FBI Watching Somali Muslims In Washington D.C.
May 23, 2009 by national
Filed under Homeland Security News
Fearing the next terror attack could emerge from America’s growing Somali refugee population, federal authorities have stepped up surveillance in Somali communities – including a large enclave just outside Washington.
In fact, WND has learned that the Baileys Crossroads area of Northern Virginia – about 10 miles from the capital – was a critical focus of security investigations in advance of the presidential inauguration in January.
Investigators say a troubling number of the area’s Somali men hold “militant” anti-American views and sympathize with al-Qaida. They typically work as taxi drivers, gathering at local coffeehouses during their breaks, as well as at a nearby mosque tied to 9/11.
Dar al-Hijrah Islamic Center in Falls Church, Va., which assisted at least two of the al-Qaida hijackers, has a large representation of Somali immigrants. Investigators say a former Dar al-Hijrah imam is now working with al-Qaida to arm and recruit fighters – including Americans – for the holy war in Somalia.
“Somalis were the hot topic during the inauguration, and they still are,” said a senior investigator assigned to the FBI’s Joint Terrorism Task Force in Washington. “They’re very militant, and they’re all over that area.”
Authorities estimate the Washington area is home to about 6,000 Somalis, most of whom are Muslim.
Another troubling hotspot is Minneapolis, where individuals have traveled to Somalia to train with an al-Qaida-backed terror wing called Al-Shabab, which means “the youth” in Arabic.
The FBI has launched investigations in the thriving Somali community of 70,000 there, questioning local men suspected of being radicalized. Last year, some 20 young Somali men – all American citizens – left to join the jihad. All of them worshipped at the same pro-jihad mosque – Abubakar As-Saddique Islamic Center – whose leaders deny a connection. Investigators, however, suspect the young men were recruited and bankrolled there. The mosque’s imam is on the FBI’s terror watch list and is grounded from air travel.
