Officials said the FBI has been identifying and tracking others who
sought to employ Hamas weapons technology in the United States, Middle East Newsline reported. They said
Hamas weapons and missiles were used against U.S. soldiers in Iraq.
"We are satisfied with the court's sentence, the maximum allowed by law,
which reflects the seriousness of the crime," U.S. Attorney Brian Albritton
said.
A federal indictment said Mohamed was driving a car packed with a
potassium nitrate mixture as well as PVC pipe from Florida to South
Carolina. Police stopped Mohamed's car for speeding, and the explosives as
well as his laptop computer were found.
"The last item played on the laptop computer, prior to the traffic stop,
was a video recording relating to the use and firing of Kassam rockets in
the Middle East," the Justice Department said.
Officials said Mohamed, who pleaded guilty, was planning to assemble
Kassam missiles and bombs. They said he produced a video in Arabic on how to
assemble bombs.
"He stated that his purpose in producing the audio/video recording was
to teach 'martyrdoms' and 'suiciders' how to save themselves so that they
could continue to fight the invaders," Justice said. "He said that he
considered the United States military, and those fighting with the United
States military in Arab countries, to be invaders. He said that he intended
the technology demonstrated in his audio/video recording to be used against
those who fight for the United States."
The prospect of a Hamas attack in the United States has been heightened
amid the Israel-Hamas war. Officials said the intelligence community has
been tracking Islamic websites that were urging Muslims to attack American
interests worldwide.
"In response to the Gaza offensive, Islamist websites have posted many
messages calling to attack Israeli and American interests worldwide," the
Middle East Media and Research Institute said.
