fellow students.
"There's this misconception that Islam is a violent religion.
Muslims are actually peaceful," a 17-year-old Yasmeen Abdulazeez
told the Chattanooga Times Free Press in 2010.
The Islamic Society mosque where Mohammod worshipped canceled
activities to celebrate Eid, marking the end of Ramadan, but called
all Muslims to attend a vigil at a Baptist church Friday night.
Islamic Society member Dr. Mohsin Ali told the gathering that
Abdulazeez "did his best to spread hatred and division."
"And we will not let that endure," he said to a standing ovation.
(Reporting by Suzannah Gonzales in Chicago, Lena Masri and Katie
Reilley in New York, Mark Hosenball, Emily Stephenson, Julia
Edwards, Lindsay Dunsmuir, Doina Chiacu and David Alexander in
Washington; Writing by Frank McGurty and Mary Milliken; Editing by
James Dalgleish and Lisa Shumaker)
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