Prosecutors outlined Friday their case against two men charged with aiding the Palestinian militant group Hamas, saying they plotted to arm a terrorism campaign with guns, money and fresh recruits. Muhammad Salah, 53, of Bridgeview, Illinois, and Abdelhaleem Ashqar, 48, of Alexandria, Virginia, have pleaded not guilty to a racketeering indictment alleging they conspired to furnish cash and organizational aid to the Hamas terrorism campaign.
| “Salah bought airline tickets to Syria for two recruits who received bomb-making training...” |
As early as 1990, Salah bought airline tickets to Syria for two recruits who received bomb-making training from a "Hamas military operative who had fought in Afghanistan," the prosecutors alleged in a 54-page document. Prosecutors trace the story of Salah, from his travel to the West Bank - allegedly to deliver money to the Palestinian group's underground military organization - to his 1993 arrest and the five years he spent in an Israeli prison before returning to the Chicago area. |