Mujahid Miski is the online persona of Muhammed Abdullahi Hassan, a Minnesota man of Somali descent wanted by the FBI for providing material support to the Somalia-based terror group al-Shabab.“Wanted by the FBI,” FBI, accessed May 6, 2015, http://www.fbi.gov/wanted/seeking-info/providing-material-support-1. Miski reportedly left for Somalia as a teenager in 2008 to join al-Shabab“Esme Murphy, “Former Minnesota Man Played Key Role In Inciting Texas Terror Attack,” WCCO-TV, May 4, 2015, http://minnesota.cbslocal.com/2015/05/04/former-minnesota-man-played-key-role-in-inciting-texas-terror-attack/. as part of a wave of at least 23 Minnesota men who joined the African terrorist group and other terrorist groups between 2007 and 2013.Laura Yuen and Sasha Aslanian, “Timeline: Minnesota pipeline to al-Shabab,” Minnesota Public Radio, last updated September 25, 2013, http://minnesota.publicradio.org/projects/ongoing/somali_timeline/table.shtml. Miski has created a broad social-media presence on Facebook, Twitter, and Ask.fm to recruit for ISIS and al-Shabab.Source for image: FBI as cited by Channel 4, "Former Minnesota Man Played Key Role In Inciting Texas Terror Attack," Somali Agenda, May 5, 2015, https://somaliagenda.com/former-minnesota-man-played-key-role-in-inciting-texas-terror-attack/.

CEP has repeatedly called on Twitter to permanently remove Miski and other extremist users. Twitter has suspended Miski’s accounts upwards of 30 times.Michael Isikoff, “Twitter under pressure to act more aggressively against terrorists,” Yahoo News, February 18, 2015, http://news.yahoo.com/twitter-under-pressure-to-act-more-aggressively-against-terrorists-230347109.html. Each time, Miski has reappeared with a new account and resumed posting messages of support for ISIS, communicating with would-be jihadists, and encouraging violence. In some instances, Miski has been able to create new Twitter accounts only minutes after his prior account was suspended, and has retained his followers with each profile iteration.

In a February 2014 tweet Miski claimed to be a member of al-Qaeda.Anthony L. Kimery, “Jabhat Al Nusra Praises American Suicide Bomber As Other Americans Join Jihad,” Homeland Security Today, May 30, 2014, http://www.hstoday.us/blogs/the-kimery-report/blog/jabhat-al-nusra-praises-american-suicide-bomber-as-other-americans-join-jihad/a6587ed6e14ba6897f595ea82741faef.html. He is also a prominent cheerleader and networker for ISIS and corresponds with ISIS fighters and supporters on social media. Miski has been described as “one of the go-to individuals online” for people who want to travel to ISIS-controlled territory. Authorities believe Miski is still in Somalia.Evan Perez, Pamela Brown, and Jim Sciutto, “Texas attackers had private conversations with known terrorists,” CNN, May 7, 2015, http://www.cnn.com/2015/05/07/politics/fbi-warning-elton-simpson-cartoon-event-attack/index.html.

According to ABC News, Miski had reportedly been in contact “for months” with Elton Simpson, one of the two shooters responsible for the May 3, 2015 attack on the American Freedom Defense Initiative’s “Muhammad Art Exhibit and Cartoon Contest” in Garland, Texas.Catherine Shoichet and Michael Pearson, “Garland, Texas, shooting suspect linked himself to ISIS in tweets,” CNN, May 4, 2015, http://www.cnn.com/2015/05/04/us/garland-mohammed-drawing-contest-shooting/; Brian Ross, Rhonda Schwartz, Randy Kreider, and James Gordon Meek, “The American Terror Recruiter’s Link to Texas Shooting,” ABC News, May 5, 2015, http://abcnews.go.com/US/american-terror-recruiters-link-texas-shooting/story?id=30827653. Ten days before the attack, Miski praised the Charlie Hebdo shooting online and said, “It’s time for brothers in the #US to do their part.” Brian Ross, Rhonda Schwartz, Randy Kreider, and James Gordon Meek, “The American Terror Recruiter’s Link to Texas Shooting,” ABC News, May 5, 2015, http://abcnews.go.com/US/american-terror-recruiters-link-texas-shooting/story?id=30827653. Miski then told Simpson over Twitter, “One individual is able to put a whole nation onto it’s [sic] knees.” Brian Ross, Rhonda Schwartz, Randy Kreider, and James Gordon Meek, “The American Terror Recruiter’s Link to Texas Shooting,” ABC News, May 5, 2015, http://abcnews.go.com/US/american-terror-recruiters-link-texas-shooting/story?id=30827653.

Miski calls for an attack on U.S. soil 10 days before the attack in Garland, Texas

Eight days before the Garland attack, Miski tells Garland shooter Elton Simpson that “one individual is able to put a whole nation onto it’s [sic] knees.”

Hours before the attack, the FBI warned Garland police that Simpson had shown interest in the event in online conversations with Miski.Evan Perez, Pamela Brown, and Jim Sciutto, “Texas attackers had private conversations with known terrorists,” CNN, May 7, 2015, http://www.cnn.com/2015/05/07/politics/fbi-warning-elton-simpson-cartoon-event-attack/index.html. Shortly after the Texas attack, which wounded one security official and left Simpson and co-shooter Nadi Soofi dead, Miski tweeted that he would miss his daily correspondence with Simpson.Brian Ross, Rhonda Schwartz, Randy Kreider, and James Gordon Meek, “The American Terror Recruiter’s Link to Texas Shooting,” ABC News, May 5, 2015, http://abcnews.go.com/US/american-terror-recruiters-link-texas-shooting/story?id=30827653. ISIS claimed responsibility for the attack, although that claim has not been verified.Holly Yan, “ISIS claims responsibility for Texas shooting but offers no proof,” CNN, May 5, 2015, http://www.cnn.com/2015/05/05/us/garland-texas-prophet-mohammed-contest-shooting/.

In November 2014, using the Twitter handle @The Minnesotan3, Miski called for the beheading of CEP President Fran Townsend.“CEP Calls on Twitter to Take Immediate Action to Stop Extremist Misuse of Its Platforms,” Counter Extremism Project, November 21, 2014, http://www.counterextremism.com/press/cep-calls-twitter-take-immediate-action-stop-extremist-misuse-its-platforms; Esme Murphy, “Former Minnesota Man Played Key Role In Inciting Texas Terror Attack,” WCCO-TV, May 4, 2015, http://minnesota.cbslocal.com/2015/05/04/former-minnesota-man-played-key-role-in-inciting-texas-terror-attack/.

Miski threatens to behead CEP President Fran Townsend in November 2014

In a December 2014 Twitter Direct Message to Minneapolis-St. Paul television station KMSP, Miski promised “the caliphate will reach everywhere,” including the White House.Tom Lyden, “Minnesota man’s ISIS connection to Garland, Texas shooting,” KMSP Fox 9, May 5, 2015, http://www.myfoxtwincities.com/story/28975221/minnesota-mans-isis-connection-to-garland-texas-shooting. He refused comment when KMSP asked if al-Shabab had planned suicide bombings inside the United States.Tom Lyden, “Minnesota man’s ISIS connection to Garland, Texas shooting,” KMSP Fox 9, May 5, 2015, http://www.myfoxtwincities.com/story/28975221/minnesota-mans-isis-connection-to-garland-texas-shooting. Miski blamed the April 2015 Baltimore riots on “the oppression of democracy” and called for the implementation of sharia.“Extremists Use #BaltimoreRiots To Spread Propaganda, Recruit New Members,” Counter Extremism Project, https://storify.com/CEP/isis-extremists-user-baltimoreriots-to-spread-prop?utm_content=buffer8c50b&utm_medium=social&utm_source=twitter.com&utm_campaign=buffer. Below are some examples of Miski’s incendiary tweets:

Miski calls for the slaughter of a female, Jewish captive in December 2014

Miski calls for the murder of Jews following the November 2014 attack on the Har Nof synagogue in Jerusalem in which Palestinian assailants murdered four worshippers and one Druze policeman

Miski threatens the beheading of Americans and Brits in October 2014

On July 16, 2015, jihadist Twitter users began reporting that Miski had died, though his death remained unconfirmed. On October 22, 2015, a Twitter user with the handle @Bint_Hjrateyn announced Miski “will be back once Allah grants him safety. He is still in hiding from the Harakah.” In comments to the post, the Twitter user said Miski’s home had been raided and there are groups looking for him.Umm Zubaydah, Twitter post, October 22, 2015, 6:45 a.m., https://twitter.com/Bint_Hjrateyn/status/657145693509976064. The user also posted a link to a Twitter account allegedly belonging to Miski.Umm Zubaydah, Twitter post, October 22, 2015, 6:46 a.m., https://twitter.com/Bint_Hjrateyn/status/657146122230697985. That account, user name Salafi Jihadi #Somal and handle @jihadist_s, began tweeting on September 20, 2015.Salafi Jihadi #Somal, Twitter, accessed October 22, 2015, https://twitter.com/jihadist_s.

Twitter users falsely report Miski’s death in July 2015.

Twitter users discuss claims that Miski has resurfaced online.

Twitter user claims that Miski has resurfaced online under the handle @jihadist_s. Other Twitter users debate his whereabouts.

On December 7, 2015, the U.S. State Department issued a statement saying that Miski had in fact “surrendered to the Federal Government of Somalia on November 6, 2015.”Email from U.S. State Department spokesman, December 7, 2015. The State Department confirmed that Miski was a lawful permanent resident of the United States, and that he was in the custody of the Somali National Intelligence and Security Agency in Mogadishu. The State Department further disclosed that the U.S. Mission to Somalia was in talks with the Somali government regarding the case. Currently, there is no extradition agreement between Somalia and the United States, according to the U.S. State Department.Email from U.S. State Department spokesman, December 7, 2015. Miski reportedly said he has “no intention of coming back” to the United States.Dan Joseph and Harun Maruf, “American Al-Shabab, Nabbed in Somalia, Denies IS Links,” Voice of America, December 8, 2015, http://m.voanews.com/a/american-al-shabab-arrested-in-somalia-denies-links-to-is/3093529.html.

In an exclusive interview with Voice of America while in custody, Miski admitted to working for al-Shabab’s “media and preaching departments” but claimed that he left in 2013 because he believed the group was unfairly imprisoning, torturing, and killing people. He claimed members of al-Shabab raided his home in early November 2015. Miski said he escaped after they blindfolded and terrorized his family. He further claimed villagers from the southern Somali town of Barawe reported him to the police after they saw him walking through a nearby forest earlier that month.Dan Joseph and Harun Maruf, “American Al-Shabab, Nabbed in Somalia, Denies IS Links,” Voice of America, December 8, 2015, http://m.voanews.com/a/american-al-shabab-arrested-in-somalia-denies-links-to-is/3093529.html.

Based on his past contact with Simpson and other Twitter conversations, U.S. authorities investigated whether Miski had possibly radicalized Syed Rizwan Farook and Tashfeen Malik, the couple who murdered 14 people during a December 2015 rampage in San Bernadino, California.Richard Winton and Richard A. Serrano, “Did Syed Rizwan Farook and Tashfeen Malik get help in terror plot?,” Los Angeles Times, December 8, 2015, http://www.latimes.com/local/lanow/la-me-ln-san-bernardino-shooters-radicalized-but-did-they-get-help-20151208-story.html. Miski admitted to Voice of America that he had voiced support for ISIS but denied any ties to the group. He denied any contact with the couple.Dan Joseph and Harun Maruf, “American Al-Shabab, Nabbed in Somalia, Denies IS Links,” Voice of America, December 8, 2015, http://m.voanews.com/a/american-al-shabab-arrested-in-somalia-denies-links-to-is/3093529.html.

Some Twitter users reacted to the news of Miski’s arrest by praying for him, while others doubted the veracity of the news or called for vengeance.

Twitter user Abu Ramzi Ashami, using the handle @_Abu_Ramzi_, claimed Miski did not turn himself in but “got caught by the apostate government of Somalia.” Ashami released several tweets denying the official State Department version of events.Abu Ramzi Ashami, Twitter post, December 8, 2015, 8:30 a.m., https://twitter.com/_Abu_Ramzi_/status/674219564863987712.

Junaid Hussain was a British computer hacker and member of ISIS, according to U.S. officials.Elliott C. McLaughlin, “ISIS jihadi linked Garland attack has long history as hacker,” CNN, May 7, 2015, http://www.cnn.com/2015/05/06/us/who-is-junaid-hussain-garland-texas-attack/.  He used Twitter, Surespot, and other media to incite attacks in the United States and Britain, as well as propagandize for the terrorist group's activities. Hussain allegedly developed ISIS’s cyber division and taught hackers how to break into bank accounts.Ewen MacAskill, “Briton lead suspect after US Central Command’s Twitter account is hacked,” Guardian (Manchester), January 14, 2015, http://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2015/jan/14/briton-suspect-us-central-command-twitter-hack-junaid-hussain-tony-blair; Russell Myers, “Jihadist hackers targeting celebrity and business bank accounts to fund Islamic State terror campaign,” Daily Mirror (London), August 15, 2014, http://www.mirror.co.uk/news/uk-news/jihadist-hackers-targeting-celebrity-business-4057294. Authorities allege that Hussein radicalized and directly encouraged Elton Simpson to carry out the May 3, 2015 attack with Nadir Soofi on a draw-Muhammad contest in Garland, Texas. Investigators are uncertain how much of a role Hussain played in the Simpson attack, but believe he may have had foreknowledge.Elliott C. McLaughlin, “ISIS jihadi linked Garland attack has long history as hacker,” CNN, May 7, 2015, http://www.cnn.com/2015/05/06/us/who-is-junaid-hussain-garland-texas-attack/;
Colleen Curry, “A British Mother Reportedly Left Welfare Behind and Is Now Helping Recruit For The Islamic State,” Vice News, December 22, 2014, https://news.vice.com/article/a-british-mother-reportedly-left-welfare-behind-and-is-now-helping-recruit-for-the-islamic-state. Almost immediately following the attack Hussain praised Simpson and Soofi on Twitter and called for death to “those That Insult the Prophet.”Evan Perez, Pamela Brown, and Jim Sciutto, “Texas attacker had private conversations with known terrorists,” CNN, May 7, 2015, http://www.cnn.com/2015/05/07/politics/fbi-warning-elton-simpson-cartoon-event-attack/index.html.

Hussain also stands accused of directly communicating with and encouraging U.S. terror suspect Usaamah Abdullah Rahim to carry out an attack on U.S. soil.Brett Gibbons, “Kings Heath terrorist Junaid Hussain gave bomb tips to extremist planning UK attack,” Birmingham Mail, April 1, 2016, http://www.birminghammail.co.uk/news/midlands-news/kings-heath-terrorist-junaid-hussain-11125081; Jack Moore, “Briton Who Plotted U.S. Soldier Beheading Had Deadly Links to ISIS  Cyber Chief in Syria,” Newsweek, April 1, 2016, http://www.newsweek.com/brit-who-plotted-us-soldier-beheading-had-deadly-links-isiss-cyber-chief-syria-443071. Hussain also allegedly sought to incite violence against Jon Ritzheimer, a former U.S. Marine who organized a controversial Draw Muhammad contest in Phoenix, Arizona, in response to the contest in Garland.David Francis, “Islamic State Calls for Lone-Wolf Attack on Arizona Man Planning Muslim Protest,” Foreign Policy, May 29, 2015, https://foreignpolicy.com/2015/05/29/islamic-state-calls-for-lone-wolf-attack-on-arizona-man-planning-muslim-protest/. U.S. officials confirmed Hussain’s death is a U.S. drone strike in Syria in late August, 2015.“UK jihadist Junaid Hussain killed in Syria drone strike, says US,” BBC News, August 27, 2015, http://www.bbc.com/news/uk-34078900. In January 2016, 20-year-old Kosovar hacker Ardit Ferizi was charged in a U.S. court for hacking personal information of American service members. Ferizi reportedly released personal details of 1,300 U.S. military and government personnel to Hussain, who posted the information online in August 2015.Pete Williams, “Hacker Accused of Giving Military Personal Data to ISIS in U.S. Court,” NBC News, January 27, 2015, http://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/hacker-accused-giving-military-personal-data-isis-u-s-court-n505406.

Hussain, who grew up in England, fled the United Kingdom for Syria in July 2013 to join ISIS.Elliott C. McLaughlin, “ISIS jihadi linked Garland attack has long history as hacker,” CNN, May 7, 2015, http://www.cnn.com/2015/05/06/us/who-is-junaid-hussain-garland-texas-attack/; Colleen Curry, “A British Mother Reportedly Left Welfare Behind and Is Now Helping Recruit For The Islamic State,” Vice News, December 22, 2014, https://news.vice.com/article/a-british-mother-reportedly-left-welfare-behind-and-is-now-helping-recruit-for-the-islamic-state. U.S. and British authorities believe Hussain was part of an ISIS group of British jihadists dubbed “the Beatles,” one of whom executed American journalist James Foley in 2014.Nick McCarthy and Amardeep Bassey, “FBI to hunt Jihadists in our midst as Birmingham man linked to beheading of James Foley,” Birmingham Mail, August 24, 2014, http://www.birminghammail.co.uk/news/midlands-news/fbi-hunt-jihadists-midst-birmingham-7663367. The group also included the terrorist known as Jihadi John. Hussain later offered to reveal Jihadi John’s identity to the British newspaper the Daily Mail in return for payment but the paper refused.Abdul Taher, “IS fighter said ‘I’ll identify Jihadi John…if you buy me a £3k car’: British extremist who once hacked Tony Blair’s personal details attempts to bribe the Mail on Sunday,” Mail on Sunday (London), November 1, 2014, http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2817329/IS-fighter-said-ll-identify-Jihadi-John-buy-3k-car-British-extremist-hacked-Tony-Blair-s-personal-details-attempts-bribe-MoS.html.

Hussain used his “Abu Hussain al Britani” Twitter persona to recruit for ISIS and call for violence.Ewen MacAskill, “Briton lead suspect after US Central Command’s Twitter account is hacked,” Guardian (Manchester), January 14, 2015, http://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2015/jan/14/briton-suspect-us-central-command-twitter-hack-junaid-hussain-tony-blair. He used Twitter to promise the jihadi flag would fly over the White House and Downing Street,Brett Gibbons, “Birmingham hacker Junaid Hussain among Brits fighting in Syria,” Birmingham Mail, June 19, 2014, http://www.birminghammail.co.uk/news/midlands-news/birmingham-hacker-junaid-hussain-syria-7291864. call for the murder of Israeli diplomats, and pledge to wage jihad until death.Nick McCarthy and Amardeep Bassey, “FBI to hunt Jihadists in our midst as Birmingham man linked to beheading of James Foley,” Birmingham Mail, August 24, 2014, http://www.birminghammail.co.uk/news/midlands-news/fbi-hunt-jihadists-midst-birmingham-7663367. Twitter deleted Hussain’s accountsMark Hosenball, “British hacker linked to attack on Pentagon’s Twitter feed: sources,” Reuters, January 13, 2015, http://www.reuters.com/article/2015/01/14/us-cybersecurity-pentagon-cybercaliphate-idUSKBN0KN00X20150114. but he quickly creates new ones, such as the one he used to communicate with Simpson in Texas.Evan Perez, Pamela Brown, and Jim Sciutto, “Texas attacker had private conversations with known terrorists,” CNN, May 7, 2015, http://www.cnn.com/2015/05/07/politics/fbi-warning-elton-simpson-cartoon-event-attack/index.html.

Authorities believe Hussain was involved in a 2014 ISIS plot to steal millions of dollars through a series of cyberattacks on British banks.Russell Myers, “Jihadist hackers targeting celebrity and business bank accounts to fund Islamic State terror campaign,” Daily Mirror (London), August 15, 2014, http://www.mirror.co.uk/news/uk-news/jihadist-hackers-targeting-celebrity-business-4057294. Hussain reportedly led ISIS’s CyberCaliphate hacker group, which hacked the U.S. Central Command’s social media accounts in January 2015.Mark Hosenball, “British hacker linked to attack on Pentagon’s Twitter feed: sources,” Reuters, January 13, 2015, http://www.reuters.com/article/2015/01/14/us-cybersecurity-pentagon-cybercaliphate-idUSKBN0KN00X20150114; Ewen MacAskill, “Briton lead suspect after US Central Command’s Twitter account is hacked,” Guardian (Manchester), January 14, 2015, http://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2015/jan/14/briton-suspect-us-central-command-twitter-hack-junaid-hussain-tony-blair. The following month, the CyberCaliphate hacked various U.S. and international media companies and threatened First Lady Michelle Obama and the Obama children over Twitter.Michael Martinez, “Cyberwar: CyberCaliphate targets U.S. military spouses; Anonymous hits ISIS,” CNN, February 11, 2015, http://www.cnn.com/2015/02/10/us/isis-cybercaliphate-attacks-cyber-battles/index.html. While the CyberCaliphate’s attacks have largely been to gain publicity for ISIS, cyber security experts warn the group could cause massive damage to global critical infrastructure.Emma Graham-Harrison, “Could Isis’s ‘cyber caliphate’ unleash a deadly attack on key targets,?” Guardian (Manchester), April 12, 2015, http://www.theguardian.com/world/2015/apr/12/isis-cyber-caliphate-hacking-technology-arms-race.

Hussain was involved in cybercrime since he was a teenager. At age 18, Hussain was part of a British hacker group called Team Poison. The group famously hacked former British Prime Minister Tony Blair’s email account and released personal information online. The group also attacked Scotland Yard, NATO, and the British National Party, and worked with the hacker group Anonymous to target banks.Hannah Furness, “Team Poison: profile of the hackers,” Telegraph (Kent), April 12, 2012, http://www.telegraph.co.uk/technology/9200751/Team-Poison-profile-of-the-hackers.html. Hussain went to prison for six months for the Blair hack.“‘Team Poison’ hacker who posted Tony Blair’s details is jailed,” Telegraph (Kent), July 27, 2012, http://www.telegraph.co.uk/technology/internet-security/9432459/Team-Poison-hacker-who-posted-Tony-Blairs-details-is-jailed.html. A former Team Poison member told CNN that Hussain was capable of stealing millions of dollars through cyberattacks.Elliott C. McLaughlin, “ISIS jihadi linked Garland attack has long history as hacker,” CNN, May 7, 2015, http://www.cnn.com/2015/05/06/us/who-is-junaid-hussain-garland-texas-attack/l.

In April 2016, the U.S. Justice Department revealed that Hussain had communicated with Usaamah Abdullah Rahim ahead of the 26-year-old’s June 2015 attack on police officers and FBI agents, during which he was killed. According to court documents, Hussain had encouraged Rahim to kill political activist and critic of Islam Pamela Gellar, who had recently organized a the Prophet Muhammad contest in Texas May 3. Instead, Rahim chose to attack the police.Adam Goldman, “Well-known ISIS operative instructed Americans to kill organizer of Muhammad cartoon contest, prosecutors reveal,” Washington Post, April 22, 2016, https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/post-nation/wp/2016/04/21/well-known-isis-operative-instructed-americans-to-kill-organizer-of-muhammad-cartoon-contest-prosecutors-reveal/. Earlier that month, prosecutors in the trial of British terrorist Junead Khan revealed that he and Hussain had exchanged several messages over the online app Surespot about targeting U.S. military personnel in Britain. Hussain reportedly told Khan he could provide addresses of U.S. soldiers based in the United Kingdom. Hussain also said he would provide a manual for making a pressure-cooker bomb. Khan was arrested in July 2015 and convicted of preparing a terrorist act.Brett Gibbons, “Kings Heath terrorist Junaid Hussain gave bomb tips to extremist planning UK attack,” Birmingham Mail, April 1, 2016, http://www.birminghammail.co.uk/news/midlands-news/kings-heath-terrorist-junaid-hussain-11125081; Jack Moore, “Briton Who Plotted U.S. Soldier Beheading Had Deadly Links to ISIS  Cyber Chief in Syria,” Newsweek, April 1, 2016, http://www.newsweek.com/brit-who-plotted-us-soldier-beheading-had-deadly-links-isiss-cyber-chief-syria-443071.

Abdelhamid Abaaoud was the alleged coordinator of the November 13, 2015, gun and suicide bombing attacks in Paris.Josh Halliday and Jonathan Bucks, “Suspected Paris attacks mastermind Abdelhamid Abaaoud: what we know,” Guardian (London), November 16, 2015, http://www.theguardian.com/world/2015/nov/16/abdelhamid-abaaoud-suspected-mastermind-of-paris-terror-attacks;
David Chazan, “True Mastermind of Paris Terror Attacks ‘Still at Large,’” Telegraph (London), July 13, 2016, http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2016/07/13/true-paris-attacks-mastermind-still-at-large/. The attacks—targeting public venues including France’s soccer stadium, Bataclan music hall, as well as restaurants, bars, and cafes—claimed the lives of 130 and wounded more than 350.Cara Anna, “Names, details of more victims emerge from Paris attacks,” Washington Post, November 16, 2015, https://www.washingtonpost.com/national/names-details-of-more-victims-emerge-from-paris-attacks/2015/11/16/82ab7bda-8c3f-11e5-934c-a369c80822c2_story.html. Abaaoud was killed on November 18, 2015, during a major police raid in the Paris suburb of St. Denis. At least one other person, a woman who detonated a suicide vest, was reported killed in the seven-hour-long raid.Aurelien Breeden and Kimiko de Freytas-Tamura, “Chief Suspect in Paris Attacks Died in Raid, France Says,” New York Times, November 19, 2015, http://www.nytimes.com/2015/11/20/world/europe/paris-attacks.html.

Abaaoud was a Belgian national of Moroccan origin. He is believed to have left for Syria in early 2014 and returned to Europe at some point later that year.Andrew Higgins, “Belgium Confronts the Jihadist Danger Within,” New York Times, January 24, 2015, http://www.nytimes.com/2015/01/25/world/europe/belgium-confronts-the-jihadist-danger-within.html?smid=tw-nytimes&smtyp=cur;
Aurelien Breeden and Kimiko de Freytas-Tamura, “Chief Suspect in Paris Attacks Died in Raid, France Says,” New York Times, November 19, 2015, http://www.nytimes.com/2015/11/20/world/europe/paris-attacks.html. Abaaoud was first identified by police as a wanted terrorist in January 2015, following a gun battle between Belgian police and suspected ISIS jihadists in Verviers, eastern Belgium.Josh Halliday and Jonathan Bucks, “Suspected Paris attacks mastermind Abdelhamid Abaaoud: what we know,” Guardian (London), November 16, 2015, http://www.theguardian.com/world/2015/nov/16/abdelhamid-abaaoud-suspected-mastermind-of-paris-terror-attacks. The extremist cell in Verviers—reportedly led by Abaaoud—stands accused of plotting an assassination attempt on Belgian police officers. Abaaoud has been tried in absentia by a Belgian court and sentenced to 20 years in prison for his role in recruiting for ISIS. He has also been accused of kidnapping his younger brother Younes, who traveled to Syria in January 2014.Josh Halliday and Jonathan Bucks, “Suspected Paris attacks mastermind Abdelhamid Abaaoud: what we know,” Guardian (London), November 16, 2015, http://www.theguardian.com/world/2015/nov/16/abdelhamid-abaaoud-suspected-mastermind-of-paris-terror-attacks.

While with ISIS in Syria, Abaaoud was one of the most active executioners for the terrorist group, according to French radio station RTL.Jean Alphonse-Richard, “Attentats à Paris: Abdelhamid Abaaoud, commanditaire présumé des attaques,” RTL, November 16, 2015, http://www.rtl.fr/actu/societe-faits-divers/attentats-a-paris-abdelhamid-abaoud-commanditaire-presume-des-attaques-7780524858. He also appeared in a 2014 video driving a pick-up truck carrying mutilated bodies to a mass grave.Josh Halliday and Jonathan Bucks, “Suspected Paris attacks mastermind Abdelhamid Abaaoud: what we know,” Guardian (London), November 16, 2015, http://www.theguardian.com/world/2015/nov/16/abdelhamid-abaaoud-suspected-mastermind-of-paris-terror-attacks. Before his death, he was believed to serve as the link between senior ISIS leadership and its operatives in Europe,Paul Cruickshank, “Who is Abdelhamid Abaaoud, suspected ringleader of the Paris terror attack?” CNN, November 18, 2015, http://www.cnn.com/2015/11/16/europe/paris-terror-attack-mastermind-abdelhamid-abaaoud/. and was also the suspected leader of ISIS's Katibat al-Battar al Libi branch.Andrew Higgins and Kimiko de Freytas-Tamura, “An ISIS Militant From Belgium Whose Own Family Wanted Him Dead,” New York Times, November 17, 2015, http://www.nytimes.com/2015/11/18/world/europe/paris-attacks-abdelhamid-abaaoud-an-isis-militant-from-belgium-whose-own-family-wanted-him-dead.html.

In addition to the deadly November 13 attacks, Abaaoud was linked to the thwarted August 2015 train attack carried out by suspect Ayoub El Khazzani, as well as a foiled attack on a Parisian church in April 2015.Josh Halliday and Jonathan Bucks, “Suspected Paris attacks mastermind Abdelhamid Abaaoud: what we know,” Guardian (London), November 16, 2015, http://www.theguardian.com/world/2015/nov/16/abdelhamid-abaaoud-suspected-mastermind-of-paris-terror-attacks. In an interview with ISIS’s Dabiq magazine following the January 2015 raid in Belgium, Abaaoud claimed to have evaded Belgian authorities and escaped back to Syria. He also claimed that he was stopped, but ultimately released, by an officer who recognized him.“Interview with Abu Umar al-Baljiki,” Dabiq, February 2015, https://azelin.files.wordpress.com/2015/02/the-islamic-state-e2809cdc481biq-magazine-722.pdf.

Abaaoud was raised in the highly volatile Molenbeek suburb of Brussels, infamous for producing a large number of the country’s foreign fighters, jihadists, and assailants. Abaaoud himself was believed to have been radicalized in Belgium’s Saint Gilles prison, while serving time there on theft charges.Andrew Higgins, “Belgium Confronts the Jihadist Danger Within,” New York Times, January 24, 2015, http://www.nytimes.com/2015/01/25/world/europe/belgium-confronts-the-jihadist-danger-within.html?smid=tw-nytimes&smtyp=cur. He was the subject of Western airstrikes in Raqqa, Syria, as recently as October 2015.Paul Cruickshank, “Who is Abdelhamid Abaaoud, suspected ringleader of the Paris terror attack?” CNN, November 18, 2015, http://www.cnn.com/2015/11/16/europe/paris-terror-attack-mastermind-abdelhamid-abaaoud/.

Mississippi resident Jaelyn Young is a U.S. citizen and convicted ISIS sympathizer. She was was arrested in August 2015 after allegedly attempting to join ISIS travel to ISIS-controlled territory with her fiancé, Muhammad Dakhlalla.Richard Fausset, “Young Mississippi Couple Linked to ISIS, Perplexing All,” August 14, 2015, New York Times, http://www.nytimes.com/2015/08/15/us/disbelief-in-mississippi-at-how-far-isis-message-can-travel.html?_r=0. According to U.S. authorities, the pair engaged in numerous conversations on social media sites with FBI agents disguised as ISIS recruiters.“United States of America v. Jaelyn Delshaun Young and Muhammada Oda Dakhlalla,” United States District Court for the Northern District of Mississippi, May 21, 2015, http://www.justice.gov/opa/file/705906/download. Young and Dakhlalla communicated with these agents from May 2015 until their arrest on August 8, 2015.“United States of America v. Jaelyn Delshaun Young and Muhammada Oda Dakhlalla,” United States District Court for the Northern District of Mississippi, May 21, 2015, http://www.justice.gov/opa/file/705906/download. Dakhlalla pled guilty to terrorism related charges on March 11,2016. Later that month, on March 29, Young followed suit and pled guilty to conspiring to provide material support to a terrorist organization.Associated Press, “Mississippi man pleads guilty in ISIS aid case,” CBS News, March 11, 2016, http://www.cbsnews.com/news/mississippi-man-pleads-guilty-in-isis-aid-case/;
“Mississippi woman who tried to join ISIS pleads guilty,” CBS News, http://www.cbsnews.com/news/jaelyn-young-mississippi-woman-who-tried-to-join-isis-pleads-guilty/. A U.S. district judge sentenced Young to 12 years in prison on August 11, 2016.Jeff Amy, “Mississippi woman gets 12-year sentence on terrorism charge,” Associated Press, August 11, 2016, http://bigstory.ap.org/article/383e88cda66c44b6a66c9536a9eb0bbf/mississippi-woman-be-sentenced-terrorism-charges. Young reportedly broke down in sobs at her sentencing, and said that she was ashamed of her actions.Associated Press, “Jaelyn Young, Mississippi woman who tried to join ISIS, gets 12 years in prison,” Al.com, August 11, 2016, http://www.al.com/news/index.ssf/2016/08/jaelyn_young_mississippi_woman_1.html.

Young expressed her desire to join and assist ISIS on numerous occasions during the FBI investigation. In correspondences with the FBI agents, Young said that she could not “wait to get to Dawlah [ISIS-controlled territory],” so she could be “amongst brothers and sisters under the protection of Allah and to raise little Dawlah cubs in sha Allah.”“United States of America v. Jaelyn Delshaun Young and Muhammada Oda Dakhlalla,” United States District Court for the Northern District of Mississippi, May 21, 2015, http://www.justice.gov/opa/file/705906/download. She cited that the U.S. has a “thick cloud of falsehoods and very little truth about Dawlah makes it through.”Jeff Amy, “No Bail for Couple Accused of Trying to Join Islamic State,” Associated Press, August 11, 2015, http://bigstory.ap.org/article/0603eac522484178a462982f3d07d2d6/mississippians-charged-trying-join-islamic-state.

Young offered ISIS her services, stating that she was “skilled at math and chemistry,” and that Dakhlalla was “good at computer science/media.”Marie Andrusewicz, “Mississippi Couple Accused Of Trying To Join ISIS,” National Public Radio, August 12, 2015, Washington Post, http://www.npr.org/2015/08/12/431803342/mississippi-couple-arrested-for-attempting-to-join-isis.

According to authorities, Young and Dakhlalla meticulously planned their trip to Syria to join ISIS, which involved travelling from Mississippi to Turkey, and then onto Syria.“United States of America v. Jaelyn Delshaun Young and Muhammada Oda Dakhlalla,” United States District Court for the Northern District of Mississippi, May 21, 2015, http://www.justice.gov/opa/file/705906/download. Jeff Amy, “No Bail for Couple Accused of Trying to Join Islamic State,” Associated Press, August 11, 2015, http://bigstory.ap.org/article/0603eac522484178a462982f3d07d2d6/mississippians-charged-trying-join-islamic-state. Young even planned the kind of clothing she would wear, so she would be instantly recognizable to the recruiters who she believed would assist her in crossing over into Syria.“United States of America v. Jaelyn Delshaun Young and Muhammada Oda Dakhlalla,” United States District Court for the Northern District of Mississippi, May 21, 2015, http://www.justice.gov/opa/file/705906/download.

The day before their arrest, Young and Dakhlalla purchased airline tickets for Delta Airlines flight 5703, which departed from Columbus, Mississippi, with a final destination of Istanbul, Turkey.Chris Thies, “Timeline of events leading to the arrest of alleged ISIS recruits,” KMOV St Louis, August 13, 2015, http://www.kmov.com/story/29784129/timeline-of-events-leading-to-the-arrest-of-alleged-isis-recruits. On August 8, they were stopped and arrested at Golden Triangle Regional Airport in Columbus.Chris Thies, “Timeline of events leading to the arrest of alleged ISIS recruits,” KMOV St Louis, August 13, 2015, http://www.kmov.com/story/29784129/timeline-of-events-leading-to-the-arrest-of-alleged-isis-recruits.

On August 11, 2015, a federal magistrate in Mississippi ordered that Young and Dakhlalla be held without bail.Jeff Amy, “No Bail for Couple Accused of Trying to Join Islamic State,” Associated Press, August 11, 2015, http://bigstory.ap.org/article/0603eac522484178a462982f3d07d2d6/mississippians-charged-trying-join-islamic-state. The pair was charged with attempting and conspiring to knowingly provide material support and resources to a foreign terrorist organization.Richard Fausset, “Young Mississippi Couple Linked to ISIS, Perplexing All,” August 14, 2015, New York Times, http://www.nytimes.com/2015/08/15/us/disbelief-in-mississippi-at-how-far-isis-message-can-travel.html?_r=0.

Young is the daughter of a police officer and Navy veteran in the Vicksburg, Mississippi Police Department. She was an honor student in high school and a chemistry major at Mississippi State University.Richard Fausset, “Young Mississippi Couple Linked to ISIS, Perplexing All,” August 14, 2015, New York Times, http://www.nytimes.com/2015/08/15/us/disbelief-in-mississippi-at-how-far-isis-message-can-travel.html?_r=0.

Allison Fluke-Ekren, an American citizen, is a senior leader of ISIS. She engaged in terrorism-related activities across Syria, Libya, and Iraq from around September 2011 until May 2019.“American Woman Who Led ISIS Battalion Pleads Guilty Allison Fluke-Ekren Admits to Providing Military Training to Over 100 Women and Young Girls in Syria on Behalf of ISIS and Numerous Other Terrorist Acts,” U.S. Department of Justice, June 7, 2022, https://www.justice.gov/opa/pr/american-woman-who-led-isis-battalion-pleads-guilty. After turning herself in to local police in Syria in May 2019, Fluke-Ekren was transferred to U.S. custody on January 28, 2022.“American Woman Who Led ISIS Battalion Pleads Guilty,” U.S. Department of Justice, June 7, 2022, https://www.justice.gov/usao-edva/pr/american-woman-who-led-isis-battalion-pleads-guilty; “American Woman Who Led ISIS Battalion Charged with Providing Material Support to a Terrorist Organization,” U.S. Department of Justice, January 29, 2022, https://www.justice.gov/opa/pr/american-woman-who-led-isis-battalion-charged-providing-material-support-terrorist#:~:text=A%20criminal%20complaint%20filed%20in,and%20charges%20Fluke%2DEkren%20with. On June 7, Fluke-Ekren appeared at a federal court in Virginia where she pleaded guilty to charges of organizing and leading an all-female military battalion in Syria on behalf of ISIS.“American Woman Who Led ISIS Battalion Pleads Guilty Allison Fluke-Ekren Admits to Providing Military Training to Over 100 Women and Young Girls in Syria on Behalf of ISIS and Numerous Other Terrorist Acts,” U.S. Department of Justice, June 7, 2022, https://www.justice.gov/opa/pr/american-woman-who-led-isis-battalion-pleads-guilty. She was sentenced to 20 years imprisonment on November 1, 2022.Holmes Lybrand, “Kansas woman who led all-female ISIS battalion sentenced to 20 years in prison,” CNN, November 1, 2022, https://www.cnn.com/2022/11/01/politics/isis-kansas-woman-who-led-battalion-sentenced/index.html.

Fluke-Ekren was born and raised in Kansas, where she eventually went to college and received degrees in biology and teaching. In 2008, Fluke-Ekren moved with her second husband and her four children to Cairo, Egypt.Isabel Vincent, “How US-born Allison Fluke-Ekren went from science teacher to ISIS radical,” New York Post, February 3, 2022, https://nypost.com/2022/02/03/how-kansas-born-allison-fluke-ekren-went-from-teacher-to-isis.

In 2011, Fluke-Ekren and her family relocated to Benghazi, Libya, where her husband, Volkan Ekren, was reportedly a member of Ansar al-Sharia, a violent Salafist group in Libya that seeks to transform Libya into an Islamic state governed in accordance with sharia (Islamic law). Fluke-Ekren’s husband reportedly removed a box of documents and an electronic device from an American diplomatic compound following the 2012 attacks on the compound and a nearby C.I.A. base in Benghazi. Fluke-Ekren and her husband then reportedly prepared summaries of the documents that were then given to Ansar al-Sharia leaders.Adam Goldman, “From Benghazi to Raqqa, a Kansas Woman Left a ‘Trail of Betrayal’,” New York Times, June 7, 2022, https://www.nytimes.com/2022/06/07/us/politics/islamic-state-fluke-ekren.html.

Citing Ansar al-Sharia’s lack of activity in Libya, in late 2012, Fluke-Ekren and her husband relocated to Turkey, then Syria in 2014, and eventually settled in Mosul, Iraq in 2015. While in Iraq, Fluke-Erken assisted ISIS personnel in running and maintaining homes for widowed women whose husbands died while fighting for ISIS.“American Woman Who Led ISIS Battalion Pleads Guilty Allison Fluke-Ekren Admits to Providing Military Training to Over 100 Women and Young Girls in Syria on Behalf of ISIS and Numerous Other Terrorist Acts,” U.S. Department of Justice, June 7, 2022, https://www.justice.gov/opa/pr/american-woman-who-led-isis-battalion-pleads-guilty; Adam Goldman, “From Benghazi to Raqqa, a Kansas Woman Left a ‘Trail of Betrayal’,” New York Times, June 7, 2022, https://www.nytimes.com/2022/06/07/us/politics/islamic-state-fluke-ekren.html.

Upon her return to Syria around 2016, Fluke-Ekren obtained authorization from ISIS’s “wali” (mayor) of Raqqa, to establish a women’s center that would provide medical services, educational services, childcare, and training to women and girls. At the center, Fluke-Ekren also assisted fellow female ISIS members in training women and girls on the use of AK-47 assault rifles, grenades, and suicide belts.“American Woman Who Led ISIS Battalion Pleads Guilty Allison Fluke-Ekren Admits to Providing Military Training to Over 100 Women and Young Girls in Syria on Behalf of ISIS and Numerous Other Terrorist Acts,” U.S. Department of Justice, June 7, 2022, https://www.justice.gov/opa/pr/american-woman-who-led-isis-battalion-pleads-guilty.

Given Fluke-Ekren’s success with the women’s center, the wali of Raqqa approved the creation of “Khatiba Nusaybah” in February 2017. Led by Fluke-Ekren, Khatiba Nusaybah was a military battalion comprised entirely of female ISIS members. Media sources reported more than 100 women and girls, including Fluke-Ekren’s own daughters, were trained within the battalion.Adam Goldman, “From Benghazi to Raqqa, a Kansas Woman Left a ‘Trail of Betrayal’,” New York Times, June 7, 2022, https://www.nytimes.com/2022/06/07/us/politics/islamic-state-fluke-ekren.html.

In May 2019, after attempting to flee Syria, Fluke-Ekren surrendered to a local police station in Qabasin, Syria, where she was later taken to a detention facility in Jarabulus, Syria. Fluke-Ekren was eventually transferred in custody to the Eastern District of Virginia on January 28, 2022. Fluke-Ekren was charged with providing and conspiring to provide material support to a foreign terrorist organization.“American Woman Who Led ISIS Battalion Pleads Guilty,” U.S. Department of Justice, June 7, 2022, https://www.justice.gov/usao-edva/pr/american-woman-who-led-isis-battalion-pleads-guilty; “American Woman Who Led ISIS Battalion Charged with Providing Material Support to a Terrorist Organization,” U.S. Department of Justice, January 29, 2022, https://www.justice.gov/opa/pr/american-woman-who-led-isis-battalion-charged-providing-material-support-terrorist#:~:text=A%20criminal%20complaint%20filed%20in,and%20charges%20Fluke%2DEkren%20with.

On June 7, 2022, Fluke-Ekren appeared at a federal court in Alexandria, Virginia, where she pleaded guilty to conspiring to provide material support for terrorism and admitted to being the leader of Khatiba Nusayah.“American Woman Who Led ISIS Battalion Pleads Guilty,” U.S. Department of Justice, June 7, 2022, https://www.justice.gov/usao-edva/pr/american-woman-who-led-isis-battalion-pleads-guilty. Although claiming she had only trained women in survival techniques, gun safety, and self-defense, evidence and testimonies from Fluke-Ekren’s daughter proved otherwise. Fluke-Ekren was handed the maximum sentence for her crimes and was sentenced to 20 years imprisonment on November 1, 2022.Holmes Lybrand, “Kansas woman who led all-female ISIS battalion sentenced to 20 years in prison,” CNN, November 1, 2022, https://www.cnn.com/2022/11/01/politics/isis-kansas-woman-who-led-battalion-sentenced/index.html.

Haleema Mustafa is a Canadian jihadist and alleged member of ISIS. Mustafa is currently charged with two terrorism-related offenses for attempting to join ISIS in Syria with her husband, Ikar Mao.John Paul Tasker, “Toronto-area woman arrested on terrorism charges after travel to Turkey,” CBC News, August 26, 2020, https://www.cbc.ca/news/politics/toronto-woman-arrested-terrorism-charges-1.5701147.

Mustafa is from Markham, Ontario. Her father, Shahzad Mustafa, is a businessman who also has appeared at events denouncing Islamic extremism. Mustafa studied human rights and equity studies at York University, where she also worked with newly arrived immigrants to Canada. Mustafa had a large online presence as she was an advocate for the hijab as a fashion statement, even appearing on CBC Radio’s Metro Morning, where she stated the hijab was how she portrayed her “modesty and my religion.”Katie Nicholson and Jason Ho, “RCMP investigating whether Canadian newlyweds detained in Turkey were radicalized,” CBC News, October 15, 2019, https://www.cbc.ca/news/world/rcmp-investigating-whether-canadian-newlyweds-detained-in-turkey-were-radicalized-1.5266465.

In December 2018, Mustafa married Ikar Mao in Mississauga, Canada.Katie Nicholson and Jason Ho, “RCMP investigating whether Canadian newlyweds detained in Turkey were radicalized,” CBC News, October 15, 2019, https://www.cbc.ca/news/world/rcmp-investigating-whether-canadian-newlyweds-detained-in-turkey-were-radicalized-1.5266465. According to reports, Mustafa’s family had previously feared that Mao had an interest in ISIS and would plan to take Mustafa with him to Syria.Katie Nicholson and Jason Ho, “RCMP investigating whether Canadian newlyweds detained in Turkey were radicalized,” CBC News, October 15, 2019, https://www.cbc.ca/news/world/rcmp-investigating-whether-canadian-newlyweds-detained-in-turkey-were-radicalized-1.5266465.

In June 2019, Mustafa and Mao, traveled to Turkey. According to Mao’s Couchsurfing.com profile, he had looked for a place to stay in the Turkish city of Sanliurfa, which is close to Syria’s border, as he and Mustafa allegedly sought to learn Turkish and Arabic.Terry Haig, “Toronto-area woman faces terror charges after alleged attempt to join ISIL,” Radio Canada International, August 27, 2020, https://www.rcinet.ca/en/2020/08/27/toronto-area-woman-faces-terror-charges-after-alleged-attemp-to-join-isil/.

In July 2019, Mustafa and Mao were arrested on suspicion of attempting to cross the Turkish border to join ISIS in Syria.John Paul Tasker, “Toronto-area woman arrested on terrorism charges after travel to Turkey,” CBC News, August 26, 2020, https://www.cbc.ca/news/politics/toronto-woman-arrested-terrorism-charges-1.5701147. They were held in Turkish custody until October 22, 2019, when they were released without charges. Immediately after their release, they were deported to Canada.Katie Nicholson and Jason Ho, “RCMP investigating whether Canadian newlyweds detained in Turkey were radicalized,” CBC News, October 15, 2019, https://www.cbc.ca/news/world/rcmp-investigating-whether-canadian-newlyweds-detained-in-turkey-were-radicalized-1.5266465; Katie Nicholson and Jason Ho, “Canadian facing 2 terrorism-related charges denied bail in Ontario court,” CBC News, December 12, 2019, https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/toronto/ikar-mao-court-appearance-1.5392223. It is still unknown if Mao or Mustafa engaged or participated in any extremist activities while in Turkey or Canada as both countries have deemed details of the case to remain confidential.Katie Nicholson and Jason Ho, “RCMP investigating whether Canadian newlyweds detained in Turkey were radicalized,” CBC News, October 15, 2019, https://www.cbc.ca/news/world/rcmp-investigating-whether-canadian-newlyweds-detained-in-turkey-were-radicalized-1.5266465; Katie Nicholson and Jason Ho, “Canadian couple released from Turkish detention without charges,” CBC News, October 16, 2019, https://www.cbc.ca/news/world/canadian-couple-turkey-released-haleema-mustafa-ikar-mao-1.5323909.

Following their return to Canada, Mao was arrested and denied bail. According to CBC News, a Turkish court on December 5, 2019, heard allegations that a cell phone belonging to Mao had received ISIS videos via the encrypted messaging app Telegram, and that the couple left a letter for their families claiming that they intended to join ISIS.Katie Nicholson and Jason Ho, “Canadian arrested in Turkey this summer charged with terror offences,” CBC News, December 6, 2019, https://www.cbc.ca/news/world/ikar-mao-court-1.5386952. On December 6, 2019, Mao was charged by a Brampton, Ontario court with leaving Canada to participate in the activities of a terrorist group and seeking to participate in the activities of a terrorist group.Terry Haig, “Toronto-area woman faces terror charges after alleged attempt to join ISIL,” Radio Canada International, August 27, 2020, https://www.rcinet.ca/en/2020/08/27/toronto-area-woman-faces-terror-charges-after-alleged-attemp-to-join-isil/; John Paul Tasker, “Toronto-area woman arrested on terrorism charges after travel to Turkey,” CBC News, August 26, 2020, https://www.cbc.ca/news/politics/toronto-woman-arrested-terrorism-charges-1.5701147. Each charge carries a maximum sentence of 10 years.Katie Nicholson and Jason Ho, “Canadian arrested in Turkey this summer charged with terror offences,” CBC News, December 6, 2019, https://www.cbc.ca/news/world/ikar-mao-court-1.5386952.

On August 26, 2020, Mustafa was arrested in Markham, Ontario.John Paul Tasker, “Toronto-area woman arrested on terrorism charges after travel to Turkey,” CBC News, August 26, 2020, https://www.cbc.ca/news/politics/toronto-woman-arrested-terrorism-charges-1.5701147. Mustafa faces two terrorism counts: leaving Canada to participate in the activities of a terrorist group and participation in the activities of a terrorist group.Stewart Bell, “Woman arrested in Toronto area for allegedly trying to join ISIS,” Global News, August 27, 2020, https://globalnews.ca/news/7299184/woman-arrested-toronto-trying-to-join-isis/. Further details of Mustafa’s case cannot be reported due to a court-ordered publication ban. Mustafa is currently scheduled to make her first court appearance on August 31, 2020.Stewart Bell, “Canadian ‘extremist travellers’ a significant concern, RCMP says after ISIS-related arrest,” Global News, August 27, 2020, https://globalnews.ca/news/7301037/canadian-extremist-travellers-a-significant-concern/. If convicted, Mustafa faces 20 years in prison as each charge carries a maximum sentence of 10 years.Katie Nicholson and Jason Ho, “Canadian arrested in Turkey this summer charged with terror offences,” CBC News, December 6, 2019, https://www.cbc.ca/news/world/ikar-mao-court-1.5386952. On March 31, 2021, Mustafa was granted bail.Katie Nicholson, “Ontario woman facing terror-related charges granted bail,” CBC, March 31, 2021, https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/haleema-mustafa-bail-1.5970940.

Liban Haji Mohamed is a naturalized U.S. citizen of Somali origin who is wanted by the FBI on charges of providing material support and resources to Somali terrorist group al-Shabab. Mohamed disappeared from his home in northern Virginia in July 2012, allegedly traveling to Somalia to join al-Shabab. U.S. authorities accuse Mohamed of playing an operational role in al-Shabab and attempting to recruit for the terror organization.“Liban Haji Mohamed,” FBI, accessed June 18, 2020, https://www.fbi.gov/wanted/wanted_terrorists/liban-haji-mohamed; “Alexandria Man on FBI Most Wanted List Indicted on Terrorism Charges,” U.S. Department of Justice, May 26, 2020, https://www.justice.gov/opa/pr/alexandria-man-fbi-most-wanted-list-indicted-terrorism-charges.

Mohamed worked as a taxi driver in northern Virginia’s Fairfax County when he left the United States for East Africa on July 5, 2012, allegedly to join al-Shabab. According to the U.S. government’s charges against him, Mohamed attempted to recruit an undercover U.S. agent to provide combat training to the Somali terrorist group. U.S. authorities also linked Mohamed to Zachary Chesser, a U.S. citizen serving a prison sentence for aiding al-Shabab. According to the FBI, Chesser and Mohamed were close associates. The FBI reportedly began monitoring Mohamed after Chesser’s arrest in 2010.“Alexandria Man on FBI Most Wanted List Indicted on Terrorism Charges,” U.S. Department of Justice, May 26, 2020, https://www.justice.gov/opa/pr/alexandria-man-fbi-most-wanted-list-indicted-terrorism-charges; Adam Goldman and Matt Zapotosky, “Virginia cabbie on FBI’s Most Wanted Terrorists list detained in Somalia,” March 2, 2015, https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/national-security/virginia-cabdriver-on-fbi-most-wanted-terrorists-list-detained-in-somalia/2015/03/02/98519b36-c10b-11e4-9ec2-b418f57a4a99_story.html?itid=lk_inline_manual_9&itid=lk_interstitial_manual_8.

In early 2012, federal investigators suspected Mohamed intended to travel to Texas and then Mexico in order to fly to Somalia. They sought to have him arrested on charges of material support before his departure, but FBI and National Security Division officials ruled there was not yet enough evidence to charge him. U.S. officials reportedly decided they needed a clear expression of intent from Mohamed and devised a plan to arrest him in Texas just before he crossed into Mexico. According to officials, Mohamed became suspicious and eluded authorities as he crossed through Texas and into Mexico in July 2012.Adam Goldman and Matt Zapotosky, “Virginia cabbie on FBI’s Most Wanted Terrorists list detained in Somalia,” March 2, 2015, https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/national-security/virginia-cabdriver-on-fbi-most-wanted-terrorists-list-detained-in-somalia/2015/03/02/98519b36-c10b-11e4-9ec2-b418f57a4a99_story.html?itid=lk_inline_manual_9&itid=lk_interstitial_manual_8.

U.S. authorities allege Mohamed went on to join al-Shabab in Somalia. A family lawyer in the United States contested that Mohamed would join al-Shabab, noting that the terror group had killed Mohamed’s uncle and imprisoned his cousins. According to the attorney, Gadeir Abbas, family members reached out to federal authorities after Mohamed had disappeared without explanation in the summer of 2012 but received no help in locating him.Matt Zapotosky, “Lawyer: FBI terror suspect had relatives who were killed by al-Shabab,” Washington Post, January 30, 2015, https://www.washingtonpost.com/local/crime/lawyer-fbis-terror-suspect-had-relatives-who-were-killed-by-al-shabab/2015/01/30/2c8f9858-a8a6-11e4-a7c2-03d37af98440_story.html. Interpol issued a red notice listing Mohamed as a wanted fugitive in July 2012 after he left the United States.“Alexandria Man on FBI Most Wanted List Indicted on Terrorism Charges,” U.S. Department of Justice, May 26, 2020, https://www.justice.gov/opa/pr/alexandria-man-fbi-most-wanted-list-indicted-terrorism-charges; Adam Goldman and Matt Zapotosky, “Virginia cabbie on FBI’s Most Wanted Terrorists list detained in Somalia,” March 2, 2015, https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/national-security/virginia-cabdriver-on-fbi-most-wanted-terrorists-list-detained-in-somalia/2015/03/02/98519b36-c10b-11e4-9ec2-b418f57a4a99_story.html?itid=lk_inline_manual_9&itid=lk_interstitial_manual_8.

In February 2014, U.S. prosecutors filed a sealed arrest warrant for Mohamed on charges of providing material support and resources to al-Shabab.Matt Zapotosky, “Lawyer: FBI terror suspect had relatives who were killed by al-Shabab,” Washington Post, January 30, 2015, https://www.washingtonpost.com/local/crime/lawyer-fbis-terror-suspect-had-relatives-who-were-killed-by-al-shabab/2015/01/30/2c8f9858-a8a6-11e4-a7c2-03d37af98440_story.html. The U.S. Attorney’s Office in the Eastern District of Virginia unsealed the warrant the following year on January 29, 2015. The FBI subsequently added Mohamed to its “Most Wanted List” of terrorists and offered a reward of up to $50,000 for information leading to his arrest and conviction.Tom Jackman, “Alexandria man, on most-wanted terrorists list, charged with aiding al-Shabab,” Washington Post, May 26, 2020, https://www.washingtonpost.com/crime-law/2020/05/26/alexandria-man-most-wanted-terrorists-list-indicted-aiding-al-shebab/. The FBI also labeled Mohamed “an asset to his terrorist associates who might plot attacks on U.S. soil.”Adam Goldman and Matt Zapotosky, “Virginia cabbie on FBI’s Most Wanted Terrorists list detained in Somalia,” March 2, 2015, https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/national-security/virginia-cabdriver-on-fbi-most-wanted-terrorists-list-detained-in-somalia/2015/03/02/98519b36-c10b-11e4-9ec2-b418f57a4a99_story.html?itid=lk_inline_manual_9&itid=lk_interstitial_manual_8.

The charges against Mohamed marked the second time federal authorities had investigated his family. The day after the government unsealed the warrant against Mohamed in January 2015, his brother, Gulet Mohamed, appeared at a hearing in Virginia regarding a lawsuit against the U.S. government. Gulet Mohamed had been placed on the U.S. no-fly list in 2009 while traveling abroad at the time studying Islam. After spending time in Yemen and Somalia, he traveled to Kuwait where he was arrested in August 2009 as he tried to renew his visa. Gulet Mohamed told his brother that Kuwait authorities had tortured him. Gulet Mohamed returned to the United States in January 2011, and no charges were filed against him. With the American Civil Liberties Union, Gulet Mohamed filed a lawsuit against the U.S. government over his inclusion on the no-fly list. The Mohamed family attorney questioned the timing of the government unsealing the warrant for Liban Mohamed the day before the first hearing of Gulet Mohamed’s case.Peter Finn and Kafia A. Hosh, “N.Va. teen who was on no-fly list tells of his ordeal in Kuwait,” Washington Post, January 21, 2011, https://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2011/01/21/AR2011012107062.html?sid=ST2011012102248&tid=a_inl_manual; Matt Zapotosky, “Lawyer: FBI terror suspect had relatives who were killed by al-Shabab,” Washington Post, January 30, 2015, https://www.washingtonpost.com/local/crime/lawyer-fbis-terror-suspect-had-relatives-who-were-killed-by-al-shabab/2015/01/30/2c8f9858-a8a6-11e4-a7c2-03d37af98440_story.html.

Somali authorities reportedly captured Liban Mohamed in late January 2015 after the United States unsealed his arrest warrant. The United States does not have an extradition treaty with Somalia.Adam Goldman and Matt Zapotosky, “Virginia cabbie on FBI’s Most Wanted Terrorists list detained in Somalia,” Washington Post, March 2, 2015, https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/national-security/virginia-cabdriver-on-fbi-most-wanted-terrorists-list-detained-in-somalia/2015/03/02/98519b36-c10b-11e4-9ec2-b418f57a4a99_story.html?itid=lk_inline_manual_9&itid=lk_interstitial_manual_8. It is unclear whether Mohamed remains in Somali custody. He faces up to 30 years in prison if convicted in the United States.“Alexandria Man on FBI Most Wanted List Indicted on Terrorism Charges,” U.S. Department of Justice, May 26, 2020, https://www.justice.gov/opa/pr/alexandria-man-fbi-most-wanted-list-indicted-terrorism-charges.

Born in Trinidad and Tobago, Shane Crawford was an English language propagandist and sniper for ISIS in Syria and was designated a Specially Designated Global Terrorist (SDGT) by the U.S. Department of State.“State Department Terrorist Designations of El Shafee Elsheikh, Anjem Choudary, Sami Bouras, Shane Dominic Crawford, and Mark John Taylor,” U.S. Department of State, March 30, 2017, https://www.state.gov/state-department-terrorist-designations-of-el-shafee-elsheikh-anjem-choudary-sami-bouras-shane-dominic-crawford-and-mark-john-taylor/. According to the government of Trinidad and Tobago in February 2017, it is suspected that Crawford was killed by a U.S. sponsored drone sometime in October 2016.Frances Robles, “Trying to Stanch Trinidad’s Flow of Young Recruits to ISIS,” New York Times, February 21, 2017, https://www.nytimes.com/2017/02/21/world/americas/trying-to-stanch-trinidads-flow-of-young-recruits-to-isis.html?_r=0.

Crawford was born in Trinidad and Tobago into the Spiritual Baptist faith—an offshoot of Christianity that features elements of African spirituality. Given the religious diversity of his home country, Crawford was exposed to Islam at an early age. However, it was not until 2005 did Crawford convert to the Muslim faith. During this time, Crawford worked at a call center while simultaneously enrolled at a local university.Amandla Thomas-Johnson, “Caribbean to 'Caliphate': On the trail of the Trinidadians fighting for the Islamic State,” Middle East Eye, March 1, 2018, https://www.middleeasteye.net/big-story/caribbean-caliphate-trail-trinidadians-fighting-islamic-state.

Crawford attended Umar ibn al-Khattab mosque in Rio Claro. Along with four other congregants, Crawford was particularly invested in furthering his Islamic studies and took to scouring the Internet for more information. According to a Muslim leader in Trinidad, Umar Abdullah, Crawford was also influenced by the jihadist leanings of Abdullah al-Faisal, a U.S.-designated Islamist propagandist who was imprisoned in the U.K. and deported back to Jamaica in 2007. In February 2010, a member of al-Khattab mosque was shot and killed, leading Crawford to seek revenge on the attacker. Crawford proposed a revenge attack to the mosque’s imam, but was promptly dismissed. Crawford and his group of friends broke away from the mosque shortly after.Amandla Thomas-Johnson, “Caribbean to 'Caliphate': On the trail of the Trinidadians fighting for the Islamic State,” Middle East Eye, March 1, 2018, https://www.middleeasteye.net/big-story/caribbean-caliphate-trail-trinidadians-fighting-islamic-state.

Crawford first rose to notoriety in Trinidad and Tobago in 2011 when he was implicated in a plot to assassinate then Prime Minister Kamla Persad-Bissessar and several cabinet members. It was alleged that members of the army and police officers were involved in the plot. During a nationally televised press conference, the prime minister did not offer further details, but claimed that the alleged plot was in retaliation for a state of emergency she imposed in August of 2011. The state of emergency was a response to counter escalating crime and violence linked to heavily armed drug gangs. Ultimately, Crawford was never charged for the plot.Linda Hutchinson-Jafar, “Trinidadian mother confirms her son with ISIL: newspaper,” Reuters, October 12, 2014, https://www.reuters.com/article/us-mideast-crisis-trinidadtobago/trinidadian-mother-confirms-her-son-with-isil-newspaper-idUSKCN0I10VD20141012.; “Trinidad PM Persad-Bissessar: Assassination plot foiled,” BBC News, November 24, 2011, https://www.bbc.com/news/world-latin-america-15882204.; Linda Hutchinson Jafar, “Trinidad PM says police thwarted assassination plot,” Reuters, November 24, 2011, https://www.reuters.com/article/us-trinidad-security/trinidad-pm-says-police-thwarted-assassination-plot-idUSTRE7AN1LO20111124.

In November 2013, Crawford and two other men were accused of carrying out a double murder in a busy town in central Trinidad. Less than a month later, all three men were suspected to be in Syria fighting for ISIS—the first Trinidadian and Tobagonians to do so. It is unconfirmed if the November murders were terror related.Simon Cottee, “Trinidad’s Islamic State Problem,” Lawfare, November 17, 2019, https://www.lawfareblog.com/trinidads-islamic-state-problem.

In July 2016, Crawford—now operating under the name, Abu Sa’d at-Trinidadi—made headlines again as he was prominently featured throughout ISIS’s magazine Dabiq. In the accompanying interview, Crawford encouraged sympathizers back home to “attack the interests of the crusader coalition,” including embassies, businesses, and civilians.Par Amandla Thomas-Johnson, “Trinidadian Islamic State militant Shane Crawford put on US terror list,” Middle East Eye, April 13, 2017, https://www.middleeasteye.net/fr/news/trinidadian-shane-crawford-put-us-terror-list-1342123. He called for attacks on western embassies throughout the islands, hoping to encourage a new wave of radical actors to spread ISIS’s violent message both domestically and potentially, internationally.Dr. Sanjay Badri-Maharaj, “Jihad in Trinidad,” Oxford Research Group, February 23, 2018, https://www.oxfordresearchgroup.org.uk/blog/jihad-in-trinidad.

On March 30, 2017, The U.S. Department of State designated Crawford as an SDGT.“State Department Terrorist Designations of El Shafee Elsheikh, Anjem Choudary, Sami Bouras, Shane Dominic Crawford, and Mark John Taylor,” U.S. Department of State, March 30, 2017, https://www.state.gov/state-department-terrorist-designations-of-el-shafee-elsheikh-anjem-choudary-sami-bouras-shane-dominic-crawford-and-mark-john-taylor/. Crawford was listed as a foreign terrorist fighter in Syria carrying out terrorist activity on behalf of ISIS, including acting as an English language propagandist for the group.“State Department Terrorist Designations of El Shafee Elsheikh, Anjem Choudary, Sami Bouras, Shane Dominic Crawford, and Mark John Taylor,” U.S. Department of State, March 30, 2017, https://www.state.gov/state-department-terrorist-designations-of-el-shafee-elsheikh-anjem-choudary-sami-bouras-shane-dominic-crawford-and-mark-john-taylor/. Several months later on August 18, 2017, the U.N. Security Council listed Crawford as being associated with the “financing, planning, facilitating, preparing, or perpetrating of acts or activities by” ISIS.“Shane Dominic Crawford,” United Nations Security Council, August 18, 2017, https://www.un.org/securitycouncil/sanctions/1267/aq_sanctions_list/summaries/individual/shane-dominic-crawford.

According to Crawford’s mother, he was injured in a U.S. sponsored drone strike in Syria in October 2016 and eventually died from his injuries.Amandla Thomas Johnson, “US kills Trinidadian IS fighter, then adds him to terrorism list,” Middle East Eye, April 20, 2017, https://www.middleeasteye.net/news/us-kills-trinidadian-fighter-then-adds-him-terrorism-list. In February of 2017, Trinidad and Tobago’s attorney general, Faris Al-Rawi, stated that Crawford was believed to have died in Syria.Frances Robles, “Trying to Stanch Trinidad’s Flow of Young Recruits to ISIS,” New York Times, February 21, 2017, https://www.nytimes.com/2017/02/21/world/americas/trying-to-stanch-trinidads-flow-of-young-recruits-to-isis.html?_r=0.

Mark Taylor, a.k.a. Muhammad Daniel and Abu Abdul-Rahman, is a foreign fighter for ISIS from New Zealand. Media dubbed the U.S.-designated Taylor the “bumbling jihadist” after he accidently tweeted out his location in Syria multiple times in 2014. Taylor fled ISIS-held territory in December 2018 and surrendered to Kurdish forces. He remains in a Kurdish prison in Syria while New Zealand debates whether to bring him back and how to treat returning foreign fighters.Adam Harvey and Suzanne Dredge, “New Zealand jihadist Mark Taylor captured in Syria and jailed in Kurdish prison,” Australian Broadcasting Corporation, March 4, 2019, https://www.abc.net.au/news/2019-03-04/new-zealand-islamic-statjihadist-mark-taylor-captured-and-jailed/10866382.

Taylor was raised in Hamilton, New Zealand. According to an unidentified relative, he suffered brain damage at the age of 2 after a “major fit with teething.”“Jailed Kiwi jihadist Mark Taylor suffered brain damage as a child, relative says,” 1 News, March 5, 2019, https://www.tvnz.co.nz/one-news/new-zealand/jailed-kiwi-jihadist-mark-taylor-suffered-brain-damage-child-relative-says?variant=tb_v_1. Taylor converted to Islam and radicalized in New Zealand listening to sermons by al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP) cleric Anwar al-Awlaki. Taylor was reportedly living in his truck when he began visiting a mosque in Hamilton. Mosque leaders told the Associated Press they tried to help Taylor, but he insisted on remaining in his truck. They did not note any other radical behavior from Taylor.Associated Press, “From Minnesota to Melbourne, Islamic State draws motley crew,” Times of Israel, May 21, 2015, https://www.timesofisrael.com/from-minnesota-to-melbourne-islamic-state-draws-motley-crew/.

In 2009, he traveled to Yemen to visit New Zealand foreign fighter Daryl Jones, a.k.a. Muslim bin John. Jones was later killed in a November 2013 drone strike in Yemen alongside Australian militant Christopher Harvard while fighting for al-Qaeda.Kurt Bayer, “Kiwi jihadist wants to leave Syria,” New Zealand Herald, September 16, 2014, https://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/article.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=11325784; Adam Harvey and Suzanne Dredge, “New Zealand jihadist Mark Taylor captured in Syria and jailed in Kurdish prison,” Australian Broadcasting Corporation, March 4, 2019, https://www.abc.net.au/news/2019-03-04/new-zealand-islamic-statjihadist-mark-taylor-captured-and-jailed/10866382. Taylor was arrested in Waziristan, Pakistan, later that year while trying to access al-Qaeda and Taliban training facilities. He told authorities he was there to find a bride and he was released.Associated Press, “From Minnesota to Melbourne, Islamic State draws motley crew,” Times of Israel, May 21, 2015, https://www.timesofisrael.com/from-minnesota-to-melbourne-islamic-state-draws-motley-crew/. Taylor returned to New Zealand, where he was subjected to travel restrictions. Taylor had lived in Australia on and off for 25 years, but the country canceled his visa in 2010 after determining he was a security risk.Kurt Bayer, “Kiwi jihadist wants to leave Syria,” New Zealand Herald, September 16, 2014, https://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/article.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=11325784; Adam Harvey and Suzanne Dredge, “New Zealand jihadist Mark Taylor captured in Syria and jailed in Kurdish prison,” Australian Broadcasting Corporation, March 4, 2019, https://www.abc.net.au/news/2019-03-04/new-zealand-islamic-statjihadist-mark-taylor-captured-and-jailed/10866382. According to diplomatic cables released by Wikileaks, Australian authorities called for Taylor to be placed on a terrorism watch list because of his “demonstrated connections” with Awlaki.Associated Press, “From Minnesota to Melbourne, Islamic State draws motley crew,” Times of Israel, May 21, 2015, https://www.timesofisrael.com/from-minnesota-to-melbourne-islamic-state-draws-motley-crew/.

New Zealand issued Taylor a new passport in 2011, but he remained under travel restrictions. Nonetheless, Taylor moved to Indonesia in May 2012. He stayed for two years and worked as an English teacher.Kurt Bayer, “Kiwi jihadist wants to leave Syria,” New Zealand Herald, September 16, 2014, https://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/article.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=11325784. In June 2014, Taylor left for Syria. That month, he posted a picture of his burnt passport to Facebook and declared he would never return to New Zealand.Michael Safi, “New Zealander thought to be fighting in Syria accidentally tweets locations,” Guardian (London), January 1, 2015, https://www.theguardian.com/world/2015/jan/01/new-zealander-syria-isis-accidentally-tweets-locations; Kurt Bayer, “Kiwi jihadist wants to leave Syria,” New Zealand Herald, September 16, 2014, https://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/article.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=11325784. In September 2014, however, Taylor posted to Facebook that he wanted to return to New Zealand. Syria needed humanitarian aid, not a bloody jihad, he wrote. He also claimed the New Zealand government had agreed to give him a new passport and he would leave Syria by late October, but not return to New Zealand.Michael Safi, “New Zealander thought to be fighting in Syria accidentally tweets locations,” Guardian (London), January 1, 2015, https://www.theguardian.com/world/2015/jan/01/new-zealander-syria-isis-accidentally-tweets-locations; Kurt Bayer, “Kiwi jihadist wants to leave Syria,” New Zealand Herald, September 16, 2014, https://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/article.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=11325784. Taylor claimed he witnessed multiple beheadings and other forms of execution by ISIS. He later told Australian media that anybody who complained about living conditions was either imprisoned or executed.Adam Harvey and Suzanne Dredge, “New Zealand jihadist Mark Taylor captured in Syria and jailed in Kurdish prison,” Australian Broadcasting Corporation, March 4, 2019, https://www.abc.net.au/news/2019-03-04/new-zealand-islamic-statjihadist-mark-taylor-captured-and-jailed/10866382.

Taylor lived in ISIS’s so-called caliphate for more than four years. During that time, he had two wives, but he later lamented that he could not afford to buy a Yazidi slave. He told the Australian Broadcasting Corporation that female slaves cost between $4,000 and $50,000, but he could never afford to buy one. He first married a Syrian woman from Deir Ezzor named Umm Mohammed. According to Taylor, she begged him to leave ISIS territory and go to Turkey. He then married a second Syrian woman who was pro-ISIS, but he divorced her because she wanted to move to be closer to her friends. Taylor said he “had to explain to her on several occasions she had to stay home and obey her husband.”Adam Harvey and Suzanne Dredge, “New Zealand jihadist Mark Taylor captured in Syria and jailed in Kurdish prison,” Australian Broadcasting Corporation, March 4, 2019, https://www.abc.net.au/news/2019-03-04/new-zealand-islamic-statjihadist-mark-taylor-captured-and-jailed/10866382.

Taylor claimed he worked as a border guard for ISIS between the terror group’s captured territory and Syria. He also said he used his Kalashnikov rifle for target practice only and never served in a combat role. Taylor also told Australian media that he had taught English while in ISIS territory.“Kiwi jihadist Mark Taylor may face legal action in NZ, says Jacinda Ardern,” New Zealand Herald, March 4, 2019, https://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/article.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=12209373. Between October and December 2014, Taylor made dozens of posts to Twitter with the site’s geolocation feature turned on, revealing his location and the location of a secret ISIS base.Adam Harvey and Suzanne Dredge, “New Zealand jihadist Mark Taylor captured in Syria and jailed in Kurdish prison,” Australian Broadcasting Corporation, March 4, 2019, https://www.abc.net.au/news/2019-03-04/new-zealand-islamic-statjihadist-mark-taylor-captured-and-jailed/10866382. That December, he deleted 45 tweets that revealed his location. Beginning in January 2015, he spent 50 days in an ISIS prison for his Twitter error.Michael Safi, “New Zealander thought to be fighting in Syria accidentally tweets locations,” Guardian (London), January 1, 2015, https://www.theguardian.com/world/2015/jan/01/new-zealander-syria-isis-accidentally-tweets-locations; Kurt Bayer, “Kiwi jihadist wants to leave Syria,” New Zealand Herald, September 16, 2014, https://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/article.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=11325784; Adam Harvey and Suzanne Dredge, “New Zealand jihadist Mark Taylor captured in Syria and jailed in Kurdish prison,” Australian Broadcasting Corporation, March 4, 2019, https://www.abc.net.au/news/2019-03-04/new-zealand-islamic-statjihadist-mark-taylor-captured-and-jailed/10866382. In April 2015, Taylor appeared in an ISIS propaganda video alongside Australian foreign fighter Neil Prakash. In the video, Taylor encouraged attacks on both New Zealand and Australia.Australian Associated Press, “New Zealand's 'bumbling jihadi' Isis recruit caught in Syria,” Guardian (London), March 4, 2019, https://www.theguardian.com/world/2019/mar/04/new-zealands-bumbling-jihadi-isis-recruit-caught-in-syria; Associated Press, “From Minnesota to Melbourne, Islamic State draws motley crew,” Times of Israel, May 21, 2015, https://www.timesofisrael.com/from-minnesota-to-melbourne-islamic-state-draws-motley-crew/. Taylor later said he was just a stand-in because Prakash had asked him. He also said he appeared in the video only because ISIS had begun to suspect he was a spy.Adam Harvey and Suzanne Dredge, “New Zealand jihadist Mark Taylor captured in Syria and jailed in Kurdish prison,” Australian Broadcasting Corporation, March 4, 2019, https://www.abc.net.au/news/2019-03-04/new-zealand-islamic-statjihadist-mark-taylor-captured-and-jailed/10866382.

In December 2018, citing a lack of food, money, and basic services, Taylor decided that life under ISIS rule had become unbearable and fled. He surrendered to Kurdish forces in northern Syria and was transferred to a Kurdish prison. Speaking to the Australian Broadcasting Corporation from that prison in December 2019, Taylor recalled his “hard decision” to leave but said he was “in a pickle” because basic services in the Islamic State had collapsed.Adam Harvey and Suzanne Dredge, “New Zealand jihadist Mark Taylor captured in Syria and jailed in Kurdish prison,” Australian Broadcasting Corporation, March 4, 2019, https://www.abc.net.au/news/2019-03-04/new-zealand-islamic-statjihadist-mark-taylor-captured-and-jailed/10866382.

New Zealand authorities issued an arrest warrant for Taylor in October 2019, which would result in Taylor’s arrest at the border if he attempts to return to New Zealand. Taylor is charged with threatening, between June 11, 2014, and April 24, 2015, in Raqqa, Syria, to do grievous bodily harm to New Zealand police officers and soldiers.“Warrant that would stop the man called the Kiwi jihadi at the border,” Stuff, October 18, 2019, https://www.stuff.co.nz/national/crime/116686272/warrant-that-would-stop-the-man-called-the-kiwi-jihadi-at-the-border. Also in October 2019, New Zealand Justice Minister Andrew Little introduced new legislation in the country’s parliament designed to deradicalize foreign fighters. Government officials did not confirm, but New Zealand media suspected the legislation was in response to Taylor as Little acknowledged that the chances of Taylor returning to New Zealand had increased. One New Zealand outlet dubbed the bill “the Mark Taylor law.”Tova O’Brien, “What the new ‘Mark Taylor law’ would mean for returning ‘high-risk’ New Zealanders,” Newshub, October 16, 2020, https://www.newshub.co.nz/home/politics/2019/10/what-the-new-mark-taylor-law-would-mean-for-returning-high-risk-new-zealanders.html. The justice minister called Taylor a “bumbling idiot” but affirmed that Taylor still posed a threat to New Zealand if he were to return.Jason Walls, “Govt introduces new legislation to de-radicalise terrorists returning from overseas,” New Zealand Herald, October 16, 2019, https://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/article.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=12277082. In December 2019, the New Zealand government passed the Terrorism Suppression (Control Orders) Bill to allow authorities to implement control orders on returning foreign fighters, such as electronic monitoring or rehabilitation.“NZ safer as Terrorism Suppression Bill becomes law,” Scoop, December 12, 2019, https://www.scoop.co.nz/stories/PA1912/S00122/nz-safer-as-terrorism-suppression-bill-becomes-law.htm.

Speaking to the Australian Broadcasting Corporation from a Kurdish prison in Syria in early 2020, Taylor said he hoped to return to New Zealand but understood if he could not. He told the Australian Broadcasting Corporation he was “sorry for causing too much trouble and being a bit hot-headed and flamboyant in my approach… I don’t know if I can go back to New Zealand, but at the end of the day it’s really something I have to live with for the rest of my life.”Adam Harvey and Suzanne Dredge, “New Zealand jihadist Mark Taylor captured in Syria and jailed in Kurdish prison,” Australian Broadcasting Corporation, March 4, 2019, https://www.abc.net.au/news/2019-03-04/new-zealand-islamic-statjihadist-mark-taylor-captured-and-jailed/10866382.

Because Taylor holds citizenship only in New Zealand, the country cannot revoke his citizenship as that would leave him stateless. According to Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern, Taylor would have to travel to a country where New Zealand has a consular office in order to receive new travel documents.Adam Harvey and Suzanne Dredge, “New Zealand jihadist Mark Taylor captured in Syria and jailed in Kurdish prison,” Australian Broadcasting Corporation, March 4, 2019, https://www.abc.net.au/news/2019-03-04/new-zealand-islamic-statjihadist-mark-taylor-captured-and-jailed/10866382.

Aseel Muthana is a British foreign fighter who left for Syria at the age of 17 and became a translator for other ISIS foreign fighters.Thomas Deacon, “‘My sons left home to become terrorists and I don’t know if they’re alive or dead,’” Wales Online, March 31, 2019, https://www.walesonline.co.uk/news/wales-news/my-sons-left-home-become-16028202. In September 2019, British media discovered Muthana in a Syrian prison. Muthana has since declared that he wants to return to the United Kingdom.Tim Stickings, “Inside a filthy Syrian prison camp where thousands of orange-jumpsuited ISIS extremists - including British jihadists - are locked up after the ‘caliphate’ fell to pieces,” Daily Mail (London), October 3, 2019, https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-7532865/Inside-filthy-Syrian-prison-camp-ISIS-fighters-kept.html; “Aseel Muthana: Imprisoned Cardiff jihadist wants to return,” BBC News, November 15, 2019, https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-wales-50433354.

Muthana’s older brother Nasser Muthana left Cardiff, United Kingdom, in November 2013 for Syria.Thomas Deacon, “‘My sons left home to become terrorists and I don’t know if they’re alive or dead,’” Wales Online, March 31, 2019, https://www.walesonline.co.uk/news/wales-news/my-sons-left-home-become-16028202. Aseel Muthana sought to emulate his older brother. He filmed himself and coworker Kristen Brekke shooting BB guns pretending to be on missions in Syria.“Treasury Sanctions Individuals Affiliated With Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant, and Caucasus Emirate,” U.S. Department of the Treasury, October 5, 2015, https://www.treasury.gov/press-center/press-releases/Pages/jl0199.aspx. Brekke worked with Muthanna at the Ice Cream Passion parlor in Cardiff. Muthana used Brekke’s computer for research ahead of his own departure. Brekke also bought combat clothing for Muthana on eBay.Steven Morris, “Three men found guilty of helping teenage jihadi travel from UK to Syria,” Guardian (London), February 10, 2016, https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2016/feb/10/kristen-brekke-adeel-ulhaq-forhad-rahman-guilty-aseel-muthana-syria-isis.

In February 2014, then-17-year-old Muthana quit his job at the ice cream parlor and followed his older brother to Syria. In addition to Brekke, two other British individuals aided Muthana in reaching Syria. Adeel Ulhaq and Forhad Rahman were reportedly part of an online network that also included the English brothers Tuhin Shahensha and Mustaqim Jaman. Rahman used contacts in Syria to help Muthana arrange and finance his travel from London to Cyprus.Steven Morris, “Three men found guilty of helping teenage jihadi travel from UK to Syria,” Guardian (London), February 10, 2016, https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2016/feb/10/kristen-brekke-adeel-ulhaq-forhad-rahman-guilty-aseel-muthana-syria-isis. Rahman and Muthana sent each other text messages.“Who is Aseel Muthana and how did he become radicalized?,” ITV, September 30, 2019, https://www.itv.com/news/wales/2019-09-30/who-is-aseel-muthana-and-how-did-he-become-radicalised/. Rahman also introduced Muthana to Ulhaq, who used contacts in Syria to help Muthana in the final stages of his trip. Brekke, Ulhaq, and Rahman were convicted in 2016 of preparing acts of terrorism and funding terrorism.Steven Morris, “Three men found guilty of helping teenage jihadi travel from UK to Syria,” Guardian (London), February 10, 2016, https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2016/feb/10/kristen-brekke-adeel-ulhaq-forhad-rahman-guilty-aseel-muthana-syria-isis. Muthana exchanged what the court deemed to be flirtatious text messages with the three prior to leaving in February 2014. According to the courts, Muthana called Brekke and Ulhaq terms such as babe, cutie, and habibi—Arabic for darling. The messages were revealed during the trial but Muthana’s identity was initially kept anonymous out of concern that ISIS would kill Muthana for being gay.John Simpson, Duncan Gardham, and Will Humphries, “Police hid identity of ‘gay’ Isis fighter,” The Times (London), February 11, 2016, https://www.thetimes.co.uk/article/police-hid-identity-of-gay-isis-fighter-08q6l95vlpk.

In March 2014, Nasser Muthana tweeted that his younger brother had arrived in Syria and if a 17-year-old could do it, so could all Muslims. According to their brother Amin Muthana, both Aseel and Nasser “felt guilty” about the war in Syria and wanted to help.Tam Hussein, “Joining ISIS: My Meeting With Aseel Muthana,” Huffington Post, last updated August 22, 2014, https://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/tam-hussein/isis-aseel-muthana_b_5520231.html?guccounter=1&guce_referrer=aHR0cHM6Ly93d3cuZ29vZ2xlLmNvbS8&guce_referrer_sig=AQAAAN5_7J1tiFhdxKCCi2d1UROizQu1K_hSZToR7uT8Zi3g68j3ubhPIN-GNPILQSWgEtx_e_OBY-GTjj643D_yhWKB5JtOhUBGimKfge1W_MXL_zOEjMQ73vB8mdRBHoyb_9SIv8cg3e6sDzJaTR4KP5SgkfVz73-4wdiarLK5Dwy4. Aseel Muthana participated in multiple interviews with British media after he arrived in Syria and talked about his reasons. In a July 2014 interview from Syria with ITV, Muthana denied that he had been radicalized at his local mosque. Instead, he said Nasser Muthana had taught him about jihad when he was young. Muthana told ITV he had no intentions of returning to Great Britain. He said he had pledged allegiance to ISIS caliph Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi and would stay in Syria until Baghdadi told him to go elsewhere.“British jihadist in Syria tells ITV News he was not radicalised by local mosque,” ITV, July 4, 2014, https://www.itv.com/news/2014-07-04/kik-interview-isis-british-cardiff-fighter/.

In one interview, Muthana said he had always been “pro-jihad” but never spoke about it with his parents or local imams.“British jihadist in Syria tells ITV News he was not radicalised by local mosque,” ITV, July 4, 2014, https://www.itv.com/news/2014-07-04/kik-interview-isis-british-cardiff-fighter/. The Muthana brothers’ father, Ahmed Muthana, told British media that he believed his sons radicalized after someone gave them the first-person shooter videogame Call of Duty. The elder Muthana blamed whoever purchased the game for them for also encouraging them to go to Syria.Mia De Graaf, “British brothers fighting for Isis in Syria were groomed by extremists using Call of Duty, claims their father,” Daily Mail (London), July 30, 2014, https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2710478/British-brothers-fighting-Isis-Syria-groomed-extremists-using-Call-Duty-claims-father.html. In 2015, Ahmed Muthana raised concerns that his sons were on a government hitlist in Syria. He further blamed the British government for not doing enough to stop Aseel from going to Syria.“Father fears IS fighter sons are on government ‘hitlist,’” ITV, September 8, 2015, https://www.itv.com/news/wales/2015-09-08/father-fears-is-fighter-sons-are-on-government-hitlist/; “Who is Aseel Muthana and how did he become radicalized?,” ITV, September 30, 2019, https://www.itv.com/news/wales/2019-09-30/who-is-aseel-muthana-and-how-did-he-become-radicalised/.

Because of their English and Arabic language skills, the Muthana brothers worked as translators between Arabic and Western ISIS fighters. According to his father, Nasser Muthana married a Bangladeshi woman who had also left England. Nasser Muthana reportedly told his father that ISIS had forced both him and his brother to marry and move into houses in Raqqa, then ISIS’s declared capital. Nasser Muthana and his wife had two sons. Aseel Muthana married a Somalian woman from Glasgow, Scotland, and had at least one child.Thomas Deacon, “‘My sons left home to become terrorists and I don’t know if they’re alive or dead,’” Wales Online, March 31, 2019, https://www.walesonline.co.uk/news/wales-news/my-sons-left-home-become-16028202. In November 2014, an ISIS militant identified only as Abu Fariss held a question-and-answer session about life in the caliphate on social network Ask.fm. The U.S. government lists Abu Fariss as Muthana’s nom de guerre and credits Muthana with conducting the information session and encouraging one participant to travel to Syria.“Counter Terrorism Designation,” U.S. Department of the Treasury, October 2, 2015, https://www.treasury.gov/resource-center/sanctions/OFAC-Enforcement/Pages/20151002.aspx; “‘I Want To Wage Jihad But I Don’t Have A Thing To Wear’ -- Western IS Wannabes Ask Burning Questions,” Radio Free Europe Radio Liberty, November 12, 2014, https://www.rferl.org/a/islamic-state-questions-askfm-western-militant-wannabes/26686817.html.

As of March 2019, Ahmed Muthana had not heard from his sons in two years.Thomas Deacon, “‘My sons left home to become terrorists and I don’t know if they’re alive or dead,’” Wales Online, March 31, 2019, https://www.walesonline.co.uk/news/wales-news/my-sons-left-home-become-16028202. In September 2019, Britain’s ITV found Aseel Muthana in a Syrian prison holding ISIS fighters. Muthana told ITV that he had been lured to Syria thinking he would be helping the country’s poor.Rohit Kachroo, “One of first British men to join so-called Islamic State traced to prison in northern Syria by ITV News,” ITV, September 30, 2019, https://www.itv.com/news/2019-09-30/jihadist-cardiff-man-locked-in-secret-syrian-jail-accused-of-living-under-so-called-islamic-state/. He also claimed he had traveled to Syria before the brutality of ISIS was widely known and wanted to return home. Muthana and his brother arrived in Syria before “all of these beheading videos, before all of the burnings happened” when “Isis propaganda and Isis media was all about helping the poor, helping the Syrian people.”Tim Stickings, “Inside a filthy Syrian prison camp where thousands of orange-jumpsuited ISIS extremists - including British jihadists - are locked up after the ‘caliphate’ fell to pieces,” Daily Mail (London), October 3, 2019, https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-7532865/Inside-filthy-Syrian-prison-camp-ISIS-fighters-kept.html; “Aseel Muthana: Imprisoned Cardiff jihadist wants to return,” BBC News, November 15, 2019, https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-wales-50433354. Muthana claimed in a November 2019 interview with BBC News that there was “too much vengeance, too much rage, too much anger” in ISIS.“Aseel Muthana: Cardiff Islamic State jihadist wants to return,” BBC News, November 15, 2019, https://www.bbc.com/news/av/uk-wales-50437771/aseel-muthana-cardiff-islamic-state-jihadist-wants-to-return. These interviews seemingly contradicted a July 2014 interview Muthana gave with ITV in which he declared his allegiance to ISIS leader Baghdadi.“British jihadist in Syria tells ITV News he was not radicalised by local mosque,” ITV, July 4, 2014, https://www.itv.com/news/2014-07-04/kik-interview-isis-british-cardiff-fighter/. Muthana’s mother, Umm Amin, has called on British authorities to let him return.Marcus Hughes, “Aseel Muthana: Teenager who fled Cardiff to join Islamic State ‘traced to Syrian prison,’” Wales Online, September 30, 2019, https://www.walesonline.co.uk/news/wales-news/aseel-muthana-teenager-who-fled-17008764. Muthana did not mention whether his brother was still alive.