Posted on 05/21/2003 7:12:30 PM PDT by RaceBannon
FBI Charges 7th N.Y. Terror Cell Suspect
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May 21, 3:55 PM (ET)
(AP) Jaber A. Elbaneh, 36, of Lackawanna, N.Y., is shown in these two photos released by the FBI... Full Image
BUFFALO, N.Y. (AP) - A seventh man was charged Wednesday with participating in a terrorist "sleeper" cell based in upstate New York by attending an al-Qaida training camp run by Osama bin Laden before the Sept. 11 attacks.
An FBI criminal complaint charged Jaber Elbaneh, 36, with conspiring to provide material support or resources to a foreign terrorist organization.
Elbaneh is believed to be abroad, federal officials said.
He is from the Buffalo suburb of Lackawanna. Six other men - dubbed the "Lackawanna Six" - have already pleaded guilty in the case and are cooperating with authorities. Prosecutors had said other arrests were possible.
"On one front, we are shutting down sources of material support to al-Qaida and securing the cooperation of individuals who trained with our enemies," Attorney General John Ashcroft said in a statement. "At the same time, the unsealing of the charges against Jaber Elbaneh demonstrates our ongoing resolve to hunt the globe for those who aid and train with terrorists."
Prosecutors say members of the Lackawanna cell attended the al-Farooq camp in Afghanistan in the summer of 2001. Some of those who went say they were trained in assault weapons and explosives, and met with bin Laden.
Authorities said the question of what the men might have done with their training remains unanswered.
The "Lackawanna Six" - Mukhtar al-Bakri, 23; Faysal Galab, 27; Shafal Mosed, 24; Sahim Alwan, 30; Yahya Goba, 26; and Yasein Taher, 25 - all face seven and 10 years in prison.
I hope the FBI keeps a close eye on my neighborhood. Rumor has it that we have several Hamas and Hezbollah supporters in my nabe (I have heard nothing about Al-Qaeda, but it woulddn't surprise me if they were here in "Bay Ruit" as well).
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