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| al-Arian Trial Depicts Islamic Jihad Infighting |
| 2005-07-20 |
| TAMPA - Internal fighting among Palestinian Islamic Jihad members had reached a boiling point and the movement was in financial trouble in 1994. Sami Al-Arian, then a University of South Florida professor, distributed a proposed resolution, called ``an internal reform project,'' to members of the Islamic Jihad's majlis shura, or governing board. In it, he proposed creating a committee to control Islamic Jihad money. It would include himself, his brother-in-law Mazen Al-Najjar and Islamic Jihad founder Fathi Shikaki. A translation of that proposal was among more than 80 exhibits entered into evidence Tuesday during Al-Arian's trial on charges of racketeering and providing material support to terrorists. The exhibits include translations of secretly intercepted telephone calls involving Al-Arian, Shikaki and others. The faxes contain repeated references to the majlis shura, and Al-Arian often refers to himself as ``the secretary.'' FBI agents were able to listen in on the calls and obtain copies of the faxes through warrants obtained under the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act, which authorizes monitoring of people suspected of being agents of a foreign power or terrorist group. The documents are pivotal to the prosecution's case because they show Al-Arian helping to keep Jihad together when it almost fractured. Assistant U.S. Attorney Walter E. Furr III repeatedly has said that ``for a time, [Al-Arian] was the most powerful man in the world in this organization.'' In a Jan. 22, 1994, call with Shikaki, Al-Arian expresses frustration that the internal power struggle ``is very embarrassing. It's embarrassing in front of the people and embarrassing in the interior and embarrassing everywhere.'' Al-Arian criticized Shikaki's proposal and encouraged him to work toward a consensus. ``When the majority is against it,'' Shikaki responded, ``then I will think about what I will do.'' Other members were upset, Al-Arian said. ``If they didn't have a level of commitment, they would all have left, frankly, among them our brother Ahmed.'' Bashir Nafi, a defendant from England who has not been arrested, used to write under the name Ahmed Sadiq. It is not clear if this reference is to Nafi. In a handwritten note about two weeks later, Shikaki tells Al-Arian that ``the essential or practical matter is the position of the North, which is more complicated than you imagine.'' Prosecutors say ``the North'' is a coded reference to Iran, which has been the Islamic Jihad's primary financial benefactor. ``What's important,'' Shikaki wrote, ``is that the official communication come from you.'' According to the indictment, other calls deal with Islamic Jihad payments for defendant Sameeh Hammoudeh, Al-Najjar and Ramadan Shallah. Shallah assumed command of the Islamic Jihad in 1995 after Shikaki was gunned down in Malta. Jurors did not learn details of the transcripts or other translations but are expected to soon. Two FBI contract translators testified Tuesday about how they created English versions of the communications and determined the speaker's identities. Those details were required to provide a sufficient legal foundation to get the exhibits into evidence. The second translator, Camille Ghorra, continues testifying this morning. Defense attorneys have not had a chance to cross- examine him to challenge any of his speaker identifications. Al-Arian long has denied any connection to the Islamic Jihad. In his opening statement, defense attorney William Moffitt indicated Al-Arian left the organization after the internal feud. Al-Arian also suggested creating a nonpolitical, nonviolent branch, Moffitt said, and left when he could not make that happen. Prosecutors also entered into evidence a series of telephone calls involving defendant Hatim Fariz and his brother, in addition to conversations with fellow defendant Ghassan Ballut. Many of those calls involve efforts to solicit donations, including conversations about securing receipts to gain donors' trust and financing the purchase of an ambulance in Palestine. In a September 2002 call, Fariz tells Ballut he is worried about Shallah's well-being. ``It's been a month since he has appeared anywhere, not after the assassinations, not after the operations, not after everything,'' Fariz said. Fariz does not name Shallah but refers to him as Abu Abdallah. Prosecutors say that is a reference to Shallah's oldest son, a pseudonym common among Muslim men. They also claim Fariz later called Shallah in Damascus, Syria, to check on his health. |
| Posted by:Mrs. Davis |
| #1 Jihadists infighting is good! |
| Posted by: John Q. Citizen 2005-07-20 22:29 |