Jihadi Du Jour: Adam Yahiye Gadahn: American Traitor

We've seen this guy on TV. He calls himself 'Azzam the American' and is a propagadist for al-Qaeda. He is an American who has become a key member of the al-Qaeda.

Adam Gadahn is the first American to be charged with treason since 1952.

There should have been others charged with treason. I don't want to mention any names like Hanoi Jane or John Walker Lindh. But Adam 'Yahiye' certainly, without question crossed the line to treason.

He has not only done recruitment videos for al-Qaeda, but has provided the English voice overs for other videos so that they can be distributed in English speaking countries.

In the video published on the anniversary of the mass transit attacks in London Adam claimed that no muslim should 'shed a tear' for any Westerners killed in the terrorist attacks in London. He also has promised attacks on America that will leave America streets running 'red with blood'.

A 48-minute video posted on an Islamic militant Web site last month included footage of Al Qaeda's No. 2 man, Ayman al-Zawahiri, and Gadahn, who the FBI believes attended Al Qaeda training camps in Pakistan and served as an Al Qaeda translator.

LA Times

"Increasingly, the stature of his statements shows that he not only has credibility as an information operative for Al Qaeda … but if you look at it through the lens of Al Qaeda spreading its message, then he is absolutely an instrumental player," said another counterterrorism official who has watched Gadahn's ascent for years.

"I mean, he is now making statements with Al-Zawahiri, who is the No. 2 and the tactician. And [Gadahn] is right there with him at critical periods of time," said the official, who like others in government spoke on condition of anonymity because of the anticipated criminal case against Gadahn.

Some background:

Gadahn, the son of musician Adam Pearlman, was raised in a middle-class Jewish family, but at the age of 17 he dropped in on the Islamic Society of Orange County and asked to worship there. He later was expelled from the mosque after attacking an employee. Records show he pleaded guilty to assault and battery charges on June 11, 1997, and was sentenced to two days in Orange County jail and 40 hours of community service. It is believed he fled to Pakistan sometime in 1998.

Gadahn disappeared soon after the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks on New York and Washington.

As of May 27, 2004, court records showed that Gadahn failed to perform the community service, so a warrant is outstanding for his arrest.

Some of those who attended the mosque said Gadahn was becoming very extreme in his views, while family members said he began attacking Christianity as he became more a more devout follower of Islam.

According to the FBI, Gadahn attended Al Qaeda training camps in Afghanistan and served as an Al Qaeda translator. The agency said he also was associated with senior Al Qaeda lieutenant Abu Zubeida in Pakistan. He has used the aliases Adam Pearlman and Aby Suhayb Al-Amriki. The FBI also said Gadahn was known to have performed translations for Al Qaeda, among other services.

In 2004, FBI officials in Los Angeles said Gadahn was last known to be in Southern California in 1997 or 1998.

Some information about Adam Pearlman:

The grandson of a Jewish doctor, the young man was raised as Adam Pearlman on a goat farm in the hills of southwestern Riverside County by parents who had eclectic religious tastes and shunned the modern world.

At 14, his spiritual journey took him to the Islamic Center of Orange County, where he fell under the influence of two radical Muslims, Khalil Deek and Hisham Diab, both naturalized U.S. citizens.

Diab, an Egyptian, owned an accounting business, and Deek, a Palestinian, repaired computers. They lived in upstairs apartments across from each other in a complex near Little Gaza, a stretch of Arab-owned shops, restaurants and other businesses on Brookhurst Street in Anaheim.

"Deek and Diab met him at the mosque and [Diab] brought him home like a lost dog,"

It's believed that Adam Pearlman aka whatever he's calling himself is in Pakistan.

One doesn't know how one will react when standing at the business end of a gun. For all his brave talk against his own country, he could cower like a pig when he's caught. Or not. He probably won't be taken alive. Or maybe he will.

However the end comes down for him, he's a traitor and has been rightly charged as one.

crossposted Blue Star Chronicles

Labels: al-Qaeda, Islam, Islam in America, Islamic Jihad, Treason