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| Syria-Lebanon-Iran |
| Mate of Aussie champ says 'Trigger' too nice to be a terrorist |
| 2007-06-28 |
| A friend of Ahmed Elomar, one of four Australians arrested in Lebanon, said he would be surprised if the boxer was involved with terrorism. Elomar, 24, who uses the name "Trigger" in the boxing ring, was one of four dual Australian-Lebanese citizens recently arrested in the country's north over alleged connections to the militant group Fatah al-Islam. The reigning Australian super featherweight champion, who fought on the undercard for an Anthony Mundine fight last year, left Australia two weeks ago with his wife and two young children. Sydney Muslim youth leader Fadi Rahman said his friend was a devoted family man. "He's of very good character, a very kind person, he's fairly quiet, a family orientated person," Mr Rahman told Network Ten. "It would quite surprise me if he was involved in such a thing." Boxing coach Tony Mundine, the father of Anthony, said he was also surprised by the reports. "He was very polite to me and at our boxing tournament, he was very, very nice and very gentle," Mr Mundine told ABC Radio. Australian consular officials continue to be denied access to the four men, with Lebanese authorities saying they want to first complete their questioning. "We haven't got consular access to them and we have been told by the Lebanese defense ministry that we'll get consular access once they're charged," Foreign Minister Alexander Downer said in Israel on Wednesday. The Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade (DFAT) is refusing to confirm the name of any of those arrested. But the family of Ibrahim Sabouh, a devout Muslim who moved from Sydney to Lebanon with his wife and family a year ago, say he is among the four. The other three are Elomar, former taxi driver Omar Hadba and another man, Mohammad Basal, media reports say. News Ltd has reported that the four men are linked to Sydney-based hardline Muslim cleric Faiz Mohammed, who is based at the Global Islamic Youth Centre in Liverpool, in Sydney's south-west. Calls to the centre were not returned on Wednesday. The Australian Federal Police (AFP) would not confirm whether the four men had previously been known to them. "The AFP is conducting inquiries into these men through its senior liaison officer in Beirut," a spokesman said. "It is not appropriate for the AFP to comment as to whether these inquiries could result in an investigation in Australia." DFAT also is investigating reports at least one other Australian had been taken into custody, and that an Australian had been killed during the fighting. |
| Posted by:Fred |
| #2 Tu3031, when I think of "Trigger", I think either that the guy was named after Roy Rogers' horse, or his parents were classic sf fans (but then, that Trigger was a woman). Neither case fits. |
| Posted by: Eric Jablow 2007-06-28 18:13 |
| #1 Yeah, when I'm introduced to a guy named "Trigger", my first thought is, "Wow. What a nice guy he must be." |
| Posted by: tu3031 2007-06-28 10:37 |