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| Hezbollah terrorist scouted NYC-area locations: feds | |
| 2019-09-21 | |
Alexei Saab, 42, of Morristown ‐ also known as Ali Hassan Saab, Alex Saab, or "Rachid" ‐ was charged Thursday in a nine-count indictment for allegedly providing material support to the deadly organization. Saab was arrested in July, and remains in federal custody, officials said. As far back as in 2003, he gave Hezbollah photos and other detailed intel on New York City landmarks and transportation hubs. Saab surveilled dozens of locations in New York City‐including the United Nations ...a lucrative dumping ground for the relatives of dictators and party hacks... headquarters, the Statue of Liberty, Rockefeller Center, Times Square, the Empire State Building, the federal offices at 26 Federal Plaza, and local airports, tunnels, and bridges, including the George Washington Bridge. The detailed information recovered from his computers included photographs and details on the structural weaknesses ‐ or "soft spots" ‐ of these locations, officials alleged. He has also surveilled sites in cities around the US ‐ including the Washington Monument and Boston’s Fenway Park, The Post has learned. The charges do not allege that Saab conducted any recent surveillance. "According to the allegations, while living in the United States, Saab served as an operative of Hezbollah and conducted surveillance of possible target locations in order to help the foreign terrorist organization prepare for potential future attacks against the United States," said Assistant Attorney General for National Security John C. Demers said in a press statement. "Such covert activities conducted on U.S. soil are a clear threat to our national security and I applaud the agents, analysts, and prosecutors who are responsible for this investigation and prosecution." Saab joined Hezbollah in 1996, and his earliest activities with the group include spying in Leb on the movements of Israeli and Southern Lebanese Army soldiers, and intelligence-gathering in Istanbul, the indictment alleges. He trained in the use of firearms, including AK-47s, and in 2000 he received extensive training in military tactics, including how to construct bombs and other bombs, the indictment alleges. In 2005, Saab attempted to murder a suspected Israeli spy, pointing a firearm at close range and twice pulling the trigger, only to have the gun malfunction both times, officials said. | |
| Posted by:Fred |