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ALEXANDRIA, Va. (AP) -- Federal prosecutors who accuse nine U.S. citizens and two other men of conspiring to join a Muslim terror group presented an address list and other evidence Friday to try to link the suspects to Osama bin Laden's al-Qaida group. But the evidence wasn't enough to persuade U.S. District Judge Leonie Brinkema to keep one defendant, Sabri Benkhala, in jail. Brinkema ordered Benkhala released to home detention at his father's house in Falls Church, upholding a previous release order issued by a magistrate. "There's no question the government has raised some significant issues here," the judge said....

JIZAN, Saudi Arabia (AP) — Blood and bullets littered the halls Wednesday of a Saudi housing complex where a shootout with security forces left three suspected militants dead, including a man wanted by the FBI for possible terrorist threats against the United States. The hours-long gunfight ended Tuesday afternoon after Saudi security forces stormed the three-story complex in Jizan, 600 miles south of the capital, Riyadh, shooting their way through the doors. At least one security officer also died and two suspected militants were arrested, the Interior Ministry said in a statement carried by the official Saudi Press Agency....

<p>July 4, 2003 -- JIDDAH, Saudi Arabia - The top suspect wanted in the Riyadh suicide bombings was killed along with three other terrorists in a gun battle yesterday in a dawn raid of their hideout in northern Saudi Arabia.</p>

WASHINGTON (AP) — The FBI made a series of arrests in three states Friday of men suspected of ties to an anti-U.S. terrorist organization whose main goal is driving India out of the disputed Kashmir territory in South Asia. The arrests of at least seven suspects were made in Pennsylvania, Maryland and Virginia, said federal law enforcement officials speaking on condition of anonymity. Federal charges against the men, and several others who are overseas, were to be announced later in the day. The men are alleged to be part of an extremist Muslim organization called Lashkar-e-Taiba, which is on the...

A federal judge on Monday denied a request by a U.S. citizen, who has been charged with plotting to kill President George W. Bush, to throw out confessions he signed while in Saudi custody where he claims he was tortured. U.S. District Judge Gerald Bruce Lee issued brief orders denying requests by Ahmed Abu Ali, 24, to throw out the confessions he signed and to dismiss the case. Lee said he would explain his ruling at a later date. The ruling comes the day before jury selection is due to begin. Abu Ali was arrested in June 2003 while taking...

Virginia man charged in alleged plot to assassinate Bush By MATTHEW BARAKAT Associated Press Writer ALEXANDRIA, Va. (AP) -- A former high school valedictorian in Virginia was charged Tuesday with conspiring to assassinate President Bush and conspiracy to support the al-Qaida terrorist network. Ahmed Omar Abu Ali, 23, a U.S. citizen, made an initial appearance Tuesday in U.S. District Court. He claimed that he was tortured while detained in Saudi Arabia since June of 2003 and offered through his lawyer to show the judge his scars. The indictment said that in 2002 and 2003 Abu Ali and an unidentified coconspirator...

Rep. Dave Brat (R-VA) is leading his Democrat opponent, Abigail Spanberger, in the district’s latest poll. A new Sienna College/New York Times poll reveals that Brat leads Spanberger in the race 47 percent to 43 percent with nine percent of likely voters in the district still undecided. The poll also found that 41 percent of voters in the district do not know who Spanberger is, while only 37 percent of voters view her favorably. Brat, on the other hand, is favored by 44 percent of voters in the district. Spanberger has been plagued with scandal throughout her race against Brat...

When visiting Khurrum Wahid’s Facebook page, you see photos of what appears to be a clean-cut politician attending different events, posing with important politicos, standing with young people, and smiling broadly for the camera. Wahid is running for the position of City Commissioner of Coral Springs, Florida, and his Facebook page has been manufactured to show the perfect candidate for the public’s view. What is hidden behind this façade, though, is Wahid’s history – and present – of his involvement in radical Islam. It is this other side of Wahid that the voters need to recognize, so that they do...

The current Sheriff is Scott Israel; he was elected to office in November 2012. As Sheriff, Israel has made it a point to reach out to diverse crowds, including those who could be considered enemies of the U.S. and her allies. Broward Sheriff Scott Israel’s 2015 radical Muslim tour began this past January, when he posed for photos with Sofian Abdelaziz Zakkout and a member of Zakkout’s Miami-based AMANA group at a local mosque. Zakkout is a big supporter of Hamas. On his Facebook page, one can find Hamas logos and photos of Hamas militants and leaders, including Hamas founders Ahmed Yassin and...

Ahmed Omar Abu Ali, a Falls Church man and a member of al Qaeda who admitted he was planning to assassinate then-President George W. Bush, was sentenced to life in prison Monday at federal court in Alexandria. Abu Ali was originally sentenced in 2005 to 30 years in prison. U.S. Judge Gerald Bruce Lee of the U.S. District Court for eastern Virginia ruled Monday that Abu Ali should spend life in prison partially because he never renounced his al Qaeda ties. After the initial sentencing, both sides filed appeals. Abu Ali completed some of his sentence in solitary confinement at...

The Hunt for American al Qaeda The United States is turning up the heat in the hunt for the California boy turned al Qaeda operative, Adam Gadahn, who has been charged with treason and is believed to be hiding in Afghanistan. If caught and convicted, Gadahn could face the death penalty. The State Department along with the Department of Diplomatic Security announced the beginning of a publicity campaign in Afghanistan urging locals to provide any information on Gadahn's whereabouts, with a reward if the information leads to his capture. Radio advertisements with information concerning the $1 million reward have...

From NBC12 News A federal appeals court in Richmond is set to hear arguments in the case of a convicted Al Qaeda supporter. Ahmed Omar Abu Ali is a U.S. citizen born to a Jordanian father. He was raised in Falls Church. He was convicted in November 2005 of conspiracy to assassinate the president, conspiracy to hijack an aircraft and providing support to Al Qaeda. He was sentenced to 30 years in prison.

Terror Suspect: 'Everyone Makes Mistakes' Thursday November 3, 2005 12:01 AM By MATTHEW BARAKAT Associated Press Writer ALEXANDRIA, Va. (AP) - After confessing to FBI agents that he joined al-Qaida and discussed plans to assassinate President Bush, an American student wrote a letter to his parents saying that ``everyone makes mistakes.'' ``I know this will be difficult for you ... but I've been detained here in Saudi Arabia for some charges of terrorism,'' wrote Ahmed Omar Abu Ali, 24, who is on trial in federal court for conspiracy to assassinate the president, providing support to al-Qaida and other charges. ``It...

ALEXANDRIA, Va. (AP) - A U.S. citizen accused of joining al-Qaida and plotting to assassinate President Bush said in a videotaped confession that he was motivated by hatred of American support for Israel. Ahmed Omar Abu Ali also said on the tape, played in court for the first time Tuesday, that a top al-Qaida operative in Saudi Arabia "made it clear I became one of them and that I could speak in the name of al-Qaida." The 13-minute confession was videotaped in 2003 by authorities in Saudi Arabia, where Abu Ali attended college. His attorneys want the confession thrown out....

A suspected terrorist accused of conspiring to assassinate President Bush said he proposed the plot but it wasn't pursued, and he was frustrated that other members of his al-Qaida cell lacked initiative, according to prosecutors. A government motion unsealed this week by a federal judge reveals new details in the case against Ahmed Omar Abu Ali, 24, who is scheduled to go on trial next month. Prosecutors say the Falls Church resident has admitted joining al- Qaida while attending college in Saudi Arabia and that he discussed numerous terrorist plots, including plans to assassinate Bush and hijack airplanes. Abu Ali...

Al Qaeda High - Alleged Bush Assassin a Graduate of Local Saudi Madrassa Stella Jatras, who normally follows the Balkans for us, reports on efforts to establish yet another Saudi Madrassa outside Washington, D.C. Nestled snuggly in the Northern hills of Virginia, lies the Islamic Saudi Academy (ISA), better known as Al-Qaeda High. ISA's most notable graduate - so far - is Ahmed Omar Abu Ali. Ali was arrested recently for plotting to assassinate President Bush. Ali was born in Houston and later moved to Falls Church, Va., where he was valedictorian of his class at ISA. After graduation, a...

A Virginia man accused of joining al-Qaida and plotting to kill President Bush can have an independent medical exam to corroborate his claim that he was tortured, a judge ruled Wednesday. Ahmed Omar Abu Ali, 24, claims that the U.S. government's evidence against him was obtained through torture while he was jailed in Saudi Arabia. Federal prosecutors deny Abu Ali was mistreated and say no evidence of torture was found by government doctors who examined Abu Ali last month, when the Saudi government turned him over to face federal charges. Abu Ali is a former high school valedictorian in Virginia...

ASSOCIATED PRESS A former high school valedictorian accused of joining al Qaeda and plotting to assassinate President Bush pleaded not guilty yesterday in federal court to providing material support to terrorists and to other charges. An Aug. 22 trial date was scheduled for Ahmed Omar Abu Ali, 23, of Falls Church. He was indicted last month and charged with six counts that would allow a maximum prison term of 80 years. Prosecutors say Mr. Abu Ali, a U.S. citizen who was valedictorian of his class at an Islamic private school in Northern Virginia, joined al Qaeda while studying overseas in...

A Falls Church man charged with conspiring with al Qaeda to kill President Bush told Saudi interrogators that he dreamed up the plot on his own but that it never got past the "idea stage," prosecutors say in court documents unsealed yesterday. Abu Ali, 24, also said during the same interrogation that he "wanted to be in al Qaeda so bad that I decided to go to Afghanistan for jihad." He said he was unable to get a visa to travel there but did join an al Qaeda cell in Saudi Arabia. Abu Ali is charged in U.S. District Court...

A federal judge on Wednesday sentenced a U.S. man convicted of plotting to assassinate President George W. Bush and conspiring with al Qaeda to 30 years in prison. In November, Abu Ali was found guilty of all charges in a nine-count indictment, including conspiracy to assassinate Bush, conspiring to support al Qaeda and conspiracy to hijack aircraft.