Bin Laden's own doctor once treated Ujaama

During one of James Ujaama's trips to aid the Taliban government in Afghanistan in late 2000, the former Seattle native fell ill and was treated by Ayman al-Zawahiri, one of the most-wanted terrorists in the world and Osama bin Laden's adviser, confidant and personal physician.

"It gives you an idea of the circles in which Ujaama found himself," noted one federal law-enforcement source, who spoke on condition of anonymity. "It would be like you or me getting a bellyache and having the U.S. surgeon general show up at the door."

On the eve of Ujaama's sentencing in federal court on charges of illegally aiding the Taliban government, three sources familiar with Ujaama's statements to agents said he detailed the meeting as part of a plea agreement. The deal reduced his possible 10-year prison sentence to two years.

He will be formally sentenced in Seattle tomorrow and likely will be sent to a halfway house to serve the remainder of his sentence. It is expected the 38-year-old Ingraham High School graduate will be freed in July, two years to the day after his arrest in Denver on a material-witness warrant.

Ujaama was arrested in July 2002 as part of an international investigation into radical members of a mosque in South Seattle who traveled to Bly, Ore., in 1999 to set up and participate in a terrorist-training camp. Federal law-enforcement sources have said Ujaama — who was a key member at the now-closed Dar-us-Salaam mosque — and his plans for the camp have been directly linked to Abu Hamza al-Masri, a fiery radical cleric in London who has praised bin Laden's attacks on the United States and the West.

Ujaama has testified at least once before a federal grand jury in Manhattan, where counterterrorism prosecutors are building a case against Abu Hamza for his role in helping Ujaama with his plans in Bly. At Ujaama's sentencing, the New York prosecutor overseeing that investigation, Assistant U.S. Attorney Eric Bruce, is expected to appear on the behalf of the government.

It was as an emissary of Abu Hamza that Ujaama traveled to Afghanistan in late 2000 in violation of a presidential order prohibiting U.S. citizens from providing services, goods or aid to the Taliban. President Clinton issued that order because of the Taliban's insistence on protecting bin Laden and his al-Qaida terrorist network, which the United States blamed for bombings at the U.S. embassies in Kenya and Tanzania in 1998. The bombings killed 213 people, including 12 Americans.

Bin Laden and al-Zawahiri — the Egyptian doctor who made the house call to treat Ujaama — have been indicted for those attacks. Al-Zawahiri, according to the FBI's "Most Wanted Terrorists" Web site, is the founder of the violent Egyptian Islamic Jihad and is believed to be an "adviser and doctor" to bin Laden, who is thought to be hiding in Afghanistan. The U.S. government has offered a $25 million reward for al-Zawahiri's arrest.

Peter Bergen, one of the few Western journalists to interview bin Laden and the author of "Holy War Inc.," wrote that "the profound impact of al-Zawahiri on bin Laden's thinking has become increasingly clear, and some have suggested that this little-known physician is more important to al-Qaida than bin Laden himself."

"We have said that we believe James Ujaama had made important contacts that justified the plea agreement," said U.S. Attorney John McKay, who otherwise would not comment. Ujaama's attorneys, Peter Offenbecher and Robert Mahler, declined comment.

When Ujaama pleaded guilty last April, U.S. Attorney General John Ashcroft said the government expected Ujaama's cooperation "to lead to the arrest of additional terrorists and the disruption of future terrorist activities."

A sentencing memorandum filed by prosecutors Feb. 3 states, "security concerns" prohibit the government from telling the court the "full nature and scope of Ujaama's cooperation."

Despite the activities in Bly, Ujaama was never the primary target of the investigation. The probe has focused on Abu Hamza and other of his followers for their role in helping finance and set up the camp.

The various charges filed against Ujaama, including the felony to which he pleaded guilty, refer to an "unindicted co-conspirator" in London whom sources have identified as Abu Hamza.

Ujaama lived for several years in London, where he designed and operated a Web site for Abu Hamza called the Supporters of Shariah, the fundamentalist Islamic law preached by the Taliban. That Web site promoted violent Jihad against the United States and solicited aid for the Taliban government.

Ujaama also can be seen sitting alongside Abu Hamza on a series of vitriolic videotapes obtained by The Seattle Times. On the tapes, Ujaama defends bin Laden, praises the Taliban and reminds his audience that Christians and Jews "are our enemies." Abu Hamza, with Ujaama looking on, talks of killing Jews and Westerners.

Ujaama's attorneys and supporters have framed his visit to Afghanistan as a "humanitarian" trip to give computers to a girls school. But charging papers provide additional motives.

"It was also part of the conspiracy that members of the conspiracy, including Ujaama, provided and attempted to provide funds, goods and services to the Taliban including Jihad fighters, currency, computers, software, computer disks and other items," the papers state.

On that trip, Ujaama was accompanied — at Abu Hamza's direction — by a young Briton identified by federal law-enforcement sources as Feroz Abassi. Abassi has been identified by several sources as the unnamed, unindicted co-conspirator in the complaint who desired "to undergo violent Jihad training."

Abassi was captured fighting U.S. troops in the battle at bin Laden's stronghold in Kandahar, Afghanistan, after the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks. He is being held as an enemy combatant at Guantánamo Bay, Cuba.

According to the charges, Ujaama attempted to enter Afghanistan a second time with money and computers for the Taliban in the days immediately after Sept. 11 but was turned away "because of the local response to the attacks."

The plea agreement prohibits Ujaama from discussing his activities and information he has provided to the government for up to 10 years after his release.

Ujaama's two-year sentence is a significant departure from sentences handed out to others arrested on similar charges. In Portland, six Muslim men who tried to enter Afghanistan to fight for the Taliban received sentences ranging from seven to 18 years in prison.

THE FOLLOWING TEXT IS AN EXACT QUOTE:

http://www.usdoj.gov/opa/pr/2004/February/04_crm_086.htm

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 13, 2004
WWW.USDOJ.GOV

CRM
(202) 514-2007
TDD (202) 514-1888

EARNEST JAMES UJAAMA SENTENCED FOR CONSPIRING
TO SUPPLY GOODS AND SERVICES TO THE TALIBAN

WASHINGTON, D.C. - Attorney General John Ashcroft, Assistant Attorney General Christopher A. Wray of the Criminal Division, and U.S. Attorney John McKay of the Western District of Washington announced today that Earnest James Ujaama was sentenced to two years in prison, following his conviction on a charge of conspiring to provide goods and services to the Taliban, in violation of the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA).

Ujaama entered a guilty plea to the charge on April 14, 2003.

Ujaama, of Seattle, Washington, was sentenced today by U.S. District Judge Barbara J. Rothstein, at federal court in Seattle. In addition to the two-year prison term, Ujaama will be placed on supervised release for a period of three years. Pursuant to the plea agreement, Ujaama has been cooperating fully with the government in ongoing terrorism investigations.

“As part of our war on terror, the cooperation of insiders with direct knowledge of the activities of dangerous terrorists could help us save innocent American lives,” said Attorney General Ashcroft. “Earnest James Ujaama pled guilty and accepted responsibility for his criminal conduct, agreeing to cooperate fully with our fight to disrupt future terrorist activity and apprehend other terrorists who threaten our safety and security. Our highest priority is to disrupt the networks of terror, and the information gained from individuals like Ujaama helps us protect innocent Americans from terrorist attacks.”

The Ujaama investigation was conducted by the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Western District of Washington, the Criminal Division at the Department of Justice, the FBI and the Seattle Joint Terrorism Task Force. The case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Andrew R. Hamilton and Todd Greenberg, and Trial Attorney George Z. Toscas of the Criminal Division’s Counterterrorism Section.

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04-086

stepping back in time...

THE FOLLOWING TEXT IS AN EXACT QUOTE:

http://www.usdoj.gov/opa/pr/2003/April/03_crm_237.htm

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
MONDAY, APRIL 14, 2003
WWW.USDOJ.GOV

CRM
(202) 514-2008
TDD (202) 514-1888

EARNEST JAMES UJAAMA PLEADS GUILTY TO CONSPIRACY TO SUPPLY GOODS AND SERVICES TO THE TALIBAN, AGREES TO COOPERATE WITH TERRORISM INVESTIGATIONS

WASHINGTON, D.C. - Attorney General John Ashcroft, Assistant Attorney General Michael Chertoff of the Criminal Division, and U.S. Attorney John McKay of the Western District of Washington announced today that Earnest James Ujaama has entered a guilty plea to a charge of conspiracy to provide goods and services to the Taliban.

Ujaama, of Seattle, Washington, entered the plea today before U.S. District Judge Barbara J. Rothstein, at federal court in Seattle. Ujaama was originally charged in a two-count indictment last August. In conjunction with the plea agreement entered today, the United States government filed a superseding felony information charging Ujaama with conspiring to provide support, including computer software, technology and services, to the Taliban and to persons in the territory of Afghanistan controlled by the Taliban, in violation of the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA), Title 50 USC 1705. That charge carries a maximum of 10 years in prison.

Ujaama has been cooperating with the government in ongoing terrorism investigations. Pursuant to the plea agreement, he will continue to cooperate with federal, state and local law enforcement, intelligence and military authorities, as well as foreign governments. In return for Ujaama’s complete and truthful cooperation, the agreement calls for Ujaama to serve two years in prison, followed by three years of supervised release. In addition, for a period of up to 10 years, Ujaama will be required to abide by conditions to ensure that he continues to cooperate and poses no danger to the community. Among other things, those conditions bar Ujaama from associating or communicating with members of a terrorist organization or anyone involved in a crime of terrorism, and require him to keep the U.S. Attorney’s Office apprised of his residence, surrender his passport and not leave the continental United States without prior written approval.

Attorney General John Ashcroft thanked U.S. Attorney John McKay, Assistant Attorney General Michael Chertoff, the FBI and its federal, state and local law enforcement partners on the Seattle Joint Terrorism Task Force for their work in securing today’s guilty plea.

“An important part of our war against terrorism is to obtain the cooperation of insiders who have direct knowledge of the activities of dangerous terrorists. We are pleased that Mr. Ujaama has agreed to plead guilty, accept responsibility for his criminal conduct, and cooperate fully regarding others engaged in criminal and terrorist activity both here and abroad,” Attorney General Ashcroft said. “We expect his cooperation to lead to the arrest of additional terrorists and the disruption of future terrorist activity.”

U.S. Attorney John McKay added: “By accepting responsibility for his actions and by agreeing to cooperate fully with the United States government, Earnest James Ujaama will assist this nation and other nations in the fight against terrorism.”

The plea agreement’s Statement of Facts explains that in late 2000, an individual referred to as unindicted co-conspirator # 1 arranged for unindicted co-conspirator #2, a person desiring to undergo violent jihad training, to travel from London, England to Afghanistan to attend jihad training camps. At the direction of co-conspirator #1, Ujaama traveled with co-conspirator #2 from London to Pakistan, and then facilitated co-conspirator #2's travel to the training camps in Afghanistan. In court today, Ujaama admitted that he was aware of the purpose of co-conspirator #2's travel. The plea agreement further states that the government’s evidence established that these jihad training camps were affiliated with and used by al Qaeda.

Ujaama further admits that during this same trip, at the direction of co-conspirator #1, he delivered currency and other items to persons in the territory of Afghanistan controlled by the Taliban. Ujaama entered Afghanistan with the assistance of Taliban officials and installed software programs that he had brought with him on computers belonging to Taliban officials. In early September 2001, again at the direction of co-conspirator #1, Ujaama transported currency from London to Pakistan with the intent of delivering it to persons in Afghanistan, but he was unable to cross the border into Afghanistan because of the local response to the attacks against the United States on Sept. 11, 2001. Ujaama also admits that beginning in the spring of 2000, he participated in the operation of the Supporters of Shariah website, on which he posted information urging others to donate money, goods and services to Taliban-sponsored programs.

On July 4, 1999, President Clinton declared a national emergency to deal with the threat posed by al Qaeda and the Taliban, and signed an executive order that prohibited any U.S. person from making or receiving any contribution of funds, goods or services to or for the benefit of the Taliban, and from supplying any goods, software, technology or services to the Taliban or Afghan territory under its control. The national emergency was continued by President Bush in 2001.

The Ujaama investigation was conducted by the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Western District of Washington, the Criminal Division at the Department of Justice, the FBI and the Seattle Joint Terrorism Task Force. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Andrew R. Hamilton and Todd Greenberg, and trial attorney George Z. Toscas of the Criminal Division’s Counterterrorism Section.

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03-237

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