Post by redstar on Jun 25, 2014 23:50:15 GMT
WASHINGTON — An American who blew himself up in an attack in Syria on Sunday has been identified by law enforcement officials as Moner Mohammad Abusalha, a man in his early 20s who grew up in Florida and traveled to Syria late last year.
The officials said they believed that Mr. Abusalha, who adopted the nom de guerre Abu Huraira al-Amriki, used a large truck in helping to carry out the bombing in the northern province of Idlib, where he had traveled after spending two months in a training camp of the militant group the Nusra Front in Aleppo. The officials said they thought it was the first time an American had been involved in a suicide attack in Syria.
Mr. Abusalha’s identity was confirmed Friday night by the State Department. American law enforcement and intelligence agencies made the identification after analyzing intelligence from Syria and foreign governments, and information gleaned from interviews with family members and friends of the bomber in Florida, one official said.
Continue reading the main story
RELATED COVERAGE
Foreign Jihadis Fighting in Syria Pose Risk in WestMAY 29, 2014
Suicide Bomber in Syria Was U.S. Citizen, Officials SayMAY 28, 2014
The size of the blast, which was shown on a video clip posted online by the Nusra Front, has led the authorities to believe that it will be impossible to ever identify Mr. Abusalha’s remains.
Photo
A man believed to be the bomber and an American, is shown at right in a photo posted on Twitter by jihadists. Credit SITE Intelligence Group
A Syrian fighter from the Nusra Front recalled Mr. Abusalha, whom he knew only by his alias, as an Arab-American who spoke Arabic poorly but was dedicated to the jihadist cause. “He was a generous, brave, tough man, always on the front lines in battles,” said the fighter, who identified himself by a nom de guerre, Abu Abdulrahman, and said that he was currently in Idlib Province, where Mr. Abusalha died.
A photo circulating on jihadist social media accounts this week showed a smiling young man, bearded and holding a cat, who was said to be the bomber. Activists also posted a video said to show the attack in which rebels load what appear to be tank shells into a large armored vehicle, and there is an explosion after the vehicle drives down the road.
A Facebook profile of a man with the name Moner Abusalha has pictures that appear to be of the same person shown in the photos on jihadist websites. Many images on the page have Arabic writing and quote the Quran. “Verily, with hardship there is relief,” the profile says on one page. The profile also says he likes basketball, football and Eggo waffles.
Public records databases show that Mr. Abusalha has lived in Fort Pierce and in Vero Beach. A youth league website said he played basketball with the Indian River Warriors in 2007.
The records show that at one point he shared an apartment with his brother in Fort Pierce, a city about 130 miles north of Miami. His parents have lived in Vero Beach, and his family owns several grocery stores in the region.
Reached by telephone, a woman named Michelle Abusalha, apparently his mother, hung up on a reporter. His father, Mohammad, declined to comment.
“Sorry, sorry, we can’t do that,” he said.
Mr. Abusalha had been among several dozen Americans on the radar of federal law enforcement officials because of past trips to Syria.
www.nytimes.com/2014/05/31/world/middleeast/american-suicide-bomber-in-syria.html?_r=0
The officials said they believed that Mr. Abusalha, who adopted the nom de guerre Abu Huraira al-Amriki, used a large truck in helping to carry out the bombing in the northern province of Idlib, where he had traveled after spending two months in a training camp of the militant group the Nusra Front in Aleppo. The officials said they thought it was the first time an American had been involved in a suicide attack in Syria.
Mr. Abusalha’s identity was confirmed Friday night by the State Department. American law enforcement and intelligence agencies made the identification after analyzing intelligence from Syria and foreign governments, and information gleaned from interviews with family members and friends of the bomber in Florida, one official said.
Continue reading the main story
RELATED COVERAGE
Foreign Jihadis Fighting in Syria Pose Risk in WestMAY 29, 2014
Suicide Bomber in Syria Was U.S. Citizen, Officials SayMAY 28, 2014
The size of the blast, which was shown on a video clip posted online by the Nusra Front, has led the authorities to believe that it will be impossible to ever identify Mr. Abusalha’s remains.
Photo
A man believed to be the bomber and an American, is shown at right in a photo posted on Twitter by jihadists. Credit SITE Intelligence Group
A Syrian fighter from the Nusra Front recalled Mr. Abusalha, whom he knew only by his alias, as an Arab-American who spoke Arabic poorly but was dedicated to the jihadist cause. “He was a generous, brave, tough man, always on the front lines in battles,” said the fighter, who identified himself by a nom de guerre, Abu Abdulrahman, and said that he was currently in Idlib Province, where Mr. Abusalha died.
A photo circulating on jihadist social media accounts this week showed a smiling young man, bearded and holding a cat, who was said to be the bomber. Activists also posted a video said to show the attack in which rebels load what appear to be tank shells into a large armored vehicle, and there is an explosion after the vehicle drives down the road.
A Facebook profile of a man with the name Moner Abusalha has pictures that appear to be of the same person shown in the photos on jihadist websites. Many images on the page have Arabic writing and quote the Quran. “Verily, with hardship there is relief,” the profile says on one page. The profile also says he likes basketball, football and Eggo waffles.
Public records databases show that Mr. Abusalha has lived in Fort Pierce and in Vero Beach. A youth league website said he played basketball with the Indian River Warriors in 2007.
The records show that at one point he shared an apartment with his brother in Fort Pierce, a city about 130 miles north of Miami. His parents have lived in Vero Beach, and his family owns several grocery stores in the region.
Reached by telephone, a woman named Michelle Abusalha, apparently his mother, hung up on a reporter. His father, Mohammad, declined to comment.
“Sorry, sorry, we can’t do that,” he said.
Mr. Abusalha had been among several dozen Americans on the radar of federal law enforcement officials because of past trips to Syria.
www.nytimes.com/2014/05/31/world/middleeast/american-suicide-bomber-in-syria.html?_r=0