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Obama Describes Nigerian As 'Isolated Extremist,' Despite Ties to Yemen
(CNSNews.com) -- President Barack Obama, in his first public comments on the attempted bombing of a U.S. airliner traveling from Amsterdam to Detroit, described the suspect as "an isolated extremist," despite reports that the 23-year-old Nigerian had been trained in Yemen, a country he visited twice.The Associated Press, quoting a Yemeni government official, said Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab lived in Yemen for two extended periods of time -- a year, from 2004-2005 and again from August-December this year. He apparently was in Yemen a few weeks before the attempt to blow Flight 253 out of the sky over Michigan. (See timeline) A statement posted online Monday by Al-Qaeda in Yemen (also known as al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula) said its "manufacturing sector" had provided Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab with the explosives he took onboard the aircraft. (The United States has not yet authenticated the Web posting, but Abdulmutallab's connection to Yemen is not in doubt.) Al Qaeda in Yemen is the same group with which Anwar al-Awlaki is affiliated. Awlaki, a U.S.-born imam, preaches a radical form of Islam that may have inspired the Fort Hood killer. As CNSNews.com reported earlier, al-Awlaki described Maj. Nidal Hasan as a "hero" after Hasan allegedly shot and killed 13 people at Fort Hood last month. Hasan reportedly had contacted al-Awlaki on numerous occasions before the rampage. Rep. Pete Hoekstra (R-Mich.) told ABC News it looks like al-Awlaki "played a role" in the attempt to bomb Flight 253. "All roads point back to Yemen, they point back to Awlaki, I think it is a pretty deadly combination," Hoekstra told ABC's "The Blotter." Posted by: Fred 2009-12-30 |
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