Free Republic

WASHINGTON - The federal indictment of a graduate of a Saudi-backed Islamic school in suburban Virginia for plotting to kill President Bush is the latest example of the school's links to troubling activity, Sen. Charles E. Schumer, D-N.Y., charged on Wednesday. Schumer said he is asking Saudi Arabia's ambassador to the United States, Prince Bandar bin Sultan, to explain where the school receives all of its funding, and whether the school may be "a breeding ground for anti-American sentiment - and, possibly even terrorist activities." It has been widely reported the school receives substantial funding from the Saudi kingdom. Schumer...

A man described by federal authorities as an assistant to a top Hamas operative was arrested by Maryland Transportation Authority police after he was seen videotaping the Chesapeake Bay Bridge, authorities said Tuesday. Ismael Selim Elbarasse of Annandale, Va., suspected by federal authorities of having financial ties to the Palestinian terrorist group Hamas, was arrested Friday after two off-duty Baltimore County police officers saw him taping the bridge from a sport utility vehicle, said Marcia Murphy, a spokeswoman for the U.S. attorney's office in Baltimore. Elbarasse was not charged with a crime but was detained on a material witness warrant...

A man described as a high-ranking operative of the Palestinian militant group Hamas was arrested last week as he videotaped the Chesapeake Bay Bridge in Virginia, and he then was held as a material witness in an unrelated case, authorities said. Ismael Selim Elbarasse of Annandale, Virginia, long suspected by authorities of having financial ties to the Palestinian extremist group, was taken into custody Friday, the U.S. attorney's office in Maryland said Monday. He was held as a material witness in a Chicago terrorism case. Elbarasse made an initial appearance in Baltimore's federal courthouse Monday before U.S. District Magistrate...