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WASHINGTON - U.S. counterterrorism agencies have not detected a significant al- Qaida operational capability in the United States since the 2003 arrest of a truck driver who was in the early stages of plotting to destroy the Brooklyn Bridge. Nevertheless, al-Qaida's capabilities aren't clear and the group remains dangerous, the new deputy director of the National Counterterrorism Center, Kevin Brock, said in an Associated Press interview.The uncertainty reflects the tension facing national security officials even though the country has gone four years without a domestic attack from al-Qaida. Brock was the FBI's special agent in charge of the Cincinnati office...

The man who admitted that he scouted the Brooklyn Bridge for al-Qaida lives in a federal maximum-security cell in Florence, Colo. But Iyman Faris has asked the U.S. Supreme Court to let him take back the agreement he signed in 2003 in which he pleaded guilty to helping the terrorists. The court asked the government to respond to Faris’ appeal and will decide March 18 whether to hear it. In the meantime, new details about Faris and his dealings with the government have been revealed in court documents and through interviews with his lawyers. Faris is not permitted interviews. His...

The Drudge scoop today is about alleged American al Qaeda Adam Gadahn. Here are some handy background links: -The FBI bulletin -Gadahn's Muslim manifesto posted on a USC website -Debbie Schlussel's report on Gadahn's radical imam -More on the Islamic Society of Orange County at Little Green Footballs -Blogger Jon at Right Side Redux did some poking around into Gadahn's past work for a little e-zine called Xenocide here -Robert Spencer reports on The New Face of al Qaeda -And before the anti-profiling absolutists start using Gadahn as their new poster boy, note that the FBI says he was just...

WASHINGTON June 14, 2004 — A Somali native living in Ohio has been charged with plotting with other al-Qaida operatives to blow up a Columbus-area shopping mall, according to an indictment unsealed Monday. The four-count indictment, returned by a grand jury in Columbus, Ohio, charges that Nuradin Abdi, 32, conspired with admitted al-Qaida member Iyman Faris and others to detonate a bomb at the unidentified shopping mall after he obtained military-style training in Ethiopia. Attorney General John Ashcroft announced the indictment at a Justice Department news conference and used the occasion to warn anew of al-Qaida's threat. "Current credible intelligence...

Ashcroft to announce shortly about Somali's plan targeting mall in Ohio.

29 October 2003U.S. Citizen Sentenced to 20 Years in Prison for Assisting al Qaeda Justice Dept. says Iyman Faris plotted to destroy New York bridgeAn American citizen was sentenced to 20 years in prison October 28 for providing material and information support to the al Qaeda terrorist organization.According to an October 28 Department of Justice press release, Iyman Faris, an Ohio truck driver of Kashmiri origin, assessed the vulnerability of a New York City bridge to a terrorist attack, among other tasks carried out on behalf of al Qaeda."Iyman Faris -- a seemingly hard-working truck driver -- betrayed his...

<p>October 29, 2003 -- ALEXANDRIA, Va. - Iyman Faris, an Ohio truck driver who now denies casing the Brooklyn Bridge to see if it could be destroyed, was sentenced yesterday to 20 years in prison for providing support to al Qaeda. U.S. District Judge Leonie Brinkema handed down the maximum sentence possible after rejecting a request by Faris, 34, and his lawyer to withdraw the guilty plea he had entered May 1.</p>

ALEXANDRIA, Va. (Reuters) - Iyman Faris, an Ohio truck driver, was sentenced on Tuesday to 20 years in prison for supporting al Qaeda, after first admitting he cased the Brooklyn Bridge to see if it could be destroyed and then trying to withdraw his guilty plea. U.S. District Judge Leonie Brinkema gave the maximum term possible after rejecting a request by Faris to withdraw the initial guilty plea he entered in a deal with prosecutors. She said he knowingly pleaded guilty and that his credibility now was "in serious question." She also said that Faris underwent a mental competency examination...

ALEXANDRIA, Va. — A terror defendant accused of plotting to cut through the cables that support New York’s Brooklyn Bridge was sentenced to 20 years in prison Tuesday by a judge who refused to let him withdraw his guilty plea. Iyman Faris was sentenced to 15 years for aiding and abetting terrorism, plus five years for conspiracy. According to prosecutors, Faris, 34, traveled to Pakistan and Afghanistan, carrying out low level missions for terrorists. He provided sleeping bags, cellular telephones and cash to members of al-Qaida and met with Osama bin Laden in 2000 at a terrorist training camp in...

ALEXANDRIA, Virginia, Sept. 26. 2003 Iyman Faris (Photo: AP) In a July court document, Sinclair said Faris has been placed on a suicide watch at the Alexandria jail and was taking Prozac, an anti-depressant. Attorney General John Ashcroft. (Photo: CBS) (CBS/AP) A man accused of plotting to topple New York's Brooklyn Bridge on orders from al Qaeda has asked to withdraw his guilty plea. Iyman Faris, 34, pleaded guilty in May to charges that he provided sleeping bags, cell phones and cash to al Qaeda. Authorities say Faris traveled to Pakistan and Afghanistan to carry out errands for the terrorist...

'A Secret, Double Life' Alleged in Case of Ohioan Who Admitted Aiding Terrorists By Andrew Welsh-Huggins Associated Press Writer Published: Sep 23, 2003 COLUMBUS, Ohio (AP) - Geneva Bowling started buying gas at H&M Auto because of its low prices. She kept going back because of the handsome, Pakistani-born cashier. Soon, she and Iyman Faris were dating, going out to eat at Middle Eastern restaurants or watching action movies. She noticed Faris bonded with her then 10-year-old son, Mike. The marriage lasted five years before arguments over money and housework led to an amicable divorce in April 2000. Bowling says...

Al-Qaida suspect arrested in NYC By Lisa Myers NBC NEWS NEW YORK, Aug. 4 — The FBI has arrested a Pakistani man with alleged ties to al-Qaida in New York City, NBC News has learned. THE MAN is alleged to have close ties to the mastermind of the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks. What most worries senior law enforcement officials is that the man is involved with the shipping industry. About four months ago, in the heart of New York’s garment district, agents from the FBI’s Joint Terrorism Task Force arrested a young Pakistani man as he sat at his...

<p>Think America's distracted from fighting terror? Perhaps you'd like to buy a bridge.</p> <p>We have another reason to thank the diligence of the Bush administration and to discount reports that the war on terrorism has been either neglected or pursued too vigorously.</p>

Captured al-Qa'eda man was FBI spy By David Rennie in Washington (Filed: 23/06/2003) The American al-Qa'eda operative unmasked last week as having planned to bring down the Brooklyn Bridge was first detained in March, and has been used by the FBI for months as a double agent, it was reported yesterday. Iyman Faris US authorities waited until last week to announce a plea bargain struck with Iyman Faris, a Pakistani-born lorry driver ordered to scout out terror targets, including the New York landmark. They did not say that Faris, who was also ordered to study ultralight aircraft, and the possibility...

<p>An al Qaeda sleeper agent "wrapped in his cloak of American citizenship" has secretly pleaded guilty to aiding Osama bin Laden by scouting out bridges and railroads for destruction in New York and Washington, Attorney General John Ashcroft said yesterday.</p>

Iyman Faris, 34, pleaded guilty to being a scout for al-Qaida. The al-Qaida operatives who recruited Columbus trucker Iyman Faris into their fold prefer to find collaborators who share their ideological beliefs, an expert on terrorism said. Failing that, anyone will do —as long as they can provide the information or materiel the terrorist network needs, said Todd Stewart, director of the Ohio State Program for International and Homeland Security at Ohio State University. But it isn’t known what motivated Faris to research torches that al-Qaida might use to cut through cables on the Brooklyn Bridge, buy sleeping bags for...

'Scout' Had Low Profile Home in Heartland Afforded Ideal Cover The Brooklyn Bridge, above, was one of Faris's potential targets, but in a coded report, he said the "weather is too hot." (File Photo/Beth A. Keiser -- AP) By R. Jeffrey Smith and Amy DePaul Washington Post Staff Writers Saturday, June 21, 2003; Page A10 Iyman Faris, the naturalized U.S. citizen unmasked yesterday as a scout for the al Qaeda terrorist network, has an unassuming profile that greatly worries authorities trying to stem the threat of new attacks within the United States, federal officials said yesterday. A resident of Columbus,...

(CBS/AP) An Ohio trucker has admitted scouting sites in the United States for a Sept. 11-style attack, the Justice Department said Thursday. Columbus, Ohio resident Iyman Faris, 33, pleaded guilty on May 1 to conspiracy to provide material support to the al Qaeda organization, and providing material support. The plea was kept secret until Thursday. According to Attorney General John Ashcroft, Faris has admitted to meeting with Osama bin Laden, providing information on ultralite aircraft to al Qaeda and helping the terror group obtain airplane tickets and cell phones. He also was told by an al Qaeda operative to obtain...

IN THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT FOR THE EASTERN DISTRICT OF VIRGINIA UNITED STATES OF AMERICA V. IYMAN FARIS, a/k/a Mohammad Rauf, Defendant. CRIMINAL NO. 03-189-A STATEMENT OF FACTS Should this matter proceed to trial, the United States would prove the following beyond a reasonable doubt: 1. The defendant, Iyman Faris, a/k/a Mohammed Rauf, was born in Kashmir on June 4, 1969. The defendant entered the United States in May 1994 and became a United States citizen in December 1999. Defendant has been employed as an independent truck driver for several years. 2. In late 2000, the defendant traveled with...

A truck driver who became an American citizen three years ago has admitted his involvement in an al-Qaida terrorist plot to destroy the Brooklyn Bridge in New York. Kashmiri-born Iyman Faris was ordered by leaders of the terrorist network to get hold of equipment to cut the cables of the bridge, according to documents unsealed in Washington yesterday. Faris, who lives in Columbus, Ohio, pleaded guilty to two criminal charges of providing material support to terrorists and conspiracy to provide support. According to his affidavit, Faris attended a series of meetings with senior al-Qaida figures between 2000 and 2002 in...