DC Students Wanted to Fight US Soldiers, May be Returned

Police officials in Pakistan and unnamed U.S. law enforcement sources are quoted in numerous media reports agreeing that the five D.C.-area Muslim men detained in Pakistan this week hoped to fight American forces in Afghanistan.

"We are here for jihad," a Washington Post report says they told Pakistani interrogators.

News reports indicate that the U.S. expects the men to be sent back here where they likely will face some criminal charges, including those related to providing material support to terrorists. FBI officials in Pakistan already have interviewed the men.

The New York Times reports the men were invited to Pakistan by a militant with links to Al Qaeda whom they met through Internet sites. One of the men, Waqar Khan, brought $25,000 with him. It's not clear where that money came from.

The others are identified as Howard University student Ramy Zamzam, Eritrean native Ahmed Abdullah Minni, Aman Hassan Yemer, and Umar Chaudhry. All of them reportedly had American passports. They left behind an 11-minute farewell video that included references to Quranic verses and the need to defend Muslims.

Related Topics: IPT News

en