Two suspected members of Hamas arrested in US
AFP ^
WASHINGTON (AFP) - Two suspected members of Hamas have been arrested in the United States and charged with supporting a foreign terrorist organization, money laundering and racketeering, US Attorney General John Ashcroft announced.
The authorities have issued an arrest warrant for a third suspect facing the same charges, identified as the deputy chief of the political bureau of Hamas, Mousa Mohammed Abu Marzook, who currently resides in Syria.
Ashcroft said the trio allegedly ran a US-based terrorist recruiting and financing cell linked with Hamas, a Palestinian militant group which has publicly admitted to many killings, primarily of Israelis but also of Americans.
"This cell allegedly financed the activities of a terrorist organization that was murdering innocent victims abroad, including American citizens," Ashcroft told a news conference.
He said Muhammad Hamid Khalil Salah, 51, of Chicago, and Abdelhaleem Hasan Abdelraziq Ashqar, 46, of Washington, were arrested on Thursday night.
The three were said to have participated in a 15-year racketeering conspiracy to illegally finance terrorist activities in Israel and the disputed West Bank and Gaza Strip territories, including providing money for the purchase of weapons.
The authorities have sought the forfeiture of 2.7 million dollars, all funds in four bank accounts and Salah's residence in Bridgeview, Illinois.
Ashcroft said that Marzook at one time lived in Louisiana and near Washington and is now thought to live in Damascus.
(snip)
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1195603/posts
Isn't this associated with the same Bridgeview, IL mosque that Steven Emerson associated with Hamas way back in 1993? ("American Jihad" pg.12)
Re: Bridgeview, IL mosque:
February 09, 2004
Battle for the soul of an Illinois mosque
From the Chicago Tribune comes a fascinating story of how Muslim radicals gained control of a mosque in Bridgeview, Illinois. (Thanks to Bassam Madany and Paul Weyrich.)
There is a great deal to this. It's all worth reading, but here are some highlights:
Among the leaders at the Bridgeview mosque are men who have condemned Western culture, praised Palestinian suicide bombers and encouraged members to view society in stark terms: Muslims against the world. Federal authorities for years have investigated some mosque officials for possible links to terrorism financing, but no criminal charges have been filed.
(snip)
http://www.jihadwatch.org/archives/000837.php