Posted on 12/01/2012 9:16:44 PM PST by Theoria
Anwar al-Awlaki, the US-born Islamic cleric killed in a US drone attack in Yemen last year, had been in American custody at least twice but was released, according to a human rights group.
Judicial Watch, an accountability watchdog group, said it had learned this through Freedom of Information lawsuits it filed with the US government.
It said documents from the US embassy in Yemen indicate Awlaki was held for at least eight months between late 2006 and mid 2007. But the documents do not say how long he was held or why he was he was freed.
Back in October 2002, Awlaki was detained at New York City's John F. Kennedy International Airport on a warrant for passport fraud, a felony that can be punished with up to 10 years in jail.
But the FBI ordered his release, Judicial Watch said. Awlaqi flew to Washington, DC and eventually returned to Yemen.
In yet another incident, months before Awlaki was killed in September 2011, the embassy in Yemen was instructed to send Awlaqi a letter urging him to come to the embassy to pick up an important document but not tell him what it was.
In fact, it was simply a revocation of his passport, Judicial Watch said.
"These documents provide further evidence that the federal government, under both the Bush and Obama administrations, has been operating a 'catch and release' program for terrorists," said Judicial Watch President Tom Fitton.
(Excerpt) Read more at telegraph.co.uk ...
Former Muslim Cleric in Custody Multiple Times and Released Prior to Assassination
(Washington, DC) Judicial Watch announced today that it has received documents from the U.S. State Department pertaining to the targeting and assassination of U.S. born terrorist Anwar al-Aulaqi by a U.S. drone in Yemen on September 30, 2011. In 2010, President Obama reportedly authorized the assassination of al-Aulaqi, the first American citizen added to the governments capture or kill list, describing the radical Muslim cleric as chief of external operations for al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP).
The Office of Legal Counsel in the Department of Justice (DOJ) had previously determined that the targeting and killing of U.S. citizens overseas was legal under domestic and international law.
The heavily redacted documents received in response to a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request filed by Judicial Watch on September 30, 2011, confirm the killing of al-Aulaqi and show that the known terrorist had been in custody. The following are highlights from the records:
In addition to the arrest noted by the documents in 2006 and 2007, Anwar al-Aulaqi was detained at New Yorks JFK airport on October 10, 2002, under a warrant for passport fraud, a felony punishable by up to 10 years in prison. However, the FBI ordered al-Aulaqis release, even though the arrest warrant was still active at the time of his detention as reported by the Fox News Channels Catherine Herridge. Once released al-Aulaqi then took a flight to Washington, DC, and eventually returned to Yemen.
Since September 2009, according to the James Baker III Institute for Public Policy, 26 terrorism cases have been tied to al-Aulaqi, including an association with blind sheik Omar Abdel-Rahman, currently in prison for his role in the 1993 attack on the World Trade Center. Anwar al-Aulaqi was also known to have been in email contact (19 email exchanges) with Major Nidal Hasan, who was charged with 13 murders in the Fort Hood massacre on November 5, 2009, and allegedly had contacts with at least three of the terrorists who carried out the 9/11 terrorist attacks on the United States.
These documents provide further evidence that the federal government, under both the Bush and Obama administrations, has been operating a catch and release program for terrorists, said Judicial Watch President Tom Fitton. The idea of inviting al-Aulaqi a known terrorist to our embassy in Yemen in order to revoke his passport is beyond belief.
Ordered his release? The FBI seems to have a propensity to release terrorist types when they have them on solid charges.
Why is the Coptic Christian filmmaker partners in crime with Coptic Christian hater?
Interesting that Nakoula's partner in the film was a palestinian Muslim with terrorist connections who was also watched by the Feds for three decades but never arrested and frequently bailed out by the Feds.
islamists believe they’re going to win this war. How are we going to demonstrate otherwise to them?
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