While Somalis in Lewiston, ME have been taking to the streets to proclaim that they have been maligned by the words of the local Mayor, some of their fellow Somali refugees in Minneapolis are on trial for helping support terrorists in Somalia and for sending some of the young men we raised with our tax dollars to Somalia to get jihad training.
From near the beginning of our reporting on this story of the ‘missing Somali youths’ in 2008, here, fingers have been pointed at the Abubakar as-Saddique mosque as the headquarters for the recruitment effort. Now we see from reports of the trial of mosque janitor Mahamud Said Omar that the mosque was indeed jihad recruitment central.
From reporter Ami Forlitti at the Associated Press:
Isse [a witness] said he knew Omar as the janitor at Abubakar as-Saddique mosque, where Isse spent a lot of time after moving to Minnesota from Seattle in 2007. It was there where he also met other men who would eventually travel to Somalia.
Under questioning from Assistant U.S. Attorney John Docherty, Isse testified that someone at the mosque named Farhan began talking to him about going to Somalia for a “jihad” against Ethiopians, which many Somalis viewed as invaders.
The men began making plans to travel — meeting in private rooms at the mosque, or at restaurants and in cars. Three other men, two of whom have been identified as travelers by prosecutors, led the discussions because they knew more about traveling and had contacts in Somalia, Isse said.
[…..]
The men raised money for airline tickets by going door-to-door under the guise of raising money for a mosque, Isse said. [LOL! I bet the Imam will insist he didn’t know about this money raising venture—ed]
Rich kids can get their own weapon money!
Then get this! You know we have reported many times in recent months that the US government has made it almost impossible for Somalis in the US to send money Somalia now. Somalis have been screaming bloody murder that their relatives in Somalia will starve. (Rep. Keith Ellison is working overtime to get the money flowing to Somalia again.) Seems it was pretty darn easy to send money for weapons to the ‘youths!’
Since the men were from the West, they were told to buy their own AK-47s. Isse said they began calling friends in the U.S. and asking for money, and eventually got assault rifles at another safe house. One weapon arrived with Omar’s name on it, Isse said.
Read the whole story. Our previous post on the trial that began last Monday is here.
By the way, one thing that might point to holes in Isse’s testimony is when he reported that new recruits were told to turn over their travel docs upon arrival at the Al-shabaab safe house. How did Isse manage to keep his and get back to the US?