<http://counterterrorismblog.org/2008/07/the_threat_here_2008_assabiqun.php> The Threat Here - 2008: As-Sabiqun
Today, July 28, 2008, 5 hours ago | Madeleine Gruen & Frank Hyland <http://counterterrorismblog.org/2008/07/the_threat_here_2008_assabiqun.php> Go to full article http://counterterrorismblog.org/2008/07/the_threat_here_2008_assabiqun.php This is the third in the series of articles by Madeleine Gruen and Frank Hyland on the threat of terrorism in the United States. This article will provide Counterterrorism Blog readers with an in-depth analysis of one of the groups in the United States whose expressed ideology is in accord with Al Qaeda's - As Sabiqun. Thanks to the diligent efforts of the US counter-terrorism community, most of what we hear about homegrown terrorism comes from news reports of failed plots. We read relatively little, though, about how the actors in these plots became radicalized. The primary precipitant in any terrorism case is exposure to radical ideology. In large part, the ideology will determine the target of an attack and the level of motivation to carry the plan through. In the first article in this series we reminded you of the AQ-inspired conspiracy by a group composed of ethnic Albanian Yugoslavian illegal immigrants, a legal Turkish immigrant, and US citizens to attack US soldiers at Ft. Dix. In this case, the group of men learned tactics and fueled their commitment by watching AQ propaganda videos that are prevalent on the Internet, many of which are formulated from a blend of ideological justifications for attacks on Westerners and Western targets, and footage of successful attacks. However, radicalization does not always require direct provocation from AQ or even exposure to their propaganda material. Often, radicalization occurs through personal contact with imams or other individuals who support AQ's ideology and methods. Most readers are familiar with Abu Hamza al Masri and Omar Bakri Mohammed, the UK clerics who made very public declarations that all Muslims are obligated to participate in Jihad if they are to consider themselves true Muslims. Authorities in the UK took years to clamp down on these two. Some officials even dismissed them as clowns. All the while, many supporters of al Masri and Bakri were leaving the UK to receive training in Bosnia, Pakistan, and Afghanistan, and participate in armed conflict. Although both al Masri and Bakri have been prohibited from operating in the UK, at least temporarily (al Masri is in a UK prison awaiting extradition to the US; Bakri is in Lebanon and is banned from returning to the UK) their influence has left an indelible mark on the future of Jihadism in Europe and beyond that will likely persist for decades. Their former followers have turned up in numerous major terrorist plots and attacks, including Richard Reid and Zacarias Moussaoui. Terrorism cases from the past have shown that radical clerics usually do not play an active role in masterminding individual plots and attacks; however, their ability to incite individuals to the point of committing violence is indisputable. The same sort of virulent ideology preached by Abu Hamza al Masri and Omar Bakri Mohammed is also preached in the United States. Abdul Alim Musa is a Washington, D.C.-based imam who is the founder and leader of As-Sabiqun ("the vanguard"), which claims additional branches in Oakland, Sacramento, San Diego, and Los Angeles, California, and in Philadelphia. Musa also travels around the United States and abroad, including to Iran, to lecture. Many of his lecture tour events in the US are at the invitation of university Muslim student associations and Muslim youth groups. Many of the followers of As-Sabiqun are ex-convicts who converted in prison, as did Musa, who spent several years in the U.S. Penitentiary in Leavenworth, Kansas for various charges, including drug trafficking. According to the As-Sabiqun web site <http://www.sabiqun.net/> , the group does outreach to prison populations. According to Musa's biography on his personal Myspace site <http://www.myspace.com/imammusa2> , "His 'street' background helps explain part of his appeal to inner-city youths and ex-convicts, with whom he can identify through personal experience." The members of As-Sabiqun are encouraged to familiarize themselves with the writings of Maulana Mawdudi, Hasan al-Banna, Sayyid Qutb, and Imam Khomeini, who are considered to be among the most radical Islamic thinkers. Musa is a showman with a sharp wit and a lot of humor. His sermons combine an odd mixture of Salifism, Khomeinism, and Jihadism. The primary objective of As-Sabiqun is to establish the "Islamic State of North America" no later than 2050. Musa provides contradictory guidance to his followers on how this objective will be met. He tells them to invite people to Islam peacefully, but then tells them that suicide bombers are heroes and that violence is justifiable when Muslims have been pushed to a point. It is understandable to say that people will become violent when pushed to their limit; however, Musa equates situations of serious violent conflict in the Middle East and elsewhere to the conditions of Muslims living in the United States, thus twisting logic for the sake of his persuading his audience. In a <http://www.shiatv.net/view_video.php?viewkey=7dbc9960ae158598a6a9> June 2008 speech to a group in Dearborn, Michigan honoring Ayatollah Khomeini, Musa said, "My enemy is the United States" and "We are living under a dictatorship in the US." He preceded those comments by telling his audience to "invite people to Islam instead of shooting" but went on to say "we are being harassed to a point" suggesting that shooting is justifiable given the extremes to which the Muslim community in the United States has been "pushed." In a February <http://counterterrorismblog.org/2007/02/steven_emersons_investigative.php> 2007 Hannity & Colmes appearance Musa said that Hizballah and Hamas are great organizations that cannot be categorized as terrorist groups. He also denied that bin Laden was responsible for 9/11 and said, "If Osama bin Laden is alive and he is a Muslim then I have to like him," which is a statement calculated to be provocative while still being easy to explain away afterward through ideological justifications. Musa appeared in the news in June 2008 when an As-Sabiqun member, Darrick <http://www.nefafoundation.org/miscellaneous/FeaturedDocs/US_v_Jackson_usg2n dmotionlimine.pdf> Jackson, was convicted of not disclosing his Muslim name on an application to be a private security guard commissioned to work at Andrews Air Force Base. The federal prosecution team argued that Jackson intentionally did not provide his Muslim name on the application in order to avoid being linked to Musa. Jackson's defense argued that their client misunderstood the question and thought that it referred to a woman's maiden name. According <http://www.muslimlinkpaper.com/mybo2/index.php?option=com_content&task=view &id=1139&Itemid=0> to reports: all of Jackson's legal documents are in the name Darrick Jackson; he used Musa and another associate of his mosque as references on the application; and his Muslim name was part of the email address he provided. However, the prosecution proved successfully that Jackson was known to harbor the same anti-American beliefs as Musa, which should have precluded him from receiving any sort of clearance to work at a sensitive government location. This was the second time this same case had been brought to trial. The first round, in December 2007, ended in a hung jury. The determination with which federal prosecutors went after Jackson for failing to provide his Muslim name on a work application suggests that there is a heightened concern about Musa and fellow As-Sabiqun members within the Law Enforcement Community. Musa is certainly aware of that interest and makes frequent references to "snitches and FBI informants" during his lectures. In June 2007, Musa delivered a lecture at his mosque titled, "How to Punk the FBI," which included such pointers as, "How to bring the "sissy" out of your local FBI agent. Counter-harassment techniques (Did your mamma buy that shirt?) [sic] Laugh your fears away by laughing in your oppressor's face." It is difficult to bring charges against an imam who acts as a messenger, merely, and who is careful to stay on the "right" side of the grey line. Also, like al Masri and Bakri once were, Musa could easily be dismissed as a blowhard who could not possibly pose a real threat -someone who craves attention by making provocative comments, but who really does not impose that much influence. A <http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/09/18/AR200709180 2154_pf.html> September 2007 Washington Post article quotes Mahdi Bray of the Muslim American Society's Freedom Foundation as saying Musa's "bark is worse than his bite;" however, audiences of Muslim university students have confirmed the efficacy of Musa's lecture style and delivery of message. A newsletter <http://www.momin.org/docs/messenger_1.pdf> for a Shia community center in North Texas featured a story about a visit from Musa to celebrate the First Annual Malcolm X Day, an event that was organized by a local Muslim youth group. One student was quoted as saying, "He's very good and powerful in his words. I think he is a good speaker because he has so many life experiences. He's not 'oh, I heard from this person.' No, he's 'when I was there and when I did this and I saw this person, when I experienced this.'" This student's quote supports Musa's claim that he has the ability to appeal to young people and to convey the concepts of As-Sabiqun's ideology effectively. Musa is only one example of many who support the same brand of ideology in the United States. Mahdi Bray <http://www.investigativeproject.org/profile/112> may tell us that Musa's words are merely words, but Musa's stated objectives and ideology is reminiscent of Ali al-Tamimi, the Virginia scholar who convinced several of his young devotees to seek training at Lashkar-e-Taiba training camps in Pakistan in order to engage in violent Jihad against American troops. This case is more popularly referred to as the "The Paintball Case" because several of the defendants played paintball in Virginia for training purposes prior to the trips to Pakistan. At least one of the defendants, Masoud Khan, remained committed to engaging in violence in the name of Islam, and his proposed target of attack possibly shifted from US troops stationed abroad to targets in the US. In May 2003, in Gaithersburg, Maryland, Khan was found in possession of an AK-47-style rifle, a terrorism manual that contained instructions on how to manufacture explosives and how to use chemicals as weapons. He was also in possession of a statement from Osama bin Laden, which read, in part: So here is America, Allah has struck it in one of its vital points, so He destroyed her greatest of buildings. And unto Allah is all praise and He has favored us with this blessing. And here is America filled with terror from its north and to its south, from its east to its west. And unto Allah is all praise and He has favored us with this blessing. (F)AIR USE NOTICE: All original content and/or articles and graphics in this message are copyrighted, unless specifically noted otherwise. All rights to these copyrighted items are reserved. Articles and graphics have been placed within for educational and discussion purposes only, in compliance with "Fair Use" criteria established in Section 107 of the Copyright Act of 1976. The principle of "Fair Use" was established as law by Section 107 of The Copyright Act of 1976. 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