Four members of an alleged Palestinian terror group, including Florida professor Sami Amin Al Arian, were arrested by the FBI Thursday. Attorney General John Ashcroft announced the arrests in Washington after an indictment was unsealed in Tampa, Fla. Ashcroft said the four arrested and four more suspects overseas “play a central role in global terrorism. They are material supporters of foreign terrorist organizations.” The eight are charged with being members or leaders of the Palestinian Islamic Jihad, identified in a 2001 State Department report as a terrorist organization. PIJ was formed in the Gaza Strip during the 1970s, and is dedicated to the violent destruction of Israel and the formation of a Palestinian state, the report says. The indictment said the organization has carried out bombings and shootings against civilians in Israel. The suspects are also variously charged with conducting a racketeering enterprise since 1984, and conspiracy to kill and maim persons abroad and conspiracy to provide material support and resources to the PIJ, among other allegations. Full Story
About OODA Analyst
OODA is comprised of a unique team of international experts capable of providing advanced intelligence and analysis, strategy and planning support, risk and threat management, training, decision support, crisis response, and security services to global corporations and governments.